Eden's Gate

Chapter 14: The Door

The four had spent the remainder of their day living their normal life. It felt strange for all of them, but what else was there to do? They played a chess tournament while they waited for Sasha to leave them alone - Richard won, obviously, and Kaitlyn had actually lost to Taylor. It had distracted them enough that the rest of the day was just them hanging out and playing games. Taylor decided to go to soccer practice, arguing that running about in it would make them feel better.

Once they got back, the Commons was full so there wasn't time to discuss the conspiracy anyway. This was fine by Kaitlyn. She did want a rest and there was something here she didn't really want to think about. She finished the day, doing her best to forget the image of Edelweiss' face that kept coming in her head, as she walked into her room, curled up into bed, and squeezed Mr. Lepus tight.

Her mind began to drift into sleep, reaching the twilight between waking and sleeping, before she suddenly snapped awake, the random noise of her thoughts coalescing into something tangible. She was worried that Eliza was behind it.

Eliza, the woman she called mother, the woman who had saved her life and given her so much here.

Thump thump thump

Her eyes snapped open, adrenaline rushing through her veins as she realized she was getting a visit from the Knocker. There could be no other way to describe that precisie knock. Loud, hard, and meant to disturb. There was something hollow and empty about it, though, like it wasn't really there.

Thump Thump Thump

She closed her eyes and took in a breath. The Knocker was an easy enough thing to deal with, in theory. She just had to ignore it. But that was sometimes easier said than done. It could be very startling and loud, and it was hard to tell what was it and what may have been something she actually needed to pay attention to.

THUMP THUMP THUMP

It was also just very annoying. She took in a breath and tried to focus on sleeping again. She wanted to dream something nice. She just needed to ignore it. Maybe she would dream about Mr. Lepus running around in a field eating carrots. It would go away if she ignored it. Or maybe she could have that one where she and Edelweiss got to explore London. It seemed so far away, and she had been told many times that cities were loud and busy and disorienting for psychics, but there was still so much to see. All she had to do was focus on that.

She heard scratching against the wall. Like a wild animal trying to dig through the wall, getting closer and closer. It was quick, feral and getting closer. She had to ignore it.

She remembered Tree Splitter. That was his name right? He was a very pleasant fellow, maybe Mom would let her go see him again.

The scratching was still getting closer. She could hear wood snapping. Like it was ripping chunks of the wall off. They hit the ground with a thunk. She wondered why no one else ever seemed to hear this noise.

She tried focusing on the sea lions she'd seen at the zoo, too. They looked so cute, with their little smiles and how they scooted across the ground. They were an amusing mix of handsome and goofy.

The shredding stopped. It started to slowly make its way towards her - she could hear its feet - no, it's paws - stepping on the ground, scratching up the floor behind it. Step by step, scratch by scratch, it got closer. Her heart pounded. She just had to ignore it, she just had to ignore it. It reached the door. She could hear it digging its claws into the door, scratching its way up and up.

She let out a yelp as something in her arms began to squirm. It was Mr. Lepus, moving on his own. No purple glow, just as if he were alive. He ran up to the door furiously, and swung it open. There was nothing there. Nothing at all.