Pandora's Box

Chapter three

The music is thumping
The chatters echo through the woods.
Sounds of clinking glasses and plates get louder as you near the bonfire.
The party.

"Go I can't believe you're already 17. It feels like just yesterday I was teaching Sonii how to translate Wiccan to English." Lilli reminisces in the past. Her glassy heterochromic eyes fixed on the twins. She's looks as if she's experiencing a flash of images of the twins through the years.

"And Sol was learning how to carve." Toni puts his arm around Lilli and they really look like a proud but dysfunctional mom and dad.

"You know, I would've thought we'd be on some mythical quest by now. Since you're you." June adds while sipping her wine cooler. Her grey hair hangs over her face, hiding her expressions from the rest of the group.

"Why a quest?" Sol questions, tilting his head in curiosity. His brown eyes become fired up as they reflect the image of the flames.

"It's just that you two are so different. I mean, apart from Wiccan, we can control one element. You two and control all four. I would've expected you to be on a mission to save the world by now." June explains, her eyes fixed on the flames. Her tone imply she's bored or possibly tired.

"I'd prefer staying here like this. We're difference by I don't think it's that unusual. I mean we all are quite different." Sonii adds her opinion. She won't admit that she is regarded as "special" and neither will Sol. They took a particular liking towards a single element so that it they would fit in. Now they rarely openly summon the power of all elements.

"Come on, this is supposed to be a party. Anyone need a refill?" Kai whines from the box of ice holding the drinks. His voice is high and his movements are shaky. He starts shaking his seaweed hair to the beat of the music which is odd since he rarely ever dances.

"I swear you've gone over your limit again." Milo scolds and rolls his eyes towards Kai. He clearly notices Kai's odd way of walking. It's obvious he started drinking beforehand.

"Argh! The fire's going low again." June presses her lips in annoyance.
"I'm on it." Sol offers to go and get some wood that Toni left at the house earlier in the day.
"I'll join you." Sonii offers. It's not out of the blue, she always helps whenever there's work but this time she has an ulterior motive. She wants to talk to her brothers about the so called "dream".

"Sol there's something that's bothering me and I don't know what to make of it." She starts off as soon as they're far enough that the others won't hear. She's got a sense of fear in her voice that makes Sol uneasy.

"What's wrong?" Sol eyes are focused on her.

She tells him everything about her experience during the day, adding the fact that the burnt twigs were lying on the kitchen counter, as her climax. She reveals how she felt that something was off ever since then.

Sol tells her how he fell asleep and saw a girl walking through a dark passageway in his dream. It was too dark to tell but this story matches up to his dream.

"Do you think it's something bad?" She asks, her voice quivers.

Sol stays silent for a moment to think and as soon as he looks ready to talk, his eyes catch sight of the empty driveway.
"Didn't James say they'll be home by 10? It's way past and..." he loses his train of thought as he runs towards the door.

"The house looks perfectly fine. Maybe they lost track of time. Or even got a bit too tipsy." Sonii suggests in attempt to calm down her brother.

"Sonii, when have they ever been late? We've been here our entire lives and not once were they late for anything." Sol runs upstairs to see if anything is out of the ordinary and Sonii moves towards the kitchen. It's then she sees it and she yells out to her brother, "Sol, I think you better get down here!"

Sol rushes down as he hears his sister only to find her staring at the darkness of a passageway with its entrance in their kitchen. Just like Sonii said.

"You want to check it out?" Sol asks attentively to his sister's emotional state. She nods her head and moves towards the darkness in sync with Sol.

And just like before as soon as their feet crossed the entrance, the passage entrance shut and they were caged in the darkness. They walk closely together in silence, following the steps Sonii took the last time. They reached the room at the end and saw the sheet-covered object once more.

Sol moved towards the sheet as if to pull it off but before his fingertips were close enough, he heard some sort of unnatural growling behind him. His first instinct was to pull his sister behind him before even looking at whatever monster they would have to face.