Shadow's Keep

by Luna Luce

How is that Bella ended up in a dead Halloween party with nothing to do but watch her friends play a game called Shadow's Keep. She didn't know that by saying a few words and falling asleep while they played, that she would wake up having to fight for her life and her friends lives. A/H, OOC, OC.

Disclaimer: This story is based on characters created and owned by Stephenie Meyer. No money is being made and no copyright infringement is intended. I also do not own Stay Alive, I just really love that movie. Josef and dear little Timothy however is mine, the little chant, poems and songs belong to me as well.

Summary: Halloween is about trick r treating or when your in high school it's about having the best Halloween party ever. So how is that Bella ended up in a dead Halloween party with nothing to do but watch her friends play a game called Shadow's Keep. She didn't know that by saying a few words and falling asleep while they played, that she would wake up having to fight for her life and her friends lives as well. Will Bella make it out alive or will she become just another shadow for the game to consume? A/H, OOC, OC

Pre-read by: SparklingFae

Beta'd by: flamingpen18 and Mama4dukes

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"Stop moving. You'll ruin your makeup!"

The brunette shifted again in her seat as she shot a glare at her torturer.

"Why do I have to wear makeup again? I mean, I'm dressed as Alice, and if you haven't noticed, she was too busy chasing after a white rabbit to care about her looks. You know what? Forget it. I told you before. I don't want to go to this stupid costume party."

The tall curvy blonde rolled her eyes at the brunette. "Yes, you do, Bella. Besides, the party is at Edward Cullen's house. You know that you are dying to see inside that house as much as everyone else. And let's not forget the crush you have on him." The blonde's lips curved into a mischievous smile.

"We both know how much you've been wanting to get his attention. So what better way than this to show that you aren't just a little bookworm, and that you know how to loosen up than to be at this party."

"Rose, please don't make me do this."

"Now Bella, you promised that you would come with me and Alice to this party."

Bella sighed and sat still as Rose applied some eye shadow to her eyes. "I know and I will, even though I don't want to. Speaking of Ali, where is she?"

"I'm here."

The young woman with short black hair cut in a pixie style named Alice, who preferred to be called Ali said as she walked into the room. Her light green eyes were shining bright in the light of the room.

"Ali? What the hell are you wearing?" Bella asked as she turned to look at her friend. She was glad to finally be free of Rose's torture.

The petite, elfish looking young woman looked down at her body which was clad in a tight short green corset dress that was tattered at the bottom, fishnet stockings, and green calf high stiletto boots.

"What? I'm Tinkerbell's hotter sister. Check out my wings."

She turned around so that Rose and Bella could get a good look at the iridescent wings that were secured to the back of the dress. Bella rolled her eyes as Rose clapped her hands together.

"Alright bitches, it's time to party. Let's do the check first."

Bella sighed as she stood next to Rose and Ali in front of the mirrored sliding closet door in Rose's room.

"Make up is perfect, check. Costumes are straight, check. Breath smells fresh, check. Adjust the girls so they look perky, check. Alright then, ladies, we are ready to search and flirt."

"Um... don't you mean search and destroy?" Bella asked her as she pressed the skirt of her costume down once more.

"Same thing," Rose said as she puckered her deep cherry red lips and blew a kiss at the mirror.

"I look too fucking hot to be anything but a tease," she emphasized her words with a shake of her butt.

"You know, Rose, I still say you should have gotten a red wig to go with that costume. After all, Jessica Rabbit was a redhead," Bella told her as she flicked her dark brown hair over a shoulder.

"And Alice was a blond. Besides, Jessica Rabbit would have looked better as a blond. Therefore, I'm giving everyone the upgraded version of Jessica Rabbit."

"Bella, you know better than to argue with her and her inflated ego."

Bella nodded her head as Rose huffed. The girls headed down the steps and yelled a quick goodbye to Rose's mom and dad. They all climbed into Rose's red 1996 Toyota Camry. As Rose pulled away from her house, she spoke to Bella and Ali.

"So is everything all set? Bella, did you tell your dad you were staying at Ali's house?"

Not really paying attention to Rose, Bella gave a nod as she stared out at the dark surrounds that they passed.

"Yeah, my parents won't be back home until late tomorrow night, so we have the house to ourselves," Ali told her as she fiddled with the radio.

The drive to Edward Cullen's house was short and uneventful. Rose parked the car and the girls got out. They looked around, noticing that there was only a few cars there.

"What the hell kind of party is this? There's no one here," Rose stated what was the obvious.

"Like we know. Perhaps, you should ask Edward," Ali told her as they stepped up to the door and rang the bell.

They could hear booming laughter getting closer to the door. Rose's beautiful face was set into a scowl. Ali looked curious and Bella, well, Bella looked like she'd rather be anywhere else but there.

The door swung open, revealing the smiling face of the high school varsity wide receiver, Emmett McCarthy.

"Hey, ladies. How's it going?"

Rose simply brushed past him.

"I thought this was supposed to be a party? All I see is your Jeep, Jasper's truck, and Paul Lahote's charger. Is this the only way you football jocks could get girls? Anyway, it doesn't matter. What matters is what happened to this massive party? You know the one that was going to be the ultimate party that will be talked about for years to come?"

Emmett opened his mouth to answer, but it was not his voice that replied.

"Lauren fucking Mallory happened. Her parents are, apparently, out of town, so she has the whole weekend to party. Whereas, I only have until midnight. Apparently, the thought of having no interruptions all weekend sounded more appealing,"

Edward said as he leaned against the walls.

Bella sighed as she stepped into the house. She gave Rose an evil glare, which was returned with an inappropriate gesture.

Ali moved up beside Rose and looked over at Edward.

"Now what are we supposed to do? We don't want to go to Lauren's, because, to be honest, we can't stand her. We got dressed up for a costume party, and it looks like Emmett is the only one dressed in a costume."

The girls eyed Emmett's gladiator costume.

"That's not true, girls."

The girls heads snapped toward a door that was way off to the side where the low raspy southern drawl came from. There, standing in the doorway, was Jasper Whitlock in what looked to be an Confederate Civil War costume. Ali was practically drooling as she took in the sight of the school's varsity quarterback.

"You do know that the Yankees won, Jasper? Right?"

Bella asked with a smirk as she gave his costume a look.

"Yes!"

He snapped out at her with a roll of his eyes.

"But I refuse to wear a Yank costume. That would be going against my southern upbringing."

Bella rolled her eyes and sent a smile his way. He returned it with a smirk and wink. Her eyes briefly flickering over to look at Edward who was still leaning against the wall. His jaw set in a scowl. He looked up when he noticed someone watching him. Seeing it was Bella, he gave her a crooked smile that made her blush.

"So, again, what are we to do now? I didn't get dressed like this just to go back home,"

Rose said with a wave of her hand down her body, interrupting Bella and Edward's moment.

"Well, girls, you're just in time. You see, Jasper has somehow procured a game that has yet to reach the market. We were just about to play. So you in?"

The three girls looked at each other.

"Might as well. I'm in,"

Rose said while flipping her hair.

"Me too,"

Ali added as she bounced on her toes.

"I think I'll just watch,"

Bella stated as they followed the guys back into what looked to be the entertainment room.

There, sitting on the floor in front of a fifty inch, big, screen LCD television, was Paul Lahote and Jacob Black in what looked to be a Biker and Michael Myers costumes. The game was already being loaded, and the new game screen was showing.

Bella looked at the screen and rolled her eyes at the name.

"Seriously? The game is called Shadow's Keep. What kind of name is that?"

"Don't know, don't care. All I know is this is a virgin game, and it's calling us to pop it's cherry,"

Emmett said as he loaded the players screen after giving Rose and Ali some controllers. Rose sat on the couch next to Emmett. While Ali sat on a cushion on the floor next to Jacob, one of her many new crushes. Bella opted for the love seat.

There were only ten players you could choose from. Eight dark characters that portrayed the Shadow players, whose tales were being told in the story, and two heroes, a male and female.

"Check out the Shadow players: the Puppeteer, the Jester, the Mad Hatter, the Carver, the Countess Reborn, the Seamstress, the Wolf, and the Immortal. The Shadow Keepers, or should I say heroes, the Knight and the Maiden look weak. I think I'm going to be the Jester,"

Emmett said as he chose the creepy looking Jester with a wide smile and a bloody hatchet.

Everyone else followed his lead, none of them wanting to pick an hero.

"Bella, are you sure you do not want to join us? I'm sure there must be another controller around here somewhere,"

Emmett asked her as he cast a brief glance her way.

Bella shifted on the love seat beside Jasper. He looked over at her and gave her a panty dropping smile, his dimples showing briefly, before he turned back to the screen.

"No, I'm sure. I'd rather not. Those Shadow characters look a bit grotesque, don't you think? Almost lifelike, yet horrifying at the same time,"

She said as she tried to calm the blush that was spreading across her face.

Her friends looked at her with small smiles on their four guys in the room were chuckling a bit.

"This is what you call great graphics, babe?"

Paul mumbled as he glanced back at her, giving her a wink before returning his attention back to the big screen.

"Relax, Bella. No harm can ever come from playing a game,"

Jasper said in his raspy southern drawl. He placed a hand on her thigh and gave it a gentle squeeze, letting his hand linger for a moment before he removed it.

"Yeah, Bells, it's just a game,"

Emmett told her with a laugh.

"Yeah, sure, just a game. I think I'll sit this round out."

Emmett shrugged his massive shoulders.

"Suit yourself. Now let's see. It says you have to say this little prayer."

"Why the fuck do we have to say a prayer?"

Edward asked as he leaned in closer from his gaming chair beside Paul to look at the words.

"I don't know, Eddie. Just humor us and say it with us,"

Paul said, clapping a hand on Edward's shoulder.

"Fine, but that shit doesn't look like a prayer, more like signing a contract. You know, like that twisted prayer that was in that movie Stay Alive and stop calling me Eddie!"

Paul snorted as Emmett laughed at Edward.

"Dude, it's just a fucking game. Besides, shit like that only happens in movies."

"Yeah, Edward, relax. I say lets just say it. I'm ready to conquer this game,"

Jacob said while he moved to lean against the couch, moving closer to Ali in the process.

Edward nodded, before he leaned over and grabbed his controller. He moved his player over by the prayer on the screen as instructed. As he waited for the others to do the same, he looked over at Bella and gave her a wink.

As one, they all said the prayer out loud. Bella watched them, while mumbling the words under her breath. A feeling of unease passed over her as the words echoed around the room.

"Come let the darkness shroud us. Let our innocence fall away. May our sins not be judged. Let the blood that is shed be of the unworthy. And when all seems to be lost, let the light lead us from here, I pray you."

The words glowed before disappearing. Everyone in the room eyes widened.

"Did you see that shit? You think it's voice activated?"

Edward asked as his voice pitched to show his nervousness.

"Fuck no, Eddie. It told us to fucking release the button after we said the prayer. You really shouldn't have watched that Stay Alive movie the other day. Shit got you acting like a pansy. Now shut the fuck up, find your nuts, and man up, because I wanna play."

Emmett said with a smirk on his face, before he turned back to the screen as a male's voice came from the screen.

'You have decided to go forth in these twisted tales of terror as Shadow players. What you may find will be hard to believe, but understand, behind every myth lies some truth. Be wary of the shadows within each tale, for they may play tricks on you. Find the object that is a mark for each character. Can you save yourselves before your characters untimely death? Good luck players. You will need it. Your very life may depend on it.'

Bella decided she didn't want to sit there and just watch them play. She closed her eyes and let the sounds of the game drifted her to sleep.

She awoke as she felt a chill in the air surround her. Opening her eyes, she immediately noticed that something was wrong.

There was mist crowding the room, and it was silent, too silent. She looked around, noticing everything that was in the room before was no longer there, including her friends.

"Hello?"

There was no answer except the creaking of the house.

"Guys, this isn't funny."

A low bone chilling chuckle filled the room. Before a deep voice echoed throughout the room.

'No, it is not little Bella, or should I say Alice. I am one of the Shadow's Keeper. You have entered this game as the heroine. Help the other players find their way back, or they will lose themselves within the game. If you yourself don't find your way back, your fate shall be the same.'

"But I wasn't playing the game."

'Ah... but that is where you are wrong. You said the incantation, just like everyone else. It makes no difference whether you had a controller or not. You said the words out loud.'

"But I...I didn't want to play,"

Bella whispered out.

That same chuckle that sent shivers down her spine before rang out around the room once again. It's funny, if she remembered correctly. A Shadow's Keeper was suppose to be a hero. So how come this voice didn't sound like it belonged to a hero.

'Funny, how no one never thinks to read the fine print. You may not want to play, but you will have to play if you plan on getting out of this game alive. Now time is running out, Bella. I suggest you get moving. You have until midnight to help your friends escape the depths of game. You will find that in seven of these rooms your friends will be trapped in their own little world as the characters they have come to portray. Remember, Bella, they are dangerous. Try to find their marks. It will have a glow to it. Make sure you grab something to offer each character. Your life may depend on it.'

"How will I know what to grab?"

'Each character has something that is their weakness. The Puppeteer's weakness would be the twine and sticks for his puppets. The Mad Hatter, of course, will be the tea kettle missing from the tea set. The Seamstress' is her needle and thread.

The Jester's is his severed tongue. The Countess Reborn's is the mirror. The Carver's is the knife sticking in the bark of a tree. And last but not least, the Wolf. Give him the basket of goodies. Don't eat it, Bella, no matter how wonderful it smells. Not one crumb must touch your tongue. Now be off. I have stalled the time as long as I could. Good luck, little Alice, and whatever you do, stick to the name you are dressed as.'

Bella bit her lip as she looked around the room, once again wishing she had stayed at home. She pulled the door open and headed out into the hall. The mist was there as well, but lower to the floor.

She shivered slightly as she looked down the hall. Why the hell did Edward Cullen's house have to have so many rooms? She decided to go left. She opened the door that was across the hall and noticed that it was just a study. Okay, so that was one room she could cross off her list.

She closed the door and headed down a little further. Checking two more doors and coming up with nothing, she started to get frustrated.

"I thought you said my friends were hidden in the rooms!"

She yelled out.

'Temper temper, Alice. Such a shame you don't have a white rabbit to follow, hmmm. Remember, tick tock. Time is ticking, and you're wasting it, yelling at no one.'

Bella screamed and slapped her hands on the wall.

"This is absolutely bullshit!"

'Such language.'

The Shadow's Keeper's voice hissed out as laughter echoed around the hallway.

Bella bit back a sob as she started to think about the characters. Perhaps, it was certain rooms? No, that was stupid. She shook her head and twisted the knob of the next door.

Upon opening it, she noticed that this was not a room at all, but something out of a horror movie. There was blood everywhere. She bit back a sob and swallowed, trying to calm the nausea that was rolling through her stomach.

She stepped in and the door shut behind her with a soft pop. She looked around in the dark room that was only illuminated by a full moon outside the window, noticing that she seemed to be in what look to be a dress shop.

'So this must be the seamstress.'

She thought as she saw a door further back that had a glow of light shining through the bottom of it. She started to head for the door when she remembered the words the Shadow's Keeper said.

Stopping midway she turned and started looking around her. She needed to find a needle and thread fast. She didn't know how much time she had, but she sure wasn't going to waste it by trying to guess.

She looked among the shelves first. Finding nothing, she turned to dress that wasn't finished yet. Stepping closer and with a trembling hand, she turned the dressmakers dummy that was holding the dress.

She tried to tune out the dripping of what she was sure was blood. Her hands were slick with the cooling blood that still covered parts of the dummy. But that wasn't what cause her to bite back the scream that was welling up inside her.

The fabric of the dress wasn't fabric at all. It was skin, human flesh sewn together to make the dress. She stared at what was once someone's face.

Right in the middle where the right eye use to be, there was a needle and thread, except this wasn't a normal needle and thread.

Bella moved over into the moonlight and held the needle up in the light. She covered her mouth, forgetting for a moment that her hands were covered in blood. The needle was made of bone, and she was pretty sure the thread that was hanging from it was hair.

Remembering that there was someone else's blood on her hands, she quickly removed her hand from her mouth. She gagged at the thought that the other person's blood was now covering her lips and cheeks.

A small whimper escaped her mouth as she moved forward toward the door. Taking a deep breath, she opened the door. What she saw made the bile rise once more.

Blood dripped from her friend's short black hair as well as her fingers. There were two teenage girls lying on the floor, stripped of their skin. As soon as the door shut behind her, Ali's head snapped up.

"Ali?"

The young woman before her blinked, but did not acknowledge the name she was called.

"Seamstress."

Calling her that seemed to snap the young woman out of her stupor.

"Ooh... such a pretty girl you are. Are you lost?"

Bella looked over the room once again, having a hard time looking at her friend like this. The sides of her mouth look as if it had been cut and sewn back together.

"No, not lost. I brought you something."

Her friend Ali, who believed she was the seamstress, stood up and seemed to glide over to her with a knife in her hand that was still dripping with blood.

"Oh, and what have you brought me, my pretty? Perhaps, I don't want it. But your skin, it's flawless. Such beautiful skin should be seen by all. And what better way than to add it to my collection, hmm..."

Before Bella could even back away, the seamstress hand locked around her left wrist. Her hand was still holding the needle and thread. With a quick slashing motion, the seamstress had cut into her flesh, causing her to scream in pain.

"Scream all you like, my dear, no one will hear you."

"Please, I bought you this."

Bella tried to ignore the pain as she opened her hand, revealing the bone needle and thread. She watched as the young woman that use to be her friend eyes widened and a smile spread across her face.

"Ah, my pretty, you've brought my needle and thread. I thought I lost it. It would have been such a shame to throw out ruined skins. You know, once they dry they are worthless to try and sew with. You've got to sew while the flesh still has moisture within it."

She hummed and picked up the skin nearest to her. Completely ignoring Bella, once the needle and thread was in her hands.

Bella let out a hiss at the throbbing pain in her arm. Watching the seamstress sew and move around the dressmakers dummy that seem to appear as soon as she hand the needle in her hand.

That's when she spotted it, the light golden glow covering an object on the blood covered sewing table.

Keeping an eye on the seamstress at all times, she made her way to the table, careful not to make a sound and draw the attention back onto her. Her hand came into contact with the table and she scrunched up her face as the warm blood covered her hand.

She looked down quickly, taking her eyes off the seamstress for a split second to locate the book.

Finding it, she picked it up, sighing in relief. She blinked and before her eyes the walls seem to melt, and she was standing in what looked to be a study for Edward's mom.

She looked at her hands noticing the book was gone, but her hands were still covered in blood, and there was still a throbbing pain in her left arm.

"I thought that once I finished a room everything would return to normal?"

'It did, my sweet little Alice. The room is back to normal, and your friend is safe. What more were you expecting? Anything that happens to you in the room with one of the characters remains. That cut will not go away nor will the blood. Try not to dirty yourself too much, and if I were you, I would clean myself up before continuing. That blood on your hands just screams 'I'm your next victim.'

Bella huffed as she return to one of the doors she opened before, knowing that it was a bathroom.

She scrubbed at her hands and face, making sure all the blood was gone and quickly searching the cabinets for something to cover the cut on her left forearm.

She found some gauze and bandages. At the moment, she was so glad that Dr. Cullen was a doctor.

After cleaning herself up, Bella made her way out of the bathroom. While in the bathroom, she had decided that she would take her chances right this time.

Humming a tune called the pumpkin carver, she grabbed the knob to the first door she came upon.

A gust of cold wind seemed to rip through her costume and settle itself within her bones. She wrapped her arms around her torso, trying to shield herself from the bitter cold as she stepped into another room that held another friend.

She looked around, noticing that she was not in a building like she was with the seamstress but a meadow.

There sitting in front of what looked to be a small stream not far from a rundown cabin was a little boy. He couldn't have been any older than five. His pale blue shirt was covered by his dark blue coveralls that were torn at the knees. He turned to look at her as she approached. Where his eyes once were sat wooden decorative buttons. Blood was caked to the outsides of his eye sockets and down his cheeks.

"Are you here alone? What happened to your eyes?"

The little boy shook his head at Bella's questions. He opened his mouth in what she was hoping was a reply, but instead, it was an eerie song that someone his age shouldn't know.

Be wary of the carver. He's as silent as a ghost. His eyes glow bright in the fire light. Pray and hope you never see such a sight. Leave him a sweet treat and a candle with a pumpkin. But keep a knife by your bed, cause the carver is coming. The carver is coming for your head. See, he has a little plan, and that plan leaves you dead. The carver wants your head alight with a candle. And your eyes, he'll watch them roast.

Bella gasped and took a step back as the little boy smiled, his mouth now bloody and looked as if wood splinters were placed within his mouth. He stood and backed away from her, before vanishing into thin air.

"Little Boy.."

Bella whispered out as she turned around, trying not to believe he had vanished before her eyes.

"If I were you, I would turn back now. The carver is near."

The little boy's soft voice said near her ear. She turned her head and noticed nothing was there.

"Wait. Where did you go?"

"Hide. Quickly! He's coming. You don't want to become part of his collection. Run, Bel-Alice."

Bella had caught the little boy's slip. If he knew her name, then who was to say the other characters didn't either. She listened to his warning and stumbled into the forest that was close by. Hiding behind a tree, she peeked around just in time to see Jacob, as the Carver, come into view.

He was dragging what looked to be an unconscious body behind him.

"He keeps them alive so that they feel him when he starts to carve into them,"

The little boy's voice whispered in her ear again. She covered her mouth to keep from screaming.

"Timothy!"

The Carver's gruff voice yelled out.

The little boy's form reappeared in front of the Carver. Bowing his head as he took the tools, the Carver handed out to him.

"Where were you? Why weren't you out here waiting on me?"

"I'm sorry. I thought I heard something around the back of the cabin. So I went to go have a look. It was nothing but a rabbit."

The Carver just grunted and pushed passed the little boy.

"Do not disturb me. You know what happened the last time you did."

The little boy nodded his head and rubbed his hand, or what was once a normal hand. Bella noticed that it had a different look to it, even from there. She covered her gasped as she realized that his hand was made of wood.

"You must find his favorite carving knife."

Little Timothy whispered in her ear again. She jumped slightly, startled by his presence.

Turning her head slightly, she saw him standing there before her, fiddling with his wooden hand.

"Do you know where it is?"

He shook his head.

"I'm not allowed to help you. You have to find it on your own. Be careful, Alice."

He gave her a sad smile, before disappearing once again. Pushing away from the tree and stumbling only just a little, she turned her head back toward the cabin.

She dusted her skirt off before moving as silently as she could away from the tree cover. She noticed that Timothy was back by the stream humming the song he sang earlier.

She moved closer to the cabin, just as there was the telltale sound of bone breaking. A pain filled yell pierced the night air.

Bella stopped in her tracks. Her body trembling, not from the night air, but from what she was sure was going on behind closed doors.

She moved slower to the cabin. Her eyes flickering to the door and to whatever laid in front of the cabin. The clouds were moving in front of the moon, making it hard to see anything at all.

When they rolled away again, Bella gasped as she came face to face with the Carver. He gave her a sinister smile. His handsome face had symbols carved into the flesh.

"My, my, my, what do we have here? A little lost beauty."

Bella didn't stick around to hear what else he might say. She stumbled back away from him and turned to make a run for it. She felt his hand grab the sleeve to her shirt. The sound of it ripping reaching her ears. There was a slight stinging sensation in her shoulder as she wrenched herself away from his grasp.

She forced herself to move faster as she heard his laughter and footfalls behind her.

"Run, run as fast as you like, little girl. The Carver will catch you still. And when I do, I will be cutting into that beautiful flesh of yours."

Bella darted behind a tree, trying to catch her breath. As she did, the moonlight glinted off something sticking out of one of the surrounding trees' bark. She couldn't hear the Carver anymore. She noticed the item had a glow to it, and she was relieved to see that it was the knife that was the Carver's weakness. The one the Shadow's Keeper told her about, but that couldn't be correct. The knife was glowing as well, and that meant it was a way to get out of this realm.

She looked around, noticing that she was alone and that it was quiet, a little too quiet.

She rushed the tree and started to tug on the knife. She heard a snap of a twig behind her.

Turning just in time to miss a blow to the head by the Carver, she had finally pulled the knife free. She swung it out in front of her, and the Carver dodged it without blinking an eye. She prayed that the glowing knife would activate soon and take her back to Edward's house.

"Oh, this little pretty has fire. I like that."

He said as he rushed at her again.

"Wait, please."

He stopped and looked at her.

"I believe this is yours."

She held up his knife, noticing out of the corner of her eye that Timothy appeared, carrying what looked to be a severed hand.

"Very good, my Little Fiery One. Now hand it over."

Bella kept her eyes on him as she reached out with the trembling hand that held the knife to him. He quickly grabbed her wrist and pulled her near.

Kissing her lips harshly, he pulled away with a chuckle and the knife in his hand.

"I'll be seeing you soon, my sweet."

He told her as the world around her swirled and vanished, leaving her standing in a closet.

She rubbed her sensitive lips, still feeling the tingling sensation of the bruising kiss. Sighing, she ran her fingers through her hair before rubbing a hand over her shoulder. Her sleeve had ripped, and she felt wetness there.

"Shit! Not again."

She groaned and opened the door and stumbled out of the closet.

"You know this being a heroine is becoming old."

'Ah, what a shame, my dear, and here Timothy and I thought you were doing so well. So you got a few nicks. At least you didn't lose your head.'

"That was horrible. How could you put that little boy into such a horrid scenario?"

'It is what you call life. Nothing is all roses and sunshine, Bella. There is always the dark and those who dwell in the dark. I never said there weren't child victims amongst the shadows. You'd better get it through your pretty little head that no one is safe within these worlds. Time is ticking, Bella.'

She huffed as she pushed her exhausted body forward. Her muscles straining as she walked toward the bathroom once more. She stumbled a bit as she pressed a hand against the wall.

'Take a break, Bella.'

"I can't take a break, and you know it. I'm on a time schedule, remember?"

'And you forget, my dear, that I'm one of the Shadow's Keeper. I can stop the time if I want. You are the first person who has actually passed two of the shadow realms with barely any harm to their being. So I will give you a break. Besides, I like you. You have fire that I haven't seen in a long time.'

Bella, not wanting to go against the Shadow's Keeper, ducked into the bathroom and grabbed what she needed, before wandering back into the entertainment room. Upon entering the room, she was surprised to see Alice and Jacob in the room asleep. She made a move to wake Alice, but the Shadow's Keeper stopped her.

'That won't work, my dear little Bella. They are under the enchantment of the game. Even though they are here, unharmed and alive, they will sleep until you have finished the game. Relax a little. I will give you ten minutes.'

Sensing the truth in his words, she flopped down onto the couch not far from where Alice laid curled up on the floor beside Jacob.

Running a hand through the tangles of her hair, she leaned over toward the mini fridge that was built to look like a lamp table. Opening it up, she grabbed a water bottle out. Taking a huge gulp of water, she thought over her other friends that were still trapped.

She really should have stayed at home. She was having the worst luck ever tonight, and it was only ten thirty. She had until midnight to retrieve her friends from the dark game that held them captive.

"You know, Shadow's Keeper, I've been wondering. Do you have a name? I mean, besides Shadows Keeper?" She asked as she set her bottle of water to the side. She started to clean the cut she had to her shoulder as she waited for his answer.

'You know, Bella, if I didn't know any better, I would say you are enjoying my presence. Yes, I have a name, although I don't remember ever having a last name. My name is Josef.'

A brief smile spread across her lips.

"It is nice to….um hear you, Josef."

'May I ask why you wanted to know my name? It's not like you can see me.'

"It doesn't matter that I can't see you. Besides, you said that you are only one of the Shadow's Keepers."

'Very observant girl, you are.'

She let out a laugh as she set the first aid stuff aside.

"Will you tell me a little bit about yourself?"

'You're a curious little girl, aren't you? Doesn't matter. No one has ever asked me about myself before. I will tell you what I remember.'

Bella settled back onto the couch. She looked at the clock, noticing that she had seven minutes left.

'I remember that I was born in the winter at the base of the Carpathian Mountains. It was around the time when Vlad III Dracul or Vlad Tepes was in reign. You modern kids today know him by that ridiculous story Bram Stoker made, using his name.'

Josef told her a little more of life in the fourteen hundreds. She glanced at the clock again, noticing she had three minutes left, when he had finished what he could remember of his life.

"So, Josef, how did you end up a part of this game?"

A low chuckle filled the room.

'My family was captured by a band of false gypsies traveling through Romania. The leader was a cruel old woman who claimed to be a gypsy queen, but I tell you now there is no such thing amongst real gypsies. Her name was Messina. She made me fight through the shadow realms for the lives of my family. However, they were not the same evils that you fight now. No, I fought against those whose souls were tossed out of the very depths of darkness: witches, shapeshifters, and demons. You see everything changes within the shadows each time there is a blue moon. I fought well. I answered the riddles. I was not lead from my path by the shape shifting women. I didn't eat the forbidden fruit, but I couldn't face my own fears. I sacrificed my own life to spare those of my family. The masters of the shadow realms saw what I could not. They saw me as cunning and brave. They gave me a choice to either become another warrior to fight against the darkness of this place, or someone who will tell those who enter the shadows about the paths, and the challenges they would face. I am also a recruiter of those who are brave, those who show promise. Those like you.'

Bella did not hear his words after mentioning the challenges. She tried, but it was so soft that it was no more than a light hissing.

"What was that last bit you said, Josef?"

'I said that your break is up, Bella, You'd better run along now.'

Bella huffed and stood up, tossing her empty bottle of water in the waste bin next to the door. She thought over Josef's words. She knew that his mentioning that her break was up was his way of trying to distract her.

Deciding that she would save the kitchen and basement for last, she headed upstairs.

She was humming lightly as she made her way to the second landing, looking left and right. She turned right, coming to the first door she saw. She opened it and walked in.

Everything was bathed in blue moonlight. She could hear soft echoes of laughter around her. She turned around, taking in the sights of what looked like the royal courtyards she saw in historic books.

She moved towards the laughter. The closer she got, the more the laughter sounded like the person was dying. She was on full alert.

After hearing Josef's words, she wanted to make sure she did not fall prey to these realms. The wind was whispering warnings to her as she continued to walk toward the center of the court.

It was obvious that she was in the realm of the Jester. As she walked into the center of the court, she saw him. His tunic, which probably once brightly colored, was dark with blood. A deranged smile was plastered on his face as he stood before what looked to be the King.

"I'mb boing poo pell ew pay oak."

The King was gagged, and he was trying not to laugh, but the Jester saw the King's mouth curve upward.

He gave the king a wide smile and laughed, showing off what was left of his tongue. Only a shriveled up blackened piece was left. The Jester raised his left arm, the bloody hatchet coming into view. He brought it down on the king's arm, removing it with one swing.

Bella covered her mouth to muffle the gasp she let out. She let her eyes fall from the writhing form of the king. His muffled painful moans were making the Jester laugh with glee.

She lifted her head when the sound of laughter stopped. Looking around, she didn't spot the Jester. She cursed herself for taking her eyes off of the Jester.

She looked around, seeing the macabre of the Jester's handiwork. The queen was right beside the king, her head hanging off her body. The king's court were all sprawled around the place. Some were missing their heads, but it was the ones whose heads were still attached that sent a shiver down Bella's spine.

Their dull glassy eyes opened wide in surprise, mouths hanging slack. A few were bloody with their tongues laying on their chest.

She slowly walked forward. Her stomach was churning at the smell of blood and waste.

She was sliding slightly in the blood. She stepped on someone and heard a sickening crunch as she was passing over the body. She bit her lip and swallowed the groan that wanted to escape her lips.

She went to step over another body, when a hand grabbed her and pulled her down.

She went to scream but a hand clapped over her mouth.

"Shh, be quiet. He'll hear you. And if he hears you, then you will suffer the same fate that all the others have. Then again, you are a pretty little one. Who knows you might become his entertainment."

The young man said as his eyes roamed over her.

Before she could reply, there was a sound of bells jingling and something dragging along the ground. The dragging and bells stopped just by her head. She felt a sharp pain in her scalp as the Jester's stand shifted and his foot pressed down on her hair. Tears welled up in her eyes, and she felt a few drops a blood in her mouth as she bit down on her lip in order to keep herself from screaming.

"I giss eet wass nopthin."

The Jester said as he moved away, finally releasing Bella's hair.

"Les inish ah ame."

Bella tried to shift to get a view of what the Jester was doing when her hand came in contact with something cold and squishy.

She closed her eyes and moved her hand, grasping what she was sure was flesh in her hand.

"What are you doing? Stop moving or you are going to get us both caught."

The strange male whispered.

Bella ignored him and pulled her hand toward her face. The king's muffled cries continued as Bella pushed some of the dead bodies away. She turned slightly so that she could thank the man who had helped her only to gasp at the sight before her.

His eyes were missing and blood poured down his face, but what confused her was how he was talking clearly, when it was apparent that his tongue had been removed.

She could still hear the weak cries from the king behind her. Turning, she watched as the Jester cut into him slowly.

Her hands clenched around something squishy, and she remembered she had something in her hand. She hoped that it was the Jester's tongue that she was

holding and not a heart or anything. She needed something to distract the Jester.

Closing her eyes and saying a quick prayer, she averted her eyes to her left hand. Black blood oozed from between her fingers.

She slowly unclenched her fingers and had to hold back a yelp of joy. As disgusting as it seemed, Bella couldn't bring herself to care that she was currently holding a severed tongue.

She didn't even get nauseous this time at all the blood around her.

She stood up, blood dripping from her hand. She didn't know how she knew his name, but she was sure she would be thinking about it when she had more time.

"Emrys!"

The Jester slowly turned his hand that gripped the handle of the hunting knife, sliding across the king's neck. The swell of red blood trickled from the blade, and the king let out his last gurgle before he went silent.

The Jester gave her a smile before he stood up. The knife covered in blood was shining by his side. Bella, not wanting to make the same mistake as she did with the seamstress and the carver, held her hand palm up and unclenched her fingers.

The Jester's eyes lit up when he saw what was lying in her palm. The knife dropped from his hand, and he walked toward her. The smile never left his face as he reached for his tongue.

She handed his blackened tongue over, glad to be rid of it. He sighed and put the tongue into his mouth. His mouth opened wide, and he wiggled his tongue that was now attached.

"Tell me, sweet girl, how did you find my tongue?"

Bella looked at him in shock. Why wasn't he distracted? She needed him to be distracted, so she could find the glowing object that would lead her out of this crazy medieval world.

Seeing that she had no choice but to answer him, she gave a shrug and pointed toward the pile of dead bodies.

"I found your tongue in that pile of bodies."

"Ah, so that's where you were hiding."

He said as he took another step forward, and her taking a step back. He stopped and cocked his head to the side.

"Are you afraid of me?"

Bella shook her head as she looked around, yet always keeping the Jester in sight.

"Don't lie, Bella. I can smell the fear on you."

She let out a small gasp.

"Why did you call me that?"

"That is your name, is it not?"

He asked her as he took another step forward, followed once again with her taking a step back.

Bella remembered the words Josef told her about keeping her name to herself.

"No, it is not. My name is Alice."

"Lying does not suit you, Bella."

He said as he took a step to the side, looking at her as a predator would its prey.

"My name is Alice."

"What ever you say, sweet girl. It doesn't matter what your name is. A name is just a memory within the shadows. You'll find out soon. Not all monsters paint such a cruel picture."

He said with a wave of his hand toward the massacre around them.

"There are some who tell such beautiful lies and truths, yet their heart has been blackened by time. Trust no one, Alice, and you might make it out of the shadows. Put your trust in false words, and you might find yourself a shadow amongst shadows."

Bella's eyes widened. Was the Jester actually giving her a warning? No, this couldn't be right. He was a shadow player, and all shadow players were evil, right?

Bella looked to the side and caught a glimpse of something glowing amongst the bodies that were seated.

"Surely you have asked yourself how some of us have become shadow players. Are we really the darkness, or just pawns in this game of chess?"

"I'm not sure. I just woke up in this mad world, and all I want to do is save my friends and get out. I don't belong here. They don't belong here."

She told him as she started to move toward the glowing object.

"Are you sure? Do you believe you or your friends do not have darkness in your hearts. If so, then you would not have been lured so easily into the darkness. You would have been able to call your friends back by saying the blessing, but only those who hearts doesn't dwell in darkness can see it."

"I didn't ask to play this sick twisted game."

"And you think we did? You said the words, and you let the darkness inside you grow. You let the shadows enter you. Now you will have to face the consequences. Such innocence, yet so much darkness in you. You should find what you need and leave. Your time is getting short, Alice."

She turned, confusion clouding her thoughts as she gently pushed the dead aristocratic woman aside. There, sitting on the chair beside her, was a glowing Jester's hat.

She grabbed it and turned to look at the Jester. Still utterly confused, she tried to give him a small smile.

"Remember what I said, sweet girl. Darkness dwells in us all, but there are some who can tell such beautiful lies and truth."

Bella's confusion increased. Was the Jester talking about Josef or the other shadow players she would meet? The world faded around her only to be replaced by a small workout room.

She quickly ruled out that the Jester was talking about Josef. Josef had been nothing but helpful to her. He couldn't, possibly, want to harm her. Could he?

She didn't have the time to contemplate over whether Josef was for her winning or against it. Bella quickly left the closet. She was losing time. She was starting to feel as if she fell down the rabbit hole of hell. This was definitely not a wonderland, more like horrorland filled with psychos. She snorted at her thoughts as she went across the hall and opened the door.

She stepped inside, and automatically, knew she was in another psycho world. Her eyes widened as she took in the sight of all the beautifully made marionettes. She groaned as she realized that she was in another shop.

'I guess shops were popular with psychos', she thought.

She turned around in a circle, taking in the sight of all the marionettes and porcelain masks that hung around the shop. Small faceless wooden figures sat upon the shelves, waiting to be turned into marionettes.

The low lights from the wall lamps flickered around the room. Bella slowly moved around, taking in the beautiful puppets. The closer she got the more she noticed the details put into the faces. The faces were so expressive, almost life like.

Her head turned sharply to look at a door hidden in the shadows of the room. She could see light coming from underneath the door. Soft haunting music drifted from beyond the closed door.

She looked back at the beautiful marionettes and gasped silently as they all turned to look at her.

'Did you see her?

She had such beautiful eyes

But behind those eyes held such terrible lies

He had to cut away all the wicked things

Until nothing was left in between

She had such beautiful skin

But behind that skin laid such terrible sin

He had to strip away the tainted flesh

Leaving behind flesh of pure

She said such beautiful words

But behind every word was broken promises

He removed the promise before it is spoken

Never will she break a promise again

Her heart was said to be made of gold

But it was found to be frozen cold

He placed a flame upon it

Until the day she will love him instead

Sweet, sweet beauty

She'll bleed red

She'll bleed red for her beloved

The master of puppets.'

The words the marionettes said were sung in a childlike whisper, almost like a creepy old nursery rhyme. Bella stared in horror as each and everyone of the marionettes she could see began to bleed from the eyes and mouth.

Bella turned and looked over at the counter surfaces, looking for anything that glowed. She didn't want to stay here another minute.

She was tired of meeting her friends dressed as psychopaths. She just wanted to go home. She didn't want to play anymore with shadows and ghostly figures.

'You remind us of sweet Anabelle. Such beauty, but a dark soul was she.'

The childlike voices whispered in the room again. Bella started to tune out the dolls. Humans and undead corpses were one thing, but fucking puppets were borderline insanity.

She spotted some yarn and sticks entwined together on a small shelf just by the door where the music was coming from.

She grabbed the yarn and sticks. Taking a deep breath, she opened the door. No matter what she had seen earlier during the night, she was not prepared for what she saw now.

There, sitting on a bench in front of a piano, was Edward covered in blood. His back may have been facing her, but she would know him from anywhere with that beautiful copper hair of his.

She looked at the beautiful black piano he was playing, when she noticed it had two bloody spheres sitting upon it. She looked again at the spheres and had to fight back the nausea. Those spheres were not spheres at all. They were two eye balls, light brown irises surrounded by red.

She shifted her stance, and the floorboard creaked underneath her feet. The music stop abruptly, and Edward slowly turned to look at her. His beautiful deep green eyes looked her over. His lips curved up into a crooked smile.

Normally, that would have made her heart race, and her stomach feel as if nervous butterflies were fluttering around inside it. Now her heart was definitely racing, but it was from fear. His smile seemed off, more crazed than sexy.

"Anabelle?"

Bella's brow furrowed at the name.

"I knew this woman couldn't have been my Anabelle. She was cruel and tainted by the touch of man. Unlike you, my sweet Belle."

Bella's eyes traveled where he had gestured toward the ceiling. There she was, the woman who she assumed was Anabelle.

She was hanging from chains with hooks embedded in her skin, like a human marionette. Her eyes were missing, obviously, since her eyes were the light brown eyes sitting on the piano. Her mouth was shut and stained red. She wasn't sure, but it looked more like blood than lipstick.

She snapped out of her staring trance at the human puppet, when she realized Edward was talking.

"Anabelle, you have to believe me. I had to get rid of them. They were sullying your good name by fornicating before marriage in your mother's gardens."

Bella followed his glare and saw a man propped up in a chair in the corner. His arms and legs were bare, except for the blood that covered them. She could see that his veins had been pulled from his body and twined together to make a grotesque imitation of puppet strings. His mouth was cut open wide, and his blue eyes were opened wide in fright.

"Christopher knew that I wanted to court you, Anabelle. He and this imposter were courting, and I believed it was you. I know that your father does not approve of me, seeing how I'm just a puppet maker. But I give you my word, cherie, I will do whatever I can to make you happy. Run away with me, Anabelle."

Bella was shocked and a bit freaked out. This man that was within Edward's body really believed that she was his beloved, Anabelle.

Knowing that time was short, she held up the yarn and sticks. She could spot something glowing just behind him on what looked like the stand that held his sheet music.

"I've brought these for you."

He looked at the items in her hand, before looking back up at her face with a smile.

"I've been looking for those. Bring them to me, Anabelle."

She took a hesitant step toward him. Her hands were shaking as she held them in front of her.

His hands shot out quickly and pulled her to him when she neared.

"Anabelle, my sweet, sweet cherie."

He moaned as he pressed his head against her chest.

Bella's eyes flickered down to him ,before looking up to the stand that held the sheet music. There was the item she was looking for. It was a small locket.

She reached for it only to be stopped by Edward. He noticed where her eyes were looking. Never taking his eyes off her, he reached back and grabbed the locket.

"Allow me to return your locket to you."

He let her go and twirled his finger around, silently telling her to turn around. She wasn't sure if she wanted to turn her back on him, seeing as he still had the locket within his grasp. She had no choice but to turn around. She heard the bench scrape against the floorboard as he stood behind her.

She felt the gentle caress of his fingers as he moved her hair away from her neck. She wanted to flinch away from his touch, but held still as she felt the cool metal touch her flesh.

He turned her around and placed a kiss to her forehead and whispered in her ear.

"Come back to me soon, Bella."

The world of the puppeteer began to fade around her. Her mind was racing with questions. How the hell does everyone know her name? Josef told her to use Alice, yet everyone knows her name is Bella.

She did a quick look around the room and noticed she was standing in a bedroom. She took in the cds and figured that she was in Edward's room.

She didn't have the time to look around like she wanted to, so she opened the door and rushed out. She glanced quickly at her watched and noticed that it was eleven o'clock. Shit! She only had an hour.

She walked a little further down the hall and opened a door that was decorated with some weird design. She stumbled inside and fell to her knees on the stone floor. There was stinging in her knees and hands. She knew if she looked at them there would be scrapes on them.

She looked up and around. The place was clean, but it smelled of death and old blood. She could tell she was in a basement, but whose she did not know. She got up and walked over to the freezer that was situated in the corner of the room.

Now she knew the saying, 'curiosity killed the cat' was most likely true in these type of situations, but she couldn't help herself. It was like how moths always seemed to get trapped by that bug zapper. She was drawn to the freezer. She looked around the room once more and noticed nobody was in the room with her.

Carefully, she lifted the freezer door. It creaked a little, and she stopped. Pausing, her heart thumping in her chest like a drum. Her eyes flitted left and right. Just great! She gets the damn freezer that needs WD-40 on the hinges and screws.

She peered through the space she had opened. Her eyes widened as she took in what looked to be tubs and bags of frozen blood. Just great! She was in a house of a vampire wanna-be.

She closed the freezer and went to turn when she caught a glint of silver out of her peripheral. She moved out of the way but wasn't quick enough. The knife grazed her cheek. She could feel the blood from the cut running down her cheek and dripping onto her shoulder.

She pushed at the crazy lady in the masquerade mask. Honey blonde hair was flowing over the woman's shoulders. Shit! She was in a world with Rose as some crazed serial killer. Well, hell, this night just keeps getting better.

She moved to the right as her crazed friend lunged at her. Rose caught her by the arm, nails breaking the flesh as she tried to pull Bella toward her. Bella pushed at her, her free arm flailing around as she hit Rose on the side of her head.

She ripped the mask away and saw Rose as she always looked, except she had a few wrinkles on her face and a light scar by her right eye. Rose let out a shriek as she raised her hands to her face.

Taking the moment of distraction that had arisen, Bella turned away from Rose and ran, banging her arm on the wall as she ran down the short hallway in the basement to a door, leading to God knows where.

She threw the door open and closed it quickly as she heard Rose's steps behind her.

"Aw, little chickie, come out and play."

Bella slid the lock in place and let out a sigh of relief. Her arm throbbed, and there was a sharp pang in her side.

"Note to self: when I get out of this nightmare from hell, enroll in a fitness center."

Bella snorted at her words, knowing that if she actually did enroll at a fitness center ,the doctors at the hospital would give her her own personal room. Yeah, it was probably better if she stayed away from all workout equipment.

Bella turned around and threw up at the sight. The room was a good size, but it was what was in the room that made her sick. There was a young girl who couldn't be any older than twelve or thirteen years old, hanging upside down over an old fashioned tub with her throat and wrists slit open.

There was a torture device in the corner that she only saw in books and movies. She knew it was an iron maiden. It looked like it was hooked up to some kind of system. She followed the silver pipe that she was sure connected at the back of the iron maiden. She followed it until she realized it was hooked to what looked like a oversized shower head.

Shaking her head, she looked around some more. She could hear Rose on the other side of the door. She wasn't sure what she was doing, but she knew it was only a matter of time before she got into the room.

She spotted another teenage girl who was still alive, naked and strapped to a St. Andrews cross with a gag in her mouth. She was twisting and turning her head, her dark brown hair falling around her head. Bella took a step closer, and the girl's head quickly turned to look at her. Her deep brown eyes stared into those that were identical to her own.

Bella let out a whimper and backed up, bumping into a table as she stared into the eyes of herself. She shook her head just as the door burst open.

She turned away from the doppelganger on the cross to look at her possessed friend.

"Chickie, I'm home!"

Rose called with a twisted smile.

"Ah, I see you've found my playmates. Aren't they just lovely?"

She asked as she twirled the dead body of the thirteen year old around.

"Are you crazy? They're fucking dead or close to it,"

Bella snapped as she quickly glance at her doppelganger.

"No, I'm not crazy."

She replied with a pout as she moved slowly to a small table a little ways from the hanging girl.

She picked up a device that looked like a small rake. Bella stared as she moved slightly to the side.

"Do you know what this is, Chickie?"

Bella stared with wide eyes and shook her head, afraid to open her mouth in case she screamed. The device was covered in dried blood and what looked to be bits of flesh.

"This, my dear, is called a Cat's Paw or the Spanish Tickler. It causes such beautiful destruction."

She waved the small device in her hand as she walked over to the cross, just a few feet away from Bella. The Bella doppelganger started to whimper as she came near. Her dark eyes sought out Bella's and gave her a pleading look.

But Bella couldn't move. She was frozen in horror as the Cat's Paw dug into the flesh of the girl. Red beads of blood popped up. Her possessed friend swiped her finger in the blood and lifted it to her lips. She smeared the blood across her lips and gave Bella a bloody smile.

"Innocent young blood always tastes sweet, and it does wonders for your skin."

She said as she drug the Cat's Paw down the girl's legs. The screams from the girl were muffled, and Bella could only stare at the sickening scene.

Bella finally snapped out of her frozen state. She reached back with her left hand, feeling along the table behind her.

Her hand connected with cool metal and she grasped it, feeling the slight sting as she felt the metal pierce her flesh reopening the cut the seamstress had given her. Warm blood dripped down her fingers.

She moved it in front of her, keeping an eye on her deranged friend as she looked at what cut her. In her hand sat a pair of Renaissance scissors. She set them back on the table and let her bloody hand feel around again.

She knew she should just turn to look at the table, but she didn't want to take her eyes off of the woman in front of her.

She grabbed a few more items from the table. She prayed that she would come across the mirror. She wasn't sure how much longer she could watch the torture in front of her.

Her hand finally came in contact with something smooth and cool. She could feel the elaborated designs and prayed that she was holding onto a hand held mirror.

She moved her hand in front of her and almost cried when she saw the hand held mirror. It was made with silver and mother of pearl with emeralds embedded in the handle.

She was admiring the beauty of the mirror, so she didn't notice that the whimpering had stop, nor did she notice that the countess reborn had moved forward.

"Ah, what do you have there, Chickie? Is that my precious mirror? I've been looking everywhere for it."

Bella eyes shot up to look at her friend. Rose's face was splattered with blood, yet she looked as beautiful as ever. No wrinkles or scars could be seen. Without hesitation, she handed over the mirror.

Rose, suddenly, became engrossed with her own image. For once, Bella let a bitter smile grace her lips. Hmm, it would seem that whoever this woman truly was, she, like Rose, was completely vain.

Bella wandered around the room as Rose preened into the mirror, turning to the side admiring her face from each angle.

Bella shuddered as she looked at her doppelganger. She was a bloody mess. She shook her head but stopped as she noticed a slight glow coming from the girl's hand.

She hesitantly moved toward the body, eyes flickering quickly to Rose. Seeing that she was still absorbed with her reflection, she quickly crossed to the girl and pried her hand open. There, sitting in her hand, was a small golden cross with a miniature rose wrapped around it.

Bella said a quiet apology to the girl and a soft prayer as she grabbed the cross from her cold grasp, tears welling in her eyes as the world faded away from her.

She gasped and clutched at her chest as she stumbled around in the dim room. It looked to be a oversized closet filled with women clothing and a vanity. Figures Rose's character would be in a room like this.

"Josef!"

Bella yelled out as she clutched her bleeding hand to her chest. She knew she didn't have time to go to the bathroom and rewrap her hand.

'Little one?'

The deep voice floated around her, sending shivers down her spine.

"Why? Why send me into a world where I had to watch someone that looked like me die? What was the purpose of me seeing that?"

'It is the way of the world. No one is promised a happily ever after. I didn't set up the worlds, Bella. I told you these worlds would challenge you. They will bend you, try to break you. And if they succeed, you will be lost. I told you these worlds feed on your fears. They feed on your darkness.'

"You didn't tell me all that, you bastard. You want me to fail, but I'm telling you, I WILL NOT GIVE UP!"

She huffed and headed down the stairs, only pausing for a moment at the bottom and opened the door that lead to the basement level.

She looked down at her tattered and torn costume, grateful that she decided to buy her costume instead of renting. She grabbed the edge of her torn apron and ripped a piece off, wrapping her hand quickly, praying that it would stay and that she wouldn't end up with anymore injuries.

She grumbled at how huge the house was and promised herself that she would be staying at home next year.

The hell with Halloween.

She walked down the steps and turned left. Opening the door to her right, she walked in and sighed. Another fucking world, except this shit looked like it was out of some fucking fairytale movie.

It was bright. All the colors seemed to be vibrant and unrealistic. It was too perfect, too storybook.

She could hear hysterical laughter somewhere near sighed and moved her aching body forward. Passing a director's chair she rolled her eyes.

"Great, just fucking great. A mass murder on a Hollywood movie set is what I needed to make this a perfect day."

She mumbled out sarcastically.

She moved behind a fake tree and peeked around it. If she wasn't so fucking nervous and scared, she would have laughed at the scene before her eyes.

There, sitting on an overgrown toadstool in a waistcoat, ruffled white shirt, pants and a top hat that had seen better days, was Jasper, Bella's other crush.

"He was late for a very important date. He didn't have time to say hello, goodbye. So I cut his fucking head off before I ate. That bitch of a red queen finally met her fate. Off with her head, I said and now she's dead. She finally got what wanted, everything red."

Bella bit her lip as she shook with silent laughter. It was not a laughing matter, yet she had an urge to laugh at the macabre scene.

Yeah, she definitely needed to be locked in a looney bin. She could just see it now. Her, locked in a padded room, singing about teatime and white rabbits. She snorted, catching the mad hatter's attention.

"Well, well, well what do we have here. It's a little poppet. Have you lost your way, little poppet?"

Bella shook her head as she stared at him, but stepped out into the line of sight, causing Jasper the mad hatter to smile.

"Ah, not just any ol' poppet but an Alice poppet. Well, then poppet, why not join me for a spot of tea?"

Bella found an open spot at the stone table. Sitting on one of the many overgrown toadstools, she looked at the spread before her. There was a silver dome in the middle of the table, but she didn't trust the contents underneath it, seeing how there was a dark red puddle pooling around it.

She shook her head in shock at all the highly dangerous and illegal items on the table.

"Well, Alice, are you going to fix your tea?"

Bella reached for one of the chipped tea cups, her hand trembling slightly. She looked over the items that were labeled crushed wormwood, powdered belladonna berries, poisoned hemlock leaves, dried wild lettuce leaves, datura seeds, dried cannabis leaves, and calamus root.

Bella remembered reading one of her mother's herbal books when she was going through an herbal phase. She remember reading about safe and dangerous herbs, so she knew that all of them were toxic in their own way. The safest one for her to take were the dried cannabis leaves.

While she had been studying the herbs, the hatter had moved closer and poured water into her cup. Bella looked inside her cup. The water was tinted red. She looked up at Jasper and gave a small smile and grabbed the jar with the dried cannabis leaves.

"Perhaps I will use this, but don't you think it would be better if we poured the water over the leaves?"

His brow furrowed as he looked at her. He gave her a smile and a nod.

"You are right, poppet."

She had to beat down the nausea as she watched him lift up what he was using as the kettle. It was the white rabbit's head severed at the neck.

She knew that she was supposed to look for the tea set. By the way Jasper was looking at her, she knew she had no choice. She would have to drink the blood tinged tea.

Seeing as there was no sugar or honey, she frowned and her stomach turned.

"It probably is not right to drink sugared cannabis tea anyway."

She thought to herself as she raised the cup.

"Just don't think about it."

She thought as she took a sip. Rusty bitter warmth flowed down her throat and settled into her stomach.

"Good, isn't it, Alice? Although, I'm not really sure if I labeled those jars right. I mean, for all I know you could be drinking poison hemlock. I was a bit off my rocker when I labeled them. Hell, I'm always a bit off the rocker. But you don't mind, do you, Alice?"

Panic exploded within her as she shook her head. Her mouth was dry and foolishly she took another sip of the tea. She whimpered slightly.

She noticed that Jasper was leaning toward her. She could see laying across his shoulders were someone's intestines and her stomach rolled at thought of just how he might have removed it from the person.

He was tapping a knife against the table as he looked at her.

"Tell me, Bella, do I make you nervous?"

Her sharp intake caused her to sputter and choke on the tea she had in her mouth. Why the hell did she keep drinking the fucking tea?

"M-my name is Alice."

She stuttered out as she coughed and wheezed.

"Sure it is ,poppet, and I'm the red king. It just so happens that I've already gotten rid of Alice, so my dear, do us both a favor and stop lying. You're completely terrible at lying. Now shouldn't you be looking for the thing to get you out of here. Oh, don't look at me like that. We Shadow players not stupid. Besides, your time is running out. I'm not sure how much time you have, but yeah, I'm pretty sure it's getting close. I just want to drink my tea and watch the fake sun. So, yeah, you should get up and search."

Bella was still staring at him. The cup in her hand long forgotten.

"You're not going to harm me?"

He tilted his head back and laugh.

"No, I've had my kicks for the day, besides you look like you've been through hell already. No, I won't harm you unless you are into that type of thing, or until I can't control myself any longer."

Bella shook her head and stood up abruptly, forgetting that she had the tea cup in her hand. It fell, landing with a thud against the fake grass flooring.

She moved away from the stone table, aware of Jasper's eyes on her. She looked over the tree she had stood behind and could make out a pale white dish in the tall grass surrounding the tree.

She moved towards it, not sure why she felt compel to do so. Reaching down, she pulled the tea kettle from its resting place in the grass.

"Where the hell were you when I was drinking blood tinged tea a while ago."

She thought as she glared at the kettle.

She turned, looking at Jasper with a smile on her face.

"I think this belongs to you. Good thing I found it."

He looked at her before laughing.

"My dear, sweet Bella, I've always known where the kettle was. I just couldn't touch it. In fact, we all know where the things we hold dear are. We just can't touch them ourselves, unless it's handed to us. Funny, isn't it? You've just wasted precious time getting a kettle that I've been looking at for the past hour or so."

Bella huffed and stomped her foot.

"This shit is really twisted."

He gave her look that could have been translated to 'no shit sherlock'.

"Well, do you know where the glowing object is?"

"You're kidding, right? You should know that if we could tell you, we would, or at least some of us would. I can say that it is not by the white rabbit at all."

He gave her a lazy smile as he got up and went to the small creek to fill his kettle.

"Tick tock, Bella. Don't want to be late, for this place is a terrible fate. I'm trying to hold off the urge to slit your throat, so you might want to hurry, poppet. Not sure how long this distraction will remain a distraction."

Bella quickly ran his words over in her head again. Not by the white rabbit. That was obviously a hint, right? It had to be near the white rabbit. Then again, this is the Mad Hatter. He wouldn't dare give her hints.

She decided to go with what she thought was a hint for her. She walked over to the body of the actor that played the white rabbit. She looked down at the body before dropping to her knees beside the body.

She began searching the pants pocket for anything that glowed. Her back was facing the Mad Hatter, so she never saw him get up, his hand wrapped tightly around the knife.

"The hand itches and twitches for blood and flesh. Red, red, red the perfect color for everything dead. Hello, goodbye welcome to death hope you stay for awhile."

He muttered as he walked softly toward her.

But Bella wasn't paying attention to him. She felt what was a chain in the dead actor's tweed coat pocket. She let out a squeal in triumph and turned just in time to see the knife coming toward her.

She lost her grip on the glowing pocket watch as she dove to the side. Her heart racing in her chest as she watched strands of her hair fall from the blade.

"I told you, sweet poppet, that I could only be distracted for so long."

He was twisting the knife in between his two forefingers.

He gave her a smile that was full of promises of death. Before she could even blink, he threw the knife. With speed that was not known to her before, she grabbed the pocket watch chain and flipped him off as the knife grazed her shoulder.

He let out a hysterical laugh and waved at her as the world faded before her eyes.

She didn't spare the room that appeared before her eyes a second glance, before she was out in the hallway once again.

She looked up and saw a clock on the wall. For fuck's sake, how long was she in the world of the Mad Hatter? The clock read that it was eleven forty-five. It was a quarter 'til twelve.

She was worried she would run out of time. How could she save anyone? She was just Bella, mousy, clumsy, shy, bookworm, and just plain ol' boring.

She leaned against the wall and frowned. She should just quit. Not like anyone would miss her.

'Your dad would miss you.'

A small voice said in her head.

'Yeah, but he's lived without her for all this time he could do it again.'

She thought as she toed the ground with her black flats.

'Giving up, Bella? That doesn't seem like you to let your friends suffer.'

Ah, Josef, figures he would show up now. She huffed. She only had one more room to go through. She really wasn't that selfish enough to leave Paul trapped in this twisted game.

"You're right. I just lost myself for a minute."

With that said, she pushed herself off the wall. She headed down the hall, Josef's words echoing around her.

'Good luck, Bella. I have faith in you.'

She sighed and pushed forward, even though her body was aching. She moved toward the door at the end of the hall. The air seem to get colder around this door.

She shivered and wrapped her arms around her torso, trying to hold in some body heat. Taking a deep breath, she opened the door and stepped inside.

Her ballet flat enclosed feet sunk into the powdery white snow. Silently cursing herself for not wearing boots or even Mary Janes, she took a step forward onto a forest path.

It was silent, too silent for a forest. She could hear the soft crunch of the snow beneath her feet. Then, as if someone had turned the forest off of mute, the sound came crashing in around her.

The calls of the birds screeching in the late afternoon air caused her to jump. "Toto, looks like we're not in Kansas anymore. There be monster wolves in this here forest."

She mumbled under her breath.

Her stomach grumbled, and she giggled at the sound before shushing herself. She felt woozy and hungry all at the same time.

She continued to walk forward, wondering if Paul would be an actual wolf or a man dressed as a wolf.

'One of life's many mysteries.'

She snorted as she tried to listen to the sounds of the forest around her.

Man or wolf, she did not want to be caught off guard.

'Yeah, like that's helped me before.'

She looked ahead and came to a stop. There, sitting in the middle of a very small clearing between two paths, set the picnic basket full of goodies on a tree stump.

Her stomach rumbled with each step she took toward the mouthwatering smells that emitted from the basket. Her hand enclosed around the handle, and she lifted the basket up, inhaling the savory aromas.

Her eyes rolled up, and she let a low moan. All other thoughts vanished from her mind. The only thing there was the basket. She opened the lid and peered in, biting her lip as she took in the sight of the sweets and meats.

Sweet sticky buns, chicken, cookies, sugared fruit turnovers, mini minced pies, and small jug of juice were all jammed packed in the basket.

Reaching in she grabbed a cookie, bringing it to her lips as her stomach growled. Just as she opened her mouth to receive the sweet, a howl ripped through the air and Josef's words slammed into her mind once again.

Gasping in horror, she dropped the cookie back into the basket. Licking her lips free of crumbs, the sweet sugary taste invaded her mouth as she whirled around to the sound of twigs snapping. There, standing behind her, was not a man but a wolf.

A massive grey wolf that could be nothing more than supernatural. She mentally snorted at that, realizing that this whole night was nothing but supernatural.

"My, my, my, what big eyes you have. Frightened, are we?"

A deep gruff voice erupted from the wolf.

Bella stared at the oversized wolf. His golden yellow eyes seem to glow as he stared back. She shifted her stance, causing him to do the same. His massive head followed the small movement.

"I'm not afraid."

She said, even with her heart ready to beat right out of her chest.

He let out a chuckle, which sounded like a series of low whining barks.

"You're lying. I can smell the fear on you, my sweet."

He said with a predatory gleam in his eyes and a snap of his jaws.

Bella bit her bottom lip. She just wanted to go home. She was tired and hungry, and she was either poisoned or having a break down.

"What's a sweet thing like you doing out here in the forest all alone and with such a wonderful smelling snack?"

He tilted his massive head as he stared at her.

Bella didn't miss the wolf's word 'snack' at the end. She tried to remember the story of Little Red Riding Hood but couldn't recall anything at the moment.

"Well, I'm not the entree or the appetizer."

The wolf let out the same barking laughter as before.

"You sure? You look good enough to eat, and you already have blood decorating you like a welcoming. Just thinking about chewing on all of your meaty bits is making my mouth water."

Bella shivered, before setting the basket onto the ground between her and the wolf. Her eyes never leaving his still form as she pulled the lid off.

"I just want to go home."

The wolf let out a low growl as he stepped forward.

"You lie, sweet. You know that you would like to be anywhere but at home. Stop lying to yourself and to everyone else. I can hear the wet thumps of your heart, and it is telling me that you are excited. You love being here, and I would guess you loved the other realms just the same. So why don't you just sit there on the stump? Why don't you stay."

"I don't belong here."

Bella whispered out as she took a step back.

"You're wrong."

He said as he lunged forward, knocking her to the ground. His muzzle inches from her face, hot rancid breath fanning over her as he growled again.

"You believe you don't belong here, but you crave the darkness. You enjoy the chase, the adrenaline racing through your veins, that complete and utter feeling of losing yourself. It's like the gut wrenching feeling of falling, makes you want to scream out in panic, but yet, you get a rush. You're an adrenaline junkie, sweet Bella. You have no sense of self-preservation. You thrive on the danger. Let the darkness consume you, Bella. Let the time run out. Then you can feel that rush every day for all of eternity."

He let his tongue roll out, and licked up the side of her face. The sweet taste of blood made him whimper as he backed away.

"I'm going to enjoy eating you. Let the time run out, my sweet."

She waited until he was occupied with the basket of goodies. Her heart pounding harder than ever. She got to her feet as quickly as she could. She didn't care what he said. She didn't want to be here. She wasn't an adrenaline junkie.

'Says the girl who loves the feel of cliff diving with Jacob and riding motorbikes without a helmet.'

She mentally growled at the voice in her head.

'I know you better than anyone, Bella. I'm in every part of your mind. I know your deep dark fantasies.'

She frowned as she started to back away from the wolf, not taking her eyes off of him for a caught something glowing in her peripheral, slightly off to the right. She started to edge that way. Just as her hand reached out to grab the what looked to be a cloak, the wolf turned and bared his teeth.

She gave him a wicked grin, before yanking the glowing red cloak in her hands. The world vanished before her eyes.

She looked around and realized she was in the garage. Well, that realm was a bit anti-climatic. She looked down at her watch and let out a whoop. She made it with three minutes to go until midnight.

Still a bloody mess, she raced through the hall and back up the basement steps. She could hear voices coming from the living room. Emmett's booming laugh brought a smile to her face.

She took a deep breath before she walked into the living room.

"Here she is. The girl of th... What the fuck happen to you, Bella?"

Emmett said as he gave her a once over.

"Yeah, Bells, you look like you just stepped out of a horror movie."

Jacob said as he stared at the blood covering her.

"My question is how the hell did you leave the room without any of us noticing?"

Edward asked as he looked at her.

Bella shrugged her shoulders.

"Don't know. Guess I'm good like that. You know, stealth ninja mode."

Her friends looked at her and blinked their eyes. No one said a word. That is until Emmett started laughing.

"Well, fuck me, Swan has a sense of humor."

Paul said as he looked at her. She thought she saw a glimpse of something in his eyes, but it was gone before she could even understand what it was.

"So what did happen to you, Bella?"

Rose asked her with a raised of one perfectly arched eyebrow.

"I went outside. I fell and got scraped up. You know the life of a klutz and all. So how was the game?"

Rose glared at her. She noticed that Bella was lying and was avoiding further questioning. Alice gave her a look that told her she would be answering all their questions later.

"It was okay. Thought it would be better than what it was. Although, there was one trippy part. The heroine sorta looked like you."

Jasper said as he ran his fingers through his hair.

"Yeah, funny."

She said with a distant look in her eyes.

"So are you ladies ready to go? I'm kinda tired."

Rose and Alice looked at one another, mouths turned down into a frown.

"Well, we were kinda going to go out for a late night bite to eat with the guys."

Bella huffed in frustration. She just wanted to go, get into a nice warm bed, and forget the hell she just went through.

"I'm not going. I got to work in the morning, so I can take you where you want to go, Bella,"

Paul said as he licked his lips.

"Um, sure."

She eyed him again. Her heart was pounding, a little shiver went down her spine.

"Well, that's settled. Bella goes with Paul, and you ladies are coming with us."

Emmett said with a waggle of his brow.

Bella hugged Rose and Alice goodbye, Alice whispering in her ear that they would discuss what really happened to her in the morning.

She followed Paul out to his car, glancing back to see everyone coming out of the house as well. She turned back to look at Paul when he cleared his throat.

"Shall we, Swan?"

She nodded as she got into the car, letting out a sigh as she settled down in the seat.

He looked over at her, gave her a grin, before pulling out of the drive. They drove in silence for what seemed to be just seconds to her but could have been minutes.

"So, Bella, what really happen to you?"

He asked as he glanced at her quickly, before looking back to the road.

"I told you I went outside. I fell and scraped up my body."

"Bullshit! You know, Bella, you're a terrible liar."

He told her with a quick flash of his pearly white teeth.

"How do you know I'm lying?"

He looked at her and gave out a low chuckle that sounded closer to a growl. The car started to slow down, and Bella peered out into the night. She noticed that they were surrounded by trees. This wasn't the way home.

"I know Bella, because I can smell it. Did you know you have such big eyes when you lie, when you're frighten, and your smell."

He shuddered and tilted his head back as he stopped the car.

"Your smell is so sweet, and I can hear your heart's wet thumps."

He turned to look at her. His once dark eyes seem to glow a golden yellow for a moment.

Bella clutched at the door handle. It was locked. She could admit that she was scared.

"Wh-who are you?"

He let out a bark like laugh as he smiled at her. His teeth seemed to be a bit pointier, especially his canines.

"You know me, sweet."

Bella shook her head. There was something wrong with Paul. His very appearance was changing, becoming almost wolfish. But that can't be right. It's just her eyes playing tricks on her, right?

She let out a nervous little giggle. What she wanted to do was silly. But she already had a lot of craziness. She felt she deserved to have a little fun, so why not poke a little fun at Paul. Surely, his features weren't really changing. She was just still under the influence of the poisoned or drugged tea.

"Um, Paul, your teeth, they're so big, and your eyes they're so large, and are your ears pointier?"

She said with a giggle.

He smiled and shook his head like a dog.

"Ah, my sweet, the better to see you with, to hear your heart pound, and to chew on all your meaty bits."

He growled out the last words, body completely shifting into the wolf as he lunged forward. She let out a scream as the now oversized wolf tore into her chest.

One Year Later

"Jane, I'm telling you it will be fun. You said you didn't want to do much for Halloween and that we could do whatever I wanted. We're college students now, Jane. You need to live a little. I mean, we get to go to a frat house and visit Aro. What freshmen in college can say they have a cool enough big brother to let them hang out with them at a frat?"

Alec asked as he stood by the door.

Jane rolled her eyes as she flicked her straw colored blonde hair over her shoulder.

"None. I guess we're going to the frat house. Happy now, you little shit?"

"Ecstatic."

He deadpanned as he ushered her out of the dorm.

It didn't take them long to get to the frat house. The noise was overwhelming, but Alec seem to be in his element. He was always the outgoing one of the two. People sometimes couldn't see how they were twins.

Where she was light in looks like their mother, her personality dimmed it. While Alec and Aro had dark looks like their father, both of their personalities seem to lighten them.

But that was neither here nor there. They made their way through the crowd of people, searching for any sign of their older brother and his friends.

Fifteen minutes of searching and Jane was ready to give up and go back to the dorm. That was until Alec yelled out Aro's name.

"Alec, Jane? When did you two get here?"

Jane shrugged her shoulders and looked around her brother's crammed room. There was a group of guys huddled around the television.

Her curiosity piqued, and she moved a little further in the room.

"What is that?"

Alec asked.

"Ah, that my little dude is Shadow's Keep II: Alice's Revenge. The first game was all kinds of crazy, but nothing your main dude Felix couldn't handle."

Jane's eyes widened at the name of the game. Shadow's Keep. Where had she heard that name before?

"Isn't that the game mentioned with the two missing teens in Forks, Washington. The news lady that interviewed their friends said they all were playing Shadow's Keep, well except the girl. What was her name?"

"Isabella Swan. Yeah, I heard about that. Some say they were messing with some heavy stuff and she died so they covered it up, and the guy Paul Lahote is in some mental hospital somewhere remote."

A guy with white blonde hair and icy blue eyes said.

"Nah, Caius, I heard the two were dating and ran off to elope. They're laying low causing the dad doesn't like the boyfriend."

A guy with dark brown hair and light brown eyes said as he looked up from the screen.

"Shut it, Demetri!"

"Both of you shut it!"

Aro snapped, before turning to his little brother and sister a smile plastered on his face.

"You two wanna play?"

The twins looked at each other and shrugged their shoulders.

"Sure."

They said at the same time.

There was eight groups of dark players. Each group with two players to choose from called Shadows. The Immortals, Wonderlanders, Rippers, Hyde and Jekyll, Grimms, The Royal Court, The Mythics, and The Warlock and Witch. The heroes were three sets of two. The Knight and Maiden, God and Goddess, The Mage's Apprentices.

They chose their players with smiles on their faces. That was until the Keeper of Shadows and her pet appeared on the screen.

'Hello, my Shadows, and Heroes. You have entered a dark place you still have time to turn around. Leave before your fate ends the same as mine. There is darkness here beyond your wildest dreams. But if you decide not to heed my warning, then good luck to you, you'll need it. You'll fight for your life as well as those you hold dear.'

Everyone was quiet as they stared at the screen. Jane wasn't sure what they were thinking. Since the only thing that went through her mind as she stared at the teenage girl dressed in a tattered Alice and Wonderland costume and her chest torn open standing next to a oversized grey wolf. All she could think at the moment, was the girl looked just like the missing girl, Isabella Swan.

The End...or is it?

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Well what did you think? Were you shock by our dear Bella's fate? Did the story give you a bit of chills? Review and let me know. Happy Halloween!