Brontide

Chapter Two

I'd never seen another house like it. Unstable as it was, it had an air of familiarity, feelings of homeliness and welcoming that I would never forget. There must've been a good five or six floors, and standing not too far in front of it I felt miniscule in size. I just couldn't understand how a house like this even existed. It looked as though it'd started off as a one-story house and then other floors were simply built on top of it.

I was very tempted to find out who lived in such a place, so tempted that I made my way up to the front door. The curtains were drawn shut but I could see lights inside, the sounds of voices carrying and people chatting over a dinner table, most likely. There were a lot of them from what I could tell, mostly consisting of children. 

This furthered my interest in the strange house. I thought perhaps I could become friends with them, or maybe I already knew them from school. My hand hovered in front of the door, prepared to knock when I let out a long sigh. I took a few steps back, deciding against it at the last minute. However, I would return. I would definitely return.

A few days later, when my mother finally let me go outside again, I retraced my steps and eventually showed up at the house again. This time I went during the day, feeling more confident about my approach and knocking promptly on the door. It was about a minute before I heard scuffling around inside, the door opening to reveal a middle-aged woman with mid-length red hair and a kind face, a shawl draped over her shoulders. She looked more than a little confused to see me, her brows furrowing a little.

"Hello, dear, are you lost?" she asked quietly, blocking my view of the inside of her house.

"Um, hi,'' I said nervously, "my name's Cassiopeia Bains, but you can just call me Cassie. I sort of stumbled into your house a few days ago and I just thought I'd say hello. I live a few hills that way." I pointed in the direction of my house, over the paddy that was situated on their front lawn.

The woman looked very uneasy. "Well, it's nice to meet you, Cassie. I'm afraid I can't talk right now, I'm a little busy." She paused. "Please don't wander so far from home, alright? Your mother must be worried sick. Be careful, now,'' she said, starting to close the door.

Without really meaning to, I stepped closer to the entrance. "Wait!"

She hesitated, holding the door almost completely shut. "Yes?"

"I don't mean to intrude, but...what is this place?" I inquired, looking up at the tall structure.

The woman didn't answer me right away. "What did you say your last name was, dear?"

"Bains," I responded, wondering what that had to do with anything, "my last name is Bains."

She was muttering things to herself, something about the "Diggorys" and the "Lovegoods" living nearby, both names I'd never heard before. I was beginning to think that I should head home, that I shouldn't have trespassed on this woman's property.

"I think I'll go home now, I'm sorry for bothering you," I apologized, turning on my heel and starting to walk away.

"Cassie,  wait just a moment!" she called. "Please do come in, I've just put some cookies in the oven."

I hesitated, examining the woman before me. I remembered what my mum always said about going into stranger's houses, how if anything ever happened to me she'd be mortified. The funny thing was this woman reminded me a lot of my mother, more so how she was before my grandmother died. She seemed very kind and welcoming.

"Alright."

***

I followed the woman inside, finding myself in her kitchen. The smell of cookies baking hit me in the face and my stomach growled, reminding me that I didn't eat breakfast. There was a long table set that could seat about nine or ten people, making me even more curious about the people who lived there. You could see the sitting area from the kitchen where there were big, comfy-looking sofas and a fireplace.