KOTLC Halloween

Part 2 (Sophie)

                                                                    One week later

       Sophie licked the strip on her locker and got the foul taste of pure salt in return. She didn't know why they still let Elwin pick the flavors. She yanked open her locker, wishing she had a cup of water to wash out the salt. An envelope sat inside, resting on the top of her small stack of schoolbooks. She stared at it apprehensively. She hadn't gotten a letter from the Black Swan in over a year. She didn't see why they would start leaving them again. After all, she was a sworn member now. She tentatively reached in and picked it up.

       Scrawled in a strange kind of ink that seemed to change colors as she read it, her name was written. The envelope looked quite a bit like the human envelopes she had seen in the Forbidden Cities, with a rectangle shape and a triangular opening that was glued shut. She ripped it open and saw an ordinary sheet of white paper and a small, clear leaping crystal inside.

       Find your way to the center and you'll get your sweet reward.

       You wouldn't want to stay away; I cannot be ignored.

       Come on the eve of the seventh day

       Find some excuse to get away

       Arrive on your own, leave feeling home,

       And never forget where you're from

       She frowned. The letter didn't make any sense. The only part she felt she had understood was the middle. She supposed that she was supposed to use the leaping crystal in the envelope in the evening in exactly a week, and that she was supposed to go by herself. That alone felt impossible. Even now, Sandor was standing behind her, watching the people passing in the halls with a threatening gaze, as though he expected one of them to try and attack. The only time she was alone was when she went to the bathroom, and even then, Sandor stood watch outside the door.

        She blinked. Was this what she had come to? She hadn't even deciphered most of the letter and she was already figuring out how she was going to get away from her bodyguard. She quickly tucked the letter into her bag, making sure to act as normal as she could so that Sandor wouldn't put a stop to any future plans before they were even made.

        She decided that she would go. It wasn't the most reckless thing she had done, and she knew how to defend herself now. She had been training endlessly with Sandor and was very proud of her progress. All through the rest of the school day, she made plans for how she would get past Sandor and what she would bring with her. She would wear the outfit Flori had made for her and stock the pockets full of goblin throwing stars and daggers. Smaller blades were her favorites.