Chapter II
Miranda
Oh, Sebastian... Miranda thought, running her free finger along his picture of the menagerie of people and creatures they met on their adventure two years ago. Suddenly, she heard someone moving outside her door. She quickly turned off the flashlight. Throwing off the heavy quilt that was on her head like a tent and flopping backwards onto the bed, Miranda tried to look as convincingly as possible that she was asleep.
The door swung open slowly, as she held her breath. Don't be Dad! Don't be Dad...
"Miranda?"
It was her younger sister, Cassie. "I know your awake," she said, walking over to her bed.
"What are you doing with Mom's portfolio?" she asked as Miranda turned her flashlight back on.
"Nothing..." she muttered, stuffing the picture back in the envelope.
"You were looking at Sebastian again weren't you? And you used to tell me that I lived in that book before." Cassie said playfully, and a bit louder than necessary.
"Shhh! You wanna wake up Dad?" Miranda hissed, making Cassie laugh quietly. "Oh, sorry. I almost forgot that Dad wants you to forget him and live in this world, not in the pictures," she said, turning on a lamp.
"It's not fair. He let you before. And not everyone finds their girlfriend in duplicate in this world." Miranda snarled, pouting.
"One would think that you wanted your boyfriend, not girlfriend." Cassie teased.
"You knew what I meant!"
"Well... I wonder if he's found her yet."
"Look, that picture isn't necessarily by Mom."
"You know perfectly well it is!" Cassie retorted. "Two years ago, right after our little adventure, Dad found that picture of Sebastian holding hands with a blonde elf girl who had a rather nasty scar on her left cheek."
"Mom might have been bored, or something. No way Sebastian would do that to me." Miranda persisted, but that horrid feeling called doubt began to creep up to her again.
But just then, there was a tapping at her window. Both she and Cassie jumped. A cloaked figure was hanging by a rope right in front of Miranda's window.