Idalia (the secrets of the whispers)

How did it all start? It started with detention. It was about twenty five years ago, I was a simple timid and fashion blundering introvert, with no friend other than my books, my laptops and my imaginary best friend. I was just twelve, a girl with a natural given talent concealed from sociality until that day.

It was my first time in detention, still don't know or understand how I got there. The principal who detained us had gone to attend to something else, while we died of boredom and fatigue. Then all of a sudden, a girl jumped in front of the class with a giddy smile and a excited shriek.

"Let's have some fun y'all!" I knew her too well, who didn't know and admire the beautiful psycho that beared the name, Victoria Banderaz.

"Tori, can you go sit before you get us into more trouble?" A boy asked with a frown. Tori had trouble following her anywhere she went to.

"Bah!" She exclaimed with a dismissive swipe of her hand. "I have been in here over and over again like it's my father's bedroom. I know that old wench more than the back of my own clean hands. She won't come back, not until every scream of ecstasy is drawn out of her by the gardener. Let's pass time with something more useful."

"Something like what?" Judith asked plainly. She was the second queen bee of the school, a know it all.

"I dunno," Tori said with a shrug, "but I'm open for suggestions, any ideas?"

"Aha!" A girl with big bright emerald eyes exclaimed with a snap of her fingers. "How about music? I love music!" She shrieked with utter excitement. I didn't know this one much, but she was the school's dye freak. She could dye her hair to any colour and change eye lens like she changes her shoes.

"Let's sing our favourite songs, we could take turns and I volunteer to be the first," she added with the same excitement.

"That's a good idea," Tori smiled, but then looked at the girl sitting behind dye princess, "but let's start with the school's she-devil."

Her name was Sage Valentine, the school's most feared junior female. Not because she was extremely quiet with a scary face, but because she packed a strong punch for all who dares her. Sage surprisingly smiled and nodded in agreement.

"I'm not much of a singer, but I rap like hell, wanna hear?" She didn't sound as scary as my classmates made her to be. Her smile even showed the opposite of cruelness.

"Excellent," Tori said with a clap of her hand, "then let's sing my favourite song, take me back to London by..."

"Ed Sheeran!" Dye queen shouted. "that's my favourite song too!"

"Hey! Me too!" Judith shouted too. Sage only shrugged. Tori turned her eyes to me, I almost fainted when her golden eyes met mine.

"Hey, you will sing with us, no?"

"Me?" I choked.

"Yes, you Idalia." A gasp left my mouth, she knew my name. How on earth did she get that information?!

"I...I...I...I can't sing,"

"Idalia, when I point at you and you don't sing, tomorrow I'll make sure you get stoned with rotten eggs and flour. Do you want that?"

"N...n...no," I stuttered.

"Then when you see me looking at you, even if you don't know the lyrics or can't look me back in the eyes, sing." It was a simple instruction but it felt like the words were laced with an irresistible command. I nodded, I was going to sing even though I didn't want to.

Tori laughed, a sound that is worth a siren's envy. "What are your names? Mine is Lady Victoria of Wales," she said with a curtsey.

"Oh, I'm Emerald, mom named me after my eyes." She twinkled her lashes. I thought the emerald was another eye lens.

"Sage,"

"Judith, everyone knows that."

"Alrighty then! Emerald, you sing first, followed by Sage, Idalia and then me. Or I'll just coordinate myself, just follow my hand signal. Idalia, no excuses. I know how you have been singing from your mother's womb, you are from a family of generational singers."

She must have research on me or didn't, don't know. That was how we became friends. We sang from that song to another and another and eventually swapped numbers. From that day, a new bond was formed, a bond between five different girls with different personalities but similar interest. Our hates and likes were similar, our passion for music was exceptional. It was music that bonded us, love that sealed it.

About four months after we became friends, Tori and Judith, the boy crazy ones dragged us to see their favourite band. They forced Sage, Emerald and I to join them to do a challenge that would win us special tickets to see the band's face to face. A group of mid year teenagers who knew nothing else but to look pretty and flirt. Tori already wedded and bore a child for one in her head. Judith on the other hand was ready to strip to get a kiss. They could be extreme when it came to celebrity crushes.

We won the tickets and was asked to wait to see the boys. Hell! They kept us waiting, who did they think they are! I had a curfew to keep up with, a father that would literally stand at the front door with an axe to wait for me anytime I returned home late. Mother would nag me to unconsciousness if I survived the axe. The axe meant "the talk" by the way. Sage was busy clawing at her eyes so she would stay awake and Emerald, ten years gone.

Judith suggested we sing to pass time and it sounded good to us. We had playfully rewritten Eminem's lucky you song, added vocal notes and changing some words to fit the rewritten version. It was something we did all the time since we spent so much time together. While Tori and Sage did the rapping, the rest of us sang the added notes. It was easy for us to remix beat since Sage's older brother was a DJ and studio engineer, he would let us use his equipment and most times helped us for the fun of it.

We ended our song but was shocked to hear an applaud. It was a woman, a simply dressed woman. She complimented on our work and introduced herself as a talent agent. Also sister to one of the boy's manager and had come to see the show. She openly spoke of her interest in us and how we could be stars if we let her make us into one. We scoffed at it and dismissed her offer. But before I knew what was happening, we were signed into a record label two months later.

We undertook a one year training before our debut. What were we called? Vivid Kiss. Why? The director said it had a nice ring to it and gave us a very outstanding vibe. It would also suit the future brands they were going to make for us, it sounded right when called. He also gave us stage names according to our appearance and what we liked. Tori insisted on being called Lemon drop, Sage chose Karela, Judith picked honey because of her hair, and Emerald went for Sherry. I went for what my mother called me, Candy.

Within four years, we were world wide sensation. Our growth was just surprising, like magic. Our friendship never wavered, our love for each other stretched up to greater heights. Sage and I did more training than the others as we were both songwriters and composers. We learnt from others and even had others to write for us too. Our genre rotated around pop and it subgenre; electropop, technopop, dance-pop, pop-rock, poprap and few times, bubblegum pop. We also did rock, electronic dance music, R&B and in rare cases, Jazz. We loved trying different things, like Judith would playfully call it kissing every genre.

We were happy, we were perfect, no one expected what was coming. What happened? Tori died. No one knew or suspected that she had cancer, she hid it so well even us didn't know. She had found out a month after our debut, but kept shut. No one questioned her excessive dark or light makeup, no one suspected when she shaved her head and took to wigs. She was a wacko, so what were the odds? She never grew lean until her final months which she covered up with the excuse of losing weight and excessive makeup. I had only suspected after she wrote and released her first and last song and her tenth solo, Marked. One describing her pain and the afterlife.

Then she publicly announced that we were going on a break to bond, without anyone's knowledge. She made us spend two weeks making more memories and telling us – me especially – of stories her grandmother told her and revealing hidden things of her hometown. It was then it struck me, I knew she was going to die and confronted her. That day she collapsed and all was known.

Her last statement was "my departure would threaten to divide you, rip you apart with force. But don't for my sake, don't ever depart from each other. Love unconditionally, sing endlessly and do remember me. The time will come for you to stop singing, take a break and go to college, meet people and live. When that time comes, you will know. Willow Spring will hide you, Cameroon Lance's University will be your guide. Don't forget, temporarily stop when the time is right."

It made no sense to us but we nodded. I was the last person with her when she crossed over, she had held me tight by the shirt and said under her breath. "Hard times will come, bitterness would rise, but never lose sight of the path ahead. All this I did for the one, all this I did to stop what is to come. Remember the sapphire leafed Oak Tree of White Spring Lake, when you hear and see the word WHISPERS."

"Welcome to Willow Spring!" Emy shrieked excitedly, throwing her hands up in the air. I giggled as I looked out of the tinted window. We were finally in Willow Spring to study. We were all excited to take a break and fulfil Victoria's last wish.

It wasn't necessary to go to the college, we already went to much more better universities, but we just had to fulfil her wish. Cameroon Lance's University wasn't a known university and certainly didn't have much worth, but it was for bonding. Judith was the only one who hated the idea of going back to school for real, she's the dumb one and also hated the fact that we were going to hide our identities.

"Wow, I'm so excited," Judith said sarcastically, "can I die now?"

"Oh come on, Judith, be excited for real, it's going to be fun!" Emy replied with her usual shriek.

"No seriously, can't you see my excited and joyful grin," Judith said mirthlessly.

"Cut it off with the sarcasm, Judith, be glad about the new adventure for once." Sage said chidingly.

"Well sorry if I'm not shrieking over something as meaningless as this," she scoffed, "we don't have to come here because Tori said to. Couldn't she have sent us to somewhere more classy and eminent? Sending us to this poor town isn't worth it."

"Judith, look around, this town isn't as small as you make it to be. It is big enough to contain two universities, eight high schools, five junior high and enough nurseries. It also have enough exciting places and the town is very beautiful, just too beautiful." I said as I looked at the town. The town was indeed beautiful, a nature town.

"I agree, it's amazing," Sage agreed.

"Okay, fine, I admit that the town is beautiful and a place I can take cool pictures in. But, do we have to dress like commoners or rather, act like one? I don't want to let go of my fabulous dress style," she whined, "and next, I don't want to have to study so hard, I almost died the last time I had to study online, let alone by myself. I'm too young to grow white hair." She cried.

I turned my head to her with a chuckle. Sage stroke her chin. "So basically, your issue is you studying hard when you can easily get someone to do it for you and also going back to study yourself is worthless?"

"Judith, you do realise that you literally have the poorest degree in the history of poor, right?" I asked with raised brow.

"The questions was confusing! What do you want from me?!" She shouted, throwing her hands up in the air. "At least I have a good high school certificate, that's enough, no?"

"You passed after retaking the exams thrice," Emy said jestingly. We broke into laughter.

"We are talking to Judith Mcdumb Bill, don't stress the conversation." Sage said with a wave of her hand.

"I am not dumb! I just don't like books! I'm allergic to books, why don't anyone understand!"

"Oh dear," sage laughed, running her fingers through her thick blonde hair. She tinted the lower part of her hair red and weaved it into cornrows to make it harder to recognise her. She wore steel grey eye lens over her golden brown iris.

"Judith have been acting more paranoid than usual, what's up with you?" Emy asked with a playful look.

"Yeah, I've been meaning to ask you that myself, what is wrong with you Judith?" Sage asked drily.

"I'm always paranoid," Judith said as she rolled her eyes.

"Yeah, but you are overly paranoid, your anxiety has evolved." I knew where this was going, they were going to tease her. The way they were looking at her said it all.

"And why are you looking at me like that?" Judith asked unnervedly, "you guys are creeping me out, stop it."

"Judith, are you aware that mood swings are signs of pregnancy?" Emy blunted out with a stifle laugh.

"Yeah...?"

"Judith, are we going to be moms soon?" Sage asked teasingly. Judith choked on her saliva while I broke into a stifled mirth. "Just tell us, we would understand,"

"Who's the father? The model that looks like a half ox?" Emy added jokingly.

"Or is it the bamboo with the two left legs?"

"Are you both crazy?!" Judith screeched angrily, "I'm not pregnant!"

"Then are you in your period?"

"For five months?" Sage laughed stiflingly, "can't be period."

"Maybe she doesn't know that she is gonna be a momma," Emy thought distantly.

"I am not pregnant! What am I? Virgin Mary!"

"Mary Magdalene actually, you sleep around a lot," Emy sighed lazily. Judith huffed through her nostrils, her face as red as a tomato.

"I haven't had sex since I broke up with Nicholas! And that was fucking five months ago!"

"I say five months," Sage uttered with a satisfied nod, "tho I can't figure out why her stomach is still flat."

"Maybe she is putting on a girdle or her womb is located at her back or her baby knows it mother is too scrawny to manage a big stomach, Judith will snap into two if she should ever carry such load." Emy added thoughtfully.

"Bloody Pete! I'm not pregnant!" Judith screamed furiously. That did it, the cabman burst into laughter.

"Or is it that the baby is too small to come out?" Sage cried, "I don't want my niece to be a rat."

"Niece? I want a nephew, one as fat as The Tower of Babel."

"No, niece and I'm going to be the godmother..."

"No way Sage, you can't be the godmother, I am. You can manage the aunt position while I be the godmother."

"Shut up Emy, I have always been there for Judith, even through the hard labour..."

"Candy," Judith cried out, almost in tears. I sank down with my hand on my stomach, "don't laugh, make them stop!"

"Okay, cut it out guys, stop stressing the baby..."

"Candy!"

"Okay, okay," I laughed with hands raised, "stop, don't do that."

"Wait, didn't you have unprotected sex with Raphael three months ago?" Emy gasped. Judith's ruddy face turned pale instantly. We broke into laughter again. Judith slapped my shoulder sheepishly.

"We are here, miss," the cabman announced laughingly. We took two cabs, one for our luggages, (by our, I mean Judith's and Emy's) instruments and stuffs. And the other for us and few stuffs.

"Wow! Is this where we will be staying?!" Judith exclaimed in shock, "I thought we were going to stay in a barn or under a bridge." She added derisively.

"Very funny Judith, I was thinking we were going to live in a yard or something." I eyed Sage and hissed.

"We might be going simple, but that doesn't mean we have to live completely low. This house belongs to Victoria, part of the things she willed to me."

"Are you kidding me? This house looks like one of those houses in movies that is always haunted, a place where only one will end up surviving." Sage said with a disapproving tone.

"And if anyone is to survive, it would be you because you are like the cat with fifty thousand life." Judith scoffed. The house was a dark painted Queen Anne's styled Victorian house, a house located deep in a beautiful flowers and willow trees road path. The path only led to the house, we were all alone in here.

"Are you sure that you want to live here, miss?" The cabman asked with a little worry, "this house is haunted, no one lives here."

"Great, now it is an haunted house."

"I own the house sir, my older sister gave it to me. Thank you for your concern and goodbye." He understood the harshness in my tone. I opened the door and stepped out, breathing in the fresh air. The others joined me. The cabmen came out and helped us drop our things, we paid and sent them off.

I unlocked the door and opened it. The house looked seriously unkept, like no one had been in there for hundreds of years, but yet the house was still strong. The furniture didn't look any bit worn out.

"Nothing a little clean up won't do," Sage said buoyantly.

"Humph," Judith grunted, "I'm not cleaning anything, don't involve me."

"I'm so renting an apartment," Emy said to herself. I ignored them, even though the house did feel strange.

After dropping our bags in our rooms, we set off to work. We shared the chores between us and even forced Judith to clean with us. She might have screamed and nagged, and nagged, and nagged and whined and cried, but she did her part. In the morning, we arranged our clothes and the kitchen and was finally done by dust. We hadn't realise we didn't eat, Sage cooked for us. Then it was time to add the finishing touch to our disguise. That was learning how to use different accent and voice.

As you know, Sage was a blonde haired girl with golden brown eyes. You already know what she changed into. Her usual dress style was rebel punk and gothic vintage, but she bought a whole new style of clothes. Sporty chic and tomboyish style. I kept telling her it wasn't much difference to me, but she wouldn't listen, none of them ever listens!

Judith had always been the prom queen chic and vintage chic kind of girl, so it was hell getting her to switch to Gothic Victoria and punk. Judith had honey blonde hair and cornflower blue eyes, the reason she was called honey. Our hairstylist dyed her hair black and wore her coal black eye lens, said it made her look like someone else and she was right. Then she cut it into a neat asymmetric Bob with blunt tip fringe.

Emerald, the crazy witch dyed her hair emerald to match her eyes but wore almond shaped glasses. She normally had her hair in waves, but straightened it. Then she changed her flamboyant eye blinding colours to something simple and moderate, girl next door to be precise.

As for me, it's not like I had any particular style, I had always been the type to wear whatever comes into my head, anything at all. I however never dyed my hair or liked any other colour than my natural cinnamon and ginger crinkly hair. So the only thing I had to do was wear glasses over my steel blue eyes with Kelly green shade. I went for the only dress style I hadn't drifted to, boho-chic. And with a well sewed on ash blond wig, I was ready to go.

It was time to begin a new adventure.

I wish we didn't.

~~~

"Now, what should I wear?" Emy asked for the umpteenth time that morning. We were getting ready for classes, a week after we arrived at Willow Spring, "should I wear the blue button sheath dress? Or the green dotted dress?"

"For the two hundred and twenty forever time! Wear the sheath dress!" I shouted exasperatedly.

She whined and stomped her feet childishly, "but if I wear the blue, it wouldn't bring out my eyes, and I don't like dots..." She gasped and clapped her hands ecstatically, "I know! I'll find another one..."

"Not again," I whimpered, slamming my face on her bed. We had to do this, choose what Emerald would wear. She always found it difficult to pick an outfit to anywhere. Victoria and her personal stylist used to help her, but now, we were on our own. We all had to take turns in helping her decide for two hours.

"Now," I raised my head, she was holding up two dresses again, "should I wear the pink ruffled silk dress or the green ruffled skirt dress?"

"Green,"

"But won't I look like a glowworm with the green? You know my hair and eyes are green."

"But you said you wanted something to match your eyes!"

"Why can't I wear all the colours," she whined.

"Because in this school, you are Cheryl McCoy, not Emerald McCoy."

"Hey! Cheryl is my never use middle name!"

I sighed and turned to lay on my back, "that's the point Emy, use a name that the internet doesn't recognise or something they won't remember."

"Oh, nevermind then."

"Are you going to wear the green or not?"

"I think I'll wear the pink," she struck her chin thoughtfully.

"Don't you dare change your mind," I threatened.

"I was going to ask about my bra this time, should I wear pink lace bra or strapless green? But again, I like blue and yellow so that's an option or even try another colours like peach, steel blue or fever..."

"Fever? That's a colour?"

"If you love colours like I do, you'd know that. Then again, what shoes should I wear? I say blue but what blue?" She headed to her shoes rank, "China blue, cyan blue, ocean blue, shark blue..."

"Eh?"

"Shark, like the colour of sharks." She shrugged nonchalantly.

"Emy, there is no such thing as shark blue, even I know that a..."

"How about baby blue or bubblegum pink? Or maybe green and yet so many greens to pick from. Should I wear moss or hunter or... Oh my God! Why can't I wear all of them!" She shouted all of a sudden.

"Too much, Emy, too much."

"Hmm, should I carry my lucky white or dove grey bag or... Candy! You are not even helping!" She shrieked in annoyance.

"Please universe, take my life," I sobbed, "and it's Lia, as in Idalia."

"So, should I wear the peach or blue bra?" Emy asked like she didn't just hear me spit out my frustration. She was impossible to get to, impossible to annoy or even understand when to shut up. And to crown it all, I was going to attend to her for ten days.

I sighed and looked at her vanity mirror. I jolted to my knees immediately, my heart sank to my stomach. "What is it?" I looked at the mirror again, I must have been hallucinating.

"I...I... I thought I saw Victoria laughing in the mirror," I replied with a dry swallow of saliva. Emy hissed and continued talking. Yeah, I was seeing things.

Wanna know what's more worse than a bad bus day? A bad singer singing a song you know or in our case, singing our own song and not being able to correct her. We had arrived at the school after a terrible bus experience, then we had to wait to sign in for late registration and the wait was killing. Then this cute girl with big brown eyes started singing our songs with her terrible and loud voice. She also got the lyrics wrong a couple of million times.

"Sitting at my table

Wondering where you at

Looking out of the window

Hoping you would pass

Boy, you got me reeking..."

"Thinking! It's thinking!" Emy shouted out unbearably.

"Oh, hello, do you like Vivid Kiss songs too?"

"Yes, so please stop spoiling it," Judith snapped.

"Oh really? What's wrong with my singing?" The girl asked with a frown.

"How about everything, from your voice to the wrong lyrics you are singing." Judith said harshly. Her cheeks flushed pink, she coughed and composed herself.

"It's not like you can sing it better," she scoffed.

"Sing it better," Emy chuckled, "ironic."

"Boy, you got me thinking

Hope I'm still breathing

As I wait on you

Dude, don't keep me waiting

As I dream 'bout you

You've got that ripped jeans

Perfect tousled hair

Smile that got me screaming

M-m-m-my oh!

M-m-m-my oh!

You got that cologne

One urging me to purr..." Judith sang while glaring at the girl. The girl's face turned pink, she looked down in embarrassment.

"Oh, you do know how to sing it better, sorry about that," she apologised with shame. "So, are you guys like fans too? You almost sounded like Honey there."

"Er..." Judith stuttered, I glared at her.

"I'm a super fan!" She suddenly shrieked. We instinctively shifted away from her. "So what cult are you? Honey Haven, Emerald Garden, Karela Area or Candy Land?"

"What?" I asked with a stifle laugh, such crazy things fans can come up with.

"My name is Adriana Ramon, freshman, you?"

"Er... Why is she still talking to me?" Judith asked nervously as she shifted away, like the girl was a diseased human. Sage sat next to her, she pushed Judith back forward.

"Because you answered her," Sage chuckled, "hi, I'm S... Tammy," she coughed up her cover. "Tammy Hamilton, and that peacock over there is Elizabeth, but you can call her Ellie or Liza. The green jelly beans is Cheryl."

"And the cute one?" She giggled, referring to me.

"Ida, call me Ida." I replied sharply.

"Are y'all sisters?"

"No,"

"Yes,"

"Related," they all answered at the same time.

"Huh?" She asked confusedly.

"Don't mind them, we met on the bus few minutes ago." I lied with a wide smile.

"Bus love," she laughed.

"Your future is crook," Judith blunted out. Sage nudged her.

"Is she always this sarcastic?" The girl asked chucklingly.

"Only since she was adopted by aliens and had her brain switched," Emy laughed.

"How would you know that, we met in a bus." Judith said with a gnash of her teeth.

"Right, bus," Sage drawled playfully.

"I have a brother here, senior though. He's really overprotective with friends and one of them is my boyfriend. They are the popular group in this college." She said proudly.

"Do you realise that we don't care?" Judith asked rudely again. Sage pinched her arm with a glare. "ow! But we don't care."

"Sorry about that," I apologised, "nice meeting you, Adriana."

"Would you hang out with me? I really want to have some friends of my own, can I?"

"No, read my lips, N-O, no." Judith pronounced slowly. Sage face palmed herself while Emy laughed.

"I guess I'll see you around," Emy smiled.

"Yes! First friend! You?" She asked me.

"Erm, we'll see," Sage looked away as a way to say no.

"Oh Cheryl, my brother is going to love you! He loves green a lot and you literally look green. Plus, your dress style is simple, just the way he likes his girls to be. Yay for me! I found my brother a girlfriend!"

"Girlfriend? Me? No way!" Emy exclaimed. Okay, this girl is annoying.

"Adriana Ramon," the secretary called.

"Present!" She shrieked, jumping up to her feet. "Gotta go now, see you around friends!" She ran off. We heaved a sigh of relief.

"That girl talks too much," Sage sighed.

"And Judith, that was too rude."

"I'm always rude." Judith snapped.

"I think we need to split up, staying together is bound to drag attention." I said as a matter-of-factly.

"I agree, especially with how obvious Emerald is," Judith glared at Emy who responded with a piggish snort. "We split up into two?"

"Judith and Emy would have been perfect since they know how to balance each other, but as much as they balance, they fight and argue a lot. Sage, you go with Judith and make sure she doesn't get pregnant," Judith rolled her eyes at my instruction, then muttered to herself. "Emy since that girl has friend zone you, you will see her more often. I trust you can handle her because you are a great coverup, and can certainly keep your mouth and pride shut. So you and I are going it alone, got it?"

"I don't need a babysitter, I'm a grown up lady who can take care of herself." Judith said angrily.

"Your pride and mouth won't make that a reality, just look what you did just now." Sage pointed out. Judith sealed her mouth while mentally cursing.

"And beside, you will have a personal bodyguard to bail you out of trouble since you are a trouble magnet." Emy said with a wink.

"Isn't that your thing?" Sage chuckled.

"I don't attract trouble, just the weirdest of boys." Emy said proudly.

"Then it's settled, we return home separately and tell each other what happened in the day, huh?"

"Definitely." Sage smiled.

"Of course, of course!"

"Eh, whatever." Judith said with an indifferent shrug. We kept shut after that, just to our thoughts.

"My cousin and her family moved in with us yesterday," I heard one of the student say to the other.

"Why?"

"They heard the whispers at their house two days ago, they had to run before it returns."

"That's impossible, little to no people ever survives after hearing any of the whispers,"

"Not impossible, just rare. That is why they ran away before it came back. The whispers wasn't that intense, it is only when they hear the sound in their ears. Honestly Fern, I'm tired of this town, I need to move out." The first one cried.

"I heard the mayor is planning to hire a demon slayer to destroy the spirits,"

Another girl laughed sarcastically. "Haven't he hired witches, psychics and even ghost hunters? What happened to them? Where are their corpses? Demon fire, he would be killed too. Whatever is haunting this town is stronger than any force. The mayor is trying to cover up so others wouldn't know, but sooner or later, the world would know and no one would come here."

"My brother and his wife already left the town, they want to protect their little girl you know. Maybe after every single should is wiped out, that's when the killing would stop. I get too scared to walk at night."

"You still walk at night? Our house is sealed immediately it clocks 8. The killing usually takes place from 9 to midnight. After my aunt died to it, we have been very careful."

"The mayor also issued a new law that no one is allowed to go into the forest or any bushy area for now. People die at anytime there."

"Who wants to die will die, have you forgotten the spirits that burns the house of people along with them?"

Goosebumps crept allover me, I was terrified. Was there like a serial killer in town? What the hell?

"My father told me that he picked up some girls from the airport, took them to the isolated house..." A gasp escaped their mouths. "Seriously, he was as shocked as we are. He said the house belongs to one of them, probably a far away relative who came to visit her hometown, unaware of the danger. They will wish they never did."

I felt the sudden urge to use the restroom. I looked at the girls, their faces were as pale as vampire's. They heard it all.

"My father thinks that the mayor would find out soon, then send them out of the town or give them somewhere else to stay, that's if they aren't dead by then. Those innocent girls have no idea what they have gotten themselves into, the dark house isn't a place to live in."

"That's their problem,"

Why would Victoria send us to a haunted town? What is going on?

~

~

~

"We are moving out of this house and that's final!" Judith shouted irrevocably as she burst the door open.

"Let's not jump into conclusions..."

"Conclusions you say? Everywhere I turned, all I kept hearing was the whispers and death. I don't want to die, we need to go back home." Sage said anxiously.

"I don't believe though, Tori loves us and wouldn't want us dead so...?" Emy was unsure, but at least she supported me.

"If we are going to stay here, then we are moving out of this house, get an apartment." Judith concluded and stomped off.

"I hate when she's like this," I sighed, throwing myself on the chair. I couldn't concentrate in class, I was scared out of my wit. All I had been hearing so far is about whispers and seeing whispers everywhere. I gulped drily and rubbed my palms against each other. If indeed the house was haunted, then we would have to move.

"That's by the way, I met Adriana's brother, his name is Sandro, he is so cute!" Emy squealed. "He said he loves my hair and invites me to sit with them tomorrow at the cafeteria, isn't that wonderful?!"

"Yeah, wonderful." I said mirthlessly. Emy started babbling about her crush while I thought to what I had seen so far.

Later at night, I laid in my bed staring at Victoria's picture with tears in my eyes. Tori was like a big sister to me, a sister and a mother. After my mother died six months before my debut, she was always there for me. She loved me, she cared about me, she wouldn't want to hurt me in anyway.

"Tori, are you a bad person? Why would you send me here? Send us here? I know you love me very much, at least that is what I think. Please, if this is all a prank, make it stop, take it away. But if this isn't and you have nothing to do with it, prove to me that all I've known about you all these years isn't false, that my love for you isn't for nothing. Even if you don't speak, just ease my anxiety and give me a reason to remain strong and hold my ground. If you are indeed cruel, then take my life before dawn, I don't want to be alive to live reality. Please."

I pleaded and cried for hours before I slept off, tears soaking my cheeks.

"Candy Crush," someone whispered softly, "wake up, my candy," it said in a singsong. I opened my eyes with a yawn, I was tired. There is only one person that called me Candy Crush.

I jolted to life immediately realisation hit me, I threw the covers off me and ran to where my feet took me. I followed the musical giggle. "Candy Crush, where are you?" She sang.

I found myself in the garden behind the house, a perfectly manicured sea green ground. I kept walking forward until I was out of the house, wandering deeper into the woods. I kept walking for hours, until I found myself at a small lake. The air smelt sweet and wonderful. The sky had worn it dark garment, her little diamonds sewed into her dress shinning brightly. The moonlight shone down on the oak tree in the middle of the lake. That didn't matter to me, what mattered to me was the girl standing at the tree with back turned to me.

"Victoria," I called shakily. The wind swept her hair around, black hair or so. She laughed and leaned on the tree, still not showing me her face. "Victoria?"

"Time, time, Candy, you are running out of time. Whispers, whispers..." Her words were unclear. The air no longer smelt sweet, it smelt like rotten flesh and garbage.

"Tori, I don't understand..."

"Whispers, remember the...tree... They are getting stronger, I can't..."

I shielded my eyes from the sudden gush of wind. "Tori! Tori!" I saw through the wind. She turned around to reveal the face of a distorted girl. Tori had a dagger right in the middle of her forehead, blood soaked her once beautiful yellow floral dress and she had a severe gash in her throat. Blood sipped out of it and ran down to her stomach.

"Don't leave the house or you will be vulnerable to them, don't let them leave, Candy, trust me..." Her head fell off. I screamed, jerking up from the bed. I cupped my mouth, breathing heavily.

"Remember the oak tree..." Her voice echoed.

Oak tree.

Oak tree.

Oak tree.

Victoria was trying to tell me something, and I'm not going anywhere until I find out what, even if it would cost my life.

•••••• Narrative ••••••

Dark robe floated behind her, she paced around her alter, chanting incantations. The red fire burnt up in the alter, the music drummed loud in accordance to her steps. Three beings appeared behind her, she turned and snarled.

"Victoria is back!" She shouted furiously. "After all this time, she still found a way to return to ruin my plans! How many more times do I need to kill that girl before she burns in hell!"

"Victoria cannot be alive, she is dead, we burnt her body with the sacred fire..."

"I know what I felt, there is no power strong enough to shake me like this. I placed a spell to conceal her from coming out, it won't hold for long. Now girls, I need you to find a way to burn that house down before she breaks free." She commanded.

"But we can't go near the house, it's protected." One of the being protested.

"And beside, she can't do anything. Soon the black moon would arrive and we would have enough energy to attack with one strike. They would all pay for what was done in the past, not even Victoria can stop us." The three beings echoed.

"It better be, but don't let your guards down, we have no idea what she's up to."

And I better find out soon... The woman thought.