hbnatalie+s.

[[image:harris8thumb.GIF width="204" height="235" align="right"]]Mr. Linden’s Library
“JESSIE!!! JESSIE I FOUND YOUR BOOK!! IT WAS UNDER THE COUCH CUSHION! HAVE YOU BEEN HIDING IT? YOU KNOW I KNOW MOM SAYS YOU AREN’T SUPPOSED TO READ THESE KINDS OF BOOKS!” Claire yelled to her older sister Jessie. She yelled again, “ARE YOU EVEN LISTENING?? WHERE ARE YOU? I’M COMING UPSTAIRS TO (//maybe//) GIVE THIS BACK!!!” No answer. “Hmm… that’s it. Maybe I should actually go upstairs and talk to Jess,” Claire thought. There was still no sign of Jessie listening, so Claire began trudging up their spiral staircase of their old house in Connecticut. Once she reached the top, Claire peered down the long corridor, only to find that Jessie’s door to her fabulous room was closed. “Okay now THIS is weird. First, Jess doesn’t respond to me. I mean, sometimes she holds grudges, but what have I done lately? Plus, she never closes her door. She’s too proud of her squeaky-clean white room. Gosh, why does she always get the perfect everything? Perfect style, perfect room…” But Claire’s jealousy was cut off when she came to Jessie’s room. The door was closed, only one light was on, and she couldn’t hear anyone. Claire leaned into the door and knocked. Not a sound. Panicking, Claire swung open the door, only to find Jessie on her bed. Unconscious. With an open book on top of her. Claire ran towards her sister, and she found that the book had strange vines coming out of the spine. “Oh my God! What are these things?! They’re everywh- they’re ON JESS!!! EW! They’re ON her!! What am I supposed to do?” Claire thought, freaking out. Claire was alone in their house, with a passed-out sister, creepy book, and she didn’t know what to do. It was the scariest situation she'd ever been in. Or so she thought.

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

Claire was on her way down the stairs to call for help, when she began to feel dizzy. “It must just be the twisty stairs, that’s all. I’m probably imagining it anyway. I always get a little out of it when I’m in a tight spot.” But her imagination hadn’t got to her yet. A few moments later, Claire’s eyelids collapsed and so did she. She lay there, slumped on the stairs, her body unconscious, but her mind wasn’t. She began dreaming, or what felt like living through a strange story.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• Claire felt like she was falling from the Empire State building, but only she couldn’t move. She couldn’t stop herself, and she couldn’t yell. It was a nightmarish state, but there was nothing she could do. Once she landed heavily onto the pavement blow, Claire’s zombie-like body began moving and talking. She was walking on a road, towards a huge building, mumbling something to herself: “He warned her about the book… but now it’s too late.” Claire had no clue what she was talking about, but she couldn’t stop herself! “What does this mean anyway?” she sighed to herself. Seconds later, her “dream-body” began to move again. She was coming up to the same strange, castle like building. It had a sign on top of it, and it read in tall, faded block letters: “Mr. Linden’s Library.” In an unknown place, state of mind, and unable to even THINK about what to do Claire began to reach for the tarnished silver handle on the door. As she opened the door, she saw something amazing. There was a single open room, about the size of a grocery store, wall to wall with books. Old books, new books, books from around the world! And there was only one man standing alone, zoned out in front of what looked like the circulation desk. Claire walked by the old man, staring, although she knew it was rude. The odd part was the man never returned her gaze. He didn’t even seem to blink. He didn’t acknowledge her. He looked like a horse that’d fallen asleep standing up. Suddenly, like waking up from a nightmare, the man’s neck whipped back and he began saying, “I warned her. But now it’s too late. I warned her…” Terrified, Claire walked over to the man and began talking to him. “Who did you warn?” Silence. “Hello? Who did you warn? And about WHAT?” Then, just as unexpected as before, the man turned to look at Claire. He stared at her with a blank, stony expression, and his lifeless, gray eyes looked right into her soul. “Hello-oo, young laaady. I’m Mr. Linden. And welcome to my li-brary,” He said completely monotone, and pronouncing library as if it were two words. The way he talked iced Claire’s spine, and made her want to leave this crazy old man, and run like Forrest Gump post-leg braces. But she still couldn’t budge. Speaking as if he were in a trance, Mr. Linden began again. “Who did I warn? Perhaps you know her. Yes? Another fine young lady; your sister, Jessie, eh? She borrowed a book from me on her last visit. A good one too. But, there’s only. One. Problem. She might not be able to return it.” “E-e-ex-c-c-use me?” Claire managed to stutter, unsure whether she was actually regaining some control of herself. “Yessss. That’s right. Jessie. I tried to warn her that the book still has a few, well, problems with it, but she insisted. And who am I to argue with that?”

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

“You’re no one to argue, Mr. Linden. Absolutely no one. No one. You’re no one to argue. . .” Claire’s trembling voice trailed off. Left eye first, her eyelid opened slowly, then slammed shut like a dead weight. Confused, tired, and sore, Claire struggled to open her eyes again. This time they opened just enough, but her sight was still fuzzy. “Where am I and WHY can’t I just get my butt up already?!” she thought, getting annoyed with her delayed recovery. However, minute-by-minute, Claire began to realize she was in her own house. On the staircase. And, to make things weirder, she was talking to herself about “Mr. Linden.” Wow. As if life wasn’t bad enough right now for Claire, she hoisted herself up with the help of the banister, and tried to make sense of things. “Ok. I’m just confused. Why aren’t I in that library anymore? Where’s Mr. Linden? And where’s that book Jessie had?” she thought, “Ohhh, that’s right. She had that weird book ON her! I guess I will have to go talk to her and see if she is alright!” With that, Claire hustled as fast as possible to Jessie’s room. But Jessie wasn’t in her room. Neither was her book, and her light was turned out, too. Claire began to worry, thinking she might have dragged Jess into her psychotic dream with her. “JESS? ARE YOU HERE? ARE YOU OK?” This time, though, a response came. “Yeah, loser! Whaddya want?? I’m trying to watch America’s Next Top Model here, ‘kay?” “Whoa. What is going on here? It’s like freaky Friday to the max! I’ve got to go see what’s up,” Claire said to herself, walking down the stairs into the living room, where Jessie was. Claire spoke first, interrupting the TV. “Well, glad to see you’re back to normal,” Claire smirked sarcastically. “What the heck are YOU talking about, short stuff?” Jessie retorted. “What am I talking about? You’ve got to be kidding me! I don’t know what you’re talking about, but I sure know what I’m doing. Umm, let’s see? Where to start: me finding you PASSED OUT in your room? Then me falling down the stairs? Ending up in some library with a psycho 70-year-old guy? Mr. Linden? You supposedly borrowing a tainted book from him? Any of THAT ring a bell?!? I know it may be a tough concept for your brain to handle, but at least try to help me out here!!” Claire shouted, getting irritated at her sister’s oblivion. “I think you’ve been reading a little too much Sci-Fi stuff lately. I mean, really, I’m here now, perfectly fine! Plus, seriously Claire, since when do I, ew, READ anyway?”

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••