Shh...

Chapter Three

Over the course of the next few days, things just got worse and worse. Another nightmare, another sleepless night, another problem I couldn't solve.

Until, one day when he didn't show up at my locker with another dream story. Instantly things were starting to look better. Even in class he just seemed happier, maybe the storm had finally passed. When lunch rolled around, I planned to talk to him about just that. I didn't want to stir up the emotions that were probably still left in him, since the joy was refreshing change of mood, but I was interested in how the change came about. "Hey, honey badger." I greeted as I sat across from him at our usual lunch table.
"Uh... hi, Vi."
"So, you seem in a good mood today." I said with a smile.
"Why wouldn't I be?" He inquired.
"Why wouldn't you be?" I stopped myself from saying anything else; like I said, I didn't want to stir anything up. "Anyways, I'm just glad you're happy."
"What are you thinking on this new case?" He asked.
"The librarian you mean? I think it's worth a look. Are you thinking what I'm thinking."
"Depends on what you're thinking."
"Well, I believe that she might be the one causing the dreams."
"The dreams?"
"Yeah, like a curse that she's put upon you because we disobeyed her."
"Curses, dreams, what are you talking about?"
"The dreams you've been having, idiot."
"Vi, are you nuts? The only dreams I've had have been pleasant, definitely not curse induced."
Okay, something was up; this wasn't the real Gerald. Now all I could do was play along and hope I coaxed out whatever it was that had caused him to change.
"You're right, I don't know I was thinking." I brushed off the awkwardness. "Anyways, the librarian, what are your opinions on her?"
"Could be something, could just be one mean old lady."
"What if she's a witch?" I proposed, trying to bring curses back into the equation.
"I dunno, a witch seems pretty unlikely."
"Evil cats, Gerald. I repeat, evil cats."
"I guess so." He said nonchalantly. This wasn't going the way I'd wanted it to, but then Gerald delivered me just what I needed. "What is taking her so long?"
"Her?" I inquired. I mouthed his response along with him, knowing exactly what he was going to say.
"Alice." Great, now I was stuck with a brainwashed Gerald that I needed to return to his normal state before I could make any progress on the case. I decided to break it to him gently.
"Oh Gerald, she's not showing up anytime soon."
"Why? What happened?"
"Huh, she's in a better place." I assured, taking his hands in my own. He quickly pulled away.
"What kind of sick prank is this, Violet? Why would you even think of saying that?"
"Listen, you can believe whatever you want until you're proven otherwise, but prepare to be proven otherwise." Suddenly my hear sank as the realization hit me. "Gerald, who's your girlfriend? The one you hold nearest and dearest to you? The one who only teases you because she loves you? Your honey badger?" I questioned, my heart beating faster with every sentence.
"Well, I'm not sure about all those things you just said, but Alice." That was it, the last straw. I slammed my fists on the table as I exploded from my chair.
"That's it, I'm getting you changed back ASAP." Then I stormed away, probably leaving the oblivious Gerald completely confused, but at the moment I didn't give a crap.

"What did you do to him?" I demanded, stomping up to the librarian.
"Who? That little friend of yours?"
"He has a name!" I stopped myself, taking a deep breath. "Forget it. I just want you to turn him back."
"Who are you to blame me? What evidence do you have?"
"Oh don't act so innocent, you know what you did to him."
"Violet? What the hell is going on?" Of course it was Gerald, and of course he had "found" me. I turned to Mrs. Girard and gave her a death glare. She just shrugged in fake innocence as Gerald latched onto my arm and yanked me out of the library.

"What is up with you today, Vi?" Gerald questioned once we were outside of the library.
"Oh really, you're asking me that."
"Hey, don't try and pin this on me; whatever this is." Despite being brainwashed, I could still see some of the Gerald in him.
"Huh, I don't care if you don't like me right now." I said, pulling him towards me and kissing him passionately.
"Violet, what the hell is happening to me?" I could tell just by the look in his eyes that he was back to his normal self.
"Oh thank god." I sighed in relief, pulling him into a bear hug.
"Uh, okay, getting a little awkward now." He told me, prying me off of him. Just like that the real Gerald was gone again.
"What the-" I kissed him again.
"Something is not right about this." He commented.
"No kidding." I was starting to get the idea of what was going on. "I promise I'll find a way to get you back again." I told him, though he was already back to his Alice loving side.
"What?" He inquired.
"You get it, at least some part of you does." Then I left without letting him get another word in.

I spent the rest of the day avoiding Gerald at all cost; partly because I couldn't stand this new version and partly because I was so close to getting the old version back. I thought about it and decided that my best chance at getting him back full time was to get to the route of the problem, Mrs. Girard. That would be tricky though, because it didn't seem like she was going to give in that easily. "Maybe we should start with finding out what she is." I thought aloud, forgetting that he wasn't around to listen. I sighed as I looked up at my bedroom ceiling, wondering. "What am I going to do, Gerald?" I whispered. That's when I realized that I was holding and talking into the phone, as if it was just another after school call between him and I. Of course I wasn't really talking to him, I guess it was just a force of habit. I put down the phone and groaned. "She must be a witch." I declared. "She must be. That way she can look human but still work her evil magic." It sounded logical enough, but how do you stop a witch? A bucket of water? Huh... there was only one person I could think to ask.

I waited until lunch the next day to go through with my plan, leading Gerald into the wooded area behind the school. "What are we doing here? Are you planning on killing me and you just don't want to make a scene?" He asked, and I just couldn't resist his goofy smile, even if it wasn't the real one. I didn't respond, I simply pulled him towards me and kissed him, hoping for a return of the real him. "Have you figured out how to fix me?" He inquired. That was just the effect I wanted. I kissed him again, trying to prevent him from turning back too quickly.
"Maybe. But first I need to figure out how to stop a witch."
"Witches aren't exactly my area of expertise."
"That's right, it's only evil cats, angry spirits and water monsters." I remarked, giving him another quick kiss.
"I think you first need to figure out how her power works."
"Ugh, and then I need to figure out how many grains of sand there are in the world and then I need to find the meaning of life and then and then..."
"Hey, it's the best I can do."
"Huh, it's not your fault." I sighed, kissing him again. "I don't want you to turn back." I whispered, taking his hands in mine.
"And I don't want to turn back. Sadly, I don't have a choice." I kissed him once more before letting him fully fade away. I knew he was gone when he let go of my hands and took a step back. "A little close there, Vi, don't you think?" I didn't respond, I just sighed before walking away.