Chapter 2

"Mike! Dinner time, come up and set the table please!"

My mums shout made me just about jump out of my skin. I glanced about to check that no one had seen me almost crap myself before shaking my head, it was kind of funny really.

"I'll be right up mum!" I yelled back.

Taking a deep breath I put my new Grimoire behind my computer screen so that it was hidden from view and put the letter back in it's envelope and shoved it into the bottom draw of my bedside chest along with the two bottles. I knew that no-one in my family would bother to look there as it was filled with all sorts of junk, my mum had taken to calling it my man drawer after watching a comedian called Michael McIntyre.

With my new stuff safely hidden away I mentally prepared myself to go back upstairs and pretend that everything was normal. It was odd to think I'd have to go upstairs and act like nothing had changed. That I hadn't suddenly learned that I wasn't as much a Walker as everybody thought. I felt my heart begin to beat a little faster as I ascended the stairs up to the kitchen.

Will they seem different to me? Will I think of them differently now I know that I don't truly belong? The biggest question of course was would I be able to sit there and pretend everything was normal?

As I unlocked and opened the door into the kitchen I caught sight of my mom busily preparing the dinner, which appeared to be some kind of stir fry, whilst humming some nameless tune and I knew that everything was still normal. I still felt affection for my mother and I knew that my new revelation would be a separate part of my life to this normal family time.

"Ah there you are dear, be a dear and set the table please."

I smiled and nodded. "Sure mum. Chicken stir fry tonight?"

Mum just nodded at my question as she checked the rice and noodles. I gathered the required amount of cutlery and glasses and headed into the dinning room which was directly adjacent to the kitchen and above my bedroom.

As I began laying out the five places for dinner Cass came into the room with a pitcher of cordial and poured a drink for each place. We worked around each other not really talking but just nudging each other as we passed one another, as sibling do, trying to distract the other. It was good natured teasing and reduced Cass to giggles when I kept elbowing her just as she was starting to pour dads drink.

"Stop it." She eventually said between giggles.

I left her alone as she poured the drink and went to the opposite side of the table to put the last of the cutlery out.

"Good day?" I asked curiously, Cass had recently been having some trouble from other kids for being such a bookworm and I knew it effected her more than she let on.

"So so, you know." She replied nonchalantly. "Maths was a bit rubbish, Mr Barlow clearly knows what he's going on about but no one seems to get what he's trying to teach us!"

I laughed when Cass huffed with annoyance. Times when she actually appeared her age were so rare that it was all the more odd when she acted like a sulky teenager. She blushed when I laughed at her and whacked me on my arm but her bashful smile belied any real anger.

"Well if you like, I'll spend a day one weekend helping you out with it if you like?" I offered kindly.

I knew that most people found it very difficult to grasp maths and I thought that was because it's so difficult to teach it, yet I knew that I was fairly competent at simplifying what is being taught so that the student could grasp the concept. I helped the gang in all our lessons and with that help we all managed to stay in top set for everything and understand all the work. Em and Dani were very intelligent anyway and could keep up easily but I helped them to grasp the principles that much quicker and could teach them the more complex parts of any subject until they were able to ace any test. Rob and Adam weren't as smart as Em or Dani but they were able to keep up with my helping them, which goes to show it's really the teacher who effects a students performance, as Rob was dyslexic and Adam the least confident person you ever met.