Ellie and the Legacy of Light

The attic smelled of dust and time, the kind of scent that made Ellie’s nose wrinkle but her imagination race. Her flashlight beam cut through the gloom, revealing stacks of forgotten boxes, cracked leather-bound books, and the occasional glimmer of cobwebs. She had been up here for hours, sorting through the remnants of a past that her parents rarely talked about. They said it was history best left untouched, but Ellie didn’t believe that. Not anymore.

Her fingers brushed against something cold, tucked beneath a stack of yellowed letters. She pushed aside the brittle paper and gasped. It was an amulet, glowing faintly in the dim light, its oval surface etched with swirling patterns that seemed to shift as she stared at them. It felt warm, almost alive, when she held it. The light pulsed faintly in her hand, like a heartbeat.

“Ellie!” Candice’s sharp whisper echoed up the stairs. “What are you doing? Mom and Dad are gonna flip if they find you messing with their stuff.”

Ellie clutched the amulet tighter and scrambled to the top of the attic steps, peering down at her older sister. “You need to see this,” she said, her voice trembling slightly, half from excitement, half from nerves. “It’s... it’s not just their stuff. I think it belonged to Great-Grandma Soni.”

Candice groaned, but curiosity won out. She climbed up, her long braids swinging as she carefully avoided the creaky boards. Behind her came their twin brothers, Ja’fiear and Mavier, who had evidently been dragged into Ellie’s chaos. They leaned against each other, whispering and stifling laughter until Ellie held up the amulet.

The laughter stopped.

“What... what is that?” Ja’fiear finally asked. His usually steady voice was laced with awe.

“I think it’s part of the old stories,” Ellie said, her words tumbling out quickly. “You know how Mom said Great-Grandma Soni was, like, half-hedgefox or something? And how she helped the monsters and humans get along back when everything was messed up? I bet this is hers. I bet it’s why she was able to do all that stuff.”

“Are you serious?” Candice folded her arms, her expression skeptical. “Mom said those stories were just... well, stories. People made that up to explain why everyone was scared of hybrids back then.”

“Why would she keep this hidden if it wasn’t real?” Ellie shot back, holding the amulet higher. “Look at it! You can’t fake this.”

The glowing intensified, throwing soft golden light across the four of them. For a moment, the world felt still, like the house itself was holding its breath. Then the floor beneath their feet shook faintly, followed by a low rumble that seemed to come from deep within the earth.

Mavier, usually the most relaxed of them, took a step back, his dark eyes wide. “Okay, uh... I vote we put that thing back and act like none of this ever happened.”

“No way,” Ellie said firmly. She slipped the amulet around her neck, where it settled like it had always belonged. “I think it’s waking up because it’s trying to tell us something. What if there’s more to the story? What if—”

Her words were cut off by the sound of a distant howl, mournful and haunting. It sent a shiver through all four siblings, the kind of sound that reached into your bones and stayed there. The glowing light dimmed, leaving the attic eerily quiet.

Candice’s eyes narrowed. “That... didn’t sound normal.”

“Probably just the wind,” Mavier said, though his voice wavered. “Right? It’s always windy this time of year.”

Ja’fiear shot him a look. “Does the wind usually sound like it’s coming to eat us?”

Ellie ignored them, her mind racing. “This is bigger than us,” she whispered, almost to herself. “If this belonged to Great-Grandma, then it’s part of why we’re here. If the town’s acting weird about hybrids again, maybe it’s because of this... or maybe it’s because the peace she made is falling apart.”

Candice frowned, but there was no mistaking the worry in her expression. “So what do we do? Just... walk out there with some magic necklace and hope for the best?”

Ellie met her sister’s gaze, her jaw set with determination. “No. We find out the truth. About Great-Grandma, about the monsters, about everything. We’re not just part of this family—we’re part of this legacy. And if people are scared again, maybe it’s time we remind them why hybrids like us aren’t