Chapter XXIV: Moonlight Through a Cloudy Night

Hi, everyone, and welcome back to "Darkness Falls!" As you all know, for about a day, no one could review. But we know that you read thanks to the three reviews we got and the traffic counters! So thanks for reading and we know the rest of you would've reviewed if you could have! So on with the show! And here to summarize the last chapter's events is none other than Duel Academy's Professor… wait, what?... Okay… As I was saying, introducing Professor Benjamin Stein… --Peach drinks some Red Bull as a precaution*

--Professor Stein walks on stage-- Hello, audience… Last time, the school lost how many of its students? Anyone? Anyone? Half of the student body went missing, along with… Anyone? Anyone? Marcel Bonaparte and Alex Ryou and Lily Muto. The students in… Anyone? Anyone? Jaden Yuki's group decided it was best to room together. There was some brotherly bonding and some needed humor… Peach… Peach? Peach…. PEACH! –Peach is dancing the Charleston on a flagpole, thanks to Red Bull giving her wings—

--Peach gets down from the flagpole and grins happily—Wow! It worked! It gave me wings! Oh, yeah! I have to do the disclaimer! Okay, Ani and I don't own the Yu-Gi-Oh franchise. We just own our story, our OCs, our version of the Yugi-verse and our interpretations which may definitely deviate from canon, either by accident or design… WHEEE!!! –Peach flies off as Stein places his face in his palm—

Warning: There is a make-out scene in this chapter. It's not too graphic, but still… it deserves a warning. Thank you!

The next morning came, and no one had been lost in the night. "We didn't lose anyone," Dr. Crowler said to Professor Stein. "Not last night... not after... Marcel..."

Stein nodded; all the staff knew that Bonaparte had taken the loss of his son very, very hard. "Maybe this is a sign that things will get better..."

"I hope so... and I hope we can figure out how to get those children back," Vellian sighed as Jean-Louis Bonaparte came into the staff room. He clearly had not slept the past night and his eyes were puffy and red from crying.

"Bonjour, everyone," the rotund teacher greeted, his voice hoarse.

"Jean, are you feeling well?" Professor Sartyr, also in the staff room, asked worriedly.

"My boy is gone... my sweet boy," Jean Louis moaned sadly. "I had to call his mother... she yelled at me... and I don't blame her... I couldn't protect him..."

"Jean...there was nothing anyone could do. Whatever this is...it attacks when we least expect it," Ben Stein tried, hoping to comfort his colleague.

"Ben... he's my child...I'm supposed to..."

"He knows his father loves him, wherever he is now, Jean-Louis... The best of parents can't protect their children from everything," Fonda Fontaine said gently, moving to place her hand on his shoulder.

"But..." Jean-Louis couldn't put it into words, but he knew that a very important part of himself had been lost with Marcel. "I'm his father... and I should be able to prevent such things..."

"That may be partially true, Jean. But you cannot protect him from everything in his life. This is one of those times," Don Sartyr tried again, wanting to help his friend.

The chubby French instructor took a deep breath. "I...I know... What Antoinette said last night when I told her," Jean-Louis sighed, hearing his ex-wife's shrill angry screams in his ears yet.

"Jean-Louis... she was reacting from being a very worried mother... When she talks to you later, I'm sure she'll be more reasonable," Fonda soothed.

"I hope so... I'll be talking to Josephine later," he sighed, referring to his current and very serious girlfriend. "She's heartbroken..." The pretty French-American woman had fallen whole-heartedly in love with Marcel when she'd seen pictures of him. And when she'd met him, Josephine had kept that adoration. And early this morning when Jean-Louis called her to let her know the boy was missing, she had cried with him over the phone.

"Well, Jean, everyone is working hard to find a way to get these children back. I think Jaden's group is even making more progress than anyone else," Sartyr stated encouragingly.

"Jaden... he will help us," Jean-Louis smiled, hope coming back to his eyes.

"Don's right. They've already thought of a way to alert a student's disappearance," Ben added, smiling and straightening his glasses.

"Oh?"

And Vellian explained about the PDAs. "They intend to modify ours as well, just in case..."

"Good idea," Viper stated with a slight smile that in anyone else would be a grin. "That came from Axel Brody. He's just like his father..."

"He was in the army, wasn't he?" Sartyr asked.

"He was... and under my command for a while. He was a good strategist and tactician... He died far too soon..." Viper remembered Martin Brody as a great fighter who'd been killed doing something terribly heroic. And he knew his son carried on the family's heroic legacy.

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All that day, everyone went to class and did what they had to. What was left of the student body had a huge picnic lunch out near Monster Row, combining the cafeteria food from all three dorms. "Mmm... We can do fried shrimp and lobster tails!" Annie grinned, shishkabobing said seafood along with some fresh vegetables.

Syrus laughed, picking out his own lunch. "I don't think we've ever done anything like this before. We should do it more often."

"Yeah," Jaden grinned, his face full of a special Japanese treat on skewers called teppanyaki dango. "I know the circumstances are lousy, but... this is fun!"

Alexis sighed and handed her fiancé a napkin, a slice of Professor Sartyr's homemade foccacia bread in her other hand. "Just try not to overeat and get sick, Jaden... Or make a huge mess."

"Babe, I'll be good," he promised.

"Think Flaming Mushroom, Slacker," Chazz reminded him drily.

"Chazz... I can eat politely," Jaden countered, sulking.

Atticus laughed, ruffling Chazz's midnight black hair. Unfortunately, he had been eating corn on the cob beforehand, though he didn't seem to notice that his hands were covered in the stuff. "Come on, bro! Lighten up and enjoy the picnic!"

"Bro! You got corn in my hair!" the raven-haired Rhodes shouted, getting a throbbing forehead vein.

"Heh... Chazz is corny! Get it?!" Jaden whooped, and most of the group face-palmed.

Violet, however, snorted and laughed at Jaden's joke. "God, how many times has dad or Bobby made that same joke?? It's gotta be the oldest pun out there!"

"Old as the hills," Bastion sighed, chuckling lightly.

"TARNATION!! Jim!!!" Jesse yelped, diving behind Jaden suddenly. Shirley came barreling towards the two of them like a bull with scales, zeroing in on the Slifer and his double.

"What the heck!" Jaden yelped, seeing the large crocodile move at such speed. "Shirley?!!!"

"I've got her!" Jim shouted, tackling his reptilian friend like an expert crocodile wrangler. Jesse peeked out from behind Jaden, a familiar piece of jerky in his hand. It looked a lot like the special jerky Dorothy ordered for Shirley.

"What's the matter, girl?" Jaden asked the large crocodile. "What happened?!" His heart was pounding a mile a minute.

Jim sighed in exasperation, still holding his reptilian friend. "Jesse!! I set down Shirley's treat on the table for five seconds, and you mistake it for normal food! Crikey, mate, throw it here!"

Jesse blinked, looked at the jerky, blinked again, and then sweat-dropped. "Oh...so then this is...? Whoops. Sorry, Shirley!" he called as he tossed her the dried-up meat, which she snapped up gladly as Jim let go.

Everyone looked a little bit stunned. "Uh... wow," Aster stated. "Never mess with a croc and her treat."

Jim patted Shirley's head. "No, you definitely don't want to do that, mate. You're lucky I got to her before she got to you, Jesse."

Jesse sighed in relief, shifting to sit beside Jaden. "Yeah...uh, sorry to scare ya like that, Jay. I sorta hid behind the closest thing I could find...heh..."

"It's... okay," the Slifer stuttered, eyebrow twitching. It would take a little bit before he got over the shock.

Alexis sent Jesse a warning glare. "Jesse... If anything had happened to Jaden, you'd be Shirley's next treat. I suggest using someone else as a shield next time," she growled.

Jesse shivered, backing away from the very threatening Obelisk girl. "U-Uh...sure thing, A-Alexis..."

"Lex... I'm fine," Jaden managed to say. "No need to get mad at Jesse... He didn't know!"

She sighed. "You're right, Jay... Next time, move," Alexis countered, tugging on his cheek teasingly.

"Good idea... Jim? Shirley wouldn't have hurt us, would she?" Jaden asked, still looking scared.

Jim glanced away, rubbing the back of his neck. "Well, er... She can be pretty unpredictable when it comes to her food..."

Jaden's eyes went wide, his breathing went shallow and his face went pale. He crashed to the ground, unconscious. "JADEN!" several people yelled.

Alexis grabbed his hand, checking his pulse. "He's okay...he just passed out. And I'm not surprised..." She was relieved and still a little bit mad at her fiancé's twin. But it would pass.

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The next week passed and the students dared breathe. But of course, everyone expected more to happen. "Three weeks... we're going to have to move back the wedding," Annie sighed on the week anniversary of Rosa's disappearance.

Syrus frowned. "And we haven't gotten any closer to figuring things out..."

Bastion sighed. "It will come... Logic dictates that there will be a solution..."

"Hopefully sooner rather than later," Violet added.

"Yeah... Tyson's so sad," Annie sighed again.

"I'm really getting worried about him. What if they come after him and try to take him too?" Syrus thought aloud.

"No... it can't happen that way," Annie moaned.

"It's not going to. We'll figure this out before they start taking people again," Violet stated, determined.

"I hope so," the other young bride to be said, worriedly. Bedtime was approaching, and the couples headed for their rooms.

"We need to get them all back," Bastion sighed as he pulled on his favorite Star Trek-themed sleep shirt.

"I know. But it's like we hit a dead end...we need more information," Violet replied, slipping into a knee-length, pink cotton nightgown for once.

"Honest has told us everything he knows," Bastion sighed. "And yet... nothing..."

"We'll find a way...somehow... We just have to," Violet muttered, walking over to hug him.

Bastion hugged back. 'I won't lose her again,' he thought, smelling her scent. He had a feeling Trueman or Darkness would target one or both of them. But he would not allow Violet to be taken if he could help it.

Violet closed her eyes, smiling and comfortable in Bastion's strong arms. 'I won't let them take you,' she thought. She, too, knew that they were obvious targets. But she wouldn't let him get dragged off to some dark world. And so one couple lay down in their warm bed to sleep.

Meanwhile, in the other room, Annie kissed Sy deeply. Syrus returned the kiss, arms wrapping around her to pull her close. Annie pressed against him, just again wanting to forget the threats for the moment. She rubbed her hands up and down his back, then moved her lips to his cheek and neck. Syrus tilted his head back to give her more room, eyes closing. Part of him wanted to forget as well, while part of him felt too worried. She moved down his collarbone, nibbling gently and sucking softly. Some of her mind might be telling her to cool it, but her hormones and the part of her that needed blissful forgetfulness were more dominant at the moment.

He moaned softly, hands moving down to her sides. What she was doing was making his hormones block out all worries and thoughts of pulling away. She moved her lips back to his, shivering at his touch. She put her arms around him, falling back on the bed. He brushed his tongue against her lips, asking for entrance as his hands ran up and down her sides. She gladly obliged, keeping her hands running up and down his back as their tongues began dancing. A warning was going off in her head, but the warm feeling in her body was stronger. He broke the kiss, about to move down to her jaw when he saw something out of the corner of his eye. He yelped, falling over off of Annie and nearly off the bed.

She blinked and gasped in shock as the contact broke. "Huh? Sy? What's wrong?" she asked, sitting up, red in the face from their kiss.

He shivered, staring at a shadowy corner of the ceiling. He could have swore that he saw eyes, but now there was nothing but black. "N-Nothing... I just… thought I saw something, that's all..."

She panted a little, feeling her body come down from where it was. "H-honey... oh my... What... did you see?"

He frowned, looking back at her. "I...I thought I saw...eyes..."

"Eyes?" she asked.

He nodded. "Red eyes...but... they're gone. I must have been seeing things..."

"Red eyes," she muttered, making herself remember. "Sy... oooh... what were we doing?"

He blushed. "Uh...m-making out..."

"It... almost felt different," she admitted softly. "Like we were... going further..."

His blush reddened. "Y-You think so?" It had felt that way for him too, but he wasn't sure if admitting it would be a good thing.

She wondered herself, but then considered what was ultimately best for them. "Y-yeah... it... felt amazing..." Her cheeks were already flushed a deep pink and they shaded to red at this.

"It...it did," he muttered in agreement, looking away.

"Sy... Sy, honey, look at me," she pleaded softly. He did so, his nervousness obvious. "Honey...it's nothing to be ashamed of," she said gently.

"I-I know... I'm just...nervous," he admitted, blush thick on his face.

"About us?" she asked, "Or... what's going on?"

"I...don't know... Maybe both..."

"Then... let's talk it out..." She helped him back up on the bed, and they sat against the pillows.

"But I don't know what to talk about," he muttered.

She slipped her hand into his, noting his was a little sweaty. "What are you nervous about with me?"

"Well, we're not married yet... What if... I mean, we," he stammered, unable to find the right words.

"It's hard to wait just a few more weeks," she admitted, looking into his eyes.

"And...I also don't want to...um, hurt you... If we...you know..." He blushed.

She took a deep breath. "Sy... if you did... it'll only be for a minute and then it should be okay.... But... you're going to be gentle..." She kept her gaze locked with his. "Please don't worry. What else is on your mind?"

"I'm also nervous...because it's been so long since anyone's gone missing. It's like...they could attack at any second... What are they waiting for...?" He bit his bottom lip, thinking aloud more than talking to her.

She changed her grip so she was holding him, her arms around him. "Whatever they're waiting for... they want to draw this out..."

He sighed, leaning into her embrace. "I'm worried that...when they attack again...it's going to be worse..."

"Honey, it may be, but... all we can do is hope, pray and plan..."

"You're right... Maybe we should get some sleep, then..."

"Yeah... we're going to have long days ahead," she sighed, opening the bed so they could snuggle down.

"At least at night...maybe we can relax," he murmured, pulling her close.

"Yeah... And Sy? I'm glad we're talking about all this..."

"Me too... It's better than keeping it to yourself...isn't it?"

"Yeah," she answered. "I think that's a strength and we feel... lighter when we talk..." He yawned, nodding. The couple didn't know it, but they were edging closer to the solution they were searching for. But tonight it was too late, and they were both too tired to stumble upon it just yet.

He curled around her and she held his hands with hers. "Night, honey," she murmured.

"Night, Annie..."

THESKILLEDDREAMEATERWILLBEDEFIEDBYTHEUNDERSTANDINGHEALER

It was three in the morning when, in Bastion and Violet's room, Violet began to moan in her sleep. Bastion, lightly sleeping, awoke and muttered, "Violet?"

"Guys...." Violet muttered in a strained, frantic voice. Darkness had decided to wreak havoc again, and had seeped into her dreams to change them into a horrible nightmare. Violet had found herself alone in a classroom in the main building, oddly holding her math book. However, upon looking around she had seen most of the group, and had excitedly run over to them. But something was wrong... "Guys? Uh, hello! Guys!! Annie?" Violet shook the brunette's shoulder, but received no response. Everyone continued chatting about this or that, and she found herself confused. Why were they ignoring her? "Jay? Alexis?" she tried, tapping them on the head. Nothing. Not even a blink or a sidelong glance. Violet frowned, getting a sinking feeling in her stomach as she stepped back. This...it reminded her too much of how things had been back home. Everyone ignoring her, not caring what she thought except for her friends. At least her friends weren't—

"Would you just get out of here already?! We don't want you here!" Violet's jaw dropped, her heart stopping. Of all people, it had been Annie who spoke, sending her a glare. "A-Annie...what..."

"You heard her! Why don't you go hang out with your stupid Bastion-baby!!?" Syrus interrupted in a teasing tone, causing the others to laugh.

Violet's eyes stung with tears that wanted to form, but she held them back and shook her head. "No...no, not again... Bastion-baby, please..." she whispered, turning to run. But she stopped dead at what she saw near the top of the stairs. "Bastion?!" He was there, all right. But he was quite clearly kissing someone who was NOT her. In fact, it almost seemed like two girls. As if she was changing between Triana and Taniya. In both the real world and the dream world, tears slipped down her cheeks. And in the real world, her cheek started burning like it had in the summer. "Bastion.....no.....why...."

Bastion, in the real world, saw the tears. "Violet?! Violet, darling, wake up..." He shook her gently and then did what he wasn't sure he should do. He kissed her lovingly on the lips. 'Please work,' he thought.

Violet's body felt the kiss, and her mind slowly pulled out of the nightmare. But Darkness had one more trick to play. Using an old type of nightmare, he had her believe that she had awakened. But in fact, she was still asleep. So when she opened her eyes, it wasn't Bastion she saw, but the startling face of Mike. Thus, in reality she gave Bastion a rough shove, face tensing.

Bastion's gray eyes widened in shock as he crashed to the floor. "Violet?! It's me! It's Bastion!" he called out in horror.

Violet's eyes snapped open, awake for real this time. Breathing in heavy and shaky breaths, she felt the tears still streaming down her face and shuddered. "Wh-What? Bastion??" Violet stammered out, fingers clutching at the bed sheets.

He sat up from his position, rear end sore. "Violet... you had a nightmare, didn't you?" he asked, pulling himself up and getting back on the bed. "What happened?"

She stared at him for a few moments, remembering what she had seen. Curling into herself, Violet shivered and sniffled, wiping at her tears. "I...I don't w-want to talk about i-it," she muttered, frowning. What would Bastion say? What would her friends say? It was a horrible thing to dream.

Bastion jerked back almost imperceptibly, but said, "I'll get you some tissues and a wash cloth, all right? Then... maybe you could talk?"

Violet sniffed, nodding. "M-Maybe..." She knew she should trust Bastion, but right now her mind was terrified and on-edge. He padded into the bathroom, got the tissues and a damp washcloth and returned to the bedroom. He took the washcloth and gently moved to wipe her face. She involuntarily flinched away, and instantly realized what she had done and regretted it. Frowning, she took his hand and let him help her clean up. "I-I'm sorry...Bastion..."

He met her eyes and then put an arm around her. "Was the dream about me?" he asked as she took some tissues.

She took a moment to blow her nose, dabbing at the few tears still in her eyes. "...P-Partly...a little..." she muttered, gaze locked on bed.

He changed how he was holding her so he was hugging her almost fully but allowing her the space to get out of it if she needed to. "Darling... I know you're frightened... And I understand if you aren't ready to tell me. But I wish you would tell me so I can help you. Please, love..."

She drew in a shaky breath, looking up at him with red, puffy eyes. "...O-Okay... I'll tell you..." Gaze becoming downcast again, Violet took a few moments to collect her thoughts before speaking. She told him about the classroom and failing to get anyone's attention. How their friends had mocked and teased her out of the blue. And last she told him, in a partial stutter, how he had been included in the awful nightmare.

Bastion gasped. "Oh, darling... it was a replay of what happened back in Ohio, wasn't it?" he murmured, placing his lips on her forehead.

Violet shook, Bastion reading her like a book. "Y-Yeah... But with all of you..." The dream had, in fact, been an illustration of her deepest fear.

"You're terrified we'll turn on you... Violet," Bastion said slowly, "we wouldn't... I wouldn't. I love you and only you... You are the only one I have truly ever wanted..."

Violet looked up, meeting his eyes and seeing the sincere truth in them. She wanted to believe him with every fiber of her being, she wanted to forget her fears. But they gripped her heart tightly, like a leech that wouldn't let go. But she pushed the feeling away for now and managed a small smile. "I-I know... You're the only one I love, Bastion...and I trust you... I don't want anyone else..."

He made the hug a little tighter. "And our friends will tell you themselves that they will not abandon you. I don't know if Annie told you, but she doesn't abandon friends..." Bastion knew something about the dark brown-haired Obelisk girl that a big brother figure would know, and that was that she had a pure heart that wouldn't allow her to abandon her friends even if they abandoned her.

She buried her face in his chest, feeling thoroughly comforted and safe. "Yeah...she told me... And I trust her too...and our other friends... It was just...a silly nightmare, that's all," she mumbled, voice slightly muffled.

"But... it frightened you," he countered softly.

"Don't all nightmares?" she muttered, a bit snappily. She bit her lip, not meaning to sound that way. She just wanted to forget it and leave the subject behind.

He knew and recognized her look of contrition. "They do... and... I wish I could protect you from that as well..."

"You do... You wake me from it," she reminded, looking up at him once more.

"Think we can manage getting back to sleep?"

"I-I think so..."

"Okay..." Together they lay down in the soft bed again, and Bastion asked, "What can I do to help you relax, love?"

"Just hold me," Violet whispered, eyes closed. "And don't let me go," she added almost inaudibly.

Bastion did as she asked, also rubbing her back softly. "Shh... I'm right here," he murmured soothingly. Violet sighed, slowly relaxing until she slipped into dreamland for the second time that night. Bastion lay awake after she fell asleep. 'Why must I keep failing her? I can't even take the pain for her...' Little did he know with those thoughts he was feeding the enemy information that would take him when the time was right. And Darkness, having accomplished what he'd set out to do, disappeared back to his own world. The rest of the night passed peacefully without incident.

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The next day at lunch time... "IT CAME!" Annie whooped happily, dancing around as she held up her PDA.

Syrus nearly fell out of his chair in surprise at Annie's outburst. "Uh...what came??"

"Yeah, what?" the others asked at nearly the same time.

"The information from Professor Galen at the University of Utah came, and it's about your leg, Tyson and the dinosaur that it came from!" she squealed in what the group now knew as her Hyper Annie mood.

"Sam Hill...she's happy," Tyson muttered.

"Well, now we'll know whether that Mr. T dude was telling the truth or not," Violet said with a grin, nudging Tyson with her elbow.

Tyson tensed. "Annie, have you read it?"

"Not yet... I'm opening it..." She tapped a button on the PDA and the email opened. "'Dear Miss Hanson: Thank you very much for your inquiry regarding the dig of 5 years ago. The bone donated to your friend was that of a Camptosaurus,'" Annie read, and then looked at Tyson, her eyes wide. "That's... that's an herbivore..."

The group gave a collective sigh of relief. "He really was lying," Alexis stated, half-surprised and yet at the same time not.

"His name's Trueman... True, my pasty white butt," Chazz growled.

"Is there more to it, Annie?" Tyson asked, on the edge of his seat.

"Yeah... 'We can determine that this dinosaur likely died from starvation when the earth's climate changed. A Tyrannosaurus Rex was not responsible.' He was lying... Tyson, that vision he showed you... it was wrong!" Annie grinned.

"Who knows how many times he's probably lied to the other people he's taken," Atticus added, frowning.

Blair looked up from her chicken teriyaki lunch. "Marcel... Trueman told him... it was his fault his mom and dad got divorced..."

"I doubt that's the truth, but we'd need to ask Professor Bonaparte to find out," Jim replied.

"But Marcel must've blamed himself," Adrian answered, "and that creep used it against him... How low..."

"Hmmm... they target us at our vulnerabilities," Bastion muttered thoughtfully.

"That would make sense... Everyone has a weakness, right?" Violet agreed.

"Yes... but how is he using it?" Bastion wondered.

"We have to figure that out, and soon," Axel sighed.

But just then, the bell rang, signaling the end of lunch and the start of afternoon classes. "Well, Bastion-baby and I have math. Since we know most of it already, we'll keep thinking," Violet stated as she stood.

The group got up and headed out to their different classes, calling their traditional "See you laters," but on impulse, Annie moved and hugged her best friend. "Forget what the nightmare said... I'd never abandon you," she said firmly.

Violet blinked in surprise, but then grinned and hugged her friend back. "I know, Annie. Like I said, it was just a nightmare. See you after classes!" She replied as she pulled away, running to catch up with Bastion.

"See you!" Annie called as they moved away. As she and Syrus walked with the rest of the group, she shivered.

Syrus caught it and looked over at her. "Something wrong, Annie?"

She looked at him and smiled sheepishly. "I'm not sure... maybe someone just stepped on my grave..."

His eyes widened. "Wh-What!?"

"It's an old saying," she answered, blushing.

He sweat-dropped. "O-Oh...uh, what's it supposed to mean? I've never heard it before..."

"Really?" she asked in surprise. "Well, it's based on an old wives' tale to explain why we shiver sometimes for no reason..."

"But...how can someone step on your grave if you're still alive?"

"It's a future thing. A person or an animal walks over the place that'll be your grave someday... Preferably about 100 years from now," Annie answered, smiling softly.

Syrus scratched his head, but decided to just go with it. "Oh...okay."

"I don't get it either," she answered as they kept walking. And so the period went on.

The classes for that period seemed to fly by, since it was almost the year's end and most exams were done with. The same was so for Violet and Bastion's math class, the bell ringing and surprising them both. "Goodness, did it go that quickly? Finals will be a breeze in two weeks," Bastion stated with a smile.

Violet grinned as they stood and headed up the stairs. "You got that right. A heck of a lot easier than this mess..."

Bastion abruptly sobered. "There has to be a solution for this... Somehow..."

"We're getting closer, at least. I mean...the breakthrough we had at lunch should help," she mused as they made it to the top of the stairs and headed out the door.

"Yeah... Three weeks to the wedding," he sighed. "Well... perhaps something will come to us... Shall we head to the next class, love?"

"Yea-oh! Shoot, I forgot my math book!" she groaned, smacking her forehead.

"Oh, all right. Darn!" Bastion groaned as he tripped on his shoelace. "Darling, I'll be right with you! My shoe is untied!"

Violet had already started running back, and she flashed a grin over her shoulder. "Okay!" She made it to the classroom in seconds, going down the stairs to her seat. "A-ha! There you are, you naughty math book... Making me come all the way back to class," she muttered, grabbing it.

And then the room abruptly darkened and the air chilled by about ten degrees. "Hello there, Violet Haverbrook," a menacing tenor voice said.

Yes… a cliffhanger, everyone. Darkness is raising the stakes now with a strike at the heart of the gang. Will Violet be able to stand up to Trueman's lies, or will Darkness claim another member of the gang? Next time, please join us for Piercing Night! Until then, please read, review and stay tuned. And if you're posting anonymously and would like a response, please remember to leave your email with us. Thank you!