Halfa High Summer Camp Moments! By: Karen Kano ------- Sighing deeply and oh so confused on what was going on she turned around, "I'm going to go look for Al see you guys later," and with that she ran back up towards the cabins. "Hey Al you in here?" Karen opened up his cabin and began looking around, "Al?" "You're little boyfriend might not be here but, I sure am." Karen stoped walking seeing the door close behind her and silver eyes staring at her smiling, "Hello there, Karen." "Oriel...," she growled under her breath, "What do you want?" "The usual..." Oriel said as she steped toward her, "You dissappered before I could even distroy you." Letting out another growl she steped back. "Apapap! Wouldn't want your little boyfriend to get hurt now would you?" Karen stoped and looked back, "What did you do to Al?" "Nothing...well not yet." ------- "Where is everyone?" Ricky glanced around the almost empty mess hall. "Well, I'm done..." He pushed his plate away, standing up and turning away. "I'll be back later." Myles looked disappointed, and a hurt look had crept into his eyes. I was hoping we could do something together... Why is he always running away from me? What is he hiding? "I knew it!" Myles pointed an accusatory finger at his brother. "You have a girlfriend, don't you!?" Ignoring Myles, Ricky quietly closed the mess hall door behind him, glancing to the left, then to the right. He began to walk in the direction of the lake as silently as possible. "Hey, Ricky! Look what I can do!" Ricky slapped his palm to his forehead, turning around and finding himself face-to-face with his younger brother. "See, look!" Myles was dangling from a tree limb, holding on with his legs wrapped around the branch. "I climbed the trees and followed you all the way here!" He grinned. "Isn't that cool, Ricky? Can you do that?" "Get...down...right...now..." Ricky growled through gritted teeth. "You might...hurtyourself..." The last two words were combined into a cough/sneeze. "Ohhh, I see..." Myles flipped over on the branch and stood up, looking down at Ricky. "You were worried about me, weren't you? But you're trying to be a 'though guy' by pretending you don't care!" Still grinning, Myles jumped off the tree limb and landed on the soft grass. "You're awesome, Ricky! Maybe someday I'll be as cool as you!" He pointed up at the tree. "I've been practicing." "I can see that..." Ricky muttered, already walking away. ------- "Answer me, Oriel!" Karen snaped at her as she took her ghost mode, "What did you do with, Al?" "Always so strait foward, I should know you better then anyone else here. After all you are like my other self." "Stop messing with me and let Al go," she said calmly. "I don't think I will see, you ran off last time before we fought, I say.." Oriels eyes flashed, "A dual to the death." "If that's what it takes..." Karen said low, "Then what are we waiting for?" "Meet at the pier in three hours or...your little boyfriend will meet his fate!" Oriel dissappered into the dark portal; Karen took her human form and sank against the door. "Oh great.." she mumbled then stould up, "Please let Al be where I think he is!" she opened the door and quickly ran towards infirmary. ---- Tia silently walked through the gates of the camp. Running away from Halfa High was one thing, but now her mother was making her go back? After Lee had dissapeared, Tia had quickly packed up her things and boarded the next bus for home. Back at her old school, Tia had felt normal for a little while, until school was over. The nightmares just kept coming back. Lee blasting her in the face, then dissapearing, along with LeiLeu, her older self. After the summer was halfway over, Tia's mom decided to send her to summer camp. Unfortunately, only one would accept her, and that was the one Tia dreaded the most. Tia walked up to the counselor's office and knocked on the door. Karen ran onto the infirmary, "Al?" she looked around and behind curtians, "Oh no..Oriel wasn't lieing." she thought as she turned around to the door of the infirmary, opening it up she looked over seeing Tia knocking on the counselor's door. "Tia? Tia is that you?" Tia looked behind her, surprised to see a familiar face.But, then again, she did meet quite a few people at Halfa High... "Karen? Is that you? Um...Hi. My mom made me come here. I guess I was getting on her nerves..." "You mom made you come? Well same goes for my mom," Karen nerviously laughed. "It's odd though, I dissappered from Halfa High to go see my sister who is sick." she heard the clock strick the two hour mark. "crud...Oriel's going to be at the pier in two hours.." she said outloud then blinked and looked over at Tia, "You didn't just hear that, did you?" "Hear What? The clock striking two, or what you just said?" "What I just said," Karen answered Tia as she looked at the clock and let out a sigh, "I'll tell you...Oriel is back, and she has Al!" her eyes glew for a moment, "And if she does anything to hurt him I'll!!" Karen looked to Tia and waved a hand, "Sorry, I'm just upset.." Tia looked at Karen blankly. "Uh, who's Oriel, and who's Al? I left Halfa High soon after I met you...But, I can help you do whatever it is you need to do...Um, let me ask you two questions. Do you remember Lee, and, do you know my secret?" "Oriel is like my evil other self thing! and Al's my boyfri-" she stoped mid-sentence and sighed with a light blush. "Um...Al's my best friend.." she looked at Tia now blankly, "Could you remind me on who Lee is? and your secret? no..I don't know it." she smiled the claped her hands together, "Can you help me stop Oriel?" Tia looked at Karen. "Sure, I can help you stop Oriel, and Lee is my evil self. I'm not sure what she is, and she dissapeared right before I left Halfa High... Well, I'm not sure if I feel comfortable telling you my secret right now, but I might tell you later..." "Thank you Tia," Karen gave a light smile. "Oh it's okay you don't need to tell me your secert, it's yours to keep and I have no intention in snooping around for it." she looked back at her, "Meet me at Cabin Kat #1 in one hour okay?" "ok. Um, first, do you know where I can put my bags? I don't have a cabin yet." Tia lifted up her three bags slowly, to show how heavy they were. "Am I supposed to be in a certain cabin?" Karen looked back at Tia, "You don't?" she then rubbed her head then blinked looking over to Natalee, "Hello there nice to meet you," she looked back Tia. "Go to the front desk over there, they'll get you a cabin!" Tia looked at the cabin assignments. "Mitsi is a camp counselor?!" Tia's last memory of Mitsi was her helping to save her from electric cords. Now Tia would see her again, along with all the other students she knew. "This is going to be a long summer, isn't it?" Tia asked no one in perticular "Want help on getting to your cabin?" Karen asked as she turned from the list, then it struck her, "I was going to practice...before the showdown with Oriel." she thought then looked up at Tia, "I'm sorry but I have to go, Meet me at Kat 1# later. Oh! and it was nice meeting you Natalee!" she turned around, "Becarful not to go ghost here...other wise someone might cetch you." she whispered then quickly ran off, "Al...please be okay." Tia heard Karen's last warning. "But, I'm not half-ghost" She whispered. "I don't know WHAT I am..." "Well, becarful what ever you are!" she wispered back and turned to run away. ---- "Okay time to practice controling the water.." she sighed some lifting her hand up at the small pond behind her cabin she closed her eyes and the water slightly moved but went back down into a small ripple, "Dang it...I have to do this right for Al's sace..." she breathed out deeply and placed her hand onto the water and slowly lifted her hand up from it, the water turning into what looked like a blade she opened her eyes and smiled. "It worked, I have something to fight for right now and I can finally control this water," she smiled but something cut right threw the water-blade causing her to drop it. "That's a neat trick how come I don't know that one?" Karen stould up, "Oriel." "I think I'm wanting to fight right about..now." Oriel put her hand up and pushed the wind back causing Karen to fall down the hill and near the lake. Karen turned quickly into Youma and stould up flying up glaring at Oriel, "Where is Al?" "Right over there," Oriel said lifting her hand up it glowing white and Al was chained up. "Al!" Karen started flying toward Al but stoped when she was hit in the back off guard causing her to scream and looked back at Oriel. "Now then, let's have that death fight," Oriel's hand glew up with the ecto-beams. "Fine by me..." Karen said deeply with a low growl. Tia ran back to the pier, remembering her promise to help Karen, and found her staring madly at another girl. "Good good," Oriel said smiling evily, "That rage you feel is what I feel as well, simpley the same." "I'm nothing like you.." Karen said darkly lifting up her hands and shooting an ecto-ray at Oriel, who simpley dodged. "There is proof, you are me." Oriel said then looked behind her and down at Tia, "Looks like we have some company, let's treat her like the quest she is." charging up a beam she hit it for the pier causing it to giveway under Tia. "Tia!" Karen shouted then glared at Oriel and flew in tackling her down to the ground. "Now now Karen, temper." Oriel said as he pushed her back with and ecto beam right into the water. Karen closed her eyes as she hit the water feeling a burning pain on her chest, "Al...I'm sorry." ---------- "Ricky, Ricky, can you do this!?" Myles climbed up another tree and grabbed a branch, tossing it from hand to hand and pretending to stage a swordfight. "Get down, Myles..." Ricky pointed his finger and shot an ectoblast at the branch, causing it to shake violently. "Next time, I won't miss..." Myles jumped down, his eyes wide. "What was that!? That was so cool, Ricky! Do it again, do it again, do it again!" Ricky's eyes widened as well. Darn it... He doesn't know... He doesn't know anything about who I really am... He...DIDN'T know... He didn't know...I'm half ghost... Now he does... Because I'm SO STUPID... "Myles, that wasn't...anything... You must have been hallucinating..." Ricky glared at the ground, his maroon eyes turning red for a moment. Idiot, idiot, IDIOT... Myles was grinning now, gazing at his brother with admiration. "Do you have superpowers!? This is so cool! Just like in my comic books! Show me what else you can do! Pleeeeeeease?" Ricky sighed. "If you promise not to tell ANYONE..." Myles looked around the forest suspiciously, making sure no one else was around. "I promise!" "Fine. Well, you know why I disappeared many years ago? It's because I'm half ghost. Half d--" "YOU'RE HALF GHOST!?" Ricky slammed his palm on Myles's mouth, although the younger boy kept talking. "That's so cool, Ricky! I wanna be half ghost, too! Can I, can I, can I pleeeeeease?" "Shut up..." Ricky's voice wasn't cold; it was surprised. What was that noise? Am I hallucinating, or did someone just yell "Tia"? "This way." He grabbed Myles's hand and ran in the direction of Karen's voice. --------- As Tia started sinking under the water, a flash of violet light erupted from her necklace and she imediately gained her tail. Tialee Siren had come out for the second time in one day; that hadn't happened for almost three months. Tia looked at the disturbed water and saw Karen sinking. Thinking quickly, she pulled her necklace off her neck, and, out of pure instinct, fastened it on Karen's and said, in an ancient language she had never heard herself speak, "The powers of the sea are mine to share, use them with me, treat them with care." Immediately, a flash of blue light erupted from the crystal necklace, engulfing Karen in it, and made her like Tia, at for now, a mermaid. --------- Ricky stopped running when he saw the fight taking place in front of him. "What the heck...?" Myles was positively ecstatic. "This is so cool! I hope this isn't a dream, I mean you telling me you're half ghost and then THIS... Wow, wow, wow, you're the coolest, Ricky!" --------- As she was sinking she heard someone voice and a chant, she slowly opened her eyes as a blue light engulfed her,"I can- breath?"her eyes whidened and looked down seeing she had a fin, "Whoa!" she said suprised then looked over to see Tia, "Thanks, Tia." Oriel's smirking was interupted when she heard someone behind her she turned her attention to Ricky and Myles and as she turned around her hands glew up once again, "What the heck you say?" she lifted up her hand. "Let me show you." she was about to shoot the same beam at them but stoped when she felt a weird ecto-beam, it was diffrent she growled and looked down seeing Karen and Tia. "I try and get rid of you, and you keep coming back you really are me." Tia looked at Karen. "Well, I guess you know my secret now, huh?" She giggled, bubbles floating to the surface. "But watch what I just figured out!" Tia Held her hands high in the air, no, water, and shot an icy blast of water at Oriel. "You like that?" she said to Karen. Karen laughed in delightment, "That's awesome, Tia I have an idea.." she said as she looked up at the angry Oriel, "I'll shoot an ecto-beam mixed with wind..you combine your new ice power with it." Oriel looked down at the two mermaids, "Oh I see you have learned a new form as well, vary well then..." "Tia, that's the only attack she doesn't know! this could finally finish off Oriel!" she lifted up both of her hands and out came an ecto-beam mixed with wind, "Now, Tia!" Tia shot ice into Karen's wind and ecto-beam, hoping that this would work. "Please work..." Oriel looked down eyes whidened as the shot engulfed her causing her to shout in a pain then glared down at Karen and Tia and closed her eyes, "I guess you win..." Oriel dissappered into a weird black portal that completely covered her. "She's gone...one of the reasons I left everyone, she's finally gone." she smiled then looked over to Tia, "Thanks a bunch!" it then hit her, "Oh no Al!" she closed her eyes as the fin dissappered giving her; her human legs back. "Al!" she quickly jumped up and floated to the chained up uncontious friend as she landed the chains dissappered, "Al...Al, wake up!" "K-Karen..that you?" "Al.." she whipped away soon to be tears and hugged him, "I'm sorry I didn't save you sooner.." "Where's Oriel?" he asked still in pain. "She's gone...finally gone," she pulled away from him, "Let's get you to the infirmary." looking back she saw Ricky and Myles, "Hey you two! Help me with him please!" Looked back over to Tia, "Come on, Tia!" she waved towards her. Ricky sighed deeply to express his annoyance. I don't HELP people... "Myles, go help that girl." "Why aren't you helping?" Myles began to walk toward Karen and Al. "...I have other things to do." Ricky started sinking intangibly into the ground, giving Myles a two-fingered salute. "See you later, little brother." She shook her head from her thoughts too see Ricky walking away and Myles walking towards them she sighed then asked Myles, "Is your brother one of those type of people where he doesn't help anyone?" Karen asked as she put Al onto her back and began slowly walking, "Oh and by the way, my names Karen..I never did get yours." "Well, yeah... But how did you do all this!?" Myles was grinning again. "What kind of special effects did you just use!? Are you filming a movie or something!? Man, this is so cool!" Karen blinked then sighed down at Myles and smiled lightly, "I guess I'll tell you, I'm a halfa." "Hey Karen! Do you need some help?" She shook her head and pointed beside her at Myles, "Hey Natalee, no nope, I'm okay this boy who doesn't what to tell me his name is helping me." she felt Al move on her back, "Al?" "Sorry about this Karen." "Hey, it's okay...We're almost to the infirmary." Myles, that's my name - Myles!" He cocked his head slightly, looking confused. "What's a halfa? That's a funny name! Is that a type of special effects artist?" "Nice too meet you Myles," she saw the boy interested in a halfa, "Well, like Natalee said...half human, half ghost but..." she whispered into the boys ear, "That's a secert you can't tell anyone okay?" "Wow, is everyone a half ghost here!?" Myles's eyes were wide with excitement. "So is my br--" He clapped a hand to his mouth. "Nevermind!" "What was that?" she asked Myles as she placed Al onto a bed, "Your Br? Bro?" she raised an eye at him, "Don't worry, I won't tell a soul. Besides, that brother of yours seemed hard headed to me." "N-no, I was going to say...um..." Myles collapsed on one of the infirmary beds, trembling slightly. "Uh... Well..." Ricky is going to KILL me... He said tell NO ONE... And I let it slip... Augh, I'm so STUPID... He sat up, trying to forget about the exposure of Ricky's secret. "Hard headed, yeah! And stubborn as a rock! Me too!" Myles jumped off the bed, clenching his fists with a determined look in his eyes. "I'm just like him!" He narrowed his eyes, changing the subject back to his brother's ghost powers. "And don't tell anyone, I'm warning you! 'Cause if you spill his secret, I'll tell everyone about yours!" Karen laughed down at myles and sighed, "I won't tell a soul!" she looked down at him and shook her head, "I might not know your brother yet, but you don't seem hard headed to me." she rubbed the back of her neck, "I can tell you're diffrent...you're your own person." Myles glared stubbornly at Karen. "Nuh-uh! I'm just like Ricky!" He sat back down and stared moddily out the window, doing his best Ricky imitation. Karen frowned towards Myles, "Why are you tring to trick me with that fake attatude?" she tapped her foot on the ground, "Myles, you really don't trust us do you?" she rose an eye brow at him, "I don't know why you're acting hardhearded...but!" turned away from him, "Thank you for helping me out, and I told you my secert so please just chill out and trust me." Tia looked at Karen, her diary finished being written in. "So...Is your friend Al going to be okay?" "What?" she looked back at Tia then nodded, "Al will be fine...he's stronger then me, so he'll be fine." Tia looked back at Karen, "Okay, umm, should we go back to our cabin so I can put my stuff away? Apparantly I'm in the same cabin as you." Karen looked from Tia then back to Al and nodded, "Sure..." she looked back at Myles, "Could you please watch Al while we're gone we'll be back soon!" she pulled Tia along with her with Myles unable to answer. Tia walked into the cabin and removed her note on her stuff. "Now, where is my bed..." Karen looked over towards Tia as she sat down on her bed, "Well...there's an open bed over there, but there was an ecto-fight in here earlier...so I'd change the sheets on the bed," she stould up and took out extra sheets, "Here you go!" "That's okay...I have my own sheets and stuff. I'm guessing you never saw our room back at HH, did you?" Tia ran to her suitcases and got out her bedding: violet everything. "Sorry, I just like violet a lot..Hey, I've always wanted a water bed, how about you?" Tia opened her suitcases again, and took out her air matress. "I'm going to try something." Tia lifted up her hands, and instantly water came to them and filled the air matress with water. "Here, Karen, you can have the water bed. I've got to do something. By the way, I have a question to ask. We are allowed to have electronics here, right?" ------ Myles sighed, glaring at the floor. I'm... I'm exactly like Ricky... How DARE she... Making stupid assumptions... Al slowly opened his eyes, "What the heck..?"he vision was blurry then he came apon a face, "That you Karen?" he questioned then blinked again seeing Myles, "Who the heck are you?" he questioned. "I'm not Karen! I'm Myles." He glared suspiciously at Al, not knowing who he could trust at the camp. "Could you please not yell, Myles?" Al said rubbing his head he saw the suspicious glare from him, "Would you chill out you not-trusting-anybody-kid?" he slowly sat up. "Me? Not trusting? Well, what do you expect?" Myles sighed, leaning back against the pillow of the bed he was sitting on. "I mean, half ghosts? How suspicious is THAT? Cool, but still suspicious." Al let out a sigh, "If you're talking about Karen...she can't help it," he looked over at the 11 year old, "It's more like a curse then a gift...if I could of guessed it Karen has a little sister around your age." he thought for a second, "But whatever right? It's not like you want to hear fully about it." "Can you tell me more about half ghosts!?" Myles's glare was replaced with a huge grin. "Pleasepleaseplease! How did Karen become a half--uh, what was it? Oh, a halfa! Yeah! How did she become a halfa?" Al let out a sigh, "Okay after I tell you this don't you dare threaten to tell her secert undersand?" he pushed his bangs back, "It happened about two years ago, she went to winsconin and there was some strange power outage...she got lost in the science lab she was visiting and when the power came back on, something went threw her." he continued, "Causing her to turn into a halfa, half alive. half dead." "And it's hard for her to balance her secert at home, being the second oldest, and her little sister sick right now, so it's hard for her." he looked over at Myles, "You understand now?" he questioned hoping he would. "Okay, okay, I get it..." Myles muttered. "I won't tell anyone, how many times do I have to say it? But that's awesome! Can I be a halfa too? Just like a superhero! Please, please, please! Can you help me?" Al smiled shyly, "Um.." "Hey Al! You're awake!" Al let out a sigh of relief, "Hey Karen." Karen walked up be side his bed, "What's wrong?" "Myles here wants to be a superhero," Al said pointing over at the fan obsessed boy. "Well, I'll teach him how to be a superhero!" Karen said smiling. "What?" Al asked clueless. "It's the least I can do to thank him for helping me out earlier," she looked over at Myles, "Ready?" "Yeah, I'm ready!" Myles grinned. "So where do I get my halfa powers?" -------- They were now flying over somewhere in the woods. -"So where do I get my halfa powers?" "Let's see..." Karen said as she dug into her pockets and took out a necklace in the shape of a ghost, "I know it might look girly but...put it on it has some of my ecto-signature in it..so as long as you wair that you'll be able to use the powers of a halfa." she looked around a bit then pointed at a log, "Try shooting that down." "How the heck do I do that?" Myles asked, suddenly remembering something he had seen on television. He held his hand out, palm up, and watched as a glowing blob of energy formed. "Whoa! This is soooo cool!" He did a sort of victory dance in the air before pointing his finger and firing. The blast slightly missed the log, blackening the bark of a nearby tree instead. "Whoops..." Karen blinked then slaped her head, "We have alot of work to do...okay try hitting the log again!" she incouraged him. "Right!" Myles held out his hand again, creating a second ectoblast. He pulled back his arm, ready to throw it, but the blast of energy disappeared. "No, that doesn't count! Redo! Redo! I get a second chance!" This time, the ecto-energy stayed in his hand. Myles fired the ectoblast, missing the log by inches. "No, no, redo! Redo! I get to go again!" The third time he barely hit the log. "I did it! I did it! Did you see that! I'm a superhero now!" His eyes gleamed with triumph as he punched the air with his fist. "I did it! I did it! I can't wait to tell Ricky!" Karen sat in the air as she watched Myles try over and over again then barely even hit the log and he was jumping for joy, "I'm sure your brother will be happy for you." she floated down and landed on the ground taking her human form, "Want to try..." she thougt for a second, "Flying?" Myles's eyes widened. "Yeah, flying! All superheroes can fly! I read it in my comic books! And it says so on TV! Teach me pleasepleaseplease! I promise I'll do better!" He was hopping from foot to foot, bouncing with excitement. "Okay okay!" she said as she tried calming him down, "It'll take a few times okay?" she took her ghost form, "Now let's go to a perfect place for you to practice flying." she flew over him and picked him up and floated up and started out of the forest but as soon as they were high enough she noticed something different as the blue mist came out of her mouth, "Why did my ghost sence go off all of a sudden?" she ignored it, "The waterfall I found is ice-olated it'll be perfect for practicing flying!" Soon they where in the ice-olated place and Karen placed Myles down and landed behind him turning ghost, "Okay close your eyes and consentrate...think of flying." Myles closed his eyes. He hated waiting. After about ten seconds, he asked impatiently, "Am I flying yet?" He opened one eye and glared at his shoes, which were still on the ground. Darn it... Karen looked beside her seeing Natalee land, "Sure." she turned her attention to Myles, "Consentrate Myles think of something happy.." Myles closed his eyes again. "Okay!" This time, he hovered a few inches off the ground before falling to his knees. "Did you see that? I flew! I flew! I really did it! I DID IT! Whoo! I'm a SUPERHERO! That was so awesome!" "I know, I know! I'm trying!" Myles snapped, upset because he hadn't gotten it right the first time. he squeezed his eyes shut and clenched his fists. Okay, going to fly...NOW. Okay... How about...NOW... Come on, let's go. Fly! ...Please? Come on, fly, fly, fly! He rose a few feet off the ground this time. "Awesome! Oh, this is soooo cool!" He did a mid-air flip, colliding headfirst with a nearby tree. "Oww..." Karen watched Myles fall to his knees and sighed with a small smile, "Good job Myles," she blinked looking back at Natalee, "We'll try again later, don't you think we should go look for your brother now Myles?" she asked tilting her head a bit. She stoped talking seeing him hit a tree and fall to the ground she whinced seeing him fall then helped him up, "Let's call it a day okay?" "No! I want to keep practicing!" Myles stood up stubbornly and felt himself rise off the ground again. "Superheroes...never...give...up!" He rose about a foot higher with every word, finally openeing his eyes. "Hey! You guys look so tiny from up here!" "Ah! Myles get back down here what if someone sees you!" she flew up towards him and quickly pulled him back down, "You know, there are people here who can easyly see you flying...go intangable when you fly." Myles blinked at Karen, looking confused. "What's 'intangible'? How do I get that? Can you teach me?" Karen let out a tired sigh, "Yes but after this you have to promise me you'll find your brother and meet me tomorrow at the lake okay?" she said as she steped back some, "Watch." she closed her eyes and dissappered from in front of him and appeared behind him. "Boo." she whispered in his ear "GAAAAH!" Myles turned around, his eyes wide. "I can learn to do that? AWESOME! That's so cool!" Emilio walked seeing Myles in the distance. "Hey Myles!" He yelled out waving as he ran towards his friend and Karen. Myles almost fell over with shock. "Emilio! Hey! Guess what I can do! Oh, its so cool!" Emilio blinked at Myles then grinned. "What is it? Tell me!" His face lit up, Emilio was never one to turn down a good story or see something new and exciting. "Kya!" she quickly put a hand over Myles mouth, "He's having a fun time with me he can...can...shoot a arrow now!" she quickly started pulling Myles away from the place. Myles shouted something, but it was muffled. "Why can't I tell him?" he demanded, trying to pull Karen's hand off his mouth. "An arrow?..." Emilio frowned giving Myles a disappointed look. "What's so special about firing a bow and arrow anyways?..." "No, I can fl--" The rest of Myles's words were muffled by Karen's hand over his mouth. "You can't!" she whispered into his ear, "Trust me don't do it!" she whispered again. "Oh you know...not many people can shoot arrows now adays!" she quickly started pushing Myles away, "We really have to go!" Myles sat up. "What the heck was that all about!? It's like it's some sort of...secret... But... That means I need a secret identity! Awesome!" He glanced at Emilio, who was still standing a few yards away, and let out a nervous laugh. "We were...eh...playing superheroes..." That didn't sound very convincing... But why do I have to keep it a secret!? Maybe the better question is... Who says I have to listen to them? Karen let out a nervious laugh, "Yeah we were playing superhero..that's it." she rubbed the back of her neck, "You know kids now a days.." "Superhero?..." Emilio raised his eyebrow looking from both Karen and Myles There was an utter silence. "COOL! Hey next time you guys play, can I join in? I'll be crash nebula! Defender of the galaxy!!" I have the helmet and everything back at the cabin!" Karen couldn't believe it, he actuly bought it she was happy and smiled. "Um, sure next time you sure can!" she glanced down at Myles then to Emilio then let out a tired sigh. "No, I wanted to be Crash Nebula!" Myles said excitedly, grinning. "Fine..." He poked Karen in the arm. "Hey, can I talk to you for a minute?" He lowered his voice to a whisper. "WHY can't I tell him anything!?" "Why? Well lets see..." she thought of a good explanation, "If you tell someone your idenity...you'll be chaced down." she then felt something strange go right threw her chest she clenched it, "What on earth?...it's that weird feeling from before.." she mumbled falling to one knee, "I'm just overheated..that's all." "I don't think so little Karen." Karen only hoped she didn't hear that voice but looked up and once again Oriel was floating there, "Don't you ever give up?" she growled under her breath and turned to Myles, "Get out of here and don't let Emilio see understand?" Myles grinned again. "Whoa, awesome! I mean... No, superheroes don't run! But first..." He dashed toward Emilio. "Heh... I... Oh my gosh! Is it that late already! Crash Nabula should be on any minute now! Aw, and they're showing episode #27, too... But if you run, you could still make it!" Pretty lame excuse... He prodded Emilio in the direction of the cabins. "Run! I'll be right there, I just have to talk to someone... Uh... All the way over there... Heh, see ya!" He ran back toward Karen. VERY lame excuse... Hey, I'm eleven! Gimmie a break! "What the heck are you doing Myles?" she asked not taking her eyes off of Oriel, "This is the real thing if you're ready," she said as the two beams appeared around her and turned her into Youma, "Besides this is really good practice for you." "Practice? Let's teach him something then," Oriel pointed her hand at Myles, "Lession one: Dodging an ecto-wind blast." "Myles! Move!" Karen said as she pushed him out of the way, "Dang it, you don't know how to defend yourself yet." she said while making an ecto-shield. "Okay, I'll be right there!" Myles turned back to Karen and Oriel. "Whoa, is that some kind of shield? Cool, lemme try!" He created an ectoblast, staring at it with complete concentration. "Hm... Let's see... Making a shield out of one of these glob things... Um... Oh, I know! How 'bout...THIS?" He shot the ectoblast at Oriel. "Hahaha! Sneak attack!" Oriel phased threw it and smiled down at Myles starting up a white ecto-beam. "Myles listen to me quickly!" Karen looked back at him, "To do an ecto-shield, you lift up your hands and focus your ecto-energy into your hands and it'll come out into a shield!" Oriel let the blast go and the white ecto-beam went hurling over to myles. Myles's eyes widened. "But I can't... I don't know how to... I... Argh!" The force of the attack slammed him into the nearest tree before he could react. Get up... Superheroes don't give up... I can't move... My back hurts too much... I didn't know this would be so hard... Karen's eyes watched as Myles hit the tree, "Myles!" "Haha...that little halfa wanna-be had it comming." Oriel lifted another hand to the boy, "He's gonna pay nicely for this one." Oriel let the white ecto last go. Karen growled and quickly got in front of him shielding with both of her arms, her sleves burned away and sigh was breathing deep and looked back at him. "Myles, don't worry about it...when a heros down and hurts stay down or you'll hurt even worse then before...or you might even die if you try to hard." Karen rubbed her burns then lifted both of her hands at Oriel and shot wind blades along with the ecto-beam "No! Heroes never die! They live forever!" Myles staggered to his feet, bleeding from a cut on the side of his head. He swayed slightly, but remained standing. "That means I can live forever, too!" He shot another ectoblast at Oriel, draining a large amount of his own energy. "Myles...they don't live forever." she looked back at Oriel as she saw Myles ecto-blast effect her, "They faid away with time." she frowned down at Myles, "Myles...stay back." she ordered him and glared up at Oriel, "You're draining away his energy. Just go away!" she shouted and something was diffrent about this scream it was sometype of ghostly wail comming out? She quickly covered her mouth and blinked a couple of times, "What on earth was that?" she thought as she saw Oriel was gone and quickly turned to Myles and saw his was out on energy, "Oh no...Myles!" she took her human form. "I have to get him to the infirmary!" She bent down, "Myles get on my back." she ordered him, "This is serious you're beat up." her eyes softend. "Don't act tough...and get on my back." "But they... Heroes are supposed to..." Myles sighed and obeyed Karen's orders, shaking his head defiantly all the while. "They never die, ever... Not in the comic books or on TV..." She knows everything... It makes me feel so stupid and weak... "Hey, you're still learning." she said as she tried cheering him up hearing his voice drain as she walked closer to the infirmary, "It's taken me two years to get where I am today...and I'm still learning," she saw the infirmary ahead, "It's not like I know everything," reaching out her hand for the door knob she opened it and saw something happening? "What's going on now?" Myles had fallen asleep during the walk to the infirmary, snoring quietly after being drained of so much energy. His hair was covering most of his face, tickling his nose and making him sneeze. He opened his eyes, gazing around the infirmary. "Where am I...?" he mumbled, looking extremely confused. "What happened...?" Myles yawned, closing his eyes again but not completely falling asleep. Karen looked back at myles and smiled, "he really got beaten up while fighting oriel.." she mumbled as she spotted infirmary and placed him on to it, "i'll get the nurse for you myles. " and with that she left to find a nurse. Myles tried to sit up, but immediately fell back when an intense pain stabbed through his chest. His breathing was shallow and staggered and his head was aching. "I...don't...think I...could eat...even...if I...tried... Maybe...later... But... Who...are...you...anyway? How...do you...know my name...?" Myles gazed quizzically at the infirmary door. "I wonder what that was all about... She didn't even tell me her name or anything... And...why did she know my name?" He sighed, leaning back against his pillow. "And where'd Ricky go?" "Right here, little brother..." Ricky materialized in front of Myles. "Don't worry - if she had actually given you the apple, I wouldn't have let you eat it, anyway..." He glared at the door. "I TOLD him to keep his slaves away from you..." "Slaves? It was just an apple, no big deal..." Myles grinned, sitting up even though it caused him extreme pain. "Guess what! I'm a superhero!" "A...superhero..." Ricky sighed, pulling up a chair. "I just happened to see you through the window here... So, um, why are you in the infirmary?" "I was fighting my first bad guy," Myles boasted. "Uh-huh... Good for you, Myles... Congratulations..." Sighing deeply she finally found a nurse, "Thank you." she told the nurse as she took some antidotes and wrappings for Myles. "I got some things for you Myles." she stoped short spotting Ricky, "You must be Myles older brother," she said placeing the antidotes and wrappings down. "I'm Karen." she looked towards Myles, "What happened your chest is hurting?" "Eeeeeww, medicine!? Blech!" Myles stuck out his tongue, making a face. "I feel fine!" Ricky smirked at Myles. "Superheroes take medicine..." "Really?" Myles grinned. "Okay, well, since I'm a superhero... That means I take medicine, too! Anyway, yeah..." He glanced at Karen. "That's where I got hit... And my back hurts from crashing into the tree..." "Well then," she took out a spoon and the antidote, "This will help stop the pain, now open up Myles!" she said as she made him take the medicine, she placed down the bottle and spoon and sighed, "Let me wrap up where you got hit, right here on your back right?" she asked as she began wrapping around from his chest to his back. "UGH! That tasted disgusting..." Myles made another face. Ricky smirked again. "Actually, when someone helps you... You're supposed to say 'thanks'... So... Whatever your name is... How did Myles get injured? Did he jump out of a tree, trying to fly? He's already done that once before..." "I told you before the names Karen!" she growled at Ricky then sighed, "Well...See Myles was fighting a ghost, and was slung up against a tree...and that pendent right there around his neck?" she pointed and continued, "It's got my ecto-energy in it, so he has a few ghost powers." "Right, right..." Ricky glanced at the pendant around Myles's neck. "Ghost powers, huh? Interesting..." "Yeah, and I was flying!" Myles grinned at his older brother. Ricky nodded, staring into space thoughtfully. "Fighting a ghost... Hm... Would this ghost have a name?" She glanced over at Ricky and nodded, "Her name is Oriel, she's my otherself...or so she says," Karen said finishing wrapping up Myles back and taking another strand of the long bandaid and began wrapping them around her ecto-burnt arms, "She dissappered again, so I'm clueless on where she's gone." "Your...'other self'..." Ricky nodded slowly. "Well, I've never heard of her..." He shrugged. "Feeling any better, little brother?" "Yeah!" Myles smiled at Ricky, then glanced at Karen. "Thanks!" He yawned, stretching out his arms. "You're welcome, maybe you should get some sleep Myles." she sugested as she finished wrapping up her arms, "You've got to be tired." she said as she sat down in a chair next to the bed. Myles yawned again. "A little... But if that mean ghost attacks us again, wake me up... I'll beat her this time..." His eyelids drooped. "She won't...win...again... I'll..." His eyes fully closed and he began to snore quietly. Karen smiled, "Be sure to wake you up if that stupid ghost attacks," she watched him fall asleep then looked over at Ricky, "Has he wanted to be a half ghost for a while?" "Well, ever since he found out I had gho--" Ricky bit his lip. "Er... Hey, can you keep a secret?" She looked over at Ricky and nodded, "Yeah, very good at keeping them." Ricky nodded. "Well... He wanted to be a halfa ever since I told him about my ghost powers... What a stupid fool I am... He almost got killed trying to be a superhero... You know, he's convinced that they never die..." He sighed. "That leads to complications..." "Back when Oriel attacked us he said something about that..." she said looking down, "But, I sure hope that fight with her knocked something about heros faiding in time, they don't go on forever." "He's convinced everything he sees in comic books is true..." Ricky sighed. "Even a fight like that won't knock any sense into his head... Not even I could convince him he couldn't be a real superhero... I mean, he has a few interesting ghost powers now, but...how can a scrawny little eleven-year-old be a 'superhero'?" "It's always a question isn't it?" she half-heartedly laughed then sigh, "I was 13 when I got my powers...so it's possable for him, just to try if he has help." She winced as a pain went threw her arm, "And that Oriel...I tell you she attacks anyone who gets in the way." she said as she looked over at Ricky, "But when she attacked Myles, I for some reason felt like I was protecting my little sister all over again...well, before she got sick." "I'm sorry about your sister..." Ricky glanced at Myles, who was sleeping peacefully. Since when are you sorry about anything? Ugh, shut up... "I just...don't want him following me..." he whispered. "I don't want him looking up to me... I've made some of the stupidest choices... Done the most horrible things... I don't want him to end up like that..." "Well, there is one way." she glanced up at him, "Tell him, just tell him to not look up to you...talk to him like you're talking to me right now." she smiled. "It's that easy...trust me, I had to do it with my sister." she glanced over at Myles, "I know it won't be easy but, try it...and maybe tomorrow you can help me train him?" "You really think it'll be that easy with a kid like him?" Ricky smirked at the sleeping Myles. "That little kid right there is the very definition of determination. I mean, he jumped out of a tree taller than our house, trying to fly! He practically killed himself, yet he STILL believed everything he read in his comic books!" He shook his head, still slightly smirking. "No, it's not that easy... Trust me... But...training... I can help with that... I know...a lot...about...that kind of stuff..." he said hesitantly, choosing his words carefully. "Hehe, well still keep tring even if he is as hardheaded as you," she smiled lightly, "So can I ask you something?" she questioned, "Why are you so hard on him, why not be more open; even if he is still a kid." Ricky remained silent for a few moments, caught off guard. "I don't try to be... It's... It started with my ghost powers... I'm barely keeping everything under control, so it's a little difficult to be nice all the time... I can't let my guard down around him; he'll see what these powers have truly done to me... And he'll imitate my actions... That's the best answer I can give you..." Karen kept quiet for a second then sighed, "Show him the right way...like I said before, come tomorrow to the waterfall area and show him," she said calmly, "I promised him one thing though, I'd show him a small bit about being a superhero...but I know that if Oriel shows her face again, she'll attack him, and I'm worried." "If Myles gets attacked again... He'll just get up and keep fighting until he passes out..." Ricky sighed, watching his little brother sleep. "Don't worry about him... I'll be there, too... And if you're also training him, that makes three of us. We outnumber Oriel..." He smiled, still looking at Myles. "Thanks, though. You really made him happy today... I could tell by the look on his face when he told me he could fly. I appreciate it... He looks up to me, but I can't make him smile like that... I can't do anything for him..." Hey, uh, wait a second... You're being NICE!? What the heck is THAT all about!? How nice of you!" she said joking as she looked over at Myles, "Just can't help it, I'm like that," she heard him say he couldn't do anything for his brother? "That right there isn't true, you can do plenty for him...just be nice, or try to." she shrugged a bit, "I mean from talking to you now, you seem nice to me." "Seeming? hm?" Karen knew that voice, "Oriel...what the heck do you want now?" she asked growling under her breath. "Unfinished business with the kid and besides..." Oriel sighed, "It seems like my 'brother's' don't listen to me anymore." "Personal problem, Oriel!" she let out another low growl, "Ricky, you know my secert already, so this won't be a shocker." she mumbled the last part as the Purple beams turned her into Youma. Ricky nodded once and reached toward Myles, roughly poking his brother's forehead. "He always wakes up when you do that." He smirked, watching Myles open his eyes. Myles sat up, looking around and yawning. "Why'd you...wake me up...? What's g--" His eyes narrowed as he glanced around suspiciously. "So she's back... This time I won't lose!" Ricky stood up and leaned against the wall while Myles jumped out of bed and staggered to his feet. "Okay then, Myles remember what I taught you!" she nodded towards Myles as she shot an ecto-beam towards Oriel pushing her out of the infirmary, "Never fight when there are sick people around, they might get hurt." she warned him as she grabbed his wrist then turned to Ricky, "We'll be outside." and with that she phased threw the wall. Oriel growled deeply as her hands glew with white ecto-energy and as they appeared, she shot it towards Myles. "Myles, ecto-shield! Now!" Ricky phased through the wall after them incase they needed any help. "Ecto-shield, ecto-shield, ecto-sh--" Myles closed his eyes tightly, clenching his fists, trying desperately to create a shield. When he finally opened his eyes, the blast of ecto-energy was gone, and he was semi-transparent. "Huh? What happened?" He turned around; the tree behind him was scorched and burnt. "It...went...through me? But how?" "You..You went intangable!" Karen said suprised and releaved. Oriel smirked, "So the puppies learned a new trick, big deal." "Oriel," Karen turned her head back toward her, "Myles, shoot an ecto-beam at her." "His small ecto-beam will never phase me." Oriel said as she fliped her hair behind her sholder then smiled, "I want to end this now." she dissappered from sight. "Where did she go?!" Karen looked over toward Myles, she wasn't behind him but she felt a pain in her back as a weird ecto-beam pushed her to the ground causing her to scream in pain. "What...how did she do that?" "Like it? It was my 'sister's' last power before she was distroyed, I'm sure you've heard of it," Oriel said smoothly as she floated behind her, "That poison she placed in your body, has just re-entered once again." Karen stould up slowly, her hands glowing she was about to spin around and push Oriel back, but Oriel appeared behind Myles and grabbed him from the behind. "Don't move," Oriel brought her hand up close to Myles face, "Or this boy will meet his fate sooner." Karen's eyes glew red for a second then she placed her hands down to her side, "Put Myles down." "So the kid's name is Myles...I always want to know the persons name before I dispose of them." "Yeah, but if you killed me...you'd have no one to hold for ransom, so HA!" Myles tried to push Oriel away by trying everything - kicking, punching, scratching, biting, and squirming. Ricky nodded, watching Myles carefully. He's very brave... I can tell he's terrified because I'm his brother... But to an outsider...he would appear to be unafraid... Ricky smirked. Heh. Just like a superhero. "Myles, Myles, Myles...you should know something," she threw him to the ground, "I don't care at all." "Well I do Oriel!" Out of no where a Ecto-beam pushed Oriel away from Myles. Oriel's white eyes gleamed with hate as she held her sidr, "I think we'll have to re-scuedual little Myles." "Oh no you don't," Karen shouted as she shot a beam at Oriel but it bairly even hit her as she dissappered from plain sight, she breathed deep some then fell to her knees taking her human form, then fell to the ground, uncontious. "Karen!" Myles stood up, running over to Karen and kneeling down beside her. "You okay?" He tappped on her forehead with a finger. "...Karen...?" Ricky had an 'Ugh, do I have to?' look on his face as he approached Karen and Myles. "She's okay... Just unconscious, I think..." "gah..." she moaned opening one eye, "It's that stupid poison Oriel put inside me, but I think I'm okay...Sorry about this," she said as she sat up and tried standing but fell right back down on her butt, "I can't feel my legs anymore." "Poison? What do you mean?" Myles's eyes widened. "But... You'll be all right? It's okay, I'll bring you to the infirmary!" He grabbed her arm and tried to pull Karen in the direction of the infirmary. "Gah... I...can't move you... You're heavy..." Ricky snickered, whispering in Myles's ear. "Uh, Myles... That's not exactly what you're supposed to say to girls..." "Then you bring her to the infirmary!" Myles glared at his older brother. "Me?" Ricky rasied an eyebrow before giving an overdramatic sigh and lifting Karen to her feet, holding her up with his arm. "Do you think you can walk there if we support you...or do I have to carry you?" Why am I HELPING someone? Why am I doing this? I wasn't instructed to be NICE... She felt herself being pulled by Myles "I'm not that heavy...am I?" she blinked a bit as she was lifted to her feet and supported by Ricky's arm. -"Do you think you can walk there if we support you...or do I have to carry you?" "I can't even move my legs...I think you'll have to carry me," she said sighing a bit. "And Myles?" she looked back at him "I'll be okay, this has happened to me before...but last time...," she shook her head. "Nevermind, I'm sure this time nothing bad will happen...At least I hope so." Ricky scooped Karen up, carrying her to the infirmary. Myles trailed behind them, smiling at Karen. "Well, you're heavy to me! I need more strength training! As soon as you're better, I can work on my superhero abilities! Oh, and I need a costume, too! And as long as you're okay, everything's all right...right? I mean, you said nothing bad would happen, right? Right!" Myles nodded, answering his own question. "Right!" he said again, opening the infirmary door. Ricky stepped inside and dropped Karen on one of the infirmary beds before sitting down in a chair. "Feeling better?" Myles gave Karen a hopeful smile, pulling up a chair. "Heh heh...Yeah, I'm fine right now." she said as thought for a second, "I wonder if they have any antidote for this type of poison.." she mumbled under her breath, "Myles, could you do me a favor?" she asked as she sat her back up against the wall of the bed, "Can you go ask the nurse to get some antidote for poison?" "MISS NURSE LADY!" Myles called out, leaning back in his chair when the nurse approached them. "We need an antidote for poison! Uh, please?" "Poison?" The nurse opened a cabinet above a sink, taking out a small bottle. "Hm... What kind of poison? This antidote usually works for everything..." She walked to Karen's bedside. "Here. Take this. If it's a common poison, you should be fine after a couple of hours." "It's not normal at all!" she screamed in her head then smiled at the nurse, "Thank you," she said as she took the antidote from the nurses hand and pored it into one of those little cups, as she finished drinking it she she felt a shiver and she shook her head. "Thanks." she said handing her back the antidote and looked over toward Ricky and Myles, "Thank you, Myles and Ricky." she layed her head back some. "Hm." Ricky nodded his head, leaning back in his chair. "No problem!" Myles stood up and gave Karen a sincere salute. "Get well soon, okay?" He let out a little excited gasp, running to the door. "I'll be right back!" He sprinted all the way to Ricky's cabin, finding his backpack and grabbing a book full of lined paper and an old box of crayons. Myles opened the door of the infirmary a few minutes later and sat down at a table, opening the notebook and taking out a few crayons. Ricky shrugged. What the heck is he doing...? Karen watched Myles open up his book and tilted her head a bit as she laid down, "What are you doing, Myles?" "It's a secret." Myles picked up another crayon and began to draw something on a piece of paper. "Can't tell you, or else it wouldn't be a secret anymore!" Ricky just rolled his eyes. She smirked slightly, "Yeah, you're right." she laid her head down and then a thought hit her about her sister she didn't realize it but her eyes started watering up so she turned her back to them. "You okay?" Ricky asked quietly as Karen turned away. Meanwhile, Myles was still coloring, oblivious to either of them. "Almost done!" he called out cheerily, picking up a green crayon. "Yeah..." she whispered back to him tring to hide the jerk, "Just thinking...about somethings." Not only was her sister on her mind but the rampage she did back at the school over nine months ago. "You don't sound okay..." Ricky muttered, staring at the floor. "You know, you can cry if you want to. Holding back tears won't help. Sometimes you need to have a good cry about something before you can feel better." "It's just..." she let her tears fall some more, "It's just..my sister, and what happened at school last year, I can't seem to get over..." she turned to look over at him not caring if she was cring now, "I'm really sorry about this." "I'm...sorry..." Ricky glanced at Myles, who was humming to himself and searching for a particular crayon. What if something happened to him? How would I feel? "...I'm sorry..." he said again, looking back down at the floor. She choaked back a jerk and sat up, "It'll be okay...I can't control the future, so all I can do is hope and move forward," she looked over at Ricky as he was staring at the ground, she didn't see this comming she had hugged him around the neck then pulled away, "Sorry about that...I'm just to emotional." "Heh... Er... Um, it's okay... It's just, I...er..." Ricky felt extremely awkward, still staring at the ground. "I, uh, I have a girlfriend... Kind of awkward, I know..." He gave a sad smile which faded into an even sadder frown. "Besides...being emotional is better than being nothing... Caring too much is better than not caring at all... Although...not caring is much easier... Which is why I try to avoid it...even if I don't always succeed..." Ricky sat up straighter, shaking his head. "I'm not making any sense... Sorry about that... The point is..." "Look, Karen, look, look, look!" Myles proudly held his picture in front of Karen's face. His art was lacking in skill, but you could tell he had worked hard and done his best. The picture showed Karen sending an ectoplasmic energy blast at Oriel with 'Get well soon! You're the best superhero ever!' scrawled at the top of the page in messy handwriting. "See, I made it mysel--" Myles paused. "Are you...crying? Did my picture make you sad? I'm sorry, I'm not very good at drawing... Is it really that bad? Maybe I should start over..." "Sorry it was awkward...If I knew that I wouldn't have-" she shook her head as she listened, "I think I understand but what do you mean by you tring to avoid..." She was cut off when a 'get well soon' picture was shoved in her face she blinked away tears that were hidden as she turned to Myles and his sad face, "No no, it's not the picture...It's something about my sister and highschool last year that's all." "Heh, it's okay - really." Ricky glanced at Myles's picture before staring out the window. "Oh, well... Uh..." Myles placed his drawing on the small table beside Karen's bed. "So you have a sister? That's cool! But what happened at high school? Did the teachers give you too many pop quizzes? Did your grades drop? Was the lunch food gross?" "Yea I a little sister around your age," she said as she took the picture then flinched a bit, "I don't really want to talk about what happened at school last year..." she said softy, "Let's just say: I was the complete opposite of my self.." "O-okay..." Myles gave Karen a reassuring smile. "But you're okay now, right? I mean, sure, some bad things might have happened in the past, but you can't go back in time or anything... All superheroes mess up or accidentally do something horrible at some point, right? But they always come back and make up for it in the end!" Ricky smiled slightly at Myles. There he goes again with his superhero metaphors... "Heh, I guess you could say that but it's diffrent with me," she looked away, "When something comes into me it stays until the person or thing is gone." she shrugged it off, "Oh well, it's been like this for a while." She gave a small smile, "I'm going to die someday or kill someone because of it, and not mean to." she smirked, "A superhero, even a halfa, can't live forever!" "But... Superheroes..." Myles protested. "...Don't live forever," Ricky finished, staring out the window. "Karen's not going to die or kill anyone!" Myles sat back down at the desk, picking up a crayon. "She's the best superhero ever, even cooler than Crash Nebula!" He squeezed the crayon so tightly it broke in half. "Myles, I can't always live...," she said softly as she sat up against her pillow, "I might hurt someone, I don't know...I'm just what's the word," she thought for a second, "I'm not really lucky." "Myles there's one thing you should know though, is that in the comics it's fake...but when your a superhero in real life it's possable for them to die." she picked up the crayon he just broke, "And I don't know about the not killing anyone or dieing thing, I know I said I'm not really lucky but...I'm cursed like that." "No, no, no!" Myles pounded his fists on the desk, wailing loudly until Ricky stood up, walked over, and grabbed one of Myles's wrists. "Didn't you stop throwing fits when you were five?" Myles banged his head down on the desk, closing his eyes and hiding his face with his arms. He mumbled something, but his voice was muffled so Ricky couldn't understand what his brother was saying. Myles picked his head up, running to the door. "I heard you when you were talking and I thought you said it was okay to cry!" Myles slammed the infirmary door behind him and sat down by a nearby tree, burying his face in his hands. "Myles..." she frowned and nodded pushing of the sheet she turned her feet to the out of the bed and tried standing up, "I'm going to go appolgize...I'll be right back." she mumbled to Ricky as she limped to the infirmary and pushed it open. She looked around a little and saw Myles under a tree with his head buried in his arms she slowly limped up behind him, "Myles?" she bent down, "I'm sorry." Ricky sat down in Myles's chair, glancing at the crayons scattered all over the desk. Great... Now I feel bad... Like it's MY fault or something... - - - Myles didn't answer right away; instead, he picked his head up as a tear rolled down his cheek. He threw his arms around Karen's neck, burying his head in her shoulder, still crying. "I don't want you to die... I don't want you to leave... Ricky left me before and I thought he was gone forever... I don't want that to happen again..." Karen jumped abit in suprise then smiled as she pulled him away, "I'm not going anywhere, but Myles you have to know something," she sighed, "Back at school when Oriel's twin sister attacked me, I went on a rampage and did something to a friend of mine here at camp." "I have a darkside Myles, and it might come back again." she said tilting her head abit, "But me dieing is far far away from now, so don't worry okay?" she stould up to her feet. "Let's go back." Myles wiped away the rest of his tears, sniffling quietly. "...Okay." He stood up, leaning against the tree trunk for a moment before beginning to walk back to the infirmary. Ricky watched them from the infirmary window, smiling slightly. Hm. He looks up to her more than he looks up to me... Well, I'm glad. I'd never forgive myself if he followed in my footsteps... He walked back to the desk, picking up the crayon Myles had snapped in half. He cares about her a lot - I can tell... So I guess she's his role model now... Heh. Good luck, Karen. You'll need it... Karen opened the door and sighed sitting back down on the bed rubbing her legs, man did they hurt she glanced over at Ricky, "Hey Ricky?" she swung her feet abit, "There's one more question I'd like to ask you," she looked down at her feet, "What happened to you?" She sighed, "I mean how did you get your powers?" she asked slipping off her shoes and laying back down, "I got mine from a strange power outage...I'm just curious." Myles sat down on a vacant bed, glancing over a Ricky. "Yeah, I was sort of wondering that, too..." Ricky sighed, glaring at the floor. "It's strange what a person is willing to do when that person is driven to extreme depression...hanging on the verge of insanity... It makes you take risks with horrible consequences..." Karen frowned with confusion then gasped, "You...put something into you, that made you like this," she nodded "I think I understand, and another thing!" she looked over towards him. "Who's this girlfriend of yours?" she asked raising a brow at him. Ricky glanced at Karen, raising an eyebrow before staring back at the floor. "Her name's Kyle... Why do you ask?" Karen blinked a bit then looked away with a small flustered face, "It was just a question, a simple question." she pushed herself up and got out of bed slipping on her shoes, "I'll be back, a small walk alone okay?" she took a quick glance at both of them and began to the door. "What? Oh, okay..." Ricky waved to Karen. "See you later, then?" "Bye, Karen!" Myles gave a salute. "Are you coming back later?" Karen waved lightly, "Yeah, I'm just going down to the lake to clear up my head abit," she sighed a deep sigh, "So if you need me for anything you'll know where I'll be." and with that she walked out of the infirmary. ---- Karen sat down on the dock and looked up, "Why did I act that way around Ricky?" she murmured under her breath then shook her head, "Naw, that couldn't be it, I can't like the guy can I?" --- Ricky turned to face Myles. "What do you think that was all about?" Myles just giggled, covering his mouth with his hand. "Hey, what's so funny?" Myles kept laughing, staring at Ricky all the while. "Clueless..." he managed to say through giggles. "Absolutely...clueless..." Ricky blinked. "I don't...get it... Why am I so clueless? Am I missing comething?" "Yeah, I think you are!" Myles laid down on his bed, smiling slightly. "And...you're not going to tell me why I'm so clueless..." "Right!" Myles grinned, while Ricky just glared at him. ----- "I guess I should just forget about it for now..," she said frowning to herself, "I mean he has a girlfriend for goodness sakes!" she nearly shouted angry as she held her leg with a shot of pain, "Stupid legs.." Sitting back down she gasped looking around her neck was Tia's pendent? "How did this get around my neck?" she questioned herself lifting up up abit over her legs and her mouth gapped open as she saw her legs turn into a fin, "Whoa...whoa this pendent did this to me earlier!" she said amazed as her legs returned. "I guess now I should just go back to the infirmary." Trevor looked at the girl who had entered the water. "That's her?" Shalise questioned instantly. "She looks so strange..." "Yes, but we must take her back home," Trevor told her strictly. "You do that. I'm going to stay here and see what kind of boys are here," Shalise said with a smile and swam out of the lake becoming what appeared to be human. Trevor watched the girl swim off with a scowl. "Stupid girl..." He looked at the new girl, his princess, in front of him. "Now I'm going to have some fun..." He stared at her, then smiled at her. "Boo!" he said in mermanian. "Gah!" Karen screamed with a jump and suprise looking back and down into the water at Trevor, "Oh my goodness you scared me," she let out a sigh. "I'm a bit jumpy right now." She looked down at Tia's necklace, "It's glowing again." she thought then looked over at Trevor and waved, "I'm sorry but I have to get going," she waved to the merman. "See yeah around camp." Trevor watched the girl leave, a scowl plastered on his face. "Great, this is going to be harder than I thought. But, then again, if I stay here for a while, I can mess with people's minds..." He grinned, scaring the fish next to him. Karen pushed open the infirmary door and saw Myles and Ricky, Myles laughing and Ricky looking clueless, "You guys?" she raised a brow at the two of them, "What's going on?" she asked as she walked by Shalise, "Excuse me." she said as she continued making her way over to Myles and Ricky Myles's grin faded immediately, while Ricky kept the confused look on his face. "Nothing," they both replied at the same time. "Just talking," Myles said casually. "Welcome back!" Ricky smiled and waved. "Did you have a good walk?" Myles stood up and spotted Shalise. "Oh, hi! Who are you?" Karen looked at both of them and held back a laugh, "I'll never understand you two.." she shook her head, "I did have a good walk and someone who seemed to know me was like...looking at me strangely," she shrugged it off and turned around looking at Shalise, "Yeah, who are you? I don't think I've ever met you before." Shalise grinned playfully at the boys. "I am Shalise, daughter of a king, and I and my brother are here to collect -" Trevor walked in through the door and got on one knee in front of Karen. "Princess...I am here to take you home." ---- "So your some type of princess?" her question was cut off as Trevor nealed down in front of her. -"Princess...I am here to take you home." "P-Princess? I'm sorry but I think your confusing me with someone else." she said looking down at Trevor then at Tia's pendent, "And 'take me home' what are you talking about?" she asked looking down at Trevor. Trevor cocked his eyebrow, "Not a princess? But, you wear the family crest, so I must take you with me!" Trevor clapped his hands and ice surrounded Karen, trapping her in a frozen cage. Shalise looked at Myles and Ricky and smiled, flashing a toothy grin that would mesmerize any boy. "H-Hey!" she shouted as the ice cage trapped her, "The family crest, what on earth...Myles, Ricky don't fall for that girls mesmerizing smile!" she shouted threw the cage then glared at Trevor, "Let me out now!" she shouted eyes flashing yellow, "I'm not a princess, let me out!" Trevor grinned maliciously. " If you won't come quietly, I'll have to make you..." He stared at Karen, and his voice became smooth and intoxicating. "Look into my eyes...You...are the princess of Atlantia, and you will come with me home, while my sister watches your friends to make sure they don't come looking for you... Do...You understand?" A blissful smile crept onto Ricky's face as he waved at Shalise. Myles glanced at his brother. "Oh no... Ricky's...smiling... Which means something is really wrong here..." He took a step toward the ice cage and began throwing punches at it, badly injuring his hands. "Let Karen out right now! She's not a princess and she's not going anywhere, so STOP IT!" Karen tried looking away from Trevor's eyes but her yellow ones turned into dull brown ones, "I understan-..." she shook her head hearing Myles then looked down at Trevor, "You're tring to hypnotize me or something!" she screached as she saw Ricky waving flirty at Shalise. "Ricky snap out of it you idiot!" she said pointing out a fingure at hos head and just a small ecto-beam excaped.. "I'll go with you, but promise me you'll leave my friends alone." Ricky didn't answer; he was still smiling and waving at Shalise. "No, no, no!" Myles glared at Trevor. "Karen's not going anywhere, so leave her alone!" He pulled back his fist and aimed a punch at Trevor, not caring about the consequences. "Myles...stop," she said bending down to the edge of the cage, "Get your brother out of the trance and come save me, I don't want you and your brother to get hurt or even touched by these two," she said bitterly glaring at Trevor and then to Shalise lifting a hand to the back of Shalise she let out a ecto-beam again. "Leave Ricky alone," she said low and cold as she sat back and looked at Trevor, "Like I said before, I'll go with you as long as you and little miss flirty over there leave Ricky and Myles alone." Myles lowered his fist, ready for a second punch. "But... Karen..." He sighed. "Fine..." he muttered, walking over to Ricky and slapping him in the face. Ricky blinked. "Huh? What was that for?" Myles smirked. "It was to make you stop acting like a total idiot..." Ricky, still a bit dizzy, glanced at Karen. "Oh, hi... What's going on?" He yawned, feeling extremely tired. "Well you clueless idiot, I've been kidnapped while you flirted with that girl!" she shouted at Ricky rubbing her head as she felt suddenly dizzy, "And this crazy person right here thinks I'm some kind of princess!" "Clueless...idiot..." Ricky's eyes widened. "Thinks you're a princess..." He turned to face Trevor. "Just what kind of sick joke is this? Let her go!" "He won't listen to you," she whispered looking over at Ricky, "I said I'd go with them if he would leave you two alone...I have no choice." "But... No, I won't let them! That's not fair!" Ricky glared at Trevor. "They don't have the right! You can't go! I don't care whether or not they leave me alone because you DO have a choice!" "Oh yeah, what would that be?" she asked Ricky as she sat up from the cage, "Risking you...and Myles on getting hurt?" she questioned as she looked threw the cage. "And, don't you worry about me." she said looking away, "Maybe...about what I feel for you will dissapper where ever they're taking me." "Feel...for...me?" Ricky blinked. "But... What do you... Do you mean..." "I don't care about getting hurt!" Myles interrupted. "I don't care!" "So you finally get what I'm saying Ricky...," she looked away, "Yes, I like you but it doesn't matter right? You have a girlfriend," she looked down at Trevor, "I'm ready..." she looked at the two of them for one last look of 'I'm sorry.' "But... I... She..." Ricky frowned, avoiding eye contact. "I...like you too... I like you a lot... I..." He finally looked directly at Karen. "I'll find you, and I'll bring you back here, no matter what. I'll fix this... I promise." "Don't worry!" Myles attempted to look brave. "Ricky never breaks his promises!" She blushed a bit then smiled and nodded, "Thank you...I'll be waiting." The ice cage shook a bit and she looked down at Trevor who was currently lifting his hand to her snapping his fingures she closed her eyes feeling drowzy she fainted in the cage. Ricky glared at Trevor as Karen fainted. "If you hurt her... If you even think of hurting her... I won't hesitate to kill you." Myles's eyes widened as he stared at his older brother. Kill? Ricky can...kill people? But... No, he never kills people. Sure, he gets into fights sometimes, but he's never killed anyone... But he talks about it as if it's unimportant... "I won't hesitate to kill you"... How can he say that with a straight face? How can he say that with such a calm demeanor? And what's he hiding? Trevor bowed before Ricky. "Now that you are cooperating, I can promise you that, on my honor, I will not harm her. As for my sister, I believe she would like to stay here. She's never been comfortable with palace life." He grinned. "So, as a trade, you may take my sister, and if I harm your friend, you may do what you like with her." Trevor snapped his fingers and Shalise immediately fainted, falling between Ricky and Myles. Ahh, mind control...So easily done. Trevor grabbed Karen and ran out the door, leaving Ricky, Myles, and Shalise in the infirmary. Karen slowly opened her eyes she felt wet all over her eyes opened up quickly, "Where am I?!" she breathed out bubbled excaping from her mouth, she looked down to see her mermaid fin? "What the heck?" she quickly got up and swam a bit upward to see she was in her mermaid form, "How did I change?" She looked down at Tia's pendent, "If I take this off, I'll be my self again," she said happy but stopped to see it was glowing, "Why is it glowing?" Trevor laughed at the girl just noticing that her necklace was glowing. The charm on the chain around his wrist was glowing as well. Squeezing the charm on his chain, the two were surrounded by a whirlpool which began spinning them in all directions, until it stopped, and the two were back in Atlantia. "Princess," Trevor began as he bowed, "welcome to Atlantia, your new home." She rubbed her head as the spinning stoped. -"Princess," Karen turned around to Trevor who was bowing before her again. -"Welcome to Atlantia, your new home." She looked down at him if he were crazy then shook her head, "I can't live here." she then looked down at Trevor, "I'm not a mermaid, I'm a-halfa...not a princess." she wanted to go back to Halfa High so bad, "This necklace it's...not mine," she thought then gasped, "Could they be meaning...who ever the necklaces holder is the princess of Atlantia?" "That would me Tia's the princess...I'll just have to play the part, until they come save me." she whispered under her breath shocked then looked at Trevor, "So...Trevor would you show me around my new home?" Trevor looked at the princess. Finally... he sighed internally. He listened to the princess's question then nodded. "But first, beloved princess and sister, I must know your true name. Father had never told us of it." "My name?..." she blinked many times, "What was Tia's name..I don't know!" she screamed in her head, "My name is Tia...but I sadly forgot my last name, it's been along time." she said sadly as she looked down at the sea floor, "May I see father?" "Forgot your last name? That's a tad bit strange..." Trevor gulped. I may have fried her brain when I used mind control on her! Great, now Dad's going to kill me! "Your last name is Renis! Now don't forget it!" Trevor yelled at Karen as he led her to the castle in the middle of the city. "You must make sure to act dignified around Father, he tends to lose his temper..." "So now my names Tia Renis? Great I stole someones idenety..." she swam after Trevor as he began to the castle, "The castle is so beautiful..." she said breathless at the sight then nodded, "I won't act up in front of Father, you have my word." she said sarcasticly to him as she sighed, "Is it in here?" she asked looking up at the big doors. "Yes, it is." He said, not catching her sarcasm. Leading her through the doors, Trevor brought Karen to the throne. Taking on a royal demeanor, he began, "Your magesty, I come bringing news of our conquest! With me I bring the royal princess, Tia Renis! But, on a darker note, the fair lady, Shalise Renis was lost in battle. I tried to save her, but I could not, without risking the beautiful princess's life, whom I bring to you!" Trevor pushed Karen toward the throne, where the king, immediately broke down to tears. "My sweet, sweet Tialee, you are home! I can hardly believe it! Come, child, and hug your father!" The king, Marshal Renis, grabbed Karen and gave her a bear hug. During this joyful scene, one person did not look so joyful. To the right of the King, the queen Galin glared at Karen. "F-Father, it's good to see you too but I can not breath," Karen said as the king let go, "Act like Tia! Oh thank you Drama classes!" she looked up at the king and bowed, "I'm so happy to be home." she looked over at the queen Galin glaring at her she didn't say anything but bow. "It's good to see you too mother," she said respectfuly already getting that feeling of 'I hate everyone' feeling. "Oh how much fun will I have.." she thought sarcasticly then turned back to the king. "Father?" she questioned, "Not that I'm not happy to be home but...why send brother and sister after me...?" she said softly and sweet, "To bring me home?" The king looked at his daughter. How much she had grown since the last time he had seen her... Marshal listened to his daughter's question, then beckoned all in the room, including the queen and Trevor to leave. "My dearest Tialee, I have been waiting fourteen years to bring you home. After learning that you had come to the esteemed school, Halfa High, I had to send you the royal crest, which I see that you wear to this day." Marshal's broad grin sunk a little as he began his story further. "You, Tialee, were my first born child, and in that sense, you will be queen soon, so I must train you in the ways of royalty. I am sorry for having left you when you were a baby, but I had royal duties, and... I was afraid to tell your mother about what I really am. You...haven't told your mother about your abilities, have you?" "Oh crud..." she though as she shook her head at the king, "No father, I haven't told mother anything at all..." she then swam in front of him, "Father? one more thing...after you have trained me, could I um, go back to camp and get all my things?" she questioned him. "Myles...Ricky hurry up please!" ----- "Squee, keep it down! Humans might not be able to see you but they could good enough hear you!" a girl with long snow white hair said scolding a little ghost beside her head. "Now if I'm right, what I senced was in here!" The girl known as Flora Flames opened the infirmary door to see Myles and Ricky up ahead she smiled cheerfully, "Hiya hiya!" she shouted while smiling a wide smile, "I heard someone calling for my help!" she took out a card handing it to Myles. "Here you go cutie, Detective Flora Flames is here to help with kidnappings, murders, and so on!!" she lifted her hand above her head, "And this is my little acisstent, Squee!" she pushed Squee over abit, "Go say hi to them!" "Squee!!" said a blue little ghost as it appeared out of no where, "I am Squeenice to meet you!" "Perhaps...Well, you do live with your mother after all. But first, we must celebrate you being here! It's time for a royal feast!" His voice boomed throughout the castle and servants came in from each corner, carrying plates of food with them, piled ten feet high. "I hope you enjoy getting to know your father." Marshal beamed and gave his daughter another hug. ---- Shalise blinked and found herself sprawled on the floor between Myles and Ricky, but there was a newcomer to the room. Slightly transparent, the girl looked at Shalise, who realized what she was. "G-G-GHOST!" She screamed, her voice rattling the infirmary walls Karen smiled sheepishly up at Marshal and nodded, "Yes I can't wait to get to know you ether," sitting down in a big chair she looked at the food then at a servant, "Could I have a salad?" she asked simpley looking over at Marshal, "So, father, what's changed sence...well I was born?" ------- Flora looked down at Shalise and smiled whide, "You bet your sweet bippy I'm a ghost!" she said proud, "Squee help this girl up please!" "Yes mam!" Squee said wrapping his little tail around the girls arm, "Up! up! up!" Flora then looked at Ricky, "Ahh I know you...you're with that guy named Death are you not?" she questioned, "And a half-ghost hybrid! Wow oh wow how rare now a days do we see that? Not vary!" she smiled, "You need help finding the girl named Karen Kano age 15, don't you?" "I can help easy!" she said proud bending down to Myles, "That necklace is a tracker sorta to her, it holds a ghost just like Squee here, I gave it to Karen just in case something like this happened but I can see, that this little human named Myles wants to be just like his old brother, a halfa, or so the sorces say." she stould up and put a hand of her hand and smiled as she nodded her head, "I can surely help you out...and trust me you'll need it." Ricky twitched slightly. "You're...awfully perky... And how do you know all this? What are you, some kind of stalker? And I don't know what you're talking about... I've never heard of anyone named 'Death'... You must be mistaking me for someone else..." Myles sighed, glancing suspiciously at Ricky for a split second before turning his attention back to Flora. "Okay. Thank you for your assistance! Now, would you have any idea where Karen is at the moment?" Shalise looked at Ricky, then back at Flora. "And would you have any idea why I just woke up in a room full of half-ghosts and ghosts?" Shalise looked at her arm. The bracelet that would have taken her back home was gone. "And would any of you happen to know what happened to my brother and my way back home?!" "Shut up!" Ricky glared at Shalise. "It's your brother's stupid fault Karen's gone in the first place, and I'm sure you helped him get here... So just shut up!" He took a step toward her, creating an ectoblast in his hand. "No... It's ALL your fault, isn't it!?" Myles blinked, too stunned to do anything. What the...? Ricky never had anger management issues... I'm definitely missing something here... Shalise tried to cover herself with her hands, for she had no idea how to defend herself, or attack. "I...I don't know what's going on here," She began as a tear came out of her eye, "I was just sent here to get the pricess and bring her home...I don't even know why I'm here..." She cried, getting into a fetal position. "It would've helped if you had found the RIGHT princess, you IDIOT..." Ricky said coldly, still wondering whether or not he should throw the ectoblast. "Maybe they shouldn't have sent incompetent fools such as yourself... Now tell me where your brother has taken Karen if you want me to spare your life..." Myles stared at his older brother, still completely stunned. There he goes again with the death threats... "M-My brother has taken her to Atlantia, her home...She was wearing the royal crest...You know, the heart shaped crystal...That was all the information we were given to find her...There's a problem though..." She gulped, afraid that this boy was going to kill her when she told him. "Her home is not Atlantia!" Ricky felt like destroying the girl right there, but he was held back by one thing: his need of information. "How can you find someone if you can only identify her by a stupid crystal!?" He let himself calm down for a moment before speaking quietly. His eyes glowed a dangerous red color as he glared at Shalise. "So... What's the problem, then?" Shalise looked at Myles, hoping to find some kind of hope in his eyes. Ricky was glaring at her, she could feel it. "The problem is...I don't know how to get back home without my bracelet. My b-brother must have taken it..." Ricky was now shaking with rage. "So... That's it, then." His voice was eerily calm; even creepier than when he had been shouting. "That means... You're completely useless... And you've helped kidnap someone I care about..." The ectoblast disappeared. Instead, Ricky unsheathed his twin knives. Myles stared at Ricky, wide-eyed. "Y-you can't kill her! It's not her fault!" Shalise cringed at Ricky as he unsheathed his knifes. Goodbye, cruel world... she bagan in her mind, but then heard Myles pipe up. "It's not her fault!" She heard Myles say. Not my fault? I thought everything that's ever happened to me was my fault... Shalise looked at Ricky, hoping to find compassion in his eyes. "Hoping I'll spare you? Not likely..." Ricky glanced at one of the knives for a moment. "I just got these polished... Too bad I'll have to clean blood off of them so soon..." Before he could react, Ricky felt a hand grab his wrist. Myles was frowning at him. "What's the matter with you, big brother? What happened to you? Why do you want to kill people? I'm angry and sad 'cause Karen's gone... I know you are too, but you have to get a grip! Put those knives away right now!" "Who are you supposed to be, my mother?" Ricky glared at Myles, but sheathed his knives nonetheless. "That wasn't so hard, was it?" Myles turned to Shalise. "By the way, I don't like you. At all. I'm only defending you for his sake. And I'm going to hold a grudge until we get Karen back. So there!" Shalise smiled gratefully, then looked puzzled. "K-Karen...That doesn't sound like te right name to me. You see, when I was little, I used to sneak into my dad's room when I couldn't sleep, and he always be mumbling some name...Fila...Tie...Tilee...No, I think the name was Tialee...But, if that wasn't the princess,who was it?" Shalise stood up slightly and looked at the floor. "Well, it definitely isn't Karen..." Ricky glanced longingly at his knives. "Don't you even think of using those again!" Myles said sharply. "Anyway, there's definitely a mistake here." Ricky glared at Shalise. "So you're telling me you don't know how to find her? Is that it? I want to bring her back right now... Imagine being kidnapped by some incompetent strangers who think you're a completely different person..." Shalise looked back at the floor. "You know, I'm starting to wonder why father sent two thirteen-year olds to find a princess...One that's been missing for fourteen years herself." She looked at her wrist again, and began to mumble. "Stupid Trevor...Always thinking he can make people do what he wants...Then gain what he wants and leave those who helped him in the first place to suffer for what he does." Shalise looked on the ground and saw a piece of crystal on the ground. "Could it be..." She pointed to the piece of crystal. "That...May just help us find our way to Atlantia." "It better help..." Ricky continued to glare at Shalise. "I also have this!" Myles removed the necklace and held it up. "This belongs to Karen. I don't know if it'll help track her, though... Anyway, I wanna go NOW! Come on, come on, which way!?" Flora took the necklace away from Myles, "Like I said it tracks into Karen, let me see the shard please." Myles handed over the necklace. "I need it back, though! Without that necklace I can't use the ghost powers Karen gave me!" ------- Marshal plucked a sald from one of the trays and handed it to Karen. "Darling, from the time you were born? Well, I remarried, had two children, and was crowned king of Atlantia. Is that what you wanted to know, dearest? There's been a problem though, dear...Worlds are coming apart at the seams. Apparantly, none of the different creatures of this universe can stay in peace with each other. That's why we have called you, dear to come to the throne. You are a halfa, a bridge between two worlds, the human and mermainian. We were hoping to settle the disputes between our different worlds. Now dear, I hope your trip here wasn't too hard, was it? Did Sir Trevor treat you kindly? DId you know that I know you're not really my daughter?" ---- Shalise looked at the necklace in Myle's hand. "That might just work perfectly," she sighed. Looking at Flora, Shalise said, "Would YOU happen to know where Atlantia is?" "Calm down, who do you think is the one who gave it to Karen?" she asked as she lifted up the shard and the necklace forcing the white shard into the necklace a weird flash of light englufed everyone appearing under the sea with mermaid fins! "Squee! I'm a fish!" Squee shouted in a shout. "I take it this is Atlantis?" Flora questioned looking at her strange green ghostly fin, "Where would Karen be?" she asked Shalise. Ricky twitched slightly. "Not...cool... I look like a total--" "Cool!" Myles interrupted him. "This is so awesome! So... Where's Karen then? Hm? Hm? Hm?" "Um, she'd most likely be in the castle...With her...I mean... my father." Shalise looked at Myles. He's really cute...I wonder how much of an age difference there is between us... ---- Marshal looked at Karen. "Well, are you going to say anything?" "It wasn't so hard..." she said pokeing her salad. -"Did Sir Trevor treat you kindly?" "Define kindly.." she thought as she put down the fork and nodded, "He's not half bad..." -"Did you know that I know you're not really my daughter?" Karen gasped and looked up at the king, "Looks like my act is up..." she said quietly as she stould from the table, "How long did you know?" she asked looking up at Marshal, "And what are you...what are you going to do?" Ricky just nodded. "Hey, why are you staring at me?" Myles cocked his head, looking at Shalise. Marshal smiled, "I knew from the fact that you weren't screaming like crazy for Trevor to let you go...Any girl with my genes would be punching him every two seconds...Plus, the fact that you don't have the star shaped mole on your neck that Tia has sort of gave it away...And no, I'm not going to do anything to you, I'm just going to help you find your way back home." ---- Shalise blushed at Myle's comment and turned her head away, seeing Karen and Marshal come through the front doors. "Look! There they are!" ----- Trevor watched the king and Karen come out the doors. "I'll deal with you later, young man," his father said to him gruffly, as he swam to meet the group outside the castle Karen looked up at the king and smiled, "Thank you, really." she said as she saw up ahead of her Ricky, Myles, Flora, Squee, and Shalise. "Guys!" she said extremely releaved and happy all at the same time. Shalise looked at Karen. "Well, she's here..." She said looking at Myles, "Are you mad at me anymore?" Then looking at Karen, Shalise said, "So, Karen, if you're not the princess, then who is?" "Her name is Tia, a friend of mine at camp see she let me barrow this necklace, she saved my life," she lifted the necklace up, "If I take the necklace off here, I'll go back to my normal halfa self..." She looked at the angry face of Myles, "Don't be angry...the son named Trevor just mis-took me for Tia..." she then looked at Ricky's eyes, "Ricky...what are you thinking?" "He threatened to kill when you were 'appsent' from camp," Flora said as she grabbed Squee by the tail. "He what?..." she turned and looked up at him, "Is that true?" Flora felt the hot atmosphere, "We'll deal with this back at the camp!" "How can we get back though?" she turned to the king, "Is there a way?" Marshal looked at Karen. "As long as you have all the pieces to the necklace, it can take you back. Just tap it twice. Oh, and if you see Tia, could you tell her that her father would like to see her sometime...But, when she's ready, not when the world is." Marshal looked at his daughter Shalise, who was staring dreamily at Myles. "And I believe Shalise here would like to come back with you to your camp..." He winked at his daughter, and put a small choker on her neck, which contained the family crest. "This will let you remain human as long as you don't get wet. Take care, children..." ---- "Just tap it twice?...Oh okay!" she tapped it once then once again...nothing happened, "Why isn't it working?" she looked down at the necklace, "A peice is missing!" Flora lifted up the ghost necklace, "It's in here, fused with the ecto-goo already." "Flora...this could work." she took the necklace away from her and it glew along with the heart necklace, the crystal was full again! "It worked!" she looked back at Marshal, "Thank you for everything, King Marshal!" she said waving, "And I'll be sure to tell Tia!" with that they dissappered. -------- Appearing back next to the lake Karen rubbed her eyes, "Sand in my eyes..." she glanced over at everyone else, "Everyone alright?" "Squee! There okay!" Squee shouted as he circled around them. "Who knew the guy partnered with Death named Ricky liked you Karen." Flora said floating down beside Karen. "Death..?" she questioned then gasped., "Death...partners?!" she stould up and quickly ran to Ricky pulling him away from everyone and turned around to him, "Ricky tell me the truth...do you...are you, partners with Death?" Ricky frowned, looking away. "I...uh..." He bowed his head, hiding the look of pain on his face. "I'm...not going to lie to you... I... I'm...sorry... Feel free...to kick, punch, slap...or kill me... I deserve it..." He turned and began to walk away. Back with the others, Myles glanced at Shalise. "Are you still staring at me? Hey, where's Ricky going?" "Ricky," she quickly stould in front of him, "Look at me." she ordered him as she stared up at him, "Just tell me, what's Death planning this time?" she asked frowning, "I helped him when he was still good back at Halfa High, something must have happened." She looked up at him once again, "Don't walk away from me please..." she said with a plea in her eye, "He's Oriels brother...I think there the last of a group that attacked last year," she said to him looking away, "Is it Death's fault that I haven't seen any of my friends around camp?" she asked knowing the silence was a yes, "Then, let's go save them." ---- Shalise blushed and looked away from Myles. "Are you still mad at me? Even though your friend's back?" She noticed Ricky leaving. "I don't know where he's going,but wherever he is going, Karen's going with him..." "Nah... It's okay, 'cause Karen's safe now. I wonder why Ricky looks so upset..." Myles shrugged and looked back at Shalise. "So...um, what's your name? I...sort of...forgot..." He gave a nervous laugh, leaning back against a tree. Shalise gave a nervous laugh in reply to Myle's. "My name is Shalise," she said, "And, now that I've told you mine, would you mind reminding me of your's?" - - - "You want to know what he's planning..." Ricky was still staring at the ground. "I'm afraid I can't tell you that... I, uh... I...don't know..." Okay, so it was a half-lie... I know the main plan, but I haven't got a clue about his motives... So, technically...I don't know what he's planning, right? So it's just a half-lie? ...Right? Yeah, but...it's still a lie... Karen looked down and stepped away, "Okay...but please," she kept her head down, "Let me go with you." she looked up at him, "Why aren't you looking at me?..." she asked turning away, "I get it...I'll just leave you alone." she began walking away from him. ----- "That's a nice name." Myles smiled at Shalise. "I'm Myles, but I'm also a superhero-in-training!" Why did I say that? Now that I think about it...being a superhero-in-training sounds kind of silly... "Oh, by the way... Why were you staring at me before? Is there something wrong? Do I have something on my face?" Myles scratched his head, looking slightly confused. - - - "Karen...wait..." Ricky forced his eyes to move until he was looking at Karen. "I just don't want you to get hurt. Death will kill you without a second thought if he wants to. If you're willing to take that risk...then you can come with me." I guess this makes me a 'double agent', huh? Hey. Wait a minute. Double agents are the guys who always end up dead... Well, at least this summer will be interesting... Karen stoped walking and looked back at Ricky, "I've known if I came with you I'm risking my life...and I'm okay with that so," she looked back at him, "I'm comming with you." Ricky sighed. "...Just be careful, okay?" How am I going to explain this to Death? And in front of Karen? Would he count it as betrayal? Or maybe I shouldn't explain it at all... Or maybe I could give Death a subtle signal or something... Hey, maybe I could pretend I don't know where Death is... Then I could avoid any confrontation whatsoever... Argh, I hate this... "I will!" she said as she turned away from him, "Which way is it to where he's hidding?" she questioned him looking back at him, "Well, go on you can lead!" she said as she put her hair behind her ear. "I, uh... He's...um..." Ricky sighed, pointing slightly to the left. "Th-that way... I...think..." He glanced back at Karen. "Oh, and one more thing... Be on your guard, and don't trust anyone. Not even your friends." "Why is he stampering so much?" she thought as she lifted a brow at Ricky and nodded, "Okay so it's left?" she began walking that way, "Don't worry, I'll be fine, and the 'don't trust anyone' thing is easy for me...I'll be able to sense it." Ricky nodded. "Okay... And...uh...this might sound strange, but... If you, um, see an apple...just don't eat it, okay?" What do I do!? What am I supposed to do!? I'm leading Karen right to him... What if he attacks us? What if he doesn't? What if he asks questions? What am I supposed to say!? "Okay...?" she said looking at Ricky sweating and stampering, "Ricky, you're nervious that I'll find out something aren't you?" she asked placing her hand onto his back, "You're stampering alot." Ricky shuddered slightly. "N-no, I'm not nervous... I... I'm perfectly fine! Th-there's nothing wrong... I was...just...thinking... That's all..." "Ricky..." she let out a sigh not knowing if he'll pull away from her she wrapped her arms around his stomach, "Don't be nervous, what happened to that quiet and strong personality?" Ricky's eyes widened at Karen's touch, which made him stammer even more. "R-right... Th-thanks... I'm...j-just...sort of...afraid, I g-guess... We're outnumbered, d-definitely, but th-that's not what I'm afraid of r-right now..." What if he kills her? What if he kills us both? What if he turns us into mindless slaves? What if he sends his slaves to attack us? What if Karen hates me after this? "Ricky!" she suddenly shouted knocking him out of his thoughts, "Please, don't think of all those things," she felt him tense up, "I won't touch you, okay...that'll make you feel better, right?" she said as her head stayed down and her arms pulled away, "It must feel awkward for you sence you well...never did hug me back at the infirmary..." she felt a small blush creep on her face, "Forget it...I was um, just- just rambling." Ricky pushed his other thoughts out of his mind, regaining his composure. "No, it's not your fault. I've just got a lot of things on my mind. Here..." He awkwardly put his arms around her for a moment before letting go, smiling slightly. "Besides, I'm always getting myself into awkward situations, anyway..." He began to walk again. "Oh, by the way... You're blushing..." Karen looked away blushing even more after the odd-hug, "I am not!" she said back as she followed him, "But thank you Ricky," she simpley said as she hugged her arms, "Even if you are clueless, and at times an idiot, and hey you get into alot more awkward things then me!" she looked up at him even if her face was still red, "Just thank you about being worried but it'll be okay." Ricky stopped walking and looked back at Karen for a moment. "Hey... I'm not an idiot! And you're still blushing!" He laughed, putting his hands in his pockets and smiling slightly. Karen felt her face heat up even more after he pointed it out twice she stoped walking as well, "At times you are!" she said back at him smiling abit threw the blush, "Let's take a short break, okay?" she said as she let out a sigh, "We can get out of this 'awkward situation' this way or we could make it ten times worse!" Ricky grinned, sitting down on a rock. "Well, maybe I am a bit of an idiot... But I can't help it..." He remained silent for a moment before asking, "Am I really that clueless?" Karen looked over at him sitting down so she desided to sit behind him, "Are you really clueless? Yes. And I know clueless when I see it," she said smiling abit again, "But you can't help it, it's just something that'll come out of the blue I would know." she looked over her shoulder at him, man was his face close... "Stupid.." she mummbled to herself rubbing her head, "Don't think about that..." she said under her breath. "How could you think about kissing him?" she said a bit to loud for comfort and gulped, "Oh no, said that to loud!" she screamed in her head looking away from Ricky. Ricky smirked, even though his heart had skipped a beat. "Did you say something? Heh... Give me some more credit... I'm not that clueless..." He glanced casually at Karen before pulling his eyes away and staring straight ahead. Her heart was besting fast and she dared to look back at him, "I said...um, I said don't think about...kissing you," she said softly looking back at him again then down at her purple boots, "I know it's a stupid thought." Ricky smiled, staring at his shoes. "This conversation gets more awkward with every passing minute... Hm. But maybe it's really not such a stupid thought..." What do I do...? What do I do!? What am I supposed to do!? "What is he going to do?" she thought as her heart beated fast she stould up quickly, "I-I'm sorry," she said as she sat down in front of him then once again realized how close his face was she looked away then down Ricky reached over and lifted up Karen's chin so she was looking right at him. "Don't be sorry." He smiled, leaning closer to Karen. "You know... Someone's going to make me regret this... And I really shouldn't be doing this..." He hesitantly leaned even closer, desperately trying to pull himself away at the same time. The result of his indecisive thoughts left him trembling slightly, staring at Karen. I shouldn't be doing this... I really shouldn't be doing this! Why...can't I...look away? Why am I so stupid!? Why was I 'nice' to her in the first place!? I'm not supposed to be nice! "What am I supposed to do...?" he whispered to himself, still gazing at Karen. "Maybe we should move on?" she thought was she was fixing to look at him but felt her chin being lifted up her eyes whidened then softly she closed them half way, "..Don't do something you'll regret doing..." she said softly while gulping. "What's he going to do?" she thought feeling her heart beating extremely fast. "Ricky..." she whispered out as he got closer, "If you'll regret this...don't do it." she said slighty, "Why am I saying this?" she whispered to herself slightly as her eyes closed shut to push pack tears. Ricky smiled. "I always do things I regret." He hesitantly leaned in toward Karen, kissing her on the lips before pulling away. He stood up, still feeling his heart beating rapidly. "Anyway, I think Death is this way." He pointed straight ahead and began to walk away, whistling to himself. Karen looked up at Ricky, "What is he doing?" she thought as she felt his lips against hers her eyes whidened then closed as she kissed back then pulled away when he did standing up, "Y-Yeah okay, this w-way?" she asked hearing him whistling while her heart beated fast them sighed, "That was...wow.." Ricky nodded, still smiling. "Yeah, it was. And the best part is, I'm probably going to be slapped by someone because of it." He continued to whistle cheerfully, pointing to the right. "This way." "What?" she stoped and looked at Ricky like he was a crazy person, "Who'll slap you later because of it..?" Ricky continued walking. "Ah...no one... We're almost there, I think... Yep, we're pretty close..." They had entered a clearing surrounded by different types and sizes of apple trees. "Of course he would choose a location around here... " Ricky murmured to himself. "Apple freak..." "Wait a second Ricky," she grabbed him by the arm, "Answer me, who will slap you because of it?" she then noticed all the apples, "Death really likes apples this much?" she shook her head, "That fruitloop.." "Fruit...loop..." Ricky murmured, suddenly bursting into a fit of laughter. When he finally managed to calm himself down, he grinned. "Sorry... Just...reminded me of something...back...h-home...a long time ago..." I hate memories... What's the point...? Besides, I'm not as clueless as she thinks I am... But you can't keep avoiding her question forever... You have a girlfriend, and you KNOW it... You're going to regret this, you stupid, clueless idiot... Karen looked over at Ricky's sudden burst of laughter, "..You keep avoiding my questions.." she said stoping looking back at him, "Don't lie to me Ricky, you regret kissing me even if it was just for a second don't you?" she looked down, "It hit me but after that kiss you said you'll regret it later on, and I had a feeling it was because of your girlfriend..." Shacking her head she looked back at him, "But you made it clear that you regreted it." "Well... I...just don't want to upset her..." Ricky sighed, sitting down and leaning against an apple tree. "I don't know what she'll think or say... To be honest...that's the only reason why I regret it... I mean, I really like y--OUCH!" An apple had fallen from the tree, hitting him directly in the head. Get used to it, Ricky... You'll probably be getting hit a lot in the near future... Death will probably attempt to kill you if you actually switch sides... She picked up the apple and stared at it then looked over at Ricky lifting it up she threw it across the room upset before sitting back down, "This is really messed up...you're with someone and I like you alot but geez..." she closed her eyes and put her head down, "Now I'm starting to regret...it." "I... I know..." Ricky followed Karen exactly; he put his head down and closed his eyes. "And it's all my fault... I... I'm sorry..." "Well..." she looked over at him as he put his head down, "Who do you like...more?" she questioned, "Why am I asking this?!" she screamed in her head, "It's not like me at all..." She bent down in front of him tilting her head a bit, "Kiss me, Ricky..." Ricky's eyes widened. Wh-who do I like...more? How am I supposed to make a decision like that!? Where do my loyalties lie? What am I supposed to do!? He lifted his head, feeling his heartbeat speed up again. "I... I...c-c-can't...make th-that decision...right now..." Ricky couldn't pull his eyes away from her. His entire body seemed to be paralyzed. "I... I can't..." he whispered, trembling slightly. "That didn't stop you before back there in the forest," she said staying still where she was bending down. "You're afraid that they'll be a spark aren't you." she said to him seeing him slightly trembling, "So why hold back Ricky, I'm right here!" she said to him in a low shout. "What's gotten into me..." "Y-yeah..." Ricky whispered. "A-and...sparks start f-fires... And fires destroy everything..." He reached out with a trembling hand but pulled it back immediately. No, no, no! Stop it! Ricky, what are you doing, you idiot!? "Then why not?" she asked in a quiet whisper, "Why won't you kiss me to see if we have that spark?..." she saw him pull his hand back, "You don't want to find out do you?" "Y-yeah... I mean, no... I mean..." Ricky looked away. "M-maybe... But... I... I can't..." As soon as the words left his mouth he felt his eyes move back to Karen. Mistake... Mistake... Really bad mistake... Still trembling, Ricky couldn't pull his eyes away. "What's wrong with me...?" he whispered, feeling his face grow warm. He reached his hand out again, bringing Karen closer. Now what am I doing!? Idiot, idiot, idiot... "I...can't..." he whispered. But the problem is, you CAN... "What is going on?!...This isn't like me..." she closed her eyes half way, "Yes you can..." she whispered to him softly while blushing, "You can do anything Ricky...anything." Ricky shook his head. "Y-you're wrong... I...c-can't do anything..." What the heck is going on? This isn't like me at all... First of all, I don't stammer. At all. I think I'm losing it... And it's because of a girl! What's the matter with me!? He leaned in closer to Karen, still trembling. What are you doing!? His face was extremely close to hers now; their lips were mere inches apart. Ricky, stop it right now... You can still pull away... You can still turn back... Ricky finally kissed her gently, sending a shudder through his entire body. ...Sparked... IDIOT... "Ricky I'm s-..." she said before he kissed her cutting her off she closed her eyes and kissed him back, "There's a spark?...oh no...pull away Karen!" she screamed in her head but her arms went around his back, "I'm not like this...why am I- why am I doing this..?" she kissed him deeper. Ricky... Time. To. Stop. NOW. Ricky finally broke off the kiss, staring breathlessly at Karen. His arms were around her and their faces were inches apart. "N-none of this...ever happened..." he whispered, suddenly feeling dizzy. And don't you even THINK about kissing her again... Ricky gently pulled Karen even closer, resting his head on her shoulder. He remained silent, afraid he would say something he'd regret. He knew he was shaking again, and his heart was beating fast. What's wrong with me...? Why am I...acting like this...? Karen simpley looked up feeling a hot blush on her face she was breathing deep, "Don't say anything...you'll regret." she looked down at him still breathing deep putting her head onto his head as he pulled her closer, "I'm...sorry." she breathed out, "But...I felt a spark..." she said quietly closing her eyes once more. "You can't...kiss me again." she breathed out finally cetching her breath. "This is my fault.." "S-so did I..." Ricky smiled, lifting his head up. "Hey... M-maybe I...actually can... Wh-what, are you afraid now? I'm terrified... But...what are you afraid of right now? Wh-what are you thinking about?" "I'm...scared." she said looking at him then looked away, "I'm scared...I'll say something that'll regret..." she said to him quiet putting her head onto his chest, "Why...am I acting like this?" she thought as she looked back up at him not able to move. "Th-then...don't say anything..." Ricky wanted to kiss her again, but something held him back, leaving him trembling again. "I...know I'll say s-something I'll regret..." Stop it right now, you idiot! Before you do anything...you need to have a talk with Kyle... Yeah, and I'll make her cry... So what am I supposed to do? She put her head back down and shook her head, "What...are you going to do?" she asked quietly as she looked at nothing inpiticular. "...D-Don't kiss me again Ricky, I want to but..." she closed her eyes and started backing out of him "..You can't." she then opened her eyes, "You're in love with your girlfriend..." she said sadly, "I can't say anything else...if I do, I'll regret it." Ricky bowed his head, closing his eyes. "Karen... I'm...really, really sorry... I just don't know what to do... I haven't seen Kyle...for days... I don't know what's going on... And I really like you... But... I... I'm just really confused right now... I feel like I'm lost..." A tear rolled down his cheek as Ricky looked up at the sunny, completely clear sky. "It must be raining..." he murmured. Karen closed her eyes and bent down into his chest frowning, "I'm sorry..." she whispered in his chest, "Don't...cry please, Ricky," she said quiet and sad, "Don't...go into this Ricky..." she said as her eyes watered up. "I lo-...don't say it..." she shut up. "I won't,...say it." "Not crying..." Ricky shook his head. "It's... It's raining, see?" He pointed up at the sky, wiping his eyes with his other hand. "Don't say you're sorry... Isn't today filled with enough regret?" He stood up, looking away. "We should...get out of the rain now... You'll catch a cold..." "Ricky, I know today's full of regret but I..." she looked up at him as he looked away, "I don't regret that kiss..." she stould up week-kneed keeping up her weight with the tree behind her, "...I alway's liked the rain...I don't ever care if I'll get sick.." She looked over at him, "I care though...that, you didn't kiss me again..." "Okay I'm seriously freaked out...why did I just say that?" she thought as she stared at him. Ricky stared at the ground. "I don't regret that kiss..." she said... "The worst part is... I...don't regret it, either..." His voice was barely above a whisper. "And I know I should..." "Why didn't you though?" she asked leaning against the tree, "It's...It's not to late you know...you can still." she was was one shivering now at what she was saying..."You can still kiss me, as much as you want..." Ricky's eyes widened. "N-no... I can't, Karen. I'm sorry, but I just can't..." He grabbed his own wrist to keep himself from reaching out to her. Why is she doing this to me? Why? Slightly trembling, he lifted his eyes, gazing almost fearfully at Karen. He took a shaky step toward her, still trying to hold himself back. What's the matter with me? I'm going to regret this... Will Kyle ever be able to forgive me? "K-Karen... Why... Why are you...acting like this?" he whispered, taking another step closer. You've already made this mistake before, Ricky! Stay away, you idiot! "...Why am I acting like this is right, I don't even know.." she thought as she saw him take another step towards her, "...I'm-..." she shook her head no and looked away. "I'm in love with you..." she thought in her head. "Karen... Just...tell me why..." Ricky clenched his fists, forcing himself to look away. "Please..." Karen looked down and as she felt guilty for feeling like this, she couldn't tell him... "...I can't...tell you.." "...You can't...tell me..." Ricky repeated in an empty voice. "Okay... I...understand..." He looked away, feeling guilty for reasons he couldn't figure out. "I'm...sorry... I...shouldn't have...asked..." Karen looked down blushing a deep scarlet, "Don't be sorry!" she shouted looking up at him even if her face was bluching, "Don't be...sorry." she whispered looking down at her shoes, "I'm..in love with you.." she whispered feeling guilty. "..I'm really...sorry." Ricky nodded, reaching out and gently touching Karen's cheek. His face was slightly pink. "...You're...blushing again..." She...said she loves me... What...am I supposed to do? What can I do? In a situation like this... What do I do? She's obviously upset... He pressed his lips to hers, gently putting his arms around her. His heartbeat began to speed up again and he closed his eyes, trying to get rid of his sudden dizziness. This is...all I can do... Karen looked up at Ricky as he touched her cheek, her face abit bright then before as he pressed his lips against hers sending that chill threw out her body once again, "...This is all he can do...he can't answer me back..." she thought closing her eyes kissing him back she put her hands onto his chest as her eyes watered up, "I'm in love with him...I can't help it.." After another moment, Ricky pulled away, breaking off the kiss. "Karen... I'm so sorry... I don't know how this is going to turn out in the end... I don't want to hurt you..." His voice cracked and he clung to her even tighter, as if he was afraid she would suddenly disappear. "I'm sorry... I'm so sorry..." Karen put her head down onto his sholder as he tighted his grip around her, she couldn't help but cry, "Don't be sorry...it's my fault...I'm the one that fell in love with you, I just...I just want you happy..." she hugged him back thinking he was going to let her go and walk away, from her...forever. "No... I should be..." Ricky whispered, squeezing her even tighter. "I... I... Um, sorry..." He let go, backing up a step. "I j-just thought... N-never mind... Sorry about that... I...didn't mean to..." He avoided eye contact, staring dejectedly at the ground. She felt him squeeze her tighter then let go seeing him staring at the ground, "What..?..You thought what?" she asked as she ignored her tears. Ricky brushed away a tear from Karen's cheek. "I thought...you'd...walk away...I guess... It was a stupid thought... I'm...sorry..." "It's not a stupid thought..." she said as she looked up at him, "I thought...I thought you were going to walk away and leave me here...as well," she sighed tring to rub her brown eyes, "...I'm a mess." she mumbled under her breath. Ricky ran a hand through his messy hair. "S-so am I... Maybe...can we find Death some other time? I don't think I can right now... I can't explain it, but... I feel...like all my energy is gone..." "I understand..." she said shakeing her head and sitting down against the tree, "I can't stand up anymore." Ricky, who was also beginning to feel as if he couldn't walk, scooped Karen up in his arms. "Come on..." he murmured. "I'll bring you to your cabin..." He stumbled over a tree root, managing to make sure Karen never hit the ground. "Which number are you in, anyway?" Karen blushed slightly, "...Um, Cabin Kat #1." she said to him as she looked down, "Don't push yourself, if you need to rest then rest I can try and make it back on my own," she said as she felt dizzy with a tired spell? "I'm extremely dizzy." "What are you two doing here?!" Karen looked over Rickys sholder seeing Oriel, "What are you doing here?" Karen questioned back...man was this ghost a pain in the butt. "I guard this area," Oriel said with a low growl, "But sence you know where it is, you're not leaving." "You again..." Ricky growled, glaring at Oriel. He gently placed Karen on the ground, out of the way incase there was a fight. "Wait a minute... Did you just...hear a scream?" He glanced around, trying to pinpoint the direction of the sound. "That was...Shalise let's get out of here and see-!" Karen covered her mouth blinking looking up at Oriel who was laughing over at her. "You're not leaving didn't you hear me before?" Oriel said between snickers before turning to Ricky, "Well well, if it isn't the clueless idiot from before." "It's that stupid poision again...what's she going to do to Ricky?!" she thought as she tried speaking. "No matter, I'll take care of you." Oriel said lifting her hand up, "Or more like, Karen over there will take care of you." her hand glew white and Karen gasped holding her chest. "W-What...?" Karen's heart began beating and she took her ghost form, "What does she mean I'll take care of him..?" standing to her feet her eyes glowed the crimpson red, which meant she was not herself. "The only way to free her is to fight her..." Oriel waved goodbye, "Goodbye, loverboy." she dissappered from sight. Ricky backed away a step. "I'm...not going to fight you... You can throw as many punches as you want, but I refuse to fight back... Come on, Karen..." he mumbled to himself. "I can't fight this battle for you... You have to win by yourself..." Karen took at step towards him as if she didn't hear him smiling an evil looking smile. "Ricky you need to run, before I-...attack you." she thought in her head as she lifted her hand up and the wind formed around her hand making a wind-blade. All she felt was...wanting to kill anything that got in her way she stoped before she brought the sword down, "How did I snap out of it last time...how do I?" she brought the sword down. "..I'm sorry.." excaped in a murmur as she jumped back. "I remember how!...Ricky you need to scream something, that'll snap me out of this!" she shouted in her mind as she ran into attack him again. Ricky blinked, taking another step back. "I need to snap her out of it...somehow... Argh, what am I supposed to do!?" He slapped a palm to his forehead. "I'm so bad at this kind of stuff..." Karen stuck the wind-blade into the ground and it dissappered back into the air, lifting up her hands she pointed them at Ricky charging up an ecto-blast. "Say..something...Ricky..." she whispered as she shot the ecto-blast. "Say...something..." Ricky repeated, watching the ectoblast as it came closer and closer. "Like what!? What am I supposed to say!?" He ducked onto the ground and rolled sideways, avoiding the ectoblast. "Come on, Karen! What am I supposed to say!?" What would shock her so much it would snap her out of this? "I don't know..." he murmured. "I don't know what to do... KAREN! Snap out of it, already..." Karen didn't listen she formed another one in her hands lifting it up to him shooting it at him but diffrent from before a tint of red was mixed in the ecto-blast. "...I don't know what you need to say..." she growled under her breath, "I..don't know." came out as she lifted up her hand and grabbed the wind in it pointing it at him again a mixture of ecto-goo on her hand going into the wind-blade. Ricky vanished, reappearing behind Karen. He put a hand on her shoulder. "Karen. Stop. Listen to me." Hm... What first? Let's try...bribery! "If you stop, I'll give you another kiss!" Karen stoped as she felt him touch her sholder she growled looking over her sholder she glared at him, "Bribery?" she said dark as she turned around lifting up her sword, "I don't think so..." "Although I want to kiss him...that won't work." Ricky pulled his hand away. Great... I'll have to try something else then... But what? What am I supposed to... He blinked as a thought came to him. No, surely not THAT... Only...if the situation gets desperate... Hey... What's Myles doing here? "I can't do this... I can't... Come on, Karen... I don't know what that ghost did to you, but you have to SNAP OUT OF IT..." What do I do!? She said I have to 'say something'... But WHAT!? Karen suddenly stoped dropping the wind-blade and grabbed her head with her right hand and did a low growl, "I'm just not snapping out of it...Ricky...you need to run!" her eyes glew a darker red as she ran into attack him with ecto-punches Ricky shook his head. The moment of hesitation resulted in one of Karen's punches meeting its mark. "Ouch... You're not half bad at this... Anyway, I'm not going to just leave you here like this..." He poked her forehead. "Karen is in there somewhere... The Karen I know...the one who doesn't attack innocent people...she's locked away in there. And I'm not going to leave her like that." Karen looked back at Ricky after she was slighty pushed back by him poking her forhead, "I've been locked up, and some boy won't stop me.." she said coldly as she dissappered and reappered behind him grabbing him around the under arms and into a weird lock hands glowing a purple color mixed with red. "Let me go..." Ricky said calmly, trying not to panic. "I'm not just 'some boy'... You're seriously underestimating me..." What can possibly snap her out of this? She seems extremely determined to tear me limb from limb... So what am I supposed to do? I can't hurt her... It's not her fault she's acting like this... Karen leaned into his neck and whispered into his ear, "Your my weekness..." she said coldly letting go laughing darkly smiling a fangy smile, "What should I do next?" she glanced behind her, "Ooh, and it looks like the two childern are here...should I kill them to?" she questioned Ricky as she sat in the air crossing her legs. "Or I can just take care of you here and now," she said floating down in front of him. "No," Ricky responded coldly. "Don't even touch either of them... So... I'm your weakness, then..." He smirked. "I have the advantage...and yet, I don't know how to use it... How...annoying..." He created a small ectoplasmic shield around Myles and Shalise to ensure their safety. "So...you can talk all you want... But are you really going to kill me?" Karen simpley laughed, "If only you weren't my weekness it would be easier!" she glanced back behind her seening him make a shield around Myles and Shalise, "How sweet of you." she said as she turned to veiw him again taking a step towards him. "Ricky, Ricky, Ricky...you might have the advantage but you can't do anything." she smirked stepping closer to him, "So I have the advantage right now." Ricky took a step back. "I'm...not going to fight you... Is there a reason why you're trying to kill me?" He took a second step, keeping his eyes on Karen the entire time, waiting for an attack. Karen took another step, "It's simple," she took another one her hands still glowing slightly. "I'm the otherside of myself...all the hate I feel inside right now," she growled, "Because I was stupid in telling you I love you." she lifted up a hand and pointed it at Ricky, "And if I get rid of you...that feeling will sease to exist." "...That's not true...I can't stop loving someone." Ricky glared at her. "Yeah, well... What if I said I also love you? What would you do then?" Well, I said it... But...it probably won't be good enough... She's...really mad right now... Karen glared back at him, "You would be lieing." she said coldly, "I know you don't love me..." she whispered feeling her eyes water, "I just know it." she still pointed her hand at him but was trembling. "You're wrong..." Ricky looked away. "Why did you think I was so upset before? And why did you think I wanted to kiss you so badly? Yes, I did... But I was terrified of the consequences... So I held myself back... I love you, and that's what scares me..." Karen's hand stoped glowing, "Ricky...?" her expression turned into a sad shocked expression and she fell to her knees taking her human form she put her head down... "I'm...you...I'm sorry.." Ricky knelt down in front of her. "I'm sorry...if what I just said...upset you..." He gently lifted her head up. "Do you still feel like you want to kill me, or did I actually do something right for a change?" Karen looked up at Ricky still shocked at what he said, "...I'm so sorry...I tried killing you..." her head had a sharp pain go threw it, "Ouch..." she said softly to herself and smiled, "You did something right, Ricky...thank you." Ricky placed his palm on Karen's forehead, checking her temperature. "Are you sure you're feeling all right? Come on, let's get you to your cabin..." He scooped her up, walking through the forest in the direction of the cabins. "Cabin #1, right?" "Yeah..." she said looking down and away from him, "Did I expect more...?" she thought to herself looking over at Ricky she looked up at the sky, "...But I can't hold him to anything, even if he promised me a kiss...I can't." Ricky just nodded, pushing open the door to Karen's cabin and placing her down on the closest bed. "You need some rest..." he murmured, sitting down in a chair only a few inches away from her. "Am I...forgetting something?" he wondered out loud. "I feel like there's something I was supposed to do..." Karen laid down and blushed at his wondering question, "The kiss..." she whispered to herself putting a blanket over her head. "Geez..." Ricky gently pulled the blanket away. "Do you...still want it?" he whispered, looking down at the ground, then back at Karen. Karen felt the blanket get pulled off of her head and Ricky looking at her she blushed looking at her pillow beside her head she nodded, "Y-Yes..." she whispered to him. Ricky nodded, gently lifting Karen up into a sitting position. "Maybe this will make you feel better..." He gave her a kind smile before leaning in, kissing her directly on the lips. Karen closed her eyes and kissed him back once again feeling the same feeling from before, but diffrent at the same time...she put her hands around his back and slightly deepened the kiss.. Ricky let out a soft moan, closing his eyes and letting his arms slide around Karen's waist. He finally broke off the kiss, staring at her with a shocked expression on his face. "Th-that was...scary...but at the same time...it was so...so..." He couldn't find the right words, so he kissed her again, feeling his heart beat faster as his lips touched hers. Karen heard Ricky slightly moan which caused her to blush, she opened her eyes, "..That was diffrent..." she said as he kissed her again, once again pressing her lips softly but hard at the same time. "This feels...right." Ricky pulled away, feeling lightheaded. "I... That was... Wow..." He put a hand to his forehead, feeling dizzy. "I...need to rest for a minute..." he murmured breathlessly. "That was...amazing..." Karen blushed as she caught her breath, "That was amazing...I really didn't know...I could kiss like that." she said between breathes, "Rest as much as you need to.." she said laying her head back onto her pillow putting her hand over her eyes. Ricky just nodded, unable to speak. He leaned back in his chair, tilting his head up and staring at the ceiling. He closed his eyes, trying to slow down his breathing. He opened his mouth to say something, but no words came out, so he just sat there with a faint smile on his face. Karen looked from the ceiling over at Ricky who was faintly smiling she smiled back and laid her head back down sighing as she caught her breath. "Simply amazing..." she mumbled under her breath to low for anyone to hear, placing her hand down to her side. "Simply incredible..." Ricky murmured, opening his eyes and still trying to catch his breath. "Karen, that was..." He closed his eyes again, unable to find the right words. "N-never mind... I...can't describe it..." Karen opened her eyes and looked over at Ricky blushing, "...It's so great you can't describe it in words, hm?" she looked back up, "And to tell the truth...you were the first I ever kissed..." Ricky opened his eyes and looked over at Karen. "Really? Well, I hope you liked it..." He stared back up at the ceiling before closing his eyes once more. "I know I did..." Karen smiled nodding a bit. "I really did like it..." she looked over at him again, "Do you want to stop or do you want to do it again..?" she asked quietly hugging her pillow tightly. "Well... That was..." Ricky opened his eyes, staring at the ceiling. "I don't know if... I mean...what if..." He fell silent for a moment before finally answering Karen's question. "Y-yeah... I...want to do it again..." he whispered. Karen looked over at him awkwardly, "What if, what..?" she asked putting her pillow back to her side..."And...I'm ready." "I'm afraid..." Ricky bit his lip. "I'm afraid I won't be able to control myself... I mean... You're... I'm... We're... N-never mind..." He leaned closer to Karen, gently running a finger down her cheek. "I'm such a coward..." he murmured, gazing into her eyes. It's...true... Before I came here... I was an over-confident kid who wasn't afraid of anything... But now...everything's different... Karen blushed slightly, "We don't have to kiss if you don't want to..." she said looking down sheepishly as he rubbed her face, "If you can't control yourself, I understand, but it's okay..." she shook her head, "You aren't a coward, you'tr strong, much stronger then I'll ever be." Ricky smiled. "Well... If you say so... But I disagree with that last part..." He swept Karen into his arms, bringing her closer. "You're a lot stronger than you think you are... You just need to boost your confidence..." He kissed her again, closing his eyes and gently stroking her hair. Karen blinked as she was swept into his arms, going from laying down to sitting up in a mere seconds, "I know I'm strong, you're just stronger then me that's all.." she mumbled the last part as she leaned into kiss him right on the lips once again. Ricky hugged Karen tighter as she kissed him, closing his eyes. He shivered slightly and returned the kiss. She...thinks I'm strong... But really... All it took to weaken me was a girl... I'm...so pathetic... I've fought dozens of people at a time in hand-to-hand combat... And all it took...was a simple kiss... I'm...just so pathetic... No, you're in love, which is completely different... Yeah, but I haven't figured out who I love the most... I can't decide... I just...can't... Karen felt him kiss her back but hugged her tight which caused her to slightly but hardly groan but it didn't stop, she put her arms around him and deepened the kiss hoping he wouldn't let her go..she continued. Ricky's heart was beating so fast and he was beginning to feel lightheaded again. He gently pulled his lips away from Karen's, still keeping his arms around her. Every time I kiss her...it's amazing... He smiled, closing his eyes. "K-Karen..." He began to speak, but fell silent immediately, shaking his head. There's nothing more to say... That was...just...amazing... Karen opened her eyes and stared at Ricky, "Ricky..." she whispered silently her heart beating against his, she smiled and closed her eyes leaning her forhead against his. I really do I love you...thank you. "Y-yeah..." Ricky smiled, still hugging Karen. "I guess... Those are the only words to describe it..." He remained silent for a moment before mumbling, "Karen... I...really do love you... I...wasn't lying...back there... I... I promise..." Karen smiled and rested her head on his sholder, "Silly...I know you ment it...you...you didn't leave me alone while I was...wanting to kill you...you stayed with me, and I know you love me...I love you too...and that'll never change." Ricky smiled, stroking Karen's hair. "Thank you...for...everything... All of it... I had thought...because of all this...I had gotten weaker... But now...I realized...you actually made me much stronger... And I'd like to thank you for that..." Karen lifted her head up and stared into his brown eyes, "I...you're..." she stoped talking and smiled, "Thank you Ricky..." Ricky shook his head. "No... Really... Thank you..." He gazed at Karen for a moment, smiling slightly. "Today was..." He paused, searching for the right words. "...truly amazing..." Karen smiled, "It was one of the best days of my life...except the part with being kidnapped...and turning evil for abit...but it was amazing..." she smiled at him again, "And you controled yourself..." "Well..." Ricky laughed softly. "You didn't see me when that mermaid girl told me she didn't know where to find you... I...kind of...got mad at her..." Tch, yeah... You were going to KILL her... He frowned, looking away. "I just... Ever since...I...um..." He sighed. "It's just...hard sometimes... That's all..." Karen lifted a brow at him, "Kinda mad at her?" she sighed, "Flora told me already...you threatened to kill when I was kidnapped." she said looking away, "I already knew you...did." she sighed deeply, "It's okay though...you didn't do it right?" she said looking on the bright side and kissed him on the cheek, "It was stangely sweet of you." Ricky's face turned a light shade of pink. "I was...just worried... And ever since...I...uh...got my ghost powers..." He looked away, a pained expression in his eyes. "It's like...there's another person inside my head, fighting for control... And...all that person wants to do...is to destroy...everything..." Karen looked down and took his hand and held it, "I know...trust me I know, it's like there's something inside that just won't quiet and it keeps tring to push it's way out...and completly take over your being," she looked down, "You saw today I struggle as well..." Ricky looked down at their hands, clasped together. "...And...it's happened to me before... I've completely lost control of everything... That's why...every day...I had to train... I had to do something...to stop myself from..." He shook his head, looking away. "But...it still wasn't enough... It'll never be enough... I could snap back at any time... And that means...you have to be careful, okay?" Karen looked up at him, "I won't leave you to suffer...I promise." she squeezed his hand to reasure him, "...I'll be careful...and let's both hope that day, is far away..." Ricky nodded, squeezing Karen's hand in return. "Yes, we can hope..." He stared into space for a minute before looking back at Karen. "Do you...know why I always...discouraged Myles? Do you know...why I...always seemed to be against him?" He glanced down again and answered his own question. "It's because...I'm afraid...he'll end up...like me... He's so young and happy... All he wants to do is become a superhero... A half ghost... And I was always afraid...if he became like that...would he be cursed...just like me?" Ricky looked back at Karen. "The only way I can help him...is to not help him... I've always been a horrible brother to him... And yet...he always looked up to me... I just...don't understand it..." "Well..." Karen closed her eyes, "He's your little brother...and from what I've heard...you left your home and he went to find you, and probably bring you home, but Ricky...he just wants to be like you because you ran away when you were young," she shook her head. "Don't get me wrong, he's just well,...he's just like you...and don't worry about the future, it's not in your hands, you don't know if he'll be cursed like you, that necklace I gave him only gives him ghost powers it doesn't make him a halfa, so he isn't cursed..." "I...I know... But..." Ricky sighed. "I'm just afraid he'll try the same stupid thing I did... I'm afraid he'll try to become an actual halfa... Even though he has the necklace... He just...worries me sometimes... I've always pretended not to care...but...I really do..." He gave a small smile. "I really do care about him... I realized...I really do care about a lot of things... I care about him... I care about my little sister... I care about you..." And I care about Kyle... "You've taught me a lot of things..." Ricky squeezed Karen's hand again. "You've taught me things I don't think I ever would have realized if I hadn't met you..." So I guess...the right thing to say is... "...Thank you." Karen smiled and squeezed his hand back, "Myles will be fine...After all he is as hard headed as you are." she smiled and then paused for a minute, "I care alot about you...and...I'd like to say thank you this time," she lifted her head up, "Thank you, Ricky...really for everything..." she looked away. "I never thought that day when I screamed for you and myles to help me with my friend, I never thought I'd fall for you...it scared me at first then," she closed her eyes, "The rest is...a fast blur." "Yeah... I felt...the exact same way..." Ricky smiled, briefly kissing Karen on the lips again before pulling away. "But even though I was scared... I knew I loved you... I do love you... And then everything happened so fast..." He looked away, still smiling slightly. She was caught off-guard from his kiss so she blushed lightly and smiled looking away, "But now...you know...you don't have to hold back, sence it's all out in the open, right?" "I... Yeah, but..." Ricky's heart had started beating faster. "I..." What about Kyle? How will she react? What am I even supposed to say to her? What if she hates me? I...love Kyle... But... I don't know...who I love most... I don't know...how to decide... Karen looked from Ricky to the floor, "...Your thinking about the consequences again..." she whispered to him looking back at him, "Aren't you?" she questioned, "Why are you...nervous around me?" she asked with a light red face, "I...just said the truth...you said you didn't want to hold back, and I said it's okay..." "I... I know..." Ricky closed his eyes. "Either way...someone's going to get hurt in the end..." he murmured, opening his eyes and staring at the floor. "Karen... I'm sorry..." he whispered. "I...told you I'm a coward... And...I was right... I don't...want to hold back..." He lifted up his head, staring at Karen. "I'm... I'm not going to hold back... I...know about the consequences... But...I love you... And that should be enough... Right?" Karen remained silent for a second then nodded, "That's enough...and...I'll say it again, you don't know...what the future will hold.." she closed her eyes, "...Go on.." Don't do it, Ricky... Think of what would happen after this... I'm...tired of consequences... I'll deal with them when they get here... Ricky leaned in, kissing Karen passionately on the lips, closing his eyes and pulling her closer. You're just going to hurt someone in the end... Why are you such an idiot? Karen closed her eyes feeling him kiss her passioniately, sent a chill threw her body. "I don't know...why, but..." she kissed him back with more passion, "...I feel like, he didn't want to do this...why am I feeling this?" I'm such a jerk... I just HAD to fall in love with two different people... And now I have to make a decision... I have to choose between them... But...I just can't... Ricky pulled away briefly, looking into Karen's eyes for a moment before kissing her again. I can't handle this... In the end, I'll have to betray someone... It could be anyone... Death, Karen, Kyle...or my own brother... I just know this whole 'camp' thing is going to end badly... And then I'll lose it... I'll lose total control... And when I snap... I could kill so many innocent people... Even the people who care about me... Karen didn't have enough time to cetch her breath when Ricky kissed her again. "What's going to happen...? After camp he could dissapper forever, I shouldn't...have told him my feelings, he's in love with two people at the same time, it's like he could betray; anyone..." Her eyes watered a small bit at the thought, but she just ignored them and kissed him back with the same amount of passion. "...Don't betray anyone close to you..." I don't understand... When did I become so...nice? Normally... This wouldn't be happening... Normally, I wouldn't be in this situation, because I just wouldn't care... But now...it's...different... Ever since I came here...to this camp... It's been different... Ricky pulled away again, trying to catch his breath. I just...don't understand... Karen started breathing deeply and stared up at him for a minute realizing her eyes were still watery she blinked away her watery eyes and turned her head to the right still breathing deep. "...He was supossed to be hardheaded and..mean...so why...is he like this.?" She turned to look back up at him, "Ricky..." she breathed out. "Is it because of...the camp, or me..?" Ricky frowned as he noticed Karen's watery eyes. "Are you...crying? Did I...do something wrong...?" "N-No..." she said rubbing her eyes dry, "You didn't do anything...wrong...it's just," she shook her head, "No, it's nothing...my eyes were just watering, that's it." Ricky shook his head. "I know something's wrong... But...you don't have to tell me... It's just... Well, I don't want you to be upset..." Psh, you act tough, but you're just a pathetic, caring weakling... Just because I care doesn't mean I'm weak... In fact, caring is a sign of strength... I think... Karen closed her eyes, "...Why are you so...different?" she asked opening her eyes and shook her head, "...You're the one that's upset and you won't tell me..." she put her head against his sholder, "Are you mad at me?" "I'm just...being pulled in about four different directions at once..." Ricky closed his eyes. "Eventually...I'm going to snap... I'm just... I'm...sorry..." He shook his head. "I don't know what's wrong with me... I'm...not supposed to care... But...all of a sudden... It's like I'm a different person... And I don't know how to deal with it..." Her eyes looked sad, "Ricky..." she this time pulled him into a hug but her face was red, "I-I'll always...be there for you." she squeezed him and barried her head into his sholder, "...Ricky, you're the strongest person I know...both in feelings and in strainth..." she lifted her head up. "...I love you...don't- feel crouded...please." she looked down, "Why just tell me why...when did you suddenly become nice?" she just as in wondering.. "Don't...don't be sorry, you don't have to be..." she drawed close to his mouth inches away, "...Just for right now...please.." "Thank you, Karen..." Ricky smiled slightly. "Why did I become nice? That's...my question... I don't even know the answer..." His voice faded into a soft whisper as he closed the gap between their lips, kissing Karen again. I don't want to upset anyone... But... I have to... No matter what I do... Or which way I look at it... There's no easy way out... Karen closed her eyes and kissed him back, "Ricky, you're the one I...want to be with forever...I don't want to let you go...ever." She lifted her head away for a minute, "..Kiss me like you never did before..." she said as she closed the gap between there lips again. That's...what I was afraid...she'd say... How...can I say no to that? On the other hand...I know Kyle feels the same way... Which brings me back to the beginning again... Ricky deepened the kiss, hugging Karen a bit tighter and feeling his heart beat fast. Yes, I do love you, Karen... But... I don't understand... I'm not supposed to love, or care... And those stupid emotions have gotten me into this mess... ...But...if they're so stupid, then why am I still kissing her? Karen felt him deepen the kiss which caused her to moan under her breath. "He's...thinking about something again...but what?" She kissed him back even harder as he pulled her closer. Ricky trembled slightly as Karen kissed him harder, causing him to let out a soft moan. He closed his eyes, trying unsuccessfully to push his other thoughts out of his mind. This is...amazing... But... I can't help...but think about...what comes next... I mean...how can I ever talk to Kyle anymore? I'll...have to try... And then... I'll eventually have to make a decision... ...But I can't... But I have to... Karen pulled away for a second to cetch her breath, "R-Ricky...you're...thinking too much again, and you're h-holding back..." she said in a low whisper, "... You're still confused, aren't you...on who you like best?" she asked closing her eyes. "This is... wrong... I feel like he's hidding something from me.." "Ricky..." she breathed out as she closed her mouth over his. "Just hold me with out a care in the world..." Of course I'm still confused... Choosing between two people... And my connection with Death means I'm supposed to be fighting against both of them... It's...not easy... This is harder than anything I've ever done... Ricky slightly deepened the kiss, pulling away after a moment. "Karen..." he whispered softly. "Listen to me, because I don't say this often..." He tightened his grip around her, closing his eyes and whispering, "I'm sorry... I...know you're upset... And it's my fault... And I want to make it up to you... But I don't know how..." Karen closed her eyes, "I-I don't know how eather..." she said softly back to him closing her eyes as he tightened his grip around her, "...You can do anything you want to make it up to me." she said to him opening her eyes looking up at him, "I'm still here for you...I do care if I'm the one you're going to betray but.." She looked down, "I won't leave you alone to suffer even if you betray me." "...Thank you." Ricky gave Karen a sad smile. "That means a lot to me. Who knows... Maybe I won't even have to betray you in the first place..." He kissed her gently on the lips. Who knows...how everything will turn out in the end? Karen pulled Ricky closer as he softly kissed her 'causing her to kiss him back softly as well and then pull away, "I'm sure...that in the end everythin will be alright, and when school comes around again..." her voice trailed off into a whisper, "Are you going to go to Halfa High if everything turns out good?" She sighed, "You probably will betray me...and it'll be like, none of this ever happened," she gave him a sad smile back, "You can try and make it up to me.." she whispered, "...Anything." "But it did happen... And even if I do betray you... How will I ever be able to forget this?" Ricky shook his head. "You and I are the only people who know this ever happened... So... Until all this clears up... It'll be our secret, right?" He gave a small smile. "I want to remember this... I don't want to forget... But for now... It's a secret, right? Just between the two of us." She mentioned...going to Halfa High... But... I only go wherever work takes me... Just side jobs... Just to gain power, or money... I can't stay in one place for that long... But I can't just say no... Karen smiled back and nodded, "It has to be a secert, we can't even tell your little brother..." she sighed, "A secert between us...that has to be between us, if it hits the camp what would happen?" she put her head down onto his sholder, "We probably will never be together right...?" she questioned closing her eyes sadly. Ricky didn't answer her question. Instead, he gently stroked her hair, pretending not to hear. "Will you tell me about Halfa High?" he asked in a quiet whisper, trying desperately to change the subject. Karen realized he changed the subject and let it slip and she sighed, "I was only there for a couple of months before I dissappered...It's amazing all these diffrent teachers and halfa's there, you have nothing to hide no secert identity...nothing you're yourself there..." she sighed, "I wonder what it'll be like this year at school.." Ricky almost sighed with relief, but stopped himself before he could actually do it. "Well... Maybe I could go there, too... Is that okay? I mean... Do they accept people like me?" Karen looked up at him with a suprised look then a happy smile, "Yeah, they'll accept you for sure..." she said as she fell back onto the bed, "I've been sitting up to much...my back is killing me." Ricky smiled back. "What you need is some rest..." he murmured. "You must be tired after everything that's happened today... So... This 'Halfa High' will accept anyone? Even a poor, unruly troublemaker like me?" He smiled again, sitting back in his chair. "Oh, right..." He stood up, giving Karen a small wave. "You need to rest... So... I'll leave now... Don't want to disturb you or anything..." "They'll accept anything and...they'll accept you as well, you troublemaker." she said smileing then laying her head back then sat up grabbing his hand, "Please don't go...you wouldn't be disturbing me if you stayed." Ricky smiled back at Karen, sitting back down and glancing at their hands. He looked back up at Karen, still smiling. "Well...alright... But you have to promise to get some rest, since your back hurts. Lie back down and don't push yourself too hard... It's been a long day, so get some rest." "I promise I will get some rest..." she said looking over at him, "Don't look over here, okay?" she said slightly blushing, "My stupid jacket is making me sweat..." she said as she un-zipped it and slipped into her bed covering everything up except her head, "Okay..." Ricky was covering his eyes with his hands, and his face was slightly red. "R-right... So... You...just...get some rest..." His hands were still over his eyes. "Do you need me to get you anything?" "You can look now, it's okay.." she said slightly blushing and shook her head, "N-Nope I have everything I need..." she said as she pushed the blankets off of her sholders and fixed her tank top to cover herself. Ricky lifted off one hand, then the other. His face still felt warm, but he pretended not to notice. "And, y-you're sure? You're not hungry or anything?" "Nope...not really." she said as she noticed his blush she smirked, "You're blushing, Ricky." she said smiling over at him. "What?" Ricky blushed a deeper shade of pink. "N-no I'm not..." Karen laughed at him blushing a small bit too, "Yes you are." she said as she looked up then over at him taking his hand, "See, you're nervous around me." "No I'm not..." Ricky shook his head, hoping it would somehow get rid of his blush. "I'm not nervous... That's a silly idea... What made you think I'm nervous?" "Well for one, you stampered...and you won't stop staring at me." she said looking away with a deeper blush, "It's not a silly idea...you just seem nervous around me." she sat up, "I'll put my jacket back on okay, that'll make you feel less...uncomfortable "No, you don't have t--" Ricky's face turned red. "I mean, yes, you... I mean... I don't care! Whatever you want is fine!" Great... I just sounded like a total idiot... Way to go, Ricky... Karen looked over at Ricky's red face and smiled, "Okay then I'll stay like this.." she said as she looked down fixing her shirt again, "Gosh dang it.." Ricky looked away, still blushing. "O-o-okay..." Stop blushing... Stop it... I can't help it... "I, uh, I uh... I think I need some fresh air or something... It's kind of hot in here... Can I open a window or something?" Karen nodded, "S-Sure..." she said as she pointed above her, "The window is right above me," she said scooting over, "Go on and open it." she said looking up at the window waiting on him. "If he falls...that'd be bad.." she thought in her head blushing. "Really bad.." Ah, great. Of COURSE the window had to be there... Ricky stood up and walked over, reaching up to the window. "So... Oh, I see... It's one of those types of windows..." He pushed the window out but it snapped shut again, hitting into his fingers. "OUCH!" Ricky brought his hand up his face, examining his hand. "That was...painful..." he muttered. "I...think I'll get back down n--" His foot slipped, which cause him to lose his balance and fall over on top of Karen. No, no, no! Darn it, STOP BLUSHING! "Ah!" Karen said as Ricky's face was inches away and her face was blood red as she stared up at him, they fell off the bed and onto the ground, "Ri-Ricky?" she said gulping. "I... That... You... Um... Window... Smash... Ouch... Slipped... I..." Ricky's face was also completely blood red, and he couldn't even form a complete sentence. "I... I...slipped..." "He slipped!...darn the awkwardness...darn you.." she thought and simpley as she noticed him not moving, "...It-It's okay." she said looking away. "It's one of those moments I've read in books before...eeep...they like kiss and stuff!!!" Oh, geez... You really messed up this time, Ricky... "Uh... Y-yeah... S-sorry... It...was an accident..." Well, of COURSE it was an accident, you moron... Stop talking before you say something REALLY stupid... Ricky hesitated, still blushing. "Um..." What am I supposed to do? In a situation like this...there are only two options... You either have to help her up and be super-nice... Or you have to kiss her... Yeah. Gee, I wonder which one to choose, considering your faces are only a few inches apart... Plus, since when are you...'super-nice'? Ricky leaned closer to Karen, kissing her directly on the lips. He pulled away and stood up, offering a hand to Karen. Karen blushed mad when he kissed her directly on the lips,"I shouldn't be feeling like this! I really shouldn't!" he then pulled away Karen opened her eyes up and sat up as she was helped up, "T-Thank you.." she stampered as her stupid tank top sleeves slipped down her arms causing her to fix them back, "Oh my gosh...don't...don't even think about that.." she shivered as she slipped under the blankets covering her head from embarrasment. "Don't think that Karen! Don't think that!" she whispered harshly to herself, "..Hey Ricky?" she poked her eyes from under her blanket, "That...felt strange with you on top of me...but it was...oh geez.." she put the blanket over her head. "Uh... Um..." Ricky's face was still completely red. I wish I had a blanket to put over my head... I just want to hide somewhere... That was so embarassing... "I'msorryIdidn'tmeantodothatpleasedon'tkillme..." he muttered, hiding his face with his hands. And opening the window didn't even help. It just made things ten times worse.. Karen poked her head out of the blanket, "I-It was okay! I...awkwardly...liked it.." she said as her voice trailed off and the blanket covered her face, "I know I shouldn't have b-but...I did...even if it was an accident..." she said as she looked away. "...It was a weird position but it-...well felt good?" she tried picking her words carefuly. "I...Want to be in that awkward position again..." she said quietly blood red. "...Oh." Ricky's voice came out as a nervous squeak. He was completely speechless, and his eyes were wide. Oh... Oh no... No... This isn't good... I have to think up something quick... I've been in awkward situations before... But... This is... This is worse than all of them... "I...kind of...liked it...too..." His voice was barely above a whisper. That's not really a great thing to say when you're trying to think up an excuse to get out of here, you know... "O-Oh...?" she said blushing pushing off the blanket, "Really?" "This is bad...this is really bad!" she thought as she looked away at the wall. "You...liked it?" she asked awkwardly looking back over at him, "Do you...want to...be in that awkward position again?" "I... Yeah... I mean, no... No, I don't mean no... I mean, yea--" Ricky looked down as his face turned an even brighter shade of red. "No... I mean... Uh... Maybe..." Ricky. You. Are. Such. An. IDIOT. Karen looked over at him blushing a deep red and she laid down scooting over, "Go ahead...and sit down.." she said as her heart began beating fast. Ricky sat down and looked away from Karen, still blushing. He felt as if he was in a dream - everything felt so unreal. Even his racing heartbeat seemed somehow distant. It was like he was watching the scene unfold instead of actually being in it. "I'm...sitting down..." he murmured, feeling dizzy. Fantastic... You sure have a way with words, Ricky... Karen nodded and stayed still with her body completly still, "Oh great...more awkwardness..." she thought as she looked up at his back, "Ricky?" she crawled beside him and looked up at him then looked down, "I'm sorry.." she said as she laid back down putting her back at him, "...You don't too." "But..." Ricky muttered, staring off into space. He shook his head, looking back at Karen. "I... I'm sorry... I'm...just...a little...nervous, I guess... Sorry..." He slowly lowered himself down until he was lying on his back. Ricky, just stop... This is wrong! You have a girlfriend! He quickly sat up, wincing. ...Right... Sorry... Karen had her back to him until she felt him lay down then quickly sit up causing her to turn over, "Ricky?" she then let out a sigh, "You're thinking about it again...the consequences..." she rubbed her head, "I'm sorry, that I asked that." "I...just..." Ricky closed his eyes. "Right now... I feel like a...a..." He shook his head, unable to find the right words. How about a complete moron? Or a total jerk? Or a stupid traitor? "I'm...so sorry... I just...don't know what to do..." Karen pushed off the blanket and sat up, "...Okay." she said as she sat up putting her back to him, "..." she felt tears comming out of her eyes, "If I keep crying like this...it'll look like he hurt me something but...I'm just torn up inside..." she looked over her sholder at Ricky and looked down and then at the floor. "...stop it." she whispered, "Stop putting the blame on yourself..." she said between sniffles, "...I'm crying for you...so don't think about the...consequences." she laid her self down legs still dangling and she stared up at the ceiling. "Don't think about it, okay?" "Karen." Ricky gently lifted her up, pulling her close. "Why...do you like me? All the pain you're going through... Isn't that because of me?" He closed his eyes. "Of course it is. All the pain I'm going through... That's all my fault, too. I have the right to blame myself for it. Don't waste tears on me, Karen... I don't deserve them..." He opened his eyes again, glistening with unshed tears. "There's...someone out there... Someone who's not a jerk like me... Someone who will love you more than anything. Someone who will repair your heart instead of breaking it. When that someone comes along... I...just want you to be happy, okay?" His voice cracked slightly. "I just want you to be happy... I like it when you smile..." Karen's tears kept on comming and she shook her head in his arms, "...I don't like you...I love you...I feel safe around you, No...not all the pain, I've been dealing with pain for a long time..." she closed her eyes, "I can shed my tears for you...I have every right too...you're in a strange position, and it's because of me." "...Ricky, you're not a jerk, just...I...you follow your heart." she put her head down, "I'm happy with you, Ricky...only you, I smile around, I feel safe around you..." she said as she pulled away laying back down, "And I trust you..." Ricky shook his head, holding back tears. "Don't trust me... Don't feel safe around me... I could... I could kill you... At any time, I could just...lose control... And then you'd be dead... And I'd never forgive myself... Ever..." Karen looked over at him, "Ricky...It's to late, I trust you...I know...you could snap at any minute but..." she closed her eyes, "I already trust you.." Ricky was shaking slightly, and his eyes had turned blood red. Why can't she just hate me? How can she like me? I'm a hazard to everyone at this camp, and I could kill them all... But she STILL trusts me... "I feel funny... I think my head's bothering me..." He struggled to his feet, spotting his reflection in a small wall mirror. "Oh no..." he whispered, his red eyes widening. "Oh no... Karen... You...have to run..." He turned around. "Now. Run! Go!" Karen sat up blinking over at Ricky, "Ricky, what's wrong?" she stould up quickly, "Ricky?" she noticed he was acting awkward his eyes were glowing red? "R-Ricky?" she stepped back. "I said...RUN," Ricky responded. His voice was cold, and his fists were clenched. His eyes flickered back to normal, turning red again after a few seconds. "I'll give you a head start, just to make it fair..." He unsheathed his two knives, smirking at Karen. "R-Ricky?" she stared at him in disbelief, "He's snaped...what do I do?" she felt her back against the wall, "I can't leave him like this, he'll get out, and-...no I can't hurt him eather." she shook her head, "I won't run Ricky, I told you already I won't leave you alone..." she said with her back against the wall, "Snap out of it Ricky. "I offered you a head start..." Ricky shrugged, looking bored. "Do you want to die? Is that it? Of course, it would end all your pain and suffering..." He grinned mockingly. "Pain and suffering that Ricky gave you. Wasn't that nice of him?" Ricky grinned, taking a step forward. "Wouldn't it be nice of him to just end it all for you? No, that wouldn't be good enough. He'll end it slowly and painfully." Karen's stomach twisted as he spoke like this, "He didn't cause this pain," she said as she glared at Ricky crawling over the bed into the next corner, ''Snap out of it, Ricky!" she said as she felt her eyes water but pushed the tears back, "...You heartless...don't come near me." she said as she knew she was cornered. "Yes, of course he's heartless... He loves no one. Not even his girlfriend." Ricky smirked. "Yep. He has a girlfriend, all right. But it's a shame it's not you, right? Wouldn't you just love to be his girlfriend? Wouldn't it be great if his girlfriend had a nasty accident?" He took another step closer. "Of course, Ricky will personally take care of her later..." He gave Karen a sickening grin. "But you happen to be first in line." Karen glared at him, "Shut up, and leave her alone...don't touch his girlfriend," she saw him step closer, "...Of course I want to be his girlfriend but..." she looked up at him, "You're the one that's heartless...your his curse.." she said as she stayed still, "And I'll make sure you, don't leave this cabin..." she said as she looked up at him. "...I'd die for every camper here, just don't go after them," she said as she looked down, "Ricky...I still love you, this isn't you." The red glow in Ricky's eyes faded and he looked at Karen, then down at the knives in his hands. "What am I doing...? What happened?" His eyes turned red once again as he shook his head. "A minor annoyance... His consciousness is always popping up and annoying me... I'll just have to delete it, then." Karen steped toward the red eyed Ricky, "Ricky...please...stop it.." she said as she took another step mearly three from him when she finally stoped, "I love you, stop it please." she said looking down at the knifes, "...If you kill me you'll snap out of it...so go ahead," she now cried, "Kill me." Ricky smirked, stepping closer to Karen and resting one of the knives at her throat. "Fine... But I like it more when they struggle..." He sighed. "Ah, well... Maybe his girlfriend will be more fun to kill." He made a small cut at her neck, drawing a drop of blood. "But we'll have to do it the slow and painful way." Karen winced as the blade cut into her neck, "Stay away from, Kyle..." she said still staying still, "I won't struggle, Ricky." she said glaring up at him then pushed away the sword glowing with a ectoblast she steped closer to him, "Ricky, I don't want you to suffer like this anymore." she steped up and kissed his lips for a second and pulled away, "...I'll take up everything that you're suffering from." Both his true and cursed forms acted as one to push Karen away. "No, Karen... I...won't let you have this... Aren't you already cursed enough?" His voice changed; it was now icy. "What a pain... He keeps fighting back... And you'd better not do that again... It gave him more power... More will to live..." Ricky closed his eyes, dropping the knives and covering his ears with his hands. "Karen, listen to me... You have to run... Please... He's... No... I'm... I'm going to kill you..." His sad look of pain shifted into an evil grin as he pulled his hands away from his ears. "Did you hear that? He knows it's hopeless... He knows he should just stop fighting... Give up... His curse is too powerful, and he's losing total control." Ricky fell to his knees, shaking violently. "Karen..." he whispered. "Just...run..." Ricky.." she said stepping back, "I won't run...I won't, I can't leave you hear like this!" she shouted at him, "...I don't care if you're the one that kills me, I made a promise to you, I'm staying with you while you suffer!" She got into a defending position, "I refuse to fight you and run away from you, but I will not die." she said as steped closer to him bending down to him, "Ricky, just snap out of it." she said as she whispered in his ear. "You really think it'll be that easy?" Ricky smirked. "This isn't a matter of just 'snapping out of it'... Pretty soon, I'll permanently delete his consciousness. In other words, I'll eventually have total control. But for now... I'd like him to 'watch' as I destroy you..." He picked up his knives, standing up and making the first move by slashing one in the direction of Karen's throat. Karen blocked with her arm causing her her wince in pain, her jacket was off so it made the cut even worse, "You're not going to do that...I'll make sure you don't," she said as she held her arm. "Well, let's see." Ricky pulled back his knife, sheathing them both and crossing his arms, looking bored. "You're unarmed, but I have two very sharp knives. All you can do is toss weak ectoblasts at me. Whereas I have years and years of practice with my skills. You're a pathetic weakling. So is Ricky, but I, however, am not. Oh, dear... I'm monologuing again... Guess this means it's time for another attack..." He unsheathed one knife, faking to the left and then slashing at Karen's right arm. "You can't keep this up forever... And we both know the obvious outcome of this little fight..." Karen winced in pain and looked at her bloody arms and back up at Ricky, "You sure do...talk about yourself like your some type of show-off..." she growled under her breath, "You underestimate me," she said as she held her arms. "..I should go ghost, but...I can't hurt him!" she thought as she steped against the wall closing her eyes as pain came threw her arms, "I won't lose to you..." she said coldly to him as she lifted up her hand making a wind blade in both of her hands, "I'll save Ricky, even if it'll be the last thing I do." "Well, your attempt to save him will be that last thing you do." Ricky smirked. "And I may be a show-off... But you're overconfident... What makes you think you can beat me? You wouldn't hurt Ricky, would you?" "I won't hurt him, but that doesn't mean I won't fight for his freedom." she said in a low growl, "I'm overconfident ofcouse it wouldn't take a genius to figure that out about me." she said lifting up the blades, "I will fight you for Ricky's freedom." "Ricky's freedom..." Ricky glanced at his knife. "It was his choice to come here, and side with Death. He was free to choose whatever side he wanted. And he chose to be against you. He knew he was sacrificing peoples' lives for the 'master plan', and he still agreed to do it." Ricky sighed. "Now the only thing holding me back...is whether or not I want to get my knives dirty with your blood. I just got them polished, too... Oh, well..." He smirked at Karen. "Go ahead. Make a move." "What?" she questioned, "Death's master plan...?" she shook her head, "..I knew he knew...but.." she lifted her blades up again and ran into attack, "Why didn't he tell me?" she mumbled under her breath, "...You're his curse, every curse one day needs to be broken..." she said to him. "...How can I save him?" "Yes, the master plan that dear Ricky didn't tell you about..." Ricky jumped to the side. "You're pretty quick... But you'll run out of energy eventually." He smirked. "Not every curse is broken... You need to realize that... You sound like his stupid brother. The cause of 'good' doesn't always triumph in the real world... You should know that by now..." Karen growled, "Myles isn't stupid, I know that good doesn't always...but in this case," she dropped the wind blades lifting her hand up slapping him across the face, "You idiot, snap out of it!" "Hey... You...slapped me..." Ricky delicately touched his cheek, where Karen had slapped him. "You...slapped...me..." He glanced at his bloody knives, then at Karen's arm. "What...what happened here!?" He closed his eyes, trembling. "Get out of my head, you...stupid...whatever you are..." "How about 'no'?" "How about 'yes'?" "You're insane. You're talking to yourself." "SHUT UP... Karen, slap me again!" Karen nodded and slapped him again then once more, "Ricky?" "Ouch!" Ricky touched his cheek again, blinking. "That hurt... So... I attacked you, then... Didn't I...?" He bowed his head, turning away. "I snapped... But...how did you bring me back? That curse... It usually takes complete control... And it would only temporarily disappear when I passed out from total exhaustion..." Karen stepped in front of Ricky and looked up at him, "...I simply...'slaped' you out of it." she said to him and nodded, "..You did attack but, you couldn't help it." Ricky bowed his head. "I could've stopped it... I could've... If I had just trained more... Back then... I thought... Ten hours a day would be good enough... So, then... What will it take to get rid of that curse? I think it will stay with me forever... Will I always be unable to control it? I don't even know when it's going to try and take over again..." "Ricky stop it..." she said as she held her head, "You couldn't help it, a curse is a curse...I know how it is," she said as she suddenly felt dizzy and she shook her head to push it away but it was no good she felt really tired, "...I feel really tired...and cold." she said to Ricky as she shivered a bit holding her arms close to her wincing with pain. "Do you think it's an after-effect of your injuries?" Ricky scooped Karen up and placed her gently on her bed, sitting down in the chair nearby. Or it could be that poison she's got inside her thanks to her evil half... Yeah, but I don't want to mention that... I've had enough curses for one day... Karen nodded, "...I think..." her right arm was drenching with blood, thankfuly he didn't cut the main vain in her neck.. "...I'm...freezing." she said as she cuddled into her blanket, shivering. "You need medical help... But we can't just move you to the infirmary..." Ricky glanced at Karen's bloody arm. "This is all my fault... I'm so sorry... Do you...know what you're supposed to do? Like, how do you treat a giant arm wound? I'm no good at medical stuff..." Just another way to let her down... Great, Ricky... Just great... Karen nodded, "Get some Alcohol...and bandages." she looked over at the bathroom, "There's a first aid box in there.." Ricky nodded, hurrying over to the bathroom. "First aid box... Oh, here it is... In the top cabinet... Ouch... Right in the forehead..." He staggered back to Karen, looking dizzy. "Box...hit...head... Not fun..." Karen smiled abit, "Thank you, Ricky.." she said to him as she took out her right arm and it slightly trembled abit, "Put the alcohol on the cut...then wrap it up." "Wait..." Ricky opened up the box. "I'm supposed to dump alchohol on your arm? Is that safe?" He gave Karen a confused look. "Not all of it!" she said to him as she pointed slightly, "In the box...theres a rag, put it onto there and clean off my arm with that.." "Oh... Got it." Ricky did as he was told and began to clean Karen's cut. "It probably hurts, right? That's so stupid... If it's supposed to make you feel better, why would it hurt? All medications are like that! It makes no sense..." He blinked. "I'm rambling... Sorry about that..." Karen laid back on the bed and winced in pain from the alchohol, "It kills germs...I guess that's why it hurts so much." she looked up. "...it's okay, you can ramble on all day." she laughed abit then sighed, "...I think I know why you snapped..." she said in a low sad voice, "It's because I trust you isn't it?" Ricky looked away. "Well... Partly... It was also...because..." Because I feel like I'm being torn into pieces... One piece is siding with Death, one piece is on Karen's side, and one piece is defending Kyle... I can only keep it up for so long... I wouldn't be surprised if I snapped again... And Karen won't even listen when I tell her to run away. When it comes to 'heroics'... She's just as stubborn as I am... She won't leave me to fight myself... So... I attack her by default... If she dies... If any of them die... I'd snap again... There's just...too much stress... Too much pressure... I wish it would all just go away... Wait... That's like saying I wish I'd snap... That's...not what I mean... Is it though? No, of course not. Like I'd WANT to go off murdering people... Stupid, stupid, stupid... "It's was also because of what..?" she asked looking over at him then she sighed, "Did you ever...just wish everything and everyone will just leave you alone?" she asked him looking at him as he was about to tie up her arm. Ricky nodded, beginning to bandage up Karen's arm. "Yeah... That's...the other reason... I'm just... Just... I feel like I just want to go away for a while, without stress, or a total loss of control over myself... I just want to...go away... I just need to think..." Karen looked away when he finished she pulled her arm away, "...Then go..." she said sadly, "Run away from it all." Ricky shook his head. "I'm not going to... I'm tired of running away... I'm...not going to run. Not anymore. Never." Karen looked over at him, "Then...face it finally." she said as she winced grabbing the alchohol and put some onto the wrage and began cleaning off her left arm and she held back a scream of pain, "Don't forget, I'm with you all the way." she said grabbing the bandages. "Thank you..." Ricky smiled, taking the bandages out of Karen's hand. "Here, let me do it. I think I'm finally getting the hang of this medical stuff... Plus, you don't want to hurt yourself." He began wrapping a bandage around Karen's arm. "So... When you told me to 'face it'... I...don't think I understand what you're saying... Am I supposed to fight myself?" Karen handed him the bandages and looked down, "...It's hard, too." she said sighing, "I should know, but...you need not to get so angry real easy, so maybe what I'm trying to say is..." she looked over at him, "Try and get over your curse...I know it won't be easy but just try." "Try to get over my curse." Ricky gave a bitter smile. "You really think it's a simple matter of 'getting over it'?" He shook his head, glancing down at his clenched fists. "This isn't like the curses you read about in books... The curse doesn't magically go away at the end..." He closed his eyes. "No, I think I'll have this for the rest of my life. It'll only be gone when I finally die. Which will probably be soon, with the way everything is turning out now..." "Don't talk like that...you won't die soon." she said sadly. "...You still need to make a decision..." she looked down, "Who would you pick?" she said quietly as she glanced at her arm. "...I..." Ricky looked down at the floor. "...I...can't...make that decision yet." He put a hand to his heart. Why does it hurt? That has never happened to me before... What's wrong with me? No, I've got to stop thinking about those things... The things that made me snap before... And if I attack Karen again, who knows what would happen... I could kill her this time... "...And Karen?" Ricky turned around so his back was to her. "Just...don't be too surprised if I get killed... I'm...kind of surprised I'm not dead already..." Yeah, but wouldn't that make everything go away? I'd be free of everything... No. You'd be dead. And besides, those are the kinds of thoughts that brought your curse. Nothing good will come out of them. "No Ricky...don't say that." she said staring at his back with watered brown eyes, "Don't...say it," she looked down, "...All I'll feel is sadness when you die." "I won't say it anymore." Ricky still didn't turn around. "I just wanted to let you know. So... Don't be surprised if...something happens..." He turned slightly, looking at Karen. "But I won't go down without a fight..." He forced a smile. "I'm too stubborn to be killed that easily." Karen looked up at him and lightly sat up putting her arms around his neck, "You're too strong to go down with out a fight..." she put her head down against his back, "I'm sorry about asking you for the awkward position earlier, before you snapped." Ricky shook his head, smiling slightly. "Not strong, just stubborn. And...it's okay... I mean... I was just thinking, that's all. I was just...fighting with myself... Trying to organize my thoughts... And..." He sighed. "Oh, nevermind... I'm not very good at explaining things. It makes perfect sense inside my head... And then when I try to say it, it just..." He stopped talking. "...Am I rambling?" Karen sighed and let go of him so he'd calm down, "Yeah rambling..." she said sitting back, "A fight with yourself isn't easy, it's hard..." she said knowing it sounded crazy then pulled him down beside her on the bed, "Lay down and just..think." she said as she laid her head down and looked up. Ricky's face turned pink as he looked up at the ceiling. His eyes moved sideways as he glanced at Karen for a second before quickly looking away. She's...right next to me... I've got to control myself... I can't do anything stupid... Just...don't move at all... Stay perfectly still, and don't do ANYTHING. Karen looked over at Ricky, he was perfectly still. "Ricky?" she questioned then shook her head, "You tring to control yourself or something?" she asked cluelessly, "Because your just...prefectly still." "I'm... I'm... Just...thinking, that's all..." Ricky remained motionless, staring at the ceiling. His face was still pink and his heartbeat had started speeding up. "Just...thinking..." Karen sat up slightly on her right arm (Where it didn't get hurt) and looked over him, "It's okay...Ricky...you don't have to...hold back," she said slightly red, "I mean...I..." she laid back down, "Nevermind..." Ricky's face turned a slightly brighter shade of pink, but he continued to stare at the ceiling. "But... I... I'm..." ...feeling guilty because I have a girlfriend? ...feeling like I'm betraying Kyle? ...trying to choose a side? ...trying to maintain control of myself? ...afraid of the consequences? ...such a coward... "You're always holding back...because you're afraid of the consequences..." she turned over putting her back to him, "Why can't you just...forget about the consequences for awhile?..." she asked as her back was still to him, "...You said you wanted to do something to make up for whatever you did..." she said quietly, "...I just...want to be with...you." Ricky's eyes flashed red for a split second. Oh no... This isn't good... That...curse...takes advantage of my weaker moments... And I can't let it take control again... "I...know..." he whispered, sitting up. "...So does someone else... And I know I have to choose one or the other... Not both..." He was shaking slightly, trying to keep himself under control. "And I...need time... Just...more...time..." Ricky stood up with his back to Karen, still trembling as his eyes turned red for a moment. "I won't..." he muttered under his breath, trying to talk to his curse. "I won't attack her again... I'll fight against you with everything I've got... But you're never going to take control..." He clenched his fists. "Never..." "Ricky...your eyes, they're..." she sat up and looked at him, "This is my fault he got nervious and his curse is comming out..." she stared at him, "I'm sorry I asked for you not to hold back!" she said tring to stop him. "Shut up." Ricky carelessly tossed an ectoblast at Karen. "No, stop it... Don't hurt her..." He gritted his teeth, closing his eyes. "Stop it..." His pained frown turned into a smirk. "How pitiful... He's getting weaker and weaker these days..." He unsheathed a knife. "I wonder why..." Ricky tossed the knife away. "Don't...hurt..her... Stop it... Go away... Leave me alone... Leave her alone..." Karen dodged the ectoblast but it burned off the bandages she looked over at him with worried eyes, "Ricky..." she made her way towards him stoping in front of him she pulled him into a hug. "Don't push me away, Ricky...keep fighting it." Ricky put his arms around her, still trembling. "K-Karen... Help me..." He squeezed his eyes shut, and they were red when he finally opened them. He unsheathed his second knife from its position strapped to his wrist and held it to Karen's throat, still half-hugging her. "How pathetic..." He smirked. "Why is he still trying to fight against it? Didn't he want to just make everything go away? That's what he was thinking..." Ricky smirked again. "So, do you want me to let you have a chance to run for your life? It'll be much more fun that way..." Get out of my head... Leave me alone... Tch, you were the one who brought me here in the first place... It's all your fault... Everything that has happened so far is all your fault. And now...you'll watch me kill her before I delete your consciousness and take total control. Just...leave her alone... Please... Karen opened her eyes feeling the blade against her neck again she trembled and looked up at his red eyes, "Leave him alone..." she said quietly, "Leave the real Ricky alone!" she said as she couldn't move, to afraid. Ricky just smirked, pushing Karen away. "Too bad the superheroes aren't going to win this time... There won't be any miracles here..." He picked his second knife up off the ground. "My offer still stands.. Run while you have the chance, and I might kill you the quick and painless way. After all... It's not fun to destroy a target that doesn't fight back..." He raised his hand, sending an ectoblast at the door, which shattered immediately. "Go ahead. Run." He smirked. "The door's open." Leave her ALONE... Stop it right now... Hm... No, I don't think I will... And it's not like you have any control... So who's going to stop me? A pathetic girl who's too afraid to do anything, or a bratty teenager who doesn't even have control over his own body? Hey... I'm not bratty... Karen looked back at the door then back at Ricky, "We've already done this before you idiot.." she said coldly as her eyes glew yellow/red for a second, "You...I'm going to make sure the curse Ricky has will be broken." she steped foward towards him lifting up her hand and slapping him across the face, "Get out of him, now." A flicker of recognition flashed through Ricky's eyes as Karen slapped him, but it was gone within a split second. "We may have done this before..." He smirked. "...But Ricky is even weaker now. And do you know why? ...It's all thanks to you." He didn't even turn around to look at the shattered remains of the door. "Looks like we've got company, too..." Karen looked over behind Ricky, "N-Natalee?!" she looked back at Ricky, "You want to kill me so badly, come get me!" she said as she floated up and phased threw the ceiling, "I've got to get away from everyone..." Ricky smirked as he watched Karen phase through the ceiling. "She won't get far..." He turned around to face Natalee. "And you... What makes you think you can hurt me so easily?" He snickered, glancing down at the knife in his hand. "I have some...unfinished business...to attend to... And you'd better stay out of my way, unless you'd like to be dead." Ricky walked past Natalee, pushing her to the side and walking out the door. Karen landed in a clearing cetching her breath she bent down and wrapped some bandages around her arms, "Ricky...he's really lost it this time, what do I do to snap him out of it?" "Now... Where did she go?" Ricky glanced to the left, then the right. "She phased through the ceiling... But then... I have to find her..." He smirked. "I guess this will be fun after all..." He began to walk through the woods, still carrying the knife. "She can't hide forever... She was doomed the moment Ricky snapped..." Karen's breath was caught in her mouth as she heard footsteps she took a step back tripping over a tree branch causing her to scream, "Ah!" she said as she hit the ground and began rubbing her rear, "Ouch, ouch..." she mumbled and saw a shadow in the woods making it way towards her. "Bingo." Ricky followed the sound of Karen's scream. "Is that the best you can do? Falling over and screaming?" Karen's heart stoped for a second and looked up seeing Ricky and his evil smile she began backing up looking up into it's red eyes, "I triped...what do you expect..?" she asked with a hint of fright in her voice. "I can't stop you, I know this now...but I have to try and save you." "You can't save Ricky...or anyone else..." He frowned, glaring at Karen with blood red eyes. "You're terrified... I can sense it..." His frown turned into a cold smirk. "But that means...this is going to be fun." Karen's back was now to a tree shaking lightly she looked at his cold smile, "I'm going to save you..." she repeated, "If there's only one thing I can do in life...well this is the one thing I-I'll do.." she said terrified. "...Of course I'm terrified..." she whispered to herself, "...But I'm moving foward in saving you.." Ricky shook his head, letting out a small, cold laugh. "You still don't get it. You will have to fight me... But you'll never be able to win. You don't know what it's like to be a true fighter. Someone who enjoys killing... Someone who savors the sight of his opponent's blood... Someone who doesn't even blink as he destroys an opponent..." He smirked, leaning back against a tree. "When you become that person... You may have a chance of defeating me..." Karen heart began to beat, "...You talk just like...me when I've snapped.." she didn't move from her spot, "That's not a fighter, that's a killer..." she said in a low sad tone, "So you want to kill me for doing what to you?" she asked as she looked up at him shivering, "I will not fight you." "Killer... Fighter... It's all the same to me..." Ricky shrugged. "...But then...if you don't fight me... Ricky has no hope left whatsoever... So you really don't have a choice, do you?" Karen stould up and looked strait at him, "He's wrong...he's tring to make me put up a fight..." she looked away, "You're wrong...I don't have to fight you, you want me to suffer a slow and painful death, don't you?" Ricky sighed, glaring at Karen. "You're no fun at all... So I'm supposed to kill you now?" He watched as a shaft of sunlight filtered through the trees and reflected off his knife. "I was hoping you'd put up more of a fight..." He turned around, glaring at Natalee. "Go away... I'll kill you later. Can't you see I'm busy?" "Wait no!" Karen said jumping in front of Ricky, "Don't hurt him, Natalee!" she said as she shook her head, "His curse took over him...don't." --- Karen looked from Natalee to Ricky and looked down then up, "Stop it!" she shouted at both of them, as a ghostly wail came out she let it continue until she felt dizzy she shook her head and looked up at Natalee, "This is between me and him, Natalee...I'll fight him." "Karen...Tag me in if you want me in" Natalee said floating up to a nearby tree to watch. "Fear? No... I'm not afraid of you..." Ricky smirked. "If anything, I'd like to fight you. I want a challenge, not a pathetic girl who refuses to fight abck... But you heard the girl... Stay out of this... I'll deal with you once I kill her." Ricky raised an eyebrow . "Yeah. Whatever. All right, Karen... You said you'd fight me... So, go ahead." He gave a chilling smirk. "Make a move." Karen took her ghost form and lifted her hands up making a areo-blade, she closed her eyes for a second and opened them running into attack, "Natalee...please don't, he'll kill you, I'm the one who did this to him..." she thought in her head as she slashed the sword down, "I'm in love with Ricky, so this is personal.." Ricky dodged to the side, unsheathing his second blade. "There we go! I love victims that fight back..." He took up a defensive stance. "You're pretty good... You only just missed. I guess I underestimated you..." Karen jumped back then span her blade around hitting his side but bairly, she glared at him, "Darn right you did." she ran into attack him again. Ricky glanced down at his side, watching as a small trickle of blood appeared. He looked back up at Karen and snickered. "I had almost forgotten what it was like... I haven't been able to fight anyone in a long time... And I almost forgot how good it felt... Even the sight of my own blood..." He clenched his fists around the knives, planning his attack as Karen got closer. Karen dissappered from sight and reappered behind him lifting up her sword over him she slashed down his back pulling her sword back with blood on it, she jumped back against a tree and over Ricky landing in front of him she lifted up her sword but it dissappered, "...I can't do this anymore." she thought but stould up backing up lifting up her hands as the wind bended around her hands making two long blades. Natalee jump out of the tree she was floating and or sitting in she Dissapeared and reappeared in the back of Karen. "Are you ok?You seem tired..." Ricky fell to his knees, feeling the blood leave his body. He closed his eyes and began to laugh, staggering to his feet. "I underestimated your mental strength as well... Under that pretty face, you're just as cold-hearted as I am." "I'm just a bit.." she said smiling back at Natalee then saw Ricky fall to his knees, "Ricky.." Karen's eyes whidened and the blades dissappered, "...I'm not cold-hearted..." she said quietly as she took a step towards him and bent down to his veiw, "I had no choice but to do this to you, Ricky...I.." she shook her head, "I...want to save you." she closed her eyes, "I love you, doesn't that mean anything to you?" Ricky's hand trembled as he raised one of the knives. "It...doesn't mean anything at all!" He tossed the knife at Karen, glaring coldly at her. "The only way you can save him...is to destroy him..." The knife skimmed her arm causing her to scream as it landed behind her she looked at him and bent down, "...I won't destroy him..." she pulled him close into a hug, "Ricky, come back...don't lose to this curse.." Ricky squeezed his eyes shut, gripping the second knife. "No... You...can't... He's... He's under my control... You...can't...save him..." He was trembling, fighting for control. "Get...away from me..." He raised his arm and stabbed Karen in the back, still slightly shaking. "Get...away..." He pushed her back, still struggling to maintain control. Karen gasped as the knife went into her back her eyes watered and she stared at him and continued towards him, "Ricky...do-don't...lose to him," she said as she cornered him against the tree she pushed her lips against his, trembling she pulled away hoping that the last ounce of stranth she had wouls save him she fainted in his lap her back covered in blood..she took her human form. "Karen!" Natalee screamed as she floated down towards Karen. "Karen...are you okay?!" Trying to wipe the blood away from her she looked up at Ricky. "You...Ricky...Fight him...Fight him...I know you can do it..." she hissed. "Ricky please FIGHT HIM" she carried Karen down to the grass right about 2 inches near Ricky. Ricky was feeling dizzy from the loss of blood where Karen had cut his back, and he was struggling to maintain focus. "Hey... That's...cheating..." He closed his eyes and rested his head back against the tree, breathing heavily. "You...can't..." He lost total consciousness, still struggling to breathe. "I can't do what...?" Natalle questioned going over to Ricky. She magicly healed him. But she couldn't heal a halfa like Karen she was speciel. Ricky sat up, his eyes widening as he saw blood everywhere. "What...happened? Why is...? Who are...? What's going on...? Karen!" His eyes widened and his stomach gave an unpleasant lurch. "What happened to you? Karen!" He clapped a hand to his mouth, scooting backwards. "I... I didn't..." He closed his eyes, feeling sick. "I...didn't..." "Ricky...Your darkside overwhelmd you...Your dark side hurt her.." Natalee whispered looking away. Ricky shook his head, looking pale. "N-no... I...didn't do it..." He scooted back even more, leaning against a tree and hugging his knees. His eyes held a look of fear as he repeated, "No... I... I didn't..." Karen opened her eye, "R..Ricky?" she said weekly looking up at him, "You're okay...I'm glad..." she said closing her eyes again. "K-Karen..." Ricky's voice came out as a horrified whisper. "What... What did I do...? What...happened to you...?" He tilted his head down so his bangs covered his eyes. "What...did I do to you...?" "...You attacked me..." she said in a low whisper as she laid on her stomach with the dagger still in her back, "...And...stabbed me.." Ricky's eyes widened and he turned his head away to hide the look of pain on his face. "I... N-no... I didn't..." He defiantly looked back at Karen and reached over, grasping the hilt of the knife in her back. "This...might hurt... But...it'll help..." He closed his eyes and pulled the knife out. "Who was it?" Ricky opened his eyes, clutching the bloody knife, still not believing Karen. "Who attacked you...?" Karen screamed as the knife was pulled out she tried moving but it wasn't any use, "...Your curse came after me...I..." she closed her eyes as the wet tears covered her face, "I'm sorry..." Ricky squeezed his eyes shut. His hand trembled as blood rolled down the blade of the knife and onto his fingers. "Stop apologizing for things that aren't your fault!" He fell silent, slightly surprised at his own outburst. Karen opened her eyes and slowly pushed herself up, "...It is my fault though if I didn't push you at all to do something...this wouldn't have happened." she said as she tried staying up but her back hurt and she groaned with a shot of pain she stade on her knees and hands. "...Shut up..." Ricky whispered. "Just...shut...up..." He stabbed the kinfe into the ground so the entire blade was buried. "It's not your fault..." He was still clutching the hilt of the knife, watching blood drip down his hand. Karen closed her mouth as he said shut up..., "I'm..." she whispered under her breath then stoped looking away she stayed still. "...Not responsible for any of this," Ricky finished for her. "I was the one who gave myself this curse... I chose this life... Knowing the consequences, I chose this... You have nothing to be sorry for." His gaze shifted to Karen. "Nothing." Karen shook her head, "I do though.." she said back to him lifting her gaze at him, "I'm the one who trusts you..." she said looking away, "I do have a right to be sorry!" Ricky glared back at the ground. "See... Now you know why I told you not to trust me... I'll just...stab you in the back... So...why... Why do you trust me!?" He bowed his head, closing his eyes and clenching his fists. Karen pushed her self up a little more and crawled in front of him looking down, "Because there was this person...I fell in love with," she said silently looking down, "...And listens to what I say, doesn't push me away when I'm sad..." she closed her eyes, "I know you're being pulled around but I'm...here Ricky." she opened her eyes, "I trust you because you gave me the feeling of trust!" "You're... You're wrong..." Ricky didn't look up. "I can only fight my curse to the full extent of my abilities... And that's not enough..." His eyes narrowed as he slammed his fist on the ground. "I never wanted to fall in love...because of that reason... Because anything that's precious to me... Anything I love... In the end...it will always end up dead." Karen looked down hurt at what he said, "So you didn't want to be in love?" she scooted back, "Then why don't you just go?" she said closing her eyes feeling hurt at what he said. "...But that's why I can't go..." Ricky shoulders drooped. "I...let my guard down... And before I knew what was happening, I was in love..." He pulled the knife out of the ground. "I...don't want you to die..." Karen looked away still, "I won't die..." she said still hurt then looked down, "...I won't ever ask you to...to kiss me or be in that awkward position or...hug me...ever again..." she said sadly, "You're to afraid of what happens after something, you never do it..." she said looking from the ground towards the sky. "It'll be...just a memory..." she said as her tears continued. "I'm afraid I'll kill you. There's nothing wrong with that." Ricky tossed the knife away and pulled Karen into a hug. "I... I'm...sorry... Karen... You...don't ever have to ask..." He closed his eyes. "Please don't cry..." he whispered. Karen's watery eyes closed as she felt him hug her tightly she placed head down, "Okay..." she said silently in his arms. "But...Karen..." Ricky opened his eyes. "Next time I tell you to run... Will you please just go?" Without waiting for an answer, he stood up and scooped Karen into his arms, making sure he avoided the wound in her back. "Come on... Let's get you to the infirmary..." He began to walk through the woods, carrying her gently. Karen closed her eyes leaning on his sholder as he carried her to the infirmary, "I...can't just leave you Ricky..." she said silently as she drifted off into sleep. "But you have to... I promised myself I wouldn't let you die... But... I can't keep that promise..." Ricky sighed. "You have to run when I... Karen? Are you...?" ...Sleeping... He pushed open the infirmary door with his other shoulder, laying Karen down on the nearest bed. "Hnn..." Karen groaned in her sleep feeling a shot of pain in her back she opened her eyes up slowly, "What's going on...?" she had been asleep for a day. "Where am I?" she looked around noticing she was in the infirmary. "Oh yea..." she slowly sat up feeling her back ache but just ignored it. She rubbed her head feeling her hair was down so the longer hair she kept in a pigtail was down. "Ricky!" she said as she remembered, "I hope he's okay.." "Hmm... Wha?" Ricky blinked his eyes, half-asleep. "Whazgoingon? Huh? Oh... Yeah... I'm okay..." He sat up, rubbing his eyes and trying to wake himself up. He was sitting in a chair, unnoticed, on the other side of the infirmary, watching over Karen to make sure she was all right. "Hey, Karen! You're finally awake, huh? How are you feeling?" He smiled. "You've been asleep for a week!" Karen's mouth widened and she screamed, "One week?!...and yea I'm feeling better." she went quiet and sighed, "What about you?" "Nah, just kidding... It was only one day." Ricky grinned. "I'm fine... But don't worry about me, okay? It's you you should be worried about... Your back must still be hurting..." "Oh you!!..." her mouth puffed up then looked away, "I can worry about you if I want too..." she mumbled under her breath as she looked away, "My backs fine..." she said blushing lightly. Ricky raised an eyebrow, looking at Karen suspiciously. "Of course your back is still hurting... It's only been a day, and that wound was pretty deep... You don't have to lie about that. It's okay to be in pain." "I know..." she said lightly as she looked down at her feet, "It still hurts...I'm not lieing about anything." she said softly looking up at him, "I gave you a nice cut in the back doesn't that hurt?" "N-no... It's fine..." Ricky shook his head, smiling. "Come on, I can handle a little scratch like that!" "But it wasn't little...you were bleeding pretty bad." she laid down, "Thanks for worrying about me." she said sitting her head back, "But I think I'll be okay..." she looked down remembering the moment the night before causing her to blush and look away, "I can't kiss him, or be in the awkward position we never went in...again." "Yeah, but... I feel much better now. Anyway, I'm glad to hear you're okay." Ricky smiled. "Do you need anything? You must be hungry... You've gone an entire day without food, right?" Karen shook her head, "Naw, I'm not hungr-.." at that moment her stomach grumbled causing her to blush, "Yea...I guess I am hungry." she looked away flushed. "Hm... I thought so..." Ricky smiled again. "Well, there's no food here, but the mess hall is close by. I'll go get you something... They've got just about everything there, so... What do you want?" "Well..." she looked up at him, "Anythings good, as long as it's food!" she said to him as she put another pillow behind her back. "This'll do!" she said getting confortable. "Yeah, but... With my luck, I'll probably get something you hate by accident..." Ricky sighed, giving Karen a tired smile. "Got a...favorite food or something...?" He yawned, feeling tired all of a sudden. "Well..." she looked away, "My favorite food is carrots...and strawberries but- like I said anythings fine!" she waved a hand and sat up, "I'll go with you." "Karen! You need rest, not exercise!" Ricky couldn't hold back a smile. Even when she's injured... She's so...determined... "Well... I know how stubborn you can be sometimes..." He took a step backwards. "So I'm not going to stop you... Just...be careful, okay? Don't push yourself too hard." "Hey! I'm not stubborn!" she said as she mumbled under her breath pushing off the blankets, "All I need is some crunches, and I'm set." she stepped out of the bed slipping on her black and purple boots zipping them up, "Ready." "Oh, admit it." Ricky grinned. "You can be stubborn at times. But I'm stubborn all the time." He began to walk towards the door. "If you need help, just ask." "Fine...I am stubborn, at times." she said walking towards the door with him, "I will, don't worry she said limping and opening the door, "I wonder where Myles and Shalise are..." Ricky laughed. "They're probably having some 'alone time'. Heh, did you see how much that girl was blushing when she looked at Myles?" He smiled. "And he's just so clueless..." "Well...he is your brother after all!" she said laughing as she limped with him towards the mess house, "Ricky?" she held her head for a second, "I think I pushed my self, or I'm just really hungry..." she sighed then put on a reasuring smile, "I'm okay!" "Hey... Are you saying I'm cl--" Ricky paused, watching Karen hold her head. "Are you sure you're okay? This is what I was afraid of..." He put an arm around her for support. "Here. You can lean on me. Maybe that'll help..." Karen blinked for a second and leaned against Ricky, it helped a bit, "Thank you...Ricky." she said slightly blushing. "Whatcha guys doing?" Myles poked his head out from the branches of a tree above their heads. Ricky almost dropped Karen out of shock. "Myles! What are you doing here!? I thought you were with that mermaid girl... And why are you spying on us!?" Myles frowned. "I wasn't spying... And Shalise is nearby, eating an apple I gave her. I just wanted to see what you guys were d--" He cut himself off. "What happened to you, Karen? Are you okay?" "Myles!!" Karen screamed as she looked up at Myles pulling away from Ricky flinching with pain and looking back at Myles and nodded, "Fine fine, just tripped." she said leaning back up. Ricky put his arm around Karen again, helping her regain her balance. "You okay?" He turned to Myles and shouted up, "See, now look what you did..." Myles sighed. "Fine... I guess I'll just leave then..." He jumped out of the tree, landing on his feet. "Wasn't that cool, Ricky? Can you guys do that?" "Don't be hard on him Ricky..." Karen scolded him as she regained her balance around his arm, "That's great, Myles. You've been practicing!" she said smiling abit. "What have you and Shalise been doing sence yesterday?" Ricky sighed, but Myles grinned, enjoying the attention from Karen. Then he said, all in one breath and without pause or hesitation, "Well, we found a dragon and then she got attacked by these other dragons and then I helped save her but it was mostly Shalise who broke open the cage they had the dragon trapped in but it was so cool because she thought I was brave but she was really amazing!" Karen smiled all happy, "So you like Shalise then?" she asked smirking evily then looked at Ricky smiling, "Told ya..." she said to him in his ear...her stomache grumbled, "Man..I must be really hungry I haven't eaten for a whole day." "I don't like her!" Myles's face turned red. "She's just amazing and pretty and cool and--" He cut himself off. "Oh, right... Yeah, Ricky... There was something I wanted to talk to you about..." Ricky grinned at Myles. "You can walk with us. We're going to the mess hall." "Okay, cool!" Myles smiled, walking beside Ricky. "An entire day... Wow... She must be really hungry..." he muttered to himself. Karen smiled and continued to walk with the support of Ricky, "He's absolutly clueless...just like someone I know." she said eyeing Ricky but just smiled as they entered the mess hall, seeing the food she quickly got into line and grabbed a tray and put food onto it reaching the end she sat down at the table happy she could finally eat. After praying a short prayer she dug-in! Ricky sat down across from Karen, and Myles took a seat next to him. "So... What did you want to talk about, Myles?" "Well... I'm just kinda...confused... 'Cause..." Myles stared at the table, searching for the proper words. "Like... Well, whenever I'm around Shalise... Um... Well, when she hugged me... I felt kind of...different..." He nodded slowly. "Yeah. My head got all fuzzy and...and it felt weird... But I kinda liked it... Even though I don't really understand what it is..." Ricky just smirked at Myles. "Just as I thought..." Karen put down her fork and looked up at Myles and smiled, "How cute!!" she said all squee-like and looked up at Myles, "You like the girl!" she sighed all romantic like, "That fuzzy feeling...and lightheadedness!" she smiled over at Myles, "You need to try and figure it out...you are Rickys little brother after all.." she said as she bit into her strawberry. Myles's face turned red again. "I already said I don't like her! I... Hey... Why does my face feel all warm?" Ricky just smiled at Karen. "Are you calling me clueless?" "You're blushing...whenever I mension the girls name you blush, it's simple facts!" she said putting the strawberry stem down and grabbing her fork and started eating her salad, "I sure am, Ricky." she said calm as she bit into the salad. "Take Ricky for instence...he blushes whenever I tell him I like him." "I do not!" Ricky cried out, blushing. "And neither do I!" Myles said stubbornly as his face turned pink. Karen couldn't help but laugh standing leaning over the table, "See...you blushed Ricky." she said poking his nose and sitting down finishing up her salad, "The two clueless brothers...it's so cute." she murmured standing up getting the plates and walking over to the tray taker as she put it down another shot of pain went threw her causing her to fall to one knee, "Pull it together, Karen..." she forced herself up to her feet. Myles giggled, pointing at Ricky. "You blushed!" Ricky smirked. "Yeah, so did y--" His eyes widened as he stood up. "Karen!" He ran over to her, concern in his eyes. "Are you... Are you okay? Come on, we need to get you back to the infirmary... We never should've come here in the first place... I knew it..." Myles stood up, watching from a distance. He wanted to help, but he felt out of place, as if he didn't belong. "How cute! You like the girl!" "Whenever I say the girl's name you blush. It's simple facts!" "Take Ricky for instance... He blushes whenever I tell him I like him." Karen looked up at Ricky, "I'm sorry.." she mumbled under her breath, "I shouldn't have pushed myself," she sighed, "I hope what I said to him would help..." she looked back down and leaned against Ricky, "Now it's time to talk about something..." she said quietly, "Don't get nervious okay, we both know what would happen." She looked away but tripped falling against a tree, "Ouch ouch...not my day..." she mumbled to herself then looked up at Ricky, "We need to talk about something really..." she looked away, "Are you betraying your girlfriend?" --------- Myles looked over at Ricky and Karen, still keeping his dtstance. I wonder what they're talking about... Will I ever be like that? Will I ever be in love with someone? I wonder why Ricky looks so pale... Maybe he's sick or something... But what Karen said... Is it true? Do I really...like Shalise? - - - Ricky looked away from Karen. "I... I need to talk to her. I'm going to tell her about you. And I'm not going to back down, or run away, or be afraid." He looked directly at her. "Who knows...? Like you said before... I can't control the future, or see what it holds..." He leaned back against a tree. "I'm sure...everything will turn out all right in the end..." Karen looked up at him, "I did say that, didn't I...?" she sighed looking down, "I'm glad you're looking on the bright side now..." she lifted out a hand to him pulling on his hand she brought him down to her blushing slightly at the awkward position they were in she kissed him on the lips. --------- Myles blushed, wondering why his face felt hot again. Watching them...makes me feel weird... I used to just say, "Eeeeew!" and stick out my tongue... But now...it's like... I'm missing something... Wait a minute... Do I want to be like that? ... Yuck! No way! Not me... Never... - - - Ricky deepened the kiss slightly, before pulling away and smiling. "I'm constantly finding myself in awkward positions these days... But you know what? I think I like them." He smiled, awkwardly putting his arms around Karen, making sure he didn't touch her injury. Karen smiled a blushed lightly, "Same here..." she said as she closed her eyes kissing back and brought his hand to her's and lightly groaned in pain and as well as passion, "Stupid back..." she thought in her head while she opened her eyes and smiled at him. "This is making me feel better..." "Really?" Ricky smiled. "I'm glad... You know I love it when you smile." He gently squeezed her hand. "Anyway... Maybe we should continue this back at the infirmary? Or your cabin? You don't want to hurt your back again..." Myles walked over, hiding his face behind a mask of disgust. "Eeew! Gross! That's disgusting! Blech! Yuck! Eeeeeew..." Oh... Maybe I overdid it a little... "Maybe my Cabin...it's more at home then the infirmary." she said to him smiling but then slightly blushed, "Could you um... get off me?" she asked smiling lightly. "Heh... Um... Right... Y-yeah, sorry about that..." Ricky pulled away, blushing. "I, um...didn't mean to... I..." "Wow!" Myles pointed at Ricky, interrupting him. "Look at your face! Anyway, I'm going to go look for Shalise! You two have fun being gross!" He walked off into the woods, still thinking about Shalise. Karen blushed and smiled slowly standing up seeing Myles walk off and find Shalise. "..Yea, so you ready?" she asked as she began limping towards the cabins. Ricky smiled. "I don't think I ever will be... But I always end up all right in the end." He glanced at Karen, looking slightly concerned. "We're almost there... Just a few more steps..." He winced as he stepped around the wood shards, scattered all over the ground. That's right... I...broke the door... No... HE did... IT did... Karen rubbed her head, "...It did this, I forgot." she steped over the wood on the ground and made her way back to her bed she went silent for a second before grabbing Ricky by the arm pulling him down with her on the bed. "Ack!" Ricky fell down next to her, closing his eyes for a moment. ...No running away this time... No backing out... I...think I'm ready now... Just...don't think about the consequences... That's all... Karen closed her eyes, "I better not do anything, so he doesn't get nervous.." she thought as she opened her eyes turnning her head the other way, "Maybe not.." Ricky blinked, wondering why Karen was turning away. "Karen?" He was interrupted as Myles stepped into the cabin, inspecting the floor. "What happened to your door? By the way, Ricky, I had another question about Sh--" He looked up and saw Karen and Ricky. "Eeeeew! Gross!" He covered his eyes with his hands and turned around, accidentally slamming into the wall. With a murmured, "Ouch..." he sidestepped into the open doorway and ran outside, still covering his eyes. "Um...I don't-" she was cut off when Myles came into the cabin she watched him run into the wall then right out of the cabin, she blushed a little looking away, "That was weird..." she said turnning back to Ricky who wondered why she turned away? "I...I don't know why I turned away." she said shyly turnning back to him, "Are yo-you ready?" Ricky was still staring at the empty doorway even though Myles was gone. "He always gets himself into such awkward situations..." he murmured. Then he turned back to Karen, giving her a nervous smile. "And, no... I'm not ready..." He reached over and kissed Karen on the lips. I'm never ready...for anything... But that never stops me... Karen closed her eyes as he kissed her on the lips, shivering abit she laid back bringing him down with her as they kissed, "If you're not ready...you don't have to do this..." she said as she broke off the kiss to tell him. And...sorry I haven't been on lately, just busy right now. Another heads up... I'm leaving for nine days, Saturday morning at 5:00 my time, so I won't be on at all during that time period.)) "I'm never ready..." Ricky smiled at Karen. "...Makes it kind of interesting, huh?" I wonder how everything will turn out in the end... But I'm always unprepared... I'm never truly ready for anything... Most importantly... I'm not ready for another attack from that curse... That's what concerns me the most... Karen looked away, "It does make it...interesting but, Ricky.." she looked back up at him, "You don't have to do this if you don't want to..." "I know..." Ricky kissed her gently for a moment and pulled away, smiling. "But what if I do want to?" Karen smiled up at Ricky, "Then...you can do it, I'm here, I won't be going anywhere for a long, long time.." Ricky smiled, wrapping his arms around Karen. "That's good to hear.." he murmured, closing his eyes. "I won't be going anywhere for a long, long time..." Yeah, well...if she keeps trusting me...it means she's also trusting my curse...and how unstable it is... And it could kill her... Which means I have to fight it with everything I've got...to protect her... Karen smiled and rested her head on her pillow closing her eyes a shot of pain went down her back causing her to wince and open her eyes, "I-I'm okay..." she murmured to him as she put her arms around him as well. "Are you sure?" Ricky asked hesitantly, opening his eyes. "You don't look okay... You look like you're in pain..." He closed his eyes, frowning. "I'm sorry... It's your injury, right? And...I'm responsible for it..." He sighed, apologizing again with a remorseful, "I'm sorry..." Karen closed her eyes, "Shut up..." she said to him looking away, "You didn't...it was that bloody curse." she said quietly still looking away, "You...can't help it, you've been controled by that stupid curse." "It's all because of a stupid mistake I made..." Ricky opened his eyes, glaring at nothing in particular. "A stupid mistake, with consequences that I was fully aware of..." He closed his eyes. "I'm...such an idiot..." "...You're not an idiot..." she said to him as she took her hands from around him to her chest and looked up at him, "Don't think that, you're an idiot...you made a mistake, and..." she looked away, "I wouldn't be hurt, if I didn't push you,...I'm sorry about that really..." she closed her eyes, "I'm sorry." "Hey." Ricky opened his eyes, looking directly at Karen. "It's not your fault that I made the mistake. It's not your fault that I can't control that stupid curse. It's not your fault, and it's not your mistake." He poked her forehead for emphasis. "Don't blame yourself." Karen opened her her eyes and rubbed her forhead, "...Ricky, I know, I know but..." she stretched her arms out so they would be flat on the bed, "You shouldn't feel over presure, it's to much for you to bair, I can tell.." she turned her head away, "I'm sorry, about the scrach on your back..." Ricky laid back, staring at the ceiling. "Hey, there's nothing wrong with defending yourself..." He smiled. "You must be a pretty good fighter if you could give him a cut like that... But...weren't you afraid? I've had to face him...it..." He sighed. "And it was terrifying..." Karen turned to her left side to veiw him, "...I was afraid to face him- erm it, but I'm..." she looked away, "I'm as coldhearted as it is when it fights.." she closed her eyes, "...I can't lie that I enjoy fighting...it's been appart of me for three years." Ricky spoke hesitantly, choosing his words carefully. "Fighting...isn't always a bad thing... It...can be considered a hobby...or an art. Just because you like it...doesn't mean you're cold-hearted..." He looked over at Karen. "You can't be as cold-hearted as it... You'll never be..." He shook his head. "I don't know what gave you that idea..." Karen looked back at Ricky, "...After I struck it down, it said...I was as cold-hearted as it was and it..." she looked away turning over, "It might be right, I was fighting you freely." Ricky looked down, clenching a fist. "Don't listen to anything that...that thing says to you..." He glared at his fist. "It doesn't know anything... It was wrong, Karen..." His eyes narrowed with hatred. "It only says those things to mess with your mind..." He sighed, unclenching his fist and closing his eyes. "Trust me, I know what it's like..." "I'm sorry..." she said quietly as she heard the hatered in his voice towards the curse inside of him, "You're right I shouldn't...I'm sorry." Ricky sat up, staring across the room. "Don't be sorry. It's only natural. He... It... That thing... It specializes in..." He sighed. "It can mess up your head so badly... If it had enough power it could drive me insane... And I'm afraid that day will come soon..." He shrugged. "...Or not. Who knows?" He clenched a fist, holding it up to his face. "If I could only become stronger... Then I might have a chance to win against it." Karen sat up and looked over at him then away, "...Ricky, you won't go crazy...that thing inside you won't take over if you just...fight back and..." she fell back and sighed, "And I'm always here for you...don't you forget that she said as she went behind him and pressed up against his back, "Okay?" Ricky smiled. "I know... Thank you..." He closed his eyes and yawned, feeling extremely tired. "Sorry... Just...tried, I guess... But... I feel safe right now... I don't know why, but..." He yawned again, forcing his eyes open but feeling them begin to droop again. Karen blinked, "Ricky are you asleep?" she asked as she lifted her hands away from arounds his neck and felt his weight squshing her, "R-Ricky?" she fell back with Ricky asleep on her... "Awkward position..." "N-no..." Ricky muttered. "I'm...awake... Sorry...Karen..." He rolled over, yawning. "Just...tired... Heh... Kind of...awkward..." He dozed off, smiling slightly in his sleep. Karen sat up and looked over at him blinking a bit, he got tired...alittle to fast. "Something's awkward about this, I can feel it in my stomach..." she mumbled to herself and stould up getting off the bed she walked to the closet getting out the broom she began sweeping up the wood...as she swept she looked over at the sleeping Ricky, "Is he really okay..?" Ricky flinched in his sleep, suddenly beginning to shiver. A look of pain and anger appeared on his face as he was confronted mentally by his curse. Get away from me... If you try to control me again... If you hurt her again... I'll... "What? You have no control whatsoever, so how can you possibly stop me? You're putting up a fight, though... You're not nearly as weak as I thought..." Shut up... Just...shut up... What are you planning on doing, anyway? "It's simple, really... Since I don't have enough power to fully control you, I'll just fuse with your spirit... It's quick and painless as long as you don't put up a fight... And unless I'm mistaken...it's irreversible." Fuse...with...my spirit? What the heck? Do you know how weird that is? What do you mean, anyway? "Heh... You'll find out soon, Ricky..." Karen put the broom away and looked back at Ricky, "He's shivering..." she whispered to herself as she walked over to her bed and looked down at him taking her quilt and placing it over him so he wouldn't shiver. "Somethings going to happen, I know it...and I'm scared for you, Ricky." she whispered sitting down on the end of the bed then laid back on her bed looking over at him sleep, pain was written all over his face, "...You can do it, whatever is going on in that head of your's I'm sure you can win against it." Ricky opened his eyes, glancing around the room. "Wh-what's...going on? This is the worst headache I've ever g--" He fell silent, remembering the 'talk' he had with his curse. Right... That curse is planning on another attack... But I don't know when it will actually strike... So I have to be on my guard... This time, I'll be ready for it... Karen looked over at him blinking, "Are you okay, Ricky?" she asked sitting up, "You feel asleep...and you were shivering, I was thinking if something was wrong?" she asked in a questioned looking over at him. "I'm..." Ricky sighed. "Honestly, I'm worried..." He sat up, leaning back against the pillow. "That...curse... It sounds confident... It's going to try something new, and it's not going to be anything good... But...I can't stop it... It's impossible..." He looked over at Karen. "How do you fight yourself?" Karen looked alittle superised at the question then answered, "I...um, how do I put this.?" she thought for a second, "..I don't know really, it rarely ever happens to me, unless I'm extremely upset, or sad. It just comes out of the unknown." Ricky nodded, looking away. "I just want to be ready to fight it... It's been reappearing constantly, getting stronger... And it's going to make another move soon..." He sighed, glaring across the room. "I didn't really understand what it was talking about, but it sounded like this..." He frowned. "I'm going to take over your spirit, Ricky," he said mockingly. "I'm going to beat you, Ricky. I'm so much stronger than you are, Ricky. You'll find out soon, Ricky!" He continued to glare across the room. "That curse is so annoying..." "Well..." she looked over at him and stould up, "You'll just have to beat it this time...and I'm here to help as much as I can." she said turning to him and smiling, "What else am I here for?" she asked smirking offering him a hand. "...We'll beat this stupid curse." Ricky smiled, taking Karen's hand. "Yeah... We will." He suddenly jerked his hand away, feeling pain stab through his head. "Hmm... Maybe I should attack you now?" Go away. You're giving me a headache. "That's not a very smart thing to say to me when I can attack you at any moment... And I think I will..." "Go ahead and try..." he muttered out loud, clenching his fists. "Ricky!" she bent down to his view and looking up at him, "Come on Ricky...fight it I know you can.." she said as her eyes sadened. "There's got to be something I can do for him..." Ricky smirked, muttering quietly. "Well...make a move... Or were you bluffing the whole time?" "Heh... Of course not, fool. But don't worry... After this, you'll still have your free will... But you'll find out your personality has been completely warped..." Ricky's eyes widened. "Wh-what?" "Well... What did you think I meant by 'fusing with your spirit'? ...You're not very smart, are you? Ah, well... My intelligence is enough, I suppose. So, are you ready?" Ricky just glared at the wall. "...You...think it'll be that easy, huh?" "Actually...yes." Another wave of pain made Ricky double over, trembling. "Stop it..." he hissed, squeezing his eyes shut and trying to block out the pain. Karen did the only thing she could do..she put her arms around him. "Ricky, you can beat your curse...I know you can keep tring!" "...Using that old trick again?" Ricky had stopped trembling and was now smirking. He pushed Karen's arms away and stared at her for a moment. "So... This is the result of the curse fusing with my soul... Very interesting... When I look at you, I don't feel anything anymore." He glanced around the room. "Everything looks the same... I just feel different... Still in control, but... I feel like a different person..." Karen tripped back and hit the bed behind her landing on her back she sat up and stared at him, "...You what?" for a reason she didn't know, it felt like her heart was just stabbed, "What do you mean?" she asked unbelieving. She then stould up, "Are you saying that that thing...just made the feelings you felt for me just dissapper and...you find it Very interesting?" Ricky shrugged, standing up and leaning against the wall. "Of course it's interesting... Sorry, but... You're just another pawn, like everyone else." He opened one of his hands, creating a red ectoblast. "I told you not to trust me in the first place." The ectoblast faded. "You wouldn't be in so much pain if you had just listened..." Karen looked away, "...You idiot, you.." she choked on her last word, "I can't believe you, you accepted your curse and..." looking down, "It took away a weekness...your feeling for me." Ricky shrugged again. "You've never been through that much pain. You've never even come close. If you'd like to bear this curse..." He created another red ectoblast. "...just ask. I'd happily give it to you. Then you'd know what it feels like..." He glared at Karen. "I fought it before it overpowered me. The curse has incredible power. Every second of battling it, I wanted to die." His voice was cold. "I did not just accept that curse..." He glanced down at the ectoblast in his hand. "...you idiot." Karen stared at him and looked away closing her eyes, "You're as cold as the curse." she said to him as she looked back up him with watered eyes, "You're the idiot..." "...Shut up..." Ricky looked away. "You're just a pawn... Why should I listen to you?" He raised his hand, aiming the ectoblast at Karen. "Want to know what it feels like to be in that much pain? I could kill you in an instant..." His hand shook slightly. "I could kill you right now..." Karen closed her eyes accepting it and tears fell down her face, "...Go ahead, why should I live?" she asked then stould up, "If you don't love me anymore?" she said looking up at him, "Go ahead and kill me..." "What?" Ricky stared at Karen with an expression of disbelief on his face. "Fool... You...want to die?" The ectoblast faded from his hand. "...No... I...won't kill you... I..." He looked away. "You're...still an important pawn..." "So...your keeping me alive because I'm just some pawn?" she asked looking at him taking a step towards him, "...You clueless idiot, I'm not just somebody who can be used..." she said to him coldly. "What do want me for, you don't have any feeling for me anymore, so what do you need me for?" Ricky took a step backwards, bumping into the wall. "It's because..." He trailed off and looked away, glaring at the floor. "...Why do I have to tell you anything? Leave me alone...idiot." Karen stepped closer to him still with wet eyes, "I won't ever leave you alone, I promised you I'd never leave you alone..." she said as she was now looking up at him, "Why don't you kill me so I'll leave you alone?" she asked staring up at him, "...Why are you so coldhearted now?" "I already told you..." Ricky glared at Karen. "I'm not going to kill you." He ignored her question and looked away, seeing her tears. "...Stop crying." "No..." she said to him rubbing her eyes, "I won't stop crying." she put her hands to both his sides, "Answer me Ricky, why are you so coldhearted and why won't you kill me..." she asked him still crying, "Why are you acting like the curse..?" "It fused itself with my spirit." Ricky wanted to phase through the wall, but something held him back. "...And I already told you... Stop crying," he said fiercely, but the hand that wiped away Karen's tears was surprisingly gentle. "...Stop asking questions. Just leave me alone." Karen flinched as he spoke fiercely then looked down as he touched her cheek, "No...I won't stop asking questions, and I..." she looked away sadened, "I won't leave you alone...because I love you.." Ricky pulled his hand back, looking away. "Why would you love...a coldhearted, clueless idiot? I've already stabbed you... Threatened to kill you... Why don't you hate me?" "I can't hate you..." she said to him looking away, "I can't hate you even if I tried..." she closed her eyes, "Your the one I'll always love, I can't ever hate you...I'd rather die, if it'll be again." "Hmph." Ricky smirked, still not looking at Karen. "...Honestly...I don't hate you, either. That's why I'm not going to kill you." He turned away, facing the wall. "Now leave me alone." "No I won't!" she said back at him, "I won't leave you alone, you...idiot." she stepped back and felt pain returning to her back she flenched and sat down on the bed closet to her, "You stole my first kiss...you lied to me about your feelings and you expect me to just leave you alone?" "Didn't you hear me?" Ricky's voice was almost inaudible. "I said I don't hate you." He turned around, looking at Karen. "...Coming from me, that means a lot. It means more than you think it does...idiot." "I heard you perfectly." she said back at him not looking up at him, "I heard you..." she felt her eyes water again, "Then why...I don't get it if you don't hate me, why keep me alive...I said kill me!" she said snapping at him closing her eyes. "Of course you don't get it..." Ricky glared at the floor. "Listen up... I'm only going to say this once." He sighed. "Maybe I don't hate you. Maybe I actually like you. Maybe that's why I don't want to kill you. Maybe you're someone special to me..." His voice became a soft whisper. "...idiot..." Karen stould up and put her arms arounds his waist, "Don't you push me away..." she said in a murmur, "Don't..." she whispered squeezing, "Why...why do you like me?" "Because..." Ricky didn't even try to push her away. "...Because I remember..." He gave a feeble smile. "Now stop being so clingy...little idiot..." Karen let go of him and backed away from him feeling the pain return she sat down on the ground, "You're the idiot..." she mumbled closing her eyes and bringing her hand to her chest, "You remember?" she asked quietly, "Then what am I a pawn for?" Ricky glared out the window, then sat down beside Karen. "...You're not. I just hate...these kinds of talks..." He stared at the floor. "So I used an excuse..." Karen looked away from him and down at the floor. "Why did you use an excuse...you didn't have too." she said as she looking down at her hand, "...What if I said I can get the curse out of you?" "Impossible." Ricky glanced at Karen before staring back down at the floor. "It's fused with my spirit...my very existence. If you removed the curse...you'd be ripping out my soul..." Karen's hand glew a dark purple and eyes dark yellow, "Nothings never impossible...not if you know how to do something." she leaned toward him. Ricky shrugged. "You can try... I mean, the worst thing that could happen...is for me to die, right? And that's not too bad..." He nodded his head once. "Go ahead." Karen put her hand up against his chest, "I'll make sure you won't die..." she said as her words faided and her body glew and so did Ricky, she then dissappered. Ricky's eyes widened slightly. "What are you doing...?" he muttered quietly as Karen disappeared. No... It's impossible for her to remove the curse once it's already connected to my spirit... There's no definite line... In other words... I AM the stupid curse... We're...the same person... "I've got to try..." she thought as she opened her eyes, "Where am I?" she asked herself looking around, "Am I inside Ricky?" "What the...?" Ricky blinked, clutching his aching head and leaning back against the wall. "Something's...wrong..." I feel strange... And I bet it's because of her... That girl... Karen... She took a step forward, "Hey!" she shouted out, "You curse, I'm here for you!" "Who, me?" A cold voice spoke up as Ricky smirked. "You can't do anything to me... If you destroy me, you'd only be killing Ricky... So...what are you planning on doing?" "Simple.." she answered looking up at him, "I said I was here for you..." she said taking a steping towards him. "So I'm going to do so.." Ricky shrugged, glaring at Karen with blood red eyes. "...Fool. Back in the forest, I was weak... Still fighting for power, and control. But not anymore... So just give up now." He smirked. "...Ricky has no hope left... And neither do you..." Karen took another step towards him lifting up her hands making a wind-blade, "I won't give up on Ricky," she said to Ricky taking her battle position, "I'll fight you...for Rickys soul.." she said taking a step closer. "Here goes nothing!" Ricky smirked, unsheathing his twin knives. "So you're actually going to fight... This'll be fun..." He tossed one knife at Karen, clutching the other one in his left hand. "But either way, you're going to lose..." Karen jumped to the side as the knife was thrown at her. She glanced at Ricky and growled picking up the dagger that was thrown at her lifting it up. "If I do win, you have to leave ricky alone. And if I lose, you can kill me...and I'll do what you want." she said sour holding up the same dagger that was in her back the day before. "I'm doing this for Ricky...so I won't lose for him." "How sweet..." He smirked. "But I'm afraid determination won't be enough to win this fight. You don't have the heart of a killer... You can't get rid of me..." He took a step closer. "Go ahead... Make a move... Just try to beat me..." Karen took a step closer as well, glaring at the curse with cold eyes. "Don't toy with me...I'll never have a heart of a killer who's like you. Freely killing with no care in the world." she took another step towards him then stop smirking, "So don't underestimate me." she then ran into attack him. "I underestimated you before..." Ricky jumped to the side, avoiding her attack by mere inches. "...But this time, I won't." He tossed his second knife to his right hand and took a step closer to Karen. "People like you can never understand what it's like to kill someone..." He raised his knife, taking another step closer. "People like you will never understand how good it feels to destroy someone..." He ran at Karen, intending to stab her. Karen didn't dodge in time for the stab, it perced her against a wall her eyes whidened and she lifted up her hand that had the dagger still in it stabbing the curse as well, but even if it was still the curse she kissed him on the lips pulling away, "Leave Ricky alone...You're so cold...just leave him alone..." The curse flinched, pulling his knife back. "Why...should I? Why do you even care? Why does he even care...?" He glared down at the blood-soaked knife, feeling blood leave his own body where Karen had stabbed him. "He's not supposed to care... He's not supposed to love..." "No..." The curse took a step back. "I can't understand those things..." He gave a small laugh, despite the pain from where he had been stabbed. "Stupid human emotions... They're always getting in the way..." He smriked. "What is love, anyway? In the end, it just leaves everyone upset... I don't see any point in it..." Karen finally pulled out the dagger and looked over at the curse, "Feelings...might get in the way. but it's never good to be alone never, you'll just die alone...being by yourself." she closed her eyes falling to her knees with tears going down her face. "You can understand them...if you gave them a try...but your so blinded from the truth...you can't anymore." The curse glared at Karen. "Human emotions... I don't know what any of them feel like... I've always been alone... I only know how to kill... I can only take over peoples' bodies in order to stay alive... I'm far from human... I will never understand any of your emotions..." His glare intensified. "Especially that thing you call love..." He sank to his knees, watching his blood form a small puddle beneath him. "And yet... I can still bleed... I can still die... Just like you humans..." He shook his head. "Life is such a twisted thing, isn't it...?" he muttered to himself, still glaring at Karen. Karen looked up at him with sadened eyes, "Everything...will have to die someday...even you." she now glared at him, "Every curse has to be broken some day..." she closed her eyes and glew for a second appearing back in the cabin her eyes became heavy and she fainted. Ricky opened his eyes, looking around. "Karen? Karen, are you okay?" He clutched his aching head, squeezing his eyes shut. He could feel the curse trying to take full control. "No... Not again... Get out of my head... Just leave me alone for once..." He fell to his knees, desperately trying to keep the curse away. "It gets stronger every day..." He looked over at Karen. "She said she could help me... But... No one can... I have to be alone... Just like back then... So many years ago..." Karen regained herself and sat up and looked back at Ricky with deep red eyes, "Don't you start talking like that...Ricky..." she crawled infront of him lifting her head up, "If you push me away...it won't work..." she said kissing him on the lips. A sense of happiness rushed through Ricky's mind for a split second. The depression he had endured through his childhood was replaced by thoughts of the happy moments - when Myles was born, when his father was home, when the whole family spent time together... He pulled away, staring at Karen for a moment. "Karen..." He smiled, puttng his arms around her. "Thank you..." The red gleam in his eyes faded away. "...And I'm sorry..." For some strange reason, he felt like crying. "Stupid...emotions..." he muttered, squeezing Karen tighter. "Stupid...stupid...emotions..." She smiled but her vision was blurry, her closed her eyes, "I'm glad your...okay Ricky." she said softly before her words stoped short and she leaned against his shoulder. Her arm was beating with pain as blood still dripped from it. "I should...bandage that up..." Ricky gently pulled away, avoiding eye contact. He didn't want Karen to see the tears in his eyes. "I'm...sorry..." he said again, wincing as a tear fell to the ground. "I'm just...so stupid..." Karen nodded opening her eyes with tears as well, she tilted his head her way shaking her head. "You're not stupid...you're free." she said softly standing up slowly resting her other arm on her shoulder, her back still hurt from the other day so she instantly shook her head and fell to her knees dizzy from the loss of blood she closed her eyes and laid down on the ground, the light in her eyes was getting weaker. "I'm tired...and cold." "I did this to you..." Ricky whispered, watching more tears fall to the ground. "Karen..." He lifted her up as gently as possible, placing her down on the nearby bed. "Please be okay..." He stood next to her bed, feeling tears and blood drip to the floor. "I'll help you... I'll make you better... I promise..." Karen smiled a little, "Hey, I knew this was going to happen...it was the only I could save you." she said quietly slowly closing her eyes. "This was supossed to happen, Ricky...now you don't have to choose..." Ricky smiled. "Thank you...so much... But...just...be careful, okay?" He looked away. "I mean... I'd rather face a thousand of those curses than see you get hurt...or killed... You're the most important person in my life... I just...don't want anything bad to happen to you..." He sighed. "How am I supposed to protect you when all I do is hurt you?" Karen smiled back at him even if she was hurt she still blushed. "I will...be more careful." she said quietly and her eyes became dull and she stoped talking and closed her mouth. "I'm sorry Ricky.." Ricky sighed. "Don't apologize for things that aren't your fault. Anyway, I'm not that great with medical stuff, but I'll try my best..." He gave her a reassuring smile. "I should bandage up that arm..." He closed his eyes, trying to concentrate. "There was something involving alcohol... And then you put the bandage on... And then...um..." He sighed again, shaking his head. "...Clueless... Anyway, what you need is rest." "If I don't get this cleaned up...I'll get blood posioning." she said quietly bluntly looking over at him, then away. "The only way to tend to my shoulder is if I sit up for a second..." she said as she slowly began sitting up feeling presure she winced but still sat up none-the-less. Taking off her jacket leaving over her white blood stained tank top. "Hurry up and tend to me...before I pass out from exastion.." Ricky bit his lip. "Wh-what? Blood poisoning? But how do I...? Ugh, never mind... First aid kit... Where is it?" He opened a cabinet in the bathroom and was hit in the head with the kit for the second time. "Oww..." He ran over to Karen, opening up the first aid kit. "Okay... So, um... First, I need to..." He frantically scanned the contents, trying not to panic. "Um... Oh, jeez... What do I do? What do I do?" "Calm down, Ricky...put the blasted alcohol onto my shoulder. NO not the whole thing...the wrag. Put it onto there and whipe it up..." she said shaking her head sighing. "And...one other thing, don't be a pervert okay?" she said in a playing tone smiling short after. "I'm not a pervert! ...Here." Ricky put some alcohol on the rag and gently placed it onto Karen's shoulder. "Bandages... Um..." He dumped the contents of the first aid kit onto the floor. "Let's see... Here! Okay..." He held them up triumphantly. "All right, I think I know how to do the rest." He removed the rag and wrapped a bandage around Karen's shoulder. "I...um...sorry..." he mumbled, looking away. "I mess everything up, don't I?" Karen let out a sigh shaking her head, "No you don't you're trying so that's all that matters." she stoped him when he finished wrapping up her arm she grabbed him by the arm pulling him into a passionate kiss. Ricky's eyes widened in shock for a moment, but he returned the kiss, putting an arm around Karen and making sure he didn't touch her injured shoulder. He pulled away, blushing lightly. "I...um..." He sighed, smiling. "I really do love you, Karen..." He kissed her again, closing his eyes and feeling the sensation of happiness return. Karen smiled returning the kiss to him she then slowly pulled away resting her head on his shoulder smiling, "I love you too, Ricky.." she said softy in his ear smiling. "And the good thing about this is...now that your curse is gone...you don't have to completly hold back.." "I...guess you're right..." Ricky's voice had dropped to a small whisper. He was blushing even more now - he could feel his face getting warm. He pulled her even closer, smiling to himself. "But... You're still hurt... I mean... Maybe this should wait until after you're better... With my cluelessness... I'd probably hurt your shoulder again..." His voice faded away as he put his other arm around her, avoiding her injury. "I'll be fine Ricky..." she said quietly to him putting her forhead against his. "It's all wrapped up so it fine..." she said softly closing her eyes. "Should I put my jacket back on?" she asked Ricky looking away. "It's up to you.." Ricky squeezed her a bit tighter, closing his eyes. "I...don't care... It doesn't matter... Whatever you want is fine..." He loosened his grip, looking directly at her. "I'm glad to hear you're okay... I was really worried when you started talking about blood poisoning... And I'm not good at handling those kinds of situtations..." He smiled. "But I guess...everything's okay now... Right?" Karen smiled at Ricky pulling her head away from him opening up her eyes, "Everything's okay now..." she said quietly, "Everythings...okay." she smiled lightly laying down, "We can be in that awkward position again if you want..." she said looking up at him. "This one's up to you Ricky...I'm keeping the jacket off." she smirked blushing, "Don't be a pervert." "I'm not a pervert..." Ricky mumbled, laying down beside Karen. His face was slightly red, and he could feel his heartbeat speeding up. "I'm...always getting myself into awkward situations..." He smiled, looking at Karen. "Anyway... I don't have to worry anymore, thanks to you. Everything's okay now..." He sighed, staring up at the ceiling. There was a tiny hint of nervousness in his voice. "It's kind of funny... I really have no clue what I'm doing, or what I'm supposed to do..." Karen looked over at him turnning on her side tilting her head for a second. "But doesn't that just make it interesting?" she asked quoteing him closing her eyes resting her head on her pillow she opened her eyes, "What do I do...is the question..." she looked over at him, "I won't hold back if you don't Ricky..." she said quietly. "With no bounds...what so ever." she said looking away, "I won't be nervous, if you're not." "I'm not nervous!" Ricky's attempt at a careless laugh turned into an immediate failure as his voice cracked. "I...just...well... Maybe a little..." He sighed. "Maybe a lot... I'm so clueless..." He stared up at the ceiling, smiling. "But I'm free...finally..." Still smiling and blushing, he pulled Karen into a gentle hug, muttering in her ear, "But you're right... This is going to be interesting..." She shivered just a bit when he whispered in her ear she nodded her head. "It's okay to be clueless...I'm clueless too.." she whispered resting her head against his chest smiling, "Whenever...you're ready." she closed her eyes, "I'm ready.." Ricky smirked. "You're not as clueless as I am..." He gently pulled away, staring at Karen for a second. "You...might have to help me through this..." He smiled. "You know how bad I can be at handling these kinds of situations..." He leaned in and kissed her, pulling her into another hug. Karen closed her eyes and kissed him back, she deepened the kiss for a second before pulling away, "I might not know how to help you..through this." she whispered softy, "But I'll try...my best." she said as she softly kissed him on the neck then went back up kissing him on the lips. Ricky smiled, blushing. He returned the kiss, pulling away and whispering,"I'll...try my best, too..." He closed the gap between them again, kissing her on the lips. He closed his eyes, shivering slightly and running a hand through Karen's hair. He felt so happy - he was laying next to the person he loved most in the world, free of the curse that had haunted him for years. Karen closed her eyes as he ran his hand threw her hair, she kissed him harder with passion. As she did this, her shirt sleve messed up. But she didn't care, she was kissing the person she loved the most. She opened her eyes and slowly pulled away, "We can stop...if you want to..." she whispered to him closing her eyes. "If you want to..it's up to you." "I... I don't...want to stop..." The words were out of Ricky's mouth before he could stop them. His face turned red as he flinched at the sound of his own breathless voice. "I... I mean... If... If you wanted to...we, uh, we could stop... But... This is..." Ricky smiled, letting out a small sigh. "I don't know... I can't describe it... It's just... This is the happiest I've ever been in my life." Karen blushed shaking her head, "I don't want to stop..." she said to him quitely. "I know what you mean, I'm happy too...really happy." she looked up at him. "I promised you I won't hold back...but will you keep that promise to me..?" she asked quietly leaning against her pillow even more. "I'm sorry...I shouldn't ask that." "I...don't make promises I can't keep..." Ricky stared at Karen with a mix of nervousness and happiness in his eyes. He was feeling something else too, some strange emotion he had never experienced before. "What is it?" he mumbled quietly to himself, gently pushing a strand of hair out of Karen's face. He kissed her passionately, closing his eyes in concentration. Finally, he pulled away, smiling slightly. "That's it..." he whispered, pulling Karen closer, smiling to himself. "It's just...love... Just another one of those emotions..." She looked away then stared at him she kissed him passionately back, as he pulled away from her she opened her eye and stared at him for a moment. "Love is not...just an emotion.." she said quietly to him. "Love is not...just an emotion..." Ricky repeated. His voice had been reduced to an almost silent whisper. He stared into Karen's eyes for a moment, deep in thought. "...You're... You're right..." He finally looked away. "It's...more than that... It's a lot more than that...isn't it?" "Much more..." she whispered back to him closing her eyes. "More then we know..." she said laying on her back looking up at the ceiling. "...I don't want this feeling to go away...what I'm feeling right now.." Karen said to Ricky quietly. "Please don't make it...go away." she stared up at the ceiling. "I don't...want it to go away, either..." Ricky closed his eyes, smiling. "This feeling... Love... Whatever it is... It's so...different... So complicated... I honestly don't think I'll ever understand it..." He smiled to himself, muttering, "Love, huh? That's what I've been feeling the entire time... That's the thing I could never figure out... I love you, Karen... I really do..." Karen turned her head over to him nodding, "I love you more then anything, Ricky..." she whispered smiling. Looking away, "What do people do when there in love...I don't know." she turned onto her side fixing her shirt finally. "We always ask questions that go un-answered..." she said to him in a love voice looking back at him. "But we can answer them...finally." Ricky nodded, unable to look away. "I...love you more than anything too, Karen." He sighed. "I'm just a little...nervous, I guess... I'm sorry... I can't help it... I mean... Who are we, anyway? A couple of clueless kids who hardly even understand love..." His voice was soft. "...Do you think...maybe...we..." He turned away, closing his eyes. "No... Never mind... I'm sorry." Karen tilted her head a bit, "What...what were you going to say?" she questioned quietly. "Do you think we? What...?" she shook her head, "Don't be sorry...what do you..want?" she asked softly. Ricky shook his head, feeling his face get warm. "It was nothing! I was just...thinking... That's... That's all... Really..." He shook his head. "Just forget it... I'm just a stupid, clueless kid..." "Ricky! It was something..what was it?" she asked looking over at him, "You know that I'll...do what you want...what do you want?" she asked again. "I'm not going to...you know I'm stubborn." she said smirking. "You're not stupid, stop saying that." she said placing her head against his chest. "Please tell me." Ricky put his arms around her, closing his eyes. "It's just... I love you so much... What we just did... That was amazing... I...just..." He shook his head, whispering to himself. "Later... Another time..." He opened his eyes, glaring into space. "Stupid...pervert..." Karen blinked blushing realizing what he meant she shook her head. "That's what I thought...you meant." she said softly. "Do you...want to?" she asked with a blush. "I mean...I." she closed her eyes. "I'm...just asking." Ricky blushed, looking away, realizing he was still hugging Karen. "I'm sorry..." He pulled away, sitting up, shaking his head. "You're... I'm... We're..." He shook his head again, unable to find the right words. "What am I doing? I'm just...such an idiot, Karen... I'm sorry..." "Stop it..." she said sadly, looking away closing her eyes. "Stop putting yourself down, Ricky...just stop it..." she whispered opening eyes looking down with wet eyes. "You keep pulling away from me...I just asked a question, you never answered." she looking up at him with hurt wet eyes, "Why won't you answer me...?" "Karen..." Ricky sighed, looking back at her with eyes filled with pain. "I didn't mean to...upset you... I...really didn't... I...want to do whatever you want to do... That's...the answer to your question..." Karen looked away nodding, "It's the same way with you, Ricky..." she whispered to him, "It's the same with you..." she looked back up at him, "Do you want to?" she asked quietly answering, "...I do, if you want to." Ricky looked away. "Well... I do if you want to..." He gave a small smile. "I guess... Maybe..." He blushed, feeling his heart beat speed up. "...Maybe... Yes..." Karen's heart began to beat even faster and she nodded, "Yes..." she answered him softly, feeling a blush on her face."Whenever your ready.." "Um..." Ricky looked away. "...I'm...not really sure I am ready..." His face felt extremely warm. "... It's just...well... I don't know..." His voice faded away as he laid back down again, trying to think straight. "...Karen... Are you...maybe just a tiny bit...scared?" Karen looked over at him nodding, "Yes...I'm scared.." she turned to him, "But that's never stoped me before..." she looked at him closing her eyes. "Okay.." Ricky looked away. "I... Uh..." He hugged her tightly, trying to buy himself time. "...Don't really know..." He sighed. "I... It's just so..." Oh, jeez... What am I supposed to do? I don't know... This is so new... So different... And I'm just...completely freaked out... I don't know...what to do... What am I supposed to do!? Karen shivered closing her eyes, "Don't hold back...at all." she said quietly. "Calm down, Ricky...I'm scared too...just calm down." she said quietly, "It's okay...don't hold back at all." she said quietly. "If you don't...think so much it won't be hard.." she said closing her eyes. "It's okay..." "I know, I know..." Ricky sighed, staring at Karen. He gave a small smile, looking away. "You said...before...not to be a pervert... It's...kind of...ironic, I think..." He ran a hand through his hair, trying to slow down the rapid beating of his heart. he sighed again, closing his eyes, moving a little closer to Karen. "...Is this...the right thing to do?" His head was filled with doubts and uncertainly, but there was also a nagging voice in the back of his mind, reminding him how much he loved Karen, and how he'd do anything for her. Karen looked up at him then away, "I-I don't know...I'm sorry, Ricky." she was confused now. So confused. "I'm sorry..." she repeated closing her eyes, "I don't know...what to do, Ricky..." she felt him move closer to her, she moved closer to him as well, her shirt's sleve fell again she reached to fix it. "I want to...I really want to.." Ricky reached out and grabbed Karen's hand before she could fix her shirt sleeve. When he finally spoke, it was in a soft, low voice. "Me too... I'm just really confused... Really scared..." He looked over at his hand clutching hers, and he heard the tiny voice in his head reminding him of how much he loved her. "Maybe... We can just take a chance and see what happens... I don't know... It's just..." He shivered, pulling Karen close to him. "I want what you want, Karen..." Karen looked over at Ricky as he grabbed her hand, causing her sleeve to mess up even more. She looked up at him as he pulled her closer, smiling she shivered. "I want to take that chance...with you Ricky.." she said quietly putting her head into his neck closing her eyes she slightly winced from him clutching her hand tightly. "Ricky...I want you...just take a chance." "...If that's...really what you want..." Ricky smiled, still holding her hand. "Then..." He let go of her hand, putting his arms around her. "...I'll take that chance too." He was still nervous, and he honestly didn't know what he was doing. He squeezed her tighter. "It'll be...okay... Everything's...okay now..." Karen nodded her head as he squeezed her tighter she closed her eyes lifting up her head to him. "I'm ready right now...to take the chance.." she whispered quietly. "Waiting is all I can do.." she thought. "...Right..." Ricky's body felt numb, as if he couldn't move. His heartbeat was speeding up again as he looked away. "...Right..." he said again, finally managing to pull away. He glanced over at Karen. "I... I'm not sure... How to... How to...start..." His face turned red. "I mean..." This is so awkward... Just like everything else I've been through lately... Except... This is different than all those other times... This is...something else... Karen looked up at him blushing then away, "I don't know...what you do in a situation like this..." she said quietly to him glancing at her sleeve for a moment then looking away from it not even bothering to fix it. "I'm sorry.." Ricky sighed, feeling his face get even warmer. Great... So we both don't know what the heck we're doing... "No... I'm sorry... For being completely clueless..." He looked down, then back at Karen. "...But I promised I'd take the chance... I just don't know how..." He looked away again. "Stupid clueless idiot..." "Stop putting yourself down..and just try something." she said looking up at him, "Just try anything...that's on your mind, don't hold it back." she said looking down. "I'll accept it...you know that..." Ricky blushed again, looking away. "What do you mean, 'Try anything that's on my mind'? I'm a..." He sighed, refusing to look up. "You're right, you know... I'm a pervert..." Karen looked away. "Exacly what I said...try anything that's on your mind." she said quietly smirking at what he said, "Whatever your thinking just do it.." Ricky closed his eyes, shaking his head. "B-but... That's...wrong... I...just..." He felt trapped, and he had no clue what he should do. "Why don't you do what you want to do?" Karen blushed a deeper red, "Because you're supossed to make the first move...and I've made alot of moves...alot." she said quietly glancing at her shoulder reaching again to fix her shirt. "...Right." Ricky sighed, taking Karen's hand again before she could fix her shirt. He closed his eyes, mentally preparing himself. "...You're right." He glanced at her unfixed sleeve, then he looked down. He shook his head and let go of Karen's hand, looking back at her. Ricky then reached out and gently put his hand on her shoulder, staring into her eyes. He stayed like that for a moment before looking down, closing his eyes, and sighing. "...Pervert." Karen looked over at him blushing lightly then sighed, "Ricky...am I going to be the one who will have to make the move...again?" she asked looking down, then up at him. "Am I?...or are you going to?" Ricky's grip on her shoulder tightened slightly. "Karen... I don't want to let you down...or make you think I'm some stupid coward." He looked back at her sleeve, wishing he had the courage to make a move. "...I just want to make you happy, but I can never seem to do anything but hurt you..." He shivered slightly, closing his eyes. "I'll do anything for you, Karen. Just...just tell me exactly what you want... I promise, I'll give it to you." "I want you too...do what you're thinking." she said looking down tilting her head onto his hand. "Please?" she asked quietly, "Just...do it I promise I won't think none the less of you Ricky...I'll never think that." she tilted her head down, "Just show me...please..you can do it." "Well... It was... I was just thinking...that's all..." Ricky blushed, lifting up Karen's chin and looking into her eyes. His gaze moved down her face, past her neck, then her chest, which made Ricky blush an even brighter shade of red. He looked away, feeling his face get warmer with every passing second. "...That's...all..." he said again, looking back at his hand on her shoulder. Make a move... Do something... Just make a move... Come on, Ricky... You've done much scarier things than this before... But...this is different... Karen looked away then down, "I'm sorry about all this Ricky...I..." she looked up at him, "You're not wanting to do anything...I won't ask you anymore..." she said softly, "I'm making you nervous...because I ask you to make a move...you're lying to me...you weren't just thinking..." she closed her eyes, "I said you can...do what you wanted to do..." Ricky glared at nothing in particular, hating himself for being such a coward. "No... You don't understand... I want to do this, Karen... I just feel like... Like I'll be...um..." He couldn't find the right words, and he felt ashamed of himself. "...violating...your privacy. It just feels...wrong..." He shook his head, cutting himself off. "N-no... That...wasn't what I meant... I...just..." He took her unfixed shirt sleeve in his trembling hand. "Make a move..." he whispered to himself. "Just do it, Ricky... Just...do something..." Karen looked up at him blushing shaking her head, "You won't...be violating me Ricky...just do it...I'm right here." she said feeling him take her unfixed shirt sleeve, he was trembling. "Ricky...do something..." she whispered softly. Ricky glanced from the shirt sleeve to Karen's face, whispering, "...I'm tired of being afraid to do anything..." He bent his head down, tugging gently on the sleeve of her shirt. "I promised I'd take a chance..." Karen blushed blood red and closed her eyes and tried calming her beating heart. Calm down...just calm down. she thought opening her eyes looking down at Ricky. Ricky smiled slightly, suddenly reminded of something he had said to Karen before. "...You're...blushing..." He smiled, despite his own red face. He pulled again on her shirt sleeve, slightly harder this time, making his face turn even redder. Karen blushed a deeper shade of red. "I'm...not...blushing..." she said quietly looking to the side of her..he pulled a little to hard on her sleeve causing her other one to fall her eyes whidened and she glanced from the ground up to Ricky. "He's so close.." Ricky kept blushing, feeling his eyes slightly widen as Karen's other sleeve fell. He smiled again. "Yes you are... You're definitely blushing... But...so am I..." He glanced at his hand, still grasping Karen's sleeve. ...So close... So, so close... But... I finally did something... I finally made a move... Should I...finish what I started? A sudden wave of confidence washed over him. "I... I can do it... Karen... I'll ask you one more time... Are you sure about this?" He stared directly at her. The determined, hardheaded look was back in his eyes, but it was softened by a look of loving adoration. "I'm ready now..." he whispered softly. "Are...you?" Karen blushed and nodded. "Yes...I'm ready..." she said softly to him looking away for a second then nodding. "I'm...ready.." Ricky looked down, reaching out and placing his other hand on Karen's other shoulder. The words 'take a chance' kept echoing in his head as he gripped both of her sleeves, closing his eyes and tugging again. "There..." he whispered, feeling a blush creep onto his face. He smiled slightly, still not opening his eyes. "...I made a move..." Karen looked up at him as he tugged on her shirt blushing she gulped looking down hoping he wasn't looking he pulled farther down slightly showing her bra her eyes whidened. And as a instinct she closed her eyes nodding."You...sure did..." Ricky still didn't look up, but he didn't let go of her shirt either. He timidly pulled a little more, blushing again. He wanted to say something, but his voice didn't seem to be working anymore, so he could just look down and feel his face getting warmer and warmer. Karen opened her eyes looking down seeing that he pulled so low that it was showing her bra even more. Now, she shivered with a red face she looked up at him hoping he would look up. "Ricky?" "Y-yeah?" Ricky's reaction was to look up when Karen said his name, which made him blush about five different shades of red. He flinched, letting go of her shirt. He was frozen and unable to look away. He finally blinked, then he covered his eyes with his hands. "Pervert..." Karen didn't fix her shirt instead she leaned foward to him. "Ricky, is this what you were thinking?" she asked quietly looking up at him she pulled his hands away from his eyes, still blushing. "Is this what you wanted to see?" she asked quietly to him staring up at him. "Finish what you started..." she said quietly to him. "Just finish it.." Ricky gulped, timidly reaching out again. "Just...finish it..." he repeated, taking a deep breath. "...Right." He looked down again, taking her shirt sleeves and pulling down, still blushing. Karen closed her eyes blushing deeply looking down her bra was now showing her heart began to beat faster and she stared at Ricky who had stoped. "Finish it..." she said quietly looking away, "Just finish it..." "...Okay." Ricky looked up for a moment, blushing, and grabbed the straps of her bra, closing his eyes and pulling down. His heart was beating faster, but he kept his eyes squeezed shut, not daring to look up. Karen closed her eyes shut feeling the only thing that kept her chest from being seen, beeing pulled down. Her heart began to beat quickly. Her face beat red not daring to say anything. She felt it get pulled down it was probably showing by now. Her heart began to beat so quickly her head felt dizzy. Ricky sat there, paralyzed, unable to open his eyes. "Karen..." he whispered, trembling slightly. He wished he would stop blushing, and that his heart would stop beating so fast, and that his head would stop spinning. "Karen..." he said again, still unable to make himself move. He didn't know what he was doing, but saying her name made him feel a bit better for some reason. Karen trembled slightly she didn't move. "Wh-What is it...?" she asked simpley gulping she opened her eyes slowly, she shivered. "R-Ricky?" Ricky looked up - it was that reaction to hearing his name again. He instantly regretted this, because he felt like he couldn't breathe when he looked at Karen. He opened his mouth to say something, but only a squeaky little, "uh..." came out. Then the sense of paralysis returned, and he felt as if he couldn't look away. A voice in the back of his head kept screaming, "pervert!" but he just couldn't move at all. Karen trembled slightly gulping, she reached up to fix herself, "I'm...I'm sorry..." she whispered to him. Ricky was finally able to close his eyes and shake his head. "Why are you sorry?" he asked, looking directly into Karen's eyes. "You have nothing to apologize for..." Karen still trembled shaking her head. "But I...pushed you..." she covered her chest with her arms looking away. "I feel like I forced you to do something.." Ricky smiled, still looking directly at her. "Sometimes...I need a little push. Otherwise...I get nowhere... What I want to say...is thank you." He smiled again. "It's not your fault... So don't blame yourself... Okay?" Karen closed her eyes to push back tears- she had no idea why she was tearing up. "But...I..." she shook her head she leaned foward towards him uncovering her chest she kissed him on the lips closing her eyes, her shirt still messed up. She pressed against him as she kissed him. Ricky's eyes widened as he froze in shock for an instant. Then he returned the kiss, slightly deepening it before pulling back with his lips inches away from hers. "...Karen... P-please don't cry... I'm sorry..." He kissed her again, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her close. "...S-Stop apologizing..." she whispered leaning against him closing her eyes tightly tring not to cry. "Just stop...apologizing..." she said lifting her head. "Finish...what you started..." "I..." Ricky closed his eyes. He felt like crying for some reason, but he refused to let any tears show. He spoke in a soft whisper, barely able to hear his own voice. "Karen... I don't want to make you cry..." "You're...not..." she said quietly as her tears showed putting her head under his neck she pulled away from him kissing him on the lips closing her eyes she deepened the kiss and pulled away looking up at him. "Just please...finish it..." she said softy staring up at him. "Please..." "...Finish it?" Ricky stared back at Karen, wondering why his mind seemed to have shut down. "But... I..." He gulped, feeling dizzy. "...don't know how... I mean... I..." He tilted his head down, trembling a bit. "I don't want to make you cry...or let you down... I just want to make you happy... But..." He glared down at his clenched fist. "...I can't really do anything..." He hated himself, still trying to hold back tears. "Ricky..." she said quietly leaning up towards him closing her eyes kissing him on the lips for a second. "Don't cry...please.." she asked softly closing her eyes. "I'm here...you don't have to be nervous...Ricky." she said softly as her tears stoped, "You don't have to...hold back." Ricky closed his eyes, pulling her closer. He just wanted to hug her for a minute, not saying anything until he finally found the right words. "...Not crying..." he mumbled. "...I just...feel like..." He trailed off, squeezing her tighter for a moment. "...I..." He opened his eyes, looking away. "...I...don't know...Karen..." "Just do it...remember?" she asked quietly after the moment hug. "Please...I'm here..." she said softly pulling away kissing him softly on the lips. "Start from here...Ricky.." she mumbled kissing him again. Ricky let out a soft moan, returning the kiss, still holding her in a tight embrace. He pulled away, gazing at Karen for a split second, then kissing her again. He ran a hand down her back, closing his eyes again and shivering slightly. Just do it... he kept telling himself. Just...do it... Karen closed her eyes kissing him back then pulled away for a second. "Just do it...okay?" she said quietly smilng kissing him again feeling the passion from before. Ricky pulled away, letting out a small, happy sigh. He could feel himself trembling and blushing, and he could hear his rapid heartbeat. "Karen... Will you...please...help me...?" Karen looked at him in his eyes, "I don't know how...too though...but I'll try my best." she said softly kissing him softly against the lips then pulled away. "I...don't know how." she said in a low whisper. Her bra was covering her chest again but her shirt was messed up and covering just her stomach. "How can I help you?" she asked him softly. Ricky looked away, blushing. "I... I don't know... I just..." He looked back at Karen, then back down again. "...I...don't know..." he whispered again, leaning in and kissing her softly on the lips. Karen kissed him back then pulled away taking his hands and placing them on her chest. "I guess...the only way to show you...is for you to learn.." she said quietly closing her eyes. "Remember what you said...you don't want to stop...I know you're as confused as much as I am...but...finish what you started." she said softly keeping her eyes closed. Ricky flinched, feeling his face turn even redder. He opened his mouth, trying hopelessly to say something, but a sense of dizziness overwhelmed him. "K-Karen..." he whispered, looking directly at her, not knowing what to say. Karen looked up at him shaking her head. "Ricky...just finish what you started." she said looking at him. "I showed you...what to do...just finish what you started...don't you want to?" she asked putting her hands onto his arms, that were still on her chest. "Just finish it." Ricky bent his head down, shivering slightly, trying to stay calm. "Karen..." He looked over at his hands, then looked down again, trying to stop himself from blushing. "...But...why are you...?" He shook his head, looking up again, telling himself to just 'finish what you started'. His heart was beating faster, but he was frozen again, trying desperately to do something, but unable to react. Karen looked up at him. "Why am I what?...Why am I acting like this?" she asked him quietly still holding him by the arms she closed her eyes. "Because...you need a push to do something right.." she said softly looking away to her side. "Finish what you started, Ricky.." Ricky looked back at her, still trembling with fear, indecision, and another emotion he couldn't figure out. He looked back at his hands, on her chest, and felt his face turn red again. Finishing what he started... It sounded so easy, it looked so easy... But it truly wasn't. "...Karen..." He looked to the side, then back at Karen, still fighting a mental battle. He felt like he was doing something wrong - he felt guilty for some reason but he didn't know why. "Okay..." he kept telling himself. "Okay...just...finish it... Come on, Ricky... Pull yourself together... Get a grip... Come on..." "Ricky..." she whispered up at him seeing him looked to the side then back at her. She squeezed his arms for a second. "Just finish it..." she said in a whisper. "Just finish it." Whenever Ricky was in a fight, clenching a fist helped get rid of the pain of an attack to the arm, so his reaction was to squeeze his hands shut as Karen squeezed his arms. As soon as Ricky has realized exactly how he had reacted, his eyes widened in shock and fear. "Oh my Gosh..." He closed his eyes, pulling away as if he had just comitted a deadly sin. He was trembling again, and he was blushing deeply, trying to calm himself down. Karen's eyes whidened and she stared up at him seeing him shaking, she sat up slightly out of breath for some reason. "R-Ricky..?" she said name quietly. "...You made another move...just calm down..." she said quietly shivering she reached out her hand to him. "..I'm sorry." Ricky sighed, focusing on one thing at a time: stop shaking, stop blushing, stay calm... He didn't pull away from Karen's hand - instead, he opened his eyes, staring at her. When he finally found his voice, he told her, "...N-not...your fault..." Karen flinched and pulled her hand away from him looking away. "I'm sorry..." she said again closing her eyes. "I'm just...sorry." "...Karen." Ricky moved closer, pulling her into a hug. "...Don't apologize... Don't say you're sorry... Please don't..." He closed his eyes. "...I don't want you to be upset... I don't want you to apologize for things that aren't your fault..." "It's just..." she closed her eyes putting her head against his shoulder "When ever you make a move...you just...pull away thinking you've done something wrong...or you've hurt me." she looked up at him. "And if I knew you reacted like that when I squeezed your arms...I wouldn't have done it..." she said as she slowly pulled out of the hug looking away. "You have to finish what you've started Ricky..." "Maybe it wasn't...just some reaction..." Ricky said quietly, looking down. "Maybe..." His voice had been lowered to a whisper, so his last words were silent and unheard. He looked back at Karen, gazing at her silently, unable to speak. Karen looked back at Ricky, who was staring at her silently. She turned back around to him, "Finish what you've started." Ricky looked down, timidly reaching out toward Karen. "...Okay." He silently took a deep breath, closing his eyes and placing his hands on her chest again, shivering slightly. "I just...needed...a push..." He gave a small, shaky smile, looking back at Karen. "That's all..." Karen looked down at his hands then looked up at him nodding. "Okay.." she said putting her hands onto his arms slightly squeezing them she bent in and kissed him on the lips softly. Ricky returned the kiss, slightly squeezing his hands again, feeling his heart beat fast. Every time Karen touched him, a shiver ran down his spine. A faint blush appeared on his face, but he refused to pull away. Karen quietly moaned under the kiss when he slightly squeezed his hands. She needed to breath, but she didn't pull away. She closed her eyes and squeezed his arms a bit harder this time. Ricky's hands squeezed a bit harder too this time, and he closed his eyes, feeling his face get slightly warm. He pulled away from the kiss for a second, giving her a small smile. He leaned in and kissed her again, feeling himself tremble a bit. Karen breathed deeply for a second and kissed him again squeezing his arms much harder this time she blushed. She then pulled away looking up at him, "Finish it..." she said in a murmur kissing him again. Ricky gave a mini moan in response as Karen kissed him again. He felt her squeeze his arms much harder, which made him blush and squeeze harder with his hands. He pulled back and kissed her again, feeling his heartbeat speeding up again. Karen winced this time in the kiss causing her to pull away and stare at him blushing. "R-Ricky..." she sqeaked out blushing a bit brighter then before. She shivered as he squeezed harder again, she winced again and she breathed deeply trying to cetch her breath. Ricky pulled his hands away, blushing bright red. "I'm sorry..." he managed to whisper. "Are you okay?" He looked away, then he hugged her gently, closing his eyes and saying again, "I'm sorry..." "I'm fine..." she said still trying to cetch her breath and looked down gulping. "Why did you...stop?" she asked putting her head onto his shoulder. "Stop...saying your sorry..." she said as she finally caught her breath. "I stopped...because..." Ricky opened his eyes, looking down. "...Because I thought I was hurting you..." He closed his eyes again, still hugging her. Karen looked up at him, "I...winced because it...well...felt good." she said closing her eyes, sad. "You weren't hurting me...and besides...in a situation like this you're supossed to continue.." she said quietly in his ear pulling away putting his hands back on her chest. "It's okay...Ricky." she said closing her eyes. "It's okay...I won't help this time though...I'll just sit here.." Ricky muttered a soft, "Oh...", opening his eyes again. "...Okay." He nodded, hearing, 'just do it' again in his head. Besides... I've already done it, so what's the difference? He squeezed his hands again, timidly at first, unsure of himself. "...Okay..." he whispered again, squeezing a bit harder. "...Okay..." Karen winced slightly but she didn't let him see it, she tilted her head down and closed her eyes feeling him do it again. She flinched and she shook her head, "Don't stop..." "Karen..." Ricky looked away, pausing for a moment. "I..." He shook his head, looking down. "Okay..." He continued, each time a little harder. He was still worried about hurting Karen, but he'd remind himself, She told me not to stop...right...? Karen flinched lightly again leaning against her bed post she looked up at him, "...You're not hurting me." she said quietly closing her eyes again. "You're not..." she said looking down seeing him squeeze harder. "Don't worry...please...you're not." she said leaning her head against the bed post. "Finish what you've started...it should come as an instinct to you...from this point on..." Ricky looked away. "...Okay..." he whispered, squeezing again, feeling himself blush. "...Right..." He glanced at Karen, looked away, then turned his attention back to her again. He smiled at her. "I promise...I'll finish what I started..." Karen nodded at him blushing lightly. "It'll just...come out from this point on..." "...Right..." Ricky nodded slowly, keeping his eyes on Karen's face, watching her blush. He lowered his voice to a whisper, telling himself, "Just...finish what you started... Don't break a promise... Just take a chance... Don't be a...coward..." The last word was spoken with bitter contempt. He raised his voice to a normal level again. "I guess...you're right..." He gave another squeeze, still staring at Karen's face, trying to stop himself from blushing. Karen winced slightly again not showing him she nodded her head gulping, unscene. She looked up at him waiting on him to finish what he started. Her chest felt sore beating from the squeezing, she ignored it. Ricky saw Karen look up at him expectantly, which made him feel clueless. "Um..." he said softly, looking away. "...Well... How exactly am I...supposed to...um...finish...what I started...? I...mean... I...uh..." He glanced at her for a split second, looking away again. "Ricky..." she said softly looking down, "You don't know what to do...in a situation like this?" she asked shaking her head. "It's supossed to just come naturally..." she said looking up at him, "Ricky...don't go clueless on me now...finish what you started." she said slightly louder then last time. "I trust you...so don't go clueless on me...not now." "B-but..." Ricky pulled his hands back, looking at Karen. "Clueless...is... It's who I am..." He lowered his gaze to her chest, then glanced even lower, looking away, blushing. "And just what's supposed to come naturally anyway?" His voice was slightly louder this time, but he lowered it again, looking back at Karen. "Is it natural to think perverted thoughts?" Karen shook her head, "Every guy has them...heck even girls do!" she said a bit louder then he was before she said then looked away. "Just finish what you started Ricky." she said firm enough to him glancing back at him. "Finish what you started." she said lowering her voice. "You're hesitating...so much Ricky...so much." she looked up at him with a small glare. "Why are you...hesitant...and I don't know what supossed to come naturally." she said looking away. "Finish what you started, Ricky." Ricky looked back at her, glanced down again, and then looked away. He buried his head in his hands, sighing. "I'm...hesitant...because... Because I don't know what I'm supposed to do... Or when I'm supposed to do it... Or how... Or..." He lifted his head up, staring at Karen for a moment. "I used to be able to act cool around people...and not show my true emotions... But ever since I met you...it's...different... Because..." He shook his head, starting over. "Karen... You know I'm a clueless jerk... You know it..." He sighed, shaking his head again, unable to say what he was thinking. "Nevermind." He reached out to her with one hand, gently touching her chest, then lowering his hand slightly to her stomach, inching his way down. "You want me to act naturally..." He blushed, looking away, hesitating for a moment. "...Okay then... Okay..." Karen blushed like mad, "Wh-What are you doing, Ricky?" she asked with whidened eyes staring at him...he wasn't going to touch her there...was he? "...Ricky..." "You said..." Ricky was blushing deeply, still hesitantly inching his way down. "You said...it would come naturally..." He looked into Karen's wide eyes, trying to figure out what she was thinking. "Unless...you want me to stop..." He paused for a moment, still looking at Karen. Kaern looked away and shook her head closing her eyes. "Just finish it..." she said in a low tone. Ricky shook his head, still not understanding what she meant. Just...do what comes naturally, right? Isn't that what she said? He was so close now, several inches away. His face was blood red, but he didn't want to stop. He didn't want to hear Karen tell him to "finish it," and he didn't want to act like a clueless coward. Inch by inch he timidly moved his hand, feeling his heart skip a beat each time he got closer. He replied to Karen with the only word he could choke out. "...Okay..." Karen was trimbling with fear her eyes closed shut she felt him get closer and closer. "..Stop..." she whispered to low for him to hear or even herself. She sqeezed her pillow. "...Stop!..." she still said it to low for even herself to hear. Ricky noticed her trembling, and he paused again, looking back at her. Am I...doing something wrong...? But... I can't be... She told me to finish it... But...finish what? I'm thinking too much... Why can't I just get it over with? He still stared at her, not moving. "...Karen...?" he whispered almost silently, still not taking his hand away Karen shook her head, still unable to control her trembling. "Don't..." she whispered shivering even more, "Don't..." she said again putting her hand onto his hand that was still low. "Don't...finish it..." she said to low for him to hear her she pushed his hand down closing her eyes...Then her eyes whidened realizing what she just did she froze shaking squeezing his arm gulping. Ricky looked away, blushing a deep shade of red. A small shiver ran down his spine. "Karen..." He glanced back at her, seeing her trembling. "...I... I... I'm...sorry..." Karen shook her head still clinging to his arm, "Don't say...you're sorry...don't..." she said closing her eyes still clinging to him. "Don't..." she whispered shivering hugging the hand that was now touching the area-it was wanting to touch. "Don't..." "Karen..." Ricky whispered, looking down at his hand, feeling his face turn blood red. "If...you wanted me to stop...you should have just told me..." He was mentally shouting at himself, screaming, Pervert! Pervert! over and over again in his mind. "I tried...I really did..." she said in a whisper still squeezing his arm. "...Ricky..." she whispered shivering closing her eyes. "Finish what you started..." Ricky blinked. "Finish...what I started... Wait..." He felt his face turn red again. "But..." His voice had been reduced to a whisper. "...How?" He sighed, looking down. Clueless... Clueless... Clueless... Karen squeezed his arm causing his hand to close, she blushed blood red. "Finish what you started." she said again squeezing his hand again, she closed her eyes looking away. "Just...finish it.." Ricky's eyes widened as he blushed again, wincing slightly. A shiver went down his spine, but he now felt totally clueless which made him feel stupid. "Karen... Please... Stop saying that... I told you... I don't know how..." His voice was slightly louder than usual, but he didn't seem to notice. He was stuck somewhere between anger and embarassment, not knowing which was worse. Karen opened her eyes and gazed back at Ricky, he sounded angry... "No..I won't stop saying that." she said in a little bit louder then usual. "Figure it out." she said looking up at him. Ricky pulled his hand back, glaring at Karen. "I can't figure it out because I'm a stupid clueless idiot!" His voice was even louder now, and he was allowing himself to give in to his anger, something he hadn't done in nearly ten years, incase his curse decided to take advantage of it. But now he was free, which completely changed the circumstances. He felt terrible and ashamed after his small outburst, but he didn't want to apologize. He didn't understand what Karen expected from him. Karen glared back at him. "You are not an idiot!" she shouted at him. Why was he so upset with her? She turned away from him. "You might be clueless but, I figured it out...and I'm clueless as well...So just." she looked back at him with a glare then she looked away shaking her head. "Forget it, it's not worth getting into!" she said putting her back to Ricky tilting her head down. Ricky continued to glare at her, not speaking for a moment. "But you're wrong..." His voice was lower this time. "I am an idiot... That's what you don't understand..." His eyes softened and he dropped the glare, trying to hold back his remaining anger. "I don't know how to react in these kinds of situtations...because...I've never liked anyone... I made a vow when I was young... I said I didn't need love...or friends...or anyone... But now I'm just...completely lost... I don't know what to do..." Karen still kept her back to him, trying her best not to cry. "Ricky...I've never ever had a boyfriend...or never ever done this before..." she made closed her hands and looked down. "Before I came to this camp, I liked my friend Al...but sence he left...I don't have any feelings what so ever for him." she said shaking her head. "I know it sounds stupid...but I'm...confused...really confused..." she closed her eyes. "We're not together...we're not a couple...but we still did that...and I don't know if I'm aloud to trust you..." she felt tears comming out of her eyes, she was shaking again as her voice went to a low whisper. "I'm sorry..." Ricky looked down, trying to ignore the strange feeling in his stomach. "Karen..." His voice was even softer now, but he didn't know what to say. He said her name again, but his voice cracked in the middle, sounding painful and hurt. But he didn't feel his face get warm, didn't feel his heart beat fast, didn't feel a shiver run down his spine. He gently touched the place where his heart was as a familiar feeling swept through him. He felt empty. Karen shivered even more her keeping her head down as she cried. "I'm sorry..." she said again as her voice cracked. "I'm so sorry..." she rubbed her eyes and sniffled feeling her head hurt she laid down onto her bed shivering her back still to Ricky. "I can't say...I love you anymore...can I..?" Ricky looked down, forcing back tears. His voice was soft and muffled, as if he was about to cry. "...You can say it whenever you want to..." He lifted his head and glanced over at Karen, which was a big mistake. Looking at her only made him feel more pain, making the tears roll down his cheeks. "Don't say you're sorry..." he whispered, biting his lip as more tears fell. "It's all my fault..." Karen looked over her shoulder at Ricky shaking her head. "Don't...blame yourself..." she sat up and put her around his chest. "I'm sorry..." she said in a whisper closing her eyes. "I love you, Ricky...stop crying.." she said closing her eyes even if she was crying herself. "Please...stop crying..." Ricky shook his head, still trying to keep his tears away. "I... I love you too, Karen..." His voice, now barely above a whisper, cracked again. The sound of Karen's voice only made the tears come faster, but he didn't know why. He wiped his eyes, still crying silently. "...I'm sorry..." Karen shook her head closing them and hugging him tighter she shivered hugging him so tight. "I'm sorry...I said that Ricky...I'm so sorry.." she said turnning him around to her pulling him into a tight hug. "I'm so sorry.." Ricky hugged her tightly in return, squeezing his eyes shut, as if that would stop the tears from coming. "No..." he whispered, shaking his head. "I'm the one that should be sorry..." He hugged her even tighter, opening his eyes. His vision was blurry from the ever-present tears. "...So sorry..." he murmured, closing his eyes again. Karen hugged him tighter back shivering she opened her eyes and kissed him on the cheek. "Why are we, always sorry?" she asked looking at his tears. "Why do we always regret things?" she asked looking down closing her eyes shivering hugging him tighter. "Why?" "I don't know, Karen..." Ricky looked away. "I don't know..." he said again, squeezing her tighter, wishing he could just hug her forever. "I don't want to regret things..." His voice was almost completely silent - he had to strain his ears to hear himself. "I just want to be able to love you... That's all..." Another tear trickled down his cheek. Karen shivered as her tears kept comming out of her eyes, "Ricky...are we together?" she asked putting her head down, "I need to know...are you and me a couple?" she closed her eyes trying to stop her tears she hugged him tighter putting her head against his chest. "It's bugging me...am I also aloud to trust you now?" she shook her head, "And...are you mad at me?" she had just asked every question that had been bothering her for the longest time now. "I need to know.." she said as she tried to stop crying but it didn't stop. Ricky kept hugging her, feeling his tears gradually slowing down. "...A...couple?" He closed his eyes, still forcing back a few more tears. "If you...want to be... And...yes... You're...allowed to trust me... I know it might take a while to get used to it, but... I'm not going to attack you anymore... I'm not going to use these knives anymore..." He unsheathed his two knives and tossed them to the floor. "I'm not mad at you, Karen..." His voice was even softer now. "I'm mad at myself...for being so clueless..." He hugged her again, just wanting to make her happy. Karen closed her eyes nodding. "I want to be a couple...more then anything..." she said as her eyes slowly stoped with tears. "I want you to be happy...Ricky...I want to make you happy.." she said as she saw him toss the knifes to the side then hug her again. "Clueless...it's who you are, remember." Ricky smiled, still hugging her. "I know I'm clueless..." He wasn't crying anymore, and a small smile had appeared on his face. "I want to make you happy too, Karen... That's why...whenever we get into fights like that... That's why I feel this way afterwards..." He closed his eyes. "I just want you to be happy...and to never forget that I'm just...a clueless idiot..." Karen's eyes were still watery and she was still crying. "Ricky...what do I have to do to make you happy?" she asked blushing looking away pulling slowly out of the hug she kissed him on the lips lightly pulling away she pointed to her neck. "Kiss me here?" she asked in question. Ricky reached out and gently brushed away one of Karen's tears. "Of course I will... If it'll make you happy..." He leaned in toward her and kissed her gently on the neck, pulling her back into a small hug. Karen closed her eyes smiling lightly with a blush on her face as Ricky kissed her on the neck she shivered lightly staying in the small hug as he kissed her gently on the neck. Ricky felt her shiver, which sent a shiver down his spine in return. He smiled slightly, kissing her on the neck again, hoping it would make her happy. He was willing to do anything after that fight... He felt so guilty, unable to put it into words. Karen sat back against her bed post smiling lightly still, she felt guilty for pushing him away. And that fight...that was there first ever. "Ricky.." she said softly shivering she had her head tilted to the side as he kissed her on the neck she whispered. "...Do you want to try again.?" she asked blushing red. Ricky pulled away for a moment, looking down. "Only...if you want to..." He sighed, looking back up at her. "I'm sorry...for all of it... And if you don't want to...just...tell me, okay?" He leaned in again, kissing her lips, then her neck again. "Please, just tell me?" Karen closed her eyes smiling. "I will...I will..." she said in a mumble as he kissed her neck. "I promise I will..." Ricky smiled, silently pulling away. "...Okay," he whispered, still giving Karen a small smile. "Okay," he said again, staring into Karen's eyes for a moment. He kissed her again, this time on the lips, quietly hoping he wouldn't mess up or make her cry this time. Karen looked into Ricky's eyes as well smiling kissing him on the lips back. She deepened the kissed leaning against the bed post. Last time she was so afraid that something would happen...something they would both regret. Karen pulled away for a second lowering herself so she was laying on her back. Ricky looked away, blushing a bit, as Karen laid down on her back. Not knowing what else to do, he lay down beside her, glancing sideways at her. "I... I don't care about regrets anymore... I don't want to have them anymore..." His voice was soft, almost a whisper. "I'm...not going to regret anything I do... It doesn't matter what it is... I'm not going to regret it... I promise." His voice now completely faded away as he stared up at the ceiling, feeling his face turn slightly warm. Karen smiled sweetly then looked away. "But...what if we do something we both regret?" she asked looking away closing her eyes. "What if we..." her face felt warm and she shook her head. "...what if we do something so regretful..." her voice faided and she opened her eyes gazing over at Ricky. Ricky glanced sideways at Karen again. Seeing her blush made his face turn slightly pink as well. "I'm not...going to regret...anything..." He looked away. "Back then...when I still had my curse... You told me to stop regretting everything... And today...you told me to take a chance..." He shook his head, glancing back at her again. "N-no more regrets..." Karen nodded and scooted up next to Ricky. "This'll be easier...now that...we're a couple...right?" she asked resting her head against his arm closing her eyes. "Are you ready?" Ricky smiled, feeling Karen move closer to him and rest her head against his arm. He felt a small shiver go through him when she asked if he was ready. "No," he answered truthfully, gently leaning his head against hers. "But...I'm willing to take a chance." Karen nodded her head as he put his against her. "Okay..." she said softly. "...Okay." she said then blinked smiling. "I just sounded like you, Ricky..." Ricky managed a nervous smile. "...Yeah." He pushed any thoughts of regret out of his mind, stubbornly telling himself over and over again to just take a chance. He took a deep breath, summoning his courage. "...Okay..." he murmured, then smiled, taking her hand and gently squeezing it. "...Okay." Karen squeezed his hand back and leaned against him, her shirt was fixed back some now. "Ricky..." she mumbled in his ear smiling. "You're going to have to start over...I'm sorry..." she said softly smiling. Ricky smiled back, feeling more confident this time. "Okay... That's okay... I know what to do now..." He reached out to her, gently taking a sleeve in his hand. "I've already done this before... N-no big deal..." He took the other sleeve, pulling down just like he did before. "I can do it..." Karen smiled keeping her eyes open this time looking down as her bra began to show just like before. She looked up at him tugging on his shirt like a little kid. "Ricky..." she said softly as her bra showed she looked up at him. Ricky looked at Karen, feeling his face turn a light shade of pink. "Easy..." he whispered to himself, barely able to hear his own voice. "Much easier than last time..." He let go of her shirt sleeves and grasped the straps of her bra, pulling down again just like before. "Easy..." he whispered again to himself. "...Easy." Karen shivered and closed her eyes for some reason she didn't know she felt it get pulled down... "Ricky..." she mumbled as he contined to pull down her bra. Ricky heard her say his name again, which sent a slight chill down his spine. For some weird reason, this time the shiver felt nice. He didn't understand it, but every time something like that happened he liked the way it felt. "Karen..." he muttered in response as he pulled farther and farther down. Karen felt him stop and she opened her eyes shivering slightly she looked up at him. "Ricky.." she said again in a whisper. Ricky gave her a reassuring smile and finished pulling all the way down. He didn't know what to tell her, so he just said what was on his mind. "That was...a lot easier than last time..." He smiled again, lowering his voice to a whisper. "S-see? I'm...fine... No more regrets..." Karen blushed lightly for a reason she still didn't know she looked over at him and nodding. "No...regrets." she said softly slowly looking away. "None at all.." Ricky smiled again, nodding. "So... Now...I guess this is the hard part..." he mumbled, glancing at Karen, then looking down. He then looked away to the side, feeling like a pervert. The faint hint of a blush remained on his face. "So..." he muttered, glancing back at her briefly before looking away again. "Um..." "Um..." she said blushing looking down. "I don't know...what to do..." she said softly shivering lightly. "I guess...we shouldn't have done this..." she said looking away. "Should we?" "I...want to do this, Karen..." Ricky whispered, looking back at her. "I may not know what to do, but... I want to do this..." He didn't realize what he was saying until after the words were out of his mouth. All hesitance set aside, Ricky was startled at how much he truly wanted to do this. It made him feel strange - he had never wanted something this badly but was never more confused in his life. Karen looked up at him blushing, "You truly want to do this..." she mumbled closed her eyes looking away. "I don't know...what to do though...Ricky." Ricky nodded, still staring at her. "I don't know what to do, either, but... Maybe I can take a chance, just like you said before..." He gently picked up her chin so she was facing him directly. "Isn't that...what we agreed on before?" Karen slightly gulped and nodded at Ricky. "Yes...we did agree on that." she turned to face him. "We'll just have to figure it out...I guess..." Ricky flushed a bright shade of red, but he kept a straight face. "I guess so..." He looked away, gently pulling back his hand. "I'm ready when you're ready... I'm ready for anything... I just need..." He smiled a bit. "...a little...push..." Karen looked up at him blushing nodding she leaned foward grabbing his hands placing them on her chest leaning in and kissing him on the kips passionately on the lips she squeezed his arms pulling him closer to her as she laid down with him ontop of her. Ricky's eyes widened but he quickly recovered and returned the passionate kiss, squeezing his hands shut gently. The light pink blush he had managed to keep under control so far has developed into a deep red color. He was uncomfortably aware of the fact that he was lying on top of her, but he ignored it, feeling much better after their previous fight. He pulled away for a second. "Th-that was...a big push..." he muttered, smiling. He then kissed her again with equal passion. Karen kissed him back with the same ammount of passion then pulled away to breath closing her eyes slowly taking deep breathes she looked up at Ricky, "D-Do you...know what to do next?" she asked breathless feeling him squeeze him hands gently it made her sigh deeply as she tried cetching her breath. Ricky stared at her, unable to speak. For some strange reason, he liked hearing her sigh like that, so he squeezed again, trying to fight back the warmth in his face. The question 'Do you know what to do next?' sent one of those wonderful shivers down his spine, even though he was nervous beyond measure. He thought he knew what to do, but he couldn't be sure, and he didn't want to do something wrong and mess everything up again. Karen opened her eyes and stared up at him, "Ricky?" she asked softly looking up at him tilting her head lightly, feeling him squeeze again she sighed deeply again. "Ricky...answer me?" she asked looking up at him blushing, "Do...you know what to do next?" Ricky glanced away, feeling a tingling feeling in his spine as she sighed again. "M-maybe..." he whispered, then looked back at her, staring at the face he loved so much. "Do...you know what to do next?" Karen blushed shaking her head, "I...don't know.." she said softly to him looking up at him staring at her. "I don't." Ricky smiled, shaking his head slightly. He didn't know what was wrong with him - every time he looked at her, that weird tingling sensation spread throughout his body. "Then... We'll have to improvise, huh?" His smile faded as he took his hands away from her chest. His eyes automatically moved downward, making him blush a slightly brighter shade of red. Karen watched his eyes she nodded at him, "Yeah...we sure will.." she said softly to him. She was wondering what was going threw his head and nodded again. "You..can...this time." she whispered softly to him blushing. "...Me?" Ricky's eyes widened as he nodded slowly, getting up for a moment and lying down next to her, staring into her eyes. He lowered his voice to a silent whisper. "She can do it... She just did... If she can do this, so can I..." He gave a decisive nod, returning one hand to her chest and letting it trail down onto her stomach, hesitating a bit. "Karen... Are you sure...you want to do this?" Karen nodded, "I'm...sure." she said opening her eyes then closeing them nodding, "I'm sure this time.." Ricky smiled, despite his nervousness. He let his hand trail down a little farther, still watching Karen's face for any signs of doubt or hesitation. He was so close again, just like last time. He told himself to just go ahead, just do it... He had already asked her if she was sure, and she had said yes...so why was he hesitating? "Karen..." he whispered. His hand was just inches away, so close. He was shivering, feeling his heart beat faster than usual. He whispered her name again, feeling the tingling feeling run all the way down his spine. Karen kept her eyes closed until she called his name. "Ricky..." she whispered his name feeling him get close her face blushed red. Hearing his own name whispered by Karen sent another shiver through Ricky's entire body, giving him enough confidence to inch his hand the rest of the way down. He felt himself tremble and noticed that his face felt a lot warmer than before as he finally reached his goal. "Karen..." he whispered again, looking down, then up. Karen closed her eyes feeling a shiver go threw her entire body and her face turned red. "Ricky..." she whispered out softly to him. "It's okay..." she said smiling softly. "It's okay." Ricky gave a soft smile in return, using his other arm to pull Karen closer to him, still shivering every few seconds. "It's...okay..." he repeated, still feeling unwanted warmth on his face. "It's okay..." Karen looked up at him smiling back at him, "Are you okay?" she asked softly to him closing her eyes. "Do you know what to do...when your hand is down there?" she asked quietly blushing. Ricky looked away, still blushing as he heard Karen's question. 'Do you know what to do when your hand is down there?' Ricky's face turned an even brighter shade of red as he shook his head quietly. "No..." he whispered, staring at Karen, hoping she had the answer. "N-no..." he said again, not daring to move at all. "...No..." "Well..." Karen looked away shaking her head. "I don't...eather..." she whispered quietly as her face turned red she gulped. "I'm sorry. Looks like we're both clueless on what to do." "Clueless..." Ricky muttered, looking away. "Completely clueless..." He sighed, wanting to just do something, but not knowing what. "...Well... I should try to figure it out, I guess..." But he remained frozen, hesitating He wasn't filled with guilt or regret - he didn't know what was wrong this time. "...Okay..." he muttered, glancing down at his hand, feeling his fce turn warm. He gulped, looking away. "...Okay..." Karen looked away feeling awkward in this strange quiet moment. She glanced up at him seeing him trying to figure out what to do. "Okay..." Ricky closed his eyes, wondering how Karen felt in this awkward situation. It felt strange, wondering what a girl was feeling at that moment, what was running through her head. "Karen..." he whispered, looking away. "...What are you thinking right now?" "What?" Karen looked over at him blushing lightly shaking her head. "I'm...just thinking." she answered lowering her head so her bangs covered her eyes. "I'm...just...thinking." "Oh." Ricky glanced back at Karen. "...Okay..." His hand was beginning to cramp up, and he didn't know what to do. He couldn't just do nothing, but he had no idea what to do next. "Just a couple of clueless kids..." he muttered, looking away again. Karen was starting to get even more confused. "Ricky...I'm thinking...about what do we do next?" she asked keeping her head down. "We're so clueless...I know you want to do this but...I don't know what to do, Ricky." she answered softly leaning her head against him arm. "I don't know.." Ricky smiled as Karen leaned her head against his arm. Every time she touched him, it felt like a jolt of electricity was running down his spine, making him sigh softly. "Karen..." he whispered, still smiling blissfully, feeling the warmth of her head resting on his arm. "I...don't know, either... But..." His first reflex was to move his hand, to stop it from continuing to stiffen up. The moment he forgot he was touching Karen, his hand closed halfway to get rid of the aching soreness from being in the same position for so long, but it snapped back open as he realized what he just did. His eyes were wide and his face was red as he felt a sudden urge to pull his hand away, but he couldn't do that to Karen... Not again... Wasn't this what she wanted? "S-sorry..." he managed to choke out, finching as he remembered his small speech about 'no regrets.' "I...uh...I didn't mean...to..." Karen opened her eyes as she felt him lightly squeeze his hand, she blushed blood red. She wasn't going to pull away...isn't this what he's been wanting to do? "I-It's...okay." she said quietly laying her head still on his shoulder. "...Is that what you're supossed to do in this situation?" Ricky's eyes were still wide. "Um... I... I d-don't know..." He glanced over at her, seeing her blush deep red, which made his face get even warmer. "...I don't know..." he muttered again, wondering why he still hadn't taken his hand away. Karen looked up at him gulping she stoped moving turnning his head over to her. "Ricky?" she whispered quietly leaning up to his mouth inches away from his lips. "Are you okay?" she asked real softly. "Y-yeah..." Ricky replied, whispering quietly. "I'm...okay..." He closed the gap between their lips, kissing her softly and trying to get the bright red color to vanish from his face. Karen's eyes whidened for a second before she kissed him back as softly as he did. Her cheeks turned red again, as she slowly pulled away looking up into his eyes. "What are you thinking about...Ricky?" Ricky stared back into Karen's eyes, not expecting the question. He was tempted to reply with, 'I'm just thinking' like she had, but instead he told her, "I'm...thinking about how I wish I wasn't clueless... How I wish I knew how to do this... And then, when I look at you, it's like I don't think at all. My mind just...freezes..." A small shiver went through him. "...And when that happens...I just feel like..." He didn't know how to describe any of it, so he just stared back at her silently, unable to speak. "...You feel like you can't do anything...you're stuck and you have no idea what you're going to do." she looked up at him as he stared back at her. "And you're unable to speak from that feeling you don't know..." she closed her eyes looking down at his hand blushing then looking away. "Like you've shut down.." Ricky's mouth fell open and his eyes widened as he continued to stare at Karen. "How...do you know?" he managed to whisper. "How do you know?" he repeated, still not looking away. "You're...right...about all of it..." He felt his hand twitch slightly, cramping up again. "You just don't know what to do...because... Because you love them... Because they confuse you, and all you know is that...you want to do this...but...you just..." He shook his head, sighing. "...I can't explain it right..." "But you just...can't." she whispered looking back into his eyes. "You can't figure it out...because you're afraid that you'll hurt them..." she looked away. "But...to tell the truth you can't hurt them while doing this...unless it was forced apon someone...you just need to.." she looked down. "Let go of fear...or any cowardness...and just let go.." Ricky kept staring at her, giving a small nod. "Y-yeah... I know... I just... Just feel like... I'm doing something I'm not supposed to do... I'm just...always afraid I'm going to hurt you... It's like..." He finally looked away. "It's kind of like having a curse... You can never get close to anyone...because you're afraid you'll hurt them... Even if you say it's what you want...and I'm not hurting you... Even though I want this... It just... It just seems like I'm doing something wrong to you..." Karen looked down and shook her head, "I don't know, Ricky...I don't know if this is...right..." she looked down and sighed. "I thought this was going to wait...for when I was older but..." she gazed back at Ricky and leaned against him again fixing her bra. "I'm...confused if we should still be doing this...Ricky.." she said quietly. "I don't know anymore.." Ricky pulled his hand away, nodding silently. "...It's okay..." He put his other arm around Karen, pulling her close. "It can wait if you want... I don't want to make you feel like you have to do this..." For now, just being next to her, hugging her tightly, was enough. "This...helped me though... It made me think about some things..." He smiled, squeezing her tighter. "Thank you." Karen closed her eyes and smiled as tears slowly came out of her eyes. "Thank you Ricky..." she said softly. "But...you want to do this with me...I want to make you happy Ricky." she said softly hugging him back and closing her eyes. "I thought you wanted to.." Ricky gave a small smile, replying softly, "I want...what you want... I want you to be happy..." He squeezed her again, closing his eyes. "If that means...waiting a few years... That's okay with me..." He smiled quietly, still hugging her. "That's...okay with me..." Karen smiled and closed her eyes nodding. "Thank you..." she said with a small deep sigh she pulled away rubbing her eyes trying to stop she smiling at him then felt a sharp pain go threw her head she winced and held her head. "Ouch...my head..." she whisped feeling the sharp pain again. "What the heck, is this feeling..?" she asked out loud looking up at Ricky with red eyes. Ricky let go of Karen, moving backwards, away from her. "What's the matter with your eyes? They're..." Realization struck him as his eyes widened. "No way..." he whispered, backing up some more until he almost fell off the bed. "No...way... Karen..." Karen's head was down, she snickered evily and she lifted up her head slowly, "This girl is much easier to control Ricky.." Karen smirked glancing to her side and on the ground laid the two twin knifes, "Now are you going to run away so this will be fun?" she asked playfully picking up the knifes looking back up at him with the cold stare he used to have, "Or am I going to have to kill you now?" "No way..." Ricky whispered again, standing up and continuing to back away. "Stop it..." He clenched a fist, creating an ectoblast...except...nothing happened. "What the...?" He glanced from his empty fist over to Karen. "Oh, jeez... Couldn't get any worse, huh?" He sighed, backing up into the wall. "Can't you just leave her alone? Why don't you control me instead?" He tried to hide the desperate tone in his voice. "...Please?" Karen shook her head, "Now way, she's much more fun to control." she gave him a cold smirk, "Can't use your ghost powers...with out me, you're just another human. With those waistful feelings...but I'll spair you for now." Karen suddenly stoped walking her face had a blank stare and her eyes slowly closed and she began to fall to the ground. "Wh-what?" Ricky didn't have time to think - he just ran forward and caught Karen in his arms before she hit the ground. "Karen?" He bit his lip, hoping she was okay, hoping the curse was gone for now. "K-Karen..." Karen slowly opened her eyes to see Ricky, "R-Ricky?" she whispered feeling a sharp pain go threw her head, "The curse..it's...inside me.." she looked at him in the eye. "But how..I..." she then realized, "Oh...no...when I was fighting him." she looked away. "How..do I..." her eyes watered up. "What do I do?" Ricky put his arms around her, resting his head on her shoulder. "I'm so sorry..." he whispered, squeezing her tightly. "...I'm so sorry..." He stayed like that for a minute before answering her question. "...Don't panic... Just imagine a wall that stands between your mind and that curse... It's a wall he can't break through, and it's only held up by your physical and mental strength and willpower. If you let that imaginary wall disappear... That's when he can..." Ricky fell silent, still hugging her. "...When he can take control... And don't get yourself into situations that upset you emotionally... That's when you're the weakest... And he knows when to attack you... When you're most vulnerable... Times like..." He gulped, his voice was now a hoarse whisper. "...Times like right now..." Karen shivered lightly and hugged him back, "R-Ricky..." she choaked out. "I can't...control this curse..." she said squeezing his shirt. "Help...it feels like it's trying to...take over." she said shivering squeezing his shirt. "How...did this thing get into me?" she asked as she squeezed tighter on his shirt. "How do I get it out of me?!" "Gotta make her stop panicking..." Ricky frantically stared back at Karen, trying to figure out what to do. "Maybe I can shock her out of it or something..." He sighed, squeeing her shirt as well and raising his voice. "KAREN! Calm down! Stop it, or that curse will take complete control of you! I don't know how it got there, and I don't know how to get it out! Just give me time to think!" "Ricky!" she said back trying to control herself her eyes wet with tears, "I can't!" she shouted squeezing his shirt tighter. "It's comming out Ricky. You have to run...please just go!" she said as her eyes flickered red. "Just go..!" Ricky managed a grim smile, letting go of her shirt and hugging her instead. "I won't run... You know I won't... Just like you wouldn't run when I told you to... I'm not running, either." He squeezed her tightly, closing his eyes. "I love you, and no stupid curse is going to scare me away... Especially not a curse whose 'personality' I know like the back of my hand... I think I might know how to defeat him, but...you have to trust me... You have to let me stay here..." Karen closed her eyes still trying to stay in control she nodded her head. "Okay...but please hurry Ricky..." Ricky nodded, still hugging her. "I need to talk to him... Or it... Or whatever it is... I need to talk to that curse face-to-face. Just like you did before, right? How did you get inside me, anyway? I need to do that same thing..." He pulled away, placing his hands on her shoulders, staring at her face. It was hard to imagine that just a few minutes earlier he had been hugging her, kissing her, touching her...and it had all ended in disaster again. Just like before, only worse... He shook his head, trying to focus. "That's...all I need to know... I just need to talk to him... I think I know his weakness now... I heard what happened inside my head before... I think I can beat him, Karen... I think I can do something right for once..." Karen winced with trying to stay in control, "I...used my ghost powers...but..." she pulled away from Ricky one eye red the other one brown she lifted her hand up to Ricky's forhead, placing it against it she growled under her breath. "Don't...move..." she whispered as her hand glew a dark purple she closed her eyes and Ricky and her glew...Ricky began to dissapper Karen sighed and fainted to the ground. Ricky felt strange - watching himself disappear sent a weird, giddy feeling through his head. He felt nauseated, and yet he was tempted to giggle at the strange sensation. It was almost unreal, watching himself vanish entirely - not just becoming invisible, but completely disappearing off to somewhere else. When the feeling stopped, he found himself somewhere dark - somewhere he had never seen before. "Did it work?" The hollow sound his voice made sent a chill down his spine. The curse could be anywhere, waiting to attack and kill him. "Jeez..." he muttered, glancing warily from side to side. "Well well..." the curse said stepping out of the shadows, "Hello Ricky." the curse said in Karen's voice she smirked as she stepped towards him. "This brings back a momory for me...that stupid girl did the exact same thing to you." Hearing Karen's voice made him shudder, taking a step backwards away from the curse. He almost forgot why he was there, in that cold, dark (empty) place as another chill went through him. He was frozen, unable to make himself move. When he finally found his voice he spoke quietly, "Leave her alone... She never did anything to you... Just leave her alone..." "You can't do anything to save her anymore Ricky." she replyed stepping closer to him taking out his twin knifes. "I'm going to distory you...in the body of the one you love...you can't do anything to stop me." Ricky instinctively reached for his knives, but felt his stomach lurch as he realized what he had done. "I left them...back there..." His eyes widened in shock, then narrowed in anger. "Stupid..." he muttered, taking another step back. The 'weakness' he had guessed about before now seemed completely useless. A sense of hopelessness flooded Ricky's mind and he kept thinking over and over, It's impossible... I'm insane... But he shook his head, clearing his mind. "Okay... Here goes nothing..." He raised his voice slightly. "Love, huh? Isn't that what you'd refer to as a 'stupid human emotion'? But you wanted it all along, didn't you? You wanted to know what it felt like to be human... Didn't you? You secretly wanted those emotions... I could tell... When you were talking to Karen...back in my mind... I could tell..." He hoped he was right. Karen slightly flinched lifting up her blades. "Shut up." she snapped throwing a knife at him. "I don't want waistful feelings...they just get in the way and hurt people!" Ricky's reaction was delayed, since he forgot his ghost powers were gone. When he realized he couldn't create a shield or disappear, he tried to jump out of the way. The blade hit him in the arm, causing him to grimace with pain. "But... You did want those feelings, didn't you?" he managed to whisper, trying to ignore the blood running down his arm. "Tell me... What made you want to take over a human body? Why did...you do it in the first place?" Karen steped closer to him smirking at the blood on his arm. "Heh, you always did know my deepest desires, didn't you?" Karen raised up the blade in her left hand raising it above him. "I needed to stay alive...I take over someone just to live..." Ricky glared back at her. "Why stay alive...when you have no purpose?" he hissed at her, keeping his eyes on her second knife. He winced as pain shot through his injured arm again, and he felt more blood trickling to the ground. Karen growled at him, "I don't want to die...I want to live and...kill everyone around me." she hand her bangs over her eyes. "So that's my purpose to get rid of those that get in my way!" she hissed stricking at him, glancing to her side spotting the bloodly knife of the ground. "I'm not suprised you don't fight back." she smirked. "Go ahead pick it up, you know I love it when they fight back before I kill them." Ricky flinched, backing away. "I'm not going to fight you... I... I can't... I won't... I can't do it..." He glanced at the other knife, then down at his arm which was covered with crimson blood. "But... I guess I have to..." He glared back at her. "You're not Karen... You're not..." He picked up the knife, glad that his right arm was uninjured. "I'll fight you... Just give her back..." Karen smirked lifting up her knife to him, "I have to advatage...I also control her powers." she said with a small hiss as the little knife turned into a wind blade she stepped to the side then ran into attack Ricky. "This is it Ricky!" Ricky watched as she ran toward him. He was paralyzed, completely unable to move. He shut his eyes, prepared to be killed by the thing that had destroyed his life ever since he was eight years old. Except nothing happened. He automatically glanced down at his injured arm, but he couldn't see it. The rest of his body was gone too. "I'm... I'm..." His expression of shocked confusion turned into a smirk. "I guess I can use her powers too..." Karen looked back at Ricky shocked for a second then smirked coldly. "Perfect." she said turnning around to him lifting up the blade. "You seem to beable to use her powers, but that doesn't change anything, Ricky." she coldly smirked at him. "I'm stilling going to kill you...then you're preious little Karen." Ricky glared back at her, forgetting that he was still clutching the other knife. "You can't kill her... How would you stay alive? You don't have a body of your own... You're just..." He continued to glare at her. "Without other people, you're nothing..." "It's simple..." she replyed looking over at him with the red eyes smirking. "That little brother of yours will make a perfect new body...I'll just get rid of this girl slowly and painfuly from the inside." "Myles..." Ricky's eyes widened. "Not him... Please... He never did anything to you..." His glare returned, only this time it was filled with more hate than ever. "If you touch him... I'll..." He raised his knife, feeling his hand tremble. "I'm going to kill you..." he whispered. "I'm not going to die...without killing you first... I don't care if we're both dead by the end of this...as long as I can kill you..." "That's more like it!" Karen smirked seeing she struck a nerve. "If that's the way you want it..." she lifted up her hand to what look like a wall. "Let's bet this girls life." her hand glew and appeared Karen knocked out chained to the wall. The curses form changed to what looked like a boy with long blond hair, alot like Ricky...but older. "So shall we?" "I'm not going to put Karen's life at stake..." Ricky gave the curse another hateful glare. "I'm not going to lose, either..." He blinked as the curse changed its form. "Is that...?" He let his voice trail off. "Never mind. Just..." He tightened his grip on the knife, slashing sideways at the curse. "Just die!" The curse smirked jumping back as Ricky slashed at him, "Is that the best you can do?" he asked smirking slashing back at Ricky with a counter attack scratching lightly on the arm, as soon as it slashed his arm, Karen winced and her eyes slowly opened. "What..the?" "Oh did I forget to mention...whenever you get hurt, that girl feels the same pain you do." he smirked lifting his hand up to Karen seeing her wake up, "And looks like she's come around to see you die too." Horrified, Ricky watched a drop of blood trickle down his arm, and looked at Karen, spotting a cut on her arm too. "No..." he whispered, glaring back at the curse. "Just shut up!" He slashed out again, feeling his anger build up with every passing second. The curse simpley smirked, "Control that anger, Ricky." he said as he dodged again slashing at his face cutting his cheek. Karen winced feeling a cut form on her face she looked down at Ricky. "Ricky...don't let the stupid curse get to your head!!" she shouted down at him, the cursed glared at her. "Shut up." he growled sending a ectoblast at her, it hit her in the stomach. Karen's eyes whidened and she felt like she couldn't breath. "Ricky, don't lose to this thing." she said in a hoarse whisper. "Don't touch her!" Ricky shouted, feeling blood trickle down his cheek. "Just shut up!" He knew his anger was affecting his ability to attack, but he wasn't able to stop himself. He lunged at the curse again, slashing out again, putting all his anger and pain into each attack. The curse dodged every attack smirking as he finally slashed him across the arm. "That's it Ricky...give into you're anger!" he taunted Ricky slashing again at his other arm. "I have to get out of these chains..." Karen said to herself and began struggling in them she felt pain come to her arms she winced and looked down at Ricky. "Ricky, don't you give into your anger!" she shouted risking everything she hand to shout to him. "Don't give in!" "I told you to shut up!" The curse shouted lifting up one hand slapping her across the face. She winced feeling her sore cheek, and blood comming down it. 'I've got to get out of these chains.." "Stop it!" Ricky pulled back his left fist and aimed a punch at the curse, not caring that he was using his injured arm. "Just leave her alone!" He winced as pain went through his arm again. "How am I...supposed to get rid of my anger?" he whispered to himself. "This...thing has destroyed my life for almost ten years... And now it's trying to attack the two people who are the most important to me... How am I supposed to control myself?" He gripped the knife in his other hand, trying to calm himself down. "It's impossible..." The curse's head turned to the left as he was punched to the ground and slide just a bit, he smirked and began to laugh. "You can't destroy me Ricky...I am you." he said smirking. "You and I are the same person." Karen shook her head, "You're wrong...Ricky, listen to me...you're angry I know...it's not impossible..if you can control your anger in an attack..." she closed her eyes wincing feeling pain in her arm, "You have my power's right...then that means you can do an attack." she looked up at him, "A powerful attack that could kill him..." she looked down at his hands. "You can control the wind right now...mix it with an ectoblast...then the rest is up to your will power." she smiled softly, "In the mean time I'm going to try and get out of these chains." Shaking with anger, Ricky nodded in response to Karen. Then he turned his attention back to the curse. "No... You're wrong... You're not even a person..." He gave a satisfied smirk, trying to contain his anger. "No more mind games..." he muttered, creating an ectoblast in one hand. "Control the wind..." he muttered to himself, concentrating on his other hand. "Never done that before..." But he managed to do it, mixing the wind with the ectoblast as he put his hands together. "The rest is up to your willpower..." he repeated, still holding on tightly to the wind-ectoblast. "All right... Control my anger into an attack..." He glared at the curse, watching the wind-ectoblast grow even bigger. "Okay..." he whispered. "...Okay..." The cursed raised a brow at him, "What do you think you're doing?" he asked seeing the red light in Ricky's hand grow even bigger, "You think that small attack can kill me?" Ricky glared at the curse, watching the light continue to expand. "Shut...up..." he growled, raising his hand. "Shut up..." he said again, letting go of the wind-ectoblast, sending it flying at the curse. "I hope you're right, Karen..." he muttered. "I hope this works..." Karen watched at the last minute the attack sent the curse flying. "He did it!" she said as she watched the curse fall to the ground..the chains dissappered and she moved her wrist to get the blood pumping again she then looked over at Ricky, "You did it!" she shouted over at him running towards him she stoped in front of him, "Are you okay?" she asked looking up at him. "Clever..move..." the curse said snickering to himself lifting up his dagger to Ricky, "But if I die...you die.." he whispered, and the knife began to glow red with ecto-energy. He then threw it and fainted to the ground. Karen stoped moving looking back behind her seeing a knife flying at Ricky, "Oh no...Ricky, look out!" she shouted getting in front of him feeling something sharp hit her back, her eyes whidened feeling the dagger stab her back, she flinched and closed her eyes. Ricky could only stare as Karen took the attack for him. "No..." he whispered, unable to take his eyes away. "It's...not true..." He watched the dagger stab her in the back with wide eyes. He turned in the curse's direction, shaking with anger, not caring whether the curse could hear him or not. "You'll pay for that... I don't care if I have to die too... I'll KILL you..." Karen fell to her hands and knees then grabbed him by the leg. "Ricky..." she whispered stoping him. "He's dead...you have to get out of here.." she whispered quietly feeling pain in her back grow even more. Ricky's eyes widened in shock. He did feel strange ever since the curse had fallen to the ground, but he didn't really think... "So... I'm dying then?" He looked away. "Why'd you do that? Why did you take the attack? I was going to...die...anyway..." He couldn't look up at her. His entire body was experiencing so much pain, it was hard to think straight. "Why did you...do it?" Karen snickered, "That's a silly question..." she reply closing her eyes, "I wanted to save you...the only way you can live is to get out of here now..." she said coughing feeling blood come out of her mouth. "You have to get out of here now, Ricky..." "What...and leave you here?" Ricky smirked. "No way... No w--" He was cut off as pain shot through his entire body again, making him let out a pained gasp. He was starting to lose consciousness, but he forced himself to stay awake for a little bit longer. "No way..." he said again, putting his arms around her, careful to avoid the dagger in her back. He didn't know if his vision was blurry because he was crying, or because he was almost out cold. Maybe it was a little bit of both. "Karen... How can I help you?" he whispered, closing his eyes. Karen kept her head down, "I need you to get out of here...you don't understand...you've been in here too long.." she said softly putting her head onto his shoulder. "You have to get out of here..." with a shaky hand she closed her eyes placing her hand onto his forhead, her hand glew purple and Ricky began to dissapper. "You'll be okay..." she said softly to him as he dissappered, "You have some of my powers now..." "Karen..." Ricky whispered, feeling himself disappear again. "No, wait... I can't leave you by yourself... Karen..." When he opened his eyes, he felt dizzy and tired. "Karen!" His eyes widened as he saw Karen right where she had been before he was sent into her mind. "Please be okay... Please be okay..." he muttered desperately, not knowing what to do. "Ricky..." she murmured...her stab in the might have been gone but where the curse stabbed Ricky in the arm and the cuts he made where still there, along with Ricky. "Are you...okay?" she asked slowly sitting up. Ricky nodded, pulling Karen into a tight hug. "You're...okay..." he whispered, squeezing her tightly. "You're...okay..." he said again, closing his eyes. "I'm so sorry..." Karen winced feeling him hug her tightly, "I'm okay...it's okay...it's over Ricky." she said pulling away smiling lightly she stould up helping him up. "I'll be fine Ricky but...you're not...it's my turn to help you." Ricky glanced down at his left arm, wincing at the sight of blood. "Oh...right... I...forgot." He stood up with Karen's help, trying to stay balanced. He still felt dizzy, probably from the amount of blood he had lost while fighting the curse. "So... Is it really true? The curse... Is it gone for good?" "I hope so..." she said forcing him to sit down, "Don't move.." she said grabbing the alchohol and wrage. "This is going to sting just a bit..." she said whiping up the blood slowly. "Ouch..." Ricky winced. "So that's what that stuff feels like..." He looked away. "You shouldn't have tried to stop that dagger from killing me... I was supposed to die anyway... You could've gotten yourself killed for nothing." Karen shook her head grabbing the tape. "Don't be so hardheaded..." she said as she began wrapping up his arm. "As long as I'm around...I won't let you die.." she said as she wrapped up his arm. "I would have died protecting you, that's good enough a reason." Ricky smiled, deciding for once that arguing wouldn't accomplish much. "You're as hardheaded as I am sometimes..." He sighed, feeling extremely tired. "But thank you..." he said softly, closing his eyes. Karen looked away finishing wrapping his arm up. "Get some sleep..." she said softly. "I know you're tired..." she said looking down at the first aid kit and began wrapping up her arm, as soon as she finished she looked back over at Ricky slipping off her shoes she crawled over to him placing her hands on both of his sides smiling she kissed him softly on the lips before resting her head on his shoulder. Ricky smiled, putting his arms around her. "Thank you..." he said again, closing his eyes and trying to stay awake. "...Thank you..." Despite his efforts, he was asleep within minutes, smiling peacefully. Karen smiled up at him then closed her eyes as well falling asleep in his arms feeling safe for the first time in the longest time. Ricky sighed in his sleep. For the first time in a long time he could rest without being plagued by his curse. He smiled, instinctively squeezing Karen tighter. He muttered something in his sleep, still smiling. "Hnn..." Karen said in a low voice slowly opening her eyes to the morning light, "What...time is it?" she looked over at the wall clock spotting it she blinked, "How long was I asleep?" she asked herself, she began to sit up until she spoted arms around her she blinked looking over seeing Ricky. Her face softened smiling she patted him on the head. "Ricky..." she whispered in his ear. "Good morning.." "Wha...?" Ricky opened his eyes. "What happened...?" he muttered softly, looking at Karen. "Did I...fall asleep?" He yawned, blinking in the morning light, suddenly remembering everything that had happened. "Are you...feeling okay?" he murmured, yawning again. Karen nodded her head. "I'm fine..." she said softly stretching out her arms as Ricky let her go she looked down at her clothes. "Maybe...I should change into something else..." she said slowly sitting up. "I'm so tired.." she whispered rubbing her head. "How are you Ricky?" she asked looking back at him. "I'm fine..." Ricky muttered, still feeling tired. "Just...tired... That's all..." He yawned again, rubbing his head. "Wonder where Myles is... Hope he's okay... The curse told me it was going to..." He blinked. "Oh... But it's gone now, right?" Karen snickered, "Yea...he's gone." she looked away thinking for a second. "Say...do you want to go swimming?" she asked looking over at him, "At the lake of course!" Swiming..." Ricky repeated, smiling slightly. "I remember going swimming...back when I was eight years old..." His stomach growled quietly, making him blush. "I am...kind of hungry though." Karen smirked back at him nodding. "Then...we'll go get something to eat then go swimming." she then sighed. "Should we find Myles first?" she asked seeing him a bit worried. "I know you're worried.." Ricky sighed, shaking his head. "He'll be all right... He's probably outside pretending to be a ninja or something..." He smiled, standing up and stretching out his arms. Karen rubbed her head standing up after grabbing her jacket putting it on then she shoes. "You're probably right..." she said softly sighing looking up at him. "I feel so gosh dang it short." she said as she zipped up her jacket and stretching out her arms slowly she sighed. "Let's go!" she said as she stepped outside she then looked to her side and sighed. Ricky smiled and stepped outside, following Karen. He glanced around, searching for the mess hall. "Let's see..." He noticed her look to the side and sigh. "Hey, are you okay?" Karen simpley nodded her head. "I'm okay." she answered looking back at him putting on a smile. "I'm okay." she turned her head away and took one step foward. "No you're not..." Ricky stared at Karen. "Seriously... Are you sure you're okay?" He looked away. She's just acting...I don't know... Just...different? Did I do something wrong? Karen looked back at him shaking her head. "I'm okay.." she repeated in a sharp short snap then looked away again. "Jeez..." Ricky muttered, glaring at her. "What was that for? I just wanted to know if you were all right..." He looked away, glaring in another direction. What's wrong with her? She's definitely not 'okay'... Karen gazed back at him, "I am okay!" she said again looking back at him. "Geez..." she mumbled under her breath taking a step foward. "Well, sorry for caring!" Ricky crossed his arms, not moving. "I've been worried since last night... You don't have to snap at me..." he muttered, still glaring in another direction. Karen looked back at him throwing her hands in the air. "I'm okay! okay?" she snapped at him again putting her hands back down and began turnning away. Ricky glared at Karen, standing still. "Yeah, I get it now... You don't have to yell at me... Jeez..." he muttered, turning away. Karen had her back to him and she crossed her arms. "Geez..." she mumbled looking down, "I'm okay..." she whispered closing her eyes. "I'm bothered at what you said last night..." she said in a snap sill looking down. "I had every right, to jump in front of that dagger." she said still in a snap. "I'm just so...pissed off that...you...said I'd die for no reason!" she said in anger glaring back at him. "I'm sorry if I get in your way." she said to him taking a step foward then another one and took off running towards the forest. Ricky's mouth fell open as he watched Karen start running away. "Wait..." he muttered, watching her with wide eyes. He raised his voice, calling out, "Hey, wait a minute!" He sighed, then started running after Karen, still glaring at her. Karen heard him shout for her she kept running from him not stoping, watching for any tree roots she would accedently trip over. "I'm so upset..." she mumbled to herself as she kept running hearing him run after her, she looked back at him seeing him glaring at her she ran faster then she was not stoping. "Stupid..." Ricky muttered to himself, looking down. "I should've known she'd get upset..." He glared at the ground. "...Idiot... Why did I--" His foot got caught under a tree root, causing him to trip and fall over. "Perfect..." he muttered. "Just...perfect..." "...Brother? What are you doing here?" Karen heard him trip, she felt like she should just go back and help him but she was to upset she kept running until she got to a opening. She looked back and ran towards the opening looking up at the sky she fell back on her back just closing her eyes. She didn't want to talk to him right now, too upset at him. "That idiot..." she whispered to herself closing her eyes feeling tears come out of her eyes, she shook her head no and the tears stoped she sat up and stood up just standing there for a minute to cetch her breath. "Myles..." Ricky muttered, trying to stand up but falling over again, realizing his foot was still caught by the tree root. "Great... Do you know where Karen went?" "Well, yeah... She went that way." Myles pointed. "Are you guys playing tag?" "Um... Not exactly..." Ricky muttered, trying to pull his foot away. "Jeez... Just what I need right now..." "Are you upset because you're losing?" Myles asked, looking confused. "...Yeah... That's right, Myles..." Ricky said quietly, looking away. He started untying his shoe. "I'll go get Karen for you! Okay?" Before Ricky could reply, Myles was running off in the direction Karen had gone in. "Idiot..." Ricky muttered, pulling off his shoe and managing to get his foot free. "Idiot..." Karen looked back behind her spotting Myles, still realizing her eyes were wet, "Myles?" she asked looking back at him. "What are you doing out here?" "Playing ninja!" Myles frowned. "Why are you crying? Did you hurt yourself? Playing tag in the woods isn't a very good idea, but... Anyway, are you okay?" Meanwhile, Ricky had stood up, leaning against a tree for support. He felt dizzy for some reason. "Should just...leave her alone..." He glared down at the ground, trying to figure out who he was most angry at - Karen or himself. Karen shook her head rubbing her eyes, "I'm not crying...my eyes are just watery." she raised a brow at him still rubbing her eyes. "Tag...if that's what you call being upset with Ricky...then I guess it's called Tag.." she replyed looking away. "If you don't mind...when you see Ricky...tell him I'm talking to him.." she asked softly turning away running off again into the forest again, with wet eyes and a empty feeling. "Upset with Ricky?" Myles blinked, watching Karen run off. "Hm... Must be an intense game of tag..." - - - Ricky clutched his head, picking a stray tree branch up off the ground and using it as a walking stick. He still felt dizzy and confused, but he had decided to walk in the direction in which Karen had run off. "Idiot..." he muttered to himself every time he stumbled over a root or branch. "...Idiot..." Karen stoped running when she got deep enough into the forest to forget the way she came. She closed her wet eyes feeling lightheaded and upset. "I'm not going to talk to him..." she whispered to herself standing against a tree rubbing her head. "I'm such an idiot..." "Maybe I should go tell Ricky... Or maybe I should go after Karen again..." Myles stared in Karen's direction long after she had disappeared from sight. "Hey...Myles..." Ricky muttered, rubbing his head. "Do you know where...?" "That way." Myles pointed. "Why was she so upset? She was talking about you and..." He stopped talking for a moment. "What did you do to her?" Ricky sighed. "I said something last night after..." He paused. "...After something happened..." He began to walk in the direction Myles was pointing to. "Thanks, Myles..." "What do you want to talk to her about? I can tell her! I can run, 'cause I didn't trip over a tree root and hurt my foot!" He giggled. "I'll go tell her you're sorry! Bye, Ricky!" He ran off again before Ricky could stop him. "Clueless..." he muttered, walking after Myles who was already disappearing into the forest again. Karen's eyes snapped opened hearing Myles running in the forest. "Crap..." she mumbled and began running again this time she jumped onto a branch to hide from him she jumped to another tree then stoped spotting Ricky limping? Why was he limping? She looked down at him and mumbled. "Ricky..." she shook her head jumping up into the sky landing in the clearing. "He got hurt because of me..." Ricky thought he heard a soft voice - Karen's voice, but he immediately turned away from the sound, feeling his anger return. Why is she mad at me anyway? I was only upset because I wouldn't have been able to live knowing she died for me... "Stupid..." he muttered, shaking his head. Karen looked down then up spoting someone in the forest, limping back into the clearing Karen turned away and shook her head and began walking back towards the camp. "I'm so upset...thinking I'd die for no reason..." she hissed coldly to herself looking to her left spoting what looked like a ditch she shook her head and began walking again but stoped. "I'm such an idiot..." Myles had no idea where he was or where he was going. He knew he was lost, and it made him feel nervous and afraid. "BROTHER!" he screamed as loudly as possible, trying to find his way out of the forest. "Help me..." he whispered, sitting down at the base of a tree. Ricky sighed, hearing the sound of Myles's voice. "Stupid little brother..." he muttered, limping in the direction of the voice. "Where'd Karen go, anyway?" He sighed, continuing to walk in Myles's direction. "Stupid..." Karen stoped walking hearing Myles scream 'brother!' she turned around with sigh jumping up flying back up towards the forest spoting Myles at the base of the tree. "Myles?" she whispered softly landing beside him. "Are you okay?" she asked softly hearing footsteps she looked back spotting Ricky, she instantly when intangable. "Don't tell him I'm here...please Myles." she said putting a cold hand onto his shoulder. "Don't say I'm here..." "I got lost..." Myles whispered, smiling as he saw Ricky. "Br--" He cut himself off, remembering what Karen had told him. "But Karen..." His voice was almost completely silent. "He was so upset and I think he wanted to talk to you... Why can't I tell him you're here?" "Just don't..." she said softly to him looking down standing up. "Myles, keep running strait, and get out of here...I want to talk to your brother." she said turnning tangable she looked up at Ricky. "Go, Myles." she whispered down at him. "I need to talk to him alone.." she said throw a glare at Ricky. "Okay..." Myles whispered, getting up and running straight like Karen had told him. "Hello..." Ricky said quietly and coldly, glaring back at Karen. "Finally done running away?" Karen glared back at him, "I guess I am." she said crossing her arms leaning against the tree. Ricky continued to glare back at her, also leaning against a tree to keep his balance. "You know, I only said that because I didn't want you to die. I said it because if you died, I wouldn't care about living anymore." Despite his words, Ricky's glare was still as cold as ever. Karen snickered looking away from him. "Oh really..." she said looking down at the ground, "I don't want you to die, that's the only reason I did it." she snapped back at him, not meaning to. "And now look what I did, you got hurt because of the idiot I am and ran off!" she glared at the ground. "Idiot.." Ricky continued to glare at Karen, even though she was looking down. "This is stupid..." he muttered, finally looking away. "It's not your fault I tripped... Idiot..." He didn't know who he was saying it to - Karen or himself. Maybe both. Karen looked up at him hearing him call her a 'idiot' she looked away sadly. "I guess...I'll just leave you alone.." she said in a whisper and began turnning away. "I don't won't to be a bother to you." she said sour. "A bother to me?" Ricky raised one eyebrow. "What are you talking about?" She was obviously upset, which made him feel bad, but for some reason he didn't want to show his true feelings. Karen glanced back at Ricky with a glare, "I'm bothering you...aren't I?" she snapped and shook her head. "Forget it...it's not worth it.." she said stepping away from him. "I'll just leave you alone." "No, you're not bothering me." Ricky reached out, grabbing Karen's wrist. "Why are you so upset?" he whispered, looking away. "Why won't you let me talk to you?" Karen stoped not looking back Ricky as he grabbed her wrist. "You made it perfectly clear...that if I died it wouldn't matter." she said still with a snappy voice tilting her head down. "...What if I don't want to talk to you..." Ricky let go of her wrist, looking down. "That's not what I said." He sighed, keeping his frustration and anger under control. "I...was supposed to die... You weren't... You were supposed to be okay..." His voice trailed off. "Besides, if you had died... I..." He shook his head. "That's not the point. What I'm trying to say is that you've got it wrong, Karen..." Karen shook her head keeping her back to him. "I told you before...I wasn't going to let you die while I was around.." she said in a quiet cold voice. "I've got it wrong?" she still didn't look back at him shaking with anger for a reason she didn't know. "I've got it wrong huh?" she kept her back to him. "Yeah, you do have it wrong!" Ricky's voice was louder now. "How could I live knowing that your life was taken instead of my own?" He angrily grabbed Karen's wrist again, pulling her around so she was facing him. "You're such an idiot sometimes..." he whispered, wishing he hadn't shouted at her. "But so am I..." Ricky sighed, leaning in and kissing her lips, letting go of her wrist and putting his arms around her. Karen's eyes whidened and she frozen she then closed her eyes slowly putting her arms around his neck. Eyes watering up and she began to cry, she kissed him back feeling guilty for yelling at him and running from him. She pulled away looking away, "I'm...not talking to you Ricky..." she said sadly in a whisper with tears comming out of her eyes. "I'm not..." Ricky just shook his head sadly. "I'm sorry..." he whispered, looking away. "This was all my fault... I'm sorry..." he said again, looking back at Karen. "I'm...sorry..." Karen shook her head, "Don't say you're sorry, Ricky..." she said backing out of him keeping her head down, "Stop thinking it always you're fault!" she shouted at him- she then realized she shouted at him again, she looked away. Ricky looked away. "S-sorry..." he muttered, then flinched at the sound of the word. "N-no, I didn't mean to say that! Sorry!" He sighed, turning away, realizing he had apologized again. "Oh, jeez..." Karen lifted up her hand and slapped him across the face, "You idiot..." she whispered then put her head onto his chest lightly pounding it. "Idiot idiot idiot..." she whispered squeezing his shirt. "...I'm...sorry..." Ricky flinched, but didn't say anything until the sharp pain went away. "You don't have to apologize..." he whispered. "I deserved that." He sighed, looking down at Karen. "I'm such an idiot..." he muttered quietly, barely able to hear the sound of his own voice. Karen shook her head in his shirt. "You're wrong...completely wrong...you didn't deserve that...I..." her voice broke then shook her head. "Stop it, Ricky...just stop it." Ricky sighed, pushing Karen away so she was against the trunk of a tree. "I guess there's no point in arguing..." he muttered, leaning closer to her. "You're as hardheaded as I am sometimes..." He kissed her again, still pinning her against the tree, feeling his anger drain away. Karen's eyes whidened as he pinned her against the tree, her head feeling light headed. And her heart beating quickly. She kissed him back feeling him lean closer, her face blushed blood red. Ricky pulled away, muttering quietly, "That's better... Please don't yell at me for saying this, but..." He looked away, still pinning Karen against the tree. "I really am sorry..." He sighed, closing his eyes and expecting another slap across the face. Karen looked down shaking her head, "Stop saying that Ricky..." she said in a snap...she was tempted to kick him but didn't she just stood there, being pinned to the tree. "Geez..." Ricky looked back at Karen, sighing again. "Are you saying I'm not supposed to apologize for upsetting you?" He looked away again, trying to keep his anger under control. Karen didn't answer him, she just looked away from him. What do I say...I have no idea what to say. She thought still not answering him, "Just quite it.." Ricky glared at Karen for a moment, but he looked away, feeling like he shouldn't be angry at her. He gave a frustrated sigh, not knowing what to say. His stomach growled loudly, making him blush. "Stupid..." he muttered to himself, still not letting go of her. Karen closed her eyes to keep his glare out of her eyes. She wasn't going to say anything to him. She knew she should just say sorry but she was still upset. "Stupid idiot..." she said looking down. "Why are you holding back your anger?" she asked in a snap glaring at him, "Go on...get angry." she said glaring at him. Ricky looked up from the ground and saw Karen glaring at him. "What?" he asked quietly. "You want me to get angry at you?" He looked away, then glared at her. "What's the matter with you!?" Karen looked up at Ricky glaring back at him, "Nothing at all." she answered looking away, still realizing he was still pinning her she didn't care, she closed her eyes. "Get angry, Ricky!" "Why are you acting so..." Ricky kept glaring coldly at her. He sighed angrily, unable to keep the anger out of his voice. "Seriously, what's your problem!?" Karen opened her eyes up, "Nothing's wrong with me." she said coldly at him. "Nothing at all." Ricky took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and counted to ten. "Just...stop it..." he hissed through gritted teeth. "Just...stop..." "No." she said simpley seeing him trying to calm himself down, "I won't stop it..." she said looking down. "Why not?" Ricky muttered, unable to keep the hint of frustration in his voice. "What are you trying to accomplish by this?" He glared at her, then looked away. "You always hold back...with everything." she said looking down. "Get angry, Ricky..." she said coldly closing her eyes. "Just get angry.." "You're so annoying..." Ricky glared at her, instinctively pushing her harder against the tree. "You're so annoying!" he repeated, louder this time, pushing her again without realizing he was doing it. Karen winced as her back hit the tree the first time, then the second time she hissed feeling pain come to her arm. Her cut opened on her shoulder. "Oh really?" she asked closing her eyes. "Is that what...you really think of me Ricky?" she asked looking down. Ricky stopped pushing her, looking away. "Idiot..." he hissed, glaring at the ground. "You're...such an idiot..." He didn't realize he was trembling, and he felt like hugging her but he wouldn't let himself. "Idiot..." he whispered again. "...Idiot..." Karen didn't look up at him kept her head down pushing back tears that were there in pain from her arms and feelings. She could just say sorry but she stoped herself again. "I'm a annoying idiot...I get it.." she said in a low cold voice. "I get it..." she said not realizing her voice cracked. "I get it..." Ricky wanted to hug her again, hearing her voice crack, but he wouldn't let himself. "It's about time..." he said coldly, still shaking slightly. "Karen..." he whispered, glaring coldly at her. "Just stop it... Just shut up..." Karen's vision was getting blurry, she wasn't going to tell him her back was bleeding. "No..." she said coldly at him not looking up at him her voice cracked. "No...I won't stop it...I won't shut up." she said shaking her head to stay awake. "Idiot..." Ricky heard Karen's voice crack again, sending another feeling of guilt through him. He shook his head, ignoring it. "Why!? Why are you doing this to me!? Just stop it! You're so good at driving me insane! You're such an idiot!" He sighed, looking away. "Idiot..." Karen shook and shook her head, "Stay awake..." she said to herself feeling dizzy, she closed her eyes. "I trying to teach you...how not to hold back." she said for the first time in this fight softly, just because she was falling into uncontiousness. "I'm sorry...you idiot...I'm sorry.." she said as her voice faided and she stoped moving, knowing that she had lost blood. "Karen?" Ricky whispered, hearing her voice fade and seeing her stop moving. "Karen!?" He shook her roughly, trying to make her move, which was when he saw blood on the tree behind her. "Oh no..." he whispered, his eyes widening. "Did I...do that...?" He closed his eyes, shaking his head. "Idiot... Idiot... Idiot! I'm...such an idiot..." Karen stoped moving feeling blood moving down her shoulder rather quickly. "Great... Nice job, idiot..." Ricky muttered to himself, gently scooping Karen up in his arms, trying his best to avoid her injury. "Idiot..." he whispered, staring sadly down at Karen. "It's all your fault..." He glanced around, trying to figure out which way they had come from. "Cabins should be this way...along with the infirmary..." he muttered, limping extremely slowly due to the extra weight from carrying her. The trees finally began thinning out and the cabins, infirmary, and mess hall appeared. Ricky pushed open the door of the infirmary and dropped Karen onto one of the beds, sighing. "I always have to take care of you... You idiot..." "I'm sorry...Ricky." she whispered in a small voice. "It's all my fault..." she said closing her eyes. "It's...my fault." she said as her voice faided off feeling her wet arm. "Stop it..." Ricky shook his head. "I didn't mean those things I said... Don't blame yourself... Please don't..." he whispered, unable to take his eyes away from Karen's face. "You...idiot..." His voice cracked, and he looked away. Karen sighed, "Get the nurse, Ricky..." she said looking away. "Geez...I owe you alot..." she said snickering. "I owe you...a nice dinner, wouldn't you like that?" Ricky looked away, blushing slightly. "You don't owe me anything..." he said softly, watching the nurse organizing the items in a medicine cabinet. "Hey...nurse... Somebody's injured over here." He turned his attention back to Karen. "You'll be okay..." he whispered. "I'm sorry..." "I'm still making you a dinner..." she said slowly sitting up as the nurse cleaned up her arm and wrapped it up. "Go get something to eat, Ricky...I'll be okay." "I don't want to leave you here..." Ricky said quietly, looking away. "Besides... I'm not hungry, anyway." His stomach growled softly, but he pretended not to hear it. "You don't have to lie..." she said smiling. "Go get something to eat...I don't want to fight anymore..." she said looking away closing her eyes. "...I don't want to fight anymore, either..." Ricky whispered, still staring at Karen. "Don't do that to me...ever again... I hate fighting with you." His stomach growled again, and he turned to leave. "Oh, I almost forgot..." He gave a small smile. "Thank you." Karen nodded looking down, "You're welcome.." she whispered softly standing out of the bed. "Wait a second though.." she looked down at his foot, "Your foot, you twisted it remember?" "Yeah..." Ricky looked away, taking a small step toward the door, hiding the pain in his face as he stood on his injured foot. "I'll be okay... It's nothing... I'm fine." He took another step, trying to walk normally, but flinching with pain. Karen quickly got in front of him putting up her good hand to stop him, "Don't push yourself." she said looking up at him pushing him back in a chair. "Nurse, injured foot over here!" she shouted out a the nurse she turned around and sighed. Ricky gave an exasperated sigh, secretely grateful for the chair. "Thanks..." he mumbled quietly. "So I guess this means we're not going swimming..." He had been looking forward to it, since he hadn't gone swimming for fun in almost ten years. "Not true." Karen said looking over her shoulder at him, "It's not that bad of a sprain...if you walk on it some with my help...we can still go swimming!" she said as the nurse walked off. Karen helped him, "Starting with, getting you to the mess house." she said as they began walking slowly to the door. "I'm helping you this time so...don't be so hard headed." "Really?" Ricky smiled, walking with Karen to the door. "I used to go swimming with my family... Back then, Myles was just a tiny little kid... And once we went with my father..." His voice cracked as he said the last word, but he looked away, shaking his head. "Nevermind... Anyway, are you feeling better? ...I'm sorry I hurt you..." Karen looked up at Ricky hearing his voice crack when he mentioned his father. "I'm okay." she answered opening the door and walking towards the mess house. "Geez...Ricky, it's okay." she said rubbing her head she then looked back strait. "Do you...if I can ask..do you hate your father?" she asked softly as they continued to the mess house look away sighing, "I don't really get along with mine...him and my mother split up when I was small...I live with my mom and sister...I have two other siblings they live with my father." she shrugged and sighed. "That's my small history..." she said sadly. "I'm sorry..." Ricky whispered, glancing sideways at Karen. After a moment, he sighed and said, "I don't hate him, Karen... He was just...never there... Never... My mother needed him... My brother needed him... I needed him... But he was never there..." A hint of anger had crept into his voice, but he pushed it away. "Every night...I'd ask my mother if he was finally home... And the answer would always be no..." Karen looked over at him then looked down, "I'm sorry." she said as they finally reached the mess hall, hardly anyone was in there so they could just get something to eat with out anyone asking if they were okay. As she grabbed her food and Ricky as well she sat down glancing back at him sitting him down. "Are you okay Ricky?" she asked softly poking her salad. "You've been quiet sence I asked that question.." "I'm fine..." Ricky muttered, staring down at his food. "Maybe I do hate him, Karen... Maybe you're right... But back then, I thought he was the greatest person in the world... He was my best friend, but then he just...left... I wonder if he ever came back... I haven't talked to my mother in years..." He stared off into space, thinking. Karen stared at him with sadened eyes, then nodded. "Ricky...let's go then, let's go see your mother." she said softly looking at her salad. "I think you should...you need to talk to your mom." she bit into her salad gazing back at him. "Tonight when everyone is asleep, we'll sneak out and go." "I... I don't know if we should..." Ricky looked away. "She's probably still upset about Myles running away looking for me. She's... She's probably..." He sighed. "...really upset. Especially about me. I was...the favorite child... And I never told her I was leaving. I couldn't tell her I was possessed by some murdering curse, so what was I supposed to do?" He looked back at Karen, sighing again. "I wonder what she'd say, seeing me for the first time in almost ten years..." Karen looked up at him from her salad pushing it away. "Ricky...you should...if it's been almost ten years, you should." she looked down. "You need to talk to her Ricky, see if she's okay. How she is and everything." she looked up at him. "Come on, take a small chance and go see your mother tonight...we can easly fly there." "I...guess so..." Ricky sighed, looking away. "...Okay...fine... We can go tonight. I wonder if we should take Myles, too... If I show up without him, she'll kill me." Karen smiled, "I don't know...if we bring Myles, if I'm right your mom would probably make him stay...after running away?" she shurged. "But we wouldn't want you dead now would we?" she stood up grabbing her tray. "Come on, let's go swimming." she said smiling. "For one hour okay?" "Huh?" Ricky blinked. "Oh... Okay..." He smiled, standing up. "That sounds great..." He was still only half-paying attention. The thought of his father had been in his head ever since Karen had asked about him. Maybe he finally came home... He shook his head, muttering, "Stupid..." Karen looked over at him seeing that he was half there she nodded, "Meet me at the lake in ten minutes." with that she ran off. "See you then!" she looked back strait and shook her head, "Should I have asked him about his father?" "Ten minutes..." Ricky muttered. "...Okay..." He walked slowly back to his cabin, staring at the ground, still thinking. "Stupid..." he muttered again, pushing open his cabin door and closing it quietly behind him. "...Stupid." Karen stoped running as soon as she stepped into her room, spotting her bag she opened it up going threw her things spotting her bathing suit. "Good, still here." she said pulling it out she ran into the bathroom to change. After she was done putting on her black one piece she stepped out of the bathroom sighing, "I hope he's okay..." she whispered looking down. Ricky sighed, grabbing a random pair of plain shorts from his bag and stepping into the bathroom, changing quickly. "Stupid..." he kept muttering to himself. "You thought he was great when you were a kid, but he's just..." He sighed again, shaking his head. "...an idiot, just like me." He tossed his shirt and jeans back into his bag, opening the door of his cabin and starting to walk in the direction of the lake. "Idiot..." Karen sighed putting her clothes into her bag and grabbing a towel and turning around she began to the door but stoped short hearing something behind her, "Hello?" she asked turnning around. Ricky sighed, still limping slightly. "But what if he did come back?" He shook his head, staring at the ground, not paying attention to anything around him. "No way... You're being stupid again, Ricky... Stupid..." He bumped into a tree, not watching where he was going. "Ouch... Idiot..." Karen took a step back, "Hello?" she said again no one answered her so she turned around sighing until she felt a hand touch her shoulder. Stoping frozen looking over her shoulder seeing pure white eyes, "O-Oriel?!" she said shocked shaking lightly for a reason she didn't know. "Hello Karen.." she said cooly as she threw Karen across the room into the wall lifting up her hand it glowing bright white. "Goodbye Karen.." and with that she sent the white light at Karen. Karen's eyes whidened realizing it was too late to go ghost she covered her head and screamed as the blast hit her creating a hole in the ceiling and smoke comming out. Oriel smirked and dissappered, "That was easy..." she said as she dissappered. "You're finally dead." Ricky heard a scream and saw smoke coming out of one of the cabins. "Oh jeez..." he whispered, running over to it and quickly opening the door. "Wh-what happened?" He coughed, inhaling some of the smoke. "What...happened?" He squinted, trying to see, but smoke kept getting in his eyes. As the thick smoke cleared slowly a figure was on the ground. Karen was on the ground with her hair over her eyes, and a towel over her stomach. A stream of blood was comming from underneath her. Ricky's mouth fell open as he quickly ran over to Karen, kneeling beside her and ignoring the pain in his foot. "What happened to you?" he whispered, not caring whether or not he got an answer. His eyes widened as he noticed how much blood she was losing. "Infirmary..." he muttered, picking her up and sprinting as fast as possible to the infirmary, wincing with every step. "Please be okay..." he kept muttering. "Please...be okay..." Karen winced and mumbled quietly, "Oriel...Oriel attacked me..." she said quietly. "..I was heading...to the lake when she attacked me..." she said quietly. "Stop talking... Don't waste your energy..." Ricky kicked open the door of the infirmary, not stopping to watch the door smack into the wall, making a loud slamming noise. "Don't move," he whispered, placing her down on the closest bed. "Nurse! Emergency! Right over here!" He looked back at Karen, hoping she was okay. Karen face flushed a white color and her eyes closed, "But Ricky..." she whispered as she coughed up blood into her hand she stared at it then back at Ricky. Ricky's eyes widened. "What did she do to you?" He shook his head as the nurse came running over. "Never mind... Just... Just...don't say anything... Don't waste your energy." "She tried to kill me..." she said as her eyes went blank and she stoped moving, her breath seemed to stop moving. Ricky clenched his fist, unable to take his eyes away from Karen. "I'll kill her..." he whispered, watching the nurse clean and bandage up Karen's wounds. "I swear, I'll kill her..." He was trembling slightly as Karen seemed to stop breathing. "No, no, no, no..." he whispered. "Don't die... You can't die..." Karen didn't shake her head, move or anything she just laid there with her bangs over her closed eyes. Ricky knelt down beside Karen, trying not to panic. "What did she do to you? What did she do? Last time Oriel attacked you...she put poison inside you..." He closed his eyes, trying to think and stay calm at the same time. "So if there's poison inside you now..." He turned to glare at the nurse. "Listen... I think she's poisoned... But it's not normal... It's...just... It's different... So what do I do!?" The nurse looked horrified. "What have you kids been doing? Weren't you just in here an hour ago?" Ricky glared at her. "Shut up! Can't you see she's dying? Just tell me how to get the poison out of her!" He glanced back at Karen. "I don't think you'll have an antidote for this... What do I do!? Jeez, Karen... I can't leave you alone for ten minutes... Idiot..." He was still kneeling beside Karen, watching blood trickle out of an unbandaged wound on her arm. "Poison in blood..." He squeezed his eyes shut, trying to think. "What do I do?" "Ricky! Ricky!" Squee screamed in Ricky's ear...the nurse not able to see him, "Ricky, you need to get it out of her with your teeth!" squee said bonking Ricky on the heck with his pom-pom. "Get her away from the infirmary to do it!...like a vampire would do it!" "With my...?" Ricky turned slightly, glaring in Squee's direction. "Are you insane?" He sighed, glancing back at Karen. "But...if it'll work... And it better work..." Ignoring the nurse, he picked up Karen and sprinted outside, placing her down against the wall of the infirmary. "Okay..." he muttered. "Just find a cut and..." he sighed. "That's so disgusting..." He lifted up Karen's arm, finding a bloody cut, and sucked out some blood, spitting it out on the grass, coughing. He repeated the process, spitting out more blood, hoping it was working. Squee spotted Ricky and blinked, "What are you doing?! Her neck, you have to bite her neck!" Squee shouted at Ricky franticly. "Hurry! Hurry, there isn't much time!" Squee said floating up, "Bit her neck!" he repeated flying away. "Jeez!" Ricky sighed, hesitating for a moment. "Are you sure this will help her!?" He shook his head, muttered "Never mind...", and bit Karen's neck, trying not to flinch as the blood entered his mouth. He turned away, spitting it out onto the ground, and sucked out some more blood, spitting it out again. Karen slowly opened her eyes with a light red face feeling Ricky sucking out some of her blood. "Ricky..." she said weakly feeling him suck some more blood. Ricky spit out some more blood, then turned back to face Karen. "I'm sorry... I have to get that poison out... That stupid thing with the pom-pom told me to do this...but he didn't tell me how long to do it..." He watched as blood trickled out of the bite on her neck. "I'm sorry..." "Thank you..." she said softly smiling at him, "I feel better." she said looking over at him smiling. "Thank you Ricky, you save my life." she said softly putting her hand against her neck pulling her hand away she stared at the blood on her hand and sighed, "I'm okay now...she triggered the poison to do something strange...but I'm okay now...it's gone so." she looked over at him. "Do you...want to go swimming now?" "You...idiot..." Ricky put his arms around Karen, hugging her gently. "You leave for ten minutes and almost die... You practically scare me to death... And then you ask me to go swimming..." His voice cracked, but he ignored it. "...Idiot..." Karen flinched and put her head down, "I'm sorry..." she whispered feeling him hug her gently. "I'm sorry..." she said again. "I shouldn't have...said that...I mean, I..." she closed her eyes. "I don't know." "No, I'm sorry... I didn't mean to call you an idiot..." Ricky sighed. "I was just afraid...that's all... I don't want you to die..." He closed his eyes, keeping his arms around her. "I'm sorry..." Karen shook her head, "But you didn't do anything...you saved me...thank you." she said softly smiling. "Ricky...really...thank you.." she pulled out of the hug, "Come on...let's go swimming...we still have to get ready for the trip we're making later." "Okay." Ricky gave a small smile, standing up and offering Karen a hand. "Are you sure you're feeling okay? I really don't want you to drown because you're injured..." "I'm okay.." she said taking his hand slowly standing up she wobbled falling foward, pushing him down. "Ouch..." she mumbled realizing she fell on top of him, her face turned red and she blinked. Ricky blushed, looking away. "Y-you don't look okay to me..." he mumbled, glancing back at Karen before quickly looking away again. "You can't even stand up..." "I triped...over my feet." she said quietly kissing him on the lips before standing up. "I'm sorry..." she said offering him a hand. "I'm fine." Ricky blinked, feeling his face get warmer. He stayed on the ground for a moment, smiling. "Okay," he muttered, taking her hand and standing up. "...Thanks... So... The lake is that way..." He pointed in the wrong direction. "...right?" "No..." Karen said looking over at him pointing left. "Come on.." she took him by the hand. "Follow me." Ricky blushed lightly, following Karen. He glanced back the way he had pointed, shrugging. "Me and my great sense of direction..." he muttered, sighing. Karen stoped walking seeing the lake in front of them, "Alright! Let's go swimming." she said pulling him to the lake. "Yes, good time for a swim!" she said pulling her hand away from his and started to take off her shirt. "Okay." Ricky smiled, looking away and blushing a light pink color as Karen took off her shirt. He glanced out at the lake, forgetting about his father for a while. Karen took off her shirt and pants and looked over at Ricky seeing his serious look then smirked pushing him into the lake. Ricky hit the water with a splash, too surprised to react. He poked his head out of the water with his messy wet hair covering his eyes. "Hey! What was that for!?" He smirked, standing up and reaching out of the water, grabbing Karen's hand and pulling her in. "Ack!" Karen screamed as she was pulled in, hitting it she poked her head from underneath the water. "Hey! What did you do that for?!" she asked in a mimic sticking her tounge out at him and 'glomped' him underwater. Ricky opened his mouth to laugh but inhaled water instead, rising to the surface of the water, coughing. "And what did you do that for?" he said weakly, spitting out water but still managing to smile. Karen smiled at him sweetly, "Just cause I can." she said sweetly and began swimming away. "Come on, Mister grumpy gills! Cheer up." she said breathing in air and going under water. Ricky sighed, going under water and swimming after Karen, glomping her just like she had glomped him. He smirked, resurfacing and muttering, "Gotcha!" Karen coughed out water from her mouth and looked over her shoulder at him realizing his face was close she smiled softly blushing lightly. "Yeah, you sure did." she said softly with a small laugh. "You sure did." she closed her eyes and leaned her head back so it was against his shoulder. Ricky smiled, seeing Karen blush, which made his face turn light pink. He put his arms around her from behind, deciding not to think about his mother or father. He wasn't thinking about anyone but Karen, which brought another smile to his face. Karen smiled looking over her shoulder at him seeing his face light pink, she bent up and kissed him on the lips softly then pulled away smiling. "...What are you thinking about, Ricky?" she asked looking up into his eyes smiling. "You're not thinking about not going tonight are you?" she asked raising a brow feeling him hug her tighter just a bit she looked up at him. "Ricky?" "No... We can go tonight if that's what you want..." Ricky smiled back down at her. "But I wasn't thinking about that...or my parents... I was just...thinking about...you." He smiled at Karen, still keeping his arms around her. Karen blushed squeezing him by the arms around her. "Ricky, thank you.." she said softly closing her eyes leaning her head softly against him again. Suddenly a white beam was sent at Ricky and Karen, hitting Ricky in the back sending them skidding in the water. Karen winced looking up spoting Oriel, she squeezed his arm. "Oh no.." Ricky winced in pain, glaring up at Oriel. "You... You tried to kill Karen..." He stood up, still giving her a hateful glare. "I'll kill you..." he muttered, instinctively reaching for his two knives. "Great... I left them back there..." He clenched his fists. "...Stupid... I guess I'll have to fight differently, then." He turned to Karen. "Are you feeling okay? You really shouldn't fight right now if you're not feeling well... Maybe you could help me... I mean, these are your powers I have now, right? So you would know how to use them... Maybe you could walk me through it..." He realized he was talking too much, so he just closed his mouth and resumed glaring at Oriel. "I'm fine Ricky..." she said standing up glaring at Oriel, "I'm going to help you fight..." she said looking over at him, "Yeah, you have my powers now...they're easy to us if you do it properly.." she looked up at Oriel who was boredly looking down at them sighing. "I'm bored so...I'm going to finsh you two off right now." Oriel said lifting up her hand to them smirking, "Remember this, prettyboy...it the attack I did on Karen when you first met her." "Watch out, Karen..." Ricky muttered. "We don't want you back in the infirmary again..." He glared up at Oriel, ready to duck or jump away from the attack. "I know." she said back to him taking a step backward then as soon as Oriel threw the attack, Karen put her hands on to the water as fast as she could making a water shield for her and Ricky. "Ricky, attack her quickly!" Karen grunted threw her teeth holdning the shield as soon as the attack stoped she stood next to Ricky back-to-back with him. "Make a ecto-wind blast.." she whispered to him charging one up in her hand. "Okay..." Ricky muttered, concentrating on forming an ectoblast in one hand - that was the easy part. The harder part was the wind blast, since he had only been able to use it once. He put his two hands together, creating an ecto-wind blast. "Got it..." he muttered to Karen. "Just tell me when to attack her..." Karen glared up at Oriel seeing her rubbing her head, Karen smirked. "Now!" she shouted lifting up her hands to Oriel closing her eyes, knowing her energy would be drained. She growled in her breath glancing at Ricky. "Hurry.." Ricky gave one nod, then held up his hands, firing the ecto-wind blast at Oriel, putting all his energy and strength into it, feeling his power slowly draining away as his attack got stronger. Oriel tried blocking there attack but it was no use. It broke threw and went hurling at her. Pushing her back she growled fleeing in the dark portal again. Karen smiled then looked over at Ricky seeing him breathing deeply, looking tired. She felt tired herself she wobbled then rested on hand on Ricky's shoulder to keep her balance. "She's gone..." she whispered weakly smiling sitting down on her knees feeling tired. Ricky gave Karen a tired smile, kneeling down beside her. "Gone..." He repeated her last word, still smiling. "That's...good... Used up a lot of energy, though... You okay?" he muttered quietly. Karen sighed deeply and looked over at him nodding, "I'm okay...just tired." she whispered looking at him. "How are you?" she asked looking back at him blinking then stood up weakly. "Come on, let's get going...we have to go get ready for tonight...we're leaving sooner than we thought." she said offering him a hand. "Leaving for what?" Ricky blinked. He hadn't been thinking of anyone or anything besides Karen before Oriel interrupted. He had completely pushed thoughts of his family out of his head. "Oh... Right... That... Yeah, okay..." He took her hand and stood up, putting his arm around her shoulders for support and comfort. He gave her a small, tired smile. "Okay." Karen looked over at him smiling lightly. "We need to find Myles...if you want him to come with us?" she asked entering her cabin and sitting down on the bed next to Ricky, sighing. "We'll need some food, and I need to change into something different.." she said sighing again. "Let's get ready." "Okay..." Ricky nodded, glancing out the window. "I wonder where he went... He's probably pretending to be a ninja or something..." "Hiya, brother!" Ricky's eyes widened and he glanced left, right, then up. "Myles..." he muttered, glaring up at him. "Why are you on the ceiling!? How are you doing that?" "I followed you guys in and floated up here! Isn't that cool?" Myles grinned, giving Ricky a thumbs-up. Karen taped her foot on the ground staring up at Myles. "Also known as...you're stalking us!" she said crossing her arms. "But sence you're here...we're going to your mom's house tonight and thought it might be best for you to come with us." "I wasn't stalking you!" Myles made a face, floating down to the ground. "I was just watching and following you, that's all! Why are we going to mom's house?" Ricky looked back at Myles. "Because...I haven't seen her in a long time, and Karen thinks it would be good to see how she's doing." "I can bring my comic books, right?" Ricky sighed, smiling slightly. "I guess so..." "Meet us at Ricky's cabin as soon as it get's dark..." she smirked looking over at Ricky. "But right now...me and Ricky need some 'alone time'..." she said taking Ricky's hands smiling child-ish. "Okay?" Ricky looked away, blushing lightly, and muttered something no one could hear. "Eww, gross! Are you guys gonna make out? Yuck!" Myles made a disgusted face, turning around and opening the door of the cabin. "You guys are so gross!" He made another face and closed the door behind him Karen looked back at Ricky slowly pushing him down so he was laying on his back. "I still owe you Ricky..." she said softly then looked down. "Did it make you that angry...that I tried to teach you how not to hold back?" she asked looking away. Ricky looked away. "I...just... I hate fighting with you..." He sighed, closing his eyes for a moment. "I hate it... I hate making you upset... That's all..." He opened his eyes, looking back at Karen. "I'm sorry." "By the way you pushed me...you seemed really upset with me..." Karen said as she slowly got ontop of him. "We're in a awkward positon..." she said softly leaning down to kiss him. "But do you mind...if we are?" "I'm...sorry..." Ricky whispered again, feeling his face turn warm as Karen got on top of him. "And no... I don't mind at all..." He closed his eyes and kissed her softly on the lips. Karen closed and kissed him softly on the lips, slightly deeping it. She slowly pulled away sighing deeply she laid down next to him. "When I meet your mom...do you think she'll like me?" she asked worried closing her eyes. "I'm just worried...that's all." she shook her head. "Ricky?" she asked looking to the left away from him. "Can you...get into that awkward position just one more time with me?" she asked softly looking down away from him with a light red blush. "Don't worry..." Ricky whispered, smiling slightly. "I think she'll love you." He blushed bright red, nodding once. "Sure... Okay..." he mumbled quietly, awkwardly getting on top of Karen. He closed his eyes and softly kissed her lips again, pulling away. "Don't worry about tonight..." he muttered quietly. "...Okay?" Karen nodded softly saying. "Okay...I won't I promise..." she said looking away then up at him. "Ricky...would you get angry if I said this...but." she closed her eyes. "You're a idiot..." she said in a quiet almost angry snap. "You...really think I'm annoying don't you?" she asked closing her eyes. "No I don't." Ricky's voice was firm, but he wouldn't let himself get angry again. "You're not annoying..." he whispered, pinning her down. "You're not..." He whispered again, leaning in, kissing her passionately. Karen tried moving her arms, but he was much stronger her, she looked up at him as he kissed her passionately. She blinked then closed her eyes kissing him back with the same about of passion before pulling away. "I'm sorry." Ricky shook his head, looking down at Karen. "No... Don't apologize... Don't..." He kissed her again, pulling away. "I started that whole thing... Because I'm such an idiot..." Karen shook her head, "I'm sorry for calling you a idiot..." she said in a quiet whisper looking up at him smiling. "I want to make it up to you..but how?" she asked closing her eyes. "I don't know what to do.." "No... You were right..." Ricky smiled back at her. "I am an idiot... And you don't have to make anything up to me. You never did anything wrong... I...actually wanted to make it up to you..." He sighed, looking away. "I didn't mean to say those things to you before." Karen would have turned his face to look back over at her but she was currently pinned to the bed... "Ricky...should we start getting ready...it's getting dark." she said looking up at him. Ricky smiled, getting off of her. "You're right... We should start getting ready... I need to get to my cabin to pack some things up." He stood up and was walking to the door when he turned around again. "Oh... And be careful... Don't hurt yourself again." Karen did a two finger salute. "Yes sir." she said as she grabbed her backpack. "Go on...I'll be fine." she said as she started to pack her things up. Ricky smiled at Karen, giving her a salute in return. "Okay... See you in a few minutes, I guess." He opened the door and softly closed it behind him, walking to his cabin. He opened the door, said a quick hello to Myles (who was attempting to stuff every single one of his comic books into his small backpack), and started tossing things into his own bag - a picture of his family from nine years ago, some clothes, and a bunch of other random things he thought he would need. Karen finished packing and sighed looking outside spotting it getting to the twilight. "I need to change..." she grabbed a black tank top and her old jeans. She quickly changed and zipped up her jacket and turned around phasing threw the wall and flying to Ricky's cabin landing softly behind Myles she smirked hugging him from behind him. "Hiya Myles!" "STALKER!" Myles screamed, flailing around and trying to escape, scattering his comic books everywhere. Ricky smirked, standing up and slinging his small bag over his shoulder. "Calm down... It's just Karen..." "Girl cooties!" Myles protested, still flailing around. Karen laughed letting go. "You sure don't act that way around Shailse." she said standing back up. "Ready?" she asked looking over at Ricky, smiling. "Come on...we have to leave now before anyone notices we are gone." Myles blushed light pink and muttered something under his breath, but didn't protest anymore. "Ready." Ricky nodded, glancing at Myles's comic books on the floor. "Myles... You don't need all of them..." Myles made a sad face, but knelt down and stuffed a few more into his backpack, zipping it up. "Ready..." he muttered, standing up. Ricky nodded again. "Okay... Let's go, then." Karen nodded and jumped up phasing threw the ceiling and began following Ricky. "Are you going to be okay?" she asked smiling lightly at him. "You'll be okay...I know you will.." she said as they flew threw the night. "Yeah, I'll be okay..." Ricky glanced over at Myles, who was sailing through the air, flipping around and smiling, temporarily forgetting that he couldn't bring all of his comic books. "I hardly even remember our house..." he muttered, staring down. Myles grinned. "I know where mommy lives! I know where mommy lives!" He pointed slightly to the left. "That way! That way! It's not too far away from here! See? There's the amusement park over there, so our house should be somewhere over there!" He pointed again, farther away. "There! There!" Karen looked down to where Myles was pointing slowly landing next to them. "Are you ready, Ricky?" she asked glancing over at him. Ricky nodded. "Yeah... I'm ready..." He knocked on the door, waiting nervously. It opened after a few moments, and he saw the face of his mother, except her black hair had more gray streaks than he remembered and there were faint red circles under her eyes, which made her look tired. She was wearing an apron and holding a large spoon, interrupted from her cooking. Her eyes widened as they fell upon his face. "R-Ricky...?" "Yeah... It's me... Hey, mom... So..." Ricky gave a small smile. "Is Dad home?" His mother's mouth fell open, but she quickly recovered and smacked Ricky on the head with her spoon. "You leave for ten years and the first thing you do when you get back is ask if your father is home!?" Ricky flinched, looking away. "S-sorry, Mom... I was just kidding... And it wasn't ten years, it was nine years..." His mother continued to glare at him, and then saw Myles, giving him a smack on the head as well. "Don't you ever run away again, do you hear me!?" Myles nodded tearfully, rubbing his head where he had been smacked. Their mother then pulled them both into a huge tight hug, letting them go after a few moments. She had calmed down and was now smiling at Karen. "Hello, there..." She glanced at Ricky, raising her eyebrows and giving him a small smile before looking back at Karen. "Who's this?" Karen lightly wave. "Hello...I'm Karen Kano." she said tugging on Ricky's shirt then whispered softly. "Ask how she is, Ricky.." she said quietly looking over at his mom. "It's really nice to meet you, Mrs. Drynn." Karen said giving a light bow to his mother. His mother waved back, still smiling. "Nice to meet you too." Ricky rubbed his head, feeling dizzy. "Right..." he muttered. "So, Mom... How are you?" She smacked him with the spoon again. "I'm a nervous wreck because of you! Why did you leave, and why didn't you tell me!?" "Ow..." he muttered, glancing sideways at Karen. "Sorry..." Myles tugged on Ricky's shirt. "Mommy's...scary when she's angry..." he whispered, hiding behind his older brother. His mother turned to Karen, smiling again. "Sorry about that... Sometimes you have to give him a good smack to get things through his head." Karen smiled and nodded. "That's true.." she said glancing up at Ricky flashing a small smile at him before turning back to his mother. "Mrs. Drynn, were you just cooking?" she asked looking at the spoon in the woman's hand. She looked up at her, "May I help you cook dinner?" Mrs. Drynn shook her head, gesturing for them to come inside. "No, no... You're a guest... You shouldn't be cooking." She glared at Ricky and held up the spoon threateningly. "I'm still not through with you, either..." Ricky made a horrified face and Myles just squeezed his brother's shirt even tighter. "Great..." Ricky muttered, stepping inside. Mrs. Drynn glanced back at Karen. "So what brings you here? Are you one of Ricky's friends?" Karen blushed lightly looking over at Mrs. Drynn. "Well...we're a couple." she said smiling rubbing her head then looked up at Ricky. "I still owe you a dinner." she said glancing over at Mrs. Drynn. "Please, Mrs. Drynn can I help you cook dinner?" she asked putting her hands together with a light clap "I owe Ricky one." "Oooh!" Mrs. Drynn let out a little squeal of joy, smiling and glancing over at Ricky. "Really?" "Yeah..." Ricky muttered, blushing a bit. "You don't owe me anything..." he whispered to Karen. Mrs. Drynn gently poked Ricky in the head with her spoon. "If she wants to cook, let her cook... You and Myles go sit down over there." She pointed to the couch. Ricky muttered something, but obeyed his mother and sat down next to Myles, who was still clutching Ricky's shirt fearfully. Mrs. Drynn pointed to the kitchen, smiling as she looked back at Karen. "I was actually just starting to decide what to make for dinner... Do you have any suggestions?" Karen thought for a second looking around. "Um...how about soup?" she asked Mrs. Drynn looking at the food around her. "Beef Stew or Veggie Soup?" she asked thinking still. "Anything really..." she said as she started to take off her jacket, she took it off placing it onto her bag in the hall way glancing at Ricky and Myles flashing a smile she turned around. Forgeting about the bite Ricky gave her. Ricky caught a glimpse of the bite as Karen turned around. He opened his mouth to say something, but no words would come out. "Brother..." Myles whispered. "Was Karen attacked by a vampire?" Ricky put a hand over Myles's mouth. "Shh." Mrs. Drynn smiled at Karen. "That sounds wonderful! Oh..." She paused, pointing to the mark on Karen's neck. "Did you get hurt? That looks like a bite, but... Hmm..." She raised an eyebrow. "That's odd..." she muttered to herself. "Where did you get that mark?" Karen stould frozen and blinked, "What..?" she put her hand onto the bite and her eyes whidened. "Um, I...triped?" she said blinking, she forgot about the bite Ricky gave her! Crap it... "Actuly..." she looked away. "I don't know where it came from." she looked back at the hallway hoping eather Ricky or Myles would pop up in the kitchen. Ricky could hear their voices, but he was frozen and unable to move. His hand fell from his brother's mouth, and Myles asked, "Was it a real live vampire?" "No..." Ricky managed to squeak out, still frozen with shock and fear. "N-no..." But Myles didn't listen - he was already running to the kitchen. Back in the kitchen, Mrs. Drynn raised an eyebrow, giving Karen a suspicious look for a moment. "Just be careful, okay?" Her smile returned and she turned around, opening up a cabinet and glancing at its contents as Myles came running in. "I know what happened!" he exclaimed breathlessly. "Karen was bitten by a vampire!" "Of course she was, dear..." Mrs. Drynn muttered, not even turning around. "Of course she was..." Karen glanced down at Myles and sighed. But for some reason she felt guilty for lieing to his mother. She spoted something about to fall and quickly caught it seeing it was beef stew mix. "I guess we're having beef stew!" she said smiling glancing at the pot on the table and quickly took it and began opening and putting in the things for the stew. "I need potatoes..." she muttered under her breath. "Mrs. Drynn...can you cut the potatoes?" she asked glancing over her shoulder starting the stew. "By the way it looks...it'll be ready in ten minutes.." Myles sighed, and walked out of the room. "Nobody believes me..." he muttered, sitting down next to Ricky on the couch. Ricky smirked. "Vampires? Honestly, Myles... You'll have to come up with a better story than that..." Back in the kitchen, Mrs. Drynn smiled back at Karen, nodding and starting to cut the potatoes. She was silent for a minute, but then she said quietly, "Did you know...that Ricky was emotionally upset as a child? I never knew he would actually leave home, but... He told me he hated everyone, and that he didn't want friends or love... He said that all the time, but..." She paused for a moment, smiling at Karen. "I guess he was wrong." Karen gave a smile smile blushing again sturring the stew. "He told me about that...in small bits." she said glancing from the stew to Mrs. Drynn. "When I first met him...he was hard-headed and cold." she turned back around to the stew. "But the longer I got to know him, the nicer and clueless he got." she smiled. "I guess... you could say I love him for that." she blushed realizing what she just said waving a hand. "I mean...I um..." she smiled and sighed. "I mean I do love him..." Mrs. Drynn just smiled at Karen. "So...he's clueless, then? He must have gotten that from his father..." She stumbled over the last word, as if it hurt her just to say it. "S-sorry..." she mumbled, turning away and slicing the potatoes again. "So... Could you...maybe...tell me about Ricky? I haven't seen him in so many years... I honestly don't know that much about him now..." Karen looked over at Mrs. Drynn and nodded. "He's...clueless and at times a complete idiot...but he always tries his best even if he doesn't know what'll happen." she shrugged as she sturred the stew. "The stew's ready for the potatoes." she said taking the cut potatoes away from Mrs. Drynn and poring them into the stew, as she poured the potatoes in it burned her, she hissed and rubbed her hand. "Ouch...always happens when I cook." she said putting her hand under water sighing. "Dinner's ready." Mrs. Drynn gave Karen a concerned look, but nodded and said, "Thank you." Ricky walked in, followed by Myles, who was still hiding nervously. They each took a seat, not saying anything until Myles broke the silence. "Mom? Where's little sister?" Ricky looked from his mother to Myles. "Who?" Mrs. Drynn flinched, looking away. "She's...not here right now..." "When is she getting back?" Myles asked. "She's...not..." Myles blinked. "Why?" "She just...can't..." Myles blinked again. "Why?" Mrs. Drynn looked away. "She's..." she whispered, not looking up. "She's not alive anymore, okay, Myles?" Myles spoke again, but his voice was softer and it cracked in the middle. "Why?" Mrs. Drynn walked over and hugged him, closing her tear-filled eyes. "I'm sorry, Myles..." Ricky didn't know who they were talking about. He just glanced at Karen with a look that said, 'What the heck am I supposed to do?' Karen's eyes widened and she placed down her spoon looking over at Mrs. Drynn and Myles then glanced over at Ricky she shook her head, 'I don't know..' Karen closed her eyes then opened them looking down at her food. "May I be excused for a minute.." she asked standing up walking into the hallway grabbing her cellphone and walked outside and closing the door. She looked down at her phone wondering if she should call her mom and see if Rai was okay. She shook her head closing the phone up and sitting down beside the house just staring up at the sky. Myles muttered through his tears, "Mommy... Did she go the same place as Daddy?" Mrs. Drynn squeezed Myles tighter, nodding slowly. "Yes, Myles..." Ricky was about to stand up, but he did a double take, staring at his mother with disbelief in his eyes. "W-what?" he whispered. "Dad... He's... You mean he's...?" She nodded miserably, still hugging Myles. "I'm sorry, Ricky..." Ricky's expression of shock turned into a glare. "When did it happen?" he demanded. "I didn't want to tell you when you were little... I didn't think you would be able to understand it..." Ricky stood up, slamming a fist down on the table, looking down. "Every night..." he whispered, trembling. "Every night..." He lost his patience and raised his voice, finally looking up. "I asked you every single night, and you lied to me!? Why didn't you just tell me he wasn't ever coming back!?" "Ricky..." He turned and walked out of the room, opening the front door and slamming it behind him, not even noticing Karen. He was glaring at the ground, walking down the street without really knowing or caring where he was going. Karen lifted her head up hearing the door slam she turned her head in the direction of Ricky. "Ricky..." her eyes closed and she stood up and ran after him. "Ricky." she called out stoping in front of him, "Ricky, where are you going?" she asked seeing him glaring at the ground. "Ricky?" "Nowhere." Ricky turned away so his back was to Karen. He was still looking down, refusing to believe that the small drops hitting the ground were his own tears. "Nowhere..." he said again, whispering this time, feeling himself trembling again. Karen's eyes sadened in confusment, "Ricky...what happened?" she asked putting a hand onto his back. "What happened?" she asked again looking at him sadly, "Is it something...you can tell me?" Ricky turned around, pushing Karen against the wall. "Stop it..." he whispered, hearing his voice crack. "Just...leave me alone..." He turned and started walking in the opposite direction, still staring at the ground. Karen hit the wall and looked up at him starting to walk off. "Ricky..." she shook her head quickly running up behind him and grabbing his hand. "I won't leave you alone." she said looking at him. "Why won't you let me help you?" she asked hearing her voice crack. "Why won't you." Ricky pulled his hand away, turning around and slapping Karen. "Shut up." He walked off again, stuffing his hands into his pockets. After a few steps, he stopped, realizing what he had just done. He stood there, frozen, unable to turn around and face Karen again. Karen's eyes whidened and she touched her cheek she fell to her knees feeling her eyes get watery. She felt empty. She tilted her head down and stood up. "I guess...I was right back at camp...you don't want my help...I won't help you then." she said in the sadest choak she had ever had. 'He...slapped me..' she thought as she heard thunder over head knowing it was about to rain. She didn't care...she stood there keeping her hand on her red cheek where Ricky had slapped her. "He..." Ricky still didn't believe he had actually slapped Karen. He wanted to apologize, but he didn't know how. "He was dead the entire time! She lied to me for seventeen years!" His eyes filled with tears again, but this time they were mostly there because he regretted slapping Karen. He stared up at the sky and felt a raindrop hit him in the eye, making him wince wth pain. "I'd ask her if he was home...every single night..." His voice faded away as he turned around, facing Karen, still feeling tears running down his cheeks. He felt dizzy, so he fell to his knees, staring down at the ground. "I'm sorry..." he whispered, barely able to hear his own voice. "I'm sorry..." Karen was shivering with sadness at the moment, still in shock that Ricky slapped her...she fell to her knees breaking down as the rain started to come down "I'm sorry about your dad Ricky..." she whispered looking back at him, not even bothering to rub her eyes. She then touched her now bruised cheek and looked away still feeling the sting from when he slapped her. She didn't say anything when he said he was sorry, she stood up and turned around to him with angry eyes and ran towards him bending down to his veiw hugging him tightly. "Why do you always push me away when you're in pain...I'm supossed to help you...that's what I'm hear for you...clueless idiot...you always push me away." the rain got mixed up in her tears as she glared at him. "You idiot.." she whispered hugging him tighter staying like that for a moment before pulling away and pushing down onto the ground she then bent down kissing him roughly on the lips. Both her hands to his sides as she kissed him harder before pulling away getting off of him stepping back as if she had killed someone. "I'm sorry.." she whispered turnning around running away from him farther away from the house, with a red face. 'What...did I just do?' Ricky stayed there, stunned, before he recovered and realized that Karen was running away. "Wait..." he whispered, standing up and running after her. "I'm sorry..." he kept whispering to himself. He couldn't figure out the difference between rain and tears. "Wait!" he called after her, running even faster. "Karen...wait..." He reached up to his face and wiped away some of the tears, splashing through small rain puddles. He finally caught up to Karen and grabbed her hand, spinning her around and kissing her roughly on the lips, still feeling tears run down his face. He put his arms around her, squeezing her tightly, whispering over and over again, "I'm sorry... I'm so sorry..." Karen's wet eyes whidened as Ricky stoped her and kissed her roughly on the lips. She heard him whisper over and over again 'I'm sorry' she put her head down onto his wet shoulder and began crying harder on his shoulder. "Ricky...why won't you let me help you?" she asked squeezing his shirt. "Why don't you ever let me help you." she asked hearing the thunder roar, she squeezed him tighter as it roared. "Ricky..." she whispered sadly. "I can't...trust you..." she said sadly. "I can't." "Why?" Ricky whispered sadly, still squeezing her tightly. "Why..." His voice faded out as more thunder boomed in his ears. He wanted to turn and run, but he wanted her to trust him too, and he didn't know how to do that. "...I'm sorry..." he whispered again. "I'm sorry..." Karen heard his voice fade. "I'm sorry, Ricky..." she said as she started pulling away. "I'll just leave you alone...sence you don't need my help." She said with her head down sniffling. Ricky pulled her back, looking away. "How can I...make you trust me?" he whispered, feeling alone and empty even though Karen was there with him. He was still fighting back his tears, still whispering, "I'm sorry..." Karen was pulled back into a hug, but she lightly pushed out of the hug and began backing up again. "I don't know..." she answered in a whisper. "I don't know.." Ricky looked down, feeling his tears mix with the rain again. "I don't understand..." he whispered, taking a step toward Karen as she backed up. "Why...can't you trust me?" He took another step closer to her, despite his instincts which told him to turn and just run. "Why?" As she kept stepping backwards, Ricky kept coming closer, until Karen was eventually against the wall of another house. "What's the matter with me?" Karen's back was against the wall of what looked like an abandoned house. She put her hand onto her cheek and she looked away, "I can't trust you...because when ever you get upset...you won't let me in." she said sadly looking down. "You won't let me help you.." "I don't need help..." Ricky whispered through his tears. "I don't need it... Just...stop it..." He was trembling again, and he heard his voice crack many times. "What am I supposed to do?" He pushed Karen to the ground, getting on top of her, watching his tears drip onto her face. "What do you want me to do?" He felt a chill go down his spine as he pinned her again, leaning in and kissing her lips, not pulling away or holding back. Karen's eyes whidened as he pinned her to the ground, feeling the tears come out more as he kissed her. Her face turned red and she shivered feeling him not holding back. She could easly get out of this situation...but phazing into the ground and flying off...but she was frozen. Shivering from the cold wind when it hit her and from the tention Ricky was giving her. She didn't know what she needed...all she knew was after him slapping her she didn't know what to do...her eyes closed as the rain came down harder on them. Ricky pulled away from the kiss, whispering in Karen's ear, "...I'm sorry..." His voice was shaky, as if he was crying too hard to speak correctly. He then kissed her again, harder this time, still pinning her to the ground, feeling the rain coming down harder and hearing another loud crack of thunder. Karen's eyes kept closed, but if they were open they would hold regret and sadness. "...Ricky...I can-" she whispered before she was cut off by him kissing her harder this time, and the rain comming down harder. She just realized she was just wairing her black tanktop...her jacket was back at Ricky's house. She pulled away, "Ricky...stop please..." she said in a small plee. "Stop it...please." Ricky pulled away again so their lips here inches apart. "N-no... I thought you tried to teach me...not to hold back..." he whispered, feeling a tear fall from his eye to Karen's cheek. He gently wiped it away, kissing her again, completely forgetting about the rain and thunder around them. Karen's eyes went blurry from her tears as he kissed her again. Ricky...stop please...stop. She pleed in her head as she pulled away from the kiss again. "Ricky...please..." she said hurt. "Stop..just stop it please..." she said looking up at him. "...I trust you again...okay?" she said softly looking up at him. "Please...stop.." Ricky's eyes still glistened with tears as he pulled away, still on top of her. He didn't say anything until he was sure he could speak without his voice shaking. "I didn't mean to hurt you... I was just... It was too much..." He squeezed his eyes shut. "First I find out a sister I didn't even know I had is dead... And then my mother finally decides to tell me my father's dead too..." He opend his eyes, staring down at Karen. The only thing he wanted right now was to see her smile. He hated when she was upset, especially when it was his fault. "...I'm sorry..." Karen leand up to him kissing him softly for a second smiling lightly. "It okay.." she said softly looking away coughing lightly. "It's really cold..." she said shivering underneath him. "I'm freezing.." she said as her face flashed a red. Ricky saw Karen's smile, which made his tears stop. He felt a smile creep onto his own face as he got off of her, kneeling beside her, pulling her into a warm, tight hug. "Thank you..." he whispered into her ear, squeezing tighter. "Thank you for smiling..." He gently pulled away and stood up, offering Karen a hand. "We should go back..." Karen nodded taking his hand and slowly wobbled to her feet, pushing her hair out of her eyes she smiled back at him. "Lets go.." she muttered looking down still feeling cold. She coughed again then sighed to clear her throat. "That was weird.." she mumbled looking back over at Ricky. Ricky glanced back at Karen, hearing her cough again. "Are you okay?" he asked quietly, looking concerned. He looked away and kept thinking to himself, This is all my fault... It's always my fault... I'm such an idiot... Karen coughed again forcing a smile onto her face she looked over at him nodding. "I'm fine. Don't worry." she turned around and began walking with him threw the rain shivering lightly. Oh crap it...I think I have a cold, I can't let him know...if he knew he'd think it was his fault. Ricky glanced at Karen, but looked away again. "Almost there..." he muttered, squinting to see through the rain. He looked down and kept staring at the ground. He shivered as he walked through a puddle, feeling his shoes fill with water. "I'm sorry..." he whispered to Karen, unable to look over at her. Karen looked over at Ricky, "Ricky..." she whispered walking in front of him pointing to her cheek where he slapped her. "If your mom asks about this...I'll just say I tripped, okay?" she said softly looking up into his eyes. "Okay?" Ricky looked back at Karen, staring at the mark on her cheek. "Okay..." he whispered, unable to take his eyes away from her face. "I'm sorry..." he whispered again, finally looking away. "Why is everything my fault? Why can't I just..." He sighed, shaking his head. "Never mind... Let's go." Karen didn't move, "Everything isn't your fault Ricky!" she shouted as thunder was heard over head she looked away. Run Karen...just run.. she thought her legs were ready to run away. Ricky reached out, putting his hands on her shoulders. "But...why does it always feel like it's my fault? Every time we get into a fight... I always feel like it's my fault..." He looked away, not knowing what to do. "Even if it's not... I just..." He sighed, hearing more thunder. "We should really go...before you catch a cold..." Karen shook her head, "Don't feel that way Ricky...stop feeling that way." she said looking down then up at him upset she bent up and kissed him on the lips, but this time when she kissed him her tongue sliped into his mouth. Her eyes whidened realizing what she just did. What did I just do? she steped back away from him this time as she turned to run she turned invisable running away from him. I'm always running away from him...always running away. Ricky reached up and timidly touched his lips, staring in the direction Karen had disappeared in. "Karen..." he whispered, unable to move. "Wait!" he called out, unable to see her. "Why are you...always running away?" He lowered his voice to a whisper, wishing he could see her. "Why?" Karen stoped running when she felt a cough comming she fell to her knees holding her chest. A hard cough came out and she covered her mouth looking down she touched her lips turnning visible wondering. "Why am I always running away from him..." she whispered quietly to herself closing her eyes looking down trying to calm down her beating heart. "I run...I guess because I get scared or freaked out on how he'll react..." she said to herself answering her queston. "Or I avoid the answer..." she rubbing her head looking down. The thunder struck a loud noise and she flinched keeping her head down. "I hate this...why did I do that?" Ricky squinted through the rain, running in the direction he thought Karen had run in. "This is pointless..." he whispered. "I'll never be able to find her..." The rain was coming down even harder, but he thought he heard a cough. Or maybe it was just thunder... "Karen!" he called out, glancing desperately left and right, battered by rain. "Please..." he whispered desperately, seeing someone on their knees through the rain. "Karen?" He ran over, kneeling beside her. "Why do you always run away?" he whispered. "You...didn't do anything wrong..." Karen looked up from the ground at him, "I..." she shook her head, "I don't know...I'm just scared on how you'll always react." she looked away. "I'm...sorry." Ricky put his arms around her, closing his eyes. "Don't apologize... Just don't..." He opened his eyes again and kissed her roughly, pulling away after a few seconds. "Don't run away... Just don't..." He kissed her again, even harder this time, hoping she wouldn't pull away and run again. Karen closed her eyes kissing him back as he kissed her even harder the second time. She pulled away putting her head down onto his shoulder not saying anything for a moment. She lifted her head back up to him nodding lightly to herself kissing him roughly slipping her tongue into his mouth blushing blood red, hoping he wouldn't push her away. Ricky blushed a deep red color, but he didn't pull away. A small shiver ran down his spine as he slipped his tongue into Karen's mouth, still keeping his arms around her, blushing an even brighter shade of red. He shivered again, feeling more rain pouring down but not really caring anymore. Karen kept her eyes closed as she felt his tongue enter her mouth, she pulled away slowly shivering from the cold. "We..better get back...if you want to stop.." she whispered softly to him. "Only if you want to." "I...d-don't...want to stop..." Ricky whispered, kissing her lips softly, hearing thunder again. "I don't..." he said again, kissing her neck, shivering again as the rain kept coming down. "But I don't want you to catch a cold either..." He passionately kissed her neck again, closing his eyes, still shivering. His heart was beating fast, and he was still blushing lightly, still hugging her. Karen shivered as he kissed her passionately on the neck. Shivering cold as she slightly moved closer to him hoping for warmth. "Ricky..." she whispered out softly as he kissed her neck passionately. "We have to go back...but I don't want to stop.." "Okay..." Ricky whispered, kissing her lips one more time, then pulling away from Karen, shivering slightly. "We can finish this back home...okay?" He gently lifted her up, carrying her in his arms. He walked back to his house, placing Karen back on her feet and opening the door, still soaking wet, still shivering. Karen nodded shivering as they entered the cold house she spoted her jacket but it would be stupid to grab it and put it on. "I'm so cold..." she mumbled looking down at her boots. "Just...watch me cath a cold...just watch." Mrs. Drynn poked her head out from the kitchen, seeing Ricky and Karen soaking wet and shivering. "Are you two okay? Karen, why don't you go take a nice hot shower before you catch a cold... I'll go make some hot chocolate... Oh, did you bring a change of clothes?" She glared at Ricky. "Ricky, what were you thinking? Why didn't you come back when it started to rain?" Ricky looked away. "Sorry..." he muttered. Mrs. Drynn shook her head disapprovingly. She had apparrently recovered from being upset about her daughter's and husband's deaths and was now worried about Karen. "Let me show you where the bathroom is. You must be freezing..." Karen looked back at Ricky smiling lightly and nodded to Mrs. Drynn. "Well...I have night clothes...that's mostly it other then this outfit and my jacket." she said picking up her backpack following Mrs. Drynn into the bathroom. "Thank you.." she whispered as Mrs. Drynn left her in the bathroom. Karen gazed down slipping off her wet clothes and slipping into the hot shower sighing she sighed deeply as she soaked in the shower. After she was done she grabbed her a towel, "I put my bag I think...ah, in this room!" she stepped into the room. "Mom... Can I go look at my old room?" Ricky asked his mother. "Of course you can..." Mrs. Drynn gave a tired smile, sitting down on the couch. "Go ahead." Ricky was still shivering, but he didn't really care. As he stepped into his old room, he saw Karen, who had apparently just come out of the shower. He blushed blood red, telling himself to get out of the room, but something kept him standing there, unable to move. "Sorry..." he muttered, feeling his hand grab the doorknob. "I...um..." He felt a sudden urge to close the door, leaving him and Karen inside, alone. At this thought his face flushed an even deeper shade of red. "S-sorry..." he said again, still unable to move. The hand clutching the doorknob was trembling, wanting to just close the door and lock it. Karen turned around to see Ricky in the door way blushing standing there. She froze looking back at him blushing. "I'm sorry...is this your room?" she asked covering her self tighter looking away. "I'm sorry...I'll get out and let you in.." she said stepping towards the door to pass him. Ricky's hand was still trembling on the doorknob, and he was unable to speak. He finally made up his mind, stepping inside and closing the door behind him, blushing blood red. He closed his eyes, not moving or saying anything, still clutching the doorknob behind him in his unsteady hand. He silently pushed the lock in, not daring to look at Karen. Karen looked up at Ricky blushing. "Ricky?" she said quietly seeing him close and lock the door. "What are you..." she stepped back looking back behind seeing his bed she blushed looking over at him. "Ricky...what..." Ricky kept telling himself to just unlock the door, open it, and let Karen out, but something else told him not to. He still didn't know what to do, and he still didn't let go of the doorknob. "I don't know..." he whispered to Karen, still looking down, letting his bangs cover his eyes. "I...don't know..." Karen stared at him still blushing taking another step back feeling her knees against the bed causing her to sit down and look down still blushing she looked away covering herself even more looking away shivering. Ricky took a step forward, not knowing what he was doing. He took another step closer to Karen, and kept walking until he was standing right in front of her. Still blushing, he gently pushed her down so she was lying on her back, and got on top of her, in that awkward position again. He wanted to say something, but he didn't know what. All he could do was stare at Karen, shocked by his own behavior. Karen stared up at Ricky blushing red as he got on top of her. Shocked by his behavior. "R-Ricky..." she whispered staring up at him. "What...are you...going to do..?" she asked with whide eyes. "What are you doing...?" Ricky didn't answer her, still unable to speak. A shiver went through him as he kissed her lips, feeling his face get warm. The fact that all Karen was wearing was a towel stayed in his mind, making him blush even more. He continued to kiss her, grabbing the end of the towel in one hand, holding onto it but not making a move yet. Karen closed her eyes and kissed him back blushing blood red as he grabed the end of her towel. She slowly pulled away, "What...are you doing, Ricky..." she whispered staring at him. I thought this was...going to wait till we were older! she thought in her head staring up at him. "Ricky?.." Ricky shivered again as Karen looked up at him. "I..." he whispered, not looking away. "I...can't...stop..." He was unable to get off her, unable to look away. Something inside him just wouldn't let him pull away. The hand clutching the towel shook with fear and indecision. All he had to do was pull, but...Karen had pulled away from him, asking him what he was doing. If she doesn't want to do this...I don't want to force her... But it's true... I can't stop... I can't pull away... Karen looking up at him shivering. "Ricky..." she whispered staring up at him as he stared at her, "Here...now?" she asked blushing not know if her eyes were passionate or shocked staring at him. "...Ricky, go ahead..." she whispered closing her eyes. Ricky blinked, staring down at Karen. "Wh-what?" he whispered, trembling slightly, still clutching the towel in his hand. He hesitated for a moment, still feeling the blush on his face. When he was finally unfrozen, he got off of her, pulling on the end of the towel, but looking away. Karen stared at him shivering as he pulled on her towel. She felt like she should just cover herself with the blanket right next to her, she was tempted...she held it in her hand squeezing it as she felt her towel come undone as he pulled down. He really can't stop...he really can't... Ricky pulled on the towel again, slightly harder this time, still looking away, still shivering, still blushing, still unable to stop himself. He wanted to say something to her, so he muttered, "I... I... I'm sorry... If y-you don't w-want to do this...just...just tell me...please..." Karen looked over at him staring at him shivering, "But Ricky...I thought..." she shook her head feeling him pull again. Giving her outline away she stared at him, "I thought you didn't know how to do this?" she asked looking down at her arm. Ricky glanced back at Karen as she spoke, which made him blush blood red and look away. "I... I... I...don't..." he stammered, wanting to look back at Karen but not letting himself. "Pervert..." he whispered to himself, shivering again. Karen sat up slowly looking down. "No...please..." she whispered covering her private place closing her eyes. "Ricky...you can't stop yourself?" she asked looking at him then away. "How...are you plaining to do this...Ricky?" "No..." Ricky whispered. "I...can't stop myself... I don't know why... I just...can't..." He moved closer to Karen, kissing her lips, pulling her into an awkward hug, shivering as he touched her. He pulled away from the kiss, whispering softly, "If you don't want to do this...just...go now..." he said softly, squeezing her tightly. "Just...go..." But he kept his arms around her anyway, not wanting to let her go. Karen shivered lightly. "Ricky...but...I thought...we were waiting...because we have no idea what we're doing." she said as he squeezed her tighter. "Ricky, I want to do this but...you're clueless on what to do." she whispered tilting her head down. "You're cluelessness is from your father Ricky...that's what your mom said.." Ricky looked away, glaring in a different direction as Karen mentioned his father. "Don't talk about him... Just don't..." He still wouldn't let go of her. "I..." He gave a frustrated sigh, shaking his head. "I'm not as clueless as you think..." Karen looked up at him then down, closing her eyes. "I'm...sorry." she whispered looking down. "But Ricky, you know what to do in this type of situation?" she asked looking back at him. "Do you?" Ricky looked back at Karen. "Why do you always ask so many questions?" he muttered, looking away again. "You're so..." He sighed, squeezing her tightly again. "...annoying..." he whispered, closing his eyes, not even knowing what he was saying. Karen looked away. "But you don't know do you..." she said in a whisper looking down as he squeezed her tightly. "I always ask questions...because I'm always curious." she said looking away. "There you go again...calling me annoying.." "Have you ever wanted to do something..." Ricky whispered softly, looking away, "...but you just weren't able to do it, or you didn't know how? What would you do if you were in that situation?" He looked back at Karen, then tilted his head down, hoping she couldn't see him blushing. "Wouldn't you try your best?" Karen saw him blushing causing her to looked away blushing nodding. "I would try my best..." she answered looking up. "I would..." she stared at him for a minute lifting up his head to her and bent her head in to kiss him. "Ricky...I have no clue, what to do.." she said kissing him lightly. "But hey...I'm only 15...I can still learn." she said again kissing him roughly on the lips as her tongue slipped into his mouth she hugged him back. Ricky felt a shiver go down his spine as he slipped his tongue into her mouth, still hugging her tightly. He didn't want to pull away, or say anything incase he ruined everything again, but he forced himself to gently pull his lips away from hers. "...I'm still learning too..." he whispered, kissing her and letting his tongue slide into her mouth again. Karen shivered and slowly pulled away looking away at the ground. "Ricky..." she whispered looking up at him looking at his face she blushed smilng. "Turn out the lights..." she whispered blushing. "And don't hold back..." she whispered looking down. "Don't hold back..." Ricky's eyes widened as he shivered again. "Okay..." he whispered, getting up off the bed and turning off the lights, blushing again. He stood there for a moment, whispering, "Okay..." again, before walking back and sitting back down on the bed. He hesitated for a moment, looking away, blushing. "So...where...do we start...?" he whispered, glancing at Karen before quickly looking away again. Karen squeezed her towel. "I...have no idea." she whispered looking away then down standing up. "We don't know what to do...maybe we shouldn't do this..." she said looking down. "We're both clueless..." Ricky flinched as Karen stood up. "No..." he whispered, pushing her back down onto the bed, staring down at her. "I've been clueless all my life... That's something that will never change...no matter what..." He wanted to look away, but he wouldn't let himself. "Always... It doesn't matter when... I will always be clueless." He sighed, still staring back at Karen. "...It doesn't matter when... We're both going to have to learn sometime..." Karen blushed staring up at him. "But Ricky..." she whispered closing her eyes feeling her voice choak. "...Ricky...do what ever you're thinking right now...don't stall hold back or anything...don't go mind blank...just...do it." Ricky looked away, whispering, "Karen... Why don't you...do what you want to do...? I just..." He sighed, looking back at Karen. "...You..." He shook his head, unable to speak without his voice shaking. He leaned in and kissed her again, pulling away, blushing. "...W-why not?" "I..." she whispered tugging on his shirt..."You're still dressed...so um.." she looked away blushing blood red squeezing her towel around her chest. "I don't know...what to do I mean..." she said softly looking away. "Oh... Right..." Ricky looked down, blushing. "Right..." He tugged nervously at his shirt collar. "Okay..." Still blushing, he timidly pulled off his shirt, tossing it away, not looking back at Karen. His voice was a tiny whisper now. "Okay..." Karen looked up at him blushing. "I still...have no idea what to do.." she whispered quietly. "Can you show me...what you know?" she asked looking at his back. "...Please?" "Wh-what?" Ricky whispered. "What...do you mean?" He was shivering again, and still blushing. He looked away, wondering what to do next. He knew he should make a move, but he was afraid of what kind of move it would be. "What I know..." he whispered, still confused. "I don't..." He looked down, annoyed for being so clueless. "I don't understand..." he whispered, even though he thought he knew exacctly what she was talking about. Karen looked away, "We shouldn't do this...then.." she said sadly for a reason she didn't know...did he really not know what to do? she shook her head no. "I'm sorry..." "Don't you dare start with that again..." Ricky didn't whisper this time. He stared at Karen, shaking his head. "Don't you dare..." He looked down again, muttering something to himself that sounded like, "Come on... Make a move... Come on..." He was looking down at his jeans, still blushing. "Stupid pants..." he whispered, forcing his hand to move and pull the zipper down, blushing an even brighter shade of red. He undid the button, still not looking up. "Stupid..." he whispered, pulling them off and tossing them away. Karen looked back at Ricky then stopped moving staring at him blushing. "Ricky..." she whispered looking at him toss his pants away. "What.." Ricky pushed Karen down so she was lying on her back and got on top of her again, blushing. He kissed her lips, then pulled away, kissing her neck, shivering every time he touched her. "What? Isn't this...what you...wanted...?" he whispered, kissing her neck again. Karen closed her eyes shivering as he kissed her neck. "..I...Yes." she she said as she felt him kiss one part of her neck. "Ricky...are you giving me a hicky?" she asked blushing blood red.. "Wh-what?" Ricky pulled away slightly, staring at Karen with wide eyes. "No..." he muttered, looking away. "N-no, I wasn't..." He recovered surprisingly quickly - his bright red blush faded into a light pink and he kissed her again on the lips this time. Karen smiled and kissed him back...still the fact that she was still wairing a towel, and Ricky was just wairing his boxers. Lingered in her mind causing her to blush and pull away. "Ricky..." she whispered looking up at him. "...Should we be doing this?" she asked without waiting on an answer,phased threw the bed and standing to the right side of the bed looking down. "I don't know...if we should do this.." "Why do you always hesitate?" Ricky asked, staring at Karen. "You always hold back... You always think too much about consequences..." It was ironic - he remembered when Karen was giving him this talk back at the summer camp. He glared at her for a moment, but looked away. "Why can't you just take a chance for once? Why?" He raised his voice slightly, looking back at her. Karen stepped back looking back at him then down. "I'm scared." she whispered squeezing her towel. "I'm scared of what could come out of this..." she said shivering, "I'm scared...I-I'm thinking about the consequences..." she looked up at him blushing seeing him glare at her. "What if...we...figured this out completely..." she looked away from his glare. "I'd be...pregnet." she said shivering keeping her head down. "And I have no idea if I'd be ready to be a mom...not at all." Ricky sighed, looking away. "Why didn't you just tell me in the first place?" He closed his eyes, taking deep breaths. He didn't want to yell at Karen, even though he was upset. "If you don't want to do this...fine...but...I thought..." He glared down at the ground. "I thought this was what you wanted... I thought you wanted this!" He raised his voice and looked back at Karen, trying not to glare at her, fighting to control his temper. Karen stepped back again afraid whenever he was like this. "Ricky...I do but...I." she looked away. "I'm confused..." she said looking back at him trying to control his anger. "...Why are you mad at me Ricky, and holding it back?" she asked staring at him. "Do you remember when we had the exact same conversation back at the summer camp?" Ricky asked quietly, clenching a fist and staring down at it, still trying to hold back his anger. He hated being mad at Karen, but for some reason he was tempted to shout at her. "Why can't you take your own advice for once?" He had raised his voice again, and he was almost yelling. "Now you're the one who's holding back... You're the one who's focusing on the consequences... You're the one who's hesitating..." "I'm confused just..." she looked away covering her ears she closed her eyes. "...shut up." she said quietly. "Just shut up.." she looked up at him seeing him holding back his anger she stepped back again with her back against the wall. "I'm scared...Ricky." she said shivering staring at him with sad eyes. "I'm scared." she looked away at the door and took a step towards it. If only I can get out of this room...it will just go away...all of this confusion will go away. She took another step towards the door. Ricky stood up and stepped in front of the door, blocking Karen's way out. "Do you think you're the only one who's scared?" he whispered, taking a step towards Karen while still blocking her path to the door. "Do you think you're the only one who's confused?" He raised his voice again, taking another step closer, backing Karen into a corner. "Am I...the only one who wants this?" he whispered angrily, staring at her, not letting himself look away. Karen shivered hearing his anger. "I want...to but...I.." she stared up at him then looked away at the door then down. "I don't know..." she whispered looking down scared. "What...do I do?" "Why are you...asking me?" Ricky looked down. He wasn't shouting, but his voice was dangerously calm, shaking slightly with barely controlled anger and sadness. "I won't force you to do anything..." He didn't know if it was a lie or not. "But... I just... I thought we weren't thinking about the consequences... No more regrets..." He glared at the ground, clenching a fist again, trying desperately to control his anger. Karen looked down. "Ricky...get angry..." she said looking up at him. "Get...angry..". "Why? Why do you want me to get angry?" Ricky glared at Karen, shaking slightly. He wanted to listen to Karen, to yell at her, to let it all out, and he was so close to snapping anyway... "Sometimes, you're just so..." He gave a frustrated sigh, still glaring at her. "Why do you keep doing this to me!? I didn't know it was possible to get so mad until I met you! Jeez, Karen..." He put one trembling hand to his forehead. "You've screwed up my head so badly... Why do you do it!? Why do you try to make me snap!? Why do you do this to me all the time!?" He wouldn't let himself slap her again, despite his anger. "The worst part is, I love you! And you drive me completely insane! Why do you do it!?" he screamed again, feeling his anger drain away bit by bit as he continued to yell at her. "Why!?" "Becuase the same reason you have.." she looked away from him glaring at her. "I love you, and I''m supossed to make you angry...make you snap when you're upset.." she said looking up at him. "Get angry at me now, Ricky!" Ricky continued to glare at Karen, still shaking with anger. "So you do it because you're supposed to!?" He reached out, grabbing her roughly by the shoulders. "Do you think this is some kind of game!?" He was tempted to hurt her now, but he wouldn't let himself snap completely. "Jeez..." he muttered, tightening his grip on her shoulders. "You're so aggravating! I don't want to hurt you, Karen, so just stop it! Just stop!" His voice was even louder now, and he was still fighting with himself, wanting to hurt her, wanting her to experience the pain he was feeling at that moment. "Is this what you want!?" Karen closed her eyes to keep her fear in. "Ricky you want me to get hurt?..." she asked shivering feeling his grip tightening on her shoulders. "Ricky...you're hurting me." she said shivering realizing he was really upset with her. "You're hurting me..." she said looking up at him. Something inside Ricky's head told him to let go of Karen, to stop hurting her. He let his glare drop for a second, replaced with concern, and his grip on her shoulders relaxed, but it was only for a split second as he remembered the mental pain he was suffering from. "This is what you do to me!" He was glaring at her again. "I don't want to hurt you...but when you do this to me... I just want to show you how much pain you put me through!" Karen looked down. "...Then show me." she said not realizing what she just said. "Just...show me.." she said feeling her tears comming. "...Just show me." looking away closing her eyes. "Do what you want with me..." she said looking up at him. "Stop it..." Ricky hissed at her. "This is all your fault... I feel this way because of you!" His hands were still on her shoulders, and he decided he wanted her to feel pain. He didn't know why, and the thought of hurting Karen horrified him, but Ricky flung her to the ground anyway, glaring down at her. "Why can't you just stop!?" Karen landed on the ground still holding her towel not looking up at him shivering knowing she was lightly crying. "I'm scared, that's why I can't...no why I won't stop." she looked away from him squeezing her towel tightly. "I won't stop it." Ricky picked Karen up off the ground and dropped her on his bed, sitting down next to her. "It's okay to be scared, but...why won't you just stop!? Do you know how much pain your stupid little games cause!? Do you think it's fun to...to make me act like this!?" He was glaring at her again, wanting to hurt her. Karen looked away from him still sitting up scooting away from him looking down. "You think I'm playing a game...I'm not playing a game." she said looking at the door again. I've got to get out of here. She glanced at Ricky seeing him glare at her. "Do what you want with me..Ricky...just do what you want with me.." "Stop it! Just stop it!" Ricky continued to glare at Karen, and grabbed her wrist, seeing her glance at the door. "What's the matter with you!? What are you trying to do to me!?" He squeezed her wrist a bit tighter, looking away, wishing he could just let himself cry. "Why won't you just stop it!?" Karen winced looking down at him squeezing her wrist, she then looked away. "Nothings wrong with me...I'm not trying to do anything to you." she looked away feeling him squeeze tighter on her wrist, she shivering scared. "Do what you want with me Ricky!" she closed her eyes ignoring his last question. "Do what...you want with me..." "I don't want to fight with you..." Ricky muttered, loosening his grip on Karen's wrist but still not letting go. "...Why won't you just stop?" he whispered. His throat was sore from all the yelling, and it hurt to talk. "Why can't you just make up your mind? Why can't you stop hesitating, and not hold back? Why can't you just stop doing this to me?" He sighed, pulling her closer and putting his arms around her. "Why?" Karen shivered. "I can't...I'm still to scared..." she said as he pulled her closed and put his arms around her. "Ricky...just do what you want with me.." she said quietly to him. "Just do it..." Ricky squeezed her tighter. "Karen...I feel like I'm forcing you to do something... It doesn't seem fair... I just don't know why you're treating me like this... Why won't you just answer me!?" He raised his voice and it cracked painfully, making him flinch. He glared away, then kissed her lips roughly, but he didn't know why he was doing it. He wanted to hurt her, to make her feel pain too, but instead he was kissing and hugging her. Karen kept her head down until Ricky kissed her on the lips roughly, her eyes whidened and she pulled away from his kiss and pushing him away standing up backing away from him and the bed. "Ricky...I- want you to do what you're thinking right now...and feeling." she stoped backing up looking down. "Do what your thinking and feeling at the vary moment, Ricky!" "You want me to let out all my anger..." Ricky whispered, flinching in pain with every word. "Why?" He stood up, glancing over at her with sadness and anger mixed in his eyes. "What are you trying to do to me?" He took a step closer to her, clenching his fists, stepping closer as Karen backed up. He reached out to her, grabbing the towel with a shaking hand. "Karen... Why won't you just answer me?" Karen still didn't answer him, shivering with fear but Ricky couldn't see her shivering. "Holding back all your anger...isn't good for you..." she answered seeing him grab her towel she shivered even more. She knew she was wairing underwear and a strapless bra. She looked down. "Just...finish it." Ricky glared at Karen, feeling himself start shaking again. "Is that all you can say!? I'm holding back my anger because I don't want to hurt you!" He pushed her backwards so she was pinned against the wall. "You just don't get it!" He pushed her slightly harder. "You just don't!" Karen winced feeling him push her slightly harder against the wall... "Just let out your anger Ricky..." she still didn't look up at him ignoring him almost completly. "Do not hold back your anger. Get angry!" she said looking up at him. "Get angry!" Ricky pushed her even harder, wondering how much he was hurting her. "Shut up!" he screamed at her, tempted to slap her like he had done before. "Just shut up! Don't you ever learn!? Don't you ever listen!?" He pushed her back as hard as he could, unable to hold back his anger. "Just SHUT UP!" Karen still didn't open her eyes. Her wrists were killing her now her back pushed back as far as it could go. And her towel hardly even around her anymore. She kept her eyes closed. "I won't shut up." she said shaking. "I won't...Get angry Ricky!" Ricky glared at Karen, still shaking. "Just STOP it! Why can't you just leave me alone!?" "Brother?" There was a quiet knock at the door. "Brother, are you okay?" Ricky froze, staring over at the door. "Myles..." he whispered, unable to move. The doorknob turned, but wouldn't open. "Brother, what are you doing? Why is the door locked? Where's Karen? Are you okay?" Ricky still couldn't move - all he could do was stare, still pushing Karen against the wall. "What am I supposed to do?" he whispered to himself, glancing at Karen, then back at the door. Karen put her head down. "Myles we're okay...just talking." she said loud enough for Myles to hear. She felt her arms become numb and she kept her head down. "I'll leave you alone...from now on." she said sadly to Ricky. "You have to get angry with me Ricky." Karen said snapping at him. "Get Angry!!" Myles hesitated. "Oh... Okay..." he muttered, turning and walking away down the hall. Ricky glared back at Karen once he was sure Myles was gone. "I already told you, just stop it! Just STOP!" He pulled her away from the wall, then pushed her roughly back against it again, hoping he was hurting her. "You really just don't get it!" He was shouting even louder now. "You don't!" He was shaking again, glaring back at her. "Why won't you just stop! You're so annoying!" Karen held back a scream of pain as her back hit the wall. "Shut up!" she said closing her eyes. "Stop saying that I'm annoying!" she tried pulling her arms out of the pin even more. "You want me to just stop! I won't just stop!" she closed her eyes shivering. "I don't care what you do or say...I won't leave you alone, I won't stop it..." she shivered looking up at him. "...And I don't know what to do in the 'situation' so just stop it!" "Shut up!" Ricky hesitated for a moment. "I'm telling you, just shut up! Just stop it! Just leave me alone!" He slapped Karen across the face, glaring at her. "Just shut up!" Karen now showed her tears and pushed Ricky back away from her touching her cheek. She looked away from him glancing at the door then at her bag on the ground she quickly turned to the door hoping she could just get away from this room. "Don't you dare leave..." Ricky whispered, grabbing Karen's arm before she could get to the door. He had seen her tears, and was now regretting what he had done. "Don't you dare..." he whispered again, looking away. He gently pulled her back towards him. "Don't..." Karen looked back at him trying to pull her arm back but she stoped wincing feeling the pain from when he squeezed her wrists and pinned her against the wall come to her hands. "Just leave me alone..." she whispered shaking. "Leave me alone..." she pushed him away from her stepping back afraid of him. "Stay away from me.." Ricky stared at Karen, feeling empty for the second time that day. "Karen..." he whispered, reaching out to her. "Wasn't this...what you wanted? Wasn't it!? I told you..." he looked down, feeling his eyes get watery. "I told you this would happen... I told you!" he said again, louder this time, still looking down, trying not to cry. Karen shivered still backing up from him until her back hit the wall. But she still kept scooting away from him up until she felt the bed and fell back feeling her towel fall off beside her. She closed her eyes trying to stop herself from crying. "I didn't want you...to slap me again..." she touched both of her cheeks and then her bruised wrists. "...You hurt me Ricky..." she said still laying down. "You hurt me because I'm such an annoying idiot..." she shivered. "I'm sorry..." Ricky slowly walked over to Karen, staring down at her with tears in his eyes. "Don't be sorry..." he whispered, sitting down on the edge of the bed, not even blushing when Karen's towel fell off. "Just don't..." He let one tear fall, quickly wiping it away. "I'm sorry..." He laid down next to her, staring at the ceiling. "I didn't want to hurt you... I'm sorry..." He timidly put an arm around her, closing his eyes, expecting to be pushed away. "I'm sorry..." Karen sniffled as he put an arm around her. She moved closer to him shaking. "We're both sorry...that's that.." she said putting her head down onto his chest. "I'm sorry...but I want to do it now..." she said shivering. "I want to do it with only you...I do care if I become pregnet but...if I do...will you..." she kept her head down. "Marry me, Ricky..." "Wh-what?" Ricky's eyes widened as he put his other arm around her. "Karen..." he whispered, closing his eyes. "...Of course I will..." He squeezed her tighter, smiling even though he was crying at the same time. "Of course...I will..." Karen smiled feeling the cold air hit her back she slowly pulled away from Ricky grabbing the blanket off the ground and throwing it over them. "Ricky...your turn to make a move." she said quietly. "Right..." Ricky whispered, staring back at Karen. His face turned a light shade of red as he timidly removed his boxers, tossing them away, shivering slightly. "R-right..." Karen shivered and looked down at her bra then her underwear and slowly took off her underwear then threw them to the ground and then grabbed ahold of her strapness bra and took it off shivering looking up at Ricky blushing. "Y-Your turn..." "Okay..." Ricky blushed an even deeper shade of red, looking away for a moment, then moving closer to Karen and putting his arms around her. He brought her closer, shivering and blushing even more as he touched her. His voice was reduced to a tiny whisper. "...Okay..." --------- Karen slowly opened her eyes from the sun. "What the...?" she shivered feeling numb and winced slightly looking over to her side seeing Ricky asleep next to her. She blushed blood red and looked down seeing his hand was around her waist. "Ri-Ricky..." Ricky mumbled something in his sleep, smiling slightly. He slowly opened his eyes, blinking in the sunlight. "Wha...?" He looked to the side, seeing Karen, and blushed, pulling his arm away from her. "S-sorry..." he mumbled, rubbing his eyes, still blushing. Karen slowly sat up but winced and laid back down feeling sore. "Why am I so numb...?" she asked outloud, then blushed remembering last night. "R-Ricky...did we...?" her eyes whidened. "Do it..?" Ricky's eyes widened as he blushed blood red. "Uh... Um..." he stammered, looking away. "W-we... Um... I..." He glanced quickly at Karen, then looked away. "...Yeah..." Karen shivered and kept her head down to keep her blush from showing she slowly sat up ignoring the pain her body felt. "Ricky...this has to be a secert." she said glancing back at him grabbing her underwear and then her bra. First placing on her underwear then on her bra. Wincing again she laid down again. "I don't feel so good, Ricky..." "Oh..." Ricky paused for a moment, reaching for his boxers. He looked back at Karen, picking up his boxers and putting them on. "I'm sorry..." He laid down again, next to Karen, looking over at her with concern in his eyes. "I'm...sorry..." he whispered again, looking away. Karen shook her head no. "Don't be sorry..." she smiled sweetly to him. "We better get up..." she said slowly standing up shaking her head ignoring the numbness and slipping on her night clothes. A simple shirt and pants. "If your mom asks...I fell asleep in here..." "Right..." Ricky nodded, smiling back at Karen, picking up his shirt and pants and quickly putting them on, not even noticing that he put his shirt on backwards. He stood up, stretching out his arms, still half-asleep. "That was..." He looked away, blushing, shaking his head. "Never mind..." He glanced back at Karen, still blushing slightly. "...I guess...the right thing to say is...thank you..." Karen smiled then sighed. "Ricky...your shirt is on backwards." she said shaking her head at him smiling unlocking the door and stepping outside...no one seemed to be upstairs. "Ricky is your mom and brother still here?" she asked looking back at him. Ricky glanced down at his shirt, blushing. "Oh... Thanks..." he mumbled, taking it off and putting it on the right way. "Um... I don't know... I don't even know what day it is..." "Brother!" Myles ran up the stairs, waving. "Hiya, Karen! I was playing ninja and I heard you guys talking up here!" Ricky sighed, glancing at Karen. "Does that answer your question?" Karen glanced at Ricky then to Myles signing bending down to his level hugging him tightly! "Good morning, Myles!" she said sweetly then winced pulling away feeling her wrists have a shot of pain go threw them. "Ouch.." she accedently whispered out slowly standing up. "I really don't feel good.." "Hey!" Myles squirmed a bit as Karen hugged him. "Gross..." he muttered, staring at the ground. "Hey, are you okay?" he asked, noticing Karen wincing. "What happened? Did brother hurt you?" Ricky looked away, not answering Myles. Myles just shrugged, looking back at Karen. "Anyway, Mommy went to the store so she'll be back later. She said she expected you guys to make sure I didn't misbehave, but I can take care of myself!" He crossed his arms, glaring at the ground. "Great..." Ricky muttered. "So we're babysitting my little brother... Great..." He gently took Karen's hand. "Come on... Maybe you'll feel better after breakfast." Karen rubbed her head and nodded. "Maybe..." she said following Ricky into the kitchen then glanced over at Myles. "Hey Myles, do you...maybe later on want to post ninja?" she asked smiling softly. "How about it?" Myles grinned, staring up at Karen. "Really? Awesome!" He glanced at Ricky. "Hey, brother!" Ricky looked over at Myles. "Yeah?" "I want pancakes. Brother, make us pancakes!" Ricky sighed, opening random cabinets. "That's great, Myles... But...uh...I can't cook..." "Make us pancakes!" Myles demanded, sitting down at the kitchen table, picking up a fork and banging it loudly on the table. "I want pancakes! Please?" Ricky sighed, pulling a pan out of the cabinet. "I can try..." Karen shivered and sighed. "Ricky...I'll cook breakfast." she said pushing him to a seat then stoped and grabbed her wrists. "Dang it...I'm still numb.." she muttered to herself. She turned back around and took out the pancake mix. "Why don't I just show you how to make them..." Ricky sat up, pushing Karen into a chair. "Just tell me what to do." He picked up the pancake mix, staring at it for a moment. "Okay... This shouldn't be too hard..." He opened up the box, glancing inside. "Yeah, this is easy..." Karen rubbed her and sighed knowing it would end up burnt probably. "Pore some into the pan..." she said simpley then sighed. "Turn it onto high and let it sit for three minutes...then flip it." "Okay." Ricky poured some of the pancake mix into the pan, turning on the stove. "Easy..." he muttered again, sitting down next to Karen. "Three minutes... Okay... Got it." "Hurry up!" Myles was glaring at the pan on the stove. "I'm hungry!" Karen shot a glare at Myles. "It has to cook..." she looked at Ricky then at the stove seeing smoke comming out of the pan. "Ah! Ricky! Why aren't you standing in front of it." she sighed quickly getting up and running to the stove flipping the pancake pressing it down and putting it onto a plate giving it to Myles. "Here you go.." she looked over at Ricky, pulling him by the arm to the stove. "Watch." she said taking the mix and poring it into the pan, hearing it sizzle then she stould there for a second then fliped it over pressing down making it ready. "Oh geez.." Myles giggled as smoke came out of the pan, but didn't say anything. Ricky looked away. "I told you I didn't know how to cook, Myles..." He glanced back at Karen. "Okay... I think I get it... That's easy..." He looked away again, muttering to himself, "Clueless..." Karen felt dizzy and put her hand onto her forhead. "I feel sick...to my stomache." she said wobbling out of the livingroom and into the room colapesing on the couch.. "What's wrong with me..?" "What's wrong with Karen?" Myles asked, watching as she left the room. "Is she okay? What happened? Did you hurt her? What's going on? Where's the butter and syrup?" Ricky sighed, watching Karen walk out of the room. "I hope she's okay..." he muttered, standing up. "You eat your breakfast, Myles. Stay here." He walked out of the kitchen, glancing at Karen on the couch. "What...do you think is wrong?" he whispered to her, glancing at the kitchen door to make sure Myles wasn't listening. Karen looked up at Ricky, "Could it be...morning sickness?" she asked him keeping her hand over her stomache. "Could I...be pregnet, Ricky?" she asked looking up at him worried. "What if I am...what do I do?" Ricky's eyes widened as he collapsed next to her on the couch, feeling dizzy all of a sudden. "Oh jeez..." he whispered, clutching his head. "I... I don't know...what to do... I... I'll do anything to help you, but..." He shook his head, trying not to panic. "I don't know what I'm supposed to do... You have to talk to someone who can help you... I...don't think you can keep this a secret forever anyway..." he closed his eyes. "I...don't know what to do..." "One of those testers...at the supermarket." she then stoped and sighed. "Or...your mom could have some in her room?" she asked looking down at her hand. "I don't know what I'm supossed to do...I'm so confused." Karen looked away. "I'm going to go look in your moms room...be right back." she was about to jump and phase threw the ceiling but stoped, feeling dizzy she sat back down. "...or not.." "I'll go look... You stay here." Ricky stood up, still clutching his head. He jumped into the air and phased through the ceiling, poking his head back down a few minutes later. "Um... What exactly am I looking for anyway?" Karen sighed and looked up at him. "A blue tube...should say 'pregnacy test' on the lable.." "Okay." Ricky disappeared again, phasing back through the ceiling a few minutes later. "Here..." He handed it to Karen, then he leaned against the wall, glancing back toward the kitchen. Karen gulped and looked down at it putting it against her finger slowly as it pecked out some blood she winced lightly then sighed pulling it away. "If it's red...we're okay but if it's blue..." she looked up at him. "I'm pregnet..." she looked back down at the tub seeing it slowly show a color. "What color is it?" she asked lifting up up to Ricky looking away. "What color?" Ricky stared down at the ground, not wanting to look up at it. He finally glanced up quickly, looking back down at the ground again after seeing the color. "It's..." His voice was lowered to a whisper as he felt a chill run through his spine. "...blue..." Karen's eyes whidened and looking at the final color, it was blue. Her heart stoped for a second and she shook her head. "What do I do...what am I going to do.." she asked whispering covering her eyes. "I was wanting to wait till I got married...to get pregnet...what do I do..." she asked hearing her voice break. Ricky covered his eyes with his hand for a moment. "I'm sorry..." His voice was a faint whisper. "This is all my fault... I'm so sorry..." He sat down next to her, shivering slightly. "I'm sorry..." He hugged her gently, closing his eyes, apologizing over and over again. Karen put her head down onto his shoulder shivering she hugged him back. "Ricky...lets go get married..." she whispered to him softly. "Let's just go..." Ricky shivered again, hugging Karen tighter. "Okay... Karen... I promise I won't hurt you ever again..." he whispered, closing his eyes. "I promise..." Karen pulled away slowly. "Ricky...let's go eat some breakfast..." she said keeping her head down standing up. She slowly began to push open the door to the kitchen. Ricky stood up and silently followed Karen, putting an arm around her shoulders and stepping into the kitchen. "What took you guys so long?" Myles demanded, staring at Ricky and Karen as they walked through the door. "What happened? Karen, are you okay? Are you feeling better?" Karen sat down next to Myles grabbing a pancake. "I'm fine...we were just talking about something that's going to happen..." she said wincing slightly cutting her pancake placing it into her mouth. Ricky sat down across from Karen, silently staring down at the table. "What's going to happen?" Myles asked excitedly, looking at Karen. "Are we going to play ninja now? What's happening? Tell me! Please! Please!" "Well...Myles...me and Ricky are going to..." she looked up at Ricky for a minute then back down. "...get married because." she muttered putting her fork down squeezing her napkin. "I'm pregnet with a baby..." she whispered staring down at her pancake shivering. "..We'll play...ninja later." "You guys are going to what!?" Myles stared at Karen for a moment before laughing. "That's the dumbest thing I've ever heard! Heheh... Right, brother? R-right?" Ricky glanced up at Myles. "...It's true, Myles... It's true..." "But..." Myles stared at Ricky, then looked back at Karen. "No way! Karen can't have a baby! What the heck?" He picked up his fork, banging it down on the table. "Ricky can't get married! You guys are lying! I'm..." He stood up, dropping his fork on the table. "I'm telling Mommy!" Karen looked up at Myles. "Myles...please don't." she said quietly sadly then stood up. "Nevermind...you can tell your mom if you want.." she kept her head down. "I'll be...back." she said quietly walking out of the room. "I'm to young to be a mom...I might be turnning 17 in 4 monthes...but I'm still..." she stoped walking putting her hand onto her head feeling dizzy. "Is...dizziness supossed to be in this...too." she muttered before fainting feeling to much presure on herself. "Brother! You guys are lying right?" Myles stared at Ricky with disbelief. "Right?" "No, Myles." Ricky stood up, hearing a noise from outside the room. "Karen..." he whispered, running out of the room, seeing her on the ground. "Karen!" He knelt down beside her, scooping her up into his arms and dropping her on the couch. "Oh, jeez... Please be okay..." he whispered. "Brother?" Myles stepped out of the kitchen. "Brother..." He stared down at Karen. "I guess...you guys weren't lying? Karen really is going to have a baby?" Ricky nodded slowly. "When is it coming? Will it be soon? I hope it's a boy! I could be like kinda like a big brother, just like you! And we could play ninja!" Ricky sighed, looking away. "That's great, Myles..." Karen slowly opened her eyes half way up looking over at Ricky and Myles. "I felt dizzy..." she said calmly then closed her eyes. "This is weird though...I heard dizziness is supossed to come after six monthes of carring a baby..." she looked down at her stomache seeing it a bit bigger then normal. "...Could it be growing faster...because I'm, a halfa?" she asked wincing breaking out in a sweat leaning back. "I'm really dizzy now..." she whispered closing her eyes. "...Ricky...you've got to get your mom, and take me to a hospital.." "What the heck?" Ricky's eyes widened. "Oh no..." he whispered, standing up and starting to run to the phone. "Myles, watch Karen! I'll be right ba--" he froze, watching the front door open. "H-hi, Mommy!" Myles waved nervously. Mrs. Drynn waved back, putting some shopping bags down next to the door. "Hello, Myles... Karen, are you okay?" she asked, seeing Karen lying down on the couch. "No time to talk..." Ricky muttered. "We need to get her to the hospital, right now..." Mrs. Drynn gave Ricky a confused look. "Tell me what happened... Is it really that bad?" "Yes!" Ricky shouted, glaring at his mother. "She's... She's... N-never mind... Come on, we've got to get her to the hospital! Call an ambulance or something! Myles, call 911! Do something!" "RICKY! Calm down!" Mrs. Drynn smacked him on the head. "Stop panicking. Just get her to the car... If it's really an emergency...I can drive faster than any ambulance..." She glanced over at Karen. "Trust me." "Okay, okay... Jeez..." Ricky muttered, rubbing his head and picking Karen up. "Will you be okay?" he whispered, carrying her to his mother's car. Karen winced and nodded. "I'll be fine..." she whispered closing her eyes. "I'll...be fine.." Ricky placed Karen down in the back seat. "Do you think you can sit up, or do you have to lay down?" Before she could give an answer, Ricky had already closed the door and was sitting in the front seat, glancing back at Karen. "You can have the entire back seat... If you want to lay down..." Mrs. Drynn got in the car, closed the door, and started the engine. "Hospital's not too far away... But, Ricky, will you tell me what's going on?" "N-not yet..." Ricky stared straight ahead, scared for his life. "M-Mom... Do you think you could drive a little slower?" "No," she replied simply, swerving to the left to avoid hitting an old lady crossing the street. "...Great..." Ricky muttered, watching them barely miss crashing into a tree. "Here we are..." Mrs. Drynn parked the car in front of the hospital. "Take her inside, Ricky." Ricky nodded, carrying Karen inside the hospital and sprinting through the doors with his mother following close behind. "Emergency!" He glanced left and right, then sprinted to the front desk, bumping onto a few people. "Emergency!" he shouted to the woman at the desk, still holding Karen in his arms. "You'll be okay..." he whispered to Karen. "You'll be okay..." "Ricky...calm down, it's not like I'm...dieing or anything." she said bluntly with a light red face staring up at him breathing deeply letting out another wince of pain. "Dang it...I was right...Ricky...did you tell your mom yet?" "N-no..." Ricky whispered to Karen as his mother came running in behind them. "I didn't tell her yet..." "Ricky! Tell me what happened right now!" Mrs. Drynn demanded, glaring at him. "What happened to Karen!?" "She's... She's...um..." The woman at the front desk called out to someone else, who came running in with a stretcher. Ricky placed Karen down on it, wondering what was going to happen to her. "What happened to her, Ricky?" His mother asked again, glaring at him. "She's... Well, she's...um... She's...pregnant..." Ricky whispered, looking away. "Wh-what?" Mrs. Drynn's eyes widened. "She's...? You mean... You...?" "Yeah..." Ricky whispered, looking away. "Y-yeah... And I'm... I'm going to marry her..." "Ricky..." Mrs. Drynn covered her eyes with a hand, leaning against the wall for support. "I don't know what to think..." She gave him a half-hearted smack on the head. "You idiot..." Karen's face was red and her eyes were closed. "Ricky stay with your mom..." Karen said as she was placed onto the stretcher. She was breathing deeply and she looked over at the nurses before passing out again. "Take her to the examination room!" A nurse said as they went sprinting down the hallway. The nurse turned to Ricky. "You should stay here...the doctor Wakza will comeout here and will tell you what's wrong with Miss. Kano." Ricky sighed reluctantly and sat down in the nearest chair, feeling dizzy again. "Mom... Do you think she'll be okay?" "I'm sure she'll be fine, Ricky..." Mrs. Drynn muttered, still leaning against the wall. "I hope Myles is okay home alone by himself too..." "He'll be fine..." Ricky was clutching his head. "He's run away and taken care of himself before... He'll be fine... But, jeez... I hope Karen's okay..." Karen was placed onto what looked like an X-ray table. A doctor came in and looked down at Karen. "So young...but from my tests I have taken you're just the thing I've been looking for to make millions." the doctor snickered to himself. "I could take you...or your baby...and raise her to do what I want." Unknowningly to him, Karen was awake but just had her eyes closed. "I guess I'm going to have to tell your boyfriend the truth..." he snickered again. "You could die from this...a rare event that's only happened three times before as my life as a doctor...that baby needs to come out as soon as possable." Karen opened her eyes and stared at the doctor. "What..." The doctor jumped a bit startled then smirked. "I take it you heard every word I said...well that just means I'm going to have to kill you after that baby is out." Karen stared at the doctor. His name was Dr. Wakza. "You twisted fruitloop..." Dr. Waka smirked. "Now it's time to go tell that boyfriend of yours what has happened to you.." and with that he turned around. "I've...got to get out of here..." Ricky was staring nervously at the clock. "Mom... Do you think she's okay? It's taking too long... What if something's really wrong? What if something bad's happening to her? What if...?" He sighed, standing up. "I'm going to find her..." Mrs. Drynn rolled her eyes. "Ricky... These people are doctors... They know what they're doing..." "But... Ugh, never mind." Ricky ran off down the hall, opening random doors, looking for Karen. The first room was empty, and so was the second one. He opened the third door and saw a couple of doctors operating on a little girl. One of them turned and yelled at him, but Ricky had already closed the door, still searching for Karen. "You're just overreacting..." Ricky muttered to himself, opening another door and seeing an older man with a cast on his arm. He closed the door. "Just...overreacting...that's all..." He opened the next door and saw Karen and Dr. Wakza. "Um... S-sorry... I was just...nervous about Karen... That's all... Just overreacting... Sorry..." Karen looked over seeing Ricky. "Ricky..." she whispered out then looked at Dr. Wakza who shook his head. Remembering before Ricky ran inside the room he threatened to 'kill' the baby by an overdose. "Mr. Drynn, I was just about to come talk with you. Please step out here with me." Dr. Wakza motioned for him to follow him. Karen looked up at Ricky then away, shivering. Dr. Wakza cleared his throat. "Miss. Kano, I know is a half-breed and the one side effect of what you did to her last night...the baby inside her grew faster then a normal person...you could say she is mature...but anyway...the point is: With this rare condiction...Miss. Kano: There is a good chance she could die from this if she does not get that baby out of her before the day is over.." Ricky's eyes widened. "Wh-what? Die? No, she can't... She can't die!" He looked over at Karen. "No way..." He turned to face Dr. Wakza, glaring at him. "She won't die," he hissed stubbornly, pointing a finger at him. "You're not going to let her." Dr. Wakza smirked evily, "Of course. It's my job in doing this type of stuff." Dr. Wakza waved goodbye. "I'll be right back, Miss. Kano to 'check-up' on you." Karen looked down and squeezed her blanket. "Ricky...you've got to get me out of this hospital.." Ricky blinked, taking a step closer to Karen. "What? But why? What's the matter? What's going on?" He glanced at the door. "You need help right now... Are you sure it's a good idea to leave the hospital?" "Ricky...Dr. Wakza wants our child..." Karen said looking down with her hands over her stomache. "And I'm not going to let him have, her..." she shivered. "He's planning to kill me..." she whispered looking up at him. "We have to get out of here." "I don't think so, Miss. Kano." Dr. Wakza said standing in the doorway. "You would just die slowly if you went out there." Karen squeezed her shirt slightly. "Ricky..." Ricky glared at Dr. Wakza standing in the doorway. "It's two against one... I can fight you easily..." He stepped backward so he was between Karen and Dr. Wakza. "You're not coming near Karen...or our child... So back off..." He clenched his fist, creating an ecto-wind blast and firing it at the doctor. Dr. Wakza lifted up his hand and was wairing what looked like a glove. He smirked as the ecto-wind dissappered into his hand. "How sweet of you, Mr. Drynn...but it's usless to fight now, when I was giving her 'tests' I slipped something into your child's blood stream." he smirked. "I'm sure you know what it is...that 'curse' that ruined your life." Dr. Wakza lifted up what looked like an antidote. "I have the cure right here...if you want it so bad, you'll kill her for me." Karen looked at Dr. Wakza shocked. "What do you mean?" "I mean he'll kill you...and once you're dead...the baby will be taken out of you." Dr. Wakza said looking at the antidote. "You wouldn't want your daughter to have the same type of life as you now do you?" he smirked again. "And don't you dare think about using your ghost powers again...if you do I'll drop this and your daughter will be cursed." Karen shivered and then glared at Dr. Wakza...she couldn't fight at all she was still hurting. "Let me and Ricky...talk for a second..please." Dr. Wakza snickered. "For two minutes...then I'll be back." Dr. Wakza walked out of the room. Karen looked over at Ricky. "Ricky...you're going to have to 'kill me.'..." Ricky glared at the door even though Dr. Wakza was gone. "What's the matter with that guy? He's completely insane..." He glanced back at Karen. "Do you think we could fake it and make it convincing?" He buried his face in his hands. "I don't know what to do... This is insane... Absolutely insane... What am I supposed to do?" Karen looked up at him pulling his hand away from his face and putting it onto her stomach. "I need you too...protect...our child...Amy." she said softly looking down. "I don't know how to fake death...but you need to so our child can have a normal life. Please." she asked squeezing his hand. "Just do it for her...please." "I promised I wouldn't hurt you anymore..." Ricky whispered, staring down at Karen. "I'm not going to kill you...or let that guy kill you either... Or let him take...Amy..." He clenched a fist. "I'll...kill him..." He glanced around the room. "There's gotta be some kind of knife around here... I have lots of experience with knives..." He looked away, glancing quickly back at the door. "I swear, I'll kill him... I don't know how powerful he is... I just want him to die..." He sighed, looking away. "Why is this so hard? I don't know what to do..." he whispered again. "I...don't know..." Karen looked up at Ricky gasping. "A..wind blade." she said to him. "A wind blade...could help..." she said to him lifting up her hands making two from the air in the room but made them dissapper quickly seeing the room door open. "Times up, Mr. Drynn." Dr. Wakza said smirking. "What will it be?" Karen looked up at Ricky then at Dr. Wakza. Her eyes glowing a light blue color, a strange wind went around Dr. Wakza's arm. "Ricky...grab the antidote quickly." she said closing her eyes. "And get it out and away from here..." she said standing up slowly wobbling. "Hurry.." Ricky ran to Dr. Wakza and snatched the antidote out of his hand, glancing back at Karen for a split second. Her words echoed in his head, 'Get it out and away from here.' But that would mean leaving her behind because she was too weak, and he couldn't do that... He hesitated, still looking back at Karen. "Karen..." he whispered, not knowing what to do. "I can't leave you alone here... But I have to get as far away as possible..." Ricky gave a frustrated sigh, stuffing the antidote in his pocket and scooping Karen up in his arms, kicking Dr. Wakza in the leg as he ran past, in hopes of slowing him down. He ran out the door, turning down the hall, still carrying Karen. "Gotta get out of here..." he muttered to himself. "Where's the exit?" Karen closed her eyes. "The elevator...we need to get back to your mom Ricky." she winced. "Go intangable..." she whispered as Ricky kept running a scream was heard from behind. "Security! Security!" Dr. Wakza shout pointing right at them. "Stop them!" Karen gasped closing her eyes causing them to phase threw the ground landing in the lobby looking over seeing Mrs. Drynn. "Hurry...we have to get out of here.." she whispered breathing deeply. "..Hurry." Mrs. Drynn gave them both a quizzical look as they phased through the ceiling. "What...?" she muttered, blinking. "Impossible... Great...now I'm hallucinating..." "Mom! We've got to get out of here!" Ricky ran to the door, pushing it open with his shoulder. "There's some insane doctor who's after our child..." He glared at his mother, who was trying to decide whether or not Ricky and Karen had actually come through the ceiling. "Mom! Don't just stand there! Get to the car!" He was already sprinting out the door. Mrs. Drynn stared after him, finally standing up. "What...just happened?" she whispered. "Never mind..." She shook her head in amazement. "Ricky, you never cease to amaze me..." She ran out the door after them, getting into her car as Ricky placed Karen in the back seat. "What do we do? What do we do?" Ricky kept whispering to himself as his mother started the car. "This is so complicated..." "Get back to the house quickly..." Karen said bluntly looking up outside the window seeing Dr. Wakza running towards the car. "Go! Hurry." she said holding her head. "...It's comming soon...get back to the house.." "Huh?" Ricky looked back at Karen, looking confused. "What do you--" His eyes widened. "Oh...jeez..." he whispered, clutching his head again. "Oh, jeez... Oh, jeez..." he kept muttering to himself, glancing quickly out the window. "Go, Mom, just go!" Mrs. Drynn nodded, driving even faster than she had before. "So..." She swerved to avoid hitting a street light. "...What exactly happened? And how did you two go through the ceiling? That's impossible..." Ricky shook his head, still muttering to himself, panicking quietly. "Ricky..." his mother said quietly, reaching over and smacking him on the head. "Calm down. We're almost home." The car stopped abruptly in front of their house and Ricky stepped out, opening Karen's door. "You okay?" he asked quietly, picking her up and walking her to the house. "Oh, jeez..." he whispered again, trembling slightly. "Oh...jeez..." "I'm..okay." she said breathing deeply squinting her eyes closed. "She comming...get inside! Hurry!" she said sweating and breathing deeply. "It hurts.." she whispered closing her eyes. "It hurts!" she screamed as she was placed down. Ricky had just placed Karen down on the couch, and he flinched as she screamed. "Oh, jeez..." he whispered, staring down at her. "Mom! WhatdoIdowhat'sgoingonyouhavetohelpmeplease!" "Ricky, shut up and calm down!" Mrs. Drynn smacked him again, kneeling down beside Karen. "Oh, right..." Ricky reached into his pocket, still recovering from being smacked on the head. "This is the antidote, Karen... Everything's going to be fine..." He looked away. Hopefully... Karen snatched it away from his hand and drank it quickly but she droped the viel coughing. "That was gross..." she whispered feeling more pain come. "Ah!" she screamed squeezing a pillow next to her. "She's comming!...geez...she's comming!!" she said breathing deeply. "What do I do!?!?" she said holding back a scream. Ricky's eyes widened and he stared at Karen in horror. "Whatdoyoumeanshe'scoming!? Ohjeezohjeezohjeez..." Myles poked his head out from the other room. "Mommy, what's happening to Karen?" "Go to your room, Myles! Shut up, Ricky!" Mrs. Drynn shouted sharply as Myles obediently went upstairs and Ricky closed his mouth. She turned back to Karen, speaking softly."Karen... Just try to relax. I'm not a doctor, but...I'll do my best, okay? I know it's hard, but just try to relax... Just try, okay?" Karen nodded and closed her eyes tightly squeezing the pillow next to her breathing deeply. "...Calm down..." she whispered then screamed from another shot of pain as she looked down seeing Ricky's eyes whide, and Mrs. Drynn holding a little red thing... Karen blinked and stared with whide eyes. "...Amy." Ricky blinked, muttering, "Ew..." before he could stop himself. "I...uh...I mean..." He smiled at the tiny child his mother was holding. "Hello, Amy..." Mrs. Drynn placed Amy into Karen's arms, giving her a tired smile. "Congratulations... Both of you..." "MOMMY! What happened!?" Myles was running down the stairs. "Why was Karen scr--" He blinked, staring at Amy. "Eww... What is that thing!?" Karen shot a glare at Myles then Ricky. "This is Amy." she said to Myles sighing looking down at her. "She's...so cute." she said smiling then looked at Mrs. Drynn then to Ricky sighing. "Thank you..." Myles looked disappointed. "So...it's a...girl? Aw, man..." Ricky sighed, staring at Amy. "I...guess you're right... She's...kind of...cute..." he whispered, still smiling. Mrs. Drynn just nodded and gave Karen an understanding smile. "Can I..." Ricky looked away, then back at Karen and Amy. "Can I hold her?" Karen looked over at Myles. "Hey, maybe she'll like ninja stuff like you." she said shrugging then looked up at Ricky then down at Amy. Nodding lifting up Amy handing her to Ricky smiling she then looked down feeling really tired she closed her eyes and slowly fell asleep. Amy stared up at Ricky with big whide brown eyes. "Baha!" she said lifting up one hand to him then looked over to Mrs. Drynn. "Gr!!" She then looked down at Karen. "Mamo!" she then looked over at Myles. "Mimi!" "Mimi?" Myles stared back at Amy. "I'm not Mimi! That's a girl's name! I'm Myles! Say Myles! Myles!" Ricky shook his head at Myles, then stared down at Amy. "Amy..." he whispered softly, smiling at her. "That's your name... Amy..." "Aww... Hey, Amy..." Mrs. Drynn smiled and waved at Amy, then looked over at Karen. "You must be exhausted..." she whispered softly, picking up a blanket and gently throwing it over Karen. She then turned back to Ricky. "Wow... I can't believe I'm a grandma... It makes me feel so old..." Karen snickered. "..Just abit." she whispered sighing. Amy's eyes whidened even more looking up at Ricky, putting one hand onto his nose smiling. "Baha!" she said smileing whide again, then looked back at Myles, "Mymis...!" she said smiling then shook her head. "Mimi...mimi!" she reached out for Myles. "Mimi!" Ricky smiled even wider as Amy touched his nose. "Amy..." he whispered again, sighing softly. "It's not Mimi! It's Myles! Myles! M-Y-L-E-S!" Myles was glaring at Amy. "If you weren't a girl, you wouldn't be so dumb! Girls are so dumb..." Mrs. Drynn sighed. "Myles..." she began, but stopped herself from giving him a lecture. Despite his words, the look in Myles's eyes showed that he was fascinated by Amy. She smiled at him. "You like her, don't you?" "No! She's a dumb girl!" Myles turned away. "Well, you're her uncle now." Mrs. Drynn smiled. "You shouldn't be insulting her like that." Myles turned back around, grinning. "Really? I'm her uncle? That's so cool! Hiya, Amy! Say Myles! Uncle Myles! Not Mimi! Say Myles! Say it!" Amy looked like she was about to cry hearing him call girls dumb. "Baku!" she said putting her head back against Ricky's chest. "Uncle...Mimi!" she then spoted something on Myles arm. "Pitty ninji!" Ricky smiled as Amy leaned her head back against his chest. Myles just sighed. "It's Myles! Not Mimi!" He gave Amy a small smile. "Ninji? You mean ninja? Say ninja! Myles is a ninja! Say it, Amy!" Mrs. Drynn was still smiling at them. "Hey, Myles... There's still hope. Maybe she'll play ninja with you when she gets older." "Mimi wo ze ninja!" Amy said happy throwing her hands into the air then reach out again for Myles. "I va Mimi!!" "Huh?" Myles blinked, seeing Amy reach out for him. "What did she say? I just heard 'Mimi' again... But she said ninja too! I taught her how to say ninja!" He smiled proudly at her. "Come on, Ricky, I wanna hold her now! Please! It's my turn! Please!" Ricky sighed, staring down at Amy. "Okay..." he said softly, hesitating. After another minute of holding her, Ricky gently handed Amy over to Myles. "Hi, Amy! It's me, Uncle Mimi!" Myles blinked, realizing what he had said. "No, no, I didn't mean that! I'm not Mimi! I'm Myles! Uncle Myles!" He sighed. "Not Mimi..." Mrs. Drynn smiled at Myles. "Looks like your new nickname is already sticking, Mimi." "No!" Myles protested. "I didn't mean that! It just... It just slipped!" Amy stared at Myles blinking tilting her head then smiled. "Uncle Mimi ninja!!" she then yawned as her eyes got droopy. "...Imma ninja.." she mumbled falling asleep in Myles arm. Myles smiled again. "Did you hear that, you guys? Did you hear what she said? 'Imma ninja!' Isn't that awesome! She's so cool..." Mrs. Drynn smirked. "I thought you said she was dumb..." Myles looked away. "Well...maybe not... Here, Ricky... I think she's asleep... You can hold her now... I feel sleepy too..." He yawned, still smiling slightly, and walked upstairs to his room. Ricky smiled again as he held Amy in his arms. "Amy..." he whispered again, staring down at her. "Daddy loves you, Amy..." He looked up. "Hey, Mom... Do you think we still have Myles's old crib? Amy needs somewhere to sleep..." Mrs. Drynn shrugged. "Maybe. I'll go look." She stood up and walked out of the room, leaving Ricky still smiling at Amy. Karen slowly opened her eyes and yawned tiredly. "Ricky..." she whispered looking up at him smiling down at Amy, causing her to smile. "I see you've already taken a liking to Amy.." she said softly. Meanwhile Amy was sound asleep in Ricky's arms snuggling even more hugging his arm squeezing it like a teddybear. "Yeah... I guess I kind of like her..." Ricky smiled even wider as Amy snuggled against him, hugging his arm. "...a lot..." He looked over at Karen. "I didn't know what it would feel like to be a Dad..." He lowered his voice, speaking quietly. "But...all those panic attacks and difficult decisions...it was worth it..." He smiled down at Amy again, then looked back at Karen. "I hope you feel the same way." Karen looked up at him and smiled nodding. "I do...I do.." she said laying back again putting her hand against her forhead. "I think...I'm going to go back to sleep I'm so sleepy..." she whispered reaching out a hand to him. "Hold my hand until I fall alseep?" Ricky smiled, holding Amy with one arm, making sure she was comfortable and secure. "Sure." He reached out with his other arm and took Karen's hand, squeezing it gently. "Thank you..." he whispered, smiling at Karen, then looking down at Amy. "Thank you so much..." Karen smiled back at him squeezing his hand back muttering, "Your welcome..." and slowly fell asleep and her hand went limp but stayed in his. Like it alway would. Ricky kept smiling back at Karen and Amy. The sight of both of them sleeping made him feel tired, and he slowly closed his eyes, drifting off to sleep, still holding Karen's hand. Amy slowly opened her eyes looking up at Ricky. "Baha!" she said happliy then looked down spotting Karen. "Mamo!" she squiggled her way out of Ricky's arms and ploped onto the ground spotting Mrs. Drynn. "Gr! Gr!" she cryed out to her crawling towards Mrs. Drynn as fast as she could go. "Gr!" Karen slowly opened her eyes moaning slight. "...I feel much better..." she mumbled then slowly opened her eyes seeing Ricky asleep next to her...but Amy was gone. "Ricky...!" she squeaked out shaking him. "Where's Amy?!" What?" Ricky opened his eyes, looking down. "Oh, jeez..." he whispered. "She was just here! Where'd she...?" Mrs. Drynn was holding Amy, smiling at Karen and Ricky. "She's right here... But you should be more careful, Ricky. She crawled away while you were asleep. You haven't been a very good parent so far." "Quiet, grandma..." Ricky muttered, yawning. He smiled over at Amy. "Hey, Amy..." Amy smiled back at Ricky. "Moin Baha!" she said happily. "Imma Ninja!" she said reaching out to him. "I va Baha! I va Baha!" she cried out looking at Ricky with big brown eyes. "Baha!" Karen looked at Amy then at Ricky. "Amy wants you to hold her, Ricky.." she said smiling softly. Ricky smiled at Karen, then looked over at Amy. "Okay." He held out his hands as Mrs. Drynn placed Amy into his arms. "Hey, Amy..." he muttered softly, smiling down at her. "You're a ninja, huh? Maybe when you're older you can play ninja with Uncle Mimi. Won't that be fun?" Amy tilted her head repeating, "Mimi...ninja..." she said blinking. "Imma ninja!" she smiled whidly looking down at Karen tilting her head. "Mamo?" Karen was leaning against the couch breathing deeply not answering Amy right away. "...Hey Amy." she whispered but winced putting her hand onto her forhead. "I don't...feel well.." she muttered before fainting. Ricky gave Karen a concerned look, and glanced over at his mother. "Mom..." "She'll be fine." Mrs. Drynn said quietly, staring at Karen. "She'll be okay." Ricky nodded, then spoke softly to Amy. "...Mommy's just feeling tired right now... She'll be okay..." He pulled her closer. "She'll be okay..." Amy shook her head, "Curso!" she said waving her hands. "Mamo ha is curso!" Amy said staring down at Karen as she was pulled closer. "Antoit! po curso inni mamo!" "What?" Ricky stared down at Amy in confusion. "What do you mean?" He glanced at Karen. "Curso? What the heck is a--" He paused, looking back down at Amy. "You mean...curse? What about it? No, Mommy isn't cursed... She took that antidote, right?" Mrd. Drynn looked concerned. "Curse? What curse?" "Nothing..." Ricky muttered. "Nothing..." Myles was walking down the stairs, rubbing his eyes and yawning. "Hey, Mom... Hey, Amy... Hey, brother... What's up?" Ricky glanced at Myles. "I don't know... Do you know what Amy's saying? Can you understand her?" He shook his head. "I'm probably just being paranoid... It's probably just stupid baby talk...but... Hey, Amy, can you tell Uncle Mimi about what's happening to Mommy? Please?" "Antioite pot curso inni mamo!" she repeated trying her best to make it clear. "Curso...inni mamo.." she said looking down at Karen sadly. "Mamo curso insta offi mehh.." Myles blinked, and gave a small nod. "Amy says Mommy..." He looked over at Karen. "...That would mean Karen. So...she says...Karen has the curse...something about an antidote... 'Cursed instead of me'... So...the antidote put the curse into Karen?" "But... But she's got to be wrong..." Ricky glanced at Karen. "What would Amy know? She was just born... How would she know?" He shook his head. "It's not true... It's not... And how can you understand her anyway? It's not true..." Myles shook his head. "I don't know..." He looked back at Amy. "Amy... Do you know how we can get rid of the curse? Do you?" Amy shook her head franticly looking at Karen. "Mamo!" she cried out. Karen slowly opened her eyes...they were pure white. "Mamo hash curso!!" Amy shouted squeezing Ricky's shirt. "Sao mamo!" Ricky took a step away from Karen, holding Amy protectively. "What did she say, Myles!? Anything about how to get rid of this?" Myles shook his head. "She just said 'Save Mommy...' That was it..." "Great... How helpful..." Ricky muttered to himself, taking another step backwards. "I'd love to save Mommy, Amy, but I don't know how... If the curse is really inside her...do I have to fight it again? What am I supposed to do? Come on, Amy... Any advice?" Amy frowned up at Ricky. "Mamo...needie meh..." she said looking up at Ricky. "Gimma ta mamo!" Karen stood up and then stoped shaking her head she held it. "...I feel like I'm...dieing..." she said in a quiet whisper falling back down on the couch coughing. "I'm dieing..." "N-no, Karen... You're not..." Ricky shook his head. "You're not going to die!" Myles nodded at Amy and quickly said, "Brother! Amy says give her to Karen! 'Mommy needs me...' That's what she said!" "But... The curse..." Ricky gazed down at Amy, who looked so small and fragile in his arms. "...It could destroy her..." "Ricky!" Mrs. Drynn shouted. "Just do it!" Ricky stared down at Amy again, then looked over at Karen. "But..." He looked away, silently handing Amy over to Karen. "Be careful, Amy..." he whispered. "Be careful..." Amy looked Karen in the eyes put a hand onto her lips. "Mamo, be okie..." she whispered frowning. "Be okie.." Karen flinched and put her arms around Amy shivering. "Amy...what did you do?" she asked holding the child tightly. "What did you do?" "Mamo...ish okie...foi no.." Amy said putting her hand down onto Karen's shoulder. "Mamo willie dies...toni.." Myles looked at Ricky. "She said, 'Mommy is okay for now' but then...she says..." He looked away nervously. "She said 'Mommy will die tonight'..." Mrs. Drynn's eyes widened in horror and she looked away, covering her mouth with a shaking hand. "What!?" Ricky's eyes widened. "No, it's not true... She's not going to die... Amy! What am I supposed to do!? What do I do!? How can I stop her from dying!? Tell me what to do! Just tell me what to do...and I'll do it..." "Mamo ish gonna...dies." Amy said looking up at Ricky. "No defitering ze futire..." Karen flinched and looked up at Ricky. "Maybe...if I die it'll be for the best...I won't hurt anyone." she said coughing leaning back. "That...Dr. Wakza put something in that antidote to do this to me...I know it." "Mamo...hash thirth mintus." Amy said sniffleing. "Ish mi fault...mi fault.." she looked down. "Baha...be withie mamo by hishself.." "Thirty minutes..." Myles whispered, staring at Amy. "She said 'Mommy has thirty minutes'..." He glanced at Ricky, then looked away. Ricky glared at the ground, clenching his fists. "Thirty minutes... That's not fair..." His voice was a low, ice cold whisper. "I'll kill that guy... I'll make him suffer... I promise..." "She...also said... 'Daddy be with Mommy by himself'... So..." Myles slowly began to walk up the stairs. "B-bye, Karen..." His voice broke, but he kept climbing the stairs, not looking back. "See you later..." Mrs. Drynn looked away, then turned and ran from the room, letting out a small sob. Ricky stared down at Karen, still shaking with anger. "He can't do this to you... What does he want from us? Why did he have to do this?" He fell to his knees, still staring at Karen. "Don't you dare die..." he whispered, blinking tears away from his eyes. "Don't you dare..." Karen looked over at Ricky with tears in her eyes. "Ricky...I can't fight death..." she said staring at him. "I can't fight it.." Amy ploped down onto the ground and crawled over to Ricky putting both of her hands onto his right arm and began pulling. "Goie toie mamo...be wish mamo. Lovie mamo." Amy continued to pull on Ricky's arm. "Mamo needish yous.." "Yes you can..." Ricky put his arms around Karen with Amy still clinging to his right arm, closing his tear-filled eyes. "You have to... You can't die... You can't... You won't... I won't let you... You have to fight death... You...have to... Please don't die... Don't..." He squeezed her tighter. "You...can't...die..." Karen put her hands around him, "Ricky...I don't know if I can.." she whispered squeezing his shirt. "I don't know what to do...I don't...how." she closed her eyes loseing her grip on his shirt, she stoped moving and closed her eyes. "I'm sorry, Ricky...I can't fight it.." Ricky stared down at Karen, letting his tears fall, unable to hold them back anymore. "You have to, Karen! You have to fight it! Just wake up! Karen... Please..." He kissed her softly, pulling away and staring at her, still crying. "Don't...die..." Karen didn't move at all and when he kissed her softly her lips were as cold as death it's self. Her heart against his chest stoped beating. "I'm sorry Ricky..." Meanwhile upstairs in Myles room his necklace began to glow a ocean blue. "Let me out!" Ricky closed his eyes, unable to slow down his tears at all. He gently let go of Karen and cradled Amy in his arms, still crying silently. "Mommy's gone..." he whispered to her softly, feeling tears run down his cheeks. "She's gone..." Up in his room, Myles stared suspiciously at his necklace, which was glowing blue. "What the heck?" He pulled it off from around his neck, still staring at it. "Who are you, anyway? Are you real, or am I losing my mind? And how am I supposed to let you out? Are you trapped inside my necklace?" Amy looked over Ricky's shoulder. "Mamo...sheep?" she mumbled as Ricky cradled her. "Sheep, kyu?" Amy asked tilting her to the right just like Karen always did looking up at Ricky with the big brown eyes. "I was sleeping! But Karen's 'death' awoken me!" The necklace shook slightly. "I'm her Shingami! Let me out before her spirit goes onto the other side, please!" the voice shouted. "I'm Melody! I'm real you're not just hearing voices...there's something blocking from comming out. Bring me near Karen! Maybe that'll help!" the necklace jumped in the air back at Myles. "Hurry not much time!" "Yeah... Mommy's sleeping..." Ricky pulled Amy close, feeling her tiny heart beating against his chest. "I'm sorry, Amy... She's not going to wake up for a while..." He closed his eyes, trying to hold back more tears. "I'm sorry." "Jeez! Okay, okay!" Myles opened the door of his room, halting in mid-step. "Wait a minute... You mean she's dead?" His eyes widened, but he ran down the stairs, not hesitating any more. "Brother! SeethisnecklaceIthinkitcanhelpthere'ssomeoneinsidebutIalsothinkI'mlosingmymindsoIdon'treallyknowwhattodo!" He said it all in one breath, so the words stuck together. "This!" He indicated the necklace. "I think it can help!" Ricky didn't look up, didn't open his eyes. "That's...great, Myles..." he whispered softly. "That's great..." The necklace shook even more. "It worked!!" Melody said in a singly voice and a bright flash of light a three foot ghost appeared. Melody slowly opened her dark green eyes and blinked looking over at Myles then down at Ricky. "Thank you!" she looked to her sides and two what looked like circles appeared on her sides. She looked like Squee, but no pom pom. "Let's see..." she closed her eyes again and two orange wings appeared on her head and she floated near Karen smiling. "I'm her Shingami...I can still save her before she crosses over." Melody breathed in then out can a small sound and it went onto Karen glowing a light color. Karen slowly opened her eyes. "What...the heck..." she whispered looking over seeing Melody then over at Myles then at Ricky and Amy. "What...happened?" "You died." Melody said bluntly. "But your alive now so I'm going to leave you and Ricky alone, Let Amy go play!!" she waved goodbye and flew back into the necklace. "Oh yeah, Myles! Thank you I'm here so if you want to talk just talk to me!" Amy ploped down onto the ground and crawled in to the kitchen to Mrs. Drynn. "Mamo ish okie!" Ricky's eyes widened and he opened his mouth to say something, but the wrods were caught in his throat. He swept Karen up into a huge hug, crying again for some strange reason. "You're okay..." he whispered, hugging her tightly. "You're...okay..." "Yuck..." Myles said half-heartedly, smiling slightly at Karen. He turned to Melody, still giving a small smile. "Thank you." Back in the kitchen, Mrs. Drynn managed a small smile, picking Amy up. "Thank goodness..." she whispered, poking her head into the living room, seeing Ricky hug Karen. She pulled her head back into the kitchen, smiling slightly. "Everything's okay, then. Everything's...okay..." "What happened Ricky?" she asked hugging him back. "What on earth happened?" she asked putting her head down onto his shoulder. "Did something happen?" Melody looked over at Myles and floated after him. "Wait up!" she called out and blinked. "You..." Ricky's voice cracked and he hugged her tighter. "You...died..." he whispered. "You were gone... And then...I don't know... Something happened... But what's important is...you're alive now... But I swear...I'm going to kill that Dr. Wakza... I promise..." Myles turned around, looking at Melody. "What? Do you wanna play ninja?" Karen slowly pulled out of the hug. "Ricky...it's okay...you don't have to kill anyone." she said looking up at him kissing him softly on the lips pulling away then kissing him again. "I'm sorry...I made you worry..." she said quietly looking up at him slightly tilting her head. "Let me make up to you...Let's go to your room..." "What's...ninja?" Melody asked tilting her head to the side. "Is it a food!?" Melody asked sitting down on Myles shoulder looking down at him. "It sounds tasty!!" Melody said smiling whide. "I-it's not your fault..." Ricky smiled at Karen, kissing her lips softly. "You...don't have to make anything up to me... R-really..." He took her hand, glancing at the stairs. "I mean...I'd like that, but... It's up to you. Don't feel like you have to do something because of me." - - - Myles raised an eyebrow. "No! A ninja isn't a food!" He pointed at himself. "I'm a ninja! Wow, you're really clueless, aren't you?" Karen looked at the stairs and smiled. "But what if I want to?" she asked tilted her head. "Let's go, Ricky." she squeezed his hand standing up pulling him to the stairs. ----- Melody floated in front of Myles, "Hey! I've been stuck in that necklace for along time!" she said tilting her head. "Can I be a ninja too!?" Ricky smiled, looking away. "Um..." He glanced down at their hands, then looked away again. "Thanks..." he whispered softly as he began to climb the stairs with Karen. "...Thank you..." - - - Myles blinked. "Sensei?" He grinned at Melody. "Awesome! Okay! Well...first...you need to learn...um..." He closed his eyes, thinking. "...Um... Oh! I know! You have to learn the art of...um...sneaking around without being caught! I'm really good at it!" He watched Ricky go up the stairs with Karen. "Okay..." Myles lowered his voice to a whisper. "What you have to do is follow them without being seen! Then comes phase two...learning how to spy on people!" He grinned again. "This is gonna be so fun!" Karen looked back at Ricky as she opened up his door. "Your welcome?" she said questionablie. She closed the door as soon as they were bother inside locking it shut. She looked back at Ricky smiling shyly. ----- Melody looked over at Myles tilting her head. "Spy on Karen and that boy?" she asked blinking. "I couldn't do that to Karen! I'm her shingami!" she said shaking her head. "I can hid you though...as in...make you as quiet as a mouse, Sensei.." Ricky smiled back, pulling Karen close to him and kissing her lips softly. He pulled away, glancing at the locked door, still smiling slightly. "Thank you..." he whispered again, leaning in and kissing her again. - - - Myles grinned. "Really? You can do that? 'Cause I've always wanted to spy on them!" He frowned, looking away. "But they're probably doing something gross...like making out!" He giggled. "Eww..." Karen smile back at Ricky kissing him back on the lips kissing him harder pulling on his shirt, lightly blushing. ----- Melody tilted her head again. "Making out? Can you show me how to do that too!?" she asked excitedly. "I'll make you as quiet as a mouse and you show me how to make out!" Ricky deepened the kiss, pulling away, still smiling. His face was light pink, but he didn't seem to notice. He kissed her lips again, pulling away and softly kissing her neck. - - - "Um...not really..." Myles stared at Melody. "I don't do that stuff! It's disgusting! If you wanna see what making out is, why don't you go spy on them? I'm not going to show you how to make out, but I can try to explain it..." He sighed. "So... Do you know what a kiss is?" Karen tilted her head to the side blushing lightly smiling. "Ricky?" she said softly looking down at him. "Can you do what...you're thinking of right now?" she asked simpley looking up at him. "Please...for me?" ----- Melody tilted her head, "A kiss?" she nodded. "I know what that is!" she said floating in front of him, "A kiss is the key to turn me to my true form!" she said smiling again swarling around then looking at him. "And it's also the key to get you into that room quietly!" she said as she was upside down. "What's kissing have to do what making out?" Ricky smiled, laying down on his bed, pulling Karen down next to him. "Hey... I want to know what you're thinking too..." He was smiling up at the ceiling. "You can do whatever you want to do..." He turned his head so he was looking directly at her. "You can do anything you want..." - - - Myles crossed his arms across his chest, staring at Melody. "Well... Um... It's sort of..." He pointed up the stairs. "Just go look and see for yourself! I can't explain it because it's too disgusting!" He lowered his voice slightly, completely changing the subject. "What does your true form look like?" Karen smiled. "Only...if you will.." she said tugging on his shirt again turning on her side to look at him. "I'm sorry I died..." she whispered kissing him softly for a second then pulling away. "Show me what you're thinking about..." ----- Melody tilted her head to the side again. "WellI forgot..." she said looking down. "It's been a long time, sence I was in my true form." she said looking over at him. "Want me to show you!?" she asked floating in his face. "PleaseI want to remember what I really look like!" Ricky sighed, smiling back at Karen. "Fine... Okay..." He kissed her back, pulling away slowly. "...It's not your fault you died..." he whispered, gently running a finger down her cheek. "...So don't say you're sorry..." He let his finger trail down her neck and hesitated for a moment, whispering, "Don't...blame yourself..." - - - "Yeah! Show me, show me, show me!" Myles grinned excitedly, watching Melody expectantly. "Wait... What did you say about transforming into your true form? I forgot... How are you supposed to do it? Can I help? Wow, this is going to be cool!" Karen looked at him with soft eyes, "Listen to your own advice..." she said whispering sharply while staring at him. "You always blame yourself, for thing's you didn't do..." ----- Melody blinked tilting her head, "Well I need a kiss from a guy!" she said tilting her head at Myles. "Aren't you a guy?" "But..." Ricky sighed, looking away. "I always feel like it's my fault... I feel like everything is my fault..." He sighed again, staring back at Karen. "When you were...dying...all I could think about was...how I slapped you yesterday...twice...and how I'd never be able to make it up to you...if you died... And then I thought about how much I'd miss you, and how I'd be a complete wreck for the rest of my life...how I wouldn't be able to raise Amy by myself without being reminded of you every time I saw her..." He gave a small, shaky smile. "She does look just like you...especially her eyes..." - - - Myles blinked. "No!" was his immediate reaction. "I mean, yeah...I'm a guy...b-but, can't you ask someone else? I can't kiss someone! I've never done something like that in my life! Ew!" He looked away. "Well...I mean... Idon't know... Technically...you're not really a person, are you?" He glared suspiciously at Melody. "What are you, anyway?" Karen looked down at her hands still holding lightly on his shirt she then looked up at him. "She does?" she asked smiling at him. "I bet...she'll act just like you when she's older..." she said softly looking up at him. "Now...do what you're thinking Ricky.." she said kissing him softly on the lips. ---- Melody's wings went down slowly and she looked down. "I don't know..." she said sadly. "All I know...is I'm a 'shingami'...or that's what I've been told. But most Shingami's don't have human forms!" she said frowning. "I forgot what I look like truely...It's really kind of sad." "Yeah..." Ricky smiled. "I bet you're right..." He sat up, staring down at Karen for a second, and got on top of her, smiling and blushing at the same time. "It's that...awkward position again..." he whispered, leaning down and kissing her softly on the lips. - - - Myles frowned. "That's sad..." he whispered. "I'm sorry. Well, maybe I can help you... I mean, it's not like this is a real kiss... That would be creepy... And it doesn't count because you're a...a...a whatever you just said you are..." He muttered to himself for another minute, but looked back at Melody when he was done. "Okay. I'll help you." He clumsily leaned forward and kissed her timidly, pulling away almost as soon as his lips touched her. "There... All done..." He looked away, shuddering slightly. "Eww, gross..." he whispered to himself, not looking up. Karen smiled shyly kissing him back pulling on his shirt again even harder to get his attention. She looked away blushing. "Could you..?" she whispered looking up at him. ---- Melody closed her eyes tightly and glew a yellow and her form changed to a girl around the age of 12. She blinked her green eyes looking at her hands and at her chest blinking. "I have these?" she asked looking down at then looked over at Myles. "Thank you." "Wh-what?" Ricky whispered, staring down at Karen as she tugged on his shirt again. "What...do you mean?" he whispered, blinking, looking confused. "What do you want, Karen?" He leaned in closer to her, so their lips were almost touching. "I'll give you anything... I'll do anything... Just tell me...what you want..." - - - Myles blinked, taking a step backward, blushing lightly. "Aw, man! So you're a girl! A human! Oh, man... Oh, jeez... I kissed a girl... Eww, eww, eww! Yuck!" He paused, just registering what Melody had said. "Oh... You're...welcome... It was... It was nothing... Glad to help out..." He took another small step away from her, still not believing what he had done. Karen looked at him pulling his shirt again. "Could you...take it off?" she asked kissing him on the lips, hard and soft at the same time she pulled away putting his hands onto her chest. "Please?" ----- Melody looked at Myles crossing her arms. "So you hate girls that much?" she asked tilting her head. "What if I was a boy...that would kind of been weird wouldn't it of been." she said stepping closer to him looking slightly up at him. "You don't like me?" she asked tilting her head. "Oh..." Ricky whispered softly, blushing and looking away. He pulled his hands away from Karen's chest, and pulled off his shirt, still looking away. Still blushing, he gently put his hands back on Karen's chest, feeling his face get even warmer. "...Okay..." he whispered, giving Karen a small, nervous smile. - - - "I like you!" Myles said stubbornly, glaring at the floor. "I just... I don't...really like girls...that's all... They're just so..." He looked up and saw her take a step closer, which made him take another step back until he bumped into the wall. "I...don't know... They're so different... Maybe I'm just afraid of them..." Karen blushed smiling shyly at him leaning up kissing him softly on the lips. "Ricky...I love you..." she said softly kissing him harder on the lips, pressing her chest against him. ---- Melody was mearly three feet away from him. "It's not good to be afraid of girls, Myles." she said leaning closer to him. "It's not good at all to be afraid of them." Ricky started to reply, but his voice trailed off into a soft moan as Karen kissed him harder and pressed her chest against him. He stayed like that for a while, eventually pulling away slowly. "I love you too, Karen..." he whispered softly, kissing her hard again, sending a small shiver down his spine. - - - "I can't help it..." Myles whispered, trying to back up even more. He tried to push himself farther away from her, but he was already pressed flat against the wall. "I know it's not really a good thing to be afraid...but... My brother...Ricky...he grew out of it... He's not afraid of girls anymore... He kisses Karen all the time... I'll grow out of it some day too... But right now..." He shook his head, looking away. "I'm terrified..." Karen let out a small moan and slowly pulled away after a while. "Do you think...you could squeeze your hands now?" she asked softly while blushing. "...please?" ----- Melody blinked then smiled, "Then...do you want me to show you how to become un-terrified?" she asked putting her hands to his sides smiling sweetly leaning closer to him. "Do you?" "Yeah... I think I could..." Ricky replied, smiling and blushing. He squeezed his hands, letting out a small sigh as he leaned in and kissed Karen again, squeezing his hands again, slightly harder. - - - "I...d-don't think..." Myles trailed off as Melody leaned closer to him. He wanted to be able to run, to disappear through the wall, but he just couldn't. He knew he was trapped, and he was staring at her with terror in his eyes. "I mean...h-how...do I become un-terrified?" His voice was squeaky and he thought it sounded pathetic. "Can you help me, maybe? Is there really a cure from afraid-of-girls disease?" Karen sighed deeply while blushing kissing him back on the lips moaning as he squeezed his hands again. She slowly pulled away lifting his hands onto her shirt blushing. "Ricky..." she whispered quietly smiling. "Go ahead..." ----- Melody was mearly inches away from his lips whispering, "Let me show you.." she whispered kissing him softly on the lips, lightly blushing as she did so. "Okay..." Ricky whispered, smiling back at Karen, gently lifting up and pulling off her shirt, blushing again. He looked away, whispering, "Okay..." again because he didn't know what to say. - - - Myles blinked and squirmed a bit, trying to get away from Melody, but something held him back. He squeezed his eyes shut, telling himself he didn't like kissing, and he didn't like girls, and he didn't like the warm feeling spreading across his face, and he didn't like the way his heart started beating fast, and he definitely didn't like the shockwave that was sent through every part of his body as their lips met, giving him a pleasant tingling sensation. He kept telling himself he didn't like it, but he couldn't pull away. For some reason, he had lost the will to fight. He had apparently lost his mind too, because he didn't know why he was putting his arms around Melody, shivering as he touched her.. Karen blushed and looked up at him kissing him softly on the lips before pulling away. "Ricky..." she put his hands onto her chest again smiling softly remembering she was wairing the strapless bra from the other night. "Thank..you." she whispered kissing him again. ----- Melody put her hands around his neck kissing him lightly but slowly pulled away from the kiss. "I'm sorry about that...Myles." she whispered trying to cetch her breath while staring at him taking her hands from around his neck. "I'll leave you alone." Ricky gave another quiet moan as Karen kissed him. He squeezed his hands again, pulling away from the kiss, staring into Karen's eyes. "I love you so much... Don't die...ever again...please..." - - - "Wait!" Myles grabbed Melody's wrist, still blushing. He glanced down at his hand, and wondered why he was holding her wrist. For some strange reason, he didn't want her to leave. But that was impossible... After all, she was a girl... Myles shook his head and pulled her closer, a hint of fear still in his eyes. "I...don't want you to leave..." Before he realized what he was saying and doing, Myles leaned closer to Melody and kissed her lips softly, just like he had seen Ricky do to Karen once. "I'll try my best...not to die." she whispered staring up into his eyes sighing deeply as he squeezed his hands again lightly blushing she kissed him on the lips softy then slowly pulled away after a minute. "Don't hold back...on what you're thinking.." ----- Melody kissed him softly on the lips and blushed light again. Why was he acting like this? She knew she had been with Myles for a long time...inside that cursed necklace, but still. He was kissing her, the one thing he hated and she knew what to do.. She pulled away slowly looking at him in the eyes. "Are you still terrified of girls?" "Don't you...hold back either..." Ricky whispered, squeezing again, harder this time. He kissed her again, slowly pulling away, staring down at her. "What are you thinking about?" he whispered softly, still staring at her. - - - Myles looked away, still blushing. "I... I don't know... Maybe... That...was scary... But it was also..." He let his voice trail off, then shook his head, afraid of what he had started to say. "No, no, no... Kissing is gross... It's bad... It's..." He tried to back up, forgetting he was already up against the wall. "It's..." He shook his head again, looking away. Karen blushed again as he squeezed harder. She looked up at him, "I'm thinking about..." she trailed off and kissed him softly on the lips and closed her eyes tring to think strait...she wanted to do what they did last night. But, it was crazy. "...I want to do what we did last night..." she said before she could cetch her words they slipped out. ----- Melody took a step back. "It's something great...kissing is well 'magical' I think...so." she looked at him against the wall and took another step back then another one. "I'm sorry, Myles." Ricky blushed, looking away. "You...really want to?" He shivered, letting his grip relax. He felt dizzy, and he was suddenly aware of the fact that he was on top of Karen. "If...that's what you want..." he whispered, still looking away. "Is it...?" - - - Myles looked up, watching Melody stepping away from him. "Magical..." he repeated softly, not knowing what to do. "Wait..." he whispered, taking a step toward her as she stepped back. "Um... I..." He looked away, blushing again. "...Thank you..." he whispered timidly, not looking up. "That was... It was...different... Whenever I saw people kissing...it always looked gross...not..." He closed his eyes. "...magical..." "Yes I do...but let's not...make another baby...okay?" she said blushing kissing him softly on the lips. ----- Melody steped back feeling a wall then she blushed looking away closing her eyes. "Y-You're welcome." she said closing her eyes. "You like it then now?" she asked tilting her head to the side again. "Right..." Ricky closed his eyes, returning the kiss. He pulled away, smiling softly, and got up off of Karen, staring down at her. He sighed softly, lying down next to her, pulling her into a tight hug. "Are you ready?" he whispered, still hugging her. - - - "I...don't know..." Myles took a step toward Melody, looking away. "It was..." He took another step, seeing her against the wall. He stepped forwrad again, closing the gap between them, smiling despite the slight fear still in his eyes. "...magical." Karen nodded lightly blushing a light red. "Yeah...I'm ready." she whispered closing her eyes. "We've already...done this before so it shouldn't...be so hard...right?" ----- Melody smiled and kissed him softly on the lips smiling putting her hands around his neck. She then pulled away slowly after another minute staring at him. "Myles, do you want to go spy on Karen?" she asked leaning her forhead against his. "Or do you want to do this again?" Ricky nodded, letting go of her. "Right..." he whispered softly, reaching out and putting one hand on her chest. "You're right..." He sighed, closing his eyes for a moment. "Okay..." he whispered softly. "I'm ready too..." He gently lifted off her bra, blushing, looking away. - - - Normally, Myles would have gone spying without a second thought, but today something was different... "I don't know... What do you want to do?" he asked quietly, looking away, wondering why he was secretly hoping they could stay there for a little while longer. Karen took her bra away from his hands and blushed throwing it onto the ground. Turnning back over to him smiling. "Ricky...you don't have to be nervious anymore...we've already done this before..." she whispered looking up at him. "Okay?" ----- Melody looked at Myles amd smiled. "Let's stay here...just for a bit longer." she said softly kissing him on the lips softly. "I know..." Ricky whispered, smiling back at Karen. "...I know..." He reached out with one hand, touching her chest, sending a small shiver down his spine. "I know..." he whispered again, still smiling. - - - Myles felt her kiss him, causing him to blush again. It was like the thrill of flying for the first time, except ten times better, and slightly different in a way he couldn't figure out. He returned the kiss, closing his eyes and letting out a small sigh. Karen blushed and then smiled back at him leaning in kissing him softly on the lips putting her hands onto his bare chest blushing a bit she slowly pulled away smiling at him sweetly then tilted her head. "What's wrong?" ----- Melody deepened the kiss before pulling out of the kiss...slowly. She looked at him in the eyes and tilted her head again. "Are you okay?" "Nothing's wrong..." Ricky whispered, smiling and shivering as she put her hands onto his chest. "I'm fine... But I'm not the one who just died... Are you sure you're feeling okay?" He gently squeezed his hand, staring into her eyes. - - - Myles nodded slowly, staring back at Melody. "Yeah... I'm...okay... That...was..." he smiled, shivering slightly, letting out a deep sigh. "...magical, right? Wanna go play ninja now?" he whispered, putting his arms around her before he could stop himself. Mrs. Drynn poked her head out of the kitchen, smiling as she saw Myles and Melody. "Look at you, Uncle Mimi..." she whispered, pulling her head back into the kitchen. "You're growing up, aren't you?" Karen blushed and sighed deeply nodding. "I'm okay...I don't know I can't explain it but...when Melody brought me back...I felt like she was giving me her life or something...I can't explain it at all..." she whispered staring back at him. "I don't know..." ----- Melody smiled hugging him back smiling she squeezed him back blushing. "Sure...let's go play...ninja." she pulled out of the hug slowly kissing him for a second before pulling away putting her hand onto his forhead. "Be quiet..." she whispered taking his hand and jumping up floating and dissappering into the ceiling invisable to people. She looked over blushing staring at Karen and Ricky. Bending over to Myles she whispered. "What are they doing?" "Giving you her life?" Ricky blinked, staring back at Karen. "But where did she come from? Who was she? And how was she able to bring you back?" He sighed, gently squeezing his hand again, kissing her lips softly, then pulling away. "Eww..." Myles whispered, staring at Karen and Ricky with a horrified expression on his face. "Why is Ricky touching Karen's..." He giggled, putting a hand over his mouth, unable to stop himself. "Eww... Gross..." He let out another tiny giggle. Karen shook her head. "I don't know...she's my shingami I can't explain it.." she whispered kissing him softly on the lips before sighing deeply pulling away and looked down at her pants. "You can take them off too..." Melody tugged on Myles hand, "Should we get out of here?" she whispered blushing. "We shouldn't be...watching this. Should we?" Ricky pulled his hand away from her chest and placed it on her waist, grabbing her pants, staring into her eyes. "Okay..." he whispered, reaching out with his other hand, grabbing the other side of the waist of Karen's pants and gently pulling down. "No... I don't think we should..." Myles glanced sideways at Melody, then looked down again. "Yeah... We should go now... We can do something else..." He smiled. "I know! I can show you my comic collection!" Karen looked back into his eyes smiling softly and she threw the pants to the ground before kissing him passionately on the lips smiling. She slowly pulled away looking at him in the eyes again. "Make a move...it's okay..." ----- Melody quickly phased threw the ground landing on the floor looking over at Myles nodding. "Okay! show me your 'comic collection'...whatever that is!" Ricky blushed, kissing her back with equal passion, pulling away, staring back at her. "Make a move..." he whispered to himself, looking down. He hesitantly reached down, grabbing her underwear, pulling gently, staring back into Karen's eyes, shivering. He gave another harder pull, still blushing light pink. - - - Myles blinked. "You don't know what a comic is? I'll show you! Come on!" He ran into his room, picking up his backpack and dumping out its contents. "These are comics." He picked one up, flipping through it. "See? They're like picture books with words in these little bubbles. They can be funny, scary, or anything! They're awesome!" He pointed into the corner of his room where a couple of books were piled on top of each other. "Those ones were my mommy's old comic books from when she was a kid... I've never read them because she told me they're about icky stuff like kissing." Karen blushed looking up at him as he pulled on her underwear. "Ricky..." she whispered blushing staring at him. "Go on..." ----- Melody picked up a book tilting her head turnning it upside down then rightside up. Looking over at Myles. "But...I thought you liked kissing!" she said crossing her arms then put the comic down pushing him down onto the bed smiling at him. "I thought you liked it..." Ricky looked away as Karen stared at him, feeling his face get warm. He gave another pull, harder than last time, glancing back at Karen, still blushing. - - - Myles blushed as he was pushed down onto his bed. "I...didn't like it when Mom first gave me those books... That's why I never read them...ever... I never even opened one of those books before... I never wanted to... And besides..." He smiled softly at Melody. "...actually kissing is different from just reading it in a book..." Karen blushed staring at him smiling seeing his face turn red as he pulled again. She closed her eyes for a second winceing in pain holding her head. "My head...hurts.." ----- Melody stared down at Myles slowly bending down to him kissing his lips 'passionately.' pinning his arms to the bed. "You're right...it is.." Ricky pulled away, staring at Karen. "Are you sure you're okay?" he whispered softly. "Is it just a normal headache, or...?" He left the sentence unfinished, not knowing what to say. - - - Myles blinked, instinctively trying to squrim free, but his arms were pinned down. He felt Melody kiss him, wondering why his face felt warm when a chill was running through his entire body at the same time. He kissed her back, closing his eyes, feeling another chill run down his spine. Karen opened her eyes and glared at Ricky...her eyes were still brown...but one was pure white she lifted her hand to him grabbing him by the neck. "Shut up." she said sharply pushing him down onto the bed still holding onto his neck. "Just shut up.." ----- Melody slowly pulled away. "You know...you can still act child-ish...and grow up too." she said looking down at him. "It's okay..." Ricky winced as Karen grabbed him by the neck. "Get...lost..." he managed to choke out, flinching with every word. "Leave...her...alone..." - - - Myles smiled at Melody. "It's...okay?" he whispered, staring up at her. "Really? I never wanted to grow up because grown-ups never do anything fun...but maybe it's not so bad..." He wrapped his arms around her, still smiling. "Thanks..." "Shut up..." she whispered losening her grip around his throat closing her eyes tightly before fainting ontop of him. ----- Melody smiled at him. "You're welcome..." she whispered before kissing him softly on the lips. Ricky blinked, sitting up, blushing with Karen on top of him. "Karen?" he whispered, putting his hand on her shoulder and shaking her gently. "Are you okay? Are you...awake?" He sighed, looking away. "I knew the curse wasn't gone... I just knew it..." - - - Myles returned the kiss, not holding back this time. He wasn't afraid anymore, and his doubts about growing up were mostly erased. He hugged her tighter, wishing they could stay like this forever. Karen slowly opened her eyes, "Ricky...that..curse." she whispered shivering. "What did I do?" she asked tilting her head down. "This is the same curse...we thought that died...it got away...and Dr. Wakza found it evil and pride took over him.." she blushed realizing she was ontop of him quickly pulling away. "I'm s-sorry." ----- Melody smiled while blushing hugging him back kissing him harder on the lips, then slowly pulled away. "Myles?" she whispered. "Do you like me?" "Don't be sorry..." Ricky whispered, sighing. "How are we supposed to get rid of it, then? We have to kill it...and make sure it doesn't come back...ever... But how?" He felt her pull away, and shook his head, putting his arms around her, pulling her back towards him. - - - Myles smiled up at Melody. "Yeah... I like you..." he whispered softly, staring into her eyes. "...a lot..." Karen blushed and leaned against his chest. "You're going to have to get rid of it...in a body..." she said whispering. "I won't let you...have this curse back Ricky, if it comes down to it...you're going to have to kill me...you're going to have too..." she said keeping her head down not daring to look up at him.. "I won't let your life...be comepletely torn up again." she squeezed her hands. "Expecualy...now that Amy is born. There's no way I'll let you have it...back." ----- Melody smiled at him. "I like you alot too..." she looked away then down kissing him on the lips. "I like you alot..." she repeated kissing him passionately again. "I won't kill you..." Ricky whispered, staring sadly at Karen. "I don't care if I have to take it back... I don't care..." He sighed. "I don't want you to suffer just like I did... I can't just sit here and watch your life be torn apart..." He shook his head. "I don't know what else to do... But I'm not killing you... I'd never do that..." - - - Myles returned the kiss, blushing again. He slowly pulled away, staring at her. "Melody..." he said softly, looking away. "Will... Will you...be...my best friend?" Karen started back at Ricky looking away. "I won't let you have this curse back, Ricky...I won't." she whispered to him sadly. "I won't..." she winced and held her chest. "I...won't let you have it, Gosh dang it.." she put her hand onto her head. "Ricky just leave me alone..." she said pushing him away. "Leave me alone...stay out of my head.." ---- Melody looked back at Myles tilting her head. "Sure!...but...what's that?" Ricky looked down, trying to figure out what to say. "Karen... Stop pushing me away... Let me help you... Please... I can't just let you go through all the pain I went through because of that curse..." He looked up, staring at her. "Just...let me help..." - - - Myles smiled at her. "A best friend is..um... It's someone..." He looked away, biting his lip in concentration. "...Someone you like a lot. And you do fun stuff together...and...um... Here, let me show you!" He leaned toward her, softly kissing her lips, pulling away slowly. "That's what it feels like to have a best friend... It's..." He smiled, searching for the right word. "...magical." Karen stepped away from him, "No...just stop it...I won't let you..." she whispered shaking. "I won't let you help me!" she said slapping him across the face. "Just shut up and leave me alone." ----- Melody smiled and kissed him softly. "...Then yes, I want to be your best friend." Ricky reached up and touched his face with a shaky hand. "Just...listen to me..." he whispered, looking away. "Why won't you just listen? Stupid curse..." He glared at Karen. "Come on, Karen... Just fight it... Fight whatever's making you act like this..." - - - Myles hugged her gently, kissing her back, slightly harder. He pulled away, staring at her, smiling. "Thank you..." he whispered, hugging her tighter. Karen shook her head stepping away again so her back was against the wall. "Don't you get it...I'm...not acting different." she said clenching her head again glaring back at him. "Leave me alone...I can do this by my self..." she said looking at her hands. "If I kill myself...I'll kill that..damn curse..." ----- Melody hugged him back then stoped whispered to him. "Your welcome..." she said softly kissing him on the passionately. "Myles..." Ricky's eyes widened as Karen stepped back. "Don't kill yourself, you...idiot... You're not thinking straight... How do you know you'll kill the curse anyway? I've dealt with that stupid curse for almost ten years... Why won't you just let me help you?" - - - Myles kissed her back, then pulled away, smiling at her. He hugged her tighter, staring into her eyes. "So... W-want...to play ninja?" His voice was shaky and uncertain, but he was still smiling at her. Karen looked over at her bag, "In my bag...are your knifes...get them now." she said not answering his question. "If I distroy myself...the curse will die." she looked down and laughed evily looking up at Ricky with silver eyes. "She only know's that...because I told her back at the forest." Karen looked down at her hand. "But I hate this body now..." she smirked, "I need a new one...a younger one." looking up at Ricky then down at the ground, "That brother of your's room is right below this room..." she laughed and phased threw the ground. ---- Melody looked at Myles smiling. "Sure...I'd love to play ninja..." she then gasped looking over Myles shoulder seeing Karen at the foot of the bed. "Karen?" Melody asked with whide eyes. Karen looked down at Melody then threw her off of Myles picking him up by the throat. "This'll work out perfectly.." Ricky's eyes widened as Karen phased through the floor. "Myles..." he whispered, phasing down after her, seeing his younger brother struggling to get away from her. Myles coughed, having trouble breathing with Karen holding him by his throat. He reached up, trying to take her hands off his neck, kicking her, trying to squirm free. "B-Brother..." he choked out, seeing Ricky phase through the ceiling. "Help..." Ricky ran over to Karen, grabbing her arm and trying to pull it away from his little brother's neck. "Stop it... Leave him alone..." Karen's grip only tightened kicking Ricky away from her. "I need him uncontious to switch...don't you interfear." she hissed at Ricky looking down at Myles with her white eyes, bending down to him. "Go to sleep little Myles." Myles coughed again, taking in breaths in tiny gasps, trying to breathe. "Brother..." he whispered again, still squirming around. "Karen...why...are you..." His voice faded away as his vision got blurry. "Help me..." he whispered softly, struggling to keep his eyes open. Ricky stood up, glaring at Karen. "Stop it!" When he saw Myles's eyelids droop shut, he ran toward her and pulled back his fist, aiming a punch at her, whispering, "Sorry..." Karen laughed as he punched her in the face. Looking back at him, "I thought you promised not to hurt her again...shame on you for breaking your promise." Looking back down at Myles she bent down to him again seeing his eyes closed. Kissing Myles on the lips her eyes turned back to a brown and she pulled away lifting up her head putting a hand onto her sore cheek. "What...did I do?" Myles opened his eyes, glaring at Karen with a smirk on his face. "I guess it worked..." He glanced at Ricky, still smriking. "Hello...brother..." Ricky stared back at Myles. "Leave him alone... He's just a kid... Just a clueless, innocent kid... Why can't you just leave him alone!?" "You've given me so much trouble, brother..." Myles looked back at Ricky, a bored expression on his face. "Now that I don't need you anymore, I might just have to kill you." Karen stared at Myles and still sat where she was sitting. "Myles...what..." she reconized the voice. "I-I didn't...I didn't." she whispered staring at him, "That stupid curse is in you..." "Hey... Who are you calling stupid?" Still smirking, Myles looked back at Karen. "I don't need you anymore, either... So I guess you two can both die...together..." He let out an ice cold laugh. "Won't that be romantic? Oh, and another thing... Before you two die...I'll kill your kid, too..." He smirked, reaching out and grabbing Karen by the neck. "Won't that be fun?" "Leave her alone... Leave him alone..." Ricky glared at Myles. "Just stop it! You always hide by taking over someone I care about... Just come out so I can fight you!" Myles sighed. "No, I don't think so... Oh, and I almost forgot... I should kill my best friend too..." Karen closed her eyes and grabbed him by the arm, "Stay away...from...Amy...don't you...dare." she tried pulling his arm off of her neck, but sence the curse was giving Myles extra stranth...she couldn't pull his hand away. "...Leave him alone you stupid curse..." Melody slowly opened her eyes staring over at them not moving seeing Ricky just standing there glaring at Myles as he choaked Karen. "What are you doing?" she whispered to herself. "What are you doing?" Myles squeezed his hand tighter around her throat, giving a sickening grin. "Ricky... Why do you care about such weak people?" He half pushed, half threw Karen to the ground, smirking. "It's so easy to take over people like her...and your brother..." Ricky clenched his fists, still unable to move. A voice in his head kept saying, He's your brother... You can't hurt him... But he knew he had to do something, so he stepped forward, grabbing Myles's arm. "Stop it... Leave him alone... I swear... If you keep hurting people...I'm going to have to kill Myles... Then you'd die, too... And when you're dead, no one else will have to suffer..." Myles smirked. "You wouldn't kill your own brother... You'd never be able to... Besides..." He created an ectoblast, pointing it at Karen. "Do you want her to die, too? What would you do...in a situation like this? When every option is unacceptabe?" He snickered, staring at Ricky. "What would you do?" Myles glanced over at Karen. "And what would you do, you pathetic little..." He was cut off as Ricky knocked him backwards, pinning him to the ground. "Leave her alone..." he hissed. Myles just blasted Ricky backwards, seeing him crash into the wall, wincing in pain. "Don't get in my way, you idiot..." Karen watched Ricky hit the wall. "Ricky." she whispered then growled standing up. "Hey you stupid curse, want to play?" she asked stepping forward to him. "Want me to die slowly?" stepping back glancing at Ricky then at the window. "Because I won't give you...any other choice!" stepping back again she quickly ran and put her hands around his stomach phasing threw the wall of the house landing on the ground pinning him to the floor. "Leave him alone." "Get off of me..." He pushed Karen away, sitting up, glaring at her. "Don't get in my way..." He stood up, still glaring at her, not making a move yet. "Because...if you do...you'll regret it..." Karen glared back at him. "I'm not going to let you do anything." she said getting in front of him, "Leave him alone, you idiot...leave him alone!" Myles smirked at Karen, forming an ectoblast in his hand. "What if I don't want to? But too bad this kid is so weak... He doesn't even fight back... It's pathetic." He held up his hand, aiming at Karen. "Pathetic...just like you." He fired the ectoblast, still smirking. Before the ectoblast could hit her she blocked with two wind-blades tossing the ectoblast away. "Me? Pathetic?" she lifted up a blade at him, "You're the one that's pathetic...switching from one body to another!" Karen shouted at him, "If you ask me that's the lowest something could go." "Maybe." Myles shrugged, watching Karen's wind-blades carefully. "Too bad I don't have any knives with me right now..." He held out his hand, creating a red blade made of ectoplasm. "I guess I'll just have to...improvise..." "What!?" she steped back seeing him make a red blade in his hand. "When did you..." she shook her head. "Nevermind..." she lifted up her hands again glaring at Myles. "Idiot.." she whispered running into attack the evil Myles. Myles smirked, raising his blade to block the attack. "I really am enjoying this...but I don't have much time right now... I'm supposed to be killing your child right now, but I'm running a little behind schedule..." He held up his hand, giving her a small wave. "Bye!" He phased through the ceiling, appearing in the kitchen in front of his mother. Mrs. Drynn smiled. "Hello, Myles..." She blinked. "Why are your...? What happened to your eyes? They're..." Myles smirked. "Don't you recognize them? They're the same eyes that stared back at you one morning, nine years ago... And you were completely clueless... Never knowing your son was cursed..." He snickered. "...Idiot." Karen's eyes whidened as Myles phased thew the ceiling. "No." she whispered following after him appearing behind Mrs. Drynn and Amy staying invisable. She looked at him shivering with anger at the curse...he wasn't going to touch eather of them she turned visable quickly getting in front of Mrs. Drynn and Amy. "Mamo! Curso inni Uncle Mimi!" Amy cried out clinging to Mrs. Drynn. "...I know Amy..." she said looking at Myles. "Leave them alone...you'll have to kill me before touching Amy." Mrs. Drynn's eyes widened as looked from Karen to Myles, holding Amy tightly. She shook her head, taking a step back. "You're not going to die while defending us..." she whispered to Karen, backing up again, getting closer to the door with each step. Myles shrugged, creating a second red ectoplasmic knife to match the first. "Fine... Have it your way, then." He tossed the first blade at Karen as a distraction, immediately lunging at her with the second knife in his hand. Karen looked back at Mrs. Drynn then back at the knife thrown at her. She then didn't notice that Myles ran at her stabbing her in the chest. Her eyes whidened feeling it in her chest. "...Protect Amy." she whispered to Mrs. Drynn, grabbing Myles by the hand. "Please...Myles wake up..." shivering she asked in a whisper. "Please..." Mrs. Drynn's mouth fell open, tears filling her eyes. "I will, Karen..." she whispered, turning and running out of the room, feeling tears run down her face. "I promise..." Myles smirked, laughing. "How do you think you can possibly wake him up? Especially when I'm at my most powerful state..." He grinned, pushing the knife farther into her chest, lowering his voice to an ice cold whisper. "...when I kill someone." - - - Back upstairs, Ricky sat up, blinking. "What...happened?" he whispered, looking over at Melody. "Hey...you...where'd Myles go? Who the heck are you, anyway?" Karen finched feeling the blade get deeper in her chest causing her to scream in pain. "Leave him alone...please...leave him alone.." her breath was getting deeper. "Leave him alone-.." ----- Melody looked at Ricky. "I'm...Melody." she said hearing a scream her eyes whidened. "That...was Karen." "Great..." Ricky muttered, grabbing Melody by the wrist and phasing through the floor, immediately running to Karen. "Leave her alone!" he screamed at Myles, pushing him backwards, causing him to lose his grip on the knife. Ricky grabbed the red blade, pulling it out of Karen's chest, flinching as he saw how much blood she was losing. "Karen... How can I help you? Are you okay?" Well, obviously not, idiot... Myles stood up, glaring at Ricky. "You'll regret that..." he hissed, not even noticing Melody. He created another ectoplasmic knife. "I'll kill you both right now..." Karen finched as the blade was pulled out of her chest, breathing deeply she didn't answer Ricky. "Save him...before he kills Amy..." she whispered to him before 'fainting.' Melody looked at Myles. "That curse took over you Myles...let me...wake you up.." she said putting a hand onto his back. "Myles, go to sleep...just sleep.." she whispered softly to him kissing him on the lips. "Just sleep.." Myles let out a soft moan, closing his eyes. He gave a small shiver, opening his eyes again. "Melody...?" he whispered softly, feeling tired. "What...happened...? Why is Karen bleeding...? Why...? You should...help her..." His voice faded away as he lost consciousness, closing his eyes again. Ricky stared down at Karen, trembling. "What do I do? We can't go back to the hospital... Mom! Come here!" Mrs. Drynn ran into the room, glancing at Myles to make sure he wasn't still attacking them. "Ricky... Go get the first aid kit..." she whispered, placing Amy gently on the ground. Ricky nodded, running out of the room. A faint bump and an "Ouch!" came from the bathroom, and Ricky ran back into the kitchen, carrying the kit. "The wound...is very deep..." Mrs. Drynn whispered, opening the first aid kit and starting to clean the injury. "This might hurt a bit..." she whispered under her breath, finishing the cleaning and taking out a roll of bandages. "What happened?" she kept whispering to herself, keeping her head down. "What in the world happened?" "Baha.." Amy whispered crawling to him staring up at him. "Mamo...willie beh okie..." Amy said tugging on his pants. "Beh okie.." Karen winced as she looked up at Ricky. "Ricky...can you please take care of Amy...please?" she asked as Mrs. Drynn finished wrapping up her chest. "I'm sorry...about this..." Melody looked down at Myles and hugged him around his neck. "You're curse is dead...it's force is gone, completely gone...I don't sence it..." Karen looked at Ricky again lifting a hand up to him. "I'll...be okay.." Ricky reached out, taking Karen's hand. "I'm sorry...I couldn't protect you... I'm sorry..." He looked away, scooping Amy up with his other arm. "I'm sorry..." Myles gave a small smile as Melody hugged him, but didn't open his eyes. "I...like you...a lot..." he mumbled in his sleep, smiling again. Mrs. Drynn closed the first aid kit, glancing at Myles for a moment before silently walking out of the room, leaning against the wall outside of the kitchen with her head in her hands. "I couldn't attack him, Ricky..." she said softly looking up at him squeezing his hand smiling up at him. "It's okay..." she whispered looking down seeing that she was only wairing underwear, causing her to blush. "Mamo, only wearie undies!!" Amy laughed out. Melody smiled whispering, "I love you...Myles..." she whispered queitly to him. "I love you..." Ricky laughed with Amy as a blush crept onto his face. "That's right, Amy..." He pulled her closer in a gentle one-armed hug. He looked back at Karen, still blushing. "As long as you're okay..." he whispered, still holding her hand. Myles smiled again, letting out a soft sigh. "I...love...you..." he whispered, sighing again. He yawned, opening his eyes and sitting up. "Melody..." he muttered, smiling at her. "Hi! Did I fall asleep? 'Cause I just had the best dream..." He looked away, blushing a faint light pink color. Karen looked up at Ricky smiling closing her eyes. "Yeah..." she whispered slowly sighing. "Can we...go back up stairs?" she asked blushing. "I don't care...if I'm stabbed...I want to finish what we started..." Amy ploped down out of Ricky's arms crawling into the livingroom tugging on Mrs. Drynn's dress. "Gr...yoief okie?" Melody smiled grabbing him by the hand. "I love you too." she said hugging him tightly then kissing him on the lips smilng. "You're okay." Ricky put his arms around her, hugging her gently. "Karen... Are...you sure you're okay?" he whispered, pulling away, staring at her. "But...if you really want to finish it..." He felt a faint blush appear on his face again as he stood up, offering Karen a hand. "...so do I..." "What?" Myles whispered. "Love? Did I say that?" He looked away, blushing. "Did...I really say that...? I..." He looked back at Melody. "Oh... But...I guess...I did mean what I said... I mean..." He hugged her tightly, smiling slightly. "Best friends...right?" - - - Mrs. Drynn looked down at Amy. "Amy..." she whispered, sighing. "I'm okay... I just... I never knew what had happened to Ricky... I never knew why he disappeared so many years ago... And I just found out he was cursed..." She sighed. "It just makes me wish I had known...back then... Maybe I could've helped him before he ran away..." Karen took his hand slowly standing up. "I'm sure...I'm okay..." she whispered floating up and phasing threw the ceiling appearing back in his room. "I'm sure I'll be...okay." Melody smile and hugged him tightly again. "Yes, We'll always be best friends!" she said happy. "Always..." ---- Amy tilted her head to the side blinking before falling asleep. "I...splee..." Ricky smiled at her, still holding her hand. He gently pulled her over to his bed, sitting down and blushing lightly. "Okay..." he whispered, pulling her down next to him. - - - Myles smiled, hugging her back. "Always? Promise?" he whispered, closing his eyes, letting out a small yawn. "I'm...still tired..." he whispered. "Why am I so tired?" - - - Mrs. Drynn gave Amy a small smile, bending over and picking her up. "Let me see if I can find Myles's old crib for you," she whispered, looking down at Amy. Karen blushed light as well but instead of sitting beside him she slowly pushed him down onto the bed slowly kissing him on the lips putting her tonge into his mouth she squeezed his shoulder tightly wondering how he would react. ---- Melody smiled standing up, "I promise always..." she said looking up holding him by the hand. "Let's go get some sleep then..." she whispered blushing. Ricky gave a small shiver, returning Karen's kiss, slowly putting his arms around her, hugging her tightly. He slowly pulled away, smiling at her for a moment, then leaning in and kissing her lips, harder this time. - - - "Thank you..." Myles mumbled, walking out of the room with her, starting to walk upstairs. "This should be fun, right? It'll be just like a sleepover!" He gave a tired smile, opening the door of his room, sitting down on his bed. "But...do you even know what that is?" He smiled again, lying down and closing his eyes, trying to stay awake. Karen kissed him harder feeling him put his arms around her she blushed lightly, slowly pulling away blushing. Wincing she felt pain on her cheek, rubbing it lightly. "Why does it feel like I've been hit?" she asked Ricky rubbing her cheek. ----- Melody watched him lay down. "I know what that is..." she said sitting down then laying down next to him. "Go to sleep...it's okay to sleep." she said softly smiling at him. "I'll be right here...when you wake up." she whispered curling up next to him closing her eyes. "I'll be right here.." Ricky's eyes widened and he looked away. "There...was some fighting... Before the curse took over Myles... When it was still in your head..." He still felt guilty; even though what he had said was true, he knew he wasn't telling the entire story. "Are you...okay?" - - - Myles smiled, closing his eyes, putting his arms around her and whispering, "Me too... I'll be here too... Thank you..." He slowly fell asleep, still smiling slightly. Karen stared at him, was he lieing to her? "I'm okay." she said softly looking away. "Ricky...are you lieing to me?" she asked softly. "Are you?" ----- Melody smiled putting her head down against his shoulder, slowly falling asleep... "No..." Ricky whispered, shaking slightly. "I'm...not..." He looked away, unable to stop himself from feeling guilty. "Okay, okay! I'm sorry!" He gently pushed Karen away, refusing to look at her. "I'm sorry... It's just... The curse was..." He stared down at his trembling hands. "...choking Myles. I saw his face...and the pain he was suffering, and I realized how helpless he is... He can't defend himself... I couldn't just let him suffer like that... I... I'm sorry..." he whispered, turning away. - - - Myles was smiling in his sleep, dreaming about ninjas, comic books, and kisses. Karen stared at Ricky putting a hand onto her face. "..So you hit me?" she asked turning away from him then slapping him across the face. "You're such an idiot, Ricky..Such an idiot!" she shouted at him with tears in her eyes turnning around grabbing a random pair of pants and shirt quickly running out of the room. "..You're such an idiot..." ----- Melody sighed in her sleep smilng...but she then slowly opened her eyes looking down. Ah! I changed back! Sleep turns me back into this form! Ricky held a hand up, touching his cheek where Karen had slapped him. "Wait..." he whispered as she ran out of the room. He stood up, running after her. "Wait!" - - - Myles opened his eyes, hearing someone shouting. "Brother?" he whispered, sitting up and staring at the door with confusion in his eyes. He looked beside him and saw Melody, back in the form she had been in before. "Oh... Right..." He leaned over, kissing her gently. Karen opened the front door slamming it behind her running away from the house as fast as she could. "That idiot.." she ten heard him scream 'wait!' she didn't stop she was cornered against a wall turnning around to him shaking her head. "Just leave me alone!" she ordered him. "Leave me alone." ---- Melody blushed and smiled, "Thank you!" she said hugging him tightly. "Thank you...for some reason when I fall asleep I turn back to that form." "Listen to me!" Ricky shouted, staring sadly at Karen. "What would you have done if it were me controlled by the curse, strangling Amy? What would you have done to protect someone important to you?" He took a step closer to her, trying unsuccessfully to hide the pain in his eyes. "What would...you have done...in a situation like that?" - - - Myles smiled back, hugging her in return. "Brother sounded upset..." he whispered. "I hope he's not fighting with Karen again..." He rested his head on her shoulder. "I guess even best friends fight sometimes..." Karen looked away, "I would have stoped you..." she said clenching her fists. "But I wouldn't have hit you!" she shouted at him sadly shivering. "Don't come near me...you say one thing...then just go back and do it again!" she said stepping back even if her back was against the wall. "I said don't touch me!" she shot an ecto-beam at his feet. "Stay away from me.." ----- "Fighting makes people be better best friends!" Melody said smiling hugging him around the chest. Ricky glared at Karen, letting the ectoblast hit him, wincing but not stepping back. "Stop it..." he whispered, taking another step closer to her. "Just stop it." He felt his voice get louder as he took another step toward her, pinning her against the wall. - - - Myles blinked, smiling as Melody hugged him. "Really? I didn't know that... But how does it make people be better best friends when their feelings get hurt?" Karen stared up at him scared, she moved her arms around, "I said leave me alone!" she kept moving around. "Don't touch me!" she shouted at him still moving around. "Don't touch me." ----- Melody shrugged. "I'm not sure..." "Be quiet..." Ricky pushed her against the wall slightly harder. "Stop moving around so much... Stop shouting... Just...stop." - - - Myles thought for a moment, smiling as he reached a conclusion. "I get it! It's like...when you have a fight with someone, you feel bad and you want to make them happy again, so you bring them a flower and say you're sorry, and then they say they're sorry too, and then you're both happy again, right?" Karen stoped moving around feeping him push her harder against the wall. "Leave me alone...I don't want to talk to you right now.." she said feeling her hands trembling. "I don't..." ----- "I guess so!" Melody said smiling whide huggling him. "You're so smart, Myles!" "I...don't...care." Ricky kept her pinned against the wall, staring into her eyes, wishing she could understand. "Wasn't there ever a time when something happened to one of your siblings? When you just wished they would stop looking like they were going through so much pain? When you just..wished you could...help them..." He sighed. "When they whisper, 'help' when they don't even understand what's happening to them...? When all they know is that it hurts, and they want it to stop? Hasn't that ever happened to you?" - - - Myles smiled, blushing a bit when Melody said he was smart. "Well, maybe... But it was your idea in the first place... I just helped!" Karen shook her head, "Don't say that! please...don't.." she looked down at the ground. "Rai...is in the hospital...and she won't wake up.." she glared at him shivering. "Don't say things like that!" she shouted at him shaking. "Don't you ever say..things again like that!" she pushed him away with an ecto-blast, slidding to the side to try and run away from him. ------ Melody smiled blushing, "Half way then..." she whispered pushing him back onto the bed. "I heard Karen call this an 'awkward position'..." she said getting ontop of him. "I don't know what that means...eather." she tilted her head to the side. "And I wonder why Ricky...was touching Karen's boobies?" she asked staring down at him smiling, "Want to figure that out too?" Ricky winced as he was pushed away, but he recovered quickly, pushing her back against the wall again. "Wouldn't you do anything to help her if you could? Don't you know how it feels?" he whispered, ignoring her words, looking away. - - - Myles blushed blood red as Melody got on top of him. "It's called awkward because...um...because..." He looked away. "Well...um..." He looked back at her. "It's..." He sighed, shaking his head. "I don't know...but...we can figure it out if you want to..." He looked away again. "Stop it.." her voice broke as she was pushed against the wall. "Stop it..." she snaped in a whisper. "Leave me alone, Ricky." she kicked him giving her enough time to run. "Stop talking about it..." ----- Melody smiled, "Okie then..." she looked down, "Her shirt was off, right?" she pointed at her shirt and started to un-button it. "Right?" "Ouch..." Ricky whispered, glaring at Karen as she started to run. "You idiot..." He gave a frustrated sigh, running after Karen. "You're such an idiot..." he kept muttering to himself. "Idiot..." - - - Myles nodded, still blushing. "Right..." he whispered, watching Melody unbutton her shirt. "Right... And wasn't brother's shirt off too?" He stared at the ceiling, thinking. "Yeah, I think it was..." He took his shirt off, tossing it away. "...Right." Karen turned the corner quickly, "I want to go home...I just want to go home..." she whispered to herself hearing Ricky running up behind her. She ran as fast as she could before running out of breath. Shivering, she didn't look back at him. "I told you not to follow me..." she whispered keeping her head down. "I told you not to follow me!" she shouted at him shaking stepping away. ----- Melody un-did the last button giving an outline away. Tossing the shirt to the ground she tilted her head. "Give me your hands." she said grabbing his hands putting them onto her chest. "There we go!" "Shut up..." Ricky whispered, stopping a few feet away from her, catching his breath. "Just shut up... I won't go away... I won't leave you alone... I won't stop following you... I won't." - - - Myles blushed again, tilting his head to the side. "That's kind of weird... I wonder why he was doing this to Karen..." he blinked, looking at Melody. "Do you know why?" Karen stepped away again looking away. "I don't want to talk to you, Ricky..." she said stepping back again. "I don't..." she stepped back again. "Leave me alone." ----- Melody poked his arms blinking, "She was squeezing his arms, I think...hmm." Melody gently squeezed Myles arms blinking. "I don't care..." Ricky whispered, taking a step towards Karen. "I won't leave you alone... Why won't you just try to understand? Why won't you just stut up and listen!?" - - - Myles blinked, tilting his head again. "And he was squeezing his hands too, I think..." He blinked again, squeezing his hands, then opening them again. "That's so...weird!" He gave a small smile, staring at Melody. "Really weird..." Karen stepped back again feeling a wall behind her her eyes whidened. "I won't do what you say...stop bossing me around!" she said closing her hands making fists. "Leave me alone, Ricky!" ----- Melody blushed staring down at Myles, "That so weird!" she said suprised shivering lightly. "It felt good to me though!" she said cluelessly. "No..." Ricky whispered, stepping closer to Karen, reaching out and grabbing one of her fists. "Are you planning on hitting me?" He let go of her hand, staring at her, whispering, "If you were going to hit me, go ahead... I won't stop you." - - - "Really?" Myles blinked. "Maybe that's why they were doing it! Maybe...since they were fighting last night... Maybe it was like brother giving Karen a flower and saying he was sorry for yelling, only different." He gave a clueless smile, squeezing his hands again. "That's still so weird..." Karen shivered scared, "Please, leave me alone, Ricky..." she said shaking even if her fists were still there, she wasn't planing on hitting him... "Go away...Ricky." she said in a whisper. ----- Melody tilted her head, "So he squeezes her boobies because he's sorry?" she laughed then sighed as he squeezed his hands closed, "That's so weird, and gross...but feels good." she bent down closer to Myles smiling, kissing him on the lips softly. "I don't care how many times you say it..." Ricky took another small step closer so his face was inches away from hers. "...I'm not going away... I won't leave you alone... And I don't care how many times you push me away... I'd never leave you alone, ever... That's a promise I know I can keep..." He leaned closer to her. "...No matter how many times you push me away..." He reached out with one hand, pushing Karen against the wall, and kissed her roughly on the lips, pulling away slowly. "Go ahead and hit me if it'll make you feel better...but I'm not leaving..." He reached out with his other hand, gently touching her cheek where he had slapped her before, then letting it trail down to her neck, then her chest as he kissed her again. - - - Myles smiled, returning the kiss before pulling away. "I guess so... Or maybe he just does it to make her feel good, or maybe he likes it too..." He blushed, looking away. Karen's eyes whidened and closed her eyes shut shaking her head, "I won't hit you..." she said whispering shivering as he touched her bruised cheek and then her chest causing her to blush as he kissed her. "...Please leave me alone...please.." she pleaing. "Please.." ----- Melody tilted her head to the side, "He liked it...I wonder why?" "No... I already told you...I won't leave you alone..." Ricky kissed her again, grabbing her shirt and holding it tightly in his hand. He pulled away, glancing down. "I made a promise, and I won't leave you alone... I'll never break that promise..." He looked back up, staring at Karen. "...I promise." Still holding her shirt in his hand, he tightened his grip and silently took a deep breath, pulling it up and off of Karen, trying not to blush. - - - "Yeah..." Myles whispered, looking away, blushing, squeezing his hands again. "I...w-wonder why..." Karen's eyes whidened as he pulled off her shirt causing her to blush and cover her chest with her arms. "Please..." she whispered as she looked away shivering, thanking it was night time and no one was awake or outside... "What...are you going to do?" ----- Melody blushed looking down at him, "You like it don't you?" she asked smiling. "Don't you?" Ricky ignored her question, pulling her arms away and putting his hands on her chest, pushing her back against the wall. "Just...stop talking..." he whispered, squeezing his hands, leaning in and kissing her, keeping her pinned against the wall. "Stop it..." - - - Myles blushed, pulling away, not looking at Melody. "No, I don't... It's just weird, that's all..." He sighed, looking back at her. "Well maybe...I like it...a little... Just a little bit... But it's still weird..." Karen winced as he pushed her by her chest against the wall. And when he squeezed his hands, she blushed red. "R-Ricky...stop it...please just stop it..." she whispered as he kissed her again. "Stop it please..." she cried out as he squeezed his hands again. "Stop...Ricky..." she whispered shivering, "You're...scaring me..." ----- Melody tilted her head again, "I thought so..." she sighed falling ontop of him, "I'm tired..." she whispered hugging him. "Why are you afraid of me?" Ricky demanded, staring sadly at Karen. "Why?" he whispered, leaning in closer to her. "What am I...supposed to do...? What's...wrong with me...?" He kissed her again, harder this time, not pulling away. He slipped his tongue into her mouth, squeezing his hands again. - - - Myles blushed lightly, putting his arms around her. "You can go to sleep...and when you wake up, I'll be here, just like before... But if you change forms while you're sleeping, I'm going to have to kiss you again when you wake up..." He smiled at her, squeezing her tighter. Karen closed her eyes as he kissed her again not pulling away. "You're scaring me...so much..." she whispered as he kissed her again and slipped his tongue into her mouth causing her to blush as he squeezed his hands. "Please...stop it...please..." she said as her face turned red from the squeezing. ----- Melody yawned putting a blanked over them sighing curling up falling asleep next to Myles. "Thank you, Myles..." she whispered dozing off next to him. Ricky pulled away slowly, staring down at Karen. "Answer me..." he whispered, still pushing her against the wall, trying to keep her pinned but not hurt her at the same time. "Why are you always so afraid?" He leaned down, kissing her neck, closing his eyes. - - - "You're welcome..." Myles whispered, pulling her close, feeling his eyes close. "I love you..." he whispered, letting out a yawn. "...Melody..." Karen shivered as he kissed her neck. "...Whenever you're so angry...you hurt me." she whispered shivering feeling him squeezing his hands again. "You alway's hurt me...when you're so angry..." ----- "I love you too..." she whispered back to Myles smiling. "Myles...good night..." "...You make me act like this..." Ricky whispered, pulling away, staring into her eyes. "I don't want to hurt you, but...every time...you just...make me act this way..." He stopped pushing her against the wall, leaving his hands on her chest. "Listen to me, Karen. I don't care what it takes...but I'm not going to hurt you anymore... I mean it... Even if you're possessed by a curse...I won't hurt you...ever..." He lowered his voice, whispering in her ear, "I promise..." - - - "Good...night..." Myles whispered, too tired to put his shirt back on. He sighed, letting himself drift off to sleep, and he was greeted by dreams about Melody, which made him blush light pink. He gave another happy sigh in his sleep, pulling her closer, shivering as their bodies touched. Karen looked down, "I don't know...if I can believe you..." she whispered to him sadly, "I don't know...anymore." she looked up at him, "You scare me so much...so much..." her voice cracked putting a hand to her neck where he was just kissing her, she blushed. "Did you give me a hicky...?" ----- Melody shivered as he pulled her closer causing her to smile in her sleep. "...so cute..." she whispered blushing. Ricky ignored her question, staring down at the ground. "I don't want to scare you... I want you to believe me... I'm trying my best..." he whispered, hearing his voice crack. "I just don't know what to do...when that's not good enough..." He pulled his hands away from her chest, staring sadly at her. "I'm sorry." - - - Myles let out a soft giggle, blushing. "Best friends..." he whispered in his sleep, smiling and hugging Melody. Karen kept her hand on her neck and shook her head. "It's okay..." she whispered pulling her hand away bending down slowly picking up her shirt putting it back on and crossing her arms. "L-Let's go...Ricky." ----- "Forever..." Melody said sweetly.."Alway best friends..." Ricky didn't move; he only stared at her, wishing he could make her smile. "Okay..." he whispered, turning around halfway, glancing back at Karen before walking back towards his house. - - - Myles smiled. "...wanna...go...play ninja now...?" he murmured tiredly, giggling again a few seconds later. "...spy...again..." he whispered, still smiling. Karen kept her head down continuing to walk to the house quiet the entire way there. She entered the house not saying anything to Mrs. Drynn or Ricky...just walking up the stairs into 'Ricky's Room.' Closing the door she locked it shivering she looked down feeling her eyes become watery. "That...idiot.." she whispered falling to her knees. "That idiot..." ----- "Sure! But first...can you change me back?" Melody asked blushing. "Please?" "Fighting again?" Mrs. Drynn asked softly. "Yeah..." Ricky whispered sadly, starting to walk up the stairs. "She's just so...annoying..." "You don't really mean that, Ricky..." His mother glared at him. "Go apologize or something, don't just stand there looking like an idiot." Ricky shot her a glare, but didn't say anything. He continued up the stairs, trying to open the door to his room, but it was locked. "Idiot..." he whispered softly, phasing invisibly through the door, landing on his knees and reappearing silently behind Karen, hugging her from behind. "I'm sorry..." he whispered, closing his eyes. "I'm sorry..." - - - "Yeah..." Myles whispered, keeping his eyes closed, leaning over, kissing her softly. "I can do that..." Karen shivered feeling him hug her from behind she turning around to him hugging him tightly. "Ricky..." she whispered wincing. "I'm such an idiot...for making you act like this...such an idiot..." she squeezed him tightly. "I just...want it all to go away...all of it..." she whispered squeezing his shirt. "Please..." ----- Melody sighed standing up streching, "Let's go play ninja!" she said blushing while smiling. "Me too..." Ricky whispered, hugging her tighter. "I wish it would all go away... I'm so sorry...for everything I did...and everything I said..." He closed his eyes. "I'm so sorry..." - - - Myles stood up, smiling. He picked up his shirt, putting it on, smiling at Melody when he was finished. "Okay! So do you want to practice spying, or sneak attacks, or we could do one of my favorites - hanging upside-down from trees!" He grinned proudly. "That's something even brother can't do! But I could teach you... It's really fun!" Karen slowly pulled away pushing him against the wall kissing him on the lips softly. "Let's...lake it all go away..." she said kissing him again. "Just make it go away..." she said looking down. ----- Melody tilted her head, "Okay sure!" she said putting on her shirt again. "Let's go!" Ricky nodded, whispering, "I'm sorry for hurting you... And I meant what I said... I'll never do it again...ever...no matter what..." He kissed her lips softly, closing his eyes, shivering slightly. - - - Myles smiled at her. "Okay! There used to be an awesome climbing tree in the backyard!" He took her hand, running downstairs and out the door, into the backyard. "See? There it is!" He pointed up. "Now first you have to climb to a high branch..." He pulled himself up into the branches of the tree. "...hook your legs around it like this, and let go with your arms!" He swung down, gripping the branch with his legs. "But don't stay like this for too long, or you'll get dizzy!" Karen kissed him back slowly pulling away putting her hand onto his chest it glowing a light purple, "I-I'm sorry..." she whispered closing her eyes.."You have to sleep..." she said looking away from him. "Just sleep.." she stood up turnning to her bag putting her things into her bag. "I just want to go away..." she whispered turnning to the window glancing back at the K.O'd Ricky then shook her head quickly taking her ghost form and running to the window phasing out of the house and flew out into the sky. "I want to get away from it all..." ----- Melody climbed the tree and blinked sitting down then falling back so she was swinging in the air by the legs. "Wow!...but...how do you get down, Myles?" she asked swinging. Ricky blinked, feeling his eyelids droop, having trouble staying awake. "Karen... What..." he managed to whisper before losing consciousness. - - - "Um... Well... You just...sort of..." Myles swung himself back up so he was sitting up on the branch again. "Swing yourself up like that! But be careful, you don't want to accidentally fall..." He blinked, seeing something flying in the sky. "What's that?" he whispered, squinting to see, tapping Melody on the shoulder and pointing. "See, that thing flying right there? Weird... It looks kinda like a person." Karen flew faster away from the house as fast as she could. "I want to get away from this place..." she looked down spoting Myles and Melody looking up at her. She quickly went invisable and started to cry. "Goodbye Ricky..." she whispered completely dissappering from the air. Melody quickly stood up on the branch. "That was...Karen." she said with wide eyes. "She's running away...come on follow me!" she said quickly grabbing Myles hand and flying into Ricky's room seeing on the floor. "Hey!" she shouted down at him slapping him across the face. "Wake up!" Ricky opened his eyes, groaning. "What? What happened? Where's Karen? Where'd she go?" He yawned, still not fully awake. "Brother! Melody says Karen's running away!" Myles pointed out the window. "We saw her flying!" "Running away?" Ricky whispered, staring out the window. "But... That wasn't supposed to happen..." He sighed, putting his head in his hands. "You guys stay here... I'm going after her." "Hey! I wanna come too!" Myles protested. "Shut up! You're just wasting time..." Ricky turned invisible and phased through the wall, scanning the sky with his eyes, searching for Karen. "Where'd she go...?" He poked his head back through the wall. "Hey...do either of you know where she went? She must be invisible...or already too far away..." "She's flying north! Towards the mountains!" Melody said closing her eyes. "You can still cetch up to her...she's turned visable about ten miles away." she looked up at him, "Get going!" "How do you...?" Ricky shook his head. "Never mind. Thanks." He phased his head back outside, turning invisible and flying toward the mountains as fast as he could. Myles sighed. "I really wanted to go too... It would be so fun...like a ninja mission..." He sighed again, staring down at the floor. "Oh well..." Melody patted Myles on the back. "It's okay...they need to make up." she said smiling, "Come on, let's go play ninja!" ----- Karen landed on the outskirts of the city looking back at the city lights then down putting on her jacket to protect herself from the cold air she began walking on the pathway towards the mountains. "I'm sorry everyone..." she thought squeezing her jacket tightly. "I have to go away from here..." she stoped walking seeing an outline of someone blocking her path. "Who's there?" "Hey..." Ricky whispered, standing in front of Karen, giving her a small wave. "...I told you I wouldn't leave you alone... Sorry..." Karen stepped back squeezing her jacket. "Why are you following me?" she asked stepping back again. "Let me go Ricky..." she said looking down at the ground. "Just let me go, please...I don't want to be a couple." she said sharply putting a hand onto her head. "Just leave me alone..." Ricky flinched visibly, as if Karen's words were physically painful. "I won't leave you alone..." he whispered, staring down at the ground, bending his head down to hide the pain on his face. "I made a promise... I'm not going to let you go." He looked over at her, still trying to hide his pain. "And I'm following you because I love you." Karen looked away from him still holding her head, she then glared up at him with yellow eyes. "Then I'll make you leave me alone." she said lifting up her hands to him sending an ectobeam at him. She flinched clenching her head, "Please Ricky...leave me alone...please." she closed her eyes, "My anger is taking over...what I said- about not wanting- to be a couple anymore I didn't...mean it...please go away." she lifted up her hands making wind blades. "I can't wait to see the inside of you, Ricky." she said smirking. Ricky took a step back, tripping backwards over a tree root sticking out of the ground, bumping into a tree trunk. "Well... I can't leave you here... And I can't hurt you..." He sighed. "Great... So I'll have to dodge and counter your attacks until I get tired... Then you'll beat me to a pulp and kill me... Great... Just great..." Karen lifted up her blades to him smiling, "It looks like it, Ricky." she ran into attack him bending down to his veiw putting a sword against his throat. "I'm going to kill you slowly..." she said putting him in the neck lightly. "Get angry Ricky, just get angry." she said in a mocking voice. "How cute." she said cutting his neck lightly again. "This'll be fun." Ricky winced as Karen cut his neck. "You think it'll be that easy?" He reached up with his bare hand, grabbing the tip of the blade and pushing it away from his neck, causing cuts to open all over his hand, blood trickling down his arm. "Ouch..." he hissed, rolling to the side, away from Karen, staring down at his hand, which was covered in blood. "This is not going to be fun..." Karen smirked standing up looking at the edge of the blade and licked it. "Your blood is so good..." she said stepping toward him throwing the swords away. "Fight me, Ricky, if you want to make me stop." she said tackling him to the ground pinning him to the ground. "It's the only way for me to wake up." Ricky glared at her, shaking his head. "No... I made a promise...and I promised not to break it... I won't fight you... I won't..." He squirmed a bit, trying to free himself, but he couldn't. "Why...do you want to kill me so badly anyway?" he whispered, still glaring at her. Karen glared down at him inches away from his face. "You hurt me to many times...you're paying for what you did." she created a wind dagger making three cuts on his arm. "If you only listened to me, and let me go..." she placed it onto the ground next to him staring at him blankly. "Ric-ky? What am I doing..." she asked staring at him, standing up quickly backing away and making a run for it towards the mountains. "What did I do to him..." "I didn't mean to hurt you..." Ricky whispered, standing up and running after her, jumping into the air and flying until he caught up. He grabbed her from behind in a hug/tackle, holding her tightly, ignoring the blood running down his arm. "I didn't mean to..." he whispered in her ear. "I didn't...mean to..." His voice cracked, but he squeezed her tighter, not wanting to let her go. Karen only stared at the rock mountain behind him until she realized what was happening and she hugged him back tightly. "It's okay..." she said hearing his voice crack. "It's okay..." she shivered hugging him tightly smiling light at him. "Can you come with me...to my sister's hospital?" Ricky hugged her even tighter as he saw her smile. "Of course I will..." he whispered. "But...just listen to me...please..." He took a deep breath, looking away. "I'm sorry. I didn't know...I hurt you that much... I'm so sorry... I really didn't mean to..." He quickly pulled away, remembering how much he was bleeding. He pointed to her shirt where his arm had left a blood stain. "Sorry about that..." Karen looked down at her shirt and ignored it grabbing him by the arm tairing off some of her shirt and began wrapping up his arm silently then stood up staring up at him smiling lightly. "Are you Ready...it's an hours flight from here.." she whispered putting her backpack onto her back helping him up. "Let's go..." she whispered and began flying off. "Thanks..." Ricky whispered, giving her a small smile. "Thank you..." he repeated, flying after her, hoping Myles wasn't too disappointed about not being able to come too. "I'm sorry..." he whispered softly again, keeping his head down as they flew. Karen looked back at him, "It's okay, Ricky.." she said flying higher with him. "Ricky...it's okay..." she said again sighing flying west now. "We'll be there soon..." she whispered to looking over at him grabbing him by the hand. "It's okay.." she whispered again and kissed him on the cheek. --------------- -------------- ------------------ Ricky stopped trembling, but he kept his head tilted down, not looking up. He could still taste her blood, which made him want to have more. "Maybe we should stay here... Just for a little while longer..." He bent his head down even lower, hiding his smirk. "Please?" he murmured softly, making his bangs cover his eyes. "Just...a little while?" He stood up, gently pinning her against a tree, not creating a knife yet. "Please...?" Karen blushed at stared at Ricky. "O-Okay..." she stampered staring at him blushing smiling shyly. "Are you...okay?" "I feel great..." Ricky whispered, staring down at her, creating a knife in his hand. He wanted her blood so badly, but he also wanted to play with her first. He gazed down at the knife in his hand. "I don't want you...running away..." He pinned her shirt back against the tree with the knife. Smirking, he whispered, "Now we can start having fun..." He kissed her roughly on the lips, making a second knife, pinning the other side of her shirt against the tree. "So..." He pulled away, gently touching her neck with the tip of another blade. "...Does this...turn you on? Are you still afraid of me, Karen? Does fear turn you on?" Karen stared wide eyed at him, "Ricky...no...I thought this blood lust was gone..." she shivered as he pinned her shirt to the tree. "No-Stop-" her voice was muffled as he kissed her roughly on the lips. "No...this doesn't...this doesn't turn me on." she winced slightly shivering. "Stop please..." "I won't hurt you this time..." Ricky whispered, still holding the knife up to her throat. "I promise... All I want is just a little taste... Please? Just a little bit... Besides..." He leaned closer to her, pressing the knife against her neck hard enough to make a small cut. "...I wouldn't call it blood lust... It's just a little craving, that's all..." "A craving...for blood..." Karen winced as he cut her throat. "No...Not a taste...you wont beable to control yourself!" she said staring at him. "Let me go...we have to go back to my house..." "I can control myself just fine." Ricky pulled the knife away from her neck. "I don't want to go back yet... You said we could stay for a few more minutes..." He licked the blood from the cut on her neck, shivering. "See?" he whispered as he pulled away. "I'm just...fine..." He held the knife up to her neck again. "Just a little more? Please?" "No...you can't...you can't have anymore..." Karen whispered to him staring at him with half wide eyes. "Why...I thought...that the craving was gone.." she whispered staring at him. "...Please." she looked away. "Can we please go home?" Ricky looked at her with fake sad eyes. "Please? I'll stop hurting you... I promise..." He kissed her lips softly, cutting her arm as he pulled away. "Oh no... What a terrible accident..." He lifted up her arm, smirking. "Let me help you..." He licked the cut, staring at her. "Besides... Once the small pain fades away...you know you like this... Why can't you just be..." He paused, smirking, searching for the right words. "...a good girl?" Karen winced and shook her head. "No!" she shouted pushing him away from her but winced as the two knifes cut her shoulders causing her to sink down. "Ouch..." she winced staring at shaking her head. "No...I just...want to go home...I want to- go home.." "You're always so afraid of me..." Ricky whispered in a fake sad voice, trying not to smirk. "Why are you always so afraid? I don't want to hurt you." He stepped back towards her, pushing her against the tree again. "I just want a little blood...that's all... Then we can go home... I promise..." Karen looked away from him shaking her head. "No, I don't want to do this..." she glared at him. "...I want to go home, I want to see Amy..." she looked at him with sad eyes. "Please...I'm begging you...I just want to leave this forest..." Ricky sighed, looking away. "Amy..." he whispered softly, letting the knife fade from his hand. "I...want to see her too... Jeez... What am I doing, Karen?" The two knives pinning her to the tree disappeared. "I don't understand...why I always hurt you... I don't know why I want your blood... It...just...makes me feel...good...when I'm drinking it..." He shivered, looking away. "...That...makes me afraid... I don't know what's wrong with me..." "It's...what's left of your curse.." she whispered softly to him turnning his face to her. "It's...okay." she whispered to him looking him right in the eye. "You don't have to be...sad...it's something that'll be there.." "It's supposed to be all gone..." Ricky whispered, staring into her eyes. "My curse... It's supposed to be gone..." He looked away. "How can I raise a child when I constantly attack the most important person in my life?" He turned away so his back was to her. "I've killed you... My curse is supposed to be completely gone, but...I...killed...you..." Karen steped behind him wrapping her arms around his stoumach. "It's okay, Ricky...it's fine..." Ricky pulled away from her, pushing her away. "No, it's not okay! Stop it! Just leave me alone, okay?" He glanced back at her before turning away again. "I'm sorry, but I can't be around you right now... Not until my curse is gone...completely gone..." He turned invisible, flying into the air, away from the forest. He silently scanned the ground, landing in the middle of the nearby city. "Why...am I such an idiot?" he whispered, leaning back against the nearest building, staring at the sky. Karen shook her head. "You idiot.." she whispered jumping up into the air flying the way she thought he few. "Ricky..." she whispered blinking away crying. "Where are you..?" Ricky sighed, not even turning his head as someone tapped him on the shoulder. "What do you want?" "Sorry, but I can't figure out this map... Do you think you could help me find where I'm supposed to go?" Ricky turned his head, staring at a girl with blond hair and brown eyes who was standing next to him. "Nope... I don't live here." He turned away again, still leaning against the building. "Hey, you're kinda cute... Could you please help me?" The girl smiled at him. "What?" Ricky blinked, turning back to her. "What the heck? I don't even knowyou..." "What's your name?" she asked, folding up the map, staring at him. "Not telling." Ricky muttered, stubbornly folding his arms across his chest, looking away. He thought she'd go away if he just ignored her. Karen spotted a town ahead of her landing in an alley. "Ricky's...somewhere in this town." she whispered glancing around the town. "Where could he be?" she asked outloud then began running down the street until she saw him. "There he is...Ric-" she stoped herself from screaming out at him seeing a girl taking to him. "Go...away..." Ricky muttered, glaring at nothing in particular. "I already told you, I don't know where anything is in this town, so I can't help you." "Please..." The girl begged him again, putting an arm around his shoulders. "If you can't help me with directions, could you at least tell me your name? Please?" "It's Ricky..." he muttered softly, flinching as she put her arm around him. "Now stop touching me and go away." "Ricky..." The girl grinned. "Well, don't you want to know my name?" "No. I couldn't care less." Karen stared at them blushing with wide eyes. "What's he doing, why isn't he pushing her away." she went invisable and floated behind a lamp post watching them. "Push her away...please.." "You're so stubborn..." The girl pulled her arm away from him, pinning him back against the building. "Go...away..." Ricky glared at her, feeling his back against the building. "Ricky... What's the matter? Do you not like girls?" She pushed him harder back aginst the wall, leaning closer to him. "Hey... What the heck..." Ricky tried to back away, but he was already against the wall. "I told you to go--" Ricky was cut off when she kissed him on the lips, still pinning him to the building. She pulled away, smirking at him. "So... Do you still dislike girls?" "Go away..." Risky whispered, unable to use his powers to phase through the wall. Just push her away... But I can't move... I can't even use my powers... I feel like I'm stuck... Karen's eyes widened and she stepped back from the lamp post tripping over a trash can she stared at them with wide eyes she turned around and ran off. "Hey... Was that...?" Ricky pushed the girl out of the way, seeing someone running away. "Is that...Karen? Oh, jeez... She must've seen that..." "Who's Karen? I thought you didn't like girls..." "Shut up!" Ricky pushed her away, running after Karen. "I'm gonna pay for this..." he muttered to himself, sprinting as fast as he could. "I hope she doesn't slap me... Hey, Karen! Wait up!" Karen didn't stop running she kept running until she got back into the forest, her heart felt steped on and hurt. "He...kissed someone else..." she shook her head. "It...hurts to much..." she fell to her knees and looked at the ground. "Oh, so there's another girlinvolved..." The girl who kissed Ricky glared in the direction he had run off in. "Well, then I guess I can't just let him run away..." She ran after him, towards the forest. Not knowing he was being followed, Ricky finally reached the forest, looking for Karen. "There you are..." he whispered, seeing her kneeling on the ground. "..Hey...Karen..." he whispered, giving her a tiny wave. Karen looked away from him with hurt eyes. "Why...did you kiss her?" she asked shivering glaring at him then slapped him across the face. "You idiot...you're such an idiot.." "What!?" Ricky glared at her, feeling his face still stinging from the slap. "She kissed me! I was trying to make her leave!" He fell to his knees in front of her, pushed her back against a tree, and pinned her. "I told her to go away about a hundred times! Don't blame me!" "You kissed her back!" Karen said glaring back at him as he pinned her against the tree. "You kissed her!" she looked away. "It felt like you just killed me...again...it hurt..you're such an idiot." "Shut up!" Ricky pushed her harder against the tree. "I did not kiss her back! I didn't even know her! Hey, I was the victim here! It's not my fault!" He flinched and looked away when she said the last line. "I'm sorry..." "You always say 'I'm sorry' I don't know if I should believe you anymore.." she said looking down covering her tears. "You kissed her back...I saw it as clear as day." she hissed glaring at him. "..Maybe you should just go make a family with that girl!" she said hurt. "Why don't you just leave me alone.." "Shut up, Karen..." Ricky whispered, un-pinning her, hugging her tightly. "I'd never want to have a family with anyone...except you... I made a promise, didn't I? I'll never leave you alone, no matter what..." He squeezed her tighter, closing his eyes. "I don't want to hurt you... I ran away because I didn't want to... But everything I do always turns out like this... No matter how much I try...I always hurt you in the end... Always..." Karen put her head down and began crying on his shoulder. "Ricky...just hold me...please..." she whispered sadly to him sniffling. "I've sorry..." she said pulling away from him kissing his lips softly. "I'm so sorry.." she kissed him again pushing him down onto the ground slowly kissing him again. Ricky kept his arms around her, squeezing her tightly. "I love you, Karen..." he whispered softly. "No one else, okay? Promise you'll remember that? Please..." He leaned up to her, kissing her lips softly, hugging her tighter. "There you are!" The blond girl burst through the trees, glaring at them, panting after running so far. "You..." She glared at Karen. "Get away from him..." Karen looked up from Ricky glaring back at the blond haired girl. "No...I won't get away from him!" she said squeezing Ricky's hand. "Now why don't you just go away..." Ricky glared coldly up at the girl. "I told you so many times to just go away..." He gave her a mean-looking smirk. "This is Karen. She's my girlfriend. We're also planning to be married. So get lost." The girl looked like she had just been slapped across the face. "Excuse me!? You kissed me when you're already going to marry someone else!?" She looked back at Karen. "Personally... I think he liked it when I kissed him... I mean, he kissed me back, didn't he? I could just tell...he lovedit..." "Liar..." Ricky whispered softly, not loud enough for anyone to hear. Karen glared at the blond haired girl. "No way..." she lifted up her hand to the blond haired girl, her hand glowing a purple. "Now go away...unless you want to die.." she whispered harshly to her. "Karen..." Ricky whispered, grabbing her wrist. "Stop it... We both know she's lying... What's the point of hurting her? She has no chance of fighting against you... Don't kill her..." "Look at him, defending me..." The girl smirked at Karen. "The only reason I'm saying this... Is because..." Ricky turned to Karen. "I don't want you to kill innocent people... Then you'll be...just like...me..." Karen looked at Ricky. "You're defending her?" she sounded shocked. "But why.." her hand glew an even darker purple. "She's tring to steal you away from me.." she hissed as he grabbed her wrist. "Let my wrist go, Ricky...I want her dead." she said glaring at the girl with a cold glare sending her ectobeam at the girls feet barely missing her. "Next time...I won't miss.." The girl screamed, jumping to the side. "You're insane! Do you know what happens to people who kill other people!? They go to jail! They get sentenced to death!" "Shut up!" Ricky glared at her. He sighed, looking back at Karen. "Listen... Please... You can't kill people... You can't... You don't know what it feels like... Their faces haunt you every night... The guilt never goes away... You don't want to end up like me..." He tightened his grip around her wrist. "No one is ever going to steal me away from you... Please... Don't become a murderer... Not like me... Please..." Karen closed her eyes looking away from the girls face making her hand stop glowing. "You idiot.." she whispered sadly to him keeping her head down shivering. "She's getting in the way...I've got to get rid of her.." she said elbowing Ricky standing up making two wind-blades glaring coldly at the girl running towards her. "Karen, stop it!" Ricky stood up, running after her. "You don't understand...what it's like..." He pushed her to the side, knocking her to the ground, falling on top of her. "I won't let you kill her...or anyone else... Please, Karen..." The blond girl backed up a step, but the fear on her face turned into a smirk as Ricky knocked Karen to the ground. "Thank you for defending me..." "You...shut up..." Ricky tossed an ectoplasmic knife, missing her head by inches. "That's your last warning... Go...away..." Karen closed her eyes clenching the wind blades as they dissappered out of her hands. "Stop it..." she whispered keeping her eyes closed shivering. "Let me do what I want..." she said lifting up her hand to the girl. "I want her gone.." she whispered sending an ecto-beam at the blond haired girl. The girl let out a cry of pain as the ectobeam hit her in the stomach, sending her crashing back against a tree. "That...hurt...you little...witch..." she choked out, clutching her stomach. "What...did you do...to me?" "You didn't listen to me..." Ricky whispered, getting off of Karen, standing up and stepping away. "If you actually kill her... You'll never be able to get over it... I promise..." Karen's hand shook and she looked down walking in front of the girl she made her hand glow a light purple and she began healing the girl. "Shut...up." she whispered as she healed the girl she put her back to them both. "You make me so upset and sick Ricky!...so upset." she began running away. Ricky's mouth fell open as she began to run away. "What did I do?" he whispered, pausing to shoot a hostile glare at the blonde girl. "Idiot... This is all your fault..." he hissed, running after Karen. "Karen, wait! Please, just wait!" Karen kept running away, "Don't follow me!" she shouted at him throwing a dagger making sure it missed him. "Just stay away from me...or I'll kill you.." she said backing away from. "I don't care!" Ricky shouted in reply, still running towards her. "I'm following you, and I don't care if I have to die to keep my promise! Besides..." he muttered to himself, "...if you kill me, then we'll be even." He finally caught up to her, pushing her against a tree trunk. "So... Are you going to kill me now?" he whispered, staring down at her. Karen shivered looking away from him not answering him. She wasn't going to say anything to him, he couldn't make her. Ricky glared at her. "Well...aren't you going to answer me?" He pushed her harder against the tree. "Aren't you going to look at me?" He lifted up her chin, still glaring at her. "Say something!" He kissed her roughly on the lips, pulling away slowly. "Just talk to me..." As soon as he kissed Karen her eye let out a waterfall of tears. "...You've hurt my feelings...so much." she said sniffling staring at him. "I just want to fade away...from this world." she trembled closing her eyes. "Just make the pain go away...please..." Ricky wiped away her tears, still pinning her to the tree. "What can I do to make it up to you? I don't want to hurt you... I don't want you to be in that much pain..." He looked away. "I only stopped you...because I could never picture you as a murderer... I'm sorry... I'm sorry... How...can I make you feel better? Do you want to go home to see Amy again? What...do you want?" Karen staring at him then closed her eyes looking away. "I want you...to act like you've never acted like in front of me before..." she whispered softly. "Please...act anyway...you want." Ricky sighed, pushing her against the tree. "Act...any way...I want...? I just want to make it up to you..." He bent his head down, kissing her neck where he had cut her before. "I want to make up everything to you..." He pulled her away from the tree, hugging her tightly, running his fingertips down her back. "I'm sorry..." Karen shivered as he ran his fingertips down her back. "...Okay.." that's was all she could say as he squeezed her tightly. "Ricky...anyway, you want...is okay.." Ricky felt her shiver as he continued to let his hand move down her back. "Isn't this about what you want?" he whispered in her ear. "What I want...doesn't matter... I just want to make you happy again..." He gently bit her ear, pulling away and kissing her lips roughly. "Is this...what you want...?" Karen opened her eyes pulled away then kissing him back not realizing once again she was pulling down her sleves and pushing him down onto the ground she pulled away shivering squeezing his shirt tightly afriad. "Just...do what you want.." "Okay..." Ricky whispered, grabbing her sleeves she had started to pull down. "Do you...want me to pull them...all the way down?" he asked quietly, leaning up and softly kissing her lips. Karen nodded softly kissing him back. "Yes...please." she said blushed as he grabbed her sleeves causing her to lean back against th tree staring at him. "Go...ahead." "Okay..." Ricky whispered again, giving her sleeves a rough tug, pulling them down further. He kissed her again, pulling her sleeves down even more. Karen blushed and kissed him back as her bra began to show she squeezed his arms smiling she pulled away. "This always happens.." she whispered staring at him. "You always feel like it's your fault and we end up making out under some random tree.." she said blushing. "It's kinda nice..though." Ricky smiled back at her, pulling down on her shirt more, then grabbing her bra. "Yeah... It's...kinda nice..." He pulled down, blushing lightly. "I...like it...a lot..." Karen blushed kissing him as he pulled down on her bra. "You..don't have to be..." she said looking away. "I always lose my temper...and don't mean too." she looked down as her bra was all the way down. She blushed moving closer to him feeling her chest bounce against him. "But...I'm..." she shook her head. "I don't know.." Ricky blushed as he felt her chest bounce against him. "...What?" he whispered, staring at her. "What...are you trying to tell me?" He leaned closer to her, softly kissing her lips. Pulling away, he stared at her silently, putting one arm around her, touching her chest with his other hand. Karen blushed feeling him put his hand onto her chest. "I'm...hurting you." she said looking away from his stare. "I know am...I've become as hard headed as you.." Ricky sighed, looking away. "You're not...hurting me... Not any more..." He glanced back at her, sighing again. "I wonder...if Amy will be as hardheaded as me too..." He tried to smile, but it was small and weak-looking. "Listen... I'm fine... I'm the one that's been hurting you so much..." Karen shook her head. "You wouldn't be so hurt...if I didn't..." she choaked on her words putting her head down onto his shoulder. "Ricky..." she whispered his name out. "I'm going to...keep running from you..." she bit her finger making the blood go down her finger. "I make you go crazy..." she whispered staring at the blood. "I know I do.." Ricky closed his eyes, looking away. "Stop it... Why are you doing this to me?" He shivered, staring into her eyes, still not looking at the blood dripping down her finger. "I'm...fine... Seeing blood...doesn't affect me... I'm fine..." He pushed her away. "Let's...get back to your house..." Karen fixed her bra and shirt nodding. "Okay.." she whispered flying back to her house...landing after thirty minutes of quietness. "I'm sleepy..." she said yawning. "Well go get some sleep Karen." Mrs. Kano said pushing Karen to her room then turned to Ricky giving him a tired smile. "Let me show you your room.." Mrs. Kano opened the door to the guest room. "Here you are...good night Ricky." Rai was already asleep...so the whole house was quiet. Karen yawned slipping on her night dress slipping under her blankets she closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep. Ricky silently sat down on his bed, waiting for the entire house to become quiet. He didn't know how much time passed after that, but once he was sure everyone was asleep, he stood up, opening his door. Let's see... Karen's room is...over here...He silently phased through the door, lowering his voice to a soft whisper as he stared down at her. "Hello, Karen..." Karen muffled in her sleep. "Ricky..." she whispered still asleep squeezing her pillows. "Don't...hurt...me..." she whispered rolling over. "Please...stop it...don't touch me there..." she mummbled before become quiet and still. Ricky gave a sad aggravated sigh, blushing lightly. He sat down on the edge of her bed, staring down at her. "I'm such an idiot..." he whispered, staying silent for a few minutes. Once he was sure his blush had faded, he leaned down to whisper in her ear. "Hey, Karen... Time to wake up..." Karen jumped looking around half asleep. "Wha...what?" she whispered half asleep.. "It's two aclock in the bloody morning...what do you want?" she asked looking over at Ricky with a glare, then with wide eyes. "How...did you get into my room?" she asked putting the blanket over her chest sitting back. "Shut up!" Ricky whispered, putting a hand over her mouth, letting his other arm slide around her waist. "Do you want to wake everyone up!? Just be quiet..." He lifted his hand away from her mouth, glaring at her. "...Okay?" Karen stared at him shivering. "Ricky...what are you doing?" she asked staring at him still covering her chest. She was trembling squeezing her blanket. "What are you going to do to me...?" Ricky sighed, slowly reaching out, grabbing her blanket. "I'm not going to hurt you...if that's what you were thinking... Jeez... Even when you're asleep...you're afraid of me..." He gave a gentle tug on her blanket. "You can...let go of this..." He smirked at her, pulling again, harder this time. "...You won't be needing it..." "W-What...are you talking about?" Karen's blanket was pulled out of her hands. She stared at him. "What are you going to do?" she asked again staring at him. "What...are you going to- do?" "Stop asking so many questions..." Ricky whispered, pushing her down onto her back. "I'm not going to do anything you won't like..." He smirked, pinning her shoulder down with one arm while the other slowly trailed down her chest. "You'll like this...won't you? Just like before...except no pain..." He licked her neck, biting gently, then licking it again. "Stop acting so afraid... Just...relax..." Karen blushed shivering then closed her eyes trying to relax her heart. "Okay..." she said softly.. "I'll relax..." she said keeping her eyes closed. "Why...though..why are you acting like this suddenly?" "Much better..." Ricky whispered, ignoring her question. "See how easy things are when you just cooperate?" He ran his tongue up her neck, whispering in her ear. "If you just let yourself enjoy this..." He smirked, still letting his hand trail down her chest to her stomach. "...you won't be disappointed..." Karen kept her eyes closed. "But..." she whispered nodding. "...O-okay..." she said softly as she felt his hand go down her body. "I-I'll enjoy it.." "Good..." Ricky whispered softly, gently nibbling on her ear. "And you'd better not hold back either... Do whatever you want..." He pulled away, staring down at her. "So... What turns you on?" He smirked, letting his hand go down lower and lower. "How...can I turn you on?" Karen blushed looking at him, "I'll...enjoy it but I don't want to be turned on.." she said sitting up then standing up rubbing her head. "Why are you acting like this?" she asked looking back at him. "Did I...do something again?" "Why not?" Ricky asked, frowning at her, ignoring her questions again. "Karen..." He leaned closer to her, not even trying to hide the lust in his voice. "I want you turned on... Now answer my question... How can I do it? How...can I turn you on?" Karen backed away from the bed. "I don't want to be turned on." she said backing up until her back hit her closet. She opened it up holding it from the inside. "Go back to bed, Ricky...you're lustful..." she said squeezing the handle to try and keep him out. "No, Karen..." Ricky whispered, phasing through the door. "I'm not going back to bed...unless you'll go there with me..." He smirked, grabbing her arms. "I thought...you said you'd just let yourself relax..." He leaned closer so his lips barely brushed against hers. "...and enjoy..." Karen jumped as he grabbed her arms. "N-No...I don't want-want to!" she said pushing him against the door of the closet. "Stop it..." she said backing out of the closet. "I'm not going to bed with you..." she ran into her bathroom shutting the fixed door. "Stay away from me, Ricky." she said trembling as she locked the door. "Just go to sleep.." Ricky sighed, walking out of the closet, standing in front of the bathroom door. "Why can't you ever just do what I want? Should I blast open the door again?" His hand glowed a faint red color as he pressed it up against the door. "Why won't you ever just cooperate?" Karen put her hands over her head. "Stop it!" she shouted at him from behind the door. "Just stop it..." she got against the wall closing her eyes. "Wake up...please...just wake up." she said to herself. "Please.." she begged herself. "Just make it stop.." Ricky took a deep breath, and his hand stopped glowing. "What do you want from me!? Whenever you tell me you're in pain, I try to help and just end up hurting you more!" He lowered his hand, phasing through the door. "I'm trying...to make you feel better... But no matter what I do...it always ends up turning out like this..." He raised his voice again, glaring at her. "What do you want!?" Karen kept her head down she didn't look up at him or say anything to him she was shivering. He...was scaring her. "You're afraid of me again, aren't you?" Ricky whispered, pushing her back against the wall. "I won't stop until you tell me what you want... It's such an easy question to answer...but since you won't say anything..." Pushing her harder against the wall with one hand, he let his hand travel down her stomach. "...I'm not going to stop..." He lowered his voice, whispering in her ear. "Now take your clothes off...because you won't be needing them... Just cooperate, Karen, or I'll have to take them off for you..." Karen blushed feeling her breath get caught in her throat. "N-N-No...Stop it.." she said closing her watery eyes. "Stop it!" she tryed pushing him away. "Go away..." Ricky just pushed her harder. "What...do...you...want?" His hand continued to go down her stomach until it reached the bottom of her shirt. "I told you... If you wouldn't take them off, I'll take them off for you..." He pulled up on her shirt, lifting it over her head. "I'll warn you again... You can take off the rest yourself...or I can help you... Karen winced and shook her head as he pulled the shirt off of her. "No- stop pulling off my clothes!" she said struggling to move. Ricky pinned her arms back against the wall, glaring at her. "You could be pulling off your own clothes right now if you had just listened to me... Now stop moving so much... Just let me finish...if you're not going to do it yourself..." Karen winced as he pushed back on her. "Stop..." she said feeling her voice crack. "..Don't take my clothes off.." "Shut up..." Ricky whispered, seeing his hand glowing red again. He pointed his finger at her and a glowing red streak shot out and covered her mouth. "I'm tired of you telling me to stop all the time... What happened...to the Karen I saw when we were back at that hotel? Why can't we do that again? It's okay to act that way sometimes..." He looked away, pushing her arms harder against the wall. "It's...okay..." Karen muffled something under the growing red streak over her mouth. She shook her head closing her eyes feeling them become blurry with tears she shook her head trembling under his touch. Ricky glared at her, ignoring her teary eyes. "You're always so afraid..." he whispered, moving his hand down her stomach again, this time grabbing the waist of her pants. "Why...are you always so scared of me?" He pulled down once, looking away from the tears in her eyes. "This...is your fault..." he muttered, giving a second, even harder pull. Karen stared at him, "You...your different..." she said choaking. "Different, in many ways.." she shivered as he pulled off her pants leaving her underwear and bra. "Please, just go to bed..." "I'm not going to bed!" Ricky grabbed her bra, glaring at her. "What do you mean, I'm different?" He gave a sharp pull on her bra, lifting it over her head. "And just answer me... Karen... What do you want from me!?" Karen stared at him with her hurt wet eyes. "I want you...to act like yourself..." she whispered sniffling. "Just be the normal...clueless...hardheaded Ricky...I know.." she winced feeling her chest get pulled up quickly then go back down bouncing as it landed. "You're more...more..." she looked away shaking her head become quiet. "But..." Ricky let his voice trail off, staring down at her. "I...was... I thought..." He shook his head and looked away, pushing her against the wall. "Finish...what you were saying... I'm more...what?" Karen looked up at him. "You're more fightening..." she whispered shivered covering her chest. Ricky glared at her, pushing harder. "Aren't I always frightening you!? You're always afraid of me...and you always will be..." He looked away. "How can I change that?" He shook his head and smirked at her, running a finger down her cheek. "Want me to tell you a secret?" he whispered softly. "My blood lust isn't gone..." A glowing red knife formed in his hand. "And since you're not acting like a good little girl, I might have to hurt you..." Karen blushed closing her eyes, "Stop it..." she said in a wimper. "You can stop...and just leave me alone and go to bed!" she said as he formed a knife in his hand. "Y-You're going to hurt me again, you've lied to me so many times!" she said staring at him with wet wide eyes. "You keep lieing to me! I don't trust you..." "Shut up!" Ricky whispered, clutching the knife tightly. "Shut...up... You always talk about how much I hurt you... Haven't you ever considered...how hard I try to stop myself...and make you feel better..." He pushed her even harder against the wall. "I tried to make you feel better...without any pain or blood... But...as usual... Everything was ruined... Because you never..." He trailed off, looking away. "...You never trust me, you're never willing to take chances, you're always holding back, and you're constantly hurting me..." Karen stared at him with wide eyes then they closed half way. "I hold back...so I don't hurt you..." she looked away wincing. "You're always comming at me, what would you do...if I killed you then brought you back?" she asked staring at him sadly, slowly pushing him away with all her strangth putting her head into her knees. "I don't know what to do...after what Al did to me...I-I'm scared..." she shivered from the cold. "I'm...scared...and you're scaring me even more...w-whenever...you act like this.." Ricky glared at her, grabbing her underwear tightly. "You're always scared... And don't mention his name ever again... You know how you felt before, when that girl was kissing me?" He looked away. "Well, how do you think I felt when you were with him!? You hurt me just as much as I hurt you!" He pulled down, glaring at her again. "I have...the same exact kind of pain...as you do..." Karen winced backing up against the wall shivering scared of him. "...I'm...sorry.." she said shivering looking away not wearing any clothes she moved away from him. "But why...why are you hurting me?" she asked closing her eyes. "I didn't mean to hurt you...I...you're..." she looked away from him. Ricky glared at her, grabbing her arms, pulling her away from the wall. "I never meant to hurt you either... Just like you didn't mean to hurt me... But we're both in pain anyway... And apologies never help... Ever..." He gave her a rough push toward the shower, giving a cold smirk. "Now that your clothes are finally off...wanna have somefun?" Karen shivered staring at his cold smirk she looked at the shower. "Ricky...what's gotten into you?" she asked shivering covering herself up. "Stop...please..." her feeling inside hurt so much... "Just go back to normal..." she begged him. "Please..." "I...don't...want to..." Ricky hissed, glaring at her. "Just...cooperate... Isn't this...better than me taking your blood...? Would you rather have this...or my blood lust...?" He shoved her again, this time completely pushing her into the shower. "Which...would you prefer...?" he whispered, stepping closer to her. Karen shivered backing away inside the shower until she hit the wall she didn't realize she turned on the shower causing her to become wet...she shivered looking away from him. "I don't want eather..." she said not even trying to hide the tears in her eyes. "I just want you back, Ricky.." Ricky smirked as she turned on the water. "Thanks for doing that for me..." he whispered, stepping into the shower with her, not caring that his clothes were getting wet. "You want me back... What does that even mean?" He pinned her against the wall. "I'm right here, Karen... And I'm acting perfectly normal..." Karen was in shock she was just staring at him before she leaned up to him kissing him softly on the lips. She was crying but the water washed them away so you couldn't see them. She pulled away. "Be the...hardheaded, confused, loving Ricky...the one that you really are...not this blood lustful one..." she shivered feeling the cold water. "Please..." Ricky put his arms around her, pulling her away from the wall. Ignoring the fact that his clothes were completely soaked, he squeezed her tightly, pressing his body against hers. "I'll always be loving..." he whispered, barely able to hear his own quiet voice. After a long pause, he spoke again, hearing his voice shaking. "When I was eight years old... I promised myself... I'd never fall in love... I'd never need friends... And then...I got my curse... And I promised again...never to love...or care...because I'd only hurt the people I care about..." He squeezed her tightly, shivering as droplets of water rolled down his cheeks. His eyes were sad, and the water could easily be mistaken for tears. "...I told you... Back at summer camp... I told you I was like this... I can only hurt you... No matter how much I love you... All I do is cause you pain..." Karen shivered as she hugged him back, "I told you...it doesn't matter..." she shivered closing her eyes. "Ricky..." she kept her eyes closed and her hand was glowing she putting it against his back she began to cry. "Go to sleep...Ricky...this is all a nightmare...just go to sleep.." "I don't...want to..." Ricky whispered, feeling his eyelids droop. "Stop it, Karen..." He shivered, closing his eyes. "I'm cold... I don't want...to...sleep..." His voice trailed off as he lost consciousness, still soaking wet and shivering. Karen stood there for a second before turnning off the water and grabbing a rob. She frowned down at him, "I'm sorry for hurting you Ricky.." she whispered picking him up phasing off all the water on him. Phasing threw the wall she placed him in his bed. She stared down at him putting a blanket over him she squeezed his hand and phased threw the wall going back into her room and falling asleep, slowly letting her tears stop. Ricky sat up, glancing around his room. "Where...am...I...?" he whispered softly, blinking as sunlight struck his eyes. "Karen..." he whispered, staring at his door, remembering the events of last night. "You...idiot..." He stood up, opening his door and walking to Karen's room. He lifted his hand up to the door, knocking timidly. Karen groaned standing up half asleep opening the door slowly. "Yea..?" she asked rubbing her eyes. "Oh...Morning Ricky.." she said still half asleep. Her mother and sister had left for the supermarket earlier leaving them alone in the house. "H-hey..." Ricky raised his hand, giving her a small wave. "I... I just wanted to say...um... I... I'm..." He lowered his hand, looking away. "I'm sorry, okay!? I'm sorry!" He clutched his head in his hands. "I had dreams... So many dreams... So much guilt... I'm sorry... I'm sorry..." Karen waved at him half asleep still she fell forward resting her head on his chest. "..Yeah...okay, it's fine.." she said in a muffled half-asleep voice. Ricky shook his head, gently pushing her backwards, stepping into her room. "It's not fine..." He closed the door behind him, scooping her up in his arms and dropping her on her bed. "You look tired..." He sat down on the edge of her bed. "Are you...okay...after what happened last night?" "Fell asleep...an hour ago." Karen mumbled squeezing her blanket. "..Bad dreams kept waking me up...guilt is terrible.." she yawned rowling over. "Come lay beside me.." she said smiling slightly. "I'm...cold.." Ricky gave a small smile, lying down next to her. "I feel guilty...and cold too..." he whispered, shivering as he pulled her blanket over them. "Maybe I can warm you up..." He hugged her gently, resting his head down on her shoulder. Karen rested her head on his shoulder as well, feeling tired still she closed her eyes again. "Thank you for warming me..up." she said smiling breafly before asking. "Do...I really make you act like that?" she asked calmly in a sleepy voice. "Blood lustful?" "Sometimes..." Ricky whispered, squeezing her tightly. "I don't know why... I can't help it..." He closed his eyes, yawning. "I'm...sorry... I can't...control myself...sometimes..." He lowered his voice. "About last night... I'm so sorry... I...didn't mean to... I...don't know what... I... I'm sorry..." Karen yawned and closed her eyes snuggling up against him. "It's...okay..." she whispered falling slowly asleep. "I can't eather..." she sighed softly smiling. "I'm warm now..." she said falling asleep. "I'm glad...you're warm..." Ricky muttered softly, closing his eyes. He was unable to fall asleep, so he just stared down at her, blushing and smiling softly. "Don't...be a pervert, Ricky..." he whispered, blushing a deeper shade of pink. "Just because she's asleep...and there's no one else here with us...doesn't mean...you can be a pervert..." He stopped talking to himself, slowly moving his hand so it rested on her chest. "Just because...you can pretend to be sleeping if she wakes up...doesn't mean...you can be a pervert, Ricky..." Despite his words, he gave a small nervous smile, letting his fingers slide down the side of her body, still touching her chest with his other hand. Karen muttered something before opening her eyes looking over at him. "...Do you...want to take a bath..?" she asked softly staring at him. "Wh-what?" Ricky whispered, forgetting he was supposed to pretend to be sleeping if she woke up. "What...did...you...just...say...?" He glanced down at his hand, blushing and pulling it away from her chest. Karen looked over at him smiling softly. "Do you want to take a bath?" she asked again turnning over on her side barrying her face into his chest. "Do you?" Ricky blinked, feeling his face turn red. "W-wait a second..." he whispered, staring at her. "You mean...?" He shook his head, muttering, "Pervert..." Looking away, he whispered, "Yeah... I...guess so... O-okay..." Karen smiled standing up she looked back at Ricky and becan to undo her night shirt. She tured around to him bending over, "Are you okay, about this?" she asked as her shirt had been done half way. "I thought you wanted to.." she said softly taking him by the hand blushing. "Come on.." Ricky looked away, still blushing. "Y-yeah... I do want to... I... It's just..." He gently pulled his hand away from hers and slowly pulled his shirt off, still looking away. "I wanted to ask you the...same question... Are you...okay about this?" He took her hand again, not making eye contact. "Yes.." Karen said looking back at him then back at the door tossing her shirt then bra away. "When you're like this...I feel safe." she said softly pulling off her pants and underwear. "This is when...I feel safe." she said smiling back at him blushing slightly walking into the bathroom making sure the water was comfortable. "Oh..." Ricky whispered softly, slowly reaching down and pulling off his pants. "But... You said...you can't trust me... Then why do you feel safe?" He followed her into the bathroom, hesitantly pulling off his boxers, blushing and looking away. "But...I'm glad you do...feel safe around me...at least...sometimes..." "In your blood lust stage...I can't feel safe or trust you." Karen said looking down. "The water's ready..." she whispered quietly taking him by the hand and stepping into the tub as water came down on them. She smiled and hugged him tightly. "When you're like this...the real Ricky, I can feel safe and trust you.." Ricky blushed, staring into space with a soft smile on his face as she hugged him. "Thank...you..." he whispered, hugging her back. "Thank you...for trusting me..." He kissed her lips softly, pulling away slowly. "And...I'm sorry..." Karen kissed him back harder then before. "...It's okay." she said pulling out of the hug halfway. "Ricky..." she whispered his name softly before leaning forward to him and kissing him softly on the lips again. This time when she kissed him, she slipped on the water and fell forward. "Ah!" she shouted landing ontop of Ricky in the tube. She blushed blood red, realizing he wasing wairing anything... "R-Ricky..." "Well..." Ricky whispered, blushing bright red as she landed on top of him. "Th-this is...awkward..." He put his arms around her, smiling slightly. "But it's okay... I kind of...like awkward moments like this..." Karen blushed a deeper shade of red as he put his arms around her. "Ricky..there's someing I need to tell you..." she whispered looking down. "I-.." she cut herself off hearing her door open. "Karen, you're taking a bath this early in the morning?" "Rai.." Karen whispered blushing staring down at Ricky. "Um..." Ricky gave a nervous hesitant noise, turning invisible. He tried to be as quiet as possible, hoping Rai hadn't seen him yet. In a soft whisper, he said, "Karen... Make her...go away..." Karen nodded. "Rai, why can't I have some privacy?!" she asked poking her head out from behind the curtians. "KarenWhere's Ricky?" "Rai get out!" she said glaring at her...there was a slam a second later. "She's gone...it's okay.." Right gave a soft relieved sigh, turning visible again. "Karen... What...did you want to tell me? Before your sister came in?" He blushed, looking away, still feeling awkward. "What were you trying to say?" Karen looked back at him crawling closer to him. Bitting his neck she smiled sweetly. "I have your blood lust..." she whispered licking the bit and smiling at the same time. "My...blood lust...?" Ricky whispered, staring at her with wide eyes. "No... You can't... Karen..." He tried to make himself push her away, but he was frozen, unable to move. "Now you...know what it feels like... And I know how you feel... You want it, don't you? You want my blood so badly..." He looked away, shivering. "Go ahead...take it... Don't suffer like I did..." Karen crawled closer to him bitting him in the neck. "Yes...I want it..." she said shacking licking his neck again. "I want it so bad..." she whispered in his ear. "I'm sorry...if this'll hurt you.." she said softly in his ear making a small cut on his arm and licking up the blood. "It's...just so good..." she whispered pulling away looking from him with what looked like fangs in her teeth. "Ricky...I don't want this blood lust..." she cried licking his arm. "Make it stop.." Ricky winced, looking away. "Karen... I don't know how to make it stop... I don't know how..." He put his arms around her. "The only thing...that made me feel better...when I had this blood lust...was when I was taking your blood..." He pulled away, staring at her with pain in his eyes. "I'm sorry... But... I don't know what I can do...except...let you have as much blood as you want..." Karen shivered cutting his arm. "I-I don't...want.." she licked his arm and barried her nails into his skin. "I don't want to hurt you.." she whispered staring at him sadly. "It's killing me, that I'm doing this to you.." she bit into his neck with her fangy teeth. "You're not..." Ricky whispered, wincing, trying to hide the pain on his face. "You're...not...hurting me... I let you do this to me... It's okay, Karen... I just want to help you..." He shivered as she bit his neck. "Don't feel bad... It's not...your fault..." Karen began sucking up te blood from his neck and slowly pulled away. Blood dripping down her lips and down off her chin. "I...want it all..." she whispered coldly squeezing her hands so tightly around his arms blood came out of his arms. "Give me your blood.." she said in a lustful hiss and she bit his neck again and began sucking up his blood once again. Ricky let out a pained gasp, squeezing his eyes shut. "You can...take it... Take it all... You deserve it..." His heart was beating faster due to the loss of blood. "I'm sorry... Just...take it..." He felt blood dripping all down his body, which made him shiver. "I'm...sorry... Now I know...how you felt... I'm sorry..." Karen pulled away crying. "No.." she whispered going up against him then pulling away turnning off the shower. Picking him up she stood up picking him up at the same time she threw him onto the bed. "What can I do to turn you on?" she asked making her chest press against him. "Want me to make my chest bounce?" Ricky blushed, staring at her. "No... I don't...want that..." He looked away, shivering. "S-stop it..." Another shiver ran through his body as he realized they still weren't wearing any clothes. "Just...take as much blood as you want... But...please...stop..." He looked away, still blushing, not wanting to admit that he was enjoying it. "...Stop." "Aw come on Ricky.." Karen cooed moving closer to him making her chest bounce. "Don't be like thatit's okay." she said moving closer to him. "I know that look...you're enjoying this." she smirked making her chest bounce once again. "It's okay to act like that sometimes." she said quoting him. "It's okay..." "Yeah, but..." Ricky blushed, looking away. "I... N-no, I'm not enjoying it!" He pushed her away, still shivering. "You're acting like me... Stop it..." Blushing even more, he scooted away from her, shaking his head. Stop it...Ricky...you pervert... You're not...supposed to likethis... Stupid...pervert... Karen moved so close to him her chest bounced on it's own. "You little pervert" she said pushing her boucing chest against him. "You're so cute..." she said hugging him tightly. "...When ever you're like this..trying to hold yourself back from me is futile..." "I'm not a pervert..." Ricky whispered, unable to push her away. "I'm not...holding anything back... Stop it..." He shivered again, blushing. "I don't like this... I don't... You can't...stop me from holding myself back..." He stared at her, looking away after a few seconds. "There's...nothing you can do..." Karen stared down at him for a second, "Oh my...gosh, wh-what am I...doing?" she asked backing away from him. "I'm sorry, Ricky." "No... It's okay." Ricky grabbed her wrist, stopping her from backing away. He secretly wished she hadn't stopped, but he refused to admit it. "It's...not your fault..." He gave a gentle pull on her wrist, bringing her closer. "Are you okay?" Karen nodded as she was pulled closer to him. "I'm okay...what about you?" she asked looking at his bite. "I hurt you.." "It's okay..." Ricky whispered, shaking his head. "I'm...fine... But..." He stared at her with concern in his eyes. "Karen... How did you get my blood lust? Please... I want to help you...but...I don't know how..." "I think...last night...when you were acting like that, it some how got into me..." Karen said looking away. "I don't...know.." Ricky closed his eyes, nodding. "So it's my fault, then... Karen... I'm so sorry..." He hugged her tightly. "But if it got into you...do I still have it too? Or did it completely go away?" He shook his head, sighing. "I just...don't know..." Karen shook her head. "I don't...know.." she winced feeling herself get cut. "My hand.." she winced pulling it back then looked right at Ricky's cut with the blood on it...it was so...beautiful..she wanted it, she looked away. "Don't..." "I guess..." Ricky shivered, staring down at her hand. "I guess we'll find out whether or not I still have my blood lust..." He lifted her hand up, licking the blood off of it. "Mm... Yep... It's still there... I still want it... I want your blood..." He smirked, wiping the blood away from one of his cuts. He held out his bloody hand to Karen, still smirking. "Don't you want some, too?" Karen looked back at Ricky with a painful look that turned into a smirk, she licked up the blood on his hand. "You know I want it..." she made a cut on his cheek. "It's so good.." she muttered to him licking his cheek. "Go ahead...you can have my blood too.." Ricky smirked, slowly pushing her down onto her back on the bed. "I was...hoping you'd say that..." he whispered, biting her neck, licking up the blood. "I guess...we can finally have some fun...right?" He created an ectoplasmic knife, trailing it down to her chest. Opening a cut on her chest, he slowly let his tongue slide down, licking the blood. "Karen..." he whispered, grinning down at her. "You're...not wearing any clothes...which should make this...even more fun..." "Exacly.." Karen said grinning back up at him. "And look at that...you're not wearing any eather..." she bit into his neck licking up the blood. "Ricky, do what you want." Ricky smirked, holding his knife back up to her neck. "So soft..." he murmured, pressing it softly against her skin. "So easy...to cut..." He kept smirking at her, leaning down to whisper in her ear, "Do what I want, hm? Let's see... What do I want?" He grinned, moving his knife down, letting the tip of its blade trail along the curves of her body. "Well... I want to make you mine..." Karen for some reason felt a chill go threw her body. "Oh really?" she whispered back smirking. "I was think the same thing...go on...make me yours..." she leaned closer so her chest bounced against his. "...Go ahead...I'm here for the taking." Ricky smirked at her, shivering as her chest touched his. "Oh no..." he murmured with fake surprise in his voice. "Looks like I gave you a little cut..." He stared hungrily down at the long cut trailing down her body. Moving closer, he whispered softly, "Let me clean up that blood for you..." He slowly moved his tongue down her body, tracing the long thin cut he had created. Karen moaned as he licked up the blood on the long cut. "How sweet of you Ricky, now I don't have to clean that up.." she cut him painfuly in the arm. "Look at that...blood.." she whispered licking up the blood on his arm before pulling away staring up at him. "How will you make me yours?" Ricky moaned in pain, still smirking at her. "Good thing...pain turns me on..." he whispered, pressing his body against hers. "Hm... How will I make you mine?" He leaned closer to her, still smirking. "How should I answer that question?" He kissed her lips passionately, biting her bottom lip, sucking the blood out. Pulling away, he whispered, "I guess you'll just have to wait and see..." He pushed himself against her again, still smirking. "But...if you keep cutting me like that... You'll turn me on even more... Won't that be fun...?" As soon as Ricky said 'pain' and 'turn on' Karen looked away slowly pulling away from him. "Yes..." she said making her hand glow. "That would be fun...but..." she lowered her hand to his chest almost touching it. "You're sleepy Ricky...just sleep.." "No." Ricky grabbed her wrist, pushing her hand away. "No, you don't... Not...again... Stop it, Karen..." He held his knife up to her wrist, making a small cut. "Don't make me hurt you..." Karen winced, "No you stop it." she said as she felt a small cut be made. "Don't you dare hurt me again..." she made her other hand glow pushing him back with and ecto-blast. She stood up and away from the bed. "Ricky, go to sleep." she said making her hands glow a light purple. "Please.." "No..." Ricky whispered, clutching his head with his hand. "Stop... Stop it..." He shut his eyes, clenching his other fist, still holdng his aching head with one hand. "I don't want to go to sleep... I'm tired...of you doing this to me... I'm tired of you...backing away from me and being afraid all the time... I'm so...tired..." "I'm not backing away from you..." Karen said stepping forward to him hugging him gently. "Please sleep..." she whispered hugging him gently. "Stop it..." Ricky whispered, forming a knife in his hand, gently touching Karen's back with the tip. "Stop it... I'll...hurt...you... If you don't...stop..." The knife faded from his hand as he closed his eyes, putting his arms around her. "Stop... Pain...lust...and blood... Make it...stop..." Karen pulled away slowly kissing him on the lips gently then hugging him tightly. "...Good night Ricky.." Karen mumbled as he got heavy falling into her arms. "Just sleep..." Ricky's lips curved into a small smile as she kissed him. "Thanks..." he muttered, falling forward into her arms. "Good...night...Karen... I...love...you..." He let out a soft sigh, losing consciousness. Karen blushed and put him onto her bed. Phasing clothes onto him she put her rob on and looked down at him. "I love you too, Ricky..." she said softly lifting him up phasing him into his room and placing him on his bed. "Karen..." Ricky muttered softly in his sleep. "No... Don't...want...blood... Stop..." He winced, shivering. "Stop...it...please..." He sat up abruptly, feeling the aching pain come back to his head. "In my...room again...?" He yawned, realizing he was wearing his clothes again. "Karen..." he muttered softly, blinking tiredly. He couldn't see straight because his head was throbbing with pain and lack of sleep. "...Karen...?" Karen was at the edge of the bed laying down asleep curled up in a little ball with a sheat over her. Ricky opened his eyes, letting out a soft sigh. He sat up, staring at Karen for a minute. "It wasn't my fault again..." he whispered softly to himself. "Was it?" He reached out and gently put his arms around her, pulling her towards him so she was lying right beside him. "Whoever's fault it is...I'm sorry... I'm...sorry..." Karen slowly opened her eyes feeling dizzy. "Ricky...it was my fault...this time." she said softly putting her head down beside him. "I'm sorry." Ricky shook his head, squeezing her tightly. "I don't care if it was your fault... I still...acted...like that... It's...my fault too..." He looked away, trying to block out the pain in his head. "Don't be sorry... It all leads back to being my fault... If I didn't have this stupid blood lust in the first place...you never would've gotten it, either..." He sighed, closing his eyes. "It always...ends up being my fault..." "Stop blaming yourself...Ricky.." she said holding her head. "It's okay.." she said softly smiling at him. "Let's go..back to amy.." she said sitting up. "Please?" "Yeah..." Ricky whispered, smiling. "That sounds...great..." The smile faded from his face as he looked away. "But Karen... Now that we both have this lust for blood... What would we do if it happened for both of us at the same time? We could kill Amy...or Myles..." He stared into her eyes, whispering softly. "What are we going to do?" "We're going to have to...stay away from each other...until it is gone.." Karen sad looking down. "Just until it's gone..." she said smiling. "We can manage.." she sat up. "I'm going to go tell my mom.." "Stay...away...?" Ricky whispered, staring sadly at her. "But... I don't... I can't... I..." He tilted his head down, nodding once. "...Okay." He stood up, still not looking at her. "I'm...sorry..." Karen smiled back at him, "It's okay.." with that she walked out...minutes later Karen came back into the room. "Let's go, Ricky." she said taking his hand jumping up and phasing threw the ceiling. Ricky just nodded, still keeping his head down. "Okay..." he said again, staring down at her house below them. "Let's...go..." He started flying in the direction of his house, squeezing her hand tightly. Karen squeezed his hand back, "It's the only way to keep your mom, Amy, and Myles safe.." she whispered as they landed on his front porch. "It's okay..." "Okay..." Ricky hesitated on his front porch for a minute, still holding her hand. "Before...we go in... I..." He swept her into his arms, hugging her tightly. "I'm sorry... I'm sorry... I'll find a way to get rid of this... I promise..." Karen blushed and hugged him back and slowly pulled away slowly. "It's..okay." she said softly knocking on the door hesitating she let go of his hand slowly. Mrs. Drynn opened the front door, staring at them for a silent moment before bursting out, "Where were you two!? Myles first told me that you..." She pointed at Karen. "...ran off somewhere, and you..." Her finger moved, pointing at Ricky this time. "...went after her! What were you thinking!? Do you know how long you were gone!? What if you died!? What if you got lost!? What if you were injured!?" She gave Ricky a disgusted look before grabbing both their wrists, pulling them inside. "Didn't you ever think about how much Amy would miss you two!?" Ricky glared at the ground, not saying anything. Karen kept her head down. "I'm sorry, Mrs. Drynn." Karen whispered before seeing Amy glomp her leg. "Mamo!!" Amy cried hugging her leg tightly. "Youire okie!" she said lookin up at her with big wet eyes. "Mamo...Baha...!" she said sadly. Karen bent down and hugged Amy tighly. "I'm sorry, Amy.." "Baha..." Amy looked over at Ricky frowning with wet eyes. "Okies?" Ricky knelt down, smiling softly at Amy. "I'm so sorry... But...Daddy's okay now... We're not leaving again, so you don't have to worry..." He scooped her into his arms, squeezing her tightly. "So, Amy... Are you okay? You already look like you've grown taller..." Mrs. Drynn sighed and stopped glaring at them. "She's...missed you guys...a lot... I could tell...she was worried about you..." Amy nodded hugging Ricky tightly. "I okies...Imma ninja af al.." she said looking at Ricky in the eyes. "Bood lopster..." she said sadly. "Youz...got bood lopster.." Karen looked away. "I'll be..upstairs." Karen said waving. "Bye, Amy...Ricky, Mrs. Drynn." Karen said running up the stairs and into Ricky's Room. Ricky blinked at Amy, and looked away when Karen ran upstairs. He sighed, forcing a cheerful smile as he looked back at Amy. "Ninja...? Aww, you're so cute, Amy..." He hugged her tighter. "But... What's 'bood lopster'? Oh, well... Maybe I'll learn your language someday..." Mrs. Drynn stared suspiciously at Ricky. "I don't know what she said... But you know she has a knack for spotting problems... Whatever 'bood lopster' is...I'd watch out for it if I were you." Ricky raised an eyebrow at her, shrugging as she walked into the kitchen. "Amy... Does...'bood lopster'... Does that mean..." He lowered his voice. "...blood lust...?" Amy nodded franticly. "Tis whach I'd!" she said frowning. "Mamo hash it tooz." she looked up at hte ceiling. "I'mma sorrwies.." she said hugging him. "Sidded of curso.." she pointed to the stares. "Mamo, ish suckingie Mimi'sh bood!!" ---- Karen was standing in Ricky's room, "I need...blood...I need it.." she whispered shivering looking down. "Myles has blood...I know his does.." Karen phased threw the ceiling and looked at Myles smirking coldly. "Hey, Myles..." she said walking beside him bending down pinning him to his bed. "I'm...hungry.." she whispered to him bitting his neck. "I need some blood.." "Mamo... Mimi... Blood?" Ricky blinked. "What are you...talking about? I...don't...understand, Amy... What are you...trying to say?" "BROTHER!" "That was...Myles..." Ricky's eyes widened and he placed Amy down on the couch. "Stay...here..." He sprinted up the stairs, following the sound of his brother's screams. - - - Myles tried to push her away, squirming around. "Stop it! Brother! Melody! Help! Karen's a vampire! H--" He let out a gasp of pain as she bit his neck. "It...hurts... Make it stop..." Karen slowly pulled away staring down at him. "Myles..." she whispered staring at him. "What am I doing?" she asked as she backed away from the nearly knocked out Myles. "What did I do?" she asked feeling blood go down her lip and on to her chin. Myles stared at her with shock and disbelief in his eyes. "Karen... You...bit...me..." He pressed a shaking hand to his neck, pulling it away and staring at the blood. He looked away, down at the ground. "Nobody...came...to help me..." His voice trailed off as his eyes drooped shut. "Myles!" Ricky slammed the door open, seeing his brother unconscious. He saw the blood dribbling out from a bite on Myles's neck, and he immediately turned to Karen. "You... Did you...? Is he...?" He checked for a pulse, sighing with relief. "He's...still alive... He's...okay..." Karen stepped away again until her back was against the wall. "I...attacked...him...I got hungry..." she began to shiver still staring with wide eyes. "It's...not okay that I attacked your little brother Ricky..." "Does this mean..." Ricky stared down at Myles. "We have to stay away from...everyone? But..." He sighed, looking away. "...If we wanted to... If we got...hungry...we could kill...everyone here... How do we...stay away? What do we do?" He clenched his fists, glancing back at Myles. "Next time...someone might not be so lucky... Next time...someone might die..." He forced himself to look away from the blood dripping down his brother's neck. "What are we...supposed to do?" Karen looked away. "I...I don't know..." she whispered clenching her own fists looking down. "...Whenever we get 'hungry' we can suck each others blood.." she said whispering looking at Myles with a face of regret. "...I don't...know." Ricky sighed, leaning against the wall. "I don't know...how to get rid of it... If we just try to ignore it...we'll attack someone eventually... And if we keep attacking people... If we keep getting more blood..." He gave another sigh, shaking his head. "...I don't know..." Myles opened his eyes slowly, staring up at them. His tired expression turned into fear and shock as he saw his brother. "Brother...kills...people..." he whispered softly, stepping away until his back was against the wall. "He...killed...Karen..." He held up his hands in front of his face protectively. "Brother...don't kill me...please..." Ricky stared at Myles with sad eyes. "Myles... I'm not going to hurt you...okay?" Myles shook his head, still trying to back away even though he was already pressed against the wall. Karen frowned and took a step towards Myles. "Myles...it's us...Karen and Ricky..." she steped towards him again bending down to his veiw timidly put her ands around him. "I'm sorry...so sorry.." she squeezed him tighter. "Don't be scared of your brother...we're trying to get rid of this blood lust.." "Don't...hurt me..." Myles whimpered, putting his head down on her shoulder. "Brother...killed you... I saw it... Brother kills people he cares about..." He hugged her tightly, closing his eyes. "I don't want him...to kill me too..." Ricky stared sadly down at Myles. "Everyone...is afraid of me..." he whispered softly. "Even my own brother..." Karen looked at him shaking her head. "He didn't mean to kill me...he tried stoping himself...but, something took over called 'blood lust' and, he snapped..." she looked at Myles in the eyes. "It's okay...don't be afraid of him...please." she said hugging him tightly. "I'm not afriad of him anymore..." she whispered softly. "Be like a superhero and trust him..." Karen winced for a second, then smirked. "Trust him alright..." she whispered leaning down to his neck and bitting it again. Myles winced, letting out a whimper of pain. "Brother... Help... Please..." He closed his eyes, shivering. "Karen... Stop it... Please...stop it... Stop...hurting me..." Ricky stepped over to them, giving Karen a gentle push away from Myles. "He's right... Stop it, Karen..." he whispered softly, smirking at his brother. He was trying to stop himself, but his mind was feeling pain, confusion, and blood lust. "...You weren't saving any for me..." He licked the blood from the bite Karen had made. "Hm... Not bad... But I think I like your blood better, Karen..." Karen looked away shivering, "No...I won't..." she whispered looking away grabbing Ricky by his hand. "We're doing something wrong...stop...stop it...we're hurting him..." she shivered jumping up into the air back into Rickys room shivering. "R-Ricky...it's getting really...bad.." she said squeezing his hand. "We need to kill it...some how.." she said laying back on the bed shaking. "We've got to..." "Mom..." Myles whispered, letting himself slide to the ground, curling up into a little ball. "Mommy... Melody..." He closed his eyes, shivering as blood continued to drip down his neck. - - - Ricky squeezed her hand, looking away. After a long moment of silence he burst out, "I... I licked my little brother! Do you know how disgusting that is!?" He tightened his grip on her hand. "But...seriously...we...have to kill this...soon...before..." He looked away. "Before we do that...to...Amy..." Melody opened Myles door. "MylesI'm-" she stoped talking seeing him on the ground. "Myles!" she bent down to him. "You're bleeding...who...did this to you?" ------ Karen hugged him tightly. "R-Ricky...it hurts...I can't stop myself...I need more blood." she said squeezing him. "I need more..." Myles stared at Melody, sitting up and backing away. "Don't...hurt me..." he whispered, shaking his head. "Please...don't hurt me..." He bent his head down, shivering. "Please..." - - - Ricky nodded, squeezing her tightly. "I know... I know...exactly how you feel..." He pulled away and made an ectoplasmic knife, opening a large cut on his arm. "Here..." He held out his bleeding arm. "Make the pain go away... I don't want you to be in pain... Just...take it..." Melody stared at him with hurt eyes. "Myles..what happened to you?" she asked crawling in front of him hugging him gently. "It's okay...I'm right here...everything'll be okay.." ------ Karen shivered and began to lick up his blood as soona s his arm was cleaned...she kept her head down. "I can't take this anymore..." she said squeezing his hand. "...It's getting out...of control." "Melody..." Myles whispered, hugging her back. "Are you...going to hurt me...? Please... Don't... Please..." He felt his eyes fill up with tears. "People...I love... People I...care about... They were hurting me..." He squeezed her tighter, still feeling a faint trickle of blood on his neck. "Don't..hurt me..." - - - "You're...right..." Ricky whispered, squeezing her hand. "But... I don't know...what to do..." He watched as a few drops of blood trickled down his arm. "I just want it...to go away..." He wiped away the blood with a finger, staring down at it. "Blood... I want it so badly..." He licked his finger, feeling dizzy all of a sudden. "Ugh... My...head..." he muttered, leaning against the wall. "What's...happening?" Melody shook her head. "I'd never hurt you, Myles..." she whispered hugging him tightly. "It's okay..." ----- Karen bit into her own arm and sucked in her own blood...she too felt dizzy. "...It feels...like it's dieing.." she whispered to Ricky falling on his bed. "What the heck..." Myles nodded, resting his head on her shoulder. "Thank you...Melody..." He closed his eyes, shivering. "I'm tired...and cold..." - - - Ricky staggered over to his bed, falling down next to her. "You're...right... Do you...think it's actually, finally dying?" He closed his eyes, feeling tired. "Was that it? Just...our own blood... So simple... But...we never figured it out...until now..." Melody's hand glew a faint orange. "Don't move...you'll be okay..." she whispered quietly healing up his cut with a sad look. "You'll be okay.." ------ Karen's eyes became sleepy and she looked over at him. "Sleep...I need sleep...so, tired..." she whispered to Ricky curling up next to him. "Just need...sleep." Myles nodded again, feeling his cut heal. "Thank you..." he muttered, keeping his arms around her. "So...tired..." His eyes closed and he fell forward, on top of her. "Good...night..." - - - Ricky nodded, falling asleep beside her. He didn't know how much time passed, but when he woke up, Karen was still sleeping. "Great..." he muttered, blushing. "Same situation... She's asleep... We're alone... Don't be a pervert, Ricky... What if she wakes up...?" He tilted her chin up with a hand, staring down at her. "...What if she doesn't wake up?" He gently stroked her cheek, letting his hand move down to her neck. His finger traced the faint outlines of the cuts he had given her before. Letting his other hand grab and lift up the bottom of her shirt, he slowly, carefully pulled it off, without any sudden movements that would wake her up. Smiling nervously, he whispered to himself, "Sometimes...I kinda like...being a...pervert..." Melody blushed smiling she placed him on his bed. "Sleep well, Myles.." ------ Karen blushed as she slowly opened her eyes feeling her shirt get pulled up. "So...you do like being a pervert..?" she asked blushing slightly staring at him. "Silly...Ricky." she whispered kissing him on the lips. "...Why are you always...turnning me on?" she asked staring at him. "You've always known what to do..." Myles smiled, keeping his eyes closed. "Thank you...for not hurting me..." he whispered, struggling to stay awake. "Melody..." He grabbed her hand, gently pulling her onto his bed. "Thank you..." - - - Ricky's eyes widened as he pulled away, blushing bright red. "Oh... You're...awake... Heh... H-hi... I...uh... I wasn't... I was just... I..." He looked away, shivering. No excuses can get you out of this situation, Ricky... Karen blushed and kissed him on the lips again shirt completely off, her chest against him. "Ricky...you're such a naughty...boy." she whispered kissing him again pushing him down. "Do what you were going to do when I was asleep.." "B-but..." Ricky whispered, blushing as he felt her chest against him. "Well...if you insist..." He kissed her lips softly, running his hand down the side of her body at the same time. "Ricky's a naughty pervert..." he whispered in her ear as he pulled out of the kiss. He touched her chest with his other hand, still blushing and shivering. Karen blushed and looked up at him. "You were going to...touch my chest while I was asleep?" she asked smiling shyly. "Naughty little pervert.." she said laughing silently kissing him softly on the lips. Ricky kissed her back, slowly pulling away. "Well... I wasn't just going to do that..." He slowly trailed the fingertips of his other hand down her stomach. "...Too bad you woke up and ruined my fun... I didn't get to finish..." "Aww..." Karen said softly kissing him. "It's no fun if we don't both do it, Ricky." she smiled. "You know that." she shivered feeling him touch her. "You're so...frightening.." she said bitting his bottom lip and kissing him softly. "Naughty wittle...Ricky" "I guess you're right..." Ricky's hand continued to trail down lower, but he pulled it back up to her chest at the last second, smirking. "But...still... I've never heard you moan while you're sleeping before..." He shrugged, squeezing his hand before trailing it down her chest to her stomach again. "Oh well..." He squeezed his other hand, which was still on her chest. "I'll just have to settle for you moaning while you're awake..." Karen moaned silently and smiled. "Want me to fall asleep?" she asked drozy like. "I can if you want..." she said yawning. "I...can sleep..." she Muttered falling asleep next to him. Ricky smirked, squeezing his hand. "Yeah..." he whispered softly, smiling and giving a small nod. "Yeah, I definitely like being a pervert..." He squeezed his hand again, harder than the first time. Karen shivered and moaned in her sleep feeling him squeeze harder she shivered. "...Ricky..." she moaned out in her sleep keeping her face a small blush on it. "Beautiful..." Ricky smirked, leaning down to whisper in her ear. "That moan of yours...is truly a work of art...even when you're asleep..." He softly kissed her lips, pulling away as he whispered, "But still... I think you can moan a little louder..." He squeezed his hand roughly, smirking down at her. Karen moaned even louder as he squeezed his hand roughly causing her to grab his arm and blush a deep red. "Ricky..." she moaned softly breathing deeply. Ricky blushed, smirking as she grabbed his arm. "Wow..." he whispered, staring down at her. "Wow... Amazing... So... She's asleep...which means..." He reached down with one hand and slowly pulled off her pants, squeezing his other hand again. "...I can do...almost anything..." Karen moaned again squeezing his arm tightly. "Ricky..." she whispered in her sleep as he pulled off her pants she turned over onto herside yawning softly hugging his hand causing it to be flatened and her to moan quietly. "Ricky..." she said so softly hugging his arm tightly. "...Don't change...ever...again..." she murmured in her sleep smiling softly. Ricky blushed, smiling back at her. "Don't worry..." he murmured, even though he knew she couldn't hear him. "...I won't..." He pulled his other hand away from her pants, putting it onto her chest, then letting it trail down her stomach. "I like being a pervert..." he whispered to himself, smiling softly. "I like it...a lot..." Karen smiled softly. "I'm...glad..." she said turnning over again freeing his squshed arm. "Ricky...I love...you.." she said squeezing his arm. Ricky blushed, still smiling. "I love you too, Karen..." His other hand kept trailing down her stomach until it reached her underwear. He paused, still blushing. "Don't be a pervert, Ricky..." he whispered, grabbing her underwear, looking away. "Try not to be a complete..." He shook his head, blushing and pulling down roughly, muttering, "...pervert..." Karen flinched in her sleep feeling him pull down on her underwear her eyes were half opened before she moaned and turned over again. Ricky shivered, seeing her flinch and moan. His other hand slowly, timidly went back up to her chest as he stared down at her. "Karen..." he whispered softly, gently squeezing his hands, wondering why he was hesitating so much. Karen opened her eyes half asleep like. "Ricky...what's...wrong?" she whispered quietly then moaned softly while shivering. "Nothing..." Ricky whispered, giving her a reassuring smile. "I'm fine... Nothing's wrong..." He softly kissed her lips, pulling away and whispering in her ear, "Nothing...at all..." He squeezed his hands again, still smiling at her. "...Okay? Oh, and when you're fully awake, Karen..." His innocent smile turned into a smirk. "I have a question..." Karen slowly opened her eyes staring up at him. "A..question?" she asked looking up at him. "What's...the question?" she whispered moaning softly while blushing. Ricky pulled his hands away from her chest, lying down on his back beside her. "Well..." He smirked, staring up at the ceiling. "What...would you do to me if I was asleep?" He closed his eyes, still smirking as he started dozing off. "Heh... I know naughty Karen can be a little pervert sometimes..." His voice trailed off as he yawned. "So...what would...you do...?" Karen sat up and put her hands on both sides of his head blushing. "Well...I don't really now...I'd do something...very naughty." she whispered to him. "I'll just show you..." Ricky smiled, shivering slightly. "Naughty...Karen..." he whispered, blushing a light shade of pink. "...Go ahead... Show...me..." His voice trailed off as he fell completely asleep, still keeping a small smile on his face. Karen blushed gulping as she pulled down his boxers. She looked away gulping again feeling her face get redder. "Ricky..." she whispered completely pulling down his boxers. She sighed deeply then put her hand over his private place. Blushing she squeezed her hand then kissed him softly on the lips. Ricky blushed and moaned loudly as she squeezed her hand. "Karen..." he gasped in his sleep, breathing deeply as he clutched the bed sheets tightly. "Oh...jeez..." His voice trailed off as he tried to catch his breath. "Oh...jeez..." Karen blushed and pulled her hand away getting away from him. "I-I'm sorry..." she said shivering backing away from him blushing blood red. "Wait..." Ricky whispered softly in his sleep, shivering as she pulled away. "You...don't...have to..." He blushed a deeper shade of red, giving a small smile. "...stop..." Karen kept backing away. "He's asleep...just stay away from him.." her back was against the wall blushing blood red as she looked down at her hand shivering. Ricky rolled over in his sleep, shivering again. "Karen..." he whispered softly. His breathing was slower and he wasn't blushing as much. "Don't...leave...please..." Karen blushed as he spoke in his sleep. "Ricky...I'm sorry..." she whispered still blushing putting on a shirt and pants phasing threw the ground spotting Myles and Melody. "Don't tell Ricky I'm down stairs..." she said going invisable. Ricky shivered again, muttering again in his sleep. "Karen..." he whispered, curling up into a ball. "Don't..." He opened his eyes, blinking. "Karen..." - - - Myles blinked, sitting up and staring at her. "...Karen...?" He yawned, rubbing his eyes. "What are you...? What about brother...? Are we keeping a secret...?" Karen's head turned visable and nodded her head. "Don't tell him I'm in here..." she whispered blushing. "Just don't tell him." "Idiot..." Ricky whispered, blushing as he pulled on his boxers and pants. "Idiot... Where are you?" He invisibly phased through the wall, glaring in all directions. "Where...are...you?" He paused as he heard his brother's voice. "Okay!" Myles grinned at her. "I'm good at keeping secrets! Brother will never find out!" Ricky let out a long sigh, following Myles's voice. He phased his head into the room whispering softly, "Hey, Karen..." Karen stoped moving seeing Ricky's head beside her. "R-Ricky..." she turned visable backing up next to Myles. "Look, I'm sorry okay?" she said blushing. "I got nervous..." "Honestly..." Ricky phased all the way through the wall, stepping closer to her. "I was asleep... I wasn't doing anything to stop you..." He pushed her back against the wall. "There was nothing to be nervous about..." He leaned closer to her. "Or are you still afraid of me...even when I'm sleeping...?" Myles blinked, moving away from Ricky, whicpering to himself, "Brother's been acting weird lately... I don't want him to hurt Karen...like he hurt me..." "W-What?" Karen whispered staring at him as he pushed her against the wall. "I was...just nervous okay?" she said looking away. "Can we please...just forget about it?" Ricky shook his head. "Why...would you be nervous? Why?" He glanced sideways at Myles, who was still backing away. "Myles... You'd better leave..." "Brother..." Myles whispered softly, backing up until he hit the wall. "Don't hurt her...please..." "Don't worry... I won't hurt her..." Ricky smirked, returning his gaze to Karen. "We're just talking..." He pushed her a bit harder against the wall. "Tell me... Why do you always back out of everything?" He kept his voice dangerously soft, still keeping the same smirk on his face. "Why do you always stop, even when you know you don't want to? What holds you back?" Karen winced quietly staring at him. "...I...when..." she shook her head. "I-I don't know...I'm sorry." she said looking away. "Look at me..." Ricky hissed softly as soon as she looked away. "And don't tell me you don't know... Don't you dare..." Myles glanced from Ricky to Karen, not knowing what to do. "I'm... I... I'm telling Mommy!" He started to run toward the door but froze in his tracks when Ricky sent some kind of ectoplasmic energy at him. The ectoplasm curled around Myles, binding his arms to his sides and his legs together, making him unable to move. "Sorry...Myles..." Ricky smirked, not taking his eyes away from Karen. "I can't let you do that... So, Karen... Answer me..." He pushed her harder. "A real answer... You're not allowed to say 'I don't know'... That's cheating..." Karen watched Myles fall to the ground. "Ricky!" she looked back at him gasping silently. "I don't..." she looked up at him in the eyes. "I don't know, damn it!" she shouted at him gasping realized she said it. "...Look, I got nervous...I'm sorry." "Well this is different..." Ricky smirked, still pinning her to the wall. "Usually I'm the one who's yelling... But, still... You can't say you don't know..." He pushed her harder, leaning down to whisper in her ear. "Because I think you do know..." He pulled away, glaring at her. "You got nervous, huh? I'm the clueless one. The one who doesn't do anything right. The coward. And yet...you ran away from a sleeping kid who was letting you do whatever perverted things you wanted to do! You don't make any sense!" "Well, Sorry for being a girl!" Karen shouted at him pushing him away, running over to Myles undo-ing the ecto-binding. "Are you okay, Myles?" Myles nodded, staring up at his brother with fear in his eyes. "K-Karen... Watch out--" Ricky had already grabbed Karen by the hair, glaring at her. He bent down, whispering in her ear. "Bad...move..." He gave a rough tug, pulling her away from Myles. "You..." He shot a glare at his little brother. "...aren't going anywhere..." He shot another round of ecto-binding at him. "And neither are you..." he hissed at Karen, pulling on her hair again. Karen screamed in pain and suprisement she lifted up her hands grabbing his wrist. "Ricky...what are you doing?" she asked giving another scream of pain. "You're hurting me!" she shouted at him. "Why are you so pissed off!?" she shouted up at him. "Because I got nervous and don't know why!?" she felt him lift her up causing her wince again. "Stop acting like a creep, Ricky!" she said shivering. "Stop it.." "I told you..." Ricky hissed, pulling on her hair again. "To never mention that name ever again... Just answer me! A real answer!" He glared at her, raising his voice. "And don't you dare say you don't know! Why do you always get so nervous!? Why are you always so afraid!?" Karen closed her eyes. "I don't know!" she shouted at him keeping her eyes closed. "Stop acting like Al, just stop it!" she said trying to pull away from him. "Let me go.." "Sure... Okay... I'll let you go..." Ricky let go of her hair, clenching his fist as he formed ectoplasmic energy in his hand. "You'd better not mention his name again... Next time I think I might snap..." He held up his hand, sending ecto-tape at her which pinned her back against the wall. Karen's eyes widened and she stared at him struggling to move. "Why are you acting like Al!?" she asked once again. "Why...are you acting like him..." she tilted her head down. "Are you doing this because I came down here!?" Ricky's eye twitched as he put his hands on her shoulders, pushing her against the wall. A smirk crept onto his face as he whispered softly, "I told you I'd snap...eventually..." "Brother...?" Myles's eyes widened as he stared up at Ricky. "Stop it... Don't hurt her..." Ricky glanced at his brother, flinching as he saw Myles's sad, helpless eyes. "You...always ruin everything... Stop looking at me like that..." He looked away from Myles, glaring back at Karen. "To...answer your question... I'm doing this because you're always running away... You're always afraid...to do anything... Every time you do something like that... Every time you run away from me..." He pushed harder, still glaring. "...it hurts... So I thought...maybe you'd understand if I made you feel pain..." Karen's eyes widened and she looked away, "So...you're going to hurt me...again?" she asked shivering. "If you keep hurting me..." her voice trailed off and she closed her eyes. "If you keep hurting me, you'll be just like him!" she blurted out looking back at Ricky's cold glare. "You'll be...just like him." she looked down. "You're acting like...such jerk." she looked over at Myles. "And you're hurting people you care about...Why are you always like this!?" Myles looked away. "Karen... You...hurt me too..." His voice got even quieter as he continued. "You both did..." He was trembling as he looked up at them. "Just stop fighting! Ricky says he loves you, and you're going to get married, but how can you do that when you hurt each other so much!?" "Shut...up..." Ricky whispered, sending a cold glare at Myles before turning back to Karen. "I'm not like him at all... I'm not... I'll never be like him... He's... He's..." His voice trailed off, but he pushed her harder and shouted, "Just stop talking about him!" Karen looked down, "I'm sorry...Myles, I'm sorry I hurt you.." she whispered looking over at him, then winced feeling him push her against the wall even more. She ignored his demand "You're acting like him!" she said shivering. "You're upset because I ran away...I'm sorry..." she finally got her arm free and she lifted her hand up to slap him. Ricky grabbed her wrist, making his hand glow red, burning her. "I'm not acting like him..." he whispered softly, still glaring coldly at her. He gave a bitter smirk, forming an ectoblast in his other hand. "So you apologize...and then you decide you want to slap me..." He increased the power of his hand burning her wrist. "...That's a decision you'll regret..." Myles felt his eyes fill with tears as he stared up at them. "What's wrong with you guys!? Stop it! Just stop it!" The main reason he was upset was the fear that ran through his mind. Is this what happens when people like each other? I don't want to fight with Melody... I don't ever want to hurt her... Ricky says he loves Karen...but he hurts her anyway... Does that mean I have to hurt Melody? A tear rolled down his cheek as he looked away from them. I...don't know... Karen looked away hidding painful tears, "Stop it...please...stop it!" she said with a cry of pain. "You're hurting me..." she looked at him with her wet eyes. "I thought...you...loved me." she wimpered looking away. "Just stop it...stop it..." she cried out keeping her head down shivering. Ricky smirked again, still giving her an icy glare. "That's funny... I thought you loved me too..." He shrugged, holding up the ectobeam in his other hand against her shirt sleeve. "If you really did...you wouldn't hurt me so much... You wouldn't hesitate or run away all the time..." He gave another shrug. "Oh well..." The ectobeam in his hand grew larger, burning away part of her sleeve. "Brother..." Myles whispered softly, shivering. "Stop it...please..." Karen stared at him feeling empty inside causing her to tilt her head down. "Stop it...please...just stop it." she looked over at Myles making a sad face. "Myles listen to me: quickly go invisable...phase threw the ecto-bind and get out of here...please.." she said ignoring that the fact her bra was showing. "I don't want him to hurt you...just go." she kept her head down not looking up at him. Myles shook his head. "He's my brother! He can't hurt me! I don't want to leave..." He looked away. "I just want to help..." "He can hurt you when he's completely snapped..." Ricky smirked, not even looking at Myles. He moved the ecto-beam away from her sleeve, closer to her chest. "But you might want to take her advice and leave... There's nothing you can do to stop me anyway..." Karen's eyes watered and looked over at Myles, "Myles, just go please!" she shouted over at him. "Just get away...from him...I don't want you to get hurt, anymore.." she whispered closing her eyes. "I didn't mean to hurt him...I didn't.." she whispered sniffling feeling his arm move closer to her chest. Myles looked away with tear-filled eyes. "...Fine..." he whispered. "I'll go... Br-" He paused, glaring at his brother. "Ricky... Don't hurt her...please..." He phased through the ecto-binding, staring sadly at both of them. "I'm sorry..." he whispered, phasing through the wall, falling to his knees in the other room and crying. "Now that he's out of the way..." Ricky smirked, moving his hand so it started burning away her shirt near her chest. "We can have this conversation privately..." Karen kept her head down, "Fine..." she whispered with a broken voice. "Do what you...want with me, if it'll prove I'm sorry.." she trembled. "Do what you want..." Ricky stopped smirking, letting the ecto-beam fade from his hand. "You're just going to stop fighting?" He clenched his fist, making a more powerful ecto-beam, burning away more of her shirt. "Why!? Why won't you fight against me!?" He pushed her harder against the wall with his other hand. "I...like when you fight back... You can't just...stop fighting..." Karen trembled looking up at him sniffling, "...This is the only way." she said shivering as she tried moving again she got hit by his ecto-beam right above her left breast. She winced closing her eyes going intangable and phasing threw his touch. Going invisable she phased threw the ceiling top landing next the Myles holding her chest shivering as she cried. "I'm sorry...Myles..." she whispered laying down next to him holding her chest. "I'm sorry...Ricky...I'm sorry.." Ricky just stood there, trembling. "Idiot..." he whispered, still holding the ecto-beam in his hand as he stared up at the ceiling. "Idiot..." He fell to his knees, smashing his fist against the floor, making a dent with the ectoblast. "...Idiot..." - - - Myles looked over at Karen, feeling tears trickle down his cheeks. "Did he...hurt you...? Did...Br-" He looked away, shivering. "Did Ricky hurt you?" "W-When...ever he...snaps he can't control himself..." Karen said looking at him crying. "Don't...cry...don't be afraid of him, you're...one of his weakness'.." she held her chest closing her eyes. "I...still love him, even...even when he's like this..." she hissed in pain feeling her chest burn. "He'll...never hurt you...I'll make sure he won't..." she said holding her chest shivering. Myles gave a tearful nod, smiling weakly. "Thank you..." He looked away, still shivering. "Believe it or not...I know how he feels... I think it has something to do with us being brothers...but..." He sighed, looking away. "...I can tell...he still loves you too... Even when he's hurting you... I could tell...when he glared at me...I saw it on his face..." He gave another weak smile. "Hey, I'm the one that's gonna protect you... I'm a superhero-ninja... I won't let him hurt you anymore..." - - - Ricky stared down at the ground with sadness and anger in his eyes. "Why do I always hurt her? Why? What am I supposed to do?" He slammed his fist down on the ground again. "Idiot... What do I do? If I go after her...she'll just run..." He closed his eyes as his voice cracked. "She...always runs..." Karen looked at him smiling weakly. "Thank...you, Myles." she whispered slowly standing up looking down putting her back to Myles. "...Thanks..." she closed her eyes phasing threw the ceiling landing on the ground quietly keeping her head down still keeping her hand on her chest. She trembled keeping her head down, "I...the only...reason I ever run, is because when you get angry at me...you hurt me..." she whispered keeping her head down. "You have anger issues...I don't care how many times you hurt me, kill me, or whatever...I'll never...stop...love you.." she closed her eyes. Ricky let the ectoblast in his hand fade, and he stood up, keeping his head down. "...But..." He cut himself off, silently pushing her back against the wall. He leaned closer to her, looking away and hesitating. "...I... Just...stop...running away from me... Stop it..." Karen kept her head down as she was pushed against the wall. "I'm scared of you...when you snap..." she admitted keeping her head down. "I got..scared.." she said looking down. "I'm sorry.." Unknowning to them, Amy had crawled into the room spotting them she smiled and began crawling to them. Ricky looked away, leaning even closer. "I..." He turned his head as he heard a tiny noise, spotting Amy crawling toward them. His eyes widened as he slowly stepped away from them, backing up against the other wall. I can't...do anything I'll regret in front of Amy... I can't snap... I can't hurt Karen... I...can't... Not now... Karen looked down at Amy as she continued to crawl towards Ricky. "Amy..." she whispered trying to get her attention but she kept crawling towards Ricky. "Baha!" Amy said smiling crawling in front of him. "Baha?" she looked at him with her brown eyes. "Mamo, ish hirt!" Ricky shook his head, staring down at Amy with wide eyes. He tried to back up more but he was already up against the wall. His body felt frozen, and he couldn't do anything but stare down at her. "Sorry...Amy..." he whispered, once he was finally able to move. "I'm...sorry..." He phased through the wall, still whispering, "...Sorry..." Amy crawled against the wall hitting on it with her hands. "Baha, commie bach hepie mamo...pawse..." she asked pulling away from the wall crying. "Amy..." Karen whispered closing her eyes. "I'm going to...go get him..okay?" she said quietly phasing threw the wall after him. "Ricky! Please...just come back!" she shouted in pain.. "Please..." she whispered looking in the direction he flew to. "I need you...please..come back.." she began flying after him before she winced and held her chest. "I need you..." she cried out floating into the mountians forest. "...Don't leave me...alone..." she whispered landing on her knees. Ricky was sitting on a tree branch in the forest, holding his head in his hands. "I'm...such an idiot... All I do is hurt her... She's better off without me..." He gave a long, sad sigh. "She...probably wishes I never even came into her life... All I did was ruin it..." He pulled his hands away from his face as he heard someone's voice. "...Karen...?" He jumped up out of the tree, too shocked to turn invisible, and stared down at the ground, looking for her. "Why...is she here...? Why...did she come after me...?" Karen held her chest shivering as she looked around, "Ricky...where are you?" she whispered then screamed out. "Ricky, please...come back...I need you..!" she gasped in pain holding her chest tightly. "It hurts...so badly...please...help me.." Ricky instantly turned his head in the direction the voice was coming from. "No... You don't need me..." He turned away, floating away from her voice. "...But..." He stopped in his tracks, turning back around halfway. "...I need you..." He flew off, following the sound of her voice. He stared down at the ground, spotting her, flying down and landing beside her. Pausing, he tried to figure out what to say, and ended up just muttering, "...Hey." "R-Ricky?" Karen whispered looking up at him. "You..came back.." she said wincing in pain. "Please don't go...please...stay with me..." she gasped in pain again holding her chest tightly. "It..hurts, please...h-help me.." she whispered closing her eyes. "Please.." "I...don't know how to heal people..." Ricky whispered, gently placing his hand against her chest. "I don't know...what to do..." He put his other arm around her, looking away. "I...can't help you... I can't do anything but hurt you..." Karen looked at him sadly. "But...you can heal people...you have my powers, right?" she asked putting her head down onto his shoulder. "Just please heal it...make my feelings stop feeling so much pain please..." "But..." Ricky nodded, closing his eyes. "I've never tried this before, so don't blame me if it doesn't work..." His hand glowed faintly as he began to heal her. "Now...I can help you with that other pain you're feeling..." He pulled his hand away from her chest, putting his arms around her. "I'm sorry... I'm so sorry..." He squeezed her tightly, kissing her softly on the lips. Pulling away, he whispered in her ear, "Karen... Will...um... Will you..." He silently took a deep breath, using all his willpower to say, "Will you...marry me?" Karen blushed and hugged him back smiling softly still crying. "Yes, I will...I will marry you!" she said hugging him tightly. "I'm so happy...Ricky...so..happy..." she whispered closing her eyes falling 'asleep' on his shoulder. "Thank...you..." Ricky whispered, hugging her tighter. "I'm glad...I could finally do something right... Something that could make you happy..." He scooped her up, carrying her in his arms. "Let's...go back to my house..." He gave her a soft smile, floating slowly toward his house. "...I'm sorry..." he murmured softly, staring down at her. Karen smiled softly to him. "I...love you, so much..." she said softly in his chest. "Whenever you snap...please...don't ever...get affended when I run..please.." she closed her eyes as they phased into the room with a crying Amy. "Baha!" Amy cried hugging his leg. "Youz...leftie meh.." "I'm sorry, Amy..." Ricky whispered, placing Karen down gently. "Amy... I'm sorry... I'm really sorry..." He bent down and picked her up, hugging her tightly. "I had to leave... But...Mommy's okay now... She's all better... Daddy helped her, Amy... We're all...okay... I'm...sorry..." Amy's eyes watered and she cried on his shoulder. "Baha!" she said in her tears. "I wove joo..." she said hugging his neck tightly. "I wove joo so mush..." "I love you, Amy..." Ricky smiled, glancing down at Karen. "I love both of you...so much... I didn't mean to leave you... I just..." He let out a slow sigh. "Daddy...has...some...anger issues...and he doesn't want to hurt the people he loves... That's why he had to leave before..." He squeezed her tightly. "Daddy's never going to leave you like that again, okay? I promise..." "Okie..." Amy said smiling falling asleep on his shoulder. "Wuv joo..."