Mr. Lancer flipped through the pages of an old Casper High yearbook. The yearbook staff needed to choose a new design for this year's book, so he was gathering some past examples for them to reference. This one was several decades ago, back when he first started teaching. He froze when he reached his class's page. Underneath his picture, labeled William Lancer, were the students. He'd had over twenty students in his class that year, but one in particular grabbed his attention.
Amber McLain
"We miss you, Ember!" was scribbled in the margin, along with the names of her friends. He remembered her now; Amber, or Ember, as she preferred, was considered one of the... less than popular girls by her peers. She didn't care what anyone thought of her, and in fact dyed her hair bright blue just to stand out. Her dreams, however, were tragically crushed in December when her house burned down, killing her in the process.
The teacher gingerly closed the yearbook. Lancer suddenly felt exhausted, as if reliving those few months before and after her death. He had heard the rumors; he had heard that Amber had her heart broken sometime in mid-September, that maybe it wasn't completely accidental how she... Lancer ended that thought right there. The whole staff had noticed the warning signs, but the school counselor was unable to get through to her. It was too late to do anything.
Maybe, he thought with a sigh, some mind-numbing television would make him feel better. Lance Thunder was, once again, reporting a ghost attack. The ghost happened to be a certain pop singer, Ember McLain. Wait- Ember's a ghost? Her song, Remember, could be heard in the background.
"It was, it was September,
Wind blows, the dead leaves fall.
To you, I did surrender,
Two weeks, you didn't call.
"Your heart, your heart abandoned,
You're wrong, now bear the shame.
Like dead dreams, in cold December,
Nothing but ashes remains!"
Oh. OH. "The Raven, Ms. McLain!" Mr. Lancer shouted, blood running cold. How had he not noticed this before? Ember, Amber... they had the same face, same voice, and even shared a name. In fact, the only difference was that, now that he looked closer, Ember's hair was real fire; ghostly fire. Before, he had merely thought it was all an illusion, pyrotechnics maybe, but if she was a ghost, it was more likely than not real.
William Lancer shut the TV off. It didn't exactly turn out to be as mind-numbing as anticipated. He needed time to think; this was all too much to take in at once. Hopefully, after sleeping on it, he'd be ready for class tomorrow. There were still some tests to be graded, but he'd finish them later.
A/N: So here I am, finally publishing a story. I don't usually write much and haven't EVER published any of my writing online. It's sort of an OCD thing. Anyways, I finally got the nerve to post this. Sorry about the length (the lack thereof,) but I figured it's better to have short chapters than none at all, right? Now, I'd really appreciate some constructive feedback! And... t-thanks for reading... *resists urge to quit and thoroughly purge file* Eheh... review?