Elita,

This school is absolutely amazing. It's so beautiful here, so scenic. I already met two people who were basically fighting over me so that I could be their friend. They obviously didn't realize that I can be friends with both of them. I also went to the Pledge Stone today. You were absolutely right. It does seem very peaceful and tranquil there. I almost felt a distinct power coming from the Stone. I wish I brought my sketchbook with me. I probably would have already filled half of it with drawings of this place.

I love you Elita,

Lianna

"Lianna, do you write letters? I'm thinking of writing to my mom and dad about you, Lianna."

"I already wrote to my sister about you, Keith, and the Pledge Stone. She'll probably read it to my little sister, Reyna. Reyna can't really read yet, but she can write some."

"So, you have two sisters? Elita and Reyna?"

"Yeah, they're pretty much twins, except for the age difference, of course. They both have that lavender colored hair and violet eyes. I look nothing like either of them because of my black hair and green eyes."

"Say…let's sneak out for a while."

Lianna and Rhythmi left their room and went out to the main area. Lianna noticed that Keith was there with two other students from their class.

"Thanks for waiting."

"Yeah, kept us waiting, Rhythmi."

"Calm down, Keith. Okay, let's get started with our test of courage to welcome Lianna."

Lianna's eyebrows went up in surprise but she didn't voice a rejection. Keith turned to her with a tiny smile on his face.

"We just want you to prove you're brave. I had to do it before, too. It's no big deal. But, you know, you do have that easily spooked look to you. No offense."

Lianna let out another growl at Keith. Rhythmi, sensing the tiny bit of hostility/rivalry, stepped up.

"The rules are simple. The four of us have hidden our Stylers in four different places in the school. They are: Ms. April's class, Mr. Kincaid's class, the staff room, and the library. Gather all four Stylers, then put them in front of the door to the basement room. It's not hard or anything, but it's also not safe to go alone. That's why we've always had this one rule: the student seated next to the initiate has to go, too."

Keith grunted at the news.

"You mean me…"

Rhythmi clapped her hands once and smiled.

"Okay, you two. Off you go."

They went down the stairs side by side. As soon as they got down there, Keith screamed and rushed to the bottom of the stairs. Laughter could be heard from the second level.

"Wah! Th-there's something there!"

Lianna looked to where Keith was pointing and saw a Bidoof.

"Keith, it's just a Bidoof."

"It just startled me, that's all… You…you were spooked, too, right?"

Lianna rolled her eyes, but smiled at Keith.

"Sure, Keith. I was terrified."

He lightly pushed her because of her sarcastic tone. However, he couldn't help but smile. The thought that she was coming out of her shy shell made him happy, but he wasn't sure why. They first went to the staff room and saw a lone Pichu at the head of the room. Lianna captured it and it dropped the Styler that it had been hiding. Keith grabbed it and put it in his pocket.

"Only three more, right?"

Lianna nodded and the two left the staff room. They went to the library next and Keith shivered.

"The library's scary at night, too… It's as if someone's lurking here…"

Lianna rolled her eyes and turned to Keith.

"Will you calm down? It's not that scary."

Lianna walked to the back of the library and grabbed the Styler that rested on the table. She went back to Keith and gave it to him, leaving the library. Her next stop was Ms. April's class.

"Even our own classroom's kind of creepy at night…"

Lianna searched through the desks and finally found the Styler in her own desk. She gave it to Keith and started to go to Mr. Kincaid's class. She was jerked back when she felt Keith grab her hand.

"Something wrong, Keith?"

"Have you been hearing anything?"

"No, why?"

"I just… Never mind."

He walked into Mr. Kincaid's room and shut the door. Lianna stared after him confused. She followed him into Mr. Kincaid's class and saw him sitting on the desk, holding the Styler with a smirk on his face.

"I already knew where this one was, considering I was the one who hid it. This is the last one. Let's take them down to the basement."

They went down to the basement, where Keith grabbed her arm. She turned and faced him with a puzzled face.

"Something wrong, Keith?"

"Are you sure you haven't been hearing anything?"

"I haven't heard a thing. Have you?"

"It might just be my imagination."

They walked to the door of Mr. Kincaid's lab and Keith gave Lianna the Stylers.

"Plunk down the Stylers here, then we go back to the dorms, and we're done. But hustle, will you? I can't take much more of this…"

There was a slight noise which both Keith and Lianna heard.

"Sssh… Did you hear that?" Keith asked.

Keith got his answer when he felt Lianna's hand grip his. He looked over at her and saw her eyes wide with fright. Keith returned the grip on her hand and moved closer to her. Suddenly, four things came through the wall and showed themselves as Ghastly.

"BWAAAAAH!"

Keith and Lianna both screamed and threw their arms around each other out of pure fright. The four Ghastly floated away but Lianna and Keith kept their grip on each other.

"Oh, it was just Ghastly…"

Keith had just realized that he was hugging Lianna when the door burst open. Mr. Kincaid rushed out, scaring the two Ranger wannabes even more.

"WHO'S THERE?! The basement is off-limits to everyone but myself!"

Keith and Lianna turned to each other and both blushed when they saw how close their faces were.

"RUN!"

Keith released his hold on Lianna but grabbed her hand and ran from the basement. They made it up to the dorms and stopped so they could catch their breath.

"What happened?"

"Rhythmi, Mr. Kincaid was down there! He caught us! He knows we were there!" Keith said.

"Oh, geez! I'm sorry! Well, that doesn't really matter now. Let's get some sleep."

Rhythmi and Lianna both went to their room and laid down to go to sleep.

~In Mr. Kincaid's Lab~

A boy with a mushroom shaped haircut stood at the back of the lab.

"Is something the matter, sir?"

"…No, it's nothing. Just a Zubat causing a minor disturbance in the hallway. Incidentally…was that experiment a success? Or was it a failure?"

"It's impossible to say yet. The control systems aren't complete. But, it's only a matter of adjustment now."

"Isaac. I'm counting on you to succeed. Having said that, it is late. Let's call it a night on our research. Insufficient sleep should be avoided."

"I'll return to my dorm, then. Good night, Mr. Kincaid."

Isaac left the lab and returned to his dorm to get some sleep.