Nevermore Academy || Marilyn Thornhill and fem! OC

Prologue

Light and Shadow.
Sun and Moon.
Day and Night.

Another synonym would be Jocelyn Ryder and Eris Ryder.
Twins; Identical.
Yet fundamentally different.

One sees a light in the darkness, when the other only sees the darkness surrounding the light.

Normie Parents, mysterious powers, that are barely held in check and sisters who had their differences before their abilities were even discovered.
Definitely a recipe for disaster. And when disaster strikes, a school for Outcasts with peculiar, supernatural powers is added to the mix.
Will this new school, this changed environment and altered life mean no next catastrophe will happen? Will it mean the tension is lifted? The crisis averted?

...Or is the drama simply relocated to Nevermore academy?

~~~~~~~

Eris Ryder was a very dangerous, young woman. She knew it, her sister knew it and her parents feared it.
It had been over a year since they'd dared to step near her. Over a year since she had lost control at Christmas dinner. Over a year since she'd accidentally broken her mothers hand, nearly thrown her father out of the window, made the tree crumble to ashes and almost fatally injured her sister.
Over one year with no hugs, no kisses, not even a pat on the shoulder and barely any conversation.
She had learned to cope with it months ago. Well, bottled up and buried the pain, more like cope, but where's the big difference.

Now she stood, facing them, in the dimmed living room of their house in Greenfield, Massachusetts. Hands covered in mud, dark hair plastered to her face by the heavy rain outside, her black clothes dripping, equally wet, on the expensive Ziegler carpet. Her mothers eyes had noticeably cast a desperate glance at her daughters muddy boots stepping all over her beloved piece of vintage art, but now Eris was riveted to see the horror on her face as she stared at what she'd just dumped on the grand, family table on which they used to have joined meals.

On first glance it looked like she'd stomped in, with an arm full of muddy roots and sticks, like a deranged toddler. But now the Ryders could not unsee what their troubled daughter had presented them with, however much they wished to.
It was bones. Freshly dug up bones.
And when a smaller, round one with two black holes and a sickening grin rolled free from the heap, they knew, unmistakably, what kind these bones had to be.

"Eris", Mrs. Ryder gasped, clutching her chest with one and her husbands shoulder with the other hand.
"What do you think you're doing?"

Her father had turned green in the face, yet was staring at her with a mixture of disgust and fury. If her eyes weren't deceiving her, she would have said he was trembling from head to toe, fists clenched at his sides.

"Oh this?" She said in a would be casual tone, looking at her parents, head crooked to the side, eyes gleaming with a vindictive pleasure at finally seeing her parents true feelings toward her clearly shown on their faces.
"This is Tom. Don't you remember sweet, little Tommy? Good-natured, wonderful, stupid Tom."
To top it off Evelyn grabbed the, clearly not fully grown, skull from the table, looked it in the face and then shoved it towards her parents, making it stare at them, with that lifeless, psychotic grin. She mimicked it.

"Don't tell me you forgot what happened to him? Do you need me to refresh your memory?". She mocked the worried voice of a person sincerely offering their help.
"Stop this right now", her mother hissed furiously. Eris felt a twisted twinge of joy to see her mothers eyes flickering terrified to her hands.

"Don't worry, Mommy. I wont hurt you." She mocked, making her eyes round and starring up at her mother like a small child asking for some ice cream. "Not if you give me answers to my questions. My many, many questions."

She started stepping around the table, starring them down menacingly. She could see them itching to back away. But she had inherited her stubbornness from somebody. They stood their ground.
With about two feet remaining between them Eris halted.
"Well, actually it's really just all about the one. What happened to Tom?" She paused, studying them carefully before she continued.
„What happened in the woods eleven years ago? What do I have to do with it and why. Why have you been treating me like an unpredictable, rabid animal ever since?"

The Ryders remained silent. Only the crackling of the fire and the sound of Louis Armstrongs What a Wonderfull World playing lowly on the radio in the corner. If she hadn't been so angry she could scream, Eris would have laughed at the irony.

"Answer. me."Eris said, her voice dangerous and low as she felt rage building up and up within her chest.
Her parents continued staring at her, clearly not even debating to answer her.

"Answer me!" She yelled, not able to control her voice. This time her hands rose at her sides and pitch black, cloudy mist started swirling around them. At this Mr. and Mrs. Ryder took a scrambling step back. Raising their own arms like shields.

„Enough" said a loud, yet checked voice behind Eris.
Rolling her eyes, she turned and faced her. She stood at the foot of the stairs leading up to the bedrooms.
Like an angel descended to bring peace. Blonde hair falling perfectly over her shoulders, blue eyes clear of sin, only clouded with worry.

„Eris, you need to stop." Jocelyn said, stepping into the space between the dark haired-twin and their terrified parents. Immediately their fathers hand came to rest on her shoulder, squeezing it reassuringly.
Seeing it, tweaked up Evelyns rage yet again and, though her hand were clear and at her side, the air pressure sensibly dropped, leaving the room cold and tense.

„I need to know what happened, Josy. You know I do." She told her sister through pressed teeth.

Jocelyn shook her head.
„This isn't the way, Evy." Her voice was pleading, yet left no room to be argued with.

Eris took a deep breath, trying to stop the shadowy mist from roaming her fingers. How could she not see; not understand. Eris had to know and know now. Before they were sent away.

The sisters stared at each other, both obviously not planing to back down.
The silence was only cut by the ballade still drifting over from the radio.

And I think to myself ... what a wonderful world

Finally, Eris let her shoulders fall back, lifted her chin up and took a step back, signalling peace.

yes, what a wonderful world ...