Dark Moon - Michael Langdon

Part 27 - DeLongpre

"What the hell is taking him so long?" Madison scoffs from her spot of leaning against the wall of the front porch. She takes another drag from her cigarette.  "We've been sitting on this porch for 15 minutes, and we were in that house for another 15 minutes before coming out here."

I look over the fence at Constance's house next door, but I don't see Michael yet.  "I'm sure he just needs more time," I reassure her.

"How could this be taking him over half an hour?" Mallory asks from her position on the ground where she is making leaves circle around a curious Violet.  "Are you sure we shouldn't go check on him?"

"He's had a lot of emotional trauma in that house.  He needs time," I insist.  "I don't want to interrupt him."  I adjust my spot on the railing and lean my head back against the pillar.  "Besides, we're safer in here than we are anywhere else; Satan can't get on this property."

"Michael isn't safe," Mallory counters as she lets the leaves drop to the ground.  "We've been watching to make sure Constance hasn't gotten home yet, but what if Satan somehow got in?"

I shake my head.  "That's not possible."

"Just like how it isn't possible to form a boundary around a house built over the portal to hell that keeps Satan and his spawn out of it?" Madison says sarcastically.  "Listen, Cordelia wants us back at the academy, so we need to get it moving.  Is it really that big of a deal to check up on lover boy?"

I open my mouth to argue with her, but Violet speaks up.  "Why don't you just go check it out?" Violet suggests from beside Mallory.  She and Mallory seem to be getting along; I think their quiet personalities mesh well.  "It shouldn't be that big of a deal."

"It's not a bad idea," Mallory shrugs.  "Constance should be getting home soon, and it'd be better for you to interrupt him than her."

I sigh as I push myself off the railing and land on the porch.  "Okay, I'll go.  If I'm not back in 10 minutes, something bad probably happened to me."

Madison rolls her eyes as I transmutate over to Constance's house.  I land in the middle of her kitchen, and it feels like I've stepped into a time machine.  Her kitchen has not been renovated at all in the last forty-or-so years, but it's cute that way.

"Michael?" I call out, announcing my presence.

He doesn't respond.  I quickly run through the first floor, trying to find him, but I don't see anything.  I go up to the second floor and find him on his knees in the middle of a bedroom - by the looks of it, it's Constance's.

"Michael?" I ask again.  His back is turned to me, so I can't see his face.

He doesn't acknowledge me, let alone respond.  He remains kneeling, leaning over a spot on the floor. I carefully approach him, unsure of whether or not he is in a vision.

I walk over in front of him so that I can see his face.  He is staring ahead blankly; he is most definitely in a vision.  I crouch down across from him and press my hand to his arm, waking him up from the vision.

He gasps and falls backward, catching himself on his elbows.  "Holy shit," he mutters, quickly sitting up.

"What the hell happened?" I ask as I rush to his side.

"This-this house," he gasps as he pulls himself to his feet.

I stand up next to him.  "What about the house?" I ask.

"We need to get out.  Now," he says, urgency becoming clear in his voice.

"Fine, but you'd better explain after we're out of here," I reply as I follow him to the door.