The days dragged on again, and I was getting impatient. I was also extremely paranoid, considering everything that has happened. All I wanted was to just sit down and read a book, or talk to my friends at school or something. As much as I love this, it can get scary and tiring. Also, Alex would get angry if I left her under my couch at home (again), and she'd end up cussing me out.

Oh, Alex, we love you!

We were marching again, getting deeper in the woods each day. Evelyn was blabbing on and on about one of the books she's going to write. It sounded pretty good, and I couldn't wait to get home and read it. I was starting to miss my sisters, and even my parents. Usually I would have laughed and said, "Nope!" if someone asked me if I missed them, but I was honestly getting homesick. The march was long, and tiring all the same. Alex was warm on my wrist, which helped because things were starting to get cold. In fact, frost was gathering on several plants, and puddles were frozen over. Andrew said the frost was due to the darkness in the woods, making it hard for sunlight to even breach through a single leaf. Secretly being kinda sorta scared of the dark, I stuck close to everyone and tried not to go too far.

"So the man in the asylum becomes interested in writing because of that person, and the lady takes his words and uses them for the papers. It goes all over social media, and New Work Times, and just everywhere! Then this man--the antagonist--comes to visit him, and--"

"Evelyn, shush." Amelia growled. "No one cares about Writing Insanity. No one will read it, now shut up so I can hear myself think."

"Hey, you hush up!" Madeline became hostile. "Just because you're always upset doesn't mean you can tear someone down, especially my sister."

Ev was silent, which is slightly unlike her because she was so giddy and talkative. I walked closer to her, taking her hand.

"Don't listen to her; she doesn't know how great your books are."

Evelyn smiled. "Thanks. Honestly, I don't really care. She can be all grumpy if she wants, it doesn't mess with me."

I knew she wasn't telling all of the truth, but I let her be. We kept walking, Amelia moaning and groaning because her legs hurt, and I holding onto Ev's so the monsters in the dark didn't get me. Hey, it's true! They're out there, and they'll eat you! Anyway, as we walked, there was a scream from one of the woman in the front of the march. Andrew shouted for the army to halt, and he raised a fist to stop the one's who couldn't hear him.

"What is it now?" Grumbled the newest Time Watcher.

I mentally rolled my eyes at her. She was going to drive me insane with that attitude. Bitch, please. I didn't care if I was swearing at her in my head, she deserved it. Seeing that we were in the middle of the group for warmth, we had to weasel our way to Andrew. When we got there, he was staring into the dark, the woman who had screamed babbling about something she saw as she paced in front of him.

"And it just... fwoosh! It was gone right before my eyes! And I know--I know--it wasn't a normal creature of the dark. No, it was human! At least, I think it was."

"What's going on, Andrew?" Asked Razz.

"She says she saw something..." He replied, pulling his sword quietly out of its sheath.

We all waited in silence, the eerie darkness creeping me out more. The army shuffled about, metal clanging quietly. I held my breath. For awhile, it seemed like nothing was going to come out, until a dark shadow could be seen between the bushes. Evelyn yanked out her bow and arrows and shot it, making it poof out of existence.

In the back, someone screamed and fell, a dark shadow yanking them into the air and flinging them at a tree. A roar of panic washed over the army, and they fell out of formation.

"EVERYONE! CALM DOWN! STAY IN FORMATION!" Andrew ordered, trying to regain control.

Another person flew into the darkness, a shadow person taking their spot.

The Watchers looked at Andrew, who was clearly having difficulty. Amelia seemed slightly sorry for him, which surprised me.

"Need some help?" Madeline asked.

"If you don't mind," he sighed, rubbing a temple.

Amelia stayed with him as we split up, going on all sides of the army.

"CALM DOWN, EVERYBODY!" I screamed over the panic, "LISTEN TO THE KING! HE KNOWS WHAT TO DO!"

Razz was screaming on the left to me, Connor on the right. Evelyn and Madeline were on the other side. It took us awhile--plus some more people flying off--to get their attention. When we did, we went back to Andrew, who was quietly talking to Amelia. Amelia was nodding as he spoke.

"Okay, you're good to go." Said I.

Andrew looked over at us tiredly, smiling. "Thrända," he muttered, before turning to the group and barking orders as more shadows appeared. Soon, the army was attacking, shadows exploding in marsh green, dark purple, and deep brown. The Time Watchers drew their weapons, me holding on tightly to my knife. We spread out and attacked, fighting along side the army. I slashed at several shadows until I was pinned down by one, who pulled a shadow sword back, aiming at my neck. Before he could stab me, I pierced its stomach, making it explode. I tried getting up, but another shadow snatched me up and threw me into the darkness, far away from the army. My back hit a tree, and I groaned and fell to the cold forest floor.

"Ugh... He's--He's got a good... huh, good arm..." I stumbled up, searching for my knife in the dark.

"Here, let me shed some light." Alex offered, glowing as bright as a flashlight.

"Thanks," I searched for the weapon, kneeling over and picking it up when I saw it. Something made a woosh sound where my head was, and landed a few feet away, beginning to hiss. Crap, I bolted, my back aching. Another canister of knock out gas landed with a thunk on my left, and I started zig-zagging to the only light in the woods, trying to get back to the army.

"Stop running, kid!" Exclaimed a woman behind me. I glanced behind my shoulder, seeing a black figure in a tree. The figure had a pony tail, reloading a gun with another canister.

I covered my mouth as gas filled the woods, Alex giving off fresh oxygen as she used a fan to blow the gas away. "Nope!"

"Come on, kid!" She took a shot at me. "Just fall asleep already!"

"No!" I was getting closer to the army.

"Stupid smart-mouth!" She jumped out of the tree and ran at me. And let me tell ya, she was fast! I tried out running her, but she was somehow able to grab me and drag me back. Alex zapped her arms, and I squirmed, but she wasn't effected. Instead, she put me in a head lock and dragged me faster.

"Let go of her!" Alex ordered, shocking her arms.

The woman ignored her and rummaged through her pocket, pulling out a strange device that looked like something Friday would make. I reached for Alex, my arms trapped in the woman's embrace, and attempted setting some coordinates. My finger tips brushed my watch's face. Almost... I pulled more, my fingers able to swipe now. Almost... I tapped out random things as the woman tried to figure out the device. Nearly there... I drew my hand closer to press down on her face.

Vroosh!

"Ah, finally. The portal works. Come on, girly." Said the lady, walking into the circular, pinkish purple rip in the fabric of time. As she got me closer, I was able to press down hard enough, sending me through a wormhole, and out of the lady's arms. Unlike most times, this was not a very pleasant ride through time. I spun in circles, making me feel sick as I travelled through the strange, swirling tube.

"Aaaaahhhh!!!" I screamed, feeling like I was spinning faster and faster.

"Hang on, Cherry! Hang on!" Exclaimed Alex as we spun.

I hugged both arms and curled up into a ball, keeping Alex close to my pounding heart as I shut my eyes tightly. In a flash, I fell onto my side in a soft bed of flowers. I was shaking from adrenaline, and my back was throbbing. My breathing began to slow, and I slowly opened my eyes again. I was wearing old British clothes, my dress ridiculously poofy. It was pretty, though, however I'm not one to wear these kinds of things. My blonde hair was pulled into a loose bun on top of my head, which felt pretty weird to me. My knife was in a secret pocket on my nice, black leather boots.

"You okay, Charitie?" Alex asked quickly.

"Y-Yeah... Just kinda... whoo! Haha! That was crazy..."

"It was, wasn't it? Anyway, let's take a look at your back." I lifted my arm to my back, and she scanned it.

"Calculating... Processing information... Information processed. Just a few scratches. You should be okay. Walk it off."

"Thanks," I sat up and looked around. I was in someone's yard, the moon hitting my dress. A horse nickered from a stables next to the house. The house itself was nice. "Where are we?"

"France, before the Revolutionary War."

"Oh... Who's house is this, then?"

"Napoleon Bonaparte."

"Oh boy... Is he still mad at us?"

"That hasn't happened yet."

I sighed in relief. "Good. For a minute there I was like, 'Eee, no!', but I guess we're alright for now."

"Indeed. By the way, he'll come outside in three... two... one...."

The front door to the house opened, and a man about my height came through. Without all his war stuff on, he seemed a bit like a child. Especially because he had a slight baby face. He stood on the porch and stared at the sky, sighing with content. His horse nickered again, and he looked around the landscape. When he spotted me, he nearly had a heart attack.

"Hello, sir." I said in French, standing and giving him a low curtsy. If you didn't know, the power we got in France was to speak French.

"G-Good evening..." He stared at me with bewilderment. "What are you doing out here?"

"I... got lost on my way home, that's all. I'll be on my way, now, if you don't mind." I started walking off, but he stopped me.

"Wait! Are you hungry, madam? I could give you something to eat before you go, if you'd like."

The mention of real food instead of maggoty bread made me stop. Napoleon seemed to notice my reaction.

"Come come, inside. I'll fix you something to eat." He went to me and held my hand, leading me into the house.

I tried to act like I had no idea who he was. "Thank you for your hospitality. What do I call you?"

"Napoleon Bonaparte. However, you can just call me Napoleon." He closed the door and let go of my hand, going to his kitchen. "I have some soup on the fire, if you'd like. I'll go fetch a bowl for you. Go ahead and sit in a seat."

I did so as he hurried off, soon arriving with a bowl and spoon. He set it on the table I was at, letting me eat. He stood by the fire, admiring the flames as I ate the delicious food. When I was done, I gave him another curtsy, and disappearing before he could say anything. I ran outside, typing out the place to go, and zapped to Zandaria again. It seemed like the battle went by pretty quick, seeing there were no more shadows. A few were bleeding, but other than that, they seemed fine. A roar of victory was waving across the men and woman, some brandishing their weapons high into the air. My clothes were back to the clothes I was wearing previously, which felt better.

I quickly joined my friends, who were near Andrew. He was talking to Madeline, telling her something of thanks or whatever. I couldn't tell, really. When he saw me, he smiled kindly.

"Oh, there you are. We were wondering where you went."

"Well, here I am!" I smiled.

He inclined his head, then turned to the army. "You all did wonderfully!" He exclaimed as heads turned. "Let us set up camp here and rest. Regain your strength, for we are almost upon the true evil."

Everyone cheered again, and I heard a woman scream, "Marry me, Andrew!"

He seemed to hear it too, but we couldn't find who said that.