A/N: This is it! The beginning of my final and perhaps biggest story to date. It's a romance, it's a thriller, and there are a few twists that will hopefully make you gasp. I've always written my stories with the Sarah/Ethan pairing or Benny/Erica one, because those are the ones I've always been most comfortable with. Not this time though. This story is going to be an Ethan/Benny because it takes me out of my comfort zone and it's something that I've never attempted before. I need to challenge myself as a writer and what better to do it than this? That's all I'm going to say on the matter.

Here's the update schedule: Once a week on Saturday until complete!

Read and if you enjoy drop a review! Questions, comments, concerns? Then send me a PM, my inbox is always open!

I don't own My Babysitter's A Vampire.

Fairytale Flummox

By JDWrites101

Chapter One: The Opening Act

For the first time since the disastrous production of Rainbow Factory and his failed attempt at being in a band Ethan found himself atop the dusty old stage. He readjusted the top hat he wore unsure of how he had ended up as one of leads in a play he never so much as auditioned for let alone wanted to be in. On both sides of him the dim outlines of Sarah and Erica could be seen as they too awaited their cue. He felt the old hat constrict around his head and for a single instant the thought crossed his mind that it might very well be alive. To the rational that couldn't be possible yet as he had learned long ago the irrational had a very special place in Whitechapel. He tugged on his pinky finger and three beams of light illuminated the stage. Light green for Erica, dark red for Sarah, and the Seer himself was in one of no particular color. The blonde stepped forward and in a strong voice declared:

"Once upon a time-"

"No! No! NO!" Screamed Rory. He jumped up on stage, pointed the megaphone at her and began to yell through it. "Didn't you read the rewrite? That's been done to death! We need something fresh, something new!"

"You want to see something new?" Asked Erica sweetly. She grabbed the device out of his hand and shoved it against his chest. "Stick this thing in my face again and you'll definitely see something new, got it?

Rory took it with a huff and turned to Ethan. "And you. Stop pulling on your finger. I don't care if it's a nervous tick or something else but when that curtain rises make it stop! And Benny these lights are all wrong, how many times do I have to say green for Sarah, red for Ethan and regular for Erica? Fix them! This play is supposed to be the 'Wicked' of Alice in Wonderland, everything needs to be perfect if we want to get that message across. I won't tolerate anything less than perfection!"

Once he was clear of the trio Sarah leaned towards brunette and whispered: "Remind me again how Rory ended up being charge of the play?"

"I have no idea," mumbled Ethan. He massaged his temple. "But at this rate he's going to be murdered by Erica." The lights overhead suddenly exploded into sparks and the three of them jumped down from the raised platform to avoid the shower of debris. "Or killed by some faulty wiring. I thought we all agreed never to but Rory in a position of power."

From somewhere in the back of the auditorium Benny called out: "Sorry bout that! Working on some technical issues. Just ignore the small explosions for now."

"Get back on the stage we're not done here!" Rory approached them with his megaphone branded and Erica stormed over to him. They began to argue and Ethan felt the hat once more constrict around his head. Could it possible that it was feeding on the turbulent emotions the group? Or perhaps it was just a few sizes too big?

"We're going to die here," whimpered Sarah. Above the spotlights began to move about erratically bathing the auditorium in all shades of colors. "We're going to die here trying to put on a play about Alice in Wonderland that Rory wrote himself. Of all the ways to die I'd never thought we go out like this."

"Not if I have anything to say about it." Ethan pulled the old top hat off and approached the duo with a hand held up. Before he could say anything the doors opened and two figures strolled in. At once the argument ceased and the teenagers put on their best smiles. The first of the duo, Principal Hicks motioned around while he whispered something, and the second an older woman nodded.

"Everyone," began Hicks. "I would like you to meet Mother Superior Catlin Feme from the local church. She's going to be next Vice Principal of the school."

She gave a small but elegant bow and said: "Pleased to meet you." She took in the stage and their forced smiles before adding: "Why don't you children take a break? From what your Principal has told me you've been hard at work on every day for the last several days. I can tell you from past experience I know the more effort and time you put into something the easier it is to get on another's nerves. It's important to take care of ones relationships before work."

Ethan nodded and looked the woman up and down. Ever since the incident with Stern he had taken to examining the new and old staff with the utmost care. Feme had dark black hair; light green eyes, and wore all the usual attire of a nun with a unique blue tinge. "Thank you, we'll keep that in mind ma'am."

The pair left through the doors and the Seer turned back to Rory. "You heard what she said, how about we call it a day? Besides I think there might be something supernatural going on with this hat, I'm sensing a second presence to it."

"The only supernatural thing here is your performance," declared Rory. "Ms. LOL put me in charge of this production and I'll say when it's time to go home. And right now-" Before he finished Erica leaned forward and bared her fangs. He laughed nervously and backed away. "I think it's time to go home."

"Oh thank goodness," called Benny. He jumped down from the small booth and made a bolt for the doors. "There aren't any bathrooms up there and I've been at that light board for hours."

Erica rolled her eyes and muttered something under her breath. For a moment the insanity of practice seemed to fade away and once more they were nothing more than friends enjoying each other's company. Ethan moved over to Sarah and was about to speak when together the three vampire's phones went off. Sarah checked hers first and let out an annoyed sighed:

"Anastasia just ordered an emergency session for all vampires to attend."

"But there's so much more that needs to be done," mumbled Rory. He crossed his arms. "There's re-writing and sets that need to be repainted not to mention the costumes which I haven't even gone over yet and-" he picked up the hatbox from the seat. "I still need to get that thing fitted it keeps falling to the side every time Ethan moves."

"It's probably about those attacks that happened last week," said Erica. She typed away at her phone and looked up with a frown. "We'd better go if we don't want to put any suspicion on ourselves."

"Attacks?" Asked Ethan. With the strangeness of the hat temporarily forgotten he asked: "I didn't hear anything about attacks. What's going on?"

"It's on a need to know basis," said the blonde. She looked at him and clicked her tongue. "And unfortunately the Vampire Council decided that you didn't need to know."

"Man and just when I was starting to feel it in with the play," said Rory. The hints of the dictator from before were gone and he seemed once more his usual jovial self. "You guys are doing really great I can't wait to see what you all look like in full costume. And man does Benny do an amazing job with those lights and sounds, this is going to be amazing."

"Sorry," whispered Sarah. She tightened a red scarf around her neck and gave Ethan a sad smile. "They were keeping it under wraps because they aren't sure of what's happening and they don't want to keep relying on the and I quote 'nerds for hire'. We'll see you tomorrow ok?"

Ethan shrugged and tried his best to sound indifferent. "See you tomorrow then. Oh and-" They were gone in a flash. His arm dropped, he rolled his eyes and huffed. To himself he mumbled: "Sarah I like your scarf."

He stuffed the hat into the box and looked up when Benny returned. The older boy was still buckling his jeans when he said: "That was too close I should really keep a bottle or bucket up- hey where did everyone go?"

"They all went to some meeting with the Vampire Council. That just leaves you and me to investigate this thing." He kicked the box. "So what do you say, head over to library and see if we can find something?"

"Sounds like a date," said Benny with a smile. Ethan rolled his eyes. Delighted with his friend's reaction the Spellmaster added: "So count me in oh and we should probably avoid that hallway for reasons that might be my fault."

Ethan looked down at his right hand and absently flexed his pinky finger. At first it was in a vain attempt to figure out the strange phantom tugs that had plagued him over the past few months, then it was in order to cope with the sudden news Mr. G had just told him and at long last he realized it was perhaps to mask the overwhelming sadness that came from within. When he lost interest in the smallest of his fingers he looked passed his teacher to the bare tree beyond the library windows, anything to avoid the truth. At long last he knew there was nothing left he could do to delay the inevitable and he turned to the older man desperate the see even the smallest glimmer of humor in his eyes. When he saw none he finally managed to utter a single word:

"When?"

Mr. G gave him a sad smile and exhaled. "By the end of summer so six months give or take a few weeks. City Hall's making way for a new theater and the library is sitting on what they called 'prime real estate'."

"They're destroying a piece of Whitechapel history to make way for a new movie theater? We already have one of those; they're like a dime a dozen. There has to be something we can do. Isn't there a deed or something like that that protects this place?"

"Trust me I've looked. For now I've done all I can with the both the City Council and School Board but this old relic just can't keep up with modern technology. It's like that tree out back, it's here but there just aren't any fruits to show for it. I'm sorry Ethan I know how much this place means to you."

He looked down. "Things just happen in Whitechapel."

The older man gave him a sympathetic smile and wandered off. Ethan looked at the books in his hands and sighed. He moved further down the aisle in search of Benny. After going down several more rows he huffed, at times he seemed to forget just how big the library was. From the corner of his eyes he caught sight of the open basement door. Of course the Spellmaster would go downstairs into the old abandoned basement, they were always finding strange objects down there so it fell to reason an answer would most likely come from same place.

"Benny?" Called Ethan. He peered around the area seeing old rows upon rows of old and ancient books. "You down here?"

"You wouldn't believe the things I've found," called Benny as he appeared with several large leather bound books. "Did you know there were several fairytale based spells? Like sleeping curses, golems, ice magic, and even a curse that can cover the city in thorns and briars. I can't wait to try some of them out! What do you think Erica will do when she falls into a deep sleep only a kiss from yours truly can wake her from?"

"I don't know…" his voice cracked and he cleared his throat. "Sleep probably? Anything about the hat?"

He was silent for a moment and then asked: "What's the matter?"

"Why do you think something's the matter? I just asked about the hat."

"Your voice cracked. We both know that only happens when your either hiding something or something is bothering you. If you want I can curse Sarah too! No need for just one of us to get all the love. Especially with that kiss you two are going to share in Act Two Scene Four."

"N-no! No…. no." He shook his head and tried to force the blush away. "Mr. G just told me that City Council is planning on closing the library at the end of August."

"Really? That's a bummer. I guess we going to have to move as many of these ancient texts and stuff as soon as possible. It's would seriously suck if we lost any of them. As for the hat I think I may have found something about cursed objects but I'll need some time to decipher it. Any emotions that seemed connected or linked would be a big help."

"All them. Anger, happiness, sadness, confusion… lust…."

"Thinking about Sarah when you're supposed to be practicing your lines? Shame on you young Morgan boy, shame."

They ascended the stairs and Ethan turned to close the doors behind them. He stopped when he noticed Benny looking at him. It wasn't just a peek but an intense almost concentrated stare. He felt the blush return to his cheeks and asked:

"W-what?"

"I couldn't tell earlier because it was dark but this thing is really bothering you E isn't it?"

"Well yeah. I grew up with this place and the library has helped us so many times in our fight against the supernatural. It doesn't seem right to just give up on it."

"It's only the beginning of January," said Benny. He placed a hand on his friends shoulder. "We've got six months ahead of us to find something that could prevent it from being sold. I say we talk to your dad and see if he knows anything."

Ethan nodded. "Yeah your right he might know somebody higher up who could help us." He tapped his cheek. "That's actually a really good idea."

"I get them every now and then," said Benny. "Now let's go and try out one of these fairy tale curses I'm dying to know what they do." He flipped through the pages of the first book and stopped. Lodged within was a small flatten rose petal. The taller boy shrugged and tossed it to the side. "Let's see… we're going to need to get a few things first. Where can we find an apple that's red as blood?"

Ethan leaned back in his chair and held up the jacket he was trying his best to sew together. Of course the extra math class he had taken would get cancelled and of course he could end up in the last class he ever wanted to take: sewing. He sighed and turned in the direction of his window in thought.

Like usual the things he tended to be average at Benny had taken to naturally, almost frightfully so. He grumbled, give him a computer and he could create an AI within hours, give him some machines and he would put something together and it would do amazing things. Give him clothes and a needle and watch at how white he turned at the small pointed tip. He turned to his computer and set aside the horrible sweater that would determine and eventually ruin his midterm grade.

He opened his new program. A small screen appeared and he typed in the words 'cursed', 'hat' and 'magic'. It buzzed then flashed to the blue screen of death. He leaned back with his arms crossed, still a bunch of errors to work out but given time it would be one of the greatest tools they had for fighting against the supernatural. There was a knock at his door and his dad peeked in.

"Your mom told me you wanted to talk," said Ross. He leaned in the doorway and crossed his arms. "Everything all right buddy?"

Ethan looked away from the crashed computer screen and absently tugged at his finger. "I heard about the library being sold during summer."

"Yeah the City Council is determined to buy the land and begin production on a new theaters as starting grounds for a new megamall. Unfortunately or rather fortunately they got caught in some old city zoning laws and won't be able to move forward with the sale until summer."

"So your against the whole thing?" His father nodded. "Then isn't there anything we can do to stop it?"

"Honestly no. The only way to prevent it would be to find the deed and hope that is has some proof the area is a sight of historical significance. The catch is that it went missing decades ago. The Council is going through all the proper channels to transfer over ownership, but I couldn't even being to fathom how they're going about it."

Ethan nodded and thought it over for a moment. "I guess that makes sense. Why don't they just build the mall around the old theater and expand out in the open fields? Wouldn't that make more sense?"

"Because more often than naught the people hiding behind the papers are idiots."

Jane peered in the room with a smile. "Mom says if you don't have anything nice to say then it's better not to say anything at all."

Ross laughed and followed her out into the hallway. Once Ethan was alone he looked between the crashed program and his less than stellar sewing project. As much as he wanted to work on program there would be plenty of time to do that later. For now his assignment and the future of his perfect GPA required his immediate attention.

On the cold tile floor of the library the single rose petal began to glow. A bright crimson light swirled around it and on the ground a red liquid pooled across several tiles before rising straight up into the air. The substance began to take form and little by little details began to manifest themselves. When the moment passed a young woman stepped forward and examined herself in the reflection of the library's windows.

Her red hair was as dark as ever, her green eyes lucid as they had been since birth and the clothes she wore appeared no worse for the wear even after all the centuries she had been imprisoned. With a wave of her hands the front door of the library unlocked and opened. The woman in the red dress walked down the steps with unnatural grace and took in the buildings around her.

Nothing in particular caught her attention. Then the clock tower began to ring. She tiled her head slightly at the sound and a dark smile crossed her face. It appeared as though someone else had made Whitechapel their home. It mattered not who it may be for the woman in red had work that needed to be done. With the same wicked grin she strode straight into town.

A/N: Who is the woman in red? What's going on with the mysterious hat? What did Benny do in the hallway? Only time and eventually the next chapter will tell! See you in a week.