The Vault

8 - Little Sister

In the year 1859 Oscar Logan Ashford had befriended a mysterious stranger who communicated with him through letters. Posting was a different issue. It was free and fast effect and through a very odd contraption, the vault in his bedroom.

Oscar sat by the piano and looked over his new friend's appalling handwriting. Freya Telford claimed she was from the future and was currently living in his very home and in his very own bedroom. He tried to shake the idea out of his mind. Having contact with the future is black magic, sorcery, he thought, something that cannot happen in reality, but deep down Oscar always longed for something abnormal to happen, something that could help him to be free from his boring daily routine. But what if it is true, he thought. What if Freya Telford could connect me to the outside world?

He marched to and fro in his bedroom. But no one would ever believe me? How can they? They will think that I have the devil within me? He grabbed the letters and wobbled away a loose floorboard near the right side of the piano. He placed her letters, wrapped in a black ribbon, into a metal box and placed it inside the hollow floor.

As he stood there was a knock at the door. His little sister Helene walked in and sat on his bed, never letting go of her expensive China doll. Oscar smiled at his sister for she was always acting as if she was the older one.

"Oscar dear," she said, extending her arm out to him. "I found something. It was in my vault and it clearly does not belong to me."

Oscar looked at the strange contraption. With a click of the centre button it came alive and a strange monstrous sound came through, what appeared to be from two small circled shapes connected by a long flexible wire.

"Is it yours?" Helene asked with eyes wide open. Oscar nodded. "But what is it?" she asked

Across the device the screen read Eminem - Lose Yourself. He looked at his sister. "It belongs to a friend of mine. I shall return it back to her."

Helene gave a cheeky smile as she stood upon his bed. "And does you friend, who I presume is a girl, have a name? Do I know her? Is it Harriet's?"

He picked her up, though a little heavier he managed to place her on his side hip.

"You my dear ask a large number of questions that sometimes I don't have the answer to."

She looked sceptically at her brother. "I will not tell Mother, or heaven forbid Father."

He took her to her room. "Have you found anything else that does not belong to you?"

She nodded as she jumped to the floor. She opened her vault and found a pair of socks. "It smells awful; must be Victor's."

Oscar chuckled as he poked his head into the vault. I wonder if this vault is as enchanted as mine, he thought.

"Is something wrong with my secret treasure?" she asked with a frown upon her face. "Because some of my little toy ponies have gone to."

Oscar picked her up again. "Do not worry little Helene. Your ponies will come back to you. I will have Gustavo look into it."

Helene huffed, placing a hand over her eye. "Gustavo has only one eye. How can he see?"

He laughed. "He will not be alone. I will help him out. Helene, promise me that you will not tell anyone about this, not even Victor."

"And what shall I get in return? It's an awfully big secret to keep to oneself."

Oscar thought for a moment. "I will by you Belgium chocolate."

"And?"

"And the most expensive china doll."

Helene nodded enthusiastically.