As she walked up the steps to the gate, Arabelle was uncomfortably aware of the graves scattered around her. She had a faint memory of how she got to this place, but at the moment, her clearest memory was waking up and feeling the cold damp stone that her face was pressed against. She remembered getting to her feet and seeing a warm bright light about a hundred feet away from her. She wasn’t sure what compelled her to walk towards it, but as she got closer, she felt more compelled to continue in towards the light. Getting closer, she realized it was an intricately detailed archway, but she couldn’t see through the light to the other side. Arabelle, however, couldn’t get over the placement which was irritatingly random for a place that was supposed to be orderly, and didn’t feel the gust of wind that shook the trees and whirled around the graves. Each foot step pounded against the stone, creating a rhythm that soothed the brain. The light became almost blinding, but there was a force leading Arabelle forward, and although she couldn’t see, she felt the exact moment she stepped underneath the arch. The light dimmed and Arabelle thought that this would mean she could see through to the other side, but in reality, the light not only dimmed, but sucked the rest of the light from the strange place she was in, causing everything to go black. Arabelle didn’t pass out exactly, but when the slowly returned to the arch, she was standing ankle deep in numbingly cold water. It smelled like sea salt and kelp, and her hair whipped around her face. Standing in the archway made the light too bright for her to see anything, so she took a step away from its center, as as she did, her vision cleared and in front of her she saw a vast beach and ocean. She took a few more steps, the water receding until she was standing on damp sand. Turning around, she saw the arch was still there, and still filled with that bright golden-white light. Slowly, Arabelle became aware of a sort of light tug she felt to return to the arch. It was faint, and wasn’t forcing her to do anything, but it was there. She knew within her heart that wherever she went, that tug would be there to lead her back to the arch. She took a few steps to the left to test her theory, and it was proven correct when she could still feel the pull of the arch, not dragging her back, but present nonetheless. She was slightly wary of the arch, and still wasn’t completely sure how she ended up on this beach, so she decided to wander around and see what she could find. The salty air filled her lungs with each breath, and the sand stuck to her feet, coating them in a layer of fine pebbles and rocks. A few dim rays of sun poked through the clouds that covered the sky. Looking around, Arabelle saw sand dunes in the distance, and a few jagged rocks poking out of the waves. A seagull cried, startling Arabelle. After wandering around, it seemed that there was no way off of the beach, other than maybe through the arch. Arabelle was determined to stay away from the arch though, and continued to wander around, desperately trying to find a way off the beach. When there turned out to be none, she admitted defeat and let the pull of the arch guide her back. Standing in front of it, she debated whether or not to step under it. After deciding anything would be better than being stuck on this beach, she stepped into the blinding light and the same thing happened as before. All the light was sucked into the arch, and when the light returned and she stepped out of the arch, she was standing in the middle of a mall, filled with families and groups of teenagers. None of them seemed to notice the glowing arch that had just appeared, or the girl standing next to it. Arabelle liked this place much more than the last, and felt safer with the hordes of people bustling around her. Her feet led her through the mall, and in and out of countless stores and eventually back to the arch. Getting bored, Arabelle decided to walk through the arch once more, still unsure of how to worked, but thought that maybe she would be taken somewhere she actually wanted to go. The light dimmed, and returned, and Arabelle looked around at.. nothing? There was nothing around her except the arch, just darkness. Frightened, Arabelle ran away from the arch, hoping that if she went far enough, she would find something, anything. But when she realized she would never find anything, that she was in an empty void. For some reason, she felt the tug of the arch more harshly, but wasn’t sure why. Slowly, she wandered back until the arches light filled her vision. She was tired and wanted to lay down, but didn’t like the space she was in. Looking at the arch, she trusted that it would take her somewhere safe. Stepping into the arch, she let the light envelope her and transport her somewhere new. It smelled like a mix of cleaning supplies and spices, or like a kitchen after a batch of cookies is baked. Arabelle looked around at what looked like a hotel room. It was pretty dark and she walked over to the window to open the curtains. Bright white crystals floated through the air and coated the ground. Arabelle was able to tell that she was inside a ski resort, and maybe at some point she would find skis and do some runs, but at the moment, she just wanted to sleep, and so she did. Hours later she woke up and the tug of the arch felt relentless now, like it wouldn’t let her get more than a few feet away from it. She still felt so tired, even after her rest. She wanted to leave the room and explore but why did the archway look so inviting, and warm, and comforting? Arabelle wandered back into the archway, not really caring where it took her or what happened to her. But this time, instead of sucking the light out of the room, the light got brighter and brighter and brighter, causing Arabelle to close her eyes and cover her face with her hands. Eventually the light dimmed, but only slightly, and Arabelle stepped out of the arch, expecting to see a new place, but instead, her body stretched away from the arch, but never disconnected from it entirely. She looked down to see that her body was no longer hers, but connected to the arch, and fuzzy on the edges. It seemed that she had become the light of the arch. She could see out into the land, and the arch was in the same place it had started in. The cemetery with the erratically placed graves and cool breeze. Arabelle saw a figure laying down in the same place where she woke up, and knew what would happen next, and tried to call out to the figure, but her voice was gone. Realizing she wasn’t able to do anything, she accepted her fate and watched as the boy entered the archway.