Chapter 2

Jack tried to blow a bent noisemaker and nothing happened. He tried again, but to no avail. And again…and again…and a—

"Jack!" Tech interrupted, "It's broken, you're not gonna get anywhere!"

Kelly smiled. They'd just gotten through Nadine, Benny, and Lucy's birthday.

Sophie had gotten into a knitting streak and made them a belt, scarf, and bracelet, respectively.

Tech claimed to have helped her. Everything he'd intended to make the kids had…exploded.

Wendy, Jack, and Duck didn't bother much and Wendy zapped up some sweaters. Yeah…

Slam ordered them pizza. Enough said.

Robert and Rev; Kelly, Ryan, Sarah, and Michael; and Ace and Lexi had kept a standard: CD's.

Daniella, as usual, gave them the best gifts. She'd gotten Nadine a bag, Benny a jacket, and Lucy a stack of notebooks (she'd grown accustomed to writing).

Anyway, Kelly was tired. "I'm going to bed." She walked down the hall. As soon as she was in her room, she closed the door. "By the way, Mom, thanks for the necklace." She pulled out the necklace. "I'm gonna be wearing it for the next 3 weeks and then zapping it back into the box so that you don't know I took it." She took off the necklace and hid it under her pillow. She grabbed her pajamas and then remembered her magic. "Duh." She zapped herself and she was immediately changed and ready for bed. She looked at the clock. 9:30. She shrugged. "I'll probably have to get up early anyway, despite the fact that we deserve a break." She rolled her eyes and then got in bed and went to sleep. As soon as she was asleep, the necklace beneath her pillow began to glow eerily. After a few second, Kelly began to dream…

She woke up in her bed. She looked around. The room was empty. She looked at the clock. 7:30 a.m. Surely no one else was awake at this hour. Where were her brothers and sister? She wrestled herself out of the bed. She walked down the hall and looked around. All the doors were open but no one was there. What was going on? She ran out to the elevator and took it down to the foyer. She left the tower and looked around town. Usually, something would be going on by now. But the whole town was empty. "What's going on?"

"Everyone's gone." Kelly whirled around to see Austin standing there. "You couldn't save them."

"What're you talking about? What do you want?" She crossed her arms at him.

Austin walked over to her. "You know something's happening. Something you can't stop. Dark forces are rising."

"Here we go again."

"This is different. Worse than gods' children or hells. It's the end. For everything…and everyone, as it seems."

Kelly stared at him. "Why should I trust you?"

He looked at her and smiled. "Because I'm the one doing it." He snapped her neck.

Kelly woke up quickly. She looked at the clock. Just before midnight. She looked at the room. Ryan, Michael, and Sarah were asleep in there beds. Kelly slowly and quietly got up and out of her bed. She zapped herself back, grabbed the necklace, hid it under her shirt again, and then left the room. She snuck down the hall and to the elevator. She went down to the foyer and left the building. She walked around the street. Some people were still out, but it was mainly quiet. "Austin? I need to talk to you."

"What?"

Kelly whirled around to face the wolf. "Alright, I just had a weird dream and I think you know what those usually mean."

"You think it was a vision?"

"If it was, I know I can't trust you. You killed me."

Austin stared at her in shock. "What?"

Kelly scoffed. "Please. You come in with this whole brooding act, warn me that a dark force is rising, and then don't show up again for 2 days and I'm not supposed to think that's shifty?" Austin then caught sight of the gold chain of the necklace. "I apprenticed for my dad and his friends for 4 years. I've seen people like you-"

"What're you wearing?" He started to pull out the necklace, but she swatted his hand away. "Ow!"

"Mind your own beeswax!"

"Alright, now you're just crazy."

"You're the one who's possibly plotting to get me to fall in love with you by my birthday in my 3 weeks so that you can kill me. Yeah! Yeah, that's exactly what's going on!"

"Kelly-"

"Don't even try it! I'm out and I'm not talking to you again!" Kelly ran off.

Austin stared after her. "What just happened?"

3 days passed as everything went the same as usual…except Nadine, Benny, and Lucy kept bursting into fights occasionally.

Daniella walked up to her sisters on the third day. "Why do you think the 3 of them have been fighting lately?"

"I don't know," said Wendy, "But it sure is getting annoying." They both glared at her. "I mean suspicious. Totally suspicious."

"When did this start?" Sophie asked.

"3 days ago," said Daniella, "Maybe their birthdays activated some hormones."

"I sure hope so," Wendy said, "That way we know it's temporary." They both glared at her again. "I mean, we better tell Ace and Lexi." That's exactly what they did.

"I don't know what's up with them either," Lexi said.

"They are acting kind of weird," said Ace.

"Hmm…" Sophie thought out loud, "Kelly had a vision about an hour before this started and she wouldn't tell me what it was about."

"Maybe we should ask her," said Ace.

Sophie nodded and found Kelly alone in the living room. "Kelly. What was that vision about?"

"Vision? What vision?"

"The one you had 3 days ago."

Kelly realized what she was talking about. "Oh, that! Yeah, that was…nothing at all of importance. It was just…Nadine, Benny, and Lucy fighting."

"Did you see what started it?"

"No."

Sophie sighed and walked off.

Kelly sighed with relief as soon as her mother was gone. "I've gotta hide this necklace better."