Dear readers-

BTW PLEASE READ IT AGAIN! I CHANGED THIS CHAPTER A BIT! READ IT PLEASE!!

GASP Yes, it is me, and no, I'm not dead, and yes, I've ACTUALLY updated!! YAY ME!!

I'm sorry, really I am. I know it's been FOREVER since I've updated last. It's a long story. One involving overly-clingy boyfriends and random new love interests where I never even thought to look... oh yea, and asshole ex-boyfriends. That plus school, getting my nose peirced, tree plays, three WIP stories, one story on HIATUS, and beinggrounded equals me having no life... oh, that and I have a feild trip tuesday (which is alo my anniversary) AND my birthday just passed. And then I had to deal with this bitch who was talking crap about me. So yea, I've been busy. But I GARUNTEE the process will go faster.

Oh yea, that, and you will either love this chapter or want to fling mashed potatos at me. Oh, and by the way, just a little side note, this chapter takes place in the same day where the last one left off, just in case you couldn't tell... I hope you could. 0.o Brief yet akward moment of silence. And yes, it is a quite long chapter. I'm sorry, but after making you wait for so long, I didn't have the heart enough to cut it off and leave you all with a cliffie. You know you love me.

Thanks to all my oh-so-loyal readers who don't stop reading, even when i get boring or forget to update. I LOVE YOU ALL!!

-SDSL

Disclaimer: If you all don't know by now what i do and do not own... i have lost faith.

Rachel

"What the fuck is wrong with you?" Chase shouted at Brooke as she sat on her knees, looking at her hands which were clasped in her lap while Evan and I stood behind her. Chase was fuming, and had already hit her so hard she'd coughed up blood. I exchanged a look with Evan. I could tell that he felt as uneasy about this as I did. Why was she taking the blame? Keeping Alice and Reid apart was mostly Evan's assignment, and I was supposed to help a bit too. So why was she taking the blame?

Brooke looked up sharply all of the sudden, a sneer marring her perfect features. "I didn't know that they had left to have sex. I checked Caleb's thoughts, and he was sure that they had gone because Alice wasn't feeling well. So forgive me for not screening every little thought that popped into her mind!" Brooke told him sarcastically.

He lunged forward, backhanding her, and she fell to the ground. I let out a tiny yelp before clasping my hand over my mouth. "No, I will not forgive you!"He kicked her in the stomach, the undeniable crunching sound of ribs causing me to cringe. I instinctively grabbed onto Evan's arm. I could hear the low growl building in the back of his throat. "Because of you, now everything is ruined!" He snarled, grabbing her by the front of her shirt, pulling her up. Her cheek was reddish and a purplish tint already. Her lip was split and bleeding. I could've sworn I could see tears sliding silently down her cheeks. "You're such a disappointment Brooke." He growled at her under his breath. He threw her against the wall, her head colliding with the mirror, then falling onto her hands and knees on the floor, the glass tangled in her hair that was already beginning to mat with blood.

"Brooke!" I shouted, running to her side. He'd been beating the shit out of her for an hour beforehand, and I just couldn't take it anymore.

Evan snarled, stepping between us and Chase. "Now you listen here, friend. We'll follow your orders because my father said. But the next time you harm either of my cousins, then that's it. I don't care what my father says; I will kill your ass again and make sure your black soul burns in a special hell."

"Evan, stand down." Brooke commanded as I helped her to stand.

"Hell no." He growled as Brooke was using me like a kind of crutch to stand, her arm slung around my shoulders as she leaned against me and as I held her up.

"Stand down." She repeated. When he didn't budge, she narrowed her eyes. "Now." She hissed at him through her teeth. He still didn't make a move. "That's and order!" She snapped finally.

Evan gritted his teeth, but moved back slowly, standing against the wall. His eyes were fixed on Chase, burning with hate.

Chase advanced on us, but I put a hand to his chest softly to stop him. "Wait, Chase…" His eyes flickered to me, then to Brooke, and finally back at me once more, as if finally urging me to speak. "Call me stupid, but didn't the prophecy say that they had to be married for her fate to be sealed?"

He paused, considering this. Suddenly, he broke into a wide smirk. "You're right, Rachel." I tried not to cringe or shrink away from him as he kissed me hard on the mouth; so hard that my lips would probably be bruised tomorrow. "I knew there was a reason I chose you to carry my heir." And in a puff of smoke, he had disappeared. As soon as he was gone, I let a look of disgust overtake my face as I wiped my mouth and spit several times.

"Brooke, are you okay?" I asked, worried, still holding her up.

She nodded weakly. "Yea, I'm fine." She coughed, and then winced, holding her ribs, her face screwed up in pain. I helped her to sit down on the bed.

"Why did you let him do that to you Brooke? He could've killed you. He probably would've, if it wasn't for Rachel's quick thinking. He's a heartless bastard, Brooke. A demented, twisted, psycho heartless bastard!" Evan shouted, irritated.

"Don't you lecture me, Evan Marcus." She hissed, her eyes narrowed. "I knew what was at stake. I knew what was going to happen. He would have killed me, Evan." She told him, as he took in a sharp breath. "You think I don't know that? But what else could I have done? Let him kill you? I don't think so, you're 

blood… family… my baby cousin, Evan. I would never allow that. Or Rachel? Certainly not. Aside from the fact that she's my cousin and a part of my team, she's pregnant." She yelled. "I did what I had to do to keep my team… my cousins safe!"

"That's bullshit beyond all bullshit Brooke." He retorted.

"Evan." I reprimanded, standing in front of him. "Watch it."

"No, Rachel. I won't." He snarled at me, and then turned to Brooke."You've got enough powers to send his ass to hell and back thirty times in a row! Why not just vanquish his sorry ass, huh?" He yelled back at her.

"That wasn't an option!" She shouted. She then dissolved into a fit of coughs in which she coughed up a bit more blood.

"Evan, leave it. Please, I'm begging you to leave it alone. We can talk about it later." I said eyeing Brooke warily.

"Shut up, Rachel." He growled.

"Fuck you, Evan!" I shouted, slapping him across the face, sitting down beside Brooke.

But he acted as if his cheek wasn't already turning an angry pink color. "Why wasn't it an option, Brooke, huh?" He goaded.

She looked down at her hands once more, sighing as she looked back up at him to answer. "I have direct orders not to vanquish him."

Evan looked as if he'd explode. But he yanked his jacket off the floor, saying, "I need some air." With a snarl as he stormed out of the door, slamming it behind him, causing both her and I to wince as he did so.

"I- Brooke, don't worry about him, he's just a hot head. You know this." I told her, trying to lighten the mood a little bit.

"I know." She said.

"Brooke…" I started, pulling out a first aid kit from under the bed, hesitating slightly, before continuing on. "Why'd you take the heat? It was Evan's screw up, not yours."

"Because, Darcy," She started, grimacing as I bandaged her stomach, where a long gash made its way across her stomach. "I'm the boss. Sweetie, I'm in charge. It's what I do." She told me, and I shook my head, looking up at her.

"Brooke, can't you ever…" I sighed, as I moved onto the wound on the back of her head. "Look, you're little 'never disobey direct orders' and 'I take the crap because I'm in charge' policy sometimes leads to your almost demise. That type of thing is totally self-destructive." I told her.

"Darcy… I'm not saying that I'm not glad that you are actually caring bout me for more than five seconds, but… that's just it, why are you caring about this so much?" She asked me, and I froze, looking up at her. "You should hate me. So why do you care?" Brooke asked me.

Okay, I know what I'm about to say may seem a tad bit confusing to you, so just try to bear with me. See, Brooke was right. I should hate her. I should want to flatten her with a steam-roller and vanquish her ass into oblivion. You see, Brooke and I have a very complicated relationship, so let me start from the beginning.

When I was born, I was supposed to be born before Brooke. I was supposed to be named Brooke, actually. But she was born three weeks early, and only a day before myself; and thus, she became Brooke. If that wasn't enough, she always had to have everything that I did; just because. Like when I was two, she used her powers to steal a doll of mine- and she got away with it. Everyone patted her head, and said, "Look how powerful she is!" When I was five, she and I went to a training school, later joined by Evan. She flew through the ranks like it was a second nature to her. She excelled in both the academics and fighting courses. Everyone said, "She' l make a great leader one day! She could rule the underworld and become Queen of the Night." A position that I was born for, and the next in line behind Evan's father. When we were eleven, she developed early, and was always stealing my clothes. One day she stole my favorite dress- and it looked better on her. Everyone told her how stunning she looked. When we were thirteen, she stole my betrothed and was bumped in front of me in the line of succession for Queen of the Night. And when we were fifteen, she stole my position as leader of the team. And yet, I still felt the need to protect her. Why that was, I don't even know.

"I don't know, Brooke." I sighed. "I guess... we're family. And… considering what a shitty position we're in right now, no matter what we've fought about in the past, we have to be there for one another… and stick together now."

She pulled me into a tight hug, "You don't deserve what I've done to you, all these years…" She whispered... this would be a touching moment to me and all… except for the fact I knew she would deny it later… and that was just fine with me.

Evan

I stormed out of the room, yanking on my jacket. I stalked down the hallways, pissed off out of my mind. I just started to realize how much my cheek actually hurt as I exited the dorms, walking towards my car. I yanked the car door open, sliding inside, pulling it shut. I sat for a second, rubbing my hands over my face, let out a long breath. Just as I put my key in the car and turned it, starting the car, my phone went off. That better not be Darcy. I thought to myself.

I pulled out my phone, looking at the caller ID. I was surprised to see the name Alice flashing across the screen, accompanied by a picture of her sticking her tongue out. Great. Just another chance to fuck up.

I answered, saying, "Look, Alice, I'm in a very fucked up place right now in a very asshole kind of mood, and I don't want to piss you off, so can I just call you back later or someth-"

"Evan, I don't care if you are being the biggest asshole know to mankind. Right now, I need you." She said, and I could just hear the tears in her voice. "Can you please just come and keep me company?"

I was stunned by the pain in her voice, and how it stung me more than Darcy's slap had. "Al-alright. Um, where are you?"

"I'm… I'm at my house." She told me.

"I'm on my way." I assured her before hanging up the phone. I then sped down the road like crazy, reaching her house in five minutes flat. The gate in front of her house opened as I pulled into the driveway, parking in front of her house. She opened the front door for me, her hair pulled back into a half-ponytail. She wore a pair of grey jean short-shorts, black flip flops, a bright blue t-shirt, and a black, hooded vest that was sweatshirt material. Her eyes were red, as if she had been crying, and yet she was still beautiful. "Come on in." She told me.

We went into her house, sitting in the kitchen. I got us some sodas from the fridge and burgers and fries, and then we went into her living room, turning on the TV. I sat down on the couch beside her and looked at her expectantly. She looked famished. "Eat something, darling." I told her, pushing the food in front of her. She began to eat the fries as I decided to go very cautiously about this. "Alice… what is going on? Why are you sitting at home, all by yourself?"

She paused, wiping her mouth and then opening her mouth to speak. "You were right." She said softly to me.

"About what?" I asked, puzzled.

"About me and Reid. About Caleb." She said, looking down at her hands, letting out a small, dry, humorless laugh. She looked back up at me, saying, "About everything." There were tears in her eyes.

"So you mean-"

"Caleb found out. He caught me and Reid after we… 'did it', I guess you could say, and he beat the crap outta Reid. He… he banned us from ever seeing each other again, and I…" She tried to continue, but she choked up, the tears spilling over.

"Hey, hey, hey…" I said, sliding my hand onto her cheek, forcing her to look up at me. "Alice, don't cry. You didn't do anything wrong." I said, wiping a tear from her cheek.

She let out another dry and humorless laugh, saying. "Oh? And how is this not my fault?"

"Caleb overreacted." I said simply, pulling my hand away, picking up my burger, taking a bite.

"He called me a slut." I froze, looking up at her as she stared down at the table once more.

"What?" I said, my voice coming out a bit strangled.

"He called me a slut, and the thing is; he was right." She said in a broken voice.

"Alice. Alice, look at me." I said, taking her face in both of my hands this time "Don't you dare ever think that about yourself."

"But, he's-"

"Wrong. Utterly and completely wrong, Alice. You are so much more than you think you are. If only you could see yourself the way I do… the way everyone else does." I told her, our eyes connecting. I pulled her into a tight hug as I said, "Alice, everything will work out."

"How?" She said in a muffled voice.

"Caleb will come around Alice." I told her.

"You don't know that." She said, shaking her head as I released her.

"He will." I told her firmly, brushing a stray strand of hair from her face.

"Evan, I'm a horrible person, and this is entirely my own fault. So why are you being so nice to me? I don't deserve it." She said bitterly.

"Alice, you are not a horrible person, and it is not all your fault. You're fun, and sweet, and kind. And Caleb is just being a bit of an overprotective asshole, but that's because he loves you, okay? And the reason I'm being so nice to you is because I care! A lot… probably more than I'm supposed to." I murmured the last sentence, studying her reaction. I let my powers of seduction radite off of myself to entice her.

"I know the feeling." she muttered, leaning her head against my chest. Suddenly, she pulled back, looking up at me, and then pressed her lips against my own. I froze for a moment, shocked. I knew it was wrong, at least that's what the sensible part of me said. But I was still a guy, and she was a girl… not to mention I had been waiting for this for the longest time. I regained my composure, kissing her back so hard that both of our lips would be bruised tomorrow. Suddenly, we broke apart. We stared at each other, both thinking the same thing: What did this mean for us?

I saw the confusion and sadness on her face, and I stood up. "This… this never happened. This didn't happen… at least that's what everyone else can think. You've got enough going on as it is. This will only make things worse. You and me… it just wasn't ever really meant to be… never really possible."

She looked up at me, and said, "So, you're really okay with that?"

I nodded. "Yes." Even though my heart said no.

"So… friends?" She asked, holding out her arms for a hug.

I smiled at her, hugging her. "Friends." I said. She was such a little kid.

A few hours later, we werecurled up on the couch, fully clothed mind you, watching a movie, when we heard the front door slam shut. "Shit, its Caleb." She said, looking alarmed.

"No worries. It isn't like we're doing anything wrong- anymore." I said, standing despite my words. "I'll go. I don't want you to get in trouble." I kissed her on the cheek, walking to the hall and out of her line of sight.

"Alice! Whose car is outsi-" He started as he came around the corner, coming to a stop in front of me.

I suddenly grabbed him by the collar, slamming him against the wall. "You're an ass." I growled, punching him straight in the jaw. "Don't you ever call Alice a slut again, or I will break you in half. You're her brother, you're supposed to be building her up, not tearing her down." He looked shocked as I released the front of his shirt.

We were both quiet for a moment, and then I went to leave, walking past him. "Where is she?" He asked quietly.

I paused, turning to look over my shoulder to say, "Living room." before walking out the door.

Alice

I sat silently for a moment, listening as Caleb's footstep's echoed slowly as I heard him coming into the room. I didn't look, I kept my eyes glued to the television. I heard him sigh as he sat beside me. "Alice… we need to talk."

"About…?" I said, still refusing to look at him.

He sighed once again. "Come on Alice. Don't be difficult." He stated. "About what happened today with Reid."

"Don't be difficult?!" I shrieked, loosing my cool as I full-out glared at him. DON'T BE DIFFICULT!? How do you even have the fucking balls to say that to me!?" He looked confused. "As I recall, you were the one being difficult when you banned me and Reid from ever seeing each other again this morning!"

"THAT'S TOTALLY DIFFERENT!!"

"Why?" I demanded, challenging him. He looked away. "Why, Caleb, huh?" He was silent. "Oh, wait, don't tell me. I know this one. It's 'for my own good'. Am I right?" He was still silent. "Right, that's what I thought." I said, standing, stalking towards the door.

"Alice! Don't just run away!" He shouted. "We need to talk about this, damn it!!"

I stopped at the doorway, turning to face him. "Caleb. There's nothing left to talk about." And with that, I ran from the room, up the stairs, up to my room, falling onto the bed. I let my eyes turn black, and the door slammed shut, locking. I stared up at the ceiling as my eyes went back to normal.

Suddenly, my cell phone rang, and I picked it up. Reid flashed across the screen. I thought about what I did today. Reid. Oh shit. I had betrayed him. True, we weren't dating or anything like that, but we did sleep with each other last night. And then… oh my god, and then I went and kissed Evan the next day… which would be today. Oh, this was bad; this was very, very… bad. It wasn't that I... I didn't even have those kind of feelings for Evan... and yet... Oh god. Caleb's right. I am a slut. I've really outdone myself this time! I've never been in this deep before. Wow… I fucked up.

"Hello?" I said, finally working up the nerve to answer the phone.

"Hey, Al, you okay?" He asked me.

"Yea." I said. "Yea, Reid, I'm fine."

"Look, I'm really, really sorry about everything. I never meant for all this to get so out of hand. I... I never meant for this to happen." He said apologetically, referring to Caleb finding out about us and flipping a shit.

"Yea..." I said, thinking about the day's events between me and Reid, Reid and Caleb, me and Caleb… and me and Evan. I exhaled loudly, tears pricking at the corners of my eyes. "me neither."

And more GASPS Haha, I know I'm evil, but Evan/Alice is just too easy. I had to do it. I know half of you fucking hate me right now, but I promise, you won't for long. And I took out Evan/Alice sex scene because I no like. I decided I didn't want them to have sex. So there. And yes, I can do that. I'm the author, damn it. LOL. So, do you like? R&R please! (it makes me feel happy... and less like a computer geek with no life...)

Peace, SDSL