A/N: This might be my last chapter for a while, but I promise that if I can, I'll try to get one up before Friday, Saturday at the latest. I hate exams… Anyway, thank you to my reviewers

Sparkleglitz01(who reviewed both stories!): Thank you! I'm kinda worried about Art; can't draw to save my life! Why couldn't Music and English been on the first day instead of the last…

Lollipopz104: I did indeed! It's great to get story ideas from my reviewers, keep them coming!

and Angelmail, (who reviewed twice in one chapter!): Aww, thank you! I'll be fifteen on the tenth of February :) As for your other question, I hadn't realized I had it rated T! I've changed it to K now; thanks for letting me know!

Trustees

Connie was woken abruptly by a sharp knocking on the door. She tried ignoring it, blocking out the sound with her pillow, but whoever was outside was obviously very persistent. She left her bed regretfully, throwing a dressing gown over her nightdress as she drew the curtains slightly to find out who would visit at -checking her clock- two o'clock in the morning. She immediately identified the battered old car parked outside the house. But what could Mr. Coddrington be doing down from London that early in the morning? She heard Evelyn shuffle downstairs and open the door, followed by the low murmur of whispering voices. The door closed softly, and a squeak came from the fourth step on the stairs, signifying that Evelyn was on her way back up. The door creaked softly as it was opened, flooding the room with light from the hallway.

"Connie?" she called softly, assuming that the bundle of tangled sheets was her niece. Connie emerged from behind the curtain guiltily.

"Oh, good. You're already up. Mr Coddrington is here with a message from the Trustees; could you get dressed and come down to the kitchen?" Connie nodded absentmindedly as she rummaged though her wardrobe. Pulling on a pair of jeans and a t-shirt, she ran down the stairs and skidded into the kitchen, earning a look of disgust from Mr. Coddrington. After being frozen to the spot for half an hour by a stone sprite arrow from Connie, he had been a lot more careful around the universal, but it didn't stop him from making her life as difficult as possible.

"Miss Lionheart, I see you have finally decided to join us." Connie fought to keep the look of extreme dislike off her face. Evelyn, sensing her plight, broke the stony silence.

"So, Mr. Coddrington, what are you doing down in Hescombe so early in the morning? Couldn't the Trustees have phoned to leave the message?" Mr. Coddrington sniffed in disdain.

"I can't see why I had to act as messenger either; but apparently, the Trustees have called an emergency meeting at the headquarters, that your niece needs to be present at, and I was the only person available to carry the message. Miss Lionheart, we need to leave immediately, there is another Society member that I need to pick up at the airport."

"I'll make my own way to the headquarters, thanks." Feeling slightly guilty that somebody would have to endure the torture that was sitting in a car with possibly the most boring person alive for an hour, she left the room.

Shutting the bathroom door, Connie began to run the bath, pulling the plug out so that the water could escape. The slender foot that dipped into the water, merging with it instantly, was completely transparent. Transporting herself through the mains water system in the form of a water sprite was not her favourite way to travel, but it was probably the fastest. Within moments of placing her foot within the bathtub, she had arrived at the bubbling fountain in the courtyard of the building. Connie stepped out of the fountain, reverting to her original form and almost giving a pair of pigeons- who were eyeing the fountain greedily, probably contemplating the fish content- a heart attack.

She knew her way well around the Society headquarters by this point; the library there was almost like her second home. After her transformation, the door guard had relaxed on the rules a little, allowing her to take books from the room, which were moved to a less hazardous area in the library for general use. The real secrets of the universals were kept in the original room, guarded jealously by the great snake.

The great marble foyer was empty, completely devoid of visitors. The squeak of Connie's runners against the polished floor echoed all around the cavernous room, notifying the Trustees for the Company of the Four Elements of her arrival. The double doors had already been thrown open, and Connie walked into the chamber of council, joining her fellow Trustees. Windfoal was the first to congratulate her on her new position, once the shared bond had been reached out to all present in the room.

"Well done, Connie. It is good to have a universal finally leading us again." Connie's shadow-self bowed her head in acknowledgement.

"Why have you called me here? I can't help but point out that this isn't the best time for a congratulatory meeting." Kinga smiled at this.

"You are already aware of the newest additions to your company; but the missing universal, Aisling Hollingsworth, is a bigger problem than the Society needs to know about. Of course, we've shared the basic details, but we don't want to give grounds for panic until the rumours are confirmed."

"What rumours?" Jade picked up from where Kinga had left off; her smooth, silky voice accentuating the soft waves rippling through Connie's oceanic mind.

"There have been rumours, rumours that Kullervo's forces have a new leader. One who is unlike anything we have ever seen before, apart from the one that you have defeated." Connie sank to her knees in disbelief. Another Kullervo?

"Do not fear, universal. This malignant spirit is not half as advanced as our old foe." Storm-Bird seemed to disagree with this statement, and his doubts were voiced by his companion.

"But he is still a threat. If he is the one who has taken Aisling, the consequences could be life-threatening to every human on the planet. We cannot assume that he is not as powerful as Kullervo, or less prejudiced towards the society. We should take every precaution to stop him from finding her, if he hasn't already done so."

"I agree," broke in Mr. Chan. "We should take precautions, especially with the untrained universals within the society. Connie, with your agreement, the mentoring of your little cousin should continue, along with the basic training of the new universal."

"Speaking of which, where is Mr. Coddrington? Shouldn't he have arrived with you?"

"I didn't feel that… riding in a car this early in the morning would agree with my stomach." Morjik gave out a low chuckle at this; all of the Trustees were already familiar with the ongoing feud between the universal and the assessor.

The door banged loudly at this point, breaking Connie's concentration and ending the encounter.

"Miss Lionheart?" he spluttered. "How did you get here before me?" Connie had kept her shape shifting powers to herself as much as possible, only letting her closest friends within the society and the Trustees know of her secret, so she had gotten used to coming up with excuses for her strange behaviour as a result of her powers, a more advanced form of the white lies she told Anneena and Jane about the Society to satisfy their curiosity.

"Borrowed Skylark. Not that it's any of your business," she couldn't help but finish. There was no sign that the Trustees found this amusing, apart from the ghost of a smile that flickered on Kira's face for a moment before rapidly fading. Mr. Coddrington wisely ignored the thinly-veiled insult and changed the subject.

"I'll just go finish the filing before I leave. I'll put Miss Hollingsworth's file on pending, shall I?" Not waiting for an answer, he turned and left, leaving a person standing awkwardly in the doorway behind him. Kira smiled and ushered him in to stand with Connie in the middle of the floor.

"Connie, this is Nick Cony. The new universal."