Challenger noticed a strange silence at dinner that night. He didn't know what had happened that day, but his fellow house mates seemed to be preoccupied. Finn, who had uncharacteristically spent the day silently performing every task that Challenger asked of her in the lab, seemed to be upset about something. Her shoulders were slumped, and she kept her eyes cast down. Veronica, who had arrived at the tree house just in time for dinner, seemed to be avoiding Malone's gaze. Malone, on the other hand, spent the entire meal starting intently at Veronica. Marguerite and Roxton might as well have been dining alone. Ever since they returned earlier that afternoon, they had no concept of anyone or anything else except each other.

At one point, Challenger tried to begin a conversation by telling them about some experiments he was conducting on Arthur the beetle, but he gave up when he received no response. "Well, perhaps some good could come of this silence," he mused. "At least I have more time to think about my experiments."

When the meal was over, each person cleared off their part of the table, and went in a different direction. Finn immediately went to her room to avoid Marguerite, Malone, and Veronica. Challenger retired to the lab to make more gun powder for their journey. Roxton and Marguerite went to the living room couch to enjoy each other's company. Veronica went out to the balcony to think. And Malone stayed at the kitchen table, his head in his hands, trying to put his thoughts together. He didn't want to push Veronica to open up to him, but at the same time, he wanted to let her know that she could talk to him about anything. After wrestling with the decision for awhile, he decided that he had to try to talk to her.

Veronica sensed someone behind her. She knew it was Ned before she turned around. She had felt his eyes on her all through dinner. He obviously knew something was wrong, and she would have to face him soon.

"Beautiful night," Ned commented, walking up beside her.

"Yeah," Veronica responded, keeping her eyes on the stars above.

He decided to ease her into conversation. "How was your trip to the village today? Are the Zanga dealing well the aftermath of the storm?"

"They're managing well," Veronica answered. "They're doing a lot of repairs, and restocking supplies, just like all of you have been doing here. I talked to Assai and Jarl for a long time about what happened. I told them about our experiences and Challenger's theory of what happened. They seem to agree with him. They all went through similar experiences with the time warps. And after the blackout, they all ended up back in their village, just like all of you ended up here. That's the only thing that goes against Challenger's theory. He thought you all landed here because you were pulled towards the center of energy, but instead it seems like everyone was brought back to where they belong."

"But what about me? I haven't been here for months. Why did I end up back at the tree house?"

Veronica smiled at him, momentarily forgetting why she was avoiding him. She put her hand on his. "Because this is where you belong, Ned."

Malone smiled back at her, and regained some of his lost hope. She'd called him "Ned" again. Whatever was plaguing her thoughts, whether it was this Ducart or something else, it wasn't strong enough to overcome her feelings for him. He knew this was his chance. He was going to find out what was wrong with her while she had her guard down.

"Veronica, I was wondering-"

"NED!" She interrupted. "Look! Do you see it?"

Ned followed her gaze to the sky and was amazed at what he saw. "The stars! They're moving!" It truly was an astonishing sight. The stars seemed to be swirling, rearranging themselves in the sky. Finally, they stopped, apparently content with their new display.

"Oh my God!" Veronica exclaimed.

"They formed the shape of the Trion," Ned finished.

"This is it, Ned! This is our sign! We have to tell the others. Tomorrow, we leave for Avalon."