Shiro's Sanctum

Disclaimer: I own nothing but my original characters and works; all other characters and worlds belong to their respective owners. I'm just playing with them.

Betad by Malcolm Tent, Priapus, Mike God of Lore, Beans, Marethyu

The Guild of Gamers: The Occult

Chapter 09: Healer's Touch

– Alexander Shaw (Ebonstar) –

At first, I considered Panacea as the prime target for my healing needs.

She's closest, and getting to her wouldn't be difficult with my powers. Everyone says she is one of the greatest healers in the world, and it's only fitting that I get the greatest powers for myself, isn't it?

But after a moment of temptation, I decided against it. If Panacea disappears and then I show up with a new, similar healing power, people may catch onto that particular aspect of my powers. I could feed on her, but again, there is some risk to that, and it just isn't worth it… for now.

Not when there is another viable target so nearby.

I've done my research, and just a short run away from Brockton Bay lies another healer, one far less famous than Panacea. Lizardtail, one of Accord's ambassadors. He's capable of giving other people a regenerative factor, and with my speed, Boston is just a short trip away.

Capes in this world are so strange, so very few ever leave their city. Sure, there are some wandering ones like the Nine, but for the most part, a Brockton Bay cape wouldn't leave the Bay for anything less than an Endbringer attack or to recruit someone (like our little rage dragon is trying to do).

When Boston is just minutes away at my speed, I'd be foolish not to take advantage of this preconception to find better prey. Most won't ever assume that Ebonstar would leave the Bay, and disappearances in Boston won't be linked to me.

Finding the Ambassadors was not hard. Much like Brockton, Boston is separated into distinct territories between the local PRT, the Teeth, the Ambassadors, the much smaller Blastgerm and some tiny gangs that are barely surviving against the big fish of the city.

Accord keeps his healer safer and far more secure than Panacea, at any rate, but with my growing powers and my little Tattletale, tracking him down is not difficult for me.

But again, I hold back. As easy as it would be to sneak into that hideout and steal away Lizardtail, I don't want to risk someone like Accord working out that I am involved in this attack. Healers are very valued, and the loss of Lizardtail is bound to enrage the crime lord.

But then, he has enemies already, does he not? As it happens, one of those enemies has a power I desire. While I am still hesitant to take too many souls into myself, I believe this one will be worth it.

Using my powers of Obfuscation, I watch my prey hum to herself as she dances around the kitchen. It's a strange sight, the hideous outfit made of spikes and bones clashing with the young woman's actions as she shakes her hips to the music playing through nearby speakers, working on a chilli.

The Teeth are hideous. Their outfits and scars disgust me, and I'm tempted to just kill everyone inside this base before making off with Hemorrhagia. The Butcher herself is not here because someone attacked one of their pit fights and drew her out to defend her territory.

Spree sits, watching the television, with a bored expression as he waits for the food to be done. Apparently, it's the Butcher's favourite, and Hemorrhagia is making it to cheer up Butcher after my little mischief at their other base. I'm giving Lisa a chance to prove herself, as this is mostly her plan with some improvisation from me.

Of course, her first suggestion was, 'Don't attack the Teeth, you maniac,' but I won't be tolerating that kind of cowardice.

Reaching out, I capture Spree with [Confusion] and watch his expression go flat as he stares into space blindly, not reacting as I drop my invisibility. Nor does he shout out a warning as I move fast, Hemorrhagia barely getting to let out a strangled shout before my fangs pierce her neck. She can control her own blood, and despite her shock, I feel the blood going down my throat stab into my insides, her last desperate attack as I drink deep.

I don't care about the damage she's doing, and my strength vastly overpowers her own as she struggles helplessly. She has a stronger will than Spree, but as we engage in this battle of blood, her mind becomes more clouded until I feel her blood continue its smooth journey down my throat.

What vampire could resist blood control?

[Hemorrhagia: The Blood that Binds]

When you give your blood to another, either to make them a ghoul or vampire childe, you continue to possess a level of control over it. With a thought, you can cause the blood inside them to boil or harden into spikes to punish disobedient ghouls or vampires, feeling your blood destroy them from the inside.

[Protean, Discipline of Change: Apprentice]

[Earth Meld]

Becoming one with the soil, you can sink into the earth. Unless in torpor, you will rise again once the sun sets next.

[Mist Form]

You can turn into a cloud of mist, perceivable to the eye but untouchable by anything save fire, sunlight, and supernatural aggression. You can easily fit through pipes, crevices, and cracks. While strong winds might buffet you, no natural force can disperse the cloud.

Ah, I suppose she was a personal biokinetic, wasn't she? 

[Quietus, Discipline of The Assamites: Apprentice]

[Taste of Death]

You can spit acidic blood at a target, able to burn through mortal flesh and bones with relative ease.

[Scorpion's Touch]

You can create a contact-based poison out of your blood that greatly debilitates a victim physically, able to paralyse weaker victims entirely.

[Dagon's Call]

By weaponising the blood within their veins, you can cause harm to a person who you have touched within the last hour, no matter the distance between you.

Hm. Not exactly what I was looking for, as I wanted my own blood control to frame the Teeth for what I'm about to do. Well, a new discipline is never going to be turned down, even if Hemorrhagia proved far less useful than I expected.

Taking a moment to knock her chilli off the counter, I toss her body over my shoulder before returning to Spree. I'm tempted to drain him as well, but I already plan to claim another soul today, and after a moment, I change my mind.

Hitting him over the head with enough force to likely give him brain damage, I grab him as well and make my escape. With a thought, I send a call to one of my pets as I escape the city limits.

Tossing Hemorrhagia down, I call upon Oblivion to reduce her body to nothing but ash, waiting as I feel my loyal childe rushing to my side.

"Pretty sure I just moved more in a few minutes than I have in my entire life," Alec quips as he arrives. He's not as fast as me, but he's close enough to be able to make it to me since I met him halfway. "What's up, boss man?"

"I've found you your first true meal, Alec," I say, tossing Spree at his feet. "Drain him, every last drop. I need to be sure you can diablerise capes like I can before we go after your father."

I don't want to take him into my soul. Without a moment of hesitation, Alec pounces like the obedient childe he is. He's so eager to please his master and to prove that he can deal with his father.

Spree finally snaps out of it, but creating rapidly deteriorating clones isn't the most useful thing when a vampire already has its fangs into your flesh. Plus, Alec impresses me with his quick mastery of Presence and Dominate. He's been using his pet to practice, and while it lacks the subtlety of my disciplines, he essentially blasts the villain's mind with emotion and control alike.

Maybe Spree would have snapped out of it eventually, but not soon enough to save himself.

Through our bond, I watch his powers carefully as he drains Spree dry, dropping the withered husk when there is simply nothing left to drink. A touch from me has Spree join his former friend, blowing away in the wind as the ashes are scattered.

Alec is too busy laughing to notice as I turn back to him, seeing three Alec's staring back at me. Two have completely blank expressions, but unlike Spree's, I don't think they're going to deteriorate anytime soon. Ah, Alec has learnt from me. Impressive. He's using the Hivemind power I got from Taylor to control his clones. He gets less of them, and some testing shows that he can't control more than four before it gets too much, but his grin tells me that he doesn't mind that limitation.

"Man, I'm going to make Chloe airtight when I get back," Alec says, making me blink.

"Was your pet's name Chloe?" I ask, making him shrug.

"Hell if I know, and I got carried away with my memory modification tests, so she doesn't know either. She's Chloe now," Alec explains with a shrug.

"Hm, why Chloe?" I ask, again getting a shrug.

"I think that was my mom's name, and it worked as well as anything else. I couldn't decide between calling her Chloe or Cherie," Alec admits with a light smirk, flicking his own face in amusement. "So, want some help with… whatever you're doing?"

I don't comment on his decision to name his first blood bag and pet after his mother; well aware that my Toreador childe has some considerable issues. As he mentioned Cherie, I got a flash of his sister, a beautiful young woman with a streak of red in her hair. To say his emotions are mixed about her and all his siblings would be an understatement.

"I appreciate the offer, but not this time. You lack my skills in Obfuscation, and I can't hide other people yet. Go home to Chloe. I'm sure she'll be impressed with your new talent," I say with a chuckle, ruffling his hair.

One of me is more than enough, but Alec could use all the help he can get. Though, I do suspect that my lazy childe is never going to do a single thing for himself again with both Dominate and now clones of himself at his beck and call.

"Sure thing, boss," Alec agrees with a grin, his hands in his pocket. "And thanks, sire."

"You're welcome. We're one step closer to seeing Nikos dead, Alec. Continue to practice, and be ready for when the time comes," I order, getting a bloodthirsty grin from him.

"I used to hate training, but I'll work myself to the bone for a chance to rip that bastard's throat out with my teeth," Alec swears, mania in his eyes. He's still adapting to his emotions returning and being so heightened. From near-complete apathy to feeling everything at a far higher intensity, it's no wonder he's a little manic.

Even if I didn't get what I truly wanted, this was by no means a failure.

Alec gives me a flamboyant and utterly exaggerated bow before he dashes away into the night, heading back home. Watching him go, I turn and head back toward Boston myself. One target down, one to go.

With my original plan having fallen flat, I won't be framing the Teeth for this. Well, not unless I dominate some of them, but revealing that a Master is running around would only make matters even worse. 

No, it's better if Lizardtail follows Spree and Hemorrhagia's example and just disappears with no real trace for Accord to follow. With three capes vanishing in one night, it might be better if I don't come back to Boston anytime soon when I'm done here.

As Ebon, I'm deliberately flashy. I want people to know where I am. I practically shine a spotlight on my location, but as I move through Boston, I'm very careful not to be spotted or leave even a hint of my presence here.

Lizardtail is a tall man in an expensive-looking suit and a lizard-themed mask, going over what seem to be documents for Accord's operations. Unlike Panacea, Lizardtail doesn't heal for free, and he's a good source of income for Accord, who sells his services to those in need. 

However, unlike Panacea, he can't heal diseases, as all he does is massively increase the natural regeneration that humans have, though as his name suggests, he can regrow limbs like a lizard regrowing a severed tail. He's an important part of Accord's neatly arranged house of cards, helping ensure that any injured Ambassador is back in the fight before anyone can capitalise on their loss.

This time, I go for something different as I project my mind toward him from my hiding place inside his office. He stiffens, shaking for a moment before he relaxes. Well, his body relaxes; his mind screams in confusion as I take possession of his body for myself.

Controlling both bodies (thanks to the gift that keeps giving, Hivemind), I have my true body sink into the shadows and [Shadowstep] away from the office while Lizardtail rises. My true body escapes Boston once more, allowing me to fully focus on the task at hand.

Accord is not a man who tolerates insubordination or incompetence. His gang is well-trained, and his Ambassadors are to be obeyed as long as their orders do not contradict his own. In truth, Accord rarely deals with the rank-and-file so as not to trigger his murderous OCD fits, so when Lizardtail starts giving some orders to the local forces, they assume that he's speaking with Accord's authority. 

With Lizardtail's body and memories at my disposal, combined with my own acting skills, his men don't suspect a thing as they get me a car as I help myself to some of the Ambassadors' money. Lizardtail has a very important client to meet. The most important of all.

The driver only asks for an address, and I give him one in Providence, southwest of Boston. We're halfway down the I-95 before 'my' phone starts to ring, Citrine's name on the screen. Here I was, expecting the Ambassadors to be more organised. 

I end the call without answering, pulling out a small handgun from my jacket and with a single shot, the driver is dead. The car swerves out of control, rolling and crashing. Lizardtail is a durable man, and any wounds he takes are quickly healed as I climb free of the wreckage. Without a second thought, I make a break for it into the dense woods before any other cars can even stop to question me. 

And then I see something truly beautiful… me.

By the time any of Accord's men or the PRT can get out to the crash site, Lizardtail is long gone from the scene of the crime. Lizardtail, Accord's loyal healer, disappearing into the night with a briefcase full of money the same night that two Teeth capes vanish without a trace.

Fact can be stranger than fiction, but I can't wait to see what the locals make of this as Lizardtail struggles in my grip. He's tough, but he isn't strong, and my fangs care little for his durability. They can pierce his skin, and that means I can drink.

[Lizardtail: Regrowth]

Any removed limbs will regrow in a matter of hours, at the very longest. 

[Fortitude, Discipline of Endurance: Apprentice]

[Defy Bane]

Your skill with Fortitude has increased your resistance to all vampiric weaknesses.

[Seal the Beast's Maw]

Through your mental endurance, you can ignore the effects of your hunger for a time. This risks causing you to become frenzied if pushed too far.

Ah, now that I can certainly use. Every little helps when it comes to defending yourself against your weaknesses. Fire and Silver will no longer be such a major threat to me, and Sunlight won't incinerate me in an instant. It will still burn me to ash if I stay in it for longer than a minute, but that's still a minute I can use to save myself should the worst happen.

[Valeren, Discipline of the Salubri: Apprentice]

[Anaesthetic Touch/Gift of Sleep]

By embracing the path of the Healer and the Warrior, you can remove the sensation of pain from a target or put a creature to sleep.

[Sense Vitality]

You have a sixth sense of how healthy those around you are by reading the life energy within their blood.

[Sense Cycle]

By embracing the path of the Watcher, you have learnt to sense the cycle of life in its entirety. You instinctively know when an individual or an event is important to your future.

[Panacea]

Your saliva can become a healing elixir, able to heal wounds by licking them or otherwise spreading your saliva upon them. This also heals the bite marks you leave behind.

[Auguring the Sickness]

By examining a target, you can learn the severity and nature of a sickness plaguing them.

[Corpore Sano]

By expending your stored vitae, you can heal any sort of wound on yourself or others.

Well, what do you know… I got Panacea, after all. Watching Lizardtail turn to ash, I make my way home with a pleased smile. Tonight has been a profitable one. 

Corpore Sano is stronger than Panacea, but Panacea is free, while Corpore Sano costs the blood I have drunk to work. I don't understand what it means by the Cycle of Life, but the important thing is that I've gained the healing powers that will make me so valued. 

While another healer going missing around the same time is suspicious, our powers are noticeably different, as Lizardtail's did not require blood or saliva to work. Plus, they already know my powers are constantly growing, and while I'm not as good as Panacea at the moment, if all my powers keep growing, then it's only a matter of time, isn't it?

Returning to my manor, I chuckle at the sounds of depravity coming from Alec's room and give Rachel a nod as she waves. She's benefitted from tonight as well, being linked to my Fortitude and Protean disciplines.

Heading into Lisa's lair, a dimly lit bedroom, she gives me an annoyed look at my lack of knocking, but I don't have to knock in my house. 

"You realise that Boston is going to pay for your little trick? Accord will snap, and the Butcher won't take this lying down. Even if you didn't leave a trace, Boston is bound to burn for your little trip," Lisa drawls.

"For my new powers, it was more than worth it," I counter, and she snorts.

"Assuming the Butcher doesn't kick down our door tomorrow morning, I might just agree with you there," Lisa finally admits. She's a power-hungry little brat, seeing the benefits Rachel and Alec got from my trip and wanting her own.

She's already looking into Capes that would compliment her own powers or empower my Auspex, Celerity or Obfuscate disciplines so that I will, in turn, empower her. She wants Coil dead; she wants to survive, and if she gets the chance… she wants to drain me and take everything I have. For that, it's better if I get stronger while she 'proves her loyalty' and gets closer to me.

"Your plan worked well enough. It's a shame I didn't get the right power to frame the Teeth, but the chaos will be an opportunity in and of itself. You did well tonight, Lisa," I praise, making her roll her eyes.

"With these new powers? I could do this in my sleep. Not that I sleep anymore," Lisa boasts. 

"Have you finished the other thing I asked for?" I say, and I watch as she hesitates.

"I have, but this… sir, this is even more risky than picking a fight with the Teeth and Accord. That girl is dangerous, a ticking time bomb," Lisa warns, but I just stare at her. After a moment, she sighs. "This is going to end poorly, and when it does, remember that I told you so."

Listening to my pet Thinker, I smile.

Do you know what makes healers so valued? How very rare they are. True healing capes are so very uncommon and almost always have issues linked to their healing. This city is spoiled, with Panacea here and healing for free. That tired little girl has become one of the cornerstones keeping this city standing.

And wouldn't my healing be more valued if they didn't have their precious Panacea to heal them every time they got injured? She's practically devaluing every other healer by her mere existence. 

I didn't want to drain Panacea and then show up with a healing power because that's too obvious. She's too high-profile, and while I would love a taste of her, I'll settle for simply removing her from the equation.

But I'm not going to kill her. As I listen to Lisa explain the bundle of stress and repressed emotions that is Amy Dallon, I smile... no, I have a better idea. Amy sounds so very unstable, one bad day from ending it all, and just perfect for a little Dementation.

All I need to do is use Dominate to set the stage a little, and then Amy will take herself off the stage and make room for the real star of the show.

But for now, I need to make myself seen around the city before sunrise. 

– Amelia Dallon (Panacea) – Three Days Later

Listening to Carol rant at her, she tried to hide her anger. All she did was take a single day off. Sure, she didn't tell anyone that she wasn't going to the hospital, but she was so tired, and Vicky took time off from her hero life all the time. Maybe she should have told someone that she wasn't going instead of hopping on a bus downtown after school, but it wasn't that big a deal.

But no, when it was her taking a walk around the boardwalk and catching a shitty movie, Carol acted like she had become a villain. 

Vicky had been sent out, banished to the same boardwalk she was being punished for going to. Carol hadn't liked Vicky trying to stand up for her, and Vicky, as much as she tried, wasn't good at standing up to Carol. Vicky would take fighting Neo-Nazis supervillains over having to argue with their mom any day of the week and had meekly slipped away after Carol had ordered her to leave.

So Aunt Sarah had been a little embarrassed to have to tell the hospital that she wasn't coming, so what? It wasn't like the nurses didn't hint that she should be taking more time for herself anyway. Was the city so fragile that it couldn't keep turning without Panacea for a single fucking day?

That's what they were acting like, which made her unhappiness grow at their ungratefulness. Sure, they always thanked her for her hard work, but words meant nothing. Now that she'd deprived them of her services for a few hours, those empty words had turned to entitled demands. 

So someone had died, rushed to the hospital that they were expecting her to be at. People died all the time. She didn't kill him; she had no part in the car crash, so why was it her duty to fix it? And for what? A pat on the back and being told she was such a wonderful hero? Carol was acting like she had personally got into a car and ran the man over, but she could recognise a guilt trip when she saw one. 

People are dead because you wanted a couple of hours to yourself. You did this. You could have saved them. Every other time this had happened, every time she had hinted at not going in for a day, Carol had weaponised these words to make her back down. This time, it filled her with nothing but bitterness and anger. 

She did so much, and for what? Her great reward for all her hard work was more hard work. If she charged, people wouldn't think they were entitled to her services, but heroes don't demand money for saving people, do they? 

That was the creed Carol had beaten into her mind. Vicky didn't stop a mugging and then ask the victim for their wallet, so why should she want money for healing people? 

"Are you listening to me?" Carol asked, noticing the way she was zoning out.

"Not really," Amy admitted, uncaring of the way that Carol's eyes widened in incredulity and outrage at her honesty. "I stopped when you started repeating yourself."

It felt good to admit it, even as it started a whole new tirade. If their positions had been swapped, if Vicky had been the healer and Amy had been the flying brick, Vicky would have gotten a slap on the wrist for this. 

Amy would be getting lectured endlessly for collateral damage, while Vicky would get a light scolding for running off to play with her friends instead of working herself to the bone.

Carol's tirade finally petered out as the furious woman announced that they were going to the hospital. She demanded that Amy apologise to the hospital for her irresponsible behaviour, to her family for mildly inconveniencing Sarah and putting the tiniest black mark on New Wave's reputation. 

As she did, something in Amy snapped.

"No."

"W-what? What did you just say?" Carol asked, her tone deathly quiet as Amy stared back at her, unblinking.

"I said no. I'm not going to the hospital today. Not tomorrow either, or the day after. I'm not going to apologise for taking an hour to myself," Amy said, her words spilling out as she realised that she was very much burning the shaky bridge between her and Carol. Instead of stopping, she pulled out the gasoline. "I'm done."

"While you are living in my house, you-" Carol started.

"Then put me into foster care. I turn eighteen this year, and with my skills, I'll be able to make more than enough of a living to look after myself," Amy countered, seeing Carol recoil back as if struck. "I am done. And I'm done listening to you."

Vicky was the only thing stopping her from leaving or just ending it all. Vicky would… she'd understand, right? Vicky had tried to stand up for her before Carol had verbally beaten her down and sent her away. Mark… well, Mark was sitting on the couch in the next room. He was probably listening, but he wasn't going to get involved; he never did.

A part of her wished it had been the Pelhams that had taken her in; maybe they'd shelter her for a few months until she was legally an adult. No, she didn't want to stay that close to Carol, who looked like she was about to explode from rage.

So much work, and this was where it all culminated. Her compensation for the tens of thousands of lives that she had saved as Panacea. A rant from a paranoid, controlling woman who couldn't even pretend to love her.

Carol's rant cut off as Amy turned, walking toward the door. She wasn't sure where she was going, to be honest, just anywhere but here. As Carol grabbed her arm, Amy saw everything that made Carol Carol, the bare skin of Carol's palms touching her wrist. 

Carol went to speak, to shout, but in a moment of insanity, she did the one thing she'd sworn never to do. Carol's words died as her anger was squashed, the chemicals in her brain changing.

Carol's mouth hung open, in an almost comatose trance as Amy's heart pounded, but something in her sung at finally doing something other than healing. She could have done this years ago and made Carol truly love her as a daughter. Maybe she should have. It wouldn't have been hard to slowly nudge Carol into the mother she always wanted. They could have avoided this, but the guilt vanished from her heart.

They also could have avoided this if Carol had just acted like the mother she was supposed to be or even given away the child she was clearly not ready for and didn't want. 

She'd done so much work, dealt with years of neglect, and hadn't seen a single reward from it. She deserved to relax, to let loose… just this one. Insanity guided her as she moved, bitterness and suppressed urges bursting free because it was time for Carol to love her.

Mark called out, finally pulling himself from his stupor to notice that something was wrong but Amy was too far gone to stop now, moving forward. It almost amused her to see Mark move into an almost defensive stance, seeing her as the threat she was. Something in him, whether it was the dark clouds in his mind or some affection for her, made him hesitate, and she grabbed his hand. 

They should have loved her, lavished her with rewards and praise like they did Vicky, and now she was taking the chance out of their hands. Deep inside her, something sang in joy, and a tiny voice that sounded like hers screamed for her to stop, but it was too late.

His expression changed as that apathetic caution, fading to a look of adoration as a body pressed against her back. Carol's breasts pushed into her back as Carol wrapped her arms around her body, hugging her for the first time in months.

"Amy…" Carol breathed, adoration in her tone as Amy's heart pounded, feeling Carol's lips on her neck as she realised what she had done. She wanted Carol to love her more than anything, and in that moment… she made sure that her dream came true in all the wrong ways.

Turning, she faced her previously furious mother with wide eyes.

"D-do you love me?" Amy asked, her voice weak. The tiny voice was screaming to fix things, but she didn't even know if she could. "Would you do anything for me?"

"Of course I do," Carol answered immediately, and without reservation, her brain chemistry warped. Emotion really wasn't that complicated or special. It was just chemistry, really. "We both do; we'd do anything for you, Amy."

"A-apologise to me, tell me that I deserve a reward," Amy demanded, and the voice screamed for Carol to snap out of it. It sounded even quieter now, stuffed further into her psyche.

"I'm sorry we've been so ungrateful, Amy. You work so hard," Mark said, his words, false as they were, a balm on her soul.

"You deserve everything, Amy," Carol agreed, kissing her neck as Amy's eyes widened in shock. "Let me reward you; let me show you my gratitude. Let us show you just how sorry we are."

The voice screamed again, but Amy didn't listen to it. She would never listen to it again.

– Alexander Shaw (Ebonstar) –

Invisible in the shadows of the Dallon house, I smile.

[Devil in the Mind]

You can cause your target to lose all inhibitions and social morals while bringing their impulses to the surface.

This power was almost made for Panacea, ready to push her over the edge. Her actions will be discovered, and Amy isn't thinking straight enough to consider the consequences. To make any real effort to hide her actions. 

Today has been trying, lurking in this dreadfully boring house since sunrise, using my powers to nudge people the way I want them to go, but I think this is more than worth it.

Panacea will never recover from this. Her heroic reputation will not survive; the world will tear her down. Maybe I'll pick up the pieces, but all that matters is that Brockton Bay has just lost its beloved healer.

How fortunate they are that another, greater healer is about to take her place.

— Bonus Scene — Victoria Dallon (Glory Girl) 

Ending the call, she frowned to herself. Being told to spend the night with the other New Wave family was really not a good sign, given how angry her mom had been when she was sent away.

Her mom sounded weird, but she and Amy had assured her that it would be fine and that they'd see each other in the morning. Mom had talked to Aunt Sarah, who was happy to have her spend the night since Crystal's room was currently empty anyway while Crystal was at college.

Making a decision, she typed a quick message to Annie and sighed to herself. Something told her that going home now would make things worse, but Annie was good at getting through to Carol. Like Aunt Jess had been, Annie was a good peacemaker, and Amy had sounded fine.

Guilt ate away at her for listening to her mom and leaving, but returning tonight wouldn't help anything. It wasn't like this was a new argument, so what difference could a single night make?