Chapter 2 - Unexpected Visit

Seven years later and Matilda was now moving into a townhome with her father. Where she was certain that it felt like a trip rather than a move. But her father was certainly ready for this change. He pulled into the driveway of the townhome which didn't look any better than it did from afar. Matilda sighed as she stepped out, eyeing how close each house was, realizing there was absolutely no space in between them. "Don't you think there's a lack of privacy in this area, Dad?" Matilda asked as she reached for a box.

"Of course not. With a little construction and a bit of decorating, it'd feel like we're back home."

"I guess." She murmured as she walked through the entrance. This townhome was nothing compared to the old house they lived in. It wasn't going to have memories with her. Inside was huge but the furniture left behind made it looked small. On the right side was the living room with only a TV stand. On the left side was the lounge with a couch set and a coffee table. Down the straight, short hallway was the kitchen that was intact. The stairs led to two bedrooms and a bathroom in between the rooms. Luckily for Matilda, the master's room had its own bathroom so sharing one with her father was the least of her worries. "Why don't you go check out your new room? You can start figuring out where your stuff will go." Mr.Brown suggested after noticing Matilda hadn't moved from the door.

"Or I suppose, you can go take a walk around the neighborhood? See if you can make any friends."

It was a good thing Matilda agreed. Maybe because she wasn't ready to start a new chapter, let alone, live without her mother. She had placed the box on the floor and walked past him. The neighborhood, from what Matilda had seen, was quiet, clean, and had a fresh scent of flowers and freshly cut grass. However, she preferred to be back home, where, in her opinion, had life. Her friends were there and the parties that happened. Wigston didn't look like the kind of town that would approve what back home was like. After a while, Matilda felt bored of walking so she pulled her phone out, typing away. She had bumped into someone. "Ow," Matilda muttered, rubbing her hand that had bent awkwardly from the impact. "Oh! I'm sorry, are you alright?"

A high-pitched voice spoke. Matilda looked up to see a girl standing in front of her. She had shoulder-length brown hair that curled outwards, green eyes that seemed to sparkle brightly under the sun, and a smile that displayed a dimple on her left cheek. "I'm fine. It was my fault," Matilda waves her phone, "I wasn't looking." Her chuckle caused the girl to smile in response.

"I don't think I've seen you around. Are you new?" asked the girl.

"Yeah, I just moved into a townhome today."

"I live in a townhome too! Maybe we're neighbors." She giggled as Matilda stared at her. She wasn't uncomfortable, maybe weirded out. She reached her hand out, "I'm Carla, by the way." She grabbed ahold of Matilda's hand and shook it.

"Matilda."

Carla beamed. "I have to get going. I have two boxes that need to get to that daycare down the street." Carla turned around, grabbing a box. It wasn't hard to notice that the boxes were too heavy to carry so she offered to help. "That would be amazing. I had to carry one box, put it down, and walk back to get the other. I'm surprised my back hasn't given out yet." Matilda chuckled as she followed her lead. Once they had gotten to the daycare, Carla had stopped to take a look at the colorful building. "Well, that wasn't far of a walk."

"If your mission is important, then the distance in between doesn't matter."

Carla led Matilda into the building where kids played, chased, threw, and cried so loud, Matilda swore it damaged her hearing aids. "Don't you just love kids?" Carla posed. They walked into the check-in room and placed the boxes down as the woman thanked them. Shortly after, Carla had checked her phone and frowned. "I have to get home. But I'll see you soon?" It sounded more of a question than a statement. Matilda nods and watches Carla leave. Before she knew it, she was alone, again. She decided to go home where Mr.Brown was busy going through the photos he had of his wife.

He looked up and smiled. "Oh! You're home. How was the outside?" He asked, chuckling. "It was good, better than what I've expected. I met a girl, Carla. Very interesting spirit." She responded, taking a seat next to him. She noticed that he was holding a photo of her mother holding an ice cream cone and laughing at whoever was behind the camera. "She's beautiful," Matilda whispered, admiring her features. "Indeed she is. Her smile was one of the reasons why I've done everything for her." Mr.Brown let out a low sniffle, trying to hide his tears but Matilda was quick to notice. "It's okay, Dad. Let it out." She comforted him. She turned her gaze to a photo that laid in an open box. It was an older photo of a woman standing in the street, dressed in a black dress and a red cloak over her shoulders. In her hand was a briefcase. She looked magical and for some reason, Matilda felt drawn to her.

"Who is this?" She asked, picking up the photo.

"I'm not sure. Your mother brought that in but never really explained what it was. She just told me that older photos have a way of finding a home." Mr.Brown noticed how Matilda's gaze haven't broken away and taken a deep sigh. "You can keep it, I'm sure she wouldn't mind."

Giving him a quick peck on the cheek, she thanked him. In her room, she had found the perfect place to put the photo. Her desk was facing the window and didn't fulfill her liking, so the photo was the right addition. Taking a seat in her chair, she heard a small grunt come from her window. She squinted her eyes to get a better look and gasped at what she had seen. It was a small creature, gazing at her from the outside windowsill. It had big blue icy eyes and white skin with baby blue detailing. Matilda figured it was a lizard or an iguana but there wasn't any news about an extraordinary creature being found or was there?

The creature took a few steps forward, moving its body away from the plant pot. Her eyes widened as she noticed a small pair of white wings with feathers lined up in three rows. It shook its head, letting out an icy grunt which fogged up the bottom of her window. She held eye contact with it until Mr.Brown called out to her. Matilda swore that the creature winked at her but she ignored it, thinking that her mind was playing games on her. Walking towards her door, she took a quick glance behind her, only to see that the creature was gone. Was she going crazy? Was there an actual creature staring at her from the other side? Who knows.