Nona wasn't entirely certain why this was her chosen method of resolving the situation. But somehow she was certain it would work. What she hadn't been expecting, once the real Clarissa returned, was that her friend would actually begin to reciprocate. It took a moment to understand what was happening. But there was definitely more pressure in the kiss than a moment before. And their bodies were a little closer. Arms were circling around her back. She could hear her uttering a little contented sigh that lacked the creepy hollowness.

She could practically feel three sets of eyeballs on her back, and she was worried who was going to say something first, and how rude it would be. Thankfully, it turned out to be Clarissa, and she was obviously back to her old self. "Hey, nerd patrol. Go do something nerdy. The hell is wrong with you, give a couple girls some space. Christ." As soon as Alex, Jonas, and Ren were leaving, she dropped her mean-girl facade and broke out that old charm that Nona knew so well. "Come here~" She took her by the hand and guided her upstairs to the bed where, until a few days before, Margaret Adler had slept. She had to try rather hard to not think about that.

They sat together there on the edge for a while, staring at their linked hands and not really saying anything. "How long?" Clarissa broke the ice first

Ugh, right to the point then. Nona clutched her hand all the tighter as if it might ground her more. "Too long. Embarrassingly long. While-you-were-dating-other-people long." Surprisingly, the other girl just nodded as if this answer didn't surprise her all that much. She confessed that it finally hit her during her birthday the year before. "I felt like shit because you were with... y'know... And in my mind I... Yeah, I guess I stole you for a night."

Clarissa sighed softly, and Nona braced herself for the worst. "Yeah. Yeah I guess I felt a little shitty about that too..."

That response was not at all what Nona had been expecting, and she sat there in stunned silence for a while, just staring at their linked hands and intertwined fingers. "I'm not sure I follow..." She took a quick glance up and saw the strangest look on her friend's face. She was sort of happy and also kind of sad and maybe a bit angry?

"I don't actually hate Alex. I don't really blame her for Michael's death. It's just easier than admitting the truth. That I was already thinking about... about breaking up with him, and so when he died, I was terrified that I would look like a heartless bitch if I did what I wanted. But trying to repress and not be a bitch actually turned me into a bitch anyway." Clarissa flopped backwards onto the bed, staring up at the ceiling. Nona followed suit and joined her in stretching out. "Maybe... I actually sort of blamed myself. Like I wanted to be free, so the universe said 'Oh, yeah, sure, we'll get right on that!' and then poof! Dead boyfriend." Nona could feel Clarissa's thumb running slowly back and forth against her hand. "There's no handbook for how to deal with complicated grief. You have no way of knowing how long is long enough to be sad before you can move on. But with all this bullshit the last few hours, it makes you realize that if there's no handbook and no rules, then you might as well just do what you want. And what I really want is to get the fuck off this island and take you on a date."

Nona held her breath, as if at any moment, the universe would decide to tear them apart again. But they were actually given a break and she released a happy sigh. "Yeah. Okay. That... Me too. I would like that. Like, a lot. Very much."

"Okay. Good. Then... Once we're out of this place. We'll do that."

"Awesome."

The two lost track of time, though it must have been roughly half an hour or so of more soft banter and gentle kisses. Clarissa was the one to push the brakes, sitting up and looking around. "Okay so... nice of the others to give us some space. But... I'm not sure where the hell they've gone. It's too quiet..."

"Damn. I didn't even think about that. Should we... Do you wanna go check?" Nona stood from the bed and stretched a little, unaware that Clarissa was looking over her for a moment.

"Well, sticking together seems to have served you guys well so far. Let's do it." Clarissa took her hand, and Nona wasn't sure she would ever get over that sensation and how nice it was. The house was indeed empty, as was the dock and the basement. It was only as they started to pass through the heavy iron gates of Margaret's manor that they could see Alex and Jonas jogging toward them. Both looked anxious, and it was obvious something was seriously wrong.

"Okay, so... Good news/bad news..." Nona had learned over the course of the night that Jonas really tried to be positive no matter what was going on, but it sometimes came off as too much.

"We went exploring and collected those missives from Maggie Adler, and I think I know how to fix all this. But... they... They took Ren..." Like her step-brother, Alex was trying super hard to keep it together, but the frustration and fear were plain on her face.

Nona could feel the shift in tone and the way it affected Clarissa along with everyone else. But the redhead more than the rest because she knew what it meant to be not only possessed but 'taken'. "We have to get him back." Everyone was surprised by how forward she was about this, and how resolute. "When they get inside you, they... they make promises, they tell you that you can have everything you ever wanted. You feel powerful and useful, and even though you know you're just a tool, you don't care. I can't let that happen to someone else."

As hard as it was hitting Clarissa, Nona felt this horrible weight in the pit of her stomach. "This... This is all my fault. I should have... I-I didn't... I could have let him down more directly. They're going to use his desires, his jealousy..."

"Woah!" Nona was turned to face Clarissa, who was staring at her with those hard eyes of hers that were difficult to look away from. "Don't you dare do that! If you follow that train of thought, you'll drive yourself crazy. And we need you to keep it together. We all have to keep it together."

A cough from Alex drew both their attention. "Let me get back to the good news for a second. We can get Ren back, no problem. Just... come on, I'll show you."

"So... Anna and Maggie... That explains a lot." Nona mused quietly, mostly to herself. In a time when women could really only be best friends, these two were basically planning a life together. But they got in over their heads, Anna got taken, and Maggie couldn't handle it. Nona, for as tiny and mousy as she was, had actually managed to not repeat the mistakes of the past. She put herself in danger and saved Clarissa in the process.

"Alright! So we just have to get that bomb shelter open, make our way back into the cave, save Ren, seal the rift, and get the hell out of dodge!" God, Alex was unflappable sometimes.

Clarissa groaned and sunk more into the couch, running her fingers nervously through her hair. "You have... an impressive amount of gusto considering how terrible things are right now."

"I'm not saying we're going to succeed through sheer optimism. But it can't hurt! Jonas and I will go ping from the whatever station and we just need you guys to be on standby for the response part. Nothing to it!"

So Alex was kind enough to give the two more alone time while she and Jonas went to take care of the difficult part. She had been certain that even hanging out in the watchtower would be pretty great. And it was for a while – a little more kissing and touching, some talking when they weren't attached at the lips. But the ghosts clearly didn't like the prospect of a bunch of kids putting a stop to their escape plans. They were both alerted to the sound of applause from the other side of the tower's little radio room where a glowing, spooky Ren stood, clapping at their displays of affection.

"Talk about your consolation prizes. I probably won't ever get to fuck Nona, but at least she makes a pretty hot lesbian... Really though, stellar job, great lie you told me about not wanting anything at the moment. Clarissa, you should be insulted. She apparently considers you to be nothing. So enjoy that for aaaallllllll it's worth." There was a flash of that horrifying static and suddenly Ren was out on the catwalk. "This one is better. Angrier. We're going to enjoy piloting him. We're so happy with our acquisition, in fact, we're prepared to offer you a deal. A bargain. We walk with this one. And you will be harassed no more."

A serious look passed between the two girls, but ultimately neither of them could possibly have been heartless enough to take that kind of offer. They were going to leave the island together, as a group. No man left behind and all that macho bullshit. "No dice, Casper. Spook on us all you want, we're getting out of her with Ren, and you're going back where you came from." Leave it to Clarissa to sass everyone, even the dead.

Another burst of static carried their friend and the spirits away into the aether, leaving them alone. With fumbling hands, Nona went for the radio and sent out a call. "Guys? Are you like... there yet? I just um... We made contact with Not-Ren. They said we could leave free and clear if we let them keep him. Rissa told them to go to hell. So this had better work or we're gonna look like serious assholes..." She paused, unsure if she was even supposed to wait for them to talk back or if a button would suddenly light up or what.

Nona actually jumped when Alex's voice came through the radio, immediately feeling like a total dork in front of Clarissa. So very smooth. "Yeah, hey, we're here. Good job, Clarissa, you did the right thing. Um, here, I'm gonna send out the call."

She gave a warm, proud smile to her friend just as a light came on. She flicked the switch below it, and even from up in the tower they could hear the sound of a heavy metal 'thunk' in the distance. "Um. Radical. We're good to go. Hurry back, I want to get this done." She sighed and looked toward Clarissa again. "I used to love coming out here. I'm pretty sure it's been ruined for me now."

She felt that wonderful wave of relief wash over her as Clarissa took her hand and began leading her down from the tower to the entrance of the bunker. "I don't know about that. Maybe we actually can fix this whole... haunting... thing. And then you and I can come out here in the summer and make some new memories..." Well, great, now she was blushing like the sun. Nona was tempted to believe her, even if her hope was running low.

One last picture, to commemorate their suicide mission. Their faces looked tired, their smiles plastered on. But in the weeks to come, they would appreciate that they had taken it, for posterity, to remember.

To prove that it was real.

The original plan had been fairly straight-forward. Go into the cave, get into the rift, shut it down. Alex was playing the hero, defiant to the end that she would go in alone and, if she got trapped, that would be her sacrifice to make. No matter how much they bickered about it on their way through to the cave, she remained resolute. Alex might have almost found it charming if it weren't so damn infuriating.

And only with all three girls practically shoving Jonas through the door were they able to stop him from being drawn in by the music playing from some old reel-to-reel device. He desperately wanted to see his mother, and it wasn't like any of them could begrudge him that desire. But Alex and Clarissa knew about death and they were able to talk sense into him, so to speak.

Having not seen the original cave where everything started, Nona was a little lost in wonder and awe – even knowing how dangerous it all was. With her magic radio, Alex was able to work past all of Not-Ren's banter.

It probably shouldn't have come as a surprise at that point that everyone else was pulled through the rift, not just Alex, making this entire scenario about three times as dire. Alex began trying to reason with the ghosts, and she actually did an amazing job. She had clearly been doing her research through Maggie's notes. "I know you're not all entirely gone yet! Anna, Henry, Calvin, Francis! Margaret Adler made so many mistakes, and those mistakes left you stuck here. We made mistakes too... But this isn't the way. Dogpiling into our bodies isn't freedom, it's just trading one prison for another. It's been more than half a century. The world you know is gone. Even... Even Maggie."

A voice from the throng broke through, a raspy, feminine voice. "What...?" It sounded sad, sadder than the rest. And even more hollow, if such a thing were possible.

Nona clutched Clarissa's hand tightly. "She died, not even a week ago. As I'm sure many of your other loved ones have too. You can't get your lives back, and stealing someone else's is no better. But... But you clearly can do amazing things. If... If you can warp time and space and... and possess people... Then you... Surely you can. I don't know! Leave this place, find peace, move on, whatever it is that happens." She sighed, figuring that just about used the last few ounces of her courage. "Or whatever. You can stay here and be bitter until the world dies. I'm just saying."

There was an infinite abyss of silence, uncomfortable and empty. It felt like existence itself was holding its breath.

Nona came to, resting against the most comfortable thing she had ever laid against. Which, as it turned out, was Clarissa's chest. She jumped back with a small noise of shock, her face resuming its burning blush of embarrassment. It only got worse when she noticed that Clarissa had apparently been wide awake and was seemingly enjoying their Moment together. "Awww, where ya going? I was enjoying that!"

"Wh-! I was... We..."

She looked around to find that everyone else was also awake before her. "Don't hold back on account of us. We just saved the day, you deserve a cuddle." Nona looked in shock at Ren, who just a few hours before had been all possessed and creepy. Clearly he was trying to make up for Not-Ren's misdeeds.

As Nona shifted over, Clarissa sat up and wrapped an arm around her. So of course she tilted her head and rested it against her shoulder. As they all sat there, staring out at the sea, the sun began to rise out in the east. Against all odds, they had survived and won the day. The ferry would be there soon, but for now, they had one last chance to catch their breath and bask in their own glory.

[A/N: Here ends the canon part of the story. But there's a lot more to come, I promise]