Chapter 6

The door led us into a horizontal, long hallway. Ib began shivering. I couldn't blame her. Across from us was another door; going through it led us into a dark room, with a small sliver of light shining on a red tile.

Suddenly, Misao stopped in front of the tile on the floor. "Do not step on this tile," she said firmly. She walked around it and tore off the paper nailed to the wall. She led us back through the door.

We stepped into a small, yet grand entrance, like one you'd find in an old Victorian noble's house. There were halls to our left and right. We venture to the hall on our right (In the game, it would be going to the left hall for the player).

The room was simple and cold. I regretted not grabbing a jacket this morning. The floor's material was the same as what you might find on the cover of a manhole or a storm drain.

It led us to an empty room. Well, empty save for a simple workbench with a pair of scissors chained atop, and a dresser in the corner. Moving back into the grandeur hall, we ventured to the next hallway.

The door led us to a small room adjacent to a long narrow corridor. At the end of the corridor was an old, antique-looking grandfather clock and a door, which led us into an intricate room, lined with velvet carpentry. A pile of nicely wrapped presents littered a corner, and a large mahogany desk sat against a wall beneath a window. Next to the desk was a similar style dresser. On the smooth surface of the desk I saw an open journal, a lamp shining brightly, a vase of flowers, and a quill in a bottle of ink.

Misao walked toward the pile of presents and rummaged around for a moment before picking up what I could vaguely recognise as a beaten up teddy bear She handed the bear to Aya, who pocketed the it the best she could in her apron. As Misao stepped toward us, one of the presents fell from the pile, making Ib and I jump.

I left Aya and Misao to investigate the presents, while I trekked to the desk, peering at the journal.

"Witch's Diary"

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I was sick, so no one played with me.

My father and my mother didn't love me.

I stepped back from the desk, feeling a chill creep its way up my spine.

We made our way out and down the corridor, when Aya looked to our left (right for the player), directly at a door. Had it always been there? Leading us through, we entered a dank smelling room, the floorboards creaking and protesting under our weight. In the middle of the room sat a worn wicker basket. Aya held up a hand for us to wait, then cautiously stepped forward. I can see her silently counting her steps.

So she knows how many it will take to run. I started counting with her. Five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten. Ten steps for a child. That's five normal steps for me.

A large teddy bear sat in the basket. I looked over to where a note was posted on the wall.

BEARS IN THE BASKET.

Aya retrieved the smaller teddy bear from her pocket and placed it in with the larger. Or at least, tried to. It seemed like the limbs took up too much space.

"Aya, stay here with Ben and Ib, I'll go get the scissors," Misao said, grabbing the smaller bear and exiting the room. She came back a moment later with just the bear's torso and head, handing the limbs off to Aya. Misao then proceeded to stuff the teddy bear torso into the basket. An unlocking sound echoed the room. As we made to exit, I looked over my shoulder at the basket, seeing it move a small bit just as the door closed behind me.

Once back in the entrance, I barely had time to look around before a vase fell from the small table in a corner, breaking and shattering glass.

Misao backed up one step. "Get back to the room. EVERYBODY, GET BACK TO THAT ROOM NOW!"

She had barely finished when a large teddy bear, larger than me, charged through the door. We sprinted back to the room with the basket, slamming the door behind us.

I felt Ib trembled against my back.

"Ben," she whimpered. "Ben, I don't wanna be here anymore. I wanna go home. I-I want Gary back, I don't wanna be here anymore!"

I moved her from my back to my chest, cradling her close. "Shh," I murmured. "We'll find him, I'll protect you the best I can, okay?" I looked at Misao and Aya. "I'm going to make sure we all get out of here alive and back to where we belong."

Misao nodded, and bravely opened the door, leading us back to the corridor.

I began humming a small tune, trying to comfort Ib.

"Two AM and she calls me 'cause I'm still awake,/ 'Can you help me unravel my latest mistake?/ I don't love him. Winter just wasn't my season."

Grand hall.

"Yeah we walk through the doors, so accusing their eyes/ Like they have any right at all to critcise,/ Hypocrites. You're all here for the very same reason."

Room with the workbench.

"'Cause you can't jump the track, we're like cars on a cable/ And life's like an hourglass, glued to the table/ No one can find the rewind button, girl./ So cradle your head in your hands/ And breathe. Just breathe./ Oh breathe, just breathe."

Misao nodded and picked up the teddy bear arms as we went through the now unlocked door.

"May he turned twenty-one on the base of Fort Bliss/ 'Just a day,' he said down to the flask in his fist,/ 'Ain't been sober, since maybe October of last year."

We entered into an even more grand dining hall, complete with a long table adorned with a white tablecloth and chairs all around.

"Here in town you can tell he's been down for a while,/ But, my God, it's so beautiful when the boy smiles,/ Wanna hold him. Maybe I'll just sing about it," Misao chimed.

"'Cause you can't jump the track, we're like cars on a cable/ And life's like an hourglass, glued to the table/ No one can find the rewind button, boys./ So cradle your head in your hands/ And breathe. Just breathe./ Oh breathe, just breathe." Aya soon joined us as we searched the dining hall for any clues to lead us forward. In the centre was a large bowl filled with sickly looking liquid. I heard Ib mutter she was hungry.

"There's a light at each end of this tunnel,/ You shout 'cause you're just as far in as you'll ever be out/ And these mistakes you've made, you'll just make them again/ If you'd only try turning around."

"2 AM and I'm still awake, writing a song/ If I get it all down on paper, it's no longer inside of me,/ Threatening the life it belongs to/ And I feel like I'm naked in front of the crowd/ Cause these words are my diary, screaming out loud/ And I know that you'll use them, however you want to."

I felt Ib's breath waft past my cheeks as she pitched in for the last verse. We walked into the kitchen.

"But you can't jump the track, we're like cars on a cable,/ And life's like an hourglass, glued to the table/ No one can find the rewind button now/ Sing it if you understand./ and breathe, just breathe/ woah breathe, just breathe,/ Oh breathe, just breathe,/ Oh breathe, just breathe."

A knife moved on its own, cutting something unidentifiable on the counter. Misao took the bear arms and walked up to the knife. After exchanging a few words, Misao was given a silver key. However, once again I'd been distracted by a book on the table against the wall.

A book titled "Dining of Aristocrats"

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People of ruling and wealthy classes have long enjoyed dining with silverware.

By using such hard-to-clean cutlery, they could hire servants to demonstrate their wealth.

In addition, silver utensils change colour upon contact with poison, making them quite useful.

I stood up straight, blowing some hair out of my face. "Hey, Misao? Remember that bowl of soup we saw in the dining room?"

Misao looked up from her bag, where she had just dropped the key. "Yes?"

I nodded at the book. "See if you can find some good silverware."

Misao lit up, suddenly grabbing the key. "Hold on!" She rushed back into the dining room. A moment after she'd left, we heard a clicking sound and she rushed back in. "The key! It turned black in the soup!"

"Must've been poisoned," I said, nodding to the book. "Sorry, I can't help it. If I see an open book I just start reading."

"Good eye," Aya said, slamming her foot on a roach. "Gross little things."

I shuddered. "I can't handle any bugs, to be honest. Spiders especially." Aya and Misao shared a concerned look.

Misao led us through a door in the small corridor to the right of where we entered, leading us to a flight of stairs going up. I felt my breath stop as I noticed a dark haired figure at the top.

"It's just Viola," Ib said, rubbing my shoulder. "She's leading us."

The stairs made a U-turn, taking us down into another long corridor. There was a door to the right covered in spider webs, and I immediately felt a chill.

"Ben, stay out here," Aya said, readying her chainsaw. "There's something we need in this room, but fuck it up and there's a giant spider. I'll take care of this."

I nodded and kept walking, looking around the corridor. Next to the door was a suit of armour, a small table with a vase of flowers, and a black cat. I felt my heart melt. "Hello, kitty, kitty." I knelt down, smiling at the feline. Felt a sudden rush, seeing a mix of violet and cobalt for a brief second. I looked up suddenly when I heard a door close, and Misao walked back into the corridor, stuffing a piece of rope into her bag.

"Come on," she said, leading us to a room to the northwest of the hall. Entering it, I gasped. A library! I felt a familiar happy rush, despite our situation. I noticed some of the shelves were sparkling, and I found myself drawn to them while Misao made her way to the right. I heard distant chatter as I set Ib down and picked up the book farthest on my left, Ib lacing her hand in my shirt as I read aloud.

"The Witch's House (1)"

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"Keys do not open doors in the witch's house. Something else must serve as a key. "

I hummed in a bit of understanding. I moved onto the one to my right.

"The Witch's House (2)"

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"The form of the house changes based upon the witch's magic. "

I set the book back on the shelf, then noticed another twinkling book in the back corner. I replaced the fabric of my shirt that Ib held onto with my own hand, giving her a light squeeze.

A book titled, "A Funny Story"

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"Once upon a time there was a rich man pulling along a cart full of treasure.

"His cart had broken down in the woods, but there came a passing hunter and his dog.

"The rich man pleaded the hunter to keep a close eye on his cart, to which the hunter agreed.

"The rich man went to get a new cart. Meanwhile, the hunter kept watch.

"Night soon fell, and the hunter grew worried for his elderly mother still at home.

"So the hunter told the dog to watch the cart and went home to check on his mother.

"When the man returned, he saw the dog on guard. So he gave the dog a reward for his master, a silver coin, to carry in his mouth."

"Awww," Ib cooed. "That's so sweet. What a good dog."

I nodded in agreement, but I couldn't shake the feeling that this story was about to take a wrong turn…

"The dog ran all the way home and brought his master the coin. But the hunter flew into a rage.

"'I told you to watch the cart, and what did you do? You stole from it!' So the master killed the dog."

My voice trailed off as my blood ran cold. Immediately after I'd finished reading, we heard a loud cackling near us. I looked to the line of chairs to my left and saw one moving, as if someone sitting in it were laughing. It stopped as soon as I looked over.

I heard Ib sniffle, and I glanced down.

"W-why did he just k-kill the dog?!" Ib whimpered, tears filling her eyes.

I hurriedly put the book back and picked her up again, rocking her gently. "It's okay, it was just a story, it's not real. It was poorly titled. That's not a funny story." I continued down the line of shelves until I saw another gleam. I leaned in to inspect.

There are old newspaper clippings here.

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I decided not to read these aloud, just in case, and also to give Ib a minute to calm herself.

XX/XX: XX Residence Burns Down

XX and his wife XX were were found dead in the wreckage.

Their bodies were found to have stab wounds, so it is suspected they were murdered and the building then set aflame.

Additionally, XX's daughter Ellen (currently 7) has been missing since the fire. The police

It ended there. I felt my blood run colder and I swallowed thickly. Ellen.

There was a mirror between two of the shelves. I decided to just check over myself to see if I'd been given any unsightly marks.

I sighed when I saw my normal reflection. A head of purple hair suddenly appeared behind me, and I screamed as I looked over my shoulder, just as the mirror cracked.

"Ben!" Aya ran over. "What's wrong?"

I shook my head. "I-I think I saw Viola. Viola in Ellen's body, I mean."

"She's trying to communicate. We must be getting close." Aya looked over at Misao, who was holding a thick book.

"This is the Book of Death. I don't know what it does…" Misao said softly. "Ben, I trust you. I'll take Ib, could you hold the book? It won't fit in my bag."

I nodded. "I'll take your bag too. It must be getting heavy." Misao gave me a small thanks as I slung the satchel over my shoulder, holding the book to my side. I felt a burning desire to read it.

As we exited the library, we heard loud clunking. I immediately pulled the girls close, my breath quickening. After a moment, it died down and we slowly walked into the hall. I looked back at where the cat stood, almost choking on my own breathing. The suit of armour was gone.

I felt something cling to my waist. I looked down to see Ib. "Oh, Ib, honey…"

"Ben, you stay here with Misao for a bit, Aya and I will scout ahead." Misao led Aya back down the hall, while I knelt down to Ib.

"Hey, Ib, it's okay. It's all going to be okay." I smiled softly, leading her to the black cat. "Come here, come say hi to the kitty."

Ib sniffed and got to her knees, petting the cat. I saw her eyes flash the same blue-purple I'd seen earlier. What was so special about this cat?

"Ben, Ib! We need you two!"

I held Ib's hand as we both made our way down the hall, taking a left. Inside were long tables covered in glass. Underneath were realistic-looking, plaster models of various bugs. A very prominent blue butterfly caught my attention.

Ib and I continued deeper into the room, passing a little maze of halls, lined with a few paintings, to get to a slightly smaller room than the previous, with just a single bookshelf in the middle. Aya and Misao stood next to it.

"I think we need the book," Misao said, glancing at the thick book in my arm.

"Oh!" I'd forgotten I'd had it...I'd gotten so used to the burning in my side. Wait...burning in my side?

I handed Ib over to Misao, holding the book in both hands. "I'm curious..." I motioned for the girls to stay back as I opened the thick, worn cover.

"Book of Death"

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As I began reading, I immediately felt my eyes itching. I went to rub them, but that only seemed to make it worse. Red spotted my vision, making it difficult to focus.

"Wait, Ben, stop reading!"

I tried to pry myself away from the book, but some sort of spell kept me reading, even as my vision was fully engulfed in a dark red, then black. I heard a distant thud and felt a dull pain in my body, still scratching at my eyes. I barely recognised the piercing scream as my own.

Everything went black.

R

End Book I