Sarah
"W-What?" I said, stunned by what Harry just told me.
"I think it was-" I interrupted him, "how did you know that I lost my locket?" I ask and he looks away from me, running his large hand through his tangled, wild hair.
"Don't bullshit me, Styles." I tell him sternly, crossing my arms. I've never told him about my locket situation; the only people who know are Cora and Lela. Cora just knows that the locket was my Mom's and had sentimental value, whereas Lela knows it's sentimental, but we've also discussed different viewpoints about the Chosen One meaning behind it and what it could do. I mean for all we know, it could just be a locket and that's it. But, something tells me it means so much more than it being 'just a locket'. I feel extremely awful for not telling Cora about this whole Sibuna business, but I don't want her to get this mark or be harmed by this thing. I think she's going through enough anyway: with this on top of whatever she's dealing with, it may upset her even more. And I don't want that because she doesn't deserve it. She honestly deserves the world... and much more.
"Uh..." he stammers, looking anywhere but at me. I raise my eyebrows and he sighs, "promise you won't get pissed?" he asks and I roll my eyes but promise. Sorta.
"Okay. Lela told me." he informs me and my eyes widen.
"What?!" I exclaim, getting a few odd looks from people but I couldn't care less what they thought of me at this moment. How could Lela do that? I told her that in private, and we discussed what the locket could've meant and how it had something to do with the Chosen One, when I had discovered what that term finally meant via Asa. I told her in complete and utter confidence because I really trust her. (Or should I say trusted?) But, not as much as Cora though. Still, she's supposed to be my friend: friend's don't lie.
"I said not to get mad." Harry says and I roll my eyes at his comment.
"Honestly, it slipped out. She didn't mean to tell me and she felt very guilty about it afterwards." he explains her actions and I sigh, feeling like I've heard this all before with my old 'friends'.
"Look, she didn't mean it. But that's not the shocking thing... don't you want to know who I think has it?" he questions. I purse my lips, thinking. I know I've been wanting to know who did it and why, yet now that I have an opportunity to maybe have an idea who did it... I wasn't sure if I wanted to know anymore. And I don't know why myself. It's like I've changed my opinion all of a sudden.
"I-" I was interrupted this time.
"Sorry I'm late class! There was a hold up with the staff meeting." our Maths teacher explains her tardiness and starts the lesson on Trigonometry.
I gazed over to Harry and he mouthed to me: "talk later." I nodded and focused on this topic. I struggled with Maths so much... I despised it a lot. I get that some Maths is needed, but some of the other things like knowing the Quadratic Formula isn't needed in my life. It's only needed to pass these exams in order to make the school look amazing and to achieve our expected grades.
Already struggling with where to use which sign for which part of the triangle, I give up, knowing that I'm never going to need this in my lifetime after school's finished.
***
Back at Anubis House, I was in my room doing some homework to get it over and done with. Cora was sat on the other side of her room, playing on her phone. Harry still hasn't told me his theory about the locket thief, because he said to me that he had somewhere he needed to be and that we'll talk later on. I was suspicious of where he had to go; then again, it's none of my business what he does in his spare time.
Thinking of what else I could write down for my English homework, I couldn't find inspiration. We had to write a short story in 100 words for some competition our English teacher wants to sign up the best stories in, yet I hardly had anything down. And it's due in tomorrow.
Tapping my pen onto my notebook for some time, I couldn't figure out what to write about. And then I got a look of annoyance off Cora; basically telling me to stop tapping my pen. So, I dropped the pen and instead grabbed my phone off the bedside table. I felt bad for annoying her, but I tap things when I get nervous. Or I try to do something to help me cope with my nerves.
Hoping to find at least some inspiration from somewhere on the Internet, I don't. I sigh and roll my eyes at the phone, and then at the notebook. I was infuriated with myself for not doing this homework beforehand and for not being able to think of an idea of what to write about.
"What's up?" Cora asks, after a few moments of silence. I had been staring at my notebook for some time: wishing that something would just write itself onto the page.
"I can't think of what to write about for the English homework." I tell her and she gets up from her bed, grabbing a piece of paper from her bedside table and walking up to me.
"Here, read this." she says and I take it from her reading through her homework.
After finishing I looked up at her, "Cora, this is amazing." I compliment her short story. But, I was slightly jealous of how she managed to write such a great story. I loved how she made Alice in Wonderland into something sinister and creepy – she's so creative.
"Thank you," she pauses and then continues, "but why don't you do something like that?" she questions me. I raise my eyebrows, confused at what she meant.
"What I mean is: why don't you turn a fairy tale story into something... horrible? Like the Grimm's Fairy Tales." she informs me and I nod slowly, trying to think of what I could do.
"That's where I got my inventiveness from." she tells me and I nod.
"That's an awesome idea. Thanks." I reply and she goes back to her bed, grinning at herself, whilst I look up some of these 'Grimm's Fairy Tales' to figure out which one to do and how I could create it in 100 words.
After researching, planning and writing, I had finally finished and I grinned at myself, proud that I managed to do it in the end (and with some help from Cora too). I placed it into my bag and moved the rest of my homework from my bed. The rest didn't need to be in until next week, so I had plenty of time to do them. Plus, it was getting late and it was almost time for supper. I can do the rest of my homework later in the week or something.
Going downstairs, I sat down at the table next to Cora. She had helped Oliver with the supper, because it was supposed to be Harry helping him as he's still on everybody's chore duty. (But, I'm not complaining; I haven't had to do chores the whole time I've been here. Which is great). Yet, he's not here. He'll probably show up though, he's been late to supper plenty of times before. Which has vexed Oliver, but he has let it slide and has covered for him many times. Although, I'm not so sure why...
"Did you finish it in the end?" Cora asks me, leaning over to grab the orange juice. I nodded, taking a bite of the pasta: it was delicious. She grins at me and pours some orange juice from the jug into her glass.
"I'll have to read it later on." she says, starting to eat her food.
I look up from my food and caught Asa's stare, however he turns away, looking quite embarrassed. I raise my eyebrows at him, but he didn't dare look over and instead looked down at his supper. Odd. I grabbed the jug of water and poured it carefully into my glass, hoping it doesn't spill.
I then turned back to Cora, who was having a discussion with Alexandra. I listened in whilst eating, my mind wondering off occasionally to where Harry could be and if he was safe.
***
"Sarah?" I heard my name coming from somewhere. I didn't bother sitting up to find out who it was; I was too tired and I was enjoying my slumber before the interruption.
Someone shook me and I opened my eyes, turning around in my bed to be faced with no one. I brush it off and closed my eyes again, wanting to go back to sleep.
"Sarah!" someone exclaimed my name again and I sit up and saw a figure at the end of my bed, sitting on it. I couldn't figure out who it was and so I rubbed my eyes and focused on the person.
It was Harry.
"Harry?" I whispered, looking over to Cora's side of the room. Luckily, she was still asleep. He placed a finger to his lips, indicating to be silent. I nodded and he outstretched an arm out for me to take. I raised my eyebrows, confused, yet I took it because I have learned to trust Harry.
He tugs on my arm, almost as if he was telling me to follow him. Therefore, I got out of bed and followed him out of the room. I was going to leave the door ajar, but he closes it properly. I was about to say something, in which he noticed, and he placed a finger to his plump lips again. I roll my eyes at him, but continued to follow, as he led me to the attic door.
"Why-" he shushed me and opened the door slowly, making it creak loudly. And I'm the one making all of this noise?
He leads me up the stairs and pushed the door open, and here I was; in the guest room with Harry. I looked around and saw no one here... I guessed that he was taking me to a Sibuna meeting or something. Pursing my lips, I expected that at least Asa would be here or Alexandra, since this is usually where we meet if we have a Sibuna meeting in the middle of the night. In fact when I looked around again, to ask him what he was doing, he wasn't in sight anymore. Is this a joke or something?
I turned around, about to leave, but the door slammed in my face before I could even touch the door knob. My heartbeat quickened and I didn't want to turn back around. I was now frightened.
"It's okay." I heard Harry's voice. I felt furious with him and whipped around immediately about to shout at him for terrifying me. But, he wasn't there.
Instead it was that... that thing. The same thing who's voice has been haunting me daily as well as their horrifying face. The thing was messing with the record player in the corner of the room. It had very long and very sharp nails. My eyes gazed to their body, which was all bone and not one bit of skin was shown; just the bones... it looked like it was a skeleton. A patterned skirt adorned their waist and they portrayed a headdress of a lioness on their head.
"It is so nice to finally meet you, properly, Sarah." their voice greets me, still messing around with the record player. I gulp nervously, their strange voice piercing my ears.
It turns around and there it was. Their face. That same face that has been haunting me ever since I first saw it. It had 2 peculiar eyes; both different shapes and sizes. Instead of a usual nose, they had a snout. And the thing grinned at me, (showing sharpened, razor-like teeth) almost as if it knew how petrified I was.
"W-What do you want from me?" I ask this abnormal-looking... person? It couldn't be a person, it looked too... too menacing. I didn't even know what it was. And I didn't want to find out. Not now, not ever.
It cackles at me, clutching at it's non-existent stomach. Maybe this could be my chance to escape? Just when I was thinking about turning around to run out of here, it stops and it notices something about me.
"You know what I want." it tells me and then smirks, "and you cannot escape. Not yet, if that is what you was going to do, child." it spits at me, sauntering over. It's height was colossal; more colossal than I expected. It almost touched the roof from how incredibly gigantic it was.
"B-But I don't know what you want..." I trail off fearfully, yet I was honest. There was no way in Hell that I was going to lie to this creep. It'd probably hurt me... or do something much worse. Also, I was slightly curious as to what it wanted.
It forcefully grips my arm, yanking me towards it's body. "How dare you lie to me – do you not want your beloved parents back?" it purrs bloodcurdlingly in my ear. I wince from the pain of their grip and I started to sweat due to trepidation. My heartbeat was increasing exponentially and I was beginning to panic even more than before. This thing knew where my parents were?
"Of c-course I do," I breathe in shakily and breathe out deeply, trying (key word) to control my breathing, "I-I'll do anything. A-Anything at all." I stutter.
It beams at me and releases their sore grip, "I am very glad we are on the same page!" it exclaims, clasping it's spindly hands together. But then it's eye colour differs to vermilion and their face changes to lour, "however child, if you do not find it you will be punished... as well as your special parents." it warns me, a look of repulsion was clear across it's facial features.
"I-I will. I'll get what you w-want." I whimper, distressed at this thing's appearance and demands.
Feeling some courage, I take a deep breath, finally managing to control my breathing into a steady state and ask politely, "i-if you don't mind me asking, where do I-I look for what you want?".
It gazes at me for some time and then smiles, "you are more powerful than you think. You will know where to seek, as Thoth guides you to sink." it speaks slowly before vanishing into the cool night air.
I roll my eyes at the unhelpful sentence and turn around, now able to open the door and finally escape quickly from that dreadful room, and try to (at least) get some sleep. Although, it's probably doubtful considering what I've just dealt with and how I'm still afraid that it'll appear again at any given moment.
note:
i'm unsure if any of u like this story. is it bad? good? i'm a little confused where this story stands..
e .xx