Cognates Can't Keep Secrets Forever

Chapter 4

"This is the BEST they could do?" Sophie asked skeptically as she and Keefe appeared in front of a tiny house in the middle of nowhere. The home Forkle had talked about in the packet that they would be living in. It was small, brick, and with a single story.

But it looked like it had been abandoned for years. Like, too long. The windows where covered with grime and weeds covered the foundation and the small brick pathway to the old moldy door.

Keefe just looked at it.
"How do humans even think about living in places like this? This place is like, the size of my entire CLOSET!!" He said, gesturing to the small haunted house.

Sophie chuckled.
"You'd be surprised what some humans live in."

Keefe shook his head and followed her through the weeds to the front door. Sophie pulled out the key Forkle had given her and shoved it in the rusty lock. At first, it didn't budge.
"Ughhhhhh." She groaned and slapped the doorframe, hearing Keefe try not to laugh behind her.

When the lock finally spun, she smiled, and shoved on the door. No luck. Sophie frowned and Keefe giggled behind her.
"Oh Foster. This is great..." he whispered.

Sophie backed up and then ran full speed at the door, making it swing open, and Sophie falling to the ground. She squinted her eyes for impact, but opened her brown eyes again and saw the ground about a foot from her face. Keefe stood behind her, leaning on the doorframe, holding her wrist and smirking.

"Geez Miss F i didn't think you'd fall for me THIS fast," Keefe laughed.

Sophie glared at him and stood up.
"Be quiet you." All though, she did fall for him a while ago...

The pair turned to the open door and walked in. Straight ahead was a dark hallway, with 4 doors along it. To the left was a small room. The carpet in the front room was a faded red, with faded golden accents woven in. The furniture was covered in dusty sheets, and there was old logs in the fireplace, also covered with dust. To the right was an even small dining room, that had only a table in it. Through the dining room was the tiny kitchen, also covered heavily with dust.

Sophie ran her gloved fingers across the table and shivered at the grime
"Gee someone get this place a house elf, wow."

Keefe scrunched his face in confusion.
"A house wha?"

She shook her head.
"Never mind. The Black Swan really wanted us to, uh, feel welcome huh."

Keefe nodded and looked around, then folling her down the small hallway. One of the doors led to the kitchen, the other to a scary bathroom, and the others where bedrooms. There where small twin beds in each, covered with a yellowed sheet.
Sophie sighed and sat down on the bed in the room she had claimed as hers.

"So. We're actually going to stop these guys," Keefe said from the doorway, hands in pockets.

She nodded and looked at her hands.
"I just- it feels so real right now. I mean, we left home! To this place! Alone!" She said, raising her arms and gesturing to the dark room around her, light streaming in through the old shutters. Keefe sat by her on the bed.

"Well. We can do it. You're amazing and I'm awesome, its a fool proof plan with Team Foster-Keefe!"

Sophie laughed and softly punched his shoulder. "Yeah I know- what is that?"

Sophie crouched down off the bed, and peered under the baseboard, where a small glimmer of gold could be seen. Sophie hesitated, then ripped off the board, and Keefe jumped off the bed.

"Soph I know this place is a dump but don't make it worse!"

"Im not I'm not! There's something here!"

Sophie took a deep breath before pulling out the small oval locket that was under the board. "There's something else." She reached into the hole created by ripping the board off and took out a small leather journal.

Keefe sat by her on the floor, examining the journal while she looked at the locket.
"Its a picture of a family. And on the back it says, H. R. Bonham, the lost are never forgotten. Huh."

Keefe raised an eyebrow "Well thats not freaky."

She chuckled and the pair stood to sit on the bed, sending a small dust cloud into the air.
"Whats in the journal?" She asked and Keefe opened to the first page.

"April 26, 1876
We have found a great place to settle in the woods. This little meadow will be great to start a life after moving from London. When we got to this forest, my children though we where being watched, and we where. But it was a woman, who probably lived somewhere near, because she came and went for days, and was always well dressed. Very friendly, loves the children. She was inhumanly beautiful. Glowing skin, blue eyes, golden curls, and she was just so regal. Annabelle thought she must be a princess and the boys thought she was a witch. Heather got quite angry with them for thinking that though. We are almost finished with our home, and we have put a lot of money into it. My fathers inheritance will get us pretty far.
I do hope that our house will stand for a long time in this meadow.
                 -Charles P. Bonham"

Sophie sat in awe.
"Wow. That was cool." She opened the locket and looked at the family. The little girl must be Annabelle, the mother, Heather, the father, Charles, and their unnamed sons. Heather must have owned this locket.

Keefe closed the journal
"Well. This experience just got a whole lot weirder."

"Um. Why exactly?"

He stood suddenly.
"I don't know! It's weird!! Also I'm getting VERY claustrophobic right now!! And its weird being alone in the middle of the woods in an old house that is disgusting!!" He finished, kind of out of breath.

She smirked and stood.
"Keefe its just an old house. And you're not alone. You've got... you've got me. Right?"

He smirked and sighed.
"Oh Foster. You ruined my panic, geez where's the fun when we're all calm and such?"

She shoved him playfully and he began to go clean his room and unpack, Sophie smiling as she did the same.

Sure she hated the tiny house and the dust, but she would get to be back in the human world, away from the elvin world for a while.

Plus,  she'd be alone with Keefe for who knows how long.
'Ooooh Fitz isn't gonna like what you're feeling Sophieeeeeeeeee.' Her brain taunted her.

Hey!
T here, sorry bout the long update wait time, but me and E are dying over here. We really appreciate the comments and votes though!
Thanks so much for reading! How your guys quarantine is going good.
~T