Out of Her Mind
Sarah managed to surprise herself, sometimes, with just how much she was willing to ignore before she snapped.
The gradual disappearance of the stuffed animals in their cubbyholes? Oh, she was planning to pack them away to the attic, or maybe give some to Toby. They didn't matter much.
The vague – and sometimes not-so-vague – figure that traipsed about in the Escher picture she had, hanging on her wall? Art. Can't understand it, you know? Maybe she just missed that before. Entirely possible, given how much she took for granted.
The faint strains of music that echoed through her room? Karen probably had the radio on – or the next-door neighbor did; or maybe the garage band down the street was finally benefiting from those dreadfully long afternoons of 'practicing'.
The suspicious thumps and the pitter-patter of Goblins-something running about the edges of the house? Well, maybe the squirrels worked their way into the wall again. Perhaps she should look in to purchasing one of those humane traps… on the other hand, they'd be harder to ignore that way.
The grey-white feathers on her windowsill, or the ground below it? Seagulls, like as not, or maybe doves. (Sarah closed the curtains when she saw the ghostly bird glide down to the branch outside her window – only so she wouldn't be forced to acknowledge it further, of course. Nothing at all to do with how it irritated him-it.)
The crystal orb lying on her bed? How nice of her father to pick up a paperweight for her! Sarah moved it carefully to her desk, using a cloth to pick it up – to keep from getting fingerprints on it – before ignoring it (almost) entirely.
The lacy white monstrosity that showed up in her closet? Really, Karen ought to find subtler ways of nudging her into attending the prom. Which still wasn't going to happen… Not that she couldn't have gone, or found a partner, or was waiting on anyone. How had she ever implied that? She just didn't feel like getting worked up over two hours of hip-hop and a bowl of spiked peach-punch.
The Goblin King standing in the middle of her room when she trudged up the stairs with several hours of homework ahead of her? As much as she'd love to procrastinate, she really did need to get to work. So she pretended she didn't see him, that hair on her nape wasn't on end when he leaned over her shoulder.
"How long are you planning to keep this up?" he murmured, sounding more than faintly irritated.
Sarah clicked her pen thoughtfully, shrugged, and got started on her homework.
Oro: Alternative title: Tempting Fate. What happens next? Well, I'll leave you to figure that out...
Quill: About time.
Oro: Hush, you know what's been going on. Anyways: I'm still working on the Stranger series. It's based on ballads, folklore, etc. If there's a story you'd like to recommend, I'd love to hear it!
Quill: She doesn't own -
Oro: What? Did something speak?
