With Friends like These

<Do you really need to improve Crimson Thorn?> asked Professor Ozerl.

<Of course!> Rose exclaimed, laying on a conveniently placed couch in her temporary workshop.

<In that case, you'll want animate weapon,> Oz replied. <The flying property might be useful as well.>

Rose pathed. <He's at his limit.>

<Now, Rose, I've seen few people as adept at pushing the limits of magical items as you,> pathed her uncle. <You've bypassed the limit on enhancement bonuses by using an actual spell. What do you think you can do for a weapon bonus?>

Rose thought hard about that. She knew Uncle Oz already knew the answer, but with him it was never that easy. He always forced her to arrive at the solution on her own, thus allowing her to learn, whether she wanted to or not. After a few minutes, she arrived at the answer.

"Magic weapon!" she exclaimed, then realized that her uncle couldn't actually hear her. <Magic weapon!>

<Well done, Rose,> Uncle Oz replied kindly. <Greater magic weapon lasts for an hour per level and can grant a +5 bonus at level 20.>

<So I can just make a schema for it!> exclaimed Rose. <That frees up an entire +5 for Crimson Thorn!>

<And the flying property is only a +1,> added Uncle Oz. <What are Crimson Thorn's current properties?>

<Keen, merciful, ghost touch, and wounding,> replied Rose.

<A ghost shroud will turn all of you melee attacks into ghost touch attacks,> pathed Uncle Oz.

<That answers another question I had,> Rose replied, writing the item down in her notebook. <It's been hard remembering everything without my books here.>

<You mean the books you keep taking from my library?> asked Uncle Oz.

Rose replied.

<You sound so much like your sister,> Uncle Oz sighed. <If it's damage you require, you've got blades of fire and greater energy surge. The former is an additional d8 of fire damage, and the latter is an additional 3d6 of any energy type.>

<What about sneak attack?> asked Rose. <That's how Shadow deals most of her damage. Could I use hunter's eye?>

<Not only that, but you could persist it,> Oz replied. <Maximum 6d6.>

<So that's an additional 9d6 of damage, plus 1d8,> Rose pathed. <Thanks!>

<Do remember to keep an eye on your XP, Rose,> her uncle reminded her.

exclaimed Rose cheerfully.

<Well, then, that handles that problem,> Uncle Oz replied. <As always, don't hesitate to ask any questions, Rose.>

<Thanks, Uncle Oz,> Rose pathed. <And… Ask Alice to open my workshop for you. Your books are in there. I'm sorry for taking them.>

<There are plenty of hiding places in your workshop, Rose, but I'm sure I'll figure out where you've put them,> Oz replied. <But most of all, I appreciate your honesty. Thank you, Rose.>

<You're welcome,> Rose replied, smiling.

Rose smiled.

<I'll see you soon, Rose. Take care.>

Rose looked around her acting workshop, still smiling. After a few moments, she happily began to work on Crimson Thorn.

The following Saturday was the first Quidditch match of the season. As it was the previous year, the match was between Gryffindor and Slytherin.

"Good luck, Harry," Sally-Anne said as they dropped off Harry outside the locker rooms. "Stay safe."

"I'll be fine," Harry replied irritably. Why did everyone have to keep treating him like a child?

"Just… Please be careful," Sally-Anne said once more, worry evident on her face.

"Just because something bad happened last year, doesn't mean it's going to happen this year."

"If something wasn't going to happen before, it certainly will now," Rose said. "The DM loves it when people insist bad things aren't going to happen."

"Do I want to know?" Harry asked Hermione, who had become the unofficial expert on Rose.

"No," Hermione replied, shaking her head. "Don't worry. If something happens–"

"Which it won't," Harry said.

"We'll handle it, mate," Ron finished. "Just make sure you stomp on those Slytherins!"

There was a reason that Ron was his best mate. With everything else that was going on at Hogwarts Ron was still more concerned about Quidditch. It made Harry feel normal, rather than Sally-Anne who kept worrying about him, or Colin who kept trying to take his picture. Harry was still a little annoyed that Sally-Anne had let him take the first one, since it only seemed to make him believe he was entitled to more pictures.

Why couldn't he just go take Lockhart's picture? The man certainly enjoyed the attention, unlike Harry. Also, unlike Harry, Lockhart was willing to smile for the camera.

Harry had been looking forward to this match for weeks, not just because he enjoyed flying, but because of something he had discovered during practice: The voices stopped. He didn't know why, but he couldn't hear the voices when he was practicing Quidditch. Harry honestly didn't care why, so long as they stayed gone.

Not two minutes after they took to the air, Harry spotted the Golden Snitch. Floating right next to Malfoy's left ear.

At that point, Harry decided that Malfoy had to be the worst Seeker in the history of Quidditch. How was he missing that?! It's wings weren't exactly silent. It fluttered around the Slytherin as said Slytherin continued to mock Harry.

Harry had to be careful not to betray any information, so he did his best to look annoyed at Malfoy's remarks and not stare at the Snitch.

After a three long minutes, the Snitch broke away from Malfoy and shot towards the ground, with Harry diving after it, hoping to end this match soon. Sure, Malfoy was on the faster broom, but Harry could outmaneuver him with little difficulty, and before he knew it, Malfoy, the Snitch, and Harry were all in a straight dive.

The Golden Snitch pulled up at the last second, and Harry with it. Malfoy, however, was not so lucky, and he crashed into the ground, leaving Harry to grab the Snitch. He was almost there, when he heard someone that sounded an awful lot like Wood shout "Look out!"

Before Harry could process his words, Fred (or possibly George) knocked a Bludger away from Harry. The black ball flew away from them, circled around, then came soaring straight back at Harry.

"That can't be good," Hermione said from the stands.

The Bludger flew back at Harry from the other side, but the other Weasley twin arrived to deflect it.

"What's happening?" asked Harry.

"Don't know," one twin said. "George?"

"They've never done this before," George said. He turned to look at Harry. "Go after the Snitch. We'll cover you."

Harry flew as best he could with the Twins on either side of him, which was tricky considering he needed to be faster than them. If he didn't fly fast enough, he couldn't catch the Snitch. If he flew too fast, then the Twins couldn't keep up with him and the Bludger could knock him off his broom. Considering he was still wearing the ring Rose made for him, the fall wouldn't actually hurt him, just the impact from the Bludger.

"Harry needs help," Sally-Anne said.

"Where's Lockhart?" asked Ron.

"Not jinxing the Bludger," Hermione replied after seeing the panic on the Defence Professor's face. "Neither is Professor Snape."

Rose was following the Bludger with her eyes as it continued to loop back around and attempt to hit Harry.

"Rose, can you do something?" Hermione asked.

"Blow it up!" Ron exclaimed.

"Can you hit it from this range?" asked Sally-Anne.

"Easily," Rose replied, drawing Serendipity. "It's now a matter of whether I can destroy it."

Rose power surged Serendipity then began to take aim at the Bludger. It wasn't actually that hard to hit a moving target. The Bludger was likely to have a higher Dex Mod than a stationary object, but it was only a diminutive object, all of which meant its AC was approximately 18. Rose could almost literally hit it with her eyes closed.

Then its hardness came into play. It was a durable object, which probably put its hardness somewhere around 10, but it was smaller, which put its HP around 20. That meant Rose needed to deal 30 damage with the spell she was about to fire at it.

Considering it would be dealing 40d6 of damage, that wasn't a problem.

Rose grinned.

"Disintegrate!" she shouted.

Up in the air, the Bludger was becoming clever. It was beginning to dodge around Fred and George, nearly hitting Harry more than once. On the ground, Malfoy had recovered and kicked off.

Just as the Bludger was about to strike him, a green ray lanced out from the stands and struck the Bludger, blasting it into dust. Harry stared at it for a second, then caught a glimpse of the Snitch. He raced after it, catching it with relative ease and winning the match.

From his vantage point in the teacher's stands, Albus watched as the Bludger attacked Harry. He watched as it began to close in on its prey, then saw the green ray streak out from the stands and destroy the ball. Technically, it was against the rules to use magic to aid either team during a match, but destroying a homicidal Bludger didn't seem like it was intended to necessarily favor either team.

Albus made a note of that spell that Rose had just used. If he hadn't seen its source, he would've assumed it was a killing curse from the shade of green, but the Killing Curse didn't turn Bludgers to dust. Not to mention, Rose couldn't cast the Killing Curse, although judging from what he had just seen, she didn't need to cast it. Albus was fairly certain that worse spells existed in her world than did here.

Harry was greeted by a number of excited fans as he left the Pitch. He pushed his way through the crowd when he spotted his friends.

"What happened up there?" Ron asked when he reached them.

"Don't know," Harry replied. "Nearly knocked me off my broom. What happened to it?"

"What else?" Hermione asked. "Rose took it out."

"Thanks, Rose," Harry said, looking around for his crimson-haired friend. "Where is she?"

"She said she had to pick something up," Sally-Anne said.

"Who went with her?" Harry asked.

"Huh?" Ron asked. "No one."

"But we're not supposed to be alone," Harry said.

Was Rose allowed to break the rules? Harry had heard that she was allowed out after curfew, but unofficially. Had she come to some arrangement with Professor Dumbledore? How could he do that? Harry hated hearing the voices, but if no one were around, they couldn't find out about them.

Harry was accompanied by a group of adoring fans all the way to the castle. He tried to talk to his friends, rather than his fans, but they kept interrupting him. Harry was glad when they broke apart when they got to the castle.

His fleeting moment of peace was cut short by an annoying voice.

"You Gryffindors must be brave to still be here."

Then there was Malfoy. He and his two goons had caught up with the group.

"You know mudbloods and blood traitors will be first on the Heir of Slytherin's list of victims. It'd be safer just to get out now while you still can."

"If you're here for a fight, Malfoy, you're outnumbered," Hermione said, as the group turned to face the three Slytherins.

"Outnumbered?!" exclaimed Malfoy. "Don't make me laugh, Mudblood. The only one of you competent enough to beat me is the Freak, and she's not here, is she?"

"We can take you!" shouted Ron.

"'We'?" Malfoy scoffed. "You mean Potter, the Weasel, the Beaver, and the Kitten? Ha! You don't stand a chance against us!"

"Back off, Malfoy!" Harry shouted.

"Or what? What are you gonna do, Potter?" Malfoy spat. "Back down then lie about it?"

"What did you say?" asked Harry.

"As if anyone actually believes that you faced the Dark Lord last year," Malfoy said. "Obviously, you just made it up to impress your three fangirls here."

"Oi!" shouted Ron.

"Harry isn't a liar!" shouted Sally-Anne.

I don't need your help, Sally-Anne, Harry thought.

"You've even got them trained!" Malfoy said, laughing. "Well, almost. Looks like the Beaver needs more work."

"Stop it!" shouted Harry.

"Make me!" Malfoy shot back.

By now, there was a crowd of people around them, so there were plenty of witnesses when the wands came out. Malfoy and his two goons pulled their wands, and Harry, Ron, and Sally-Anne pulled theirs.

Harry kept his focus on Malfoy, but he noticed that Hermione wasn't drawing her wand. What was she doing?

"You haven't got the guts to attack me, Potter!" spat Malfoy. "And you know what? I doubt any of your pets here have– AH!"

Harry looked around, but he couldn't figure out what had happened. No words had been spoken, no wands had waved, no spells had been fired. Instead, Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle were stuck to the ceiling.

"Great timing," Hermione panted.

Harry turned to her and saw Rose standing beside her.

"I should really consider crafting a staff for that or something," Rose said, looking up at Malfoy. She turned to Hermione. "I use it an awful lot. Maybe something for a few times a day? I dunno." Rose snapped her fingers, and the three Slytherins fell from the ceiling and landed hard on the ground. "Better question: How come there are never any professors around when you need them? It's as if they all know a fight's about to break out and steer clear of that area."

"You!" Malfoy hissed.

"Me!" Rose hissed. "If I were you, Butterhead, I'd start running. I've been dying to try out bad touch tentacles, so you really don't want to cross me."

"You think I'm just going to walk away?" Malfoy scoffed, brandishing his wand at Rose. "You don't scare me!"

"I should've left you up there," Rose said. "Oh well." She held up her hand, and a sphere of fire appeared in it. "Run. Now."

Harry eyed the ball of fire in Rose's hand. She wouldn't risk hurting him, would she? Not that it'd matter; the way Malfoy was acting, he deserved it.

Rose drew back her arm, preparing to roll the ball of fire at Malfoy.

"She'll do it, Malfoy," Ron said.

"Sh-shut up!" Malfoy stammered. "This… You!"

"Just run, Draco," she said. "Don't look back, just run."

Rose rolled the ball along the ground as she said "run", directing it straight at Malfoy. As it chased him, the Slytherin fled as fast as his legs would carry him.

After a few seconds, Rose held up her hand. The ball changed direction and rolled back to them.

"Hermione, would you mind putting that out?" Rose asked. "You can just douse it with water."

"I can try," Hermione said. She squeezed her eyes shut, then chanted, "Aguamenti."

A jet of water sprang out of her wand and doused the orb at her friend's feet.

"Perfect!" Rose exclaimed. She turned to her friends as Serendipity disappeared inside her glove. "I can't always be here to protect you lot. You've got to learn to defend yourselves."

"I can fend for myself!" Harry exclaimed. "I was handling it just fine before you showed up!"

"Harry, settle down," Sally-Anne said gently.

Harry turned to Sally-Anne. "I don't need your help, Sally-Anne! I don't need you to defend me, or ask me if I'm alright, or baby me all the time! And I certainly don't need you to encourage other people to bother me! I can manage just fine on my own! You're not being helpful, you're just being annoying!"

Sally-Anne's face turned red, and her eyes began to water.

"I'm… I'm sorry," she whispered. "Excuse me."

She pushed past everyone and ran.

Rose watched her friend run off crying, then turned to Harry.

"There are three types of people," Rose said. "When a disaster hits, and the dust has settled, there are those who attempt to help the victims, those who do nothing, and those who seek revenge." Serendipity appeared in her hand. "I fall into that last category."

Harry began to back away from Rose. He had seen what she did to people that upset her friends. Alright, he'd seen what she did to Malfoy and those Ravenclaw students that had mocked Luna, but he didn't need to experience it firsthand.

"Everyone who doesn't want to get hit, clear away from Potter," Rose said.

The color drained from Harry's face. He'd just survived a wild Bludger, but it was his friend that was going to get him?

"You think I'm kidding?" Rose asked when no one moved. She raised her arm and a blast of fire shot out of her outstretched hand. "Six."

She wouldn't! Harry thought, turning to Hermione. She'd stop Rose, wouldn't she? Hermione exchanged looks with Harry. She was just as surprised as he was.

"Five."

The hallway began to clear, save for Rose and Harry. Even Hermione and Ron were backing away.

"Four."

"Rose!" Hermione shouted.

"Run after her and apologize, Potter," Rose said. "Three."

Harry had no idea what to do anymore. He couldn't concentrate on anything except his impending demise at the hands of Rose. What would happen when she reached zero? He wanted to run after Sally-Anne, but he was too shaken up from everything that had happened in the past hour, not to mention the fact that Rose was standing between him and his friends.

First he was nearly killed by a Bludger, then he was harassed by Malfoy, now this! When would it end?

"Two."

"Hermione, what's she going to do?" Ron whispered.

"Black tentacles," she breathed. "She said earlier she really wanted to try it out."

"One."

Harry was still frozen with fear, unable to react or think. This was it; he was going to die. He had made his friend cry, which, from what he had seen, was punishable by death in Rose's view of reality.

To his surprise, Rose didn't kill him, but instead lowered her wand.

"Four words," Rose said. "That's all I need to make your day worse, Potter."

Rose turned around and walked over to Ron and Hermione. She whispered something to them, then vanished in a burst of rose petals.

As the crowd of people began to disperse, Hermione and Ron simply stared at Harry.

"What'd she say?" he asked them as his voice returned.

"Why didn't you tell us?" asked Ron.

Harry went pale. She couldn't have told them. He ran over to his friends, both of whom were still shocked by whatever it was that Rose told them.

"Tell you what?" he whispered.

"That you've been hearing voices!" Hermione hissed. "Is that why you've been so quiet lately?"

Why couldn't Rose have just killed him?! At least it would've been over quickly! Now he had to suffer through his friends thinking he had gone mad.

"Come on," Hermione said. "I know the good hiding spots on this floor, so I'm pretty sure I know where Sally-Anne is. Let's go talk to her and sort this out."

"Wait, why?" Ron asked. When Hermione glared at him, he added, "Why do you know the hiding spots?"

"Because I've run off crying before," Hermione said. "And I decided that six floors was too much for when I get upset, so it would probably be a good idea to have a backup."

"You mean the common room?" Ron asked.

"Sort of," Hermione replied. "It's a long story."

Harry was paying no attention to his friends. He just wanted this day to be over.

Sally-Anne looked around. It was bad enough that her best friend had just shouted at her like that, but now everyone was staring at her. Her mind was breaking down; she couldn't think clearly enough to respond. She felt as if she had just been slapped. She felt small, embarrassed, and just wanted to run away, so that's exactly what she did.

Sally-Anne turned and ran through the crowd of people, keeping her head down to avoid the eyes of any other student. She could hear them whispering behind her as she ran, but she didn't look back; she just kept running. She didn't stop running until she found sanctuary in the form of the first-floor girls' bathroom. Her vision was blurry from tears, and she wasn't paying attention to anything except finding a place to hide.

Sally-Anne closed the door and sunk to the ground as the tears began to flow unfiltered.

She sat there and cried for what seemed like hours. How did this happen? Harry was her best friend, but she didn't realize that she had been upsetting him this entire time. How could she not have realized it? Sally-Anne was supposed to be the people person, wasn't she?

Harry had always been shy and reserved, but now Sally-Anne was beginning to wonder if he hadn't been shy, and she had just assumed he was since he didn't talk much. What if he just didn't like talking? If so, why? Why wouldn't he want to open up to them? What had his aunt and uncle done to him to make him like this? What was happening to him that was so horrible that he couldn't, or wouldn't, talk about it?

Sally-Anne wanted to know the answers, but she couldn't figure out how she'd ever discover them. Harry certainly wasn't talking, and it wasn't as if she could just read his mind.

To make matters worse, Sally-Anne knew she had a crush on him. She hadn't wanted to admit it at first, since she was afraid it would complicate matters, but she had slowly come to accept it. Not that it mattered now. After what Sally-Anne had done, there was no way that Harry would ever like her as much as she liked him. It was hopeless.

So Sally-Anne sat and cried. She cried because she had upset her best friend, the boy she liked; because he had yelled at her and made her feel ashamed; because she had failed at being the kind person she had been working so hard to be.

"Who's there?!" wailed a familiar voice.

Through the fog of misery, Sally-Anne realized that she had taken refuge in Moaning Myrtle's bathroom.

"Sorry, Myrtle," Sally-Anne apologized in between her sobs. "I… just needed to… find somewhere away… from other people."

"What about me?" Myrtle wailed. "Aren't I 'people'?!"

Sally-Anne began to cry again as she realized that she had just insulted someone else. She was lousy at this.

"You are," she said after she'd calmed down a minute. "Actually, I think you'll understand what's going on better than anyone."

"What happened?" Myrtle asked.

"Well…" Sally-Anne began, not wanting to involve someone else if it wasn't necessary. "I… There's this boy that I like, and he's one my closest friends, but he's been so quiet lately. I just know there's something bothering him, but he won't tell me what it is. I thought I was helping him by asking him how he's doing, just to show that I care, but… but I guess I've just been bothering him. Today, he just yelled at me in front of all those people, and now… Now I just feel awful!"

Sally-Anne dissolved into tears again, the pain of what had happened still fresh in her mind.

"At least you've got friends," Myrtle said. "I'm all alone here, because no one wants to be Moaning Myrtle's friend!"

"I'm sorry, Myrtle," Sally-Anne said. "We could be friends."

"Why would you ever want to be my friend?" Myrtle asked.

"I try to be nice to everyone," Sally-Anne replied. "Did your parents ever read you fairy tales when you were little?"

Myrtle nodded slowly.

"Mine did, too," Sally-Anne said. "We saw all sorts of plays and films together, and it made me want to be a hero. I want to help people. I like seeing people happy, so when I see someone upset, I try to make them smile."

"Why?"

"I used to be shy and timid," Sally-Anne said. She smiled, then wiped some tears from her eyes. "In fact, if I hadn't met my friend Rose, I probably would've just transferred out of Hogwarts at the first opportunity. I was always so scared of everything and everyone, but Rose kept me safe and gave me this ribbon." Sally-Anne pointed to the green ribbon tied into her hair. "It makes it easier to talk to people, and people keep complementing me on it. After they did that, I started to get the confidence to stand up for other people." The tears stopped in Sally-Anne's eyes. "I still remember what that was like, and I decided that I was going to stand up for people that couldn't help themselves. I realized that I could finally reach my dream and become someone who helps other people."

Myrtle looked down and began to cry again. It wasn't her normal wails, but just a soft cry. "Wish I had friends like that."

"Like I said, I'll be your friend, Myrtle."

Myrtle looked at Sally-Anne for a moment, then slowly said, "You're different to the others."

"Thanks," Sally-Anne replied. "I'm Sally-Anne, by the way. Sally-Anne Perks. What's your name?"

"Myrtle."

"Your full name," Sally-Anne said, laughing a little.

"Myrtle Warren."

"It's nice to meet you, Myrtle Warren," Sally-Anne said. She extended her hand, but then quickly receded it. "Sorry, I forgot you're a ghost."

"It's nice to meet you, Sally-Anne," Myrtle replied, smiling. She floated over to Sally-Anne and sat down. "This boy you like. Is he nice?"

"I thought he was. He always seemed so shy, but something's been bothering him lately. He won't tell me what, and now I don't know if I'll ever get through to him." Sally-Anne stopped, realizing that if she continued down a Harry-related path, then it would undoubtedly end in tears. "What about you? Were there any boys you liked when you were in school?"

"Well," Myrtle said shyly as she sat down in front of Sally-Anne. "There was one boy, but I'm not sure he ever noticed me. He was always so nice, and he had the best smile. He just had that sort of face that made you trust him. I always… Never mind."

"It's alright," Sally-Anne said. She laughed. "Trust me, nothing you say will sound more ridiculous than some of the stuff Rose says."

"I… I always imagined he'd be a knight that would save me when I was getting bullied."

"Did you get bullied a lot?" asked Sally-Anne.

Myrtle nodded. "Olive Hornby was the worst. She'd make fun of my glasses, or my pimples, or anything she could! I was such a freak!"

Myrtle began to wail again, and Sally-Anne made a mental note that she had struck a nerve.

"It's alright," Sally-Anne said as soothingly as she could. "What was the boy's name?"

"Tom," sniffed Myrtle. "He was a Slytherin, and two years older than me, so he was never going to notice me."

"So?" Sally-Anne said. "So he was in a different house. If I've learned anything from those romance films my parents watch sometimes, it's that it's possible to find love even if they're supposed to hate you. In fact, I think forbidden love is supposed to be better or something. I never really got it, to be honest."

"But I'm a Muggle-born!"

"So am I," replied Sally-Anne. "But if a Slytherin boy seemed nice, I'd still try to be nice to him."

"But wouldn't it be hopeless?"

"I don't know." Sally-Anne frowned. "Maybe, but it can't hurt to try!"

"You might succeed," Myrtle said. "You're pretty! I bet you'll be asked out by a hundred boys before you leave, but not me. Never me!"

"You're pretty too, Myrtle," Sally-Anne said. "Your glasses look lovely on you, and I love the pigtails you've got your hair in."

"You're just saying that," Myrtle replied. "No one ever liked me."

"Their loss, then," Sally-Anne said, determined to cheer up her new friend. She wracked her head for something encouraging to say. "If they didn't see what a worthwhile person you were, then too bad for them. I see it."

Myrtle smiled. "Thanks, Sally-Anne."

"You're welcome, Myrtle," Sally-Anne replied, climbing to her feet. "I had probably better head back to my room. I just remembered I'm not supposed to be alone in the castle after that attack."

"What attack?" Myrtle asked, floating to her feet.

"The one on Hallowe'en," replied Sally-Anne. "Mr. Filch's cat was petrified, and I don't think the teachers know why yet."

"Oh," Myrtle said.

"I'll see you later, Myrtle," Sally-Anne said. "Next time I'll bring Rose with me. I think you'd like her." Sally-Anne smiled. "She's my knight in shining armor." She paused, then quickly added, "Please don't tell her I said that."

Myrtle smiled. "I won't. Bye, Sally-Anne."

Sally-Anne turned to open the door. As her hand reached the doorknob, she heard a hissing sound.

"What was that?" she asked.

Myrtle looked around her bathroom, terror in her eyes.

"Myrtle, what is it?!"

Myrtle shrieked.

Sally-Anne followed her gaze and saw something on the ceiling. It was massive and covered in shimmering, green scales. It looked an awful lot like a snake.

"What is–?"

Sally-Anne never finished her sentence. The moment she saw its burning, goldenrod eyes, everything went black.

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