Seven Wonders: The Complete Book

by Clayton Overstreet

Things can be rough at the best school in the country. It can be hard to keep up. Unless of course you agree to a few extra curricular activities... like fighting monsters out to eat your fellow classmates.

Seven Wonders

I do own these characters. This is original work by me.

Seven Wonders

By, Clayton Overstreet

Introduction

Sometimes you never knew how your day was going to go.

Three students ran around on the roof of Hideko Academy in the middle of the night, the only lights coming from the street lights some distance away, the half moon above, and a dozen darting cellular phones. The phones being somewhat low to the ground. Down below three other students and an old man were going in circles around the building with torches and incense, chanting and making sure nothing left the school building.

The three on the roof meanwhile had large burlap sacks that were already wriggling from occupants and wore thick matching clothes and thick leather work gloves. It was impossible to see their faces behind the safety masks. They looked more like dog catchers than teenage students.

The cell phones were not in their hands. They were in face running around on the roof, each one having sprouted four pawed feet and striped tails that could have been charms hanging off the bottom that matched whatever color the phones were. On the screens were mischievous faces in masks. They might have seemed cute if one of their pursuers was not already cradling an injured hand from being bitten by sharp teeth and powerful jaws. It had not pierced the leather but had felt like getting his fingers caught in a door.

Hefting her own sack which was heavy since the occupants had given up their disguises Sarah mentally berated herself for the day she had made an agreement that led to her chasing half transformed tanukis, an omnivorous canine from Asia with red-panda-like markings, across the roof of one of the most prestigious schools in the world. The others were grumbling too. It needed to be done and was hardly the most dangerous thing she had participated in since joining the Spiritual Harmony Class, but it was darned annoying if nothing else.

Not least of all since the cute almost cartoon-like little things they were chasing had the tendency to change from small toys into snarling thirty pound animals with claws, teeth, and bad attitudes when grabbed. The males also had a nut sack that would suddenly stretch out and do their best to slap against her. Thankfully these were not too bright. They were all doing their best to just shove the little bastards into the sacks.

A man had shown up at the local mall doing a "special promotion" that weekend giving away high end cell phones to anyone who asked. They would turn on and everything, but had no plans so while physically sound had no service or apps. And they were free so nobody noticed when they could not get their devices into the drives. They just took them home and for a day or two forgot about them.

Then things started disappearing. Food. Small but expensive items. Kids started seeing things, swearing their phones were moving on their own and even changing or playing tricks on them. Or had just disappeared. Parents were pissed, usually at the kids who they blamed. The school heard a little and called in the SHC. So they had gathered them up for a closer look.

Then found them trying to sneak away. Mr. Kane had led them in trapping the little monsters in the school and then evacuating, pulling the fire alarm. For the rest of the day they had been chasing shape shifting cell phones and animals around campus. The suits and sacks were in storage. Sarah had not asked why, but could guess similar events had happened before.

Mr. Kane said that these were low level tanukis. Barely able to take on one other form and not much brighter than a regular dog. The guy selling them had either been a high level one, maybe their parent or possibly a human looking for one. That would have been dangerous. As it was he had probably spent months training these to take on the shape of cell phones and steal for him, bringing back whatever they found. An old tanuki trick. At least among the mystical shape shifting kind.

They were a lot cuter in cartoons and video games than in real life where they were really just snarling animals. They had been driving them out of hiding places and herding them around all day. This was her third sack. Kane insisted they would be shipped back somewhere else, but frankly Sarah suspected he was going to drown the lot of them in a pond somewhere or something.

At this point she was not sure she would object.

Lifting one up by the tail and stuffing it quickly into the sack with its friends she thought back to the day she had gotten herself into this mess.

1

School Spirit

The American School System is in the toilet. Teachers are taught only how to teach and little if anything on their subjects and are paid less than the local garbage man. Children are shoved together in overcrowded classrooms often with people they have no interest in and nothing in common with. The subjects are prepackaged lists of facts crammed together to deliver as much knowledge as possible in the shortest amount of time and tests are multiple choice because no teacher has the time to read the thoughts of their students who are expected to pass easily and then go out into the world to fill menial jobs.

So when Sarah Evans was invited to join the new Hideko Academy in Arizona, a Japanese type high school moved to the states, her father was overjoyed. She was pretty interested too. They really talked the place up.

Unfortunately it was just as good as expected and Sarah… was not.

She tried. Buckling down under the massive workload. Giving up social life… which was fairly easy as she had been sent to live far away from her old friends in her own studio apartment. She had even asked for a tutor. All to no avail.

Now she sat in the principal's office looking at Mr. Okimodo Harashi, the principal. He was a middle aged Japanese man with a dark beard and a bald head. He wore fussy little glasses and a grey suit.

"Your transcripts for your first semester here… are not good," he said in a surprisingly deep voice. "It's clear you are trying, but…"

"I know sir," she said from across his desk. She played with a blond curl and looked at him with wide innocent green eyes. She was a good looking white girl with pale skin, a few freckles, and a mop of curly hair that if she died it red would have made her look just like a slightly older orphan Annie. She had never really been in trouble at school very often. Except that time in middle school when she punched Theodore Wiley in the face for snapping her bra. It was not her fault she had developed early, the jerk. From what she heard though the man across from her was not that fond of gaijin, especially blonds. "I've always been an excellent student but the classes here are so different and…" She felt tears on the corners of her eyes. "No matter how hard I try I never seem to catch up."

He sighed and set the folder down. "That much is clear. I am sorry, but I see no reason to believe your academic performance will improve. It may be the environment. Your grades before coming here were quite excellent by American standards and it should be easy to transfer…"

"No! Please, isn't there anything else we can try? My dad was so proud when I got in here and he leased an apartment for the next three years just so I could live near school. I am willing to put in the effort. Whatever it takes. Just help me."

"You've been putting in the effort. It isn't helping."

She looked down again. "I know."

He paused to steeple his fingers and consider. "There is one thing you might try. We have a special class…" Sarah winced picturing herself in the special education group. Riding the short bus and sitting between a kid who drooled all the time and one who liked setting his desk on fire. "You'll get full academic credit. The class's purpose is to do some service to the school. A little campus maintenance, counseling other students, and working for the overall good of Hideko Academy."

Sarah blinked. "What… like an event planning committee? A community service group who prettifies the campus and listens to kids talk about their problems? Like the student counsel?"

He smiled. "Something like that. You'll only have to attend this one class and there will be no tests, no homework, and you'll likely do little enough school work. You will instead focus on a few… outstanding issues." He cleared his throat. "I'd need you to sign some consent forms of course. It's possible you'll be dealing with some hazardous materials, people in unstable frames of mind, and a few unpredictable situations that I have no way of assuring you'll get out of without some harm."

Sarah had worked with some "special" students before after school in kindergarten. Kids who bit or scratched and threw things. To be able to dump her school work and deal with that every now and then was sounding too good to be true. Suspicious she said, "I am not sure that is a good idea. The idea is for me to learn and get a good job."

"Oh do not worry on that account. We've been running this program since the school was founded in 1789 near the Aokigahara area near Mount Fuji. A lovely area. Well known for… its spiritual presence. There were caves, a lake, and a lovely bit of woods. " He paused and looked at her seriously. "Have you heard why we opened this school here in America?"

"Uh, no sir. My dad said it was because the school system in Japan is much stricter than here and a lot of people want to try new systems and see if they work better."

"Indeed, but that is not all. In Japan we have students who are like you. Trying so hard but unable to keep up. And I'm afraid we are much stricter. Teachers were even allowed to hit and otherwise punish students. The pressure was intense. I'm sorry to say we had several suicides."

Sarah gasped. "I never intended…"

"Not at all, but the people back home are quite superstitious about such things. Among others. I'm sure you've seen some of those popular cartoons and movies from our land. As time goes on and schools age they gain reputations in certain circles. Students share stories. Stories turn into ghost stories and soon a pall forms over the school like a dark cloud. One student claims she's possessed by a fox or a boy is said to be a witch who cast a spell that made an enemy kill himself, and the next thing you know the students are using the same excuse the next year and the year after that. Enough students believe it and you do not know who is scared and who is making it up to get out of class. People start seeing things." He paused. "I'm sure when you reach college you'll learn all about it.

"That is in fact what the class I'm offering you is meant to prevent. After hundreds of years of dark and spooky stories our students had all kinds of unjustified fears and stories. Curses were blamed for stomach aches and ghosts for everything from thrown objects to vandalism. Stuff a teacher has no time to fix or track down the source of. So we began a group for students to do so. Fixing the damage. Squelching any rumors. Finding logical explanations whenever possible and even performing a few minor ceremonies to quell the more superstitious students. It is legitimate work and many of those students have subsequently gone on to do similar things for major companies."

"They have?"

"Oh you'd be surprised. Buildings get put on old church sites. I believe a major store chain even put one of their stores on an Aztec burial ground. I've heard of a company whose building was pyramid shaped had no many complaints about over sharpened scissors and things they send someone around to pretend to dull them. Stress is a killer and when enough people die from overworking themselves the air can always use a good cleaning. Not to mention some of the things people try to intentionally freak out the people who work in such places for various business reasons. In New Orleans I know of a young man whose job is to check incoming packages for voodoo dolls. It's always good to have someone who knows ways to quiet rumors and keep the employees from being frightened off by superstitious mumbo jumbo."

That made sense. Her dad still carried around his lucky rabbit's foot from his old high school football days even though most of the fur and a toe had fallen off. "And that's what you want me to do?"

"It's what I am offering to let you do. To stay here. Officially of course you'll be told off as a member of a special study club and we'll ask you not to discuss it with the students not in the class unless we send them to you. You get full marks, recommendation letters…"

"That seems like a lot for a little."

He waved it off. "True, but in Japan such things are taken seriously. And there are certain risks, both physical and psychological. Think of it as many schools do, as when a roommate or a friend hurts themselves while in school. It happens and often the student's roommate gets straight As for a semester on the grounds that such a trauma is distracting and the students do not need the pressure of academics for a while and should not be punished for that."

"Kind of morbid comparison isn't it?"

"We've had some students who found this class, little as was required of them, far more problematic than their regular studies. Listening to scary stories the way a priest hears confessions… oh the horrible imaginations some of you kids have. Dealing with the kinds of kids who take it seriously. Parents. We've found small cults growing on campus a time or two in the past."

"What like sacrificial stuff?"

"Oh once or twice. From a few extremely disturbed students. Mostly just New Age groups who sometimes go too far. Sometimes trying to start a secret society like the Skulls or the Freemasons. Kids will try anything and while we're not responsible, if someone does get hurt during hazing or something they tend to blame the school.

"We've had a lot less incidents since we moved the campus to America. The supernatural is less prolific in this country than ours where there are still thousand year old shrines claiming to have bits of monsters or cursed objects. We even tried to do without the class for a while, but… well incidents start to build up and we can't just keep hopping the school around every time students start telling urban legends." He shook his head. "In Japan a lot of schools have stories about various rooms, what was built on the ground before the school… a couple from alumni families have even enrolled and started telling the old stories we tried to get away from. So eventually we had to reinstate the program. Trying to banish some of those old ghosts."

Sarah could understand that. There was that old burnt down building on the hill outside of town. Since she was a kid she had heard a dozen different stories about what had happened to it. Then there were popular stores like Bloody Mary or the Slender Man. Kids told those stories and sometimes got hurt when they went too far. Adults eventually learned to ignore it, mostly, but wild imaginations especially those under stress from overwork like at this school could snap if it became too prevalent. Certainly distracting from the schoolwork if nothing else.

Stopping that from happening did seem like a decent job. And it was not like there were any real ghosts. "I guess I can do that."

"This is a serious decision young lady." Harashi looked at her over his glasses. "Rules you have to follow. And by making this agreement you agree to stick it out. You would possibly be better off at another school following standard academics. If you make this agreement and you back out you will receive failing grades in every subject and it may be impossible for you to get into any other school."

"I'll do it. Please, I can't get kicked out of here."

Now he smiled and opened a desk drawer. "Very well. I just need you to read the rules and sign an agreement."

"Sir, I'm a minor and I can't agree to any contract without my father's consent."

"Oh don't worry, this is nothing legally binding. It's more about your given word. We value honor here and while I cannot enforce it, I expect you to do your best. You can have him sign it too. There's no need to keep it secret from him. This is a unique opportunity I'm offering you here Miss Evans and it helps your fellow students. I will not be made a fool of because you think it is an excuse to slack off."

She gasped. "Never sir!"

"Very well. Read this over and sign it if you agree. But again I strongly suggest you think this over carefully as you do. If you cannot handle it then you need to simply transfer to a less demanding institution."

She took the stack of papers from him. She began to read.

I hereby state that of my own free will and without undo outside influence I agree to take on the duties of the Hideko Academy's Spiritual Harmony Class. I accept that my duties are to tackle any reports of a supernatural nature and to the best of my abilities do whatever is required to balance out the situation and bring peace back to the school. In exchange I will be granted academic freedom and grades commensurate with my performance in the class, never to fall bellow an A and often to gain extra credit in the excellent performance of my duties.

All students in the SHC are required to do the following or forfeit all benefits of participation in the program.

1. Treat all students and stories as serious. No student is to be treated as if they are mentally impaired, lying, or foolish. When dealing with these reports the SHC must do all appropriate research into the report and perform the appropriate recommended actions be it performing a simple ceremony, finding evidence, chasing out an offending creature physically, or any other actions required. Under no circumstances will I refer to a student or situation by a derogatory term or treat it as anything less than an emergency situation by downplaying it or treating it with less than my full attention. If a full investigation into events proves that a student is lying, mistaken, or possibly suffering from mental problems of some sort, that information will be turned into the school staff who will take appropriate actions. I will not be required to perform any actual psychiatric wellness actions that I am not trained for and am encouraged not to, but am asked and expected not to do anything that would obviously make an unstable person more unstable and dangerous if at all possible like calling them crazy, acting as if they are crazy, or otherwise provoking them. If I feel that way I will keep such an evaluation to myself unless discussing it with the school staff.

2. Under no circumstanced is the SHC allowed to fake a ceremony or otherwise improvise merely to dismiss a situation. If it is determined that the best way to handle a situation is to perform certain actions to dispel a spirit or other energy or merely to assuage superstitious beliefs it is to be performed correctly according to appropriate instructions. Other students may know what to expect or may not, but being caught faking knowledge and thus violating rule 1 would do more harm than good. All actions deemed to be under the heading of religion, witchcraft, magic, exorcism, psychic powers, metaphysical, and quantum physics as appropriate are to be researched beforehand and done in exacting detail to the best of the students' abilities. If unable to do so I will contact the school staff and they may be able to contact and/or hire a competent specialist. As a student I will not undertake any ritual that could cause physical harm to another person or myself and will only participate in one if a qualified person, such as an ordained minister, priest, or sorcerer deems in necessary and has filed paperwork with the school and the person's legal guardian/power of attorney.

3. The first thing tried should always be communication. I will do my best to find out all the details of any situation and discuss it with those involved before taking other actions except in the direst of emergencies. This does not apply to séances, trances, invocation, spirit boarding, and summoning which are all prohibited and discouraged. If any of those may be required the school insists that you contact them first and present a fully thought out and preferably written plan for such before attempting it. Unauthorized use of any of those varieties of communication risks forfeiture of all benefits and immediate expulsion from SHC. We also encourage you not to try them at home.

4. If injured first aid may be administered by a competent practitioner and emergency services contacted. I understand that dealing with anything involving the supernatural can make people and situations unstable and while I swear to do my best to be safe I understand that things can happen. I will not hold the school legally responsible and the school in turn promises to provide me with any medical, mental, and spiritual assistance required to survive the incident. The class teacher will arrange regular checks of the student's spiritual wellbeing in the event of an actual or suspected supernatural incident and take appropriate action to ensure the student's wellbeing.

5. Due to the special nature of the agreement I enter into here, I will not discuss SHC business outside the class, either in terms of confirmation, denial, or by refusing to answer. Even if they seem to have knowledge already. This includes among strangers, friends, and family. If asked about it I will inform the asker that I am not allowed to talk about it and do my best to change the subject or leave that person's area. I am not required to lie. If they continue I will inform the school staff and let them deal with the situation. Failure to remain silent about the SHC until graduation except in agreed upon situations that will be recorded in the student's records forfeit's the school's medical assistance program for SHC students, all grades gained through working in the SHC, and the school will deny having made this deal, all positive actions, or that the SHC exists. If through an incident or their own actions someone does find out about it inform the school and we will give them the appropriate explanation as we see fit. Further more I will not discuss anyone's account of a supernatural event or anything else that happens to involve SHC business with anyone outside the SHC or in earshot of anyone not a member and the appropriate staff members, online, in writing, over the phone, or in any other way. The staff will contact any outside specialists. If a student dies I am allowed to break confidentiality with the police, about their involvement, but only then and with the aid of the school staff who know about the situation and if possible a lawyer. Spreading rumors, opinions, half-truths, or facts about the SHC and things they deal with is not permitted even by accident. This protects the members as well as others who could otherwise be accused of mental disorders, lying, practicing black magic, or a variety of other social stigmas.

SHC members gain the following.

1. Full academic credit, extra credit, and community service benefits. Regardless of participation in other classes or events. (Excluding things like driving class or woodshop in which untrained students are a direct threat to the physical wellbeing of others. To gain credit in such classes they must be taken in addition to the standard duties. However SHC does take priority and incase of tests or important lessons tutors and alternate testing times can and will be specially arranged. Passing is up to the individual student.)

2. Immunity from school rules. SHC students are allowed to be out of class, go anywhere on or off campus at any time, and cannot be punished by any staff member for anything less than an unprovoked violent crime and even then are to be given the benefit of the doubt at all times if another person, student or teacher, has a version of events that conflicts with theirs. They are also allowed to do random searches of any lockers, personal belongings, desks, cars, etcetera on campus and may ask the school to make arrangements for similar access to students' homes and other property as required.

3. The class is given a special budget for necessary materials, field trips, and personal purchases. If deemed appropriate we will reimburse you for any personal moneys spent in the service of the school. Keep receipts. Keep all such purchases reasonable and be prepared to justify anything too outlandish. Anything over $100 should be cleared with the school first. Too many unjustified expenses will result in changes to the budget. Also all students are entitled to as much free food and merchandise as they want from the school store, cafeteria, and other programs including those meant for charity and fundraising purchases such as bake sales, car washes, and others. School resources are not to be used in any incidents not related directly to the school or personal gain. This includes all artifacts, talisman, amulets, books, body parts from supernatural creatures, and other things used or found in the course of your duties. Such things once used and no longer immediately needed or if found should be turned over to the current SHC teacher as soon reasonably possible for storage until such time as they are required.

4. SHC members can take students and teachers from other classes if they are needed. Such people will be encouraged by the school to do as they are told and ask as few questions as possible. Please try not to abuse this privilege, but rest assured that due to the required secrecy the school tends to look the other way if you do.

5. The students are given cellular phone plans and phones of the highest quality that they may use for their own purposes provided they are not illegal and the student agrees to keep the phone on, charged, and provide at least three other means of contacting them in the event of an emergency. If called in on official SHC business I will respond with my full capabilities regardless of the time or place or whatever else I am doing. I will treat all such calls as a dire emergency regardless of which SHC member calls or what about. Any abuses should be reported. No SHC information may be kept on the phone.

I hereby acknowledge that I understand all of the above information and requirements and agree to keep both the letter and the spirit of this agreement. The school will not be held responsible for death, injury, or loss of soul or sanity.

Signed: _

Parental Signature: _

Sarah reread it three times. It all made perfect sense to her. Treat the stories as real and do not provoke students who might be on edge. Do your best to help people or at least get them help. And the benefits were actually pretty sweet. It almost felt like cheating. Or being hired by the school with a diploma as a paycheck. Plus apparently cash. It was mildly disconcerting that only the name of the school was written in a different font, as if it were a standard form used by a lot of different schools. She looked up at the principal.

"Something you do not understand?"

"No, it's all pretty simple." The loss of sanity and soul thing was probably if she started to believe the hype and thought she was possessed or something. He extended a fancy pen to her, the kind with an actual nub you usually only saw in lawyer's offices. She hesitated and for some reason felt a chill as if he were pointing a knife at her instead of a simple writing took. Then she shrugged it off, took the pen, and quickly scribbled her name on the contract. For a moment once she finished it seemed to flash neon blue and she blinked. "What was that?"

"What was what?" He asked taking back the pen.

"I thought I saw…" She blinked her eyes a little itchy from going over the contract. She put it in her backpack. "Never mind. What do I do now?"

"Take your copy home with you and have your parent or guardian sign it too. Tomorrow report to Room 13 on the first floor of building C. The teacher is Mr. Gerald Kane. I doubt you know him. He'll arrange for your school supplies, give you the reading lists, and other materials you'll need." He extended a hand. "I expect great things from you Miss Evans, now that the pressure is off."

She smiled and shook it, then yelped as something like static electricity shot up her arm. Not a little bit either, but the kind of jolt you got from grabbing a steel door after crossing an entire room of carpet in socks. While holding a really fluffy cat. It felt like her whole arm had gone numb, but she smiled a little and said, "Thank you sir. I won't let you down."

He handed her a brand new cell phone and a scrap of paper with the number on it. Sarah was impressed. It was top of the line. "We'll see."

Sarah could barely believe her father signed the form, but like Sarah he knew some places needed such programs and if it got his daughter a diploma from such an amazing school it was worth it. Finding the room was easy enough. She had been at the school for a semester already. Sarah just was not prepared for what she found inside. For one thing when she opened the door the room was mostly dark and small fires flickered on the desks of the half a dozen people inside. At first she thought maybe she was in the class with the kids who liked to start fires, but then realized they were using actual candles. The thick denim curtains were drawn and the teacher stopped speaking as soon as she opened the door.

"Yes?" He said in a cultured English accent. This despite the fact that he looked to be about ninety. "Can I help you child?"

"The principal sent me." There was a drawn out silence. The students did not look up or turn to the door. It was hard to make them out even with the light from the hall. There were a couple dozen desks but only about five or six of them. She thought maybe more before realizing the two guys in the corner were an anatomy model and a skeleton on a hook. "I am supposed to join the class."

Suddenly it was like a whistle had been blown. The teacher's face turned from helpful concern to a disgusted frown. The kids slumped in their desks and one said, "Great, the old man's suckered another schmuck."

The teacher, presumably Kane, waved absently. "Just sit wherever. If you feel like grabbing a book get a candle and matches from the back table. Otherwise feel free to take a nap. Or leave. I honestly don't care. Just close the damned door."

Stepping inside she did, pausing to let herself get used to the gloom. There were six other people in the room. Students of varying ages. Four boys and two girls. One of the boys was Polynesian, round but strong looking and covered in tribal tattoos and pierced… everything. His head was shaved and when he smiled his teeth were filed to points. She had seen Pacific natives with the tattoos before but it was like he went overboard to add the word "cannibal" flashing over his head. When he saw her looking he actually licked his lips.

Another boy looked mostly like your standard normal white kid, except he had dyed his hair neon green. Or was wearing a wig. He had a large leather bound book out in front of him full of the kind of designs you saw when people in a Harry Potter movie were using the library. For a moment he ran his finger down a page and she thought she saw the lines glow purple, but she blinked and they were just ink. Must have been a trick of the candle light. Metal in the ink or something.

Another boy lay back easily at his desk reading a comic book. He was big, build like a football player, with handsome features and shot brown hair. Sarah would guess he might be headed for the military after school, if not for the fact that he was wearing a large brown robe like a druid or monk. A six foot staff carved with runes leaned against the side of his desk and his fingers each had two rings apiece. Hanging around his neck was a collection of necklaces Mr. T would have envied, each one ending in a different symbol, crystal, or figure. Sarah recognized Saint Christopher, the Seal of Solomon, a cross, and an inverted pentagram with a goat head, but it was like "Where's Waldo?"

The final young man was a black boy. African looking rather an African American. On his forehead was a scar that looked intentional. Sarah had seen them before. Some tribes in Africa marked each other that way. A school had gotten into trouble once for putting two boys with similar scars in class together, assuming they would like to see someone from home. They had almost immediately tried to kill each other. It turned out their tribes had been at war for generations.

He had a selection of knives on his desk and was sharpening them. A slow hissing sound as he ran the knife sharpener down the blade he was holding slowly. Barely a whisper that in a regular classroom she would not have heard. She glanced at the teacher again, but he was uninterested focusing instead on a newspaper.

A mocha skinned girl who could have been black or Indian or Native American looked up at her. She had a wrapping around her head… a hajib? And was she reading the Koran? She didn't recognize the language and did not want to speculate. Her family was not that into religion and like most American teenagers other cultures were bits and pieces of half remembered knowledge to her. She looked up at Sarah and said in perfect English, "At least now we have another woman in here."

"Nice to meet you, I'm Sarah."

She turned back to her book and a Japanese girl complete with the catholic schoolgirl plaid skirt, blue blazer, etc. look normally seen in high school anime. Sarah wore the same thing. It was the official uniform. Most of the kids did not wear them. There had been a law suit and the requirement had been lifted. Hoping to focus on school Sarah had kept with it, though it did not help her grades or social life. Her hair hung down in front of her face almost to her chest and one eye peered out with half a smile. On the back of her chair was a white hooded sweater with the school's logo and a bunch of Japanese characters. Sarah was pretty sure she had seen her at the bus stop a lot but had not really talked to her. She was busy and it was pretty crowded.

She said, "Don't mind them, they're a little standoffish. Especially Jasmine. Being a Muslim and having the same name as a cartoon princess has worn her a little thin in the socializing department. Dr. Kane you know. I'm Keiko. The guy with the teeth and the tats is H. I don't know if that's his full name but it's all he'll answer to. The one with the green hair is Kyle. The one playing with his knives is Ohm. And the one in the robes is David. You really don't want to talk religion with that guy. Here have a seat with me."

She seemed the nicest and most normal kid so Sarah took the offer. "I'm Sarah."

Around her people glanced at her and grunted. Nobody else made introductions. Keiko went on lowering her voice to a whisper, "Sorry about the not so warm welcome. Back in Japan they take this sort of thing seriously. Everyone knows about it and how to deal with it. Here it's mostly guess work. Last year we had a girl from Arizona who was Navajo and the daughter of a shaman. She did well, but her family took it seriously too so they transferred her out to another school.

"Not that it'll help. It's not like the stuff that happens here is unusual. People just prefer to pretend it is something else or ignore it. When they have half a clue. Back in Japan there are shrines all over the place and plenty of people you can call. Psychical researchers, priests, mediums…"

"Psychiatrists," Sarah quipped under her breath.

"Oh a skeptic huh?" Sarah nodded and Keiko giggled. "Well let's see how long that lasts."

"So is this all we do? Sit around and read?"

"Well there are plenty of books to study," Keiko said and pointed to some book shelves against the walls.

Sarah looked. Scary Stories, History of the Occult, H.P. Lovecraft, Shinto, Encyclopedia of Gods and Fairies, Demonology… she shook her head. "I'm not into fantasy."

"Once a month we spend the day drawing up paper talismans for protection. Other than that most of what we deal with is on a case by case basis. Pretty routine most of the time."

"Like what?"

There was a throat clearing from the front of the class. "Miss if you're unable to just relax and have to mumble to yourself back there…" Sarah glanced at Keiko who smiled and shrugged. Apparently Sarah had been whispering louder than her new friend. Well no sense in pointing it out ad getting the only nice person in the room mad at her. "Then perhaps you would prefer to get to your initiation. I wanted to hold off until you had acclimatized…"

"Sir, I'd love to do something other than just sit here. I mean I get it. People, especially teenagers, are superstitious and sometimes need to be talked down. I don't mind helping out getting them to calm down and see reality. To tell the truth I'm surprised they are having us do this rather than a clinical psychologist or something, but I suppose it's easier to discuss things with people their own age. It's just I came to this school to learn and just sitting here killing time isn't what I was expecting."

"Three tops," David mumbled to Kyle. "Twenty bucks."

Kyle looked up at Sarah briefly and then returned to his books. "I say she makes it to four. Just on being stubborn and refusing to believe what is happening."

"What are they talking about?" Sarah asked.

Kane motioned for her to come back up to his desk. He opened a drawer and pulled out a small stack of forms. He counted out seven and slid them to Sarah. She picked them up and he watched as she scanned them. Mostly just lines with the heading "Wonder of the School Report". He also added a gold badge on a clip that had SHC on it. "Take these, fill out all seven, and when you do you'll have done your dues and we'll explain everything. If you can't then you'll be out of the school anyway so why waste our time? Like I said I was going to give you the chance to observe and study up, but if you don't want to wait…"

Sarah frowned. It felt like she was being hazed. Instead of saying yes or no she asked, "How do I fill these out?"

"Well your mission, should you choose to accept it…" It was the first sign of humor she had seen in the man. It seemed a little taunting rather than a friendly joke. "Is to go around the school and find seven identifiable supernatural events. Take as long as you want. Investigate as best you can and get the most information and if you can clear it up great. Tell us how you did it. You can either ask around and if you find something at least three students say they have heard about or seen it counts. If you confirm it yourself that's fine. If you make it up and we find out you lied you'll be kicked out immediately. If you die or disappear, we'll inform your next of kin if you aren't seen for three straight days or somebody locates your body."

"Ha-ha, very funny," she said. Then she frowned, remembering what the principal had said about cults on campus. Some of those religious crazies (and she could not help but glance at her fellow students again) could be dangerous even if they were kids. Like the military cults loved to recruit teenagers. "Any chance I can get someone to come with me and show me the ropes?"

Kane smirked. "If you can get someone to volunteer. It's nothing personal. I'm afraid we don't like to get attached, incase you fail. Believe me we get a lot of would-be ghost hunters in here and the gung ho types who jump in feet first and do not know what they are doing usually don't last long at all."

Sarah looked at the room. They were all looking at her now. None of them so much as nodded or raised a hand. Then Keiko said, "I'll do it. I really have nothing better to do." She winked at Sarah. "Besides it'll be fun seeing you deal with this stuff. Just don't expect me to hold your hand. I'm just going to observe and offer advice. If you can't handle it…"

"I get it. I'm supposed to handle this myself."

"Pretty much," Kane said. "Preferably without getting into an actual life or death emergency."

"Fine," she said and nodded to Keiko. She walked over and got her backpack, stuffing the forms inside. "Let's do this."

Keiko got up, her chair scraping on the floor. The other students turned to look, startled by the noise, but did not even follow her with their eyes as she followed Sarah out of the room. Glaring at the chair as if it were responsible. Keiko waved happily, "Later everybody!" They all ignored her.

Out in the hall after she shut the door behind them Sarah said, "I get them giving me the silent treatment, but I figured you were part of the group."

Keiko shrugged. "You spend enough time at this and you start to focus on some of the big things. Religion, quantum physics, new age stuff… I've seen some of the kids carted off because they couldn't handle it or worse they actually snapped." She coughed softly. "Like Kane said, usually the ones who don't believe it and maybe see something. Kyle really got into studying magic and Dave went defensive and got religion. Only he hasn't picked one. I think he's hoping a god will pick him. Ohm thinks of it more like hunting. Kane was a professor of theology when Harashi suckered him into taking the job. Jasmine was already religious so it's not really affecting her. H got in because he's some kind of genius, but also has some mental problems and was in the class with the kids who like to start fights and fires. Sometimes he seems to know what he's doing and other times I think he thinks he's hallucinating everyone in the room. I think he's one of the ones they're just trying to get expelled."

'They use this class a lot for that?"

"Not really. It's a serious program and the people who get through it really do seem to do well. But it's sort of trial by fire. Sometimes they have a serious surge in problems and they dragoon a real genius in to help out, they'll even hire outside contractors, but ninety percent of the time… they use cannon fodder."

Sarah felt her heart sink, reminded once again that she was part of this crazy thing because her grades just were not up to snuff. In a regular American school she would have had a 4.0 grade point average easily. This was why she wanted to do well in this school. Nearly every student who graduated Hideko Academy was offered a scholarship from the school of their choice. Especially if they were part of his program the principal had assured her father when he called up to check on the form. Her dad was not poor, but without a scholarship and with an ordinary diploma and even high SAT scores the odds of getting into one of the really great schools were slim. Slimmer since Sarah was not that smart and had thought buckling down would get her through Hideko.

She gripped the strap of her pack and clipped the gold plastic badge to her collar. "The principal said if I got the badge nobody would mess with me?"

"I never got one, but once enough people know you're in SHC it doesn't matter," she said. "Most of the students don't know about the class. The ones that do tend to ignore us unless they need something. When we talk to them you can make up any story you want about why you're asking about stuff. Claim any authority. The principal will back you up and the staff won't contradict you. You can even pull kids out of class to talk to them and hand out detentions if you want."

"Really?"

"Yeah but you want to be careful. There was one overzealous guy back when the school was in Japan who tried to ban spirit boards and any occult paraphernalia. He made too big of a deal out of it and the students rebelled. Just to mess with them they would draw up curses, make effigy dolls… everything they could think of to piss him off from painting walls with blood to cootie catchers. Eventually he had a breakdown because nobody would listen to him and things got pretty bad for a while because with the upsurge people started really believing and doing stuff. Others supported him and tried to fight it. One girl got run over by a car by the end and she wasn't even part of it. Things calmed down a little after that, but then they decided to just give everyone an early graduation move the school."

"How do you know what happened in Japan?"

"My family has gone to this school for a long time. I practically came here with them. My mother works in Florida, so I learned English young even before I came here."

"My dad works in an office a lot I came here so I could get into a real school. My grades just… I guess I can't keep up with the requirements here, so it's either this or at best community college. More likely I'll end up in a career where I wear a paper hat and try to pay for trade school."

"With that curly hair I can't see you as a truck driver."

"Not really," Sarah said with a grin. "Though I was not really picturing being an occult researcher either."

"Don't knock it yet. I get the feeling you may have a knack for this sort of thing."

"A psychic premonition."

Keiko grinned. "More like a message from the spirit world. Ooo!" She wiggled her fingers and rolled her eyes in her head. Sarah smiled. Deepening her voice she said, "The spirits say you have found your destiny and should pursue it."

"Well oh spirit guide, what should I do first? I need a bit of a push because I am not going to head back there and tell Creepy Kane that he was right and I have no clue what I am doing."

"See? You are psychic! You guessed his nickname already. Not exactly the oracle of Delphi but not bad." Sarah rolled her eyes. "Okay here's my suggestion. Go to the library and get some books on how to be a detective. Maybe cruise the internet while you're there. Then when lunch comes around pick some people to ask."

"That's it?"

"How much easier could it be? I'll have some more suggestions for you later, but baby steps, you know? Start small, see how it goes. Take your time. You have until you graduate or quit. Trust me, patience is a virtue."

Sarah sighed. "I guess so. It's just that I haven't really socialized much since coming to this school. With my workload I'm surprised anyone has the time. Is there some other laid back program they just didn't tell me about? Take drug tests for the staff or the sports teams and get perfect report cards?"

"Jealous?"

"Of course." They both laughed and then she sobered up. "I'm just not sure I'm up for really socializing, let along interrogating people."

"Well we have three hours to study for it. I can help you with that part. I'm a pretty good tutor. And I get where you're coming from. I don't talk to too many people around here either. We can be study buddies. Then we can go to lunch. It's pizza day."

"Yay," Sarah said half heartedly.

Keiko's prediction turned out to be pretty accurate and it took only about twenty minutes for her to finish writing her first report. Though the incident itself took longer. It was remarkably simple and a little boring actually. At first. It was not like she was looking for the Maltese Falcon or running a CSI lab.

The library was a lot of shelves lined with books. There were openings where a series of computer stations were set up, a glass case with a Victorian era doll in a red velvet dress sat in display in a glass case, another with an stuffed own whose eyes followed patrons around the room (presumably taking over if the librarians was not there to watch them and inspire care for the books), and a set of samurai armor in one corner standing as if filled with an invisible person. Oddly there was a piece of paper stuck on each with a piece of tape, Japanese characters written down each one.

The librarian had taken one look at the gold badge Sarah wore and had not even asked why she was there during class. She went back to reading a book of her own and petting the library cat, a white creature with a gray saddle-mark on its back and a tail that split into two at the end hanging off the desk and swinging back and forth. Sarah and Keiko had gotten several books on how to be a detective (it was a very comprehensive school) and read through them. It was very relaxing especially knowing it was just one subject and there would be no test. Sarah was still a little edgy though. It felt like a trap or a trick. Like any second a camera crew would pop out saying "I can't believe you thought you would graduate for doing nothing. God you are so blond!" and she would spend the rest of her education riding the little bus to school.

Nobody said anything though and Keiko seemed both serious about it and too nice to be part of that. Sarah had come up with some logical reasons for the class's existence. She decided for the moment to treat it seriously too. If they were screwing with her education would be the least of her problems. She would just sue them and could afford any school she wanted, provided she didn't mind dying her hair and changing her name.

When lunch came along they joined the other students in the noisy cafeteria. Keiko explained she was on a diet, but watched longingly as Sarah had her slice of pizza. "I'd happily share with you."

"No, it's against the rules," Keiko said sadly." I get certain cheat days if someone offers it to me, but really I just have to get used to it."

"Then I'll eat fast. I'd agree to starve myself with you, but I'm already so hungry. If I'm going to talk to anybody I don't want my stomach growling."

"Please. I consider it a pleasure to live vicariously through you," she said happily. "Of course I'm not the one putting on weight."

Ignoring the teasing with the grace of someone eating state approved quasi-Italian food Sarah finished up her pizza, drank her chocolate milk, and finished up with a fruit cup. Meanwhile she scanned the room, poking at the cherry in the plastic container with her Spork. 'I'm just not sure who to ask about weird stuff…" Keiko rolled her eyes and then pretended to scratch the underside of her nose with the top of her finger, pointing energetically. "Oh!"

There was a table full of Goth kids. Black leather dog collars. Dyed hair. Various tattoos and religious symbols. Pretty much her exact opposites, but still the most obvious people in school to be into the supernatural. No wonder she was struggling in advanced calculus.

Dumping the containers and greasy paper plate in the trash she walked confidently over to the Goth table while Keiko followed but stayed a little ways back watching. Made sense. She was observing. It was up to Sarah to do the work. "Hey guys."

A kid who smelled like clove cigarettes and had black eye shadow narrowed his eyes at her while the others just stared. Not exactly friendly, but better than her first trip to Room 13. "What do you want?'

"I've been asked by the principal to go around and see if anyone has seen anything weird at school lately."

"Like drug dealers?" A girl sneered. She had a stripe of blue in her hair and a spike through her lip.

Sarah rolled her eyes. "Right, because I'm an undercover DEA agent and we always round up the Emo kids fist. I also want to ask you about human trafficking and the prostitution ring the cafeteria lady is running out of the gym." That got a chuckle from the kids and a few smiled. "Seriously. I'm supposed to check to see if anyone's reporting any ghost stories or strange events. I don't believe it, but if someone's saying they see a ghost it could be they have mental disorders or maybe someone's hanging around school that shouldn't be or maybe someone is on drugs.

"And yeah, I'm hitting up you guys first. Big surprise." She smirked at them and they gave grudging smiles. "I'm just supposed to ask around. If this were a real drug investigation they would have sent cops. I remember at my middle school there was a field next to the fence where a tree hung down and the kids used to hide under the leaves to get high or smoke cigarettes and pot and try to see shapes in the smoke. I never participated, but I didn't rat anyone out either. I'm not asking for names or anything, I'm just supposed to see if anyone's seen or heard of anything weird."

"You're with the SHC, right?" A boy asked from the end.

"The what?" several others asked."

"It's a school thing. She's legit. Remember when my sister had that incident last year?"

"You mean when she thought she was possessed and kept claiming to be a fox?"

"I thought it was hilarious when she lifted her leg and peed on Mrs. Hogan's desk."

"I thought it was scary."

"Me too. That sort of thing really wasn't funny."

The boy said, "Yeah well the SHC were the ones who figured out she wasn't just screwing around or crazy. Whatever was happening… and there was some freaky stuff going on… it was done to her. I'm not sure if she would have gotten arrested or put in an institution and I don't know the details. Something about her having accidentally come into contact with some really freaky mushrooms or something. But she's fine now."

"I'm new," Sarah admitted. "Just doing a little research."

"Lucky. I'd love to be in a group that does stuff like that," the girl said. "I guess they want normal kids like you though, so you don't get too into it."

"Ask the principal and he might let you in," Sarah said.

She waved it off. "Nah. I've got a ton of work and after school activities too. My said if I didn't do a sport this year she was confiscating my makeup and taking me to a tanning salon. If I played at that stuff she would probably start talking about putting me on antidepressants again." The others at the table mumbled similar sob stories. "You must be doing pretty well to have time for something like that."

Sarah nodded, but did not say anything. Technically she was supposed to be getting perfect grades. If she kept this up she could even double her work. Ha! "So anything? Like I said we're not busting anyone, just keeping an eye on things."

A guy with spiky white tipped hair said, "Well we do sometimes go down into the furnace room and play with my Ouija board."

"It's kind of fun, even if Stacy does move it."

"I do not!"

"What about when you asked if Trudy had a crush on you?"

"She did. We've been dating for six weeks!"

"You still pushed it to yes."

"Okay yeah, but I think maybe she moved it too." Giggle.

"Do you want to join us after school?" A boy asked.

She almost said yes, but hesitated. "Actually after school I have to get home. My dog needs food and a walk and dad doesn't get home until later in the afternoon." She could see them thinking she was just making excuses. Sarah had always been good at reading people. She caught Keiko's eye. "How about fourth period instead. Lunch is almost over. We can go right now."

"I can't I'm busy…" "I've got class." Almost all of them said in unison.

"Oh I can get you out of class." She really hoped Keiko had not been teasing about that. She remembered something in the contract she signed about that too and checked her copy. It confirmed the whole thing but she was still nervous about exercising the option. Suddenly the group was looking at her in a mix of surprise, disbelief, and like she was their new best friend.

It was true. They got up as a group and with Keiko trailing behind each and went to their classrooms. She spoke to several teachers ready to explain herself, but all she had to do was name the student and say she needed them for something. A couple asked if they needed to get their homework and were told to consider it done and passed. Otherwise they were ignored.

"Wow, this is cool. Maybe I should join your group. What's it called, the PDC?"

"Sorry," she said. "This is a one time thing for research purposes only."

A lot of shoulders slumped and one said, "Figures."

They stopped by Todd's locker for a cheap board, in a cardboard box plastic pointer, and a half used black candle that smelled like vanilla. "I know how to do this with a piece of paper and a penny too. It might be less creepy."

Sarah said, "If we're going to do this we might as well do it. Like I said, you won't get into trouble for this." She hoped. Though herding half a dozen kids in black clothes and makeup into a furnace room to hold a séance probably violated some school rules. Hanging back she asked Keiko, "What do you know about that guy's sister? I'm not sure I want to egg him on if his family had some sort of mental disorder."

"Not at all. She was doing a lot of weird things. Eating sand. Declaring she was a fox. Pissing against a teacher's desk. It would seem to go away for a while and she would come back to school. The shrinks weren't sure if she was really sick because they couldn't find anything physically wrong with her. So the SHC had a ceremony to drive out any evil spirits. I'm not sure if it was the Shinto chant, the Bible verse, or when Kane hade her look into a mirror and broke it, but she's been fine since. Like I said people in this country are kind of amateurs at this so they'll try anything.

"Whatever it was she was fine when they finished. That was two years ago and there hasn't been an incident since. Not the best exorcism they've done here, but as long as it works."

Sarah was more incline to believe that either the girl had been joking around, probably learning about Japanese fox possession from some TV show. Even she had seen a few of those. That or she had something wrong with her. Like the kid said, maybe she ate some mushrooms or got poisoned with something or just had a nervous breakdown. If she believed she was a fox then believing she was exorcized was a short step. Either way a shrink had probably looked at the boy to see if there was a mental problem and it was none of her business. It was not like she had suggested this in the first place and really she just wanted to get at least one of those forms filled out.

Sure she could have just written about the group and basically phone it in, but she had no classes and was a little worried if she did not do her best it would violate the "spirit" of the agreement she had made. Sarah was getting a lot out of this bizarre little deal. The least she could do was put in some effort.

It was not as if they were going into some underground labyrinth. The furnace room, when they went, was just that. Down a short flight of concrete stairs was a twenty-foot square room with a furnace and a few janitorial supplies. Sarah watched as they unboxed the board and put it on the floor.

"I'll wait up here," Keiko said before they went down.

Looking at the sort of dark stairway and the creepy Goth kids leading the way Sarah nodded. "Thanks a lot. If I don't come back out, call the cops."

They all sat around the board cross legged. Even Sarah who felt she should participate. It was hard though. The floor was uncomfortable. She also kept glancing at the furnace as they lit the candle, hoping like hell there was not a gas leak or something. "Maybe we should do this in the library."

"No," one of them said. "We need more silence than that so we can focus. The right atmosphere."

"Plus teenagers sometimes cause poltergeist activity or have psychic abilities that interfere," another said. "The school's new enough I don't think there are that many vibes sinking into the foundation."

Giving in to the crazy logic because she really did not see a point in arguing Sarah nodded, "Okay, how do we do this?"

"It's simple. Everyone puts their fingertips on the pointer and we move it in a circle and focus on the questions asked to see if any spirits answer. There are enough of us we'll each just use one hand. And no cheating!" The last was directed at the others some of whom looked serious while others tittered. "It doesn't always work though."

Of course not. If it did it wouldn't be hokum, she thought but did not say. The last thing she wanted was a lecture on negative vibrations and how disbelief interfered with the psychic vibrations. Despite the brief levity they seemed awfully serious as they put their fingers on the heart shaped piece of plastic.

"Do we read the letters it points to or if they appear in the little round hole?"

"Point," several said.

It felt like a game at a sleepover. They asked questions like "Will I get a girlfriend by the end of the year?" "Am I going to pass my Science test?" "Is that movie I want to see worth it?" Getting yes or no answers as the pointer was edged one way or another. Sarah was not doing it but someone definitely was.

"You should ask something."

Sighing she could not keep the skepticism off her face. "Um… what's my dog's name?"

J-E-F-F

Sarah felt a brief cold feeling in her stomach. The others saw her face. "Is that right?"

"Who knew my dog's name?" Nobody answered but the pointer moved to NO. "Okay smart guy, what's my mother's name?"

A-B-I-G-A-L

Sarah let go before it got to the E. This was impossible. She had not mentioned her mother to anyone. Not by name. It had been ten years since she died. Her friends in middle school when the subject had come up only heard Sarah call her "mom". She sure hadn't told these guys. The only one who might know was the principal or someone with access to her records. Could they have hacked her files?

The whole lot of them were staring at her now. They had moved their hands off the board and sat back. Nobody asked if it was right this time. They could tell by her face that it was. Eyes shifted to each other, searching for some sign that one of them had pulled the prank.

"Do you think the school is really haunted?"

They all heard the scrape and like magnets their eyes went down. Nobody had touched the board. They were all sitting back. But the plastic piece that had been pointing at the E was now firmly on the YES. The Goths all stood up and took several steps back.

Swallowing Sarah reached out gingerly with two fingers. She picked up the pointer. Turning it over she saw three legs ending in badly placed felt tips. It was hollow. She weighed it. Too light to have magnets. No strings. She flipped it around a few times looking for the trick.

She was about to inspect the board when it suddenly jerked out of her hands and slammed into the wall, shattering. People screamed. Sarah was one of them as shards of cheap plastic hit the ground. Then there was a cracking sound. They all looked wide eyed at the board. It was bent in half, like a tent. Then suddenly the cover, basically a large sticker affixed to the board began to blacken and bubble and the whole thing burst into flames.

The only one still sitting Sarah was the last one to the stairs. She was still right on the heels of the others as they ran for it. The others split up at the top of the stairs. Some headed for class. Others the bathroom. One guy said, "Screw this." He headed for the door and presumably left campus.

Sarah might have followed them but was interrupted by a sudden alarm and sprinklers going on. Keiko, still waiting in the hall, squealed a little and stepped into the doorway of a nearby bathroom, staying pretty dry. Sarah, already damp, quickly joined her.

"What did you do?"

Sarah looked at her feeling her face pale. She told her what had happened down in the furnace room. "The school is haunted."

Keiko gave her a slow knowing smile. The kind a grown up gave a small child doing a difficult trick they are very proud of even if they are not very good at it. "I know. And that isn't the half of what goes down here."

Sarah stared at her. Then she backed up into the hall and walked towards the door. Ignoring the water. By the time she walked out into the sun along with hundreds of other students she was drenched. While everyone else lined up though, she headed for the bus stop. She sat down, waited patiently, and then got on the one that would take her home.

The next morning as she sat at the school bus stop in her white sweater Keiko was enjoying the moments before school started. Few if anyone wanted to hang out at the bus stop. Most of them just wanted to get inside and check their lockers or chat before the bell rang. Like everyone in the SHC Keiko did not need to worry about that. She laid back against the glass walls of the shelter. Not even feeling the cold as she had tightened the chords on her hood so that her eyes and nose peeked out of a little ring like a ninja.

A bus pulled up and Keiko barely noticed the students getting off. She might as well have been invisible. Until one stopped in front of her. She looked up, startled to see a familiar face. "You came back."

Sarah nodded. "Yesterday I saw something mind blowing and scary. It made me feel like a complete idiot and to tell the truth I think I may have wet myself a little. I've come up with something like twelve rational explanations for what I saw and I don't believe any of them for a second."

"And?"

Sarah's eyes sparkled and a smile spread across her lips. Keiko smiled back recognizing the look in her eyes. Sarah had seen something unexplainable and terrifying. Something magical. And she wanted more. "What else have you got?"

2

The Fourth Floor

On Keiko's advice Sarah decided to wait and turn all of her reports in at once. Kane was not the type who would care, though he might suspect she was dead so they did swing by the class just to wave hello. "Shut the damn door!"

Slamming it noisily Sarah said, "What a grump."

"Let's see how chipper you are after we get a little deeper into the weird stuff."

"Great, what's next?"

"Aren't you scared?"

"Yes."

"Ha. Well okay. Again I can't hold your hand, but now that you aren't wandering around in denial I can give you some tips. There are two ways for you to find something supernatural. Though they're both dangerous and there's a good chance that around here they might find you first."

"Only two ways?"

Keiko asked, "Are you a sorceress, priestess, or shaman who can summon up ghosts and monsters?"

"No."

"An experienced cryptozoologist?"

"Uh-uh."

"Familiar with quantum physics?"

"That wasn't an option in my middle school."

"A latent psychic or gifted with other mystical abilities?"

"I seriously doubt it."

"You may be selling yourself short there, but the point is that, for you right now, there are two options. Both of them are dangerous."

"I gave this a lot of thought last night and… you do realize that I just saw literal proof of an afterlife right? So one day I'll be dead. I'd really like to know how it all works before that happens. If not I think I'd like it if when I'm in line to be judged or whatever and people ask how I died the guy in front of me says 'I choked on a chicken sandwich' and I get to say 'I was torn apart by demons.'"

"You're crazy," Keiko said grinning hugely.

"Again I just learned for certain that life is temporarily but I'll go on. I also got dragooned into the spook squad. I thought it was a joke before and kept expecting it to blow up in my face. It was a trick or I was going to end up not getting my diploma because I wasn't doing the work. Given a choice between upper level math and becoming an actuary or middle management at a cubical farm or being the lady people call when monsters and ghosts are attacking, I pick option B. This is awesome!" She laughed. "I never knew this stuff was real before so I didn't pay much attention to it, but I remember seeing one of those ghost chaser shows and all I could wonder was if they were trying to prove ghosts existed, why do they never do anything to piss them off or something on camera? If I'd had my phone out yesterday…"

"Because they can hurt you. And once you know it's true most people are a little more empathetic and just want to help them move on for everyone's sake." She paused. "That or they start with witch hunts and exorcisms. In some places they still kill people over this stuff you know."

Sarah considered. "I get it. Sorry. I'm just a little wired."

Keiko nodded trying to look serious. Then she smiled again. "Just promise if I get you killed, you'll stick around and haunt me."

Sarah reached out and shook her hand. Keiko jumped a little surprised. "Deal." She let go. "Man your hands are cold. How long were you sitting at the bus stop?"

"A while," she said absently, looking at her hand. Putting it into the pocket of her sweater she said, "Okay there are two ways to intentionally find something supernatural. One is to ask around and see if someone can point you in the right direction. Everyone has a ghost story. People mysteriously die or disappear. Heck, twenty-seven people have died since this school opened."

"I don't remember that in the brochure," Sarah said, eyes wide. "They were all killed by…"

"No! Maybe five of those died from something supernatural. And I'm pretty sure three of those were incidental. People die at schools all the time. Old teachers have heart attacks, kids have accidents goofing around, teenagers with issues or hormones kill themselves, and sometimes they're killed by other people. I remember one kid who was on the track team just keeled over while running one day. He had an undiagnosed heart problem." She added surreptitiously, "Rumor has it he still haunts the school."

"Where?"

She smirked. "You can figure that one out easily enough.

"Okay more detective work. I can handle that. What's the other way?"

"You have to get lost."

"What do you mean?"

"Exactly what I said. You have to become lost." She pursed her lips. Around them the hallways were empty. Everyone else was already in class. There was a bench on the nearby wall. She motioned for Sarah to join her and they sat. Once they were comfortable she went on. "I'm sure there are all kinds of weird metaphysical rules for this, but the way it was explained to me was that it has to do with perception. Like it says in the Bible 'Whatever you hold true on Earth, I will hold true in Heaven.' Or something. I know you haven't really been into magic, but you've seen some science fiction and fantasy right?"

"Sure, it's kind of hard not to. I'm not a Trekkie or anything, but I get the basic ideas."

"Then you know that scientists have pretty much proven that time and space are figments of the imagination and what we experience is just what we understand. I can't explain it all right now. It takes years to even begin to understand this stuff and most people do not even manage it in a lifetime. It's a great big infinite universe.

"Fortunately you do not need to know everything. It's like you can use an entertainment system without knowing how every part of it works."

"Good. I know I'm kind of jumping into the deep end here. Tell me what you can and I'll just do my best."

"Okay then, when I say you need to get lost I mean it literally. The reason a lot of people cannot interact with the supernatural is because they do not believe it or know it is there. It's like a radio station on the radio you aren't listening to. Unless you tune into it or the broadcaster puts the kind of power into it to force you to listen it might as well not exist. Someone might come up and tell you they heard about it, but…" She shrugged. "And the more certain you are that it doesn't exist, the less you go looking for it, or ask about it, then the less it can affect you. And likewise most of them are just as uninterested in this world ad individual people. A DJ doesn't care who is listening to his broadcast, except the more that do the more he gets out of it and sometimes people make calls into the station."

"Way to stretch a metaphor."

"But just because you do not know about it does not mean it doesn't exist or can't affect you. Or for that matter is not actively avoiding you or being blocked in other ways for some reason. Now a lot or even most of what's out there can't or won't interact with us. Think of every place between the sun and Pluto where you would survive for more than a second including about 90% of Earth. And out of all that how many places you would want to spend a lot of time."

Sarah considered. Going to another planet would be neat, but as far as anyone knew there was no life on them. Water. Food. Basically most of them were rocks and gas and not exactly human comfortable. Actually without forty million dollars in equipment every inch outside Earth's atmosphere was instant death. Even on Earth Sarah wanted to avoid the Sahara, the Arctic Circle, countries where women were treated like property or slaves, and anyplace that required twenty-seven inoculation shots and government permission to visit. Just for a start.

"I get the idea," she said.

"Now of those that do get here and can interact they usually do not understand right away how we work or how to contact us. Ghosts have a bit of an edge because they have been human. Though most souls are drawn off to other places. Not to mention they pass through solid matter and the Earth travels at hundreds of thousands of miles per hour so a lot just get dumped into space where they have little to hold onto. Other spirits even help them along not to mention the occasional exorcism or finishing their unfinished business. And spirits are just the tip of a big iceberg.

"Unfortunately among the supernatural a long time ago the beings that have an easy time contacting us and throwing around their supernatural weight, which we usually referred to as gods, decided not to directly intervene any more. People got creepy about the whole worship thing. Cults, human sacrifices, crusades… you get the idea. So normally they do not make as big a splash these days and when they do most people write it off as something else. This is just as well since if they are gods there's really nothing we can do about it."

Sarah nodded. "If you want to make God laugh tell him your plans."

"Right. So basically what we'll run into are things that are less powerful. Anything corporeal can usually be killed somehow. So manifesting that way is dangerous. Some have done it, but it costs them. And when they do they often manifest in a way that corresponds to what we expect. A lot cannot even exist in our reality unless they make that connection and keep people believing in them."

"So they only exist because we believe in them?"

"No, they exist regardless. Think of the power in your brain and then imagine how much energy is in a hurricane or a thunder cloud. More than enough to match whatever you think with, but not in the same way. So to interact with us they take on a shape and act the way we expect. At least at first. Over time they can learn to think themselves. Or they dissipate. Growing bored, unable to maintain their form, or they are actively destroyed. And the rules can be different for each one."

"So how does getting lost help?"

"Well one thing that holds them back is human perception. It's pretty strong. I'm not even sure science works because it works, or because people think it works. I've heard of some people with strong enough psychic powers able to kill or walk through walls. Some supernatural creatures can bend what people agree are the laws of physics. It's harder though in the mundane world and in front of larger crowds who do not believe it. That's why a lot of gods need believers to manifest. It's like time and space. The reality is there, but people can't understand it so their brains edit things out. To such a degree that they can't interact. One person might see something and the man next to them not. Which one is crazy? Or are they both right? Meanwhile spirits do not have bodies so interacting with matter and energy is hard at best. They can with practice and power, but…"

"So some people can see ghosts and even interact with them, but most don't so they're invisible."

"It's a gift or a curse. Some people just have different senses. Like some people being color blind. Some have got it and most don't. There are even glasses that can help them see color. Again, not important. What is important is how to break that perception. And that is to get lost. If you do not know where you are, you can be anywhere. If you aren't sure what will happen next then anything can happen. You know that feeling you get the first time you step into a building you have never been in before? Or when you go on a trip and see new places? You do not know what to expect, so it's easier for the supernatural to make itself known. Especially if you're focusing or thinking about it at the time. That is why a lot of people see weird things on road trips at night.

"If you lose all sense of direction, have no idea where you are, aren't sure that magic and monsters are not real, or just get disoriented you can touch other realities to varying degrees. Especially if something is trying to touch back. Some people can even do it intentionally or instinctively. Drugs can help, since they can release your hold on reality. And it can be bad for all involved, like being exposed to radiation. Or the changes in perception can become permanent."

"But not everyone who gets lost disappears or sees something weird."

"Or talks about it when they do," Keiko added. "But then not every gazelle that heads down to the river gets snatched away by a crocodile or mauled by a lion. Many probably go their whole lives without seeing a major predator for more than a minute. The ones that do don't tell anyone."

"Ah and now we get to your subtle way of reminding me that this is dangerous."

"There was a fire. A lot of these things have to feed on humans. There's a reason they have an SHC."

"So what, will I get attacked by a vampire or something?'

Keiko did not respond to Sarah's teasing tone. Instead she frowned and said, "That isn't funny Sarah."

"What's wrong?"

She shook her head. "Sorry, I get you're new and it's exciting but… okay listen up. Most of these things, they get energy from absorbing it. Just a little and sometimes very specific. Elementals feed on fire, earth quakes, wind… whatever. Fairies, yokai, and ghosts feed off humans or other life forms they have an affinity with. A few learn to just take in ambient energy like heat and light. Some psychics and magicians can do it. If it has a body they can also eat food. The energy they need isn't usually much. Some people have even had physical relationships with ghosts or kitsune and as long as they kept it to once or twice a week were fine or just got sickly. Too often and they die.

"People who become monsters are different. If they are cursed it's one thing. The curse affects and could kill them. So they have to feed and if they survive okay. Normally though a curse isn't nice and it's meant to torture and kill the person so they either die or get caught and killed. Some sorcerers can turn themselves into wolves or just about anything else and have ways, good and evil to replenish themselves. Otherwise they can get drained too. It's not easy, but it can be done.

"However with vampires or werewolves usually at least the first one in the line to become one, becomes a monster in a very specific and horrible way."

"How's that?"

"They have to act like a monster. You want to be a vampire? It's the easiest thing in the world. Go out, hunt people down and drink their blood. Kill them and guzzle their life away. If you want to be a werewolf, go out and maul people growl. Howl. Tear their flesh away and eat it. Sometimes it happens because the person is possessed or something, but every monster is different and trying to classify them is like any species. Tell me how many kinds of bats there are to have ever been in the world and everything about them."

Sarah shuddered and looked sick. "That's—!"

"Monstrous," Keiko said. "If you're willing to do something like that, it doesn't matter if you get supernatural powers and most likely you'll be killed before it becomes an issue. Bodies tend to attract attention. Sometimes it's even transferable. Like the vampire's bite. Certain supernatural energies have effects. Like bathing in nuclear waste only shaped by…"

"Perception. Okay I get that and some weirdo out there likely would do something that like. Especially if they knew it would work."

"That is why they don't sell too many books on how to summon demons and sacrifice virgins, keeping it to fiction. The actual magic books they sell are mostly about positive energy and seeking guidance. Take ghosts. Most people want the dead to just pass on to the afterlife. No muss or fuss. When they stick around it's because they want to be a ghost so they can do their unfinished business, seek revenge, or are just afraid of what's waiting and would rather not leave their familiar world. You know unless someone cursed them to wander the earth for eternity or something. Again we usually try not to get involved with gods for a reason."

"Okay so to sum up, the supernatural exists, but usually it can't interact with us because it doesn't fit into how we see the world."

"Yes. Though the more you interact with it the less immune you are to tits effects. And sometimes things are powerful enough that no amount of denial helps. That's why a lot of them let people see them and live to tell the story. They ay need to feed on humans, but the more people who know about them and share the same image the easier it is to interact. Like if I tell you to picture a cat you'll imagine a four legged furred feline. If I say the name of a cat you know then we'll both be picturing the same specific cat."

"Right. And for whatever reason the more people who believe the weaker the boundary between magic and reality gets."

"It's why gods have temples and followers and kids dress up as monsters on Halloween. Spirits appear as they imagine themselves or others imagine them and if a kid thinks he's a vampire or mummy to them he might as well be. Also real monsters can be mixed in with any group."

"So it's all about perspective. And the less certain you are of how things are, the easier it is to bend the rules. How do I just get lost?"

"That's part of why schools and offices need groups like the SHC. It's why so many ghost stories and fairy tales start with someone walking into the woods or going on quests to strange lands. In modern times the places people are most likely to get lost for even a moment or two in a city they grow up in…"

"Are schools and office buildings because they are not used to them. They're mazes of identical hallways, cubicles, and doors. And the younger and more inexperienced someone is the more likely they are to lose their way."

"Exactly. Not the really young kids because they do not go too far from the adults and are watched closer. In the old days most people barely made it to twenty and the woods were everywhere. On any given day a kid going to a school can get turned around and all it takes is that moment of uncertainty for something to happen."

"But doesn't anyone notice?"

Keiko shrugged. "Some do. Most people don't believe it and it's almost impossible to prove. If someone dies they find a reasonable explanation. They disappear and nobody knows what happened. Police reports get filed and unless a body turns up that's about it. Come back for your twentieth reunion with the thousands of kids in your graduating class and see who just does not show up."

It was scary, but Keiko had a point. Before the thing with the spirit board if she had just heard the story she would have assumed the Goth kids made it up. Possibly to get out of trouble for pulling a fire alarm or smoking on campus. Even if someone had gotten it on their smart phone she would assume it was a fake. And if she believed it… so what? It was just a weird thing that happened. She had seen plenty of missing person and pet posters hung up or announcements on the news. Had she even bothered to check the faces of people she passed on the street? If she told anyone what had happened would they believe her on the evidence of a broken piece of plastic and a burnt and broken board game? No, she would either be talked out of it convinced by a professional psychiatrist to rationalize the whole thing away or if she insisted it was real be on a lithium drip by the weekend.

If she had not already been in the SHC she might already have written it off. Actually a question came to her. "How do I know I'm not crazy?"

"Well I suppose everyone asks that," Keiko said playfully.

"Keiko I'm serious. Maybe those kids slipped me something. Or I let the atmosphere get to me. I mean the other kids in the Spiritual harmony Class… what a name… didn't exactly strike me as normal. I used to believe I could predict what side a quarter came up on. What if I'm fooling myself or just had a stroke or something?"

Keiko sighed. "Fair enough. Two points. One: if you are crazy then all you can do is go with what your senses are reporting. Like in a dream when you do not ask questions no matter how weird it gets. You just do what you need to and maybe you'll wake up.

"Two: when people hallucinate they usually either see things or hear things. Not both at the same time. The two senses are in different parts of the brain. Like how people who stutter can sometimes speak perfectly if they sing or rhyme. Not a hundred percent, but pretty definitive. Until you wake up in a rubber room wearing one of those Hannibal Lecture masks, I'd just go with it." She hesitated and then gave her a hug across the shoulders.

Sarah took a deep breath and nodded. She could go with her original plan and embrace what she was experiencing or drive herself crazy questioning everything. Standing there and letting a ghost throw knives at her because she refused to believe it existed would be the kind of stupid horror movie stuff that would get her killed. So far she had seen one inexplicable event. Deciding she was imagining the whole thing before looking for more was premature.

"Okay. For now I suppose I can keep on the path. So to speak. How do I get lost?" I know there's a small forest next to the school, but it's not that big. When I was in elementary school we had a cemetery next door and a hospital on the far side of it."

Keiko said, "It can be a little bigger than you think. This place used to be next to a forest called the Sea of Trees, a dark place in Japan where a lot of people get lost and even go to commit suicide. When they moved the school part of it came with. That's why they put up the chain link fence and all those signs saying 'private property' and 'trespassers will be fined'."

"Why not do more?"

"Teenagers. Tell them a house is haunted and that a dozen people died there and the blood won't have time to dry on the walls before they sneak in and hold a séance. Give it a week and I'll bed twice as many of those Goth kids from yesterday will be down in the furnace room again trying to summon the dead. Lock the door and they'll just go somewhere else."

To prove the point Keiko got up and led the way as they revisited the classrooms they had been to the day before. Not all of them were in the same rooms. But they found three of them. Peeking in the door Sarah caught their eye and two of them seemed really excited to see her. They even started to get up only to be waved down with a shake of her head. "Just checking that you were okay." Then ducking away before they tried to follow her. The third one seemed to be wearing more normal clothes and a lot less makeup today. She almost did not recognize him except his hair was still dyed black. When he saw her he looked like she was the ghost and firmly put his text book in front of his face and pretended she was not there.

Sarah took the hint and joined Keiko in the hallway. "Looks like not everyone is heading back into the creepy haunted basement."

"Never meet your heroes," Keiko said. "Fantasizing about the supernatural is one thing. Seeing it is another. Not everyone is happy to think it might be real."

"Well I want to see more. If I can't understand it so be it, but I need to try to accept it and one burning kid's toy isn't going to be enough."

"So should we start asking around?"

"That will take too long. I know it's a little reckless but before I can commit to all that I need to know I can find something. Like if I had a treasure map. I'd want to find a few of the landmarks before trying to follow it all the way to the X. How do I get lost? I have a pretty good sense of direction. I don't think blindfolding me and spinning me around will do it."

Her friend raised a thin black eyebrow and said, "Are you telling me you've been to every building on campus?"

Sarah would have felt better with a campus map. Keiko meanwhile told her to just pick a random building and try her best to ignore any signs. There was a large brick building where a lot of the arts and crafts classes were held. Metal shop, wood shop, ceramics, art, music, and mechanics… the kind of stuff they needed to be away from the main buildings for. It was pretty big and Sarah had never been to it. She had been working herself to the bone on the school's requirements. Electives, she had thought, could wait until she got her feet under her.

The familiar feeling of being revealed as a dope hit her again. This was all new and amazing. It did not mitigate the fact she was doing to because she could not cut it in regular classes. "I don't know how everyone else manages to keep up at this school. I did my best, but…"

"Well you're used to American schools. I hate to say it but they screw up a lot. The teachers don't want to look bad so rather than fail kids they help them pass and point out mistakes to change the answers. Sex Ed classes require wavers from parents and then barely cover what you learn in health class. You seem smart enough to me, and you got into the school, but you were set up to fail. Too good for the old school but so used to it you were having trouble assimilating in the new one.

"That or the principal set you up to fail. He hates white people, especially blonds and I wouldn't put it past him to overload you before making you the offer to stay."

"You think?"

"Maybe. You might feel better thinking of it that way."

"But is that the truth or am I just dumb enough to believe it?"

Keiko laughed. "You're impossible, you know that? You know I am right here with you. How do you think you implying everyone in the SHC is stupid makes me feel?"

Sarah could not help giggling with her and opened the glass double doors to the building, stepping inside before she really thought about it. She held it open for Keiko who smiled at the gallant move. Then Sarah froze as she turned and looked down the hallway. It was pretty long. There were a couple other openings to other halls, a lot of doors, each with a number. She could hear the sounds of machinery echoing off the building. At the far end was another pair of glass doors shining with bright sunlight. Up above the florescent lights buzzed annoyingly. No people though, they were all in class.

Keiko was right now that she was thinking about it. There was a certain uncertainty. The unfamiliar background was not overloading her, but she seemed hyper aware as they took in all the new information. Maybe she was just over thinking it because she was expecting something to happen. The hallway could have been part of any school. Or horror movie.

"I can't guarantee you'll see anything weird, but something tells me you have a knack for this," Keiko said encouragingly.

Suddenly they heard a squeak and both turned to see a janitor. Denim overalls and a mop bucket. Sarah glanced at Keiko who nodded encouragingly. Remembering that this was all a test Sarah gathered herself and stepped forward. "Excuse me sir."

The middle aged man with thick stubble turned and said, "Yes?"

"I was wondering if you've seen anything strange around here."

He frowned. "Strange like how?"

"Anything unusual."

"Like an overly curious girl standing in the hallway asking questions?" He didn't say it like he was joking. More like she was annoying him and in the way. "Shouldn't you be in class?"

She tapped her badge, wondering if he would recognize it. She was mildly surprised when his eyes widened in recognition. "I need to know."

Reluctantly he said, "No you don't. Yeah some things happen around here, but they've been happening for a while. Nobody would believe you if you tried to prove it, so what's the point? You go poking at things and you could get someone hurt. Some things do not like being messed with."

Sarah glanced at Keiko who was leaning against the wall and pretending nothing was happening. She got the message. Turning back she said, "There has to be something you can point me towards. Maybe someplace nobody else goes?" He chewed on his lip. "I'd hate for the higher ups to think you weren't cooperating." She hated threatening him, especially when she was not sure she was a threat, but he obviously knew something. Confirmation had her whole body tingling.

Almost snarling he said, "Fine. You think you're so smart little girl? Try the fourth floor. We only use it for storage. When I started there was a little bathroom. Little more than a closet, but I live across town and I used it when I got to work to shave and clean up a bit to save time at home. I needed a shaving mirror so I went to a second hand store. I got one they picked up from an estate. Picked it up for two bucks. Just a little pink plastic frame with a chipped blue butterfly in the corner."

"What happened?"

He hesitated. Maybe if she had been nicer he would be more open. Finally though he said, "Find out for yourself. I haven't been in there since… I saw something. And got sick. If you're dumb enough to go don't get close to the mirror." She nodded politely and turned to go. There was a jingle behind her. "Wait, take this if you must." She turned and saw him fiddling with a large key ring. He took off one old brass key, not so different from any other, and tossed it to her. "After what happened to me I locked it and hung an out of order sign. That is the only key."

Looking at it she smiled and said, "Thank you. I'll bring it back."

Glaring he said, "Don't. Keep it. Toss it in the trash. I don't want it back. Now get out of here so I can mop the floor. Stairs are that way. The elevator is in the next hall over."

He ignored them from that moment and Sarah did not know what else to say. So she headed for the elevator. Keiko fell in step behind her and neither spoke until they got in the elevator. It was a simple little one, a little wider than normal with a message not to load it past 2000 pounds. There was short rough carpet inside torn and marked with cart tracks.

When the doors closed Sarah said, "God, for a second there I thought he was going to try and kill me."

"You were pretty straight forward," Keiko said. "I'm impressed. With the way you have been putting yourself down I wasn't sure you were assertive at all."

"I'm not a wimp," she said haughtily. She scanned the buttons. There were five. The one was the second from the bottom, right above one that said B, presumably for basement. There were three above them. The one that should have been for four had only a few scrapes of black left on the button. Not even the shape of a number. Otherwise it looked almost new. Not a surprise in a school less than five years old. Possibly the janitor guy had scraped it off. "I do feel bad about threatening to get him fired."

"Hey he obviously knew the rules. Besides you didn't get him fired. Would you have even gone to the principal if he said no?"

"Maybe," she hedged as the elevator rose, dinging as they went. No sound came when it stopped on four and opened.

They stepped out and looked around. It was pretty clean all things considered. Boxes and mats and tarps were piled around the place. A few things that could have been heavy machinery, broken or spares, hidden under more tarps. Empty carts and a couple with rusty or broken tools. Some of them with dust. Overall though it looked like someone came in regularly to clean the floor and windows though. Sunlight streamed in from one wall. The whole place was open, like a warehouse. Only a few pillars as it spread out almost like a football field. In the middle was a box-like structure like a smaller shed inside the big room. There were two doors.

Walking over she found one of them open. It revealed a staircase. Right next to it was a light switch. She turned it on and the lights buzzed to life. Well most of them. About half the fluorescent bulbs were burnt out. The lights that did work were barely visible with the sunlight so she flipped it back off.

The other door was on the other side. It was locked and had an "Out of Order" sign held on with duct tape. The tape had been there long enough that the edges had pulled back leaving dirty glue behind like someone had roughly traced it with a marker. Keiko said, "I think this is it."

"Have you been in here before?"

She shook her head. "Not really. I took sports. Ribbon dancing. I have never gotten around to this building."

"Were you any good?"

"I'll show you some time." They paused. "Well? You've got the key."

Rubbing it with her thumb so hard it was almost breaking the skin of her palm Sarah stared at the door. Her ears felt like they were on fire, listening for anything. Would she have felt better about this if she heard something like a rat scuttling around in there? Scratching at the door? A voice begging to be let out?

There was no space between the bottom of the door and the floor. An ant might have gotten in but shy of a rodent eating through the wall anything that had been in there when the door was locked had probably starved years before. It was unlikely there was anything alive in there.

This was not as comforting a thought as it would have been just a day before.

Swallowing in her suddenly dry mouth she brought the key to the lock and slid it in. Perfect fit. A quick twist and the door opened. It did not even creak, but it did thump against the wall where there was a hole in the plaster already.

The janitor had not been exaggerating when he said the tiny bathroom was like a closet. It was more like a stall, except there was a small sink. A metal faucet, the sink itself was more like a plastic tub. It was stained and splattered with paint and chemicals. It might have been installed used.

The mirror above it was hanging off a push pin and looked like it belonged to a little girl. Cheap and the little blue butterfly in the corner was barely still blue. Maybe four inches wide. Something that Sarah would have expected to come with a doll as part of the set so you could brush her hair and pretend to do her makeup.

There was dust on the top edge, but something was odd. Sarah leaned forward, trying to figure it out. Then it dawned on her. The mirror itself was spotless. Not even a water drop. No dusk on the edge near the glass. Everything else in there was at least mildly dusty and she did not even want to lift the lid on the toilet and see what that looked like. She was picturing her old fish bowl, a little plastic thing she had gotten at a carnival when she won the goldfish scoop. She had forgotten it a week after she got it until it really started to smell and found Toby the fish floating upside down in green sludge. The room did not smell that bad but she hardly wanted to check.

Suddenly she looked beyond the glass and gasped. "Holy…! Are you seeing this?"

Keiko squeezed in next to her. "Whoa."

There was another face in the mirror. One other face. It was not a scary face. Instead it was a little girl. She had brown hair and full cheeks. Her skin was pasty, sickly rather than just pale. Her eyes sunk in a little. She looked like she wanted to cry. The white of her skin made it easy to see the red spots.

"Is that a real ghost?"

"Seems like it." Keiko waved a hand. The girl mimicked her. "It looks like she has measles. Is that even a thing?"

"Yeah. A couple years ago there was a huge outbreak. People stopped vaccinating for it and then when it came back nobody was immune. A bunch of kids got sick in like three states. Didn't the janitor say the mirror came from an estate sale?"

"That poor kid."

Sarah would have agreed, but suddenly a tiny hand jutted out of the glass like it was not even there. She screamed as it came to a stop an inch from her face. Keiko grabbing the wrist. Sarah backed up and hit the door so hard it stuck the knob all the way into the plaster. "What the heck!?"

Keiko let it go and the hand retreated. Staring in horror Sarah remembered what the janitor had said about staying away from the mirror and about getting sick. Could ghosts transfer diseases? Would a vaccine even work?

There was a quiet sob. In the mirror she kind of expected to see the little girl had transformed into some hideous monster, gnashing fangs and howling for blood. Instead she saw the same sick little girl, tears falling down her eyes. She spoke and the voice sounded muffled, like when someone tries to talk through a car door with the window up. "I didn't want to hurt you."

"What do you want?" Keiko asked, amazingly calm. Then again she was used to this sort of thing.

"I want a hug. I want to play. I've been alone in here so long. Ever since I got sick. My mom and dad wouldn't even come in and talk to me. They just peeked in and brought me food and talked through the door. The spots made me ugly so they didn't like me any more." Tears fell from her eyes and somehow fell into the sink.

Sarah, over the shock, took a step forward. Keiko held her back by putting an arm out in front of her. Looking in Sarah said, "Oh honey, I'm sure your parents still love you."

"Then why don't they see me any more?"

"Well sweetie if you had spots then you got very sick. When that happens, doctors do something called quarantine. You have to stay alone so that nobody else gets sick."

"Really?"

"Yeah," Keiko said. "You wouldn't want your mother and father to get sick too would you?"

"No. But when do I get better?"

"Um…" The two older girls shared a look. Sarah asked, "What's your name?"

"Annie."

"Well Annie, do you know what 'death' is?" Unfortunately the girl shook her head. What was she, four or five? Sarah thought hard. "Well you're dead."

"What's dead?"

Keiko said, "It means you aren't sick any more."

The girl brightened up. "Really?" Sarah was surprised to see the spots suddenly clearing up. Like they were being erased. Annie's face even took on a healthier color.

She picked up, "That's true. Actually you're never going to get sick again."

"Does that mean I can see my mom and dad again?"

Keiko hesitated and Sarah said the only thing she could think of. "That's right. But um, first you have to go someplace. So they can come see you."

Annie frowned. "Shouldn't I wait here? They gave away all my stuff. How will they find me if I'm not here?"

"Um, is there a really bright light? Do you see someplace you can go?"

"Uh huh."

"Well I'm pretty sure if you go there your parents will be able to find you. You'll just have to wait a bit." She added, "it's got to be better than hanging out in a smelly old bathroom."

Annie hesitated and then said, "I guess. Um… thanks. The last guy I talked to just yelled and said bad words. I think I got him sick too."

"He's all better now," Keiko said.

"Oh. Good. I suppose. Um, so I just go towards that light?"

"I think so," Sarah said. "If not I suppose you can just come back."

"Okay. Um, thank you."

Suddenly she was gone. Not only that, but the mirror was changed too. The previously pristine glass had a patch of green mold behind it and a crack in one corner. Sarah reached out to poke it, but then held back. Looking at Keiko she moved towards the doorway, practically forcing the other girl out ahead of her. She then went around to the outside of the wall where the mirror was just to make sure there was no room to hide and maybe reach through a convenient hold. Nothing but a solid wall.

"Do you think you'll get sick from touching her hand like that?"

Keiko said, "I doubt it. She looked healthy enough when she left. Good work by the way." She did not sound certain.

"The rules in the contract said I should try talking first. Besides she was just a little girl. I think." She said, "How about we find another bathroom and you wash your hands just incase?"

"Sounds like a plan." They made their way back to the elevator. Rather than push one Sarah pushed three. It was closer. They rode down to the next floor and then out into the normal looking hallways. Sarah had grabbed the key on the way out and was holding it tight again. It took them only a few minutes to find a restroom. "Stay out here and make sure nobody comes in until I'm done."

"Wash thoroughly but don't take too long. I think I almost wet myself up there and I really need to pee." She pushed the door open and let Keiko in so she would not have to touch the handle. After a minute listening to the water as Keiko scrubbed. "Do you think we should check on the mirror again? In like a week or two and see if she's back?"

Keiko came out wiping her hands with paper towels. "It couldn't hurt. I hope she's safe wherever she is. I kind of wish we could know for sure, but really I'm in no hurry."

Sarah agreed and slipped into the bathroom. Without thinking about it she gave wide berth between herself and the sink and the large bathroom mirror. When she finished in the stall she hesitated, but went forward and washed her hands. Her reflection remained the same. Not so much as a twitch out of place.

Walking back to the elevator Sarah said, "That was intense. I hope we helped her."

"She's still dead," Keiko said. "I seriously doubt she's going to hell. Either way it's best she's not trapped in a bathroom for all eternity."

It was hard to disagree with that. She supposed that eventually she would find out, one way or another, what had become of Annie. Also now she had a second experience. On that was a little harder to write off. Possible mental instability was still on the table, but at least she was not the dupe of a bunch of occult obsessed teenagers.

"Did we take a wrong turn?" Sarah asked, noticing something.

"Why?"

The elevator dinged for the second floor. "There are only four buttons in here. It only goes up to three. I accidentally hit the basement button."

'I guess we could have gone down the wrong hall," Keiko said. Sarah hit the one before they passed it and had to go back up. The door opened almost immediately and they got off, the elevator doors closing behind them and the car heading down to the bottom level.

The classes had let out while they were upstairs. The fourth floor must have had great sound proofing. They had not even heard the bell. They looked around slightly disoriented peering between the milieu of students and headed for the first doors they saw. Sarah's stomach rumbled a bit and she pulled out her cell phone, wondering how long it was until lunch. "Huh?"

"What?"

"It says it's three o'clock," Sarah said.

"How? My sense of timing isn't great, but it can't be that late. It was only about second period."

They looked around. Kids were leaving class and a lot of them, off in the distance, were headed for the parking lot. The sun was a lot further in the sky too. Sarah checked the phone again, "It says it's still Thursday."

"That's good. Wow, that's creepy." Keiko turned to look up at the building. "I guess if we do go back we should start early…" She trailed off.

Sensing something odd Sarah said, "Something wrong?"

"Um, I guess not. You aren't overwhelmed by what happened or anything, are you?" She was still looking up.

"Nah, I'm fine now that my heart isn't jumping out of my chest. As long as I don't wake up with measles tomorrow I'll be fine. You okay?"

"Yeah…. Um, I feel fine. Except…"

Worried Sarah turned and looked up. "What?"

"Do you see what's happening in the fourth floor window?"

Sarah frowned and looked. Like when she saw the mirror something was off. It took a second to realize what. "Wait a minute. One… two… three…"

"Yeah," Keiko said again. "I don't want to be the one to say it."

"There is no fourth floor." She looked up and down, counting and recounting the windows. Never getting past three. As one the two of them stepped back, walking backwards. Not really caring is they hit anybody. They did not take their eyes off the brick wall. When they got further back they could see into the third floor windows. There were people still inside straightening up.

The roof was flat, but they could see vents and air conditioners. Still moving back no matter how far they went they could not see any sign of a space big enough to hold the large warehouse-like space or the little inside room where the bathroom and stairs had been.

"Should we go back in?" Keiko asked.

"With our luck we would go back for five minutes and wouldn't get out until the weekend," Sarah said. "Should we see if we can ask the janitor?"

"Assuming we could even find him and I'm a little scared to try." Sarah understood. There had been a lot of stuff on the fourth floor. Had the janitor been a ghost? If so, that was creepy. Should they try helping him pass on too? If not, did he know you couldn't see the fourth floor from outside? The guy had seemed pretty freaked out by the girl in the mirror. Would he keep going to a nonexistent floor? She reached into her pocket and found the key to the bathroom again. Solid and warm against her fingers. It did not help the shiver that went down hr spine when Keiko said, "you know in Japan the number four is considered unlucky. A bad omen."

"Why?"

"Because the Japanese word for four sounds almost exactly like the word for death."

Sarah kept staring up at the roof, wondering if the missing floor would appear. Like a heat mirage or something. She probably would have stayed there until it got dark. And part of her wondered if the missing part of the building might appear when the sun went down. But her stomach growled again. "Well I think that's it for today. I should head for home. Jeff is waiting and I have got to get something to eat. Apparently stepping outside of time doesn't mean I don't get hungry. It would make a great diet plan."

"Yeah, just as Rip Van Winkle." Keiko smiled and turned away from the mysterious building. "I told you that I thought you had a knack for this. I can't wait to see what we find tomorrow."

Sarah was tired and still a little shaken. Undead children and ghostly diseases would do that. As she thought that last sentence she found herself smiling and could not help agreeing. She could use a good night's sleep and would probably enjoy the rest of filling out her second report form, but she wondered what, if anything, the two of them could dig up on Friday.

3

Less Than Charming

Not ready to go back to the elective building and a little wary of trying to get lost again Sarah met Keiko at the bus stop Friday morning and told her, "I think I'm willing to put in the work to do some investigating this time."

"I can't guarantee we'll actually find anything. Even when they do see something a lot of people do not like to admit it, incase people think they're crazy."

Sarah thought of the key she had added next to her house, bike, and mailbox keys on her teddy bear key ring. So ordinary looking. Yet she knew she had used it to open the locked door of a haunted bathroom on a floor that did not exist. She imagined trying to explain that to her father or anyone else. "I hear antipsychotic medications come in cotton candy flavor now."

"Good to know."

"Do most of the SHC members run into this many weird things?"

"Not usually, but sometimes it picks up. Also keep in mind you're actively looking for this stuff and you know it's real. Ninety percent of the time people do not notice when something like this happens. They miss it or see it from a distance, the corner of their eye, or whatever. When they do notice it people rationalize it… or sometimes disappear. Most of them are harmless but…"

"Yeah, I get it. They don't organize a group to deal with something that can't actually hurt people." She paused. "Do you know if anybody has been hurt recently? Like in a weird way?"

"No, but we can ask around. It's not like we have classes."

And that is just what they did. Their first stop was the nurse's office. Jane Winters was actually one of the younger people on the staff. A brown haired thin beauty she usually took care of most of the student's ailments with a bit of bandaging and bed rest and the occasional call for a parent to come pick up their kid. There were some regulars. Kids who got into… if not fights exactly, but got beat on just because they tended to annoy people. A few other kids who had crushes on her. She treated them as best she could and tried not to make a big deal out of it. If they began coming around too much she would start treating their wounds with iodine instead of less painful ways of cleaning scrapes.

Again Keiko let Sarah take the lead while she waited in the hallway. The nurse's office was small and there were three kids there already even though first period had already started. Not hurt, but some of the students had to take medications. Parents sometimes had good reasons or just felt better if an adult was in charge of distributing them.

When the last one left Sarah knocked on the door frame and said, "Miss Winters?"

Looking up the nurse said, "Yes? Is something wrong?"

"No, I'm fine. I just needed to talk to you."

"About what?" She motioned for Sarah to come in. There were two doctor-style examination beds with a curtain between them and each had a stool. She also had a desk and a chair. That and the locked medicine cabinet and a few other shelves and drawers took up all but a few feet of tile floor. The nurse took one of the stools and pulled one over for Sarah.

Tapping her badge Sarah sat and said, "I was going to ask if anyone's been hurt or gotten sick lately in a weird way." She added the illness thing remembering how the janitor had said the little girl in the mirror had somehow gotten him sick. Keiko and she were both fine still, but you never knew.

The nurse said, "I understand that the SHC has its job to do, but you know I can't just discuss a student's illness or anything they might have said with another student. No matter how strange their story might be. You've have to get permission from a parent or a court order and I seriously doubt you have one of those."

She had a point. It was a standard story. Doctor-patient confidentiality. Plus a kid might be reluctant to tell their parent they got burned on an exploding spirit board or fell off a roof because they were exploring a floor of a building that wasn't there. Even if they did the parents probably kept it quiet. Came up with some acceptable story if they their daughter was briefly possessed. Afterwards wrote the whole thing off. Nobody wanted their kid to be known as the crazed demon girl or to be the ones who raised her. Visions of lawsuits danced in her head.

Still Sarah liked to think of herself as smart. Maybe not exactly valedictorian material, but she had gotten into the school damn it. That was at least above average. Think of it like those TV crime dramas where a priest knew someone was a murderer but could not tell anyone because they heard it in the confessional. There was always a loophole. You just had to find it.

"Give me a minute here," she said. Winters nodded and turned to the counter, filing out paperwork on the pills she had distributed. When she was done she got up and put them in a drawer full of manila folders. "Okay, then can you tell me anyplace in the school where a lot of students have had weird accidents or something happen to them? Maybe they told a strange story at first and then changed their story."

The nurse considered. "Hard to say. As you know a lot of this school's activities are a bit different thank a standard high school. A lot of the kids aren't used to say, sword fighting. And I'm not sure what the normal injury rate is in Japan or whatever. I'm a little new at all of this. But… you might try the sports fields and other physical activity areas."

That did not sound as likely for supernatural encounters. She would check it out, but Sarah wanted something a little more substantial. "Okay, if there was one place that as a health professional you think people should stay away from where would it be?"

"Well we have had some bad luck with the frog pit."

"Frog pit?"

"Our senior science teacher Jared Wallace does a lot of dissections at the beginning of the year. He orders a bunch of frogs, has the kids put them in jars with chemicals to pass out and die, and then do the standard dissection. But rather than waste them he then takes them out past the agricultural and farming classes where he has claimed a special compost heap. He puts the frogs there and sets up a camera… the kind that take a picture every hour or so."

"What for?"

"By the time they decompose he has enough for another class in a few months on the effects of decomposition. Rotting bodies, insect activity, bacteria… whether the frogs are cut up first, whole, or embalmed. All sorts of things."

Sarah shuddered. She liked frogs and thought they were cute. "I thought they did that sort of thing on a computer these days."

"It depends on the school and who makes a complaint. This place is a little more traditional and the added benefits of the pit really raise the class of the class I guess. Parents of the students here do not want their kids cutting corners and if they end up in a real lab situation, research scientists aren't allowed to balk on a dissection because the test monkey is cute." She shook her head. "I wouldn't do the pit though. It smells worse than a normal compost heap and there have been a few kids who got hurt out there and even had to be sent home. Frogs can have some pretty weird hallucinogens in their systems. Mr. Wallace had the whole area around it roped off to keep people from messing with his camera equipment."

Sarah frowned. "Wait, since when do they let kids dissect the kind of frogs that make them hallucinate? I mean we're not talking about cane toads and poison arrow frogs are we?"

The nurse fidgeted a little and looked away. "Not usually, though Wallace has used different species sometimes. It could also be caused by bacteria, methane gasses, not to mention just hormonal imbalances aggravated by various toxins in the compost heaps. They also put the feces out there from the horse riding class and the cows and sheep they raise in the agriculture classes. It usually gets recycled into fertilizer. I'm not a doctor, just a nurse."

"So did some of the students hurt see things out there that you think could only be hallucinations?" Sarah nudged.

"I can't really say."

In other words she was not going to be blamed by parents for letting something weird about their kids slip. It sounded reasonable. There were a lot of things in rotting animals, plants, and crap that could affect people. No matter how weird it would be written off once the kid was taken away from the spot. Especially if they were not supposed to be there in the first place. A quick trip to the doctor and unless they found a reason to call the CDC then the whole thing would be written off.

Sarah briefly wondered if she should ask the nurse about the girl who was possessed. Did Miss Winters believe the girl was possessed? Or did she think, like Sarah had at first, that the SHC just dealt with overactive imaginations?

Smiling she stood up. "Thank you for your help." She noticed a box on the counter. It contained the cotton masks worn by people who had trouble with allergies and polluted air. "Can I grab a couple of those?"

The nurse frowned and nodded. "I know your little group gets a lot of leeway, but again I can't recommend you going over there."

"I'm not going right away, but if I do it's better to have these and not need them than need them and not have them, right?"

She sighed. "I suppose. I would prefer you to get Mr. Wallace's permission and possibly bring an adult with you if you go. Also do not touch anything down there you do not have to or get too close. I'm serious. A cotton mask is fine for looking, but people who work around that stuff use oxygen tanks and all kinds of equipment and to keep from getting sick and often they still end up in the hospital more often than they should."

Sarah nodded, thinking of garbage men. She had been on a field trip to the dump once and seen the guys sifting through the garbage piles, vats, and tanks. She had been seven at the time and thought they looked like astronauts. Now she remembered them and thought of the scientists in plague outbreak movies. "Got it." It was not like she wanted to poke a bunch of rotting amphibians in the first place.

"So, do we just go straight to the frog pit or what?" Keiko said in the hallway.

"No, I say we do the full investigation. We'll do this by the book. First we'll arrange for Mr. Wallace to take us over there and then we'll go to the classes around it and ask questions. Maybe someone saw something. We almost got ghost measles yesterday because I didn't listen to the janitor when he said to stay back from the mirror."

Keiko nodded. "Good point."

"Besides we don't even know if anything weird is going on there."

"Then why are we going?"

"Just a hunch." She saw the grin on her friend's face. "What?"

"You are totally psychic."

Laughing Sarah shook her head. "Yeah or maybe I'm cursed or just monumentally stupid. With my luck I'll end up getting killed like the chick in the shower in a monster movie and spend the rest of eternity having to answer the summons of every kid in school with a spirit board because I pissed off the wrong ghost."

By the time they swung by the main office and got directions to Dr. Wallace's class it was almost the end of the period. They waited for the bell and his room to empty out. Keiko waited in the hallway again and Sarah ducked inside shutting the door. He was clearing up for the next period and saw her. He was a fairly good looking middle aged man with a full head of dark hair and graying temples. "You're not in my class." His eye went to the badge on her collar. "You're from that special education class right? The one where students are supposed to meditate or something?"

Okay he was a scientist. And obviously barely knew anything about the SHC. Sarah was not even going to try to explain it to him. She remembered the way the nurse had come up with a good half dozen ways that kids could be caused to hallucinate. All perfectly valid even if she clearly had not completely believed it. That meant there was no need to bother his pretty little head with the truth.

"I was asked to do a quick report on your frog pit by the principal. There have been a lot of accidents lately and they're a little worried."

He sighed. "That experiment is perfectly safe, provided the students follow the rules and the restrictions on approaching the area. Any half intelligent person knows not to go poking around decomposing remains, especially when they've been marked off for safety."

"So none of your frogs contained hallucinogenic chemicals?"

Now he openly glared. "Absolutely not. At least not in any form that would affect people. The frogs I use in my dissections are bullfrogs and tree frogs bought through legitimate vendors. I have shown the paperwork to several people as required."

"Aw, tree frogs?" Sarah couldn't help almost whining. She had an aunt who lived in California who had taken her out to catch some of the tiny little critters. Bullfrogs were kind of gross with their big eyes and warts and everything. Sarah could see how people might not feel attached. Tree frogs on the other hand were small and adorable. They could even change colors.

Now Wallace smiled at her, a bit condescendingly. She got that a lot. Partly it was a blond thing, mostly because she was an obvious bleeding heart. "Small frogs are good for careful work. If I think a student is up for it I see how they do on the tinier bodies."

"Well do you think you can show me around? I just want to take a look at the pile." She decided to get on his good side. "Truthfully I think if kids are tripping out there, it's on something they brought with them. An out of the way place where people don't usually go would be ideal for that sort of thing."

"Not really," he said. "With all the gasses released by decomposition lighting so much as a match out there could be very dangerous."

"Even more reason to take a look. I've gone to grocery stores and seen people hunkered down behind where they keep the propane tanks for their cigarette breaks. I don't think the security guards go back there often, but if I can find anything to show that kids are back there shooting up or something."

He considered and then nodded. "Very well. I was going to check on the camera tomorrow, but I have the fourth period free. Unless you have another class and wanted to wait until after school."

"I'm actually free that period," she said. She remembered a little nervously about what Keiko had said about how in Japan the number four was sometimes considered a death omen. Was it just a coincidence? Now that she thought about it fourth period was also when she and the Goth kids had used the spirit board.

"If that's all miss, I have another class."

"Right. I'll leave you to it and see you later." She hurried out and saw that there were kids waiting. She nodded to them and hurried on with Keiko falling in step next to her. "Do weird things happen more often during fourth period?"

Keiko pursed her lips. "I'm not sure. I don't think so but it depends."

"On what?"

"Well a lot of the things that happen on school grounds or some from here, they correspond with Japanese beliefs. The things on the other side connect with that. Around here a lot of the students know the myths and traditions… I think there are actually a few classes on mythology not to mention the beliefs and traditions get brought up in history class or whenever people mention anime or the occult. So it's possible the 'four' thing could have significance. Just not enough to really rely on it as a guideline or rule."

Sarah said, "Wait, you say on the school grounds. What about off them?"

Keiko shrugged and grinned. "You never know. How about after today you take a nice long weekend, wander around town, and tell me if you notice anything."

"Will do."

They were walking across the track and field towards the back of the school. Kids were running laps around it and also practicing soccer on the field in the middle. There was a small wooden building off to one side with a large open patio. Roughly a dozen or so kids were practicing with wooden swords as a stern looking Japanese teacher wearing black martial arts clothing walked among them. "I thought we were waiting for that teacher before we headed for the compost heaps."

"We are, but I also said we should talk to the agriculture class. Yeah it means we have to talk back here after lunch, but we've got two periods to kill before then and I so do not want to do that sitting in the library again." She paused. "Do you think we should ask the PE kids if they've seen anything?"

"They're all pretty busy," Keiko said. "Being timed and watched. It is not like a class where the teacher can pass out tests and just wait for them to be passed in. Interrupting them for our own curiosity is a little different than if someone reported a problem."

"I guess. It can wait until next week if nothing else. If ghosts really do feed off energy then I'd think the athletic areas would be a good area to check." She looked around. "I don't suppose you see the kid who died haunting the place, do you?"

"There are twenty kids running on the track. Unless one of them starts floating or something I have no idea how we'd tell." She paused. "You could trip them as they run past and see if anybody's foot just passes through yours."

Sarah laughed as they paused on the edge of the grass, waiting for the pack of runners to pass as if they were at a crosswalk. "Tempting, but I'll pass on that. I might break somebody's neck and end up being haunted. I get bothered by living guys enough without worrying about dead ones following me around."

Keiko giggled. "I knew you'd be a heart breaker. Happens a lot?"

"I usually shoot them down right away. Especially since I got into this school. I've been swamped with work. Besides I don't um…"

"I get it." Sarah looked up into Keiko's eyes and they two shared a blush. Neither looked away until they realized the same group of runners was passing them again. Keiko looked away first and Sarah did the same. "We should go."

"Yeah, but… maybe you and I can do something this weekend. You know, hang out or something."

Keiko said, "Maybe after you're done with your initiation test. When we know each other better and have something to talk about other than ghosts, monsters, and curses."

"Good call."

The agriculture area was on the other side of a chain link fence like the one that cut off the small woods on the other side of campus. Only where there the gate leading to the little dirt path between the trees had been locked and hung with signs to keep people out, the way in was a simple opening between two steel posts and over a cattle grate, a series of thin metal bars meant to discourage hoofed animals that might escape their enclosures.

Kids in the class shelled out hundreds of dollars as part of the class to raise pigs and cows and then sell them for food. They earned back more money than they spent and got good grades. There were also some small fields where they great vegetables. The classroom was a small out building similar to the ones they used at construction sites.

The current class was outside digging up a bunch of potatoes and feeding the animals. Pigs wallowed in mud behind fences and cows were being given bales of hay. It smelled good in the air covering up some of the more organic scents. On the far side of that small batch of trees was an open field where some were horseback riding. The teacher, a short balding black guy in overalls and a plaid shirt that would have fit in on a farm if it had not been pink and orange, walked among them peering through his glasses and making sure they were doing it right.

Keiko stopped at the gate. Sarah walked forward, careful to avoid stepping on anything important or too muddy. As she approached a kid came up with another potato. "Hey Mr. Foster, check it out, another one with a face."

Sarah and the teacher both looked. Mr. Foster nodded and said, "You're right Jimmy. This one kind of looks like Mel Gibson."

"You said that carrot last week looked like a super model," a girl said.

"Potatoes and other root vegetables often resemble faces. Even certain fruits. That's one of the reasons the little sprouts that grow on potatoes are called eyes. There do seem to be a lot of lumps on this batch that resemble faces, but that is merely an optical…" He saw Sarah. "Yes?"

Sarah smiled and said, "Hi, I was sent by the office to check in with the kids around here and make sure they're feeling well. There have been reports of some health issues caused by some of the compost heaps and the principal thought it might be a good idea for me to check." She tapped her badge.

He nodded. "Ah yes, of course." He lowered his voice and leaned in. "This isn't about that headless horse is it? Because they assured me that was over. It wasn't even a problem for the students, but at night it disturbed the animals and they stopped eating…"

Sarah would love to hear the story, but it would distract her from what she was doing. She nodded to him and began to meander around the digging students, asking if they had seen anything. "I'm not supposed to tell the principal anything. Complete confidentiality. Just see if there's an issue. Decide if they need to move the compost heaps or if anyone's been hiding out back here doing anything."

Most of the students had nothing to say and seemed fine. No evasiveness, just a lack of information. Two of them gave her badge a nervous look and swore they knew nothing. A boy who seemed to be getting pretty muscular from all the farm work smiled at her, obviously checking her out and she smiled back if only to keep from alienating him. "Actually yes, I did see something. I was out here about a month ago late. It was my job to frost-proof the beds by laying down some plastic sheeting and stuff and I left without doing it. I remembered later and came back. Some people were still in the office so they let me in and sent a security guard to watch me. The rolls of plastic and the stakes were close to the compost heaps. I thought it was a dog at first. It was about that size of a sheep and white, but we don't have sheep here and it moved wrong.

"It walked weird too. Not sure how to describe it and it was just a flash. Then it disappeared behind one of the heaps. I was going to check it out and then I swear it jumped out from behind the pile. Not like a dog or anything, but like a great big grasshopper. It was kind of shiny and hard looking too, sort of segmented. I thought it sort of looked like a big insect, but I didn't get a good look because it flew up into the air and was so fast I lost track of it. I did not see where it landed either." He shrugged. "I kind of wrote it off. You don't think maybe I inhaled something from the compost did you? Sometimes you read about schools that find out somebody buried toxic waste during construction."

She shrugged. "No! Nothing like that. They've checked. They think somebody might just be messing around with the compost heaps. Maybe inhaling the methane to try to get high or just hanging out figuring nobody would come looking for them. The office is afraid that either they might get sick."

"You can get high on methane?"

"Only from brain loss, but people who want to do that sort of thing aren't exactly the brightest group. Still if there's some sort of wild animal running around out here or rooting through the piles they should probably check into that. The weird way it looked might be because it is sick." Dead was sick, right? Or was it the opposite? "I've got a teacher coming to help me look around later. Don't worry, it'll be handled and whatever you saw is probably long gone by now."

He let it drop and looked like he was about to ask her out when she turned away and walked off to talk to other students. She noticed that one girl who had been feeding a cow was now slopping a pig. "Did you buy two animals?"

"No, a friend of mine named Lisa got hurt out here a few months back. They think her pig or one of the other animals got a hold of her leg and threw her around. She was unconscious and couldn't remember anything. Her parents pulled her out of school. She mailed me the ownership papers on her pig."

Unfortunately those little scraps of information were all she got and the period ended. She went up to Keiko and asked, "Should we hang around and ask the next period class?"

"Only two out of thirty? Seems unlikely you'll do much better. If we knew who was involved or what happened it might be different. From the sound of things though, it seems whatever it is usually comes out at night when nobody is here."

"Usually?"

"Well if more than two or three people are involved in this, maybe it can come out during the day. Some supernatural creatures are nocturnal. Others are harmed by sunlight. Some feed off of it. Just like animals. I think it has to do with solar radiation or something for a lot of them, but also it's easier to believe in monsters and get lost in the dark. Most people lost all sense of direction as soon as the lights go out. Back when people accepted magic as a fact instead of fable, forests where light never showed through the leaves stretched across continents. Today a lot of the remaining forests also have the most people who still believe." She paused and tapped her foot on the ground. Sarah looked down and saw a dried up worm.

"I'd say it's likely the first one. Whatever the kids were doing maybe they disturbed the thing."

"Or the stories are exactly what they seem. A guy saw a weird dog and the girl's friend got bit by a pig. Don't get too excited just yet. Harry Houdini and Arthur Conan Doyle both believed in magic and Houdini spent his whole life when not on stage disproving a boat load of hoaxes while Doyle supposedly went looking for fairies and found little girls with cut out pictures and a little skill with a camera."

"Really?"

She nodded. "People who have run into real magic tend to become bigger skeptics about the paranormal than those desperately looking for it."

"The guy who actually gets sucked up into the alien space ship and probed probably isn't going to fall for pictures of garbage can lids being flung like Frisbees or cheap rubber suits," Sarah said, understanding. "I guess we don't even know for sure something is out here."

"Exactly. Come on, we have one period then lunch. Let's just relax and then meet up with Wallace and see what you can fine out."

They retraced their steps two hours later with Wallace in the lead. He had barely glanced at them as he led them around the agriculture class and about twenty yards away where there were four pits duck. One full of crap, one full of rotten vegetables, and a third full of random stuff that looked like the school's gardeners leftovers. Tree limbs, cut grass, and some fruit rinds probably left around by students under the impression that organic waste did not count as littering.

"I'll stay back here," Keiko said. "Frogs creep me out when they're alive, let alone rotting bodies." That left Sarah with both cotton masks which she decided to over lap. Wallace had one of his own.

The frog pit was just what it said and by far the worst smelling of the four. (Sarah tried not to focus on the number, afraid she might get paranoid about it.) It was surrounded by a yellow rope tied to four metal stakes and was not as full as the others. About ten feet deep with maybe a three-foot pile of half rotted frog carcasses at the bottom. On the lip of the hole was a camera. As if reading her mind Wallace said, "The frogs would decompose faster in summer, but it's almost but not quite spring yet. So this time of year it takes longer. Of course some of this is from previous years."

Sarah tried not to look at the sludge in the bottom of the pit that, in all likelihood, might be tar a million years down the road but at the moment was just much with little things swimming in it. "I'm surprised they stay around long enough to rot."

"The formaldehyde we use to suffocate them in their jars tends to keep away most predators. Add in the other heaps and the fertilizer used around here and even scavengers like vultures and insects. It also slows decomposition a little. Those that do usually bother the animals and gardens. I'm actually surprised how many of them get taken every year. Between that and the human presence along with the large dangerous creatures like cows and pigs we do not get many wild animals around here."

"So dead frogs disappear?"

"Sometimes."

"Ever catch the culprit on camera?"

He smirked. "Nope. The camera takes about one picture every ninety minutes over the course of months. At the angle it is at it keeps most things from getting in the way."

"Why do it every year?"

He shrugged. "The students get more interested seeing 'their' frogs. It's silly but effective. A lot of them swear they can recognize the ones they dissected, no matter how identical. They even argue over it a\or ask me to put theirs on top of the pile."

"So they can watch them putrefy?"

"In Japan people sometimes drew scrolls of human bodies going through the rotting process," he said. "People are always focused on the process of death. Look at modern zombie culture." Sarah had seen the occasional Zombie Walk and more than a few movies and could not dispute it. She was developing a keen interest in the dead herself, albeit not the meaty bits. "Well?"

"Well what?"

"I thought you were going to look around."

"Oh right, sorry." He shrugged and walked away. "What are you doing?"

"As long as I am here I'm going to get a rake or something and shift the pile. Expose the lower levels so people can see how the exposed bodies, which are almost mummified in the sun and the wind, compared to the ones protected by their bodies. The chemicals get washed away and the insects move in and all sots of things happen."

"You enjoy playing with dead things?" Sarah asked.

"If I did I'd be a richer man," he called back. Do you know how much sanitation workers make over a teacher? Not to mention all of the extras. I mean most people don't know how much of what they throw away gets recycled, even before that became a thing. Soap is made out of used grease and ashes. Shit and urine and dead animals can be boiled down to male ammonia and all kinds of other chemicals. Fertilizer. People think it all goes into a landfill and either gets buried or burnt up or dumped in the oceans, but most of it gets sifted and sorted and purified and sold back at a hut profit. After we pay them a monthly fee to haul what we've collected away. That doesn't even count the times people lost bits of gold and silver in the trash. Jewelry, computer parts… the bastards make money hand over fist. But all anyone thinks about is the smell the rot, and the occasional prick who just wants to dump it or toxic waste around the place to save money."

It sounded like a rant the teacher had given a lot of kids and Sarah began walking around the pits about half way through. There was plenty of space between them and the lips were edged with concrete. So she was not worried about them collapsing. She still wanted to keep her distance. Nurse Winters had been fairly adamant about some of the health concerns. Seeing the massive number of insects floating around the other pits it was easy to believe.

She did not see much in the way of evidence of anything really. The only cigarette butts she saw were a couple mixed in with the trash probably picked up along the way. None of the ground by the pits. No sign of stubs of self rolled marijuana joints or even a match. No blood pools from some hideous beast attacking people either. After her two successes it was both a relief and disappointing.

Behind her as she circled around looking for tracks… did ghosts leave tracks? Gods she wished she had been more into that nerdy occult crap… or any sign of anything weird Wallace kept rambling on about the fortunes made from rotting garbage. Coal. Oil. Ivory. Fur coats. Toiler paper. He seemed to know it all. Meanwhile Sarah was coming up empty since the dirt around her was packed hard earth with a thin layer of dust rather than tilled garden soil.

Well so much for Keiko's theory that she had some kind of knack for this. People probably did not go from zero to sixty at this sort of thing. You needed to be exposed to it a lot to be able to just pick it out like that. If at all. She had not seen any of the others leave the room. They probably got approached by one or two kids a month looking for help and just talked them into forgetting it. Maybe one really important issue every year or six months. Something like that anyway. Having one lucky break in the furnace room where they pissed something off and then wandering into a place by accident did not mean she was going to find something scary and magical every time she went looking for it.

"Ah!" She turned, but the pit full of leaves and grass was already over the lip by a good two feet. Wallace was nowhere to be seen, but she heard him screaming,. "Aaaaaaaiiiieeeeeee! Help! Get it off! Get it off of me!" Suddenly he rose up, his hole body, as if he were levitating. Then he slammed down again.

"Holy—!" Sarah almost screamed. Keiko was running forward and Sarah came around to join her.

When she saw what was attacking Mr. Wallace did look sort of insect-like, shiny and segmented. There were what looked like rows of legs and a bit head with empty eye sockets that glowed inside like blue candle flames. It clicked as it moved and it great wide mouth was filled with Mr. Wallace's waist. Its throat was hollow though, so she could see his legs kicking inside it.

"It's a giant frog," Keiko breathed, wide eyed.

Sarah realized she was right. What she had thought were extra legs were ribs. The toothless mouth was clamped on the struggling teacher, shaking him, but not even piercing his clothes. Now that she knew the shape was there. Only it was still wrong because as she peered closer she saw that the bones were made up of smaller bones. She saw tiny gravel-sized pieces and legs and even skulls the same shape as the huge one. The big from was made up of hundreds or thousands of smaller frogs. And despite what the boy had said earlier the thing was the size of a Volkswagen Beetle rather than a sheep.

"What the hell is that?"

"Oh I know this one. It's on the cover of every book of Japanese ghost stories ever. It's called an O-dokuro. They are usually huge skeletons that show up on battlefields where nobody properly buried the bodies. They sort of merge together and then they attack people so they can strip their flesh and add their skeletons to the body."

Sarah watched as Wallace struggled and yelled but otherwise did not escape. He also did not seem to be getting very hurt except when he hit the ground. "It's not doing a very good job."

"I noticed."

"Maybe because it's a frog. They don't have teeth or claws and they eat by swallowing anything smaller than them. I think they need muscles and things just to swallow. So what's it trying to do?"

"The best it can? I've also heard stories that sometimes if you kill too many animals for no reason they come back for revenge. People who slaughtered cats or dogs to test swords or just because they felt like it would claim they were attacked by goblin cats or demon dogs out for revenge. Others say they're just shape shifters who take on the form to screw with people. Could be any of them."

"How do you stop them?"

"Um, in some stories you can stare them down and if you're really true of spirit you can break them up. Or you can send for a priest. Bury them properly…"

"I don't think we can do any of that with Mr. Wallace in its mouth like that. Come on, we have to pull him out."

Keiko flinched. "Do we have to? Maybe normal frogs don't have claws, but this one does even if they are just bones. Besides it's not like he's getting badly hurt." There was an 'oof' from the man as he was hit on the ground again. "I really hate frogs. They're so slimy."

"This one isn't. Come on." They moved forward cautiously. The two of them were students after all. Teenage girls. Technically it was not their job to rescue a fully grown man. So they were going to be cautious about the whole thing.

The bone frog did not seem to notice them. Actually since it did not have eyes, a nose or any other sense organs. Still it had grabbed Wallace so it had something going on. Looking close Sarah saw no sign of anything physically holding the bones together, but they seemed to fit like pieces of a puzzle. There were clicks and scrapes as it moved. Glancing at Keiko she saw the hesitant look on her friend's face.

"Okay, I'll grab his hands and you hold on to me."

"I can do that. Just don't get yourself eaten. This could be a grudge situation. Technically Wallace is the one who got all those frogs killed. If it's a choice between you and him…"

Sarah did not say anything to that, honestly not sure where she was going. Wallace had at least stopped shrieking and was now doing his best to keep from getting hurt as a human dog toy. He was holding onto the frog's huge composite skull and trying not to flop around. "Mr. Wallace, take my hands!"

He did. It was easy. The frog did not seem to care she was there. Though one he did it began to tug back. "Pull!"

"I am pulling!" He shouted at the same time Keiko, who had her arms around Sarah's hips, said the same thing.

The frog may have no teeth, but it was holding tight. Sarah pulled for five minutes and even managed to budge the undead amphibian a few feet, its boney feet leaving small furrows in the dirt. Unfortunately she was only human and the glowing eyed monstrosity was not getting tired. She was and so was Mr. Wallace. After five minutes their fingers, sweaty and aching came free and the frog again began shaking its head trying to force the teacher down its throat.

Falling into Keiko as the two tumbled to the ground Sarah breathing heavily they watched for a moment. Keiko said, "While I could stay here all night, I'm not sure how much longer he can handle this."

Sarah knew Keiko was right. Wallace was a middle aged science teacher. The frog was not a huge threat. Actually Sarah would have been willing to take it on with the rake Wallace had been using to sift the pile. With the man in its mouth though, it was not an option. And there was only so much of even the gentlest pummeling the guy could take. It was not like they knew whether he had some brittle bone disease or anything either.

Reluctantly disentangling herself from Keiko's arms Sarah said, "Okay, time for plan B."

"What is plan B?"

Stretching Sarah said, "I'm going to feed him to the thing."

"What?" Keiko and Mr. Wallace, who could hear her, both said once again at the same time.

Sarah did not answer, instead running full speed at the frog. Hands out she hit Mr. Wallace in the shoulders with her palms and pushed. The frog opened its jaws to accept the rest of the surprised man who was t\still clinging to the lips of it jaws. But he was tired and with the added force he lost his grip. Sarah shoved him all the way in and then jumped back, yanking her hands out just as the frog's mouth snapped shut like a blunt bear trap.

"Ah! What did you do?" The teacher yelled. He was curled up inside the frog's rib cage, taking the place of its organs.

"Saved your life," Sarah said coldly at his recriminating tone. "You were getting tossed around like a rag doll. Now you're nice and safe."

As if to argue the frog tried to hop off. Its legs looked powerful and from what she had heard from the guy earlier it could jump pretty far. At least when it did not have a full grown man in its stomach. As it was it got about twelve feet into the air before awkwardly crashing down.

Wallace grunted and snapped, "Yeah, I'm really cozy in here. Get me out!"

"Working on it."

Keiko came up next to her. "So how do we get him out of Mr. Toad's wild ride?"

"There's a popular TV show about hunting ghosts and monsters. The guys in that usually burn the ghost's bones. You try that and I'll try the stare down thing you suggested."

"You sure he's worth it? They can hire another teacher." Sarah shook her head. "Yeah, I know. I was mostly kidding anyway. Fine. I'll cook up some frog's legs. But again, be careful. According to the stories if you break eye contact for even a moment it'll eat you too and it looks pretty cramped in there."

"Believe me, a night trapped in there with a middle aged teacher isn't my idea of fun." She called out, "Hey Mr. Wallace, any chance you can just break out of there?"

"I can't get any leverage from in here. I don't know how they're sticking together, but it's like a bundle of twigs. A single frog would be easy to snap. Lash them all together and they're a lot harder." The frog was trying to walk a bit, but with the extra weight was wobbling.

"Okay then, I guess Kermit and I are going to have a good old fashioned stare down."

She walked like a gun fighter going around the slowly moving corpse pile. Keeping a sneer on her face she moved in front of it and then stared into the glowing depts. Of its eye sockets. They were a soft red that throbbed a bit, though whether with some hidden heartbeat of the thing or hers Sarah was not sure. That dim glow quickly became her whole world. The frog froze as their eyes met.

Meanwhile Keiko cheerfully hummed "Froggy Went a-Courtin'" as she pulled dry branched out of one pit and began piling them in with the dead frogs. With Sarah and the frog locked in a staring contest she did not want to ask for matches or something. Smoking was not allowed on school grounds.

"Where is a spontaneously combusting spirit board when you need it?" She muttered. Well that was not going to be possible here. She looked around and considered. You could use flint, but she did not know much about recognizing rocks and there were none around. Agriculture class meant such things had long been dug up and disposed of. And the school was new enough that construction had taken most of them out of the area. The kids at this particular school might be expected to be better behaved than most, but you did not trust teenagers with throwing sized rocks. "The principal is going to be pissed about us starting another fire."

Finally she just grabbed two dry sticks and began rubbing them together. To her surprise it only took a moment for them to start smoking and then one to light up. "Whoa, it worked!"

With a shrug she tossed the stick into the pit with the dead frogs and the rest of the collected underbrush. A moment later the dry leaves caught fire. They crackled and burned fast. It spread to the mummified frogs and sticks. The smell of rotting frogs was quickly replaced with a scent not unlike a barbeque pit. Even some of the slimy stuff in the bottom caught, mostly liquefied fat and bodily fluids.

Whether it was that or the stare down suddenly the frog fell apart. Mr. Wallace hit the ground again, though it was a short drop. He quickly got to his feet, tiny frog bones falling all around him in a clatter. He stood up, wincing a bit, and shook them off. Sarah moved forward and began kicking them into the flaming pit. Keiko joined her while the confused adult blinked in confusion, trying to figure out what happened.

The fire was dying fast. It had barely singed the contents of the pit. Sarah turned and nudged the teacher's leg with her foot. "Hey, Mr. Wallace."

"Huh?"

"Is there any quicklime around here?"

"What?"

"Quicklime. The stuff they use in movies when the mafia wants to dissolve bodies. They use it in gardening and stuff. Is there any in the shed where you got the rake?"

"Yes, but…"

"Well go get a bag. Unless you want to risk this happening again." He hesitated, instinctively uncertain about taking orders from a teenage girl, one of the students. But she looked him in the eye and he nodded, hurrying off quickly.

Keiko came over and said, "You're kind of a badass."

Sarah turned and said, "Actually when the frog showed up, I wet myself. I'm really trying not to cry."

"Total badass." Sarah could not help smiling a little.

Mr. Wallace came back hefting a fifty pound back of quicklime. Without asking he ripped the top open and then dumped the whole bag into the hole. There was some bubbling as it hit the pile like when hydrogen peroxide was used on a wound and they stepped back to keep from letting the cloud of chalky dust touch them. "In an hour this will be soup."

"You should get some gasoline and burn the rest after school," Sarah said. "And no more live dissections or rotting body pits. You have plenty of videos and there are VR dissection programs."

"But how did this happen?" He asked. "It's impossible."

Sarah shrugged. "Hey, I'm not the one who just spent twenty minutes sitting inside a zombie frog. I just came out to see why people were getting hurt out here. You're the one who brought evil froggy doom down on the school." She gently coughed and put a hand over her mouth. "Sorry, teacher in my throat."

Keiko laughed. Mr. Wallace acted like he did not hear her. "Do you have any idea what all of this means?"

"That if you tell anyone they'll think you're crazy. Or worse you'll get to replace Mr. Kane as the faculty member of the SHC." Sarah patted him on the shoulder. "Well thanks for an interesting period Mr. Wallace. I learned a lot. Just for the record though, if this happens next year because you decided to play around with dead animals again, I am pushing you into that pit. You feel me?"

"Yes ma'am," he said uncertain if she was joking.

"Great. I'm sure the principal can pay for the program you need and you can find something besides rotting frogs to keep the students entertained." She turned and walked away, Keiko with her. "By the way, if you do show the films and something tries to crawl out of the TV, let me know." He nodded without saying anything else, eyes drawn into the pit as he rubbed the bruise around his waist.

Weekend Interlude: Beware the Mall Elves

Once you learn to see something, it can turn out to be everywhere. People see patterns all the time. Two lines make a cross or the letter T. The right shapes make a face. Hold your hand up to the light and raise to fingers and you have a bunny rabbit.

Sarah had learned to recognize magic. For three straight days she had been focused on nothing else. She had thought she was getting a break after Friday when she had basically shoved a teacher down the gullet of a car-sized frog. It had saved his life. Still add that to a day spent exploring the floor of a building that did not exist and her first foray into contacting the spirit world and all things considered a couple days off for the weekend was going to be a welcome respite.

Too bad Keiko could not join her. "I don't think I can go out this weekend. I might eventually, but it's going to take some time."

"It's okay. We've spent a lot of time together and a little apart won't make much difference. We only just met after all."

Sarah had said it, but not meant it. She really liked Keiko. Not relied on her exactly. The girl had made it clear that while providing advice Sarah was on her own as she explored the supernatural. Only stepping in if there was a life or death emergency and only offering up information to direct questions. Sarah appreciated that.

Overall the other girl was just good company. Supportive and kind and funny. Sarah would have happily spent a lot more time with her. Still that would probably be best after they finished Sarah's initiation ritual. If she screwed it up it was back to public school. And more than her interest in Keiko Sarah really was interested in the strange world she found herself in. Not least of all because words like "soul" and "eternity" suddenly had real world meaning.

Her father had decided that Sarah was in some kind of counseling program. He was no more into the supernatural than she had been. He asked her how she had been doing in the new program. She let honesty step in for truth in this case. "Well on my first day I spoke to some Goth kids about their obsession with the occult and they seemed to seriously rethink it. I think at least a couple gave up entirely. On the second day I helped a little girl. She had sort of a psychosomatic illness going on." If ghost measles counted. "I plan to check in with her next week. And then I helped a teacher who was having problems with his class's project involving dead frogs."

"When I was a kid every time we dissected one no matter how dead they were someone in class would claim theirs was moving."

"Something like that."

"It sounds like you've been busy. I was afraid this was some scam."

"No, I've been doing a lot of work. It's not as intense as the regular schoolwork, but comparatively I see how it makes up the difference. Only I really like this better. My student advisor says I seem to have a knack for it. Though I think she's really been leading me to the good stuff."

"Good stuff?"

"People who really needed help, not just goofing around. It really drives home how important this all is. It's not a game or something you handle once in a while. But a real part of life and a good way to help people. I don't know what the other people in my class have been up to when I'm not around, but I am definitely doing serious work."

As a reward her father had given her some money and a ride to the mall. "Keep up the good work and next year we'll discuss getting you a car."

Sarah thanked him and pictured driving around in a little white bug painted up like a skeleton frog. As she wandered the mall later whistling the theme to "The Addams Family" it occurred to her that learning the truth about the supernatural may have broken something. Or the schoolwork had. Yes, she felt much better blaming the education system than demonic forces.

After picking up a new album from one of her favorite singers she even swung by a New Age shop called Rite Aids: Home of all your Magical Needs. She was not expecting much. They mostly sold crystals, oils, books, and statues of figures from the Hindu pantheon and of course Buddha. The lady behind the counter also offered psychic readings for various prices depending on whether you liked palm reading, runes, bones, tarot cards, or a full séance (by appointment only). It was not that she firmly believed the woman was a fraud, but at the moment she seriously saw no need of those particular services at the moment. The lady could have been somebody's mother, with platinum blond hair and wearing sweats and a little too much makeup. She also had a tie-dyed kerchief holding her hair back and two large crystals dragging down her earlobes.

All things considered though… she stopped by the small book shelves. Only a few dozen books all on magic. Stuff a few days ago she would have dismissed out of hand. Even a paperback claiming to be the Necronomicon (though a part inside said the spells had been abridged to keep people from ending the world). Most of it struck her as silly. She saw a page in one book talking about being "sky-clad" which mostly seemed to involve getting naked and dancing in the moonlight. Apparently gods granted favors in exchange for entertainment. 90% of magic seemed to be about getting attention from otherworldly entities and getting them to like you.

Good to know, but at least for now Sarah did not want to spend her days with Kyle and Dave pouring over books of spells and rituals like she had history and calculus. It would be like becoming a nuclear technician when all you wanted to be was a mechanic. Sarah was not sure how many levels there were to this magic stuff but she did not want to end up one of those fictitious wizards who could turn a rat into crockery but not match a tie with their shirt.

Still she picked up two books and carried them towards the counter. One was "The Mythical Creature Encyclopedia". It was pretty thick actually. Practically a paper brick and the parts inside were small blurbs with minimal information. But it did have a cross referencing section in the back based on traits. With her phone's access to the internet it might be enough to give her at least a slightly better chance at identifying supernatural creatures. Like recognizing a woodpecker but still having to look up whether it was a supposedly extinct ivory billed kind or a common yellow bellied sap sucker. And whether you had to shoot it or could just scare it away with a wooden owl.

The information might be a little inaccurate too, but Sarah felt that it was better than heading back to Kane's classroom and asking for their reference materials. Not until she finished her initiation. Having Keiko hold her hand was bad enough, despite the benefits of her company. A quick look did show a listing for O-dokuro, mentioning everything Keiko had said about the creature, so it was as good as she was likely to get.

She also picked up a book labeled "Cleansing Rituals: Dissipating Negative Energy and Placating Unsettled Spirits". That seemed like information worth having. Like first aid. Besides the contract with the principal had made her promise to perform such rituals an to do it in exacting detail. She should probably learn one or two. It would have been nice if she had the ability to just chant or something and send Frogzilla on his way.

She brought her purchases to the counter and the woman reached for them, but hesitated, pulling her hands back. She looked at Sarah and said, "I sense you have had contact with dark entities." She looked at the book titles. "An interesting choice. I see no signs of the occult about you. No jewelry or tattoos. You did not look at any of the books promising power. I suspect your interest is new and not without cause."

"You must be psychic," she joked. Sarah hesitated and then said, "I recently joined a special club at school."

"The Spiritual Harmony Class?"

"You've heard of it?"

"Some of my best customers for five years," she said. "I take it you are the new meat?"

Sarah laughed. "Something like that. And yes I have had a few encounters over the last few days." Since the lady knew what she was talking about Sarah spilled her guts.

The woman, whose psychic reading poster identified her as Mistress Rose, 23rd level Wiccan… whatever that meant… seemed suitably impressed. "Your friend probably has a point. And you made a good choice in those books. Your aura is screaming that you could use some cleansing. Being close to dark spirits is similar to sticking your hand in a uranium mine. Usually nothing will happen unless you're near an extremely powerful vein, but a lot of long term exposure and you might as well stick your head in a microwave."

"That's how you put it to customers?"

"The kids who normally come in here? I'd explain all about negative vibes, but you seem a little less of a hippy. You're trying to get a handle on things, but you're also willing to accept that you won't know everything. Scientist and wizard types are usually more focused on the mechanics of things." She eyed Sarah. "You know I have a test to see if you have latent psychic abilities. It takes about an hour."

"Sorry, my dad is picking me up in about thirty minutes. Maybe another time. Besides if anybody has psychic powers it is probably Keiko. I don't know much about her, but I'd guess anyone who lasts in the SHC has to have some skills."

"True. I was in a similar program in college. Made a fortune afterwards clearing up office buildings for a company I can't name. Used the money I earned to open this place."

"From corporate boardrooms to the mall?"

"Next to schools malls are one of the greatest sources of psychic energy. They're self contained crossroads; people walk the halls like monks in a Zen garden, you have excited kids playing games and adults meditating in yoga class. People are happy, angry, sad, and every emotion in between." She smiled. "I'm seventy-five years old kid."

Sarah felt her eyes bulge. "You look like late thirties. You don't suck blood do you?" She remembered Keiko's speech about hot to become a monster a person had to act like one and even she knew there were witches and vampires that were supposed to bathe in virgin's blood.

"No, I just know how to absorb ambient energy. Believe me, if I were a vampire half the things in here would explode and I'd be being hunted down by righteous citizens, not running a shop. I've looked younger. This is comfortable me. There's a trick to it. Come see me after you graduate and we can discuss your future. If you live that long. You should be careful in the meantime. I'm not even the only one who works this particular mall. Mostly after it closes and those that work the day aren't too dangerous, but if you see some scouts in orange sashes and beanies do not accept free samples of their cookies." She paused. "You know I have some special items I save for special customers. Some I make and others I've picked up at estate and storage sales. In my job I know a lot of the big time practitioners in the area and if they kick the bucket you can bet they have something around the place that they can't use once they're dead."

"Like what?"

"It's hard to tell sometimes. I have a modest talent, but it's mostly in reading auras. You find a genuine talisman and I can tell if it's good or cursed and there's research I can do, but… you never know. Like when you go to a book store. The good stuff is behind glass, not so good on the shelves, and stuff they aren't sure will sell goes in the stapled paper bags and sold for a dollar. But occasionally sometimes the guy at the store makes a mistake." She said, "I seriously doubt you'd be willing to pay for any of the serious items I've identified. We're talking big bucks and a lot of possible dangers. I keep them in a special vault with major protections, scientific and magical.

"The cheap stuff I keep on display here and sell to kids and amateurs. It's in the cases to prevent shoplifting. It's all blessed, but about what you would expect for between ten and five hundred dollars. Mostly it keeps spirits and monsters away from them." She tapped the case attached to her counter where large crystal balls and skulls sat on stands. "If you like though I will show you my version of a grab bag. I have a guy who takes the cursed items off my hands, but sometimes I get positive things that I just can't identify. You pay me a thousand dollars and you pick one thing of your choice."

God this sounded like a scam. Sarah sort of believed the lady. It sounded worth while. But… "Sorry, I can't. I don't have that kind of money and I don't know how to even use things like that."

The woman pursed her lips. "Tell you what. I will make you a deal because from what you've said, you've done some really good work so far and I want to encourage you. You've got a couple of kids to stop poking the bear; you rescued the soul of a little girl and took out a real monster. In America those things are called raw-heads and they can be damned dangerous. Five hundred dollars and you work for me two days a week during summer vacation. I'll pay you, but like your friend I see potential. Even if you are not a psychic. A girl who can take this sort of thing in stride is rare."

"How much?"

"Five hundred."

She chewed on her lip. She had spent most of her allowance on clothes and what her dad had given her. The fifty she had left would just about cover the books. And if this was all legitimate it sounded like she at the very least needed to try a cleansing ritual on herself as soon as possible. On the other hand she was almost eaten by a giant frog, set on fire, and infected with undead measles. The excitement of discovery was still there, but when in Darkest Africa you brought a gun. She did have en emergency credit card her dad had given her and if she could demonstrate she had a job to pay it back, he would not be too mad. "Show me the things first and if I see something I like then I'll consider it. I do not think I am psychic or whatever. It's just going to look like knickknacks to me. If I see something I just have to have we'll see."

"Distrust… well you are new. I suppose that's acceptable, this one time. There are a lot of fakes out there. Once we establish my good will though…"

"I'll be even more suspicious," Sarah said. "Nobody sells fake jewelry to suckers like the only jeweler in town."

Rose smiled wide. "Clever girl. I definitely want you working for me. Fine. Let's see how you do." She went to the back and came out holding a large box labeled for golf balls. Flat, about four inches deep, and when she opened it separated into several dozen smaller boxes. Only seven of them had something inside and none were touching. She set it on the counter while Sarah looked them over.

In the first box was a small statue. A boy reading with some chopped wood strapped to his back. Rose saw her looking and said, "That is a statue of a famous scholar from Japan. I don't remember the name, but he studied while doing chores. I don't know what it does, but urban legend says sometimes statues like these are kept on school grounds and are sometimes seen to move. I've never seen it do anything but I do know it has some positive power in it. Supposedly his image is supposed to help people get smarter."

Sarah shook her head. "I don't care what it does. If I ever saw it move I'd smash it to pieces. I hate those evil doll movies."

Rose grudgingly admitted, "Yeah, there's a reason I keep it in a box and haven't sold it yet."

She examined the others. There was a small magic eight ball on a chain. Basically a key ring. Except the liquid inside was red, not blue. She shook it and asked, "Should I buy you?"

"No." Floated up.

"Should I buy something here?"

"Yes."

She looked at Rose, who shrugged. "I don't know if it's right. It does something, but when you ask it questions it only answers yes and no. it might be good luck. The answers could be a coincidence. It might do something else. I do not have the patience to find out. I'm sure somebody will eventually."

Sarah decided not to ask her about the others as she put the goofy toy back. If she paid five hundred for that she would have to go home and kill herself. Provided her father did not beat her to it. Also spending hours asking a toy that might not actually predict the future yes and no questions seemed long and complicated. Especially since it had just told her not to buy it.

Moving on there were five other choices. A large pentagram with a dragon on it. It looked to be made out of pewter though the eyes might be real rubies. They almost seemed to follow her, though possibly the story about the moving statue had just spooked her. Next up was a large incredibly clear crystal on a silver chain. No, white gold. It was shaped like an eight sided pyramid and about as big around as a fifty cent piece. Next up was a red leather bag that was full of tiny dice like they used in role playing. Each with a different number of sides. Only when she looked close she realized they were carved from actual bone and instead of dots or numbers each tiny die, about the size of her pinkie nail, had a strange symbol on it. Nothing like the runes she had seen on some of the books.

What looked like a ring box had what appeared to be a pair of contact lenses. When she was not even moving them rainbows rippled over the surface like a soap bubble. There was a thick bronze ring with a rough black crystal. It had flames etched into the metal. Finally there was a silver dagger on an earring that, to Sarah, seemed like it might be good for sharpening pencils.

She dismissed the ring. Maybe she had just had too much to do with fire that week. Likewise the dragon. The earring might be considered a weapon and get her in trouble. Besides it was just way too violent. Seemed like either attack or defense. If it hurt things that was not her style and if it was defensive it might keep them away. Good for vampires, but she pictured the little ghost girl crying because the thing burned her or cut her or something. And it really was not her style.

The dice looked interesting, but risky. If they were real bone, they might be human. She was pretty sure that good magic or not, the police would have something to say to that. And if they were in this box, it was because Rose did not know what to do with them. A dozen little mysteries that could do just about anything. Intriguing, but not useful. Though if she ever came back and had the money if they were still here she might take the time to study them. Something told her this would not be her last stop here.

The contacts… those were tempting. Would they let her see things? Like ghosts or invisible monsters? Only she would have to find one first. And then what? Only she would see them. Would she hear them too? Would they be happy about that? And could she prove it? So many variables for something she had to put in her eyes that might not even do what she thought.

She picked up the pendulum. Even in the artificial light it made a lot of little rainbows dance in the room. The chain was four inches long and tipped with a little ring. Most of them on Rose's face making it hard not to laugh. "So you have no idea what this does?"

"In mystical circles a pendulum is sort of like a dousing rod. Unfortunately some are made to hunt very specific things, only work for very specific people, and have to be asked very specific questions. I've never seen one like this. I've tried using it. I've let others use it. It just hangs there unless you move it yourself and even then it's just gravity, nothing useful. At the same time it is so powerful it makes my teeth sting. I've also tried pouring different energies into it with no effect. Sometimes they're a focus for something, especially when they're carved into a seven or eight pointed circle. Seven sides being the symbol of order while eight being the symbol for the primal chaos, the source of gods and monsters.

"That's why I had to put it in the box. It's the only way I'd ever make anything off it. Most practitioners love the look of it, but anything with that much potential makes them nervous. Not to mention its monetary value. It's the sort of thing that belongs in a treasure chest buried on an island somewhere or being guarded by a monster in some hidden temple. If it seemed evil or I was a more responsible person, it would be. As it is I think it's cleared up your aura just holding it, but I am sure that's just a side effect not the intent. You can get the same effect with an incense ceremony."

So it was good magic, but could do anything and was potentially as dangerous as carrying around a stick of dynamite. With all the best intentions. However Sarah did feel as if picking it up had cleaned her somehow. The crystal was so clear, as if it was made of water, and the rainbows were pretty as it spun in the light. She wanted to see it in the sun.

Almost without thinking she slid her finger into the thin ring on the end of the chain so she would not have to set it down and took out her wallet and put her fifty on the counter and then pulled out the credit card. She did not hesitate to slide it but she did mentally wince as she heard the beep as it went through. Signing for it felt like making a deal with the devil. "At least it makes pretty rainbows."

"What rainbows?" Rose asked. She narrowed her eyes, but did not seem to notice. If she was really seventy, something Sarah wanted to believe but was not sure she did, maybe her eyesight was not as good as it used to be. Her father's night vision was pretty bad. "If you want it to show you rainbows you need to take it in the sun."

"I will. Thank you. I suppose I will see you later."

"If you find out what it does let me know."

"Maybe," she teased and the older woman nodded as if she had just done a good trick.

Sarah took the bag with her new books and picked up the clothing bags and music store purchase. They were pretty heavy to carry one handed, but she cold not help raising the pendulum up and watching all the rainbows as she walked out of the store. Like casinos a lot of malls do not like windows. They prefer it if customers lose track of time. Still the rainbows seemed brighter in the min area with more lights. As it spun on its chain the crystal seemed to shine lights on everyone and everything. Some more than others. She was afraid someone would complain about it shining in their eyes, but nobody did.

She was about half way to the door when she stopped. Two girls in orange sashes and beanies had a table set up near a mostly blank piece of wall. On it were boxes of cookies. People came up and bought them. On the table though was a plate with little pieces of brownie. Under it was a sign that said No Free Samples. Only the word "No" was written in very small and the rest was very large.

No Free Samples!

Sarah remembered what Rose had said about them. Something about not taking the cookies. A fat man walked up and snatched a piece off the plate. One of the girls, who Sarah might not have looked at twice but was now staring at, said in a high pitched voice, "You shouldn't do that."

The other one said, "You're too big and fat and juicy. They're bad for you. You should buy some of our fat free cookies."

The man sneered. "Mind your own business kid." He then popped the brownie in his mouth. The girls leaned together like they were sharing a secret and giggled.

Sarah would have never noticed what happened next a week before. Maybe not that morning. Now it was impossible to miss. The rainbows from the crystals were dancing over the little girls. Everywhere else there were one or two… no wait, that old lady with the pentagram necklace had a few more than anybody else. But not as many as the girls. They were practically covered in them. Like they were being crawled on by overly colorful fireflies. It should have blinded them but they did not seem to notice.

Through it all Sarah could see little things she might have missed before. Their eyes, blue as flowers, had slit pupils like a cat's. Both had long hair, one red and the other black. When they moved it sometimes moved away from their ears. Sarah only caught a glimpse, but they looked pointed. And hairy. Looking under the table she thought she saw the tip of a tail pop out from under one's dress. It looked a lot like those on the cows she had seen the day before if somewhat smaller.

Actually looking at them closely Sarah was not sure they were little girls. They had no wrinkles and their bodies were svelte, but the more she looked the more they looked like very thin very short adults. None of the rounded innocence you expected on children. in fact they looked more like hungry predators, the way they looked at the man.

Sarah felt a chill and wrapped her hand around the prism, afraid they would see the rainbows. They did not notice. Nor did they pounce on the fat man. Instead he froze as soon as he swallowed their little treat. His eyes glazed over and his pupils widened.

Suddenly he turned and lurched off. There was a fast food restaurant nearby. He waited until nobody was looking and then quickly dove into the ball pit. Nobody looked up at the sound. Kids got in and out of it all day. He was too fat to go under the layer. Maybe that was why Sarah saw it as half a dozen four fingered black hands rose out from under the bright balls. They had claws and red scales that shone in the light and they dug into his round body as they gripped him. Then silently the bulge of him vanished. It was impossible. The balls were only about two feet deep and there was a gap under them, showing the net that held them in place incase someone lost coins, key, or anything important they needed to retrieve. The bottom was basically a trampoline and when she looked it was barely even dented by the balls, let along sunk under the weight of a man. It was meant to give the kids the illusion that they could hide, not allow people to disappear like a magician's assistant.

Swallowing and feeling ice in her stomach Sarah set her bags down and turned to a nearby water fountain and got a drink, trying not to immediately turn back to the "little girls". Drinking gave her time to think and she slipped her pendulum into a pocket and reached for her book bag, pulling out the encyclopedia. Maybe it was the cookies, but she did not even check the references. She went straight to the entry on Elves.

She skimmed the article. Elves and other fairies had far darker origins than Santa's little helpers. There were all sorts of rules about dealing with them. Especially not taking food or gifts that were not offered freely and without debt. Even if it was disguised or thrown to you. Information given if you thanked them for it, basically acknowledging the favor. It put you in their debt and unless you could pay them back immediately they tended to take their debtors as slaves… or food… or worse. They either cold not or usually did not lie, but could play word games and tricks. Also it was almost impossible for someone to notice them if they did not want to be because of magic called glamour.

There was almost another page of information, but Sarah's heart felt like it was crawling out of her throat as she read:

It was believed that elves and fairy creatures of all kinds could tell when people were specifically thinking of them and were then attracted to them. So much so that peasants would come up with other names for them such as the Gentlefolk, the Little People, and the Kindly Ones to prevent this. They would also keep a bit of iron around the house or on their person be it a needle, a nail, a horse shoe, or other charms. Otherwise they risked catching the elves' attention.

Shaking a little Sarah looked up. Both girls were staring at her. They grinned, showing that their teeth were all baby tooth sized, far too many of them in each mouth, and all just a little pointed. In unison they asked, "Would you like a cookie little girl?"

It was massively creepy and she noticed they did not say "for free". Still Sarah had faced things just as bad not a day before. Well no. She was far less afraid of the bone-frog than she was of these two little monsters. Breathing through her nose and pressing her lips tight she stamped that feeling down and picked up her bags. Then turned smartly and headed for the door at a brisk pace. Not running. She felt like she was in a tiger cage. Run and they chased. Or the security guards would wonder why a teenager was hoofing it as full speed for the door.

The man was long gone and she could not do anything for him short of jumping into the ball pit. What then? Best case, it would be a ball pit, leaving her looking silly. Worst case she would end up wherever he had gone. With whatever had taken him. If she ate the brownies she was sure she would. There was nothing she could do and she tried to tell herself, in a way he had doomed himself. She hoped she could sleep at night believing that.

Rose knew about this. Had she not done anything because she did not care… or because she couldn't? Had her pendulum let her see what was going on? Or had other people just not noticed? The fat free cookies, she was suddenly sure, would not cause problems. People who ate that probably weren't, as the e— little people had said "juicy" enough. And buying them was a legitimate business transaction. Still how many people would snag a piece and ignore their warnings. One a day? A dozen? Did they take them all? Could they wait and take others later or like Hannibal Lecture did they spare those who were polite?

Sarah heard them giggle as if they were right behind her though she was sure they were still a good few yards back at their table. Resisting the urge to turn around she kept walking until she was hit by sunlight as she opened the doors. Elves and fairies in general mostly did not like sunlight. Some said they were nocturnal and others that it burned them like vampires or took away their powers. Only when the doors were closing behind her did she turn and see them waving playfully at her. Then the tinted doors closed.

A horn honked making her jump. She turned and saw her dad in his car waiting for her. It was all she could do not to run gratefully up to him and throw herself into the warm embrace of the steel body of their Ford. She threw her bags in the back and quickly got in.

"I've been waiting five minutes."

"Had to pee," she lied.

He saw her look. "Something wrong? Nobody got fresh with you did they?"

She smiled at his archaic phrasing that she knew he had learned from her grandmother. "No, nothing like that. I just…" How did she explain the— gentlefolk? She thought firmly.

She didn't. "I think some of those scouts who sell cookies in the mall dosed a guy. They had these free brownies and he started freaking out. The security guards were dealing with it, but it was kind of freaky." Hopefully that would keep her dad from trying them.

Thankfully he said, "That is why when you used to trick or treat I'd warn you about taking loose unwrapped candy and check your bag."

"And so you could steal some."

"Sure," he said. "But really for safety. So what did you buy?"

She winced. "About that. I um, I used the credit card." She quickly explained. Most of it true, leaving out the magic bits. "I just couldn't resist and I thought it might help with the SHC stuff. The occult kids are really into this stuff so if they see me with a genuine pendulum it might give me a little credit without making the normal kids think I'm too weird."

"I see." He drove in silence for a while. When they got home he pulled into the driveway and turned off the car. "Okay, let's take a look at this bit of glass you got conned into buying. You still have the receipt?"

She nodded. It was in the bag with the books. And if not she had signed for it. Reluctantly she pulled the prism out of her pocket. Oddly the rainbows seemed no different in the light of day than they had before. A few danced over her dad, but nothing like the elves or that one lady. Oddly when she looked down she did not see any on her. Weird.

Her dad did not seem to notice them either, but his eyes widened as he saw the pendulum. He took it from her and suddenly the rainbows shut off like a light. Sarah looked around and saw some pure white light coming from it, but that seemed normal and when one beam hit her dad's eyes he flinched and blinked like anyone would. Despite his previous disapproval he could not help saying, "Wow."

"I know right," Sarah said, seeing light at the end of the tunnel.

He held it up to the light. "I think this is real white gold. Your mother used to have a necklace made of this. And… no. it couldn't be." he picked up the prism bit and to Sarah's horror pressed it against the rearview mirror.

"Daddy no, you'll scratch it!" But to her surprise it did not scratch. It left a long scratch on the mirror. Eyes widening Sarah and her dad both started to say, "Holy—!" They both knew what that meant. That stone, that huge clear stone, was a diamond. It might be synthetic, though Sarah suspected not made in the usual way and pictures of alchemists danced in her head. It would still be worth a lot.

"You paid five hundred dollars for this?!"

"I talked the lady down from a thousand."

"I should make you take it back just so you do not rip the lady off."

She shook her head. "Dad, I'm pretty sure she knew how much it was worth. I got the impression she was more interested in what its mystical potential was than what it was made out of." All the same Sarah was pretty sure that if she wanted a car, this thing could probably buy her one… or twelve. Only she wanted it more. Magic. She had real magic! Gingerly she held out her hand. Almost reluctantly and as if it were going to pop like a bubble her dad handed it back and immediately the rainbows returned.

"New Age hippy," he muttered. "Not sure how I feel about you working in her shop. Well I hope you're careful with it. And don't just show it around. I'd say leave it in your room but I'd be worried about people breaking in. just don't tell anyone it's anything but quartz. If it gets stolen its on you and I still expect you to pay me back before the end of summer."

"I will."

That established he nodded and smiled, "All the same, that's an amazing purchase honey. I'd suggest getting it appraised, but I'm not sure I'd trust anyone to do that."

"It doesn't matter," she said. "It's mine." She sounded a little too much like Gollum for her own peace of mind when she said that. Worse, she meant it. The crystal felt warm in her grip.

"I'll see if I can find one of your mother's old necklace chains. The matching white gold one if I can. If you don't mind it hanging down past your breasts when you wear it under your shirt. At least it won't fall out by accident."

She nodded. She could not imagine just stuffing it in her pocket with her key ring. It felt so much heavier now than before. Like she was carrying the contents of a bank vault in her pants. Briefly she wondered how much she could reasonably get for it on the open market, but dismissed the idea. It was magic. That meant more than any money ever could.

4

Ravens and Swords

"So what, you think it senses magic?" Keiko said as she looked at the dangling crystal. Sarah nodded, watching the rainbows dance over her friend's face like hungry ants. Keiko obviously could not see them. "How does it work?"

"It just does," Sarah said, putting it away. Again she had only known Keiko for a few days. If she had some secret she had yet to share with Sarah, that was her, but it did seem to confirm her friend had some kind of psychic gift. "Mistress Rose said she had no idea why it was not working. How should I know why it suddenly works for me?"

"Cool. And those little girls, they were real elves?"

Sarah felt her teeth grind, but nodded. The school was surrounded by iron fences and all other forms of metal. Just like everything else in the modern world. If the book was to be believed in the old days when everything was forests and huts fairies were a constant danger. These days, especially during the day, it was unlikely they would hear her thinking of them with so much iron in the way. Even if they did there were plenty of fantasy obsessed people all over thinking of elves all the time. They probably would not even notice her.

Probably. "Yeah, I am pretty sure. And not the nice ones that work for Santa. I think this necklace may even provide some protection from evil."

"You do seem somehow… lighter? Cleaner? I'm not sure but just being near you makes me happier," Keiko said. "Of course that could just be you."

Smiling Sarah said, "I feel pretty much the same, incase it wasn't obvious. But I think we should save it until we're sure I'm not getting sent to another school."

She seemed disappointed but nodded. "Yeah, that makes sense. So where to today?"

"The office."

"What?"

"The principal put me in the class. He can give me a tip on finding something weird."

Keiko laughed. "I love it. I'm not going in with you, but I love it."

Sarah laughed. "I expected as much."

Mr. Harashi stared at her over his desk. "Two fires, a janitor who says you threatened his job, a science teacher who suddenly asked for unexpected leave and a bill for several dozen versions of a program to virtually dissect frogs. In three days."

"Those kids were playing with the spirit board anyway. I just watched mostly. The janitor was uncooperative. And I helped pass on a little girl who was giving people diseases from beyond the grave and a dead frog that had a fairly legitimate grudge, with a capital G, against that science teacher who I saved from being eaten. It had also hurt a lot of other people and made more think they were crazy." She oddly found the principal far less intimidating than she had in the office last week.

Harashi smiled. "All true. So what is it you want?"

"A tip. I'm doing pretty well on my own, but it's Monday. Mr. Kane gave me an assignment to find seven supernatural things in the school on my own. I've done three so far. I was hoping you could give me a tip on the fourth."

"Most people take their time on that."

She shrugged. "I've got nothing else to do. Besides they were all so smug about it. And like it was such a chore. I actually like all this spooky stuff. It's amazing. And they were obviously trying to teach me a lesson or something. So I want to do it without crawling back and asking them for help and guidance."

He nodded. "I understand. Though I suppose I shouldn't really help you openly. It is a test after all."

"Any teacher would recommend a good book. You don't have to tell me what's going on, but you put me into the class. You made me sign that crazy contract that I'm pretty sure could get both of us burned at the stake in some countries. You moved the school out here from Asia trying to outrun the weird crap. You haven't asked me one damned question about any of the stuff I just told you about. That means you're not some clueless administrator. And I just saw some guy get grabbed by monsters and dragged to Hell or something."

He smiled. "Someone's been to the mall."

Sarah let that hang for a moment. "I'd really like to run into one supernatural thing that is cool and that I do not feel the need to do something about. Just a little something to let me know for sure it's not all evil and scary."

Harashi nodded slowly. "Very well. I can point you towards something… not evil. Nothing purely good really comes to this world. Thankfully. Anything like that is either unwilling to interfere with us mere mortals, at least directly, or they are of the 'burn them all for being impure' sect and are kept the hell away from us."

"I don't need perfection."

"And unless you can demonstrate a direct threat to the school or its students I don't have to help you. Still you've done a lot of good and I appreciate that. You may do more. Also Kane likes being a pain of whenever he can. So okay I will give you one tip. Otherwise I only expect you in here if there's a serious threat and the rest of your class is incapacitated. Clear?"

Sarah wondered what it would look like if she took out her prism. Would Harashi glow like the elves or turn out to be a regular person? She was not sure finding out was worth showing it off so just said, "One time deal, I get it."

"Check with Missus Carrion. She runs the after school fencing club, for the serious sword fighters. You'll have to stick around, but since I don't care if you wander off all day or even check into her, so how you spend the time is up to you. You've already done more than I expected for your first month."

Was that praise or dismissal? Sarah could not tell. She considered flipping him off, but then remembered that contract and the way it, like that kid's book of magic, had seemed to glow. Maybe he was just an old man. Then again there was some old saying about wizards and how they were both subtle and quick to anger. She had spent the weekend flipping through her new books and cross referencing online. Statistics on how many people simply disappeared every year were terrifying. Showing disrespect to any supernatural being, let alone one who had her name on a contract, seemed like a bad idea. It was different when she had not believed in them. Also he was still her principal and she was here to get good grades. So she bowed and simply left the room.

Outside Keiko said, "Are you okay?"

"I'm beginning to realize that when dealing with this stuff you can't expect to win or even try all the time. It makes me feel sort of powerless."

Keiko pursed her lips. "I could give you some ancient eastern wisdom about how great strength comes from realizing that we're all powerless." Sarah gave her a look. "Okay not the time. But what were you expecting Sarah. Human beings have always held the middle ground. We're predators and prey. We rule this whole planet more or less. Every now and then something bigger and nastier comes along. Sometimes we get lucky. Sometimes we don't. Just because it is elves or ghosts or giant boner frogs instead of saber toothed tigers poking holes in your sense of species superiority doesn't make much difference."

"Boner frog?" Sarah asked with a grin.

"Best name I've got so far. Better than Frogger 2: Revenge of the Amphibians. Anyway why do you expect to do anything about it?"

"Uh, it's our job."

"No, we protect the school. Within reason. And we're supposed to call in help when we're in over our heads. If it was a serial killer would you try making a citizen's arrest?"

"No, but there would be police. SWAT teams. FBI agents. Bounty hunters."

Keiko's grin threatened to remove the top of her head. "So basically you're asking me who you're gonna—?" Sarah slapped a hand over her mouth. It did not stifle her snickering.

"Not funny!"

Keiko stepped back. "It's hilarious. Look Sarah, eventually maybe you'll be the one they call. In the meantime what can you do about it?"

Sarah began to say something and paused. Then she said, "I'm going to call the police."

Keiko frowned. "What?"

"Lots of people saw those girls. Maybe they think they're real kids or something, but that means they're corporeal. I may not get past the metal detectors at the mall with a weapon or a horse shoe, but cops can walk right in with guns and handcuffs and all sorts of things."

"Oh my god, you're going to NARC on elves!"

"You think I should?"

"I will be personally insulted if you don't," Keiko said with a grin. "I just wonder if they'll disappear or be handcuffed." She paused. "You should send in a tip to the local news first."

"You think? I don't want to end up one of those people on the news who gets hate mail because they called the cops on some kid's lemonade stand."

"First off that happens when the parents get involved. I would love to see that. They probably ate their actual parents. Second have you ever seen the inside of a police station? The interview rooms all have metal chairs and metal on the windows, and metal tables in a building pretty much full of metal. There is no way in hell they are going in there to officially file charges."

"They were in the mall."

"Point, but they were also against a wall away from everyone and the guy disappeared into a ball pit. I'm not even sure how much iron and steel they use in buildings like that. Besides there's also the whole daylight thing unless you think they're showing up at noon for this." She smiled. "Unless you think they aren't magical elves. So tell me the truth Sarah. Do you believe in fairies?"

She made the call. She gave her name and told the police a slightly abridged version involving mischievous kids and pot brownies along with the suggestion that maybe they were working for someone else trying to get people hooked on drugs. She had already sent a message to several local news tip lines about the police showing up at the mall to arrest some scouts. Of course if the "kids" had some kind of "adult" guardian, any concept of how the legal system worked, or even some sort of legal human identity then it would be relatively easy to get out of the thing and get Sarah into trouble.

Nobody called her back.

Sarah waited two hours, going to hang out on the library computers and surf the web nervously wondering if she would get a stern lecture bout filing false reports. Having to stand there while crying children accused her of god knew what.

Nothing. They went to lunch.

Afterwards to get rid of some nervous energy they decided to hit the track. It was fourth period again. There was another class out there. She thought she recognized some of them. Had they been out there last time? Sarah decided she did not care. After what she had done already she did not care if the track was haunted. That could wait until later. Maybe when it was dark and the school was empty and she could spend the time to perform a real cleansing ceremony and send dead-man-running on his way. The best she could do during the day would be to look crazy or really freak out the other kids. It was not like that scene in Ghostbusters where they laid out a trap in a jogging ghost's path and just caught him. If she had the brains to pull that off she would still be in with the regular kids. And she did not want to pull out her pendulum around all those other kids.

So they just ran for a while. Keiko was in great shape. She had obviously had a severe training regimen. After twenty minutes Sarah stopped and just rolled onto the grass, panting and Keiko, her former friend and now hated enemy and form of all things evil in the world, was not even breathing hard. The bitch.

Sarah glared up into her grinning face. Keiko may have been psychic but hardly needed special powers to read Sarah's sweaty red face. "If looks could kill."

"You're lucky you're cute."

"I'm frickin' adorable," Keiko said. "And less than impressed with your endurance."

"You take my breath away," Sarah muttered.

"Only because you can see up my skirt from down there." She reached down offering a hand and helped Sarah to her feet. "Feel better?"

"Much." She reached to her pocket and checked her messages. There were none from the police or the news, but there was a general message from the Emergency broadcast System. "What?" She tapped the screen. "Mayhem at the Crossroads Mall".

Sarah took the phone. "A tip received today sent two police officers to investigate possible drugs being slipped to innocent customers at the local mall. The suspects, apparently dressed as scouts of some kind, have been operating unnoticed out of the mall for years. Details are sketchy but it seems that whatever organization they were supposed to represent does not exist. The girls have no identity and do not correspond to any missing children reports. In fact analysis of the mall's security cameras reveals they may not be children, but very short adults.

"After being confronted the two suspects ran leading police and mall security on quite a chase, strangely reluctant to actually make a break for any of the exits from the building. It is believed they may be hiding somewhere inside and some witnesses claimed to have seen them entering a ball pit at one of the restaurants, though so far the search is ongoing. Some evidence suggests they have had contact with many people reported missing over recent months and possibly more who have visited the mall beyond the archived footage. Police have confiscated both the cookies and homemade brownies they had. The cookies seem fine, though of course anyone who may have bought anything from them is asked to go to the local hospital and bring in any remaining samples. The brownies however have been tested and found to contain several unknown substances as well as traces of a hallucinogenic fungus known as 'magic mushrooms'." Keiko whistled and handed the phone back. "No wonder they haven't called you. They're kind of busy."

"No kidding. What else do you think they'll find? Rose implied strange things happen there, especially at night."

Keiko shook her head. "Oh no you don't! You can worry about that when you're working there over the summer. You can now focus on school. The police will handle the mall. I'm not even sure you should go shopping there."

"With what I paid for this thing," Sarah said touching the lump of diamond under her shirt. "I'll be lucky if dad ever lets me go there again." She was exaggerating. As long as she paid him back over the summer she still got her allowance and extra money sometimes. He had even let her keep the card, so long as she promised to call him and let him examine any more priceless items she wanted to buy at a fraction of their value. "If you could get me a new Porsche for under two grand…" Ha. Dad jokes. Truthfully though she did want to have an excuse to avoid the place for a month or two. Thank god for online shopping.

"Want to look up more articles?"

"No! I did my bit. I seriously doubt any arrests will be made even if they find similar crimes in other places, so I doubt I will have to testify in court. I'll feel better if people are just more alert for these things. They'll probably just do something else somewhere else though. They seem pretty adaptable." From Puck spiking people's drinks to selling cookies at the mall. Not the sign of slow thinkers.

"Well now that you have vanquished Satan's little helpers, think you can get some sleep? You look exhausted and not just from running. We can find you someplace nice and quiet and you can make up the sleep you've missed until the afternoon." Sarah looked a little uncertain. "Don't worry, I'll watch over you."

"Well when you put it that way, how can I resist?"

"You snore," Keiko said when Sarah woke up.

"Do not." She yawned and stretched. She had been napping in the bleachers by the sports field. Not the most comfortable spot considering they were made of metal, but not back and nobody had bothered her.

"Like a chainsaw."

"Lies. All lies," she said as she sat up. Keiko giggled and Sarah got to her feet, doing a few stretches. "I still can't believe I get to just goof off like this."

"I think it's perfectly fair. Saving even one soul should be worth not having to do school work."

"Maybe, but if this whole spirit investigation thing does not work out, I'm not going to have the skills at anything else."

"Well then you should be fine, unless you think people are going to stop dying."

"What time is it?"

"About two."

"Well we've got a couple hours. How about we swing by the fourth floor and make sure that dead little girl has passed on?"

"Sounds good to me."

They walked to the electives building, stopping outside to again count the floors only getting up to three. Inside they decided to take the stairs, both agreeing that an elevator to nowhere was a little creepy. Not that walking up a flight of stairs that should not exist was much better.

They reached the fourth floor. Opening the door at the top of the stairs, the same one they had looked down before, they found the place looked about the same. They went to the next door and found the old broken dirty mirror. No little girl stared out at them. Sarah brought out her pendulum and only a few rainbows sparkled around the glass. A lot more twinkled on Keiko.

"Well that's a relief," Keiko said when Sarah told her that her magical doohickey was not picking anything up.

"I hope she's doing okay," Sarah told her. Then she looked around. "What do you think is up with this place? Since the school moved to get away from the supernatural stuff I doubt they built this on purpose, even if they could. How do you get a floor that shouldn't exist?"

"It's a side effect of a concentration of mystical energies," Keiko said. "When worlds bleed together you sometimes have some that are really close except for a couple of differences. A floor of a building, a building, a town… it is called a Brigadoon after some town that disappears and reappears every now and again. Remember time and space is just how people deal with reality, not what's really there. Some places become unmoored. Like wormholes or mystical places. That is how things like fairies find this world. They're easiest to find when you get lost."

"Speaking of time, we've been here five minutes. Let's get out before we lost a whole day."

"Good call." They hurried for the stairs. Back on the mundane floors she checked her phone. "3:30. That is one way to kill time. I wonder if we could travel into the future like that. Camp out there a week and see what happens."

"I wonder what happens if the school gets torn down while we're in there," Keiko said.

Seeing the point Sarah shuddered. "I don't want to find out."

"Come on, I know a short cut behind the chapel. We should get to the fencing house before practice starts. It's less rude than interrupting." She led the way for once and Sarah followed.

The chapel was a hold out from the old days in Japan. It was actually older than the school and had been moved with it. A simple enough building it had originally been a Shinto shrine. There was even a red Torii gateway outside and two fox statues on either side. The building itself had changed over time though and not resembled a Christian church with a steeple, stained glass windows, and rows of pews inside. The old stone altar at the front of the room was from the original building, but was covered with a white and gold cloth. Out back was a small picnic area with a table and a cherry tree. It was run by an old nun and Sarah had never spent much time there. There were also slots where people could place money and ring a bell with a rope on certain holidays and then pick out a random fortune after making an appropriate prayer or hanging their wish written on a piece of paper from the tree. Apparently gods liked money, or at least liked people to pay to keep up their shrines. Currently it was empty.

It was a good example of Japanese history. From back when they were trying to keep Christianity out to when it took over and worked to stamp out the competition. In this case it only worked half way. Inside behind the altar was a red cabinet in which a brass statue of the Goddess of Mercy and an old wooden brush that supposedly was left over when a man found out his wife was a fox in disguise. Items like that were often enshrined.

They were walking across the grass of the picnic area when Sarah came to a sudden stop. Keiko said, "We should really hurry."

"What's that?" She pointed.

Keiko looked and saw something nailed to the trunk of the cherry tree. They moved forward and peered close. It was a little doll made out of what looked like straw held together with rubber bands. Vaguely human shaped it was nailed to the trunk. On the head someone had stuck a student ID with a piece of duct tape.

"Aw crap…" Keiko said softly.

"What is it?" Sarah repeated.

"A curse. Use your little detector thing. See if it's working."

Sarah brought out the pendulum. She had to cover her eyes. The tree and the doll especially attracted so many rainbows it was blinding. She wrapped her hand around it and stuffed it back under her shirt. She told Keiko what she saw and said, "What does that mean?"

"That somebody knows what they're doing and has the power to pull it off. The guy who's ID this is… Gregory Derris… has someone really pissed at him."

"What do we do? Just rip it off the tree?" She reached for it, but Keiko caught her hand. Her fingers felt cool but firm.

"You do not want to touch this with your bare hand. This is serious dark magic. Look, there are only three nails. We have a good four days to stop this. Let's finish what we were doing and we can handle this later."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah. We're going to need some stuff for this and it's going to take time. It needs to be dealt with, but not now. This is a pretty popular curse, but most people can't actually pull it off. Like working a voodoo doll. For most people it's just cathartic. At most someone with a bit of psychic power might make someone feel a pinch where the nails are driven in. Done correctly… there are some seriously dangerous effects. Come on, we should go. Fast."

Feeling like she had just stumbled onto a barrel with something green and glowing leaking out of it Sarah followed Keiko quickly away. She had more questions, but saw no point in having Keiko along to advise her if she was not going to listen. What would have happened to her if she had touched the doll? She gave it one last backward glance before they rushed off.

The two girls arrived just in time. The fencing club was more of a courtyard off the side of the sports field. About two hundred yards up a hill. It was a Japanese style wall with a wooden gate. Inside was a fifty foot wide area with a brick floor. They also used to for archery class three times a week. At one end was a large shed used to hold the equipment.

The gateway was open when they got there and the teacher, an older Japanese woman, was examining the students. About twelve of them wearing Japanese style fencing gear. Wire face masks, white padded tops, flared black pants, and of course woken swords. Some solid and basically blade-like while others had rounded ones with no edge made out of bamboo.

Misses Carrion looked to be about fifty with a red face and a long nose. Her hair was tied in two ponytails that flared off her head like wings. She wore a black kimono and carried a sword of her own that she tapped against her shoulder. On her hip attached with a red chord was a flask that might have caused her red complexion.

She looked up as Keiko and Sarah arrived, her eyes an odd gold-yellow color. Then turned away to deal with the class. Sarah and Keiko took a seat against the wall to watch.

It was not like the usual fencing style where they used a foil and showed only one side. Japanese style fencing placed both hands on the sword and meant facing the opponent. When they swung it was more like using a hammer or a mace. The students practiced powerful downward blows meant to slam their opponents to their knees. Samurai were all about using their folded metal swords, decapitating or disemboweling their enemies as quickly as possible. Their swords designed more for slicing than chopping, clanging against an enemy weapon, or even stabbing.

It was all about strength and speed rather than precision, though of course that was part of it. At least aiming for a spot where the sword would do some good. Here it was a point system. In the old days when they were warring across Japan it was finding a flaw in the armor. Though a lot of time it was also about killing any peasant who pissed off them or their lord.

After an hour of practice suddenly Missus Carrion turned, her robe fluttering in the air and pointed at Sarah. Her finger was long and the nail pointed. Painted red. "You, gaijin girl! You have something shiny. I want it."

Clutching the crystal under her shirt Sarah said, "No!"

"You came to my gym wearing a powerful charm. I can sense it from here and know that something that powerful must be made of the purest substances. I cannot just take such a thing, but I challenge you. I will beat you until you beg for me to take your pretty bauble." She grabbed a sword from one of her students and threw it at Sarah's feet. Then she gripped her sword and took a stance. "Face me you blond haired wimp!"

Keiko came over and said, "Don't worry Sarah. I'll help you fight the bitch. I used to be a pretty good swordswoman. I've even won a few tournaments."

"But…"

"Come on babe, don't you have the guts to try?"

Sarah considered. She did not want to risk her treasure. On the other hand the mean lady was challenging her and she had risked her life several times. If it was precious of her maybe she should defend it. It was a little silly, especially since she had never used a sword in her life, but…

"Fine." She stood up, scooping up the sword. Keiko smiled and came up behind her, putting her hands over Sarah's. "I may not have much of a chance, but I've faced things a lot scarier than you."

The red faced teacher grinned. "Nice declaration. Let's see if you can back it up."

Pressed against her from behind Keiko whispered in her ear. "We have to work together on this one. Let me lead, but put your strength into it. You don't have any experience, but try to feel it. Like dancing."

"I know how to dance. You lead."

Carrion suddenly was right in her face. Her sword swung for Sarah's head. No hesitation or mercy. Keiko was ready for it though and they raised their hands to block it. All the same when the teacher's sword hit, hit stung her hands and felt like she had blocked the swing of a sledgehammer. "Ah!"

Smirking, her opponent said, "Not a back block. I know fully grown men who couldn't have stopped that."

"I can see why," Sarah said through gritted teeth. Keiko pushed her forward and she poked her own sword at Carrion's eye, making her back up a step.

"Keep moving. Don't let her have the time or space to do another strike like that."

"I hear you," Sarah said. Keiko was making the moves and all she could do was add her strength. Still it was like dancing and she had been in classes for years. This was not that different.

Soon they were moving smoothly and swinging their sword to meet hers, stopping Carrion from getting her strength into the blows. Of course Carrion was doing the same to her. With Keiko helping out Sarah was not quite a match for the experienced teacher, but could at least defend. If Carrion had a problem with facing two opponents she did not complain about it, but did seem to be getting angry. Sarah had no doubt if the woman got the sword from her hands she would spend at least the next ten minutes beating her until she was a mass of bruises and making her hand over her pendulum.

Then something strange happened. As they fought it was like Sarah could suddenly predict the woman's moves. Fighting her was getting easier and easier because even without Keiko her sword was not just blocking, it was getting to the places she was swinging first.

Missus Carrion saw this and suddenly began to change. It was weird, not like a werewolf movie where the beast slowly crackled its way out of human form. More like a superimposed image. Slowly fading from one to the other. Like the other form had always been there, but hidden like a leaf bug in a bush. Or a carpet shark nestled in the sand of the ocean. There but somehow missed until it wanted to be seen.

And instead of a woman Sarah found herself facing off against a huge black bird. A raven. Only it was the size of a dinosaur. Carrion's sword had become her beak, still diving and clicking against Sarah's wooden sword, only faster and harder than before. Pecking at her and snapping.

"What the hell?"

Keiko said in her ear, "She's a tengu. Sort of a magical shape shifter. They're known as some of the finest sword fighters ever. How are we beating her?"

"I don't know, but I think if we lose, there's a good chance she'll peck our eyes out."

"Eyes," the bird squawked and it sounded both cheerful and hungry.

Sarah frowned. She was not sure if the bird was serious. She was a teacher after all. But even if she was not, the idea of this thing taking her pendulum was inexcusable. "Hey, I just remembered something."

"What's that?" Keiko asked.

"I'm not a swordfighter." She ducked back avoiding a strike from Carrion's beak. Then as the bird's head drew back like a snake to strike again she moved forward and instead of swinging her sword, she brought her foot down hard on one of the thin black talons. The tengu screamed like a human and bird mixed as Sarah ground her heel, hearing a snap. Bird bones were hollow after all and the teacher of her self defense class had assured her that you could break a human foot this way.

Suddenly the red faced woman was back, sitting on her ass and gripping her foot. "Cheater!"

"Thief and bully," Sarah replied. "And you either surrender now or for dinner tonight I'm eating crow!" She gripped her sword like a baseball bat, taking aim at the woman's head. It could kill the bird woman. Her dad often cracked chicken bones for the narrow with his teeth when they got KFC. On the other hand Sarah doubted that after an autopsy she would be accused of murder.

Only instead the woman smiled and stood up. Her toe was straight again. Sarah was sure it had been bent to the side. She picked up her sword. "Nice move. Yu identified a weakness and capitalized. And for someone who claims to never have used a sword before you did well."

Looking at Keiko Sarah said, "I had help."

"No doubt, but still I sensed something from you. Honestly if you wished to be my student I could make you one of the best…"

"Sorry, I already have some responsibilities with the SHC," she said. She saw the teacher looking at her chest. Almost sexually. Or so it seemed until she remembered the reason she had started the fight and covered the lump of her pendulum. "Besides, I beat you. Why would I want to be your student?" She looked around the room. None of the others seemed flustered by their teacher turning into a giant black chicken. Had they even seen it or did they know already? Either way trying to make a big deal out of it seemed like a bad idea. "I think we'll be going now."

She backed towards the door, keeping the wooden sword. It was notched, but made for that sort of thing. She did not turn around until she was out of the gate and walking back towards the main part of the school.

"You beat her?"

"Um…"

"You could learn a lot from her you know."

"Please. I don't know how she treats her other students, but she would probably just use any classes with me as an excuse to beat me up and rob me. And I can't rely on you all the time. I got lucky."

"You were actually quite good near the end there."

"Like you said, it was like dancing. I've been watching her this whole time. Since you kept her from finishing me early it was easy to predict the rest. I'm not a moron after all. I did get into this school. I may not have been able to handle the long haul, but they do not just let anyone in here."

"I know that, but I think it's more. I'm really beginning to think you can do anything."

Blushing Sarah rubbed her arm. "Maybe, but right now I need to see if the nurse is still around."

Keiko smiled and moved closer. "Here, lean on me if you need to. You kicked ass."

Taking her up on it gratefully Sarah leaned on her friend's shoulder. She was not bleeding, but her hands ached, her whole body felt like one big Charlie horse, and her lungs burned as if she had run for miles. She might have some natural skills, but her body was not up to the task.

Jane Winters was still on the campus. She had to incase the after school clubs got rowdy or something happened. She did not mind. It was not exactly strenuous and she could use the money.

"Missus Carrion huh? Well you aren't the first one I've patched up from her class. I'm surprised there's no blood."

Sarah shrugged and winced. "Yeah, well not from lack of trying."

"You might want to take tomorrow off and see a masseuse," she said. "As near as I can tell you're just a bit strained and bruised."

"I thought so, but I needed to ask. Has a kid named Greg Derris been in here?"

She hesitated. "Yes. He was in class when he started coughing up blood. I had to call an ambulance. Why?"

"He might have been cursed," she said.

"I was thinking poison."

"Same difference. I just needed to know if whoever was after him was having an effect. If it's something medical the doctors will handle it however they can. If it's magic I might be able to help." She did not tell the nurse about the doll. She might want to do something about it. "You have keys to get into the school after it is closed right?"

"Yes…" Sarah held out her hand. Jane sighed and pulled out her key ring, taking three off on a side ring. She slapped them into Sarah's palm. What the hell. Show me some magic girl."

Closing her fist around them she said, "Sure. I'll bring these back after I make myself some copies."

5

Night School

Sarah took the nurse's advice, heading out for a massage rather than going to school in the morning. Her dad had even paid for it after she told him she had fought the school's sword master. He was skeptical at first, but she did not even tell him that she had actually won, albeit with Keiko's help. She told him she was just trying it out to see if it was something she would like and had taken a pretty good beating. Her dad was not quite the type who wished he had a son, but he was impressed that she had put that much effort into it and once she promise that if the school complained he could ground her for a month, he let her have the money and did not question it when she said she was spending the night at Keiko's.

By now she had confidence in her ability to ignore the school's curriculum and still get good grades. All she had to do was face off with ghosts and monsters on a daily basis. She was earning it.

Totally worth it, she thought as she remembered her former work load. She had genuinely pushed herself to keep up with it. Now that she knew there was an afterlife it was all too easy for Sarah to imagine working herself to death trying to finish a giant pile of papers and then having to spend eternity as a ghost trying to catch up. Trapped at some little desk. Lashing out at anyone who interrupted her. It could happen to anyone.

It made her appreciate the importance of the Spiritual Harmony Class. They school may have it around to keep the supernatural from messing with the students, but just as important was freeing trapped souls. It was not like this whole life and death thing came with a manual for the recently departed. She thought of that girl in the mirror, so alone for who knew how many years. Sealed away in a dingy little bathroom on a floor that did not always exist. Time may have moved a bit faster there, but what did that matter if they had never gone up? She might still have been trapped behind an Out of Order sign until doomsday.

"Why so serious?" Her masseuse asked.

Lying on a massage table wither face framed by a cushion it was impossible to turn her head and look at the woman rubbing the kinks and aches from her back. She remembered what the woman looked like though. Mostly. She was pretty with almond eyes and light skin. She could have been Asian but her hair was light brown. In addition she was wearing a cotton face mask not unlike the ones Sarah had worn not to mention a pair of plastic gloves. She took no offense at that. Sarah wore her pendulum under her towel and it pressed uncomfortably against her chest. If she spent all day hovering over strangers and sticking her hands in their sweaty backs she would want protection too.

It was hot in the room, incense burned on the counter, and soft music played. A pair of decorative scythes was crossed on a nearby wall. The only noise… and unsanitary act… was that the woman doing the massage kept a large bowl of hard candies next to her station which she popped into her mouth and crunched on almost continuously. When she breathed there were whiffs of fruit, mint, and caramel. Apparently she liked variety.

"I took a job at school. Sort of a counseling gig for extra credit."

"Rough work?"

"Challenging. A little dangerous. Worth it though. I've just been going nonstop and then I got in a fight with an old crow who teaches sword fighting."

"Did you win?"

"Yup." She smiled. "With some help from a friend of mine."

"I'm feeling some stress here, not just aches and pains."

"I have more work to do tonight. I was given a specific assignment and I'm mostly done, but like I said, not easy. My friend, the one who helped me with the sword fight, thinks someone at our school is doing something that could get someone hurt. So we have to swing by later and try to stop her."

"Shouldn't you call the police?"

"Uh, no. It's nothing violent," she said, hoping she was telling the truth. "Like I said, it's a counseling thing."

"Well I hope you aren't taking too much on yourself," the woman said, rubbing Sarah's shoulders. Her hands were amazingly strong for her size and it hurt a bit, but Sarah just grunted and put up with it sure the woman knew what she was doing. "I remember what I was like when I was younger. I could hold a grudge like nobody's business and if anybody got in my way or insults me… well I can be a bit of a monster."

Sarah winced at a particularly sharp pinch. "Ouch! Hey, watch it."

"Sorry. I was thinking of this guy I know with one of those greased up hairdos. He used pomade. Just the smell of the stuff still makes me want to puke."

"Don't take it out on me."

"You're right, but it's a sore subject. And believe me I've had to deal with a lot of rude and inconsiderate people. Some are nice, but a lot…"

"Sounds like you are looking for a fight."

"What can I say? It's who I am. I have a bit of a mean streak. Possibly because my sister cut my face up badly when we were younger. I was always better looking than her and maybe a bit too smug about it. Want to see the scars? It's not pretty especially since my teeth are kind of messed up too."

"No! Jeez, I'm sorry to hear that. I hope you called the police."

"She got what was coming to her," the masseuse said firmly. "Having these scars though, it really lets you know who is worth while in this world. Ask someone if I look beautiful and mostly they'll say yes until they see what's under this mask. I've had to get downright forthright with some people who reacted badly."

"Sounds like a sore spot. And maybe like you're one of those girls who might pull knives at parties."

"You have no idea." She sounded like she was feeling happily nostalgic about it. "I'm practically the original crazy-ass girlfriend, even though I don't really date."

"Were you in a gang?"

"Nah, I never had the patience with other people. You?"

"I barely have one normal friend. I've been so focused on school. I'm hoping that now I have more free time maybe I'll make more friends…" She remembered the mixed results from the kids she had done the spirit board with. "I'm not sure how well that works though. Dealing with weird stuff like I'm supposed to might scare a lot of them off." If a burning board game was a deal breaker giant ravens and killer frog skeletons were probably a few steps up on the "never talk to this person" ladder. Someone near the "burn the witch" rung. "By taking the job I may have kissed normal friendships goodbye."

"So? Normal people suck. The ones worth knowing are always weirdoes."

Sarah smiled and said, "Yeah, you're right." Keiko actually seemed pretty normal if you ignored the part about her being in the SHC. It made Sarah wondered what exactly had led her to not only end up in the class, but stay there.

When they finally finished she gave the woman an extra five dollars as a tip before heading to the shower. "That should buy you a big bag of suckers or something." The woman nodded and at the very edges of her mask Sarah thought she saw crinkling scars. Since it covered pretty much everything from ear to ear she could imagine how bad they looked. On impulse she leaned in and gave the startled woman a hug and then backed off incase it was unappreciated. It was hard to tell but the woman did seem to be smiling.

When she was done she felt refreshed and caught a bus to the school. Keiko was waiting for her at the stop. "I'm not keeping you from your own work am I?"

"If Kane wants me he has my cell phone number," she said. "Besides those idiots in the SHC don't know what they're missing leaving you hanging out in the wind like this. I mean come on, frogs and tengu and ghost girls…"

"Oh my!" They shared a giggle. "Okay, now that I'm here and feeling a lot less like I've been slapped around by a pissed off nun with a yardstick, can you tell me why the doll freaked you out?"

Keiko patted the seat next to her. No other kids were likely to show up this late so she sat. "It's a curse."

"Actually the voodoo-doll vibe was kind of obvious."

"You're not far off, though that's just one name for it. In Japan you get these a lot. Usually someone gets pissed off and wants to inflict some damage without getting arrested or anything. So they drive in a few nails. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. It depends on a few things. If you have strong spiritual powers and perform it correctly, how much you mean it and believe in what you are doing, if a spirit sees it and decides to help you out… a lot of factors."

"So why don't we just pull the nails and trash the thing?"

"That might work. Burning the doll and tossing the ashes into a river is a good idea. Only again it looks like the girl knows what she's doing. She made the doll, she got the guy's picture, and she nailed it up behind a shrine. If she's following the rules she's coming in at night between midnight and four in the morning to add another nail and just pray for vengeance on the guy."

"She?"

"In Japan we get a lot of what you'd call Onna monsters. Women who for some reason or another turned to dark powers to get revenge. Normally like I said nothing happens, or maybe the guy gets coincidentally sick, or even dies. On the other hand sometimes there are side effects on the caster. Or sometimes anyone who gets involved."

"What kind of side effects?"

"Are you familiar with the story of Hashi Hime, the bridge princess?" Sarah shook her head. "How about a boy named Jason Voorhees? Nice kid, a little slow, and his mom was into witchcraft?"

"He's real?" Sarah asked eyes wide.

"No, but it's a good example of what happens sometimes to the people who cast the curse, usually women who had some guy piss them off. If the curse works and they take a life they can be transformed into a monster. Sort of like a vampire mixed with a serial killer. They usually attack and kill anyone who fit their victim profile. If they were scorned in love they might kill happy couples. Or just men. Or women. If they were stopped from having kids they might kill children or mothers. Keep in mind you have to be pretty messed up to cast a curse like this in the first place and then keep doing it when you think it is working.

"It's sort of like becoming an angry ghost, except they're usually still alive. The difference between the living and the dead is not all that big. And when you do something like that it creates a connection between the victim and the spell caster and whatever else might be involved. You do not want to touch that doll with your bare hands. Your little necklace might protect you but why chance it?"

"Okay, so we take it down and burn it."

"Yes, but first we need to find the person who put it up or they might just do it again. And you said the nurse already told you the guy in the ID is out sick. So the person doing it not only knows what they are doing, they know it is working. I checked earlier and there was an extra nail so they aren't stopping."

"How do we stop them?"

"You tell me."

Sarah glared at her for her unhelpfulness, but nodded. "Okay, we'll go see Mr. Wallace for something combustible, a hammer, and some thick gloves. We wait until school gets out and then remove the doll from the tree."

Keiko nodded. "That way whoever is behind it doesn't know until she shows up tonight."

"Right, when we'll be waiting." She paused. "I think we should check in with the nun who runs the place too. Maybe she can bless the doll or something. Besides I want to burn the sucker as soon as possible and make sure I don't get on the wrong end of this whole thing."

Mr. Wallace was only too happy to help without asking questions. Sarah soon had thick leather gloves of the type used in chemical experiments, a self lighting Bunsen burner, and a good old fashioned claw hammer. He also assured them that next year the school would be using VR dissection instead of the real thing. "It does make me wonder about things like body farms and other uses for cadavers."

"In those cases people intentionally donate their bodies for those purposes," Sarah pointed out. "It might explain why those guys in Tijuana that steal people's kidneys go out of their way to keep them alive. If we ever get to the Soilent Green stage of society we could have issues."

"This just opens up so many levels of science that I never…"

"Mr. Wallace, don't. Stick to what you know and do not go poking at this stuff.'

"But…"

"Look, we're getting our information from ancient superstitions. Yeah, we're basically poking at it. But it's like uranium. People mess with it and they die. Someone smart might figure out the mysterious illness was caused by the glowing rocks and gets rid of them." She took a deep breath. "If scientists who know what they are doing start poking around with it though then you get nukes. The last thing anyone wants is you opening up a gateway to Hell, pissing off a god, or turning every human on Earth into worms."

"Then how will we ever understand it?"

"I'm sure there are people… or at least beings… out there who do. Psychics, sorcerers, and probably gods or demons. None of whom are likely going to want you getting too far with research. I mean you can try but… do you know when gunpowder was invented?"

"In china several hundred—"

Sarah made an annoying buzzing sound. "Wrong. At least I assume so. Think of the guys who probably invented it before the official guy and just did not know not to get it close to the candle. All anybody would know is that there was a loud noise and their house mysteriously burned down."

"Like Castle Frankenstein."

"Eh?"

"There really was a Frankenstein family in Transylvania long before Shelley made up her story and one of them was a well known alchemist. At least historically. Supposedly one day there was an explosion that blew up part of the castle and according to legend something escaped into the woods."

Sarah shrugged. "The point is you are a high school teacher. You have a good job, a wife…" She had noticed the ring on his finger. "And people who mess with this stuff tend to vanish without a trace. Sometimes alongside whole cities."

"Or continents," he said sounding disappointed. "I see the point."

"I'm just saying that as a scientist you should maybe invent an alternate fuel source or something before you start poking around with magic."

She left him to think that over, hoping she had made her point. Of course she was being a bit of a hypocrite. She was new at this too and ahead of him by a day or two. But her point was sound. She was playing with fire. A scientist could end up playing with napalm. Like the guys in movies who capture an alien and forget to ask if it has friends. She was dealing with minor disasters as they popped up. It would be all too easy to imagine Mr. Wallace recreating the killer frog, possibly in his own back yard.

It might be a good idea to get his address out of the school records in a few months and do a little snooping around his place. It might not be so bad if he got eaten, but the frog had not seemed like a picky eater and it could go after neighbors. Or little kids. Hopefully he would be smart enough to stay out of it.

On the way out she grabbed a box of cotton masks. Keiko saw her and said, "What are those for? We aren't going to go to the pits again are we?"

"No, but it occurred to me that whoever is doing this knows how to cast curses. I don't want to be next on the list because they whipped out their cell phone and got us on camera. I talked to my masseuse this morning and she made a good case for this kind of person really not liking it when people get in their way."

Nodding Keiko said, "I get you. So we put these on and make sure they can't take a snap shot of us tonight and have us spitting blood tomorrow. Though I think I'll just use my sweater hood if it's okay with you. They would need our names too. We should probably leave our IDs at home and think up a fake name to give her. I mean she could still take our picture around school."

"Well if this girl doesn't agree to give up I think I'll try to get her expelled. I don't see how we can stop them from trying again."

"Actually this one time should be enough. It takes a lot of emotional energy to do this sort of thing. A lot of focus. It's draining physically and psychically. Making it work once would take a lot. Restarting would be twice as hard. Anger fades over time. Assuming they are the power source it's unlikely that anyone who could do something like this and affect a living person could do it a second time.

"If they are channeling the power through a spirit that's another matter. A lot of them have short attention spans or limited patience or ability to contact this world. So disrupting the spell could mean they get bored and wander off. Others have limitless patience and can do whatever they want. Even disrupting the spell might not break the curse."

"Then we have the nun bless the grounds and hope that appeases it."

"Yeah. Then we check on Greg and see if he gets better. If not we see if his family will try an exorcism and a cleansing."

"The contract did say there was a budget for that." She paused. "I think we should leave the doll put for now."

"You sure? There are already four nails in it. If this is working it could kill the guy before the caster even gets to number seven."

"Whoever we're dealing with might be a little more willing to listen if we haven't already messed with their master plan."

Keiko shrugged. "It's your show. And I am pretty sure you're psychic so I'm willing to follow your lead."

"I seriously doubt I'm any kind of psychic. Otherwise I'd have done better on the multiple choice quizzes. I never guess right when I try to pick one at random."

"Never? That's interesting."

"Why?"

"The odds of getting them all wrong are about the same as getting them all right."

Sarah snorted. "Or it's just a coincidence. I could be remembering wrong."

Keiko sighed and put an arm around her friend. "I believe in you."

"Yeah, well I'd rather trust you." On impulse she transferred all of her gathered items to her left hand and pulled out her phone. Keiko was briefly confused until Sarah swung it around and the flash went off.

"What was that for?" Keiko said.

"Incase we get killed or something. Or just to have. What's your number? I'll send you a copy."

"I lost my phone a while ago and haven't got a replacement." Keiko looked nervously at the phone. "I should tell you that I don't really take good pictures."

"Nonsense, you look great. See?" She flipped the phone around.

Keiko stared for a moment at the picture of the two of them. Smiling and with Keiko's arm over her shoulder. She looked stunned for a moment and then said, "You take good pictures."

"You have to give props to a beautiful model," Sarah said and put the phone back in her pocket. "Come on. Let's head for the church and talk to the lady in charge."

It felt good now that she was over her initial nervousness to wander around the school as she saw fit rather than jumping at the bells like Pavlov's dogs. There was a sense of power to it. True she had to be conscripted into doing other things, but the perks of her new job were nice. Suddenly she burst out laughing.

"What's so funny?" Keiko asked.

"it just occurred to me. We're on a witch hunt. An actual literal… witch hunt."

"Oh my god, you are so right. That is so cool."

"There's no chance she can actually turn us to frogs, is there?"

"Nah. If she could Greg would have been finished on day one."

"Assuming she just did not want to suffer."

"Anyone who could do something like that wouldn't need the kind of curse you can find in a kid's book of urban legends from Japan."

"You hope."

They took their time heading for the church. It was a nice day and they were not in a hurry. Greg probably would have argued, but he was not there and likely had no idea what was actually happening to him. With any luck this whole thing was a exercise in futility. The guy could have caught some strange disease or maybe the person behind this had poisoned him as an insurance incase the spell did not work.

She doubted it though. If they had gotten away with poison then why keep coming out in the dead of night to put nails in a tree? Greg randomly getting sick at the same time was a big coincidence… though so was her being put in the SHC the same week it was happening. Or that the number of nails needed to finish the curse was the same as the number of forms Mr. Kane had given her. It was all enough to make one believe in a higher power. Well that and the giant undead frog. That was a real closer.

They approached the church admiring the stained glass windows. No actual scenes from the bible, just general color spread about the place against the white walls and a simple steeple without a cross. It was probably meant to be nondenominational. There were all kinds of rules about religion and schools.

Before they went in Sarah pulled out her pendulum. She had already learned of at least one staff member who was not human.

It turned out to be a good call.

As they stepped inside they saw the old woman sweeping the floor. Sarah was pretty sure for more serious cleaning she either got volunteers or kids from detention to help out. There were two tables on the walls to the left and right with a lot of candles and dozen rows of shiny wooden pews on either side. No confessional. Presumably if you needed to talk you could trust the nun or go to your own church on Sunday. Up front was a dais with a large book case behind it. She did not recognize all the titles but Sarah saw that they came from a lot of different religions. Presumably whatever a kid might need or suggest.

Which one was real? Sarah wondered. She had seen proof of a lot of Japanese stuff, but also elves. It was probably complicated.

The nun smiled at them as they walked inside. "Can I help you girls with something? Or are you here to make a donation to the clothing drive?"

It was strange the way she said this and Keiko did not like the way the nun looked at sweater. Sort of hungrily. Gripping it and stepping back she said, "No, I'm just helping her out."

The nun turned to Sarah, who was staring at a spot in the air above the nun's head. "What can I do for you?"

Sarah was unsure if she should run or just resign to wetting herself and dying right there. There was not a single rainbow on the nun's face. Instead they had gathered in another shape, as if a giant were standing over the old woman. The nun was a tall woman for being wrinkled and gray hair sticking out under her habit. She was dwarfed by the thing above her. The details were sketchy but there were a lot of rainbows, forming a silhouette.

It sort of reminded her of when Sailor Moon transformed. Only if Sailor moon were eighty. She saw pendulous breasts that hung down. The figure was hunched with a pair of large clawed hands. When the nun moved so did the huge shape… or vice versa.

The nun knew something was going on. So it was no surprise when the glitter of Sarah's pendulum caught her eye. What was weird was that she knew what it was. "Great Enma, you have the Tear of Tiamat!"

"The what?" Keiko asked.

The nun ignored her. "Does it work for you?" Sarah continued to stare, a shiver down her spine as she contemplated whether the thing was big or slow or just had a larger stride. It was the size of a T-rex and she was all too aware that she was the size of the average lawyer. "Never mind, I can see that it does. How… interesting." Sarah continued to stare. "Would you mind putting it away so we can talk?" Still frozen in place. Somehow the idea of that thing still being there but unseen was somewhat worse than knowing where it was. "I promise I won't hurt you."

"What are you?" Keiko asked seeing that her friend was indisposed.

"The modern term is a psychopomp. It means I help ferry lost souls to the other side. Similar to the priests and shamans on this side, but working from the other end. It's a terrible thing when souls become lost and cannot find their way to where they belong."

Sarah finally managed to get a hold of her throbbing heart and put her necklace away. The figure vanished and she was able to focus on the nun again. "We… uh… we actually are here to help keep someone from dying. Have you noticed the doll nailed to the tree outside?"

She nodded and smiled. Her teeth were yellow. "Oh yes, the death curse."

The two girls gawped at her. Sarah said, 'You knew?"

"I'm the one who taught the person doing it how to perform the curse."

Even Sarah thought she sounded whiny as she asked, "Why?!"

"For that you would have to ask them. I won't stop you from interfering but let us say that I have my reasons for helping."

"You call this help? Do you know how many people could die?" Keiko asked. "Did you even tell the person what could happen to them if they complete the ritual?"

"I left some surprises. My people are neutral, most of the time. Especially in regard to the soul. What a human chooses to do… the consequences are on them. That death awaits someone at the end of this they know. What else matters?"

Sarah wished she could argue with that. You did not tell someone planning a murder that they could be caught and killed themselves. Spend their life in prison. Go to hell. Or in this case become a monster. "You don't think turning them into a killer is bad?"

"If you knew the details, you might not think it was either. But again I am not the one doing the killing. That's up to them. Ask and find out the reasons before judging."

The two hesitated. Sarah said, "Do you mind if we stay in here while we wait?"

"Not at all. Part of the ritual involves praying for terrible things to happen to the victim. So I leave the door open. Just don't damage anything, or else." A barely audible growl came out of the air above her head.

Sarah felt a sudden need for a bathroom. "I promise." She ran off as a limping run for the restroom sign in a far corner.

The nun smiled and turned to Keiko. "Are you sure I can't help you with anything?"

"I'm fine," she said firmly. "I just wonder if you've ever heard of the Winchester mansion."

"What's that?"

"The wife of the man who invented Winchester rifles. She believed she was being haunted by the people killed by her husband's guns. She became a shut in and then began building additions to her home to confuse them. Doors to nowhere. Staircases that just end at a wall. Constantly changing the place. Now it's a tourist attraction."

"Your point being?"

"Who says she was wrong? Some people blame the person who forges the gun, some those who sell them. If your little witch does kill Greg or someone else, will they blame them, or will they blame the one who taught a child to do this?"

"I am not sure I care," the nun said confidently.

"Hopefully you will never find out."

The nun raised an eyebrow. "One day you will. And when the time comes I will take a personal interest. I may even keep your little hooded sweater as a memento. Few are so foolish as to stand up to me like that and most regret it dearly."

"Maybe I'll just turn up naked."

The nun smiled and seemed about to say something when Sarah came back. She looked much better. "So just so we're clear, you helped this person cast the curse, but otherwise you won't interfere or hurt us because we're trying to stop them."

"Absolutely not. I do not interfere directly in the affairs of living humans. I can provide advice as I see fit. That is all." Unspoken was the fact that they could treat her like one of the guards at Buckingham Palace and she would do nothing, but in the event of their deaths all insults would be remembered and accounted for.

"Understood. Uh, will you be here?"

She sniffed. "I happen to have a very nice apartment and a life outside of school."

"Right, just wanted to make sure we did not disturb you." Sarah was not sure what this thing was, but it felt like death incarnate. As if its decisions not to "interfere in the affairs of living humans" was a guideline, not a hard and fast rule. More importantly one that she did not always adhere to. Being too familiar with a creature as inhuman as the elves and Carrion seemed like a bad idea. She was not even sure what might set it off, though spending al day listening to mortal teenagers probably did not help. Certainly passing on twisted magic spells to the students did not indicate she had the same moral code as the average human.

Keiko seemed to disagree. "So when this is all done can you clean up the negative vibes your little protégé is leaving around or do you just plan to let someone else clean it up like toxic waste?"

"Naturally I plan to cleanse the area," she said calmly. "I've already kept the negative energies in check. This is between two people after all and many children and teachers come here to pray. You can rest in peace, assured that I do take some responsibility for my actions."

Keiko tried to stand and glare at her, but Sarah quickly grabbed her by the shoulders and flipped her around. "Well that answers all of our questions. Nice to meet you. goodbye."

"Bless you children," she said sweetly. She went back to sweeping and this time she sang. "Effigy dolls nails to a tree, these are a few of my favorite things…"

Outside Keiko almost screamed through pressed together lips. "What a—!" She stopped and turned to Sarah. "What is up with you? She was obviously provoking us and she handed a kid the equivalent of a grenade. You were practically kissing her feet." Sarah took a deep breath and told Keiko what she had seen. Keiko paled visibly. "Oh."

"Yeah, oh. I suggest you apologize to the nice lady and maybe slip a twenty into the collection plate. Maybe donate to that clothing drive she mentioned."

Keiko still seemed defiant, but then she smiled. "I know where to get some clothes. Why don't you head to the library and I'll meet you there?"

"You don't want to come with me?"

"I want to make sure you have an alibi."

Trying not to grin Sarah did an about face and headed for the library, leaving Keiko rubbing her hands together like an OCD super villain. She was still in front of the librarian reading when an announcement came over the speakers. "It is a felony to steal private items of other students. Will the person who took the spare clothes out of the lockers please return them to the office? If that happens in the next hour I will forgo punishment and consider it a mere prank. Do not and I will call the police."

The PA system cut off and Sarah shared a shrug with the librarian, barely keeping a smile off her face as she went back to reading the Occult Encyclopedia.

Sarah met Keiko outside the chapel with a hot pizza at a little after five. If there were still people around, like the cleaning staff or teachers working late, they were not around. Sarah had also dropped the keys she had borrowed from the nurse back in her office. She had copies.

"Hungry? I got Hawaiian."

"No thanks, pineapple isn't my favorite," Keiko said.

"Sorry, I should have asked."

"I don't really like pizza," Keiko said. "Seriously, I had something earlier and I am fine. The way to my heart is not through my stomach."

"What is it?"

"Impress me and find out." Sarah smiled and without saying anything she went and peeked into the chapel. The door was open as promised. She eyed the room and pulled out her pendulum. No sign of the scary lady. "She left a while ago after I helped her load a bunch of donated clothing into her car."

Sarah looked back over her shoulder. "And where did you get that clothing?"

"Oh here and there."

"Well while you were getting it, did you see whoever robbed the lockers? Because it seems that some of the richest kids in school found that their best clothes were taken. We're talking silk socks, leather jackets, stiletto heels, and all of it name brand. One girl was complaining she lost a bra and stocking set that's more than my dad makes in a week."

How awful and tragic," Keiko said placing a hand over her heart. "I wish I could help but I was helping a nun."

"Well that's definitive. She seems like the perfect alibi. Totally moral and incorruptible."

Keiko frowned. "She has a weird clothing fetish though. I swear she was about three seconds from tearing my sweater right off me." Sarah smirked and Keiko blushed. "Not like that. I got the feeling she would have taken the skin with it."

Sarah shuddered. "I believe it. I don't' think she's actually malicious like those elves but…"

"But a hungry bear isn't actually out to get you either, yeah." They both looked at the chapel. "And now we have to stay in there."

There were some books and my phone has the net. I was thinking of napping until eleven though. I can set an alarm."

"Actually I was going to suggest we watch an anime series I know. It's hilarious because they took a G rated kids show about a haunted school from Japan and gave it adult dialogue."

"Great, that'll take my mind off the scary monster lady." She sighed. "Fine, but only because I still feel guilty about not getting you anything you can eat."

"Yes!" Keiko fish pumped the air.

Feeling like maybe she was being manipulated Sarah joined her inside, purposely avoiding sitting in pew four. They were not comfortable seats, being made of solid hard wood. Still the show was as good as Keiko said and they watched the whole thing laughing and enjoying the evening. She doubted the techniques the kids used to fight the ghosts would work for her, but Sarah vowed to look into it just in case.

"I can't believe I ate that whole pizza," Sarah said around midnight. "I wish I had your discipline. By the time I'm in my twenties I'm going to be so fat."

"It's what's on the inside that counts," Keiko said. "And believe me, there's a good chance you'll never live that long. I say life fast, die young, and leave a beautiful ghost. Are you happy you ate the pizza?"

Sarah burped and rubbed her belly. "Yes."

"Then enjoy it. Nobody lives forever. That's definitely something you learn in this job."

Sarah could imagine that after her parents the little ghost girl had probably missed candy or cake. That room in the mirror had plenty of toys. Did the video games work? The real horror of that little girl's situation sank in. It would have been like a nightmare. The kind where you went into the kitchen and found your mother except instead o a face she just had a mouth full of sharp teeth. The same in most ways, almost normal, but off in others. Only without the chance of waking up.

It was hard to imagine a worse version of hell.

They took turns using the bathroom again, wanting to be ready incase the person showed up. Though a bit of research had made it more likely they would be there between one and three, the hour of the Ox. Sarah had no idea why it was called that, especially since it was two hours, but she was not sure what the hour of the wolf was in western culture either.

At exactly 1:00 AM they heard a loud pounding outside. Sarah put on her cotton mask and Keiko tugged the hood of her sweater shut until just her eyes peeked out. Sarah grabbed her phone which had a bright light on it useful as a flashlight. They went outside and hurried around to the picnic area and the tree.

When the light hit the figure the person turned around. They wore a gingham dress and had a pair of dark braided ponytails and had brown skin moisturized so it shone like polished wood. Turning green eyes flashed in the light before a hand was put up to block them. Red lipstick and red high heels. A fairly well endowed top too. All in all very pretty for a boy. Slightly off was the hammer in his hand and a crown on his head holding three lit candles. Strings of candle wax were dripping down his hair.

Sarah recognized Brian Fisk. He was pretty famous around school. Top of his class, star of the field hockey team, and well known around school because he was going through gender reassignment surgery. He had always been transgender, dressing as a girl, but when he turned sixteen his parents had finally signed the paperwork. Supposedly in the hope that at least by the time he got to college Brian/Bridgette would have a better time as a woman than the transgender boy. It was a pretty popular subject around school. Like how even though he looked like a young lady now, he still identified as a boy, planning to change it when he changed schools.

"What are you doing here?" He asked, surprised.

Sarah said, "We're here to stop what you're doing." She saw him grip the hammer and hit the picture button on her phone before emailing it to herself. "I just sent your picture to my inbox."

Practically snarling he said, "Why can't you just mind your own business?"

"I can't just let you kill somebody, even if it's in a way the police can never prove."

"He deserves it!"

"Careful," Sarah said. "Deep growling shouts aren't ladylike." Brian narrowed his eyes and then nodded, accepting the rebuke. "Why don't you come in with me and tell me about it? And I can explain the nasty side effects of what you were doing."

He considered for a moment and then nodded, setting the hammer down on the picnic table. Sarah saw Keiko duck out of sight. She had been prepared to step in if Sarah was in trouble, but now that she was not the plan was for Sarah to go talk with the perpetrator while Keiko spent some time taking out the nails and spiriting away with the doll for burning later.

In the church Sarah motioned for Brian to sit first. He did, lifting his skirt and daintily sitting down. "Again, why are you bothering me?"

Sarah sat down next to him and said, "You know your curse is working right? Gregory Derris is very sick and could die." She used his full name like a police officer would, so Brian did not get the idea that she and "Greg" were friends or anything.

"He deserves to burn in hell," Brian repeated.

"Maybe. Do you?"

"Me?"

"You're murdering a guy. Yeah it's with magic. Congratulations, you won't go to prison. Unfortunately you now know for a fact that the supernatural exists. Gods, demons, curses… and hell. Of some kind anyway. Doesn't matter what since every religion ever has something to say about murdering people."

"Maybe it's worth it." He sounded petulant.

"Except it won't be the hell you're expecting." She told him about the side effect of the curse. Living a full life and then going to hell for murder was the best case scenario. There was, she explained, a very real chance that the curse would transform him into a hideous monster bound for eternity to hunt down guys like Gregory and kill them. Over and over again.

"You are lying. Sister Sue would have told me."

"Sister Sue taught you a curse that makes a person puke up blood for several days and then die in horrible agony. Assuming she did that with your good as her sole reason seems a little naïve."

"You don't know what he did."

"So tell me."

He took a deep sigh. "He asked me out. Not openly really, but I'm usually cool with that. I've been out with girls and guys and either way they do not find it easy to be seen in public with a guy in a dress. So I'm okay with being discreet, going to places on the far side of town, that sort of thing. I'm used to them even wanting to stay with their official boyfriend or girlfriend.

"Anyway about a month in I suddenly get a call from Greg's girlfriend Cathy, bitching me out for giving her syphilis. It took a while to get the details, but Greg apparently told her that he had gotten drunk at a concert and I gave him syphilis. A neat trick since the concert was like a month before we even went out.

"So when I hang up I immediately went to the doctor and found out, yep, I have the disease. Fortunately it's very recent and they give me some antibiotics that clear it right up. After that Greg's avoiding me for a while and finally I corner him. He admits… no he brags that he just took me out so he could give me the same strain of STD he had before he told his girlfriend. So he could blame me for giving it to him and her before getting clean. The story he told everyone else was about me getting him drunk and him not knowing I was not a girl."

"He knew?"

"Oh yeah. He knew." Brian shook his head making his ponytails bounce. Absently he grabbed one and started stroking it, tears in his eyes. "He said he picked me because I'm a freak and nobody would believe me if I denied it. And he was right. Cathy spit in my face when I tried to tell her. I won't even tell you what some of Greg's friends have said to my face. Nobody has done anything physical yet or written notes because of the school's anti-bullying rules, but otherwise they aren't pulling any punches. His and Cathy's parents are trying to sue me, even after my doctor said I couldn't have had the disease as long as either of them. I don't even know if he told whoever gave it to him." Eye liner dripped down his cheek. "I was seriously thinking about killing myself when Sister Sue told me what to do."

He sounded like a bad country song. Sarah thought about Greg's smiling face beaming from his student ID. He was handsome enough. Having never met him Sarah would never have guessed such a Machiavellian ploy to maintain his social status. She did not doubt Brian's account, if for not other reason than that he would need a serious reason to go after someone with a curse. If he had been making it up then he would have probably told people he was cursing Gregory rather than skulking around in the dead of night to do it secretly.

It made a certain sense. Or had symmetry. Greg had told a lie everyone had believed. Brian had told the truth and been dismissed. So his revenge had been enacted in a way that was true, but nobody would believe. And both Sister Sue and Brian were right, it sounded like Gregory did deserve what was happening to him. If it would end there she might even have considered letting Brian finish his little curse. Even if there were more victims along those lines, it seemed likely they were just as deserving.

The thing was Brian wasn't. Not yet.

"Brian, I can't stop you from doing this thing. I know that. But if you do this nobody else in the world may know you killed another person, but you will. You'll have become a killer for someone I wouldn't dare spit on for fear of what I would catch. And that's if the full curse doesn't rebound on you and turn you into an inhuman monster that just kills over and over again.

"I've seen what happens to people whose souls become trapped like that. You won't be some avenging angel. You'll just be reliving your own pain over and over again. Never free of it. Killing people you never knew as a surrogate for the guy who wronged you once. Mr. Derris might die in blood spitting agony and go to hell, but he's probably headed downstairs as it is. Probably due to some other STD he'll get a month from now that will make what you're doing to him seem like a chest cold in comparison.

"Meanwhile you're letting him drag you to hell with him. Do you think the two of you will be together? I mean here you are just about through with your transition, off to college where nobody knows you… did you want to work or be a housewife?"

"Housewife," he admitted. "I haven't decided if I'd marry a man or a woman but I sort of pictured spending my days taking care of the house and raising the kids, waiting like a fifties mom with slippers and a martini for my spouse to get home, going to PTA meetings and trying not to laugh at the clueless idiots around me…"

"Kids huh? I'm sure they'll love knowing that mommy killed a guy with black magic. When your son or daughter comes home crying because somebody broke their heart are you going to tell them how to make them pay? Will you be proud when some dumb high school kid drops dead? When your own child is doomed to eternity in hell?"

Brian reached up and took the candle crown off his head. Silently he leaned over and blew them out. He was shaking with suppressed sobs. Sometimes no matter how hard they tried, some people just could not stop being a guy. "It's not fair if he just gets away with it."

"He won't. Like I said, you know there's another world. Magic and ghosts. Things out there watching and judging and playing with us. Maybe even helping us." She thought of Sister Sue again. "Derris could grow up to be a rich CEO. Donate millions to charity or otherwise trying to buy his way into Heaven. It won't work.

"Meanwhile you could spend the rest of your life being treated badly because you want to be a woman. You could get everything you want and be discarded by ungrateful kids. As long as you do your best, you probably won't be damned for eternity. Unless you kill that son of a bitch and get dragged down with him."

Brian stared at the burnt out candles on his lap. Absently he reached up running his hand through his hair, dislodging several hunks of wax. "I hate him so much."

"Nobody says you have to like him. Just don't murder him. File a countersuit. The prick gave you a STD on purpose. You have proof. Do it right and you can make him pay for your college. Or just drop it and go on with your life. I just hope that your life becomes the topic of a Lifetime movie and not a series of monster movies."

Brian sat there silently for a while and then said, "I guess I should get rid of the doll…"

"I have a friend taking care of that." Brian looked startled. "Oh come on, I wanted to talk you out of it and I said I couldn't really stop you. That doesn't mean I have to make it easy for you to become a supernatural serial killer."

Setting the headpiece on the pew Brian looked like he wanted to argue with the description, but just nodded instead. "I'm sorry."

"You've been up every night for the last five days. Why don't you go home and get some sleep? If you want I can get you out of school tomorrow and you can have a spa day."

"I do feel drained," he said. "I could use some pampering and maybe a manicure. Are you sure you can arrange that?"

To give Brian a day to get his mind off of Greg and relax? It would be easily worth it. She would have paid for it herself except A: he had tried to kill someone and more importantly B: his dress and makeup were both designer. Better than most of her clothes. He could pay for his own spa. "I am sure. Now you get your pretty little butt home and into bed. And stay away from Sister Sue. She's got her own issues you do not want any part of."

Blushing prettily he said, "Thank you, I…. thank you." Standing up he hesitated long enough to try to get any wrinkles out of his dress and then hurried for the door.

Sarah waited a little while, wondering if what she had done was really the right thing. Oh she had said that she thought murder was wrong, but in this situation there was a good case for it. Brian had every right to kill that SOB. And anyone who did anything similar to that was not deserving of sympathy either. If Brian wanted to go all Dexter on them who was she to interfere?

Except that Brian had not killed anyone yet and was a lot more worthwhile than his would-be victims. Being the killer of one wronged person was one thing. Being forced to relive his pain forever and kill people that he did not even know because they were sociopaths, trapped forever. It was not like the spell would have turned him into Batman. A vigilante who went out and turned these guys over for justice. Just one murder after the other. If she could keep him from that it seemed worth it. She had tried. And given the particulars even if the authority figures did believe her, what could they do? Burn Brian at the stake? If after this he went out and tried the curse again… well then that was on him. There was only so much you could do if someone was suicidal.

Keiko found her there about twenty minutes later. "You okay? I followed Brian until he hopped a fence and drove off in his car. Did it go well?"

"I hope so." She told Keiko the story. "I just feel like I maybe did the wrong thing. I can see why Sister Sue felt that maybe giving Brian that curse to use was the right idea."

"I doubt it. Trust me on this, when a spirit gets trapped they may not consciously be aware that they are doing the same thing over and over again. It can take a while to get used to thinking without a brain. Whole new perspectives are hard to get a grasp on sometimes and they get a sense that if they let go of the old and familiar they'll fall right off the planet, maybe out of the universe. But part of them knows exactly what is going on and feels trapped. Like when you get your head caught in a railing and can't get out."

Sarah shuddered remembering when she was a kid and stuck her head in the banister. It had seemed like a good idea until she could not pull out again. By the end she had not even been thinking and panicked. Her neck had been bruised for a week when her father had finally gotten a saw and cut her loose. Being trapped like that for a full day let alone centuries… she felt sick just imagining it.

Keiko looked at her with understanding. "You need something to take your mind off this. The bus doesn't run until four thirty around here. That gives us about three hour. It shouldn't take too long to burn the doll and ID, perform a cleansing ceremony, and toss the ashes down a storm drain… yeah I know it's polluting, but you try and find a river around here. Before that, how would you like to listen to the best band in the world?"

"You get a new music player or something?"

"Nah, it's live and in person. Right here in the music hall."

Sarah frowned. "No offense, but I've heard the school band play."

Keiko laughed and took her elbow. "Come on nonbeliever. You're going to hear real music."

It was amazing music. Mostly because there were no human beings to get in the way. The music hall was mostly sound proofed, but even before they entered Sarah heard muffled notes coming through the walls and doors. The lights were out, so that was weird. Sarah knew how to play the piano but could not imagine doing it in the dark.

"Now keep in mind, you aren't investigating this and aren't supposed to do anything about it. So no using it as one of yours."

"Okay…" Sarah got out her keys and opened the locked doors. Suddenly the air was full of music, loud in your face, and note perfect. Keiko went in first for once and turned on the lights.

Sarah gasped because there were musical instruments floating in the air. That alone was amazing enough, but she recognized them. On the first day of school they did a tour of the campus and in the music room there had been a collection of famous instruments. A single drum from the Beetles. A horn bought from a bar that Louise Armstrong played once. A tambourine owned by Aretha Franklin. A flute from the London Philharmonic. A guitar from Elvis's later years. Maybe a dozen or so in all. None of them particularly expensive as they went. Old but still functioning. Kept behind glass in cases set into the walls.

Somehow they were out. The cases open. And they were currently playing jazz.

"What is this?" Sarah asked.

Keiko smiled. "Tsukumogami. Artifact spirits. Everything has a spirit and sometimes, if their kept ad loved those spirits gain in power as they want to be part of the human world. Sometimes they are possessed by ghosts. Other times it is like the Velveteen Rabbit. Or those weapons that kill so many people they become demons." Sarah gave her a look. "They're pretty rare. It usually takes decades and these are just instruments. They even take requests."

"Fine because they're really good. But if I get decapitated by an evil tambourine because you requested a Weird Al song, I will haunt you forever."

"Promises-promises."

It really was a great concert. After they played a couple of her favorites she had tried naming a few obscure songs she liked. The instruments seemed to take it as a challenge. They got them all right and did better versions than she remembered. It was different since some of them were meant to have vocals, but the music was not even flawless. It was perfect. Not mechanical like it was being played by some computer. You got a sense of life from every note.

Shortly before sunrise the music stopped and the instruments floated back to their cases. Sarah was tempted to call for an encore, but she just followed Keiko's lead when she started applauding. When they were all back in their places on stands or just sitting on shelves alongside trophies and posters. Then Keiko led the way out and Sarah locked up. She was tempted to say that this was way better and less dangerous than the bird-lady sword fighter, but was slightly afraid that if she did one of the instruments would show up and demand blood or something.

"That was so cool."

Keiko nodded. "Feeling better?"

"How could I not?"

"Come on. Let's go burn a cursed doll."

Sarah laughed. "I love the fact that my life now includes sentences like that. And I don't even have to hit a comic convention."

6

Hungry-Hungry Hairdo

"Three days," Sarah whined as Katie watched her eat a cafeteria hot dog on a grassy hill. "And not even an airplane I could mistake for a UFO!"

Keiko rolled her eyes and bumped her friend with her shoulder. "Most people only see one weird thing in their lives. The SHC barely has one thing a month they really have to deal with."

"I bore easily."

"What about that kid you said you saw in the parking lot?"

She had caught a glimpse of a young boy who had been poking around the cars. There was definitely something weird about him because he had the hood open and was looking under it. She had thought that odd since the kid seemed to be about ten. Sarah had gone around to the side expecting to see him vandalizing the thing and instead had seen that he had a very long tongue… like three feet long, dipping in and out of the oil tank as if he was a humming bird. "I don't think that counts. I'm not sure it's school related and when he saw me he literally turned into a ball of fire and flew away."

"Nobody else saw this? Where were the security guards?"

"I didn't see them, but even if they did see it, you think they'd tell anyone? Look at that lame story they came up with for the mall elves. The newspaper said they were midgets from a drug cartel that might have been harvesting human organs. By now those little monsters are off probably running an evil lemonade stand somewhere."

Keiko shook her head. "You're getting addicted to this stuff. Come on Sarah you can't expect into something new and out of this world every day. Admittedly you've had some good luck in that area, but you can't just expect this stuff to walk up to you demanding attention."

Suddenly a shadow fell over them. They looked up and saw Rebecca Marx, a beautiful dark haired Jewish girl with a two-foot beehive hair style held in place with enough bits of string, hair clips, and even a pair of those chopstick things women used in china to make Jack Sparrow envious. And when you looked closely you could see that her hair was not just swirled around like an ice cream cone. Instead it was a complicated mix of braiding, cross hatching, and techniques Sarah recognized from making pot holders at camp. It must have taken hours and was very distracting. A lot of kids had wondered why, when she started sporting it two years before, she was allowed to do so at school.

Other than that she seemed pretty normal. No tattoos or piercing. Her clothes were nice but subtle. Nothing about her screamed that she would ever be the girl with the crazy hair style.

"You're that girl who has been wandering around school all week. The one who was asking my friend Stacy and her buddies about spirit boarding."

"If you want help with that I'm afraid…"

"No! The last thing I would ever do is getting involved with weird stuff. I only met Stacy because I thought she could help me and… and a lot of my old friends didn't like my new hair style. They kept saying that spiders would hatch out of it."

"Have they?" Sarah asked.

"Not really an option. Look, I really need your help."

"With what?"

"My hair."

Keiko said, "I take it back. Apparently the weird stuff will just walk up to you and demand your attention."

Becky would not explain her problem in public, so she led them to the auditorium. It was open because that weekend was a school dance, but mostly deserted. The kids working on the decorations came in at random, but far less than say using a bathroom and while Sarah considered taking her to the fourth floor that seemed a little extreme for some privacy.

When they got there she explained, "My hair is… alive. And worse there's this… thing on the back of my head. A…" She wined. "It's a mouth. With teeth and a tongue and it can talk and it's always hungry. If I don't tie it up like this it steals my food right off my plate. It whispers things when I try to sleep." Tears were falling from her eyes. "Please tell me you believe me."

"Well I haven't seen it yet. But I won't disbelieve you unless you take your hair down and your head just sits there. Heck I'll even give you the benefit of the doubt a little there. I've seen those old Michigan J. Frog cartoons. What I don't understand is why you're coming to me."

"Stacy said you… knew about this stuff. She told me about the SHC. Her friends are still arguing over trying to hold another séance."

Sarah winced. Okay so one or two of the Goth kids had known about the SHC. She had come around asking questions. She was the new person when the weird stuff happened. Given what she had learned since studying investigation techniques, it was not surprising that they were assuming she had a lot more to do with the exploding board game than she had. "Look, I'm new at this. Basically I'm just doing my initiation, poking at ant hills. Up until last week I thought magic and monsters were the subject of primetime television."

Becky's knees shook. "You can't help me?" Her lip trembled. "My… my parents have tried everything. Our local priest tried baptizing me. I was strapped to a bed for four days while a Catholic priest sent by the Vatican tried to exorcize me. They called in a witch doctor from Arizona. I think we've lost fifty grand to fakes. The principal had to give me special permission to keep this hart style. I can't even cut it because it fights back and now my neck is developing problems from the weight of the beehive." She grabbed Sarah's arm suddenly making her jump. "Please! I need real magic and you're the only chance I've got."

"Okay, okay! Just let me go. I said I couldn't help you. I may know someone who can."

"You do?" Keiko and Becky asked at the same time. Keiko was surprised and Becky was wide eyed with hope.

"It's been a busy week."

Becky let her go and said, "Thank you!" Then she hesitated. "Are you sure these people can't just tell you what to do? Can't we keep this just between us?"

"You mean not let an adult in on your being a freak and stick with the easily dismissed teenager?" Keiko asked.

Becky ignored her. "I just don't want to end up a modern day sideshow freak. I mean what if they want to find out how it works? Fifty years from now my dissection video being shown after that Roswell alien one in some kind of marathon."

Sarah wanted to believe her, but was still conflicted about saving Greg. And Keiko was obviously implying she should check into this deeper. "Becky before I help you, I'm going to need a few things."

"My parents paid the last guy twenty thousand dollars."

Sarah felt a momentary shiver of greed, but shook it off. "I don't want your money." Both the other girls seemed surprised when she said that. "I looked up how real exorcisms work. The person is often starved, sleep deprived, and…"

"I know. I've been through it."

"Yeah, sorry. And it didn't work at all?"

"No. It would have been worth it if it had and if I thought another one would help I'd do it. But I'd rather not, you know?"

"I'll see what the people I know say. They may want to be paid. Like I said, I'll check in and I will get back with you. I wish I could do more, but I am so new at this anything I did would do more harm than good."

"I understand."

She left and Keiko asked, "Who do you know that could be of any use?"

"Well there is the rest of the SHC. They've done this sort of thing before. I do not like the idea of asking for help before I've finished my forms. I do however know someone else with a lot more experience."

Keiko did not join Sarah on her trip back to the mall. Sarah could not blame her and shuddered as she walked past the ball pit. She kept her pendulum in plain sight, less concerned about possibly being robbed than missing some little pointy eared monster leaping at her from out of the crowd. She only relaxed when she made it to Rite Aids and saw Rose inside reading the palm of some teenage boy.

Sarah entered slowly but both looked up as the little chime attached to the door. The boy looked mildly annoyed and Rose pleasantly surprised. They both quickly got back to what they were doing while Sarah window shopped. She and Keiko had even performed a quick cleansing ritual over the tree where Brian had been performing his curse. She had needed an excuse to try it, a situation in which it might be effective, and frankly did not trust Sister Sue. There had been no physical effect but Sarah swore that the air felt cleaner and somehow happier. Keiko said she felt the same way describing almost exactly how Sarah felt.

The book of mythological creatures had been fascinating and worrying. There were a lot of supernatural creatures. Some overlapped. Basically the same thing with a different name or slightly different abilities. Like comparing yeti to Bigfoot. Others were unique and almost all of them were dangerous. At last the ones people knew about.

Presumably there were hundreds more out there completely unknown for each one a person had heard of or seen, but went unrecorded because a human never encountered them, never told anyone, or did not survive. Not to mention any spirit or entity that was good or neutral probably did not get involved with humans. People only ran into the kind that lived around them or were actively after then… or trying to stop one of the dangerous entities. Basically the supernatural world was as complicated as biology, math, or any other branch of research. Only they were still stuck in the mindset of scientists in the sixteen or seventeen hundreds where they could build ships and fire canons but doctors were still blaming illness on imbalanced humors and toothache on evil fairies.

Only there really were evil fairies. That really complicated things.

Eventually the boy left seemingly content with whatever his future held. Sarah went over to the counter and smiled at Rose. "How's business?"

"Not bad. How goes your adventures?" Sarah told her everything. It was good to get some of it off her chest. Rose interrupted. "Oh my gods, I sold you the Eye of Tiamat for five hundred dollars!? And it works for you?"

Sarah clenched her hand over her prize. "You can't have it back."

Rose smiled. "Don't worry about it. I do feel a bit cheated, but I took the deal and never could find a use for the thing. Seems like you have."

Sarah relaxed and continued talking. Rose was tickled pink when she heard about the elves and Brian, though she kept his actual name out of it. "That's great. Though you should be careful. Elves tend to hold grudges. They used to curse entire family lines if the offense was grave enough. I am also pleased you stopped that other curse. It sounds like the 'victim' might have deserved it, but curses like those are never a good idea. They cause a lot of collateral damage and every time one works, it means another ten people or more will try it. It also tends to attract other things."

"Like what?"

"Demons, dark gods, good gods who think anyone with contact to dark forces needs to be destroyed, monsters, evil spirits, sorcerers who can use the negative energy or enslave the cursed ones, and some things that can only live in cursed areas… or it can mutate those around it. The same thing can happen even with too much good magic. There are very good reasons why people are forbidden from going near places and things considered cursed or sacred."

From what Sarah had been reading, even benevolent gods sometimes made mistakes while trying to reward mortals. Greek myths were full of them. King Midas for example helped Dionysius and a satyr friend of his when they turned up drunk at his palace and was given a wish. He wished that everything he touched turn to gold. A good wish right up until he got hungry or his daughter came in to give him a hug. Gods did not always see things the way a mortal might and humans tended to not think things through. For both sides it was like trying to communicate with a completely alien creature. Like when Kirk runs into a creature made of gas, or crystal, or pure energy and they spend half the show trying to kill each other over some misunderstanding. Or because someone is being intentionally evil, greedy, or just plain mean.

"I get the feeling you aren't here just to check in. You seem spooked."

Sarah shuddered once again remembering the claws that had dragged the fat man to oblivion. "Actually I came here for your help. How are you at banishing evil spirits?"

"Not bad. It costs though and as I recall you were worried about paying a mere five hundred dollars."

"It is not for me, it's for someone else. Ad her parents apparently paid twenty grand to the last guy they hired. They might insist on paying you after you succeed…"

Rose waved it off. "I have standard contracts for that. It's a necessity these days. You would be amazed how desperate people change once a curse is lifted. As soon as it is all clear they start saying things like 'demons don't exist so how can you charge us for getting rid of one?' Sometimes it's just denial, not wanting to admit what is happening. Other times they think they're clever."

Sarah frowned. "Wouldn't stiffing someone who has just demonstrated supernatural powers be a bad idea? Especially if you called them in because you could not handle the problem yourself?"

Rose gave a wicked grin. One of her teeth glimmered gold. "Yes." Sarah smiled back and Rose asked, "So what is the problem?"

Sarah described what Becky had told her. "I haven't seen it myself. I guess she could be making it up. I think I saw a movie with a girl who had a mouth in the back of her head once. But if so she's a really good actor."

"No, the story rings true. And if it were a prank it would be a pretty lame one. I personally would be annoyed at being dragged out there for nothing, but overall it seems pointless. Especially if she's not seeking attention."

She seemed troubled. "What's wrong?"

"The curse you're describing… it has… well it's had a very specific cause up until now. This girl… how old is she?"

"Uh… sixteen… maybe seventeen?"

"And she's never had kids? Been married?"

Sarah blinked. "Uh, I don't think so. I mean some girls at school have babies and I guess might have gotten married young with parental permission. Is it important?"

"I don't know yet. Before we do this, I'll need to talk to her. From both ends."

"Do you really think you can help?"

"That will depend on several things. Mostly her and how this happened. Sometimes these things are hard to identify correctly. Like werewolves. Some people are possessed by an animal spirit and act like a lycanthrope, sometimes they are legitimately insane, some are transformed by others, a few transform themselves, sometimes they get cursed by killing the person who had the curse before them, and sometimes it's something laid on an ancestor that travels through the bloodline. Assuming the person is human to begin with." She shook her head. "Only I've never heard of two versions of this curse. And nobody who knew about t would want to be publicly linked to it. Like you say extra mouths aren't unheard of in fiction, so if she's a fake that's fine. If this is real… well that presents problems."

"Such as?"

"I'd rather not say until I talk to her. Sorry young apprentice. Your lessons will continue when your time at school ends. You cannot be distracted either from your duties to the SHC or from the lessons I will teach you. Both require focus and a bit of knowledge that could be dangerous if you tried to cross them over." She smiled. "Something tells me that you have the instincts to guide you along both paths. Trust in yourself and the answers should present themselves to you."

Sarah was surprised. Briefly she wanted to ask, "When did I become your apprentice?" But thinking it over, she was pretty sure she wanted to be. Rose had a lot to teach her. Though in the back of her head Sarah wondered if she kept her youth by bathing in the blood of virgins or something. She could just be psychically fattening Sarah up like a turkey. She did not think so and really liked the old witch. Besides, it might be worth it. "I am not sure I am the one you want. I mean B— that boy I mentioned was able to get that curse to work."

"A strong possibility. Many ancient cultures including the Egyptians and the Norse had cross dressing priests who were respected or feared above all others. Personally I suspect because such people tend to have harder lives and thus deeper connections to their emotions and psychic powers. Stressful situations activate psychic powers and who is under more stress?"

"Tough call. Is it the person hiding who they are or the one who has been outed in a world where acceptance is an impossible dream?"

"Eh. It helps if you start a cult and can curse your enemies. They got respect quickly at that point." She clapped her hands. "Well I have to work. Tell your friend I'll meet with her, but no promises. Also tell her my name is Mistress Vivian. That was my nom de plum when I worked with the circus."

Sarah felt a tingle and wanted to hear that story. She could tell Rose wanted to tell it too. Just as she had spilled the events of her own adventures. At the same time Sarah was being dismissed. The assumption being that there would be another time. "I'll call you with the meeting place. Do you have a specific request?"

"Hey for twenty grand I can afford to be flexible. Keep in mind I'm old enough to still think of that as some serious money. If I have an appointment with a serious customer I may push it back a few hours or a day, but just see when she wants to meet and call the shop."

"Will do." She looked out the door. "Uh, you don't think those elves are still out there, do you?"

"I haven't seen them since they got chased out and the guards are on the lookout. If I were you I'd just do my best not to think about them. They can hear you if you do and even if they aren't there, you'll make yourself paranoid. They can hide themselves from human sight, but doing it well is annoying and if they did it would mean they could not sell cookies. But I can't say for sure and other things come to malls. I'd say if you wanted to avoid magic and monsters you should stay at home and never talk to anyone, but people who do that make easy targets for the supernatural. It's more like trying to pick a thief or a murderer out of a crowd with no evidence and having never met them before." She eyed Sarah's pendulum with no little jealousy. "Of course back in the day that's why they used bloodhounds."

Sarah took the hint. That was why her bauble had been made. It really was amazing. She had looked up Tiamat. The mother of all the original gods and monsters. Avatar of what was there before creation, mate to Apsu the Abyss, whose body was used to make the universe. The Eye of Tiamat had not appeared anywhere. She had been mildly afraid it would be on some stolen artifact list and the FBI would see her in some picture on social media and bust down her door. But who would admit to having it if they knew what it was? Nobody would destroy it, even a monster. If they even could.

Sarah had been impressed when she had found out that it was a real diamond. Now the monetary value seemed superfluous. This was the sort of thing people sold their souls for. Possibly had. Her research had turned up other things. The Bottle Imp. The Spear of Destiny. The Grass-cutter sword. Excalibur. The Deathly Hallows.

It was almost obscene how Sarah felt about the shiny jewel. If she could somehow see Keiko's face in the facets like the Pink Panther diamond it would be perfect.

Confident that her treasure would at least warn of any serious dangers Sarah stepped out into the mall. The scent of food courts filled her nose and she was mildly conflicted. On the one hand she had bought something dear and precious for a fraction of a fraction of its true value. On the other that had pretty much killed her allowance for at least three months. She supposed this sort of thing had its price.

As she meandered about doing a bit of envious window shopping Sarah even managed to forget the ball pit. She did not see the rainbows, invisible to anyone but her, flickering over the surface. The way something moved softly inside, showing as little evidence on the surface as a mole under sod. Still a red shape easily mistaken or another plastic ball, suddenly split revealing a shiny golden eye, split horizontally like a goat's. There was a soft hungry growl edged with resentment as it followed Sarah's movement. Then the balls shifted just a little and the eye was replaced with a nose. Not a human nose. The nostrils were too big the tip to long and hooked, and the red skin looked like layers of leaves, overlapping and veined. The nostrils flared catching her scent.

Then it was gone. Sarah turned around feeling a shiver down her spine. Nothing was there but she still quickly headed for another part of the complex. If someone wondered about her nervousness and checked the footage they might think the balls settled oddly. If they looked and sifted through them for a hundred years they would find nothing.

There is something about looking at something close to human but that still falls outside of what you think of as normal that really disturbs people. The same instinct that makes people suspicious of strangers or has animals attacking mirrors. It's why computer animators have never been able to get a CGI human character that looks too real quite right.

And that was only part of the reason the back of Becky's head using her hair like tentacles to shovel food into a second mouth that chewed hungrily despite not even having jaws. It reminded Sarah of a disturbing starfish. Keiko looked like she was going to puke. If she did Sarah would probably join her. Before untangling her hair, a process that would have taken anyone else at least an hour but Becky's experienced hands took about twenty minutes, they had placed a stack of fruit next to her. It had been free ten minutes and was already half way done, simply shoving it one piece at a time into the mouth and not caring about peels or cores.

Rove… sorry Mistress Vivian… sat on the auditorium stage next to Becky. "Rebecca do you have any idea why this is happening?"

"No! I mean one day I woke up and the back of my head was freaking talking to me. Telling me I had to apologize but not why. Stealing my food. I didn't know things like this could happen."

"Lucky you," she said blandly. "The thing is that I do know how this happens. And believe me it is generally deserved. I need complete honesty from you. Do you understand?"

Becky's main mouth pressed together in a thin white line. "One of the other guys told me that too. He said that it was the result of killing someone by letting them starve. I have never hurt another human being like that. I am a hair puller in a fight."

"It wouldn't have been a fight. It's more of a Cinderella story. The way this usually works is that a woman gets married. The guy she marries has kids from a different marriage. And being a wicked stepmother the woman lavishes attention on her own kids and deprives the other children of food and care until that child dies. Then after about forty-nine days they suddenly get a mouth on the back of their head, their hair comes alive— you get the picture."

"Yeah, but I didn't do that. I do not have any kids and I'm way too young to get married. I don't even have any siblings or step-siblings or anything."

"Okay then we examine the time-line. I take it you remember the exact date your head grew a second mouth."

Becky gave her a look and then sad, "February two years ago."

"And what were you doing then?"

"I was on vacation. My dad surprised us with a cruise to the Bahamas. I came home from school and found our things packed to go, the pets sent to a kennel and a cab waiting to take us to the airport. We were on a boat for two weeks. Nobody died. Everything was fine when I got home. No friends disappeared. Everyone on the cruise was perfectly okay."

"Why forty-nine days?" Keiko asked.

"Forty-nine days is the mourning period in Japan. That's why the curse takes so long," Vivian said. "So whatever happened had to have gone down in that time period."

"Nothing happened," Becky said.

Something tickled at the back of Sarah's head. It seemed silly. Like she was one of those people on those old detective shows that says something that they think makes sense but out loud sounds stupid. Then she thought of Rose's advice to trust her instincts. She still doubted she was actually psychic, but she had a vague idea. What could it hurt?

"What were you supposed to be doing?"

Becky looked up. "What?"

"You said your dad surprised you and whisked you away. What would you have been doing that Christmas if he had not surprised you?"

Becky frowned. "Nothing. We had no big plans and both my parents kept it secret. Otherwise I guess I would have been splitting my time between watching TV and going to my part time job. Maybe hanging out with some friends."

"And your friends are all fine?" Vivian asked.

"They're not really my friends any more, but as far as I know everyone I knew back then is still alive and well. If they aren't and I'm just forgetting I seriously could not have done anything if I wanted to. I was nowhere close."

"What was your job?"

Becky looked at Sarah. "I got a temp job at a laboratory on a college campus near here. I was cleaning out animal cages once a week. I'd come in, make sure their food dispensers had water and food in them, and that the automatic cleaning stuff at the bottom of the cages got swapped out. It wasn't much but it got me some spending cash. There was even this monkey there named Mr. Jingles who is exactly like my pet monkey at home. I mean I called him Mr. Jingles. The students don't' name the animals they're experimenting on. I kind of got in trouble for slipping him one of Fuzzy Tail's old squeaky toys once."

"What happened then? Did they fire you?"

"Nothing. I mean I called in and told them that I would be out of town. The professor in charge said that was fine and he would assigned another student to it and I was free to come back when I got back."

"Did you?"

"Nah. Something happened and he called me up to say that he didn't need me any more, but that he would keep my number. I think he assigned a grad student to do it or something to save money."

Sarah pulled out her phone and logged onto the net. "What was the name of the school?"

"Southside Community College."

She began a search, checking December and then January for anything to do with the college. Something came up on January third. "Oh dear."

"What?"

She turned her phone so Becky and Vivian could read it.

Animal Rights Advocates Petition To Fine College

By, Paula Seagull

Over Christmas vacation this year tragedy struck when the animals in Southside Labs were left unattended over the holiday break. The professor running the lab admits that his usual caretaker, name not mentioned, was going on a trip and had informed him of her sudden unexpected absence. He had been planning to hire or assign someone else that afternoon, but had been grading papers and working on plans for his own holiday and forgot about it.

Tenured professor J.P. Rockford who runs the lab said, "The person I usually have do this is conscientious and has done so studiously. She is in no way to blame for this. I take full responsibility and am paying the fine for animal abuse and reimbursing the school for the lost test animals. While we do experiment and even kill our test animals, we do so as humanely as possible and this should never have happened."

Animal rights groups are up in arms and…

Becky stopped reading and just stared at the screen. Mistress Vivian nodded. "That might do it."

Sarah saw it too. "A place where they routinely kill a lot of animals. Usually the smartest ones who probably have at least some idea what is happening."

"And she's the only one they know," Vivian and Keiko said in unison.

"What?" Becky asked.

The mouth on the back of her head said, "About time you figured it out."

"This is it? What you want me to apologize for?"

'Why couldn't you just tell me that? I didn't even do anything." It ignored her and went back to finishing off its food. She looked at Sarah and Vivian. "Do animals even have souls like that? Even if they did would they be smart enough to blame someone for something they were not even there for?"

Sarah and Keiko shared a look and then both said, "Yes."

Mistress Vivian said, "You ever read Moby Dick? Heard of Captain Hook? Animals have fine memories. Big cats injured by humans have been known to track them for days to kill them. Pull a thorn from a lion's paw and it might not eat you. There used to be an old sideshow where a cat, dog, mouse, and snake or some other animals were raised together so they never tried to eat each other." She smirked. "It didn't always work, but you get the general idea."

"Look at it from the animal's perspective," Sarah said. "The rest of the people in that lab, they were detached. They would have to be to experiment on them. Kill them. To the animals it's torture. Animal rights people say it all the time. Scientists don't even deny it any more and rely on words like 'necessary sacrifices'. It's a big issue. And my guess is that this college has been operating a while." She checked her phone. "Established in 1978 by a grant from... So yeah, they have been doing this a long time. Then there you are, feeding them, cleaning up after them, and I'll bet you pet and even played with a few."

"Sure, I mean nobody else would. The teacher had no problem with it, but warned me that I would be too attached when they died. I just couldn't resist. What does that mean?"

"Haven't you done any research on this?"

"My mother and father have been taking me to church and having me read the bible. I know the whole thing by heart along with a lot of hymns and parables and things. I told you we've called the Vatican and even a few New Age types. We've even been bilked a few times. None of it did any good."

"Of course not," Mistress Vivian said. "You didn't even check other religions did you?"

"Why would I? Jesus is our savior."

"His actual name is Joshua," Keiko said. "Jesus is just what the Roman's called him when they translated the story of his life from Hebrew to Lain." If Rebecca took any notice of the correction she ignored it.

"Personally I am not much of a fan of Christianity. I'm not saying their God or his son don't exist, but the followers are human get a lot wrong after two thousand years of telephone tag and mistranslations. But they do have some power and they get a few things right. And when you're being cursed you cannot be forgiven until you repent and earn it." She waved at the hair that was reaching around for any scraps it may have missed. Sarah and Keiko moved back a bit, hoping it did not go for them.

Becky again yelled at her own head. "Why didn't you just tell me all of this?" There was no reply.

"It's an animal spirit. They don't learn English that fast. Maybe a few words and commands. More like parrots than a child and it takes years to teach those a vocabulary with a few hundred words," Vivian said. "They can get pretty cunning with time, even the dumber ones, but usually like a lot of ghosts they don't even notice time passing. Not unless they understand that they re dying. It used to be a common practice to leash a dog into a cemetery and then place food out of his reach. Once he was straining and totally focused on the food a swordsman would what its head off in one swing and the ghost supposedly went on guarding the cemetery."

"These animals on the other hand," Sarah took up, feeling the urge to impress her would-be mentor. "They died over the course of maybe two weeks? When you left it was how long before you would have been in?"

"Uh, Saturdays." Her eyes looked a little glassy. "We left Friday afternoon."

"Right, so they would have been at the end of their food, hovering over a filter full of feces that needed to be changed, and probably without water. I have never starved like that, but I can imagine. Trapped in a cage without water or food. The stench. Slowly wasting away and maybe trying to claw their way out, bleeding to death when they got hurt. Gnawing on steel, maybe getting through and getting cut up. Only to be trapped in the lab… did they have food in the room?"

"Most of it was fresh so it was kept in the cafeteria fridge. There were big bags hamster pellets in big bags on the opposite side of the room." She winced.

Keiko said, "I always thought it was mean putting mice too near the cats, ferrets, and snakes in a pet store. Like Tantalus. Food just out of reach forever."

Coffins inside of coffins. Dying in one of the slowest and most painful ways possible. And after weeks or months of her being the only human they really recognized and understood was connected to anything but pain, suddenly she was gone. Leaving them to die. When they did kick the bucket, did they try to find her? Possibly locating her at home playing with her own pets. Including a monkey. Apparently without giving them a thought.

"Why would they blame me? I take good care of my dog, my cat and FT. I was nothing but nice to those animals."

"Nobody else to blame? Besides nobody is sure why this happens," Vivian said. "If it happened to every nasty stepparent they'd be all over the place."

"I bet it builds up," Sarah said. She was thinking of the frogs. "Like you told me the negative vibrations or whatever build up and either do things to people or attract attention. In this case it got set off like an oil well. Pain, anger, recrimination… and boom. Black gold."

"Texas tea," Keiko added.

"It does meet the requirements of the curse. You probably barely gave them a thought."

"They were going to be killed."

"Painlessly, or close to it," Sarah said. "Just like thousands before. Rats, monkeys, and who knows what else. All trapped there probably screaming at the new animals in their cages, not understanding why they could not touch them or something. Or just not seeing them at all. From what I looked up the school seems pretty science oriented. So they would likely not do anything about it until something like this happened."

"And since it happened to you, they never knew about it. The animals might have even sought you out," Vivian. "Only to find you pampering your own pets and ignoring them."

"Even dogs get jealous when they don't get attention," Keiko said.

"So I just have to apologize?"

"Mean it and make this thing understand."

Becky had tears in her eyes. Were they relief at her plight or sympathy for the animals? Sarah supposed they would know soon. She suspected doing something like this for one's personal benefit would not work. "I am sorry. I didn't want any of them to die." She tried to say more but suddenly a tuft of hair flickered over her mouth.

"No! Food!" Sarah was too slow. A lock wrapped around her neck. It was surprisingly tight, but then it fell away as it brushed the pendulum under her shirt. Several ropes of it tried for Vivian but bounced off the air like it hit a wall. She did not even flinch. Keiko had slipped right through the strands. For a second it looked like they had her and she just brushed past out of reach. Down Becky's hair was almost six feet long. Both high school girls backed up. "Feed me!"

Mistress Vivian shook her head. "Hungry ghosts. The only thing that matters more than their grudge or unfinished business is their appetite. I understand but the thing is when anything starts starving all the best parts go right out the window. Men and animals resort to cannibalism, eating things they can't digest, or chewing on their own bodies. Eventually they die. If they already are dead…" She looked at Sarah and snapped. "Get to the kitchen. Grab as much food as you can."

"I have a better idea," Keiko said. She motioned for Sarah to follow her. On the way out she pointed to some chairs stacked in the corner. "Grab one of those and follow me."

Unsure what good the chair would be except maybe grabbing food off of a high shelf, she did as instructed and they ran out into the sun blinking at the sudden brightness. She shook it off following Keiko's footprints. The cafeteria was a ways off. They stopped about twenty feet from where they were.

Blinking in the light Sarah did not see anything at first, but then she grinned. They were in front of one of dozens of vending machines that dotted the campus. She looked at the chair in her hands and hesitated. Keiko snorted. "These things are insured and they get broke all the time. Vandals or just sports accidents. Just break the glass." She tried but the thump just made her hands stink, despite the chair's steel legs. "You need to weaken it."

Sarah got an idea immediately. Yanking off her necklace she set the chair down and ran her diamond over the glass front, just like her dad had when he tested it in the car. It took a minute to carve an X and the sound was horrendous, but she did it and slipped the completely undamaged diamond back around her neck.

The sound of breaking glass was surprisingly satisfying. She made sure to knock out all the jagged pieces and then tossed the chair aside. As the last bits tinkled to the concrete she and Keiko reached in and grabbed a bunch of boxes and bags. Even some fruit, Then they turned and ran back.

Suddenly a whistle blared. "Stop!"

Sarah glanced back and saw the yellow t-shirt of a school security guard. He was about ten steps behind them. "Keiko…"

"Ignore him," she snapped.

Sarah understood and pounded her feet to the auditorium. He was almost on them when she yanked open the door. His hand fell on her shoulder. He was shouting, "I don't know how you did that but…" His voice trailed off as he saw inside the auditorium. Sarah felt his grip relax and she ran forward again. Keiko had already tossed her armful forward.

Becky had been suspended like a woman levitating in a magic show. A few strands had been whipping at Mistress Vivian. They seemed to be getting closer than before. Missing her face by inches. From the sound of them they would split her skin like a bullwhip. Then when Keiko threw the food Becky had unwrapped like a mummy in a comedy landing with a soft thud on the stage.

The food was disappearing too quickly. Any second it would be gone and so would what Sarah was holding. Unless… she had read somewhere that vampires counted every seed or bead thrown at their feet. She doubted the hair could do that, but did it are if the food came in large clumps? Dropping most of what she had Sarah grabbed a bag of sunflower seeds. With a flick of her wrist she scattered them across the polished floor. As she hoped dozens of strands began chasing them.

Bending down Sarah grabbed a bag of pretzels, crushing it between her fingers before popping the top and shaking it. Waiting for the hair to finish the seeds. Meanwhile Rose nodded approvingly and moved to Becky's side. "Now you hair brained idiot! Do it now!"

Shivering Becky said, "I'm sorry. I wish I could go back and undo it. If I had known I would have insisted on feeding those animals. I would have double checked if I thought anyone had been there. I feel bad about all those animals they kill for their experiments and I just wish that once they're gone they go to a better place. Please!"

Suddenly the whole room was silent. They all froze listening for the sound of chewing. Carefully Becky reached up and back, looking for all the world like she was checking for a lump on her head. Or a hole. Her face broke into a delighted grin. "It's gone!" She paused for a moment and held her hand in prayer. "I hope your souls find peace." Then she jumped u[ and hugged Vivian, whose magical shield seemed to be gone. She ran to Sarah and hugged her. Then with a huge smile she ran out of the auditorium, presumably to tell the world, her long hair flying behind her like a comet as she shoved the security guard aside.

He looked confused. What is going on in here?"

Sarah held up her badge like she was leaving a COSTCO. "SHC." He started to speak and froze. How far had the security guards been briefed? Just told not to interfere or told about the monsters. Either way, "Take it up with the principal." He nodded and left, probably to do just that.

"She hasn't paid you yet," Keiko pointed out.

"She will. Believe me; nobody stiffs me on a bill." Rose winked at Sarah and then looked at her. "So this is the famous Keiko I take it? That's interesting."

"You know about me?"

"Aside from magic and monsters Sarah has talked about little else. 'Keiko helped me do this. She helped me do that. She taught me how to find invisible places.'" She looked Keiko up and down, squinting. "Does she know?"

Keiko glanced at Sarah. "Not yet."

"How is that possible?"

Keiko shrugged. "She's good, but new at this. I'm actually pretty sure she can't tell the difference." Reaching over Keiko laced her fingers with Sarah's making her smile and Rose's eyebrows shoot up like they were on a trampoline. "Know what I mean?"

"You know you can't stay with her all the time."

"I know. I'm just…"

Helping her with her initiation. I get it."

Sarah huffed and squeezed Keiko's hand. Both she and Rose had rainbows twinkling across their faces. "You know I'm standing right next to you. Acting like you can't see or hear me is rude. I realize you have some sort of secret Keiko and I'm waiting until you want to share it, but that's no reason to treat me like I am not here! I'm not even psychic like Rose so it's not like I can just figure it out."

The other two stared at her and then burst out laughing as if it were the funniest thing in the world. Sarah let Keiko's hand go and crossed her arms over her chest, pouting. That only made them laugh harder. Finally she grinned and shook her head.

"Well my work here is done," Rose said. "And I'm not sticking around to clean up the mess."

"Us either," Keiko said taking Sarah's arm and pulling her toward the door before she could volunteer. This time Sarah closed her eyes to get used to the bright sunlight, feeling its warm glow on her face.

7

Dancing With A Moonlit Devil

Becky was out of school for a few days. Sarah had expected her to return with a more normal haircut. Instead she was wearing a wig having shaved her head bald right down to her eyebrows and plucking her lashes. False eyelashes were in place and she had drawn the eyebrows back, but judging from the way her skin gleamed in some places and had razor rash in some places, she had shaved every hair from her body like a professional swimmer.

Sarah could not blame her. Part of the horror of possession was having your own body disobey your orders and after two years it might be a while before she got past a buzz cut. A lot of people thought it had to do with her new association with the animal rights group she had joined. Whether because of her new appreciation for the plight of abused animals or a simple precaution against a relapse, she approved.

In the meantime Sarah was a lot less worried about finishing her seventh and final form. After Becky had pretty much dropped into her lap, she doubted it would be long before something else happened. On Friday instead of studying the occult section of the library or wandering around, she went straight to Keiko and said, "After spending so much time in the auditorium I'm actually curious how the dance is going to go tomorrow. Want to go with me?"

Keiko smiled. "I can't think of more charming company. But if you don't mind I'm not a big fan of dancing in a crowd or just milling around the place. How about we do a food run on the snack tables and then hang out outside where we can still hear the music and dance, but don't get stepped on by clumsy people?"

"I can work with that. Do you dress up or are we sticking to the usual?"

Keiko considered. "I can put in the effort if you will."

"Great, I've been dying to see you out of that uniform." She blushed. "I mean…"

"I know what you mean." She checked a thin pink watch on her wrist. "I actually have some things to do today. I know I am risking missing out on whatever strange thing you come across next, but…"

"Hey, it's okay. I'm not exactly sick of your company, but we're not joined at the hip. You've been great at helping me out. If you need to do something else I understand."

"Thanks. I'll see you at the dance tomorrow." She smiled and added, "I'm not quite sick of spending all of my time with you either."

"You haven't seen me dance yet. After that you might never want to be seen in public with me again."

"Mm, good point. Should I be wearing my dancing shoes or steel toed boots?" They both laughed and then Keiko turned to walk away.

Sarah would have liked to stare until she was out of sight, but it seemed childish and reminded her of her first day of kindergarten. She had followed her mom along the chain link fence until she had gotten into the car and driven away. It had been scary and she had cried. That was then. She was a big girl now and did not have to see someone to know they would be back.

She spent some time meandering around the campus. Even after all she had done and been through it still felt like she was cheating. Maybe that was part of why she got frustrated when there was not some supernatural thing or other going on. Part of her kept expecting to be in class struggling with trigonometry or chemistry or memorizing dates out of a history book. Instead she spent most of her time just wandering around.

No wonder Mr. Kane and the others spent most of their time in what was essentially a free study period at mini-Hogwarts. If someone needed them they were easy to find. She wondered if they were intentionally hiding out from the sort of random things she had run into all week.

She hoped not. If that was the case Sarah was not sure she wanted to spend time wit them. Keiko definitely knew how to look for trouble. Hopefully once she proved herself the others would warm up. Otherwise she would go back to hanging out with the Goth kids or something. Maybe chat with Rose on the phone. After all she had done sitting in a little room every day pouring over books was not going to be her life. Freeing lost souls and protecting people from monsters should be treated like a grand adventure, not a death row sentence, even if it was dangerous.

If poking the bear with a stick got her killed she would apologize to her father in the afterlife. He would understand. She hoped. Just in case she should keep a diary. Privately so she did not end up in a rubber room, but still. Whether he believed it or not at least he would know.

Thinking of her last form, she wondered what it would be like to fill it out from beyond the grave if something happened. Because she was sure she would. She loved this stuff. Partly it was the danger and thrill of it all, but that was muted. Because in the end the one thing she could always take away from this was that there was an afterlife. Eternity. She had no idea ultimately what happened. Since eternity was not over it was possible nobody did. But there would be something.

Or perhaps oblivion did await some people. Hell to torment the wicked… though most religions did not seem to paint it as eternity so much as necessary and temporary correction for misdeeds. Or not. That uncertainty was a good thing. If everyone knew they were going to survive death or what the rules were suicide rates would sky rocket. Worse, people might try doing to right thing just for the reward and not for the right reasons. In the past they had tried human sacrifice, Crusades, suicide cults, terrorism, and just plain picking people off from the water tower.

Throw real supernatural events on that fire and it was obvious why both humans and the supernatural kept lower profiles than they used to. Even people with ghost hunting and psychic television shows tended to shy away from offering anything in the way of actual proof. And thankfully the majority of people helped by refusing to believe any of it and of those that were open minded tended to dismiss it. Or actively deny it because very few people wanted to know that something could crawl out of their bathroom mirror while they were asleep and kill them. Thankfully the supernatural world was just as big and interesting if not more so as the mortal world so it was like any other event. Something good happened and a few people remembered it or something bad happened and people took care of it. Lives were ruined and the world might end, but so far it just kept on spinning.

So in the meantime Sarah was happy to be in the know. Like a spy or a Bodhisattva. Knowing all the secrets, doing the best she could, and hoping that in the end because of what she did everyone ended up happy. Oh, maybe it is like scientists when they knew both so much more than everyone else and enough to know how much was still waiting out there, she thought. Though at the moment she was at best the person who people called when they needed their vacuum or remote control fixed than if there was a nuclear plant preparing to take out the east coast.

Sarah had been pretty beaten down by schoolwork. Nobody enjoys things they are not good at. Games, sports, fighting… trying and failing only makes you better if you get better. Otherwise it drags you down and maybe kills you. Whatever doesn't kill you can leave you crushed.

Keiko's prediction had been right. These things were scary, dangerous, and so much bigger than her. But she had a knack for it. And for every monster they vanquished, for every ghost they helped, and villain they punished, it made Sarah feel like a winner. Prideful even, knowing that most of the other kids would have wet themselves or run away screaming by now regardless of how smart or athletic they were. It may be stupid and dangerous but then technically so were doctors working with plague victims or astronauts going to the moon.

Of course they were praised as heroes by the world while Sarah's public image would probably be like Rose's: the crazy but harmless lady who sells crystals to want-to-be teenage witches and occasionally tricking people out of money for fixing superstitious nonsense. The police were more likely to show up at her door to arrest her for fraud than thank her for stopping a series of murders. In the comics it had been decades and they still sometimes took potshots at Spider-man when he stopped a crime. That was probably how the wall crawler ended up dying for real. One day someone who did not even expect to hit him was going to get lucky.

"Heavy stuff," she mumbled with a grin and stopped by a vending machine. Smiling she slid a dollar into the slot and ordered a rice ball. The very one she had broken. Doing that really helped the existential angst roll off her like water off a duck's back. Taking a bite she turned and saw the security guard from before watching her suspiciously and she waved a cheerful hello. He looked like he wanted to talk to her and did not at the same time.

There was a bang like someone kicking a trashcan. Almost gratefully he turned and ran off. It was a good reminder. Not every "muggle" disbelieved in magic these days and every now and then crazy people who thought they were monsters or people who genuinely believed all magic to be evil still held witch hunts. Or were willing to pretend to if it meant controlling the angry crowd. If she got noticed by the wrong people she could end up with a resemblance to a cat named Frankenstein. After the windmill scene.

Chewing on her snack she quickly went off to find other things to do. She had to be available for student assistance, but was sure if the rest of the class were indisposed they would tell her. If not, it was hardly her fault. In the end she found a nice hill in the sun next to the fence that cut off the riding area for the equestrian classes and enjoyed watching the horses.

For a brief moment she caught a glimpse of what looked like a headless horse and a headless rider. As if both had run into a strategically placed wire and never noticed. They were gone before she could do anything and Sarah decided to look into it later. At the moment she just wanted a nap.

Sarah had a dream that afternoon. A creature hiding in the shadows. Huge, similar to Sister Sue, but somehow… hungrier. And focused. Standing at the edge of the shadows and watching her with three glowing eyes that held far too much intellect for something she was sure had never been human. Along with more malevolence than Sarah expected from something she did not even recognize. It stood at the very edge of the shadows. She caught a glimpse of clothing. Not throwing itself again what was obviously a barrier like an animal. Patient. Like those serial killers the police went to for advice. Its breath smelled of heavy liquor and rotting meat. Its bulging stomach growled like a cement mixer.

Sarah woke with the sound of a school bell. She had not been off the schedule that long. Her eyes snapped open and she breathed heavily, willing away the image and trying not to retain any of it. It was a lot like a dream she had when she was a kid. Right before her mother died. She had kicked up such a fit that Gina had given up and let her watch herself for the few hours it would take to hit the grocery store.

An eight year old could only do so much. Staying home was easy. Getting mommy to stay home that day when they were out of milk was not one of them. And being a little girl she had forgotten all about it by the time daddy came home sweeping her gratefully into his arms and told her how they had been looking for her everywhere. An eight year old could blame herself when she learned what had happened.

She had not even liked guessing in games or on tests after that. She stamped down on the urge and relied on her own knowledge. If an answer came to her out of the blue she would dismiss it. Other kids might try those old answering with a question like "George Washington?" Some of her friends would shout the answers to game shows and try to get her to join in. Sometimes they were right. Good for them.

Sarah meanwhile ignored the pressure to join in, even as somewhere at the back of her head a tiny voice whispered the answer only to be echoed by the announcer. Leaving her feel even more stupid because her forebrain refused to answer any question unless she could remember how she knew it.

Especially when the answer was something like the event that had ended her mother's life. Despite her father's warnings she had looked it up online. This felt like it could be so much worse and part of her felt bad because how could it be worse than losing her mother? But the feeling would not go away. Not this time. She could practically smell what the thing had in mind. No. No. NO!

"I am not a psychic. I am not a psychic. I am not psychic."

Sarah was waiting by the auditorium about a half hour after sunset on Saturday. Her dad had lent her his truck, a huge black monster with duel exhaust coming out of the top. A few people in the parking lot had been impressed when she drove up. Naturally a school like theirs would never halt classes or have children up on a school night or Sunday. School came first and homework had to be completed. Even their jocks were among the smartest students because one bad grade and they could not participate in football or dances. They would sell you tickets, but the tickets had to be specially stamped at the door by someone with a scanner that checked them against grades. Sarah had not been to any of them since she started.

Suddenly a pair of hands covered her eyes. "Guess who?"

She smiled because she did not have to. Keiko was behind her in a black and white candy stripe dress, her hair up. Sarah felt almost frumpy in the red number she was wearing. "Hey Keiko. I got you some punch."

"I ducked inside and had some while I was there." She moved her hands. "I messed with the DJ's play list while he was not looking and put on some better tunes."

"Yes!" Sarah could not help laughing. "Look at us. Starting fires, skipping class, pulling hair, and vandalism… we are such bad girls."

"So bad we're good," she agreed. A head bobbing song came on and they two began dancing almost at the same time.

Their dance styles were very different. Keiko moved like she had when they had been fighting the tengu. Swiftly, smoothly, and with purpose. She tapped her feet on the ground deliberately like she had a grudge against it and kept them planted all the time. As if afraid that if she let go too much she would fly off. It was obvious to Sarah that her friend had learned sword fighting and turned it to dance as best she could.

She on the other hand tended towards twirling and toe tapping. Occasional ballet moves. Often both feet were off the ground. Sometimes she would reach out when she was sure it would surprise Keiko and grab her hand or twist her around. Despite her hard moves Keiko was surprisingly light on her feet. Through the crack they had left in the door the DJ was looking suspiciously at his equipment and the kids around him. Only since he was working he could not turn it off and while the music was not what he expected, so far nothing objectionable had come on.

Five songs in a slow one started and Keiko found herself facing Sarah, one hand on her him and the other on her shoulder. Sarah asked, "Did you put this song on for any reason in particular?"

Keiko shrugged and let her lead. When she was not alone she floated like she was on wheels. Sarah almost looked but could not take her eyes off Keiko's. Despite the yellow of the outside lights they shimmered like they were only catching the starlight and felt like she was looking into Sarah's very soul. It looked like her own reflection was glowing in them like moonlight. Keiko barely seemed to even blink.

She did not realize she was looking away until she turned back and saw Keiko's worried frown. "Why do you keep doing that?"

"You keep looking over your shoulder. Every time you start to relax and smile you suddenly get this nervous look on your face. What's wrong?"

"It's nothing."

Keiko stepped back pulling away from her. "Don't lie to me. I can tell when you are lying."

Something told Sarah that Keiko was lying, but she could be wrong. The girl had secrets and had been leading her around by the nose. Besides after all the help she had been and secrets she had shared, Sarah could not do it. Keiko had been her only confidant for the craziest time of her life. Sarah could not lie to her. "I had a weird dream yesterday. That's all." She described it and forced a smile. "Stupid nightmare huh?"

"We need to get everyone out of here."

"No we don't. It was just a dream."

"Sarah, do you know what an oni is?"

She knew the answer. She had not even gotten to N in the book yet. The answer came instantly. "No, I don't."

"Yes you do." Before Sarah could angrily deny it she said, "Because you just described one. About ten feet tall, red skin, four claws, horns, and three eyes. Smart and terrifying. They're demons, good and bad. Most of them stay in hell and torture people or do other jobs in the spirit world. When they come here it's never good. They usually don't because even if they're peaceful humans would kill them on sight."

"Aren't demons immortal?"

"Maybe but so are vampires and mummies. Corporeal bodies can be immortal without being indestructible. And even if they survive as spirits and grow a new one, nobody likes being torn apart and burned by a mob."

"It can't be true. I'm not psychic." Now it sounded like she was crying.

"How do you know?"

"Because if I was I would have been able to save my mother!"

Keiko froze. She saw Sarah crying and shaking. A thousand things came to her mind. Hug the girl. Give her a speech about how being psychic did not make someone god. That a kid, no matter how gifted, could not save everyone. Only she did not have time for that. Not now.

"Maybe it put the dream in your head. These things love it when their prey is scared. I've heard some cook their food alive so the soul is still inside when they eat it."

Sarah blinked, wiping away the tears. "Really?"

Nodding emphatically Keiko said, "Lots of things do that. Dreams are where people go when they lose perception of their own world. Everybody does. It's an infinite place with no rules that we have to visit or the world drives us mad and kills us. What did he want?"

"I… in my dream he was the thing the elves were feeding at the mall. They had some sort of deal and when I was telling Rose about it, his ears… he heard me."

"So he wants revenge?"

"Worse. He wants to kill me. He wants to make it last, keep me hovering on the edge of death. He wants to keep the path open between the afterlife and here."

"Why?"

"He has friends," Sarah said quietly. "Hungry friends. He plans to use the energy and my death to let them into this world one at a time and start with eating every person in this school."

"Sister Sue is inside as a chaperone. Could she help?"

"I'm not sure whose side she would be on."

Keiko hesitated and nodded. No sense asking if she was going to ignore the advice. "I can buy that. No sense testing it. Any idea when he will be here?"

"He's been looking for me for days. Well nights. I don't think he can go out in daylight." Lots of monsters, especially those from elsewhere or who absorbed energy, had problems with daylight. Humans would probably have similar trouble with a blue or green star. Less Superman more "when we found his body we couldn't tell if it was soup or a man." "He's going by smell. The city isn't making it easy and without backup he's not ready for a full on rampage. He's been unable to follow me home because it is too far away, but the school is a lot closer to the mall, where he hides out. And now I'm here at night."

"I'm not surprised. No sunlight and they can turn invisible. Not to mention plenty of power to open a portal for himself. One way."

"How does he get back?" She stopped, remembering what it planned for her. "Oh."

"They have a ton of powers, including invisibility, sometimes shape shifting. You know some of what evil fairies can do right?" Sarah nodded. "Some say Hell and Fairyland share a border and that it was even part of Hell when humans forced them to abandon Earth with iron. Every hundred years or so they have to give up seven of their people and they do not breed often."

That explained their lack of sympathy for humans. A dying race usurped along with Neanderthals and Cro-Magnons by vicious killers. It was sad and at the same time made you sort of proud to be Homo-sapiens. At least luckier than being anything on the planet. "So we can fight this thing?"

"Mobs can fight these things. If they know what they're doing. Sometimes the parts can fly or move on their own. I wouldn't want to try in anything shy of a battering ram."

"So what can we do?"

"Claymore mines would do for a start."

"We are so screwed. How do we know if it's here if it can be invisible?"

"You tell me."

"I told you I'm not… oh right." She pulled out the pendulum. It was hanging down a décolletage her father had really not liked. Nothing appeared in the rainbows except Keiko. It was hard to tell through the door, they had a disco ball and LEDs. "I'm not seeing anything."

"Good. On foot to get from the mall to here, avoiding cars when you're invisible it could take him hours. Less if he's a shape shifter and can take human form."

"So what do we do? Pull the fire alarm?"

"Nah. I'm surprised someone hasn't pulled it already. Besides they rig them with dye these days, so if you did and we survive this, in all likelihood you'd be fined. Or at best blue. And nobody would leave. At the most they would line up outside." Keiko looked at her. "You should go. If you're not here, maybe he'll call it off."

Sarah felt panicky. They were all going to die. The only question was if there would be enough blood in her eyes to keep her from having to watch. She had no doubt that this thing would just kill someone else. It was patient. It would find her eventually. Especially with access to the school records. Even if it did follow her away, it would just kill a different group of people. Compared to the medieval villages they used to ransack a modern city was an all you-can-eat buffet. "No."

Keiko saw her face and did not argue. "Okay, maybe we could push it in the frog pit."

"Too small. Way too small."

"I hate hearing that. Okay… we need help."

"Who would be crazy enough to…" she trailed off and then pulled out her preprogrammed cell phone. There was a call list with all the SHC. Through the door it was hard to miss the kid in the robe, his religious symbols clattering almost over the music. Mr. Kane was in one corner, scowling and annoyed at having been dragooned into chaperoning. Jasmine was there too bobbing with some other girls in head coverings. If they others were Sarah could not see them. The principal was watching from the snack table. She began to text with the speed of a teenage girl. "Screw the stupid initiation. Keiko I'll go talk to the principal and whoever to see if we can convince people to leave. You head over to the sports field. They have swords, javelins, and those metal ball things… shot-put. Not even the security guards have guns and if we get them involved they will just die." She could almost see the one from the other day's head vanishing as it was ripped off by something he could not even see.

"I can try, but I'm not sure I can move that much."

"Most of it should be in a cart by the door."

"On it."

Mr. Kane was closer when she got inside. He looked up from her text as she approached. "Got tired of searching without help?"

"I've had help," she said dismissively. "I need more."

"Oh did you get one done?"

"If we survive the night, I'll turn in all seven on Monday. I was going toss up between the heedless horse in the riding area and the kid on the track. I finally identified him when I got here and he was still running."

"Seven in two weeks?" Sarah briefly felt like a brave little tailor. "That's… did you say survive?"

Sarah explained things to him. To her relief he did not question it. No "you must be crazy" or "how do you know?" She supposed if she were abusing her authority they could punish her later. Nobody who knew they were real wanted to be disbelieving of the girl who cried oni. They went to the principal while David and Jasmine joined them. A few kids, notably the Goth set and Becky, eyed the meeting nervously.

The principal eyed her and said, "I do not know the details yet, but you have been quite busy. I'm beginning to wonder if placing you in the SHC was a good idea."

"And the restaurant owner says 'Damn that health inspector. Before he showed up and found them we didn't even have a rat problem.'"

He chuckled. "Okay, I get the point. No blaming you for being better than expected. Though I do not appreciate you bringing off campus apparitions."

"You want to stick around and discuss it with him?"

Less than twenty minutes later the whole room was cleaned out. The principal had been going to suggest the story of a gas leak. Sarah had changed it to vandalism of the cars in the parking lot. The principal said the police were already on the way and that he, Sister Sue, and the other chaperones would give everyone rides home in the bus while the investigation went on so nobody could try hiding evidence. They grumbled, but filed out either afraid for their vehicles or being blamed.

"How much time to we have?" Kane asked.

"Maybe another hour." She turned and shouted at the DJ. "Leave the music on!"

"But…"

"Do it," Kane said. "You can come back for it tomorrow. We'll make sure it's safe, but someone's bound to blame you since you don't even go here." They had to write him a receipt but he left. "Good thinking. We leave the music on and we at least know where he's going. If it's an oni it's the only way we can track it."

"Oh I'll see him coming," Sarah said. They looked startled. Before they could ask why a pair of double doors burst open. Keiko came in pushed a cart so fast it was like she was flying hanging off the back. It came to a stop. Spears, chains, ropes, and swords bristled out. The canvas it was made out of bulged around what were basically cannon balls.

David looked at Sarah. "Did you do that?"

"It was her idea," Keiko said. Sarah just shrugged.

"Nice." He might have said something about underestimating her, but he had never really done the estimation.

Kane meanwhile took control like a general and the other kids all listened without comment. Sarah claimed a steel katana. She looked at Keiko. "Is this Missus Carrion's?"

"It may have accidentally fallen out of the cupboard she keeps it in. Tengu steel is very useful on oni."

It was light and yet felt very strong. It hummed when she swung it through the air. "Personally I'd rather have the actual sword master."

Pulling another sword and swinging it like a scimitar Jasmine said, "She doesn't have a phone where she lives." She did not keep going and Sarah did not have time to wonder where a giant magical bird called home.

David kicked over the snack table and grabbed the white tablecloth he then laid it out flat and drawing symbols on it with the food. Sarah saw some off symbols and a growing collection of rainbows, so whatever he was doing was working. She turned away as he moved on to the next table.

Kane said, "Whoever knows how to program the stupid music player, see if you can download some demon banishing prayers. We can play them as soon as it gets here. It might not work as well as if we have actual priests in the room, but it can't hurt." His phone buzzed. "The others are remaining outside at the restaurant across the school. They brought guns and a sledgehammer. We let them know when he gets here and Kyle can seal the grounds so it can't escape."

"Can we be outside when that happens?"

"No. It can disappear," Sarah said. "It's what was hiding in the ball pit being fed by elves at the mall." They all stared at her. "Never mind. The point is if it gets away it will be back and it wants to bring others. Either we take it down or this entire town will be devoured by demons. For a start." In the modern world a full demon attack would not mean "oh dear, where did everyone go?" like with Roanoke or Atlantis. It would be millions of videos from car cams and banks to idiots with cell phones. Keeping magic a secret after that would be impossible. If that happened billions of people would start poking holes in reality just because they could.

She was pretty sure the oni had not thought of that, but did not think giving him the chance would be a good idea.

She had briefly looked them up a bit. Most of the demons were actually pretty law abiding working for the kings of hell. So if they could get rid of him and send his spirit home, it was likely he would be punished for killing people. Or would have to reform. Either way he would be gone for a few centuries at least.

Unless they lost.

The small army waited behind the auditorium, weapons at the ready. The main doors were wide open and the music blared. Sarah looked at the front of the building from around the edge. From next to her Jasmine asked, "So how is it that you have angered this beast?"

"This is sort of a side effect. I was at the mall a while ago and I saw a couple of elves posing as scouts. They were leaving out bits if brownie like they were free samples. People ate them, went into a trance, and then went for a dip in the ball pit. Only they never came out."

"By Allah, that is hideous. What did you do?"

"I called the cops. Reported them as drug dealers. They haven't been back since. Unfortunately the thing that they were feeding took it personally."

She nodded. "My first case for the SHC involved a tanuki. That is sort of a—"

Sarah smiled. "I know what a tanuki is, I had a Nintendo. Of course everyone here used to think they were raccoons. We had no idea why it could fly or whatever, but a lot about those games were confusing."

"Yes, well the tanuki had applied at the school store and was robbing people. It took us a while to notice. You see he would make change for things people bought, but when they checked later they found that their change had turned into rocks and leaves."

"Like fairy gold."

"Exactly. And when we confronted him, well I had never seen such a creature before. It changed into its true form and viciously attacked me." She shoed her hand. There was a nasty scar on it. "I almost lost a finger."

"Still better than my first case," David muttered. "We had to exorcize someone and instead of a demon they were possessed by a fox and…"

"I heard about that one," Sarah said absently. "I'd like to hear the details some other night, if you don't mind."

He blushed. "Sorry."

"It's okay. I'm scared too. I just didn't expect to bring this down on anyone."

Mr. Kane cleared his throat. "Miss Evans, think nothing of it. All of us can potentially bring down disaster with the most well meaning of actions. If you stopped a gang member from shooting someone in the street and then he and his gang came by and tried to shoot us up over it, does that mean you should have let that first person die?"

Sarah smiled ruefully. "I was not sure any of you cared. It seemed like you all got dragooned into this whole thing and resented it, doing the bare minimum."

The older man looked at bit embarrassed. "I'm afraid that is an affectation we put on for new members. It's quite necessary to weed out those who are too eager, who refuse to believe what they learn, or who just cannot handle it. It also gives a student a chance to try dealing with things themselves and the importance of teamwork. So far you are the first to actually rise to the challenge."

"Well I had help. Without Keiko I'd probably have wandered around the campus for a day and come back defeated."

Keiko said, "Oh I think you would have done just as well without me."

Before anyone else could say anything Sarah held up a hand. "It's here…" the rainbows forming the silhouette were far too beautiful for the horror of the thing before her. It was like Sister Sue only without the friendly nun as a front man. Then it stepped towards the doors.

They all froze and it was not hard to hear the thump of heavy clawed feet. Suddenly the doorframe buckled and the wall crunched into concrete and rebar pieces. As it entered the room the oni became visible. Just as expected he was the very model of a terrifying demon. All red horns, three glowing yellow eyes, claws, and huge tusks framing a huge nose and slicked back black hair. Two things made him even more terrifying.

He wore a suit: perfectly tailored jacket, pants, and tie. All apparently made from white tiger skin. No undershirt as evidenced by a scaled red chest. On his hands were thick rings, each the size of a bracelet and set with stones larger than Sarah's pendulum. The whole look reinforced that this was a monster. Not a deranged murderer. Or some kind of animal. It dispelled any idea of trying to negotiate. This was an intelligent being who was civilized and still decided that eating other people were okay to eat.

The other terrifying thing was that he had a large iron club studded with spikes. Best described with words like "solid" and "heavy". It must have weighed more than a car. The handle was wrapped in leather and judging from the three human skulls hung from the large ring at the base, no prizes for guessing what kind. Yet he carried it like a wiffle bat.

The horror also knew how to make an entrance. Crashing through the wall it slammed its club on the floor shattering wood and concrete. Amazingly a shower of gold coins suddenly flew up like it was a video game. They tinkled across the remnants of the floor as the demonic ogre stuck his face through the shower and roared. The whole building shook. Walls cracked.

"Now!" Sarah shouted. She used the remote control in her hand to turn on the banishing prayer. The monster froze, but sadly did not seem like it was going to run away or burst into flames.

Keiko was the closest to the back door. While the oni was still roaring she came around with a javelin. She twirled it with style and then let fly. The point hit him in the mouth and went straight through out the open hole behind him. The giant's mouth slammed shut with a surprised whimper.

The others stared and all together said, "Wow!"

Keiko smiled. "I am good."

"Second volley!"

Kane and David each had a shot-put ball. They threw together. Kane aimed for the stomach. He missed and it fell short. Instead it fell on one of the great bare clawed feet with a crunch. It started to scream but David, the former football player, had a better arm. The ball hitting it in the face silenced the monster so well they heard its tusks snap off and a wet sound as its nose was flattened into a pig-like snout flowing with green blood.

The thing was, it did not go down. As the ball dropped its eyes narrowed and the hands gripped its weapon.

"Run!" Sarah was not sure who among them took the first step, but they were long gone by the time the oni limped after them. It may have been able to handle pain well but nobody walked right let alone ran on a freshly broken foot. With its sinuses flooded with its own blood it was not much of a tracker either. "Follow me! I know a place he'll have a hard time finding us."

She led the way to the elective building. When she got there mentally she cursed because she realized it would be locked. Wandering around the school during the day was one thing. Night was another matter. Without thinking and with the other's right behind her not to mention the dull thump of a two ton monster in the distance, she reached out and yanked on the door anyway.

She felt a click and the door suddenly yanked open almost making her fall over. She stepped back with the door in her hand as the others rushed past her into the building. They had just left it open? No, it had been locked. Maybe the building had let her in. Keiko shot her a look, taking the rear. Sarah ran after, slamming it shut. "Head for the elevator! Hit the button for the fourth floor!"

"There are only—!" David began but Keiko pushed them in and Sarah joined them. She hit the fourth floor button. He stared at it. "I rode this elevator for metal shop for two years! How can there be a floor that isn't there?"

Sarah smirked. "It's unlisted." The elevator dinged. It opened up on the fourth floor and they hurried out rushing to the windows. It was dark but there was enough moonlight not to mention the golden glow of the thing's eyes. Sarah whispered, "Keep quiet. This thing heard me across a crowded shopping mall."

The oni started to walk past the building. As Sarah had hoped its nose was probably useless. Disturbingly all three of its eyes moved in different directions as it scanned for them. They slid right over the missing floor and Sarah breathed a sigh of relief. "Jasmine, do you have any idea how to beat him?"

"No! Why are you asking me?"

"Someone needs to watch him." Jasmine laughed a little and nodded. The others shared a chuckle as she took up the guard position. The oni was walking away. The windows rattled. She kept an eye on it, hand gripping the sword hilt.

Sarah looked at Kane. "Anything?"

"Oni are basically immortal. Human beings aren't supposed to be able to fight them. Once you're in the underworld Yomi they're supposed to kill people over and over again until they have paid for all their crimes on Earth. There they're a lot bigger and unkillable. This one's manifesting physically. The body, like ours, keeps him tethered to the Earth. Destroy it and he's gone."

"So are we," David pointed out. "And since a spear to the face barely slowed him down, I'd like other options than running at him with tiny swords screaming." He held up his katana. "He's going to pick what's left of his teeth with this after he mashes us into an easily edible paste because we broke his teeth."

"We?" Jasmine asked. He looked terrified as she pointed that out. She looked out the window and did a double take. "Uh, guys, he wandered off and now he's back. You need to see this." They went back to the window.

The oni was back and its hand was stuck in its face. Literally inside it. Massaging and shaping the thing like he was playing with clay. As the watched the smashed parts began to reform. Its foot looked fine already. It was still walking past them. The face was no George Clooney but it was definitely looking more its terrifying self.

"How is he doing that?"

Kane shook his head. "He must have used an elemental spell when forming his body. I'd say Earth, maybe clay from the river Sanzo mixed with the blood of humans."

"Why not use the river?" David asked.

Kane stared at him. "Sometimes I forget how much you still have to learn. Nobody touches the river. Not if they ever want out." There was definite finality to that statement.

"What does any of this mean?" Sarah asked.

"Well elementals definitely have their weaknesses. For example—" He stopped and they all stared as the oni finished his nose job. The now disturbingly flesh-like proboscis took a deep breath of air. Then its head snapped around and it grinned with a mouth full of newly minted fangs. Despite the way they had flowed they looked very hard and very sharp.

"Stairs!" Sarah said. They hoofed it and Sarah was the last one out. So she saw as the oni somehow burst through the windows of a building that was not even there. Then both of them froze as the glass flew backwards. Suddenly it was whole again as if someone had hit the rewind button. Apparently human or demon that was something you did not see too often. They both stared for a moment. Then Sarah ran over to the elevator and hit the down button. The oni shook off its surprise to turn in time to see her run down the stairs.

The stairwell was too small and something else must have been in effect. Even the door held as the monster hit it. Sarah ran down and on the second floor found the others waiting for her. She looked back up and was pleased to see only one flight above her. "We need to hurry. He might be trapped, but I wouldn't count on it."

"Where to?"

Kane picked up where he left off. "Elementals are vulnerable to other elements. Um… mud is a mix of Water and Earth. That leaves air and fire."

"There's a kiln in the ceramics class."

"Sure we'll just push him in like the witch in Hansel and Gretel," Keiko sneered. "I'm sure he'll cooperate. Hey when we try air, how about we see if the maintenance guys left their leaf blowers around? Maybe before we die we can post his face looking all wobbly on a video site."

Jasmine moaned. "We're going to be killed by Gumby's evil brother!"

Clay… something about that tickled Sarah's mind. Using play-dough in preschool. Sandcastles on the beach and the way she cried when… The elevator had stopped for several minutes. They had heard nothing from the fourth floor since the stairs had disappeared. No thumps or breaking glass. Possibly the floor was protecting itself. Only now the elevator was going up again.

"Crap. Everyone get to the sports field. I have a stupid-stupid plan. On the way please try coming up with a smarter one! When we get there you guys head for the bleachers. David and I will go to the center of the field."

"Why?" David asked.

"We're the bait." The elevator stopped. Dave cursed and they took off as heavy footsteps echoed off the shaft.

As they went Sarah asked, "Mr. Kane, you're a middle aged man. How's your lawn?"

He frowned. "Uh, the housing commission in my gated community has never fined me."

That was high praise indeed. Her dad had a few things to say about the kind of people given that job. "Petty anal tyrants". It was one of the main reasons they lived in an apartment. It was a bit small but better than seeing someone measuring your grass like a god weighing a heart.

"Then you're exactly who I need." She gave him a few brief instructions and gasping he turned and ran off.

"Where's the grownup going?" Dave asked sounding panicked.

"To save our lives I hope." The others veered off now too. She and Dave went straight to the field. Dave did not seem to notice when eh ran through a midnight jogger. They stopped, gasping for breath. Something moved to the side. "Keiko, I said…"

"Screw that."

Nothing she could do about it so Sarah just turned and drew what she hoped was some kind of mystical sword. David did likewise. She glanced at him as they heard the oni coming, like a growing heartbeat. "I don't suppose you're some kind of wizard?"

He shook his head. "I am trying to be a priest. The thing is, it isn't like you would think. All this stuff… and I have yet to see a cross drive away anything. I've been hoping for a sign."

"I'm pretty sure gods either keep a low profile or they require a sacrifice." Sarah slapped her forehead. "Oh! We never tried hiding in the church."

"Would that have worked?"

"Maybe. Not for why you're thinking though." More like how a wolf might hesitate to run into a bear's den. Sarah did not trust the woman, but she doubted anything with half a brain would try crashing through her windows.

The oni walked towards them, smiling. It spoke. The voice was rumbling, the accent sounded Dutch. "Finally tired of running little rabbits?"

David said, "No! We've merely led you into a trap. Step on this grass and you will burst into flames until your body turns to glass." Trash talking football player. Nice.

The oni rolled all three eyes and stepped onto the grass. "Please, the people with power in this world with any true power hide among the elite or leave for better places. I doubt even the gods care for this place."

"No!" Sarah said. "There is magic in the world. I've seen it."

"Well soon you'll see Hell little girl. Then we'll see how your faith lasts." He paused, nostrils flaring. "Wait… don't I know you?"

"You were chasing me," she said.

"No… ah now I remember. Not you. The woman at that grocery store."

Sarah gasped. "What?"

"Yes it was a few years back. I had been feeding on the homeless in New York for years, but they began to figure it out. Blasted psychics. I escaped because they refused to believe what I really was. So I hopped in the back of a truck hauling snack foods… I believe you call the immigrants… and we arrived at a store with a gas station. I was getting hungry so this seemed as good a place as any. I had been drinking and got careless and when I got out of the back people saw me. They started pulling out their cell phones so I threw the truck at them. After that it was just cleanup. He kissed his club. "The best part of this thing is that it leaves you humans looking like you were hit by a car anyway. Nobody even misses the pieces I eat.

"One of the humans looked just like you. I remember her leg was broken and she faced me down with a mop. It was hilarious. She even managed to poke me in the eye once."

Keiko looked at Sarah and gasped. "Oh gods…"

"Mommy?" Sarah felt herself crying and could not stop. They had said it was an accident.

The oni smiled. "Before I kill you, tell me one thing. How did you know I was coming? You were prepared. How?"

"You didn't tell me?"

"Why would I do that?"

Sarah looked at Keiko who shrugged. "Okay I magic feathered you. Dumbo."

"Why?"

"Who are you talking to?" David and the oni asked.

Keiko said, "Because I like you, but you can be so annoying. It was like watching Superman when every other person from Krypton on Earth can fly and he's afraid of heights. You may be the most powerful psychic ever." She shook her head in denial as Dave and the monster both stared at her. Keiko just laughed. "You are so blond."

The oni had enough and began advancing again. A few more steps onto the field and he would have them. David glanced at Sarah, wondering if she was crazy. Why? It made no sense.

Suddenly the sprinklers came on, just as planned. Not too much of a surprise. Mr. Kane had admitted his yard was up to snuff. Anyone who could pull that off knew a thing or two about sprinkler systems. Dave and Sarah both cried out as they were hit with the spray. It hurt. Bad enough that it was definitely going to bruise. The pressure had been turned up to unsafe levels. The two kids ducked down to avoid it.

The oni could not. He tried to dodge but had already taken a blast to the face. He was blinded, blinking and stumbling as he dropped his club and rubbing his eyes. At first it looked like he would wipe it away and get control. Except something like mascara began running. No, not mascara. It was his face. It was being washed away.

"It probably works like an effigy. The body has to resemble the host to hold on to its spirit."

Sarah did not care. She felt delight as the monster stumbled, melting like the wicked witch. Then she glanced over at Keiko… who still stood. Untouched. The water passing harmlessly through her. "I'm sorry I couldn't be of more help to you Sarah. I really am. But you did great." She turned and walked away, vanishing in the moonlight as if she were part of it.

Sarah did not deny it. Keiko had faded into the background. She was Bruce Willis the whole time. Or maybe more like the baseball players in Field of Dreams. People had talked to her. But not normal people. Special people. Chosen people.

People like Sarah.

Gripping the sword in her hand she was on the oni as soon as he bolted. Picking a direction at random and trusting a straight shot to get him out of his predicament. He needed someplace dry. Anywhere else would be good. He stampeded like a bull, his feet making squelching sounds instead of terrifying drumbeats of doom. One of his horns fell off, looking more like wet chalk when it hit the ground.

Sarah chased after him. Carrion's sword slashed through him easily. Even though the flesh could not have been that dissolved yet. If there was anything like bones in there the sword did not care. Clay flew. An arm dropped off followed by a half melted ear. The oni struck out blindly. A finger splashed against her shirt. It had looked like a flying dagger at first, but was like being hit with a paint pellet.

The oni ran. It was completely blind. Easy to tell since it no longer had a face. Without the water it had smoothed over like a man wearing a nylon stocking. All the same he was no bumbling fool. This was an intellect thousands of years old. He had run before.

Sarah was not letting him go. She sliced off a leg. It fell like a log. After a small wobble the oni began to hop. Great big leaps. Soon he left Sarah in his wake. The others were running up then and had their own weapons.

"He's getting away," Jasmine said.

"No," Sarah replied coldly. "He's not."

With his body the oni just needed time. He might be shorter, but a revenge trip would be in the making. Immortals could really hold a grudge. But nothing like a pissed off teenage girl. Sarah suddenly understood exactly how Bobby had felt. Only he had been called off. If she had to Sarah would have clawed her way into hell to hunt this bastard down.

Abandoning the sword she raced off. She knew where he was going. And she had been wandering around school for weeks. Meanwhile the muck monster would have to blindly find his way around buildings. It was not even a race.

The oni reached the parking lot and smiled as it heard cars passing by. Plenty of room to run. Plenty of people to get in the way. It might get damaged, but a few minutes to sculpt some eyes and other sense organs and he would be back in business. That stupid human girl would be his next time. No fooling around.

With another jump he landed on someone's convertible. A few rows over a young boy with a long tongue who had been drinking oil from another car screamed and ran for it. He felt the edge of the gate leading out, reaching to make sure it was open. If not he would rip it free. It was a clever plan. He had to admit it. Maybe he would water board her before killing her. And that kid who had broken his teeth. He could— ah! He drew back. Someone had put up an actual barrier! How had these little maggots managed that?

"Ah!" The gate slammed on his arm. It was hit by the overlapping part that protected the latch. It cut through him with less effectiveness than the sword, but it worked and his hand dropped to the sidewalk.

"You aren't going anywhere!" Sarah snarled. She grabbed his stump and spun him like a top. The oni remained where he was, fear creeping in at last. It did not care if it escaped now. All it wanted was that arm back. Only it was completely helpless. One ear was all it had. The tiger skin suit was long gone, shed off with the outer layers of mud. He was a shapeless red blob barely still standing.

Something roared. It rumbled more than even the oni had. So loud the monster could not hear where its death was coming from. There were squealing tires and them it was as if the hammer of Thor descended and the front of Sarah's dad's truck hit the only so hard it was pushed through the chain link fence, falling to pieces. Sarah smile as she saw that. "I love you mom."

Epilogue

On Monday Sarah got off the bus and found Keiko at her usual spot. Roughly where she had died hit by a car back in Japan. Kane had identified her when Sarah showed him the picture she had taken of the two of them together. Spirit photography, full interacting with the dead, precognition, telekinesis… she had developed quite the résumé. Old yearbooks were easy to come by at a school. Keiko looked back at her through the ring of her tightened sweater hood, hunkering down.

"Need a ride out of here?"

"Had a few. I step out of the car or off the bus and I appear right back here."

"Harsh. Though I suppose that means you could hit a drive-in movie. Any idea why?"

"Want to get rid of me?"

"Not just yet. So?"

She sighed. "I was a lot like you. So sure the supernatural was so much hokum. I saw who ran me over and knew what had happened. The whole school was abuzz with it and maybe that would have been enough for me to stay. Only then I died and…" Her eyes flared up, like stars. "It was all true! I was killed and the school was torn apart by poseurs. Wishful thinkers with no idea what they were doing. I could have possibly passed on knowing those idiots were going to be disappointed. Instead…"

"Instead you became everything they were looking for and started hanging around the SHC." Sarah smiled. "Man, you must have been really annoyed with me."

"I'm not a psychic. I'm not a psychic," Keiko mimicked, sticking out her tongue. "I swear it was like some special hell. The only person in my time here who can see and even touch me and at first you didn't even believe in ghosts. Did not even notice that nobody else could see or hear me. And it's not even Christmas." She sighed. "At the same time I didn't want to tell you.

"That was you with the spirit board right? How'd you do that without me seeing you? or know about me?"

"Came up through the floor."

They both laughed. "And the rest?"

"I liked you. It was an adventure. You clearly needed help. Take your pick." She curled up on the bench. "I peeked at your files and used the school computer so I could do that stuff with the Ouija board. I understand if you do not want to see me anymore. I'm pretty sure I was using some of your energy the other night to move stuff around when we were fighting the oni. Rose was right. If we spend too much time together it could start sucking the life out of you."

"So we keep it down to four days a week and maybe the occasional emergency. As for not seeing you, that's almost as funny as when I introduced you to Rose. You know when I kept saying that I was not a psychic." She wondered how many people she saw all the time were actually dead. "I went to where my mom died on Sunday. It's a 7-11 today. I told her I was okay and a little about myself. And that the thing that killed her was gone. She went into the light."

"You weren't grounded?"

"No. Dad bought the principal's story. It helped that the oni really did trash another car. A little mud on the fender and some scratches in comparison was nothing." She reached into her pocket and pulled out one of the gold coins that had appeared from the oni's club. "The principal was not too put out either. He's getting a much bigger budget. Not as big as he could have since we took a lot of the gold before he saw it. Dave's dad had a tow truck so we took the club and traded it to Rose for unlimited store credit." What would they do with gold? All they could have ultimately done with it was devaluing the currency. Assuming the government did not start asking pointed questions. Sarah's debt was wiped away, but she could not tell her father that and she still wanted to work with her anyway.

"So the oni is gone?"

"Nope."

Keiko pulled back her hood. "WHAT!?"

"Silence banshee," Sarah teased. "It turns out that the hand I slammed in the gate was mostly intact. I had this feeling I should keep it. So we put it in a special case so it can't run off."

"Why?"

"Well it turns out that if part of the demon lives, it's still connected spiritually to the rest of it. Like imagine living your life with one hand disappearing into a hole and you can feel something crawling around in there but have no idea what it is and can't get it out. You can still feel it. Move it. But you can't see it or know what's actually happening to it. If he ever comes back the first thing he'll do is come looking for it and we'll be ready. Hopefully I'll be long dead by then."

"Gods that's creepy. I love it."

"I'm supposed to tell the SHC about my reports today. They're all really eager to hear them. Then I was debating whether we should hit the track or the riding area."

"I'd do the horse thing. I hear Carrion's upset someone borrowed her sword. Save the track for a day she's not there."

Sarah leaned in to give her a peck on the cheek. It was cool on her lips. "I'll do that. Thanks for the advice."

"Anytime."

"Promise?"

Keiko hugged her and kissed her on the lips. "Go on. Play with your new friends. When you're done come back. We can play slug-bug."

"Deal."

"I warn you though. I've had a lot of practice."

(The Present)

Sarah stuffed the last baby tanuki into her sack and tied it shut. Then she head Jeff bark. She had brought him along to help. Looking over the edge of the roof she saw the adult male, still in human form, running down an alleyway.

Secure in her power Sarah ran to the edge of the roof and jumped, managing a few steps against the wall of the building across from her. Then she felt ghostly hands catch her under her arms. "One of these days you are going to do something like that and I'm going to let you fall."

"No you won't," Sarah said confidently. She swept down on the tanuki who barely saw her shadow before turning and getting both sneakers to the face. He fell back, taking on his true form of a rather pudgy dog with raccoon stripes. Jeff came around the corner with some of the other SHC and grabbed it by the tail, shaking it a little.

"Stop doing that," Jasmine shouted angrily. "The rest of us can't see your ghost bride. It freaks me out seeing you float around like that."

"Maybe if you carried a broomstick," Keiko said.

Sarah pointed at her. "You keep quiet Harvey." She turned to Jasmine. "He was going to get away."

The others arrived loaded down with squirming sacks. Kane had one of the sticks with a loop on the end dog catchers used. He slid it around the tanuki's neck, not trusting it at all. "That looks like the last one."

"Rose says she knows someone who can take the lot," Sarah said.

"I'll bet she does. We're making her rich," Kyle said.

"Well Mister Wizard, if you want them you could keep them."

"No way!"

"We get a cut," David reminded him.

Sarah yawned and pulled out her phone. "I'm too tired to argue about it. She rented a van. And half the kids in school will be out tomorrow getting rabies shots. Should be a nice restful day."

David narrowed his eyes at the look on her face. He knew that look. Sarah knew something was coming and was not going to tell them. She winked in his direction and walked off to make her phone call. Dave thought, Tomorrow, I'm wearing a flack jacket.

The End

Other Books By This Author

Harlequin: A Fool's World Novel

Mall Elves and Other Urban Predators

24/7 They Are Always Watching

Dragon

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