Dury stopped skipping stones and looked straight at me. Whether he knows it or not, Dury is very handsome, in spite of his tattered clothes and bruises, cuts and handcuffs. "Hi, Liz." he said back.

Sabs shut his poetry of Edgar Allen Poe, opened up his history book, ripped out the last page, grabbed his pencil, and wrote something. He showed me what he wrote. It said 'do you have anything on the PTS 10/13?' Don't forget he's mute.

"Yup." I replied, "I got five pages on it. But what about Dury?" Sabs gave me an upset look. He tore out another clean piece of paper and wrote, 'he told me he doesn't have it. Dury makes this excuse that there's no pencils or papers in his house, and that he can't afford to buy it.' Dury softly smacked his forehead with the palm of his right hand. "For the twelfth time, Sabs, it's true!" he debated with him, "I know a lot about Guillotine Square. I just can't find a piece of paper to write it all down. So, what's up, Liz?"

I knew what to tell them. "I was at the PTS 10/13," I started, "when I saw the Pumpkin King waiting for somebody." But Dury was so interested, he interrupted. "Who was he waiting for?" he asked me abruptly. Sabs rolled his eyes, and wrote to him 'quiet! Let Liz tell us more.' I shifted my eyes from left to right.

"So, anyway," I continued, "I went up to Cairo and asked him who they were waiting for. He said 'they're waiting for some guy called Bonejangles and a friend of his." Sabs was very interested. He wrote 'go on.' I pondered a bit.

"Then, not long after I asked him," I continued, "their train came up. I actually saw Bonejangles. He was a little creepy though, with his under-bite and everything. His friend was actually a girl, and I call her the Corpse Bride, because she was all dressed up like one."

I told them the rest of what happened in the PTS 10/13, even the part where I tripped.

"So now, I'm trying to find out if Lock's a spy, and ways to impress the Corpse Bride." I finished.

"I'm not surprised about Lock at all." Dury said, "He's always pushing me around, and it's all because I'm poor!" Sabs ripped out another clean piece of paper from his note-book, and wrote 'well, at least he's not as bad as his boss. I've been researching him, and he uses gambling machines to torture and kill people.' I knew what Sabs meant.

During the fire, I was entrapped into a barrel and taken to Bloodnut County to join up as one of Oogie's henchmen. I refused to do so, and Valvira heated up a branding iron of a sliver of a moon, and branded me in the wrist. Shock, who was kidnapped along with me, couldn't stand what they were doing to me.

So she sprang out and bit Valvira's arm, and while Oogie was trying to get her off of Val, Shock gestured for me to run away. So, I barely fled, and by the time I was back home in Pumpkinhead County, I was relieved. My brand, better known as a scar, was still on my left wrist, and it really hurts a lot.

We were all under the weeping willow, which was right next to the lake. I wanted to change the subject.

"Sabs, when can we start on our report?" I asked him. Sabs quickly tore out a clean piece of paper and wrote 'how about now? Can you tell us about what you wrote on the PTS 10/13?' I took my history note-book out of my messenger bag, and I flipped to the ninth page where I started my five pages on the PTS 10/13.

"Dury, if you want, you could dictate and I could write it down." I offered to him. Dury's raven, Modesty, flew right towards me, and picked up my pencil with her beak, and a spare note-pad I had in my messenger bag with her claws. She flew towards Dury with them, and after dropping them right in front of him, she perched on his shoulder again.

"I like the offer," Dury replied, "But no thanks. I should be writing it myself." Just when he was about to write, he spotted his watch. It was 6:30 pm! "Oh no!" he cried out, "My dad's gonna kill me!" He picked up my note-pad and pencil, and he rushed right out of Lake Eire, with Modesty flying right behind him.

Dury didn't like being past curfew. It's because it's one of the reasons his dad beats him up. The other reasons are because he tries to stop his fighting with his mom, and it's because Dury was trying to defend his mom.

I don't blame him at all, because his dad was acting like this ever since the death of his younger sister, who had the same name as his raven. He had Modesty as a consolation gift after his sister's death. It's probably because of grief his dad's beating him up.

Sabs was confused for the first time in his life. He tore out a piece of paper, and wrote 'what was that all about?' I looked at Sabs.

"Isn't it obvious?" I said to him, "Dury is probably getting beat-up by his dad right now. Just look at how fast Dury ran!" Yes, Dury was gone in a flash.

He was a really fast vampire. One time at Gym, he outran the whole class at the race-track. As usual, Gav was one of the kids to be the last few people to cross the finish-line.

I'm not surprised whatsoever, because even though Gav might be popular for his hideous looks, he was fat. I tell him again and again to lose weight, but he never listens to me.

Well, anyway, I opened up my messenger bag, and I let Slyther out. "Looksssssssss like there'sssssssssss a good hunt tonight." he said as he sniffed around Lake Eire. There's a whole lot of rats and mice to go around this place. It's practically infested with mice.

Anyway, I knew I should follow Dury. With his pace, I would need the Odyssey 3000.

Sabs knew what I was up to. He ripped out a piece of paper, and wrote, 'Liz, are you out of your mind! What if Dury suspects? Not only will you lose a friend, but you'll also face charges of stalking!' I whistled for the Odyssey 3000.

"It's better than letting him get hurt every night." I retorted, "What if he dies this time?" Sabs shook his head, ripped out a piece of paper, and wrote to me, 'I guess you have a point. But it's still stalking!' By the time I read the last sentence he wrote, I was already on my broom.

"Slyther, follow me to Guillotine Square and if there's anything suspicious, I'll go down, okay?" Slyther was beginning to agree with Sabs. "I trusssssssst you know the consequencesssssssss of what you're doing." he said to me. I rolled my eyes. "Trust me, Slyther." I said, "We won't get caught." I put my messenger bag on the floor, and Slyther slithered inside. "Follow Dury to his house, Odyssey!" I commanded, and I went off really fast. I hope this works.