A / N : Sorry for the delay, everyone, but I had a bit of difficulty with this chapter. I'm actually playing with the idea of doing a sequel to this story, so I had to figure out a way to end it that will give me something to play with. Thanx to everyone who has read and voted, hope you enjoy the chapter.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       Six months later...

      Crane quietly observed the throng of people milling around the area, quickly averting his eyes as a scantily-clad, exceptionally well-developed young woman undulated past him, giving him a brief, speculative glance before continuing on her way.

      Diana moved to stand beside him, Molly and her friends Claire and Jessica close behind her. "You look a little shell-shocked there, partner," she observed.

      Shaking his head slightly, he replied, "In spite of having several years to become accustomed to modern standards, I still find myself amazed to see people appearing publicly in attire that would have been scandalous even as undergarments in my time."

      "Yeah, I have to admit that some of these so-called 'outfits' are a bit outrageous," she chuckled. "That one kind of looked like she was wearing a denim thong and a couple of poker chips on a string. Definitely not much left to the imagination. With the girls here, I'm kind of fighting the impulse to pull a tablecloth off of one of those snack tables and wrap her up in it."

      He opened his mouth to respond, but paused in confusion as two more suggestively attired girls shouldered between them, both of their faces displaying nearly identical pouts of indignation as they clicked rapidly past on their stiletto-heeled shoes.

      "How odd. I was under the presumption that everyone was here for the purpose of enjoying themselves," he said. "But those young ladies both appeared to be quite disgruntled."

      With a laugh, Molly chimed in, "They were just over there talking to Ashley, and they're mad because he's with Jenny's friend, and they can't get invited back to the tour bus after the show."

      As the other girls giggled, Crane's eyebrows shot up in astonishment, and Diana exclaimed, "Molly Thomas, where in the world did you get an idea like that?!"

      "Mom, I'm not a baby anymore, and I do go to public school, y'know. Some of the older girls have been talking about that stuff in gym class and at lunch all week."

      Turning their attention to the area Molly had indicated, they observed Jenny and Hawley standing near Ashley and Faith, conversing with her brother, Todd, and his girlfriend, Sarah. Faith stood between Hawley and Todd, with Ashley behind her, arms wrapped securely around her waist, and his chin resting atop her head. As the team had stayed in contact with Faith and the guys since their time in Tuttlesburg, they knew that Ashley had in fact taken her on the requested date once he had recovered enough to move properly again, and the two had been practically inseparable since. She had even recently given up her apartment and moved her things to Ashley's home in Nashville, using a month-long break in the tour to get settled. 

      Motioning for the girls to follow, Crane and Diana moved forward to join the group. As the crowd parted momentarily, they noticed Jake and Alex standing near the bar area, conversing with the other members of BVB, as well as the guitarists for the other band, Asking Alexandria. 

     They reached the others just in time to hear Faith inquire, "So, how do you like working for the government, Nicky?"

      "Technically, I don't, kiddo," he responded, offering everyone a devilish grin. "Not officially, anyway. They have me down as a 'consultant', which is actually kind of convenient, since I don't have to jump through quite as many hoops."

      "But it still gives you enough clout to avoid getting shot, or locked up in some foreign jail," Diana added, a slight tinge of sarcasm in her voice.

      Adopting an injured air, Hawley retorted, "That only happened once! You're making it sound like I make a habit of pissing people off!"

      "So she's got you figured out then, eh, dude?" Todd shot back, and everyone burst out laughing, including Hawley, after a moment.

      At that moment, Jon stuck his head through the door, shouting, "Ten minutes for Asking,  guys! Let's hustle!" 

      The rest of the BVB members, along with Jake and Alex, began making their way over to the others as the British band began rushing from various parts of the room, hurrying to the stage entrances, checking their earpieces and guitars as they moved.

      They all took positions at the side of the stage, making sure that their guests had the best possible view as Asking Alexandria began their set. The girls, along with Alex and Jake Wells, weren't the least bit shy about showing their enthusiasm, dancing and whirling around madly, singing along with the songs to which they knew the words.

      During a brief pause in the music, where several band members were talking between themselves onstage, Ashley turned to Crane and said, "We didn't get the chance to ask when you first got here, but what ever happened to that damn mirror, anyway?"

      After glancing around to be sure that Molly's friends weren't paying any attention to the conversation, Crane responded, "Not to worry, Master Ashley, it has been rendered useless, and is, in any case, safely out of reach of those who might be tempted by it."

      "That's right," Jenny added. "It's in the middle of a slab of cement at the bottom of the Atlantic now. Destroying it wasn't really an option, since that might have actually turned something else loose, so sealing it off and dumping it somewhere fairly inaccessible seemed like the best option."

      "Hey, you guys are the experts! As long as the thing can't keep puking up freaky shit like that anymore, I'm good," Ashley informed them.

      "And what of you, and your companions?" Crane inquired. "Has Master Jinxx continued with his use of the spirit board?"

      "Not around us, he hasn't!" Ashley replied. "I couldn't say what he does on his own time, but none of the guys will mess with it anymore, and we all told him before we started the tour that if anybody found it anywhere on the bus we'd burn it, so as far as I know, he's at least left it at home."

      "And I have no intention of being anywhere near one of those things again if I can help it," Faith chimed in. "First time I see it, I'm out!"

      "That makes two of us," Jon interjected, as he approached the group. "But right now, you guys need to start getting yourselves ready. Asking only has a couple more songs to go, so don't put everything off 'til the last minute. We can all hang out some more after the show."

      Andy, Jake, Jinxx, and CC excused themselves to start strapping on their guitars and adjusting their earpieces, joined shortly thereafter by Ashley, once he had thoroughly kissed Faith, "for luck", and she had adjusted his headset microphone. Once they had scrambled to their places, Jon and Faith signaled to each other, indicating that they were ready for any issues that might arise.

      Several minutes later, the crowd erupted in screams and cheers as the band took the stage, and the girls shrieked along with them, jumping excitedly at the side of the stage, rapidly snapping pictures with their phones. Jenny, Alex, Sarah, Jake, and Hawley soon joined them, and before long even Diana, Crane, and Todd were cheering and clapping between songs.

      Hawley smirked at Todd, remarking, "Funny, I seem to remember REO Speedwagon and ELO being more your thing, buddy."

      "Yeah, it is. But I'm pretty sure I'm gonna have to get used to this, since it doesn't look like Ashley's going anywhere anytime soon, so I may as well learn how to enjoy it," Todd retorted over the music. "What's gonna be fun is when she gets our parents to come to a show. You and Jenny have met our folks, dude. Mom is a die-hard jazz fan, and Dad thinks The Doors music is hardcore, so they're going to be mildly freaked, to say the least."

      "I hardly think it's going to be that bad," Faith said. "They met him before I moved to Nashville, and they both think he's great."

      "Yeah, they think he's great, but have they listened to his music yet?"

      Whatever reply she made was drowned out by another roar from the crowd, as Andy engaged in some banter with the audience. Crane turned his head, chuckling to himself as he noticed that Diana seemed to be attempting to find a way to simultaneously cover the ears of all three girls as several curse words left the singer's lips. But the smile slipped from his face as he noticed the barely-clad young lady who had earlier caught his eye, standing several feet away, fixing them with a calm, level stare. When she saw that he had noticed her, she gave him a slow, slightly mocking smile, raising an eyebrow, as if inviting him to approach her. But there was something about her posture, as well as the absence of humor, or even genuine interest, in her eyes, that made it seem more of a challenge than an invitation.

      Hawley glanced up at that moment, and saw the woman gazing at Crane. Using his elbow to nudge Jenny, who stood next to him, he said, "Looks like the Professor has an admirer. Maybe she thinks he's a rock star, too."

      "Maybe," Faith responded. "He could definitely pass for one if he wanted to."

      "As long as you don't ask him to actually sing," Jenny muttered, just loud enough for Hawley and Faith to hear. 

      They turned their attention back to the stage, not wanting to miss the last part of the concert, but even as he focused on the stage, enjoying the music, Crane knew that the woman was still watching them. During the encore, he looked away from the stage for a moment, and saw her still staring in their direction, offering him yet another sardonic grin before he decided to simply ignore her for the time being.

      Soon after, the band left the stage, with the crowd still screaming and chanting their name, and the house lights came up. They dashed to the dressing rooms, showered quickly, and rejoined the others, signing autographs and taking pictures with fans who approached                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    The barely-clothed brunette stepped forward holding a phone, and said, "Excuse me, do you think it would be possible to have my picture taken with the band?"

      "Sure thing, hon," Andy replied, as they shifted to allow her into the center of the group. As she took her place, she held the phone out to Crane, a slight grin playing on her lips.

      "Would you mind, sir?" she inquired. "I won't be able to get all the guys in the picture if I do a selfie."

      Still feeling an indefinable uneasiness, but not wanting to cause a scene, he accepted the device. "Of course, miss. Everyone take your places, and tell me when you're ready."

      As they clustered around the woman, CC grinned widely and exclaimed, "Damn, it's good to have everything back to normal!"

      At a signal from Ashley, Crane lifted the phone and snapped several photos, in quick succession. But when he took the final shot, two things happened. He felt a sudden, burning pain, coming from the pentagram etched into the flesh of his arm, and the image he saw on the phone as he clicked changed.

      For a split-second, instead of a reasonably attractive, well-endowed young brunette, he saw a scaly, gray-skinned creature, displaying a mouthful of long, needle-sharp teeth, like those of a barracuda. The image was made even more grotesque by the fact that it retained the buxom shape and suggestive dress of its human guise. Then, as quickly as it appeared, it was gone.

      And as a familiar, screeching laugh, which bordered on maniacal, seemed to echo in his ears, he surreptitiously deleted the photos he had just taken before handing the phone back to the woman, and in reply to CC's statement, said, "I suppose, Master CC, that it entirely depends on  your definition of normality."