Cheshire Chapter 3

by fhwrege

Trials of the first days of a young breakthrough.

Andrew's

Tokki Rachelle

I stood back with Detective Fisher and watched the family reunion while Alice Scott pulled Ruth into the group hug. I smiled as she introduced Ruth to her grandson Malcom aka Megaton. Six feet tall, give or take, he had looks on the better side of average but two years of training with the Sentinels had given him a good set of shoulders. "Hmmm. He's also wearing those jeans rather well."

"Could you be a little more professional?" Kim said with irritation. "Stop checking out Rionnagh's brother!"

I looked up to see Ruth's raised eyebrow as she turned back to Kim. Kim managed to blame her flush on having to interrupt the reunion in order to get us to the meeting site on time. I had no such luck.

"So Rachelle. Got busted did you?" The question came from Detective Fisher where he stood beside me just barely covering his smirk with an unlit cigarette.

I'm sure my freckles disappeared as I felt my blush go down to my collar. "Sigh. Just because I don't mix business with pleasure on photo shoots doesn't mean I don't notice." I rubbed my neck, "Though I'm usually better at not being so obvious about it."

Turning to walk to the van, I changed the subject, "You'll be following Mr. Scott, Detective?"

He nodded, "I will. We have the recordings from both Rionnagh and her aunt's security firm, but the brass wants interviews and written statements. Need to have the 'i's dotted and the 't's crossed as soon as possible. The kid's been through enough but it shouldn't be too hard on her. The people in Brannigan's firm are pros, and since he's agreed to share his transcripts I get lucky." Sighing, he continued, "No matter what though, the School Safety Act means Whitlow's Academy for her."

Given the look he gave me, something must have shown on my face. Pausing out of sight of the family I held up a hand and sighed, "Look. I need to join Kim. Just….watch Rionnagh's interview and come tell one of us what you think then."

Fisher gave me a thoughtful look as we parted and went to our separate vehicles. I climbed into the passenger side of the van and looked in the back just in time to see Ruth hand Rionnagh the Grendel plush. She accepted it with a bashful 'Thank you' and hugged it close as Kim pulled out and navigated our way through traffic.

I made small talk with the family as we watched Rionnagh squirm and bounce in her seat with excitement. I had to smile, bright as she was, she was still very much a little girl. Malcom had to cover his mouth to muffle his laughter when she nuzzled the plush behind its ears enough to trigger the purring. His response to our questioning looks was to comment that Grendel should have known better than to let Nix pick his plush for him.

We finally drove up to a hanger at a little used airfield and pulled into an attached garage. Kim and I got out as Rionnagh's father and Detective Fisher pulled in beside us. Letting Kim ride herd on them, I headed inside to get set up.

While we'd intended to meet Andrew at his studio, we quickly realized we'd need more space and Pixello's studio was perfect for what we needed. A Verne type that specialized in electronics engineering with a side in videography and data storage, he developed gear for everything from space probes to deep sea submersibles. The studio was where he did his alpha testing.

The studio took up most of the hanger but the area most important to us was the massive green room. 200 ft wide, 200 ft long and 300 ft high, it stretched from the roof to over 100 ft below floor level. The room could be used dry or you could flood the portion below main floor level for underwater or shoreline shots. If you used his equipment for half or more of your session he would rent it for next to nothing.

I gave a nod to Donna where she was waiting near two of the four available dressing areas. She was talking to two people near a table with several chairs surrounding it, one of which was large enough to hold Ruth as Tygeara. Tommy Brannigan was easy to recognize and the other was probably Angelica Grant, the attorney for F3.

Kim led the rest in a few minutes later and began introductions, ending with Ruth shifting to Tygeara. By the time they were done I had the equipment ready. They started with the legalities around the Tygeara trademark and then went on to the statements of the situation surrounding Rionnagh's breakthrough. They finished with trademarking the name Rionnagh Cheshire. All told everything took until noon.

Detective Fisher grabbed himself a coffee from the spread Ginger had set up while they were finalizing the paperwork and gestured for me to join him. Suspecting the reason I walked over and waited for him to begin.

He took a drink before asking. "Scholastically she'd score at highschool level or above wouldn't she?"

I nodded, "Even before her breakthrough she'd skipped two grades and was ready to skip a third. Dr. Harte is sure her comprehension has been increased. At the very least she's college level in extra reality physics as well as linguistics. So she's sweet, adorable, talented AND knowledgeable beyond her years. That's why NU has moved up part of it's schedule to begin a boarding school for children with advanced learning capabilities."

He frowned, "Putting a whole bunch of hyper-intelligent, underage breakthroughs under the same roof? Are you sure that's the answer?"

"Me? No. I'm just a videographer." I gave him a wry smile. "But Dr. Harte is of the opinion that you can teach someone responsibility and respect for others without them having to be 'grown up'. So children like Rionnagh can have a chance to be children and not be forced to be adults in children's bodies." I sighed, "She claims the trick is to find a way to give them freedom within 'guidelines'. From what I've seen the only hard rule she has is 'The right to swing your fist ends where my nose begins.'"

Fisher barked a laugh, "Do you think she'd be willing to teach a class at the Pen based on that?" He finished his coffee. "Well I have what I was sent here for. I should be getting back to the precinct."

I shook his hand. "Thank you for keeping us in the loop last night Fisher. Finding out her aunt was going to be OK really lifted a weight from Rionnagh's shoulders and I think Alice's as well."

"I'd say it was just part of the job but I'd be lying." He said with a wink. "Thankfully my boss saw it as maintaining good relations with the Portland PD. Keep an eye on the kid for me would you?"

I smiled back "I'll do that. Take care of yourself Detective." And with that he made his way across the studio and to the garage.

After that I joined Donna, Pixello and Angelica Grant in planning the photo shoot. There was no way to tell which of us was more excited over the challenges and opportunities Ruth and the munchkin were providing us.

While we were doing that Ruth shrank back down to human size and joined Rionnagh and her family for lunch. The kid still had quite an appetite, though only about half of what it was this morning.

After everyone had eaten we went to one of the lounge areas and sat talking. Rionnagh managed to elicit more smiles as she started nodding off before eventually curling up to nap between Ruth and Alice. She rested quietly until about 20 minutes later when she began twitching and mumbling in her sleep.

"Hnnnn N-no." Rionnagh mumbled as her head started shifting side to side. "Grma gave her t'me, you you cn't have her." Her limbs began twitching as if she was struggling with someone. "N-no. Wht'r you doing?.. MOTHER NO!" With a yell Rionnagh jerked awake, limbs flailing and eyes wide but unfocused in fear.

"Easy pequeña you're safe." Ruth crooned to Rionnagh as she held her and rocked back and forth. "Easy now. We have you. Shhh." Slowly her gasping breaths relaxed and her eyes began to focus. When her grandmother took her face in her hands she took a last deep breath and most of the tension visibly left her body.

Sighing, Rionnagh closed her eyes, leaned her head into her grandmother's shoulder and carefully took her hand. "Sorry. I'm sorry." She spent the next few breaths resting, but despite the occasional tremors going through her there were no tears.

After just a few minutes she pulled away and gave Alice a nuzzling kiss to the cheek. "Thank you Grandma." Turning to Ruth she pulled her into a hug and thanked her as well.

Malcom had been changing when Rionnagh had called out and had come running, carrying his helmet and jacket. He knelt next to the couch where they were sitting and looked at her with concern. "Bad dream Squirt? Is everything okay now?"

"Do do you have to go?"she asked him while giving his uniform a worried look.

He looked down, "Oh this? No. Quin decided that since I was going to be with you and Ruth when you had your photoshoot with F3, I might as well get mine done as well. Once we're finished do you think you'd be up to meeting my teammates?"

I had to grin as I watched Rionnagh's eyes widen.

She silently opened and closed her mouth twice before she got out, "The Young Sentinels? Meet them? Today?" she asked as she brought her closed fists up in front of her nose.

Malcom's eyes twinkled as he answered, "Yes. You little ray of sunshine. Today. The Young Sentinels and at least Quin of the Sentinels as well."

Eyes shining Rionnagh sat there for a count of ten before throwing her arms around his neck and tumbling them both to the floor. "Eeeeeee. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. You are the best brother EVER!"

"OOOFff. Easy there Squirt. You're a lot more than the armfull you used to be." She relaxed her grip enough for them to get to their knees, though Rionnagh looked slightly hurt. Malcom grasped her chin and made her look him in the eyes. "Hey. Hey. None of that. It's not your fault you needed a bigger container to hold all the cute that is you."

She giggled at that and hugged him again. Pulling back she gave him a bashful look. "I might need the bigger container most of the time but I think,.." at this she closed her eyes and with a thought shrank to 4 feet tall. "I can do the armfull. At least for a little bit."

Maclom only stayed stunned for a moment before picking her up in a hug that resulted in more giggles and laughter form her. "Oh I've missed you kiddo. It's been far too long since I've heard you laugh like this." She had her arms around his neck again so he had an arm free to lever himself up so he could stand. He started carrying her over to the dressing areas, "Come on. We have things to do before you meet your new extended family."

Kim stepped up beside me. "It's like watching layers peel back one at a time. Just when I think she can't get any brighter, she goes up a couple of lumens." she observed with a smile.

I shrugged, "For someone her age, when we first saw her had to be close to her worst. I'm glad we were there to catch her." I gave my head a shake. "Anyway. I'd better do a check of the gear. Pixello has added a few more bells and whistles."

Kim grinned, "Doesn't he always?" We laughed and went about our separate duties.

We started with some promotional stills on dry land and then moved to the green room (that Pixello had quietly flooded) to do more dynamic shots with Ruth at full height as Tygeara. Rionnagh played multiple parts including little fuzzy faerie (she looked an inch and a half tall in Tygeara's palm (and the ones where she was standing on Tygeara's nose were just adorable)) as well as shots underwater using the selkie form she'd discovered this morning. We were even able to get some aerial shots with Megaton thanks to a programmable flight of drones with sound dampening projectors that dropped the volume of his blasting down between 40 and 50 decibels. It wasn't easy to hold a conversation with him when he was firing but it wasn't deafening (we were inside afterall).

Donna called a break at about 2:30. Everyone that wanted to grabbed something to snack on while we waited for Andrew to show up. The "snack" for Ruth and Rionnagh was pounds of rare steak between them.

Ruth had just shifted back to her human size when a commotion announced the arrival of the Sentinels. Astra walked in side by side with Kim and Artemis, with The Harlequin and Andrew just behind. Galatea (in her human guise) and Crash came next followed by Ozma, Tsuris and Grendel (who had Nox and Nix on his shoulders) and a mix of dozen or so photographers, assistants and press. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Rionnagh wipe her mouth with a napkin, take a frantic look at the smear she left on it and vanish in a puff of silvery mist.

I walked over as Ruth looked at the suddenly empty chair and the napkin fluttering down onto it before turning to me. I shrugged, "I'm thinking she went to one of the sinks with a mirror to wash up. She can't cheat by shifting out of her fur like you can."

Ruth blushed, "I didn't think of that. Some Auntie I am." She looked at me, "Help me find her?"

I shrugged, "We can try but given what she just pulled she'll probably evade us until she thinks she's presentable."

Ruth gave a resigned sigh, "I should have seen this coming. When Mr. Brannigan mentioned us going to the dome after the photoshoot she became anxious about making the right impression."

Cheshire

"Oh no. Oh no. Oh no!" I shifted back into phase in the safety of an empty washroom next to the sink. Sure enough when I looked in the mirror it showed there were spots of fur around my mouth with food stains on them, especially on my chin. I turned on the water and began splashing my face and scrubbing with my hands. I breathed a sigh of relief when the discolorations washed out, then tensed up again at the sight of my wet fur sticking out in all directions. No no no NO! I was NOT going to meet THE Sentinels looking like something out of a bad Meme. I started scrabbling at the drawers looking for a clean towel to dry off with. I'd only found a small hand towel before I heard voices through the door.

Rachelle, "I'll check the doors on this side, Ruth. You get those."

I heard the door to the next room open; I was out of time. "Ooo, No! I have this." I shrank down to a foot high and was able to press off more water due to my lower surface area before I grabbed the now beach towel sized cloth and shifted out of phase again. The door opened and Rachelle looked inside as I flew unseen through the walls and then up to the high shelf where I'd left my bag.

Phasing back in I quickly scrubbed as much moisture as I could from my fur before propping up my epad and powering it on. Once I'd logged in I used the camera for a mirror. "Yikes!" Now my fur was over fluffed. I burrowed into my bag to reach a side pocket. I fumbled through a few things in it before finding the brush. It was meant to help clean a plush, but when I tried it on my arm the bristles worked almost as well on my fur.

Crawling back out and settling in front of the epad I managed to get my facial fur presentable if not perfect. I was doing the last touches on my arms when a voice came from over my shoulder.

"There you are."

I spun around to see a face wearing a blue half mask. "Eeeep! She found me!" I nervously straightened my clothes as Astra - ASTRA! - Put her elbows on the shelf and rested her chin on her palms as she watched me.

Seeing I was finished she remarked, "You know Rionnagh, my friend Shell is already trying to wheedle a copy of this out of your Grandmother. If you don't come down soon I might let her."

I spun around and sure enough the video chat was active. I must have turned it on along with the camera. But anything I was going to say slipped my mind when I saw someone peeking over the edge of my bag and gazing at the Grendel plush. "Oh! Um hello?"

Astra giggled behind me. "That would be Nix. She's very shy but she heard you had an interesting plush up hear and had to come and see it. Would you like to meet her?" I could only nod. "It's okay, Nix. I'm pretty sure she's friendly."

Slowly Nix fluttered over the bag to join me. She was a doll(?)my current height with ball jointed limbs and painted on facial features that nonetheless still moved. On her back were a pair of beautiful butterfly/faerie wings that must have let her fly up here. I shifted my vision and blinked, "You.. Glow!" I reached out hesitantly toward her and she lifted her hand to mine. I grasped it lightly and looked at her in wonder. "You're alive!" Nix suddenly looked wary and my stomach sank along with my ears. "I'm so so sorry. That was so rude of me. I didn't mean…" I stumbled to a halt feeling miserable.

Nix looked at me and must have seen I hadn't meant to hurt her. She gave me a tentative smile before saying, "Apology accepted but… what did you mean 'I glow'?"

I shifted unsure, "To.. to me every living thing, from grass to people, has a glow if I look for it. You glow a little differently than Astra or myself but you are as bright as anyone else here." I hesitated, "Start again?" she nodded and, blushing furiously, I tried again, "Hello Nix, my name is Rionnagh Cheshire. It is very nice to meet you."

Nix blushed back at me, "Hello Rionnagh, It is very nice to meet you as well." She fidgeted a bit before asking, "Would it be okay if I took a closer look at your plush?"

I smiled and for an answer I held her hand and led her over to it. When we got there I let her go so she could get a closer look. It was my turn to fidget as I watched her examine the mane, "Um, Nix?" she turned to look at me. "Malcom thinks Grendel let you pick his plush. Did he?"

Nix gave me worried look, "He did. Do you think that was wrong of me?"

I shook my head quickly, "No that's not what I meant. I...I just wanted to be sure I offered the 'thank you' hug to the right person." I could feel the heat in my ears as I blushed.

Nix gave a start of surprise but then happily reached out and pulled me into a hug. I happily returned it and nuzzled her cheek before letting go. She giggled, "That tickles!"

Astra asked from behind us, "Rionnagh. Why would Megaton think Nix picked the plush?"

I grinned and hopped to the other side of the plush by its left ear. I motioned to Nix to copy me with its right ear and started rubbing. A very indelicate snort escaped Astra as the purring built in volume. When I turned to look she had a hand over her mouth to contain her laughter but her eyes were shining.

Turning back I sighed and pulled away from the plush. As much as I was enjoying this they were probably on a schedule. I took a deep breath, "It wasn't too bad for the first shoot. I can do this." I grabbed the Catstra plush and walked to the edge of the shelf as Astra collected Grendel.

Nix flew down to rejoin Ozma as Astra tucked the plush under one arm and held out her hand to me. My wings shimmered into view as I took it, stepped clear of the shelf, and started growing as we flew down. Her eyes widened in surprise as I grew and kept growing until I reached my full height. Touching down next to Malcom and Grandma Alice I turned to see Astra with her free hand on her hip and giving me an exasperated look. Wondering what I'd done wrong I lowered my eyes and I saw it. We were eye to eye and my feet were on the floor, but she was tapping her foot. On empty air. Almost a foot off the ground. "Oh." My ears drooped in embarrassment and I shrugged, "Ummm.. I'm sorry?"

My imp took over and I shrank so her eyes would be level with my ears. "Is this better?" and gave her my best wide eyed, innocent look. We both blushed as laughter broke out around us.

Astra rolled her eyes, "Saints preserve us from the cuteness and bad influences." That last was directed at the redhead about Mal's age standing next to Grandma Alice.

She (Shell?) stuck her tongue out at Astra and then grinned, "Say what you want but the stills from your mask cam are going to be gold."

A tall, fit looking man in a perfectly tailored suit stepped up accompanied by The Harlequin. He waited a moment for the mirth to die down before saying, "Sorry to interrupt but we'll need Rionnagh at her full height for her final fittings."

I blinked, "I'm sorry but.. Final fittings for what?" Grandma Alice had a twinkle in her eye as she pulled papers out of a folder she was holding and handed them to me. The top paper read, "Congratulations on your submitting the winning design for the F3 Astra plush. As a bonus The Sentinels are extending this certificate, good for one complete outfit from Andrew's Designs." The second one was the same for the Grendel plush.

Malcom caught the certificates falling from my trembling hands while Ruth caught me and guided me to a chair as my knees gave out . It took me a few moments to respond to the questions of what was wrong. "Two years. Two years I've had to hide my interest in this part of my brother's life. Two years I've had to be careful of what I said or what was on my epad or phone so my mother wouldn't get upset. Two years of studying everything I could to try to fill the emptiness of not getting to sit on the couch next to Daddy and my brother and planning a weekend trip to a museum or a park or zoo.

I'm sorry. I've been dreaming of something like this for so long that so much of it coming true in so short a time is a little overwhelming. It's hard to believe that this time yesterday I was a regular, non-breakthrough girl talking to her grandmother over video chat using the prize she'd won from the contest she'd entered her into." I took a deep breath and stood drawing more looks of concern "I think I'm okay now. I just needed to catch my breath."

I reached and took the certificates back from Malcom. Looking at them I felt a little bit guilty. "Do I have to use both of these for me?" I asked, biting my lip and looking at Ruth.

She looked back at me. "It's sweet of you to think of me pequeña but you've gone through a lot over these. Are you really sure you want to use one of them for me?"

I stood my ground, "I am. I know you didn't intend to break through but if you hadn't I wouldn't be here now. I won't pretend that I won't have nightmares about what caused my breakthrough and put me on your doorstep or that I won't have problems stemming from being furry and so tall for may age. But I wouldn't go back even if I could and I'd fight anyone that tried to make me.

"I'm very grateful to you and the rest of NU Inc. for what you've done for me. Please let me do this for you."

Donna had walked up and joined our group and Ruth turned to look at her.

Donna shook her head, "Don't look at me. The cost of materials Andrew uses for just one outfit can be enough to equip five operatives. We can't touch what this is worth."

Ruth looked like she was going to continue to argue when Andrew cut in. "If it makes things easier for you, Ms. Botes, after being contacted by Donna and being informed of the situation surrounding your circumstances, I took it upon myself to design an outfit for you based on the measurements provided. All I ask in exchange is that I be allowed to partner with Donna on your line of Kaiju couture. We would of course need you to be the primary model for our creations."

I watched Ruth's jaw drop. Looking around I could see I wasn't the only one stifling giggles. After recovering Ruth looked suspiciously at Andrew and Donna. "You sneaks. You have dozens of concepts drawn up already don't you?"

Donna grinned, "Guilty as charged." She shook her head, "Ruth, designers have been trying to break into the powers market in Japan for years. As a Kaiju that fights Kaiju you have the best chance we've ever seen. And I'm certainly not going to pass up this chance to work with a Master of Style"

"Alright. Alright." Ruth cut in. "Sigh, Have it your way. Two things though. Matching jackets and footwear for when I want to be human AND there had better be a legitimate script that I approve of for any interviews or guest appearances."

"Fair points. I'll take your terms" Andrew grinned and held out his hand, "Deal?"

Ruth shook it and nodded. "Deal." Sighing she looked at Donna and shrugged, "As good as I am at fighting I need to face the fact that it's as much part of the advertisement now, as it was the feature of my former career. Maybe I just need to feel like I'm doing something productive. Even if it's outside my current comfort zone."

Negotiations done, Andrew and the Harlequin(she insisted on Quin) turned their attention back to me. Their first offering had black dress slacks with a silver shirt and black vest. A tie in a blue that matched my eyes (worn loose) and boots with multiple buckles that covered halfway up my calves accessorized it. A swipe of the screen and I was wearing a black pantsuit with a blue blouse and open toed flats with straps that held decorative leather greaves to my foot above and below my digitigrade ankle. Both outfits had my star on the breast pocket with two blue dots bracketing the bottom tip of the star. As I played with the view the dots disappeared and reappeared depending on the angle. Enlarging them revealed them to be cat eyes the same shade of blue as mine.

Rapidly blinking my eyes I quickly zoomed back out and moved on to the next picture. "I won't cry. I won't cry. I won't cry!" The next costume was a cross between my swimsuit and Astra's uniform. The main color of the outfit was the dark blue of the sky when the first stars come out. High waisted shorts went from mid-thigh to the top of my hips covering my navel and the near sleeveless top covered me from my neck to just below my ribs leaving a few inches of fur showing. Fingerless gloves and toeless boots that reached to my elbows and knees and a sash around my waist fastened with a clasp accessorized it and the new crest on my chest completed the look. A tap dropped light armor with greaves, bracers, breastplate and a matching mask/helm over the costume.

I realized I was starting to tremble and shakily set the tablet down before I dropped it. I had my hands over my muzzle trying not to squeal hysterically when I heard Donna say, "Sorry but I saw what happened to Megaton when he told her you were coming." When I looked I saw she had somehow managed maneuver Astra and Quin so they formed a screen between her and me. That was all the warning they had before they were wrapped up in a fuzzy hug and being spun in a circle.

"Eeeeeee! THANK YOU! They. Are. So. COOL!" I squealed as I pirouetted up into the air, my wings pulsating with light. I spun until Astra started to gently loosen my grip around Quin. I barely kept myself from dropping her when I realized that I'd been hugging her so hard her ribs had bent. I quickly descended and set them down. I knew I should be upset with my lack of control but Quin looked more bemused than hurt so the most I could manage was embarrassed. "I'm sorry." I apologized as I vibrated with excitement. "The designs are so wonderful I just couldn't stop myself and the crest is perfect. How is the intermittent effect achieved?"

Andrew smiled, "Reflective crystals just 2 or 3 molecules thick arranged in varying grids pointing different directions. All in a durable media the thickness of a coat of paint." he explained while pulling the breastplate out of a box and handing it to me. "It's nearly as durable as the material it's adhered to and easy to replace if it is defaced by damage." He continued as I looked it over. "Now. Where would you like to start?"

It took me a few minutes but I decided to start with the designs meant to go with Grendel. It took a few tries but I was eventually able to, as Shell put it, project "proper feline disdain." to go with his near perpetual glower for a few serious shots. But after that the time was spent with fun and sometimes silly scenes. Including one where Donna had found an outfit for me that matched Nix and had us do an "Ogre being kissed by faeries" shot. Grendel pretended to be long suffering but the looks the rest of the team gave him after we were done told a different story.

The shots with Astra were even more fun. While I could lift her maul easily (at least after she described how to "fly" to counterbalance the weight) I didn't feel comfortable posing with it. But Mrs. Li, a sensei for my youth self defense class back in Portland, had taught me to use both Tonfa and a Bo staff. Pixello actually had a pair of Tonfa on hand and after a bit of looking he found some unused structural rods and fashioned one into a Bo staff for me. So after the promotional stills they recorded me doing forms with Astra for about ten minutes.

The other winners of the F3 competition had their photos taken separately using one of several smaller stand alone studios Pixello had in the hanger. The group shot would be assembled digitally later under Quin's supervision and sent to each of the winners.

We were getting ready to go when Grandma Alice turned to me. "Well my little Rionnagh have you had fun today?"

"It's been wonderful Grandma." I sighed happily, "Malcom's teammates are almost like family. I wish the day didn't have to end so soon."

"Well my dear I have good news and bad news about that." Grandma sighed as she reached up and stroked my cheeks, "The good news is The Sentinels have invited us to The Dome to throw us a reunion dinner. The bad news is they want their Dr. Beth to give you a quick once over before then. Mostly to see how your noggin is doing." she said running her fingers over the light scar. It had barely itched all day but I could feel my ears droop.

"Oh sweety it won't be that bad." She lifted my chin to look me in the eye. "Hey. Would it make it easier if Astra flew with you to The Dome so you can get the examination over with sooner?"

Eyes wide I managed to stammer "I-it w-would."

"Good." she said with her eyes twinkling. "Because your father and I told them you'd be delighted."

She hugged my head tight to her shoulder as I went weepy happy again. Putting my arms around her I very carefully hugged her back. A few deep breaths later she gave me one last squeeze and reluctantly let me go.

Looking up as I dried my face I could see Astra walking over carrying her maul. Smiling at me she held out her hand, "Well young lady are you ready to go?"

"Yes, ma'am." I said standing up. I wondered for a moment why she blushed but filed it away for later. ASTRA was going to take me for what would be my first real flight. I had so much energy I started skipping as we walked to the door leading outside. Laughing, Astra skipped with me.

The members that hadn't left yet were all smiles as Astra had me put my mask back on. She floated up, adjusted it, and showed me how to use the comms. Satisfied she took my hand again. "Ready?"

In answer I rose into the air and followed her up into the bright August sky. The towers of downtown glittered in the afternoon sun as we flew toward the city.