"Okay, everyone get into block!" Eva shouted above the normal din.
"Your turn to count the beat," Morgan informed her, handing her two thick, heavy sticks.
"Damn. Band, attention!"
"Hut!" Was the responding roar from the forty-seven people of the band. They all proudly stood at attention.
"Band, horns up!"
"Hut!" The horns snapped upwards.
"You were late," Morgan quietly informed one of the younger band members. "Fix your posture." The nervous newbie instantly straightened his back, supporting his instrument with his arms rather than his back. Morgan glided away while Eva shouted her instructions.
"Clover drill! Eight-to-five steps! Make sure you count loudly! One! Two! One, two, three, four!" The band moved together, counting loudly and shouting the next direction change so that no one would get lost and trampled.
"I hate it when they make us do this. You'd think they'd at least be down here to do their job," Eva grumbled quietly, watching the band's progress. "Watch your lines!" She shouted to the band.
"Probably another meeting. Their feet suck."
"If we have to start the drill without them again, I'm going to be pissed. Are we even allowed to practice without adult supervision? Shoulders need work as well...oops, someone fell."
"Nice recovery though. Who knows? Anyway, we'll just do the same as yesterday. You conduct, I'll go up on the scaffolding and see how the show looks and all."
"Full show?"
"Yeah, then cleaning."
"Sounds like a plan." Eva sighed and addressed the band once more since they completed the drill. "You need to follow the lines! People are out of step and your shoulders need work. Make sure you're paying attention to the moves! The counting is good, but it would sound so much better if everyone did it! Same drill again, this time go to the left first! One! Two! One, two, three, four!"
After forty-five minutes of block, the band was granted a five-minute break. There was still no sign of the director.
"You'd think J would at least be down here. Or that student teacher," Morgan grumbled.
"I think J is doing a pitt sectional in the band room. And I'm pretty sure the meeting is about the student teacher."
"What'd he do? We've only been in school a month now," Morgan asked with a frown.
"It's not about what he did, but who," Eva replied with a conspirator's wink.
"What?" A hint of shock showed defeated Morgan's usual lack of expression.
"It's all rumors, but the school board is addressing it, or whatever. You'd think they'd be done by now."
"Who was it?"
"No idea. Some junior."
"Ew."
"At least it wasn't a freshman," Eva pointed out with a disgusted wince.
"Gross." With that said, Morgan climbed up the scaffolding.
"To say the least," Eva replied, and then turned abruptly to the band. "Hey! Band! Opening set, with instruments! We're going to do a run-through, and then we'll clean! Hey, you better work hard if you don't want to have an early practice before the competition tomorrow!" The band quickly got into formation and waited for the drum major's cue. However, Eva was staring at the field with a scowl. She glanced up at Morgan who was wearing a similar expression.
"Oy! Where is everyone?" Eva demanded. "We're missing three people already!"
"I thought I saw Jess and Mark today, but they must've gone home sick. Lisa's been sick, though. Mono," someone near the front sideline explained. Eva sighed and raised her hands. Instantly everyone was at attention.
"One! Two! One, two, three, four!" Eva shouted across the field. The opening bars of Cherry Poppin' Daddies' "Zoot Suit Riot" exploded from the drum line before the trumpets started their part and the band began to move. Eva danced subtly to the music, though she never slowed or missed a beat. The music transitioned smoothly to "Saddest Thing I Know" and finally ended with "Shake Your Lovemaker." Someone clapped from behind Eva and she turned to see if the band directors had finally shown up. They hadn't, but the police had.
"Very nice performance," the younger cop shouted to the band. The older one didn't look as impressed. "I'm going to have to interrupt your band practice for a little while. Does anyone know Jessica Billert or Marcus Jacobson?"
"You'll be hard-pressed to find someone who doesn't know them here. They were both in the band," Eva pointed out. "What's this about?"
The young cop addressed the entire group, explaining, "Jessica and Marcus were reported absent after lunch, though they were here this morning, but there aren't records of their departure from the school and neither of their parents know where they went. I was wondering if any of you knew if they went off together? I know you don't want to rat out your friends, but their parents are very worried for their safety and we would like this resolved as quickly as possible." No one responded. Many glanced curiously at each other and useless chatter spread through the band. All were wondering what had happened, though no one offered any information to satisfy everyone's curiosity.
"It will be better for both Marcus and Jessica if anyone with information spoke up now!" The older cop crankily shouted to the groups. The murmurs stopped, but no one stepped forward.
"We're going to have to interview everyone here. Is that okay, Mrs. Thomas?" The young cop shouted up to Morgan. She glared down at him in horror.
"Um, it's actually Mr. Thomas, and he's not here. She's the other drum major. It should be fine to interview everyone. We'll break into music rehearsal out here and we'll send a section to you so you can interview them. Is that okay?"
"That should work. I'd like to interview you and the other drum major now, if that's fine."
"Yeah, sure. Band! Take a break!" Eva shouted. "I don't think I can really help you. I only realized they were missing when they went into opening set."
"Do you know who Jessica and Marcus would confide in?"
"Other than each other, you mean? Well, I know Jessica was close to Hannah and Lisa, but I'm not sure about Marcus. He hung out with David, I think."
"Were they dating?"
"Who, David and Mark? Nah, they were straight."
"I didn't mean..." The cop started but Eva chuckled and stopped him.
"Yeah, Yeah. Jess and Mark are an item."
"Do you think they would skip to go hang out together like this?"
"Not really. I heard they were about to break up," Eva stated matter-of-factly. "Oy, Morgan, did you know anything about them?" She asked when the girl had finally climbed down to join them.
"No." The unspoken words were, "And I don't care." Eva shrugged.
"She doesn't like drama. Hell, either do I, but somehow I manage to hear most of it." She shrugged again. "Anything else?" The officers asked a few more questions before they requested to see those Eva had mentioned being particularly close to Mark and Jessica. They managed to question the entire band before the directors even bothered showing their faces on the field.
"Eva! Morgan! What the hell were you thinking? You let the cops question the band without us being there?" Mr. Thomas roared, his face turning an unhealthy shade of red. Closely following him was J leading the pit.
"The band was willing to speak with them in order to find them," Morgan said coolly.
"You should've waited for us before..."
"You should've been here," Eva interrupted him, her anger hidden behind her usual bubbly grin. Mr. Thomas' face paled and he would have started to yell at the girl's impudence had the police officers not stepped in to thank the drum majors before leaving.
"The band already did one run-through. We were going to clean, unless you want them to do something else," Morgan quietly informed the directors before they could focus on Eva again. Their previous anger disappeared as they went to work with the band.
"You shouldn't pick fights," Morgan flatly chided Eva.
"They shouldn't be assholes," was the cheerful response. Somehow the trace of anger had disappeared from her tone.
"You never stay angry too long," Morgan mused with a smirk.
"You're amazingly good at stopping arguments," Eva commented with a grin.
"You give me plenty of practice. What do you think happened to those two?"
"Probably were 'making up' after their last blow-up. Nothing unusual," Eva shrugged and watched sadly as the band directors took over. The atmosphere was suddenly more oppressive than before and the band's life was hastily drained from their bodies. Both Eva and Morgan could feel it, yet neither of their personalities changed in the least, though both were ready to smack both directors for their idiocy. Finally practice ended and all were allowed to return home. Everyone slowly trudged up the hill to the band room, exhausted and frustrated, most lugging huge instruments or pit equipment with them.
"That was annoying," Morgan stated in her usual monotone.
"Mm. The show's looking better, though. Wonder if it'll stick with them this time," Eva mused. "Last practice the show looked great, then this one it seemed everyone forgot what we worked on. Oh well. Such is life," she dismissed the thought and skipped up the hill despite the fact that she was pulling a large podium behind her. "Your turn to pull this damn thing next time," she commented as she passed up the other band members. Morgan easily kept up though she was dragging the smaller podium as well as the bulky metronome with her. When they reached the band room, they instantly heard the annoying shouts that signaled frustration, exhaustion, and band drama.
"Flute section again?" Eva sighed yet her grin didn't leave her face long.
"Who else?" Morgan stated dryly. "Your turn. I did it last time."
"Damn. Okay," she set down the podium and approached a group of girls huddled in a circle making hot accusations and screaming at each other. Already one girl was in tears though she was still fighting back rather vigorously.
"Oy, it's time to go home! Go and rest and it'll all be fine!" Eva started happily, but the shouting continued.
"Hey, come on now! We're a family, remember! Play nice, children!" Nothing changed, except that the flutists began to tattle on one another to Eva. Eva sighed before her face contorted into what was dubbed her "hell-demon face."
"Shut the hell up now! If you have this much energy to fight after practice you haven't been working hard enough on the field! Now all of you go home and we will discuss this like civilized people next practice! And if you can't do that, you all will be running laps until you learn to get along? Am I clear?" She roared. There was instant silence in the band room as people stared. Eva coughed delicately and grinned. "Okay, I'll see you guys at next practice! Remember to behave!" She said in a singsong voice and bounced back to Morgan. Rosa, Gabe, and Will were waiting with her, their instruments away and ready to go home and eat.
"Okay, so that's today's problem. Wanna bet they have to run laps tomorrow?" Eva asked with a wicked grin.
"You're evil," Gabe commented with a wolfish grin of his own.
"Finally! Someone acknowledges it."
"Morgan's still more evil than you," Rose pointed out.
"Dammit! One day I will win!" While laughing, the group left the school and drove home – Eva on her motorcycle while the rest piled in Morgan's amazing black Pontiac Firebird.
The two engines revved loudly before Eva squealed out of the parking lot, racing past the stragglers and heading towards the large house they now called home. She could hear Morgan behind her, rapidly edging closer and closer to her. Eva laughed manically in the wind, though the sound of the motor covered the laughter muffled by her black helmet. Abruptly she turned down a narrow street, her leg nearly scraping the ground before straightening. Morgan was still hot on her tail and easily made the turn. Abruptly Eva turned off the road onto a narrow, wooded path that the car couldn't follow. She raced through the woods, a grin of sheer bliss plastered on her face as she raced expertly down the rough path. She could still hear Morgan's engine roar in the background even though it was taking a less direct route. Still, when Eva pulled up to the house Morgan's car was already there and the four riders were sliding out of the lush interior of the car.
Eva cut the engine and tugged off her helmet.
"Close," Morgan smirked. Eva grinned and bounced towards the door.
"I really don't care who wins, I just like the speed," she explained happily as she let herself in the vast house. "Ah, I really like this house. Let's stay here for awhile."
"You know we can only stay for a short time," Will pointed out, scowling slightly. It seemed that his love for Tara was still bothering him.
"Yeah, but we can always hole up here for a while," Eva shrugged. "Hmm, I'm hungry." She bounced into the kitchen and pulled out a bag of dark crimson liquid before popping it in the microwave.
"Can't you just drink it cold?" Morgan sighed, pulling her own bag out of the fridge and would have drank it if Gabe hadn't stolen it and chugged it down. She sighed before grabbing another one and sipping at it.
"But it seems like it's fresher like this," Eva pointed out. "Like you're actually biting into something living." The microwave beeped and she happily slurped her dinner down. "Oy, aren't you guys going to eat? It's not healthy to skip meals."
"I'm not hungry," Will claimed and went to barricade himself in his room. Gabe grabbed another bag before plopping down in front of the television.
"I'm going on a diet," Rose decided.
"Try again. You're too tiny as it is," Eva said sternly. "Eat up. I won't have you randomly blanking out and biting someone."
"It'd be quite troublesome. We'd have to move and I'd have to suppress people's memories again. How annoying," Morgan sighed.
"Okay, okay!" Rose exclaimed, true apology and distress in her voice. "I don't want to cause you any trouble, I'm sorry!"
"Don't worry about it, kiddo," Eva patted her head before tossing the empty bag into the garbage. "I'm full. I think I'll go play," she announced.
"Going to see the wolf again?" Gabe called from the family room, obvious disapproval in his tone.
"Yup. He should be out tonight," she commented, ignoring his anger. Gabe growled under his breath before turning back to the show. "I'll be back in a little bit. Don't wait up, Dad," she joked and earned a glare in response. She chuckled before leaving.
"Morgan, want to come with?" She asked. "I'm sure you two would get along. You both seem to be bad asses," she grinned, not meaning any harm in the words. Morgan smirked but shook her head.
"I've got chemistry to work on."
"Okay. Actually, he probably won't show if there are other people with me. He's really antisocial," she commented before heading outside. The night was cool and she smiled to herself, humming a sweet song as she walked towards their normal meeting place in the woods. When she got there, she plopped down on the ground and waited, laying on her back and staring at the stars through the gaps in the trees.
Soft footsteps broke her from her daydream and she looked up at the tall, muscular man in front of her. His black hair was pulled into a stubby ponytail and stubble marred his skin. He sat down next to her, a tiny smile his only greeting.
"What's wrong?" Eva asked, concerned. Though he had yet to speak, she could already tell he was upset. His dark eyes, normally mysteriously broody, were filled with an unspeakable rage and pain. "Did anything happen at school?" The low growl that escaped his lips proved she had hit the mark. "Another fight?" She sighed, sitting up to pat his broad shoulder consolingly.
"Kicked out," Logan murmured flatly. It seemed he was still in shock.
"What?"
"They kicked me out. I didn't…I didn't start anything." He grew angrier as he spoke and his words and body shook. "They attacked me again. I had to fight back! What the hell did they expect me to do, just sit back and take it? Those bastards, five of them, accused me of some bullshit before they jumped me! They had weapons, the god damn filthy jack asses!" He ended in a loud, angry rant. Unable to sit still any longer, he leapt to his feet and paced.
Eva sat, shocked. This was the first time Logan had spoken so much. Normally he was used to how people treated him. Because of his size and appearance, most thought he was trouble. People either avoided him or picked fights.
"What are you going to do?" She asked quietly, her face somber for once.
"I'm going to find a job."
"You're quitting high school?" She asked, appalled. "You'll never get a decent job if you don't graduate!"
"That's what my parents said," Logan sighed and flopped back down to the earth.
"Why don't you go to a different school? Ooh, come to my school!" She said excitedly.
"It doesn't matter which school I go to, the same thing will happen," he said, miserable. "I scare people too much."
"So does Morgan. You'll fit right in!"
"I don't think…"
"You can't just give up after one crappy school!" Eva pleaded. "And this time you'll have friends there, so you'll be fine!"
"Friends?"
"What, am I not your friend?"
"One, not plural," he pointed out.
"I'm sure the others will like you too! They don't scare easily," she said with a wry smile. "Want to meet them?"
"No," Logan bluntly stated. Eva pouted at him, and was about to reply when she felt something pierce her shoulder. Biting back a scream, she turned her head to see the wooden stake protruding from her skin. She laughed tightly before ripping it out. Logan, meanwhile, was staring down the woods as if daring anyone to admit to the crime.
"Your aim sucks!" Eva shouted. "You're supposed to pierce the heart, nimrod!"
"Don't give them advice," Logan growled.
"Ah, it's common knowledge anyways," she shrugged, and winced. Blood was oozing out of the gouge in her arm, but she ignored the pain and silently scanned the woods for the enemy. Her keen eyes caught sight of a shadow of a person, so she darted forward. A hand holding yet another stake swung out at her, but she dodged it.
"Thanks for the advice," a male voice said smugly. Eva frowned slightly before popping her head around the tree that the person was hiding behind.
"Hey, don't say stupid end lines like that unless you actually kill your prey, dumb ass," Eva said, grabbing the boy's throat with her injured arm and forcing the stake from his hand with the other. He was probably a few years younger than she was, or younger than she had been when she was turned. "So, why'd you attack me?"
"Dirty…vampire," he gasped. "I'll kill you!"
"You're really not in any position to say that right now, are you?" She informed him cheerfully. "Hmm, a vampire hunter? I haven't met one of those in a while. Which family are you from?"
"I'll never tell!"
"Aw, come on! That's no fun. Maybe I've met one of your ancestors before, I wanna know!" Eva said rather childishly. She was about to say something else when she sighed. "Oops, now you're in deep shit. Gabe found out. I'd start talking before…" She didn't get to finish her sentence as Gabe suddenly appeared and threw a punch that snapped the tree in half.
"Why'd you move him?" Gabe snarled at Eva as the tree crashed to the ground. She was now cuddling her attacker in her arms.
"We promised never to kill humans, right?" She reminded him with a sweet smile. Gabe growled, still furious. It almost seemed that he was growing larger as his wrath increased.
"He tried to kill you!" He roared. The hunter flinched in Eva's arms, causing her to laugh.
"Yeah, he did. But I'm alive, in a sense. Come on, Gabe, he's just a kid."
"Kid or not, I won't have him harming my family!"
"Like your kind harmed mine?" The kid suddenly piped in. His fear of Gabe turned to newly remembered fury. He ripped himself away from Eva, jarring her shoulder in the process. She hissed out a curse and nearly doubled over. Logan patted her back awkwardly while Gabe glowered at the pair.
"That's a stereotype, kid. That's bad. Blame the vamps who actually killed your family, don't take it out on us," Eva gasped. The pain and loss of blood, it seemed, was finally taking its toll.
"Don't lecture me," the kid growled. Eva laughed weakly.
"Damn, I need to see Rose." Her intended sigh came out as a moan. At the sound of Rose's name, the kid's face purpled with anger. At first, it didn't seem like he was going to be able to say anything, but then the words spewed out of his mouth.
"That bloodthirsty wench! She's the evil bitch that killed my family!" The kid shouted angrily. Gabe growled dangerously at the hunter and barely resisted tearing his head off. The kid flinched and involuntarily took a step in retreat.
"Rose? Evil bitch?" Eva stated, confused. She shook her head. "Nah, that's more Morgan, but she's not a bitch. Just evil."
"Nice save," Morgan said flatly, appearing silently beside Logan and Eva.
"Shut up, you two," Gabe growled. "Go back and see Rose. I'll take care of this."
"Eh, no fun!" Eva weakly protested. At Gabe's venomous glare she winced and nodded.
"Help her back, wolf," he snarled to Logan. He glared at Gabe in return but obliged him, only because Eva was tottering off on her own.
"I told them not to come, but…" Morgan said and shrugged. Cat and Tori popped into the show.
"We would've gotten here sooner, but someone was slow," Cat said, glaring pointedly at Tori.
"You could have gone without me," Tori pointed out with an identical glare.
"Sorry, I couldn't keep them home," Morgan said quietly. Gabe sent them a death glare that had the bickering instantly halting. When all was silent once more, Gabe turned to the vampire hunter and grabbed him by the front of his shirt.
"We don't hunt humans. I don't know why you think Rose hurt your family, but she didn't. None of us did. If you ever come near my family again, I will personally rip you to tiny shreds that even a vampire wouldn't recover from. Are we clear?"
"I will have my revenge. She broke the contract," the hunter whispered, still determined though there was fear in his eyes.
"It will be your funeral," Gabe hissed in the boy's face before releasing him. The hunter fell to the ground in a humiliated heap, and Gabe headed back to the house. Cat, Tori, and Morgan followed rather glumly.
"That was anticlimactic," Tori sighed in a random British accent.
"Dang, I wanted to try out my new weapons," Cat pouted, disappointed.
"This is why I stopped in the middle of a lab for?" Morgan stated rather disgustedly.
"What'd he mean about a contract?" Tori suddenly asked.
"Who cares?" Gabe growled, still angry. The three sent knowing looks at each other behind his back but followed his lead and fell silent. By the time they got back home, Eva was lying on a couch with Rose tending to the bloody excuse for a shoulder. Logan was standing in a corner, brooding gloomily. Eva, however, was feeling a bit livelier and was greedily sucking down a bag of blood. She stopped when Gabe and the girls arrived.
"You didn't kill him, did you?" She asked sternly. Gabe glowered at her, but it had lost most of its heat as his anger faded.
"No, but I will if he tries this again."
"Which he will," Tori sighed. "He said he wanted revenge, and since he thinks Rose killed his family…"
"I didn't!" Rose protested loudly, her eyes growing wide with shock. "I swear, I've never killed anyone!"
"Nearly did, but you were young and I stopped you," Eva said fondly, remembering the past. At Rose's pained look Eva patted her head. "It was self defense. Damn vamp hunters."
"I just want to know what contract he was talking about," Cat said with a slight frown.
"Who cares? We don't owe him anything," Gabe grumbled with an almost easy-going shrug. It seemed he was returning to his normal, calm state of mind once more.
"I wonder what family he's from. It'd make more sense if we knew that," Eva commented. "Ah, I suppose we'll find out."
"If he gets near enough for us to find out, I'll tear his damn head off," Gabe growled. His edge hadn't completely softened. Eva held up her hands to appease him.
"Come on, he's just a klutzy little kid. Can you honestly kill him with a clear conscience?"
"Yes."
"Damn it, stop being sadistic!"
"I'm not, I'm being honest."
"You people are noisy. I was reading," Dan stated quietly, coming into the room.
"About time you came down," Cat told him wryly.
"Yes, you're missing an incredibly entertaining debate," Morgan stated sarcastically.
"Is Will still in his room?" Gabe asked Dan. Dan nodded and Gabe groaned.
"Is he hitting puberty again?" He grumbled.
"He is eternally sixteen. Not as great as some people would think," Eva joked. She finished the bag of blood and licked her lips, satisfied. "Thanks, Rose. I should be fine for school tomorrow," she said cheerfully.
"School! Oh no, I forgot I have to practice for band!" She exclaimed and instantly darted away. The group stared after her rather skeptically before returning to the conversation.
"We need to be careful of this vampire hunter," Gabe instructed them. "Especially Rose. She seems to be at the top of his list, but I don't see how she could have done anything that anyone would want to kill her for."
"Actually I think most people want to kill us just because we are vampires," Cat pointed out.
"With the exception of the crazies who want to date us," Tori commented nonchalantly. Normally the group would laugh, but due to the severity of the matter at hand, it was only Eva that showed her appreciation of the joke. Gabe sent her a stern glance and she stifled her giggles.
"Keep an eye out for the kid and make sure Rose doesn't get hurt. And don't screw around!" He snarled at Eva. She made a face but didn't argue for once.
"Class dismissed?" Morgan asked, lifting an eyebrow at Gabe. He nodded once and the group departed, save Gabe, Logan, and Eva.
"How's the arm?" Gabe asked shortly.
"Fine. It'll completely heal in a few days. Rose does good work. It'll be amazing when her power grows even more." For once she sounded mature.
"Good. Let the dog out before you go to bed," he grunted and left. Eva winced slightly at the shot. Logan looked furious, but was too introverted to speak. Only a growl escaped him, which didn't help to disprove the "dog" comment.
"Sorry. He doesn't like people in the house," Eva said, truly apologetic.
"I'd have to go to school with that?" He asked venomously. Eva smirked.
"He's really great once you get to know him. You just happened to meet him in nasty circumstances."
"I'm sure," was the dry response. However, he sighed and left the shadows of the room. "I'll let you sleep."
"Talk to your parents about switching to my school! I'll even give you a ride."
"I'll consider," he grumbled, and left, leaving Eva to her own devices. She could hear Rose playing her clarinet in the distance as well as the low curses of those doing homework assigned in their complicated classes. Eva sighed and snuggled back against the cushions of the couch, wondering who exactly the vamp hunter was.