When You Want It Least (Chapter 2)

Chapter two

When Will explained why he was screaming his lungs out in the middle of the night, everyone said it was a dream. No matter how much Will tried to convince them that it was no dream, his parents kept assuring him it was simply a dream and no Mirrowel could possibly exist.

In the morning, when everything calmed down and nobody remembered the night-event, Will sat next to his grandmother in the warm living room and said, "Gra'ma, I need you to tell me about the mirror."

His grandmother looked at him with eyes full of confusion and said, "What mirror?"

"The mirror your grandfather told you about," Will replied, not expecting the disappointment he was going to face.

"May he rest in harmony with the angels of paradise," his grandmother muttered then looked up and smiled. "Mirror? What mirror?"

"The... The mirror you said your grandfather told you about," repeated Will.

"May he find concord amongst those he walks with," muttered Will's grandmother again. "Mirror?" she asked and now she was getting on his nerves.

Struggling not to let his temper break, Will took a deep breath and said, very slowly, "Do you know any stories about magic mirrors?"

"Oh yes!!" Will's grandmother replied. "A mirror... a magic mirror... a portal between two worlds." Then she stopped.

"And?" Will said, perplexed by the sudden stop.

"That is it," Will's grandmother replied, fighting her way up from the sofa. "That's the story."

With his mouth wide open, Will helped his grandmother up. He couldn't say a word. He was shocked. When his grandmother was near the door, Will said, "B... But there must be something else!"

Katie's frightened face refused to leave Will's mind. He was walking around his room, looking at the mirror every minute, hoping that the portal would open. He needed to get back there and help her... or maybe help will be too late. Will shook the thought away.

Will's younger sister, Jessica, came into his room, sat on his bed and started silently watching her brother marching across the room. "Are you sure it was not a dream?" she asked. Will granted her with a furious look and Jessica said quickly, "Okay... I believe you." Then she watched Will for another minute and asked, "Where's the rest of the mirror then?"

Will stopped. "You are a genius!" he whispered, a smile spreading on his face. He ran towards his sister and hugged her. "Help me! We have to find the other pieces!"

Will pulled his sister after him into the basement. He commanded her to look for unusually protruding bricks. They scanned every inch of the walls but found nothing. They even digged out few suspicious bricks out but with no result. After several hours of intense search, Jessica gave up and went upstairs, leaving Will to struggle on his own.

"If I was to hide something," Will whispered to himself, "I wouldn't hide it in one place..."

The attic seemed as the most appropriate place to look in at the moment. It was absolutely devastating to find nothing in the walls. He looked at the numerous boxes with different labels and sat down onto the floor. His breath was uneven and jittery but he was resolute to find an other portal. He stood up and the wooden floor under him screeched. It was usual for the old attic floor to screech but that was different... Will fell to his knees and passed his fingers over the wood. Then he knocked twice... it was empty... there was space beneath it. Will started to pull it up and there it was! Another piece of the magic mirror!

"Come on!" Will begged. "Get me to Mirrowel!"

The attic started spinning and melting away... Will reappeared in the cemetery. It was not dark and foggy. On the contrary, it looked quite peaceful. "Katie!" William called but there was no answer. In fact, there was complete silence. Will ran around the lifeless graveyard calling out her name and when he found no answer he started for the temple. His hand hesitated to push the door open but he pushed his fear away and went in.

It was dark, cold and too quiet. There was a horrible smell... not disgusting or revolting, but horrible. It was a smell of death... a smell of hatred that lived in the place. Will could feel his head beginning to ache as the accursed air entered his lungs. He covered his nose and tried to breathe less frequently while searching the temple. There was no sign of Katie or the ghost anywhere.

Maybe I should go to her house, Will thought.

Deep inside his heart he hoped that he would find the girl in her house but he knew that it was unlikely. He also wanted to fill her father in so that both of them can search for her... or at least he hoped so.

"Mr. Vicio?" called Will, knocking the door for the sixth time. He put his ear to the door and heard nothing. He sat on the stairs and started waiting.

Will burried his head in his arms and tried to calm down. Thoughts and questions were whirling around in his head like a tornado. Katie's face was still fresh in his mind. He could see her hand helplessly stretched out and her little lips whispering the word "help".

Suddenly, A massive hand grabbed Will by the elbow and pushed him against the door. "What have you done to her?!" Mr. Vicio whispered furiously.

"I... I... We..." Will was so surprised by the sudden ambush that he could not speak.

Mr. Vicio pushed the door open and dragged Will after him. He pushed him into an armchair and snapped, "Talk!"

Confused and quite frightened, Will started telling him everything. Meanwhile, Mr. Vicio was restlessly striding across the living room, his hands firmly folded on his chest. When Will got to the point where the ghost caught Katie, Mr. Vicio opened a cabinet and pulled out a crossbow, several arrows and a big dagger. Will went on but apparently Mr. Vicio was not listening. He rushed out of the house. Will followed.

"You stay, boy!" Mr. Vicio ordered angrily. "You have caused enough trouble! Now stay inside and... just..." He waved his hand as though getting an insect off his ear and hurried away.

Will went back to the house and sat in the armchair. The tune started playing... but this time it was a sad sond filling one's heart with remorse and regret. Will saw photo hanging over the fireplace. Katie, a couple of years younger and not so pale, stood between Mr. Vicio and a beautiful woman that looked very much like Katie. By the wide smiles on their faces, Will felt that the only reason he had not seen Mrs. Vicio yet is that she passed away.

Will's eyelids started getting heavier and only then he realised how little sleep he had. He forced himself not to fall asleep but his struggles were overcome by the slow melody and he fell asleep. He dreamt of the basement and how he got to Mirrowel. Then he saw how he met Mr. Vicio and how he went to the temple... but Katie did not follow him. Instead, he went into the temple and the ghost appeared in front of him. She stood two feet away from him and stared him in the eyes. She was saying something but Will coudn't hear.

He opened his eyes. He was still in Mr. Vicio's living room. The sky was black and a clock indicated ten minutets to midnight. Will was stunned by the amount of time he slept. Apparently, Mr. Vicio had not come back yet. Will could not wait anymore and left the house in hope to help in finding, and helping, Katie.

When Will got to the temple, he could see nothing. Everything was surrounded by heavy fog and it was awkwardly cold. Will knew the ghost was near. "Katie!" he called, hoping to hear a reply... and he did.

It was a loud scream coming from inside the temple. Will pushed main door open and ran inside. It was pitch dark and Will could not see a single thing. Then the yell came again and Will went in the direction it was coming from. He stopped in a wide room which was lit by the dim moonlight coming in from the broken windows. It was a huge rectanngular room with a door on each wall.

"Katie!!" Will called. "Katie! Where are you?"

Unexpectedly, bright light appeared in front of William. He shielded his eyes from the sudden light and when his eyes got used to the light he looked up. Before him stood the ghost holding the unconscious Katie by her throat and keeping her few inches above the floor.

"Let her g-g-go," stuttered Will, trying to shut his fear down.

"Why?" the ghost whispered, barely moving her lips.

"B-b-b-ecause she... she... her heart is pure!" Will stated, remembering Mr. Vicio's words.

"Is it?" the ghost asked in the same low tone.

"Y...Yes," replied Will, hoping from the bottom of his heart that Katie's heart was pure.

"Bargain," the ghost said.

"Bargain? Okay! Anything! Ask for anything!"

"You find the most sinful human in Mirrowel," the ghost hissed, putting Katie to her feet but still holding her throat.

"Wh... What?"

"You will see the aura," the ghost went on. "Focus and you will see the sinful aura. Then kill!"

"K... Kill?" whispered Will but had to agree. "Okay... I'll kill him. Let her go..."

"Not so fast," the ghost said. She placed her index finger on Katie's throat and passed it across the pale skin. "If you leave Mirrowel for more that six hours... she dies."

Will could feel his heart freeze and his insides turn upside-down. He was thinking of going back to his world and forgetting Mirrowel but now he could not... Katie's life depended on his presence in Mirrowel.

"Okay," Will said.

"Brave," the ghost hissed, a smile appearing on her face. Then she pushed Katie into Will's and disappeared, her voice echoing in the temple, "Avenge! Avenge! Avenge!"

Will carried Katie across the bridge all the way to the village. He kicked the door open and went into Katie's house. Mr. Vicio appeared from the living room, the photo in his hands, and ran towards them crying out his daughter's name. When worried Mr. Vicio's eyes looked at Will, he nodded reassuringly. Mr. Vicio took Katie from Will's arms and hurried to the living room and placed her on the sofa.

Will told Mr. Vicio about everything that happened except the fact that Katie was to die if Will left Mirrowel for too long. They agreed not to tell Katie anything in case she did not remeber what happened to her and in case she did they would tell her it was a dream. Mr. Vicio told Will that he had to leave Mirrowel but Will refused saying that he could not break his word not to leave Mirrowel. Then Mr. Vicio offered him to stay and live with them and never go looking for the sinful person. Will refused - he could not live in Mirrowel forever and forget his family and friends. Then Mr. Vicio gave Will a map. He said that Mirrowel was in fact a small world. There were only two big towns and three villages, all located not very far away from each other. After quite a long discussion, Will agreed to stay for the night before leaving. Mr. Vicio even offered giving him some armory but Will only took a small dagger. First Will could not understand why Mr. Vicio was so eager to help him and was not resented by the idea that Will had to kill someone but then Will understood that the man would do it himself if he had struck that deal.

At dawn, not wishing to stay in the village any longer, Will headed to a new destination - The Reed Town. He had no idea how or where he would find him... and he hoped he never did.

TO BE CONTINUED