Hello again, everyone! I'm back with another chapter! To address some of the reviews:
Azkadellio: I'm getting around to explaining how they're related, but I didn't wanna explain too much in the first chapter. I wanted it to be more of a teaser chapter, You know? Tori and Jade will meet again in due time, and I think after this chapter, it may be a bit more obvious. And yes, ya caught me. It is. But, it's going to be just a bit different. It's gonna be kinda like a little of Lisa and Cassie, if that makes any sense right now.
paige1313: I'm glad you enjoyed the chapter. I'm thinking about updating once a week, but I lose interest in my stories sometimes, or life just grabs ahold of me, so I'll try to stick with once a week. I don't know. nothing's really official.
Mickey12Boo: I'm glad ya like it! And yes, Cat will be joining the story soon.
Guest: Well, I'm sorry you didn't like it, though if you didn't, I feel like it would've taken less energy to click the back button than to leave a review. Does anyone else notice that most reviews like this are anonymous?
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Jade and Robbie were back in a new motel room, setting up the items they'd need for the hunt, as well as setting up charms and incantations to protect their homebase from anything that isn't human while they're away.
"So, any person that came in contact with this mirror has died?" Jade asked Robbie, walking over to where they had set up the laptop.
Robbie typed swiftly on the keyboard, pulling up the information he needed.
"Yeah. Check this out. It was made in the early 1920s, owned by one Martin Stanrich. Three months later, Mrs. Stanrich goes all Amityville Horror, butchers her husband and three kids with an axe before slitting her throat right in front of the mirror." He says, showing her an old newspaper picture from his computer, with an article on the deaths.
"Mirror's put in storage, then reemerges ten years later, around 1932, purchased at an auction by one Edgar and Madeline Pierce. Three days later, Edgar and the kids are found butchered in their beds, and the mother's throat is slit. Right in front of the mirror." Robbie again provides evidence for that.
"Same with the Hutchins family in 1946, and the McDanniels in 1958. After that, the thing was put in storage for another 57 years before emerging at an auction about a week ago, bought by the Smiths. Same thing happens to them." He finished, clicking through the last few pictures.
"So, we have a mass murdering mirror. Seems like Mrs. Stanrich started it all. Let's go burn the body and be done with it." Jade said, reaching for the bag with rocksalt and lighter fluid.
"It's not that simple. Her body was cremated." He explained.
Jade sighed. "Of course it was. 'Cause nothing ever goes according to plan. Alright. So how's she going around killing all these people? You think her spirit's trapped in the mirror?"
"Could be possible. In some religions and cultures, mirrors and cameras are seen as being able to capture souls. The mirrors in the house of a recently dead person are covered up, so that the soul can escape properly."
"So, we sneak into the Smith crime scene, smash the mirror, then hightail it outta there." Jade says.
"Yes. But I think we should burn the glass shards, and the frame, just to be safe." Robbie suggests.
Jade nods to him.
"Agreed. We leave at nightfall. Make sure we got everything we need for this, and get some shut eye. I'll set the clock for 9:30." She replied, setting the clock and flopping down on the bed.
Within moments, Robbie was asleep, his soft snoring heard coming from his side of the room.
Jade fiddled with the ring around her neck. She knew she wasn't going to get any sleep. She usually never does, hence her famous coffee addiction.
She stared up at the ceiling, ring in her hadn't, and thought of high school. Happier time.
!
"Hey babe." Jade said easily, slinging an arm around her girlfriend of four months' shoulder and pecking her cheek, a coffee cup in her other hand.
"Nerds." She spoke to the rest of the group, motioning with her coffe cup and taking a sip.
"Jade, be nice." Tori said automatically, playfully swatting the goth.
"Fine. Friends. And Robbie." She corrected, smirking at the curly haired boy.
"Hey!" He protested.
"Sorry, bro. Can't help the obvious nerd vibe you give off. Plus that comic book collection you keep doesn't exactly help your case."
"How are you two even related?" Andre asked, Cat and Beck nodding their agreement.
"We aren't. Dad adopted this one when he was a baby." Jade said, motioning to Robbie.
"That explains a lot." Beck chuckled.
The gang had gathered in the park, enjoying the bright, sunny day.
Their newest members, Jade and Robbie, had moved to California six months ago with their father, and getting accepted to Hollywood Arts soon after.
Truth was, they were working on their first cases without their father, in the general vicinity of Hollywood. Their dad was all over the country, and decided that his kids could take on a few cases solo. As it stood, Hollywood was ripe with angry spirits of failed celebrities and people who'd lost it all trying to make it big. Dad ruled that, while the ghosts weren't that dangerous, it would give them experience on building a case and hunting, working up to the real deal.
Beck, Robbie, Andre, and Cat were throwing a Frisbee that Beck had brought, and Tori and Jade were hanging out under an old oak tree, talking and laughing at he rest of the gang's antics.
"Do you ever miss it?" Tori asked suddenly, snuggling closer to Jade and playing with the fingers on Jade's hand not around her shoulders.
"Miss what?" Jade asked, watching her beautiful girlfriend.
"Travelling around with your dad."The Latina looked at her, gauging her reaction.
Jade weighed the options in her head. She and Robbie had told the gang that their dad was a travelling business man, and that he'd recently stopped letting them come with him on his trips.
"I do, sometimes. I miss the different people we meet, the...activities...the scenery." She started, looking ahead.
"But, then I think about all the things I have here. The friends, the school, the happy brother."
She turned to Tori, kissing her softly.
"And, not to mention, my beautiful girlfriend."
Tori smiled at that, and kissed her again.
When they pulled away, Jade was smiling.
Tori giggled. "What are you smiling so big about?"
Jade chuckled softly.
"I just. Never thought I could ever be this happy, y'know? It's not supposed to come to people like me."
Tori's eyebrows furrowed.
"Someone like you? What does that mean?"
Jade closed her eyes and took a deep breath.
"Tori. My family, we're-"
"Hey! Give that back!"
Jade's eyes snapped over to the sounds of her brother's protests, her older sister instincts taking over.
A tall, well built man in a trench coat was standing next to him, holding the frisbee high above his head.
"Jump for it, ya little punk."
Jade clenched her jaw, and got up, walking swiftly toward the older man.
"Hey, asshole. What the Hell do you think you'r-"
The man turned to Jade. His eyes flickered black.
"Robbie. Get away from him." Jade said, her voice deathly calm.
Robbie was about to protest, but saw the look on Jade's face.
"Get the others out of here, then meet me in the nearest alley. Bring the stash"
Robbie nodded. He knew alley meant roof, and to bring weapons to fight a demon.
"Good."
Jade took a deep breath, and walked closer to the man.
Then punched him as hard as she could in the face.
The man's head snapped back, and Jade followed it up with a push kick to the stomach.
She turned her head, seeing her friends looking at her in awe.
"Go! Get out of here. NOW!" She yelled.
The demon recovered, and picked up Jade by the throat, throwing her back into the oak tree.
Her back and head smacked into the sturdy trunk, and she slid down, groaning.
Tori went to check on her, but was waved away.
"Go! I'll explain later." Jade snapped off a thick branch, wielding it like a baseball bat and smacking the demon upside the head when it ran for Tori.
The gang quickly dispersed, and Jade booked it to the streets, buying Robbie some time to set everything up.
She knocked over some nearby trash cans, trying to delay the demon in any way she could.
Jade ran into the nearest alleyway, and climbed easily up the fence at the end of it.
Her phone vibrated in her pocket, and she whipped it out, answering it quickly.
"Jade?"
"Robbie! Tell me you're ready."
"I am. Get to the nearest roof. Run over the rug I have set up. Trust me."
"See ya in five, Rob."
She ended the call, sprinting back out onto the street.
She saw their signal, a small red flag hung on the fire escape.
Checking to see if her new best friend was following her, she scrambled up the fire escape, climbing faster when she heard him below her.
She reached the top, and spotted the rug Robbie was talking about.
She sprinted across it, the man following in close pursuit.
Soon, she ran out of room, and turned around.
He jumped for her, getting closer and closer...
And ran into some sort of invisible wall.
Jade turned to Robbie for some sort of explanation.
"Devil's trap. Found it in one of dad's books." Robbie said, lifting up part of the rug.
He began chanting in Latin from a book, and the demon began screaming and fighting to get out.
Suddenly, it started to change.
It grew long, black hair, and shrunk half a foot, taking on a more feminine look.
Before she knew it, Jade was face to face with herself, but with black demon eyes.
Jade 2 laughed maniacally, and Robbie's chanting faded into the background.
"You know, Jadelyn, you try to act all big and bad, but who're you really trying to fool?" She asked, stepping out of the Devil's Trap.
"How did you-" Jade 1 began, but was cut off.
"You can't save the world, babe. Hell, you can't even save yourself. And you honestly think Tori loved you? That she still loves you? Someone pathetic like you doesn't deserve any love." Jade 2 stepped forward, slowly advancing on Jade 1.
"You hunt these supposed 'monsters', yet you yourself can't stop yourself from becoming one. And how long until that happens, huh? How long until you lose enough of your humanity to kill an innocent? Hell, to kill Robbie?"
Jade 1 was on the edge of the building by this point, and Jade 2 showed no signs of stopping.
"Face it, Jade. In the end, you're no better than the things you kill." And with that, Jade 2 pushed her off of the building.
I'M FOREEEEVER YOOOOOOOURS.
FAITHFULLY
Jade and Robbie were jolted awake by Journey, and both sat up, rubbing the sleep from their smashed the snooze button on the clock, and Robbie could've sworn he saw tiny springs and screws flying off of it.
Must've fallen asleep, Jade thought to herself, cursing. She wasn't about to let some stupid nightmare get to her.
She was Jadelyn fucking West, badass and evil-killing extraordinaire, and she did not scare easily.
"Rise and shine, sleeping beauty. We got a mirror to smash." She said to her brother, heading for the bathroom.
She splashed some water on her face, trying to forget about her dream. She applied her usual dark makeup, then put her jet black hair in a ponytail.
Hey, they were going after an evil mirror. She wanted her reflection to look hot.
She went out of the bathroom, and grabbed her black leather jacket, along with her black work boots.
Robbie grabbed his glasses, and begrudgingly put his shoes on.
Sometimes, he thought to himself, sometimes, I hate this job.
He chuckled.
Alright. Most of time.
"You ready to head out?" Jade asked, grabbing the keys to the car.
Robbie nodded. "Let's do this."
!
They pulled up outside of the Smith residence, surveying the scene. Police tape was still everywhere, and there was a squad car parked in the street next to the house.
Jade parked the car inconspicuously in the driveway a couple of houses down.
"Try the back way?" Robbie asked, getting out of the car.
"Try the back way." Jade agreed.
The two gathered the supplies they'd need: two sawed-off shotguns with ammo, pure iron daggers, salt, lighter fluid, and matches, and headed out.
"What're we gonna do about the police? If they hear gunshots, or smell fire, how are we gonna explain that?" Robbie asked, creeping slowly towards the house.
Jade pulled out a prescription bottle from her jacket pocket and held it for him to see.
"You go inside, check the place out. I'll deal with the cops. I'll meet you at the back door in ten minutes. Got it?" Jade asked, handing him her bag.
He nodded.
"Excellent. Be careful, little brother." And with that, the two broke away, one heading for the back door, and one heading to the front.
Jade creeped slowly up to the squad car, careful not to make any sudden movements. She slipped up next to the car, thankful that the window was down.
Inside, the lone police officer was asleep, his hat slipped down over his head, and his mouth open slightly.
Jade looked around the squad car, and saw a fresh-looking takeout cup of coffee in the cup holder.
Bingo, Jade thought as she pulled out the prescription bottle. She popped the top, careful not to let the pills rattle around, and took out a single pill, taking out her knife as well and crushing the pill with the flat side of the blade. She took a deep breath.
Now comes the hard part.
Jade gripped the dust in her hands, and eased through the window, careful not to touch the cop, or the steering wheel. She dropped the dust in the cup, and stirred it in with her finger.
She quickly withdrew, and crouch-ran back into the Smith's yard.
She dug around in the dirt for a second, and found a pebble, throwing it at the car and ducking into some nearby bushes.
The police officer jerked awake at the sound of the pebble hitting the side of the car, and looked around for anything suspicious. Jade held her breath, hoping that he wouldn't get out to check for suspicious activity.
Luck was on her side for once, and the officer shrugged, grabbing his cup and taking a long drink.
He sat the coffee down, and Jade counted each long second until, finally, he fell asleep.
Jade let out a breath she didn't know she was holding, and raced to the back of the house.
!
"What are we lookin' at here, Robbie?" Jade asked, walking into the Smith's study, where the mirror was housed.
"Definitely Mrs. Stanrich. I was checking the place out and she tried to knife me. I managed to stab her, and she disappeared, but Jade, we're gonna have to be really freakin' careful. This is one sneaky SOB." Robbie replied, loading a sawed-off with shells and pumping it.
"Alright. So, we go in, smash the mirror, burn the pieces, and get out. Nice and easy." Jade said, making a salt ring in the middle of the room.
She took the mirror off of the wall above the fireplace, and walked with it to the salt circle. Placing the mirror in the middle of it, she raised her sawed-off, using the butt of it to smash, ready to come down on the cursed object.
"Agh!" Jade heard Robbie's cry of pain, and spun around, lowering her weapon.
Mrs. Stanrich was looming over Robbie, an old barber's razor in her hand.
Jade fired off a shot, and she disappeared in a cloud of smoke.
Jade ran over to her brother, dragging his unconscious form into the circle, being careful not to break the line.
"Now's not the time to be laying down on the job, Robberina." She said, hauling him into the circle.
"I'm gonna enjoy this, you bitch. Nobody hurts my brother." She growled, seeing Mrs. Stanrich in the mirror.
She smashed the mirror, careful to keep the shards together, and drew another salt circle around the mirror itself before pouring salt over the mirror itself.
She heard Mrs. Stanrich screaming from outside the salt circle, and could feel the breeze coming in, beginning to blow away the outer ring.
Working fast, she grabbed the lighter fluid from one of the bags around Robbie, as well as the matches.
She squirted the lighter fluid on the mirror, and lit a match.
Jade then felt a searing pain in her left shoulder, and saw Mrs. Stanrich's razor embedded in it.
The ghost started laughing maniacally, and threw Jade against a wall.
She went for her iron knife, but Mrs. Stanrich knocked it out of her hands, and it went flying across the room.
Jade made a run for the fireplace, hoping that one of the fire pokers would be made of iron.
She didn't get very far, and felt something tug on her right foot. She landed on the floor hard, feeling one of her knees throb from the impact.
Jade turned over, and saw that Mrs. Stanrich had stabbed into one of her work boots.
Glad I didn't wear converse.
She crawled quickly, trying to make it to the fireplace.
The ghost loomed over her, turning Jade over onto her back.
She bent down, and held the razor to the side of the hunter's throat, slowly increasing pressure and drawing blood.
She jerked up suddenly, then burst into flames.
Jade sat up, panting heavily.
Robbie was clutching his left bicep, watching the flames coming off of the mirror.
"Rob. Little help here?" Jade asked, sitting up and clutching her neck.
Robbie ran over to her, quickly assessing the damage. He ripped off part of the shirt he was wearing, and tying it gingerly around Jade's neck.
"I'll fix it up better when we get to the motel room. Right now, we need to get the Hell outta here." He told her, helping her to her feet.
"First thing's first. Wipe the place down, get rid of all our fingerprints. I figure once the cops see the state of the crime scene, they're gonna wanna know what happened." Jade replied, holding the shirt piece against her wound.
Robbie nodded his agreement, and the two got to work.
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Holly Vega was drinking her coffee and waiting for her husband to get dressed for work and come downstairs for breakfast, as usual.
She had set out some sausage, bacon, eggs, and pancakes, as usual.
The television that she kept in the kitchen was on, and the latest weather reports were coming in, as usual.
Milk and apple juice were set out on the counter, as usual
Then the lights started to flicker, and all she could find on tv was static.
"How...unusual." Holly whispered to herself.
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*A Colombian necktie is when someone's throat is slit, and the blood drips down the front of the shirt, kind of like a necktie. The saying was made famous supposedly when Colombian drug cartels used it to silence their enemies permanently.
I don't really know what I want Tori's daughter to be named, so any suggestions would be much appreciated.
So that was the chapter! Hope you all enjoyed reading it, and I'd certainly love it if you left me a review! 'Till then, I'll see ya next chapter!