A/N: Holy cow, I was looking at the stats and I noticed that this was my most popular story. It gave me a warm fuzzy feeling so I thought I work on another few chapters. Also, my original notebooks had hardly any emphasis on Jade. I'll do my best to change it but the Phoenix/Connor route is my favored story line so the fic may be a bit biased for a while. So now, by popular demand, I give you…Chapter 5!

Chapter 05

Phoenix came to with a smile on her face. The dream, vision, whatever it had been had left her with a calm, happy feeling. She was also vaguely aware of her hand resting atop something soft, that same softness on her stomach as well. There was also a pressure on her left that her foggy mind couldn't quite comprehend. Her eyes opened and she saw Connor's head between her hand and abdomen. His hand rested atop her thigh.

She felt as if she should be annoyed but wasn't. She looked around and saw that some of the other students had already cleared out. Then she heard him make a noise in his throat. His hand came off her leg and he pushed himself up. "You're fuzzy," she yawned after her hand slid off his head.

"That's what they tell me," he grunted, running a hand through his hair. "Sorry. Rosemary told me to sit next to you. Hope you don't mind."

She shrugged. "I might later but can't say I do right now."

"So what'd you see?" he asked.

"I was flying. Over a canyon, then a plain, then Waterfall City. It was the most beautiful thing I think I've ever seen," she said with a smile.

He studied her and realized that, had he the courage, he would have said the same about her. When she was a bit mussed from sleep and her claws were retracted, so to speak, he couldn't remember when he'd seen anyone more stunning.

"What about you?" she asked.

He shrugged. "I'm not sure. Mine didn't have that much clarity."

"Sucks to be you," she grunted, stretching. "Good looks, small brain and bad visions."

"Hey, what happened, I thought we were getting along?" he asked, spreading his hands.

"Yeah but I'm waking up now," she said, sitting up. "And I realize how you were being a pig and trying to cop a feel." She used his shoulder as support to help herself stand. "Later."

Connor shook his head and stood up as she left.

"Jade Winters. You're of the land," Rosemary said.

Phoenix's sister stood up and went over to the matriarch, taking the scroll that was handed to her.

"You'll remain at Dolphin Bay Hatchery and care for the eggs," the older woman said.

Jade nodded and sat back down and her sister nudged her a bit. "Way to go," Phoenix smiled.

"Phoenix Winters. You're of the sky," Rosemary said. As Phoenix stood, she added "Almost violently so, it seems. I've never seen one with such a clear destiny before. You'll go to Canyon City and undergo Skybax training."

Phoenix smiled wide. A few Skybax riders had come to the hatchery and dropped off supplies. Skybaxes were giant flying dinosaurs, a species separate from the more vicious pteranodons.

"Connor O'Riley," she said next. Connor lowered his head and Marian hugged his arm comfortingly. "You're of the sky."

Connor's head snapped up. He wasn't sure what surprised him more: the fact that he'd finally been assigned a habitat or the fact that it was the sky. If there was one thing he kept closely guarded, it was serious fear of heights. "I what?" he said, blinking in surprise.

"You're of the sky," she repeated. "Do you wish for your assignment?"

Nonononono. "Yes, o-of course," he said, climbing to his feet. They suddenly felt like they were full of lead clear up to his knees, better to keep him on the ground.

"You too will travel to Canyon City and go through Skybax training," she instructed, handing him a scroll. "And I suggest you and Phoenix learn to get along. Your destinies intertwine, there's no way to avoid each other."

His flush brought color back to his paling cheeks and he sat back down.

Phoenix walked down the beach the morning they were to leave. The water was almost freezing and the air wasn't much better. Still, the cold helped clear her mind and help her think. For that, she risked pneumonia.

She splashed through the surf and her foot connected with something under the water. She frowned and stuck her hands in, moving the sand around the object. She pulled and emerged with a beat up grey and black messenger bag. Her jaw dropped and she vaulted from the water, unzipping it as she went. It was the bag she'd hardly ever gone anywhere without but she'd lost it when the boat had gone down.

She knelt down and began emptying the contents; a portable CD player with the mini speakers, her CDs, her chemistry textbook and her laptop she'd used for notes. She also found her cell phone and a couple soaked decks of cards. She packed it back up and ran up to the main house. "Jade! Jade, come here!" she called.

Her sister came out and her eyes widened. "Where'd you find that?"

"On the shore! Jade, my cell phone's in here!" she said excitedly in hushed tones.

"But Phoenix, it's had to have been under water for weeks now," Jade said. "It won't work."

"But it's been off! If we can dry it out and clean it, there's no reason to think it won't work!" Phoenix smiled.

Jade gave her a pitying look. "Honey, it's a prepaid Nokia, not a satellite phone. God knows where we are but I doubt we're near the mainland."

"Well, I'm gonna try. Do you know if this place has any tools?"

Jade sighed and disappeared in the house. She returned and handed Phoenix a leather wrapped kit. "It's a spare, it won't be missed."

"Thanks. Oh and do you have paper? Like, a lot of it?"

Jade frowned. The finding of the messenger back must have been like a toxic agent to her sister and was obviously frying brain cells. "Why?"

"I found my notes. If I can dry out my laptop, I'm copying them," Phoenix answered.

Jade shook her head and rubbed her nose. Chemistry was the only thing Jade had ever asked Phoenix for help in and the younger twin was incredibly proud of it. "You might want to ask Rosemary for a few blank scrolls," Jade advised. "If you can't find her, then probably Marian."

Phoenix and Connor were the only two going to Canyon City. They sat in the carriage atop the brach. She was sitting on the floor, using the bench as her work station, taking the screws from her laptop. Connor sat with his arms crossed, watching her. When one of the screws rolled off a bench, he spoke up. "Hey, you got a screw loose."

She gave him a withering look and picked up the screw. "You're not very funny."

"Sure I am. What are you doing anyway?" he asked.

"These are some things I found from our boat. I had notes from my classes in this, I want to get them out. It'll give me something to do," she answered. "I don't really feel like explaining it in any more depth than that."

Connor rolled his eyes. "Has anyone ever told you how pleasant you can be?" he asked.

"Yup, all the time," she drawled.

When they were close to Canyon City, Phoenix packed her things back into her dried bag. They were met by a young woman in a padded white uniform with "Cambell" stitched over her left breast. "Breath deep," she greeted.

"Seek peace," Phoenix replied. Connor remained silent, eyeing the Skybaxes above the canyon.

"Welcome to Canyon City," she said. "I'm Jenna Cambell, I'll show you to your quarters."

Jenna led them down a narrow staircase on the side of the canyon. "How deep is this?" Phoenix asked. When she looked down, it turned pitch black before she could see the bottom.

"Over six thousand feet," Jenna told her, calling over her shoulder.

"You know, I never understood why Canyon City is actually on the canyon wall," Connor said.

"It brings us closer to the Skybaxes," Jenna answered. "And flying over the canyon gives cadets a better appreciation of the correct way to fly."

She led them to a wide ledge with houses built into the wall. "These are the amateur cadet quarters," Jenna said, leading them to the end of the line. "You'll find your uniform on the table. You must wear it for all classes and whenever you fly. You'll also find a map of Canyon City. Civilian dwellings and the marketplace are on the north wall, ferries go too and from every fifteen minutes or so. Here were are, your names are on your doors. Classes begin tomorrow directly after lunch."

Phoenix nodded. "Thank you."

Jenna nodded. "Breath deep."

"Seek peace," she replied.

"Actually," Jenna said. "That's not entirely correct here. For flyers, the correct response is 'fly high.'"

Connor gave a slight, humorless laugh. "Alright then, fly high," Phoenix said and found the door with her name on it.

There were two rooms in her quarters. The first room had a bed in the corner, a rack on the wall, a desk with some drawers and a table in the center. The second room had a flap of fabric over the doorway. Behind it was a bathtub and toilet.

She went back to the main room and lifted out the white uniform to study it. It was very similar to Jenna's. On the left breast was her last name and it zipped up the front. Suddenly she heard some banging noises from next door and frowned. She left her own place and went next door to see what was wrong. She saw that the table was knocked over and the curtain separating the main room and bathroom was torn down. The sound of Connor retching filled her ears. When he stopped, she heard him rinse his mouth out. When he appeared again, he saw her and stopped dead. "What are you doing here?" he asked.

"I heard something, a-are you OK?" she asked. "You're been kinda sick ever since the hatchery."

"I'm fine," he assured.

"So that incredibly flattering sound I heard a little bit ago wasn't you puking your guts up?" she asked skeptically.

He shifted uncomfortably. "OK, so I was. Why do you care?" he asked, sitting his table upright and sitting at it.

She hesitated, considering saying "I don't" and leaving. Instead, she went behind him and began massaging his temples. Whenever she'd been sick, she'd always had a headache. "Our destinies intertwine, remember? I consider it part of my business to know what's the matter with you," she said firmly.

"I…I have a problem…with heights," he said slowly, after much hesitation. "Beyond my father and possibly Rosemary, you're the only one who knows."

"Yikes," she said. "What are you going to do?"

He shook his head. "I don't know. If my destiny is to die then I guess I don't have a choice."

"Don't say that," she scolded. "You're not going to die."

He was quiet for a minute then said "You know, that feels really good."

"Jade used to get really bad headaches all the time," Phoenix said. "This was the only thing that helped her."

"Thanks," he said.

They were quiet for a minute. Finally she stopped and sat on the table. "Look…I won't let you die, even if it kills me. Alright? I swear."

"If you say so."