Elaine had been looking through her things in her office. Well, looking through and tidying up at the same time. … At least, there was an attempt at the tidying up. Elaine was getting too distracted by this and that to really focus on the tidying aspect. It made her wonder briefly how on earth exactly she managed to keep the rest of her house reasonably tidy, yet her desks would nearly always be guaranteed to be messy.

She got distracted by things such as a box containing a Celtic broach. It had lost its original shine many years before even Elaine's grandparents were born. But it still brought a smile to her face. The very thing that had sparked her interest in archaeology to begin with.

Elaine had been fairly curious as a child. Always asking questions when they came to mind, no matter how random or absurd they would be now that she was an adult. It was that curiosity that would lead her to discover and soon fall in love with archaeology.

Eleven years old, Elaine was still living in Burgundy, France. Just a little outside a small town. The distance was just enough for Elaine and her brother to walk in everyday for school and such. It was spring and the weather was warm enough for the two not to even consider bringing coats with them.

That of course changed later on. The weather, being unpredictable and unreliable as it is, had steadily leaned towards bad that day. It was barely noticeable at first, but then it just seemed all of a sudden like the dark grey clouds in the sky appeared out of nowhere.

Walking alongside the road after her classes had finished for the day, Elaine had given a brief but weary look towards the sky. Only wearing a cream summer dress, she didn't want to be caught in a sudden shower. She was on her own since Philippe had to go to his soccer practice. You would think that with potential rain they would cancel for the day. Instead, they just decided to use the gym.

Elaine wasn't scared of walking on her own. She's done it plenty of times before. She knew better than to talk to strangers and wouldn't let herself get kidnapped by some creep!

Plop!

Elaine cringed as she felt the first drop hit her bare arms. She was still a little way from reaching home, but Elaine wasn't too sure she would make it on time. She contemplated hiding under a tree until the rain stopped. But that thought was scrapped once she recalled Philippe saying that standing under a tree would attract lightning or something like that. Was that correct? Elaine wasn't sure. But she didn't want to waste time thinking when she started to feel more drops. She glanced around for a shelter of some kind. Why did she have to live in such a rural area?

Soon, Elaine's eyes landed on the remains of a house. According to her parents, it had burned down some years ago. They specifically said to never go inside. Being a good little girl, she had listened to that warning up to now. But it was raining. She would be careful and not go upstairs. She was sure her parents would understand.

Taking a brief look around to make sure no one was around to be a withness, Elaine quickly ran up the driveway which, until it started raining, had been dusty. Thankfully it wasn't muddy, otherwise she might have lost a shoe or both!

Elaine's parents never told her what had started the fire. They probably didn't know either. But the roof was still up so while Elaine may not have been the warmest in the house, she was dry just as long as she kept away from the broken windows.

There was little to no furniture and the 'furniture' was really just broken, charred remains and a few bricks lying about if they counted. If stacked they probably could have been sat on. Couldn't they?

Elaine wondered if she should get a start on her homework now. Better now since she might be here a while. But she doubted she could really focus on books in this place. Elaine tapped her foot very gently as she looked all over her current room. Possibly what had been the living room since there was a damaged fireplace in it.

The floors creaked, and one or two boards actually seemed loose. Could it be possible to lift them up? Elaine doubted she could risk using the stairs making going upstairs out of the question. As such, while she would go under them, she could still look under the floorboards. Elaine twirled one of her low, loose ponytails as she thought it over before she got down on her knees, being careful where she knelt exactly. She put her hands on one loose floorboard and pressed her fingers against the sides of it before lifting it up with some difficulty due to its weight.

There wasn't much to spot underneath. It was just dark.

But she spotted something. It stood out in the darkness underneath the floorboards. It didn't really shine, but it stood out enough for the young French girl to notice. Her curiosity rising, she reached down and grabbed the edge of it before pulling it up.

It was a broach. A bit dull in colour. Elaine wasn't even too sure about what the colour would be called. The design was definitely not like anything she had seen before. Definitely different compared to what her mother had. There were some spirals on it, and didn't feel smooth. If there was a fire here, this broach must have fallen in through the cracks. It was the only explanation.

Elaine looked outside and saw it was still raining. She had time to come up with an excuse as to how she found the broach without mentioning the house. Then she would try and find out what she could about this broach.

Elaine was brought out of her memories. She only realised now that she had no idea what she had been looking for. She sighed at the frustration felt. It felt like she wasted time. Standing up, she put the box back on her desk before checking the window in the room was closed before checking the rest and her front door.

Her new nightly routine.