A transcript from Ashton Parker’s audio journal:
Monday, September 16th at 6:48 p.m.
I’m recording this tape in case anything happens to me. I feel like I’m losing my mind… It’s been two weeks since I’ve seen that… woman… with that… mouth. She appeared out of thin air and approached me as I was walking home from work. She had smooth dark hair and was wearing a long thick trench coat and a surgical mask. When I acknowledged her, I could immediately feel her bone-chilling aura, and that there was something eerie about her demeanor. I asked her who she was, and she responded in a very curious manner… She paused, seemingly to contemplate something for a moment, and then looked directly into my eyes, almost as if to observe my soul, and after a moment simply said, “Do you think I’m beautiful?”
I didn’t know what to say, I was caught off guard at the idea of this random woman approaching me on my normally-desolate path home from work. She hadn’t even told me who she was, and she was asking if I thought she was beautiful? Who does that? And with a surgical mask on, how was I supposed to determine if she was beautiful or not!? Didn’t her mother ever teach her not to talk to strangers? Something was wrong, and it wasn’t just the strangeness of her appearance; it was the sense that something ancient and malevolent lurked beneath her surface. I panicked, I turned towards my house, and I ran.
I keep dreaming about her… each time that I have this dream I am standing there in front of her, and she asks me again, “Do you think I’m beautiful?” I feel compelled to answer her, my heart flutters and my face trembles and I begin to stammer. Each time I notice the same disturbing thing—her eyes, dark and hollow, seem to penetrate deeper into my soul than our original encounter. The mask shifts slightly, revealing just a hint of her lips. The grin that peeks through is unsettling, a cruel twist of mockery and despair. It has dawned on me that this woman in my dreams was no ordinary woman.
I can’t sleep… I continually see her in the corners of my vision, in every dark alley, and behind every closed door. I feel her following me, though I haven’t ACTUALLY seen her since that night. I don’t feel safe. As I sit here recording this, I feel a cold shiver at the thought that she might find me again. The fear is real, and I don’t know if anyone will believe this story, but if you’re listening, know that I’m terrified and uncertain of what’s to come.
A transcript from a Wisconsin News Outlet:
Wednesday, October 2, at 5:30 p.m.
MISSING PERSON: Ashton Parker was last seen in Shawano, Wisconsin at a gas station near his parents’ cabin on September 18. The woman who reportedly saw Ashton stated that he seemed distressed and was having an argument with a woman wearing a trenchcoat. Over the past two weeks, authorities have searched the entirety of Shawano with no signs of Ashton. If you have any additional information regarding the location of Ashton, or who the woman he was arguing with may have been, please contact the Shawano police department.
This story is inspired by the Japanese urban legend of Kuchisake-onna, also known as The Slit Mouthed Woman, a vengeful spirit who lurked around the dark corners of Japan during the late 1970’s. She often asks her victims if she is pretty or beautiful, but the problem is, there is no correct answer. If you say “yes” she takes her mask off, revealing her deformed mouth and repeats the question. If you say “yes” she instantly slashes your mouth to make you “beautiful” too. If at any point you say “no” she kills you instantly.
