OMG! this is finally done! I really hope you've enjoyed this story, and I'm so sorry for the hiatus I ended up taking for this story. I would still love to get your feedback on if I should continue this into the books or not. :)

-owl

"Who?" Rollan asked. It was still early enough that he wasn't very aware of what could be going on.

Lucette sighed softly, giggling as well. "Tarik and Olvan have returned with the other children. Come on!"

Rollan nodded and followed Lucette, behind him Essix soared through the vaulted ceilings of the fortress. It was all he could do to keep up with the woman as she was practically sprinting through the halls.

It wasn't more than a minute of running through the halls when Rollan and Lucette burst into the courtyard. Rollan had to lean over and take a few deep breaths before he looked up to the group of people in the middle of the courtyard.

Olvan, Tarik, Nicolai, and now Lucette were clustered a little ways away, talking quietly about something. The three children that were accompanied by a wolf and leopard drew Rollan's attention.

"Shouldn't there be a panda as well?" he asked, not looking at the kids.

There was a flash of light and Jhi appeared next to the kid in Zhongese clothing. Rollan finally looked up at the kids. To his great surprise, it was Conor and Meilin. The Niloan girl was unknown to him, though.

"Conor? Meilin?" Rollan asked in shock.

They both nodded, Conor enthusiastically, and Meilin elegantly.

The Niloan girl stuck out her hand. "I'm Abeke," she said, smiling.

"Rollan." The boy introduced.

There was silence as the four kids watched as Essix swooped down and greeted the other Great Beasts. Briggan was quick to bump his nose against the top of Essix's head. Uraza did the same. Essix then hopped and perched on Jhi's head, leaning down to look her in her eye.

"Rollan?" Lucette called over from the cluster. "Do you want to show them the tower where you all will be staying? Dinner will be at sunset."

Nodding, Rollan waved them along to follow behind them. "Just as a warning, the tower is quite tall, so it takes a while."

All three of them shrugged, and the four children began the trek to the top of the tower. Jhi went back into passive state, while Essix flew around the outside of the tower and was likely just going to meet them at the top. Briggan and Uraza followed behind the kids.

Along the way Rollan learned that Meilin had gotten the Nectar last when she summoned Jhi, and just as she did so, the Conquers launched an attack on her city and her father's estate. She was immediately sent off with a Greencloak.

Conor had gotten the Nectar last as the least important and Devin had been beside himself in anger when he had gotten nothing and Conor had gotten Briggan. Tarik had guided him to Greenhaven.

Abeke had been the only one to take the Nectar in her village. As soon as Uraza had appeared, the sky opened and rain had fallen on her village for the first time in two years. Immediately after, a man by the name of Zerif had showed up and tried to take her. Olvan arrived just then and had sent the Conqueror away, bringing Abeke with him.

When they entered the common room at the top of the tower Essix was waiting for them, perched on the back of one of the chairs. Briggan and Uraza both padded over to join her and laid down on or near the chair on which she was perched.

Rollan pointed at the door that led to the room he had claimed a year ago when he had arrived at Greenhaven. "That's Conor and my room. Meilin and Abeke get the other."

"Is there a difference between the two rooms?" Meilin asked, her eyes narrowing.

Rollan shook his head. "No, just different colors of bedding and the directions the windows face."

Meilin nodded and turned on her heel, practically marching to the other door and entering the room. Abeke was quick to follow. Conor let Rollan enter the room first. Rollan sat on his bed, to the right of the door.

Conor placed his traveling bag on the other bed and opened the wardrobe on the same side of the room. Then he carefully took his things from his bag and hung them or folded them nicely.

"Have you liked it here?" Conor asked once he finished putting his things away. "What do you do all day?"

Rollan nodded. "Yeah, it's nice. Much better than where I was before. For the most part I'm training with Lucette."

"Which one is Lucette? There were two women when we arrived and I didn't catch who was who," Conor asked as the boys returned to the common room.

"Lucette has auburn hair, and Lenori has blue hair. Have you met their spirit animals yet?" Rollan responded.

Conor shook his head. "No, I've only seen the marks."

"I've met Myrim," Meilin interjected when she and Abeke entered the common room, the former now wearing fresh clothes. "We were introduced when Lenori brought me here from Zhong. I haven't been around Lucette though."

"You'll probably be introduced tonight at dinner," Rollan said, looking out the window at the sun shining at its peak. "Speaking of, we should have time for a tour of the fortress before dinner."

And with that the four children and two of the animals made the trek back down the tower. Jhi was a mark on Meilin's hand and Essix flew from the window, getting into a contest of some sort with another avian spirit animal and disappearing.

That night, after dinner, the four children and their spirit animals made their way back to the top of the tower. With a serene 'goodnight' the girls had entered their room and closed the door, bringing with them one of the two candles that had been brought up.

Rollan and Conor then entered their own room with the other candle. Briggan padded into the room just before Conor let the door shut, and Essix came barreling in through the window.

The boys changed into their sleeping clothes in a companionable silence. Essix settled on the headboard of Rollan's bed like normal and Briggan was curled on the floor next to Conor's bed. Once both boys were in bed, they said goodnight and Rollan blew out the candle.

And, it seemed to Rollan, as he fell asleep amid Conor and Briggan snoring, that he had missed having people sleeping nearby. Having the tower to himself had been nice, but maybe it was good that he was no longer alone up there.