Circle Quartet: 35

Chapter 35

I can’t stop gazing at the picture of Jeff. There’s a big sickle around his neck. Jeff was wearing black in that picture and his face looked calm in his eyes closed; like he was willing to die. I look up at Amanda and Marc. Amanda lowers her gaze when my eyes meet hers. Maybe she thinks that I’m going to get mad for not telling me earlier.

“You’re the Seer?” I finally speak after the long silence.

Amanda nods slowly.

“And I’m the Teller,” says Marc. “Amanda can draw something that she sees or dreams, while I can tell the meaning of her drawings.”

“I can’t believe it,” I shake my head. “I heard that there’s a Seer and a Teller in our family and I never, ever expected the two of you.”

“I’m…I’m sorry, Alice, for not telling you about this,” mutters Amanda, trembling. She’s nearly in tears.

“Hey, it’s okay, Amanda,” I reach across the table and place my hand on hers. “I’m not mad at you. Ever. I’m glad that you show me this.”

“Amanda drew this picture the night when you came to our house. Do you still remember the ball that Dad held when you’re having your break?” asks Marc.

“Yeah. The frog massacre,” I roll my eyes. It was the night when Aunt Ada exploded and turned Harley into frog. How can I possibly forget that night?

Amanda and Marc giggle. Amanda wipes her tears. “After that night, I suddenly had a vision. I quickly ran to my room and got my drawing paper. It was happening so fast. When I finished drawing, I was shock to see the picture. So, I called Marc and showed this to him. He told me that something bad might happen to Jeff. We gathered our courage to meet Jeff that night and Marc told him everything,” Amanda sighs heavily.

“How did Jeff react when you told him the truth?” I ask.

Marc clears his throat. “Jeff didn’t say anything but smiled. He said that he had a dream where he met a Death God. He said that his time will come. Then, he told us to keep this secret from you before he left. He didn’t want you to worry about him. Everybody knew about his death, except you, Alice. We felt really guilty for not telling you but we had to keep Jeff’s promise,” he says in a low tone.

I close my eyes and try to remember the night that I fought with Jeff. He forced himself to scold me so that I hated him and left the group. That was his last wish. He didn’t want me to witness his tragic death. He knew that he’ll die. Mom and Dad knew. Ace and Sable knew. Everyone knew!

“Alice, are…are you okay?” asks Amanda in trembling voice.

“Yeah, I’m fine,” I slowly open my eyes. “Thanks for telling me this.”

“There’s one more drawing that I would like to show you,” says Amanda. Her voice is barely whisper.

She shows another picture. It’s a picture of a place full with trees with no leaves but branches. I stare at the picture and focus on something weird in it. I see a creature, a black creature with yellowish eyes and there’s a spot of light in the middle of its body. I think I know this place. It’s the place that Jeff and I only knew!

“You saw this in your dream, Amanda?” I ask, staring at Amanda with an inquisitive expression.

Amanda nods. “Yes. I saw this place last night. That’s why I told Dad to come here so I can show you this. I saw you and Stefan walking to this place.”

Did she just say Stefan? Stefan knew this place too? This is getting confusing.

“Oh, before I forgot. Jeff gave me this, two nights before his death. He wanted me to give it to you,” Marc hands me a CD.

I take the CD and both of them excuse themselves to leave. I totally forgot that they are not nocturnal like me. I stare at the CD as they leave my room. I switch on my laptop and play the CD.

Jeff appears on the screen. He’s sitting on a sofa and looking straight at me. “Hello, Alice,” he greets. “When you see this video, I’m already dead.”

Silence.

“Okay, I know. It’s lame,” he rolls his eyes. Then he chuckles. How I miss his chuckle so much! Then, Jeff clears his throat. “But it’s the truth. I record this video to let you know a secret. Do you remember the place called Path Beneath the Feet? I took you there once when you’re very small. It’s an enchanted place where only chosen people can enter.

“Do you still have the necklace that I gave to you before the final examination? That necklace is the key to open the path. After you watch this video, I want you and Stefan to go to Path Beneath the Feet. There’s a group of creature called SimpleThing, an elemental spirit which has a tip of light on their left chest. Find a SimpleThing that has emerald tip on his left chest. Match the necklace to the tip of light and you’ll find the answer.”

Then, Jeff sighs.

“I know that you must be sad when I’m not around anymore. I knew my time will come when Amanda showed me the picture that she saw in her dream. Please don’t get mad at her. She’s a super sensitive girl,” Jeff chuckles, and so I am. “I know you have a strong will. No matter what happen, Alice, I will always be with you. Always. I love you, little buddy. Until next time,” he smiles and waves goodbye.

The video ends. I can feel warm tears trickle down to my cheek. I quickly brush them off. I have to be strong, no, I am strong! I close the laptop and call Stefan. I tell him about the video and what Jeff told me to do. Stefan says that he’ll come to my house. I tell him that I’ll wait at the backyard gate.

I go to the backyard without telling anyone. They will know, eventually, as this mansion is surrounded by strong magic to prevent Alse from coming. But the dangers are lessened since Alse drank the false blood. It might take ages to heal herself. I don’t need to wait long for Stefan as he appears few minutes later with his superbike. I hop on his bike and direct him the way.

We reach a thick forest after 20 minutes ride. Stefan parks his superbike beside the road. We need to walk on foot from now on. The air is cold but it doesn’t affect me much.

“Is this the place?” asks Stefan.

“Yeah. We need to walk to reach there. This necklace will show us the way,” I reply and take out the necklace. The light glimmer and a green glowing arrow point appear.

“Look likes a compass,” says Jeff. I nod and we follow the pointed arrow. I don’t know how long we walk but we reach a stream. Green algae glows in the dark.

“God, I miss this place,” I whisper out loud.

Then, we see an opening not far from where we stand. The door is open. I hold Stefan’s hand firmly and together we walk through the opening. As we pass through, we can see lots and lots of SimpleThing. SimpleThing is a dark brown creature that floats in the air. There’s a tip of light on the left chest.

Jeff told me to find a SimpleThing with emerald light. I look around, right and left. It’s quite hard to find it. Then, the light from my necklace glows brighter and brighter. After that, I see one SimpleThing floating towards me and touch itself to the necklace. Suddenly, the light glows too bright that I need to close my eyes.

I slowly open my eyes and shock to see a man who is standing in front of me. I can’t even utter a word as my gaze lock to his. Stefan is also in shock. We can’t believe that he’s there, a person that we miss the most, standing in front of us.

“It’s good to see you, Alice, Stefan.” Jeff smiles brightly.

Tell me that this is not a dream!