The Invisible Man's Secret
It had been a slightly fogy October day. The leaves on the trees were turning their regular colors. At the ledge, at the edge of the forest, the mountains looked like a mountain of pancakes covered in an ocean of colors.
Christena, Kelly, Chris, and Kyle had been friends ever sense they were four. They had found the ledge and clamed it as theirs. But their parents didn't know about it.
On that October day they went into the forest. They were throwing rocks in the stream when they heard a stick crack. They supposed it was a deer or a rabbit.
"Do you really think that it was a deer?" asked Kelly when they were walking home.
"What ells could it be? A hunter?" asked Kyle. "Besides, he would have found us and probably would have said: 'Hay you kids, you shouldn't be here. There are bears around these parts.'" Every one but Kelly laughed.
On Thursday, when they were basking on the ledge, they heard it again. "Crack!" Every one whirled around. Nothing.
"Kyle and I will go and check it out," said Chris. "You girls stay here." When they came back they said they found nothing.
"It's spooky really. Not knowing what's there behind you," said Christena.
"O, come on," said Kelly. "You really think it's a human?"
"If I'm not mistaken, you were afraid of the noise," said Chris. He was right. Then they went home.
The next day, when they were sitting by a tree, facing the hills, a slight breeze swept across Chris' neck. But the thing is, there was no breeze in the air. "Did anyone feel that?" asked Chris.
"Feel what?" asked Christena.
"That breeze."
"There isn't a tree moving Chris" said Kelly.
"I know; but I felt something going across my neck" he continued.
"It was probably a chill going down your back" said Kyle.
"Your probably right" said Chris.
When they were walking through the forest, trying to find a shady spot the next day, Christena wanted to climb an oak. "Anyone with me?" she asked.
"Sure, why not" said Chris.
"Ya we'll do it" they all agreed. So they all tried to get to the highest branch they could get to. But then, they heard footsteps behind them. They all tried to blend in with the branches. There was no one. "OK" said Christena "I am totally freaked out."
"Ya" said Kyle, "let's go home." There were no arguments.
The following afternoon, they decided to play in Kelly's backyard. "Oh come on," said Chris "Let's go back into the forest." He had been trying to convince them to go back into the forest ever since they got into Kelly's back yard. They finally agreed. They were hesitant but they decided not to go too far into the forest.
"So," said Christena. "What shall we do? Sit around, play games, have a throwing contest?"
"OK" said Kelly. "A rock throwing contest."
Kelly went last. So far, Chris had thrown the farthest and Kyle had thrown the shortest distance. When it was Kelly's turn, she through it right into a bush. Then, much to their surprise, the bush groaned.
They all ran out of the forest; all except Christena. She ran deeper and deeper into the forest. But what she didn't know was that her friends weren't behind her.
When she came to the ledge, she couldn't stop. She was about to fall when something tugged her from the collar of her shirt. She was flung backwards, thinking that one of her friends had done it. She lay there for a few minutes, thinking of how close she had come to flying off the edge.
She stood up slowly and looked around. No one was there. Then, from out of no where, a man, probably in his late 60s, wearing a bowler hat, half moon glasses, a bow tie, a white shirt, black jacket, black pants, and black shoes, appeared in front of her.
"Please, do not be afraid," he said. "I am Richard Anderson. This may be a shock to you, but I've been watching you and your friends now for a week." Christena was speechless. "I won't hurt you." He said to her.
Finally, Christena found her voice and courage. "What are you doing here? And how come we haven't seen you?" She asked.
"Because I can turn invisible," he told her. Again she was speechless. "You should sit down," Richard said. So she did.
"I was born in the early 1800's. A witch put a spell on me to make me invisible. But by putting that curse on me it made me live forever, until a blood relative says the counter-curse," he explained. Christena looked at him curiously. Richard rushed to explain. "Ever since that day I've been looking after my family. There was a time that I lost them, but I found you a few years ago. I've been watching you ever since."
"So you want me to say the counter-curse?" Christena asked.
"Yes; that's exactly what I want you to do," he responded.
"I just have one question: how can you turn visible again?"
"I have been alive for almost two hundred years, and most of those years I've spent alone because no one could see me. So I tried to master my own body, make myself visible, and I have been able to do that for short incraments of time."
"Then why do you want me to say the counter-curse if you can already counter it yourself?"
Richard sighed. "What other 198 year old man do you know? I still can't die."
"Why don't you want to live forever. You could be alive when we have flying cars or something."
He smiled at her naivety. "You have no idea what it's like to see everyone you've ever know die, while you never change. You can't get close to someone becasue you know you will outlive them. I just want to die and be with my family again.
A tear traced itself down Christena's cheek. "Alright," she said. "I'll do it."
They walked all the way to the witch's house. Supprisingly it wasn't that far away from Christena's or her friends house, which was sort of unnerving. It was a rickety old house with moss and vines growing up the sides. "Is this the witch's house?" Christena asked.
"It was. She died about 100 years ago. She got burned to the stake for witchcraft," Richard said. "C'mon. Let's go in,"
It was a very dusty house. "The last time I was here she had her spell book on this bookcase," he said pointing to a small black bookcase in the corner.
"I think I'll go outside," said Christena. The first step she took, bats came flying out of the fireplace. She ducked down and flew out of the door like one of the bats.
Richard came out after her. "Are you alright?" he asked.
"Yes," confirmed Christena. "I'll stay out here. You go back inside and find the counter-curse." He nodded and went back inside.
Richard came out shortly. "I found it," said Richard excitedly. "It's on page 2,324."
"That's a big book," said Christena.
"Alright," said Richard, "I need you to read these words." She took the book and fell to the ground from its weight.
"The days have been long and the loneliness unbearable. With these words I restore you to how you were: a mortal being" she read. The only sounds afterwards were the sound of some crows from a nearby tree.
"I don't think it worked," sighed Richard.
"Maybe I'm not your blood relative," said Christena. "You said that you lost track of your family before you found us. Maybe you found the wrong people." They agreed on that. Christena promised that she would ask her dad to do some genealogy.
They finally found it. Her name was Sarah Pulsing, and she lived on 22nd street. After school, Christena found Richard at the front of the forest. They walked all the way to 22nd street. All they found there were some tall publishing buildings and a girl standing by a cardboard box.
"Do you know where we can fined a Sarah Pulsing around here?" Christena asked her.
"I'm Sarah," she said hesitantly.
"We need you to read these words," Richard said maybe a little over enthusiastic.
"Why?" Sarah shrinking back against the brick wall behind her. Richard told her the story. "Okay," said Sarah. "I'll do it." She cleared her throat. but before she could say anything Richard stopped her.
"I have one last bit of unfinished business." He turned to Christena. "You know that bush you and your friends were throwing rocks at?"
"Yes," she said.
"Well I was looking for something. Something of the witches."
"What was it," the girls asked together.
He smiled. "Burried treasure."
"What?"
"I want you two to share it. You have more use of it than I will ever have. Think of it like a reward and a thank-you gift for what you are doing for me. Please."
They agreed and gave him a hug. Their own small and simple thank-you.
"The days have been long and the loneliness unbearable," Sarah began to read. "With these words I restore you to how you were: a mortal being."
Suddenly the wind felt like a cold slam across the face. The girls had to catch themselves so they wouldn't be blown over, but when they looked at Richard, he was standing with his eyes closed and a smile on his face. The wind didn't seem to be affecting him at all.
Suddenly he started to get fainter and fainter. He seemed to be blowing away with the wind. The girls watched this until the wind died as well as the man.
"I don't know what to feel," said Sarah.
"I know what you mean," agreed Christena. "I'm sad that he's dead, but also happy at the same time. It's what he wanted."
"There was also one other thing he wanted." They looked at eachother and grinned.
They walked right to the bush that Kelly had thrown the rock. They had found a shovel in the witch's basement. They started to dig when they hit something hard, "This is it!" Christena said excitedly. She and Sarah brought out a wooden chest. Sarah took the shovel and hit the lock, and the lock broke apart.
When they opened the chest and looked inside, they saw purls, gold, emeralds, and rubies. "I feel like I'm in a pirate movie," exclaimed Christena.
They split the money into two different piles.
In the end, Sarah Anderson went to the same school as Christena. They were neighbors to. The very next day, after Sarah moved in, Christena's friends and Sarah became friends.