Chapter 2: Proof?

The friendly trio had no idea what to say. They didn't even know what to think! Could it actually be possible that Thatch was under control, or was this just another one of his pranks?

But, then again, it was the friendly Thatch that had written this letter, and personally gave it to Casper. Was he really hoping that the friendly ghost would read it and discover the truth? The friendly Thatch had no reason to lie, so why was it so hard to believe this?

"What do you guys think?" Casper asked his two friends, hoping that at least one of them would be able to give him a little guidance.

"Honestly Casper, I don't know." Mantha shook her head. "It's hard to believe any of this."

"But, what reason would the friendly Thatch have to lie about this?" Ra questioned. "I mean, can't we give it just a benefit of a doubt that this might actually be true?"

"It would explain why Thatch can be friendly at some point, and then a bully again at the next." Casper nodded.

"Ok then, say it is real, how can we know for sure?" Mantha asked. "I mean, it's not like we can just walk right up to him and make him prove to us that there's a nicer Thatch trapped on the inside."

"You're right Mantha, you're right." Casper nodded, an idea coming to his head. Usually he would be against this, but this was an emergency, and an answer was needed. "But there is another way."

At this, Ra and Mantha stared at their friend expectantly, wondering what exactly Casper could be planning to help expose the vampire for not being who he claims to be. Casper sighed and continued his explanation.

"The Thatch in this letter says that he was able to break through his imprisonment a few times, fighting against the demon that controls him. If we can see him do this ourselves, we'll have our answer."

"Casper, are you suggesting we… spy on him?!" Mantha gasped in disbelief, Ra staring just as shocked.

"I wish there was another way." Casper sighed. "But unless we go digging through his personal belongings, I don't see any other way we can be sure that the words in this letter are true."

"Well, his coffin is sitting right here." Ra pointed out, looking directly at the black coffin that was the vampire's sleeping area. "And there's nobody here besides us. Plus, we still have about 5 minutes before class starts, so…"

"Ra's right," Mantha nodded in agreement. "It'd be a lot easier if we just looked around Thatch's coffin. Surely there's SOMETHING in there that can tell us if this is real or not."

Casper was hesitant. He really didn't want to go through Thatch's belongings, afraid of what he might see. He was even more afraid of getting caught by the vampire himself. But then again, his friends were right. Spying on Thatch would take a longer time than to just search through the coffin and find the proof they needed.

"You're right." He finally sighed. "Our best bet is to search through the coffin. But let's hurry, we got four minutes left and I don't wanna get caught, especially by Thatch."

Mantha and Ra nodded in agreement and the three friends quickly went over to the coffin. Lifting up the lid, all they saw was grey velvet lining, and a single white pillow.

No handles, no buttons, not even a blanket.

"There's gotta be something in here." Casper frowned. "Like, a secret cubby or something like that."

"If we just run our hands against the velvet, we might find a button or something." Mantha thought. "And if we knock on the walls and floor, we might be able to hear the hollow area."

"Right, come on, let's hurry."

Casper, Mantha, and Ra then proceeded to search the coffin, looking for hidden cubbies and possible switches or handles. At last, Ra knocked on the floor of the coffin, and a hollow sound greeted him.

"Guys, I think I found something."

Quickly, the mummy ran his hand along the area, looking for a hidden button or handle to open the cubby. He at last found a button and pressed it, allowing it to come up and turn into a handle. He grabbed it and opened the cubby. As the three friends stared inside, they gasped at what they saw.

Inside the cubby was a strange small black box. The box was covered with golden serpents around the rim, it's hinges were rusted with age. Hands reached to a blue gem on top of the lid, and around the box, painted on each side, was a pentagram made of blood.

Casper reached into the cubby and grabbed the box, feeling a jolt of dark energy go through him as he carefully pulled it out.

"What is it?" Ra asked, expectantly looking at Mantha.

"To be honest, I don't really know." The zombie admitted. "I've never seen anything like it."

"... I… feel something." Casper spoke as he studied the box. "Like… a dark energy, flowing through me. … It's coming from this box."

"This must be what Thatch released the demon from." Ra gasped. "If we can just find out what this box is, maybe it will give us enough proof."

"Maybe Ms. Heady will know." Mantha offered as she took the box from Casper and placed it in her bag. "This thing looks ancient. This is definitely a piece of history, and Ms. Heady IS a history teacher."

"Makes sense to me." Ra nodded.

"Let's just hope that Thatch doesn't notice that it's missing." Casper shivered has he closed the cubby and the lid to the coffin. "I got a bad feeling about this."

At that moment, the bell suddenly rang, signaling the students to get to their classes. The friendly trio looked at each other, fear running through them.

How can they possibly handle their classes, when a possible evil demon is in every single one of them, watching their every move, and silently plotting their possible deaths?