Dear Jules,

Hey, how's it going? I'm Noel. Noel Abrams, if you want to get exact. Jules is a kickass name, it's a shame your letter was so short. I think it's kind of awesome that our schools are doing this whole letter thing. None of us know too much about the Gallagher Academy, except that it's, well, the female version of Blackthorne. Or so I've heard. Never been there. Could you tell me what it's like?

So wow, what can I write about myself? I'm seventeen and my birthday is on June 29th. I was born in Roseville, the same place as your school, and I lived there until I was accepted into Blackthorne. Even though Blackthorne is just a half hour away, I miss Roseville. It had the whole small town charm that you don't really get as a spy. Nice houses and gardens, lots of locally owned stores, and everyone knows your name. What's to hate about that?

My dad works there in a pharmacy, it's been in our family since the beginning of time. Or at least the founding of Roseville. See, I was supposed to work there, but something about being sent to a school for future government agents changes that. I still love my dad, though, and I work there in the summers.

My mom, on the other hand, owns a clothing store in town. Maybe you've been there? It's called DeeDee's. If you haven't, don't stress about it; I only go when absolutely necessary. It's extremely pink and almost always filled with obnoxious teenage girls (no offense), but my mom loves it. Oh well. If you ever want a discount there, I'm the guy to ask.

I've got a younger sister too, her name is Anabel. She's only thirteen and in the seventh grade, but she acts like she knows everything about the world. I don't blame her, though, she's pretty smart and mature for her age. Even I take her advice sometimes. Despite it all, I'm still her big brother, and what can I say, I miss the kid. We were always really close, you know?

When I'm not studying, I play a lot of sports. Good thing about Blackthorne is that they train you like crazy in gym, so I always show up the guys back home when I'm in Roseville. I like almost every sport, but soccer and swimming are my favorites. It's the feeling of scoring a game winning goal or diving in the water at five AM that gets me. Like for one second, you're the best. Only for a moment. When I'm alone, I go running, it's how I clear out my mind. What do you do for fun?

School wise, my workload this year is ridiculous, as I've got to do field agent courses along with a few research and development classes. Nothing says "typical high school experience" like tracking your classmates in a Covert Operations assignment and then having to perfect a pocket laser in the chemistry lab. Only joking, though. I wouldn't trade this for all the cheerleaders and pep rallies in the world.

Oh, and Jules? I don't think this letter thing is a waste of time.

See ya,

Noel

Sophie,

Seasons?

I think I would be paprika. It has depth and richness, and instantly adds a lot of soul to any cooking. Plus, it's spicy, and a lot of people can't handle it.

There's also saffron, which is extremely valuable and expensive depending on where you live. Have you ever seen pure saffron? It's pretty trippy to know that shade of yellow exists in nature. Trippy, but nice.

But I'll tell you what season I wouldn't be. Salt. It's so plain and constantly used. It can actually cause a lot of health problems if eaten in excess. You could die from it.

I'm sure you just read that and said, "The fuck? What is he on?" Nothing, at the moment. All the resources in the world and not one of my brilliant peers has thought to develop the greatest drug on the planet? The other spy schools must be laughing at Blackthorne.

You sounded a bit high when you started talking about the seasons you and your friends were, no offense. Has the Gallagher Academy made this super drug? Is it a pill or something you smoke? If you could send me some, that would be great, thanks.

I liked your letter a lot, by the way. Thanks for the heads-up about the different types of letters. I definitely didn't want to be an ensnared gazelle, those are the worst. You were right, too. There were more try-hard letters than the clingy girl ones, but the classroom smelled nauseatingly like strong perfume after a few minutes of opening the envelopes. Not too much mail of the "do-not-give-a-damn" variety, though. Except I heard this one guy got a letter with only one sentence in it and very cutting. That's ballsy, even for a spy girl.

Not one letter mentioned boyness or manhood. I'm sorely disappointed.

Since you so graciously summarized your life for me, I'll return the favor. I'm Leo, even though I believe I'm a Capricorn. I don't actually give a shit about horoscopes, so it works out. I'm a few months off being able to be tried as an adult in a court of law and I could not be more thrilled. I think reality TV is disgustingly interesting and drinks should always be cold.

Summarizing has never been my forte. If you can sum up your life in a few sentences, you've got a lot of living to do.

Take it easy,

Leo

Ivy baby,

You'll have to try harder than that.

- Adrian

an: em wrote this chapter, so major props to her! quite a fast update and kind of short, but the letters will go longer once the partnership correspondence commences. like my word choice?

thanks for all the fabulous reviews! let's keep that train going. liked it? hated it? tell us about it! :)

-asha (: and the ever lovely em.