Blood Feather

Pieces of a Puzzle

Feather, now with her full spare uniform on, leans back on the fluffy bed with galaxies strung across the comforter, pillow case and spread sheet, on black iron bed case with a black iron head board. Her bed is on the right side, next to the wall after walking through the door, whereas Doe's meadow styled bed is on the left side. Feather holds the daisy earring directly in the beam of strong sunlight streaming in from the window beside her bed and carefully memorizes the shape and feel of the completely red center of the daisy, dyed so well not a single seed was spared and the red cannot be smudged off. Feather notes as she moves her finger searching for evidence of blood spill away and stares at it closely.

"You know, I have the feeling I've seen something like this before." Feather speaks slowly, uncertainly.

"Perhaps you've heard stories about the Great Spirit when you were younger. Try to think. There may be something important in your memories." Doe carefully wraps up her old book in a a clear membrane before placing it in a brown paper box.

Feather continues to observe the earring, turning it in the light. "No, I'm very sure it was pretty recent, maybe we could ask the principal about all of this."

"That would be a good idea, if one could find the principal. No student has ever seen him before, and his office door is always locked." She herself received the message to welcome the new student via video chat, one where the principal could see her but she couldn't see the principal.

Somewhere in Feather's mind, she says to herself. 'I knew there was a catch to the message. It'd be too simple otherwise.' The principal himself is quite the riddle.

"I still can't believe all of this actually happening." Feather giggles. "It feels like a dream." A dream full of delicious mysteries she never wants to wake up from.

Enjoy it while you still can, Doe sighs, still upset from Feather's careless handling of her precious book.

"But still, this looks so familiar, like the light glinting off a daisy chain..." Her eyes widen and she pushes herself up in one fluid movement.

"It was on the gardener's neck! He was wearing it as a necklace!" She shouts excitedly, proud of herself for figuring it out.

"Did you say necklace?" Doe blurts out, then quickly places her hand over her mouth and bites down on her finger. Punishment for saying something she's forbidden to.

Feather frowns and moves over to her side of the room, pulling Doe's hand away. "Is there something you're not telling me?"

Doe rapidly shakes her head and pulls her hand away, backing towards the oak wood door.

Feather dangles the daisy earring above her wide open mouth while glaring at Doe with a fiery intensity. Her message is clear: spill it or the earring goes down the hatch.

"Wait- wait!! I'll tell you!!" Doe's eyes scream silently with fear. Feather lowers the earring, closing her mouth and tightens her hand around it, smirking.

"You're a tyrant." Doe gasps, questioning where the easily led girl just a few hours ago went.

"Only when it comes to things I really want." Feather grins and tightens her grip on the earring, making sure keep the pointy part directed away from her flesh.

Still hesitant, but deciding on the lesser of the two evils, Doe begins to speak with a vain hope that this would be okay, since Feather isn't a normal student. "Normally we're forbidden to speak of the secrets entrusted to us by the principal. We, meaning the prefects, who have special privileges and technology beyond the reach of other students, such as coming here to scout the school before the year starts-"