The Second Tale of the Unreliable Narrator (And There is Definitly ONE This Time)

This time, Imelda was NOT ready. And she knew (almost) exactly what she was supposed to do.

“Wait, so what exactly do you want me to do with him?” She asked, turning to the boy who recently recruited her. It turned out that his name was Caleb, but Imelda decided to call him Cal. It was much easier to type say than Caleb.

Cal looked at her and leaned against the counter they were standing by.

“You really are geared more towards killing than protecting, aren’t you?” Mel nodded like it was obvious. He laughed and ordered a lemonade when the person behind the counter asked.

“I don’t want you to DO anything to him, I just want you to watch him. Make sure we know who he’s talking to more than others, who he prefers to sit next to and stuff like that. And make sure he doesn’t have anyone working for him here, I might get hurt otherwise.” Mel looked at him from the corners of her eyes. She smirked, sipping his drink.

“You owe him money, don’t you?” She said, placing the drink back in front of him. He glanced at Mel.

“How do you know that?” He said, moving the glass further away from Mel.

“Because that’s what everything is about nowadays. That’s why I got into the assassin thing. I needed the money and I had a strong stomach. You wouldn’t believe the amount of rich people who want to kill others just because they didn’t get their money on time. Everyone’s short on coins at the moment, and that’s why people will start snapping. Soon, they’ll grow tired of scraping by and decide they’re going to go for the jackpot; the royal treasury. That’s the only place all that money can be going to. And hey, maybe it’ll bring some more rain into the kingdom, God knows we need it. It’s like a dessert here, and all everyone ever talks about is getting more water.” Mel reached for Cal’s glass again, but this time, she was too slow. He moved it an arm’s length in the other direction, giving Mel a look. She rolled her eyes and sighed.

“Look, if you want your own drink, order it. Just stop sipping mine. And yes, you’re right, I owe him money. But the thing is, I don’t have it at the moment.” He lifted the glass to his lips, but stopped at the last moment, staring at the side of the glass. He twisted it around a bit and then drank deeply. He plonked the empty cup on the table and turned to Mel, who was giving him a suspicious look.

“What?” He said, looking around, “Why are you looking at me like that?”

“Well,” Mell said, raising one eyebrow, “You’re paying me more than I’ve ever been paid before, and yet you don't have enough to pay him back? How much do you owe him?”

“Uhhh,” Cal said, fiddling with the glass, “Let’s just say a lot, ok? Right now, though, I need you to be focused on keeping an eye on Harry. Can we just drop the money topic?” Mel shrugged and rested her back against the counter.

“Sure, as long as you pay me what we agreed. Ooh! She’s got a pretty dress.” Mel pointed to a woman who was strolling around the room, almost like she didn't know where she was…

Oh, crabsticks. Milly! Can I have some help? Sure, what do you need Page? Well, I was telling Mel’s story, and suddenly she turned up! She’s from a different story! I know, because I’m the one who’s supposed to be telling it! Can you help? Uh, I’m not entirely sure what I can do, but maybe you could just…. Improvise? What!? Are you seriously telling me I should break one of the only rules we have? No, I think I’ll handle it on my own. Ok, if you’re sure… Yes, I’m sure.

Out of nowhere, a girl about Mel’s age, who looked strangely familiar and had weird purple eyes, rushed to the woman’s side, ushering her out of the door and into the hallway. Mel squinted but then remembered that she was supposed to be watching Harry the Horrible, not whoever that lady was. She scanned the room and panicked. She couldn’t see Harry. Oh, no, wait, there he was! He was just standing by that other girl…. Who also looks familiar. The girl turned around and Mel saw why. It was Peppi. Oh dear. There could only be one reason for Peppi to be talking to Harry, and that meant bad news for her and Cal. Mel pocked Cal in the side and nodded towards Peppi.

“That’s the sort of thing you want me to be looking out for, right?” She said, keeping her eye on the two across the room.

“Oh, yeah, thanks, Mel. Do you think we should go, or do you think you can handle it?” He said, putting his hand up by his face as Peppi turned towards us.

“Uhhh,” Mel said, thinking, “I might be able to handle it, but you might want to be ready to run, Peppi’s coming over.” Cal got up and strolled casually away, keeping his face out of sight from Peppi.

“Hey! If it isn’t the traitor! How are you doing without Herman?” Peppi said, nudging Mel with her elbow as she sat on the stool Cal had been sitting on a moment ago. Mel rolled her eyes and turned to Peppi.

“I’m good actually. My new employer is paying me more than I’ve ever been paid, so you know, I’m good.” Peppi squinted at Mel.

“Was that who you were just talking to, the dark-haired boy? I think I’ve seen him before….”

“You probably haven’t,” Mel said, careful to keep her voice casual and light, “He doesn't get out much. But no, he’s not my employer. He’s just a friend of my employer.” Mel ordered a drink from the guy behind the counter and offered some to Peppi before taking a big swill of the sweet and tangy liquid in it. Peppi sat back and watched, shaking her head when Mel offered the drink.

“I think you know why I’m here.” She said, cocking her head to one side.

“Oh, really?” Mel asked innocently. Peppi decided she actually DID want a sip of whatever Mel had gotten and grabbed the glass.

“Mmmhmm,” She said, with her mouth full of fizz. She swallowed and gave the glass back to Mel.

“I think you know exactly what I’m doing here and want to stop it. Am I wrong?” Peppi said, looking at Mel strangely.

“Probably,” Mel said, returning the strange look, “Remember, I don’t know what you’re here for, we never actually agreed that I knew. I mean, I can probably guess, but I don’t actually KNOW, you know?” Mel said, looking into her glass to avoid Peppi’s eyes. Peppi shrugged.

“Ok, then I’ll leave you with your guesses. Have fun!” She said, walking in the opposite direction Cal took off in. Mel sighed in relief, sagging against the counter before remembering to keep an eye on Harry. When she looked around though, she couldn’t find him. She got up and walked around the whole room, but she still couldn’t find him. Then she realised what she had said was true. She didn’t actually know why Peppi was talking to her, but now she did.

Mel raced through the house, looking for Cal or Harry, but try as she might, she couldn’t see either of them. Mel turned a corner and ran into the girl from earlier, the purpled-eyed one.

Carp! There she is! What do I do? …wait is she asking me where Cal is? Should I tell her he’s in the basement getting knocked senseless by Harry?...No, probably not. Hmm, how about going for the innocent act? Yes, that’ll work!

“Oh, I’m sorry, I’m looking for two people, one is about my height, the other is about a foot taller, and he’s really mean-looking. The shorter one has a blue shirt on and dark hair. Have you seen them?” Mel said, her voice strained from stress. The purple-eyed girl sputtered for a moment, and then her face grew calm.

“No, I don’t think I’ve seen them, sorry.” She carried on past Mel, and Mel continued down the hall.

Suddenly, Mel heard noises coming from a door she hadn’t noticed before. Cautiously, she opened the door and found a staircase leading into a dusty-smelling room. The noises were coming from below her, so she couldn’t see what was making the noises. Mel started to creep slowly down the stairs, but then a loud groan came from directly under her and she froze. Another sound, strangely like a giggle, came from below her, and Mel continued very slowly down to the bottom. When she rounded the stairs, she saw two people. They were in each other’s arms, their lips locked. Mel made a disgusted face and backed up slowly. Cla wasn’t here, that’s for sure. When she came out of the door at the top of the stairs, the door smacked into someone.

“OW! The person exclaimed, rubbing his nose. Mel’s eyes widened when she saw who it was.

“Oh my goodness, I’m SO sorry Cal! I didn’t think to check before I opened the door! Where were you anyway?” Mel said, glancing concerned at Cal.

“You know, I thought I hired you to keep me safe and unhurt. It looks like you aren’t very good at your job. I was in the kitchen, trying to avoid Harry while you were chatting to his lackey.” Mel laughed in relief.

“When I noticed you and Harry were gone, I thought the worst, but it looks like you're ok.”

“Yeah, no thanks to you. Come on, let’s get out of here. They don’t even have good music.” Mel and Cal walked down the hall together, each laughing in turn at some bad joke the other made. And everything was alright for a while. (Keyword: For a WHILE)