Jon's younger sister Zoe entered the room. She had always been into weird things--Goth, occult, you name it. And she was very familiar with Larry, who had been a constant pest to her own crowd.
"I thought I heard some noise in Jon's room," she said.
"Well, if it isn't the ravishing dark-clad Zoe," said Larry.
"Shove it," replied Zoe. "I don't know what you're doing in our house, but I'm going to call Mom. She's right downstairs."
"I think not," replied Larry. "For the one who is prepared has the advantage. I wish that you'll do anything I say. Now halt in your tracks!"
Larry was astonished to see Zoe grab for the stone anyway. Larry held her off for the moment, but something seemed very wrong.
"Are you surprised?" asked Zoe. "You know there is such a thing as magic. We all remember that spell you cast that turned your hair green. Do you think there's something special about you which makes you the only teenager in the whole world who has ever managed to do magic? There's nothing special about you, Larry, and there are others like me who know how to treat magic with more respect than you do. You're not getting through my protection ward."
"Argh!" I am defeated!" yelled Larry, and then said "I wish I was far away from here." And disappeared.
But Zoe didn't tell Larry the whole truth. She did know some magic, true. And it did protect her against the stone. But the spell fed on her own magical power. Which meant that she could protect herself, but not Karyn, Jon, or anyone else. And Zoe wasn't that powerful. She could scry a little and do some protection spells, but there was no way she could just magically find Larry, hit him with an energy blast, turn him into a frog, or anything like that. Larry, with the stone, had her hopelessly outmatched.
Zoe needed help. She got out her cell phone and punched in Jon's number....
