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Episode 1

The Unexpected Arrival

The sky was light. The last vestiges of light from the dying sun still streaked across the sky.

The only vehicle in sight was a dark motorbike which zoomed past the signboard that said:

Welcome To Beacon Hills

...

...

It was a typical Sunday night at the Argent house. Seventeen-year-old, pretty, brunette, Allison Argent was to be found in the kitchen refilling a glass of water while her mother, bonny Victoria Argent, blue eyed father Chris Argent and his sister and Allison's aunt who could pass off as her sister, sat in the living room enjoying the latest episode of Utopia and arguing amicably if General Pathan was the good guy or bad.

The Argents had recently moved to town after Chris Argent was offered an especially lucrative deal with the local police. He had carried forward the family business of arms supply, and quite successfully at that. Allison Argent was settling in nicely in the local high school and had made quite some acquaintances.

A screech of tires followed by the ringing of the doorbell a few seconds later prompted Allison to cross the hallway to answer the door. Swinging the door open, her thoughts, still quite focused on the TV show, turned to confusion at the strikingly unfamiliar figure in front of her.

Her brown skin shone with sweat and her long dark braid was coming undone. Wisps of hair flapped around her face, her small almond shaped eyes scrutinised Allison with the same intensity as she did her. Her tall and strong stature along with the silver rings in her ears and the suddenness of her arrival aroused a suspiciously mobster-like air around her.

A motorbike helmet was tucked underneath her right arm and a huge heavy looking rucksack casually hung over her shoulders. The stranger's body blocked the vehicle from Allison's view. Her rough, worn out boots, old jeans and t-shirt spoke of her poor fashion sense.

"Chris Argent?" The girl asked abruptly.

Allison realised she ought to have greeted the stranger a good ten seconds ago, but she was stunned into silence.

"Yeah..." Said Allison, turning on her heels tentatively, "just a moment"

Allison walked into the brightly lit living room, echoing the television sounds.

"Who is it?" Her mother asked.

"Did dad borrow money from the mafia or something?" Allison asked "There's this woman at the door and she looks like she's here for some serious extortion"

Chris laughed as he stood up from the armchair, patting Allison on the shoulder once as he passed her.

A moment's pause, while everyone present in the room turned to the TV, was followed by a loud cry from the front door.

"Hey Kate, it's Seraphina!"

The last word made Kate leap off the sofa, and hurry to the front door, disregarding the fact that she stubbed her toe in the edge of the wall.

Allison turned to look at her mother, ready to give her a confuse look, only to see her mother's jaw harden, nostrils flare and eyes become icily cold.

The stranger was escorted into the living room by the brother sister duo. Now that the bright yellow hued light illuminated her face and a soft smile played on her lips, the girl, Seraphina, didn't look as unsettling as before, but still a little daunting.

"You know Victoria" said Chris jovially, pointing at his wife.

"Seraphina." Said Victoria coldly, standing up from her chair and facing Seraphina.

"Victoria" said Seraphina firmly "'How do you do, dear friend?" She emphasised the last two words, mocking Victoria's coldness towards her. The girl's accent, though not heavy at all, was most certainly un-american. That coupled with her complexion and hair made Allison sure Seraphina wasn't from the States.

Victoria didn't answer but her eyes followed Seraphina as the latter walked over to a sofa, dropping her bag carelessly on it and following it by plopping down herself.

"This is Allison, my daughter" Chris said cautiously.

"Ah..." Said Seraphina softly. She smiled warmly at Allison and the latter felt obliged to return it. "You're new. Recent addition to the family?"

Seraphina laughed at her own joke and Kate joined in.

"I don't mean to be rude" began Allison, her eyes darting around from her father, to her mother looking cold as ever to her aunt who looked... smitten? Allison could tell that the stranger's presence had topsy turned the entire family dynamic. "But who exactly—" but Seraphina cut her.

"Well I'm starving. How about your father and aunt explain how distant a relative of yours I am while Victoria fixes me up something good to eat?" She looked at Victoria, quite indifferently, and added "please for heaven's sake, you have so many little bottles of spices, use them, will you? Don't give me bland food."

Victoria glared at Seraphina. With a quick glance at her sister in law and then her husband, and with the utmost poise, she delicately got up from her seat and walked out of the room.

"And that, ladies and gentlemen" said Seraphina, spreading her hands mockingly, "is why I had dinner en route."

...

...

It took nearly twenty minutes for her father to establish, with occasional help from an unusually enthusiastic Kate and a casually indifferent Seraphina, that the latter was a distant cousin of Kate and Chris', and was here to complete her final year of schooling.

Seraphina explained how a childhood illness had forced her to start school pretty late ("better late than never", Kate pipped up), and Kate described how she used to play with baby Seraphina after Chris told Allison how, during their constant moving around, they'd spend almost a year with Seraphina's parents who had unfortunately died in a car accident years ago.

Allison didn't know if she was imagining it but it seemed as if Kate was rather keen on Seraphina, edging closer to her and making elaborate hand gestures while Seraphina looked weary of her.

"And now my grandmother finally got tired of me and kicked me out, and I thought I should seek out my dear cousins for help." Seraphina finished

"Wow that sounds so..." Said Allison

"Tragic?" Supplied Seraphina

"No... Filmy" said Allison

"I told you" said Kate "You should've come up with a better cover story. She didn't buy it. See."

"Hey! I'm a trained killer not a story writer!" Protested Seraphina

In spite of herself, Allison laughed.

"Seraphina?"

Everyone turned to look around at Victoria, who'd reentered the room. She bore an icy smile played on her lips. Her hands were clasped in front of her.

"I suppose you must be tired from your journey." Victoria continued "I've prepared a place for you to sleep" she gestured for Seraphina to follow her.

Slightly taken aback, Seraphina said "That's very kind of you, Victoria"

Behind her, Chris looked searchingly into his wife's face.

"Allison, I don't want you up too late, it's a school night. Please go to bed" Victoria said.

Allison started towards her room without a word. The change in her mother's demeanor had alarmed her into silence.

"This way please" Victoria said, gesturing at Seraphina to follow her and then turning on her heels towards the kitchen.

Frowning at Chris and Kate, Seraphina caught hold of her heavy rucksack, and without much effort, hauled it over her shoulder and followed Victoria out with the brother and sister tailing behind.

Victoria led them out of the house in the direction of the garage but instead of entering it, she walked a little to the right and towards a small shed. Seraphina could clearly hear the jingling of the keys in Victoria's hands along the sounds of the moths and crickets.

"Victoria—" began Kate "I think Seraphina—"

"Will find herself at home here" said Victoria, pushing the door of the shed open with a flourish.

It looked a little smaller on the inside than it looked from the outside. Dimly lit by a few old light bulbs, a dusty old bed with a worn-out mattress with two lumpy pillows heaped on it lay in the corner. On the opposite end was an equally old wooden cupboard. The walls, which at one point might've been a bright blue hadn't passed the test of time very well but better at least than the sorry table and chair that constituted the rest of the room furniture.

"And here's the bathroom" said Victoria happily, walking over to the only other door and turning the knob to open it. Seraphina quickly glanced inside. The grey sink and toilet with washed out tiles completed the picture.

"I hope you'll be comfortable here, Seraphina. If you need anything, please don't hesitate to ask" said Victoria in a tone that didn't match at all with what she was saying. "Chris, I'll be expecting you in bed, shortly"

And with that, Mrs. Argent turned and walked out of the shed.

For a moment there was silence, then Chris spoke.

"Seraphina, you don't have to stay here. I'll talk to Victoria… Maybe you can share with Allison or something"

Seraphina, who was staring at the doorway, had a soft smirk on her face as if Victoria had lived up to her expectations.

"Oh, don't worry about it" she said reassuringly, tuning to look at Chris. "I don't really plan on using this room much anyway"

"Yeah, baby!" said Kate triumphantly "Seraphina Argent is back!"

Seraphina's face twisted into a grimace of irritation and her eyes flashed at Kate's words. But it was so brief, one might've thought it to be the trick of the light.

"Are you sure?" Chris continued "I don't know what Victoria has against you…"

"Don't you?" said Seraphina, winking at him.

Chris sighed and said "Well, in any case, I really appreciate you coming down here so soon. The situation is getting out of hand and we're no closer to resolving it than we are to inventing flying carpets. Of course the people think they're just ordinary animal attacks… Also I've already signed you up in the local high school. You can go with Allison tomorrow. It'd be good for her to have someone her own age around to protect her"

At the words 'her own age' Seraphina let out a snort of laughter. Chris, too, grinned as he realised what he'd said.

"Hey, it's no problem. Always ready to help an old friend out. Besides it's not like I have a lot to do these days" her voice trailed off a little, but she quickly recovered and said "this is one of the few Violet Areas, you know"

"Yeah well... I'm really sorry about all that" he motioned at the room around "and Victoria. She'll warm up to you hopefully."

"Yeah, right. Sun will soon start rising from the west" Seraphina said "So where do you keep all your, er, 'business stuff'?"

"Out in the garage" pipped up Kate "We can use them whenever we want! We're going to have so much fun!" Kate continued excitedly. She made a gun with her fingers and mimed shooting.

Seraphina laughed quite convincingly.

"Yeah…"

"We should go now" said Chris "You need your rest. Come on, Kate"

Chris walked out of the shed with Kate following looking dejected. She paused at the doorway.

"I'll prepare breakfast for you" she said, regaining her excitement "What'd you like to have?"

"Er, whatever everyone else is having would be fine" said Seraphina, who was at the doorway too.

Kate reached and placed her hand on Seraphina's arm which was resting on the door frame.

It took every Seraphina had to not jerk it away at once

"You can share with me too, you know." Kate said, leaning closer to her "I'm so happy you're here, I—"

"Good night, Kate" said Seraphina, shutting the door in her face.

She rested her back against the door and let out a deep sigh and let her shoulders slack. A few moments later, she heard Kate trudge away from the door towards the house.

Seraphina waited 'till she heard the front door of the house, which was well outside a normal person's hearing range, close shut. She opened the door and carefully peeped outside to check if the coast was clear.

In a quick rustle of leaves and wind, Seraphina Argent was standing next to her bike which she'd parked outside the front door of the Argent house. She grabbed hold of the handles and quite easily steered it towards the little shed which was to be her home for as short as duration as possible, she hoped. Seraphina slung another bag off the bike. Though not as big as the previous one, this was equally, if not heavier. She walked back inside the shed with it and plopped it on the floor, following it by sitting down on the bed which creaked as she did so.

What was she doing here? These people didn't follow the right ways, rules and ideologies. They flat out disgusted her.

Seraphina leaned forward and placed her hands over her face, staring at the darkness of her palms.

Ugrah they called them from where she came. Outlaws who had no regard for the Code. Execution… that was the punishment for breaking the code. But it was her fault, wasn't it? She was the one who taught them the ways... Was it still a sin if she had no recollection of it?

But Chris was right. The situation in Beacon Hills was quite alarming. Seraphina was apt to handle it. She'd just do stuff her way and with as little of their involvement as possible.

Seraphina had complete confidence in herself and her abilities. She was sure if there was anyone who could cleanse Beacon Hills with as little collateral damage as possible, it was her.

Kate, though... Seraphina would have to do something about that.

Seraphina took a deep breath and closed her eyes, her palms still covering her face.

Damage control... It was hard...

Seraphina removed her hands from her face.

Not even a ghost of merriness lingered on her face. She kicked her bag under her bed. She heard the guns inside clang together and the bullets shuffle around in their casing.

She laid back on the bed. Her eyes still not open. She liked the fact that her weapons were so close at hand, not that she wasn't capable of inflicting fatality without them.

Seraphina opened her eyes and let the sharp light of the bulb above her bed hit her till her eyes adjusted. Her expression was nothing but grim.

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Glossary

Ugrah: Outsiders who didn't follow The Code, a set of rules and guidelines, and were condemned by the Council

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