Violet's POV:

The basement was dark, but not so much that I couldn't see anything. I descended the stairs, taking a look around. It was mostly just a bunch of random stuff, but what creeped me out the most was the number of stuffed animals Uncle Victor had down there. And I don't mean stuffed animals like teddy bears, I mean stuffed animals like Corbierre.

I turned around and found myself face-to-face with a bookcase. I looked up, seeing what seemed to be some kind of puzzle, although it hadn't been completely hidden, as some of the pieces were still slightly turned. I moved them back to where it looked like they had been, and made the number 9899. That didn't look right, and of course nothing happened, so I continued moving the last one until it came to a 0, then I remembered that Anubis House was built it 1890 (Victor told me, though I didn't want to know, but apparently it's come in handy). The puzzle currently showed 9890, so I turned the first piece until it came to a 1, after which the bookcase began to slide off to the side, revealing a room that looked to be an old study.

I walked around, taking in everything. I came upon another bookshelf, and found a book with an interesting title, but if you ask me, it just seemed suspicious. I attempted to pull it off the shelf, and in doing so, the bookshelf turned around, taking me to another room. Suddenly, a bright light began creeping its way from my feet towards my head.

Have you ever had that feeling where you're so afraid of what's about to happen that you just can't close your eyes? That's exactly how I felt in that moment. I couldn't help but watch as the light trailed up my body, getting closer to my face with every second.

But all of a sudden, once the light reached my hand, it disappeared as soon as it hit the ring I was wearing on my left hand. It was a three-finger pyramid ring that my mother had given to me, saying that my grandfather, Victor Rodenmaar Sr., had wanted my mother to give it to her first daughter, had she had any, which, obviously, she did. I didn't understand why, though, but I kept it, and I wore it almost everyday. Luckily for me, though, it stopped the light before it did anything bad. If it would have done anything at all. I saw a tunnel off to my right, and decided to take it, curious as to where it lead.

Fabian's POV:

The alarm on Alfie's phone went off, signaling that Violet's fifteen minutes in the basement were over. Jerome opened the door, calling for her. We waited about a minute or two for a reply, but none came. Jerome looked at us (Sibuna) expectantly.

"Well? Aren't you going to go down there after her?" he asked.

"Why would we go after her?" Patricia countered, "You're the one who dared her to go into the basement."

"Because," Jerome scoffed, "You guys were down there, like, all the time that one year!"

Amber groaned. "Ugh, fine! But if I break a nail or get my dress dirty, it's on you," she walked over to the doorway, turning around as she reached it. "Aren't you coming?"

It was then that I realized that none of the rest of Sibuna had followed her, but once she drew it to our attention, Eddie, Patricia, KT, Alfie, Nina and I walked over to her, and she lead us down the stairs.

We all looked around the basement for Violet, but none of us could find her. Then I directed my eyes to the bookshelf leading ti the antichamber. Gazing upward, I saw that the code was put in: 1890.

Nina walked over to my side, following my gaze. "Guys, come look at this," she called to the others.

"You don't think...." Patricia didn't finish her sentence, but she never needed to. I'm pretty sure we were all thinking the same thing.

"We have to get in there," Eddie stated.

"But wait," Amber started, "Wouldn't the combination have reset if the bookshelf was completely closed?"

"Amber's right," I confirmed, "The passage isn't closed."

"Then let's open it," KT suggested.

Everyone began pulling and pushing at the book case until we finally got it to open. Once we entered the antichamber, we stopped to get the amulets.

"I think that Fabian, Nina, Amber, Patricia and Alfie should go into the tunnels, since they're more familiar with them," Eddie proposed, "And KT and I can wait here, just in case the others decide to come down."

We all agreed to Eddie's plan, and Alfie, Amber, Nina, Patricia and I made our way into the tunnels.

Violet's POV:

I stopped in front of a seemingly bottomless pit with what looked like an alligator/crocodile made of stone, when I heard multiple voices behind me, calling my name. I turned around to see Patricia, Amber, Nina, Fabian and Alfie come into view. Nina spotted me first, and came rushing over to me.

"What are you doing in here?!" she queried.

"You guys knew about this place?"

Fabian sighed. "Yes."

"Well," I replied, "Then all of you have some explaining to do."

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

(pic is of Violet's ring) Violet discovered the tunnels! What do you think, is Sibuna going to let her in on their secrets? Hmm.... Anyway, just out of curiosity: who is your HOA OTP?

~Tiffani

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