"Edward Bone! You're going to miss the bus!" Edward blinked sleep from his eyes and mumbled drowsily as his mother's words reached his words. He sighed and stretched, sitting up in bed. Eyes now fully wide open, he turned to look at the clock – and nearly fainted. He had seven minutes to make it downstairs before the bus came and went. Rapidly brushing his teeth, the fourteen-year-old only had a few seconds to fix his appearance. Dabbing cream on a minor burst of acne and patting down his curly blond hair. Green eyes stared back at him from the mirror. He sighed and threw down the toothbrush, darting downstairs in his white shirt and blue tie. Hastily throwing on a cape, he grabbed a slice of toast that his mum had buttered for him, stuffed it in his mouth and ran out the door of number 9 Filbert Street.

Even though his dad had moved as a child to a house belonging to his father, Lyell Bone, they had moved back after a devastating fire had destroyed the house. The whole family had decided that number 9 was probably much safer. At least that's what he had been told, Edward reflected as he grabbed a handrail and pulled himself onto the bus just in time. He down tiredly beside his friend Liam Gunn, who was also in music with the cello. Edward, though he was admittedly better than his father, wasn't exactly what one would call good at music. He was passable with a saxophone. The reason that Edward even went to Bloors was that he was endowed – he had been going to Bloors for the past three years and had been identified as endowed from the very beginning. He was an Animator, meaning he had the ability to bring drawn things to life. Ed's father had always told him to use his talent well, but there was never any conflict. There was a noticeable tension in the King's Room, but nothing had happened. Yet, Charlie would always add. He was sure that something would eventually happen. Edward really didn't care.

"Start of a new year," Liam sighed, still looking out the window. Edward was relieved to see that his friend still had the same messy hairdo he kept swearing that he would fix. Unlike Edward, Liam didn't have an endowment. Instead, he had a sister called Felicity. Felicity certainly wasn't as good as an endowment in anyway. She didn't go the Bloors, but apparently she was always causing the family trouble. Sometimes Ed wished that Liam was endowed, but he knew that Liam's lineage was straight and pure – no hint of the Red King in it.

"Seen Caitlyn since last Thursday?" The music student asked somewhat tentatively. Edward zoomed back into reality, somewhat embarrassed to have left his friend waiting so long. The hint of a smile grazed his face. Liam was always asking about Caitlyn, and Edward was forced to reply (not without a roll of his eyes) that no, he hadn't seen Caitlyn since last Thursday.

Over the summer, the group of friends – that was, the Endowed students referred to as "good" and their friends, would meet constantly in the Pets Café. It was a café run by his father's good friend, Benjamin, and Benjamin's wife, Una. The single rule in the Café was "No Pet, No Entry"

Thursday had been the last time the group of friends had met, as the weekend was rushed with packing and getting ready for the new school year. Even the sun had gone away, to be replaced by drifts of clouds and only a scrap of blue sky to be seen. But Monday had arrived eventually, and the sun had come with it. It was too bad that everyone who had so fervently waited for it was going to shut up in a gloomy old Academy. The light from the aforementioned sun shone in through the clear bus windows. Ed closed his eyes against the rays and lay back on the seat, trying to catch up on the sleep he had missed. The bus stopped suddenly, and Edward tapped his friend softly on the shoulder. Liam looked over at the dozing boy with a grin that was visible through a crack in Edward's eye. The flax-haired boy shook his head to show they weren't at Bloor's, but then frowned, "There's never been a stop here before."

Edward was wide awake with that. A shiver ran down his spine. He didn't know why, but it felt like something was finally going to be happening at Bloor's. Something that the first three forms had been missing. Some action, some adventure. He sat straight up and peered at the opening bus door, much to Liam's confusion. The scrawny fellow poked his friend, "What is it?"

A girl entered, wearing the blue uniform required by music students. She was tall and skinny, and long dirty-blond hair fell from her head. It couldn't be described as straight, nor could it be described as curly. It looked astounding, and it took Edward's breath away. He could gape in wonder. Her blue skirts flittered around her smooth legs, showing perfectly formed legs. Her face wasn't too narrow or too round. It was a perfect size, and completely void of freckles. Her mouth was set in a smirk that was in between an angel and the Mona Lisa. Her nose was small and round and fit perfectly around her face. Woah, Edward thought suddenly, what a perfect person. Last of all, he found himself gazing into her eyes. They were a steely grey with only a hint of green. Seaweed green, he remarked with a shiver.

"Who's she?" Asked Liam, unable to stay quiet any longer. Edward could only shrug helplessly as he watched the girl parade down the aisle and seat herself beside Dominic, two seats down and across the aisle from the two boys. Immediately, Edward stiffened. She was one of them. One of those known as "evil" to Edward and his friends. The ones he was always aware of, across the table from him. Quickly, he did the math in his head. They would have six, and Edward- Edward and his friends would only be five. The balance was shifting.

Dominic Silk had been one of Edward's friends in the first year. Their parents had gone to school together. But ever since Gabriel Silk, who had the ability to feel emotions through clothing, had died in a suspicious car crash, Dominic had been manipulated and twisted by the Bloors. He still lived with his mother, Cara, but she was a rotten apple if Edward had ever seen one. Dominic had inherited his father's gift in a way. Instead of being able to feel emotions, he was able to find someone instantly if he touched their clothing. When he was talked about in hushed whispers, whenever he told someone what he did – the effect was always chilling. Edward still had the memory of Dom's dark voice in his head, 'I find people,' Dominic had said, like he was stating the weather. It wasn't a memory he liked very much. Ed could also remember his father's voice, after Charlie had learned the news about Gabriel and Dominic's switching of sides. It had been calm but concerned. Deeply concerned. If Edward remembered correctly – and he didn't know if he would ever be able to forget this – Charlie (That's what he called his father, by Charlie's wishes) had said, 'We've lost one, Ed. We've lost one. You can't lose anymore.' Edward had agreed, but he didn't really understand.

But now he did. The balance was shifting. Soon they would be overpowered. He stared at the strange girl, who stared back at him and waved cheerily with her sharp eyes. The smile didn't extend past the corners of her mouth.

Edward clutched his arm and gasped softly. He needed to talk to someone who was endowed. He needed to talk to Kai. Kai was Benjamin's son, and he had inherited Una's ability to make himself invisible. Kai was a year older then Edward, and a good person to have in a crisis. He was thoughtful and intelligent. He and Edward were almost as close as Edward and Liam, yet Edward would trust Kai more in a situation like this, if only because Kai had more experience. His arm throbbed again, like it was carrying poison throughout his body. It would go away soon, he knew. Edward sometimes wondered if all endowed children on his side would feel that – the sense of loss.

--

Olivia Bone was standing in the kitchen of number nine Filbert Street, flipping a pancake over the stove. She had been home most of the summer after shooting for a film she was in had finished and she was preparing for another film in the fall. As she cooked, she could hear the contented snores of her husband, Charlie, as in lay in bed. He was a lazy layabout, she smiled to herself. But she loved him. He and Edward were her world. She watched leaves flutter about outside the window. It was warm, but considerably less warm than the week before. A sizzle from the grill attracted her attention, and she put the pancake from the stove onto a plate. That made a huge pile that she knew she and Charlie would eat over the week. Setting up the table with the two plates for her and her husband, she called, "Charlie! Breakfast!"

A mumbled snore came from the upstairs bedroom, followed by spluttering, and eventually a cheerful voice, laden with sleep, called back down, "Just a moment. Let me get dressed!"

A second later, Olivia heard more snores. She rolled her eyes - Charlie had fallen back asleep. The big lunk. She would call him again in a few minutes. Turning, Olivia looked out the window, expecting to see birds fluttering. Everyday she looked out the window, hoping that one of the birds was her friend Emma Tolly-Torsson. Shortly after Emma, who had been Olivia's best school friend, had given birth to her child Gemma, she had disappeared. Tancred had been devastated beyond belief. The Bloors, as usual, had refused to make any comment. The speculation was that Emma had turned into a bird and had not been able to turn back. Charlie's father, Lyell, had also disappeared when Charlie was a child. But Lyell had been hypnotised, and Olivia didn't know of any current hypnotisers. Manfred had lost that talent and gained the ability to burn with fire. His son Patrick also had that endowment. Tancred and Lysander, Caitlyn's father, were trying to figure out if anyone had the ability to affect another endowment.

So she looked out the window expecting to see birds. She saw something else entirely. A young boy stood on the sidewalk, burning. He was screaming in pain. His arms and legs were on fire. Olivia would have rushed out there and then to help the child, but something stopped her. The boy's mouth was open at an unimaginable angle. His head was twisted so far he surely couldn't be real. A bug crawled up his arm, going under his white shirt. A bulge on his chest showed the insect's progress. It came up his neck and force ditself into his mouth. The boy cried out again, the fire devouring him. Olivia blinked and remembered to breath. But after she opened her eyes again, the boy was gone. She rushed to the front door and opened it, looking out. There were no scorchmarks or any indication that it had happened. Had it been an illusion? No, Olivia was an illusionist herself, and could feel that it wasn't an illusion. Suddenly, a white-hot flash ran up her arm. She gritted her teeth against the pain. It had vanished, but she knew what it was. Quick as a flash, she was back inside, screaming, "Charlie! Charlie! Wake up!"


A/N; I wanted to make it longer but I don't want to bore you guys ;-; So what was supposed to be the second half of this will be the next chapter, alright?

Thanks for the reviews. Two per chapter is a lot for Charlie Bone fics, apparently. Huzzah! So:

Sapphire - you get a Liam Gunn plushie that looks at you with wide eyes.

Jelly - you get a Audrey Endless plushie that tosses it's hair around.

So review some more :)

This is amazingly fun to write. I hope you enjoyed it so far. Be prepared from lengthy notes at the end of chapters.