As Victor sped towards the east edge of town, he felt something so alien that it might as well have not been his own emotion: anxiety.

Victor treated emotions as currency; calm was gold, and patience was platinum. His first big foray with his powers had taught him much about both, as well as the use of others to assist in deflecting curiosity. He had not intended for his sister to be his first slave sale, but she had meddled in his private affairs and had threatened to expose his plans.

Thus she had become part of them instead.

He had felt a sense of regret. Not remorse, and never guilt, for they were worthless in his emotional economy. He had a unique power that set him heads and shoulders above all others, and power was meant to be applied. He had sold her to someone that would treat her well.

But at no time had he ever felt anxious.

He could rationalize it as the enormity of this project. Sixteen years in the making, it conveyed the sense that failure was not an option. He had plans for others like her, but Gina was his prototype. She would tell him whether his "invention" would work.

And yet the thought of failure was not the source of his anxiety.

Victor turned down Old Fairview. The snow that had fallen the day before had succumbed to the morning sun, save for some sheltered areas under the trees or in the shade of boulders. Not enough had fallen to soak into the road and turn it to mud. His tires kicked up some dust behind him in the dry air.

He did not let himself glance at the abandoned house he passed on the way. It had stood empty since Stephanie's broken-hearted family had moved away after their daughter's tragic "death." Victor had encouraged it behind the scenes. To him, it had been a kindness to remove a reminder of their loss from their conscience.

Victor pulled over outside the moldering cemetery. His trench coat billowed like a cape behind him as he strolled around the front of the car and advanced into the cemetery. He slid his hands into the pockets, his shoes crunching and scraping as he picked his way over the fallen fence and around the detritus.

He was a few feet from Stephanie's false grave when he stopped. His gaze was drawn downward, then to the side. He turned away from the grave as his eyes traced a circuitous path about the ground.

Even here the snow was sparse, but unlike the road, its exposure to sunlight had been brief. Closer to the graves, meltwater had run into the ground, keeping the soil soft. The snow had disappeared, but the evidence had not. Someone had tramped about the cemetery within the last day.

Victor stepped along the edge of the cemetery closest to the trees. He spotted the disturbed graves, where the accumulated neglect had been removed from some of the headstones in a methodical pattern.

As if someone had been looking for something.

His eyes traced the depressions in the soil once more. It had been a search party, numbering at least two, likely three.

Victor turned towards the far corner and advanced. He stopped short of the grave and peered towards the trees. Again, the ground had been disturbed within the last day, right at the place where one would need to stand to read Stephanie's headstone.

Victor drew in a long breath and let it go, holding his gaze as hard as the silent headstones. It could be nothing. Cemeteries were often targeted by mischievous teens during the Halloween season. A dare, a hazing, morbid curiosity, boredom, or even a drunken stupor. Had he not decided to visit the grave once more, he would never have known about it.

He looked about for more evidence: a tissue or a scrap of paper dropped from a pocket; a shred of clothing caught on a craggy branch; a button popped from a sweater or jacket; an empty beer bottle left by carousers.

He found nothing.

A fine line existed between caution and paranoia, and he wondered if he risked crossing it. He had no reason to think that the Harbingers would be led here. What of it if they had? They would see the same thing anyone else would: a grave marked as Stephanie Fowler, a fact that could be contested by nothing short of exhuming the body. He spotted no such disturbance in the soil over the grave.

He knew what the Darkness knew. Richie Gardner could see the past, but it required an artifact and the right place. He would have access to neither save for this site, and at no point was the body revealed here. The dead do not speak if they do not have Presence.

And if Lydia had somehow reached out to the one with the Dream Gift and proclaimed herself to be Stephanie, the girl would still see only a grave.

Victor stepped out of the cemetery and towards his car. He pulled out his cell phone and flipped it open. It was time to catch up with an old friend.

"Charles, this is Victor," he said as he got into his car. "Do you have the number of -- scratch that, the home address of Walter Newland? Yes, that's right, the retired funeral home director. I assume he still lives in Haven ... Yes, I'm familiar with that area, thank you ... No, you may not ask. Goodbye." He snapped the cell phone shut and started the engine.

"I tell ya, we were this freakin' close," Ned said, holding his thumb and forefinger a quarter inch apart. He banged his fist on the table, rattling silverware and eliciting a panicked gasp from Cassie as she grabbed her soda cup. "Another coupla seconds an' we woulda had it."

"Fuckin' right, man," Richie drawled between bites of his sandwich. "If the bitch hadn't been on to us, we would've kicked her sorry ass out of Heather's head."

"What exactly did you do?" Jason asked.

Cassie sighed and gave him a tired look. Don't encourage him, she thought, not wanting to give voice to it for fear of hurting Ned's feelings. Ned had ranted on this subject to Cassie after each period since Heather's class.

"Jus' a little ol' mental elbow grease," Ned said with a grin, hooking his fingers into imaginary suspenders.

"Which means?"

"We shoved at anything we could find that wasn't nailed down. We figgered that would cover everything that wasn't part of Heather's mind."

"A brute force attack? Did that actually work?"

"Almost. Damn." Ned slapped his hand on the table again. "Another coupla seconds, that's--"

"We get the point, Ned," Cassie declared, holding her dripping cup above her tray.

"Huh? Oh, ah, sorry, babe. Here." Ned grabbed his napkin and helped sop up the soda that had splashed over the rim of the cup.

"I didn't think such tactics would work against something like this," Jason said.

"Well, we had some help, ya know," Ned said, jerking his head towards Cassie.

"I opened something up," Cassie admitted. "I'm not sure how. It was like I was using that power that I experimented with on Ned, but now I can do it in the daytime."

Richie looked up. "Wait. You can get into people's heads when you're awake now?"

"I'm not sure, Richie. It may only work over this link. It's all too much too fast. Ever since last night it's like my dream senses have gone into overdrive. I have to wonder if Stephanie did something to me."

"Whatever ya did, it sure as hell let me and Richie do a number or two," said Ned. He lowered his voice. "Whatever happened, we gotta keep this quiet so it don't get back ta the Great White Counselor of the West. If Cassie's gonna be our secret weapon--"

"Please, Ned, don't refer to it as a weapon," said Cassie.

"Oh, sorry, babe. I didn't mean like I wanted ya ta hurt people with it."

"I know, but I can do damage from ignorance rather than malice. For awhile I couldn't tell my thoughts from Heather's. It was like we were the same person for a short while."

Ned grinned. "Heh. I was talkin' about Captain Kirk the other day. Mebbe I really shoulda meant Spock. Nice little mind-meld thing you got goin'."

Cassie smiled faintly. "I just need more time to figure out how this works."

"Unfortunately, we don't have a lot of time left," Jason said. "Cassie, you think you might be able to use this later when Heather has to go to detention with Ms. Hollis?"

"I'd rather not do it if I could avoid it, but--" She paused and shook her head. "No, forget I said that. You're right. I can't shy away from this."

"Ain't you two gonna be a little busy this afternoon?" Richie said, one corner of his mouth turning upwards.

Cassie shifted in her seat. She could have done without being reminded of that.

Ned frowned. "Real smooth, dude."

"Hey, I don't dance around this shit anymore," Richie said.

Cassie tried not to look at Jason. Just sitting near him sparked a tingle in her pussy. Whenever she glanced at him, erotic thoughts pranced through her head. She feared that she still shared a weak "meld" with Heather, that she was echoing some of Heather's raw lust towards Jason.

Cassie had not seen the text of the answers on the test, but she had gathered the general content from Heather's emotions and what the others had said. Cassie had not realized how strong a sexual attraction Heather felt for Jason, and now Heather's lustful urges were becoming her own.

As if sensing Cassie's discomfort, Jason cut in. "With regards to Cassie's powers, Heather's safety -- anyone's safety -- always takes precedence. We'll have to work that out when the time comes. In the meantime, let's talk about the party coming up Monday. Cassie?"

Cassie flinched. "What? The party?"

"You mentioned to me between classes that you had something to talk to us about regarding the Halloween party? Costumes, I think."

"Oh. Oh, yes, that's right, silly of me to forget." Under the table, her legs parted to relieve the ache in her pussy. It didn't help. "I-I've made a connection with a costumer based in Randall. They're going to send someone to their Haven store tomorrow to take measurements for your costumes."

Richie frowned. "Measurements?"

"Yes, these will all be custom-fitted." Cassie smiled. "Now that I've gotten over some of my fears about Halloween, I thought I would get into the spirit of it a bit more. I don't usually like to flaunt my parents' wealth like this, but I feel it's the least I could do for all of you."

Ned grinned. "Sweet. So whaddaya got, or have ya already picked some stuff out for us?"

Richie looked askance at them. Cassie turned to him and touched his arm. "Richie, don't worry, I already know what you want. You just have to pick what team you want on the uniform."

Richie grinned. "Cool."

"What about Jason?" Ned asked.

"I talked to him briefly about it, and we pretty much decided on that," Cassie said. Jason gave them a twitching half-smile and said nothing.

"Heh, if I had ta guess, I woulda said yer gettin' him a Starfleet uniform."

Jason adjusted his glasses. "Um, well, actually ... well, you shouldn't really assume that ... um ... uh, yeah, that's pretty much it."

Richie snorted laughter. Ned tried to hold back but guffawed as well.

"Oh, now, be nice, both of you!" Cassie said.

"You know, I've hardly said a single thing about Star Trek these past two months--" Jason began.

Richie and Ned laughed harder.

"So what are you going as, Ned?" Jason said over their laughter, his cheeks flushed.

Ned snickered and pondered for a moment. "Huh, I guess I didn't really stop ta think about it. Oh, wait, I know! I'll be a pirate."

Richie stared at Ned in bewilderment. "Wait, you? A pirate?"

"Hey, yeah, why not? I can say 'arrr' with the best of 'em! Avast ye scurvy dogs and all that stuff."

"What're gonna call yourself? Blacknose?"

Jason nearly snorted his soda in laughter. Cassie rolled her eyes but hid a smile behind her hand.

Ned gave Richie a look of mock-indignation. "Oh, yer the comedian today. Anyway, this can work. I can be the pirate and Cassie can be my saucy wench."

Cassie blinked and stared at him.

"Well, a tasteful saucy wench, anyway," Ned offered.

"If it's anything like what I'm thinking, I doubt my parents would let me dress up like that."

"Jeez, babe, they'd get on yer case about a dumb costume party?"

Cassie sighed. "'Whenever you present your face to the world, you present your best at all times.' A direct quote from my mother. She's going to insist I go as a princess or a queen, I just know it."

"Mebbe ya can fool her. Get two costumes made. One fer the parental units and the other ta have fun with."

Cassie started to shake her head and stopped herself. "I'll think about it," she said in a soft voice.

"So what's Melinda going as?" Richie drawled.

"I don't know yet, I haven't had a chance to talk to her about it," Cassie said.

"Hey, mebbe if Jason's goin' all Trekkie on us, she can be his green-skinned space babe," said Ned.

Richie snorted. "Yeah, I'd love to see you try that one on her."

"I'm not sure if Melinda should go to have her measurements taken," Cassie said. "Not when Heather seems to think that something will happen to her this weekend."

"Can ya give her a lift, mebbe?" asked Ned. "She's not gonna take kindly ta sittin' out the party, not when she was forced ta stay home when the thing with Melissa went down."

"Heather thinks she may be on the verge of another vision concerning Melinda. I'm hoping that will be more clear on what the danger is." Cassie's shoulders slumped. "Assuming Heather survives whatever Ms. Hollis will do to her this afternoon."

"Today was a fluke," Jason said. "From what I saw in Heather's mind, I think Ms. Hollis got lucky that time."

"Did you see anything else, Jason?"

"I saw something from Diane."

Richie frowned. "Diane? You mean, like, from the school tool?"

"No, it wasn't Doctor Mann himself. I couldn't tell what it was. I just know that there was something coming from Diane's mind. It was a little like the energy I saw from Ms. Hollis' mind."

"So it had ta be Mann tryin' ta screw with us," Ned said.

"Except she didn't do anything to hinder us or help Ms. Hollis," said Jason. "Unless you or Richie felt something you didn't mention? Or you, Cassie?"

Cassie shook her head. Ned and Richie did as well, but Ned paused. "Well ... nah, I guess it was nothin'."

"What is it?" Jason said.

"I just thought it was cool that Diane was followin' along with us. Kinda like it was what she was s'posed ta be doin'. Like it was, I dunno, expected of her. Like she was followin' a script."

Cassie looked thoughtful, then alarmed. "Like she was obeying you?"

"Well, I didn't give her any kinda direct order. Not like ya can do that anyway with this link thingie."

"Look, she was helping us, okay?" Richie said. "What more do you want?"

"It's just that Melinda seemed to think that Diane was somehow making Heather treat her as a slave the other day," said Cassie.

"Yeah, but that's them. They always had that shit going on between them. Diane's lezzie anyway."

"Technically, that has nothing to do with it," Jason said. "We're talking control and not sex."

Richie snorted. "Like the two are different anymore?"

Cassie took a deep breath and ignored the sensations from her stiffening nipples as they brushed against her bra cups. She forced her legs together and tried to pay no attention to the squish of moisture between her thighs. "Let's j-just be careful about this, please. I really hate the idea of Diane exiling herself from us, but I don't want to see Mann trying to gain influence over us, either."

"He can't be doin' that, or he'd be havin' her try ta get the Book from us again," said Ned. "Haven't heard a peep from her 'bout it."

"Then it's another distraction, like Ms. Hollis," Jason said.

"We can't keep treating Ms. Hollis as just a distraction," Cassie said.

"We won't. We'll do our best to protect Heather this afternoon."

"But it means we'll have to wait on ... um, other things."

From the tone of her voice it was clear she wanted to do anything but wait, and her face betrayed her frustration with her own desires.

"Um, not ta be indelicate or nothin', but mebbe ya should go ahead with it," Ned said.

Both Cassie and Jason stared at him. Richie looked on with amusement as he ate.

Ned twitched. "Um, yeah, that's right. And that's her freakin' boyfriend sayin' this. Look, sex is power, right? It made us get all charged up and whatnot on Wednesday. Mebbe that's why me and Richie just missed with Heather."

Richie smirked when he thought about Melinda, but he wiped it from his face before Jason could see it.

"But we'll be, well, distracted," Cassie said.

"Yeah, but we'll be sharin' that link with Heather. Mebbe some of that power will get ta her and she can fight off Horrible Hollis better."

"Or she'll pick up on our lust and addle her mind further."

"I don't think we can project our feelings directly like that," said Jason.

"I was referring to my own abilities, Jason," Cassie said. "I was able to get into Heather's mind really easy. If that happens again when I'm, well, i-in the throes of lust--"

"Yeah, but ya said yerself you'd be distracted, so mebbe that will hold ya back," Ned said.

Cassie felt like her head was spinning. Suddenly she was the center of attention, the one that everyone was looking to for the answers. She wanted to claim she couldn't do it, but it became clear that she was down to a choice between trusting her own power and trusting the spells in the Book. And if she refused to use her power and something happened to Heather, she would never live down her cowardice.

"I wish we knew more about what exactly Victor is doing," Cassie said. "Then this would not seem so confusing."

"I hope to get some answers this evening," Jason said. "By now my computer should have, ah, retrieved all the data. If you know what I mean."

Ned grinned and tapped the side of his nose. "Nudge-nudge, wink-wink, say no more."

"If anything unusual has been happening at Haven High for the past twenty years that's following any sort of pattern, I should be able to find it."

"Hey, anything I can do, old hoss?" Ned said. "Now that I got my web surfin' fingers limbered up."

"Yes. Go look for whatever information you can scrounge up about the Haven coroner's office circa October and November of 1984."

Richie wrinkled his nose. "What for?"

"I think I know," Ned said. "You wanna see if ya can find that dude in Richie's vision."

"Right," said Jason. "If he really was involved in helping Victor in a cover-up, then he had to be associated with the coroner. I want to see if we can dig up something."

"Do you really think you can use it against him if you do?" Cassie asked.

"It's more information than Mann likely wants us to have. Richie gave me the idea earlier."

"Huh?" Richie said with a mouth full of sandwich. "I did?"

"I'm working on the theory that Doctor Mann is obsessed with secrecy. Anything we can find to jeopardize that secrecy might be useful, even if it's not something that we can make stick in any sort of legal sense."

Ned snorted. "Dude, I think jus' about everything going on here is so far beyond legal that there jus' ain't a term for it yet."

Gina stepped out of her final class and paused just past the door, causing a minor pile-up behind her. Several boys (and one girl) had waited for her to leave first so they could follow and ogle her ass. Now as they bumped into each other in their attempt to avoid colliding with the object of their desire, they pretended not to be doing what was obvious to everyone else they were doing.

They finally scrambled out from behind her seconds before Gina turned and headed down the corridor. The nagging voices in the back of Gina's head had stopped for now. A single thought crystallized in her head, having lurked in the shadows for much of the morning for fear of prompting the doubts once more.

Her long strides drew maximum attention to her legs. She was used to the higher heels now. They felt good on her feet, and she enjoyed their crisp click against the floor. She held her head high and her shoulders back as she stepped up to an open locker. "Brad?"

Brad turned his head and fumbled the books he was transferring from his locker. "Oh, uh, hey, Gina," he said with a sloppy grin. "I was gonna come over and talk to--"

"You said earlier this morning that your parents would be out tomorrow?"

Brad's head bobbled. "Yeah, all morning and a good part of the afternoon, too. If you want to come over, that would be great."

"Yes, I'll come over," said Gina. She smiled. "Do you want to have sex with me then?"

A book dropped from Brad's arms. He picked it up and stepped closer to Gina. "Wow, are you serious?"

"Yes, of course. I'm offering myself to you, Brad." For a moment, Gina's mouth remained open, as a plea to accept her offer teetered on the edge of speech. She closed her mouth without another sound and avoided a most inappropriate action.

"Just like that? I don't have to, like, take you out on a date or anything?"

Gina shook her head. "Of course not. Just take me as you wish."

Brad had thought that Gina would prove to be easy, but he had not expected it handed to him on a silver platter. He was too caught up in his own excitement to listen to any warnings in his own head that this was too good to be true, or to lament at any sense of disappointment that she presented no challenge. He nodded and grinned. "Okay, yeah, I'll take you, definitely."

Gina looked relieved and excited at the same time. Her pussy oozed through the tight pants. "You'll need to give me your address," she said in a breathless voice.

"Huh? Oh, yeah!" Brad grabbed a notebook and tore a corner from one of the pages. He scribbled his address on it and thrust it at her.

Gina accepted it. "What time should I come over?"

"Make it eight," Brad said. "My parents are supposed to be gone by seven."

Gina nodded. "All right, I'll be over then." She smiled and added in a low and sultry voice, "I'm really looking forward to you fucking me."

"Oh, man, so am I. Hey, you think you can, um, you know, wear something like this again?"

"Of course." She paused. "This is more slutty? Like you wanted?"

Brad smirked. "Oh, yeah. But I'm dying to get that off you."

Gina's next words rode a slow sigh of desire. "See you tomorrow, Brad."

Brad stared at her ass as she walked away. He nodded, grinning like a kid on Christmas morning. "Yeah. See ya."

From his office, Victor sensed the exchange between Gina and Brad through his avatar. Her transformation had finally proceeded to the point it should have been some months ago. Gina appeared cooperative now. She wanted to end the conflict in her head and settle on one vision for her future. Victor would make sure it was the right one.

His avatar did not sense anything or anyone moving against it. The interference from Stephanie had ceased.

From Lydia.

Victor frowned. He could not let himself think of Lydia as Stephanie. He had to believe that Stephanie was as dead as the body that had fulfilled the role of a corpse, convenient if tragic. Prolonged, hard, unwavering thought made belief became reality. His body was proof of that.

Now that he was satisfied that Gina was on track, he had an old friend to visit.

Victor stood just as a knock came to the door. He had a sense for who it was from the griping voice of the Darkness. "Come in."

Terri let herself in and closed the door behind her. She lingered with the doorknob in her hands behind her.

"I thought you were holding detention today for your wayward would-be slave," Victor said in a neutral voice.

"I am. But I wanted to stop by for a moment."

Victor stepped out from behind his desk and took his coat in hand. "Make it quick, I have an appointment."

"I thought you would like to know something. Earlier this morning I finally got a really good hold on Heather."

Victor repressed any display of the anger she had triggered. The power was not used to "get a hold" on someone. One used the power to imbue loyalty and obedience into the perception of reality first, then the rest followed. Mindset first, submission second. Her statement meant Terri was still treating her power as a club when a scalpel was needed.

"It was going rather well, but then I encountered resistance from her," said Terri. "It didn't make any sense to me, Victor, not when I had managed to--"

"Stop."

Terri gave Victor a puzzled look.

"I need to warn you now," said Victor, his voice and face calm but his eyes intense. "I have reached the end of my tolerance with you. I hope that is all I need to say."

Puzzlement turned to outright and obvious confusion.

"Your ignorance, whether pretend or sincere, does not bode well for this association. I grow very weary of making my desires known when they should be obvious, but I will do so one last time: I will hear no more complaints about your power."

"Wait, Victor, this is not a--"

"You will not interrupt me."

Terri fell silent, lacing her fingers together before her to stop herself from fidgeting, her eyes twitching.

"I have given you all the power you would ever need. Whatever resistance you encountered has nothing to do with the power itself and everything to do with its application."

Terri's lips drew to a thin line, but she said nothing in the baiting pause that followed.

"Not everyone has the ability to master it, which is why I am careful about who receives it. I cannot give you anything more than what you now have, nor can I teach you anything more than you have already learned. I no longer wish to be your sounding board for your mistakes."

Terri's teeth clenched. She waited, then said, "May I speak now?"

"If you must."

"I would like to know if you ever seriously considered Heather Sovert a prospect this year."

"No, Terri, I had not. That was your idea entirely."

"That is not what I meant. Would you ever have considered her had I been able to deliver a proper slave to you?"

"By that statement, you imply that you now know and acknowledge that you have failed in that endeavor, yet you still persist at it and come to me with gripes of your own limitations. Repeating the same action and expecting a different result is the very definition of madness."

Terri's eyes burned. She gripped the doorknob behind her again until it creaked in its frame. "I see."

"Do you wish any more of me, or may I consider this conversation and all future attempts to disturb me ended?"

Terri looked long and hard at Victor and weighed the importance of her information against his words. She shook her head. "No, nothing else, Victor."

Terri scrambled out of the way as Victor surged towards her. Her arm brushed his as he barreled past her and out of the office.

"I wish I had thought of this sooner," Jason said. "Ms. Hollis will have a head start on us."

"What do you mean?" Melinda asked.

Jason had hoped that Melinda would understand without having it explained to her. Richie smirked in anticipation of hearing Jason's explanation. "Cassie and I thought we ... what we will be doing ... might help give Heather energy somehow to help her resist Ms. Hollis. I thought that you and Richie might, um, help that way, too."

"Who says we're going to be doing anything?" Melinda retorted, but the conviction in her voice was weak, and her eyes darted towards Richie.

"Melinda, don't be like this right now. These things are hardly a secret anymore."

Melinda frowned. "I just didn't want to make a big deal out of it, that's all."

Richie held his tongue, despite having any of a dozen different cheeky comebacks to choose from. Finally have a heart, huh? Guess it's national "don't be an asshole" day.

"I get whatcha mean, chief," said Ned. "It's gonna take time ta get home and then back ta the meetin' house."

"Yes, and I'm not sure how much we can help her when we're all on school buses," Jason said. "Unless Cassie could drive us. Where is she, anyway? And Heather?"

Melinda folded her arms, and her shoulder thumped against the lockers. "Heather wanted to head directly to Ms. Hollis after she was done at her locker. She didn't want to take the chance of getting there late. Shit, this sucks!" Melinda cried, her tone hovering between anger and tears. "Ms. Hollis is going to turn Heather into a slave, I know it!"

"Hey, kemosabe," Ned said to Jason. "Ya think Heather woulda had a vision 'bout it if she was gonna get really screwed over right now? Ya said she saw Melissa comin' fer her and she saw somethin' 'bout Nyssa right before that little scrape."

"I'm hoping you're right," said Jason. "Oh, here comes Cassie."

Ned nodded and turned his head. "Yeah, she said she was makin' a little detour. Hey, babe, ya see anything?"

Cassie rushed up to them. "Unfortunately, yes. I saw Gina go to Brad, and I think she set up some sort of a date with him. He handed her a scrap of paper that might have had a phone number or address."

"From what ya told me 'bout that dream, it ain't gonna be dinner and a movie," Ned said.

Cassie nodded. "She probably just arranged to have sex with him."

Melinda gaped at her. "With Brad? You mean, like, on purpose?"

"Jason, I can feel some kind of significance to this," Cassie said. "I'm not sure how I'm sensing that. Maybe I still have some sort of faint link into her mind."

"Didja try ta make her stop?" Ned asked.

"I didn't dare! I didn't want to risk encountering that ... that shadow of Victor while we're at school."

"Cassie, can you get us to the meeting house?" Jason asked. "Richie, Melinda, and I need a faster way to get there."

"I can't take you all in the limo, but I can pay for a taxi."

"Thanks, Cassie. Come on, we all better get going."

Cassie nodded and followed until she noticed Ned lagging. "Ned?"

"Nah, don't wait up for me, kiddies," he drawled. "I'm gonna hoof it home. The walk will help clear my head. Parental units ain't home so no one ta worry what I'm up ta."

"You're not coming in the limo with me?"

Ned smiled faintly. "And go where, babe? Yer gonna hafta get off at the park so ya can get in the back way ta the house. I'm not goin' if yer gonna be busy with Jason. Kinda awkward, ya know?"

Cassie wanted to say something, but she could only sigh. Her thinking was not just his comfort (or lack thereof), but that it was one less person that could lend additional help to Heather. Two, since Diane would be left out as well. If Diane were not a confirmed lesbian, Cassie might have dared to suggest that Ned pair off with her. "I'll call you tonight."

"Sure thing, babe." Ned offered a tiny grin. "Have fun."

Cassie blinked, forced a weak smile, and hurried after the others.

Melinda lies on a bed in the near darkness, where strange, robed and hooded figures loom on either side. Her arms and legs are spread, muscles straining against restraints hidden in the shadows. Her naked body trembles. Her pussy oozes and drips, a stain spreading on the sheet under her. More dark figures watch her, their silence as foreboding as it is maddening.

A single figure nods his head.

Now Melinda is beset by the robed ones, touching her breasts, caressing her sides, stroking the insides of her thighs. She writhes and shakes with unrequited lust. Her whimpers turn to tearful cries, then hysterical pleas.

The figure raises a hand, and his brethren stop and fall back.

Melinda cannot stop panting. The figure approaches her. She holds up her head, eyes desperate, lustful, and pleading. He pulls open his robe.

Melinda stares in both horror and desire. Her lower lip trembles. "Yes ... yes, f-fuck me ... please, I'm so horny ... please, fuck me! ... PLEASE!"

Heather gasped and flinched, books that she had shoved halfway into her locker tumbling to the floor and over her feet. When she stepped back, a thick hand manifested on her shoulder. She uttered a ragged gasp and whirled around, her back banging against the nearby lockers.

"Are you quite all right, Miss Sovert?" said Seeger, lowering his hand.

Heather swallowed and nodded. "Yes, I'm fine," she lied. She crouched and picked up her books. "Never better." She bolted upright and dumped her books into her locker.

"Perhaps you should stop to see the school nurse."

Heather's gaze whipped towards him, sharp as icicles, but relented a few seconds later. "I'll be fine, Mr. Seeger. I'm sorry I worried you." She slammed her locker closed. "If you'll excuse me, I have detention."

Seeger watched her slip around him. "Do you wish to be let out of it, Miss Sovert?" he heard himself ask.

Heather stopped and turned. "What??"

Seeger let out a rumbling sigh. His face was unreadable. "If you feel you are at issue with this detention, I can speak with Ms. Hollis on your behalf."

Heather just stared.

Seeger took a step towards her. "I am concerned for you, Miss Sovert. You did not look well just a moment ago."

Claiming to be sick was appealing to Heather. She reasoned that if anyone had any sort of power over Ms. Hollis, it would be the Vice Principal. Ms. Hollis couldn't override that. She wouldn't use her power on him. That could raise too many questions.

Heather understood that her thoughts were simply one rationalization piled atop another, but she was desperate to try anything. She held her response when she caught sight of someone approaching behind Seeger, someone that trailed the inky black cloak of an Aura.

"I would not take kindly to giving detention to a sick student," Seeger said. "If you are indeed ill, then we would reschedule--"

"I see no reason to do such a thing, Seymour."

Seeger spun about. His look of shock was forced into a scowl. "Perhaps we should let the school nurse decide that, Laura."

Laura Bendon looked at Heather. Heather clenched her jaw and stared into the center of the Dark vortex surrounding her Principal. The corners of Laura's mouth tugged upward in a knowing smile as she stepped past Seeger. "That will not be necessary. Will it now, Miss Sovert?"

Heather only now noticed that Laura held a box tucked under her arm, made of silver-colored cardboard with a fancy gold trim. She studied it for a few seconds before flicking her eyes up to Laura's face.

Laura cradled the end of the box in her free hand. "I asked you a question, Miss Sovert."

"No, it won't be necessary, Ms. Bendon," Heather said, her voice stiff.

"In that case, we should go. You are already a few minutes late."

"I protest, Laura," Seeger announced as Laura shepherded Heather away.

"Then lodge a complaint with the school board," said Laura without slowing or turning her head. "I have better things to do than to listen to you complain about matters that have already been decided."

Heather wanted to turn to see what Seeger did next. Laura squeezed Heather's shoulders as if reading her intentions. Heather managed not to flinch, yet she shivered when she saw the slithery black tendrils of Laura's Aura out of the corners of her eyes.

"You are fortunate I came upon you," said Laura. "I might not have believed you if you had said you were late because of Mr. Seeger."

Heather bit her lip to suppress a sarcastic reply.

Laura led her into a classroom, where Terri stepped out from behind the weathered desk, upon which lay Heather's test pages. She smirked as the two approached. "How naughty of you to force your Principal into fetching you."

"Actually, Seymour waylaid her," Laura said in a tired voice.

Terri rolled her eyes. "Beyond me why you let that fossil remain here."

Laura closed the classroom door behind her. She glanced out the glass window and observed a few remaining students walking by in the hall. "Are you quite sure no one will see us in here, Terri?"

Terri flashed a smug smile. "Positive. They'll see nothing but an empty classroom."

Heather thought she had recognized it. The classroom was unused, designated as an unofficial storage space for broken or obsolete equipment. Several slide projectors in various states of disrepair were clustered in one corner. The few desks and chairs that were present were piled atop one another or scattered in pieces at the far side of the room. In the center, a space had been cleared and the floor swept.

Laura glanced at the open space herself and cast an inquisitive gaze at Terri.

"I thought Heather could 'model' your little present to her," said Terri, her eyes flicking to the box.

Laura stepped up to the desk and set the box down. "No doubt you can furnish the proper motivation for her."

Terri's smile turned wicked. "Heather, come here."

Heather avoided looking at the box as she stepped towards the two women. She did not meet their eyes, nor did she cast her gaze downward in unprompted submission. She held her head aloft even as her heart pounded so hard that she was surprised they could not hear it.

"Your Principal has done a very nice thing for you, Heather," said Terri. "She's gone to the time and expense to choose a costume for you for the Halloween party."

Heather tensed, and her eyes shimmered. She let them flick to the box once but did not linger.

"I expect you to be very grateful for this, Heather," said Laura. She removed the lid from the box and tilted it towards Terri. "Do you think I guessed the right size?"

Terri peered into the box, then shifted her eyes towards Heather. "I suppose we'll have to see. Heather, remove your clothes."

Unable to suppress her curiosity any longer, Heather had craned her neck to see the costume, and now rose on the balls of her feet. She fell back on her heels with a faint thud, and her gaze darted between the two women.

"Go ahead, Heather," said Laura in a low, husky voice. "I've always wanted to see this."

Heather shivered in revulsion at the lascivious look to Laura's eyes despite the flame it lighted in her pussy. She took another step back, feeling violated even before they had touched her. Laura had needed no words; the look on her face alone told Heather that her Principal's prurient interest was not sudden. The idea of her Principal lusting for her disgusted her beyond the taint of the Darkness it brought.

Laura leaned forward over the top of the desk. Her Aura swirled and twisted about her. Tendrils whipped towards Heather like tiny snakes. "Or would you like me to take a more direct approach as I did with Marcie?"

Terri raised an eyebrow, but said nothing.

Heather's eyes widened. She was sure that Laura could not effect such a complete enslavement in the space of a few minutes. Laura had spent at least a week or more in her "conversion" of Marcie Fuller from skittish wallflower to sex kitten.

The longer Heather could remain in control, the better. Even if it meant her humiliation by her own free will.

Ignoring the heat rising to her cheeks as well as her loins, she began to unbutton her blouse.

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