Hey, Butterflies! I'm back with Chapter 21! I'm so excited! But I'm sad too because the story is drawing to a close. Anyways, here's Chapter 21: The Land of Fire and Ice
Disclaimer: The Secret Saturdays belongs to Jay Stephens and Cartoon Network.
I can't believe I ever thought winter in Seward was dark. I can't believe I ever thought the eternal night at WeirdWorld was dark. Honestly, I can't believe I ever thought anything was dark before now. Iceland, I am discovering, is very dark in the winter. As in no sunlight all winter for three months. I'm not sure I could do it, even with my experience at WeirdWorld. But the land is beautiful. I wish I could see it in summer. And the Northern Lights are gorgeous. The colors are so vibrant, and I love how they look as if they are dancing. Maybe living here wouldn't be so bad, as long as I had someone with me; I'm not sure I could stand the lack of sunlight in the winter all by myself.
As we fly to an area just outside Eyrarbakki, I gaze out the window in awe. This land is absolutely stunning, and I can only imagine how it looks in the summer. I have to convince the Saturdays to come back here one day. But I need to focus right now. After Doc lands the airship, we will have to drive to the address Anonymous gave us using one of the Saturdays' extreme weather mobiles (which I did not know they had). Poor Indigne. She just got dragged into all of this, but she seems to be doing okay so far. I don't see how she is able to stay so calm, even if she is Mom. I know that I would be freaking the heck out if I were in her shoes.
The car pulls into the driveway at a small hostel, and we all get out. From the outside, the hostel looks nice with its white paint and blue-green curtains hanging from the windows from the inside. We walk into the hostel, and a receptionist greets us warmly. Doc says that we're supposed to meet someone, and the receptionist nods before disappearing in the back office. She returns a few moments later and asks if a "Miss Van Rook" is with us. I introduce myself to the receptionist. She asks me to come with her and to bring Indigne with me. The Saturdays seem wary of it all, but I agree anyways. It's not like we have any other options if we want to resolve this.
In the back office, Indigne and I wait patiently. We have no idea what to expect, but we are both hoping for the best. I can feel my heart pounding in my chest and hear it roaring in my ears. The office contrasts starkly with how I am feeling; the office is simple and clean. The walls are painted white, and the floor is a simple hardwood. There is one desk and one computer, with a filing cabinet next to the desk. There is very little in the room. Meanwhile, I am a complete wreck. My heart is racing faster than it has in a very long time, and I can feel the sweat forming and sticking to my body. There are no windows in the office, nor is the door glass, which I believe adding to my reaction to the situation. I am completely separated from the Saturdays, and there is no guarantee the woman next to me is Mom. In other words, I am alone if anything goes wrong. Indigne softly places a hand on my shoulder; I tense at first, but then I relax when I realize it is only she. She looks down at me and smiles encouragingly. Then her smile fades as she shakes her head and looks at me sympathetically.
"Lily, I did a bit of research on your adoptive mom. I'm really sorry, but I'm afraid I have some bad news." I swallow. Not here. Not now. Indigne is Mom, I know it. "I found some records saying she passed away two months ago. Something about pancreatitis." My heart stops beating as it falls to the floor and shatters. No. No. Not Mom. I can't- I don't believe it. After all this time, I thought I had found her. I thought I could have part of my family back. What do I get instead? Two dead parents and a dead sibling. I crumple to the floor and try my best not to cry. This isn't happening. Her promise. She can't be dead. Pas ma mère. S'il vous plaît, pas ma mère. Indigne squats down to my level and places a hand on my knee. She doesn't say anything; there's not to say that can make this easier. First their wedding, then Dad's death, and now Mom and my unborn sibling's deaths. How could I have missed all those?
My hands ball into fists. I don't know what effect this will have on my powers, but I don't really care. If Anonymous wants my powers, xe can have them. I don't want them anymore. I just want Mom.
The door to the office opens. I am half expecting Mom or Dr. Beeman to walk in knowing my luck. Instead, it is Komodo. He says that we need to look outside. I leap to my feet, translate for Indigne, and rush out to the lobby. It does not look good outside. Ice and snow are falling heavily from the sky, and I can see geothermal vents giving off more steam than before. I knew volcanoes erupted in Iceland earlier this year, but this definitely is not normal. Am I doing this? Closing my eyes, I try to calm down and get a grip on my powers. But I can't. It's as if they slipped right through my fingers. What is happening? I've never lost control like this before! Breathe, Iris- Lily- whatever I'm called. Just breathe. The ground starts shaking, and the wind grows significantly stronger. I'm losing control entirely. My connection with Komodo is fluctuating rapidly, and any magic I might have been able to use to stop this is gone. It's as if my powers just disconnected themselves from me.
The office door opens and closes. Everything outside and inside me settles. Everyone looks to me, but I can only shake my head and stammer as I try to explain myself.
A new person clears xe's throat. "Hello, Iris. I'm Anonymous."
That's the end of Chapter 21! I hope you all enjoyed reading it. What do you all think of the twist Indigne informed us of? And who do you think Anonymous is? Let me know in the reviews. Thank you all so much for reading! Don't forget to follow, favorite, and review! I love you all so much!