No Rest for the Wicked

2

"She's young. Naive." Lucille said, gently stroking the keys of the piano, no sound emerging.

"And temperamental." Thomas replied, standing... Well, floating next to his sister.

"She completely changed this place. Our place."

"It's not our place anymore. It was halfway to rot before she fixed it. Even I can tell it's warmer."

"I'll give her some credit; she removed that awful portrait of Mother. It stared holes into me for years." Lucille almost seemed to sadly sigh. "It's been so lonely..."

As soon as the siblings had died, the spirits haunting Allerdale finally vanished. They were at peace after years of torment, unable to let go of the mortal realm because of their rage. No Enola, no Lady Beatrice... Just the Sharpe siblings alone haunting the house they had a hard time letting go of. Now they could never leave.

"Do you regret it?" Thomas asked suddenly. Lucille glanced at her brother before pursing her lips.

"I..." She sighed, not finishing her thought. "Has it really been 119 years?"

"That's what the girl had said. A lot changed in a century."

"She wears short pants. And she spoke of starting a job in two weeks time. And of buying her own automobile. And her language..."

"I'm dead, not blind, I saw all of it. Maybe we can learn from her."

"Pardon?"

"Learn more about what the world is like now. Lucille, think about it. We've been stuck here for years with only each other. The girl is nothing like Edith."

"Apparently a lot can change in a century, but you're still on that little bitch after all this time, I see." Lucille scoffed. Thomas opted to ignore the comment.

"Apparently Edith's been dead for 45 years." Thomas said.

"So why are we not away from this place? She killed me and I..." Lucille opted to not finish the thought.

"We were wicked in life, dear sister. Murder, lies, deceit, laying with each other is just what's on the surface."

"We had no one but each other and I don't regret any of it."

"And that's the problem." Thomas muttered, Lucille ignoring him.

"Hell would be a blessing at this point, I think." She replied.

"This is our own personal hell. Maybe we can make it better if we get to know the girl, maybe even befriend her."

"What makes you think I'd be willing to do that?"

"Some form of repenting? She's loud-mouthed and the least lady-like woman I've seen, but she has a good soul. If she somehow takes a liking to one or both of us, perhaps it would show we're not irredeemable."

Lucille thought about it. And the more she did, the more she realized she had to do something. Living... Well, not living, technically, but remaining in their current state was eating away at her. She was almost losing her mind. Sighing, she nodded.

"We reveal ourselves to her tonight. Actually... You do it first. Get her comfortable before I come along. She doesn't believe in ghosts, so we may as well force her to do so."