# **36. "The Mist Keeper of Rookwood Heath" – The Story of What Hides Among the Heather**

North of Yorkshire, where the heather stretches endlessly to the horizon, lies **Rookwood Heath** — a place so wild that no one dares to sleep under the open sky.

The fog that shrouds the heather is thick and impenetrable, and the wind carries a whisper, as if the land remembers every ancient tragedy.

Locals speak of this place only in the oldest legends: that **the heath has its Keeper**, a being that appears in the mist when someone ventures too far in.

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## **I — The New Resident of the Heath**

In 1924, a young botanist named **Samuel Whitlock** arrived in the vicinity of Rookwood Heath to study the rare heather plants.

He was cautious, diligent, and skeptical of the stories about the "Keeper."

The villagers only whispered:

— If you see the fog too early… stay close to the path.

— And if you see its eyes… do not look away.

Samuel only smiled. “Superstitions,” he thought, “for superstitious people.”

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## **II — The First Encounter with the Mist**

On the first day, he noticed that the fog on the heath appeared suddenly, thicker than usual, moving almost like a living thing.

He followed the path, but every glance to the side revealed shadows shifting in rhythm, as if watching his every step.

Suddenly, he saw **a figure in the fog**.

Tall, thin, almost translucent, with eyes glowing in the light of the setting sun.

Samuel froze.

A voice emerged from the mist, so soft it seemed to come from the very earth:

**“You should not be here…”**

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## **III — The First Night on the Heath**

Samuel decided to spend the night in a makeshift tent.

The fog completely enveloped the heather.

During the night, he heard rustling, crackling, and then delicate footsteps among the heather.

The Keeper was not yet visible, but Samuel felt **watched**.

He closed his eyes, trying to sleep, but in his dreams he saw only fog swallowing his body, while a voice repeated:

**“Too far… too far…”**

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## **IV — Approaching the Keeper**

The next day, Samuel decided to find the source of the whispers.

He ventured deeper into the heath until the fog completely surrounded him.

Then he saw it fully — the Mist Keeper.

It was larger than he had imagined: its arms stretched above the heather, its form blurred, as if shaped from the mist itself.

Its eyes shone with a cold, clear light.

It did not speak.

It only watched.

Samuel felt that **every thought was being read**.

He could not think of escape, for suddenly **time slowed**, and the world around him pulsed with the fog.

The Keeper raised a hand and pointed a direction.

Unconsciously, Samuel followed.

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## **V — The Secret of Rookwood Heath**

The fog led him to an old, overgrown stone chapel, ruined by centuries.

The Keeper stood at the entrance.

Samuel noticed symbols carved into the stone, moving as if alive.

A voice in Samuel’s mind became clear:

**“It has guarded this place for centuries. Those who enter… must leave something in return.”**

Suddenly, he felt a weight in his hand.

He dropped his notebook — all his research, maps, and sketches.

The notebook fell into the fog.

The fog swallowed it completely.

The Keeper stepped aside.

Samuel could move on — but he knew that part of him remained in the Heath.

A part of his own presence had been left in the misty world of the Keeper.

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## **VI — The Last Words**

Samuel returned to the village.

He was no longer the same man.

He spoke little of the Keeper, yet in his eyes always lingered fear and reverence.

For years he wrote one sentence in his journal:

> “Rookwood Heath lives.

> The Keeper never sleeps.

> Part of me remains there. And I will never be whole.”

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## **VII — Today**

The fog still appears on Rookwood Heath.

Those who dare venture too far sometimes hear a whisper:

**“Leave something in return…”**

And they know that the Keeper still watches, guarding the heather and maintaining the balance between the world of humans and the secrets of the mist.

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