Chapter 5: Breakfast
All were waken by the sounds of the sea crashing against the boat and knocks at their doors.
"Children, children!" Someone called in a droning voice.
"Children?" Harry repeated sleepily.
"Youngsters, young adults, adolescents- breakfast, breakfast!" It continued. The knocking stopped and footsteps were fading away.
Jake got up in a hurry, pulling the coverings away and went close to the wall that split the bedrooms. "You guys up?" he called.
"Yeah," Buffy and Matilda said together. Then Buffy's voice sounded, "Slide the wall, if you want."
Jake put his hand against it and immediately it slid out of place. He looked into the girls' room to see them dressed and fixing their hair. Matilda was tying a ribbon around her head and Buffy's hair was down and neat. They both smiled.
Buffy turned to Matilda. "They aren't even dressed,"
"And their hair is all over the place." Matilda said. Both of them giggled.
Jake smirked and when he turned around he saw that all the boys' hands were in their hair, smoothing it. Jack and Jesse's hair were getting neater, but Jake couldn't say the same about Harry.
"Why don't you close that wall so we can change," Jesse told Jake.
Jake went across the room where the hidden wall was poking out and touched it. It closed in a second.
"Does my ribbon look right?" Matilda asked Buffy, as she looked in the mirror.
"Here, let me do it..." Buffy said, undoing the tie and fixing it.
"I wonder what they have for breakfast," Matilda said.
"I just hope its not water with fish," Buffy said.
"With any luck, we might have a normal breakfast. Did you notice that the inside of this boat barely looks like a boat, and sometimes feels like it is not moving?"
"I did," Buffy said. "But I do hear water."
"But I'm not at all seasick," Matilda told her. "Usually I am. It's like they've- *enchanted* this boat to feel like an ordinary house."
Buffy nodded. "There. Finished."
"Looks great," Matilda said. "Worst comes to worst, I'll cook us a meal. If they have some food to be cooked."
"You can cook?"
Matilda nodded. "Learned at a young age. Can you cook?"
"Mmm, I can make... toast." Buffy said.
"What about eggs?"
"I can make... toast," Buffy repeated, making her bed. "Oh and sandwiches."
"Impressive," Matilda said sarcastically, and then the wall opened and the girls were staring at fully dressed boys. "That was quick."
"Breakfast anyone?" Jesse said. The six walked together into the living room.
"You know, Scrauss showed us to our rooms but didn't show anything else," Jake said.
"Didn't know where the bathroom was." Jesse told them.
"It's down that hall," Matilda answered.
"Well, I know now, Jack told me," Jesse said.
Everyone looked at Jack. "How did you know?" Buffy asked.
"I found it. During the night." Jack said gently, remembering last night. Everyone nodded.
"Why do the kids linger?" said a weak voice. Everyone turned around to see a tall man with a wide baggy face, black eyes, and a long carrot like nose. Matilda backed closer into Buffy.
"We were just trying to find some place to eat," said Harry, quickest to speak up. Everyone nodded in agreement.
The man smiled revealing yellow teeth. With one bony finger he pointed to a door.
"Thanks," Buffy answered for them all. They all backed away and started walking to the door. Quickly they all entered the room. They saw a long wood dining table and went over to it.
"Sit, sit," someone said. Jack heard this and found it familiar. And sure enough, it was the short plump man he had seen outside the bathroom at night. His face was red and cheerful. "The cooks are getting your breakfast ready."
"Great, I'm starving," Jack said and they all sat together.
"Now isn't there something you'd all like to drink?" The man asked. Jack frowned at his cheeriness. Perhaps the thought of them all failing to reach the end of their journey was still lingering in his mind. "Juice? How about Juice?"
"Er-"
"Great!" The man interrupted. "I'm Logan, for all of those who didn't know-"
"Which would be all of us." said Jack.
Logan's eyes flickered with annoyance, but his smile was wide and cheesy. "Give me a holler if you need anything," He disappeared behind swinging doors into the noisy kitchen.
"Anyone who agrees that his joy was not genuine say I." Buffy said.
"I," Everyone said.
"At least he's being nice to us," Matilda said. Jack snorted at this and everyone looked at him. Matilda frowned. "You don't think he's being nice to us?"
"It's more you not being nice to him," Buffy said.
Jack sighed. "Just because he's nice to us now, doesn't mean he's our ally."
"True," Jesse agreed.
"What makes you think that?" Harry asked.
"Because, Harry," Jack said irritably. "Not everyone is optimistic about this trip."
"Well of course, the Dream catchers..." Jake said. "But he's not a dream catcher."
"Probably not," Jack said. "But they're not our only enemies."
"Is there something you're not telling us?" Buffy said, looking at Jack suspiciously. "Is this about our league or some personal experience?"
"I would die before giving you an insight on my personal experiences."
"Then it has to do with the league?" Matilda concluded.
Jack felt as if everyone was against him. Finally he answered. "Yes."
"Well- share." Jesse demanded.
"Why?"
"If it has to do with the league, we should all know," Jake said. "Because we're all in the league and you wouldn't want to know something we all don't. It could put us in danger."
"If it's worth being called a danger," Buffy muttered.
"Look, while I went to the bathroom last night I overheard that man talking... with a tall man. You haven't seen him. Anyways, things were said and the tall man told- Logan- that someone has enemies. That we had enemies."
"Who's someone?" Buffy asked.
Matilda took a guess. "Scrauss?"
Jack shrugged. "That would be my first guess."
"What else?" Jake demanded.
"Tall guy said that we wouldn't make it to the great finish," Jack said.
"Great finish-" Buffy frowned. "The- the room with the box?"
"We do have a long journey," Jake said. "Of course it's got to have some danger."
The group nodded and then the kitchen door opened and out came maids dressed in a black dresses and white apron. Plates were set before them and the maids disappeared as quickly as they came.
"Great!" Jesse said and dug in.
Everyone started to eat, for they ate nothing last night. Scruass entered in the middle of their eating.
"Hello, league. Eat up, there's much to be discussed today." Scrauss said.
"Mmhmm," Buffy agreed.
"When you are done, come out into the deck. I was there just a minute ago, and the sun is warm and nice." Scrauss gestured to the glass door in front of them, which led outside. "Meet in the White room in about fifteen minutes."
"Where's the White room?"
"You will find it," Scrauss assured them. "Just down the hall. The door is labeled."
The league finished up and Logan came out smiling but when he saw Scrauss he jumped slightly. "Scrauss..." his voice was very high pitched, and his fat fingers played on a ring of keys.
Scrauss looked at him, as if he were a lower being. "Hello, Logan."
"Just checking on the kids," Logan said, in the same voice. The kids could see clearly that he was trying to be undaunted. "Are you all done?"
They nodded.
"Logan why don't you take their plates into the kitchen and meet Vicente outside. He will give you instructions there."
"Instructions for what?" Logan asked suspiciously. The League watched this interaction fixedly.
"You will see," Scrauss said.
Logan huffed, his right left thumb scratching one of the keys. "Where is he?"
"Outside." Scrauss said and gestured to the glass door. "He turned the corner, but he is out there. We were speaking with each other just outside that door."
Lagan nodded gallingly. "Fine. But I'm asking the maids to take the meal instead."
"If that is what you wish," Scrauss said slowly.
With a last glance at the kids, Logan stepped outside and turned the corner.
Scruass bowed. "Good morning to you all and see you in a moment." Scruass left through the door they came in.
"Lets go outside!" Matilda said. They all agreed and stepped outside. It was a very nice sunny morning, and the sea looked beautiful. They hung out on the edge of the boat, just enjoying the breeze.
Harry looked out on it, seeing it's peace but could not bring himself to feel the same way. He stepped back, pushed his glasses up his nose and sat down on one of the chairs. Matilda looked at him and took a seat beside him, though Buffy was still very close by. Jack, Jake and Jesse were on the other side of Buffy, talking, though Jack barely said anything.
Matilda looked at Harry then at her fingers and then back at Harry. "I've noticed that a lot of the people in this league aren't very happy. And I don't think that it is just because we are on this journey."
Harry didn't look up, but played with his wand in his pocket.
"I think it's because of something that was going on in their own lives," Matilda concluded. "You're one of them by the way, if you didn't know."
"I- I recently lost someone."
"Your dad," Matilda guessed.
"No." Harry said and suddenly had a very bad feeling in his stomach. "My parents died when I was one."
"Both?" Matilda said. "Well that's sad already. Whom do you live with then?"
Harry wasn't in the mood about speaking about this. "Aunt, her husband and their son."
"They try to make things better for you?" Matilda asked.
Harry laughed, that other members of the group glanced at him. Harry cleared his throat. "No. They're the worst."
"Worse then my own parents?" Matilda asked.
"Probably." Harry said.
Matilda then laughed. "Doubt it. My parents were horrible people. I was adopted by my teacher."
"Really?" Harry said with interest.
"Yup." Matilda said.
"Hey we should go find the white room," Buffy said and she started walking through the glass door. "These glass doors are very thin," Buffy commented.
"Walk with me," Matilda said and they walked over to the glass doors behind the rest of the group.
"Hey, a ring of keys," Harry said, pointing to Logan's ring of keys that were on the floor.
"Hm," Matilda said, looking at it while holding the glass door open. "Must have dropped it."
****
Yes, barely anything happened in this story I write a lot. Hopefully I will get into more character interactions, as I did with Harry and Matilda. Things need to be said, and stuff needs to be done. More later! Thanks for the reviews, Mike Dean, Brutal 2003, Mockingbirdflyaway, S.M, Random Reader, SpellBlade 5777, Ssphinxx, Jen 30 and xiaoka!
All were waken by the sounds of the sea crashing against the boat and knocks at their doors.
"Children, children!" Someone called in a droning voice.
"Children?" Harry repeated sleepily.
"Youngsters, young adults, adolescents- breakfast, breakfast!" It continued. The knocking stopped and footsteps were fading away.
Jake got up in a hurry, pulling the coverings away and went close to the wall that split the bedrooms. "You guys up?" he called.
"Yeah," Buffy and Matilda said together. Then Buffy's voice sounded, "Slide the wall, if you want."
Jake put his hand against it and immediately it slid out of place. He looked into the girls' room to see them dressed and fixing their hair. Matilda was tying a ribbon around her head and Buffy's hair was down and neat. They both smiled.
Buffy turned to Matilda. "They aren't even dressed,"
"And their hair is all over the place." Matilda said. Both of them giggled.
Jake smirked and when he turned around he saw that all the boys' hands were in their hair, smoothing it. Jack and Jesse's hair were getting neater, but Jake couldn't say the same about Harry.
"Why don't you close that wall so we can change," Jesse told Jake.
Jake went across the room where the hidden wall was poking out and touched it. It closed in a second.
"Does my ribbon look right?" Matilda asked Buffy, as she looked in the mirror.
"Here, let me do it..." Buffy said, undoing the tie and fixing it.
"I wonder what they have for breakfast," Matilda said.
"I just hope its not water with fish," Buffy said.
"With any luck, we might have a normal breakfast. Did you notice that the inside of this boat barely looks like a boat, and sometimes feels like it is not moving?"
"I did," Buffy said. "But I do hear water."
"But I'm not at all seasick," Matilda told her. "Usually I am. It's like they've- *enchanted* this boat to feel like an ordinary house."
Buffy nodded. "There. Finished."
"Looks great," Matilda said. "Worst comes to worst, I'll cook us a meal. If they have some food to be cooked."
"You can cook?"
Matilda nodded. "Learned at a young age. Can you cook?"
"Mmm, I can make... toast." Buffy said.
"What about eggs?"
"I can make... toast," Buffy repeated, making her bed. "Oh and sandwiches."
"Impressive," Matilda said sarcastically, and then the wall opened and the girls were staring at fully dressed boys. "That was quick."
"Breakfast anyone?" Jesse said. The six walked together into the living room.
"You know, Scrauss showed us to our rooms but didn't show anything else," Jake said.
"Didn't know where the bathroom was." Jesse told them.
"It's down that hall," Matilda answered.
"Well, I know now, Jack told me," Jesse said.
Everyone looked at Jack. "How did you know?" Buffy asked.
"I found it. During the night." Jack said gently, remembering last night. Everyone nodded.
"Why do the kids linger?" said a weak voice. Everyone turned around to see a tall man with a wide baggy face, black eyes, and a long carrot like nose. Matilda backed closer into Buffy.
"We were just trying to find some place to eat," said Harry, quickest to speak up. Everyone nodded in agreement.
The man smiled revealing yellow teeth. With one bony finger he pointed to a door.
"Thanks," Buffy answered for them all. They all backed away and started walking to the door. Quickly they all entered the room. They saw a long wood dining table and went over to it.
"Sit, sit," someone said. Jack heard this and found it familiar. And sure enough, it was the short plump man he had seen outside the bathroom at night. His face was red and cheerful. "The cooks are getting your breakfast ready."
"Great, I'm starving," Jack said and they all sat together.
"Now isn't there something you'd all like to drink?" The man asked. Jack frowned at his cheeriness. Perhaps the thought of them all failing to reach the end of their journey was still lingering in his mind. "Juice? How about Juice?"
"Er-"
"Great!" The man interrupted. "I'm Logan, for all of those who didn't know-"
"Which would be all of us." said Jack.
Logan's eyes flickered with annoyance, but his smile was wide and cheesy. "Give me a holler if you need anything," He disappeared behind swinging doors into the noisy kitchen.
"Anyone who agrees that his joy was not genuine say I." Buffy said.
"I," Everyone said.
"At least he's being nice to us," Matilda said. Jack snorted at this and everyone looked at him. Matilda frowned. "You don't think he's being nice to us?"
"It's more you not being nice to him," Buffy said.
Jack sighed. "Just because he's nice to us now, doesn't mean he's our ally."
"True," Jesse agreed.
"What makes you think that?" Harry asked.
"Because, Harry," Jack said irritably. "Not everyone is optimistic about this trip."
"Well of course, the Dream catchers..." Jake said. "But he's not a dream catcher."
"Probably not," Jack said. "But they're not our only enemies."
"Is there something you're not telling us?" Buffy said, looking at Jack suspiciously. "Is this about our league or some personal experience?"
"I would die before giving you an insight on my personal experiences."
"Then it has to do with the league?" Matilda concluded.
Jack felt as if everyone was against him. Finally he answered. "Yes."
"Well- share." Jesse demanded.
"Why?"
"If it has to do with the league, we should all know," Jake said. "Because we're all in the league and you wouldn't want to know something we all don't. It could put us in danger."
"If it's worth being called a danger," Buffy muttered.
"Look, while I went to the bathroom last night I overheard that man talking... with a tall man. You haven't seen him. Anyways, things were said and the tall man told- Logan- that someone has enemies. That we had enemies."
"Who's someone?" Buffy asked.
Matilda took a guess. "Scrauss?"
Jack shrugged. "That would be my first guess."
"What else?" Jake demanded.
"Tall guy said that we wouldn't make it to the great finish," Jack said.
"Great finish-" Buffy frowned. "The- the room with the box?"
"We do have a long journey," Jake said. "Of course it's got to have some danger."
The group nodded and then the kitchen door opened and out came maids dressed in a black dresses and white apron. Plates were set before them and the maids disappeared as quickly as they came.
"Great!" Jesse said and dug in.
Everyone started to eat, for they ate nothing last night. Scruass entered in the middle of their eating.
"Hello, league. Eat up, there's much to be discussed today." Scrauss said.
"Mmhmm," Buffy agreed.
"When you are done, come out into the deck. I was there just a minute ago, and the sun is warm and nice." Scrauss gestured to the glass door in front of them, which led outside. "Meet in the White room in about fifteen minutes."
"Where's the White room?"
"You will find it," Scrauss assured them. "Just down the hall. The door is labeled."
The league finished up and Logan came out smiling but when he saw Scrauss he jumped slightly. "Scrauss..." his voice was very high pitched, and his fat fingers played on a ring of keys.
Scrauss looked at him, as if he were a lower being. "Hello, Logan."
"Just checking on the kids," Logan said, in the same voice. The kids could see clearly that he was trying to be undaunted. "Are you all done?"
They nodded.
"Logan why don't you take their plates into the kitchen and meet Vicente outside. He will give you instructions there."
"Instructions for what?" Logan asked suspiciously. The League watched this interaction fixedly.
"You will see," Scrauss said.
Logan huffed, his right left thumb scratching one of the keys. "Where is he?"
"Outside." Scrauss said and gestured to the glass door. "He turned the corner, but he is out there. We were speaking with each other just outside that door."
Lagan nodded gallingly. "Fine. But I'm asking the maids to take the meal instead."
"If that is what you wish," Scrauss said slowly.
With a last glance at the kids, Logan stepped outside and turned the corner.
Scruass bowed. "Good morning to you all and see you in a moment." Scruass left through the door they came in.
"Lets go outside!" Matilda said. They all agreed and stepped outside. It was a very nice sunny morning, and the sea looked beautiful. They hung out on the edge of the boat, just enjoying the breeze.
Harry looked out on it, seeing it's peace but could not bring himself to feel the same way. He stepped back, pushed his glasses up his nose and sat down on one of the chairs. Matilda looked at him and took a seat beside him, though Buffy was still very close by. Jack, Jake and Jesse were on the other side of Buffy, talking, though Jack barely said anything.
Matilda looked at Harry then at her fingers and then back at Harry. "I've noticed that a lot of the people in this league aren't very happy. And I don't think that it is just because we are on this journey."
Harry didn't look up, but played with his wand in his pocket.
"I think it's because of something that was going on in their own lives," Matilda concluded. "You're one of them by the way, if you didn't know."
"I- I recently lost someone."
"Your dad," Matilda guessed.
"No." Harry said and suddenly had a very bad feeling in his stomach. "My parents died when I was one."
"Both?" Matilda said. "Well that's sad already. Whom do you live with then?"
Harry wasn't in the mood about speaking about this. "Aunt, her husband and their son."
"They try to make things better for you?" Matilda asked.
Harry laughed, that other members of the group glanced at him. Harry cleared his throat. "No. They're the worst."
"Worse then my own parents?" Matilda asked.
"Probably." Harry said.
Matilda then laughed. "Doubt it. My parents were horrible people. I was adopted by my teacher."
"Really?" Harry said with interest.
"Yup." Matilda said.
"Hey we should go find the white room," Buffy said and she started walking through the glass door. "These glass doors are very thin," Buffy commented.
"Walk with me," Matilda said and they walked over to the glass doors behind the rest of the group.
"Hey, a ring of keys," Harry said, pointing to Logan's ring of keys that were on the floor.
"Hm," Matilda said, looking at it while holding the glass door open. "Must have dropped it."
****
Yes, barely anything happened in this story I write a lot. Hopefully I will get into more character interactions, as I did with Harry and Matilda. Things need to be said, and stuff needs to be done. More later! Thanks for the reviews, Mike Dean, Brutal 2003, Mockingbirdflyaway, S.M, Random Reader, SpellBlade 5777, Ssphinxx, Jen 30 and xiaoka!