The first several mornings that Mitzi woke in her bed, she jerked upright, her heart pounding. It always felt as though she had just woken from a nightmare, but she was simply too tired still - she couldn't remember a thing she had dreamed, and she had the sneaking suspicion that this was, in fact, better than the alternative.

It wasn't until the fourth night that she discovered just how much better.

She startled awake again, as she had every morning, with the certain fear that something was wrong. But this time, a few deep breaths did not help, and her gaze darted to the side, her attention caught by something out of the corner of her eye.

The first glance was not enough, due to the sudden intense shock of seeing her mother. What was Theresa doing here?! As she turned to face her mother directly, she felt the panic bubbling up inside her. The only reason either of her parents would ever bother coming to Amityville would be to drag her home, kicking and screaming.

Another flash out of the corner of her eye, and she turned to see her father. Both of them were wearing wide, malevolent grins, which only made the whole situation more surreal - and more terrifying. She had never seen either of them smile like that before, almost as though they were taking glee in her suffering.

"No, please, I don't want to go, I need to graduate, for Grandfather, for the family, for…" she babbled, trying to convince them to let her stay. But it seemed she had underestimated how far they were willing to go, to protect their golden goose. Finally she ran out of words, the fear choking her throat as the pair of them approached her from opposite sides. Her glance kept darting between them, and yet still she felt there was something wrong.

It took her far too long to recognize the grey cast to them both, the lack of color, the glowing eyes. As if those slasher smiles had not been enough, when they began to murmur, "Home," "Home," in voices that echoed oddly, she suddenly recognized what it meant…

With a half-stifled scream, she bolted out of her bed, right between the two of them, heading for the doorway. Her mother tried to dart inward, to block her, but just at the last moment a flash of white and red and gold got in the way.

She didn't even have time to really recognize the BunnyWunny, ripped to pieces and left on the floor with stuffing scattered around, having protected his owner for the last time. All she could think about was escaping as she struggled with the handle and managed to get through the door and into the hallway.

She ran straight to Roch's room, banging on the door and shouting, but almost in an odd echo of the other night, there was no response. She kept trying for far too long, only realizing after several minutes that if she was no longer running, that meant…

The lavender-haired ghoul turned to see her parents standing at the end of the hall, just as she heard the door open behind her. "Mitzi? It's too jackin' early… What's wrong?" She glanced back at him, then towards her parents again. "Can't you see them?" she asked, her fear just barely in check. "See who? You okay, screech? You have a nightmare or somethin'?"

"Is this what has been distracting you?" "Is this why you have become so weak and useless?" If she had been scared before, now it jumped to an outright panic, as she suddenly knew what her parents were going to do. She had to do something, she had to… she had to… She couldn't risk Roch. Turning to face him, she blurted out, "No it's fine, it's nothing, sorry for disturbing you," almost stumbling over the words, knowing it wouldn't be enough to convince him, glancing back behind her even as she did. "Are you su…" "Yes I'm sure!" she shouted, grabbing the door and pulling it closed before he could react, before she took off in the opposite direction from the grey, eerie figures. If she ran fast enough… they'd have to follow her, right? They wouldn't have time to stop?

She wasn't sure whether the sound of a door being shoved open followed by a cut-off shout and a horrifying, sickening thump were in her head, or really happened. She didn't dare glance behind to find out.

This time she headed straight for the exit to the dorm, determined to escape and unwilling to bring anyone else into it. She had almost made it when she saw Circe, and as her blood started pounding in her ears she almost stumbled. No, no, not someone else.

She was sure she could hear their footsteps behind her.

"Mitzi, is anything the matter?" She just shook her head. "It's… it's nothing, go back to bed." Don't follow me don't come with me please don't let them see you… As the other Reaper changed her path to jog alongside her, concern on her face, the purple-haired ghoul felt her heart plummeting. And then eerie, deranged laughter floated up from behind them…

Mitzi jerked around, but saw only a flash of grey, no sign of her parents. Circe stopped as well, giving her an odd look. "What?" "Didn't you hear that?" "Hear what?"

Mitzi turned around and started running again, and her friend was too startled to follow right away. She caught up just as they reached the doorway outside. "Mitzi, what's going on?!" Turning back to her friend, the purple-haired Reaper tried to push her back into the dorm. "Go back to your room and lock the door, they already got Roch, they'll…"

And then there they were, coming up the hall, and Mitzi screamed. "Circe, run!" She tried to grab the other ghoul's hand, to pull her through the door to outside where there might be a chance, but the necromancer yanked free. "Mitzi, what…?" But the purple-haired ghoul didn't wait, there was no time. She shoved through the door, eyes screwed shut as she felt the p***k of tears, even before she heard the horrible sounds she knew were coming…

She just ran, determined to get as far as she could. She didn't even look where she was going, until the third time she stumbled and she almost went face-first into the stone path beneath her, only just managing to catch herself on her hands as she went down. She knelt for a moment, palms and knees scraped, her breathing wild, not even able to stand again. She had just started to calm a bit, when she saw a hand reach down in front of her.

"Mitzi, you okay?"

She slowly looked up, already knowing what would happen next. Alex stood there, looking vaguely concerned, but clearly there wasn't anything too big to worry about, right? That usual grin on his face. No, not him too.

She pushed herself up, not taking his hand, and looked over her shoulder. "Alex, you have to get away from me. If they see you, they'll…" Was that a flash of grey?

He looked confused. "Who'll do what? Is everything all right?"

This time when she looked behind her, she was sure she saw something moving. "C'mon, we have to run. Hurry!" She grabbed his hand, pulling him along behind her, trying to get enough speed to stay ahead. But it was too late. She knew it was too late, they were going to take Alex next…

Unfortunately, zombies were not known for their speed, and Alex was no exception. On top of that, as frantic as she was, he simply didn't seem to get how important it was that they move. "Wait, what's going on? Is there someone back there?" Couldn't he see? They'd get him next, if he didn't hurry!

Then he stumbled on something, and she felt his hand slip from her grasp, just as Circe's had. "No!" She skidded to a halt, turning to go back, to grab him, to keep him running, to keep him safe, but it was already too late. She could only watch in horror as the zomboil looked around, trying to see what had her so panicked, looking right past and through the figures approaching him… and then her Insanity-infected parents fell on him.

She couldn't watch, instead turning back away and continuing to run, but the sound followed after her.

Once she was far enough away, she started trying to think through the panic. As long as she stayed on the school grounds, she would keep running into friends, acquaintances… people would keep dying. She had to leave, she had to stay away from everyone; she would lose any chance of help, but already she knew there was no help here. Better to at least protect everyone by leading them away. And so even as she kept moving, she turned her steps toward the front of the school, trailing along the edge of campus in the hope of avoiding any other students she knew.

As she passed the ghost dorms, she breathed a sigh of relief. She just had to skirt around the main buildings, but the odds of finding someone lurking around there were much less, especially at this time of day. Right?

By this point, she probably ought to have known better.

The main building was just ahead when the door opened, and out stepped two of the ghouls from her Trials team, the two she had stayed in touch with after. Her heart began to race again. Her parents had no reason to hurt them, if anything they had helped in her training, right?

Not that that would make a difference, she knew.

She tried to pick up her pace, to pass before they saw her, but she hadn't had any chance to catch her breath, and she simply couldn't run anymore. As Whisper raised a hand in greeting and called out to her, Mitzi tried to wave them back toward the building. "Go back inside! It's not safe, they'll get you too!"

Imryn gazed around, puzzled, clearly trying to see what the Reaper was talking about. Whisper looked like she was about to say something in response…

When the grey figures of her parents appeared seemingly from nowhere, taking both ghouls completely by surprise.

Mitzi skidded to a halt. This time she couldn't help but watch, horrified, unable to do anything to help, unable to even say how they had somehow managed to pass her without her knowing. She held one hand over her mouth, trying not to retch as she saw her friends torn to pieces in front of her eyes.

When they finished, her parents looked up at her, their eyes glowing with a malevolent glee. "A zombie?" "A ghost?" "We taught you better than this," the Father-figure hissed. "So weak. So useless," replied her mother, the odd echoes catching on the sibilants until they filled the air.

"They died because of you." "And you - you - are next."

"No!" she shouted, covering her ears, but their words came through just the same. The fear had bound her through the bloody destruction, but somehow she was able to put on another burst of speed, to take off and pass them again. The gates, she had to get to the gates, she had to get away from the school. She couldn't let them kill anyone else.

And then her goal was in sight, but it didn't fill her with hope or relief, because standing there stood the one person she had thought safe. "Mitzi, look, I finally made it!" As the onryo ghoul's face lit up, Mitzi stumbled, suddenly unable to breathe at all. No, Reiko was supposed to be home with her mother, away from Amityville, safe. Not here. Not now.

Running had only gotten more and more of her friends killed… and even Roch hadn't been a match against them. She looked behind her, to see her parents advancing. Glancing back and forth, she knew that if she tried to leave the school, if she kept running, they would kill Reiko. So there was only one choice.

She stopped and turned, facing them. "Fine, if you want me, then take me! I won't fight it anymore!" she shouted, with a conviction that she very much did not feel. But there was no other way, was there? Not if she was going to save the ghost ghoul, who more than anyone did not deserve this kind of trouble.

The grins on their faces chilled her to the bone, but she stood her ground as they almost flew the last part of the way. As they ripped into her, pulling her apart, she cried out through pain greater than anything she had felt before, all her conviction gone. The only thing she could think of was that she should have kept running.

And then they left her, bleeding, on the ground, and somehow through the haze of pain, she recognized that they were moving on. Not even finishing her, letting her die slowly, and watch as…

No no nononono it had to be enough she had given in and let them take her they had to leave the other ghoul alone…



Mitzi woke with a scream, her last memories in the dream-world blending directly into her waking thoughts. For a moment she didn't recognize where she was, looking around frantically for the onryo, for the two grayed-out figures that were (had once been?) her parents. She didn't even notice the tears streaming down her cheeks, or how raw her throat was - the scream on awakening had quite possibly not been the first.

The feeling of a plush figure shoving its way into her arms finally brought her to reality, and for a moment she stared at the BunnyWunny, before burying her face in his plush fur. She sobbed into him for what felt like forever, lasting long past the point where she no longer had any tears left to cry.

She could vividly remember each of her friends' deaths, including that of the noble mini comforting her now, which at the time she had not even noticed. And the worst part was how she had let it all happen.