Hellfire On The Other Side

Chapter 8

Charlene and Tina are sitting at an empty table in Tiana's Place, wearing aprons. "Whew! Char, girl, I'll tell you. I've been helping around her for five years, and I'm still not used to the Thursday Brunch Rush," says Tina. "I don't know what you're talking about. Seemed like it was manageable to me," says Charlene. Tina slouches in her chair as she removes her apron. "Easy for you to say," she sneers. "People don't wanna bother you. Not with that charm around your neck." She points at Charlene's new necklace, which has a silver skull charm on it. She got it from Shane a couple five months ago on her birthday. "Oh, Ti! So what if it's shaped like a skull? It was a gift from Shane. I even got him one, too! That way, we're always with each other, even if we're miles apart!" says Charlene, frolicking around the table. "Well, that proved to be pretty useless. He hasn't left New Orleans in four months," says Tina. "Yeah, that is weird. I'll go and talk to him! He's probably at my place right now!" Charlene takes off her apron and throws it on the table. "See ya later, Ti!" she says, walking out the door.

On her way to her house, Charlene begins to think about the past four months. "It's strange. Shane hasn't been to Paris in four months. Not even for our dates! Has he been banned from ever visiting? Is he a wanted criminal? Oh, I certainly hope he hasn't done anything bad! No. No, he wouldn't. Not my darling Shane," she thinks to herself. Once she arrives at her house, she knocks on the door. "I'm ho-home!" she says in a sing-song voice. The door opens, and a large man in a white suit says, "Hey! There's my little girl! How was work today?" The man is Eli "Big Daddy" LeBouff, Charlene's grandfather. Charlene hugs Big Daddy tightly. "It was great! Has Shane been by here yet?" she says. "Shane? Oh! You mean the kid in the long, black coat! Yeah, he's in your room, waiting for you," says Big Daddy. He leans in and whispers, "If you ask me, I'd say he's in a bit of a mood. You should be careful of what you say." Charlene nods and walks upstairs and into her room.

Inside Charlene's room, Shane sits in total darkness. Not a flicker of light to be seen until the door opens, revealing a dark silhouette. "Shane?" says Charlene. "What're you doing sitting in the dark?" She chuckles and turns on the light. "Whoa, that's bright," says Shane. "Well, what'd you expect? You've been looking at literal darkness for five hours!" She sits next to Shane and holds her charm necklace. "Big Daddy tells me that you're in a mood. But I know better. He's terrible at reading people," she says. Shane smirks. "Seriously?" "Yeah. Once, I was choking on my spit, the worst thing a human can experience, next to death, and he thought I was hungry! Luckily, Mama was there to help me." Charlene sighs. "I miss her sometimes." Shane wraps his arm around her and asks, "Whatever happened with your mother? You talk about her all the time." Charlene smile and looks at Shane. "She moved away. She's a fashion designer in Spain. She's living her dream. She's way too busy for me to talk to her, though," she says. "Well, maybe one day, she'll call you. Phones work two ways, y' know," says Shane.

"Hey, Shane?" asks Charlene. "Yes, my love?" he answers. "Why haven't you been going to Paris recently? I've been wanting to go on another date, y' know." Charlene makes her fingers "walk" up Shane's arm and to his lips. Shane takes off his cap and coat, then sighs. "There's other places in the world that we could go on dates, Char. And I think lots of them are way better than Paris," says Shane, avoiding the question. Charlene eventually realizes why Shane hasn't been to Paris in four months. She gasps, then says, "This doesn't have anything to do with-" Shane points his cane at her and says, "Don't say her name. Do not say her name." Charlene twirls her hair and blushes. "Sorry, Shane. I just worry about the two of you. I mean, you seemed to have an unbreakable bond," she says. Shane stares solemnly out of the window. "So did I," he says. "But that's in the past now. I need to focus on the future." Charlene grabs Shane's cap and coat. "How's your voodoo coming along?" she asks. Shane's coat and cap disappear from her hands, then reappear on Shane. "Very nicely," says Shane in a gravelly voice.

Charlene sits on the room floor, criss-cross applesauce style, and squeals. "So cool! Show me more, darling!" "Sure thing! First and foremost, I can create shadow orbs, in case I even get into a scuffle," says Shane, summoning a shadow orb with his left hand. "Ooh!" says Charlene in amazement. "Second, my Shadow warp has gotten much better. Not, all I have to do is look at a shadow..." Shane disappears before finishing his sentence, "Shane? Darling, where'd you go?" Charlene asks, looking around her room. "...and I immediately warp to its location," says Shane from behind Charlene. Charlene shrieks after hearing Shane, then immediately giggles. "That's also cool! Scary, but cool! Anything else?" she says. "Yeah. Talking with the souls of the dead, I have strong connections to the Soul Realm, and-" Shane falls onto the floor in an instant.

"Shane!" Charlene picks up Shane and sets him on her bed. "Shane, what happened?" she asks. Shane clutches his chest. "Something's happened in the Soul Realm. Something big. I know I shouldn't be there, but I have to get to Paris," he says. "You shouldn't be in Paris? Did Claude ban you from there?" asks Charlene. "Doesn't matter. I have to get there, quickly! And I have to stay hidden," says Shane. "But how? You'd stand out, even in the shadows!" says Charlene. "You forget. I have one last power to show you," says Shane with a smirk on his face. "You ready?" "Heck, yeah!" says Charlene. Shane closes his eyes, then turns into a shadow on Charlene's bed. Charlene stares wide-eyed. "Now, that is cool," she says. Shane flies out of Charlene's window and makes his way to Paris. "I sure hope everything's good with Clara. I don't care if she doesn't want to see me again. I will protect her to my last breath," says Shane.