Post by Elizabeth on May 28, 2015 9:15:46 GMT -5
_~_*_~_*_~_ Charlotte's Secret- A GTH Prequel _~_*_~_*_~_
Charlotte sat at the antique piano in the ballroom of the illustrious Thornton Hall.
Everything was decorated beautifully for the masquerade ball taking place that evening.
It was her 21st birthday, but somehow that didn't excite Charlotte, it saddened her, and
frightened her. An unnerving sense of danger overwhelmed her the entire day, and she knew why.
It was only last week that her cousin Clara discovered that Charlotte had changed her will,
and that her name was no longer on it. Charlotte tried to explain that she needed to make extra
provisions for her sister, Harper, who was just released from a nearby sanitarium, and she needed help.
But, as always, Clara didn't listen. She was furious, and stormed out, even going as far as to threaten
Charlotte. She figured that it was said in anger, that Clara didn't really mean it. But she knew of
Clara's thirst for money, and how she kept the Thorntons' under her thumb by running the family
business for so long. But would Clara actually stoop to hurting Charlotte? She didn't know.
She did know, however, that Clara could not be trusted any longer, and it broke her heart. She
and Clara were inseparable as children, best friends, more like sisters than cousins. 'How could
Clara be like this to me?' she wondered.
Charlotte knew she needed to be there for her family, but she didn't know if she could. She was
worried about how much time she had left. 'Paranoia!' she thought, but her heart told her something
was wrong. She could not shake the feeling of danger enshrouding her. She knew she needed to let
someone know the truth if anything happened to her. Then, she suddenly remembered her locket.
She finished playing the tune to her favorite song, then rushed upstairs to her room. She went over
to her dresser, opened her antique jewelry box, and lifted the lid. She pulled out an ornate lace locket,
given to her at only 9 years of age, by her beloved mother, who passed away shortly after.
Charlotte remembered her mother telling her thrilling stories of how special the locket was, used by
female spies in the Civil War to send messages to and fro. The locket contained a secret compartment,
which was secured by a very sophisticated locking mechanism. Only Charlotte herself and
Harper knew how to unlock it. She took a small slip of paper, wrote a short message on it, folded it
and placed it inside the necklace, which she securely locked. She then placed the necklace in a small
wooden box, which she latched and clutched tightly as she descended the long, dark staircase to the cellar.
When Charlotte reached the bottom, she unlocked the door to the secret tunnel that ran under the house,
and slipped inside. She walked a fair distance down the dank, candle-lit passage before reaching the old
safe she had found there several years back. She unlocked it, and placed the box with the necklace inside,
before locking it back in place.
She trudged back through the tunnel, the sense of danger weighing heavy upon her. Charlotte then headed
upstairs to the ballroom, for the birthday party that, unbeknownst to her, would end up changing her fate.......forever.
(So, I'm really sorry if this sounds conceited or anything lol, but I posted this in the Magic Library on the HeR forums. (idk if any of you have seen it on there) But since replies aren't allowed on stories on HeR, and I really wanted to know what you guys thought of it, I just posted it on here too... I know it's not that good of a story, but if you guys could please give me your honest opinion on it, I would be so grateful! Thanks so much!!)
Charlotte sat at the antique piano in the ballroom of the illustrious Thornton Hall.
Everything was decorated beautifully for the masquerade ball taking place that evening.
It was her 21st birthday, but somehow that didn't excite Charlotte, it saddened her, and
frightened her. An unnerving sense of danger overwhelmed her the entire day, and she knew why.
It was only last week that her cousin Clara discovered that Charlotte had changed her will,
and that her name was no longer on it. Charlotte tried to explain that she needed to make extra
provisions for her sister, Harper, who was just released from a nearby sanitarium, and she needed help.
But, as always, Clara didn't listen. She was furious, and stormed out, even going as far as to threaten
Charlotte. She figured that it was said in anger, that Clara didn't really mean it. But she knew of
Clara's thirst for money, and how she kept the Thorntons' under her thumb by running the family
business for so long. But would Clara actually stoop to hurting Charlotte? She didn't know.
She did know, however, that Clara could not be trusted any longer, and it broke her heart. She
and Clara were inseparable as children, best friends, more like sisters than cousins. 'How could
Clara be like this to me?' she wondered.
Charlotte knew she needed to be there for her family, but she didn't know if she could. She was
worried about how much time she had left. 'Paranoia!' she thought, but her heart told her something
was wrong. She could not shake the feeling of danger enshrouding her. She knew she needed to let
someone know the truth if anything happened to her. Then, she suddenly remembered her locket.
She finished playing the tune to her favorite song, then rushed upstairs to her room. She went over
to her dresser, opened her antique jewelry box, and lifted the lid. She pulled out an ornate lace locket,
given to her at only 9 years of age, by her beloved mother, who passed away shortly after.
Charlotte remembered her mother telling her thrilling stories of how special the locket was, used by
female spies in the Civil War to send messages to and fro. The locket contained a secret compartment,
which was secured by a very sophisticated locking mechanism. Only Charlotte herself and
Harper knew how to unlock it. She took a small slip of paper, wrote a short message on it, folded it
and placed it inside the necklace, which she securely locked. She then placed the necklace in a small
wooden box, which she latched and clutched tightly as she descended the long, dark staircase to the cellar.
When Charlotte reached the bottom, she unlocked the door to the secret tunnel that ran under the house,
and slipped inside. She walked a fair distance down the dank, candle-lit passage before reaching the old
safe she had found there several years back. She unlocked it, and placed the box with the necklace inside,
before locking it back in place.
She trudged back through the tunnel, the sense of danger weighing heavy upon her. Charlotte then headed
upstairs to the ballroom, for the birthday party that, unbeknownst to her, would end up changing her fate.......forever.
(So, I'm really sorry if this sounds conceited or anything lol, but I posted this in the Magic Library on the HeR forums. (idk if any of you have seen it on there) But since replies aren't allowed on stories on HeR, and I really wanted to know what you guys thought of it, I just posted it on here too... I know it's not that good of a story, but if you guys could please give me your honest opinion on it, I would be so grateful! Thanks so much!!)