Hello everybody and welcome to the first chapter of Dark Magic! FIRST OF ALL: there will be absolutely NO ArtemisxVictoria shipping, nor will there be ArtemisxMinerva shipping (if you didn't read the summary, this is post-TTP and pre-TAC, you lazy bag of bones). Speaking of shipping, there might be some slight Victorence here, so...

It was raining in Bellville. Victoria stared hard at the fifth story window of the five-star Hotel Bellville, fifth suite from the right and the left, umbrella protecting her blonde curls. Normally she wouldn't have stopped, but something about the occupant of that particular room was bothering her. Ever since the visitor had arrived, the sky had churned, sending Mr. Tibbalt's dog, Gallagher, barking day and night.

She had been delivering a package to the hotel's manager from the librarian as a favor for her mother when she saw them. A huge mountain of a man dealing with the bellhop while a boy of about fourteen or fifteen stood next to him, looking uppity. At first Victoria was impressed by his suit and neatly combed hair, but as she chided herself for staring, something felt off about him. Maybe it was his mismatched eyes, or they way the large man took note of everything and everyone in the room. She had rushed out of the building after the pair had boarded the elevator, walking briskly and clicking her heels just so.

Now she stood in the cold, wet atmosphere, squinting at the window of the visitors. Suddenly, she heard footsteps on the drenched pavement behind her, and she turned to see an umbrellaless Lawrence running up to her, his silver streak of hair amidst the uncombed black shining with drops of rain. As usual, his shirt was untucked and his shoes were untied. Also as usual, Victoria sighed.

"Honestly, Lawrence, can you even look tidy for five minutes?"

"No time, Vicky," he panted, using the nickname that Victoria viewed as the root of all evil. "Look."

Victoria glanced down to where Lawrence was pointing at the sidewalk, then danced away from a large black beetle with ten legs, sucking in a startled breath. The two watched it crawl up the side of the hotel to the fifth story window with difficulty, pelted by rivulets of rain. Lawrence frowned, confused, as Victoria's eyes widened.

"Oh, no," Victoria gasped, then dragged Lawrence into the hotel. She quickly walked up to the desk.

"Excuse me," she said to the clerk, smiling politely. "But what was the name of the young man who checked in this afternoon? My mother would like to send him a welcoming letter."

The clerk, knowing Victoria's mother and her mailbox mannerisms well, smiled back.

"Stefan Bashkir, and his uncle, Mr. Constantin Bashkir." she replied.

"Thank you very much," Victoria smiled wider and dragged Lawrence right back out again. "Lawrence, we're going to Nine Silldie Place. We may have a problem."

oOo

"Why are we here?" Lawrence asked for the millionth time, unflinching under Victoria's Demon Dazzle.

"Shhhhhh! Just watch the house," she whispered, staring hard at the windows of Nine Silldie Place. She saw a faint glow and her eyes widened. "Lawrence…"

"Yeah?"

"Have you noticed anyone disappearing lately?"

"Well, now that I think of it, I have. Those twin girls Mary and Susan, three boys named Mark, Bob, and Wade, and one other boy named Ross." He frowned. "Maybe…"

Victoria nodded, her memory refreshed, but already beginning to fade. It was happening again, just like the incident two years ago. Victoria remembered everything; the gofers, the classrooms, Mr. Alice, and especially the hanger. She shuddered, remembering her friend's hopeless expression as he hung helplessly. As long as her name was Victoria Wright, no one was going to suffer the same fate, strange boy or not. Lawrence had came to a similar conclusion and, glancing at his prim and proper partner in taking down evil bug-ladies, he decided right then and there that there was only one thing they needed to do…

oOo

After Lawrence and Victoria had finished their hot chocolates at Missy's (a local shop useful for steaming beverages and the odd helpline) the pianist leaned on his elbows towards the perfectionist.

"Okay Vicky," he began, earning a Dazzle. "What's the plan?"

Victoria cleared her throat. "I'm glad you asked," she said, pulling out a neat set of bullet points and indented paragraphs.

"How in the world did you have the time to type all that?!" gaped Lawrence.

Victoria looked at him innocently. "You mean you don't have an emergency plan to escape and/or rescue someone from the Home just in case?"

Lawrence groaned inwardly, barely suppressing the urge to facepalm. There is a fine line, he thought, between prepared and mental.