1 Mysterious
I woke to the sound of my jewelry box playing its song next to me in bed. When I cracked my eyes open I spied the object sitting on the desk. I watched the ballerina dance in a circle with a feeling of dread.
How did it get in here?
Who wound it up and brought it in here?
I hopped out of bed and rushed to it and checked its contents. The locket still lay where I left it but there was an addition to the necklace. A silver lapis ring sat inside on top of a piece of black velvet.
I picked the ring up and examined it from top to bottom. There wasn't a speck of black on the silver and the lapis was flawless without a scratch. It looked a touch feminine and dainty but easily could have been worn by a man. Inside the band, I spied something written in a fancy script. After tilting the ring more into the light I easily read the inscription inside.
All I refuse & Thee I chuse.
An eerie feeling passed through me as I read those words. I sensed a sort of – magic with those six words. Powerful magic as old as time.
I shuddered and called for the only person I ever truly trusted.
Auntie, I whispered inside her mind. I sensed her stir inside her room and sat up.
"Angela?" she cried.
It's me, come to my room. Please.
Immediately she stumbled out of her bed and crept toward my room. After a moment or two, someone knocked on my door. I dashed over and opened it then ushered my aunt inside.
What is this, I asked showing her the ring.
Just as carefully as I examined it, Florence looked at it too. She too spied the inscription and shivered.
"It's your mother's." my aunt told me, "I never saw her without it since Branton was a young boy."
Before I was born, I inquired.
"Over a year before." Florence replied.
I sighed as Madelyn walked inside.
"What's going on?" she asked as Julian came in behind her.
My aunt passed Madelyn the ring, "Angel found this along with her jewelry box."
As Madelyn looked at the ring, Julian looked at my box and locket.
"You were a cute baby." Julian said as he put the locket back and shut the box.
"That's not Angela." Florence told him as he was given the ring to look at.
"Then who is it?" he asked.
"I don't know, I've never seen the youngster before." Florence answered as Julian looked inside the band. "Just in this locket."
I watched as Julian read the inscription and his eyes went wide.
"Was this Ariel's?" Julian demanded.
"It was." Auntie replied with a frown, "I thought that it was lost when Ariel died."
Madelyn placed a hand on his shoulder, "What's wrong?"
Julian turned toward her, "I gave Jenny a ring like this once." He shook his head deep in thought, "Before I died, I changed the inscription to read: I am my own master."
A silence passed between everyone and in that time Damon came in.
"Who died." He asked with a smirk.
I snatched the ring and tossed it to him, My mother's.
He looked at it and snorted, "A combination between Jenny's and a vampire's ring."
I frown and he showed me his hand. On one of his fingers sat a lapis ring almost exactly identical to my mother's.
"This is getting creepy." Madelyn said unsettled. "I take it that this thing just appeared?"
I nodded and pointed to the box.
Damon stuck his head in, "That too right?"
I nodded and shuddered. I don't like this, I told him placing the ring back in the jewelry box.
Me neither, he replied.
Our next clue was wedged in Morigan's door, an obvious warning of who would be next if we didn't get this next clue.
I spy something old, blood red cursive said.
Joan and Florence went to my aunt's bank to look through her safe deposit box for another clue. She kept a bunch of my parent's things that she deemed too valuable in the box. Things like my parents' wedding bands, the deed to the old house, a gold medallion with strange writing on it, five raw rubies and two blue sapphires were there.
Stefan and Elena scoured the empty cemetery to see if my parents' tombstone was what was old while Madelyn ran off to check in with her over protective folks.
They knew where she was, why did she have to repeat it?
That left Damon, Julian and I to baby-sit Morigan.
"I want my Momma." She whined for the hundredth time.
I rolled my eyes and turned to leave.
She grabbed my arm and shouted, "This is all your fault you know."
I jerked my arm free and glared at her harshly which made her cower back into the couch.
Then Morigan began to flirt with Julian who sat beside her watching TV.
"Why don't we go somewhere where we can spent some time alone." She said clutching his arm and batted her eyelashes.
Julian jerked his arm free, "Try it with someone who's interested, Morigan."
My sister in law rose out of her seat and sauntered over to Damon across the room. Before she got there Damon walked off and came to sit beside me on the floor.
I sensed Morigan glaring at me as I watched the local news.
A report about the zombies from the Hallowed Souls Cemetery visiting relatives suddenly came up. A husband, who died over thirty years ago, visited one lady. She was rushed to the hospital after suffering from a heart attack. The sister of the man who sold a person their house visited them. They took it better than the old woman. The woman, her brother and the owner ended up having tea together.
"Keegan's game is certainly interesting." Julian said with a smirk, "Sort of like what I spied last night."
In a blink of an eye, Damon was across the room, had jerked Julian off the couch and slammed him against the wall holding him by his shirt collar.
"If you mention what you saw to *anybody*, I will rip out your eyes and shove them down your throat." Damon growled, "Understand?"
Julian's eyes were big as saucers, "You'll actually do that to me." He shivered in delight and just smiled.
Damon dropped him on his tail end and walked, no stormed back to me.
"Psicopatico." I heard him mutter, plopping down beside me.
"And loving every moment." Julian responded obviously grinning ear to ear.
"And on a even stranger note, the Texas Rangers won the Pennant." The newscaster said before turning to the sports guy. "First zombies and now the Rangers?"
"Rangers stink." Julian said over the sports guy's monologue. "The best thing Texas has is the Stars."
I'm not a sports fan so I say that they all suck, I told Damon.
I'm not a fan either, I find it pointless to run an inflated piece of a swine across a field. Damon told him and flashed me a grin adding, The cheerleaders are nice though.
All you're interested in is food and women, I told him. How typical of a man.
He leaned over and murmured in my ear, "Food and you."
My face turned red as a K-mart sign and Morigan saw it.
"Why are you flirting with that zero?" She whined, "Why aren't you drawn in by *me*?"
Damon turned around and momentarily smiled, "None of your business."
Everything went back to normal. Julian flipped to a movie about some chick trying to get through a maze and save her brother from the "Wicked Goblin King." Damon silently watched the film, laughing at the Goblin King's hair every time he showed up. Morigan even commented on the outrageous things that this king was doing to the woman he said he loved.
"When you are evil, love shows itself in evil ways." Said a familiar voice behind us all.
Everyone turned and jumped to their feet to come face to face with Keegan and The Creeper. The Creeper was standing slightly in front of Keegan in a protective pose to ward off any attacks on his person or his master's.
Keegan was casually standing dressed in a black T-shirt that said: I no like you, a pair of baggy jeans and Doc Martins. He must have been in a playful mood because I spotted a blue and black hair wrap to one side of his face. At the bottom of the wrap was a small charm of Uruz, a rune that allows other dimensional transport.
"It is true." Keegan then added cutting a glance at Julian, "Isn't it Juliana?"
Julian jumped to his feet and Damon had to hold him back. Keegan just smirked and turned his attention towards me.
"You didn't figure out my clue yet, have you?" he chuckled. "And it was right under your noses."
With a wave of his hand my mother's jewelry box appeared in his hands. He opened it then drew out my mother's ring and locket. After handing the box to the Creeper, Keegan walked up to me.
"Which of these do you think it is? Last chance to save Morigan." Keegan smiled and dangled the two pieces in front of me. "Chose wisely."
I rose to my feet and examined each one. One was full of mystery. Where did my mother get it? Why did she never take it off? Most importantly, who gave it to her?
The other was normal as can be, except for the mystery of the other little baby. Who is this child? Why wasn't I told about him or her?
My decision was easy.
Ha ha! It's my infamous cliffhanger of unending torment! Ha ha!
I woke to the sound of my jewelry box playing its song next to me in bed. When I cracked my eyes open I spied the object sitting on the desk. I watched the ballerina dance in a circle with a feeling of dread.
How did it get in here?
Who wound it up and brought it in here?
I hopped out of bed and rushed to it and checked its contents. The locket still lay where I left it but there was an addition to the necklace. A silver lapis ring sat inside on top of a piece of black velvet.
I picked the ring up and examined it from top to bottom. There wasn't a speck of black on the silver and the lapis was flawless without a scratch. It looked a touch feminine and dainty but easily could have been worn by a man. Inside the band, I spied something written in a fancy script. After tilting the ring more into the light I easily read the inscription inside.
All I refuse & Thee I chuse.
An eerie feeling passed through me as I read those words. I sensed a sort of – magic with those six words. Powerful magic as old as time.
I shuddered and called for the only person I ever truly trusted.
Auntie, I whispered inside her mind. I sensed her stir inside her room and sat up.
"Angela?" she cried.
It's me, come to my room. Please.
Immediately she stumbled out of her bed and crept toward my room. After a moment or two, someone knocked on my door. I dashed over and opened it then ushered my aunt inside.
What is this, I asked showing her the ring.
Just as carefully as I examined it, Florence looked at it too. She too spied the inscription and shivered.
"It's your mother's." my aunt told me, "I never saw her without it since Branton was a young boy."
Before I was born, I inquired.
"Over a year before." Florence replied.
I sighed as Madelyn walked inside.
"What's going on?" she asked as Julian came in behind her.
My aunt passed Madelyn the ring, "Angel found this along with her jewelry box."
As Madelyn looked at the ring, Julian looked at my box and locket.
"You were a cute baby." Julian said as he put the locket back and shut the box.
"That's not Angela." Florence told him as he was given the ring to look at.
"Then who is it?" he asked.
"I don't know, I've never seen the youngster before." Florence answered as Julian looked inside the band. "Just in this locket."
I watched as Julian read the inscription and his eyes went wide.
"Was this Ariel's?" Julian demanded.
"It was." Auntie replied with a frown, "I thought that it was lost when Ariel died."
Madelyn placed a hand on his shoulder, "What's wrong?"
Julian turned toward her, "I gave Jenny a ring like this once." He shook his head deep in thought, "Before I died, I changed the inscription to read: I am my own master."
A silence passed between everyone and in that time Damon came in.
"Who died." He asked with a smirk.
I snatched the ring and tossed it to him, My mother's.
He looked at it and snorted, "A combination between Jenny's and a vampire's ring."
I frown and he showed me his hand. On one of his fingers sat a lapis ring almost exactly identical to my mother's.
"This is getting creepy." Madelyn said unsettled. "I take it that this thing just appeared?"
I nodded and pointed to the box.
Damon stuck his head in, "That too right?"
I nodded and shuddered. I don't like this, I told him placing the ring back in the jewelry box.
Me neither, he replied.
Our next clue was wedged in Morigan's door, an obvious warning of who would be next if we didn't get this next clue.
I spy something old, blood red cursive said.
Joan and Florence went to my aunt's bank to look through her safe deposit box for another clue. She kept a bunch of my parent's things that she deemed too valuable in the box. Things like my parents' wedding bands, the deed to the old house, a gold medallion with strange writing on it, five raw rubies and two blue sapphires were there.
Stefan and Elena scoured the empty cemetery to see if my parents' tombstone was what was old while Madelyn ran off to check in with her over protective folks.
They knew where she was, why did she have to repeat it?
That left Damon, Julian and I to baby-sit Morigan.
"I want my Momma." She whined for the hundredth time.
I rolled my eyes and turned to leave.
She grabbed my arm and shouted, "This is all your fault you know."
I jerked my arm free and glared at her harshly which made her cower back into the couch.
Then Morigan began to flirt with Julian who sat beside her watching TV.
"Why don't we go somewhere where we can spent some time alone." She said clutching his arm and batted her eyelashes.
Julian jerked his arm free, "Try it with someone who's interested, Morigan."
My sister in law rose out of her seat and sauntered over to Damon across the room. Before she got there Damon walked off and came to sit beside me on the floor.
I sensed Morigan glaring at me as I watched the local news.
A report about the zombies from the Hallowed Souls Cemetery visiting relatives suddenly came up. A husband, who died over thirty years ago, visited one lady. She was rushed to the hospital after suffering from a heart attack. The sister of the man who sold a person their house visited them. They took it better than the old woman. The woman, her brother and the owner ended up having tea together.
"Keegan's game is certainly interesting." Julian said with a smirk, "Sort of like what I spied last night."
In a blink of an eye, Damon was across the room, had jerked Julian off the couch and slammed him against the wall holding him by his shirt collar.
"If you mention what you saw to *anybody*, I will rip out your eyes and shove them down your throat." Damon growled, "Understand?"
Julian's eyes were big as saucers, "You'll actually do that to me." He shivered in delight and just smiled.
Damon dropped him on his tail end and walked, no stormed back to me.
"Psicopatico." I heard him mutter, plopping down beside me.
"And loving every moment." Julian responded obviously grinning ear to ear.
"And on a even stranger note, the Texas Rangers won the Pennant." The newscaster said before turning to the sports guy. "First zombies and now the Rangers?"
"Rangers stink." Julian said over the sports guy's monologue. "The best thing Texas has is the Stars."
I'm not a sports fan so I say that they all suck, I told Damon.
I'm not a fan either, I find it pointless to run an inflated piece of a swine across a field. Damon told him and flashed me a grin adding, The cheerleaders are nice though.
All you're interested in is food and women, I told him. How typical of a man.
He leaned over and murmured in my ear, "Food and you."
My face turned red as a K-mart sign and Morigan saw it.
"Why are you flirting with that zero?" She whined, "Why aren't you drawn in by *me*?"
Damon turned around and momentarily smiled, "None of your business."
Everything went back to normal. Julian flipped to a movie about some chick trying to get through a maze and save her brother from the "Wicked Goblin King." Damon silently watched the film, laughing at the Goblin King's hair every time he showed up. Morigan even commented on the outrageous things that this king was doing to the woman he said he loved.
"When you are evil, love shows itself in evil ways." Said a familiar voice behind us all.
Everyone turned and jumped to their feet to come face to face with Keegan and The Creeper. The Creeper was standing slightly in front of Keegan in a protective pose to ward off any attacks on his person or his master's.
Keegan was casually standing dressed in a black T-shirt that said: I no like you, a pair of baggy jeans and Doc Martins. He must have been in a playful mood because I spotted a blue and black hair wrap to one side of his face. At the bottom of the wrap was a small charm of Uruz, a rune that allows other dimensional transport.
"It is true." Keegan then added cutting a glance at Julian, "Isn't it Juliana?"
Julian jumped to his feet and Damon had to hold him back. Keegan just smirked and turned his attention towards me.
"You didn't figure out my clue yet, have you?" he chuckled. "And it was right under your noses."
With a wave of his hand my mother's jewelry box appeared in his hands. He opened it then drew out my mother's ring and locket. After handing the box to the Creeper, Keegan walked up to me.
"Which of these do you think it is? Last chance to save Morigan." Keegan smiled and dangled the two pieces in front of me. "Chose wisely."
I rose to my feet and examined each one. One was full of mystery. Where did my mother get it? Why did she never take it off? Most importantly, who gave it to her?
The other was normal as can be, except for the mystery of the other little baby. Who is this child? Why wasn't I told about him or her?
My decision was easy.
Ha ha! It's my infamous cliffhanger of unending torment! Ha ha!