Chapter 10 : Tome
Clover sat at the table with Lorna. The latter laid the Tome of the Unknown flat before them and opened it.
"This is the page about the Beast", she said, pointing at it. "Most of it we already knew, but there are a few things… well, check it out for yourself."
The Woodsman's daughter leaned over the book to examine the page closely.
"'The lantern presumably created itself a body over time'…" she read aloud. "So he didn't start off like Aileen did."
"Presumably", the other girl reminded her.
Clover nodded. Her new friend was right : there was no certainty in the Unknown.
"And what about the second Beast?" she asked. "Did the lantern found it quicker to take her body and soul than to create a new body?"
"This is my theory anyway", Auntie Whispers intervened as she brought cups of tea to the table.
Her guest sat back in her chair.
"We couldn't destroy the lantern so we hid it", she explained. "We thought that at least we could avoid any other Aileen-like incident. But… the Beast might still come back some day? Can he do that if the lantern is out?"
"Even the Tome doesn't say anything about this", Lorna said.
"I'm afraid there isn't much to do about this situation" Auntie Whispers added.
"Oh, there is one thing I can do", their guest said. "I will keep a close eye on where Aileen and the Dark Lantern are buried. If the old Beast shows up once more, I'll kill him all over again. I'll kill him a thousands times if I have to."
The other two didn't reply.
Auntie Whispers served tea to everyone then sat at the table with the teenagers.
"Let's just say that… with him, it's personal", Clover explained to break the silence.
All three took their cups in their hands and drank their first sips of tea.
"Speaking of personal matters," the old woman began, putting her teacup back on the table, "would you be so kind to inform me what happened to my sister, dear?"
The guest froze. There it was. This subject couldn't be avoided forever.
"I do not know, m'am. I've never even met her."
"That's a good thing you haven't. Adelaide wasn't the type of witch you'd want to deal with. But your friend did, didn't she?"
How could she reply to that? How could she say anything that wouldn't make the old woman more suspicious than she already was?
"Only briefly. Then she disappeared. Beatrice and I have no idea what happened. Also, your tea's very good."
Clover took another sip and leaned over the Tome again, focusing on the written words, searching for new information and soaking it up.
"Why thank you, my child. And maybe I'll talk to Beatrice about it instead", Whispers said.
"I doubt you'll get much information from her either", the Woodsman's daughter stated, eyes still on the page.
Always hidden in the shadows. Real appearance unknown. The book was wrong on that last point now : the Beast's real form was no longer as mystery. How much of the knowledge within the Tome of the Unknown was still true? How much of it had been disproved? How much secrets were still secrets even to whoever wrote these pages? Was it a reliable source at all?
"Even if the Dark Lantern did manage to create a new body from scratch… would it be the same Beast or a completely new one like Aileen?" Clover wondered aloud.
"What makes you so sure this girl was a completely new Beast and not simply possessed by the lantern?" Lorna asked.
"Well… I'm not. All I know is she had neither her own memories nor the first Beast's. Otherwise she would have recognised me."
"I guess the Dark Lantern could not transfer memories to the new body", the old woman said. "Or didn't have the time to."
The Woodsman's daughter thought to herself that the Tome of the Unknown probably needed an updated edition to really help them uncover the mysteries of this world. Maybe they could all work on it later if they found anything more than mere guesses and theories.
She sat back in her chair again and took a long sip of tea.
Actually, she was starting to doubt they'd ever get a definite answer about how all of this really worked.
She glanced at the window and realised the sun was already setting.
"Oh, it's getting late", Clover said before quickly finishing her cup and standing up. "I should go back home now. Maybe I'll visit again soon. Thank you for letting me see the Tome. And for the tea."
Lorna and her aunt stood up as well to accompany their guest to the door.
"One last question, dear", the old woman said as she stood next to the exit, "have you ever considered becoming a witch? I can sense you have potential."
"What?" Clover replied. "What do you mean?"
"Anyone can practice witchcraft, but already having special abilities can help."
"What special ab- oh, you mean… how I can… sense things? Until recently I thought it was normal."
"There is no such thing as 'normal', child."
"If you say so", the Woodsman's daughter said. "I'll think about it. Goodbye m'am. Goodbye Lorna."
"Goodbye Clover", Auntie Whispers and her niece replied in unison as the latter opened the door to let their guest leave.
Once she was out of sight, Lorna closed the door.
"This Beatrice definitely has something to do with what happened to Adelaide", the old woman stated. "And Clover may or may not know about it. We need to catch Beatrice alone if we want to get anything from her."
The teenager simply nodded.