<What the hell are you doing?>

Lucian winced at the words as he turned his head to see the spectre of Tavores hovering close to the beam that he was balancing on. What was he doing here? Did he have something he felt kind enough to share with him for once? He had been satisfied that the menace hadn't tried to contact him since he had informed him on the location of the Keys. There had been those few times where Tavores had decided to stake his dominance over their conscience, but at least then, he hadn't had to see him. If Tavores had decided to present himself to him again, that must mean that he had some serious information to discuss with him. Why else would Tavores go through all the trouble of appearing before him? Still, the last thing he needed at the moment was that haughty prince bothering him. He was actually feeling halfway decent for the first time in the past month. The height of the beam was serving as his danger fix for the day and he was swooning in the adrenaline rush as usual. Now, Tavores intended to rip him away from his drug. Why did Tavores have to go and ruin everything?

"Go away!" he grumbled, waving off the intrusive figure. "I don't want to talk to you now. I'm busy."

<Yes, busy all right. You're acting like a reckless moron as usual.>

"And you're acting like a pushy asshole as usual. Now, leave me alone."

<I have something to tell you.>

The other youth rolled his eyes at the spectre. "Of course, why else would you waste your precious time conversing with a 'reckless moron.' Well, get it over with already! The less I have to talk to you the better."

<My sentiments exactly. Now, as I was saying…Hey! Don’t do that, you’ll fall. I don’t wish to see you damage any part of this body. We need it to protect the Keys.>

"I won’t fall. I have a masterful grasp of poise and balance," claimed Lucian continuing to make his way across the beam that was supporting him above the ditch. He had found it while biking back home from school since the twins hadn’t yet been able to buy a new car. When he saw how perilously high the beam was over the pit, he just had to try it out. He needed something to do until it was time to go to work. Tashira had managed to find him a job working at a clothing store. It was mostly mind-numbingly boring, but it gave him something to keep his mind off things. His sister had told him that that was the most important thing to do right now. Forget.

<Famous last words. If you don’t quit this right now, I’m taking over by force.>

Now, the owner of the voice was something that Lucian wished he could forget. The sound of his complaint whined in his brain like some destitute child. He tossed a glance over at the ethereal form stomping his foot at his side. Since the figure was resting on nothing but air, the movement of his foot failed to disturb the stillness of the place. Smiling, he faked a slip and leaned toward the edge of the beam. The transparent brown eyes of his companion widened and he jumped toward him.

<What are you doing?>

Lucian regained his balance and laughed heartily at the thought of frightening the other form. "Boy, Tavores, for a dead guy, you sure throw a big fuss over nothing."

Tavores glared at him through his crimson hair and swiped at him, knowing that the blow would never connect. The other boy humored him and ducked, keeping most of his attention set on staying on the beam. Realizing that his efforts were a waste of time, Tavores returned to where he had been floating beside his reincarnation, sulking as he massaged his neck to lessen his anger. His fingers slipped through the short ragged strands of the back, scouring the red hexacle emblazoned in his skin. Even without a true body, it could be seen glowing through his fingers.

<You are such a witless brat! Why do have this unhealthy obsession with trying to kill us? I've been through hell and back just to get this body. You would think that someone in your position would show a bit more respect. But no, you have to pull these suicidal games all the time,> he moaned as Lucian backed up part-way on the beam and then leapt to the other side of the ditch, reaching it only by a hair’s breath of an inch. He dusted off his pants from the landing and leaned against a tree, watching Tavores gawk in horror and flap over to him. The other youth still had his splendid black wings though his hair had not been lengthened. Tavores didn’t really need anything to help him move through the air, but Lucian guessed that the wings made him feel less ghostly and more alive. The brown-eyed boy never would accept that his time was over.

"You know Taves, you really shouldn’t talk to me like this. What if people walked by and saw me having a conversation with thin air? They’d think I was crazy," he pointed out with a rebuking stare. This was kind of fun. Mocking Tavores made his visits less infuriating.

The diaphanous prince gave him a fearsome look of his own. <Not that that would be too far from the truth. You are crazy.>

"Maybe. But I don’t need you to go wrecking my reputation. I enjoy my masquerade."

<Deceive others all you want. Just stop trying to get us killed,> snapped Tavores, descending from the air and finding a place to sit upon the ground. Lucian noted his change in position. It seemed strange. Why would one want to rest on the ground like a common mortal when he could soar with the grace of eagles? If he had wings, he would certainly have his fun with them. Tavores just liked to brood. He was Dominic with a hair job.

The playful comparison caused Lucian to feel that inner lurch again. He snarled at himself for allowing his mind to travel down that path once more. Hadn’t he promised Tashira that he was fine with everything? It was true. He was just peachy. His entire life didn’t revolve around Dominic. With time, the pain would go away. He could wait until then. Lucian couldn’t let one person drag him down. There was too much around him to revel in. He had his family, his computer fun, and his danger. That was all that he had ever wanted. Everything was just fine.

It had almost been a month since his fixation had abandoned him. Things were far too busy around him to allow time for dwelling over what could have been. The car situation had posed a problem in the beginning since it was rather expensive to fix. But Tashira had solved that dilemma and now he had his new job, while Tashira had hers at a bookstore. More than likely, she had only taken the position since it gave her both the discount on merchandise and the free time to browse the novels. Tashira loved to read. He was more of a television fiend. Unless books piqued his interest really early on, he had the tendency to forget about them. If he was that desperate to know what was inside the novel, he could just rent a movie on it. That was faster and full of great visuals.

On the Guardian side of things, the Chimera hadn’t bothered to make their presence known for a while. Tyrell had mentioned something about being ambushed and rescued by Erika and Dominic. But neither of the heartless youths had told him where Dominic had gone. They said that Dominic just wanted to be left alone. What did they know? They didn’t even know Dominic. What they knew was the image he projected. That wasn’t him at all.

Erik had been acting different since her encounter with the Chimera. She had agreed to work with the Guardians in place of their missing member. Tashira had been none too excited at this idea. Working with Erik meant having to put up with her holier-than-thou attitude the whole time. Though she did seem to ease of on riling him. Maybe Erik felt that he needed time to recover. That was stupid! It wasn’t like he was in an actual relationship. Dominic refused to even regard him as a friend. With him, it was always some ulterior motive. He knew that. Why wouldn’t the other teenagers quit treading so softly around him? He wasn’t broken.

Tyrell appeared to be the only one of them who didn’t seem overly interested in comforting him. He wanted to get Lucian back into his old pattern. They had even started playing basketball again once Angelique had taken care of the injuries he had acquired in the battle with Lionelle. Sometimes Maren and Cyrus would show up for a quick game or a lesson in technique. Cyrus was a shoddy player, but he did learn fast. It had made Tyrell happy to see his new friend getting along with his old ones. Well, that was his good deed for the day. Making the youngest boy smile did do a little to take him away from his thoughts. Tyrell also helped to ward off Kat, sending Maren to occupy her or simply avoiding her by hanging out in places that she wasn’t prone to visit.

It wasn’t like Lucian didn’t want to see Kat. He just didn’t know if he was ready to deal with the false emotions that she always stirred in him. After having experienced something true and concrete, he considered it an abomination to allow him or her to delve into something that just didn’t feel right. He was still wasn’t sure what he was going to do about dating her. Everything was just so much more complicated now. Why was he letting it be? Dominic was gone so it shouldn’t matter whether he continued to date her or not. But something told him that it still did matter. It mattered a lot.

One good thing, it was good to see that Tyrell was back in spirits again. He and Angelique still appeared to be having some problems. Tyrell tried to get her to spend time around the Guardians so that she could get to know the youths that he owed his life to. But Angelique continued to elude their company and was usually very fidgety and flustered around them. She really seemed to dislike Lucian. Whenever he saw her, her lilac eyes were always boring into him as if he was some sort of sinful creature. Though Angelique did seem more scared than angry with him. What was he to her? Had Tyrell told her about Tavores? No. Tyrell would never break his promise. So why did she seem to shun him most of all?

Perhaps, she thought that he had his eyes on her cousin. He sure was around him often enough. But if Lucian had to point out who was after whom, he would have had to lay the main blame on Tyrell. Tyrell was the one who sought him out. He never believed that it was for anything more than friendly purposes. Still, in jealousy, one had a convoluted interpretation of the things around them. Angelique must have felt that her failure to relate to the Keys or the Guardians took her out of the loop with Tyrell. So she was edgy about anything that seemed to drive the wedge further between them. It was a bizarre way for cousins to act toward one another. Then again, Tashira had alluded to the possibility of them not being related through blood.

Through with categorizing his thoughts for the moment, Lucian returned his attention to the figure before him. Though Tavores couldn't produce a material form, he could make himself visible to Lucian alone by altering his conscience in some way. Lucian didn't care as long as the prince held back on the action when anybody else was around. He grinned at Tavores and stretched out upon the tree. "I’m not trying to get us killed, Tavores. It’s all in good fun," he joked, catching the self-righteous expression on the prince’s face.

<The Sun Guardian was right. You do need help.>

Lucian’s face turned bright red in fury and his eyes flared so bright that they almost glowed within their irises. "Do not bring him up! You have no right to listen to my private conversations! I don’t listen to yours."

<Only because you’re not able to. We both know that if you could, you would delight in eavesdropping on my appearances,> Tavores replied in his mocking tenor.

"Who cares? Just because you can experience what I experience doesn’t mean you have to use it against me."

<I only did it to make you stop fooling around and listen to me. I brought myself into this state so I could discuss something with you without having to wait through your torturous dreams.>

"Dreams that are your damned fault!" accused Lucian, peeling a piece of bark of the trunk and launching it at the other boy. The wood sailed through his translucent arm with no resistance at all. Tavores frowned at him and looked down at his arm.

<I would appreciate if you didn’t do that, Lucian. I don’t like to have the fact that I have no material form shoved in my face,> he beseeched as his reincarnation ignored him. <Of course, you could care less about that, couldn't you Lucian? Why must you continue to mock me like this?>

"You bore me, prince. You have no reaction to anything. And I mock you because your greatest thrill is making my life hell."

The red-haired apparition sighed and focused his eyes upon Lucian. <You should be used to such a thing by now. After all, you are the Hell Guardian,> he sneered as he examined his other self. <And I’m so sorry that you find me so uninteresting, brat. But maybe you’ll find something engaging in what I’m about to tell you. Your boy Key, Tyrell, holds the Cruce this very minute.>

Lucian blinked his eyes as his mouth dropped open. "Tye has the Cruce? How?" he sputtered, reaching up to grab Tavores’ shoulders before realizing that they were insubstantial.

<Tyrell Arteme is the descendant of the Alistars.>

No way! Tyrell was part of the same family that he had seen watching over the Destin twins in Tavores' memories. In those, all of the Alistars had been slaughtered in a raid on the castle. The Cruce had been lost forever. Now, Tavores was claiming that Tyrell had the powerful relic. Did he know how to use it? Lucian wasn’t even sure what it looked like. His dreams had always mentioned it but they had never revealed its appearance. Neither Destin had ever held the Cruce. The only thing that he knew for sure was that it was said to have immense power and was used in invocation of the spirit realm. Whether that meant demons like Armageddon or other familiars, he didn’t know.

"So the clairvoyant is an Alistar. Who would have guessed? Does he know?" the other redhead posed, gazing at Tavores in anticipation.

<He knows. I told him that he should be more careful now since we know that Vincient is controlling the Chimera. He wants the Cruce,> related Tavores, flinching at the name of his old master.

"Vincient. He’s the badass who killed you, right?"

Making a face at Lucian’s choice of words, the prince nodded his head. <Yes. He’s the one who destroyed all that I cared about and made me into the creature that became legendary for his sadism.>

"So how long have you known about this?" Lucian inquired in an absent tone, flustered by the pang of guilt that struck him as he listened to the dejection in Tavores' voice.

<Since the night of Tyrell’s concert.>

The other youth froze, eyes traveling over Tavores. Frustration started to burn inside him as he realized what the prince was saying. He had withheld this information from him all this time. Tyrell was waltzing around with the very thing that the Chimera wanted swinging from his neck and Tavores hadn’t even told him. Tavores knew his responsibility as a Guardian. How was he supposed to take proper care of the Key if he wasn’t kept up to date on what was going on with him? It was Tavores’ job to tell him everything that he discovered since the prince had more knowledge on the subject. Why had his other self not told him about this earlier?

"Wait a second, you’ve known since then and you never told me? I thought that you wanted me to be on top of these things," he spoke, his voice rising in pace with the speed of the anger racing through him.

Tavores waved his hand to say that the matter was not pertinent at the moment. <I had planned on telling you that night. But talking with the Key made me actually feel bad for you. Tyrell nagged me for so long about why it was wrong to cause your nightmares. I tried to tell him that I don’t want to cause them. They just happen because of the merging of our minds. I can’t help it. You think I like making you suffer?>

"The thought crossed my mind."

<Quit being a nuisance and be quiet. Since I couldn’t talk to you that night, I decided to talk to you the next day. If you recall, that was when you had your minor mental-crisis with that horrid boy.>

At the recollection, Lucian felt for the ring that now hung across his throat on its own woven silver chain. He had stolen the necklace from his sister’s jewelry case. She had thousands of them in all sorts of styles and lengths. This one was simple but elegant so it had seemed the perfect match to the unassuming trinket. When Tashira had first laid eyes on the ring resting below his gullet, she had seemed unnerved though she had tried to hide it. It was the same way whenever she would look at him now. Her eyes would fall to the ring and that brief look of unease would pass through her eyes. Tashira didn’t like to see him wearing it. It was possible that she knew whom it was from.

"Do not call him things like that?" he growled, glowering at the unmoved Tavores. "You don’t know him."

<You forget, Lucian, I know everything that goes on in your life. I see everything that you see and hear everything that you here. I know just as much about your insolent ‘Nicky’ as you do,> reminded the prince, his voice full of disgust.

"You can’t call him that. You’re not me," Lucian said with a narrowing of his dark red eyes.

<You don’t know how much I wish that were true, boy. If I weren’t you than I wouldn’t have the memory of having that bastard’s lips crushed against mine.>

A smile of sheer satisfaction graced Lucian’s visage. "Oh, so you enjoyed that kiss, did you? I found it very invigorating myself. Too bad, I never tried it before."

Tavores coughed hoarsely as his eyes burned like two scalding orbs of molten lava. <You disgust me, Lucian. A boy. And you don’t even care!>

"I swear, Taves. If you didn’t have one thing to criticize me on, I would drop dead from shock."

<Don’t you have any shred of moral decency?>

"Not listening...." sang Lucian, holding his hands to his ears.

<In all my years, of all the people I could have been reincarnated as, I get the gay one. As if the hair wasn’t bad enough,> Tavores raved, smacking himself in the forehead. <What did I ever do to deserve this?>

"Actually, I would rate myself as more of a bi. I have had my fun with the ladies," heckled his reincarnation, thrilled at a chance to get on Tavores’ nerves. It helped lessen the tension of the conversation and made it easier to laugh at. That way, it couldn’t hurt.

<Just shut up! We’re not talking about this anymore. I’m getting sick.>

"All this over one little kiss. Talk about overreacting."

The shade of the prince rose back up on his wings, looming over the other boy. His brown eyes shot daggers at the youth as he drove one fist into his palm. <If you don’t stop talking about this, I’m going to take over and then you can have your little celebration party inside your own conscience.>

Lucian lifted his eyes to him and tossed him a demonic smirk. "Try it," he challenged, letting the prince know that he was willing to fight for possession. The resolve in his eyes dissuaded Tavores and he fluttered back down to the ground, cursing softly to himself. Lucian beamed in triumph and twiddled with the ring. "That’s better. So you’re trying to tell me that the reason that you didn’t tell me such a crucial thing as Tyrell owning the Cruce because you were having a hissy fit about one measly kiss? You have to be the shallowest person I know."

<This discussion is closed. I’m going to tell you one more thing before I leave you to your sickening musings,> Tavores retorted, closing his ebony wings against himself.

"And what is that, pray tell?"

<The Cruce is the same cross that Tyrell is always seen with. Vincient intends to use it to resurrect the deity Evangel. If he does, nothing would be able to stand in his way.>

"There’s that name again. Tye said it before. Who is this Evangel?" asked the other boy, resting his head against his elbows.

<Ask your Key. I’m through with you for now,> the prince barked as his figure dematerialized into a few floating pellucid feathers that cascaded to the dirt and faded away.

The remaining youth was elated that Tavores had promised not to bother him for a while. Talking with the prince was just too demoralizing. Tavores never had anything pleasant to say. He wondered if his other self had acted this way when he was alive. It must have been hard for his sister and the Alistars to stand him. On the other hand, his personality could have undergone serious reconstruction after his dealings with Vincient and his subsequent death. That sort of thing would have changed anybody. One couldn’t exactly be expected to be Mr. Happy-Sunshine after that kind of life. Tavores did have his excuse. Lucian just wished that the prince didn’t always have to choose to take out his misery on him. He did a prime job of providing enough misery for himself.

Sometimes, he did find himself regretting the fact that he could not touch Tavores. He really wanted to throttle him after the youth had had the nerve to bring up that night with Dominic, knowing fully well how much it agonized him to remember. For that split moment that he believed that the older boy was going to stay with him, he had felt better than he had ever felt in his life. He didn’t need danger or style or skill or anything. All that he needed was to know that Dominic was right next to him and wasn’t trying to hide from him anymore. That had been heaven. He wanted it back. No matter how many times he tried to forget, he still wanted it back.

All of the others were right. He wasn’t over it. He would never be over it. How could he forget the one thing that had ever made him so completely content? Dominic wasn’t going to come back. He knew that. It wasn’t like he didn’t understand. He just didn’t want to understand. As long as he didn’t consent, he could still hope. What else could he do?

He raised the ring on its chain and stared at the sparkling amethyst rock in the center. That color. So dark and foreboding, yet so resplendent and alluring. It suited Dominic more than he could ever know. Lucian ran his finger over the glazed jewel, tipping back his head to gaze at the opulent afternoon sky.

"Nicky."

*~*~*~*~*~*

Tyrell chugged down the water that Angelique had given him. She made a present effort to come to all his mini-games with Lucian and the others. Though she never got close until they had left. Screwing the cap back on the water bottle, Tyrell handed it to his cousin and checked on his watch. Classes would start in ten minutes. That gave him enough time to try to coerce her into relinquishing the broach. He had been holding it off for long enough. Things were getting odd with the Guardians. Dominic had left and Erik had joined them as a definite member. Tashira always appeared to be calculating something in her mind and Lucian was somewhat abstracted most of the time. It would be a good thing to get the pendant before anything started to result from these changes.

He softly grasped her hand and took her over to the side of Carthala’s courtyard. Not that many students chose to hang out there. They were usually chattering away on the steps of the entrance or in the parking lot. Tyrell motioned to the grass and both youths dropped to a sitting position on the soft surface. The boy kept whipping his fingers through his hair and exhaling distraught puffs of air. Angelique gave him an affected look and touched the top of his right hand. He hoped that she didn’t pick up the minuscule tremors rolling over the knuckles and bones as he devised a method of reaching his objective.

"Is there something that you need, Tye?" the silver-haired girl questioned in her tempered tone, studying her cousin as he took a deep breath.

"Uh...yeah...there is. Remember your broach?" Tyrell began, a flush coming over him.

Keeping her palm over his skin, Angelique pulled out her necklace and pointed to the exquisite pin suspended by the Amethyst. "You mean this thing? What about it?"

This was going to be harder than he had thought. The boy nodded lightly and picked up the broach in his fingers, paying close attention to the letter engraved on its bottom. "I think you should give it to me," he said quickly, wanting to get this over with as soon as possible.

"Why? It was my gift. Besides Tye, it’s just jewelry. Why would you want it?" Angelique mulled, taking her trinket from Tyrell.

"It was a gift of a Chimera. That makes it bad," Tyrell urged, knowing that Angelique wouldn’t buy that explanation. He could sense her anxiety as her hand began to slide away from his.

"I’ve had it all this time and nothing has happened. You don’t need to worry about it."

Her companion fought with the desire to snatch the jewel away from her. "You still shouldn’t take the chance. I don’t know why Fang gave it to you but whatever the reason is, it can’t be good. I’ll get rid of it for you."

"NO!" the girl yelled, pushing Tyrell away from her with both hands. "It’s mine just like the Amethyst! You can’t have either!"

"You don’t understand, Angie. I have to get that thing away from you. It’s the possession of a very evil person. You don’t want to be connected to him at all," Tyrell shouted, grabbing at the necklace.

"But it’s mine! It has always been mine. I can feel it calling to me. If you want me to give it up, then you give up your cross," Angelique demanded, holding her hand against the broach, and blocking his fingers from reaching it.

"Angie! Are you even listening to yourself? You’re acting so strange. You run away from my friends. You spend all your time fooling with your new jewelry. It’s starting to feel like there’s this empty space between us. There’s something about you that I’m not a part of."

"What about all your time as a Key? You never let me be a part of that before I found the Amethyst."

Tyrell cringed and turned from Angelique. He had kept his work as a Key a secret from her for a while. She had been forced to accept lie after lie from him. Why wouldn’t she see this as the same thing? Still, Angelique wasn’t the type to hold a grudge. She was always so forgiving and let things roll by since she was afraid of upsetting people. Over the time he had spent dealing with this Cruce business, she had begun to change. Tyrell truly believed that it was her jewelry that was causing the shift in personality. After all, the broach had belonged to Vincient and that other strange character Evangel. Tavores hadn’t been joking when he had stressed the exigency of getting the broach away from her.

"Please give me the broach, Angie. I don’t want to fight with you anymore. It makes me feel horrible," he implored, caressing the girl with his docile emerald eyes.

Angelique put a hand on her head and shook it to the side. "I don’t want to fight with you either, Tye," she whispered in a husky timbre.

The mahogany-haired youth put his arm around her shoulder and rested his nose on the bridge of hers. "So you’ll give it to me then."

"Tye, I...."

Not waiting for her answer, Tyrell undid the clasp in the back of the chain and slid the necklace off. Angelique’s eyes flew up to his hands, burning with an unknown emotion. Then, she ripped the necklace away with one hand and used the other to capture his cross. Tyrell let out a scream of surprise, back-pedaling on his feet as Angelique’s hold caused his chain to chafe at his neck so hard that he could feel a tiny line of blood beading in the back.

"Angie! What are you doing? Let go!" he cried, catching her wrist in a tight grip. But when he looked up at her, he was horrified to see the blankness in her eyes. They seemed to take on a much darker hue so that they almost reached the level of black. The fingers wrapped around the Cruce were stark white and they were pressed against the skin so deep that the white crescent of each nail was hidden from view. Dark blood red ran down her hand, splashing onto his. Its warmth spread under his fingers and he jerked his hand away with another scream. "Angie!"

The cross was burning strongly enough for him to feel the heat on his chest though Angelique held the item away from his flesh. Pain flared across the area, making him wince and try to pull away. Tears built in his eyes from the sheer torture of the Cruce’s power. They spilled over his eyelids, creating wavy tracks down his cheeks. It hurt so much. How could he make it stop?

Angelique remained motionless as she held the cross, barely even breathing. Her eyes were totally black now and they leered at him like a pair of emotionless onyxes. She didn’t seem to be going through anything like he was. In fact, she seemed to be relishing the power rushing out of the relic. Her face curved into a blissful smile. It was hard to see from all the pain clawing at his chest. He made another flimsy attempt to pry her fingers from the Cruce’s surface, but Angelique refused to let go.

"Angie...please..." Tyrell panted, his voice choked with suffering. He was starting to lose it. How much more of this could he take? His cousin’s face blurred before his eyes and he felt himself falling backwards.

"Tye!" a voice yelled into the courtyard, though the sound seemed like a dull echo in his ears.

Suddenly, he collapsed against the grass, feeling the scorching sensation waning. A pair of soft arms lifted him from the ground. He sensed a light touch upon his forehead, moving away his bangs to grant better access to the skin. Red embers of light spun before him as something tugged at his hand.

"Tye! Come on buddy, talk to me," the first voice entreated, its purring tenor resonating through his faulty hearing.

"Please Tye! Show me you’re okay!" wailed another voice. This second noise had a more tender ring to it.

Tyrell forced his eyes to flutter open and observed Lucian propping him against his chest as Angelique kneeled by his side, holding her cousin’s hand. Blood still ran from her hand, forming a curvy line down to her elbow. But her eyes had returned to clear lilac, lacking any sign of the blackness that had befallen them moments ago. The stoic visage had also vanished, being replaced by one of anguished fear. His cross was once again situated against his shirt, having lost its savage heat.

"What happened Tye?" Lucian encouraged, removing his hand from Tyrell’s forehead. "I heard you screaming and then saw you faint next to Angelique here. Are you okay? And what the hell happened to Angelique’s hand?"

The silver-haired youth jerked her hand away from Tyrell and backed up, as if noticing Lucian’s presence for the first time. She wiped at the streak of blood on her arm and glared at the redhead. Her hand fell to the Amethyst and she wound her slender fingers around the jewel.

"Tye doesn’t...he doesn’t need...you to help him. I can look after him just fine," Angelique scolded, tripping over her words in her anxiety.

Lucian looked wounded as he pushed the youngest teenager back into an upright position and started to move away. "I was worried about him, Angelique. I am his friend." His posture stiffened and he searched the girl with cryptic eyes. "Come to think of it, he was yelling at you when he collapsed. What was going on? What did you do?"

Accusation poured from his tone and Tyrell slowly turned his head to face him. He didn’t like what was going on. Lucian was blaming Angelique for what had happened. His friend knew that Angelique was involved somehow and her immediate resentment toward him seemed to indicate that her involvement was bad. Angelique had sensed the power of the Cruce. Tyrell was positive about that much. Something about the item had taken hold of her in those minutes. She had not been Angelique at all, but some other entity. What had happened?

He was afraid then. If Angelique had felt the essence of the relic, then he couldn’t let Lucian know. The Guardians were wary enough of his cousin as it was. Ever since that time that she had cast the spell on Dominic and Lupe, they had watched her with the eyes of hawks. They suspected her of having to do with something sinister. She was a liability to them. Dominic feared her and even Tashira had been curious to learn more about her. They would not take the knowledge that she had caused the Cruce to revolt against him lightly.

There had to be a way to get Lucian off this topic. Later, he could talk to Angelique about what had happened and perhaps get her side of the story. If she had discovered that his necklace held the Cruce, they could talk about it. They might even be able to determine how Angelique was related to any of this. But that would have to be settled between just the two of them. Whether Lucian liked it or not, Tyrell would not allow this to become Guardian business.

"She didn’t do anything, Lucian," Tyrell fibbed, moving his eyes to the ground so that Lucian wouldn’t be able to see through his falsehood. "I was yelling at her and I got a terrible headache. That’s why I fell down. It wasn’t Angie’s fault at all."

His friend seethed and pointed at Angelique with an inflamed jerk of his finger. "Then why didn’t she try to help you until I shouted out your name? She was just standing there, watching you suffer. What's wrong with her? You’re her best friend."

"I was confused," whimpered Angelique, her shoulders shaking noticeably. "I didn’t know what had happened. Everything was just so quick." She looked over at Tyrell as her eyes wandered down to the black cross. Her hand closed over the Amethyst. "And I wouldn’t accuse anyone, Lucian. You’re not the most trustworthy person yourself," she threatened in a voice that was very different from her own.

"And just what do you mean by that?" the older boy hissed, making an attempt to advance toward her.

Tyrell stumbled in front of him and blocked his path. "Don’t! Angelique’s just scared. That’s why she’s saying such weird things. She doesn’t mean any of it. She was just spooked by my passing out. Please don’t get angry with her."

"Where does she get off saying that stuff to me? I just wanted to help you. That’s what friends do. I’m tired of her acting like I’m some sort of plague. I’m not a bad person!" Lucian roared, shame etched across his face. "Why does she run away? I don’t want anyone else to run from me! What did I do wrong? What did I do?"

The green-eyed boy knew that Lucian was no longer talking about just Angelique. He was talking about his partner. Lucian was afraid of forcing others away the way that he believed he had done to Dominic. How could his friend blame himself? It was Dominic who had made the choice to leave. Lucian had to know that. Why was he acting like this? Dominic had always been so mean to him. Why did he care so much if the boy was gone? Yes, he was his partner, but Lucian had worked with just Tashira before and they had been able to manage things. He didn’t even seem like he was worried about the Guardian issue. Lucian missed Dominic himself.

"Tyrell doesn’t need someone like you around him. You are a hazard to yourself and others. I don’t want you to press your suicidal behavior on my Key," the girl snarled, getting Tyrell’s attention.

Her Key? What was she talking about? Only his Guardians had ever addressed him by that title. She was treating him like a possession. What was more, she was berating Lucian. How could Angelique be saying any one of these things? She usually just avoided the boy or disappeared whenever he showed up. Now, she was using such vicious words against him? He had to do something.

"Angie, leave Lucian alone. He’s been through a rough time," he placated her as Angelique gave a cold laugh.

"Rough time? That’s a good one, he should be glad his partner’s gone. You were always griping about how Dominic smacked him around, Tyrell. Besides, your strongest Guardian shouldn’t be associating with someone of Lucian’s blood. It’s tainted," she drawled as the black veil started to cloud her eyes again. Tyrell was too stunned to speak. Beside him, Lucian snarled and he knocked his friend to the side, eyes glistening with near hysteria. He looked like he was ready to attack Angelique as he stood feet away from her, breathing hard and bringing his hand to the ruby globule.

"What makes you say these things, Angelique?" he spat, having obvious trouble keeping his voice calm.

"Like I wouldn’t know what you are. I can...."

Racing forward, Tyrell screamed at his cousin and threw her to the ground. Before she could fight against him, he curled his fingers around her necklace and ripped it off with all his might. Angelique howled and kicked at him, snatching for the chain with tearing nails. Tyrell pulled the rest of the chain away, separating the girl from the broach as well as the Amethyst. He awkwardly shoved the necklace with its charms into his pocket and leapt up, allowing Angelique to return to her feet. The darkness that had been descending over her eyes was gone again and she looked mortified.

"Tye I...." she started as her voice broke from her shock. Tears flooded her eyes and she turned around and fled from the two boys.

"Angie!" moaned Tyrell, spinning to the side to give chase. A loud buzz roared through the courtyard, announcing the start of the day. He was late. But that fact was the last thing on his mind. He needed to get to Angelique. "Angie, wait for me!"

Lucian lurched forward and wrapped his fingers around Tyrell’s shirt, flinging him backward. Baffled, the younger boy turned to address his friend. The redhead’s eyes were filled with betrayal and disbelief.

"You told her," he whispered as the other youth stared at him, flabbergasted.

"Lucian, let go. I need to go after Angie. She’s not well."

"You promised me that you wouldn’t tell anyone!" bellowed Lucian, yanking his fingers off Tyrell’s clothes with such ferocity that they almost tore the fabric. "How could you tell her?"

Immediately, Lucian’s accusation became clear to him. Lucian thought that he had told Angelique about his connection with Tavores. But he hadn’t told his cousin. He had promised his friend and would never think of hurting him by backing out on it. Yet it was true that Lucian had a reason to believe that he had told. The words that Angelique had spoken seemed to hint toward Lucian not being human. How did she know about that? She hardly even spent time around Lucian so great was her aversion to him. And her manner in those moments had been foreign to him. What were Angelique’s prized possessions doing to her? He was glad that he had managed to get both jewels. Maybe, Angelique could return to her normal self again. It had to be just the jewels that were doing this to her. Nothing else made any sense.

Tavores had known about the pendant. There was the slight chance that he could tell him more about the pieces later. That was if he could convince Lucian that he had not betrayed him. The older boy looked caught between the need for retribution and the desire to keep his friend. His unsteady red eyes trained on Tyrell as he moved backward, lowering his hand.

"Why?" Lucian asked so low that it was hard for Tyrell to make out the question. "Why did you tell her?"

Tyrell followed Angelique’s escape with dejected emerald eyes. He wanted to catch her and tell her that what had happened didn’t matter. It was just the gems. Now that she was rid of them, they could talk about it and figure things out. He wanted to tell her that it wasn’t her fault. But he couldn’t leave Lucian like this. His friend had to know he didn’t tell his secret to Angelique.

He shook his head and then approached the red-haired youth. "I didn’t tell her, Lucian. I would never break my promise."

"Then how does she know?" demanded the distressed teenager, turning his face from Tyrell.

"I don’t know. Maybe she doesn’t. Maybe she was just saying those things to get to you."

"No. I saw her eyes when she was speaking. She meant every word. There was sincerity in her tone. She knows."

"That can’t be," Tyrell denied. "Angelique knows nothing of Tav…your other self." He had almost slipped up there. Lucian abhorred Tavores. It would not do to further rile him by mentioning the other figure. "Weird things have been going on with her lately."

Lucian raised his eyes, appearing a bit relieved. Good. That meant that he had realized that Tyrell hadn’t revealed Tavores’ presence to anyone. The redhead motioned toward Tyrell’s pocket and withdrew his hand from his globule. "You think it has to do with that necklace she wears?"

"I do."

"Does this have something to do with Evangel, perchance?"

The younger boy flinched. "You know about Evangel?"

"Yeah. So who is she? You tried to tell me before but I was stressed and stormed out on you. I’m willing to listen now. What’s her connection to Angelique’s jewelry?" posed Lucian, the thirst for information evident in his tenor.

"She’s…." Tyrell found himself unable to finish. He hadn’t thought of the possibility of Evangel’s relation to the items. Tavores had warned him of Vincient. He hadn’t gone into much detail on Evangel. From what he had seen in his visions, Evangel did sort of resemble Angelique. They both had that dark silver hair and they both had a very delicate bone structure and appearance. Did his cousin have some correlation with the deities’ assassin? Was that why the pendant seemed to influence her personality so much? And if a link did exist, what did the Amethyst have to do with it?

Maybe, it wouldn’t be a good idea to tell all this to Lucian just yet. He hated keeping secrets from his friends, but this wasn’t just about him. It involved Angelique too. He had to protect her, even from his chosen Guardian. After this last episode, Lucian might intensify his suspicion about her. The Guardians could even decide to rally against her. Angelique didn’t deserve that. She couldn’t help what the relics were doing to her. But what had happened to her with him and the Cruce would not be easy to explain to his Guardians. To them, she would become dangerous. He had to stall Lucian’s questions until he had a chance to think about this more and talk to Angelique alone.

Dropping his eyes to his watch, he let out a nervous shriek. "Crap! Lucian, do you know what time it is? We are so late. We better get to class!" Lucian’s eyes glanced at him, irritated at the change in topic. For a moment, Tyrell was worried that the other boy would see through his ruse.

"We need to discuss this with the others," Lucian responded, bringing his eyes from Tyrell. "This is Guardian business."

"No!"

"What?" The older boy put a hand on Tyrell’s shoulder, attempting to pull him over to him.

Tyrell nudged him off, trying to get a grip on his emotions, which were consuming him in horror and desolation. "I don’t want to talk to the others."

"Why not? We’re here to help you. If Angelique is having problems that are interfering with your safety, it’s our responsibility to deal with it."

"I don’t want you to deal with it! I want you to leave her alone!"

His companion staggered, aghast at the fury the younger boy was showing him. "What are you talking about, Tye? Why are you so sensitive about this? Do you actually believe that she is putting you in danger?"

The mahogany-haired youth groped at his mane with his fingers. "No...I don’t think that. I’m not afraid of her. I really don’t want to talk about this," he mumbled, feeling his heart pitch inside his chest. A lump of bile climbed up his throat and he knew he was going to be sick any moment now.

"I’m not sure we have a choice anymore, Tye. Angelique is clearly not stable and it’s affecting you. That cripples our efforts with the Chimera. We need to talk," Lucian detailed in a rising voice. It was clear that he was trying to soothe the younger teenager, but he was doing a really rotten job of it.

Fighting the building nausea, Tyrell struggled to come up with a way of ending the conversation without giving in entirely. Lucian was watching him with regret. He probably felt that he was making him ill, but he knew that he couldn’t back down from this. To him, it was Guardian matters and that had to take top priority over everything. He just thought that he was doing the best thing for his charge. Lucian would never hurt him on purpose. This couldn’t be helped. Tyrell felt bad for putting his friend is this position but he understood that he couldn’t risk the Guardians opposing Angelique. She meant too much to him. Angelique was the thing he cared for more than anything else in his life. She needed him.

"I don’t want to talk to the rest of the Guardians," he asserted, straining his voice to deliver his refusal.

"Tye…."

Shivering gray-green orbs met with forlorn garnets as Tyrell gazed at Lucian in an unquestionable display of trust. "I don’t want to talk to them. I just want to talk to...you. But not now."

"When?" inquired the other youth shifting his glance to observe Tyrell’s cross.

"Tonight. You get off from work at ten, right?"

"Uh huh."

"Come over and we’ll talk then," Tyrell answered in a gloomy voice. He caught Lucian’s unsure nod and then scrambled left toward the closest entrance to his classroom. Before he ran in, he leaned his head over the door and stared back at his friend. "Don’t tell Tashira, alright?"

Lucian appeared dismayed but waved his hand in a concurrent fashion. "If that’s what you prefer. I won’t speak to Tashira about this until after we have our discussion. But Tye, you have to tell me everything you know. You can’t hold anything back. Understand?"

"Hurry up and go to class, Lucian. You’ve missed enough school as it is."

"Speak for yourself."

Smiling at Lucian’s jest, Tyrell ducked back behind the door and hurried down the empty halls. It would be okay. He would reconcile Angelique when they got home and they would have plenty of time to talk before Lucian arrived. Once he got some comprehensible input from his cousin, he was sure that relating it to Lucian wouldn’t be a problem. Lucian sympathized with him. He would understand if given the right facts. There was nothing to worry about now. Still, he couldn’t shake the tiny speck of doubt that had entered his mind. What if it wasn’t all right? What if he was wrong?

*~*~*~*~*~*

Tashira heard the clicking of the keys as she waltzed up to her sibling. As customary for this hour, he was busy at his computer, running scans on different programs and sending mail to other net associates of his. He had quite a few computer buddies that he affectionately referred to as his ‘connections.’ They were good with bizarre events and strange occurrences, the perfect allies for tracking down the workings of the Chimera. Lucian tended to spend at least a good two hours on the computer every night after school. He had even attempted to show Dominic how he was able to scour the net for information once. Of course, when Dominic had had his first shot at the trick, he had fouled up and blamed the whole thing on the younger boy for not showing him properly. It had been almost four days later when the dark-haired youth finally got the hang of the system and was able to give her brother a tiny hand when it came to his research. That didn’t mean that he didn’t continue to bark at Lucian for assistance whenever he came to a snarl in his work. Lucian had hit the nail on the head long ago. Dominic and computers just didn’t mix.

She took in the time on the monitor’s clock bar, noting that Lucian had to get ready for work in just under an hour. He took the task of working on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, while she was left with the remaining days. The weekends they decided could be devoted to either studying the patterns of their opponents or just having a little free time with their friends. Unfortunately, Erik seemed to infer that ‘friends’ included her as while so she always ended up crashing their get-togethers. It wasn’t that tried to make everybody miserable most of the time, though that was often on her agenda, it was just that Erik had this aura of mystery about her and it wasn’t a positive type of enigma either. Tashira was finding it very hard to trust the blond despite her claim of allegiance to the Guardian’s cause and her agreement to help them work out the Chimera situation and plot further attacks.

Lucian seemed to tolerate Erik all right as long as she didn’t mention Dominic. Once that happened, her twin would somber up at good bit. She too had learned not to bring up their old ally. Lucian was much happier if he didn’t preoccupy himself with concerns about the eldest youth. She had never found out what had happened the night that Dominic had abandoned the redhead. All Lucian had told her was that Dominic was gone. No elaboration, just that one phrase. After that, he had taken a shower and spent the rest of the day making up the schoolwork that she had picked up for him. Soon, he had re-adopted his cheerful demeanor and was joking around with her as usual. He couldn’t fool her though. Tashira knew her brother better than anyone.

Then, he had that ring. Though she had never told her sibling, Tashira knew what that ring was and where it had come from. She had overheard Nadia’s conversation with Dominic when she had returned to the kitchen that day. It was his mother’s, apparently the only thing that Dominic had to remember her by. That meant that Nadia must have been his half-sister, especially since she called the dark-haired boy’s mother by her first name, Selene. From the discussion, she gathered that another gentleman, possibly a friend of his mother from the discussion, had given Dominic the ring. So it had to mean a lot to him. Nadia had worn it when he was gone and now he had given it to Lucian. But why?

The truth was that she hated the jewel. She hated what it represented to her. Tyrell had often scolded Dominic for his treatment of Lucian, insisting that he treated him like his personal lapdog. A lapdog. Tyrell hadn’t been too far off. A lapdog that now wore a silver collar with a license tag forged of amethyst, zircon, and white gold. To her, it was a mark of ownership, Dominic’s ownership over the soul of her beloved brother. It made her want to force the ring away from him. The item pointed out one fact that she constantly fought to ignore. Even when he was gone, Dominic still controlled Lucian. And Lucian wanted to be controlled. He accepted it. Why? How could he still want to befriend the older youth? It wasn’t that she thought that Dominic was really wicked or anything like that, it was just that he and Lucian were such polar opposites. They had nothing in common. Hadn’t Dominic’s departure proved that to her brother? But every time she glanced toward him and saw that ring sitting against his sternum, she knew that it hadn’t.

"Luce," she sang out to him in a sweet voice, holding something behind her back.

Hearing her call, Lucian jumped and quickly minimized whatever he had been working on. He clicked on another bar and brought up a screen filled with random names and began typing a note to one of them. Tashira was irked by his reaction, but hopped over to him and waved three tickets in front of his face.

"Guess what these are for?" the girl giggled as her brother’s eyes scanned the writing on the yellowed scraps of paper.

"Opera?" he teased, giving her a glimpse of his playful smirk.

Tashira smacked him on the arm and shook her head. "Can’t you read, Luce? They’re for that hot new action flick that just came out yesterday. I waited in line for three hours after work to score them for us. Maybe you could even get Tyrell to tag along."

"You went through all that trouble for a couple of tickets?" Lucian asked, peering at her in an incredulous manner. "Aww, is there some gorgeous guy in this thing that you have your eye on, Shira? You’re such a sucker for green eyes."

"No. I’ll have you know that there is not one guy in this movie that I would ever think of dating. They’re all like twenty-five or older. Well, maybe that one with the curly brown locks. He is kind of...Hey! You’re getting me off topic. You rat!"

Her twin held back her punishing hands, laughing as he caught one of the flailing limbs. "Alright Shira. So when is this fun event supposed to be?"

"Tonight. Ten thirty. I got a showing that allows you time to get ready after work. Do you think Tyrell will come?" she replied, changing her clawing fingers into gentle digits that glided through her brother’s hair.

Lucian frowned and averted his eyes. "That’s a bad time, Shira. I have some extra stuff do to tonight. I think we’re getting ready for inventory. I don’t know if I’ll be home in time," he murmured in a thick tone.

"Really? But yesterday you said tonight was clear."

"Uh....yeah. But I just got an email a few minutes ago telling me to be prepared for a long shift tonight. Sorry about that," the redhead stuttered, seeming to have trouble explaining to her the cause for his change in plans.

"Lucian. You’re not keeping something from me are you?" she posed, her voice picking up a note of dishonesty.

"Course not, precious. Would I lie to you?"

"Usually no. But you’ve been acting different since...."

Forcing her arm away from his side, Lucian regarded her with hard crimson eyes. "Shira, we’ve talked about this. We decided not to bring it up anymore. You agreed."

"Yes, I know that but...." Tashira contested, reaching up to brush her fingers across Lucian’s cheek. He snatched her hand and glared at her, his other hand tracing the ring on its chain.

"No! We’re not discussing this! I can’t go to the movie because of my job. That’s it! It has nothing to do with anything else. Quit acting like I’m some lovesick teenage girl! I’m not brooding. I’m fine!"

"Luce, I’m not saying that you’re moping. I’m just saying that we need some time to get out and have fun. This Guardian position is awfully boring. It’ll be good for us to play the role of normal adolescents," she consoled, lacing her arms around his neck and pulling herself close. "Please do this, for me, sweet brother."

Lucian released her palm and gazed at the wall. "I can’t. I really have work tonight. You know I’d come if I were able. I just can’t," he said sadly, yanking his hand from his chain.

Tashira was puzzled. She knew that Lucian didn’t really have to work like he kept insisting. He was lying to her. Lucian had never lied to her about anything. Did it have to do with Dominic? Perhaps. Then again, it could have something to do with Tyrell. Lucian had been late in getting to class this morning. She had heard that from Erik. Later, Nadia had informed her that both Angelique and Tyrell had also been tardy. Maybe, there was something going on with the group. But why wouldn’t her twin tell her?

"Alright," she consented, adjusting the ponytail on the back of her sibling’s neck. "We can try again some other time since you’re busy tonight.

"Thanks, Shira."

"So, have you found anything interesting lately?" the girl questioned, moving her head to point at the computer, which was still going through its search.

"Nothing important," he answered distantly, unwinding her arms from around his shoulders. "I guess I’ll try again when I get back. I have to get ready. I don’t want to miss the bus and have to call another cab again. Last time, I wound up with a fan of oldie music. I think my ears are still bleeding."

The silver-haired youth chuckled and helped her brother to his feet. She put her hands on her hips and gave him a fake grimace. "With all the extra work they’re making you do, they should give you a raise."

"Tell me about it," groaned Lucian, putting a hand on his head as if exhausted by his workload. "I don’t know how much more of this I can take. Maybe you’re the only one who should work." Tashira shouted and pushed him lightly as he hurried up the stairs with a yelp. She heard his door slam closed in his haste and she plopped down in his computer chair.

Curious, she opened the various programs that were running on the system. Three separate windows popped up, one over top of the other. The first one was Lucian’s list of net informants. There was a message by each name, telling the reader what their big scoop was for the day. A search engine for the word ‘Evangel’ was the focus of the second window. Under the search box, there were only two sites. They were both unlighted so she figured that Lucian hadn’t had the time to look at them yet. Tashira didn’t trust herself with computers so she decided to leave that window alone.

She shrank the first two programs, bringing up the third window. As her eyes ran over it, she felt a combination of anger and misery cascading over her. The page was littered with pictures of wolves, gray wolves, red wolves, white wolves, and at the very bottom, black wolves. Apparently, it was a listing of a handful of sightings that had been gathered from as far as two thousand miles away. One line stood out to her amongst all the other writings of the page. It was located under the list of the sightings of various black wolves. ‘There have been no further sightings of the strange wolf who many have claimed to have had violet eyes.’ Her eyes darkened as Tashira closed the program and left the room.

*~*~*~*~*~*

*~*~*~*~*~*

The scream died from Tyrell’s throat as he heard it echo from upstairs. His parents had taken Kat shopping for winter clothes and, upon his request, had left him behind. He had hoped to talk to Angelique but she had learned from his mother that she had fallen asleep in her room after returning from school. As usual, he had taken his detour to Maren’s to practice on the band’s new repertoire before coming home. Upon discovering that Angelique was sleeping, he had spent the rest of him time deciding what he was going to tell Lucian when he showed up later that night. After his parents had left him to his thoughts, he had tried to watch a bit of television but had found himself zoning out during one of the prime-time soap operas. Even the supernatural ones couldn’t hold his interest anymore. It was kind of hard to find amusement in the pretend bizarre episodes of others when his own life was just as strange.

Now, he realized that he must have fallen asleep while watching the program. The dream had scared him more than any of the others had before, even the one where he had been killed at the end. Who was that man in the alley? He had suspicions that the young girl was Angelique before his aunt had brought her to live with them. But he didn’t know who the man was. He was obviously her father and had said he was leaving because Angelique’s mother no longer trusted him with their child. What was he talking about? He had mumbled things about Angelique having a destiny to fulfill. What was that all about?

Of course, the worse part about the whole dream had been the end. Evangel had appeared before young Angelique. This was probably meant to be some sort of symbolic allusion. It didn’t mean that Angelique had ever seen Evangel before. It was his dreams way of showing him the definite connection between his cousin and the fallen angel. But what did any of it mean? How were they connected?

He reached into his pocket, checking to see if the Amethyst and the broach were still there. They were. The feeling of the Amethyst against his fingertips produced a deep-seated worry for the boy. In the dream, Evangel had transformed the Amethyst into her sword just as he, Kat, and the Guardians did. Dominic had been right about the Amethyst being dangerous. It was the sword of the assassin of the deities. That must be why it could cause Angelique to become so belligerent. She was taking on the role of the Amethyst’s original owner. It was good thing that she was separated from it now.

Another part of his dream struck him as being confusing. Angelique’s father had given her the Amethyst before he left, so why had she just found it last month? Had Ciara taken it away from her? That was a good guess since the dream had emphasized how Ciara felt about Angelique’s father. She had a reason to not trust him. After seeing his interaction with young Angelique, Tyrell wasn’t sure that he trusted him either. The way he had spoken to her was very disturbing.

Using the armrest to lift himself up, Tyrell held a hand to his head, already sensing the freezing sweat that trickled down his head. He had to find out where the other scream had come from? It had sounded just as his had. Had he imagined it? The only other person in the house was Angelique. She had to be the one who had given the cry.

Trying to shake the discomforting images of the dream from his mind, Tyrell left the couch and climbed up the stairs. He rapped softly against his cousin’s door. There was no answer but he could hear faint moans coming from within the room. Noticing that the door wasn’t locked, Tyrell turned the handle and entered the area. For a brief moment, he felt a pang of fear. Angelique had been incredibly aggressive toward him earlier. What if she was still suffering from the effects of Evangel’s trinkets? He couldn’t let that stop him. Angelique was frightened and needed to be comforted. It was stupid to let fear hold him back. Wasn’t that what Dominic had preached to him. Well, he wouldn’t be fear’s pawn.

"Angie," he announced in an undertone, bringing himself closer to her bed. Tyrell could see her sitting up on the mattress, holding her arms and shaking violently. "Angie, are you okay?"

She didn’t answer so he made his way over to her and crawled onto the end of the bed, whispering pacifying words. Angelique noticed him and froze, backing away from the boy. When he tried to touch her, she jerked to the side and held up her hands.

"Don’t! I’m afraid to be around you, Tye. I don’t know what’s wrong with me anymore. I keep doing such atrocious things. I hurt you, today. I don’t even remember doing it. I was the only one there and you were screaming and I didn’t try to help you. Then, that boy showed up again. He scares me because of the way he makes me feel. I don’t feel like myself whenever I’m around him and I know he can sense it," she explained in a raspy voice.

"Angie, Lucian won’t hurt you. He’s our friend."

Angelique wrung her hands as a distant look appeared in her terrified eyes. "He’s more than what he seems. I don’t know how I know that, but I do. Some part of him frightens me."

Tyrell wondered if his cousin was talking about the ability to perceive Tavores’ presence around Lucian. Was that why she avoided Lucian? Did Tavores want to do her harm? Tavores had never mentioned any feelings of ill will toward Angelique when they had talked. Yes, he had been mad about her having the pendant, but he hadn’t told Tyrell that she was an obstacle.

Sighing, he tried again to wrap his arm around Angelique, but she pulled away from his gesture. "I told you that it’s not safe," she argued, her eyes misting at the idea of being forced to refuse comfort from the one she trusted most.

"I’m not afraid of you, Angie. I know that what happened wasn’t your fault. It’s the gems that have been causing you to act like this. They’re gone now and everything will go back to being as it was. Don’t worry," he informed her with a bright grin.

"You should be afraid of me, Tye. I don’t know who I am. That dream…."

"You had it too?"

The older girl looked up at him, unsettled and a bit befuddled. "You saw what I saw? You saw the family in the rain and the Amethyst? You saw Evangel?"

"Yeah. I saw all of it," Tyrell replied, wishing that he could have denied it and spared Angelique the torment of knowing that it was one of his visions. She knew that his visions usually showed the truth in one way or another.

"What do you think it meant?"

"I don’t know."

His cousin gnarled her fingers in her bed sheets, a mask of fear covering her visage. "I’m scared, Tye," she admitted in a low tone. "What are we going to do?"

He traced a circle into the covers, feeling depressed and helpless. What could they do? The dreams pointed toward Angelique having an affinity with Evangel. She was the one that Vincient hoped to use the Cruce to bring back to life. Angelique had already felt the call of Evangel when she possessed her articles. Would that feeling really just vanish? Or was there something more to it? What if it wasn’t the gems that were changing Angelique? What if they had just served as a catalyst for something greater?

Forcing himself to pretend that none of these thoughts were gracing his mind, Tyrell approached Angelique again. She tried to stop him but he ignored her protests and brought his arm around her shoulder, pulling her over to him. The girl gave up and embraced him tightly, holding back frightened tears. Tyrell rubbed her back and tried to reassure her.

"Don’t worry, Angie, I won’t run from you no matter what happens. We’ll figure out what this means together and we won’t have any more secrets between us. I won’t let anything come between us from now on. Nothing."

Even as he spoke the words, he heard his mind rage in protest. How could he promise her such a thing? He had forgotten to take one major thing into consideration. His Guardians. And most importantly, Lucian. He would be arriving fairly soon. Could he protect Angelique’s secret from him, the boy who was quickly becoming one of his most cherished friends? He had told Lucian that he trusted him with everything, even his life. Did that apply to Angelique’s life as well? It couldn’t. But could he deny his Guardian the truth if it meant cheapening his promise? Could he do it to protect his cousin? Tonight, he would find out.

*~*~*~*~*~*

Comments: Whoa, this chapter is a bit intense with all the different things going on. Things are going downhill for Tye and Angie and Luce is having some major issues. I guess my favorite parts of this chapter would have to be Luce vs. Tavores and Luce & Shira. The first allowed me to show how Tavores reacted to Luce’s relationship with Nicky, while the second allowed me to show how it affected Shira. She’s such a devoted sister. When I created her, I wanted her to sort of serve as a foil for Kat. Kat’s relationship with her twin is snippy while Shira’s relationship with Luce is playful and affectionate. We could also add in a tad obsessive. ^_^ Gotta love the uber-protective twin sister. So are we going to have a Tye vs. Luce? You bet. Next chapter is destined to be ANGST-city.

Nayami: Hey guess what, Nicky? You guys have fans.
Lucian: Yep. And they all love to call you by the name I gave you. That’s so cool.
Dominic: What’s wrong with Dominic?
Nayami: Too dark sounding.
Dominic: Everyone else calls me by my real name.
Lucian: Aw, is Nicky not feeling the love?
Dominic: Don’t touch me.
Nayami: I think Nicky wants to go brood in a corner somewhere.
Tyrell: How come I don’t have any fans? Aren’t I cute and sensitive?
Nayami: Yeah, but you’re not slashable enough. You spend too much time with Angie.
Tyrell: I could be slashable.
D & L: Hahahahahah!
Tyrell: I could! Come over here, Lucian. I’ll show you.
Dominic: *growl*
Tyrell: Um...on the other hand. Just kidding...uh...yipe! Angie!
Nayami: I need to get these kids to a psychiatrist.

Extra!
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