Mary Poppins: Practically Perfect

Chapter Five: Silence and Secrets

It's been a while guys, what with exams and Christmas and a whole load of writers' block but FINALLY I have a new update for you! Enjoy and tell me what you think in the comments. Bye! writersblog x

Terror claims people in various ways. The twins had come out of their hiding place and now stood with the torchlight eerily lighting up their eyes; they were staring at each other, both of them searching the other for answers. I couldn't see Belinda from inside my hiding place, but I didn't have to. I think her wailing could be heard on the third floor.

As for me, I sat in my cupboard, not moving, not daring to breathe. At home, when I got scared, I'd yell at whatever was frightening me. But you can't fight the darkness and you definitely can't fight people two floors above your head. So I sat in the cupboard, in complete, soul-crushing silence.

Silence until the twins laughed, that is. Not just a laugh, more of a queer cackle. If my face could have been seen in the darkness, you could see confusion written all over it. Belinda stopped wailing. I peered out of my cupboard and saw, with the little light that the torch offered us, that Belinda had also revealed her hiding place; I could see half of her body poking out from behind a decorative wall tapestry.

I slowly pulled myself out of the cupboard, standing up and brushing the dirt off of my clothes. Cautiously, I began walking over to the twins who creepily turned in unison and stared at me with the same devious, green eyes.

"I-I'm sorry," I started. "Am I missing something here?"

"Oh, Mary," laughed Tilly. "What's the issue?"

"Yeah, isn't this fun?" Tina exclaimed, her snake-like eyes glowing in the light of the torch.

"We are trapped in a freezing cold secret room under the school!" I yelled. My voice bounced off the walls and I was sure I heard the faint sound of a few bricks crumbling in the distance. But the possible threat of a complete cave-in didn't stop me from continuing, "Which, may I add, we have only been in for four hours!"

That was it. Fresh start ruined. Temper well and truly blown.

Yet the twins still smiled. I began to wonder when on Earth our inevitable death would dawn on them when Tilly said something which made Belinda come running out from behind the tapestry to join us and my heart start pumping blood triple time.

"But, Mary. Who's ever heard of a secret room without a few secret passages?"

Silence. Not the bloodcurdling type. Sheer, fresh, beautiful silence, brought on by two girls filled with such excitement they could have flown right off the ground. My jaw dropped. Belinda grasped my hand so tightly, I could no longer feel my fingers. We both just looked at the twins with the exact same intensity they were giving us.

"So, shall we go?" Tina said slowly, as if we were brain-dead, which, at that particular moment, we were.

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Five minutes later, the four of us were hurtling down a stone passageway Tina had unveiled from behind a golden statue, our footsteps reveberating off of the walls. For the first time in my life, I threw caution to the wind and ran for my life, tailing the twins, down a secret tunnel which looked as if it could fall on us at any moment. Belinda was sprinting, close behind me, panting like a dog. We ran for what seemed like years, until all of a sudden the twins stopped. It took all the strength I had not to crash straight into them. Belinda's reactions were not so quick and she fell on top of me, both of us landing in a heap on the cold, hard floor. Half-drunk on a combination of excitement and serious fatigue, we immediately burst out laughing.

"Shhhhhhh!" Tilly and Tina glared at us with wide eyes.

"We are right outside the Headmistress' office!" Tilly whispered and I noticed she had a rusty brown door handle clasped in her hand. Looking up, I saw a small wooden door, which looked as if it hadn't been opened in decades.