"Erika, I don't know what to do with you."

Erika stared into space, absently as her headmaster lectured her uncooperative ears. She sat in his office, a familiar setting to her already, and he towered over her from behind his desk.

"In your first day here, you provoked two separate fights and ran. Would you prefer juvie hall to Horizon?" Peter stared Erika dead in the eye, to accentuate the seriousness of the situation.

But Erika didn't so much as bother to offer a response. She just stared at him stolidly.

"If you choose to not cooperate here," Peter continued, "that's where we'll send you."

Erika avoided his gaze. His voice drowned in her unrelenting thoughts.

"That or a lock down school down the road. Those are your alternatives if you choose to not make it work here." Peter paced as he spoke. Clearly, he wasn't thrilled with lecturing either.

He stopped pacing to face his student. "Erika, if you don't talk to me, I can't help you."

Erika rolled her eyes, while Peter tried to maintain eye contact with his defiant pupil "What's your choice?" he asked outright.

Erika's gaze drifted to her headmaster. "I don't know," she said simply.

"It's simple. You either decide to stay here and get your act together or you're shipped off the juvie. Which is it?" his voice was commanding, tired of her lack of cooperation. He wasn't in a mood to take any crap from her.

Erika maintained her absent stare. She shrugged. "What does it matter what becomes of me anyways," she said.

"Do you want your life to go to waste? I can help you, it's my job Erika. But I can only help you if you let me," exasperation crept into Peter's voice.

Erika shook her head, and replied nonchalantly, "You can't help me, Mr Scarbrow. The only person who can help me is me."

"And why do you say that?" he asked, regaining his patience.

Erika shook her head again.

"So that's your choice, huh?" disappointment was conspicuous in the headmaster's voice. "Juvie?"

"No," Erika responded firmly.

"Then what is it?" Peter inquired, exasperated.

Erika shrugged.

"So you're staying here then?"

Erika shrugged again. "Yeah, I guess."

"Well if that's your decision, as of now you're on restriction. You're not going to be doing much the next few days. And Erika? Where's the copy of the rules and that essay I asked for?"

"Didn't do it," Erika responded nonchalantly.

"Well you can work on it during your restriction. I still want it done for today."

"Yeah. Whatever."

"Not whatever. You'll be supervised, you won't be participating in events, for at least the next few days. It depends when you get your act together. It's called punishment, consequences."

Erika's visage wore defiance, but she held her tongue.

"This is just to teach you, because you need to learn. There are better ways to solve problems than to break out in a fight."

"Not true," stated Erika, shaking her head.

Peter was surprised by her response. "And why do you think that?" he asked.

"You prove yourself in fights, show people that you're not to be messed with. It's about how fiercely you fight," she said.

"But does that resolve your problems?"

When Erika refused to respond, Peter continued, "That's what I thought," he said.

"But it does," Erika said suddenly. "You stand up, you kick some ass, people can't walk on you. Personal problems are secondary. Come on, this stuff is basic."

Peter slumped into the chair behind his desk. "Why do you think like that, Erika?"

"Experience," she stated simply.

"Yeah? What kind of experience?"

"Life," she responded. Erika rose from her seat. "I am so out of here," she said.

"You can sit back down until Mr. Claypool arrives," Peter said.

Erika shot him a look and slumped back into her seat. She decided she would try to follow the rules here, strange as they are. She was pretty sure juvie hall was a place she didn't want to be..



"You packed?"

"Yeah," responded the tall, dark haired boy. "Got all my stuff."

"Think you brought enough?" asked the man sarcastically as they walked out to the car, noting the many bags of luggage the boy carried.

"I brought all that I need," the boy responded.

"Hey, kid, I'm sorry," said the man, twisting the key for entry into his car.

"For what? Shipping me off like this?"

"You understand, right?" He said as he turned to the boy.

"What is there to understand? If I was in your position I'd do the same thing."

"Really?"

The dark haired boy shook his head. "No."

"Listen, it won't be that bad." the man said unconvincingly, stooping into the driver's seat of his car. "There's a lot of mountains surrounding the place.."

"I know. Why don't you think I'm putting up a fight? I'll be better off there than here."

"I'm glad I'm not the only one who thinks so. Get in."

Seeing the boy failed to oblige with his instructors, he said, "What are you waiting for? Get in the car."

"Can't wait to be rid of me can you?" the boy accused.

"Adrian stop stalling. You're going."

"I can't believe you were the person my mother left me with. You were supposed to look after me, not ship me off."

"Adrian, get in the car," said the elder, exasperated.

"Fine," the raven haired teen loaded his luggage into the back seat of the luxurious car, and entered the vehicle.

"Hi, welcome to Horizon," announced Peter Scarbrow as his latest admit approached the main lodge. "I'm Peter Scarbrow, I'm the headmaster here."

"It's a pleasure to meet you Mr Scarbrow. I'm Malcolm Garret," the man put out his hand for Peter to shake. Peter took it warmly. "We spoke on the phone," continued Adrian's guardian.

"Ah, yes."

"This is Adrian Garret," said Malcolm, motioning to the tall boy with raven dark, wavy hair. His eyes were deep-set and blue, and seemed to stare off into space. But it was not space that had captured his attention- it was the mountains, hulking forms towering over the rest of the life. He had a lanky, tall build and carried himself well. His features were chiselled and proportioned well along his face. He looked about 16.

"Adrian? I'm Peter. How are you doing?"

Adrian met Peter's gaze, scrutinizing who would be his headmaster. He blinked.

"Come inside, Adrian, we'll get you settled in." The raven haired boy obliged Peter's instructions and hauled his luggage into the main lodge.

Peter watched in bewilderment as his latest admit willingly entered the hospitality of Horizon. He was more than a little confounded at the scene, but decided he would question Adrian's motivations later.

Peter didn't know a vast amount about Adrian Garret. What was in his file was limited, and Malcolm had not divulged a great deal about the teen when they had spoken over the phone. But what Peter considered the strangest prospect of it all was that, as he had watched Adrian arrive, and he has not detected any hostility in his eyes. It was almost as though Adrian had already embraced Horizon as his new home.

Peter turned to the man who had brought Adrian into his care.

"He's not a bad kid," Malcolm began. "He just needs someone to straighten him out. He has his priorities figured out, and they don't include school."

"So he's a truant, huh?" Peter questioned.

"Yeah, and I think depressed too."

"Is there a possibility that he's suicidal?" Peter asked.

"I'm pretty sure not, but I wouldn't rule it out. He's had some rough experiences, but he has reasons to live for. He's a talented kid."

"Would you like to elaborate when you say, 'rough experiences'?"

"I'm pretty sure Adrian won't be shy in telling you about them. He's the one who knows the whole story anyways. I only know bits and pieces of it."

"Thank you, Mr Garret. He's in safe hands, I can assure you."

"I know. It's just that he was thrown into my responsibility, and when he was first brought to my house, he was a mess. I want what's best for him, and I think he will receive adequate help here."

"He will."