Once Aja and Kimber got to Synergy's room, they found they weren't the only ones worried. Shana and Raya were there waiting for them.

"Aja," said Shana, "I guess you noticed something different about Jem, too."

"Yeah. Kimber could tell before we left. I didn't want to alarm you guys. That's why I didn't say anything."

"Synergy," said Kimber, "can you tell us what's wrong with Jem?"

"I am sorry. I cannot help you," the computer replied.

"Well," said Raya as the girls were leaving, "she wasn't much help."

"Let's get some sleep." As always, Shana was levelheaded. "Maybe things will make more sense in the morning."

They all said goodnight and went to bed, unaware that Synergy was distressed by their concern. Something was wrong if all of them noticed it. Synergy knew she needed to help Jerrica, but she still didn't know how.

The next day, Jem and the Holograms practiced for their concert. Afterwards, Kimber and the others decided to have a talk with Jem.

"Jerrica," Kimber asked as she approached her sister, "can we speak with you for a minute?"

"Sure, but my name's Jem."

"What are you talking about, Jerrica?"

"Jerrica's not here anymore - I am."

"Jerrica, that's not funny!" Kimber was starting to get upset.

"Stop playing around and tell us what's really the matter. We know it's not just a cold," said Aja.

"I don't know what you mean. My name is Jem, not Jerrica. Can't you tell us apart?"

"OK," mused Shana, "now she's really gone off the deep end."

"Jerrica, you're scaring me," said Kimber. "Please, just tell me what's going on!"

"I'm trying to," said Jem, "but you're not listening to me. I'm Jem. I was getting tired of just being put away whenever Jerrica was done with me, so I decided to put her away."

"What are you talking about, Jerrica!" Kimber was getting so upset and worried that she was starting to repeat herself. The other girls were just as concerned. If what Jem was saying was true, then something was really wrong here.

"Listen, when Jerrica becomes me, everything is great. I get to sing and talk to people. But when she's done with me and 'show's over', everything goes dark. I can't feel anything. It's like I'm not a real person anymore. I want to be real all the time. So, I've made it so that I can be." Jem started moving toward the door. "I'm sorry, girls, I have to go. I promised Rio I'd meet him for lunch." With a wave, she walked out of the room, leaving the others stunned.

"Is this really happening?" asked Aja, to no one in particular.

"What Jem said," wondered Raya, "she was kidding, right?"

"Oh my God. My sister has lost her mind! I knew something was wrong. I just didn't know it would be this bad."

"Wait a minute," said Shana, trying to make sense of all of this. "What if she's not kidding."

"What do you mean, Shana?" asked Aja.

"Well," Shana continued with her theory, "have any of you ever wondered what does happen to Jem when Jerrica puts away her illusion? I've never thought about it before, but what if, somehow, Jem developed some kind of consciousness herself? I can see why she would resent being put away like she doesn't matter."

"But what about Jerrica?" asked Kimber. "If it's true, then what happens to her when she's Jem? She's never mentioned anything like that happening to her."

"Maybe it's never happened to her before. Maybe now Jem has found a way to make it happen."

"I can't believe we're even discussing the possibility of this being real," said Aja. "I mean, this is like something out of a science fiction movie."

"Well," Raya contributed, "Jerrica does own a hologram-projecting computer. Even without this weird situation, that isn't something you see every day."

Kimber rejoined the discussion. "Talking about if this is really happening is all well and good. What I want to know is what we're going to do about it!"

Aja had an idea about that. "We're going to see Synergy again. And this time, she is going to give us some answers!"