Disclaimer: see chapter 1
Chapter 7: Thrills and Chills
(To help you visualize this chapter: Noodle's new motorcycle resembles the one she is seen riding in the Garage Palace music video.)
. . .
As they pulled up to Buster's Motorcycle Outlet, Noodle leaned towards the cab's tinted window until the tip of her nose touched the cool glass. She beamed when she saw a truck labeled Motorcycles, Inc. unloading a row of gleaming bikes onto the concrete. As soon as the cab stopped, she was out the door, pausing only briefly to pass a few bills to the driver before running towards the shining machinery. Noodle was dimly aware of the sound of the cab door shutting as 2D stepped out after her but paid him little mind as the wind in her ears swept the sound away.
She saw a man wearing a Buster's Motorcycle Outlet T-shirt overseeing the unloading of the new vehicles and adjusted her course to meet him. The man's eyes widened, perhaps alarmed at the sight of this woman barreling towards him at top speed, and he flinched as she leaped to cover the remaining distance between them. The guitarist landed elegantly on her toes two feet in front of the man, coming to an instant stop.
"My name is Noodle, and I believe my motorcycle arrived with this shipment." She said with a sweet smile.
The man nodded, relaxing visibly. "Ah, yes, Noodle. We have your motorcycle in the truck, my boys are unloading it now. I'm Buster, by the way, Buster Bleu, owner of this dealership." The man held out his hand with a grin. Noodle took the outstretched hand firmly and shook it with energy. "I'm sure you'll be pleased with the quality of your new vehicle; Motorcycles Incorporated always delivers fine products. Yours, I believe, way the jet-black and army green cycle with turbo boosters?"
"That's right."
"Ah, here it is now." Buster said, watching as his employees led the cycle off the truck. He waved them over, and they brought the motorcycle towards them, setting it before Buster and Noodle for them to admire.
Gazing at her new ride with satisfaction, Noodle reached out to stroke a polished handlebar. The paint glinted in the morning sunlight. The guitarist sniffed the air; her nose was filled with the rubbery, intoxicating scent of fresh tires. Her eyes caught her own reflection in the gleaming, silvery metal of the bike's boosters; she extended her fingers to brush them lightly against the cool surface.
Meanwhile, Buster instructed his employees: "Bruce, I want you to run to my office and grab Miss Noodle's paperwork. Lenny, in our storage room you'll find the new helmet Miss Noodle ordered." Bruce and Lenny nodded and made for the building on the far end of the lot.
As Noodle crouched to examine her new bike's engine, she heard footsteps approaching her from behind and sensed 2D's tall figure standing over her. His arm brushed against her hair as he reached forward to touch the bike's paint.
"Wow," he said breathily. "This is cool."
"Yeah," Noodle replied, her heart filling with pride. "It's supposed to go from zero to one hundred in seven seconds flat and handle high-speed turns without jerking or slipping…" A sad thought crossed the guitarist's mind. Noodle's face sunk into an involuntary frown as she felt her spirits plummet, sinking until they settled like stones somewhere low in her chest. Noodle sighed morosely. "Not that we'll be able to drive that fast on most roads around here. We'd have to go somewhere deserted, maybe in the country, and I don't have time for that sort of trip right now. We'll be too busy finishing up our album for the next couple of weeks, and then we'll be touring-"
"You know," Buster interrupted, "There's an abandoned race track further downtown, just five miles down Derrings Road. Lots of parents take their kids there to teach them how to drive, but it'll be empty now, since everyone's either in school or at work. You might come across some hooligans with skateboards, but other than that, it should be clear."
Noodle graced the man with a radiant smile as she felt excitement kindling once more within her. "That sounds perfect!" She turned to 2D. "What do you say to a quick stop at the tracks before we hit the library?" She gave him her best puppy dog eyes and nearly jumped for joy when the singer smiled and nodded.
"Whatever makes you happy, love."
Noodle gave 2D a quick, tight hug around the waist before turning to face an approaching figure.
"I've got your helmet, miss," Bruce said as he offered the object to the guitarist. She took it gleefully, and ran a hand over the shining black surface. She could see her face reflected in the visor, as well as 2D's face looking down from over her shoulder…
"Oh, 2D! We need to get a helmet for you!" She exclaimed.
2D ran a hand through his uncovered blue spikes, then brought the hand down to feel his damaged skull, courtesy of various automobile accidents. "Yeah, I guess we do."
"We've got some helmets in the shop, you can look through them if you like," Buster chipped in. "Larry ought to have found your papers by now as well; you can fill them out while your friend picks a helmet."
"Sounds great!" Noodle replied.
. . .
Fifteen minutes later, Noodle hopped excitedly onto her motorcycle. Turning towards 2D, she patted the seat behind her. "Hop on!"
"Alright," 2D said, obeying her command. As Noodle secured her helmet onto her head, she felt 2D's legs drop onto either side of her, his jeans sliding roughly against her skin. She heard him putting on his own helmet (a bright magenta shell which clashed beautifully with his hair) as she dropped her visor and ignited the engine. Holding her breaks, she held the throttle and savored the roar of the revving machinery.
"Are you ready, Toochie?"
"Ready."
Noodle rolled her eyes. "You know you need to hold on?"
"To what?"
"To me."
"Oh. Right."
Noodle felt the singer place his hands gingerly on either side of her waist. A devilish grin crossed her face. You'll need to hold on tighter than that. Noodle released the breaks and, not bothering to accelerate gradually, shot out of the lot.
A yelp sounded by her left ear; he was now wrapped tightly around her, his arms closed around her waist, fingers digging into her sides through her leather jacket, chest pressed against her back, and chin tucked over her shoulder. Noodle reveled in the feeling of the wind whipping past her, 2D's heat pressed against her, her skin tingling with excitement. However, she forced herself to slow down as the duo joined a line of vehicles coming to a stop at a traffic light.
The next ten minutes were spent crawling forward with traffic, stopping and starting and stopping again. The grip around Noodle's waist slackened as 2D shifted into a more comfortable position. Noodle stared dully at the beat-up truck in front of her, then craned her neck to try for a glimpse at the upcoming exits. Her eyes were drawn to large green sign hanging over the road:
DERRINGS ROAD. TAKE NEXT EXIT.
Noodle perked up immediately. "We're almost there, Toochie."
"Mmhmm," she heard as her companion's grip regained some of its former tightness, his fingers clenching on either side of her as his arms constricted over her stomach. Meter by meter, the motorcycle crept towards the exit. Noodle gazed irately at the stretch of cars in front of her, glancing frequently towards the run of cracked asphalt which turned sharply away from the road and dove into a thick patch of woods. Come on… Only twenty meters left… Suddenly overcome with excitement, Noodle hit the gas, mounting the shoulder of the road to close the remaining distance between her and her exit. She grinned as she accelerated into the woods, feeling 2D's thighs squeeze tightly around her and his body cling to hers like a second coat. She leaned forward, bringing the singer's body forward with her and slightly on top of her. Trees cast them into shadow; the road narrowed, and the overgrown foliage reached out to brush against her shoulders and her helmet. It's a good thing both 2D and I have visors, Noodle thought as they passed under a mass of overhanging tree branches dripping with thorny vines. This road obviously isn't used often.
A light could be seen shining ahead. It grew closer and closer, larger and larger until the duo were flying out of the woods. In the center of a broad field sat a large racetrack. A few bits of tall chain-link fence surrounded the structure, but most of the fence was either broken or collapsed. An imposing concrete slab rose out of the ground; the phrase DERRINGS RACETRACK was carved into its surface. This sign was also adorned with copious amounts of graffiti. In fact, two teenagers were currently standing before the wall, spraying their initials inside of a neon-green heart. The teens turned in surprise as the motorcycle shot past them like a bullet.
Noodle slowed down, coming to a stop at a faded line of white paint which must have, at some point, marked the beginning of the large oval racetrack. Four teenage skateboarders were eyeing the helmeted bandmates warily. Noodle revved her engine loudly, and the teens hastily removed their boards from the track.
"Ummm… Do you want me to get off now?" 2D stuttered, his grip slackening. "You'll probably want to try out a bunch of stunts and speeds and stuff-"
"Hold on, 2D"
And they were off.
2D let out a short scream before pressing his body once more to hers, squeezing her in his grip. Noodle watched the speedometer as it climbed rapidly, passing the highway speed limit, nearly doubling the highway speed limit, the needle reaching as far as it would go. Adrenaline coursed through her. She could hear the wind screaming around her helmet and slicing past her legs as they shot down the track like a rocket.
As they approached the first turn, Noodle leaned forward, concentrating. She tilted her handlebars incrementally and the bike leaned into the turn. Intense G-forces pressed her insides together so that she could barely breathe- or maybe that was 2D's arms, constricting around her waist like a python- and she completed the turn, the bike beginning to accelerate once more.
Caught up in the moment, excitement flooding through her veins, Noodle howled with glee, her teeth bared in a crazed smile. To her pleasure, she heard 2D's howls join her own, his fear abandoned in the surge of adrenaline and excitement. Forget clubs, this is the most fun we've had in months!
They rounded the track three more times, testing the bike's speed and acceleration while screaming like children on a rollercoaster. 2D's hold on her, while still tight, no longer felt like that of a drowning man desperately clinging to a life raft. Noodle could feel him leaning into her, pushing his face into the wind and willing the bike to go faster. She could feel the energy and excitement coursing through both of them and hear their boisterous shouts pierce the air before being quickly swept away by the rushing wind.
Partway through their fifth lap around, Noodle pulled a wheelie. She could feel 2D's chest shake as he laughed loudly with sheer joy, adjusting his grip to better mold his body to hers. The teens were cheering them on; both the skateboarders and the graffiti painters clapped and whooped whenever 2D and Noodle passed them by.
Eventually, Noodle's fingers and toes began to feel slightly numb, and she reluctantly slowed down, bringing the bike to a stop before the white line on the racetrack. Both 2D and Noodle were panting heavily as they climbed off of the bike. Noodle's feet hit the ground; it felt strange after the- half hour? Hour?- of sitting and basically flying across the track on her motorcycle. 2D must have been feeling similarly strange; he nearly tripped and had to grab onto Noodle's shoulder for support. They both removed their helmets, setting them on the ground beside them. Noodle grinned up at 2D, who was returning her smile in full.
"That was great!" 2D exclaimed, now holding both of her shoulders. "I've got to get one of these! And then you could teach me how to ride it! And then we could race and do tricks and stuff!"
Noodle laughed with his enthusiasm, still caught in the high of the ride. On a whim, she tilted her head up and, very briefly, kissed 2D's chin.
Pulling her face away from his, Noodle saw that 2D's cheeks had turned slightly pink. She raved inwardly about how adorable he looked with that smile, how cute his eyes were as they shined white with glee, how hot his mussed helmet-hair was…
Taking a few deep breaths to calm down, Noodle gazed towards the racetrack, her eyes passing over the teens before doing a quick double take. Is that graffiti-painting couple giggling at us? She rolled her eyes, then raised them back to meet 2D's gaze. He was still smiling, but his smile was calmer now. Almost tender. Noodle could barely hold back a sigh.
"I guess we should head to the library now," Noodle said.
2D nodded dumbly, opening his mouth but seeming to have trouble forming any words. "Um… ah… yeah. I guess so. Whenever you're ready, love."
. . .
They arrived at the Library at around noon, laughing as Noodle performed a quick doughnut in the almost-empty parking lot before parking the bike. They strolled shoulder to shoulder towards the old brick structure, passing by a well-kept flowerbed before opening the windowed doors and entering the establishment.
The roaring of the nearby highway disappeared as the door closed behind them, leaving only the sounds muffled footsteps on worn carpet, book pages turning, and the occasional clicking computer keyboard or mouse to fill their ears.
2D hardly heard any of this noise; his ears were still ringing with the roar of the motorcycle's engine, and his head was swimming with the bliss of his and Noodle's time at the racetrack. He smiled as he recalled the feeling of the wind, the speed, their excited howls and laughs, his bandmate in his arms, Noodle's sparkling eyes as she pulled off her helmet, her lips on his chin…
"Can I help you two young folks?"
2D blinked, snapping out of his thoughts to find a small, grandmotherly-looking woman smiling up at Noodle and him.
"We're looking for information on our new house," Noodle told the woman. "It seems like the type of place that would have an interesting past, maybe even a history of hauntings."
"Hauntings? Well, you young people certainly are getting imaginative these days." The woman chuckled to herself, shaking her head. "We do have a local history section. It's in the row nearest to the far wall; turn left and go all the way down."
"Thank you, mam." Noodle replied.
"You kids have fun!" The old librarian called as 2D followed Noodle to the far end of the building.
Reaching the last row of books, the pair walked down the aisle, observing tomes on the history of various areas of the world before reaching a shelf which bore a placard labeled LOCAL HISTORY. 2D observed the dusty tomes, watching a small spider scurry across the top of a particularly ancient looking one before squeezing itself between the pages. It dosen't look like these get read very often, 2D thought as he squinted to read the title on the book's worn spine: "A Complete Collection of Census Reports, Region D, 1855-1905." On either side of that tome, 2D observed books labeled "Population growth, 1890-1940" and "Businesses Registered in Region D, 1885-1835." 2D sighed. These books don't look very interesting.
"This one looks promising," Noodle said, pulling a slightly newer looking book from the shelf below that which 2D had been staring at. The singer turned towards Noodle and observed the cover of her find. It was labeled "Notable Sites and Buildings: a Historic Compilation authorized by your Local City Department." Below the title was an image of a tall brick building with a clocktower.
"Is our house notable?" 2D asked.
"I guess we'll find out," Noodle replied, making her way to a table at the end of the row of shelves, tucked into the corner of the library.
Noodle dropped into one of the metal fold-chairs at the table; 2D took another and scooted closer to her. He watched as Noodle opened the book, and was slightly disappointed when, instead of going straight to the pages with the most pictures, she turned to the chapter index and began tracing her eyes across the tiny black lettering.
"Let's see… City government buildings, parks, businesses, historic sights… ah, here we go! Haunted sites!" Noodle skimmed through the listing for that chapter. "The Andrews Family Graveyard… Butcher's valley… the Downtown Clocktower…" Noodle continued running through the list of sights, frowning more and more as she went on.
2D frowned as well. None of these names sound like they have anything to do with our place.
Just then, Noodle paused. 2D looked at her face and noticed that she was squinting at one of the titles, looking confused. "Saturnz Barz?" She sounded out slowly. "That's an odd name. I wonder what sort of place that could be?"
"Can we look at it?" 2D asked curiously. "It sounds kinda cool."
"Well, we've got nothing else to go on." Said Noodle. "Hmmm… page 134…"
As she flipped through the pages, 2D smiled with excitement at the pictures flashing by. Some of these places look like they could be in an old western movie. As Noodle flipped closer to the page they were looking for, they entered the haunted chapter and the buildings began to look creepier. Ooh! I could imagine a zombie movie using that foggy field! Or a Halloween thriller in that old clocktower!
When they reached page 134, 2D's breath caught in his throat.
It was their house.
Noodle grinned. "Well, it looks like we picked up the right book. 'Saturnz Barz- the Spirit House. Legend has it that in the 1840's, worshippers of evil entities performed a ritual which opened a portal to the other side on this property. Those people were never seen again. Reports of malevolent beings and ghostly activity are occasionally reported by neighbors and passers by, but few residents have lived in the house long enough to investigate the site. The most recent resident, Mrs. Charlene Germaine, raved that she had observed firsthand the beings which inhabited the home and learned their secrets. Her doctors then decided that she suffered from anxiety and prescribed her strong medicine, telling her to move to a new house and refrain from stepping outdoors. Neighbors agreed that Germaine was a "crazy, deluded" woman. The house is currently owned by Greenfield Realtors, who claim that the site's only curse is how hard it is to sell.'" Noodle looked up at 2D. "Well, it looks like we're not the only ones who suspect this place is haunted. It's too bad that the writers of this book didn't include an interview Mrs. Germaine; it would've made our research a lot easier."
"Y-yeah…" 2D stuttered. He was staring down at the phrase "malevolent beings," which didn't sound very good. Hearing a light tapping noise, the singer looked up to find Noodle typing something on her phone. "W-whatcha doin', love?"
"Looking up Charlene Germaine," Noodle responded. "Hmmm… there are a couple of Charlene Germaines… But there's only one in this area." She focused on her phone screen, squinting as she continued to type and click. Suddenly, her face burst into a smile. "Yes! I've found her address!"
"H-her… a-address?" 2D repeated nervously.
"Yes, Toochie, her address. Mrs. Germaine's information is listed on the Medical Support Services for the Elderly and Addled's patient page. She seems to be the expert on this topic, so we ought to visit her."
2D's eyes went wide. "But d-doesn't the book say she's c-crazy?"
"We're all a little crazy," Noodle responded with a grin. "But I think Mrs. Germaine is less crazy than the book would have us believe." Noodle stood up and held her hand out to 2D. "Ready to go?"
2D took her hand slowly and allowed himself to be pulled to his feet. "I- yeah, I'm ready."
Noodle's face softened slightly. 2D could almost feel her analyzing gaze taking in his distress, somehow getting inside his mind and figuring out exactly how nervous he was. Face heating, the singer broke eye contact, pretending to be interested in the census reports on the bookshelf.
Apparently, however, he was fooling nobody. 2D jumped slightly when a small finger tapped his nose. "2D?" he looked back into Noodle's concerned eyes. "Are you still up for this?"
2D felt her small hand wrap around his wrist. It was gentle, but strong, and very steady. Her warm palm soothed the cool skin of his arm. He liked the warm feeling. It almost felt like Noodle was letting him borrow some of her strength, some of her bravery. The singer smiled. "Yeah, love. I'm with you all the way through this."
. . .
The motorcycle pulled up to the curb in front of a small, eclectic-looking house. It took a few moments for 2D to take in the overgrown lawn and wild flowerbeds, the tiny porch littered with boots and bottles, the eaves lined with an array of windchimes which jangled discordantly in the wind, and the off-white paint chipping off ancient siding. He climbed warily off of the bike and pulled the helmet off his head as his bandmate did likewise.
The pair approached the front door slowly. 2D glanced distrustfully at the warped wooden steps which led up to the porch, pausing for a moment before he felt Noodle's hand take his own. He allowed the guitarist to lead him up the short stairway and to the door.
As Noodle stretched her finger towards the doorbell, 2D flinched, recalling the loud cry of their own doorbell. Noodle pressed the button. When it only let out a short buzzing noise, 2D sighed with relief.
"JANICE, I TOLD YOU TO STOP VISITING!" 2D jumped as a bullish, elderly woman's voice rent the air. Pounding footsteps sounded closer and closer to the entryway, and 2D stepped behind Noodle. "I DON'T CARE WHAT YOU POMPOUS HOMEOWNER'S ASSOCIATION GOONS THINK! I'M NOT CLEANING MY HOUSE, I'M NOT MOWING THE LAWN, AND I'M NOT PAYING YOUR STUPID FINES!"
The door slammed open, and 2D found himself quivering under the stare of a diminutive hunchbacked woman waving a wooden cane. The woman froze as she saw her frontmost visitor, quickly taking in Noodle with piercing icy-blue eyes. The next thing 2D knew, the woman's angry scowl was gone, replaced by a quaint grandmotherly smile. "Oh, I'm sorry dears; I thought you were someone else! What can I do for you two-" her gaze passed over Noodle and her eyes locked with 2D's black spheres. Suddenly, the woman's face crossed back into scary mode. "DEMON BOY!" Teeth bared, the woman raised her cane once more, causing 2D to yelp and raise his arms protectively in front of his face. Noodle's hand flashed out and grabbed the end of the cane before it could strike 2D's head.
"Wait, miss! He's not a demon, he just looks odd!" Noodle hastily told the woman.
2D peeked out from between his fingers to watch the woman look over him once more, critically examining his face. She closed her eyes for a moment and tilted her head, as if listening to the song of the windchimes. Then, she smiled. "Sorry, young man. Those eyes did give me a bit of a fright. And who might you folks be?"
"My name is Noodle, and this is 2D," Noodle replied. "Are you Charlene Germaine?"
"Yes, that's me." Charlene responded.
"We were hoping to ask you some questions about a house you used to live in," Noodle continued. 2D nodded in assent, still hiding partially behind his bandmate.
"Hmm… you wouldn't happen to mean the Saturnz Barz house, would you?"
"We do," Noodle confirmed. "You see, we just moved into it yesterday, and we've had some… otherworldly experiences. They're starting to worry us, and we thought you could help us shed some light on what's going on,"
"Otherworldly experiences…" The woman frowned, then glanced down the street in either direction before looking back at her visitors. "Would you two like to come in? We can talk about your situation without and fear of interruption."
"That would be lovely, thank you," Noodle said with a smile, following as Charlene backed into her home.
2D, however, lingered by the door. "Maybe you guys should talk, and I'll stay out here and make sure the bike's safe, and no one interru-" 2D was interrupted by the sound of his stomach growling. He winced, placing a hand over his stomach. I'm hungry. We should've stopped for lunch before coming over-
"Are you hungry, young man?" Charlene asked with a sympathetic smile. "I've got a pot of warm stew sitting on the stove, and a tray of cookies just about ready to come out of the oven."
. . .
Two minutes later, the three of them were sitting in worn, yet soft, old-fashioned chairs, warm bowls of stew on their laps, a tray of chocolate-chip cookies set on a table between them.
As 2D downed a spoonful of savory beef stew with relish, Charlene related the tale of her time at Saturnz Barz. "I must say, I hadn't been expecting anyone to report any more trouble from that house. I thought the problem had been taken care of.
"Twenty years ago, after my husband passed away, I decided it was time for a change of pace. I discovered the Saturnz Barz house, saw that it was selling cheap, and jumped at the opportunity. I thought that I was awfully lucky to snag such a reasonably priced property. Until the first night…
"I woke up at around 1 a.m., wanting a drink of water. This sort of thing happened often; I always left a glass sitting on the bedside table. But when I tried to lift my arm, I found that I couldn't. I looked down, and saw a giant worm-like spirit tying me down to the bed! I screamed, but my voice was drowned out by a loud, dark laugh. Next thing I knew the bed had been lifted into the air. I could see hands, many hands, clutching at the sides of the bed and lifting it up, and I could hear some creature laughing. The bed was taken around the house, thrown from room by the creature. Then, after a few minutes, it stopped. The creatures just disappeared.
"When I woke up the next day, I convinced myself that it must have been a dream. But then, things kept happening. I would find strange writing on the walls. Animals would act strangely, almost as if they were possessed. And the creatures would come back. Sometimes at night, sometimes during the day. They would often alter the house itself, causing it to shift and distort. Sometimes, it seemed to fly as if it were in space.
"The same two spirits always returned, the worm and the creature with many arms. But sometimes, there would be others. More than once, I witnessed the ghosts of the original owners of the house reenacting their last few days of life. That's how I learned about the demon-worshipers who opened the portal to the other side. And there was another force. At first, I would only be dimly aware of its presence, as if it would wake up briefly when the other two spirits were around. But, over time, I could feel it growing stronger. I began to get the feeling that this spirit was much more powerful than the other two, and that they were merely servants of the big spirit. I was scared. Nobody who I tried to tell about the house would take me seriously, except for other locals who had experienced the house's horrors firsthand, and they wanted nothing to do with the house or with me. I was on my own, and I was scared." The woman paused to take a few spoonfuls of soup. 2D stared at her, spooning his soup quickly as if she were a movie and he were eating popcorn.
Noodle then chipped in, "We've met the two spirits you mentioned, the worm and the many-handed one. But we haven't seen ghost people, nor have we sensed any larger spirit yet."
2D shivered, remembering that this was a real problem, not just a scary movie.
Charlene shook her head glumly. "That's not good. I thought I'd gotten rid of those spirits once and for all. When I was finally fed up with the spirits, I decided that I couldn't just leave the house and let the big spirit keep doing whatever it was doing. I couldn't read the writing it left on the walls, but I could sense that it was planning something bad. So I began to research ghosts and spirits, I called mediums and ghost whisperers, I searched through ancient witch-doctor texts on how to protect oneself from and eradicate harmful spirits. I tried many things, but the spirits merely laughed at my efforts and became more violent. Finally, I overheard one of the ghost people whispering about the text he had used to find the ritual for opening the portal. I recognized the title from an old tome in the house's attic. I had never been able to read the book; it was written in the same language as the writing on the walls. I think only demon-worshipers possess the ability to translate it. However, I was able to read the name of the book's author, an old witch Doctor named Andri Meada. I combed through old libraries to find other works of hers and, after a month of searching, found a text, written in English, in which she documented a cure for powerful spirits and their helpers.
"Following Andri's instructions, I concocted a powdery medicine which, when inhaled by the spirits, drained their powers and caused them to be sucked back to the other side. I threw it upon the two spirits, and as they were being drawn away, I followed them back to their portal. It was an old piano, tucked into the basement of the house. As the spirits were sucked away, the keys began to glow. I saw the ghosts of the demon worshipers playing the piano, using it to summon the big demon from its slumber. I threw the last of my powder upon the piano; it sunk between the keys, and the spirits were all sucked into the piano. Then, the piano vanished.
"Days passed, then weeks, and I saw no sign of the spirits afterward." Charlene sighed. "However, the damage had been done to my reputation, and my doctors press-ganged me into moving here.
"I've continued to study Andri's book, and I've taken many of her tips for keeping bad spirits away, including inviting friendly plant spirits to my lawn, and hanging enchanted wind chimes which warn one when danger is near. I also learned why the spirit's power was increasing. Apparently, after passing through to this side, the spirits had to gradually draw energy from the portal until the big spirit was strong enough to take on it's full form of power and carry out its dark plans."
Noodle frowned, looking down at her bowl of soup. "It's good to know that there's a cure for our spirit problem. But… If you sent the spirits away then, why are they back now?"
Charlene cast Noodle and 2D a suspicious glance. "I don't suppose one of you two were foolish enough to reopen the portal?"
2D hastily shook his head. Noodle replied, "No, none of us did it. Admittedly, we did bring a demon worshiper to the house with us, our friend Murdoc. However, we'd just arrived at the house when the spirit problem started. Murdoc wouldn't have had time to curse our house just yet. We've never even seen the piano your talking about."
2D watched Noodle and Charlene as they pondered how the old portal may have reopened. The singer was also thinking about the ghost piano. As scared as I am of the spirits and the house, I kinda think the whole enchanted piano thing is cool. It's kinda like Murdoc's special base guitar, except as a piano. I wonder If I would sound super cool playing it. Not that I would play it… But it still sounds cool. 2D leaned back in his chair, daydreaming about his enchanted piano. And we could get Noodle an enchanted guitar, and Russel an enchanted drum set. Wait, does Russel already have an enchanted drum set? I mean, that ghost rapper, Del, kept popping up around him. 2D narrowed his eyes, feeling confused. But I thought he switched drum sets a few times before Del disappeared. Shouldn't Del have disappeared earlier then? 2D continued thinking over his questions, but only grew more confused. Shaking his head, 2D finally gave into his confusion and decided to turn his question to Noodle. "Hey Noodle, does Russel have an enchanted drum set?"
Noodle raised an eyebrow, looking at 2D quizzically. "No. Not that I know of, anyway."
"Then where did Del come from?" 2D asked.
"Del came from…" Noodle's eyes suddenly widened. "Russel! Russel was Del's portal!" Noodle smiled at 2D. "2D, you're a genius! These spirits are sucking the energy out of Russel. That would explain why he's been so tired lately; he's being drained by the spirit house!"
Charlene nodded. "That makes sense. Andri did mention that most spirits aren't bound to a single portal. They've probably been hanging around the Spirit House, waiting for a new portal to appear." Relaxing slightly, Charlene reached for a cookie, took a bite, then continued, "That could also explaine why you haven't sensed the big spirit yet. That one is linked to the piano, and requires the piano's call to awake."
Noodle grinned wider. "So as long as we don't play the piano, we're not in danger from the big spirit! This is very good news, especially since no one can even find the piano!"
"Yes, it appears we don't have too much to worry about. I'll whip up some more of that powder; I can have it finished by midnight and you can pick it up tomorrow morning. You can douse the two spirits and give your friend, Russel, small doses to interrupt his portal. As long as he takes it regularly, your spirits should be gone in no time."
Noodle stood up and 2D followed suite, grabbing a few cookies as he did so. Noodle shook Charlene's hand. "Thank you so much for the help. It'll be so much easier to focus on our music once those spirits are gone, and 2D will be able to sleep much easier."
"No problem, dears," Charlene responded. "We'll have your house right as rain soon enough."
Noodle turned back to 2D with eager eyes. "Let's go tell the others the good news."
2D smiled back at her, happy that their ghostly troubles were nearing an end.
. . .
Coming up next: Nothing scary, hopefully. They finally have a plan to solve their problem. Nothing could possibly go wrong! Right?
Thanks again to all of my reviewers! You guys keep me going!