Ren stretched, raising both arms as if trying to touch the ceiling. Then she twisted, left, right, left again. "Finally!" she exclaimed happily. "I think it's worn off."

"Worn off?" Lisa picked up the discarded bandages. "You make it sound like someone cast a spell on you, not tried to hack you into four separate pieces."

"Oh, five, at least." Ren snagged her clothes from the bed and got dressed, relishing the complete lack of pain the movements brought. Lisa sighed at her, and disappeared down the stairs.

After a few moments, Ren followed her. "We should do something today," she announced. "I've got to get out of this house."

"Yeah, us too," Bud agreed from the couch where he'd been reading. "We're sick of listening to you whine and gripe and fidget and complain all day, every day."

"I do not," Ren argued. "Not all day."

"True," Lisa put in. "Sometimes you're asleep."

"Just for that, I'm going out, and you two can stay here." Snatching her sword belt from the coat rack of all places, Ren flounced out the door. She hadn't gone very far before a whine overheard alerted her to an incoming dragon.

"Ren!" Viridian swooped down and hit the ground in front of her in a spray of grass and dirt. Then he floated back up more slowly, hovering a foot off the ground.

"Viri, don't tear up my lawn landing if you're not going to stay landed," Ren chided.

"Got rid of them, didn't I?" The dragon waved a claw at the sproutlings, who had scattered into the bushes. "Let's go hunting."

"Hunting, hunting, that's all you ever want to do."

"I'm hungry!"

"That's because you grow like a weed. What kind of creature gets so big so fast anyway?" Ren prodded him on a shoulder that was nearly at eye height.

Viridian looked back along his length speculatively. "A dragon."

Ren laughed. "I suppose I asked for that." She shook her head. "Oh never mind. At least you can feed yourself. Yes, let's go hunting."

Viridian executed a happy loop in midair that missed Ren's nose by an inch. Glaring at him, she started for the trees.

"I needed to get big fast," the dragon continued, floating along next to her.

"Why?" Ren looked up.

"I don't know." A ripple ran down his spine."I feel trapped. I need to be bigger!"

"Well, you're doing a good job of it. I wouldn't worry." Ren patted his side comfortingly. Viridian gave his hissing laughter that was getting deeper by the day, then suddenly stopped, craning his neck back.

"Someone's coming."

Ren turned, following his gaze, and saw Pearl running headlong up the path. Waving, she drew the Jumi girl's attention to their position, as if Viridian wasn't obvious enough.

Panting, Pearl stumbled to a halt in front of them. "Ren…there's a problem…" She choked and started to cough from trying to talk and breathe at the same time.

"Slow down a bit, it's okay…" Ren took her by the arm and steered her to a rock where she could sit down.

Pearl sat and waited until she could talk again. "It's Rachel," she said eventually. "She's disappeared."

"What?" Ren glanced instinctively towards Domina. "How? When?"

"Probably last night, I woke up early this morning and she was gone…I didn't hear her leave or anything! Mark's in a panic and Jennifer's been all over the village trying to find a clue, but no one saw her. They asked me to run down here, in case, but…" She ran out of air.

"She wouldn't leave in the middle of the night just to visit me," Ren concluded for her. "But…where would she go?"

"I don't know! I…well…last night she seemed agitated about something. In fact, she'd been kind of quiet, since you and Bud and Lisa came over a couple days ago, remember?"

"Yes, actually. I do occasionally remember things," Ren muttered.

Pearl stared at her. "I didn't mean…" she stammered. "That is, I wasn't trying to imply…"

Ren blinked, realizing how harsh it had come out. "Oh I'm sorry, Pearl. Don't listen to me," she urged. "Go on please."

"That's all really." Pearl looked sadly at the ground. "She seemed restless, so I asked her about it, and she said that she didn't know what to do with herself. So I said…well, I've been thinking, you know, about what you said? So I just repeated what you said, about doing things you think need doing, just because…" She blushed suddenly. "I can't say it as well as you did. Maybe it didn't come out right and that's why she ran away?"

Ren's mind was going a mile a minute, trying to make some connection, but her thoughts were interrupted as she looked at Pearl's distraught face. "You can't blame yourself," she said, helping the other girl up. "Whatever she's done it was her choice. Come on, let's go inside, you look like you could use some water."

"What happened?" Bud came running up with his sister close behind him. Obviously they'd noticed the little gathering at the wood's edge.

"Apparently Rachel's run away," Ren explained, and saw the twins both flush. "You know something!"

"N…not really…" Lisa wouldn't meet her eyes.

"I mean, we didn't exactly tell her to…" Bud half continued.

"Spit it out!" Ren demanded and Viridian swished his tail loudly through the bushes behind her. He was probably just annoyed at having his hunting trip curtailed, but it made a nice effect.

"Well…" Lisa sighed. "We were talking to her the other day, you know, about magic…while you were out shopping with Jennifer and Pearl."

"She seemed really interested and she's so quick on the uptake, that we started to show her some things…" Bud took up the story.

"But then we got worried, because, well…" Lisa looked embarrassed. "I was afraid Bud would get out of hand and blow a hole in their house, so…"

"What do you mean, I would get out of hand?" Bud interrupted. "You were the one who was about to try that…"

"Hey! Stay on subject here!" Ren snapped. The twins flinched.

"Sorry!" Lisa apologized hurriedly. "Anyway, we ended up telling her about the magic school, and how if she really wanted to learn, she should ask her parents…we really did say ask her parents…" she trailed off.

"Oh!" Pearl clutched at Ren's sleeve. "It is my fault after all! Because I told her…"

"And I just told you it's not your…argh, I sound like Elazul; look what you people are doing to me! Who cares whose fault it is or isn't!" Ren waved the three of them a few steps away, trying to give herself room to think. "So the general idea is, Rachel's probably snuck out to enroll in the magic school?"

Lisa nodded.

"Which is…where?" Ren asked, after a moment's hesitation.

Bud looked at her blankly. "Geo."

"Oh, right. Geo." She tapped her fingers on Viridian's side thoughtfully, then brightened. "I'd better go after her!" Her three companions exchanged looks. "What?"

"Nothing," Lisa said, but her expression was knowing. "I can't imagine you'd have any reason to suddenly rush off to Geo, now that you're all better."

"I do have a reason. Rachel, remember? I don't know what you're talking about." She looked at Pearl for support, but the Jumi was simply watching her expectantly.

"Shouldn't you tell Mark and Jennifer? I mean, they'll be worried sick…" she suggested.

"You can tell them." Ren gave her a gentle nudge towards the path. "If I leave now, I won't be too far behind her…"

"If we leave now, we could catch her on the way," Viridian spoke up loudly. Ren jumped and stared up at him.

"You're not saying…"

"I can take you to Geo." The dragon wriggled happily. "I'm big enough now!"

"I don't know…" Ren looked him over dubiously, but she know the doubt was mostly in her own mind. "It would be faster, I guess…are you sure?"

"Yes!" Viridian sounded so exultant, Ren didn't have the heart to object further. Slowly, she put her hands on the dragon's side, then vaulted up in a fluid movement. Settling into position, she was startled at how right it felt. Leaning against the pale fur that lined his back, she could hear his heart beat, feel the slight movements of skin and muscles that kept him in the air…it seemed so normal, as if…

"Do you even know how to get to Geo?" Lisa's voice interrupted. Ren sat up, blinking.

"Er…no. Why don't you tell me?"

"Tell me." Viridian insisted. "I'll remember."

Ren started to protest, but as Lisa stepped up and began outlining directions, main roads and side roads and landmarks, she quickly stopped listening.

"I've got it. Ready to go?"

Without even waiting for an answer, or any sort of goodbyes, Viridian swirled up into the air. Ren gasped and hung on tight, but after a few seconds she realized that there was very little sense of motion. Not nearly as much as she would have expected. A little extra weight pressed her into the dragon's back, and a slight wind blew her hair back, but no more than running downhill fast. Whatever magic kept him in the air without wings seemed to have passed to her as well.

Looking back, she could see Bud, Lisa and Pearl watching her ascent. Holding with one hand, she raised the other in a frantic wave that she hoped would convey that everything was fine. Then she returned her gaze forward and tightened her grip as Viridian sped up.

The dragon was in high spirits. He swooped and glided, diving and spiraling in endless loops. Ren was worried at first, but nothing he did seemed to have the slightest chance of flinging her from her perch, and she quickly began to enjoy herself.

"This is incredible!" she called out, and Viridian trilled gleefully in response.

Suddenly the sky shifted. For a moment it was blood red and angry, clouds boiling overhead. Viridian tilted and lost altitude, dropping fitfully towards the ground. Ren shrieked and clung to his scales…and then everything was normal.

Breathing fast, Ren loosened her grip. Looking around and down she saw several rows of gravestones passing far below. For a moment it had felt as if something was pulling on her, as if it had given a short sharp tug to her soul…

Shuddering, she forced herself to look away, ahead. "Viri? Did you feel that?"

"Feel what?" The dragon tilted his head backwards and looked at her questioningly.

"Nothing." Ren clamped down on the urge to look behind her again, and with far more ease shoved the disturbing thought out of her mind. No haunted cemetery was going to ruin her first flight.

Geo was a long trip from Domina. Ren assumed Rachel was traveling on foot, but even if she'd caught a ride somewhere, there was no way she could have kept ahead of Viridian. So it was quite a surprise when they reached the city a few days later and still hadn't seen wing nor hair of her.

Ren leaned against a scraggly tree, shredding spiny needles from their stems and staring at the city walls murderously. Eventually she straightened, launched the naked twig into the stream they'd camped by and turned to the dragon lounging in it.

"Okay, Viri, bath time's over. Apparently Rachel's smarter than us, though I suppose I should have known that already. I'm going into the city…if she's somehow got there ahead of us, I'll find her. Meanwhile, I want you to go back over the roads, side roads and any other likely looking place. If she hid from us somewhere along the way…I'm sure you can ferret her out."

The dragon snorted bubbles at her. "Not a weasel. I want to see the city."

"You're getting too big to pass as a pet anymore, and you'll only cause a ruckus in the streets…don't look at me like that! You know you would, and probably enjoy it too."

Viridian nearly tied himself into a knot trying to look ashamed and insulted at the same time. Finally the dragon stood up and shook himself, sending water everywhere. When Ren was done spluttering and wiping her eyes, he was a rapidly receding green blur heading in the direction they had come.

"Well, if I'm lucky he'll do as he's told. If not, at least he'll be off sulking somewhere and not tearing Geo apart piece by piece," Ren mumbled to herself as she wandered back to the road.

By the time she reached the city gates, she was dry; the summer sun baked the ground even hotter than Polpotoa. Stepping through the gates, though, Ren suddenly felt the temperature drop to a more comfortable zone. Blinking, she walked back out through the portal, then in again, feeling the heat waver on and off.

"It must be magic!" she exclaimed, then looked around hurriedly. Several people had stopped on their way and were staring at her. "Ah…I mean, of course it's magic. Silly me." Gathering up some shreds of dignity, she stepped through the gate one last time and walked as quickly as possible away from the amused whispers behind her.

Paying more attention to getting away from the gate and less to going anywhere specific soon got her hopelessly lost. By the time she thought to look around, she had no idea what street she'd come down. Geo was apparently built like a maze, with alleys and houses piled any which way. Some enterprising people had even built their houses over the streets, creating tunnels and alcoves everywhere.

Ren glared helplessly at the fifth dead end she'd reached. "Oh forget this," she whined, backed up, got a running start and scrabbled over the wall she'd been facing. Making a rather ungraceful but upright landing on the other side, she brushed herself off, looked around, and found herself embarrassed once again.

She'd finally found some open space; what appeared to be an outdoor restaurant of some sort, full of tables and chairs and relaxing people; most of whom were now staring at her in amusement or shock.

"What?" Ren snapped at the lot of them. "If you'd built this place properly, I wouldn't have to resort to things like that." Forcing herself to ignore the stares, she stalked over to the canopied bar.

"Excuse me," she directed at the bartender, who was already watching her, of course. "Where can I find the magic school?" Behind her, someone snickered. The bartender managed to keep a relatively straight face and started outlining the necessary turns and cross-streets.

Nodding as if she understood, Ren took the streets at a run and got about halfway, before the rest of the directions leaked out of her head, leaving her standing on a wide, crowded looking street. Well, at least she'd made it to a main avenue, that had to be an improvement.

Strolling up the street and trying to look like she knew where she was going, she came to a fork. Two paths lead off to either side, uphill, and directly in front of her was a store with a lot of shiny-looking jewellery in the display windows. Ren look back and forth between the streets for a moment, then made the obvious decision and entered the shop instead.

Inside it was nearly black compared to the brilliant sunlight outside. By the time her eyes adjusted, the shopkeeper had put down whatever he'd been working on and was watching her instead. He was a mousey looking man with baggy, rumpled clothes, uncombed hair and glasses that looked like retired window panes. "Can I help…" he started, then stopped. Ren glanced around the shop, but saw nothing but dusty shelves filled with antique jewellery, a few boxes stacked in a corner, and the counter itself.

"No, I don't think so. I'm looking for…"

"We're closed," the man interrupted. "Please leave."

Ren stared at him. "The door was open," she waved at the entrance behind her.

"I was just closing," he stepped out from behind the counter, making shooing motions. "Go on, I don't have anything you'd be interested in!"

"I'm just looking for direc…" Ren found herself stumbling backwards out the door as it slammed in her face. Reaching out, she tried the knob, but the bolt slid home just as she turned it.

Just as she was about to start banging on the window or something, a flutter of cloth caught the corner of her eye. Turning, she saw none other than Elazul leaning against the front pillar of a nearby building, looking like a well-placed statue. His eyes were closed and his arms crossed; only the slight movement of his cloak in the breeze gave him away.

Ren stood watching him for a minute, but he didn't look up. "Typical," she muttered. Walking around the back of the pillar she rested against it, peering around the side at the Jumi. Still no reaction. Slowly edging her way along the stone until she was almost next to him, she leaned over.

"Hi there," she said loudly.

Elazul jumped like he'd been bitten. Spinning around, hand on sword hilt, he stumbled back into a potted plant, which tipped over and fell with a crash, scattering soil and fronds everywhere. "What the…" he started, then caught sight of Ren, doubled over with laughter. "Oh, it's you."

Muttering, he turned around and righted what was left of the plant. Then he spun back, eyes wide as the recognition caught up with him. "Ren!"

"Yes?" Ren asked innocently.

"What in mana's name are you doing here?"

"Looking for a friend," she answered slyly.

"Not Pearl? She didn't…"

"No, Pearl's fine. Still at Mark and Jennifer's, enjoying all the pink."

Elazul started to speak, then stopped, looked confused, opened his mouth and stopped again. It was quite funny. "Not you," Ren clarified, before he could gather up whatever he was trying to gather up to ask. "Rachel's disappeared and the twins said she probably came here."

"Oh," said Elazul faintly. Ren snickered. "What?" he asked grumpily.

"Nothing." Quickly, she outlined what had happened, so far as she knew. "You haven't seen her around, have you?" she concluded.

"No…though all things considered, I doubt she'd come running up to say hello. She doesn't like me, remember?"

Ren thought about it. "No, I don't. But nevermind that," she said quickly. "Where's the magic school?"

Elazul pointed up a street. "It's…" he looked at her critically. "I'll walk you."

"I'm not an invalid anymore," she sniffed. "I can walk just fine."

"That's not it, I can just see you getting lost somewhere. There's something I want to check anyway," he added hastily.

"Well, only so long as you're going that way," Ren grinned at him. Elazul just snorted and started up the street.

As they passed the unfriendly jewellery shop, Ren aimed a kick at the door and was mildly comforted as it rattled in its socket.

"What did that door ever do to you?" Elazul asked as she ran to catch up.

"Nothing, but the shopkeeper was incredibly rude. All I wanted was some directions, but he acted like I was going to rob him."

"I got the same reception. All I did was try to make some discreet enquiries about Jumi cores. That's the sort of place that often hears about such things..."

"Yes, I can imagine. Discreet." Ren nodded sagely.

"Hush. Anyway, all I got was a lecture involving words like 'vulgar' and 'insensitive' …on and on…like I need to hear it." He shrugged. "Of course, I wasn't going to tell him that, so I just left."

"Just left? No yelling? Invectives? Slamming of doors?"

Elazul looked over his shoulder. "Perhaps."

Ren giggled. "No wonder he was paranoid when I walked in."

The gates of the magic guild were tall, stark, and imposing. They were, however, open, which lessened the effect somewhat. The courtyard beyond was empty as Ren and Elazul passed through the portal, but the sounds of lectures being given could be faintly heard through several open windows.

"So…what are you looking for, then?" Ren asked, turning a slow circle and scanning the buildings.

"I thought I saw, or perhaps sensed is a better word, a Jumi here. Well, she wasn't here to start with, but I saw her a couple times in the city and followed her here one day. I tried to talk to her, but she ran off. Lost me in a crowd of students."

"Well, there's no one out here now, maybe we should go inside."

"Are we allowed?" Elazul stopped with one hand on the entrance.

"Is the door locked?"

"No."

"Then what's the problem?" Ren reached past him and pushed the door. It opened silently and they went inside. "I mean, the worst they can do is yell at us to get…"

"Keep it down in here, can't you see this is a library?" A voice bellowed. Ren squeaked and nearly fell down the stairs in front of her. Elazul grabbed her arm and dragged her back to stable footing.

Squinting as her eyes adjusted to the dim light, she could see shelves of books covering every wall. It was indeed a library. "Sorry," she murmured to the upturned faces of several students scattered about the place. She wondered which one of them had yelled.

Suddenly there was a flurry of activity just at the bottom of the stairs and to her left. Ren looked just in time to see the edge of someone's robes disappear out a side door, which shut behind them. Descending quickly, she started towards it, but her eye was caught by a shining pane of glass that seemed suspended from the middle of the ceiling.

Stopping, she peered at the strange piece of artwork. It was circular and very colorful, small bits of glass glued together to form what appeared to be a very ugly face. As she looked closer, she couldn't find any strings or stands holding it up.

"What do you think you're doing!" Ren jumped to her feet from where she'd been looking underneath the glass, just missing smacking her head into it on the way up. It was the same voice that had startled them upon entering.

"Ah! I'm sorry, I didn't realize you were…er…" She tried to think of something non-insulting to say. "Er…did you speak?" She peered around the pane again, hoping to find someone behind it.

"More like shout," Elazul muttered, rubbing one ear. "I thought you said to be quiet in here."

"I'm the exception!" the glass boomed again. "It's very hard to project one's voice from another dimension, I'll have you know! Volume is the least of my worries!"

Ren backed slowly away from the loud apparition, only to stumble into someone approaching from behind. Turning to apologize, she came face to face with a green-eyed, green-haired young woman who lifted a hand in greeting.

"Don't mind Nunuzac," the girl explained. "He got stuck in an alternate universe when an experiment went bad, and he's awfully cranky about it."

"That's Professor Nunuzac to you, dirt!" the dimensionally challenged glass yelled, vibrating slightly. "Don't talk like you know anything just because you have hands! Hands…I miss hands…" Subsiding in volume, Nunuzac seemed to dim slightly and backed away, mumbling to himself.

"Dirt?" Elazul spun towards the new girl. There was a flash of green from what Ren could now see was a core embedded below her throat. "You're the girl from outside! You are a Jumi!"

"I'm not making any attempts to hide it." The girl lifted her chin a bit haughtily. "I am Esmerelda, emerald guardian."

"Not hide it? Here? In a place like this, surely…"

"The school isn't like that. Magicians aren't hunting Jumi cores anymore. At least, not the ones here."

"Wouldn't want your core anyway, useless clod of dirt that it is…" muttering came from Nunuzac in the corner.

"Hey, what's your problem anyway?" Elazul snapped, rounding on him, but Esmerelda stepped between.

"I said not to worry about him. I'm used to it." She tilted her head at him. "Aren't you going to introduce yourself?"

Elazul looked around, but no one was paying attention to them anymore. "I'm Elazul, lapis knight," he said finally. "If you knew I was Jumi, why did you run away, before?"

"I didn't know then. What was I supposed to think, with you shouting and barreling after me like a boar?"

Ren snickered loudly at that, causing both Jumi to look at her. "And…" Esmerelda stepped forward. "Is this your guardian?" she asked hesitantly, then looked closer. "Oh, you're not a Jumi at all."

Ren blinked. "Sorry?"

"No, no, I didn't mean it like that," Esmerelda held up a hand defensively. "I was just expecting a guardian, I guess." She turned to Elazul thoughtfully, leaving Ren feeling shut out, like a door closing.

Reaching out, she put a hand on the girl's shoulder and turned her back around lightly. "His guardian is back at home," she explained. "I'm Ren, by the way."

"Oh." Esmerelda sounded a bit disappointed. "So why…"

"So, you don't have a knight?" Elazul interrupted.

Esmerelda turned towards him. "Well I…"

"Actually, it's kind of urgent that I ask," Ren spun her back. "Is there a girl named Rachel in the school here?"

"Well, I know most of the students and…"

"You see, I'm looking for others…"

"I haven't seen…"

"She would have come here only a few days ago maximum…"

"Stop pulling on me!" Esmerelda yanked her arm away and stamped her foot in frustration. "I need to go to class, why don't you people figure out what you really want while I'm gone!" Swirling around, she stormed out the door.

Ren glared at Elazul. "Can't you let a person talk for once without interrupting?"

"Let you talk?" Elazul snapped. "Rachel's safe here, if she is here at all. I wanted to warn her about that hunter!"

Flushing, Ren was about to respond, when a loud voice cut her off. "I see lack of communication among young people is as prevalent as it ever was." Nunuzac floated up. "You've already chased away my apprentice, are you going to continue yelling until you both stomp off in a huff as well?"

They glanced at each other, then Ren gave half a smile and Elazul shrugged and looked away. "I guess I'm not really the best at…how did you put it? Communicating," Ren explained.

"It's a useful skill to learn," Nunuzac insisted. "Saves on misunderstandings, and also the sanity of teachers. A lot less yelling to get yourself heard."

"You're one to talk about yelling." Elazul refocused on the conversation. "Wait…apprentice? With the way you were talking to her before?"

"She came to me full of her own importance," Nunuzac said firmly. "Not unlike a couple of kids I'm looking at right now. A few insults simply remind her that she is a small person in a big world."

"Says the floating dinner plate," Elazul retorted hotly. "I don't see where you get off making a call like that."

"From out here, the big picture is far easier to see." Nunuzac twisted slightly in midair, almost a shrug. "Apparently you are not interested." He started to turn away.

"Wait." Elazul reached out to tap the side of the glass. "I'll listen."

"For five minutes at least," Ren put in. Elazul made shushing motions at her and she laughed.

Nunuzac turned back with a sigh. "Very well. Esmerelda came to me some years ago, seeking a spell to locate her sisters cores…don't interrupt! I'll explain. She has three sisters, all deceased. Their cores together, are four parts of a whole, an emerald quartet. She believes if she could get them all together, she could revive them."

"But the Jumi can't cry anymore," Ren broke in, despite herself. "I thought that was the only way…"

"It is." Nunuzac glared her into silence. "But as I said, she is very full of arrogance, certain that she can succeed where so many have failed. I told her it was impossible, but she insisted. So I took her as my apprentice and we worked together on a spell to bring the cores to her. It took many years, but we have recently finished it."

Ren sat down at a table. The professor's echoing voice was giving her a headache. "So…did it work?"

"It did, in a way. Hand to hand, coincidence by coincidence, the cores have come to this city. We can sense that much, but we cannot locate them more specifically. The magic interference here is too strong. So Esmerelda has been searching the city in recent days, seeking some sign from her own core."

"That could be dangerous right now," Elazul said. "There's a core-hunter of the worst type about. I'm sure she's safe here at the school, but out in the streets…"

"Well." Nunuzac tilted backwards a bit. "When she comes back, why don't you consider offering her your help, instead of pelting her with demands?"