Chapter Fifteen
The Hallway

"YOU!" a voice thundered out as a sword pointed at Derek's neck. "How
dare you harm my poor Lorne, you lowly excuse for a human! He's never hurt you,
never once laid a finger upon your sorry hide, but I shall now in retribution!"

Derek yelped in shock. "Me? I didn't do anything! I've been here the
whole time! I don't even know Lorne!" He cast his eyes upon Chong, hoping that
he would come to his defense and knowing that Hansel had his hands tied up with
Faith and Dawson. He feared that Hansel would not hear Crystal although her
words were so loud they echoed round and round his head. He looked at the woman,
his fear showing clear in his eyes and his legs shaking so hard that he almost
fell out of his seat.

Chong looked at the woman in surprise. "Crystal? What are you talking
about? I hate to admit, but he has been here the whole time! I'd like to get rid
of him, but you can not attack him for something he didn't do!"

Blue and Crystal roared in anger at the denial their mother was met
with. "We all saw him strike poor Lorne!" Crystal exclaimed, her fury darkening
her usually pale face. She brought the tip of her blade closer to the brunette's
throat. "I never blamed you for suggesting that I be handed to my uncle to save
the rest of you, but I absolutely will not tolerate your harming Lorne! You can
deny it all you want, but we saw you! Now, are you going to fight," she
demanded, her ice blue eyes slanted dangerously, "or shall I simply slice your
neck here and now?"

Cindy roared in agreement, but Blue looked at Crys in concern. Had she
actually just threatened to kill the man? He wanted him to pay for hurting
Lorne, too, but to kill? "COOOO COOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" he roared out, calling for
Angel.

The loud cooing of the dragon called Hansel's attention, and his mouth
fell open when he saw the blonde woman with her sword pointed at his baby's
throat. He paled at first; then fury filled him. His grip tightened on Faith's
hand.

"Fuck!" Faith exclaimed, her eyes swinging to Hansel. "What the Hell's
your problem . . . " Her words stopped as her gaze went past Hansel to what he
was looking at. Derek was in deep crap, and despite her threats, she could never
let Hansel down when he needed her help. "Kid," she managed to make her voice
almost even but it still shook a little, "you're gonna have to let me go."

"Keep her, kid," Hansel whispered. "I'll handle her . . . " { . . .
somehow.} Hansel had already dropped Faith's wrist, and now he started moving up
behind Crystal's animals. He wondered where her wolf was but didn't see her
anywhere.



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The Meeting Room

Ororo's blue eyes were glazed as she looked down at the unmoving girl.
Vang's roar and Connor's, Tom's, and Morph's screams for Zora passed by her like
water rushing over her head. They assaulted her ears, yet she paid no attention
to the actual words. Instead, her gaze refocused upon Wolverine and the battle
he raged against Roxanne.

'Ro was glad to see that the Werejaguar was falling back now and Logan
continued to swipe at her. Her roars of pain echoed through the house, and yet
he continued cutting away. One set of the Were's claws lay a few feet past the
fighters, but Ororo did not even seem to care when she realized how injured the
woman was. Instead, she raised her hand, summoning a lightning bolt that she
intended to use to finish her off. She was so intent upon summoning that one
bolt that she never saw the attack coming.



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Dawson's eyes grew large as he was faced with the dilemma. If he turned
Faith aloose, she would kill Crys or, even worse, she would be gone and he'd
never get her back. "Give me your word, Faith, that you won't leave. I'll turn
you aloose. And just what the Hell is going on here? Everybody's fighting
everybody!"

"Crys, he hasn't moved since he came to the meeting!" Dawson doubted
that Crys would believe him but prayed that she would any way. Where was
Aphrodite? He had heard Jack's voice earlier, calling for Her, but She still had
not turned up. Would the Goddess only deign to show Herself once everybody was
dead? Dawson wondered.

She couldn't promise him. She couldn't give him her word and break it
yet again! She couldn't, but damn it all, somebody had to save the boys and
Crystal was too good for Hansel to be able to take her down! "Do you want them
to die?" she asked Dawson, fighting to keep her voice still and her tears away
from her eyes. "You've seen her fight. You know what she's capable of. I'm the
only one here who can take her. You know that."

"You lie!" Crystal exclaimed. Hansel stilled himself in case she turned
to look in Dawson's direction. "You all lie! I never would have thought you
would be in league with a man who would harm an innocent ally, let alone Lorne!
I saw him do it, as did my children!"

Hansel took a step closer, and Cindy whirled to meet him. The lioness
roared as she leapt forward. He fell back, landing on his rear with an
exclamation of "Ow!", and her deadly jaws closed on empty air.

Crystal did not turn but pressed her blade against Derek's jugular.
"Last chance," she warned, her voice low and deadly, "to fight like the man you
aren't."



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Panting hard with his tongue occasionally lolling out of his mouth, Smee
ran as hard and fast as he could. He had felt several times when something had
attempted to grab hold to him, and each time he had swung out with the only
weapon he had left -- his huge rear end, which was big enough to knock down a
whole fleet of ships. He was bigger than an elephant, than a hippotamus! No
wonder James didn't want him!

The thought brought tears welling into his eyes, tears that Smee neither
could nor even tried to stop. They spilled down his cheeks like a cascading
waterfall. A sob broke free from his lips. No wonder James didn't want him,
didn't love him! It was a miracle he ever had, a miracle Smee didn't deserve!
After all, he was older, uglier, and -- dratted Gods knew -- fatter than any
cackling hag ever had been!

He couldn't face James. He couldn't listen to his callous pleas and
hurtful lies. He couldn't even bare to look at him, knowing he'd lost him
forever. He had to get to his room. If he could just get to his room . . . But,
wait! No, that wouldn't do! Smee realized as he rounded the corner that would
have taken him to his bedroom.

His bedroom could provide him no safety for the wardrobe was still
against the door and he could no more get in than James had been able to!
Another sob raked his chubby body, and then, over his tears, the angry words
coming from another bedroom, and the fighting hailing from downstairs, Smee
heard the voice of the man he loved so, the man who had taken his world and
crushed it in the palm of his hand.

Smee looked ahead and had to squint to be certain, but sure enough up
ahead, right before his very door, was James. He was not alone. "Oh, don't worry
about him, dear," he was saying, crooning into the ear of some giggly wench with
a large bosom. "He'll take himself out of the picture soon enough, and then you
can be the mother to my bois. They deserve a good mother; he never was one."

Smee's face paled. His knees went so weak that he had to press a hand
against the wall in order to stop himself from falling. More tears spilled down
his red, round cheeks. "NO!" he screamed. "NO!" Yet there it was, his beloved
James whispering and giggling with a woman.

It was then that James looked at him. His eyes met his, and the words
Smee had known to be true finally came. "Oh, hello there, cabin boi. You haven't
done yourself in yet? Pity. Care to meet the future mother of your -- I mean, my
children?" Cruel laughter barked from his beloved's lips. "Oh, don't look so
surprised! You may be stupid, but even you aren't stupid enough to believe that
I could ever love the likes of you!"

Smee's answer came out in a long, loud wail that was filled with all the
heartache and sadness that was crushing his heart in a vicegrip.
"NNNNNNOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!" Blindly, he turned to a door, threw it open, and
ran for the window.



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Angel dragged Spike with him. There was no way he could reach Crystal
from the other side of the room enough to make her understand what was going on.
He knew what was happening was not normal. Too much was going on, and they were
all at each other's throats! He knew his family were not murderers, not toward
each other, and that they would fight for each other if some one else was to
attack! Yet now they were all turning against each other? He answered Blue and
let Blue know he was coming even as he continued to punch Spike. It was the only
way he could drag him with him, and if he left him, he would surely finish
killing Carlos.



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Vang could not believe what was happening. The whole world seemed to
have gone mad, and his beloved Zora had ended up caught in the very midst of it.
He had called out to her when she'd first gone after Ororo, but she had refused
to hear his words of reason. He had quieted, believing that Ororo, who he had
always thought of before as being wise, gentle, and calm unless severely
provoked by a force outside their family, would never harm his daughter.

Bast, how dreadfully wrong he had been! Vang quieted the roar that built
within him so that it would not give him away. He was as much to blame for
Seraphina laying still upon the floor as the accursed Weather Witch. Had he only
intervened and stopped the fight, she never would have been hurt, let alone
fried by lightning. He knew she would live, but would she ever be the same after
having been electrocuted?

Vang kept his body low to the floor as he ran and only rose when he was
almost at Ororo. It was then that he sprang into the air, landed on some one's
back, and jumped higher from there as the person toppled beneath his weight. He
sailed over her body and landed on top of her back, his twenty deadly claws
digging in.

As Ororo screamed, lightning filling the room in vain attempts to hit
him, Vang dug deeper. Blood poured from the holes his claws made, and then with
a mighty roar that blew Ororo's long, white hair out at all angles, he bent his
head toward her neck. His fangs grazed her throat just as a lightning bolt
struck him.

Vang's head fell back as he roared, but he did not release his claws. He
took the Weather Witch with him, instead, as he spiralled toward the floor.
Their roars and screams reverberated in the room.



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"I can't let you go," Dawson told Faith. "Don't you know that your
running away from us will kill all of us? I dare you! I dare you to promise me,
and better yet, I dare you to try to live up to it! You wanted me to be a
Pirate? Now I'm asking you. Can you live up to the Code? I dare you to try, and
I dare you to try to be woman enough to be with me when you're not even woman
enough to give your promise that you won't run away!"

By now, Derek was almost crapping on himself. He knew he didn't stand a
chance against the woman and that the only one of them who did stand a chance
against her would be Faith. He knew that Dawson would never let her go and that
no one was going to come save him. Tears were filling his eyes and blurring his
vision, but he sought a look at Chong's face out of the corner of his eyes. His
voice shook even more than his body trembled as he asked in a whisper, "Y-You .
. . You will take care of him, won't you?" A tear slipped down his face. He'd
never get to be with Hansel again now.

Chong could not believe what he was hearing out of Derek's mouth. Here
the man was about to die, and the only one he could think of was Hansel! "I am
telling you, lady," Chong tried again, "we are not lying! We speak the truth,
and I don't know who or what you saw, but it was not him!"

"There is something here," Angel told him as he reached them. "I can't
figure out who, or what, it is. I can't see or smell them. But something came
back with us. It's causing all this chaos, and there is no Goddess to save us!
Whatever it is must have taken Aphrodite out. She's not even answering the
Captain or the Priest."

"Crys, that boy has not moved from that chair! Do you think I would lie
to you?" He looked deep into his sister's eyes even as he hit Spike again on the
side. "Did I hear you say that you were going to slice his neck? Since when have
you ever hurt any creature to that point, let alone an innocent?"

Faith glared at Dawson. The kid had finally done it. She was pissed. She
was beyond pissed! Very few people had ever made her as angry as she was now.
She glared at him with boiling fury that could have easily been mistaken for
hatred as she spat, "It's not that I'm not woman enough, you idiot! I was trying
to save your sorry ass from what you think you want but wouldn't want if you
knew what the Hell was going to happen! Damn, I never knew you were such an
idiot! You want me to stay? Fine! I'll stay! I won't run away, but if you think
I'm going to condemn you, you've got another fucking thought coming!"

"Condemn me to what, Faith? Don't you know that if you get turned into a
cat, I'll simply hunt up a Wizard and have them turn me into a cat? I'm not
afraid of that curse!"

"That's not the only thing that might happen! I could lose my sex
drive!"

Dawson looked at her in puzzlement. "Would that be such a crime? We
still would have each other! Sex ain't everything!"

She stared at him for a split second in shock. "Fuck, you're still too
much of a virgin to realize it! You don't deserve to have to be with a woman who
can't give you pleasure!" Had she just said can't? Damn, she didn't need him to
know she couldn't . . . "I could be turned old! I could die and leave you alone!
I could forget you; I could forget everything and every one here! I could even
forget my own name!"

"If you forget everything, Faith, I'm still here! I'll take care of you!
I'll never leave you alone!" He stressed the word "alone". It was the one thing,
next to losing Faith, that he was most worried about: being left alone. He never
wanted to be left alone. He looked around at all the Pirates who were fighting
and knew that they also had that one big fear. It was something they all shared.
Loneliness could kill you.

He shook it off. Why the Hell wouldn't James shut up? People were good!
Not all of them were good, not even most of them, but he knew his family was
good! What the Hell was wrong with them? They were all fighting, as though they
wanted to kill each other! Even Angel was fighting, trying to keep Spike knocked
out enough that he wasn't fighting somebody else, and he was trying to stop his
sister from killing somebody! He looked into Faith's eyes. "I'll never leave you
alone, my love."

Crystal stared into Angel's eyes, and then her gaze softened in sadness.
"You're right, Angel. There is something here, and whatever it is, by the North
Star, it's gotten to you. Now step out of the way and let me do that that is the
only right thing for me to do as he's harmed poor Lorne so!"

A knock sounded upon the door. Many heads turned to look at it in
surprise, but none stopped fighting.

"What do you mean it's gotten into me, Crys? I'm having to keep Spike
knocked out, and he keeps coming around! I can't help it; I have to keep hitting
him! He wants to kill Carlos; he blames Carlos for something attacking Kyna!
Carlos was innocent, yet Spike wiped out almost their entire family! I can't let
you kill Derek; he's innocent!"

Crystal's gaze finally left Derek entirely, but her blade stayed pressed
against his quivering throat. She stared at Angel; then her eyes shifted to
Spike. Blood was pouring all over his face, and if he had been human, he would
have looked to have been upon death's door. She looked acusingly back at Angel.
"He's like a brother to you, Angel, and yet look at what you've done to him!
Something's happened, all right! Something is here, something that was conjured
by this . . . this monster of a man and Carlos and who knows how many others!
Not every one here takes kindly to the Supernatural. Those two are among those
who do not, and they've finally decided to do something about it! Why you can
not see it . . . "

Her voice broke off as another knock came upon the door. She looked at
it for a moment, then looked back at Angel. "Why you can not see it, I do not
know, but I believe Spike! I saw Derek attack Lorne with my own eyes, and like
Spike, I've no reason to make up such a fantastic vision! You are blinded, my
dear brother, so, as much as I do not want to, if you insist upon standing in
our way, I will fight you." Her eyes bored up into his. "Is that what it is to
be, Angel? Will you defend the guilty so far that you will fight me?"

Spike was barely hanging on to consciousness. Was the woman with the
sword pointed at some guy's throat saying that she believed him, that she was
going to help him kill Carlos? He'd find out soon. He didn't need any help doing
Carlos in; he just needed help in reigning in his crazy sire.

"Dawson, you just don't get it," Faith spoke, sadness slipping past her
anger again. "They won't let you stay with me, not if they decide to punish us!
Look at what's happened to the others! So many of them lost everything, and none
were allowed to keep their family!"

Angel shook his head. "I-I don't know what's wrong with you, Crys! I
don't want to fight you, but I can't let you kill the innocent! And I can't keep
up punching Spike!" He looked at his own fist; it was getting raw. "Spike just
won't stay out! I knock him out, and he's back seconds later!"

"There is a Wizard amongst us. He's taking the forms of the innocent and
attacking those who can do the most injury to them! Why won't you believe me? I
know you think you saw him. I tell you it wasn't him; he hasn't moved!"

Chong stood shoulder to shoulder with Angel, looking intently at Crys.
"Crys, you've always been compassionate. I don't want to fight you either, but I
will. I can not allow you to harm Derek when he is innocent! If he was guilty,
I'd be the first one to give him to you, but he has not left our side! I do not
know what to say as far as you seeing him with your eyes. I am with Angel; I
believe there is something amongst us."

"Am I the only one who hears the knocking on the door? I'm not about to
tell it to come in, whatever it is, but it might be the evil thing that's
causing all the problems! Give Derek the benefit of the doubt for now, please!"
he pleaded with her. "AND, FOR GODS' SAKES, JAMES, SHUT UP!" He was the only one
who dared to yell at Hook, who ignored him and kept on playing.


People, they ain't no good.
People, they ain't no good.
People, they ain't no good at all.
To our love, send a dozen white lilies.
To our love, send a coffin of wood.
To our love, let all the pink-eyed pigeons coo.
That people, they just ain't no good.
To our love, send back all the letters.
To our love, a valentine of blood.
To our love, let all the jilted lovers cry
That people, they just ain't no good!



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From another part of the room, Elvira's voice raised from where she had,
once again, landed flat of her back in her attempts to help Jack to stand. "I'M
WITH THE COOK!" she yelled, forgetting the Chinese man's name for the time
being. "SHUT THE HELL UP, HOOK, AND GIVE ME YOUR JACKET!"

Elvira looked at Jack as she waited for that to sink in to Hook's
lunatic brain. "Hon, I don't know what the Hell you've gotten your ass into, but
whatever it is," she paused as another knock came upon the door and then
continued, "your pants have somehow gotten stuck to the floor. We ain't getting
them up, so we're gonna have to get you out of them."

"I don't want to be naked in here!" Jack told her. "This whole room is
crazy! All because you cleaned me up! Damn! Will ain't even noticed me; it's
like I don't even exist any more! They don't see me! They don't recognize me,
and they damn sure don't do what I tell them to do! Get me something to cover up
with! Hook ain't gonna pay any attention to you; Smee done ran off on him!"

"I'll get his jacket," Elvira told Jack with a roll of her eyes. "You
just wait and see, and this whole chaos thing has got nothing to do with your
new 'do, Jack. They're nuts; that's why they're not paying you any attention. As
for Will, he's a bit too busy to notice right now, kinda like you're too busy to
notice those delish pants he's got on." She ran off before he could question her
on the latter.

Jack struggled to be able to turn to see what Elvira was talking about
on Will. "Well, I'll be damned!" he exclaimed as he finally caught sight of
those pants. "How did he get those damn pants?!"



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James broke into an even louder voice, almost screaming at the top of
his lungs even as his coat was being pulled. "GET OFF OF ME, WOMAN!" he yelled
and backhanded Elvira. "You and your kind done cost me my man! Stay the Hell off
of me!"

Elvira glared at James from the floor. She had landed hard, but she
flipped back on to her feet as though it were but a mere annoyance. Her eyes
were flashing, and she was suddenly hungry. "My kind?" she hissed, her fangs
glistening as another knock sounded. "Care to clarify on that, man with only one
hand? Are you talking women, Sorceresses, or bitches?" She edged closer to him
the whole time she was talking, her face shifting, until she was upon him and
lowering her fangs to his neck.

Wolf freaked! What the Hell was going on amongst the people?! They were
all nuts, and now Elvira was attacking James, who couldn't stop singing long
enough to fight her off! He had no choice; he had to come out of the wall! Using
his feet, he kicked the grill off and slid out.

He barely managed to reach Elvira before she sank her fangs into James'
neck. Her eyes were glazed over, and he held on to her tightly, talking
soothingly to her and trying to reach her despite the craziness he could feel
running through her body and mind. Not once did he think about eating her, only
about saving her from herself.

"JAMES, YOU IDIOT, SHUT UP!!" He was rewarded with Hook looking at him
as though he had lost his mind and another chorus of the same, old song. He
dragged Elvira into the wall with him. He had to get her away from whatever evil
lurked in the room!



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As yet another knock came upon the door, it was accompanied by a voice
that was all too familiar to most of those in the room. "RUBEUS HAGRID, I KNOW
YOU'RE IN THERE! OPEN THIS DOOR AT ONCE!"

Hagrid, who had managed to stay out of the fighting by hiding in the
hallway, heard the voice and trembled. Did he dare to open the door and let the
Wizards take complete control of the people who had not lost their brains, or
did he dare to keep them locked outside the house? For some reason, the madness
had not touched him yet. He was safe outside that room, but he wasn't about to
open the door and let the Wizards get controlled either. He decided to ignore
the voice.

"OPEN THIS DOOR AT ONCE, HAGRID, OR WE SHALL OPEN IT OURSELVES! IF I
MUST DO THAT, I'LL KNOW WHERE YOUR TRUE LOYALTY LAYS, AND THOUGH ITS PAINS ME TO
THINK IT, I'LL HAVE TO TAKE APPROPRIATE ACTIONS!"

Hagrid bent down and looked through the keyhole. He saw nothing. There
was no way he was going to open that door! He backed up against the wall and
eyed the door, preparing to fight in case it burst open. Whatever the thing with
Dumbledore's voice was, it definitely was not Dumbledore! How he longed for
Dumbledore to have been there, because he knew he could stop the madness! "GO
AWAY!" he yelled to the closed door but did not approach it.

The sound of several things hitting the ground outside echoed into the
room. Then came Albus' voice whose tone was laced with sadness, regret, and just
a trace of anger. "VERY WELL. YOU LEAVE ME WITH NO CHOICE. I SHALL MISS YOU AT
THE ACADEMY, AND I AM SURE THE CHILDREN SHALL AS WELL! I'LL HAVE A TIME
EXPLAINING IT TO HARRY, RON, AND HERMIONE ESPECIALLY, BUT SO BE IT! YOU'VE MADE
YOUR DECISION!"

Hagrid wanted to cry out against Dumbledore's words, but he knew it
wasn't Dumbledore. He had looked through that keyhole, and he had saw nothing.
If Dumbledore was there, Rubeus would have seen him. "GO AWAY!" he yelled.
"YOU'RE NOT DUMBLEDORE!"

"VERY WELL! WE SHALL, BUT WITH US, GOES NOT ONLY YOUR FUTURE BUT THE
LAST CHANCES FOR SALEM AND HIS PEOPLE!" Footsteps began to sound, as though a
large group was leaving.

Rubeus was quaking as he reached out for the door. "WAIT! DON'T GO!" He
pulled the door open and felt a rushing of the winds. He flailed his arms
around, trying to hit whatever it was. He knew this was not Dumbledore, because
Dumbledore would never have pulled such a trick upon him! He didn't know what it
was, but he knew it wasn't good!

He tried to fight the tornado of winds, but it was in vain as the winds
picked him up and threw him so hard against the wall that the impact knocked the
wind out of him. He slumped to the floor, pulling a table over him. The door
slammed shut, and diabolical laughter echoed throughout the house.



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Delvira was tiring, but she hung on desperately to Jareth's talons even
as he tried to loosen her grip and Didymus continued to beat at her with his
cane. She had no idea how long she had been clinging to her husband and the
chandelier, but it felt like forever and a night. She had grown weary of trying
to get Didymus to believe her and so had stopped yelling at him and only
continued to try to argue with Jareth and to try to kick Didymus off of her.

"Never fear, Your Majesty," Sir Didymus called upwards, "I shall conquer
this mountain yet!" He struck Delvira's rear with his cane.

From their high perch, Jareth could see everything in the room, but he
had no inclination for changing out of his owl form. The whole fucking world was
mad! Why shouldn't he be mad, as well? He continued to flap his wings and peck
at Delvira. He told her telepathically, {{{Leave, Witch! Go away! Far away
before you end up like them!}}}

Normally he would have kicked Didymus' butt for daring to touch the
Queen, but now he welcomed his help. Even between the two of them, they were not
able to drive her away, and yet Jareth knew she was not using magic against him.
One part of himself wanted to kick his own self for fighting against her. He had
to keep reminding himself that it was for her own good that she leave him
behind.

"Is that what you think of me?! After all these decades of marriage, you
expect me to believe that you think of me only as a Witch and that you truly
wish to be rid of me?!"

He screeched back at her. "{{{Go away, woman! Go away! You can't leave
fast enough! Stay and be tainted forever more!}}}"

She hated to do it, Delvira thought, but she had one way to get the
truth out of him. She hated to harm the poor dog, despite the numerous aches and
pains he had inflicted upon her, but she knew how Jareth felt about the few
subjects he had left. "I do not believe you, husband! Speak the truth now, or I
shall fireball your loyal Knight here!" She allowed Didymus to climb further up
her back.

"{{{Go away, woman! I speak the truth! I'm not the one you need! I'm
only a low piece of shitt! I let you down! I'm not worthy to be called King!
Fireball me; fireball him! Fireball the whole damn house! I don't care!}}}" His
voice rose higher inside her mind. {{{I'm trash! I'm filth beneath your feet,
and it won't even work any more! Go and get the one you need and want! Go away;
go away now before my stench gets upon you!}}}

"Jareth, you are the one I want and need! You always have been! You
didn't let me down by being with her! You couldn't have known; I understand! But
you are letting me down -- you're letting me down right now by trying so hard to
turn me away and being so hard upon yourself! I love you! You fear whatever's
going on with them grasping me? It does not matter if it does for if I lose you
I shall go even more insane than they are now! Is that what you want?"

"{{{No!}}}" he screeched. "{{{I want to cut the loathsome thing off! It
betrayed us!}}}" he groaned out. {{{And now the whole damn world is going to
Hell in a handbasket! Look at those idiots down there! They're trying to kill
each other, and I can do nothing to stop it no more than he can!}}} He looked
far down to the floor where Jack had finally gotten out of his pants. {{{Don't
look,}}} he told Delvira. {{{The man's naked!}}}

{{{The only man I want to see naked is you, dear husband!}}} She had
been about to say more when Didymus reached her head, brought his cane up and
over, and began to use the piece of metal to choke her. "This may not kill you,
Helvira, but you will leave my King alone!"

"{{{SHE'S NOT HELVIRA, DIDYMUS!}}}" Jareth told the dogman. "{{{IT'S
YOUR QUEEN, DELVIRA! GET OFF OF HER AT ONCE!}}}"

"I can not, Sire!" Didymus yipped. "She has bewitched you!"



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Jack could not believe what skimpy little underwear Elvira had managed
to get him to put on. He didn't even know how they had gotten on. He knew he had
to have put them on but didn't remember doing it. As much as they revealed, he
might as well have been naked! They damn sure wouldn't listen to him now, but he
had to try!

He raced toward Hagrid and was going to get the Giant to help him stand
up tall enough that they could see him. He wouldn't allow his mind to go on the
thought that they would see too much of him, but he had to get through to them.
He was desperate! When he reached Hagrid, he realized that the Giant was not
moving but climbed up on him any way. Once on top, he started yelling at the top
of his lungs, hoping to be heard over James.

"SHUT THE HELL UP AND STOP FIGHTING!!!!" His words echoed around the
room. He was surprised he was actually heard over James, but he was even more
surprised when his words kept going round and round as though they were an echo.

Jack felt invisible hands grab him in response to his shout and throw
him upward. His arms flailed wildly. Even as he fell, he finally caught
something with his bare hands. He felt that something rip, and he started
falling again with glass shattering all around him. Others fell with him, and
their screams mingled in the air as the ceiling fell.



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Kat's Bedroom

Ace watched in amazement as Kat flew back against the wall. "I tried to
tell her, Captain. We're trapped inside here until they come back for us."

"{{{It 'twas a good plan, me lad, if'n only she'd listen. I knae not
what tae say tae make her see the truth. It 'twas nae her grandfather who
proclaimed tha' she was nae blood o' his! He ne'er would ha'e done such a
t'ing!}}}"

Ace stared at Captain. Kat believed her grandfather had denounced her?
But why would the old man have done such a thing when he loved his granddaughter
as though she were his own daughter? "Stop beating around the bush!" he cried.
"What exactly happened to her in the test? Tell me! Help me to understand why
she no longer wants me!" Maybe, then, armed with the knowledge of the thoughts
that were preying upon his beloved's heart and soul, he could win her back?

Captain returned Ace's gaze through steady, emerald eyes full of wisdom
and heartbreak. {{{When she was thrown from the Tyranosaurus Rex ye tamed, she
fell unconscious at first, but when she came 'round, he was there. Or so she
thought. I'm tellin' ye jest as I've been tellin' 'er: it 'twas nae him! It
could nae ha'e been fer nae only is he dead, but ev'n his ghost 'twould ne'er
turn 'gainst 'er!}}}

Kat's eyes were barely open. Blood ran into her vision from where she'd
hit her head so hard. She could not see the two males who meant everything to
her, but she could hear them. "It 'twas him, Capt'n," she spoke weakly. "Ye can
lie tae yeself all ye want, but I'm done lyin'. I must serve the greater
purpose."

Captain chose to ignore the argument that he knew he'd only fail in and
continued talking to Ace. {{{He attacked her, Ace, ripped her apart verbally fer
allowin' herself tae get entangled wit' a man who 'twas nae worthy o' her, did
nae di all tha' should be done tae save animals, an' 'twas nae e'en Irish. He
would nae ha'e cared that ye're nae Irish, jest that ye love Kat an' animals an'
di all ye can fer 'em. An' he, ne'er, ne'er, ne'er would ha' turned 'gainst
her!}}}

"I don't believe he would have turned against her! It couldn't have been
him! I always thought that he would approve of me despite my lack of Irish
blood. I have spent my whole life taking care of animals. It's not fair what
happened to us, but it's life! Sometimes you lose, but you have to keep fighting
the fight! If Kat doesn't want to keep fighting the good fight by my side, I
will still have to fight it. I am a warrior, and I must protect all animal kind.
I think he would have looked into my heart and saw that what I speak is truth
and would have accepted me, but even if he hadn't, he would have never hurt
Kat!" Ace could tell that Kat was more conscious of what he and Captain were
saying, but he did not even turn his eyes toward her. "It had to be one of those
damn Wizards pretending to be her grandfather!"

{{{But this vision o' him . . . This mirage, hallicinuation, the bloody
fake whose words ha'e destroyed yer relationship wit' our Kat . . . ! He ripped
her apart verbally, tol' her she was a failure, that her love fer ye had caused
her tae become tha' failure, tha' she was tae blame for the others' deaths, an'
tha' she 'twas nae worthy o' th' cause nor e'en o' th' O'Hara blood or th' Irish
blood tha' runs in 'er veins! He tol' her tha' she was nae longer kin tae him,
that she 'twas nae o' his flesh, o' his blood!}}}

"I am with you, Captain. It wasn't truly him but most likely one of the
damned Wizards who wants to see our work fail, and what better way than to
separate Kat and me?!" He reached out and stroked the old, scraggly tabby before
finally turning his eyes to the woman he loved. "Believe what you will, Kat, but
I say it was one of the wicked Wizards. What better way to condemn all the
animals of the world than to seperate their champions?"

"We must serve the greater purpose, Kat. Remember we planned to do it
together? Now you not only shut me out, but you shut Captain out. You think you
can save the world by yourself? You can't even save yourself!" He walked over to
the door and began to beat on it. "SOMEBODY, OPEN THE DAMN THING! LET ME OUT!"
But the chaos that was growing below drowned out everything else.

"I can nae sa'e the whole world. Nae one can, nae taget'er nor alone.
But I can save more if'n I ha'e nae distractions." Perhaps, though, she had
saved all she could. She heard Ace crying to get out and dropped her injured
hand, that was bleeding again, upon the floor. "I'll get us oot." Fire spread
swiftly across the floor.

Ace stood, watching the fire come toward him and praying that it would
devour him so that the pain in his heart would no longer trouble him. Captain
leaped onto the bed and set to meowing at the top of his lungs, telling both Kat
and Ace to come to their senses and get out of the fire's pathway and calling
for help. Tears ran down the elderly cat's face.

Kat continued to lay where she was, the fire growing ever closer as it
covered the floor. She had never felt so warm before. Her eyes drifted shut.
Aye, she had saved all she could. She'd take herself out of the picture, and
that would open it for Ace to save those she could not. He would be free,
without distractions of any sort, and could save so many more that way. She did
not even cry out as she felt the floor go through . . .



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Meeting Room

Gabrielle looked in shock at the chaotic scene unfolding in the room
around her lover and herself. "This was supposed to fix the problems, not make
them worse!" She could see Kurt talking to himself again, Jack running around
half-naked, James banging on the piano, Brendan about to wolf, and three other
fights. Then her green eyes fell upon the redhead who had come to her aid in
protecting Xena earlier that morning.

"I've got to go help Rachel," the bard announced, getting to her feet.
Before she could take as much as one step forward, a morning star swung out and
struck her hard in the back of her head. She fell forward.

Xena rushed forward and hit Rian from behind. "How dare you, foul
bastard, knock my Gabrielle out! She was doing nothing to you, and yet you laid
her out on the floor! Turn and fight like a man!" Her sword dove for his heart
even as she spoke.

He had no idea what he had done to make the woman attack him so. He was
not even sure who this Gabrielle was, but as he felt the air coming from her
sword, Rian dropped to the floor and rolled. The Werecreature hurtled over him,
straight at Xena.

Xena was not sure what to do to stop the Werecreature short of killing
her. She took the butt of her sword and hit the Werecreature in the head as hard
as she could, hoping it would knock her unconscious. It only stunned her for a
moment, but it was long enough for Xena to step forward and grab her furry neck
in a nerve pinch.

"That will hold you for a few minutes while I get back to the bastard
who tried to kill my Gabrielle! Then I'll finish you off! One attacker at a
time!" She looked quickly around until she spotted Rian and jumped forward to
meet him, her sword diving downward as Rian was still on the floor and had not
gotten to his feet. "You are a sorry excuse for a Pirate!" she told him.

Rian rolled first one way and then the other, narrowly avoiding Xena's
blade each time. "I know not what I have supposedly done to anger you so, lady,
but if you wish to battle, allow me a chance to fight and I shall do so!"

Janeesa, seeing her Golden God under attack, became so frightened that
her mouth flew open in a high-pitched squeal that shattered glass all around
even as the floor fell through.



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Hallway

Hot on his father's, Smee's, heels, Frederic almost crashed into him
when he stopped by his room. He barely managed to recover himself and throw his
arms out, hoping to catch his father, when he took off again, screaming at the
top of his lungs "NO!". What was going on? Frederic could see nothing that could
aggravate Smee, but suddenly running in a different direction, Frederic saw his
intended target!

Smee didn't have to tell him that he was planning on jumping from that
window. Frederic could see it as plain as he could see the sunlight in the sky
that streamed from that same window as though it was beckoning Smee with open
arms. "OH, GODDESS, NO!!!" Frederic screamed as he threw himself forward in a
desperate attempt to catch his father. He barely managed to catch his legs as
the little man was jumping through the window.

With all the strength he had in his body, Frederic held on and
desperately drug him back into the room just as he felt a trembling going
through the floor. "Dad?" he managed to get out as the floor let go. He held on
to his father tightly and tried to manuever while falling through the air so
that his father would land on him. The last thing he saw, as he hit the floor
hard, was the tears still streaming from his daddy's eyes. He knew his heart was
breaking and felt as though there was no help from Heaven or Earth to save
either of them.



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Kitchen

Upon arriving in the kitchen, Prue almost choked. "What the Hell are you
doing here?!" she asked. She was about to thrust her hands out and send Leo to
wherever she could when she noticed Carl was wrapped into him, fighting for all
he was worth. "GET HIM, CARL!" she joined Paige in yelling, her fist punching
the air as though it could connect with Leo's jaw. "GET HIM!"

"Is that who I think it is?" Cole asked Piper. "What's he doing here?"

Piper was as white as a sheet. Paige was holding on to one of her hands,
but Piper's other hand was shaking as though it were caught in a whirlwind. "It
. . . It is." Piper swallowed hard, then looked at Cole with desperate tears in
her eyes. "Please, Cole, you have to believe me when I swear to you that I never
called for him or asked for him or . . . or anything! I don't want him any more;
I never did! I don't even know where he came from or what he is now!"

"He's an accursed White Lighter!" Cole told her. "Leo, you have no
business here! We have a White Lighter! You do not belong here! Carl, let go of
him. Now orb the Hell out of here and don't come back or I'll take you some
place you don't want to go!"

"SAM!" Prue called. "SAM?" But there was no answer. She glared angrily
at Leo. "What did you do with Sam?"

Carl stopped hitting Leo but continued to straddle him and glare angrily
down at him. "I'm not going anywhere!" Carl hit him again. Blood once more broke
out from the Gnome's punch. Leo's face now looked like a bloody, war-torn
battlefield.

"Explain," Piper told him, pulling courage from her sisters and Cole,
who had not yet accused her. "Explain before I explode you again!"

At her words, Cole looked at Piper strangely. When had she exploded Leo,
and why had he had to miss it? "You heard the lady," Cole told him, looking back
at Leo. "Explain now or you'll explain later after I take you away from here."
He kind of grinned to himself about Piper exploding Leo; he was glad it had not
been him.

Paige glanced sideways at Piper. "Remind me never to piss you off again,
sis."

"You can't do that, Demon!" Leo shot at Cole. "And just what are you
girls doing involving yourselves with Demons and Pirates, of all things?"

"He," Piper snapped at Leo, "may be a Demon, but he is the man I love!"

Leo's mouth dropped open in shock. He glared at Cole.

"Now answer for we will not ask again!" Prue demanded.

Leo looked at each of the others in the room in turn before settling his
gaze back upon Piper. His answer came just as the roof caved in. "I'm your new
White Lighter."


To Be Continued . . .

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