My Neighbor Is a Silver-Haired Banshee 14 How to Find a Missing Banshee Monday, 23 December 2019

Apollo and Gab were in Leslie's room – the basement. Leslie was Gab's older sister with a two-year gap . Their resemblance was uncanny; people who didn't know them always mistook them as twins of different gender. The only difference was of course their stature, but everything else looked the same – 5'9" in height, brown almond eyes, downward-turned lips, arched eyebrows, oval-shaped face, and golden walnut hair. Gab had a blowout haircut with tapered sides while Leslie had medium layered hair. She also wore eyeglasses with oversized frames. They may have the same physical appearance, but their personalities were different. Gab was the grumpy type because his patience was short. Leslie was the most understanding, patient, and helpful person in the whole wide world. Gab was never into academics, so he just pursued music while Leslie loved to drown herself in books. She had the most interesting job which could explain how she was able to afford a Toyota Prius Prime; she was a paranormal investigative special agent and was being paid a hefty amount of money for the weirdest research topics.

"What the heck is that?" Apollo asked, not feeling so please as he looked at the desktop computer's monitor.

"I just googled how to find a missing person. Step 1, contact the police as soon as you have reason to worry." Gab responded.

Apollo's eyes rolled. "You're killing me, bro. We need to research how to find a missing banshee, not a human being."

"But Betha's human too."

"I know but don't you think in those four months that she was missing, I didn't look for ways to find her?"

"I know. I know. Fine. But nothing about tracking a missing banshee is stated in this old book." Gab held the book he borrowed from the vintage library which was on top of his sister's needed research materials next to the monitor. "I'll google how to find a missing banshee then."

"You won't find anything. Except for folklore, you won't find anything helpful via internet. I've already googled it before." Apollo said in a sad tone.

"What are you guys up to?" Leslie's sudden presence in the stairway across them surprised them as they both turned to see her.

"God, Leslie can you make some noise when you appear like that? You're so sneaky." Gab said, breathing heavily.

"But that's how I got my awesome job." She gave them a smile. "Plus, this is my room."

"I know. I sent you a text message that Gab and I need the basement for research."

"Which is why I had to come home earlier than usual because I got curious. Since when did you do any research?"

Gab held the books he got from the vintage library. "Well I got these for you." He said, with a funny intonation.

As Leslie approached them, Apollo suddenly had the brightest idea. "I can't believe this. Why have I not ever thought about this before?"

"Thought of what?" Gab asked.

"Dude, your sister is the perfect person to help us." Apollo's eyes sparkled and the color of his face brightened.

"You're willing to tell my sister about this research?"

"No offense, dude. But if I had a secret and I had to pick between the two of you, I would've picked your sister. She's trustworthy, patient, very helpful, and very nice. You're always using her Toyota, but she never complained."

"How would you know that? Are you here 24/7?" Gab sounded annoyed.

"I like what I'm hearing. Go on." Leslie leaned on the wall by the computer and crossed her arms. Her face showed gratification after hearing compliments from Apollo, but she was more eager to hear their secret.

"You sure love to be a part of this, don't you?" Gab said, less annoyed upon seeing his happy-looking sister. "Let's join forces then."

"Okay, but don't be shocked by what you're going to hear." Apollo said.

"Dude, she's a paranormal investigator. She believes in anything and everything. Believe me. It won't shock her." Gab responded.

Apollo smiled. "Well…we're trying to find a way to find a missing banshee."

Apollo and Gab studied Leslie's facial reaction and all she said was, "Count me in." She smiled without her teeth showing but her eyes were full of excitement.

After telling everything that Leslie needed to know about Betha, her banshee form, and her sudden disappearance, Leslie opened her wide closet. To Apollo and Gab's huge surprise, there was a hidden passage to another room that looked like a mini library with hi-tech computer systems and other gadgets that no average person would be familiar with. The right side occupied 80% of the room space with Metal Wire Storage Cubes that served as bookshelves for what seemed to be thousands and thousands of hardbound books. The left side of the room had one medium-sized round wooden tea table upholstered with four stools and the computer systems beside it.

Apollo turned to Gab; his shocked reaction was still intact. "Judging from how utterly dumbfounded you look; you had no idea you were living with Felicity Smoak." Apollo commented in reference to a character in the television series called Arrow.

"God, Leslie. I've always known you were a paranormal investigator but since when have you turned into an I.T. expert? Are you a skilled hacker too? I mean, without the books and that comfy looking table over there, this place sure looks like Oliver Queen's headquarters."

Leslie laughed. "You guys are exaggerating. This doesn't look anything at all like the Arrow Cave. And stop gawking, your jaws might be locked if you keep your mouths open that way." She picked up a thick black hardbound book and sat on one of the stools as she placed it on the tea table. "Come on. Welcome to my hideout place." She said with a friendly tone.

"Do you know how appalled I am that you kept all of this to yourself? Didn't you trust me at all?" Gab said as he and Apollo sat in front of her.

She gave him a blunt expression. "I would've told you if you had shown any interest in what I do but you never did."

"Well then, I forgive you." Gab said without eye contact.

"Is this a banshee book?" Apollo asked, amazed at how big and thick it was. "Can I see it?"

"It's not just a banshee book. It has all the supernatural beings you never knew existed. Hold on. Let me turn the page to what you need." Leslie said as she scanned the book. After two minutes, she showed it to Apollo. "This is what you're looking for but I'm not sure if you're ready to take on this kind of task. It involves risk. You may never go back to your human form."

Apollo looked confused. "Huh? What do you mean? What does it say?" He looked at Gab then took the book for them to see what she meant. "Oh my God, it says here that banshees are a rare breed of demon. I never thought of Betha as a demon. This is insane. The folklores I read via google didn't say anything about a demon."

"I agree. Betha didn't have even a hint of demonic behavior." Gab looked as anxious as Apollo.

"Well what you read in google are myths, not facts. Just keep reading." Leslie said.

"Their screams can burst glass and blood vessels blah blah blah. Oh, here it is. Here it is." Apollo's face showed excitement. "It says here that only a dog can track a banshee because of its strong sense of smell." He turned to the next page. "And there are instructions and a spell to cast it."

Apollo and Gab looked at each other then back to Leslie. "So, I have to turn into a dog? And you mentioned that there may be a chance that I won't go back to my human form?"

"Yes, unless you find Betha, the banshee you're looking for. You will turn back once you have fulfilled your mission." Leslie explained.

"Well of course I'll find her. I'll make sure I do. But just out of curiosity, what kind of dog will I be?" Apollo asked.

"Well that depends. The spell is designed to specific needs. You might turn into a Bloodhound, a Beagle, or maybe a German Shepherd. They have the strongest sense of smell but of course, we'd have to see it for ourselves."

"Cool." Apollo nodded, looked at Gab then shifted back to Leslie. "Okay then. Let's do it!" He said without a hint of reluctance in his voice.

Chapter end