maple syrup | remus lupin [1]

147. an untold tale by anne rowle

CLAUDIA OPENED THE BOOK as she sat down on the large windowsill. She hadn't been able to find any sort of details of what book it was, for the cover was nothing but blank.

However, as soon as she flipped the first page, she discovered what book it was and who it was by as it stood written in a message on the first blank page.

Dear Claudia,

This is a book your mum never got to publish. She finished it, however, but I never got the chance to show you it. Read it very carefully now, my little princess, for it has a meaning.

I'm sorry for it all. I hope I can be there to bring you some comfort and explain it all to you.

Love always,

Gemma.

Claudia frowned upon the message at first, but as soon as she realised just whose handwriting it was, she immediately felt her eyes tear up.

She had always thought that there was practically nothing left of her two favourite people, especially not after her father had informed her of that. But, a message from Gemma and a book written by her mum was right before her, so that didn't seem to be the case.

She was incredibly confused to why the book had been hidden in the wall beside a windowsill of all places, and also who had hidden it there.

Well, of course the action was done by none other than Charles, who had wanted to make sure that no one would ever find that book.

Especially not Claudia.

And still, he made a not so foolproof plan to hide it in his manor instead of destroying it.

Why? Well, there really was no reason for it. Charles Maple was just plain and old stupid.

Claudia opened the first page of the book, and then she read.

Now, would you like to hear how this small little untold tale by Anne Rowle played out?

Well, it started with what one would expect; a fair and beautiful love story. However, it evolved in a strange way that made Claudia understand why Gemma never showed it to her when she was younger.

You see, it was very much like several books Claudia had read in recent years. It wasn't really a romance as it seemed. No, it was horror and thriller and possibly mystery all in one.

Claudia must've sat there on that large windowsill for at least three hours, reading that book. In fact, once she finished it, she looked up and had no idea where she was, what time it was or if the party was still happening upstairs. She had no idea, since she had fallen into a different world like she always did when she got to reading.

All she knew was that she was confused. Gemma said that the book had a meaning, but what meaning was that?

Well, Claudia realised that Gemma wasn't alive anymore, so there was no way she was going to understand.