"Okay!" Jody yells. Everyone is gathered in the courtyard, including all the teachers. There are multiple dummies placed seemingly randomly around us, each marked with the name of a different type of monster. "Here's how this is gonna work! One of the teachers is gonna hand you a random weapon, and as fast as you can, you're going to use it to dispatch one of the monsters, depending on what the weapon is. Aatami, you're up first."

Aatami did pretty well, though he looked confused for a few seconds when he got handed a bottle of water by Ms. Jones, before figuring it out and splashing it on the demon dummy.

When it's my turn, he yells, "You got this, Day!" I grimace at the fact that that nickname is sticking.

I take a few deep breaths and take a ready position. Mr. Winchester counts down, "Three, two, one.. GO!" He throws a machete at me and I behead the vampire dummy in a fluid motion, then hand it back to him. Ms. Mills gives me an iron fireplace poker and I use it to stab the ghost dummy. Some stuffing falls out as I pull the poker out and hand it back to her. Ms. Jones tosses me a silver knife and I drive it into the heart of the werewolf dummy.

"Good job!" Nydia high fives me when I go back to the group. "I think you have one of the fastest times so far! You're gonna be a great hunter."

I blush. "Thanks."

Pretty soon, it's Nydia's turn. She doesn't get off to a very good start, when Claire gives her a fake blood-covered knife and she accidentally stabs it in the werewolf's heart. Then she tries to cut off the vampire's head with an iron poker. All in all, she does not get a very good time.

"Maybe I'll just be your researcher." She whispers to me as she rejoins the group.

"That might be best."

I'm laying on my bed, listening to Foster the People and absentmindedly doodling in my notebook when I hear a knock on my door. I open it to find Ms. Mills standing there, looking strangely nervous.

"What's up?"

"How would you feel about going on your first hunt?"

I stare at her in shock. "Seriously?"

"Yeah. You and a few others have been chosen to go hunt a ghost a few hours away."

"Awesome! When do we leave?"

"A few hours. Get a backpack of stuff you might need, and then head down to the mess hall at three."

Yes! I've been itching to go on a hunt for weeks. As I pack my bag, I wonder who else is coming. Hopefully Nydia and Aatami. Speaking of Nydia, I haven't seen her in a while. She said she was going to get lunch after the reflex exercise, and she never came back. I'm kind of worried about her, but she's probably just exploring the giant building or something.

I finish packing and look at the vanity. I pick up the pin and put it on my backpack. I have somehow connected Tris and the pin in my mind, and it feels like it would be like forgetting her if I didn't take the pin.

Once I'm ready and it's almost three, I head down to the mess hall. When I get there, I see Claire, Mr. Winchester, and a few students milling around. Among the students I see Aatami, and I rush over to him.

"Hey, Aatami! Have you seen Nydia? She went to go get lunch and she never came back." I say.

He frowns. "No, I haven't seen her. But I'm sure she's okay. She can handle herself."

"Yeah." I respond. "It just seems out of character for her to just disappear."

Our conversation is interrupted by Mr. Winchester standing up and clearing his throat.

"Okay. There seems to be your standard restless spirit about an hour away in Worthington, Minnesota. Claire and I are going to take you guys to hunt it."

A collective cheer goes through the students gathered. Mr. Winchester and Claire lead us outside and towards a… church van?

"What is that?" I ask, looking at the small white bus with Sioux Falls Church Of Jesus printed on the side in bright orange letters.

Mr. Winchester sighs. "That is our ride. It was the only van we could find on such short notice.

I grit my teeth and get in the bus. Thankfully, the windows are dark. I head to the very back and Aatami slides in beside me.

"While we're relatively alone, I need to talk to you about something." I tell Aatami, observing that everybody else is near the front of the bus.

He suddenly looks nervous. "Okay, what?"

"I know you're trans." His eyes widen. "I don't care." I quickly reassure him. "I just wanted you to know that I know and I support you completely, and I know Nydia would too."

He lets out a breath. "Thanks. Can- can I tell you something?"

"Anything."

"My- my parents didn't support me. They denied that I was a boy, and they kept misgendering me. I'm- I'm also asexual. They- my parents- they tried to prove that I wasn't. They-" his voice cracks.

My eyes widen. "Oh my god, Aatami. I'm so sorry."

"No, I'm not done. When-" he shudders. I hug him, and he continues talking into my shoulder. "When the Kitsune came, I didn't even try to help them. I just ran away. I didn't try to save them."

"Anyone in your situation would have done the same."

He shakes his head. "No. You don't understand. I knew what I was doing. I knew they were going to die if I left them there, and I- I was okay with that. I'm a horrible person." he whispers, looking down at his sneakers.

"No, you're not." I say firmly. "Your parents were assholes, and with what they did to you, they deserved that. You cannot blame yourself." I pull away from the hug and look him in the eye. "Okay?"

He nods slowly. "O-okay."

"Promise you won't blame yourself?"

"I- I promise."

"Good." I hug him again. God, I can't imagine what he's gone through. I never got the chance to come out to my parents before they died, but even if I had, I couldn't imagine them acting that way. And then having them die, and thinking you're a horrible person because you're okay with it? My whole view of Aatami has changed. I respect him so much more, because he's gone through so much, and yet he's still able to joke and be happy around people.

"I love you." I whisper to him. "In like, a friend way." I quickly revise, not wanting him to take it the wrong way.

"I love you too." He responds. "In like, a friend way as well." He mocks me.