AUTHOR'S NOTE: The last couple of one-shots were really intense and full of traumatic content. I decided to write something lighter this time. This is essentially the story of how the Silver Society officially began in Salem.

This scene was mentioned in passing in the eighth book of the series, and I decided it would be fun to actually write it out. It starts off a little depressing, just to illustrate Alex's emotional state when he arrived in Salem, but I promise it gets a lot more amusing.

ALEX MEETS AIDEEN AND ARNIE

Alex looked at the boxes filling his new home and sighed. Driving to Salem from New York and unloading his belongings had taken long enough, and he was exhausted both physically and emotionally. He definitely wasn't ready to unpack yet.

He couldn't help but think about why he was there. They were dead... All of them were dead. Blake and Anne Marie, and the baby of their little group of psychics, Talia, were dead because he hadn't been able to save them. She'd only been fourteen, and Alex had lost her. Melody, his girlfriend, was dead because he hadn't gotten to her in time. Her death hadn't even been supernatural. Melody's killer had been a random monster of the very human variety, and that was somehow so much worse.

The scroll was glowing. Alex didn't remember unpacking it. In fact, he was pretty sure that he hadn't, since he hadn't unpacked anything yet. He refused to read its surface as he shook it angrily.

"You've got the wrong guy!" He snapped. "I failed the last group I was supposed to lead! They're all dead! I suck as a leader!" He tossed the scroll across the room and watched it slam into a wall. That was oddly satisfying.

He'd gone to Salem because the scroll told him it was his destiny. He needed a new start. He had nothing to lose. At barely eighteen, his life was basically over. He was a failure, and no "second chance" the Universe was trying to force on him would change that... But he couldn't ignore the overwhelming urge to move to Salem and try to start over anyway. His parents, Bobbi, Lynn, and even his little sister Hillary had all agreed it might be better for him. If Alex stayed in New York, he would never heal.

Tony, his boss at the Unit, had agreed that Alex's destiny now lay elsewhere. He'd made arrangements with the head of Salem's Unit, Skip Burke, to get Alex settled in Salem quickly. Now, Alex was wondering what he'd gotten himself into.

With a sigh, Alex decided he might as well go explore the place he was now supposed to call home. His house was pretty central to the main sightseeing area, and Alex figured he could walk to most of the more interesting spots at night to avoid running into tourists.

Salem was completely different from New York. In Manhattan, even at midnight, the streets were filled with tourists and residents alike, all enjoying the many bars, clubs, and other venues the City hosted. In contrast, Salem was much quieter. A few people lingered near the last of the bars that were still open, but most people were in their homes or hotels, and it was eerily quiet.

The cemetery on Charter Street, called both the Charter Street Cemetery and the Old Burying Point, was empty. Alex sensed a tremendous amount of supernatural energy lurking inside and knew this must be a hot spot for the slayers. He'd be joining them soon, after he got settled in and started working with the Unit. Tony had insisted on personally securing Alex a position with Salem's Unit himself. Alex didn't have much say in the matter.

Alex continued walking, wandering around Essex Street before making his way onto Derby Street and heading toward the waterfront. Water generally soothed Alex, and he wondered if Pickering Wharf could calm his nerves a bit.

He tensed as he heard the unexpected sound of laughter coming from the waterfront. The person who was laughing sounded young, and Alex wondered what a kid was doing out at that hour in a place like Salem.

Alex headed toward the sound and spotted a preteen girl with long blonde hair having a laughing fit as she looked toward something.

Alex followed her gaze and was startled by what he saw. A preteen boy was tied to the mast of a ship with a thick rope. He was completely naked, with his bare behind exposed for all of Salem to see, had there been anyone else around.

"What's the matter, Arnie?" The girl asked the boy. "You look a little cold!"

"Deenie, can I please have my clothes back now?" The boy begged.

Alex rushed closer, figuring the boy needed rescuing, but the girl consulted her watch and cheerfully replied, "Okay, you did your time!"

She pulled out a silver dagger, which concerned Alex until the scroll suddenly manifested in his hands and began to glow. In shock and confusion, Alex finally paused to read the words that appeared on its surface.

Aideen Phillips. Age twelve. Slayer. Vampire. Witch. Pyrokinetic. Has a silver dagger with a dragon on the blade. She is your first recruit to the Silver Society.

"Seriously?" Alex mumbled.

Aideen immediately spun around at the sound of his voice and held her dagger in front of her. "Who the hell are you?" She demanded.

"Stranger danger, Deenie! Untie me!" Arnie said. "And give me back my clothes!"

Aideen waved her hand and the rope burned to ash without burning Arnie. She tossed his clothes to him. Arnie used the side of the ship to hide as he quickly pulled on his clothes.

"I asked you a question, Creeper!" Aideen snapped. "Who are you, and why were you watching us?"

Alex put his hands up in surrender. "I'm new in town," he replied. "My name is Alex Paxton. I'm a slayer from New York."

Aideen put her dagger away. "It's okay, Arn," she said as he ran to her side looking ready to attack Alex. Aideen turned back toward Alex and added, "My dad mentioned you'd be coming to town. I'm Aideen. This is Arnie. We're slayers."

"We'll be ranking age soon," Arnie added with pride.

"Can I ask why you were tied to a ship? Naked?" Alex asked.

Aideen started laughing again. Arnie tried to look angry, but he started laughing, too.

"We made a bet," Aideen replied.

"I lost," Arnie added.

"A bet?" Alex repeated in disbelief.

"Yeah. I bet Arnie he couldn't figure out how to borrow the ship in under two minutes," Aideen replied.

"I was so close," Arnie mumbled. "Cars are a lot easier to borrow than boats."

These two are little criminals, Alex thought with a mix of horror and mild amusement. They reminded him a bit of some of the slayers from Brooklyn, who learned to pick locks, hot-wire cars, and hack computers in addition to typical slayer skills.

"So, you failed, and she tied you to the mast of the ship... Naked," Alex said to make sure he was following.

"Naked," Aideen confirmed cheerfully.

"Is this a normal form of punishment in Salem?" Alex asked.

"Deenie gets creative when she's bored," Arnie replied.

"And you went along with it?"

"I always go along with her ideas. They're usually fun."

"Was this fun?"

Arnie shrugged. "I've found worse ways to embarrass myself," he replied.

"You do realize how dangerous it is to tie yourself to anything, especially while naked, in the middle of the night, right? Anyone could have attacked you."

"It's not like I left him alone to fend for himself. I was watching his back- and backside- the entire time," Aideen said with another laugh. Arnie soon started laughing again, too.

Alex shook his head. "Okay... I guess I just need to go ahead and do this... Aideen, I need to talk to you. It seems that you're part of something that I'm here to oversee."

"Where Deenie goes, I go," Arnie said firmly.

"Sorry, kid, but this is kind of a by invitation only thing."

"I'm her guardian. Where she goes, I go," he insisted again.

The scroll started glowing again. Alex looked down to see what it had to say.

Arnold Gelman. Age 12. Slayer. Empathic healer. Vampiric human servant and soul guardian to Aideen Phillips. Has a silver dagger with a pentagram on it. Third member of the Silver Society.

"Really?" Alex asked. "Both of these goofballs are my responsibility?"

Package deal, the scroll replied. Good luck!

If the scroll could make a sound, Alex was positive it would be laughing at him in that moment.

Arnie beamed at him. "I guess your glowy silver thingy told you I'm right?" He asked.

Alex sighed. "Alright, here we go," he said. "Aideen, Arnie, apparently you're members of a group called the Silver Society... I'm meant to lead it, and to guide the rest of you. From what I've been told by the scroll, or the glowy silver thingy, there are twelve of us. We reincarnate roughly every forty years to save a new city from evil. This time around, we're supposed to save Salem."

"What are we supposed to save it from, exactly?" Aideen asked. "Evil is too vague."

"Yeah, that could mean warlocks, corrupt slayers, vampires, rogue lycanthropes, demons, our third grade teacher-" Arnie began.

Aideen shuddered. "Mrs. Rybert," she said. "Her wig still gives me nightmares!"

"Potentially all of that," Alex said. "Except for maybe your former teacher... But basically, the Silver Society is generally tasked with stopping an apocalypse-level threat."

"An apocalypse?" Aideen repeated.

"Like, a genuine apocalypse?" Arnie echoed her shock.

"Are you guys okay? I know this is scary," Alex began.

"Scary?" Aideen asked. "It's awesome!"

"We'll finally have something different to do around here," Arnie added in excitement.

"So, does that mean you're in?" Alex asked.

"Of course we're in!" Aideen replied.

"Bring on the apocalypse!" Arnie added.

"Who else is in this group, anyway?" Aideen suddenly asked.

"I don't actually know," Alex admitted. "You're the first two I've found."

"We're the founding members!" Arnie cheered.

"This is serious, guys," Alex cautioned them. "It's going to be very dangerous."

"We're slayers, Alex," Aideen replied. "We face very dangerous things every day. We've got this."

"Don't worry," Arnie added with a smirk. "I'll keep my clothes on during missions."

"I'm going to hold you to that, kid," Alex said. He had a feeling that mentoring these two would never be dull.