James:

The supermarket behind me buzzes with business, but its peaceful as I sit on the sidewalk. Zach, who sits besides me, concentrates on counting the little change we have left. Saving the day doesn't fill our pockets if the government is trying to get us behind bars. Just as soon that thought creeps in, so does anxiety. How long till Zach gets tired of me? Everyone gets tired of me...

"Zach..." I mutter.

"James?" Zach says, looking up from the money.

"Will we be best friends forever?" I ask, feeling foolish. Zach looks surprised for a moment, but then breaks out into a grin.

"We better be," he laughs. I find myself smiling too; my anxiety fleeing at the sight of his grin. I was being stupid. Zach and I will be best friends forever.

* * *

My eyes open slowly, the dream leaving me wide awake. I stare up at the ceiling, trying to ignore the pang in my heart. Its been so long since I've had that dream... I wonder what made me think of him again. Suddenly, the pang in my heart turns agonizing. I wish I could decide if I hate you or miss you, Zach. A mocking smile begins to take shape on my face. "Best friends forever, huh? What a joke..." I chuckle to myself.

Night:

I peer into the prisoner's cage, his words ringing in my ears. Whats a Hunter? I glance back at him, but quickly look away as I realize he's watching me. His red eyes shift to his scythe, I catch myself following his gaze. The scythe suddenly explodes into fog. A shape comes out of the darkness as the fog clears. A Doberman Pincer takes the place of the weapon. Its glossy, black fur radiating the color of blood. Its red eyes narrowing in sick delight.

"Its a pleasure to met you, Night. I'm Sylvia, his Spirit Animal," the dogs says telepathically, nodding toward Zach. How is this possible...? How can he be a Spirit Dancer? His aura is too twisted...

"We are alike in more ways than you think," Sylvia growls.

"What are you?" I shriek, losing my temper.

"I'm something you could've have been," Zach answers, laughing at his own vagueness.

"Tell me-" I start, but before I can finish my sentence, I'm interrupted.

"He's not worth it, Night. Lets go..." Moon interrupts, tugging at my sleeve. I continue staring him, ignoring Moon.

"I won't stop till I get answers," I promise. Then, I storm out of the room.

Jermaine:

I sit on the couch, watching a TV broadcast about another leopard escaping from the zoo. The large number of reports about these incidents made me numb to them. So, being bored, I turn off the television and look at Delta polishing one of her sniper rifles.

"What's your plan? How are we going to kill her?" She asks, glancing at me.

"Night works with my sister, so I'll convince her to bring me to work with her. You go find a nice place to deliver the killing blow. Your a sniper, aren't you? I distract Night and you do your thing," I explain.

"Are you sure your okay with me killing her?" Delta says.

"I don't care. I just want her dead," I reply bluntly. Delta opens her mouth to reply, but a knock at the door distracts her. She lets out a long sigh, putting down her gun. She walks to the door reluctantly. By her slight change in expression, I can tell she knows who's at the door. From the couch, I hear the door open and a man speak.

"Delta! How are you? Have you taken my advice and gone on a vacation?" the man says cheerfully.

"No, I haven't, Daniel. Now go away, I don't need you to check up on me. I'm doing just fine," Delta replies coldly. "Go back to your new family." Her last words fill me with such curiosity, I leap off the couch and get a peek at the visitor. The man is as old as Delta, but noticeably weaker. He's an average man with graying, brown hair and an unimpressive build. The man, Daniel, notices me instantly. His brown eyes widening in surprise.

"I didn't know you had a boyfriend, Delta! I mean there's a bit of an age gape, but I suppose that's not a bad thing. I'm glad your finally moving on," Daniel exclaims happily.

"I'm not dating anyone! I'm old enough to be his mother!" Delta snaps disgusted. I watch the exchange closely, realizing that this man is her ex-husband.

"Don't worry, Daniel. Delta will be getting the closure she deserves very soon, won't you?" I say, turning to look at Delta. She narrows her eyes, understanding my hidden message. Daniel, on the other hand, looks at us, completely lost.

"Um...I'm a little lost guys," he admits.

"Well, go be lost somewhere else," Delta growls, slamming the door. She says nothing and goes back to polishing her gun. I smile, feeling a little relieved to have avoided an awkward conversation. That's one thing I like about her. She doesn't talk about unnecessary things. The perfect soldier.

Summer:

With one short command, I awake Mia. The teenage girl is hardly older than I am. Her green eyes look around the room groggily as if trying to figure out where she is. Suddenly, her body tenses. She aims a fiery glare at me. "What did you do with Zach?" she growls menacingly.

"The plan is to execute him, but you already knew that, right?" I smile. I see her entire body flinch. She must really love him...

"Don't touch him," Mia says, gritting her teeth.

"If you satisfy my curiosity, I won't have to. His fate is in your hands," I answer. My words cause her stop and think. Her face turning into caution rather than aggression.

"What do you want to know?" she asks cautiously.

"I want to know what he is," I say. Mia shifts uncomfortably, having second thoughts.

"If I tell you, you'll promise not to hurt him. He's everything I have," she mutters, looking at her feet.

"I promise," I reassure her. Mia sighs deeply, bracing herself.

"Zach is a...corrupted Spirit Dancer, officially called an Hunter," Mia says.

"Corrupted Spirit Dancer?" I question

"As you know, certain emotions can take over Spirit Dancers. If they let their emotions consume them, then this will cause them to be corrupted. When they are corrupted, their Spirit Animal will need to be feed double to be able to withstand their physical form-" Mia explains.

"But don't Spirit Animal feed off of their partner's bodily nutrients?" I ask, interrupting her.

"It isn't enough. They need more. The only way to get those nutrients is to kill," Mia answers grimly. "When you get corrupted...its like being possessed. You have no control over your body anymore."

I open my mouth to reply, but she stops me.

"There's more. You want to know everything, right?" she snaps. I nod. "Zach is different. He never had chance. He was chosen by a corrupted Spirit Animal and forced to bond with it. So do you understand now? He's just sick! He doesn't deserve to die. He deserves to be free."

I have no words to answer her. Her absolute devotion to him was something I haven't seen before. Even if her words are true, will it be enough to save his life? "Is there...a cure?" I ask.

"No..." Mia replies, her eyes tearing up.

"Wouldn't death be his best option?" I question.

"No! I'll figure out how to save him! I just need more time..." she exclaims, her voice trailing off.

"You might have already run out of time," I answer. I snap my fingers, sending her to sleep before she can object. Even if I told my higher-ups what she told me, his fate my have already been decided. "I'm sorry, Mia..."