Aw, guys, I'm so sorry for the long wait! I was swamped with my exams in June, and I've been on holiday for July! I promise, I'll update sooner next time! Thanks for all the reviews!

Disclaimer: I don't own any of these characters, except for Tera. They belong to Tim Burton and Disney.

Chapter Ten

Before she knew it she was dragged from the bag, and quickly turned over. A rope was wound tightly around her wrists, making her wince as it rubbed the broken bones.

They pushed her up against a wall, and she maneuvered to lean her bruised back against it. Peering through the dim light, she could see little bugs peeping out from the corners and the piles of junk. On the wall was a large, round, flat piece of wood with a sort of twisted face painted on it; the mouth was a tunnel. She got a chill down her spine, knowing that down there, a man made of bugs wrapped in burlap was waiting for his meal.

Lock jumped up onto a crate. Leaning into the tunnel, he called, "Mr. Oogie Boogie!"

She couldn't hear the boogie man's reply, but by the way Lock grinned maliciously, baring pointed teeth, it couldn't have been good.

"Yes sir, we've got her," he said. "Yes. Yes. 'Course."

He paused to listen, and, if possible, his grin spread. "Yes sir!"

He turned and said to Shock and Barrel, "He's hungry now!"

They all approached her. She pressed back into the wall and, as soon as they were in range, kicked. She hit Barrel squarely in the chest, sending his small body flying back. Shock and Lock let out identical shrieks and ran at her, but she kicked out again, this time hitting Lock. Shock snarled at her like a rabid dog, the little witch obviously fuming. Tera had the sudden urge to laugh. Then something hit her head, leaving her dizzy.

Barrel had snuck up beside her with a piece of wood. While she was still trying to steady her eyesight, they somehow hoisted her up and carried her over to the tunnel. She tried to struggle, but they shoved her head-first down the tunnel, laughing.

The cold metal raised goosebumps up her neck. She shivered, trying to slow her way down the small tunnel. From the amount of adrenaline pumping in her veins, she knew all of a sudden that she'd never be able to be in small spaces again.

Suddenly she dropped onto a roulette table, twisting in mid-air so that she didn't land on her head. Instead she landed hard on her already-bruised back and broken wrist, and she let out a groan.

After a moment she struggled to look up. Her legs, at the knees, dangled off the edge of the table, and all around her were different things you could find in a casino, all of which she knew immediately from the set in the movie. Tim Burton would go crazy if he found out about this!

And then an all-too-familiar burlap bag sauntered up to her.

Her heart raced even faster in her chest, if it was possible by then. She stared up at him, the spiders in his eyes, the snake tongue in his mouth, as he smiled maliciously, letting out a long, terrifying laugh. In spite of herself she cringed back, wanting to wake up, telling herself, It's all a bad dream. A really bad dream!

As if he read her thoughts, he grinned. Then he bent close, examining her as if she were some rare specimen.

"You're jokin' me, right?" he said, his voice making her shiver. "You're not the mortal girl!"

"What makes you think I'm not?" she spat defensively.

His eyebrows (if they could be called eyebrows) went up. "You are?" When she nodded he let out a booming laugh. Then he peered down at her again . "But you're so scrawny," he said. "I thought mortals were fat."

An anger was building up inside her. "What the hell would you know?" she demanded. He chuckled, thrusting his face close to hers. She had a terrifying view at the spiders sitting in his eye sockets, and the snake flickered against her cheek as he spoke.

"I know more than you, that's for sure," he said. His breath was rancid, like rotting meat. In disgust she turned her face away. He chuckled again and pulled back, producing a pair of dice. "Youlike gamblin', kid?" he said. "Let's play!"

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When Jack returned home to find Tera gone, his tower in a mess, and Zero nowhere to be seen, he went straight to Sally's house. He didn't knock, but just went in, to find her at the fireplace, cooking a soup. When the door opened, she turned quickly, and then held a hand to her throat. "Jack," she said. "You scared me."

"I'm sorry," he said, "But I didn't have time to knock. Tera's gone, and I think they got her."

Sally's eyes widened. Very quickly, she took the pot off the fire and set it on the stone floor, setting a lid on it. "Do you think they took her to Oogie's mansion?" she asked. Jack nodded grimly. Her gentle face hardened into a look of determination. "Then let's go."

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Tera watched as he played idly with the dice, digging through shelves of bottled and pickled…things. She cried out in disgust when she saw a dried, shriveled human hand get thrown into the bubbling soup pot, turning it a ghastly green color. Next went a struggling tarantula, and a huge snake. The stew, or whatever it was, began to spit, and he grinned. "Snake and spider stew!" he said with a laugh. "Now mix a little girl in there…"

"You're sick," she spat, and he glanced at her, looking amused. "Sick? Sick, am I? Naw, just hungry." He guffawed at his own joke, threw one more thing into the stew, and came over to stand over her again.

"Jack'll save me," she said. "And then he'll get you, and you'll never cook anyone again!"

The spiders in his eye sockets shifted slightly at the mention of Jack. But Oogie Boogie boomed out a laugh. "Jack'll save me," he said in a really high voice, mocking her. "And he'll get you! Ooo, I'm so scared!" He laughed again, and a bug flew out of his mouth and landed on Tera's stomach. She made a face of disgust, jerking it off of her.

He suddenly hoisted her up off the table and over his burlap shoulder. She let out a shriek, struggling and kicking to try and get down, feeling the little bugs all squirming around under the burlap.

He let her drop onto a rectangular slab, her feet towards the stew pot. The spinning blades were dangerously close to the bottoms of her feet,andshe let out a shaky breath, thinking worriedly, Jack, where areyou?