House of Anubis: Triad of Memphis

House of Feuds/House of Mirrors

"So your parents and their friends really started this club?" Jonah asked excitedly to Sarah as the entered the house, coming from school.

"Yep," Sarah confirmed, "along with Lucille and William's parents."

"And they solved mysteries?" Jonah grinned.

"Yeah. Hey, you're handling all this really well. I didn't expect you to believe it all-"

"-Smith...Rutter..."

Jonah and Sarah looked upward at Mr. Carroway looking over the barrier, staring down at them as his hands gripped the wood.

"Mr. Carroway," Sarah acknowledged, "hi."

"What're you two talking about?"

Sarah and Jonah glanced at eachother in hesitation.

"Oh give the children a break," Mr. Rainier intervened, coming into view at the top of the stairs at just the right time. "They've had a long day; not all kids are up to incriminating activities."

Mr. Carroway cleared his throat and brushed off his coat before returning back in his office.

Mr. Rainier winked at the two of them as he descended the steps.

Sarah and Jonah rushed off past him up to Sarah's room also as some of the other students were just coming into the house as well.

~~~~~
Later on that day, Jared had left his room and come into the foyer as Niamh was leaving Mr. Carroway's office above. Lucille was just coming out of the lounging room and kitchen area, and Jared rushed over and pulled her back inside with himself.

"You're a girl, right?"

"Um..." Lucille trailed off.

"Right, so could you maybe 'girl-talk' with Niamh and find out what she thinks of me?"

"I-I don't know her that well."

"Thats fine, just...please."

"N-no," Lucille shook her head and left the room. Jared stomped his foot and heaved a sigh, thinking about his next course of action.

In the most convenient sense, Niamh came in through the door just after Lucille had left, and Jared froze in place. Niamh scoffed at him and folded her arms.

"Niamh, hi," Jared greeted nervously.

"Really?" Niamh frowned. "No jarring comment, no failed attempt at wooing me over?"

"Wooing," Jared muttered to himself, chuckling.

"You're an idiot." Niamh passed by him and headed to the kitchen. Jared turned around to continue facing her.

"Niamh," Jared began, "I-I didn't read the letter."

Niamh took a deep breath. She grabbed an apple and then came into eye contact with Jared. "So you're a thief and a liar. I don't know what kind of person you think I am, but to entertain someone else who actually has tolerance for your crap." With that, she left the room.

Jared was about the end it there, but he decided he couldn't leave it like that. He stepped out the room and gained Niamh's attention again as she was ascending the stairs.

"I wasn't lying!" he declared.

Niamh rolled her eyes and turned to face him. "Like I said, I'm done with you."

"Done with me? No, I'm done with you," Jared retaliated with a newly-found anger. "You know what, screw you."

"Excuse me?" Niamh shook her head.

"I don't have time for you anymore."

"Very well then," Niamh addressed sharply, then leaving Jared's view.

Jared dropped his gaze from that are to see William, Tyler, and Jonah all out of their rooms, staring down the hall at him.

~~~~~
Rachel observed as Niamh came into their room furiously, slamming the door behind herself.

"Are you alright?" Rachel asked.

"Do I look alright?" Niamh responded sarcastically. "I'd kill him if I had the chance."

"You're not killing anyone," Rachel demanded. "Niamh, what's up?"

Niamh collapsed on her bed and stared at the ceiling, her hands overlapping her stomach. "I just...don't want to be at this school anymore."

~~~~~
Jonah caught up with Sarah a few days later with a new idea on his mind about the riddle. He met up with her at the dining table in the morning, sooner than any of the others had come for breakfast. Jonah whispered to her outside earshot of Mr. Rainier who was in the kitchen.

"Okay, so I was thinking that maybe the riddle meant we'd have to look into the sky at sunrise or sunset, hence 'skies of fire'," Jonah explained.

"But what about the reflection?" Sarah inquired. "What's a mirror of twelvefold?"

"Do you have the pocket watch?"

Sarah reached into her bag and pulled it out, handing it to Jonah. He opened it up and examined the worn inside. Noticing the needles which no longer moved.

"Wait a minute," Sarah took the pocket watch back.

She fiddled with it a bit until the cover lens came popping off. She used the knife at the table to wedge beneath the actual face of the watch. It eventually came off and beneath was a mirror, still with the Roman numerals labeled around the circle.

"You're a genius," Jonah complimented.

"Well it was broken a bit, and I thought I saw something glint underneath," Sarah shrugged.

"Getting a little intimate here, are we?" Jared had just come in, shortly followed by the others.

"Not at all," Sarah denied.

"Then what is going on here?" Jared interrogated, his eyes falling on the pocket watch parts.

Sarah took them and cupped them in her hands. "Nothing, Jared..." She then made eye contact with Jonah and nodded her head toward the door.

She and Jonah stood to their feet and grabbed their things just as the others were sitting down.

"You're leaving already?" Lucille asked Sarah, raising her eyebrows.

"I'm sorry," Sarah apologized. "We'll catch up in chemistry."

~~~~~
And that is yet another chapter for you all! I hope you enjoyed it, and here are the discussion questions:

Do you think Niamh and Jared will make up?

So, it was just one discussion question, but oh well. That's all I have to offer at this time, so until next time Aristocrats!