Of Witches and Ghosts

Local Crones

Danny watched in fright as Sam slipped off her chair and fell to the floor.

"Sam!" Danny jumped out of his seat. He gently turned Sam on her back; blood was leaking out of her nose. Jazz handed him a tissue to wipe Sam's face.

Mr. Lancer rushed over and knelt down next to Sam and placed a hand on her forehead.

The class was in an uproar; some students had fled the classroom and some had stuck around either out of morbid curiosity or to see what was wrong with their fainted classmate.

Tucker, Jazz and Valerie all came up and over to Danny and Lancer.

"She's burning up!" Lancer gasped. "Mr. Fenton, what in the hell is going on?"

"I-I'm not exactly sure," Danny bit his lip. "I-it's a little hard to explain, sir. S-she...Sam's, well..." Danny leaned over to whisper to his teacher.

"She's more involved with these...demons than we thought."

Lancer's eyes widened as he quickly got the message. " I see. What do we do?"

Danny was unsure and before he could answer, he heard Sam groan.

"Home..." Sam croaked. "Danny...home..."

Danny held her hand in his tightly and he delicately brushed a stray strand of hair that stuck to her clammy forehead. "Are you sure, Sam? Maybe we should get you to a doctor."

Sam swallowed and weakly shook her head. "No, please... home...arm..."

"Arm?" Tucker quirked a brow.

Danny slipped the cardigan off her left arm. His breath got caught in his throat; her arm was dark red, almost purple and swelling up through the bandage.

"Oh, dear," Lancer stammered.

"Oh, my god," Jazz gasped as she covered her mouth.

Danny hastily picked Sam up and held her in his arms. "C'mon, guys, we gotta take her home."

Danny, Jazz and Valerie rushed out of the classroom. Tucker followed after taking a photo of the board and Sam's desk.

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It was hard to ignore the slight red hue the sky was taking as Danny and the others ran down the street that led to Sam's house.

"Are you sure we shouldn't take her to a hospital, Danny?" Jazz panted as she rushed to keep up with her brother.

Danny grunted, holding Sam even tighter to his chest. He could feel her arm throbbing. "She said to take her home. Maybe there's something there that can help."

He looked up at the sky, warily. We need her now more than ever.

When they reached Sam's home, they burst through the front door. They were all shocked to see Ida and two other elderly ladies sitting in the parlor, as if they had been waiting. They all looked completely shaken. Ida's white hair was disheveled and she clutched onto the shawl draped over her hunch shoulders.

Her fretting gaze landed on Sam. "Oh, my Button," she wailed as rushed over to Danny. She gently cradled Sam's cheek in her palm; Sam groaned as she felt the cool touch of her Gramm's hand.

"It's starting sooner than we feared," Mrs. Agatha Moores muttered. She was a tall, elvish looking woman. Her long white hair was pinned back by butterfly hairsticks, although it appeared to be less tidy as it should be.

"What is?" Danny asked, looking down as Ida dabbed a cloth on Sam's clammy forehead.

Mrs. Maria Thimbles, a short, dainty woman dressed in a crisp white dress placed a hand on Ida's shoulder. "A restless shift in the air; it's a warning of great danger. Ida, we must secure the house!"