A/N: I know it's short. I know it doesn't advance the plot much. And I know it's been forever since I last updated. But I had to post this, because if I didn't I would forget about writing more and the time between updates would increase. To anyone who's been waiting for a long time, I'm sorry. I started writing fanfiction as a break from my original story, and I write fanfics when my original writing feels like work. Therefore, when I write fanfic, it should never, ever feel like work. If it does, I'm doing something wrong. For the longest time, this was feeling like work. But it's finally feeling like a great deal of fun, so expect more updates soon; I want this finished before school starts! Anyway, enough said, and on to the story.

Chapter 9: The Truth

The moon was quiet. It always was; sound could not cross the vacuum of space. But even when there was some noise to be heard—when wizards discussed objectives within their stolen bubbles of air, or (less frequently) when astronauts chatted with each other within their spaceships—the moon was a contemplative place, perfect for sitting and thinking.

The place where Nita was sitting and thinking was, in her opinion, a better place to sit and think in than the rest. The view of Earth was especially clear from here; the marbled blue-green planet spun softly through space, seemingly just at the edge of the foreshortened horizon. It was a view Nita would never get over, though at this moment, her thoughts were not focused on it. Instead of becoming philosophical over the fantastic sight, she was busy trying to think of a way to start her discussion with Kit.

What would be worse, she thought idly, me telling him that I like him, or me telling him that I don't want to like him and would appreciate it greatly if he could help me stop? She sighed, the soft sound remaining trapped within the confines of the air she had taken with her. It was looking more and more like a lose-lose situation every second. But Kit would be here soon, and she had to think up something to say!

Or did she? The thought struck her as odd, at first, but something about it made Nita reexamine the idea. Did she really have to think of a way to make it seem all right when it so obviously wasn't? Kit had always stuck with her in the past through seemingly unsolvable situations, being the optimistic one—the blindingly optimistic one, in some cases. A sad smile graced Nita's features as her thoughts were drawn back to his reaction those years ago when she'd explained to him exactly what she was expected to do as the Silent Lord in the Song of the Twelve. He had refused to even think of the possibility that they wouldn't both make it out okay.

In the end, he was right, she thought. We both did make it out okay. Nita had often wondered about this; events seemed to have worked out far better than she ever could have imagined. Though Ed had died in her place, it had been a substitution the giant shark had welcomed. Everything had ended up just as Kit had said it would—with Nita explaining things to her parents, while Kit listened and ate.

Maybe, Nita thought for the first time, it worked out that way because Kit said that it would. Wizards can't lie… It was definitely something to think about.

Meanwhile, Nita was no closer to finding a way to break things gently to Kit than she had been when she started. What if it just can't be broken gently? she though, exasperated. To try and make her current condition seem sensible would be a kind of a lie, and that was territory Nita didn't want to get caught in. She was already worried about what she had told Katherine in the cafeteria, about waiting for the right time to ask Kit to the dance. She was hoping that it would be enough for the Powers that it had been the truth when she had said it; at that moment, she had seriously intended to ask Kit.

That's the problem with the truth, Nita thought. It can change. Some things are black and white, but most things only come in shades of gray, and this is one of those. And intentions change all the time. What might be a truthful confession one minute becomes an out-and-out lie the next.

Which is why we have to do our best to tell it the way it is, here and now. Resolved, Nita decided that she would simply tell it to Kit as it was. There was no other course of action that would not seriously compromise either her wizardry or their friendship.

With this finally settled, she sat back and looked up at the sky. It was dark—it always was, though the sun blazed noonday high in the distance, and her shadow stood sharp by her feet—but it was full of stars. Looking at them, Nita could have almost convinced herself that she was back at home, sitting in her backyard and looking up at the stars. If it hadn't been for the sight of the far-off Earth, instead of the moon, and the differing placement of stars, she might not have noticed. But those small details contrived to make her feel even further away from home than she really was. The past days' events had pushed her out of her comfort zone; this meeting here would be the ultimate proof of that.

Still, she would have rather not seen Kit appear moments later, still in his school clothes. He walked up to her, pausing for a minute to let his bubble of air merge with hers, before sitting down beside her. "So," he said, almost casually but with a hint of anticipation, "what's up?"

Well, he did ask, Nita thought, before beginning to tell him.