He did not expect the newspaper that was thrown at his face.

"Hey, what the heck!" Sebastian yelled at whoever threw the paper at him. Perhaps it was the midnight news boy who threw the newspaper at unassuming victims, a different story that Charlie told him about.

"Oh-Sebastian I'm sorry dude I thought you were... okay I didn't know what you were but uh- Sorry!"

Wait a minute that voice sounded familiar. Sebastian looked at the figure confused " Charlie? What the actual- what are you doing here? Shouldn't you be at home?"

Charlie dug his hands in the pockets of his worn jeans. " Well I was but, my parents kinda not home? "

Sebastian tipped his head to the side. "They still went on that business trip?"

"I mean they could have left before the news happened," Charlie answered.

The two walked off from the apartments and were heading nowhere in particular.

"So you heard about Noah?"

Charlie looked away from Sebastian and started to obsessively scratch his hand. " Well uh yeah" He took a deep breath. " We need to sit down .." Charlie gestured to a bench on the street which was used for people waiting for the bus.

They sat down on the bench. Sebastian dreaded the news Charlie was oh so avoiding. It took a while for Charlie to speak again when he did his voice was as quiet as a whisper.

"Noah was burned to death in the fire."

So that's the story the school came up with, instead of being shot for no reason he was burned to death. It was disgusting how the school could lie so easily and make everyone believe it, it was likely wasn't the first time they lied like that. But what could Sebastian say? Tell Charlie that all he knows is a lie. Tell him that it wasn't the fire that caused their friend's death but his curiosity. No, he shouldn't tell him, Charlie would undoubtedly blame him and wouldn't want to speak to him ever again.

Could he have prevented it if he had followed the students to the staircase? Questions such as these entered Sebastian's mind. It was maddening to try and decipher what might have happened and what if things were different.

Perhaps he should forget the whole notion and leave his troubling mind, enter back into the depths of reality.

Sebastian grabbed his book bag, and opening it he grabbed a bag of chips and handed them to Charlie.

The both of them ate the chips, as they spoke to each other, they both seemed to be ignoring the topic of their tragic friend.

"Oh man, remember the creepy math teacher who got fired!" Charlie said.

"Oh yeah Miss Renee, remember her eerie smile and that luminous red lip gloss." He shuddered.

"And those creepy doll collections! All of them were named after dates! Do you know why they were named after dates? Charlie questioned his friend. Sebastian rolled his eyes. "Oh no Charlie has another hypothesis."

Charlie started to gesture wildly " Listen you twit! She made dolls of her victims and  killed them! she labeled the dolls with their death date!"

Sebastian replied "Uh huh and how did she not get noticed?"

Charlie smiled " But she did! Why do you think she was fired? "

"Because she was seen smoking in the supply closet."

"That's what they want you to think! She was secretly a witch! The taste of blood from young children made her alive !"

"If that were the case why was she a high school teacher?"

"My story was ruined by your critical mind, how could you Sebastian!"

The two laughed at their ridiculous jokes and  Charlie asked Sebastian where he was at the escape from the fire.

Sebastian could have lied but he didn't. He told Charlie everything except for the notebook and Will and Noah's death he made it seem he was the only one in the basement. If anyone were to ask Charlie about the notebook. They would hear all about how Sebastian Miller stole the journal the government is theoretically looking for.

" Oh.." Charlie eventually said after a moment of silence.

Charlie pulled his headphones out of his neck and handed them to Sebastian. Sebastian curiously looked at them. "Okay? I don't have a phone with me ...why are you handing them to me," he asked. Charlie smiled. " I have no purpose for them, I have like ten pairs of the same kind, dad brought a shipment to test soo have them. Anyhow, it's not like I have any use for it anymore. I should inherit the business by now." Sebastian grabbed the headphones and placed them in his book bag.

"Anyhow I should get back home. Ugh, it's going to take FOREVER to get a ride home." Charlie said.

"Stay at my place, you know the way in,'' Sebastian answered, referring to a way in his apartment by his window. Although Sebastian hated this way to sneak in and out his friends took the dangerous route, they always commented how it just looks scarier than it was.

Charlie tilted his head. "You're not going home?" he asked.

"Nah, not for a bit, I'm going to walk for a bit. See you later Charlie."

The two friends walked off in opposite directions. Unknown of their future and the truths that will be uncovered in the far and hurtful future.

The city was quiet, with sounds of cars passing by, the usual homeless person or raccoon going through trash cans, and the faint beeps of the cameras updating constantly.

He stopped walking in front of a street lamp illuminating a sickly blue glow.

A closed coffee shop stood peaceful as Sebastian stood by it, he looked up at the apartment above it and wondered if it would be odd if he just randomly popped by. He looked out the window, perhaps he could even tell them everything that had happened to him. Sebastian eventually decided against it his brother would never understand and it was the middle of the night.

Walking away from the dim light of the street lamp he heard a strange sound, kind of like banging metal. He looked behind him and saw a guy with a bruised face and blood dripping down on his shirt walking out from behind the coffee shop. He didn't look like the type of person you’d want to meet in the middle of the night.

 It was just Sebastian's luck that he’d have to be stuck with him. The man  stared at Sebastian right into his eyes and shouted “Hey kid.” 

Sebastian paused and felt a chill going down his back. “Did you see a girl come by?” 

Sebastian backed away “No sir.” He wondered how fast he could run to get away from this guy but before he knew it he was already in front of him like he had some sort of super speed. He grabbed Sebastian’s shoulder and shook it. ``You better not be lying to me, boy, because if you are, I will make you pay.”

Sebastian had no words; he was too frightened to do anything. He froze up like an ice cube.

“Hey leave him alone he knows nothing.” Sebastian looked over and saw his brother walk by, he also quickly noticed that his hands and face were equally as beat up.

The man frowned and let go of Sebastian “Oh really and how am I supposed to believe that?”  

Rain smirked “Because he is my kid brother, and if I see you lay a finger on him again I will give you another smack in the face. Now leave before I lose my patience.”

The man looked even more angry and walked away “Remember Rain Miller.”

Rain rolled his eyes “Yeah yeah give you the girl blah blah blah tell it to the next guy.” 

Rain moved his attention to Sebastian “Hey Sebastian what are you doing here? Wanted to see me?”

Sebastian shook his head “Uh no, not really. Just on a walk I’ll be home in a bit uh what was with-”

“Oh that was nothing, just some friend of Banana Joes, who had a couple too much root beer if you ask me. Hey come inside lets chat for a bit. I got some pizza in the fridge if you want some.”

That did seem like a good idea, too much of a good idea. Sebastian studied Rain’s face as if this was the first time he saw him in a while. “Sorry I can’t I got Charlie over..See you tomorrow I guess.”    

Rain looked disappointed “Oh..wow yeah you probably should get back. See you around Sebastian.” 

Sebastian started to walk away when Rain shouted “Hey and remember you can visit me anytime okay!” Sebastian just shrugged.

After a while he was all alone, he passed quiet buildings, loud buildings, and dreadful sights, as police cars gathered together, dragging a woman into a tall truck with her hands tied behind her back, perhaps she was a witch, Sebastian didn't feel any pity for her after all witches were hideous and evil creatures and he was sure one of them killed his father as they can look awfully like humans.

 As he traveled along the streets, in his usual melancholy expression he pulled the headphone on as he wished he had some kind of phone with him so he wouldn't have to listen to his thoughts.

before him, a bridge filled with no human life, and two towers blocked a wood area filled with fog. It was hard to see what was in the distance with the shadow of fog and the darkness of the midnight moon.

 One growing up in the land of Eriel would not normally travel along the bridge unless it was necessary and sneaking past the guard towers was surely forbidden.

But Sebastian knew things that normal citizens knew not, he knew a secret way past the towers. A smelly, disgusting way that only a young child, playing a game of hiding and seeking would discover.

He snuck into the bridge and opened up the sewer lid. Hearing a strange noise he looked up and saw a guard walking around the premises. Sebastian ducked down and saw that the guard was just getting something out of his car and went back into his little watch house.

After the guard left Sebastian jumped down into the sewers, it stunk just like he remembered. "Okay Sebastian, are you doing this?" He asked himself, he looked at the notebook and the east tunnel with uncertainty. "Let's get this done and over with."

He didn't want to ever go back to the forest, ever since he did he was plagued with the thought that maybe the fact he came here killed his father. Of course, it made no sense and he kinda wanted to explore the area still.

He stopped for a second to stare at the strange stones in the walls, remembering the time he stole a notebook of his brothers once to find out that the stone markings could have been goblin. Although he never got a quite good look at that page because his brother snatched the notebook from him and yelled at him for just looking at it.

He barely touched the stones, they didn't seem special.He had to bet that they were made by some bored contrition worker and his brother was just nuts.

After some walking he ultimately reached the small room with the ladder, the room was just as dull as he found it to be when he was six although the ladder wasn't as frightening.

Climbing up back to the fresh clean air or the outdoors, he found himself at the edge of the forest. He stared at the strange purplish fog and felt the need to go in and explore. He shook his head, he shouldn't do that he should just read this book and get the whole deal over with after that. Who knows what he should do? He was scared to get back home. He sat down and placed the notebook on his lap as he wondered if he should do this now or if being here was even more of a sin. He opened the notebook to the front page with uncertainty.

The contacts read:

The teenager net test experiment

"Experiment?" he asked himself There was nothing else on the page except a gray vulture.

Turning the next page, he read.

The teenager text experiment 5cb, to seek for magical beings riddling in plain sight looking to bring war, the royal act 441 accepted this experiment for greater purposes and the safety of our citizens. If any unwanted fault happens it would be the fault of the co-conspirators and not the fault of the royal act and its special reapers. In this act teachers are appointed to find any magical monsters, freaks, and others who dare to take a human form. All teachers shall be handed contracts and refusal will end in the departure of their job and arrestment. Tell the students of the experiment will also end in arrestment

The rest of the page was full of all Sebastian's teachers except the math teacher and the principal.

Flipping through the rest of the pages of the notebook, he learned that a special government force was trying to find magical teenagers. If The government were to be caught, they would hide the evidence in a false magical fire and blame the monsters.

Feeling enraged for the school's lack of empathy and care, he threw the book in the darkness. A loud thumping noise echoed in the forest.

"No good royalty, they can live in their big castle with their no problem life and treat us like dog crap." he ranted in the darkness, loud enough for the royals themself to hear him.

Standing up, he grabbed a random stick from the ground, the stick was pure white with strange markings that resemble eyes. 

He began to search for the notebook he tossed by poking the ground with the stick, knowing if he doesn't find it the government would do a fingerprint test and find out he stole it and who knows what they'll do to him. As he walked closer to the forest a tall vine came out of nowhere to hit him hard in the face before he could realize what just happened. It sprayed him with a blue powder. He fell to the ground,with the urge to sleep. Trying desperately to fight the urge, a high-pitched female voice spoke in pitch black."Oh I'm sorry!" he succumbed to sleep