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The Smiling Owl



Estimated reading time — 5 minutes

With a terrible taste in my mouth, I awoke from a slumber that seemed so deep I would never emerge. Having gone to bed at 1:17 am, it was now only 2:47 am. My hour and a half of sleep had seemed infinity longer than that, filled with twists and turns of the subconscious dream state. But now, reality was all too real. When I say this taste in my mouth was terrible, I don’t mean that standard gopher shit breath every middle aged man has when he wakes up. This taste was very abrasive and unusual; not bitter, but sickly sweet, making me want to vomit. The closest thing I could compare it to, would be the aftertaste of cheap rum mixed with some form of liquified candy corn.

My bare feet touched the cold, hard ground of my new studio apartment, and I walked past my bedroom window and into the bathroom. Looking in the mirror, I opened my mouth in hopes of identifying the source of the taste, only to find that my tongue was covered in white gunk; almost like plaque. Confused, I then brushed my tongue and teeth to eliminate the taste, to no avail.

Beginning to become restless, I then went into the kitchen. Opening the cabinets one by one, I had my mind set on finding something to cut through this terrible flavor. The best option I found was lemon juice, and began downing it like water. Frustratingly enough, the liquid glided over the plaque on my tongue like a protective film, never even touching my taste buds. Throwing the lemon juice to the ground, I went back into my bedroom.

Suddenly and all at once, I was aware of a presence. A warm, throbbing, almost painful sensation came over me; almost like an external source of nerve stimuli, boldly yet calmly letting me know that I wasn’t alone. It was the kind of inherent awareness one would experience in a dream, only this wasn’t a dream. My instincts directed my attention to my bedroom window, to which, almost in a trance, I then walked to and peered out of. What I saw was the visage of an owl, sitting on a tree branch. Not a screech owl or a spotted owl, but more of a barn owl if I had to guess. It was very large, and almost immaculately white.

For the longest time, I was paralyzed, staring into it’s crimson, saucer-like eyes. I didn’t know if I was frightened or intrigued, because this animal wasn’t just staring at me, it seemed to be staring relentlessly into me. After at least 4 or 5 minutes of this, the owl then, with an air of utter calm, smiled at me. Looking into it’s eyes, I felt strangely comforted. The very moment I broke it’s gaze however, everything changed. My tongue began throbbing with a writhing pain I can’t even describe. Almost like every individual muscle inside of it was tearing itself apart. I ran into the kitchen to put water onto it, but it dried up like acid as soon as it touched. Panicking now, I put everything I could think of on my tongue to help alleviate the pain. Nothing seemed to be helping, but I was determined not to give up until the pain abated.

It was 10 minutes later when the swelling began. In addition to the writhing pain that had not let up one iota, now my tongue felt like it was being inflated with air from the inside. Barely able to close my mouth, I ran past my window again towards my bedside; the owl was still there with a smile as big as ever. Reaching for a bottle of ibuprofen, I try to down a handful at once, hoping it will help the swelling. I was unable to swallow though, and the pills fell abruptly out of my mouth.

Nothing seemed to be helping, and in a complete act of desperation, I ran back to the kitchen, past the smiling owl and to the silverware drawer. Opening it, I reluctantly pulled out my sharpest serrated steak knife. Holding my breath, I punctured my tongue with the knife, hoping the wound would release some of the pressure. Instead, all my muscles tightened around the knife hole, making my tongue’s pain increase double-fold. Reduced to flailing on the floor now, I did the only thing left that any rational human being would do. I put the knife in my mouth and began sawing at my tongue. The pain of the blade was nothing compared to what I had been experiencing. Once my tongue was half way severed, I paused for a second so as not to choke on my own blood, which was now pooling quite dramatically on the floor around me. Gagging on the knife blade, I finished the job, ripping the remaining tendrils in half as I yanked the wretched thing out. Showering the floor with blood, my severed tongue landed in front of me, squirming and flapping like a fish out of water.

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Disgusted and mortified, I kicked it across the floor into the bedroom and closed the kitchen door so as not to see it, and even worse, not to hear it; flapping around. Plugging my mouth with paper towels, trying desperately to maintain the bleeding, I sat crouched in the corner, suspended by shock and disbelief. As my heart rate finally slowed, I was still frozen with fear. So many thoughts were rushing through my mind, they were almost indecipherable. “What the hell just happened?, is that a medical condition?, am I dreaming?, What was with that owl?, Was that an owl?”. Then, all too suddenly, the most horrifying revelation came over me like a dark cloud.

That owl had smiled at me through the window. It is anatomically impossible for an owl to smile. Overcome with a raw sense of primordial dread, I realized the truth. “That’s not an owl! There is no owl! That’s not an owl!” I screamed to myself. The glowering question now remained, if it wasn’t an owl, what was it? I was beyond caring, I didn’t want to know the truth, I didn’t even want my tongue back. In that moment, all I wanted was to get away from the owl and back to placid safety. That is when a swooping noise broke my train of thought. Quickly, all fell silent; almost as if things were normal again.

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After waiting, I slowly opened the kitchen door to find that the severed tongue was gone. Approaching the bloody pool on the ground, I looked out the window once more, which was now strangely open. Staring back at me with crimson eyes, the owl was still perched on the branch, however now, it was poised to open it’s mouth. What happened next is beyond my realm of understanding. I knew it was impossible yet it happened anyway. The owl opened it’s mouth, and with a brand new tongue, spoke to me with an unholy voice. “I will survive” it said. It’s smile then spread wider than it had before, revealing a pearly white set of teeth. It was at this point that I blacked out from fear.

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Once I awoke, the owl was nowhere to be found. The bleeding in my mouth had clotted and I immediately got my things together and headed to the hospital. Once I was in the emergency room, having to communicate with a pad and pencil, I informed the chief surgeon where I came from. A look of general unease came over his face as he reluctantly told me that the previous tenant of my apartment came in exactly one month prior, mysteriously missing all of her teeth.

The End

Credit To: Justin Suttles

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Copyright Statement: Unless explicitly stated, all stories published on Creepypasta.com are the property of (and under copyright to) their respective authors, and may not be narrated or performed under any circumstance.

71 thoughts on “The Smiling Owl”

  1. Only on creepypasta will you find someone who wants to sleep after cutting out their own tongue. Also, Doctor-patient confidentiality… 2/10

  2. I instantly thought of “The Cat With Hands” as well.
    I don’t doubt it’s an innocent similarity though. I imagine it’s probably a concept that’s been used in lots of folk tales etc for hundreds of years anyway; spooky animals stealing bits of people.

  3. Oh yes, because the most rational thing to do when your tongue is swelling and hurting is to try to cut it with a knife.

  4. I really liked this, purely because when he was hacking his tongue off it made me cringe, and I liked that the last tennant of the apartment was missing their teeth and now the current one is missing his tongue.. What is that owl up to?! Really liked it, a LOT better than some of the nonsense that is on here.

  5. Ok being honest here. This pasta is a bore….its not scary….it didnt leave me nervous at all…im not over here on the edge of my seat worried some demon owl is sitting at my window smiling at me…..i leave this site for a few months and come back to pastas like this….hell even eyeless jack’s climax (i mean the whole him stealing that guy’s kidneys) story left me a tad nervous….as did BEN’s….his left me not wanting to play majora’s mask for months on my emulator on my laptop…..this for me left a “bad” taste in my mouth and i do regret reading it….and yes….i can probably write a better pasta……

  6. Funny enough, there exists an actual bird called the Potoo (native to Venezuela) that resembles a smiling owl.

  7. “Freakin– guy!!! Call 911 dude!” is what I was thinking when he resorted straight to cutting into his tongue. But I realize that the demon was manipulating him to do it, so perhaps it was unavoidable. Still, though… Kids, if your tongue begins to swell call 911 don’t cut it off…

  8. Though it could be more logical, like how they would bleed to death before getting to the hospital, I liked it! The thing with the teeth at the end was neat, but I don’t like how it said the end. It always disappoints me when someone does that.

  9. Best pasta in town. Recipe of the month. Very good. Cleverly written. Well delivered. I enjoyed the chills that ran back and forth my spine as I scrolled down slowly. :)

  10. I Hate Assumptions

    Too many typos and wrong words. (There’s a difference between “its” and “it’s”; also, why would someone want to “maintain the bleeding” when keeping the bleeding going would mean dying from blood loss?)

    Definitely a crappypasta. Fix some stuff and try again!

  11. Yes yes i did

    Pyromania:
    Okay whoever wrote this clealy made it from The Forth Kind movie. In fact these lines: “That’s not an owl! There is no owl! That’s not an owl!” are taken right out of the trailer.

    dear author if you’re going to write something based on something else at least add something to it instead of taking it right from the movie. And no, cutting off your tongue doesn’t count.

    “I will survive” it said. Anyone else read this in the voice of the singer to that song?

  12. Ok….so a creepy ass bird crapped demonic bird shit into some guys mouth and he cut off his own tongue….legit stuff….
    Oh Well, it was an interesting pasta anyway…

  13. Weird. I had a dream similar to this a few months ago where I had a funny taste in my mouth and my tongue was covered in white stuff, but it tasted exactly like (unused – thank god!) toilet paper, as if someone had been stuffing it into my mouth while I was sleeping. When I woke up my tongue was normal but the taste was still faintly there.
    Nice pasta. More gross than scary though. 8/10

  14. I was actually feeling the pain. I was clenching the whole time when you said that you were cutting your tongue.. xD But anyways, it was a really good pasta. :)

  15. I’ve never heard of the cat with hands, so it’s not unreasonable that someone else wouldn’t have.

    Most horror stories are variations on similar themes, so I don’t see that it’s unoriginal. I for one really liked this story. I
    :)

  16. the long words, while readable, were unnecessary and interrupted the flow in places as well as being used incorrectly in one place i remember, a “glower” is a (negative) facial expression. The tounge chopping seemed premature, maybe show pain more prevelently, perhaps so much he is starting to black out? However, the concept was good, and got the point across quickly would eat again.

  17. First two paragraphs my mind was set on the fact that he had demon cum in his mouth. Then I realized that I’m immature and continued reading on. Good thing I kept reading on, this pasta is amazing.

  18. To “You Can’t Handle The Username” – I’m glad you enjoyed this pasta! I’m always coming up with new stuff so we’ll just have to see what happens. Wouldn’t be surprised if I end up submitting more pastas eventually. Also, in semi PASTA related news, feel free to check out my SLENDER MAN Trilogy on youtube. The link is below.

    http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL7E6A6B106D13F9FA&feature=view_all

    You might find it enjoyable.

    Cheers!

  19. Wasn’t bad.

    HOWEVER, IT’S =/= ITS. You used the incorrect term EVERY TIME. That annoyed me so much the entire time I was reading this.

    it’s mouth
    it’s gaze
    it’s crimson eyes
    it’s smile

    it’s = it IS. That’s what the apostraphe is for – it’s a contraction. Normally, apostaphres show ownership as well, but “its” is an exclusion to the rule.

      1. Supreme Grammar Lord

        *apostrophe, and it’s part of grammar and the English language. It shows when a word has been shortened in a certain way to increase the ease of speaking or writing. An example is in the word *didn’t*. It is short for *did not*. Got it?

  20. You want a username? YOU CAN'T HANDLE THE USERNAME!

    Justin Suttles, what’s coming next? Any idead for further pastas? I loved this one. :D

  21. well in the video of the cat with hands there is a cat with hands obviously and he is trying to be a human so before the video ends the cat who has the body of a man steals the tongue of another man and then the cat with the mans body eats the man who has just lost his tongue I really don’t see how you couldn’t have known about the story but to each his own

    1. Well I’m a creepypasta nut and I’ve never even heard of The Cat With Hands. It’s very likely that someone can go without hearing of something, but there’s only so many stories in this world that can be told. Similarities like this happen sometimes.

  22. Thank you for the feedback! I’m glad the majority of you are enjoying it. Honestly, I’ve never heard of “The Cat With Hands”, so if “The Smiling Owl” reads as a rip off, I assure you it’s unintentional. And as for the 4th Kind debate, I applaud the person that caught on to the similarity. Ever since I saw the trailer for the 4th kind, that image of the owl has haunted me deeply. So much so, that I was compelled to write a story that incorporated that image and then allowed me to go in my own direction with it. The line similarities were really just my way of paying homage, by repeating the exact words that frightened me so much.

  23. the plot isnt scary “an owl that made a guy cut his tongue out to realize that an owl is haunting his house in need of mouth parts” but how it was written was what made it good

  24. You want a username? YOU CAN'T HANDLE THE USERNAME!

    Redbeans, ugh, I didn’t mean it like that…
    ‘It was sickly sweet…’
    Ewww I’ll never read it the same way again. :(

  25. Okay whoever wrote this clealy made it from The Forth Kind movie. In fact these lines: “That’s not an owl! There is no owl! That’s not an owl!” are taken right out of the trailer.

    dear author if you’re going to write something based on something else at least add something to it instead of taking it right from the movie. And no, cutting off your tongue doesn’t count.

    “I will survive” it said. Anyone else read this in the voice of the singer to that song?

    1. Honestly i did, i thought for a second it might be one of those endings were it just cuts to the owl just being the singer of the song and it just being a CrappyPasta

  26. reminds me of the movie the fourth kind there is a part in the movie where the female character is in a trance seeing an owl smile at her but she doesn’t like the smile the owl is also white in the movie but there are differences between this story and the movie but I thought the story was well done

  27. I was a little nervous when you first said that the owl smiled, since owls can’t smile. So I was relieved when you addressed that later. However, if you were to attempt to cut off your own tongue, you’d probably go into shock before you could actually finish, and if you did finish, you’d bleed to death since there is an artery that runs through the tongue.

    But it was interesting, and now I know why I cover any windows that are in my bedroom.

    1. Owah ca smie ere ih o owah as ot a owah
      Is a more accureate representation of how he would speak with no tonge. Don’t worry I’m kidding. 8)

    2. EDIT: This is going to sound pretty provocative but I have no other way of putting it into words.
      I’m truly sorry, but at what point in your life did you encounter an owl, or any organism for that matter, that could obtain the organs of other living beings after first making said beings severe the organs from their own bodies?

      I mean if the owl is capable of doing exactly that, I think it’d be possible for it to give humans the ability to successfully carry out the entire operation.

      (Besides, you forgot that a tongue alone does not grant one the ability to speak. You gotta have the right neurological brain structures & vocal cords.)

      1. You are on a website where people post their fictional scary stories. Trying to use logic like that is really just a waste of time and honestly makes you look kind of dumb. And without a tongue you cannot make the sounds required to form cohesive words; also if the owl smiled he most likely took a mouth from another victim and possibly vocal chords, if you want to be technical. But I mean come on its a story about a damn owl that makes people cut out parts of their mouth like honestly chill.

      2. if the owl has the muscles to be able to smile and the correct jaw structure to do as such, or the ability to coat a body part in white liquid and cause it to flap around what posses you to think it cant talk

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