Thank you so much for your review PixanaWillow. I really appreciate it. I was so happy when I saw it. Thanks. Also thanks to everyone who reads this story. Remember that if you have any questions you can always ask me. And when you see a gem name and want to know what colour it is, search it up on google.


A tiny little voice chirps from behind me. I search the guardians faces, but they're just as clueless as I am. I think the voice came from somewhere over the hills. A trail of black sand leads me to the edge of a forest. I pause, waiting for the others to catch up to me. A stone appears out of the corner of my eye. I take one step forwards and everything turns black. I feel my way over to the others.

"What's going on?" Tooth gives voice to the many question whirring in my head.

"I don't know. Spinel where are you?"

"I'm here Cory. I just wanna try something." I half crawl over to the stone I had seen earlier. "Hey do you think this will work?" I whisper to my shoulder. My rock hops off me and I search through the stone to find what I was looking for. Rose quartz. "Please, please help us. My friends and I need light. Would you be able to light up the way for us?" A small pebble of the quartz begins to glow a soft pink light.

"You are absolutely brilliant!" Cory exclaims. The glow expands and becomes stronger as we walk through the shadow shrouded forest.

"Do you think there's a way out?" Jack asks nervously. "I don't want to have to face Pitch like this. I need sleep." I suddenly feel dizzy and light headed. I stumble a little and fall onto my knees. It feels as though a weighted net had been thrown over me, and now someone was hauling in their catch.

"Spinel, are you okay?" Tooth reaches out a hand to help me to my feet when I smell a burning noise from behind me.

"Calm down mate." Bunny snaps. "You're gonna set us all on fire." I turn around, still on my knees to see Cory's hair burning and his eyes sparkling. He looks mad.

"Pitch! This isn't funny!" He yells to the darkness. "Come out now!" A demonic laugh sounds from all around us, making my lights flicker. I push more light into them and everything gets brighter. My head throbs and my ears ring. I can barely hear what Jack is shouting and I can feel Cory's arms around my knees and shoulders. Everything seems to be changing colours and my vision blurs. My friends, and Bunny, smudge like they are being rubbed out by an eraser. The laughter begins again, but this time it's more of an evil cackle.

"Guys? Where are you?" My heart beats double it's regular speed and a black sandy hand rests on my shoulder. I spin on my heel to face a 2 metre tall man with glowing topaz eyes and coal black clothing. His skin has a sickly grey tinge to it, and his voice hurts my ears.

"What are you?" My eyes study his every move. He may be a murderer. He certainly looks the part. "What do you want?" He removes his hand from my shoulder to prod at my rock. I slap his hand away. "Stop it!"

"Why? It's so much more fun to tease you." As if to prove his point, he holds a piece of paper in front of my face. "Your fear is there, you don't need to hide it." My school report. I have to get it back before he gives it to my mum. If she sees that I failed in everything, she'll kill me.

"I'm not afraid of you, you freak." I snap at him.

"Your friends are though. They must be glad that you disappeared." He grips my wrist. "How sad for you, a weak, out of control little child."

"I'm not a child!"

"I can make you very afraid, girl. Don't push me." I slap at his hand but he just digs his nails into my arm.

"I used to scare myself to sleep every night. I don't think I need your help."

"Then there must be something wrong with you." His tone insults me. I glare at him.

"There is nothing wrong with me. Maybe you should take a look at yourself."

"What?"

"You're a freak. You love to scare me, don't you? What kind of sick joke is that?" His facial expression changes.

"I'm the bogey man. It's what I was made to do." He say dryly. I laugh despite myself.

"The booger man? No wonder you hate everyone so much. Your name, oh wow."

"Shut up!" I jump at his voice, and an unpleasant tingle runs down my back. "You're going to come with me!"

I wrench my arm out of his iron grip and run. I have no idea where, but I don't stop until my rock falls and I have to stop to pick him back up. Then we keep going. "Cory! Jack! Tooth! Bunny! Help." I stumble and fall, falling on my elbow. A bolt of searing pain shoots up my arm into my brain and I break down and cry. I cry for my brother, and for my parents, for Riley and for Nessa. I also cry for myself, something I haven't done in years. My tears flow freely and I curl my knees up to my chest, becoming a little ball on the shadowed forest floor. I cry for Lauren's death and the confusion of becoming Spinel. I cry because I finally made friends, but I also met the bogey man. I cry because I may never get to see them again. I'll never get to say goodbye to Nessa. I cry until I have nothing more to cry for, and then I fall asleep.

I dream of Nessa, and of me before I woke up, when I was normal. Nessa is laughing and we're both just playing around in her garden, poking fun at her fish and tormenting her birds. Sky and and her many, many huge fish. I also see Jack looking at us with a smile on his face. I don't notice him until he comes into my view, right in front of Nessa. I wave hello but he doesn't see me. His hair is brown and his eyes are hazel. Cory comes through Nessa's back door, but his hair is blonde, and his skin is the same as mine. Next is Tooth, but like the others, she doesn't look like her normal self, she looks like a normal lady. Her fairies are nowhere to be seen, and her clothes are completely different. She has a small tattoo of a tooth on the back of her neck, a tooth with wings. Her hair is tied up in a neat bun and she smiles, sauntering over to stand beside North. He lost the outfit and exchanged it with a huge shirt and shorts. His beard is very short, and his face is more detailed, with wrinkles that tell of how old he really is. I spot a tiny little rabbit and assume it's bunny. He's sitting on a boomerang. I scan the area for Sandy or Pitch, but I don't see them anywhere. Never mind. Pitch strides through the double doors and outstretches his arms in a greeting.

"Welcome everyone. Today you will be moving off to your various parties, but I would first like to propose a toast. To the special lady that is soon to be my wife. Jillian, would you like to step up onto the stage?" My mouth drops open in shock. Nessa's mum is marrying Pitch? Why? He scares little kids for the fun of it. Nessa can't have the bogey man for a dad. What happened to Robert? This s so confusing.

"Hey honey." Jillian murmurs as she walks up onto the porch.

"Nessa! Did you know any of this was happening?" Ness doesn't hear me, so I turn to Jack. "Don't you recognise Pitch?" Again no response. I reach out with a hand to shake his shoulder, but my hand passes through him. I'm a ghost! I don't exist. Is this what would've happened if no one became a guardian and I was the only one? Is this just Pitch playing games? Cory, maybe he remembers me. I grab for his hand but the same thing happens. I go straight through his arm. Tears trickle their way down my cheeks and drip slowly. They shatter into tiny fragments when they hit the ground. I catch one in my hand and notice they're made of glass. Maybe I can get them to see me. Without using myself of course. I will a yellow diamond flower to sprout from the ground and rest on an emerald stem, along with thorns. Then a pink flower, then a white, orange blue red and purple. Suddenly the party guests notice the flowers and stop to look at them. I create two especially for Cory and Nessa. Small veins and other inclusions spell out 'Lauren/Spinel'. I hope that they understand my message. I place the cyan rose in Nessa's hands and the orange one in Cory's. I wait for them to read my words. It should've been difficult to carve the diamond, I realise. Who cares about that?

"Lauren, where are you?" Nessa cries. "I remember now. You were my best friend, and you went to the beach with me and you talked and drank our wine and we had so much fun. Where are you?" She searches desperately for me, but she still can't see me. I remember what Jack said when I first met him. 'She doesn't believe in me'. Maybe she needs to believe in Spinel, and what better way to do that than to spell it out for her. I change the message on the petals, 'Believe in me. I'm right here. ~Spinel'

"Cory? Did you get it?" I look over to see him staring straight back at me. My mouth curves upwards in a smile and I run over to wrap my arms around him. Nessa comes from behind and squeezes me tightly. Cory hugs the both of us and the adults and the guardians stare at us like we're lunatics. Whispers go around the garden and soon Nessa decides it's only fair to let me breathe.

"Spinel! Is that your new name? That's so cool." She stands back to look at Cory and I. He releases me quickly and Nessa sighs. "You guys are so great together. I wish Jack would notice me." Her eyes wander over to the brown haired guardian. I suddenly realise what she said.

"Nessa, we're not a thing." I say quickly, gesturing to Cory and then to myself. Cory's arms wrap around me again and his head rests on my shoulder, his breath tickling my ear.

"Now we are."