Witch Hunt – Chapter One
~Saturday, October Fifth. The Wheeler Residence.~
She yawned, staring out her window to the perfectly cheerful sun arising. She then pulled a strand of auburn hair behind her ear as she stretched. Before she could enjoy the sweetly solemn moment, she heard a loud crash and a few "booms". Knowing it was her dear brother, she smirked, knowing it was going to be another identical day in her never-changing life.
"Seren', whatcha think of dis?" Her brother asked, pointing to a contraption that looked like an oven and a heater shoved together with spoons and axes thrown in-between. Serenity merely smiled, rubbing the grease off her brother's cheek.
"I'm sure it's going to be fine, Joey." She replied warmly with a grin. She was a bit unsure of what it was, but she guessed it was used to… take down homes? Cool a home? Cook food?
"I sure hope so. The invention convention is commin up ya know. I'll take da horse down to Salem and den win dat contest!" Joey declared, lifting his index finger in the air excitedly. Serenity smiled, reassuring her brother's victory.
"Joey, I'd love to see your invention at work, but I must go to the flower shop. The flowers should be beautiful!" Serenity stated, wanting to see how her roses and daisies were doing.
Serenity grabbed her hooded brown coat and her bag, kissing her brother on the cheek before she left. "Until later, Joey." Serenity called, half way out the door.
"Later, sis'." Joey yelled on top of some booms. Serenity smiled as she skipped to the village.
~*~
Serenity slowly walked through the crowded section of Domino, the Domino Market. It was filled with all sorts of delightful stores, such as meats and cheeses, a bakery, a toy shop, a book store, a general store owned by the Muto's, a tavern owned by Rex Raptor and Weevil Underwood, a tobacco store owned by the Hawkin's, a vegetable shop, Kaiba's produce, a temperance tavern, and a few others. The town was filled with familiar faces, including Marik Ishtar, the Priest's son, chatting with Rex Raptor, who was outside of his tavern. Their eyes lit up when they saw Serenity walking by with a pail held by the handle that was around her forearm.
"Good morning, Serenity!" Rex and Marik chirped, giving Serenity their full attention.
"Oh, good morning!" Serenity replied, wanting to stop and chat, but she had to go to work.
"Serenity…" They drooled, watching her body disappear in the crowd. They then turned back onto their conversation on warfare.
Serenity had bumped into many people wishing to chat, but had to decline with the same answer. Eventually, she reached the Ishtar Flowery Shoppe in time to let the roses keep their color. She sat down on the white railed patio, adoring the roses that were placed in a vase on a table in the front of the store. She breathed in the fragrance of the roses.
"There will be nothing more beautiful then the flower…" She sighed, closing her eyes and allowing the aroma take control of her.
"Oh, I doubt that. I know someone who is much more beautiful then a stupid plant…" Duke Devlin, the pretty-boy of the town stated charmingly, leaning against the railing.
"Oh. Hello, Duke." Serenity replied excitedly, glad to see one of her friends. Although, lately Duke has been different to her… More… flirty.
"I see you're working with these…plants." Duke replied flatly, picking one up, twirling it within his finely manicured fingers, and then throwing it behind him. Serenity left eyebrow rose, wondering what the hell he was doing.
"I'm sorry, Duke, but I really must get to back to work. Such a pity we cannot stay and chat." Serenity called, going back into the small shack of a shop and glad to leave the ignorant pig Duke Devlin was being. He was constantly flirting with every girl he saw, not to mention he had his own group of three ladies that followed him everywhere and completely despised Serenity for the mere fact that Duke had a favoring for her. And Duke did absolutely nothing to stop it. "Such a pity indeed…" She mumbled to herself sarcastically before bumping into a sobbing Mrs. Ishtar and a very solemn Yugi Muto, the poor sap that had the horrible job of announcing the very unfortunate news of Mr. Ishtar's death to Mrs. Ishtar.
"Oh, oh, Serenity, dear." Mrs. Ishtar sobbed, grabbing Serenity's shoulder tightly as Serenity swallowed, "I-it appears that, that, M-mr. Ishtar h-has passed on… May God have peace on his d-dear soul." All Serenity could do was wipe the tears from her eye and look up at the sobbing Mrs. Ishtar.
"Oh, I am so sorry, Mrs. Ishtar…" Serenity whispered, watching the elderly Mrs. Ishtar throw a rose on the ground.
~Friday, October Eleventh. Domino Village Cemetery.~
Everyone sat down in the wooden benches that were painted black a few years ago. The paint was faded and chipping, but it wasn't too uncomfortable and was appropriate for the time. Sobbing, sniffles, and hiccups were heard all around the cemetery as the priest's son, Marik, who was going to be the new priest, sighed, and talked about the oh-so-interesting life of his father. Ishizu, his sister, and his mother sat in the first row with other members of their family.
After Marik, Ishizu, and Mrs. Ishtar's speech, Mr. Ishtar was buried. Everyone except Ishizu Ishtar and a lawyer from Massachusetts remained. His name was just "Shadi". It appeared they knew each other somehow. Maybe he was friends with Mr. Ishtar…
"Ah, Ms. Ishtar. My dearest sympathies for your loss." Shadi stated not so sympathetically. Ishizu shook her head.
"Oh, yes. But I knew he was ill. I always knew he spent too much time from the world. He was always in our basement; he said he had to keep a treasure safe. It's odd, really. But when he got ill, he was always in bed. I wonder if his treasure is still safe down there… Whatever it is." She replied, wiping the remains of tears from her eyes.
"Oh, dear, dear Ishizu. You see, m'lady, I have something to do with that. Y'see, it was my treasure he was guarding." He smirked, to Ishizu's displeasure, "See, I give the treasures, also known as the Millennium Items, to whoever Fate-erm-God has decided them to belong to. But I, of course, have two Millennium Items, whilst everyone else has only one." He explained. Ishizu's mouth opened in surprise.
"And how, exactly, Mr. Shadi, do these Millennium Items serve a purpose?" She asked, rather nervously. She knew they had to be valuable therefore she wanted one badly.
"I am not quite sure I know…" He lied, grabbing something from the bag on his belt loop, "but I have a feeling they are blessed by The Creator*."
"G-God? So they would be quite valuable, yes?" She asked eagerly. Shadi smiled.
"Ah, Lady Ishizu, yes, they are. And I happen to have one of the more feminine items, right here." He stated with an evil smirk, shaking the necklace in his pocket. It was as if the saliva from Ishizu's mouth was of greed and want. "But, oh, Ishizu, do not worry, my dear. I will give you a Millennium Item, for you are worthy, and deserving. But, first, you must promise to do something for me. Or may you rot in the darkest abyss** God may find." He then whispered in her ear. Chills ran down her spine, but then she tilted her head in confusion.
"But, why-?"
He placed his index finger on her lips to seal them, and then did the clasp of the Millennium Necklace around her neck and then walked into the distance, leaving Ishizu's jaw to fall down. She then closed it and smirked, feeling the gold around her neck. She twitched as an aroma came over her after she wondered what was so special about the necklace. The necklace gave her the answer.
~Tuesday, October 15. The Wheeler Residence.~
"Well, sis'. I'm alllllll ready for the invention thingy!" Joey called exitedly to Serenity, tying the cover of his creation down on the carrier.
"Good luck, Joey. I'm going to miss you soooo much!" She replied, hugging him. Joey hugged her back, putting his hand on her soft auburn hair.
"Don't worry, sis'. I'll be back soon. G'bye!" He called out, riding the horse into the forest. Serenity sighed, not really wanting to be alone without him. He was the only one that kept the 'pigs' away from her.
Speaking of pigs, knocking on Serenity's door was none other then Duke Devlin, with his hair slicked back, a confident grin on his face, and an arrogant attitude to go with it. He had brought his posse into Serenity's backyard along with the three girls that followed him around that dreamed of being married to him. He knocked on her door three perfect times, then folded his arms arrogantly, his smirk still intact.
"Yes? Oh, hello Duke." Serenity greeted, backing away slowly as Duke budged into the house knocking down all her pictures of her brother who seemed to have a hatred of Duke ever since he started calling him "dog" and made him be a joker for his own amusement and poor Joey's embarrassment. "What exactly do you need, Duke?"
"Serenity, have you ever considered getting….married?" He asked, prowling up to her. Serenity continued stepping back slowly until she bumped into the wall.
"Err, no. Not exactly." She replied, chills running down her spine.
"Well, I meant to me, more precisely. Just imagine… Me… You… Children…"
"Well, I do love children…"
"I know. But I'm quite wealthy, you know. And I am the heir to my father's farm. Meaning, I will be wealthier."
"That's great, Duke, but I'm not so sure about Joey…"
"What do you mean, about Joey? Serenity, Joey is completely out of the picture here. I am a reasonable guy. I tried to put up with the sap, but he just cramped my style… So, will you marry me?" Duke last said before Serenity clenched her teeth and could not take anymore. You can explain her future. Claim to be the father of her children. And brag how rich you are. But once you insult Joey, and Serenity isn't that fond of you as it is for how you've been treating her lately, you've just crossed the line.
"I beg your pardon, Duke, but I'm going to have to ask you to leave."
"What do you mean!?"
"No. I will not marry you. And I will have to ask you to leave me alone." She stated calmly and clearly. As she got older, Joey and their friends gave her more strength to stand up to people. Even if Duke was a friend of theirs at that same time.
Duke huffed out, dragging his posse of mindless idiots along with him. Serenity slammed the door and went into the backyard. She sighed, grabbing the grass in hope of it easing her aggravation. She hoped to relax until a large bell rang, meaning there was a town meeting. And it was the Church bell, the one that only rang on holidays or in disasters. And it sure wasn't a holiday.
~The Catholic Church~
Serenity sat down in a pew with Bakura, Yugi, Mai, and Tristan as Ishizu Ishtar approached the podium. She sighed, a bit nervous, but decided to go on with it.
"Thank you all for coming. I have urgent news for you." Ishizu shouted so everyone could hear. They did hear, and most gasped. "Yes, a friend from Massachusetts informed me of a form of Witchcraft going on near our beloved city of Domino."
Everyone gasped again, asking questions in confusion. It was complete chaos! Ishizu sighed, wanting everyone to quiet down. She screamed, "Quiet!" and stamped her foot to get everyone's attention.
"Thank you…" She continued, sighing, "I will answer your questions later. But please, heed me first. Witchcraft is magic performed by female Witches and male Wizards. It is influenced by Lucifer, the King of Hell. We must take all the precautions needed to prevent witchcraft from taking place in our small town. Please let anyone in the Ishtar family know if there are any signs of witchcraft. Mr. Shadi informed me that some signs of witchcraft are most common in young girls, acting strangely. As if they were puppets of the witch or wizard. Also, witches and wizards use the magic Lucifer gives them to get what they want." Ishizu continued explaining for awhile, and many questions were brought up.
"I don't buy this crap for a second." Tristan Taylor, an indentured slave of the Hawkins, stated. He was a close friend of Serenity, and it "almost" appeared as if he loved her. He obviously wasn't the richest or was the handsomest, but he had a big heart. Also, he was free in ten years! How nice…
"Well, I sure know I'm not a witch. But, who do you think is a witch, you guys!?" Mai Valentine asked, worried that jealous girls would accuse her of being a witch. Actually, everyone was a little bit worried about being accused themselves.
"I don't know, Mai. I don't think they would've brought it up if it wasn't true. Ishizu Ishtar isn't normally like that." Yugi replied, looking around at the controversy of questions and panic, "Hey, has anyone seen Joey?"
"Oh, he entered an invention contest. I'm not really sure what it does, but I'm sure my big brother will do great! He said he's doing it for me, you know! He said he would buy us a big house and we wouldn't be poor anymore!" Serenity exclaimed, everyone sweat-dropping.
~Tuesday, October 15. 11:21PM, the Wheeler Residence Backyard~
Serenity went outside to take in the clothes on the clothesline. She hummed and danced a little while taking them down. That's how she was, a peaceful, cheerful, positive girl. Thankful for everyday of her life and her big brother, she was happy. She was as beautiful on the inside as she was on the outside as well. Long, smooth auburn hair, honey eyes, and a perfect shape.
Suddenly, she heard the familiar whinny of a horse. Joey's horse!
"Fillet! Oh my God, Fillet! Where's Joey?" She asked to the horse. It just gave a panicked look, and Serenity hopped on and rode into the woods. "Don't worry, big brother, I'm coming to save you!"
*: The Creator = God.
**: Abyss = Hell.
The next chapter should be out quicker then this one was. I explained why it was late below. Teehee! I made all the bad guys "good" in this story, and a lot of the good guys "bad" in this story! Lol, I'm such a dork.
Sorry for not making the first chapter sooner! -.-;; Life has been hard. Y'know, school stuff. But I also got hit by a car. (Don't worry, I'm all right! But the lesson learned was: Do NOT Jaywalk. =_=;;) My mom had a hysterectomy because she had something growing in her. And I went to Washington, DC. Wow, were the Cherry Blossoms beautiful and the festival was great as well. Too bad Michael Jackson was there. 0.o;; They had this Japanese group, Rin', I think, and they couldn't speak barely any English! It was hilarious! She was like, "I am very, very happy to be in America and very happy as well to see the beautiful Cher-rrry Blossoms as well. Since they are a symbol of our home, Japan. And it represents the friendship of Japan and Amer-america. Sorry. Sorry! Or, in Japan, we call your Cher-rrry Blossoms Sakura. Sakura, yes." It was so funny. But they sang beautifully and they played beautifully, too. I hope to go again next year.