Blink || The Lost Boys

The Headmaster Ritual

"These tendered sons, these shattered toys"

                     The Headmaster Ritual by The Smiths

CHANGE WAS COMING. David could feel it in his bones. Whether it was his preternatural senses warning him or simply intuition, he wasn't sure. But he knew something was coming.

He wasn't opposed to change itself, just the kind he couldn't control. This felt entirely out of his hands, which only served to put him in a foul mood.

The only one of his brothers who seemed to pick up on this was Dwayne. Marko and Paul were too busy getting hyped for another night on the boardwalk. They yelled and wrestled, causing general havoc while he contemplated what could possibly be coming.

Dwayne approached him, obviously just as perturbed. "Do you feel that?"

So, it wasn't just him. "Yeah, I feel it. What do you think it is?" Dwayne was his right hand, his main enforcer. David valued his opinion above the others, no matter how much they all meant to him.

"I'm not sure, but it's big," Dwayne cautioned, giving David a pointed look.

That wasn't what he wanted to hear, but it confirmed his suspicions. He mentally cursed and tried his best to prepare himself for the unknown. It made him uncomfortable.

His protectiveness, a constant hum in his chest, intensified. These boys were his responsibility. They were the closest he had to family, and despite his general apathy, they were important to him.

Dwayne simply nodded and moved on. David appreciated that about him – no prying. "Alright, boys," he announced, heading out of the cave. "Let's ride."

If he couldn't figure it out and calm down, a trip to the boardwalk and a good meal might settle his nerves. Maybe that's all this was.

They mounted their bikes and tore down the bluff with a rebel yell. Weaving through trees, they finally hit the sand.

Almost there. Suddenly, a pink-haired apparition materialized in front of David's bike. Thick-rimmed glasses perched on her nose, her eyes wide with terror as his wheels screamed towards her.

"Watch it!" he bellowed, slamming on the brakes. Sand erupted in a spray as his bike swung out and slid to a halt inches from the woman.

Dust settled. Woman gone. David scanned his surroundings, bewildered. No one running, no screams, just beachgoers minding their own business around their bonfires.

What the hell?

He'd swear he almost ran her over. Shouldn't she be there, covered in sand and shrieking at him? Instead, he looked like a fool overreacting in front of his brothers.

He caught their equally confused expressions. At least he wasn't losing his mind. He shot another glance at the spot, then brushed it off.

Feigning nonchalance (though he wasn't fooling anyone), David restarted his bike and peeled off towards the boardwalk.

Sevyn blinked back under the boardwalk, already bent over, palms braced on her knees as she tried to catch her breath from her panic. That was close. Her eyes were squeezed shut tight as she reoriented herself.

In the distance, she could hear the rumble of bikes getting closer. She hadn't gotten a good look at the person who almost ran her over, but if she were a betting woman, she'd put her money on the Lost Boys – and they were getting closer.

No time to waste. She scrambled out from under the boardwalk and bolted up the stairs, disappearing into the bustling crowd.

This was her element – a sea of oblivious faces, too busy gawking to notice a nimble pickpocket at work.

A glint caught Paul's eye mid-flirt. There, weaving through the crowd, was the pink-haired phantom from the beach.

A tourist bumped into her, offering a flustered apology, but the girl barely missed a beat. Her nimble fingers brushed the man's wrist, and a glint of metal disappeared into her bag before the man even noticed. Paul couldn't help a smirk.

Smooth.

He ditched the girl he was talking to mid-sentence, nudging David with his elbow. "Hey, check it out. Isn't that the babe you almost flattened?"

David followed Paul's gaze, spotting a flash of pink before it melted into the crowd. The faintest scent of strawberries and cream lingered in the air – Santa Carla's mysterious new resident.

Without a word, David jerked his head in her direction. Paul and Marko needed no further instruction. They peeled off like wolves on a scent, leaving the girls they were chatting up sputtering in their wake.

The two vampires, seasoned predators as they were, quickly spotted their prey. She turned and saw them following, her eyes widening before she sped up again.

"Hey! Wait up!" Marko called out; his signature Cheshire grin plastered on his face.

"Yeah, girl, we just want to talk!" Paul cackled, bouncing on his toes to keep her in sight. They weaved through the throng, the girl a pink blur just ahead.

She momentarily disappeared, but then they saw her dart into a clothing store. Paul whooped, bumping shoulders with Marko in celebration. They charged into the shop, only to find it empty except for a startled girl behind the counter.

She froze, magazine clutched to her chest, eyes wide with a mix of fear and shock. Marko almost cracked a taunting joke, but the mission took priority. "Hey, you seen a girl with pink hair come through here?"

The girl peeked over the magazine, a single curt nod her only response. She pointed vaguely towards the changing rooms.

Paul flashed her a sarcastic thumbs-up. "Thanks a bunch." He and Marko stalked towards the closed curtain, ignoring the girl's stuttering protests about not being allowed back there.

Marko yanked the curtain back only to find the stall empty. Shocked, he turned to Paul, who wore a similarly surprised expression. There was no way she could have vanished so quickly.

"Whoa, where'd she go?" Paul offered no help.

"I don't know, but let's tell David. Maybe he'll have an idea," said Marko.

Across town, Sevyn landed silently in a grimy alley, a drunk homeless man staring at her with a slack jaw. She flashed him a grin and a cheeky salute before sashaying away, her loot safely tucked into her bag.

AN: Hey everyone! Thanks for reading still. I have a bunch of chapters prewritten and my plan is to post every Tuesday. I probably should have said that last chapter, but I was excited to post.

I'm having fun with Sevyn, I've been writing OCs for a long time now and I think Sevyn is one of my favorites so far.

Anyway, let me know what you think!