I suspect it was a very stressful class for Cornelia.
I didn't pick a specific reaction, my last chemistry class was a couple of decades ago.
W.I.T.C.H. - W.I.T.C.H. - W.I.T.C.H. - W.I.T.C.H. - W.I.T.C.H.
"What's wrong?" Cornelia asked when she saw me lower Will's mobile from my ear.
"She didn't pick up."
The blonde rolled her eyes. "Typical. Did you leave a message?"
I shook my head. "If I leave a message and Mom is the one that gets it our secret would be out."
"She must have just stepped out."
"She shouldn't." I certainly didn't dare go out until school let out, in case someone asked why I wasn't at school. "Maybe she's asleep."
"At two in the afternoon?" asked Cornelia incredulously.
I shrugged. "I don't know." There were other possibilities of course. Possibilities that scared me. Had Cedric or Elyon struck while Will was alone?
Cornelia rested her hand on my shoulder for a moment. "I'm sure she's alright. I'll ride home with you after school and fill her in on the way to Miss Rudolph's."
"And..." I bit off the sentence before I could finish it.
"Then we'll find her."
I barely paid any attention to the last class of the day, although I managed to put up a pretense after the teacher threatened me with a detention. The minute the last bell rang I shoved everything higgledy-piggledy into my bag and ran out of the door.
"Will, wait!"
I almost forgot myself and reminded Cornelia that I wasn't my sister, before I remembered that she had to maintain the pretense as well. I slowed down and let her catch up.
"You know, you've got a lot to learn about being an Infielder," she grumbled.
"A what?"
"An Infielder. Look, you know Uriah and his crew."
I nodded.
"Well they're Outfielders - the school slobs and losers. Infielders are the opposite, people like me."
Well I knew which I wanted to be more like and it wasn't those boys. "Please teacher, teach me."
Cornelia threw back her head and laughed. "Well one important lesson is that you can't ever look like you're taking anything too seriously. Because if you're having to do that then you're not in control."
"But we're not in control."
She gave me a reproving look. "Shhhh. That's a secret."
I was surprised how fast Cornelia could walk without appearing to hurry at all. I suppose her long legs helped with that. I had to trot a little to keep up but I tried my best to keep from showing that I was in a hurry. Even with Cornelia setting the pace we got our bikes and cycled off the grounds before most of the kids had even made it out of the building.
It was nice just to hang out, chatting with Cornelia as we rode. I made a mental note: definitely going to arrange with Will sometime that I can take Cornelia up on the offer to meet her family.
When we reached the apartment block, she paused at the bicycle rack, still perched in the saddle. "Do you want me to wait down here?"
"I'd appreciate the company," I told her. It was true... and if my fears proved right then I'd want a Guardian to be with me.
At the top of the stairs I did my usual fumbling around with the keys.
"Why do you have so many keys?" asked Cornelia, with an air of amusement.
I finally found the right ones. "Will keeps the keys from her old apartment on the same ring."
"Why would she do that?"
I shrugged. "I never asked."
The apartment was quiet and I poked my head into the sitting room and then the kitchen as I went past. No sign of Will, or Mom. Still, there was also no sign of a struggle. I saw the laundry basket was filled with bedding so she'd been here long enough to have done at least some of the chores.
"Will!" Cornelia called out.
No answer.
We exchanged looks and then I pushed open the door to Will's room. I half-expected her to be at the desk, wearing headphones or something that had kept her from noticing us or the earlier phone calls but the room was as vacant as the rest of the apartment.
"Where is she?" Cornelia asked.
"I've no idea." I moved a chair below the hatch and scrambled onto it so that I could check my hiding place. "See if you can find any clues."
"Sure." Cornelia looked around and added: "Frogs everywhere."
"Don't you think that they're cute?"
"As if." She shuddered slightly. "Horrible little slimy creatures." Then the elegant girl squeaked. "Er... there's something moving under the bedcovers!"
Looking down I saw she was right. Still, it couldn't be very large... maybe the size of... aha. Hehehe. "Oh, that's just my sister's pet." I paused as if in thought. "Uh, since you don't like frogs..."
"That's a frog!" Cornelia screeched and retreated to the door.
I couldn't help but laugh at the look on her face. I'm pretty sure a frog the size of Will's dormouse would be the biggest frog in the world. "...how do you feel about dormice?"
"Oooh, you..." she huffed.
Since there was no sign of Will up in the loft I scrambled down. "He's a mite feisty."
"Well unless Will's hiding in the bathroom, she's not here," Cornelia grumbled. She went over to the desk and started looking through the mess on it. "She couldn't have left a note or something?"
"Probably not," I headed to the door. "I'll check the rest of the apartment."
Will wasn't in the bathroom. I was checking the kitchen again, to see if it looked like she'd had lunch here when I spotted a blinking light on the ansafone. Will couldn't have left a message on it in case Mom heard it, but perhaps it would explain why she had left?
"It's me honey," Mom's voice came from the machine when I pressed the button. "I'll be late today, but I'll bring something ready for dinner. Make sure you keep your cell phone on so I can get hold of you iof anything comes up."
Nothing out of the ordinary there. Mom's left messages like that at least twice since I started living here.
There was another message though. "Hello Will! It's Vera! I have some great news for you! Come to the swimming pool when you can!"
...she wouldn't!
The machine flicked to a third message as I stared at it. "It's your Mom again. I forgot to say this first time I called. I love you, honey."
"I love you too Mom." Shaking off my fit of fear, I ran back to the bedroom and started looking for the orange sports bag that Will kept her swimming gear in.
"Did you find anything?" Cornelia asked.
"Maybe," I grumbled. "You."
"Just a lot of homework. Unfinished homework," she added for emphasis.
I groaned. "And I can't find her swimming kit! I can't believe she'd do this!"
Cornelia crossed her arms but kindly refrained from saying 'I told you so'. She was certainly thinking it though. "Well you can't go to the swimming pool to get her, so I'll have to. You got to Miss Randolph's and let the others know what's going on."
D for Drakensis
You're only young once, but immaturity is forever.
I didn't pick a specific reaction, my last chemistry class was a couple of decades ago.
W.I.T.C.H. - W.I.T.C.H. - W.I.T.C.H. - W.I.T.C.H. - W.I.T.C.H.
"What's wrong?" Cornelia asked when she saw me lower Will's mobile from my ear.
"She didn't pick up."
The blonde rolled her eyes. "Typical. Did you leave a message?"
I shook my head. "If I leave a message and Mom is the one that gets it our secret would be out."
"She must have just stepped out."
"She shouldn't." I certainly didn't dare go out until school let out, in case someone asked why I wasn't at school. "Maybe she's asleep."
"At two in the afternoon?" asked Cornelia incredulously.
I shrugged. "I don't know." There were other possibilities of course. Possibilities that scared me. Had Cedric or Elyon struck while Will was alone?
Cornelia rested her hand on my shoulder for a moment. "I'm sure she's alright. I'll ride home with you after school and fill her in on the way to Miss Rudolph's."
"And..." I bit off the sentence before I could finish it.
"Then we'll find her."
I barely paid any attention to the last class of the day, although I managed to put up a pretense after the teacher threatened me with a detention. The minute the last bell rang I shoved everything higgledy-piggledy into my bag and ran out of the door.
"Will, wait!"
I almost forgot myself and reminded Cornelia that I wasn't my sister, before I remembered that she had to maintain the pretense as well. I slowed down and let her catch up.
"You know, you've got a lot to learn about being an Infielder," she grumbled.
"A what?"
"An Infielder. Look, you know Uriah and his crew."
I nodded.
"Well they're Outfielders - the school slobs and losers. Infielders are the opposite, people like me."
Well I knew which I wanted to be more like and it wasn't those boys. "Please teacher, teach me."
Cornelia threw back her head and laughed. "Well one important lesson is that you can't ever look like you're taking anything too seriously. Because if you're having to do that then you're not in control."
"But we're not in control."
She gave me a reproving look. "Shhhh. That's a secret."
I was surprised how fast Cornelia could walk without appearing to hurry at all. I suppose her long legs helped with that. I had to trot a little to keep up but I tried my best to keep from showing that I was in a hurry. Even with Cornelia setting the pace we got our bikes and cycled off the grounds before most of the kids had even made it out of the building.
It was nice just to hang out, chatting with Cornelia as we rode. I made a mental note: definitely going to arrange with Will sometime that I can take Cornelia up on the offer to meet her family.
When we reached the apartment block, she paused at the bicycle rack, still perched in the saddle. "Do you want me to wait down here?"
"I'd appreciate the company," I told her. It was true... and if my fears proved right then I'd want a Guardian to be with me.
At the top of the stairs I did my usual fumbling around with the keys.
"Why do you have so many keys?" asked Cornelia, with an air of amusement.
I finally found the right ones. "Will keeps the keys from her old apartment on the same ring."
"Why would she do that?"
I shrugged. "I never asked."
The apartment was quiet and I poked my head into the sitting room and then the kitchen as I went past. No sign of Will, or Mom. Still, there was also no sign of a struggle. I saw the laundry basket was filled with bedding so she'd been here long enough to have done at least some of the chores.
"Will!" Cornelia called out.
No answer.
We exchanged looks and then I pushed open the door to Will's room. I half-expected her to be at the desk, wearing headphones or something that had kept her from noticing us or the earlier phone calls but the room was as vacant as the rest of the apartment.
"Where is she?" Cornelia asked.
"I've no idea." I moved a chair below the hatch and scrambled onto it so that I could check my hiding place. "See if you can find any clues."
"Sure." Cornelia looked around and added: "Frogs everywhere."
"Don't you think that they're cute?"
"As if." She shuddered slightly. "Horrible little slimy creatures." Then the elegant girl squeaked. "Er... there's something moving under the bedcovers!"
Looking down I saw she was right. Still, it couldn't be very large... maybe the size of... aha. Hehehe. "Oh, that's just my sister's pet." I paused as if in thought. "Uh, since you don't like frogs..."
"That's a frog!" Cornelia screeched and retreated to the door.
I couldn't help but laugh at the look on her face. I'm pretty sure a frog the size of Will's dormouse would be the biggest frog in the world. "...how do you feel about dormice?"
"Oooh, you..." she huffed.
Since there was no sign of Will up in the loft I scrambled down. "He's a mite feisty."
"Well unless Will's hiding in the bathroom, she's not here," Cornelia grumbled. She went over to the desk and started looking through the mess on it. "She couldn't have left a note or something?"
"Probably not," I headed to the door. "I'll check the rest of the apartment."
Will wasn't in the bathroom. I was checking the kitchen again, to see if it looked like she'd had lunch here when I spotted a blinking light on the ansafone. Will couldn't have left a message on it in case Mom heard it, but perhaps it would explain why she had left?
"It's me honey," Mom's voice came from the machine when I pressed the button. "I'll be late today, but I'll bring something ready for dinner. Make sure you keep your cell phone on so I can get hold of you iof anything comes up."
Nothing out of the ordinary there. Mom's left messages like that at least twice since I started living here.
There was another message though. "Hello Will! It's Vera! I have some great news for you! Come to the swimming pool when you can!"
...she wouldn't!
The machine flicked to a third message as I stared at it. "It's your Mom again. I forgot to say this first time I called. I love you, honey."
"I love you too Mom." Shaking off my fit of fear, I ran back to the bedroom and started looking for the orange sports bag that Will kept her swimming gear in.
"Did you find anything?" Cornelia asked.
"Maybe," I grumbled. "You."
"Just a lot of homework. Unfinished homework," she added for emphasis.
I groaned. "And I can't find her swimming kit! I can't believe she'd do this!"
Cornelia crossed her arms but kindly refrained from saying 'I told you so'. She was certainly thinking it though. "Well you can't go to the swimming pool to get her, so I'll have to. You got to Miss Randolph's and let the others know what's going on."
D for Drakensis
You're only young once, but immaturity is forever.