Part Two
Jamie’s head smashed painfully on the ground. The wind was knocked out of her, her vision a blur, but slowly a blonde figure above swam into focus.
Dani pulled Jamie the rest of the way over the threshold, quickly slamming the door shut and throwing the bolts. She turned back to Jamie, worry etched across her features. “Are you okay?” She knelt down, gently touching Jamie’s shoulder.
“I think I’ll survive--”
The beast collided with the front door in a loud crash.
Instinctually, Dani threw her body against it, bracing against the wood in a desperate bid for it to hold.
Jamie dragged herself up, head still swimming in pain and a touch of dizziness, and took her place beside Dani, adding her weight against the front door.
Another crash against the door, another wince from Dani. She looked to her right, Jamie meeting her gaze with a matched look of fear.
They waited for the next impact, bated.
But, it didn’t come.
Another few moments of silence.
“D’you think it’s gone?” Jamie asked quietly, both of their backs still pressed against the door in anticipation.
Dani risked a glance through the peephole. The doorstep was empty now.
She let out a sigh, “Yeah.” Dani let her head fall back against the door, eyes closed. After a moment, she looked back to Jamie, face softening. “I’m glad you’re here.”
Jamie met her look, a small smile tugging at the corner of her mouth. “Good thing your station wagon is so easy to spot.”
Dani rolled her eyes, nudging against Jamie with her shoulder. But instead of pulling back away from the contact, Dani leaned into it, leaving her shoulder resting heavily against Jamie’s.
Jamie returned the pressure.
Swallowing, Dani let her hand drift toward Jamie’s. She brushed the back of Jamie’s hand with her knuckles before gently slipping her hand into Jamie’s palm.
The brunette gave her hand a squeeze, reassuring.
Jamie leaned her head back against the door but winced, grabbing at it with her free hand. “Almost forgot about that,” She grimaced, cradling the back of her head.
“Oh god,” Dani snapped back to their present situation. “Here, let me get you something.” She shoved off the door and made her way to the Wingrave’s kitchen. Jamie trailed behind her, glancing around the darkened home. Dani opened the freezer, rooting around a few minutes before pulling back with a bag of frozen peas in hand. She snatched a dish towel off of the counter, wrapped the frozen vegetables in it, and turned back to Jamie.
“Here,” Dani beckoned her forward. Jamie acquiesced, stepping into Dani’s personal space. The blonde gingerly reached out, applying the makeshift ice pack to the back of Jamie’s head and holding it in place. Jamie reached up to take the compress into her own hand, relieving Dani of her duty.
“Thanks,” She looked into Dani’s eyes as the blonde lingered in the close proximity. She glanced down, for the first time taking in Dani’s clothing. “Are you dressed as Mary Poppins?” Jamie blurted, mouth agape in amazement.
Dani covered her face with her hands, groaning. “I kind of forgot I was wearing this.”
“Well, I shall never forget this,” Jamie responded, an entire grin sweeping her features now.
Dani pulled her hands away from her face, finally. “I was going to surprise you at Owen’s party, but… Wait, who are you supposed to be?” Dani frowned down at Jamie’s outfit: a plaid shirt under a denim jacket under a red puffer vest.
“Marty Mcfly, obviously,” Jamie intoned, before her eyes were drawn back to Dani’s costume. “But I would have gladly shown up as a chimney sweep if you’d’ve given me a heads up.” She winked at the blonde, drawing forth a blush on Dani’s cheeks.
Dani sighed, stepping closer in towards Jamie again. “I probably shouldn’t be so distracted by the thought of kissing you with an eight foot horned demon outside, should I?” She nervously met Jamie’s eyes.
“Probably not,” Jamie agreed softly, matching Dani’s step forward. Dani reached forward to tug at Jamie’s vest…
“Miss Clayton!” Flora’s shrill echoed down the stairway into the kitchen.
Dani leaped back, suddenly remembering her place. “The kids…” She looked back to Jamie, concerned. “What are we gonna do?”
Jamie frowned for a minute before her eyes lit up, resolute. “Owen and Hannah. We’ll go over to theirs, they’ll know what to do.”
xxx
Owen was shoved against a bookcase, shoved against his front door, entire body wrapped in cloth like a mummy. His eyes were wide and panicked, a violent banging against the front door on the other side of his barricade. “I have no idea what to do!” He wailed pitifully.
Hannah rounded the corner of the kitchen, a bride of Frankenstein wig on her head, a meat cleaver in one hand and a hammer in the other. She shoved the hammer against Owen’s chest, he clambered to grasp it. “Hannah--”
“Hush, Owen. We need to prepare ourselves to fight.” She looked through the front living room window, steeling at the sight.
xxx
“Okay, guys. This is my friend Jamie, she’s here to help,” Dani explained, having gathered the Wingrave children and brought them downstairs to the still darkened living room.
Jamie gave an awkward half wave, “Hullo.”
“Is Jamie going to protect us from the monsters, Miss Clayton?” Flora inquired, eyes still round with fear.
“Yes,” Dani reassured, meeting Jamie’s unsure look momentarily. “And we’re also going to go over to our friends’ house. Because there’ll be safety in numbers, okay?”
“I don’t know if we should leave our house…” Miles interjected, glancing suspiciously between the two women. “What if something happens to it? One of those beasts breaks in and nobody’s here to stop it?”
As soon as he finished speaking, a loud wolf-like howl sounded right outside, from the direction of the backyard.
Dani’s face warped into another look of concern, her reassuring air put on for the children fading fast. “Miles, your life and Flora’s are more important than the house,” Her voice held a slight quaver of fear. “So we have to go, okay?”
Miles looked over to his sister’s big, watery eyes. “Okay. But we need protection,” He nodded resolutely, disappearing into the back of the house before anyone could stop him. He reemerged seconds later with an old shotgun in his hands.
Dani’s eyes bulged, rushing towards him with her arms outstretched. “Woah woah woah! Where did you get that?”
“It’s Dad’s. For protection,” He clarified, holding the weapon, unafraid.
“Okay, I think I need to hold onto that,” Dani requested, delicately taking the weapon from his hands. It was heavier than it looked. She looked down at it, then looked over to Jamie with an unsure grimace. “Do you know how to use this?” She whispered as she stepped back over to her.
Jamie gave an indistinct shrug. “Might’ve shot one a few times a very long time ago…” She reached out, collecting the gun from Dani’s fingers. “Let’s see,” She cracked open the barrel to reveal two new rounds already inside. “Christ, you’ve got the thing loaded already?” She looked up at Miles, horrified.
He nodded, nonchalant. “Dad taught us.”
Another howl outside broke the conversation.
“Okay, can we go now?” Dani asked anxiously. “You’re good with that?” She glanced down at the gun in Jamie’s hands.
“Yeah, yeah,” Jamie affirmed, though not very reassuringly. “Good as I can be.”
“If you want me--” Miles began.
“No,” The two women responded in unison.
xxx
“Okay,” Dani took another deep breath, their small group gathered by the front door. “Remember,” She began instructing the kids for the fourth time already. “You stay behind Jamie and in front of me. Nowhere else.” She made eye contact with Flora and Miles, waiting for another set of obedient nods. “Alright,” She looked up to Jamie now. “As fast as we can to my car.”
With a nod, Jamie flipped the set of locks on the door and quietly pulled it open. She slowly peered left, then right, and with a final nod at Dani, began to lead the way towards the station wagon.
Jamie stepped carefully and quickly, her Nikes treading quietly enough so far. She glanced to the left down the sidewalk, a clear view of the street now, and to the right. Nothing, yet.
They were nearly there now, the car keys in Dani’s hand as she left her point behind the children and stepped forward to gingerly slide the key into the lock of the passenger door. Jamie kept guard, eyes straining about in the dark as Dani, painfully slow, turned the key. A slight crunch. The blonde paused, glancing over her shoulder.
No movement.
She pulled the handle, a distinct CLICK echoing about the street. Dani grimaced, looking over to Jamie who waved her on, impatient to get in the car. Dani pulled the door open, guiding the kids in the front seat, then tumbling them over the bench into the back seat. After they made it safely in the back, Dani slid across the passenger seat, taking her place behind the wheel. Jamie glanced down, saw it was her turn, and gently lowered herself into the car. They both heaved a sigh of relief, meeting each other’s eyes.
“Same time,” Jamie whispered, nodding her head at Dani’s hand on the key in the ignition.
Dani nodded, “One,” Hushed, just barely a spoken word. “Two.” She only mouthed three, as she cranked the key and Jamie simultaneously shut the car door. The engine turned, but didn’t start.
Jamie whipped her head over, “I thought you said this car was reliable!”
“I said it was practical,” Dani muttered through clenched teeth, turning the key again, begging for the engine to come to life.
It whined, but still didn’t start.
“Dani,” Jamie’s voice dropped.
“I’m trying, okay!” Dani didn’t bother looking up, again trying to start the car.
“No, Dani, really…” Jamie clicked the lock on her door down.
“Miss Clayton, a mean looking wolf is coming this way,” Flora offered from the backseat.
This jerked Dani to attention and she looked out the passenger window to see another snarling beast, this one on all fours, covered in a thick fur, muzzle already stained red. Its eyes glowed a brilliant green.
“Dani!” Jamie exclaimed, urgently. The wolf had started a trot directly aimed at the passenger door.
“Come on, come on, come on,” Dani begged, cranking the car, once, twice, and finally the engine turned over, rumbling itself awake.
The wolf seemed to disagree with the sound.
Just as Dani clutched the gear shift, two angry paws banged against Jamie’s window.
Flora and Miles screamed in the backseat, the car shifting into drive, as Dani made the tires squeal in eagerness, her foot to the pedal to the floor.
Another howl sounded behind them, Flora and Miles and Jamie all turned around to watch the wolf continue to keep pace with them for several blocks before it eventually peeled away to stalk a different prey.
Dani glanced in the rearview mirror, finally in the clear. She let out a breath she didn’t realize she’d been holding.
She also hadn’t noticed the pressure against her thigh, and she glanced down to discover Jamie’s hand clutched against her skirt. Dani shifted slightly, causing Jamie to glance over, then quickly and bashfully withdraw her hand.
“I--” Dani had barely opened her mouth before something smashed into the hood of their car.
The blonde slammed on the brakes, the station wagon only barely keeping itself on the road.
Dani saw the yellow pinpricks first, before her eyes fully took in the shape of what appeared to be a small and heavy stone gargoyle on the hood of her car. She frowned, and then the small creature tilted its head, looking directly at her. It flexed its small wings: they looked like living rock.
The passengers of the car were all silently transfixed.
And then the demon lifted its left hand, swiftly bringing it down with a clunk on the windshield. Everyone in the car jumped.
Dani punched the gas again, bolting forward but not shaking their new hood ornament.
The demon raised its claw again, smashing at the glass and this time effectively sending a crack sprawling across the windshield.
“Jamie,” Dani didn’t know what else to say or do, but then the sound of her passenger window being cranked down interrupted her hopeless thoughts.
“Whatever you do, don’t crash,” Jamie requested, before hauling her upper half out of the passenger window, shotgun in hand.
“Wait, what are you--” Dani chanced a glance at Jamie, eyes turning saucers once more.
Jamie spared a few seconds to take aim before pulling the trigger, the gargoyle vanishing in the explosion instantly. Only the dent in the hood, and the crack tracing its way across the glass remained in its place.
Dani wore an expression of shock and horror, but her foot didn’t let up on the gas.
xxx
A hush found its way into the car for the rest of the drive, the children in the backseat shell shocked into submission. Jamie still clutched the gun tightly in her lap, knuckles white. Dani hadn’t taken her eyes from the road until she saw Owen’s house up ahead, slowed the car to a stop in front of the small bungalow.
Another moment’s worth of quiet before Dani switched back on to the task at hand. She turned in her seat, face full of concern as she looked back at her two wards.
“Are you guys okay?” She asked softly, mouth downturned at the corners.
The pair nodded, silently.
Dani turned to Jamie now. The brunette met her look.
“Ready for this, Poppins?”
Dani nodded, letting Jamie exit the passenger side first and sliding out after her. She once again motioned for the kids to climb over the front seat, gathering them close this time, an arm around either child, as they made their way to Owen’s front door.
xxx
“Oh god, one of them’s at the front door again,” Owen whispered to Hannah, huddled behind the couch together.
“Owen! It’s us!” Jamie’s voice hissed from the other side of the front door.
“Do the zombies know your name now?” Hannah asked, getting to her feet and looking through a gap in their blockade of the front window to find Jamie and company. “It’s Jamie and Dani,” She turned to Owen. “We’ve got to get them in.”
Owen rushed over now, leaning in as close as possible to the door around the various pieces of furniture he had stacked there. “Jamie! You’ve got to go ‘round back! We’ve barricaded the front.”
“Couldn’t be easy, could it?” Jamie muttered to Dani, turning around to glance about the neighborhood again.
“Go ‘round the left, through the gate!” Owen instructed.
Dani’s worried expression deepened, still clutching Miles and Flora close, as she followed Jamie around the side of Owen’s house, through a small wooden gate, into an especially darkened backyard.
Jamie froze in front of her, Dani nearly crashing into her. The blonde leaned in, peering over her shoulder.
“You see that right?” Jamie hushed.
Dani nodded silently, eyes transfixed on what appeared to be the silhouette of a person, stock still in the center of Owen’s backyard.
Jamie slowly raised the gun, trained it on the figure. “You lot get to the backdoor,” She instructed, slowly putting herself between the dark shape and Owen’s backdoor.
Dani pulled the children along with her, nervously glancing over to the silent standoff. She could hear the sounds of Owen carefully undoing all of the locks on the backdoor.
Finally, the door swung inward, Owen’s frightened mug peeking out, and then waving them in once he confirmed it was in fact Dani on the other side.
Dani pushed the kids in ahead of herself, then turned back, “Jamie,” It was just a whisper, but it caused the mysterious figure to lurch in their direction.
“Shit,” Jamie began walking backwards towards the house, still keeping the muzzle of the gun aimed at the rapidly approaching thing.
“Come on then, Jamie!” Owen yelped, eager to get the door shut and locked again. “Get the bloody hell inside!”
And like it was in slow motion before her eyes, Dani watched as a second figure emerged from the darkness somewhere to the right of Jamie, easily tackling the brunette to the ground and sending the shotgun skidding out of her hands.
“Shit!” Jamie cursed again, her head hitting the ground for the second time that night, as she found herself in a grapple with a nasty, rotting thing snapping its teeth at her.
Dani leapt forward, rushing to grab the lost shotgun. Once her fingers slipped around the cool and heavy metal, she felt possessed. Rearing around, she found Jamie still struggling to keep the monster off, so Dani quickly lifted the gun and brought the stock of it smashing down on the creature’s head, once, twice, three emphatic times.
Jamie shoved the now twice dead corpse off of her, scrambling to get to her feet.
A groan nearby drew Dani’s attention over again, and without a second thought, she raised the gun and pulled the trigger. The kickback rattled her, making her totter backwards, but ahead of her the second undead creature crumpled to the ground as well.
Jamie stepped beside her, surveying the damage. “Nice one,” She complimented, grasping Dani’s upper arm.
Dani looked to her, almost smiling.
“Inside. Now.” Owen’s stern voice commanded from the doorway.
xxx
Once safely inside, all locks flipped, all windows covered again, Owen let out a defeated sigh and slumped down onto the couch, covering his face with his hands. “I know you were defending yourself, but now the whole zombie horde will be raining down upon us with the noise of that shotgun,” he bemoaned.
“Might be surprised,” Jamie responded, sitting in an armchair across from him, Dani perched on the arm. “It could be a brand new beastie come to kill us all.”
“What is that supposed to mean? Is that a joke?” Owen looked up at her, brow furrowed.
“It seems to be a wide array,” Dani clarified. “Of...monsters.”
“What do you...there’s not a massive zombie apocalypse happening out there?” He gestured to the rest of the city.
“Apocalypse, likely,” Jamie responded. “As for zombies...those are the first we’ve seen of them. Wait ‘til you meet the other demons.”
“What have you seen then?” Hannah joined in, returning from the kitchen where she had sat down Miles and Flora to some tea and biscuits to calm their nerves.
“Let’s see,” Dani began, “Gargoyle, werewolf, an eight foot tall cloven-hoofed beast…” She glanced down at Jamie. “Anything I’m forgetting?”
“Oh! I saw a great big winged thing. Mothman style,” Jamie described, then, upon seeing Dani’s confused frown, “But that one I saw on my bike before I found you,” She explained to the blonde.
Dani’s face softened, “You rode through streetfuls of demons on your bike to find me?”
Jamie’s face pinkened as she glanced down at her hands.
Owen cleared his throat loudly, “Could we focus on the literal gates of hell that have seemed to have opened up beneath us? What are we going to do?”
“What more can we do?” Hannah asked him back, gently resting a hand on his shoulder. “It’s not safe out there, and we have no clue why this all has even started in the first place.”
“Right,” He nodded, a bit calmer under her palm. “So we...just hide?”
xxx
Hannah had stepped in seamlessly with the Wingrave children, bringing them down the hall to a small spare bedroom and building them a simple but satisfying fort; lining it with blankets and pillows and tucking them in safe and sound.
Owen made his way to the kitchen table, sipping nervously on a cup of tea as he repeatedly ran his fingers through his hair, sometimes muttering something to himself. Jamie couldn’t make out what it was.
She turned to look at Dani, who sat at the furthest end of the living room, wringing her hands and occasionally ducking her head to peek out the window, as if she were specifically waiting on someone to arrive.
Jamie slowly made her way towards the blonde.
“Hey,” She greeted softly, standing beside Dani.
“Hi,” Dani looked over, the distress plain on her face.
“You okay?” Jamie asked.
Dani shrugged, “Um,” Then shook her head slightly, as much of an answer as she could give.
“Hannah got the kids to bed,” Jamie informed, trying to ease her nerves.
Dani nodded in response, “That’s good.” A pause. “God, this is why I’m not a babysitter.”
“I think you’re managin’ just fine,” Jamie offered.
Dani looked back out the window, still frowning.
“Thanks, by the way,” Jamie tried again. “For back there,” She nodded her head in the direction of Owen’s backyard.
Dani turned back to her, her features softening. “Yeah well, you got the one on the car, so…”
“So...two to one is what you’re saying?” Jamie smiled, trying to lighten Dani’s mood.
“Two and half,” Dani replied smoothly.
“Half? What half?” Jamie balked.
“The one with the horns, at the Wingrave’s,” Dani explained. “I stabbed it with a fire iron.”
“That was you?!” Jamie exclaimed, awe hugging the words. “It was bleeding all over the place! See, you really have been keeping those kids safe,” She stepped nearer to the blonde, giving her a reassuring nudge with her hip. “And me too,” Jamie tacked on.
Dani looked up at her, worry easing off a bit. “I’ll do everything I can to not see you get killed by a demon tonight,” The blonde offered the bleak but sincere vow.
Jamie looked down to meet the particular way Dani was gazing up at her. “The feeling is very mutual,” She replied.
And then Dani stood, suddenly.
The change in placement brought her very, very close to Jamie. The brunette swallowed at the proximity this time.
“I--” Dani started and stopped, looking into Jamie’s eyes. She brought a hand up, gently holding on to Jamie’s arm. “I like you.” She finished, bravely.
Jamie smiled at her, “That’s kind of what I was getting at with the last bit I said--”
And then Dani was kissing her. Breath hitching, stomach fluttering, properly kissing her.
Jamie didn’t know Dani had it in her. But she also didn’t expect her to be a proficient demon slayer, either.
Dani clutched at Jamie’s neck, drawing her closer, desire slipping out of its constraints that Dani so usually properly maintained. She deepened the kiss, losing sight of her inhibitions, of the past several hours, of most things, except Jamie.
The shrill ring of a telephone broke them apart like a crack of lightning from the sky.
Jamie kept her hands on Dani’s waist as the pair looked over to Owen, who was standing in front of his kitchen phone, staring at it dumbly.
Hannah rushed into the room. “Are you going to answer that?” She asked him, impatient.
“H-hullo?” He spoke into the receiver as if a demon would surely be on the other end of the line.
“Owen! Glad I got you, bit of a miss out here isn’t it?” Rebecca sounded normal, if not a bit cheerful.
“Rebecca?” He asked, looking over to Hannah, who then turned to Dani and Jamie.
“His neighbor,” She whispered to the pair.
“Yeah, yeah, mind if I pop over?” Rebecca asked him.
“Oh, um, well…” He stuttered, caught off guard. “Are you...you?” He asked.
“Am I me? Of course I am.”
“You’re not...a Rebecca shaped demon?” He tried again.
“Oh no, of course not. You sound upset...maybe I can help? Be over in a bit, yeah?”
“Um...okay then. Best come ‘round the back.” He hung up the phone and looked over to his friends. “Becca’s coming by.”
They all stared at him with questioning looks.
“What was I supposed to say? No?” He defended. “Plus, she’s a bit of a goth, so she might know what this whole thing is about.”
xxx
Owen slowly opened the back door, ready for another wave of the undead but there stood Rebecca, alone and unbothered. She gave a little wave to him before traipsing inside, a small black bag over her shoulder.
She glanced about the living room after following Owen through the kitchen, and she raised an eyebrow. “Thought you were having a party, then?”
Owen made an indignant noise, “I was before the bloody zombies scared everyone off!”
“Mm, right,” Rebecca nodded, stepped forward to where Dani and Jamie sat awkwardly on the couch, trying to avoid accidentally touching one another. “Hullo to the brave survivors!” She joked, then held out her hand. “Rebecca.”
“Right, so that’s Jamie” Owen pointed to the left, “And Dani,” He gestured to the blonde. Dani attempted a smile, and Jamie tilted her chin up in acknowledgment.
“Hello, Rebecca,” Hannah stepped back into the living room, eyeing the other woman cautiously. “Decided to stop by for the end of the world, have we?” Hannah asked, keeping her voice light.
Rebecca chortled and rolled her eyes, “Oh, I figured you two would be all in a tizzy over this. It’s really nothing so dreadful, and it’ll only last for the next twenty-four hours…”
The group broke out in exclamations.
“Twenty-four hours!” Owen bristled. “You mean we’ve only just begun with this madness?”
“‘Fraid so,” Rebecca plopped down into the armchair. “Someone gave them a bit of a head start, it seems…”
“Okay, what do you know?” Jamie leaned forward in her seat, staring Rebecca down.
Rebecca sighed, “If I had to guess, I’d say someone decided they’d like to throw a welcoming party for the Lord of the Dead.”
Dani’s face fell with realization. “...And you’d probably start the party in a cemetery, right?”
Rebecca looked over to the blonde, “Well, yeah, that’d be the best place, really.”
Dani glanced over to share a knowing look with Jamie.
“Well, can we stop it?” Owen asked, exasperated.
Rebecca made a noise of disapproval. “Technically, yes. But, why would you? Hell of a lot more trouble than just letting it run its course,” She leaned back, fiddling with a lock of hair. “You’ve got any drinks leftover?”
Owen made another noise, so Hannah patted his shoulder and grabbed a beer from the kitchen, passing it over to Rebecca whose eyes lit up at the drink.
She sipped at it, unaware of the expectant looks from the entire room.
“Well?” Owen insisted.
“Oh! You were being serious? You don’t really want to try, do you?”
“Yes,” Dani asserted, a surge of bravery edging her on. “We don’t know what else might happen, we have to try to do something.”
Rebecca sighed again, followed it with a large glug from the bottle in her hand. “Fine,” She reached into her bag and pulled out a large book, its spine clearly showed its age. “There’s probably a solution in here.” She dropped it unceremoniously on Owen’s coffee table.
“What is that?” Hannah stepped closer, peering down at the tome.
“Grimoire.”
“And that is…?” Owen looked down at the book now.
Rebecca rolled her eyes again, “It’s a book of magic. It was passed down to me, from my great-grandmother, and it was passed down to her, etcetera etcetera…” Rebecca waved her hand about in explanation.
“So you are goth,” Owen breathed in wonder.
Rebecca laughed at him, “More like a witch, actually…”
“So you can help us?” Dani asserted, sitting forward. “You can help us stop this?”
Rebecca took a deep breath, and released it. “Fine. I’ll help. But I’ll have you know I just came ‘round for a Halloween party, not all this.”
“I’ll wake the children,” Hannah said before stepping off in the direction of the hallway.
“I’m going to need another drink then,” Owen grumbled, off to the kitchen.
Rebecca, alone with Jamie and Dani now, looked back and forth between them, raising a brow at their nearness. “You know,” She began, getting their attention off one another. “There’s this great bar you two might like, I could show you sometime--”
“Oh! Um, we’re not-- I mean, I am,” Dani stuttered in response, “But...we’re not...” She fumbled nervously.
“I mean, I am,” Jamie looked at her.
“Okay, right, well, we are,” Dani corrected, still rambling, “But not... with each other--”
“But we are a bit...aren’t we?” Jamie frowned.
“No, yes! No, we are. Okay, so we kind of are…” She looked back to Rebecca with wide eyes.
“Okay, okay,” Rebecca rolled her eyes. “Was just trying to tell you about a good bar, don’t worry about it.” She traipsed off in the direction of the kitchen.
Jamie gave Dani a look and the blonde grimaced in response. “Sorry,” she offered sheepishly.
xxx
And so, everyone was loaded up in Dani’s station wagon, once again, headed back towards the hellmouth in the Wingrave’s backyard. The children sat safely between Owen and Hannah in the backseat, and Jamie found herself squished between Dani and Rebecca in the front.
“Isn’t this just cozy?” Jamie mumbled, inadvertently pressing against Dani every turn they took.
“Practical,” Dani shot back, risking a glance over at the brunette.
Jamie managed a small smile, “Better keep your eyes on the road, Poppins,” She nodded up at the signs of chaos lining the street: cars crashed into trees and each other, little fires burning here and there, shapes and shadows from surely no good source, periodic screams off in the distance, smashed windows…
Dani corrected her focus, but didn’t fail to notice the gentle and reassuring warmth of Jamie’s hand resting near her knee.
xxx
The small group found themselves huddled in the foyer of the Wingrave home, having carefully and quietly scurried inside after Dani parked once again out front.
“We better make sure nothing got in while we were gone,” Dani suggested, quickly re-securing the front door’s locks.
“Right,” Owen nodded, “I’ll check down here,” He nodded to the darkened living room and kitchen.
Hannah stayed put, once again corralling the children about her, as Rebecca casually traipsed about the home, lifting this and that knick knack to give it a look.
Dani frowned, peering up the dark staircase from the bottom step. As she moved to begin her ascent, something pulled her back by the hand.
She turned to see Jamie holding her back.
“Let me go with you,” Jamie offered, joining the blonde on the wide staircase and beginning the climb up, still holding lightly onto Dani’s hand.
Dani felt her chest fluttering for two reasons.
They made it to the top, and after doing a thorough search of the upstairs bedrooms, found themselves in Miles’ room, both looking out the window for the advantageous view of the cemetery. It seemed to pulse with energy now, an eerie fog hugging it close.
“You sure about this?” Jamie questioned.
Dani took a deep breath, shivering slightly with nerves. “We have to try. We could have died five times over tonight, I don’t think everyone else has been so lucky… And what if Mr. Wingrave can’t get back to the kids, and they never see him again…” Dani let the gloom and panic saturate the room.
“Okay,” Jamie nodded, “What’s the plan then?”
“The kids will stay here with someone to protect them...I’ll go into the cemetery with Rebecca--”
“Hey,” Jamie interrupted, squeezing at Dani’s hand. “I thought we had a deal?”
Dani quirked her head, still wearing her deep expression of worry.
“We’ve got to watch each other’s backs. It’s how we’ve made it this far, isn’t it?” Jamie explained.
Dani sighed, shaking her head. “Jamie, I don’t--”
But she was interrupted, this time by Jamie’s lips on hers. It was gentle, but imploring; a promise. Jamie pulled back, just slightly, “I’m coming with you.”
xxx
The group had reconvened downstairs, the house confirmed unbreached. Dani stood in front of everyone, wringing her hands, but accepting her role as de facto leader.
“Okay,” She began, after a deep breath. “Hannah and Owen will stay here with Miles and Flora. Jamie and I will go with Rebecca into the cemetery, where hopefully we will...figure this out,” She finished weakly, still unsure of what they were heading into.
Hannah and Owen nodded their agreement, both wearing looks of concern. “You lot be careful,” Owen instructed, “Don’t be above tucking your tails and running, if need be.”
Jamie nodded back at him, stepping forward to hand him the Wingrave’s shotgun. “Here,” She passed him the gun, “Don’t let anything get in this house.”
“But don’t you--”
“We’ll be okay,” She assured, “We’ve got a witch on our side, ‘aven’t we?” She winked at him.
The trio on offense met each other’s eyes with a look, before stepping towards the back door of the home, where they’d travel down the short hill to the cemetery’s gates.
“Miss Clayton, wait!” Flora called out, rushing forward from her spot near Hannah’s calming radius. She flung herself at the blonde, wrapping herself around Dani’s legs in a clinging hug. “Please be careful, Miss Clayton. You are the bravest person I know.” She sniffled a little, hiding her face against Dani’s skirt.
Dani knelt down to give the small girl a proper hug. “Don’t you worry,” The blonde reassured, “We’ll be back before you know it.”
xxx
As the trio slipped through the entrance of the graveyard, the energy shifted distinctly dangerous. The place was charged, an electrical current that caused Rebecca’s hair to stand on end. She shuddered, pausing their steady pace forward.
“Hold on a moment,” She pulled her bag forward and dug around inside. “Here, you two best take these…” She held out two wooden stakes.
“You’re serious?” Jamie looked from the stakes up to Rebecca’s face. “Bloody wooden stakes? What if it’s not a vampire who jumps us in here?”
Rebecca shrugged, “Should still work.”
Jamie looked back at Dani, still unconvinced, but the blonde reached forward and accepted the proffered weapon without complaint. Jamie huffed but followed suit.
“Right then,” Rebecca turned back, leading them deeper into the cemetery. “We should be able to find the apex of all of this quite easily…”
“Like, it’ll be glowing purple?” Dani’s voice quavered.
Rebecca turned and followed the blonde’s eyes to the mausoleum further on ahead. “Yes, that quite looks like it,” She confirmed, shifting their course directly towards it now.
Jamie hung close to Dani’s side, casting her eyes about cautiously. “I’ve got a bad feeling, Poppins…”
“It’s okay,” Dani reassured, “We’re almost--”
A man appeared in front of them, seemingly out of thin air.
The pair halted, now separated from Rebecca up ahead.
“Odds are looking bad that he’s human, eh?” Jamie clutched Dani’s arm with her left hand, pulling the blonde backwards with her.
Dani couldn’t find it in her to respond as she watched in horror as he stalked towards them, his mouth slowly stretching into a monstrous grin splitting open to reveal a disturbing row of sharpened teeth that went on and on, akin to a great white.
He reached an arm forward, hungrily staring them down.
Dani felt another rush of bravery and stepped toward him, swinging the stake out to take a stab at him.
Her arm halted suddenly, an iron grip around her wrist, as he easily caught her attempt. His mouth opened wider, gleeful at his easy catch, as he tugged her forward and away from Jamie’s side. Dani struggled against him, but his strength overpowered her, and before she could even yelp out for help, he had her held against his body, his mouth opening to fully devour her.
“Oi!”
He managed to barely glance up from his laser focus on Dani’s exposed neck before his right eye was impaled with Jamie’s wooden stake.
He screeched in pain, recoiling away and dropping his grip on Dani. The throes of death barely lasted ten seconds before he dissolved away into dust, scattered across the grass of the graveyard.
Jamie gathered Dani in her arms, eyes running over the blonde to make sure she was okay.
Dani took several deep breaths, “Guess it does work,” She looked down at Jamie’s stake which laid innocently on the ground now.
“Come on!” Rebecca urged them from up ahead, back onto the task at hand.
xxx
They stood in a row in front of the mausoleum now, Dani nervously clutching Jamie’s hand.
“Right,” Rebecca took a deep breath, “Suppose you should follow my lead?” Rebecca met the pair’s eyes with an unsure nod, before charging forward into the mausoleum.
Rebecca quickly took in the scene before her: three hooded bodies on the ground, an awful lot of blood, and their surrounding accoutrements. “Bloody hell,” She groaned at the sight, then stepped forward and blew out the three black candles first. “Okay,” She turned back briefly to address Dani and Jamie, “I’ll take care of the details, you just make sure nothing comes this way.”
She didn’t waste any time to see Dani nod in assent, before she was kneeling on the ground, and tugging open her backpack to remove a piece of white chalk and a box of matches.
Dani pressed in close to Jamie in the doorway, both with their backs to Rebecca now to assess the foggy graveyard for approaching threats. Her body wracked with shivers.
Jamie cocked a brow, “Cold?”
Dani nodded, “Freezing. You aren’t?” Her teeth chattered.
Jamie shrugged, looping an arm through Dani’s and glancing over their shoulders to see Rebecca’s progress. The witch had downturned the set of mirrors, and was now drawing some sort of figure and additional figures outside of the preexisting pentagram left from the previous summoners. Jamie grimaced as her eyes shifted to the three men on the ground, the blood pooled about them. But then, one of the bodies twitched. Jamie swallowed, “Dani,” She spoke quietly.
“Hm?” The blonde turned to see what Jamie was looking at, at the exact moment that Rebecca finished her last sigil with a flourish.
Rebecca sat back on her heels, looking up at the pair with a smile. “All right, so far so--” Rebecca was interrupted by a rush of wind, a deafening sound reminiscent of metal ripping, and an intensely bright ball of purple light that appeared above the pentagram. The intensity of the light made Rebecca scurry backwards, cowering in an attempt to cover her eyes from the blaze.
Dani winced, also shielding her eyes from the brightness.
“Dani,” It was Jamie again, this time the pitch of her voice turning quite fearful.
The blonde blinked away the splotchy remnants of the bright light, eyes slowly refocusing on the new figure standing in the center of the pentagram. It had the shape of a person, wearing a white dress, with long, dark hair.
But, where their face should be, was nothing. A swath of blankness.
Dani shivered again, now at the fear running through her veins.
Before she could process the minute movement, Dani felt Jamie’s hand push her backwards, and she stumbled slightly, catching herself near the mausoleum's doors. She watched helplessly as Jamie now stood between her and the danger once again, and in a blink, the thing was upon Jamie, an iron grip around her throat.
“Rebecca!” Dani yelled for the witch as she rushed forward to aid Jamie.
The faceless thing now dangled Jamie before itself, the brunette struggling, clutching at her throat uselessly, gasping for breath as the monster squeezed, unrelenting.
“Jamie!” Dani was at her side now, her hands scrabbling at the creature’s. The blonde tried to rip the grip away without success, then turned on the creature itself, flailing at it. Without pause, it swiped the blonde away like a gnat, and Dani crumpled in a heap against the wall of the mausoleum.
Rebecca rushed to the blonde’s side, “I’ve got to finish closing the rift while she’s distracted!”
Dani’s head swam as she struggled to her feet, “It’s going to kill Jamie!” She pushed past Rebecca, once again returning to the creature’s side. Glancing about out of desperation, Dani’s eyes alighted upon the ceremonial dagger, now cast aside next to one of the bodies on the ground.
With another bout of out of body determination, Dani grabbed the dagger, and brought it arcing down into the monster’s back.
It dropped Jamie, who fell to the ground in a gasping heap.
Rebecca looked over, relieved at the turn of events that didn’t include Jamie being strangled, but resumed her pursuit with focus: she had lit two out of the three white candles.
But now, Dani found herself toe to toe with the thing.
The moment hung, Dani’s chest constricting in fear...and then it was upon her, her throat wrapped up in an angry grip.
It advanced, pushing her back against the wall of the mausoleum, the soles of her shoes slowly rising up off the ground, her windpipe crushing painfully.
She bared her teeth in pain, barely able to take even a sip of air anymore.
And then Rebecca lit the third candle.
The grip around her neck slackened and Dani drew in a desperate, hungry breath. But then she was jerked forward again, the unrelenting grip now dragging her forward by her shirt.
Above Rebecca’s markings on the floor, the purple light reappeared, a slim tear in the air at first, but quickly growing, drawing the faceless thing backwards in an invisible current.
It hung on tight to Dani’s shirt, and she was pulled along helplessly.
The blonde felt defeated, resigned, focused only drawing more breath deeply into her lungs.
But then Jamie appeared in her periphery, struggling to push forward one of the hooded bodies on the ground. Then, the body was moving, standing up on its own, as Jamie prodded him forward, his hood falling back to reveal a wide-eyed man.
“Master,” He called, voice trembling.
The faceless thing moved its head in his direction.
“Go on!” Jamie gave him a firm shove closer to it, before reaching out and taking a hold of Dani’s arm.
The blonde finally returned to the moment, looking over to Jamie and feeling a surge of affection and will to live. She grasped back at Jamie, latching on and desperately trying to slip free of the thing’s grasp.
“Master! It’s me!” The man’s voice gained temerity. “I did this! I did this for you.” He reached out, touching a hand to the thing’s chest.
And in the blink of an eye, Dani was free and tumbling onto Jamie.
The faceless thing’s hand was now around the summoner’s neck, its feet crossing over the threshold of Rebecca’s mandala in chalk. With the crack of a neck, and the whoosh of an airlock vacuum, the purple light ensconced the creature and the man’s limp body, and then they both disappeared. The darkness of the mausoleum settled over the space once again.
“Are you okay?” Jamie was still clutched to the blonde.
“Yeah,” Dani nodded, barely able to make out her companion in the dark, but reassured by the physical feel of her.
“You two still breathing?” Rebecca called out, unable to see anyone else. She pushed out of the mausoleum, eyes readjusting to the moonlight that felt bright as daylight after the dark crypt.
Jamie and Dani appeared a few moments later, Dani’s arm wrapped protectively about Jamie’s waist.
“Whew, still breathing it is!” Rebecca joked, noting Jamie’s soured expression.
“Barely,” Jamie shot at the witch, reaching up to her neck gingerly and wincing.
“Let me see,” Dani requested, unbuttoning the top button of Jamie’s shirt and gasping in dismay at the instantly purple mottled mess. She lightly ran her fingertips along the bruised skin.
Jamie shuddered under the touch. “You’ve got a decent one of your own,” Jamie pulled Dani’s collar down a bit to reveal the reddened and angry remnants of a vice grip.
“I know the optics were a bit bad, but I did manage to get rid of her,” Rebecca interjected, nearing the pair and smiling apologetically.
“Who was she?” Dani asked, looking over to the witch.
“The Lady of the Dark,” Rebecca responded, eyes drifting back over to the quiet mausoleum. “Don’t think that was who he was expecting to get. She’s a bit of a misandrist, so good luck for us, I suppose?” Rebecca chuffed in amusement, and turned back to Dani and Jamie. “We should get going. Best not to linger with such a thinned veil.”
xxx
“You sure you don’t want me to wait?” Jamie lingered on the Wingrave’s doorstep, concern writ on her face.
After a relieved and emotional reunion with Owen, Hannah, Flora, and Miles, the exhaustion of the night seemed to come over everyone at once. Owen, Hannah, and Rebecca gathered themselves and prepared to walk back home together. They stood at the end of the sidewalk, waiting to see if Jamie would be joining them.
“You know I do,” Dani sighed, “I just don’t know what state Mr. Wingrave might be in when he gets home... and I probably have enough to explain with the leagues of demons that descended on the house tonight.” She rubbed her forehead tiredly. “It’ll be okay. I’ll be okay.” She reassured Jamie.
“Okay,” Jamie nodded, still reluctant to walk away. She started to turn towards the others but then spun back to Dani, “Could you call me? Tonight?”
Dani blushed, surprised.
“I mean,” Jamie continued. “When you get home, just so I know...that everything’s okay.”
“Yeah,” Dani smiled. “I can do that.”
xxx
Jamie jolted awake at the ring, a crick in her neck from the uncomfortable way she had dozed off on the couch, the receiver near her head on the side table.
“Hello,” She quickly answered, sleep still clinging to her voice.
“Hey,” Dani breathed from the other side.
Jamie exhaled a sigh of relief, leaning back into the couch. “Everything all tied up then?”
“Mhm,” Dani hummed, “He didn’t see anything. Completely normal night, completely normal Halloween party.”
“You’re serious?” Jamie balked.
“Yep,” Dani popped the p, dropping herself into her bed, still in her Poppins costume. “He gave me $400 for the night,” She added.
“Not sure if that covers both of us almost dying, but I’m glad you got paid,” Jamie smirked.
“I’m gonna call in sick tomorrow...maybe I should call in sick for a week?” Dani wondered aloud, her entire body settling into a deep ache, the last of her adrenaline finally fading.
“I think you deserve a rest,” Jamie concurred, glancing at the clock that now ticked on past 4 AM. “Shall you get on to sleep, then?”
Dani felt the weight of her eyelids acutely, “I guess so…”
“Goodnight, Poppins.”
“Jamie, wait,” Dani’s voice held a sudden urgency. “Can we move our date to tomorrow night?” The blonde asked, a little breathless. “I don’t think I can wait.”
xxx
“Well well well,” Jamie smiled as she leaned down to look into Dani’s station wagon, the passenger window rolled down, already waiting at the curb in front of Jamie’s apartment. “I know that it has a much more utilitarian purpose, but you look quite nice,” She tugged at the fabric of Dani’s turtleneck after climbing inside the vehicle.
“Likewise,” Dani smiled, eyeing the scarf tucked artfully around Jamie’s neck and into her jacket. “How are you?” Dani’s countenance shifted over to concern.
“I’ll be fine,” Jamie brushed off, “Really.” She added, the worry not leaving Dani’s face. “Plus, you got it just as bad. Same boat and all.”
“I think you were strangled distinctly longer than I was,” Dani insisted, fingers reaching out of their own accord, but pausing, hovering near Jamie, “May I?” She asked.
Jamie rolled her eyes, “Fine. But it took a bit of time to get this arranged just so…”
Dani gently pulled aside the scarf to reveal the even darker bruising exposed in the light of day. She sucked in air through her teeth, hissing at the sight. “Oh, Jamie,” She murmured, letting her thumb trace the edge of the contusion lightly.
“At least people will just assume we’ve been necking very aggressively?” Jamie joked quietly, Dani’s touch sending her heart racing.
Dani smiled at her, stilling the movement of her hand.
“Thanks for keeping your promise,” Jamie broke the comfortable silence. “The one about not letting me die,” She clarified, lips turning up in a grateful little smile.
“You’re welcome,” Dani responded, body automatically shifting closer to her passenger, her hovering hand slipping up to cradle Jamie’s jaw, her thumb running across Jamie’s cheek.
And then Jamie was tugging her in by her sweater, closing the distance to eagerly meet Dani’s lips with her own.