Balloons (Wattys2017)

Chapter 7

Sparrow woke up the next morning, determined and extremely excited. She rushed out again, running to the town as fast as she could. She needed to get Nomed, there was no way she could do this on her own.

Plus, she may have found his missing sister. Sparrow rushed to the white painted house and knocked on the door. Opening the door was a very tall, skinny woman with ratty hair and deep bags under her eyes. She glared at Sparrow, who stayed confident when she spoke.

"I would like to see Nomed, please." Sparrow said politely. The woman stared at Sparrow, before spitting on the ground beside Sparrow's foot and coughing.

"Nomed! There's some girl that wants to see you!" The woman yelled hoarsely. She walked off and the sound of footsteps fast approaching (and a tumble or two) signalled that Nomed was in a huge rush to get to the door.

"S-Sparrow, y-you're here! Y-you're alive!" Nomed exclaimed, hugging her tightly. Sparrow gasped slightly and hugged back.

"Nomed, I need to tell you something." Sparrow said. Nomed let go of her and looked at her.

"W-what is it?" He asked. Sparrow looked around to see if his mother was anywhere before she began speaking.

"I think found your missing sister." Sparrow began. Nomed's eyes widened in shock.

"W-what?! Really?" Nomed asked in shock, looking behind Sparrow. Sparrow pushed Nomed back slightly.

"Yes, but not with me. I think she may have fallen for the Daemon's trap." Sparrow said softly. Nomed's eyes went wide again, tears forming.

"S-so....s-she's..." Tears slipped down Nomed's cheeks. Sparrow hugged him gently.

"I'm so sorry, Nomed." Sparrow spoke. Nomed hugged Sparrow back, clenching the back of her shirt tightly. Nomed pulled away, wiping his eyes quickly.

"I-it's ok....just m-means we need t-to show the D-Daemon what w-were made of, r-right?" Nomed said, trying to make themself sound confident. Sparrow smiled warmly and nodded her head.

"Yeah, it does. I need your help with something." Sparrow began. Nomed tilted his head slightly.

"O-ok, with w-what?" Nomed asked.

"How to trick the Daemon. I recently found out that the girls in the boarding school are the ghosts of the Daemon's victims." Sparrow said. Nomed jumped back slightly before nodding.

"O-ok. D-do you have a-a plan?" He asked her. Sparrow thought before answering.

"Not entirely, but I'm sure it'll work." Sparrow stated shrugging her shoulders. Nomed gulped before nodding.

"W-we should d-discuss this a-at the candy s-shop." Nomed suggested.

Just as Nomed said, both met once again in the afternoon at the candy shop. The owner was more than happy to let them stay (and have some free candy). He was thin and was wearing his striped uniform. His icy blue eyes were welcoming to anyone really, and his blonde hair was nearly hidden under his hat.

"Ok, so. The girls told me that the Daemon enjoys games, and I need to find the balloons that hold their souls so they can leave the school." Sparrow explained. Nomed nodded his head, listening while chewing the ear of a large gummy bear.

"S-so, your p-plan is to m-make a game w-where the p-prize for y-you is f-freedom?" Nomed asked as he chewed the ear piece he was able to tear off. Sparrow nodded and placed a chocolate piece in her mouth.

"Yeah, I'd just need you to help me. The ghosts will most likely be hidden, you're good at finding things right?" Sparrow asked. Nomed shrugged his shoulders slightly, biting the other ear.