Dear Karen,

Hope you're having fun in Stoneybrook, and keeping in condition for my return (remember, you should be doing 100 sit-ups and 100 push-ups every day). When I come back we'll play Let's All Come In. I have some totally dibble new material.

Kristy

Karen Brewer is my step-sister who only lives with us on alternate weekends (don't ask; my family is really complicated). We've become really close though, and not only is she my sister, she's one of my favorite charges! I felt a bit guilty writing to her and not giving her all the details, because I knew she'd love it here. She has such an imagination that witches, Slayers, and demons would be no problem to her.

But security is security, and I would never disclose confidential information. Loose lips sink ships, you know.

I decided, though, that I'd put Karen and some of the other girls I sit for on a strict training regimen when I got back. You never knew who'd be called as a Slayer and some of them really needed some toughening up. Especially Charlotte Johannsen. I didn't think she'd last five minutes in a dark alley with a Thurgordian Slime Demon. Stacey was way to easy on her.

All these thoughts were going through my head at breakfast and, as usual, I had plenty of time to think about them because everyone else was in their own little world. In fact, Dawn, Jessi and Mary Anne all had suspiciously huge smiles on their faces. Stacey was staring at Angel, which meant that she too had a huge smile on her face, although not a suspicious one. We all knew exactly what Stacey was thinking (well, maybe Jessi didn't – you don't do those lessons until 7th grade health class).

Claudia, on the other hand, was talking a mile a minute about some commission that had to be finished by today. Apparently she was almost out of sequins, which given her outfit, wasn't surprising. Today, she had decided to do an homage to one of the most tragic parts of English history, the Black Death, which I guess her sister Janine was taking a college class on (Janine being a certified genius drives Claudia crazy but, as she says, an artist can't afford to waste inspiration, regardless of the source). She was wearing a tight black jumpsuit with blue sequined spots that represented bruising, and under her arm she had made a huge papier mache buboe. Continuing the motif, she had sequined the blood and puss draining from the buboe too.

Normally, I think Claudia's outfits are a waste of time that could be spent babysitting and money that could be spent filling her Kid Kit, but I had to admit that this one was pretty distant. Claudia said she was trying to represent pain and suffering through her art. She can be really deep that way.

After breakfast, Stacey, Claud and I headed towards the daycare center (not that Claudia was any use – her Demononic Designs office just happened to be in the same room). I had learned that the secret of getting Stacey's help was to ask her in front of Angel; she didn't want to look irresponsible in front of him and had decided that in order to get his attention she had to match his 'commitment to duty.' I was in desperate need of a second instructor. With Stacey there, I could work the kids in smaller groups.

Unsurprisingly, however, my plan didn't last five minutes into the day.

I was lining up my A squad (actually, I called them "Bear Squad" – I wouldn't want to damage anyone's self-esteem by ranking them) for the first lesson of the day when I heard shouts from the back of the room. Assuming they were coming from my B squad, I turned around to shush them. For once, though, it wasn't the kids.

"You can't take my red glitter!" Claudia was shouting from the back room, almost in tears. "I needed that. I'm making open sores today."

Stacey emerged from the office, carrying a little glitter jar and some red construction paper. "You know, Claud," she said, in a deceptively sweet voice, "I've been meaning to talk to you about that. You realize that boys just aren't attracted to girls who dress like plague victims, don't you?"

Claudia looked furious. "You . ..you hater." She advanced towards Stacey.

I rolled my eyes. "Bear Squad – GO!" I hadn't been training these kids non-stop for a week for nothing. They sprang into the dual attacker formation we had practiced, and a split second later, the right flank had pinned Stacey while the left flank had pinned Claudia.

I signaled to a member of Fish Squad standing on the sidelines, and she removed the glitter from Stacey's hands and brought it to me.

"Kristy," she said, clearly annoyed, "I just wanted to teach the kids how to make Valentines."

"Even I know Valentines Day isn't till March," interrupted Claudia angrily.

I ignored them both. "Remove intruder," I barked to Bear Squad. They escorted Stacey out, and I motioned them to return Claudia to her office. Fish Squad even returned her red glitter before locking the door.

This was extremely disappointing. I suppose I should have known I couldn't count on Stacey to be helpful. Still, another instructor would be nice. The kids could do so much more with extra attention. . .

We started drilling again and I was so focused that I almost didn't notice the figure standing in the doorway, but the tight bodysuit caught my eye. "Not Stacey again," I groaned, ready to order Centipede Squad off the benches and into action.

The door opened, and the flash of blue tipped me off. It wasn't Stacey, it was Illyria!

"In my day," she intoned emotionlessly, "warriors began training as soon as they could hold a sword. I see you are reviving that tradition. It will bring you great power. I would like to help."

I was so surprised that all I could do was nod. Immediately, Illyria begin arranging the children into a formation so complicated I knew I'd never have thought of it.

We had another instructor and she was good. My mind raced as I thought of all the things Illyria could help us accomplish.

And then I felt a familiar sensation. Was it? Yes, it was! A Great Idea! A slow smile spread across my space. This was going to be my dibblest plan of all.