A Written Destiny ||A Music Freaks Fantasy AU

Chapter Three: An Eerie Tune

After what happened yesterday, Star felt it was needed to find a different place to be alone. She didn't mind, though. Better be outside in the sunshine rather in a dark hallway filled with spiders.

She hurried down the school courtyard, passing students eating lunch at picnic benches or under shady trees. For once, she was early to lunch, and she was trying to find somewhere to hide before all the students came out.

Out of the corner of her eye, she suddenly caught sight of a low hanging tree bending over a bush. From afar, it might've looked ordinary. With its leaves danced in the mellow wind, and innocent looking bush leaning against it. But to Star, it looked like some sort of... barrier.

She shook her head. That was an odd way of thinking of it. But what if...

Doubt crowded in her head as she walked up to the bush. Making sure nobody was watching, she pushed a few branches out of the way. Surprisingly, they were light and very easy to move, as if it was made for that purpose. Hesitating, Star looked both ways before she crawled through the small opening.

A small clearing greeted her. It was surrounded by trees and tall bushes so that the place was closed off, but sunlight still shone through. You could just see the puffy, white clouds passing through the blue sky, blocked by glittering, green leaves.

It was a perfect spot to write, Star thought as she sat down. The grass was soft, and the light shone right on her notebook. She smiled and took out her pen to write. But before she could finish her first sentence, a sudden faint, melodic sound floated through the air.

She lifted her head, pricking her ears for the sound. It came again. Somehow it reminded her of a... violin? 

The sound was coming from behind a bush. She pushed them aside, but it didn't seem like a bush at all. There weren't any roots! It was... artificial. Star frowned. This was getting stranger and stranger by the moment.

Pushing the bush to the side, she came face to face with a wide, gaping hole that was dug deep into the ground. It's edges formed a smooth, perfect circle. There was no way it could've been made by accident.

Now that the bush was aside, she could hear the violin clearer now. Should she investigate? Who was playing the violin anyway? What was this hole even doing here?

She looked down, only to be greeted with darkness. But... surely there wasn't anything to lose. Without thinking, she threw her legs into the hole and jumped.

For a moment, she was falling, and the wind whistled in her ears as she plunged downwards. Her hair shot upwards, eyes squeezed tight. Star braced herself for the fall, but to her surprise, she landed softly. Opening one eye, she found herself on a pile of leaves, which had broken her fall. It was as if someone had prepared it for her...

Ahead of her, a sort of underground tunnel stretched in front. Star found herself walking through, tracing her fingertips against the walls. It was as if she was on a real adventure! Like the heroes in all the fantasy novels she had read... What if this was her destiny?

Don't be silly, Star. This is reality. Not another fantasy you whip up.

It seemed that the tunnel was leading her somewhere inside the school. But where? Was it a secret room that had a sort of weapon inside? A forbidden meeting place?

The violin was as clear as ever now. The person playing it had burst into some sort of song. It had a spooky vibe to it, and Star felt a shiver crawl down her spine at the strange melody. She was starting to regret this. 

Soon, the tunnel curved upwards, and she began to climb. Her head hit something solid above her, and she looked up to see a trapdoor. Curiously, she opened the trapdoor with a slow creak, and the violin playing stopped. She looked up to see...