As I looked at my father's body hanging from the rafters, something occurred to me. I had no parents. I had no friends. And every other family member I knew was a gazillion miles away. Sobbing, I ran up the stairs. In my room, I threw myself down on my bed and cried.

Before I had cried much, however, Little Leota came runnning into my room, crying herself. Assuming that she was crying over our father, I put a hand on her shoulder to comfort her. Although her mother was an evil, heartless murderess, she was only five and didn't deserve to have her childhood taken from her in such a manner. We wept together for awhile, and I finally asked her.

"Lettie, what's the matter?" she wiped tears from her eyes, and said quietly "Daddy's dead. Daddy's dead and Mama's stuck in her crystal ball."

I pushed her away from myself so I could look at her. "What did you say about your mama?"

She sniffled. "Mama's stuck in her crystal ball. Come see." She took my hand and led me through the hallways that I hadn't dared come through since my curse had been put upon me. She paused in front of door glowing from the inside with an ethereal green light. I could hear Leota chanting inside. It didn't seem much different to me. Lettie knew different, however. She put a finger to her lips and pushed the door open.

I had to throw my hands over my eyes. The light in the room was blinding. When it finally waned, I got a glimpse of what Lettie had been trying to tell me. Leota was in her crystal ball, but it was only her head, nothing else. I gasped.

Leota finally saw me, and glared. "I bet you're glad this happened to me, aren't you Chrissy-Lily? She spat out my father's nickname for me like it was poison. "I'll bet you're glad I'm going to be stuck here forever!"

I couldn't help allowing myself a little grin of triumph. "No, actually. I'm not glad you're going to be stuck here forever like that. You won't be a good houseguest."

She just fell silent and continued to glare at me.

The weeks after that were quiet at the Manor. I got one of the servants to cut Daddy down, and then we gave him a proper funeral.

Then, one night I woke up to sounds in the house. I got out of bed and grabbed a candle, praying that it wasn't a burglar or anyone that meant harm. Lettie met me in the foyer. She was whimpering and shaking. I pulled her close to me, and we walked together. We were friends, Lettie and I, and I had promised her that I would never leave her, ever. When we arrived in Leota's hallway, the sounds became distinct shrieks and squeals. I opened the door to the séance room, and saw three wraiths flying around the celing.

I looked at Leota. She smiled evilly at me from the depths of her glass prison. "Christine," she murmered smoothly, "you said I wouldn't be a good house guest, so I invited some friends. I hope you don't mind. Meet Silas Grunge, Emmet Totts, and Felicia Scratch."

I backed away in horror. Lettie was huddled in the hallway, thankfully unable to see what her mother had done. I told her to go back to her room, get under her covers, and stay there without making a sound. She nodded, running back to her room as fast as her feet would carry her.

Without saying anything to antagonize Leota, I walked back to my room, hoping that those three spirits would be the end of her channeling. Three, I could deal with. Anymore was too much.

And yet, there were more. The unfortunate thing was, she didn't have to channel them, or conjure them up. They came to us as an unfortunate result of their contact with the conniving Madame. Though most of them seemed decent, I was too frightened to get to know them personally. I needed to get out of the house, but I didn't know how. Then, one day, a few days after my thirteenth birthday, I got a call from one of my mother's friends down in Georgia. They had known each other during their circus days. He said the circus was in need of a tightrope walker, and if I was as good as my mother had been, the circus would be in business for years.

Grateful for the excuse to leave the house, and thankful that my mother had given me some training in her art, I consented. I packed my bags, and left that night, telling Lettie that I would be gone for awhile.

"Hurry back," she requested in a childish singsong tone. Assuring her that I would, and promising her that I would write once a week, I kissed the top of her head, and left, shuting her door behind me.

The Big Top seemed an exciting place. Mr. Hudson, my mother's friend, took me to meet the ring master. Although he introduced me, the ringmaster insisted he needed no introductions. I was the spitting image of my mother, he said.

Then, he asked me to show him what I could do. Confidently, I climbed up the ladder, and onto the rope that was suspended so high in the air. Placing one foot in front of the other, and holding my hands out for balance, I managed to make it from one side of the rope to the other without falling.

When I reached the ground again, the ringmaster and Mr. Hudson applauded enthusiastically. I was hired.

After a few months of practice, it was time for my first show. I hadbeen so caughtup in practices and freedom that I had forgotten aboutmy promise to writeLettie. If onlyI had known then what that mistake would cost me in the near future.Now though, I was battling first show jitters.I stood there with my parasol feeling a queer sense of déjà vu. But I was only walking above a floor, thank god.

After I had done my thing, the audience cheered loudly and called for encores. I glowed with pride. It went on like that for a few years, until the show we put on the day of my nineteenth birthday. It was on that day that Mr. Hudson and the ringmaster said that I would be doing something special to spice up my act: walking above a pit of very hungry alligators and crocodiles. All too aware of Leota's prophecy, I tried to refuse, but it was to no avail. I was too good, they said, to keep walking above the plain floor.

So, I went. As I stood above the pit on the rope, holding my parasol, I prayed to make my death quick. As I walked I tried not to look down. Then, when I was halfway across, one of the monsters escaped from the pit and took a bite out of one of the poles holding up my platform. He was soon joined by the others. I screamed, and so did everyone else. Finally, they managed to eat through the poles, and the platform fell, taking me with it. Pretty soon, I was buried beneath all their bodies as they each fought amongst themselves for a decent piece of me. I felt lots of pain, and my clothes became soaked, and bloody as they dragged me beneath the water. Then, thankfully, I felt nothing, and saw nothing but darkness.

What do you think? Christine called Little Leota "Lettie" because they were friends as kids. Sorry about Christine's gruesome death.

Thanks, Aquarian Wolf, and you'll find out about Scott soon enough.