It was a fact that this wasn't normal. His mother still made him and his brother pancakes with a smile on her face. Their father worked for some credit union, which he didn't exactly understand how it worked, and the flooding memories of events that would happen.

He stared at the glass plate, trying to make sense of all these different images and events inside his mind. There were two girls, both identical except that one was trembling in fear while the other was covered in blood.

"Recent stabbing in the city of Claymore causes the city into chaos." It was the voice of a news reporter on the television from the other room. "Witnesses reported a young girl stabbed Jackson Kenny with a knife, but randomly disappeared."

"It's devastating that this happened to him. He's such a good man, but hopefully her parents will turn her in," one female witness said.

Kai could remember it all now. The girl who stabbed Jackson Kenny without hesitation or remorse for her actions was Aubrey Prices. No, that was just the facade of the true mastermind, Hope Prices.

He found it ironic that the name Hope was given to someone who was making a town lose hope. It had to be some sort of irony.

"I don't get it," Jaxton whispered, leaning over beside him. "Why are we travelling all over the place? Will we eventually stop?"

"I think this is where everything truly happens. It's where all the chaos began, right?" Kai inquired.

There were memories of one of the twins crying her eyes out, telling them she had died multiple times but had come back to life. She was always crying, but he couldn't remember names for some reason.

"Boys, I'm going to be working late, but your dad will be home for dinner," their mother chimed, fixing the pancakes on their plates. "I know he isn't exactly great at cooking."

Their father was awful at cooking. Oftentimes, he'd get so lost filling out forms or taking phone calls that the food would burn. He once let a pot of hot water bubble over that burned Jaxton's wrist. However, the burn magically healed.

"Mom, can I ask you something?" Jaxton asked, directing his eyes at their mother.

"What is it, sweetie?"

"About last night..."

Kai watched their mother grab her black purse before stopping. He knew exactly what Jaxton was going to ask about, considering what happened.

"Did dad leave early because of what Kai did?"

He didn't realize what was happening until it did. He was upset that he had to stop playing video games early, despite it being Friday night. Their father had stomped into their room, almost unplugging the game system before an illusion of a frying pan hit the back of his head.

"I'm sure it's nothing to worry about." She laughed nervously, clutching her purse tightly. "He's not mad at you. If anything happens, just call your grandma!"

Their mother rushed out the front door with a smile, slamming it behind her. The two just sat on the mustard leather chairs, staring at each other. They both knew their mother was frightened of them, despite not physically showing it.

"He's not coming back tonight," Jaxton said, eating his pancake drenched in syrup. "It's in my mind."

"You have that too?" Kai exclaimed.

"The girls are Amaris and Alexandra O'Rally. We're back at the beginning of everything. Aubrey's murder spree, Alexandra's disappearance, Amaris's abuse, and what happens with our parents."

Kai slowly began eating his pancake. They were five but felt ten years older. Maybe that was the situation: he was trapped in his younger body with most of his memories from whatever the present has become.

"We don't physically go to Claymore until we are fifteen. Should we go now to try and find Amaris at least?" Jaxton suggested.

Before Kai could answer, there was a knock on the door. He slowly stood, walking over in his pyjamas to find a girl with her cheeks puffed, her light purple hair braided, and her dark eyebrows knitted together.

This person was in his memories. She was always doing random things like running into poles or following Aubrey Prices around like a mindless zombie.

"Tamara Versa!" She grinned, pointing her thumb at herself. "I wasn't really in the mood to become a mindless slave today."

Not in the mood? Is there just certain days she wants to be one of her mindless slaves for the fun of it?

Tamara let herself in rather than actually allowing her to come in. She was young like them but her memories seemed to be in tact if she remembered who they were and where they even lived.

"Aubrey used to know your addresses, so we know them," Tamara said, looking around the entrance before walking into the kitchen on the right. "People kept asking me if I was a lost child. I'm fifteen—"

"Mentally," Jaxton imputed. "Physically, you look like a lost child."

"What?" she yelled, her eyes wide. "How is that physically possible?"

Jaxton came walking over to the entryway, holding his plate of pancakes and eating them. This wasn't the conversation Kai was expecting to have today. He noticed that Tamara's eyes seemed to gleam at the sight of his pancakes.

"Are you sure you aren't under Aubrey's trance?" Kai asked.

"Nope," she said with a wide grin. "See, I came here because I thought it was weird that I remembered you guys. Did you find Amaris yet? Did Alexandra die yet?"

Tamara seemed to know everything. Where is the leading answer to all of this? It feels like everything changes every ten minutes.

"There's one thing that's different." Tamara's voice became serious. "Hope possessed Alexandra earlier. She'll probably still go in the same order: his siblings, cousins, friends, and then anyone who associates with him."

"A domino effect," Jaxton stated.

Tamara's eyes shifted toward a back window, her eyes lighting up with joy. "You have a swing set!"

Kai glanced back, seeing the small swing set they had in their backyard. Tamara rushed out the back door, leaving it open for the two of them to catch up with her.

Suddenly, the cordless phone began to ring. Kai rushed over to the white phone and held it to his ear. He probably shouldn't be answering calls, but it might be important.

"Is this the Crossfield residence?"

"How did you find my number?" He stumbled over the words.

"You can search people's names and phone numbers online." Aubrey's smug voice answered. "Do you expect anything less from me?"

"Didn't expect it to be this quick," he said plainly. "Then again, you're one who loves surprises."

Aubrey let out a loud laugh on the other line. Kai started banging his head against the wall, because they obviously couldn't hide anything from this demon.

"Do you remember everything?" she asked. "Mari says she can't remember your name. I thought Rare twins were supposed to be intelligent."

Kai felt his eye twitch. He's seen this attitude of hers, always wearing that sly smirk with eyes that seem to look down on everyone.

"Should I call you Hope instead?" he said mockingly. "Since it looks like we're falling right into your trap like normal."

"It's not my fault you guys are stupid. I tricked Mari like usual because she's always so gloomy. Honestly, I did her a favour."

"What did you do?" he demanded.

"Can you calm down? We have more important issues to focus on than Mari's health."

Kai slowly banged his forehead against the wall. Of course, Aubrey's going to overlook everything with Amaris and work toward her actual intention.

"Do you ever think of anyone besides yourself?" Kai grumbled.

"Nope," Aubrey said. "Listen, Kai, don't be such an ass because I don't have the patience. Is one of my slaves with you?"

Kai glanced out the window which revealed Tamara on the ground, sitting on the fallen swing. He realized she must've broken the swing set unless Jaxton did it on purpose.

"No," he said plainly. "Why on earth would they be here? Aren't they from Stonewall?"

"They aren't there," she hissed.

"I thought they were your slaves, Hope."

She hung up on him. He smirked, setting the phone down on the counter and letting out a sigh. This didn't help that Aubrey—Hope—was looking for her mindless henchmen that aren't controlled yet. The only problem is where Josh and Sydney were.

Kai opened the back door to see Tamara riding around on the lawn on his blue bike. Jaxton glanced over at him, shrugging his shoulders.

"Aubrey's looking for you." Tamara stopped trying to pedal on the grass. "I covered for you."

"My mind shows I don't meet her until I'm ten," Tamara said.

"She's not finding a way to break the curse, is she? She's finding a way to change the past that grants Amaris a reason to kill her sister," Jaxton said darkly. "That's what this whole thing is about."

Tamara darted her eyes toward the wooden fence. Kai doubted she'd get them much information after everything she had done for Aubrey.

"What's her next goal?" Kai gasped. "What's the next step she takes?"

Tamara gulped, closing her eyes. "She makes Aubrey kill herself."

"How—" Jaxton stopped, his eyes wide. "Wait, Alexandra has been right about that?"

Tamara didn't say anything but started pedalling on the bike again around the pool deck. Kai wasn't in the mood to fish her out of the pool or deal with whatever Aubrey's next plan was.

Suddenly, there was a slam from the front door. Kai ducked down near the window to peek up, seeing their father holding a large suitcase in his hand. He was loading in some documents along with some random snacks that were in the wooden cabinets.

This must've been when their father actually left. He didn't realize that their father actually came to get things because when he left, he never came back once.

"He's too scared of us," Jaxton said sadly. "He won't care if we're with a stranger."

"I'm not a stranger!" Tamara exclaimed, puffing her cheeks. "We're allies."

Kai felt his eye twitch. That wasn't the exact terminology he would use to describe people that help murderers.

"He doesn't know," Kai remarked. "He doesn't like how we're abnormal."

Amaris wasn't the only one who had to deal with family issues. She may have had a loving family before hurricane Aubrey snatched away Alexandra, and she was left with Jack to deal with.

"Wait... aren't your parents going to be looking for you?" Kai asked Tamara. "You're basically a runaway."

"No? I told my moms I was going to save the world, and they agreed," Tamara said.

Kai slowly craned his head around to look at Tamara. His mind had an assortment of questions, but he didn't even know where to begin.

"They just let you leave?" Jaxton asked with a dropped jaw.

"Why are you so surprised?"

There were many reasons. The first being why on earth they actually let her leave alone. Isn't that the easiest way Aubrey could pick her up again and make her one of those slaves? No, there was a bigger question.

"They dropped me off and said they'd be back later," Tamara beamed.

"Tamara, this isn't a playdate," Kai groaned. "We have to stop fake Aubrey from killing real Aubrey."

"It's not exactly something you can stop. You see in those memories, the real Aubrey has a scar around her neck?" Tamara pointed at her throat. "Just find the demon herself."

Kai held out his hand toward the two of them, but nothing happened. He should be able to teleport like all Rare twins could. He glanced up at the sky, seeing it was a normal cloudy day.

"Sealed," Jaxton said. "In the memories, Hope talks about it. Alexandra can basically take away abilities and use them as her own."

Kai gritted his teeth, narrowing his eyes. He can't drive over with a car because the police would still pull them over. Claymore isn't exactly walking distance when it's over two hours away.

"I could call my moms," Tamara said.

That would be a solution, but it's not like they can tell them everything. Their own mom is at work, but they could come back before she returns from work.

Jaxton walked over and grabbed his wrist along with Tamara's. One minute, they were in the middle of the street, where two cars had crashed. There were police on the scene talking to a man who was walking a hamster. This town being whacky was an understatement.

"Guess mine aren't sealed. It probably has to do with the light and darkness thing," Jaxton sighed, letting go. "The beginning of the end."

"What's our ending?" Tamara asked with her head tilted. "Isn't it normally happy?"

Happy endings are in stories, but that isn't exactly how their story goes. Aubrey Prices wanders like a bug, causing havoc with their own curse of being Rare, which they still have no idea how to get rid of. If he had to guess, it's probably murder because everything seems to lead that way.

He felt his arm yanked into a berry bush, glaring at Jaxton. He pointed to Aubrey whistling and walking down the street, swinging around an IV cord, with Amaris walking beside her with her head down.

"Is that it?" they heard Amaris's voice. "You keep on killing people until my sister gives in?"

"Don't you want to break that little curse?" Aubrey asked smugly. "The police station has everything we need. I got rid of most of the documents before but it's great what we have now."

"Something is wrong with this picture," Jaxton whispered.

"How the hell is the real Aubrey still alive?" Kai asked in disbelief.

The real Aubrey had a bright smile on her face, despite looking at an exact reflection of herself. This time she didn't die by suicide, but he knew what the aftermath held.

Kai spotted Amaris walking, but she wasn't the five-year-old they were. She was her normal teenage age, walking in a plaid skirt and black shirt. She had black tights with her hair up in a bow.

"Why are you still uptight about everything?" Hope asked with a hand on her hip. "You're your regular bodily age and not some feeble child."

Amaris stared at Hope but didn't say anything. Were they just supposed to walk out and act casual about the whole thing? The real Aubrey isn't dead; she's still alive.

"This makes zero sense," Tamara whispered. "Alexandra can't magically age people unless it's a power Amaris always had. That'd be pretty cool, which means we'd have teenage bodies again. Woohoo!"

Once again, Tamara did not find fault in the situation. The best bet is confronting the serial killer, but she'll just give the same response that's in their mind.

"Hey Hope!" Kai peeked up, spotting Jaxton walking toward the three. "Aren't you supposed to be doing something?"

"What? Getting an actual body? No, because this dumbass still thinks it's smarter that I don't have an actual body. We've figured out a way to age our bodies," Hope said smugly.

Amaris pointed a finger at Jaxton that automatically reverted him to his actual teenage self. He was looking his hands over back and forth before staring agape.

"We figured it out when Mari saw the real Aubrey. Are you trying to search for Rare information or attend a funeral service? Oh, I didn't strangle Jackson with the IV cord." Hope sighed, raising her eyebrows. "He doesn't deserve a pathetic death as such."

"I don't recall asking about him," Jaxton said with an arched eyebrow.

Kai couldn't help but snicker at the frown on Hope's face. It wasn't often that people talked back to her, considering what she was capable of.

"I'm just stating a fact because I assume you wanted to know what we've been doing since then."

"Not really."

"And what if we found information?" Hope snarked with a smirk.

"Liar," Jaxton rolled on his tongue. "If you did, wouldn't Alexandra give you a body by now?"

Hope narrowed her eyes at him. Kai couldn't recall if she could read the minds of others, but based on the memories of the future, she didn't.

"You want to talk to the asshole? Fine." Hope spat, punching herself in the stomach.

Instead of the facade of Aubrey being there, Alexandra O'Rally was flat on the ground with her eyes closed. She groaned, slowly opening her eyes, glancing around the area with those icy eyes.

"I'm not giving it," she spat, blood spewing out.

"Why?" Kai asked, walking out from behind the bush. "And don't give the excuse that she isn't deserving or that it's to protect Amaris. Those excuses are getting old."

Alexandra glared at him hard. He knew exactly where to push her buttons after seeing how much they clashed with her. If anything, he'd consider Alexandra as deadly as Hope.

"They're basic facts," Alexandra growled.

Kai felt himself zapped with something, which made him realize he wasn't in his young body anymore. He glanced at Amaris, who eyed him with her lips pressed together.

"You're delusional," Kai spat. "I'm not siding with the idea that giving that demon a body is right, but holding off just creates more chaos for all of us. It's not like last time, where it was years before we figured out this loop."

Kai knew he was pushing a nerve, but he didn't care. In his memories, he didn't speak much of the truth, but this girl needed to hear everything, not just from the Prices twins.

"Shut up!" she barked. "It causes less harm."

"Having someone murder the town based on a grudge is less harmful?" Jaxton mocked. "Did you ever stop and think about what your sister wanted?"

Alexandra went silent, her face turning red. It was one of the rare moments where she wasn't screaming at him yet.

"She wouldn't because empathy doesn't exist in her bones." Hope was standing behind Alexandra with both hands clasped on her temples. "Poor little Alexandra O'Rally."

Hope grabbed a document from her pocket and shoved it into his chest. He looked at it with Jaxton looming over him with information on their own birth records. There were the normal records of the date of birth on October twenty-fifth, born at 8:00 a.m. There were no complications, but there were other hospital documents.

"We're going to the science centre," Hope said, now revealing her actual appearance. "I have a few tricks that might make this process go quicker."

Hope and Aubrey started walking away leaving the three of them in the middle of the road. He flipped through some other documents, but there was one thing that stuck out.

"Why give us this information?" Kai called. "Isn't this what you need yourself?"

Hope stopped, looking back at them with a smirk. "Have you heard the tale that apparently the world was recreated by an angel and a demon? It wasn't just the simple world ending from the meteor shower. According to the facts, both wanted a world where nobody was judged and everyone could trust each other."

"It did work," Aubrey piped in with a smile. "People had irregular hair colours or abnormal heights, but that was considered normal. Although the demon thought there should be a carrier that would change the world. So, there was always a new set every so often, but once we were born, things changed."

"Instead of the angel and demon being two different people, they were a set of twins that were the same gender. That meant there had to be someone to stand up to them," Hope sneered. "That's why you were born according to documents."

Kai blinked but didn't say anything at first. "No shit."

"And it looks like your curse isn't breaking until Mari kills Alexandra," Hope said with a smirk. "You can still kill her with me inside of her, but that may get rid of me."

That would be perfect if they could get rid of Hope, because that's one less issue to deal with. Although Kai had a feeling this wasn't going to be an easy solution.

Suddenly, Hope dropped to her knees and started coughing up blood. She gritted her teeth, using her wrist to wipe some of the blood from her lips.

"Amaris, come here," Hope spoke.

Kai found it odd that she wasn't using her nickname considering she always used it. He watched Amaris slowly walk over standing a few meters away from the girl.

Hope stared directly at her, slowly reaching for something in her back pocket. Kai started running toward the two, but it was too late. Hope stabbed a knife right through Amaris's chest.

"What the hell, Hope?" Jaxton yelled.

Hope didn't respond to his insult, but Kai figured it out. He watched Amaris fall to the ground, Hope's expression seemingly blank.

"Alexandra," he spat.

The beginning of the end is starting. Guess we have to see who the real killer was.
-Lexi