Andy

"What do you mean?..." Andy rises from his chair, eyes wide, unbelieving.

"Just now... I was talking to my mother, I thought it was my mother... But she was acting too calm, missing too many details. So I pulled out my cross, said the prayer and poof... She was gone."

"You exiled your own mother?!" Andy shouts in shock.

"No, because she came in the living room a minute later, silently judging me because I was talking to myself... Whatever they are, they're already here in the house. Who knows how many of them followed us back this afternoon."

"We cannot go in the forest anymore." Andy firmly shakes his head regretfully, "We can't risk it."

I nod in agreement. Ashley sits up attentively. "Your mother was possessed?"

"Not possessed, but cloned... Andy, this might be more than we originally thought... Can the spirits project themselves into other people?"

Ashley frowns, looking genuinely invested in the problem. "Not that I know of... Just possess people, either temporarily or permanently."

"I have no idea..." Andy frowns, "The clones you've seen, explain exactly how they are."

"They can't remember certain facts about memories, even something as simple as a birthday... They're very persuasive, using charisma, kindness and concern to control you into doing what they want... And sometimes there's something lacking from their appearance, like their 'creator' didn't know everything about how they looked."

I sneak a glance at Ashley, and he is unwavering. My gaze skips to his hands quickly, and sure enough, he's still wearing those gloves...

His face is so innocent and concerned, I'm actually having a hard time seeing him as the villian he's been thusfar.

"So the only way we can tell people apart is by their lack of visual details and memories?... Shit."

"It's never been big, obvious things, either. It's as simple as missing a piece of jewerly or a small scar on your finger. They're difficult to notice when they're gone unless you're really looking for them."

"Well that makes things damn easier..."

I sigh in frustration, looking to Andy. "We have to go out tonight and get some defensive equiptment. Holy water, sage, salt, the works..."

"We're breaking into a church?" He asks in disbelief. "Isn't that like... A sin or something."

"We don't have a lot of options," I breathe, "and Sunday is still too far away. If we even make it the next four days to the church service, we could all be dead by then. It's now or never."

"Wait," Ashley speaks up, directing both mine and Andy's attention to him. "Isn't there some secret law that if you use the holy water for ill intentions it loses it's power or some shit? If we steal it, will that affect it's strength?"

"Dammit..." I curse under my breath. "You're right... We can't risk it. We could go before school tomorrow and pick some up. Preferably not at my church, I don't want my pastor to inform my parents of my need for holy water, which will spring a whole new era of problems on us. We have to be swift and anonymous."

"We should probably do some research on it, as well." Andy suggests. I nod in agreement and pull out my phone, tossing it to him. He goes to work Googling the details of holy water while me and Ashley discuss the other details of our evening adventure.

I have to admit, it's odd as hell to look at him as an ally over an adversary... He still doesn't look completely trusting of me, but he's more open to conversation now than before, which makes facing him a lot easier... It also makes me feel guiltier about how I treated him before, and the turmoil I put Andy through this afternoon over it... Although it was a nessecary conversation to have, I think we could have done it without the yelling, blackmail and accusations. I'll openly admit to being at as much fault at him.

"What else?... Sage and salt?"

"We'll have to get both of those. We could use the kitchen salt downstairs, but like before, it could propose more issues. Let's just buy some in bulk at the grocery store. Andy, what's the time?"

He checks the clock on my phone "It's only nine thirty."

"Okay, so we could go to the grocery store first, and pick up a couple cans of salt. I think the myth is to sprinkle it around the perimeter of your property to deter spirits... Are you both sure that it won't have an effect on either of you?"

"Salt ring is designed to keep out other spirits," Ashley explains, "It won't affect any that are already here."

"So if there's some already on the property, we'll need to do what, exactly? Burning sage is meant to calm angered spirits, and it can set them free if it is burned with a prayer... We'll need to be careful of that, we don't want to accidentally exile you both."

Having two ghosts for friends has to be one of the hardest things ever... This all could have been very simple to carry out, but alas, every action we take could also have a consequence.

"Hey, I had two friends in California that were really into Wiccan/Pagan-type stuff. They weren't witches or anything, they were the kind of people all zen with nature and only used their abilities to heal the sick and ward off spirits. They brought over these jars one night... Aw fuck, what were they?..." Andy gets caught up in his thoughts for a few seconds.

"Would Juliet know anything about this?" I ask.

"I don't know... She's more into the psychic/fortune teller part of it."

"I suppose it wouldn't hurt to ask... Once you're done there, shoot her a text. Let her know who you are, though."

"On it... Damn, what was it?" He laughs, "For the life of me I can't fuckin' remember the name of those damn jars... Well anyways, they were full of all kinds of nasty shit, like personal sacrifices and shit, and they were meant to ward off evil beings. They made one for me, actually. It's still sitting in my dorm back in Berkeley..."

"Do you think it would still protect you now?"

"Maybe?" He hedges sheepishly, "It contained all the nasties of my body in it, so maybe."

"Maybe we could get Juliet to ship it to us?" I suggest.

"She'd have to find a way into the room, but yeah, that'd work."

"We still have to make one for Ashley..." I look to him, and all three of us realize what that means.

"Oh hell no, we are not digging up my body." He waves his hands firmly.

"Man, you don't even need your body anymore, you just need... Pieces of it to defend your soul." Andy tells him, sounding just as disgusted and revolted as the rest of us felt.

"That's disgusting!" Ashley snaps at him, "I'd rather just get grabbed than do that."

"If you won't..." Andy sighs, reluctance in his voice. "I guess that I could do it..."

"Maybe not... I think I know what you're talking about. Each person has to make their own or it won't work... You have to collect your own 'nasties'." I frown in disgust and look back at Ashley. "It's where we're at, unless of course, you have a tuft of hair, a sample of your blood and some nail clippings lying around."

His face scrunches up, but he finally gives in. There's no other options, no matter how much I wish that there were.

"Here we go," Andy speaks up "Holy water is offered for free from all Catholic churches. They usually provide a fountain near the main entrance where you can collect it, or you can have a priest bless some for you. It says here though, that if you misuse the holy water, prepare for some negative effects." He frowns and looks up at us both.

"Stealing probably counts as misuse." Ashley mutters.

"There's a Catholic church six blocks up the street from here. We could go tomorrow before school or swing by after."

"I vote after... That way we can get a jug of the stuff without looking suspicious packing it all over the high school." Ashley says.

"I agree with that." Andy nods, "Okay, I've texted Juliet... I told her a bit about the mess we're in, I'm just awaiting her response... While we have some time, I'll do some research on those Wiccan jars."

"I'm ready to head to the store when you guys are."

"What about your parents? They haven't gone to bed yet."

"I'll go tell them now that I'm going to bed. They won't bother me. Gather your things, we leave in ten... I just want to get this thing wrapped up." I shake my head, exiting the room, going downstairs. My mind is racing, thinking of all the things we will have to do to guarantee our safety and the safety of those around us. Hopefully our precautions will be enough.

I lean around the corridor of the living room, and they're curled up under a baby blue afghan watching reruns of the Golden Girls on TV.

"Hey hun, what's up?" My Dad greets me when he notices me standing there.

"I just came to say goodnight." I tell him with a smile.

"Oh... What time is it?" He cranes his neck to look at the clock on the end table. "Almost ten, huh?... Well, goodnight, Ash. Love you!"

"Love you, too."

"Heading to bed alright? Goodnight." My Mom says. I send it back to her and play up the tired footsteps back to the stairs. Once I've climbed them, I dash to my room and grab my backpack, pausing to empty it of textbooks and other school related nonsense, and make sure that I've got money on me. I glance in the mirror, and I look alright. The dress is a little dirtied up from rolling about on the forest floor, but other than that, I still look like I'm ready for school.

I fluff up my blankets on my on my bed and put some pillows under the comforter to simulate a sleeping body beneath.

Andy and Ash linger outside my room, as I step out out of mine, looking at them in confusion. "What's up?"

"We're just gonna go out the front door tonight. Ashley isn't feeling up to climbing out of a window." Andy rolls his eyes and punches his shoulder. "So stay close to us and we'll get out without your parents even noticing."

We get out of the house without anyone noticing and on our way.

"Hold on," I stop on the porch after we close the front door.

"What?" Andy asks in confusion.

"Let me bless the house... It's not much but it's better than leaving them completely unprotected."

"Okay, do your thing." He waves his hand dismissively, ushering himself and Ashley off the porch and out of the way. I hold my cross in my hand and bow my hands, murmuring a quiet prayer.

"Lord while I am away, protect my parents as they sleep. Keep this home standing, and protect it until first light. Ward off all evil, and keep it in your eye. Amen."

I take a deep breath and open my eyes, looking up at my home, nodding once, then walking away to join Ashley and Andy at the base of the driveway.

"Alright, off we go." I smile.

"Sounds good... Where to first?"

"Grocery store. They close at eleven so we should probably handle that first."

"Where are you planning on hiding all this salt?" Ashley snickers.

I slide my backpack straps off my arm and shake it at him, laughing. "In here, bitch! Now, let's go on a midnight salt run!"

I take off in a sprint, feeling the world rushing beneath my feet and my worries fall behind me. Running at night is such a unique experience, and certainly something that you need to do at least once in your lifetime. It feels like running blind, while being able to see and feel everything all at once.

I hear laughter, and they are at my side, running the same speed as me. It's a contagious feeling, so I can't help te freedom scream that erupts from my lungs. This is what I need, something to distract me from the crap that keeps coming our way.

The curtains of the nearby houses are tugged open and the confused faces of their owners peek out into the darkness, trying to figure out who the hell would be screaming outside their house at ten pm.

We're all laughing, feeling giddy. Running away from my home into the bleak, dark night somehow feels like putting all my problems behind me, running off for a new start I can't quite have.

Perhaps that's the perk of being like Andy or Ashley... No more commitments, no one to worry about disappointing or conforming for. You set your own standards and are free to choose any path you want for yourself... Truly free to do anything that your heart desires. You could pursue any dream and accomplish any task... The only thing you'd be missing would be a body. So I guess I can kind of understand those ghosts... They have access to anything they could ever want, except the one thing they cannot have. With nothing left to lose, I suppose it'd be a good plan.

We reach the downtown area within fifteen minutes, running most of the way, at least, until our little human friend (me) ran out of breath and simply could no go on. That ended in a few joking insults from Andy and a few red-hot poker iron comments from Ashley with a snide expression to match.

The grocery store came into view soon enough, the long, narrow, silver building parked directly beneath two bright streetlights with a handful of bums sitting outside. Their bloodshot eyes stay down on their drug craft on the sidewalk as we go by, completely invisible to onlookers.

"Alright, you two will need to stand back a bit so I can pay for it. Don't wanna accidentally disappear."

"What? You're actually going to pay for it?" Ashley asks.

"Yes?" I crook my eyebrow at him, "Why? What was your idea?"

"I'm sure you can guess his idea." Andy mumbles, rolling his eyes. "He just wants to drink, smoke and shoplift. Let him be a kid, mom." He says mockingly, following it up with a laugh and a jab to Ashley's ribs. "Just let him be a delinquent kid in peace."

Ashley looks annoyed, but not angry, surprisingly.

The sliding doors don't react when we stand in front of them. I wave my hand at the sensor, but it doesn't pick it up. "Back up, guys..."

Ashley and Andy take a few steps back, and the door sensor flashes a little red light and it slides open with a bell chime. "Alrighty, then... Sliding doors are ghost proof."

The inside of the store is overlit, blinding white fluorescent bulbs hanging from the ceiling makes the building feel like a miniature scale hospital waiting room. I look up at the signs hanging over each aisle, "Soups and pasta, cereal and bread, baking and organic... That's probably the one."

Carly Rae Jepsen's 'Call Me Maybe' is playing over the store's speakers quietly, giving the adventure that was meant to feel eerie and determined feel more like a leisure trip to the store between three friends, searching for Sour Patch Kids and Bud Light.

Andy and Ashley speak quietly to each other, their voices far too low for me to hear so they just sound like a quiet hum in the background.

We step into the baking aisle, and scan the shelves slowly, looking over the displays of boxed cake mixes, sacks of flour and sugar, and the colorful display of baking liners and candles in different themes. At the other end of the aisle, is a nice, big shelf of salt canisters. On sale, too.

"So this is the wall of spirit repellent?" Ashley jokes dryly, looking over the navy blue cans of Morton salt, lined right to the edge of each shelf, freshly stocked. It's a good thing we came so late, then... Looks like they just finished stocking this aisle.

"Hey, do one of you want to go grab a cart?" I ask them, looking over them, trying to mentally figure out how many cans it would take to line my backyard, house, and driveway.

"I'll do it." Andy volunteers, turning on the heel of his leather boot, swiftly making his way back down the aisle to seek out a magical, four-wheeled carrying device.

"Regret playing with death, now?" Ashley chuckles, stepping back from the shelf.

"What do you mean?"

"You intervened with his death, made him choose something other than crossing over... You messed up the scales."

"Are you joking?" I ask in confusion, shaking my head. His smile fades a little, and he shakes his head. "No... I can't imagine something like this happens all too frequently, you know? A human falling in love with a ghost."

I laugh, but it lacks humor and just sounds nervous "Yeah... I guess not."

"Do you ever think about how much easier your life would still be if you hadn't approached him again in the woods?"

I shake my head, "I thought about it, yeah, but my life was boring-"

"But your life was yours. Now it belongs to everyone in it, and you have to spend-" He leans forward to examine the price on the salt "Twenty-five dollars on Morton granulated salt to ward off the spirits that were never a problem until we came along." He raises his eyebrows challengingly, but not in a malicious way.

"I don't regret it." I shrug, pulling one of the cans off the shelf, rolling it around in my palms.

"Beep beep!" Andy wails, and we both turn, watching him come barrelling down the aisle, standing up on the bar underneath the cart, rolling towards us in style, wearing a cheap pair of aviators with the tag still attached, dangling over his nose.

"Fill'er up" he slaps the handlebars with a grin on his face. I hesitate a moment, appreciating his wonderful smile.

"You're kinda awesome." I laugh, smiling at him for a moment before turning my attention back to the shelf, grabbing several cans, setting them into the basket, counting over in my head two more times how much we need.

"Ten cans? Sounds good." Andy nods towards our loot appreciatively.

"Is that all we needed here?" I ask them both, trying to remember if we had forgotten anything. They both shake their heads in agreement, and we make our way to the registers to check out.

We're the only ones in the store, so clearly a bit of a shock to the woman working in check out, reading a romance novel, looking like she'd be more fitted to work in a health foods store or Spirit Halloween from her appearance. Andy and Ashley make themselves visible before we approach the register.

"Hello..." She sits her book aside, looking us over in confusion, trying to figure out if we're troublemakers.

"Hello." I greet her as cheerfully as I can without sounding suspicious. We start loading our load of salt onto the belt, and she starts scanning them, then stops to stare at all ten cans before laughing. "You kids got some demons or something?"

"Actually, yes." Ashley responds, raising his eyebrows dramatically. "Had to make a midnight salt run, the spirits are getting restless."

She nods slowly and looks at him and Andy, and a strange look comes into her eyes. "What are you kids dealing with?"

"Something followed us home." I say, my voice shaking a bit. From her appearance, she looks like the perfect Wiccan... I'm just hoping that she is.

"Oh, really?..." She looks us over again and sighs, "Well, can't say that I've ever had three teens roll in at ten in the evening to buy ten cans of granulated salt... So it must be serious." She raises an eyebrow at us. "Let me tell you kids something, coming from a vetran Wiccan," Her look is severe and serious. "Salt is a good start, it'll minimalize your problems, but it won't get rid of them."

"What will?" Andy asks.

"A crap load of holy water and some Wiccan jars, each one unique to each of ya... They're kinda nasty, but they'll do the job."

"What are they?" I ask her, seeking as many answers as we can gather.

"They're simple jars, either glass or stoneware - your choice. You just fill 'em up with as many pieces of yourself as you can, as well as some other dark items to lure in the spirits."

"Lure them in? Aren't we trying to get rid of them?" Ashley asks with narrowed, confused eyes.

She nods quickly. "That's what they do. They draw in negative energy and traps it in the jar for you to dispose of at your leisure... However, you'll want to make a new one in it's place. They're difficult to make."

"Could you show us how?" I ask her, figuring that at this point, I don't have much more dignity to lose.

She purses her lips, and scans the last four canisters.

"I can't do that, I'm sorry." She shakes her head quickly, but softens a little. "You can't be misusin' them, alright? They're not a joke, they are to be respected."

"Got it." Andy nods.

"Tell ya what... I can put together a list for you of what you need, and how you'll need them... Just be aware... The requirements aren't exactly pleasing."

"What do you mean? What could be so terrible about them?" Andy chuckles.

"When I said that you need as many pieces of yourself as you can manage, I meant everthing. Toenail clippings, hair... For the girl, blood, and for the boys-" She looks at them both with redenning, embarrassed cheeks. "Well, I'm sure you two will figure out what that means."

They clear their throats in embarrassment and shift their wait from foot to foot... Of course, Ashley could not let it be.

"Hey, uh, what kind of blood?"

She looks at him for a solid four seconds, glances at me, then looks down at her register, checking the total. "That'll be 24.65"

I hand her twenty five dollars and step back from the counter.

"I made it gender-specific for a reason, son." She gives him a suspicious eye, and tugs our reciept from the printer, handing it to me from accross the counter along with my change.

"I can't think of it all off the top of my head right now... Maybe you kids could drop by tomorrow? I could have a list for you by then."

I nod eagerly, "That would be wondrful, thank you... What time can we drop by?"

"Any time is fine. I work the day shift tomorrow, anyways... In fact, we close here in five minutes so you kids oughta head home, huh?"

She smiles at us and pushes forth two plastic bags full of salt canisters. "Have a nice night, and try'n stay out of trouble, alright?"

"Will do, thanks!"

I grab one bag and Andy gets the other and we head out of the store. I shake my head, feeling strangely closer and further from the truth at the same time.

We stop outside the store to make the transition from bag to backpack. I was able to fit all but two cans into my backpack, so Ashley carried the last two, walking up the sidewalk with a thank you bag dangling from his fingers.

"Okay, now where?"

Andy gets a sneaky smile on his face. "I feel like CC is overdue for a good scare, don't you think?" He wiggles his eyebrows challengingly.

I sigh, but agree. "Poor CC." I say.

We catch up to Ashley, and he starts snickering.

"What the hell's wrong with you?" Andy asks him, narrowing his eyes at him.

"I was just thinking about what she said... Ash needs 'blood'." He chortles and I lose all interest in being kind to him, frowning in embarrassment. Of course... He's such a damn boy.

"Well," I take a deep breath, my tone taking a cheerful turn. "At least I don't have to jerk off into a jar to ward off demons." I skip ahead of them, making my way to the end of the block. They've both fallen silent in what I hope is their own embarrassment.