The next morning drew quickly and her normal breakfast of steamed porridge seemed to disappear the same way: quickly, especially because of her best friend, Tom Morton, who was as hungry as a pig in the morning.

"Aren't you hungry, Nikki?" he asked between bites of Jimmy Lee's porridge, her porridge, and his porridge.

"Nope." And that was the truth. She wasn't hungry, just caught up in some thinking. In some thinking about that story of Harry Potter, that fear of him from Bo, her actual meeting with him, and her past. She wondered how it all came together...like a jigsaw puzzle without a missing piece.

"Alright then," he replied. He turned as Michelle Timbres sat down beside him. She was already dressed for the day, in her fatigues. "Hey, are you going to eat the bread roll?"

"Nah," Michelle replied. "Go on ahead and take it, Tom."

"Thanks!" he exclaimed, taking it from her tray.

"So," Michelle started. "Where were you last night, chic? All of the Lilac team was looking for you?"

The Lilac team, Nikole's station; "I got caught up in slaying the vamps." She snickered at the name: 'Lilac team.' Lilac? Icky. "Serious?" Michelle took a spoonful of her porridge. "Hey, this one has flavor."

"F'real, chic? No lie? What flavor?" Nikole asked in astonishment. The cafeteria food actually having flavor, this was definitely a Kodak® moment.

"Tastes like sugar."

"Lemme try," Nikole replied, taking Michelle's spoon away from her. She tried a little then replied, "Actually, it tastes more like cinnamon then it does sugar."

Michelle shrugged as she took back her spoon. "Hey, didja know that we have some people name the...uh, Dirty's visiting?"

"Dirty's?" Tom asked.

"Yup. Or something else, like, uh Dursley's I think." Michelle took another spoonful.

"Dursley's?" exclaimed Nikole. "Why?"

"I dunno. Like for, uh, a sample of Army life I guess." Michelle shrugged.

That wasn't enough for Nikole, but instead of asking her head off, she just continued sharing a breakfast with Michelle.