Trent walked with his usual carefree attitude through the halls of Lawndale High as he searched High and Low for the woman he had come to see. Despite the Lane family wasn't well liked in the world of monsters and ghouls, Trent passed on, completely unthreatened by the fact that he was about to speak with who was known as one of the oldest Vampires in the area, "Heyy." He mumbled outside the door of Mrs. Bennett's classroom.

Immediately recognizing the voice, Diane Bennett stood up and stepped back a bit, "Oh um..." She nervously smiled, "Trent Lane?" Lane. Lane. Lane. Such a dangerous family to everything that goes bump in the night, "Well, what are you doing here?" She knew he was no threat but she was well aware of what the Lane Family was capable of, "If it's about your sister Jane... She graduated last year..."

"Yeah... she's in Boston..." He said in his typical voice and came closer in, "Do you know who uhhh." Pausing he couldn't remember her name, "There's a girl here... Daria's sister said she was a werewolf... but I can-"

Having not heard what Trent just said but would have probably exploded if she did, Sandi Griffin came stomping into the room, Ms Barch walk in behind her, "Maybe if that MALE stopped keeping his mind in his pants, he wouldn't be caught up in this situation!" Barch yelled, "Every single time he meets a pretty girl he-"

Stopping before him, Ms. Barch stared at Trent and then looked over at Mrs. Bennett, "Uhm..." Sandi glared at Trent quickly before looking over at her economics teacher.

"Whoa..." Trent looked at Barch, then Sandi, "It's you." He pointed to the Fashion Clubber, "Quinn's friend or something..."

Raising her eyebrow, Sandi stepped closer, "Uhm, yeah, so?" She attempted to stand her ground, "I'm not sure who you are but I don't think I'd ever be caught talking to a dead beat or whatever like you."

"Diane." Ignoring the fact that Trent was there, as she knew he wasn't a plausible threat [despite he was a male], "That MORON Tommy Sherman is being held hostage by some girl." She glared at Trent, "He's your friend. You help him."

Due to their locations, Sandi thought she was being talked to by Ms. Barch, "He is no-"

"Oh, Janet, let's not get Trent involved in this too." Diane looked over at the poor guitarist and sighed, "Trent, this is a big mess... why are you even here?"

Mess? He just came because he heard Ms. Barch had a new werewolf in the area, "Slow down... Daria's sister asked me to talk to you about that werewolf girl but..." He looked at Sandi, "You seem okay."

It took only moments to register in Sandi's mind what she had heard but she had heard it and it wasn't going to end well, "What?" She stared at Trent, speechless, "Who are you? Wait." The words filed through her mind, "Quinn told you to talk to me?"

Both teachers looked at eachother and then at Trent and Sandi, "Yeah... She's your friend, isn't she?" He wasn't sure what the problem was, "Look, whatever's going on..." He turned to Mrs. Bennett, "You're [u]invited[/u] to come over to our house and see if you can use any of my mom's tools to get back Tommy Sherman." He paused.

"I am not done with you!" Sandi stammered, "Quinn told you?"

Mrs Bennett nodded, "Thank you Trent. There's so much going on though... If only Wind was here..." She sighed, "He could reason with Janet's brother..."

"You have a brother?" Trent looked at his ex-science teacher in confusion, "Cool..."

"No you idiot!" Janet Barch fired back, "He /was/ my brother until he changed his name and tried to hunt me down for the past 25 years." She growled, "I..." Pausing she looked away. Her mind began to float back to her childhood with him, her familial feeling she hadn't felt in so long.

"Quinn knows I am a werewolf?" Sandi was stuck on that but being ignored. "Hello! Mr. Smells Like Teen SPIRIT." She desperately needed assurance now. Her self esteem was dropping faster than the stock at a Cashman's 50% off sale on Just-In Merchandise.

"Yeah... Dunno how he does it but Wind's voice just messes with human minds." Looking at everyone he sighed, "Wish I could do that... I'd get all the [b]human girls[/b] I'd want." He laughed a bit and coughed.

Sighing, Mrs. Bennett looked over at her co-worker, "Alright, well it looks like Tommy's being held hostage and there isn't much we can do about it... unless." Looking over at Trent she grinned, "You and Sandi can get him out of there."

"What?" Sandi nearly blew a fuse.

Sandi stomped down the hallway in near frustrations, her mind beaming with rage and insult from Quinn's apparent having found out her secret. "Seriously. Of all the people in the school." She mumbled to herself as she stopped at her rarely used locker to get out some makeup, "And now I have to hang out with that... punk guy?" She hated every minute of what was happening, "Ever since I became this... this... this thing, everything has become so... wrong." She slammed the door shut after she obtained what she came for and started for the girl's bathroom. Hopefully Ms. Barch and Mrs. Bennett could get her excused from classes, after all, they were teachers. Ms. Barch. Ugh. She was the reason she was in this mess in the first place. Scoffing at this fact Sandi clenched her make-up bag in her hands further and sighed, "She's the reason I'm this monster."

Upon entering the girl's bathroom, Sandi dropped her bag onto the counter and took a good, hard look at herself in the mirror. She knew she'd give anything, ANYTHING to be redeemed from this curse, to be normal, to have normal nails, normal hair, once again perfectly bonded teeth.

Sighing to herself she began to file her nails again, a ritual she had to do at least three times during school hours to keep them from becoming anywhere close to unkempt. Filing harder at her nails she thought deeper to herself as to how she could cure herself from this affliction.

/BZZZZztttt BZZZZzzZZZt/

The buzz of her cell phone jarred her from her mind and away from possible solutions to any and all of her problems, "Hello?" She answered the phone as she checked over her nails, "Uhm, this is-"

"Sandi Griffin?" That familiar voice spoke, "I've been trying to reach you, It's me! Michael Marz, the doctor who covered your case after the accident a few months." He smiled on the other line, happy she picked up, not that she could see, "Do you have a minte?"

She knew not to talk to Marz. Marz = BAD. Why? Marz wanted to kill her science teacher, the woman who stopped her from eating her own parents. "Uhm well.. I actually..."

"I was studying some photographs of when and where you were attacked... and according to my research, Janet Barch is actually the one who attacked you and turned you into the monster you are today."

The words she just heard had seemed to peek her interest, "Well uh..." Pausing, the Fashion Club President nodded, "According to her it was the other guy and..."

"Lies!" He spoke back, "Janet is a liar, lying to get ahead. She's the one who bit you, Sandi. She's the one who nearly mutilated you. We did an autopsy of Johnathan's body and there was no sign of him ever being a werewolf in the first place!" He punched his table.

This came as startling news to Sandi. She always knew Ms. Barch was a weird nutcase but... a liar? "She made me this... werewolf?" Sandi muttered in disbelief, "She did this to me?"

"Yes." He paused, "...and according to my research, if you kill the werewolf who bit you. You will be lifted from the curse forever." He smiled.

Skeptic to this last part Sandi scowled, "Gee, that sounds... supernatural." She scoffed, "Listen, I'm at school right now taking a test or something, so like, I have more important things to do. Um, thanks for calling and whatever and I'll talk to you later." With that she hung up, her mind confounded with the information.

"Tommy Sherman's not sure what to do but..." He heard the door behind him open and he turned around, "Melissa is here..." Looking down he glanced at Kristen, "You know, Tommy Sherman isn't a genius but he knows what someone's gotta do the right thing."

Kristen blinked, confused at that, "What do you mean?" She whispered to the boy before turning around to look at her friend come in, "Did you have a good day at Church?"

Nodding the vampire came in slowly, "I told God how I feel about everything..." She looked down, "About Michael and his sister... about Diane and her husband." Sitting down next to Kristen she sighed, "Why couldn't they just let me die?" She looked away, "Dammit Kristen."

Sighing, Kristen realized now what was right... well, sorta right. Due to Jel's religion she couldn't just kill herself, that's a sin... but, "Melissa?" She looked at her friend, "I know I'm not very good at these kind of things but..." Starting to cry the girl got up and began for a drawer, concentrating hard to open it and remove a wooden stake, "We've had this talk before and..."

Melissa stared at Kristen, nearly shocked, "Kristen..." Before she could finish, Kristen quickly mustered up all her concentration, strength, and will to jam the wooden stake through her roommates hear, her body slowly disinigrating into ash.

Chapter 17 -

Sandi shuddered at the thought of stepping into such a grotesque vehicle. Its rusted paneling and slightly rotting stench made her shiver at the thought of riding in it. "You know, I usually have a policy about riding in cars with guys I just met..." She folded her arms, her mind poking back at the information Dr. Marz told her.

"Relax..." Trent spoke as he opened his door and leaned over to open the passenger side door, "Hmm, sorry, passenger's door is broken from the outside." He mumbled as he tried his hardest to push it open, "Tommy Sherman's always getting into messes... He's a cool guy."

"No he's not." Sandi slid into the car and attempted to pull it shut, the hinges creaking and squeaking as she tried to pull it closed. "Gee, what is wrong with this piece of crap?" She tugged harder, the door eventually coming closed.

Trent seemed offended about how his beloved car was so harshly talked about, "Hey... how do you know it's crap?" He started it up, a puff of black smoke coming from the exaust pipe, "A car's as good as the driver..."

Sandi blinked and put her seatbelt on, something she did with hesitence, just incase the car burst into flames. "So uhh..."

"We're on a rescue mission, alright." He stared forward and started up the car, "Don't know what monsters we're gonna have to fight... Hmm... no..."

Staring at Trent, Sandi felt a bit of disgust go over her. He /was/ like 25 or something, why was he even visiting at the school, let alone, he smelled filthy and... how could he see Tommy Sherman... and... "How did Quinn find out?" Sandi's mind went back to the first thing on her mind. "No. Wait." Pausing she glaced out the window, "Who or what are you?"

"Good question..." Trent's musician mode was still on, so no good question should go unpunished, "Who is anyone...? What is anyone?" He kept his eyes on the road, "I'm an artist... a musician... I write lyrics... Paint words into your mind with my voice."

After a moment pause, Sandi looked down at her hands, then out at the road that was moving besides her. No hope for escape. Stuck in the car on the way to find Tommy Sherman, where she didn't even know where he was. Let alone if Trent did. Let alone if he even remembered what he was doing. She remained silent for a few more moments before opening her mouth to say something, "What?"

Trent looked at her, "There's only a few familys like ours left in the world." He scratched his arm, "The Lanes are the oldest vampire hunters in the world..." He coughed a bit and looked over at Sandi, "Hmm... I haven't had dinner yet... you hungry?"

Tommy blinked, "What did you just-" He wanted to escape but before he could, Kristen broke down in tears before him, screaming, crying, her body kneeling over the fallen ashes of her fallen friend, "-do?"

Kristen continued crying, staring at the ashes. "Why'd you do it, Tommy?" She cried hysterically, "Why'd you do it!" She started to breath heavier, her mind starting to snap, "Why Tommy? I trusted you?" She looked over at him, the tears stopping, "Why did you kill Melissa?"

"Uhh..." He just clearly saw her do it, "What are you talking about, Kristen...?" He wasn't sure what to do, "You killed her." He started to grow nervous and somewhat confused, but kept his calm, "Tommy Sherman would never hurt a-"

Kristen glared at the ex-football player in anguish as the television and lights in the room burst from electrical energy surging through them, "She was my only friend and you..." Kristen clenched her fists. "You sickening monster!" -

"No." Sandi scowled, "Why would I be hungry? What are you even insinuating?" Trying to just figure out what was even up with this guy, she pressed on, "So you kill vampires? Riiight." She said sceptically, "I bet you've never killed anyone in your life, let alone a vampire or whatever." She thought about characters like Stephen Salvatore and how hard core he was, "I mean, vampires are tough."

Trent swung through a drive through restraunt anyways, disregarding the time restraints of anything that was going on, "I've killed your kind too." He said nonchalantly, "But I'd rather talk it out if they're willing to listen."

Sandi thought to herself while Trent ordered his food and attempted, her hardest, to figure out exactly what this unfashionable loser had up his sleeve, "Right, whatever." She still was skeptic, "So like... is there a cure for this or something?" She shot out, the idea of what Dr. Marz said again throbbing in her mind, "I mean, is it possible I could be like, normal again?" If what Trent says adds up with what Dr. Marz said, then if she killed Ms. Barch, she might get cured... since apparently Dr. Marz said that the Ms. Barch said bit her was actually not a werewolf... "Because like, I don't want to be like... this."

"Well..." He obtained his food from the window and then rubbed a ring on his finger some, "Lycanthropy is your good old fashioned curse... if you kill the person who gave it to you... then the curse will be lifted..." Nodding he ate a fry, "Though I'm not sure how or why it does it, but it does it..."

Trent verified what Marz said. "Oh, really?" Sandi mumbled, "That's really weird... but that would mean I'd have to kill the person who attacked me, right?" Blood, guts, not really her thing, "Because that sounds really..."

"You'd have to do it when you're not... you know, a beast." He continued driving, the ring on his finger getting hotter and hotter, "Must be getting close..."

Not liking to be called that, but shutting up about it, Sandi Griffin nodded, "I think the person who attacked me is still alive and..." Rubbing her arms she insecurely thought about it for a minute before propsoing the idea, "I can't go on living my life like this... I mean... well..."

"Well, I don't know much about werewolves, except most of them die with a silver stake or bullet through the heart." He stopped outside of an apartment complex, "Though you guys can still bleed to death... Hmm... 'Bleed to death, cut off your head, lay you to bed, then take your body to the feds...'" He seemed astonished for a minute, "Whoa. Kinda cool." Turning around he grabbed a small bag, "This should take care of whatever we run into in there... unless it's a dragon or space alien or something, if that happens then we should probably run."
-

Tommy stared in awe at Kristen as she stood over her friend's ashes, her eyes beaming with disgust, hatred, and rage. Her ethereal body started to glow as she seemed to grow in power. "WHY?" She stepped closer towards Tommy Sherman, the whole apartment seeming to rumble. "She was my best friend! YOU MONSTER!"

Trying to think of the best way he could get out of this mess, Tommy Sherman stayed silent, hoping that Kristen was only joking around or something. He'd never seen a hot mess before, well... a hot mess like /this/ before. Only ghost babes he'd seen were in the movies or hanging out right outside their death spot, all sad and what not.

"I should send you to the bowels of pergatory where you belong!" She started towards Tommy, fists clenched but ready to tear his spirit apart, "I am not just any little GHOST." She grinned, a force of energy pushing away the salt that trapped Tommy Sherman, "I am the bane of realities." Laughing she grabbed him by his shirt collar and smiled, "You fucked with the wrong girl..." She started to cry again, "Melissa..." She muttered under her breath, "This is fo-"

Just then, as if by some miracle, a grey blur shot through Kristen and landed in the wall behind her, dispersing her against her will, "I think I got it..." Trent muttered stepping in, holding a bow, "Yeah... Cool." Setting the stuff down on the floor he looked at Tommy Sherman, "Hey..."

Falling to the floor now that Kristen had vanished, Tommy got up and looked at Trent, "Tommy Sherman ain't seen nothing like that in his life." He muttered, "Girls, man..." He started for Trent."

"Women, right..." He agreed and turned to look at a non-existant Sandi, "Hmm, thought she was with me." He shrugged it off. "Well, you should probably tell the others what happened... Just hope that girl's okay." [refering to Sandi]

After having rumaged through the disgusting, rotting trash and debris in the back seat of Trent's car, Sandi had finally found herself something that she could use to take down the beast who turned her into this... unfashionable nightmare. "How dare she lie to me about such..." She clenched the poorly wrapped silver blade in her hand and grimaced, "Such trivial information. She like, ruined my life and whatever."

She had a weapon, now she just had to figure out how to stab Ms Barch through the heart. She still had her doubts about the whole thing, old fashioned curses, but if that weird stoner guy, Quinn's sister hung out with was really what he said, then maybe this whole thing would end when Janet Barch was dead... Then again would killing someone really be the right thing to do? Her conscience started to get to her, "I mean, would they turn me into the police or something...?" She did just want her life to get back to normal.

Then again, if she killed someone, would her life even get back to normal? She'd be a murderer, not that she wasn't already... and these scars, ugh. No one would even appreciate her with these scars. "My life is over..." She mumbled again as she walked right back into the school and towards Ms Barch's room.

"I don't care what you think!" Janet Barch threw several papers, fliers, and other desk equipment off her desk in a huff, "You come here and try to track me down, try to KILL me?" She didn't look him in the eye, "Michael, for God's sake, leave it be! It was an accident!"

School had been out for nearly half-an-hour by the time Sandi had the time to arrive, but unfortunately it was just not in the best knick of time. The halls were empty as she headed towards the classroom nervously. Despite she really wanted to be human again, she wasn't sure if killing Ms Barch would be the best option. No, it had to be. It was either this or live a secreted life where who knows what she'd do. "Uhm..." She heard the words going on inside the classroom and took a peek in.

"An ACCIDENT?" Michael Marz laughed, "Janet, it was no 'accident'!" He pulled out a silver blade and held it infront of himself, "You are a filthy mongrel!" He stepped closer, "You ruined my life!"

Sandi stood outside the door, listening to the exchange of words, still contemplating what was going on. If she was going to kill her and be freed from this curse, SHE had to do it, not Dr Marz. "STOP!" Sandi made up her mind instantly, running into the room and holding out her own silver knife by the handle, making sure not to touch the blade herself.

"Sandi!" Janet Barch said looking at Sandi, then at her brother, then at Sandi again, "What are you doing here? Is Tommy okay?" She was unaware that Sandi had a vendetta against her and was happy she arrived, "Stop and get Mrs Bennett! I think she's still-"

"Like, no!" Sandi glanced over at Dr. Marz, then back at Ms Barch, "You're the accursed monster who made me this... this... thing!" Sandi growled, "Not that Jones guy. I get it now. He wasn't even one of those stupid werewolves like you!" She held the knife tighter, "I mean, why would you lie to me?"

"Lie?" Janet glanced at her brother and then at Sandi, "Oh, come now, don't be-"

Dr Marz made the first move, running up to his older sister with a grin on his face, taking the silver knife to her like she was a wedge of cheese, "I've been waiting so long to do this." He smiled, his eyes blood thirsty with redemption.

If he killed her then she can't kill her... and... she'd be this monster the rest of her life and... Frozen still she watched as Marz stabbed Janet Barch in the chest with the glee and joy he'd not felt in over 20 years. "Waiit." Sandi tried to spill out as her teacher fell to the ground, her brother toppling on top of her, "This can't be possible..."

Dumbfounded and terrified at what she just saw, Sandi Griffin took a step back and looked at Dr Marz, "I thought she was like, the person I was supposed to-"

"You were just a safety plan. That Bitch never bit you." He smiled, standing up, leaving the knife in the teachers chest, "In case I were to-"

His words were cut off as a sharp pain ripped through the lower part of his leg, sliching through his achilles heel and shooting up the remainder of his leg. Toppling over back onto the body of his sister he realized that she had not only survived the fatal blow but was able to remove the blade from her chest, "Learn more about Science and less about..." Her words were laboured, "Revenge." Throwing the knife with as much energy as she could across the room she smiled a smile of sucsess, "I'm immune to silver you moron." She held her hand over the wound.

Having just watched this all go down, Sandi stood nervously. "So there is no-" Thinking about a cure right now was trivial, the Full Moon wasn't for another few days. Instead she smiled and headed for Mrs Bennett's room to get her Economics teacher and hopefully everything will be sorted out.

Shockingly enough, as time passed, Janet and her brother came to a fair agreement. It took time for her to reason with her brother that it really was an accident, that she didn't mean to do it, that the emotions were something out of her ability to control, and that she was well, just a complete and utter mindless monster when she started out as a werewolf.

Unfortunately for Sandi, there was no cure for Lycanthropy. The person who did bite her was dead. She could never kill him and obtain her once was freedom... and although Quinn knew her secret, Quinn was fairly okay with it, so long as Quinn didn't tell anyone else.

College for the Fashion Club President would start soon. She'd be attending Lawndale State, the same school that Stacy Rowe would be going to. A school that Stacy wanted to switch out of the moment she learned that fact, but was forced by her parents to stay in.

The Bennetts and Lanes continued their lives as normal. Trent took Tommy back to his place for a few weeks to make sure that weirdo stalked Kristen wouldn't find him. She hasn't yet, but who knows what the future might hold for this football hero.

"It's so cool that you've invited us for this Christmas Party at your house this year, Sandi!" Stacy smiled as she stood by the door, waiting for her mom to pick her up, "I mean, I know it's not Christmas or anything but..." Looking towards the cloudy night sky, she sighed. "You know, I was worried about you the past few months, I mean..." She wasn't really but... "I really care about my friends and everything."

Sandi stood by the door way of her house and stared up at the sky, the light of the full moon shimmering down as the soft, cool breezes drifted through the streets, "I can't believe this is like, our last semester in High School and stuff, I mean, after this..." She felt a sharp pain run through her arms. Just as planned, expected. Good thing she was home alone tonight, "School is really tough, but I am so glad I had friends to get me through it, unlike those uhm..." Her mind blanked for a second, "Unpopular people..."

Stacy nodded, "I know, right?" She smiled weakly, "I wonder where my mom is... I guess I'll have to walk home tonight..."

Her nails grew longer, thicker, more claw like, "Well Gee Stacy, if my mom were home I'd ask her to take you home but no one is here, you only live like.. a block away and stuff, right?"

"Yeah, I guess." Stacy turned to head outside the door, "Well, thanks again Sandi and..."

Sandi went in to hug Stacy, in what at first appeared to be a kind gesture, which quickly turned to malice. Reaching one clawed hand to Stacy's skin, she scratched the poor girl, intentionally. "Oh my God Stacy." She said, actingly, "I am so sorry."

Stacy had jumped when she got scratched but shook it off, looking angrily at Sandi, "You really need to cut your nails! Quinn was right, you should use metal blade file thingies..." Rubbing where she got scratched she turned and walked away, "I'll see you at New Years..." She muttered as she began back for her house.

Sandi nodded, "Yeah... Merry Christmas, Stacy~"