A very special happy [belated] birthday to twitter user Sandi_luv! Hope this chapter isn't too much of a disappointment! Love you!

Just another reminder that this story was originally written by PaganBaby for the Buffyverse and I've adapted it for the Auslly scene. Mine, however, will have a very different ending. ;) Enjoy.

Chapter Ten

Two months passed…

Austin had been horrified that Ally had to witness the carnage of that fateful evening firsthand through that awful dream, and the guilt that racked him that he was most likely the cause of her grief and pain was enough to almost wish he had never let himself be seen by her in the first place. Knowing how much he had come to know and love this girl over the time he'd known her, that was saying a lot.

Still, he knew there was nothing he could do to change the situation now, and he made a pledge to himself to, from this point forward, use every bit of strength he had to remain with her through the night. Even if he couldn't stay corporeal for her, he could at least make sure he could be seen by her, so if she were to wake up scared she would know he was there for her.

Ally's dreams about the past had stopped, nothing more came after watching Austin die. Although, she still had nightmares where she relived the murders over and over again. She'd wake up crying and yelling, but Austin would be there to comfort her and tell her that he was with her. It made it easier for her though she couldn't hold him tightly the way she wanted to.

Dez still had nightmares about the thing in the basement. It was gone now, banished by the priest, but the memory would stay with him forever.

A lot of work was accomplished on the house in those months. The living room was livable again; the kitchen was pristine; the lawns were still being manicured, but they looked 100% better already; the pond was fresh and stocked with fish, ducks and a frog or two; and even though there were more important rooms to renovate, the ballroom was fixed up, too.

The hardwood floors gleamed; the deep-red wall paper was restored; crystal chandeliers hung from the ceiling. It was like something out of a fairy tale. Dez insisted on hanging a glittering ball in the middle of the room. When the lights were turned down low, thousands of little patches of light filled and drifted throughout the room from the ball. As tacky as the rest of the group had originally thought it to be, it looked breathtaking when the glittery lights filled the room as Ally played hauntingly beautiful melodies on the piano.

The three friends couldn't wait to invite the townspeople up for the re-christening of the house. If they wanted to come, that is. This place had a lot of baggage as far as the town was concerned, most giving them weird looks when they found out they lived in the 'Starr's Spooky Mansion.' Still, a big party was going to be held when everything was finished.

The best part of the last few months had been the power and plumbing being in working order. They had a celebration with a bottle of wine from the cellar when the power was turned on.

It was a huge relief for all of them.

Austin would only leave Ally's side in the morning, and they'd always part with a soft kiss. Then it was on to the day's work for her while he went wherever it was that he went to regenerate his energy.

When she was sure he wasn't around, Ally would start discussing the Trent situation. Trish tracked Trent 'T-Fame' Jackson down on her laptop. He did indeed live in the heart of Miami, running his father's studio business. He was now thirty five years old and married with no children. From all appearances, he was a normal - but very rich - man.

But they knew different. He was a heartless killer. No one could do what he'd done and be 'normal'.

The three roommates came up with a plan, and it was time to put it into action.

oOo oOo oOo

"Okay, we ready?" Ally asked, her voice wavering with excitement and fear.

"Yep, let's do it," Trish said.

Dez shifted his gaze from Ally to Trish, back to Ally. He still didn't like this at all, but Ally was determined. Austin and the others that were killed did deserve to have justice. He just wished that it wasn't relying on them to serve it up.

Ally dialed the number and waited.

"Hello, Jackson Enterprises, this is Brooke speaking. How may I help you?"

"Yes, hello," Ally said, keeping her voice calm. "I'd like to speak to Mister Trent Jackson, please."

"Do you have an appointment?"

"Um, no... but he's going to want to talk to me."

"May I have your name?"

"Can you give him a message?" Ally asked.

"Alright..."

"Tell him… tell him that I was at the mansion on July fifth, two thousand and seven. I saw what happened. Can you give him the message right now?"

"I'm... afraid Mister Jackson is in a meeting at the moment…"

"Just make sure you give him the message. I'll call back at four o'clock."

"And your name to go with the message?" the secretary asked, trying again.

Ally hung up, and took several deep breaths.

"They wouldn't put me through to him," she explained.

"Ally, are you sure we shouldn't just tell the cops?" Dez asked. "We're waaaay out of our league here..."

"The cops are in on the cover-up, it could be even more dangerous if we went to them."

"Nice town..." Dez said sarcastically.

"It is a nice town. The problem is the people controlling it," Ally said, taking a drink of water.

"You did good, Ally," Trish reassured her. "You sounded very authoritative."

"I'm all shaky inside," Ally said, laughing nervously.

They all looked at the clock on the mantle, one thirty. Only two and a half hours to go before she called back.

oOo oOo oOo

Trent kicked back at his desk, lighting up a cigar in victory. He was going to acquire a smaller recording studio and expand the business even further. Life was good.

He leaned over and pressed the intercom button. "Any messages, Brooke?" He puffed out a cloud of thick smoke.

"Yes, sir."

"Bring them in, would you?"

"Right away," Brooke signed off.

She entered the office a few moments later and approached his desk.

"You had a call from Hal Page, he wants to get together for a game of basketball tomorrow." Brooke laid the messages out on the desk. "Another call from Bernadette Palmer about the new studio you're building in Tampa... And there was one more."

Trent looked at her expectantly. "Well?"

"I wouldn't even bring it to you, but... it was strange. A woman called. She wouldn't give me her name." Brooke referred to the message slip in her hand, "She said, quote, 'Tell him that I was at the mansion July fifth, two thousand seven. I saw what happened.'" Brooke looked back at him. "Does that make any sense to you?"

Trent's heart clenched, his eyes darkening as the muscles of his jaw worked. He leaned over and snatched the paper from her hands and looked at it. Brooke blinked at his abruptness.

"She didn't give her name?" he asked, still looking at the paper.

"No. She said that she was going to call back at four o'clock. Should... I put her through?"

"Yeah. Put her through. She... might be an old friend of mine." He forced a smile onto his face. "A friend who was fond of games like this."

"Oh, alright, then..." Brooke said. Something was bothering her about the way he looked. He was trying to cover, but the message seemed to freak him out.

oOo oOo oOo

Trent waited, watching the clock. It was impossible... no one could have been there. The house was empty that night, he was sure of it. He didn't know what kind of game this woman was playing, but she'd be sorry - very sorry.

A minute after four, his phone lit up. He took a calming breath and picked up the phone.

"Yeah?"

"Trent Jackson?" Ally asked.

"Yes. You're the woman who called earlier?"

"Yes, this is she. You got my message, then?"

"Indeed I did. Although I only go by T-Fame now. What's this about?"

"I think you know what it's about. Don't play dumb. I know what you did."

"What is it that I'm supposed to have done?" Trent said haughtily as he sat back in his desk chair, reclining it and propping his feet up on his desk.

"You murdered them. Austin, Kira, Ethan and Nelson - you murdered them in cold blood."

"You're insane," Trent said calmly. "You don't know a thing."

"Would you like me to give you some details?" Ally asked, her voice quavering slightly as her eyes began to water. "How about... what you said to Austin when you were stabbing him to death?"

Trent remained silent.

Ally continued. "You said, 'I told you I'd kill you, don't look so surprised.'" Ally had to cover her mouth to muffle a sob as she relived the memory. "Before you left, you said you were going to get some traveling money and be on your way," she spat angrily through her tears.

Trent thought he was going to vomit. No one could know that! No one that wasn't there.

"Do you believe me now?" Ally asked.

"What do you want?" he asked in a low, dangerous tone.

"I'll keep this information to myself... If you play ball."

"Blackmail?" Trent laughed mirthlessly. "You don't have a shred of proof that what you're saying is true."

"Yes, but I could make things very difficult for you. I could contact some news organizations, I could tell them all about it. Who knows? Maybe one ambitious journalist will get interested in the story and do a little investigating on their own. I could -"

"Alright!" Trent yelled as he dropped his feet from his desk and sat forward again, leaning against his desk. He took a breath, then continued more evenly. "Alright. I'll 'play ball' as you put it. But not over the phone. I want to do this face-to-face."

"Good. I'm glad you're seeing things my way," Ally said, trying to sound like a character from a spy movie. "Do you know the Melody Diner?" Ally had picked an eatery in downtown Miami for the meeting. It was well-lit and safe.

"Yes," Trent said after a moment.

"I'll meet you there tomorrow night at 8 o'clock in the evening. We'll talk terms then."

Ally hung up.

Trent ended the call and pressed another button on the phone.

"Yes, boss?" a male voice asked.

"Were you able to trace the call?"

"Yes, sir. It's an address just outside the city."

Trent considered that. "Very good. Send it up to me right away. And," he added, his voice grave. "You will speak of this with no one. Do you understand?"

"Y-Yes, sir. I understand."

Trent ended the call and sat back again. "You're going to get a lot more than you bargained for... No one fucks with T-Fame." He fingered his silver letter opener.

oOo oOo oOo

That night the skies began clouding up, a storm was just on the horizon.

"You sure you don't want to come with, Allycat?" Dez asked pulling on his jacket.

"Nah, I want to stay here and wait for Austin."

"Okay, but I still feel funny leaving you all alone," Trish said.

"I'm not alone. Austin will show up soon." Ally smiled. "Now go on, you knuckleheads. You're going to miss the start of the movie," she said opening the large front door and leaning on the side, pushing them out.

Dez gave her a kiss on the cheek and held out his arm for Trish. "Ready, M'Lady?"

She giggled and looped her arm through his. "Let's motor. See ya in a few hours, Als."

"Have a good time! And bring me back some Raisinets!" Ally called after them.

oOo oOo oOo

Ally sat on the couch in the living room going over her plan again and again.

She would go to meet Trent at the diner tomorrow at eight. Trish and Dez would be waiting outside just in case she needed them. Trish had put together a listening and recording device that Ally could wear concealed in her clothing. Ally would bait Trent into confessing to the crimes. Then they'd have proof to present to the proper authorities, ones that weren't in the Jackson's pocket.

Ally was scared shitless, but she had to do it. Since the dreams, she became more and more sure of the fact that she was the one meant to expose Trent, that this whole heinous crime and its current unsolved status was what had really drawn her to this house.

Ally had seen Kira, Nelson and Ethan's ghosts every now and then; sadness and despair radiating from them. She had to do it for them too.

The storm was getting louder and closer. A particularly loud crack of thunder made her jump.

"Austin?" Ally called out to him. "It'd be nice if you chose now to show up... the storm's making me jumpy."

The lights went out. "Oh, shit," Ally cursed. "Great, that's what I needed."

She got up and felt her way slowly to the armoire where they kept a flashlight. She clicked on the flashlight, feeling a little better already.

A small noise came from the kitchen. It sounded like a pot being knocked over. Her heart thudded.

"It's okay... some of the ghosts like to make noise sometimes... they won't hurt you," Ally told herself.

A shape appeared in the archway.

Ally shone the light on it, hoping that it was Austin.

Trent squinted. "Hello, there. Miss Dawson, is it?"

She froze in terror.

"You seem to be having a little problem with the power." Trent smiled, shielding his eyes from the flashlight's beam.

Ally's spine turned to ice. "How - How did you -"

"Find you?" he chuckled. "You're pretty new at the blackmail business, boo. I had the call traced and - voila! I had your address in my hands." Trent walked towards her, studying her in the faint light from the flashlight. "You can't be more than 25 years old. Were you bluffing? You weren't here at all, were you?"

Ally backed up into the armoire.

"That's a real shame," Trent chuckled and shook his head. "You had me going! I don't know how you know what you know, but I can't allow you to live... you understand that, I'm sure."

"Get... Get away from me!" Ally said, her voice rising.

"Afraid I can't do that, sweet-thing. You want to play with the big boys? You pay the price." Trent pulled a gun out of his pocket. "Guns are so much easier, just point and shoot. I don't have to get messy this time."

Terror clouded her face. "NO!" she shouted.

In the blink of an eye, she clicked off the flashlight and dove to the side. Trent fired, missing her. Ally landed on the floor and scrambled away. She grunted with pain when her shin came in contact with the magazine rack.

Trent whipped towards the sound and fired again, missing her by just a fraction of an inch. Ally screamed, feeling the bullet whiz by her head. She took a hold of the brass magazine rack and hefted it, then swung it in an arc towards him with a roar.

Her aim was better than his.

The rack struck him in the chest. He grunted and stumbled backwards, the gun tumbled out of his hand to the floor - getting lost in the darkness. Ally ran as fast as she could to the front door. If she could make it to her car she could use her spare key hidden under the floor mat to get away.

She opened the door. Trent caught up with her, slamming his body into her and the door, forcing it closed again. Ally screamed and struggled against him.

"You little BITCH!" Trent spat.

"Leave me alone!" Ally screamed and twisted in his grasp.

Trent turned her around and slammed her repeatedly against the door by her shoulders. Ally grunted with each blow. Then his large hands were gripping her neck, squeezing harder and harder. Ally gasped for air and scratched at his arms. Her knee came up swiftly to connect with his groin. Trent cursed and loosened his hold enough for her to get free and shove him away.

In a blind panic, she ran up the stairs to her room, gulping in oxygen. Ally held her bruised throat, feeling her way along the wall.

Trent recovered, angrier than ever. He took the steps as quickly as his swollen balls would allow.

Ally made it to her room and slammed the door, then locked it. She put her back against it and slid down slightly. Tears ran from her eyes.

"AUSTIN!" she croaked. "Please help me!"

Trent's body began battering the door. Ally sobbed and braced her legs and back against the door.

"I live with people!" Ally yelled, her throat still raw and on fire. "They'll be home soon!"

Trent paused for only a second before resuming his assault on the door. "Then I'll just have to kill them, too!"

Ally shrieked when she heard and felt the lock break. With all of her might, she tried keeping it closed. But, just as it happened in the past, Trent was too strong and irate to keep out. She jumped away from the door, running to the window. She didn't even get it open before he was upon her.

Trent tossed her away from the window, and she landed on her back by the bed. He jumped on her, pinning her down with his larger frame. Ally screamed and kicked her legs frantically. Trent snarled and struck her hard across the face.

"SHUT UP BITCH!" He shook her. "How did you find out?! How do you know what happened?!"

"Get off of her!"

Trent turned towards the voice. He recognized that voice even after all these years. A bolt of lightning illuminated the room long enough for him to see him.

"You... it... can't be..." Trent paled.

Austin was standing a few feet away from them.

"I said, GET AWAY FROM HER!" Austin advanced on him.

Trent released Ally and skittered backwards across the floor. Ally rolled away and climbed over the bed, putting distance between her and the other human.

"Ally, are you alright?" Austin panicked.

Ally nodded and sobbed.

"You're dead! I know you're dead!" Trent said in disbelief.

Austin leveled his gaze back on his killer. "Yeah, I'm dead. And you're gonna be too. You shouldn't have come back here. You shouldn't have touched her…"

Trent backed against the wall and slowly slid up to a standing position.

"You're... a ghost?" Trent noticed that he could see through him slightly.

"Thanks to you," Austin said getting closer.

"Ghosts can't... can't touch people." Trent tried calming himself. "You can't hurt me."

Austin growled and lunged at him, unfortunately his fists passed through Trent like a strong breeze. Trent gasped at first then laughed crazily.

"You can't hurt me!"

Austin grit his teeth and kept swinging unsuccessfully.

Trent's eyes went to Ally's huddled form against the far wall. "But I can hurt her." He looked back at Austin, an evil grin spreading on his face. "You get to watch while I kill another one of your whores." Trent started for Ally.

"Ally! RUN!" Austin shouted.

She cried out and tried to leave, but Trent was faster. His hands wrapped back around her throat, choking her from behind.

"NO!" Austin cried.

He looked around in a panic. Taking a breath and trying to put aside his wild emotions, he concentrated on making his left hand solid. Then he picked up the lamp from the bedside table and moved quickly over to the struggling humans. He raised it over his head and, with a shout, smashed it down on the back of Trent's neck. The glass lamp exploded on contact.

Trent yelled and released Ally again. He dropped to his knees; Ally collapsed to the floor as well, gasping for air.

"Ally, get out of here! Please, baby! Hurry!" Austin shouted.

Ally crawled along the carpet towards the door. She had very little energy left, as she had almost passed out. Her throat was on fire, she pulled in rasping breaths. Just as she reached the threshold between the bedroom and the hallway, the electricity came back on.

Standing there in the doorway were Kira, Nelson and Ethan. They were looking past her at Trent, their faces grim. She felt an odd mixture of terror and relief as she felt them pass over and through her into the room.

Trent's eyes widened further. He crawled backwards, holding the back of his head.

"Hello, lover," Kira's voice whispered.

Trent shook his head. "No..."

"Remember us?" Kira asked, raising a delicate eyebrow.

"What do you want!?" Trent panicked.

They looked at one another and laughed.

"What do we want? What do you think we want?"

Austin smiled and joined the other spirits. "Kira, you can talk?"

"Now I can." She turned and smiled at her cousin then reached out her hand and stroked his face, looking upon him lovingly. "His presence, our murderer's presence here, made us strong enough to do this."

Austin looked over at Ally, who was sitting up and holding her neck, but she gave him a small, nervous smile and a nod to let him know that she was okay. He looked back at Kira.

"You guys were giving me a complex not talking to me for seven years. It's good to see all of you."

Nelson smiled. "Sorry, Austin, but you don't belong here. Your purpose is different than ours…"

Austin looked between his three mates and furrowed his brow. "What? What do you mean?"

Kira opened her mouth to respond to her cousin, but Trent moved along the wall to the window, preparing to climb out and jump off the roof if necessary.

"Stop him," Kira said coolly, catching him out of the corner of her eye.

"How?" Austin asked.

"You can manipulate objects, you're the strongest one of us. Make sure he doesn't leave." Kira smiled then turned to Ally. "You should go downstairs. We have... business...to finalize here. Call the police if you can. Tell them that you were attacked, minus the details about us of course, and that your attacker is upstairs."

Ally nodded and slowly stood up. She took one last look at Trent and the apparitions closing in around him before she closed the door.

As soon as the door had shut, Ally heard a series of loud thuds and screams of pain from Trent. She went quickly downstairs and called the police, not wanting to contemplate what was going on in there.

oOo oOo oOo

The spirits walked toward Trent.

"G-Get away from me! You can't hurt me!" Trent yelled, bloodied and bruised from the glass shards of the lamp that had shattered over his head.

"Can't we?" Austin asked, raising an eyebrow.

He picked up a hardcover book with ease. He didn't even have to concentrate. Austin hurled it at Trent, hitting him in the forehead. Trent yelled and slapped a hand to his forehead but Austin didn't give him time to recover. He threw more objects, everything he could get his hands on, at the cowering man before him.

Trent screamed with his arms over his face. "Leave me alone!"

The ghosts were only a few steps away now.

"I don't think so, bro," Austin said menacingly. "You're going to pay."

Trent wept hysterically, on the edge of madness. He looked up at them and shivered. They now looked like they had the last time he'd seen them, bloody and pale. The knife wounds he'd inflicted on them were fresh and gaping, their clothes were soaked in red.

Austin touched the tip of his index finger to Trent's forehead. Trent screamed and batted Austin's hand away frantically. A grin lit up Austin's ghostly countenance.

"Well, looks like I can touch you. Why don't the rest of you give it a try?" he asked the others. "It's fun!"

They laughed menacingly and began touching their cold, dead hands to Trent's face. He shrieked, twisting away from them, "AARRGHH! NOOOO! GET AWAY!"

He looked to the window, knowing at this point that was the only way out. He looked back at the dead, rotting faces of his victims and cringed, pushing them off and standing to his feet. His eyes were wide as he looked to the French doors leading out onto the small balcony, looking around in panic for any other option than this one.

He didn't find it.

Kira and the others watched his line of sight and smirked.

Another loud crack of lightning struck and the doors suddenly burst open, seemingly on their own. Trent knew they had done it, but he didn't care.

In a sudden decision, he ran at full speed through the open doors, onto the rain soaked balcony, and over the edge.

Ally shrieked from the living room when she saw the body land on the lawn outside with an indescribable sound, lifeless and contorted.

"No fair," Kira pouted.

The phantoms gathered around the window and looked out, unable to leave the perimeter of the home. Trent's dead body was laying on the front lawn; his neck broken and his body twisted.

"I wanted him to suffer more," she said as her essence, along with the others, transformed back to their clean facades.

"That woulda been nice," Austin agreed. "But it's done now... It's finally over."

"Yes, quite right, Austin," Ethan said. "He'll have plenty of suffering where he's going, anyway."

Nelson smiled. "Red hot pokers up the backside for all eternity? Couldn't happen to a nicer guy."

The ghosts chuckled. Austin put his arm around Nelson, feeling insanely happy they were finally, after all this time, communicating with each other again.

They all enjoyed the view a while longer, staring until the sirens from Ally's 911 call could be heard approaching from a distance.

The storm had cleared, and Austin watched as they began to move about the room, looking down at their hands feeling a change. It wasn't long before Kira turned and looked at Austin, her expression serious, and scaring him.

"Austin, our unfinished business is finished now..."

Austin blinked a few times, his sadistic happy high from watching Trent die already fizzling out. "Yeah…" he said cautiously.

Kira gave him a sad smile and the three ghosts stepped away from him. He furrowed his brow at them and watched as a white light appeared around their forms and they became bathed in light.

His cousin tilted her head and looked at him with an unreadable expression.

"It's time for us to cross over now. But," she smiled sadly at him.

Austin's smile fell as he watched them step backwards and into the glowing light. His eyes caught Kira's one last time.

"You can't come with us."

And with that, his smile fell

To Be Continued…

Welp, that's a cliffhanger alright. What do you think Kira meant? Why can't Austin cross over with them? What business might he have that's unfinished? ;) Please review.