(A/N Hello thar :P

Thanks for the reviews, guys! I'm going to try put your suggestions into action in here, hopefully. Those little suggestions help me out loads, you know? Not much to say, apart from that... there's nothing to say, lol? Read and Review :P )

We had no electricity for ages. After half of the street had called up a million different electricians to look at the damage, they decided that the majority of the wires and stuff will have to be completely torn out and replaced. Not even the trained specialists knew what could have happened- apart from the whole streets electricity had been burnt to a crisp in a matter of seconds.

In the end, the scale of the damage had become so large that people even decided (or at least considered) to move house. The damage would take ages to repair- weeks, months... not to mention it would cost loads.

Coping without electricity had become a nightmare. All of the food had defrosted, all of the entertainment was down, and cooking meals on a night became a huge task... at least it was never too cold... Summer would be when the real problems began when storms rolled in and the heat grew to unbearable.

Personally, I wanted to move somewhere else and get this crap over with. But my parents forced me to stay. We continued living as close to normal as possible while people knocked down our walls and replaced everything. I was surprised that there wasn't some sort of riot about this. It was ridiculous.

Then suddenly, one day, one of those electricity men came into our livingroom- and flicked the switch. The lights flickered on, and everyone gasped as if they had never seen electric light before... you don't realise what you have got until you have lost it, eh?

"Hope that's good enough for you... must'v been terrible, coping without electricity." Meanwhile, I'm just gasping at the ceiling, looking like a moron...

Before long, the telly is on, the cooker is on, the lights are on, the heat is on, and were all happy bunnies again. It feels like paradise being back in a nice, warm house after all of that bacon nonsense... I wonder if this is what it feels like for arctic explorers when they have just come back from a long trek through spiralling blizzards and encounters with polar bears... minus the walking.

After this, life goes back to normal.

Almost.

The Monday following the return of the electricity, I awake in my warm, warm bed, and flail around wildly searching for the light- then I realise that my mop of dark-brown hair is hanging over my eyes, all knotted and messy. My mum says I should get it cut- it goes almost down to my waist... but I don't think I suit it short. I don't want to look odd or anything.

After getting dressed and brushing my teeth (and hair... just not with the same brush...) I frolic off down to school, contented as ever. As normal, I wait for my friend Josie by the bench near the bushes next to the maths block. The grey ground is painted with random shapes of yellow and blue and green and stuff, and out of boredom, I look at them and try to spot familiar shapes.

"Hey Lara!" I flinch suddenly, but then realise its only Josie. She's quite a short kid, with short, dark hair to match and grey eyes- and she's a liiiiitle bit of a weeabo. Not a full blown weeaboo, but a weeaboo nonetheless... I wish she could like better animes though. The ones she likes are either yaoi, or just crap... Ill shut up.

"Ciao, Josie" Yes I do use Italian words thanks to Assassins Creed. I don't spam my sentences with them though. And at least I pronounce them correctly. I aint' no Italy weeaboo. Ha. Italy weeaboo... OK ILL SHUT UP ABOUT WEEABOOS ALLREADY!

She already knows about the electricity problems at my house. I don't think she really has that much sympathy for me though... not that I am an attention seeker or anything. We have a little conversation before the bell goes and we go into tutor, then onto our first lessons.

I have maths and English, which is pretty boring. I usually like English, but we were having to write some ridiculous essay about some book or another. I don't even like it. It's about this kid some hundred years ago who becomes an actor for some of Shakespeare's plays or something. It's not even mildly interesting.

Then, its break time. I pop off to the canteen and meet three of my friends there- Lucia is the first to approach me, with that I'm-seriously-holding-back-a-smile expression on her face. I hate how familiar we are sometimes- she has a longer face than me and straighter hair but still... we share a lot of qualities.

"Eeeedwarddd" She jokes. It all sort of started on msn where we randomly shared pictures of Edward Elric from the anime Fullmetal Alchemist... I SAID I WOULD SHUT UP ABOUT ANIME!

"'Sup." Joy comes up behind her, smiling. She has curly-ish short blonde hair, and a personality so full of humour it hurts... I realised then that we were all the same height. Ha!

We are all sat down and sitting on one of the white tables in the canteen, when Lucia pulls out a newspaper from her bag and spreads it out on the table, rather unexpectedly. It's a bit random, and I and Joy share glances before looking back to Lucia, confused.

"And what would this be?" I say, one eyebrow raised.

"The white eagle of the school! It's all over the school newspaper!" She sounds really excited, and her eyes are lit up like its Christmas morning. I'm still confused with a dumb expression on my face, but Joy has already picked up the newspaper and has begun reading it out loud, her voice growing with interest and lowering in volume the further into the article she reads.

"On Sunday last week, reports have come from the teachers of Merignang (A/N that's my schools name mixed up!) school. Reports say that a mysterious figure has been seen around the school grounds, often appearing for a short while before disappearing again. The teachers looked around to see if it was just a student causing trouble, but the figure always evades them before being caught. Police were called in to take the investigations further, but found no evidence of this mysterious person- apart from a short black and white CCTV video clip of the white figure, too blurred to make out who it is.

The school has been left open, but security has been taken up a level to ensure nobody else breaks in the grounds... or is it a person? Ghost investigators have been going undercover in the school to see if the figure is actually a ghost, maybe even of a former student, killed by a train near the school itself. The figure has been nick-named 'the white eagle' for its swiftness and white colour... read more on page 6"

"Lara, you believe in ghosts don't you?" Joy folds the green-tinted newspaper in half and hands it to Lucia, who seems itching to say something.

"I say that we try solving this for ourselves!" Lucia suggests, leaning inwards, eyes still all aglow. She chuckles at her plan. I can't help but grin a little- It would be exciting, stalking around the corridors and dodging teachers, searching for a mysterious ghost...

"Yeah!" Me and Joy say in almost perfect sync. Lucia raises her hand, and so do me and Joy- and have a great big group high-five. I really need to cut my nails, because I scratched poor Lucia!

"Ow! Ohmygod what was that for?" She laughs, flapping her injured hand wildly. Me and Joy chuckle along with her. When it dies down, I decide to start the plans...

"So... how about we bunk next period?" I clap my hands together devilishly. "We all have another maths lesson next... which we can miss..."

"Were gunna have to dodge Student Support..." Lucia points out, shrugging.

"Miss Joss..." Joy shudders at the thought. Not one kid would dare get on the wrong side of that woman...

"Oh come on, It will be great fun!" I almost shout it in such a horrible, emphasised tone, it makes me cringe now thinking about it. A few heads turn and I wilt a bit as I feel eyes burning into my back... teenagers are nosy creatures...

"Let's do it then!" Lucia puts her hands down on the table and stands up. "Let's go get this ghost!" As she stands, Joy swiftly reaches into Lucia's bag again and whips out the newspaper, flicking to page 6 and scanning through the print.

"It says the white eagle was last sighted near the picnic area, climbing the wall... wow. He's pretty fit." Joy murmurs the last bit under her breath, and Lucia punches her playfully in the shoulder.

"Were looking for a ghost you know!" I remind her, still smiling. The excitement was bubbling up in my stomach and drowning the nervous butterflies. This was going to be a great laugh.

"So we best look around the science block and..." Lucia pauses.

"Miss Joss's hut?" Joy suggests. Miss Joss is the meanest, strictest, loudest, and strangest teacher in the history of teachers, short, chubby, and the tiniest bit scary- she wouldn't take very kindly to three keen ghost hunters creeping around during lesson time. An after school detention and a good scolding would be the price for getting caught... plus, there would be no more Assassins creed for me...

The bell goes suddenly, and Lucia gives an almost solemn nod as the other people walk out around us.

"Its gunna be great fun! Were gunna catch this ghost no matter what!" I try to reassure my companions. The happy mood returns, and we gallop off, laughing quietly in anticipation as we set off.

We walk around like ninjas through the corridors and automatic doors, randomly pressing our backs to the walls and peering around corners. It's crazy fun, feeling like a super spy, dodging the baddies with the guns and stealthily killing invisible enemies. It was funny when we ran into those double doors and hit the wrong one, which ended up with us in fits of laughter.

We were making our way around the huts, creeping around the walls with eyes narrowed and ears listening out for the slightest sound- then there's a click. Like a door turning. A lock unlocking. The door of Miss Joss's hut.

"Get back, get back!" I whisper, bundling everyone down the side of the hut- and into some badly placed gravel. Our feet scuffle in the pebbles and we press ourselves up into the corner where the hut met the wall surrounding the school. A van cast a shadow across us from the springtime sun.

We all stopped breathing as footsteps approached- the familiar slow plod of Miss Joss. We stop breathing. Maybe even thinking. She appears, walking slowly past our hiding place. She pauses, looking at the folder she holds with her.

Shit! Whatever you do, don't. Look. Here! I pray silently.

The next couple of seconds pass so slowly. It seems like time has stopped. The only sound is of a nearby bird tweeting. We fell so silent. Dead silent.

Finally, she moved.

We slipped out of the horrible pause, breathing again. We remained in our hiding place for a little bit longer before slowly tiptoeing out again, panting in fear.

"That was fucking close..." Joy straightens herself up, holding her head.

We decided to stay in the picnic area nearby for awhile- it was quite sunny and warm, plus hardly anyone came around here so we were safe from teachers. I knew we were probably being chased by Student Support at this moment, slowly being tracked down by (not really, but almost) super teachers... it just made everything twice as fun knowing danger lurked around every corner.

We went to relax on one of the picnic benches, the warm sunlight on our faces and the calm breeze blowing blossoms across the ground. The tree nearby was already pink with the coming of spring, and the odd bee buzzed above our heads.

Lucia (who's bag seems to hold just about everything we need) pulled out a packet of Jaffa cakes to share while we plotted some more plans and read more of the newspaper... there seemed no other clues leading to his whereabouts. We would have to do the rest of the searching ourselves.

"He could be anywhere by now... and how do we even know he is a he?" Joy said. Lucia was still scanning the newspaper for information.

"That newspaper said that he was only on CCTV for less than a second. Really is like an eagle." I say.

"Ha. He is pretty fit." Joy grins.

"... and in the end we will find out it's an innocent little girl, and you'll be arrested for being a pedo." I joke.

"That's one badass girl then." Lucia comments before scoffing the last Jaffa cake down and standing up again. "We had best get looking again"

"It's just because you like dodging the teachers!" I point out with a laugh, chucking the wrapper and plastic from the Jaffa cakes into the green bin by the bench.

CRASH!

"Holy shit what was that?" Joy screams at the sudden noise. All of our heads whip around to the source of the sound- behind the blossoming tree.

I see a shadow cast across the ground, and suddenly, my heart begins pounding beneath my chest. There's someone there. And there making one hell of a cacophony.

Lucia and Joy scream in excitement and run away from the picnic area- but then realizing that I haven't moved a muscle, they stop at the entrance and peer round the brick. Lucia flails her hands wildly, while Joy is asking me to follow them and run. I'm just paralyzed. Not with excitement. Not with shock. With realization? I don't know...

The guy making the noise stands and peers out from behind the trunk of the tree. I know that face anywhere. I've seen it plenty of times. And the scar... and the clothes... dear god...

He dashes off over the nearby wall in seconds. My jaw drops to the floor, and my eye is twitching. I know a cosplayer when I see one... and that wasn't a fucking cosplayer...

Lucia and Joy are at my side again, but I am still frozen. I thought if this were to actually happen my reaction would be totally different... but its scarier than what I first thought. "Hey you OK?" Joy asks, slightly nervous. Maybe she thinks I'm joking. But I'm not. I step forwards and swallow deeply, closing my mouth.

"I know that guy anywhere..."

Silence. They wait for me to continue.

"That's not a ghost, guys... that is not a ghost at all."

(A/N shoddy chappie is shoddy. If you have any suggestions for some changes, then tell me and I will edit this chapter...)