Scene 3: The Ceremony

'Perhaps she can tell us, uh, as she leads us to the chamber? I dont think time is on our side' Alexander shrugs and notices that one of his arms appears to be longer than the other. He figures its best if the family tries to keeps moving

"That is wise young ... girl." Dusk stands up, leaving Twilight responsible for Dawn. "This is not the place for the dead." she challenges Annabelle, who simply looks at the witch with an arrogant smile and ignores her.

"You hurt me with your question" the woman turns to Alexander. "I'm Annabelle, can't you tell? I have been waiting to come back to you since... " she pauses mid-sentence, looking deeper into the forest. "... the letter. I realized it couldn't have been you who wrote it. "

She then turns to Claire, the girl feeling this Annabelle staring into her soul. "It's the family Ceremony." she says smiling. "Everyone will be there. Your grandmother is waiting us."

Nathaniel does like answers, and he could definitely use a cure, he could feel himself literally slipping away. Yet this 'Annabelle' didn't seem to be as trustworthy are the caretaker. "Uhm, thank you, but no."

Alexander shakes his head, his shadow rippling around him and blotting out all torchlight until some rays once again break through. "Annabelle... Why do you insist on taking us down these steps? These witches think the family ceremony lies elsewhere..."

Alexander shudders as the woman moves toward the person whose name he can't quite recall. He knows that there is something there—that he should be angry with that one, that he once loved Annabelle but something went wrong. If not fr that moment, he'd never have picked up this habit, this need for laudanum and worse.

Then he remembers—going through Nathaniel's bag, finding the syringe, still full of laudanum, enough to knock out a full-grown person. He moves to intercept Annabelle. "Darling, let's not rush things. I've missed you so..." He quietly slips the syringe from his pocket and jabs it into the woman's neck.