Diar's POV (Flashback) 8 years ago

I can vividly remember the day that it started. I was in the backseat of the car with my little sister Ellie sitting next to me. Her head laid on the car window and she had her dolls in her hands, clutching them hard with her tiny hands, as if they were about to run away.

I on the other hand, held a book, a book that my history of magic teacher gave us as an assignment for class. The day felt normal, like any other day.

I, wanting to know more about the world, while my sister used the only things she had control over to escape from reality, her mind and her dolls.

The drive felt slow and long, which I was glad about because I was able to finish reading a whole chapter of my homework assignment. I figured I might as well stop now because I had a whole week till the assignment was due. So I closed my book, shoved it in my backpack without caring about how it would fit.

Our new driver, who's name I still haven't memorized, looked at us through the rear view mirror and asked "miss Ellie are you alright you've been staring out the window for quite some time and you look quite pale is something wrong?" She didn't respond so I turned to look at Ellie to see what the driver was talking about. She did look pale, more than usual at least.

She was quietly shaking and was pressing hard onto her stomach so i asked "are your ok Ellie? Why are your shaking? What's wrong?"

"nothing, I'm fine don't worry".

"How can i not worry you look like you're about to faint".

"I said it's nothing, don't ask like you care" she said barely getting her words out then coughed.

She squeezed onto her stomach even tighter while I let out a sigh of disappointment then said "you don't have to be mean, all i want is to help just tell me where it hurts."

She fiercely turned her eyes slightly to look at me from her side view. She stared with so much confusion and suspicion. At that moment I could tell what she was thinking, I mean it wasn't hard, Ellie has a face that even a blind man could read.

It got me thinking, Maybe I should have paid more attention to her then she would have believed my worries.

"stop looking at me like that I'm being serious, you don't gotta say nothing just point" i paused and waited for her response but nothing.

"Ellie come on just spill it!"

"Ok! Fine! I don't feel too good you happy".

"No, I'm not happy what's hurting".

"My stomach, its acting up, it feels like I'm being stabbed 100 times and it wont stop".

"What? Wait?" I said with my hand touching my chin "How do you know how it feels to be stabbed when you never been".

Her gaze sharpened then she said "Can you stop" while rolling her eyes and turning her body facing away from me "this is why i dont tell you stuff no more, I'm not joking" she then crossed her arms together and with a pout she turned back to face the car window. "You never take nothing seriously"

I looked at her and sighed then said "fine fine I'll stop, ok? I'm listening." I reached over and touched her forehead to feel if she was getting hot like my momma taught me but nothing, her body was actually colder than normal.

"That's weird? Your body's cold" i said while moving my hand from her forehead to her neck.

"What do you mean my body's cold" she said.

"It's exactly as I said, you're supposed to be extra hot because you're sick but you're not even warm no more".

"Do you not feel cold?" I said.

"No i feel like I'm like I'm burning up" she said.

We both looked at each other confused, then the driver said "what did you eat today miss Ellie" while looking at us through the rear view mirror.

i turned to look at the drivers seat and said "why'd you ask that".

"She said her stomach was hurting so maybe she ate something bad today" the driver said.

I turned to look back at Ellie and said "that makes sense, what'd you eat today?

"Nothing different i ate the breakfast momma made us and the food at the cafeteria, it was the same as yesterday" she said.

I turned to look back at the driver to see if he had any new bright ideas on what might be happening but nothing. We just stared at each other both with confused faces.

What could be making her stomach hurt if not the food that she ate? I thought to myself for a while longer until I said to the driver "well do you have some medicine for her... ugh... mister?"

"My names Ian Kuff, young master. And yes i think your mother gave me miss Ellie's medication incase something like this happens while on the road, check the my back seat pocket it should be there."

"Thank you Driver Kuff, ill make sure to remember your name as of now" i said with a slight chuckle while reaching into the seat pocket and pulling out a plastic white bottle that already had Ellies name on it.

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When I opened it i noticed that the bottle was already half full and while i handed Ellie a pill and a bottle of water i asked the driver "does this happen a lot Driver kuff? The bottle is almost half way gone. Why haven't i been told that Ellie has stomach problems?"

"that i do not know young master. as you know i am still new to the position of being your driver, maybe you should ask the lady of the house for answers"

"Hm, maybe I should. Here Ellie have some more water I know how you don't like big pills" i said while handing ellie another bottle of water and putting the pills back in the seat pocket.

"How do you feel now Ellie? It'll take a few minutes for the medicine to kick in so take a nap while we get home" i said while taking off my second layer and laying it on top of Ellie. Before laying her head down she turns to look back at me just to stare as if I'll attack her but the second her head touched the cushy car seat she was knocked out.

"Look at her so sassy, mama always says that about her" i moved her school bag that was on her feet to the side and lowered her car seat to keep her comfortable.

"She's still a little cold, driver kuff can you turn up the heat before we all freeze to death."

"Yes young master"

"Thank you, ugh this is so annoying though I don't know how its sunny but freezing all at the same time, do you know driver kuff"

"yes i do young master. Aklure's weather has always ben contradictory" he says with an accent.

"I can't argue with that but that can be said for its citizens as well can it not?" I said while facing the drivers seat. Its odd, he sits with perfect posture, so poised and elegant. With his dainty little hands on the rough and matte black steering wheel. Even his whole body is not big enough to fit the entire driver's seat. How can someone like him be our protector on the road? At least his voice sounds like a man.

"Your accent where is that from, I've never heard anyone in Aklure speak like you do"

"Oh well, my former employer was a world traveler I would often join him on his many trips as an aid so I've been everywhere and i sort of picked up the accent from being in close proximity to an Englishmen" he says with a smile on his face.

"You must have been happy as his aid you smile just speaking about him" I said back with an half sincere smirk.

He hurriedly scrambled to keep his demeanor and immediately removed his smile, "I apologize young master, yes talking about him did remind me of some happy memories but by the time my job was done with him your family was in need of a driver and Aklure is still my birth home so i am happy with providing my services to the pines family, after all they've help me so much in my youth." He said while making the final turn that leads to the gated wall.

"We've made it home" he said while pulling up in front of the gated wall. He reaches for a button near the cup holders and presses it. Immediately after the middle of the gated wall opened, showing the other side of the road that let us cross over.

I gently shook Ellie to wake her of her nap to relay the message. "Hey Ellie wake up, we're home"

"hmm, no, five minutes" she responded with her tiny arms reaching for the roof of the car then them falling back down. "Come on Ellie, get up and out of the car, stop acting tired" i said while stepping out the car waiting for the driver to hand me my bag.

She was silent for a few seconds then sharply turned her head away from me.

"I don't act, why would you say that" she muttered under her breathe, barely letting me hear her.

I turned to look at the driver to see his reaction, nothing, then looked back at the dramatically crumbled up Ellie and responded with "fine, whatever, do what you want. Driver kuff can you make sure that one of the maids make Ellie her favorite strawberry cream crêpes with a cup of peppermint tea, that should calm her down."

"Yes young master. And your study snacks are already prepared in your room so there wont have any distractions from the staff."

"Alright, sounds good. See you inside Ellie" i walked off without waiting for her response.

A set of maids came rushing to greet me at the doors of the house.

"Welcome home young master?" said maid number one.

Before taking my first step into the house maid number three placed my house slippers in front of my path and removed the shoes off my feet. At the same time maid number two lifted my school bag that was hanging on my shoulders off and held it while walking behind me.

"hello everyone" i replied.

"I'm staying in my room for the rest of the day, you're free to do whatever it is y'all do when you're not needed, i don't want to be disturbed."

"Yes Young master" they all said simultaneously.

Hours passed and it grew dark outside. My mind couldn’t stay quiet no matter how hard i tried. The sound of my feet pacing and sound of my heart racing uncountably became the soundtrack of my roaring thoughts. The snacks didn’t help and when I requested tea to calm my nerves all it did was remind me of why i felt anxious. The remedies that have worked before now were becoming fuel to my anxiety.

It didn't make sense. How could she have stomach problems but not know where or when it started. And why did almost everyone know that she even needed prescriptions for it and not one of them told me.

I know that Ellies always been sick and I shouldn't be surprised that she needs medication but this is symptom is something new and for some reason it's something hidden.

Moments passed and as i was sitting on my floating chair pondering away the night, the thought that what happened today with Ellie was not an accident but instead was intentional could not escape me. I repeated over and over in my head the facts of the situation and each repetition left me with more questions than answers.

“Go forward, go down, and stay” I said to the chair.

now sitting near my desk i opened my school bag, pulled out a sheet of paper with a black pen and laid it on top of my desk to organize my thoughts.

Here are the facts: Ellie had two big meals, breakfast in the morning at home and lunch at noon at the cafeteria of the academy. Those two are pretty standard, her meals are very calculated and timed due to her diet restrictions and the known medicines she has to take. But then hours later she starts getting sick with stomach issues, a hot fever but was cold to the touch, and excruciating pain that had to be treated with new medication.

The new medication is known to Ellie’s new driver, possibly my mom, the old driver and now of course i now know of its existence. Who else knows and why is it that the list of people who do know is so short.

Does father know about Ellie’s new medication? Does the whole staff know? Was i the only one who didn't know? If that's the case why? Why would everyone purposely not tell me that Ellie was getting sicker and make me believe that she was getting better? Why lie?

It didn’t make sense, who would lie about something like that? And that's not all, something had to happen to make Ellie sicker. Even the doctor told us that she was getting better and her illness was leaving her body so something had to happened between that time with our doctors to now.

Every possibly of what could of happened and what was true was at war in my mind. I needed to get more facts before i overthank myself into insanity. I needed facts, i needed to start asking questions.

I loosened my heavy grip to the now dried up black pen i held in my hand. The sheet of paper that was once white as snow now was filled with black ink shaped like question marks. The pen left dents that cut through the paper.

I took the now used sheet of paper, crumbled it up into a small ball, and thew it across my room for it to land on top a pile of the same shaped paper.

That's it! No matter how much i think about it i wont be able to find out the truth when i don’t know all the facts. I need to investigate and see how Ellie actually spends her day to see when and how someone could hurt her.

I stood up from my chair to walk towards the bed and threw myself on top of the soft and inviting mattress. Bounced then laid while pulling my comforter towards my face.

I turned to my head to the right to look at the windows that touched the ceiling and in peeked darkness. The murky air filled my room with the birds and insects chirping away the night.

Its too late to do anything right now i can investigate tomorrow.