Open Novella Contest 2021 Latin Homework or the End of the World?

Round One

KEV

You have a worksheet full of sums due tomorrow but your attention can't help but shift to something else - anything else - as you sit at your desk. The poster of Middle Earth, complete with a film accurate frame and fading is almost memorised so provides little more than a guide for your wandering eyes rather than anything to really focus on. Lining the top of your desk are Pop Vinyls of just a chosen few characters. Groot is among them. Again more of an ornament than an activity. You know there are games on the computer but your mother has worked out the difference between gaming keystrokes and those of studying.
Aimlessly spinning around on the desk chair while staring at the plaster of the roof is losing its original appeal. At this point even attempting a house of cards is more interesting than finding the value of x, y or any other letter the teacher has ordered.

So when your older sister calls even that event becomes a welcome distraction.
'Kev, you're a nerd. I need a favour.'
As greetings go it seemed an odd choice even by her standards. Jules normally waits to make scathing personal remarks in person or through memes.
'I suppose. Not the best way to soften me up though.'
'There's no supposing. Now tell me what to do if someone's possessed!'
'Jesus, don't scream at me. Possessed by what?'
'How would I know!'
'You called me. Is this about that guy?' The key to blamelessly annoying an almost screaming older family member is to remain calm and disinterested.
'YES IT'S ABOUT STEVE!' Bingo. 'But not like that!' She adds in a smaller voice, 'his Latin pronunciation's really good and he thinks that I'm smart and funny.'
'Sure, whatever.' Why is she being open and genuine with her emotions. We don't do that, we're not emotionally mature enough yet for that. 'Ahem, well let's assume demonic then. What universe is it?'
'This universe!'
'Okayy, but like following the rules of traditional folklore, religion, Supernatural, The Witcher, another Netflix show?'
'Which is the quickest and easiest?'
'I supppse drinking holy water would be the most painless-'
'I haven't got any holy water!'
'Well it would be a lot easier to help you if I knew what game you were playing-'
'IT'S NOT A GAME!'
'Okay okay, your crush on and manipulation of a guy you like is very serious and not at all a game.' You let out a put upon sigh, no point letting her know this is saving you from death by algebraic boredom. 'Salt is also a very basic option. Normally preventative for bad spirits it also seems to sometimes work for capturing a possessed vessel or for banishment as well. Or smudging, but that tends to be more cleansing bad spirits from a place rather than a person.'
'Fine! I'll try that...hang on, I'm putting you on speaker.' The only change this made was now you could hear the echoey scratches and rustles of her movements and the creaking bounce of her feet on the floorboards. You sandwich the phone between your left hand and your face, propping your head up while you scroll slowly, one-handed, through reddit. Surely that will sound sedate and similar enough to reading an educational webpage? You hear your sister come back to the phone again with a sigh.
'Okay, salt didn't work.'
'Well maybe that's more effective for ghosts or, I don't know, giant snails.'
'Stop trying to be funny! What do I do?'
'Well if you didn't even have holy water I doubt you've got an Angel blade.'
'Not helping!'
'Exorcism?'
'I don't know how to do that!'
'Easiest is by bell, book and candle. But it's not always accepted because it was originally for excommunication not exorcism.'
'I've got a text book, message alert and his mum's salt lamp. Do they count?'
You shrug, even though you know she can't see it.
'Worth a shot. Do you reckon you have to say the chant in Latin?'
'Ugh, probably? My Latin is rubbish.' Can you hear a pout?
'It'll be fine. I'll Google something for you because my next suggestion is a pentagram and that would need Latin too.'
'Seriously Kev, how the hell is geometry going to help?'
'Not a pentagon, a pentagram. Five pointed star, often drawn in chalk or salt. Like the reverse of summoning a demon.'
'Well that's not how we summoned it in the first place.'
'Damn, I wonder if Steve would let me in this RPG? With you it just sounds like a disorganised mess, but for people who know what they're doing it sounds like it'd be fun. It's like super real world and resourceful.'
'Stop going on about your nerd hobbies. It's not a game! Steve's been gagging up this black goo, I think he accidentally summoned a demon when he was showing off his Latin pronunciation.'