House of Anubis: Triad of Memphis

House of Flames/House of Returns

Before the place was lit on fire, Niamh pulled out her phone and frantically texted William, the first to come to mind and her most recent contact. She gave up mid-text, deleted it all, and shoved it in her bag as she realized he couldn't have done anything, especially not make it in time.

"Place the candle there," she heard Mr. Owen say. After a clank on the floor, Niamh heard the click of a lighter. "Now, let it burn."

Niamh went back up to the railing, this time up on her feet and leaning over to see the fire following the trails of gasoline weaved all over the floor. Sh could already feel the heat wavering in the library, and she rubbed her temples to decipher what she would do. She heard a car engine outside and figured it was those three pulling off.

She took a great risk and headed down the spiral steps down toward the flame. She stayed in the paths that the fire hadn't caught to yet in hopes of reaching the door, but unfortunately it was blocked of by an entire barrier of flame. She headed back the other way, coming to the wall. She caught sight of the bookcase, slightly propped open from the wall. Niamh made the connection in her mind and glanced back at the increasing fire as she pulled out the bookcase further to see a small square through which she could crawl through. She knelt down and went through and pulled the bookcase back in to shield her. She stayed down on the floor but crawled a few feet away and then collapsed down on the cold stone ground.

~~~~~
Meanwhile at the school, theater rehearsal was still going on. Several scenes needed practice according to Me. Duval, and they couldn't overestimate the time they had to prepare. Rachel had gone to talk to Mr. Duval for some time during the end of rehearsal and returned to William with big news.

She gripped his arm as she told him. "I just found out that on the day and night of the play is when parents come to visit! They're going to make an announcement eventually, but we're the first to know."

"Parents?" William repeated. "Aw, this is terrible. Now they're going to share more stories about how everything here makes them nostalgic and-" William kept rambling whilst he thought of another view on this matter. If his parents did come, they could help him and Niamh with what they had gotten themselves into. They knew the school well enough. "-this is amazeballs!"

"A-amazeballs?" Rachel chuckled.

"I picked it up from someone," William admitted with a smile.

Rachel shrugged her eyebrows. "Well anyway, we have one more scene to rehearse and then we're done for the day."

William nodded.

~~~~~
Niamh had her bag slumped over her shoulder and instead of heading further into the tunnels, she headed in the direction toward Anubis house, not knowing that's where it was leading, but exploring nevertheless. She noticed many things that seemed they had once been put into use but worked no longer. She came across the chasm though, where a beam stretched across and swinging pendulums sliced the air with every fall.

"You've got to be kidding me," Niamh breathed.

She then noticed something down at the wall, perhaps to lead to a secret passage of its own. She knelt down and pushed it in and glanced back over at the chasm when she failed to hear the pendulums anymore, seeing that they had stopped. It was as though she had found the trigger, but whatever the reason was, she was glad. She peered back through the net she had pushed open to see dirt having fallen and blocking a path. She stood back up on her feet and continued to the chasm. She tossed her bag across the way to alleviate the offset and crossed the beam.

She eventually came to a bookcase, just there at the end of a tunnel. She pushed and tugged at it and even kicked it before thinking about tugging at the books themselves. Niamh had seen the Addams Family enough to know how this worked. She began pulling at books until one in particular made it revolve. She continued into the Frobisher study. She studied a few things here and there, but she eventually found the button on the wall, pressed it, and stepped out through the sliding wall/bookshelf. She glanced around and had her suspicions that it was the cellar to Anubis house though she'd never been down in it before.

She ascended the stairs and opened the door as quietly as she could, then shut it behind her, and that was when she realized she was back in Anubis house.

She was still standing in front of the door when Jared had come out of the living room with her diary in hand. He froze at the sight of her, and she laid her eyes on her property that he was holding.

"You stole it?!" she went up to him and yanked it from his hands.

"Why is there soot all over you?" Jared asked.

Niamh glanced down at herself and felt her face, not realizing how much soot had gotten on her from the library. She flaunted the diary in his face to distract him from it. "Why did you steal this?!"

"I-"

As of convenient timing, Lucille came out the girls' hall and looked down from the railing to see the events taking place. Jared glanced up at her briefly and returned to Niamh.

He continued, "I'm sorry...I did steal it, and I'm sorry. I-I-I don't know why, but I didn't read it."

Niamh recalled what she had found out of Jared earlier. She shoved the diary in her bag and hoped to manage out the words that she believes him, and that she forgives him, but instead it just came out as, "Whatever."

She turned toward the stairs to head up them.

"Sorry," Jared mentioned again.

Niamh stopped with one foot on a stair as a flurry of mixed emotions rushed through her. She just wanted to turn around and assure him that it was okay, but at the same time, she wanted to slap herself for thinking such a thing. He didn't deserve her sympathy and yet she was giving him that. He didn't deserve her heart and yet she was giving him that.

~~~~~
Mhm, so this is the next chapter for you all! I hope you enjoyed all that happened in it, and here are some discussion questions.

Do you think Niamh will go back into the cellar?

Do you think Niamh will tell Jared how she really feels? And should she?

Until next time, Aristocrats!