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Amanda

He'd been silent for a long time. Neither of us spoke a word. He just continued to hold my hands in his, sweeping his thumb over my delicate fingers gingerly. The two of us sat Indian-style in the stillness of the hallway, facing each other.

I hung my head, glaring down at the cold floorboards beneath us as the chill trickled through my thick pants and touched my skin. When I looked back up, Finn's concerned green eyes passed over me quickly, before he flashed me a weak, worthless smile. Yet it left even quicker than I had anticipated.

"I …I can't protect you guys." He said quietly, puppy-like eyes staring apologetically back at me.

I nodded slowly, "I know. And that's okay, you know that, right? You've been our leader for a long time now." I giggled, nudging his leg with my foot when he looked away. "It's time to give someone else a chance. Don't you think?"

He laughed shortly, still seemingly upset that he was weaker than the rest of us. I sighed, leaning forward and cupping his face with a single hand, letting my fingers brush over his cheek gently.

"You're strong. You'll fight this off. It won't be long before you're running this show again. But until then, just let someone else take the lead." I whispered, moving in closer to him so that I was almost sitting in his lap.

His smile lit up the room, that very same adorable grin that I had fallen in love with. The one that made me say yes when he asked me to help him sneak into Disney to find the other DHI's years before.

"Someone like my gorgeous girlfriend?"

I cocked an eyebrow at him, smirking. "I've studied a true master for long enough. I think it's time to break out that whole heroine archetype." My lips traced the side of his face, trailing slowly along the edge of his jaw, then onto his lips. I think I had convinced him enough.

"I'd say it's ready for the student to become the master." He whispered, chuckling. Arms wrapped warmly around me, pulling me the rest of the way. So close I was lost in his green depths. And I could feel his pulsating heart, thumping in his chest. And his shaky body was nearly pinned down by my own.
I giggled, looking away and holding my gaze on the wall to keep from catching a glimpse of the handsome, ragingly attractive boy in front of me. "Stop being such a goof, Finn."

As I propped myself back up and his hands still held loosely onto my hips, I could feel his grin radiate through the air without even giving it a glance. Reluctantly, I took hold of his hands and slowly pulled them away, never looking away from his eyes. "Hands to yourself, kid." I whispered with a small laugh.

In return, he smirked. But just as he opened his mouth to say something, someone shouted out in the other room. "That's not even remotely funny, Maybeck! Whoever –whatever- is up there can kill us for all we know." Jess growled

"I'm sorry. I was just joking around."

"Donnie, just cut it out, okay? This really just isn't a time to mess around." Charlene stated calmly.

"So you're siding with her now?"

I sighed, standing up and dusting myself off, before held Finn up as well. "Looks like I should get in there." I indicated a point on my shirt as though there was a badge of some sort. "As honorary new leader and all."

Mock-pouting, he stood up, shakily, and chuckled.

"Okay. One thing first, though?"

"What?"

He leaned in and kissed me- on the cheek, that is. He pulled me into a hug and it took everything I had to stop myself from just lacing my fingers through his hair and kissing him again- after all, I did have work to do, now, and I couldn't stand here all day. He let his head fall on my shoulder, kissed my neck, and whispered,

"You go do what you have to. I know you can, so don't doubt yourself." He backed out of the hug, smirked at me, and slowly made his way back to the living room. "I'm gonna go keep Wills company."

I nodded, sighing, and walked into the kitchen.

"All I'm saying is it's probably just like a closet of sorts. Maybe there's something valuable in there." Maybeck said.

"No- There's a shadow! In my dream!" Jess shoved the book in his face.

"What if it was just a nightmare, Jess?" Maybeck said. "A bad dream. You have those a lot, don't you? More often than Jess dreams?"

It was true; ever since 'Jez' had disrupted her life, she'd have dreams she'd wake up screaming from, much to Jeannie's annoyance and my heart break. But Jess just glared.

"I know what a nightmare feels like and I know what a vision feels like!"

"What if it's nothing?" Maybeck said. "Wait- even if it is something, what are you expecting us to do!? Pack up and leave!?"

"N-.. Y-… I don't know!" Jess said. "Ugh!" She slammed her fist into the table- she must be really angry- and sat down. They resorted to staring at one another for a while; occasionally switching our stares to the next person. I rolled my eyes, still trying to figure out what to do.

"Maybe it's a ghoooosttt." Maybeck said in a mocking-spooky voice.

"Donnie. Stop." Donnie?

"So you're siding with her now?" He growled.

"I'm not siding with anyone. I'm just saying, look at her." Charlie motioned at Jess. She shot her a confused look. Look at me for what? "She looks pretty serious- she's obviously not joking- and we should be concerned."

"So you are siding with her. Come on! It's pr-"

"Alright. Shut up, all of you." I said. "Let me see the journal…." It was handed to me. "I think… I think we need to see what's in there."

"Manda!" Jess yelled. "It could kill us!"

"Jess, do you believe in ghosts and myths and all that crap?" Philby said.

"I believe in serial killers!"

"Locked in a room?"

"Okay- Maybe not serial killers. And maybe you don't believe in supernatural things. But did you believe someone could see the future? Or… Or levitate? Did you believe that carton villains can come to life and kill people? Because you sure as hell didn't until sixth grade, however many years ago."

We stared at her. She got mad.

"What!? You think I'm crazy, or something!?" She nearly shrieked.

Attempting to calm her down, I started to say 'No, we're just looking out for you', but I could not find the words.

"I'm not!" She said, "I'm not crazy!"

"We didn't say you were, Jessie…" Charlie tried.

"You're staring… I'm going for a walk!" She started to leave the kitchen, heading for the door, but I caught her arm.

"No, you are not. No one goes anywhere alone, anymore, got it?" I looked around the group, making sure everyone understood. They nodded, a bit shocked.

"But-"

"You're going to sit in the living room with Willa and Finn, and we're going to continue life as normal until we figure out what to do with that door. Got it?"

The three others either nodded, or mumbled a soft 'yeah'.

She clenched her fists. She looked like a little kid trying not to have a meltdown.

"Jess." I whispered. "Calm.. Calm yourself down, okay? Why are you so mad?"

"I don't… I don't know!"

"Alright… Go in the living room."

She nodded, looking back at everyone. "I'm.. sorry. I don't really know what just happened."

….

A scream pierced through the house. I shot out of my sleep, out of Finns arms, immediately running into the smaller bedroom.

Jess sat, shaking, on the bed, her hands over her face. Charlie sat next to her, trying to comfort her or talk to her or help her, I don't know.

"What!? What's wrong!? Jessie?" I whispered. I sat on the bed in front of her, grabbing her hands. She threw her arms around me, buried her face in my neck, and sobbed.

Charlie sat against the wall; Willa (who hadn't even stirred from her sleep) curled into her. She had a hand on the girl's shoulder, looking at Jess sympathetically.

What happened? I mouthed to Char.

A dream, I think. She mouthed back.

For the first time, I noticed the boys standing in the doorway.

"It's alright. I've got her. Go back to sleep."

They mumbled groggy 'Okay's and left.

"Jess, what happened? Did you have a dream?" I whispered.

She nodded.

"A Jess dream?" Charlie muttered.

"I… I don't know…" Jess said, a fresh round of tears bubbling to the surface.

"You don't know? Hun, how is that-"

"It seemed so real. But it… it can't be. It was a nightmare, I th- I think." She cried.

"Okay, well, Jess, if it's a nightmare, it's not real and it can't hurt you. Why are you so shaken up?"

"I don't… I… There were shadows, Manda. Like ghosts. But shadows…"

"Like the one in your dream about the house?" I mumbled, keeping my voice soft.

"Y-Yeah…"

"So, maybe, do you think that one was just a dream, too?"

She nodded, her face still pressed into my neck.

"We'll get that door open and find out." I said. I felt her tense. "Hun, it probably is completely safe. It was probably a nightmare."

She just shrugged.

"Manda?"

"Yeah?"

"Please stay here?"

What was so terrifying she wanted me to stay with her? She hasn't said that to me since she was eight.

"Of course…" I muttered. She nodded, taking a deep breath. She kept her face against my neck, and I lay back onto the bed. Jess snuggled into me.

…

"We have to get that room open. It's killing her." Philby said. Me, him, Maybeck, and Charlie were gathered in a small circle in the kitchen.

"I know. She's really shaken up. I'm almost positive it's completely safe- she's having nightmares." I whispered. "And… and I don't know. It's like she can't tell the difference between nightmares, her Fairlie dreams, and… you know. Reality."

Charlie bit her lip.

"But the shadow. What if it really was a 'Fairlie' dream?" She whispered.

"She did have the dream a while ago, like a few days." Maybeck said. "Before the nightmares. It might be real."

"I know my sister." I said. "It wasn't real."

"You can't be sure." Charlie glared.

"Either way, we need to see what's in that room. I agree with Amanda."

"It could force us out of the house!" She fought.

"I think it's locked for a reason." Maybeck said. "Leave it."

I shook my head.

"No. We're opening it. Dangerous or not, we need to know. I know my sister. I know that it was just a nightmare. We'll get the hammer from the garage and knock it open. Got it?"

Charlene glared. No one refused.

"Good."

Philby.

I stood in front of the door with a sledgehammer.

Swinging it down on the locks would break them. All of them. Might take a while. A little stress on my muscles. But I've got plenty of strength.

So why can't I do it?

I sighed, sitting against the opposite wall, sledgehammer across my lap.

It was quiet. Charlie and Maybeck had wanted no part of this. They were outside. Amanda was with me until Jess had figured out what we were doing, had run up the stairs, and begged for me not to. Amanda had to pull her downstairs to calm her down.

Which was another thing- Jess was probably the single strongest girl I knew. I've seen her get her flesh ripped open by a pirate's cutlass and still get back up and beat him.

So when she's begging, pleading, crying for me not to open a door…

Well, I really don't want to open that door.

Alright. So say this goes bad. I hit whatever comes at me with a sledgehammer and get everyone out.

It could be Overtakers. Overtaker magic. I can't fight that on my own.

But if it was, then it was hiding, waiting for the perfect moment to strike. To hurt us.

My stomach dropped.

I have to.

I stood, bringing the hammer back. I swung it down. First lock, done. Second. Third was a bit harder. I bit my lip.

Fourth.

My hand closed around the door handle. I turned, took a breath, and threw it open.

Immediately, I jumped back. The door hit the wall and I jumped again.

Darkness. That's all it was. The curtains were drawn, and I could barely see three feet into the room. Taking a deep breath, I stepped in.

The room was freezing- considering it was nowhere near the fireplace on the first floor, I wasn't surprised. The floorboards creaked underneath me.

Making my way, further into the chilly, dark room, I felt something watching me. Eyes on my back. Forcing myself to keep going, I went for the window, to let some light in.

I crashed into a piece of furniture- a desk, or dresser, or something, and let out a quiet curse. God, that hurt. I'll have bruises tomorrow.

Walking around that and stepping more carefully, I continued towards the window. The floor creaked behind me. I swallowed.

It was probably just you.

Something hit the ground near the desk, and I sprinted the last few feet, ripping open the curtains, and turned to see the dark shadow of a figure staring at me in the newly acquired light.

I screamed.

"Whoah!"

"Phil!" The figure laughed. My eyes adjusted to the light.

"Holy crap, Willa! You scared the living crap out of me!"

She raised her eyebrows.

"You guys didn't tell me you were opening the lock room. I wanted to help!"

I noticed, she was hunched over and leaning on- yes, it was a desk- that I'd crashed into.

"That's because you're hurt." I whispered, running to her and looping an arm around her waist. I started to help her back to the bedroom.

"No, Phil- Just.. let me sit in the desk chair. I wanna see what you find in here."

I sighed.

"Fine."

As she sat, I could finally look around the dimly lit room. Against one wall was a row of bookcases, the other a few paintings. The center of the room was a desk, its chair facing away from the one big window. Ugly, old-fashioned wallpaper decked out the room, and a disgusting carpet.

"It's a study." I mumbled.

She nodded.

"Look in the bookcase."

I did as she told, and realized something. The books didn't look real.

"They don't…"

"They're not. Do you see the hinges? They're little compartments."

Making my way over, I saw that, yes, she'd been right. I flipped the top open on one of them.

Fake ID's. And Passports. And birth certificates and legal documents.

Next box- money. Canadian Dollars, U.S. money, Euros, Pounds, everything.

"Wills… This guy must've been a fugitive." I made my way down to the last compartment. I flipped it open.

A gun.

I bit my lip.

"So this guy's interesting." Willa whispered, now shakily standing behind me.

Slowly, I nod.

Charlene.

"Don't you think it would have been a good idea to bring Jess along?" I asked Amanda as we sluggishly marched through the thick snow on the ground. After the storm the night before, it just seemed so much worse, with snow past our knees. It almost appeared as if the white fluffiness could fall off the tall braches and just swallow me whole. "She's so on-edge from the whole locked room business. It might have gotten her mind off things."

"I don't think it would have helped much. Getting her mind off a problem with another problem?" She replied, eyelids fluttering with exhaustion. We were all so tired and beat up, left without the slightest bit of energy from the days without food. That's why we were pacing through the thick forest, looking for something to eat. "Plus, I think it's nice that she's there to keep Finn company."

"Phil and Willa are there too."

"Yeah, but I really don't think that they'll be paying much attention." Amanda stated, then realized what she had said when I sent her a particularly quizzical glance. "Ew, no! I mean because Willa's hurt and Phil's looking in the room upstairs, Char. They're not even dating."

I laughed, giving her a good-humored shove. "I know, moron. I was just kidding."

"And anyways, Finn and Jess just don't really get along as well as they should. I mean, not that they don't get along, but he's my boyfriend and she's my sister and they never talk. Maybe if she takes care of him a while, she'll be able to have a conversation with him that doesn't involve teasing him about me."

We stopped quickly as Maybeck signaled to us. She and I stood perfectly still, eyes darting left and right trying to sense whatever had pushed him to make us halt. Then realizing there was no real danger, motioned for us to continue.

"Do you really think we can kill some animal? I mean, we don't even have any tools."

"Yeah, like I need some dumb old spear to kill a little woodland creature." Maybeck scoffed. "There's power in these hands."

I rolled my eyes at the idiot that walked partly in front of us, knowing Amanda's reaction was the same.

"I can't believe your dating that dork." She muttered to me, though we both knew she was just joking.

He and I connected in a way that was just so…present. I don't know, it just kind of felt like an optical illusion where you can stare at it for years and think the image is a rabbit and then one day just realize that it's actually a duck. It sounds cheesy, but it was this one day patrolling where I just knew.

"What was that?" Maybeck called back to us, obviously hearing her.

"Nothing." She responded in an almost taunting voice as we giggled a moment.

"Speaking of dating, what's with you and Finn?" I asked, curious, though it almost sounded accusing the way it came out.

"What do you mean?" Amanda asked, surprised eyes latched onto my every movement. It didn't take much to put her in a defensive mood. I guess that was just a side effect from hunger: moodiness.

"I don't know, it's just that you're kind of babying him. Like you suddenly just decided to take charge and pegged him as a follower."

"Okay, wait a minute," Eyes glistening with a distinct flicker like the ember that sparks a wildfire, "I just made him stay because I know he's sick and I care about him. And just because he's been leader for so long doesn't mean that someone can't step up when he's down."

"Hey, Amanda, I'm not saying you can't." I eased her down from her ire, "Just forget I said it, that wasn't right of me to judge."

She opened her mouth to say something but was cut off by Maybeck calling back to us. "I hear water, like a river or something not far away. We can try to catch some fish, maybe leave a trail so we can come back later with containers to get water."

"We're coming." I shouted back in his general direction as he treaded deeper into the forest. When I turned back to Amanda, despite the fact that she had since fallen silent, I knew that there was some cinder of anger that was just waiting to be stoked into fervor of fury.

As we continued towards Maybeck, the sound of the stream became louder until it was an uproar of water. "How did you…?"

Maybeck, standing triumphantly along the side of the river, held up the pocket knife with a decent-sized fish on its end. The blade hadn't been long enough to pierce it through and through, but blood was already beginning to ooze down onto his hand. Being a tad squeamish, I cringed a bit. But, somehow it felt less repugnant than finding a dead bunny.

Several minutes later, Maybeck and Amanda were discussing how to ration the two fish we'd caught. We'd decided it wouldn't be easy to get any more and it was already getting too dark to stay outside. So the catch we ended up with wasn't a feast, but it would have to do. As they talked on the side, I sat quietly by the bank, observing the fierce flow of the water.

It wasn't crystal blue, mostly white actually from the tossing and turning, the foam forming on top. But that must have been one of the reasons it hadn't been frozen over, constant movement. Stillness made one weak.

I found myself, however, unable to focus on the true beauty of everything around me with the unnerving hunger in me and painful desire to get back inside where it was warm. I could hear my stomach growling over the gaudy river. But as I leaned my head back and closed my eyes, my mouth near salivating while imagining the juicy taste of fish, I heard another sound.

A howl.

I glanced back at Amanda and Maybeck, receiving reactions that clearly showed they had heard it too. Amanda nodded towards the direction of the cabin, obviously wanting to get back. She looked anxious, probably appearing the same way I felt. Another howl, this time MUCH closer, and Amanda came over quickly to pull me to my feet as we made a mad dash for the cabin.

"Amanda, I think we can stop a minute. Running will just get its attention." We both slowed and looked back to see Maybeck right behind us. Something felt really off about the noise, though. Almost as if I'd heard it before, like an individual kind of yowl I was familiar with.

"They're fake." I whispered to myself, breathless with revelation. It couldn't be.

"What?" Maybeck asked, overhearing me.

"T-the wolves. What if they're not real? I mean like not from here. Come on, Frozen, Beauty and the Beast. There are a lot of wolves in Disney movies."

"Char, I think the hunger is getting to you." Amanda laughed, causing me to glare at her to the point that she noticeably tensed.

"I'm not crazy. There's something off about those howls. It's almost as if we're meant to hear them. What if," I stopped lowering my voice. "What if the Overtakers found us here?"

"You're delusional." Amanda alleged, continuing towards the cabin. "Let's head back."

"What? You're just going to ignore that possibility?" I asked heatedly.

"Yeah, pretty much." She smirked back at me, something that irked me in such a way I wanted to slap her clean across the face.

"Who put you in charge?" I screamed at her. Maybeck put a hand on my back, trying to calm me but I shrugged it off.

With the most self-satisfied smirk I'd ever seen on her face, she stated, "My boyfriend."

…

"We're back." I said as we all made our way through the front door of the cabin. As Amanda pushed past me, anger built up from the back of my heart forth. Ignoring it as best I could, I turned back to Maybeck as he held up our kill. "Got food."

"Hey," Philby welcomed, coming out from the kitchen, "Just bring it in. Be quiet, though. They're sleeping." Maybeck followed him into the kitchen, taking the fish and they both began to talk about how to cook it over the fire.

I walked soundlessly into the living room, happily accepting the warmth in the confined area. Outside, the temperatures had seemed to drop even further overnight –if that was even possible- and through my many layers, I could still feel my skin numbing over with frost. An orange blaze casted hazy shadows across the wall from the fire.

The crackle of wood met my ears, leading me to turn around and find Amanda was already adding logs to the fireplace. Though it was nice to have the extra heat, I didn't appreciate the fact that, as a supposed leader, she did so without asking. But that must have just been my own irate mind because I probably wouldn't have cared at all had Finn done the same thing.

Working past the image of her smirking, I reminded myself of all the times we had hung out together and saved each other's butts on missions.

That worked a bit but that wasn't what really got me to forget her arrogance and remember that we were one big happy family. It was, instead, the scene that had unfolded before me as I adjusted to the scarcely lit area.

Finn, sound asleep, sat up in the dead center of the couch, legs stretched out in front of him trying the impossible feat of gaining traction on the smooth floor and ultimately sliding down slightly. On either side of him, his other companions as the youngest of the group. Legs brought up to her chest and toes tucked between the cushion and the armrest, Willa, swept over with slumber, leaned back against Finn's side in an unconscious attempt to keep warm. Jess, though likely to deny it later if asked, was snuggled up beside him, also asleep, her head resting lightly against his arm.

I could picture the three of them exchanging old stories, trying to get their minds off our panic-inducing ordeal. Cold as it was, I knew that I also would have wanted to settle in together for warmth. There was nothing suggestive about it, nothing innuendo-ish. Simply the fight of three friends against the chill.

What I couldn't help but notice was that for the first time in what seemed like days, Jess was composed enough to actually fall asleep. For the first time, Willa wasn't whimpering in her sleep from pain. That's what it took to be a leader. Not the title, not being bossy. It was being there for the people you cared about and having them trust you enough to let their guard down. As much as I knew Amanda loved everyone in the group, she couldn't be that for us. Be our leader.

Only Finn could do that.

….

OOOOOHHH what a chap!

SO SORRY but ya know. Life. School's hard. Hard enough when you're one person. When you're trying to work around two people's… Man it gets tough.

But I love you all, and Neon loves you all, and we hoped you've enjoyed.

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