HOUSE OF NIGHT RETURNS
I didn't think much of it at first but then it became more pronounced as my brain processed what was actually happening. Arabelle was coughing blood. She was dying, my best friend was dying. Her name is Arabelle Wick and I've known her for three years she's been my best friend ever since I got to this vampire school. Coughing up blood happens here a lot it's when the kids start to reject the change from human to vampire. There are schools all over the world for children who get marked and start to go through the change it takes four years to complete the change but any time from when you're marked to the time you make the complete change you can reject the change and die. As she violently coughed up blood and soaked her beautiful black dress she had worn to the ritual that night.
She was crying, and her tears were tinged with red as she realised she was dying. "I'm staying with you. I won't let you be alone." I said as I tried to comfort her in her last moments whilst trying to hold back my own tears. She coughed and gagged again, and more blood sprayed from her mouth and nose. I couldn't hold it in anymore, I started to cry. It was too late. As she took her last breath I could feel her spirit leave the room and drift to some distant place where it would be kept safe. A part of me left with her.
I was in a daze from Arabelle's death and just sat in our room, not knowing what to do or say to persuade the girls that I was ok with all of this. Truth was I just needed to adjust to not hearing her funny northern accent every morning when it was time to get up, or hear her over the table at meal times when she would act like the mother of the group and tell us all to stop arguing. God I was going to miss her so much. Even though I still had Erik, Damien and friends like Erin and Shaunee it still wouldn't be the same without Arabelle here.
Weeks went by. Months went by. I was back to my normal self, after that morning in Erik's room I became happier and happier, realising Arabelle wouldn't want me to be sad so I just remembered all o the good things that happened over the years. I knew where ever she was she was thinking of me too from time to time.
Walking to the temple to set up for my first ritual as leader of the shadow daughters, I saw something out of the corner of my eye. There where big ever-green trees towering over me blocking out the moons light. I suddenly stopped as I heard a voice coming from a distance away. I wasn't sure what to do so I tried to creep a bit closer to see who it was talking. I froze in place as I saw Miss Swann and she was talking to someone, I couldn't quite see who, because of the trees blocking the light. Then the unknown figure turned into the little light that there was and I saw her. I saw Arabelle. How could this be? I didn't understand it one bit. My brain just couldn't process what was happening. I had to see if see was real. But I couldn't because it couldn't be my Arabelle, my Arabelle was curvier, whereas this look-a-like was as skinny as a twig and had such a gaunt face and had such a sad expression.
"…Oh my gosh, I can't-"I started to say.
"Polly Hardy what do you think you are doing all the way out here at this time of day. Shouldn't you be at your ritual?" that was Miss Swann cutting in and unexpectedly it felt like I was in a trance and I heard myself automatically say
"Sorry Miss Swann, yes...I should be at my ritual. Sorry to disturb you Miss Swann."
And not even meaning to do it I turned away and walked to the temple on my own. As I reached the temple entrance my conscience came rushing back to me. What had just happened? I couldn't remember, all I could think of was that I was running late for my first ritual as the new leader for the shadow daughters
I was shaking as I walked out, I couldn't believe what I had remembered, all of my memories from before the ritual came flooding back to me, everything about seeing a distraught Arabelle and Miss Swann making me do things I didn't want. I had to tell someone. But who? I couldn't tell the twins and not Erik either all three of them would blow this out of proportion. So that only left Damien who I could trust with this.
Then I dawned on me maybe I could contact Arabelle by going to the west wall and summoning her spirit and maybe connect with her.
I ran to our room and gathered some of her things. I really hoped this worked. Everyone gathered in my room and I explained what was going on.
"Polly! Why didn't you tell us before? We could have kicked Miss Swann's arse!" Erin and Shaunee chimed together. Erik spoke in a sort of dazed voice.
"Oh God how could this happen, this is some sort of evil, I'm sure of it. How could anyone come back from the dead?"
"I don't know, if we try to contact Arabelle maybe she could tell us something about what happened to her and whether there are any others. Ok let's get down to the west wall and see how this is going to work." I said.
We walked as a big group down the dark path to the west wall. As I was arranging Arabelles things into a circle everyone took their places whilst holding their candles I went round the circle clockwise from north and lit them calling their elements to them.
I concentrated on her aura that was left on the items. Images started to appear in my mind, she was somewhere dark and wet, and she was speaking to someone. Only this time it wasn't Miss Swann.
"Hello, Arabelle? If you can hear me please say something, I really need to know that this isn't my imagination. I know you can talk. I heard you with Miss Swann earlier."
Arabelle jumped in surprise. It felt like I was there but not in a paranormal sort of way. Suddenly Arabelle answer in her northern accent that I missed so much.
"Oh Polly, where are you? You have to get out of here, you can't be here, it's bad." Arabelle exclaimed.
"No, Arabelle I'm not where you are. Where even are you by the way?" I said.
"It doesn't matter. She's coming I can't talk now." Arabelle said in a rushed voice.
"Ok if I have to leave please come and meet me at the west wall next Friday." I begged.
"Fine. Meet me there after your last class when everyone's in the dining hall." She snapped at me.
She hissed at me and I jumped and almost immediately I was back with my friends and Jack at the west wall in the school. I was so excited that she was actually going to come back to the school and talk to me.
"She's coming to see us here next Friday after last lesson when everyone's at dinner." I said exasperated.
"Yay yay yay, I can't wait to see my northerner again! Woo!" the twins said together.
The week passed quickly.
It was Friday and I was buzzing but so nervous at the same time because what if the outcome was bad? What I Miss Swann was evil? She was supposed to be one of the good guys. When the bell finally went all five of practically ran out of the room and down the dark path to the west wall. Out of breath we sat down under the pine tree nearest the wall. We waited for over an hour. Finally a figure came out of the shadows, not even identifying who it was I rushed over and hugged the figure. She was tense but loosened. I heard a faint sob in my ear. Stepping back I looked at Arabelle in the eye and only saw misery.
"Hey, so how did you end up like this? How did it happen? And how is Miss Swann involved in all of this? And most of all is anyone else like you, because when I saw you in the circle I saw that James boy." I said in a quick rush.
"Wow, nice to see you too, I've been great thanks. How about you? And by the way you have a lot of questions." Arabelle replied flatly but with a hint of happiness.
"Sorry I didn't mean it like that. And I'm good just slightly worried about what happened to my best friend last month." I said more calmed that now she was here.
"So anyway, Miss Swann is actually evil didn't you know. And I think she's planning on building an army of un-dead marked vamps or something. And yeah there's this whole network of us down town in the sewers. I couldn't believe it when I woke up." She said again flatly but no hint of happiness this time. We talked some more and finally came up with a plan to take Miss Swann down and her little un-dead army with her.
The next week we planned and refined our sources and strategies more. Every time I looked at her it felt like she knew what we were planning.
Arabelle met us at the same place but this time she had come with a small army of her own so that we had a few of each type of marked vampire. We went to the staff accommodation and snuck up to the top level and the end of the corridor and opened her door, she was meditating. We surrounded her in a circle and I cast another circle so that she couldn't escape and called all of the elements to the circle so that they would help us. She seemed to come out of her trance not shocked at all.
"Ah children, I expected you to be here a lot earlier, I'm surprised it took you this long to figure it out." She said in a harshly calm voice. It sent a chill up my spine.
"You evil bitch! Why would you do this? What do you have to achieve from this? World domination? Because that's never going to happen!" I shouted at her being careful not show how scared I was. All of the elements where swirling around me now, I felt like I was ready to explode.
"If you are going to get rid of me then do it quickly please, I have neither gained nor lost anything from this so I shall go quickly and quietly."
Then the room went completely white. And when colour came back she was gone. It was all very strange but none of us had any idea what had just happened. So I dismissed all of the elements and we went back to our dorms. The un-dead vampires went back to their sewer and were going to come back tomorrow just earlier in the night so that we could sort out arrangements and other such thing with our new high priestess. I went to sleep very happy and relaxed.