The Crow and the Falcon. (Eight)

"That one next, I think." Bruce said, nodding his head towards a freshman with over-done black make-up dressed in an over-sized black sweater. The students of Redditch High were heading home after a subdued day of schooling. "She looks like she's begging for a dance with Death." He continued.

Lydia smiled coldly. "Let's follow her, shall we? Wait until she arrives at a secluded spot then..." She giggled and mimed a discreet stabbing motion with her fist.

"We'd better go now. She'll be out of sight before long. Then we'd have to wait until tomorrow to find her again. The pair linked arms and set off after the girl, keeping a safe distance.

~*~

Bernadette Garrett trudged home, trailing her book bag dejectedly behind her, unaware of being followed. School had been bad today. Particularly bad. She hated it on a good day, hated the teachers, hated the pupils, hated the pointless monotony of the lessons. She didn't excel at all in academic subjects, and her art and poetry was overly dark and morbid. Purposfully so, most said. She knew they were right. It was an attempt to give herself an image, draw attention to herself, and perhaps to make people a little frightened of her.

Today had been worse than most days because of Tatum Kent. Bernadette was wishing she hadn't died along with the rest of the school, only her opinion differed greatly. Tatum had been a useless airhead in her opinion, and the world was better off without her. The only problem with her death was that the rest of the school, even the town, were walking around mourning her passing, crying their eyes out over someone they barely knew. Some of them out of guilt, probably. They felt guilty for saying nasty things about her. Bernadette knew a few of them, and their hypocrisy was sickening. Everything was always about Tatum Kent, about what a beautiful, popular girl she was, about how she was a wonderful student, cheerleader, what wonderful school activities she planned. And now she was dead, it was /worse/. Whatever corner you turned, people were talking about Tatum. It made Bernadette boil with anger. She didn't think she could face school the following day if it was going to be the same.

She turned off of the main road and up the dirt track that led to the bridge across the small river. Her parents' place was barely half a mile further. She never made it. Two pairs of strong hands grabbed her from behind, forcing her to the ground. A large ball of cloth was stuffed into her mouth and a sickly sweet fragrance wafted up her nose. It smelled like decay. It smelled like death.

She struggled violently before a pressure weighted her shoulders down. Someone was sitting on her legs, too. She looked up into the a pair of grey eyes that burned with a psychotic light, made even more terrifying by the demonic leer on the boy's face. The girl on her legs looked equally as frightening, and she struggled even more, but to no avail.

The girl caught Bernadette's gaze and held it. They began to hum, and it vibrated through Bernadette's skull, building in pressure, until finally her ears popped, and it felt like she was floating. It reminded her of the time her mom had taken her to a meditation group to fix her 'attitude', the same sense of peace and wholeness. Only that time she hadn't be so very afraid.

The panic rose a notch higher as the girl produced a kitchen knife from her bag and held it above her belly, only she no longer had control over her body and was unable to struggle any more. She heard herself whimper behind her gag as a disjointed thought flitted through her mind. They'd killed Tatum. They were going to kill her, too.

The girl rested the point of the blade on Bernadette's navel. Such a normal, everyday object, but so dangerous, so /evil/. And suddenly it was plunged inside of her. If Bernadette had been able to scream it would have been heard for miles around. It wasn't so much pain, surprisingly, but more the shock that she'd actually been stabbed.

As she thought it was over, that they were going to kill her, they closed their eyes, their faces becoming blank. A tingling sensation began to grow inside of her. It didn't feel entirely physical, more like part of /herself/ was being manipulated.

The girls withdrew the knife from Bernadette slowly and carefully, her hand steady. Bernadette was horrified to see a yellow mist flow from the wound, following the tip of the blade. It rose above her, floating over her, twisting around it's own tendrils. As the mist left her, so did her strength. She began to lose her grip on consciousness until eventually, and gratefully, she blacked out into a very deep sleep.

~*~

Bruce and Lydia slowly opened their eyes and stared in hungry anticipation at the yellow Lifeforce they had drawn from the girl's body.

/Brace yourselves/. The voice inside told them. /Be ready for this/. The yellow mist between them began to writhe faster. The tendrils moved down, towards the body, seeking a place to live and give life.

"Now." Bruce whispered, Lydia wet her lips a little and handed the knife carefully to her brother. He gripped the handle firmly, placing the blade to the girl's throat, then cutting swiftly and deeply.

As the girl's heart ceased beating, the tendrils snapped back away from the body and began reaching for the only other sources of life nearby. The two steeled themselves as the first icy touches caressed their cheeks. Icy, the voice had told them, because only freely given Lifeforce was warm. The yellow mist parted in the middle, flowing down Bruce and Lydia's bodies, making them want to shiver. It stopped moving down when it reached the navel, and began flowing /in/ instead. Lydia bit back a scream as icy daggers forced their way in. And then it was over.

Bruce and Lydia got up shakily, collecting their belongings and carefully making sure to remove all trace of their ever having been there. They picked up the body between them, and moved to the bridge.

/A weak Lifeforce/. The voice said, almost to itself, /But still, a weak one is better than none at all/.

They gave each other a satisfied look as they hauled the body over the centre of the wooden railings, and watched it fall in the river below. It stuck in debris for a few moments, then the current picked it up and washed it down- stream.

~*~

The sun had been down for an hour by the time everyone had assembled in Jess and Mike's sitting room. Mike sat cross-legged on the couch plucking the strings of his guitar and humming softly. A breeze blew in gently through the open window.

"They definitely weren't in school today." Zia said. "Stefan wasn't in chemistry, so I asked around. Neither of them have been in today."

"I tried calling their place at lunch. If anyone was in, they weren't answering." Adam supplied, chewing his bottom lip.

"Maybe they've left town." Cookie suggested, dejected.

"And would you blame them if they had?" Adam glared at her. "After what you pulled last night, I really wouldn't blame them if they skipped the country."

"Okay, okay. How many times do I have to say I'm sorry for this? I'm worried about them just as much as you are. Hell, I'm more worried about Damon. I was in his head. I was in his /soul/, dammit. How do you think I'll feel if something awful happens to him?" Tears rolled down her cheeks.

"Hey, hey. It's okay. What's done is done." Jess said, pulling her friend into a hug. "Besides, I don't think they've left town. Stefan wouldn't. He said last night he wanted to help, and he wouldn't leave before that. They're still here, probably holed up at their place for a day or two."

"We're still here." A voice spoke softly. The group turned to the window, startled. Stefan boosted himself in and landed in a crouch on the floor. He pulled his leather jacket off and draped it over the arm of the couch. Damon followed after. The pair were dressed entirely in black. Any sign of the previous night's events had gone from Damon's face. If anything, it was harder. He looked at Cookie, his lip turning up a little at the corner.

"You owe me." He said simply. "And I collect on my debts."

"Ignore him." Stefan said as Cookie's eyes widened. "That's just his way of saying he forgives you."

"Yes. But she still owes me for what she did."

"In what way?" Cookie asked, a little fearfully.

"We'll see." Damon replied, his mouth forming into a calculating grin. "I'm sure I'll think of something."

"Where've you been all day?" Jess asked, butting in. "We've been worried."

"I'm touched." Damon replied, still grinning at Cookie. "We've been talking all day."

"About time." Cookie muttered under her breath. If Damon heard it, he ignored it. An uncomfortable silence fell over the room.

"So, you're okay?" Mike asked finally.

"I've been better." Damon replied dryly, taking his gaze from Cookie. "But I've also been far worse. Thank you for asking, anyway."

"How about you guys? After last night..." Stefan trailed off and shrugged.

"I think we're doing okay." Mike told them "It'll take getting used to, but we're okay. Apart from Cookie's guilt trips, that is. Jess doesn't seem bothered at all."

"Yeah. Thanks for last night." Stefan smiled at her.

"S'okay." She shrugged self consciously, and grinned a little.

Stefan looked at the floor a second, then addressed the group. "Last night didn't /exactly/ go to plan. I had hoped to discuss Tatum Kent's murder. Then things got out of hand, and we didn't get chance."

"So we discuss it now." Mike said, putting down his guitar. "If anyone has any ideas, now would be a good time to reveal them." Everyone stayed silent. "Fine. So how's about the guys with triple figures in their age start talking?"

Damon looked at Stefan and shrugged. He turned to face the girls. "Adam told you about our discussion in the library, right?" They nodded. "Good. Anything you don't understand?"

"Other than why anyone in Redditch would /want/ to do this, we have no questions."

"So far, so good." Damon nodded to himself. "Okay. Stefan and I discussed this among other things earlier today. We're new here, we don't know anyone except you, so we have no clue as to who could be doing this."

"Apart from Lydia." Stefan muttered.

"But we agreed not."

"Yeah, yeah." Stefan waved his brother on.

"As much as I'd love it to be my creepy cousins so they could get slammed away for life, all logic tells me otherwise." Adam grinned wryly. "They don't have the guts to pull it off."

"That's what /I/ said." Zia said.

"Don't write them off altogether, though." Cookie said darkly. "They've been /nice/ since last night. They're definitely up to something."

Damon rolled his eyes. "Fine. Not having met them, I don't suppose I'm in any position to comment. So, any other ideas?"

"Some guy kidnapped Tatum's kid brother a few years back." Jess informed them. "They had a grudge against Mr Kent. Something to do with a business take-over. I think the guy has a few enemies, so maybe it's just some revenge killing. Or am I being overly hopeful?"

"Overly hopeful." Cookie replied sadly. "This is something big, and it won't stop with Tatum. And it's no-one in town. Strangers, people who don't belong."

"So that leaves myself, Damon, Bruce, Lydia who are new to town. Anyone else?" Stefan asked.

"There's a family moved in on Maple Avenue." Mike supplied. "But unless their second name is Bundy, I doubt it's them."

"Kids?" Adam asked.

"Two, and it wasn't them. One is seven, the other ten. They're in Jamie and Aaron's classes in school."

"Anyone new in town then that has reason to be at school, then?" Stefan amended.

"The janitor has a new guy working for him." Zia said. "I've seen him when I stay late for dance. He's from out of town for sure."

"I've heard rumours about him. Ex-drug addict, stuff like that." Adam frowned. "Although you shouldn't listen to rumours."

"So we have a new janitor." Damon summed up. "A ten year old and a seven year old. Wonderful."

"And Bruce and Lydia." Stefan muttered.

"Shut up about Bruce and Lydia."

"They showed up just before Tatum was killed." Jess pointed out.

"Oh, not you, too." Damon shook his head despairingly. "I'm getting tired of this. The next person to mention those two gets thrown out of the window. And that is /not/ an idle threat, I genuinely mean it." He snapped.

"You should meet them." Adam said.

"I'd rather not. From what I've heard, I'm better off without that little joy of life."

"Just out of interest, what would the janitor be needing Lifeforce for?" Zia asked.

"Maybe he was a part of some religious cult or other?" Mike suggested.

Damon cradled his head in his hands. "We're getting nowhere with this."

"What's your suggestion, then?" Mike asked.

"It's a big town." Damon said, looking up. "The truth is, you're not going to know /everyone/ who moves in and out. It doesn't even need to be someone who /lives/ here. It could be someone staying for a few days."

"Bru..." Cookie shut her mouth quickly as Damon shot her an evil look.

"How about we split up and look then?" Jess suggested.

"Best idea so far." Damon sighed.

"Okay then. Tomorrow we look round school for new faces, then look round town after school for suspicious looking people." Jess decided.

"Fine. Two groups." Stefan said. "Me and the twins, Damon and the rest."

"Uh uh." Jess shook her head. "Me, you and Adam, Damon and the rest."

"Why?" Stefan frowned.

"It's better if Mike and I are split. Twin thing." She explained. "If there's any trouble, we'll know about it whatever. There might be a hundred and one reasons why you and Damon can't get in touch, but there's no way to stop Mike or myself knowing about the other. So we'll go on opposite teams."

"Fair enough." Damon shrugged. He walked to the window and boosted himself out. "We'll see you tomorrow, then."

"You don't have to leave, you know." Jess said, a little hurt.

"I know." Stefan told her, picking up his jacket. "It's not that I don't want to stay. Damon's starting to get pissed off, and you /don't/ want to see him when he blows."

"No way." Cookie agreed with him.

"So don't take personally, okay." He told Jess, smiling.

"Alright. 'Night. See you at school, then." She replied. Stefan nodded, and followed Damon out of the window.