*This short story is brought to you by La Bella Collaborative: Holiday Submissions!
**Photo by Julie B on Unsplash

The Legend of Glomane
A Short Story Inspired by the Cold Month of December
by Aminata Babut

In the small town of Glomane, Christmas was never quite as cheerful as it was in other places. It
began when a group of carollers decided to bring some yuletide cheer to the town. Among them was
Morrigan, a mysterious songstress with a voice that could rouse the dead. She vanished into the night
during a rendition of a long-forgotten carol. It was said that every year on Christmas Eve, the ghost of
the forgotten caroller returned to the town to complete their unfinished song.

This Christmas, a curious teenager named Harper stumbled upon an old, dusty journal in the attic.
Harper dove into Morrigan’s journal like a detective on the trail of a cold case. Morrigan, it seemed,
had been entwined in a love story gone awry. Indeed, the relic of ink-stained secrets, revealed a
chilling saga of love lost, a Christmas tragedy that could make even the most stoic hearts tremble, and
an unsent letter laden with the weight of unfinished business. Harper, guided by an insatiable curiosity
and an affinity for the eerie, gathered a motley crew of locals to confront the town’s supernatural
underbelly.

The inked confessions spoke of a clandestine affair with a local artist named Samuel, a man whose
canvases seemed to capture the very soul of the town. Their love, however, was forbidden, the kind of
secret that thrived in the dark corners of Glomane. As Harper read on, the narrative took a dark turn.
One fateful Christmas Eve, Samuel had crafted a masterpiece, a portrait of Morrigan that bared her
soul in hues of longing and passion. The plan was to reveal it to the world, to defy the unspoken rules
of the town and declare their love openly. But fate, as it often did in Glomane, intervened with a cruel
twist.

A winter storm descended, burying the town in a suffocating blanket of snow. Samuel, determined to
share his creation, ventured out into the biting cold. Morrigan, waiting with bated breath for her
unveiling, was left alone as the storm swallowed Samuel whole. The heartbreak in her journal entries
was palpable, each stroke of the pen revealing a soul trapped in an unending winter of grief.
The tragic twist continued. Unbeknownst to Morrigan, Samuel had written her a heartfelt letter,
expressing his undying love and the pain of being torn away. But that letter, soaked by the snow, was
never delivered. Its words remained frozen; a silent scream trapped in the icy clutches of time.
As Harper unravelled the story, they discovered that the unfinished carol, the haunting melody that
echoed through the years, was Samuel’s creation. It was meant to be a declaration of love, a symphony
that would echo through the ages. But the storm had silenced it, leaving Morrigan and her fellow
carollers in a spectral limbo.

Armed with this newfound knowledge, Harper sought out the remnants of Samuel’s artwork hidden in
the depths of Glomane. The discovery of the forgotten masterpiece, untouched by time and framed in
frost, was like uncovering a relic from a tragic love story. The missing letter, now fragile and brittle,
was carefully pieced together, revealing Samuel’s heartfelt words.

On that eerie Christmas Eve, Harper stood in the town square, the ghostly choir waiting in the wings.
With the portrait in hand, and the letter clutched tightly, Harper initiated a spectral reunion that
transcended the boundary between the living and the dead. The final verses of the forgotten carol,
infused with the essence of love and loss, echoed through Glomane, bringing closure to a tale that had
lingered like a ghost in the shadows.

As Morrigan and Samuel exchanged their silent goodbyes, the ghostly choir dissipated into the night,
leaving behind a town touched by the otherworldly. The portrait, now a relic of love and tragedy, was
displayed in the local museum, a reminder that even in the most chilling corners of Glomane, there
could be a warmth that defied the frost of time. As the town held its breath, the unresolved echoes of
Morrigan’s past converged. A bittersweet reunion unfolded, and the ghostly choir dispersed into the
night, leaving Glomane forever changed.

The Forgotten Carol” became a legend passed down through generations, a reminder that even in the
darkest corners of the past, there can be healing and redemption. And every Christmas Eve, the town
would gather to sing Morrigan’s carol, not as a mournful melody, but as a celebration of love and the
power of unfinished stories coming to a close.

– Aminata Babut

Aminata Babut is both an artist and a writer of extraordinary skill! If you’d like to see more from this featured writer, you can connect with Aminata at any of the links below:
Website: https://arthoephase.com/
Threads: @art.hoe.phase
Instagram: @art.hoe.phase

Want to see more Holiday Submissions? click the ‘La Bella Collaborative’ tab at the top of the page.