<div align="center"><span class="bbc_font" style="font-family: arial;"><span class="bbc_size" style="font-size: 18pt;"><em>Jaid Samantha Black</em></span><br/><span class="bbc_size" style="font-size: 12pt;">Fretting</span></span></div><hr/><br/><div class="floatleft">(http://i1137.photobucket.com/albums/n520/undisclosed2you/E%20char%20pics/tumblr_lwbpk62wGD1r89ob8o1_500-1.jpg)</div>A low tinkling sound, and the bright blue light that showed briefly from the cracks in the bathroom door went unnoticed by the patrons of Lou's Diner, a ratty little establishment that sat on the corner down the street from P3.  No one paid attention to the tall blond that walked out of the previously empty room, even when she slumped down into an empty booth, her elbows resting heavily on the reflective surface of the table.  Something was bothering her, and it was only slightly caused by the sense of panic that was rippling through the Elder's ranks.<br/><br/>For quiet sometime, the number of witches being corrupted to the side of Evil had been increasing, and today, one of her charges became a casualty to that war.  A slight numbing fear, and disappointment filled her, and the frown on her face increased, causing her face to darken broodingly.  The girl, a small delicate boned witch had just come into her powers, and Jaid had been excited to be assigned to her; since she loved children.  But she hadn't even gotten the chance to reveal her true identity yet, before she felt the taut connection to the girl snap, and disappear.  She had immediately orbed up to the Elders, and had spent what felt like an eternity listening to them talk among themselves.<br/><br/>As an older waitress approached and took her order, her thoughts turned to her other charges, which lead her to thinking about one of her newer assignments, a trio of sisters born from one of the Charmed Ones.  So far all she had done was a bit of surveillance, and she had hardly even talked to any of them, pretending to be a regular waitress at P3.  But what with everything going on, she felt a terrible dread in her gut, telling her that she wouldn't get as much time blending into the background as she'd like.<br/><br/>If she were to be honest with herself, she was a bit intimidated.  The Charmed Ones were famous figures of great good, and she had spent a great deal of time listening to the whitelighter gossips retelling tales of their adventures in the past.  She knew she'd do a good job, but with this latest failure, her courage was flagging quiet a bit.<br/><br/>As soon as her coffee arrived, she busied herself with staring into it, as if to divine the future from it's murky depths.  Finally, as it's temperature turned an unappealing lukewarm, she pushed the cup away, and quickly paid, before stepping out into the busy, construction filled street.  She walked the short distance to the club, and when she disappeared through the back entrance, she pondered her next move towards winning her charges trust.<br/><br/><hr/><br/>On the other side of town, the bright glare of police lights, along with the occasional blast of a siren filled the night.  A partition had been set up, and the bright yellow caution tape barely kept the small crowd, that had already showed up, from pushing their way onto a crime scene.  As police prowled the scene, photographers snapped shots of the odd scorch marks on the alley's walls, and someone managed to cover the dead body that laid lifelessly in a dark puddle of dirty water.  From a distance, officer schmitt looked on, a solemn look on his face, and a determined gleam in his eyes.<br/><br/>The victim was so young, and to have died so violently made an old weariness creep into his bones.  This wasn't the first dead kid he had seen, but it was troubling him that such a scene was becoming such a regular occurrence.  He scratched negligently at the short stubble on top of his head, and glanced at the marks that marred the walls around him.  Whatever had happened here, it hadn't been pretty, and he would bet that some sort of fire arm had been used.<br/><br/>Glancing down at his watch, he pursed his lips in thought, and wondered, for what felt like the hundredth time, when the lead in this investigation would show up so they could get started on finding out exactly what had happened here.