Chapter Five

Some length of time later, Sylvia was patrolling in the local area, and even working on outfitting the cavern that she and Serenade had earlier found together. It was now about 5:30 pm local time, more or less. And it was now Friday, September 14, 1990, as she patrolled in the local area or worked on outfitting the cavern she and Serenade had earlier found.

As she was walking down a street near the Zion Gate, while secretly patrolling there as Sylvia, an eagle suddenly flew toward her without any warning. A few dozen or so model planes that looked like miniature jet fighters were chasing that eagle, and trying to shoot it down. The eagle flew almost directly toward her, and she soon followed it when it passed her, heading for a hole leading underground as quickly as it possibly could. She eventually had to duck under some fire from those planes. And when she did, she ducked into a nearby long-abandoned house with thick stone walls.

Ten seconds or so later, she was Skyhorse, and out of that house, again. She found a sling and several stones, on the ground just outside that house. And she began slinging stones at those planes just as quickly and as accurately as she then could here. Each stone she launched here hit one of the planes, and knocked them down, until she was out of stones to sling at them. By that time, she had knocked down eight planes with those stones. She then withdrew her sword and shield from her subspace pocket of sorts, so as to have something else to defend herself and the eagle with here. Five minutes later, then, the remaining planes were taken down with several well-placed strokes of her sword or ricochets of their own bullets off her shield or the nearby ground. She, however, was completely unharmed by any of the bullets, due to her excellent defense of herself and the eagle, in fact.

After all the planes were down completely, she collected them as quickly as she could here. She soon stored them away in her subspace pocket, so that she could examine them later, whenever possible. After doing that, she went in search of the eagle those planes had obviously been chasing, of course.

Skyhorse eventually found them hiding in that hole, and put her sword and shield back in her pocket of sorts. That done, she tried to get the eagle to come out of the hold, of course. It took her about twenty minutes or so. But eventually, she did get it to do that here.

After she did, it soon let her pick it up. She checked it for injuries, et cetera. Skyhorse found no major injuries to that eagle, but they had still been hit by at least a few bullets on their wings and back. Nothing that was particularly life-threatening, but that had left some wounds just the same, in fact.

She searched for things that she could use to attend to those wounds, of course. After transforming herself back to Sylvia, she searched the nearby house for some things that might work well enough here. It took her a little while to find some old clothes in reasonably good condition which she could use while she attended to the eagle's injuries, by the way. But she still found them not too long after re-entering the house in search of them. Those clothes seemed to be about a few hundred years old, at least. And they weren't generally in good enough condition for a typical human being to wear in their life. She soon began tearing them into strips as she saw fit, in order to attend to the eagle's injuries as needed.

After a little more time had passed, she had done all that she could do for that eagle at the present time. Then she picked up that eagle, and put them in a sack that she'd found near the clothes in the stone house. That done, she slung the sack over her shoulder as gently as she then could, for the obvious reasons, before resuming her current patrol in the Jerusalem area.

After she had been continuing with her patrol for about another twenty minutes, the eagle suddenly spoke, in a moderately quiet tone of voice. It said, "Thank you for helping me, Sylvia. Those planes were hunting me just a little while ago. I was in the process of searching for someone else in the area when I encountered them. I was flying near The Dome of the Rock a little while ago, searching for someone named Kiena Jacano, in fact. But before I could get very far with doing so, I encountered the planes you saw earlier."

When she heard these words from them, she asked, "Who are you?"

"I am Isaiah."

"Named after the prophet?"

"Yes, my master named me that. He did that before he fell asleep about two years ago. When he left, he gave me orders to search for the person I just told you about. Ever since, I have been entirely out in the wild searching for the person I just mentioned to you."

"How come those planes were hunting you, Isaiah?"

"I don't know. But they resembled planes from assorted Arab nations, such as Iraq, Syria, and Egypt, for example, just the same."

"I don't know anyone by that name. Should I ask around?"

"I don't know if that would be wise, at least not at present. But I have this feeling, somehow, that you will eventually encounter her in your life."

"I see. And do you have a favorite place to stay, seeing as you've been staying out in the wild for so long, Isaiah?"

"I usually hide out near the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, whenever possible, Sylvia."

"And when you can't?"

"Then I hide out wherever I can, whenever I can. I sometimes have to raid assorted garbage cans, dumpsters, and assorted buildings, for example, though, in order to get enough to eat for myself. I was in the process of raiding for food periodically while flying in search of Kiena Jacano, when I encountered those planes. You know the rest by now."

She eventually brought them to where she'd parked her van near Christ Church, and put him as securely and as safely as possible into her van where needed. No more than a few minutes after doing that well enough to suit her here, she drove toward the nearest animal hospital. A little while later, then, they arrived there, and she brought Isaiah into that hospital, for the obvious reasons. An animal doctor or two soon took charge of Isaiah, and brought him where needed in that hospital. As they worked on him, they also got the necessary information from her that they needed to better take care of him to the best of their current ability to do so here. By 7:30 pm, then, local time, they had done all they could for Isaiah at the current time. They gave her some instructions on how to take care of him for at least a little while, and some medical supplies as needed, of course. She thanked them for their assistance with him, and soon left for her family's residence elsewhere in the area. On the way home, she soon purchased a cage as directed by those animal doctors, and put Isaiah in that cage as needed, before putting it into her van as well.

Sylvia arrived home by 8:30 pm or so local time, and went immediately to her room. That done, she put his cage in a corner of her room that'd been empty for at least a little while before then, in fact. After dealing with him as needed at the current time, she soon left her room again, so that she could tell the other Wakefields about what'd just happened to him here, of course.

Her parents and siblings were surprised at least a little by the fact that she'd brought an eagle home with her on the current night. She told them what she could about the incident in which she saved him from the planes, and kept secret what she had to about it. They soon asked what his name was, supposing that she now knew it, of course.

She told them his name was Isaiah, and told them whatever she could currently tell them about him. For any other information, she had to deny their requests, for the obvious reasons. Eventually, her parents and siblings went to their respective rooms for most, if not all, of the rest of the night, and so did she. After she returned to her room, then, she resumed work on a quilt she was then in the process of making. She worked on that quilt periodically over the next few hours, until about midnight or so local time.

When she got tired of working on it at the present time, she set it aside back where she'd had it resting before. Sylvia then went to her family's kitchen area, and got herself a little food and drink to have just before bed. She made herself some tuna sandwiches and poured herself some grape juice. Sylvia took about fifteen minutes or so to make herself that food and pour herself some grape juice. After which, she then returned to her room for the rest of the overnight period, of course.

As she then consumed her sandwiches and juice, she also prepared for bed, and read a book for a while. Eventually, after having first changed into some appropriate sleepwear, she had finished consuming her sandwiches and juice. She then put the necessary plate and glass on her desk, for later returning to the Wakefields' kitchen area as needed. That done, she returned to her bed, and was soon afterward quite asleep again. And lost in more dreams of the past, in fact.

The following day, she went out and spent some time with her friends Elizabeth, Leila, Sonja, and Ashley again. They went to the same mall that Rolando and Sylvia had first encountered each other, in fact. They were in search of more music to purchase for themselves while there, among other things that they might want to do while they were there with each other.

They arrived at the mall by 9:30 am local time. Whereupon they soon went to a clothing-related store in search of some clothes they might need later in the year, in fact. They shopped for a while there, and then moved on to assorted other stores as needed. They did this sort of thing until just about noon, more or less, when Sylvia suddenly got this feeling that something was about to happen in the area of the mall. She said, "Elizabeth, Leila, Sonja, and Ashley, I have this rather strange feeling something's about to happen around here."

"How come?" asked Elizabeth and Leila, together.

"I don't really know, Liz and Leila. And I wish I did. Believe me, I wish I did."

"Would you tell us, if you could?" asked Ashley.

"Of course I would, Ash. But right now, I just don't know why I'm feeling this particular feeling here. Can we continue this shopping bit a little later? I'm going to try to figure out why I'm feeling this feeling right now. Meet me later wherever you can, please, girls. In the meantime, be careful around here as best as you can for as long as you can, okay?"

"Where will you be in the meantime?" asked Sonja.

"I don't really know, Sonja. If I did, then I might or might not be able to tell you, of course. But right now, at least, I don't really know. Sonja, I'm putting you in charge here, in my absence. Please watch over Ash and Leila as best as you can until I rejoin you."

"Will do. Take care, then, Sylvia. May you return safely to us later, of course."

A minute or two later, at most, Sylvia split from her three friends, and began to try to find out what was about to happen here. Whatever it might be, in fact. She was soon drawn toward a city bus. And on the way there, she somehow got the sense that Skyhorse might be needed.

So, when she got that sense, she ducked into a currently-empty alley about a block or two away from the mall's nearest entrance/exit point, and became Skyhorse. After doing that, she continued on toward where that city bus was heading. First on foot, and then on horseback, as Serenade suddenly appeared next to her as she was running toward that bus.

As soon as he was close enough to her, she leapt up onto his back, and continued on her way. He said, just as soon as he could do so quite safely enough, "There seems to be a bomb planted on a city bus now, from an impression that God's just given me here, Skyhorse. I wonder if you'll be able to defuse it well enough, if you have to."

"Of course I hope so, Serenade. Is this another Negaverse-related matter?"

"It doesn't seem so. It seems to be another planned terrorist attack, in fact. At least that's from what this impression has apparently told me at the current time."

"When did you get this impression?"

"About twenty minutes ago, more or less. And as soon as I did, I ran away from Reuben and Timothy, while they were still working with me. I left the stable complex, and came in search of you. Fortunately, I found you in a timely enough manner, of course."

"I just got a rather strange feeling myself about ten or so minutes ago." She briefly described this feeling to him as best as she could at the current time, and finished about a minute or two before they arrived at a nearby stop for the bus somewhere in the city. Skyhorse soon sneaked under the bus without anyone knowing, after Serenade said that the bomb was placed somewhere under the bus's main body. She hung as close and as quietly to the undercarriage as she possibly could, for the obvious reasons, and waited for the bus to continue on its way.

After it started moving again, she made her way as quietly and as safely as she could toward the bomb. Which was placed in the approximate center of the bus's undercarriage, in fact. It had a series of wires, and a digital display for a timer that was now counting down minutes and seconds before the planned explosion of the attached explosives. The explosives consisted of several sticks of dynamite bound together, as well as several pounds of other kinds of explosives. Also there were a few canisters considerably filled with assorted small and sharp objects, as she soon found out rather unexpectedly when her locket was sufficiently close to them to detect them well enough. All in all, the bomb was quite dangerous, from all current appearances to her, in fact. At least from what she could then tell about it, anyway.

By the time she finished looking over the bomb in question well enough, only about five or so minutes remained on the bomb's timer. She soon withdrew her sword, once she scanned the bomb with her locket, and laid it on her stomach as she hung from the bus's undercarriage as needed here. The locket projected an x-ray-like scan, then a few other scans, of the bomb in front of her eyes just in front of where the bomb was on the undercarriage. Skyhorse studied those scans for a few seconds or so apiece, before her locket stopped giving her those scans. When it did so, she took her sword off her stomach, and proceeded to start cutting the necessary wires with it as the situation then required her to. Five seconds before the bomb's timer was about to run out, and just before the bus was about to hit part of the mall, she cut the final wire then present. And the bus veered away all of a sudden, not to hit the mall at all, in fact.

It came to rest about ten feet away from the part of the mall that the bus had been aimed at by terrorists who'd hijacked the bus in question here. And after it did so, she scurried out from under that bus, and briefly melted into the nearby crowd, putting her sword away as she did that. She then did that so the Arab terrorists wouldn't see her well enough before she could show herself again well enough here, of course.

The Arab terrorists that'd hijacked the bus soon came out of it, and began searching for the person or persons who'd disarmed their bomb here, for the obvious reasons. They weren't successful enough. At least not at first, anyway, for Skyhorse hadn't shown herself to them yet. Two slipped under the bus to try to figure out why their bomb hadn't gone off, while others went into the crowd, hoping to find out who'd sabotaged their bomb. They went into the crowd with several machine guns of mostly Russian and Arab design. And several knives also were on many of them, either in plain sight or not.

But at least not at first, anyway, did they see Skyhorse. For she'd hidden deep enough into the crowd to avoid immediate detection. All while also trying to figure out how to handle the five or six terrorists, at least, who'd earlier planted the now-harmless bomb on the bus's undercarriage or hijacked the bus.

Eventually, she came up with a plan as Serenade reappeared near the nearest entrance/exit point to the mall. She retrieved her shield, sword, and scabbard from her pocket of sorts, and prepared to engage those terrorists as needed. When they were close enough to her, and when it was safe enough for her to do so, she showed herself.

When she showed herself, she was sitting on a bench near the mall's nearest entrance/exit point. She was, of course, wearing her Scout uniform, when she did that. She had her shield hanging on her left arm, her scabbard hanging from her waist on her left, and her sword in her right hand, when she appeared to the terrorists here. She soon said, "Halt, you terrorists! I am Sailor Skyhorse, servant of the One True God! Protecting the innocent is one of my missions as a Sailor Scout. I shall not allow you to destroy innocent lives, if I can possibly avoid it. Leave now, or face the justified consequences of your actions, evil people that you are! This is your last warning!" As she said those things, all the other people in the area except for the terrorists hurried into the mall as quickly and as safely as they could, for the obvious reasons.

When they began to charge toward her, firing bullets from their machine guns as they did so, she shielded herself with her shield, and closed with them as well. Moments later, with some well-placed strokes from her sword where and when needed, half a dozen or so Arab terrorists were down and out of the fight. Some of their bullets had ricocheted off her shield, and hit them instead, for those she didn't strike down with her sword. Others not hit by their own bullets fell because of strokes from her with her sword. Still others were taken out when Serenade surprised them by trampling them under his hooves without warning, and others were taken out when the Pilgrim showed up with assorted items of his.

Fifteen or so minutes after she showed herself to them, then, not one of the Arab terrorists remained sufficiently active in the fight. For they'd either killed themselves with their own bullets, Serenade had trampled them to death, or Skyhorse had taken them out of the fight by wise use of her sword, scabbard, or shield, as then necessary for her. Pilgrim helped out Serenade and Skyhorse where possible, but had killed nobody who was fighting outside the mall at that time, in actual reality. Only one of the terrorists was still alive when the fight ended, in fact. And only because it was necessary for at least one of the terrorists to survive, in order to piece together the necessary information about the planned terrorist attack that Skyhorse had just prevented, of course. Among other things, for that matter.

Eventually, the fight was over, and Pilgrim and Serenade each left the area. Though not with each other, in fact. The only one of the three to remain in the area of the fight when they left the area was Skyhorse. And she was standing over the person who'd just been in charge of the planned attack on the mall they were outside now. She had them firmly in her grasp, and checked them for any injuries, wounds, and hidden weapons or explosives when she did. Finding no yet-unknown hidden weapons or explosives on that terrorist's person, she soon checked them for assorted injuries and wounds. There were several, mostly due to bullets that'd hit them after ricocheting off her shield, by the way. She attended to those injuries and wounds as best as she could until some law enforcement and medical personnel came to the mall, and dealt with the terrorists still there as needed. Eventually, they took a statement from her as necessary, and let her go not too long after that.

When it was quite safe enough for her to do so, she eventually found a place to hide a few blocks or so away from the nearest part of the mall. And she hid there briefly, as best as she could then do so there. For a little while longer, she stayed as Skyhorse, just in case her abilities as Skyhorse were still going to be needed. After waiting for about another ten or so minutes, once she got there well enough and safely enough, she powered down again, and was just Sylvia Wakefield again, in very short order, in fact.

When she did so, she finally realized that her earlier feeling suggesting that something might have been about to happen was her Scout state giving her advance warning that she might have to fight again in a very short time. And as soon as she realized that, she also realized that she'd not actually be able to tell her friends the whole truth about what'd just happened. At least not until they ever became Scouts, of course, if ever.

She eventually rejoined her friends where she'd left them, just as soon as she could do so well enough, in fact. When she returned to them, Liz said, "Skyhorse and the Pilgrim appeared not too long ago, it seems, Sylvia. This time they and a horse appeared to fight against assorted Arab terrorists who'd hijacked a bus, and placed a bomb on it, hoping to crash it into this mall, from what appears to be the case now."

"Oh, really?"

"Yes, that's right, Sylvia. If I'm not too mistaken here, that now makes three times that pair of fighters has appeared to fight in the local area. But they disappeared from view again not too long after the fight, just as soon as they could get away from where it was well enough, from what others have said here in this mall."

For a while, then, until about 3 pm or so local time, the quartet of friends stayed with each other, often shopping with each other as they did so. On the way to an art supplies store, they encountered Rolando as he was heading toward a store that often sold games and toys in it. When they encountered him, Sylvia eventually asked, "We meet again, it seems, Mr. Volois. What's on your mind right now, if I may ask you this here?"

"I'm in the process of going to a store that sells models of sailing ships, for example, Miss Wakefield. Why do you ask?"

"I haven't seen you around this mall often, if I'm not too mistaken, since our first meeting. That's why I'm asking, that's all."

"Very well. I'm looking for models of assorted ships that I and others close to me can try to put together as needed, whenever possible. Would you five ladies care to join me here, then?"

After a few moments of silent conversation about ten feet away from him among the five girls, Sylvia finally led her group of friends back to his side. And she soon said, "As you wish, Mr. Volois. We'll accompany you for as long as you'd like us to do that here, in fact."

So the six of them soon formed up with each other as they saw fit. Sylvia formed up next to him, while the other four girls formed up behind them both as they then wanted to here. Rolando soon led them to the store he'd just been heading toward, and began searching for assorted ship models, of course. The five girls also looked around the store while he did so, not really expecting anything at all to strike their fancies well enough for them to consider buying anything from that store, for that matter.

They all stayed in the store for about half an hour or so, until just about 4 or so local time, more or less. After which, Rolando went with them to the store they'd all been heading to when he'd encountered them. In that store, Sylvia and Ashley purchased assorted art supplies, either for themselves or for other people close enough to them in their respective lives. While they did so, Liz and the other three girls began to get at least a little bit acquainted with Rolando, if they'd not already begun to do so, in their lives. They were still doing so when Ashley and Sylvia rejoined them in a bench near the front of that store in the mall, in fact.

A while later, then, the six of them found themselves in an Italian-style restaurant for some later-than-normal lunch. They all ordered some pasta and assorted other items for that lunch, including a pitcher or two of grape or apple juice, for that matter. As they had their respective lunches with each other, they conversed quite a bit, if and whenever possible.

They took about half an hour to have their lunches with each other, before leaving the restaurant behind again. Rolando covered their check, and Sylvia the tip, in fact. After which, the six of them eventually left the mall behind. Sylvia and her friends soon piled into her van, while Rolando got behind the wheel of his own car. They all eventually left the mall behind for wherever their desires might then take them on the current day.

Two hours or so later, then, Sylvia and Liz met up with each other again at a local athletic club near Wakefield Castle. They met up with each other again when they saw each other near an indoor pool there. Sonja, Leila, and Ashley weren't there when they showed up there near each other, however.

For a while, they conversed with each other on bleachers near the pool, watching others swimming in it as they did so. Including, in fact, Kiena Jacano, though they didn't yet realize it. In time, Sylvia and Kiena would come to see a lot of each other, if and whenever possible. Though not necessarily in the Athletic Club they were now in here, in actual reality.

Once Sylvia felt she and Liz had talked with each other long enough at the current time without entering the pool, Sylvia rose from her place on those bleachers, and went to the edge of the pool. She came near a ladder leading down into the pool in an area of shallow water, as Kiena was about to exit the pool so that she could return to the diving board she'd dived off moments before. As Kiena rose out of the water while using that ladder, her eyes locked briefly with Sylvia's, before either girl realized that here. Their eyes remained locked on each other for a few seconds, at most, before Kiena looked away, and Sylvia stepped to one side, so that Kiena could finish exiting the pool here.

After Kiena was quite sufficiently clear of the ladder, Sylvia then entered the pool by descending it as needed. She soon had begun swimming in the pool as she saw fit, even after entering the part of the pool that was marked as deep water, in fact. She swam only where divers weren't very likely to dive into the water, of course, while there. She mainly swam on her back while doing so, though not always, while there. She also did some butterfly-style swimming strokes as she saw fit to do them while there, for that matter.

Eventually, Kiena decided to stop diving periodically into the water. By that time, Liz had also entered the deep water of the pool and come to where Sylvia was in it. As the two friends usually floated on their backs on the water's surface, they sometimes conversed with each other whenever possible. Which wasn't very often, of course, for the obvious reasons.

After Kiena decided to stop diving into the pool for at least a little while, she eventually made her way to where Liz and Sylvia were swimming near each other. Kiena soon asked Sylvia, "Have we possibly met before, by any chance?"

"No, I don't think so. Why do you ask, miss?"

"You seem at least a little familiar to me for some yet-unknown reason, that's all."

"I don't think we've ever met before." Sylvia said this to Kiena, in fact.

"Well, whether or not we've ever met before, I'd like to introduce myself to you, if I might, Miss Sylvia Wakefield."

"How do you know my name, miss?"

"I know it from attending assorted shows where your quilts, for instance, have been on display, Miss Wakefield. My name is Kiena Jacano, in fact," answered Kiena, with just a little bit of a smile.

"So you're one of the people who likes my work?"

"Yes. One of my uncles is Mr. Jonah Sherman, and he has been in the horse business for quite some time, in fact."

"I know him. He is lodging several horses at a nearby stable complex, including one horse I've particularly taken a liking to of late."

"And this horse is?" asked Kiena, as she also began to float on her own back near Liz and Sylvia in the pool.

"Moonlight Serenade. Right, Liz?"

"That's right, Sylvia. She really likes Moonlight Serenade for some yet-unknown reason, as far as I can currently tell, Miss Jacano." The three girls then often conversed for some length of time with each other. Thereby beginning the process of getting to know each other at least a little bit, if they didn't already know each other well enough yet, of course.

When it was almost 8 pm, Liz said, "I'm going to have to leave here now, Sylvia. I want to be home early enough to catch something I'd like to catch on TV tonight, if I can. So I'll have to go now."

"Do you want me to take you home now?"

"Only if you don't mind too much about doing so."

"Meet me in the locker room in about fifteen minutes or so, and I'll see if I can get you back to your place by 9, at the very latest."

"Understood. It was nice meeting you, Miss Jacano."

"You'll see me again, I'm sure, somewhere, Miss McCall." Moments later, Liz was out of the pool and heading for the appropriate locker room, for the obvious reasons.

For a little while longer, Sylvia and Kiena conversed with each other, before both deciding to leave the pool for the rest of the night as well. They soon entered the applicable locker room, and showered to get all the chlorine and other stuff that was on them taken off, of course. And they soon changed into other clothes there, when the need arose for them to do so. By the time that they were done doing so, Liz had been waiting for Sylvia for about five minutes or so, in fact.

A while later, then, Sylvia and Liz parted from Kiena here. They wouldn't see her again the rest of the night, in fact. Kiena remained in the locker room for a while after they left, and thought a little bit about what they'd discussed with each other while in the pool or in the locker room together.

She eventually left the locker room behind. And then the Athletic Club, not too long after leaving the locker room there, for that matter. She went home in her family's station wagon, and arrived at her family's residence about ten or so minutes after leaving the Athletic Club behind for the rest of the night. By 9:15 pm, she was there. And five minutes after that, she was in the bedroom that she shared with her sister Leah.

Seth was diagonally across the hall in his own bedroom, which was closer to the master bedroom, when Kiena entered her and Leah's bedroom. Their parents' master bedroom was at one end of the main hall on the ground floor of the house. On either side of that main hall in the living quarters' half of the house, there were two other bedrooms and two bathrooms. One bathroom and one bedroom were on either side of the main hall leading to the master bedroom. The bathroom closer to the master bedroom was the master bathroom, and it wasn't attached to either of the other two bedrooms besides the master bedroom. The second bathroom was the one directly opposite Kiena and Leah's bedroom, while the master bathroom was directly opposite Seth's bedroom.

Kiena soon dropped her things on her bed in her part of the room behind a curtain that split most of the bedroom in half. Not all of the room, of course. This was for the simple reason that part of the room had to be left uncurtained so that people could get in and out of the bedroom's main door, if and whenever needed or desired. Leah heard her do so, and then rolled over on her stomach, asking Kiena to open the curtain between their beds for a while as she did so. Leah was then empty-handed, by the way. Kiena soon acceded to her younger sister's wishes, and opened that curtain for a while. But not before changing into some appropriate sleepwear for herself at the present time.

After Kiena had donned a mostly red and purple nightgown with matching slippers, she soon opened the curtain, as requested. Kiena soon lay on her stomach, facing her sister, as she asked, "What's on your mind, Leah?" In her hands, she now held a few sheets of music she was currently working on for a symphony she'd not finished composing.

"Are you going to try to attend my dance recital in a few days, Kiena?"

"If I can. Uncle Jonah has asked me to help out with his stable complex more, if and whenever possible, in the future. I don't know why, but he asked me that today, just the same."

"I see. And does he hope to be able to come to see it as well?"

"Of course he does. But since he had to fire one of his grooms recently, he has been forced to look for someone else to fill that groom's position. He had to fire them after they were caught mistreating a horse there by a frequent rider of horses there, it seems. And he's afraid that fired groom and others may seek their revenge against him, that horse, and anyone else associated in any way with his stable complex, Leah."

"Not a very good situation there at the moment, it seems?" Leah picked up a Hebrew version of an American comic book, and began reading it a bit. Even while talking to her sister, she did so. It, in fact, was an X-Men comic book. Leah was a rather big X-Men fan, and her favorite X-Men character was Rogue.

"No, I'm afraid not. I wish I knew why he apparently thinks I might be able to help him out more with his stable complex here, of course." She studied her sheets of music for a little while, and soon found herself a pencil to work with so that she might be able to add more notes to the symphony if desired or needed. She found a pencil to work with, and not a pen, so that she'd not be locked into certain notes for the symphony until she chose to leave them as they stood then.

She periodically added notes to one or more of those sheets, even while talking to Leah in their bedroom. And she tested those notes periodically by trying them out on a piano, tuba, or French horn she had where needed in her part of their room. Even Leah helped her test those notes out by playing a harp in her own part of the room. Leah was of roughly moderate skill, in terms of her playing a harp, while Kiena had considerably more musical skill than Leah did, at least at the present time, anyway.

The two sisters periodically talked about their days as they tested various notes that Kiena was considering for her symphony's four main instruments. All of which had just been mentioned here, in fact. Other instruments that'd also be played for that symphony included a flute, a guitar, a trumpet, a clarinet, a few drums, a pair of cymbals, and assorted others as needed.

The sisters periodically tested those notes until just after 11 pm, when Leah said, "I'm getting somewhat tired now, Kiena. We'll have to pick this up later, if that's all right with you."

"No problem, Leah. Besides, I'm starting to do the same thing here, in fact."

"Good night, then, Kiena. Sleep tight and all that, if at all possible, of course."

"Will do, Leah. The same to you, quite obviously enough."

Without another word, then, Leah turned off the lights on her side of the curtain, got under her covers, and went to sleep in very short order. Two or three minutes, at most, after Leah did those things, Kiena then did the same on her side of the curtain, after first drawing the curtain shut again, for the obvious reasons. Both girls were quite soundly asleep in their respective beds by 11:15 pm local time, in fact.