Rell

"Are you sure this is okay? Isn't it a tab bit... revealing?" I spun as I looked in the mirror. The shorts barely covered my butt.

Cat rolled her eyes. "Do you want to blend in or not?" Then she came to stand beside me in the mirror. Her costume was even worse, a black corset and tiny bottom with thin black tights that showed off every inch of her legs, all topped off with black cat ears.

"Who am I supposed to be?" I asked tentatively, buttoning up the cream colored shirt that barely covered my abs.

"You're Indiana Jones. You said you wanted something you can fight in, and carry weapons." Cat met my eyes in the mirror and gave me a devious smile. "Besides, you look hot. No way Bastien will be able to resist."

I blushed at this, and her smile grew wider. I picked up the whip and hat the outfit came with and then finally smiled back. "I once had to wear a dress made entirely of fish scales to sneak into the Mer ball— at least this doesn't stink. And if you really think it will help us blend in."

She rolled her eyes again— they were going to get stuck if she kept doing that. "You might be the expert of your 'Dark Land', but trust me, when it comes to high school parties, Cat is queen."

I wasn't sure I could trust someone who referred to themselves as queen, but it wasn't like I had someone else to give me fashion advice. I tugged my hat over my head, and then stepped out of the changing room. The store around us was filled with Halloween costumes, clearance signs, and other teenagers buying their last minute costumes.

Tonight was the Halloween dance.

The last night to find The Beast before the Blood moon.

Lorcan stepped around the corner, and I burst out laughing. He was in an outfit made entirely of black leather, with a huge black cape, and a mask that covered only the upper portion of his face, with little points sticking up like odd ears.

"What in the Dark Realm are you supposed to be?" I said, laughing.

He lifted the cape up to his face, covering his mouth "I'm Batman." His voice was low and rough.

"Oh! That's batman!" I was about to ask him more about his Human Realm hero, when Bastien suddenly stepped around the corner.

Our eyes met and I forgot what I was about to say.

He also wore a cape, but his was a deep, rust red. He wore a leather vest, strapped tight over a flowing shirt, with leather boots and tight pants.

He looked like a prince of the Dark Realm.

But apparently my surprise was nothing compared to his. Heat rose in his cheeks as his eyes ran slowly down my outfit.

"What are you supposed to be?" I said, jumping in before he could say anything about my costume.

He ripped his eyes away from my legs and blushed. "I'm Prince Charming. It was the only costume left tall enough for me. And I'll be able to carry a sword without looking strange."

I frowned. Of course, tonight wasn't about fun, or costumes. It was so easy to forget with Bastien.

"Your costume looks nice too," Bastien said, gesturing a bit awkwardly, and he blushed even darker.

"Thanks," I said, and whipped my hat on. "I'm Indiana Jones." Whoever that is.

Together we all went to buy our costumes. I used a considerable hunk of my remaining wad of cash to purchase them all. Guess it was a good thing I hadn't tossed it after all.

Can I have a costume too? How about a rhinoceros? I'll blend in like Cat said. Poxel squirmed around in squirrel form in the leather satchel that came with my outfit. He was on transforming time-out after his earlier romp through the woods as a giraffe.

You already have a built in costume. And you're still in time-out. Giraffes are not native here, I don't care what you saw on Animal Planet. If anyone saw you it would have been a big problem!

I never said they were native, only well loved. It would have been a nice surprise for the humans. What about a baby rhinoceros?

No Poxel. No surprises tonight.

Bastien held the door open for us and we all tramped outside. A fall wind blew from the direction of the forest, scattering leaves, and bringing fall scents with it. I paused, a sudden tingling ran my spine, The night felt alive... or was that only Bastien's presence at my side?

The Blood Moon rose tomorrow night. We only had one night left.

A final night of freedom.

Already I could feel the pull of the magic, like some distance heartbeat that sounded subtly louder every moment. Lorcan and Bastien stopped as well, and there was an odd moment as we all stared at the distance forest.

"Guys, you coming or what?" Cat gestured impatiently to the car, we all piled back inside. Bastien and I took the front, mostly because after his taxi ride Lorcan seemed to think driving was for servants, and of course Cat joined him in the back. Fine by me.

Bastien's leg brushed mine as I sat, and suddenly I felt the pulse even more strongly.

What was wrong with me?

"We should arrive early at the dance, scout it out. Look for any likely suspects," Lorcan declared from the back seat. I was about to agree with Lorcan, when Cat gave a decidedly unladylike snort.

"Absolutely not! Only losers show up on time to a dance. I don't even want to think about what would happen to my social life if I showed up early."

I met Bastien's eye, looking away quickly before we both broke out into smiles.

Lorcan sighed. "Fine, we'll park in the forest and scout out the woods, make sure everything is in place for tomorrow. Then we head to the dance. But no more than one hour late."

"Fine," Cat muttered, as she checked her reflection in the magic mirror of her phone.

That decided, Bastien pulled the car out of the parking lot of small shops, and headed down the highway, deeper into the forest.

"Maybe we should go over the plan one more— " but before I could finish Cat leaned her whole body between the seats where Bastein and I sat, and cranked up the tiny box that played music.

Or not.

Music pounded through the car, and I sat back and tried to enjoy the last bit of sunlight. We left the town behind, the trees growing up higher and darker. The woods had reached their full fall glory, a thousand shades of red and gold mixed between the evergreens, and though I knew I should have been focused on the hunt, instead I found myself trying to soak in every last color and beam of light that cut down through the limbs. Once we caught the Beast, and had the rose, Lorcan and I would leave for the Dark Realm.

I unrolled the window, letting the wind whip my hair back so I had to clutch my hat to keep it from blowing away. I closed my eyes and inhaled; the scents of fallen leaves, fresh earth and sunlight.

And below it all something darker.

My eyes flashed open and met Lorcan. He sat stiff, upright, a wild, almost frenzied look in his eyes.

The magic was calling.

It sang through our blood, calling awake things inside that once lay dormant, making things alive, and dangerous. Beautiful, terrible, powerful.

The Beast wouldn't be able to resist the call tomorrow.

We pulled into a small outlet, and all climbed out of the car. There was an odd moment as we all looked up at the trees around us. Somehow the forest suddenly felt menacing.

"So... should we split up? Circle back to the car in an hour?" Bastien looked up at the trees around him, his voice unusually soft.

Cat crossed her arms over her black bunny outfit. "Horror movie 101 Bastien, never split up," she threw her hair over her shoulder. "Plus the hot girl always dies first. Which would be me."

"Partners then?" Lorcan asked. Again, we made eye contact and he gave me a quick nod.

Just stick to the plan Rell.

Cat changed her mind in a flash. "Fine, I'll go with Lorcan. Meet you guys here in an hour," she looped her hand through his, pulling him after her. Just as we knew she would.

Alright Poxel, go with them. But remember the plan and stick to a dog, nothing bigger. AND NO RHINOCEROS!

Poxel burst out of my satchel, transforming in a suspiciously large wolf-like dog in a single bound, bounding away into the forest after them.

"Guess that makes us partners," Bastien smiled at me, my insides suddenly turning to mush. I pushed the feeling away. Focus on the hunt, Rell. For all I knew, this might be my last night with Bastien. Still, I couldn't resist a teasing smile.

"Doesn't look like I have much of a choice."

He laughed, and then together we walked down a path that led the opposite way. We walked side by side, just close enough I could have reached out and taken his hand in my own. I didn't; I could already feel his nearness in every part of me.

At first I could hear Cat's high-pitched voice in the distance, but soon it faded, replaced only by the crunch of our footsteps, and the soft noises of the forest around us.

Our footsteps seemed loud as the forest darkened. Even though he couldn't feel the magic, Bastien's eyes went often to the trees above him.

"Do you think it'll work? Lorcan's plan?" He finally said, as if more to break the silence than really ask.

"If it was Lorcan's plan— no way. But luckily for you and everyone in these woods, it's my plan. And it'll work. The Beast won't be able to resist the call of the magic." Even I could feel it calling now. But I didn't feel as confident as I sounded. It was one thing to make a plan in the daylight, and another to walk the woods at night.

The air grew colder, and I wondered if it wasn't my confidence in the plan that I was worried about... it was if I even wanted the plan to succeed.

Of course I wanted to save The Dark Realm. It was my home. It was where I belonged.

But when we found the Beast and the Blood Rose, it meant leaving the Human Realm. Forever. It meant never seeing the Sun again, never seeing a blue sky, or the colors of the forest again.

It meant never seeing Bastien again.

"Rell."

I spun, hand landing on the dagger hidden in my satchel, but Bastien had simply stopped on the path. The trees reached over us, holding us in a world of shadows and silence.

"What's wrong? Did you see something?"

"No. Nothing like that." He hesitated, and swallowed. His eyes were suddenly sad, and when I met them, I wondered if he had been thinking what I had. His voice dropped to a whisper. "Say everything goes perfectly with the plan. We catch the Beast and find the Rose. How much longer will you be staying here?"

His eyes held mine, unrelenting. I felt a surge of miserable longing for something that would never be mine.

"Lorcan's magic is strongest during The Blood Moon, and will help us cross over," I whispered. "The Dark Realm needs us. We leave as soon as we have the rose. Tomorrow."

"Tomorrow?" He shook his head, disbelieving.

"I don't have a choice." Lorcan's words tasted bitter, and I suddenly felt angry, and miserable. "This isn't my realm, Bastien. This isn't my home. Lorcan and I have a responsibility to protect our realm. It's just the way things are."

I expected him to turn and walk away, or maybe even to yell at me. Instead he took a step closer. Suddenly I wasn't sure if it was the magic that was pounding through my veins.

"Then there's something I have to do now. Just in case I never get the chance again."

He leaned forward. I closed my eyes, and his lips met mine. As first it was soft and gentle, the flutter of a fairy's wing. But then he stepped closer, moving his lips against mine, and suddenly his touch felt like the first time I ever rode a dragon: the rush, the wild freedom and the heat, the way I only wanted more. His hands wrapped around me, leaving trails of fire, and I curved into him, reaching my arms up around him. His lips were warm, soft, hard, confusing—

A scream tore through the forest, and we both broke apart.

"Was that— ?" his voice was low, breathless, but then the cry came again, and this time a sort of horror filled me.

"Cat," we said at the same time.

The scream came again and I veered off the path, running into the darkening woods.