Her feet felt sluggish as she walked toward Haley, dreading what was in that room. Zoe couldn't recall any other time she'd ever been this afraid.
Haley had to literally tug her into the room, and when Zoe saw the occupant, she thought she might faint in relief.
A boy was sitting on a thin and battered mattress on the floor, completely engrossed in a thick book on his lap. A desk lamp stood beside him, spreading sharp golden light across the pages and casting still shadows on the walls.
It's just some boy, Zoe thought, and pursed her lips as the beginnings of a pressure headache throbbed through her temples. All those jitters for nothing.
"Sleep paralysis?" Haley crouched down to glimpse the cover of the book. "Well now, that's a first. I didn't think you were interested in medical or scientific genres."

"I'm not." The boy answered, his voice oddly flat.
"Then what's up with this? Having trouble sleeping?" Haley snatched the book away from him and shook it in disregard.
"I'm interested in what logical explanation scientists have for the Old Hag legend." Davis blinked up at Haley, before turning cryptic grey eyes on Zoe. "It is said that the Old Hag comes at night when people are at their most vulnerable, when they are caught between the stages of sleep and wakefulness. The story goes that she will sit on her victims' chests, and try to drag their souls out to sell to the devil. It's the most frightening experience a human being can endure, because it is more real than the air we're breathing right now."

"Well that would make for an interesting bedtime story." Haley mumbled, distractedly scanning through the book.
"It only lasts for a few seconds to a minute, but the psychological effects it has on the victim varies. Some can never sleep without a light source, and some even dread going to sleep in fear of having that experience again." Davis added. "Scientists refer to some instances as hypnagogia."
"So has anyone ever seen the old hag?" Zoe asked.
"None that's been reported. But of course, it wouldn't be reported at all. Since the person who would lay eyes on her would die instantly."
"You like making up your own urban legends." Haley shook her head dismissively.

Davis turned his odd eyes onto Haley, and for a long moment they looked at one another in silence.
"What do you want, Haley?"
"We went to the Willis house earlier tonight." Haley licked her lips and closed the book.
"So? I told you that place isn't haunted." Davis frowned and sent a sidelong glance at Zoe.
"I beg to differ. We did the Ouija board thing, and then some really weird things happened..." Haley started.
"Didn't I tell you Ouija boards aren't toys?" Davis asked in an impatient voice. "Look, regardless, that house is not haunted so you probably imagined whatever happened. "
"But..." Haley began as Davis rose to his feet.

Zoe took a slight step back as he straightened to his full height. He was taller than the average guy, and skinnier; she could see the clear outline of his collarbone and the sharpness of his shoulders.
"There aren't any ghosts there. Believe me, Haley. Somebody probably thought they saw or heard something and started freaking out." Davis snatched the book from Haley, giving her a glowering look. "It's contagious when people are put in certain situations; how do you think a stampede happens? One person freaks out and all the others follow like mindless sheep."
"No, Davis, there were shadows. Real shadows and they were just shooting across the walls like bullets. And it only happened after Zoe asked a question." Haley said irritably.
"Oh? And what did you ask?" Davis asked, looking at Zoe thoughtfully.
"Well, Tanya asked it why it was there in the house, and it said that it's waiting. And then I asked it what it's waiting for, and it said that I'm a portal." Zoe said, glancing from Haley to Davis nervously.
"You're a portal?" Davis repeated, cocking his head to the side uncertainly.

"Yeah. Do you know if that's some sort of afterlife lingo or something?" Haley asked.
Zoe felt a little more secure with Haley standing right beside her. Something about Davis unnerved her; something in his eyes that was different from everybody else's.
"Afterlife lingo." Davis smirked and shook his head lightly. He narrowed his gaze at Zoe thoughtfully. "Have you ever used an Ouija board before, Zoe?"
"No." Zoe said.

"Hmm." Davis pursed his lips and turned around to sink back down onto the thin mattress. "Have you ever meddled with anything spiritual? Anything like a séance for example?"
"No, I haven't. But," Zoe chewed her lip doubtfully. "My mom's a Medium, so she deals with these things a lot."
"A Medium? Like the people on TV who can see ghosts?" Haley asked.
"Yes." Zoe said uncomfortably.
"That's wicked!" Haley exclaimed.

"Well, if you haven't personally been experimenting with any of those things, then it makes no sense to me why they would refer to you as a portal. It could have been a warning, something to scare you off. Or it could have been that whatever ghost you contacted is looking to get in touch with your mom, if she is what you say she is... or it could be that it wants to possess you."
"Oh, Davis, really!" Haley scowled.
"But like I said, I don't think what you contacted tonight is a ghost of any kind. The Willis house isn't haunted, unless one of the spirits your mom has been in touch with in the past has attached itself to you and followed you there." Davis ignored Haley's outburst, holding Zoe's gaze evenly.
Zoe shook her head slowly. "They don't follow me."

"How do you know? Can you see them too?" Haley asked curiously.
"Then whatever contacted you tonight was not from the spiritual realm." Davis said quietly. Zoe could see the clockworks going in his head. Her mouth became dry and she waited tensely.
"That's what you came here for, isn't it? Clarification." Davis looked at Haley expectantly.
"Pretty much." Haley admitted. "I had my suspicions that there's something else going on, but I just needed a second opinion. For confirmation on my gut instinct."
"What are you talking about?" Zoe asked, completely lost.
"Have you ever heard of Shadow People?" Davis asked, and looked at Zoe with an intensity that frightened her.

His voice was clear and echoed off the walls. Zoe stared at him, momentarily stunned by the unexpected question.
"I'm familiar with them." Zoe said truthfully.
"Interesting." Davis narrowed his eyes at her thoughtfully.

"I think they just watch me. They only come out at night, no matter where I am." Zoe licked her lips, heart beat picking up in her chest. Except for one...
There was a full minute of solid silence, and Zoe shifted uncomfortably under their eyes.
"No matter where you are, hmm?" Davis repeated. "Are they here now?"
Zoe frowned at him. She scanned the corners of the room briefly. There were shadows, but those were created from the light beside the boy. Normal shadows.
"No." Zoe found it hard to say. All her life, she'd seen them. She'd seen them at Tanya's house, and she'd seen them in the Willis house. They were to her like the stars were to everyone else – she knew they were there without needing to actually look at them. She'd even seen one or two following her on their way here. But there were none in the room, and come to think of it she hadn't seen any since she'd entered the building...

"No, you're right. They're not here, because they can't come in." Davis folded his hands on his lap and tilted his head back to stare at her. "Shadows aren't my field of expertise. I'm not educated, if you may, in the area of shadows and all that dwells within it. Haley, however, knows more about them than is good for her, I believe. She's the one who carved the rune of restraint- or is it containment?- on the entrance and exits of this building."
"A rune? What is that?" Zoe felt fear clog up her throat.
"Magic." Haley answered simply.
"Have the shadows ever tried to communicate with you?" Davis frowned.

They were looking at her expectantly. Zoe got a really bad feeling as she looked from one to the other.
"Only once."
"When? Where? What did they say? What did you say?" Haley fired off, and Zoe made herself small against the wall.

"I...it's.. is that such a bad thing?" Zoe asked weakly. The look on Haley's face scared her.
"Oh, you can bet it is." Haley said heatedly.
"But... they've been around me since I was little. They never hurt me, or tried to talk to me before. Not until the other night."

This information seemed to stun Haley into shocked silence.
"What did they say to you?" Davis asked.
"I... just some gibberish. He said I called him, or something like that. He said I should call him umbra." Zoe stammered uneasily.
Haley let out a soft, strangled noise that was meant to be a laugh, or a cry, Zoe wasn't sure.
"Did he ask you anything?" Davis asked.
"No. No, he said that... he said he had something that I wanted, and that he would give it to me in return for something else."
"Don't, Zoe." Haley choked, eyes wide in horror. "You didn't agree to anything, did you?"
"No... but I thought it was just a nightmare."
"You saw him in a dream?"
Zoe nodded slowly. Davis and Haley exchanged looks.
"Sounds like one of Julian's." Davis said.
Another silence.
"Do you think we should go tell him? I know he doesn't like it when we barge in on their hunting trips but this is serious stuff." Davis said.

"I don't know. Zoe hasn't agreed to anything, so maybe we can still help her out. I mean, we could do it, Davis. We've got the resources."
"Yeah, but we're only human. We can only do so much without ending up... you know."
"What are you talking about?" Zoe asked, exasperated. "What has Julian got to do with this? What are you not telling me?"
Haley bit her lip and looked away, but Davis turned to face Zoe squarely.

"Maybe you have something that they want, Zoe." Davis said flatly.
"Oh, Davis. Don't scare her." Haley exploded.
"But... like what? I don't have anything." Zoe took a startled step back.
"I don't have all the answers." Davis shrugged helplessly. "I'm just going on theory. Why would they contact you if you didn't have something they wanted?"
"And you're basing your theory on what? A guess?" Haley asked.
"On the fact that one shadow man in particular stalked a girl for years, because he wanted something from her." Davis said, and an incredulous look crossed his face when Haley shook her head. "Hades and Persephone."
"So you're basing your theory on mythological stories?"
"I'm basing my theory on Julian and Jenny." Davis said in a scolding voice.

"Okay. Okay," Haley shrugged. "So... this Umbra dude has the hots for Zoe?"
"It's a possibility. The point is, we don't know what his motivation is. We can guess, but we can also guess wrong. That's why I think we should get Julian involved."
"No. I think if anyone should get involved, it should be Jess." Haley shook her head.
"Jess? Haley, apart from the fact that Julian and Jenny are most likely to kill you for it, Jess won't want to get involved."
"If you think we should tell Julian, go right ahead Davis." Haley glared at him.
"You're family. You should tell him." Davis backtracked.
"That doesn't make him any less scary. Can you imagine what he would do if I told him we made contact with Shadow People?"
"No." Davis sighed.
"Exactly, neither do I. And I don't want to find out either, so," Haley folded her arms across her chest. "We deal with this by ourselves."

"Right." Davis agreed.
"Could someone please tell me what's going on?" Zoe asked, putting her hands to her head.
There was an awkward moment when Davis and Haley looked at each other. "Uh..." Haley finally wrung her hands together, and glanced at Zoe uncertainly.
"This is going to sound crazy."
"I expect it to. Nothing else has been short of insane since I've set foot out of the house." Zoe said.

"Well... the Shadow People are from the Shadow World. Aunt Audrey always referred to it as Niflheim..." Haley said.
"Which is stupid because Niflheim is supposed to be one of the nine worlds in Norse mythology, and therefore nothing more than just a myth." Davis added.
"Davis," Haley said, exasperated. "Genies are just creatures of myth too, but Julian is real."
"Julian is a genie?" Zoe asked. She remembered him clearly – the frost white hair, the indescribable blue eyes that had looked right into her mind – nothing human could look like that. He could pass as a mythological being...
"Julian is from another race. From the Shadow World. It's a world of mist and ice that exists alongside our world. They're a very... old race." Haley waved her hands helplessly. "And they're evil, which is why they're forbidden to enter into any of the other worlds. They lure people into the shadows, to trick them, to enslave their souls and to do God knows what with their bodies..."

"Julian isn't evil." Davis said.
"...they used to be summoned by sorcerers who wanted more knowledge, or more power. In return for something else, which was almost always the soul of the one who called them up." Haley finished. "But you didn't call them up, did you, Zoe?"
"No." Zoe tried to swallow the lump that had settled in her throat.
"So..." Haley trailed off, staring at Zoe thoughtfully. "Maybe someone in your family messed around with them, and that's why they're attached to you."
"It's plausible." Davis nodded.
"I don't think..." Zoe began.
"Next time you see this Umbra, you should ask him what he wants from you. That's it. Nothing else. Don't answer any of his questions. Don't get into a discussion with him. Just ask him straight out what he wants." Haley cut her off. "It's too risky to say or do anything else, because they are very sly tricksters. He can take any of your words and twist it into something it's not."

Ring-ding-ding-ding-ding!
"What was that?" Zoe jumped.
"That," Haley sighed and pulled out her mobile. "Is probably Kyle looking for us."
The ringing cut off when Haley answered. "What do you want, brother?"
Haley went quiet, the annoyed look on her face changing from surprise to anger. "I'm fine. No, really, I'm fine, I'm hanging out with Davis. Yeah, I know you don't like Davis. You don't like Jess or Bruce either. My point is you don't like anyone. The party got boring so I left with a friend. No, with Zoe. Like I said, I'm fine. Are you joking, it's not even nine yet!"
Haley went very quiet, her eyes flashing furiously as she listened. Zoe shifted uneasily, and glanced at Davis. He was watching her closely.
"Ugh. Do you guys mind? I'll be back in a second," Haley said to them, and stepped out of the room. "Yes, I know you said I could go only because Kyle was going, but..."
Her voice became muffled as she walked down the hallway.
"So, how's Vista Grande been to you?" Davis asked.
"Oh... different. Crazy." Zoe said.

"People here know when they are confronted by something that could be classed as... supernatural." Davis said. "Some of us have the intellect to stay away from it, like Kyle. Some of us know enough to keep ourselves safe while still exploring it – like myself and Haley. And some of us just don't have a choice but to be associated with it. Like Julian and Jess."
Zoe looked at him uncertainly.
"And you." Davis said.
"That's not a very nice thing to say." Zoe said quietly.
"You're different." Davis studied her with cool eyes.
"Story of my life." Zoe snapped, and glared at the door. Where was Haley? She'd had enough of this – she wanted to get out of here. Now.
"You don't feel at ease. Like you shouldn't be here." Davis said, as if reading her thoughts.

"Nobody should be in an abandoned asylum at night." Zoe responded curtly.
"It's perfectly safe here. We're not causing any destruction or doing anyone harm." Davis leaned his back against the wall. "But you feel like you've treaded onto uninvited territory, don't you?"
"So what if I do?"
"You know," Davis leaned forward suddenly, and flashed her a smile that lit up his face and did something inexplicable to her heart. She didn't know whether to run away or hit him. "Jess doesn't come here either. It makes him feel very uncomfortable. And Julian... well, Julian can't even get in if he tried."
"Why are you telling me this?" Zoe frowned.
"Because you are just like Jess. You bewitch people without realizing it. Don't tell me you don't have guys competing for your attention, or you haven't had any threats from girls."

Zoe stared back at him for a long moment. "I don't seem to bewitch you." She meant to be sarcastic.
"No. I've got protection against magical influence. So does Haley. It's the reason why she's practically the only logical-thinking female in town when Jess is around. Her feelings for Jess is genuine, you know." Davis said. His smile was beginning to scare her.
"I'm nothing like him." Zoe said.
"Maybe you're more like him than you realize."

"I thought this Julian is from another race. You know, both my parents are normal, and my grandparents are equally human. I'm not like Jess at all."
"Okay," Haley reappeared in the doorway. "My dad is picking us up, Zoe. He'll drop you off at your house. I'm really sorry – Kyle called him and told him I've run off, and now he won't listen to reason."
"Did he threaten to tell your mom?" Davis asked.
"Of course, why else do you think I'm going home?" Haley sighed heavily. "Unless you want to go back to the party by yourself, Zoe."
"No, I think I've had enough for one night." Zoe said.