It had been decades since Charlie had last stepped inside the old home, and the scenery hadn't changed much. The front gate opened on its own—much to his complete surprise—and the lawn was once more cleaned up. He had walked past it a few times the first several years, and had watched as the place fell into a neglectful state, but never had enough strong emotions to go and do anything about it. Maybe some of the others had mourned its disarrayed state—and they had likely been the ones rounded up to clean it up—but he himself had almost felt a sense of glee at seeing the mansion so old and broken. He had felt like he had won a bit.

"Was wonderin' when I'd be seein' you again," he greeted Alecto at the door, who only regarded him with one raised eyebrow. It was no rumor that the rest of James' little men hated Charlie, likely for his coarse attitude and the fact that James seemed to prefer him, despite the other men having been with James since before the turn of the 19th century. That kind of snub got to a man, or, well, vampire actually.

Regardless of his feelings toward Charlie, Alecto still opened the door for him, and he stepped into the foyer. The inside was just as unchanged as the outside and it was almost like falling back in time to when he had first entered the grounds, except no one was wearing a zoot suit (and thank god for that). Even the chandelier was exactly the same—well, technically it looked the same, as it had been replaced with an exact replica back in the 1970s (after the Bitch from Hell—or Alejandra as everyone else insisted upon calling her—had come storming through here, many things had been replaced).

"Ah, Charles, I'm so glad to see you've arrived."

He turned toward the dining hall, seeing James sitting at the head of the table. He wasn't particularly tall, but he emanated power, enough to make him seem bigger than he was. Around him, other vampires milled about, clearly waiting for something to start.

"I assume I'm the last one to the party?" he asked, walking into the room. "Love what you've done to the place."

James smirked. "Still got that sense of humor, I see. You do know how I prefer to have some sort of stability in my life and a constantly changing household wouldn't be a reflection of that, now would it? And you're not the last one to arrive. We're still waiting on a few others."

He looked around the room, recognizing the heads of all the Vampire clans. Except, no, he realized, someone was missing—

"Xavier won't be with us this evening," James told him, answering the question Charlie hadn't yet to speak. At the mention of his name, the rest of the men in the room suddenly took a keen interest in the ceiling.

"An' why's that? He piss you off again?" he inquired.

"You could say that," James replied cryptically. "Tell me, Charles, how have you been all these years? I've heard you've been living in a basement of a school for some time now. How dreadful; I can't even imagine."

"Yeah, lost my old place when a bunch of kids got too cocky for their own good," he explained. "An' you know how we all feel 'bout fire."

James frowned. "I hope you didn't hurt anyone Charles. You know we have rules about that and I'd hate for you to have to deal with the consequences."

"Oh, don't work yerself up over it," Charlie assured him. "If one of 'em got hurt, it's cuz he singed 'imself. Old news anyway."

"Well, my home is always open to you," James told him, "as I'd hate for one of my most loyal men to be stuck in some dingy little school girl's basement."

"Aw, don' you worry 'bout me. I do jus' fine on my own." No need to add on that a dingy old basement was better than sharing a roof with the likes of him. He could only imagine James wouldn't take too kindly to that message.

"Bet he likes seeing all those girls," someone murmured, probably Freeman. He had a malicious smile of his face anyway.

"Eh, we all know that's up yer alley," Charlie remarked. "You know, I think we're less than 200 feet from a school."

Freeman growled, his eyes glinting yellow as he leaned forward, ready to attack.

"Now, Freeman," James said, cutting off the other vampire's growling with the sharp tone of his voice. "Don't think you were somehow above earning yourself such comment. You insult a man's honor and he will go for yours as well."

Freeman scowled, leaning back up against the wall again, still eyeing Charlie like he was waiting for an opportunity.

"Now, we've still got some time before our final guests arrive, but Charles, why don't you start anyway? The men here were able to fill me in a bit about what's going on around here, but I do trust you more than any of these men," James said, waving a hand toward the other vampires.

"Then 'm sure they've told you 'bout the slayer," he said.

James eyes seemed to glow. "So they were telling me the truth. How exciting. Do you know how long it's been since I've seen a slayer? Eons, I tell you. Vincenzo always like to avoid them and Rubio was never very good at fighting them. Said they were too pretty."

"This one's a looker too, but she's got enough bite to send a good man packin'," he explained.

James laughed. "I'm not worried about one little slayer. There's a million of them now, strewn out across the world. She's another off-the-line model, manufactured by the Watcher Council Incorporated. Hardly something to concern myself with."

Charlie shifted his weight on his feet. "Not this one, James. She's-uh, not one of 'em new ones who ain't never seen a vampire before. She's the slayer. Buffy Summers."

"Buffy?" James repeated, his eyebrows drawn together in thought.

"She defeated the Master?" someone offered.

"Took on a Hell god?"

"Killed an entire legion of Turok kan?"

"Oh, yes! Ms. Summers," James said. "Yes, I remember her. Dracula was absolutely fanatic over that girl, it was laughable. I'd never seen him so entranced."

"Yeah, well, she's here an' been beatin' us into the ground," Charlie told him.

"So I've heard. I'm glad to see you've kept out of harm's way though," James told him sincerely.

"Well, I ain't goin' off an' killin' people so she ain't got her eyes on me," he lied. Every time he happened across Buffy, she felt the need to burn holes right through his shirt with her eyes. Probably though he was "tainting" her daughter.

"Hm, well, this is unfortunate to hear then," James decided. "I have heard about Buffy Summers and while I still don't see her as much of a threat, I know she'll cross paths with me if she catches wind of my arrival. Think we can keep that to ourselves, men?"

James' question was met with murmurs of approval across the room.

"Anything else you'd like to tell me, Charles, besides about Ms. Buffy Summers?"

He thought about Beth, and even about Spike (that would rile James up a bit, and wasn't it fun to ruffle the peacock's feathers), but he only shook his head.

"Disappointing," James admitted, actually looking crestfallen. "I had hoped more had changed since I was last here. Oh well, I guess I shouldn't expect much of this town. Are the Kalderash still here?"

He nodded. "Yep. Keepin' to their own business though. You know how they are. We ain't the Scourge so they don't care."

"Very true," James murmured. "Say, wasn't the lesser half of that group seduced by the slayer?"

Charlie shrugged. "So they all keep tellin' me. Ain't seen 'em in a while, though Angelus was up here dealin' with some demon."

"Mm, so he does have a soul," James murmured. "I thought that was some rumor running around to shame him. They say I was killed by some measly little demon hunter, so I wouldn't be surprised they'd try to bring him down as well. Seems like he did that all on his own though. Same for the Brit? It's only hearsay thus far."

He shrugged. "Ain't know much 'bout that. William's gone an' disappeared off the map. Ain't no one heard from him since he went up sayin' he was gonna get 'imself that Gem of Amarra. Don' ever know if he found it."

"Considering the Aurelians will sire just about anyone, I'd be surprised if he did," James muttered.

The front door crashed open with a bang, jolting everyone where they stood. Charlie quickly turned around to see an annoyed Alecto as two men came into the foyer, dragging between them a bloodied, dirtied body. The two were cackling, hurling insults at the body. He recognized Carmichael, more of a residential thug than a vampire, despite his dirtied state. He didn't recognize the other man with his blonde hair and aristocratic features. He was brutish-looking as well though, so maybe he was a friend.

"We got him," Carmichael announced, him and the other vampire dropping the body to the floor. It moaned, so it wasn't dead, though he wouldn't leave a pretty corpse. When the person turned over, Charlie realized he wouldn't be leaving a corpse at all.

"Xavier, how nice of you to join us," James greeted.

Xavier shakily got to his feet, favoring his right foot, as his left one was twisted at an odd angle. He held his left arm up to his chest, his white skin stretched tight over bone. He opened with mouth to say something Charlie supposed, but James cut him off with a loud laugh.

"I don't wish to hear your excuses," he said. "Though what I do wish to know is why he is here, his blood leaving a trail through my household?"

"Figured you'd prefer to take care of him," the unnamed vampire replied, his tone carrying that same, sophisticated edge that James' did. Chances were these two were old friends.

James smiled. "Mm, it has been some time since I could properly deal with anyone. You always do read me so well, Elwood."

Elwood grinned smugly, kicking Xavier for good measure. James stood up out of his seat, striding over to where Xavier still stood. Both Carmichael and Elwood put a hand on each of the vampire's shoulders, pushing him down to his knees. Xavier grunted in pain, but didn't fight it. He looked up at James, a reproachful look in his eyes. Charlie merely watched with bored eyes, already well aware of what happened to those who did things James did not like.

"You know how I hate disloyalty," James murmured, shaking his head. "You hear I'm coming into town, and what do you do to show your respect for me? You run? It's disgraceful. And I have such distaste for disgraces."

In one fellow swoop, James produced a stake and pierced Xavier's heart. His eyes went wide before he crumbled into dust, leaving a pile on the floor.

He wrinkled his nose. "I want this entire mess cleaned up. It's put me off for the evening." He turned to looked at the rest of the vampires, who only stood stone-still, waiting for what James would do next.

"Let this be a lesson," he told them. "I do not appreciate those who disobey me. No one touches the slayer, you hear me? She's mine to decide to deal with."

"But James," Elwood started, looking confused, "you can't—"

"You'll come to find things are very different around here, Elwood," James interrupted. "My brother is not nearly as smart as he thinks he is and has made quite the fool of himself in the process. I have my ways, old friend, and if you choose to stay, you'll see exactly what they are."

Elwood grinned wolfishly. "Wouldn't ever think of leaving, master."

"Come now, old friend, we have much catching up to do," James said. "The rest of you can leave."

The other vampires did as told, walking around the mess Xavier left on the floor, speaking with one another over who would cede Xavier's old territory or if one of his own would rise to stake claim. Charlie tried to disappear into them, but James noticed him at the last moment, likely due to the fact that compared to the dark, somber suits on the other men, he stood up in his jeans and light blue button up.

"Charles. Are you sure there's nothing else to tell me?" James asked him, a kind smile on his face. "I just hate to be left out." He glanced down at the pile of dust by his foot, the message clear, no need for a visual.

"'Course," he replied. "My daddy raised 'imself a smart boy an' I know better than to lie to my superiors. I ain't got nothin' else to tell you. Though, tell you what, I hear anythin' else of use an' you'll be the first to know."

James smiled. "That's all I ask."

With a final nod, Charlie quickly removed himself from the house and the entire grounds for that matter, knowing there wasn't enough distance in the world that he could put between himself and that vampire.

-.-

"You know, I had always thought demon activity would pick up around Halloween," Daniel commented as he strode down the road beside Beth and Nadja. Small children dressed in costumes darted around them, swinging bags of candy and screaming. Nadja winced as a particularly vocal princess sprinted past her, nearly colliding head-on with an astronaut.

"No, children are dangerous enough to themselves without the demons helping," Nadja noted.

"Vampires don't really care for Halloween," Beth explained. "Most demons see it as mockery and generally too crowded. How often does a smart demon take on a crowd of people anyway? And the dumb demons, well, they just know tonight is loud."

"But we still must remain vigilant," Nadja added with a firm nod of her head. "We have to patrol the streets, rather than eating candy ourselves or watching scary movies."

"Nadja's still a bit sour about spending Halloween working," Beth explained to Daniel.

"I still don't see why your parents had to choose this weekend to go down to Olympia about another vampire story. We all know it's a bunch of kids from Forks who think they're funny!"

"Every slayer has to take these things serously," Beth reminded her. "And when we're done, my Aunt promised to have M&M cookies for us when we get back, so stop complaining."

Nadja whined, folding her arms over her chest, but didn't argue any further.

"So, your father works with your mother on all her trips?" Daniel inquired.

She shrugged. "On and off. Sometimes my mum goes off on her own, and they used to do it more often when I was little. Now that I'm older, though, they can go back to doing the double-team thing. They were like that a lot before I came along."

"It's really quite romantic," Nadja added. "Her dad used to be all evil and then—"

"Nadja," Beth interrupted, cutting off her friend.

"Your dad was evil?" Daniel asked, looking confused. "I didn't get that feeling from him."

"That's because he's all nice now," Nadja replied. "A real pushover. Unless you're my cousin Zack, may you never be forced to meet him."

"I do remember your cousin. St. Jude's isn't a very large school," he reminded her. "And he seemed nice enough, if not a little awkward."

"He's like that all the time," Nadja told him.

"You knew him?" Beth asked.

He nodded. "Not well, of course, since I didn't have any classes with him and I have no interest in robotics, but he and his friends ate lunch at the same table as me."

"You ate lunch with those wackos?" Nadja asked, sounding apalled. "You have far more tolerance than any one person should ever have."

"No, I didn't eat with him, only at the same table," he reiterated. "I didn't have any other friends to eat with."

"Oh," Beth said, looking at him. He didn't seem saddened by that, only looking as if he was stating a simple fact, "like the sky is blue" or "Arsenal sucks." "Er, well, you could always eat lunch with us," she offered.

Nadja gave her an inquiring look, and Beth gave her one of those "what else could I do?" and suddenly Nadja realized Beth was bringing home a puppy. And projecting. Most definitely projecting.

"Yeah," Nadja agreed. "We've got lots of table room and sometimes stimulating conversation."

"Thank you for your offer," he said, smiling. "Not many people seem to want to have me around. It wouldn't be so bad if they were subtler about it."

"Well, don't worry about us, we're a couple of weirdos so we can't judge," Nadja told him. "She's super, scary strong and me—well, I'm friends with her, so I'm weird by association."

"She also presses dried flowers and leaves," Beth told him. "And makes her own hair accessories."

"Crafts is a perfectly fine way to pass time!" Nadja argued.

"And she knits."

"Alright, you know what, no scarf for your Christmas present. You can just forget it."

"I do find you two to be most interesting," he told them, smiling. "My mother will also likely be delighted to see I've made some friends. Now she'll only have to work on my older brother."

"You have an older brother?" Beth asked.

He nodded. "Yes, I do, but he went to public school. My parents don't have enough money to send us to private school and my brother wasn't able to get in on scholarships like I was. And after that incident with the school body killing children for their souls, I'm sure he wasn't too upset about it anymore."

"Yeah, that does put things into perspective," Nadja agreed. To her right, a large bush moved and Nadja jumped right on it, pulling on Beth's jacket sleeve.

"It moved!" she hissed, pointing at the offending foliage.

"Like bunny moved?" she asked.

"No, I don't think that's a bunny," Daniel decided, pointing at a small, scaly tail sticking out of the bush.

"Would you like the honors?" she asked him, handing him her crossbow.

"I will admit I've only ever used these in videogames," he said, taking the weapon.

"I'll show you how to use it," she assured him. "It's simply enough. You pull this string back, load the bolt, aim and then pull the trigger." She helped him through the steps, making sure he wouldn't almost accidentally shoot himself in the foot like Zack had. Nadja had found that to be a riot, and Beth only hoped not to have a similar problem happen again.

He lined up his shot and she had more faith in his aim than Nadja's, who had never held a weapon prior to meeting Beth. Daniel had explained his years of gun practice, and although slayers didn't use guns, being able to aim did come in handy.

He pulled the trigger and a small, pained squeal erupted from the bush. "I sure do hope that wasn't someone's pet lizard," Nadja decided, hands on hips. "That was one, weird encounter."

"Well, it was that man's fault for letting Mr. Peppy out of his cage," Beth reminded her, walking over to the bush. She dragged the thing out of the bush using her foot, revealing a small little demon with a furry body and enough sharp teeth to make anyone rethink its "cute" potential.

"Aw, a little rapscallion," Beth noted.

"Is it actually called that?" Daniel asked, coming over to look at it. He crouched down, nudging it with the crossbow.

"No, it's called a Ra'pickian," Nadja jumped in. "I see those around my Grandfather's some times. They like to nibble on wood and sometimes they'll bring a whole tree down. Beth just doesn't know how to pronounce words."

"Hey, at least I didn't call it a 'Rap Scallop' like my mum did," she defended. "My dad's still laughing over that one. You knew what I was talking about anyway, so who cares?"

Nadja only sighed. "Best start working on your Beth-to-English translator dictionary. Sometimes she'll use some fancy British slang on you and then we're all lost."

"Hey, that is English," Beth cut in.

"'Bodge' isn't a word."

"Sod off," she muttered, kicking the Ra'pickian back under the bush where a dog might find it and eat it. Hey, not like it's poisonous.

"See?" Nadja said, pointing at Beth. "Absolute gibberish."

He looked back and forth between the two girls, his brow furrowed like he was considering what to say. But no words came out of his mouth, so the moment seemed to have passed.

"Let's keep moving," Beth decided, once the body was fully concealed by the bush. "I'm sure there's lots more little bitty beasties running amuck around here—and before you say anything, Nadja, I know you understood what I said. That's not strictly a British word."

"No one says 'amuck' anymore," Nadja murmured under her breath.

"Shouldn't we dispose of the body?" Daniel asked.

"You want to touch the dead rodent body?" Beth asked and he shook his head. "No? That's what I figured. Alright, keep moving. We've still got at least two hours until my aunt says she'll have the cookies done.

Nadja groaned.

-.-

Beth was laid out on her bed, kicking her feet up in the air as Zack rambled on about some exam he had a few days ago. She had talked to him during the first week of classes and hadn't heard from him since, save the occasional text message and the picture he sent of him feeding a squirrel a Cheeto. She hated feeling like some jealous girlfriend, but she had really gotten worked up over who could have taken the photo. He had apologized profusely for not calling sooner, and she forgave him, mainly because she didn't think she had any room not to. Zack had a life outside of her and as much as it hurt to think it, she wouldn't try and stop him if he decided there were better people out there for him. At least they wouldn't be some weird vampire-slayer-human combination that could most definitely do more bench presses than you.

"High school was a breeze compared to college," he finished. "Did you know there are actually different ways to study?"

"Yes, I did," she responded. "I didn't have many friends at the academy, remember? I spent a lot of time coming up with new ways to go over information."

He laughed. "Then you would excel here. Well, I've just spent the last ten minutes whining about my life, how's things on the west coast?"

She shrugged. "Everything's been pretty quiet actually. Not a lot of vampire activity, so my parents have actually been taking several road trips to deal with demon problems elsewhere. My dad's still not too happy about leaving me here to deal with the beasties, but Mr. Wells and I handle it pretty well."

"So parents are out? Hope you aren't sneaking boys into the house," he lectured, sounding almost serious for a moment.

She snorted. "Who would I even invite? The only other boy I know is Daniel and he's more entranced by my father than any 'womanly wiles' I have."

"'Womanly wiles,'" he repeated and she could almost picture the face he was making. "I'm glad to hear things aren't too busy though. I know you can take care of yourself, being an Amazonian and all, but that doesn't mean I can't worry."

"Ugh, you sound just like my dad," she groaned. "And the first slayer was African, not from anywhere near Amazonia, wherever that is located."

"Please don't compare me to your dad. You know how that makes me feel."

"Emasculated?" she jokingly offered and she heard him make a disgusted noise.

A series of loud yells followed by a bang was heard from the other side of the phone and Beth sat up. "What was that?" she asked, hearing loud shouting that was getting closer.

"Oh, a couple of idiots," he mumbled. She heard someone shout his name, followed by a string of words that were lost in the cacophony of noise made by the other "idiots." Was it her mind playing tricks on her, or did one of the voices sound feminine? "Look, I have to go now, but we can talk later, okay?"

She smiled, although she didn't feel it. "Of course, can't take away all your attention," she joked.

"I don't mind," he told her, sounding honest.

"Go, have fun, but not too much, alright? You can't just go and forget me with all your new friends because that's just rude."

He laughed. "I don't think I could ever forget you, Beth. Later."

"Bye," she breathed, hearing the click as he hung up. She dropped her phone to the bed, feeling rather depressed.

She cocked her head when she heard a small knock on her door and looked over to see her Aunt Willow stepping into her room.

"I just thought I'd let you know I was heading out," Willow told her.

"Your date, right? With Esme? I remember," she murmured.

Willow frowned, looking over her pseudo-niece. "What's got you all frowny?" she asked, coming into the room and sitting down on the bed.

Beth shrugged. "It's stupid."

"It can't be all that stupid if it's upsetting you this much," Willow told her.

"It can be if you're overreacting," she mumbled, pulling her knees up her chin. She looked at the wall for a moment, before saying, "Zack's making lots of new friends."

"Yes, er, that does happen," Willow responded, knowing that there was more than Beth was saying. "He had friends here."

"I know, but I was here too," she explained. "Now he's off in Boston, making lots of new friends and who's got time to think about all those people here in stupid Bellevue?"

"Bethie," Willow soothed, reaching out a comforting hand and rubbing her shoulder. "Just because he's somewhere else doesn't mean he's going to forget about you. Jackie was in Cleveland nine months out of twelve and he still came around to visit you every summer because he was your friend."

"That's because Jackie's an anomaly," she insisted. "Zack's got all his normal friends in normal old Boston. They don't even have an official demon hunter there, the city's so normal! And Zack likes normal, you know. He never really got into that whole slayer thing I do. He's got a chance to be in a regular place with regular people who didn't take Vampire safety classes in the fourth grade."

"Bethie, he grew up with magic—and he practices it! He can't be that normal," Willow reminded her.

"He's more normal than me," she responded, then shut her mouth very quickly after that.

The look on Willow's face was almost heartbreaking. "Bethie," she murmured, "you don't think he's trying to get away from you, do you?"

"No," she responded quickly. "Yes. Maybe. I don't know! There's plenty of normal, pretty girls in Boston I'm sure, and everybody else I've ever known was always trying to keep away from me. The other slayers couldn't get away from me fast enough and they dealt with weird, monster stuff all the time."

"Not everyone was trying to get away from you," Willow pressed on.

"Most people were," Beth insisted. "People who came in from the outside were. And Zack's from the outside."

"You do realize that I wasn't born at the Academy like you were?" Willow replied, sounding vaguely amused.

"You know what I mean," she grumbled.

Willow sighed, looking skyward, probably praying to some heavenly gods to assist her with the moody, angsty teenager. She didn't have kids; she didn't sign up for this. "Zack likes you Beth, all of you," Willow promised. "He's not trying to get away from you."

"You say that, but he hates vampires," Beth reminded her. "That's half of what I am. And what if, now that he's away and had some time to think, he realizes that he kind of hates me too? I mean, there isn't any reason why he shouldn't, I am—"

"Listen, Elizabeth," Willow cut through sternly, her no nonsense face on. "At some point, you are going to have to stop letting those girls get to you. Margaret was a foul person who took enjoyment out of beating on you because she thought she had the upper hand. You are not what she said you were. You are somebody worth loving, do you hear me? And Zack knows that too. Don't disrespect his friendship by allowing your insecurities to get ahold of you. Don't let Margaret have so much power over you; she doesn't deserve it. I don't know how, but somehow, you're going to have to realize one day that the world doesn't get to tell you how you have to be. You're the child of Spike and Buffy, two of the most contradictory-to-first-appearances people that I have ever met. You have the power to be more than others will try to beat you down to."

Beth dropped her head, burying her face into her knees. Willow looked on frustratedly, unsure of what to do. Usually, those little empowering speeches worked. Fiddlesticks.

"Look, if you want, I can cancel my date and we can have some auntie-niece time," Willow told her in a much softer tone.

"No, I'm okay," she promised. "Go out on your date. I'm okay. I'm just being stupid, like I said."

Willow frowned. "Bethie—"

"I promise, I'm alright," she sighed, lifting her head to look at her aunt. She had a determined look in her eye and her face was dry. Willow couldn't make out an emotion through the mask. Spike was always better at these things, goddesses only knew why; the man had once been so emotionally stunted.

"Alright," Willow said, standing up. "I'll be back by eleven, okay?"

She nodded, still looking unfazed, like they hadn't just been talking about Beth's barely veiled and ever-lingering self-loathing. It had seemed to have been going so well, but then that stupid Baba had to go and ruin things because he was a jerk and that was what jerks did. Oh, if she ever found out what universe he popped off to, he was going to ge—

"Have fun," she called.

Willow smiled weakly, closing Beth's door behind her. She didn't hear anything as she walked down the hall. She half-expected to hear something break, giving her an excuse to stay behind. But not a peep out of Beth, and Willow left the house, locking the door behind her. She couldn't talk about it to Esme, as she had yet to be let in on Beth's condition. Most of the family was in the dark and she hoped things wouldn't go south when somebody finally left the cat out of the bag.

Up in her room, Beth listened as Willow's car started and pulled out of the driveway, the sound of the engine growing more distant as she drove down the road and away. She sighed, hugging a pillow. She didn't mean to worry her aunt enough to make her use her "No Nonsense" voice, but she still couldn't silent the little voice in the back of her head that assured her she was right and that Willow was wrong, beyond wrong.

She looked down at her phone, contemplating calling her dad, since he was the one she always went to when she felt this way. But then she remembered he was likely working and he didn't like Zack anyway (he'd probably throw a party if Zack moved on and met some other girl). Left alone, she crawled under her covers, texting Andrew that she didn't feel up to patrolling. She made up some lie about feeling under the weather before throwing the phone across the room and listening as it made a dull thunk against the wood of her desk. She winced, hoping it wasn't damaged. After she broke the last one's screen (accidentally; how was she supposed to know those things were so damn breakable, seeing as all people ever seemed to do was drop them?), her dad had threatened to not buy her a new one if she broke another one. "Use some cans an' a string," he had replied when she asked how else she was supposed to get in contact with people.

She curled up into a ball, hearing the phone vibrate as Andrew replied, pushing her negative thoughts from her head and falling asleep.