"Donovan! You're home late!" Emma gave her a cheery smile as Donovan walked into her temporary dorm. The clock had only just struck nine o'clock and it had been a long day. Only having a few classes, Donovan had plenty of time to stroll Delawell's grounds and ponder what to do about her Jo situation. During their previous meeting, she had made it quite clear to Jo that there would never be a path towards forgiveness. Looking at the situation now, Donovan realized that's all she really wanted.

"Everything okay?" Emma reached out to grab Donovan's cloak, but she just shook her head.

"Thank you so much for letting me stay here," Donovan began, looking at Emma and Abbi. "It was so kind of you, but I can't be a burden for much longer. As much as I would love to stick around forever, I need to mend my relationship with Jo. Our quarrel won't last forever – even the darkest curses can be broken, after all. This was just a mere argument, a much easier fix."

Abbi shrugged her shoulders. "If you're sure, but our door is always open! Well, closed, but you know what I mean." The girls shared in a laugh, but Donovan had her mind made up. She needed to leave.

"Thank you, but it will be better this way. I'm sure of it." Donovan bent over to collect her belongings and leave their little home.

Emma kneeled down next to her with a smirk planted on her face. "So... Rumor has it that Adam Russler has a new girlfriend. Would you, by any chance, have any knowledge of this?"

Donovan looked up from what she was doing, her cheeks burning like dragon breath. She looked at her friends with surprised eyes, but they were only giggling. How could that news have spread so quickly? She shook her head, softly laughing herself. "Well, looks like nothing is a secret anymore! Yes, Adam has asked me to be his girlfriend, and I have gladly accepted. We went out for some shaken ice, but that was the last I've seen of him."

Abbi snorted. "Or is that where you've been all this time?"

"I've been roaming the grounds, honest!" Donovan blushed, not knowing what to do in such a situation. She never had a boyfriend before, since she spent all of her time obsessing over Adam. Well, unless her one week fling during her third year counts. She "dated" this one guy to try and catch Adam's attention – make him jealous. Unfortunately that only seemed to separate them even more.

Emma smiled. "Well, we expect updates!"

"I'll owl you with every single word," Donovan promised with a pathetic giggle. Imagine her giving updates by the second! Adam would find her insane and the relationship wouldn't last very long.

Picking up the rest of her things, she bid her friends goodbye, and left their dorm. The night sky beamed down on her with the moonlight being the only thing to light the path. Her boots clonked against the cobblestone towards her own dorm, but as she was halfway there, something changed her mind. Donovan wasn't ready to face her old friend. What would she even say?

She couldn't return to Emma and Abbi now that she had just left them with her intentions clear. Donovan's teeth sank into her bottom lip, drawing a bit of blood. She quickly wiped it away, aware that there could be vampires lurking about. An idea then sparked in her head – she needed to find Adam and talk to him. He saw what happened between her and Jo earlier, and he would be able to help her figure out what to do next. Not only was Adam a star Linsink player, but he also had a hand for playing chess. Life was sort of like chess – you needed to find the right pieces to play and decide which moves to make.

She began her journey towards his dorm, which wasn't all too far away from her own. It would make for an easy trip when they wanted to sneak away at night together. Her knuckles clenched together and banged on his door. He opened it up immediately with a huge grin. "Donny, what brings you here?"

"You," she said softly, admiring his fluffy hair. "But I also need some help."

He nodded with a smile fading from his face. "Is this about Jo?" Donovan nodded with an audible sigh.

"Well, dearie, why don't you step inside, then? Josh is away for the night, so we can stay up as late as we want." He ushered her through the door frame and she was taken into the most disorganized room that she had ever witnessed. Trying to ignore the disgust of the room, she closed her eyes.

"I want to reunite our friendship," Donovan admitted.

Adam scoffed. "A rather brave and difficult task – admirable!"

Donovan beamed at this, hoping that it was more of a compliment than anything. She strolled around the room, not that there was much room to walk. She considered the level of difficulty that she would be faced with on her quest, but shrugged it away. Friends were meant to find each other, no matter the consequence. "I want this, Adam."

"I understand, but I want you to know what you're up against, Donny. She's done a lot to you and I want you to be prepared for the worst." Adam fell back on his bed, trying to figure out the game plan. He was visualizing all in his head, the move-by-move play out, just like in chess.

Donovan shuddered. "I'm going to back to our dorm tonight, but I'm not sure if I'm ready. What am I supposed to do or say, even?"

"Do you think you need another night to prepare? Like I said, Josh isn't coming home tonight, so you're more than welcome to stay here, until you have it all figured out," Adam offered, still trying to come up with a game plan.

She tried to her smile and excitement as he proposed this. Donovan fell down next to him, shrugging her shoulders. "One night wouldn't hurt. After all, I want to do this right."

"Of course, darling."

Eleven thirty at night and Donovan's eyes fluttered open. Looking next to her, her heart began to panic before she recalled the previous events. She pulled back the sheets and ran towards the window, staring out at the full moon. It shone even brighter than it had at night. Glancing back at Adam, she knew that she couldn't stay here. She denied herself happiness until her relationship with Jo was completely mended. No matter what it takes, she vowed.

Donovan quietly threw on her cloak and closed the door to the dorm behind her. She tiptoed down the pathway, the moon reminding her the consequences of what she was doing. Delawell wasn't too strict about somethings, but when it came to sneaking out past eleven o'clock, they weren't too pleased. There weren't strict consequences of doing so, but the shame tied to it would be undeniable.

If she was caught.

Donovan reached her dorm and pushed her key inside the lock. Jiggling it about in its hole, she was able to push open the door. To her surprise and dismay, Jo was nowhere in seat. Two perfectly made beds and no lights on was exactly the thought that feared her. She ran back out of her dorm, determined to find her friend. After all, Jo could be in some serious trouble!

The castle, was Donovan's first thought. If she tried to sneak into Delawell, she would definitely be caught, but she needed to find Jo for the sake of her safety and their friendship. So Donovan took a stroll up to the open gates, taking a deep breath. She needed to muster up all the courage she could gather if she was going to go through with this.

Going through the gates, it didn't take long for her to find the whereabouts of Jo. Bright green smoke rose against the dark sky. It could only lead to one possible answer. Her boots clanked against the cobblestone even harder, until she found the source of the smoke. Her vision immediately looked at the dormer windows on the castle, but the smoke wasn't coming from there. She scanned the castle, following her eye sight to the very bottom of the building where the window touched the ground. The green smoke rose from there.

Quickly, Donovan rushed over to the window only a little over from there. Peeking through it, she saw Jo mixing different potions and repeating various spells and chants that Donovan had never even heard of.

"Very good, Jo! You are going to make for an excellent apprentice once you leave here," a lady said, walking into view. Donovan studied the black lace and leather on the lady, coming to only one conclusion. This was Mistress Josephine – banished from the lands for creating a curse strong enough to kill even the most powerful and it did indeed succeed. Except not enough to kill off the entire race. Her evil forces weren't that strong.

Jo stared at Mistress Josephine, her eyes clouded and her pupils enlarged so that her whole eye looked black. Suddenly, it all began to make sense. The snapping, the lies, the sudden change of heart – Jo was under a trance.