Helia had arrived back at Red Fountain and was currently settling in to what would now be his room. Riven sat on his bed across the room from him and watched Helia in silence. Even if Riven had been singing karaoke though Helia probably would not have even noticed.

His thoughts were on the conversation he had had only a few hours ago with his friends back on Knightly. He thought they would have understood or at the very least respect that this decision was what he wanted. They hadn't even taken him seriously and they made it blatantly obvious that they didn't think he had what it took to make it here.

If he had done it before he could do it again. He was here to stay, because this time he had a reason to be here and a reason to be a hero.

Helia's musings were finally interrupted when Riven spoke up for the first time since Helia got back. "So do you want to actually admit to me the reason that you suddenly decided to come back or do you want to hear what I already know?"

Helia turned around hearing this, not having expected Riven of all people to strike up a conversation with him. "What?"

"Come on now poet man, are you going to fess up or do you want me to say it?" Riven questioned without pause.

"Poet man?" Helia questioned.

"You heard me, now don't change the subject."

The only immediate answer to Riven's question was a blank stare. After a moment of shocked silence Helia was able to work his mouth again. "I just thought it would be a good change for me." Helia said this and then turned back to putting his things away.

"Okay, now why don't you try telling me the truth?"

Helia couldn't help but wonder if he was really that easy to read. Was it that obvious that there was more to the reason he came back to the school. First his mother called him out on it and now Riven of all people. Helia hadn't realized how long he had been thinking this over but apparently it was long enough for Riven to grow tired of waiting.

"Okay since it doesn't seem like you're gonna tell me any time soon I'm gonna tell you what I think. I think you came back because of someone and as flattering as the thought is something tells me I'm not that person. Now let's see, up until the unveiling you were dead set on going home at the end of the week. So that means it was someone you met there and there was one girl that seemed to have your undivided attention. Not just that but you also forgot all about your little pacifist morals when she was in trouble and only stopped fighting when you knew she was safe again. Any of this setting off any bells for you? You can't even deny that she's the reason you came back without getting distracted and going on a rant about how great she is."

Helia stared at him with wide eyes and once again without words. Riven stared right back at him with no sign of backing down.

"Um... well I... uh" Helia muttered incoherently, unable to get any actual words out.

"She seems to genuinely like you. Just don't mess with her and there shouldn't be any problems." Riven said this with a serious and threatening look on his face and then left the room before Helia could so much as attempt to say anything else.

"Ugh that was brutal. Why, of all people, did I have to be paired up with Riven for sparring?" Timmy sighed dramatically as he fell onto the couch in the common room of their dorm.

"Oh come on main frame, it wasn't that bad." Riven said off handedly as he too plopped himself onto the couch.

"You're not the one with the Charlie horse." He griped back as he rubbed his sore thigh.

"Oh no! Charlie horse! Charlie horse!" Riven mocked standing from the couch and hopping around on one leg while clutching the other in his hand. "Woah!" during Riven's little show he failed to notice Sky stick out his foot as he Brandon and Helia entered the room until he was lying face first on the floor.

"Come on Timmy it's not that bad. We all know Riven's a brute. I got my butt handed to me by a pacifist." Brandon tried placating Timmy as he slapped Helia on the back showing he didn't mean his words as an insult. "I never knew a couple strings could hurt so much."

In the same sparring class Timmy had been talking about Brandon and Helia had been paired up. Helia had been solely on the defensive at first while Brandon was on the offensive with his phantoblade. However, once it seemed that Brandon would win Helia surprised everyone by using his laser string gloves to wrap Brandon up by his ankles. He then pulled and sent Brandon falling to the ground.

"Yeah Helia you were great, especially since it was your first class in over a year." Sky complimented.

"Thanks guys, I guess what I learned never really left." Helia tried brushing off the compliments, not wanting to be the center of attention longer than necessary.

"It wasn't just sparring though. You were insane in strategies class too and we can't forget about how you flew the OWL." Brandon said remembering Helia explaining his tactics for the given situation in Strategy class and how he was a pro at flying their squad ship.

"You're a natural." Timmy said this as Brandon sat next to him on the couch and Riven got up from the floor and sat on his other side again. Helia and Sky sat on the couch across from them.

Before they could continue the conversation anymore someone's phone started ringing. They all pulled out their phones to see whose it was. It ended up being Helia's phone but instead of answering it he denied the call and put his phone away again.

"Who was that?" asked Timmy curious that he didn't answer.

"Nobody important" Helia was about to change the subject when his phone started ringing again. Just as before Helia took out his phone glanced at it and denied the call. Before he could even put it down, though, it started ringing again.

"Would just answer it already!" Riven had lost his patience and couldn't see the endless ringing stopping anytime soon. Helia having the same suspicion excused himself to his and Riven's room and closed the door behind him before answering the call.

"Hello" his greeting was said in a deadpan voice.

"Helia it's about time you answered your phone." The familiar voice chastised him.

"What do you want Liam?" Helia questioned the current art student.

"Hey don't forget us!" in the background Helia could hear Ethan and Lucas yelling at Liam to put it on speaker. Liam then replied to them sarcastically. "Oh who could ever forget you two?"

"Did you need something?" Helia asked, pulling their attention away from the argument that was about to start. The line filled with silence and Helia checked to see if there was anyone still on the other line. He put the phone back to his ear in time to hear Liam mumble something into the phone.

"What?"

"I said I'm sorry, we all are. We shouldn't have underestimated you like we did and we shouldn't have said the things we did about Red Fountain and we shouldn't have mocked you about being a hero. Look man your our friend and it was kind of a shock for you to tell us your visiting for a week and then come back early only to find out that your transferring schools and leaving us behind for something bigger and better."

Helia was silent for a beat then two, letting himself absorb what Liam had just said, before speaking as he heard Ethan and Lucas in the back ground agreeing with him.

"Look guys, I shouldn't have snapped at you like that and, maybe I should have explained a little better but this is what I need to do and where I need to be right now. I like it here I have some friends and there's this gi- well there are some interesting people here. I found a new reason to be here and be a hero and I can't just forget about that and go back now. There are some 'things' i need to find out more about"

His friends didn't seem to notice his slip up or at least it they weren't going to mention it. "We get that now and we fully support your decision. Just don't forget about us little people when you end up in the history books okay? so, are we forgiven?"

Helia let out a small laugh and answered them. "Yeah you're forgiven and I'm too."

"Forgiven. Oh and by the way Helia, don't think we didn't notice that little slip of yours before. I won't ask any questions now but I expect to meet this girl when you finally work up the guts to ask her out."

Maybe Helia hadn't been as inconspicuous as he had thought.

"Um, yeah, well..." Helia was now flustered and started to blush. Thank goodness he was alone in the room. The mere mention of Flora, even without her name being said made him love sick. He was in deep and he hardly knew the girl yet.

He was struck out of his thoughts by laughter coming from the other end of his phone. "Don't worry about it man, clearly this GIRL is the thing you want to find out more about. Just keep in touch okay."

"No problem." Helia smiled to himself. They said their goodbyes and Helia hung up and walked back into the main room.

"Everything okay Helia?" Sky asked as he saw their newest member re-enter the room.

"Yeah just some business from home that had to be taken care of. Everything's good now." With that said the boys went back to flipping through the tv until finally settling on a movie to watch before they went down to dinner.

Helia knew he made the right choice. This is where he needed to be and he was glad he was able to meet these people that had so easily become his good friends.