The days flew by as quickly as they came, they flowed into weeks and weeks to a month. Before I knew it, it had been three months since I transmigrated.

I spent my days training, I finally could control and use my flame at will. Once a week, I visited Roderick and during those visits he voluntarily showed me the skills he learnt from Sir Richard. Roderick always bore excitement whenever I came to visit. He was better than the first day he came to the estate and was more attractive and gorgeous anytime I visited. His muscles were prominent and seemed to grow stronger each passing day.

I have to admit it was hard not to fall for him with the looks he possessed. I couldn’t stop my heart from fluttering every time Roderick’s eyes met mine. How could a man be so effortlessly charming?. The sight of him was a danger to my heart. It raced just by a mere smile from his lips.

If it was back in my world, Roderick would have his own fan base. Girls would be drooling just by the sight of him. . . and I would not blame them he was a drop dead gorgeous man.

My dear brother, Edward has been a tremendous help to me. He became my tutor, teaching me every move and trick about my flame. It was nice learning from him, he was funny and very understanding when it came to tutoring me and I on the other hand loved learning from him.

My eldest brother, Leopold and I hardly conversed with each other and I completely understood why. Being the heir to the Dukedom— he had a lot to handle and never had the time to spend with me which was totally alright with me but sometimes. . . I wished we had some time together but we only saw each other during our weekly family dinner and only then could we converse for that period of time.

“I want to show you a new trick I created!” Edward said one faithful afternoon.

We were at our personal training ground, the garden. We loved staying under the oak tree located at the center of it. I had my back rested against the tree, enjoying the warm afternoon breeze. Hearing the words ‘new trick' got my attention.

I peeled myself from the tree and drew closer to him.

“I call this trick ‘The Firework’” He said with a high level of enthusiasm.

“Nice name!” I replied, impressed by the name. “So, how does it work?”.

“Like this!” He interlocked his fingers and slowly separated them from each other, what seemed to be like tiny particles of blue flame settled between his hands.

“First, you create small balls of flames!” I watched closely as the tiny particles increased to a definite size. “Then, enclose all the balls of flame into a bigger one, the bigger ball acts like a covering of the tiny balls and then you do this!” He shot the ball into the sky. I watched in awe as it exploded. The tiny balls of flames detonated into tiny sparks, illuminating the sky above us.

A gasp escaped my lips as I watched, enthralled by the neat trick.

“Wow! Edward, it is amazing!” I said, still awestruck.

“I know!” He said, smiling proudly.

“Why do I have the feeling that you use this trick to impress a lot of ladies?”.

He gave a half shrug, not replying the question. I could see the smug look on his face—his gaze still fixed at the sky.

“That explains why we receive a lot of love letters from your annoying lady friends!” A familiar voice said.

We both turned to see Leo approach us, his face had an unreadable expression. I could sense the tiredness in his eyes.

“Just admit that you are jealous because you have never received any letter!” Edward said, comically.

Leo scoffed at his remark, “I do not need to be jealous of your tiny piece of fame with the ladies. Those ladies do not approach me because they know that I do not have time for their cheap tricks!” He replied,

“Oh, now you are just trying to convince yourself!” Edward replied.

Leo was about to say something but I was quick to act.

“Does anyone want to go for a horse ride?” I asked, drawing their attention to me.

They both exchanged a look, before staring back at me—wearing a shocked expression on their faces.

“You can ride a horse?” Edward asked, bewildered.

I nodded affirmatively, “Yes I can, Sir Richard taught me!”.

They looked more baffled than earlier, for a moment I felt like I had said something dumb.

“I can not believe he taught you how to ride!” Edward said. My words seemed not to have registered in his brain.

The next words Leo said left me awestruck.

“He is a horrible teacher!” Leo stated. His demeanor was completely different from earlier.

“I know right!” Edward agreed. They both burst into laughter leaving me more baffled than ever.

“Do you remember when he taught us how to use the sword and gave us actual swords to train with?” Edward asked between laughs.

“Yes I do recall that! We destroyed every single drape in the ballroom, all in the name of training!” Leo added.

“Father was so enraged when he found out. We were banned from touching a sword ever again!” Edward said. They continued with their laughter while I stood there feeling left out.

A childhood memory flashed in my mind. Younger versions of the three of us were screaming at something at the empty West wing of the main building—Leo fainted at the sight of it. Unknowingly, I giggled at the memory. They looked at me, pondering what made me tickle.

“What is making you laugh?” Edward asked.

“I just remembered when the three of us went to the dark, uninhabited, lonely West wing in search of the known ghost that Sir Richard told us about!” I stated.

His eyes gleamed and a laugh escaped his lips while Leo's face reddened with embarrassment as the memory flooded back in.

“Oh! I remember that!” Edward said whilst laughing, he pointed at Leo “I can remember you fainting when we saw that ugly statue in the last room of the hallway!”.

“I did not faint! I just fell that's all. . .” Leo said slowly, probably thinking of a better retort.

“Yeah right!” I replied, “You boys were so scared you hung around me for protection!”.

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Edward scoffed at my statement “Oh! I wasn't scared!” He retorted.

I rolled my eyes at him “You were scared, you were so scared that you ran out of the room screaming like a dying rat!” I jeered at him.

“Why are you bringing up a dying rat?” Leo asked, bearing a puzzled look.

Edward was quiet for a minute, I could notice his cheeks flushed, he looked mortified.

“Maybe I was a bit scared!” He admitted slowly “At least I didn't faint!” He said comically, referring to Leo.

“I told you I fell!” Leo retorted.

“Yeah right!” I said with a roll of my eyes.

“You weren't any better. Your scream outmatched that of a dying rat, you were scared too!” He said, referring to me.

“Why, the dying rat?” Leo asked again but no reply was given to him.

I blinked a few times, shocked by Edward's words. “No, I was not!”.

“Yes you were!” They said simultaneously.

“Fine! Let's settle this!” Saying this, they looked at me prepared for what I was about to suggest.

“We will go to the West wing tonight and search for the so-called ghost!” I said the last part with air quotes.

The boys were mute, not saying a word about it. They looked unsure of my suggestion.

“What! Are you boys scared?” I said in a mocking tone.

“No!” They both yelled.

“Fine! It is settled then. Tonight we will go to the West wing!” I said confidently. An amazing idea creeped into my mind. A plan began to unfold in my head, I couldn't help but imagine Leo’s terrified expression. This would be a night they’d never forget.

* * * *

That evening just after dinner—they gathered each with different expressions written all over them.

“Are we ready?” Rosalind asked, staring at her brothers.

They wore a concerned look on their face before nodding in agreement.

The trio left the main building and began their journey to the infamous West wing. Its history was unknown to them. For as long as they could remember no one dares go near the West wing and due to that ghost stories were created to scare off the unfortunate.

As they approached the West wing, they each created a flame of their own lighting their path. The hallway loomed before them, shrouded in darkness. Every creak of the old wooden floor echoed like a distant scream, sending chills down their spines.

Rosalind felt her brothers clung closer to her, she could feel their bodies tremble as they drew nearer to the door. She held in the laughter that was about to seep out.

The trio halted in front of the dark broad oak door which loomed over them. The door groaned in protest as Leo pushed it open. His heart hammered in his chest as they ventured into the terror of his childhood.

It was exactly what she thought it would be. The only source of light apart from their flames was the open window where the rays of the moon light seeped in, brightening the room a little—illuminating the dust particles that swirled like specters in the air.

The drapes and curtains were worn out and outdated. Their shadows danced on the cobwebbed walls, and the air was thick with dust and the scent of decay.

“Can you boys give me some space?” Rosalind said as their grip on her tightened.

“We are men not boys!” Edward said, corrected firmly.

She scoffed, rolling her eyes at his words.

“We are trying to protect you!” Leo added in a shaky tone, looking around the abandoned room.

“You gripping my arm is not protecting me in any way!” She spoke in an annoying tone.

Hearing her complaint he loosened his grip on her.

“You too, Edward!” She said,

He sighed and did the same. Just as quick as a flash, he saw a glint of a white fabric pass them by.

A gasp escaped his lips, his face whitened.

“Leo. . . Rosalind. . .I think I saw something!” He yelled, his shaky voice resonated throughout the entire room.

They followed his gaze but saw nothing but an empty room.

“There is nothing there Edward!” Rosalind said in a bored tone. She began to wonder where the so-called ghost was, all she could see was an abandoned room filled with cobwebs and dust-filled furniture and creepy statues .

“But I saw something!” He claimed but no one believed him.

Leo looked around the room using his flame as a source of light, he vetted the room, passed a couple of whitened figures with long robes. Strange looking statues which frightened him the first time they approached the room, were before him. A shiver ran down his spine as the memory flooded in.

Leo spotted a door at the far end of the room, it's presence was unknown to him before that moment. He left the group, reaching for the door curious as to what unknown treasures or terror it held. . . suddenly realization dawned on him.

He slowly retraced his gaze, it landed on the whitened figures, their hair covered most of their faces, they gave off an eerie feeling and wore a deadly expression.

His face grew pale as he stared at the figures, it seemed like their gazes were fixed at him as they approached their direction, not breaking eye contact.

“Rosalind! Edward! I think I have found the ghosts!” He said slowly, his voice was shaky and the tone was a terrifying one.

“What do you mean by ghosts? We are looking for just one. . .!” Edward's voice trailed off, his gaze landed on the figures. They gave off a deadly smile, dragging their feet towards them, looking more like the undead.

Rosalind's jaw dropped as she noticed her brother's face turned beet red, eyes wide like a startled deer.

A scream left their throats! They felt their skeletons leave their body at the sight of the disgusting beings. They ran off leaving their dear little sister behind, so much for offering her their protection.

It was at that moment Rosalind wished she had a phone with her to record their reaction. Her brothers would have gone viral on the Internet. The way they ran out of the room and the paleness of their skin made her laugh, this was funnier than she ever imagined.

“The Ghost! The Ghost is real!” Leo screamed as he ran down the hallway.

“Leo! Hold on!” Edward yelled, running behind him.

“Edward, the ghosts, they. . .” He halted in the middle of the hallway. Edward almost bumped into him.

“What! Leo we need to run!” Edward grabbed his arm, pulling him further towards the other end of the hallway.

“Wait! Where is Rosalind?” He asked, he wore a terrified expression as he stared at his dear brother. It suddenly dawned on him. They left their dear sister behind. Who knew the terrible things the ghosts were doing to her at the moment?.

They both exchanged a mortified look. Mustering as much courage as possible, they decided to run back in to save their dear sister from the deadly hands of the ghosts.

They slowly approached the room once more but. . . this time, they were prepared for combat with the undead. Much to their dismay, they heard the sound of laughter resonating from the room. They exchanged a perplexed look and marched in. Leo and Edward stopped in their tracks on witnessing what was before them.

Rosalind was laughing heartily with the ghosts like they were old friends.

“What is going on here?” Leo asked slowly, he bore a strange look.

“Just a little trick I made up!” She responded heartily.

“What!” They yelled simultaneously. Shocked beyond words as the prank they fell for.

Rosalind looked at the ghost closest to her, a smile smoldered on her lips.

The conversation they had earlier that day recalled in her mind.

>>>> “I am sorry, My Lady but I cannot do it!” Lenora said, frantically.

I couldn't help but roll my eyes at her. I had just finished explaining my amazing plan to frighten the skin off my brothers and she was already chickening out.

“Why can't you?” I asked.

“I might get in big trouble for it!” She replied, her hands trembled at the thought of being punished.

“You will not. I guarantee it! We just need to frighten their socks off a little” I said firmly, giving her my word. “So will you do it?”.

She took a deep breath and slowly nodded. Knowing that she didn't have much of a choice, she gave in.

I yelped out for joy. “Great! We just need two more people for this to work!”.

“I have some people in mind!” She said,

“That's nice, tell them about the plan and make sure that everything is ready before sundown!” I said, a devious smirk plastered on my lips.

>>>> “Rosalind, how could you?” Leo asked, his voice was filled with annoyance.

I couldn't help but giggle at their faces. This night would definitely be a night to remember.

“You nearly gave us a heart attack!” Edward yelled. He looked enraged and was boiling over a hundred degrees.

“I am so sorry!” I said, holding my laughter.

They looked at each other, probably pondering on something, their gaze shifted to me.

“Can you at least stop with the scare?” Leo asked, he sounded more irritated.

I stared at him confused, pondering on his question.

“What?”.

Edward sighed before speaking “Can you tell the fourth ghost that it is over? She should stop this instant!”.

I had a baffled demeanor as I stared at them, I turned to Lenora and her friends probably hoping that they understood them.

“We are only three, My Lady!” Lenora said slowly, staring at me and then her friends.

Suddenly, I felt something on my shoulder. I slowly turned and saw a skeleton’s hand holding me firmly. Its bony fingers gripped my shoulder as blood drained from my face. As slowly as I could, I turned around— beads of sweat formed on my forehead as a cold shiver ran down my spine. My breathing quickened as I beheld what was before me.

I was face to face with the hideous being, its face was something that I could not bring myself to describe. The figure seemed to be floating. Its hands were made of bones and a worn out cloak covered the rest of its body. I stumbled backwards as I stared at it, it wore a threatening smile staring back at me. I felt my blood run cold at the sight.

A scream escaped my throat, as I fell to the ground and blacked out. The image of the figure was floating in my mind.