Gillian wanders into a shocking picture

Gillian could not keep up with the dance steps and the rhythm eventually. It was too fast and new for her.

She stepped off the dance floor when she felt that she had enough exercise for the evening. So, she stood near the door and watched the others carry on with their routine.

After a short while, she realized that she needed to use the bathroom, so she slipped out of the studio, closed the door behind her and walked towards the bathrooms down a small passage. She knew the house well from her frequent visits over the years.

As Gillian neared the bathrooms she heard a chopping sound coming from below her.

“Someone’s busy in the basement,” she told herself. She walked into a bathroom and looked around. There was no one else there, so she entered and closed the door behind her.

When she was done, she washed her hands at the basin and heard the chopping sound again.

“Is someone manufacturing something down there at this time of the evening?” she asked herself. Maybe it’s one of the servants. I can do with some company while the others are dancing,” she told herself and so she took the stairs which led down to the basement.

Once in the basement, Gillian walked down a narrow passage towards where the sound was coming from. It sounded as if it was coming from the florist workshop. Mishka’s grandmother’s nursery.

“Oh, does someone else use the nursery at night then? Why would they arrange flowers at night, unless there was a function in the morning?” Gillian wondered to herself. She stood still when she began to hear the sound of someone chanting inside the workshop. It sounded like a woman.

“An older woman,” Mishka whispered to herself as she walked closer to the sound of the chanting.

“But, why would an older servant be chanting as if they were making Rap music?” she asked herself as she walked closer softly.

Gillian stood still in shock when she recognized the voice after almost entering the workshop. It was Mishka’s grandmother!

“Why would she be working in the nursery so late? And why is she chanting?” Gillian asked herself in surprise.

She decided not to walk into the nursery, but to try and peep from behind the door. Maybe Myrtle needed help, but it would not be a good idea to just barge in. She might be offended.

So, Gillian stood behind the door which was slightly open and peeped in carefully.

“She really shouldn’t see me peeping,” Gillian told herself, holding her breath and trembling slightly.

There she was, but she was not only chanting. Myrtle was holding a bowl in her hands and moving it in circular motions, like someone who was busy with some kind of idol worship as she continued to chant.

Gillian covered her mouth to stop herself from letting out a scream in alarm.

“What on earth was Grandma Myrtle doing by herself at this time of the evening? It was well after suppertime.

“She should be sitting in front of the TV and not down here doing, what on earth?” Gillian asked herself as she stared.

Myrtle then moved over towards a mirror and at this, Gillian moved away from the door completely.

“Just now she sees my reflection and calls me a Peeping Tom,” she told herself. She then reversed backwards slowly and when it was clear that Myrtle had not noticed anything, Gillian turned around and walked towards the steps with hurried steps.

She was trembling from fear as she walked.

“Maybe she’s busy with an Eastern ritual for her health, but that there now was very scary,” she told herself as she walked up the staircase at a fast pace.

At the top of the steps, Gillian stood still and listened again. Everything was quiet from there because it was too far away for her to hear any chanting. The chopping sound started again after a short while.

Gillian then walked on towards the studio shaking her head in disbelief.

“Does Mishka know about her grandmother’s strange rituals? But, she would have told me about it long ago,” Gillian told herself. “Unless it’s so embarrassing that she can’t tell anyone about it?” Gillian asked herself.

She stood still outside the dance studio before opening the door.

“No, there’s no way that Mishka would be able to keep quiet about something that weird in her family. She can’t be aware of it, I’m sure,” Gillian told herself as she opened the studio door.

The atmosphere was suddenly very different from earlier, even though the music was still playing and the dance group was still busy on the dance floor.

Gillian went to sit on a chair which stood in a corner of the studio. She looked at her reflection in the mirror which spread along the width of the studio for dancers to see themselves as they danced.

She looked visibly shaken to herself.

“I should try to compose myself. But, how do I do that without an energy drink or a shot of brandy?” she asked herself.

“Breathe in deep and try to smile, otherwise everyone will notice that you’re in shock,” she told herself. She clutched her hands together to keep them from shaking visibly.

“How do I tell Mishka this about her grandma? Can it perhaps be a health ritual? But at night and so far from anyone else? What if she has an accident down there? Nobody would know,” Gillian thought to herself.

“But then again, Mishka did indicate that her grandma was unusually fit. So, can it be from Eastern rituals as well as herbs? Or was that some kind of secret activity down there just now? Because Mishka surely can’t know about it and it’s creepy,” Gillian told herself with a shudder that she could not supress.

She glanced around to see if Mishka had noticed her shudder. Mishka was smiling as she danced and did not seem to notice anything strange about her friend, though.

So, Gillian got up from the chair and decided to join them on the dance floor again. It was hard to adapt to the new dance which they were performing now, but it felt much better than sitting down in fear of what she was going to say to Mishka about what she’d seen.

“Maybe I shouldn’t have gone down there in the first place. What will my parents say about that?” she asked herself nervously.