• Chapter 4
    In the Dead of Night


    The air smelled like dampened lavender, laundry detergent and there were faint wisps of slightly burnt cheese. The night was uncannily quiet except for the duet of muffled snores coming from opposite ends of the house. It was dark tonight, thanks to the overcast, but it was best to stick to the shadows. Even on evenings like this, it was dangerous to be out.

    There was the faintest tapping sound as he scurried across the tile and into the safety of the dark, carpeted dining room. The sound of snoring had become louder and more distinct but that wasn’t what interested him. As a static charge ran over his lean body, all his hairs stood up on end. He could feel it pulling him. Calling for him to come to it.

    His nose twitched as the smell of morning mist and ancient moss filled it. With a second to spare, he stopped and ducked into a dark pit of shadow behind some curtains. From his hiding spot he could see a shadow pass in front of the peeking moon. All his senses heightened immediately and his heart raced uncontrollably. Danger was a rush unlike any other but it was also a burden at times.

    After taking a few breaths, he rushed to the next safe haven under the table. The hall beyond the doorway had no places for him to hide. So it would be a straight dash for the room where the pendent was calling for him. There was some more rustling and he held his breath, imagining himself invisible. Being caught was not an option. When the sound faded he sucked in a deep breath, gathered his nerves, and ran for it.

    He was silent as he moved across the carpet but even though he was moving at top speed, the doors didn’t seem to pass him fast enough. Hot, ragged pants rushed out of his nostrils and gaping mouth. As the door came near, he looked at it in dismay. It was closed.

    Open you damn door! Open! OPEN! There was a small click and the door cracked open ever so slightly. That was all he needed though because he now had adrenaline and the mortal peril on his side. With one great leap he jumped toward the crack, making it wing open about half a foot.

    One of his feet got caught on the carpet when and he began tumbling, rolling across the cushioned carpet. When he finally came to a stop, it took him a few minutes to catch his bearing. Deep, reverberating snores racked his sensitive ears and he had to shake his head a few times to get rid of the ringing that came afterwards. By the time he had accomplished that, his eyes had adjusted and they were drawn immediately toward the target of this suicide mission.

    The cold gold shone dimly on the girl’s slowly rising and falling chest. There it was! The thing he desired most was there, around a weak , sleeping girl’s neck. It would be so easy to just take it! Forgetting about the danger he had faced only moments earlier, he scampered over to the bed. He made it up, onto the bed easily thanks to the sheets. A smile warped his whiskered face.

    Then the snores halted for a moment and the bed shook as the human below adjusted positions. He waited until the bed settled a bit before carefully making his way over the folds to where she laid. Her head was turned toward him and her face held a pained and fearful expression. She obviously was suffering a nightmare. Which would actually make this easier, since she would be far too wrapped up in her fantasy world to notice a missing necklace.

    Breathing as scarcely as possible, he nimbly climbed onto her shoulder and leaned in to wrap his teeth around the gold chain. He was a mere centimeter away when suddenly he was yanked upward roughly. Before he knew it, he was flying farther and farther upward and he could hear every beat of the owl‘s wings.

    “NO!” He squeaked wriggling against his capturer’s grip.

    “Be silent you pathetic rat or I‘ll break your neck right now!” The owl hissed, clenching on him harder to prove the point. He was going to die anyways so the creature chose to at least go out fighting.

    “You can’t protect her and the pendent forever, Varent.” He snarled, ignoring the pain from the tightening claws. “Master will find her no matter where she goes in this world! All of you are just wasting your time on her!” The claws clenched on him even harder and there was a horribly snapping sound as one of his ribs snapped. They were both now in the open air, outside the house.

    “Well then it’s a very good thing I don’t plan to keep her in this world.” Varent replied darkly. The rat looked up at him, horror struck.

    “Y-you wouldn’t dare-” He was cut off as they were suddenly swooped upward by a thermal and the trees became smaller and smaller. Cold air seemed to gag him and it was becoming harder to breath.

    “You have no idea what I would do to make sure that girl’s destiny comes true.” Varent said darkly.

    “How can you so trusting in a weakling like her?” Rat asked, now becoming curious.

    He chuckled, his laughs coming out in small sharp hoots, “You have chosen a form with too simple a mind, Gaellin. Her body maybe weak right now but she has more power than you can imagine within. Now, my dear friend, this flight of yours must come to an end. I cannot let you tell your master what I have spoken of.”

    Gaellin didn’t even get a chance to squeak in protest. With a quick movement, Varent snapped his neck and released him from his grip. He didn’t bother looking down, but if he had, he would have seen a rat morph into a man marked by scars and hardship with tangled black hair and rags barely clinging to his body, plummeting downward for a few heartbeats, before fading away into black sand and blowing away into the night.

    He tilted his body and made a quick turn, back toward Heather’s house. It was too dangerous for her to stay in this world any longer, he decided. “Tomorrow night.” He whispered to himself. “Tomorrow night I shall make the transfer…”

    -Chapter 4 end-


    Author's Note: This is a short filler chapter in a story I'm writing called Morning Bells, which is based off my entry All Roads Lead to the End. You can find the other chapters at this link.