Horror Movie

People always yell at the screen during horror movies (at least in their heads). The one advantage we have as the audience is that we know it's a horror movie and we know that some giant beast or serial killer is gonna leap out and eat their face. But in real life we don't get that lovely advantage. When there's a noise that freaks us out the natural reaction is to go investigate. Last night I had one of these investigatory moments.

I lost track of time and didn't notice that it was getting dark. For that reason I had to go out and feed the cows and horse in the dark. I don't really care if this happens. It just makes the job far more difficult than it needs to be. So I'm out there in the dark scooping hay to the cows when I here this barking, whimpering,  whining sound. I froze for a moment and listened. It didn't happen again so continued shoveling hay. Then I heard it again. I thought maybe the dog had snuck out the door after me. I called, "Girlie!" The sound seemed to stop so I finished giving the horse hay. Then I heard it again.

I couldn't help it I had to investigate. So I followed the noise in the dark clutching a crappy flashlight in one hand and a pitchfork in the other. Every once an while it would stop so I'd stop and listen. Then follow it once it started up again. I got to the edge of our fence and the noise stopped completely. I stood there and listened for a couple minutes. All I heard was may heart pounding. I started back towards the cows. I got about half way back when I heard the noise again. Only difference was that it was coming from the direction I originally came from. If I wasn't completely freaked before that, I definitely was after. I got back and our horse, Rocky, was staring at something. He didn't seem concerned, but by that point I was too freaked to even bother trying to figure out what the sound was. I booked it back up to the house.

I figure that it was probably a coyote or something. Where we have our cows and horse can echo pretty well sometimes. Heck if it was an animal it probably just moved. That would be the logical explanation of things. But while I was down there my mind started with coyotes than progressed to cults sacrificing animals, vampires, pontianaks, were-wolves, manticores, the Questing Beast, and Will-o'-the-wisps (once I'd heard it coming from my starting point). The whole time I was "investigating," my mind was yelling at me the same things you want to yell at the screen for a horror movie. Needless to say it didn't make a difference.