Dive In

“Are you sure you have to go into town?” asked Ella anxiously as she passed her aunt the keys to the jeep.

“I'm positive. I'm almost out of gas for the jeep and there's barely any food left in the cellar. If it's the figure in the woods your worried about, just stay in the cabin. My ranger senses are telling me they've moved on though, you should be safe to visit the beach. Just stay out of the woods,” Maria said, climbing into the jeep.

“And you can't take us with you?” sighed Ella, taking a step back so the dirt wouldn't kick up into her face.

“I need the room for groceries, sorry kiddo. Topher will be here, you'll be safe with him,” she said, the revved the engine and tore off down the road.

Ella kicked a lose pebble out of frustration. Her aunt was as stubborn as her father, sometimes she wished the siblings weren't so alike. Even Derek had seemed uneasy when their aunt said she needed to make a supply run into town. Something was out there, but Maria was so sure of her park ranger abilities that she truly believed she'd chased it away. This morning they'd tried to explore the boathouse, but the padlock had been changed and Derek hadn't been able to pick it, and Maria didn't have anything to cut it off with. Derek wanted to try swimming under, but someone had put a net up to block the way. Maria inferred that it must be some of the kids that lived across the lake messing with her boat house, and that she would sail over tomorrow to have a talk with their parents. Derek perked up at the mention of possible playmates, but Maria said that they were boys older then Ella, and they wouldn't want anything to do with him. Ella wasn't sure what to do with herself now, without the forest to roam Mirror Lake was suddenly very dull. She pulled an old towel off the clothes line and headed down to the beach. Her brother was already there, splashing around in the lake with his new snorkel and flippers. She pulled off her sundress and slathered on the sunscreen her brother had discarded in the sand.

“Ew! No stripping!” shouted her brother from the water.

“I'm wearing a bikini you perv!” she shouted back.

“Just make sure your wearing sunscreen, I don't need a tomato for a sister,” he shouted before diving back into the water.

Ella rolled her eyes. Derek was referring to the time her friends had convinced her to try tanning without sunscreen on, to see if that would help her get some colour. She had certainly gotten some colour, but not the kind she wanted. She ended up looking like a bright red tomato, was in pain for a week, and her burnt skin peeled off, leaving her just as pale as before. Since then she'd always applied sunscreen generously whenever she went outside. Ella leaned back on the towel and closed her eyes. Even through her eyelids the sun scorched her eyeballs. She was just about to get up to fetch her sunglasses when something blocked the sun. A cloud must have blown over or something, she thought. But wait, just a few seconds ago the sky had been absolutely cloudless! Her eyes shot open, and she let out a strangled scream. Standing above her was a boy about her age. She scrambled to her feet, trying to wrap the towel around herself.

“Sorry, didn't mean to startle you,” said the boy, taking a step back.

“W-what are you doing here? This is private property,” barked Ella, trying to steady her heart beat.

“Is it? I'm sorry, I honestly didn't know,” he apologized.

“It's alright,” said Ella. She didn't mean to snap at him, she just wasn't very good at talking to boys.

“I'm Landon by the way. I'm camping with my family on the north shore. That's not privately owned, is it?” he asked, shooting her a smile. Ella couldn't help but notice that his teeth were perfectly straight, no doubt aided by years of braces.

“Not that I know of. I'm Ella,” she said, relaxing a bit. Landon seemed friendly enough. He had light blond hair that he'd gelled into a faux-hawk. His eyes were a startling blue, almost the same colour as the sky reflecting on the lake. He was paler then Ella, and tall and skinny. On most teenage boys his height and weight would make him look gangly and awkward, but the way he held himself made him look graceful and elegant.

“Nice to meet you Ella. Do you live here?” he asked, gesturing towards the cabin.

“No, it's my aunts Cabin. I'm only visiting for the next two weeks,” she said, dropping her towel onto the sand and sat down on it. To her surprise, Landon sat down right beside her. She hoped she hadn't struck up a conversation with an arrogant douche bag, she supposed he looked like the type.

“Really? I'm here for the next two weeks as well. And I was worried I'd have to spend that time with my little sister,” he said, leaning back on the towel.

“What?” she asked dumbly.

“That is, if a pretty girl like you wants to hang out with a goof like me,” he grinned.

“Oh, um, sure,” she flushed. She'd never heard a guy call her pretty before, and certainly not to her face!

“Good. You seem interesting. I don't mean that in a bad way, too many girls are brainless airheads. You seem smart,” he rambled.

“Um, thanks?” she said. She didn't know much about boys, but Landon seemed a little strange. Maybe he was just socially awkward like she was. If so, they should get along just fine.

“Sorry, I must be creeping you out. Maybe I should just try small talk instead of rambling,” he joked.

“Maybe. Where are you from?” she asked, tracing her name in the sand.

“I just live in town,” he shrugged, “How about you?”

“Edmonton. I hate it, the big city is disgusting,” she said, crinkling her nose.

“I could imagine, all the pollution and hobos. Maybe you should move out here,” he said jokingly.

“I wish,” she sighed.

“Not to come on to strong, but how old are you?” he asked.

“Fifteen. You?”

“Fifteen. Nice to know we're the same age then,” he said, watching the lake.

“Yeah,” she agreed, not knowing what else to say.

“Is someone out there swimming?” he asked.

“That's my little brother Derek,” she rolled her eyes.

“Why doesn't he have to surface?” Landon asked, a weird tone in his voice.

“He's got a snorkel and flippers. I practically have to drag him out of the lake now that he has them,” she said.

“Oh, that makes sense. For a second there you had me thinking you guys were some sort of freaky mermaid people,” he said, forcing a laugh.

“Freaky yes, but mermaids? No,” she shook her head.

“So where's your aunt?” he asked casually.

“In town, buying groceries and gas,” she said, watching her brother clomp out of the water clumsily in his flippers.

“Hey! Who are you?!” Derek shouted across the beach. Ella had a feeling he was trying to be intimidating, but he just looked ridiculous flopping across the sand.

“I'm Landon,” he said, shooting her brother an easy smile.

“I'm Derek. You want to come swimming? I'm sure my sister is boring you to tears,” he said, gesturing towards the lake. Ella scowled.

“Uh, no, I'm good. Don't want to get my hair wet,” he joked.

“Then just wade in. You don't even have to get your shorts wet,” suggested Derek.

“Maybe later,” he said, grimacing at the water.

“I'll hold you to that,” said Derek, and he turned around and flopped back towards the water.

“Hey, can I show you something?” asked Landon, standing up and holding out a hand to help Ella up.

“Um, what?” she asked, letting him pull her onto her feet.

“It's a surprise. I can only get there if you have a boat though, there's no pathways,” he frowned.

“We have an old fishing boat we can take. I'm not so sure about this though, we just met and no offence, but I don't feel safe wandering out in the woods,” she said, taking a step back. Landon seemed nice enough, but even sociopaths can seem nice at first.

“Oh, right. I'm sorry, I must really be freaking you out. I'm just used to having everyone knowing my family and I because we live in a small town. Going with me would go against everything they teach you about strangers, wouldn't it?” he said, looking at his feet. Ella noticed he wasn't wearing any shoes, and that his toes were unusually webbed.

“Yeah it would,” she nodded, “But what if we weren't strangers? What if we were friends?”

“Well then, would you like to be my friend Ella?” he asked, smiling.

“I certainly would,” she said, smiling back. Ella knew it was a bad idea to go with him, especially if he was headed towards the woods and that weird creature was still out there, but she wanted to escape the beach so badly. She'd been itching all year to come out to the cabin and explore the forest. It constantly beckoned her, teasing her with thoughts of leaves rustling in the wind, vivid greens and rich browns, the clean, fresh smell of soil and moss and the solitary peace it brought her. She'd been waiting so long to return to the forest, and now she was trapped on the beach and in the cabin. It was even worse being so close to the woods, sometimes at night in her dreams she would jump out her window and run through the trees. The scary figure in the woods should be gone by now, and Landon should be able to protect her in case it wasn't. Maybe just in case she should grab one of her aunts hunting knifes to be sure.

“Does that mean you'll go with me?” he asked eagerly, like a little puppy. As if this boy would hurt her!

“Sure. It's just that we saw something strange in the forest yesterday, and I'm a little worried it's still out there. Just let me go grab some shoes,” she said, pulling her sundress back on.

Ella ran back to the cabin, hoping that Landon wouldn't notice her ratty old flip flops half buried in the sand. She'd needed an excuse to run and get the knife, and shoes were the first thing that popped into her mind. She went into the living room and pulled up a loose floorboard, and underneath was an assortment of old knifes and guns. Most of the guns had stopped working, but the knifes were just a little dull. She pulled out the best looking one and the whetstone and ran the blade over it a few times to sharpen it. She fastened the sheath to her leg, making sure it was tight and wouldn't fall down. She slid the knife into the cover, careful not to nick her own leg. Her sundress was white, but it was made of a thick enough material that it easily disguised the knife. She replaced the floorboard, grabbed a different (cleaner) pair of flip flops and ran back out to the beach.

“So where's your boat? In the boathouse?” asked Landon, looking around.

“No, that's been locked since my aunt bought the cabin. Ours is the old fishing boat tied to the dock,” she said, walking out onto the sun baked wood of the pier.

“I was really hoping you wouldn't say that,” he sighed.

“It is. As long as you can swim,” Ella laughed.

“Then I should be just fine,” he said, following her out onto the dock.

Ella carefully climbed into the boat, making sure to hold it steady while Landon climbed in and got seated. She untied it from the dock, throwing the rope into the belly of the boat. She clambered towards the back of the boat and tugged on the engine starter, hoping that her aunt had refilled the gas because Ella wasn't really in the mood to row the boat across the lake. After a few hard yanks, the old engine sputtered to life and the boat slowly propelled itself through the water.

“Where to?” shouted Ella over the roar of the engine, her hand wrapped firmly around the steer“It should be directly across from your cabin,” he shouted back. Ella steered the boat so it was headed towards a sandy portion of the shore. The lake wasn't that large, but with this crappy boat it would take them at least ten minutes to reach their destination.

“Does this thing go any faster?” yelled Landon.

“Yeah, just give it a minute to get going,” she replied, ripping the chain again, revving the engine. The boat kicked forwards, causing Landon to tumble out of his seat and onto the floor. He tilted his head back to frown at her. Ella couldn't help but laugh as he climbed back into his seat.

“You knew it was going to do that, didn't you!” accused Landon, but Ella could see a hint of a smile on his lips.

“Nope, not a clue,” she giggled. Usually boys made her nervous, and strangers made her uncomfortable. But something about Landon was different. Either he was a transvestite that she'd somehow known all her life, or she was finally coming out of her shell. She cut the engine as they approached the beach, not wanting to get sand in the blades. She slid the oars out of their holders and into the water. Landon grabbed an oar and helped her paddle the rest of the way to the shore. Once they reached the sand, they both jumped out and dragged the boat far enough onto the sand that it wouldn't drift of into the middle of the lake.

“This is what you wanted to show me?” asked, Ella, crinkling up her nose. It was just a small, sandy beach. She supposed that the sand was especially soft, almost like silk on her toes, but other then that there was nothing special about this place.

“It's a little further into the forest. Come on,” he said, offering her his hand. She took it lightly, blushing faintly. He pulled her deeper into the forest, and she struggled to keep her footing in her clumsy flip flops.

“Doesn't the ground hurt your feet?” asked Ella, avoiding and prickly rose bush.

“Hm? No, not really. I'd rather step on a sharp rock then wear shoes any day,” he answered.

“Are we almost there? I don't really want my aunt to come back and find me missing,” said Ella with a pang of guilt. She'd never disobeyed her aunt, and here she was, out in the forest with a boy she'd just met when her aunt had clearly said to stay out of the woods. Landon could even be that terrifying figure in the forest. Ella highly doubted that though, Landon's hand in hers felt warm and secure, and whatever was in the woods was cold and evil.

“Almost, just one more turn... Here,” he announced, coming to a stop.

Ella could barely believe her eyes. In front of her was a clearing encircled with slabs of stone. The stones had odd markings on them, almost like Chinese characters mixed with Celtic symbols. Landon wandered into the clearing, looking at her to gauge her reaction. Ella walked into the centre of the clearing and slowly turned around, taking it all in. It looked ancient and wild, but rather then the wild overtaking civilization, it looked like something wild had placed the stones here. Landon stood in front of Ella, excitement in his eyes.

“So what do you think?” he asked eagerly.

“This is... amazing,” she muttered, “Thanks for bringing me here.”

“Glad you think so,” he smiled.

“Has anyone else been here? It looks deserted...” she said, walked towards the smallest of the stones which towered over her head.

“Nope, just me. When I found it there was no tracks or traces that anyone had been here. These stones seem to keep even animals and plants away,” Landon observed.

Ella continued towards the stone, marvelling at the smooth rock. It was a light cream colour, and had a marbled texture. She wasn't watching where she was going and her foot caught on a root sticking up from the ground. She tumbled down, throwing her arms out to catch herself. She managed to grab the rock and stop herself from face-planting into the dirt, but she knocked the rock slightly askew. Steadying herself, she peered down into the whole under the rock. She thought she saw something buried in the dirt, so she squeezed her arm into the tiny whole and felt around. Her fingers wrapped around something smooth and cool, and she pulled out a leather journal. On the front were the same symbols as on the rock etched in gold, but the journal looked fairly new, considering where she'd found it.

“Hey Ella, you okay? I saw you took a tumble- whoa, what is that?” asked Landon, kneeling down beside her.

“I think it's a journal. I found it underneath this rock,” she said, starting to untie the rope coiled around the journal.

“Do you think there's other things below the other rocks?” he asked excitedly.

“Maybe... But I don't think we should look. It just feels wrong, like we'd be intruding, you know?” she said, opening the journal. Unfortunately, it was all just symbols.

“Yeah, I guess. More symbols? Look for a name, maybe in the front or the back?” he said, leaning in closer to get a better look.

“Nothing in the front...” she said, flipping through the pages quickly, scanning for some form of English. Ella turned to the last page, and there was a small passage written in more symbols, but they were different from the rest of the book. Whoever had found this place before didn't speak English, perhaps a Native person? But Ella hadn't heard of them settling this land before, and that's something she would have read about. Her eyes scanned the paragraph for any symbols that looked familiar, but there was nothing. Then her eyes hit the signature. It was in both symbols and English. Well, she knew it was English because she knew the name.

This was her mother's journal.

“Who's Nyssa Keaton?” asked Landon, prying the journal from Ella's hands.

“That's... That's my mom,” she whispered. She was scared if she said it aloud the journal would disappear along with the stones.

“Really? Well we have to ask her about this place! She must know how to read the symbols!” said Landon, oblivious to Ella's distress.

“We can't,” she sighed.

“What? Why not?” he asked, noticing Ella's dark tone.

“She's gone. She left my family when I was a baby. I've tried to find her, so has my father. She could be dead for all I know,” said Ella.

“Oh Ella... I'm sorry I'm such and insensitive jerk,” he said, sitting down beside her.

“It's okay. You didn't know,” said Ella, taking back the journal. Her mother had never left her anything, no special keepsakes, no letters, not even a memory. This journal would be all she had left of her.

“Look, there's some sort of pouch in the back. I think there's something in it...” said Landon, and he pulled out something wrapped in white silk. Ella took it from his hands and unwrapped it. Inside was a necklace with a sliver lotus on it. Ella held it up to the sun, it shone brilliantly, cascading little rainbows onto the rocks around them.

“It's so pretty,” she whispered.

“You should take it,” Landon urged.

“I don't know...” said Ella.

“It obviously belonged to your mom. If she's... gone... it should be yours now. It's your rightful inheritance,” he said, pressing the necklace into her palm.

“I guess so. I should ask my aunt about this stuff, she used to be best friends with my mom,” said Ella, slipping the necklace into her pocket.

“No! Er, I mean she might not let you come back. Or take the journal from you. We should keep it a secret until we find out what's going on,” said Landon.

Ella eyed him suspiciously, but something about Landon made her feel like she could trust him, like he would never do anything to hurt her. But what was it about him that made her trust him more then she would trust her own aunt?

“I guess,” she said, standing up.

“We should probably be heading back. When can I see you again?” he asked, taking her hand and leading her back through the trees to the beach. Ella was surprised that he knew the way so well.

“How about you come over for supper? It's just left over chili, but it has to be better then camp food,” she said. Ella hoped her aunt wouldn't mind extra guests at dinner.

“Any food is better then camp food,” he laughed, “But if I come over I'll have to bring my little sister. I promised my parents I would hang out with her tonight.”

“Of course. Uh, how old is she?” asked Ella. It would be great if she could find Derek someone to hang out with, even if it was a girl.

“Eleven. How old is your brother?” he asked as they reached the beach.

“Same age. Maybe they can hang out-”

“And leave us alone?” said Landon, raising an eyebrow.

“Exactly,” said Ella. They pushed the boat back into the water and hopped in. Landon rowed them back out to where they could use the engine and Ella steered them back to the cabin.

When they got back to the dock, Derek was running around on the beach with Topher. When Topher caught wind of Ella and Landon he bounded across the sand and bowled Landon right over. He then began to thoroughly lick Landon's face, and Ella had to drag him off.

“Sorry, Topher likes meeting new people,” huffed Ella, struggling to keep Topher off of Landon.

“Don't worry about it, he seems nice. Well I guess I better be heading back to camp now, it was nice to meet you Ella. I'll be back later with my sister. I think you'll like her, she's a little... slow, but sweet,” he said, taking Ella's hand.

“Sister?” bellowed Derek from across the beach.

Landon leaned in closer and whispered, “I think I may know something about your mother, Ella. The name sounds familiar. Let me do some digging, okay?”

“Really?” she asked, wide eyed, “That would be amazing Landon! I... I would give anything to have her back,” she said sombrely.

“I'll try my best,” he smiled. He dropped her hand and ran back off into the forest.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Ella was out in the backyard, picking raspberries for the desert she planned on making when Landon returned. A girl who Ella assumed was his little sister bounced along behind him, humming a foreign tune. Derek was towards the back of the property playing with Topher, but as soon as he heard Landon call out a greeting he came running up the path. Landon's sister looked like a smaller, more feminine version of him. Her sheer blond hair hung long and straight all the way down to her waist. Her eyes were the same startling blue and her skin was even paler then Landon's. She was tall and skinny, easily towering over Ella. She frowned, even little girls were taller then her. Maybe she'd just had her growth spurt or something.

“Hey Ella,” said Landon in a sing song voice, “Derek. This is my little sister, Brittany.”

“Hi! Nice to meet you!” her voice sounding like a bubbling brook.

“So whatcha up to?” asked Landon, giving his sister a shove towards Derek and Topher.

“Picking raspberries. I was going to make a desert,” said Ella, digging deep into the bush to find the juiciest, ripest berries.

“For me? You shouldn't have,” he joked. Out of the corner of her eye Ella could see Brittany tossing a ball for Topher, and Derek trying to show off how far he could throw it. She hoped he didn't throw it too far into the woods, they didn't need a missing dog.

“Where's your aunt?” asked Landon, picking a berry and popping it into his mouth.

“Still in town. She called to say something came up at the station and she'll be staying there late, possible overnight,” said Ella, swatting Landon's hand away from her bucket. She almost had enough raspberries now.

“Station...?” asked Landon cluelessly.

“Oh, she's a park ranger of sorts. She specializes in tracking and arresting poachers,” said Ella, going back up the path to the cabin.

“Cool. Your not worried about inviting some strange boy over to your house when no ones home?” he asked, holding the cabin door open.

“Nope. I can take care of myself,” Ella grinned, pulling up her sundress to reveal the hunting knife still firmly fastened to her leg. After getting back from her adventure with Landon she decided to keep the knife on her at all times. The majority of her summer clothes were flowing dresses and skirts, so she thought it would be easy to conceal. As long as her aunt didn't notice one of her knifes was missing, Ella wouldn't mind having the extra protection. She may not know how to use the knife, but having it was better then nothing.

“You... You've had that all day, haven't you?” he frowned.

“Yeah. Can't blame a girl though, can you?” said Ella as she ran water over the berries.

“Well... No. While we're being honest about weapons concealed on our person, I have a few of my own,” said Landon, digging into the pockets of his cargo shorts. Ella held her breath for a moment, then laughed with relief when Landon pulled out some foam Nerf gun bullets.

“See, totally deadly,” he joked, sticking the suction cup end to her forehead.

“Yes, way more dangerous then my knife,” Ella rolled her eyes. She finished washing the berries and stored them in the fridge for later.

“So what's for desert?” asked Landon, removing the Nerf bullet.

"We'll have to settle for raspberries and crystallized ice cream from the back of the freezer. I hope you don't mind,” she said.

“Beggars can't be choosers. It's better then canned peaches from the nineties,” he shuddered.

“Really? You guys are camping, shouldn't you be having good stuff like s'mores and marshmallows?” laughed Ella, taking out the leftover chilli from the fridge.

“No... My parents are challenged in the kitchen. Or in this case, around the fire,” he chuckled.

Ella covered the big bowl of chilli with saran wrap before putting it in the microwave. It was strange how comfortable she was with Landon. Usually even her conversations with the closest of her friends seemed strained and awkward, like she had to think out every word before saying it. With Landon the words came easy, flowing freely out of her mouth without a second thought. It was like she was talking to her own brother, without all the insults and bickering. What on earth had made her think she'd needed a knife this morning? It must have been her fear of the figure in the woods. No matter how hard she tried to put it out of her mind, the scary encounter in the woods kept creeping back into her thoughts. Ella shuddered, thinking of the eery black figure.

“Whatcha thinking about?” asked Landon, hoisting himself up onto the counter.

“It's stupid,” she said, blushing.

“Not as stupid as what I was thinking about,” he said.

“What are you thinking about?”

“If I tell you, will you tell me?”

“Sure.”

“I was thinking about robot bunnies with laser eyes. Your turn,” he said, nudging her with his flip-flop clad foot.

“Robot bunnies?” she asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Yeah. All the cuteness without the mess. And if someone gets on your nerves you could zap them, like Derek, cough, or Brittany, cough. Now you.”

“Fine. Well, I was just thinking how comfortable I feel around you, like-”

“You've known me all you life?” he grinned.

“Yeah. Why are you smiling like that?” she asked.

“Uh, let's just say I found out something about your mom,” he said thoughtfully.

“What?” asked Ella eagerly. Her heart started to pound in her chest, she couldn't believe this was happening! Fifteen years without hearing much more then the occasional story from her father or aunt, and here she was, about to discover something new about her mother.

“What do you know about her? I don't want to relay knowledge you already have,” he side, motioning for her to sit down on the living room couch. Ella sat down beside him, racking her brains for her memories of her mom and trying to ignore the fact that his arm was draped around the back of her seat.

“Well I know I look just like her, just shorter and with grey eyes. She was my aunt's best friend, that's how my dad met her. I know she grew up at Mirror Lake, but she didn't tell my aunt or my dad anymore about her past. Well, she might have, but they've never been too eager to tell me about her. And she disappeared just a few months after having me. That's all I really know,” said Ella.

“Hm. Well my parents said that they knew the name, but she never lived in town. They think she must have lived out here in a cabin like your aunt, but she was very reserved and quiet so they never actually talked to her. She just came into town every once in a while for supplies, and eventually she just disappeared. It was about sixteen years ago, so it must have been when she married your dad. Assuming they were ever married,” said Landon matter of factly.

“They were. At least, that's what my dad told me. He doesn't talk about her much now that he's married Tracy,” Ella said the name like it was slimy and disgusting.

“Is she Derek's mom?” asked Landon.

“Yeah. He's trying to make me feel guilty for not calling her mom or treating her like family, he keeps saying that Tracy's more of a mother to me then my biological one has been,” she sighed. She felt bad for unloading on Landon, she'd just met him this morning and here she was drawling on about all her problems.

“But what if your mom had to leave? And she couldn't say why? What if she wanted to be with you and your father but had no other choice?” he said.

“I want it to be like that, but I'm not sure it's true. But I'll keep hoping she'll come back for me, and I can't give up that hope. Calling Tracy my mom is like giving up on her,” she said. The timer on the microwave started to go off and she got up to take the chili out.

“I think I understand. I wish I could have told you more, but like I said, she was a bit of a loner,” said Landon, jumping up to help set the table.

“Maybe I'm more like her then I originally thought,” mumbled Ella.

“I don't think you're a loner,” he said, taking the stack of bowls from Ella's hands.

“I don't really feel comfortable around other people, I only have a few friends,” she said, taking out the spoons.

“But your so friendly!” Landon objected.

“No, your friendly. I'm not sure what it is about you that makes you so easy to talk to, but whatever it is, I'm glad for it,” she smiled.

“I'm going to take that as a compliment,” he beamed.

“Is the food ready yet?” asked Derek as he barged through the back door with Brittany and Topher in tow.

“Yes Derek,” Ella sighed. Everyone sat down and she dished up the Chili.

“Can we have a fire tonight Ella?” asked Derek, sprinkling grated cheese into his bowl.

“I'm not sure that being out at night is safe right now,” she said uneasily.

“Aw come on, your not scared about that thing you saw in the woods, are you? Brittany and I have been sleeping in flimsy little tents for the last few nights and nothings happened to us,” teased Landon.

“Yeah, but your camping on the north shore. This thing was in the opposite direction,” reasoned Ella.

“What exactly did you see?” asked Brittany in a sweet little voice, sympathetic to Ella's cause. Ella relayed the story of her encounter with the creature in the woods to Landon and Brittany, who had sceptical expressions until she explained how the creature had made her feel.

“It felt cold and evil to you? And all you wanted to do was run?” asked Landon, leaning over the table eagerly.

“Yeah. That's not natural, is it?” she asked, nervous that they thought she was a kook now.

“No. Maybe it was a ghost or something!” exclaimed Brittany.

“We should go ghost hunting!” shouted Derek, standing up so abruptly his chair toppled over.

“Yeah! Do you have any flashlights?” asked Brittany, already getting carried away.

“Absolutely not!” said Ella, smashing her fist into the table.

“You don't have flashlights?” asked Brittany dumbly.

“She means your not going,” said Landon, his voice taking on a very serious tone. Ella had never heard him speak in anything other then airy quips.

“Aw, why not?” pouted Derek, picking up his chair and plopping himself down on it.

“Because it's dangerous. Case closed. Oh, and no fire either,” said Ella, getting up from the table and storming into the kitchen. She really wished it was more then two feet away from the dinner table, so she could fume in private. She really hated it when Derek made her look like the bad guy because she had a little common sense. At least it seemed like Landon was on her side, and that was all that really mattered, it's not like she was trying to impress Derek or Brittany.

“Here, I'll help with the dishes,” said Landon, dumping all the plates into the sink and running the water. Ella passed him the green apple dish soap and hoisted herself up onto the counter.

“That went swimmingly,” muttered Landon as he scrubbed the plates with a dingy sponge.

“I'm sorry, my brother just aggravates me sometimes. Sorry if you wanted to go ghost hunting,” she sighed.

“Trust me, I didn't. Whatever was out there... I believe you, it's not safe. I'm not even sure I want to tent out there anymore,” he shivered. To Ella it seemed like he was holding back information, like he might know more about the figure in the woods then he was saying. She didn't want to pry though, she'd already probably freaked him out with her squabble with her brother. Instead of embarrassing herself further she grabbed a clean towel and began to dry the dishes.

“Don't feel bad Ella, I can't stay for a fire anyways. I do have a bed time you know,” he chuckled.

“Oh. Well do you want to hang out again tomorrow? I would like another chance to show you I'm a sane person,” she sighed.

Landon laughed before saying, “Sure. Meet you at the beach?”

“Sounds good,” she smiled.

“Well then see you tomorrow. Brittany, we need to get going,” he called, placing the last plate on the drying rack. Brittany followed her brother to the entrance, pouting all the way. Ella noticed that she preferred walking around barefoot as well, and her toes were oddly webbed, just like Landon's. She brushed it off, it was probably just a trait that ran in the family.

“Can't we stay a little longer? Derek was showing me his DS,” she whined.

“Sorry Kiddo, we have a curfew. And if we're late because of you, I'm still the one who'll be whipped for it,” Landon said, shooting his sister an apologetic smile.

“Goodnight Britt,” said Derek, giving her his trademark grin. If Ella didn't know better, she would have thought that Derek had developed and instant crush on Brittany.

“Night Derek,” she smiled back.

“See you tomorrow Ella,” called Landon as he dragged Brittany out the front door and across the lawn.