Chapter Nine

Chapter nine

Sunlight streamed through the windows, signaling the beginning of a new day. The leaves on the trees had begun to turn red, orange, and gold. A crisp breeze lifted the fallen leaves and blew them past singing birds. It was a joyous day. At Dark Side Manor, it was anything but joyous.

“Boys you’re going to be late!” Donte bellowed down the hall. It was Friday, the last day of the second school week, and everyone had already slipped into daily habits.

Peter groaned and rolled over, onto empty air.

“Gah!” The crash seemed deafening as gravity dragged Peter to the ground. Dave shifted on the top bunk and looked down at Peter.

“Careful.” He said groggily. Peter moaned, popped his head up and said, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

“Thanks.” Wit was already up and getting dressed, his laughter appeared to be making it hard for him to get his shirt on.

“Oh.” Said Peter, still on the floor. “So you think this is funny?”

“Why yes, yes I do.” Wit said, chocking back another laugh.

“Boys!” This time it was Anthony yelling. Blake’s eyes grew wide, he jumped out of bed and rushed to get ready whilst saying.

“If Anthony starts yelling that means we really have to hoof it.” In less than four minutes they were dressed and eating some scones while rushing to the front door. They were the last to leave the manor.

The sprint to the school left all the boys sweaty and panting. Michelle, Daniela and a few of their new friends met them by the front door.

“What happened to you all? It’s always the boys that are late.”

“Not true.” Declan, who was walking on top of the tall fence, said. He jumped down.

“I’m the only boy who is never late.”

“We. Are. Not. Late.” Olly and Terrence gasped.

“Technically.” Declan said referring to a small group of kids running along the sidewalk towards the main path. Someone yelled across the lawn.

“Hey! Declan.” Declan gave Michelle and the others a small salute.

“Cheers” Declan turned towards the shout, leaving Michelle, Daniela, Olly and Terrence. The group included Lye, Ecrin and a girl who they recognized as a friend of Lye’s.

They barely had time to catch their breath before they heard the soft “head to class” bell.

“Bye girls.”

By now they had gotten pretty good at finding paths between the deep tangle of bodies. They made it to the class room with plenty of time to spare. This morning Mrs. Light’s hair looked like she hadn’t combed it, in fact it looked like she hadn’t gotten much sleep.

“Good morning, students.” She was gasping for breath, like she had run here from, from where ever she lives. Mrs. Light shook her hair out and tied it up. Lye walked in, she she moved gracefully down the aisle, her eyes grazed over Peter. Peter ignored her, coldly. Memories from last week flashed in his mind.

It was Saturday, Donte and Mr. Roblin were telling them legends about Count Dracula. They said that one day he went mad with this urge to come to the very spot on which they stood. As he had stood there he became taken with the idea to build a manor. Big, and great, capturing the buildings of his home place. Once the construction was complete, he ignored the callings of friends from his home town. He angered the spirits, setting them free, and inflicting their anger back on himself.

“When Dracula lived he created many other vampires. He called them ‘companions’ one of his companions became angry that his master was not paying him enough attention. So out of anger and jealousy he wrote the story of Dracula that people know today.” Mr. Roblin finished.

“So your saying, that Dracula created a vampire that got jealous, and wrote a book about him? To be saying that you would have to believe he was actually a vampire.” Hayden scoffed the last sentence.

“Oh, I do believe.” Hayden raised an eyebrow.

“Really?” Donte and Mr. Roblin nodded.

“It is because they believe the lies.” Lye’s cold voice spoke from the door of the parlor. Donte groaned inwardly while Eloy responded.

“What lies are those exactly Lye?”

“You know very well the lies I am talking about Eloy. Dracula didn’t have an urge, he was tricked into going. He didn’t anger the spirits they were mad for their own reasons. He wasn’t fond of his creations that were jealous. He executed them.”

“You believe that?” Jerald asked. Lye shifted her arctic gaze upon him. Jerald gulped under her perilous gaze.

“Yes, I believe that. If you believe the lies they tell you.” She snarled the word lies, “Then you are a fool. Wait, look who I’m talking to.” Jerald blinked, as the youngest and the smallest of his friends he got picked on a lot. He brushed past all of it but he was very proud of his expansive knowledge. Lye’s words had put a crack in his pride. So the dam burst, and Lye had actually smiled at his tears.

White hot fury burned through Peter’s veins as he remembered. The way Jerald had cried, and George and at one point Michelle. It angered Peter that Lye could be so terribly cruel. As Lye walked past him he completely ignored her, and at one point during the “Study Hall” portion of the class, when she caught his eye he glared at her. She brushed it off and ignored his cold stare. Not that it had been very cold.

“Alright, I want the right side to split. The back half, go to the table on the far right. Front half the table next to it.” Mrs. Light turned to the left side. “Left side back half go to the table on the far left. Front half sits at the table next to it. Go.”

They split, grabbing their bags they trudged to their assigned tables and sat down. A pit formed in Peter’s stomach as Lye sat in the last chair, at his table. She was sitting right across from him, her gaze boring holes into his skull. Peter did his best to ignore her.

“Now, I want you to take one of these books.” Mrs. Light took four identical books and dropped one on each of the smooth, round tables. “Look up the name of someone in your group. Write down the origin and the definition. If you know what your name means, then good. If not, well find out.”

Peter, Hayden, Phillip, Aden, Jerald, and Terrence were grouped up with Lye, Ecrin, their friend Miranda, a boy named Colin a girl name Cynthia and two other boys, Jake and Austin. Flipping through the book, taking turns Lye caught Peter by surprise by saying.

“Peter. Reliable like a rock.” Everyone looked at her. Terrence, who was on the other side of the table from Lye had the book. Peter looked at his friends, then at Lye.

“Pardon?” Peter asked her. Lye smiled, as close to a smile as Lye can get, that is.

“That is what your name means. Reliable like a rock.” Peter nodded without really understanding.

“Oh, alright.” Phillip pitched forward in his seat.

“How did you know that?” Lye turned her smile-smirk on Phillip.

“My brother’s name was Peter.” Something clicked in their minds. Is this the reason she pays so much attention to Peter? Because of her brother?

“His name was Peter? Past tense?” Aden asked. Lye’s smile-smirk disappeared, she cast her eyes towards the table.

“Past tense.” She sighed “He was Murdered.” She whispered these last words. Everyone’s jaw, except for Ecrin and Miranda, dropped. Mostly because Miranda was paying very close attention to Aden and Ecrin was poking her. Peter stuttered.

“I’m, I’m very, wow, um. That’s, that’s very sad. I’m sorry.” Lye shook her head viciously. Her furtive face returned. Reminding Peter that Lye was never nice. Did Lye even had a vulnerable side? Peter wondered on this, perhaps she did. All the same a picture of tough-as-nails Jerald crying went through Peter’s mind and his fury came back.

As the day ended, Peter caught Lye looking at him. A sad look crossed her face, and he could have sworn he saw a single diamond like tear glisten down her cheek right before she turned away. A guilty pit formed in his stomach in place of the anger that had been there earlier. Lye is broken somehow, and no one has bothered to fix her. Peter shook the thought from his head and lay down in bed anticipating sleep.