The virtual reality spins around me as I slowly slip out of consciousness. Can I do that? Can I become unconscious on Lyoko? I miss Earth already. There's no air for me to breathe, no colors for me to see, no heat for me to feel. But, at the same time… there's also no pain. No throbbing, no bleeding, no aching, no burning. Which do I like better? I could let XANA destroy me right now, and be forever trapped in Lyoko. Forever free of pain. But then I would also be free of love, of nurture and care and friendship. Do I really want that? I hear the shrill cries of the bubbly spike haired cat as he disintegrates into a billion virtual blocks.

"Aelita, behind you!"

A sickening, shrill gurgle creeps behind me and I feel the slimy tentacles brush around my arms. The Scyphozoa. I could let XANA steal my memory… then I would be able to live without the constant reminders of what happened. I wouldn't have to remember anymore. The weak little Kankrelat shoots his laser at the orb that circles around me one last time… and then scuttles away.

XANA won't let me die. He needs me as much as the other's do. So I guess I've got no choice, then. Time to stop being so selfish, Aelita. I throw myself off of the ground and run inside the tower, completing my usual ritual. I hear Jeremie heave a massive sigh of relief before snapping at me over the intercom for taking so long. I was just seconds away from letting the entire world be destroyed for my own selfish desires… and yet, I'm not fazed in the least. I feel nothing at all. What is wrong with me?

"Aelita, what was that all about?" I hear as I tumble out of the scanner, holding my hurting head. Jeremie catches me as I fall forwards, but the look in his eyes is that of disappointment and perhaps even resentment. I feel aggression from him, compared to the usual contentment that I receive. I also feel something warm running down my leg, and my stomach starts aching. The pain is dull and excruciating, and I lean forward as I grapple my arms around my pulsating abdomen.

Yumi runs towards me and puts her arms on my shoulders, and I press my hand against the scanner to give myself support so that I may stand while I feel my body ripping into pieces. "Aelita, you're bleeding again," she claims, her voice rippling with apprehension.

"Aelita, do you think maybe you should go to a hospital?" Odd calmly suggests, but I am not fooled by his polite nature. I can sense him freaking out internally. A hospital? Absolutely not. They'll find out, and then everyone will know.

"No." I snap. The first words I've spoken for the entire day. Those around me appear shocked that I have finally broken my vow of silence, but I won't play my little game any longer. I can't go to any place of authority.

"Aelita, you're bleeding a lot."

"I'm fine." My tone is blunt and emotionless, but I must make myself clear. "Really."

"Aelita, you're not fine," Ulrich steps forward in front of Odd and Jeremie. "You almost let yourself, your friends, and all of Earth die back there. Something is wrong, something is very, very wrong. And you won't get rid of us until you tell us what's going on with you. You're not yourself anymore, Aelita."

"Ulrich is right," Odd agrees. "This past week and a half you've just been totally… out of it. We're worried about you, Princess."

"Aelita." I look to my left, and see the old man from my dreams perched against one of the empty scanners. "My darling Aelita… you must tell them."

"Aelita? What are you staring at?" Yumi leans towards the direction my eyes are fixed upon, but of course she sees nothing.

"Nothing." Ulrich walks over to me and gently tilts my chin upwards, staring directly into my eyes with a warming look of friendship and comfort. Better than the look Jeremie is giving me.

"Aelita…. Why won't you talk to us? We're your friends."

I look into Ulrich's eyes for a bit, gaze at all of my friends, and then look back to the man that I can only assume is the subconsciously produced image of the father I had at some point. "To protect you," I confirm. My mind flashes back to the night of torture.

"Since you decided to fool around, you've earned your punishment. I know who your friends are, and I know where each of them live, and where they spend their free time. I'll find a way to get the information I desire. But for now… you're not going to tell a soul, do you understand?" His voice is harsh, and demanding, injecting fear into my very spine.

"I promise." I tearfully mutter across my dry, trembling lips.

"A promise is a promise, Ms. Schaeffer. I'll see to it your friends suffer a fate worse than you just did if I find out you've opened your mouth."

"A promise is a promise," I say to Ulrich.

I spend all of next morning throwing up. Thankfully, it is a Sunday, and I don't need to worry about missing class and being asked more questions. Everyone else is asleep this early morning while I'm spewing my guts out, which gives me the privacy I desire when running back and forth from my bed to the toilet down the hall. Honestly, I may as well just try and sleep at the bathroom at this point.

I think about yesterday and the trip to Lyoko. I think about how I put everyone's lives at stake because I wanted to be a little brat and play the game of silence. More importantly though, I think of the strange red orb that so cautiously floated around my body as if it were protecting me. Although in a way, it felt as if I was supposed to protect it. As if it clung so tightly to me because it was scared, and desired my attention. I think about how for some reason, shooting at the orb takes away my own life points, as if it was a part of me. As if the orb is inside of me. Jeremie said that, according to the virtualization process, something inside of me had transferred to Lyoko and was produced into the virtual world as the orbiting red circle. He thinks the program bugged up and stripped some of my human DNA from me during the transfer. It makes sense, I suppose.

Then I start thinking about parasites. Nasty, creepy, crawly parasites. Disgusting things that thrive inside their hosts and do nothing but steal. Selfish little creatures that suck the very life out of you. My stomach churns at the thought, and I find myself once again leaning over the toilet. I hate throwing up. Now is a time when I'm actually thankful to have short hair. Once I'm back in my room, I'm suddenly overwhelmed with a discomforting feeling of insecurity and fear. As if someone is watching me. I look all around my room, but of course, nothing is in sight. When I look out the window though… I see a man, semi hiding behind the tree, peeking into my window. Receding hairline, thick sunglasses, a microphone pinned to his suit… dressed in all black, maintaining a professional stance. Shoes that shine brighter than the sunlight that bounces off of the glass. As quickly as I see him, he sneaks behind the tree and disappears. It's as if he vanished right into thin air. I don't know where he went, or where he managed such a trick, but now my entire body tingles with the sensation of terror.

He is watching me.

"Aelita?" I hear a tender tapping against my door and I yip slightly, startled by the sudden noise. The door opens and I am met with the sight of the skinny, blonde boy who lashed out at me the night prior.

"Hi, Jeremie." I give a pathetic attempt to be friendly.

"I wanted to talk to you about something. About what I originally came to talk to you about yesterday."

"Okay," I say, looking back at the window once more before I sit down on my bed and gaze up at him. I don't feel like listening to his incessant babbling, to be honest. He can tell that by looking at me, too.

"Well, I did some research on the Hermitage."

"And?" I lean forward and settle my chin on my knuckles, attempting to give the impression that I'm listening intently.

"Well, I found a name. Franz Hopper."

My eyes widen as he mentions the name. It sounds so familiar. Franz Hopper?

"Daddy, look at my giant snowball!"

"Well done, my angel!"

"Franz Hopper?" I repeat. It sounds completely natural to say his name. This man must be the one in my dreams.

"Yes. And, as it turns out, he was the owner of the Hermitage. Even more interesting, he used to be a teacher right here at Kadic Academy!"

"What happened to him?"

"Dunno. He disappeared one day."

"Do you think he had something to do with the supercomputer?" I ask. My attention has been caught. Perhaps this is the key to learning more about my past.

"I wouldn't doubt it; after all, his house had a link to the sewers."

"Daddy, the men in black are here!"

"I know. Come this way, quickly."

"Jeremie…" I stare off into space as the images of my younger self dashing through the massive, never-ending sewers flash through my head. The man, who I now know is Franz Hopper, guides me by his hand as he takes me to the factory for the first time.

"What?"

"I think Franz Hopper is the man I've been seeing in my dreams."

"What makes you say that?"

"I don't know. I just… I just know."

"Aelita…" Jeremie sighs and looks down at his feet, kicking them against the edge of my bed. "I want to apologize for yesterday. I'm sorry I got angry at you. I may not know what happened, but, I'm sure it wasn't your fault. I can't possibly get mad at you for it, whatever it may be. Will you forgive me?"

"Yes. Thank you for apologizing." Look at that face. I can't stay mad at that. He's so cute. I really wish I could tell him. But I'm scared of what may happen to him. "Jeremie?"

"Yes, Aelita?"

I look down at my palms as I twiddle my fingers together. "I'm scared." He looks at me nervously, wondering what I'm hiding.

"Why?"

"Do you ever get the feeling that… that someone is watching you?" I stop playing with my thumbs and look back up at him. Wow, he's nervous.

"Why do you feel that way?" A blur of blackness wizzes past in the corner of my eye. I look to my door, wide open, but there is nothing there. Jeremie notices that I'm staring at my door, and he raises his eyebrows at me in curiosity. "What are you looking at, Aelita?"

"I don't feel safe," I say to him without turning my head. I feel very, very uncomfortable. Jeremie gets off of my bed and walks to my door. "No, don't!" I plea, fearing that the man will latch out and grab him at any moment. He steps into the hallway and looks around, checking each direction twice. Then he looks back at me and smiles reassuringly.

"There's nothing there, Aelita."

"Are… are you sure?" I start chewing on my fingernails, and a chill runs up my spine. Jeremie walks out of my sight, walks back to the door, walks down the other side of the hallway, and then meets back at the doorframe.

"Positive." He smiles and closes the door, re-joining me on my bed. "Aelita, why do you feel like you're being watched? Are you in danger?"

I can't lie anymore. "I think so."

Jeremie's eyes widen at my response and they become glazed over with distress. The color flushes from his face and he takes my shaking hands into his. "'Lita… please, if you're in danger in any way, you must tell me. I really, really care about you Aelita. I don't want to see you get hurt."

"I can't tell you… he'll hear you…"

Jeremie looks around my room, wondering who I could be referring to. He presses his index finger against his lips, leans in by my ears, and whispers. "Okay, so then don't speak. Just nod your head accordingly. I'll be quiet. Will that work?" He smiles at me, desperate to figure out what's going on. I nod, but glance back at the window. Jeremie gets up and closes the blinds. My heart pounds inside my chest. I have such a horrible feeling about this, but I don't want to lie anymore.

"Aelita…" Jeremie gently speaks in the lowest voice he possibly can while still being audible. "This person… told you that you couldn't tell what happened, right?"

I nod my head slightly, my pupils darting back and forth to make sure there is no one in my room.

"Did he say something bad would happen if you told?"

I nod, my pupils fixed on Jeremie this time.

"Did he threaten you?"

I shake my head no.

"Did he threaten… me? Or the others?"

I nod. Jeremie sits back slightly, disheveled by the fact this person knows who he is.

"So… this person knows who you and I and the rest of us all are?"

I nod.

"Does he know about… the factory?"

Now I'm getting really uncomfortable. Jeremie is really digging deep, here. Perhaps I'm just being paranoid, though. I stare at him for a moment, but finally, nod my head to confirm.

"The supercomputer? Lyoko? XANA?!" He starts raising his voice and my heart skips a beat. I lean forward and press my finger against his lips.

"Shhh," I order, before nodding my head. Jeremie scratches his head in disbelief and also fear.

"This is bad. This is very, very bad."

I sit cross legged on my bed and cover myself with the blanket rolled up in the corner. The atmosphere has become frightening, tense, and cold… and I don't like it.

"What are we going to do?" He asks, becoming leery and anxious.

I shrug. Jeremie looks at me and fixes his gaze upon the bruises that rest around my neck.

"Is this person a girl?"

I shake my head.

"So… this person… is a he."

I nod.

"I was afraid of that."

I bring the blanket up past my neck and cover my mouth and nose. My hot breath pressed against the comforter heats it up, and makes it soothing to hold against my frigid face.

"Did he put those marks there?"

Oh no. He went there. I slowly nod my head against the blanket. My eyes are starting to water, and Jeremie is growing more and more edgy with each question.

"Did he… put marks… anywhere else?"

There are some on my thighs and my ribs. I nod.

"This man… he hurt you?"

The water that builds up in my tear ducts escapes the dam of my eyelids, gently trickling down my pale cheeks. I nod.

"Aelita… where did he hurt you?"

I close my eyes and let the drops begin to consistently flow. Jeremie leans closer towards me and brushes his thumb against my face, wiping away the tears that inhabit my cheeks.

"You cannot tell anyone. Do you understand?" I mumble through my shaking voice.

"Yes."

"This doesn't leave this room, Jeremie. This can not leave this room. No matter how badly you want to, you can't tell. You can't, Jeremie."

"I promise, 'Lita." The firm pressed line of his tense lips slowly curls into a smile. I stare at him, debating whether or not I should do this, but… I trust him. "Show me where he hurt you," he softly requests.

And so I oblige. I slowly drag the blanket off of my face, down my chest, and past my torso before stopping and letting it sit on my lap. I look at Jeremie to see his eyes intensely following the pattern of the comforter. I clutch the ends of the blanket and pull it off of my lap, pushing it onto the bed. He's still watching, and he looks almost confused, as if he doesn't quite understand what I'm getting at. I grab onto the ends of my night shirt and carefully begin to roll it upwards, revealing my underwear. Jeremie starts to blush a bit, and I'm probably blushing too. But what's more, I feel ashamed. I feel dirty.

I'm still sitting cross legged, and so the wounded area is exposed. I move my hand downwards and point to the zone directly between my legs.

"Here."

Never in my short life have I seen the color drain from someone's face so quickly. Never have I seen someone go from neutral to absolute devastation within a millisecond.