2 - Witness

The students left the gates filtering to neighborhoods walk togethers or freinds that share walking distance. Some were getting a lift and others had bikes. The school rental bus is a old worn coach that takes a set route around the school catchment zone. A pound fifty per student to have a seat.

The creature was a winging green skin greasy thing, it half shut into the engine hatch. Was pose at the ready to tamper with it. The driver had a listless vacant gaze. The elite popular students were paying their fair to board and thought nothing if it. To busy talking to each other. Although it was the assumption that they would be able to know anyway, that they were blindfolded human folks like the rest of the people around her. She had hopes but now, clearly it was about to be up to her. She stands debating to take the bus or actually complaining about it right this second. Some excuse of maybe thinking the engine was acting funny or a bad smell. But she will be picked on by the clowns that were boarding next. They throw a water bottle across and already now was big commotion between the popular and the jealous clowns. She turly was wavering at the step of boarding when Alex pressed his hand on her shoulder.

"Don't go on there." He begged her.

"Someone has to stop the driver from killing them." She whispered back and Alex shook at this. He began coughing up blood as per normal and she had to support him from collapsing. She couldn't bare his weight and her bag at the same time, sitting him down on the floor. Quickly a few on the bus came off to see how he was and if they can help.

"The bus is dangerous." He struggled past these words and she nods understanding totally.

"Hey... that's real nice." The world seems stopped. A bird nearby about to take off was frozen mid lift. Some crossing the road was in perfect stop from mid steps. Even a cyclist was upright and well past the point of push off. The sound of everything cut off. No cars. No ton of gaggy students. No teacher shouting at the smokers. No honk of a mad parent nearly running a foolish student over. There is only creepy errier nearly foreboding silence, it doesn't even seem like white noise or have pitched ringing type of silence.

The bus driver had a guy in a white suit lift out through their skin, it was quiet gory for a moment to watch it. This demon has brown and grey specked scales, gold teeth that grins wider then a mile and clawed hands rubbing like rubble falling off a stone pile.

She can't move.

Until the demon made a mistake. He pushed her to get to Alex. She was now aware and seated on the floor, looking up at the demon. Alex held up by the collar and being strangled. She couldn't help it with such little time. Her fight and flight response kicked a gear. She took her bag off and pushed the demon backwards onto the bus door. She had just enough reach in helping Alex away from the demon, dragging him away a small bit.

"Are you OK?" She asked Alex who still doesn't say something. She pats his shoulders and shakes him, "Alex!" He finally caught breath and gasps a bit for air. He finally finds himself breathing somewhat better. She hugs him, heat of the moment, "God's please help us. I don't need that demon strangling you again." For sure that plead meant something, a flash of lightning strikes the pavement in front of the bus. A winged feathered type in cream drapes stands with a spear, glaring darkly of the little green skin guy in the engine. The little thing screams loud until the very last breath, blue watery paint over the bus windshield. Alex gags. She frowns at this not being her frist time witnessing a little imp being gutted. She pats Alex well.

"What is going on?" Alex gags.

"We have other things to worry about." She pulls them just out of the way from the business suited brown scale guy from stabbing them both. The strange hot blade sparkes and burnt embers on thier clothes and skin. She puts out any attempt of flames while Alex pushed her out of the way. It being another strike. He took the full blow through from shoulder to lower chest.

"Oh, come on. You two perfect love birds just need to -" The demon screams in how a spear poked through him. A blow for a blow. The angel was a weaker rank but it buys enough time for her and Alex to make it on board the bus. The fight being long winded and distracting. The bus was scuffed in the scrap and not long was there a head thrown onto the bus. The demon all covered in yellowish gold liquid that sprays from the helmet face covered head. The demon sicken grin as he pressed a button to close the bus door. He laughed in finding this game amusing.

"Get off this bus!" One the popular kids hissed, throws a vile towards the demon. The vile wasn't even open or splashed over anything. The demon bemused holds the vile up and tossed it about. Laughing at these poor pitiful children.

"My grandmother will have your head mounted to her office." Clearly the same family or in the loop.

She was more caring for holding Alex's large blade cut closed and from blood pouring everywhere. She was alone in trying to do basic first aid. No one around her was unfrozen and has not clue. She alone. Trying everything she can.

"Oh... lucky me." The demon purrs, "More brats. Just the set I needed."

She holds the wound close as tight sealing as possible and tries to get Alex to stay with it. But he was loosing it. He went cold and drops without a heart beat. She began to sob but this turned into a loud wail. The few that can witness turned at looking to her.

She begs and pleads. However there is nothing to be done. A god of death came to release this soul. She can see this god, this grim repear. She turly turned to beg to them if there was something anything to give Alex more time. But the repear shook not and takes away his soul. She shook at unfair that her only friend was lost hold between her fingers. The swift notion of a death gods blade, it cut through her in order to take him. Tainting her even more then she was already. Cold as the blade that tested her.

"Yes... And soon you can go chase after." The demon so hyperfocused on her. The smart students that werent time stopped were using her as decoy to flee off the bus. The demon raised hand to crush down the blade. She posed at defending herself with her arms out, crossed shielding her and Alex's corpse. The hot Blade strikes a unknown surface, clattering and bounced backwards. Some student were in the way and were hurt. She stares at the floor, dazed at wondering why she didn't have this ability to block a blade sooner. To been able to block Alex's heroics.

Whatever part of what just happened was like a switch in her deep thoughts. Her mind a clarity beyond natural and her heart struck with ice. She almost lowered her arms but the hot demon blade sparks hitting the invisible things. Echoed rattle of distance metal links waved by the sheer power behind his forceful hits.

"Demon... you are under court lock for the murder of a living human. The attempted murder of all these students. The damages and mental welling being of all these students that you have now cursed for the rest of their lives." The demon wasn't going to just sit down and let the undertakers do their jobs. He actually was relishing in causing more harm around him. The undertakers was in tight grey area of what to do. Not exactly allowed to touch humans to move them away or unfreeze the once still seated here. It is best that the undertaker tries to get the demon off the bus or banished from the realm.

"I bestow upon this sinner these chains that bind and break bone. I lock this evil beneath my feet and let him scream in anguish of his own crimes to rest weight as justice." She chanted in standing up for herself and others. She held the start and she is the loudest brave one. She wasn't afraid to stand up and eye this demon. This defying the demons anguish only make the sin chains stronger on this demon.

"We lock this sinner with the chains of misery and burden his cursed upon the living." Others joining this chant and snakes move alive in form of metal tendrils. He was pulled and disarmed, "We bind this sinner upon the caster until do justice is met." The chant is in the undertaker guide book of spells and only works with experienced users. Someone that knows sin chains are and cost of them. Given she started the chain, it will bind this demon to be locked beneath her. It can't be undone unless the sinner is executed or she dies from the corruption of the sin chains.

The demon in the fine suit was turned into a statue and can't be picked up by anyone but her. She of course instead left the demon there and picked up Alex's corpse. She alone carried him off the bus, onto the floor at the door. She kneels at the side, holding cold dead hands and cares little for those around her.

"Excuse me..." She peers slowly up to a undertaker, alot happpend around her that she stopped paying attention to, "Oh, this was terrible." The undertaker lowering to make Alex less a victim of a stabbing but made him look like he died of natural cause of his illness, "That's more beleiveable. Right?" The undertaker tilts in how she wasn't so surprised or impressed. All these other kids are acting like it was magic. The few snotty living Tricksters around explaining what happened. But she the odd ball out. She acts completely different from the rest. She stays seated holding a corpse hand, even as the undertaker had to make her believe able for living invesgators.

A few clowns that were caught up in being cursed came over to look at her and Alex. They make jokes and were unable to really realize the importance of everything happening. One went to put a hand on her.

"Touch me and I will break your arm." She spoke like the undertakers do, that voice that the dead spirits have. This only made the threat seem more interesting then intimidating.

"Look you shouldn't." The undertaker can't stop the bully from doing whatever. But tried to voice reason. Had to move away to not be caught in human conflict.

"He is just taking a nap or is frozen like them dolls over there. His not dead." She is visibly shaking.

"Hey, leave them alone." A smart popular child is pushed by the bully, failed attempts stop this. Several attempts of others going to grab or pull this clown away. Still this freak of clowns seems to not take it all seriously.

"I am sorry for being to late to save you Alex. Taking a hit that you didn't need to. Playing a hero." She spoke hoarse of her voice at this corpse, "You are gone now. This is just a shell. But... I am sure you can still hear me." She leans close at one last hug, "I am not a spineless weakling. I just never used my defense to hurt others." She sits up and puts his hand to his chest, "You see... I can look after myself. So please watch me now and see that I am going to be fine. That you need to worry about the court." She stands and is full of raw emotions that are at conflict inside her. Outwardly was simply a cold dead stare, a doll poker face expression.

"You are not frozen. Whatever. Your just a freak." She makes it no time to punch this guy down to the floor, he had to crawl backwards away from her. Away from her cold slow altering nearly murderers gaze.

"Hey Harrison, did you know that your petty jealous commentary is perfect example of how an idiot sounds like?" He crawls in being blocked from further movement by others, people sick of hin, "You think that I come from a hot country that was a luxurious lifestyle beside a pool? You think that maybe the fact that how you seem to starve at home isn't just this country problem." She stomps a little close to comfortable near his croch area. She lowered to peer deep into his eyes, "Wake up you poor shit for brains. I come from the same shitty world as you. I had to make money to feed hungry family members. I am late handing in my homework, not because I am stupid or that I don't understand." She pointed at him, "No. That is you. You never hand it in on time because you dont care and dont listen. You don't seem to understand that everyone has a hard enough life as it is and you are dragging the rest of us in your stupidity." She grapples his shoulder and popped the shoulder out of joint, "Dude. Alex is dead. I don't need your drool of stupid over his corpse. What time stop being frozen, what exactly are you going to tell the adults? What will the adults think what happened? Look as the injured student's that were hurt by that demon. Tell me, who do you think that are going to blame? A invisible demon or you? You with a history of punching your mother and being out among bad crowds. What will the police think about the green in your pocket?" She kicked him to lay down while she stands up away from him. He stares at the sky for only a little moment to think about this. To shot up quick at getting what she meant.

"Wait, but the bus wasn't my fault." He stood with looking at everyone. So many eye rolls or turn away at not supporting him. None speak in correcting her. All the students that are hurt, they don't care about saving his ass or explaining that she is bluffing. Fed up with his behavior as it is. She knows just as much as everyone else. He isn't going to be blamed for all these folks hurt on the bus.

"Hey Luna, you can't be serious." someone else laughing this off. They beleive her bluff to, another that didn't listen to her at all. By now, others came to check on Alex and there is that solem slow curtain falling in people's expressions. Alex's other friends have a moment each telling him stuff, well talking at his corpse. More sobbing and hugs. The slow move of people getting back on the bus, looking at the corpse as they pass. Some had the undertaker mind erase this moment. But clearly not everyone. She is one of them that knows the turth, with a demon shackled in binds by her.

"When time returns, you and everyone will be exactly as you were in the moment that you left time in. Mid step onto a bus that will jolt and break down. The jolt with be the excuse of how the students were injured... well there be a few that we will use. That guy Harry for." The undertaker lifting Alex up and was playing along the little lie, "I suggest not saying anything crazy."

"Alex was just telling me to not get onto the bus. He is going to collapse. Dont gp on the bus, those are going to be his last words." She spoke so plain and unnatural, "I guess you lose a lot when you die. You undertakers don't seem to understand emotions, at least I used to think that was the case." She tilts, "You do have them, you just show them differently to a human." She has achieved creeping the undertaker out now. She stands ready.

The jolt of sounds and the bus skipping like it does. Alex in standing pose, began to fall but she caught him. Laying his head on her knees and mutely listening for the last little give his heart makes. She stays here at his side while teachers and his parents ran this way. His mother torn at shaking him and shouting his name. His father reading the express Luna has, pulls his wife to cry in his arms. Luna sat here with closing Alex's eyes and the cold taking over him.

"Move away!" The bus was moved with several teacher boarding to see the commotion happening in there. Many unhappy complaining students in pain from the bus jolty movement. The driver kicked off the seat. The crisis of living world police and management of several teams. Medics pronounced Alex dead then having to quickly go assess the injuries of the students in the coach. Harrison on a stretcher on air for his popped out shoulder. Officially its just the bus driver that was arrested for drink driving and cause of all the student injuries. Harrison will be arrested in hospital for the green they find later, he wasn't mentioned as being the cause of the worst injuries.

She was picked up off the floor when they moved Alex to a body bag.

"He saved my live. The bus would have thrown me through the windscreen if he had not stopped me stepping on." She spoke in that listless unnatural way, the shock settled in for sure, "Don't go on that bus." She told the police and his parents. They left with not having any further associations with her. She was in old worn out thread baring school uniform, clearly not someone they think Alex hangs out with.

Today was marked as the bus failure incident. Marked in school history.

Everyone that was part of the accident has reports sent to parents. The bare minimum the school is allow or funded to be able to do. Yet there was that same issue again, she was exempt from having most of the 'free' support. But for some reason or another, there was several different anomalous reports that shined this issue that she suffers from. This was a big mistake on the schools part and now it made into lowering the schools reputation. That's a big hit for a free public school to be having its national education status lowered. It happened right after several detectives and school inspections caused by the schools in acquitted safety background check failed.

So in a sort of silver lining, the bus failure incident was the low step. Now things are forced to change for better. If it doesn't, there was talk of a new governor taking over among other plans.