Pitch Black

"Jack, you're been awfully quiet. Pray tell what's on your mind?"

Lynn and I were in Huntington's library, in two of the large armchairs that rested in front of a huge fireplace, two days after Xavier joined Pitch Black. We were looking through books for Pitch Black to possibly read, and we had been doing so for about three hours. It was midnight, and I was tired, but Lynn, an insomniac, insisted we keep searching. We were flipping through books and she kept trying to start conversations to liven things up, but I responded with one-word answers all the time, and the conversation would die down to her frustration. Now she could no longer hold it in.

"Nothing." I said shortly, looking down at the book I was reading. I wasn't even paying attention to the words; I was gnawing on my lip, wondering, burning to know, where Belial had come from, and how much of a nerve he had to join the club with his constant smiling. For the last two days, the club had been focused on his conversations, his way of thinking, his ideas and opinions. The club simply loved him. Even Lynn and Brandon liked his ideas. But I was absolutely repulsed. The ways in which his eyes shone as he talked, with that grin. What was he? Why was he so happy to be here? It irked me greatly and every time I thought about it, I would chew on my lip.

"Jack Winstead, don't you dare say that 'nothing' rubbish to me," Lynn said, looking at me with an angry stare. "Tell me what's on your mind. I won't stop bothering you until you tell."

"Lynn." I said quietly, not showing my slight annoyance with her. "Stop. It's okay."

"No, it's not." She set her book down, stood, walked over to my armchair, and sat on one of its arms. "Why are you so quiet?" She said more sternly. "You've been like this ever since that Xavier boy joined Pitch Black."

I put my book down slowly, and looked at its cover in my lap. "I don't like him. He's always smiling."

Lynn gave a chuckle and ran her fingers through my hair. "Poor baby. Can't handle that someone in the school is happier than he is."

"It's not that." I said. "I couldn't care less if he was. It's just, who's that happy to be here, in such a dark and depressing place? You of all people should know what I'm talking about, you hate it here."

"True... The boy is rather odd, always walking around with that smile on his face. But he's very lively. Sort of the thing this school needs, a smile. Right?" She looked at me with a small smile. "But I will admit, he's extremely rare."

"Rare... Yes..." I said, getting lost in my own thoughts again. Seeing that she had failed to capture my attention, she sighed exasperatedly and went off to hunt for more books.

My head was bowed, and I was so lost in my thoughts, I didn't notice when someone had picked up the book Lynn decided not to use from the table, and sit down in the armchair across from me.

"Of Flowers and Blood?" A familiar voice said. I looked up, and felt a burning flair of hatred. Xavier was there, flipping through the book. "Complete rubbish, that whole idea of vampirism." He closed the book, looked up, and smiled at me with that smiled I despised so much. "I've been here for the past five minutes and you're just now noticing me," he said with a voice full of humor. "You must be an extremely deep thinker."

I didn't answer. I just sat there and looked at him, feeling as though if I stared hard enough, just like how Reid stared, he could feel my hatred from the inside out and wipe that stupid smile off his face.

Xavier cocked his head slightly when I didn't say anything. "No answer?"

"Nothing to say." I said quietly.

Xavier, still smiling, looked at me for a minute. "Jack, you're one of those brooding types, aren't you? Why don't you like me? Do I offend you in any way? Or is that just how you are normally?"

Silence.

After a moment of smiling at me in silence, with only the crackle of the flames from the fireplace being the only voice in the room, he reached into his bag and took out a small, black book.

"Moon and Light, by C. A. Lovette." He said. "This right here is an excellent book. I shall present it to Pitch Black tomorrow to see if they'll read it. I think you'll like it too, Jack. Here." He threw the book in my direction, and it landed in my lap. "First to get a taste of how great it is." Then, to my surprise, he stood up, and strode over to me quickly, then put both of his hands on the chair's arms and lent over so that he was above me, his face close to mine, staring at me with shining brown eyes. Still smiling. I gave him a hard, challenging glare.

"Y'know you really should smile more, Jack Winstead." He said in a whisper, sweeping his eyes across my lips. "You have such a charming face. I haven't seen you smile once since I arrived. Show a little more happiness. This place isn't all that depressing."

"Don't look at me with that smile on your face, Belial." I said through gritted teeth.

The smile never left his lips. "Read the book." He whispered slowly. "Tonight. You'll love it."

He then straightened up, took his bag, gave me one last smile, and walked away. As soon as he did, Lynn came back with another armload of books.

"Right then." She said, putting them on the table. "You grab a few, and I'll take the rest. We'll just skim through them."

I shook my head, and stood up. "No need, Lynn. I've already got one." I showed her the small black book Xavier gave to me. "I'm going to head off to bed now." I walked away, leaving behind and angry Lynn. Usually I would stop and wait for her, but I was too distracted. I knew I would get hell for it in the morning, though.

I went up to my dorm room, up on the second floor, and unlocked the door as quietly as I could. My two other dorm mates were fast asleep. Quietly, I undressed, went to bed, and slipped under the heavy black sheets Huntington's supplied us with.

At first, I had plans to sleep. I was so very tired, so the first thing on my mind was sleep. But the book that lay among my school ones inside my bag was still fresh in my mind, only moments ago held by the pale hand belonging to Xavier Belial, shining that flashing white smile that was imprinted in my very skull. Even if I closed my eyes, the smile stood out more. I was so angry, so frustrated, I wanted nothing more than to reach into my bag and shred the book to nothing. But I had a feeling if I did, karma would rear its ugly head and Xavier's face would never leave me, but haunt me forever and gnaw at my brain for as long as I stayed at Huntington's.

God how I hated him.

I rolled over on my other side, grabbed the book, and turned on my bedside lamp. I turned it over in my hands, staring at the black front and back covers. In shining blue letters at the front, the title read "Moon and Light" and at the back was the author's name, C.A. Lovette. Disgusted, ashamed, and angry with myself, I opened the cover and began to read:

There was once, and always has been, two kings of the sky. One king's name was Moon, and the other was Moon's brother, Sun. They ruled the sky with complete balance, and each slept while the other upheld his twelve-hour duty each day. But they were also very opposite, causing them to pay no attention to each other. Sun was the carefree brother- he abided by the rules and had no worries or doubts. Moon, on the other hand, was quiet and pessimistic. He was annoyed by his brother's optimism. He always preferred light, but Moon liked shadow. "But without me, you'd be nothing!" Sun once insisted to his brother. "No," Moon retorted. "Without light, we'd be nothing. And without darkness we couldn't be seen." Sun and Moon never agreed with each other, so they stopped and went their respective ways.

One night, when Moon began his shift and Sun went to bed, a stray beam of Light from Sun wandered up to Moon, knocking back angry stars and scattering them around the sky. "What is it you seek, Light?" Moon asked the beam, annoyed. "You disturb my peace and my subjects."

Light gave moon a mischievous and charming smile. "I've escaped from Sun. You are much better, so I shall hide here, in the dark sky, with you. No one looks where it's dark."

"But Sun is not a forgiving king," Moon said. "He will find you and bring you back with very harsh punishment."

"Which is why I ask for your help, sir. Let me stay in your dark skies so that you may hide me forever from your brother."

Moon became very annoyed with Light. "No. Go back, foolish beam, from whence you came. There is no room nor patience for you in my skies."

Light continued to smile at Moon. "I shall not leave. You will need me one day, as I need you right now."

"Ridiculous nonsense." Moon scoffed. "Leave my sight at once."

With one last smile, the beam of Light bounded off to a dark corner of the sky, away from Moon. Moon huffed and continued his watch over the night sky. The nerve, Moon thought, for someone like that to come into my skies.

After that, everything was quiet. Moon enjoyed quiet.

Quite. I continued to read late into the night, barely noticing the time creeping past, in utter silence. I could hear nothing while reading the book, I was so focused. I enjoyed the silence intensely.

I fell asleep when the sun was halfway into the sky and the waking-bell was ringing clear over the grounds. I groggily got up, frustrated that I had stayed up so long for the book, and slowly got dressed. I quickly read the last line of the second chapter, and put it in my bag before stalking out of my dorm.

And the Moon, poor or fortunate thing, depending on what one's views are, did not know what was in store for him with that eccentric burst of light.