Alex Davenport's Story

Chris shrugged. "I'm not ending up with either of them," He said simply. "It's not like I'm not going to get a girlfriend at one point. I just need to fall in love with that special someone. But I guess that kind of sounds a bit too.. girly for a grown man". He shook his head and walked towards the bar. The man behind it looked at him expectantly. Chris looked at Belle. "What would you like to drink?" He asked.

---

Juliet stood up. "And don't you act like you actually care about being nice to me. If I weren't immortal, you'd probably have snapped my neck for even looking at you. You want to hurt me? Go ahead, I don't care! I'll woop you so hard you'll be bleeding out of your ass" She spat at him, her eyes narrowed. Words could not explain her feelings towards Corbin at that moment. She hated that she loved him, and that was both confusing and frustrating at the same time.

---

Alex sat up, watching as Erieda's sudden awareness of his emotions. "I think so," He said, "Though I can't be sure. It's odd". He moved his arm and placed a hand on her stomach, shuddering as he felt the child's energy. "Yep, it's the baby". What a strange feeling. It's not like he was used to being around babies, but he was pretty sure they shouldn't feel like that.

Chris chuckled. He turned to the man behind the bar and said "Two beers and a coke, please". The man nodded and proceeded to fetch and make their drinks. Chris looked over to Belle. "I remember my first beer," He said, "It was quite some time ago. Probably around 30 years, I reckon". A few people in the bar turned their heads towards Chris, and he could've almost facepalmed. He'd either be thought of as a liar, or just a very young looking man who was buying beers for a young girl. That was a reputation he did not need on one of his first visits to Parkwood.

---

Juliet watched his growl, and a harsh shudder raked up her spine. All she saw was a flash of black, then a giant pressure on her front. Her vision became clear when Corbin shifted into a human. The position they were in was extremely awkward. Probably not for him, but it was for her. A small blush crept onto her cheeks and she looked away. "Could you please get off me?" She asked, her voice almost as quiet as a whisper.

---

"The baby.. has power," He mumbled, soon followed by a deep frown. He sighed lightly and covered his eyes with his hands. "This is going to prove troublesome, you know. How are we going to send it to school? What if it shifts in the middle of a play fight? What if it starts to glow green like you do, or poofs into a demonic tree creature? If it is figured out for an immortal, it could risk revealling all of us to the outside world aswell. Then a normal life would be too far out of reach. For all of us".

"Nice work Chris, now everyone thinks you're a pedophile." Belle said. Chris dropped his head slightly, "Don't you think I've noticed that?" He asked rhetorically. When the bartender served the drinks, Chris grew more and more nervous. He curled his fingers around his own drink and took a quick sip as he watched her chug down hers. That wouldn't end well, especially because it was her first.

He moved a closer by an inch as she started coughing. "That was horrible." She said, "God, I feel so woozy all of a sudden...". Chris let out a roar of laughter. "Well, no wonder, you chugged it down like your throat was on fire," He added, "Maybe you should stick to the soft drinks for tonight". He took another sip of his beer and smiled, turning to the bartender once more. "I'll get a cheese burger and chips, with a side of beans. And Belle, what do you want?".

---

Juliet was relieved when Corbin lifted himself up with no hesitations. She just lay there for a second, propping herself up with her elbows. She watched Cameron enter, and closed her eyes with utter shock, this musn't have looked good from anyone else's view. When a hand entered her vision, she looked up to find Corbin holding it out for her, offering to lift her up. That was nice of him, but she was going to refuse just to prove a point. She was not his friend.

"Listen, I'm sorry for snapping at you. I'm not exactly the most calm person in the world. Sometimes I don't react well when people raise their voices. A lot like you, in a way." Corbin said. Juliet scoffed. She accepted his apology, but his excuse sucked. And she was not like Corbin. Corbin was a cheat, a liar, and a hopeless excuse for a friend. Why she was interested in him was beyond her.

No words left Juliet's mouth. She walked silently across the room and took a seat on the sofa, her gaze not wandering to Corbin for a second.

---

Alex listened to Erieda as she tried to think of ideas on what they were to do with their child. "We could send him or her to a school in OtherWorld. I mean portals are easy enough to..." She suddenly stopped speaking. Alex raised a lone brow. "Homeschooling...perhaps," Was her next big suggestion. "Sure, because either of us know how to teach a child what they teach them in school. At best we'll be teaching them how to be an emotional, power-crazy, psycopathic mess" He spat.

There was a lingering silence, Alex just assumed Erieda was thinking. But when she explained that she didn't know what to do, and shot him a sad look, he sighed. He wrapped his arm around her and pulled her closer. "We'll figure it out. Though right now, let's just cuddle and rest".

Chris watched her walk away and rest her head on the table. He held out a finger to the bartender, gesturing for him to wait a second. He then wandered over to Belle and kneeled beside her chair. His eyes glared deeply into hers, and soon after he chuckled again. Her eyes were dazed and she could barely see, she wasn't fit for standing up. She was drunk. He wrapped his arm around her and lifted her up, bridal style. "Let's go. I'm not having a meal with someone who doesn't, or can't, make sense".

---

Juliet rolled her eyes at Corbin. But she'd be lying if she said his forced footsteps didn't make her flinch. She watched him sit down outside the hotel. She was considering saying something else. When she finally decided on it, she began to walk towards him. "Co-" She stopped immediatly when Theresea came and announced her arrival. A panicked gasp shot from her lips, and she ran upstairs. She didn't know the hotel, so where she was running was beyond her. Once the realisation of how foolish she was being kicked in, she came to a halt. Juliet took a seat on the top step of the stairway.

---

Alex liked cuddling with Erieda. It comforted him, however the extent of his pain. He rested his chin on the top of her head and grinned happily. It was then that the silent was now filled with a distant voice, of which he could only assume was Theresea. "She's back. Want to go say hello?".

"Too bad, I was really looking forward to that burger." Belle said. Chris nodded. He'd simply just get them to go. He'd sooner have her tucked up in bed with a nice meal than having to sit in a bar full of strangers whilst she was drunk. A barely noticable blush appeared on his cheeks as she buried her head in his chest. "You are totally embarrassing me and you're probably enjoying this, aren't you?" She added, looking up at him. Chris merely shook his head, his brown eyes staring into hers with a slight shine to them.

He was attention was drawn from her when the bartender began to snap his fingers. Chris turned his head and glared at him, but the bartender shoved two plates towards him. He walked closer to the bar. "Is it possible that you could just put all of this into one of those little take-away tubs? I think that beer affected her more than us both had expected". The bartender sighed and disappeared into the kitchen with the plates. He came back out a moment later with two tubs. Chris took them both and nudged them onto Belle, gesturing for her to hold them.

Chris exited the pub and began to walk towards the hotel, and entered without even glancing at Corbin, Theresea and Kristina in the doorway. He'd greet them later on. Chris walked upstairs, past Juliet, and stopped in a random doorway, placing Belle on her feet and taking one of the tubs. "However brief, this night was very enjoyable. Thank you".

---

Juliet scooted over to the side as Kristina walked down the stairs, mumbling an almost inaudible apology. Then she saw Chris holding Belle like they'd just got married, and she had to move over a smidge more. She gripped onto her forehead and released a low grow. "Why are there so many damn couples here?" She spat, closing her eyes.

---

Alex too got up, taking Erieda's hand in his. "Time for a reunion," He said, slightly unsure. He went to open the door, but when he saw Chris and Belle walk past he slammed it shut. His expression was horror-stricken. "My brother and my ex.. Jeez". He shuddered, his entire body suddenly going cold with annoyance. He let go of Erieda's hand and punched the door open, almost sending it off it's hinges. That's when he heard Juliet's comments on couples. He ignored it, and just stormed downstairs. Once there, he remained silent and took a seat on the couch.

Kristina rolled her eyes. "I just wanted to kill the noise, but it was just Theresa." She said seriously. She waved at her, but he mood changed along with almost everyone else in the room. She could sense emotion lingerig from inside and outside the hotel. She was just enjoying the peace. "If we stay silent will they go away?" She asked knowing the answer. She felt a slap come to the back of her head an by instinct she elbowed it. Se heard a groan and laughed. Cameon should leave er alone. "You didn't have to attack me Kris. Dryad keep control if your dragon!" He shouted as a joke but Kristin just hit him again. Cameron backed away from her and could sense what everyone else was. "Maybe we should move all the vulnerable people." He looked at Kristina and knew Erieda was somewhere. "Out of the way. Whatever is out there is pretty strong."

Bells had just finished her chips when she delta chill roll down her back. "Oh shit." She whispered before jolting up and looking out the window she ran a frustrate hand through her hair and ran out the room and stumbled down the steps and out the door just as quick. She looked around and saw them. All 79 to be exact. "Shit, shit, shit." She repeated before walking back inside. She faced everyone with scared eyes. "You all need to leave, like now." She said running back to the window and looking outside. "Shit, why the fuck can't they leave me alone." She muttered watching them approach even closer.

---

"Jeremiah!" He yelled and a teenager with the muscles of a god came. "Yes sir?" Jeremiah asked. "As soon as we enter i want you to grab Belle with one arm and fight with your other, understand?" Jeremiah nodded and he ran towards the house followed by the army. "Let the games begin." The warlock chuckled and followed

Chris was almost knocked off his feet at the amount of power being released all at once. He assumed they couldn't all be from the group, so there were others. Not good. The first thing that popped into his head was Julius, figuring he'd heard the knews of Thorn's death. Not that they were particularly close, infact they hardly knew eachother, but Thorn would never attempt to murder his own children without some persuasion.

A small, strained sigh escaped his lips as he made his way down the steps and into the lobby. "Woah" He mumbled. Everyone was fighting. Alex was standing protectively near Erieda, Corbin was injured but still fighting, as was Kristina, and Tommy was protecting Kristina, Juliet was flailing about in the middle of it all, trying to dodge attacks. Theresea disappeared into a car and drove off. Belle was nowhere to be seen. He figured she must've been asleep.

Chris walked back up the stairs, through the hallway until coming to the room he'd left her in. She wasn't there either. Odd. He checked a few rooms but she was in none of them. He couldn't feel her presence anymore. Then he thought of something.. wasn't Belle a witch? Maybe the warlocks had come for her? His eyes widened as he heard someone yell "Fall back!".

"Belle..." Chris whispered, gripping onto his hair. He fell to his knees. They'd taken her...

Tommy crashed the heads of two warlocks just as he noticed Alex with Erieda. He wa glad for that at least. She’d be somewhat protective from her own pride. It was then he heard screaming. He turned to see Belle, just before she’d disappeared in the arms of a very large man. “Shit! Belle.” He stood stuck. He wasn’t sure what to do. He couldn’t leave Kristina. She was injured and his girlfriend but he couldn’t just let Belle go. Though it was really already too late. A Rock and a Flippin Hard Place. That’s where he was at the moment then he heard fall back, just as something stabbed him through the chest. He looked down to see a blood red blade protruding through his chest. He looked around to find that all the warlocks were gone. “ You have got to be kidding me.” He said and saw Erieda’s eyes widened and her come for him. He moved her away. “Get. Belle.” He said before he passed out.

Erieda caught her brother as he passed out. “ Burn it all, Deathlike? Where are you?”
“ Here. Maste...By the Queen.” She gasped as she saw Tommy bleeding. What was worse was that he was in Dryad form. Erieda sighed as she assessed the damage. “ He’ll live but he’ll be unconscious for a few days in order to heal.” She told Deathlike. “What about the Witchling?” “ Her name is Belle. I’ll scry for her. See if I can find where she’s located.” She told Deathlike, sounding much like the old General Erieda.
“ Aye, Master.”
“ We have much too many injured to go after her now.” She said. Erieda closed her eyes, summoning her power to try to find some trace of Belle. “Burn it all... I can’t see anything yet. They’ve covered their tracks.” She said and began to think. Than A thought struck her. “They aren’t going to kill her. Otherwise they wouldn’t have gone through all the trouble to cover their tracks so thoroughly.” She said more to herself than to anyone else. “ master, Your brother?” Deathlike said. “ He’ll live. I told you that. It was a silver blade. So He’ll be fine so long as he rested.” She said and gestured to the ever closing gap in his head. Deathlike still looked unsure. “ Aye, ma’am. “ She said. “ Scan the Area, Deathlike.” She said. “ Tell me what you find when you are finished.” She said and Deathlike nodded and disappeared.

Alex's eyes also widened as he turned to see Tommy being stabbed, following closely behind Erieda as she moved towards him. Then her and Deathlike began to mutter about the whole Belle situation. Chris walked out of the hotel and his eyes were fixed on Alex. They exchanged a quick nod, then both turned towards the forest. From there was a ghostly presence, the kind that would keep you awake at night with thoughts of horror and death.

A small figure walked closer, the shade from the trees shadowing her entire body. Yet you could still identify her as a young girl. She stepped into the light, revealling her appearance. Chris moved to Alex's side, and their bodies were both shuddering with a slight fear.

"Hello, brothers" She said, her voice scarily childlike.

"Syrid," Alex greeted, "I assume you've come to finish what Thorn failed to do?".

"Of course not," Syrid replied with a small giggle, "Is it a crime for me to want to see my big brothers?".

"Yes" Chris spat.

Syrid released a hiss. "Watch your tongue".

Chris shut his mouth.

"Then what is it you seek, Syrid?" Alex asked.

"Thorn is dead, mother is too old to take care of me. I need someone to take me in, and who better than the most important people in my life?" Syrid asked.

"Bullshit. You tried to kill me!" Chris shouted, stepping forward.

Syrid shook her head, darting forward at such a speed that it was literally invisible to anyone else. She gripped a hand around Chris' throat and slammed him down, the ground cracking beneath the pressure. When she let go and stood up, Chris let out a strained cough. Poor Alex hadn't even clocked onto what had happened. One second she was near the forest, the next she was beside him, Chris lying injured at her feet.

"You know I don't like it when you yell, Chris" She whispered, looking down at him.

Alex growled and turned to drive a clenched fist in her face, but Syrid grabbed ahold of his wrist and twirled him around, bending his wrist backwards. She then took the opportunity to put him in a life-or-death situation. She pulled a knife from her belt and placed it against his throat.

"Fool" She mumbled.

"Let me go..." Alex said, his voice almost as inaudible as a whisper.

Syrid pushed him to the ground and placed the knife back on her belt. "So, you going to take care of me or not?" She asked.

Chris and Alex, who were lying on the ground at this point, both nodded.

"Great!" Syrid yipped, "I'll be in my room if you need me". She then skipped inside the hotel and disappeared upstairs.

Kristina continued to stroke his face as the last person she wanted to see strolled through the hotel. Cameron. She didn't have time for jokes and stupid family members. Belle was missing and Tommy was stabbed. The two most important people in her life have been taken away and she didn't have time for Cameron. "Kris. Snap out of it and talk to me." He was trying to get her attention, but it wasn't working. Cameron took a step away from her knowing that messing with her wasn't going to be the smartest thing to. She had too many emotional issues as it already is, now they have escalated. She is in a shock. Cameron looked around and already knew Belle was missing which is why he rushed over here. He got to the back and saw Erieda, Chris, and Alex. Erieda was holding a pendant in her hand which was probably going to help them find Belle. Chris looked super sad, which meant he had a crush on Belle. He didn't say anything though. "Erieda, was Kristina like that earlier? She isn't speaking or responding to anything." Which wasn't healthy for a normal person. He just didn't want to find out that she is dying on the inside and can't say anything. The dragon elders need her. Speaking of which, the deadline is almost up and Cameron was going to get in trouble for not giving her the necklace. "Never mind. Is that how you are going to find Belle?"

Layla had no idea what to do. She was stuck; caught in between the car chair (which had been forced forward in the crash). "Oh, God! Holy crap. Terry! Terry!" She tried to murmur, but her eyes became tired and weak, slowly drifting into a haze. But she tried to fight the feeling and searched into Theresea's pocket for her mobile phone. Maybe she had some contacts she could ring to help them out. Layla scanned through the millions of people and stopped at the name "Thomas". She had heard this name mentioned before, maybe it was one of the many friends Theresea had. Layla tapped the "call" button and waited for it to pick up. But before she could hear the answer on the other line, she lost consciousness.

~*~*~*~

Layla felt a body close to her head, she had no idea who or how she was found but she rested her eyes until she was placed down.
"Oww!" Layla cried as something tapped on her skin, near a close bruise. "What happened? Who are you?..." She asked, her eyes seeing two people but clearly she knew, she was seeing double. She slowly moved from her position laying down to face on her side and look at her new-found hero. "...My hero?"

"I'm Alex, Theresea's close friend," the boy said. Layla smiled, but he laughed - maybe at her joke. She had liked the name Alex but had never actually met anyone with the same name until now. "I love your name..." It sounded slightly awkward and flirty so Layla tried to steer away and onto a new topic. "So um...Theresea is like a friend of yours? She doesn't exactly say much to me about her life, I mean...I have this slight feeling that she hates me...maybe for being born, I s'pose."
Layla looked down at her arm, (she didn't want to look into her hero's eyes) and noticed it was badly bruised. He then commented.
"Sure, your hero," He said almost inaudibly, "You just get some rest, I'll have Erieda come and tend to your wounds as soon as she's finished with her search for Belle's current location. For now, is there anything I can do for you?".
Alex mentioned a few names but Layla had no idea what their appearance looked like, nor how they were related to the group. Layla just gave a slight smile and pause before answering, with her eyes peirced to the floor. "I...I want to thank you...for saving me. I understand why you saved Theresea, you've had a long past by the sounds of things. But you could've just left me...I was stuck, and unable to reach, but you never. You saved me too. So, thank you. I owe you, a lot." Layla eventually looked up to see his response.

Layla looked up when he responded. He seemed sincere. "It was no trouble, honestly. And that's a bit stupid. I would've helped you out of that car even if you were my worst enemy. See, I don't know what Theresea has said about me or my attitude, but I'm not a bad guy. Sure, I have my moments.. Actually, I have quite a lot of moments, but that doesn't change anything, y'know."
Layla giggled, Alex seemed nice. Layla had no idea why Theresea acted all snobby toward her. She had a feeling it was of pure jealousy and hate that she would steal her friends away from her or something. When Theresea did arrive back, there weren't that many smiling faces...
"That's funny. You're a good friend... to Theresea, I mean. I can see why she stuck by you. Can I ask you something...Why doesn't anyone like Theresea? When she arrived back the other day, well she wasn't exactly getting many friendly responses. Did she do something to you guys?"

"I understand." Layla simply commented. She understood this connection she'd seen Theresea and Corbin have. "I have to admit, it's like this one whole big love triangle, hey? Honestly..."
Layla tried to move her body out of the bed, having great difficulty. "Ouch!" She shrieked as her toenail scraped the scar on her left leg. "I got scared a lot..." Layla muttered. She gave a slight giggle as her foot reached the edge of the bed.

---

Theresea eye's opened. She sat there, lying for a minute. Her head whizzing from everything that happened lately. Her eyes heard voices, unknown whether she was hearing things from the crash or whether it was real she had no idea. She listened, trying to block out the noises of the jerking made when she hit the breaks at the last second. Then she remembered everything. "I'm meant to be dead..." Theresea muttered looking at the ceiling, then around the room. "Where am I?" Theresea pulled the covers off her and began walking to find the destination of the voices. She followed them to a close hall and up a room. Slowly listening to them, both communicating about her. "I have to admit, it's like this one whole big love triangle, hey? Honestly..."
She finally peeked into the door to see the girl trying to get out of the bed. "Layla..." Theresea murmured before stepping back into the hall, then taking a quick glance in and actually making a move inside the room.
"Layla...Gosh! You're here." Theresea ran to her sister's side. "I thought you were gone."
Layla looked shocked but happy at the same time. "You're supposed to be dead. I mean, recovering from the accident." Layla was lost for words. Theresea hated her and now there was this affection.
Theresea thought about Layla's comment. "I know. I wonder how I'm alive..." Then she swallowed and remembered. "Healing, that's it. I healed. My body mended itself - all the scars were healed. My abilities worked over my dead body, that's it." Theresea was amazed her body could do that, as far as she knew she could only heal other people.

Theresea had been re-united with her sister, so now she decided to leave. Alex would be left alone, but Theresea wanted to properly be reunited with everyone. That's when Theresea remembered about the disaster that happened not that long before. "Crap! What happened to Belle?" Theresea asked Alex, tugging at Layla's arm to direct her back to the room. "Where is she?! Is she okay?"
Theresea panicked, even though they hadn't been as close as she'd liked to be with Belle - they were still friends no matter what happened.
"Layla, Alex? Has anybody seen her?"