It was 12 o'clock, Lottie was sure of it. The only thing she wasn't sure of was if it was twelve in the morning or night. The last thing she could remember was falling asleep in the laboratory, after curling up in Garson's chair. Reluctantly, she opened her eyes, which were sealed tight with sleep, to total darkness. The stars outside blinked their twinkling eyes, and she watched them, smiling like a child. Then, a searing pain ran through her head, followed by tiny purple dots appearing before her eyes.

"You're just tired", she whispered and headed up the stairs to the living room. The house was silent, not a Hyde in sight.

"Keep telling yourself that dear", said a voice in her head. "I still won't go". What the Hell. Who was that? The pain started pulsing, and her vision started to cloud. Either she was having one heck of a nightmare or she had taken way too much monocane.

"Don't worry. I've just hacked into your telepathic neural system", the voice said again. She tried to place the voice, the English accent with a tinge of something else unknown.

"Oh, you again", she said back telepathically. "I know it sounds really British, but bugger off".

"That's no way to speak to a queen".

"The day you become queen is the day I seriously start questioning my sanity", she sighed, knowing her sanity probably went out the window years ago. "So what do you want? Make it quick".

"Day three, my darling. I j-"

"Right, okay, let me stop you there. And tell you one thing you might not know about my family. They actually know what day it is. Olalla is a bit of a push, but, the point is they don't need you reminding them of some nightmarish thing that will probably never happen".

"Well then. I will see you again", she muttered, rather annoyed. The telepathic line began to fade, but there was a few moments left, which she wanted to make use of. "I have your father", she lulled, and the line immediately went before Lottie could answer. She knew she was lying, but something told she might go that far. Her vision returned, and, with a sigh of relief, went upstairs to bed.

:/:

"Don't even try it", she exclaimed, as she heard the curtains swishing from the side of her. "I'm up already". She could hear a tut of disappointment and she immediately knew it was Olalla, trying to wake her up by letting the light in.

"Well, you're fun", she murmured sarcastically, and walked back out onto the landing.

"That's me", she answered, fully knowing her sister was already out of the room. She couldn't quite tell if last night was a dream, but she just pushed it to the back of her mind, and headed downstairs. "Any sign of a Miss. K. L. Simonis, Queen of the Night Children, Lady of Vampire Actresses, and Bringer of Procrastinated Agony".

"Um, I don't think so", Maggie replied, staring out of the window. "Everyone's down the Empire, celebrating".

"Celebrating what?" Lottie asked, slinking into a chair.

"Happy Hour?" She grabbed a coral coloured cardigan from the banister, and went for the door.

"Going too?"

"Well", she remarked. "Can't miss three for two on cocktails, can I?"

"It's eleven in the morning".

"So?" She gave a little wave, then closed the door behind her, leaving Lottie alone. Which she didn't mind, being an introvert, sociopath and twenty nine years of age.

"Finally, some peace", she thought to herself. It was so nice just to experience silence for once. However it was short-lived. Outside she could see a purple cloud floating past the windows, and she growled under her breath. Whispering blasphemy, she threw the front door open to Keres... again. The annoyed anger she felt at that moment seemed like the closest she could get to an actual Hyde persona.

"Before you ask, no", she fumed, and Keres just smiled at how she affected her so much.

"Can I just say what I want to say first?" she asked, fluttering her eyelashes slightly. "Go on, you know you look forward to it".

"Can't say I do, darl".

"The third day is upon us, and I ask the third Hyde. How many children have you made cry? You may huff and you may sigh. But add another to the list if you pass this by".

"Yeah, still no". Keres snarled, but Lottie wasn't fazed at all. "So, pop along now. Go and bark at someone else's door". Elongated, black claws extended from her fingers, and she started heading towards her.

"Hey!" someone called from Lottie's right. She turned to look who it was, but Keres struck out. Three long scratches appeared across her face, and Lottie touched them carefully, a shot of pain shooting through her cheek. She looked at who the person was again, and this time successfully. It was Sackler, armed with a crossbow, and had a leather quiver of spare bolts. He fired a single one in Keres's direction and as soon as it hit, she disappeared in a wisp of purple smoke.

"Thanks", Lottie said, slightly rejoicing that the she-witch was gone, well, until tomorrow.

"No problem, Ma'am, it's my pleasure".

"How can I repay you?"

"No, don't worry about it. I see vampire, I think shoot".

"Don't tell my sister that", she murmured. "Well, thank you, again. Hope to see you around". She turned to go back inside, silently nursing her claw wound on her cheek that had started bleeding slightly.

"Actually", he spoke, stopping Lottie in her tracks and turning to look at him. "There's this poetry evening I heard about in The Three Horseshoes every Saturday. Be nice to have someone to go with me". Lottie pondered it for a moment, then nodded, making a beam appear on his face.

"Okay. Maybe when the craziness has died down".

"Thanks", he replied, starting to head towards the town. "Well, you know where I am. See you then".

"See you", Lottie wavered off, and shut the front door behind her, doing a tiny happy dance with delight.

:/:

"Cheers!" everyone said, clinking their glasses together. The Empire was untidy, to say the least, but homely. Garson had retaken his place behind the bar, and was loving being back. Bella, on the other hand, was not. Her cold had developed into the flu, and, mixed with two hours worth of drinking, it was starting to take its toll.

"I'm off to bed", she exhaled.

"Hey, hey", Robert pacified. "What's up? You not feeling too good?"

"You could say that", she replied.

"Why don't you stay for a while? I'll get you a sherry or something".

"I-I..." she trailed off, and the room started to swing in her vision. She could hear Robert, just not what he was saying. Her hands went freezing cold as all the blood from them ran to her head, making her gag. Everything started to go dark, and she could feel herself falling, falling into his arms, thinking that it might be a little more than a cold...