AN: Sorry about the long wait, but I'm back with chapter two. I'm going to start putting sneak peeks of the next chapters at the end. That's all I have to say for now, so enjoy!
Chapter 2: Partners, Smoke, and Unknown History
"Where are you?" Ariadne shouted into her cell phone.
"I'm running late." Michaela's voice crackled through the device.
"I don't know where my classes are." Ariadne informed her.
"Look at your schedule." Michaela suggested.
Ariadne groaned. "You ripped it up and said I wouldn't need it because I have the same classes as you."
"Talk to Fabian about it." Before Ariadne could reply the line went dead. Ariadne walked down the hallway in search of Fabian. She spotted him talking to a couple of people in front of his locker.
"Fabian!" Ariadne ran towards him.
"Hey, how's every-," Fabian began.
"I need your assistance." She cut him off.
Fabian nodded. "Yeah, what is it?"
"Michaela ripped up my schedule and-,"
"You need me to find your classes? No problem." He finished for her.
"Thanks," She smiled at him, "You're a life saver."
Ariadne suddenly heard someone clear their throat and she looked at the three people that were with Fabian. "Oh, sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt."
"It's fine." Fabian replied. "Amber, Nina, Mick, this is Ariadne. This is her first year here."
Ariadne offered them a smile and waved. "Hi,"
"You're American?" Nina asked.
Ariadne nodded. "Yep, born and raised in New York."
"New York!" Amber squealed. "The fashion capitol of the world?"
"Yeah, well, I'll be right back. It was nice to meet you." Ariadne made her way to the bathroom at the end of the hall.
"How is it that you're friends with some of the most attractive people?" Mick asked. Nina elbowed him and Mick groaned. "You're one of them."
Nina rolled her eyes and glanced at Amber. "We're going to go. I'll see you later."
Nina gave Mick a quick kiss before she and Amber walked away.
"So who is she?" Mick asked.
"She's Michaela's new roommate." Fabian answered.
"God," Mick glanced at Ariadne who was making her way back over to them. "Sometimes I wish I lived in Thoth house."
Fabian chuckled before nodding towards Ariadne. "You ready for first period?"
"Yeah, what do we have?" She asked.
"Egyptian Mythology."
The smile on Ariadne's face fell. "Well, that's boring."
Mick smiled and mumbled, "But it sure comes in handy."
Fabian laughed at the comment and the three began walking to their first class.
(***)
"I have your first project for you this semester. You are to study any country in the world besides the one you reside in now. You must discover how it came to be a nation, the official language, the culture, the citizens, its geographic location and structure, the most known history, and how it appears present day. You must write a report and create a presentation. This project counts as more than half of your grade, so I suggest you put effort into it. I have paired you up with one other person in the class." Professor Dallion looked down at the list in his hand and began reciting names.
Ariadne kept her eyes glued on her notebook as she sketched on a blank page. "Ariadne Stratford and Morgan Witrow."
Ariadne's head suddenly snapped up from her notebook and she looked at her teacher. "What?"
"I said-,"
"I know what you said." Ariadne interrupted. "Why can't I be paired with anyone else?"
"Because I'm the teacher and you have no say. End of discussion." Professor Dallion continued to list off names and Ariadne sighed.
She glanced behind her and saw Morgan in the back of the classroom. His arms were crossed over his chest as he leaned back in his chair and wore a smirk on his face. He was staring directly at her.
At that very moment the bell rang and Ariadne jumped out of her seat and rushed out of the classroom. She made her way down the hallway as quick as possible and ended up running into someone and dropping her books. She bent down to pick them up and when she stood back up Morgan was in front of her.
Ariadne glared at him and said, "It's not nice to sneak up on people."
Morgan shrugged. "I find it rather exciting."
Ariadne rolled her eyes and walked past him as she headed to the lounge. "I have somewhere I need to be."
"I just came to ask you what country you want to do." He explained.
"Let's do America." She suggested.
"That's boring." Morgan commented.
Ariadne shook her head and said, "It has a very intriguing history."
"Right, the revolutionary war… By the way, to answer your question, yes I am still mad that America managed to become a sovereign nation and change everything drastically. Tea is better than coffee, chips sounds better than fries, you don't know what minced pies are, and our accents are cooler."
"I'm going to ignore your sarcasm and suggest something else. I'll come up with something by the end of the day." She replied.
Morgan nodded and began walking away from Ariadne.
"Morgan?" Ariadne suddenly called.
He turned to look at her. "Yeah?"
"Coffee is better than tea, crumpets taste like dried squashed biscuits, we do know what minced pies are, and our accents may not make us sound snooty and stuck up, but at least we don't use the word bloody in practically every sentence."
Morgan narrowed his eyes at her and she smirked at him before tossing her hair over her shoulder and walking into the lounge.
(***)
"What'd you get for number five?" Amber asked.
Nina looked down at her notebook and said, "I got 22."
Amber raised an eyebrow and looked down at her own work. "How'd you get that?"
"I did cos(60) and multiplied that by-,"
"I don't know what you are talking about." Amber pointed out.
Nina rolled her eyes. "Amber, we've been doing trigonometry for a year. How do you not know what I'm talking about?"
"I spent a year saving the world Nina." Amber replied.
Nina chuckled and put her attention back on her work.
"Hey guys," Mick and Jerome walked up to the two girls and sat beside them.
"How are you lovely ladies today?" Jerome asked.
"We are doing trigonometry." Nina informed him.
Jerome scrunched his nose up in disgust. "Why? Not like we are going to walk up to a cash register and say 'I need 1/5 pi of that wheel of cheese and could you make sure to measure the side opposite of tan(15), thank you.'"
Amber smiled and leaned against Jerome. "And that's why I love you."
Jerome returned the smile and Nina set her textbook down on the table. "I guess we are done."
"Hey, did you happen to-," Mick began.
"I hate life." Fabian exclaimed as he sat down in front of the two couples.
"What happened this time?" Amber asked.
Fabian threw the school newspaper down on the small coffee table in front of them and the four moved to read the headline. "'School clubs being cut from school.'" Nina read aloud. "What about this makes you so upset?"
"Look at the list of clubs." Fabian stated as he ran a hand through his hair.
Jerome opened up the newspaper and skimmed the list. "Every club you're in is on this list."
"Exactly… How am I supposed to get into a good college if I don't have any clubs to prove that I did something besides school?"
"Why not join a sport?" Mick suggested.
Fabian stared at him. "Mick, please think about that statement."
Mick shook his head and leaned back in his seat. "Right, balls hate you."
Fabian narrowed his eyes at him. "They don't hate me, they just-,"
"Hey, you ready?" Fabian looked up and saw Michaela standing over him.
Fabian nodded and stood up. "Let's go."
"Where are you going?" Amber asked.
"We're going to an amusement park with a group of friends." Michaela answered.
"I would've invited you guys, but you don't really know anyone who is going." Fabian stated awkwardly.
The group of friends stared at each other as tension filled the air. Nina suddenly cleared her throat and stood up. "Hi, I don't think we've officially met. I'm Nina."
A small smiled filled Michaela's face and she said, "Right, Mick's girl. I'm Michaela. May I just say that I've heard a lot about you."
"All good things I hope." Nina replied.
Michaela smiled at the statement. "Yeah… Mick is such a great guy, isn't he?"
"Umm…" Nina looked at Mick. "Yep, he's a keeper."
"Yeah, he's good looking, kind… and faithful." Michaela told her.
Mick jumped up from his seat and said, "You best be going now. Don't want to be late, do you?"
Michaela nodded. "You're right. Come on Fabian."
Fabian gave the group an apologetic look as he and Michaela walked away.
"What was that about?" Nina asked.
Mick shook his head. "I have no idea."
(***)
Ariadne walked out of the school and headed towards Thoth house. She had her head down as she read over the assignment she had been given for world history class.
"Hey," Ariadne looked up and saw Morgan rushing towards her. "How is the American today?"
Ariadne rolled her eyes and handed the assignment to Morgan. "We're doing Egypt."
"Hmm… I know a lot about Egypt." Morgan replied.
"Apparently everyone does at this school." She exclaimed. She pointed towards the paper and said, "You are doing this and I'll be doing this. That way we can just combine our work together in the end."
"The whole point of having a partner is to do it together." Morgan pointed out.
Ariadne shrugged. "I work better alone."
She began to walk away, but before she could Morgan took hold of her wrist. Ariadne's blazer inched up and exposed her bare skin. Morgan squinted his eyes to get a good look at her wrist at noticed that scars littered her fair skin. Ariadne looked up at him and quickly snatched her wrist away. She turned and walked away before he could say anything.
(***)
Nina walked over to the door of Anubis house and opened it to see Michaela leaning against the doorframe. She walked into the house past Nina. "Yes, you can come in."
"Where are they?" Michaela asked.
"Who?" Nina questioned.
Michaela sighed. "The Scooby gang."
"Umm…" Nina lightly shook her head. At that very moment Amber came down the staircase. She spotted Michaela and Nina in the foyer and walked over to them. "Michaela, Fabian isn't here, but he'll be back in-,"
"I came to talk to you, Jerome, Mick, and Morgan." Michaela explained.
"Why? What's going on?" Amber asked.
Michaela took a deep breath. "I'll explain as soon as you get everyone here."
Amber nodded and walked to the boys' rooms to get Mick and Jerome. After a few minutes everyone sat in the living area waiting for Morgan to arrive. The door suddenly opened and Morgan entered the room. "What was so urgent that I needed to get here immediately?"
"That's what we want to find out." Jerome answered. "Michaela, what's going on?"
"She can't be here." Michaela explained as she nodded towards Nina.
"Why?" She asked.
"You aren't part of the Scooby gang." Michaela responded.
Mick shook his head. "Nina, you can-,"
"Okay, I guess we'll let the world end again." Michaela stated as she made her way to the front door.
"Wait," Amber called.
Michaela turned back. "Yes?"
Amber sighed and looked at Nina. "I'm sorry, but-,"
"Seriously?" Nina gawked at her. "You aren't actually going to kick me out, are you?"
"Nina, Michaela has a point. You aren't part of this mystery. You were a victim and that's all." Jerome informed her.
Nina shook her head. "Fine, I guess I'll go then."
Nina walked out the room and Michaela closed the door behind her. She looked at the four teens and smiled at them. "The end of the world is near."
"What are you talking about?" Morgan asked.
Michaela walked towards the fireplace. "Chaos is being awoken to fulfill their failed goal."
"But the Fortuna jewels are-," Amber began.
"Still salvageable." Michaela finished for her.
"That means that they're going to go after me." Amber sighed. "I thought it was over."
"It is. Well, at least for you." Michaela confirmed.
"What are talking about?" Mick asked.
Michaela pointed to Amber. "She was the Fortuna jewel for the last generation of Chaos members. With each one that comes, a new person is picked."
"What are you talking about? We defeated Chaos." Morgan reminded her.
Michaela nodded. "You did, but they are being resurrected. Their souls are being released from the underworld."
"How is that possible?" Jerome wondered.
"The last living Chaos member from the last generation opened the doors of death to let Chaos members out and allow them to possess bodies all over England." Michaela explained.
"What do we have to do to stop them?" Amber asked.
"We have to protect the new Fortuna jewel till their abilities are fully developed." Michaela stated.
"Abilities?" Mick waited for her to further explain.
"Abilities that will help close the doors of death and destroy the one link Chaos has to the human world, the soul of Anu Kabar, the original Chaos member."
Amber looked down at the ground. "I thought it was over…"
"Well, it isn't." Michaela insisted.
"Hold on," Morgan got out of his seat, "who is the new Fortuna jewel?"
A smile filled Michaela's face and she said, "Have you guys met my new roommate?"
"Ariadne?" Morgan asked in disbelief.
Michaela nodded. "You must protect the new girl and make sure that she stays out of trouble. It should be easy for you Morgan seeing as you already… how do I put this in British terms? Fancy her?"
"How do we know if someone's possessed?" Jerome asked.
Michaela shrugged. "You don't. Now I have to go."
"That's it? You don't have anything else to tell us?" Mick questioned.
"Not that I know of." She declared.
"Why do you do that?" Amber wondered. "You just dropped a huge bomb on us and you expect us to just let it settle?"
"I honestly don't care what you do. The world is ending again, so I suggest you figure out a plan. I already did my part by telling you instead of letting the world go down in flames. What more do you want from me?" She argued.
Amber remained quiet and Michaela smiled. She walked out of Anubis house leaving the group alone.
"What are we going to do?" Mick asked.
Morgan shrugged. "We'll do what we need to, but right now we need to take baby steps, so let's wait till we have all the information needed. For now we pretend like we don't know anything. No one dare mention this to Ariadne."
"Why? She has a right to know." Amber exclaimed.
"Actually, Morgan is right. We don't want to scare her off." Jerome agreed with Morgan.
"So we are all in agreement?" Morgan checked. "We'll talk later."
Morgan exited the room, followed by Mick.
"I still think we should tell her." She divulged.
"Amber, you know how it felt when you found out. Give her time to settle in and be normal, okay?" Jerome got up off the sofa and left Amber on her own.
(***)
Ariadne stared at the cup of coffee she had in front of her. She was alone in the school cafeteria in the middle of the night. "Ariadne?"
She suddenly jumped and spilled the cup of coffee all over herself. Ariadne stood as the boiling coffee settled on her skin and clothes. "Great… I had to wear white."
"Sorry about that." Morgan handed her a napkin and Ariadne dabbed at the fabric which was sticking against her skin.
"It's fine." She replied.
Morgan nodded and took a seat at the table Ariadne had been seated at. "I wanted to talk to you."
"If it's about what happened earlier I don't want to talk about it." Ariadne stated.
"I just want to make sure that what I saw… was what I saw." He explained.
Ariadne sighed and sat back down at the table. "Yes, it was."
"Why?" Morgan asked.
Ariadne looked down at her hands and said, "I know I look like I have everything together, but I'm not perfect. My life before coming here was no fairytale."
"What happened?"
"Morgan, I barely know you. I'm not going to reveal my deepest darkest secrets to you. Especially when I know that you won't do the same." She revealed.
Morgan nodded. "You look like the kind of person that has everything together."
"Why?" She asked. "Cause people think I'm pretty?"
"No, you just have this air to you, like nothing can break you down." He responded.
Ariadne stared at him and allowed her eyes to take in every feature of his face. His messy dark brown hair, the light bags under his eyes, the way the corners of his mouth slightly wrinkled when he frowned.
"Why are you staring at me?" He asked.
"You look sad." She informed him.
Morgan let his eyes find hers as he slightly moved forward. At that very moment Ariadne cleared her throat and stood up. "I have to go. I can't stay out past curfew. Meet me tomorrow so we can work on our project together."
Before Morgan could even replied, Ariadne bolted out of the area and disappeared into the inky darkness.
(***)
Professor Dallion made his way to his car which was parked at the far side of the road. He sighed as he pulled out his car keys and clicked the doors open. He shoved his keys back in his briefcase just as his phone began to ring. He paused for a moment and pulled his phone out of his pocket before putting it to his ear. "Hello? I'm on my way. I just need to drop something off at my flat and I'll meet you there. Are they in bed?"
Professor Dallion held his phone between his shoulder and head as he opened the car door and threw his briefcase in the vehicle. "Yeah, I just-,"
He paused as the sound of leaves rustling filled his ears. He looked around the dark street only to find no one there. "Umm… I have to go, but I'll make sure to call you later. Bye, love you."
He hung up the phone and tossed it in the passenger seat before stepping into the car. He fumbled with his keys as he tried to put them in the ignition. "Come on… come on."
The engine lightly roared, but refused to start. "Come on."
A loud bang was heard from outside and Professor Dallion tried to get the engine to work as he frantically jiggled the key in the ignition. "Please start, come on. Just start al-,"
The words trailed from his mouth as he caught sight of a giant puff of smoke outside the car. The smoke zipped towards the vehicle and seeped in through the windows. "What the-,"
The smoke shot towards him and entered through his eyes, nose, and mouth before it disappeared and his head collapsed against the steering wheel.
After a few seconds Professor Dallion lifted his head and turned the key in the ignition causing the engine to roar to life. His hands gripped the steering wheel as he glanced over at the mirror and stared at his black eye balls. A wide smirk settled on his face and he stepped on the gas and drove out of the school.
AN: I hoped you liked the chapter! I will try to get the next one out by next week or the week after that. Please review, favorite, and subscribe if you like! I apologize for any mistakes!
P.S. As you may have noticed Fabian is all buddy buddy with Nina, Amber, Mick, and Jerome and that will be explained in a later chapter. A lot happened over the summer that will be shown in a few chapters.
Next time on House of Souls…
"I don't think this is a good idea." Fabian exclaimed.
"Come on, we're supposed to be having fun." Morgan pointed out.
Ariadne shook her head. "I don't know. I sort of agree with Fabian."
"Why? Are you scared?" Morgan teased.
"No!" Ariadne snapped. "I just think it's irresponsible."
"We're teenagers." Michaela reminded her.
"That isn't a good excuse." Ariadne replied.
Morgan put an arm around her shoulders. "It's for fun. You know what that is right?"
Ariadne stared at the group reluctantly before picking up the red Dixie cup in front of her and gulping down the drink. She knelt down on the ground and gave the bottle a hard spin.
"See? Fun." Morgan stated.
Ariadne watched the bottle as it continued to spin around. After a few more seconds the bottle slowed and came to a stop.
Michaela looked at the bottle and then the person it had landed on before saying, "Oh, this is going to be interesting…"
*Summary for next chapter: The students host a 'back to school night' at the school pool where fun and games soon transpires into a lot of drama when a couple of friendly games pit people against each other.*