“Though his backpack was far lighter than usual, it seemed to weigh him down like an anchor.”

Alex feels especially burdened by his notebooks full of creepy stories (See: Symbols & Motifs), so much so that the narrator uses a simile to compare them to an anchor. This demonstrates how emotionally significant the burden of his interest in horror is. Although writing makes him feel better in the short term, Alex blames his penchant for writing creepy stories for his general “weirdness” and belief that he is a “loser.” This belief drives him to attempt to destroy his nightbooks and introduces the theme of The Universality of Weirdness.

“The woman smiled. There were tiny gaps between her narrow teeth, giving her the look of one of those weird, glowing fish that prowl the deepest part of the ocean.”

This comparison establishes Natacha’s predatory nature and makes the mood ominous. Her “narrow teeth” sound like fangs, and word choices like “weird” and “prowl” are off-putting, adding to the sense of danger her appearance creates. The fish that live in the ocean’s depths are uniquely designed to survive in total darkness, and, consequently, they often appear otherworldly and frightening. Natacha likely does too.

“It was becoming harder for Alex to focus. The room kept tilting back and forth, like when you first step off the pirate-ship at an amusement park. He felt like he might be ill.”

White compares the sickly, off-kilter feeling being under a witch’s spell gives Alex to a common experience: How it feels to ride a popular amusement park attraction. This