Okay everyone, I'm sorry if this chapter blows. I wasn't planning on writing this yet. Sorry about the beginning of the chapter, I know it's a little slow.

Disclaimer: I do not own The Darkest Powers

This is Derek's POV

The answer to the last riddle was a bubble. Because that question was a little vague, I also took air.

What is the first thing you do in the morning?

What was I thinking? I lay in bed waiting until 9:30. I had already done all my homework, so now all I had to do was wait. Unfortunately for me, waiting left time with my thoughts. And those thoughts kept drifting to after school. I don't know why I did it. I wasn't even thinking. I just did it. I had questioned Simon for five years why he did it. He always said it came naturally. Without thought. And finally, after all this time, I was beginning to understand him. A guy who has had at least thirty girlfriends since he was twelve and he keeps going. I always wonder why he even bothers when he was just going to break up with them anyway. When asked about it, he just said he couldn't help it. When he liked a girl, he liked a girl.

I don't like Chloe. Not that way. That much I knew. However, the more I see of her, the less certain I am of that. I've never liked a girl before. I wasn't really sure how liking a girl worked. Before Chloe, I don't think I've said more than ten words to a girl, not counting Tori because she's my sister. But when I'm sitting next to her in class, I can't help but say hello. At first, I had chocked it all to being polite. I might hate the majority of the world's population, but that didn't mean I didn't know how to be polite. She sat next to me in two of my classes, so why not be even a little friendly. However, being polite didn't explain my want for conversation. The only people I have ever had a conversation with that lasted more than ten words were my family. But now I find myself talking to Chloe. Hell, I even joked with her. I wasn't only talking out of necessity; I was taking pleasure in our conversations. I didn't understand it, and I wasn't sure I wanted to. Liking Chloe was unacceptable. If I began to like her, I would start wanting more, like a relationship and I had seen enough of them from Tori and Simon to know that I didn't want a relationship. They were messy and complicated and in the end, they weren't worth it.

And yet there was today. It had started fine. I'd went to my first class, ignored everybody there. I had been late to math because I had to give Chloe her homework. I tried to find her before school, but with the chaos, I was unsuccessful. I wouldn't have risked being late, but I knew that she had math second hour. By the time I found her math class, the bell had already rung, so obviously couldn't go in and give it to her. Eventually, I settled for knocking on the door and giving it to her teacher. I made an excuse that I was tutoring her and hoped that she went with it.

When English started, by day started to change. Not only did I talk to Chloe, I laughed. It wasn't a big laugh, granted, but it was a laugh all the same. Of course, just when I began to relax, Beth had to interrupt. I wasn't positive that it was Beth, but from the look on Chloe' face, I'd say I wasn't far off. For some reason, I started another conversation with her during the hour. I'm not proud of it. I was fully capable of completing the assignment during the hour, but just glancing over at her paper, I stopped myself. So I helped her. By the end of the hour, I knew where our talking would go and I wasn't about to let it escalate, so I closed up again. I could tell by the look on her face that she didn't like it, but it was my way of dealing with the complicating emotions.

My next few hours had gone fine until French. Again I started a conversation. I had inquired about her day. She had looked frustrated and I was curious. And again, her answer amused me, so much that I even smiled. But even with the previous joking, nothing had prepared me for what happened once the final bell rang. I had expected to go to the committee, plan things out and leave. And like most things in life, it did not go my way. Instead, I had to stay longer to paint a stupid banner. I was hoping to leave after that, but Chloe, being who she is, was clumsy. Had I known that she had put the paint can atop the bleachers, I would have warned her. However, the only hint I had was a slight rocking noise and Chloe's slight look of terror. I should have been faster. I should have gotten away before it hit me. However, my concern for her had distracted me. I was too focused on her look of terror and the increase in her heart rate. By the time I knew about the paint, it was already too close to miss. I didn't particularly like the sweatshirt, so the fact that it got covered in paint didn't make me mad. My reaction to it, though, did irk me. I took it off, defeating the entire purpose of wearing it. I'm pretty sure that my t-shirt came up because I had heard the entire gym gasp and I could feel it when it came down. Also, the look on Chloe's face gave it away. I was confused by it. She was flushed and her breathing was slightly erratic. I wondered if it was a reaction of seeing what was under the sweatshirt. I'd seen that kind of look before. Mostly from Tori when she watched a movie where a guy took off his shirt. However, I had never gotten a reaction like it from anyone, so I brushed it off. There was no way she was blushing over me.

What happened next could easily have been avoided. When Amber came over, I could easily have just walked away. However, I stayed. I waited to hear what she said. Not so much because I was really interested, but because Chloe was fuming. My curiosity got the better of me and I listened. I, of course, in no way cared after Amber started to talk. I'd heard that tone before around Simon. So I brushed her off. I probably could have done it in a more 'polite' way, but I don't think she would have understood what I was trying to do. Instead, I insulted her. I was expecting to get told off for it by Chloe like Simon usually does, but she was only fighting to hold back a laugh. I took that as a good sign. I suggested to Chloe that we leave because I didn't think she could hold her laugh any longer. There was no motive other than that. But then I invited her to get ice cream. While everything else can be explained, that cannot. I really have absolutely no idea why I did it. It just came out. And what surprised me even more was that she agreed to it. I could explain that. She was probably just trying to get on my good side so I would ask her to the dance. But then why did she ask me all those questions? She seemed genuinely interested in my life. Why did I tell her anything? I don't know her. It's not like I care if she knows anything about me.

I sat up and held my head in my hands. Now I had a headache. Simon always said I think too much and I was starting to believe him. I stood up and my head started to spin a little. I put my foot on the bed to steady myself, cursing myself. It was probably a side effect of withholding my change. I really needed to change, but I didn't have time. Three more days. I just had to wait three more days and then I could change.

I was about to walk out of my room when my foot hit something. I swore and looked down. Some of my books were lying on the floor. Simon. I shook my head and leaned down to put them back on the shelf. When I was done, I noticed there was a significant gap between the books. Some of my books on decomposition were missing. I guessed that he took them for his project. I was fine with him using them, but it was annoying that he took them without asking. I got up and started to leave again when I noticed something else was missing. My book on necromancy. Why the hell would he want that? He can't use that for his project. My eyes widened as I realized something. He most likely shared those books with Chloe for her research. If he grabbed that book, she might have seen it. Shit.

I ran out of my room to Simon's. The door was ajar, so I let myself in. I looked around the mess for his backpack. I found it in the corner and walked to it. I opened it and looked inside. The books were in there. I grabbed them out and looked through them. Sure enough, Nekromantia was in there. I pulled it out. I didn't know if she had already seen it, but I wasn't about to risk it. I put the other books back in and zipped it shut. When I set it back against the wall, something crinkled in the front pocket. It was probably just some girl's number, but my curiosity got the better of me. I unzipped the pocket and reached my hand in, feeling for the paper. My hand made contact and I pulled it out. It was a schedule. I looked at the classes and saw that two of them were the same as mine. I looked at the name at the top and saw Chloe Saunders. What does he have her schedule for? I shoved it back in and left his room. I made a pit stop at my room to drop the book off and continued to the kitchen.

Tori was sitting at the table eating a salad. I just ignored her and walked over to the cabinet, where I pulled out the aspirin. I poured a few into my hands and walked over to the sink. While I poured myself a cup of water, Tori started talking behind me.

"So," she said. "Any news about the dance?"

"Besides the fact that I'm not going?" I said, not turning around. I downed the pills and the water and set the glass down.

"Don't have a date?" she said, arrogantly. I turned around to see a matching look on her face. I scowled and said,

"I know what you and Simon have been talking about. No matter how much you piss me off, I'm not going to ask Chloe to the dance," I said.

"Sure about that?" she said.

"I've lived with you for twelve years. You can't piss me off any more than you have in the past," I said, walking past her.

"We'll see," she said.

I continued into the living room and found Simon playing some video game. I sat down on the couch and watched. He was trying to kill an army of zombies. He had never passed this level before. I had, but I wasn't about to tell him how. We had a competition going and so far I was winning. I watched him for a few more minutes. He looked like he was going to win. He had one more zombie left and he just needed one more shot. When he got his gun aimed, I leaned up behind him and said, "Shoot."

Simon, not knowing I was there, yelped and jerked the controller. The gun fired over the zombie and the zombie got him. Once his breathing was under control, he turned to me, glaring.

"Dude, what the hell?" he yelled.

I had a hard time answering him through my laughter. Tori came in to see what all the commotion was about. Seeing Simon's angry face, she looked at the TV screen.

"You're supposed to kill the zombies, moron," she said, "not the other way around."

"I would have if someone hadn't surprised me," he said, giving me a pointed glare.

"Just because you can't shoot straight doesn't mean you have to blame other people," she said.

He swore and turned back to the TV. Ignoring Tori, he restarted the level. She left after a minute and he relaxed when her footsteps weren't audible anymore. I got comfortable again and watched him play, this time without the interruptions. Though he never passed that level, he spent the next few hours trying. By the time we had to leave, he had successfully died 46 times. Simon went out first, but I stayed behind to grab a few things. Just as I was about to walk through the door, Tori came up behind me. She shoved something in my hand and said, "You might need this." She then walked away. I didn't know what to make of it, so I shoved the item in my pocket without looking at it.

We didn't talk on our way to the school. I was too focused on replaying the plan over in my head, making sure there weren't any flaws. Simon must have noticed the tension because his mouth stayed shut. It didn't take us long to get there. When we did, it was 9:15. We were supposed to meet Beth at 9:30, so we waited in the car for a little while.

"What did you bring," Simon said, quietly.

I reached down on the floor and brought up a bag. I handed it to Simon. He accepted it and looked inside. Looking confused, he said, "You brought a bag to hold a flashlight?"

"The flashlight is for you. The bag is to hold anything we may find," I said.

"Oh," he said, looking slightly embarrassed. "That makes sense, I guess."

I rolled my eyes and looked at the time. 9:25. Close enough. I opened my door and got out. Simon followed suit and got out. We walked a little ways until we could see the front door. We stopped behind a bush. I felt something tug at my jacket and I looked over. Seeing nothing, I assumed it was Beth.

"You ready?" I asked, addressing both of them. Simon nodded and Beth pulled at my jacket again. "Alright, Beth, you're up. I want you to go to the office and find the controls for the cameras. It should be behind the secretary's desk. Don't walk through the front door. That window is the principal's office. Go through there. Once you shut off the camera, come back. You got all that?"

She tugged twice and let go of my jacket. I assumed that she had left. We didn't have to wait long. After a few minutes, she tugged at my jacket again.

"Alright," I said. "Stay close to me."

I walked slowly, assessing my surroundings with every step. Once I was sure that nobody was going to jump out of the bushes, we got to the front door and I pulled out the key. I unlocked the door and cringed at the slight squeak as the door opened. I held it open for them to walk through and then I walked through the second door. Simon stayed behind me as I walked down the hall, listening. I didn't know where Beth was but I hoped she had stayed with us just in case. At every corner, I stopped and listened, then peeked around. The halls were empty. Once we got to the office, I was tense. I hadn't heard anything, but I felt like we weren't alone. I ushered Simon into the office and I looked around.

"Where first?" Simon whispered as quiet as he could.

"You start in the principal's office," I said. "Look though the drawers and pull anything that looks suspicious. We'll make copies."

He nodded and went in. I would have gone in myself, but that would have left Simon out here. If anyone came in, I wanted to be the first one they'd see. I started by going through the secretary's desk. The drawers were empty except for a few pens and a stapler. I sat down in the chair and turned on the computer. While I waited for it to load, I listened for Simon. I could hear him rustling through papers. I could hear him pulling a few. Once the computer was loaded, I waited for a password screen to open, but it never did. Instead, it went straight to the desktop. Must be because it's a school computer. I clicked on the files. Nothing. The memory was empty. I searched through the programs, but there were only the default programs. Why have a computer but not use it?

I shut down the computer and went to check on Simon.

"Anything?" he asked.

"No," I said. "What do you have?"

"Most of this stuff is like school policies but I found a few odd ones. I don't really know what they are, but I figured you'd want to see them. I was about to check the computer," he explained.

I nodded. He moved over and I sat down in the chair. For the second time, I started up the computer. This time, however, it was protected by a password. I scowled at the screen and leaned back it the chair.

"What now?" Simon whispered. He was answered by the keys typing on their own. When enter was hit, it accepted the password. I quietly thanked Beth and leaned forward. This one was not empty. Like Simon had said, a lot of the stuff was school policies and stuff like that. However, a few caught my eye. I clicked on one and a page popped up. It was a list of all the students and their info: name, age, and grade. Stuff like that. However, there was something else under each name. There was supernatural information. Now we're getting somewhere.

"That's way too many to print," Simon said. I nodded in agreement. I suddenly remembered the object Tori gave me. I reached into my pocket and pulled it out. It was a USB drive. I didn't know how she knew, but right now I didn't care. I popped it into the slot and started loading things onto it.

"Where did you get that?" Simon asked.

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you," I said. I waited until it was loaded and was about to pull it out when I froze. I could swear I heard a footstep. I slowly got up and looked to the window. I quietly walked over and unlatched the window, praying it wouldn't make too much noise. Simon gave me a WTF look and was about to speak when I covered his mouth with my hand. He saw me looking toward the door and his eyes widened. He looked as far over as he could and looked back at me. I carefully picked up the papers and put them in the bag. I pulled out the USB drive and put it in my pocket. I motioned for Simon to go to the window. He did, but his shoe squeaked. We both froze and I listened. Whoever was there heard and was walking toward the office. Not caring if we made noise, I climbed out of the window and helped Simon through. As he went through, I heard something hit the floor, but my brain didn't register. We hightailed it out of there toward the car. When we got to it, I stopped and listened. I could hear somebody in the office. The window rattled as they leaned out. A breeze blew past the window and towards us. My heart started thumping when I breathed in the scent. Once they were out of the office, we got in the car and started home. I didn't know who they were, but I did know something. He was a werewolf.

Okay, so what do you think? I know it's shorter than the last one, but that one took a lot out of me. Anyway, hoped you liked it.