It was all shadows...both within Raven's trunk, and Mina's mind. As she bounced up and down, bound and muffled by an old handkerchief, tears trickled down her eyes. Raven's shopping spree of Ninja Kitty merch had been nothing but a ruse and all those years of training and knowing Raven from the Lawson Legal Academy for Gifted Youth were clearly for nothing. He was about to become her undoing and the only thing left to do was to surrender herself to that double crossing snake.

The purple cruiser had made an inordinate amount of starts and stops, leaving her to believe that he was simply getting as far away as possible to perpetrate her murder. And this darkness was merely the purgatory before that end.

At last, the car was put in neutral. They had arrived to whatever sordid destination he planned his misdeeds. She heard casually humming, singing even and when he opened the trunk, she couldn't even believe her eyes.

Raven was grinning from ear to ear and he held a light blue box with an upside down pair of yellow arches. "Look what I gotcha kiddo!" he said. "A Peppy Meal for a growing girl! Fresh from WacDonalds!"

Mina's eyes, red and bloodshot from tears widened and as he removed her mouth gag, she spat at him. "I dont want your crappy meal, you two timing, double crossing Aura stooge!"

Raven casually lifted his shiny shoe to avoid the spital. "Hey, owch. I'm offended, kid. I specifically stopped at the drive thru, risking my neck as a semi professional kidnapper to get you this and you won't eat it?!"

"Take those crapnuggets and choke on them! Besides, you know I only prefer to eat at Burger Princess!"

Raven rolled his eyes. "You always were a burger princess, kid. Now get out. You're coming with me."

At first, Mina wanted to remain in the same place and ask Raven to just shoot her. But, the fact that a villainous axe wife was going to get away with the crime of the century, meant she would have to keep living. If not for any other reason, having been betrayed by one of her most trusted friends.

Raven unbound her legs and she got to her feet. Her hands were still tied so she couldn't fight him. (Not that the weedy man was a particularly physical specimen, but he did have gun...)

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She finally got to look around for the first time and she was not as surprised as she should have been.

They were in a gravel parking lot for a sea-cliffside institute building that seemed to be abandoned. The windows were sea green, and the walls cracked and full of peeling white paint. A faded sign read: "MT IT Institution."

Below the cliff, the sea whipped itself hard against the jagged rocks and the sky had turned an ominous shade of purple. "I hope you're ready, kiddo!" Raven chuckled. "You're gonna be a permanent resident at our institute here."

"Why?!" Mina demanded. "Why are you doing this to me?"

"It's a sad and simple fact," Raven said, patting her on the back. "I've trained you too well. The Aura don't want you meddling in their affairs any longer. Least of all, Miss Bossy Lady herself, Miss Charlotte O'Scara."

"Do you mean, Georgia..." Mina said softly.

An usurped Ninja Kitty ringtone came from Raven's E-Phone. Mina wished he would turn it off. She couldn't bear that traitor appropriating her favorite trendy cartoon music.

"Oh...speak of the devil," Raven said feeling somewhat flustered. "It's her?"

He put it on Boom, the unfortunately named camera app and much to Mina's surprise, the ginger haired Georgia stood in the powder room, but her attire had changed. A pair of skull shaped bows were in her hair, and her vacant look was replaced with a sharp and merciless glare. Her eyes were dilated and her teeth had spread apart to show some oddly sharp ones. She twiddled her hand of oddly colored yellow and green nails. "Well, well well," she said sweetly yet venomous. "Howdy Boo, Mr. Archibald."

"Archibald?!" Mina exclaimed.

"Good to see you too, Miss Charlotte," Raven answered, sounding shockingly professional. "It's so much nicer to talk to someone who uses my real name!"

"Your real name....?!" Mina squeaked. She was endlessly surprised that a man who had named his lawyering company after his bird like mental acuity was not even really named as such.

"Anyway, Char," Raven said, again with a dead serious tone that was slightly unnerving. "I just prevented a total snafu. Your careless butler assassin dropped the brooch you paid him as he fled and this wiz kiddo and her creepy friend from Not Gothic had figured it out what it was."

"Oh dear," Miss Charlotte said, biting her lip. "It's a good thing y'all didn't slip up..." Her face darkened into an insane sneer. I tend to dip my nails in cobra venom and scratch people when they upset me."

Raven tugged at his collar. "Right and I..."

"You're very lucky they're about to rule in ma favor, Archie," Miss Charlotte said. "Especially after you trained that little pink ingrate to be so...thoughtful with evidence."

"Right..." Raven answered looking somewhat embarrassing.

"Y'all think you can play both sides," the murderous belle said. "But after today, you will decide which side of the law you are on...and I'll make the decision real easy for y'all."

Both Raven and Mina were silent as Charlotte flashed some snake venom coated nails. "I want you to dispose of this young meddler once and for all...by the time I return, I want you to bury the hatchet...in her head."