ã€ŠLittle Giselle Easelã€‹


 Act One

    Act One: The Art Project

    It was the last class of the day and a boy with a black and white varsity jacket, a cap, shades, and clean pair of shoes walked into a normal everyday classroom. The young man of a mixed skin tone, average height and weight looked for his friend before he took his seat. A girl with brown eyes, long straight raven hair, freckles and tanned skin waved him down, "Hey Timothy over here!" Timothys attention was caught as he walked over to the seat next to her. Timothy put his bag on the table and took his school supplies out, "Oh, I see you¡¯re starting to care about class now!" said the girl in excitement.

    Timothy cocked his head back "Hey Gloria, aren''t you just full of energy today and eh not really I just figured if I look like I cared the teacher might pass me," stated Timothy with little emotion. The two conversate for a while until the school bell rings.

    After a few minutes of silence Timothy abruptly said, "Man I hate this class, dude is never in on time!", as he slouched in his chair. Noise filled the room again.

    Gloria turned her head towards him and whispered to not make a scene, "Timmy you shouldn''t complain if you actually paid attention, you might like the class."

    "I really highly doubt that this class is crap, I honestly don¡¯t even know why I''m in it." said Timothy.

    Gloria put her arm around him and with a smile delivered her list of reasons why he is in the class, "Because you need it to graduate and because you love me."

    Timothy grabbed his supplies and put them in his bag and sighed before his reply to Glorias statement, "Yeah... I need to get the hell out of here, he''s only getting two more minutes of my time.¡±

    A pale boy with rectangular glasses and a black suit walked in the doorway. "Well if it isn''t Barry, shit he''s not even in the class and he''s here!" stated Timothy.

    "I''m just here to let you guys know class is cancelled," said Barry in a monotone voice.

    Gloria put on a skeptical face and questioned him "Really... is this a joke?"

    "Don''t even answer that, joke or not class is cancelled and I''m getting the Hell out of here, goodbye Gloria, I''ll see you after school!" busted out Timothy in happiness, as he got up and threw his bag over his shoulder.

    She leaned over and grabbed his arm and said "Okay, just don''t forget next Friday the art project is due, don''t put it off." She released his arm.

    He replied, "No promises.", he waved and walked out of the class.

    Outside of the classroom, Timothy walked down the hallway thinking to himself about what to do the art project on. Then he overheard two kids talking about an urban legend and decided to eavesdrop around the corner from them. "Did you hear about the urban legend?" asked kid one.

    "Which one?" replied kid two.

    "Giselle Easel, she does artwork, if you do a chant to summon her, So I was thinking of finding a way to get her to paint a picture for my mother''s birthday" answered kid one.

    Timothy whispered to himself, "Who knows about this kind of freaky freaky stuff... oh Lucille, got to get my anti-conversion face on."; he took a deep breath and walked away from around the corner.

    Timothy went upstairs and roamed around the second floor until he bumped into Gloria. Timothy put a surprised face on and asked Gloria, "What are you doing up here?"

    "I''m going to the library to do some work, what are you doing up here," she responded.

    Timothy turned his head both left and right temporally scanning for Lucille, "I''m looking for someone... by the way you know where Lucille''s locker would be." asked Timothy.

    "Around room 213, I forgot to tell you about the fair that is coming up this weekend we should go," stated Gloria.

    "Alright we''ll go and thanks," replied Timothy while walking away.

    Timothy got to room 213 and saw Lucille at her locker. Lucille is another pale kid who is short, with bloodshot eyes with bags under them and a goofy smile always plastered on her face. He walks over to her with the anti-conversion thing on his mind and puts his hand on her shoulder, "Hey Lucille, I''m just going to go straight to the point, I''m not joining your group and what do you know about Giselle Easel?" stated Timothy.

    "Aw, why not and Giselle Easel?" questioned Lucille.

    "The answer will never change and yes Giselle Easel." said Timothy.

    Lucille removed Timothy''s hand from her shoulder, "Giselle Easel... what about her?" she asked Timothy.

    Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more.

    "What are you a damn parrot, tell me about the girl!" exclaimed Timothy.

    Lucille nervous eye twitch kicked in and in fear she responded to him "She''s and urban legend!"

    "Yes, I know that already, is that all you know?" interrogated Timothy.

    Lucille prayed for safety, took a deep breath, and released all the information she knew, "I don¡¯t know much about her, but if you go to Ms. Woo¡¯s antique shoppe you might be able to get more information."

    "Where''s the antique shoppe?"

    "I don''t know it''s everywhere." said Lucille in a panic with her eye twitch getting worse. Timothy looked away from her and turned around but right before he was going to walk away and let Lucille have that sigh of relief, he turned back at her and asked sarcastically "Do I need a chant for this shoppe too?"

    "I told you all I know."

    "Thanks for the help."

    "Your, your welcome."

    Timothy left the area shaking his head, "Yo stop the twitching, that''s some freaky stuff!" exclaimed Timothy.

    Lucille jerked in attention to the statement.

    On his way to walk to the stairwell to get downstairs, a door nearby opened and Barry walked out and informed Timothy, "What you are looking for is close by."

    Timothy stepped back and faced Barry and uttered the following, "What are you doing, just telling me things I want to hear all day and I¡¯m looking for a lot of things."

    "Don''t be an asshole now!" said Barry in a louder tone than usual.

    "But you''re the one who appears out of the blue with random ass information," stated Timothy.

    Barry collected himself and let Timothy know the deal, "I''m just trying to help, but you should hurry before what you want goes away."

    "Which way do I go?" asked Timothy.

    "It doesn''t matter." replied Barry, he reopened the door, walked in, and closed it behind him.

    Timothy went to open the door, but it was locked, and he thought to himself "What the Hell is going on?", he decided to leave the door alone and turn the corner to get to the stairwell.

    He got to the stairwell, and everything was warped thinking aloud to himself, "What happened here, did the drama kids start decorating the school?" He stepped on a black circle which was a hole, which led to a place that was unknown to everyone. During the fall he experienced a series of flashing lights which all consisted of primary colors and in between each primary colors was the secondary color that was made up of the two, he had to cover his eyes because the flashing was hurting them. He landed on a fluffy surface he opens his eyes to see an elderly Asian lady looking at him, she is about five feet, short black hair, glasses and is wearing a dress with flowers on it and has a bag with a scale print on it,

    "Are you okay, I heard you were looking for me is that true?"

    "Miss, I don''t know who you are and where am I?" said Timothy questioning the lady. Timothy gets up and looks at his surrounding and sees gargoyle statues, water fountains, koi fishponds and shelves of books, he walked towards the door.

    "Would you like to do this transaction outside young man?" asked the lady,

    "Sure."

    They got outside to be where Barry last closed the door.

    "Let¡¯s start this from the top, hello young man how are you today?" greeted the lady.

    "Miss who are you?" questioned Timothy.

    "Yes, that''s who I am, do you want to buy anything." she said.

    "Look lady I don''t want to buy anything your selling, I''m pressed for time."

    She flashed him a book and put it back in her bag "Are you sure?"

    "Wait are you selling that book!"

    "Yes, I am, five dollars." she stated, putting her hand out.

    "At least let me look at the book first."

    "No, five dollars!" she said strongly.

    "One I don''t even know your name, so how do I know your not trying to swindle me, put the book out." said Timothy with suspicion.

    "I''m Ms. Woo," she said taking out the book Timothy took out his wallet and pulled out three singles rolled up and they did the transaction.

    He started to walk away.

    She counted the money, "Hey this is only three dollars!" she yelled.

    Timothy started running.

    "Lousy kids," she mumbles under her breath.

    "Was I right, are you looking for his locker number for your tag?" asked Barry, coming around from the corner. She gave him a surprised look, "I know what you¡¯re thinking, I''m a psychic, a real one like I told you before, his locker is E14, that way." said Barry pointing down the hallway. Ms. Woo pulled out a tag and marked it with a symbol.

    "Ms. Woo, can I talk to you?" said Lucille also coming around from the corner.

    "Oh geez, don''t talk to her, she''s got nothing good to say, trust me." stated Barry.

    "Barry shut up!" exclaimed Lucille.

    "Is she a bad girl?" asked Ms. Woo.

    "She''s going to spew out a load of nonsense no one really wants to hear." stated Barry. Lucille gave him an angry face, "Yeah I said it nonsense because that¡¯s what it is, and you should be happy I didn''t ruin your whole routine."

    "It''s not nonsense, I''m going to enlighten you all!" cried Lucille.

    Ms. Woo''s eyes glowed as she asked Lucille to speak about her philosophy, "Go ahead enlighten us."

    Barry shook his head and blurted out "Crap!"

    Lucille cleared her throat, set her bookbag on the ground and pulled out two pamphlets and handed them to Barry and Ms. Woo.

    They took them and Barry flipped through it real quick and handed it back to Lucille, "I''m a psychic so I know what your going to say, and even if I wasn''t I know what your going to say is nonsense, I''m just here so Ms. Woo can be in the right mind when absorbing all of this flimflam." said Barry in disappointment.

    Lucille grabbed the pamphlet, and she started the "enlightenment" process. "Okay at Loving Hands Friendship House, we take in everyone of different backgrounds, fat, skinny, tall, short, color, gender and everything else underneath the sun, we want everyone to feel welcome and comfortable for our big journey," said Lucille enthusiastically before being interrupted by Ms. Woo.

    "Sorry I really need to put this tag on that boy¡¯s locker, so can we walk there please."

    "Sure," responded Lucille.

    Barry led them to Timothy''s locker, Ms. Woo put the tag on Timothy''s locker and then the custodian walked by them before Lucille could resume telling them about the Loving Hands Friendship House and let them know what they had to do, "Hey, you kids get out of here schools been over for an hour already."

    The group nodded their heads and walked away to get to the exit walked to the spot that they were in previously, "I wish I could listen to more, young lady, but it seems like we have to go." said Ms. Woo.

    "It''s okay she''s used to being cut off." said Barry jokingly.

    Lucille shot him a frown and told Ms. Woo "It''s okay you have the pamphlet, read it and if you have any questions, you can call the number on the back." said Lucille warmly.

    The boys waved to Ms. Woo goodbye as she walked in the door she came out of and went back to wherever she is from. Barry and Lucille parted their ways in the building and went home.

 Act One II

    The next day came by, and Timothy went to open his locker and noticed the tag on it. "What the Hell is this?" he asked himself, he went to rip the tag off his locker, but it was unable to come off, so he disregarded it and opened his locker and a black box popped out.

    Gloria went to meet Timothy at his locker, she saw the box and asked him "What''s with the box?"

    " I have no clue and I don''t even want to open it."

    "Maybe it''s from an admirer!"

    "Yeah, I highly doubt that it''s probably from a short pissed off Asian woman." said Timothy with the utmost confidence in his theory.

    He took his books and got ready for class and shut his locker and they started walking to homeroom, "You¡¯re not a little curious about what is in the box?" asked Gloria.

    "Nope not at all, if you want you can have it."

    "It''s ok, it''s yours bring it home."

    They got to the homeroom door, Timothy let Gloria go in first, they took their seats and Timothy brought something to Gloria''s attention "Hey, Gloria my parents are leaving tonight for two weeks, so if you want to come over and do this art project with me that would be cool."

    "You''re feeling lazy aren''t you." said Gloria with suspicion.

    "Don''t worry you won''t be doing my project or most of the work for it I promise." said Timothy with a smile. He puts his pinky out and she does the same and they make a pinky promise.

    "So, their flight is at eight so come by at seven so we can drop them off and work on this project." informed Timothy. The bell rang and class started in session.

    School was over, Timothy grabbed the box and brought it home with him without opening it. He got home and went to his room, but the box was giving off a strange vibe giving him an eerie feeling, so he threw it in the corner. He put his school things away, grabbed some snacks in the kitchen and headed back to the front of his house. Timothy sat in his living room watching television flicking through channels until he found a show that he liked saying to himself "Crap, crap, really crap, super crap, not even going to acknowledge this show, well here we go.". He had found a marathon for one of his favorite shows and decided to watch it for four hours until his doorbell rings, He goes to answer it,

    "Hey Timothy!" greeted Lucille with passion.

    Timothy sighed and asked, "What are you doing at my house?"

    Lucille puts her foot in Timothy''s doorway, and joyfully cried "I''m just spreading the word of my..."

    Timothy cut her off "Go away, I don''t want to hear it today!" He went to close the door but noticed Lucille'' foot in the way, "Girl move your foot!" exclaimed Timothy.

    "What''s happening down there?" asked Timothy''s mother from upstairs.

    Timothy turned his head towards his house "Nothing I got this!",  he returned to Lucille, Timmothy told her "Go kick rocks, go to another house or something, just don''t be in my front yard right now, bye.", he gives her a nudge out his doorway and closes his door.

    Outside his house Lucille is having a conversation with another person, "Girl, why are you still in front of my house and Gloria what are you doing?" questioned Timothy.

    "Going to your house?" she answered with a puzzled look on her face.

    Timothy shot a glare at Lucille, "Enjoy your night you two." said Lucille with her nervous eye twitch kicking in walking to the next house.

    Gloria walked into the house "Ma, dad Gloria is here, so I¡¯m going to be waiting outside!" screamed Timothy.

    "Hello, how are you!" she said in a loud but polite tone.

    "Hi, Gloria we are good, how are you, and we''ll meet you at the car then!" replied the parents.

    "That''s good to hear, I''m well, I''ll be waiting in the car for you guys!" she responded.

    "Okay!"

    Timothy and Gloria were in the car waiting for Timothy¡¯s parents, "Come sit in the front; by the way, I got to show you something when we get back!" said Timothy in excitement.

    "Why didn''t you show me when I first came to your house, I''m sure we had enough time and is it what was in that box?" questioned Gloria.

    "Because I don''t want my parents to find out and no."

    The parents got to the car and sat in the back and Timothy drove them off to the airport.

    They got to the airport in twenty minutes at the departure section, "Enjoy your flight guys!" said Gloria in excitement for them.

    Timothy got their luggage, hugged them, and told them "Have a safe trip and don''t let any of the officials fondle you at the metal detectors.

    "We will and we won''t and keep the house in good condition and get home safe." they replied in jokingly manner then a serious one.

    Both parties waved at each other as Timothy and Gloria drove off.

    They got back to his house and Timothy went to show her the thing he wanted to show her, he pulled the book out.

    "What''s with the book?" she asked.

    "I''m going to summon Giselle Easel."

    "Do you really believe that I mean I didn''t expect this from you of all people, but maybe we should do this tomorrow after school since we have a half day and can make preparations for our encounter with this woman."

    "I think you¡¯re afraid but sure just for you," he said with a comforting smile on his face.

    They sat on the couch and continued to watch the marathon that was on, "You want to order some food?" Timothy asked.

    "Sure, I''ll just have some of what you''re having."

    "Well, I''ll get us a pie what kind do you want?" he asked.

    "Plain is okay."

    Timothy went to his house phone and ordered a pie from the local pizzeria. "We got to wait thirty minutes," he told Gloria.

    In those thirty minutes they discussed the plan for summoning Giselle Easel and made a list of things to get. They set a time and place to start their gathering of materials, and then the pizza came, Timothy and the pizza guy went through the transaction. Timothy brought out plates and cups and they ate.

    The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

    The next day came by, and it was after school, they scanned through the book for a list of materials to get for the summon. "We really don''t have to get anything," said Timothy in surprise.

    "We should probably get some stuff for safety measures, if she is going to be on fire," stated Gloria. She took out a piece of paper and wrote a list of suggested things to get.

    Timothy watched her write it and asked, "What is all of this?"

    "The list silly, now let¡¯s go get this stuff."

    The list consisted of water, a net, and a dazzling light. Gloria started walking away and Timothy grabbed her arm and questioned her "Why do we need a net?"

    "Didn''t you read the book?"

    "Yeah, I did but I still don''t think the net is necessary."

    "Lets just get the stuff."

    They went to the local store to pick up the items. Timothy hung his head and mumbled to Gloria in the store "I''m mad he has a net that big, like why does anyone need a net that big.",

    "Maybe for the same reason we do," she whispered back jokingly.

    The clerk pulled out a thirty-foot net and asked, "Do you have a boat to go fishing out in the ocean with?"

    Timothy and Gloria looked at each other and answered slowly "Uh huh," nodding their heads.

    "I would usually charge you thirty but since you are such young fishermen, you can get it for fifteen dollars."

    "We''ll take it..." said Timothy in shame.

    They did the transaction and the clerk told them, "Have a nice day enjoy your fishing trip, I''m sure you''ll do good." he said with the utmost confidence in them.

    "Thanks... have a good one..." they responded.

    They got out of the store and Timothy turned to Gloria and blurted out "I can''t believe I paid fifteen dollars for a D!"

    "Well next time you should do better earlier on, so we won''t have this problem, even though this is the last thing," she said sternly.

    "Can you please stop riding me about this and help me get this done," he pleaded.

    They went to Timothy''s house and got the set up ready in his backyard. The set up consisted of a painting canvas, water hose connected to the house, an intense light and them in red colored shirts with white letters on them reading P.P.A. (people protecting animals) holding a net. "I just don''t understand the reason for the P.P.A shirts, I don''t think the shirts will faze her in anyway, do you want us to get holy water because she might be an "evil" spirit?" Timothy stated.

    Gloria put the net down and started walking in the house, "That''s a good idea!" she said with great energy.

    "Get back over here, we''re not using holy water, I''m not waiting for some old dude to do hand signs and talk over water and probably spit in it to, you know how old people got the overflowing mouths and things of that nature!"

    She stopped walking and told him "We can make out own holy water."

    Timothy sighed, "We don''t need holy water, we need to hold this net and do this chant."

    Gloria submitted to Timothy''s reason and went back to her spot and held the net. Timothy cracked open the book and did the chant "Little Giselle Easel/ the girl riding a flaming gazelle/ will you help me stop being a worthless slacker/ help put an end to my chapter/ in the life of a procrastinator/ I will put now to later/ so have my back you wonderful girl/ have my back you wonderful girl.¡±

    The sky had gotten grey, and a grey hole appeared behind Timothy with silhouettes of a child and a gazelle on fire, Gloria pointed behind Timothy "Look!" she yelled.

    Timothy turned around and was greeted with a hello by the shadowy figure. Timothy waved in confusion, the shadowy figure hugged the gazelle goodbye and walked out the hole as it closed on her pet. The girl is wearing a pink dress, pink slippers, with a pink bow and a whistle around her neck, holding a basket and mimicked the facial features of Gloria. She walked up to the canvas and cried out in frustration, "I can''t reach!"

    "Wait I''ll have you draw inside on the floor so it will be easier for you." Timothy said.

    She accepted those terms, and the group went inside with the canvas.

    Standing in the living room Giselle asked, "What do you want a picture of?" Timothy showed her a picture of him winning an athlete of the month award and asked her to draw it. She pulled out her magic art supplies and started doing work on the canvas, it took her about two hours to finish but it was complete and perfect.

    "Thanks kid!" Timothy said in excitement, he pulled the book back out and went to the return page and saw that it was missing, he closed the book and looked down at the floor in disappointment.

    Both of the girls asked, "What''s the matter?"

    "I don¡¯t have the page that returns Giselle home."

    "It''s ok I can only stay around for three weeks anyway, then I go back home automatically, this has happened to me before." Giselle said.

    "Since you did my art project, I''ll let you sleep on my coach until I find a way for you to go home." Timothy stated.

    Night had fallen and Timothy made up the couch, so Giselle had somewhere to sleep. Gloria told Timothy that she would be back tomorrow to check up on them both. Giselle grabbed Gloria¡¯s leg and asked for a bedtime story, ¡°Aw how cute is that, you got any books suitable for a child?¡± asked Gloria.

    ¡°Of course not, what kind of question was that, look for an e-book.¡± answered Timothy.

    Gloria went to Timothy''s laptop and looked for an e-book version of a childhood classic of theirs. Scrolling down the list she found one, ¡®The Three Turtles and a Dolphin,¡¯ ¡°I got it Giselle, this should be a good one for you!¡± Gloria said in excitement.

    ¡°Hold up, can I get comfy?¡± Giselle said she pulled out a sheet of paper and drew herself pajamas, slippers and a teddy bear and the drawings turned into real life objects.

    Timothy was amazed by her abilities ¡°Damn that''s crazy, I see you forgot to color your items in though, but that''s still amazing!¡±

    Giselle splashed brown paint on her products, ¡°Here we go, uh now where can I change?¡±

    ¡°In the bathroom, Gloria can you show her the bathroom and help her.¡± requested Timothy.

    Gloria showed Giselle the bathroom and helped her change into her pajamas.

    The girls came back into the living room, Giselle crawled onto the couch, Gloria sat by her feet with the laptop and was preparing to read the story to Giselle. Timothy tucked Giselle in, ¡°I think your supposed to do that first.¡± he told Gloria.

    Gloria looked at him, Timothy looked back, and Giselle looked at both of them and asked for a glass of water. They both looked at her and simultaneously they both answered, Gloria answered ¡°Yes.¡±

    While Timothy replied ¡°No,¡±

    Giselle looked at Timothy and questioned him, ¡°Why not?¡±

    ¡°Because you will pee on the couch.¡±

    Gloria shook her head and got up, ¡°Don''t get the water!¡± Timothy exclaimed.

    Gloria glared at him, Timothy walked over to her, and Giselle rolled out from under the covers and walked up to them and stated, ¡°I don''t pee the bed.¡±

    Timothy knelled down to her level and said, ¡°I''m just trying to keep my house clean, when you wake up you can have your glass of water,¡± said Timothy calmly.

    Giselle gave him a puzzled look and screamed, ¡°But I''m thirsty now, how will waiting for light help me?¡±

    ¡°For light, did you just say for light?¡± Timothy asked all tranquil.

    ¡°Yes, for light, that''s what we say, where I''m from!¡± yelled Giselle.

    Before Gloria could ask Giselle where she is from, Timothy cut her off, put three fingers up and sternly told Giselle ¡°Look, look, look, where we''re from and where all three of us are at right now we call it morning and we don''t raise our voices when it''s dark out, that''s how people get in trouble, so go back to the couch and go to bed.¡±

    Gloria just shook her head and Giselle caught it in the corner of her eye and pointed to her, telling him ¡°I don''t think she is agreeing with you.¡±

    Timothy gotten back up out of his knelling stance, ¡°Gloria if she pees on my couch tonight, you''re cleaning it up in the morning, I swear!¡± Timothy said in a loud tone.

    ¡°I thought you said no yelling, when it''s dark out?¡± questioned Giselle.

    ¡°I was asserting myself.¡±

    Gloria shook her head and went into the kitchen, ¡°I don''t think so, but I won''t give you trouble since I''m getting water.¡± Giselle said.

    Timothy thought to himself he better make sure it is not a lot of water. Gloria came back with half a glass of water, Gloria reached her hand out to Giselle, but Timothy intervened, ¡°Wait, how old are Giselle?¡± he asked.

    She put out her right hand and answered ¡°Five.¡±

    ¡°That''s still bed wetting age, Gloria, especially with that much water.¡±

    Giselle looked at them, looked at the couch and then back to them, and stated, ¡°I think that''s a couch.¡±

    ¡°She got you there,¡± said Gloria with confidence that Timothy would let her drink the water.

    ¡°Yeah, either way you might urinate on something that doesn''t need to be urinated on.¡± Timothy retaliated.

    Gloria went around Timothy and gave Giselle the water and told Timothy, ¡°You already said she could have it.¡±

    Timothy sighed and watched Giselle drink the water, ¡°Okay, all done, here you go,¡± she said handing Gloria the water, she went back to the couch and tucked herself in. Timothy took the cup from Gloria and told her to take Giselle to the bathroom. Timothy washed the cup out in the kitchen and waited for the girls to come back to the living room.

    The girls came back, ¡°Okay let¡¯s do this again,¡± Gloria said.

    Giselle crawled onto the couch, Timothy tucked her in, and Gloria sat at the edge of the couch and picked up the laptop ready to read the e-book to Giselle. Gloria read the cover of the Three Turtles and the Dolphin. Giselle just fell right asleep. ¡°What the hell you put in that water?¡± asked Timothy.

    ¡°Nothing, it came out your tap with the filter on, maybe she''s just tired from the trip.¡±

    ¡°Well okay, I''m just hoping she doesn''t wet the couch, and I won''t forget about tomorrow alright.¡±

    ¡°Alright, see you tomorrow, have a good night, let me know how she is.¡± said Gloria going to the door.

    ¡°I will, goodnight,¡± said Timothy seeing her out the house.

 Act Two

    Act Two: The Fair

    The next morning, Gloria had arrived at Timothy¡¯s front door and waiting for her on the other side was a bucket, sponge, and latex gloves. ¡°She peed the couch¡­ get to it!¡± demanded Timothy.

    ¡°You don¡¯t have to be mean about it.¡±

    ¡°I deliberately said to not give her the water for this exact reason, and you went against it. I¡¯m holding you accountable.¡±

    Gloria took the cleaning supplies out of his hands.

    ¡°Its morning, Good morning, Gloria!¡± screamed Giselle.

    ¡°Why are you screaming?¡± asked Timothy.

    ¡°You said I can scream in the light¡­ oops, I mean morning!¡±

    ¡°You can¡¯t be loud.¡±

    ¡°But!¡±

    ¡°Stop being loud.¡±

    ¡°You yelled at Gloria! Humph¡­¡± Giselle crossed her arms and turned away from Timothy.

    He goes around to her front, ¡°It was a mistake, we are not loud over here, we use our inside voices. Do you hear me? You talk just like this inside,¡± he said softly.

    ¡°Okay,¡± she unfolded her arms.

    ¡°How¡¯s that couch?¡± he snarled at Gloria.

    ¡°I don¡¯t need this!¡±

    ¡°Excuse me, we just had a talk about our volume. We¡¯re big people, lets act like it.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m sowwy about that couch¡­¡± Giselle added.

    Gloria¡¯s heart melted, ¡°Aw, it¡¯s okay baby.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t do it again,¡± added Timothy.

    ¡°When am I going home?¡± Giselle inquired.

    ¡°Uh, I don¡¯t know yet. But we have a fun day planned for you.¡± Timothy placed his hand on her head.

    ¡°What are we doing?¡±

    ¡°We are going to a fair.¡±

    Giselle¡¯s eyes widened and brightened up, ¡°With the clowns and lions and elephants?¡±

    ¡°Oh no, that¡¯s a circus and it¡¯s not in town. A fair has games to play and rides.¡±

    ¡°Aw¡­¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s fun, I promise.¡±

    ¡°I finished with the couch,¡± Gloria announced.

    ¡°Good, can you get Giselle ready, and we¡¯ll head out.¡±

    They met back up in the living room and Giselle was wearing a red dress and red shoes with a bag in her hand. ¡°Well, aren¡¯t you over dressed for the fair,¡± commented Timothy.

    ¡°I¡¯m wearing too many clothes?¡±

    ¡°No, no, you¡¯re fine. Let¡¯s just go.¡± Catching a glimpse of the bag, Timothy stopped the girls, ¡°Wait, Giselle you have to leave your bag here.¡±

    ¡°Why?¡±

    ¡°Just incase you lose it.¡± ¡°I won¡¯t lose it; I bring it everywhere with me.¡±

    ¡°What is in the bag, which is so important?¡±

    ¡°My paint.¡±

    ¡°You can leave it here, nothing is going to happen to it,¡± assured Timothy.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know¡­¡±

    ¡°Sweetie, you can leave them here. No one is going to take your paint in this house, trust me.¡± Gloria added.

    ¡°How can I trust you; you made me pee the couch.¡±

    ¡°And when you got in trouble, I helped you, by cleaning it right?¡±

    ¡°Yeah¡­¡±

    ¡°So, why don¡¯t you leave the bag here.¡±

    ¡°Okay.¡±

    Timothy opened the door for them and followed them out.

    In the car on the way to the fair, Giselle cried out, ¡°I¡¯m hungry!¡±. Timothy lets out a large sigh.

    A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

    ¡°We can eat at the fair sweetie,¡± assured Gloria.

    ¡°What do they have there?,¡± Giselle inquired.

    ¡°Oh, you know, the typical fair stuff like popcorn, cotton candy¡­¡±

    ¡°Candy! I can have candy for breakfast!,¡± exclaimed Giselle in excitement.

    ¡°No, you can¡¯t have candy for breakfast, we¡¯ll stop somewhere and get you some food.¡±

    The three arrived in the parking lot at the town diner. ¡°What can I eat here?¡± inquired Giselle.

    ¡°Food,¡± an annoyed Timothy answered.

    ¡°What kind of food?¡±

    ¡°Good food.¡±

    ¡°Sweetie, when we get inside you can look at the menu,¡± informed Gloria.

    ¡°Okay,¡± Giselle responded kicking her feet.

    Once inside, the host gave them a seat and Giselle crayons and pictures to color in. Her coloring kit mat consisted of red, blue, yellow, and green crayons and the pictures are of an apple tree, a bird, and a boat in a pond. Giselle was sitting tucked in between Gloria and the wall and across from Timothy. ¡°Let¡¯s see what kind of pictures you have,¡± Gloria said leaning over Giselle.

    ¡°Okay,¡± Giselle peered up at the girl really quick to look back down at her pictures.

    ¡°I see you have an apple tree, a bird and pond, what¡¯s in the pond?¡±

    ¡°A boat!¡±

    ¡°Aw yes, it¡¯s a boat, you¡¯re so bright. Isn¡¯t she smart Timothy?¡±

    ¡°Yes, she¡¯s so smart.¡±

    The server came to take orders, ¡°May I start you off with some drinks?¡±

    ¡°3 waters,¡± Timothy answered for the group.

    ¡°Okay 3 waters, do we know what we want to eat yet or are we still looking it over?¡±

    ¡°We¡¯re still looking.¡±

    ¡°Okay take your time, I¡¯ll be back with your waters.¡± The waiter left the table.

    Giselle¡¯s stomach growls, ¡°I¡¯m so hungry¡­¡±

    ¡°We¡¯re getting you food baby, let¡¯s look at the menu,¡± Gloria flipped the pamphlet to the back where the kids section is; ¡°Here they have a hamburger and fries¡­¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± Giselle cut off.

    ¡°A hamburger is beef between bread.¡±

    ¡°Beef?¡±

    ¡°A cow,¡± interrupted Timothy.

    Giselle¡¯s jaw dropped and she slapped her cheeks, ¡°Not a cow, poor moo-moo, that means we can¡¯t get milk if we eat them.¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s see what else is on the menu, we have a hotdog and fries,¡± Gloria continued.

    ¡°You guys eat your pets?¡±

    ¡°No, it¡¯s just the name of the food.¡±

    Timothy flipped his menu over to see what the hotdog was made from and in fine print it was 100% beef, ¡°Try the chicken fingers, it tells you exactly what it is.¡±

    ¡°Chicken don¡¯t have fingers, they have wings,¡± Giselle retorted.

    ¡°Geez it¡¯s chicken.¡±

    ¡°Shaped like fingers? Ew.¡±

    ¡°Not like the ones on our hands, it¡¯s just a long piece of chicken. Can you try it for me sweetie?¡± asked Gloria. Giselle eagerly shook her head. ¡°Thank you, baby.¡±

    ¡°Where¡¯s the waitress?¡± Timothy commented.

    ¡°We didn¡¯t even pick our.¡±

    ¡°For the sake of time, I¡¯m getting the usual.¡±

    ¡°Makes sense,¡± Gloria said in agreement.

    The server came back with their waters and took their orders. Giselle got the chicken fingers basket. Gloria, the penne and vodka and Timothy, chicken breast with broccoli. ¡°Thank you, I¡¯ll be right back with your orders,¡± the server took the menus and leave.

    ¡°Why did you get chicken breast? Did you want milk too?¡± Giselle asked.

    Gloria chuckled. ¡°It¡¯s just food,¡± answered Timothy.

    ¡°While they were waiting Giselle colors in her pond on the mat. She strokes the crayon right to left on the paper. Either Timothy¡¯s eyes were playing tricks on him, or the pond was rippling. Giselle finished coloring in the pond, but any possible movement was not there. ¡°Nice coloring Giselle, what color is your boat going to be?¡± inquired Timothy.

    ¡°Violet!¡±

    ¡°How?¡± ¡°Red and blue,¡± she raised both crayons up.

    ¡°Right.¡±

    ¡°I have to pee.¡±

    ¡°Gloria go take Picasso here to the bathroom.¡±

    ¡°Come on Giselle,¡± Gloria slid out the booth holding Giselle¡¯s hand.

    Timothy watched the girls leave for the bathroom and he got the idea to touch the pond picture. He poked his finger into the paper, and it sank in. Rapidly he takes it out, ¡°What the hell¡­¡± He has thoughts about his project, but he calmed them with he counter thought of the project doing something strange after she created it. He dipped his finger in once again and went to his knuckle. Checking to see if the water was real he smelled it, it was legitimate. The girls come back to the table, ¡°That was quick,¡± Timothy commented.

    ¡°False alarm,¡± Gloria replied.

    Giselle¡¯s stomach growled once again, ¡°I¡¯m hungry¡­¡±

    ¡°Color your pictures, it¡¯ll take your mind off of it.¡±

    Giselle took her red crayon and colors in an apple on the apple tree. Timothy watched closely to see what would happen; meanwhile Gloria is trying to tell him something about the fair, ¡°Tim, I forgot to mention to you that we¡¯re supposed to volunteer for Duke¡¯s performance at the fair.¡±

    None of it registered, but what did was that an apple appeared on the table. ¡°Gloria!¡± he blurts.

    ¡°Excuse me, I have your meals,¡± the server came in taking Gloria¡¯s attention away from Timothy.

    ¡°Yay, food!,¡± Giselle¡¯s excitement knocked her apple underneath the table.

    The food is placed in front of them and they began to eat. Giselle went for a chicken finger, it still had grease residue on it. Gloria put her fork through the child¡¯s intended target, ¡°Wait let me blow on it, it¡¯s hot.¡± The child¡¯s head followed the fork, but her hand does something different. As the chicken approaches Gloria¡¯s mouth another piece enters Giselle¡¯s. Putting the entr¨¦e back on the plate, she can see the artist chewing, ¡°Did you just take a bite out your food?,¡± Gloria inquired.

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    ¡°Let it go and let her eat, she¡¯s hungry,¡± Timothy interjected. ¡°How is it, Giselle?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s good.¡±

    ¡°Good.¡±

    After the meal, they got back into the car and Giselle was kicking her feet, into the back of Timothy. Feeling the thrust he commented, ¡°Can you stop kicking your feet?¡±

    ¡°Sorry.;¡± A minute passes, ¡°Are we there yet?¡±

    ¡°No.¡±

    ¡®How much longer?¡±

    ¡°5 minutes.¡±

    ¡°5 minutes!¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s not that long.¡±

    ¡°Okay,¡± the excitement of being close makes her kick her feet again.

    ¡°Giselle, can you sit behind Gloria.¡± Giselle scooted over and the excitement petered. He checked her in the rear-view mirror and she is not kicking, ¡°Ain¡¯t that something.¡±

    Once she got settled in the spot she decides to color in the picture of the bird. She took the yellow crayon and scribbled in the lines. Off the last stroke the bird comes flying off the page flapping around the car, ¡°Oops!¡± she cried.

    In the rearview mirror Timothy saw the bird. Gloria turned around to see what the fuss was; the bird flew in her face making her panic, ¡°Open the window, open the window!¡± Her franticness caused Timothy to swerve and swat at the bird.

    Despite enjoying the commotion, Giselle recalled the bird back into the page, ¡°Chirp Chirp return.¡±

    Timothy pulled over to recuperate after the commotion, ¡°Giselle, we need your crayons,¡± he stated with his hand out.

    ¡°It¡¯s because you¡¯re afraid of Chirp Chirp.¡±

    ¡°No, it¡¯s¡­¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s okay, I¡¯m afraid of snakes,¡± she passed over the crayons.

 Act Two II

    They arrived at the fair and Giselle is hypnotized by the atmosphere of fun. Gloria and Timothy placed their hands on Giselle¡¯s shoulders, ¡°Don¡¯t get carried away,¡± they told her.

    ¡°We have to get tickets, so we can do the fun stuff,¡± Timothy continued.

    On line Giselle was rambling on the things she wants to do, ¡°I want to go on the really tall thing, pet the pig, get a powder plate and go in the colorful house!¡±

    ¡°I see you¡¯re excited,¡± Gloria commented, as Giselle rocked her arm in excitement.

    ¡°Yeah!¡±

    ¡°Tim, don¡¯t forget we have to go to Duke¡¯s set at 4.¡±

    ¡°Duke¡¯s set?¡± Timothy questioned.

    ¡°Yes, I told you he¡¯s doing a middle earth exhibit.¡±

    ¡°When?¡±

    ¡°At the diner.¡±

    ¡°What? Why the¡­¡± his eyes dropped down to Giselle, who was staring up at him. He covered her ears, ¡°Why the fuck would I agree to help that sweaty bastard¡¯s production? He removed his hands off the girl.

    ¡°Because the teacher is giving extra credit for helping.¡±

    ¡°Extra credit? I don¡¯t need extra credit, mt project is an A.¡±

    ¡°The one you did?¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    ¡°Wait, I did a project!¡± Giselle interrupted.

    ¡°Big people are talking right now,¡± Timothy hushed her.

    Gloria broke even more news to him, ¡°The extra credit is going to the report.¡±

    ¡°Report?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, for English.¡±

    ¡°I did it already.¡±

    ¡°You sure it¡¯s an A?¡±

    Timothy sighed, ¡°I¡¯ll go to the stupid production¡­¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s a production?¡± Giselle inquired.

    ¡°A play.¡±

    Giselle¡¯s eyes lit up, ¡°Ooh a game!¡±

    ¡°No, it¡¯s where people go on stage and act out a scene.

    ¡°Wow, like T.V. in person,¡± her eyes glowed

    They got to the booth and Timothy, got them several tickets. ¡°Alright, we¡¯re ready Giselle, would you like to see the animals?

    ¡°Yeah!¡± she answered.

    ¡°Okay, let¡¯s go.¡±

    They arrived at the animal pens; in the pens there are goats, sheep and pigs. Giselle broke from Glorias hold and ran up to the fence. A sheep comes up to her expecting food, noticing she was empty handed, it left. ¡°Aw, it left!¡± she cried out.

    ¡°You need food, come here,¡± Timothy told her by the pellet dispenser. She hurried over. ¡°Put your hands here,¡± he instructed pointing at the hole.  Her hands went under the hole, he put a quarter in the slot and turned the knob. Pellets came out and she sprinted back to the sheep pen. The same sheep returned, ¡°Put your hands by its face,¡± Timothy told her. She follows the directions and the goat started to lick the food out her hands, she giggled.

    Gloria got a text, ¡°Tim, I hate to cut this short, but Duke needs help with his set.

    ¡°Timothy sighed, ¡°For real?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    ¡°Okay, Giselle, Gloria has something to tell you.¡±

    Gloria rolled her eyes, ¡°We have to go to the production.¡±

    ¡°Aw, already. Is it 4?¡±

    ¡°You tell me,¡± Gloria showed her the face of the watch.

    ¡°Why don¡¯t you show the phone,¡± Timothy interjected.

    ¡°Hush.¡±

    Giselle stared at the face of the watch, ¡°I can¡¯t tell.¡±

    ¡°Well it¡¯s almost time we have to go. Don¡¯t worry we can do rides after the show,¡± Gloria told Giselle.

    ¡°Okay!¡±

    Timothy sucked his teeth.

    They got to set for Duke¡¯s production, it looked like a medieval scene on a cardboard background, a gray castle, wooden drawbridge and a moat. ¡°Where¡¯s the sweaty hippo?¡± commented Timothy. Duke appeared and true to Timothy¡¯s words, a sweaty, pale, overweight male, with greasy hair dangling over the right side of his face.

    ¡°Is that a hippo?¡± Giselle asked, ¡°He looks like a people.¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s half,¡± Timothy joked.

    ¡°Oh.¡±

    Duke approached the trio, ¡°Thanks for coming out Gloria¡­ Timothy.¡±

    ¡°Hey, he didn¡¯t say my name!¡± Giselle exclaimed.

    Gloria looked down at Giselle and introduced her, ¡°This is Giselle.¡±

    Duke and Giselle greeted each other simultaneously. ¡°I¡¯m going to get some food, I¡¯m starving,¡± Duke continued.

    Thinking she was asking an intelligent question Giselle inquired, ¡°What do hippos eat?¡±

    Timothy started bursting at the seams, arching over. Gloria looked over to the little girl, ¡°Giselle that¡¯s a random question.¡±

    Timothy¡¯s voice covered over the girl¡¯s discussion, ¡°What are you having, Duke?¡± Timothy asked laughing wiping tears from his face.

    ¡°A hippo is an animal,¡± Gloria continued.

    ¡°Oh you can have the food by the farm animals,¡± Giselle suggested.

    Timothy¡¯s laugh turned into a long airless, soundless gasp. Duke side eyed Timothy, ¡°I¡¯ll be back,¡± he said leaving.

    ¡°She doesn¡¯t mean it!¡± Gloria informed. She turns to Timothy, ¡°Tim, what the hell?¡±

    ¡°What?¡± I didn¡¯t tell her anything.¡±

    ¡°Giselle, he¡¯s not a hippo, okay.¡±

    ¡°Okay,¡± Giselle said in agreement.

    When Duke got back, he showed them around the set. ¡°Did you draw this? Giselle asked.

    ¡°Yeah, I did.¡±

    ¡°Wow cool. Can I do some art?¡±

    Duke did not reply. ¡°Be nice and let her do something,¡± Timothy said.

    The star of the production thought quick and gave Giselle a meaningless task. ¡°Yeah, you can outline some stuff for me with this ¡®special¡¯ pen.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s special about it?¡± Giselle asked.

    ¡°The ink is invisible,¡± Duke handed her the pen out his pocket.

    ¡°Whoa,¡± she stared at the pen mesmerized, she snapped out of the trance feeling powerful.

    ¡°Have fun.¡±

    ¡°Yeah!¡± Giselle sprinted off and Timothy trailed behind her.

    Duke watched the two leave and turned to Gloria, ¡°Gloria, shall we finish up for the production.¡±

    Giselle was tracing over the set, the lines would look perfect, if the ink was visible. ¡°I need help getting to the top of that picture,¡± she told Timothy.

    ¡°Skip it.¡±

    ¡°Skip it! I can¡¯t skip it, that¡¯s not good art, lift me up, lift me up, lift me up!¡±

    ¡°Fine,¡± Timothy picked her up and she traced the remainder of the picture on the set.

    Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.

    Giselle spotted a white smug in the paint job, ¡°They didn¡¯t do a good job painting this in,¡± she shook her head. She rubbed the pen on the dried yellow paint and crosses it over to the white spot, until it disappeared.

    Timothy watched her manipulate the paint remembered her painting at the diner and tried to snatch the pen from her, ¡°I think it¡¯s time to stop.¡±

    ¡°What are you doing? Why?¡±

    ¡°Because you helped enough, don¡¯t tire yourself out. Do you want a juice?¡±

    ¡°Yes!¡±

    ¡°Okay, lets get you one.¡±

    As they walk to the stand Giselle rubbed her hands on the set. Duke came out, ¡°Hi Hippo! Did you see my work on the set.¡±

    ¡°Yeah¡­¡±

    ¡°How can you silly? The ink is invisible.¡±

    ¡°I have a magic light.¡±

    ¡°Can I see it?¡±

    ¡°Sure.¡±

    Duke pulled out a blacklight and shined it on the set, the invisible lines are exposed and so are tiny fingerprint smudges. ¡°I see you got some of the ink on your hands.¡±

    ¡°Really?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, see.¡± He said putting the light on her hands.

    ¡°Wow,¡± a bright-eyed Giselle said amazed.

    ¡°Oh geez, let¡¯s go wash your hands and get you a juice,¡± Timothy commented

    It¡¯s time for the production, they were on a wooden stage and the viewers sat on wooden benches. Duke was the king and Gloria his queen. The knights bowed to him, ¡°Your majesty,¡± they greeted.

    ¡°She¡¯s a queen?¡± Giselle asked Timothy.

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    ¡°Really!¡±

    ¡°Shh, watch the show.¡±

    ¡°You should be up there with her.¡±

    ¡°Hush.¡±

    ¡°Okay¡­¡±

    Trumpets blared as the lights cut on and the curtain drew open. A line of knights faced the audience with the trumpeters at the ends. One soldier broke the line and pulled a scroll from his armor. ¡°Tales of heroics, magic and love, will lead to a passionate event. Can King Teragon (Duke) slay the chargoyle and the lady or will he fall trying to get love.¡±

    Giselle turned to Timothy, ¡°Is the King her husband?¡±

    ¡°No.¡±

    The curtains closed.

    The curtain reopened; Duke was riding in on a stick horse. ¡°Whoa there, Stang easy.¡± From behind a bush crawled out a peasant.

    ¡°Excuse me good sir, can you help me?¡±

    ¡°What happened?¡±

    ¡°A witch named Cessprin sent a chargoyle to attack my village. I tried to fight it off with the other knights, but they all perished in the flames.¡±

    ¡°Which way is this creature?¡±

    ¡°In the village of Spectrum.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll head out there right now!¡±

    ¡°You can¡¯t kill it alone!¡±

    ¡°I have the magic sword Azkelibur.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t do it alone!¡± Duke rides off to the town. ¡°You¡¯re going to die¡­¡± The curtains closed.

    Duke arrived in the village to see it razed and gray. He wandered around the area and nothing besides gray and black structures everywhere. King Teragon placed his sword in the ground ,¡°Let all the souls that perished here rest in peace¡­¡± From behind the set a character in all gray with horns, a red tail and wings popped up behind the King hissing. Teragon turned to the source of the sound drawing his blade out of the ground, ¡°You must be the creature that did all of this!¡± The chargoyle continued to hiss at him. King Teragon took a swing at the beast with his sword, the attack was evaded. The monster then retaliated with his claws and Teragon repelled with the broadside of his blade dulling the tips. ¡°There is no hell born denizen that can break the magic of Azkelibur.¡± With a swing of the mighty blade, he connected with the creatures wing when it tried to retreat. He casted a golden net and captured the beast.

    Giselle turned to Timothy and kicked his shin, ¡°I have to go pee pee.¡±

    ¡°Can you hold it?¡±

    ¡°No, I really have to go! I have to pee pee!¡±

    ¡°Okay, damn, let¡¯s go to the bathroom,¡± he took her hand and left the production. He got a text from Gloria asking where he is going. He replied back with that he is taking Giselle to the bathroom and he will be back.

    The two got to the restroom portion of the fair, ¡°Wait!¡± Giselle cried out.

    ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°I can¡¯t go into the boys room, I¡¯m a girl!¡±

    ¡°Can you stop yelling, I thought I talked to you about that. Yes, you can go in the boys room you¡¯re young enough where it isn¡¯t wrong.¡±

    ¡°I sit on the potty, boys don¡¯t do that.¡±

    ¡°You can sit in the boys room too.¡± Giselle was not budging. ¡°Do you want to pee on yourself?¡±

    ¡°No.¡±

    ¡°Then come in the bathroom with me.¡±

    ¡°I can¡¯t go in the boys room.¡±

    Lucille comes by overhearing the issue Timothy was having with Giselle, ¡°Is everything okay? I see that you¡¯re having some bathroom trouble with her, she can come in with me if you want?¡±

    ¡°Do I have to join the Loving Hands Friendship House, if I do take your help?¡±

    ¡°No, I¡¯m doing this for the girl.¡±

    ¡°Okay, in and out, I have to get back somewhere.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry she¡¯ll come back in one piece, let¡¯s go sweetie. ¡°What¡¯s your name?¡±

    ¡°Giselle.¡±

    ¡°Aw, that¡¯s a pretty name,¡± Lucille took her into the bathroom.

    Timothy thought to himself, ¡°Lucille isn¡¯t so bad, when she¡¯s not preaching about that damn friendship house.¡± The girls came back, ¡°She¡¯s all done, she was being a big girl and did it all on her own,¡± Lucille complimented.

    ¡°Thank you,¡± Timothy took Giselle¡¯s hand, ¡°Let¡¯s get back to the play before Gloria gets upset.¡±

    ¡°Bye nice lady!¡± Giselle waved with her free hand.

    Timothy returned with Giselle to see King Teragon reach the lair of the witch Cessprin, ¡°You evil woman show your face!¡±

    ¡°You looking for me? What brings you to my lair, do you want to die?¡±

    ¡°You attacked the town and I¡¯m here to avenge all of those who fallen to your treachery!¡±

    ¡°My treachery? That town broke our contract, rules are rules when I do my part and they don¡¯t do theirs, there will be ramifications.¡±

    ¡°Who would make a deal with a devil like you?¡±

    ¡°The town, that hellhole wasn¡¯t producing any food and people were dying I gave them life, a second chance and then they turned their back on me. Death is what they deserve.¡±

    ¡°You fiend, death is what you deserve!¡± King Teragon unsheathed Azkelibur.

    Cessprin raised her hands and smoke was produced from the edge of the stage. Giselle swallowed a mouthful of smoke and started choking, which caused Timothy to take her away for some fresh air. She gasped as Timothy tried to give her water. ¡°Drink this, it will help you.¡± Her coughing turned into wheezing, then a long gasp, when he finally cleared her airway. She took the water from him and chugged it down. ¡°Slow down before you have to pee again,¡± Timothy advised her. ¡°We will wait for the fight to be over, so you don¡¯t have to breathe in anymore smoke.¡±

    ¡°Okay.¡± She handed him back the water bottle; ¡°Where did that smoke come from?¡±

    ¡°It came from the stage.¡±

    ¡°Is the stage a chargoyle?¡±

    ¡°No, it is a special effect,¡± Timothy laughed; ¡°Let¡¯s go see if the smoke is gone.¡±

    Giselle is getting irritated at the production, ¡°I¡¯m bored.¡± Timothy ignored her. She jabbed him with the pen Duke gave her, ¡°I¡¯m booooored.¡±

    ¡°You want to go on the rides?¡±

    ¡°Yay!¡± she started getting up.

    Gloria saw it and eyed Timothy.

    ¡°Sorry  kid, after the show.¡±

    ¡°Aw. You know what would make this fun, some action.¡±

    ¡°Action?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, action. Inkivus Livikus!¡± The whole set she traced over with invisible ink became real. The cardboard castle became stone, boulders dropped at the feet of those in front, water splashed them from the drawing becoming real. ¡°Fun, fun, fun!¡± Giselle clapped.

    ¡°What happened?¡± Gloria asked, breaking character.

    ¡°You my queen are going to my castle,¡± Duke said snatching her off the throne going into the castle.

    A knight improvised a line, ¡°We are going into intermission. The king and queen will produce an heir.¡± Another knight picked up Giselle and retreated into the castle.

    ¡°What the hell!¡± Timothy sprinted across the moat towards the castle entrance, knocking the last knight in the line on the ground taking their sword and shield. ¡°The production is over!¡± he exclaimed. ¡°Beat it dweeb,¡± he told the knight.

    ¡°It¡¯s just an act¡­¡±

    Inside the castle he was in a stone hallway lit with torches, ¡°What the hell, this looks legit. Gloria! Giselle!¡± His words scan the hallway for the girls.

    ¡°Tim!¡± Gloria hollered.

    ¡°Where are you? What¡¯s going on?¡±

    ¡°He dragging me through the castle!¡±

    ¡°Shut up!¡± Duke commanded. ¡°Knights go get the outsider. Knights!¡±

    ¡°The play is over, dweeb,¡± they said dropping their swords.

    The sound of metal hitting stone indicates to Duke that the men did not follow his orders. ¡°I¡¯ll do it myself, he shouted barging into the hallway to see Timothy with a sword, he retreated.

    ¡°Come out Duke!¡± Timothy barked.

    Duke returned with a sword. When Giselle saw Duke get the sword she opened the front of the castle to the seats. To the surprise of both combatants the audience did not leave.

    In the room Gloria and Giselle are in, Gloria was tied to a seat and was trying to get Giselle to untie her. Giselle¡¯s tiny hands are tugging at the rope, but was tightening the grip. Gloria cried out, ¡°Giselle, stop you¡¯re hurting me¡­ It¡¯s like untying your shoes.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know how to untie shoes,¡± Giselle points to her shoes, which are straps.

    Gloria lets out a sigh.

    Timothy and Duke are battled it out, captivating the crowd. Steel clanged, eyes widened, grunts thrown. Duke went for Timothy¡¯s head, he evaded. Coming back up, Timothy retaliated with a head sweeping blow of his own. Duke ducked but his crown is knocked off. ¡°You almost killed me!¡± he shouted.

    The battle raged on, the boys clashed their slabs of steel against the other¡¯s in various angles hoping to best the other. Duke put his weight into Timothy, the latter managed to hold the opposition off due to his athleticism but gravity assisted the podgy foe. Timothy rolled away to avoid impact. ¡°Why are you running away?¡± Duke taunted.

    Timothy tugged on his cape and swept his feet propelling himself up. Once back on his feet he dug his toe into Duke¡¯s chest before planting his foot and laying his sword on his neck, ¡°Stop this shit!¡±

    ¡°Release the chargoyle!¡±

    The fire creature that Duke tamed earlier in the production came out the darkness of the castle in front of Timothy. ¡°Yeah, now you¡¯re done,¡± Duke gloated.

    ¡°If this thing kills me it kills you, do you want to burn alive?¡±

    ¡°Then lets die, as long as you don¡¯t win.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re sick¡­¡± Timothy looked back at the chargoyle, as it approached near he backed off Duke and started evading the monster.

    ¡°Hahaha, well look at you being a coward now,¡± Duke grabbed his sword and in an attempt to corner him with the beast.

    Timothy repelled the blade to be nudged into the chargoyle. Once contact is made he turned around quickly to avoid being caught by stabbing the creature in the belly. ¡°That was close¡­¡± He watched the creature whimper and shrivel into a ball. With his back to the opposition, Duke took a swing at him. Timothy jumped to the side and watched Duke cut his creature down the wing. With the turn of his body came his blade to be block by Azkelibur. The chargoyle roared for retaliation. Timothy side stepped around Duke to the point that Duke is in between the creature and himself. Fire in the mouth of the monster started to flare up in between its teeth. ¡°I think your pet is looking for revenge,¡± taunted Timothy; ¡°Don¡¯t worry about me, you cut that thing twice already, I¡¯m sure it hates it you.¡±

    Duke turned back to see that what he was told was true. ¡°Oh boy,¡± Duke slashed at the neck of the creature and the flames left its mouth scorching the interior of the castle. He turned around to see that Timothy was gone. The fire traveled through the castle and set the flammable materials ablaze.

    Timothy ran through the castle against the knights, calling out the girls names. He tracked the girl¡¯s voices behind a door. Kicking the door open, he saw Giselle struggling to get the rope off Gloria. Timothy swept passed Giselle to untie Gloria. ¡°Are you okay?¡±

    ¡°Yeah,¡± they both answer.

    ¡°Yay another fight!¡± Giselle cried out.¡±

    Timothy turned about, ¡°Crap! Why didn¡¯t you leave the set?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m here to save the princess.¡±

    ¡°You put her in this situation, you can¡¯t save anyone!¡± Timothy charged him with his blade. Azkelibur bounces off the unnamed edge turning to find its way to the owner. Giselle is mesmerized by the swinging of the steel, she watched as Gloria carried her out the castle. ¡°Guys c¡¯mon, we got to get out of here! Giselle can you stop this?¡± The three ignore her and the clash raged on.

    The girls got to the audience and watched the fire swallow the castle. ¡°Giselle stop this!¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s fun.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s dangerous!¡± From the audience viewpoint they can watch the two boys fight to the end. The heat started to tire the combatants out. Gloria finally got to Giselle when the two took a break from fighting. ¡°Giselle, sweetie, can you undo this.¡±

    ¡°Aw, they stopped fighting¡­¡±

    ¡°Yes, because it¡¯s dangerous.¡±

    The boys continue to fight again. The chargoyle still alive makes its return to the fray. ¡°It¡¯s back again!¡± Timothy exclaimed. Duke looked back, and at that time Timothy disarmed Duke, he backed up slipping on his cape. Timothy placed his foot on his chest, rest the tip of the blade on his throat, ¡°It¡¯s over you fat slob.¡± The fire consumed them as the chargoyle added to the mayhem.

    ¡°Giselle!¡± Gloria yelled.

    ¡°Inkvus Delivikus.¡±

    The set was restored back to normal. ¡°That¡¯s the play!¡± Duke declared. The curtain closed, the audience applauded and Timothy whooped his ass behind the scenes.

 Act Three

    Chapter Three: The Commission

    Before school started, Timothy dropped Giselle off at a daycare in town. While checking her in he saw Lucille bringing boxes inside. ¡°Hello, young man, how may I help you?¡± the woman behind the counter asked.

    ¡°I would like to drop my little cousin off.¡±

    ¡°Hey!¡± Giselle interrupted from underneath the counter. The lady peers over to see her frustrated.

    Timothy kneeled, ¡°I know you¡¯re upset, but you have to stay here to be safe.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m safe at your house. I want to go home!¡± Giselle complained stomping her foot.

    Timothy looked up to see the woman watching and then looked back down at Giselle, ¡°There¡¯s toys here.¡±

    ¡°Can I draw on them?¡±

    His eyes popped out his head, ¡°Oh, no! No, you can¡¯t draw on them.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll give you some paper, so you can draw, sweetie,¡± the woman said.

    Timothy leaned into Giselle¡¯s ear and whispered, ¡°No art.¡±

    ¡°Aw, c¡¯mon!¡±

    ¡°Remember Saturday?¡±

    ¡°That was so long ago!¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s only been two days.¡±

    ¡°That long?¡± she gasped slapping her cheeks.

    He felt time and the woman¡¯s eyes cut into him, he made the choice to leave her at the daycare regardless of what she wanted. He hopped back up to the woman¡¯s eye level, ¡°I¡¯ll pick up her up at 1:30, please make sure she doesn¡¯t draw, she¡¯s in trouble.¡±

    ¡°Hey, you said I wasn¡¯t!¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s all the yelling that¡¯s getting you in trouble.¡±

    Giselle breathed loudly covering her mouth with both hands.

    ¡°Remember no drawing, make some friends!¡± Timothy bolted out the door.

    The woman leaned over to Giselle, ¡°What¡¯s your name little missy?¡±

    ¡°Giselle.¡±

    ¡°How old are you?¡±

    ¡°Five,¡± she answered with her words and open palm.

    ¡°Aw, aren¡¯t you precious, you can play with the other kids.¡±

    ¡°Okay,¡± Giselle skipped around the counter into the back.

    Lucille came up to the woman behind the counter and asked, ¡°Where would you like this box?¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it. Shouldn¡¯t you be going to school?¡±

    ¡°Oh yes, I should.¡±

    ¡°Quick question, did you see the boy that was just here?¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    ¡°Is he a classmate of yours?¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s kind of young to have kids.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t think it¡¯s his kid. It would have gone around school. But he summoned some spirit girl to do his art project.¡±

    ¡°Some girl? What was her name, if you know?¡±

    ¡°Giselle.¡±

    ¡°Huh, how strange¡­ have a good day at school.¡±

    ¡°Thank you,¡± Lucille left the daycare.

    The woman went into the playroom to see Giselle bouncing a ball. ¡°Hello, sweetie.¡±

    ¡°Hi, do you want to play catch?¡±

    ¡°No thank you, hun. I have to ask you some questions.¡±

    ¡°Okay,¡± she continued bouncing.

    ¡°I need you to stop bouncing please.¡±

    ¡°Okay,¡± Giselle caught the ball.

    ¡°How do you know that boy who dropped you off?¡±

    ¡°I did his art project.¡±

    The woman laughed, ¡°Aw, you have an imagination.¡±

    ¡°I did do his art project, I¡¯m really good at art. He even called me from home.¡±

    ¡°Where do you live?¡±

    ¡°The specter zone.¡±

    ¡°The specter zone?¡±

    ¡°Yes, he called me through this book, and he tried to bring me home, but he couldn¡¯t because he was missing a page.¡±

    ¡°Where are you real parents?¡±

    ¡°Dead.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry to hear that, what happened to them?¡±

    ¡°They died.¡±

    ¡°How.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±

    ¡°Sweetie, does it make you feel sad to think about your parents?¡±

    ¡°No because I¡¯m dead too.¡±

    The woman is taken aback and laughed it off, ¡°What an imagination you have.¡±

    ¡°I really am I dead, but I came back to life when Timothy called me over.¡±

    ¡°How can you come back to life, but your parents could not.¡±

    ¡°I think it has to do with my mother, she was a famous artist and she was going to make it but she said she rather have me be alive then to live without me and then I saw a lot of colors and became good at art but I never saw my parents again¡­¡± She broke out in tears.

    This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there.

    ¡°Aw baby¡­¡± The woman hugged Giselle.

    ¡°Can I play with the ball again?¡±

    ¡°Yes, sweetie.¡±

    ¡°Yay!¡± The bouncing resumed.

    In the other room the woman was on the phone talking to someone, ¡°This is Tessa, I have a message for the leader. I found our guide.¡±

    At school, Timothy walked into homeroom to Gloria¡¯s surprise. ¡°How are you not suspended?¡±

    ¡°Suspended for what?¡±

    ¡°Punching Duke.¡±

    Timothy sucked his teeth and brushed the event off.

    ¡°Are you ready to submit the project for art class?¡± Gloria asked.

    ¡°Crap.¡±

    ¡°Is it home?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, I have to go home and get it.¡±

    ¡°So, you¡¯re going to cut which class? I would like to know so I can act dumb for the teacher.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m going after homeroom, the hell with it, I¡¯m going to go right now,¡± he looked around to see the teacher reading a newspaper.

    Timothy made a break for it, at the door the teacher looked up, ¡°Where you going?¡±

    ¡°Huh.¡±

    ¡°Huh, is not a place I know of. Where are you going?¡±

    ¡°My locker, I need my books for class.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re caring about school now? I guess you want that scholarship,¡± the teacher commented snarky.

    ¡°Yeah¡­ I have to get that education.¡±

    ¡°Run along.¡±

    ¡°Thank you.¡±

    While in the hallway he saw Lucille arriving at school. ¡°How¡¯s it going?¡± Lucille asked.

    Timothy eyes rolled, ¡°I¡¯m fine.¡±

    ¡°I never knew you had a sister.¡±

    ¡°Yeah¡­¡±

    ¡°She kind of looks like Gloria.¡±

    ¡°So, I¡¯ve heard,¡±

    ¡°You know that the Loving Hands Friendship House offers children classes.¡±

    ¡°I think I¡¯ll pass. I¡¯m in a rush. I¡¯ll catch you later.¡±

    Timothy got a text from Gloria, telling him that he forgot his bookbag in homeroom, ¡°Crap.¡± He turned back to get the bag.

    Once back in homeroom, he caught the attention of the teacher, ¡°Timothy, I see you have returned without your books.¡±

    ¡°Yeah¡­ I left my bag in the room.¡±

    ¡°Uh huh, you can go in between classes.¡±

    Timothy mouthed an expletive and settled back in next to Gloria.

    ¡°I see that didn¡¯t go well. What did you do with Giselle?¡± Gloria inquired.

    ¡°I left her at home.¡±

    ¡°Are you serious!¡±

    ¡°Ms. Shields, mind your voice!¡± the teacher commanded.

    ¡°Sorry.¡± She looks back at her friend, ¡°What are you thinking, leaving that little girl in your house alone, she like four at most.¡±

    ¡°She¡¯s not at my house alone, I¡¯m surprised you think that low of me. I left her at the daycare in town.¡±

    ¡°Hey, Gloria, Tim,¡± Lucille greeted.

    ¡°Hi Lucille,¡± Gloria greeted back.

    Timothy nodded his head, and Barry squeezed in between them, ¡°Pardon me.¡±

    Lucille took her attention off the two, ¡°Hey Barry can I interest you in an invite to the Loving Hands Friendship House bingo hour.¡±

    ¡°No thank you, I have work.¡±

    ¡°Where do you work.¡±

    ¡°The psychic outline.¡±

    ¡°Really, aren¡¯t you kind of young for that job?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m eighteen now, so I get adult hours. Anyway, what are you doing here, this isn¡¯t your homeroom.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m going to make an announcement.¡±

    Lucille went to the teacher and asked to make an announcement. The teacher allowed him to make the announcement. ¡°Hello everyone, the Loving Hands Friendship House is looking for volunteers for bingo night tonight and other events throughout the week, if you would like to sign up raise your hand and I¡¯ll come by with the sign-up sheet.¡± No one raised their hand. ¡°Thank you for your time.¡±

    Gloria overheard Barry talking to a classmate about his birthday that day and how he is working. He groaned about how now that he is eighteen, that his boss can make him work late hours because it no longer violates child labor laws. As he complained about his job, Gloria picked up that he works at a psychic hotline and that his boss in a cheapskate but would put him on television since when he works, he generates the best numbers.

    Homeroom ended and Timothy broke out of the school to get his project. In the stairwell he abruptly went out of the emergency exit in the stairwell, while Gloria was talking to him. She heard the door open and commented to herself, ¡°I¡¯m covering for him this period¡­¡±

    Outside of the school, Timothy is running down the street, trying to not miss two class periods and to avoid being seen by anyone from the school. His phone vibrated in his pocket, but he ignored it. A minute later it stopped and vibrated once again. He does not pick it up.

    Gloria sighed going into the next class having to cover for Timothy. She struck luck as there was a substitute teacher in the classroom. ¡°Oh man, he got lucky,¡± she took a seat and the attendance sheets floated around, she signed both of their names and passed it on. She sent a text to Timothy letting him know there is substitute in the current period.

    Timothy arrived back at his house to retrieve the canvas out of his living room and then his phone buzzed. He checked it to see a message from Gloria stating that there is a substitute teacher in class. After reading it he commented to himself, ¡°Oh shit, then I¡¯m going to take my time.¡± He plopped himself on the couch and flipped on the television. He got another text from Gloria badgering him about getting back to school. ¡°Yes, Gloria, I have the project,¡± he said to himself turning the television off.

    Timothy returned to the school with the project in tow. He snuck into the art room and dropped the project off. Duke caught him and watched him drop off the assignment, ¡°Miss!¡± he panicked. By the time the teacher turned around Timothy was gone.

    It was time for art class and Timothy and Gloria walked in together. ¡°Are you ready?¡± Gloria asked.

    ¡°Of course.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t you think it will be obvious?¡±

    ¡°No, it doesn¡¯t look like a kid did it.¡±

    ¡°It doesn¡¯t look like you did it.¡±

    ¡°Looks like I handed it in.¡±

    Gloria rolled her eyes. They both took their seats.

    ¡°Miss are we presenting our projects?¡± a student asked.

    ¡°Now why the hell, would anyone ask that,¡± Timothy groaned.

    ¡°Well, it¡¯s your work, you can talk about the process, I suppose,¡± Gloria said.

    ¡°The process, I¡¯m not talking about the process.¡±

    ¡°But it comes from the heart,¡± she joked.

    ¡°Yeah, it comes from my desire to pass.¡± He shouted out to the teacher, ¡°We shouldn¡¯t present, the class doesn¡¯t want it, right?¡±

    The class agreed.

    ¡°I¡¯ll open up the presentation portion to anyone who wants to do it,¡± the teacher said.

    The student who asked about presenting did not, as they fell to the pressure of the class.

    ¡°Ok, so no one wants to present, that¡¯s fine, you can fill out the project reflection sheet.¡±

    Two pieces of paper came to Timothy and Gloria¡¯s table. ¡°Make sure you write something meaningful. I don¡¯t think Giselle would be able to understand the words on the paper.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re hilarious.¡±

    Timothy read the questions on the sheet; it was a set of ten questions. Question one: Why did you pick the type of assignment that you did? Answer: I felt like this was my strongest method of doing art. Gloria, looked over, ¡°Tah.¡±

    ¡°What did you put?¡±

    ¡°Nothing yet, I¡¯m going back to that question.¡±

    Question two: What motivated you to create the scenario? Answer: I was very proud of this achievement of mine and wanted to share it with the class. ¡°Hey Gloria, do you think this answer is too conceded?¡±

    ¡°Know what is underneath that sheet, yes, I find your answer vain.¡±

    ¡°Oh well.¡±

    Question three: What elements of art did you use while doing this project? Answer: ___ ¡°Gloria, what is an element of art?¡±

    ¡°See this is why you should pay attention in class.¡±

    Timothy looked around the room to see a poster on the elements of art. ¡°Oh I got it.¡± Answer: I used shapes, lines, and color. ¡°Obviously. ¡°He put his pencil down and took a quick break. ¡°Who knew art was this easy.¡±

    Question four: What were your strengths while doing this project? Answer: Time management. ¡°You aren¡¯t right for that one,¡± Gloria commented.

    ¡°It¡¯s the truth though. I used my time wisely.¡±

    Question five: What were your weaknesses while doing this project? Answer: Wanting to do it. Gloria and Timothy eyes met ¡°No comment?¡± he asked.

    ¡°No.¡±

    Question six: Why did you not use any other method to do the project? Answer: Because I was not comfortable with the other options.

    Question seven: What would you change about how you did the project? Answer: The ending, it did not go as planned. ¡°Is that about¡­¡±

    Timothy cut Gloria off, ¡°Obviously, did you do number one yet?¡±

    ¡°Not yet.¡±

    Question eight: What advice would you give future classes? Answer: Take this very seriously. ¡°Seriously?¡±

    ¡°Yes, Gloria, seriously, you should take this seriously and do number one.¡±

    Question nine: What grade would you give yourself? Answer: An A. ¡°Easy ass question.¡±

    ¡°Did you really look at that question?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s why I put an A.¡±

    ¡°Did you reflect on it?¡±

    ¡°Yes, that¡¯s how I came up with the answer. C¡¯mon Gloria, this is how this works. Did I reflect on it¡­¡±

    Question ten: Would you suggest this project to future classes? Answer: Hell no. Gloria looks over, ¡°Tim.¡±

    ¡°Right, I¡¯m in class, he scratches out the hell and turned the paper over.

    The teacher came around and collected the papers. ¡°When do you think we will get our grades?¡± Timothy asked.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know, hopefully quickly, so you can plead your case to the teacher.¡±

    ¡°You are sure spicy today?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, I don¡¯t know, I think I just woke up on the wrong side of the bed today.¡±

    ¡°I can tell, maybe seeing Giselle will make you happy.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll come see her but won¡¯t babysit her for you.¡±

    ¡°Okay, okay, I wasn¡¯t asking you to babysit for me, just to spend some time.¡±

    The teacher revealed Timothy¡¯s project, the class is amazed by the artwork. ¡°Wow, Timothy, you really did an excellent job on this. How come you couldn¡¯t do work like this all year?¡± the teacher commented.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know, I suppose I had a lot on the line this time and had to get it right. I applied myself.¡±

    Class let out, ¡°Gloria, I¡¯ll text you when I get Giselle, and we can meet at my house.¡±

    ¡°Okay.¡±

 Act Three II

    Timothy opened the door to the daycare. It was quiet inside, the children are not playing or napping, they are sitting quietly at tables with their hands folded. He scanned the room but does not see Giselle. The younglings do not make eye contact with him, except one, an antsy one in the corner. He laughed; ¡°Hi, I¡¯m here for my cousin,¡± he said to the person behind the desk. Lucille came in behind Timothy, ¡°Hey, I¡¯m clocking in,¡± she announced.

    Timothy turned back to the worker, ¡°Giselle please.¡±

    ¡°Giselle, Giselle,¡± the worker said flipping through the sign in log; ¡°Giselle, right.¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    ¡°It says she has been picked up already.¡±

    ¡°Picked up already? By who?¡±

    ¡°Her parents.¡±

    ¡°Her parents?¡± The student registered the lie, ¡°Really her parents came in, they didn¡¯t tell me they were picking her up.¡±

    ¡°Well, she left, with her parents.¡±

    Timothy turned around and snapped back to the worker, ¡°Mister or Miss, picked her up?¡±

    ¡°Both of them.¡±

    ¡°Uh huh,¡± Timothy walked out the daycare.

    Outside the daycare, the temperature rose a lot. ¡°Man, it got hot out of nowhere,¡± he commented to himself. A breeze blew by and stopped when it touched his body, for the first time in his life he felt wind as a solid. The wind jabbed him in his gut, and he swatted it away. It clunked as it hit the ground and then another clunk hit the ground. Heat materialized as two rows of flames beside the boy. He ran towards the daycare, the fire intersected and cut him off. ¡°Foolish mortal, you can¡¯t run from my authority,¡± a woman¡¯s voice said behind him.

    ¡°Who are you?¡± he asked turning around to see a woman in a flowing gown, face covered by the fanning inferno.

    ¡°I¡¯m the Princess of the Specter Zone, head of the summoning committee.¡±

    ¡°The Specter Zone?¡±

    ¡°Yes, the Specter Zone, where you summoned the girl from?¡±

    ¡°Oh, that place¡­¡±

    ¡°I need to see your license.¡±

    ¡°License, what license?¡±

    ¡°Your license that allows you to do summons.¡±

    ¡°Is this about the book?¡±

    ¡°Yes, Mortal!¡±

    ¡°Oh, if that¡¯s the case I have a library card and that allows me to get books.¡±

    ¡°A library card!¡± She scoffed and cut her eyes at him, ¡°Do you think you¡¯re funny?¡±

    ¡°I have my moments.¡±

    ¡°Well, do you like dark humor?¡±

    ¡°¡­at times.¡±

    ¡°Well let me humor you if you don¡¯t return the girl back in three days, I¡¯m burning your neighborhood down.¡±

    ¡°Where¡¯s the humor in that?¡± Timothy¡¯s demeanor changed.

    ¡°In your face,¡± the Princess laughed.

    Her laughter picked up his mood. ¡°Oh, it¡¯s humor!¡±

    ¡°No idiot, it¡¯s a promise. I will have this place set ablaze if Giselle is not back in three days.¡±

    ¡°Wait, how can you set the whole town on fire.¡±

    She snapped her fingers and in a poof of smoke comes out a Black, bald individual with orange eyes. ¡°Ashton here will do it for me.¡±

    ¡°Hey fireman, how about I get a week to find the girl.¡±

    ¡°No, you get three days.¡± She checked her watch, ¡°You have until four P.M. on Thursday, before this place is smoked out.¡±

    ¡°Big man, you let this woman dictate to you,¡± Timothy instigated.

    ¡°What are you doing?¡±

    ¡°Asking the man, a question.¡±

    ¡°Cut your foolishness out, three days or this place is gone.¡±

    ¡°Wait, wait, wait!¡± Timothy panicked recalling his recent conversation in the daycare. I was told she was picked up by her parents.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s a good cover up.¡±

    ¡°No, I¡¯m serious, if you go back into the daycare and ask for her they will say her parents picked her up.¡± Timothy looked past the Princess to see the daycare was not behind her or behind him. ¡°I think it is next to one of these walls of fire.¡±

    Both paranormal individuals looked at each other. ¡°I don¡¯t think he knows,¡± Ashton says to the Princess.

    ¡°He doesn¡¯t know, but knows how to do summons. That doesn''t seem believable.¡±

    ¡°What am I supposed to know?¡± Timothy asked.

    ¡°Hm, he could be acting dumb,¡± the Princess commented.

    ¡°Acting dumb to what, this fire thing is new to me.¡±

    ¡°Just tell him,¡± Ashton told her.

    ¡°You are in a pocket of space between both realms. That way your world is not affected by things in the Specter Zone.¡±

    ¡°If that¡¯s the case, why am I being penalized for losing the girl.¡±

    ¡°Because she¡¯s not in the pocket of space but roaming around in your world.¡±

    ¡°What happens if a person from the Specter Zone stays to long in my world.¡±

    ¡°I see he hasn¡¯t been following along,¡± Ashton commented.

    ¡°We set your home on fire!¡± the Princess exclaimed.

    ¡°I meant without intervention.¡±

    ¡°Horrible things but remember bring the girl home.¡±

    If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.

    The walls of fire collide with each other. In a moment of intense heat, Timothy cooled down and is back outside the daycare.

    After his episode with the paranormal authorities, he called Gloria, ¡°You won¡¯t believe what just happened.¡±

    ¡°What happened?¡±

    ¡°Giselle went missing.¡±

    ¡°What! How?¡±

    ¡°Apparently her parents picked up.¡±

    ¡°Parents? She doesn¡¯t have parents, she¡¯s a spirit¡­do spirits have parents?¡±

    ¡°Supposedly. But now we have to find Giselle, or the town will be set on fire.¡±

    ¡°Set on fire! Set on fire by who?¡±

    ¡°By another spirit that some Princess of the summoning commission is sicking on us.¡±

    ¡°A summoning committee, this all sounds fake, stop playing.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not it was the strangest thing. I left the daycare and all of a sudden, I was surrounded by fire and this woman was threatening me with destruction if I didn¡¯t send Giselle back.¡±

    ¡°Did you tell her about the parents?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, and they were not going for it.¡±

    ¡°Well, you¡¯re going to have to fix that.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, we are going to have to fix it.¡±

    ¡°We, we nothing, I didn¡¯t summon any spirits to do my project.¡±

    ¡°But if you don¡¯t help me, you and everyone you love will be dead.¡±

    ¡°Dammit Timmy!¡±

    ¡°And you and the girl bonded, I know she would love to see your face when she gets saved.¡±

    ¡°How do we know she¡¯s even in the area, she might be out the country for all we know or worse.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t say that, then we all will be worse. Have some faith.¡±

    ¡°I would but you give me nothing to have faith in.¡± Gloria hung up.

    ¡°Gloria, Gloria! Aw damn, she¡¯s mad at me¡­¡±

    ¡°Lucille you¡¯re back!¡± a woman in the backroom said.

    ¡°Yeah, I really wanted to help out since we have a big event coming up.¡±

    ¡°Ah, yes the big event¡­¡± the woman paused, then resumed, ¡°Your dedication to our group has been fantastic, I think you should get a scholarship after our trip.¡±

    ¡°Really!¡±

    ¡°Yes, of course I don¡¯t make the calls, but I¡¯ll put in a word for you.¡± The lady said watching the children rove around on the floor. ¡°Oh, and Duke has recommitted himself back to the Loving Hands Friendship House.

    ¡°Oh wow, really, that¡¯s great!¡±

    ¡°Speaking of the man himself.¡±

    ¡°Good afternoon,¡± he greeted the females.

    ¡°Hi, are you coming back to the Loving Hands Friendship House!¡± blurted out Lucille.

    ¡°¡­Yeah¡± he answered.

    ¡°Sorry, if you wanted to tell her yourself. It was such big news, I had to tell her,¡±The woman apologized.

    ¡°It¡¯s fine, is Mother here?¡±

    ¡°Ah yes, she is. I know she wanted to talk to you. She should be in her office.¡±

    ¡°Thank you.¡± Duke walked away from the females.

    Lucille watched him walk away, ¡°Do you know what Mother wants to talk to him about?¡± Lucille asks.

    ¡°I don¡¯t but I don¡¯t think he¡¯s in trouble.¡±

    Duke got to Mother¡¯s office and knocked on the door. ¡°Come in,¡± her voice says from the other side.

    He opened the door, ¡°Good afternoon, Mother.¡±

    ¡°Welcome back Duke, I heard that you had interesting weekend.¡± She is shrouded in the darkness of her clothing. Mother¡¯s presence had a dominating effect on those around her. Her eyes are piercing yet allowed those to open to her.

    ¡°Yes, I did.¡±

    ¡°I heard those effects in the production were amazing, how did you do it?¡±

    ¡°Uh¡­ well it¡¯s a crazy story.¡± He did not know how to put the information across, ¡°Well, I had a helper, who miraculously was able to make things happen.¡±

    ¡°Make things happen, how?¡±

    ¡°It might be magic¡­ I know it sounds crazy.¡±

    ¡°No, it doesn¡¯t, we believe in a power above our understanding, this could be apart of this power.¡± Duke did not say anything. ¡°Welcome back Duke, I¡¯ll see you at the event this weekend?¡±

    ¡°Yes¡­ erm, what is the event?¡±

    ¡°We are going to visit the next plane, with our guide.¡±

    ¡°We found a guide?¡±

    ¡°Yes, a sign from the powers outside our understanding.¡±

    ¡°I see.¡±

    ¡°Please, stay and help us prepare a bit, get yourself reacclimated,¡± her eyes transferred her darkness to him.

    ¡°Yes, Mother.¡±

    Duke left and Mother followed behind him.

    It was late night around midnight and Timothy was flipping through channels on the television. He quickly skipped over Barry doing psychic work on an informercial, he flipped back to the channel. ¡°Call 1-800 PSYCHIC for a reading,¡± Barry announced. ¡°We have a caller. To give you some speaking time, what¡¯s your name?¡±

    ¡°Ms. Kwon¡±

    ¡°Hello, Ms. Kwon. What¡¯s your question?¡±

    ¡°When will I get my book back?¡±

    ¡°The person you are talking about, the person who has it will come seek you out real soon.¡±

    ¡°Okay.¡±

    The phone call ended. Another call comes in, ¡°Hello caller.¡±

    ¡°Hey, Mr. See It All, I got a message for¡­¡±

    ¡°I will tell him! Don¡¯t worry¡­¡± Barry cut off. ¡°Commercial!¡± he ended the call.

    During the commercial break Timothy got the idea to call Barry for help with Giselle. He dialed the number in and got put on hold. The program came back on, and Barry was with a caller. Timothy held the line. From the television, Barry could be heard giving a prediction, ¡°Things ain¡¯t looking so great, delete those pictures off your phone and deactivate your social media accounts, we¡¯ll leave it at that.¡± He abruptly yelled, ¡°Don¡¯t connect line 5!¡±. But it was too late, the caller was in. ¡°Because I¡¯m too young to gamble,¡± he cut the customer off. The operator disconnected the call. Timothy finally got through, ¡°I¡¯m sure you already know my name, do you know where I can find a girl named Giselle?¡±

    ¡°Ah yeah¡­ ain¡¯t she a bit young?¡± Seeming like a predator, Barry¡¯s boss instructed him to keep the call going. ¡°So, tell me a bit, is she important in your life. I feel like you owe her something.¡±

    ¡°¡­ I just need to find the kid.¡±

    ¡°I see, Ms. Ancer¡¯s psychic hotline does not assist in crimes.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not a pedophile. I need to find my cousin, she went missing.

    Timothy¡¯s call got switched over to the boss, ¡°His name is Timothy!¡± Barry shouted over.

    The boss now has the call in her hands, ¡°Hello Timothy, this is head psychic Ms. Ancer, we would like to assist you in your search for your cousin. However, we would like to use your story to help promote the brand; we would change the names of course.¡±

    ¡°Sure, I just need to find the kid A.S.A.P.¡±

    ¡°Of course, call again tomorrow for more help.¡±

    ¡°Wait, wait, wait, wait, this current caller.¡±

    Barry took the current caller, ¡°Hello caller.¡±

    ¡°What do you see in my future?¡±

    ¡°A phone call. Callers usually come with a defined narrow question.¡±

    ¡°Do you double as a medium?¡±

    ¡°Usually, the questions are about yourself.¡±

    ¡°Is there fire?¡±

    ¡°Yes¡­¡±

    ¡°A lot?¡±

    ¡°More than a normal person would see.¡±

    ¡°Good to hear, about that Giselle girl is she safe?¡±

    ¡°Yes, she is safe.¡±

    ¡°Do you know where she is at?¡±

    He got a signal from the boss to milk the call. ¡°Dang this girl is popular.¡±

    ¡°3 days or everyone will be on fire.¡±

    ¡°Goodbye, we are going to commercial,¡± Barry cut the call. ¡°Man, the psychos and predators are out tonight,¡± he told his boss.

    ¡°Hold on, I got the predator on the phone,¡± She gave her attention back to Timothy ¡°Do you know that last caller?¡±

    ¡°He wants the girl, and he kills.¡±

    ¡°Are you a cop?¡±

    ¡°No, I¡¯m the girls cousin.¡±

    ¡°Maybe you should call the authorities.¡±

    ¡°I called because I know Barry is a real psychic.¡±

    ¡°Wait, how do you know his name?¡±

    ¡°I just do, can you help or not?¡±

    ¡°If you honor the deal, sure.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, whatever just help me.¡±

    Ms. Ancer recruited Barry to Timothy¡¯s search, ¡°I got a job for you. This Timothy boy will call often just advise him on finding the girl.¡±

    ¡°I can tell you that¡­¡± he saw a vision of his boss¡¯s future seeing she will short him of his pay. He came back into it, ¡°I will take the job.¡± The vision turned into a grand fire at his job, he focused hard to figure the date, it is 2 days from the current date, ¡°I just want off on the 6<sup>th.</sup>¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s too short notice!¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s it I quit.¡±

    ¡°You wouldn¡¯t.¡±

    Barry placed his hand on the crystal ball and rolled it over to the edge of the table.

    ¡°Fine you can be off on the 6<sup>th</sup>!¡± she caved. ¡°She continued to tell Timothy to call tomorrow night.¡±

    ¡°But I need¡­¡± the call ends.

    In between switching channels, Timothy heard rumbling outside, he peeked out his window to see Roscoe struggling to get into his house. He retreated into his blinds when he saw Roscoe¡¯s head turn towards his house. He kept watching television when a knock comes at his door, ¡°Crap,¡± he mumbled to himself. He answered the door, ¡°Hey Tim, can I get a knife, I need to open my lock,¡± Roscoe requested.

    ¡°Sure¡­¡± Timothy closed the door.

    Timothy returned to the door with the knife, before he gave him the knife, he posed a question to Roscoe, ¡°I have a question for you?¡±

    ¡°Its to get in my house.¡±

    ¡°No, I figured that, but you know about somethings going on.¡±

    ¡°It depends on what are these things?¡±

    ¡°I have a friend who lost their daughter, she got kidnapped out the daycare in town.¡±

    ¡°The mother¡¯s place?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, that one, what do you know about it?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s a recruiting ground for the Loving Hands Friendship House.¡±

    ¡°Oh boy. How?¡±

    ¡°Apparently they warp the minds of the kids who go and then they bother their parents to go to a meeting and then the whole family gets involved and once they are committed the whole family is trapped in that cult.¡±

    ¡°But why would they kidnap a child?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know, but she was that girl who stopped the production at the fair the other day, right?¡±

    ¡°You were there?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, I saw the final moments.¡±

    ¡°Maybe the family of the girl is apart of the cult.¡±

    ¡°She¡¯s not.¡±

    ¡°Are you sure? You never know.¡±

    ¡°I know she¡¯s not apart of the cult, can you help me with some info on her disappearance?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll look around for you, same time tomorrow?¡±

    Timothy looked back to check the time, ¡°Yeah,¡± he hands him the knife.

    Barry texted Timothy with a plan to get views on the situation and for Timothy to not pay standard rates. He sent him the number to the hotline, with the extension number and let him know going through this route will skip the processing fees. Timothy was to call at midnight.

 Act Four

    Act 4: The Lost Page

    It was one minute to midnight; Timothy watched the clock for when he could make the call. The numbers morphed to twelve on the dot and instantly he connected the call.

    At Ms. Ancer¡¯s hotline, Barry took his seat behind the crystal ball and the hotline lit up. ¡°Man, that was quick.¡± The lights and cameras turned on and instantly Barry was on television. ¡°Hello caller, how can I help you?¡±

    ¡°I need help finding the missing girl.¡±

    ¡°Ah, yes Giselle.¡±

    ¡°Can you tell me where she is?¡±

    ¡°Yes¡­¡± Barry answered. He looked pass the camera to Ms. Ancer. ¡°She is somewhere around your location.¡±

    ¡°Around my location? Like by where I am now?¡±

    Barry shuts his eyes, ¡°In the town you live in.¡±

    ¡°Really, is she going to leave anytime soon.¡±

    ¡°She will not cross any town borders but will not be in town in two days.¡±

    ¡°Two days, will she be alive?¡±

    Ms. Ancer ran her hand over her neck, indicating that he should not answer the question.

    Barry closed his eyes to find the answer. ¡°Wow that¡¯s an interesting question.¡± He opened his eyes, ¡°Uh, how do I put this?¡±

    On the other line, Timothy knew that Giselle was a spirit and might not be a living creature in general. ¡°Wait, will there be a¡­¡±

    ¡°I know what you going to ask, yes there will be. I don¡¯t see how it is connected to the girl though.¡±

    ¡°Uh, well¡­¡±

    Barry shivered intensely as he tapped into the universe to find answers. ¡°Were you told something by an outside source?¡±

    ¡°Outside source, as in another psychic?¡±

    ¡°No outside source as in¡­¡± the call dropped. ¡°Hello caller, hello.¡± Barry¡¯s composure broke and he stood up.

    Ms. Ancer was directing him to sit back down. The psychic¡¯s deduction pieced together something so otherworldly that his induction did not prepare him for. The boss called for a commercial break. She walks up to the table, ¡°What¡¯s the matter with you?¡±

    ¡°I saw the future.¡±

    ¡°Ha, ha, ha, ha, oh boy did you see me firing you?¡±

    Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.

    ¡°Whoa, fire¡­ing, uh yeah, and I think I can see the reason¡­¡±

    ¡°What reason is that?¡±

    ¡°This missing girl case.¡±

    ¡°What about it?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll keep myself composed; can we get him back on the line?¡±

    Ms. Ancer goes back to her spot and before the program comes on, Barry texts Timothy to call back.

    ¡°Alright everyone, we are going to milk this call,¡± alerted Ms. Ancer.

    The call that should have gone through the operators went straight to Barry. His phone ringing got lost in the ringing of the other phones. Barry picked up the phone, ¡°Hello caller.¡±

    ¡°Hi, about the girl¡¯s whereabouts¡­¡±

    ¡°One thing, whatever that source told you, I would take it seriously, I don¡¯t know how to classify it.¡±

    Ms. Ancer was upset by the words ¡®I don¡¯t know.¡¯ She mouthed to him, ¡®You do know.¡¯

    ¡°Caller¡­¡±

    An operator went up to Ms. Ancer, ¡°This call was never put through by any of the operators.¡±

    ¡°What are you talking about?¡±

    ¡°I mean, that the caller is not paying standard messaging rates.¡±

    ¡°Wait a minute, how the hell is this person talking to Barry? Are we being hacked?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know but I¡­¡±

    Ms. Ancer silenced the worker, putting her hand up. In her thought she produced a question, ¡°How are our ratings.¡±

    The worker skimmed social media for people¡¯s comments on the program, ¡°It seems about fine, but we could make more profit, if the caller was charged with the standard messaging rates.¡±

    Ms. Ancer¡¯s greed got the better of her, ¡°You¡¯re right, disconnect the call.¡±

    ¡°Will do ma¡¯am.¡±

    Timothy was on his couch taking notes on what Barry was telling him. Then a knock came at the door, right on schedule. ¡°Hold on, I have to get the door.¡± Timothy muted his phone. Looking through the peephole he saw Roscoe, ¡°Let¡¯s go, right on time.¡± He opened the door, ¡°Roscoe how¡¯s it going!¡±

    ¡°Roscoe smirked, ¡°Is that you on the T.V. doing the missing girl case?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, what did you find out?¡±

    ¡°The Loving Hands Friendship House has the girl from the play.¡±

    ¡°How¡¯d you find out?¡±

    ¡°I have my sources.¡±

    ¡°What do they want her for?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know, my source couldn¡¯t tell me that.¡±

    ¡°Do you know where they are located?¡±

    ¡°Uh, yeah at¡­¡±

    Timothy heard Barry¡¯s voice over the phone, ¡°Hold on.¡± He put the phone to his head, ¡°Yeah I¡¯m still here.¡±

    Ms. Ancer told Barry to end the call. ¡°Sorry you were taking too long, I have to end the call,¡± Barry said. The hotline went on commercial break.

    ¡°So where is the girl?¡±

    ¡°Roscoe!¡± A woman yelled from across the street.

    ¡°Oh crap, my girlfriend woke up, I got to get back.¡± Roscoe ran back to his house in a hurry.

    ¡°Fuck.¡±

    Timothy went back to the call to see that he has been disconnected. ¡°Aw damn.¡± He called the direct line again, but Barry did not pick up. ¡°What the hell! Barry, I need you to pick up.¡± In panic he texted Barry the truth, ¡®Barry I was approached by some people after I lost the girl and they said they would burn the town down if she was not returned back home.¡¯ A text came back, ¡®I can¡¯t help you through the hotline, they¡¯re on to us. But I will help you after school.¡¯ ¡®Thank you.¡¯ Timothy replied. He then sent a message to Gloria, ¡®Me and Barry are going to search for Giselle I would appreciate if you came and helped. She is in the town btw.¡¯ No reply.

    The program came back on

    After the program ended, Ms. Ancer approached Barry. ¡°Come to my office.¡±

    ¡°Uh, Miss, I am tired, and I have school tomorrow.¡±

    ¡°I understand, I¡¯ll make this quick.¡±

    Barry felt unwelcome news coming on, ¡°Can we do this on the way.¡±

    ¡°Fine, your psychic, do you know what I¡¯m about to tell you.¡±

    ¡°Hopefully not what I¡¯m thinking.¡±

    ¡°For your stunt tonight, I¡¯m going to have to let you go. We will give you your final payment via direct deposit on the next pay day. Good night, Barry.¡±

    He walked out without saying a word but recalled his vision for the previous day. He closed the door behind him, ¡°At least I know why my pay got shorted¡­ aw well I miss the hassle, in a couple of days,¡± he said to himself.

 Act Four II

    In homeroom Gloria gave Timothy the answer to his text, ¡°Obviously I¡¯m going to help you. We must stay alive,¡± she whispered to him.

    ¡°Thanks, I think I can get Barry to assist us as well.¡±

    ¡°How so?¡±

    ¡°We had a conversation about the ramifications of not bringing the girl back.¡±

    ¡°So, the ramifications of your actions.¡±

    ¡°¡­yeah, but I¡¯m going to fix this.¡±

    ¡°How are you going to find this missing page?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m going to go back to the place, where I bought it.¡±

    ¡°Which was where?¡±

    ¡°In the stairwell¡­now that I say it like that, it sounds stupid. But I¡¯m sure I¡¯ll find the lady in the stairwell again¡­¡±

    In passing to class, Timothy ran into Barry, ¡°Hey, are you serious about helping me?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, as serious, as the result of us not bringing the girl back.¡± Barry¡¯s eyes shut. ¡°You¡¯re athletic right?¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    ¡°Good, you are going to need your all your energy today.¡±

    ¡°Ok, we meet at the stair by the library at three, I¡¯m bringing Gloria too.¡±

    ¡°Cool, I¡¯m sure we will need all the help we can get¡­ Have you summoned anything else.¡±

    ¡°No.¡±

    ¡°Ok, the stairs by the library at three, see you there,¡± Barry said departing.

    After school, Timothy went back to the stairwell with Barry where the first encounter happened, with Ms. Woo. Meanwhile Gloria tried to extract information from Lucille. She had stopped her at her locker, ¡°Hey Lucille, I heard you work at Mother¡¯s Day Care.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, how did you know?¡±

    ¡°Timothy told me, when he dropped his little cousin off.¡±

    ¡°Oh, the one that looks like you?¡±

    ¡°Haha, I¡¯ve heard that before. Well, she¡¯s gone missing and I was wondering if you knew anything?¡±

    ¡°No, I haven¡¯t heard anything.¡±

    Duke interrupted the two, he apologized to Gloria for their previous encounter, he continued with Lucille giving her some news, ¡°The Loving Hands Friendship House is going through with the event this weekend, they found a guide.¡±

    ¡°Really, that¡¯s great!¡±

    ¡°Um excuse me, what¡¯s this event?¡± Gloria inquired. Lucille was going to answer when Duke suggested she should not compromise the secret of the group. The two departed from Gloria, leaving her with suspicion, ¡°They¡¯re up to something¡­¡±

    In the stairwell the two boys waited for something, they exactly do not know what it is. ¡°When you saw this book peddler, where were you?¡± Barry inquired.

    ¡°In the stairwell.¡±

    ¡°Doing what?¡±

    ¡°Walking.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s useful.¡±

    ¡°Come on psychic, use your powers.¡±

    ¡°I can¡¯t see in the past.¡±

    A door can be heard opening, they looked up the stairwell and saw the art teacher. She commented on them in the stairwell, ¡°You¡¯re still here, you like school that much?¡± The boys chuckled. ¡°You got to leave we have a staff meeting.¡±

    ¡°Okay ma¡¯am.¡± Barry replied.

    The boys left the stairwell, in hopes that the teacher would go away. As soon as they opened the door and went through, a kaleidoscope of colors overrode their senses. ¡°This is it!¡± Timothy alerted Barry.

    ¡°This is where the book lady is at?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, something like this, when I first saw her, I went through this color thing.¡±

    ¡°You are sure, you¡¯re not on drugs?¡±

    ¡°No.¡±

    The door can be heard opening.

    After the color collage, Ms. Woo appeared Timothy jumped straight into his complaint, ¡°You sold me a book with a missing page!¡±

    ¡°Oh, you¡¯re the boy who shorted me?¡±

    ¡°Give me that page!¡±

    ¡°Pay full price!¡±

    ¡°Fine, refund me the money and I¡¯ll give you what I owe.¡±

    ¡°No, you will pay the full price of the book for the missing page.¡±

    ¡°What? No, you bitch!¡±

    ¡°Fine, no page for you, get out my library!¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m getting that page!¡±

    Shelves started to move about, ¡°I¡¯ll take you out, fool!¡±

    Timothy was trying to gauge the movement of the shelves to the location of Ms. Woo.

    Princess and Ashton arrived in the library; a shelf came at them to be incinerated by the latter. ¡°I see this lady is up to her nonsense again,¡± commented the Princess. Spirits flew all around them from the smoke. ¡°You know you¡¯re going to have to catch them,¡± she continued. She materialized a jar.

    ¡°Yes ma¡¯am.¡±

    ¡°For your sake I hope you burned a bunch of spells and not many summonses.¡±

    Along with his anger, Ashton flared up.

    ¡°You might want to do that with as little fire as possible. We don¡¯t need a bigger mess on our hands,¡± the Princess said.

    A spirit floated by them and was sucked into the jar.

    Timothy and Gloria were avoiding being cornered by the shelves. ¡°My goodness, it never stops¡­¡± Gloria panted.

    ¡°If you¡¯re tired try going to a wall or a corner and staying there, you probably won¡¯t have to move much that way,¡± suggested Timothy.

    As soon as that was said Gloria was pinned against a wall by a shelf.

    ¡°Gloria!¡± Timothy exclaimed.

    ¡°Get the page, it¡¯s more important, we can¡¯t lose the town!¡±

    ¡°Right!¡±

    Timothy scrambled around for Ms. Woo. He got to the center of the library to scale a shelf on the move. Once at the top, he located Ms. Woo. The sudden shift of the shelf threw his balance off. He caught himself and straddled to the top giving it a full body hug. As the shelf slid across the floor, he steadily regained his footing.

    A glass orb cut across the dark air, muffling voices. Off the lip, a spirit slipped out, ¡°I¡¯ll make you deal.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m listening.¡±

    ¡°You let me go and me and you we¡­¡±

    ¡°Pardon me, I couldn¡¯t hear you can you say that again?¡± Ashton inched closer.

    ¡°I said, you let me go¡­¡±

    Ashton contained the spirit, ¡°Me, let you go, crazy.¡±

    A spirit retreated to a book on a shelf. Timothy jumped on the shelf chasing down Ms. Woo. The shock of the landing rocked the book out of the shelf ejecting the spirit out and into the jar. Timothy jumped to another shelf, rocking it. The sound agitated Ashton, he caught the shelf, feeling like it was an attack on him, his temper flared up. His hand glowed a bright orange. Princess ran by, ¡°Don¡¯t burn anymore things.¡± Her voice snapped him out of his anger, giving him clarity. The Princess was trailing behind the hopping student. Ashton continued containing the spirits.

    Gloria squeezed out from behind the shelf, breathing hard. ¡°Oh, my goodness, that was heavy.¡± A second shelf pinned her back onto the wall. She pushed books off the shelf and rolled in between the rows. As the books plopped on the ground, Ashton was set off, ¡°All of these damn books!¡± His eyes streamed lines of flames. ¡°No more spirits running around,¡± Ashton grunted hovering over Gloria. ¡°Close those books!¡± he demanded.

    Under the pressure of his demeanor Gloria started closing the books and putting them back on the shelf. A spirit passed by Ashton into Gloria. ¡°Time to get rid of this girl,¡± a fireball appeared in his hand. A shelf pinned both to a wall. The flames died out and the spirits trance out the collision. ¡°How the hell did I get back behind a shelf. ¡°Gloria asked herself. The shelf was removed, ¡°You got lucky, now back to our regularly schedule extraction. He ignited his hand and put it to Gloria¡¯s face, the smoke made her cough and the apparition put the jar to her face. She pushed him away to get air. Ashton saw that nothing came out of her. He tried it again and Gloria started fidgeting. ¡°Stay still, I¡¯m trying to exercise you.¡± Ashton said.

    ¡°What!¡±

    Ashton ignited even more, Gloria instantly broke into a sweat, ¡°Get off me!¡± she kicked him away. She coughed, intensely wheezing. ¡°There¡¯s¡­ there¡¯s¡­ there¡¯s nothing inside me¡­¡±

    Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there.

    ¡°That¡¯s what an apparition would say.¡±

    He placed the lid onto her face. Gloria started making gasping noises. Once it stopped, he removes the jar. Another spirit roamed by him, ¡°Come here you¡­¡± he swung the jar. The spirit returned to Gloria and settled in.

    Timothy was on the heels of Ms. Woo, ¡°Look here lady!¡± He took a breath of air, ¡°I¡¯m tired of your shelf nonsense. I need that page, or a disaster will happen.¡±

    ¡°What disaster is that?¡±

    ¡°The death of us.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s a lie, a bad summon does not result in penalties for the group just the summoner.¡±

    ¡°Lady, you sold me this cursed book, you are a scammer.¡±

    ¡°And you are a thief,¡± she retorted.

    In the library Barry was wondering around, trying to avoid obstacles in his way of an exit. He jumped back and a shelf passed in front of him. ¡°These shelves really need to stop,¡± he commented to himself. Looking around he found the shelf that will end up closest to the exit. He scaled it and surfed it to freedom. As he was surfing along, he saw Timothy talking to Ms. Woo. His eye started to twitch, ¡°I have a bad feeling about this.¡± ¡°Tim, we have to go!¡± Barry called out.

    Timothy kept his focus on Ms. Woo. He lifted a book out the shelf and threw it at Timothy. ¡°Tim, lets go, I found an exit!¡±

    ¡°Not without the page, I don¡¯t leave.¡±

    ¡°Aw dammit, if you get the page come thus way!¡±

    ¡°We have to make sure the town is safe.¡±

    Barry jumped off the shelf and rolls into the spot that would be the portal. He turned grey and disappeared.

    ¡°Look I need that book and I will pay the original price for it.¡±

    ¡°Ho ho ho ho, your spirit is broken, huh boy?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m just making a mature decision.¡±

    ¡°Good, that¡¯s a choice. I want to see the money.¡±

    Timothy pulled out his money, ¡°Can I see the page?¡±

    Ms. Woo put space in between them and showed him the page. ¡°Stay there.¡±

    ¡°How can I tell if this is the page I need, if I can¡¯t look at it.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re just going to have to trust me.¡±

    ¡°Trust you!¡± He flailed his arms, ¡°Bitch is shiesty as hell¡­¡± he mumbled under his breath.

    ¡°What¡¯s that?¡±

    ¡°Nothing.¡±

    Gloria was running around the bookstore wildly. Timothy watched her approach him, ¡°Gloria can you help me talk to his lady?¡± Gloria full on rammed into Ms. Woo knocking the page out of her hand. Timothy picked it up as it landed at his feet, ¡°How convenient.¡± Once he grabbed the page, he ran off saying, ¡°Fuck you bitch I ain¡¯t paying for this.¡±

    ¡°Stupid boy, stupid gir¡­ Oh you¡¯re possessed, which creature is inside you?¡± She put her glasses on and looked inside Gloria¡¯s eyes to see a specter of negative emotions. ¡°Oh, nothing that can help me.¡± Behind Gloria¡¯s eyes were twice as much malice than expected.

    ¡°You¡¯re the reason I¡¯m here!¡± Gloria¡¯s voice echoed.

    ¡°Is that from the girl or you?¡±

    ¡°Both of us,¡± Gloria¡¯s head turned ninety degrees with a smile.

    ¡°Oh, I see you think I¡¯m the cause of your troubles.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re the reason, I¡¯m stuck in here.¡±

    ¡°Girl is it not the boy?¡±

    ¡°The boy?¡± One voice asked.

    ¡°Yes, the boy who did not pay me for the book.¡±

    ¡°How does this relate to me being stuck in here?¡±

    ¡°Aren¡¯t you in here to help him get the missing page back,¡± Ms. Woo spoke to the internal Gloria.

    The words only go surface deep, ¡°You know you could just let her out and maybe that would quell the anger¡­¡±

    ¡°Good try, you belong to me.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m happy that boy cheated you.¡±

    ¡°Ho, ho, how you jump to anger so quickly. It¡¯s only natural for a beast of your nature.¡±

    ¡°Like being a bitch is in your nature.¡±

    ¡°Witch, the word you¡¯re looking for is witch.¡±

    ¡°No bitch is the correct word.¡±

    ¡°Where¡¯s my book?¡±

    ¡°The char¡­ the creature of flames destroyed it.¡± Gloria smiled widely. ¡°So, I¡¯ll be roaming around until the time comes for me to be free.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll find a place for you to be.¡± She swiped her hand through the air sending a shelf into Gloria. ¡°Stupid spirit.¡± She looks around the bookstore. ¡°Where¡¯s that boy at?¡± She saw burning wood, ¡°The chargoyle!¡± In her quick thinking, she formed a solution, ¡°Ubble, ubble bubble wand!¡± A pink rod appeared with a film of liquid covering the circle tip. The witch blew into the circle to jumpstart the item and the air from her mouth expanded the liquid into a blow shape and then in retreated into the circle.

    Ms. Woo scanned the area for the firestarter. ¡°Chargoyle, where are you?¡± She closed her eyes and looked through the eyes of the gargoyle statues, she saw him waving the glass jar, through air. ¡°Ah I see he¡¯s trying to collect the spirits.¡± She then located another target, ¡°Where is the boy with my page?¡± the gargoyle located Timothy. A shelf opened and water waked and Timothy slowed down the from the crash of the wave. He was in knee deep water and is touched by a flipper. The flipper tried to draw him into a hole, ¡°What the hell!¡± he turned to see a giant koi fish attempting to eat him. He distanced himself from the animal by jumping but did not make much distance. In an inhale of water Timothy would have been dragged to his demise if it was not for Ashton. Heat cooked the animal and burned Timothy¡¯s elbow, ¡°Ah, damn!¡± Vapor plumed off the water and a shadowy figure, stayed masked in the air, ¡°Consider that a warning of things to come if the girl is not returned home.¡±

    ¡°I got it¡­¡± Timothy laid down, soaking his arm in the water, and holding the page above water. His face had a struggle between concern and pain on it. Even the smell of cooked fish could not change his appearance.

    Ms. Woo watched the whole ordeal through the eyes of the gargoyle. ¡°There goes another part of my library destroyed.¡± The statue also captured, Ashton extracting a spirit from the carcass from of the fish.

    The water rocked against their bodies, ¡°Aw, man don¡¯t tell me this water is a monster too?¡± Timothy complained.

    ¡°I don¡¯t sense any spirits in the water.¡± They are both touched by a hard object; ¡°Oh I know what this is.¡±

    ¡°What is this!¡± Timothy panicked being pushed by the mysterious force.

    Ashton walked around something, ¡°It¡¯s a shelf, it¡¯s underwater.¡±

    Ms. Woo surfed in on a shelf, ¡°Smart of you to figure out,¡± with a wave of her wand she encased the chargoyle in a bubble. The bubble soaked up the water in the library, which gave it the effect of tightening up, ¡°Well now you monster, I¡¯m going to send you somewhere, that you can¡¯t come back from.¡±

    As the bubble collapsed on him, it popped. In a regretful moment Timothy knocked over Ms. Woo and ran off with her wand, setting Ashton free. ¡°Why did I do that? I should have let her kill him; the town would have been safe¡­ Tim you were not thinking¡­¡± he thought to himself.

    Ms. Woo went after him, but not before she kicked her heel into the eye of Ashton. He held his eye and stopped the bleeding through cauterization. ¡°I need to ask the Princess for more extrajudicial authority.¡±

    ¡°While running away, he saw Gloria, and yelled out, ¡°Gloria, I got the page.¡± The words did not register with her. ¡°Gloria!¡±

    ¡°She still has a spirit in her,¡± Ms. Woo commented.

    ¡°What! What did you do to her!¡± he waved his hand with the bubble wand in it, trapping her in a bubble; ¡°Wow that was easier than expected.¡±

    ¡°Let me out you little, thief!¡±

    Gloria looked at Timothy and shouted, ¡°Tim! Are we going home?¡±

    ¡°¡­yeah¡­¡± He paused, ¡°Wait a minute, she has a spirit in her, I don¡¯t think I can bring her home.¡±

    ¡°Wait right there I¡¯ll come to you. Good job on stopping that lady.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll meet you halfway.¡±

    Ms. Woo summoned a shelf and popped the bubble. The sight of this causes Gloria to run the other way. ¡°Give me my wand back.¡±

    ¡°No!¡±

    In an attempt to break his spirit, Ms. Woo said, ¡°You are exactly what the psychic boy in here said you are.¡±

    ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°Now I got your interest, your friend the psychic was the one to tell me to rip out the page, he said you were going to cheat me. And wow, he sure has accurate results.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re lying.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not, that¡¯s why you have one last page.¡±

    ¡°Thanks for letting me know, but now I have the page and you don¡¯t,¡± he waved the wand once more and conceals her within layers of bubbles. ¡°Let¡¯s see you pop all of those.¡±

    Duke went back into the stairwell when he was instructed out of the school building, by staff members. ¡°Lucille let¡¯s go back the way we came its closer to my house,¡± the boy said with intentions of being nosy.

    ¡°Sure,¡± she watched Duke drop down the hole into the bookstore. ¡°Duke!¡± the hole closed.

    Duke arrived in the bookstore, ¡°Where am I?¡± A shelf came at him, and he froze, He is kicked out the way by Gloria, ¡°Hello Duke¡­¡± she had a grim look on her face.

    ¡°Uh, hi Gloria¡­¡±

    ¡°The shelves were moving around; you should get a step on it.¡± She offered him her hand; he took it and was met with a foot in his face.

    ¡°Gloria what are you doing, stop!¡±

    His words meant nothing; she kept stomping him.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry!¡±

    She ignored him, but his cries registered with Ashton, who saw the scene. ¡°Aw damn,¡± he rushed over to see to burn the spirit out of Gloria. He wrapped his arm around her waist and covered her mouth with his free hand. She coughed up the spirit, Ashton went to contain it in the jar but missed. He exhaled a stream of smoke, he got up, fire destroyed the sprit. ¡°Whatever the Princess can yell at me.¡±

    ¡°You again!¡± Gloria exclaimed.

    ¡°Yeah, me again, I¡¯ll fix it so you don¡¯t have to look at me anymore.¡± His eyes flared up orange and he kicked Gloria out of the library back into the stairwell. Ashton turned to Duke, ¡°You should probably go to.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, yes I¡¯m on it!¡± Duke collected himself getting up and is kicked in the rear by Ashton. He stumbled down the steps and landed next to Gloria¡¯s feet. The boy looked up and braced for impact scrunching up. ¡°What are you doing?¡± Gloria asked. Duke caught on to what is happening, collected himself, ¡°Oh nothing, where were we?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±

    Timothy crossed paths with Princess as he walked away with the page. Ms. Woo sent a shelf at him, the Princess deflected it. From the chunks of wood came the Princess for Ms. Woo. ¡°It¡¯s time to have your license revoked.¡± Her eyes turned red. Ms. Woo tried to resist the royalty but to no effect. Ms. Woo ran away from Princess, giving into a chase. The Princess grumbled over having to chase the bookseller again. She called out for Ashton, ¡°Stop the spirit collection, I need assistance.¡± Ashton tracked down Ms. Woo and trapped her in a ring of fire. Princess split the flames, ¡°Ms. Woo your license has been revoked.¡± She pulled out a stamp and pressed it on the soul of the woman. Ms. Woo flashed purple and a portion of her that allowed her to communicate with supernatural forces has been barred. ¡°We are confiscating your library as evidence of your magical misdoings.¡±

    ¡°I did nothing wrong.¡±

    ¡°You sold magical items to the unknowing and unauthorized. On top of that you defaced a summoning book. The repercussion could have been more severe if it was not a return page!¡±

    ¡°He deserved it.¡±

    ¡°He deserved not to get the book; the rules have to stay in place.¡±

    ¡°Summoning is prohibited outside of a sphere of¡­¡±

    Ms. Woo cut the authority off, ¡°Then why didn¡¯t you stop him while he was summoning the girl?¡±

    ¡°Okay, we¡¯re done here,¡± the Princess formed a hole underneath Ms. Woo. She got about halfway down when she is grabbed by Ashton. ¡°What are you doing?¡± the Princess asked.

    ¡°Making sure she gets home,¡± His eye turned red with malice.

    This prompted the Princess to ask, ¡°What happened to your face?¡±

    ¡°She put her heel through it.¡±

    ¡°Oh, but you can¡¯t burn the lady.¡±

    ¡°Fine, I won¡¯t,¡± he put his foot through her teeth; ¡°Chant some spells now,¡± dropping the bleeding woman down into a life of powerlessness.

    ¡°Ashton let¡¯s go, we will gut this place tomorrow,¡± the Princess told him. The two burst into flames, putting out all the fire with them.

    Whatever spirits managed to evade capture, rejoiced in their departure.

    Once Timothy retrieved the page and went to the same spot as Barry, the collage of colors happened once again. A trial of white followed him. The residual havoc from the library lingered in the stairwell. Barry saw a vision of Timothy punching him in the face. In the psychic¡¯s escape he is blinded by the smoke, in a complete darkness this visual sense has been cut off. But in a sudden sensory spike, a feeling of something hard hit him in the face and a warm stream followed down his face. ¡°Timothy?¡±

    ¡°Barry, you told the lady to rip out the page!¡±

    ¡°I didn¡¯t think it would turn into all of this. I knew you were going to rip her off, so I suggested a fair exchange.¡±

    ¡°The town might be wiped out because of that ¡®fair exchange¡¯!¡±

    ¡°The town might be wiped out because you didn¡¯t want to do your own art project!¡±

    The smoke got caught in the detector and the alarm went off. The sprinkler system cooled the two boys off. During the evacuation Gloria could be seen talking to Lucille.

    ¡°So, Lucille, who is this guide?¡±

    ¡°The guide?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, for the event this weekend, Duke mentioned it.¡±

    ¡°Oh, come to the Loving Hands Friendship House meeting today and you¡¯ll get more detail.¡±

    ¡°¡­ I would if I could, but one of my relatives has gone missing and we¡¯re looking for her.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s unfortunate¡­¡± then Lucille thought for a minute reflecting on the previous morning. ¡°Wait a minute is Timothy your cousin?¡±

    Gloria is taken aback for a moment, ¡°What brings this question up?¡±

    ¡°Oh nothing¡­¡±

    Gloria then connected the reason why she is asking Lucille questions to Lucille question.  ¡°Oh, we are related through a cousin, I don¡¯t know if I would call him a cousin though.¡±

    ¡°I see.¡±

    ¡°Lucille, if you see my cousin, can you please tell me, she looks like me just as a little kid.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll let you know.¡±

    ¡°Here take my number,¡± Gloria gave Lucille her number, ¡°And if you ever want to hang out just do something in town let me know.¡±

    Duke walked up behind Lucille, ¡°Duke, is that you?¡±

    ¡°Yeah¡­¡±

    ¡°Where did you go?¡±

    ¡°A crazy place, I hope I don¡¯t go back,¡± his eyes bulged out of his head, and he walked home in a stupor.

    ¡°Duke, wait up!¡± Lucille chased after him.

    ¡°Gloria are you ready to go home, we have to plan a way to now find out where Giselle is,¡± Timothy told her with Barry behind him.

 Act Five

    Act Five: The Hotline

    In the library spirits were talking amongst themselves. ¡°Good thing we didn¡¯t get captured.¡±

    ¡°I forgot what its like to be outside of a book.¡±

    ¡°You think we can make a deal with the Princess for freedom?¡±

    ¡°Ha, her let us free, we had a better chance with that crackpot bookseller.¡±

    The spirits laugh, then it stopped when they heard footsteps.

    Princess and Ashton arrive back at Ms. Woo¡¯s bookstore. ¡°Ashton continued containing the spirits, I¡¯m going to seal this place off,¡± Princess told Ashton. She produced spear, went from corner to corner of the location, dragging the spear along the ground. As she dragged the spear, a crackling noise is made, to be joined with a luminous purple light and gust of wind from the pressure of her magic. Spirits cried as they were being severed by the Princess¡¯s magic, from the light came smoke in shapes of deformed ghost. ¡°Ashton, come here and get behind me, some spirits are trying to escape.¡± Ashton flew over and captured the spirits that are being pushed out by Princess. She watched the jar get blackened rapidly, ¡°She sure has a collection.¡±

    Ashton commented; ¡°Do you think she¡­¡±

    ¡°Yeah,¡± Princess answered coldly. Her words brought a chill to the air. ¡°There must be a big opening over here somewhere.¡±

    A spirit in an attempt to escape phased through Ashton taking the fire out of him, into Timothy¡¯s town. Ashton fainted, the Princess shook him, ¡°Wake up.¡± She shook him more intensely, Wake up!¡± She looked at the rift formed in the library and said to herself, ¡°They¡¯re on their own.¡±

    Ashton rolled over to see the rift, sighed to realize he did not have any fire in him. ¡°What hit me?¡±

    ¡°Oh, you¡¯re up! A spirit got you; it went into that rift.¡±

    ¡°Isn¡¯t that the town where the boy is from, we should go. Plus, I need to get my fire back,¡± he said getting up.

    ¡°I¡¯ll guess we¡¯ll do this later.¡±

    Timothy woke up before his alarm went off. His eyes adjusted to the darkness; the mint blue numbers changed to the targeted number for the alarm. The dings formed into a beep from outside the room. It is the fire alarm and Ashton reminding him one more day. ¡°Hurry up time is running out, one more day.¡±

    The alert was registered, and he weaved the threat into the sound. ¡°Please tell me you pressed a button and didn¡¯t set anything on fire!¡±

    ¡°Look around, you¡¯ll find your answer.¡± Ashton¡¯ face faded into the shadow on the door.

    Timothy ran to his living room and did not see any fire but smelled something burning from outside his front door, ¡°You didn¡¯t, I had a day left!¡±

    ¡°Humph, you slept a bit too long.¡±

    Timothy opened the door to see Roscoe¡¯s house razed. His eyes stared into the fire, black encompassed the orange. Two orange splotches are left then they fade away with the black. Mint blue numbers change to the time of the alarm, and it rang. He hit the button, the noise stopped, and it went silent. His eyes took in the sunlight from the cracks in the blind. Opening the door, more sunlight crept into the house, he peered around his home looking for Ashton, using his phone¡¯s flashlight. Then he got that reminder that he has been waiting for, a text from Barry. ¡°I know we have to find the girl, give some good info,¡± he said to himself. A follow up text appeared on his phone, he read it aloud to himself, ¡°Ask Roscoe about¡­¡± he halted his reading to comment,¡± What the fuck?¡±

    After he put on his street clothes, Timothy knocked on Roscoe¡¯s door. A woman answered the door from behind, ¡°Who are you?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m Timothy and I was wondering if Roscoe was home, he was helping me with something.¡±

    ¡°Oh lord, the fiends done found our house.¡±

    ¡°Ma¡¯am I am not a fiend; I am just here to ask Roscoe a question.¡±

    ¡°Aren¡¯t you a bit young to be a homeboy.¡±

    ¡°Uh, I don¡¯t know what you are referring to, I just really have to ask him an important question about Ms. Ancer.¡±

    ¡°You can ask me the question,¡± the woman gave him attitude, opening the door, to reveal a fair skinned skinny lady with a neck tattoo of flowers and a corner lip piercing.

    Timothy sighed, the release of air from his mouth blows into the woman¡¯s face stronger than usual, flickering her lip ring. ¡°If you see Roscoe, tell him the kid across the street needs to talk to him.¡±

    ¡°Excuse me!¡± Her voice echoed.

    ¡°Uh oh, that doesn¡¯t sound good,¡± Timothy turned around and the woman had the same possessed look Gloria had in the bookstore on her face. He turned back around and ran away.

    The woman screeched, ¡°Ms. Ancer!¡±

    Roscoe peeked out his window to see his girlfriend going berserk. He rushed out to the front of the house, ¡°Babe, what¡¯s the matter?¡± He laid his hand on her shoulder.

    The girlfriend brushed his hand off her, ¡°Who is Ms. Ancer?¡±

    ¡°She¡¯s the psychic lady in town, did Tim come by here, I swore I heard little dudes voice.¡±

    ¡°What business do you two have?¡± the girlfriend closed in on him.

    Roscoe bent backward, then stepped back to put space in between both of them to answer, ¡°He is looking for his cousin Giselle.¡±

    The word Giselle triggered something in the woman, ¡°Giselle?¡± Her head tilted to the side, ¡°That¡¯s the girl the boy is supposed to bring home,¡± two voices from the woman said.

    ¡°Why do you sound like that?¡±

    If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

    The woman kicked Roscoe in the groin, ¡°Ms. Ancer!¡±

    When the woman departed and Roscoe gathered himself, Timothy came back. ¡°Are you okay? I saw her give you a good shot.¡±

    ¡°Were you just here?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, and your girlfriend was going crazy, she possessed.¡±

    ¡°I know she¡¯s crazy but possessed is a bit much.¡±

    ¡°No, she¡¯s possessed, I just finished being around some possessed people yesterday and they had the same look on their face. I can try to get her back to her sense, but you have to come with me to Ms. Ancer¡¯s hotline.¡±

    ¡°I got you, just give me one second, I have to get something, just incase something pops off,¡± Roscoe went back into his house.

    ¡°I¡¯ll meet you in the middle of the street,¡± Timothy rushed back into his house to get something.

    Both of them met in the middle of the street, ¡°What did you get?¡± Timothy asked.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about, you¡¯ll know, if we have to do some dirt.¡±

    The answer gave Timothy a bad impression, ¡°Oh boy¡­¡± he texted Gloria and Barry requesting them to meet up at Ms. Ancer¡¯s hotline.

    Gloria made a phone call to Lucille, ¡°Hey, I am going out to see some friends, ¡°If you want to come along, I will meet you at the park.¡±

    ¡°Sure!¡± Lucille answered eagerly.

    Both girls met at the park, ¡°Where are your friends?¡± Lucille asked.

    ¡°They are at Ms. Ancer¡¯s hotline; we should meet them there.¡±

    As the girls walked to the hotline, Gloria once again probed Lucille¡¯s brain for information, ¡°So what time is the event tomorrow?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s at noon. Did you want to come?¡± Lucille invited.

    Gloria took a deep breath, ¡°Yeah, I¡¯ll go.¡±

    ¡°So, what made you change your mind?¡±

    ¡°I want to know what makes my friend interested in the group¡­¡±

    ¡°Aww, you consider me a friend?¡±

    ¡°Yeah,¡± Gloria answered. ¡°So¡­¡± She stopped herself.

    ¡°So, what?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s nothing, you might have to do a lot of running today, I hope you are up for it.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll try my best.¡±

    The crazed woman went to Ms. Ancer¡¯s hotline in a frenzy. She banged on the front door, ¡°Open up!¡± Roscoe was trailing behind her trying to calm her down and behind him was Timothy, Gloria, Lucille, and Barry.

    ¡°Barry, it¡¯s your job, we have to stop her,¡± Gloria said.

    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m going to stay over here, I can¡¯t be around when the place goes up in flames.¡±

    ¡°What, why not?¡±

    ¡°They fired me¡­ and I don¡¯t want to be an arsonist candidate, so you guys let me know how it goes.¡± Barry turned away, ¡°If it is any consolation, I know you guys will not be inside the building when its...¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s helpful,¡± Timothy said sarcastically.

    ¡°Good luck, call me after you finish here.¡±

    The woman kicked the door open, ¡°Ms. Ancer, where are you?¡±

    ¡°Uh, are you guys going to deal with that crazy lady?¡± Lucille asked.

    ¡°Crazy lady! What do you mean? That¡¯s my girlfriend!¡± Roscoe replied.

    Lucille tensed up, ¡°Uh, um, sorry I didn¡¯t mean it like that¡­ It¡¯s just that¡­¡±

    Timothy cut her off from stumbling over her words, ¡°Maybe you girls should go with Barry; me and Roscoe can handle this.¡±

    Inside the hotline the girlfriend was greeted. ¡°Excuse me miss!¡± a worker called out. The girlfriend turned her head and tilted it. ¡°Can I help you?¡± the worker inquired.

    ¡°Ms. Ancer!¡± Heat came off her voice; then she registered that the worker was a man. ¡°You¡¯re not Ms. Ancer.¡± The r in the woman¡¯s name growled out her mouth.

    ¡°Uh¡­¡±

    ¡°Where is she!¡± the girlfriend looked around quickly.

    The worker slowly approached her, ¡°Miss, maybe I can help you. Are you here for a reading?¡±

    ¡°A reading?¡± Her neck turned ninety degrees; ¡°I¡¯m not some kid, you don¡¯t have to read to me!¡±

    ¡°Kid?¡± they both said.

    ¡°Miss, what are you talking about?¡± the worker asked.

    ¡°The lost girl. You do readings for kids right?¡±

    ¡°Uh no, we do readings for adults¡­¡± the worker said confused; ¡°I think you might be in the wrong place,¡± he tried to dismiss her.

    Ms. Ancer overheard the conversation somewhat, the only words that registered with her were kid and reading. As if a dollar sign went off in her mind. ¡°Are you here for a reading ma¡¯am?¡±

    ¡°Are you Ms. Ancer?¡± the girlfriend asked. The r growled out once again.

    The danger registered with the business owner, ¡°Uh, who are you?¡±

    ¡°I am looking for the girl.¡±

    ¡°We don¡¯t have any girls here¡­¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t you read to kids?¡±

    ¡°The readings we do are for adults.¡±

    ¡°Why are you reading to adults?¡±

    Ms. Ancer looked back at her employee and came back to the girlfriend, ¡°We are a psychic hotline, that¡¯s what we do¡­¡±

    ¡°You know where the girl is!¡±

    ¡°Ma¡¯am we do not know where any girl is.¡±

    ¡°Giselle, does that ring a bell!¡± A stream of flames projected from her mouth into the ceiling. Immediately the structure got weak the ceiling coughed up a pillar of wood.

    The wood put space in between the girlfriend and Ms. Ancer, paralyzing the staff. The fire alarm snapped them out of the trance, and they went to evacuate the premise. ¡°Everyone get out, we have a fire!¡± Ms. Ancer cried out.

    Along with the girlfriends temper the temperature rose by a tremendous amount. ¡°Ms. Ancer, Giselle, Ms. Ancer, Giselle, where are you!¡±

    Parts of the ceiling rained down on the girlfriend but cause her no harm, the flames keep her from damage.

    Ms. Ancer evacuated her workers. The phones started to spark from the heat produced from the girlfriend, the items slowly rang before the explosion. ¡°You can¡¯t go in there!¡± Ms. Ancer yelled out to Timothy and Roscoe.

    ¡°We have to stop that lady,¡± Timothy replied.

    The girlfriend roared out flames cracking the windows in the building. ¡°I¡¯m calling the fire department, you¡¯ll die if you stay in here,¡± the owner said.

    ¡°I¡¯ll take that risk.¡±

    The males charged into business.

    Somewhere out in the streets, the trio that abandoned the hotline were conversing, ¡°So how did you get fired?¡± Gloria asked.

    ¡°I helped Timothy for free.¡±

    ¡°Really, they fired you for being helpful. They didn¡¯t even give you a warning.¡±

    ¡°Nope it just happened. Ms. Ancer loves her money.

    ¡°You know that genuine action would appeal to us in the Loving Hands Friendship House,¡± Lucille added.

    ¡°I¡¯ll pass on that offer. We should watch from a high place.¡± Barry led the girls to a steep hill in the town. After a strenuous climb up the incline Barry took a deep breathe and exhaled, ¡°This should be a good place to watch¡­¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t see any smoke.¡± Lucille commented.

    ¡°That¡¯s good.¡± Gloria and Barry both replied.

    ¡°Are you sure we¡¯re high enough?¡±

    Barry palmed his face, ¡°Yes, I¡¯m sure we¡¯re high enough.¡±

    Gloria on the other hand in her concern gave Lucille¡¯s comment some thought, ¡°Maybe we aren¡¯t high enough.¡±

    ¡°What, do you want to go onto a roof of a building and watch?¡± Barry asked. He gave a second for a reply and continued, ¡°You know maybe the place is not on fire.¡±

    ¡°Yet,¡± Gloria added.

    ¡°Maybe the vision changed because or action cha, ch¡­an¡­ged¡­¡± his face felt fuzzy. ¡°Because the events I see are ba¡­¡± he stopped short, he had a vision of a phone call.

    ¡°Guys, I see some smoke now,¡± announced Lucille.

    ¡°And it starts,¡± both Barry and Gloria said.

    Barry got a call from Ms. Ancer, as soon as he picked it up, he could hear yelling on the other side, ¡°I know you did this!¡±

    ¡°No, I didn¡¯t, it¡¯s probably an angry customer.¡±

    ¡°You did this!¡±

    ¡°Oh boy, get off my line you bitch!¡±

    ¡°Why did you want today off today?¡±

    ¡°Because I was going to a party.¡±

    ¡°Celebrating the burning of the hotline?¡±

    ¡°No, the burning of a witch!¡± he hung up.

    ¡°Was that your boss?¡± Gloria inquired.

    ¡°What do you think.¡±

    The plumes of smoke had converted over into a blaze.

    ¡°The fire is huge now; we have to go back!¡± Gloria panicked.

    ¡°Go back and do what? They make it out in my vision.¡±

    ¡°Barry, I need to see that they are okay, from my vision.¡±

    ¡°I just can¡¯t go back.¡± Gloria huffed. ¡°But I will help you when it¡¯s time for the other thing for sure, I don¡¯t have any connections or hang ups on that.¡± Gloria grunted and slapped him; ¡°I know I deserve that but call me when this is all over.¡±

    Gloria sped up with Lucille trailing behind her.

    On his way to the Loving Hands Friendship House Duke saw the hotline on fire. The sight of the flames made him shudder in familiarity. ¡°Oh boy.¡± Ashton popped up behind him, ¡°What¡¯s up with the fire?¡± Duke jumped hearing the voice and ricocheted of the ground seeing the apparition. ¡°Fire guy!¡± Ashton approached him, he backed up. ¡°What¡¯s up with the fire?¡± he repeated.

    ¡°That¡¯s not you?¡±

    ¡°No but it seems familiar.¡±

    ¡°I, I, I, guess you have to go inside to find out¡­¡±

    Ashton laughed ¡°You¡¯re funny, I will be going inside.¡± His face became determined, and his fiery passion was not absent like his fire

    ¡°Good.¡± Duke watched him enter the inferno and then sprinted full force in the direction of the Loving Hands Friendship House.

 Act Five II

    A bit earlier, the girlfriend saw Roscoe and Timothy and retreated into the hotline. The smoke masked her. ¡°Is she always this crazy?¡± Timothy asked. Roscoe cut his eyes at him. ¡°Okay, that was a stupid question,¡± the youth redacted his question. Paint started to bubble and pop on the two. ¡°She is melting this place¡­¡±

    As if the ventilation system was coming on, rattling is heard through the vents. Heat exhausted from above them temporarily then the vent fell in between them. They parted the area and it rained down fire. ¡°Whoa!¡± they both exclaimed.

    ¡°How¡¯d she get in the vents?¡± Timothy asked.

    She poked her head out and went back in. The rattling continued. ¡°Follow that sound!¡± Roscoe yelled out. They tracked the thumps to a wall. Roscoe struck the knob to burn his hand, ¡°Aw damn! She has this place overheating!¡± The structure crunched and the wall collapsed. ¡°That¡¯s a blessing in disguise.¡± The fallen wall exposed a red environment, luminous in effect. The girlfriend hissed at them.

    ¡°Whatever spirit possessed her is going crazy right now,¡± Timothy commented.

    ¡°Should we go to a priest or something?¡±

    ¡°¡­if we¡¯re lucky enough the exorcist will come to us¡­¡± For a moment he was hoping to see the Princess and Ashton. ¡°No bailout this time¡­¡± Timothy commented to himself. ¡°Let¡¯s continue forward.¡±

    ¡°Right let¡¯s continue forward, no demon is taking my girl!¡± Roscoe charged into the hole.

    ¡°Right¡­¡± Timothy sighed.

    ¡°Roscoe!¡± the girlfriend¡¯s cry echoed.

    A gust of hot air slowed him down, ¡°Hun!¡± Roscoe called out.

    ¡°That¡¯s not who you think it is,¡± yelled out Timothy.

    ¡°She¡¯s in there somewhere!¡±

    The girlfriend laughed with the flames exhausting from her mouth.

    Roscoe stood off with his girlfriend, ¡°Babe don¡¯t make me hurt you,¡± he drew his gun.

    Flames fanned off her hands, ¡°Shoot me you bastard!¡±

    ¡°Hey man, don¡¯t you think that¡¯s a bit extreme?¡±

    ¡°Nothing new¡­¡±

    ¡°What?¡± Part of the wall shattered, releasing a thick plume of smoke. All their senses were cut off beside their hearing. A series of coughs took place.

    ¡°Roscoe¡­ are you going to shoot me?¡± the woman¡¯s voice echoed.

    ¡°¡­ I will if I have to¡­¡±

    ¡°Do it then, all you do is a lot of talk,¡± she crept up on him. Smoke masked her.

    When the smoke had a break in it the girlfriend punched at Roscoe but missed. With the weak structure and her increased strength, a hole was punched in the wall and then it crumbled some more. Roscoe went to grab her, but he succumbed to the heat and smoke. The girlfriend fled through the hole, producing a blue gap. Timothy saw the smoke ventilate out of the girlfriend¡¯s hole; he ran towards to it escape but tripped over Roscoe. ¡°Oh damn, wake up, wake up,¡± he shook him to no avail; he proceeded dragged him through the hole the girlfriend created. ¡°He looks burnt, I have to find something to dampen him up.¡± A lightbulb goes off, ¡°Oh, yeah, the bubble wand from yesterday. Hopefully, there is enough moisture in this to help him.¡± Timothy wrapped him in a bubble. Something popped back up, in the corner of Timothy¡¯s eye. He turned too her, ¡°Oh shit!¡±

    ¡°What are you doing, boy who knocks on my door at weird hours of the night?¡±

    ¡°Saving your boyfriend. You¡­¡± He ducked from a stream of fire. ¡°Oh shit, she still has fire in her.¡± He rebounded back up to be met with another stream of fire, he attempted to repel the fire with a bubble, but instead it got contained. ¡°Ok lady, its time for you to¡­¡± He avoided another burst of flames.

    ¡°All that talk,¡± the girlfriend laughed. ¡°I didn¡¯t take you for being afraid of fire, isn¡¯t that what you¡­¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not a user you stupid bi¡­¡± He jumped back away from a fireball she spat up. He swung the wand aggressively to produce a bubble that did not gain any distance. ¡°What the fuck¡­¡± he rolled his eyes sighing.

    The girlfriend spat at the bubble, and it turned to steam on impact. She growled at him, they circled each other, her lips puckered and his arm with the wand behind him, lined up with his hip. She released a fireball; he countered by swinging his arm; the orbs clashed creating a cloud. When the cloud dissipates, they are both out of each other¡¯s vision. ¡°Crap where did she go?¡± he whispered to himself.

    Timothy checked his surroundings waving the wand, ready to produce a bubble. The film of liquid expanded as he moved around. He released one bubble and ran away from it. Then another bubble was created, and he ran from both. Eventually he made a line of bubbles, a stream of flames popped all the bubbles creating a thick vapor. Timothy now knew what direction the girlfriend was in, and he contained the vapor in bubbles near the source of the stream. She is now visible to him, and he is still concealed. A bubble appeared in front of the cloud. The girlfriend screamed a fierce wave of fire that was met with a volley of bubbles that neutralized the fire. The cloud grew bigger and with that so did Timothy¡¯s range on her once she was fully consumed in the cloud, she found herself in a bubble. ¡°Got you!¡± he celebrated with the wand held high and the girlfriend contained, the princess came from behind and took the wand from him. ¡°Enough magic for you.¡±

    ¡°I can only hope, but the magic keeps finding me.¡±

    ¡°Mor¡­ oh, ho, ho, you¡¯re doing that humor thing. I¡¯m catching on.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re turning into a mortal.¡±

    The Princess slapped him, ¡°Don¡¯t ever insult me like that again!¡±

    Timothy grabbed his face and a little bit of blood dribbled out from his mouth. ¡°Damn, it was a joke, I thought you were getting a hang of the humor thing.¡±

    The Princess huffed.

    Gloria and Lucille arrived back at the hotline. ¡°Timothy!¡± Gloria cried out.

    ¡°Gloria!¡± the two hugged. ¡°I¡¯m sorry I keep dragging you into this mess, I really want you to know how much I appreciate you sticking with me through this whole thing.¡±

    ¡°Of course, that¡¯s what friends are for right? I¡¯m so happy your okay¡­ Plus you saved me from¡­¡±

    ¡°Saved you from¡­¡±

    The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

    ¡°Hush, you know what you saved me from, no need to mention it again.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re talking about Duke, aren¡¯t you? And that little girl?¡± interjected Lucille.

    ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°You didn¡¯t want to hang out with me, you just wanted to know about the event because you think the Loving Hands Friendship House kidnapped that girl! I should have known you were ingenuine!¡± Lucille sobbed, running off.

    ¡°Lucille, it¡¯s not like that!¡± Gloria cried out in vain.

    ¡°Aw well, we have a girl to save, a town to save,¡± Timothy said breaking Gloria away from the moment. ¡°Gloria, once we get the girl, you can reconcile with Lucille, but it¡¯s important we don¡¯t all burn up.¡±

    Ashton went inside the burning building. He looked around to see the charred objects of the hotline. The cords of the phones had coiled tightly into smoldered ball with the bottom of the exploded phones remaining. ¡°That did sure did a lot of damage in here,¡± he commented. He walked around the pile of debris, stopped to check it for anyone; nothing was underneath it. Continuing on he saw the hole that the girlfriend had produced, ¡°I hope it didn¡¯t get to far¡­¡± he said to himself as he walked out the hole he saw the boyfriend. Ashton examined Roscoe¡¯s body burn free, just red, ¡°He must have succumbed to the smoke.¡± He fanned his face a bit and then heard some coughing. Roscoe looked up to see the silhouette fade away.

    Ashton who had been exploring the ruins showed up behind the princess to see the girlfriend floating in a bubble. The girlfriend was screaming inaudible things creating steam. ¡°There¡¯s my fire,¡± he said.

    ¡°Let¡¯s get it back,¡± the princess said. She started a chant, her eyes rolled back in her head and her index fingers and thumbs connected. ¡°Esca retra, esca retra, esca retra, esca retra!¡± The bubble turned black, as the essence left the girlfriend¡¯s mouth. As the essence filled up the bubble, Ashton eyes widen, ¡°About time I get to be normal again.¡±

    ¡°So, to show gratitude you¡¯ll spare the town?¡±

    ¡°No, what is wrong with you? Get the girl!¡± barked the princess. She was anticipating something and held the wand under the girlfriend.

    The bubble lightens up into a white smoke that became dyed orange, it popped, and the vapors are inhaled by Ashton, recharging him as indicated by his red eyes. The girlfriend fell into another film of bubbles, and one kept her up above the ground. The spirit that was possessing the girlfriend evacuated from the woman. What should have made him sulk but a devilish look on his face, ¡°Back on duty?¡± he asked.

    ¡°Yes,¡± the princess answered.

    ¡°I¡¯ll be honest with you; I¡¯m destroying that spirit.¡±

    ¡°As you should; take all that frustration out on that spirit that stole your flame,¡± Timothy added.

    ¡°Ashton go get the spirit; mortal get the girl!¡± Ashton departed in pursuit of the spirit. Ashton pursued the spirit, hands full of fire. Orange streaks filled the air as he trailed the wind; people took photos as he passed by. He flailed his arms whipping the spirit with a trail of heat. In contact it propelled the spirit forward. ¡°Yowch!¡± the spirit cried out. The spirit turned the corner and as Ashton wrapped around the turn charring the corner of the building. They cross over into the parking lot. ¡°Open space now!¡± Ashton threw a fireball past the apparition hitting a car blowing it up. The explosion was enough to startle the spirit from proceeding forward. ¡°Oh no,¡± it cried out.

    ¡°Oh yes!¡±

    But as the explosion was enough to stop advancement forward, the pressure of Ashton in the rear was enough to not retreat. The spirit went to the side, Ashton cut diagonally, igniting another car and it had the same effect, until it was cornered. ¡°No where to go now,¡± Ashton said. He placed himself in a crouching position, hands ignited, ¡°Come this way again,¡± he taunted. The spirit went forward and snapped upward. In the nick of time a person opened a window for fresh air. It fled through the window. Right after, Ashton barged in the window trampling over the person, tossed a fireball at the cracked door singeing it but the spirit escaped through the crack. The forward motion of the fireball had pushed the door shit melting the hinges. Ashton kicked the door down. ¡°Hey, come back!¡± the person yelled out to be ignored. Out in the hallway all the doors were closed. The wind chime sounded, and Ashton approached it, ¡°Seems like you¡¯re stuck,¡± Ashton taunted. ¡°I¡¯m enjoying the chase, I¡¯ll let you have a head start.¡± Ashton opened the door. Once outside the spirit tried to possess Duke and was cooked by a fireball. ¡°Ha got you, you motherfucker.¡± The spirit turned into smoke in front of Duke¡¯s face. He got jumpy and fled, screaming, ¡°Ah monster!¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong with him?¡±

    Duke ran by the scene at Ms. Ancer¡¯s hotline and saw the Princess.

    Roscoe climbed over the rubble to get to the scene. The bubble popped and the girlfriend woke up with Roscoe above her. ¡°Roscoe?¡±

    ¡°Babe?¡±

    ¡°Where am I? And why am I wet?¡±

    ¡°Ms. Ancer¡¯s hotline.¡±

    The girlfriend sat up and looked around, ¡°I don¡¯t see anything, except for a lot of burnt stuff.¡±

    ¡°Well¡­ how do I explain this¡­¡±

    ¡°What did you do?¡±

    ¡°I didn¡¯t do anything.¡±

    ¡°He didn¡¯t do anything,¡± Timothy joined in

    ¡°You¡¯re that boy who keeps knocking on my door,¡± she retorted.

    ¡°¡­ for a good reason¡­¡±

    ¡°What reason?¡±

    ¡°He saved you!¡± Roscoe blurted out.

    ¡°What are you talking about?¡±

    ¡°So, doorknocker here again,¡± Timothy reintroduced himself; ¡°So what happened in the hotline was that you were possessed by a spirit. And you started shooting flames.¡±

    ¡°Get the fuck out of here!¡± the girlfriend laughed. ¡°Shooting flames,¡± she grabbed her throat.

    Roscoe and Timothy nodded their heads, ¡°It¡¯s true,¡± they said.

    ¡°That¡¯s why your throat hurts, the fire coming out of it,¡± Timothy continued.

    ¡°I have allergies. Where did this spirit come from?¡±

    ¡°She¡¯s going to be skeptical the whole time?¡±

    ¡°Yup,¡± Roscoe answered.

    ¡°Roscoe, shut the hell up!¡± the girlfriend yelled.

    ¡°Well, the spirit came from a bookstore, most likely¡­¡± Timothy answered.

    ¡°A bookstore? Is it haunted?¡±

    ¡°Hmm, that¡¯s a good question.¡±

    ¡°Humor me kid, spirits come from a liquor store, you see what I did there.¡±

    ¡°I was being serious. I seen a person possessed from a spirit in a bookstore.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s because they let the crazies in there. Roscoe, what did I tell your stupid ass about serving at our house.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t serve at home,¡± Roscoe replied.

    ¡°I¡¯m not a fiend,¡± commented Timothy.

    ¡°Mortal! Do you take possession lightly?¡± the Princess interjected herself.

    ¡°Who is this bitch?¡± the girlfriend inquired.

    The princess gasped, ¡°Are you still possessed?¡± The males laughed. ¡°What¡¯s so funny? You want to be set on fire?¡± The princess continued.

    Timothy straightened up, ¡°No need for all of that. We should be getting on our way.¡±

    Roscoe grabbed, Timothy¡¯s shoulder, ¡°Tim, man I can¡¯t thank you enough.¡±

    ¡°If you want to show your thanks, come with us to the Loving Hands friendship House, we have a girl to rescue.¡±

    ¡°Since I owe you, I¡¯ll come with you. What will I be dealing with?¡±

    ¡°Crazy people,¡± answered Timothy.

    ¡°As long as there aren¡¯t any demons, I can handle it.¡±

    ¡°Cool. Let¡¯s head to the Happy Hands Friendship House.¡±

    ¡°I will take you.¡±

    ¡°Wait! What about me?¡± the girlfriend exclaimed.

    ¡°Oh man, yeah, I just can¡¯t leave my girlfriend here.¡±

    ¡°Right¡­ she can¡­¡± Timothy tried to say.

    The Princess inserted herself in once again, ¡°She can go home and rest unless she burned her house down too.¡±

    ¡°Who is this lady?¡± the girlfriend asked impatiently.

    ¡°I am no one who needs to answer to you.¡±

    The girlfriend went to press up on the Princess, but Gloria got in the middle, ¡°You know with this fire, you think the fire department would be here,¡± she said.

    ¡°The red truck people with the lights and loud noise, I put them in a pocket, they were in the way.¡±

    ¡°What?¡± the four humans said.

    ¡°It¡¯s hard to walk with obstructions and even harder to burn something down if there are people putting water on it.¡±

    ¡°We get the hint. Can you just bring them back?¡± Tim

    ¡°After I the girl returns home.¡±

    A ping went off on Timothy¡¯s and Gloria¡¯s phones, Gloria looked at the notification to see a video of Ashton chasing nothing. ¡°Ma¡¯am, are you seeing this?¡± Gloria put the phone to the Princess face.

    ¡°What am I looking at?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s your friend running around with fire we don¡¯t want to have an accident. Could you just¡­¡±

    The Princess slapped the phone out her hand.

    ¡°¡­ talk to him¡­¡± Gloria continued.

    ¡°I don¡¯t take request from mortals.¡±

    Gloria picked up her phone, ¡°The town will be safe if Giselle goes back home, right?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    ¡°Can the firefighters¡­¡±

    ¡°No firefighters!¡±

    ¡°We are going now!¡± Timothy cut off, ¡°Lets hurry to that crazy place.¡±

 Act Six

    Act Six: Loving Hands Friendship House

    The four got to the location of the Happy Hands Friendship House. It had the appearance of a typical church. ¡°So, this is where they are holding her?¡± Timothy asked Barry.

    ¡°Yes, it is.¡±

    ¡°Do you know what room she¡¯s in? I want to be in and out.¡±

    ¡°Are you afraid of being converted?¡± Barry joked.

    ¡°No, there¡¯s a demon after me¡­¡± Timothy looked around.

    ¡°A monster after you?¡± You¡¯ve been hanging out with Duke and the Knight tales?¡±

    ¡°No there¡¯s a monster after us, you know him¡± Gloria chimed in.

    ¡°Whoa, wait we ain¡¯t talk about any demons,¡± inserted Roscoe.

    ¡°I thought you were psychic¡­ that must mean he¡¯s not coming.¡±

    ¡°One day left and I burn this whole shit down!¡± a voice from behind said.

    They turned around to see Ashton. ¡°Who is this motherfucka?¡± Roscoe asked.

    ¡°Ashton,¡± answered Barry.

    ¡°I thought you didn¡¯t know about the demon. Timothy said.

    ¡®I don¡¯t. He doesn¡¯t look like a demon, but I seen this arsonist in a vision.¡±

    ¡°She needs to be home by tonight or we¡¯re having a townwide barbeque.¡± Ashton stated.

    ¡°Townwide barbeque, fuck out of here!¡± Roscoe reached for his waist.

    ¡°Wait!¡± Barry recalling his vision, ¡°You¡¯re going to die!¡±

    Unregistered, Roscoe pulled his firearm out, ¡°Aye, buddy this is going to stop!¡±

    ¡°Are you going to shoot me?¡± Ashton stared at the pistol, ¡°Well.¡±

    ¡°Best believe!¡± Roscoe fired on the apparition. The black steel turned red; the nose of the pistol sneezed out a bullet. The weapon dropped.

    Ashton was unfazed by the missed shot, looking at the ground he asked him, ¡°Do you have another one in you?¡± The red left the weapon, Roscoe scooped it up and let off another shot, but the bullet did not make it out of the barrel. The combustion from the weapon set Roscoe a blaze, instead of projecting the bullet. Roscoe¡¯s body had melted instantaneously, leaving charred bones.

    ¡°Oh, my goodness, Roscoe¡­¡± Gloria sobbed.

    Ashton scattered the ashes with his foot kicking the firearm over to the youth.

    Timothy picked up the gun. ¡°Are you going to try to shoot me too?¡± Ashton asked.

    ¡°No, I¡¯m going to go in and save the girl. If you care about her, you will come in too.¡±

    ¡°Nice try in trying to guilt me. Bring the kid back or I¡¯m going to do stuff your friend experienced on a grand scale.¡±

    ¡°Why don¡¯t you practice inside?¡±

    ¡°The girl is inside, your time is running, hurry up!¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s go guys.¡± They walk through the doors; internally the building matched the external.

    Inside they are greeted by a woman at the entrance with a smile plastered ear to ear. ¡°Welcome to the Happy Hands Friendship House. Please go down the steps to the transmutation room.¡±

    ¡°Transmutation room¡­¡± Gloria said to herself.

    ¡°We are going to the other side today. Our special guest will guide us.¡±

    ¡°I must have missed that day who is our special guest?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s a surprise, but sister Lucille found her.¡±

    ¡°Is Mother here?¡± Timothy asked.

    ¡°Yes, she is preparing the girl. Please go down to the transmutation room.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll show you guys the way,¡± Barry said taking the lead.

    While stepping downstairs Timothy integrated Barry, ¡°How do you know where the room is?¡±

    ¡°Psychic powers remember.¡±

    ¡°But we don¡¯t want to go to the transmutation room,¡± Gloria added.

    ¡°I¡¯m not going to take you there; however, I can¡¯t take you to where Giselle is at because we never find her in a room.¡±

    ¡°So, we can in losing?¡±

    ¡°No, I don¡¯t know if we succeed or not, just that we don¡¯t find her in a room. We can change fate however.¡±

    ¡°How so?¡±

    ¡°By using what we know. The last door to the right at the end of the hallway is the transmutation room and that¡¯s where we don¡¯t need to be.¡±

    ¡°Do you know how the place looks that we find her in? Or who does it?¡±

    ¡°From what I saw, we all saw her together in a room with white walls, but again we can change that.¡±

    ¡°You just said she wouldn¡¯t be in the room,¡± Timothy stated.

    Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.

    ¡°Yeah, but once I gave you the information of the transmutation room the vision changed. I say we split up to cover more space.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know about that with these loonies, Gloria worried.

    ¡°I don¡¯t think she would feel safe on her own,¡± Timothy told Barry.

    ¡°Then you go with her,¡± Barry responded. ¡°Even though it would be quicker independently.¡±

    ¡°You take her, I¡¯ll be fine by myself,¡± Timothy said patting his hip.

    ¡°Because you have a gun? Do you even know how to shoot?¡±

    ¡°That doesn¡¯t matter, it¡¯ll be enough to scare them.¡±

    ¡°Fine, we¡¯ll take the left side since there¡¯s more doors.¡±

    ¡°Fine, be safe and remember to stay in contact.¡±

    They took their first doors.

    Gloria and Barry opened their door, and they are in the kitchen. They are faced with giant punch bowls filled with purple liquid. ¡°Are you two here to help with the drinks?¡± the chef asked.

    ¡°Yeah¡­¡± they both replied.

    ¡°Good, take those angel flakes,¡± the chef said pointing to a white canister.

    Gloria grabbed the container, ¡°I have a question, where¡¯s our guide?¡±

    ¡°You mean the girl?¡±

    ¡°Yeah¡­¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s a surprise.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯ve met her before?¡±

    ¡°You ask a lot of questions. Can you pour those flakes in the bowl?¡±

    Gloria twists the top and got a whiff of some chemicals, ¡°Uh do you know that this is cl¡­¡±

    ¡°How much time do we have left until the big event?¡± Barry asked.

    ¡°An hour.¡± The chef squinted, ¡°You look familiar, you¡¯re that con artist on T.V!¡±

    ¡°Con artist?¡± Barry was taken aback.

    ¡°Yeah, the ¡®psychic.¡¯ There¡¯s no way you¡¯re apart of this group.¡±

    ¡°I converted him,¡± Gloria chimed in.

    ¡°Who are you?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m a member.¡±

    ¡°I need a name.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m Giselle and I brought in Barry over here.¡±

    ¡°You think you¡¯re funny naming yourself after the girl on the top floor,¡± after the words left the chef¡¯s mouth, he realized his error; ¡°Wait a minute!¡±

    Barry snatched the container from Gloria¡¯s hands and powdered the chef¡¯s eyes. The burning causes the man to cry. The two fled the kitchen, ¡°So that¡¯s not the place,¡± Gloria said; ¡°I wonder how Timothy is doing?¡± Texting him for an update and giving him one of her own.

    Concurrently at the time of the kitchen fiasco, Timothy opened his door, it¡¯s a utility closet with Duke in it. Not seeing the objective, he closed the door. Ashton arrived behind Timothy, ¡°You know hiding in the closet isn¡¯t going to help you,¡± he said looking past him at the door.

    Timothy knocked on the door, ¡°Duke he¡¯s talking to you.¡± No reply, ¡°Nothing,¡± he turned around to tell Ashton who was no longer there.

    He heard voices across the hall, walked the length of the corridor and there were no doors left besides a stairwell. He pushed the bar, going through slowly closing the door behind him minimizing the sound. Across the hall was the cafeteria, Lucille saw Timothy go upstairs and excused herself.

    Midway through the stairwell, Timothy heard a voice, ¡°Tim!¡± He looked down to see Lucille. ¡°What are you doing here?¡± she continued.

    ¡°I¡¯m here for the event.¡±

    ¡°Are you¡­ every time I talk about this place you made fun of me.¡±

    ¡°It was because I didn¡¯t want to be made fun of. But your words hit me, that¡¯s why I¡¯m here tonight.¡±

    ¡°Come to the cafeteria.¡±

    ¡°But I want to get familiar with the place.¡±

    ¡°No need soon we will be on a different plane.¡±

    ¡°I would like this to be the final thing I do here.¡±

    ¡°Fine, I¡¯ll give you a quick tour before the big event.¡±

    ¡°Can we start upstairs, I already been downstairs.¡±

    ¡°Sure,¡± Lucille caught up to him.

    ¡°Why did you join the Happy Hands Friendship House?¡±

    ¡°I was lonely, looking for someone to talk to.¡±

    ¡°Do you really not have friends at school?¡±

    ¡°Not before the Happy Hands Friendship House, I even contemplated suicide, but those days are behind me.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s good that you got past that.¡±

    They got to the top of the stairwell; Lucille opened the door for Timothy. ¡°Thanks.¡±

    The room closest to the stairwell was a study room, ¡°Here¡¯s the study where we learn all of the important lessons,¡± Lucille told him. Through the glass door he could see children, ¡°Are the kids going to the big event?¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    ¡°And the parents are allowing this?¡±

    ¡°Yes, the Happy Hands Friendship House is family friendly, they¡¯re in the cafeteria.¡±

    ¡°In hopes that Giselle is in the room, Timothy asks, ¡°Can I say hello?¡±

    ¡°Sure,¡± Lucille opened the door, ¡°Hello kids, we have someone who wants to say hi.¡±

    ¡°Lucille!¡± the children exclaimed full of life.

    ¡°This is Timothy.¡±

    ¡°Hi, Timothy!¡±

    ¡°Hello kids,¡± he scanned the room, no Giselle but the sitter was there; they make eye contact with each other.

    The two leave, ¡°Wow I have to say the kids love you,¡± Timothy complimented.

    ¡°They¡¯re a good bunch,¡± Lucille laughed.

    Timothy got a text message with an update from Gloria, what he read dropped his heart. He gave them an update. ¡°Lucille, you said you were passing your suicide issue.¡±

    ¡°Yes¡­¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re not homicidal are you¡­ I¡¯m joking but life is a great thing and shouldn¡¯t be wasted you know.¡±

    ¡°What are you getting at?¡±

    Barry and Gloria took the stairwell to the very top. ¡°Let¡¯s start at the far end and work back,¡± suggested Barry. Gloria nodded in approval and followed Barry¡¯s lead. They got to the door at the end of the hall, they are faced with two double doors.

    ¡°What¡¯s back there?¡± Gloria asked.

    ¡°Hopefully the girl,¡± Barry slowly pushed the door, a loud creak is made, ¡°They need to oil these doors.¡±

    ¡°Can I help you?¡± a male voice behind the door asked.

    Barry let¡¯s the door go. In the instant they turned from the door they were called out, ¡°Hey you two, what are you doing?¡±

    ¡°Barry what do we do? Do you have a vision?¡±

    ¡°Uh, we talk our way through this.¡±

    They turned around to see a towering burly man asking them, ¡°What are you two doing?¡±

    ¡°We were looking for¡­ the study¡­¡± Barry¡¯s eye twitched.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong with you?¡±

    ¡°Hmm¡­¡±

    ¡°Wait a minute, you¡¯re that conartist, that¡¯s on T.V. What are you doing here?¡±

    ¡°Looking for the study.¡±

    ¡°Her office is right this way¡­¡± Duke¡¯s voice echoed through the hallway.

    ¡°Barry,¡± Gloria whispered.

    ¡°It sounds like Duke.¡±

    ¡°I know that.¡±

    Duke arrived in the hallway with Ashton, ¡°Oh hey guys.¡±

    ¡°Why does he look so happy to see us?¡±

    ¡°He must think we are going to save him from the arsonist.¡±

    ¡°Arsonist?¡± the man asked.

    Barry got a vision, ¡°Crap, we are in a bad spot.¡± He answered the man, ¡°Yeah that guy over there is an arsonist, we just saw him light some stuff on fire, but we don¡¯t know him. Is he a member?¡±

    ¡°A member of what?¡±

    ¡°The Happy Hands Friendship House.¡±

    ¡°No and you¡¯re not either.¡±

    ¡°Yes, we are.¡±

    ¡°Then why don¡¯t you know where the study is?¡±

    Gloria and Barry backed away from the man ¡°We know the study isn¡¯t here,¡± Barry answered.

    ¡°You two stay right there.¡± The man put his attention on Ashton and Duke. ¡°Who are you?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m Duke, a member of the house!¡±

    ¡°Why aren''t you getting ready for the event!¡± The man¡¯s face heated up.

    ¡°The event that this mother lady is overseeing?¡± Ashton interjected.

    ¡°Who are you? Mind your business!¡± the man turned a tomato red reaching in his pocket.

    ¡°Aw crap, we have to run towards Duke now!¡± panicked Barry grabbing Gloria¡¯s hand and hurrying to the other side of the hall.

    ¡°I thought I told you two to stay put!¡± the man produced a gun. ¡°I¡¯m getting rid of all of you!¡±

    Ashton registered the threat and took it upon himself to neutralize the problem. As soon as the man pulled the trigger the ignition jumped out the hammer and burned the man¡¯s eye. ¡°Fa!¡± the man screamed out. Barry and Gloria watched the damage unfold, then they ran off. Asthon kept walking towards the study, forgot about Duke. The man aimed the gun once more except its further from his face and his hand shaking.

    ¡°Are you okay, you seem nervous,¡± taunted Ashton. ¡°Kid,¡± he looked back and saw that Duke was gone, ¡°Oh¡­ he ran away.¡± He turned his attention back to the man, ¡°Well I guess you¡¯re going to show me where Mother is.¡± He watched the man pull the trigger to no avail. ¡°I guess you won¡¯t be helping me.¡± Ashton approached the man, his target does not back down. The pressed trigger kept squeaking. ¡°Get out of my way,¡± Ashton pushed the man aside.

    Once Ashton got to the door, the man pushed him through it. The two tussles on the ground, the man tried to piston whip him, but Ashton caught the barrel in his hand and heated it up, singeing the man¡¯s hand. ¡°What the fuck!¡± the man cried out letting go of the gun. Ashton threw it away and with the same hand grabbed the man¡¯s head, charring his face. Left alone the apparition goes into the room to be disappointed, no one was inside, ¡°Great, I did all of that for nothing¡­¡±

    The babysitter made a call to Mother, ¡°Mother, the boy who dropped the guide off has made his way into the event.¡±

    ¡°Where is he at?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know I saw him in the room with the children, but he left.¡±

    ¡°Then it¡¯s time to start the event.¡±

 Act Six II

    Making his escape from Ashton, Duke bumped into Lucille showing Timothy around. Lucille saw that he was out of breath and asked, ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡±

    Duke swallowed some spit and took a few deep breaths, ¡°That¡­ fire man¡­¡±

    A ding went off, ¡°Can all members please go to the auditorium, we will be starting the event shortly.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s starting guys let¡¯s go,¡± Lucille said.

    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯ll meet you guys, I¡¯m going to go to the bathroom,¡± Timothy told them leaving. He ran back, ¡°Wait guys I have to tell you life is worth living.¡±

    ¡°O¡­kay¡­¡± they both said looking at each other.

    ¡°Live! Now I¡¯m going to find this bathroom,¡± Timothy ran off.

    Barry¡¯s eye twitched, he cracked a door open ¡°Stay by the door, we¡¯re going to need to use it.¡± he told Gloria.

    The two crossed paths with Mother and Giselle, along with Mother¡¯s guards; Mother¡¯s suspicion got the best of her, ¡°Who are you?¡± Those with Mother had put their eyes on the two. ¡°We¡¯re members, I know there¡¯s so many of us, that we go under the radar,¡± Gloria answered. The voice perked up Giselle as she gasped.

    ¡°Names?¡± Mother asked.

    ¡°Gloria!¡±

    ¡°Gloria? Mother turned back to Giselle. Sweetie, do you know this girl?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, she summoned me with Timmy.¡±

    ¡°You guys do everything together?¡± Barry whispered to Gloria.

    ¡°He needed help.¡±

    ¡°Go into the room¡­ now!¡± Barry pushed her into the room.

    ¡°Bye Giselle.¡±

    ¡°Bye-bye Gloria and friend,¡± Giselle said.

    Mother nodded her head for the guards to go after them; Barry shut the door and locked it. ¡°I hope she¡¯s okay, we have to find a way to get her.¡± Gloria said. The knob rattled and the door thumped. ¡°Oh, my goodness, what are we going to do?¡±

    ¡°Use the key!¡± Mother demanded.

    ¡°Use the window.¡± Barry told Gloria, opening it. ¡°There¡¯s a fire escape here, go, go, go!¡±

    The knob struck and the guards opened the door to an opened window. ¡°The kids got away.¡± One guard looked out the window to see the two halfway to the street. They both go back into the hallway.

    ¡°Let¡¯ go start the event,¡± Mother said. She texted the babysitter, ¡®Make sure all the windows and doors are locked.¡¯

    The babysitter left the room and started going room to room to lock the windows. At the final door on the floor, she bumped into Ashton. ¡°Who the hell are you?¡± She pulled out her phone.

    Ashton slapped the phone out of her hand. ¡°Who are you?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re in my building and you¡¯re going to pay for my phone!¡±

    ¡°Sure,¡± Ashton stomped on the phone making it spark and explode.

    ¡°Who are y¡­¡±

    Ashton covered her mouth, ¡°Enough talk, where is the girl? You have a big operation here.¡± The babysitter made muffled noise. ¡°I¡¯m going to let you speak but if you yell scream or make a loud sound, you¡¯re dead. Do you understand?¡± The woman replied with more muffled noise. ¡°You can shake or nod your head for clarification.¡± She nodded her head. ¡°Good, where is the girl?¡± he let her go.

    ¡°Get away!¡± she yelled out to be grabbed and muffled once again.

    ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll find her myself. Intense heat radiated from his hand until her eyes dripped over his hand. ¡°Dumbass.¡±  He kept searching the premise for the missing denizen.

    Mother came out on to the stage to greet her followers along with Giselle. Giselle was wearing a white dress. Lucille looked at Duke, ¡°Isn¡¯t that the girl from the play?¡±

    ¡°Yeah,¡± he answered with his eyes forward.

    ¡°She¡¯s, our guide?¡± She elbowed Duke to make him turn to her, ¡°I¡¯m not sure about this¡­¡±

    ¡°Why?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s a child, what can she possibly know?¡±

    ¡°You haven¡¯t seen what she can do, it¡¯s crazy stuff.¡±

    ¡°Still, it¡¯s a child¡­¡±

    On the stage Mother commands the group, ¡°Family, tonight is the night that we go to the next level.¡± The group applauded, besides Lucille.

    ¡°What¡¯s the matter why aren¡¯t you clapping?¡± Duke asked Lucille.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know¡­ I have to go to the bathroom, can you come with me?¡±

    ¡°What?¡± Duke blushed.

    Lucille caught that and clarified, ¡°Buddy system.¡±

    ¡°Oh yeah. How are we going to get out, Mother is talking.¡±

    ¡°Right, maybe if we just go real quietly, she won¡¯t notice us.¡±

    A member interjected themselves between them, ¡°Shh.¡±

    Lucille was determined to get out, ¡°Okay, we just bring attention to ourselves and then ask for forgiveness if we are caught walking out.¡±

    ¡°Can you stop?¡± the member said.

    ¡°Sorry,¡± Lucille got up and went two seats over.

    ¡°Lucille, can I ask you where you are going?¡± Mother called out.

    ¡°The bathroom¡­¡±

    ¡°During this time? It can wait.¡±

    ¡°But I really have to go and¡­¡±

    ¡°You can hold it.¡±

    ¡°But I might go on myself during the trip,¡± Lucille replied looking around feeling the eye on her.

    ¡°That¡¯s not an issue, take a seat!¡± The weight of Mother¡¯s words brought Lucille back into her seat.¡±

    ¡°There goes that plan,¡± Duke whispered to Lucille when she sat down.

    ¡°At least I got up.¡±

    ¡°Today Giselle will bring us to the next plane, back home with her!¡± Mother announced the congregation clapped. ¡°Bring out the drinks!¡± Mother called out to behind the stage. The kitchen staff came out from behind the curtain, wheeling punchbowls of purple and green liquids. Down each row the workers serve cups of the drink. From behind the curtain appeared two drinks for Mother and the guide. ¡°Family, let us toast to our trip to the next plane!¡±

    The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

    In the hallways Timothy heard people clapping, he cracked the door open to see Mother and Giselle holding drinks. ¡°Giselle!¡± He shouted out swinging the door open.

    ¡°Who the hell are you!¡± Mother asked getting quick to anger. Then adjusted herself. ¡°I mean, who are your young man?¡±

    ¡°Giselle, that¡¯s my cousin!¡± he briskly walked down the aisle.

    ¡°What¡¯s a cousin?¡± Giselle asked Mother. ¡°Hi Timothy!¡± she waved at him. ¡°Can he join us?¡± she asked Mother.

    Mother thought to herself, a way to get rid of him, ¡°Yes he can.;¡± She signaled to a member, ¡°Young man come take a drink with us.¡±

    A person serving drinks poured him a cup. Timothy knocked the cup out of their hand. ¡°I need to get my cousin back.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s a cousin?¡± Giselle asked Mother again.

    ¡°You can¡¯t take our guide!¡± a person in the crowd exclaimed.

    ¡°She¡¯s a child!¡±

    ¡°Young man you¡¯re going to have to leave,¡± Mother told him. Members of the congregation started to circle in around him.

    ¡°Not without that girl!¡± Timothy produced Roscoe¡¯s gun.

    ¡°Whoa, Tim has gone crazy,¡± Lucille commented.

    ¡°I could have told you that,¡± Duke said.

    Men from the stage pointed their guns at Timothy, ¡°Aw damn,¡± he said.

    ¡°Put the gun down, son,¡± Mother told him.

    Timothy complied and then asked to read an appeal. ¡°Sorry ma¡¯am I really wasn¡¯t trying to use my gun I was going to original give you my appeal that I wrote, may I please read it.¡±

    Mother rolled her eyes and sighed at the request but let him talk to maintain her image to the congregation. ¡°Fine after you read it, you will drink with us, that way you have an understanding of what we are about.¡±

    ¡°I agree.¡±

    ¡°Then you can continue with your appeal.¡±

    Timothy took out a piece of paper and read the cantation on it sending Giselle home. Giselle glowed in an orange aura and levitated above the stage. ¡°She going to take the journey!¡± a member cried out. People started drinking in a hurry to catch the passage to the next plane. The mission Mother put across was effective, as evident per the actions of her followers. Mother watched her congregation drink without her in amazement. But then her expression changed to confusion. ¡°Our trip!¡± She cried out. In desperation she grabbed Giselle, but her hands phased through the spirit. ¡°Shoot him!¡±

    Once again, the ignition of the firearm set the wielder on fire. The mayhem encircled the room, the double doors Timothy slipped through turned white, luminating, creating a shadow that extended to the other side of the room, but falling short of Mother. Princess appeared, ¡°Do you understand, what you have done?¡±

    ¡°Who the hell are you?¡±

    ¡°The keeper of the little girl you stole.¡±

    ¡°Keeper?¡±

    ¡°Yes, the keeper of spirits. Anyway, that is not important. I must give you a penalty for your actions.¡±

    The scenery was taken in by the followers who still had their cups in hand. ¡°Where are we,¡± the congregation started asking. Then theories started to form, ¡°I think we crossed over to the next plane.¡± ¡°The boy is an arsonist!¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not an arsonist!¡± Timothy killed that idea from conception. Having thought about his classmates he called out for them, ¡°Lucille, Duke, you guys here?¡±

    ¡°Yes!¡± Lucille answered.

    ¡°Come out to the aisle or the center.¡±

    ¡°Uh, there¡¯s fire...¡±

    ¡°Yeah and no one is panicking.¡±

    ¡°Wait, are we dead?¡± a member asked.

    ¡°Dead with fire, oh no we are in¡­¡± another member panicked.

    ¡°You¡¯re not!¡± Timothy and Princess yelled out.

    ¡°Where are we then?¡± the crowd inquired skeptical.

    ¡°You are in a realm, between home and the specter zone,¡± Timothy told them. Princess looked back at him. ¡°I remembered what you said, I don¡¯t do any of that weird stuff, I promise.¡±

    ¡°Didn¡¯t you just do a spell?¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s the specter zone, it sounds made up?¡± a member of the congregation exclaimed.

    Timothy ignored the Princess and answered the congregation member back giving validity to Mother¡¯s idea, ¡°It¡¯s where the guide is from.¡±

    ¡°That girl was a monster.¡±

    ¡°A monster!¡± Giselle cried out.

    ¡°They¡¯re talking about you,¡± Timothy informed her.

    ¡°I¡¯m not a monster.¡±

    Princess interrupted their exchange. ¡°Say your goodbyes!¡±

    ¡°Bye Giselle, stay out of trouble,¡± Timothy said.

    ¡°Bye-bye, I had fun doing your project,¡± she waved.

    ¡°This guy never does his own work,¡± commented Duke.

    ¡°Lucille lets go!¡± Timothy called out.

    ¡°Come on Duke lets get out of here,¡± Lucille told him.

    Both go to Timothy, ¡°Okay guys, lets get the fuck out here.¡± When the three of them unite the flames dissipate and Giselle and the Princess fade away.

    ¡°Boy, what foolishness did you just pull?¡± Mother asked.

    ¡°Nothing, her people just wanted her back and you had her.¡±

    ¡°¡­Okay,¡± she turned to her other guard, ¡°Get that¡­¡±

    The Princess grabbed Mother from below the stage. ¡°Oh man that lady was a demon, she tried bringing us to hell,¡± the congregation rambles. There was a calm moment until everyone in the auditorium realized that some otherworldly creature was lurking in the room with them. ¡°Oh, my goodness, there¡¯s a demon in here!¡±

    The congregation started to stampede out of the auditorium. Timothy grabbed, Lucille and Duke, ¡°Stay up guys, don¡¯t fall under, if you do, you¡¯re never coming up.¡± The three braced for the impact of the bodies crashing against them, ¡°Go with the flow!¡± They surfed out the room along with the rest of the people, until they rest at a wall. Timothy tugged on Lucille and Duke¡¯s arm, ¡°Don¡¯t go, let them escape, we are still in town,¡± he informed them.

    ¡°We just saw Mother get sucked into an orange hole,¡± Duke said.

    ¡°Like I said we were between home and the Specter zone, where the guide was from. This is what you signed up for.¡±

    ¡°The Specter zone, has demons?¡±

    ¡°It has spirits¡­Look either way if you don¡¯t want to die, let these people run out of here.¡± Timothy thought about Gloria, ¡°Oh crap!¡± He pulled out his phone and called Gloria. ¡°Gloria, where are you?¡± During the call Duke and Lucille took the opportunity to leave on their own.

    ¡°I¡¯m outside, we saw Giselle¡­ What¡¯s the rumbling?¡±

    ¡°The people are stampeding; the summoning people came a dragged Mother somewhere with them and now these people think that they are in some sort of hell trap.¡±

    ¡°Oh wow.¡±

    ¡°Get away from the building, I don¡¯t want you to be trampled.¡±

    Gloria and Barry went to safety to watch the stampede of Loving Hands Friendship House congregation members. ¡°Man, they are pouring out that place,¡± Barry commented.

    ¡°That¡¯s what a demon will do¡­¡± Gloria said texting Timothy.

    ¡°I¡¯m surprised the building isn¡¯t on fire. This is nothing like the hotline¡­¡±

    The sky cleared up and the temperature lowered, with a scream and a loud voice saying goodbye and echoed out with the paranormal changes. ¡°Giselle!¡± Gloria cried out, ¡°Have a safe trip.¡±

    ¡°She wasn¡¯t yelling, was she?¡±

    ¡°No, she was saying goodbye.¡±

    ¡°Again?¡±

    ¡°She likes me, okay.¡± As they returned to reality it hit them hard, a burn mark on the street took them away from the goodbyes. ¡°Roscoe is gone¡­¡±

    ¡°Yes, this is going to be hard especially after everything his girlfriend just went through¡­¡±

    Timothy met up with the two, who looked at the burn mark without a word. ¡°Did you see Lucille and Duke?¡±

    ¡°No, but I¡¯ll let you two be. You just had a crazy day,¡± Barry said walking away.

    ¡°You did too!¡± Gloria yelled out. It had no effect on Barry. ¡°Are you okay?¡± she asked Timothy.

    ¡°Yeah¡­ we¡¯ll just see them at school¡­¡±

    ¡°Tim, I mean¡­¡± Gloria stopped; ¡°We should get rest, we exhausted ourselves.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, I kinda wished I gave the kid a proper goodbye.¡±

    ¡°She said goodbye. But let¡¯s not dwell on it right now.¡±

    While Timothy and Gloria walked home, when Gloria spotted Lucille and Duke. ¡°You know those two almost lost their lives, maybe we should go talk to them.¡±

    ¡°You know what¡­ even though I don¡¯t like them, I agree.¡± Timothy called over to the two, ¡°Hey come walk with us.¡± Lucille took the invitation, Duke hesitated. ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s not used to you being nice,¡± Gloria answered.

    ¡°Fine, I¡¯ll greet him with an insult.¡±

    ¡°Tim!¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s because you kicked him in the face,¡± Barry said from behind.

    ¡°Did you kick him in the face?¡±

    ¡°No,¡± Timothy answered.

    ¡°You kicked him in the face,¡± Barry informed her.

    ¡°No, I didn¡¯t; when?¡±

    ¡°In the bookstore.¡±

    ¡°What?¡±

    ¡°Oh, that makes sense, when you were possessed,¡± Timothy added.

    ¡°Possessed!¡±

    ¡°Did you lose your memory?¡±

    ¡°Obviously,¡± Barry chimed in.

    In an orange void, the Princess, Ashton, and Giselle are with Mother. ¡°Ashton watch the lady, I¡¯m going to bring the girl back.¡± The Princess laid her hand on Giselle¡¯s head and continued talking to the woman, ¡°Ma¡¯am as you know you are being penalized for your actions against the girl.¡±

    ¡°I didn¡¯t do anything to the girl!¡± the lady panicked.

    ¡°Ashton.¡±

    ¡°On it; lady you¡¯re not going anywhere, get comfortable.¡± Giselle and the Princess fade away into the orange. Mother ran away from Ashton, ¡°No where to go!¡± his voice echoed. Either the woman was running in the void or was blocked going side by side with a stream of fire. ¡°I wonder what the Princess will do to you?¡±

    Timothy returned home, he stopped on his front steps to be filled with guilt. He sighed, ¡°Oh man, I do not want to do this¡­¡± He turned around and walked to Roscoe¡¯s house. On the steps he thought about how he was going to break the news to the woman. After his reflection, he knocked on the door. The girlfriend opened the door, ¡°Oh you¡¯re that kid who keeps knocking on my door.¡±

    ¡°Yeah¡­ well¡­¡±

    ¡°Where¡¯s Roscoe?¡±

    ¡°So, he didn¡¯t make back from the Loving Hands Friendship House¡­¡±

    ¡°What do you mean, he didn¡¯t make it back!¡±

    ¡°So, he was set on fire by an¡­¡±

    ¡°Is this more of your magic stuff!¡±

    ¡°Yes ma¡¯am, he tried to shoot at a spirit, and it set him on fire.¡±

    ¡°Why didn¡¯t you put him out?¡±

    ¡°The fire was so quick; we didn¡¯t have a chance to.¡±

    The girlfriend fell to her knees sobbing, ¡°I can¡¯t believe this!¡±

    Timothy went to console her, ¡°I¡¯m sorry¡­¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t touch me, you¡¯re walking death!¡±

    The boy backed away, ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I¡¯ll let you be¡­¡± (insert Roscoe¡¯s return)

    Back at school Timothy met up with Gloria, Lucille, Barry, and Duke by the front door. ¡°What a crazy weekend, right?¡± Duke said. The other four groaned and grumbled, ¡°You guys are right, it was crazy in a terrible way.¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s strive for normalcy, I know we all need that in our lives,¡± Timothy said.

    ¡°Yeah,¡± the rest of them agreed.

    ¡°Let¡¯s make a pact¡­¡±

    ¡°¡­to stay away from magic,¡± Gloria finished his sentence.

    ¡°To stay away from magic.¡± They fist bumped each other in agreement.