Okay sorry it's been so long since the last update! School has taken a lot of time. Sorry about that! -Diana and Kalvin

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Willow was walking uncomfortably in her shoes, and both girls were wobbling around. After both boys had had enough of it, they helped them by using their bodies as a support.

After a while, however, they had gotten used to the shoes and were running back and forth to the windows of shops. The boys were having a hard time keeping up, and soon lost sight of the girls. With a sigh and nervous glance at one another, they began their long search.

After several hours of looking to no avail, they stopped to rest on the darkening street. It was late enough where the street lamps had powered on, and the sun could no longer be seen.

"Where could they have gone?" Kevin asked, breaking the silence.

Jason shrugged, wiping the sweat off of his brow. "No clue. Man, they got used to those fast." Kevin nodded in agreement. They stood in silence.

"Hello, boys," a sickeningly sweet voice echoed throughout the street, making their hair stand on end. "Looks like your kitty and rabbit aren't here to help you; such a shame..."

"Who's there?" Kevin asked, his voice shaky.

The feminine voice hummed. "Oh, just li'l ol' me..."

"You don't sound very little to me." Jason said, his tone wary.

The voice chuckled. "Very perceptive."

Both boys saw light cast over them and extreme heat lick their backs. Both jumped, twirling around. Only to be met with the black eyes of a large horse.

"Meet," the ominous voice chuckled, "my Nightmare."

It was large and the body hosted flames instead of flesh and bone. Its ears twitched as it peered at them.

"Go."

And with that one command, it charged at them. Both boys, having a negative experience with Highschool dodgeball, were able to dodge. By flinging their bodies to the side of the street, it ran by without burning them. It skidded to a halt, and turned around slowly, pawing at the street.

"Run?" Jason asked, looking at his friend.

"Run!" Kevin yelped, following the dark-blue eyed boy. They ran into an alley, being pursued by the creature. Popping out onto another street, they stopped to catch their breath. "Did we lose it?"

Jason shrugged, panting. With a loud growl from a few feet away, they quickly bolted, pushing off the wall. Jason peered back, only to see it right on their tails. "Run! It's right there!" He yelled.

Kevin peered back. "What are you talking about? It's gone--" He was cut off by the large mare landing in front of them, blocking off the exit and landing so harshly that the ground rippled. Both boys were tossed onto their behinds from the shock. They scooted backwards, trying to flee it.

The sickeningly sweet voice began to laugh. "Get them. I prefer...." she paused. Then her voice began to drip with cyanide. "Dead."

It was upon them within seconds, charging at them. Both boys froze, covering their faces for the undeniable approaching pain.

"Réaltaí ar an spéir, a chosaint siúd nach féidir leo ó stoirme agus ó dhochar--" Stars of the sky, defend those who can't from storm and from harm. A familiar voice began.

"--Schatten der Nacht, verteidigen die, die nicht vom Feuer und von der Flut." Shadows of the night, defend those who can't from fire and from flood. Another finished.

The pain never came, and so both boys looked up to see the giant horse pushing against a large, circling star. It was made of moving and shifting shadows, ever twisting and flowing. It pushed against its force and grunted in protest.

Two people walked in front of the boys, and the ominous voice cursed.

"Time to go," the voices said in unison as they grabbed the boys and hauled them off. Both were still in shock from what had just unfolded before them only seconds ago.

They halted to a stop, and almost smashed the girls to the floor from it. Looking up, there were two Nightmares.

Willow cursed under her breath. "We'll meet back at the rendezvous point!" She called as she lugged Kevin off to the right. Elvira nodded and swiftly pulled Jason behind her down the left street. One Nightmare followed one group.

Kevin was flabbergasted. That had been the girls? They had protected them? Why would they?

He was pulled out of his questioning by a fierce growl. Looking up, the hair on the back of his neck raised. He wanted to back up and hide, but something was instructing him -- no, it was forcing him -- to stay there.

A familiar meow echoed throughout the alley, and Willow grinned.

"Come on, ye fiery hellbeast." She said, mostly to herself. When it was within range, she stopped them both, whipped around, and made a few gestures before making a box with her fingers.

A large pulse of energy went into the sky above the Nightmare, like a firework. When it reached a certain height, it pulsed, and the glow stopped in a large rectangle. From the boundaries established, it grew another pulse that cascaded down like a waterfall, entrapping the flaming horse. Her gaze flickered to his.

"Do not question yer instincts," she said softly. She then broke contact with him, backing away and holding both hands horizontally, palms up and fingers spread, at him. Her eyes began to glow as white essence twirled around her fingers. "Leath uaigneach aineolach uair amháin, chun bheith cad tá tú agus cúnamh dóibh a dteastaíonn sé uathu, ar anam bhanna de mo." Lonely half once unaware, become what you are and aid those who need it, oh bonded soul of mine.

Kevin watched her with interest before focusing on Stardust, whom had patted over to him and wrapped the tip of his tail around his leg. He looked up just in time to see the white essence twirl and curl out towards him. He could not move nor resist as they wrapped around him and the cat. Kevin's body felt out of place, even odd. His vision was a bit blurry and he felt a bit loopy.

Then he gritted his teeth as pain erupted from his core. Even though it lasted no more than a few seconds, he could still feel the effect spread outwards, pain turned to a numb, tingly feeling. He stumbled a bit, barely catching himself. Inside of his body, something felt completed, almost as if a puzzle piece to his mentality had been replaced.

With a questioning gaze, he looked at Willow. Her focus, however, was on the horse.

"Come," she commanded, and for some reason, he was pulled towards her. He couldn't stop himself as he neared her. Her gaze flickered from it to him, and a soft smile was placed on her lips. "Me lion, show your true form."

With that, his body folded in upon itself. And then began to grow. He could feel the hair -- fur? -- around his head grow longer, his claws longer, his paws bigger, his muscles tougher, and his bones stronger. He felt power curl and twist beneath his pelt, and his tail lashed as he reveled in it.

But deeper down he felt confusion and bewilderment. Kevin no longer knew what he was or who he was. He was a large, golden lion that was full of strength and loyalty. He bounded towards the Nightmare as it began to escape its bonds, snarling and showing off his teeth. The mare huffed as it steadied itself to meet his charge. Instead of running into it, he cut off to the side, a mirage of himself being to one to go straight towards it. It was a mirror image, he admired before noticing that it was indeed solid. His true form, however, caught the creature off guard as the mirage disappeared when he got close enough. He slammed into its side, the licking flames not even charring his skin thanks to his thick, glossy coat. With his full weight, he was able to crush the mare underneath his large frame, defeating it quickly.

His form turned back to the red haired witch. Quickly -- as in almost instantly -- he was at her side. He rubbed his large head against her shoulder and she smiled as she scratched right behind his whiskers. He began to purr, much to Kevin's horror.

"Leithligh." Separate. With that command, white essence came off of him like steam, curling towards the sky magnificently. Kevin tumbled onto the ground in bewilderment. He looked up to find the skeleton cat in Willow's arms, purring against her hand. She didn't meet his eyes.

~*~

Jason was being pulled by Elvira through the dark streets, away from the Nightmare. He was confused at the fact that he wasn't dead yet.

"Where's the junkyard?!" A voice broke him from his thoughts, and he looked at her in confusion.

"Huh?" she rolled her eyes at him, and he quickly got the message. "Oh! Take a left, straight, right!"

With the speed of something that shouldn't be possible with her small frame, they soon ended up with the mountains of scrap metal.

"Why're we here?! We're trapped!" He hissed. She rolled her eyes. Jason watched as the light of the horse came closer.

Elvira, however, closed her eyes and began to hum. Jason looked at her, believing that he was going to die. Almost instantly -- before he could start to complain -- her voodoo rabbit popped out of the scraps behind her, and she picked him up.

"Bonbon," she addressed, "I need some souls." Jason looked at her as if she were insane as the rabbit disappeared in a swirl of black mist before reappearing, holding something that apparently only she could see. She nodded in thanks as the rabbit hopped to the ground and settled by Jason's feet. The grotesque rabbit made him extremely uncomfortable, so he distracted himself by watching the blonde girl.

Elvira had her right hand out. Several faint tints of different shades of grays, reds, and purples swirled in her hand in a vertical circle, much like a ferris wheel. She brought her left hand up, black mist twirling after her fingers like smoke.

"Ich lasse Sie zu Ihrem Gastgeber." I release you to your host. She said softly, touching each glowing translucent sphere as it reached the top. The mist surrounded it, before puffing out of existence and the orb disappeared. Soon, all were gone.

"How was that helpful?!" Jason screeched, the light was glowing brighter as the Nightmare neared.

She casted him a side glance, but did not answer, leaving Jason to boil in confusion and dread. The horse neared, cornering them against the wall of metal behind them. It pawed at the ground, almost charging.

It, however, was distracted by the sounds of metal. Jason followed its gaze to the top of the wall of metal. On it, there were numerous creatures made of trash.

Broken toy airplanes, trains, cars, you name it. It seemed like a metallic toy store had come to life. Jason gulped as they bounded over them, encircling the Nightmare.

Elvira finally turned to her rabbit, her eyes glowing as she stared at it and it at her. She nodded, and her eyes flickered to Jason before she turned around, walking a few feet away.

"Where are you going?" He asked, all malice gone from his voice. She, again, did not reply.

She outstretched her hands, touching her index fingers and thumbs to make a spade. Separating her hands, she then moved her arms quickly in gestures, black ribbon-like essence following behind, shaping her symbol into fabrication.

"Einsame Hälfte einmal unbewusst, werden, was Sie sind und Hilfe für diejenigen, die es brauchen, oh gebundenen Seele von mir." Lonely half once unaware, become what you are and aid those who need it, oh bonded soul of mine. She chanted. The black smoke shot from the symbol like a twirling arrow. It enveloped him and the zombie rabbit. Jason's body felt out of place, even odd. His vision was a bit blurry and he felt a bit loopy.

Then he gritted his teeth as pain erupted from his core. Even though it lasted no more than a few seconds, he could still feel the effect spread outwards, pain turned to a numb, tingly feeling. He stumbled a bit, barely catching himself. Inside of his body, something felt completed, almost as if a puzzle piece to his mentality had been replaced.

He casted a questioning glance at Elvira, who met his gaze. She nodded.

"Come," she said, holding her small hand out to his. He walked forward, against his will as the black tendrils in her hand reached out to him before disappearing back into her palm. He neared her, and she grabbed his chin and pressed her forehead against his by standing on the tips of her toes. His mouth was slightly open at the sudden closeness and her eyes flicked up to his; they were glowing a brilliant green and the veins around her eyes were black, as her cornea started to darken with the color seeping in. "Mein Befehl ist jetzt dein. Meine Last ist jetzt dein. Mein Leben ist jetzt dein." My command is now yours. My burden is now yours. My life is now yours. With that, she closed her eyes and exhaled slowly, black mist swirling from her breath into his.

She let go of him, breaking the contact and stepping backwards. Jason felt the mist fill every vein he had, every nerve he possessed. He could feel the darkness leak into every cell of his body, but it was not a frightening experience. In fact, it was comforting, the safety of the darkness concealing his being, shrouding him in a cloak of ebony warmth. Once the darkness had flowed into every nook and crannie of his being, he felt himself stretch upwards, as the darkness blurred out his existence and make him as light and as barely existent as a shadow. Had he been able to see himself, he'd be able to see that he was now seven feet tall, had long rabbit ears protruding from the top of his head, white buttons for eyes, and an overlong mouth comprised of white stitches.

"Go forth," she said, her gaze tearing away from his as she pointed at the horse. "I need you, my Mate."

Jason froze. Mate? What did she mean? What the--

He was ripped from his thoughts as his feet lurched forward robotically.

The Nightmare had begun to defeat the minions, the souls floating towards Jason. To his surprise, they were absorbed into him, filling his every fiber with power and purpose. For a second, he relished in it, but the feeling was quickly broken as he approached the Nightmare. It was busy with the minions but spotted his slowly moving form instantly, destroying the last of them.

It grunted, pawing at the ground and huffing, steam flowed out of its nostrils as it readied its body to charge. It launched, flying at him with a dangerous kind of speed. But, to the confusion of both him and the mare, he was suddenly gone. Jason found himself literally 2D, pressed up in the shadow of a building. As an art major, he had always wondered about what it would be like to be 2D, but he never wanted to actually be it. The mare looked around, stopping angrily until it spotted defenseless Elvira. It seemed to smirk as it charged towards the unwavering girl. She didn't move nor flinch; she stood there staring it down.

Jason felt adrenaline rush through his being, telling him to save the girl. He didn't resist. The mare was quite surprised as he teleported out of the sky falling upon it and ripping out its throat with his sharp claws. It skidded to a stop, barely a foot from the girl. She stared at Jason expectantly, and to his surprise, he felt something around his mouth tear. He felt like his mouth was finally able to move, and his form bent down, picking up a small orb before smiling wickedly and placing it into his mouth.

Had he just eaten a soul?

For a moment, he gained control of his body. Immediately, he used his claws to feel his mouth. Inside was jagged teeth, with a sticky substance coating them. He didn't have to check to know that it was blood. He looked at her in terror before he lost control.

His body kneeled down to her level, much like a proposing position but more rigid. His body was relaxed but his mind was up in flames in confusion. His elbow rested on his knee and the other hand was planted on the ground.

Elvira walked up to him, putting on hand on his cheek and using her other one to touch wear his heart should be.

"Getrennte." Separate.

With that, Jason felt a piece of him break away. He opened his eyes to see himself in a normal form, and Elvira holding the demon rabbit close to her heart, petting his ears and looking into the distance.