Original Stories Fan Fiction ❯ The Fort Kearny Mystery Stories Case #1 ❯ The Young Investigators League ( Chapter 1 )

THE FORT KEARNY MYSTERY STORIESCASE #1: The Rising Star Mystery

CHAPTER 1: The Young Investigators League (Eljin)

 

Silver Hawk House (Basement) - Present, 5:30 a.m.

Second week of school. Hell no.

 

Don't get me wrong though. I really do enjoy my very fulfilling education system here at Fort Kearny as a fifteen-year-old teenager. I've always enjoyed school, simply because it did help me give a chance to discover who I truly am as an individual with no distractions. I prefer my academic environment surrounded with the atmosphere that would give me all my chances to concentrate on subjects I enjoy the most (which is pretty much all of them) and the ones I least enjoy (which is very rare, actually. I don't like dancing though, but I love music, guitar lessons, occasional songwriting, and occasional singing). Airi is doing well herself. We pretty much have the same interests, not because we're fraternal twins, but it's pretty much within the family blood. It's kind of obvious to those closest to the family. Half of your relatives work in the entertainment showbiz or something, which to someone like me, is a big pain in the…

 

Last week was our first week of school in this school year. Airi and I, along with our longtime childhood friends Dustin John Davies (we just call him DJ) and Aisling Harris, are in our second year of high school at the only private school in this town, Fort Kearny College Preparatory Academy. Apparently, both sides of the family had history with this school. Both my parents attended this school and also met. My father wanted to be a famous teen idol or something, while my mom wanted to become a police officer. The people who knew our family really well felt that my mother was the perfect girl for my father when they were our ages, simply because they all believed that she would be able to handle “runaround playboys” like my father and actually control them. I never really bothered asking either my parents (especially my mother) about these silly rumors. After all, the past was the past.

 

The celebrity figures signed under the Silver Hawk Entertainment Agency--- most of them from age zero to forty or whatever age these people consider “young”--- get to have special housing within the estate grounds. I don't really pay attention to all the schmuck with my father's business since celebrities in general annoy me, but there was some stupid rule where some kids at the Silver Hawk “Inner Circle” get to sleep at the rooms and quarters of the main house, which to Airi and myself (okay, maybe just me), simply sucks. Airi and I had to move out of our own bedrooms just so some dumb teen idols can occupy our rooms. What the hell.

 

On the other hand, Airi and I are in a much more private, more secure quarters now. One of the main house's special attractions was the basement. Whenever people hear the word “basement” at some conversation they would usually think of something creepy or something dirty, but this particular basement is different. The basement is actually another separate quarters, maybe it would fit a one-story house. It had three bedrooms (two of them are occupied by Airi and me), it had a small kitchenette and dining room where Airi and Aisling do their experimental cooking that sometimes made DJ and me nervous, it had a spacious living room and a wide-open play room (more like study/meeting/conversation room to me though). The entire basement was also carpeted except for the kitchen, which was neatly tiled and cleaned by the housekeepers every day whenever we're at school. In exchange for us giving up our bedrooms, the basement was simply heaven to us. Not only that it's our special place to study and hang out with our friends, but it was also the perfect place for the Young Investigators League (or we just call ourselves “The YoungIns League”) to gather around and have our twice a week meetings (Friday afternoons and Saturday late mornings) here.

 

What's that? What is the Young Investigators League? Well, ever since that unforgettable (at least to Airi, DJ, Aisling, and myself) murder case of that girl I've forgotten the name, let's just say that the four of us have discovered our passion and a natural “knack” in solving cases. We started to confirm this new interest by reading countless classic detective mystery books from Sherlock Holmes to Nancy Drew to even playing that Clue board game. Finding evidence, process of elimination, asking questions and gaining some answers, you name it, we all found it as an adventure. We decided to have our own small group of investigators with this name (Aisling came up with the name--- she's a true genius!) at first completely dedicated to solving that murder case that Mom didn't get to solve without mentioning Cai Aneirin's name anywhere. Stupid Alaric. This is all your fault, dude.

 

Lately though as we continue to do more research (which I have to admit that we really didn't get anything important regarding that dead girl from eight years ago) we ended up solving minor cases for other people, mainly with the kids back in school. The first case we solved successfully was a serial theft of lunch money among the kids in our school, only to learn that a group of anime otaku nerds just wanted to get the money for their costume materials so they can go to some big anime convention and compete at some costume playing contest and sing cheesy, annoying, squeaky anime songs and make a fool of themselves. Too bad for them that we caught them. They didn't go to jail, but they were forced to do some paid community work around the town to earn the money they stole and pay the kids they robbed back, along with giving up some of their precious anime DVDs and CD soundtracks to whoever was interested in them. Crime and punishment does not just apply to juvenile delinquents and ghetto thugs from the hoods, you know. Losers.

 

Well then, now that's out of the way, we're back to reality again. Monday, first day of the second week of school. First week of school was awesome. This week the school immediately transformed in to hell. Airi thinks that I was overreacting about it, but still. We've had enough nuisances and cheesy pricks hanging around our grounds already. Now it's going to be the same type of hell that I have to live in for the rest of my high school scholastic career? I'll have to convince Mom to talk to Dad and see if they can transfer us to another school, but knowing those two, there was no way they would agree to that.

 

This particular week is the first week at Fort Kearny College Preparatory Academy to open its campus gates to celebrity teen stars under the Silver Hawk Agency management. That would mean that all these kids that you see on magazines, TV, the movies, and the internet are going to be blended with the rest of us students. In other words, they're going to be students too, wearing the same uniform and blended in the same classes as we do. This is all the fault of our newly-appointed mayor of the town. The first time I encountered this mayor at one of my family gathering parties at home he reminded me of those anime otaku geeks we caught from our first case, except he was being an otaku to all the teen idols in my dad's agency. Kind of creep if you think about it. Long time ago those idol kids were homeschooled by highly-certificated instructors at the instruction and training centers not too far from the main house and if you ask me, it was a perfect life.

 

Thanks to the “new government” of Fort Kearny, I'm gonna have to be looking at the faces of all of these idol kids during school, most especially that idiot brother of mine, Alaric. My two younger brothers, Julian and Tristan, officially moved back here after some years living in England for some highly-prestigious education (why the hell didn't my parents send me and Airi over there instead?) simply because they were “ready” to take on the world. Like Alaric, Julian (age thirteen) and Tristan (age twelve) are going to be idol kids too. In a type of situation like this in your family I really felt for Mom. Her genes were not as strong as Dad's. Airi and I seem to be the only ones who inherited a lot of her productive genes including our facial features. None of the people around Fort Kearny would even believe or even think that Airi and me as a son and daughter of the very prolific former teen star-turned-agency CEO Rayner Hawke (real name: Rayner Horie) because we really don't have a single trace of Horie in any of our physical appearances. Then again, it wasn't as if we'd actually tell the whole world who we really are anyway. Even the people can't even tell that our mother, Detective Vina Horie, is even Rayner Hawke's one and only wife!

And another thing--- why is the entire Horie Family using the pseudonym surname of “Hawke” instead of sticking to “Horie”? I thought we were human?

 

All these rants and complaints have been filling up my mind ever since last weekend when Dad announced about this whole celebrity teen thing in school bit. Alaric (age seventeen) seemed excited that he would finally spend his studies in an actual school, but to me, his own reason would most likely so he can ruin my perfect academic life. If that were the reason, then it would be worse than hell itself with Julian and Tristan hanging around with him and his friends in the same school too. The reputation of the school is going to be so low in terms of academic prestige simply because most of the kids would drop studying and fawn and chase after them instead.

 

Here I am lying down on my bed, staring at the ceiling of my room (or rather, I'm staring at the floor of my house since I'm sleeping underneath it), completely wide awake, with all of these thoughts in my mind. It was five-thirty in the morning and I could not even close my eyes. I usually wake up for school at six in the morning but this time I'm having a hard time going back to sleep. It makes me wonder how Mom and Airi are able to handle all of this. How is Mom still able to focus as a detective and Airi being the diligent student that she is with all these crazy stuff going on? Am I cursed or something?

 

There was this old song from the good old days of pop music that started to play in my mind that completely explains what I'm feeling right now. “Tossing and turning… ohh tossing and turning… all niiiight…”

 

Just as I was about to get up, waving the white flag to myself and just get up I immediately caught a sound coming from the door. In fact, it sounded as if the lock of the basement door is slowly getting unlocked. The only people I know who would have the keys to the basement would be my parents and (God forbid) my brothers, but why on earth would any one of them want to come in the basement at this particular hour. Then again, the main house is open twenty-four hours a day since some of these star kids have to work really late hours to shoot their movies or TV shows or something, so that was one thing that I had to keep in mind.

 

In my case I'm not taking any chances. I decided to use a bit of my past self-defense training with Mom in order to stop the culprit from coming in to the basement even further. I sneaked in Airi's room to find her iron softball bat that she uses during her softball team practice in school. It was the perfect weapon to clobber the intruder. I left the lights off to be sure that the intruders do not see me there.

 

Right when I placed myself in the position right near to the door, I can see the door open slowly. I readied my bat, ready to smack the creep until he cries uncle, but just as I was about to raise the bat on the first person that steps in to the basement, the lights were immediately turned on with the intruders screaming in fear right at me.

 

Just as I have taken a good look, I screamed even louder than the intruders. Of all people…

 

“Ugh… what on earth is going on here?!” From behind I heard Airi's moaning voice. It was already obvious that she was awakened by the screams and the shrieks these people made right when they turned on the lights and saw me with the bat already aiming at them.

 

“UGH!” I shrieked even more to find Alaric, Julian, Tristan… and a girl I've never seen before (maybe Airi knows her?). It was bad enough that they will be starting school at my own high school but this?

 

“WHY ARE YOU HERE?! DON'T YOU REALIZE WHAT TIME IT IS?!”

 

Airi ran quickly towards me and stood in front me as a sign for me to chill. No, I refuse to chill, not especially if your own brothers and some strangers I've never met would sneak in to your room at 5:30 am!

 

“Anger management, Eljin,” I hear Airi whispering to me, obviously telling me to calm down.

 

“Eljin!” I hear Alaric speak to me with some girl hiding behind him. “Why are you up this late?!”

 

“I ASKED FIRST, DANGIT!” Who the hell does this guy think he is? These guys just crossed over the Horie Twins Territory, seriously!

 

From out of nowhere Julian stepped up front, looking rather shy and timid (these British people must have made him and Tristan in to a bunch of “proper”-acting wimps, seriously…), right at Airi and me and spoke: “I… I'm so sorry, Eljin… Airi… it was my idea… I… I forgot that the basement is no longer vacant…”

 

I ended up scratching my head, finding myself walking back and forth from one point, trying to calm myself from all this madness. Airi decided to take over my place and did the questioning.

 

“Why on earth would you sneak in the basement like this, Julian?” Airi asked in a lot calmer tone. “And at this time as well?!”

 

I noticed Julian gulping nervously, facing Airi. “Well… I…”

 

I ended up turning my head towards the youngest brother, Tristan, who was also looking nervous just facing me. “D-don't look at me like that… they dragged me along with them! I'm innocent!”

 

Airi continued on with where she started: “Guys, don't you know you've only got an hour and a half to get ready for your first day of school? Enough with all these late-night after-shooting shenanigans--- you guys are gonna have to be a lot more responsible now if you want to seriously survive high school!”

 

Alaric sighed and gazed at the mysterious girl hiding behind him. I admit she was somewhat attractive but that kind of beauty already tells me that she was not exactly a normal kid of the town. From out of the blue he spoke to the girl in some language I thought I was familiar with but not.

 

“I'm sorry, Monique… I've been impolite… the boys and I… we have two more siblings in the family…”

 

“Oh God…” I ended up rolling my eyes and turned away. I can already feel the pain of my head kicking me all over the place. Someone kill me now, please! If there was another thing I'm displeased with my brothers is that they never even talk to their new girlfriends about Airi or me. If those girls have high hopes of getting married in to the family one day they're going to have to get to know the family too. Not only that these people will have to get to know the twins but they will have to get to know our mother as well. I wonder if they even mention about Mom in their pick-up conversations…

 

The girl behind him nodded with a faint smile on her face. I think from the sounds of it Alaric just spoke to her in French. Though the family pretty much learned two or more languages so we'd be able to communicate with anyone foreign and end up under the Silver Hawk management and make them feel welcome French was my worst language. From what I picked from that complicated language the girl's name is Monique.

 

“Eljin,” the older brother turned to me after he exchanged his fancy French with Monique. “Don't start yelling at me right away until I'm done explaining. The `inner circle' of Silver Hawk had special permission from Dad that if needed we can hang out here until all those crazy fans are gone. No one anticipated how crazy these fan girls are, sleeping at the streets across from the main house gates hoping that we'd come out so they can scream and take us down. They're everywhere, Eljin, all over the place; twenty-four hours a day! There was nowhere else to go around the entire estate except for the basement!”

 

“Oh, I see,” was all I can respond to him. How can I relate to these guys' daily and nightly dilemmas with the obsessed fan girls? In fact, they have more problems than they have fan girls, seriously. Sometimes I thank the one above for making me the least attractive brother among the four Horie Sons. I'll have to be honest. I was never good with girls. Aisling is different because she's one of my closest female friends (actually, she's the only closest female friend that I have who's not related to me by blood or marriage), so she doesn't really count. Then again it's not like I'm desperate.

 

“So… there…” Alaric continued, turning towards the two girls with them. “Besides, the guys and I were just showing Monique around since this is the first time she came here for a visit...”

 

As he goes on with his lengthy yet poorly executed excuse for sneaking in to our basement at five-thirty in the morning a little voice inside me did not help me keep my cool for long. Why can't these guys show this French girl the main house when it's daytime and when no one's home? Oh yes, Monday of the second week of the school year has already won more problems.

 

“… It was already announced by Father earlier that the movie shootings will have to delay for awhile simply because of school. It turns out that a lot of us teen idols preferred going to a real school than doing homeschooling which was why there's change of plan. I mean we may never even have the time to show Monique around because we'd all be busy studying and doing homework---“

 

“AT FIVE THIRTY, ALARIC?” Too late, brother. The cool has run away. “ARE YOU ALL INSANE?! YOU'RE GONNA PAY!”

 

“ELJIN, DON'T YOU DARE---!” Airi immediately reacted but the evil side of me has taken over my arms, ready to strangle the older brother for his stupidity and simply because he was just plain annoying.

 

Sometimes I wondered if I had some kind of a bipolar disorder or something. I'm usually a non-violent person. I mean, my words may kill anybody, but I'm actually yellow when it comes to getting in to fights. I have the other half of me do that side of the overall Horie Twin personality. In fact, I'm glad to have Airi on my side especially in situations such as these. She would knock me on the head first before I can even strangle and murder my own brother.

 

Ouch. That hurts. That hurt even more than the last time. It hurt so much that it was more than enough to knock me unconscious just so I can finally calm down.

 

“Okay guys. We'll talk later over breakfast, okay? Goodnight.”

 

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Silver Hawk House (Breakfast Dining Room) - 6:45 a.m.
School begins at 7:45 a.m. I was lucky that I regained my consciousness at around six-fifteen or else we would all get in trouble for being late in school.

 

Despite that my hair was in an orderly manner, my black-framed glasses completely intact on my eyes, and my school uniform from dark blue blazer to black shoes were in proper fashion, deep inside I seriously feel rather ill. Sure I was unconscious but I didn't remember if I even rested well after what happened earlier this morning.

 

Our long time housekeeper, Mrs. Emma Trenchbull, makes the best breakfast ever. She always mixes and matches the breakfast dishes with one or the other every week. Today, we're having Breakfast Crepes with a hint of lemon flavor in it. Breakfast has always been my favorite meal time, but today, the lemon in the crepes made the entire thing gone sour for me.

 

Just seeing the faces of Alaric, Julian, and Tristan right across from Airi and me is making my breakfast becoming less enjoyable. I shouldn't be having these looks at them. They are my brothers after all. They have the same parents as we do. The only thing that's different is that the whole world knows them while the only people who only cared about me are the family and friends.

 

And then at the empty seat next to Airi is the French girl who was with Alaric earlier this morning. She finally introduced herself to us because Alaric was too fixed towards her that he even forgot to introduce her to the rest of the family. Monique Gravier is her name. I think she and Alaric are in love with each other since they couldn't stop looking at each other. But for some reason she was always giving all these kind gestures to the rest of the family, most especially my mother and Airi. The smile of hers reminds me of those fashion models who were forced to smile for the magazine cover when in reality their smiles don't mean anything friendly at all. Though Alaric, Julian, and Tristan kept conversing with her in French her English is pretty fluent. Like Cai Aneirin, Monique is a year older than Airi and me.

“I'd like to cook for you someday, Mrs. Horie,” I heard Monique speak to my mother, who was conversing with her.

 

“No, you're our guest. Guests shouldn't do household chores or cook for the hosts,” Mom answered humbly. “But I can cook as well as Mrs. Trenchbull.”

 

Monique chuckled softly with that very feminine laugh of hers. For some reason her femininity is beginning to annoy me, but on the other hand she doesn't seem to be a snob unlike many of the French kids Airi and I met and encountered, whether they were located here or even back in our trip to France years ago. On the other hand, maybe Monique isn't from the city. Her gestures seem slightly bit traditional but not like from the nineteenth century or something. I noticed Alaric staring at her again, which automatically made me give another death stare towards him.

 

“Eljin,” from out of the blue I heard my father call my name from the end next to mine. “You haven't taken a bite of your crepe yet.”

 

“I'm not hungry,” I answered immediately. Really. Whenever I have my breakfast it was usually just with Mom, Airi, Mrs. Trenchbull, and me at the island counter. Dad would always head to the skyscraper office early morning while Alaric was always out at his TV shooting and Julian and Tristan were overseas. Now the family is complete and the fact that Alaric, Julian, and Tristan decided to attend school instead of staying home for homeschooling for some reason I'm feeling rather uncomfortable with the new concept.

 

“My goodness,” I heard my mother's voice from the other end. “Eljin, you look like crap.” Thanks a lot for your direct feelings, Mom. “Did something happen earlier that made you sleep on the wrong side of the bed, son?”

 

Right when Mom asked the question I noticed the three brothers lowering their heads. I would be the mean brother and do the tatter tale on these three but the fact that I went mad like a bull and even attempted to strangle my brother made me keep my mouth shut.

 

“Um,” I hear Julian whisper softly with his faint voice and that heavy British accent of his. (Oh great… I have siblings who don't speak the same English as Alaric, Airi, and me… what's up with this?) “Mother… I'll explain… later…”

 

“Let me guess,” Mom responded. “The three of you and Monique here sneaked in to the basement at about five-ish a.m. and Eljin woke up first and was about to knock you with Airi's softball bat, correct?”

 

“MOM?” I shrieked right at Mom to keep her quiet. Even I was surprised that she even guessed every single detail correctly.

 

“You tried to kill them with my softball bat…?” Right next to me I can feel Airi's furious eyes towards me. “You're really unbelievable, Eljin.”

 

Julian opened his eyes wide in shock: “Mother, how did you figure that out? That's exactly what happened!” Again, another death stare.

 

“She's a police detective, Julian,” Alaric joined in the conversation, shaking his head slightly. “Of course she would have the knack to re-enact a predicted event.”

 

“Well, not just that, Alaric,” Mom responded, still with that familiar humble smile of hers, “it's just that my predicted re-enactment somehow tells me that I can see Eljin in that situation with the softball bat---“

 

“MOM--- OKAY ALREADY!” I called out the second time to keep Mom quiet. Man, I don't need all these embarrassing crap to be mentioned… please.

 

Though Mom seemed to just shrug the entire situation Dad did not have that same smile on his face. “Alaric, Julian, Tristan--- why on earth did you three sneak in the basement at such an early morning--- and with poor Monique too? You've forgotten the basement is now occupied by your twin siblings here? What on earth were you trying to do?”

 

“It's better for Julian to explain the reasoning on paper, Father,” I hear little Tristan (well, he's twelve, but he looks like a kindergartener to me for some reason) speak. “It's a long story and I got dragged along with it.”

 

Monique chuckled softly and also pitched in her words. “Alaric just wanted to show me where this famous basement is located in this main house. It seems that the Silver Hawk Idol `inner circle' kept on making a huge fuss about the basement.”

 

“Eljin and I are occupying the basement now,” Airi spoke, reminding everyone. “We had to give up our bedrooms so more `inner circle' people would have room to sleep.”

 

“Why on earth did we have to move out of our rooms like that, Dad?” Why on earth did I even decide to open my big mouth again? “I mean--- WE LIVE IN THIS HOUSE!”

 

“You're still living in the house, Eljin,” I heard Alaric answer my question. What does this idiot know? “Besides, it's best to protect you from the crazy fan girls and the Paparazzi. At least with Mom, she's a police detective and always shows up as a police detective instead of being the beautiful wife of the CEO of Silver Hawk Entertainment. You and Airi just don't have any disguises. The Paparazzi knows no looks, as long as you're blood with the famous, they'll hound you like a farmer hunting a turkey for Thanksgiving---“

 

“WHO ASKED YOU?!” I snapped immediately right at Alaric. His know-it-all gestures sometimes make me sick.

 

“Alright now, cool it,” Dad interrupted as he was just finishing his crepe. “Can we for once start talking about something happy and positive? All I've been hearing lately is complaints here and there over the silliest of things. You kids are a lot more mature than that--- especially you, Eljin.”

 

“DAD?” Why? Why on earth is this family ruining my life right now? Why can't Dad realize that even if I'm not exactly the nicest son around I feel that I'm the only one who thinks first? This is one thing why I a bit disappointed in you. Unlike Mom, who stays neutral most of the time, you take sides in favor of the “popular” son.

 

“Alaric, Julian, Tristan!” Dad continued, which caught my attention once again. “If you are giving a `tour' of the basement please inform Eljin and Airi first? At five-thirty even? Are you boys insane?” Alright then. I take everything back.

 

More series of parental lectures came about after that, with Mom adding her words to the solution. I am failing with anger management for the time being which was why Mom added that I should go back to attending anger management seminars again after school. I am in perfectly good condition right now, Mom. I'm doing well with anger management altogether. The problem with it is that Alaric is immune to them.

 

I finally found my appetite that ran away from me this morning and began eating my lemon breakfast crepe, just when everyone else finished theirs. While everyone was standing up from their seats I caught a glimpse of the three celebrity brothers having positive grins on their faces. I wish I knew why I always felt so annoyed and so irritated every time I look at Alaric that my annoyance even carried over to both Julian and Tristan. Since they decided to join Alaric rather than become actual free individuals I'm beginning to look at those two younger ones looking like Alaric. Julian would be Alaric number two and Tristan would be Alaric number three.

 

“Hurry up and finish your crepe,” I heard Airi reminding me with a slight nudge on my side. “DJ and Aisling are probably waiting outside the gates by now.”

 

“Sis?” From out of the blue Julian called for her. Airi turned her head towards him.

 

“Yeah?” Airi responded casually. “What's up?”

 

“I… I was wondering if… I mean… how should I say this…?” Airi looked at him curiously with her arms crossed.

 

“I'm listening,” Airi answered, still eyeing on the younger brother. You know I wonder about this kid. Airi and I are two years older than Julian and he chose the path to darkness (Alaric) once he reached of age (teenage years) and yet he couldn't even talk straight as if he was hesitant to say what he wants to say.

 

“Well… it's just that… um… I was wondering about…” And again, Julian trails off in silence. What is wrong with this kid?

 

On the other hand, knowing Airi more than the rest of the brothers in this family, she's pretty good at figuring people out. “You were asking if I have any… female friends?” Airi gave a soft chuckle at her thought.

 

“Julian wants to know if you know a particular girl who lives in this town.” From out of the blue, little (well he's not so little; he's almost the same height as I am) Tristan spoke for the shy brother. “He spotted a girl at that place where you and Eljin and your friends usually go after school… To do your… Community service?”

 

Aww… Julian is in love (if that's the case then who was that other girl hanging. The problem with this one is that it could be any girl in school and I don't have many friends who are girls (not that I'm not interested in them or anything…). Airi and Aisling may probably know.

 

“That depends,” Airi answered with a smirk towards both Tristan and Julian.

 

“Um,” Julian immediately answered. “Will you and Eljin… and your YoungIns band be at that gelato malt shop place for that community service thing later after school?”

 

“Nope,” I answered right away. Alaric already left the table with Monique so I should be the big brother in this situation. “I'm having drum lessons today and Airi, Aisling, and DJ will be rehearsing with me at the basement.”

 

Let me tell you a bit about this community service thing that Tristan just mentioned. In Fort Kearny Academy all students are required to do four hundred hours of community service, meaning we have to do a hundred hours per school year. The gelato malt shop that Tristan also mentioned is called the Cool Chimes Gelato Malt Shop, or simply “The Cool Chimes.” Every night there's always volunteers of entertainers who would do entertainment for the customers and then if the audience likes them they get tipped. If not, it still counts as community service anyway.

 

We're not just the YoungIns League of underground private detectives, but we're also known as “The YoungIns” --- a four-member rock band singing sixties decade-influenced songs. I play the drums in the band, with Airi playing lead guitar and Aisling playing the keyboards. DJ is our bass and also our main lead singer, even if we take turns. When it's a duet with a boy and a girl it's usually Airi and me who would do the duets. We perform every Friday night and from what I was told that our little band was one of Cool Chimes' favorite highlights during their volunteer entertainment nights. Even if that was the case, we also play at local charity events and school events. As far as fortune and fame, it's out of the question. Each of us have our own separate plans for the future. One of my plans was to find a way to get the hell out of the Silver Hawk House and finally be free of the entire superficial celebrity crap atmosphere that I'm living right now.

 

Julian then gave his attention towards me right away. He was reluctant at first to say something to me but he finally braved his fear. “Eljin… um… would it be alright if… I come over your drum lesson after school today?”

 

Poor kid, I thought to myself. I guess I was wrong about him becoming Alaric's twin brother. Alaric can brave anything (and I admit I admire him for that) and he's also as opinionated as I am, but Julian…?

 

“Sure, why not,” I shrugged at him. It wouldn't be so bad, I thought. I mean, at least this is Julian and not Alaric. I'd lose my concentration on my drumming if he were around. “By the way, how are you guys going to get to school and come back home? You're taking the limo or the Rolls Royce or what?”

 

Tristan joined in the conversation, nudging Julian on the side. “Well, we'll be taken by the Rolls to school for today. Later we'll be escorted to the mall in order to purchase our new bicycles so we won't have to be driven to school anymore.”

 

What was that? Bicycle? Oh no…

 

“But wouldn't you be at risk of getting spotted by those crazy fans and those Paparazzi people, Tristan?” Airi asked curiously.

 

“Oh, we have our ways,” Tristan answered with a slight smirk on his face. “When Julian and I were back in England we always rode bikes to school, even though our faces were all over the place from posters to the telly. We've gotten used to it. As a matter of fact pretty much every Silver Hawk idol will be also riding bicycles to go to school too. Everyone's excited about it.”

 

“Ah, I see,” Airi understood with a small nod.

 

I wanted to question Tristan as to why these celebrity kids decide to endanger themselves by pedaling back and forth rather than ride those fancy cars like many of the older celebrities do. That would mean Alaric would be biking to the school too.

 

This is bad. Really bad.

 

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Streets of Fort Kearny - 7:15 a.m.

The routine on the way to school has always been like this for Airi and me. Unlike majority of the rich folks and others at this side of town we don't ride limos or fancy cars to get to school. There was no need anyway. The school is only five blocks from the Silver Hawk Estate gates anyway, plus biking is good exercise and it keeps us active. Sometimes Mom would give us a lift to school on her way to the police station but because of her flexible schedules with her cases it doesn't always happen that way.

 

Airi and I left early since the other three guys would be riding in Dad's shiny silver Rolls Royce to school so they can show up as the “famous Hawke Brothers” and get surrounded by these fanatic fan girls. Besides, we also had a deal about not revealing each other's relationships to each other to prevent any fanatic or Paparazzi hound us. In public my father calls my mother “Detective Horie” while she calls my father “Mr. Hawke.” In fact, our disguise as to why we are staying at the Silver Hawk Estate wasn't because we're also Mr. Rayner Hawke's children, but because we are working part-time reading the Hawke Brothers' fan mail and replying to them in return. What the hell.

 

We met DJ and Aisling just outside the gates. I don't know how those crazy fan girls were able to pass through the estate gates and were now camping outside the main house. We had to take another route to get outside without them noticing us coming out from the house. Aisling and DJ couldn't enter the gates because of the fan girl situation; even if the parents assigned the guards on duty that DJ and Aisling are two of the few people who can enter through the estate without any special permission.

 

“Good morning,” Aisling greeted us with her usual, perky cute smile that we see every morning. “How are you two this fine morning?”

 

“Jeez, Eljin,” I hear DJ join in. “You look like crap.”

 

“Okay already, DJ!” I shrieked right at DJ as the four of us started to pedal our way to school.

 

As we ride through our usual route I noticed something rather strange today. Usually the route is crowded with students walking their way to school, but this time there were hardly anyone around. Are we on Twilight Zone or something or am I stuck in a very realistic nightmare…?

 

“Where is everybody?” Airi asked curiously, also realizing the lack of students walking their way to school. “Are we late or something?”

I looked on my watch and we still had a long way to go before the school bell rings. “We're way early, Airi.”

 

“You're worried about the roads not being crowded, Eljin?” DJ asked curiously, glancing right at me for a few seconds. Man, sometimes I still wonder why DJ is still hanging around with us when he pretty much earned the title of `Most Popular Non-Celebrity Boy' in school thanks to his good looks (according to the girls anyway) and his cool singing voice and his cool clothes and his cool personality. He changed a lot since we were little, but regardless of his popularity he's still hanging around us. I just gotta be sure he doesn't become a disciple of Alaric though once he steps in to the campus grounds for the first time. “Your way of thinking is making me nervous as of late…”

 

“I'm fine, DJ…” I felt like smacking his head from the back right when he said that remark towards me.

 

As we rode further our route already close to school there were a huge crowd of students--- mostly girls--- just outside the school gates. What on earth is going on, I thought? Right when we reached the gates we got off our bikes so we can head inside.

 

“You do know that today is the first day of school for those Silver Hawk idol kids, right Eljin?” Aisling asked with a slight chuckle.

 

“Ugh!” How can I forget that? Of course they would be outside. They know they'll be arriving in front of the gates and come out from their super-fancy cars. Hell is about to break lose very soon…

 

“Oh, that reminds me,” Airi changed the subject and gazed to Aisling. “Last week when we had our performance at Cool Chimes… have you met Julian?”

 

“Your younger brother, Airi?” Aisling asked to confirm. “Well, not personally, but I did see him. He's really grown in to a really handsome young man, hasn't he? I think he's a lot cuter than Alaric, actually.”

 

“I wouldn't know,” Airi responded. “He's my brother. I don't look at him that way…”

 

“He seems rather quiet though,” Aisling made her first impression. “How come you ask?”

 

“Well, I want to help him find that mysterious girl he just fell in love with at first sight--- right at Cool Chimes. I was wondering if you had some kind of an idea or something.”

 

“I wish I can help but matchmaking is not my thing,” Aisling laughed softly. Airi joined in the laughter too.

 

“Man,” DJ changed the subject again. “It feels so weird to have famous people as your classmates… I feel nervous myself about it.”

 

“Why the hell would you be nervous for, DJ? Everybody here likes you,” I said my statement to him. Who on earth would ever get nervous for people you see everyday? I wouldn't.

 

“Easy for you to say, Eljin. Your house is practically surrounded by idols and some random fan girls who probably climbed over the gates while the guards were sleeping.” I'm glad you're happy to see them, DJ. Me, on the other hand, I just wish all of them would just go away and disappear.

 

We reached the bike parking lots and locked our bikes to the parking slots for security. Afterwards we were heading to the school building entrance when we heard random screams from random girls running outside from the building.

 

“THEY'RE HERE! THEY'RE HERE! OH MY GOD THE HAWKE BROTHERS ARE HERE! …” Please someone set me free from this madness…

 

“Jeez! Who cares about them?” From out of the blue I blurted out my annoyance.

 

“Eljin, calm down,” Airi gave me a warning right away. Anger management, I know. We continued towards the building and just as we were about to enter, a particular name called out caught our attention right away.

 

“CAI ANEIRIN IS HERE! OH MY GOSH HE'S SO HOT IN REAL LIFE!”

 

Airi heard the name and turned her head towards the gates. I can already feel in my gut that she wants to run out there with the rest of the crowd to see her long lost childhood best friend. However, she wasn't the only one who took notice. I admit that I got curious too, but not for the same reason.

 

Just hearing Cai Aneirin's name again brought back the memory of Yukina Hutton's unsolved murder again. I can't believe that he came back from England (like how my younger brothers have). Since when…?

 

I have a feeling things may get more interesting on a positive way somehow after all. Alright then, I take everything I said back.

 

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AUTHOR'S NOTES

I focused a bit more of character development here because I don't want to rush on this one. I also plan to do a bit of experimenting, exploring the story in different points of view from first-person (from the twins' point of view) to the usual third-person narrator view.

 

And that's it for Chapter 1! Feedback, comments, and suggestions always welcome.