Issues

Chapter Two

Sometime later –although she wasn't sure how much later—Domino woke up. At first, she was confused; then she remembered the recent events. Gingerly, she felt her forehead. To her surprise, someone had placed a cool washcloth on it. She removed it, then examined her head for any bumps. There was a small one on the back of the head, but other than that, she was fine.

Carefully, she got out of bed, and was relieved to find out that she hadn't broken any bones. She made her bed, silently thanking whoever had taken her here, and washed her face in the small bathroom.

There was a knock at the door. "Come in," she said, exiting the bathroom and opening the door. How long had it been since she was sucked under by the couch? Domino wondered.

When she opened the door, she was greeted with the sight of two boys, who looked to be the same age as her. One looked a bit shy, and was glancing around nervously; the other seemed more at ease, with a small smile on his face.

"Uh, hi," she said, wondering what was going on. The shy boy looked up, a little startled. "I-I'm Vincent Van Dort, miss," he stammered. "And this is my friend, Toby Todd."

Domino stepped aside to let them in. Van Dort? But, but that's impossible! Actually, given what's happened, I'm shouldn't be surprised. "We just wanted to make sure you were alright, miss," Toby explained.

"Call me Domino," she said, not really liking the sound of "miss"; it was too old-fashioned for her. Toby raised his eyebrow slightly. "It's short for Dominique," she added hastily.

There was an awkward pause; then Vincent asked, "Anything we can do?" She started to shake her head, then paused. "Wait…would you mind telling me how you got here?"

The boys looked at each other. Toby shrugged, indifferent. "It's a bit of a long story," he warned. Domino shrugged and sat down on the bed. "Not like I'm going anywhere."

Vincent hesitated. "Well, alright. See, mi—Domino, this is what happened…"

It was a cloudy day, as usual. To Vincent though, he knew it was different; it was the one-day of the year when his father mysteriously disappeared into the woods for hours at a time. And this year, Vincent was determined to find out why. Hurriedly buttoning his coat, he ran downstairs. He was just in time to see his father leaving. He seemed surprised to see his son.

"Father," Vincent said breathlessly, "Can I go with you?" He looked up at him, pleading to be let in on the secret.

Victor hesitated. Should he let him come? "Alright," he relented. "Be ready in ten minutes," he called, as his son raced out of the house.

Vincent raced down the streets, until he came to a large brick building on the corner of Fleet Street. It was actually an orphanage, and that's where his friend Toby lived.

He ran up the steps and knocked on the door, breathless. In a few moments, an elderly woman opened the door. She smiled when she saw him. "I'll tell him you're here," she said, winking before turning around and yelling for Toby to come down. Vincent smiled. Mrs. Mickran was a nice old lady—a bit dodgy, perhaps, but nice.

Within half a minute, Toby was downstairs, a grin on his face. The two waved to Mrs.Mickran, then started walking back to Vincent's house.

"Today's the day, isn't it?" Toby asked excitedly. Like his friend, he too had wondered about Mr. Van Dort's strange tradition.

Vincent nodded. "We have to hurry though, if we want to go," he warned, and the two began running. In a few minutes, they were in front of the house, just as Victor was leaving.

He smiled, seeing his son and friend, and the three began to walk towards the woods. Within a little bit, they had reached the spot where Victor went every year: Emily's grave.

Toby couldn't help but raise an eyebrow, and discreetly point. Vincent followed his finger, and was equally surprised. Something like a hand was sticking out of the ground.

Victor frowned, then knelt down next to the ground. "That's odd," he muttered, feeling the hand-like structure. "That wasn't here last—"

He got no further. The hand seized his wrist, and began to pull him down. He struggled, but it was no use. Not only was Victor was being pulled under, but the ground around him started to sink. Panicking, Vincent grabbed onto his father's wrist. He dug his heels into the ground, still slid closer and closer to the hand. Toby grabbed onto his friend's wrist, but his fate was inevitable. Within a few moments, the three were dragged underground…

"…And then everything went dark," he concluded. Toby nodded, and sat down on one of the two chairs in the room. Vincent hesitated, then sat down in the other chair.

"Huh," Domino murmured. "That sounds like what happened to me." This has to be a dream. What else could it be? Unless, of course, it's real…

"So, where is here, exactly?" she asked.

A/N: Moo? Quack? Woof? (And to clarify, yes, WhatUpImDomino is my side account) Gummy razors will be given to those who review. Flames will be used to roast hot dogs and make s'mores.