Purrfictionist here! Here's the next chapter. I couldn't come up with a better title so it's called Lunch. If I get at least five replies, I'll post a new chapter today. And thanks for the review!

Mrs. Castile: Don't worry. I got this one all planned out

Chapter One

Jillian

Lunch

"Hey," Sydney says peeking into my room. "Jill?"

"In hear," I call from the hall.

I hear the door close behind her as she walks through the narrow corridor that grows out wide into the hall. I look up from my textbook and take in the small change in her everyday khakis. Of course Sydney Melbourne, the Alchemist, also known as my "sister" was wearing her every day khaki pants only this time, she was wearing a green turtle neck and a pair of boots.

It was starting to get cold here in California believe it or not. A cold front started to move in from the Pacific Ocean. Ever since Halloween, our clothes are starting to grow thinner and thinner by the day.

"Did you drop of Sonya?" I ask.

"Yeah, I did," Sydney replies as she sits down next to me. She reaches deep down into her khaki's pocket and pulls out a small palm sized picture. "Before she left, she gave me this picture saying that Clarence had asked her to give it to me."

"Clarence?" I say thoughtfully.

Clarence is a strange old man with a boat load of creepy things to talk about all day but everything he says seems to be impossible to believe but after the Warrior incident, nothing seems crazy anymore.

I look down at the picture in Sydney's hands and raise my eyebrows in shock. "That's Clarence?" I ask.

Sydney smiles at my expression. "He is."

Clarence looks so young and happy. The Clarence in the picture is nothing like the Clarence now who's cooped up in his gigantic house all day.

My eyes scan the picture and let out a gasp as I take in the guy standing next to Clarence. This guy must be a lot younger than Clarence, maybe around Adrian or Eddie's age. He has blond hair and blue eyes and it's his cheek that's the most catching part of him all. On his long cheekbone is a hard to miss dark tattoo that swirls all the way from his cheek to his ear.

"Marcus Finch?" I whisper. "He's that alchemist Clarence knew right?"

Sydney nods grimly. "Yes. Marcus apparently is a huge rogue alchemist," she explains. "He stepped down for some reason."

"Why'd he quit?"

"I don't know," Sydney says. "But I'm going to find out."

We stare at the picture silently wondering why a person so young like this stepped down. I remember Clarence saying something about him earlier when I had to go for my feedings.

"A smart young boy he was, but a story follows behind him, a story that can knock us all of us out like a high tide might on a full moon night. It's that very tide that had sunk the alchemist's trust in him."

I shiver and look down at the boy before me. He seems so light… and carefree, laughing with Clarence. How can he be accused of being bad?

The door suddenly flies open and loud footsteps echo through the dorm room as they grow louder and louder. Angeline steps into the hall with a huge smile spread across her face. I didn't have to be a spirit user to feel the happiness radiating off of her.

"I was looking everywhere for you guys. I tried to call you Jill but you weren't picking up and now lunch is almost over!" Angeline squeals.

"It must have been on silent," I mumble as Angeline pulls me and Sydney up to our feet.

I blush and pull my hand from Angeline. There had been a reason I was in my dorm doing my homework for two continuous hours instead of going out with my friends and having lunch. I had been trying to avoid Angeline for most of the day. She keeps going on non-stop about Eddie and every single time she brings him up in our conversations, I feel as if someone shot me right through the heart.

And then there's Micah. Poor Micah looked so upset when I broke up with him and him and Eddie share the same dorm. What if he told Eddie about me breaking up with him?

What if Eddie asks why I broke up with Micah?

How can I ever answer that?

My stomach does another flip as Angeline pulls me out of my dorm, kicking the door close behind her. Sydney glances over at me and raises her eyebrows.

"Did you tell her?" she mouths.

I shake my head.

Sydney gives me a disappointed frown as we walk into the huge courtyard. A cold breeze sweeps by and rakes across my bare arms. I sigh glumly as I wrap my arms around myself for warmth. I had forgotten to grab a jacket to cover up my shirt.

"You found her," someone says. Eddie.

I look up from the courtyard's floor and meet Eddie's worried hazel eyes.

"Yep, she was in her dorm, doing homework all day," Angeline explains. "And her phone was on silent."

"Jill," Eddie says standing up. "Do you know how many time Angeline called you. We were worried that something had happened to you and that the W-"

Warriors. He was going to say the Warriors. Something cold runs through my body and I take a step back. Why would the Warriors be here on campus. Of course Trey's here but he won't do anything.

Micah stares from him to me, to Sydney and then to Angeline.

"They were here?" I whisper.

"Who was here?" Micah says.

"The Walters," Sydney covers, her voice alert and still. "Our uncle's family dropped by for a visit. We don't really like them, they're a bit… off."

"No," Eddie says a little too quickly. "We just wanted to make sure you were ok. When you didn't pick up the phone, we started making assumptions."

I nod silently sitting down next to Micah.

"Right," I say looking at him. He was lying.

"You two must be hungry," Angeline points out. "You should go get some lunch before the cafeteria closes."

"I'm not really hungry," Sydney says pulling out a book from her bag. "Jill should go get something though, she looks hungry."

"That's true," Eddie says his eyes flickering to Angeline. "Angeline, you should go with Jill."

"I can go with Jill," Micah blurts out. "If um, that's ok."

Something flickers across Eddie's face and he nods. "Of course," he says looking around the courtyard again and then nods at me. I'd be safe if I was in a crowd.

Shocked, I push myself up to my feet and together, Micah and I head off in silence towards the cafeteria. Micah stands tall over me, an inch smaller than Eddie. His shadow casts out long over me as I push open the huge, glass cafeteria doors. An eerie silence greets us into the almost empty cafeteria and I hold back a shiver as the AC washes over me at full force.

"Your siblings are very protective of you," he says finally.

I fight back a smile. "Yeah, I guess they are."

"You're lucky."

"Thanks," I say.

He looks at me longingly as I drop a piece of pizza onto my plate, waiting for me to say something. I avoid his eyes and pay for the slice and start to walk out of the cafeteria with Micah in my shadows. As I reach the doors of the cafeteria, I stop walking and turn around so that I'm facing Micah.

He's already looking down at me with his hurt light blue eyes and his messy red hair falling over his forehead.

"Micah?" I whisper.

"Yeah?"

"I'm sorry about breaking up with you."

He shrugs. "It's ok Jill maybe being friends will do us both good."

I sigh in relief. "That's so good to hear Micah. Um, did you by any chance tell Eddie about us breaking up?"

He shakes his head no, and I practically faint in relief.

"No, I haven't actually. I was too busy studying for the semester exams I didn't get to tell him. Why are you asking?"

"It's just that I didn't really want Eddie or Angeline or anyone to know. They already have too much on their shoulders and I don't really want to add to it."

Micah nods. "Of course, I won't tell him."

Smiling, Micah and I head back out in a much more comforting silence. As my eyes flicker over to our table, I catch something red flickering in the far distance and I watch it disappear right before my eyes. My hands on my tray loosen as I step back in horror as I take in what I had just seen. That wasn't a leaf, it was hair.

Someone had been watching us.