Simon:

I don't go back to my room. Instead, I head for Penny's. I can't get into the Cloisters, though, and we aren't allowed to have mobiles at Watford. I end up having to wait outside for nearly half an hour until a girl going in agrees to get Penny for me.

It's worth the wait. I've never been good at hiding things from her, and it feels like a physical itch under my skin when I try to. I hate it, and I need to talk to someone about this now. Who better to tell than my best friend?

...

Penelope:

"What's wrong?" I ask as soon as I step outside and see Simon.

"Why do you assume something's wrong?" he asks, swallowing.

"I know you, Simon, and I know that if it wasn't something important, then you would just wait until breakfast tomorrow to tell me."

He shrugs. "It isn't exactly that something's wrong… I've just been keeping a secret from you, and I don't like it."

I feel a sharp sting. "I thought we had a pact. No secrets."

"I know. I'm sorry, Penny. It's stupid."

I'm still a bit hurt, but I've suspected that he was hiding something for a while now. I'm mostly just glad that he's finally decided to confide in me. "Alright, you're forgiven. What is it?"

"Not here," he says, glancing around. "We should go back to my room, where nobody will overhear."

"Isn't Rhys there?" I ask.

Simon checks his watch and sighs. "You're right. He's probably back by now. Okay… How about White Chapel?"

I nod. "It should be empty this late."

We head for the chapel. Simon stares at the "hidden" door. We sit down in one of the pews, but he looks hesitant to start talking.

"What is it?" I urge him on.

He takes a deep breath, then let's out all at once, "Baz is a vampire."

I laugh. "Very funny, Simon."

"I'm serious!" he insists. "Baz is a vampire, but… a good one."

"Okay, ignoring the idea of a 'good vampire' for a moment, why do you think he's a vampire? Do you have any proof?"

Simon laughs. "I caught him drinking blood from a rabbit. He himself admitted what he is!"

"Okay…" It's hard to deny the logic, if Baz admitted it and was caught drinking blood. "You need to stay away from him, then." I stand up and take Simon's hand. "We need to go tell the Mage."

"No!" Simon bursts out, pulling me back. "I told you, he's good! None of us are in danger!"

"How do you know that, Simon? Vampires are dark creatures! They are murderers!"

"Baz isn't!" he insists.

He looks so earnest that I sit back down with a sigh. "Okay, I'm listening. Convince me."

"He only drinks from animals," Simon says. "He's never hurt a human, and he doesn't ever want to!" He pauses for a moment, then says, lower, "Besides, I think the Mage already knows… Baz said that he thought the Mage believed he might be a threat to other students, and that's why he got a room to himself. If that's true, that would mean that he already knew Baz was a vampire and let him into Watford anyways."

Simon looks a little confused, like he's trying to put the pieces together and solve a puzzle. I can relate. At least Simon has the pieces. I'm just going on what little he's told me.

"So Baz says that he's never hurt a human and never will. Do you really think you can believe him? He wouldn't tell the truth about it if he was killing people, Simon!"

He just raises an eyebrow at me. "I was alone with him for several hours today, in my room, in his, and in the woods. He was hungry enough that he had to run out in the middle of our study session to feed. He had plenty of chances to hurt me. If he wanted to, don't you think he would have?"

I cross my arms, hunching a bit. I don't know what to think. All I know is that there's a lot I don't know. For example, "Why do you care so much? Why don't you want to turn Baz in?"

"Because he didn't choose to be like this, Penny! He was just a kid when he was Turned! Because he doesn't deserve whatever might happen to him if we go to the Mage! Because, in some weird way, I think we're friends now!"

We sit in silence for a few minutes while I try to sort through my thoughts. I don't want Simon to be in danger, but I also don't want to betray his trust. "Alright," I finally agree. "I won't go to the Mage. But I don't trust Baz, either. I don't want you to be alone with him until I figure this out."

Simon looks upset, but nods. "I guess that means I should cancel our tutoring sessions, then," he says with a small laugh.

Why do I have to care so much when he's unhappy?

I shake my head. "You don't have to cancel them if you don't want to. Just… tell him you want to make it a study group. I'll come with you."

He beams at me. "Thanks, Penny!" He hugs me and stands up, glancing out one of the stained glass windows. "We should get going before curfew."

I stand as well, but grab his wrist. "And Simon?"

He turns back to me, head tilted. "Yeah?"

"Please don't keep secrets from me anymore. Especially something as big as this. You'll make me worry."

His smile fades to something smaller and fonder. "I promise I won't, Penny. Or at least, that I won't do it on purpose. I can't guarantee I won't forget to tell you something, though."

"I know you can't. You have terrible memory," I say, patting his arm and laughing when he makes a noise of indignation.