Ballade's POV
"No, Lauren, only one member of the Ice Shiba family can master the sealing power. That duty goes to the oldest female child," I explain.
"Even if that weren't the case, Tracy wouldn't even allow Angela or Amelia to learn it," Antonio adds.
"Why not? She lets us train," Amelia says.
"Tracy may have accepted the fact that the two of you inherited your family's symbol power and lets you train, even though she still doesn't like the idea of having you fight," Ji says.
"She let me fight that nighlok that one time," Angela says.
"Tracy let you do that because all of us were too worn out from battling it once before," Lauren says.
"Mom, before sissy got the arrow, she was waiting to hear from Juilliard. Will she still be able to go to the school if they pick her name off the waiting list?" Amelia asks, slightly changing the subject.
"Juilliard is a tough college to get into, so the admission board placing her on the waiting list means that she must have impressed them at her audition," Kevin says.
"What college has you to go to an audition to even get in?" Mike asks.
"Juilliard is a performance art college," Ashley says.
"Tracy has had her heart set on getting into the school since she turned 13," I say.
"What if she didn't get in?" Kevin asks.
"She told us if that happened, she'd go to Michigan State to get a degree in veterinary medicine," I reply.
A few seconds later, Aaron walks in, holding Tracy's cellphone. I see she had one missed call after Aaron hands the phone to me. I'm not sure how to unlock the screen. So, I give it to Ashley since she knows to access the home screen.
"So, who called sissy?" Angela asks.
"The admissions counselor from Juilliard," Ashley replies.
"I'll call the counselor back. The school needs to know that Tracy is in the hospital," I say.
Ashley nods and taps the screen to make the call. She puts it on speakerphone then places the phone down on the coffee table.
"Hello, Tracy, thank you for getting back with me so quickly." a woman says.
"This is her mom. I called back to inform you that Tracy had a medical emergency and will be in the hospital for the next five days due to her appendix rupturing. The doctor said she would make a complete recovery," I say.
"Thank you for letting me know. I'm glad to hear that Tracy will be alright," the woman says.
"Is sissy going to your school in the fall, ma'am?" Angela says.
"Who was that?" the woman asks.
"Sorry, the call got put on speakerphone; that was one of Tracy's little sisters, Angela. She is excited for her," I say.
"That's fine, I was just about to send Tracy an email to inform her about registering for the fall semester, but the internet at the school has been down since last week," the woman says.
"Will Tracy sill be able to make registration?" I ask.
"I'm afraid not. The cut-off date is in two days," the woman says.
"Can't you give her more time? " Angela asks.
"I'm afraid not, but the best I can do is try to hold a spot for Tracy to attend next fall," the woman says.
"Thank you, ma'am, and I'll tell Tracy the next time we go and visit her," I say.
"You're welcome, and thank you for filling me in on Tracy's condition. Have a nice day," the woman says as she hangs up.
Normal POV
The next day Ballade and Antonio head to the hospital to visit her daughter. They walk into Tracy's room while she is finishing breakfast.
"Hi, honey, how are you feeling today?" Balade asks.
"Still a little sore, but other than that, I'm good," Tracy replies.
"That's good to hear, sweetheart," Ballade says.
"We have good news that will hopefully brighten your day," Antonio says.
"Did I get a call from the admission's counselor from Juilliard?" Tracy asks.
"Yes, sweetheart, but you will miss registration for the fall semester," Ballade says.
"So, I get into my dream school, but thanks to one of my internal organs bursting, I can't go," Tracy says wobbly, as tears build up in her eyes.
"Honey, the admission's counselor from Juilliard, said that she would try to hold a spot for you to attend next fall," Ballade says.
"But, there is no way to be certain that we'll defeat Master Xandred in time for me even to go," Tracy says.
"Tracy, your mom, did tell us about a way for us to seal all the gaps in the city," Antonio says, quickly changing the subject.
"Wait, my family has a sealing power?" Tracy asks.
"Yes, sweetheart, but I don't want you to try to master it until I say that you're ready, okay?" Ballade says.
Tracy nods. A few seconds later, Antonio's morpher rings, and he answers it. Ji tells him about the nighlok attack.
"I'm on my way, Ji," Antonio says as he hangs up.
"Be careful, Antonio," Tracy says.
"I will, and don't worry about Amelia or Angela having to take your place. No matter which one is out in the field, I'll have their back," Antonio says.
"Thank you. Now go. The others need you," Tracy says.
