 
### Mad Monks

### And

### Blood Diamonds

### Balancing Reality - Book 1

### By Allysina Shinestone

### Copyright 2020 Allysina Shinestone

### Distributed by Smashwords, License Notes

### Thank you for downloading this ebook. This book remains the copyrighted property of the author, and may not be redistributed to others for commercial or non-commercial purposes. If you enjoyed this book, please encourage your friends to download their own copy from their favorite authorized retailer. Thank you for your support.

### Chapter 1

Clairisa Vinson stepped out of her house, number 199, and down the street of Constance Way towards the main intersection where the bus would take her to Channel A. High School for her second week of the new school year. She kept a quick pace while her wrist for the time on each step.

"I just had to stay up last night and watch another episode of Night Bite." She looked down at her watch again. "And I just had to hit the snooze button this morning." She said as she hurried to the intersection and pressed the button furiously. "I'll have to move that clock over onto the desk, so I have a reason to get out of bed to turn it off." She glanced to either side of the street and noticed no cars were in sight. She looked up at the red hand signal, rechecked the road, and glanced down at her watch and swallowed. "Damn it. Going for it."

Taking one last look to the right and left, Clair pushed off her right foot to start into a run as she dashed across the two streets. Reaching the other side, she jogged over to the bus stop and slowed only to see a bright orange paper over the time slots. Scanning the words, Clair got the overall message that this particular bus line was shut down for the day due to an accident or incident at one of the previous stops - delays to be expected.

"Great." Clair sighed as she looked around and hoped for an answer to her problem. Noticing the sign to the nearby park, Clair glanced at her watch then to the sign nodding. "If I hurry, then I can just make it for the first bell."

She took off, hoping her clumsy years were behind her as she passed by the park's sign and into the park. The play structure and swings were empty as she followed the bike path through some overgrown bushes and low hanging trees, leading onto a large open field that she recognized as her old elementary school. Nostalgic memories started to come to her, but she forced them out of her mind as she was determined to make it to school before the first bell.

"Just along the path between the two elementary schools, over the wooden bridge, and then across the street by the Max Milk," Clair said with each breath. "I can make it... I can..." Something out from her peripheral vision caught her attention, making her stop in time as a large golden dog bounded in front of her. "What the?" she asked, confused as she skidded to a halt - not wanting to collide with the dog.

"Where did you come from?" Clair asked, looking around the field, hoping to find an owner. As she glanced around the area, she couldn't see anyone rushing after the dog. Clair turned back to the dog and sighed deeply. "I need to get to school, but I can't just let you run around freely." She looked around again, hoping to see some kind of indication of where the dog came from. The dog barked at her and hopped around, wagging its tail. "Maybe your tag might give some kind of clue... Hey!"

Clair reached for the dog's collar and tag, hoping for some form of ID, instantly the dog barked excitedly and bounced away from her. "Come back!" Clair called out as she started to run off the path and chase after the dog through the field.

"Come back here!"

Clair blinked and looked around as her words seemed to echo in a different tone. She noticed a man running towards both her and the playful dog. As the man neared, he called out breathlessly to the dog.

"Stu, come here, boy!" The man breathed heavily. Clair jogged over to him to make sure he was all right, but before she could get to him, the man waved to her. "Don't worry about me, dear. Just get that silly mutt."

Clair nodded her head and started after the dog. Stu waited for her to near him and then bolted in the opposite direction. Clair sighed as she too stopped for a quick breather. Putting her hands on her knees and breathing deeply. Movement next to Clair made her lift her head to see the man had continued the chase. She watched for a few moments until she realized that Stu was unknowingly running in her direction. His head was turned back, looking at the running man.

Clair took off her backpack and prepared to run as Stu rushed past her. Reaching out to wrap her fingers around the colorful threaded collar, Clair gripped the collar and pulled back, trying to slow the dog down from its full speed. Her feet trying to lock into the ground, Clair felt the threat of her legs giving out from the large dog's speed and strength. Screaming as she fell, Clair hung onto the collar as she was being dragged by the large dog - through a fresh muddy puddle.

She continued to hold her grip onto the collar and scream out for Stu to stop. Suddenly the dog slowly came to a halt, sitting at the feet of a woman holding a box of dog treats. Clair looked up at the woman and thanked her. Coughing occasionally as the dog's long tail hit her in the face.

"Really, Henry I told you! If Stu gets lose, grab the treats box and shake them." The woman said sternly to the man as he jogged over, carrying Clair's bag over his shoulder. "Stu sit, stay..." She said, placing a dog treat onto his nose. Stu froze, his eyes narrowed on the treat. Clair watched as the woman took the collar from her grip and clipped a thick dog leash around it. Sighing with relief, Clair rolled away from Stu and stood up.

"Oh, dear." Henry frowned.

"Oh, Henry, her poor clothes!"

Clair looked from the worried faces down to her clothes. Her eyes widened at the amount of wet mud that stuck to her shirt, pants, and shoes. "Crap! I can't go to school like this." The realization hit her, glancing at her watch, Clair groaned. "I'm going to be late for sure."

"Don't worry, dear. You'll make it." The woman turned to Henry, handing him the dog leash. "Here, Henry. Take Stu inside and go find Jane's old clothes from this past summer. They should be in her room." Clair took the bag from Henry and followed as the woman kept assuring her that everything was going to be all right. The woman's calming hand patting her own didn't reassure Clair, but once inside the small house, Clair's attention moved to all the small antiques and figurines that lined the filled bookshelves. She found herself looking with interest at the different designs.

"Henry, did you find the clothes yet? The girl..." The woman suddenly poked her head into the kitchen, looking at Clair. "I'm sorry dear, I didn't get your name."

"Clairisa Vinson... But most people call me Clair."

"Alright, then Clairisa." The woman said with a kind smile. "Now you go into the bathroom, here. Change out of your messy clothes - Here is a plastic bag to put them in. Don't worry, your mom should be able to get the mud out with a wash or two." There was a pause behind the bathroom door as the woman again called out to Henry for the clothes.

"Why did this have to happen today," Clair sighed, checking the mirror. Luckily there was nothing on her face or hair, but she made a mental note for later to have a long hot shower just in case.

"Clairisa, here are the clothes. I hope they fit. You look the same age as our granddaughter, Jane." The door opened, and the woman handed her some folded clothes. "Henry will be in the car when you're done. As a thank you, he will drive you to school. Which one do you go to?"

"Channel A. High school," Clair answered as she started to unbutton her jean jacket and placed it into the bag that the woman gave her.

"Oh, not far at all." The woman then closed the door as Clair heard her shout to Henry about the school. Clair continued to undress, thankful that the mud and water didn't reach her bra or underwear. Unfolding the clothing belonging to Jane, Clair looked at the clothes and blinked in confusion.

"They must have just been grabbed from the closet or something." Looking at the labels of the red long sleeve shirt and dark black jeans, she blinked as the tags looked like from some designer store or brand. If she showed them to Melanie, Clair was sure that she would recognize them. Quickly slipping into the clothing Clair looked at herself in the mirror, only able to see from the waist up, she shrugged her shoulders and opened the door. Moving towards the front door, she noticed her shoes placed in a similar plastic bag, and next to them were a pair of black boots.

"Oh, those look sharp on you, dear!" The woman said, coming from the kitchen with a brown paper bag in her hands. "You and Jane are the same sizes. I'm glad." Clair picked up the first boot looking worried about wearing them. "Don't worry, dear. Those are Jane's old pair. She gets a new one each year. Hurry and get them on, or you'll be late for school."

Clair pushed the thought to the back of her mind and nodded. While putting on the boots and zipping them up, she was surprised to find that they fit as if made just for her. She worried about being capable of walking in the boot, but once out on the small porch of the house, she found it easy to move around in - also comfortable.

"Here I made you a quick lunch - nothing fancy, just a ham and cheese sandwich with a juice box and three of my home-baked cookies. I noticed that you didn't have a lunch bag with you, so I just whipped up something quick."

"This is fantastic, thank you," Clair said with a shock as the woman pushed the brown bag into her filled arms. Moving her bag onto her back to make room for the two plastic bags and the lunch, Clair shivered slightly from the morning chill.

"Oh, also take this jacket. It's going to get cold out in the evening."

"I can't take that. You've done so much for me already!" Clair said, waving her free hand from under all the things in her arms. She started to back down the steps of the porch.

"Nonsense. You'll catch your death without a jacket. Jane won't mind."

"I'm again thankful for all you have done for me, Mrs..." Clair blanked, realizing that she didn't know the woman's own name.

"Call me Abigail, dear."

"Right, Thank you very much, Abigail. But I need to get to school."

"Abigail, leave the girl alone," Henry called from the driver's side of the car. "Get in dear, ignore the tears."

"Tears?" Clair asked as she backed towards the car and opened the door with her free hand. Looking back, Clair's heart froze as the woman was crying slightly. Her hand lowered from the car door handle, and Clair found that she was walking back towards Abigail. "You know, maybe I might need the jacket. Thank you, Abigail."

Abigail gave a small gasp and placed the long jacket onto the pile of things in Clair's arms. Clair then turned and got into the car. Glancing to Henry, she noticed a grim look. He pulled out into the street, and for a while, they drove in silence until they stopped at a traffic light. He looked at her.

"I told you to ignore the tears."

"I'm sorry. Abigail seemed so sad, and I thought..."

"That you brought them on. Don't worry, dear, you didn't. It's hard for her, but Jane is about your age when she left for school."

"Where did she go?" Clair asked.

"Back to England with her family." He replied. "Since she left, this summer, poor Abi has been sad. Seeing you brought back a bit of happiness."

"Oh..." she didn't really know how to respond to that. She looked out through the window to see them pulling up to the front doors of Channel A. High school. Students were still walking into the building, but Clair figured the bell had already rung.

"Thank you for helping with Stu and for making my wife happy. Even if for a few moments." Henry said with an uneven smile.

Clair opened the car door, got out, and smiled back at him. Taking all her possessions in her hands, she flung her bag onto her back. "Tell Abigail that I'll bring Jane's clothes back later tomorrow, after a wash. And tell her thank you for the lunch." Henry nodded in understanding and waited for Clair to walk to the school doors before pulling away.

### Chapter 2

Clair opened her locker and placed the two plastic bags at the bottom while putting the brown lunch bag on the top shelf next to her textbooks. Hanging the long jacket on the small metal hook, she looked at the collection of books looking for her science textbook. Finding it and placing it into her extra bag used for carrying her books around the school, Clair then found her two notebooks and slipped them next to the science textbook. As the last bell rang, she placed her pencil case into the bag and closed her locker, double-checking the directional lock remained locked.

Jane's shoes made an echoing click as Clair rushed to the Science lab. Most students turned to look at her as she sped by with looks of confusion, but from the corner of her eye, Clair thought she saw amusement, and did that guy just wink at her? Shaking her head to focus on getting to class, she turned the corner of the science hallway. Reaching the door to the lab, she peaked in, finding it more comfortable in the heeled boots to not stand on her toes to look through the small slit of a window. The teacher - Mr. Smithy, hated tardy students entering his class. Luckily, Clair didn't see any signs of him from her point of view.

The students in the class were talking excitedly as Clair entered the classroom. Jane's boots continued their musical clicking as she walked by the lab tables. Clair glanced around the room, noticing that as she walked, more heads turned her way. Her face blushed as there was a mix of oh's, ah's, wow's, and many other expressions. Clair figured to focus on getting to her seat when she noticed the back of her best friend, Melanie Avalon's head turn, and her mouth dropped open.

"Damn did you just get back from Paris, Clair?" She asked, looking at her with disbelief.

"That bad?" Clair asked, embarrassed by all the attention.

"Bad? Girl, you are rocking those boots. I saw your hips swaying from side to side." Clair rolled her eyes at Melanie's statement. Sitting in her seat, she arranged her books and pencil case on the desk. "So, what's with the outfit?" Clair turned to look back at her, almost hurt by the tone in her voice. "Not that you look bad. Far from it. But you don't usually wear brand name clothing and Clair..." she paused, looking around the room as the other students looking their way. "You look like a different person in them. More confident. I mean, your hips swayed!"

"Blame Jane's boots."

"Who's Jane?"

"It's a long story." Clair said, rubbing her forehead. Opening her eyes from the slight headache forming, Clair saw Melanie continue to stare at her. "Fine. The short story is that I helped a nice couple with their dog this morning, which included me being dragged through a mud puddle. The woman was grateful for me helping with Stu...."

"Stu?"

"That's the dog's name." Clair said mid-sentence, "Anyways. She was also sorry that my shoes and clothes were wet and muddy, so she let me borrow her granddaughter's clothes. Her granddaughter's name is Jane. Therefore, these are her clothes."

"Ahh I see." Melanie said, nodding. "Well good thing you didn't come into class with the muddy clothes or Mr. Smithy would have used you for the next science experiment."

"I was more worried about not being late to class." Clair said, sitting back. "He seems to be running late again."

"Must be getting that coffee that he likes to drink in the morning from the cafeteria." Melanie suggested as she looked down at her phone. Out from the corner of Clair's eye, she noticed Melanie scratching her upper shoulder violently. Turning to ask if Melanie was alright, her eyes landed on the reddening of her skin.

"Are you wearing the gift your aunt gave you this past summer?" Clair asked, half already knowing the answer. Melanie looked up from her cellphone and grimaced as she pulled the top of the shirt to the side, showing Clair the inflamed skin underneath a pink lace strap. "I thought you threw it out. You know it itches your skin."

"I know." Melanie sighed with defeat. "But I thought, why not give it a try again. I mean, that was during the hot sticky summer that I last tried it on. This is cooler weather."

"Result?"

"Still itchy as hell." Melanie said, placing her shirt back into place.

"Why not alter it? Like your other uncomfy's." Clair suggested. She recalled helping Melanie a month after her birthday to sew fabric around the itchy parts of different bra's that her family would give her. She chuckled as she remembered her doing all the work while Melanie spent her time stitching her cellphone number into the cup of each new bra.

"Didn't have time to do it with this one yet." Melanie said with a strange look in her eye.

"If that look is to have me come over and stitch it for you, then you can forget it, sister."

"Oh, come on... We can then have a sleepover after. Watch a bit of Night Bite?" Melanie suggested. "Come on. Think of it, a girl's night. We can invite Kyler too."

"I'll think about it." Clair said with a grin. "However, if all you are going to do is write your cell in each one again..."

"Hey that is important to do." Melanie said defensively. Clair raised her eyebrow questioningly at her statement. Melanie leaned in and whispered, "Well when the boy band concerts come around..."

"I remember this tale." Clair said with her hand raised, stopping Melanie from continuing. Melanie had explained her ingenious plan of using any unused bras as - band bras. Of course, Clair was curious to ask what they were and was led to the large walk-in closet where Melanie kept two boxes covered in band logos and rock stickers from concerts that they had gone to over the years. Melanie opened one and laid out many different bras onto her bed for Clair and their other friend Kyler to view with pride.

At the time, Clair was confused to see so many different bras in many sizes, styles, and colors. Melanie explained that ever since she started growing the "girls" her family kept giving her different bras for her to wear. The only thing was no one in her family knew what her bra size was or what bra style she preferred. So, the Birthday, Christmas, and graduation gifts grew. Melanie didn't know what to do with the abundance of bras until she went to her first concert.

An all-boy pop band, one she had a crush on at the time, came to town, and she went with her mother to see them. During the concert, the bandleader went to the front of the stage when something was thrown on him. The leader jumped back in surprise as a bra fell from his arm. Melanie told Clair that the group leader improvised the next bit of the song, picked up the bra, looked it over, and took it back to the rest of the group. Melanie became excited as she told Clair that she saw the leader of the band give the sexiest smile she had ever seen and even quickly smelled the bra. After the song ended, he raised the undergarment for the audience to see and thanked the mysterious bra thrower. Melanie realized that she could reuse, renew, and recycle her useless bras for that purpose. She packed the bras nicely away, and when a male musical group came to town, she would pick out the "right one" to throw.

She leaned back from Melanie when the door to the room opened. The class went silent with a hush as Mr. Smithy entered and walked to the front lab table in front of the chalkboard. He placed his bag and coffee on the long table and turned to start writing on the blackboard.

Clair felt a tap on her shoulder, turning she saw a piece of folded up paper lying on her shoulder. Removing it and opening it up under the desk, she saw that it was from Melanie.

"Forgot to ask if you would help me study for the English grammar test during lunch?"

Clair folded the paper up and slipped it into a small zippered pouch in her pencil case with other folded paper notes. Turning in her seat to eye Melanie, she nodded her head, indicating she would. Clair learned to not talk during science, for that only made Mr. Smithy angry and throw chalk at students as the class found out their first class with him.

After the first week of school, the students in her class heard many rumors about Mr. Smithy's bipolar mood swings and sudden outbursts giving detention to students for the most ridiculous reasons. One student got a detention for having dog or cat hair on their clothes, another got one for using a pen instead of a pencil for a lab, and the one that Clair recalled this morning was the student who got one for bringing mud into the classroom. She heard that a student actually had the guts to talk back to him, which caused Mr. Smithy to explode into a rage. The rest of that class was said to have had a horrible exam mark because of that student talking back to him. It was a fact that Mr. Smithy terrified her, as she tried her best to just get through a year by not bothering the teachers in general, but when you are unsure what mood the teacher will be on that day, only made the class that more unpredictable.

"I'll take attendance." Mr. Smithy said as he turned away from the board and opened his computer to check off the names of the students present. Clair looked around the room, counting the students herself to make sure that everyone was here. The last thing her headache needed was a shouting-spree from Mr. Smithy over someone being late.

"Amy..."

"Here." She responded quietly.

"James..."

"Yep." He said with a yawn.

"Excuse me?" Mr. Smithy asked, staring at James.

The class turned to face James. A fair-haired boy with glasses that always seemed to be tilted on his face. He swallowed and cleared his throat, "Here. Sir."

"That's better." The class looked at each other with worry and relief. Clair joined in on the worried look. "Melanie..." He continued to call out.

"Here."

Clair started opening her notebook to find a clear page for writing today's notes down, knowing that it would be a while to getting to her name on the attendance. After finding a page and setting her pen next to the notebook, she looked up at Shara Thompson called out that she was here.

"Clairisa..."

"Here." She said softly.

"William..."

Clair frowned her eyebrows at the name and looked around the classroom as the other students had a similar look of confusion on their faces. She had never heard of a student named William in their class or even their year. Many of the students in the ninth grade, including herself, Melanie, and Kyler, all transferred to Channel A. High from Karen Glade Secondary. Clair turned to face Melanie to ask who this William guy was when the door to the room opened again.

"William...!" Mr. Smithy called as he looked at the class with anger, instead of the opening door.

"Here." A voice called from the door. The class and Mr. Smithy all turned to face the door as the one who identified himself as William entered the room. The guy was tall and lean, with brown-blond curly hair wearing dark blue jeans and a long grey sleeved shirt with worn black leather patches on the shoulders. "Sorry I'm late. Had to get signed in at the office. I'm new and got lost trying to find the classroom." He strolled into the room and looked at the student's stunned faces, then to the angry look on Mr. Smithy's face.

"Just get to your seat. You're interrupting the class." He said, pointing towards Clair. She swallowed, hoping he was looking behind her - then recalling that Melanie was right behind her, prayed he was pointing behind Melanie instead.

"Right. So just take any seat?" William asked, looking at the long tables and any empty seats available.

"Just sit next to Clairisa." Mr. Smithy snapped as he waved from William to Clair's location. Clair looked to William with a shy smile and a small, indicating wave as he looked at her. Placing his hand on the empty chair next to her and starting to pull it out, Mr. Smithy suddenly cleared his throat with irritation. "Not that one." He sighed. "Clairisa switch spots with William. I'd like to make sure he doesn't leave so fast after class ends."

Clair sighed lightly and slid her things over to the other side of the table. Grabbing her bag and standing from the seat to move around William, she placed the bag on the back of the chair.

"Clairisa Vinson, what are you wearing on your feet?!" Mr. Smithy's voice echoed around the room. Clair closed her eyes, wishing the class would just end quickly. "I asked you a question, Miss Vinson."

Clair pulled out her chair and sat down. "Just my boots." she said carefully.

"Don't sit down. Stand up so I can make an example of your choice of footwear." Mr. Smithy said as he marched around the desk and walked towards her with a twitch in his right eye. Clair looked around the room, noticing a few students shaking their heads at her to not stand and take this embarrassment by him. She swallowed as he stopped in front of her, looking through his glasses and down his nose.

"You call those 'boots' appropriate footwear to wear in my class?" He asked her in a severe tone. Clair didn't know how to respond, so figured it was best to remain quiet. It worked for mice when a snake would break into their burrows, so maybe it would work for her too. "I asked you a question!" She closed her eyes then as the shout rang in her already aching head.

"They're better than no shoes at all." She said, gripping her hand tightly into a fist and then released it slowly back outwards. The class gasped while a few whispered words like 'damn' or 'she's dead' echoed softly around her. Clair agreed with the remarks as the color of Mr. Smithy's skin started to turn a slightly pink color, and she was sure he wasn't blushing. His breathing became more rapid as if he had just run a marathon, except he was standing still. The twitching in his right eye moved from the left, while the right started to flutter like a spasm.

"You think you're so smart? Coming into my classroom with those hooker boots on and thinking you run the place?"

Clair backed away from his words and advancement. She saw him use this movement when he threw the piece of chalk last week at one of the students in the class. She was shocked that he would describe her boots belonging to hookers.

"Those aren't hooker boots. They're Jimmy Choo!" Shara shouted as if he spoke to her. "Hookers don't wear pure leather."

"Don't help Miss Thompson. I've questioned many of your outfits that have entered my classroom." Mr. Smithy said with a growl.

"Hey! Leave her alone." Clair said, taking a step towards him. He looked back at her with a questioning look. "You started this with me. So, leave her out of this."

"Well, now. Miss. Vinson seems to have a comeback for everything, doesn't she?"

"If you start attacking the other students, then I might have a comeback for everything." Clair didn't know where these words of power and courage were coming from, but she seemed to be on a role. Maybe it's the height of the boots, she thought.

"A threat coming from a whore's mouth, that's a new one."

"MR. SMITHY!!" A shrill surprised tone came from the door. Standing in the frame of the door was Vice Principle Whire with a few pieces of paper in her arms and the male gym teacher Mr. McAllen holding a dark green backpack in his hands, with shocked expressions on their faces. Mr. Smithy turned to the door straightening his posture a bit. Clair took the opportunity to back away from Mr. Smithy. "Did I just hear you call a student a whore?"

"She dared to talk back to me. NO - more like threaten me." He said accusingly, glaring back at Clair.

"Is this true?" Mr. McAllen asked as he looked at Clair.

Clair shook her head, "No. Not to sound childish, but he started it." She looked back to Mr. Smithy as his blushing pink skin tone grew a deeper shade of red. His hands tightened into fists, and his body started to stake as his eyes narrowed at her. "He was verbally attacking Shana, so I..."

"You women are all the same." Mr. Smithy growled. "Skanky little liars always wanting attention but never putting out when someone with actual hard-working money comes along."

"Maxwell calm yourself. We've talked about this kind of attitude..." Whire said then gasped when Mr. McAllen suddenly threw the backpack he held into her full arms. Mr. McAllen marched into the lab, flexing his muscles, trying to intimidate those around him. Which to Clair seemed to work as students quickly fled from their seats as he neared Mr. Smithy and backed themselves against the back wall.

"Don't touch me, you poor excuse of a teacher!" Mr. Smithy shouted as he backed away from Mr. McAllen's advancement. Mr. McAllen slowed but kept his eyes on Mr. Smithy.

"Clair." A voice whispered next to her. Turning, she saw Melanie helping William over the table and walking to where the other students gathered. Glancing to the rest of the class, who now had their cellphones out recording the whole ordeal, Melanie held out her hand to pull Clair away.

Clair took a step to reach out to her, but suddenly she felt a sharp tug pulling her backward. In the heels of the boots, she stumbled a bit but used the desk to steady herself. Looking to what yanked her back, her eyes widened as Mr. Smithy's shaking chalk dust-covered hand wrapped around her arm tightly.

"Let me go!" She cried out as she tried to pull back from his grip.

His strength surprised her as he gave a guttural cry and pulled her sharply back in his direction. "Not till you give me what I want. Respect!" He screamed directly into her face. Clair covered her nose as a strange smell made her cringe.

"God what is that..." she asked out loud. Thinking back to when she tried red wine at her family's Christmas party, Clair glanced at the coffee traveler cup sitting on the desk behind Mr. Smithy. "Oh my god, he's drunk!" She cried out in panic. Her eyes blinked as tears formed in them from the intense smell of the alcohol on his breath. She then tried to use her other hand to force peel his fingers off her skin.

"Maxwell let go of her!" Both Mr. McAllen and Whire said. Clair noticed that Whire had moved herself to stand in front of the other students. Her attention turned back to Mr. Smithy as he shook her again, violently.

"Don't touch me!" He screamed. "I'm not letting go till this bitch gives me the respect that I deserve." He said on a hiccup.

Clair felt him pulling her towards him again. Having enough of this, she leaned forward and swung her right foot back a bit. "You asked for it, you sick bastard!" Clair then brought her right foot around, tucked it in as she used her arms to move closer towards him. Making the connection, Mr. Smithy gave a deep gasp and feel to the floor quickly. Clair was about to fall on top of him but gripped onto the nearby desk for support as Mr. Smithy's hand slid painfully off her arm.

Backing away from him, Clair felt Melanie wrap her arms and pull her further back away as Mr. McAllen jumped on top of Mr. Smithy and forced him to stand while his arms were grappled behind his back. Cursing and grunts followed as Mr. McAllen led him towards the back door of the lab and down the hall.

Whire took a deep breath and walked quickly to the door watching as another teacher assisted in moving Mr. Smithy down the hallway. She turned back to the stunned group with a surprised look on her own face. Landing her eyes on Clair, she walked over and looked at her in worry.

"Are you alright, Dear?" she asked. Clair didn't really know what to say, so nodded her head. "Right. Well, as your teacher is being..." She paused, searching for the right word to use. "Dealt with. The rest of your class will be a spare. Please gather your things, and I'll take you to the library for a study period."

The class murmured as they gathered their belongings. Whire handed the backpack thrown to her by Mr. McAllen to William. Leaving the classroom and walking into the nearby library, the students spread out among the tables and rows of shelves. Clair turned to see Whire talking to the Librarian when Shana suddenly appeared and hugged her around the chest.

"Clair, thank you for sticking up for me." she said into Clair's shirt.

"Umm... You're welcome?" Clair said, still a bit jittery about the whole thing. The rest of the students came around and started to congratulate Clair for her standing up to Mr. Smithy. "Who knew the guy was drunk all this time?" she added, trying to get a bit of a laugh out of the group. The others agreed but were quickly shooed away by Whire and the Librarian.

Shana stayed near Clair and Melanie. "Like really, Clair. That was - Scary! At first, when I saw you in the whole outfit, I was like 'what a bitch to wearing designer clothing on the second week of school just to get attention.' But then Smithy just bashed your boots like that. Well, Clair, no one messes with Jimmy Choo! I had to say something!"

"I understand." Clair said, annoyed by Shana's first impressions about her new outfit, but they weren't hers - they were Jane's.

"But then you just made him shut it, like that. With a snappy come back too."

"Yes, I get it, Shana."

"I just want to say. That your clothes are gorgeous, and if anyone bashes them today, you come get the girls and me. We'll stand behind you and give them a beating." She paused. "Nice kick to the assholes' junk. Like he'll be needing them where he is going, right?"

"Umm yeah." Clair said she watched Shana walk away and join her other giggling friends in the corner of the library. "What just happened, Mel?"

"It was a bit a blur for me too." Melanie said as she led them to a table near the back windows. "Oh, it's raining now. What a miserable day."

"You could say that again." Clair said as she slumped down into the soft chairs. Her head lowered onto her crossed arms on the table. "My head is pounding." she sighed. A little poke made her look up and see Melanie holding out two green liquid pills. Clair figured that Melanie would carry headache pills with her as she suffers from migraines during the autumn season. "Thanks." She whispered gratefully.

Melanie sat down across from her looking worried. "You okay?"

Taking the first pill into her mouth and drinking a large gulp of water, she swallowed and answered, "My head hurts." Clair moved the second pill between her fingers before placing it in her mouth.

"I mean about what just happened."

Clair placed her water bottle back into the side of her bag and put her head onto her left hand, pressing against the pressure just underneath her skin. "It's just been one hell of a morning."

"Yea, Understatement." Melanie chuckled. "Chasing a dog through the mud, wearing designer clothing, and now being attacked by Crazy Smithy."

"Crazy Drunk Smithy." Clair corrected.

"Right! Was he really drunk?" Melanie asked. Clair nodded her head as a shiver of the smell came back to her. "How could you tell?"

"It was on his breath." Clair said, revolted. "I noticed the coffee cup and figured that was why he always was late to classes. Filling up the travel mug with alcohol." Clair nodded her head as the other sudden acts of outbursts now made sense.

Melanie looked for her cell phone as she felt it vibrating in her purse. "And the video is viral."

"What! Already?" Clair asked, leaning forward to look at the screen. She watched as her face was turned away from Mr. Smithy, and he took his chance to grab her arm and pull her closer to him. Clair shivered as the video was obviously edited and skipped to her kneeing him in the gut - though, from the angle of the camera, it almost looked like she hit someplace else. "Ohh, that was a good hit." She said with a slight bit of pride.

"Yea. You hit him good." Melanie said, watching the video again. "You know, with the outfit and the kick to the balls..."

"I didn't kick him in the balls."

"In the gut, then..." Melanie corrected herself, "You looked like Athena." Melanie then lifted her hands up and pretending to karate chop the air and the books on the table next to them. "Clairisa Vinson - Teacher Slayer." she laughed.

"Don't say that. I don't want it to stick." Clair said, placing her head onto her folded arms again, hiding her face from Melanie.

"Oh, come on, I'm joking." Melanie said with a sigh. Looking around at the books on the shelf, she stood suddenly, making Clair lookup. Reaching a row of books, she pulled one out and looked at the cover. "I thought so." Turning the cover to Clair, she pointed to the row of books. "Manga and Graphic novels!"

Clair sat up and moved out from the chair to look along the book's spines to read the titles. "They have Night Bite here." She said with interest as she took the first volume out and sat back down in the chair. "Maybe this could help take my mind off of Smithy."

"You don't need to worry about it, Clair." Melanie said as she walked back with a full stack of books that she placed on the table. She ran her finger down the spines and carefully pulled out the book she wanted. "Look at it this way, you actually stood up to a teacher. You would have never done that before. Also, he was going to lose his temper sooner or later."

"What if he gets fired?" Clair whispered.

"So, what if he does? Good riddance, and I think our class won't be the only ones thinking that." Melanie said, opening the cover of the book. "Oh, come on, Clair, cheer up." She said, looking over the top of the book. "If he is fired after what happened today, then it is not your fault." Clair looked up at her with a sad look. "The VP said that they have been getting complaints from past students about him. They just needed to see just how right the students were and how wrong a teacher he is." She reached across the table and lightly touched the top of Clair's hand. "It will be okay."

"But the attention from the students?" Clair said with a sigh. "I thought the clothes alone would be enough unwanted attention... But this?"

"I say go with it." Melanie said but soon after frowned. "Just don't let it get to your head. You don't want to be like Jenny, right?"

Clair thought back to when Jenny, an old friend of theirs, suddenly got attention in grade school. Jenny thought she was the princess of the school, and she made everyone remember that fact too. One day an older student got annoyed at Jenny's attitude and made their feelings known with a few fists to Jenny's face. Jenny's parents moved her to a new town, new school, and they got her a shrink to help her deal with her overpowering ego.

Clair and Melanie tried to send emails and letters to Jenny countless times, but after a few too many messages of "you abandoned me, I hate you, you're the worst friends ever..." they both stopped writing to her.

"Yeah, don't want to do that." Clair agreed. She looked at the many Manga's sprawled out on the table and back to the graphic novel of Night Bite in her hand. "Have you heard from Jenny recently?"

Melanie shook her head. "Only thing I saw was that she created yet another Facebook profile and that she was continuing to write that she was going to run away."

"Oh well, that's..." Clair stumbled to find the right words to say.

"Jenny." Melanie finished for her. Clair nodded her head in agreement.

"I didn't know that they created Night Bite into a graphic novel series." Clair mentioned as she flipped through the pages of the book.

"They are making all pop culture into graphic books or manga." Melanie said as she flipped the page in her own book.

Clair read the first few pages of Night Bite. She criticized the drawings of the main characters and showed Melanie some of the well-known quotes from the show was used as the main text boxes with only the description boxes as actual reading content. "There isn't much to this book." Clair said, disappointed.

"Well you know the show by heart. Line for line." Melanie said with a chuckle. "I don't doubt that you would be hard on the graphic novel."

A throat cleared above them. The new student, William, was standing by their table and glancing towards the books.

"Can we help you?" Melanie asked, annoyed that she was interrupted from her Manga.

William nodded his head quickly. "Yes, I was looking to see if you happened to have the next volumes of the Night Bite graphic novel on your table?" He swallowed nervously. "I finished volume two and was looking for the next one to read before the next class."

"Well, good for you." Melanie said snappily.

"Melanie." Clair sighed. She turned to William and smiled politely. "Yes, I think we do have the next volume, somewhere here. Did you want to bring your stuff over and join us?" Clair asked. Melanie raised her eyebrow at her in surprise. "In case you finish reading that one and want to read the next without walking across the whole library."

"How did you know I was across the other side of the library?" He asked, confused.

"I saw you reading on the couches when the class all settled." Clair said simply.

"Oh, I see." He thought for a few minutes before smiling. "Sure, I'll join you. As long as you both don't mind." He looked in Melanie's direction.

Melanie looked up from her book and shrugged. "Fine with me."

"I'll just go get my things." William said as he put his book back on the shelf and walked off.

"Why did you invite him over to sit with us?" Melanie asked Clair in a hushed tone.

"What? He's new." Clair said. "It's called making friends."

"Yea, but we don't know what he's like."

"Why should that matter?" Clair asked, confused with her reasoning.

"Back." William said as he placed his things on a nearby chair and dragged it towards the table. He seemed to debate where to arrange the chair as Melanie gave him a sideways glare. Getting the hint, he moved the chair closer to Clair and sat down.

Clair widened her eyes at Melanie, giving her a look of disapproval. She answered with a raise of her eyebrows - acting like Clair should have expected it from her. Clair sighed deeply and was about to mutter the word drama queen under her breath when William spoke up again.

"I could leave." He said slowly.

"NO." Melanie and Clair said at the same time. Melanie moved the book closer to her face while Clair grabbed a random book from the pile and opened it - pretending to read.

### Chapter 3

The three of them sat there for the rest of the period. Clair would look over her book to see Melanie glancing towards William, but once he or Clair would move a bit, she would sneak quickly back behind her own book with a little blush on her cheeks. Clair looked at William to when she wasn't reading the Manga in her hand - which was frequently. The Manga was a bit boring and not her taste. The main female character was too cute and predictable, the sidekick was a guy who obviously loved her, but she was too blind to see, and the teacher was a pervert. Bringing the memory of Mr. Smithy back to her, she put the book down and glanced over at William. He was an attractive guy. She only now saw that his face was skinny, and his eyes were a dull blue color.

William looked up at her and blinked in confusion. "Did you want to read this one?" he asked, indicating the third volume of Night Bite in his hands.

Clair shook her head. "Sorry, just spaced out a bit. I didn't really like the first one of the graphic novel series."

"Oh, well, many people complain about the first volume. The art was horrible, and the dialogue, if you call what they had dialogue, was boring." William said, agreeing. He marked his page off with a piece of paper and reached for the shelf to retrieve the book he put away. "Here, try the second volume. Definitely better than the first."

"Oh, the art looks different." Clair noticed quickly as she opened the book and saw more dialogue and speech bubbles.

"Yeah, they got a different artist to draw the characters." He said shrugging. "Apparently, the first volume was getting a lot of complaints."

"They must have heard you from the future, Clair." Melanie joked as she finally said something from behind the book.

"I guess they would have." Clair laughed. Turning to William, she smiled and said, "Oh, well, I guess we'll introduce ourselves since we got so into our own books that we didn't do it right off the bat. My name is..."

"Clairisa Vinson." He said shyly.

"Yes..." She said, confused. "How?"

"Everyone will know your name after today, Hun," Melanie said with a chuckle.

"Well, I asked one of the guys in the class. Mostly about what the incident was about because I was completely lost." He said, frowning. "After getting a few details, he mentioned your name."

"Who was this?" Clair asked with interest.

"A guy named James." He said, thinking.

"James is a greeter type of guy," Melanie said, nodding her head from behind her book. "I'm Melanie. If you call me Mel, I'll hit you!"

"I'll remember that." He said stiffly. "I guess that leaves me. My name is William Weaver." He shrugged. "Or as James called me, New Guy."

"Where did you move from?" Clair asked with interest.

"Toronto." He said shyly.

"Sorry, you must have been asked questions like this a million times already," Clair said with a laugh.

"A little, but I guess I don't mind," William said, shrugging. "I see that we have a common interest in Night Bite."

Clair nodded her head. "Yes. I love the show and the novels. Not sure about the graphic novel, though."

"Read the second and third volumes, and you will see that they are different than the first," William assured her.

Clair shrugged and asked, "So are you in our classes?"

"I guess so." He said, confused. Taking out a sheet of paper from his pocket, he handed it to Clair to look at. "This is what the vice-principal gave me this morning."

Clair looked over the timetable of William's classes. "Science and English in the morning, Drama and History in the afternoon. We're all in the same classes."

"Oh, that's good," William said with relief. "I thought I was going to follow James everywhere today to find my next classes."

"Well, you're not following us." Melanie snapped.

"Melanie?!" Clair said, surprised.

"Oh, well... If you could give me directions?" William offered. "That would be fine too."

"No, you can come with us," Clair said. "You're going to make other friends in the class too. But on the first day, you shouldn't be left in the dark."

"That's a quote from Night Bite." William smiled as he put the timetable into his backpack.

"Yeah, I really like Night Bite," Clair said, shrugging with embarrassment. Clair looked down at her watch and frowned. "Well, it seems that we have fifteen minutes to get to English." She stood from the table, picking up the second and third volumes of Night Bite. "I'll sign these out and read them either at lunch or after school."

"Didn't you have volunteering of some kind to do tonight?" Melanie asked as she put the pile of books back on the shelf but slid three out for herself. Clair looked at her, confused. "You said last week that you couldn't come over because of some volunteering with kids."

"Oh! The Girl Guides meeting right, thanks for reminding me." Clair said as she and Melanie walked to the table to scan their books. William jogged up behind them with his own pile of books to takeout. "I forgot about the meeting. But no, I have to watch Dean tonight."

"Dean is my younger brother," Clair informed William, figuring he was wondering.

"Oh, I see. I have a younger sister. What's this about Guide's?" William asked as he finished scanning the book, placed them into his bag, and then flung it onto his back.

"I volunteer my time with a local Girl Guides group," Clair explained. "My next-door neighbor, she is the troop leader and asked if I was interested in volunteer hours, and I said yes." She smiled. "I was in Girl Guides when I was younger, so she thought it would be good for me, plus I get to work with kids."

"You like kids?" William asked.

"They love her," Melanie said with a laugh.

"I do like kids," Clair said, nodding her head. "Some kids do push my limits, but I do like them."

"You mentioned something about camping this weekend, right?" Melanie asked.

"No, next weekend." Clair corrected. "But the meeting is in a few days, it's about the preparation for the camping trip." Realizing that they had reached Clair's locker, Melanie and William waited till she got her books for English. Once she got them, they headed off to their English class.

***

Clair gave a sideways glance to William, who sat next to her. When he entered the room, having a look of confusion, she had invited him to sit with her and Melanie. Luckily English wasn't a class where there was prearranged seating. During a ten-minute break, she had written a note asking how he thought the class was going so far. He wrote back that he was worried about the upcoming grammar test. Clair figured that he would be since he just found out that there is one on Thursday. She wrote back that she will be happy to study with him.

Before she realized it, they set a date and time for studying. She couldn't help but smile. Every time she would glance at William during class, he would give her this gorgeous smile that would send a shiver down her spine. She just hoped he didn't see each time she blushed and then turned away from him.

"Take out your copies of Shakespeare Romeo and Juliet and follow along with the class. I'll call on you to read each passage, and then we will discuss what it could mean as a group."

Clair kept her finger on the passage of the literary text as another student read it aloud and then was asked what the passage meant. She started to visualize the two main stars from Night Bite, reenacting the balcony scene that they were reading.

She could see the heroine of the show, Athena, in a long white gown standing on a balcony with a summer night's breeze blowing her pulled-back hair off her pale shoulders. Marcus, the ultimate bad boy vampire of the show and Athena's love interest, appeared in a similar outfit like Romeo. Clair flipped the book to look at the book's cover, looking for a reference to Romeo's fashion choice and grimaced as the outfit wasn't something she would like to see Marcus in. She pictured him in a black long, almost pirate-like coat with gold trim and a red lose undershirt. Clair smiled, liking the outfit more. His long dark hair was pulled back with a leather thread but had bits of fallen hair to frame his masterful face.

As the next student read, she placed the words into her mind like Marcus was saying them to Athena. The gestures and poses she figured more dark and manly than just skipping here and there around alone garden. One moment Marcus was behind a tall tree, covered by darkness as he spoke of her brightening beauty, and then he would walk out from the shadow, intensifying the words he meant even more.

"See how she leans her cheek upon her hand. Oh, that I was a glove upon that hand." Marcus spoke out as he watched Athena from the ground. He would then reach out his arm to her standing there, and his hand would match up to the side of her face. Clair felt her face start to blush a bit from the idea of his voice saying in his low husky tone, "That I might touch that cheek!"

Something from the corner of her eye sparkled, blinking the imaginary Shakespeare Night Bite daydream away from her mind, Clair focused on what had just caught her attention. She noticed the teacher looking in her direction, so figured to fake reading along but wanted to know what was that thing that glinted at her. Carefully turning her head to see from her peripheral vision, she noticed the glint again, and it seemed to come from William as he held something from the side pocket of his backpack.

Clair stared at the object in wonder, hoping his hand would move slightly to the left or pull the item up a bit more. Once his hand moved, she noticed the scrunched up top part of a small brown leather pouch. As William took it out farther from the bag, she was confirmed that it was a dark leather pouch. The pouch was the size of his hand, tied with a stitch of dark red rope with what seemed to be interwoven with flecks of silver thread. Hanging on the end of the rope was a round metal symbol. The symbol had a circular border, and two lines that came from the top down together in the center were a tear dropped red jewel sat.

William seemed to be feeling the contents of the pouch through the leather exterior. To Clair, it was like he was counting the objects in the pouch. When he had finished counting one item, it fell to the bottom of the bag, making a small clicking sound. She wondered just what was in that pouch.

"Clair, will you read the next passage, please." The teacher asked.

Clair snapped her head away to look at the teacher and then back down to the book. Her finger was still on the previous passage. Clair swallowed, worried that she would get in trouble for not paying attention. Melanie cleared her throat on the other side of Clair. Glancing to her left, Clair watched Melanie's fingers as they showed her four and five.

Scanning and flipping the page over, Clair searched for the passage. Luckily the books they used had faded numbers long the side of the passages. She breathed out in relief as she found it. Clair read the passage to the class and stopped when the teacher asked the whole class what the passage meant. Clair turned to Melanie and mouthed, thanks.

Turning her attention back to the pouch in William's hand, she was disappointed that he had placed it back into his bag's side pocket. Frowning, her mind wandered on about what could be in that pouch.

***

At lunch, Clair and Melanie meet up with their friend, Kyler Moore, by her locker. As they approached, they noticed Kyler whipping her face and back of her neck off with a white towel with the school's logo on it.

"Just get out of the gym?" Clair asked as she sat against the locker.

"Nah, went for a run. The track outside is bigger than Karen Glade's." Kyler said, grabbing her lunch.

"When did you have time to run?" Melanie asked, sitting across from Clair and Kyler. "And out in the rain?"

"It's better in the rain, and I have a spare after first period." She smiled. "Extra-long lunch period or training time." Clair noticed the slight tone of sadness in her voice. She figured that Kyler would be a bit lonely with the different class schedule than theirs.

"You and your sports," Melanie said with a laugh.

"Oh, yeah, cause the only running I see you do is to a hot boy or for sales at the mall." Kyler poked back as he opened her plastic container of rice, chicken, and vegetables. Clair opened the brown bag that Abigail gave her this morning, excited for the ham and cheese sandwich she mentioned. "A traditional brown bag lunch?" Kyler asked, eyeing her.

"Yea, what's that about?" Melanie asked.

"You know the woman that I helped this morning with the dog?" Clair asked. Melanie nodded as Kyler frowned and shook her head, having not been told the story. "Well, as an extra thank you, she made me lunch. Which is a bonus because I was so worried about being late this morning that I didn't make a lunch."

"Wait, you helped a woman this morning?" Kyler asked, confused. Clair explained about the dog and the mud, also about needing the designer clothes. "Oh, I was going to say they looked nice on you."

"No, you weren't," Melanie said with a snort. "Since when do you notice fashionable clothing."

"Okay, you got me there. But if Clair came in a sports jersey, then I would say that looked nice on her too." Kyler said, glaring at Melanie with a slight smile. Leaning forward, she asked, "So, what else did she pack in there?"

"Cookies," Clair said. "There's three, want to share?"

"Peanuts?" Kyler asked with concern.

"I don't think so. Looks like chocolate chip." Clair said, passing a cookie to Melanie.

"Taste like it too," Melanie said, licking her lips. "Thick dark chocolate."

"Then, yes, please," Kyler said, quickly placing her hand out for her own. Taking a bite, she closed her eyes. "Home baked." She hummed with enjoyment.

"Good thing you didn't invite William to join us, Clair. He might not have gotten a cookie." Melanie said with a chuckle as she took another bite into the cookie.

"What is with you today?" Clair asked, confused. "You have been very rude to him all day." Melanie grabbed her juice box and sipped loudly, trying to drown Clair's voice.

"You met the new guy!" Kyler asked as she finished the cookie.

"He's in all of our classes. Well, except for Art." Melanie said plainly. "Clair has been making love eyes at him all morning."

Clair blinked in surprise and nearly choked on the sandwich. "I have not!"

"Have too," Melanie said, crossing her arms. "Since William came over to find those books, you have been staring at him with huge heart-shaped eyes."

"William? Is that his name?" Kyler asked, glancing between the two girls with interest. Clair nodded. "Nice name." Melanie huffed loudly.

"Melanie, what is wrong?" Clair asked.

"Nothing is wrong," Melanie said slowly.

"Oh, I think I know!" Kyler said suddenly. "She wanted William first!"

"What?" Melanie and Clair said together as they both turned to face her in shock.

"Yeah, Melanie. You wanted to have first shot at the new guy. But he talked to Clair first." Kyler paused, watching Melanie's face turn in anger. "Face it - you're jelly."

"I am not," Melanie said, crossing her arms.

"Look, no one has William," Clair said, raising her hands in defense. She turned to Melanie. "Melanie, you should have said something to me. I mean, I figured something was up between you two, but... I didn't know you wanted to be the first to meet him. And really, we weren't the first to meet William - James was." Melanie didn't seem impressed by this fact. Clair thought for a minute, "Look, the next class is drama. Ask him if he would like to be your line partner."

"So, only one period... one possible assignment," Melanie said softly, not looking at her. Clair nodded to herself as Kyler's theory was correct. Melanie did want to be the first one to talk to William.

Clair thought again. "Well, I did ask him if he wanted help with the English test on Thursday. You could cover that."

"Cover?" Melanie asked, confused.

"Yeah, I was so mixed up with the dates he gave me that I forgot that I'm at the church with the Girl Guides one evening. I won't be able to make it." She paused, letting that set in before adding. "This will also help you with your studying too." Clair took out the paper note from class and handed it to Melanie. "What do you think?"

"I..." Melanie was trying to search for the correct words. "I guess I'm sorry." She said sadly.

"It's alright," Clair said with a sigh as she bit into her food. She really wanted to get to know William more, but she shrugged the thought off. She wished that Melanie had made more of a signal or made a quick motion to giving her a clue that she wanted to crush on William. If crushing on William was what Melanie was thinking or hoping. Clair nodded sadly in her head that Melanie needed someone to crush on to make her feel better. Melanie had broken up with her two-week summer boyfriend a few days before school started when she found him going to the beach with another girl.

"Well, come on," Kyler said suddenly. "What do I get? You get a drama class and a study date?" She asked, pretending to fight for the note in Melanie's hand.

Clair watched her friends fight over the note, not really focusing on them. She wished that she could have a chance at finding someone to crush on. Band members and TV actors were lovely to crush on - Hell, Marcus as Romeo was charming to think about, but they never enter your actual life. They make you want to join their lives. She had been so busy with volunteering and schoolwork that she didn't think much of crushes or even boyfriends. Her eyes scanned different guys in the classes, but only silly little fake crushes or "relationships" would form.

Clair smiled as she thought of Marcus again - wearing the Romeo outfit but this time appearing at her school, find her and take her hand to run into the night together. Thought of the leather pouch entered her daydream. Clair blinked her eyes and saw that Melanie and Kyler were now arm wrestling for Melanie's unfinished cookie. Kyler was clearly winning as she was the most athletic among the three.

"When you are with William Melanie, could you ask him about his leather pouch," Clair asked.

The two girls stopped and looked at her. "Leather pouch?" Kyler asked as she bent Melanie's wrist to the side - winning. "HA! Mine." Taking the cookie and stuffing it quickly into her mouth.

"Yeah, it's about this big." Clair tried to recall the size as she showed the girls with her hands. "He was playing with it during class, and I'm just curious about it."

"I could ask him, sure," Melanie said, shrugging her shoulders.

"You know it could be like medication," Kyler said, thinking out loud. The girls looked at her in confusion. "Like what I carry my EpiPen in." She took out her case, showing it to them.

"I don't think it's that. Each time William seemed to be counting something, and it would make a clicking sound, hitting the other items at the bottom of the bag." Clair said, wondering. "When did you get a new EpiPen case?"

"This summer," Kyler said with a frown. "My brother and I were playing when I got stung by something. I started getting rashes and could hardly breathe."

"You got stung by peanuts?" Melanie asked.

"Not peanuts! This sting, well, we're still not sure what it is yet. I can't remember much." Kyler said with a smirk. "My brother still calls me spotty." She opened the case and took the pen out. "Now I have to carry this annoying thing around. Didn't have to as much when it was just peanuts."

"It will save your life," Clair said.

"This sounds a lot like a heath commercial-like on TV," Melanie said with a giggle. Kyler nodded and put her pen away as the bell rang. The girls packed up their lunches and went to their own lockers. "At least you have a nice bag to carry it in, Kyler," Melanie said with a smile.

"It's no Jimmy Choo, though," Clair said. Melanie nodded her head in agreement.

"What's a Jimmy Choo?" Kyler asked.

***

In drama, Clair watched as Melanie asked William, shyly, to help her run lines for the assignment they were given in class. The two sat in the corner of the room and practiced each of their lines. Clair sat with her partner Jesse working on their own lines together. At the end of the class, she caught up with Melanie before their next class.

"So, how did it go?" Clair asked.

"It was great," Melanie said with a smile. "He is very funny and a good actor. He memorized his lines like that." Melanie snapped her fingers, making Clair blink in surprise. "William is also charming. He complimented me so much, I was blushing like crazy."

"Did you ask about studying grammar?" Melanie nodded her head in excitement. Clair smiled with relief. "Great. I'm glad you're getting to know him." They started to walk down the hall. "So, if he going to be your husband? Can I be your maid of honor?"

Melanie laughed. "We will have to see." She stopped, looking in the direction of her class down the opposite hall from Clair's class. "My art class is this way." She frowned.

"History is this way," Clair said with the same sadness.

"High school is odd. You get to choose what courses you want to do. But I'm not with you."

"Yeah, I know what you mean," Clair said, frowning. Melanie tried to convince her to join the art class so they could be in the same courses for the first semester, but Clair wasn't really into art. She liked to draw and paint, but when offered a history class, Clair really wanted to take that. "I hope you have fun in your class."

"You too, even if it is boring facts and event stuff," Melanie said, making a sour face.

Clair entered the history room and noticed William along the side of the wall. She waved and walked over to him. "Hey William, boy, the day has gone fast." She said, laughing as she sat down in front of him. Arranging her things, she turned in her seat to talk to him before class started.

"Yeah, the day is going by fast." He agreed. "I wanted to ask you something?" Clair nodded, waiting for him to ask his question. "Melanie said that you asked her to ask me about a leather pouch that I had on me." Clair noticed his mood changing as he talked. He was whispering, however, not in a shy tone and a bit dark. "I don't know where you thought you saw a leather pouch, but I don't have one."

Clair blinked her eyes. "I didn't mean to seem like I'm spying on you or anything, William." She paused, finding her words. "It was just something I noticed you were holding during English. It was a leather pouch about this big, had a dark red rope with flecks of silver thread and a metal symbol hanging from it."

William was silent, looking at her through strange eyes. Clair leaned back in her chair as she felt that she might have stepped over a line with him. "I don't know what you're talking about." He replied quietly.

Hearing the clicks of the teacher's high heel shoes enter the room and closing the door. Clair turned back around in her seat and thought about the sudden change in William's mood. He seemed pissed and different from his shy persona this morning. Glancing behind her, she noticed his backpack on the ground next to his feet.

The thought of the pouch came to her again. The shape, the color, and the curiosity of the weight of whatever the contents were. Feeling her fingers moving on her lap, she was startled by a sensation of feeling something in her hand. Looking down, she almost expected to be holding the pouch but saw nothing there. Closing her hand, she shook her head, confused. Clair knew what she saw, but maybe it was something that William didn't want others to know about. Like maybe it was holding medication. For all she knew, it could be illegal drugs. Maybe Melanie was right; they didn't know him very well and only meet him today. Clair decided not to worry much about it as she focused on the lesson of the 1920's prohibition era.

### Chapter 4

Throughout the rest of the week, the strange pouch still played stayed in the back of Clair's mind. She started to recall things like when William held the pouch as if he was counting the objects inside and the sound that came from it. It took a while to figure out that the sound was almost like dice or coins hitting against each other.

"Why would something like that pouch still be on my mind." Clair asked herself as she lay on her bed, staring at the ceiling of her bedroom. "I'm sure I saw him pull a leather pouch out from his bag." Clair groaned as she covered her face with a Night Bite collector's pillow. Lifting the pillow above her and looking at it, Clair remembered that she took out the Night Bite graphic novels.

"Reading should take my mind of that leather pouch." Clair said.

She crossed her room to where her backpack was settled next to the folded pile of Jane's borrowed clothes and boots. Her mom had washed the muddy clothes the following night, and Clair made a trip to stop by Henry and Abigail's house to return the clothes. While talking to them over tea, Clair was told to keep the items for helping with Stu. Clair still felt a bit wrong for accepting the clothes as the message wasn't directly from Jane herself but her grandparents. Clair kept them folded up and on top of her dresser with the boots against the wall to not lose their shape.

She grabbed the books and brought them over to the bed. Laying down, she began to read the second volume. As she read, she noticed that the character design and dialogue were better in the second volume, as William mentioned.

"Clair, time for dinner!" Clair looked up from the book and glanced over at the clock on her desk. She sighed as she was just getting into the story. Placing the book flat on the bed to keep the page open for later, she stood and walked downstairs to grab her supper from the kitchen table. Her mom watched as Clair walked back towards the stairs. "Have lots of homework tonight?" She asked with a laugh. Clair nodded, even though she already completed her homework at school. She just preferred to eat her dinner in her room, in case she was working on homework she could complete during dinner.

Walking up the stairs, Clair thought she heard a soft thump coming from her room. Entering her room, she noticed that the book had fallen off the bed and landed on the floor in a tent-like shape. Clair quickly put her supper on the desk and bent over to pick up the book from the floor. She hoped that it wasn't damaged from the fall. Looking at her comforter, she saw the indent where her elbows were and a line where the book's hardcover marked the sheets. There was no way that the book could have fallen on its own from the middle of the bed.

"Strange." Clair said, looking from the bed to the floor and then to the book in her hands. The way the book landed on the floor, Clair found that it flipped to another page from where she originally left off. She held the book open to the new page and looked at it with interest.

Clair knew the plot to Night Bite from watching the TV show and reading the novel series, but she noticed something interesting in one of the illustrated panels. On a table inside the church was a small dark pouch with a rope holding it closed and a metal symbol attached to the string. Clair's eyes widened in astonishment. "It's the pouch!" She said with excitement.

She brought the book to her desk and scanned the dialogue boxes to find out if there was something to this mysterious pouch as she ate her supper. Sadly, there wasn't much information on the bag. It was just part of the background of the church. Clair frowned and sat back in her seat. "I finally found the pouch but come to a wall again. There has to be a connection..." She said to herself as she flipped to the next few pages to see if other panels had the pouch in it. However, the only one was on the page; she held open as she continued to eat. "Could it be a new collectible?"

Placing a small sticky note onto the page to free her hand, Clair turned to face her computer and went onto a few different Night Bite merchandise sites. Trying to not get distracted by the many new shirts or items on the websites, Clair frowned again when nothing came up about the pouch.

"Could the pouch be given to one of the characters?" She wondered. "No, it wasn't in the show or the books, and this is a close adaptation to the show." Clair looked at the panel again, wondering if she might have missed something. The panel showed a darkened chapel where a table held many objects on it. There was a large white skull candle, jars filled with strange powder, a large bush of some plant with yellow flowers, and the leather pouch leaning against it.

"Maybe, there was a scene like this in the show..." Clair swallowed the last of her food and placed her plate onto the floor. Turning the book over to glance at the front of the book, she hoped it would indicate which episode and season would match with the show's timeline. "It's early in the show..." She said in amazement. Clair changed the website to the Night Bite video site where she can scan and watch all the seasons and any interesting behind-the-scenes videos. Scrolling down the page and clicked on a few descriptions of the episodes, Clair sighed in disappointment until she found the one she figured the church scene would be in. She clicked on the video and watched intently, keeping her eyes on the screen.

Athena had a lead as to where the most recent evil had been conjured in her hometown. The camera showed a church that looked familiar to Clair. Pausing the show, Clair opened another site and searched for Toronto churches used in the past filming of Night Bite. To her luck, she found the exact one, The Cathedral Church of St. James on King St. East. Clair recalled seeing the building the last time her dad took her to Toronto for a business trip. While he was working, she toured around downtown Toronto with her Aunt Carol. Clair read that the Night Bite crew filmed at this location for the church fight scene.

"Church fight scene. Okay, I remember that one." Clair nodded her head. She went back to the video and watched it intently. Athena entered the church during the day and searched it for clues relating to the supernatural. She was discovered and asked to leave. The video went on about the characters planning to enter the church to investigate during the night. They come and find themselves trapped by practitioners in a cult who were using the church as their hideout.

"Pouch, pouch?" Clair said she stopped the video a few times to search the area for the table or even anything with the pouch. "Nothing?" She said, annoyed when the fighting stopped, and the episode ended.

"Damn." Clair said, sighing. "Nothing in the episode, I guess. That was the only part that involved the church in the series." Clair said to herself. "Now, what?" She searched the different sites about the graphic novel series, wondering if anyone mentioned about the pouch. "A lot of comments arguing about the true history of St. James but nothing about the pouch! Damn it!"

Clair sat back in her chair again, annoyed. "I guess it's just a pouch. William must have liked the design of the pouch and made it himself. He did read it before me." She was about to turn the computer off when a beep made her look at the screen. Clair read the post, "Does anyone know what the powdered stuff was in the jars in the Night Bites comic season one, volume two, in the church?" Clair looked at the book again. The jars were on the table with the pouch. "Perfect!" she cried out.

Another beep made her glance back to the screen; someone had answered the recent post. "Good question. Why not write to the author of the series. She had a lot added into the graphic novel version of Night Bite." Clair chuckled, as the author of the post underlined the words graphic novel and wasn't surprised to see that the chat was now arguing about the difference between comics and graphic novels.

She jumped in excitement and cried out, "Why didn't I think of that?!" She turned the book to the last page, where the author of this volume had an address and email. Clair looked up the address and was shocked to find the author lived in Toronto. "Well, that's a coincidence." She started to work on the email when the door to her room opened. Turning, she smiled as her dad walked into the room.

"Hey sweety. Have a moment?" he asked, sitting on the edge of her bed.

"Sure. Just working on something." Clair said as she minimized a few of the pages on the computer screen. "What's up?"

"Your mother informed me that you have a PD Day coming this Friday."

"Oh, right. I forgot about that." Clair said, nodding and then frowned as she added. "I seem to be forgetting a lot lately."

"Well, I was wondering if you wanted to join me on a trip down to see Aunt Carol?"

Clair felt her mouth drop, but she quickly closed it, knowing her dad would think that something was up with her acting like this. He was a smart man, well one would have to be in the career he was in. One of the top enforcers of the police force, and he would work on cases with the Toronto police.

"I'll take that as a yes?" he asked, confused by her silence.

"Oh. Yes. Are mom and Dean coming?" Clair asked.

"No not this time. Dean has a doctor's appointment and a sleepover that he 'needed' to go to." He said with a chuckle. "He's going to sneak into that R rated movie with his friends that night." Clair nodded, figuring that it wouldn't take long for him to figure it out. Clair only heard about it when one of Dean's friends spoke out while playing video games, and she overheard it as she passed by.

"Will it be overnight?" Clair asked as she glanced at her closet, thinking if her overnight bag was in that closet or the one in the basement.

"You know my cases might be longer than expected." He said, standing. "I'll tell your mother that you're coming and call Carol to prepare the guest room."

Clair nodded her head, trying to contain her excitement. Her dad closed the door behind him, and she looked down at her hands to find them shaking. "This is great! I'll see if I could go into the church and maybe even meet with the author of the graphic novel. Ask questions about that pouch and..." She looked at her phone as it vibrated on her desk. She turned off the alarm she set for herself to start studying for the Grammar test. "And study for the test." She sighed as the excitement faded.

"This is almost like Night Bite." She said with an excited smile.

Typing up a quick email to the author, Clair pressed the send button and leaned back in her chair. Closing the sites on the computer, Clair pulled out her notebook and started to work on studying. After a while, her cell phone buzzed, drawing her attention to a text message from Melanie.

"Studying with William was a great idea. Thanx for this."

Clair smiled, but it soon faded as she recalled that William and Melanie were studying together for the test. She started tapping her pen on the paper, thinking of something, and yet nothing came to her mind. Sighing deeply, she stood from the desk and stretched.

"Why do I feel so upset that William and Melanie are studying together." Clair asked out loud. "Maybe it's because I wished it was me instead of her... And I'm talking to myself." Glancing towards the bed, she nodded her head and started to get ready for bed.

~~~

A scarping sound made Clair opened her eyes to find that the graphic novel on her desk had been left open. Sitting up in bed, she walked over to the desk and noticed that with each step she took towards it, the pages would turn rapidly back and forth. Clair put her hand down to stop the pages from moving but gasped as one page gave her a paper cut on the inside of her middle finger. Putting the cut directly into her mouth, Clair saw in horror that she bled onto the page. Only a single drop along the book's inner crease, but this upset her as she was worried what the librarian would say about this when she brought the books back.

She took a Kleenex from her desk and was about to carefully wipe the blood drop off the page before it soaked through when the drop moved away from her advancing finger. Lifting the Kleenex to see what happened, Clair was shocked to find the blood drop seep into the page and start filling the white space between the panels into a dark red color.

" _Stop, stop doing that!" she said, trying to soak up the blood with the Kleenex. Pressing hard against the book, Clair felt the texture underneath her hands change slightly. It felt as if she stuck her hands in thick paint. She pulled away, noticing a black, red substance covering her hands and crawling up her wrists like a reversing river. "AHH!" She placed her foot against the desk to help give her leverage against this sticky substance that seemed to be pulling her closer to the book._

" _Let go of me!" Clair cried out as she fought against the strength of this substance. With a sudden burst of force from the material, she felt herself falling forward and then down. It was dark, and Clair found it hard to breathe as the substance formed around her body and face. As fast as it formed around her body, the sticky substance was ripped off her. Clair opened her eyes to see that she was falling from a high location and was about to hit the hard-stone floor below._

" _Help!!" She cried and closed her eyes, waiting for the impact. Only she felt a small jerk of motion. Opening her eyes again, she looked around herself and saw that she was in the arms of a tall statue depicted of a male angel. Taking a few calming breaths, she climbed off the statue's outstretched arms._

" _Thanks, I guess." She said to the statue, unsure if it could hear her but still wanting to show her appreciation. Clair walked to the middle of the location she was in and saw the high ceiling above her. Small flames flickered from the hanging chandeliers. Lowering her head and glancing around, Clair saw that she stood in the middle of a large cathedral. Thoughts of the graphic novel came to her._

" _No, I can't be inside the..." Before the words graphic novel escaped her mouth, Clair turned and had a slight case of Deja Vu. The table stood next to the confession booth with the same items on it. The yellow flowers, the skull candle - now lit, the jars of powder - now open, and the leather pouch._

" _Missing?!" Clair said as she neared the table. "Come on. What is in that damn pouch!"_

Hearing a soft humming sound behind her, Clair turned and noticed a shadow along the far wall near the doors. Looking around her for a spot to hide, Clair saw some boxes that would work and quickly jumped behind them. Noticing that there was a gap between the three large crates, Clair lay on her stomach and looked through. The shadow shrunk in size as its owner walked into the middle of the chapel. The figure wore a long robe making it hard to distinguish if it was male or female. The robed figure walked over to the table where the items were. Putting the lids back on the jars and blowing out the skull candle, the figure gathered the things in its arms and opened the confessional door. Clair moved her body to see what was happening when the building shook suddenly.

Gasping, Clair pressed herself down to the ground and covered her mouth. The figure turned slowly to face the doors of the chapel. "You shouldn't be here. The church is closed." From the tone the figure used, Clair guessed it was male and unhappy about the visitor.

" _Sorry, Father. But I have something to confess." Clair blinked at the familiar voice. Moving her body to the other side of the boxes, she peeked around the crates, and to her amassment, saw Athena and her gang bearing weapons and getting ready for a fight._

" _Oh, my god. Athena and everyone... Meaning..." Clair said softly._

" _That there will be a battle." A low voice said above her. Turning her head and looking up, Clair's mouth dropped. Standing next to the crates was Marcus McFaul. He kept his face to the impending battle, but Clair felt the words he was speaking were for her. "You stay here out of harm's way."_

" _But..." Clair started as she rose from the floor but froze as his dark green eyes moved from the building battle to her with a look of presence and demanding obedience. "Yes, Sir." She finished as she sat down on her butt. He nodded his head and simply vanished from sight. Clair turned her attention to the slot again to watch the battle with interest._

" _You think that your little group of misfits can stop me." The robed figure said, drawing a curved blade behind his back._

" _Misfits." Carlos, Athena's tech-manager, said with a chuckle. "That's a new one."_

The battle started, robbed figures came out from their hiding spots attacking the group. Athena and Marcus fought together against the robed male figure with the curved blade.

" _This is just like the episode on TV." Clair said softly to herself. "Which means... Move! Move!" Rushing from her sitting position, Clair moved out of the way just as another of Athena's friends, a half-angel named Joseph, had crashed through the crates she was behind. Sliding against the far wall, Clair saw the young man hit the stone wall hard. "He needs help." She turned to see Marcus and Athena continuing to fight. She wondered if she should or even could help Joseph. "Is this a dream?" Looking down at her hands and touching the wall next to her, she nodded as the wall was solid. "Marcus said to stay put, but Joseph needs help."_

Clair looked beside her and noticed an open crate of holy water containers. Looking at Joseph, she grabbed three full bottles and ran to his side. Dropping to her knees, she opened the first bottle and poured the contents on the back of his head and neck, where he hit the wall. Clair knew that this would help Joseph as he was half-angel, and one of the ways that he would heal in Night Bite was to bathe or put holy water on any injury inflicted on himself.

" _Head, neck." Clair said as she started to open the second bottle. She looked over his body, wondering what else was injured._

" _Eyes." He gasped. Clair looked down, startled by his voice. "Eyes. Please. He threw acid on me!" Clair nodded and poured the liquid onto his eyes. The acid-burned area and inflamed skin around his eyes vanished. His eyes opened, and he looked at her with his light silver hue. "Thank you. Miss." He stood onto his feet but fell against the wall. Clair stood with him and gave him the last holy water. Opening it, he drank it down quickly. Shivering, he cracked his back and shoulders. "That's better." Looking down at her from his 7-foot height, he bowed his head and smiled. "Thank you again. But please stay here, out of dangers way."_

Clair nodded her head and watched Joseph jump back into the battle. Now that she was standing, she could see the full fight. More robbed figures joined and seemed to be making this an equal battle. Marcus and Athena were taking on a sizeable demonic being with shredded fabric hanging from the different horns and scales from its body. Clair wondered if that was the male robbed figure from before.

Looking at the battle, she had the need to get out of the open area and stay hidden, as Marcus and Joseph had told her. Carefully walking to the edge of the wall near the confession booth, she looked at it and noticed that the door was still open. Clair moved along the pillar to look in, keeping an eye on the battle if she needed to hide again. Seeing the inside of the booth, she recognized the padded seat where a person who confessed any sins would sit on or place their hands on if kneeling in the booth. Only the seat was up and seemed to be a top for a hidden compartment.

" _That must be where he put those items from before." Clair said with amassment. She turned to watch the battle again but gasped and jumped away as a robed figure flew in her direction and took her along for the ride as he hit the stone pillar. Clair rubbed her backside that was flung to the ground and saw the robed figure who hit the post lay dead next to her. Looking over its still body, half expecting it to get up and rejoin the fight from its dead state Clair noticed a glint of something in his hand. Moving closer to it, she saw the leather pouch laying open in the palm of the dead robbed figure._

" _So that's where you were." Clair said as she quickly snatched up the pouch and opened it to look inside. "Finally, I can see what's in here."_

" _GIRL!" A demonic growl shook the chapel. Clair snapped her head in the direction of the booming voice as her hands pulled the scrunched top open more. The demonic being that Marcus and Athena were fighting was staring at her with its hand pointing at her. "Give those here!"_

The bag started to feel hot to the touch. Clair gasped at the searing pain in her hands but held onto the edge of the pouch as it began to pull away. Feeling her body being dragged across the stone floor towards the battle, she looked around herself and then to the demon again as its eyes glowed red, and its finger curled inwards. The bag increased in heat and gave a violent pull, nearly pulling her arms with it.

" _No, you don't!" Clair cried out as she pulled back on the bag. Moving her hand down into the pouch, her fingers touched something small but sharp. Wrapping her fingers around the item, she felt more small sharp things in the pouch. "They feel like stones?" she thought out loud._

" _GIRL!!!" The demon growled again._

Clair clenched the sharp item in her hand and felt something pulling against her waist, forcing her to let go of the pouch. She watched, devastated as the pouch flew to the demon's outstretched hand, and he then turned walking towards her. Looking for who pulled her away, she saw Joseph wrapping her in his arms.

" _Joseph?!"_

" _Miss. Through the glass. Hurry!" He said, pointing to the back wall of the section they stood in. Clair looked to the area he pointed to and noticed a beautiful stained glass window that she didn't see before. "Hurry. He can't get you once you're through."_

The demon growled, making the building shake. Clair looked from the battle to the stained glass window. Some part of her had this strange need to stay and fight with the others. The vibrations of the demon's feet increased as he came closer to them.

Marcus came down from above and slashed at the demon's face with a sword. He then turned to Joseph and shouted, "Throw her!"

Instantly, Clair was in the air, being thrown back into the stained glass window. Her last glimpse of the battle was the demon grabbing onto Joseph's throat, squeezing it, and then throwing his limp corpse away.

" _Joseph!" Clair cried out; tears gathered in her eyes as her heart felt like it was going to burst from the sight alone. The demon's eyes started to glow bright red, focused on her as the darkness around her grew. Clair tightened her grip on the item as the tears fell from her eyes, and darkness enveloped her._

~~~

"Joseph!" Clair said softly as she shuttered awake. Looking around, she saw that she was in her room. Her hands were in a tight grip on the blankets. Slowly letting go of them, she touched her heart as it beat fast. Her other hand, she placed on her cheek as tears fell onto her fingertips.

"What a dream." She said with a shaky voice. Glancing over to her desk, she found that the graphic novel was open. "Just like in the dream." Leaning over to her bedside lamp, she flicked on the light and moved the sheets off her. Moving to the desk, she looked down onto the page where the table and items were. Her eyes scanned the page, thinking if what she just went through was a dream or not.

"It felt so real." The last word lost meaning as she looked to the middle of the book and saw a small drop of red soaked into the white of the page. "Oh my god. That... That mark wasn't there before." Brushing the spot lightly with the tip of her finger, Clair noticed that the mark was inside the paper itself instead of on top.

A light thud made her turn her head. Looking towards her bed, she noticed something underneath the sheet that caressed the floor. Walking over to it and pulling the cover off, Clair's eyes widened as she stared at a small red diamond. She tried to think how and why it got there, but as she tried to think, a low strange sound came from her desk. Turning back to face the desk, Clair had the sudden thought of the demon from her dream, and the growling sound it made was like what was near her desk.

Running over to the book, she grabbed it and slammed the cover shut. Looking around the room, she found a stained glass window knick-knack that hung on her window by a suction cup. Pulling it from the window with a popping sound, she placed the stained glass onto the cover of the book and stepped away. Clair waited, watched, and listened, but couldn't hear the growling sound. Feeling a bit relieved and freaked out by everything, she walked back to her bed.

Bending to pick up the red diamond from the floor and placing it next to the lamp on the side table, Clair felt a zap of electricity from it. Dropping it quickly onto the wooden surface, she watched as it circled around and then stopped, glimmering in the light of the lamp from above. Clair thought she saw letters reflect onto the wood table. Poking the diamond slightly to flip it over onto another cut edge, she watched with interest as the soft letter-like forms on the wood moved with the stone.

"This is strange." She commented. Recalling a night camping when she was in Girl Guides brought the idea of a shadow puppet craft they made. Poking through a tin made it look like stars and shapes were on the walls of the cabin.

"What if I held it up to the light?" Clair asked as she reached with her thumb and pointer finger to pick up the diamond. Upon touching it, she withdrew her hand as another static-like shock coursed through her fingers. "Ah! Okay. New plan." She looked around her room to the dresser where her makeup and accessories were. Taking the tweezers, she walked back to the bedside table and tried to get a firm hold of the diamond. "No shocking me this time." Clair said in triumph as she raised the red gem into the air, making sure to let the light from her lamp hit it just right.

The shapes of letters that she noticed on the table now appeared on the wall by her bed. Leaning against the bed, she looked at the forming notes catching a few words here and there but finding it hard to still read. "This is like those microfilms from the world war 2 documentary channel. Only I can't make out the words." In between the words and letters, symbols and numbers started to come through. Clair scanned the new images and numbers quickly, trying to make sense of all this when she recognized the symbol hanging on the leather pouch.

Her mind thought back to the robbed man and the demon that talked to her during the dream. "That must be his mark." Clair said as she quickly lowered the red gem and closed her heavy eyes. Glancing to the digital clock by the bed, she nodded that she should try to go back to bed. Shivering from fear and knowing that it would take her a while to get back to sleep, Clair thought to look for her stuffed animal to calm her nerves. Placing the red diamond onto the side table, she stood and looked around her room for a minute to search for her stuffed cat toy.

Walking over to the closet, she opened it, and as if summoned, the toy animal fell into her arms. Clair hugged the medium black cat with white pawns and noticed something around her neck. Walking back to the bed, giving ample space from the book on the desk, Clair saw that a necklace and pendant of wrapped silver wire in a sphere shape hung from the cat's neck.

"Oh yeah, I put this on you three years ago." Sitting on the side of the bed, she started taking the necklace off from the cat when soft whispers called out to her. Clair glanced at the red diamond on her side table as the light again was displaying letters, numbers, and words onto the wood. Trying to catch what the whispering voices were saying, she noticed a few were similar to the words slowly reflecting on the wood.

Nervously, Clair moved her fingers across the silver wire of the pendant. The voices and strange sensation she felt around her now was familiar. She shivered as she recalled using the Ouija board years ago, and a similar situation happened. Whispering voices in different languages, calling out to her, symbols, and other unpleasant images flashing in her mind. Clair looked around the room, hoping the doors and furniture would stay in one place, unlike last time when the doors all opened and closed around her, and the heavy furniture moved as if they were on a slippery surface intending to harm her.

Looking down at the silver pendant and back at the red diamond, she quickly reached out for it muttering, "That would actually fit." Moving the silver wire to the side to allow the red diamond to be placed inside the sphere, Clair looked at it again. "I don't know where you came from. But I don't like how you make me feel."

She set the necklace down on the side table and got back into bed with the cat in her arms. "Have a goodnight in that pure silver sphere." she said darkly as she turned the light out and faced her back to the necklace. Behind her, Clair heard the rattling sound of something moving back and forth. She hugged her stuffed cat tighter.

### Chapter 5

Clair sat, looking out the window of her dad's car. Her mind was busy with thoughts and plans once they arrived in Toronto. It was only a five-hour drive, which gave her time to reflect on things bothering her. The grammar test went surprisingly well; she didn't need to second guess anything. I sat down, started writing, and was the first one in the class done. Melanie told her that she was surprised that Clair had finished so fast and that she was also annoyed for William for not coming to school after all the studying they did. Melanie explained that they spent until 10:00pm studying. She said that it seemed easy when studying, but once the test came, everything in her brain seemed to disappear. Melanie also figured that William would have to take the test next week, giving him technically more time to study. Clair thought it was a bit odd for William to not show up for school, but maybe he had a good reason. However, the last she saw him was on his first day of school.

Clair played with the sphere of the necklace; the red diamond touched her fingers, and it would bring her thoughts back to the dream she had a few nights ago as well as a few small zaps. The electric zaps, when she touched the red diamond, didn't bother her much. Clair wore the necklace to school yesterday, hoping to see William's reaction to the red diamond, but he wasn't at school. She had this strong feeling that the diamond was connected to the pouch she had been obsessed with. If her dream and the red diamond that occasionally shocked her were anything but coincidence, she now needed to see that pouch.

Clair received a message back from the author who said she would meet her at St. James to talk about the inspiration of the volume. It was good to meet up with her and ask questions, but Clair also wanted to check out the church herself. Those parts of her dream just seemed too real. However, Clair couldn't get her head around the concept. It was a dream, and things can't come out of dreams.

Unless you're in Night Bite, she thought to herself. Clair nodded; anything can happen in Night Bite. It was fantasy - not real - fake. Her hand wrapped around the pendant. Where then did this red diamond come from?

"Aunt Carol said she was making your favorite tonight." Her dad said as he turned down the music on the stereo. When Clair didn't respond, he repeated the conversation starter.

"Fish & Chips?" Clair asked excitedly but blushed as she noticed that she was still preoccupied. Focusing on this conversation, she was partly glad that something else would take her mind from her own thoughts.

"Yep." He said with a grin. "I can't wait."

"Neither can I." Clair said and waited for more of a topic to occur, but when one didn't, she turned her attention back out the window.

***

Clair placed her things down onto the guest bed and looked out the window onto the street. She recalled playing down on the road during the Summer with the neighborhood kids years ago. Now it was Autumn, and leaves fell onto the pavement.

"Well, your dad is off to work. Ready to go shopping, dear?" Clair was surprised she didn't notice Aunt Carol open the door and enter the room. Clair walked from the window and grabbed her purse. While waiting for Aunt Carol to lock up the house, Clair checked that she had her phone and notepad. "Alright. To the mall!" Aunt Carol said, smiling. Clair followed beside her and kept up with the conversation as they walked down the streets. She kept her eyes on the street signs looking for King St. East, knowing that was where the church was located, and that was the path they took years ago to get to the nearby mall.

"And then I told Joan that if her boys ever went through my garden again, I would..."

"Aunt Carol, can we go down this street?" Clair asked as her eyes caught the letters of the King St. East sign.

Aunt Carol looked up at the sign and then down the street indicated. "Down King? Whatever for?"

Clair rushed through the lines in her mind that she prepared mentally for this situation and prayed that her drama classes – little experience as they maybe - came in handy for convincing her aunt to go to the church. "We are doing this project in history about architecture, and our teacher showed us this one example of a church here in Toronto called St. James."

"Oh yes. I volunteer there on the weekends." Aunt Carol said with a nod. "A beautiful cathedral indeed. But there are other churches in Toronto, dear."

"Yes. I know, but that church also was featured on one of the TV shows I like to watch."

"Not that demon show that your mother demands I get merchandise for you for birthdays and Christmas?" Clair nodded, trying to ignore her favorite show being called a demon show. She was worried about the adjustment in the tone of her aunt's voice. "Well, I should stop by the church and tell them that family is in this weekend and won't be able to volunteer this Saturday." She turned to walk down the street; Clair smiled and followed behind her.

As they walked down the street, Aunt Carol continued about the boys playing in her garden. Clair listened to only a few parts of the story and only verbally agreed when her aunt became quiet. Once they passed a few houses and crossed the street at the intersection, Clair looked up at the large church through the thick trees. The image brought flashes back of the show displaying the front, indicating that the scene would take place here. She was surprised that in the middle of downtown Toronto, church grounds were large enough for green grass, tall trees, park benches, and a metal iron gate that surrounded the building. Clair let her aunt open the iron gate, keeping close to her as they stepped up the stone stairs of the church. Looking at the lock on the door, she realized that it was a simple lift and slide latch like on backyard fences. She breathed deeply as her aunt opened the door and walked inside. Clair entered the building a bit more hesitantly. Letting the heavy door close behind her, she saw familiarities instantly from her dream. Only this time, it was daylight and not the darkness that surrounded the large room. The bright sunlight shone from large windows on her left, and a large stained glass circular window was at the back of the room above the alter. She wondered if that was the same window that Joseph threw her through in the dream or a different one.

"It's the exact same as in my dream. Spooky." Clair whispered to herself. Following behind Aunt Carol, she looked in each dark corner of the church as they walked by.

"Where is everyone? OH! They must be in the back kitchens preparing for tonight's dinner." Aunt Carol said as she stopped and looked to a pair of doors. "Clair, I'm just going to go find the girls and have a talk. I will only be a minute, and then we can go shopping." Clair nodded her head and watched her aunt walk towards the doors. Once sure that the coast was clear, Clair jogged in between the two groups of long seats, locking her eyes on the confession booth in the back of the enormous room.

Once close to it, she slowed down and suddenly became nervous. Clair became unsure if she really wanted to know what was in the confessional or anything about the pouch. She felt she had a choice to make at this point, and if she didn't make the right one that it would change her whole life. Thinking things through and taking a deep breath, she stepped forward and opened the door. Looking in was exactly from her dream. She looked down to find that the plush seat was down and looked like it didn't move at first glance.

"Here goes..." Clair said as she reached her hand to the front of the seat, grabbed the edge of it, and lifted her arm up. She closed her eyes, not really knowing why but felt like she had to. Her arm went up, and her hand was still attached to the seat. Opening her left eye slightly to her amazement, there was a compartment under the seat. Stepping closer and looking inside, she frowned.

"Empty?!" Clair put her hand in the compartment, checking for a false bottom. "Nothing. Well, I don't know if that's disappointing or a relief."

"What is?" A voice said behind her.

"Gah!" Clair gasped and turned to see a woman standing behind her. "You scared me."

"Sorry." The woman laughed as she put her hand to her own chest, being startled by her gasp. "Didn't mean too. You wouldn't happen to be the young lady who emailed me this week about the Night Bite graphic novel?"

"Yes." Clair closed the seat back down and stepped out from the booth. Closing the door behind her, she reached out, and the woman took her hand for a firm handshake. "I'm Clairisa. I did email you. Thank you for taking the time to talk with me."

"I'm honored." She said. "I only have a few moments, but what was it that was on your mind. From the email I got, it sounded urgent."

"What no. Not urgent at all. Just a curious reader who likes to find interesting things in the things she reads." Clair said as she took her notebook and phone out from her purse. "Well, in the second volume, there is a panel, here." Clair opened her phone and showed the photo of the panel to the woman. Clair figured that it would be best to leave the graphic novel at home under the stained glass suncatcher, instead of bringing it with her and having it cause her more trouble. "Well the items on the table."

"Yes." The woman said, nodding.

"The pouch here. What is it, why is it in the panel, and what is inside?"

"Well, mostly, it's creative expression. You know, items that a cult member in the scene's situation would have on them. No real meaning to them. Just to create an atmosphere for the story." She paused. "In literature, especially those such as Manga and graphic novels, it's hard to give a type of atmosphere because it's a mix of visuals and words on the page. You can't have a lot of text like a regular novel, and you can't have a lot of visuals, or that would be like a kid's storybook. Visually overwhelming, in my opinion."

"So, the pouch is just a design. Nothing to it?" Clair asked with a hint of disappointment in her tone.

"Well, there was the myth of this place back in the day being used for cultic rituals." The woman said, nodding, recalling the right information. "That must have been years ago, and the people of this church really don't like the mention of that... So best not to ask if going to them next." She looked down at Clair with a knowing smile. "You know, Quill was the one who told us to add that into the volume after editing. Maybe taking to her would be your next best shot."

"It would be a dream to speak to her in person. Even sending a letter would be great if I had her address. The fansite only displays the address for the publisher's office." Clair said, putting her phone away as she started to play with the pendant again.

"Getting to Quill is hard. Though, I think I might have her most recent address on my phone." The woman took out her phone and checked it quickly. Clair couldn't believe her luck, hoping that she did have the address, she waited to put her notebook away. "I think it might be... Yes. This is it." The woman turned her phone around, and Clair quickly copied down the address to mail the letter.

"I recall Quill isn't really tech-savvy, so she doesn't email. That's more of her assistant who does that for her."

"Thank you so much." Clair folded the notebook up and slipped it into her bag. "This means a lot. Again, thank you for your time."

"Clair?!" Aunt Carol's voice called out.

"Oh, that's my aunt, I better go."

"Well, take care." The woman said with a chuckle.

Clair walked up to her Aunt Carol as she shook a man's hand with a soft goodbye. "Clair dear, this is the big guy on the church committee. David Cookery. David, this is my niece."

Clair nodded her head in a polite greeting. David did the same, but Clair noticed that he had his attention to her chest area. "That's a lovely stone in that pendant, my dear." Clair froze and blinked as his eyes seemed to be focused only on the diamond.

"Clair what do you say when a compliment is given?" her aunt prompted.

"Thank you, Mr. Cookery."

"May I ask where you got the stone from?" He said softly.

Clair tried to calm her breathing and act normal to not give herself away. She didn't trust this man, the look in his eyes gave her this kind of vibe that didn't sit well with her, and his voice was like slicing butter. "My friend gave it to me." She answered.

"A friend. Hmm." He said, leaning in to look at it. "This is beautiful. Would you allow me to look at it?" Clair didn't know what to do. A small poke in the back from her aunt made her glare sideways at her. With a little sigh, she lowered her hand from the necklace and let him reach for the pendant. As his fingers lifted the metal wire surrounding the red diamond from her skin, David flinched and pulled back quickly from the pendant. He glared down at Clair, while she raised an eyebrow at him for his reaction.

"David are you alright?" Aunt Carol asked, concerned. "Are you hurt?"

"No, Carol, I'm fine." He said, releasing his hand and placing it down by his side. His eyes remained on Clair. "Just a small electric shock." Clair couldn't help but glance at his hand to see his skin becoming inflamed and pink as if burned.

"Pure silver does that to some." Clair said, backing away from him. She then took hold of her aunt's hand, pulling towards the door. "Aunt Carol, can we go. We don't want to be late."

"Alright dear, stop pulling. The mall won't close for another four hours."

Clair kept a hold of her aunt's hand but turned to see Mr. Cookery watching them intently as they left. As the door closed behind them, Clair noticed the woman standing looking at the confession booth. "I guess she wasn't in much of a hurry after all."

"Clairisa, that was very rude to pull me away from the conversation with David." Her aunt said firmly.

"I'm sorry." Clair said with a small tone of hurt in her voice. "I don't really get a good vibe from him."

"Not you too." Aunt Carol said with a sigh of annoyance. "Your father said that the last time he visited."

"Dad meet him?"

"Yes. He said the same thing that you just said. 'Not a good vibe from that David guy.' I swear you are your father's daughter." She then took Clair's hand and marched them away from the church. "Well, come on. You wanted to go to the mall." Clair really didn't feel like going to the mall; she was more interested in checking out the church. However, after the interaction with David Cookery, she had this bad feeling that maybe it wasn't such a good idea.

After the mall, they returned home down another street than King. Clair was quietly glad to take the longer distance to get back to the house. She sat on the guest bed and folded the few items she purchased while shopping. A black long faux leather jacket, similar to Jane's designer one or the one's Clair frequently saw Athena wear on TV, a handheld silver cross - hoping that it was pure silver and the one item that her aunt didn't witness her buying - a multi-tool including a knife. Clair took the cross in one hand and the multi-tool in the other. Looking from them and then to the window, Clair breathed slowly. The only way Athena got more information was to investigate, Clair thought as she watched the children playing in the street but then retreated into their homes for supper.

***

Clair opened her eyes as her middle toe was painfully pulled under the bedsheets. Feeling groggy and confused about the pain in her toe, she sleepily reached to touch a string tied onto it attached to the metal bedpost. Rubbing her eyes, Clair sat up and reached to untie the toe from the bedpost. She looked at the digital clock seeing that it was past midnight.

"It's time." She said softly to herself. Stepping over to her overnight bag, she pulled out an extra backpack with the silver cross and multi-tool inside, and her clothes for the night's escapades, her running shoes, and the necklace with the red diamond in the pendant. Clair got dressed silently, put her hair up into a long braid, and then wrapped it into a tight bun. Grabbing her cell phone and putting it into the backpack's side pocket, she flung it onto her back and attached her watch to her wrist. Putting on her navy jean jacket and double lacing up her runners, she quietly opened the door to the guest bedroom and looked out into the hallway, noticing a light in the living room area.

"I forgot that Dad had a case." Clair thought as she closed the door and looked towards the window. She figured that her dad would be sleeping on the couch as when often working on a case, he would prefer to sleep on the couch, then wake up the family by trying to get to his room. Even if she was quiet, her dad was a light sleeper and would hear her leaving from the front door. "If I leave from the window, it will be like during the summertime years ago."

Clair opened the window and stuck her head out to look up and down the street to see if anyone could see her leaving from the window. She recalled the simplicity of sneaking out from this same window during the summers that they would visit Aunt Carol. She turned to look down where a park was in the distance. Clair recalled her first time sneaking out of the house when fireworks were going off late in the summer evening. Clair climbed down effortlessly, placing her feet onto the edges of the water drain and then grabbing the empty spot of missing brick in the wall.

Once on the ground, Clair climbed over the small fence and walked quickly down the street towards King St. East. Clair kept her eyes peeled for anyone in the shadows or just anyone in general. The roads were generally not a safe place to be at late hours, no matter how old a person was. Gangs ruled the streets, and hobo's loitered in areas you'd least expect them to be. "I've got to be careful." Clair told herself. She saw the sigh for King St. East. Swallowing, Clair walked down the dark street, holding the pendant in her hand. Three streetlamps were flickering as she passed by them, making the atmosphere darker.

Before Clair knew it, she stood before the dark building's gate. She opened the iron gate and walked to the backside of the building, keeping low and out of the light. With each step, her heart pounded as she feared the sound of it would give her position away. She placed her hand on her chest to calm it's beating. Clair froze as she heard voices nearby.

"Why did he call this meeting. I have exams tomorrow." A female voice said with a whine. Clair knelt into the dirt behind some bushes as she continued to move towards the sounds. Seeing people illuminated in the light from her new location, she saw three people outside smoking by the back door of the church. Two male figures and a female - who Clair figured just spoke.

"Look, he called a meeting. We come." A male voice said. "Shit, it's cold out here." Clair figured it was the one in the t-shirt who said that, as he was the only one not wearing a sweater or coat.

"Unfortunately, Timmons didn't show this time." The third figure said with a chuckle.

"He'd be upset if that punk returned, and he wasn't here to face him." The female replied in agreement. "Can you believe that David thinks he'll come back here tonight." Clair blinked her eyes at the name the female mentioned, but part of her wasn't surprised by this news. She figured that they were members of the church committee, like what her aunt told her.

"Yea, after how many weeks has it been since that brat came here and stole from us?" the man in the t-shirt asked.

"About 2 or 3 weeks ago." The third figure replied.

"That completely ruined all our nights. David was pissed at the kid, and we couldn't complete the ritual at all." The female said as she threw her cigarette away in anger. The ambers from the end of it flew away and landed on the grass. It started to ignite until the third guy quickly stomped it out with his large boots.

"You trying to burn down the church?"

"Sorry." The female snapped. "Just annoyed."

"We all are." He replied as he urged them back into the church. "If David is right and the spell works - bring the kid here tonight. We will get back what is ours, kick the brat's ass, and then be rewarded."

The door closed and then locked with a loud click. Clair fell onto the side of her bum in shock of what she overheard. She didn't understand who they were referring too, but they mentioned that David Cookery was the one who called them all here for a late-night meeting and that a kid would be coming here. Did that mean her? Only it couldn't mean her because they were also talking about the same kid who stole from them about 3 weeks ago.

"I'm so confused." Clair whispered. "This doesn't make any sense. From David's reaction to the red diamond around my neck and then being slightly burned from the silver wire around it. He could be waiting for me, but those three mentioned another kid who stole from them."

"Wait, a ritual. They said something about a ritual." Clair thought hard about what the three people were talking about. "David did a spell to bring a kid here tonight, and the group performed a ritual that was interrupted by a kid over three weeks ago." She swallowed at this as the thoughts of the demon in her dreams came back to her. "I guess this church is still performing dark ceremonies. No wonder no one wants to talk about it."

A light came on in the church. Clair carefully poked her head through the bushes to see that candles were being lit, and from the look of the candle's primary color - red -, it wasn't going to be for anything peaceful. Clair looked at her watch and realized she had been out for two hours. "I'm curious about what is going on in there, but part of me - or really all of me - wants to go back to Aunt Carol's." Clair sighed and nodded as she made up her mind.

Carefully making her way back the way she came, she exited the church grounds but found that her hand remained on the metal gate as if stuck. She looked down at it and saw that her hand had formed a fist, tightening around the gate without letting go. Glancing back up to the front doors, Clair thought she heard a soft voice calling out to her. The voice had a similar tone to the one in her bedroom after the dream. It was welcoming her to come inside and stay for a while. There was someone she had to see, and they were waiting inside the church.

Clair watched as her vision faded; the light from the streetlamps outside seemed to disorientate the exterior of the building. She blinked quickly and found herself inside the church. Clair noticed her skin was covered in many different colors. Turning behind her, she looked up to see the colors of the stained glass window shining down on her. Only as she looked closer, the window looked like it had been repaired recently.

"I guess they fixed it." Clair said softly as she recalled being thrown through the window only a few nights ago. She looked around herself, finding that she was alone. The church was aglow with different sized candles lit high on the ceiling and around the room on large golden candelabras. Clair felt her foot move, taking a step forward into the central part of the church. She looked at her foot curiously and was about to ask it what it was doing when a deep voice echoed through the building.

"You took something that belongs to me."

Clair thought back to what that thing she stole could be. While she thought, Clair moved her hand to fiddle with the pendant of her necklace. She gasped and pulled away as something burned her fingers. She looked at her fingers, transfixed, as blood dripped down into the palm of her hand - a small shape formed from the blood - a red diamond.

"The red didn't get there on its own."

Clair gasped as the blood shaped diamond, returned to its liquid form and vanished from her palm. Clair looked around the church, wondering who was speaking to her.

"If you give me the diamond from your neck. I will show myself."

Clair looked down at her hand to find her multi-tool was there. Flicking the device in a quick sideways motion, released the knife part of the tool. Slowly she watched as her arm raised the blade upwards, to her neck.

DON'T!

Clair comprehended the demand in another language and felt someone grab onto her arm, painfully pulling it down and behind her back. Closing her eyes while breathing deeply, Clair stepped backward, hoping to move whoever held her away from her body.

"Give me the Blood Diamonds!"

OPEN YOUR EYES!

The voices continued to give her commands as the two different voices blended - overlapping each other wanting dominance. Clair was forced to listen to the voice who spoke in another language. Snapping her eyes open, she saw that she was still in front of the church building, holding onto the metal gate with her left hand. She noticed that her foot was forward as if she was walking back into the grounds. Feeling confused and scared, Clair quickly stepped back and closed the gate. She released the gate and looked at her right hand, where the multi-tool was. She glanced at the ground and saw the blade open.

"Was that real?" she asked with a soft cry of confusion. "Then who?..."

GO HOME!

Clair spun to look around the darkened street, wanting to find the owner of that voice. She didn't recognize the language that was spoken to her, and yet she understood its words. Clair couldn't tell if the voice was outside or inside her head. Each dark area she looked at, she thought she saw something looking back at her. Picking up the multi-tool from the ground and carefully closing the blade, Clair placed it back into her bag. She looked around one last time, then Clair noticed a dark figure standing in the church window just above the front door. The two streetlights above her that illuminated her clearly, suddenly shattered, making the area dark.

GO HOME. NOW!

Clair jumped from the closeness of the voice and the threatening tone it used. She ran as fast as she could down the street. When she reached the street sign for King St. East, she found that the metal sign was down on the pavement crumpled up as if someone crushed it like a paper ball. Giving the fallen sign space, Clair continued to run back to her aunt's house. She glanced at her watch and saw that it was close to five in the morning. The sun would rise soon, which meant that Aunt Carol and her dad would be getting up.

She jumped over the fence and made her way to the drainpipe. Calming her breathing, she carefully climbed the pipe back up and reached the window. Climbing in and closing it softly behind her, Clair pulled down the blind and quickly stripped her clothes. Finding her nightgown, she slid it on, but her fingers hit the pendant of the necklace. Freezing as another zap coursed through her, fear started to build inside her. Clair unhooked the clamp at the back of her neck and glared around the room for her bag. Walking over to it, she started to dig for anything to put the cursed necklace into. Her hand pulled out a fake book with empty space to hold things. Nodding her head, she threw the chain angrily into the book and slammed it closed.

"Now you stay in there until I can figure out what to do with you!" Clair whispered as she thrust the fake book back into her bag. Turning to the door of the room, she thought she heard movement outside in the hall. Clair rushed over to the bed, threw the covers off, and jumped right in. Upon laying on her tightly bound hair, she growled and sat back up to unravel it from the bun and then from the braid. She shook her head from side to side to let it unravel and then laid back down.

She felt her body shaking as she laid in the bed. Clair didn't know if it was from fear, shock, adrenalin - she had no idea. However, she knew that she had a long night and that sleep would bring her a bit of peace until she figured out what to do with that red diamond.

"Blood Diamond." she reminded herself softly. Recalling the voice in her mind that had demanded them. "It said the word plural though, meaning there are more." Her mind started to race with questions and thoughts of demonic voices as well as figures in robes. "Where could the rest be?"

### Chapter 6

Stepping out from the darkness, Christov saw the vast crowd gathered around the commotion of police, ambulance, and fire trucks in front of a large building that was engulfed by flames. He glanced at a couple of teenagers laughing while holding up a crushed street sign taking pictures. Christov read that the sign said King St. East. He didn't really know the meaning behind the street's name, but obviously, it had The Master's energy surrounding it - therefore, it meant something.

As he approached the inferno, he saw the police trying to keep the crowd back and the firemen taking care of the fire. Christov moved around the crowd to get a different angle of the situation. The ambulance was being loaded with people on gurneys. Most of the bodies were in blue bags while two or three who came out were strapped down with bands as they screamed out about demons, blood, and fire to anyone who would listen.

"Everyone back. The fire is increasing!" The police shouted through a megaphone. Christov was forced to follow the crowd as they backed across the street. The light of the increasing flames brightened the early morning street. Feeling familiar energy near him, he glanced across the intersection and saw The Master standing away from the crowd with a box of donuts in his hands leaning against the hood of a car. He was wearing his typical apparel of black business pants, a black shirt, and his long red leather coat. The Master had his white-blond hair pulled back in a messy long pony with strands of hair falling across his face, a new style that Christov wasn't used to. Usually seeing The Master with clean, slick back hair displaying the burn mark of a cross on the right side of his face. Now the gathered hair was partly covering the scar, which made Christov wonder if The Master was allowing the hair to fall to cover his face from the mortals or he didn't care about his rough appearance.

Christov approached The Master with a questioning look about the doughnuts. The pastries in the box vanished as the energy to hide the truth of its contents was revealed. Inside was a dozen of The Master's favorite food – Blood Cakes.

"Morning, Christov." The Master greeted as he bit into a thin round, flaky red and black looking disk.

"Morning, Mas - Sir," Christov said with a bit of difficulty as his usual response was forcibly interrupted. It was around 12 years ago that The Master ordered his commanding forces that when out in society among mortals to address him as Sir instead of Master. Once commanded to the order, Christov and his troops had to obey. Yet the change was difficult for them to adapt to. The Master chuckled as he found this forced verbal change amusing. "Enjoying those doughnuts?"

The Master moved his eyes to the thin red black disks and then back to Christov with a toothy grin. "Of course. I became weak after this morning's..." He tried to find the right words. "Activities. And I would have had more of these to share, but only one specimen was good enough to produce them."

"Which one was it?" Christov asked as he turned to see more bodies being loaded into a second ambulance. Christov had a vague understanding of how The Master and others in the trade of creating Blood Cakes made them. He knew that is was from blood, which was evident due to the name of the strange pastry. The technique to extract the blood for them was a secret to those who created them and The Master.

"A young female. College or University-bound from what her thoughts were screaming as I approached her. Smoked heavily, though," He said with a hint of sadness. "Which is why the black is mixed in." The Master sighed deeply. "It's been so long since I had a truly pure Blood Cake – ahem doughnut." He caught himself and inserted the word quickly.

Christov grimaced against the description of the smoky black swirl in the cake as The Master took another bite. It was an acquired taste – Blood Cakes. Christov had tried one during a strategy meeting during the 1940s and spent the rest of the week obtaining more souls than he usually would collect to cleanse his system and tongue. He leaned against the brick wall watching the fire grow. Changing his dialect to Demonic, to not be overheard by nearby mortals, he asked, "Who started the attack?"

The Master bit into another 'doughnut and said proudly back in the same language, "I did."

Christov raised his eyebrow, confused. "Really?"

"You doubt me?"

"If you truly did cause this, then I must have missed the giant meteor-sized hole in the ground."

"That was one time." The Master said, clearing his throat. "Besides. I held back this time." He paused for a moment. "Though if you want to see a giant hole where the church once stood..."

"That's quite alright, Mas... Sir!" Christov said, catching himself. Even if in another language he was commanded to call him by Sir.

"Now, to business." The Master said as he took two 'doughnuts' and devoured them. Clearing his throat, trying to swallow the lot he put in, he turned back to the fire. "The church was a cover for a small cultist group trying to summon their worshiping demon into this realm. The keyword here is trying. What they actually did was unleash something that should have been lost to the ages." Christov listened intently, nodding in understanding. "They were using different ritualistic tools that most groups of the cultic kind only dream about, one of which was recently stolen. I'm not sure how they came across these items; however, I was eased when I heard that it was a simple child who stole it from the cultist. Only, with them out of the church, the leader of the cult sought out help to get them back."

"The one he is unknowingly unleashed, I'm guessing."

"Correct." The Master then frowned. "I read in the leader's mind that he has full acknowledgment of what this being is and that it becomes stronger when hearing 'prayers' from those devoted to it. He was close to getting one of the diamonds back. Luckily with the energy of this unleashed being rising, I came just in time to stop her."

"Her? The child who stole the item needed by the cult?"

The Master shook his head slowly. "No. A... An innocent. Caught up in this mess by accident and by curiosity." The Master paused for a moment looking at the fire as it rose again, causing chaos for the firemen to put it out. Christov looked to the increase in the blaze, noticing the energy from The Master. Figuring that the retelling of an innocent girl being a part of the situation seemed to anger him. Many lesser beings would not pick up on this as The Master was hard to read both telepathically and facially. However, being the Head of Tactical Operations in The Master's forces for generations, Christov was finding that at the slightest moments, The Master's emotions came through his hard shell.

"I have a task for you." The Master said as he started to drum his fingers on the hood of the car. Christov figured that it was a mission of some sort as The Master only called those individually for rough missions or tasks. However, he was curious about being personally called away from operating the forces to partake on a mission. "The girl. Watch over her and report back to me. Only till a time when things will change for her will, I assign someone else."

"I understand, Sir," Christov said with a slight bow of his head, symbolically agreeing to the mission given.

"I, unfortunately, can't watch over her as much as I used to as this unleashed being has become a bigger issue." The Master said he reached back into the box to produce a 'doughnut' and held it out to Christov. Christov looked at the 'doughnut' and saw that unlike the other red and black mixed ones, this one had swirls of silver. "This would assist you during your mission."

Christov hesitantly took the 'doughnut' and slowly ate it while making the same face that he made the last time the taste hit his senses. He felt the increase of energy around him. The street, people, and sounds morphed a bit and then instantly snapped back into place. Christov looked at his hand and realized that his energy had increased, and he felt more energetic.

The Master chuckled as he took another 'doughnut' from the new smaller box. "Congratulations. You upgraded." He finished his snack and then closed the box. Standing up from the car and turning to round the side of it, walking down the middle of the street, The Master called out to him, "Try using that on your partner - Jared. He'd have the best 24 hours of his existence." With that, a car passed in front of The Master, and he was gone. Christov tried to see if a shift path could be found but recalled that The Master wouldn't want anyone to follow him if he didn't want them to. Therefore, never left an opening or path to follow through a shift.

Christov looked around the area, getting a feel for the new enhancement in his abilities and energy. Feeling like he had eaten at least a few thousand souls in such a short amount of time, he took a step forward to start walking back down the way he came. The sounds of the crowd's voices and thoughts were more apparent to him than the auras of each living thing within the area. Taking a deep breath to focus on all the overwhelming sensations hitting him all at once, Christov searched through the crowd to look at the front of the church's gate. His eyebrow raised as he noticed an energy outline of a young girl standing at the entrance. However, he knew that her physical form was not there at this time. Christov figured that this was a new ability thanks to the Blood Cake. Seeing the past energy of others would be a beneficial ability. Glancing up to the burning window, he noticed the form of another presence; however, unlike the girl's energy, which visually showed him details, this figure who stood in the window looking down at her remained clouded.

Christov walked across the street as more people, waking from the early morning commotion, joined the crowd to watch the fire slowly be extinguished. He focused on the girl's energy as each action she did was like a movie of what occurred a few hours ago. The young thing seemed to be in a trace of some kind as her hand was attached in a death grip to the iron gate, looking up at the church doors when her foot took a step forward but then stopped. Around her neck, Christov noticed a necklace with a pendant with its own negative energy that matched the figure in the window. Squinting his eyes, bring in details of the jewelry to him, Christov noticed a Blood Diamond surrounded by pure silver wire. Glancing back up at the figure, it seemed to be using that Blood Diamond to not only communicate with the girl but to try and control her. The pure silver wire was strong against the contained negative energy of the Blood Diamond; however, with the outsourcing of power now trying to interact with what it held was weakening its protective barrier.

Christov nodded as The Master's energy entered the area again, only this time it was a shrouded image like the figure in the window. Christov understood that The Master wouldn't have wanted anyone to see him or sense his energy, so he covered himself. Glancing back up to the window, the figure was obviously annoyed that another being was in the area as the energy that formed around it gathered in strength.

Turning his attention back to the girl, he watched as the figure in the window and The Master commanded attention from her. He wasn't surprised by the scene of her holding a sharp knife up to her throat, understanding that it was the figure's intention to have her slit her own throat. The Master, however, surprised him by grabbing the girl's arm and bending it back behind her, forcing the weapon out from her hand. Christov leaned against the brick wall as more people ran past him to see the fire. Before him, he watched with interest as the young girl's dilemma of who to listen to only built her own energy to past that of the figure and just meet The Master's individual energy level.

"Interesting," Christov said under his breath as he continued to watch the scene. The Master eventually convinced her to leave, which she did quickly. Christov stepped away from the brick wall to follow behind the energy image of the young girl. He wasn't surprised to see The Master walk through the gate, onto the grounds, up the stone stairs, and into the church as the doors closed slowly, and soon the church erupted into flames.

His attention went back onto the young girl as she stopped at the intersection of the street. Looking at the crumpled-up sign, Christov nodded to himself as The Master's energy was all over. "At least it wasn't another hole in the ground," Christov said as he continued to follow the girl's energy down the next street. He recalled being a part of the clean-up crew in South Africa after The Master had a fight with a lesser demon and, during the battle, had obliterated two city blocks.

Christov watched as the girl climbed into the second-floor window of a detached townhouse. He shifted inside and noticed that the physical form of the girl was lying in bed asleep. Turning his head to the window, he watched as her energy form rushed around the room, placing her things down and stripping off her clothes. Out of common courtesy, Christov looked the other way while she changed into her nightgown. He leaned against the wall and watched as she took off the pendant that held the Blood Diamond.

"Where did you get that?" He asked mostly for his own ears. She threw the necklace into a false book and whispered angrily at it. Glancing towards the door, the girl took off for the bed and got under the covers. Sitting back up, she quickly unraveled her long hair and then laid back down. "Pretty energetic girl," Christov commented as he neared the bed, stepping on a loose board creating a squeaking sound, he froze and quickly altered his form to be invisible to mortals. Christov was glad that the girl was still asleep. With the morning she had, he figured that she would be wiped out.

Focusing on her forehead, he attempted to read her thoughts and see if she was dreaming anything. However, he couldn't get past a block that was deep inside her. Sitting on the side of the bed, he placed his hand atop her forehead and focused on her subconscious mind. Feeling a better connection, he entered and saw a mix of light and darkness, fighting each other in her subconscious realm.

"The start of a nightmare." He said softly as he passed by it to find her most recent dream, expecting to see her morning activities of the church in her mind. Only it was a battle inside the church, which made him raise an eyebrow as he could clearly see The Master fighting the cultist on the stage of a fiery interior. As he continued to watch her dream, he noticed that her vision of The Master was changing, splitting in-between eight different forms. Two of the people fighting, Christov recognized as they flew around the room engaged in the carnage.

Joseph, the half-angel, bounced off the walls and charged at a group of cultists. The group scattered, but one unlucky man met their demise by the ends of Joseph's sharp nails. The other individual that was in the girl's dream made Christov sigh with annoyance.

"McFaul."

Nodding with a sudden understanding as Athena jumped around the room fighting cultist too, Christov figured that the girl was a fan of that show that Athena, McFaul, and Joseph were in. The dream would focus on McFaul as he fought, making Christov sigh again. "Of course, she has a crush on him too." He gathered his energy and forced the dream away, hoping to give the girl some peace knowing she had a rough night. He knew how The Master usually took care of situations, and from the current remains of the church and many of the cultists dead, he didn't want this girl to witness them – a dream or not.

Placing the girl in a light sunny beach setting, he let her subconscious take charge of the dream. He stayed in the distance, merely watching her as she bounced from the hot sand to the cold water. Summoning a beach chair to be formed from the sand behind him, he sat down, watching her play with a beach ball.

"She seems like a normal teenager," Christov commented as she started building a sandcastle. "However, her energy and the interaction with this cult seems to give The Master interest in her."

The girl laughed as she found a clam and opened it with her hands. As the mouth of the clam opened, Christov was already off the beach chair as a red beam of negative energy burst out at her. The girl screamed and tried to drop the clam, but the beam was still aimed at her. Christov knew that once he approached her that he would have to change his appearance for the simple reason of trust and creating a bond with her. He gritted his teeth in defeat to the idea as his clothes, hair, and skin ripped away from him to form McFaul's TV persona and regular clothing. Reaching the girl, Christov grabbed her and blocked the red beam with his back.

"What?" The girl screamed as she looked up at him through tear-filled eyes. "Marcus! What's going on?"

"Don't worry. I've got you." Christov said, mimicking McFaul's accent and voice. Shape altering came naturally to him as it was a natural ability for an Incubus to have. With his line of work, it came in handy for interrogations and undercover missions. However, this type of covert mission was unlike others he had and didn't want others to know. Tightening his hold on her, he propelled them both up into the air. The girl gripped onto his shoulders, screaming as the gravitational pull in her subconscious made the fall back down to the ground feel real. Landing, Christov let the girl set her own footing on the pavement of the fairgrounds she summoned in her mind.

"That was horrible." The girl said, taking deep breaths. "But thank you, Marcus, for saving me."

"Think nothing of..." Christov's words ended as the girl placed her hand on his shoulder, jumped up to his height, and lightly kissed him on the lips. Turning away from him with a blush on her face, Christov was glad that she wasn't looking in his direction because he instantly altered back into his original form. He couldn't think straight as her raw energy surrounded him from the kiss, which made him back away in surprise. Noticing that his form was his own and she was turning back to face him again, Christov altered himself back to McFaul's persona just in time.

Taking his hand in her own and leading him through the dream fair, she said with a bright smile, "Come on, let's go look around the fair."

Christov gathered his thoughts now that her energy had vanished from around him. He was used to intermingling with different mortals and, perform romantic interactions to gain information. This mission was not like the previous ones he had been assigned before. Staring at the back of her head with disbelief, he realized why The Master wanted her to be watched.

"Master, what have you done?" He thought as she turned back to look at him. He smiled kindly at her, hoping his thoughts wouldn't be visible on his face.

### Chapter 7

Clair stretched tiredly as she placed her overnight bag onto the floor of her room. She looked from the comfy bed to the desk, wondering what she should do. On the drive home, she had decided to write to Celestia Quill about the pouch, but she didn't get a lot of sleep when her dad came in to wake her for breakfast that morning.

"I was having such a nice dream too." Clair thought to herself as she pulled out the chair to her desk and sat down. Pulling out a pad of lined paper, she started to pre-write a letter to Celestia Quill. She knew that she had to word the letter correctly, feeling embarrassed if her favorite author, who she looked up to, found any grammatical or spelling mistakes. She turned to the door of her room, wondering if she could have her mom edit the letter as she would for her reports and homework assignments.

"No, can't do that," Clair said and turned on her computer to accurately type up the letter. "Just type you up and send-off." Once the document opened, Clair set right to work.

Dear Celestia Quill,

I hope this finds you well.

My name is Clairisa Vinson. I am a huge fan of your series Night Bite, both the novel and the TV show. I am currently reading the graphic novel series. I had a question about one of the panels in the second volume of the first season. It's the panel where it shows a church, and there is a table with different ritualistic objects on it. The objects are; a large white skull candle, jars filled with some strange powder, a large bush of a plant with yellow flowers, and a leather pouch.

While in Toronto, I had the opportunity of speaking with the author of that volume, and she told me to ask you the following questions as you were the one who edited the panel.

Here are my questions: I was wondering what the pouch is and why it's important enough that you added it into the graphic novel but not the show or books. Also, what is inside the pouch?

Hope that you can answer my questions.

Your number one fan,

Clairisa Vinson

Clair read and re-read the letter over, hoping that everything sounded okay. "It would be horrible if she read my letter and found something wrong with it," Clair said as she folded the letter and placed it into an envelope. Writing down the address onto the front, Clair could hardly control herself in all the excitement. She added a stamp and rushed down the stairs to her front door. Putting on some quick slide on shoes and a heavy jacket, Clair rushed out the door to the edge of her driveway. Looking both ways before crossing the street, she jogged across and reached the mailbox.

"Luckily, there is a mailbox outside my house." She said with a wide smile as she opened the door and placed the letter in. "Bye, letter. Hope Celestia gets you soon." Clair watched the letter plummet into darkness and released the mailbox's door. Heading back inside, she wondered what to do next as she had till the mailman arrived on Monday to deliver her letter.

"Clair." Her mom called out to her. "Don't forget you have Girl Guides tonight, with Sherry."

Clair smacked her forehead forgetting about the Guide meeting. "Thanks, mom. I'll be ready when Sherry gets here." Clair headed upstairs and looked from the bathroom to her room. She really wanted to get some more sleep as she would have to help with the girls tonight and didn't want to be too tired to keep up with them. However, with her running around outside early this morning, she was also feeling very grungy and dirty. Taking a nice hot shower would make her feel better. Stepping into her room to change into her bathrobe, Clair grabbed her shampoo and towel to head for a nice bath. Once in the bathroom, she locked the door and turned on the shower to hot. Waiting for the steam to cover the small window and the mirrors, Clair disrobed and stepped into the shower carrying a face cloth and her shampoo. The hot water hitting her sore back and neck muscles felt great.

"Good idea," Clair said as she felt that taking a relaxing shower would make going back to sleep that much easier. Finishing with the shower, Clair dried herself off and gathered her things to head back to her room and sleep. As she opened the bathroom door, her mom was standing outside her bedroom, waiting for her.

"You were in the bathroom, so I waited till you were done." Her mom said with an uneasy tone. Stepping around her mom, Clair entered the room and put on her pajamas, wondering what was going on. "First off, I just want to tell you that Aunt Carol is okay." Clair widened her eyes and sat down on the bed, understanding that this was a serious conversation. "But the church where she volunteers burned down this morning. Many people in the church were injured and a few dead, but luckily Carol is fine."

"Wait! Aunt Carol was inside the church?" Clair asked, alarmed.

"No, apparently, this happened early in the morning. Carol just called now, to let your dad know she was okay. She didn't go to volunteer today because the news on TV caught her attention, thank goodness."

Clair was silent as her thoughts that had calmed from the hot shower quickly formed and continued their rampage through her mind. "How... How did it happen? Is anyone alive?" Her thoughts went to the three people outside the church, having a smoke and talking about the ritual, then to David Cookery. Clair hugged herself as a shiver ran through her.

"They don't know how the fire started. It's still under investigation. As for the people in the church during the time, the news mentioned about twenty people inside. A little under half made it out alive, with only some injuries." Her mom paused. "Sweety, are you okay?"

Clair nodded her head quickly. "Yeah, it's just we were just there yesterday." She was there in the early morning too, but no fire broke out while she was there. Clair was confused. Did something happen in the church to cause a massive fire?

"Yes. Carol mentioned that you meet a few of the staff." Her mom said, touching her hand lightly. "Don't worry. She wanted me to tell you that David Cookery is alright." Clair felt the room spin slightly at this news. "Clair, you got pale suddenly. Maybe I shouldn't have told you all this."

"No, mom, I'm fine. It's actually a good thing you told me." Clair took a few deep breaths and nodded her head. "Really. I'm fine."

"Okay." Her mom stood from the bed and walked to the door. "Are you going back to sleep?" Clair nodded, not looking directly at her. "Well, I'll wake you for supper then." She turned off the light and closed the door behind her.

Clair sat in the room, breathing slowly. "David Cookery was still alive..." she muttered. Her mind raced with questions. What was going on in that church? What happened after she left? If she didn't leave when she did, would she have been trapped in that church too? What would they have done to her if they found her? Clair didn't want to think about what they would have done to her as the look of David Cookery came into her mind after he touched her necklace. "No good, that's for sure," she said softly.

"Those people who I overheard must have been caught in the fire too. They mentioned a ritual and spells. Could the spell have gone wrong... Or, right?" Clair couldn't recall what happened once she left the ground of the church. There seemed to be a long time where she couldn't remember exactly what happened. She was leaving the grounds of the church when her hand was stuck to the metal gate. Suddenly she found herself in a state of panic, unable to move from the gate. Begin told to go home by a deep voice in a language she never heard before and yet understood. A shiver ran up and down her spine as she recalled the voice in her mind. Another voice in a different tone looped into her thoughts.

"The figure in the window of the church." Clair wasn't sure if that was David Cookery or not, but the ominous stance wasn't welcoming. The deep voice again told her to leave. Clair shook her head and laid on the bed, covering up with the blankets. Hearing something fall in the room, she sat up quickly to see a statue that Melanie made her had fallen from her windowsill. Lowering herself back down to the comfort of the bed, she whispered, "I need answers soon, or I might go crazy." She closed her eyes and forced herself to think happy thoughts.

***

Clair glanced towards the clock on the wall, wondering when the meeting would end. She knew it was only three hours long, but after her rough sleep of dreams with glowing eyes, deep dark voices calling out to her, and figures appearing everywhere, she wanted to go home and try to get more rest. When she awoke, she went to return the statue that had fallen back onto its usual spot when she froze to see that it was already replaced. Telling herself that her mother must have come in to check up on her and pick it up, Clair had a strange feeling.

Once at the community center, the feeling lingered. Focusing on her tasks, Clair gathered the girls into their groups and went to the kitchen area to prepare a snack for the girls after their team building games. Once she was alone, her mind wandered to the church and David Cookery. Opening the fridge, Clair pulled out the tray of cookies and carrot sticks. Placing them onto the large island, she turned to get the two containers of juice. Closing the fridge, she walked over to the cabinets to get the paper cups. Then started to pour the drinks into the cups, separating them onto two different colored trays - Orange juice on the orange tray and apple on the green.

"Tomorrow, I need to ask William again about that pouch." Clair thought to herself. "The sooner I know what is in that damn pouch, the closer I'll be to solving it," Clair said as she moved the cookies and carrots onto another tray. "I guess that one red diamond could be from the bag. But that was from a dream." She looked down at her hand, opening and closing it, recalling the dream of pulling the diamond from the pouch and holding onto it. "If it wasn't a dream, then where did it come from?"

"Cookery seemed very interested in it." She continued to speak to herself as she placed the last of the carrots onto the tray. "The silver wire seemed to bother him when he touched it. In Night Bite, that would mean the person was like a vampire or demon of some kind. But this isn't Night Bite – it's real life." She frowned when her mind couldn't give her an answer. "Could he just be really allergic to silver?" Clair shook her head. "No, no one reacts that quickly or even dramatically when they touch silver. He said that it also shocked him like it had to me those few times."

"And what about the words, numbers, and symbols on my wall? What did they mean?" Clair thought about the symbol that matched the one hanging from the leather pouch that William had. Looking around to the window of the swinging doors, she noticed the leaders busy with the girls. Taking out her phone, she opened a search engine website and started to describe the symbol. "I doubt there is anything online about that symbol." Pressing the search button, she scanned the pages but found no results. Thinking, she reached for a napkin and took a marker from the drawer near her to draw the symbol. Looking down at it, she placed her phone above it and took a picture using the website's image recognition search engine option.

"Let's try this?" Clair said as she pressed the search button and waited for results. After a few minutes, the results came back. She looked at the images selection first, noticing a few people had marked their skin with a similar mark. When clicking on the image, the only information about it was an autopsy report of a mass suicide of a cult group years ago. "Okay, so cultic connections. Usually, they represent a demon that the group worships or something connecting their purpose." Scanning through the other websites, Clair frowned. "Nothing."

"I have this feeling that something isn't right about that red diamond I found. No, it's called a Blood Diamond." Her hand went instinctively up to play with the pendant of the necklace she wore. Shaking her head, a sad chuckle came out from her lips as she realized she was wearing a different necklace tonight as she was scared to wear the Blood Diamond. "Since getting it and learning about that church, there has been nothing but bad stuff happening."

"There has to be a connection to that church, David Cookery and his goons, and that Blood Diamond. Why else would he be so creepily interested in a necklace of a teenager? The pouch from the graphic novel is obviously the main question here. If anything, I should demand William to show it to me or to not show it to me if he still insists he doesn't have it. Which I know he does." Clair sighed, "This is so confusing."

"Come on, it's over here."

Clair turned her head as two girls in brown uniforms ran past the open kitchen door that leads into the main hallway of the community center. She put her phone away, walked to the door, and leaned her head out, looking in the direction that the girls took. The two girls Clair recognized instantly from the back of their heads. Paige and Casey were the most annoying girls in the whole troop. They figured they were better than everyone and often made it known through their wines and pouts. They stopped in front of the large double doors that lead to the chapel part of the community center. Paige opened the door and pushed Casey quickly inside, closing the door behind them.

Clair glanced at the other door wanting to bring attention to the two girls sneaking away from the meeting. However, it seemed that Sherry and the other leaders hadn't noticed the girls leaving or were told that they were going to the washroom. Clair knew this excuse often worked because she used it years ago when she was in Girl Guides. Not wanting to disturb the games or the leaders, Clair left the kitchen and headed towards the chapel.

Opening the heavy door and looking around the bright chapel, Clair searched for the two girls. It seemed odd to her that the lights were on inside the chapel until she realized that Paige or Casey could have turned the lights on. It didn't take much searching to find Paige and Casey as they were both by a long table playing with a display at the front of the chapel. Clair approached them, trying to be quiet in case the girls decided to run from her.

"See, I told you, Casey. These are what they use in ceremonies when you get married." Paige said, moving a large dish around on the table.

"So, Barbie will need these for her wedding," Casey added, laughing.

"What do you two think you're doing in here?!" Clair asked in an authoritative tone. The girls jumped and screamed in surprise. As expected, they took off in different directions. Clair sighed as she tried to chase the girls towards the doors. After a while of chasing them around the chapel, Clair got them cornered near the doors. "Go back to the group now!" She said breathlessly.

"No! We don't want to!" Paige said, crossing her arms.

"You can't make us!" Casey added. "You're just a teenager!"

Clair raised her eyebrow in confusion to the statement. "Sure, I'm a teenager. But Snowy Owl won't like it if she finds you here." Clair felt odd calling Sherry - Snowy Owl, but it was a leader's name and how the young girls addressed her.

"We're not scared of her!" Paige said, stamping her foot onto the floor. "Or you."

Clair rolled her eyes at the stubborn behavior. Thinking for a minute, she suddenly realized that there was one thing the two girls enjoyed in the meetings. "You know I think they might be still playing games."

"I don't like the games they play," Casey said sadly.

"Well, I thought I heard the leaders saying that they were going to play Over, Under and Through." Clair smiled as the expression on the girl's faces changed to excitement. "And as I recalled, you two really like that game."

"We like being leaders!" Paige said, beaming. "Come on, Casey, maybe they haven't played the game yet, and we can be the leaders again." Not waiting for a response, Paige took hold of Casey's hand, and the two rushed out of the chapel.

"Not bad," Clair said, complimenting herself proudly. Turning around, she realized the mess the girls had made to the display on the altar. Sighing, she walked over to the altar and started to set things right. "This goes here and that there..." She said to herself. Hearing something behind her, she turned but saw nothing. "And the last one, here," Clair said as she stood back and smiled at the work of fixing the alter. Being inside the small chapel made Clair shiver from memories of her dreams and being outside St. James.

"Now, back to the kitchen," Clair said as she marched down the aisle towards the door. Clair bent down to remove the door-jams from the doors and placed them into a small box next to the chapel's entrance. Just as she pulled her hand back from dropping the door jams into the box, she saw the open doors behind her close on their own with a hard slam. Clair gasped and jumped away from the door. "What the?" Rushing towards the doors, Clair grabbed the door handles and pulled, then she pushed. "Locked?" She gasped. "How could they be locked?" She tried shaking the doors, but nothing worked. "Oh man..." She sighed. With a soft click, the lights suddenly went out. Clair gasped.

A loud screech made Clair turn back to see a large outline of a floating figure flying at her quickly. She screamed and ducked to the side as the creature swerved and flew around the chapel. Turning back, the figure flew towards her again. Clair pushed off from the floor, stood up, and ran in a tumbling motion.

"Help!" Clair screamed as she saw the thing flip in the air and change its direction to fly after her. Clair didn't notice the leg of the chapel bench and fell forward. Landing, she felt her right wrist collide with the bottom leg of the next row of seats.

"Ahh. Ouch!" She cried. Looking above her, Clair saw the figure sore over her head and turned effortlessly in the air to fly back at her. Clair tried to pull herself up by holding onto the back of the seats but tumbled back down to the carpet, feeling as if she did something to her wrist when she fell.

"My wrist." Clair cried out in pain. She turned her head to see the creature's dark red eyes focused on her. Glancing next to her, Clair forced herself to move and roll down the space between the benches. She held her sore wrist close to her chest as she reached the end of the row. She looked around for the flying creature. Seeing that it had gone high into the air to find her, Clair took the time to search for a way out. The windows were too high for her to jump, and the only doors to the room her locked by something she didn't understand. Looking towards the alter, Clair noticed the display that she fixed up. She tried to recall if there was a cross on that alter or any other religious symbol.

"It's a chapel, there has to be one here," Clair said as she stood from her spot and ran to the altar. Spotting her, Clair heard a terrifying screech and figured the creature was flying back at her. "Come on. Cross, a cross. Please!" Clair said in a panicked tone as she only saw dishes and cups. "Shit!" She turned just as the creature screeched at her, and its long fingers reached out towards her. Clair screamed and fell to the ground in front of the altar, her eyes glued to the creature. "HELP!" She screamed out as tears ran down her face in fear.

A loud echoing snap made Clair look around the room. Suddenly in front of her was a tall man with long white hair, gelled back and pulled into a ponytail, wearing a long red leather looking coat with black attire. "Who?" Clair was about to ask when the creature's agonizing scream followed the echo of the snap. She glanced around the man to find the creature floating in midair was on fire. She watched in strange amusement as the flames flickering mesmerized her until the beast vanished in ashes and smoke from the ambers of the fire.

"Are you alright, my dear?" the man asked softly as he turned to her. Clair focused her attention back to the man in the suit. His hand was held out to her. "Don't worry, it's just a hand." He said with a deep voice filled with amusement.

"Who are you?" Clair asked. "I've seen you somewhere before." She looked over the man and nodded. His face was partially shaded by the outside streetlights, but she recognized his powerful stance and attire from somewhere. A dream? The thoughts of last night's dreams came to her, and as if fast-forwarding the tape in her mind, she nodded as his image appeared a few times during the battle inside the church with Athena and the gang fighting alongside him.

"Am I dreaming?" she asked out loud.

"Depends on how you perceive things." He said, watching her. His hand was still held out for her to take. "But I can assure you that you are not asleep."

"Oh, great," Clair said, nodding her head but with a hint of confusion to her voice. She was hoping that her tired state was the leading cause of all this, but if what this man said was right, there was another reason. Looking at the area where the creature was, she asked. "What was that creature?"

"You are taking this rather calmly." The man said with a chuckle. Clair looked up at him, confused. "You were just attacked by a creature of darkness and watched as its corpse became inflamed and vanished before your very eyes."

"Yes, you caused it to catch fire, right? With your fingers."

"I did." He said with a grin as he snapped his fingers again to demonstrate. A small amount of flame encircled his hand, formed a line, and started to weave around his wrist and through his fingers playfully.

"Why?" Clair gasped as her eyes widened at this ability.

"You called out for help." He answered. Taking a breath in, he looked around the room and relaxed his fingers, letting the flame extinguish.

"What's wrong?" Clair asked as she silently watched the man look around the room as if scanning for something. She glanced around the chapel, curious about what else could be here.

"Lost the trail." He said under his breath.

"Trail?" Clair asked.

"Nothing to concern yourself with." He said, turning his attention back to her. "Are you going to stay down there for the rest of the night?"

Clair grimaced, feeling like he was treating her like a child having a temper tantrum. She tried to move her legs to stand on her own when she found that she couldn't. Looking down her jeans, she noticed black spots spreading outwards like an ink spill. "I'm bleeding?"

The man got down to her level, kneeling to look at the bottom of her jeans. Shaking his head, he waved his hand over her legs. "You're not bleeding. This is the beginning of an attachment." He said as a thick black liquid formed around his hand and pulled out from the fabric of her jeans.

"Like a spirit attachment?" Clair asked as she recalled the many episodes from Night Bite, where the main characters dealt with spirits and them attaching to family and friends.

"Exactly." He said, impressed. Holding the black mass in his hand, he quickly flicked it towards the wall, where it splattered against it and then vanished. "Try standing now."

Clair nodded her head and felt her legs able to move. Folding them under her body and attempting to stand, she instinctively reached out to take the man's hand. With a soft tug, the man helped her up onto her feet. "There we go. That must be better than that hard floor."

"Yes, it is," Clair said as she dusted herself off. "Thank you." She froze, suddenly noticing that her wrist didn't hurt anymore. She lightly touched her wrist, moving it this way and that in wonder.

"Everything working well?" He asked with a laugh.

"Yes," Clair said in amazement. "Umm, why didn't the creature attach to you?"

"You think that the slime there was from that pitiful being?" he asked with interest.

"I guess." Clair shrugged. "You said that you couldn't find the trail. I wondered if it was the trail of the creature that got swallowed by the fire."

"No, it didn't come from the being. However, it was delivered to you by it." He said with a smile when she frowned in confusion to what he meant. "And to answer your question about why it didn't attach to me. It did, or at least it tried." Raising his hand to show her the back of his wrist, she watched as his pale skin looked like it was dunked in boiling oil.

"It might have attached more if given a chance. Though I didn't give it one." The man said with a toothy grin. For the first time, Clair noticed a scar on the side of the man's face. It was in the shape of an X next to his right eye. Even though the injury looked healed, it seemed that it was painful when it was given. A strange thought came to her that even with the scar, the man was very handsome, and again she had this feeling that she had seen him before.

Clair stared at him in confusion. "I've heard your voice before. How do I know you?"

"Clairisa, what are you doing in here?" Clair looked to see Sherry with a disappointed look on her face.

Clair walked towards Sherry. "Sherry, thank god that you came and opened the door. I was locked in after I sent Paige and Casey back to the group. They were playing with the display here. I tried to clean up after them, but I..." She paused. She couldn't tell Sherry that a dark creature attacked her. "But the doors locked me in, and I couldn't get out."

"Oh, you poor thing," Sherry said as she came closer. "In here all by yourself, in the dark, no less."

"I wasn't alone. This man..." Clair turned to introduce the man only to find that he was no longer there.

"Man?" Sherry looked around, giving a small nervous laugh. "I don't see anyone here, Clair." She wrapped her arm around her shoulders, guiding her towards the doors. "Come on. It's almost snack time. I'll help you with the snacks."

Clair glanced back over her shoulder as Sherry led her towards the kitchen. She was confused as to what happened. What was that flying creature? Why would it attack and then send something to attach to her? Who was that man, and why did he come to her rescue? How did that man have that much power? She touched her wrist, looking at it in wonder and thought, did he heal my wrist?

"You there, Clair?" Sherry asked, waving her hand in front of Clair's face. Clair blinked and backed away from the outstretched moving hand. "You spaced out for a minute there. Something on your mind?"

"Many things," Clair said, sitting at the island watching Sherry fix the food onto the trays, only to see that they were already complete.

"I see," Sherry said, handing her a cookie and a drink of apple juice. "Here, we need you awake for the meeting this evening for the overnight camp next weekend." She left the kitchen carrying the drinks and food into the gym. The cheers of the girls made Clair look down at the cookie. Nibbling on it, her thoughts went back to the man.

"That man was interesting. Disappearing and appearing like that." She said softly. "I didn't get a chance to ask his name. Although his deep voice did sound familiar." Closing her eyes and focusing on the man's figure, Clair tried to pinpoint where else she saw him. "Dream from last night - check. His deep voice sounded like the one outside the church." She scrunched up her face trying to concentrate. "But before all that..." She prompted herself.

Light flashed behind her eyes, and the sound of alarms went off in the background as if someone had turned down the volume. Clair took in a breath but found that it was hard for her to breathe. Placing her hand onto her chest, she felt cold strings and round plastic attached to her. "Wires?" she thought, as her body felt something suddenly metallic and cold being placed onto her chest.

"Clear!" A voice shouted, and Clair's body violently shook as it felt like an electric charge ran through her whole body within a second. She opened her eyes and noticed that the cookie in her hand had fallen to the floor. Sighing, she picked it up and placed it into the bin. Clair rubbed her head as a headache on the right side by her ear was forming. "What was that?" she asked.

### Chapter 8

Clair arrived at school with the foremost intention of finding William. She couldn't spend another night with nightmarish dreams and no sleep. Clair did her best to hide the dark circles under her eyes with foundation, but from her point of view, she could still see them. Walking to her science class, she wondered if it was again canceled due to Mr. Smithy's outburst. Seeing the notice on the door indicating that the class was canceled, she nodded and made her way to the library to drop off the two Night Bite graphic novels.

Once in the door, she placed the third volume into the return box and continued to walk into the library. Looking around, she saw a few of her classmates reading or talking with friends. Over at the back, by the Manga section, Clair found William sitting alone reading the next volumes of Night Bite. Gripping the cover of the second volume in one hand, she breathed deeply and reached into her jacket pocket with the other. Brushing the necklace's pendant, feeling the electric zap from the Blood Diamond, she marched to William.

"Good morning Clair." He said with a smile as he lowered the book.

"Morning." Clair said as she slammed her things onto the table and leaned over it to look down at him, hoping it would get his attention.

"What's with the third-degree stare?"

"Guess what I did for the past few days?" She asked.

"Umm. Watch Night Bite?"

"Close." Clair said. "I read the second and third volumes of the Night Bites series. You were right; the design is better as the series goes on. I also found something interesting on one of the panels in the second volume." Clair said with sarcasm as she pushed the book across the table and opened it to the page with the small blood drop in the center. "See this table here. In this panel." She pointed to the illustration of the table inside the church.

William's eyes thinned as he looked at the book and then back up to her. "Yeah, what about it?" He asked carefully.

"Well, you see that little pouch next to the skull candle?" She said, pointing. "Well, it reminded me of the pouch that..."

"I told you that I don't have a pouch, Clair." William said, quickly interrupting her. "You were just seeing things."

"Oh really?" She laughed. Clair found it hard not to raise her voice at him. With the past nights of night terrors and demonic voices calling out to her, she guessed her nerves were taking over. "Guess what else I did? Sorry, out of time." Clair said, stopping him before he opened his mouth. "I went to Toronto." Clair slowed her words as the realization came to her. "Where you moved from...You!" She gasped in horror. "You were the kid that stole from them!"

"Clair, I... I don't know what you're talking about." William said with a little stutter. "Me moving from Toronto is just a coincidence."

"When did you officially move to Ottawa?" Clair asked in a low tone.

"About two or three weeks ago. It took a while due to school paperwork and stuff for my mom's work."

"That's the same time that they said it was stolen." Clair said with realization. Things were starting to make sense. "It's you they are after, not me!"

"Who's THEY?"

"Don't play dumb, William. It has to be you who stole from the church." Clair said, her voice lowering.

"Clair, really, I don't know what you're talking about." He said warningly. "Now please just drop it."

"I can't drop it until I figure it out." Clair said with sincerity. "William, please show me the pouch. I know you have it. I just want to figure out if this cursed diamond has friends inside it." She took out the necklace, letting the pendant swing back and forth in front of William's face. Upon seeing the Blood Diamond in the pendant, William quickly covered his hands over hers and the necklace to hide it.

"Where did you get that?" He demanded. "Did you go into my bag?"

"A-HA! I knew it. You are connected!" Clair pointed in his face. "You do have the pouch, and you did steal it from those guys at the church."

He glared at her but breathed in deeply before saying. "Alright. I do have the pouch, and it was from the church." He leaned in carefully to her whispering. "How do you know about the church?"

"As I said, I went to Toronto this past weekend. I went to that church for some answers. Only when I get there, the items I hoped to find weren't there. Instead was David Cookery and his cult followers."

"Holy shit, you met Cookery and lived!" He said, speechless.

"Almost, no thanks to that pouch and this damn diamond." Clair said, placing the necklace lightly onto the table.

"Where did you get that?" He repeated, his voice worried, and his eyes widening.

"I don't exactly know how I got it, truthfully." Clair said silently, pointing to the book again. "You might not believe me, but I had a nightmare around this graphic novel. Where I was in the church during a big battle. At one point, I got a hold of the pouch and reached in taking that from it, but this large demon forced the pouch away from my hands." She paused, sitting down across from him, exhausted. "When I woke up, the Blood Diamond fell from my hand." She softly added, "If you put light through it, words, symbols, and numbers can be seen."

"Really?" He said, looking down at his bag that sat by his feet under the table. "What did they say?"

"I didn't understand it. Only one symbol was the same, the one hanging off the pouch." Clair said, frowning. "I did some research on it and found that the only account of it is etched on dead bodies after a cultic mass suicide years ago."

"Wow."

"All I want to know is if I can see the pouch? I want to see if there are more Blood Diamonds inside it."

"Blood Diamonds?" William was surprised by the term.

"That's what the demon called them. Saying that it wants the diamonds back." Clair said, nodding. "So, you are the one who stole it from them... Then we have a problem."

"We?" William said. "No, just me, you're not a part of this."

"Excuse me, but from the countless nightmares and interactions with Cookery and the demon voices, I think I am now involved." Clair said firmly. "Though trust me, if I could go back and not go so far, then I would. This whole thing brought back a past I don't want to revisit."

William was silent for a minute, then looked up at her with a judging glare and asked, "Are you working for them?"

"Of Course Not!" Clair said, shocked that he would even suggest such a thing. A hushing from the other students echoed through the library. Clair breathed in to calm herself. "Look, I've been through hell this past weekend. I haven't slept, I've been hearing demonic voices and being attacked by flying creatures." She continued even when William showed concern after saying she was attacked by the flying creature. "I just want answers so I can figure out how to make this all stop."

William looked from Clair, back to the book, and then to the Blood Diamond. He was quiet as he bent over and then looked around the library. "Fine I'll show you the pouch. But not here." He stood from his chair and gathered his belongings into his bag. Closing the book, he handed it back to her. "Follow me."

Grabbing the necklace from the desk and putting it into her pocket, she felt another zap from the diamond. Nodding her head, Clair followed him through the doors stopping to drop the book into the return bin. Jogging up to him but keeping a distance, she stared at the back of his head, wondering what he was thinking and where they were going. She felt like she was going to finally get some answers, but part of her was also worried if she really wanted to find out.

"William..." Clair started to ask as they headed for the west end stairwell, one of four stairs that lead to the second level of the school.

"Just please be quiet until we get somewhere safe." He said harshly.

Clair nodded her head and tried to keep up as the fast walk turned into a sprint. She was very curious as to why he was acting this way. He slowed down when they reached a set of doors leading outside. They exited the school, and William looked around the area before pulling Clair behind the large garbage bins. Clair held her nose with her other hand. "Why did you bring us here, William?" she asked in a nasal tone as she continued to pinch her nose close.

William turned to her, and the expression on his face was strange to Clair. "What I am about to show you, Clair, you can't tell anyone else about. Got it!" He said in a stern tone.

"Okay." Clair said, shrugging her shoulders. "I thought you were going to show me the pouch."

"I am." William lowered his bag and unzipped a side pocket. He pulled out the leather pouch and held it tightly in his hand. The tie string with the metal symbol hung from it. "You were right, I do have the leather pouch. I'm sorry I lied to you, but I wasn't sure that I could trust you."

Clair raised her eyebrow. "Trust me? With what?"

William breathed in and then opened the bag. "When you described the pouch to me last week. I was completely shocked that you saw me with it during class. I guess I'll have to be more careful." He paused as he looked inside the pouch. Pouring a few of the contents from the bag into his hand, William showed Clair. In his palm lay a stack of red diamonds.

"Blood Diamonds." Clair pulled her own out again and compared it. "There the same."

"Yes, they are." William said as he poured them back into the pouch. "So how did you connect me to stealing the pouch."

Clair explained how seeing the pouch originally made her obsessed with finding out more about it. She told William about seeing it in the graphic novel and then contacting the author to speak to her about the pouch. Suddenly realizing that she was going to Toronto for the weekend, Clair figured doing her own investigation into the church and the pouch. She mentioned the dream again to him of fighting the demon and pulling something from the open pouch.

"I then overhear these three people, who I now think, are cult members. Because they talked about David, about the kid they saw, and that they were waiting for the one who stole from them. There was one name mentioned, a Timmons or something missing the meeting, and if the kid did come back, he would miss his opportunity for revenge?"

"Oh, that guy." William said with a nod. "Yeah... I burnt his eye with a candle."

Clair blinked, hearing that. "You what?"

"When I stole from them, I was foolish and was caught in the act. I grabbed what I could, the pouch, and ran. This one large guy fought me, and during the fight, I hit him with a lit candelabra. I couldn't tell if the liquid coming from his eye was wax or blood."

"Yes, well." Clair said, continuing her story. "Then I left, unsure if they were waiting for me or - now in this case - you to appear. So, as I left... See this is the blackout part because I can't recall much. But a voice told me to go home, and so I did." Clair leaned against the brick wall, exasperated. "Then once back in Ottawa, I find that the church has burnt down."

"Yeah I heard about that too. Lucky that happened." William said.

"Unlucky. Half of the people inside the church survived. One was Cookery."

"Damn."

"My feelings exactly." Clair said, nodding. "Then, oh yeah, that's not all. I'm at my Girl Guides volunteering when I'm locked in a room, and this flying creature attacks me."

"Yes, you said that back in the library." William said, recalling her telling him. "What happened there? Was it the demon or Cookery?"

"I'm not sure." Clair said, shaking her head. "It was a long black sheet like a phantom creature with red eyes."

"And it attacked you?"

"Yes. Luckily, I was saved by this man in a long red leather jacket."

"Who was it?" He asked, confused.

"I don't know, he vanished before I could ask him his name. But he had these powers that stopped the creature."

"Such as?"

"Well, he could create fire." Clair lifted her hand and demonstrated what the man did for her. Snapping her fingers, she half expected flames to appear, but nothing happened. "He snapped his fingers and fire appeared. That's how he stopped the flying creature. The creature then tried to attach itself to me, or as the man said, delivered something that was attaching itself to me – anyways, the man got it off. It looked like black sludge."

"I never heard of anyone like that." William said, shaking his head with a worried look on his face. "Keep an eye on him if he ever appears again, let me know. He sounds trouble."

Clair nodded her head but felt like if she met the man again that he wouldn't cause her harm, unless she brought it upon herself, which made her wonder why she would think this about him. "So that's my side of the story... Your turn!"

William nodded and placed the pouch back into his bag. "Before I moved here, I was walking by the church one night and saw people entering a side door, hidden by large bushes." Clair recalled the bush she hid behind and nodded. "I followed before the door closed and saw one of the satanic rituals happening. In the corner of the room, I found this pouch with the red diamonds inside."

"By the confessional?" Clair asked.

"Yes... How..." He thought for a moment. "Oh, right. Your dream. Anyways, I took them but got caught. Fought them with an inch of my life and ran like hell. I told my mom that we had to move away because of a bully or school reasons. I can't recall which one I gave her. Then we moved here."

"But that doesn't explain why you stole them?" Clair asked.

"Yes." William answered slowly. "Listen, that is the next part." Clair nodded as she crossed her arms. "So, before I stole them, I saw that the group was using these diamonds in one of their rituals. When they left the room, I came in and took them."

"What in your mind told you to steal from a group of satanic cultists?"

"Look, it had to be done." William said shrugging.

"What?"

"They were doing something evil. I thought to interrupt the monk's plans by taking the pouch."

"That wouldn't stop them from causing evil. If anything, it made things worse." Clair said, shaking her head at his logic. "They are after us to get the Blood Diamonds back. If they are as you say, important for a ritual." She thought for a moment. "What type of ritual did you see them performing?"

"I'm not sure. I missed the Latin phrases, but it was very bloody."

"A blood ritual?" Clair asked.

William nodded his head. "I'm surprised you know of the term."

Clair shrugged. "Night Bite used a few of them. I was curious about the magic used in the show, so I did some research." Under her breath, she added, "Among other things." She looked around the area. "So, what are you going to do with the diamonds?"

William leaned against the bin. "I'm not sure." He paused. "They haven't come after me yet."

"No because they only tried to come after me!" Clair shouted.

"Alright, calm down." William said. "We'll figure this out." He paused for a moment to think. "We can't give the pouch back to them."

"Can we destroy them?" Clair asked, hopefully.

"Nope. Doesn't work."

"Well what did you try and not try?" She looked around the area and saw a large rock by the garbage bin. "Did you try smashing it?" Clair got down on the ground, picked up the rock, and placed her necklace onto the ground. Raising the rock high over her head, she slammed it down just as William was trying to warn her. The rock hit the pendant smashing the silver wire open, but Clair gasped as she felt an opposing force push her and the rock backward. Her back hit the ground as she rolled away from the diamond. Looking at it with confusion, Clair thought she heard a deep growl in her mind. She held onto her head as William came over to her.

"Hey, you alright?" He helped her up by grabbing under her arms. "You flew far."

"It's that demon again." Clair said, closing her eyes to force the voice out of her mind. "Ahh. I can't get it out."

"What is it saying?" William asked worriedly.

"It's just growls..." Clair said as she felt the pressure in her head fade. "It's stopping. I don't think the demon liked that I did that to his Blood... Diamonds!" She said, suddenly excited.

"What happened?"

"I remember what happened during the blackout in front of the church. The demon voice was commanding me to go inside the church. Then it wanted its Blood Diamonds back. And I wore the necklace that night, so he then told me to get mine... Oh my god." Clair turned to look as her hand rose next to her throat like she held something in it.

"What?" He asked again.

"I... I tried to cut my own throat." Clair said as she backed away from the red diamond on the ground. She found that she was starting to shake. "We need to get rid of those."

"We will." William said, nodding. "Wow you must be really freaking out from the whole experience, Clair." He walked over to the diamond and picked it up. "Hey, what if I take yours and keep it with the others. It should stop bothering you then, right?"

"I guess so." Clair said, calming herself down. "But what if they find you?"

"I don't think they will." He said, placing the diamond into the pouch with the others. "I just need to make sure I don't activate them again."

"Again?" Clair gasped. "When was the first time?"

"I think I might have activated them during class last week."

"What?"

"Yeah, I felt the bag get really warm when I was making sure that all the diamonds were inside. Then, when I got home, my mom told me that some men came to the door asking for me, while I was at school."

"Oh god." Clair said, holding her head. "This is not good."

"The monks won't come." He said.

"Monks?"

"That's what they called themselves when I stole from them." William said, nodding. "Mad Monks, I call them."

"I think they would be more than mad that you stole from them."

"Don't worry, we will figure this out." He said as the bell rang for the second period. "Just try not to think about it. You know what, once I get home, I'll make a protective barrier around your house."

"A protective barrier?" Clair asked with a small laugh.

"Well, we will talk about it later. Time for English."

Clair nodded and followed behind him. Even if William told her to not think of it and that he would do most of the thinking about what to do, Clair couldn't help but worry. This was affecting her too.

***

On the way home, Clair continued to think about the so-called Mad Monks, and even though William had taken her diamond, she still felt on edge and watched. "Maybe I shouldn't have asked about that stupid pouch. It's because of me obsessing over it that it has got me into this mess." She said as she opened the front door and walk into her house.

"Mom, I'm home." She called out as she kicked off her shoes by the door. "Mom?" She called out again.

"Mom went out." A voice called from upstairs. Clair walked up the stairs and saw her brother's head poke out from his room. "She went next door to ask Sherry something."

"Thanks, Dean." Clair said as she walked by his room.

"Oh, mom told me that Aunt Carol sent you a letter. Mom put it on your bed." Dean called out before closing his door.

Clair nodded, opened her door, and entered. "Aunt Carol sent me a letter? She knows she can text me." Setting her bag on the ground and walking over to the bed to find her aunt's familiar custom envelope and in the corner, her stamped address. Picking it up and admiring the pink and yellow-flowered edges, she paused before opening it as a feeling that something was wrong came over her.

Ripping the side of the envelope and pulling the letter out from the envelope, Clair slowed her hands, recognizing a few words from the fan letter she sent during the weekend to Celestia Quill. "Why is this in Aunt Carol's custom envelope and folded backward?" Clair asked nervously. Checking the address that she wrote on a sticky note on her desk, she shook her head in confusion as it was clearly Celestia Quill's address.

Through the paper, Clair noticed thick lines on the back of the letter. Turning the paper over and reading the roughly written bold words Clair's eyes widened. She covered her mouth as a scream tried to escape, but only a muffled sob came out from between her fingers. Dropping the letter and letting it fall gracefully to the ground, Clair stared terrified at the message on the back...

WHERE IS THE POUCH?

### Chapter 9

Heartbeat racing, Clair grabbed her bedroom phone and started calling her aunt's number. As the telephone ringed, she kept muttering about her picking up the phone. "Come on, Aunt Carol. Please pick up."

"Hello?"

"Aunt Carol?!" Clair gasped with relief.

"Oh, Hello, Clair. So nice of you to call."

"Yes, I'm... I just wanted to ask if you sent a letter to me in the past few days?"

The line was silent. "I don't think so, dear..." Another pause came through as she was tapping the plastic part of the phone, thinking about the question. "Oh wait, did you get one of my flowered envelops?"

"Yes." Clair said quickly.

"Then that explains it." Aunt Carol said with a laugh. "That wasn't from me, dear. It was from David. Remember David Cookery from the church that I... used to volunteer for." There was a hint of sadness in her voice, but Clair ignored it, trying to stay focused.

"Aunt Carol. Why did Cookery, I mean David, send me something using one of your envelopes?"

"Oh well, we met in the grocery store and talked about the church's sad situation. He's still healing the poor man, what with his face all but mostly burned to a crisp..."

Great, a crispy mad monk leader. Clair thought as her aunt continued.

"He was in the heart of the fire, trying to save those who came in for nightly prayer. That must have been a new activity that the Church approved, as this was the first time I heard of that particular Church offering nightly prayer time."

Because it wasn't nightly prayer, Aunt Carol. It was a dark cultic ritual with demonic worshiping. Clair silently commented.

"He then mentioned that he was given a new position and thought that a few youth programs would interest you and wanted to send you some pamphlets on them."

"I bet they would." Clair muttered under her breath. As the ideas of blood sacrifice and dark magic rituals for youth came into her mind as examples of these so-called pamphlets.

"Sorry, what was that?"

"Oh, nothing." Clair thought for a minute. "So, you sent these programs for him?"

"No, dear, he asked me for an envelope, and I just so happened to have one with your address. He was thankful and told me that if I had other mail to deliver, he would do that for me. Which I thought was nice of him to offer..." Clair filtered her voice out as the same words, gave your address to him, echoed through her mind.

"Umm, where did he mention he got the new job?"

"Oh, in Ottawa, dear."

"Of course, Ottawa." Clair said, breathing out and leaning weakly against the wall. "Well, thanks. I just thought I'd call and say hi." Clair said with no emotion in her voice.

"Oh, of course. Call anytime..." Clair hung up the phone, not waiting for her aunt to finish her sentence, staring at the letter on the ground.

"I have to call William." Clair said, nodding her head. Grabbing her cellphone from her purse, she searched through her contacts to see if she got his number from class last week when they first arranged to study together. "Thank god." Sighing with relief, she pressed on his name. Clair waited for the phone to ring as she took sideways glances to the letter that still lay on the ground.

"Hello...?" A tired voice said.

"William!" Clair cried out.

"Yes. Who is this?" He asked in a startled and confused tone.

"I got a letter!" Clair said in a rush. "I got a letter from them! They want to know where the pouch is!" Clair gasped as a sob came out of her. She glanced down at the letter again as tears fell. "They know where I live!"

"Clair? Is that you?" William asked. "Are you alright?"

"NO, I'M NOT ALRIGHT!" She screamed into the phone. "THEY-SENT-ME-A-LETTER! AND THEY KNOW WHERE I LIVE!!"

"Who?" He asked.

"REALLY? WHO?!" Clair yelled into the phone. "The ones who want that damn pouch of yours. The Mad Monks!"

"Okay, let me get this straight. You got a letter from them?"

"Yes, no... Sort of!" Clair said, annoyed. "See, I sent a letter to Celestia Quill asking her about your pouch since she assisted in editing the graphic novels that she might know."

"You sent a letter to her asking about my pouch?" He repeated.

"Yes, please keep up!" Clair said with a sigh. "But I sent it Saturday! My mom brought it into my room today, and it was in my aunt's custom envelope. So, I called my aunt, and she said that David Cookery asked her for my address so he could send something to me. The letter he sent back was my fan letter to Quill, but on the back was this message in black marker or something asking, 'Where is the pouch'."

"Wow, okay."

Clair waited to hear a reply from William, only when nothing came through the phone, she asked in a panicked tone, "So, what are we going to do?" The line remained silent. "Hello? William?!" She called into the phone.

"I'm thinking." He snapped. "Oh shit."

"What?" Clair asked.

"They are outside my house." He said quietly.

"Okay. Well, just give back the diamonds." She sighed. "I want this to end, so please just give them the diamonds."

"I can't do that." He said.

"William, I don't want them coming after my family."

"I don't want them coming after mine either – or myself."

"Then why won't you just give the diamonds back?"

"I'm worried that they will curse me if I do." He replied sadly.

"They might curse you either way!" Clair said as she walked to her window and looked out onto the backyard, hoping nothing was outside. Seeing that her parents were preparing the pool for winter and things were lying around the underground pool, she couldn't see anything out of the ordinary. Then she looked at the forest that backed onto the house. Squinting her eyes, she flinched as she saw movement in-between the trees. "Are the majority of the Mad Monks at your place?" She asked.

"I think so." He paused. "Why are there any at your house?"

"Well now that they know where I live, thanks to my aunt." Clair said harshly as she looked outside. "I'm not sure. I thought I saw something in the woods behind my house, but I might just be seeing things."

"It's okay." William told her. "Just don't open the door or invite them in." A loud sound came through the phone. "I have to go. I think my mom is opening the door for them." He paused. "Listen. Clair, you will be alright. Don't call me, though, I'll call you."

"Okay." Clair said with a whimper. "Good luck, and call me."

The line was silent, but then he finished by saying, "Unless something happens to me." Later the line died. Clair gripped the phone and closed the curtain. She moved away from the window and sat on her bed. Placing the phone onto the dresser, she glanced at the floor again, reading the words on the letter.

"What do I do?" Clair asked. Her eyes widened in fear, and she hastily called out, "Please don't let anyone answer." She put her head in her hands, trying to think of what to do. "How did they even get the letter? Did they intercept it? But it would have been just sent out today as the mail doesn't get picked up during the weekend." Clair shook her head; she had so many questions.

"I should take my mind off of this, Mad Monk stuff." She said, looking around her room to find an activity for occupying herself. "There has to be something to do... Clean. Sure. I'll clean." Clair set to work as she started to reorganize her room. After that was done, she looked to her school bag and figured re-writing any messy notes from her classes would help pass the rest of the time. Before she knew it, her mother called up to her from the kitchen to come down for supper. This time Clair stayed down in the kitchen eating at the island. She didn't want to spend time in her room with the letter still on the ground. While she cleaned, Clair didn't want to touch the letter, so she skillfully slid a notebook under it and placed it lightly onto the side table.

Soon, dinner was over, and Clair sauntered back up into her room. Opening the door slowly and peeking inside, she half expecting someone to be waiting for her, but relaxed as the room remained empty. She closed the door behind her and saw the letter with the message facing her. Feeling angry for fearing a piece of paper, Clair marched over to it, snatched it from the side table, and walked over to the window. Lifting the window open, she started to rip the letter into many small pieces, cursing each piece under her breath and threw them into the cold evening wind. Watching the little bits of paper fly off into the night, Clair felt like she could breathe again. She closed the window and locked it tight.

"Good riddance." She said, walking back to her bed, sitting on it for a while, figuring what to do now when something on her wall caught her attention. Focusing on the spot that seemed to be moving, she got up and slowly approached it. "What is that?" Seeing a dot on her wall, Clair instinctively reached out to lightly touch it with her finger. A thought came to her as her finger was close to the small dot. This was the same place where the words, numbers, and symbols appeared from the Blood Diamond. Once contact was made, a familiar zap of electricity coursed through her hand, arm, and body.

"Ah!" she gasped as she felt her body recoiling from the sensation. Hearing something like a curse word coming from behind her, Clair turned her head to see who was there but noticed that her vision had gone black, and her body was feeling heavy and numb. Falling to the floor, she felt something grab around her body before everything around her vanished.

~~~

Clair opened her eyes to find that she was lying on a cold hard stone floor in the dark. Lifting herself from the floor and standing up, she found herself feeling stiff and sore. Rubbing her shoulder muscles, Clair looked around her to see the flicker of candlelight bouncing along the stone walls. Taking a breath in, she noticed the smell of incense.

She shivered as a chill ran through her. Searching the area, she found a long-knitted blanket in the corner of the room. Clair stood up and picked it up, shook it a bit to get the dust off, and wrapped it around her shoulders and body. The blanket's warmth and security calmed her as her eyes got used to the room's dim light. She seemed to be in a back storage room. Boxes were stacked upon each other, and chairs stood on top of extra tables. Hearing something through the open door and around the corner, she strolled out into the hallway. As Clair passed many wooden doors, she realized that the sound was getting louder. It seemed to be coming from behind the door at the end of the hallway. Turning the cold metal doorknob with a surprisingly big creek, Clair pushed open the large wooden door.

Stepping inside, her breath was taken away by the fantastic height of the ceiling and the beautiful array of colored light that painted the stone floor from the large stained glass window. Clair figured that she was in a church, a rather beautiful old church. She stepped on the edge of the area where the stained glass light came shining onto the floor. Placing her foot inside a ray of vibrant green light, she smiled and stepped to envelop her whole body in different colored light. Clair heard soft organ music playing somewhere as it echoed off the walls. Feeling light and giddy, she spun herself around, laughing. Her arms flung out and held onto the edge of the blanket. Clair watched as the stained glass colors seemed to paint the blanket as if it were vibrant butterfly wings.

A sudden shout followed by approaching footsteps made her freeze from her fun and look around. The music stopped playing, and the light from the stained glass seemed less lively. It was almost as if the light from outside had been hidden or turned off. Feeling a dark presence approaching, Clair searched for a place to hide. Glancing up along the second-floor landing, she spotted some large crates behind a decorative wood banister. Running to the nearby stairs, and silently moving along the railing to the boxes she saw from the ground floor, Clair knelt behind them as people entered the Church.

Shifting herself to see a broad view of the ground floor from the second level, she noticed a large group of about ten figures walking silently in a line. They were wearing long dark hooded robes, except for one who was being practically dragged by their arms. This person wore regular clothes, jeans, and a long sleeve shirt but had a canvas bag over his head. The hooded figures arranged themselves in a large semi-circle facing the stained glass window and the altar that was to the side of the window. A lone figure stood near the altar. Clair wondered if he or she was the leader of the group.

The leader pointed to the person being held and snapped their fingers loudly. Two hooded figures who carried the struggling person brought him into the semi-circle center where the light from the stained glass was shining down. Throwing him to the ground, the two figures bent down and attached something to the person's arms. Clair squinted to see exactly what, but she was too far up to see details. If she had to guess, she would say from the sound that it could be metal chains.

" _Remove his blind!" The leader ordered as he raised his hand out. Clair noticed that the voice from the leader was deep and threatening. A man's voice. A familiar man's voice._

One of the two figures stepped towards the person and snatched the bag off from the head, causing it to snap backward violently. The person gasped and fell forward, weakly onto the floor. Clair squinted her eyes to see if she could see who this poor person was. From where she was, all she could perceive was that the person was male and had short dark hair. Only the light from the stained glass was changing the color of his hair, which made her confused as to which tone it was.

" _Boy you have been a fool!" The leader shouted as he pointed down at him. "Stealing from us is something that you will regret!" The other figures cheered and clapped. "We only found the pouch on your person but not our property, so tell us... Where are the Blood Diamonds?!"_

Clair gasped and backed away from the edge of the second floor. "The Mad Monks, here?" She thought, looking back down to the floor. "Then that must be William, chained up down there, and the man by the alter is Cookery." As if he heard her saying his name, the leader removed his hood showing that it was David Cookery. Only she was confused by his appearance as the burn marks and scars on his face made him look more monstrous than human. Clair sat back, trying to think of what to do. All she knew was that she had to do something; William couldn't escape without her help.

" _I won't tell you." William's weak tone said from below._

" _Stubborn brat, aren't you?" Cookery whispered. Clair shivered as she realized that she could hear his voice as if he was standing next to her. "I will give you one last chance. Tell me where the Blood Diamonds are... or we will have to make you tell us." Clair glanced back through the banister, watching as Cookery turned to the altar with his back to William and the other monks. Leaning forward to see what Cookery was doing at the altar, she spotted that he was mixing powder and a flower in a stone bowl. Picking up a dagger that lay on the altar, he turned to face William, vanished from sight, and suddenly reappeared in front of him._

Clair gasped air into her lungs and was about to scream a warning to William when a hand wrapped and pressed around her mouth. Clair squirmed and tried to break free from whatever or whoever was holding her. An arm wrapped around her body, pulling her away from the edge of the banister. During the struggle, Clair felt her feet kick out and hit the crates with an echoing bang. She froze as the thing holding her swore in her ear and dragged her farther away from the boxes. Luckily, she was still able to view the main floor from this angle that the person moved her too and waited to see if any of the monks heard the bang.

Surprisingly they ignored it, muttering about raccoons or birds. Clair squirmed around in the hold on her to see Cookery, who took hold of William's left arm and sliced it deeply with the dagger. William grunted in pain as he tried not to scream out, but as the blade was removed from his flesh, he couldn't help but cry out. Cookery walked back to the altar and, walking up the steps, glanced up to the second-floor, scanning it carefully. Focusing his attention back to the altar, he dripped a few of William's blood into the stone bowl. Turning back to the group, he raised the bowl into the light of the stained glass. Clair's eyes widened as the colorful lights from the stained glass faded and darkened into a red hue. The hue washed over William's skin, covering him in a curtain of red light. He struggled against the hold of the chains, the rattling echoing around the Church mixed with his grunts, sobs, and heavy breathing. Clair fought against the thing holding, desperately trying to get out of the hold and down to the main floor to rescue William.

A dark voice growled by her ear in a language that she didn't know but had a feeling that it was commanding her to be still or to be silent. Clair shook her head, trying to tell the thing that she wouldn't listen. "I need to get to him!" She yelled in her mind.

" _You go, you will be caught." The dark voice said in a growl. "And they will do worse to you."_

Clair shivered as she watched William suffer. Speaking against its hand, she cried, "I don't care." The hand pressed harder against her mouth. She looked down, noticing a few monks turning their heads and looking up at the balcony.

" _Please let me go!"_

" _I will not."_

Feeling useless to William, she asked the thing holding her, "What are they doing to him?"

" _You will know soon enough." Was his only response._

Looking over the edge again, Clair watched as William squirmed in pain. Cookery and the monks laughed as he fell to the ground, unconscious. Cheers and calls of excitement echoed around the Church. Clair felt a burst of strength fill her as she pulled away from whatever was holding her back. Running to the balcony's railing, she saw William's limp body on the ground and screamed down a heartbreaking cry. Followed by the cry was a gasp as something flew by the balcony and floated above her.

" _So glad you could join us, my dear."_

Above her was David Cookery looking down at her with red eyes. His crooked teeth were showing in a sinister, triumphant grin. Clair screamed and backed away only to find the thing that held her before again, wrapped its arms around her.

" _Let me go! Let me go!!" She cried out as she pounded her arms against his. She blinked, noticing that the arms around her were male with long sleeves and wearing thick leather gloves._

" _Having you both here will only make getting the Blood Diamonds back that much easier." Cookery said with a slight chuckle of amusement. His eyes shifted to the male holding her from behind. Clair felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand up in worry, as thoughts of the one holding her could be working for Cookery. Another horrible idea came to her that the long stare that Cookery was giving could be him hypnotizing the person behind her into doing his bidding. Cookery spoke again, this time directly to the man behind her, "However; I was not expecting you."_

" _Damn it." The male said and forced her away from the edge of the balcony by throwing her backward. Clair felt like a bowling ball going in slow motion as she was rolling on the floor away from the balcony._

" _You cannot protect her, Fallen!" Cookery's voice changed to a threatening pitch and tone as he tried to grab out at her. Clair gasped as she saw a bony white hand disappear behind the blanket that she still wore on her shoulders. The blanket tucked and wrapped around her face making her gasp for air. "He has me!" She thought as she squirmed._

~~~

Clair landed hard on something. Looking around, she noticed that she couldn't see anything. It was dark. She tried to move, only she couldn't. Something was wrapped around her. Recalling the blanket, Clair struggled to get the sheet off of her. Poking her head out into fresh cold air, she was surprised to find that she was in her room, laying on the ground, tangled up in a blanket.

"Where am I?" She coughed a bit, noticing her mouth was dry. Pushing the blanket off her chest, she sat up and looked around her bedroom. "My room. But how did I get here?" She looked from the bed to where she sat now, trying to piece things together. Glancing at the wall, where she recalled the dot being, she asked, "Or did I even leave?"

"I must have fallen out of bed." Clair said to herself. "But how did I get onto the bed?" Recalling the arms that caught her before she blacked out, Clair nodded. "Okay, then that... the Church? Was it a dream? It felt so real." She stood up and placed the blanket on the bed. Glancing at the clock seeing that it was past midnight, she worried about William as he said he would call her back.

"William..." She turned to look at her cell phone, sitting by her lamp. Turning the screen on from its sleep state, she saw no messages, texts, or a call from him. "He said that he would call... Unless something happened to him. If my dream was real, then..." She looked at the phone and swallowed. "Should I call him?"

"No!" She said, running a hand through her hair with annoyance and throwing the phone onto the blanket. "If he is with the Mad Monks, then calling could make things worse for him or for me for that matter." Clair sat on her bed, the covers wrapped around her shivering body. She didn't want to go to bed. She was worried about having another nightmarish dream or to continue the dream with David Cookery grabbing out at her. The thing that held her back might not be in this dream or reality.

"Who or what was that?" She asked silently. "Cookery called him Fallen. Like a fallen angel?" Clair thought for a minute. "He wasn't hurting me. Well, besides not letting me move or talk. Maybe it was that man with the scar from the chapel?" She laid down in the bed as her neck and lower back started to hurt from the position she was leaning.

"Cookery said that it couldn't protect me?" Her eyes fluttered closed, and yawned. "So maybe..." Clair tried to keep her eyes open, but they lowered just as she thought she saw a smiling figure sitting in the rocking chair, watching her.

### Chapter 10

The next morning, Clair couldn't wait for William to arrive at school. She needed to make sure he was alright from after what she dreamt about last night. Clair wondered if she should tell him about the dream she had or just wait and see what he would say to her. She just needed to see him. Only he wasn't anywhere to be found for the morning classes. His desk was empty in English, and the science class was still canceled as no teacher was able to replace Mr. Smithy yet. Clair found that interesting as hiring a substitute for other teachers was simple, but replacing a science teacher was harder it seemed.

Clair sat with Melanie and Kyler during lunch. There was still no sign or text from William, and she was getting worried. She wondered if she would have to call the police and file a missing person's report. At least she would know of his last whereabouts if the police would believe her about the dream. "Probably not." she sighed.

"You seem very distant, Clair." Melanie asked worriedly. "And you keep looking around as if you are searching for someone."

"I'm fine." Clair said repetitively. "Just tired."

"Maybe she was up all night watching more Night Bite." Kyler said, laughing.

"Hard to do, when she practically memorized the whole series so far." Melanie said, nodding. "Though they are filming more episodes for the new season."

"Playing online games then." Kyler suggested.

"She wasn't on." Melanie said, shaking her head. "I checked. Unless you found a new game?"

Clair shook her head and said with a white lie, "No, I was studying last night."

"Oh, that was my next guess!" Kyler said.

"I was busy last night too." Melanie said. "We have been sketching in art and..."

Clair faded out of the conversation between Kyler and Melanie as she felt something in her pocket vibrate. Pulling out her phone, she glanced at the caller ID seeing William's name flashing on the screen. Relief calmed her nerves, but Clair soon worried about who was on the other end of the call. She pictured Cookery stealing William's phone and using it to call her. "I have to take this." Clair said quickly as she stood up and walked around the corner away from Kyler and Melanie. Once she was alone, Clair pressed the button and waited.

"Hello?" Clair asked, not wanting to sound like she had been desperately expecting the phone call. She thought of a scene from a movie where kidnappers called to arrange a ransom for the hostage. Clair swallowed, waiting to hear if William would answer or if she was going to hear David Cookery's voice instead. The line remained silent for a few moments. Clair cleared her throat and said into the phone again, "Hello?"

"Clair?" She placed her hand on her chest to calm her beating heart from a panic attack. It was William's voice.

"William?" She asked, hopefully.

"Yes, it's me." He said in a groggy tone.

Clair couldn't hold back anymore as she rapidly asked, "Are you alright? What happened last night? You didn't call me back, and I was worried about you? Did they get you? Are you hurt?"

"Hold on, I'm fine. Just tired." He said, yawning. "I couldn't come to school today."

"Why not?" Clair asked worriedly. "Was it that spell that Cookery cast on you?"

The line went quiet. "What spell?"

Clair caught herself before she went into an explanation. She figured that it must have been a dream, or he would have agreed with her. She shook her head and said with a small laugh, "Sorry, I don't know where that came from. I just had this dream last night, and it got me worried, but... it couldn't have happened..." She paused. "Anyways, are you alright?"

"Yes, I'm fine." He said. "My little sister is sick, and she had to stay home, but she can't stay home alone cause my mom had to go to work. So, I called the school saying I was sick."

"I'm sorry to hear that." Clair said, relieved that he was fine. "But what about the monks?"

"Oh, them, well." He paused. "They stayed outside my house. Mom didn't let any in, don't worry. But I feel drained and strangely weak today. I woke up on the floor of my room this morning. Weird, eh?"

Clair's mouth dropped. "I woke up on the floor too. Apparently, I fell out of bed." She shook her head. "What about the pouch? Is it safe?"

"Yeah it's safe. The diamonds are too." He muttered something away from the phone. "I actually moved the diamonds from the pouch."

Clair felt the skin on the back of her neck rise at this news. She recalled Cookery mentioning that he couldn't find the diamonds on William, just the pouch. "Why would you do that?" she asked with concern.

"If the monks tried to get into my house and search for the pouch, they would find it full of rocks. I hid the diamonds in a metal tin." There was a pause as something rattled in the background. "Only thing is I can't find the pouch in my hiding spot."

"Oh god. They do have the pouch." Clair said with a gasp. She leaned back against the wall in disbelief.

"What that can't be true. My room is messy. It must be here somewhere." William said with a small laugh.

"No, William. I don't think it's in your room." Clair said, worried.

"Clair, you sound scared... What's wrong?"

"As I mentioned, I had a dream last night, and well..." She paused, trying to recall the dream. "The monks were in it, and you were too. I watched as they dragged you into this church and chained you to the floor. Cookery was in front of you and wanted to know where the diamonds were because he said that they found the pouch on you but not the diamonds. You didn't answer him." She paused, catching her breath as her heart pounded in her chest. "Then to make you talk, he did this spell on you."

"Spell?" He said, surprised.

"Yeah, he mixed these things together into a bowl and added your blood by cutting you."

"Wait, in the dream, where did he cut me?" William asked.

"The inner part of your left forearm, I think." Clair answered.

The line was quiet for a while until William muttered, "So that's how I got this mark then."

"What?" Clair gasped. "William? This is freaking me out."

"Clair, don't freak out. This is great because you can see things that happen in your dreams, and they are real."

"Please don't sound excited because I'm not." Clair said, sighing.

"Don't worry, it was probably a small spell to get me to talk. Nothing to worry about." He assured her. "But did you wanna meet after school or after supper? Maybe something else from the dreams you've been having could give us the advantage against the Mad Monks."

"I will have to see." Clair said sadly. "Got more homework, and I've had other things on my mind that I hadn't started them yet like what I would usually do." She frowned as this was true; because of this, Mad Monk and Blood Diamonds Clair was a bit behind in her usual scheduled assignments.

"I see." William said. "Well, homework is important."

Clair nodded silently as the bell rang. "Lunch is over. I hope your sister feels better."

"She'll be fine." He said with a laugh.

"And you be careful too." Clair said. "I don't think that was a get-you-to-spill-the-beans' spell. It looked a lot more intense and painful."

"I'll be fine." William said. "You better get to class."

"Text if anything happens." Clair demanded.

"I'll text if something feels off or if monks are outside the house." William said slowly.

Clair hung up the phone and raced to her locker to retrieve her books for the afternoon's classes. During drama class, Clair and Melanie were line partners because William was away. Throughout history, Clair felt her phone go off again. Waiting till after the lecture was over, and they had a work period during class, she took out her phone and noticed three urgent texts from William.

William - 2:20 pm

You were right about the spell, Clair. I am feeling very strange and throwing up all over.

William - 2:30 pm

Clair... What was that spell about? Did Cookery mention it in your dream? I'm feeling very itchy all over my body.

William - 2:45 pm

I know what the spell is doing to me, Clair... It's turning me into a werewolf!

Clair raced home to start working on her homework. Still, the only thing that came into her mind was William becoming a werewolf. Her mind couldn't understand why Cookery would turn William into a werewolf or if such a thing was possible. "He wanted William to tell him where the diamonds were or to force him to tell..." Clair scratched her head with the end of her pen as she sat at her desk. Rewriting her notes from the history lecture, she thought about any instances in Night Bite that could help.

"Athena had a friend who became a werewolf, but that was only for a few episodes. A pack came into the city and demanded her friend join them to prevent fear in the humans of the town. Which was interesting on their part." Clair focused harder on the notes, promising that once they were done, she would look up information on werewolves. "Only the friend became a werewolf naturally, not through a spell."

"Clair supper!" Her mother called. Clair looked down at her notes and saw that after one more sentence, she was done. Quickly taking the time to finish, she closed her books and placed them into her bag. Standing up and heading downstairs, she passed the living room where Dean was sitting and eating his supper in front of the TV.

"Sis, Van Helsing is on. Wanna watch with me?" Dean called out.

Clair entered the kitchen and got her food. Thanking her mom, Clair left the kitchen to walk through the living room. She had watched the movie before, but her mind was busy with other matters. However, if she found interest in the film, she would stay and eat with Dean. Her eyes landed on the large screen tv to see the handsome Hugh Jackman walking around the town hunting something.

"Hmm not tonight Dean." She said, walking towards the stairs. "I have a lot of homework and..."

"...Werewolves are hard to control on the night of their first full moon..." Count Dracula said as the actor who played Valken entered the castle.

Clair turned sharply around, nearly spilling her carrots onto the floor. She re-entered the living room and sat next to Dean at the coffee table. "Well, I'm almost done." Clair said softly and watched with interest while she ate. In her mind, she was taking mental notes as the scenes played out. She knew that screenplays and movies were a thing of fiction, but she felt that there had to be some truth to them, or the situation would never be created.

"... With fresh werewolf venom coursing through your veins..."

Clair nearly dropped her fork as the line from the film made the thought come to her. Cookery must have been wanting to turn William into a werewolf to control him into giving the location of the diamonds or giving them directly. Quickly finishing her meal, she thanked Dean and placed her dishes in the kitchen.

"Thanks? For what?" He asked, confused. Unable to answer him, she ran up the stairs to her room and checked the homework that she was given to make sure that it was done. Nodding, she picked up her cellphone and dialed William's number. She gathered her warm jacket and bag with a notebook, pen, silver cross, and the multi-tool. Putting on her shoes at the door, Clair called out to her mom that she was going out and will be back for 9:00.

"Hello?"

"William! It's Clair." She said, panting. "I had a thought, and I'm coming over. Is it dark at your place yet?"

"No, I don't think so." He said slowly.

"Great. I'll be there as soon as I can." She hung up and started running faster down the paths. She hadn't been to his house but had his address when he invited her to study English last week. Typing it into her phone's GPS, she followed the sidewalks by the roads to get to his house. She saw that it wasn't like her neighborhood and wasn't surprised to see the children in rough-looking clothes running around. At the same time, the parents watched them, talking loudly and drinking beer.

"Ehh... Interesting neighborhood." Clair said softly as some people waved to her, and she put on a fake smile to wave back. "I didn't know this area existed around here." She then focused on the house numbers. "16...16...?" A door opened, making Clair turn to see William motioning for her to hurry in. She rushed forward, looking around the street as she went. To the left side, Clair noticed a public park behind a gated fence. Sweeping the area quickly, she entered the house as William moved to the side to let her in.

"Thank god you found my house." He said with a laugh as he looked behind her before closing the door. "I was a bit worried when the sky got darker that you wouldn't find it and would be wandering around."

"GPS is useful for navigation." Clair said, taking off her shoes. "Okay, I have a plan and..." William quickly covered her mouth with his hand and pointed upstairs. Clair nodded in understanding and followed him up the stairs noticing the boxes in the main living space and kitchen.

"Sorry for the mess." He said, opening the door once they reached the second floor. "We are still moving in."

"That's fine." Clair said as she stepped into his bedroom, and her mouth dropped. "You weren't kidding. This place is a mess. No one could find anything in here." A part of Clair really wanted to start tidying the room but figured that it was rude. She took her notebook out and flipped open to an unused sheet. Getting a pen from the bag, she started to write a message down, and once she was done, she gave it to William to read.

I know why they turned you into a werewolf.

"Why?" William asked... "Also why are we..." Clair raised her finger to her lips quickly to silence him. She took the pad of paper from him and wrote rapidly.

The Mad Monks might be able to hear us if we talk. But if we write, they won't know what we are talking about. Now, Cookery wanted to turn you into a werewolf because werewolves can be controlled.

"I don't see how..."

Clair glared at him for speaking. Writing quickly, she handed him the book to read.

With you as a werewolf, on the first full moon, Cookery could get you to bring him the diamonds under his control.

Clair looked at him, hoping he would get the idea.

"Okay, makes sense." He said, nodding. "What do we do then?" He took the pen and paper from her and wrote,

The first full moon is this weekend.

Clair nodded as she didn't think that far. Looking at a hanging calendar on the wall, she noticed the date with the full moon's image as the weekend of the Girl Guides camping trip. An idea came her as she took back the pad and started to write.

Give me the diamonds!

"What! But you..." Clair glared at him and pushed the paper into his hands. Tapping the page with the pen in her hands, she waited for him to take it from her only to watch him go and get his own.

You didn't want one. Why take them all?

Look, if they don't come with me, then Cookery will have both the Blood Diamonds and a new teenage werewolf slave.

Clair bit her lip as the realization of the situation came to her. She didn't want to keep the Blood Diamonds, but to prevent the Mad Monks from getting them for another week, at least, would give them more time to plan about what to do about them. She wrote.

I'll keep them with me till we can figure out a counterspell or something for you.

William was quiet for a bit till he said softly, "I would feel better if they stayed."

Clair neared him and whispered back, "We don't know how strong these guys are. We just know that they are determined to get them back." She swallowed, feeling nervous. "You asked me to trust you. Please, trust me in return. Besides, it's an at-least-for-now situation."

"What if I come after you?" William said with a whisper.

Clair turned the page over and wrote.

You don't know where I live.

"He does." William said, looking seriously back at her.

"This weekend is my camping trip with the Guides... I'll bring them with me." Clair nodded with excitement as the growing idea sounded good to her. "Cookery doesn't know where the camping grounds are. Therefore, buying us some time."

"This is risky, Clair."

"What have we got to lose?" Clair asked with a smile. "Sorry, Athena often says that in the show, and I thought it would sound cool." A frown soon came on her face. "We actually could lose a lot."

William looked around the room. "Are you sure about this?" Clair nodded and put the notebook and pen back into her bag. Moving things around to create space, she pulled out a black velvet pouch. She pointed to it, indicating to William to put the diamonds inside. He nodded back to her and opened his filled closet. Getting onto his hands and knees, he started to dig, throwing things behind him.

"Here." He said, lightly pulling a Power Rangers tin lunch box out. He opened the tin, and Clair looked at the diamonds with a shiver. William did have a point that she could barely handle one diamond. Now she will have to protect the whole collection. Looking up at him with determination, she nodded for him to dump them into the velvet pouch. Holding the bag open, she felt a few different zaps as the diamonds hit against her fingers and landed into the bag.

"Why in there?" He asked as he closed the tin.

"Velvet is said to contain energy inside and prevent energy from seeing it. Or so says the internet." Clair said, sealing the pull strap closed and placing the pouch into her bag. "Well, I should go before it gets too dark."

"They could be outside now, waiting to follow you home." William said, following her down the stairs. "I could see if mom can drive you home." He cursed behind her. "I forgot she doesn't get the car till next week."

Clair nodded in understanding. "It's okay. I'll be careful and mindful of things around me." She reached the door and started to put her shoes on. Looking out the window of the door frame, she hoped no one would follow her home but knew she had to be careful. It wasn't Toronto, but nighttime wasn't a good place to just wander by yourself. "Alright. I'll see you tomorrow at school."

"Yeah." Suddenly reaching out and grabbing her arm, stopping her from opening the door, he added, "Clair, just please be careful." He opened the door for her. "Go right home. If something doesn't look or sound right, then run."

Clair swallowed but nodded as she felt her adrenaline start to fill her. "Bye." She shivered as the night air hit her. Looking around her, she kept a quick pace as she walked down William's street. Turning to the sidewalk near the road, Clair lifted her cellphone and used the camera application to look behind her. Pretending to talk to someone, she glanced to the side over her shoulder and noticed a car following slowly behind her. The road was strangely empty minus this car – which was going slow, considering the speed limit of the road was 70 km. Seeing a path leading between two houses, Clair suddenly turned and ran down the trail. Once reaching the end of the path, she noticed that she was in another neighborhood of houses. Recognizing it as Kyler's street, Clair nodded her head, recalling the way home from here. She stayed on the paths between the houses until she really needed to cross Main Street. Clair didn't see the car following her, but she kept her cell phone up to look behind her.

Seeing the welcoming lights of her house, Clair took to a run. Stopping at the front door, she entered the house and took off her shoes. Climbing the stairs to her room, Clair opened her door and closed it quickly.

"Oh wow. My heart won't stop beating." Clair said, breathing deeply. "Hmm what can I do with these?" She looked around the room, noticing the books on the bookshelf. "Okay, for now, at least." She walked over and pulled out the fake book that she brought with her to Toronto, opening it, she placed the velvet pouch inside.

"I'll keep the cluster of Blood Diamonds with me till a solution can be found." Clair said as she started to strip off her clothes and get into her warm pajamas. She chuckled nervously, "No problem." Brushing out her long hair from the knots she figured she got from running home, she finished and sat on the edge of the bed, looking at the fake book. Thinking of the upcoming weekend where she was going camping with the Girl Guide troop at Camp Woolsey, she wondered if it was a good place to bring the diamonds. It was a thick forest area where many groups from around Ottawa and Quebec came to camp and learn survival skills.

"The biggest survival skill I need is to avoid Mad Monks while they demanded their magical Blood Diamonds back." Clair sighed. Blinking as William came into her mind, she frowned as she added to the list that they might now have a spell-controlled teen werewolf who could retrieve them. Glancing towards her open window as the curtain moved slightly from the wind, she shivered as she imagined a panicked William enter her room. His bones snapping painfully as he morphed in front of her and using his claws to carve out her innards. Shaking her head from the violent image her mind created, she rushed from the bed and slammed her window closed. Locking it, she looked around the room for the stained glass ornament that she placed on the graphic novel.

"It can't go through glass." She said in a whisper as she found it under her desk and placed it onto the window using the suction cup on the back. Looking at the time on her clock, she yawned and marched back to the bed. Getting under the covers, she whispered to herself, "Hopefully this will all be over soon."

~~~

Clair opened her eyes to find herself in a cold room. Lifting her head, she noticed that the place was familiar. It was from her childhood memories. "It's the campgrounds." She said, getting out of the bottom bunk of the bunk bed. Moving towards the door, she stepped out, but instead of her feet landing on the same tiled floor as the room, it felt wet and cold. Looking down, Clair noticed she was standing on grass and around her was the woods by the Girl Guide's cabin.

" _What are you doing out here so late at night, young lady?" A voice called out to her. Turning, Clair noticed an old man with a gardening rake over his shoulder. He was wearing long jean overalls and a thick long sleeve plaid shirt with silver shining buttons on the front. A large fabric hat hung on his back, held by a leather strap around the front of his neck. "It's dark out here."_

" _Yes. I... I think I'm looking for something." Clair said, unsure why she was here._

" _Answers?" The old man asked as he placed the metal rake to the ground and leaned against the handle. Clair shrugged her shoulders and nodded. "Very well. Follow me." Twirling the rake in his thin fingers and placing it back onto his shoulder, Clair walked behind the old man as he led her down a path towards some thick trees._

" _Where are we going, sir?" Clair asked as she heard some twigs snap around her. Hurrying to walk closer to him, as the forest sounds were frightening her._

" _Going to see the one who can answer your questions." He replied. "Hush now and listen closely to what I have to say." Clair nodded and waited for him to continue._

He stopped suddenly, making Clair move sideways to not run into him. Bending down to her, Clair realized just how tall this man was, and as he spoke, she felt herself shrink in fear at each word. "There will be an old cottage on this property. When the full moon is high in the sky, and its light covers the cottage's front door, you must walk up to the door and knock three times upon it. Then write down your question and slip it under the door."

His thin fingers quickly grabbed her by the shoulders, shaking her violently. Once he stopped shaking her, the man began to speak again – his voice more disjointed than before. "Once that is done, walk three steps away with your back to the door and say - 'Witch of the forest, take my question and bring the answer to me.' Hold out your hand to the house, and she will put her answer into your hand. Just remember to not turn your head and look at the cottage. No matter what happens or what is said to you, DO NOT TURN AROUND TO FACE THE HOUSE!"

~~~

Clair sat up in bed with a gasp as her whole body shook in fear. The voice of the old man was calm and gentile initially, but as he continued to speak, Clair noticed the change in his voice. It turned ominous, corrupted, and demonic in nature. Recalling the instructions, Clair figured it was best to write them out. She felt that if she didn't, the old man would just retell the speech over and over into the night until she got it memorized. Reaching for the notebook in her dresser drawer, Clair started to write out the steps he gave her. Once writing the last steps out, she reread them, making sure she didn't forget anything.

### Chapter 11

Clair swayed back and forth as she stared tiredly into her locker. The dream with the old man kept appearing and bothering her all night. Each time the demonic tone of his voice would scare her awake, and Clair would realize that she did miss parts of the 'rules' he had given her. The old man was persistent and relentless, which meant no sleep for her. She tried to focus on which books she needed for science, but she would lose her balance each time she reached into the locker, falling backward. Clair felt hands grab her back.

"Hey. You alright?" Clair turned her head to see Kyler holding her up from behind. "You don't look so good."

"I didn't sleep well," Clair said, moaning slightly as the room spun a bit.

"Well, of course not. You were probably up all night for last-minute test cramming." Kyler said with worry.

"There is no test," Clair said weakly.

Kyler ignored her words as she placed the back of her hand to Clair's forehead. Kyler shook her hand away as if in pain. "Damn, you're burning up. You might have a fever." Clair shook her head, muttering she was okay, but the movement of her head made her whole body fall weakly against the lockers next to her. Kyler frowned, "You should go see the nurse."

Clair pushed slowly off the lockers and looked deeply into her locker. Her eyes locked on the science textbook she had been grabbing for the past. She checked her watch on her wrist. "Great." She muttered silently. She had been trying to reach into her locker for the past 20 minutes since she got to school. "I only have a few minutes to get to class."

"That would be a good time to go see the school nurse. Come on, I'll take you."

"No, Kyler! I need to get to class. Hopefully, there is no class again. If there isn't, then I'll go to the nurse."

"Well, Little Miss, I can walk down a flight of stairs to the first floor. I wish you good luck." Kyler stood with her arms crossed and a serious look on her face. Clair sighed and locked the door hard, trying to show how much energy she still had. Taking a few steps, Clair felt something lift her arm. Turning, she saw Kyler give a pathetic shake of her head.

"It's a good thing I have a spare in the first period," Kyler said.

"It's a good thing, you're my friend," Clair said softly.

Kyler looked down with a smile forming on her face. "Yeah. Though I could be taking you to the nurse's office. You may never know." They walked down the stairs slowly and around the corner to the area of the science classes. "Which one?" Kyler asked as she looked from one door to the other.

"Seven. Oh, it looks like there is class today." Clair said with a sigh. "You don't need to walk me in."

"Yes, I do! You nearly face-planted into the lockers upstairs." Kyler said, continuing to walk to the door.

"Really, I'm alright now. I can walk in myself."

"No, you just don't want the attention on you," Kyler said. "It's either I carry you in, or fall flat on your face because you passed out." She shrugged her shoulders. "It's up to you."

Clair lifted her arm off from Kyler's back. She waited for a minute and nodded slowly. "I'll be fine. Thank you, though."

"Alright," Kyler said, slowly looking over her. "You know that your pale, right?"

"I've always been pale," Clair said with a slight grin.

"Oh yeah, I've heard that one before from you." Kyler paused. "I'll wait here till you get to your seat. After that, I'll be in the cafe getting your lunch ready."

"Yes, mom," Clair said with a giggle.

"There we go, laughter is the best medicine." Kyler patted her shoulder but said thoughtfully, "Don't overdo it, Clair."

Clair nodded and opened the door to walk inside the classroom. As she walked in, she noticed that half of the seats were filled with students, and they were quickly texting to other students to hurry to class. Rounding the corner, Clair bumped into the edge of a table, making a loud scratching sound. Cursing under her breath, she noticed William quickly look in her direction with a worried look on his face. Next to William was a tall man talking to him until he heard the table screech.

Turning to see where the sound came from, Clair saw the man's features and had to stop herself from reaching out to pinch her skin to see if she was dreaming. The man wore a t-shirt with a lab coat design and jeans that showed his long muscular legs. His hair was a dark color and messy - stylishly messy. Clair figured that this was their new science teacher. He was an older man, but compared to Mr. Smithy, this man could have walked off the Paris runway or just came from a photo shoot.

"Excuse me," Clair said weakly as she passed by them and noticed the teacher's scent of woody cologne. He moved and looked down at her with a worried expression.

"Clair, are you alright?" William asked, worried as he watched her pass by his desk to sit across from him. "You don't look well."

"I'm fine," Clair said. She placed her books onto her desk and slid slowly into her seat. "I didn't sleep last night."

"I'm sorry to hear that... Clair, was it?" The man asked as he left the front of William's desk to sit on the back of the one in front of Clair. She looked up at him, hoping to smile at him, but felt the room spin around her, closing her eyes to stop the sickening motion. "You look very pale, Clair. Have you gone to the nurse's office yet?"

"I'm usually pale, Sir, and anyways I don't need to go to the nurse's office," Clair said, shrugging her shoulders.

"Is that so?" He said in surprise to her response.

"Oh, Clair, there you are! Kyler texted me, and she told me all about it." Melanie said in a hurried tone as she placed her things by her desk. Clair suddenly noticed a breakfast sandwich in front of her desk as Melanie's hand zoomed away as if she performed a magic trick. "I thought we told you not to study so much that you wear yourself out. Here, eat this sandwich."

"Melanie, please," Clair whispered as she tried to hand the sandwich back. "I'm fine. Just tired." Her stomach growled in protest as the sandwich left the desk. "Damn stomach," Clair growled silently.

"I don't mind food in the lab. Just not when we are mixing formulas or dissecting anything." The man said as he walked back to his desk and turned to write something on the blackboard.

Clair propped her head on her hand while Melanie poked her back to get her attention. She turned carefully in her chair and raised an eyebrow as Melanie mouthed an aggressive 'eat the sandwich'. Clair moved back to face the board, lifted the sandwich to her lips, and took a bite. As she ate, she sighed as the bits of food was helping with her lightheadedness.

"Clair, are you alright?" William whispered as the class started to settle down. "Do we need to switch?" She knew that he was referring to the Blood Diamonds. Still, she felt a bit unnerved about him being under Cookery's control; she slowly shook her head with a weak smile. She rubbed her heavy eyelids and took another bite of the sandwich. Melanie was an angel to get this for her. She didn't want to tell Kyler or Melanie that she was in such a rush to get to school that she hadn't eaten any breakfast.

The man at the front of the room faced the class, cleared his throat. "Hello, class. As you can see, I am not your previous teacher. I am just substituting for the semester until they find someone permanent." He paused as he walked around the desk and sat down on the edge of it. "My name is Gregory Anderson. You can call me Greg, Mr. Anderson, or Mr. G. However, Mr. G is what my previous kindergarten class called me." He laughed to himself but stopped when he realized that no one was laughing with him but staring at him awkwardly. "Anyways, I came around to get to know a few of you already. Names might take me a while to get, but we'll see how things go. I just need to know where you all left off with your previous teacher?"

"The lesson of designer shoes." A voice called from the back as the class laughed loudly. Clair smiled and nodded her head in agreement.

"Yes, I did hear the stories." Mr. Anderson said, laughing with them. "What section were you learning about, though?"

"Energy and matter," Melanie said brightly. Clair smiled; Melanie did enjoy science more than English.

"Ah, I see." Mr. Anderson said, nodding his head. "Well, I guess for an early class, everyone in here might not have as much energy." The class nodded and giggled. "Well, let's see if we can change that!" He said he jumped off the edge of the table and ran to the back of the desk. He bent over and stood back, holding a ball in his hand.

"This is a ball. Nothing interesting about it, right? What about when I throw it at... James?!" Mr. Anderson pulled back the ball and threw it directly at James. Surprised by the fast-approaching ball, James ducked and cried out a curse. A few in the class cried out in fear, and some chuckled as the ball bounced off the desk behind James and rolled on the ground.

"The hell was that?" James shouted, annoyed as the class laughed.

"As I mentioned, it's a ball. But I gave it the energy to throw it to you." Mr. Anderson said with a laugh.

"More like at me. Here I thought we got rid of Smithy!" James said, bending over to pick up the ball and throw it back to Mr. Anderson.

"Wait, hold your arm up like that." Mr. Anderson said, holding up his hand like a stop sign as he walked towards James. "Now, you are preparing to throw the ball back at me, right?" James nodded as his annoyance fizzled out and became confused. "Is there energy in the ball now?" He asked the class.

"No?" Shara said with an irritated click of her tongue.

"Why?" Mr. Anderson countered as he pointed to her.

"It's not moving," Melanie said, raising her hand. "Energy means moving."

"Alright. That is true." Mr. Anderson said, nodding, lowering his hand. "However, James is holding the ball and getting ready to throw it. He is building up his energy to send the ball flying back at me." The class remained quiet. "This is called pending energy. The energy that is building up or being stored to use later." He pointed to the ball and James' arm. "See how his arm is shaking now? It's getting tired because the energy is ready to be used, but nothing is happening right away." Mr. Anderson quickly walked back to the blackboard and held his hands out, covering his face. "Go ahead and throw it, James. Everyone, keep your eye on the ball as it comes back to me."

James shrugged his shoulders to this request. Lowered his sore arm for a moment and then raised it up to pitch the ball at Mr. Anderson. A few students gasped as the speed the ball flew towards Mr. Anderson's face. Clair widened her eyes as she was getting nervous for the new teacher's sake. All eyes followed the ball as it flew and hit against the board with a loud slapping sound. Clair blinked as the sound startled her, while other students shrieked in surprise.

"You moved?" James said, annoyed.

"You think I would stand in front of pent up energy." Mr. Anderson said, laughing. "Now, the energy of that flying ball is called... Anyone?"

Clair raised her hand. With a smile and a nod from Mr. Anderson, she replied, "Kinetic."

"That's right." He said with a smile. "So now that we figured that out." He bent back behind the desk and placed a pile of papers on his desk. "Let's get into something a little more exciting. Notes!" A wide smile came to his face.

"Notes, aw man." The class moaned.

"Notes aren't exciting!" James shouted as he slumped down back into his seat.

"They are if you add these." Mr. Anderson said he lifted up two items up and placed them onto the top of the desk. There was a DVD case displaying large font about energy and matter while next to it was a long metal toy rocket ship. "Well, okay, I lied a bit." He paused as the class cheered with realization. "The movie is with the notes, but this rocket here is for our class on Monday – that is if we have good weather."

"Best teacher ever," Melanie whispered as she placed her hand beside Clair's head. Clair nodded and slapped the hand with her own.

After class, Melanie followed Clair to her locker to make sure she didn't fall over. She was feeling a bit better but was still very tired. Placing her science book back into her locker and getting her English books, Clair closed it and followed Melanie to English.

"I can't believe the new science teacher; he's so cool!" Melanie said excitedly. "First the ball demonstration, then the movie and last the big explosion demonstration!" She laughed. "Did you see William jump during that explosion?"

"It was a 'big bang'." Clair said with a laugh. "Mr. Anderson was exciting, though; the class woke me up for sure."

"Yeah, alarm clock-a-la-flame," Melanie said, laughing.

Clair laughed softly. She stopped laughing as William stomped angrily by them and entered the classroom. "He's in a bad mood today."

"I noticed that too during science," Melanie said in confusion. "He didn't like it when Mr. Anderson called him up for that explosion demonstration." She laughed. "That jump and his expression when the gas in the jug ignited and flames shot out the top reached the ceiling. Priceless. He probably crapped his pants!"

"Melanie, that's mean," Clair said in a whispered chuckle, as they entered the class and sat down near a grumpy William. Clair smiled at William, but he only nodded his head to her.

Clair turned her head away from him, wondering why he was so moody today, hell she was the one who didn't get any sleep. Sighing, she figured that the werewolf thing might be stressing him out or as the first full moon was a few nights away, and it could be affecting him too.

***

Clair stretched as she sat down in her seat for history. She sighed as nothing fascinating happened during drama except for a few new drama costumes being delivered to the classroom. She pulled out her notebook and started to doodle.

"Hey," William said behind her. Turning, she was surprised that she didn't notice William enter the classroom, let alone walk by her desk.

"Hey..." She was about to tell William about the dream she had when the teacher entered and started the class.

"We're starting class early today because I want to give you all your first assignment." The class sighed and moaned. Ignoring the sounds, she continued, "I will hand out a person or event from the 20th century, and you will write a report about it." She walked around the class handing out sheets with the assignment's criteria, the student's name plus a person or event written in a space next to the word - topic. "Once everyone has their topics, we will be heading to the library to research for the whole period."

Walking by her desk, the teacher placed a sheet down, but Clair noticed that it was slipping off. Catching it and reading over the contents of the rubric excitedly, she frowned as the topic on the Romanov Family was one she hadn't heard of. Shrugging, she figured that's what the assignment was about, finding out about people and events.

"What did you get?" William asked as the class gathered their books and walked out of the classroom heading towards the library.

"The Romanov family." Clair said, shrugging her shoulders. "I haven't heard of them."

"Aw man, you got them?" A voice said sadly behind them. Clair turned to see Amy behind her frowning. Curry blond hair was hidden by the colorful bandanas that Amy wore every day. "I really wanted that one. It's one of my favorite topics in the early 20th century."

"Oh." Clair said in surprise. "Did you want to trade?"

"We're not allowed to trade." She said with a frown. "But if you get stuck, I could help you." She said, brightening up. "I know everything about the family, but the one part I find the most interesting is that Mad Monk."

Clair and William both turned quickly to Amy in confusion as they entered the library. "Who?!" They both asked.

Amy nodded. "Yeah. His real name is Rasputin. He is..." she paused, thinking and then corrected herself, "was this monk who was thought to have mystical abilities. The royal family, the Romanov's, had a sick boy, and the queen summoned Rasputin to the palace to try and heal him. Everyone was confused about his methods about calming the boy's sickness, but the queen thought he was a blessing. Eventually, he became the family's trusted advisor."

"Really?" Clair asked. "And the term, Mad Monk?"

"Oh, that's just one of his many nicknames." Amy said dismissively. "A lot of people didn't like him. People back then, and I guess some scholars think he was influencing the royal family with some strange hypnosis." She smiled kindly. "But you'll see exactly what people think about him as you research into the family's history. Hope you enjoy the topic; I think you will." Amy said as she headed towards a sitting area.

"Did you hear that?" Clair said, turning her head in surprise to William.

"Yeah, that is not a coincidence that you got this topic. Thought it should have been mine." He said, confused and a little sad.

"Why yours?" Clair asked.

"I want to research about this Mad Monk." He said plainly. "I stole the diamonds; I should learn more about them."

"Well, what did you get?" Clair asked as they walked along the bookcases to locate the history section.

"Nicolas Tesla?" He said, annoyed. "I have no idea who that is."

"Maybe he is a historical werewolf." Clair suggested with a giggle.

"Very funny." He said, unimpressed by the joke.

Clair looked at the rows of books and took a few to the table she and William were sharing. She was surprised that there was so much information on her topic. Sitting down and opening a book to a random page Clair jumped back in shock. Covering her mouth as a loud gasp made the library hush her.

"What's wrong?" William asked, putting his book down. He looked down at her book on the table and turned his head to get a better look. "Who is that?" He asked in disgust.

"Who else... The Mad Monk himself." Clair said, turning the book towards William. She shivered. "I can't even look at the picture. Those eyes just stare right through you. God, just imagine seeing him back then?"

William took the book and looked closer at the picture of the long-bearded man called Rasputin. He leaned closer to Clair and whispered, "You don't think that this could be the Mad Monks leader, do you?"

"No, cause that's Cookery." Clair said, shaking her head. "Also, it says under the picture that this guy died in 1916."

"What if he didn't, though?" William said, grimacing at the image. "This Rasputin guy sounds too strange, what with his hypnotic abilities that Amy mentioned. It would be strange for him not to be the leader of the Mad Monks." William turned the book around to face her again. "Look at the eyes, Clair. Do they remind you of anyone?"

"They do look like Cookery, but anyone can have eyes like that." Clair said, shrugging her shoulders. "Besides this guy died a century ago."

"Unless," William said silently. "Unless Cookery is this guy but just reborn in this century, or maybe this is who they worship."

Clair shook her head. "I think that all this is just a big coincidence. The Mad Monk is just a name that they gave this guy. Cookery is a crazy cult leader."

"I don't know." William said, thinking. He looked at Clair carefully with worry in his face. "Do you have the diamonds on you now?"

"No." Clair lied as she touched her satchel bag. She didn't want to leave the diamonds at home, so she brought the fake book to school. Her hand touched the front compartment where the fake book was sitting. A zap hit her palm, making her feel slightly dizzy. Flipping through the pages of the history book, she wondered if having the Blood Diamonds on her was making her feel this exhausted.

"I really don't think you should go to that camping trip, Clair." William said in a severe tone.

"I'll be fine." Clair said, removing her hand from the compartment and feeling better. Her book opened to another picture. "Ah, I like this picture better." Turning the book back to show William, she noticed the strange look in his eyes. They were staring at her, very similar to how Rasputin's image was looking. Focusing her attention on the picture, she found she admired it. The image was a photo of four beautiful young women sitting straight on some lounges and cushions. She looked at the text under the image, reading it to William. "Nickolas' beautiful daughters; Olga, Tatiana, Maria, and Anastasia. Beautiful names." Clair commented to herself out loud.

"Clair, listen to me..." William whispered urgently. Clair looked up at him, noticing that his eyes were still locked onto her. "You could be in danger..."

"I knew the danger when I... Did what I did." She said, trying to censor her words as she looked around the library. "If you're worried that you'll come after me, then just chain yourself in your room."

"No, what if they come for you while you're out camping?"

"You don't think I haven't thought of that already?" Clair said tiredly. "Listen, I might have a way to fix all of this, but if it doesn't work or don't follow the rules..." Clair froze as the old man's voice came to her, warning her to recall his words. "Then I might not have to worry about the Mad Monks and Cookery."

"What, why not?" William asked, confused. "What do you plan to do?"

"Ask a forest witch for help." Clair said, sighing as the idea already terrified her.

### Chapter 12

Clair gathered the young girls off the bus and walked them to the cabin where they were going to spend the night. She took a deep breath as she recalled not too long ago when she came to camp here as a Girl Guide. The fire pit where they sang campfire songs with the older Girl Guides and Pathfinder groups was still in the same area, only the benches were painted a gray color. The vast fields behind the cabins were freshly cut and watered by the rain they had during the week. The memories of the games they would play in that field made her smile.

Clair also recalled the countless dreams of the old man with the rake, leading her away from this cabin. She tightened her grip on the handle of the small wagons loaded with the camping supplies and the girls' overnight bags. Clair suggested tying the wagons together and pulling them like a caravan train, instead of running back and forth from the far parking lot to the cabin.

"Smart thinking, Clair!" She said through gritted teeth as a hill came up, and she pulled hard onto the handle. Finding that she made it to the top of the hill, she took a quick break letting go of the handle. However, a few of the girls who wanted to help by pushing the back end of the train of wagons were not aware of her having the break as they pushed the train down the steep hill. "Damn it!" Clair cursed under her breath as she rushed after the runaway train of supplies and luggage. Reaching the bottom of the hill before the wagon train, Clair braced herself to catch the five-wagon line.

"Nice catch!" Clair breathed deeply as she watched Paige and Casey watching with amusement in their eyes. Clair figured the comment came from Paige as this smug look appeared on her face.

Sherry opened the door to the cabin, and the girls rushed inside to start picking out which bunkbed would be theirs. Clair could hear the girls arguing with each other, added by a few group leaders speaking loudly as she pulled the wagons inside. Looking over the wagons, she started to separate the cargo into two piles; one of camping supplies and food, while the other was for the girls to find their weekend bags.

"Clair once you're done with the bags, could you please get the food into the fridge." Sherry shouted from a far room.

"Alright." Clair called back. She looked over at the pile of food and supplies and started to unzip bags and lift coolers to locate the many food and drinks they brought for the two days. Clair placed the food and drinks into two empty wagons and pulled the train of food into the kitchen area. Clair counted in her head how many hours of volunteering she would get from this weekend alone. Clair knew that by the end of her senior year, she would obtain more than the specified amount to graduate. This planning pleased her mother as she insisted on getting an early start on the hours to make her more recognized by colleges and universities. Clair never thought what it would be like after high school, and as her mind was more focused on other matters, she put those thoughts to the side to think about later.

Looking around the cabin area, Clair smiled again as she recalled the time when she was in this very cabin. Sitting at the round tables, making crafts, and eating with her friends. Thinking of her next-door neighbors from her previous neighborhood, Clair figured that she should contact them after this weekend to see how things were with them.

"Clair?" Sherry called from the rooms.

"Yes?"

"We finally got the girls to settle which bed is theirs." She informed Clair as she walked out of the room and came towards her holding a craft box. "We're going to get them working on crafts by making their own fancy hat visors. You can go into the rooms and pick out a bed for yourself." She paused. "And if you don't mind, could you sleep in one of the girl's rooms? In case something like Pillow Wars happens in the middle of the night."

Clair grinned. "I'll make sure the girls don't start a war. I just finished up here." Clair moved away from the fridge to show how she organized it. "Drinks on the top, meat on the second shelf, and rest on the bottom or in the crispers." She left the kitchen as Sherry muttered a kind thank you.

Grabbing her overnight bag and feeling another zap of electric shock, she grunted in annoyance as the Blood Diamonds were buried deep in her bag. Yet, they were still affecting her. Clair walked into the first room but stopped short when she realized that the leader's things were inside. She entered the next room and found that another leader had placed her items on a lower bunk, whereas the girls were up on the top bunks in the room. Which left the last room, she glanced in and noticed a few of the girls preparing their beds, some making little forts between the bunks.

"Clair!" A girl cheered. After the loud alarm, the rest of the girls cheered, jumped off the beds, and forced Clair into the room by pulling excitedly on her arms. "Sleep under me!" The girls cried out as they pulled Clair towards different bunks.

"She can't sleep in here!" A loud voice called over the other girl's shrieks of excitement. Clair turned her head, noticing Paige and Casey sitting on top of their bunk, looking down crossly at her. "She is mean and a liar!"

"Yeah." Casey said in agreement.

"Don't listen to them, Clair!" A few girls said. "There, grumpy!" Clair swallowed her laugh as she glanced sideways to Paige and Casey.

The girls eventually got Clair to sleep on the bottom bunk of the center bed. She figured that she could see all the girls if something were to happen. Clair made her bed and closed her bag up with a small key lock. She recalled that things could go "missing" at camp, or in other words, items get stolen. She figured keeping the bag locked would be best with the Blood Diamonds that she had. A sound behind her made Clair turn and watch Paige and Casey leaving their bunk to go out to the main area. Clair nodded her head as she clicked the lock close, placed the keys onto her keychain, and then put it into her pocket.

"Well what should we do next?" Sherry asked the group as she and the leaders cleaned up the tables from a hotdog lunch.

"Can we go outside?" A girl asked.

"I think that's a great idea." Sherry said with a smile. "Clair, you can take them outside and play for a bit while we clean up."

Clair nodded her head as she passed her plate to Sherry. "Alright, girls, follow me outside for a game of Fruit Basket." The girls cheered as they stood from their seats and rushed towards the front door of the cabin.

Once outside, Clair arranged them into a line and picked a girl to call out the different kinds of fruit. Noticing, of course, that Paige and Casey were sitting away from the group, not wanting to play. Clair noticed the girls soon were getting bored with the game and start to wander off into their own groups of friends. Thankfully, the leaders came out of the cabin and gathered the girls back.

"I think we should go out on a nature hike." Sherry said to the girls. They didn't cheer at the idea of just walking in nature, but the girls agreed. Splitting into five groups of five, Clair joined Sherry's group. She ground her teeth as she saw that Paige and Casey were in the group too. "Let's meet back here for 2:30." Sherry called out to the other leaders. They all nodded and headed out in different directions.

Clair followed behind her group to make sure the girls followed Sherry and didn't wander off. As the trees blocked the bright sun from shining down on them, Clair turned her mind to William. She had been so distracted with the camping trip that she didn't have a moment to think or worry about William. She wondered how he was feeling. Did turning into a werewolf hurt? In the movies and TV shows, it looked like it hurt. Then again, was he really turning into a werewolf? He could have lied to her, but what about the dream she had with Cookery casting a spell on him? What are the Blood Diamonds for? Will the Mad Monks come after her? Will they be safe back in the cabin, or should she have brought them with her? Clair turned to look behind her as she thought about heading back to the cabin.

Blinking her eyes as sunlight shone down, blinding her for a minute. She turned back to the group and continued to walk, rubbing her eyes and shaded them to realize in shock that Paige and Casey had gone off the path. Following quickly after them, she noticed that they didn't wander far.

"Girls, come back to the group." Clair said with a sigh.

"Shut Up! We're just picking flowers" Paige snapped as she placed her hands on her hips. "Go away!"

"Look," Clair said with her patience running thin with this brat, "Just get back on the trail and follow the group, alright."

"What are you going to do if we don't?!" Paige shouted. "Tell on us?"

"No." Clair said, shaking her head as she closed the distance between them. "I'll just leave you out here, on your own, without any idea how to get back to the cabin."

"You can't do that!" Paige laughed as she looked up at Clair, sizing her. "You'll get in trouble by Snowy Owl."

A sudden cry from Casey made Clair and Paige stop arguing and look at her. She had her back to them and was slightly shivering. Clair, thinking Casey had hurt herself, walked towards her. "Casey are you oh..." Clair stopped instantly as inches away from Casey's hand was a long dark snake. Clair felt her hair on her body rise in panic and fear. She was terrified of snakes. Casey gave a long, uncertain sob as the snake moved closer to her. Clair glanced quickly around her and saw a stick a few steps away – next to Paige's foot. She felt that she shouldn't leave Casey's side in case the snake did something.

"Casey, stay still." Clair said calmly, even if her heart was beating so hard that it felt like it would come out of her. "Paige. See that stick near your foot. Give it to me, please."

"No way!" Paige said in a scared scream. "You're on your own!" She turned and ran towards the path. "Snowy Owl!"

"Paige!" Clair and Casey called out. Clair noticed Casey out from the corner of her eye that she had turned her body around to follow her retreating friend. The snake curled up its body and hissed loudly as it sprung towards Casey. Clair reached out instinctively with one hand to grab Casey and pull her away from the attacking snake – that had smoke coming off it. "What the!" Clair said out loud as her right arm reached out to grab or bat the snake away in mid-air.

However, instead of grabbing the snake, Clair's arm blocked Casey's body from the snake's fangs as it bit down. Clair screamed out in pain as she pushed Casey away from herself and the snake. Casey landed and watched with large tear-filled eyes, loud whimpers coming from her mouth. Clair looked down at the snake to find it starting to coil and wrap around her arm. The smoke that Clair noticed before was now slowly enveloping her arm. As it bit down harder into her arm, she watched the light blue color in her veins become black.

Grunting and breathing heavily, she reached into her back pocket and pulled out her multi-tool. Flicking the blade open in one quick movement, she slid the cold blade against her skin and under the snake's body. The blade sliced her skin as the snake was reacting to the edge and was pushing it into her arm.

"Get off me!" She screamed as she quickly pulled the blade upwards and felt the resistance as the blade slid forcefully through the snake's neck. The snake's body tightened around her arm, and its fangs dug deeper. Sawing the blade back and forth, Clair gasped out in pain and grunted as she noticed the growth of the black color in her veins moving up her arm.

"Give me the Blood Diamonds!"

"What?" Clair gasped as she heard the voice in her mind.

"I know you have them, girl! They call to you as they do me. Soon, they will command you to bring them back to me."

"I'll never give them to you." Glaring down at the snake around her arm, she sent the last of her strength into forcing the blade through the rest of the snake's body. The creature's smoky appearance fell away from its corpse as it fell limp from her arm to the ground in front of her knees, it's head still attached to her arm by its fangs. Glancing down at the gashes in her arm from the blade, she noticed that the fangs had dragged across her arm, making an even large gash mixed with blood and dark yellow puss.

"Clair..." Casey cried softly in a panicked tone. "Is it dead?"

"I will not have to wait long for my Blood Diamonds, girl. The poison in your system will finish the job that the snake was sent to do."

Clair continued to breathe slowly as she glanced down through burry eyes at the snake's head still on her arm. She reached to pull it out with her fingers but drew back once her shaking fingers touched the scaly skin. Clair shook her head and tried to restrain herself from vomiting from the sensation of the snake's skin against her fingers. She couldn't touch it.

"Clair, is it dead?!" Casey asked a little harsher.

"Yes." Clair gasped as she shakily used the blade to pry the head off her arm. Feeling the moving fangs inside her pulsating arm, Clair flung the head away from her. Watching as the snake body vanished in a puff of smoke - a sensation of pins and needles coursed through her arm and body from the snake bite. Clair's eyes widened as her arm was bruised, bleeding, and black was filling her veins.

"I will be sending some men to come to get my Blood Diamonds, girl. They will bring back what is mine and then make you watch as they slay every small human here."

Her eyes landing on a terrified Casey, a sudden furry filled Clair as she called out in a dark tone, "You will not harm anyone! Not while I'm here!" Hearing the laugher of the voice in her mind echo to her retort, Clair felt the strength inside her fade. She saw that the ground was rotating slowly.

"Clair!" Casey cried. "Help, Snowy Owl! Help! Clair is dying!"

Clair felt small hands gripping her shoulder as she started to fall forward. Instinctively she put her hand out to steady herself before crushing the outline of Casey under her weight. Still, everything went to black as something hit her face hard.

***

"Yes, I know... Again, Mary, I'm sorry... I don't know how it happened...Clair is resting now. We got a doctor from the nearby town to look at her, and he took as much poison out as he could ... Mary, please calm down..."

"She is fine... The ambulance is coming with a specialist... The doctor called them... They will be here in a few minutes... Mary, please, she is alright."

"Well, there are a few cuts and gashes on her... Please don't scream into the phone. She used her pocketknife to cut the snake off her arm... Yes, just on her arm and her face... Mary, please don't shout! She got the bruise on her face from falling on a rock when she blacked out... No, she doesn't have any cuts there, only a scrape... it's not that bad, Mary."

"No don't come up, she will be fine. If they take her to the hospital, I'll call you back, but I won't know until... The ambulance is here. I must go... Yes, I'll call you again if something happens..."

***

Clair took a deep breath and turned her head to the right. She winced in pain and opened her eyes in wonder. As her eyes focused around her, Clair found that she was in a brightly lit room lying on a comfy bed. She tried to sit up but fell back down onto the mattress, grunting in pain.

"Ahh, crap!" She gasped.

Looking down at her arm, she saw a large wad of gauze wrapped around her. A light-yellow stain covered one side of the bandage while red covered the rest. She tried to lift her arm to inspect it but found that she felt weak and could hardly move. Clair looked around the room, hoping for an answer to where and why she was here.

"Hello?" she called out dryly. Clearing her throat, she tried again but louder. "Hello!"

"Hello."

Clair moved her head, looking around for the voice's owner, who just spoke in a fascinated tone. When she turned her head back towards a nearby chair, she suddenly saw someone sitting next to her. She gasped and tried to move from the bed, determined to get away from this person, who was wearing a long dark hooded cloak covered in blood. "You must rest." The voice said.

"Get away from me!" Clair screamed as she forced her body to move but found that it was as if something like a heavy invisible blanket was lying on top of her, keeping her still. Noticing the robbed figure was lowering his hand, Clair guessed that he caused her to freeze on the bed. "No please, leave me alone." She cried.

"Why are you making such a fuss?" The cloaked figured asked as he leaned forward.

"You're here to hurt me!"

"Why would I hurt you?" he asked.

"Look, I don't know anything about diamonds or know where they are!" Clair cried out. "Please, let me go and leave the girls alone!"

"Diamonds?" the voice asked in confusion.

"You're... You're looking for them, aren't you?" Clair asked as tears of panic fell down her face. A slight stinging sensation made her flinch in confusion.

"No." The voice said. "Why would I be?"

Clair swallowed and breathed slowly. "You're... You work for David Cookery, the Mad Monk leader." The figure was silent as the hood turned a bit to the side as if confused. "Aren't you?" she asked nervously.

"Ah, I understand." A male chuckle came from under the hood. A hand pulled back the hood to show the man from the chapel. His scar by his eye was the first thing Clair noticed and gave her reassurance and relief.

"Wait, you're the man from the church. With the magic fire fingers." Clair said excitedly. "Oh my god! You scared me wearing that robe."

"I didn't mean to scare you." He said with a small grin. Looking down at himself, he grimaced as the realization of the blood-covered garment was a surprise to him. "Though seeing this on me, I could understand why." Snapping his fingers, Clair watched in wonderment as the robe he wore vanished, and in its place was the familiar long red leather jacket. His hair pulled back and draped over his shoulder – pooling into the front of his lap. He tilted his head to the side, looking at her arm. He straightened his silky red tie and said sadly, "You hurt your arm again."

Clair looked down at her arm too. "Do you know what happened? I can't seem to remember."

The man nodded his head. "You were bitten by a snake."

"A snake?!" Clair gasped. "How did ..." She stopped and started to recall the hike and finding Paige and Casey off in a field. "Oh no. Casey, is she okay? Is she hurt?"

"No, she isn't hurt." He chuckled as he stretched his shoulders. "A little scared at the thought that you were, as she put it, dying."

"Dying..." She said breathlessly. "Am I dead?"

He shook his head, his eyes looking tired. "No. Just unconscious from the poison." He touched her arm lightly with the tips of his fingers. "They did a good job of getting most of the poison out. However, they didn't get it all."

"Will the remaining poison kill me?" Clair asked in a worried tone.

"It shouldn't." He said, placing his palm on the bandage. "However, that wasn't an ordinary snake."

"Yeah, there was smoke all over it!" Clair said, nodding her head as she recalled it vanishing in smoke. "Was it on fire?"

"No. My dear, that was a smoke snake." The man said as he focused on her arm. "A very low-level spirit summoned by powerful demons to do their bidding."

"Cookery summoned that smoke snake to kill me?" Clair asked softly. A slight burning sensation pricked in her arm. Clair gasped, closed her eyes shut, and gritted her teeth together, trying not to curse in pain in front of the man. "It hurts!" She breathed out quickly.

"I know it hurts." He said lightly. "But, I need to check." He paused for a minute as her arm continued to prick and sting. "I see." He said softly to himself. "You have business to attend to as I understand, and she will be able to get the rest out."

"She who?" Clair asked, confused.

"You have a meeting with the Witch of the Forest, do you not?"

"Oh... Yes. At night. What time is it now?"

"Close to midnight." He said, moving the curtain blocking the window of the room with just a wave of his hand. Clair widened her eyes at this as his hand didn't even touch the fabric to move it. "A beautiful full moon is out tonight."

"Yeah, don't remind me." Clair said with a grunt as she tried to get out of the bed. "I feel so weak."

"You will need this too, at least, to leave the bed and building on your own." He said as he took his nail of his middle finger and pointed it inwards into his palm.

"What are you doing?" Clair asked curiously about what he was doing as she watched his regular nail grow and sharpen before her eyes.

"Watch." He said with a smile as he brought the chair closer to the bed to see better. "As the blood gathers in my palm, it will become something completely different." Clair watched as the blood gathered in his hands and then formed upwards into a circular object with a hole in the center. He held it out to her, indicating to take it from him.

"A doughnut?" Clair asked, confused. "With the blood, I thought it was going to be more bloody or gross." Picking up the pastry and squishing it between her fingers, she smelled it expecting it to have a scent like a metallic penny, but nothing came to her.

"It is an acquired taste, but it will help you for now. Unfortunately, I can only provide that single one to you."

Clair looked at him and smiled. "Well, thank you." She raised it to her mouth and took a bite out of the flaky doughnut. Clair moved it around her mouth to try and get the flavor of the doughnut. "I don't taste anything?"

"Really?" The man asked with a slight chuckle. He smiled a bit. "Well, that makes two of us." His brow frowned a bit as he helped her sit up on the side of the bed. "How do you feel now?"

"Compared to before, a lot stronger." Clair said, but as she looked down at her wrapped arm, she frowned. "Hope this would stop hurting."

"It will in time, my dear." He said with a nod. "Now, before you leave for your meeting. You mentioned me working for the leader of the Mad Monks? Who exactly is this leader? Can you tell me what you know about him?"

Clair breathed deeply as the pain continued from her arm. "You might not believe me." She said, grunting as she tried to put her shoes on. "Hell, I don't even know if I believe it."

"Is that so? Well, try me." He said with a chuckle as he sat back in the chair.

"This group of monks or cultists really... Are after a friend of mine and me. See, he stole something from them..."

"Could it be the diamonds you mentioned?" He asked, his eyebrow raised.

Clair nodded her head. "Yes. They were in this leather pouch. Anyways, he took the diamonds, and now they are after us."

"If your friend stole from them, why are they coming after you?" He frowned.

Clair looked down with a sigh. "Because I currently have them. Which is why I thought you were here to get them from me." She paused for a minute. "I asked William..."

"William? Is this, your friend?" The man asked with a smile.

"Yes. He's the one who took the diamonds." Clair said sadly. She looked down at her arm moving her fingers to feel slight pain. "The leader, David Cookery, cast a spell on William to tell him the diamonds' location."

"How do you know about this spell?"

"I saw it in a dream." Clair said with a sigh. "I know that dreams are only something in your mind, but with William not showing up for school the day after my dream... I became worried."

"As one would." The man agreed. "And this spell cast on him?"

"He's turning into a werewolf." Clair said, pointing to the window. "And since this weekend is the night of the full moon, I thought it best to hold onto the Blood Diamonds."

"You know the proper name of them."

"Yes, a demonic voice in my mind keeps saying that he wants them back."

"I see." He said with a nod. "Why would William becoming a werewolf give you worry enough to hold onto the Blood Diamonds?"

"Because with him as a new werewolf, I figured that Cookery would be able to control him to get the diamonds."

"Ah, so you thought to hold onto the diamonds to protect your friend from giving in to this Cookery's demands?" Clair nodded her head. The man sighed with relief. "Well, that explains things. Where are the diamonds now?"

Clair started to open her mouth but closed it. "I don't think I should tell you that. I mean, I'm grateful for you saving me from the flying creature thing in the chapel and for giving me a doughnut. But I don't know what you intend to do with them or who's side you are on."

The man laughed loudly, making Clair chuckle a bit too in an uneasy way as if there was a joke, and she missed the punchline. "My dear, I am on no side but my own. I was just providing you a way to finish this whole ordeal with these Mad Monks and Cookery. But if you feel that you should hang on to the Blood Diamonds, then that is your decision that I can't change."

"You're taking this well..."

"Hmm?" The man asked as he stood from the chair and looked down at her in surprise.

"I don't know why I said that." Clair said, confused.

"Well, you said it for a reason." He said with a grin.

"I guess, from your personality, I figured you would be mad or upset that I said no to telling you where the diamonds are."

"You would be right, my dear." He said, nodding. "However, you remind me of someone, and I would like to see how you fix it yourself." He turned his head towards the door. "I can at least give you a few moments head start to get to your meeting on time. I wish you good luck with your task – as it will be a hard one."

"Wait, where are you going?" Clair asked.

The man smiled a toothy grin as flames erupted around him. Clair gasped in surprise at the sudden flames that surrounded the man. She wondered if that was how he got around. A thought came to her as the fire remained around the door frame. Standing from the bed and reaching out with her hand, she let the red and gold flickering element caress her fingers. She was expecting the sensation of burning flesh; however, as she pulled her hand out from the flames and observed her skin, she noticed that no marks or pain came from it. Hearing the bed creaking behind her, Clair turned as she was surprised to see herself lying in bed fast asleep. Looking down at herself, she found this odd. Still, she welcomed it, thinking that while she was gone to see the forest witch that her body would remain here – not causing concern for whoever bandaged her.

Clair stepped away from the flame covered door, looking to the side of the bed to see her overnight bag was there; she reached down and opened the lock with her left hand with difficulty. "Damn, I guess I'm going to have to get used to this. As my dominant hand is out of commission." She unzipped the bag and pulled out the notebook with the instructions written on it. Clair placed the notebook back as she ripped the instructions out and one for her to write her question on.

"Might as well write the message now. Hope the Witch can read this?" She had been thinking about the wording of her question during the week. At first, she was going to ask about the Blood Diamonds themselves and what they are for. In the end, she figured that ending this whole Mad Monk operation would be best for everyone. Clair spoke slowly as she wrote out,

How do William Weaver and Clairisa Vinson stop David Cookery and his cult of Mad Monks from their main goal?

She felt that is was as detailed as she was going to get. Looking down at her sleeping body, she had thought about Night Bite, where a few times Athena's friend Kat would leave her body. "Astro-protection." She recalled. "I guess that's what this is." Clair said as she folded the paper into her pocket.

Stepping through the fire that burned brightly, Clair walked out into the hallway, feeling a strange sensation around her. It was as if there was an oppressive force, making everything slow down. She snuck carefully, trying to not make a sound. As she passed by a leader sitting in a chair half asleep, Clair froze. Waving her hand over her face, she blinked as the woman didn't move. Snapping her fingers in front of her face, Clair saw that the woman didn't move at all.

"It's like she's frozen." Clair said as she walked by her and to the door of the building. "I guess that's what the man meant by helping." Once outside, Clair looked up into the night sky and saw that the wind was still blowing in the trees. "I've got to get to that cabin. Hope I know the way as I doubt the old man will be around here. Though I don't want to see him either."

Walking down the steps of a large building, Clair followed the forest path until she found the familiar cabin where the other girls slept. Knowing the rest of the way, from the countless nightmares, she found the silence of the night a bit uneasy for her, so she started to talk to herself to break the silence. "Why did the man ask about the diamonds. Could he be trusted?" Clair thought as she walked quickly through the woods. "He wasn't upset but definitely seemed surprised by my answer to not telling him about their location. And the 'do my task on my own?' what did he mean by that?" Before Clair could think more about the man and his inquiry of the diamonds, she saw the clearing and the cottage sitting in the middle. Just like in the dreams with the old man, the scene was eerily familiar. The moon was almost hitting the front door, which she recalled being the first step. Clair pulled out the instructions and the written question from her back pocket.

"When the full moon is high in the sky, and it's light covers the cottage's front door, you must walk up to the door and knock three times upon it." Clair walked closer to the cottage; each step made her heart skip a beat. Watching as the moonlight moved across the cottage's front door, she moved closer to the door and knocked three times with her left hand. Glancing quickly to the instructions, Clair nodded in understanding and bent down to slip her question under the door. Then turning her back to the door and taking three steps away from the cottage, Clair held up the instructions as she read aloud.

"Witch of the forest, take my question, and bring the answer to me."

Clair placed the instructions into her front pocket and moved her arm back. Only as she did, the pain under the wrappings intensified. She swallowed, switching her arms and lifted her left arm back with her palm open. As she waited, in her mind, Clair recited, "Don't turn to face the house, don't turn to face the house!"

"My my... A young girl knows how to summon me. How could this be?" Said a chilling scratchy voice on the back of Clair's neck. "Did the Rakee show her the way? If so, for what purpose would he have to help her? Unless the one who watches over her demanded it from him." There was a long pause, so long that Clair wondered if the voice had left. She wanted to turn and see but closed her eyes instead, intending to listen to the old man's warning.

The voice cackled with enjoyment, "You almost turned, did you not, child?" Clair swallowed, unsure if talking to the Witch was aloud or not. "No, matter. Soon you will turn to face me." Clair felt her hand tremble from both the strange angle she held it out at and because of fear of this Witch. "Your hand trembles. To answer your question, you must see with your own eyes as the question is difficult to answer simply by writing it down on paper."

Clair took a breath in and said, "If it must be seen, then describe it to me in detail. I'm not turning to face you."

"Clever." The Witch screeched. "Most young ones would turn once they hear that I have the answer they wish."

Clair realized that nothing happened when talking to her, so she figured to keep going. "It's not what I wish the answer to be, just the solution."

The wind in the trees blew through the forest. Clair waited for the Witch to respond. After a moment, Clair heard the door to the cottage slam; she jumped from the sudden noise but remained still. With her hand stretched out, she felt a rough leather brush against her palm and fingers. Clair squeezed her eyes tighter, figuring that this was the Witch's hands placing something into her palm.

"A mortal's curiosity is their greatest weakness." Clair opened her eyes, confused by the voice as it wasn't the Witch's sharp tone but a deep male's. "Ones fear is also a great weakness to mortals. Isn't that right, Clairisa?" Tears formed in Clair's eyes as the voice became familiar to her in sickening realization. The hands around her own still felt leathery, but she was sure by the voice that it was David Cookery, and he was standing right behind her.

"You're not here." Clair said in a shaky voice. "You're not here."

"Oh, but I am." Cookery's said. "With the full moon high in the sky, I have sent your friend to come and get you. Since you have the diamonds."

"No..." She whimpered.

"I'm afraid so." He said. "It's upsetting to see such young potential be ruined by false hope."

Clair bowed her head as her whole body shook from fear. She closed her eyes as tears fell down her cheeks. "This is wrong."

"What?"

"You're not real." Clair said softly. "You're the witch trying to scare me... To make me face you!" Clair's voice echoed through the clearing on the last word. The area fell silent after her outburst. Clair didn't bother asking if anyone was still there because she could feel the hands around her outstretched palm close it slowly. Clair opened her eyes, breathing slowly. The leathery hands moved away from hers, to allow Clair to wiggle her fingers and feel something in her closed palm.

"You are clever and brave, young one." The witch's original voice came back. "As said, most would turn during my attempts. The Rakee has given you strict warnings to not face me." She paused as something snapped behind Clair, but she didn't move, looking straight into the forest. "The Rakee has been watching along with the one who protects you, and he informs me that you are injured. For you might have guessed, I am blind."

Clair nodded empathically. "So, when one turns to face you..."

"I take their eyes. A bright child." The Witch commented.

"You mentioned others have turned to face you during your attempts." Clair asked. "But, you are still blind?"

The witch made a sound like a cough and a scream mixed with a laugh. "Curious about me? I mentioned that curiosity was one of the mortal's great weaknesses."

"I just haven't encountered one like yourself." Clair said with honesty. "I won't ask if it upsets you." Clair blinked in confusion as to why she felt sympathy towards her.

"You are an amusing child." The Witch said with a scratchy laugh. "You did not bring me the gift of sight, but you amused me for a night. I shall heed the Rakee's request and heal your arm."

"Really?" Clair said, surprised. "Who is the Rakee?"

"The being who gave you those warnings about me and my ways. The skin of an old man is just a suit to him, child." Clair looked down to see a large shadow engulfing her. Closing her eyes again, she breathed in deeply. "Now show me your arm." Clair moved her right arm backward, feeling the wrapping being pulled away from it. Even if Clair was interested in how the Witch would heal her arm, she kept her eyes closed. She waited for something to happen when the leathery feeling brushed down her bare arm. Stopping just before the pulsing area, Clair gasped in sudden pain, falling to her knees and squeezing her eyes with all her might. Her arm felt like it was on fire and that sharp knives were ripping open her skin, muscle, and veins.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" Clair cried out.

"I didn't get the gift of sight, but poison is a delicacy to me, Child. Now stay still, and I won't make too much of a mess of your arm." Her voice gurgled as if she was trying to swallow something thick and liquidity. Clair cried out as the sharps knife sensation deepened into her arm.

### Chapter 13

An echoing scream made her jump awake, realizing that it was her own, Clair closed her mouth and breathed in deeply. She glanced around the brightly lit room in confusion. "Where am I? Was that a dream?" she asked herself out loud. She looked towards the chair near the bed and thought of the man with the scar talking to her. Glancing down to her bandaged arm, she noticed a clean bandage had replaced the old wet one. Clair's thoughts instantly reminded her of the Witch and the item that she put into her left hand.

Looking to her hand, Clair opened it slowly to find a curled-up piece of rough tree bark. One side smooth and lighter in color than the other. "That was a dream, right?" Clair asked softly as she placed the bark onto the bed and used her left hand to roll it out. Looking at the thin etchings on the bark, she shivered, "This look like sharp knives or nails made them. Good thing I didn't turn to see what she looked like." On the bark, she read,

Their goal is complete and will bring chaos. To stop them from more destruction, seal the diamonds into a location where they cannot go. Reflect and cast your energy to obtain what you wish.

Clair re-read the message again, wondering what it meant exactly, as she noticed the sound of footsteps approaching the door to the room. Turning to see her overnight bag, next to the bed, she reached for it to place the bark into a side zippered pouch of the bag. Finally, putting it into the side pocket, Clair looked down at her bandaged arm, wondering how well the Witch healed her arm. From the amount of pain she endured in the forest Clair figured it was worse than before. Feeling curious, she unwrapped the bandage slowly.

"Clairisa, don't take the bandage off!" Sherry's voice made Clair freeze and look up as if she had been caught doing something bad.

"Hello, Clairisa." A woman said as she rushed over to the bed. The woman wore a long white jacket with a blue shirt and pants under it. She took Clair's hands away from the bandage and continued to unwrap it herself. "My name is Doctor Headley. I just need to see how your arm is doing." She paused as she continued to uncover the injury. "How are you feeling right now?"

Clair shrugged. "Okay. A little confused, though."

"Okay, and let's see here." Dr. Headley said as the last of the gaze came off. "I... I don't believe it."

"What is it?" Sherry asked worriedly. "Is it worse?"

"No, the opposite." Dr. Headley said in surprise. "The poison seems to be out, and the bite marks have already started to close up."

Clair lifted her head up to see for herself. Looking down her arm, she saw two gashes where she figured the bite marks were and about three deep cuts around them. Around this area was a mix of dark purple, blue and black bruises. The doctor was right; it looked like the gashes were getting smaller by the minute. Watching a cut close on its own, Clair was interested as a gathering of light blood formed around it and left a small scar.

"I have never seen this before. But I guess there is no need to bring her to the hospital." Dr. Headley said she wrapped up the wound again with new bandages, stood from the bed, and walked out with Sherry.

"Does that mean I can get up?" Clair asked before they left.

Sherry looked at the doctor, who shook her head. Sherry said softly, "No, sweetie. Stay in bed and rest for tonight. I'll have one of the leaders bring supper for you in a few minutes."

"Sure." Clair said with a sigh. "Are you sure you don't need me?"

"You need your rest." Dr. Headley said with a laugh.

"What time is it?" Clair asked.

"Twenty after twelve." The doctor said.

Clair nodded her head as the door closed behind the two women. Clair lay in the bed, staring up at the ceiling, wondering again where she was. She knew she was in a room, but she didn't recall a place like this in the cabins. Unless there was another building just for emergencies, she figured. Thinking about when she headed out into the night to see the witch, she did look at the building she exited but didn't recognize it. Clair sighed as she searched for something to entertain herself like TV or a book to read. Only there wasn't much to do in this room.

Clair sat up in the bed and moved to place her back against the wall. She touched the side of her face as something stung there. Her fingers brushed up against the rough texture of a large bandage on her cheek. "Now how did I get that?" she wondered. The door to the room opened with another click. Clair turned to see a woman entering the room. She recognized the woman as one of the leaders - Blue Jay - unfortunately, she couldn't recall her actual name. She had curly black hair and was holding a tray with food and a few books and coloring pages under her arm.

"Clair, dear. How are you feeling?" Blue Jay asked as she propped the door behind her, with a rubber stopper.

"Okay I guess." Clair said. "To be honest, I'm a little bored."

"I figured you would be." She said, placing the tray on the bed next to Clair.

Glancing down at the hot meal of Mac and Cheese, Clair smiled. "This is great, thank you."

"No, thank you, Clair. For saving Casey from that snake."

Clair looked away with worry as she swallowed some food. "It wasn't much of a rescue. I didn't know the snake would attack. I think I threw her away from me. I just hope she's okay."

"Well, if you're feeling alright..." She said slowly. "Casey is waiting outside the door to see you. She practically dragged on my foot, begging to come to see you."

Clair thought for a minute. "It's past midnight. Why is she up so late?"

"She wouldn't go to bed until she knew you weren't as she put it 'dead'."

"I see. It would be nice to have some company. Though..." She paused, not wanting to ask if Paige was with Casey too.

Blue Jay shook her head, figuring what she was going to say. "Don't worry, Paige is not with her. Casey came alone."

"I find it hard to believe that Paige isn't with her." Clair said doubtfully.

"Well," The woman moved closer and sat on the chair next to the bed as Clair continued to eat the food. "From what I gather. After the snake attack and getting you settled, Casey and Paige had a huge fight. One girl told me, when I asked, that Casey was mad at Paige for leaving her behind when she was scared from that snake." She paused, shaking her head. "Paige then said some mean things to Casey and about you too. So, Casey gave the 'I'm not going to be your friend anymore' speech, and ever since then, she has picked new partners in the group to do crafts and activities with."

"I'm surprised." Clair said, astonished. "What about Paige?"

"Well, you didn't hear it from me..." Blue Jay said, frowning. "But Snowy Owl stopped the fight with the girls as the things Paige said about you and Casey came out."

"Oh no." Clair said in a gasp but wanted to hear more about what happened.

"After a phone call to Paige's mom, she might not be at our next group night."

"That's... I mean..." Clair couldn't find the words. She was happy that the brat finally got what was coming to her. However, she felt terrible that Casey was probably hurt by mean things her ex-friend said to her. Finishing the last of the bowl, Clair handed it to her.

"She will also be picked up by her mother tomorrow morning before we get on our bus to head home." Blue Jay said, standing and walking to the door. She stopped and turned to Clair, "Would you like me to bring Casey in?"

Clair nodded her head, solemnly. "Yeah, I'd like that." Blue Jay waved her hand near the door as she stuck her head around the corner of the door frame. She called out to Casey, and before she finished her sentence, Casey was inside the room, holding many things in her arms.

"Hi, Casey." Clair said with a smile. She didn't want to worry Casey any more than what she already might be.

"Hello." Casey looked down at her feet with a small frown on her face.

"I'll just leave you two alone." Blue Jay said as she closed the door behind her.

Clair looked at the immobile, sad girl. It looked like Casey had been crying. Clair tapped the bed area next to her. "It's okay, Casey." She paused, watching as Casey started to cry again. "Hey. It's okay, come on up." Casey rushed over to the bed, placed the things she had in her arms on the corner, and climbed blindly towards Clair as tears fell from her eyes. Once Casey was close enough, she wrapped her arms around Clair's body. She placed her head against her stomach, sobbing uncontrollably.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm..." Casey's muffled sobs and hiccups said around Clair's stomach and clothing. "I should have listened to you, but..."

"Casey." Clair said soothingly. "It's alright. You don't need to apologize."

Casey hugged tighter. "Yes, I do." She hiccupped again. "I didn't listen to you, and now you are hurt. Because of me..."

Clair rubbed her back lightly, trying to calm her down. "Casey. It's alright. Really. I'm fine." She paused as Casey moved her head around her shirt. Clair figured she was either whipping her eyes on her shirt, or she just whipped her nose. "And you did listen. I said, don't move, right?" Clair wasn't sure if she did say this during the snake attack but asked anyway.

"Yeah." Casey sniffed as she lifted her head to look up at Clair's face.

"And you didn't move. You were a brave, good girl." Clair said reassuringly.

"But the snake bit you!" Casey said, terrifyingly looking at Clair's arm.

"Yes, it did." Clair said, lifting it towards Casey and unraveling it slowly. Casey's eyes widened at the cuts and the bite mark with the dark colorful bruising. "But I rather that the snake bit me than you."

"Why?" Casey asked as she sat back on her legs and looked at Clair's bandage on her face in wonder. Clair wrapped up her arm, bandage again, and lifted Casey's hand to her cheek. She ran Casey's hand over the texture of the bandage.

"Because I don't want you to get hurt." Clair said softly as she winced from the slight pain from her cheek. Casey stopped rubbing and soon had tears in her eyes again. "It's okay, you didn't hurt me." Clair assured her as she whipped fallen tears from the girl's face. Clair continued with her words, "You shouldn't be hurt when you are at camp. You should have fun with the group and have a good time."

Casey sat back on her bum, crossing her legs. "You're not mad at me?"

"No, of course not." Clair said as she gave Casey a small hug. "I'm just glad that you didn't get hurt. It's our job, the leaders, and I, as your friends, to protect you from anything that could harm you." Clair said, rubbing the top of Casey's head. She noticed a small decorative sparkly clip in her hair. "That's a beautiful hair clip."

Casey touched it lightly as if forgetting it was there in her hair. "Yeah." A small smile came on her face. "We made these today after the walk. I made mine a pink dolphin because I like dolphins and the color pink." Clair smiled and leaned back against the wall. "We made you things too!" Casey said excitedly.

"We?" Clair asked.

Casey nodded and turned to the pile of things on the bed. Behind her back, Clair watched as she was trying to separate the many crafts and items into groups. Turning back around with a hand full of hair clips, Casey placed them on the bed in front of her legs and lined them up.

"These are beautiful, Casey." Clair said, touched. "Did you make all these?"

"No." Casey said in a silly high tone mixed with a giggle. "This one is from Sandra, and this one is from Annie, and this one is from Kayla, and this one..." Clair followed her eyes as Casey pointed to each crafted hair clip in the line, recalling who made which one. After the hair clips, Casey took out a large folded yellow construction paper card, filled with stickers and drawings. "This is a card that we all made for you." Casey said, smiling. "We put everything that you like on it."

"Oh, what did you girls put on?" Clair said with a laugh.

Casey opened the card showing Clair the inside. "We drew pictures of you wearing princess dresses. Here you are riding a unicorn. These are butterflies as they carry you over a field of flowers..." Clair scanned the card quickly and noticed one drawing. It was of her 'fight' with the snake, only the stick figure, which Clair realized was her, was covered in aluminum foil as if she is wearing shining armor. Instead of a pocketknife, she had a long bloody sword. She grinned at how much red crayon and the mixed marker was used in this corner of the card. In the middle of the card were the words,

Our hero and friend, Clair.

"This is very nice." Clair said, closing the card. "I don't know what to say but thank you. Please tell the girls I said thank you too, alright."

"Okay." Casey said with a smile. She turned around again behind her and started to look nervous and shy. "There is one more thing." She said softly. "We made these in craft time after supper, and I wanted to make you something special and say thank you for saving me from the snake." Casey said, blushing as she pulled her arm around from behind her back and held out the craft to Clair.

Clair couldn't believe her eyes as she touched the plastic ribbons lightly. Tears started to form in her eyes. "This is beautiful..." she paused. "But I don't want to take your only..."

"I made two." Casey said proudly, showing hers on her wrist.

"You are very skilled at making crafts. Could you help me put it on?" Clair asked with a smile on her face. Casey sat up on her legs as she tied the craft onto Clair's left wrist. Clair looked down, admiring the three colors interwoven around each other on her wrist. "This is the best present I ever received, Casey. What do the colors mean?"

"The pink one here is my favorite color. This dark pink is my second favorite color, and this purple one in the middle is your favorite color. See, my favorite colors are hugging your favorite color." She said proudly. "Like this..." Leaning over, Casey hugged Clair's body as much as she could.

"Casey, I love it. And here is a hug for you too." Clair hugged lightly back as she found that her strength hadn't fully come back yet. As she hugged Casey, Clair glanced down to admire the craft. It's interesting, Clair thought to herself, how a friendship bracelet can brighten up your day...evening.

Clair sat alone, looking up at the dark ceiling. Casey was taken back to the cabin to finally sleep just as Sherry brought Clair books from the cabin. She finished reading two of the three books that were brought to her, then glanced at the card the girls made again and then turned in for the rest of the night.

As she lay in the dark, with the moonlight filling up the room, she thought about William. Looking down at her arm, she smiled and laughed softly, "I wonder if this means that I will turn into a were-snake?" Turning her head towards the moonlight that entered the window, Clair lifted her arm and let the light touch it. The moonlit her arm up a little, but she couldn't feel any discomfort or change. She snickered, "were-snake..." She felt her arm and eyes getting heavy and starting to fall.

~~~

Clair was standing and felt something lift her hand upwards. Opening her eyes, she was amazed to find herself in the middle of a packed dance floor with elegant spinning bodies around her. Clair looked around to see that the people dancing around her had beautiful costume-like evening wear and matching masks covering their faces. Clair looked down at herself to see that she was wearing a dark blue and white silk dress that was tight around her chest and curved around her hips, but then the material of the skirt flew out wide around her. Moving the bottom skirt, Clair could feel stiff boning under the dress; she figured that this was how the dresses skirt was staying out so firmly. She noticed that thin white rolled sleeves lay on the sides of her arms, and a line of tear-shaped red diamonds hung down from the sleeves, tickling her arms. On her chest, she noticed a red jewel sitting at the point of the dress's sweetheart neckline.

A soft clearing of a throat made her look up and realize that her arm was still being held up by a gloved hand. Clair blushed as she saw a tall, muscular man holding her hand as if it was a delicate flower. His eyes sparkled behind the slits of his gold and black mask when he saw her looking at him. He bent over and place a light kiss on the top of her hand; she felt little scratches on her skin and noticed that the man had a bit of a scruffy beard. Clair looked the man up and down as she thought that he looked like Marcus Knightly from Night Bite. A grin came on his face as he pulled her close into his body and turned them to match the moves of the other dancers.

Clair felt herself blush as his right hand settled on her back. His gloved fingers brushed up and down along the revealing part of her back. The fabric of the glove he wore sending shivers up her spine. They continued to spin and sway around people on the dance floor. Out of the corner of her eye, Clair saw something move across an open doorway. Her head tried to follow back to the same door as the dance continued.

" _Miss..." Clair looked up at the man as the word came from him. She sighed to herself as the thought of this man is the spitting image of Marcus came to her again. He even had his same accent. She waited to hear what he had to say, but he didn't say anything; he stared down at her in a strange way._

" _Why are you looking at me like that?" she said with a light tone in her voice._

He kept his eyes down on hers, his fingers rubbing her back in the same spot. She noticed the area where he was rubbing was starting to become painfully aggravated by the fabric of the glove. She was about to say something to him about it when she noticed something going by the door again. She turned her head towards the door and wanted to go see what it was. The man tugged her into his body, getting her attention. Clair glared up at him, wondering what his deal was. She was surprised that they were still dancing with each other matching the same tempo as everyone else without missing a step.

He glared down at her, too, and Clair felt something tapping her back left shoulder. Turning her head slightly, she noticed that it was his finger, the one that was rubbing her back that was now tapping her shoulder. Suddenly his finger returned to rubbing her back again. Clair raised her eyebrow at him but figured because of her mask that he probably couldn't tell if she raised it or not.

A thought came to her as she felt the moving finger doing a type of pattern. Maybe this has a meaning... She glanced up at him curiously. "Are you trying to tell me something?" She asked in her mind. The man grinned, his face relaxed from the intense glare he was giving her earlier but quickly change to a look of concentration. Clair tried to figure out just what he was trying to tell her through a rubbing message on her back, and why couldn't he just whisper in her ear or something? She would appreciate that more than this repetitive movement on her back.

" _Could someone hear us if we spoke out?" Clair added softly to herself. He nodded, not missing the movement of his finger. She tried to imagine the action he was drawing on her back. At first, she thought it was numbers he was telling her, but after a while, she realized that it was letters. He was spelling out a word to her, which was rather hard to figure out as he barely lifted his finger from her back. Another thought struck her, what if he was writing in cursive? Her hand was given a squeeze. Looking to her hand, Clair figured that he was sending her a silent message of approval and that she must be on the right track._

In her mind, she pretended she was writing on a chalkboard. She followed his fingers movements as the white chalk scratched across the board. At first, the word was very faint, so faint that she couldn't see it. With each stroke of his finger, the letters eventually became legible.

Clair frowned at the word in her mind. "Danger?" She whispered lightly.

The man gripped onto her hand tightly and pulled her close. They both stopped dancing. His head bent down towards hers, Clair's heart pounded so fast as she realized that he was going to kiss her. It was an excellent idea, but she wanted to know what the danger was. Just as Clair could feel his breath brush against her lips, everything went dark around her, and a strange pull came around her hips. She blinked in surprise and reached her hands out to feel anything out in the darkness, but her hands felt nothing. Looking down at her waist, she expected to see a rope or something wrapped around it but couldn't see anything as her hand brushed over the fabric of the dress.

" _Hello?" Clair called out with a hint of nervousness in her voice._

A sound of bells made her turn her head around. Behind her, she noticed that the doorway that she kept an eye on during the dance remained lit, but by what though she couldn't say. The bells chimed again, and Clair watched in confusion as a round ball rolled across the floor, from one side of the door frame to the other, and then disappeared.

Clair took a step and then another until she found that she was speed walking towards the door to follow the mysterious ball. Leaving the ballroom and entering the long hallway, Clair kept her eyes peeled for the rolling ball. She followed the sound of the bell chimes as the ball rolled away from her. The path that the ball took was long and encouraged sudden turns down other hallways. Clair briefly saw golden frames and small items on polished stone tables.

Finally, the ball stopped rolling as Clair noticed that it led her to a dead end. She looked at the walls seeing that the framed art that hung there was covered by dark fabrics. "That's strange. I don't remember art being hung here." Clair said as she found it surprising that she knew the layout and décor of this grand house. She bent down to look at the ball. A strange feeling in her mind was telling her to turn around. She turned cautiously.

" _Who...?" Clair gasped as a tall, lanky man stood shrouded in darkness, watching her with menacing cold eyes. The man was dressed in filthy long robe-like clothes that seemed as if they had been covered in dirt. Clair squinted her eyes, wanting to see his face, but he stood in the shadows blocking his features._

The man continued to silently glare at her as she stood from looking at the ball. Clair started to feel scared of the strange behavior of the man. She glanced to her right to find a closed door. Moving slowly and keeping her eyes on the man as she went, Clair walked towards the door. The man raised his hand, quickly sending a dark cloud towards her, which covered the handles of the door. Clair gasped and stepped back, looking nervously at the dark cloud covering the doorknobs. She felt that these clouds were powerful with negative energy.

A shadow moved over her. Looking up in horror, she saw the man had moved swiftly and was now standing right in front of her. Clair backed away from him, and her eyes widened as she saw the man's face clearly now and noticed that his attire had changed too. He was wearing the robes of the Mad Monks. Cold, lifeless eyes stared into hers, while a long messy dark beard fell from his face to his chest. She knew this face.

" _Rasputin!" Clair gasped in horror. A sinister grin shifted his beard as something rushed up to Clair's neck. Backing from the sudden movement, Clair found that her back was to the hall, making the covered frames shake a bit as she saw the man's hand around her throat._

" _My diamonds look nice on you, little one." He said with a smoky voice as his free hand ran delicately across the row of hanging red diamonds from across her shoulders._

" _These are your diamonds?" Clair gasped in confusion._

" _This is simply a host that I'm using to meet with you, little one." Rasputin forced Clair against the wall in a quick motion, her back hit the trimming of the frame hard as her head slammed back into the canvas. Clair turned her head and noticed that the cover of the frame she hit was coming lose above her. She glanced up and saw that instead of a painting, it was a reflective surface, glinting in the hall's light._

Rasputin's hand tightened intensively around her throat. Clair coughed and gasped for air. She placed her hands onto his and tried to pull or claw to get it off her throat. A cloud of dark energy poured out from his free hand like a waterfall, and it pooled on Clair's desperate hands. Her hands were pulled forcefully off his and thrown up above her head with a flick of his finger.

" _AHHH! Help me! Please!" Clair screamed and tried to fight or move but found that her hands were bound by something that she couldn't see._

" _Shhhh." His free hand clamped over her mouth, silencing her. Clair glanced wildly around the hallway hoping for someone, anyone, to come to her rescue. She wanted the man she was dancing with to come to rescue her. Rasputin bent his body, getting closer to her face. Clair tensed and closed her eyes as his hand covering her mouth and throat pushed against her. She realized something; she couldn't breathe. Her head pounded, matching her heartbeat as it quickened in panic and fear of what Rasputin was going to do to her._

She felt his breath on the side of her face by her ear. She heard him take in a breath before speaking. There was silence until a growling tone said suddenly in her ear,

" _You will pay...Little One."_

~~~

Clair struggled for air as she woke suddenly. She was pushing and forcing something off from her. She tried to open her eyes but found something blocking her vision. Breathing quickly, Clair found that whatever was blocking her vision was also covering her mouth, stopping her from getting any air.

"Help! Someone!" She screamed in a muffled voice. The object pushed down harder on her face. Clair felt her head becoming dizzy and started to see spots against a white background. He's suffocating me! She screamed in her mind. Tears wanted to fall from her eyes, but they were whipped away by the object, pushing down on her face.

Using the last of her energy, Clair kicked out her legs, hitting something. A loud crash of several objects echoed through the room. The pressure on her face lessened in surprise to the loud crash. Clair tried to get her hands to move but found that they were tied above her head. Thinking of trying to turn her body suddenly to throw Rasputin off her, Clair lifted her body and turned quickly to the right. Something shifted on the sides of Clair's stomach, but they tensed, clinging to her body. Another sound echoed through the room as well as shouts and screams. The pressure was pulled off from Clair's chest. She squirmed helplessly, calling out for help. Muffled screams erupted in the room. Clair tried to turn her head to get the object off her face so she could see what was going on.

Suddenly a cold air rushed onto her face, and she took a deep but painful breath in. Clair turned her head to see that she was back in the small room, and three leaders were trying to hold someone down while Sherry's face came into view from above her. "Clair are you alright? My god... Hold on, I'll get this untied." Sherry said in a panicked, worried tone.

Clair turned her head to look above her. Her eyes widened as her hands were tied to the bedposts by a thick string. "What is going on?" She asked, gasping, her eyes searching wildly around the room. "Where is he?"

"Hold on, sweetie." Sherry said, rushing to untie the knots of the string.

"You will pay for this!" A shriek came nearby Clair. Turning her head, Clair saw that under the struggling pile of group leaders was a small girl.

"Paige?!" Clair cried out in shock. Paige looked up from under the leaders to glare at her. Clair blinked her eyes in confusion as she noticed that gray smoke was coming out of her eyes. "What the hell is going on?!" She demanded.

"Got it." Sherry said triumphantly as Clair's arms fell behind her head painfully. Clair gasped in pain as she brought her arms back to lay down by her sides. Her right arm where the snake had bitten her had become swollen and more bruised. Sherry came around the bed and checked all over Clair's face and body, checking for injuries. "Paige tried to suffocate you with a pillow, Clair." She said solemnly.

"She what?" Clair said, dumbfounded.

"Yeah... And I would do it again until you die like you were supposed to do with that damn snake bite!" Paige yelled as she was pulled to her feet. She screamed and tried to remove herself from the grip of the women holding her back. "I would have brought a knife to stab you! You friend stealing bitch! But I couldn't find any in the kitchen."

Clair and the leader's mouths fell open, shocked from what they were hearing. Sherry stood from the bed and stepped towards Paige crossly. "You tried to kill Clair just because Casey came to see her?"

"NO!" Paige said in a loud piercing scream, glaring up at Sherry. "I want to kill her because she deserves it!" Paige sharply turned her fog-covered eyes to Clair. "If you didn't move or make so much damn noise while you slept, I would have killed you."

"Get her out of here!" Sherry shouted in rage. The other leaders struggled to pull Paige but eventually got her through the door and down the hallway.

Clair shook her head in shock. "What the hell was that about? Damn, I knew I had a bad feeling about her, but this..."

"I'm so sorry, Clair." Sherry said sadly. "We had no idea she would do this. Just because Casey didn't want to be her friend anymore... What a stupid reason to resolve to murder." Sherry started to pace the length of the room. Clair watched her, wondering were Sherry got the idea from and wondered why she didn't comment about the girl's eyes fogging over. "Well, that confirms my decision to kick her out of our group."

"Don't just kick her out, get her into an asylum." Clair said, still in shock.

Sherry stopped pacing and then said to herself as she headed towards the door, "I better call her mother now, to have her picked up before morning instead of at 10." She stopped at the door, holding it from closing behind her, she turned to Clair sadly. "Clair, I know this might be hard and confusing right now, but you should fall back to sleep. I will make sure Paige is dealt with and have one of the other leaders come to sit with you till morning."

Clair sat on the bed, watching Sherry leaving, muttering to herself as she walked down the hall. Clair sighed and looked around the room again before lying back down on the bed. "Sleep? After what I just went through?" she sighed deeply.

"What the hell is going on?" Clair asked out loud. "Paige wouldn't resolve to murder because she lost a friend. Unless she is psycho." Clair thought for a moment. "The look in her eyes. Could she have been possessed? If so, then how and why?" A thought came to her as the snake warned her that it would come and attack the girls. "The diamonds!" She shouted and scooted off the bed. Moving the bag towards her, opening the locked section, and placing her left hand inside, she felt the familiar zap from the bag.

"Thank god." She said with relief. Sitting back on the bed, she closed and locked the bag and then lay down. Comfort was something she was having difficulty with as her arm pounded in pain, and her head ached. Clair tossed and turned for the past hour or so as thoughts of Mad Monks, Blood Diamonds, werewolves, snakes, and dreams consistently came to her. During one of her tossing's Clair noticed one of the leaders sitting outside her room with a book in her hand. With a slight feeling of safety, Clair felt her heavy eyes close.

### Chapter 14

Clair sat on the plastic seat of the swing; the fresh evening air blew around her making her smile. Her shoes dug lightly in the sand as she waited for William to show up. Clair had come home to a distraught mom and dad as they freaked out about her snakebite injuries and the attempt that young Paige made on her life. Clair had finally seen the damage on her face when she got to look in a mirror once at home. A few girls on the bus were trying to show her with their mirrors, but the leaders told them to not bother Clair. Her face had a bloody gathering of scratches on the left side of her face just under her black eye. A few bruises were along her jawline, making eating and talking a bit painful. She realized that she looked horrible.

Her mom and Sherry talked - or really yelled \- on the phone as Clair left the house to go to the nearby park to see William. He sent her a text that day saying to meet with him at 2:00 pm in the park near the school once she got home, he had something to tell her. Clair also had some news; she didn't tell him about the snake attack, the meeting with the witch, or Paige attempting to kill her. She figured that once they understood what the witch meant by her words, then all this Mad Monk and Blood Diamond stuff would end. Clair waited some more, glancing down at her watch to realize that she had to move her watch to the other arm because of the bandages. As she looked at her other wrist, she smiled as she still had on the friendship bracelet Casey gave her.

"Clair!" William called from the field. Clair stood from the swing and waved back with her right hand, wincing as the slight movement hurt. William stopped as he glanced at the bandage on her arm with the sling and her bandaged face with her black eye. "What the hell? What happened...?"

Clair shrugged and said simply. "It's a long story." William forced her to sit back down on the swing as he took the other swing next to her. He turned facing her, listening as she told him about the snake attack, meeting the Witch of the forest, the Rasputin nightmare, and Paige strangling her. Clair left out about the man with the X scar on his face only because she figured he didn't seem as essential, and William warned her about being around him. A small twinge hit her heart; Clair also thought she didn't want to tell William about the man because she might have given him away stealing the diamonds.

"So, in short. Clair hates camping and camping hates Clair." She said with a small laugh but frowned. She was trying to pass the whole thing off as nothing but a lousy camping experience, but for Clair she was terrified. She said that she would protect the diamonds, and all this stuff happens to her.

"That's pretty intense!" William said in astonishment. "I had some interesting things happen over the weekend too."

"Werewolf?" Clair asked nervously.

William nodded his head. "I'm still scratching all over from that hair on my body. I think I also ran through a patch of poison ivy."

"I'd give running through poison ivy instead of my weekend."

"Right, I'm sorry," William said, sighing. "So, what did the witch say exactly?"

Clair reached into her purse to pull out the rolled-up bark. "Here, she gave me this."

"Their goal is complete and will bring chaos. To stop them from more destruction, seal the diamonds into a location where they cannot go. Reflect and cast your energy to obtain what you wish." He read out loud. "How does that solve our problem?"

"Well, I think it means to stop them from continuing with chaos and destruction, we need to seal away the diamonds in a place where they can't go." Clair sighed. "Only where can't they go?"

"Well, most evil things can't enter churches," William said.

"They do their work in churches. I guess pretending to be religious gives them a pass into a holy place." Clair nodded. "Dream's won't work either, I'm guessing because both Rasputin and Cookery seem to be very active in mine."

"What about the next part of this riddle?" William said as he read, "Reflect and cast your energy to obtain what you wish. What could that mean?"

"Cast your energy could be like a spell," Clair said, shrugging. "Reflect generally means to look back on." Her mind raced with what it could mean when images from her dream with Rasputin came to her. "The frames?"

"What was that?"

"The frames in my dream with Rasputin. They were covered."

"So?"

Clair thought for a moment, recalling the fabric falling partially off the frame she was choked against. She remembered the flash of something. "What if the frames weren't paintings but mirrors?"

"Mirrors? But why cover them?" He asked, confused.

"Well, I read somewhere that mirrors are significant in different places of the world. One used them for scrying..."

"Scrying?"

"It's what Athena's friend, Kat, does to locate demons and evil things in the show. Remember with her hand-held mirror?" William nodded in understanding. Clair continued, "Other locations would say that a mirror would steal your soul if you looked into them for too long. Therefore, the myth for Vampires or even of Bloody Mary, for that matter, came from that. Then, some locations would cover their mirrors after someone dies."

"Why would they do that?"

"From the articles, I recalled that it's not to let evil spirits who feed off those who are in mourning to be let in."

"So, a mirror is also a passageway?" William asked.

"Yes. It's even in the movie Van Helsing." Clair said with realization. "Once finding Dracula's layer behind the mirror, they could enter it."

"Okay, so we need to enter a mirror. Is that what the witch wants?"

Clair shook her head. "I don't think we enter it, just the diamonds." She frowned. "We don't even know if the Mad Monks can enter through a mirror or not." She thought for a minute. "But the demon they worship can't enter mirrors! That's it, William!" She said excitedly.

"Well, I mean it's worth a shot." William said, standing. "Let's go find ourselves a mirror."

Clair remained sitting. "I think it might have to be a particular mirror."

"Why, did your dream show you the mirror?"

Clair shook her head. "No but, sealing away something as powerful or wanted as the Blood Diamonds. It must be a powerful mirror."

"Wait, you said that people would use a mirror to sigh, right?"

Clair looked at him, confused. "Do you mean to scry? Then yes."

"If it's used to find people and evil things, why not use it to find the mirror?"

Clair nodded. "It sounds like a good idea, but scrying isn't something you just grab and go. It takes time to learn how to do it properly."

"Properly? But Clair, this is for a good cause. Stopping evil." He said, turning to her. "It can't be that hard?"

"No, it's not hard to do, but it's controlling it and then getting out without hurting yourself." Clair said, shaking her head.

"Sounds like you've done it before."

"Like the Ouija board, if you don't know what you're doing... Then bad things can happen." Clair said, slowly trying to not answer the question directly. She nodded her head as she recalled her interest in scrying and the Ouija board when Night Bite first aired. She shivered, "It's something I don't want to get into again."

"So, you have done it?" William repeated. Clair nodded. "Then you just tell me how..."

"No." Clair said strongly. "Seriously, William, you don't want to mess with something you don't know how to control. As we already know, from the Blood Diamonds... The unknown gets you into trouble."

"But, you know what to do."

"I dabbled. I'm not an expert." Clair stated, standing from the swing. "Even when I did it, I opened doors I shouldn't have, and I didn't close them properly."

"I thought we were talking about mirrors?" William asked, confused.

"We are, but for some, mirrors are a doorway. If they aren't closed properly, then bad things come through."

"What came through when you did it?" William asked lightly.

Clair shook her head, not wanting to remember that time. "I was young. Night Bite just aired on TV, and after being obsessed with the plot and the magic on the show, I got myself an Ouija board and tried to talk to the spirits." Clair laughed a bit, "I tried to talk to my departed grandparents. Even used a trigger item, like in the show... Only on a show or video game, you can just turn the TV off when things get too intense and scary. This..." Clair paused. "This was something I never experienced before. Items moving around the room, voices that I couldn't tell were outside or inside my mind, violent images flashing in my mind. The pointer on the board moved back and forth from those two cursed letters."

"You experienced this stuff before me... I mean the Mad Monks, Cookery, and the diamonds?" William said, astounded. "Who were you talking to?"

"I can't - I can't say its name. But what I know now is that it's a strong demon." Clair said, nodding her head. "Once I knew what it was, I destroyed the board and threw it away. I didn't close the circle..."

"Circle?" William asked.

"A circle of protection. Hell, I didn't know you needed to make one when communicating with spirits. I sure as hell do now." The look on William's face was one of confusion to the conversation. Clair explained, "You make it so they can't harm you or form into reality. If you don't create one or don't close it properly, it's like you opened a permanent doorway for spirits." Clair turned to face him. "It's the same for mirror scrying. If you don't know what you're doing, stuff can and will go wrong."

"Okay so we find someone who knows their stuff and have them help us."

"Do we really want to get another person into this?" Clair said, worried. "I mean, sure we have them help us seal the Blood Diamonds away, but what happens after that? What if us introducing the Blood Diamonds and Mad Monks to them, makes them another target?"

"Well, what do you want to do?" William said, throwing his hands up into the air. "We either get someone who knows their stuff to do it - as you say properly or do it ourselves and keep them safe from being a target."

"William, I don't know why you're getting so upset?" Clair asked.

"Sometimes when the fate of the world and other people's lives are at stake, you just need to act - not think whether it's safe enough for one or two people."

"Magic isn't something that you can just snap your fingers and make things happen." Clair said, snapping her left hand quickly in front of his face. "It takes preparation and confidence. If you don't do it right, then consequences for asking that energy for favors affect everything around you."

"This is millions of people, Clair. Something needs to be done."

They stood staring at each other, till Clair raised her left hand to settle the situation. "Clearly we are on different sides about this. Let's sleep on it and figure something out tomorrow." She said, heading towards the edge of the sandpit.

"See, this is what I mean." William called out to her. Clair turned around to see his hands tight and formed into fists. "We don't have time to just simply sleep on it and think things through."

"Why are you rushing this?" Clair said, fixing her sling. "We want to stop the Mad Monks and Cookery, right? Well, to do that, we need to plan and prepare."

"We don't have time?" William shouted to her.

"What are you talking about?" Clair said, noticing that she was shouting too.

"What if I change tonight and come after you? You're not at a campsite anymore, you're back in the city."

"Yes. So..." Clair said, not understanding the point he was trying to make.

"You said that Cookery knows where you live." William pointed out. "He sends me to collect the diamonds and maybe even your body once I rip it apart. Then we are screwed."

Clair blinked at his outburst. She shivered as his voice seemed to change with the mention of ripping her body apart. "Alright." She said, raising her left hand. "We'll do it. Just give me time to find the right mirror. Good enough?"

"Why do you have to go find the mirror?" William asked, annoyed by the idea.

"Because you might be under the influence of Cookery. You might smash the mirror to prevent us from sealing them away." Clair said simply.

"You... You don't know that."

"Your uncertain statement proves it. You don't know what will happen or how under the influence you are to Cookery's power." He nodded his head, which made Clair relax. "Good. Now just chain yourself up or something if you do change tonight."

"Do you have the Blood Diamonds right now?" William asked as he cleared his voice.

"Of course not. They're at home." Clair said, hoping her white lie would be believable. Noticing his strange facial tics, she added, "I'll see you tomorrow at school."

Turning to walk away, she noticed the sound of footsteps behind her. Glancing behind her shoulder, she saw William following her with this strange look on his face. The glare he gave her was like Paige this morning as she tried to kill her - foggy gray eyes. Quickening her pace, Clair turned the street corner and pulled out the silver cross from her bag. Her hand, while reaching in, brushed up against the Blood Diamonds in the velvet pouch, giving her another zap. Kneeling to the sidewalk, a thought came to her to scrape the bottom corner of the silver cross along the gravel, creating a thin white line.

"What are you doing?" William's voice deepened as he called out to her. Once he neared her, Clair quickly lifted the cross, pointing it towards the other side of the street, and envisioned the thin line from the gravel stretching over the road to the next sidewalk. Taking a step back from the line she made, Clair raised the cross above her head and down to touch the lamppost.

Clair wasn't sure, but she thought William slowed down as he approached the line she created. Her body started to back away from him and turned with a knowing smile on her face. She heard William curse at her as she continued down the sidewalk, intending to go to a small store that could have what she was looking for.

Looking down at her hand, Clair blinked her eyes as she felt like she blacked out for a few seconds, and yet she recalled all that had happened. She turned to see William trying to cross the street but stop once on the other side and start to punch the air. "Not going to ask." Clair said she placed the cross back into her bag and continued to the new curio shop on the Main Street. Sherry mentioned the new shop to her during the bus ride back from camping. Sherry was into a bit of new age healing methods, and this store suggested a few items she wanted to check out.

Once at the shop, Clair entered and felt excited. She looked at all the mysterious items and strange things hanging off stuffed bookshelves and display tables. "Seems like a good time, if any, for me to look around." Clair said as she closed the door and heard a small tinkering bell above her head. Looking up, she saw the swinging silver bell making her presence in the store known.

"Hello?" A voice called from the back of the store.

"Hi." Clair called back in a soft tone. "Is the owner around?"

"I'll be with you in a minute. Just have to place this papyrus down..." Clair nodded her head and continued to browse around the store until the owner wasn't busy. "Ah, there you are. Sorry about the state of the store. We opened just this week, and I haven't organized it yet."

"That's okay." Clair said as she turned to acknowledge him. Looking at the owner, she was surprised he was so young. Clair half expected him to be older with a gray-white beard. However, the man had dark red hair that was gelled back and parted neatly to the side and had a clean-shaven face. Thin black-rimmed glasses sat on the bridge of his nose. While his tie hung loosely from his attire of a light gray business suit. Clair neared him, "Do you have any staff, or is it just yourself?"

"Only myself." He said with a laugh as he played with his tie to realize that it was crooked and fixed it swiftly. "I had a moving company, but sometimes they don't know the proper way to handle a mummies sarcophagus or the proper order of ancient texts." He blinked his eyes and looked around the store with a look of defeat. "Anyways, welcome to Knox's Curio Shop. I'm Knox. How may I help you?"

Clair bit her lower lip a little as she didn't really know how to ask for a proper mirror to scry or even seal away Blood Diamonds from Mad Monks. "Well, it's a strange request."

"This is the place then." Knox said with a smile as he started to organize a pile of books near him.

"I need a mirror."

"For scrying?" He asked, arranging his glasses.

"Yes, but how did..."

"As I said, my dear, it's a place where objects are used for the strange and unexplained." He said with a nod. Turning to look around the store, he frowned. "Hmm maybe they are in the back-storage room? Careful as you come around the desk."

"Wait, you want me to come with you?" Clair asked, unsure as she stepped carefully around the desk. The whole back area of the desk was covered in large boxes and stacked books.

"Yes. Four eyes are better than two." Knox said with a chuckle. "Just through this door here." He said, stepping through an empty frame leaning up against the wall, leading to a long hallway. "I'm curious, what are you going to scry Miss..." He paused. "Oh, I forgot to ask your name when I gave mine. How rude of me."

"That's alright." Clair said. "It's Clair."

"Ah, so again, what are you going to scry Clair? It's interesting to find one so young know the technique."

"I dabbled in it once." Clair said, ducking under the frame.

"Then why come back to it?" Clair tried to think of a lie to fool Knox, but as she was about to speak, he cried out, "AH, here we are. The mirror emporium as I call it." Clair gasped as the wall she looked in front of her was the same as her dream with Rasputin. The only difference was in her dream; the frames were covered, here the walls displayed different types of mirrors, large and small. "I know it's a lot of mirrors. Took a while for the men to unload them. Mirrors are tricky items."

"Why not cover them?" Clair asked as she tried to look away from the many reflections of herself.

"I'm not in mourning." He said simply.

"What about the mirror's acting as portals for evil spirits?"

Knox chuckled as he touched a few of the frames, "Not all evil spirits are evil. People perceive them due to what the job of that spirit or demon must-do for all eternity. Some jobs are certainly more terrifying than others."

"For example?" Clair asked, curious about this man's knowledge.

"Example... Hmm." Knox thought for a moment. "For example, an angel of light vs. one of darkness."

"I thought we were talking about demons and spirits?"

"We are but, angels aren't as angelic as the movies and literature make them out to be. You aren't religious, are you?" Knox asked suddenly. Clair shook her head. "Just checking. Sometimes I speak too far and get in trouble. Anyways, what was I... Oh, angels. They are depicted as bright gorgeous beings, right?" Clair shrugged. "Well, the truth is that they are just as horrific looking as any other being, demon or otherwise. The blinding light is to cover up their appearance from others to not scare them."

"They look that bad?" Clair asked.

"Nope, they are so beautiful that looking at the true form of one will scar your sight and drive you mad. No mortal mind can understand the true face of angels."

"What about god then?" Clair asked. "Angels are just a part of him. So is his true form just as magnificent?"

"Not, sure about that. However, the texts about god portray different sightings and figures. The burning bush, for example, or the plaques of Egypt." Knox nodded. "God is one that isn't much brushed upon, and when it is, unfortunately, the only things we know as scholars are that it must be a male and he is powerful but never truly seen, except when wanted to."

"You're a scholar?" Clair asked.

"Used to be." Knox said sadly. "But enough about the past. We are looking for a mirror for scrying. Which you also avoided my question, by the way."

Clair nodded, suddenly embarrassed. "Yes. Just to scry. Do you know how to scry?"

"I know many ways around a mirror." Knox said proudly.

"Many ways? There is more than scrying and sealing?"

"OH, you're interested in sealing too. Now that is high energy."

"It is?" Clair said, worried.

"Yes, but you said you wanted one for scrying. I'm confused about your intention for a mirror. You have used one for scrying before, right?" Knox asked.

"Yes." Clair said, nodding. "I had mishaps during an Ouija board session or five and..."

"Which one called out to you?" He said, turning to face her with his arms crossed over his chest.

"I'm sorry?"

"Which demon spelled out its name?" Knox asked in a severe tone. Clair bit her lip, not wanting to say the name. "Did the pointer go back and forth from one letter to another continuously?" Clair nodded her head, looking away from him, hoping he wasn't judging her. "Ah, that one." He said, moving towards the only covered mirror hanging on the wall. "This one then isn't for you then." Clair neared the one he indicated, looking at it curiously.

"CHILD..."

Clair gasped and backed away from the covering. She recognized that voice from the Ouija board sessions and that one mirror scry. She shivered as horrible memories entered her mind of black eyes looking back at her through the mirror as deep laugher rang around her.

"Yes, best say away from that one." Knox said, putting a hand on her shoulder. "It remembers those it's affected."

"Why won't it go to the other mirrors?" Clair asked as she looked around at the many different glasses, reflecting them both walking through the collection.

"That my dear is a sealed creature." Knox said. "It took quite a few exorcisms to get part of it inside that mirror."

"Wait... Only part?"

"Yes. It's a powerful creature. So, if you go near an Ouija board - thought I don't know why you would after I figure a horrible time with that fiend - it will still be there." Clair nodded her head in understanding. She had no intention of going near an Ouija board anytime soon. "So, you still didn't tell me why you need a mirror?"

Clair sighed in defeat. "I need to seal something powerful into it."

"How powerful?"

"Umm not sure if there is a scale from one to ten of energy in existence but..." Clair said, unsure.

"You have the item on you right now?" Knox asked with a look of interest.

"I do, but I don't want to make you apart of..."

Knox interrupted her again. "Clair, you entered my store. I'm sure I'm a part of it now." He chuckled. "It's how it always goes. They enter the store, and I become a part of their problems. However, I'm usually the one with the solution."

"That sounds great but also too good to be true." Clair said, eyeing the door to the room.

"I understand. Really, I do. I work in a store that holds cursed items, and I sell them to people. Most of the items in here I didn't buy myself, but they just show up when the need comes." He shook his head, getting off-topic. "Depending on the item, I can see if I can seal it."

Clair swallowed as she eyed her bag with worry. "No one can see us here?"

"Nope. Not even through scrying. Which is funny considering we are in a room filled with mirrors." He walked over to the wall and tapped it lightly, "Silver paint. Hard to come by but great for those you don't want in or leaving a place."

Clair nodded but started to make her way back to the door, "How do I know you will help me?"

"Knox is a truthful guy Miss. Powerful too." Clair turned to the voice and blinked as she saw that instead of her reflection in the nearby mirror, it was a young boy with rough clothes and messy light hair stuffed under a flat hat.

"Who...?" Clair started to ask.

"Collin, be my name." Collin said, giving a broken bow, taking off his cap as he did. "I live in this here mirror. Knox bought it from my ancestor after she saw me a few too many times inside. Poor lass thought it was the bottom of the bottle, making her see me in here."

"Thank you, Collin." Knox said softly as he stepped forward. Clair watched as the boy disappeared from the mirror as if wiped clean. "He's a good boy, just a bit mischievous." Knox turned to her with a serious look. "It is up to you if you would like me to seal the item you have away. Best me than you on your own."

Clair was still a bit unsure. "Could I watch? Just to make sure you don't do anything suspicious..." she couldn't find the correct word that she felt he would accomplish.

"Of course." He said, nodding. "You can't learn things if you don't get to see and interact. Asking questions helps too in those matters." Clair nodded and reached into her bag to pull out the pouch. Once it was out, Knox stood up straighter. "Oh, that's powerful. But I bet it's what is inside the pouch, right?"

Clair nodded. "Is it too powerful?"

Knox took a few steps towards her. "Open the top." He looked down into the pouch as she unstitched it. Once open, a sound seemed to grow in the room. Looking around, Clair wondered what it was as she noticed the mirrors both on the walls and leaning on the floor were slightly vibrating. Knox placed his hand on top of the opening, Clair watched as he breathed in and out. Looking back to the room, she saw the glass slowing down and then relaxing.

"Best not to do anything here were glass shards could hurt us." Knox said as he led her out into the hallway through the frame in the doorway. Turning to the end of the hall, he opened the door to a dimmer room. Flicking on a light, he ushered her inside and closed the door. "There. That's better."

Clair looked around this new room and saw it was more put together than the rest of the shop or the storage rooms. There was a large circular rug on the floor where a round table stood. On top of the table was a cloth with different silver and gold symbols that flowed down to the carpet. Clair neared the table and saw that there were a few glowing crystals on it. "This is the best mirror to handle those little devils." Knox said he stood by a cabinet opening it and taking out a few long black and white candles. He turned to look at the table and nodded his head. "Should be good to use now. The crystals have done their part."

"What do the crystals do?"

"They recharge the mirror. The different points here are like sensors for the mirror. This cloth is helping too by protecting the energy from leaving the two items too quickly. Think of it like heating up the stove before you put the cookies in to bake." Clair nodded, suddenly feeling hungry. Knox took the crystals off one by one, placing them onto a table with wheels attached to the bottom of it. He then took the cloth off the table, folding it carefully as Clair watched dust fly around the room. She looked down and saw that the surface of the table was the mirror. Standing back, Clair watched as Knox moved around the table to place the two colored candles down.

"Are you making a pentagram?" she asked.

"Looks like it. But no, I'm not." Knox said as he placed the last two down. Clair turned her head to try and see what he was doing. The black and white candles stood next to each other in the five points that would make up a pentagram if drawn out. "You will see once the lights go out." He said, taking out a lighter from his pocket and lighting each candle. "Okay we are about ready. Now before the lights go out, how long have you encountered these?"

Clair thought for a while. "About a week or two?"

He nodded. "Alright." Walking out of the room, he came back in shortly after with a chair in his hands. "This is for you. Sealing an item that has attached to a person can become draining."

"Wait, so if these aren't originally mine, those who did have them would be affected too?" Clair asked.

"Oh yes. Definitely." Knox said. "Items like those Blood Diamonds drains energy both positive and negative, from those around it who created a bond or attachment."

"Wait, we shouldn't do this then!" Clair said, placing the pouch back into her bag.

"Why not?" Knox asked simply.

"Because the original owners, the ones we want to seal these from, will know that we are doing this and be mad-er."

"Mad-er?"

"Yes. "Clair said. "I'm sorry, but we shouldn't."

"Wait do you want them sealed away or destroyed?" Knox asked. "Because we can do both."

"I want them gone to not affect myself or to be used by others again." Clair said.

"Well, then we need to get something from you." Knox said as he reached to the cabinet and pulled out a small cup used for medicine. "Here."

"You... want my blood?" Clair asked as she raised her wrapped arm and pointed to her bandaged face.

"No! I would never ask anything like that from you. Anything would do. Just spit into it." Knox said, giving her the cup. "Just as you do, think of the reason behind the seal and destruction of the Blood Diamonds." Clair nodded her head but was reluctant to give her spit. Turning away from him, she gathered what she could and spat into the cup.

"Cute." he said with an amused chuckle when he handed it back to her.

"Now, best take a seat. Cause you're asking a lot, and it will take a lot." He said as he took off the tie and jacket of his suit, then rolled up the sleeves of the white dress shirt. Walking back, he waved his hands in the air, which resulted in turning off the lights. "Also do you take sugar in your tea?"

"Umm, sugar?" Clair said as she neared the chair but didn't sit down. She watched as Knox nodded his head and started to speak in low tones. Clair figured it wasn't a time to ask questions but did her best to think of them while watching so she could ask later.

Knox reached out a hand to her as it opened and closed. Clair reached back into her bag to get the pouch, thinking that was what he wanted. Placing it into his hand, she watched as a smile crossed his face; he nodded and dumped the contents onto the middle of the mirror. The echoing tings from the falling diamonds made Clair cover her ears. Raising his hands above the mirror, Knox started to speak in a language that Clair didn't understand,

"Arenam maris extremis profundum. Vult ostendere illis occupandi ea omnia maledicta adamantes purpurae."

Clair watched in disbelief as each of the diamonds started to sink into the glass of the mirror. Stepping a bit closer, she watched as they all seemed to go into a black box that was in the reflection of the mirror. The surrounding area of the black box, Clair noticed, looked like a pool of blood. Once the last of the red diamonds fell into the black void of the mirror, Clair gasped as the candles' flickering light grew.

Knox's hand flew out to her again, and Clair took the cup of her spit from the side table and handed it to him. Knox added the saliva to the first two candles in front of himself and opened his eyes,

"Tenebris lux sua cellula egredi crystallini sanguis obstructionum. Lux inde in bono est, ut in ulla nunquam perdere sanguis crystallini realm"

Clair turned her attention to the mirror's surface as the black candle's flame seemed to create a line that crossed over each other, sealing the dark box in the center. Then the white candle's flame grew and followed the same path as the black. Clair watched as the white candle's flame line wrapped around the box in the center and started to squeeze it.

"Ah!" Clair gasped as she felt her body tensing. The sensation started in her chest then moved outwards. She tried to keep her eyes on the mirror to see what was going on, but as the light in the mirror grew wider and wider, Clair felt the tense, gripping sensation grow outwards. "Ahgg."

Looking to Knox, she noticed that he was glancing behind her with a look of worry. Confused by what he meant, she felt arms grab her waist from behind just as the light from the mirror filled the surface and brightened the room. However, for her, her vision darkened as she blacked out.

***

Knox stretched his arms and shoulders, looking at the unconscious girl to the being holding her up. "I was getting worried when you weren't approaching her from the shadows, Christov."

The warrior stood effortlessly, lifting the girl carefully into his arms. "I am to watch her not make contact."

"Then that's a dangerous game." Knox said as he waved his hand over the mirror to end the ritual. He was confident that the ritual had been successful. The Blood Diamonds were not simple to seal and destroy, but he was sure that the girl and The Master would be pleased with the result. "Help me bring her into the far room. There's a kitchen in there were I promised her tea."

"She needs her rest." Christov said as he followed him to the back of the hallway to the location he indicated. "She has dealt with enough this weekend alone."

"I was informed when The Master visited the store." Knox said, setting the tea kettle on the stove and placing three bags into the water. "He told me about the weekend camping trip. Now, why didn't you interfere then?"

"As I said, I'm to watch her, not make contact."

"I heard you the first time." Knox said. "The Master wasn't happy that she got attacked by a lesser smoke snake, out in daylight, or by a young girl smothering her with a pillow." His head turned sideways, watching as Christov lowered the girl into a soft chair. Moving her slightly to the left as her right arm was set up painfully. "Did you not think to interfere then."

"He knows I could not." Christov growled as he turned to leave through the door. "Your job is done, Knox."

"So is yours from what I hear, Fallen." Knox said as the whistle of the finished tea echoed throughout the room.

### Chapter 15

Clair sat in science, looking out the windows as the rain came pouring down. She and the rest of the class were annoyed that they couldn't watch the rocket launch as Mr. Anderson had promised them last week.

"I can't control the weather, everyone. Once we get a good day, we will go out." Mr. Anderson said. "How about a movie? I promise no notes. Just watch."

Clair leaned back in her seat, adjusting the wrapping on her arm and shoulder. She glanced down at the bandaged arm to glare at it. The wounds were healing just fine until her mom insisted that she get shots to protect her from the bite's effects. Once she returned home from Knox's shop, her mom rushed her off to the hospital to get three shots. Now her arm hurt more.

"Clair?" A voice whispered beside her. "Is your arm hurting again?" Clair turned to see Melanie leaned towards her from her desk behind her.

"Just a twinge," Clair whispered back.

"You should have stayed home," Melanie said in a worried tone.

Clair nodded in agreement. The main reason she came to school against her friend's and mothers' wishes was to speak to William about the Blood Diamonds being destroyed. She woke in the chair of Knox's kitchen to find a cup of herbal tea and a weakened Knox sitting across from her. He informed Clair that the Blood Diamonds were sealed and destroyed; however, it left them exhausted. She had so many questions about the ritual he performed, but he assured her that their paths would cross again, but he wanted her to rest.

"Now you won't have to worry about those Blood Diamonds or those who previously had them." Knox told her.

Clair nodded her head, and for once in the past two weeks, she had an excellent long peaceful sleep. No nightmares of Mad Monks or of Cookery chasing her. No Rasputin interrupting the grand balls she danced in and, more importantly, no more Blood Diamonds. However, Clair did feel a bit weak and tired, but she suspected it was from the shots.

The door to the lab opened, and Clair couldn't help but snap her attention to the door seeing William entering late again. She watched as he walked past Mr. Anderson's desk, placed a late slip on his desk, and continue to his seat. When he sat down, Clair waited for him to turn and smile at her; only when he did turn to her, the look on his face was annoyed and angry. Clair frowned and focused her attention back to the science movie, wondering why he was so mad.

When class ended, Clair walked to her locker to put her English text away. The class had been canceled, which meant a more extended period for lunch. Clair took out her books for the history report, intending to work on it during the free period. Closing her locker, she saw William moving quickly towards her.

"Hey, get caught in the rain?" she called as he grabbed onto her left arm and pulled her forcefully to the stairwell. "Okay I get it, you're in a bad mood today, but let go of my good arm." Once in the stairwell, he let go of her and started to pace back and forth. "What is up with you?"

"Something is wrong."

"I figured that much." Clair said, setting her books on the build-in wall seat. "Well maybe this news will make things better. I got someone to seal and destroy the Blood Diamonds. They are all gone now."

"What! That's horrible news, Clair!"

"What! Why?"

"Without them, I can't stop the werewolf curse!"

"They had nothing to do with the curse. Cookery used other tools to cast that on you." She said with a shake of her head. "Also, the curse should end."

"What, why?" William said, confused.

"When the diamonds were destroyed, it would have had a big effect on the original owners. Meaning the Mad Monks and Cookery."

"I don't know. I still feel it in me."

Clair thought for a minute. "Maybe Knox could help you?" she pointed out.

"Knox?"

"He's the owner of a curio shop in the strip mall across from the park. He sealed and destroyed the diamonds." Clair said.

"Oh. I see." He was thinking for a minute when he added, "Maybe I will make a stop by."

"Are you a bit better now?" Clair asked, getting her books and heading to the library. "Not as cranky?"

"Yeah, I guess so. Thanks." William said as he watched her head to the library. "I have to go to the gym for a moment. I'll catch up with you later." Clair nodded her head and entered the library.

William watched her enter the library before taking out his phone and started to create a text message. "Who does she think she is destroying my Blood Diamonds without my permission or inclusion?" He grinned as he sent the message to her. "Let's see her get out of this. You're welcome, Cookery."

***

Clair glanced up at the large church as the busy downtown street behind her was congested with traffic. She took a deep breath as she looked down at her cell phone to re-read the message that was sent to her that morning during spare. Her phone vibrated, and she glanced at the phone to see the number, and the message sent to her was an unknown number. Opening the text, Clair's eyes widened as she read,

Meet me at the Knox Presbyterian church downtown. We need to discuss the meaning of victory. If you do not show, I will kill your friend.

"Strange that it has the same name as Knox." She commented as she slowly made her way up to the stone steps and then placed her hand on the large wooden door with metal detail. Her mind was reminded of entering the church back in Toronto. Her hand moved back from the wooden door with worry. Clair had the feeling that this was a trap, but she didn't know where else to turn.

She showed William the message, and he seemed worried but not interested in coming with her. He gave her many excuses too, which worried that he might still be under the influence of Cookery and the Mad Monks. She tried to see Knox after school but found his shop closed. Even when she went to the back of the store, he wasn't there or didn't answer her knocks.

Holding her hand and looking up at the door, Clair wondered what Athena would do in a situation like this. Most of the time, she had back up from her friends or even Marcus Knightly when he suddenly appeared from the darkness. Looking around the busy street, she half hoped Marcus would appear and join her as a backup.

"That's TV, though." Clair sighed.

Raising her right hand to push the door, Clair stopped when pain pulsed through her. "That's right." she said, rubbing her right hand, thinking it would calm the throbbing. Looking down at her cast, all Clair could see was a big bullseye for Cookery and his men to take advantage of this apparent weakness. "I have to cover this, somehow." She fiddled with her long jacket, placing her arm inside the right sleeve and securing the rest of the jacket onto her shoulder. Taking a safety pin from her purse, she pinned the tag inside the coat to her bra strap and shirt. "It will have to do." Clair said with disappointment that her dominant arm was out of commission.

Opening the door with her left hand, Clair looked around the massive cathedral before entering in. The place was lit with candles from candelabras and chandeliers from the ceiling. The rows of benches spread all the way to a large alter with images of Christ and angels. The area was familiar to her. Part of the dream with Cookery performing the ritual on William came to her. Clair focused on looking for any movement within the chapel or along the sides of the walls. However, the place seemed to be empty. Cautiously searching, as each step brought her closer to the main altar, Clair wondered where everyone was. She figured the church would be closed for the evening but hoped a janitor or a person of the cloth would be walking around.

"The church is closed for the evening." A voice called out to her. Turning, Clair noticed a woman in a business suit looking at her with a kind but tired smile. "We open tomorrow at ten."

"I'm here to see David Cookery." Clair said, trying to hide the fear in her voice as she said his name.

"Do you have an appointment?"

"Something like that."

"I'll see if he is available." The woman said, turning to head for a back door, off to the side of the alter. "May I have a name?"

"Vinson." The woman nodded her head and left through the door. Clair looked around the church for quick exits. She might need one if things went wrong, and she had a feeling that things were going to be bad quickly. Counting two doors, the one she entered from and a door with the word exit glowing red above it, Clair nodded her head, noting where they were.

"Vinson?" Clair turned her head to see the woman gesturing for her to come towards the door. Clair strolled to the door but started to feel her heartbeat faster and faster. "He will see you now."

Clair swallowed as she walked into the room where the woman indicated he was waiting. Stepping in, Clair's eyes scanned from him, sitting at a large desk covered with books to anything else in the room. The room was simple with a case filled with books behind the desk, no windows but strangely a large standing mirror in the corner, by the door as she entered the room.

Cookery looked up from his readings and gave Clair a questionable look. Clair swallowed, wondering what he was thinking. She couldn't help but feel a bit squeamish as the burn marks and scars on his face looked like a mask from a horror movie. Finally, he spoke to her, "You're Carol's niece, am I right?" Clair remained quiet. "Did you receive the letter I sent you?"

"I didn't appreciate it." she retorted.

"I am sorry about that, but I needed to know if you were paying attention or not." He said with a smile.

"Why did you want to meet me?" Clair demanded.

"In truth, child. I didn't."

Clair blinked in surprise. "Liar. You sent me a message saying to come here and talk about the meaning of victory, or my friend will be killed."

Cookery's eyes looked at her for a while before saying, "Hard to lie in a house of God, my dear child."

"Oh, but it's so easy to tarnish it with the practices of dark cultic rituals?" she asked, hoping it would make an impact. She noticed his eye twitch at the comment.

Standing slowly from the chair, Cookery pushed it back under the desk as he walked around it. Keeping his eyes on her the whole time, he said, "I'm surprised that you would even have the nerve or energy to bring that up. From my understanding, you sealed my lords' diamonds away and even could destroy them. I'm not sure how you accomplished this feat or even survived the many attempts on your life. However, in the process, those who were close to them - yourself and I, for example - became weakened. Even if I am in a weakened state, I'm still more powerful than you."

Clair took a step back from him approaching her. "What are you going to do, choke me like your ancestor did?" she asked, trying to sound brave when she was terrified.

"Rasputin? Well, we are similar in many ways. However, he didn't know his own power. Interesting that you figured that out. My own men don't even know that he was my ancestor."

"Bonus points to me then." Clair said with a grin as she watched his movements.

"Indeed." He replied with less enthusiasm. "You seem to think that you will survive this encounter with me. You're either very brave or very stupid." Clair didn't respond as he lifted his hand out to her. "I didn't appreciate that you destroyed my masters' Blood Diamonds, but you should know it isn't hard to find new ones - or should I say create new ones."

"And by creating new ones, you mean to make them from me?" Clair asked as she looked from his hand to see dark clouds floating down to the floor and slithering towards her.

He nodded his head. "Sure, yours will have a slight trace of poison in them, but it will not matter as much." He smiled as the cloud on the floor formed into a gathering of dark smoke snakes.

"Nice trick." Clair said, backing towards the corner where the mirror was. She couldn't help but look at the snakes then Cookery.

"Yes. I'm aware that the one that I sent didn't kill you as planned."

"What would killing me prove?" Clair asked with a shaky laugh. "You kill me and would never have seen your diamonds again." A snake lashed out at her foot, making Clair jump back, hitting the mirror's surface. Her left hand gripped the mirror to steady it, but she found her fingers touched something cold like placing her hand into ice water.

"I'll regain his diamonds back, once you lie dead with your blood drained." Cookery said, laughing.

Clair glanced behind her to see her fingers merging in the glass of the mirror. Taking them back out and moving them around on the mirror's surface, Clair noticed a ripple-like effect moved away from her fingers. Dipping them back through the glass, Clair had the idea that if her fingers could go through then, her whole body could too. A place that they can't enter. The thought flashed into her mind, but she glanced back to the snakes hoping they couldn't go through.

"Miss, hurry." a voice whispered by her ear.

"Collin?" Clair asked under her voice.

"What did you say?" Cookery asked with a laugh. "Praying for your life, my dear?" The building suddenly shook, causing the snakes to back away from the door to the room with a loud hiss. Clair looked at the door in wonder as she could feel intense amounts of heat coming from behind the door. "What is this?!" he screamed out.

Clair continued to watch the door with interest, noticing that the smoke snakes were backing towards their master's feet, scared by what was behind the door. Removing her fingers from the mirror to steady herself against the wall, Clair felt the stone was warm to the touch. "It's sweating?" she commented as she took her hand away and looked at the dripping water from her hand.

"NO..." Cookery snarled. "NOT AGAIN!"

"Again?" Clair gasped. The realization hit her as the door to the room vibrated and bent inwards. Heat and flames poured into the room around the cracks and edges. The snakes hissed loudly, and Clair noticed that they mixed with the sounds of screaming from outside the door.

"Fire. The church is on fire!"

"You want to set us up in flames again, demon?!" Cookery called out as another bang echoed from the door. "Well, go ahead. Burn an innocent while you're at it!" He turned to Clair and started to reach out for her as his other hand reached for something on the desk.

"Miss, please hurry." Collin said louder behind her. Clair turned and closed her eyes as she felt a cold blade-like sensation slide up her left arm and cover her whole body. Opening her eyes, she saw her legs last to enter this wispy world behind the glass.

"Curious-er and curious-er," Clair said with a slight chuckle of amusement, as the idea of Alice Through the Looking Glass came into her mind.

"NO!" Cookery cried out. Clair watched as he aimed a gun at her and fired. Pulling her legs through, she gasped as the bullet hit the glass and shattered it. Bending to watch in the broken shards of glass, Clair saw the wood from the door fly when an inferno spread through the room. Cookery was screaming in anger at the shards on the floor and then in terror as a walking figure covered in flame neared him.

"Who's that?" She wondered.

"Miss. Please, hurry this way. Before the building is gone." Collin said, pulling at her left arm.

Clair stood and followed him. "Why the hurry?" she asked.

"Once the building that held this mirror is destroyed, the mirror world reflecting it disappears too. We've got to get you out of here and into safer worlds."

"Oh, then where do we go?"

"Quickly, through here." Collin said as he pointed to a large dark circle in front of him. "This is safe, just dark cause the torch is out." He stopped by it and helped Clair into it. Feeling the cold sensation on her body again, Clair kept her eyes open as she stepped onto the other side of a mirror. She was surprised to find that it was a room, and as Collin said, it was dark.

"Did you mean the light is off, Collin?" Clair asked, glancing behind her to see the outline of the boy in the full-length mirror.

"Yeah, the torch is on the wall there." He pointed in the direction, and Clair felt her way along. Touching the wall and then a light switch, she turned it on and noticed an extravagant hotel room.

"Wow, where are we?" Clair asked as she walked over to the window, seeing that she could see across the downtown area.

"My great ancestor's hotel." Collin said with pride. "My aunt brought me here one time... While I was still alive... We stayed in this room, but the looks are different."

"What year was that?" Clair asked.

"Hmm I think 1940?" Collin said, shrugging his shoulders.

Clair nodded and turned her head to the right side of the window as a massive explosion caught her attention. "That, that was the church. Did you see that?" Turning to see if Collin could see from the mirror, but she found that he wasn't there. "Oh, bye Collin. Thanks." She then turned back to the fire down the street.

"If that's the church and that's the park, then I should be at The Lord Elgin Hotel?!"

"Who's in there!" A shrill voice called from the open door. Clair turned around in shock to see a woman in a uniform looking at her in surprise. "What are you doing here? This door was locked."

Clair blinked for a moment and began to fake cry as she ran to the woman. "Oh, thank you! Someone finally heard me!"

"What?"

"I was locked in this room and couldn't get out, thank you for opening the door for me."

"You could have just opened the door handle?" The woman said, holding Clair back from getting her uniform wet from her tears.

Clair lifted her jacket up to show her the bandaged arm. "I couldn't if I tried. It was like someone put a chair on the other side. I was so scared. Thank you."

"Alright, enough. Let's get you to your parents." The woman said with a sigh as she led Clair down to the lobby of the grand hotel. "Are they staying here?"

"No, they are down the street at the restaurant. I think I know the way." Clair said with a sniffle.

"Alright. Just watch how you go, and I better not find you playing around here again."

Clair nodded and walked quickly to the front doors. Once outside, she turned to see the fire trucks and ambulances doing quick work as the church was most definitely the building on fire. Walking to the end of the street, Clair took out her cellphone and noticed a message from William waiting for her. She quickly called a taxi to take her back to the bus station closer to her end of the city. While she waited for the taxi to arrive, she looked at the message.

I should have gone with you. I'm so sorry. Hope you're okay. I didn't transform tonight, so the curse must be over.

Clair rolled her eyes and waited for the taxi to pick her up. She watched the action of the fire down the street till it arrived. After getting into the taxi and providing the address for the bus station, she realized that she would have to wait for the bus to arrive once she was at the station. Fixing her jacket around herself, Clair watched the cars go by on the street. The hour bus ride back to her home gave Clair time to relax. She kept herself awake by listening to her music. Glancing to her watch, she was surprised to see that she would just make it home before curfew with the speed the bus was driving.

"What a night." Clair said with a sigh. Once off the bus, she walked the rest of the way home. "With that church on fire and William's curse ended, it must mean that Cookery didn't survive." She took a deep breath as she turned the doorknob to her house.

### Chapter 16

"Are we on?" the news reporter asked as another ambulance pulled up to the church. "I'm standing outside Knox Presbyterian on the corner of Elgin and Lisgar tonight, where many have gathered to see this building of hope and peace now engulfed in flames. Many people around the crowd suspect this to be a copycat attack like the one in Toronto's St. James two weeks ago. There have been a few graphic displays of dismemberment and charred corpses leaving the building as the firefighters do their best to calm the inferno..."

Christov leaned against The Lord Elgin Hotel, watching the crowd and the fire trucks blocking traffic by the large church. He straightened up as The Master walked towards him with a box of doughnuts with the words Tim Hortons on the side. Opening the box, The Master took a doughnut from the box and ate it.

"The firemen didn't want them." The Master said, licking the blood from his lips.

"You made those from the firemen?" Christov asked, slightly annoyed and a bit confused by The Master's methods.

"No. Other people from the crowd were giving them drinks and food. They said no to mine." He said with a small frown. "Well, more for me."

"What happened this time?" Christov asked, eyeing the fire again.

"I found the leader that escaped from Toronto." The Master said with a smirk. "Didn't need as much energy this time."

"I see," Christov said with a nod. "So, what happens now? Knox mentioned that my job is over."

"It's not over." The Master said, eating another doughnut. "Just beginning."

"Really?"

"Yes." He swallowed and continued. "Sure, those cultists are gone, but I'm still trying to track down what they unleashed. However, other issues have arisen while I've been away on these adventures." Glancing sideways to Christov, he smiled, "I want you to continue my tracking of that bastard while I take care of other matters. You will report to me each move he makes and theories to what he is trying to do next."

"I understand, Sir," Christov said, bowing his head. "But what of the girl?"

The Master was silent for a while but then nodded his head. "I will inform you on that aspect later. For now, we will let her rest." He cracked his neck, side to side, and then turned to walk down the street. "I have another meeting to go to. Take the night off, Christov. The information I've gathered will be sent to Jared."

"As you wish," Christov said, confused again by The Master's methods.

***

Celestia Quill tried to keep all her paperwork together as she walked through the halls of the film studio. She had been working on the next installment of her books all month while also working on correcting the direction and dialogue of the show.

"Cursed scripting staff and production crew." She said as her heels clicked on the floor, heading to her office at the end of the long hall. "I swear if they add one more character or one more false plot point into this series, I'm going to scream!" Her hand landed on the doorknob, and with an awkward turn of her hand and wrist, the door opened. Walking in and placing the stack of papers, scripts, and notebooks onto a pile of marked papers by the door, Quill turned to turn on the light and close the door.

"You seem stressed, Quill." The deep voice made her hair stand up on end and send a slicing shiver down her spine. Turning slowly towards her desk, she wondered how he had gotten into her office and how long he had been sitting in her chair. A box of Tim Horton's doughnuts sat open towards her. He pushed the box towards her and said with a grin, "Would you like one?"

"Mas...Sir." Quill said, coughing as the command came through her like a force she never experienced. "What do I owe this honor?"

"Not much." The Master said as he stood from the chair and leaned to closed his box of doughnuts. "I need assistance from you three again."

"I understand," Quill said, nodding. "Athena and Joseph are just on set right now, but I could..."

"No need to bother them." The Master said, raising his hand to her. "What of McFaul?"

Quill swallowed as his tone turned slightly darker, just saying his name. "He is also on set."

The Master nodded his head, looking at the different papers and images hanging on her wall. "I can't go into much detail. But for now, start making plans for your group to travel to a few locations for something called a convention?" He looked to her, questioningly. She nodded her head, confirming his correct word. "For sending you to the direct location would raise suspicion from certain beings."

Quill pulled her notebook from the pile next to her and opened it to a blank page. "Which locations will the convention take place?" she asked, pulling a pen from her secured hair bun.

"Start with New Brunswick and follow the circuit till further instructions." He said with a sigh. "I will give McFaul private instructions, but he will be leaving your company for a time."

"Good thing filming for this season is over," Quill said, writing down the notes.

"I'm sure his fans will understand." The Master said with a frown. "For the three of you, I just want you to be a cover for McFaul."

"A cover?" Quill repeated.

"Yes. Be yourself on this tour and interact with fans. McFaul will be getting instructions once on the road." The Master turned and grabbed his box, closing it slowly. Standing, he turned to face Quill. "Understood?"

"Yes, Sir," Quill said, bowing at the waist. When she stood back up, she noticed that he was gone. Relaxing, Quill moved over to her chair and smelled it. "Smells of fire." she sighed. Flicking her hand over the chair, it instantly changed into a different style and color. "I was looking to change out the chair sooner or later."

She glanced down at the notes for the convention The Master wanted the four of them to partake in. "The only one for Canada and those locations is at the end of September till October." She turned her computer on and started to plan their trip. Suddenly a familiar buzzing rang through the halls. Nodding her head, Quill stood from the desk and rushed off to the sound stage, hoping to catch them before leaving for their rooms.

***

Marcus McFaul stood on the side of the fake door wearing a pair of uncomfortable pants that the costume department said was from the late 1700s. He looked at the rest of the costume they told him to wear for the back-in-time scene he and Athena were filming. The tapered black and white tuxedo with a long black cape attached at his shoulders was not something a gentleman would have worn during the 1700s. He should know, he was around during that era. He wore what the aristocratic men wore. This costume with small lights on it was not relatable to the 1700s at all. He touched the small lights on the front of the jacket. One of the tech staff told him that these were to help in the later scene where he and Athena were alone in one of the dark rooms. The lights were censors that would create the effect of his jacket dissolving into a magical mist. The director explained to him that this special effect is what the audience wanted to see when a vampire was about to seduce his prey. Marcus couldn't help but chuckle when he heard this.

If the writing staff only asked him how he would seduce his prey, he would tell them that he wouldn't seduce her or him. Mind control was more productive, and it was simple to alter memories once he was done with them. A frown came to his face, and he shook his head as dark thoughts of hunting came to his mind again. Why couldn't the past just die? He surely had.

Once blood banks and offering sites were created around 1941, he had become less of a hunter. The places were easier to get his fill than going out and hunting. Marcus did notice that the less he hunted, the harder it was to keep a human's attention if he needed their blood in an emergency. He made a mental note to himself to maybe try hunting again tonight.

"I was just in my room at home, and then I'm in this elaborate ballroom in Verona." The surprised tone of Athena's line reached Marcus, and he prepared himself for his cue. He just needed to wait for her next line. Marcus could picture the scene as the director was telling them before they started shooting. The camera would be on him as he entered the ballroom under a dark shadow and then walked around the room, mingling with people in similar tight costumes.

"But, I couldn't know this is Verona," Athena said, confused.

Marcus grinned as he got into his character - himself. "Unless you have been here before." He said, speaking into the hanging microphone above his head. His voice echoed through the set as the director had wanted. After saying his line, Marcus prepared to open the fake door to enter the scene. He just needed to hear...

"Marcus? Is that you?" Athena's tone was a mix of surprise and annoyance.

Marcus turned the doorknob and stepped out into the shadowed area of the set. He didn't look at the camera that he knew was now focused on him. As directed, he was hungrily staring at Athena. She stood in the middle of the ballroom surrounded by dancing people. He walked one step at a time, his eyes never leaving her even if a couple entered his path. He just brushed past them and hoped that the director didn't notice.

Marcus stood on a small cross on the floor, his eyes still glued on Athena, but an ominous grin came to his face. Athena was turning this way, trying to look for him through the crowded ballroom. He stayed on the cross for a few minutes till he noticed a hand gesture from the director, and Athena turned to look right at him. The grin widened and showed one of his fangs that the makeup staff forced him to wear. As choreographed, another dancing couple crossed in front of him. He ducked quickly to give the impression that he disappeared.

"Cut!" The director yelled over the soft music. The dancers froze in their places. Athena froze too, but Marcus moved quickly to his next area for the next shot. "Marcus, are you in place?!"

"Sir." He replied as he stood on the next cross on the set. Marcus was now a foot away from Athena. He quickly looked at her costume for the scene. Athena wore a long light blue puffy European dress. He figured that the costume department didn't do their research when creating her outfit either. Her strawberry blond hair was put up with small strands falling around her face, and hair diamonds decorated the edge of the strange bun on her head.

"Then, to the next scene. Night Bite scene 21, roll 6 in 3, 2, 1..." The director said as he sat down in his chair and pointed suddenly, "ACTION!"

The cameras focused on Athena and turned slightly to show Marcus now standing next to her. "Athena," Marcus said in a low, seductive growl.

A look of anger formed on Athena's face, and her body became tense. She was going to rush at him, just as they had practiced. "YOU!" Athena screamed and rushed towards him with her white delicate gloved hand clenched into a hard fist. Marcus moved quickly to the side and grabbed her outstretched arm lightly. He spun her around himself, matching the dancers in the background, and tucked his other hand around her waist.

"Care for a dance?" He asked with a grin. He pretended to move his body to force her to dance with him.

"With the devil? No, thanks!" Athena said as she squirmed from his tight grip.

"Why do you have to be like this when we see each other, Athena?" Marcus said as he tightened his grip on her hand. "I threw this whole ball just for you."

"I'm touched that you care." She said with sharp sarcasm.

"Oh, I do care." He said as he suddenly sent her into a low dip matching the dancer's movements. He brought her back up, and they both spun. "Just as you care for me."

"I... I would never..." Athena struggled to say as she stopped them both from dancing.

"Come now, my dear Athena. I know you are lying to me. Your eyes tell me everything." Marcus looked deeply into her eyes and swallowed nervously. He hoped that this would work. After all, it was her idea. "Your eyes are exceptionally open to me tonight. Just like a book that has been lost in the back of a vast library. Finally, open for all to read." He felt his energy entering her mind and brush against the wall that was slowing opening to him.

"If only I could read every single word among those pages." He paused and had to refrain from smiling as he felt Athena letting him in - letting him have control. With the connection strong for the moment her sent her commands telepathically. "You will keep your mind open to me. You will remember all your cues and say all your lines perfectly. You will do what I say until I tell you to wake up."

"I guess, my dear Athena, I will just have to get closer to see each word." Marcus pulled her slowly towards him and lowered his head to gaze down into her eyes. He paused there for a few minutes as he saw the camera next to his face capturing the hypnotic stare Athena was showing.

"Athena?" He asked softly. After a pause, he smiled. "Answer me."

"Yes," Athena said in a sleep-like tone. Her eyes remained opened and locked onto his.

"I have something I wish to show you." He said as his hand brushed along the side of her bare neck and moved away from her. His other arm released from around her waist as he took another step back from her. "Follow me." He whispered lightly. "Follow me," Marcus said telepathically. Without blinking, Athena walked towards Marcus' outstretched hand. She allowed him to lead her off the ballroom set through another door. Once they were away from the cameras and other actors, Marcus entered Athena's mind and commanded her to wake up. He held her as she fell weakly against him.

"Oh, my head," Athena said, sighing. She turned and straightened herself. "So, how did it go? Did I let you in this time? Did it look real?"

"Hold on," Marcus said with a chuckle as he grabbed her some water that he hid behind the set before they started filming. "Here, drink some water." She took it from him but was waiting for him to answer at least one of her many questions. Rolling his eyes, he nodded, "It worked. I was able to enter this time." Athena smiled and opened the bottle to start drinking the water. "As for how it looked," Marcus said truthfully, "I'm not sure. But I think we're about to find out."

As they turned to face the door, the Director opened it with a smile on his face. "That was amazing, magnificent! It was as if you were really controlling her with like hypnosis or something McFaul!"

"Thank you, sir." Marcus and Athena said together.

"Come and watch the scene. I cannot believe how magnificent it was. The angles were all right, and the lighting..." The director said in a proud tone as he led them off the set and towards the conference screening room. He suddenly stopped and waved to a rushing woman coming towards them, followed by a tall, fair young man. "Quill! Joseph! You have got to see what we have so far, the last scene was..."

"I'm sorry, Harvey, but I need to speak to Marcus and Athena right now," Quill said, stopping in front of them, taking deep breaths. "It's of an urgent matter."

"What's so important?" Athena asked, looking from Quill to Joseph.

"It's about the convention that we talked about..." Quill started to explain when Harvey interrupted her.

"Not that damned convention thing again, Quill." He said, annoyed. "They can't leave now just to go talk to fans and have pictures done. There is still more filming to do!"

"You just deal with the show," Quill said in a forceful huff.

"They are the show!" He yelled. Marcus and Athena gave sideways glances to each other. They both had the same plan, but they didn't want to be the one to put it into action. To their surprise, they noticed that the argument had stopped abruptly. Quill was staring intently at Harvey. After a few seconds, the director nodded his head and continued his way towards the screening room. "I'll get those clips for the convention ready for you by the end of the day..." He said in a sleepy tone as he walked down the hall.

"That would be great, Harvey, thank you," Quill said with a kind smile. She turned back to Marcus and Athena as they grinned at her. "Look, I know you two were thinking about doing it too." She shook her head and looked to an open door. "Come on, in here." They all gathered in the room, Marcus and Athena sitting in the large seats because of their costumes, Joseph sat on the table, while Quill closed and then locked the door loudly. She then lightly traced her finger over the door drawing a symbol design.

"Is that really necessary, Celestia?" Athena asked with a questioning look. "No one is going to listen in. Magical or not."

"I just got word from Him," Celestia said seriously. She shook a little bit as if recalling the meeting was an ordeal. "He wants us to go and investigate something while we are on the convention trip."

"Him... As in The Master?" Marcus asked, surprised.

"Wait, your master..." Athena asked, confused while pointing to Marcus. "Or mine?"

"Ours," Celestia said, pointing to Marcus and herself. He groaned and let his head fall backward. "So, this is mostly your mission. We are just your cover."

"Can I choose to not accept it?" He said in an irritated tone.

"You know what happened last time you told him off," Celestia said, crossing her arms. "You don't want to go back to that realm again."

"Fine," Marcus said after muttering under his breath. He recalled that realm and had no intention of going back to it voluntarily or not. "What is this mission, and where is it?"

"You mentioned the convention," Athena asked. "Are we actually going?"

"Just let me get my thoughts together," Celestia said, shaking her head to clear it. "I never really met Him before, and it shook me up."

"Yeah, he does that," Marcus said, exasperated. "He likes appearing unexpectedly and then be all scary and threatening to make his point known."

"Yeah, I wasn't sure to take the doughnuts he offered me or not," Celestia said.

"OH, great he's addicted to those Blood Cakes," Marcus said with a fake laugh. "Best not to take them unless he insists."

"Good to know." She replied. "But to what he wants. All he really said was that you, Marcus, will investigate while the rest are at the convention. As stated, we and the convention are a cover."

"Why not get one of his Fallen go do it?" Joseph asked. Marcus pointed towards Joseph a few times as he was about to ask the same question, but the half-angel beat him to it.

"Because he said he wanted Marcus to?" Athena said softly with a slight shrug.

Celestia nodded her head. "He said it had to be you," Marcus growled in frustration and muttered under his breath. Celestia continued, "However, he didn't give much detail. Just that it will be in one of the towns that we are going to be at, and once we are there, he will contact you again."

"I don't want to see him or do this damn mission," Marcus said, standing from the chair and moving towards the back of the room. "Watching something?" Marcus said as he took out his flask and drank from it. Red blood dripped from the side of his mouth. He used his tongue to lick it up before it fell on the costume. He had to pay for the last seven costumes he accidentally dripped blood onto.

"Again, I'm not sure exactly what this something is," Celestia said, sitting next to Athena. "Or if he wants an individual followed. All he said was it had to be you."

Marcus growled and took another deep chug of his drink. "Fine. I'll do it. Don't have much say."

"Glad to hear that," Celestia said, smiling. "Pack for Autumn. We start in New Brunswick, Canada."

"I can't wait to see the fans," Athena said, smiling. "They are my favorite part of conventions." She stood and looked down at herself with a frown. "But before I pack, I've got to get out of this damned dress."

### Chapter 17

Clair stood in the bright field of wildflowers and tall grass. Breathing in the fresh air, she felt relaxed and curious about what this field held. Walking forward, Clair held out her hands, touching the tops of the tall blades of grass tickle her palms. Looking down at her right hand, she was surprised to see that her cast was gone and that there were no signs of injury along her wrist and arm.

The path that she followed was one she figured was traveled frequently as the brown dirt with muddy footprints was different than the bright green grass on either side of her. Looking into the distance to see which direction the dirt path was taking her, Clair noticed that the golden field of wildflowers didn't continue into the distance. The landscape seemed to split into different forms of terrain. The wildflowers and tall grass blended into a precise and glimmering chasm of crystals that reflected the light of the bright sun. Beyond that seemed blurred; she wasn't sure if the next area was a thick forest of tall trees or buildings of a city. Further, in the distance, she noticed the sun setting, however as the sun's circular shape touched the horizon's edge, darkness grew over the circular shape.

" _Oh no!" Clair said, concerned for the lack of light over the area. Staring at the darkening sun, she felt her vision being intensified as if there was an increased zoom-in feature to her eyes. A tall figure, with unusual appendages forming out from its body, suddenly appeared in front of the darkened sun. Spreading its formed arms out widely, negative energy flew from his palms. It began filling the world around Clair, making it hard to breathe._

~~~

Clair awoke as she bounced on the bed, gasping. Opening her eyes and sitting up quickly, she looked around her room. Feeling a sudden pain from her right arm, she looked down and frowned as her arm was still wrapped and bandaged up.

"God what a dream." She said, gasping for air. Shivering, she reached for her notebook to write down the dream before she forgot the details of it. "That darkening of the sun and that thing with all those arms was creepy!" Hearing something vibrating, Clair noticed the screen of her cell phone lighting up – indicating that someone was calling her. Getting up from her bed, stretching, and reaching for the phone, she glanced at the screen's flashing ID name. Clair picked up the phone and answer, "Melanie?"

"Hey, oh my god, I thought you were never going to answer."

"Why are you calling so early?" Clair asked quietly as she leaned against the dresser.

"Early?" Melanie said in confusion. "Well, I guess seven might be early..."

"Seven?" Clair gasped. She turned to her alarm clock to see the bright red numbers. "It's morning?"

"Of course, it's morning, Clair." Melanie said with a chuckle. "You must have had a good sleep. I tried calling you for 30 minutes now." Clair nodded, agreeing that it was a good sleep till the end of the dream with the darkening of the sun and the creature appearing. Parts of the crystal chasm area of the dream came to her, making her wonder if the sun was darkened if the shimmering crystals would stop shinning.

"HEY! Are you listening?" Melanie shouted into the phone.

"Yes, yes. Sorry." Clair paused, wondering what exactly Melanie was just talking about. "Actually, could you repeat."

A long heavy sigh came through the phone. "As I've been trying to tell you. The cast of Night Bite are coming to the October convention."

"What?!"

"Yeah! The author, Celestia Quill, is going to be there. You know, doing her book stuff and showing a few clips from the next season of the show. Joseph is going – I almost died when I heard that. Athena is going to be there..." Clair walked towards her bed and sat down, feeling a little dizzy and lightheaded from this exciting and unexpected news. Her stomach growled at her, but she ignored it, listening to Melanie's spiel. "And oh, the best for last..."

"No!"

"Yes!" Melanie squealed excitedly. "Marcus McFaul is going to be there."

"Oh my..." Clair breathed as she fell back onto the bed. "Marcus McFaul there. And we'll meet him?"

"You bet. I begged my dad to get tickets this morning at breakfast. I can't wait." Melanie said with a squeal.

"Oh wow." Clair said as she closed her eyes and started imagining meeting her TV crush in person. "I might just drop dead in front of him when we get his autograph."

"Well at least," Melanie said with a chuckle. "He could bring you back. Being a vampire and all." She and Clair laughed. "Yeah, I can see it now. In the next episode of Night Bite, Clair Vinson becomes a vampire bride to Marcus McFaul."

"Clair! Breakfast!" Dean called from behind her door as a stampede of footsteps heading down the stairs quickly followed. Clair glanced towards the closed door.

"Sorry, Mel. I have to go." Clair said.

"No worries. I'll see you at school." Melanie said. "It seems cloudy outside, so the rocket might be on hold again."

"Damn." Clair said sadly as she stood and walked to the desk. "See you at school." Hanging up and putting the phone down, she walked downstairs for breakfast.

***

"Yep, no rocket today." Clair said she found it hard to carry the umbrella and her backpack walking down the street nearing the school when William suddenly called out to her. She slowed down as he neared her. He was dripping wet and scooted under the umbrella for protection from the falling rain.

He took the umbrella holding it over her head and his. "Here I got that. Is your arm any better?"

"It was a demonic smoke snake attack, not a paper cut. It's going to take longer to heal than a few days." Clair said with a laugh. "You seem in a good mood today."

"Of course." William said. "I heard on the news that Cookery and his group are all dead in another church fire downtown."

"Death shouldn't bring happiness, but because it's those Mad Monks, I'm happy too." Clair said, nodding.

"Which reminds me." William asked. "You didn't cause the fire, did you?"

"What! No!" Clair said, whispering as some students neared them and looked in their direction. "I was almost trapped in it."

"You didn't tell me how you escaped?" William asked, interested.

"I was in the office with Cookery," Clair said as she jumped to avoid a big puddle. "We talked when he got up from his desk and sent more demon smoke snakes after me."

"So, he did send the snake to the camp?" William asked.

"Yes, he said it was to kill me." Clair said. "Anyways, these snakes backed me into a corner where a large standing mirror was, and then the building shook. The door to the office shook violently as if something wanted to break it down. Cookery realized that it was like what happened at the church in Toronto and reached for a gun that I didn't know he had on his desk."

"Wait... a gun?"

"Yeah. It was scary."

"But how did you escape?" William said, stopping for a minute and looking down at her.

"Oh," Clair said, stepping over another puddle. "The mirror I mentioned before, well, you won't believe me, but it was like a door. See, I met this boy named Collin, and he helped me through the mirror."

"This boy named Collin helped you through a mirror?" William said with disbelief. "Alice much?"

"Oh, Collin is someone in a mirror." Clair explained.

"Someone?" William asked, confused.

"Yes, I think he lives in the mirror. I'm not sure how it works, but I met him while at Knox' shop on Main Street."

"Shop, what?"

"It's the place where the Blood Diamonds were destroyed." Clair said simply. "The owner, Knox, is very nice and knowledgeable with mirrors and occult stuff."

"So, this Knox is like Samuel from Night Bite?" William asked.

"Oh, I didn't think of that when I met him. I guess I had other things on my mind at the time." Clair said, frowning that she didn't make the connection to Knox, and his occult shop was comparable to Samuel's on Night Bite. Samuel was Athena's watcher and provided the group of the show with many different weapons, spells, and resources on all creatures that they fought.

"Anyways, I'm in this mirror world, and Collin helps me step out at another mirror in - get this, The Lord Elgin Hotel - just a few streets from the church."

"Wait, you are serious?" Clair nodded. "So, you were helped by a mirror person who led you from a mirror in Cookery's office into one at an expensive hotel just a few ways down the street from a burning church? That's hard to believe, Clair."

Clair began to walk, with William following her. "Well, look. Whatever happened, happened in the past. All of this is finally over." She said with a light sigh. "No more Mad Monks, Rasputin, werewolves, Blood Diamonds, or demon snakes, hopefully."

William was silent for a while until he chuckled. "Though you still have that report with Rasputin in it."

Clair nodded slowly. "You're right. Damn." She laughed too. "I best finish that. It's almost due soon. How is yours going?"

"It's going." William said, handing her back the umbrella as they entered the school covered from the rain.

"Thanks." Clair said, closing the umbrella. "I guess we won't be seeing the rocket fly today."

"I guess not." He said simply.

"Oh, I feel like so much weight has been lifted off my shoulders. I mean, sure, my arm is still in a sling, but hopefully, this feeling means that everything can go back to normal for the both of us."

William nodded silently as he placed his hand onto her shoulder, stopping her for a moment on the stairs. "I do want to thank you for believing me though and helping out. You were a big help through all this shit. I wouldn't have been able to get through it without you."

"I'll gladly take that thank you. Part of me thinks more than a thank you and kind words are in order here for all that I went through and did... But you're welcome anyway. I'm here if you ever need to talk about something." She paused and quickly added, "But if it's more Mad Monks and demonic beings, than may I suggest going to a priest who isn't set on killing you to talk to. I mean all that is said and done, I hope I never have to go through this again."

She turned and continued up the stairs. William watched her go as he placed his hands into his coat pocket. Once she had left the stairwell, he walked out the door as the bell rang. Stepping off the grounds of the school, he grinned and started to laugh a bit to himself. His hand gripped around the object in his pocket, and he pulled it out to admire it.

"Sorry to disappoint you, Clair, but this isn't the end." His hand tightened around the shaft of the pointed wooden stake as the grin widened on his face. "It's only the beginning."

### Chapter 18

(Eight years ago)

"She's not breathing!"

"Heart rate decreasing!"

"Lung collapsed."

"She's going into Cardiac Arrest."

"Heart rate is decreasing further!"

"Second lung collapsed."

"Prepare for CPR!"

"No response."

"Turn on the defibrillator!"

"Everyone Stand Back! CLEAR!"

"No response."

"CLEAR!"

"Nothing."

"One more time, live damn it! CLEAR!"

"Nothing, Doctor. She's gone."

***

"Where am I?" Clairisa asked as she looked around the shadowy area. She shivered as a cold wind blew around her. Placing her arms around herself, she felt her hands brush against ice-cold skin. Looking down, she noticed that she was naked, which didn't concern her as there was nothing of importance to cover. "Hello?" she called out again.

"Hello, little one." A male voice said around her. "What are you doing here?"

"That's what I want to know." Clairisa asked. She glanced around her surroundings to find the owner of the voice. "Excuse me, but where are you? I hear your voice, but I don't see you."

A chuckle of amusement echoed around her. "Don't worry, child. I'm just staying in the shadows till I'm sure you will not fear me."

"What?" Clairisa asked nervously. Backing away and looking around with worry, she felt her ankle hit something behind her. Turning, she noticed a light golden stair floating an inch off the floor. "It's glowing?"

"Wait, Clairisa!"

Turning back, she noticed a man approaching her from the shadows of the darkness surrounding her. The man was tall and had long blond white hair. He wore a long red jacket that flew around him like leathery bat wings. Standing before her, Clairisa noticed the man's face with a concerned look on it.

"Please dear, wait before you step on that... step."

Stepping towards him with interest, she said, "You aren't scary, mister." The man turned his face to the side with a slight grin to this remark. Clairisa noticed a deep, healing scar under his eye. Taking up the side of his right cheek was a deep red X mark. "Did you hurt yourself?" Clairisa asked, pointing to the mark.

The man touched the scar and frowned. "A millennium ago, child." Lowering his hand back down to his side as he looked at her curiously. "Clairisa, how did you come to be here?"

"I don't know." She said with honesty. "I don't even know where here is?"

"Many humans don't, while others only imagine it." He said with a chuckle. "Though someone of your young age being here is a rarity."

"Leave her be foul beast!"

Clairisa turned to see a glowing figure stepping down a set of invisible stairs till they stopped on the visible step behind her. Stepping back and holding her arm against the bright light from the figure, Clairisa gasped, "Are you an angel?"

"He is." The man with the scar said under his breath, easily unimpressed.

"Clairisa Vinson. Child, you are being awaited." The glowing figure said calmly. "Please take my hand, and we shall go."

"Go where?" Clairisa asked, confused. Looking down at her body, she felt a strange sensation. "My body feels funny." She rubbed her arms and legs as it felt like needles were sticking into her.

"It's been about a year here, dear. Your body and mind are maturing. In other words, you are now a year older." The man with the scar said.

Looking down at herself, Clairisa shook her head. "Why am I a year older?"

"Child, you are deceased and must come with me." The angel said calmly as they reached out to her again. "Everything will become clear in a moment."

"What if she doesn't want to go with you, Feathers."

"Feathers?"

"You called me a foul beast." The man with the scar said with a grin. "I thought we were playing the name game."

"Clairisa, there isn't much time." The angel said firmly. "You can't stay in this Limbo. You must come with me."

"I'm in limbo?" Clairisa said, looking around at the darkness. "In between life and death?"

"The same." The man with the scar said with a nod. "As I said, many humans don't know about it, but some speculate." He shook his head, "It is up to you what your choice is."

"Why are you showing her compassion, traitor?" the angel asked. "Or have you already tempted her to follow you?"

"Unlike your kind that blinds those into thinking that what awaits them is peace and kindness, I show them the truth and proof of what actually could be given to them."

"Ahh... My body hurts again." Clairisa said she pushed against her skin and forehead as another wave of pins and needles overcame her system. Breathing deeply, she asked, "Am I another year older?"

"Yes." The two entities said together.

Looking from the two, she said, "So you're an angel, and you're the devil?"

"A smart deduction child." The angel said, moving its hand out to her again. "Now that it is clear to you shall we?"

"Wait, I don't want to die." She said, stepping away from them both. "I don't..." Tears started to fall down her face.

"No one can live forever, child." The angel said with a sad tone. "However, you will be free if you come with me."

"Am I not free now? I mean before I..." She couldn't say the word.

"No, you are stuck, and if you don't make a choice, you will remain here. Haunting those who you've loved for all time."

"Why do you have to scare her like that, Feathers. She clearly isn't ready to die yet. Let her go back."

"I could go back?!" Clairisa asked. Feeling the sensation of the needles again, she leaned over herself, breathing slowly. "Another year?" she gasped, asking the question worriedly. Looking down at herself, a slight blush came to her as she noticed her body had changed. Poking her chest with her finger, she questioned the strange gather of skin that bounced slightly. "What are these?"

"Those are called breast, dear." The man with the scar said as he performed a simple hand motion towards her. Suddenly a cover of fabric flew around her body. Looking down, Clairisa noticed the purple sundress. Swaying back and forth, she admired the light fabric swishing around her legs.

"Thank you." Clairisa said to the man. He nodded at her.

"Of course, you put her in a tight-fitting dress." The angel muttered.

"What's the problem, Feathers. She is maturing while we discuss matters, at least giving her some clothing will help keep her dignity should this take longer to send her back."

"That is not the plan for her." The angel said with no emotion. "It's already been decided."

"Hey, don't I get a say in this?" Clairisa asked. Covering her mouth at the rudeness, she just displayed. "I'm sorry, I don't know where that came from."

"See, she has fight within her." The man with the scar said. "Something that we haven't seen in a while from someone so young." Clairisa looked from the man to the angel. They seemed to be having a silent conversation through an intense staring contest.

"You can't be serious? Her? She's too young." The angel said.

"By the time we are done with this conversation, her mind will be years into maturity." He said simply. "You know my proposal. Go ask your Master about it. Though I feel that he's read it from your mind and thinking about it as we speak." He smiled sinisterly, which revealed the fangs that hid underneath his thin lips. "At least I'm asking for permission this time."

"Yes, this is certainly an improvement to your past behaviors because your last attempt nearly killed you and millions till you sent him away." The angel lowered its hand, placing it on its hip. "Our Lord thought that we would have to worry about your son."

"You deal with your own kin, Feathers. I'll deal with mine."

Clairisa looked from the two of them arguing till she noticed another person standing with them. "Umm, who is that?" she asked, interrupting the argument that she didn't understand due to it being in another type of language. The argument stopped as the third figure stepped forward. The outline seemed to be ever-changing to Clairisa as with one step, the figure was an older female with long white curly hair, the next step, they were a male with a shaved head. It was like flipping through different people as if the figure was undecided of which to be or stay on.

"You can leave Seale." The figure spoke lightly as if in a whisper. Clairisa turned to see the angel. The glowing step it stood on disappeared after it bowed deeply to the ever-changing figure. The figure turned to the man with the scar and greeted, "Brother."

"Brother." The man with the scar said with a slight nod of the head.

Looking towards Clairisa, the female figure smiled. "Greetings Clairisa."

"Umm, Hello... Sir?" Clairisa said, unsure which proper greeting to use as the figure changed into three females and two younger children.

"Clairisa, you're going to be returned back to your body. You have stayed too long here." It said then turned its attention to the man with the scar. "This is in your care, Brother."

"Understood." He replied as he reached his hand out towards Clairisa, and the other figure did the same.

"Take our hands, and you will be brought back." The other figure said. Clair took hold of the man with the scar's hand first, feeling a warm touch to her cold skin before taking the other beings, which cracked with electricity under her touch. "Interesting, she trusts you rather than me."

"You have been away from humans for far too long, brother. You only remember what they were in the past. Therefore, hide who you are from them." The man with the scar said sadly.

"You're the one to talk about hiding one's appearance, Brother."

"I'll see you soon, Clairisa." The man with the scar said with a soft smile, ignoring what the figure had mentioned.

She was about to ask what he meant by that when a sharp pricking sensation came from both hands and shot through her arms and chest then down through to her legs. She screamed in pain as a similar electric feeling racked through her body at the same time.

"She's gone, Doctor."

"Note down, officially deceased after three minutes and 30 seconds of CPR and active deliberator..."

"Doctor! Her vitals and heart rate are rising!"

"What?! This can't be. She's alive! Get her oxygen – Stat! A seven-year-old coming back from near death... Unbelievable."

###

Thank you for reading my book. If you enjoyed it, please leave me a review at your favorite retailer. Keep your eyes open for more supernatural situations with Clairisa Vinson in future books.

Thank you again!

Allysina Shinestone
