Chapter 41

Kitty

Things are going from bad to worse. Kitty thought after she made the announcement. She let her body fall backwards onto the bed and lost herself in thought.

Bartimaeus was on his foot in an instant. "You what?" He shouted.

Kitty closed her eyes and answered simply, "Out of all people—and djinn—I thought you'd enjoy Ptolemy being back."

That stunned him into silence.

Ptolemy was silent, too. Perhaps he was thinking it over. Kitty had given him a new life with his best friend; but still he said nothing.

Kitty herself was speechless. How could she screw up so badly like that? She must've skipped over it. And because of that lttle err, she had screwed up beyond repair. And worst of all, she brought Ptolemy back to life; mortally endangering him. What could she say to that? She supposed the best thing to do would be to keep quiet.

Bartimaeus was angry at her, too. Deep down inside he was eternally grateful to her—she could sense it. But she could also sense undeniable hatred. By resurrecting Ptolemy she had endangered his one and only friend. She had ripped the fabric of time; destroyed it by bringing Ptolemy back. He wasn't meant to be here; yet she had brought him here.

Why? Because she wanted to impress Bartimaeus. She wanted to prove to him that she wasn't like magicians but she could do what they did.

She had put all three of them in danger, just to prove what she could do.

What had she proved? She proved that she always got her way. Not that she could use magic for the better. No, she had proved that she didn't care what happened to other people; it was what she got that mattered.

She was just as good as any other magician.

Kitty sat up on her bed and stared into Ptolemy's eyes. Her own filled with tears. "Ptolemy, I am so sorry." She shook her head slightly and forced the tears back. She turned to Bartimaeus. "Magic is a powerful tool. I'm no better then any other magician. I'm sorry."

She waited a moment, stood, hurried out of the room.

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Kitty burst into tears the minute the door behind her was closed. Her own words had shocked her; she hadn't thought about what she was going to say. She guessed they hit her harder then they did Bartimaeus or Ptolemy. With magic comes power. With power comes lust and devotion. She really was as bad as any other magician. She overused her magic for show. She wanted to be on Bartimaeus' good side, so she did what she thought would work. She summoned Ptolemy just for popularity.

She was just as low as Farrar. And that was the lowest of the low.

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Kitty sighed as she continued to walk. She had forgotten all about George.

George stepped in front of her. "Hello, Kitty."

She was so sidetracked that she wasn't thinking of her false identity. "Hey." She had completely forgotten about Clara Bell, the person she was supposed to be around here. She started to walk away, but again George stepped in front of her.

"I thought your name was Clara."

Kitty stopped dead, looked up to George. "Er…Kitty's my nickname."

"Is it? Interesting." Out of the corner of her eye, Kitty saw George take a knife off the nearby table. "Kitty," George continued as he hid the knife behind himself and started to walk around the table. "I know what you've been up to. I've sent a spy to your room."

Kitty was circling the table now, too. Her Resistance battling techniques were coming back to her. A strange thought suddenly hit her. Why where there no customers at midday? What was going on here?

As she circled the table, trying to avoid George, she passed another table. While doing so, she took a knife off the table casuilly and slyly. George hadn't noticed. She was ready for anything George could throw at her.

"Yes," she began. "I know you've sent a djinni to my room. He's already revealed himself. I know him. I'm one step ahead of you."

"On the contrary," George began. "I'm two steps ahead of you. Why do you think I summoned Bartimaeus? I knew you know him. That's exactly why I assigned him to the job. I knew he'd tell you I'd summoned him and why. It was all part of my plan to get the both of you here, but torn apart. Now your only ally is being forced to work against you. Face it, you're alone."

"If you've been watching me as closely as you say you have, then you'd know that I have another ally. Two, actually. Two magicians. And very powerful magicians."

"You mean that half-breed Farrar? She's not very powerful, if you ask me…"

"Which I'm not."

"…Besides, I've got her all taken care of. I've got her djinni on my side, too. Face it, Kitty, you're defenseless. There's nothing you can do to stop me."

"Why are you doing this?" Kitty cried.

"One simple word, Kitty: Power. Commoners like us need more power in the government. Commoners like us need more power in anything we do. And the djinni I've befriended, his name is Barloa. And his master, Jane Farrar, is loosing control over him. As she slips into becoming a werewolf more and more, Barloa is given more and more freedom. He found and came to me willingly. He's been on my side all along. He'll have a seat in Parliament."

"George, did I ever tell you how crazy you are? What's happened to you?"

George seemed to ignore her comment and question. "Kitty, come with us! You can have whatever you want! Riches, fame, your own continent, even! How could you ever decline such an offer? To have riches beyond your wildest dreams…" His voice drifted off, let the image hang.

Kitty licked her lips as if with interest. But what she really was doing was thinking of a way to escape without anyone getting hurt and getting Ptolemy at the same time. Her fists clenched around the butt of her knife. She was clenching it so tightly the texture of it made small imprints in her palm. Her mouth felt as if there was a cotton ball in it, her throat the same way. She found she couldn't swallow. Her heart was pumping adrenaline through her system, making her jittery all over. She took a deep breath through her noise, let it out through her mouth. It didn't help at all. "Your plan is good, George. But I know you're working for someone. Who?"

"I work for no one." He told her simply.

Kitty nodded. "Alright then." She screamed, lunged forward, knife at the ready. She was in control at first, but George was too strong for her. He was on top of her in a matter of minutes. Her knife was useless—George had taken it from her and thrown it aside, out of reach. She had managed—with a good struggle—to take his and throw it out of reach as well. Now it was a full-fledged fist fight. She could take him on now.

George's fingers tightened around Kitty's throat. They were so tight it made her neck seem fight. Her neck soon turned blood red, and her head started to pound.

Kitty slammed her hands onto George's and tugged at them. But it was no use; George's grip was too tight. Her head felt as though it would explode. Almost instinctively, she began to call for Bartimaeus. "B-B…Ba," but the word stuck in her mouth. "Bartimaeus," she croaked.

"Calling for the help of a demon?" George taunted. "He isn't even on your side. Pathetic." His fingers tightened around her neck.

The word filled in her lungs, bit at her tongue. Kitty opened her mouth, got as much air as George would allow, prepared her throat. "Bartimaeus!" She screamed. It came out this time. She was sure Bartimaeus had heard her. After all, he had better hearing then any human. Kitty let out the loudest, shrillest scream she could make. Hopefully Bartimaeus would put two and two together.

Again, Kitty readied herself for a scream. But instead of Bartimaeus, Ptolemy filled her mouth, lungs, mind. Again she took a big breath and let out another scream. "Ptol—" But she couldn't finish the rest. George covered her mouth. Her kneed her in the pit of her stomach, taking whatever little air she had left. She grunted in pain as the air rushed out of her.

Tears ran down her cheek as reality hit her. She was going to die.

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A/n

Check it out! Like ten chapters in one weekend! You guys better be happy! And is Kitty going to die? I'll write eventually. XD Cliffie for you.