“I can’t believe you talked me into this shit,” Aelius said, standing in his officer uniform, clad in all black leathers. His red hair that reached his shoulders was pulled back in a hair tie—surprisingly well kept for this sudden windy night. He looked over at his friend, revealing another furrowed brow. “What happened to your hair?” he asked again. 

Ah, yes. The handful of white hair within his long dark brown locks. It made an appearance during a particularly vivid dream one night, like he wasn’t already a step away from deaths door in this city overrun by ghosts. Zhen Xue attempted to not roll his eyes and failed miserably, not caring in the slightest. He supposed after receiving ‘I don’t know,’ for the umpteenth time, Aelius would no longer settle for that response. “If I told you I’m changing my identity to become your great grandfather, would you believe me then?”

Without a lick of amusement, Aelius’ rich brown eyes narrowed at him before proceeding to study the haunted manor beyond the thick iron gates ahead. The apprehension on his features reached an all time high, twisting with some minor disgust at the cobweb overhead that hung on the ancient doorway. “Are you sure this is the place?”

Gods… If Aelius wasn’t actually useful at keeping him alive, Zhen Xue would’ve put in more effort to avoid him, though he suspected that wouldn’t do much good. “There are only four manors within our local vicinity that have reported an abnormal death count. Three we already visited after you made sure to pointedly follow me,” he added with a touch of sarcasm. “Of course I’m certain this is the right place.” 

At his tone, Aelius made a childish, mocking expression before crossing over the threshold. “No matter the time of day, you are always a delight to be around.”

Zhen Xue snorted, thinking to himself he could say the same, before following after him into the abandoned garden. As an atheist, he didn’t believe in the supernatural—hell, he didn’t believe in ghosts until a couple years ago, but now, he made sure every gossip or whispered rumor was his business. He could no longer afford to ignore the evidence, not since that time when… 

His mind snapped back to the garden, pushing that thought away. 

Right. Now wasn’t the time for that. 

There was a legend surrounding this particular manor. Fortunately for him, the residents of Notting Hill’s Lancaster Road were abundantly bored and loved to be nosy. A young blond woman from the states acquired the lease to this abysmal… What could he even call it? This was no longer a home. It was graveyard of dead things—uprooted fallen trees, wilted flower bushes, grass so tall they had to crawl over some parts, and most of the upstairs on the home itself was simply gone. 

“Let’s go ghost hunting, you had said while barging through my front door. It will be fun, you said,” Aelius continued monotonously, pulling his coat free from where it snagged on a bush.

“Is that uniform just for show?”

Aelius grunted in displeasure, shoving the weeds aside with such velocity Zhen Xue grinned.

He broke into a cough, hiding his laughter as they reached the porch, but he had to agree with him. The vegetation was terrible. Vines protruded from places they shouldn’t, suffocating any form of plant growth. Who would want to live here? The owner must need bifocals or lived in such poverty prior to the move to even care. Or… they were a high level spirit—a ghost that can take an appearance—which is exactly what they were about to find out.

Aelius sighed heavily at the spiders crawling along the outer wall, which is why Zhen Xue took the opportunity to irritate him further. “Would I be this calm if we were in danger? I’ve done my research and you know when I say that, I’m the best source you’ve had regarding anomalies. She’s only after orphans and suffering children.”

“Both of which we once were,” he argued with a groan. “We are the perfect five-course meal, whether I put a label on our foreheads that says free appetizers! Come and get some, no extra charge!”

It was an effort not to laugh. He wasn’t wrong, but that’s exactly what would play to their advantage. 

Aelius’ rich brown eyes narrowed, turning frigid as he grumbled something under his breath. “You think I don’t know what you’re planning? That’s precisely why I’m bothered! Goddammit, Zhen Xue.”

Of course he knew, which was exactly why Zhen Xue teased him. This nagging ‘old’ man wouldn’t let him go anywhere by himself. Zhen Xue gave a tiny shrug, removing a piece of foliage from the sleeve of his winter coat.

Aelius stared like he was debating whether to actually leave him behind. “Move aside unless you want to get knocked on your ass and you know I will do it.” He pushed open the weighted doors as Zhen Xue sidestepped out of the way. Dust flew around them from the movement, hinges creaking loudly in the silence.

Zhen Xue followed at an unhurried pace, finding the interior similarly decayed—broken tables and chairs, glass shattered across what he suspected was once a beautiful rug but now a scrap of fabric. He tried the light switch, but after viewing the pathetic excuse for a light bulb, decided that it wasn’t worth the effort. He reached into his coat pocket, pulling out two flashlights and wordlessly handed one to Aelius. His thumb slid against the switch, light casting an ominous shadow across Aelius’ features, making the white of his eyes glow. “Did you bring what I asked?”

His eyebrows rose nearly touching his hairline. “Toadstool and liverwurst?”

“Yes.”

“No,” he said flatly, turning away. “Who has that lying around?”

With a heavy sigh to gather his patience, he moved past him deeper into the lobby. To his right a ruggedly old staircase appeared leading to the second floor. “So, how are we going to do this? Should we split up like usual?”

“I’ll handle that,” Aelius said, stepping past him. “You can search the basement.”

“You’re joking, right?” Aelius tilted his chin, encouraging him to turn around and so he did. There was a hole in the floor with a staircase that led down into gloomy blackness. “There’s a basement?” he repeated with disbelief. The map didn’t mention a lower level.

Aelius shook his head, laughing as he mounted the staircase. “Shout if something goes wrong.” 

He wouldn’t. Not when he knew Aelius was going some place safe, while he was entering the real danger. The chances of the map being wrong were slim, which meant whatever was haunting this property was indeed a high level spirit. His chest squeezed in both eagerness and anxiety. This could be the one he’s been looking for. 

Dammit. He should’ve come alone, but… he could breathe a bit easier with Aelius not far away. He gripped the flashlight, descending the staircase down into the darkness. The floorboards creaked under his leather boots and as he traveled, not even the wind could be heard any longer, only the sound of his controlled breath.

At some point during the decent, he no longer needed his flashlight. A soft glow emitted at the bottom, leaking through the floorboards overhead. It guided him the rest of the way, reflecting against the floral wallpaper. The staircase opened up into a long hallway full of rooms—some open, while others were closed. When his feet hit the last step, he paused, taking in the room to his right with stacked boxes and broken objects scattered around. His eyes glazed over a golden hand mirror, taking note that it was in slightly better shape then everything else.

He clutched the small cross necklace around his neck. An atheist, he reminded himself, but religious artifacts warded off evil spirits, so of course he carried one around. He turned away from the storage room, taking measured steps down the hallway. A shiver ran down his spine, alerting him of danger. Keeping his eyes peeled for incoming threats, he hurried forward, trying to reach the room at the end that held a hazy glow. There was something about that room and his instincts were usually on point.

A door slammed behind him, sending his heartbeat into his throat. He froze, holding his breath as another door slammed shut, gradually sealing off the rooms. With a split second decision, the hand holding his cross dropped back to his side and he broke into a run for the room at the end. Something doesn’t want him to see, which meant… His train of thought broke, color draining from his face at the spider-like creature—a high level spirit, or rather, a bent over woman with long inky hair and pale skin—emerged from the room ahead.

“Get down,” a voice rasped sharply—a man with a sweet voice that sounded awfully familiar.

Seeing that he was cornered, Zhen Xue didn’t hesitate, throwing himself out of way just in time to watch the silver masked man, who suddenly arrived to the scene, throw a match towards the creature. It flew over their head, setting the room with the hazy glow into flames. The creature screamed with such force, Zhen Xue thought his ears would bleed. Shit, shit, shit… He needed to get answers from that thing before they died. 

“My child…” they wailed. “Not my child.”

He halted mid step, changing his mind. Okay, maybe he didn’t need answers from this thing that bad. He could find another high level spirit, even though they were rare. There’s no way it will answer his questions now after burning what he assumed was the child’s bedroom. He reflexively took a shuttered breath, a wave of regret washing over him. The room was empty, he reminded himself. There was nothing living in this house—nothing except for the man behind him. He turned back around to find him standing there, hands at his side on guard.

If things weren’t that serious Zhen Xue would’ve laughed at how the supposed blond woman who bought the lease was actually a man, but he could understand the confusion. Even with a mask, this man stole his breath. 

He was beautiful.

And probably a high level ghost, he mentally berated himself. Best to stay away. Having been distracted, he realized too late how the hair on the back of his neck stood up. Those blue eyes widened in alarm. 

The man moved with such grace, snatching his hand and pulling him into a run back towards the stairs. Zhen Xue didn’t stumble once. “She didn’t disappear…” the man commented with a huff, clearly irritated.

That’s true and with that thing chasing them, they won’t make it up the narrow stairs without being caught. “The mirror,” he breathed, knowing that was their best chance. He didn’t wait for a response, pulling the silver masked man into the adjacent room from the stairs. 

The golden mirror laid beside the boxes where he found it. 

Zhen Xue threw his weight into every step, determination driving him on adrenaline alone. His body was jerked to a halt, a hand gripping the back of his coat.

A chill went through him. He released the masked man’s hand, slipping out of his coat, maintaining his speed. 

An angry cry bellowed behind him. 

He slid to his knees, snatching the mirror within the same movement. Then threw it against the wall with such velocity that even the golden case shattered, raining down between him and the creature. 

The woman’s hand paused mid air, nails nearly reaching the masked man’s handsome face. 

Zhen Xue sat back on his heels, sighing in relief because that would’ve indeed been a tragedy. 

He did it. 

They were safe. 

The creature would disperse any second, and with a sinking feeling in his chest, he knew so would his chance for answers. At least that’s what he thought as he let his guard down. He did not expect the creature wouldn’t vanish. 

Those soulless black eyes slid to him with an uncanny accuracy, head tilting with a slight crack of bones and he froze, fear ripping through him like no other.

That wasn’t the right object.