Chapter 10 Getting back on your feet

Waking up had been anything but fun. Normally I wasn't much a fan of awakening. Especially not when I could not recognize my environment. The last thing I could fully remember was biting the lip off a Banshee. Which was definitely going in my book of 'things I will never do again'. It took me a minute to realize I was safe. That the girls were surrounding me. And that they were as pale as I felt. My awkward greeting nearly caused them all to cry.

It was quite a surreal experience. I felt like I'd crawled back from Death's door and according to Irma's colourful story, apparently I did. The doctor – who Hay Lin had gone to fetch the moment she'd gathered herself – was also very clear on how lucky I was to have survived that kind of torture. He wasn't really too pleased when I told him how I got that poison in my system in the first place. He'd been close to saying that he shouldn't have tried to save me and something about natural selection. His mutterings quickly died out when he noticed how Taranee's hair had caught fire. Her fire golem, along with Cornelia's earth golem were also still present and clearly unhappy with his opinion. Nevertheless I thanked him. At least I could still tell everyone of my big mistake. Before the good doctor made his quick escape, he reminded me that I was not allowed to do any tough physical exercise until the green had left my lips. This meant a total embargo on Guardian practice, swimming and P.E. I was going to have a boring few days, I was certain of that.

Ari was quick to enter after the doctor left. I really wanted some rest. Hopefully this time without a series of awkward dreams. But he seemed keen on thanking me. He was terribly thorough, apologizing for his underestimation of our abilities as well as how far we'd gone to save and protect Maqi as well as him from his own wrongdoings. I managed to gather that the girls told him about my deal with the Banshee. This only caused shivers to go down my spine, because it meant that they would be having a discussion with me about said deal. And I would probably hear something along the lines of how stupid I was.

I was spared this torture for at least one day. They'd seen that I tired out easily and gave me the respite I wanted. It wasn't exactly what I needed. Again my dreams pulled me into places and moments I couldn't have possibly experienced. I saw Yua, praising me for a magic feat I'd just managed. A feat I knew I wasn't capable off as it had something to do with fog. The dreams changed and I was now sitting on my knees in front of a table. On said table was a small mountain of books and a stack of paper. A quill and inkpot stood nearby. I heard Luba tell me to copy the books. Asking which book she meant, I quickly learned she meant every book of the mountain. The dream switched to me being surrounded by Banshee. They weren't ominous, rather they seemed to enjoy themselves well while they told stories about how farmers had tried to capture them. With their honing laughter, the dream changed once more. This time I stood in a garden and Luba's merciless voice called me out, telling me I made a mistake and to start again. Being forced through what seemed like a kata was the last I remembered before waking up again.

By now I was hungry. The doctor had told me to stay in bed for at least another day, but according to my calculations, I did just that. Seeing as no one was in the room, I decided to help myself up. Walking after being out for what felt like weeks, was a challenge. My legs wobbled greatly and I needed to catch myself on the chair before falling down. Good thing I did, as I noticed that my Guardian top lay over it. With some difficulty I managed to get it on, wondering how I couldn't have noticed the lack of said garment. With it in place, I felt a little bit better. I at least found the strength to move. I managed to reach the door and as I opened it, I faced a rather surprised looking guard. I assumed he was one. He started stammering about me getting back to bed. I silenced him by placing my finger on his lips. In hindsight, that must have looked like a very drunken action, but at that moment it was the only thing my mind could come up with.

"Where are the kitchens?" I said.

The stumped guard pointed in a direction. I nodded and whispered a thank you before going in the direction he pointed out to me. It didn't take him long to gather his wits and run after me. He was sputtering again, telling me I shouldn't be up. I rolled my eyes. I was hungry. And now that I thought of it, a bathroom wouldn't be a bad idea either.

"Tell me when we're walking past a toilet room or something," I said, interrupting him.

The poor man nodded and pointed at the room I was about to bypass. I smiled at him and duck into said room. Upon returning the guard was still there, now only slightly red in the face. He shouldn't be the one embarrassed. The moment he saw me, he tried to herd me back to my room. With a bit of coaxing I managed to convince him that he could escort me to the dining room. Which was a lucky happening. Because halfway to said room I could feel my legs buckle again. He noticed and offered his shoulder as support.

With him as support, I managed to reach the dining hall. However, where I'd hoped to find it empty, I was greeted by the very concerned shouts of my friends. It was dinner time. I really hoped the doctor saw me yesterday or I would be getting a lecture about that as well. Hay Lin and Irma were the first to approach me. They took over the support from the guard, who now feverishly started his explanation as to why I was out of bed. Ari didn't seem to be too pleased, up until I apologized for the guard. After that the guard went back to his former duty and I was escorted to an empty seat. Hay Lin sat next to me and was adamant on keeping an eye on me during my dinner.

Dinner was fine too. I couldn't eat much, my stomach turned when I tried to eat more than three potato slices. But as I at least tried to eat, I was filled in on any missing information. Ari had made a contract with Kandrakar. Which was very good news for us. That meant we had something to show for in Kandrakar. The other news wasn't quite as good. I'd been in a coma for five days, with today it being the sixth day that we were in Arkhanta. And with Ari wanting to give us a feast, it meant we would be here for seven days. I really hoped our good graces with Kandrakar hadn't run out, or we would have a lot of explaining to do when we got home.

Dinner went by and I was finally escorted back to my room. Unfortunately, this was done by the girls. Meaning they were going to corner me. And how right I was.

"What were you thinking?"

I closed my eyes in mild annoyance. I sat on my bed, not yet keen on laying down. I opened my eyes and looked at Irma, who'd been the first to speak. I tried a tired smile.

"I wasn't?"

Cornelia huffed. "Clearly."

"Bullshit," Taranee said. "You can think of a way to keep the Banshee from harming Maqi or Ari or anyone else on this godforsaken planet, but you forget to safeguard yourself? I'm not buying that."

Well, I certainly pissed off some people here.

"You didn't stop me."

"How could we? You just went and made that deal, without telling us beforehand!" Taranee shouted.

Honestly, I'd hoped I would have this quarrel with Cornelia. I knew how to handle her and how to keep my increased feeling of guilt out of the way. Apparently all my luck had run out trying to save me from the poison. Taranee was a lot harder to argue with, especially when she got emotional. Not only did she make me doubt every word that came out of my mouth, but keeping my pride would mean either losing a friend or losing my eyebrows.

"I didn't know an assassin would come!" I argued in return. "I figured you guys would have gotten there way before she almost killed me!"

I said the wrong thing. While it did take the fire out of Taranee, it definitely caused the four of them to pale.

"She…what?" Irma said.

I twirled one of my longer locks of hair. While I could sense I'd turned the feeling of guilt to them, I couldn't help but feel guilty as well. It wasn't their fault that I ended up fighting Orube. I should've cornered her with my magic from the start. I really hadn't been thinking.

"What did she do?" Hay Lin asked.

I shrugged. "Doesn't really matter. We all got out of it. We're all healthy, or I will be in a few days. Point is, I made a mistake. I should've asked you guys before. I'm sorry."

I ended with my head bowed. I really hoped this would be the end of the conversation. I knew I'd been rash, but I rather took all the blame than have them blame themselves just as much. We can't carry the blame together. It doesn't work that way. The blame of my plan going wrong would have been increased fivefold if they'd all agreed on it. I rather just took it all. That way, they could live a little easier. I owed them that much, especially after making them worry for five days straight.

My apology was accepted with a group hug. It was a relief they wouldn't press the issue any more. I was glad they trusted me enough to make these mistakes. With that they left me to get my sleep. My night was filled with similar dreams as before, but I was glad it didn't take as long as it did before. I woke up in time for breakfast. The day went by without much ado. Ari was busy with preparing the feast and Hay Lin and Maqi kept me company for most of the day. Irma helped in the kitchens, Cornelia helped with decoration and Taranee hovered around, sometimes keeping an eye on me and other times she was found in the kitchens. The feast was grant and while I still had some trouble eating, I did manage to at least taste something of every dish that came by. As I looked around the hall, where people ate, talked and sang merrily, I couldn't help but think how different this could have been. I shivered at what would have happened if we'd really killed Maqi. I doubted that these people would be this ecstatic. Maybe if it was one of us dead. Though I highly doubted that would have happened. I shook my head. It was perhaps better to leave those thoughts behind. It didn't happen and it never would.

The next day wasn't filled with the cheer it had the day before. Mostly because we would be returning home. Maqi was sad to see his favourite babysitter go. We were less excited because not only did we have to file our mission report, we would also be grounded into oblivion if Kandrakar wouldn't want to help us. And at the moment I was highly doubting our chances.

After saying our goodbyes to Ari and Maqi, we left. The moment we arrived in Kandrakar, we were once again met by Halinor. The fold hadn't closed behind us or she came rushing up to us. I cringed, reading her movement as if she wanted to give me a hug. I misread. Instead she grabbed my hand and shook it firmly.

"Thank Kandrakar you're alright. I've been so worried about your recovery. Once we learned you were poisoned, I feared the worst. I wasn't certain how I could face Yan Lin if you hadn't made it. And having to face this trial so soon after Nerissa. I'm so sorry you had to go through this, Will."

Halinor blabbered on. I could only blink in surprise as a deep blush started to form on my cheeks. I never expected her to worry this much about us. She'd never struck me as the caring type. Perhaps that was because of her role in Kandrakar, but I was certainly glad someone at least cared.

Her eyes soon left me and settled upon the two new members our team had. I was uncertain as to how Kandrakar would react to the two golems. Cornelia and Taranee had made it clear to me that they wouldn't destroy their golems. I took the hint and didn't undo the creatures myself. Besides, it had been the golems who found me first and who called the girls. If anything, I owed them my life.

Halinor seemed to be enamoured by them. Especially the fire golem took her interest. She had the curtesy of first inspecting Terbis, Cornelia's golem. She touched him carefully, but he didn't move at her actions. To me it seemed as if he were inspecting her just like she was inspecting him. I could see Cornelia standing proudly next to him, as if she was waiting for some kind of praise. She did light up when Halinor muttered 'incredible'. I didn't have the heart to tell Cornelia that without me, Terbis wouldn't be standing next to her.

Once Halinor moved to Lux, Taranee's fire golem, I could see the same elation I'd seen in Taranee when we tried to create our first fire golem. Lux seemed pleased with the attention it was getting, rubbing its head in Halinor's hand. Both Hay Lin and Irma grimaced as they watched it do that. I understood why. Lux was still a creature of fire. She was essentially petting fire and I could see why that would make them uncomfortable. I knew it didn't hurt others, unless on either Taranee's or mine command, but it was still slightly frightening.

"Marvellous. And you created them?"

I blushed again, clearly hearing the praise in Halinor's words. I looked down and hunched my shoulders. A shy smile formed on my lips. I wasn't really suited for these compliments.

"It was Taranee's idea. And I couldn't have made them without either Taranee's or Cornelia's aid," I said.

"Ingenious. Taking Nerissa's initial idea of what she did with Sandpit and applying it to other elements. Have you already made a water or air gol-"

"Halinor, the Congregation is waiting."

Halinor stopped talking immediately. She straightened her back and turned around. I looked past her and saw Mira standing in the door opening of the Folding Chambers. While she was the spitting image of Yan Lin, she didn't feel the same. Yan Lin would have greeted us with a big smile and would have told us we did a great job. Mira looked almost disappointed. And impatient. However, when she looked at Hay Lin she still managed a small smile to her granddaughter. Hay Lin didn't seem to notice the strange demeanour and went to Mira for a hug. She got the hug, but it was a lot shorter than one with Yan Lin.

"Come on, you've got a lot to report about," she said, before turning around and walking away.

We all looked at Halinor. She had an eyebrow raised and was obviously mouthing the same words Mira just had said. She noticed us looking and tried to hide her childish behaviour. She gestured us to follow her. As we walked, Halinor bent towards Hay Lin.

"I prefer your grandmother over her," she whispered.

Hay Lin giggled awkwardly while I looked at Mira. She was quite ahead of us and gave no indication of having heard what Halinor had said. I wondered if she truly hadn't heard it or if she was ignoring it. Regardless, we walked on and soon we were left to walk to the middle of the Congregation Hall while Halinor and Mira took their seats among the Council.

I couldn't gauge the opinion of the Council. They were glaring at us, but that wasn't new. They weren't whispering amongst each other. They weren't oozing more disdain than usual. My eyes rested temporarily on Luba. I'd seen her in my dreams. I was almost certain those dreams had been memories. And thus, it meant that Luba knew Orube. Could it be that Orube had been sent by Luba? Then again, the memory had been from when Orube had been a child. Perhaps Luba was no longer Orube's master. I pressed my lips together before facing the Oracle. The Oracle sat on his knees, levitating a few inches like usual. He looked at us with his usual small smile. His eyes seemed even warm. Did he know we deliberately acted against his orders?

"Guardians, you have returned from your mission," the Oracle said.

I nodded, unsure how this would continue.

"Your mission was to end Maqi's suffering."

I held my breath. Now he would convey his disappointment and take our powers.

"You've cured him and even convinced Ari to ask us for an alliance. I must say, you've exceeded my expectations."

I looked surprised at him. Glancing shortly at the rest of the Council, I could see that he was the only one who seemed to think so. The disapproval I'd expected from him was radiated by the Council. I guessed they couldn't speak against the Oracle. A feeling of relief washed over me. That was one concern I could let go off.

"Please, tell us how your mission transpired."

I shared a short glance with the girls. It was clear they too were surprised by this. A few shrugs was the only reply I got from them. I turned back to the Oracle and started the story. Once I came to the part of when Cornelia closed off the throne room with me and Orube in it, I relinquished the story to Cornelia. She told their part as well as offering Orube's sword. I had known about it, and took my time to look at the Council. Maybe one would give off a hint of recognition or irritation. Instead all of them looked impassive as Cornelia finished her story. I once again spoke up, now filling them in on my side. As I spoke, I was certain to keep an eye on Luba. Her face was void of any emotion, but her ears told me her thoughts. I'd worked long enough in the pet shop to recognize what the ears of a cat convey and I could definitely read anger from her. She was not pleased with me keeping her pupil away for such a long time. When I came to the point where I described nearly blacking out by Orube's hand, murmurs started. Something akin to concern seemed to bubble up from the Council as I spoke of the light I'd noticed and grabbed. The Oracle remained unreadable throughout my whole explanation. I finished with the Banshee taking me, me biting the lip of another Banshee and going unconscious, before waking in a bed five days later.

"Two times you've encountered this strange light. A light, you say, you can only see in your mind's eye. Do you know what this was?"

I stared blankly at the Oracle. It had been creeping in my mind, the question of what it could be. But for the life of me I couldn't figure it out. A part of me wondered if I had taken their life energy, but I was also certain I should not utter that suspicion here. I rather did not want to be labelled as a second Nerissa.

"I don't know, sir," I said.

The Oracle looked at me with a piercing stare. I wondered if he believed me. It was clear the Council didn't. Whatever I'd done was apparently bad enough for them to get concerned about.

"And you say you've only noticed a short, rejuvenating effect, with an increase in your martial arts abilities. Nothing more?"

I looked him right in the eye. "No, sir."

I was lying through my teeth. I prayed that Hay Lin had the decency to keep quiet. And all I did was stare into the Oracle's eyes and try to block my mind as best as I could. I didn't want him to know about the memories. It would only spell out trouble for me. The Oracle looked at me for longer than I liked until finally, a satisfied smile formed on his lips.

"Very well, Guardians. What remains is one final question. What are your plans with these golems?"

I looked back, this time at Lux and Terbis. Taranee and Cornelia moved to them, standing protectively in front of them. The defiant looks they wore conveyed that they would fight whoever voted for having them destroyed.

"We've thought of that. You see, as those golems helped in saving my life, we thought it to be fair to let them keep their lives," I said.

"Wouldn't they be a hazard to the secret you're trying to keep?" the Oracle replied.

I nodded. "Yes, however."

I gestured at Taranee and Cornelia. Both nodded and turned to their golems. Cornelia's golem started to rumble and bits and pieces started to fall off of him. Very quickly, the golem had shrunk to the size of a lucky charm one could clip to their phone. Taranee had pulled out a small, glass-made container which was hanging from a necklace. The container was open from the bottom, but it looked as if it was closed when one observed it. It had been a gift from Ari when we'd been thinking of a way to keep the fire golem alive and with us. Lux shrunk to the size of a match's flame and dove into the container. Taranee fastened the necklace around her neck. It now looked like a harmless, light giving necklace, as long as Lux remained rolled up. I looked back at the Oracle as Cornelia picked up her golem.

"I believe this should do."

The Oracle smiled. I could see a twinkle in his eyes.

"That should do, Guardian. That should do indeed."

He looked one time into the Council. They'd gone back to silence and as I too stole a glance, I could still see them being unhappy with our predicament. The Oracle opened his arms wide.

"You've done an outstanding job, Guardians. Kandrakar wishes to thank you," he said.

I looked at the girls. While we'd liked some gratefulness, a present wasn't something we had expected. The Oracle waved his hand and a fold appeared.

"This will lead you back to Earth, approximately ten minutes after you left it, seven days ago."

The looks on our faces must have conveyed our surprise. The Oracle chuckled softly.

"See it as our thanks. Not only for calming the situation on Arkhanta, but also for saving Meridian from Phobos and the universe from Cedric. You were right, after all. A little gratefulness is never wrong."

Taranee blushed as the Oracle directed the last part of his explanation towards her. She merely nodded. I bowed to the Oracle, feeling happier than when we arrived here.

"We thank Kandrakar for this gift," I said.

I was glad we didn't have to bargain for it. And that all our worries about getting grounded were for naught. I ended my bow and grinned broadly at the others. They replied in kind. I undid our transformation and we went through the fold.

We arrived at the Silver Dragon basement. Despite everything, I still checked my phone. I'd learned it would automatically change the day and date to the planet we were on. The first time I realized it was when we went to Meridian and I checked to see how long we had before we had to return. It turned out that Meridian is two hours ahead of Heatherfield. It had been a surprise to say the least. My phone screen flashed and on it I could read the day we left, along with 17.09. I deep sigh left me. We really returned on the day we left.

"Will, you might want to glamour your lips. They're still green."

I looked shortly at Cornelia. She held up a pocket mirror and I could indeed see the sick green colour my lips had from the poison. I frowned and focussed my magic. Glamouring wasn't one of the things I was particularly good at, but just my lips were luckily still doable. Just as the green ring past my lips, the basement door flung open.

"Girls! You're back from Meridian so soon? I told your father you wouldn't be home till six."

Hay Lin crowed in delight as she flung herself at Yan Lin, who'd barely descended the stairs. Once again our story was repeated, this time mostly by Hay Lin. I had chosen to remain seated in the couch, feeling more drained than before. When Hay Lin explained about the poisoning, Yan Lin interrupted her temporarily. She asked me to drop the glamour and checked my lips. She disappeared upstairs and returned with tea and cookies. She also gave me a small box of tea that would help me get better. Apparently my quick recovery had been due to my Guardian form and it would take a lot longer for me to heal in human form. The tea would help me to stay on my feet. I could only thank the old woman as Hay Lin resumed her story.

Yan Lin made a face when Mira was mentioned and she sighed deeply when hearing about her Altermere's antics. Finally Hay Lin finished before nearly whipping around and turning to me. The tea had given me some energy back and I looked almost guiltily at her as she looked at me with accusation written all over her face.

"You lied. I haven't heard you lie in a while now, but that had been a lie," she said.

I hunched my shoulders. The others all chimed in, asking what exactly had been my lie. I bit my lips as I nodded slowly.

"I did. I…Rather not want to have Kandrakar on my back about it."

"Can someone tell me what you lied about?" Irma said.

"About her not noticing anything else from that light blob she siphoned energy off," Hay Lin replied, almost impatiently. Her eyes were wide and she closed in on me, clearly curious.

"You mean, you did notice something else?" Cornelia said.

"Something you want to keep hidden from Kandrakar?" Taranee added.

I nodded and stared into my nearly empty cup. It wasn't fair to keep it hidden from them. Though, admittedly, I wouldn't have told them if Hay Lin hadn't picked up on my lie. I placed the cup in front of me and pulled up my legs. I placed my head on my knees and looked almost remorseful at the others.

"I…I think I took a part of their memories. Of Orube and the Banshee," I finally admitted.

They looked blankly at me. I couldn't discern what they were thinking. Even Yan Lin remained silent as they all let the words sink in. I felt my cheeks burn in shame. Ever since I fully realized what those dreams had been, I couldn't help but compare myself to Nerissa. This seemed like something she would do. In a way, this was worse than Taranee's mindreading. She would only listen in. I think I actually stole the memories.

Yan Lin sat down, concern now creeping over her aging visage. That concern was mirrored by the others. They hadn't taken a step back yet, but the way they eyed me, told me they were considering it. It hurt to see them look at me like that. I closed my eyes and let my head hang. This was the reason I rather stayed quiet. But with Hay Lin being a living lie-detector, I could never talk myself out of it.

"But…I mean, you only did it cause you were low on energy, right? Orube was strangling you. She could have killed you if you hadn't…"

I looked up, grateful to see Irma produce reasons as to why I did it. She looked for help towards the others, who seemed inclined to agree with her. Hay Lin was nodding vigorously. Cornelia smiled, as if she were agreeing with what was being said. Taranee readjusted her glasses and flashed me an encouraging smile.

"It's not like you do this every time. This was a first. And your powers are by far the most mysterious of all. I mean, you control Quintessence. But Quintessence is also life energy. Does that mean you could – in theory of course – control all life? I think that would make you as a Guardian too overpowered. Even if Kandrakar regulates our powers, yours would still be way too overpowered. Perhaps what you did was some kind of survival instinct. Like, who knows what could have happened if one of us had been in your situation? Maybe Irma would have drained Orube from all the moisture she possessed, just to stop her from strangling. Hay Lin might cause vacuums or too much oxygen. I might combust. We don't know what we would do during such a moment. So you siphon off some memories to regain some energy to free yourself. That's good to know."

I smiled fondly at Taranee's deduction. It made me feel better about what had transpired. I had never meant to do such a thing to anyone. But in that moment it had felt like it was the only right thing to do. It had been that or death. And I considered myself too young to die.

"Astute deduction. But, may I ask, what do you think I would do in such a case?" Cornelia said, turning around and facing Taranee.

Taranee shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe plants would burst out and try to free you? Or the floor could crack open and…No. That could cause you to fall in as well….. Maybe, if we look at it scientifically, you might do something with the carbon in humans? But I mean, that's a stretch. I've never seen you even produce gems. And humans possess a lot less carbon than that. We're talking really advanced stuff here. Then again…With Will pulling on memories…."

Taranee started to rattle off everything she could think of. Cornelia injected sometimes and within no time were the two discussing the possibility of Cornelia creating her own gems. This certainly caught the blonde's attention as her eyes sparkled at the idea. Irma was quick with a snarky reply while Hay Lin crowed in delight at the prospect of using gems in future clothing she would design. As I watched this, my heart calmed down. My shame trickled away and all I could do was smile fondly at them. They didn't make a great deal out of it. They just accepted it as a part of my powers. They didn't even once play with the idea I did it on purpose. However, as the playful display went on, I noticed a set of eyes eyeing me with worry. Yan Lin hadn't said a word since I explained my lie. Concern was still etched in her age-old face. Worry filled me as she continued to watch me. Doubts started to crowd my mind. She had seen more in her years as a Guardian. Did she know more? Or did she see Nerissa's shadow within me? I didn't dare to ask and turned my head away.

We spend the rest of the day doing our homework and watching a movie. We'd gone to my place and ordered pizza's. My mom wouldn't be home till late, which meant I would have been alone anyway. The girls didn't pick up the subject of my memory theft and I was grateful for the distraction. We further discussed how we should continue with our training. Irma had been the first to call for a vacation until I was capable of practicing again. I shut that down. After my fight with Orube I realized how important our training was. And I was not going to allow them to avoid it. Especially not when there was a chance that our group could split up. Training would become a lot more difficult then. We decided that the issue of Redstone would be postponed until it was necessary. For now our current training schedule was problematic. I couldn't join in. I wanted to – despite the doctor's orders – but the others shut me down. There were a few threats and curses. My sanity was also questioned. And thus, I agreed about staying out of the training until my lips were normal again.

Back on topic, the girls did complain about how boring our Guardian training had become. They all knew to what extend they could use their powers and it was becoming dull. I asked them for any ideas to spice things up. I was answered with a few irritated frowns and complains that it was not their job to think of a training regime. I rolled my eyes, but before I could even begin to explain that it was a group effort, Hay Lin came up with an excellent idea. She proposed a capture the flag idea, with two against two. As I was not allowed to join in, due to the poisoning, it would be a great practice to see how they did in battle in case I could not support them. I was certainly impressed and I wasn't the only one. Hay Lin blushed proudly. I made a note of it in a handbook I'd recently purchased. Taranee's idea of keeping a book with notes was not a bad idea.

We couldn't flesh it out as my mother came home around the same time. We decided to meet up after school the next day, where we would leave for Meridian and share the idea with Elyon. After all, we needed a place to do this.

And so we endured yet another day of school. I couldn't say I was glad to be back. I hadn't taken much notice of it before, but I realized that when I was in Guardian form, I barely felt the effects of the poison. As a human, my energy drained quickly. This resulted in me falling asleep during our third period. If it hadn't been for Cornelia waking me up in time, I would've had yet another call to my mom's office about my bad habits. The tea Mrs. Lin had given me gave me some energy, but it wasn't exactly my favourite flavour. I had to endure, I supposed.

The day ended with the announcement that the scores of the test were posted on the notice board. I felt no need to push through the throng of people to see if I could go to Redstone. Many drooped off, disappointed. As Cornelia and I slowly progressed forward, we were blocked by the Grumper sisters. Bess and Courtney both had the gossip ability that would bring many paparazzi to shame, but I often questioned their intelligence. Especially when you knew how they blackmailed many kids to do their homework or to help them cheat during tests. To see them sneer at us, only brought my hopes up.

"Why do you even bother to go and look? Aren't your grades on par with Uriah?" Bess said.

She gave a dismissive wave to the lanky orange haired boy, who was slowly bullying his way through the crowd. Flanking him were his two gorilla-like cronies, Kurt and Clubber. I rolled my eyes but remained silent. I knew better than to bite at one of their barbs.

"Don't tell me you two got into Redstone," Cornelia said.

I smirked at the blatant disbelief that oozed from her words. Even despite their victorious disposition, the twins grimaced at Cornelia's words. They've had a feud long before I arrived in Heatherfield and I was glad Cornelia knew how to handle them. I had yet to see a day where they bested her, though I've already had to face many devious tactics of the two. They were walking, talking nightmares if you didn't know how to carry yourself. And in a school filled with insecure teens, they could easily reign. I glanced up at Cornelia, who's nose was lifted slightly. Her lips were drawn into a thin line and a condescending eyebrow was raised. They would have reigned if they didn't have to fight Cornelia for the top spot.

"Check it yourself, princess. You'll find that the two of us will be going to the prestigious Redstone Academy."

I really disliked the predatory grin the two were wearing. I never knew what lured them to try and pick on me, or any other student for that matter. I was about as interesting as a wiped clean white board. Both flicked their hair, not quite having the same effect as when Cornelia did.

"Okay Bess, who'd you bribe this time? Or did you ask your mom to call in a favour or two?"

I looked up surprised, seeing Irma coming up from behind the twins. Taranee and Hay Lin soon followed. By what I could make out, Hay Lin was elated while Taranee seemed to have mixed feelings. I was going to guess both made the cut-off. And by Irma's extremely annoyed look, I was guessing she didn't.

Bess turned around, snorting at the sight of Irma.

"Please, I don't have to suck up to a nerd to get even an average score on my tests. Unlike you, Lair," she said.

Irma crossed her arms and narrowed her eyes. "We all know that you and Courtney only possess one brain, which you obviously have to share. You two going to Redstone should have been as impossible as Uriah and his goons joining that trip. And we all know his mental capabilities."

Courtney now joined her sister, effectively turning her back to Cornelia and me as well. She placed an arm around her sister and hugged her a little bit, as if to tell her to stay silent. I could just sense how much the two were enjoying Irma's bitterness.

"That's for us to know, Lair. Now, if you don't mind. We have to tell our parents the good news. That we're not failures. Like you," Courtney said.

With that, both let out a hideous loud laugh, false and fake at the same time. They stalked off, leaving a seething Irma behind. Hay Lin petted her on the back, smiling brightly as if the encounter never happened. Irma just closed her eyes and breathed heavily, muttering some things I couldn't quite make out. Hay Lin's reaction to it made me deduce that she was contemplating of cursing the twins with a persistent raincloud. I was glad Hay Lin convinced her otherwise.

"Don't worry," she said. "We'll be there to keep an eye on them and to keep them from having too much fun."

Irma smirked a bit in response. I was about to ask whether they'd seen our scores as well, when another obnoxious voice called out.

"What's that Lair? Got some problem with me?"

Irma sighed deeply. I pinched the bridge of my nose as I too turned to our next encounter. Uriah moved towards us, pushing others out of the way. One kid, three years younger than me, even fell to the ground. I frowned at Uriah and his goons. I really didn't want to deal with this today. I groaned softly when Hay Lin fanned the flames even more.

"She's got no problem. No problem at all. She's just lamenting that it's a shame you're a bubble brain. Nothing more."

Uriah snarled at Hay Lin, while his two lackeys were still processing the insult. Students around us were leaving, either because they could sense a fight incoming, or because they'd checked the board and wanted to go home. I was left becoming acutely aware of how unprotected we were by the rest of the student body. I bit my lip. Fighting was absolutely not on my list of things to do today. I just wanted to go to Meridian and take a nap after our talk with Elyon. Apparently that was too much to ask.

"If you're looking for trouble, you either talk to me or take a hike, Uriah," Irma said.

Mentally I thanked Irma for not using her mind suggestion powers on Uriah. She was understanding the situation better than I'd hoped. Though I wished she would just ignore him. Was it her time of the month already?

"Shut it, Lair. I'll get you after your little friend," Uriah barked before turning to Hay Lin. "You're going to apologize for what you called me, squint eye."

I grimaced. Uriah was not above the use of racial slurs, but I generally disliked the use of them. I'd almost say I was disappointed that he didn't prove me wrong. Hay Lin, however, didn't bat an eye at the use of the term. Instead she smiled at him, as brightly as before. Her eyes twinkled as she made her most innocent face.

"I have to apologize for saying bubble brain?" she asked as innocent as possible.

Uriah growled. "Don't say that again! I don't want to hear you say that word!"

I couldn't help but grin as Hay Lin stood still, taking his yelling as if it were nothing. With her increased hearing, I figured it must've hurt somewhat. Instead she just cocked her head and placed a finger on her chin, looking even more confused and innocent than before.

"What word?" she said and I sighed. She was just going to make things worse. "Bubble brain? Well, bubble brain technically consists out of two words, but okay. If it bothers you, I won't say bubble brain anymore."

I hid a smile as Uriah started to become as red as his hair. Even Irma and Taranee were smirking as the older boy was getting played by Hay Lin. Hay Lin was not done yet.

"But tell me. If I can be squint eye, why can't you be bubble brain?"

Uriah's voice went up a few octaves as he was now yelling through the otherwise empty hallway. One straggler realized that the situation was getting out of hand and made a run for it, leaving his locker open.

"You're doing this on purpose! You're trying to make fun of me!" Uriah said.

"Took him long enough to realize that," Cornelia whispered to me, to which I chuckled.

Both Kurt and Clubber looked rather lost at their enraged leader. Neither seemed to be fully aware of how Uriah was being played, or perhaps their brains were still in the middle of processing the insults. I didn't know how their brains worked, though I was certain it wasn't quick.

"You know what? You can clown about in your own personal space. Put her in that locker!"

Uriah was done with the verbal tussle. I never understood why he always tried it anyway, even though he knew he would lose. Maybe he enjoyed getting toyed with. But now Kurt was moving according to his orders. Hay Lin paled as the large boy came closer. She inched towards the open locker. I had to step in, or else I would have to witness Hay Lin getting acquainted with someone else's locker.

"No!"

I was taken aback by Taranee's sudden eruption. She slammed the locker closed and for a sliver of a moment, I saw a red hand print on the iron. Her glasses reflected an unseen fire and I feared Uriah was pushing his luck too much. I did not want to risk our identity being outed, just because a bully got the best of our emotions. Kurt halted, obviously surprised by Taranee's explosion.

"You can't just do whatever you want, just because there are no teachers around! Get out of here now, or I'll tell the principal."

So far for me getting concerned that our powers would leak out. Despite Taranee obviously losing her cool, she still managed to threaten with the principal, rather than giving him a taste of her powers. I was glad she was a goody-two shoes. And I was glad she was the one who exploded. If it had been Irma or Cornelia, Uriah would long been drenched or pushed into a locker himself.

"Good thing you decided to stay calm," Irma muttered as she tried to calm Taranee down.

"Ooooh. I'm scared now. Should we leave, guys?"

Uriah's sarcasm was heavy. I wouldn't be surprised if there was another racial slur waiting to be released. He was obviously not afraid of what we could do to him. In all honesty, it was perhaps better he didn't. That meant our secret was still safe. But man, did I wish he knew we could destroy him in seconds if we wished to.

"If I were you, I'd take her advice," I said, fed up with this useless game. I really wanted to go home.

"And quick too," Cornelia added.

Uriah smirked at us, looking as if he'd noticed us just now. His eyes darted from us to the wall. I followed his line of sight and found an extinguishers hanging there. I wondered if he really would be as stupid as to go for that.

"It looks like tempers are flaring up!" he said. I groaned internally as he indeed moved for the fire extinguisher. "I think this calls for an extinguisher!"

With that he grabbed the thing, even before we could react. Within seconds he'd released the safety pin and foam was blowing out of the nuzzle.

"You idiot!" Cornelia cursed. "I'm going to…"

I managed to grab her shoulder before she even finished that thought. "Secret. Identity," I hissed.

"Then what?" she hissed in return.

There was only one option.

"Run!"

I grabbed Cornelia's wrist and pulled her along, signalling the others to follow us. It didn't take long or Uriah and his goons were following us as well.

"You didn't happen to catch our names on the board, did you?" Cornelia huffed while running.

"You're in, along with Hay and Taranee. Will and I stay here," Irma answered.

This news didn't surprise me a lot. I figured something like this had been the case, going on the reactions of the Grumpers. It didn't deter me from finding a way to safety. As we ran, I looked for possible exits. There were no students to block our way and I wasn't going to keep this up for long. My eyes finally rested upon the janitor's closet. As I ran to open it, I briefly caught a glimpse of professor Sylla turning the corner at the end of the hallway. He was coming our way, but I wasn't going to risk it. He didn't seem to have noticed me, or the others. I closed the closet behind us, just when Clubber came from the hallway we left.

We were jammed inside of the closet, with brooms and mops leaning heavily on us. Irma was the first to comment.

"You've had better ideas, Will. What do we do now?"

I fiddled with the necklace. I wanted to make as less sound as possible. I gave Irma a sideways glare, shutting her up, before slashing in the air. A fold appeared through which a few brooms fell.

"In!" I hissed, making a mental note to throw them back before closing the fold.

The girls didn't hesitate and they all moved in as quickly as possible. I jumped in last and threw the wayward brooms back in before closing them. I was certain they made a lot of noise and I hoped no one was passing by. And if so, I hoped they thought it was a big rat or mouse knocking things down.

Those troubles quickly left me as we were greeted by a very surprised looking Elyon, Caleb and Lyonak. I was all but happy to see the latter and by the way he looked at us, the feeling was mutual. It must have been a rather amusing sight. Us tumbling through the fold, following a set of brooms which I rapidly throw back before closing the fold behind us. We all stood awkwardly, looking from Elyon and Caleb, to our least favourite member of the Meridian and Kandrakarian Council.

"We…Uhm… We'll wait outside," I said, pointing at the doors.

Elyon blinked a few more times, before a grin settled on her lips. She snickered softly behind her hand before shaking her head.

"No, don't worry. We were wrapping up here anyway, weren't we, sir Lyonak?"

Elyon faced the man, who obviously thought otherwise. He seemed eager to express that opinion as well, but never seemed to be able to utter it. Elyon gestured for him to leave and I admired her doing it with such dignity and blatant display of how little she cared for his complains. I hid a grin as he stormed off, huffing indignantly.

"He's muttering that this is not over," Hay Lin said once the doors slammed shut.

Elyon merely smiled and went to hug us.

"He's grumpy about something. Leave him be. I'm more interested in what you guys did. You left only yesterday! Was your mission that easy?"

We all grinned awkwardly at Elyon. She could easily read our faces and thus, our third retelling of our mission followed. We did change some details, as to why we were sent to Arkhanta in the first place and me stealing other people's memories. In the end, both Elyon and Caleb looked pale at me. Caleb was probably thinking something along the lines of how crazy I was and Elyon looked as if she was wondering how it was possible I lived this long. I only hunched my shoulders and tried to smile their worries away. A few strings of hair were twirled in between my fingers before I finally decided that our silence had taken long enough. And I wasn't in any mood to go into details.

"So…About why we actually came here. We've got a favour to ask."

It seemed to me that Elyon was still trying to process what we've told her. She only nodded for me to continue.

"We've been thinking about a way to up our Guardian training, if you will? But we would need some space for it. We want to do a sort of capture the flag and we rather not drag your soldiers into it."

It took a moment for Elyon to register what I've said. It took a while longer to fully explain how and why we wanted this. I was grateful that Caleb soon saw the virtues of using such a simple game to practice, claiming it would also work for the soldiers. It took some convincing, but in the end Elyon agreed. We were given a few conditions. We had to build an arena for it, to avoid the fights from moving out to the village or the castle. When we were practicing, at least one had to cover the arena with a shield, to ensure that nothing bad happened if we got too excited. And we had to clean up after every practice round. That way the soldiers could use it as well, just like Caleb suggested.

With that decided, Elyon was kind enough to appoint us a place where we could start. The rest of the day went by with the girls, Elyon and Caleb bickering about how the arena should look like. All I did was transform everyone and sit back, taking a moment to myself and breathing a little easier. We did manage to settle for a standard shape of the arena, the needed benches and balconies and Irma got her fountains. All would be worked on the next time we came. Elyon would make sure that the general outline would be clear and that everyone would be alerted to the new addition to their training regime.

As we returned to Heatherfield, we quickly said our goodbyes and returned home. Upon my return, I had to face Collins, who'd decided to join us at dinner. I didn't need his mothering over me along with my mom's. I was surprised he was the one to grant me some space. When my mom was trying to get answers out of me, Collins tried to stop her. It was curious to see and definitely fun to watch. And when he decided to clean up along with my mother, I couldn't help but flash him a smile. Perhaps having him around wasn't as bad as I initially thought.

That night I slept in my own bed, never being so happy to just lay down and rest.

[A/N] Another chapter! Sorry for the long wait and I hope you all enjoy it!