The Animals Have Come to Play (Completed) (unedited)

Long Lost Son

(Chapter 26: Long Lost Son)

Leander and I returned back to Cynric and the old man back in human form and completely dressed. The old man turned from starting at the waterfall to give us a narrowed look.

"Good now I can see your faces, and we can communicate effectively," he told us before gesturing us towards him. "Hurry up, you're so slow!" he complained. I picked my speed up to an awkward walk-jog. I stopped when I was close enough to him and stood next to Cynric.

"So, are you the guy from the Kadel family? The one that Nora has contact with?" Leander asked as he strolled up to my side. The man turned his attention towards him.

"Yup! Good ol' Nora," he paused for a moment. "You kids don't expect me to bring anyone alive right? I'm not following down that same path, no sir-ree! My father was too impulsive," he added in. The three of us shared a look.

"You said you were expecting us? Shouldn't you know what we need?" I asked in confusion. The man gave me a glare. He put his hands on his hips.

"Of course I know the reason as to why you are here! Why wouldn't I know? You're here to see the library. You have things you need to find. Some just don't know it yet," he said, tacking the last cryptic sentence at the end.

"Then why did you bring up bringing someone back to life?" Cynric asked him. The old man scratched his butt before interlacing his fingers and stretching his arms.

"My name's Alaric," the old man called out, stretching his hands above his head before bringing them back to his side.

"That doesn't answe-" Cynric started but was interrupted by Alaric who shoved a finger into Cynric's face.

"Impatience is the root of all your problems. You can't force life to give you answers, but must let them unfold before you," Alaric explained, poking Cynric's nose a few times. Leander snickered before leaning over my head towards Cynric.

"That's from the hand he scratched his butt with." Cynric's nose curled in disgust as he bent his head to rub his nose on his sleeve.

"I'm not forcing life to tell me anything. I'm asking you," Cynric said back to the lunatic of an old man.

"I'm not telling you," Alaric sang out, skipping over to Leander.

"You're the spitting image of your grandfather," he stated, gripping Leander's shoulders and giving them a squeeze. Leander glanced at one of his hands before grabbing Alaric's wrists and moving them off.

"Which one?" Leander asked in a bored tone, shoving his hand into his pockets. Alaric gave him a look that said he was irritated.

"The dog one," Alaric snapped sarcastically, rolling his eyes as he turned around. "Which one?" he mimicked Leander under his breath as he walked away before adding a "Pah!" at the end. He once again stood at the base of the water, his legs spread out wide as he rested his hands on his hips. He breathed in deeply.

"Uhm, Alaric?" I called out hesitantly. He twisted his torso towards the side so he could look at me.

"Oh, that feels good!" he exclaimed, starting to stretch his back as he switched sides.

"Do you think we can head to the library now?" I questioned, expecting it to fall on deaf ears. Alaric froze.

"Oh! You're right!" he said before diving head first into the pond. We all shared an exasperated look, waiting for the old man to come back up.

He didn't.

After a few minutes, I began to get worried. I walked to the water's edge, peering into it to see if I could see him. A dead body hadn't floated back up yet. Suddenly a wet hand grabbed my ankle yanking me in. I let out a loud scream as my body got enveloped in water. Water sucked into my mouth, filling my lungs. I kicked towards the surface, coughing and sputtering.

"Ari!" I heard my name being yelled and looked up to see the distraught faces of Leander and Cynric.

"I'm okay!" I managed out between coughs. "I think," I added.

"Well, what are you two guys waiting for?! Get in!" Alaric said from behind me in annoyance.

"What were you thinking?! You don't just pull someone into some water without warning! They could get seriously hurt!" Cynric reprimanded Alaric. Cynric reached his hand out for me to take, but I was jerked back in the water from behind.

"Get. In." Alaric dangerously commanded. Both boys watched him with furious eyes as they slipped into the water. Once they were in, I was released. "There! Was that so hard?" Alaric asked in a condescending tone.

"Now come on!" He dove under water. I looked at the two boys before shrugging and following after him.

I breathed in deeply before plunging under. I timidly opened my eyes, expected to feel stinging, but found nothing. I pushed forward, following after the blurry body of Alaric. The water was filled with the sound of a dull roar. When Alaric started swimming upwards, I quickly trailed after him. We breached the surface, the deafening sound of the waterfall behind me.

I turned around, wiping water from my eyes to see the sheen of water covering the mouth of a cave, spraying droplets in every direction. I turned back around, seeing Alaric on a stone platform. I hoisted myself onto the edge as Cynric's and Leander's heads popped out of the water. They mimicked my movements, throwing themselves onto the stony ground. I stood up, and I noticed how Alaric was watching us. I froze instantly, remembering something I probably shouldn't have forgotten.

"Oh my god! I forgot about my phone being in my back pocket!" I wailed as I grabbed for the electronic device instantly. Alaric waved his hand dismissively, and I watched as all the water that soaked into my phone gathered onto the top of the screen before evaporating. My jaw unhinged itself as I turned the phone on, and I saw it worked completely fine

"Right, before we head in, we better dry up!" he exclaimed happily, acting like nothing happened. He clapped his hands once. A sudden gust surged into the cavern, instantly clinging to my body and drying my clothing. I slipped my phone back into my pocket instinctually. Both boys climbed to their feet slowly, looking down at their clothing to find it dry.

"Great! Let's go!" he called, beckoning us to follow him by waving his hand. This time, without hesitation, I walked after him. I heard the footsteps of the boys behind me.

At the end of the short, hallway-like passage, we came to a rounded wooden door. It was a dark color, with a golden colored handle along with golden weavings that matched the ones on Alaric's necklace.

Alaric reached his hand down to the handle, pushing it down to swing the door open. It opened without a sound.