CHAPTER TWO

Clarissa Phillips had been sleeping on the couch since the death of her husband, and was fairly certain that she'd be moving into the guest room. She could not bring herself to sleep in the bed she had once shared with the man she loved knowing that he would never again lay beside her in it. She was seriously considering letting Aideen have the master bedroom, since she and her twin sister Courtney shared a room. They were teenagers and couldn't have been more different. It might do them some good to have their own spaces. Although the two were very close, Clarissa knew that Aideen was starting to get annoyed with having a half-pink bedroom. Aideen's side of the room was navy blue. She'd wanted to paint it black, but Courtney had protested that.

"Hey, Mom," Courtney said as she came in from school.

"Hi, sweetheart. Where's your sister?" Clarissa asked.

"I don't know. She said something about going to see Cierra."

"Cierra?" Clarissa raised an eyebrow at that. "Aideen never goes to see Cierra unless she needs research." Aideen and Cierra were friends purely because they both belonged to the Silver Society. They were polar opposites in a lot of ways, and although they got along fine, they simply didn't have enough in common to warrant many visits that were entirely social in nature.

Courtney shrugged. "She didn't give me any details."

"You didn't ask?" Clarissa asked in surprise.

"I was talking to... Never mind."

"Talking to who, honey?" Clarissa asked curiously.

"Just this boy..."

"A boy?" Clarissa smiled. "And, let me guess. You were distracted?"

"Yeah," Courtney admitted. She was normally very boy crazy, and Clarissa was pleased to hear that this seemed to be the case again, as she'd withdrawn a bit immediately after her father's death.

"Well, I'm sure she's fine, whatever she's doing," Clarissa said, although she wasn't actually certain of this. Aideen had been acting more and more reckless lately. She had all but declared war against the warlocks, and while Clarissa respected that, she was concerned. Aideen could take care of herself, but she was still her daughter, and Clarissa didn't like knowing that she was putting herself in danger unnecessarily. To take her mind off of this problem, Clarissa changed the subject. "I have news. I finally booked a band for your birthday party."

"Really?" Courtney asked excitedly. "Which band?"

"Serpent's Kiss," Clarissa replied, frowning at the name. "I was a little bit worried that I was booking devil worshippers by their name, but their music is actually pretty good."

"Oh my God, Mom, they're one of the hottest bands around! How did you book them?"

Clarissa smiled. "I have my ways."

"This is so cool! Aideen's going to flip. She loves them." Courtney was grinning from ear to ear.

"Good. I was hoping I'd find a band that you both liked. That's not always easy."

"Well, they're a little bit of an edgy rock band for my taste, but they're definitely fun for a party, and they're right up Deenie's alley."

"I'm glad to hear that."

"Dylan's obsessed with them. He's seriously going to fanboy."

"Oh, really? Should I expect him to harass them all night?"

"He might try to kidnap them," Courtney joked. "He owns most of their merchandise, and he slept outside of a music store for three nights just to get tickets to their show in Boston a few months ago."

"That's pretty dedicated, alright."

"Well, you know how Dylan gets about music."

"Yes, I know Mr. 'It's All About The Music' gets obsessed. Nothing's more important to him, except for maybe magick."

"If you ask him, music is magick."

"That's actually true, in a way."

The telephone rang. Clarissa looked at Courtney and said, "I'm not home."

Courtney nodded and picked up the telephone. "Hello?" She answered.

"Courtney?" Liora Erikson asked.

"Oh, hi, Aunt Liora," Courtney replied. She wondered if her mother had known that it was her sister on the phone and if that was why she'd said she wasn't home. The annoyed expression on Clarissa's face seemed to confirm this.

"How are you doing, honey?" Liora asked.

"I'm okay. Things are finally getting back to normal... I miss Daddy, but I'm trying not to focus on that so much."

"I'm glad you're doing a little bit better, sweetheart. How's Aideen?"

"She's... Trying," Courtney replied honestly. She knew her sister was anything but alright.

"I understand," Liora said sympathetically. "And how's your mom?"

"She's trying, too... She's not home right now."

"She's standing right next to you," Liora replied firmly.

Courtney blushed, and was glad that Liora couldn't see her, although she suspected that her aunt was fully aware that she was blushing. "Busted, Mom," Courtney said.

Clarissa rolled her eyes. "Put her on the phone, Courtney," Liora said.

"Okay," Courtney replied. She handed the telephone to Clarissa.

"Hi, Liora," Clarissa said reluctantly.

"It's not polite to lie to your big sister, Clarissa," Liora scolded her gently. "Listen, honey, I was calling because I wanted to know if you were still planning the usual party for the twins this year."

"Of course I am. Why wouldn't I be?" Clarissa asked in an annoyed tone.

"Well, I just figured that with poor Benny's passing still so fresh, you wouldn't want to throw a party," Liora explained.

"You figured wrong," Clarissa snapped. She couldn't believe that Liora was bringing Benny up to her yet again. Of course, her sister had never been the most tactful creature on the planet.

"I'm sorry, Clarissa," Liora said quickly. "I didn't mean to upset you."

"The girls are turning sixteen, Liora. That only happens once. I want them to have something good to look forward to after all the pain they've been through, okay? Is that really so wrong?"

"Of course it's not. I'm sure Benny would want them to celebrate."

"Yes, he would." Clarissa was very tempted to hang up on her sister, but she knew Liora would only call her back if she did.

Courtney knew what her mother and aunt were arguing about. Liora had successfully worked her father into every single conversation with her mother since he'd been killed.

Courtney wanted a sweet sixteen. She'd been dreaming of one for years. Of course, in her dreams, her father had always been there to dance with her. Courtney felt tears in her eyes at the thought of her father, and she ran upstairs before her mother could stop her.

"Courtney?" Clarissa called after her. "Liora, I need to go."

"Give her time, Clarissa," Liora advised. "I'm sure that whatever made her run off is something she needs to work through on her own for a bit."

"How did you know that she ran off?"

"How did you know that I was the one calling?" Liora countered.

"Look, I need to take care of this. If it was Aideen, I'd agree that she needed time on her own. Aideen has proven time and time again that if she runs off, she actually wants to be left alone, but Courtney's different. She's very sensitive, and it seems that she's trying to live in a plastic bubble these days where she doesn't have to think about her father. I'm sure she knew what we were discussing. I need to go after her."

"Do as you see fit, Clarissa. She is your daughter, after all," Liora said with obvious disapproval at Clarissa's decision.

"Yes, she is. Goodbye, Liora." Clarissa hung up on her sister and took a deep breath before heading upstairs to the bedroom that the twins shared. "Courtney? Sweetie, are you okay?"

Courtney looked up at her mother with tears streaming down her cheeks. She was clutching the teddy bear her father had given her on her thirteenth birthday. "I miss him," Courtney managed to say before her hysterics overwhelmed her.

"I know, Courtney. So do I," Clarissa admitted. She wrapped her arms around Courtney and tried to comfort her.

Clarissa had been having better luck with comforting Courtney than she had with Aideen. Every day, Aideen seemed to be pulling away from her a little bit more, but at least Clarissa knew that she had friends to lean on. If nothing else, Arnie seemed to be able to help her. Clarissa wished she knew what to say to make her daughter feel better, but there were no words. Aideen and Benny had been closer than any father and daughter Clarissa had ever met, and although Aideen loved her mother, she'd always relied on her father unless he wasn't giving her what she wanted. On those occasions, Aideen usually played the "you're my soul's mom and you can make the final call" card with Clarissa. Benny had been Aideen's incarnated father, but he was actually her soul's cousin.

"Mom, when does it stop hurting?" Courtney asked.

"I don't know, honey. I wish I did," Clarissa replied.

"You and Aunt Liora lost your father at an early age, too."

"I was fourteen and Liora was seventeen, and yes, it was difficult, but our father was not nearly as good of a man as yours was. He barely acknowledged us most of the time. He wasn't evil, but he wasn't really there, either. The loss hurt, but I know that your loss is a lot more difficult."

"Did it ever stop hurting?"

"Yes, after some time passed, it got easier, but when you lose someone that is as important to you as your father was, it comes in cycles. You're miserable, then you think you're okay, then it hits again... It takes a long time to reach a point where you can let go."

"I don't know if I'll ever be able to let Daddy go."

"I don't know if I will either," Clarissa admitted.

Courtney snuggled in closer to her mother. They stayed like that for a long time before they heard the telephone ring again.

Clarissa went downstairs to answer the phone. "Hello?" She asked.

"Mrs. Phillips?" Someone asked.

"Yes, this is she..."

"Hi... This is Cierra... Um... There's kind of a problem with Aideen."

"What happened? Is she alright?" A million and one "what if's" went through Clarissa's mind in that moment.

"She fainted, and no matter what I do, I can't get her to come around. I called Arnie and Spencer and even Alex, but no one's been able to bring her back."

Clarissa cursed. "Where are you?"

"We're at my house." Cierra gave her the address.

"I'll be right there." Clarissa hung up before rushing back upstairs. "Courtney, I need to go out for a little while. Stay here, okay?" She didn't want to tell Courtney why she needed to leave for fear of making her worry. Until she knew what was wrong with Aideen, there was no point in making Courtney panic.

"Alright, Mom," Courtney replied with a sniffle. She hugged the teddy bear a little bit tighter.

Clarissa didn't want to leave her, but she knew this was an emergency. She kissed Courtney's forehead before she hurried out of the house.

~*~

"What the heck could be causing this?" Cierra asked in frustration. She felt guilty that Aideen had collapsed and wondered if she could have prevented it somehow.

"I don't know," Alex admitted. "You said you were just looking over some warlock files, right? And then she fainted?"

"Yeah. She didn't act like she was lightheaded or anything. She was fine one minute, then she was unconscious the next."

"Maybe she got pulled to something?" Arnie suggested. It happened to him fairly often, but Aideen occasionally had issues, too. Thankfully, because she was only mildly empathic, her visions didn't make her bleed.

"She'd have shown some sign of a struggle by now," Spencer replied "She's not stuck in anything. She's just unconscious."

"Cierra, can I see the files?" Alex asked.

"Are you sure it's safe?" Cierra asked hesitantly.

"I'll be careful," Alex replied.

"Alright," Cierra said. She handed him the files they had been looking over. "She said she wanted to research the enemy. She's really into this whole warlock vendetta. I'm worried that it's going to get her killed."

"So am I," Alex admitted. "I just don't have the heart to tell her to stop. If I were in her situation, I'd be doing the same exact thing." He looked at the files. "I don't know what could have knocked her out, unless there is some sort of curse on one of these... Maybe a warlock didn't want his information to be seen."

"You may be right," Cierra agreed.

The doorbell rang. Cierra quickly opened the door. "Hi, Mrs. Phillips," she greeted her politely.

"Hello, Cierra. You know, you can call me Clarissa," she said. "Anyway, where's my daughter?"

Cierra led her inside and told her what had happened. "Deenie?" Clarissa called. She took her daughter's hand. It was radiating with energy. "Something attacked her," Clarissa said.

"I think you're right," Alex replied. "I feel the energy, too, but I can't place it."

"It was a warlock. I'm sure of that much. Why were you two going through these files?" Clarissa asked Cierra.

"She really wanted to research the known warlocks in the area. In fact, she wanted to cover the entire East Coast," Cierra replied.

"Wow. That's a lot of warlocks," Arnie said.

"Yes, most of which operate out of Salem to some extent. Aideen wants to know the name and case history of every warlock that might ever dare to wander into the area uninvited. I'm not sure what she's looking for, but I guess she'll know it when she finds it."

"She's obsessed," Spencer said with a sigh. "She's being reckless. Deenie needs help to get through this."

"This won't bring her father back, but it might get my daughter killed," Clarissa said, shaking her head. "This is becoming a lot more dangerous as she finds out more information. I'm afraid she's going to go on some vigilante kick and try to single-handedly take down every single warlock in the United States."

"I wouldn't put it past Deenie," Arnie agreed. "Although honestly, if anyone could pull a stunt like that and succeed it would be her."

"That's true," Spencer said. "I just wish we could help her somehow. It breaks my heart seeing her spiral like this."

"Only Aideen can pull herself out of this place," Alex said. "We've all tried, but she has to realize what she's doing is not the answer on her own. We can't force that on her. This is her way of trying to cope."

"Stop making excuses for her," Cassandra said, appearing in the doorway. "What did she do this time?"

"We were looking through the warlock files, and she fainted," Cierra replied.

"Proving that reading is dangerous," Arnie added with a laugh. It didn't meet his eyes, which proved how worried he actually was.

"Where did you get these?" Cassandra asked, eying the mountains of paperwork sitting in Cierra's living room. "And how did you convince Aideen to actually read them herself? She hates paperwork. Normally if she saw this much of it, she'd smite it."

"She wanted to do this," Cierra replied.

"She's really in over her head," Cassandra said with a frown.

"Yeah, but try telling her that," Arnie replied.

"I will. I know Aideen suffered a really hard loss, but you know what? Getting herself killed by going on some suicide mission just because she's on a vigilante kick will not bring Benny back from the dead, and the sooner she realizes that, the better. She's a good slayer. I would hate to see her die because of this stupidity."

"I think you're exactly what she needs, Cassandra," Spencer said. "Even as we all continue trying to protect her from anything that might upset her, you refuse to do it. I suppose it's human nature to want to indulge her, but you're doing exactly what she asked the rest of us to do."

"Well, you know emotions aren't in Cassandra's programming," Arnie teased her.

"Shut up, Arnie," Cassandra replied. She knelt beside Aideen and tried to figure out what energy might have taken her down. "He's a powerful warlock, whoever he is," she said finally.

"How do you know it was a he?" Arnie asked.

"The energy is definitely male."

"So this warlock isn't just a female slayer? I mean, they're tougher than the males, so it's possible that they'd come across as male energy."

"No, this is actually a male, I can tell. He's old magick."

"Old magick? What do you mean by that?"

"He was born into a warlock line, a strong one that has survived for centuries. It feels like one of the oldest. I may not be much of a psychic, but I recognize evil energy. This energy is radiating with incredibly strong warlock magick."

"She's right," Spencer said. "I feel that, too. The power is incredibly strong, and it feels ancient."

"So some angry guy from a warlock family cursed these records?" Cierra asked. "How did the Unit miss that?"

"These files came from the Unit?" Clarissa asked. The Supernatural Phenomenon Investigational Unit, a.k.a. the S.P.I.U. or simply the Unit for short, was a branch of the police department that investigated supernatural crimes. It was made up of the strongest psychics in each region, be they empaths, precogs, slayers, healers, energy manipulators, time travelers, or any combination of the above. Most of the stronger psychics either worked for them officially or were affiliated with them in case of emergencies in which their special skills might prove useful.

"Yes, the files are from the Unit, and believe me, Skip was thrilled to be rid of them. He said they've had piles of this stuff in the basement just waiting to be sorted, and that if I was so inclined, he'd love for me to go through it, since the clerics have found every excuse under the sky to avoid doing it," Cierra replied.

"Okay, back to what's important," Arnie said. "How do we break this ancient magick that seems to have attacked my best friend?"

"We need someone with a stronger knowledge of warlocks," Alex replied.

"Johnny would know what to do," Clarissa said. "He's one of the top witches in Salem."

"Which Johnny?" Cierra asked.

"Johnny Winston. He was one of Benny's closest friends."

"Johnny Winston, of Ashford, Clinton, Eckerd, and Winston, the law firm that Beth's father works for?"

"Yes, why?"

"So Mr. Ashford is working with a witch and he doesn't know anything about the supernatural? Johnny must be good at hiding his identity at work."

"Yes, and Danny Eckerd is a vampire. They're a law firm in Salem, Cierra. Did you really think it would be run entirely by mortals?"

"Well, I suppose that stranger things have happened," Cierra decided. "What about Mr. Clinton? Is he a lycanthrope or something?"

"Mark Clinton is about as clueless and mortal as can be when it comes to the supernatural. He's Lewis Ashford's brother-in-law."

"That's interesting. At least it's a balanced dynamic of two supernaturals and two mortals." Cierra was all about balance.

"I'll call Johnny, and if I can't get him, I'll try Danny. They're both pretty good with this sort of thing."

"Danny is a goon," Arnie said. "He's constantly fooling around."

"Much like you," Cassandra mumbled under her breath.

"He is kind of immature sometimes, but he was one of Benny's best friends, and he's still one of mine. I trust him," Clarissa said. She pulled out her cell phone and dialed Johnny's extension first.

"Johnny Winston," he answered on the second ring.

"Johnny, it's Clarissa," Clarissa replied.

"Hey, Clarissa, how are you holding up?"

"Not great at the moment," she admitted. "I need a warlock spell broken. Are you up for it?"

"You know I'm always willing to spare energy for you. Who cast the spell, and who is it on?"

"We don't know who cast it. We do know that he's a warlock from a very old line. It was cast on Aideen."

"Well, that's certainly not good. Alright, tell me where you are, and I'll sneak away for a little while."

Clarissa gave him the address and hung up the phone. Ten minutes later, Johnny arrived, and Clarissa explained the situation.

"Well, she's not struggling, so at least we know it's not a torture spell," Johnny said as he considered the situation. He studied the energy carefully before saying, "Yes, I know who cast this, but I don't think it was directed at your daughter."

"Well, that's good to know," Clarissa replied.

"He cast a general spell that anyone approaching his file would fall unconscious."

"Terrific," Alex said. "And we break the spell how, exactly?"

"It will wear off exactly twenty-four hours after it hit her."

"Twenty-four hours?" Arnie repeated. "Well, that sucks."

"Aideen is fine," Johnny reassured him. "It's sort of like she's asleep, only she's not dreaming. She won't remember anything she saw that he doesn't want her to know, though."

"Wait," Cierra said. "Why did it only hit her? I was going through the files with her."

"I don't know," Johnny replied. "It may have been cast to specifically target slayers, or maybe you just have something in your energy that it didn't feel threatened by."

"A spell that has feelings? Wonderful," Arnie said. "That's a new one."

"This spell is like a shade of the warlock that cast it. It can think and feel like the warlock could. It picks its victims. Unfortunately, it viewed Aideen as a threat."

"Smart spell," Alex mumbled.

"Are you sure she's alright?" Clarissa asked.

"Yes," Johnny replied. "The spell didn't harm her. If she tries to look at the filed again, though, the spell will most likely try to kill her."

"Okay, no more researching for Aideen," Alex said firmly.

"Which warlock cast the spell?" Spencer asked.

"You wouldn't know him. He died several years ago, when you were still a baby," Johnny replied.

"If he died, how is the spell still this strong?" Arnie asked.

"I suppose he knew what he was doing."

"Are we positive that he's actually dead?" Spencer asked.

"Well, he was. He may have come back."

"The way Deenie does?" Arnie asked.

"Not exactly. He was dead for an extended period of time. He was buried and everything. However, if he struck a deal with the right Reaper, they may have resurrected him and given him back his life."

"Wouldn't someone have noticed a dead guy walking around?"

"In Salem? Not necessarily. You of all people should know about memory modification, Arnie," Johnny replied. "It's a powerful thing. It is possible to erase an event, even something like a death, from everyone's memories, just as it is possible to erase a person from everyone's memories so that it's as if they never existed."

"That creeps me out," Cierra admitted. "I know I'm not particularly memorable, but the idea that someone could erase me completely is kind of scary."

Suddenly, Joey appeared in the living room. "Um... Hi, Joey," Arnie said. "What are you doing here?"

"Oops," Joey said as he looked at Aideen. "Too late?" He asked.

"Yeah... Did you know this was gonna happen, munchkin?"

"I see it."

"Does Jade know you're here?"

"Mama and Beth shopping. I home."

"Shopping? Jade? That's a scary thought," Arnie decided.

"She get spell stuff."

"And Beth went with her?"

"She try learn stuff."

"That's cute. Beth's turning into a baby witch," Arnie said with a laugh.

"Please tell me you don't mean Lewis's daughter," Johnny said.

"Yeah, that's who we're talking about," Arnie replied. "Why?"

"Lewis won't like that his daughter is getting into the occult. Is she just casting basic spells, or is she actually converting to Paganism?"

"She hasn't converted, but the way she spends time around Jade, it's only a matter of time before she decides she'd rather be a witch," Spencer replied. "Besides, Beth is one of us. She needs the magickal knowledge if she hopes to survive in our world."

"Joey, who was watching you?" Cierra asked.

"Maggie," Joey replied.

"Does she know you're gone?"

"No, she in kitchen with brother. He come over 'fore I go."

"You'd better get home before she realizes you just vanished. I don't think she'd take that very well, and we can't keep asking Arnie to modify her memory."

"Why not?" Arnie asked with a laugh. "It keeps my skills sharp."

"It's dangerous, Arnie. If you erase someone's memory enough times, you can hurt them."

"I know what I'm doing," he replied defensively. "I wouldn't hurt her."

"Even the most advanced memory modifiers can cause an electrical overload in the brain," Cierra said practically. "This is all science, Arnie. Psychic abilities run on energy, and give off electrical stimuli that cause certain things to happen. That's why misfirings hurt so much. A psychic misfiring sends the electrical impulse to the wrong part of your brain and causes a negative reaction."

"Alex, Cierra's talking all brainy again," Arnie whined.

"You're not stupid, Arnie, so don't even pretend that you can't follow this conversation," Cierra said before Alex could reply.

"Why does she have to break it down and make it all technical?" Arnie asked. "It takes the mystery away."

"That's the point," Cierra replied. "How can we use our abilities if we don't understand how they work?"

"Science bores me."

"You like chemistry."

"No, I like to blow things up. There's a difference between the actual scientific processes of chemistry and just making stuff go boom."

"You sound more like my daughter every day, Arnie," Clarissa said with a laugh.

"Well, she's only been my best friend since before I can remember. She was bound to rub off on me eventually. Anyway, I'll take that as a compliment."

"Alex, would you please tell Arnie why it's important to understand the scientific side of our abilities?" Cierra asked.

Alex silently cursed. He didn't want to be brought into the middle of this discussion. Cierra was sounding like a walking textbook and Arnie was purposely arguing with her, and both were doing these things purely because they were worried about Aideen. Alex had been working with them both for a long time, and he liked to think that he knew the way their minds worked by now.

"Cierra's right, Arnie," Alex said. "It is important for us to understand our abilities from every angle, even the scientific ones. That angle really helps if we have to explain why we're working with the Unit on a case to police officers that don't have our... um... talents. However, Arnie also has a point, Cierra, because science is not the only aspect of our abilities, and we have to understand the other aspects as well."

Johnny studied Alex with admiration before mouthing the words, well done to him. He was proud of Alex for finding importance to both of the arguments and trying to help the two that had been fighting see each other's points. You know, you might make a good judge someday, Johnny added telepathically, making Alex smile slightly.

"So, what should we do now?" Spencer asked. "I mean, Aideen's not going to wake up for a while, and there's really nothing that we can do for her..."

"I'll help you take her home," Johnny told Clarissa. "We'll make her comfortable."

"Thanks, Johnny. I appreciate the help," Clarissa replied.

"It's not a problem. I'd do anything for you, Clarissa. After all, I've known you since we were young, and you're one of the few people that I can say that about."

"Will you be at the twins' birthday party this year?"

"Yes, I was planning on it. I know Danny's going, too. We figured it might help you and the girls a bit if you had us for moral support. I know this one's going to be hard for them."

"Yeah... It means a lot to know that you're both here for us."

"It's the least that we can do." Johnny picked Aideen up. Her body curled up in his arms as though she were a small child that had fallen asleep and was being picked up by a relative. Aideen had known Johnny for her entire life and he was like an uncle to her. Her body felt comfortable in his arms. "Let's get her home."