A r r i v i n g a t t h e m a n o r

We gather outside the school, waiting for our buses to arrive.

"So, try come around 7pm, not sure how long you're staying for but pack for a few nights. Hopefully you'll be allowed," Casper instructs us, then the buses get here and we all go our separate ways.

At home, I unpack my bag and get changed, then go downstairs, preparing for the tricky job of persuading my parents to let me go. I succeed in my endeavour, then I skip back upstairs to pack.

At first glance, Cyfrin Manor looks like an ordinary house, maybe a bit big. As you get a closer look, you realise that its massive. It is the biggest house in this town, admired by all. The gardens are well-kept, hedges neatly trimmed, trees perfect spheres, flower bushes in line. The grass is level, and soft, the driveway neat and clean. It leads to a small round-a-bout, with a large willow tree in the middle. Behind it, the road continues for a hundred metres, then you see the manor in all its glory. It's huge, built of grey stone that sparkles if you catch it at the right angle. The window and door frames are black, and it perfectly compliments the walls. It is built like a castle, strong walls, four round towers at the corners. But then, if you look slightly to the side of it you see that it goes further backwards and diagonally to either side. Looking from above, there is a garden between these walls.

I always love arriving at the manor, love running along its huge grassy fields, love galloping on horseback along the shore of the lake on their property. I love exploring the manor itself, passageways hidden in every wall.

I reach up to knock, and just on que, the door opens to reveal Lucas and Casper play fighting on the floor, their mother, Mrs Cypher looking down at them with amusement and disapproval mixed on her face, and their father, Mr Cypher, holding the doorknob. Aviania and Alexa, our friends who decided not to come to school, are already here, lounging on the couches, watching the boys.

"Hi,��� I say pointedly. At this, they stop wrestling and look up at me from their position on the floor. Lucas pushes Casper away then gets up and straightens his clothes as much as possible, but doesn't accomplish much. He is wearing a wrinkled white dress shirt, sleeves rolled up to his elbows, exposing his forearms, and a pair of loose black trousers. Casper is wearing a t-shirt that stretches tightly across his chest, and shorts.

"Heyyy," he says, dragging out the y. I step through the door, say goodbye to my parents, and close the door. Cecilia shuffles beside me, ever so quiet.

"Thank you for letting us come," I say to his parents.

"Oh, it's fine," Mr Cypher replies. "Go upstairs and unpack."

Casper and Lucas lead the way, still pushing each other, and once we are up the stairs and out of earshot of his parents, I say "So, what were you fighting over this time?"

"Huh? Oh, nothing," Lucas answers.

"Uh-huh," I say doubtfully.

"Really? You know what, I actually believe you. You two are just the kind of guys who would fight over nothing," I say in a sarcastic voice, although I am being sincere.

They fake hurt faces, and Alexa says, "Honestly though, you got yourself into that."

"Yeah, yeah," they turn away, knowing she's right. They lead us through the long hallways of their manor, and I wonder how they know what's where, and then we reach the room where we'll be staying.

"Welcome to your room. Fee will be fifty bucks a night, bathroom is in the first door on the left, mini kitchen is the second. On the right, you have your tv room which is the further door, and finally, cough cough Charlotte, the library is the closer door on the right," Lucas says this in a fake female voice, while Casper opens the door and points out all the rooms.

"Library?" I ask.

"Ugh. Lucas, you shouldn't have told her," a new voice joins in jokingly, and we turn to see Mia. "Now we will lose her to the books."

"Ohhh, true. Whoops," he grins.

I roll my eyes. "Guys, you would've lost me to the books anyway. I packed some."

They look at me.

"How many?"

"Four."

"Four?? Char, what do you need four books for?" Mia gasps.

"To read," I state the obvious.

"You'll be reading this whole time!"

"Nah. Four books I can finish in a day or two, depending on how long they are. Not that hard guys. You know me," I protest to their incredulous stares.

"Anyway," a new voice joins the fray. "I unfortunately picked up an extra along the way. He just had to come." Damon.

"Hey. That's mean. The others like me," the last person - Matthew - protests.

Yeah, nah. But I don't say that out loud. It's true though. No one does like him, cause all he does is follow everyone around, judge what they do, and complain that they're not doing what he wants. He is so full of himself.

"Lets unpack," Aviania interrupts my thoughts, and goes into the room. I follow behind her, and I see the room properly for the first time. It's big, about the size of my living room, a pool table in one corner and a coffee table and couches in another.

There is a third door, in the far back right corner of the room, Lucas notices my gaze and says, "Oh yeah, missed that part, we're gonna sleep in there." I go and open the door, and there are five double mattresses pushed up against the walls, two on the left and three on the right.

"Girls on the right, boys on the left," Mia says, and I dump my stuff down on the middle mattress on the girl's side. I sit down on it, facing the boy's wall. Lucas and Casper take the right one, leaving poor Damon with Matthew on the left one. Next to me, Amelia and Cecilia take the left mattress, Aviania and Alexa the right.

"What are we gonna do?" I ask, when everyone's got their spot.

"I dunno. Why don't we watch a movie." Alexa suggests, and we all agree and go to the tv room. After a long wasted time spent arguing on what movie, we settle down with snacks and watch. \

Two hours later, the movie ends and we all stretch back.

"Dinner time," Lucas says in a sing-song voice, and we all groan.

"I can't eat after that snack feast," I joke.

"Too bad, cause we have a dinner feast coming up," Casper replies, straight-faced.

"Ughhh. Okay then, lets try and fit it in. Don't blame me if I'm sick after," Aviania agrees.

The Cypher twins lead us downstairs, past halls, and into a room with a table in the middle, and 8 chair set around it. A white cloth is draped over, and the places are set like they would be at a formal party or something.

"Wow, fancy," Amelia says.

"Mum and dad said it should be well served," Lucas answers.

"This is very well served," I say, and everyone agrees and takes a seat around the table. A waiter dressed in a clean white uniform enters the room.

"You have a waiter?" I say incredulously.

"Uh, yeah. Don't judge," Casper affirmed.

"I'm not."

The waiter comes around, taking our orders, and a while after he leaves a delicious smell of cooking food wafts into the room. After a not so long wait, the meals come in, the food set out precisely on the plates, finely dressed in sauces. We dig in, and then after dessert I am surprised I fit it all in.

"That is good food," Cecilia says, and I agree. It was so neat, presentation was spot on. And the taste was even better, rich flavours that mixed perfectly with one another. Everyone else also murmurs agreement, and we leave the room and go back to ours.

"What are we gonna do? Play a game, watch another movie?" Matthew suggests.

"Not sure," I reply.

"Well. I dunno about you guys, but I am dead. School is tiring, and we have all holidays ahead of us to pull all nighters, so right now, lets go to bed and tomorrow we can discuss what we will do. Sound good?" Casper asks.

"Yeah. Night guys," Damon says, and everyone responds.

As I lay down, I think back over the school year. It has been tiring, with homework each night, getting multiple assessments at a time, exams, grades, sports, extra-curricular and trying to balance all that along with my social life. I'm glad it's holidays, and I hope they will be enjoyable. Summer holidays, which means 6 weeks of no school, Christmas, New years, beaches. Can't wait.

I put my head down to my pillow, make myself comfortable, and close my eyes. A while later, I'm asleep, recharging for whatever surprises tomorrow might bring.