It was barely five o'clock when Joan's cell phone rang, forcing her into wakefulness. An odd sensation greeted her. A soft weight stretched across the base of her neck. Opening her eyes, she looked down to see a pale, thin arm draped over her. The hand at the end of the oddly placed limb featured black-painted nails. Following the arm to its source, Joan felt her chin brush against the dyed black hair of her younger sister. The girl had her face buried in her shoulder as she snuggled into her body for warmth.
"Huh?"
Hurrying to reach her phone, she extricated herself from Zoe's grasp. Instantly, the girl stirred. Slowly, she lifted her head and squinted about her for a few seconds. Her surroundings soon reminded her that she was not in her own bed. With another groan, she flopped back down and pulled the blanket over her head.
Leaving her questions for later, Joan grabbed her phone from her backpack and answered it. "Hello?"
"Good, you're awake," Athena's voice replied, not bothering with a greeting.
"More or less," muttered Joan. "Why are you calling me so early?"
"My contact has agreed to meet with you before school starts. Come to the school by seven and bring your friend. I'll meet you out in front and bring you to the meeting place. See you there."
With that, the call ended before Joan could ask for more information. It occurred to her that she would have to take the public bus, since the school bus did not come until later. That would add a good fifteen minutes to her commute. She had to hurry if she wanted to get her morning shower in beforehand. Cursing under her breath, she turned her attention to the intruder in her bed.
"Alright, squirt," Joan snapped as she yanked the blanket back. "What are you doing in my bed?"
Zoe groped around for the cover, but eventually gave up and hauled herself into a sitting position. Rubbing her eyes, she grumbled, "This is your fault. You were sleepwalking again."
"Sleepwalking?"
Zoe quickly summarized the previous night's events. Joan ran a finger over the bracelet, considering the implications. "So the sleepwalking's being caused by this."
Her sister nodded. "Seems so. Y'know, I thought that thing was pretty cool at first, but now, it's really starting to creep me out. And I don't creep out easy. Who was that calling?"
Joan pulled her pajama sleeve back down with a sigh and approached her underwear drawer. "Athena. And that reminds me. Why'd you have to go telling Athena about the bracelet? When I asked you not to tell Mom, I'd hoped you'd understand that I didn't want this getting out." Panties and bra in hand, she rushed to her closet.
"I figured you needed help. Athena knows about magic stuff, and she's good at keeping quiet. I didn't tell anyone else, just so you know. Anyway, did she come up with something? Is that why she's calling?"
All her clothes now gathered, Joan paused to dial up Nicole. "We'll just have to see." A groggy voice from the phone indicated that her call had been answered. "Nicole? Sorry for getting you up so early, but it's urgent."
