The Connection (House Of Anubis)

[Chapter Seventy-Seven]

"No," Fabian shouted as they watched Amber and Patricia fall through the board. Amelia stumbled forward as she held onto the wall to help keep her balance. Her head began to throb, so she decided to sit down as Joy climbed down from her spot on the makeshift throne.

"What's the point of asking for my help if you're not gonna listen to me," Joy hissed as she stopped at the front of the board. Fabian began to stutter, "O-o look, I got it wrong okay." "Wrong; Fabian this isn't chess! If we make a mistake someone falls through the floor." "Don't you think I know that! I feel bad enough as it is," he shouted back. "So, you should," Joy shot back as she glared at him.

"None of them have signed up for this! Even Victor chickened out when he knew what the stakes were!" "No, anyway who knows what would've happened if we would've done your move," Fabian sassed back. They could both feel their anger rising and Amelia was in too much pain to try and stop them.

"Worst case scenario we'd have lost Amber. But I would've had two players playing this game instead of one!" "You always have to be right and rub everyone else's noses in it, don't you? And you know why? It's 'cause you're a bully and a control freak!" "Yeah, well you're a geek and a coward." The two began to shout insults at each other as Amelia slowly rose up from her seat on the ground. "You're a witch," "Doormat."

"Will you both just shut the hell up," Amelia groaned as she leaned her back up against the makeshift throne. They both turned around toward her, both of them having forgotten that the girl had also been down there with them. "You two screaming at each other is not helping anything, and it sure as heck isn't going to get our friends back. So just stop yelling and figure this out because I am tired of all of this, and I just want my friends back."

They both sighed before turning back to face each other. "So, what do we do now," Joy asked Fabian. "I don't really think we have much of a choice, do we? Joy, I'm sorry," he apologized. "Okay let's do this," she huffed as she headed back toward the makeshift throne and climbed up it. "Joy just take a few deep breaths. I believe in you and I know you've got this. And Fabian, just think positive and trust what Joy says. I know this is going to be the one that gets us to the end; I can feel it," Amelia smiled.

Fabian re-positioned himself on the board while Joy looked over her notes. After a few steps Fabian was a step away from being right in front of the Victor statue. "Okay, we're getting there," he sighed as he turned toward Joy to wait for her next instruction. "Easy Indiana, your next move will have you land on one of those danger squares by Victor." "I thought you had it figured out," he exclaimed with wide eyes.

Joy shrugged her shoulders, "It was a hunch, that's all. His moves could be completely random, impossible to predict!" "Joy, come on you can do this," he reassured her, but she just shook her head as tears sprung to her eyes. "What if I'm wrong?" "Hey, hey you got me all this way! You're good at this." Amelia reached up and grabbed a hold of Joy's hand, giving it a small squeeze as a sign that she was there for her.

"Now, okay tell me the moves you had planned. I won't do them, I promise," Fabian lied. "I just wanna know what they were." "One forward, the one right, then two forward," she recited as she looked over the board. Fabian turned back around and did the exact moves that Joy had just recited to him. Joy immediately jumped out of her seat and ran down the steps as Amelia followed behind her.

"Fabian no," Joy cried as they all silently stood and waited to see what was about to happen. Once all the statues turned and none of them landed on Fabian, who took one step forward that caused him to be off the board. They had officially beaten the game. Joy wrapped her arms around Amelia and they both cried as Fabian began to cheer, "Yes!" They watched as the statues all turned forward and fell down through the board, all of them completely disappearing.