2 has an unspoken but well-understood need for anger management therapy, by the way. It's a theme of mine that I adore. So, when he seems out of character to you, please rest assured that he doesn't seem so to me. ;P

Barn Owl Girl, if you were checking for this update on the stairs again, I'm going to virtually thump you on the head. I hope you've learned your lesson. :D

2222222222

The Witching Hour

2222222222

2 was always glad to lend his help where it was needed, usually without hesitation. But when 9 described what had just happened, he couldn't believe it at first. Certainly, 7 had been unstable recently, because of the baby. It was to be expected, they all supposed. But this… It didn't sound like a frustrated, disoriented female body, unwittingly wreaking havoc on the world around it. It sounded more like affair of the mind, and it made 2 a little nervous. The mind can be a frightening place, and he had little experience in that field.

But his only daughter was in terrible distress, and she had locked herself in a room alone with a very new baby. Underequipped as he was, 2 was more than willing to try. So he marched alone down the hall, bracing himself for whatever he may find. He hadn't gone very far when 1 caught up to him.

"I don't like this," his brother grumbled. "I'll bet you anything that Pi has something to do with this."

"I feel it, as well," 2 agreed, feeling a chill run down his spine. That part of his memory that he suddenly couldn't reach—the memory of something he couldn't remember, but must be there—flared in the back of his mind. He still wasn't sure if that blocked memory had even happened. But at the same time, he was more sure than ever that it had happened, because it had gone on warning him for days. And now this…

"What could she have done this time? What could she have done to my 7?"

"I suppose we'll all find out. The woman will be in good hands, I don't doubt. We'll get to the bottom of this. But… What about the child?"

"I haven't even figured out what I'll say to the mother yet. Don't rush me."

"Of course not. I'll… I'll be out here, should you need me."

2 appreciated that. It was nice to not be completely alone, as he walked into the proverbial lion's den.

"Thank you, 1," he said with a sigh. He left his brother nearby, and cautiously approached the locked door. Within, he couldn't hear 10 crying anymore; but he could very clearly hear 7 sobbing abysmally. It wrenched his heart to think she could be in so much pain—his strong, proud, sturdy 7, who never cried easily. He knocked gently on the door.

"7, it's me. Sweetie, please let me in."

He waited a moment, hearing footsteps. Then the bar on the door was thrown aside with a loud shink! and hit the floor with a clank. In the blink of an eye, the door burst open and 7 all but flew out.

"Daddy!" she cried, throwing her arms around him. Her head sank onto his shoulder, and she went on crying, safe in the only shelter she had. She hadn't hugged him like this in a very long time. He had often wished she would, but this was nothing but troubling. Despite their difference in height, he wrapped his arms around her and stroked her scarred back, trying to soothe her.

Surely, this whole mess was just a huge misunderstanding. But she was in so much pain.

"Oh, my poor girl," he whispered, "my poor dear girl. Come inside and sit down, and you tell me everything, okay?"

He gently led her back into the bedroom, nudging the door behind him until it was only ajar. He attempted to sit 7 down in the rocking chair, but she turned away from it.

"I'm not sitting in that thing," she growled. "Built on lies…"

"You know, 7, your brother had his hands on it, as well."

That wasn't exactly helpful. So he took her hands, sat in the chair himself, and pulled her in a heap onto his lap. She still wasn't thrilled, but she didn't resist this time. Instead, she curled up and rested her head against his shoulder like a frightened little child. She sniffled pathetically once, twice, and then collapsed into tears again, burying her face in his warm chest.

While he rocked her and held her close to his heart, whispering soothing words, 2 looked up and searched the room for 10. He spotted her lying on the bed, sleeping rather peacefully. That was good. He hoped that she would stay that way for a while.

"7," he said after a while, "tell me what happened."

In a rough, shaking voice, she answered, "9 is leaving me."

"Yes, so I heard."

"So now he tells everyone. Bastard…"

"7!" he scolded, giving her a cautionary squeeze. "How could you think such a thing? What on earth did he say to you?"

"He didn't need to say anything. His little side dish told me everything."

"…Who?"

"Who do you think?" she sobbed. "That little brat, Pi! He's running away with her!"

"She said that? And you believed her? But… Why would you do that? Why would you listen to her, and not your own husband who loves you so much?"

"He doesn't love me…"

"Nonsense! Of course he loves you, my dear. 7, can you not hear some of the things coming out of your mouth? This isn't you."

"But it's the truth," she insisted, sitting up to look at him. "It's the truth!"

"7… Your eyes…"

Her eyes were wrong. They were cloudy and fogged up from the inside. 2 had never seen anything like this before, but somehow he recognized it. Perhaps it was a long forgotten instinct, or something vague he had read in a book a long time ago.

"…You're blind."

She looked surprised and puzzled. "I can see you just fine."

"No, no. You're blinded from the truth. Something is keeping you from seeing it." He grasped her by the shoulders. "Think hard, 7, what else did she do to you? What did she do to you?"

"She stole my husband, is what she did to me! I don't know what I'm going to do—I need your help!"

"Yes, more than ever, it seems."

Frustrated that he was being vague again, she jumped out of his lap and began to pace, her head in her hands. "I'm going to have to raise my baby on my own. She'll never know her father. Only the empty hole where he said he would be. He promised he'd be there for her! Bad enough he's abandoned me… But what about 10? How could he do this to her? How could he just leave me to do this alone? It's not right! It isn't fair! I don't want to do this by myself!"

While she went on babbling nonsense, 2 rose from the rocking chair and walked to the bed. He silently regarded his sleeping granddaughter, blissfully unaware of what was happening around her. Her daddy would never, ever leave her so easily. He was right down the hall, worried sick about her, and her mother, as well.

One thing, at least, was sure: while 7 was impaired like this, 10 couldn't be left alone with her. He bent down and gently picked her up, hoping she would remain asleep; she stirred and scrunched up her little face, ("Leave me alone, granddad, I'm trying to sleep, here!") but then relaxed and went on sleeping. Oh man, 7 wouldn't like him just taking her baby away from her, especially not now. But what else could be done? He couldn't put 7's very odd feelings above the baby's safety.

Deciding to take the direct route, he wordlessly turned and headed for the door—all routes would be abrupt and painful, so best to just do it. 7 noticed at once and grabbed him by the arm.

"What are you doing?" she demanded.

"You can't be worried with a baby like this. I'll look after her."

"No—you're taking her to him! Don't let them take her away from me!"

"I'm not taking her anywhere."

"She's all I have left! Daddy, please!"

"He's not taking her anywhere and you know it," he snapped back, shaking her off. He couldn't recall being so harsh with her before. But by now, he'd had more than enough of her… foolishness. He hated thinking of his 7 as being foolish, but she wasn't herself.

Instead of fighting back, she took a few steps away, looking stricken and terrified.

"Daddy… You're supposed to be helping me… You're supposed to be helping me! Why are you helping him? He's a liar! They're all lying!"

10 woke with a start at her mother's yelling, and her eyes darted around in surprise, but thankfully she didn't start crying. 2 shook his head sadly and walked out the door.

"We'll be in the common room, whenever you're ready to be civil, young lady," he informed, and shut the door firmly behind him.

"Daddy, no!" she frantically yelled after him. "Bring her back! Please bring her back!"

It broke his heart not to answer, but what was there he could say? His own pain was only punctuated by her anguished scream of despair, hardly muffled by the walls between them. In his arms, 10 squirmed uncomfortably and cried softly, wondering what was going on.

"Hush, blessed," he said with a cautious smile. "Granddad's got you right here. You're perfectly safe with me."

She didn't seem to be convinced. He supposed he wouldn't be, either. He stopped beside his brother, and they shared a moment of tense silence.

"Did you hear all that?"

"Every word," 1 agreed, giving 10 his finger to hold for comfort. She gave him a baleful look and stuck his finger in her mouth, which he had found he didn't mind. Even he had admitted it was cute. But they were too worried to notice.

"The child does need to be with her father," 2 said decidedly, "and he needs to see her. I don't know what we're going to do about 7, though…"

"He'll figure something out. He always does. Pi and her trickery are the least of the evils he's faced."

"And he'll be far from alone, this time."

"I have a terrible premonition that 5 will not be so willing to help."

"Confusticate and be bothered what he thinks of it! I'm in no mood for thinking of other people's feelings. Do you know how I feel? I'm furious. I feel like punching that girl in her pretty face and tossing her headfirst into the snow! I don't want her here plaguing us another second longer."

1 nodded slowly, looking vaguely pleased. "Always refreshing to see your magnificent capacity for wrath pointed at someone else's head, for a change."

2 bobbled his head from side to side, appreciative of the sentiment, but too frustrated and angry to enjoy it much. "We should get back to the others," he said finally.

The rest of the clan was waiting, gathered in the common room—though Pi was distinctly missing. The lot of them were pretty much the same as when the brothers had left. 6 and 8 were sitting together against the far wall where they could see everything, waiting for a pertinent emotion to color their typically blank faces. The twins were huddled together in a corner, looking upset and unsure. 5 was sitting on the sofa, thinking hard about things, probably certain that Pi had nothing to do with what had happened. And 9 was pacing nervously in front of the fireplace, looking more worried than they had ever seen him—even more so than when they had left.

"We're back," 2 announced, earning the undivided attention of everyone present. When he saw his baby, 9 dashed right over to take her.

"Is she alright?"

"She's perfectly fine. Perhaps a bit disoriented, but nothing you can't fix, I'm sure."

9 smiled down at his daughter and she flailed around with a delighted squeal, overjoyed to see his face again. He kissed her little face and hugged her close.

"Oh, my precious girl, I was so worried about you."

2 felt his wounded hart warm up. There was no way in the fires of hell their 9 was leaving them. Satisfied that his only child was okay, the younger man looked up with worry still plastered over his face.

"What about 7? Did you find out what's wrong with her?"

2 hesitated, hating to be the bearer of such awful news. Sensing his brother's dilemma, 1 spoke up for him.

"She's convinced that you're leaving her."

To this, 9 looked horrified and crestfallen. "…But… But why?"

"Oh…" 2 sighed heavily and rubbed the back of his neck, suddenly unable to look at him. "You're not going to like it, 9."

"I don't care. Just tell me. Please!"

Oh, if he had a dime for each time someone had begged him please to do something today, he'd have… 40, 50, maybe 60 cents, give or take. He had lost count. That was entirely too rich for his liking.

"You may want to sit down for this."

2222222222

All she had to do now was wait a bit. Pi lay on her bed in the infirmary, waiting patiently as she could. She had dozed a while, waiting on the Bearer's return from the Emptiness; but she was woken by 7 screaming in heartbroken pain. When he found his wife out of sorts, filled with a sudden, unexplainable, overwhelming hatred of him, he would be dazed and confused. And before he could gather his thoughts, she would swoop in and snatch him in that moment of weakness.

Because she found that 9 didn't have any outstanding mental weakness she could take advantage of. Even when drunk, he had an amazing presence of mind. Thus, if he was to have anything to get a foothold in, she decided she would have to generate it herself. Fortunately, his unyielding love for his wife gave her something to work with. Who cared if Alpha frowned upon it? The same love that made him so strong would prove his undoing.

That is, if everything went as she had planned…

And in a heartbeat, she realized that she had dozed entirely too long and had missed her window of opportunity. She heard a stampede of footsteps coming up the hall, along with 9's furious voice hollering her name, and various other voices imploring him to calm down.

Alpha's going to kill me for this…

She considered running and hiding, but they would surely see her in the hall. And where was she supposed to run to? Into one of the locked bedrooms? To the woman who was now convinced she was running away with her husband? Yes, a fine idea. She thought of darting under the bed, pretending that she had already fled, but who among them would fall for something like that? The only choice was to stand up straight and tall, and accept her fate as bravely as she could.

She wondered how vain it was to feel like Joan of Arc in this moment.

The Bearer exploded into the infirmary like a hurricane. On either side of him, the elders had him by the arms, attempting in vain to hold him back. 5 stood in front of him, trying desperately to block him and push him back; but it was about as productive as trying to stop the sunrise. There was no holding this storm back.

Pi continued to watch with morbid fascination as the five men struggled in the doorway before her—these men who she had only seen as calm, gentle, and loving with each other. 9 didn't even acknowledge his family trying to hold him back. His eyes were full of furious flame, and they were fixed, unmoving, on her.

Oh yeah, he knew what she had done. Pi saw no more use for her mask, and let all traces of pretended sweetness or innocence melt from her. She glared back at 9 with all of her real self, everything he already knew she was. Behind the barrier of his brother's arms, he stopped struggling quite so much and spoke in a loud voice.

"What did you do to her?" he demanded, his voice shaking with rage. "Tell me what you did to her!"

She lowered her head, but not her glare, silently daring him to ask again. She felt so defeated, backed into a corner, like a wounded, hunted animal. It was so unfair.

"Answer me! Tell me what you did! Tell me!"

"Fine," she growled, turning her head away. Her frizzy hair fell beside her face, hiding her expression. She sighed, wondering if they would even believe her.

"7 is under a spell," she answered, crossing her arms. "I've rewritten a part of her knowledge with something of my own making. She was only the arrow, 9—I was aiming for you. If only we'd been in the place I had planned at the same time, I would have succeeded."

The men were all silent, most of them disbelieving. Even though 9's expression had changed from fury to shock, she got the feeling that he was more than willing to believe her.

"Why?" he asked. "Why did you have to bring her into this?"

She rolled her eyes and looked up at him with a scoff. "It was a gamble." Tossing her hair off her shoulder, she added, "Looks like I've lost. Again."

He processed this, but then tensed up again. "How do I fix it? How can I break the spell?"

She gave him a devilish smirk. "You have to kiss her. True love is a rare force of nature—so when it's there, it has the strength to overcome anything in its way. Unfortunately, a love as true as yours could move mountains, if it had to. Breaking my spell is the least of what it can do."

He looked slightly surprised by how straightforward that sounded, and therefore relieved. Glad to dash his hopes, she scoffed at him again with a cruel smile.

"Easier said than done. She never wants to look at your traitorous face again, remember? She'll probably beat you to death if you get that close to her, now. Cleaning up a mess if never supposed to be easier than making it. Especially when it's someone else's."

The rage suddenly flared back to life. 9 pushed his brother out of the way and stormed right into her face. He towered menacingly above her, and she was frightened at first that he was going to hit her. She hadn't imagined he had the capacity to be so angry; who knew what he was capable of now? But she bravely stood her ground, looked him in the eye, daring him to strike her. Instead, he stuck his finger sharply into her chest.

"Get, Out. Of my house."

"…"

When she refused to answer or move at all, he snatched her by the wrist and dragged her to the door. The rest of them cleared the way, glad to finally be rid of her. Pi chose not to protest, and just let him haul her roughly behind him. It was a wonder he hadn't hit her yet, or that she was even still alive. As long as she was mostly unharmed, she intended to stay that way. What Alpha would do to her when she returned home would be bad enough, and would require as much strength as she had. She couldn't afford to fritter away her newfound health, provoking 9's temper.

It was tempting, though. His fury was so out of character, it was almost adorable…

The furious Bearer dragged her toward the entrance and out into the courtyard. She had never actually seen the outside of the building she had been in all that time; and, thanks to the snow, there wasn't much to see. The courtyard was circular, lined with rows of towering, snow-covered statues. Pi wasn't sure why, but she got an instant impression that they were supposed to be muses. Other than the dunes of snow that sparkled in the clear sunlight, the courtyard was clean and undisrupted by litter and debris, like the streets were. The clan had forged a wide, straight path through the snow from the library entrance to the gate on the other end of the circular courtyard wall, which led out into the Emptiness.

Which, of course, was exactly where 9 was taking her. When they reached the wrought iron gate, he all but threw her through one of the gaps in the bars—so hard that she nearly tripped and fell face-first into the snow.

"I've been merciful today, because I have things to take care of" he said angrily. "But if you ever, ever come back here, you will not leave this place alive. Is that clear?"

She answered with another glare and furious, indignant silence. Oh, how utterly she had been foiled.

"Get out of my sight," he commanded, pointing out into the street. Without waiting to see if she would comply right away, he turned and stalked back up the path. Far ahead, waiting just inside the entrance, she could faintly see 1, 2 and 5 all waiting for him. When he caught up to them, he stopped briefly to say something… But then darted off out of sight, prompting the other three to follow him.

And now she was alone. There was nothing else to do but begin the long trek back to her own home, and brace herself for another confrontation. As she turned and made her way up the street, to the western part of the city, she shivered and cursed the bad run of luck she'd had.

It's all their fault, for being so damn thick, she decided. Stupid fifth clan. I will break one of them. I will bring one of them back to be sacrificed. Every single one of them deserves that death. On my father and my mother, I swear it will happen. One of these days…

2222222222

"I want a watch established, with shifts, every night," he explained as they walked back to the common room. "And I think it's safe to say we need some kind of alarm system for the gate."

"If you had just done away with her and gotten it over with, we wouldn't have to put all these things in place," 1 pointed out.

"I'm not like that," he answered, turning to face the older man. After a pause, he continued, "It would have only lasted so long, anyway. Pi has sisters, somewhere, and probably a leader. They would find us on their own, eventually; better to just let her lead them to us, while we're expecting them, than to be taken by surprise a few years from now. If I could just march off and find them now, I would—but I can't. You all know that I can't.

"I'm sorry it has to be this way. But for right now… I just don't know what else to do."

9 felt aggravated and worried, to say the very least. And he was beside himself for letting Pi stay for so long. In hindsight, there had been so many things he could have done to prevent all this from happening. All he really wanted was for his whole family to be safe. And for a while, he had thought that the world had become a relatively safe place to be. But this? Others of their own kind attacking them with evil magic? It was so deucedly unfair.

And there was still 7 to deal with. In this moment, his wife had to come first. No matter how long it was going to take, he had to break the spell. It peeved him, but Pi was right—how was he supposed to get close enough to kiss her, when she wouldn't let him into their room?

Convinced he was leaving her, huh? Then he would just have to convince her otherwise.

"Look after everyone for me," he said quietly. "I'll be down the hall for a while. I don't know when I'll be back."

He had only taken a few steps when he was stopped by 1's cool hand on his shoulder.

"I suppose you believe everything she said about spells and such?"

"Well, yes I do."

"You would. It's outlandish and fantastic. Some would say you've lost your mind."

"Sometimes, fantasy is the only logical explanation for things."

To his slight surprise, 1 nodded approvingly. "I've always firmly believed that such evils are present in our world. And Pi's presence here has only strengthened that belief. Beware of what might be lurking behind that door of yours; evil can do a great many terrible things."

9 gave him a hopeful smile and answered, "But love can do more, I think."

"Godspeed, then, boy."

2 came to stand beside his brother and added, "Don't worry about things out here; we'll take care of them. You just bring our 7 back."

They parted ways on that positive note—positive, except for 5, who seemed to have gone numb. But 9 couldn't worry about him now, especially when he was under someone else's care for the time being. For now, there was only his bewitched, grieving wife, the kiss that would break the spell, and the locked door standing impossibly in his way. How was he going to get her to let him in? Or get her to come out? What could he say that would catch her interest? Surely, the part of her that Pi had erased was still there, pushed aside by the spell, trying to resurface. If only he could give it a little strength, some encouragement, to inspire her to open the door—even if only to scream at him or, yeah, sure, slap him in the face again. If only he could get that door unlocked…

He stood before his bedroom door, staring it down, unwilling to let its locked nature daunt him. On the other side of it, he could still hear 7 crying softly, and it broke his heart. He gently knocked on the door, wondering what reaction it might cause.

"7, honey, it's me again," he slowly called to her. "I want you to know, Pi isn't here anymore. She's gone. And she's never coming back. But I'm still here. I haven't gone anywhere, and I'm never going to. Honey, please open the door. Please talk to me."

He couldn't hear her crying anymore, but he got no answer. Not that he had particularly counted on one.

"Well… Alright, then," he said decidedly, and sat down with his numbered back against the door. "If you don't believe me, I'll prove it to you. I'm not moving until you unlock the door and come out here, do you hear me? Remember what I said on our wedding day? When I promised to never leave your side, no matter what? I'm not leaving you. I'm going to stay right here, as close to your side as I can, and I'm going to stay here for as long as it takes.

"…I'm serious, now. I'm not moving from this spot until you come out of there and talk to me. Even if it means I'll be sitting here in the middle of the hall for a week—for a month—for a year—I'm not giving up on you.

"I promise."

Still, he got no answer. He sighed a heavy, but quiet sigh, and settled against the door, making himself as comfortable as possible. This was going to be… Interesting…

2222222222

Author's Notes…

Pi will not be terribly important for the next chapter or so, but she is NOT out of the big picture. There's too much story left, still. She will probably get a chapter all to herself soon, so… Just stay sharp.

The next update is mostly more of 7 wailing like a punched baby seal into people's shoulders. And, naturally, there will be plenty of fluff to go 'round—but don't worry, Thomas Holmes II, I promise it will be tasteful. ;D