Time for a group meeting.

Dante's mental message woke Annie up that morning. For some reason yesterday had exhausted her. Maybe it was just the stress of Conan nearly dying. Even though she didn't feel guilty anymore, she still couldn't shake the feeling that it was part of something bigger. Maybe it was just the beginning, a warning perhaps...

That means you too Annie. Dante added.

Relax, I'm coming. I just woke up. She responded with mild irritation.

We're all right outside the entrance to the main courtyard.

Alright, thanks. Annie said, putting up a mental guard after replying. She slipped on a loose tunic and riding pants. She didn't bother with full armor, but she put protective covers on her forearms and she wore knee-high boots, two things that she normally reserved for covert missions. The protective covers on her forearms where as much a weapon as a defense; they were made out of a mixture of leather and crushed diamonds, making them a lethal asset. Her boots where made of the same material to add some power to her kicks and to protect her shins.

After leaving a note with a servant to let Peter know where she was, Annie met up with the rest of the group.

"So, what are we up to today?" She asked as she jogged up to her friends.

Dante looked around cautiously. Luckily it was still early enough that there weren't many people around. "We're going to meet up with Odette on the outskirts of town," There was only one useful town that had a trading market and a pier close to the castle, so we all knew which one he meant. "We need to get back on our plan."

Annie's eyes widened from surprise and excitement. "You mean the plan?"

Dante nodded.

"What are we waiting for, let's go!" Duff was practically hopping in anticipation.

And so they did. For the first time in a long time, the group could travel without any pressure, so they simply walked, chatting as they went.

Annie worked her way over to Akari. "Akari, what's Duff so excited about? He doesn't even know that much about this plan yet."

Akari gave her a sort of sad smile. "Annie, we're leaving."

Annie practically stopped walking. "What do you mean? Who's leaving? And where are-"

"Just Duff and I." She grabbed my hand, pulling me along so we kept up with the group. "We're going to be staying with Odette. It's not easy to be a spy on your own, so we've decided to help her out."

"There's more to it than that, isn't there?" Annie prompted.

Akari nodded. "Duff and I are half vampire. It's never really been important, but now that we're getting older, well, we need some help from a true vampire. It's not easy for half vampires to be away from full vampires. And besides, we're getting weird abilities, like vampire magic, that we need some help figuring out."

"Wow, this just seems so out of the blue." Annie said.

"Well, Duff and I spent a lot of time at Cair Paravel training with their healer, Gwen. She knows a lot about different types of magic, and she pointed it out. If it wasn't for her, we'd be in a lot of trouble."

"You guys have to visit with Odette as much as you can, promise?" Annie asked, ruffling Akari's short hair.

"Oh, don't worry about that. You'll be seeing a lot more of Odette now that you're starting the plan, and we'll tag along with her when we can." Akari said with a grin.

That's right, the plan. I can't do it without Odette, can I? I'm not even sure how we're going to pull it off without Mitch. She looked over at Demetri without thinking about it, but she quickly looked away. That's insane. Just because they look and act alike does not mean that Demetri can fill Mitch's spot with Odette and I.

"Yeah, I can't wait." Annie said, putting on her best smile. No need to let the group know that Demetri's confusing me. She thought.

Before they knew it, they were right on the outskirts of town. Odette was waiting for them, just as she had said she'd be. It was odd, seeing Odette dressed in anything but her mission gear or her royal attire. But now she was dressed like any other commoner. She even was using some of her vampire magic to put up a more human guise. Annie had gotten used to the guises long ago and could see through them, but she knew from past experience that the guise made Odette look less pale, less dark and overall less intimidating and enthralling.

Even though it's myth that vampires can't go into sunlight, it's true that sunlight, and daytime in general, makes them uncomfortable. And though Odette tried not to show it, she was definitely not comfortable.

"So, where are these vamplings?" She said in her usual monotone voice.

"Vamplings?" Duff repeated.

"Yeah, that's what we call half vampires." Odette answered. "And I think you're one of them."

"You're right." Dante said, stepping forward. "And his name is Duff. Akari is the other one, his twin sister."

"I figured that much out, surprisingly enough." Odette said sarcastically. Still, she let out a grin. She had always had a bit of a soft spot for Dante.

The twins ran over to her which surprising enthusiasm.

"Where did that come from?" Conan muttered to Demetri.

Odette's superior hearing heard Conan. "It's because they haven't been around a true vampire for so long. Now that they maturing, they need to be around one, or bad things will happen."

"So you really have to go then, don't you?" Conan's words were directed at Akari. Besides Demetri, Akari was Conan's closest friend.

She nodded sadly before walking over to him. "But I'll visit whenever I can, I promise." It was odd hearing Akari say 'I' instead of 'we'. The twins so often spoke of each other like that, rarely speaking of only their individual self. Shocking most of the group, Akari leaned in and kissed Conan on the cheek.

Conan seemed shocked, but he hugged her, holding her tight for a brief moment. Then she skipped back to her brother and Odette.

"Well, I guess that I'll be seeing you guys later then." Odette said, turning to walk into the shadows with the twins at her heels. It was apparent how at ease they felt around her already; she didn't even have to tell them to follow her.

"Ah, Odette, don't forget about meeting Annie and I later." Dante said.

She froze, not turning to look at them. "Of course not." And at that, she disappeared into the shadows.

It was a quiet walk back to the castle, much to Demetri dismay. He desperately wanted to make another move on Annie, but he couldn't risk Dante noticing what he was up to.

When they got back to the castle, Demetri got his wish. "Hey, Demetri, why don't you go and train with Conan and Annie." Dante suggested.

"Okay, sure. Do you want to come to?" Demetri offered. He knew that Dante wouldn't have asked Demetri to do it if he intended on coming, but he had to offer to avoid all suspicion.

"No, Susan's really upset about her brother Edmund being sick, so I want to go and be with her for a little while." Dante answered, almost sheepishly.

Demetri smiled at Dante. "Have fun."

Dante sighed, probably at himself, before walking off.

Demetri walked over to Annie and Conan. "Do you guys want to train?"

"Sure, I'm game." Annie said cheerily.

To everyone's surprise, Conan objected. "I'm gonna sit this one out." He seemed a little down. "I'll see you guys later, okay?"

"Yeah, sure Conan." Annie said, feeling a little confused.

As Demetri and Annie walked to the arena, Annie asked why Demetri thought Conan was so down.

"He has a thing for Akari." Demetri answered simply.

"Oh! That makes sense." Annie exclaimed. "I can't believe I never noticed."

"Eh, don't worry about it. If he really wanted you to know, he would have told you." Demetri said.

"I guess you have a point there." Annie grinned all of a sudden.

Demetri caught her grin. "What?"

"No, it's silly." Annie said, looking away from Demetri.

"Really, what is it?" Demetri had stopped walking, and Annie stopped with him.

"Well, I just wondered if you had ever liked anyone." Annie admitted a bit shyly. I should have lied and said something else!

Demetri smiled for a moment, but then his face turned serious. "Yes, I have liked someone before. Just one person."

His serious expression and the weight of his words froze Annie in place with wide eyes. He can't mean me, can he? No, of course he can't. He doesn't.

But Demetri's hand that came forward and cupped her cheek said otherwise. "One, truly amazing person." He locked his gaze on hers.

Those eyes, they're even the same color as Mitch's were! Annie thought, still frozen by shock. Oh by the Lion's Mane, help!

"Annie, you are a truly amazing person." Demetri said. He started to lean in towards Annie, and that's what gave her enough of a warning bell to break out of her initial shock. She pulled back fast, shaking her head.

"No, Demetri, no." That's right; Demetri. His name is Demetri. "I'm sorry that you feel that way, because my heart belongs to Peter."

Demetri just kept looking at her with those transfixing ice blue eyes, but after a moment, he sighed and looked away. "I'm sorry, I was out of line to say what I said."

That made Annie sigh. She ran a hand through her hair, which was starting to get kind of long again, as she tried to think of an appropriate response. "You weren't totally out of line. We're friends and teammates, so we need to be honest with each other, but being honest requires saying how you feel, not acting on it."

"You're right, Annie. I really am sorry." Demetri said, looking back at Annie.

"It's fine Demetri, really. Maybe we can train later, okay?" Annie said, trying to look anywhere but at those eyes.

Demetri said some response that Annie heard but didn't really process. I need to train; that'll take my mind off of this.

When Annie got to the arena, she saw the usual staff there. She asked one of the servants to go and fetch Peter for her.

As she waited for Peter, Annie went to her weapons storage room that was built into the arena. The arena still looked the same as always. The terrain was still grassy with a large pond in center and a variety of trees scattered throughout the area. Annie did notice that some trees had been moved to leave a clear area, where the grass was worn away to mostly dirt. A servant was drawing a chalk circle around the dirt patch. Well, that could be fun. Annie thought with a grin.

After gearing up with two swords, a number of daggers, a bow and some arrows, Annie saw Peter walking in with Lucy.

"Hey Annie, I hope you don't mind that I brought Lucy." Peter called from the arena's entrance.

"Of course not." Annie called back.

Peter jogged over to Annie. "With Ed sick, Gwen busy healing, and Susan trying to run things, Lucy has been getting awfully bored, and she hasn't trained in ages."

Annie grinned. "Well, nows her chance."

"Actually, I wanted to see the two of you battle." Lucy said, smiling. Annie hadn't even noticed her walk over.

Peter shrugged. "I'm game if you are."

"Always." Annie said, still grinning. She checked quickly to make sure he had a weapon on him, which he did, before lunging at him.

Even though Annie jumping at him out of nowhere was slightly surprising, Peter reacted well. He pulled his broadsword out of it's sheath and deflected her blow with it. It took him a moment to realize that Annie didn't have a weapon drawn; she had merely came at him her forearm. How is my blade not slicing through her arm? He tried to see if she had any armor on under her tunic, but she was in motion again before he had the chance.

And man was she in motion. Peter was almost transfixed by the grace of her movement as she jumped up and did a flip over him, landed perfectly and almost silently.

Still, no amount of grace could have fully distracted Peter from this fight. He knew that if he lost he'd be hearing about it until their next duel. He lashed out with his sword, pushing a hard offense on her. She just kept blocking his attacks with her forearms, but he was pushing her hard; she was almost backed up into the pond.

Wait, the pond. No, I can't let her get near water. Peter thought suddenly.

It was almost like Annie read his thoughts. She stepped backwards into the water and it was obvious that it was rejuvenating her.

Peter swore under his breath. He couldn't just wait for her to attack, the only progress he had made so far had been by taking the offensive, so that's what he did.

Only this time, he decided to try a bit of a different approach. He put his sword back in it's sheath and charged at Annie, preparing to punch her.

And that's when they heard Lucy scream.

Annie was at the young queen's side in a flash thanks to the energy the water had given her.

"Peter, she fainted!" Annie called.

Peter felt fear course through his body. That was the first sign of the sickness. Still, he put on a brave face and sprinted over to his sister.

Annie was talking to some of the servants that had rushed over when they heard Lucy. They were taking her to the infirmary.

"I'm going to go with her, do you want to come?" Peter asked Annie, lacing his hand through hers.

Annie shook her head. "I'll meet up with you later, okay?"

Peter nodded. He gave her hand a squeeze before following after the servants.

Annie stood on the edge of the arena, keeping her balance against the wind that had just picked up. Just like that, half of the royal family is ill. She thought.