They were called to dinner at six- turkey loaf with spinach and bread from the bread maker- and they ate quietly. Charlotte was conscious of her parents' eyes on the both of them. They were asking too-casual questions, and Charlotte parried the best she could. We're just tired. We didn't sleep well. No, no, were not sick. But it's hard, all of my friends. You know, were worried. Maybe that's why were not sleeping well. They didn't even try with Zee.
After dinner was done and the plates were cleared, Charlotte and Zee went back upstairs. They sat for a while, watching dusk turn to night, and wondering what that night might bring.
"Mom and Dad are catching on," Charlotte muttered to Zee after a time. "They know something's up."
"You handled it well," Zee said. "You're good at that, you know?"
"Lying?" Charlotte said.
"No… no… just always knowing the right thing to say. I never do."
"Are you kidding?" Charlotte exclaimed. "You're, like, Mr. Perfect. You're so polite and charming, and everyone loves you."
Zee raised his eyebrows.
"It's true. You're, like, the coolest guy in school. Ever since you got there, everyone's been following you around."
"Look, they like me because I'm the new guy. And I have a funny accent. It'd be the same if you came to my school. Of course… there are no girls in my school. But anyway, it doesn't mean anything. I don't have anything to say to them. And I can never talk my way through something. Not like you."
"You don't need to," Charlotte muttered. "Everyone just likes you."
"Well, they'd…" Suddenly he stopped himself, rather suspiciously Charlotte thought.
"What?"
"Nothing."
"What?"
He sighed. "Charlotte… do you actually… you know…" He trailed off and looked away.
"What?"
He swallowed. "Do you want to, you know, have people like you?"
Charlotte gaped. "What do you mean?"
Zee started to rub his face, looking rather like he wanted to rub himself away. "It's just… well…"
"Zee!"
"You don't really seem like you, you know, are that interested in other people…" Zee squeezed his eyes shut.
"What?!"
"I mean, everyone would like you. But they don't think you care one way or another… You can give off the impression of… oh… you know…"
Charlotte could not believe what she was hearing. Kids had been talking to Zee about her? Who? They'd said she was cold? That she was -what was the word her mother had used?-prickly? Charlotte was prickly? Charlotte wasn't prickly; she was, you know, careful.
"That's not true. I'm not like that!" She shook her head. "They're confusing me with Gretchen-the-goth-girl. "
"Gretch?" said Zee. "Naw, man, she's brilliant…" He caught himself and blushed furiously. "Charlotte, it's just… look…" But then he suddenly stopped, straightened, and turned his head toward the window "Did you hear something?"
The expression on his face made Charlotte entirely forget their conversation. Anyway, she'd been down this road before. "What? Where?"
"At the window"
Charlotte listened. There was a rustling, like a branch. Or, no, a tapping.
"Something's tapping on the window," she whispered.
Zee and Charlotte stared at each other. Charlotte bit her lip. Zee swallowed. "I better go see," he said quietly.
And so, with Charlotte holding her breath, Zee walked slowly up to the window. It could be a branch, Charlotte thought. A tapping branch. Or just the wind. Or something stuck against the window. It could be anything, really. Any other night if something were tapping against the window, it wouldn't scare Charlotte at all-it would just be a normal, everyday thing. Still, Charlotte squeezed her eyes closed as Zee opened the blind. And then he made a strange noise, somewhere between a gasp and a gurgle.
On the windowsill was a large black bird, staring right at them. Large, as in gigantic. Gigantic, as in enormous. Ginormous. Ginormous, as in a big black eagle-size bird with black, beady eyes. Did I mention that the eyes were looking right at Charlotte? The bird flapped its wings and tapped against the window
"More smart animals," Zee muttered.
The bird flapped again, then raised its leg. Something white fluttered in the breeze-it was a piece of paper, attached to the bird's leg.
"It's a note," Charlotte said.
Charlotte's heart went into her stomach, and her stomach went into her feet. Zee's mouth hung open uselessly. They looked back and forth at each other, then to the bird, which kept waving around the letter impatiently.
"I guess we should see what it says," Zee said, reaching over to open the window.
CHAPTER 18
THE BLACK BIRD FLEW INTO THE ROOM WITH A whoosh. It perched on Zee's dresser and let out an emphatic squawk.
"Well, it doesn't seem evil," Charlotte said.
"Kind of friendly," Zee agreed.
"Squawk," said the bird. It raised its leg again, displaying the rolled-up note.
"That's a large bird," Charlotte said.
"Gigantic," Zee agreed.
"Squawk," said the bird, waggling its leg pointedly.
"I guess he wants us to take the note," Charlotte said.
"I guess so," Zee agreed.
"Squawk," said the bird, glaring at them. Charlotte was glad the door was closed.
Zee was closer, as Charlotte noted happily, so he approached the bird carefully and untied the note from his leg. The bird waited, holding his leg perfectly still. When Zee was done, the bird squawked again. He put his leg down and gazed at them from the dresser.
"He's waiting for something," Zee said.
"Maybe we're supposed to tip him?" Charlotte said.
"What do you tip a bird? Cheese?"
"I don't know," Charlotte said.
The bird tucked his head into his shoulder and proceeded to groom himself.
"Guess not," said Zee. "Well… should we read the note?"
"I guess so," said Charlotte.
Neither of them moved. If in every battle between evil, shadow-stealing geniuses, and good-hearted innocents there is a point of no return, this was that point, and they both knew it. Charlotte trembled a bit. The bird moved to his left shoulder and started to nibble.
"All right," Zee said heavily. And he unrolled the note. And he read. And he went green.
"What?" Charlotte said. "What?"
Zee shook his head wordlessly and passed her the note. Charlotte sucked in a breath and read:
Charlotte and Zachary -
I have been captured. It is up to you now. There is no other choice. Follow the bird; he will show you where to go.
– Metos
"Oh," said Charlotte.
"Yeah," said Zee.
Without Charlotte's noticing it, someone had taken her bones and slow-cooked them, and suddenly, right at that moment, they became jelly. Bone jelly. Charlotte sank onto the bed.
"Oh," said Charlotte.
"Yeah," said Zee.
The bird looked up, shook his head, and began to nibble at something on his neck.
Zee, who apparently had also fallen victim to the evil bone-jelly plan, fell against the wall and sank to the ground.
Time passed. The bird nibbled. Bones hardened again, took shape and purpose. The world sharpened before them. And Charlotte shook her head and said meekly:
"It's up to us now. We have to save everyone." And Zee nodded slowly.
Still they sat. The bird looked up, appraised the two of them for a moment, rolled his eyes, then starting working on his right wing, smacking a little as he did so.
"I guess it means… we're going down there," she said.
"I guess so," Zee said.
"Oh, goody" she said, putting her head in her hands and breathing in heavily. Zee leaned back and thumped his head against the wall.
"Okay, then," she said.