Her walk home was equally depressive. She was tempted to take a detour and go to their apartment, check it out and see if truly her father was kidnapped. But something held her back. She wasn't sure if it was the ominous way in which Jason had told her that their apartment was full of demon activity, or the feeling of fear that nested in her chest like a bird. She knew that she would be done for if she took that detour.She got to Olive's house in a matter of minutes. Their house sat in the middle of a group of detached houses, with small lawns in the front and sprinklers. The bourgie part of New York City.She jogged up the staircase to the front and rang the doorbell, then stepped back, waiting for a response. She had always wondered how her best friend's dad was able to afford such an expensive house. She knew he was a real estate agent, but the nature of his work was as vague as vague things were. Were real estate agents that wealthy?Soon the door creaked open and Olive's dad pee

The neighborhood where Ayesha's motorbike led them to was a deserted place south of the cathedral, closer to the East river than ever before. Maddie glanced around. They had drawn up in front of a large factory, which looked as if it had been destroyed by a terrible fire. The hollow brick and plaster walls still stood, but metal rods poked through them, crooked and scarred with burns. In the distance Maddie could see the skyscrapers of Manhattan and the black figure of the Statue of Liberty, farther out to sea.They got down from the motorbike and Ayesha whistled. The whistle sounded loud in the chilly night air, metallic with the smell of rain and thunder. A dog barked in the distance. Jason rolled from behind a couple of trashcans, followed by Cassie, both of whom were also dressed in fighting gear. "What took you guys so long?" Jason asked, barely out of breath as he cartwheeled to a stop before them."Sleeping Beauty here," Ayesha nodded towards Maddie "was enjoying her nightmare

It was late June and the last day of school before summer break. Madeleine Shay was standing on the level stone roof of her apartment building, flecked with air conditioning units and satellite dishes, and watching a group of middle-school teenagers walk past the building, chattering about mundane things. It seemed so ironic that things as normal as school and exams and summer break was still going on, what with Aosoth still at large. Her dad had needed to make up a couple of reasons for her absence from school for the past two weeks, lying to the school management that she was suffering from a severe case of myalgia. She'd shrieked with laughter after her dad had dropped the phone and he'd stood there with a resigned shrug, the light from the window illuminating his rectangular glasses. He was such a terrible liar.Afterwards he'd sat her down and explained the reason for his hiding her from the Hunter world and keeping the truth about Aosoth from her."I never thought I’d see your

𝘚𝘢𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘥𝘢𝘺Ayesha groaned impatiently as Maddie threw yet another piece of clothing on the ground."Will you just pick something to wear already?" She asked. She was sitting on Maddie's bed, her booted feet propped up on a couple of pillows."I don't have party-worthy clothes." Maddie protested as she eyed a sweatshirt in the back of her closet.Ayesha reached out from the bed and picked up a sequined, royal blue dress from the pile of the floor. She shook it in front of the other girl's face. "This" she said pointedly "is party-worthy."Maddie looked at the dress with a grimace. "Hard pass, please." She picked up the sweatshirt she had been eyeing and threw it over her jeans, then pulled Ayesha from the bed. "Let's go."They walked out of the room and clambered down the staircase to the kitchen, where Paul was enjoying a lone coffee and toast.He raised his eyebrows as Maddie stopped before him, giving her a quick once-over. "Well, that isn't party material.""I don't care, as

Maddie felt like she was stepping out into a calm, chilly spring night. More glowing moon-like orbs lazily floated around. The whole room was dark and breezy, and despite her thick hoodie, Maddie shivered slightly. The lazy chatter and clinking of glasses made her feel extremely at ease."I've never seen anything like it. It's beautiful, Cassie." She murmured in awe."Magical," Ayesha added."Thank you," Cassie beamed and gave a mock bow."Oh look, there's Jason." Ethan pointed out, steering them towards a corner of the room.Jason was standing among a bunch of young men his age, all of whom were dressed very fancy. Jason, on the other hand, looked like he'd rather be anywhere but there. He'd still managed to look formidable even in a three-piece suit, and was twirling a small Celestial Blade in his hands.Their eyes locked from across the circle of teenagers, and Maddie felt a small jolt in her stomach. She reluctantly broke eye contact with him after a few awkward seconds. She still