Here's the next chapter. It's long because I don't know how often I'll be able to upload with school. Thanks to all me readers, reviewers, favoriters, idea givers, and all-that-good-stuffers.
This chapter is dedicated to RascalKat. Please go read ImPulse, AMAZINGLY EPIC AWESOMENESS!
I do not own My Babysitter's A Vampire
Long day, tomorrow. Why are you up so late?"
Ryellie's first instinct was to run. She knew that was a bad idea, being that she was on the roof. Still, she needed to get away. A stranger spoke those words, in a hungry tone.
Ryellie woke up with a start. He nightmare had consumed her, with such vivid images. Those icy blue eyes. Those sharp fangs. She brushed it off, putting her shaking head in her hand. Wishing away the memory that was nothing but a pain in the neck. She laughed at her own joke.
"It's okay." She told herself. "I'm just a little stressed out. Long day ahead of me." Almost an echo of those same chilling words. The words she never really heard. "Talking to myself again." She complained, laughing lightly as she got up.
Ryellie walked over to her closet mirror and looked at herself. She didn't seem different. She was still there. That proved she had been dreaming.
There was a knock at the door. Grace peered in. "Ryellie Katice, are you almost ready to go? I took a personal day from work just for this." She told her, laughing.
"Yeah, I'll be right there. And Mom, you work at home." Ryellie reminded her.
"That's the joke, darling. Are you feeling alright?"
"I'm great." Ryellie replied, with a bright smile her mother couldn't see from the doorway. Grace still stood there, holding onto the doorknob. "What's up?" Ryellie asked, turning into the concerned one.
Grace's tone was casual, which was practically a miracle. "I was thinking, after we go get your braces taken off, do you want to go into school… or do something else?"
That was a strange question. Ryellie thought that was the joke. Or a bribe for her understanding since the rule had been made. Usually, whenever Ryellie had something not related to school planned for part of a weekday, going back to school afterwards was the one and only option. Now that there was another choice-all was up to her-she thought she'd jump at that chance.
She thought wrong.
"No thanks." The words came out automatically. "I can't wait to go into school and smile at Benny."
She turned her head to see her mother cross her arms. Although there wasn't an ounce of anger in Grace's eyes, Ryellie made an effort to add: "And Ethan, Sarah and Rory. And Erica." Grace smiled slightly. She was surprised to hear Ryellie name what she considered to be so many people, even though she'd already heard about them. When it came to Ryellie, five was a lot of friends. Five friends was an all-time record. "Mom? There is actually one or two places I'd like to go." She said, surprising herself. "And, can I have your opinion on a new dress?"
Grace walked into her daughter's closet, to see what she was talking about.
"You should've been there, Erica." Sarah said as she walked the hallway with her best friend. She couldn't stop talking about Ryellie's house, and Sardines. "I mean, I know it's just a game, but it was so much fun." She went on, not noticing Erica was barely listening. "And, as Rory would say, I was on fire!"
Erica literally winced at the mention of Rory's name.
"Something wrong?" Sarah asked. Then, in a mocking tone, she added: "Am I being too geeky for you?" She was forced to stop short when Erica stopped walking.
Her tone was slightly shaky, but otherwise empty. "Rory and I broke up Saturday night."
"You and Rory were goin' out?" Sarah asked, with raised eyebrows.
Erica answered in a whisper, sounding fed up because frankly, she was. With what, she couldn't quite say, but she did say this: "Sort of. Believe it or not-emphasis on 'not' because even I don't believe it-I asked him out after we kissed Wednesday-"
"Kissed? Wednesday? This past Wednesday?" Sarah couldn't help but interrupt, barely able to manage full sentences in her surprise. Seeing that Erica's expression was somewhere between angry and sad, she said: "Sorry, go on."
"He thinks I stood him up."
"Did you?" Sarah asked. That surprised her as well. Erica was tough, not heartless.
"Yes." With that word, Erica seemed to reach her breaking point. Sarah saw that she was close to tears. "But what was I supposed to do? I couldn't exactly help that I was being chased by some savage vampire hunter at the time." As Erica spoke, in a fearful and forlorn tone, it was like she was reliving the memory.
Sarah could barely manage a "What?" in response.
"Don't worry," Erica told her, her tone toughening. "I won. That guy's been targeting me for nearly two weeks, it's about time I did something about it."
It was about time she talked about it, too. Sarah hadn't heard a word about it, but that's not what bothered her. "Are you okay?" She asked, with her heart in her throat, holding onto Erica's shoulders as if she'd float away otherwise. She turned her head when she noticed Erica looking past her.
The boys were at Ethan's locker. Erica's focus was on Rory and his pleading eyes, which Benny ignored, while Ethan heaved an inaudible sigh. "Fine." Erica answered finally, walking off briskly.
She only made it to the end of the hallway unnoticed. Until she saw another face she knew. If it wasn't for her vision being blurred by a buildup of tears, Erica might have noticed a change. She practically spat when she spoke. "What do you want?"
In answer, all Erica got was a much needed hug.
Benny spent his break in the library alone. At first, all he did was laugh silently over the irony that on his first day back to school, Ryellie was absent. He tried reading, but nothing kept his attention. He found himself looking at the words in the book, but not absorbing them. He stood the book up on its own, so he had to question why-after some time-it started falling down slowly. Upon seeing the cause, his jaw dropped.
"Hi, Benny." Ryellie greeted, giving him a toothy, brace-free smile. That wasn't the only thing different about her. She gave her straightened hair an innocent flip, trying to get it out of her eyes. Which revealed the single sparkly silver streak running through it. The streak that matched her headband, eye shadow, and the tiny industrial bar in her right ear.
Her red dress was flowing, with a bubbly bottom and ribbon-like sleeves that wrapped around her arms. Not that Benny could see from where he was sitting, but she wore matching wedges with zigzagging straps that went up to her knees.
Now, this is just torture. Benny thought. Only, what he said out loud was: "What happened to you?" Slowly, in absolute disbelief. He didn't mean it negatively.
"I don't know." Ryellie answered, just as baffled. Her face was red as she talked with her hands.
Benny took a closer look as she did this, and his eyes widened. "No, really. What happened to you?" He asked in a distressed tone, springing up reaching out to flip over her wrist. Bringing the bruise on it to her attention.
"I don't know." Ryellie repeated, much more fearful the second time around.
She didn't want to worry Benny though, so she added: "But I bruise easily." She didn't feel like she was in pain.
"In two places?" He turned his attention to her shoulder, where another bruise was. Worry washed over him, and he asked the first question that came to his mind, given where they lived. "Did you happen to see your reflection in the mirror this morning? All there?"
Ryellie didn't have to think about it. "Yeah. You think I'm a vampire?" She asked in her softest audible whisper. She thought back to her nightmare. It'd seemed so real, but it couldn't be. She didn't know why she was even considering the theory. Vampirism isn't something she would ever ask for. Still, she kept up the conversation. "Based on what?"
"The, uh, makeover." Benny answered, unable to look away from the bruises. "And I use that term real loosely. You look as great as always, it's just… different." He was amazed he made it through that sentence, he was so frazzled.
Ryellie rolled her eyes angrily, which shocked Benny to the core. Almost as much as her venomous tone. "I don't have 'Erica Syndrome'. Clothes don't make a person. I'll go home and change if it bothers you that much."
Despite his surprise, Benny kept talking, hoping Ryellie would listen better. "I didn't say it was a bad thing, and your clothes aren't the problem."
"Then what is the problem?" The words hurt, they were so sharp.
"What's yours?" Benny couldn't help but ask. He tried to snatch the words right back. Even if Ryellie upset him, he didn't want to upset her any further. Especially when he didn't know what he did wrong to begin with. He gave her an honest "Sorry."
"No, I'm sorry." Ryellie replied, sounding like herself again. She looked angry at herself, and the unexplainable outburst. Their eyes locked. "I'm just starving, and I don't know how to handle it because that never happens. Especially in my house, there's always food on the table." While he wallowed in worry all over again, she asked: "Did we just have our first fight?"
Benny couldn't help but blush. "I think so." She shook her head, her mind back on the rule. He understood exactly what she was thinking. He had the same thought. Only, another thought was louder.
Benny sighed. "If you want me to quit worrying," He lowered his tone to a whisper and finished with: "check your neck. Then, I'll try to summon some lunch for ya."
With a laugh, Ryellie complied. She brought a slightly shaking hand to her neck, afraid of what she might find. Benny watched like a hawk.
Ryellie's eyes glazed over for a split second, and he froze with fear when she spoke. "Well, Benny, not that I ever doubted it, but it looks like Calculus isn't your only area of expertise."
At the end of the school day, Benny and Ryellie stepped out into the hallway, walking as fast as they could. Their mission of the moment was to find Ethan. After that, they didn't know what they would do.
She couldn't keep the pace, dazed. If the vampire attack had only been a dream, that meant she was living a nightmare.
"Not to rush you or anything Ryellie, but we're kinda in a hurry here and this is a hallway not a runway." The last part of Benny's sentence was meant for other students, who were staring at Ryellie as if she were a model.
Her apology was drowned out by whistling. "Who's the hot chick?" Asked a voice that haunted the both of them. Though 'annoyed' was really the proper term. The two turned around sharply to send a glare his way. After what the boy had said to Ryellie the last time he spoke, he deserved more than that. "Freckly girl?" He asked. Ryellie had to admit that 'freckly girl' was much easier to say than her actual name. She and Benny tried to tune the boy out, but he was difficult to ignore. They didn't notice he talked as if he didn't mean a single word. "Did puberty hit you like a freight train?"
"This fist still works." Benny informed the boy, trying to get him off their backs.
"I ain't lookin' for trouble." He replied, scoffing. Though he sounded nervous and hesitant. "I'm the good one." Benny and Ryellie narrowed their eyes, ready to ask for explanation. They didn't get the chance.
What happened was they found out just how fast word spread around Whitechapel High School.
"Hey, Weir, can I date your ex?" A senior boy asked.
"WHAT? NO!" They barked in unison, sending each other smiles right after.
"Then can I?" Another questioned. The comments continued, but Benny and Ryellie didn't have time for the nonsense.
"E!" Benny called out, having no other way to reach Ethan with the crowd that surrounded them. They apparently had no time for syllables either. Ethan rushed over-Sarah by his side-sensing the urgency.
Benny didn't wait for questions after the four friends pushed through the chatty crowd, making it disperse. "Ryellie's a vampire." He whispered sharply. He didn't get an answer. Not from speechless Ethan, caught in the middle of a vision come true.
"What do you wanna do?" Sarah asked Ryellie softly. She remembered contemplating not coming back after becoming a full-fledged vampire, how heartbreaking the whole experience had been for her.
Ryellie tried not look as stressed as she felt, seeing how her friends were there to support her. Her answer still came out sounding like a plea. "Just take me home."
"She's acting as if nothing happened." Ethan said to Sarah. The two were seated on Ryellie's living room couch, their arms around each other's shoulders.
"That's how she deals." Sarah sympathized. "Everyone has their own way. Besides, she's in shock and it's only day one."
Ethan nodded. "Sorry if this is difficult for you." He told her, not knowing how else to phrase it.
"No, it's fine." Sarah replied honestly. "Ryellie's always had this empathy for me. Now it's just stronger."
Upstairs, Benny stood outside Ryellie's door, checking up on her. What seemed like a second ago, she was all smiles. Then, she disappeared. "How're you holding up in there?"
She answered very hesitantly. "I'm alright." The slow response time did nothing to hide the quiver on her voice.
"Are you crying?" Benny's tone implied that he already knew the answer. He waited for it anyway.
She wasn't going to lie to him. "…Yeah."
The door flew open.
Benny sat on the edge of her bed. He wasn't sure how to comfort her, despite the fact that they were so close. He'd never seen her cry so much. Dead silent, tears falling like a rainstorm. She didn't look like she wanted a hug. No matter how much she needed it.
"I'm sorry." She told him, drying her eyes and sitting up.
"For what?" He asked, perplexed. Ryellie didn't need to apologize for anything.
"Letting you see me cry like this." She replied. But she didn't stop there. "Getting bitten. Saying I was in love with you when we both know the rule." Benny was already shaking his head-telling her it was okay-when Ryellie let something slip. "Standing at your doorstep." Benny's breath left him, while Ryellie went on, too angry at herself to stop. "Not fighting my own battles."
"Don't say that." The words were somewhere between an order and a plea. Benny couldn't believe what he was hearing. "You really think all of this was a mistake?"
"No. I love my life the way it is, just… not at the moment."
"That's allowed, you know." He told her, almost sarcastically.
Ryellie nodded, taking a deep breath. "I'm just scared." She admitted. "I'm sure Reegan's told you I'm afraid of my own shadow. But I don't want you to ever think that you don't make me feel brave because no one does a better job of that than you do. I just worry I won't be able to handle this on top of everything else. Even with you. I've been fighting myself since I got here."
"There's the problem." Benny answered. "You have to stop beating yourself up." She didn't respond, but she knew he was right.
Worn out, she lied back down. He comically followed her lead. It was more of a flop. Only their heads touched.
It got quiet after that. They stared up at the top of the canopy. Randomly, Benny laughed. Ryellie looked at him, confused. He explained himself. "Your first day, all I expected was a boring lesson and an average school day. Then the universe throws you at me at warp speed." She smiled as he went on, surprising her with what he said next. "And I was terrified." He thought for a second, and added: "I'm still terrified. Still confused. Still happy."
She sat up a second time, a look of sheer amazement in her eyes. A look that said she felt the same way. He smiled at her, sitting up as well when she spoke. "What were we worried about, again?"
Benny and Ryellie walked down the stairs together. She felt calm, confident and content with him by her side. "Ethan, Sarah, do you wanna hear the plan?" She asked the couple, who exchanged glances.
"What plan?" Ethan asked.
"We both thought it up, and it goes something like this:" Benny began, pointing to Ryellie, passing her the metaphorical microphone.
She cleared her throat as if what she was about to say had been rehearsed. She spoke in the kindest tone she could manage. "Hey, Mom, Hey, Dad. We just wanna tell you we're gonna date no matter what you say, and by the way, I'm a vampire."
The group burst out laughing. A bad idea made a great joke for some reason. Sarah was only shocked by the second part of it. "She's already joking about it." She told Ethan with a smile, admiring Ryellie's courage.
Ethan's expression mirrored his girlfriend's when he quietly asked her: "What were we worried about, again?" Thanks to Ryellie's vampiric sense of hearing, she got a laugh out of that.
"In case anyone was asking my opinion, the idea is daring, but it needs work."
"That's code for 'don't do it, your mother will have a heart attack.'"
The group turned their attention to the men in the doorway. Opposite in every way, except for their dark hair, that had begun to gray.
"Hi, Simon, Hi Miles." Ryellie greeted. She didn't mind that they overheard the conversion. Even though Miles was terrible at keeping secrets, Simon would keep him in check.
"You've all had a bit of a rough day, haven't you?" Simon asked, his brown eyes sparkling with empathy toward his granddaughter.
"This is where the kids would say 'duh'." Miles supplied.
With an eye roll, Simon laughed. "Well, let's not dwell on that. The day's not even half way over."
"Who's hungry?" Miles asked, proving that he was as he marched off to the kitchen.
"What've I told you about hats in my kitchen?" Simon asked sternly, following right behind.
"Chefs wear hats in the kitchen, I don't see why I can't." Miles reasoned.
"Because after you cook, you eat. And it's disrespectful to wear hats at the table." They continued on with their argument while Ryellie's friends stared after them.
"They're like old, male version of you cousins." Ethan told her.
"Don't I know it." She said, leading the others into the kitchen behind her grandfathers, who had stopped bickering abruptly.
"Well, there's one thing we'll agree on." Miles pointed a stubby finger, and the kids looked in the direction his crystal blue eyes were focused on. In the window, the group could see Grandma Weir, Lydia and Victoria. They were talking and laughing like they never left each other.
"After all this time, they're reconnecting." Simon said. "That is a beautiful thing."
Miles nodded, while Benny and Ryellie just stared. It was almost too good to be true. They looked at each other, to gauge their apparent shock. Automatically, their expressions turned from happy to loving. "As is that." Miles commented.
They snapped themselves out of it. The moment was over.
Ryellie knocked on the door to the office, after her friends had gone home.
She smiled when she heard: "Come in, Ry." Her father knew her knock. Ryellie mimicked her mother's stance as she stood in the doorway, her hand on the doorway. Noah looked up from his paperwork, hiding on sigh. By the look on his face, it was obvious he knew the question that was coming. Regardless, he said: "What's up?"
Ryellie wanted to ask him the same question, seeing that he was all dressed up. Instead, she got right to the point. "I don't wanna bother you, but this is bothering me, so… is there any reason why Benny and I can't date?" She never thought she'd ask that question, but it was impossible to drop her feelings. She had to do something about it.
After much hesitation, Noah answered the best way he knew how. "It's just easier to say it's complicated, sweetheart." Then-surprising himself-he admitted: "I think Benny's a nice guy, based on what you told me."
Ryellie blinked. "Then I don't get it. Is it just that mom doesn't like him for some reason?" That barely sounded like a question. It sounded like Ryellie was coming to her own conclusions.
Her father met her eyes. Silence fell. Ryellie prepared to get yelled at, but when her father finally spoke, his tone was soft yet dark.
"This isn't about Benny."
At that moment, Grace appeared behind her shocked daughter. She knew nothing of the conversation. Ryellie turned slowly, to see her mother in a dress and her hair in a beautiful updo, courtesy of Victoria. "C'mon, dear." Grace said to Noah. Then, while sending her daughter a smile, she added: "We don't wanna be late for our date with the Morgans."
"I'm more than a little confused with everything that's going on right now, but I'm glad my parents are going on dates again." Ryellie said. Ethan had invited her over, since Sarah had to babysit Jane and Benny being there was a given.
"And with Ethan's parents." Benny added, astonished. All these connections were amazing to the group. Even though the date was a good thing, Ryellie was sad that anything had to interrupt her father's explanation. Oh, well. She thought. We'll have later to talk.
"Where did Ethan go, anyway?" Sarah asked. He seemed to have just wandered off while the others were talking, but he had a right to. Everyone was acting a little off.
Benny and Ryellie gave a synchronized shrug in reply, but Jane said: "He's in the kitchen."
With a nod, Sarah went off to find him. When she did, he was holding an empty glass. As she came through the doorway, he greeted her with a warm smile.
She started talking, but he didn't hear a word. He didn't even hear the house phone ring. He was too busy thinking about something. Something he hadn't thought about before. Ryellie's dress seemed strangely familiar to him.
Sarah gasped at the sound of glass shattering.
"Ethan?" Sarah said, sounding as panicked as he looked. With the expression he wore, she thought what came out of his mouth would'v been much worse.
"Oh, no." He looked at the mess he made, then grabbed a dustpan.
"Can you tell me what's going on?" She asked as he swept up the shards and disposed of them.
"I'm being paranoid." He answered. Ethan looked like he had entered full freak-out mode, but Sarah knew he must have a good reason.
"Why?" She asked, following him back to the living room he practically bolted to.
"Because, forgetting about a vision doesn't stop it from happening."
When they got to the living room, they found Ryellie gone. Sarah wondered what vision she hadn't heard about, while Ethan panicked some more. "Where's Ry?" That caught everyone's attention. Only family, blood-related family, ever called her that. This was a cue to be alarmed. Only, Jane wasn't.
"Reegan called and told her to come home. She said Rae had anniversary blues."
"What does that mean?" Ethan asked, trying his best to keep calm.
"I think it means it's Rae and someone's anniversary, and she's sad about it."
"This is no time for sarcasm, Benny." Ethan didn't sound mad. He sounded as if he wished it could be a time to joke around.
"Ethan," Sarah started, trying to think of a way to get him to talk to her, since he seemed set on springing into action to save Ryellie from an unknown fate. "baby-"
The spontaneous "Whoo" from Benny didn't hide the happy shock on Ethan's face. Unfortunately, that was only on the surface. Inside, he was a trainwreck.
"Listen." Sarah went on. "You can't do this all on your own. We don't even know what you're trying to do."
"I know." Ethan replied. "Neither do I."
"Run faster, Ry." At first, she froze in fear. Only halfway home, she was worried that was the opening line for a second attack she wouldn't remember in the morning. Then, she sneered, her fear dissolving.
"Don't call me that." She said, wishing she could deliver a punch as powerful as Benny's. This guy deserved another one. Or maybe, she'd bite him. She just had to say something first. "We're not friends, and we're certainly not family." She couldn't help but say what she was thinking either. "...Jerkface."
He fought the temptation to roll his eyes and answered: "It's Zander, not Jerkface." It shocked her. A guy with eyes like his-gray-and a name like Zander, had made fun of her. And now his tone was surprisingly hushed and kind. "Did you not hear me when I said 'run faster'? I'm trying to protect you."
"From what?" She asked, because the only thing she wanted to get away from at that point was Zander.
On cue, a pack or snarling dogs came running at Ryellie. They stopped just before they reached her, as if to watch her flinch. She jumped, bumping into Zander, who kept her on her feet.
"Get her." A voice the seemed to come from nowhere commanded.
A voice she knew.
With that, Ryellie was forced to run in the direction the pack chased her. Away from her house.
"Stay here." Ethan ordered kindly. He was suited up and carrying what he considered all the essentials, although he didn't know what he was up against.
"No." Sarah objected. "I'm coming with you." She had just tucked Jane in, pretending like nothing bad was happening. She wasn't going to pretend for Ethan.
"You have a job to do." Ethan reminded her.
"Well, I'm coming with you." Benny said. He wasn't going to play pretend either.
"No, you're not." Ethan refused, racing for the door. Benny beat him to it, blocking his path.
"You're being unreasonable." He told his best friend sternly, knowing nothing of the vision. At least, nothing that had to do with the part about him. "First you tell me something's gonna happen to my-potential-girlfriend," He hated haven't to stick that word in there, but something bothered him more at the moment. "then you tell me I can't help save her?" It made no sense.
Until Benny won the stare-down against Ethan, and he submitted, providing an explanation. "Something happens to you too."
"How bad?" Benny asked, barely caring. Ryellie was his priority.
"I don't know." Ethan admitted.
"When were you gonna tell us all of this?" Sarah asked. Not angry, just concerned.
"Look, I know I messed up." Ethan told the others. "But now I have to fix it." With that, Benny moved out of the doorway. The second Ethan was gone, he defiantly followed.
Sarah didn't wait to pull out her phone and dial wildly. The line opened on the third ring, which was like torture in the crisis situation. Still, Sarah managed to keep calm as she talked. "Hi, Grandma, can you come watch Jane for me? There's something I gotta take care of."
"Can't vampires heal themselves?" Zander asked, with tears in his eyes. He was standing over Ryellie. He hadn't been able to do anything to help, and now she was lying in a ditch, struggling to get up. The dogs had caught up to her and-finding the makeshift grave-left her for dead once the job was done.
The damage wasn't so bad. Many of the bites hadn't even broken the skin, and she only bruised when she fell. Ryellie didn't care about the injuries, they would heal. She cared about getting home, without Zander.
"Stop being so creepy." She told him, once she had the strength to give up. He knew too much.
"Don't get up. Something could be broken. I'll call an ambulance."
"I'm fine." That was the last thing Ryellie needed. It scared her more than the dogs had. "but something's up, I can feel it." The look on Zander's face told her he already knew that. Which only convinced Ryellie further that he was bad news. "I have to go." She said, trying her best to use her vampiric speed. For a human, she was fast. As a vampire, given the condition she was in, she was not up to par. She could deal with that. As long as everything turned out okay.
"You've only been in this town eleven days, how do you know where you're going?" Zander called out, even knowing Ryellie was too far away to give an answer.
Ryellie would find her way. She had to.
"It's almost as if you made yourselves live bait. Without any of your vampire friends too. You boys are really brave."
"Who is this guy?" Benny asked Ethan, when the figure emerged from-seemingly-nowhere. Despite the fact that his shaggy black hair had streaks of blood red running through it, and he painted his nails black, neither of the boys looked intimidated.
The boy-man, they supposed-looked like he had a few years on them. Maybe five. But that didn't make him seem like a real threat. "That's not the question." He told them, with fiery blue eyes. "Question is, where's the girl?"
"Could you be a bit more specific? We know several." Benny's joke gave Ethan a shred of hope that maybe his vision was wrong. Until the older boy replied.
"Your grandma doesn't count."
"Alright, now I'm scared." Benny admitted. Ethan nodded in agreement. The person in front of them made himself seem like a stalker.
"I don't even know why I'm doing this," He told Ethan and Benny, stepping closer to them as he spoke. Then, he said something that made their toes curl. "The 'T' in Temberlon stands for trouble, and the 'N' in Newbold stands for nuisance." With that, the threat became real. To Benny, those sounded like fighting words. Fighting words he had to answer.
"Know what the 'W' in Weir stands for?"
"Worthless."
Benny was tackled to the ground full-force, and Ethan jumped to his aid in the struggle. Only he never reached him.
"Think before you act." Benny's attacker said. And suddenly, that's all Ethan could do. His vision-the one he was in the middle of-played over and over again in his head, as if on a continuous loop. It was all he could see as he stood frozen, helpless as Benny was.
Sarah came to their rescue, but the tables had already turned. It was as if Benny was unstoppable, with barely any effort. His opponent was close to collapsing in the grass of the backyard turned battlefield.
He suddenly turned to Sarah, and Benny let her take over in the fight. He went to check on Ethan, who had fallen to his knees, his thoughts overwhelming him.
Sarah saw every punch and kick thrown at her. She was too fast for her opponent. Even so, her friends wanted to help her. They wanted this guy to leave them alone. As soon as Ethan had his strength back, they made they way toward her. She didn't even see it coming when her foe kicked backwards instead of forward.
Benny toppled over, the wind knocked out of him.
"BENNY!" An earsplitting scream, that could only belong to one voice.
Ryellie came into view, looking just as Ethan had seen her in his vision. She rushed to Benny's side.
"Playing doctor again?" He teased, as soon as he could manage. Her laugh barely hid a sob. "I'm good." He assured her.
"Grayson, what are you doing here?" She barked, still kneeling beside Benny.
Benny sat up, finally feeling well enough to do so. "You know him." It wasn't a question, but now it was clear that what Grayson said to start the whole fight wasn't just to mess with his head.
"Yeah, she does." Reegan supplied. The others would've jumped if they weren't so on edge already. They didn't question where she came from.
"Alright, well, who is he?" Ethan asked, head still spinning.
"Short version? Crazy ex-boyfriend with a grudge." Reegan told him.
"Wow, that's original." Sarah replied, her sarcasm apparent.
"Leave us be." Reegan ordered Grayson. "C'mon, you can't win. It's five against one."
He smiled slyly. "Not anymore, its not." With that, the five snarling dogs reappeared. One by one, they transformed, back to their human selves. A collective gasp was swallowed up by the sound of Grayson's laughter, as he stepped back to watch the rest of the fight unfold. "Now, it's fair."
"No." Rae dismissed. A lot less shocking considering-usually-whevever Reegan went, her sister followed. "Now it's fair." She put up her fists, ready to fight. Grayson laughed again, turning his head to give his ex a glassy glare.
"What, did you invite everybody?" Rae answered that question for Reegan, with a sucker punch to Grayson's turned face. He hit the ground hard.
Ethan's jaw dropped, as he blocked one of the shape shifters' attacks. "Go, Rae." He practically whispered, laughing. He didn't know she had it in her.
By the look on her face, neither did Rae.
Grayson didn't retaliate when he got up. Instead, he walked up to his ex while the others kept up the fight. His lackey took that as the signal to take on Rae instead.
He sneered at the sight of Reegan's dyed hair. "You know, Reegan... I hate blondes." With that, he slapped her straight across the face. As she winced in pain, he mumbled: "One recently tried to kill me."
"I don't blame her!" Reegan answered, fighting back. With that, the battle was in full swing.
The good guys were dominating, fueled by adrenaline. Though Ryellie was quickly loosing energy, fighting on fledgling power. It was just her luck she got in a fight with the strongest of the bad bunch, excluding Grayson.
No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't even bare her fangs. The proof, as Rory had put it. Maybe Ryellie wasn't a vampire. Maybe she was something nameless.
Winded, she fell over. Her opponent fought dirty, kicking her when she was down. She gasped for air as she failed to get back on her feet, and Benny ran to help. Someone else got there first.
In a flash, Ryellie's opponent was on the ground, blood pouring from his broken nose, pleading for his life.
Rory stood over him, baring his fangs. With a squeal, Grayson's lackeys went running.
Ryellie stood up, stunned but smiling bright. The good guys gaped, then literally applauded. Rory took a grateful bow, making them laugh.
The laughter stopped when he got knocked down. With a kick.
"Again, really?" Benny commented, while the twins complained.
"Oh, you're still here." They yawned, regarding Grayson.
"Unlike my fair-weather friends," He said, picking up Rory who was writhing in pain. "I'm not afraid of pointy teeth." Now Rory was squirming to get out of Grayson's grasp. He wondered how he would explain to his parents why his shirt was so stretched out, while Grayson went on. "Like I said, I hate blondes."
He put Rory down gently, to everyone's surprise. With in eye roll, he glared in the blonde vampire's direction until their eyes locked. The look seemed forced, as if a second ago Rory wasn't at all focused on him. Confused by this, he did nothing but stand there. Reegan screamed, startling everyone but Grayson.
Then the group found out why. All of a sudden, it was as if Grayson was standing on Rory's lungs. The others watched in horror-not knowing what to do-as Rory's face went pale. Within seconds, he was in a coughing fit on the ground. Grayson stood over him, smiling evily as he gasped for air-eyes barely open-and his lips turned blue.
Grayson laughed, not taking his eyes of Rory. "Been a long time since you've known what that feels like, hasn't it?" He asked, cut off when he was sideswiped. Out of everything that happened, the group considered what they saw then as the greatest shock.
"Hello to you too, Erica." Grayson laughed, turning to face her as he got up.
When oxygen returned to Rory's lungs, it tasted better than blood.
The others didn't dare move, too dazed to do so.
"I thought I got rid of you." Erica spat.
"Key word: thought." Grayson replied, walking off.
A win by forfeit made the others sigh with relief. It was all over, for the moment.
Erica helped Rory to his feet without a word. He said an enthusiastic "Thank you!" to the air, before he saw she was already gone.
"Well, this day was weirder than normal." Benny commented. He knew the threat was still out there, but he and his friends could laugh knowing it wasn't right at their backs. Figuring Grayson and his henchmen out would be more than a challenge, but they were ready to face it together.
"You're telling me." Ryellie replied. "I hugged Erica this morning." The others eyed her strangely, thinking that might bump Erica showing up to save Rory off the top of the 'Daily Shocker' list.
"Well," Benny replied, laughing. "I can officially say this now."
"Say what?" Ryellie asked with a smile. One he mirrored when he answered.
"Welcome to Whitechapel…
Thanks for reading, PLEASE REVIEW! Favorite part? Anything to elaborate on? Ideas? I'll update ASAP! =]