Chapter 15

Mr. Crepsley's P.O.V

Last night, KayLi and I received a parcel from Mr. Tiny. There was a letter and a small figure of a ship inside. If I am right, KayLi said the letter was from Mr. Tiny, and it simply said:" To rush you on your way. –Mr. Tiny"

In the morning, KayLi told me about a dream she had gotten last night. I do not usually listen to dreams, but the dream she had may have been related to the parcel, so we decided not to pass it up. KayLi said that she would try to talk to that girl she saw in her dream. KayLi suspected Mr. Hynderpan had some relation to clocks or ships, as the rhyme had said:

" Tick Tock, tick tock

The mouse ran up the clock

Mr. Hynderpan you wrecked my plans

Be careful where you dock"

We decided to meet in the afternoon, when school was over.

A few hours later, I was sitting in that café where we usually met. A waitress came over and said:" Sir, would you like anything?" I told her I wanted a cup of tea. Soon after that, I spotted KayLi making her way towards the café. To my surprise, there was a girl following her. She had dark blonde hair put up with a pink hairband, and, unusually, purplish coloured eyes. When they got to where I was sitting, KayLi introduced me to Violet. I nodded at her. She seemed like a really shy girl. She was hugging her books tightly. From KayLi's description this morning, she sounded a lot like the girl KayLi saw in the dream.

KayLi sat down next to me. Violet seemed hesitant, but sat when KayLi persuaded her gently. I decided to be softer with this girl. The waitress came, bringing my cup of tea, and asked the girls what they would like. KayLi ordered a slice of cake, but Violet was just sitting there. "What about you, Violet?" I asked her, in the most kindly tone I could manage. The girl blushed beetroot red at being asked a question directly, and shook her head hurriedly before looking down again. When the waitress went away, KayLi gave me a look- the dream and Violet were connected to Mr. Tiny. I raised an eyebrow at her. How so?

She turned to Violet. "Violet, tell Mr. Crepsley about Mr. Hynderpan." She was quiet for a few moments. I was beginning to wonder if she heard KayLi and was about to ask the question when she replied. Still looking down, she started speaking. Her voice was soft, and she spoke quickly. " I know Mr. Hynderpan. He used to be the captain for a ship- The Cassandra. But he retired and now he owns a shop near the shore where he sells clocks and compasses." She lapsed into silence again.

Later, when the sun was setting, we bid farewell to Violet and took a walk to the shore. KayLi confided to me that she had a feeling Violet's role in this was not over yet. We walked pass rows of shops. Most of them were closing for the day. One shop, at the end of the road, was called " Hynderpan's Tick Tock Clocks" The bell rang when we walked in. The store looked like an antique shop. A man, presumedly Mr. Hynderpan, walked out through curtains from the back.

"May I help you?" he said. His voice, too, was soft, but had a certain tone that made you think twice about crossing this man.

"Yes," I replied. "We are looking for a man. You might know him. His name is Tiny, Desmond Tiny." As I said it, his eyes narrowed and through gritted teeth, he said :" Speak fast. What is your purpose here? How do you know Mr. Tiny? What do you want from me?"

I shared a glance with KayLi. I guess we should tell him, but gently. "Mr Hynderpan," KayLi started, "if you know Mr. Tiny, surely you know that he, ah, is, different? Well, recently, he set up this Game called the Destiny Games, purely for his own entertainment. Do you know about it?" Mr. Hynderpan walked around the counter and sighed. "Follow me." He said. He led us through the thick curtains to the back room, where he gestured for us to sit down on the sofa. " So what are you?" he said bluntly. "Um, we're vampires, sir." KayLi said.I watched him suspiciously. If he opened his mouth to scream, I would have to muffle it. It would not do if more people came to investigate the screaming. Luckily, Mr. Hynderpan seemed to have dealt with vampire before, at least. "I see. So tell me about this game."

Over the hour, we told him about Mr. Tiny and his plot. Then we told him about KayLi's dream. When KayLi got to the part about him jumping In to save the little girl, his eyes turned sad. "If only I could have saved her." He said under his breath, so softly that even with vampire hearing I could barely make it out. "Mr. Hynderpan," I interjected "Could you tell us what you have to do with Mr. Tiny?" He sat there quietly, pondering some things. After about a quarter of an hour, he said:" Come tomorrow, I will tell you about it. But first, there are things I have to gather. Come back tomorrow." And he went quiet, staring at the wall behind us.

"Okay, then, Mr. Hynderpan, see you tomorrow then." KayLi said, and she got up to leave. I stood up too. We walked out from behind the curtain and walked out. Behind us, the door closed with another ring.

I, um, just realized. They're walking around In the afternoon. Oh well. Maybe it's a special world. Anyway, thanks for the reviews, guys. It really gave me support. =) Stay tuned!