Reality is a Fleeting Moment

Chapter Twelve

Izzy POV

Today was a do-nothing day. I was not gonna leave my treehouse the whole day. Part of it was because I didn't want to, but I suppose I could play it off as a mental health day. After I learned that I actually had a family at a point in my life, the Red Beryl-like stone showed me more spirits than just my aunt. Currently, my older sister(technically she was older, although she didn't really age anymore since she was dead) was taking pictures of my treehouse with an old polaroid camera, with the promise of telling me more about the family when she was done.

"You know," My sister(apparently named Ellie) glanced at me as she took pictures. "Mother and Father will think you are very pretty. Even though you are dressed quite casually, you pull it off surprisingly well. Your makeup seems to match well.

"What?" I sat up in my bed. "I'm not wearing makeup. I've only worn face makeup twice in the past 19 years; both of those times only last school year."

Ellie stared at me incredulously. "Really? You look like this naturally? And you've only worn makeup on your face twice in your whole life? Truly?"

"Yep~" I laid back down, pulling out my phone to watch some reels. "And I'm content with that number not changing, ya know?"

"Well, it's gonna." Ellie put away the camera. "Right after I tell you about the family."

I sat up again, shoving my phone under the pillow with a smile. "Fire away, then."

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(Leila POV)

"Did you hear?" Willa asked as I closed my locker. "Someone knocked A-spen, A-li, and A-lan unconscious last night, and they just woke up. No one knows who did it or why."

"Really? How?" I asked in response as we walked to my math class.

"Well, it was probably a werewolf because A-lan had bleeding scratch marks on his face. He was caked in blood when he woke up. It was crazy." We walked in the door to the classroom, but something seemed amiss...

... My ex-boyfriend was gone, but not his girlfriend. "Weird..." I whispered to Willa. "Where's Jean Pierre? Victoria is here, but not Jean..."

"He left early in fourth period. Something about a dire situation that required his presence."

I sighed in relief. "Good. That's great news."

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(no particular POV)

I suppose I should start from the beginning.

Mother was a princess, you know that, yes?

Azura Yelena was an English princess, who married a man from another world.

His name was Aarnon.

He and his sister, Enyiana, came from an alien planet, but were able to blend in here on Earth.

Aarnon and Azura had six children, not including you.

Ellie(myself), Cedric, Katie, Julia, Simon, and Leo.

No one really knows how, but...

But a fatal sickness spread, starting with Father, and ending with me.

By some miracle... you didn't get it.

However, due to lack of information, the news stated that all of us got it.

Assuming that we were all almost dead, an assassin by the name of Arnold Vega made an attempt on our lives.

Obviously, Mother knew;

This kind of thing is common for people like her.

She hid you so you'd be safe, but the rest of us...

Well, you know what happened.

Anyway, "friends" of Aunt Enyiana took you to America to respect her dying wishes.

They did as they were told for the first year and a half, but after that...

...They went rogue; followed their own desires.

They sent you to an orphanage run by the escaped convict Georgie Myrna, but she went by Gretchen Barta so the cops wouldn't come after her.

What you know as the "Chamber" was actually just a manifestation of her criminal habits.

...

Well, you're all caught up now.

You're welcome.

And just like that...

She was gone...

Again...

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(Izzy POV)

"Clever tyrants are never punished." I muttered as I walked to the high school. Leila had given me a call during my do-nothing day because her ex was causing her trouble. I smoothed back my hair to look more presentable. The school had gotten new office workers, so if I could pull off being French... the boy would be left to my mercy.

I strolled into the front office and faked a French accent when I spoke to the receptionist. "Pardon me, Miss. Um, would it be okay if I borrowed Jean Pierre for a moment? It's an emergency."

"And you are?" The lady at the desk asked.

"I'm Alli, his sister. My mother wanted me to come with him when he went to America, but I'm not an exchange student." Apparently, the lie worked. She handed me the school phone next to her computer.

"Dial 0304."

"Thank you." I punched in the numbers and held the phone to my ear. After a few rings, the teacher picked up.

"Hello? This is Mrs. Brown, music teacher. With whom am I speaking?"

Frick. Mrs. Brown knew me too well... "Yes, I'm Alli. May I speak with Jean Pierre?"

Mrs. Brown stifled a laugh. She knew it was me. Thankfully, she played along. "Of course. Give me a moment." The voice switched to a French male.

"Bonjour. This is Jean Pierre." The voice was soft, but clear. I didn't blame Leila for being attracted to him.

I forced my voice to sound panicked. "Jean! S– Something terrible happened! H– He's in danger! You need to come with me!"

"Wh–" I started, but I cut him off.

"Jean Pierre, if you don't come down to the front office and leave with me right now, someone is gonna get hurt! Jean, please!" I forced a voice crack and a few tears. "Please, Jean! Please..."

"Uh... alright." The phone hung up and he appeared in the front office after a few minutes. "I'm ready to go, Alli."

"Good! If we leave now, we can barely make it." I grabbed his hand and sprinted out of the school, towards the forest. Once I'd made it to the barbed wire fence, I slowed down, cleared my throat, and reruffled my hair. "So, Jean Pierre," I hissed in my normal accent. "You are a terrible person. Breaking Leila's heart, then causing her trouble? You're going to regret that."

He was quiet for a moment. "So... no one's been hurt?"

I barked out a laugh. "Oh, someone's definitely getting hurt."

"Who?"

I raked my claws across his face. "You."