Thank you to everyone who reviewed my story!

And to my Anonymous reviewers: Yes, I know. This chapter is for Glitch. Sorry about that...


It was dark, just as before, in the deepest part of the city ghettos. No one could find him there, he knew that for sure. The night was his cover, his sanctuary, his place of hiding and refuge from all who dared to approach. As long as he remained entombed within the night, he would be safe forever, there was nothing for him to fear from the dark. It shone across him, the bright dazzling brilliance known as light. He tried to cringe away, but it followed, burning his skin until it bubbled. He cried out in agony, withering away in the light, the cruel police vehicle lights. A dark voice was heard, ringing through his skull, his soul, his very being.

Oblio.


"Kerith! Kerith, wake up!" An angry and slightly worried voice called out, shaking the sleeping blond ferociously.

Kerith snapped his eyes open, only to have his vision invaded by the rays of sun poking through his window. He hissed in pain, covering his face and the rest of his body safely underneath the bed sheets.

"Let me guess, a little wimp like you couldn't handle a nightmare? How pathetic."

Kerith grimaced. God, why did Jaryn have to be so annoying all the time? "It's not pathetic when you continue to dream of yourself dying." He mumbled, shoving his face deep within his pillow.

"Okay, I get it. You die a couple hundred times in your dreams, how bad can that be?" Jaryn said, polishing up one of her ruby painted fingernails.

As Kerith's biological twin, she was almost a perfect match to him. She had the same platinum blond hair, only slightly longer in the back. Her pale yellow eyes gleamed with a mixture of hatred and boredom, only softening for her brother when physically inclined to. Jaryn was a dancer, well built in strength and grace, allowing for complicated dancing moves. She had even created a crew for her and her brother. The Glitterati.

Kerith had originally rejected the idea, sitting firmly on never wanting to show his face to the world again. Jaryn pleaded, but mostly blackmailed her brother into going along with the idea, just long enough until he finally began to enjoy himself. They lived at the top of the city, with the authority to challenge and beat all other crews, hands down.

She had always been so sure of herself and her motives, yet her brother became an all together different matter. Jaryn, in truth, did not wish for Kerith to suffer every day of his life with no escape from his pain. So she listened, and waited to see what she could do.

"It's terrifying and painful, yet strangely gentle at the same time. My flesh burns off and the laughter is a constant ear-splitting sound. Yet, the darkness keeps me safe from all of that, for as long as I can hold onto it. It's like a vision, trying to warn me of my future if I don't change something." Kerith said softly, slowly pulling the sheets away from his face.

"It's about the Night Shade thing, isn't it?" Jaryn huffed, laying backwards over the bed and Kerith's legs.

He blinked in shock, sitting up to face his sister. "How did you-"

"I read your diary."

"Jaryn!"

"What?" She shrugged, flipping herself over to a more comfortable position. "I was curious."

Kerith sighed and ran a hand through his frazzled blond locks. He'd only just gotten up, but was now bombarded with sunlight, Jaryn, and having his personal thoughts invaded as well. How he wished to be sucked back into the darkness once again.

"My guess," Jaryn yawned, stretching out her arms, "Is that the only way to get rid of this nightmare, is to become what you've dreamed of."

"You're suggesting that I become Night Shade?" Kerith raised his eyebrows incredulously.

His sister rolled her eyes. "Duh. I want you to stop obsessing over this...thing. So, I'll help you."

Kerith eyed Jaryn suspiciously, searching for an alternate motive. "That's all? You don't want to blackmail me or anything? This isn't a trick, is it?"

"God, no, okay?'! I'm trying to do a nice thing for you here!" She cried in frustration, running off to pick up a few supplies from her room. Jaryn returned shortly with an armful of midnight black material, a sewing basket, and a tape measure. She shoved her brother out of his bed and began taking specific measurements to match his figure.

"What are you-?" Kerith grunted as his head slammed into the hard floor.

"If you want to keep yourself safe from the police, you better bet your sorry but that I'm going to take one of the highest precautions possible."

"And that is-?"

Jaryn grinned deviously. "I'm making you a costume."


Glitch sighed for what seemed to be the fourteenth time today, wiping his camera lens free of dust and dirt. He was a younger looking teen with energetic green eyes and raven colored hair. He dyed a lock of it green in order to show off his "swagger", at least, that's what Mo had said. Most of the time, Glitch wore normal tee shirts and jackets with jeans. Besides the fact that he was the youngest reporter ever, Glitch was just another regular teenager. As a junior journalist, his job was dangling by a thread every second the business dropped a place lower in the popularity ranking. As of now, he was skating on thin ice, waiting for his boss to drop the bad news on him at any second.

"Mr. Tekuno, the boss will see you now." A grumpy, old-lady receptionist said, eying the boy as he stepped cautiously into the judgment hall.

"You wanted to talk to me, Mr. Homuzu?" Glitch said, peeking through the door opening.

Mr. Homuzu, known to his friends as MacCoy, was a quirky young man with more ambition than most. His hair was a bold blond, spiking up at the tops nearest to his face. He always wore orange tinted goggles, prescription for his lacking eyesight, disguising the compelling emerald orbs beyond. Some of Glitch's co-workers had reported his eyes to be enchanted, drawing in and capturing all those who dared to look at MacCoy straight on. Surprisingly, he never wore a business suit, but an orange, yellow, and green striped track suit with a navy blue shirt underneath. Glitch didn't care much for MacCoy's style, just as long as he didn't fire him.

MacCoy turned around in his office chair, donning a pair of headphones around his neck, and a bright smile. "Well, If it isn't Glitch Tekuno! Have a seat, kid."

Glitch did as he was told, fearing for his very life. MacCoy's facial expression became very serious as folded his hands together, placing them on the desk separating the two boys. Glitch could feel himself sweating at the very sight. The sight itself was a harbinger of bad news.

"Glitch, as you know, our paper has not been doing too well lately." The blond started out, relaying statistics everyone in the office had known. "In order to avoid releasing any of our valued journalists..."

Glitch swallowed heavily. Here it was, the killing blow.

"I have decided to make a few changes to our apparel." MacCoy smiled, leaning back in his chair.

For a second, Glitch forgot to breathe. He wasn't getting fired...he wasn't getting fired! He was actually holding onto this job!

"Kid. Kid, can you breathe okay?" MacCoy shook the younger boy's shoulders, attempting to snap him from his trance.

Glitch took in a new breath, looking back to his employer. "Y-yes, sir!"

MacCoy chuckled. "Good. 'Cause from now on, you'll be know as Gem."

"Of course I- wait...what?" Glitch sputtered as a black wig and dress were shoved into his arms. "Aren't these...girl's clothes?"

"Yep. You're going undercover as a female reporter." His boss grinned, tossing Glitch a small bag full of makeup.

"You can't be serious!" Glitch cried, staring mortified at his boss, who was wearing a devious grin on his face.

"Take it, or your fired. It's your choice."


Life. Sucked. It had been at least five hours since Glitch had last walked in men's clothing. He had scowered half the city already, and still no luck in finding anything cover-worthy of MacCoy's paper. The sun had proceeded to set, leaving the boy cold and defeated as he pushed on with his search. Currently, Glitch was wandering aimlessly around a local park, his violet dress swaying in the breeze. His wig itched way too much for his comfort, the long hair irritating his neck and shoulders. He still had his camera and notepad, thankfully, but no lead on any sort of interesting story. Glitch caught whiff of a very faint smoke scent, coming from a nearby bench. Running over to investigate, he found a police officer smoking, a faraway look in his teal eyes. His hair was a dark blue, half lay over his left eye, while the rest was pulled back into a ponytail that flared out in all directions.

"U, um...excuse me, sir?" Glitch said nervously, trying his best to uphold a feminine tone.

The officer turned his way, quite surprised to find a girl so young hanging around the park at this hour. "Isn't it a little late to be out playing hopscotch, Miss?" He chuckled.

Glitch fumed, they'd only met for two seconds, and he already despised the guy. "I'm a reporter for the 'DJ Down Low' weekly paper! My name is Gl-Gem."

"Gem, huh? Why don't you take a seat." The officer said, patting the bench space next to him.

Being cautious to lift his dress, Glitch situated himself on the wooden slats next to the officer. He pulled out a notepad and pen, ready to take down any notes that seemed important.

"Do you like scary stories, Gem?" He cooed, pulling Glitch closer that he liked to be. "I've got a real good one that will shake you to your core."

"You see, I used to be the commander of the task force. First officer ever to receive a promotion at the age of 19." The officer began recalling his memories, as if it were only a dream.

"I see..." Glitch mumbled, scribbling down notes on a blank page.

"And then...he came along. That one criminal that managed to escape my grasp every time. He continued to dodge the police, evade all detectives, and vanish in an instant. One year ago, I had almost caught him! But, he slipped away with a final goodbye, and was never seen or heard of again." He clenched his fists together tightly, anger boiling in his blood.

"What happened after that?" Glitch asked, wanting to pry ever bit of this story out of the officer, if he could.

"I began dreaming. Horrid nightmares that happened over and over again, never ceasing for a single day. In the dream, I'm standing in a room full of light, everything feeling nice and happy. Then, a wave of darkness erupts from the ground, swallowing me whole. Two fiery red eyes stare me down, burning my skin and slashing with claws of shadows. Two words come to my mind every time. Night Shade."

Glitch was silent, scribbling down "Night Shade" and circling it several times with his pen. He stood to leave, bowing politely. "Thank you for the story, Officer...what's your name?"

"Oblio."

"Oblio. Check. Catch you on the flip side, dude." Glitch grinned, waving to the officer.

He had only run a few feet when he realized how much of a boy's reply that sounded like. Glitch mentally slapped himself for being so retarded. Opening his notebook, Glitch tapped the two letter word, standing out from everything else on the page.

"Night Shade. Whoever you are, I'm going to find you!"


*Tekuno is Japanese for Techno

**Homuzu is Japanese for Homes (Sorry. No clue what to name MacCoy)


Cue the chase scenes!

Glitch is the crossdresser, (mostly because he looks cute in girl clothes) which leads to very bad plot related things in Glitch's future. MWAHAHAHAHAHA! ! ! ! !(cue evil lightening and thunder)

Also, Fan fiction is being a pain in the butt, so if I have to repost the story, I'll tell whoever favorites and/or reviews.