Chapter 4

Peggy and James knew they had a chance of brawling with them and winning but if they didn’t win they would need to have a backup plan and know where they would flee to so the twins followed the people holding Astrid, hoping to find out where they live. When they were in the middle of the forest they stopped at an abandoned cottage in the middle of the forest, it was covered in emerald moss that must have been a decade old, dust enveloped the roof’s tiles, the door filled with secrets past, thick grime covered its surface, covering what was behind. Behind this cottage was a clear azure river and at the brink of it was an old water mill, unrevealed items lay inside, but that’s left for another adventure. The Sun was beginning to leave for its night rest as the Moon returned  and now they were aware where Astrid was hiding.  They planned to stay there until dawn, however,  while the kids were sound asleep, it began raining, the rain turned to thunder. This happened through the night but as the Sun returned, it had stopped. They headed home, only the sun’s light led the way. When they got back home the back door was locked, forbidding them to enter, so they went into the apple tree and through the mysterious door that leads to the unilluminated basement. They were both exhausted, so they went straight to bed but Peggy stayed wide awake, her brain asking questions. What if she isn’t safe? What if they left the cottage? There were about a million questions playing through her mind.

 She couldn’t deal with all this stress and she was starting to feel sick, so she decided to go downstairs to get a glass of water.

“Hello,” said an unidentified voice from the other room.

“Who-who is it?” she said in a quavering voice.

“It’s just me, Mr Sanderson, why do you sound so worried, child?” whispered Mrs Sanderson hoping not to wake James up.

“I-im sorry im so so sorry! ”Peggy whispered,  feeling too much guilt to handle.

After that, Peggy just informed Mrs Sanderson what happened and Mrs Sanderson was irate but knew Peggy already had a mass amount of guilt so she stayed silent.

The next day Mrs Sanderson knew who to go to, they knew it all in the town, Michelle Wazowski. She was one of the few elders in the humble town, but she knew everything about everyone, so Mrs Sanderson thought she must know who the thieves were. Michelle’s house was on the opposite side of the town. It was covered in thick green, emerald grass surrounding it. It was quite a large house with 2 bedrooms and a lavatory, James saw that at the side of it there was a large wooden shed with moss spreading its way across the button. It had a beautiful wooden door with an intricately carved pattern of beautiful flowers on the front of it. Mrs Sanderon was knocking harshly on the front door for quite a while but when James showed Peggy the old shed Peggy noticed that Michelle was inside it. Peggy managed to clamber over the small gate and knocked the shed’s senior door when Michelle finally arrived. She was such an enjoyable person overall, she has had her moments but we all have. She thoughtfully invited everyone inside and they sat on a small park-like bench outside. James has an amazingly good memory so he was able to describe the thieves in full detail. Michelle explained that those people are kids whose parents have passed and know they have to steal to acquire money, they normally steal valuable stuff like watches and earrings, they then sell them for quite a lot of money,  as they are only kids, they are able to fit into small vents and can run as fast as the speed of light so they never get caught. 

A couple hours later they were ready, James was holding a bat as he was terribly scared and just wanted to rescue  Astrid and get this over with, Peggy was clutching a knife just in case it was needed and Mrs Sanderson refused to fight with the children, so she was on first aid. She would help heal injuries if needed, she also needed to gain Astrid’s trust and get her to come with them. They decided to set off at sunset. The time arrived faster than lightning, these kids were ready to risk their lives. They began walking, with caution, only a small lamp lit their way. They all had their separate thoughts. Peggy was hoping they wouldn’t be slaughtered on the way. They arrived at the base, it was an old cottage. The cottage walls were full of emerald colored ivory, the roof being conquered by crows perched on top, graves lay beside the walls, the deceased ready to pop out at any moment. All of this was torturing the poor children’s minds. They were becoming more scared by the second. James stepped out to the door first and kicked it open. The thieves were sound asleep as Astrid lay in a cage, sleeping. As James lowered his foot, a bear trap was underneath, he set it off as it clutched onto his foot, sending screams of agony out of him. Immediately the thieves sat up, glaring at the children. This was now a battle of time. Who could get to Astrid first? It was time for a battle.

Immediately,  Mrs Sanderson leaped out into the open and charged heading for the cage. Peggy screamed before throwing her knife at one of the thieves in Mrs Sanderson’s way, hitting them in the eye. Blood splattered all over the floor as a scream of pain escaped their lips and they lay in their own blood. James had managed to pry the bear trap off, in a rage, he charged at the second one, hitting them in the stomach and causing them to cough up a mass amount of blood. This was because he had added a little something to his bat, it was spikes, whetted spikes. Astrid was whimpering, fear could be seen in her eyes. Mrs Sanderson eventually reached the frightened little creature and she pried open the cage’s door. Astrid jumped into Mrs Sanderson’s arms and nuzzled into her chest. Mrs Sanderson looked, she had become attached to Astrid. She would protect her at any cost, even her life. Mrs Sanderson’s thoughts were interrupted by a thieve’s lifeless body flying towards her, she managed to duck although she was shocked. Shocked that children were capable of such an evil deed.  “Let’s go- now!” Peggy screamed, hoping to get away from this mess quickly. James grabbed hold of Peggy’s arm and hurled her out. Mrs Sanderson followed, careful not to make James’s mistake and step into anything.

They had done it. They had won. They had retrieved Astrid and she was safe. What should they do now?  “Hm, maybe we should go to the apple tree? Or I could make apple pies!” Peggy stated, all the fear had left her voice and had only become happiness.

“Possibly, maybe we-” Mrs Sanderson began but she was cut off by a small yawn, the small yawn came from Astrid.

“Let’s go and put her in her bed.” James  suggested, a small grin appeared on his face as everyone agreed with him. They all began to head home, little did they know, the thief who’s now half blinded were following them. He wanted revenge…