Chapter Two
Merean breathed in deeply the musky smell of old furniture and swept her long gaze over the entrance foyer. Everything was how it looked 400 years ago, although the wallpaper was peeling and slightly yellow and the floor could have used a good sweep. She walked over the oak floorboards and into the sitting room, dust rising in the air around her.
The old, plush couches were worn and covered in a fine layer of dust. The grand piano in the corner was slightly chipped and a few keys were missing. The oil paintings that hung on the wall were missing, probably stolen centuries ago by some over excitable persons.
Merean walked through a side door into the large kitchen. Everything was still here: the old polished cupboards that had once been full of the most delicious canned goods, the brick chimney with the charred fireplace, and the marble bench where she used to sit countless times while waiting for her dinner when she was young. The only things that had changed were the gas stove that had been added and a refrigerator. She rifled through all the drawers, finding the silverware that Grandmama had cherished the most. These were supposed to go to Merean, but that was before had she run away.
She walked back out into the sitting room then through two large mahogany doors that led to the dining room. The dining room had changed only a bit. The wallpaper had been removed and replaced with a garish red paint and the mantelpiece had been removed from above the fireplace. The table was still mahogany and the chairs still matching. She remembered sitting at this table when she was ten and entertaining some guests with a new trick she had learnt.
Merean retreated out of the room and decided to explore the new areas of the lower floor that had been renovated and changed. A study had been built next to the dining room and a small indoor greenhouse had been added behind the kitchen. She arrived at the elegant, sweeping staircase and bounded up the stairs. The hall was the same, except a rug had been added. All the doors were still the same polished oak. Merean pushed open one door and poked her head inside. It was Granddad and Grandmama's room. The small four-poster bed stood in the middle of the room, the purple quilt Grandmama had made was tattered and ripped. The dressing table and bureau were still there, and no doubt there were some clothes in the drawers. She closed the door again and proceeded down the hall. She peered around Da's room, finding nothing of interest. His bookcase was there, although empty and his bed was broken at the head. Merean continued down the hall before stopping at a door that had always lingered in her memory.
She took a deep, steadying breath and slowly crept inside. Her room had remained the same. Her four-poster bed with the midnight blue curtains was in almost perfect condition; her dressing table was fine, although the mirror was slightly cracked; the bookcase was empty but all her books were back in her apartment in Shinansiling; and her wardrobe doors were barely hanging on the hinges. She sighed and walked through the room, looking for her most treasured item, the one she had been forced to leave behind. She searched high and low, but she couldn't find it.
Growling, Merean turned and left her old room, trudging angrily down the stairs.
I'll bet any money that Da took it away, Merean thought angrily as she marched through the foyer and slammed the front door closed. She didn't bother to explore the stables or the servants' quarters, they were of little interest to her now that she knew that her precious keepsake wasn't there.
She checked her watch and cursed. It was eight twenty-two and if she didn't hurry, she'd miss the last bus back to Shinansiling. Merean bounded over the fence and tore down the empty streets towards the centre of town. She sped past late-night stragglers and ignored the shouts as she knocked people over. She rounded a corner…and fell flat on her butt.
"Oi! What the hell do you think you're doing?!" an angry voice shouted down to her. Merean ignored them, rising to her feet and bru.
"What do you think you're doing?" the voice repeated again.
"Running for the bus!" Merean retorted. The guy she had run into stared back angrily, his electric blue eyes piecing her foggy grey ones. His ash-blond hair was slightly tussled and his face was twisted into an annoyed grimace. She noticed a few paper bags split and their contents littering the pavement.
"Running for the bus? No one needs the bus that urgently," the guy said, ignoring the paper bags and continuing to stare at her.
"Well, I do," Merean said and she rudely pushed past him and resumed her mad dash for the bus. She made it just in time, banging on the doors as the bus slowly crawled out of the bus station. The driver glared at her as she jumped on and walked to the back. She plonked down in a seat and rested her head against the window. She was exhausted and angry that she hadn't found what she was looking for. Not to mention she was stuck on this damn bus for another four hours. But within ten minutes, Merean was out like a light.
***
Ash grumbled as he picked up the contents of the paper bags that had spilt when that crazy girl had run into him. Nobody needs the damn bus that urgently, he thought with irritation as he salvaged what he could then straightened up again. He had been walking towards the Gallagher Homestead when she had slammed into him. Then she had been rude and run off again.
So now he was off again, with half the supplies he had originally started with. He had no idea why Midir had asked him to come here; he only knew that he wanted Ash to find something. And whatever that something was, it must've been important because Midir had a fit when Ash refused. Ash trudged up the dimly lit streets, looking out for a sign that would say he was nearing the original homesteads of Ollabandia. He didn't have to walk for long. He found the street then continued up it, knowing that the Gallagher Homestead stood at the end of the street.
Ash rounded a corner and stopped and stared at the homestead. A large cherry blossom tree stood in front of what must have been the stable and as for the homestead, well, it was massive. Ash jumped over the chain link fence and walked up the grassy hill towards the house. He paused on the wide, sweeping veranda when he noticed footprints in the dirt on the veranda. Someone must have been here recently, Ash thought as he pushed open the front door. He walked into the entrance foyer and looked around. He could see the staircase from here and could vaguely remember Midir saying that he had to go upstairs into one of the bedrooms. He did as he was instructed, walking slowly up the stairs and proceeding to the last bedroom on the left. Midir had said that this was where the thing he wanted was.
Ash walked into the room and surveyed everything. There was a four-poster bed with midnight blue curtains; a dresser with a cracked mirror; an empty bookcase and a wardrobe with broken doors. Ash walked forwards and rifled through the drawers in the dresser then continued to search the wardrobe. He looked under the bed and even checked the bookcase for any secret compartments. It wasn't here. The thing Midir wanted wasn't here. Dammit, Ash thought, now I have to go back to school. When Midir had asked Ash to find that something, he had promised that if Ash found it he wouldn't have to go back to school and he'd have a new target to hunt. But Ash had failed, and now he was going to school.
It didn't seem fair to him. Even though Ash looked like your everyday seventeen-year-old, technically he was over four hundred. Dhampirs stopped growing when they reached a certain age. Ash had stopped growing when he turned seventeen, but even then he was only five years old. Dhampirs aged really fast, meaning he looked like a seventeen-year-old boy when he had only been alive for five years. But years had passed and Ash stayed the same, meaning he looked like he should still be in school and not out killing people.
Ash walked back towards the centre of town, dawdling because he didn't want to have to face Midir straight away. He walked slowly down Main Street, looking through all the windows and watching drunks spill out of pubs onto the sidewalk. Finally he had had enough of sight seeing and returned to his car. He climbed into his sleek black Mercedes and sped off into the night.
***
Merean woke to her head slamming against the window as the bus ran over a pothole. She rubbed her eyes sleepily and realised she was back in Shinansiling. She clambered off the bus clumsily and looked around for a taxi. She finally found one sitting in the shadows, the driver probably hoping that no one would see him so he didn't have to drive anywhere. Bad luck, buddy boy, Merean thought as she tapped on the window.
The driver looked at her warily then unlocked the back door. Merean climbed in and told the driver where to go. He looked at her as if she were crazy then took off up onto the main road. Merean stared out the window, watching everything go by in a blur. The taxi rounded a bend and slowed down. They had come to the west side of the city; the bad side. The driver pulled up next to the curb and told her to get out; he didn't want to have to go any further. Merean got out; payed the fare then walked the two blocks to the apartment building she stayed at. She unlocked the iron security gate then opened the door. She walked quietly through the dark and empty lobby, and then stumbled up the dark stairwell.
She found her room, unlocked the door and walked inside. She dumped the keys on the kitchen bench and looked around. The small kitchen was relatively clean, although the small dining table was covered in newspapers and letters. She walked through into the small lounge room and checked the answering machine: nothing. She then continued to the small bedroom and flopped onto the double bed. She kicked off her shoes and quickly fell asleep.
Sorry, it's not very good. I find it hard to write things set in the modern world. I'm looking for someone who'd want to be my Beta Reader and help me out. I'm also looking for someone to help out writing the parts in Ash's point of view. If anyone would like to help, PM me and I'll give you my details and tell you whats going to happen.
Anyways, hope you enjoyed it and please review!
(LoL, hi guys! This is Emily aka Palace-Of-Nightmares, Sarah doesnt know I'm writing this. hehe. But you MUSt reveiw :) reveiw because its an awesome story and it will only get better)
Vampsa (Sarah)
