Will is jolted out of his vibrating world the exact second his foot comes down on the pavement. Already he had become used to the vibrations, and suddenly, without them, he stumbles as sounds come rushing back to him as a tidal wave of voices. Layla catches him and he hears her again.

"Will? You know, maybe you shouldn't have come to school. You really don't look… right."

Will looks at her and coughs. The dust ignores him and drifts throughout his body, no longer interested in drowning him in age. His eyes seem to be adjusting to the sudden lack of visible vibrations. Layla is not surrounded by soft greens and golds any longer. People have hard outlines once more without their various vibrations, Will finds as he glances around.

"Will? Did you even hear me?" Layla looks at him suspiciously and Will is reminded of his mother.

"Yeah, sorry, I'm just tired. I didn't sleep well last night."

"Are you sure?"

Will looks at Layla again and wonders if he is sure- Did he sleep last night? Then he realizes that this is not what she means, she is asking him if he is sure that he is alright.

Will does not answer her question, and instead tells her a lie so that he can avoid the possibilities of 'Are you sure?' because Will no longer knows what is he sure about, about life, love, sleep and endless dreams. "I have to go meet Warren in the library. I'll see you at lunch."

And then he is gone, and Layla is staring after him with a puzzled expression on her face.

Will heads to his locker and finds himself instead at the door of the art room. He stands there, numb, when suddenly a hand comes down on his shoulder.

"Are you gonna stand there like a statue all day long, or go in the classroom? If you're going to be a statue today, I'd like to move you to the center of the room so the students can draw you."

Miss Jo sweeps past him, the skirt of her black dress brushing against his legs as she passes. Will stares after her and she pulls her self up onto a desk and sits. She swings her legs back and forth, on the edge of the desk and regards him with her tongue sticking out from between her lips. "What's bothering you?"

"Don't you already know that?"

Miss Jo raises an eyebrow. "Clearly, someone was not listening when I explained my ability. I'm not psychic; I can't read your thoughts."

"But you said-"

"I can understand, yes. But understanding is a rather complex thing for anyone who has not truly experienced it to understand. Do you understand?" She grins at him and Will feels a smile breaking out on his face.

"You said you would give any student who answered that question with a 'yes' fifty demerits."

"Oh, look at that! One of my students was actually listening! Thank the lord." She slides off the desk and walks over to Will, slings an arm around his neck, and Will doesn't feel any pain in his shoulders. He wonders if the strange marks have disappeared, just as they came, but his hopes are dashed as Miss Jo regards him and slowly says, "The marks are still there."

"How did you-?"

She cuts him off with a sigh and a shake of her head that sends strands of brown hair into her face. "Part of understanding. I can tell what physical shape you're in- that's the reason that Principal Powers keeps telling me that I should take over Nurse Specs' job when she retires, which will only happen when the world ends- I can tell you've lost your powers, too."

Will stares at her sad expression and horror covers his face. "I've- I've… lost my powers?" he can't take this again, can't handle the thought of never flying again, of going back to a level of strength that he once considered normal and now thinks of as weak, can't stand the thought of that look in his parents eyes, the one that was there whenever they looked at him after they found out that he had no powers. Numb, he walks away from Miss Jo and collapses in a nearby chair, head in his hands.

Miss Jo regards him sadly, her arm falling to her side as Will walks away. "Well," she pauses, crosses her arms and walks over to him, "as far as I can tell, they're not inactive. Just… hibernating." Will looks up at her, and she understands the question he is going to ask. "I can't tell you when they'll be back. I'm no psychic, remember?"

He looks back down at the floor. Again, Miss Jo understands what he is saying, though he has not spoken a word. "You don't have to tell anyone, unless you want to. I would suggest you tell your girlfriend and your best friend, but you don't have to. I can get you out of PE, and you would probably be better off not telling your parents. They'll only worry, and your powers should be back soon enough." Will nods, silent.

He looks up at her after a moment, pauses, then opens his mouth to tell her… something, anything, just… to tell her, but he is cut off by Miss Jo. "You should probably go to class. The bell will ring soon." The look she is giving him, far off and cold, tells him that she knows what he was about to tell her, though he is not sure himself what he would have said. His mouth goes dry and he feels the dust stir up in his body again as he leaves. As he is walking out the door, he hears her whisper, "Goodbye, Will." He can't help but feel that it is final, the end.

As soon as Will is gone, Jorie sighs, rubs the back of her neck and looks with closed eyes to the ceiling. She opens them and groans. "I hate it when you guys mess with the students. Sometimes, I think you do that just to spite me," she whispers. Jorie's eyes close again, and she wishes things were different.

Author's note: For all of you who reviewed, thanks, especially Seducing Reason- three reviews in one day! And, about the lengths of the chapters, I can't really do anything about that without writing a bunch of stuff that wouldn't fit. It depends a lot on my mood and how the chapter flows. And YES, I have introduced yet another OC, but she is NOT a GodSend. Again, DON'T USE HER UNLESS YOU ASK FIRST. Thanks, and R&R, people, it makes the author update more often. 3