2 A Haunting Reminder: Prologue pt 2

It was. . . something hard to accept, these real memories that I had were just from a plot? And my beloved sister was, by this time no longer of this world? It seems that my family and the staff has already forgotten Amelie. . . when I asked one of the maids about her she gave me a blank expression.

"I'm sorry, who Milady?"

And sure enough, that night I had my first encounter with her.

I couldn't sleep that night. No matter how much I tossed and turned, I found it impossible. I rolled onto my back.

When I opened my eyes, a girl wearing clothes so dirty and torn, that if it weren't for the embroidered Hawthorne crest on the collar of her blouse I wouldn't have recognized her. Isn't that funny?

Naturally, I froze up. Thankfully, I couldn't see the girl's face her hair, which had clumps of dirt sticking to it, served as a veil. The girl slowly moved. I counted two seconds for every step that was placed, the torn pieces of her clothing and ends of her hair seemed to be blowing back as if there was a draft. In which of course, there wasn't. My window was shut tight, if any of my maids even so much as forgot to close the window they'd get demoted or better yet fired by Mother though granted that was when I was still ill, by now they knew better.

As she walked out of sight, the sound of her footsteps resounded.

kl-op. kl-op. kl...op. Ee-ee-eee.

The door to my room creaked open. Slowly, I sat up.

This wasn't a game. I wasn't safe and separated from the horror of bearing witness to this behind the glass screen of a phone. This was real. This was my life now.

If this were a game, I wouldn't hesitate to follow after the ghost, but right now I did so resisting the urge to run to Papa or my older brother's bedroom screaming.

I reluctantly abandoned my bed, but I couldn't bring myself to leave without hugging a pillow. I poked my head out the door and flinched at the sight that awaited me.

Amelie had stopped walking. I realized when she started walking again, she had been waiting for me.

I saw the side profile of her face for just a second as she turned the corner, thanks to the moonlight prying through the hall's window.

Dried blood, near the part where her eyes should have been.

My mind went blank for a moment. My body trembled, the tears welled up inside me like a volcano prime for an eruption.

Sure enough, she wanted me to follow her. So I followed the sound of her steps. Two seconds for every sound.

The door to the library opened, I only saw the back of her head as she entered.

I didn't have to venture any further as the door was open. Amelie was standing before a shelf. She dissipated from sight when a thick book fell with a loud thump.

I stood there staring blankly for what was probably a minute.

Hugging my pillow tightly, I finally mustered the courage and walked over and bent down to pick it up.

The second I did, a hand touched me from behind and I nearly jumped out of my own skin. I slowly turned my head to look.

"Anais?"

It was just my older brother Clifton. His wavy silver hair looked disheveled and covered his face, only exposing one sleepy-looking brown eye.

I couldn't help smiling.

"Ah, it's just you brother. . ."

It was no surprise he came, he had a spare room linked to the library for the days he was too bothered to walk back to his own, this book was so thick and the sound was so loud naturally one would come to investigate.

"What're you doing here so late at night?"

"Ahhhhh, I was just doing some late night studying."

Clifton frowned as he rubbed the sleep from his right eye.

"I don't think that's necessary since you've already been accepted. You know you just got over your illness, if you try to push yourself by trying to overachieve like this... you don't want yourself relapsing do you?"

"R-right. . ."

"Now I won't be able to sleep until I know you go to bed."

"Okay."

When I turned to leave with the book he made a clucking sound with his tongue and grabbed the heavy book with ease out of my hands.

"I need that!"

His eyes narrowed at me.

"Please, brother dearest."

His hand lowered for a second, but when I reached out he held it up higher.

He was a 21-year-old man, and I barely made it up to his chest.

"This is..." I tried jumping up to swipe it but he just held it higher then lower as if he was playing with a cat. "Discrimination!"

"Are you finished? I'll carry it to your room so stop being so fussy."

"I'm not..." being fussy, I wanted to complain.

He headed towards the door and turned around to give me an expectant look when I didn't follow.

I realized it only then, how fast my fear left me the second I saw his face.

He raised an eyebrow as I approached the door with him.

"What's with the pillow?"

I nearly forgot I was holding one, the corners of my mouth stretched as I spoke, "This... I thought I'd sleep here."

A vein bulged out from his forehead.

He held up the book as if to hit me, but it stopped centimeters from my head.

He muttered aloud, "Would her little head pop like a watermelon if I did that?"

My body had been frail from young, yes but still, hearing him mutter this annoyed me.

"Thank you for the mental picture."

Every time I thought about my disappearance now I can just imagine my head exploding... Actually, now I'm just seeing a watermelon replace my head.

Brother walked me back to my room and left the book on the dresser. I got in bed.

"Thank you brother dearest, good night."

"Hmph!" He grumbled something.

He tries to play it off but I know he loves it when I call him that. I lie down in bed. I can feel his gaze on me. Being watched by him like this somehow made me feel safe.

Clk.

He shut the door. I sat up to reach for the book. The door opened and I fell back in bed, eyes closed.

"Hmmm...." Clifton yawned as he closed the door.

I made sure to listen for his footsteps to disappear this time before sitting back up to open the book.

Ahhh, I see.

It suddenly made sense why the Anais character knew so much about the happenings of Hawthorne in her journals.

The Letiffany household descended from a long line of mages that specialized in light magic, this was no secret however, alchemy also seemed to be in the mix. There were various potions and herbs that could scare away evil spirits or even vanquish them.

But how would one go about vanquishing ALL the evil spirits of Hawthorne? I close the book shut and sigh.

My door slowly creaked open. My heart jumped inside my chest at how slowly it was opening.

"Aha! I knew you'd still be up! Gimme that!" Clifton snatched the book from my hand and waved it.

"I knew I shouldn't have let you leave with it! You can read it later tomorrow, be a good girl and go to sleep!" He quickly retreated and closed my door shut but not before sticking out his tongue. "Neener!"

I lied down in bed with a huff.

I'll let him take it for now since I memorized the book title.

But it made me sad. Knowing that encounter might be my last moment with him.