A girl, A boy, and a graveyard

La Belle Dame Sans Merci

Lockwood POV
2626 Words

A/N: This chapter takes place in TEG book, where they fight La Belle Dame, but instead Lucy isn't there. I've tried to help make it make sense for the people who haven't read the book. This chapter will be longer than most of the others, and there's multiple skips through time. Hope you enjoy!

"Lockwood! Where are you?!" I heard George yell down the hallway, but it was faint compared to the hollow screaming of the visitor and the swinging of my rapier, as it cut through the air.
"Just, putting him in his place!" I huffed, and even though I felt the sharp pain shoot through my knee, I leaped up onto the dusty table, jumped in the air and threw a salt-bomb down onto the ghost. The ghost evaporated in a second, its body melting into the floor.

Just like me, as I landed awkwardly, and fell backwards onto the floor. George, Holly and Kipps ran in the room.
"For god'd sake Lockwood!" I smiled up at them.
"Hah! You guys look funny upside-down. Can you stay like that?" They grabbed my arms and dragged me to my feet.

***

We sat outside on the stone steps, the house was small, but it had been deserted, and we had a job to do. Which was exactly what Holly was screaming at me at that moment.
"We had a job to do Lockwood! You know what that means? Or do I have to spell it out for you?"
"Well-" I started.
"No! Don't you dare speak! It means we're a team! Even if Lucy isn't here, or Quill is a part of our group now! None of that matters, we are still a team! And you disrespected that, by ignoring us and trying to kill him by yourself!"

Kipps looked pale, he stood there, hands deep in his jacket pockets. Summer was slowly falling into autumn. It wasn't exactly cold but it wasn't as hot as it used to be, that week consisted mainly of warm afternoons and rainy nights. He had let his ginger hair grow a little more, it was less military crop cut.

George was leaning against the wall studying a book, his glasses had dust on them from the house, there was dirt on his knee and a cut on his cheek. It wasn't a tough case, it was just confusing.

The ghost, a 'Sir, William George Crudd' had been secretly murdering his maids in the name of 'science' apparently. The house had been a dusty abandoned reck, and the ghost was sly and fast. It had tricked the others, but I had been enticed by the chase, and caught up to him.

'Alright alright' I wanted to say, 'I enjoy a chase, I enjoy feeling excited, sue me' But I decided against it. I knew it wouldn't help, especially with Holly.

"Yes, you're right, and I'm sorry. I got carried away, I understand." I nodded, looking around and standing up. "Now, our taxi has pulled up." I nodded to the headlights on the other side of the gates. "So can we please get this to the furnaces?"

"More importantly, go home? I'm exhausted, and highly dehydrated, I need tea." George shut his book and tucked it under his arm.
"First relatable, thing you've said, Cubbins." Quill smiled and with his hands still in his pockets, walked off to the taxi.

I gave one last smile to Holly and strutted off to the taxi, hand on sword hilt.

I stared out the dark taxi window, watching the sky turn a light pink and yellow at the first sign of dawn break. My reflection still stared back at me. My face was lean, chin pointed out, dust and mud was smeared on my pale cheek, and there was a cobweb that clung to the side of my hair. Deep tired wounds hung under my eyes, I rubbed at them, and looked away from the real image of me.

"Hey, so we have a new client tomorrow." Holly smiled. "And well, it sounds pretty interesting!"
"Woooow." Quill whistled, "Really? Not a murderer this time?"
"Nah, it'll be a victim this time." George and Kipps high-fived. It was the first time I'd seen them get along so well.
"Ok in all seriousness," Holly put a hand to her forehead then turned to us, "It's a pretty interesting case. The ghost is called La Belle Dame Sans Merci."