Katie was the first to stir

It was the rising sun that had done it. Her bedroom window faced east, and as a result, the sun would wake her up every time she forgot to close the curtains the night before. Her bedding was wrapped around her like a cocoon, her face was buried in her pillow, her strikingly red hair was spread out around her head, and she was very comfortable. She didn't want to get up. But the shaft of sunlight seemed to be taunting her, and there were voices coming from outside the door. Everyone else was up; it was about time she did the same. Reluctantly, she stretched and pushed herself upright.

James was lying next to her, still snoring away merrily. She smiled. Her boyfriend might be a computer nerd who stayed up most nights playing video games, but when he went to sleep, he slept with a vengeance. She'd learnt quickly that it was easier not to bother trying to wake him.

With a sigh, she untangled herself from the duvet and opened her bedroom door.

The first thing that greeted her was the smell of burning. With a sense of dread, she stepped out into the central communal area, closing the door behind her. She didn't bother closing it softly – it wouldn't wake James up anyway. Once outside, the smell of burning was even worse. She quickly identified the source, and the moment she did, her worst fears were realised.

Dan had attempted to start cooking breakfast without her.

He was attempting to make an omelette, and the entire thing was literally going up in smoke. Dan, who possessed absolutely no cooking skills whatsoever, had no idea how it had happened, and was now running the blackened omelette under the cold tap, pan and all. Honestly, she was surprised that he'd managed to even get that far.

Two people were helping him. Or rather, laughing their heads off as Dan demonstrated his complete inaptitude once again. There was Leah, his closest friend. And there was Matt, their leader.

It had been almost a week since the duel with Mizutsu, where Matt had won them their first Number. And in that brief time, Matt had changed drastically. He was so much more involved with the lives of everyone around him. He laughed, played, and dueled with them on a regular basis. He had a far more serious personality than any of them, and sometimes reprimanded them for being silly, but overall had become a lot more open. Two nights ago, he had even told them about how he had acquired his own Number, which was a disturbing tale to listen to, and must have been hard for Matt to tell, but he had done so regardless.

To Katie, it seemed that Matt was finally starting to feel at home.

Dan, on the other hand, had used the time less efficiently. His cooking skills had not improved in the slightest.

"Dan, seriously, don't..." Leah moaned between her giggles.

"It'll be fine!" Dan assured her brightly, emptying the water out of the pan, then replacing the pan on the hob to try cooking the soaked omelette again.

"Come on, man," Matt said. "Even you have to realise that your omelette is beyond help now. Show some humanity. Let it die a peaceful death."

"No no, it's fine," Dan insisted. "I've almost got it down; I know I can do it this time." Matt buried his head in his hands.

Katie stepped forward, and the others quickly became aware of her presence. "Morning, Katie!" Leah said happily. "I think you've arrived just in time."

"So I see," Katie said, grinning, her hands on her hips, looking sternly at Dan. "What do you think you're doing with that?"

Dan looked at the pan, then back at her. "Oh... Katie... um... this isn't what it looks like-"

"It looks like it to me," she interrupted, acting all stern, trying to keep herself from laughing. "It looks like you're trying to fix breakfast. Behind my back! Did you honestly think I wouldn't find out about this?"

Dan, now realising that she was joking, decided to play along, and looked at the floor guiltily. "Well... I guess... I'm sorry you had to find out like this-"

"So how's this work?" Katie replied, raising her voice very slightly. "Am I not good enough for you anymore? You think Matt can do it better than me? Is that what you're saying?"

"It wasn't like that, I swear." Dan said, raising his hands defensively. "It's not you, it's me. Besides, Matt's a good friend, but he could never be as good as you..." Matt suddenly looked quite uncomfortable.

By this point, Leah was laughing so hard she was struggling to stay on her stool. "Oh god, please stop..." she gasped, clinging to the counter for support.

Katie couldn't hold it anymore, and ended up doubled over with giggles. Matt and Dan joined in, the omelette lying forgotten in the pan.

"Hahaha... sorry Katie," said Dan, in between laughs. "I just wanted to try this myself for once."

"It's ok," she replied, making her way over to the kitchen area. "Though I think Matt was right, that volcanic-solidified-magma-omelette-thing is a bit beyond help. You should probably start again."

"Told you!" Matt said triumphantly.

"Rubbish. Everything's fine. It's perfectly edible." Dan insisted. He turned back to the frying pan to show them, then suddenly jumped back with a yelp of surprise at the flames rising out of the pan.

Leah cracked up again, as Matt dived forwards to turn the gas off. "Oh Dan, your cooking does make me laugh."

He turned to her with a look of defiance on his face. "Oh? You think you can do better, can you?"

"I know I can." She replied smugly, standing up and grabbing an apron. "Stand aside boys. The girls are going to work!"

Katie laughed. "Your heard the girl. Everyone around the other side of the counter pronto. This is our party now."

Seeing Dan about to say something, Leah quickly pointed a finger at him and snapped, "Go on, make a joke about girls belonging in the kitchen. I dare you!"

Unsurprisingly, Dan said nothing.

*SEVERAL MINUTES LATER*

There was no denying it. The omelette was cooked to perfection, and large enough to feed all five of them. A disgruntled James had finally decided to join them, grumpy as usual from the early start, but brightening up quickly when he laid eyes on the omelette, which was sitting on the table in between the three sofas. He immediately reached for a piece of it, but Katie slapped his hand away.

"Ow!" he complained. "What was that for?"

"Not yet," she replied, "first, someone here wishes to say something."

Leah looked pointedly at Dan sitting beside her, who shrank into his seat. "Is there anything you'd like to say to us, Dan?"

Dan hesitated, then relented. "Thank you, girls, for making us breakfast. Your species is superior to ours in every way and we will hold a parade in your honour."

"And don't you forget it," Katie giggled.

"Traitor," James said, throwing a cushion at Dan's head.

"Well, I don't know about you lot," Matt said, "but I'm starving. Can we eat?"

Everyone agreed, and they quickly tucked in. James was the first to take a bite, and immediately spat it out, coughing and gasping. "Sweet mother of Mirror Force!" James spluttered. "What the hell is in that thing?"

Matt had been about to take a bite, but quickly thrust it away from his mouth when he saw James' reaction. Katie and Leah weren't so fortunate. They had been committed to their mouthfuls, and were now frantically coughing and hacking pieces of omelette onto their plates.

"Wh- what happened?" Leah gasped, her eyes watering.

"I have no idea," Katie replied. Still coughing, she rounded on Matt. "Do you know anything about this?"

Matt stared back at her calmly, a hint of amusement on his face. "I think you should ask Dan about that."

All eyes turned to Dan.

"Well," the culprit said, choosing his words carefully. "I'm not going to start pointing fingers or blaming anyone: such things are beneath us. However, it's entirely possible – nay, perhaps even probable – that a certain someone within the near vicinity may or may not have upended an entire pot of pepper into the omelette's mixture. Now, there's very little evidence supporting this theory, but in my humble opinion-" He didn't finish, but rather leapt to his feet and ran for it.

"You're so dead!" Leah pelted after him, and thus began the second around-the-room-chase that week. Unfortunately for Dan, Leah had somehow managed to get hold of a wooden ladle, and was repeatedly beating him over the head with it as they ran.

"Ow... thi- ouch, this is uncalled for!" Dan shouted between yelps of pain. "I have the right to a lawyer! I have- OUCH... I have the right to a fair trial in a court of law!"

"The only right you have is the right to remain pummeled!" Leah replied loudly, leaping over the sofas in an attempt to catch him, and almost knocking Matt flying in the process.

As the chase moved into the corridor, Matt straightened up in his chair, then motioned with his finger for Katie to come closer. She did, and Matt whispered, "Maybe we should go out to get breakfast."

She nodded in agreement.

*MEANWHILE*

Somewhere in the city, a long way from the Deltas, another girl was stirring.

She was in a hospital bed – in Room 94 – hooked up to a bunch of machines. It was clear that she'd been in an accident of some kind. The bruises and cuts, each in similar stages of recovery, were widespread and plentiful, covering all visible parts of her body. Her skull had been fractured in several places. Her right wrist was in plaster. Two of her ribs were broken.

The girl had no idea how she had received these injuries. The doctors were certain that she'd received some sort of mental trauma, but it was hard to know what, why or how. Domestic abuse wasn't out of the question, but then again, neither was a car accident, a mugging, or a nasty fall down the stairs. The girl could remember nothing about it. She just wanted to forget about it and be out of here.

But there was someone who did remember. This person was sitting beside her bed now, as he had done for the past week, watching her wake up. He was dressed simply, in jeans and a brown shirt. He had blonde hair and dull hazel eyes. And he knew that this was no accident. He knew that these injuries had been caused by someone. And he knew exactly who. The only issue was, he had no idea where to find the one who was responsible.

The girl was awake now. She instinctively turned her head, already knowing that he'd be standing beside her, as he always was. "Good morning, Keane," she whispered.

"Good morning, Esta." He said softly, reaching out and stroking her bright blonde hair. "The doctors say you're doing great, but I still wanted to check in on you."

"Thank you..." she said weakly. He put a finger to his lips and she understood. She wasn't to waste her energy talking. Even that small snippet of conversation had been a struggle.

"I'm really sorry, but I can't stay. I have to go to work now," he said, wishing with all his heart that he could stay longer. "I'll be back as soon as I can, ok?"

She smiled and nodded, no more than a tiny rocking motion. Then she closed her eyes, already exhausted. Keane looked at her a moment longer, sadness etched into every line of his face, before turning and leaving the room. He passed a doctor on the way in, who greeted him as a friend. He was often visiting Esta in Room 94, and the doctors had grown to know him quite well.

So this doctor knew, right then, that something was different about the boy. Was it the way he walked? It was such a subtle difference, but Keane did seem to be walking more confidently, more purposefully. Dismissing the thought as unimportant, the doctor entered the room to perform the usual checks.

But Keane had changed. He had become more driven, more determined to find the person who'd caused all this, and make them pay for what they'd done. It was becoming everything he was. It was in every fibre of his being, every corner of his mind: revenge. He was becoming obsessed with it.

In fact, he was so engrossed in this thought, that he barely even registered the green flash on the back of his hand, or the tiny whisper in the back of his mind egging him on.

"We can do it, young one. We just need to know where to start…"

Fun Fact #1: The summer solstice refered to in the title is when the sun is at its highest point when seen from the North Pole or South Pole, depending on which Hemisphere you're in. This will not be story-relevant, but the word 'Solstice' will be.

Fun Fact #2: If James and Katie ever get around to writing their version of the opening story, you'll learn a lot more about the girl, Esta, mentioned at the end of this chapter, such as what happened to her. If not, you will have to settle for what is revealed in this story, in addition to the info given on our profile page.