"...So we ended up wandering around for another hour before we found our way back to the exit on the main floor. It felt like months! It was so spooky in there that I thought I'd go nuts."
"I'm just glad to hear that you're all right, dear. Your Aunt Hilda and I were getting worried."
Sabrina's mouth drooped at the concern she heard in her aunt's voice. "I'm sorry, Aunt Zelda," she apologized, raking a hand through her mane of blond hair. "I didn't mean to worry you. I promise that we're going to try and take care of this as quickly as possible. Is everything okay at home?"
"We told the school that you'd caught the flu...I managed to obtain a doctor's note, so that's bought you some time," Zelda informed her.
"Wait...what doctor? Sabrina frowned briefly. "Wouldn't I need a check-up at an actual doctor's office to get a note?"
Her aunt chuckled softly. "Our Other Realm physician, dear. Drell was able to explain the situation, and we bewitched the note to appear as convincing as possible to mortal eyes." Zelda coughed before changing subjects. "Your friend Valerie has been dropping off your schoolwork for you, so you'll be able to catch up once you've returned home."
"Returning from chasing ghosts around a haunted hotel to a pile of homework? Sounds awesome," Sabrina sighed. Wait...Valerie's been dropping off my work? Sabrina swallowed before asking, "So...has Val...uh...asked about me?" She tried to phrase the question casually, but her tone wavered.
"She has," Zelda replied softly. "Multiple times, in fact. Valerie is very concerned for you, Sabrina. In fact, I had to get Hilda to disguise and throw her voice, pretending to be you, to allay some of her worry," she added in a wry tone.
"Huh," Sabrina rejoined, somewhat weakly. "You...uh...you don't say. Um, look, Aunt Zelda, I should probably get going, so, uh, I'll talk to you later, okay?"
"All right, dear. Hilda sends her love!"
"Love you guys, too. Bye!"
Sabrina hung up, staring at the wall glumly. "I feel like such an idiot," she mumbled softly.
Valerie is such a good friend. She cares about me so much! She would never do anything to deliberately harm me or hurt my feelings. She's always been supportive.
My relationship with Harvey isn't that stable. We're "off" more than we're "on," and honestly, that's not promising. I doubt that we would last together.
I do feel uncomfortable that she's dating him, yeah. He's my ex and my friend, and she's also a friend. Knowing that she's doing the same things with him that I used to do does make me feel kind of awkward. But...I think the thing that I feel more uncomfortable about is that she didn't talk to me about it. That she didn't trust my friendship enough that she felt the need to hide this. I value her so much as a friend, so for her to do this kind of stings.
Heh...and I've been letting Harvey off the hook here. I'm miffed that he didn't tell me, too. Can't put all the blame on Val.
But I think I'm mad at myself most of all...losing control like that, throwing a tantrum, trying to run away from it... I can't believe myself sometimes. I'm more of an idiot than the two of them.
Sighing, she flopped onto the bed. "I need to talk to them when I get back," she said quietly. "I value their friendship too much to throw it away. I can't sulk because they have a chance at making it work...unlike me."
"Glad to hear you've wised up. Now, are we ever going to get to the bottom of that mystery, or are you and Pretty Boy going to wander around all week holding hands?"
Gasping at the sudden interruption, Sabrina bolted upright. She glared at the source of the comment, currently sunning himself in a chair by the window. "Salem, stop eavesdropping. And I thought you were asleep, anyway."
The black cat stretched, sliding his paws along the cushion. "It was just a cat nap. And with the way that you were giggling with Zelda over Shinji, how can anyone in a two-mile radius not hear you?"
"Sh-shut up!" Sabrina willed her cheeks to not turn pink, but ultimately failed. Embarrassed, she tried to regain composure the best way she knew how: throwing a pillow at her familiar.
With his usual fluid grace, the cat leaped out of the way, chortling. "Shinji and Sabrina! Shinji and Sabrina!"
"Argh!" Sabrina shoved her head under the other pillow to drown out her cat's laughing.
"I told you there were ghosts," Chris nodded sagely.
"We know, we know," Sabrina mumbled under her breath. "But seriously, now. I saw the ghosts of four of the accident victims!" she emphasized. "...Even if they didn't want to talk," she added morosely.
"That's an understatement," Shinji added, wiping his forehead with the back of his hand. "The weather is so hot!" he added. "It feels like it must be at least 30 Celsius."
The two teenage Spirit Detectives had met up with Chris at the Hotel's entrance again. Chris had brought another car to work on, and Shinji had volunteered to help him work on the...well...whatever it was they were working on; Sabrina had been paying more attention to the way Shinji had stripped down to his undershirt. Late October in Southern California, Chris had told them, could vary between 60 to 90 degrees Fahrenheit. The temperature had been steadily creeping up since they'd arrived six days ago, and it was reaching into the upper 80's.
So while she was a little more toasty than normal, at least she was getting a nice show right now. And Shinji somehow made having smudges of car oil and grease on one's face adorable.
For the past hour or so, they'd been tossing around theories and trying to decide on a plan of action. Sabrina had tried everything she could think of to coax Chris into helping, but each effort resulted in the same response: "Nuh-uh, chief. That place is haunted. Not going in."
"You're sure?" Sabrina asked for what felt like the hundredth, possibly thousandth time. "Even though your dearly departed grandfather is there? Think of all the things you could talk to him about, the family history you could learn! How your great-grandparents built the Hotel! What your grandmother's horse-training days were like!"
Chris gave a start at this last statement, tapping on something that squirted a jet of oil into his face. Grumbling under his breath, he fumbled for a towel, which Shinji handed to him. Vigorously scrubbing his face, he finally looked at Sabrina with a bewildered expression.
"How'd you know Granny used to train and show horses?" Chris asked her incredulously. "That was decades ago, before they had my dad."
The blonde girl froze for a moment, eyes widening. How...how did I know that? It just flashed in my mind, just out of the blue... Gulping, she nervously ventured, "You...uh...told me yesterday?" She quickly gave him her most reassuring smile.
He stared at her blankly for a second. Shinji looked from the bewildered mechanic to the flustered girl and back with a quizzical expression. There seemed to be a single, thick moment of tension.
But as soon as that moment started, it ended. "Okay!" Chris nodded, accepting her statement. "I kinda ramble sometimes when I'm work, doesn't matter what I start talking about..." He continued on, obviously taking Sabrina's impromptu lie for truth. "...But like I said before, chief," he abruptly switching topics, "I don't do ghosts, man. No way, no how. Doesn't matter if it's George Washington, Marilyn Monroe, or even Grandpa Dewey. No. Ghosts."
Sabrina sighed gustily from her perch on a low stone bench on the terrace. "Fine, fine. Chicken," she grumbled under her breath. "But that still leaves Shinji and me with the responsibility of getting back in there and talking to these less-than-friendly specters. And if you recall, the last time I tried that, I barely made it out in one piece."
"You said that Sally was friendly, right?" Shinji pointed out. "Maybe we just need to focus on finding Sally."
"How?" Sabrina asked. "It's not like we have ghost-tracking tools or anything." At least, not any more. If I had those psychic powers back, we might stand a chance. But as things stand now...
"We don't need special tools," Shinji pointed out. "You said that they appeared when you went near the elevator, right?"
Sabrina frowned. "Yeah, they did. It was the first time that I'd actually gotten that close to it."
"Then all we need to do is examine the elevator!" he pointed out triumphantly. I'm sure we'll find them there."
Why do I have a bad feeling about this? Sabrina wondered. I hope they're in a better mood than before... She blanched at the prospect of facing the trio of wrathful ghosts for a second time.
Shinji noticed her less-than-enthusiastic expression. "Don't worry," he assured her, "I'll protect you!" He smiled encouragingly at her, eyes bright.
Sabrina just about melted.
"Will this place ever stop being creepy?" the teenage witch mumbled under her breath as she switched her flashlight on.
"Probably not," Shinji noted.
The two detectives had slipped inside the hotel's front door, leaving Chris outside with the car. This time, they planned to investigate the elevator and front desk, in hopes of drawing the ghosts out for a second time.
"But there's one thing that's bugging me," Sabrina frowned.
Shinji raised an eyebrow. "One thing?"
"Yeah," she replied offhandedly. "If the ghosts didn't want us here, and if they wanted to make their presence known, why didn't they show up when we first walked around here on Tuesday? And why would they appear to just one of us, not both?"
"Huh," said Shinji, pursing his lips in thought. "Because we showed up for a second time and they wanted to warn us to leave? Maybe?"
The American witch shook her head. "We were there for at least an hour before anything happened. And it still doesn't explain why they revealed themselves to me and not you."
Shinji moved his flashlight in an arc, slowly illuminating the contents of the lobby. The light pierced the dusky atmosphere of the room, revealing the planter, reception desk, and luggage cart. "Well, I still believe it was because you went near the elevator...wait, didn't you tell me that you were looking at the luggage?"
She nodded. "Yeah, I was going through the suitcases to look for anything useful, and then..." she gasped suddenly. "The locket!" Sabrina hurriedly dug into her pockets, then ripped her backpack off and dug through it. After rummaging for a few moments, she pulled it out of a front compartment with a triumphant gesture. "Ta-da!" she announced, holding it in the air.
"Yes, you mentioned you found a locket with Claire Poulet's photograph," Shinji nodded. "In another person's luggage?"
"Somebody named Carolyn Crosset, to be specific. But," she continued eagerly, pushing herself off the ground, "I was holding it the entire time."
Shinji looked at her in confusion. "I do not see...oh!" A look of understanding dawned on his face. "You think that they attacked you because you took the locket?"
Sabrina turned the locket over in her hands, rubbing the etching on the front with her thumb. "I still think that they have some sort of fixation with the elevator, but maybe taking the locket was a catalyst?" She stopped, looking thoughtful. "A catalyst...For them? Or...for me?"
"Uh...Sabrina? What are you talking about?" Shinji looked at her curiously, head tilted slightly to one side.
"It's...uh...well, you see..." Sabrina trailed off, unsure of how exactly to explain herself. Well, there's nothing like the direct approach. "I sometimes have psychic powers."
Shinji's eyes nearly bugged out of his head as he took a stumbling step backwards. "You...have psychic powers? Are you serious?"
She sighed, stepping towards him to put her hand reassuringly on his shoulder. "Have a seat and I'll explain," she said firmly, steering him to a nearby couch.
"So what you're telling me is that you've not only seen and talked to ghosts before, but you have ESP, but it's only happened once before?" Shinji leaned towards her from his seat on the couch, elbows resting on his thighs. His dark brown eyes burned with curiosity.
"In a nutshell, yes." Sabrina had spent the last twenty minutes or so giving him an abbreviated recap of the Gracey Manor incident, choosing to focus more on her interactions with the ghostly inhabitants and the bizarre new powers that she had gained (and subsequently lost) than on the dark warlock she had defeated. I have a feeling that this story should be saved for another day. And not when I'm in a place that makes me feel like malicious ghosts are going to pop out from any corner!
She cleared her throat, banishing all thoughts of Atticus Thorne from her mind for now. "I guess that you could term the abilities I developed ESP, but it would depend on your definition." She shrugged lightly. "But I could read spiritual imprints on objects, view events that had previously occurred, and I could...'see' things. People, objects, events," she clarified. "Things happening in the present." Biting her lip, she rolled the locket between her fingers, warming the metal.
"But these powers...didn't stay," Shinji said slowly. "And you don't know why?"
"They vanished sometime after I left the Mansion, maybe while I was recovering afterward. I've thought and thought, and I can only guess at one possible solution." Sabrina lifted her eyes to meet his. "Remember how I told you earlier that I thought that the locket was a catalyst for the ghosts' appearance? Well, I've been thinking. What if it's the same with me, in a way? What if being around them...triggers these psychic powers?"
"What you said to Chris this morning..." he trailed off.
"I think that it's started to happen again. It's possible that they didn't go away, but that they just lay dormant since I wasn't around ghosts anymore."
"Okay...so if your guess is correct, we will be able to find the ghosts-"
"With these powers," Sabrina interrupted. "Either by trying to somehow use my abilities, or by waiting to see if they grow stronger. If the latter occurs, we'll know that we're getting closer to their presence." She grinned triumphantly, although her smiled dimmed after a moment. "I'm sorry," she said in an uncomfortable tone. "This must seem really strange to you."
Shinji laughed and shook his head. "I think it's amazing," he said. "It's unexpected, but not strange." He gave her another one of his warm smiles, seeming to look at her in a new light.
Whew...I was a little worried how he'd take it. Not many witches have psychic powers, and those that do...well, they're looked at as oddities at best. I was hoping that I would never have to bring it up because I was worried about his reaction. But now that I know that he's okay with it...I feel glad. I'm not sure what I would have done if he had been creeped out by it because...
"Sabrina?"
"Eh?" Sabrina jerked her head to face Shinji, her bangs fluttering against her face.
"Are you okay? You seemed to be very thoughtful for a minute."
Her cheeks heated a little at being caught lost in her thoughts. And maybe they were heated a little because of the nature of those thoughts, but that was a subject that she didn't have time to go into right now. As it was, she and Shinji had been in Hollywood for six days now. While they had several hypotheses regarding the nature of the disappearance, they were no closer to discovering the actual facts. They had a witness with amnesia, a mysterious key that may or may not be important, and victims who could ostensibly be talked to but who resisted attempts at help. Oh, and a broken elevator that apparently was the key to all this, if the ghost of a eight-year-old child film star was to be believed.
If only for the sake of their sanity, it was in their best interest to push forward and solve this as quickly as possible. Before any other strange things happened, that is.
"Don't worry about it; I'm fine," she said firmly. "Let's get started looking for those ghosts. There's quite a bit of ground to cover, but we know that they have to be in here."
"Right," Shinji agreed as he pushed himself off the couch. Faint tendrils of dust rose off of the couch as he stood. He brushed his hair out of his face, scanning the room. "Should we start at the elevator, like we discussed earlier?"
"I think it would be best. It was the last place I saw them, and if the elevator is as important to them as we think it is, it might draw them out." Sabrina adjusted her backpack, and took a deep breath to steady herself. She turned to face Shinji, trying to grin encouragingly and quell the feeling of butterflies in her stomach. "Let's do this!"
He smiled back at her, a warm look lighting his eyes.
The two of them began to slowly make their way towards the elevator, with cautious and measured steps. They soon were standing before it, eying it with a mixture of curiosity, apprehension, and fear.
Sabrina raised the hand holding the locket and closed her fingers around it. She pressed her fingers against the metal, feeling it warm under her touch. The young witch took a slow breath, and began trying to consciously utilize her ESP. She hadn't really tried to use it on her own before; the powers had just seemed to activate on their own according to the situation. For a moment, she felt at a loss for what to do. But in a flash of sudden insight, she closed her eyes.
It was hard to describe, she thought, but she had a sudden urge to press her consciousness forward, like the ripples made by dropping a stone into a pond. Slowly, and carefully, she began to drift forward into the inky darkness before her closed eyes.
The Japanese warlock by her side watched, fascinated, as the girl's breathing slowed to a deep and meditative rhythm. She appeared to be wholly and intently focused, completely at peace. Slowly, as if in a trance, her other arm lifted, hand reaching upward towards the elevator door. Her fingers were outstretched, seeking the cool metal panel before her.
Is it just me, or is she sort of...glowing? Shinji thought to himself It doesn't look like any type of spellcasting I've seen before...a little like meditation, but... This is fascinating!
Her fingers made contact with the door, pressing lightly. Sabrina began trying to mentally "press" the door. Show me, she thought. Show me what I want to see. This locket contains the memories and energy of someone I want to meet. Help me find her, wherever she is in this place.
A sudden rattling broke the silence in the room.
Sabrina, deeply engrossed in focusing her powers upon the elevator, didn't notice. But Shinji whipped around to face the source of the noise—the reception desk. He watched, struck still, as an inkwell jerked around the surface of the desk on its own. It shook, dancing around in crazy patterns.
"Don't...don't do this..." Shinji whispered, his throat suddenly dry. "Just stop. Please."
The inkwell violently slammed onto its side, ebony liquid spilling out onto a blank ledger page. Tendrils of liquid snaked out further onto the page, curling and thinning and forming words:
GET OUT.
"We're here to HELP!" Shinji frantically yelled, his temper fraying. "Mou, yamete! Just stop already!"
There was silence for a moment. The inkwell then slowly tipped itself upright once more. The ledger page then began to crumple itself up into a ball, ink quickly saturating through the paper.
Shinji's heart thudded against his ribcage, and he licked his dry lips. His mouth felt completely parched, tongue like sandpaper. "Is this some kind of joke?" he growled, voice wavering more than he would have liked it to.
"Oh, I assure you, old man..." a masculine voice drawled out of nowhere, dripping with a posh British accent.
Shinji jumped a little in surprise, looking around for the source of the voice.
"...this is no joke." The air seemed to ripple, as a dark figure formed out of nothing. Shinji moved in front of Sabrina, blocking her from the figure.
"Sabrina!" Shinji hissed, reaching behind him to grip her arm. "Sabrina! Look! It's...it's a..." She didn't answer; didn't seem to notice, really. She was deep within whatever meditative process she was using to find that woman's ghost.
The dark figure took another step forward, then paused. The material comprising it-whatever it was-seemed to ripple and shift before settling. The features of the figure slowly became more distinct, like a photograph developing. Standing before the two teenagers was a tall, dark-haired man clad in a tuxedo. He glared at them, his body language practically dripping with scorn and condescension.
Breathe, Shinji. Breathe. Don't show him that you're rattled. Don't show fear. They can smell that. …Or was that dogs?
Shinji took a shallow breath, trying desperately to save face in front of the strange man. He almost laughed out loud at the momentary realization that he wasn't afraid of the man himself, but rather afraid of letting him have the upper hand. Fine, pop out of thin air all you want. Pull all the cheap tricks you can think of to try and scare us away. I'm not giving in and I'm not budging. Shinji set his jaw and glared back. That's right; I can take whatever you throw at me and send it back. Just try.
The tension was palpable for a moment as the three stood there: Sabrina still intently divining, and Shinji and the ghost staring each other down. It was a moment that felt like eternity.
But just as abruptly, the strange ghost tossed his head back and laughed. It was a short, barking laugh; but it was genuine, and Shinji could see the man's shoulders relax. He felt the tension drain from his own body, nerves still feeling somewhat raw. He relaxed his grip on Sabrina's arm, but still warily watched the other man.
The ghost chuckled to himself again briefly, before slipping one hand into a trouser pocket. "Well," he mused as he surveyed Shinji, "you do have quite the backbone, don't you?" The scornful look on his face was replaced with a more guarded, shrewd expression. Shinji got the sudden feeling that this was a man who prided himself on his reserve and stoicism. He's a hard one to figure out, I bet.
"I suppose that kudos are in order for you and your companion," the ghost continued. "Others have visited the grounds in pursuit of their own goals, but you are the first to make it inside the hotel. Come to think of it, I have not spoken to one of the living in decades..." he trailed off momentarily, before turning his inscrutable gaze more closely on Shinji and Sabrina.
It was then that Shinji realized the the man standing before them looked as though he had literally stepped from a black-and-white photograph. He was solid as well, and if it weren't for the fact that his entire being had no color whatsoever, Shinji would have sworn that the man was alive.
"You might want to wake your friend up," the ghost said slowly. "If she is, as I surmise, attempting to summon us, she has already succeeded. She does not need to continue."
Shinji cautiously slide his eyes sideways to Sabrina's quiet and still figure. He wasn't sure yet if this ghost could entirely be trusted; he needed to be careful. "Sabrina?" he asked quietly. "Sabrina, can you hear me?"
Her eyes were still closed, face calm but frozen. Shinji shook her shoulder slightly. "It's okay, we found one of them. Please, wake up." Still nothing.
With a weary sigh, as though he was being vastly inconvenienced, the ghost silently stepped over to her and tapped her once on the shoulder. Sabrina's eyes immediately flew open, a look of shock spreading across her face.
"It worked!" she blurted out. Then she caught a glimpse of the ghost and blinked. "Okay, it sort of worked."
"Oh, it worked, all right," the ghost replied dryly. "Now..." he began to circle around the two witches, sizing them up. "I have a few questions that I've been dying to ask you. You could begin with telling me who you are and why you're here." The ghost stopped, pinning them with a stony gaze. "I'd be much obliged if you would cooperate."
"I told you before. We're here to help you," Shinji frustratedly reiterated.
Sabrina laid a hand on Shinji's arm in a calming gesture. He turned to face her, his gaze full of frustration and tension. She closed her eyes and shook her head, indicating that he should back off for a moment.
She cleared her throat and made direct eye contact with the ghost. "My name is Sabrina Spellman. My friend and partner is Shinji Yamagi. We've been sent here by the Witches' Council of the Other Realm to investigate the mysterious disappearance that happened several decades ago. Your disappearance, in fact." She paused for a moment to let it sink in. "You are Gilbert London, right?"
The man actually quirked a smile at that, albeit a small and self-satisfied one. "My reputation precedes me, I see. Or perhaps you are a fellow devotee of the arts? Anyone with culture and taste would obviously have heard of the esteemed Gilbert London. I confess myself surprised to find someone of that refinement here in the States."
"I recognized you from the publicity photo my boss gave me," Sabrina dryly replied. Wow, this guy's ego is taller than the Hotel. He and Salem would either get along like oil and water or be best friends. And I don't think I care to find out which one it is...
"Ah." London arched an eyebrow and coolly examined her again, clearly trying to determine for himself whether or not she was of sufficient taste to warrant further conversation. He then paused, seeming to recall something. "Now, wait a moment...witches? Another Realm? My dear girl, what are you playing at?"
Sabrina sighed, realizing that this was not going to be an easy conversation. "I know that this sounds ridiculous, and that since you're a human-or you used to be one, anyway-that the idea of another world is a little weird..."
"It's bloody ludicrous, is what it is," he replied sharply. "I can accept the existence of the soul and its endurance after death-I'm living proof-but your fairy stories of magic and nonsense are laughably misplaced."
"They are not fairy stories!" Sabrina could feel her cheeks warm and the back of her neck prickle. This uncomfortable feeling in the pit of her stomach reminded her of sophomore year, when Libby Chessler began taking every opportunity possible to confront and mock her. Don't get defensive. Be firm and calm. Don't get hysterical. Don't let him wind you up.
She took a shuddering breath, trying to relax her stomach muscles. At the same time, Shinji stepped forward, eyes narrowed at London. He opened his mouth, clearly to deliver a remark to the older man, when...
"Stop it! Don't pick on her!"
Both witches stopped in their tracks, and looked at each other. The butterflies in Sabrina's stomach dissipated, and Shinji's eyes widened. Neither of them had spoken those words.
The air shimmered for a moment, before rippling like a pool of water. Another figure began to materialize between the teenagers and the ghost. It was smaller and lighter; a shade of soft, pearly grey. In a moment, the figure of a small girl stood before them, hands outstretched in a pleading gesture.
"Sally," Sabrina mumbled.
Sally Shine looked back and forth between the Detectives and London, a pleading expression on her face. "Please don't fight," she begged. "They're here to help, Mr. London. Please don't make them leave."
London shifted uncomfortably and looked away.
Huh. Jerk though he may be, it looks like he's got a bit of a soft spot. Or it takes shameless begging to make him feel guilt, Sabrina briefly pondered.
A long moment passed before London finally grunted out, "Very well." He turned and stiffly walked towards the wall. Sally quietly watched London lean against a pillar and look out the window before she turned her attention back to the teenage witches.
"You came back," Sally said in awe. "I was so worried that you wouldn't. I kept trying to tell the others to stop, I really did, but they wouldn't listen, and I'm so sorry and-"
"Whoa, whoa," Sabrina held her hands up to stem the torrent of words. "Calm down. Just take your time and relax. I promise we're not going anywhere."
Sally nodded, clutching her hands together. She looked from Sabrina's face to Shinji's and back again. "Are you sweethearts?" she blurted out. "Because you stand awful close to each other and you blush all the time and smile at each other, and it's just like Mr. London and Miss-"
"That's enough!" London growled from his spot.
The little ghost pouted, but ceased her queries. Sabrina's face felt like it was on fire, she was blushing so hard. This is the most precocious 8-year-old I've ever met. She...oh my gosh, was she watching us? So she knows that I kinda like him, and he...Shinji maybe likes me that way, too? Sabrina coughed nervously, not trusting herself to look at Shinji right now without turning as red as a tomato (and if she had looked at him, she would have noticed his furious blushing). "Uh...ahem. Er, no. No, we are not sweethearts." Not yet, anyway, a voice in the back of her mind cackled.
"Oh." Sally looked faintly crestfallen. But being young, she didn't stay disappointed for too long and switched to another topic. "So you came to find us? You really came looking for us?"
"Yes." Shinji knelt down to be closer to Sally's eye level. "We're here to help you. All of you. So...You said that you needed to go to the party?"
Sally nodded vigorously. "We have to get there. Everybody's waiting for us."
"But, Sally..." Sabrina trailed off, not sure how to phrase her statement. "It's 1999, Sally. The party ended 60 years ago."
"Not for us, it hasn't."
It was almost becoming second nature by now to have new voices chiming in all the time. A third figure appeared out of thin air, shadows rippling and swirling to eventually reveal a stout, middle-aged woman.
The nanny, Sabrina realized.
Emmaline Partridge strode forward before planting herself firmly by Sally's side. She dropped her sturdy black umbrella to rest on the floor like a cane, and pushed her glasses further up her nose. She looked at the two teenagers suspiciously.
"Mimi, it's okay!" Sally chirped. "They're nice, and they came to help, and they want to take us to the party!"
Ms. Partridge didn't seem to hear her charge as she continued to size up the Detectives. "It's still there," she continued. "We can hear them, every Halloween night. Music and laughter, and voices calling for us to hurry. It's torture-" she cut herself off suddenly. "But why am I telling you this? What care have you for the troubles of the dead?"
"We're witches," Sabrina said bluntly. "And we've been sent to help you. So what you're telling me is that you're all fixated ghosts?"
"If that's what you call it, then yes." Ms. Partridge frowned slightly. "We cannot...move from here, for lack of a better word. We cannot go outside the hotel. We cannot go to the top floor. We don't know how to pass on to our rest." She looked straight at Sabrina, her eyes weary and haunted. "We are trapped."
"If you work together with us," Sabrina said slowly, "we will do everything in our power to help you reach that party and then move on to whatever awaits you. But we can't do any of that unless you trust us."
The teenage witch slowly extended her hand towards the woman's ghost. "Will you do it?"
Emmaline Partridge looked deeply into Sabrina's eyes, then into Shinji's. Behind her, London was slowly gravitating towards the group, trying desperately to look uninterested but unable to hide the faint gleam of hope in his gaze. Sally edged closer to her nanny, clasping onto the side of her coat and looking upwards with an eager expression.
"You...are the first ones in sixty years..." Ms. Partridge said slowly. She stopped again, and the two Spirit Detectives looked at her expectantly. Which would win? Her distrust and hopelessness? Or the fervent desire to be saved?
After a long moment, Ms. Partridge extended her hand to gently rest upon Sabrina's. "Please," she said thickly, as though she were fighting back tears. "Please save us. You are our only hope."
The hour was beginning to grow late, and the sun threw long shadows upon the Hotel lobby's floor. Both groups reached a quick agreement to meet the next morning (and without any attempts to spook the Spirit Detectives away) to begin formulating a plan. "This Saturday is Halloween," Sabrina reminded everyone solemnly. "We've got to make the most out of tomorrow so we can be ready in time."
The ghosts chose to make their exit by simply disappearing, which Shinji found to be less and less disconcerting each time it happened. Isn't it strange how you can get used to such weird things happening? He and Sabrina gathered their things and began preparing to leave, with the blond witch slipping ahead to talk to Chris.
"Hey! Hey, Mr. Shinji."
Something soft and cool touched his arm, and Shinji yelped. He quickly realized that Sally had re-materialized and was bouncing up and down eagerly. "Uh, sorry," he tried to laugh off his initial reaction. "What is it?"
"You're not sweethearts, yet, but you're stuck on Miss Sabrina, right?" Sally chirped.
Shinji's mind was whirling at this point. This kid is persistent! Maybe she fancies herself to be a little matchmaker? If I was a ghost stuck in a deserted hotel for 60 years, I'm sure I'd be desperate for something to do. But still...well, she's totally right. Funny how kids usually are.
"Okay, okay, you win," he groaned, holding his arms up in mock defeat. He squatted down to look her in the eye. "Nobody can get anything past you, huh?"
Sally laughed, delighted. "Nope! I'm the best!"
Shinji shook his head, grinning. "You sure are. Now, what do you want me to do?"
"Ummm," Sally stopped to think for a moment, biting her thumb. "You should go do something romantic! Like a fancy restaurant, or the park!"
"So I should ask her out on a date?" Even though she's trying to dictate my love life, Sally is adorable. No wonder everybody loved her, Shinji thought, looking at the little girl fondly.
"Ab-so-lute-ly! And the sooner, the better! Tonight! You should do it right now!" Sally shook her finger at him. "If you don't, she'll get away!"
"All right, all right. I'll go ask her right now." Shinji reached out to ruffle her hair, and stopped when he realized that his hand went through the top of her head. "Sorry," he apologized sheepishly.
Sabrina glanced at Shinji out of the corner of her eye. He'd been rather pensive for most of the walk home. She'd left before him to tell Chris that they wanted to come back tomorrow, and waited by the gate for her partner after the mechanic had left. Shinji had ambled out the door, apologizing for being late, but explained that Sally had wanted to talk some more.
After that, they had walked back in companionable silence.
I wonder what he's thinking. Sally, huh? ...Omigosh, I wonder if he's thinking about what she said earlier? About us being sweethearts? And how she thinks that I like him? I mean, I kind of do, so it's not like Sally was lying, but she really shouldn't say things like that out loud, even though she did say that maybe he likes me, too, so I guess it's okay and-
"Sabrina?"
The teenage witch jumped, knocked out of her rambling internal dialogue. "I'm here!"
They were almost back at the Cayuga, and Shinji had stopped under a streetlight. He was looking at her curiously, and maybe a little...fondly?
"That's...um...good to know." Shinji stopped, and frowned, as if trying to decide what to say next.
Why is this so hard? he mentally howled. I've asked out tons of girls. I'm not some tongue-tied moron? So why am I so nervous?
"I...was thinking," he began.
"Uh-oh, that's dangerous," Sabrina quipped, flashing a teasing smile.
Shinji grinned back. "Well, I was thinking that you and I could...uh...go. Um, go to dinner."
"We've been going to dinner every night," Sabrina pointed out. ...Wait a second.
"Yes, we have gone to dinner. But not together," Shinji tried to elaborate.
"There's only the two of us. We can't take Salem out of the hotel." Is this what I think it is?
"A date!" he blurted out. "I want to take you to dinner on a date!" Damn, that was nowhere near as cool or suave as I wanted that to be. Please don't let her think that was stupid...please...
Sabrina's lips curved up in a soft smile. Okay, definitely what I thought it was. It's actually kind of cute that it took him that long to spit it out. "That sounds perfect."
Shinji's entire face brightened and the biggest, sunniest grin that she'd ever seen spread across his face. "Meet me at the hotel lobby? 8?"
"You're on!" she began walking briskly toward the hotel. "Gotta get ready!" she called over her shoulder.
Shinji stood and watched her head down the sidewalk. I did it. She said yes. She might be interested in me the same way.
As he followed her, he may or may not have done a little victory dance.
AN – Has it really been an entire year since this got updated? Ouch. I couldn't help poking a little fun at myself in this first paragraph for leaving our Detective stranded in the Hotel for that long, heh.
Anyway, you'll note that I've finally begun to explain some of the questions you guys had about this fic-series earlier. Sabrina's powers originate from a part of her brain that normally doesn't get used, but that is activated when it comes into contact with pure spiritual residue, such as ectoplasm (spiritual energy of ghosts, in this series). Hence, her powers lie dormant when not in contact with this type of energy.
There are five chapters left in this fic (Epilogue included), and my goal is to have them up by the end of this year at the absolute latest. All previous chapters have (as of this chapter) been revised and re-uploaded. This was probably the hardest chapter to write, since I had to cram so many ideas, plot points, and characters in, but I'm glad it's finally done! Things are starting to become less hectic in my personal life, so I have more writing time. I've finally been able to secure a great entry-level job in my field (pay and hours aren't that terrific, but it's the exact institution and type of position I wanted), so I now have more structured time. This means I can usually write during my breaks and other down time, if there's no other pressing work to be done.
Oh, and just in case anyone is confused about the timeline in this story: Chapter 6 starts on a Saturday, and the two Detectives leave for California later that day. Chapter 7 is Sunday, Chapter 8 is Monday, Chapter 9 is Tuesday, Chapters 10 and 11 are Wednesday, and this chapter is Thursday. Halloween is on Saturday.
I want to thank everybody who kept reading this story and favoriting it during my hiatus. It was nothing short of mind-boggling to have people still reading even while my stuff was slipping into the cracks of obscurity.
(As a side note, I can't help slipping random Japanese phrases in. I can't speak Japanese, but some of my friends (and Google Translate) do, and that's enough for me. What does that make me? Dunno, but if a character is bilingual, it makes sense to have them speak at least SOME of their native language at times. "Mou yamete" = "Stop that," or "That's enough.")
(Second side note: Writing Shinji's dialogue is hard. In the Sabrina comics' "manga reboot"-which this is partially based off of-Shinji fluently speaks English, and uses the same idioms and speech patterns that a native speaker of American English would. You get used to it, but it's a bit jarring when you realize that in the real world, the only way he'd speak like that would be if he was raised in America-which he wasn't. I've tried to make it a little more realistic in this fic: Shinji speaks English as a second language, so he isn't going to speak it the same way Sabrina does. He's a little more stilted, his vocabulary is different, he isn't as likely to use contractions, doesn't know the same idioms, etc. His dialogue will change, though, over the course of the other fics. Again, naturally reflecting what happens when you spend a lot of time with someone who speaks another language. The more you practice, the more you learn and the better you get at speaking it. That's the goal I have in mind, at least, but in the meanwhile, I sometimes stop and look at the dialogue I'm writing. I wonder if it makes him sound really old or something! Just some thoughts to share.)
Next chapter: Shinji and Sabrina hit the town on their big date, where sparks fly! Preparations are also made for Abigail to confront her fears...