Chapter 4.2 – First day at school

Teen (13+)

(Song has been blocked to be shared on blogspot).

Metallica - Invisible Kid

This is Billys song...

Invisible kid
Never see what he did
Got stuck where he hid
Fallen through the grid

Invisible kid
Got a place of his own
Where he'll never be known
Inward he's grown

Invisible kid
Locked away in his brain
From the shame and the pain
World down the drain

~~~~




Aaron woke up this morning, both excited and a little nervous about his first day at school.

At the breakfast table, Aaron has plenty of questions for his brother.




Aaron: Is it true that everyone on the first day will have to make something out of papier-mâché?

Isaac doesn't answer him, he is to busy eating.




Aaron: Will we learn how to read and write on the first day? How do you know how to read?




Isaac: Noo, you do not learn anything on the first day! You mostly just sing songs and play! That's what we did anyway!




Isaac: And then you will meet your teacher for the first time, and he will have a big brown suitcase! Teachers always have big brown suitcases!




Aaron: I'm scared of teachers. Will they yell at me and tell me to sit still at my desk?




Isaac: Teachers aren't dangerous! They won't yell at you, and you can always make them happy by giving them flowers!




Aaron is assigned to the old school building closest to his home, whereas as his brother is assigned to the new school on the opposite end of town. Lenore, another kid also having her first school day, is already on her way to enter the building.

While Aaron and Isaac is at school, Natalie wakes up to a late breakfast... She could hear her own voice talking as if she was sitting right beside herself, even smell the foul stench of old ice cream on the table.... though neither her nor the kids had a preference for ice cream...




Natalies voice: It will be okay, Natalie. It will be okay. There are band aids in the bathroom. There should be. Don't worry, Natalie.
Everything is fine. Everything is fine. Everything is fine...




Natalie wasn't fine. She felt anxious as the amount of dirty laundry she didn't want to to think about pushed its way to the forefront....




At school Aaron was having a good time playing in the sand box. School was easy on the newcomers, of course, so they got a lot of playtime.




Aaron found another one of those space rocks in the school yard. Not very useful..




Aaron and Lenore had great fun playing with the spring riders.




Aaron is home after his first day of school. "I want to talk to dad", he thinks. "Tell him everything about my first school day. It wasn't as scary as I thought".




Aaron also wants to impress the teacher, so he immediately goes for his homework. School wasn't that easy on them, but the homework was very simple. Just practicing the letters of the alphabet for now. Isaac is a little more carefree, choosing to play with his toys instead.




For Aaron it is work before play, for Isaac, play before work.




Billy was happy when Aaron finally came home from school, and initiated a friendly pillow fight.

Billy: Take that, Aaron! Hahaha!




Aaron: Last week momma got a letter in the mail that said if we go to the forest and find some stones, we can make you alive.




Billy: What are you talking about, Aaron? I am already alive! Can't you see..?

There was a lot of things Billy didn't understand, and this was one of them, because he was pretty sure he was alive...atleast sometimes... Billy didn't have a name for his "toy state", for him this had become the norm. It was the world that he knew, and how he thought things should be...

As Billy had gotten older, being near Aaron would always invigorate him and bring out his playful side..




Billy: Tag! You're it, you old garbage can!

Then they played tag the rest of the afternoon until bedtime..

---

The next morning:




Billy: Good morning Aaron, my bestest best friend of all the bester friends!




Aaron: Once upon a time, there were two best friends, and they wanted to be best friends until they died!




Aaron: But then an evil genie came and cast a spell on them to stop them from being friends!




Aaron (almost sings when he talks about this part): But from a country faaar far away came the most beatiful fairy queen, she was very lovely and pretty!

Aaron: And she cast the evil genie away to the dark and scary place he came from!




Isaac (thinking): I don't know what it is, but there is something about Billy... He is not quite like us, I think maybe he is a ghost..




And then it was off to school again for the boys.. Isaac has the longest way, so he must really hurry up..




Mom Natalie was inside playing with the kids toys. 35 years old, but only 5 at heart..




Lenore was also on her way to school.. and the festival food stand clerks were hurrying to their stands..




Ah, there are more kids using the school, most of them are teenagers. I sort of know who they are when I check their names....these teenagers are actually of the third fourth generation since I started watching this town... The teenagers have their own classroom and a separate schedual during school hours. They have breaks in between classes at different times to avoid conflict between the younger and the older students.




"These giant teenagers make me nervous" Aaron thinks. "I hope they are nice..."




Then shortly after entering the school and their classroom younger ones leave..

Oh, yes of course, I forgot that today is excursion day, and the kids are going to one of the mausoleums in town.. again...




Someone should probably give the school bus driver som better directions.. I don't know why she would park all the way up there by the old Colosseum...




Aaron thinks it is safest to sit on the front seat next to his teacher, Kornephoros. "Teacher's pet! Teacher's pet!" he can hear some of the other kids shout from the back of the bus..




Isaac and the kids from the new school building are also with them for the excursion... and I see they are visiting the Aeterna Tormenta catacombs in the poorer parts of town.. I am sure that could be a bone chilling experience..




It's kind of dark down there... dark, cold and moist.. who knows what could be hiding just around the corner!




Aaron really enjoyed the trip to the catacombs.. so many old skulls, bones and delightful screams of tormented souls from the otherworld... what a perfect way to spend a sunny summers day!




It's funny the bus driver actually drives past Aaron and Isaac's home on the way between the catacombs and school.. Isaac notices and tries to contact the bus driver..

Isaac: Hey, bus lady.. we can go off here! That's our home!




Bus lady listens and lets them out, just on opposite sides of the road, of course..




"Hi, mom." Aaron says after walking in the door, eager to talk about his experience in the catacombs. Mom doesn't answer Aaron, she just continues to play with the toys, so Aaron goes to do his homework... but there is another one there to greet him..




Billy: Hi Aaron!




Billy: I think we should get out of the house some.. lets go to the theatre!

Aaron: A.. vowel... B.. conso uhhh.. consonant... C...consonant.... ugghh... I hate this homework already..




Billy: Or just get out of the house and do something... what do you say, Aaron?




Aaron: I have an idea.. we can go to the forest and look for those gemstones we need to make you alive..




Aaron:..then we can get out of the house, just like you want!




Aaron: But of course, there can be dangerous things in the forest.. so we have to be careful.. and don't tell mom we're going there!

Billy: Ok, I support you in everything you do, my most bestest friend, but I think you must go there alone! I can't follow you to the forest...







So Aaron went alone, far up into the forest.. It was evening, and already starting to get dark..

Aaron: Hmm, I see no gemstones here.. might as well just finish my homework..




Aaron: a - small a - vowel, A - big A - vowel, b - small b - vow..uhh.. consonant...

So he sat down by the Deathfish Pond to complete his alphabet lesson.. not noticing that there is a cottage behind him..




Aaron: I'm getting tired.. time to go home.. there were no gemstones here.. I'm gonna ask mom tomorrow, maybe she can help..




The next morning Aaron woke up to the sound of rain hammering against his window, a sure sign that autumn was already here..




Billy: Good morning Aaron.. did you find any gemstones last night?

Aaron: No.. I don't think there were any.. I'm going to ask mom later after school if she can help me to find some..




Natalie (thinking): Hmm, maybe I should go look for those gemstones.. I am wondering why they would be so interested in Billy over at The Philosophical Centre, though. I guess it must be some important research thing...




Natalie: The gemstone finder tells me there are some near the Forest of Illusion, so I think I will make that my starting point..




Natalie: I can't explain it, but I have a strange feeling there is someone else with me in the taxi and not just the taxi driver...




Natalie: Hmm, these stones look like they could be important for something, but these are not the stones I am looking for..




Natalie: No wonder this place is called the Forest of Illusion.. This is a typical place to get lost and confused and eventually start seeing things that aren't real... I see no gemstones, though..




Natalie: Well, the gemstone finder did say that there should be some gemstones at the northern edge of this forest, just in the direction of the old abandoned cottage..




Natalie: Hmm, interesting... there are still bees in the beehive.. I hope somebody lives here now to care for them..




Natalie: Ok, that's eerie.. that looks like a coffin.. placed there almost as if it is guarding the back entrance to this cottage.. I don't think this was here before... but I should be close to some gemstones now, according to the finder...




Natalie: Oh, there it is! Just around the corner.. wow, how shiny it is!




Natalie: Hmm, I don't think this is a rainbow gemstone, though.. nah, it's just an emerald..




Natalie: Oh, here is another one.. hmm, that doesn't quite look like a rainbow gemstone either.. only a tanzanite..




Natalie: Now I wonder if someone else lives here now.. only one way to find out.. I'm gonna have to brave it, and knock on the door..




Natalie walks up to the door and knocks it three times, and almost immediately this elderly woman comes out..

Elisa:Hi, Natalie. I am Elisa, nice to see you here again. I have been expecting you. Come on in.

Natalie doesn't even have to introduce herself before Elisa knows her name, and then some..

Natalie: How do you know my name? Have we met bef..?

Elisa (interrupting):We have never been formally introduced, but yes, kind of... You didn't see me, but I let you stay in my house back then. Poor child, I know where and what you've come from...




Elisa: Anyway, I understand now that you have been sent here again looking for Rainbow Gemstones.. but believe me when I say.. I have been looking for them around here for decades, and never found any.. Really, I believe someone has made a trap for you...




Natalie: But... so I have been lied to.. but Dr. Tristam at the Philosophical Centre said that I should find them so that we can bring the plush toy my son is communicating with to life..




Elisa: Yes, you have been lied to. There is no Dr. Tristam that works at the Philosophical Centre..




Natalie: ..but I was there, and I saw him, and I talked to him.. how do you know about all this, and how can you be sure it is right?




Elisa: Lets just say I read about it all in a book.. now, follow me inside, I have something to show you..




Elisa: This, Natalie, to my left, is an alchemy station. I use it to make potions, and with it, I can make a potion to make Billy come alive.




Natalie: I am amazed! I can't believe what I am hearing and seeing! Last time I was here, it was all empty... but now, it is just like the home of a witch from the fairy tales! So it IS true! You are the forest witch!!!

Elisa: It wasn't empty. Like I said, I was here, even then, I just kept myself hidden.. and I prefer to use Magician, thank you.

Natalie: Oh, I'm sorry.. so you can make the potion we need to make Billy come alive?




Elisa: Oh, yes, I can.. but I must warn you, Natalie. You are in trouble, in great danger in fact. When you felt on the taxi ride up here that someone was with you, you were right. Someone, or should I say, something, was with you. And it is with us here too, right now. I can sense it.




Natalie: Well, that's umm.. creepy.. how am I in danger? Will it hurt my children?




Elisa: You.. well, no.. it is not really interested in your children.. Now, I don't want to say to much, and I may already have.. just be careful who you talk to from here on, Natalie.. not everyone is going to be who or what they say they are...

Elisa knew that the part about not being interested in her children was a bit of a lie, the truth was that it certainly had some plans.... but she didn't want to upset Natalie to much.

Natalie: Ok, ok.. I'll keep my eyes and ears open..

Elisa: Excactly, now come back to me three days before this year ends, and I shall have the potion ready for you.. now, take care of yourself, Natalie...




And so Natalie left the cabin, and headed home for the night.. the autumn forest was a beatiful sight with its fiery red, orange and yellow coloured trees.. Natalie almost thought she could smell it burning, even though it had just rained and everything was soaking wet...




???: Occidit, et angelus pariter pythonissam!

????: Adolebitque angelus! Ure sata pythonissam! Adolebitque!

To be continued...

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