Alright, I know I said that this chapter would be funny, but I recently got a huge list of songs from my two fav singers: Avril Lavigne and Hilary Duff, so I'll be putting a whole bunch of those in here too. Oh, and a couple other songs…but anyway, here's the next chappie! WARNING: This chapter contains extreme drama and a bit of…oh wait, I can't say that, because it would ruin the whole fic…anyway, consider yourself warned.

Chapter 8

Nobody's Home

Isabel

"We are gathered here today to honour the life of Neriah Gabriel…" I hear the pastor's words, but they don't even begin to register in my brain. All I can think about is the fact that Neriah, one of my best friends and future sister in law, is dead. All I know is that it wasn't an accident, and that it's her fault. I'll always remember how she was found.

Flashback

"Neriah?" I call out through the house. Matt's gone, again, busy being Mr. "Leader of the Tribunal", and now he barely spends any time at his place with Neriah. I've noticed lately that she's been very distant with all of us, and when we all get together, she barely says a thing. Of course, a time came when she stopped coming at all, and now she just locks herself up in her house.

I couldn't tell you
Why she felt that way,
She felt it everyday.

And I couldn't help her,
I just watched her make
The same mistakes again.

She never told us what was wrong, and after a while, she was starting to act like Rochelle used to; hiding her feelings behind a mask. I walk around a bit, and my sixth sense leads me to the kitchen.

What's wrong, what's wrong now?
Too many, too many problems.
Don't know where she belongs
Where she belongs.

I see her there, lying down on the floor with a knife through her heart. At first, I think that somebody did this to her, before remembering that she could only be killed by an Immortal, and she and Matt are the only Immortals who know where this place is. I know that my brother would never do this to her, he loves her too much. But since he hasn't spent very much time at all here with her, she probably felt that he doesn't love her anymore. Realizing that she did this to herself just makes it even worse. I scream out in my thoughts for somebody, anybody, to come here.

Matt comes first, and when he sees his soul mate's dead body on the floor, he lets his head droop. I feel tears come thick and fast, and I round on my brother. "This is your fault!" I scream. "If you'd been home more often, then Neriah wouldn't be dead!"

She wants to go home
Nobody's home
It's where she lies
Broken inside

There's no place to go
No place to go
To dry her eyes
Broken inside

"W-what?" he asks, startled. "Isabel, I'm sorry. I guess I just…got a little carried away with being an all important leader."

"Yeah, well, it's a little late to apologize now, isn't it? No matter how many times you say you're sorry, it's not going to bring her back." I know that my words are hurting him, but that's the whole point. I want him to feel guilty that Neriah's gone.

Open your eyes
And look outside
Find the reasons why

You've been rejected
And now you can't find
What you've left behind

Arkarian comes shortly after, and I run over to him, burying my head into his chest. "She's gone…" I whisper softly, unable to do much more than that. He strokes my hair and holds me close.

"It's okay, Isabel," he says reassuringly.

Be strong, be strong now
Too many, too many problems
Don't know where she belongs
Where she belongs

End Flashback

I'm brought back to the present by the pastor saying my name, and calling on me to say a few words. I walk up to the front, and tell myself I'm not going to cry. Yeah, right. "Neriah was one of my best friends," I begin. "She was there for me always, and my only wish is that I could have been there for her so this never happened." Since everyone gathered knows about the Guard and everything, I don't have to hold anything back. "Of course, she, like the rest of us, lived a dangerous life, and one of the things we always know is that someday we'll get killed. I don't think any of us were thinking that this would happen." That gets a few chuckles.

"And I think that if Neriah would simply open up to us, or even to just one person, then she'd still be here. But let's not talk about what should have happened, and let's not all become so distant because of this. Neriah wouldn't want that. Instead, let's celebrate the life of a beautiful young woman, a great co-leader, an extraordinary fighter, and a good friend." Here, I lift the wine glass that I brought up with me, and everyone else does the same. "To Neriah," I say, and they all mutter "To Neriah".

She wants to go home
But nobody's home
It's where she lies
Broken inside

There's no place to go
No place to go
To dry her eyes
Broken inside

Her feelings, she hides
Her dreams, she can't find
She's losing her mind
She's falling behind

She can't find her place
She's losing her faith
She's falling from grace
She's all over the place

She wants to go home
But nobody's home
It's where she lies
Broken inside

There's no place to go
No place to go
To dry her eyes
Broken inside

She's lost inside, lost inside
Oh, oh

She's lost inside, lost inside
Oh, oh, yeah

End

Yes, I know. I'm evil. But I couldn't help myself! Next up: Ethan/Rochelle.