Chapter Two: Back Among The Living:

Miranda took a step back from the wall, as the realization of her being mortal once again was made painfully clear. As much as she appreciated being back among the living, after being able to pass through walls and other objects the last time she was on earth, walking to her actual destination seemed exhausting. She laughed at her own processing of the situation, and with determined steps left the jar room with Caleb's loft the next destination in mind. It did not take too long, and she soon found herself outside his door. She took a deep breath to calm her nerves and gently knocked. There was no answer so Miranda knocked a little bit louder. Again nothing. Perhaps he is asleep it is after all the middle of the night? Miranda was not exactly what time, but she guessed somewhere 2 and 3 in the morning. Trying extra hard to not make excessive amounts of noise Miranda tried the door knob, and to her surprise the door opened. As she entered she immediately felt another rush of memories. The most distinctive was when her friends used a séance to communicate with Abby Wheeler another girl who was a victim of the Ravenswood Five Pact curse. Glancing around the room she quickly realized it had not changed much at all, that said, she did see the light fixture that had fallen when the ceiling cracked during the séance was hanging once again. The next thing she uncovered was the room was extremely cold. In fact, it took her only moments to deduce that Caleb no longer was taking up residence in the loft. As she approached the bed her suspicions were confirmed. The bed was perfectly made, and the extra blanket which Caleb had always used when sleeping was not present. Sitting down on the bed Miranda began to think of her next move. She knew that from observing a conversation between Caleb and her uncle when she was still a ghost her uncle cared deeply for her. Plus, with him being the keeper of the children of the pact, she reasoned he must know something, and might be able to answer why she was back on the earth as a living breathing human. Looking at the clock on the nightstand, she realized it was now closer to 4am. Deciding then and there that she could do nothing more until getting some sleep she slipped between the sheets and instantly found herself drifting off. The dream started almost instantly she was in a deep sleep.

She was in a town, a town that sort of reminded her of Ravenswood, and yet it was not Ravenswood. Miranda looked around her surroundings trying to make any sort of sense of why she should be in this dreamscape. She was standing on a street. As she began to explore this unfamiliar location she decided to head closer to the center of town. Perhaps that would have the answers she was seeking? It did not long for her to reach the town center. Realizing there must be a town hall she looked for a sign that had the name of this mystery town. That was when she saw it a sign that said ROSEWOOD. Why does that name ring a bell she thought to herself? By this point she had reached the town hall, and sat down on one of the benches to collect her thoughts for few moments. After a few more moments, had passed she suddenly realized why Rosewood sounded familiar. It was where Caleb had lived before coming to Ravenswood on the bus. With the realization of Caleb connection to this town came another, which was this was also where Caleb's girlfriend Hannah lived. Why would my dreams take me here unless… of course she thought maybe after I passed on Caleb went back to Rosewood? As Miranda began to consider the likely hood of this possibility a strong wind suddenly arrived breaking into her thoughts. Looking up she suddenly spotted a lone black raven, feeling suddenly terrified Miranda got up from the bench deciding to seek shelter. As she got up, though, she failed to notice that the raven had now taken on its true human form. "MIRANDA COLLINS" she heard a voice boom, realizing with horror whose voice that was Miranda turned around and felt her blood run cold. Staring her right in the face was Gabriel Abaddon the minister who brokered the Ravenswood pact all those many year ago. She continued to stare at Abaddon until he closed the gap between himself and her with one smooth motion. "Hello Miranda, glad to see you have made it back to earth", with a shock she realized it was him who was responsible for bringing her back. Not sure how much time she had left Miranda took a deep breath and asked the question that she was (no pun intended) dying to. "Why have you brought me back?" Abaddon cackled again but responded "The debt still must still be paid, and I have come to collect." As he touched her forehead she felt herself waking up, the last thing she heard was Abaddon state "The clock is ticking"

Miranda's eyes popped open with a start, and the realization of what she just witnessed left her in absolute shock. Looking again at the clock she now saw it close to 12 noon. Getting up she decided it was time to spring her return to her uncle. Leaving Caleb's loft, she made her way to her uncle's house. She spotted him sitting at his desk, lunch sat not far off, but Collins seemed distracted. He was also holding a cup of coffee. Just as he was about to take a sip Miranda burst in. To say that Collins was surprised to see his once deceased niece standing in front of him would be an understatement, the coffee cup hit the floor and shattered instantly. "Hello Uncle" Miranda said." Still sitting there dumb founded Collins wondered what this turn of events would bring…