I thought about saying for them to get a room but I decided to say, "Why are all of you working on this... With the exception of James?"
"Redd told us to try it out. She knew Val would get everything in about a minute so she divided us up into groups. You have your own place, too." Lona said pointing over to an empty chair and a table top full of puzzle pieces. I am not like Val at all except that we are sisters that are 11 months apart from each other. I'm smart, but not as smart as Val. But when it comes to puzzles, I'm second best at it. You give me two minutes then come back and you'll see I finished the puzzle by then. Val only needs a minute. Pam finished it in 5 minutes and Lona finished in 7 minutes.
"That's a record for me," Lona said.
"Same here," Pam said happily.
"I could have finished sooner if only..." Val was saying to herself.
"What I want to know is why we had to do this puzzle, Redd?" I asked.
Redd was hiding in the shadows waiting for someone to find her. She walked forward.
"Oh it's easy to see, isn't it? She wants to teach us patience." Lona said like she thought everyone knew.
"Lona, you show signs of a real teller. You can see past what other people might think is a burden or very troubling. Val." Redd said looking at Val since Val was still contemplating what she might have been able to do faster.
"Yes, I'm sorry. I can't help it. I know I can do better. I like to challenge myself."
"That's why you are the brains of this group. Lona is the Teller. She will be able to tell you some parts of your future and lead you- like me. Pam is the bravest. She will stand up for you guys and keep you cheerful on your journey. And Nicki is the power. She will remind all of you what you chose to be when all hope seems lost." Redd just made a huge prediction. It was a lot to live up to, especially if you didn't even know what you were supposed to do.
"So, what does this tell us? That we have to travel? And do what? We are just kids." I said hoping somehow magic could give me a license so I would be able to drive.
In Pam's driveway was a BMW convertible sports car. It had a backseat even though it was a two seat car. The front and backseats were expanded by magic so more people could fit. From the outside, it looked like a two seated vehicle. I started freaking out. I get to drive a sports car! Wait until I tell Bon! I thought to myself.
"But what about my license?" I asked excitedly.
"Check in your pocket. You each have a leather wallet. They contain your licenses and 500 dollars in cash each. Pam, you have a credit card for only your most desperate times of need. In the car, if you look in the glove compartment, you'll see there are four passports. Good luck. Lona will Tell you what you must do to help our kind. We are Creatures now. Be careful." Redd gave each of us a hug and then she just disappeared. We all stood there stunned. The information was being forced upon us like there was no tomorrow. Then Lona started shaking. She was trembling so much that she almost fell. I, being the strongest, caught her before she could fall. Then, she started to speak in a deep, grave voice that was only an echo of her own, "You will travel around the Western Civilization and bring Creatures hope to rebel against the humans. You will go to Miami, Florida- Jackson, Mississippi- Oklahoma City, Oklahoma- Salem, Oregon- then back to Philadelphia. Be aware and alert."
Lona stopped and looked at us. She asked why we staring, like nothing happened at all. We told her she made a prediction of what we were supposed to do. Val had all the places stored in her enormous brain and she had already figured out how we were going to get to Florida.
"We will take a boat to Florida. A boat that will store our car. Then drive to Miami. It will only be about 600 bucks for the ride to Florida if we mention Pam's father." Val said.
"First of all, it's getting late. We should hide the car with a spell, (Val was doing that already), and sleep over here. Agreed? Tomorrow, I will drive Lona to your house so you can pack the clothes you need. We have a long day tomorrow so let's go to bed." I said exhausted from all the surprises that seemed to keep coming.
Val and I were sleeping in the attic and Pam and Lona slept in Pam's room. I had another strange dream. First I was driving the new car by myself, the way I always dreamed of. Me with one hand on the wheel and one hand behind the passengers head rest. I had let down my long blonde hair and I had dark shaded sunglasses on. I was jamming to my
favorite music, Katrina and the Waves, Fleetwood Mac, and Rush, to name a few bands. Then Bon appeared next to me. He was like me, wearing sunglasses and all. We were speeding down a highway that was really curvy (but smooth curves) and seemed like it would go on forever. Then the car started shaking somehow. Bon turned into a Creature I'd never seen before. The weather changed from sunny to rainy in an instant. Then I woke up with water being splashed in my face and someone shaking me.
"Nicki! Nicki! Wake up!" Val said.
"I am awake, you butt." I grumbled. It was the best dream I've had in a long time.
"We have to go. It's time. We wait any longer, we will miss our boat." Pam said worriedly. I got dressed quickly. We all hopped into the car (YES!) and drove off to Lona's house. I was actually really good at driving. At the beginning I kept jerking the car to a stop a few times, but Val told me to relax so I did and I was gliding down the street. Next was our house. We wrote a note to our parents that we were staying at Pam's house for the next week, because I had a major test coming up (which was true) and Val just wanted to stay over. We grabbed duffel bags and stuffed all the clothes we could carry with a few books by Dean Koontz and, of course, The Harry Potter series! Then we were off again.
I knew how to get to the highway from all the trips we took for school in Philly. The road was all mine, except for the occasional Mac truck and police officer. The speed limit was 70 miles per hour. I was tearing up the road like no tomorrow. The wind was blowing through all of our hair. Val was sitting next to me with Pam and Lona in the back
laughing at something. Our exit came and I pulled off the highway. We were in Philadelphia. We needed to cross the city's slow moving traffic between the very tall buildings. We finally made it to the dock by 1 o'clock. We parked on the boat and got out to stretch. We stopped by McDonald's before coming here. We got back in and put up the top of the car for privacy.
"That was some wicked driving, Nicki," Lona said.
"Yeah, well, I learned from seeing other people drive. Look, I have to use the restroom. Be right back." I said. I walked into the bathroom. It was a single room not like a public one at amusement parks. I stood there thinking. Why do we have to do this? Why not anyone else? Then there was a slight breeze. I looked around and saw Bon.
"How did you-? What?" I asked astounded to see him there.
"I had to see before you left, even if it was in a bathroom. Look, you really shouldn't be doing this. We can handle it by ourselves. You could have-"
I cut him off. "Yes, WE can handle it. I'm a Creature now, too. I'm a witch now. And I don't need you to tell me what to do with my life, kid. I want to do this! This is what the four of us want to do."
"I'm not telling you what to do, I'm just saying what I think is right. If you won't listen to me then take this." He showed me a necklace. It had a ruby as the main jewel. "It was my grandmothers. She was a witch. It's a long story that I will save for later."
"Thanks. What does it do?" I asked.
"I don't know. I'm not a witch or wizard."
"But you are part wizard if you grandmother was a witch."
"Then I'm not wizard enough to activate its powers. But you're witch enough. Take it and have a fun trip." He said. He put it around my neck. I gave him a kiss good-bye and he left. I hid the necklace under my shirt. I'd tell the girls later.