Hey guys! Long time no see! Lots of work, and now that I'm pregnant I've been busy preparing for the new baby! Fun times! This chapter is a long one to help make up for the wait. Lots of interesting things here and I really enjoyed how this and the next two chapters have turned out! The other two chapters are ready to go, so hopefully, reviews come quickly! For all those that reviewed and have to wait, I'm sorry :) Definitely not trying to make you suffer. I had a really hard time figuring out the name for the chapter. It's full of different elements, so if the chapter name is a little odd, I will fix it. ALSO! Please let me know if there are any grammar errors XP Enjoy the chapter!
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Chapter 15:
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Sarah blinked her green eyes open to the familiar sight of her bedroom. She had woken up to this familiar and comfortable scene for most of her life and she stretched a little, giving a moan of happiness. Sleeping in your own bed does wonders for the body.
She looked over to the white and black hair blob next to her, only to get a huge puff of warm dog breath right in her face.
"Agh! Merlin! WHEW!" She holds him away at arm's length as he tries to lock her. Yuck! There goes my relaxing morning.
She reluctantly got out of her comfy bed to get ready for school and to feed Merlin with the kibble Mark had brought over. As she walked with Merlin in the crisp morning air to the ugly brown shed, she heard a sound coming from inside…
Cautiously, she crept forward and pressed her ear against the door. A series of muffled rattles, squeaks, and thumps come from inside.
Please be a rat and not a monster…
Merlin perked his ears and sniffed at the door. He was just curious though, not barking which was encouraging.
Sarah hesitantly put her hand on the shed door and counted to three… then shoved open the door!
Nothing.
Sarah flipped on the light.
"SCREEEEEEEECH!" a white owl answered, staring menacingly from across the room on the wooden table.
"Aaaaaah!" Sarah yelled and jumped back.
An owl? In her shed? She stared at the little angry bundle of feathers. It was standing on the dusty work table next to her baseball bat, black stone, and other things she'd gathered.
Wait a second…She took a few steps closer and the white howl stepped away, one of it's wings dragging awkwardly. It was very white, with just the barest hint of cream color. It's little heart-shaped face watched Sarah warily.
"Are you the owl Jocelyn smacked? How'd you get in here?" She said to herself, looking around. Sarah didn't expect an answer or anything. She just didn't know what else to do except talk herself through odd situations. She wondered if the sound of a human voice could be calming to an animal if it's scared, or if that was just a myth.
Slowly, she took another step forward, holding out her hand. The owl puffed up, glaring at her suspiciously and clicked it's sharp beak unhappily. Remembering what had happened to Jocelyn and Cody, she put her hand down.
"It's ok, little guy." I should give it a snack.
Digging through her schoolbag, she found the little bag of trail mix she had packed for lunch, "Hungry?"
The young owl simply watched her. She came forward slowly to set a peanut onto the table.
Sarah was beyond excited as she stepped away and the owl cautiously hopped forward and snatched the peanut. It cocked it's head at her before ruffling it's feathers.
Sarah thought of the absurdity of this moment. Of course, when you live next to the woods you're bound to see an owl once in a while. But this was her first time interacting with one. They're supposed to be nocturnal.
She laughed nervously, "Looks like we've got a new friend, Merlin! What should we call him?"
The owl gazed at Sarah with it's pitch black eyes.
Her.
Sarah stared at the owl. The owl stared back. She got the feeling that it was a female owl.
"Or...Her? Uh, do you have a name or shall I give you one?" She said, watching the bird cautiously. She wondered if this was a trick of Jareth's. What were the odds of this bird coming to her and NOT being one of Jareth's? It was obviously one of the birds at the accident with her and Emily. And that kind of stuff doesn't happen without magic.
The owl, of course, says nothing in response. Sarah allows herself to smirk. Even if the owl could understand, she would probably be wondering why this human girl is talking to dogs and owls…or inanimate baseball-bats for that matter.
Merlin wagged his tail and came up to the table to sniff at the owl. The owl hissed at him in the strangest hiss Sarah's ever heard, almost like a demented snake, and clicked its beak in a warning. She is reminded again that she doesn't know much about owls since she had no idea they made such creepy noises before.
"It's alright, owl. It's alright, Merlin won't hurt you." Sarah scratched the dog behind the ears.
She looked at the owl's wing, which was a little bent, and worried that Jocelyn hurt it really bad. But it got here, didn't it? It must still be able to fly. Sarah looked up around the shed and found a large opening in the top right corner. The owl must have come in through there.
"Poor thing. Your wing looks a little painful." She cooed to it. "Want me to take a look?" The owl clicked it's beak menacingly.
"Ok, that's a definite no, then." She wouldnt have known how to heal a wing anyways, or what to look for. Suddenly she remembered why she came in here and looked at her watch with a gasp,"Shoot! I'm late!"
She put a handful of trail mix on the table in case the owl wanted more. And with that, Sarah turned and headed back to the door. "Bye, Merlin! Don't eat our visitor!"
Sarah looked back and the owl and dog were both staring at each other, sizing each other up. It was so odd having such a magnificent bird in such a drab shed.
"Thank you for yesterday," She nodded at the owl. "If not for you guys… who knows what Cody and Jocelyn would have done."
Obviously, the owl doesn't respond…cause it's an owl. And Sarah closed the shed door behind her, puzzling over this mysterious bird and wondering what else was in store for her today.
After a long day of school and pile of homework stuffed into her backpack later...Sarah joined the excited crowd of high schoolers heading to watch the first basketball game of the season. The sun was setting, casting beautiful hues of purples, oranges, and pinks as she looked around, not really listening to the cacophony of students yelling and laughing, while keeping an eye open for one of her friends. The students seemed a lot more excited for this game than normal. She spied Stacey outside the front doors with the rest of the cheer squad; jumping up and down with 2 frenchbraids in her long hair and waving pom-poms into the faces of the people who walked in.
"Hey Stace!" Sarah called as she reached her.
"Hey Sarah! Ready to watch the Westchester Wolves totally destroy the Anderton Cougars?" she hooted and shook her blue and white pom-poms in Sarah's face.
Sarah chuckled as she brushed the pom-poms away, "You know it! We're going to crush them!" She paused, thinking, "It's weird because 90% of the time I really hate this school. But right now…"
Stacey grinned, "Right now you kinda want to go find someone from Anderton High and tell them how Westchester is ten times better than their dumb school?!"
Sarah laughed, "Yeah, kinda! Is that weird? It keeps occurring to me that this is my very last year to be a 'wolf', you know?"
Stacey shook her pom-poms. "Yup! And getting you pumped up for the game means I'm just doing my job! GO WOLVES!" Her blond braids wave around as she bounces up and down.
"Have you seen Sean at all today?" Sarah glanced around briefly as she searched for a jersey in the crowd.
Stacey smirked, mischievously, "Yup! Based on his face during warm-ups... I'd say he's running on, like, 70% excitement and 30% terror."
Sarah laughed, "Well, I can understand why. It's his first time on the team! But there's no reason to be nervous, he's just a stand-in if someone gets hurt, right?"
Stacey stared at her strangely.
"What?"
"You haven't heard?"
Sarah's puzzled, "Heard what?"
"About Ben?"
"Huh?"
Stacey looks at Sarah like she's grown two heads, "How could you not have heard, Sarah?! Everyone at school has been talking about it! They even announced it over the intercom!"
"I was late this morning dude. Just tell me! What haven't I heard?"
"Ben got attacked by a bear yesterday! And Sean IS playing tonight, to take his place!"
Sarah's mouth dropped open. "WHAT?!"
Stacey took a step closer to Sarah, and spoke lower so noone could hear with all the students bustling around them, "It was after school in the gym parking lot! And Sean was right there when the bear attacked Ben. You should talk to him. You've always been a good listener and he'll appreciate it. He thinks….." Stacey glanced around and then lowered her voice even more, "He thinks that the Goblin King had something to do with it."
Uhhh, what? How? Sarah frowned, "Uh, wow...ok, I'll ask him after the game..."
Stacey gave Sarah a few hard claps on the shoulder and then stepped back to her place.
Jeez, he's probably feeling a lot of pressure right now, stepping in for Ben, the Team Captain...
"You HAVE at least heard about what happened to Mr. Cooper though, right?" Stacey suddenly asked.
"Mr. Cooper?" Sarah stared at her, feeling like a ditz.
"Are you serious Sarah?! Are you living under a rock?!" Stacey gaped at her, making Sarah's face turn a little red, "Mr. Cooper got attacked by a black snake in his office this morning!"
Can things get any worse than this? Sarah remembered that Mr. Cooper had been absent today but she had just brushed it off, not concerned. How am I the last to hear anything?
Stacey stepped closer to Sarah again, her eyes frightened, "He was busy talking to Luke when a black snake came out of his desk and bit him! He was unconscious by the time the ambulance came by."
First owls, then bears, now snakes!? What's happening!
Stacey gripped Sarah's arm, concerned, "You don't think… I mean, could they be related? Like, what are the odds of two crazy animal attacks happening within twenty-four hours?"
"Three."
Now it was Stacey's turn to look dumbfounded, "Excuse me?"
"Technically, there have been three crazy animal attacks within the last 24 hours." Sarah bit her lip, trying to connect the pieces to the puzzle.
She then proceeded to tell Stacey bout the owls that attacked Joss and Cody yesterday and saved her and Emily. Stacey stared at her, horrified.
"And now there's an owl stuck inside my shed..." Sarah mused to herself as she wondered what it could mean. She hoped Merlin was ok...
Stacey's eyes were as wide as saucers. "Two weeks and Dan still hasn't woke up...And now Mr. Cooper and Ben are there in the hospital with him! This can't be a coincidence, right? It's got to be the Gobl—"
"STACEY! C'mon, the game's about to start!" Britney yelled over at Stacey, annoyed.
"I'll be there in a minute!" Stacey called back.
"Ooooooookay, be late if you want but Coach Tanner told me to tell you that you're on thin ice." Britney grinned evily at Stacey, taunting her. She strutted away and Stacey glared after her.
"Have you STILL not figured out how to get that cellphone back?" Sarah asked, glaring at Britney's back as well.
"I gotta go." Stacey sighed dejectedly, side-stepping the question. Sarah could hear what Stacey wasn't saying. She was still at Britney's mercy.
"It's okay, we can talk tomorrow," Sarah said, not wanting her to get into trouble. With a grateful nod and a sad smile, Stacey hurried toward the gym.
Sarah started to follow… when a strong hand clamped down on each of her shoulders.
"Hey, Sarah, long time no see." Jocelyn's angry voice had Sarah twisting around to face her.
Sarah's mouth dropped open as she took Jocelyn's face in.
"Not long enough," Sarah raised her eyebrows in shock, processing what she was seeing.
So that's what happens if you get too close to owls...
Dark angry scratches covered Jocelyn's face, arms, and hands, while the deeper cuts had strips of gauze taped onto them. She looked like a badly put together mummy. Who knew that owl claws could do so much damage? Again she hoped Merlin was ok and wondered if leaving them in the shed was the right thing to do.
Sarah tried to move away, but was suddenly grabbed by Cody who had come up beside Jocelyn. He looked just as bad, if not worse. "Awww, don't be like that! We missed you!" Cody smiled maliciously
"H-hey! Let go!" Sarah cried, eyes wide.
"But we want to sit by you during the game! We can do the wave!" Jocelyn grinned, sarcastically.
"Or, you know, talk about what you did to my car." Cody's face darkens, not smiling anymore. His grip tightens painfully, and Sarah's stomach fills with dread. How do I get them to leave me alone?
"Hey, high schoolers! Great day for a basketball game."
All three students jumped as someone spoke up from beside of them. They turn, and Sarah's shocked to see the handsome face of Connor Green. He wore a brown leather jacket and had his hands casually in his jean pockets, blond hair combed neatly. He had an easy smile on, but his eyes were hard, assessing the situstion. Boy, was she glad to see him!
"Ready to go in Sarah?" He said, smiling over at her and coming to stand beside her.
Jocelyn lets go of Sarah's other arm, scratching nervously at the red gashes that mar the backs of her hands. Cody was more reluctant. He sized up Connor, who was about the same size as him but was obviously older and an adult, before he let go of his grip on Sarah.
Sarah bit her lip and watched Cody and Jocelyn's reaction as Connor put his arm over Sarah's shoulders where they had once been grabbing.
"C'mon Joss." Cody said, turning away and going into the gym, with Jocelyn hurrying along beside him.
"Where are they headed in such a hurry?" He smirked, looking down at Sarah.
"Thank you for helping me," Sarah looked up at him, then realized their faces were really close and blushed. It was good he had come to the rescue. "As long as it's away from here, who cares!"
"Hmmm, I'm sensing that you guys aren't exactly friends." He murmured, looking back the way they went.
"Wow, what gave it away?" Sarah rolled her eyes and sent a final glare in the direction they had walked off in.
Connor smirked. He gestured towards the door, and with a blush, Sarah walked with him through the doors of the gym…
They eventually found themselves seats among the crowd of rowdy Westchester High fans with a great view of the court.
"So what happened to Cody and Jocelyn? Looks like they both took a bag of angry cats to the face." Connor asked, holding out a bag of M&Ms for Sarah to help herself. What a gentleman!
"Owls, actually. I think they're still a little freaked out about it." Sarah flashed him a big smile, grabbing a handful.
His eyebrows shot up and he pondered that for a moment before saying, "This whole place seems a little freaked out, if you ask me."
"Uh... what do you mean?" Sarah swallowed nervously.
"Dunno, just getting a weird vibe… like something's wrong but no one wants to admit it."
He has no idea. Sarah did her best to suppress a shiver. She glanced up at him, but he doesn't seem to have noticed.
"So, uh…how are things?" She tried to change the subject.
He smiled, and looked at her, "Well, today my boss hid in the back while I got rid of a spider."
Sarah giggled.
"…. except it wasn't a spider. It was a big dustball." He rolled his eyes.
"Wow. It's just non-stop excitement at Gunther's Hardware." Sarah joked.
They spied Stacey at the base of the bleachers, standing with the rest of the cheer squad. Connor waved and she smiled, sticking her tongue out at him.
He smiled and shook his head, "Heh. Brat."
"You guys are adorable." Sarah smiled, as she saw them banter back and forth. Toby and her were like that most of the time. She was beginning to miss the little squirt.
The game was about to start. Down on the court, the two teams got into position for the jump ball…she could see Sean clearly. The only Asian on the team and he looked jittery.
BEEEP! the whistle blew...
And their team took possession!
"Yeah! Go wolves!" Sarah shouted, clapping loudly.
The Westchester player drove down the court but was soon trapped by an Anderton High defender.
"Drew! Over here!" Sean yelled over to his teammate, completely open.
Drew looked at the spikey black-haired teen… then away. He tried to get past the defender, but ended up losing the ball!
"Are you kidding me?" Sean yelled. He held his arms open in disgust.
"What the heck? Sean was wide open!" Sarah frowns, annoyed. What gives?
The Cougars scored an easy basket, and the ball returned to Sarah's team. But once again…
"Is it just me, or is nobody passing to your buddy down there?" Connor asked.
"It's definitely not you…" I don't believe this.
By the middle of the second quarter, the Wolves were down by ten points.
"BOOOOOOOO! Someone score already!" Cody bellowed out over the whole stadium.
"Come on, Wolves! You can do it!" Stacey cheered sadly, trying not to lose hope.
Britney, standing beside Stacey, huffed angrily, "Ugh. This blows."
Sarah's heart sank as she watched Sean get angrier and angrier as his team refused to pass to him. His other friend, Tom, watched from the bench, shoulders slumped in defeat.
"I can't believe this…." Sarah shook her head, angry. I'm about to go down there and slap someone!
Connor nodded, "You're not the only one. Sean looks about ready to lose it."
On the court, Sean got into a defensive stance, tracking the ball with the intensity of a shark, his face flushed with anger.
"Come on…please!" He muttered to himself quietly.
One of the Anderton players makes a cross-court pass… and Sean sprang up, snatching the ball out of the air!
"Yes! Go Sean, go!" Sarah jumped up excitedly.
Sean headed for the three-point line, defenders scrambling to catch up! He shot, just as an Anderton player slammed into him from the side! Sean stumbled, nearly falling… but the ball swooshed through the basket! Cheers erupt from the bleachers as the ref awarded Sean a free throw, which he sank easily! The crowd roared!
"Score!" Sarah screamed as she hugged Connor! Her brain caught up to her actions, and she flushesd pink as she slowly let go of him. Looking up at him, she was relieved to see that he was grinning at her, eyes sparkling.
The ref signaled halftime! Sean followed the rest of the team off the court as the cheer squad jumped up to do their routine.
They both cheered and Sarah yelled, "HELL yeah, Sean! You're the best!"
Sean looked up at Sarah in the bleachers. Grinning, he pumps his fist in the air.
"Hell yeah!" He yelled back, running to go on a break.
"Come on Wolves! Let's hear you howl!" Stacey yelled up to the crowd.
As the cheerleaders start their routine, Sarah noticed Connor frowning slightly.
"What's up?" she asked.
"Does Stace seem off her game to you?" Connor nodded toward Stacey, who danced clumsily at the back of the formation. She looked so embarrassed.
Sarah realized that Stacey hasn't told Connor about the blackmail.
"Maybe there's something going on with her," Sarah suggested, trying to ease him towards the answer without breaking her promise to Stacey.
"Must be. Stace wouldn't let any old stress interfere with her cheerleading." He said, worried. "Gymnastics, dance, cheer… performing was always the one thing that helped her escape from whatever other crap she was dealing with."
"Crap like your parents?" Sarah couldn't help but ask. She bit her lip, not wanting to overstep her boundaries, but wanting to understand Connor's background better. Get to know him.
Connor sighed, tapping his foot on the bleachers.
"Yeah… I gave up on my folks a long time ago. To me, they're just a couple of unpleasant strangers who happen to live with my sister. But Stacey… I don't think she could ever cut them out like that. She's too good a person."
"And you're not a good person?" Sarah asked. She's curious as to what he will say about himself.
He looked over at Sarah and gave her a half-smile, "Not bad, but not too good either."
The routine ended and the second half of the game began.…
During the third quarter, Sean sank basket after basket! By the middle of the fourth quarter, the Wolves were only down by one point!
"Holy crap…" Sarah said, shocked. Sean is good…..almost too good! She never knew he could play like this! She couldn't help but get the niggling feeling that there was more to meet the eye here. Sean had never made the basketball team, but now during his first game he scored every point? Thoughts of what Stacey had said about Jareth being the reason that Sean was here came back to her mind. Sarah glanced around warily, half-expecting to see his dark shadow somewhere in the room. Suddenly, Sarah wasn't having that good of a time anymore.
"Huh! We might actually win this." Connor laughed and clapped.
The cheering from Sarah's side of the bleachers got louder and louder as Tom grabbed a rebound and started dribbling up the court!
"Whooo! Get 'em Wolves!" Stacey whooped, waving her pom-poms.
Tom stopped, blocked by an Anderton defender. He spun around, looking for an opening.
"SEAN!" He passed the ball to Sean with seconds left on the clock. Sean pivoted and shot the ball…
"Come on!" Connor pleaded.
Everyone's breath held...
….and the ball dropped straight into the basket!
"BOOM!" Sean yelled, throwing his arms out and turning towards the crowd as if he was a circus performer finishing an act!
The crowd roared, surging to their feet! Everyone rushed onto the court as a chant began to rise over the noise…
"King Kang! King Kang! King Kang! KING KANG!"
Everyone was on the bleachers. Everyone except Sarah who sat there, watching the revelry. She looked around and noticed that M.J. was still on the benches too, doodling in her sketchbook without a care in the world.
"Whoo-hoo!" Sarah could hear Stacey laughing. And everyone yelling to each other.
"You're number one!", "SUCK IT Anderton high!", "Yeah! Wolves rule!"
"You were incredible out there Sean!" Luke spoke over the intercom above the noise of the crowd, "I always knew you were the star of the team!"
Sarah sighed. She stood up and turned to MJ, "C'mon MJ, let's get down there and congratulate him before we hurt his feelings."
MJ grumbled for a moment, lost in her drawing before sighing and snapping her book closed. They walked down the bleachers together and were able to reach Sean, surrounded by adoring fans.
"Yeah! Go Sean!" Emily whooped and hollered.
"That's my man!" Taylor tried to slap him on the back, but couldn't reach him because of the crowd.
Sean looked like he's going to cry, but instead sucked it in and laughed triumphantly. Tom pushed his way through the tight knot of people, "C'mon, Sean, we've gotta hit the showers! Coach is taking us all out to dinner to celebrate!"
"You guys should come!" Sean looks to Sarah, MJ, Luke, Taylor and Emily, "Dessert's on me! I'm feeling generous!"
Everyone agrees except Sarah. She's quiet.
Sean followed the rest of the team to the locker room, and Sarah looked around until she saw Connor over by the doors.
"Hey, you heading out?" She asked him.
"Soon, yeah. Gonna see if I can talk to Stace for a minute first. You want a ride home? It's too dark to walk by yourself."
"Thanks, but I'll be alright" She smiled shyly.
"It's a nice drive this time of night."
I REALLY really want to. "I'll take you up on that another night.." She gave him a quick hug.
He smiled, waving as he wandered away through the crowd toward his sister. Excepting Dan, Sarah always felt like Luke, Sean, and Taylor were like her brothers and she didn't feel awkward around them. Especially Taylor, because of Jess. As she looked at Connor she felt a tingle of excitement and attraction. He felt like an adventure. And Sarah truly… desperately missed the thrill of adventure. Only Jareth had ever offered her that, but he was as unattainable as a unicorn. An evil unicorn.
She went outside and sees Sean with his team about to get into a van.
"Hey, Sean!" She called out, reaching them.
He turned to her with the happiest expression on his face that suddenly seemed hesitant, "Oh! Uh, hey Sarah... you gonna meet us over at the diner?"
"Actually, I'm going to head home, kinda tired." She nods behind her to where Stacey had offered her a ride, "You did really good today Sean! I didnt know you were so good at basketball!"
Sean suddenly looked a little uncomfortable, "Yeah, I...I guess."
Sarah had never been a patient person and went to the point, "I heard you were there when Ben got attacked. Is he ok? What happened?"
He looked around and leaned over to Sarah and said "Actually, uh, can we talk about that later? I'm about to go celebrate with my team..."
"Stacey told me that you mentioned the Goblin King had something to do with the attack. THIS is more important than a dinner!"
Sean scratched his head, looking back and forth between the van and Sarah.
"Sean," Sarah whispered, "What did the Goblin King do to Ben?"
Sean sighed, his eyes became guilty as he finally relented, "He's the reason I played tonight, Sarah. He HELPED me get the position..." He looked upset, " And I-I think he's the reason I scored so many points tonight."
"But, Sean, why would he do that?" Sarah asked him, having felt that was the reason but still shocked.
"In return for his help...he-he wants...Sarah, I-I don't know what to do!" He shook his head struggling.
"What does he want?!" Sarah felt a tingle of fear shoot up her spine. Did Sean make a deal with Jareth in order to be a basketball star?
"C'MON KING KANG! Get in the van we're going to be late!" Tom called to him from the seat he was saving.
"Just a second!" Sean yelled. He turned back to Sarah,rushedo, "I gotta go. We'll talk tomorrow!"
"Sean!" Sarah gaped at him.
"We're all going to the hospital to visit Dan tomorrow. I'll tell you and everyone else then, ok?" Sean pleaded, looking back up at the van.
That was a good idea. Sarah realized. After 2 weeks in a coma; Dan had been transported to the nearest city since Westchester didnt seem to have the right tools to help him and he was now allowed visitors at the new hospital.
Sarah realized that she was being selfish. This is Sean's first moment of victory. He had just gone from zero to hero...was it so wrong to let him enjoy the feeling while he still had it.
And here I am spoiling it...
Sarah nodded, defeated, "We need to see Dan and figure out what our next move is. I'll talk to you later, Sean."
He smiled grateful, before turning and climbing up into the van with the rest of the team. He looked at her sadly through the window as they drive away.
Sarah stood there for a minute, feeling cold. How could Sean have known that Jareth wanted something unless he talked to him? And the snake with Luke and Mr. Cooper? Had Jareth been there too?
She's hit with a cold rush of air, and shivered as she walks along. She nervously looks around her at the black night as she walks along the dark wooded road. The wind whips Sarah's hair around and does the same thing to the trees who seem to be dancing and shaking. Her hair stood up on her arms and zhe rubbed them, trying to calm herself down. She felt watched. Exposed. Which is something you never EVER want to feel while walking in the dark.
Why hadn't I accepted Connor's ride?
Sarah looked up at the dark trees, wanting to hightail it back to the highschool but forced herself to move onward. Merlin was still in the shed. She had to go through the darkness to get him. She begins to sing herself a song, as that's the only thing giving her courage.
I'm not scared! I'm not scared!
When she finally makes it home, she took a deep, stabilizing breath. She made it! She turned a little away from the house to walk toward the shed. Why oh why does the shed have to be so far from the house, RIGHT on the edge of the woods? Curse you dad!
Sarah opened the shed door with a screech that grated her nerves, "Hey Merlin! How's it go….ing?" Sarah saw the owl on the floor, looking up at her. There was a crumpled paper, next to it's foot. Merlin was in his bed under the table, watching the owl warily. She could barely see him because of the darkness. She quickly flipped the switch on, feeling relieved as the light chased away all the strange shadows.
"Merlin! Come!" She ordered, feeling angsty.
He stood up, watching the owl out of the corner of his eye, and pressed against the walls as he tried to come over to Sarah with the greatest distance possible between them. Sarah couldn't help but laugh. Looks like they had a bit of a squabble while she was gone. Merlin probably tried to eat the owl, and she had put him in his place. Sarah checked his fur, but there are no scratches or bites.
"Did you make our friend feel welcome? Or did she have to make you behave?" Sarah asked him, petting his head. He closed his eyes, and grinned happily.
Sarah turned to the bird, who was still on the floor, and she again noticed the folded piece of paper . The owl was watching Sarah, and began to bob her head up and down when she noticed Sarah looking her way.
Sarah stood there studying her for a moment. She didnt know if the owl bobbing its head was cute or creepy. What was the piece of paper though? It looked old, like parchment.
"Look, uh, owl. I don't have any more food for you..." Sarah walked slowly in order to not scare the owl, "But can I get that paper from the floor without you attacking me?"
Surprisingly, the owl obliged and walked away a few paces on her long legs. She had such a pretty heart-shaped face. Sarah picked up the paper and looked at the owl thoughtfully.
"You are such a beautiful and graceful creature. I think I'm going to call you 'Daphnee'."
She just stared at Sarah and so Sarah kept talking, to perhaps get her used to her voice, "The name comes from Greek mythology about a nymph, the daughter of the river-god Peneus. She escaped from the attentions of Apollo by being transformed into a laurel tree. And seeing how the Laurel in a symbol of victory, I think you definitely were victorious against Cody and Jocelyn even though you were hurt in battle."
She apparently got bored with Sarah's narrative because she began to fluff up and preen her feathers, ignoring her.
Sarah turned her attention to the parchment paper in her hand, it was old and brittle. She unfolded it. It was a letter! An old letter by the look of the cursive.
"Dear E.B,
I want to write to you from the car of a train bound over the Rockies, a feat of modernity so spectacular I reel to conceive of it!
Alas, my mind is preoccupied with my destination; one Westchester, Oregon and the curious package that started me on this expedition when it appeared in my university mailbox: a photograph of dark trees…an inhuman silhouette…and five hastily scribbled words.
"It lives in the woods."
The other faculty (and your father) think me mad to chase such nonsense. Perhaps they are right. Perhaps they've always been right. Or perhaps this time I shall prove them all wrong.
-Goddard E. Filleus
September 29, 1871
Sarah got a queasy feeling from the letter. It lives in the woods?...Did he mean Jareth? Who is the author of this letter? She checked the date.
"1871?! Where on earth did you find this Daphnee?" Sarah cried, shocked. What's an owl doing, bringing me 200-year-old mail?
"I don't suppose you have an overdue letter from Hogwarts, do you?" Sarah asked her with a raised eyebrow. Sarah was joking but at the same time hesitant. What...or WHO was this bird?
Daphnee tilted her head at Sarah.
"Well, I guess it would be weirder if you did answer." Sarah rolled her eyes and looked back at the paper. Reading over the letter one more time she concluded that she'll have to do some research on this Goddard E. Filleus fellow. She walked over to the table only to stop in astonishment. ANOTHER folded up old paper was on the table! The first one must have fallen to the floor and the owl protected it from Merlin.
Slowly, ever so slowly, Sarah reached for the paper. It was addressed to the same "E.B." by the same Goddard E. Fillius. Are these pages of someone's journal?
Sarah began to read.
Dear E.B.,
Do you recall our endless discussions beneath the old oak tree? As I settle in Westchester, your words echo in my ears, speaking of reality and ritual… known and unknown… and the ancient wilderness that lives between…
I confess I am bewitched by this somnambulant woodland town. But there is a supernatural "fog" of sorts here, E. B... the gradual tension of boundaries ill-defined and shifting of two realms. A dark current courses beneath this town. Every soul in Westchester seems to acknowledge it… but none dare speak it's name.
I mean to trace that current to its headwaters… and chart them for all the world to see!
Goddard E. Fillius
October 1, 1871
A supernatural 'fog'? Ill-defined and shifting boundaries of realms? A dark current?!
Sarah took both letters, opened a drawer of dusty thumbtacks and pinned the letters on her wall so they wouldnt fall onto the floor again. She stepped back and studied them for a moment. This man had worked at an acedemy of some sort and was messaging a woman about his trip to Westchester. Did he ever discover Jareth as the source of the strange occurances here ? She rubbed at her tired eyes. This would have to wait until later.
"Come on, Merlin." Sarah sighed, slapping her thigh to get his attention. She didn't want to turn the light off, but she forced herself to be reasonable and plunged the shed into darkness as she quickly closed the door. She turned and headed back to the house. Tomorrow would hopefully bring more answers than today did.