Chapter 45

Lauren lay in her bed at the end of what felt like the longest day she had ever had. They had sat around after the ritual in uncomfortable silence. Many of them had cried for the retched boy that was her brother. Travis had insisted that S'more and hotdogs would make them feel better, and you know it had somewhat.

The wolf had returned by then and had decided to recline at Brenna's feet. They fed him hotdogs and it had sat with them like it was a family pet. Even stranger than that, when they went to leave he followed them out to the parking lot. And when Brenna opened her car door he jumped inside. Brenna asked Marley to interpret for her and ask what was going on. The wolf had apparently said in his picture stories. Wolves hunt with Ravens, Raven in your pack, So wolf hunt with your pack. No one could fault the logic and Brenna who seemed to have bonded with him decided to take him home, but before leaving everyone had promised that they would do everything in their power to help her find her brother and bring him home. Lauren felt blessed because, what she lacked in family, she more than made up for in friends.

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In the early hours of the morning Lauren rolled over on her side exhausted, but sleep would not come. Where was her brother? He was broken. She could be sure of that. Where would a broken boy go after his return, possibly Seattle? She would start there. Just before crashing she had left a message on the deep web. It was a magical message board for the Enlightened community asking if anyone knew her brother's whereabouts to please contact her. Now she could only hope that someone knew something.

It took a long time for sleep to come, but eventually she slept and the nightmares came. She fought for her life in the dark realm beside her uncle, but her brother was the jabberwocky that stalked them in the dead of night. It terrorized their every moment. Finally her beloved uncle was taken by the fiend and she was left to face the malevolent creature on her own. The beast mocked her in the inky black forest, saying, "I'm going to catch you; this time you can't get away," and suddenly she was back on her bike going round and round uselessly, and he was just a hairsbreadth from her. Lauren woke in a pool of sweat, the covers twisted tightly around her, with a stalled scream on her lips, and a sense of foreboding so great that it nearly suffocated her.

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Lauren went through the motions at school for the first part of the week. She tried to pay attention in class but failed miserably. She joked with the gang at lunch, and she tried not to incur the wrath of le Fay in the afternoon. Quinn and she were becoming closer every day while Zach had grown even more distant. Every day after training she rushed home to check her computer to see if there was a reply.

Oh why oh why did she have to go to a school with magical creatures that interrupted cell signals and disrupted technology. Then she could check when she was at school, but no she had to wait until she got home. Every night she put another message up on the board including new information she had thought of during the day, but still there were no replies, until Wednesday afternoon she came home to find this response on the board.

I have information regarding your brother, but I will only share it with you in person.

Madly she typed:

Why not just DM me?

Because . . . I don't know you from Adam and you might be one of them.

One of who?

I won't discuss it further unless we meet.

Okay where would you like to do it?

Do you know the Halfblood club downtown?

Club NYX?

Yeah that one. Meet me there @ midnight on Friday.

And come alone!

How will I know you?

Don't worry. I'll know you.

Okaaaaaay that was cryptic.

She waited and waited but there were no further responses. She was disappointed that this was her only lead. She knew it was stupid to say yes to a meet-up IRL with someone online, but what choice did she have? She'd tell the guys about it at lunch tomorrow maybe they'll have a better idea than meeting a total creepazoid alone in a club on a Friday night, and she wasn't seriously thinking about doing that, was she?

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Lauren walked in to the cafeteria dying for the Thursday Special: Mac & Cheese. She looked over to see Quinn already in line ordering the secondary special hot dogs and fries. She waved to him when he spotted her and grabbed herself a tray. There were probably half a dozen student's in front of her so she sat back to wait when she noticed that a long lean shadow had fallen across the serving dishes behind the glass partition and looked back to see Zach standing nonchalantly behind her. She moaned inwardly. She had been doing a good job of avoided him since last weekend, but she guessed it couldn't last forever. Should she strike up a conversation? It would be weird if she didn't, would it? Yaaaahhhh . . . Damn it! She had to say something, but what? She racked her brain and all she came up with was:

"Hey."

"Hey" he replied.

Great, she thought, now what?

She looked up at the gods above and prayed for the line to move faster.

This was damn awkward. You'd swear they had had a torrid affair or something, and one or the other had cheated, she couldn't even figure out why they weren't friends anymore.

Nope she had nothing. If he wasn't going to talk neither would she.

Then he said something:

"How's the search going, any luck on the boards?"

Wow, he actually sounded pretty normal for a change not even mad at her for once. It gave her hope, so she replied excitedly, "Actually yeah a guy contacted me yesterday. He wants to meet up to talk about it this weekend."

"Wait a minute you're not thinking about meeting a stranger are you."

There it was the 'I'm annoyed with you tone'.

Maybe she should pretend she needed to pee and get the hell out of line, but no it was nearly her turn to order.

"Well are you?" He insisted.

"I'll have the Mac & Cheese," Lauren told the cafeteria lady. Maybe if she said nothing he'd get the point.

"Lauren," he growled.

"Alright, yeah I am, okaaay." She barked heatedly over her shoulder.

"Let's talk about it at the table," she muttered at a more reasonable volume when everyone began to stare.

Quinn looked over to see if she was okay and she secretly hoped he didn't come over. She couldn't take another moment of their male posturing. They had been at it all week. Frankly, she was sick to death of it.

She didn't even bother to say another word before she grabbed her tray and tore off to the cash to pay for her meal.

I swear she thought if someone ruins another perfectly good Mac & Cheese day I'll go postal for sure.

When she reached the table Quinn had a spot waiting for her beside him but frankly at the moment she wanted nothing to do with both guys so she grabbed a seat by Marley and Liv.

Quinn looked confused, but he'd get over it. She had to smile though when Zach grabbed the vacant spot. Good, she thought, now they can play who's the biggest toughest guy without her.

When she sighed Marley asked, "Everything okay, you look like you could use someone to talk to?"

She wanted to say, Ya think, of course nothing's okay, it hasn't been for a long while but that would have been too harsh so she said instead, "I'm just having some boy trouble."

Marley and Liv both looked at each other and laughed.

Marley added, "Well if you're looking for advice about guys you just might be barking up the wrong tree here Rover."

Lauren couldn't help it when they all started giggling.

This is what she needed: more female companionship. Maybe she should just give up guys and become celibate or something. It would be far less complicated.

By the time the last of their crew joined them Lauren was half way through her heavenly lunch and feeling ten times better when she announced, "Guess what guys? Someone contacted me online last night."

"Wow that was quick! Ray exclaimed, "Dad will be happy to hear it. He still insists he wants to help."

"Thanks Ray, tell him I said thank you and I'll keep him in the loop." Lauren was touched by his father's concern.

"What'd they say?" Ryan asked

"Well not much, he wants to meet in person." Lauren told them

"I hope you said you'd meet in a public place," Quinn interjected.

"Yeah how do you know he really has information, maybe he's just a creep or something," Cameron added as he draped his arm around Meg.

Lauren whined in response, "Not you too Cam."

While she thought It must be a guy thing.

"Look," she said sounding more annoyed then she meant to. "He asked me to meet him at Club NYX on Friday night. He said come alone, but I'm not a complete noob. I never intended to do that. So who wants to go?"

Marley spoke up then and said, "What a coincidence I'm playing there on Friday night."

And Liv added, "Why don't we all go? I'm famished."

Marley gave her a hard look before ducking her eyes to the table -- While Lauren thought 'oh no down that road be dragons.'

Maybe relationships weren't so easy for the girls either.

It got a little tense around the table as people picked up on the non too subtle friction between the girls, but Zach's next statement broke the ice.

"Sorry guys I can't go I don't have fake ID."

Just then Kyle gave himself a facepalm and blurted out, "Holy shit Brah, we forgot to tell you the best part about living in the magical world."

They all started laughing.

"They don't card Dude. There's no legal drinking age." Travis finished Kyle's sentence.

When Zach and Quinn looked shocked, CJ jumped in to explain.

"Yeah," CJ teased, "Can you imagine how embarrassing it would be to card a five hundred year old vampire, because he doesn't have any stubble?"

"And we don't have to worry about the place being raided because it's invisible to humans." Brenna added.

Kelly practically purred and grabbed Xander's expensive shirt front saying, "I just bought a hot little number that you're not going to believe. I guess we can make an appearance, right sugah?"

"No can do Kel I have a date, but I'm sure you can go with the girls." Xander said nonchalantly.

WTH Lauren thought weren't they dating?

Kelly eyes narrowed to slits before she caught herself and said," Sure no prob. The girls and I can make a night of it."

Donnie jumped into the conversation then as he stared a hole through Kelly, "I like to dance very much." Then he seemed to cringe and look up like he was going over in his head what he just said and was not happy with the outcome.

Lauren couldn't help, but think teenagers and their hormones; they were all a friggin' mess.

"I go on stage for my first set at eleven. Let's meet up before hand?" Marley suggested.

"Sounds like a plan." They all agreed.

Lauren started going over in her head what was in her closet and if she might need to buy something new before the night. She hoped not. New was not in her budget. But looking hot as sin was on her agenda. Zach was going to rue the day he cut her out of his life.

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Lauren came straight home after training on Friday still with no clue what she was going to wear.

Until she got a text from Kelly:

Hey can you pick me up 2?

Right . . . since Xander wasn't going she had no mode of transportation.

Why was she even going if Xander wasn't; it's not like she liked any of them?

Lauren texted:

I don't know, I just got home, and I've got nothing to wear and no time to get ready if I have to portal three people. I'm going to look like a complete dweeb.

You could have knocked her over with a feather when she got the next text.

Pick me up now and we'll go through my closet and find you something to wear. I'll get ready at your house.

Was Kelly kidding? She was nearly six feet tall and as thin as a rail!

Would she fit into anything she owned? She didn't know, but did she really have any other choice? Her wardrobe was seriously limited to casual stuff and the dress she'd splurged on for the last years Masquerade.

Send me your address I'll be right over after my shower.

Lauren portalled over to Kelly's with her hair still wet. They ended up deciding to get ready there. It made more sense seeing that Kelly had a kickass wardrobe, enough make-up to choke an elephant, and enough hair products and expensive jewelry to start her own retail chain.

Lauren couldn't help but think: 'You Want Thingamabobs She's Got Plenty' and I wouldn't mind 'Being Part of Her World" as she snickered in her head.

How could she afford all this stuff?

Kelly's room was pretty, but sparsely furnished so Lauren didn't think she was rich or anything, From what she had seen of her house, which wasn't much, just her simple bedroom and adjacent bathroom, she didn't appear to be living in the same tax bracket as Xander, but yet she didn't seem to be hurting either.

As if she guessed what Lauren was thinking, Kelly said, "If you think Xan bought all this, guess again. I'm my own woman." She said proudly. "I've been working and earning my own way since I was eight."

When her jaw drop open she said, "I'd watch that facial expression Sugah, it's not a very attractive look for you, besides it will cause wrinkles."

"Here," she said to change the subject, "Come over here I'll do you hair. I hope you like braids, because Mohawk braids are all the rage?"

Two hours late Lauren was contoured and primped to the nine's, and they actually found a pair of Kelly's black Leather Capri's that worked just fine as a normal length pant on Lauren. A bronze metallic barely there top actuated Lauren's dark complexion perfectly and Lauren's hair, braided teased and poofed, made her look as fierce as Lagertha on Vikings. They had to spell Kelly's black stiletto heels to shrink in order for them to fit on Lauren's much smaller feet, but Kelly had surprised her and told her to keep them that she had plenty.

Kelly had even made her simple sandwiches to munch on, while she completed her fashion ritual, but when she was done, when they were both done; they looked like they just stepped off the cover of Vogue. Lauren had never looked so good. She couldn't wait for Zach to see her. Her stomach was in a tight not of anticipation at the thought.

When they were just about to leave Kelly took her plate with her left over crust and placed it slightly under her bed.

Lauren watched as a tiny grey white hand reached out and snatched it, and her mouth fell open, when she heard tiny chewing sounds, "You've got an imp living in your room and you're feeding it?"

"Lauren sugah," Kelly admonished, "we've talked about this look for you, "as she snapped her jaw closed."

"Do want you to make Quinn drool or talk about Imps?"

Lauren just giggled, but then she kinda felt bad after wondering if it really was Quinn she had dressed up for.

********************THANKS FOR READING***************

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Tune in tomorrow to find out what the club is like and how halfblood magical creatures blow off steam.

A/N if you think up a cool name for that Were meeting place; it doesn't have to be a bar. Let me know. I'll write it into the books. *Hugs*