Ben was screwed. He would never find his class. Manor Road was by no means a large school, but at that moment it might as well have been the size of Hull. Ben had gone in the direction that Sara had pointed him in, but that had been no help. It had let out into a main courtyard which stood between the two large buildings of the school. Off in the distance, he could see two mobiles, which also presumably housed classes. Ben had half hoped that there might be some kind of signs. He would at least have hoped that the different buildings would have visible names.
He looked down at his timetable. The room was listed under the subject, but it might as well have been written in Greek for all the good it did him.
B11.
What did that mean? Was it the eleventh room in the B block? Was it the eleventh room on the B floor? Was room 11 split into two rooms with an A11 and a B11?
He should have asked someone passing by, but he had been too scared. The kids his own age had been laughing about something, and he didn't want to bother them. They would think he was some kind of annoying freak. Then there were the older kids, but they were all big and scary. One of them even had a beard. And now they were all gone anyway.
Ben was now alone in the courtyard too afraid to go towards any of the buildings in case he went to the wrong one. Soon, someone would find him. A teacher would see him, and they would think that he was trying to skip class. They would come out and shout at him, and then they would take him to Mr Briggs, and then he would shout at him. Then he would probably be kicked out for being a nuisance, and they would call Tia Maggie, and then she would shout at him. She wouldn't want him around then. She would think he was too much trouble. She would kick him out of the house. Then where would he go? He would be homeless. He would have to live out on the street begging for change. It was getting cold as well. He would probably freeze to death out there at night. Then they would just take his body and dump it in some landfill or something. And there he would rot cold and forgotten by the world. All because he couldn't find his maths class on his first day.
Oh, woe was he.
"You alright kid," a voice said behind him.
Ben was snapped out of his spiral, and he turned to see a boy about his age standing behind him. He was a lithe boy with fair hair, cropped short and soft blushing features. He had these pale green eyes which seemed to pierce straight through to Ben's heart. It was a hot second before Ben Remembered he had been asked a question. He tried to answer, but his mouth had gone dry, and he couldn't get the words out.
The boy gave a toothy grin, which did not help things.
"What's up?" He asked, "Cat got your tongue?"
Ben was puzzled by the boy's accent. It was American, or maybe Canadian Ben could never tell the difference, and in his current setting it was quite a surprise.
Ben managed to make some kind of noise that he had intended to be a no but got mixed with an awkward laugh along the way. It seemed to suffice though.
"I'm Jake," Said the Boy, holding out his hand, "What's your name pal? If you can manage it."
Ben tried to subtly wipe his sweaty palms before taking Jake's hand.
"Ben," he said a little shakily, "Nice to meet you."
"Likewise," Said Jake, "I haven't seen you around Ben. You new?"
Ben nodded.
"Awesome," Said Jake, "Me too, though I guess not anymore with you around. But listen, don't worry about it. It's super cool here."
Something suddenly struck Jake in the back of the head from behind. It was a Rugby ball that had been thrown from the field where a group of older boys were beginning their PE Lesson.
"Eyes up Jakealynn," Said one of the larger boys, "You don't wanna get hit now do you?"
"That was a good one, Steve," Jake shouted back, "The old gears were really grinding on that one. You can see the smoke from here."
Steve and his boys weren't paying much attention. They were still laughing at a joke Ben wasn't sure he understood. Jake picked up the rugby ball and threw it back over into the field. He had not thrown it very hard, but he had somehow managed to aim it in just a way that the point in the ball struck Steve in his left eye.
Steve made a number of expletives with a few choice words for the boy who had done this to him. They faded into the background though, as Jake pulled Ben off into one of the buildings.
"Don't worry about Steve," Said Jake, "He's a real caveman. Honestly, they fished him out of the ice a week ago. A little simple maybe but who are we to judge a man from such a different time."
Ben laughed which seemed to have an energising effect on Jake.
"Anyway, we better get going," Said Jake, "Let me guess you're looking for Math class right? It's impossible, I know. My first day I was wandering around for hours until a little birdie told me where it was. Just Stick with me kid, and I'll get you through."
Jake put his arm around Ben's shoulder and led him up the stairs to their Maths class. Ben felt for sure Jake would be able to feel his heart beating through his chest but obviously he wouldn't.
They were five minutes late to their lesson, but that apparently meant nothing. The teacher was still embroiled in getting the class to settle down so he could take the register and that gave Ben a chance to sneak him and Jake in. Ben wasn't sure he would call it a skill, but he had always had a habit of being ignored. In times like this, it could be quite the advantage.
All told Ben could probably have missed this lesson with little consequence. The teacher, he never caught his name, was having a real challenge with the class. He had failed to get them quiet enough before the deadline for the register, so he just quickly marked everyone present before he got a call from reception. After that, he managed to write something on the board about variables but never seemed to get far in his explanation before something was thrown or the name of a famous footballer was shouted out in a funny voice.
Ben hated all of this. He found himself becoming increasingly anxious as the noise from both the other pupils and teachers increased. He had naively thought that Secondary school was going to be more orderly than Primary. They were meant to be big kids now after all.
It was quite a relief when the bell finally went, and the defeated Maths teacher didn't even finish whatever it was they were trying to say.
Ben began making his way towards the meeting spot with Sara when Jake stopped him.
"Where are you going?" He asked, "The Halls this way."
"I was just going to meet my sister." Said Ben
"She'll probably be there," Said Jake, "Trust me you want to get to the hall quick or all the nice food will be gone. You'll be left with broccoli or something."
"I like broccoli," said Ben.
"Your super weird Ben," Said Jake, "I like you."
Ben blushed and tried his best to hide it.
Jake had been right that an early entrance to the hall was probably for the best. The place was heaving with kids from all the years with a line all the way out into the yard. Ben still had his lunch from Tia Maggie, so he at least didn't have to wait in line. Jake didn't have a packed lunch, but he also had a way out of waiting in line. With a quick hand and sticky fingers worthy of the artful dodger Jake managed to fill an entire tray with whatever he could snatch in the gaps between people. With a little help from Ben, he was even able to sneak past the lady at the tills, giving him a veritable feast for nothing.
"Ben," He said as he looked over his mountain of pasta, chips, and salad, "I think this might be the start of a beautiful friendship."
The two managed to find seats on the end of one of the long folds-out tables that lined the hall. There were a couple of girls from the year above sitting on the other end, but the distance was far enough that with the overall noise of the hall, they had a fair amount of privacy in terms of conversation.
Ben saw Sara over by the lunch line. She smiled and waved at him but didn't come to sit down. Ben wasn't sure why. She didn't seem to be with anyone. Was she avoiding him? Maybe she was embarrassed by him. That would make sense.
"So, where you from kid?" Jake asked.
Ben snapped back from his thought spiral.
"Hull," Said Ben, "We've only just moved into the village."
"New kid in a couple of ways then," Said Jake, "I feel ya. You can probably tell I'm not from around here. I'm from New York. I was a kinda stray, but I got adopted by this British guy. When they moved back here, I came with."
"What about your parents?" Asked Ben, "Sorry that's probably really personal."
"It's cool," Said Jake, "Honestly your guess is as good as mine. I never really knew em. I was brought up in... odd circumstances until I was adopted."
"You were in care," said Ben, "So was I. For a little bit."
Ben searched Jake's face. He could tell him. If no one else, then at least him.
"My dad died," He said, "Earlier this summer. Me and my sister didn't really have anyone else, so we had to go into care."
"Oh, I'm sorry kid," Said Jake, "That really sucks."
It certainly did.
"But you got adopted?" Asked Jake.
"Sort of," Said Ben, "My Tia Maggie got herself named our legal guardian. She lives in the village, so we moved to live with her."
"Wait, Hold on a second," Said Jake, "When you say Maggie. You don't mean Mad Maggie Sanchez, do you."
Ben had not meant that and for a second, he was genuinely convinced that they were talking about two different people. But how could they be? There couldn't possibly be another Maggie Sanchez in this village.
"What do you mean?" Asked Ben.
"Sorry dude," Said Jake, "That wasn't cool. That's what people call her. You know it's probably one of those small-town things, stupid gossip, or something, I don't want you to think that I think that your Tia is..."
"What do they say about her?" Asked Ben.
Jake looked uncomfortable for the first time since they had met. He had been the one who had stepped into this though, so he was going to have to wade all the way to the other shore.
"You ever heard of Maligna Manor?" Asked Jake.
"The house on the hill," said Ben.
"The Very same," Said Jake, "We'll look I've only been here since the spring, but even then, I can tell you that there is a lot going on with that Place."
"My sister asked the Taxi Driver about it when we first arrived," said Ben, "He wouldn't say anything about it except that it had burned down."
"I know it's a load of bull right," Said Jake, "but nobody will tell you different, and I mean nobody I asked Archie, their one of the people I'm living with, and they said it was just an old house and that was it no matter how much I asked. But ask any kid, and they'll tell you stories".
"Stories about My Tia?" Asked Ben.
"Yeah," Said Jake, "I mean sort off. You know how it is, never many details, but from what I heard she went up there with her younger brother and her boyfriend like twenty-something years ago. No one's sure what happened, but her and her brother are found alone on the hill hours later, and her boyfriend was missing."
"What happened to him?" Asked Ben.
"That's the thing, man," Said Jake, "Nobody knows. But it's not the first time, and it wasn't the last. You see that girl over there."
Ben looked over to see an older girl close to Sara's age. She had dark black hair and was laughing with a tall, stocky girl sitting next to her.
"That's Mandy Fulmer," Said Jake, "Her younger sister went missing four years ago. The official story is she got lost in the woods and drowned in the river, but no one believes that. She was last seen by Maligna manor."
"Did anyone go into the house to look for her?" Asked Ben.
"No one goes into the house," Said Jake, "Except you're Tia and her brother. When they got found, they said some crazy stuff about Lord Maligna being in the house and using weird magic to attack them. I don't know, that's what they say."
"But other people must have been in the house," Said Ben, "To look for the missing kids."
"They don't," Said Jake, "Because no one in this town wants to admit it, but they all know something weird is going on there, and they would rather ignore it than admit they don't know what to do about it."
Ben looked back at the girl. The story was a lot less fun now. He thought about Sara going missing. Knowing exactly what had happened to her and no one doing anything because they were afraid of what might happen. Knowing he would never see her again and that it would happen to more people because no one wanted to learn the lesson.
"I'm sorry I said that thing about your Tia," Said Jake, "You wanna know the truth I don't think she's crazy. You know the first night I moved here I had a nightmare about that house, and I have had one every night since. There is something up there. I can feel it."
Ben looked once again into Jake's light green eyes. He felt something. Not just the basic attraction he had felt before. It was something more than that. Those eyes saw more than most, and Ben now felt like he could catch glimpses of their visions reflected within them.
The green of Jake's eyes turned fiery. A clock ticked away in the background. Green floors and red walls. A laughing Jack. A big cat stalking in the shadows. Something hunting in the water. Roaring fire.
"Wow," Said Jake, "Got a little serious there didn't we? How about something else? Do you play any good games?"
Ben blinked. The light in the hall felt strangely bright. The chatter that still echoed around them seemed louder somehow. He looked over to Jake who was looking at him with a bemused smile. Games. Yes, that was something to talk about now. No more serious topics. Not for a little while anyway.
After a shaky start, the conversation quickly got going. Soon, Ben was even beginning to forget his previous concern about the Manor and as the two of them left the hall to head to their next lesson they were so enraptured in their conversation that they could notice little of what lay around them.
That was until Steve pulled Jake's school bag away from him.
"Hey," Said Jake, "what the hell man."
"Alright Jakealyn," said Steve, "got a new boyfriend I see."
Ben felt his chest tighten. He wanted to move away, but the other two lads had surrounded them.
"Leave him alone," said Jake.
"Ohhhh," Said Steve, "Think you're a big man now do you."
"A big enough for you to pick on apparently," Said Jake, "I know you're broke up about Kathrine dumping you, but violence won't solve anything."
The mocking smile on Steve's face soon faded into an angry sneer. Ben backed away instinctively, and it seemed that Steve's goons hadn't even noticed as he slipped past them.
"You want your bag back big man," said Steve, "Then you better get it."
Steve threw the bag high over Jake's head where it was caught by one of his cronies behind. The three of them continued to throw the bag between them as Jake scrambled beneath them desperately jumping for it.
Ben had gotten some distance from the group and stood stock still for fear that he would be dragged back in if they spotted him. He watched Jake's desperate attempts to catch the bag and wanted to help. Wanted to but didn't. He just hid.
The bell rang. Steve caught the bag and held it in front of Jake before pouring the contents out onto the floor in front of him. Jake went up to gather up his things when Steve grabbed him by his collar.
"Listen, kid," He said, "I won't normally hit a girl. But if you're going to pretend to be a boy, I will batter you like one. We clear."
Jake didn't give any sort of reply, but Steve seemed to feel that he had made his point and threw him violently to the ground.
Ben stayed hidden until he was sure the gang of teenagers had gone before he made his way towards Jake.
"Hey," He said, "I'm sorry about that. I should've..."
"It's cool," Said Jake, "you better get going, or you'll be late."
Ben didn't move. Jake had a big smile plastered on his face, but Ben once again gravitated to those eyes. Those eyes told him everything.
"Honestly dude you can go," Said Jake, "Class is just right across the hall from math you can't miss it."
Ben stood for a moment trying to come up with the right thing to say. He couldn't. He turned and headed for the building.
He could hear Jake sniffling behind him.
Jake did not meet him in English, nor did he turn up for ICT afterwards.
Guilt mixed with another kind of sadness, as it seemed nobody else cared. His name was called and passed without comment. Ben might have said something, but he wasn't sure that he should. Maybe it wasn't for him to talk about. The lessons were nothing special. When work was done, it was done half-heartedly and when not Ben was no longer present enough to feel the same anxiety he had felt in maths. When the final Bell rang, he got up more from instinct than anything else.
As he left, Ben kept his eyes peeled for Jake. He wanted to say something before the end of the day just to ease things over. Ben didn't like to admit it, but he had become anxious as the day had worn on. It wasn't his usual anxiety. It was not a restless worry that had no name. This was something that Ben had never really felt before. It was dread, and it had a name.
Ben didn't have to look up. He could feel the Manor glowering down at him. The house was no longer just a strange landmark to Ben but a presence. It didn't stop at its gates but stretched out over Winter's Green with the growing darkness of the night. It was hunting. Claws outstretched ready to take in its next prey.
That wasn't the worst part, however.
The worst part was that Ben felt drawn to it, like Sailors by the siren's call. He feared that house more than he had feared anything in his life, but he needed to go there. That terrified him more than anything.
Was this what Tia Maggie felt? If so, Ben knew for certain that she wasn't mad. Not in the slightest.
The sun set over the horizon and for the first time in his short life, Ben was afraid that he might not see it rise again.
He should find Jake, just in case.
There was some movement in the treeline. Ben looked over, but it was impossible to see clearly through the shadows. Whoever it was they had Jake's build. Ben surveyed the dark wood. It would be fine. There were no wolves in England, and it was barely three trees deep, all rational points, but tonight did not feel like a night for the rational.
Ben moved into the tree line. The streetlights had buzzed to life outside, and the autumn had withered the canopy which had once clouded the wood. It wasn't too Dark but still, the shade mixed poorly with the dusk, and Ben was fairly blind as he made his way deeper in.
He continued to search for the figure he had seen but all shadows seemed to meld in these woods and Ben was unable to distinguish anything he would have thought to be Jake.
The Darkness was becoming too much for him. Ben no less wanted to find his new friend, but this was beginning to feel like a lost cause. The resolution to leave could not have come at a better time because it coincided almost perfectly with the sound of rustling leaves not far behind him.
A million different horrors charged through Ben's mind, but he did his best to dismiss them. It was just the wind, a bird or something equally mundane. Still might not be a terrible idea to get back to the street. He turned and began making his way out of the wood. It was slow going because with every step Ben felt the need to quickly look around himself. The space around him suddenly felt vast and unknowable. As he glanced around, he caught sight of something moving in the trees.
It was not Jake. It was too big for that. Ben couldn't get more details, though because as soon as he had turned to face it, the figure was gone. Ben kept his eyes peeled on where the figure had been as he began to take his tentative steps backwards.
A hand grabbed his shoulder. Ben screamed. It was a surprisingly loud scream for the usually quiet boy and startled him as much as his assailant.
"Ben it's me," said the familiar voice of Sara, "It's just me."
A Wave of relief washed over Ben followed closely by a backwash of embarrassment.
"What are you doing in the woods?" He asked.
"What are you doing in the woods?" She asked back.
"I was looking for someone," said Ben.
"Was that the boy you were with at lunch?" Asked Sara, "Look at you. Making friends already."
Ben Blushed.
"What about you?" He asked, "You didn't say why you were out here."
"No real Reason," She said, "I just... I wanted to see If I could scare you."
Sara gave Ben a short punch on the arm before wiping her face.
"Anyway," Sara said, "What do you want to do then?"
Ben tried to work out if this was some kind of trick question. Sara groaned in frustration.
"We said we were going to go explore the Village before going back to Aunt Maggie's," She said, "Remember."
Ben remembered Sara saying they would do that. He didn't remember agreeing to it. In fact, he remembered being against the idea. Not that it apparently mattered.
"Yeah," He said, "I guess."
"Great," Said Sara, "Just Give Aunt Maggie a text saying we're at an afterschool club."
"Why do I have to do it?" Asked Ben.
"Because she won't believe me," Said Sara, "People always believe you."
"That's because I don't lie to people," said Ben.
"And now it's time to cash in on that goodwill," Said Sara, "Come on or she'll get suspicious."
Ben sighed and got his phone out. He didn't end up sending the text though because when his phone came to life, it displayed a missed call and a text from Tia Maggie.
"Err, Sara," said Ben.
"What?" Asked Sara with a clear understanding of what was likely wrong.
Ben showed her the texts.
"Hola Ben," the text read, "Sorry to bother you at school but I can't get a hold of Sara, and I need to talk to her. Can you make sure she comes home straight from school? "
Sara grimaced.
"It doesn't matter," She said, "Just tell her we're at a club like we said. She can't argue with that."
"Sara," said Ben.
Sara searched for something else to say, but nothing seemed to come.
"Fine," She said, "Let's get this over with."