A/N: I wanted to post a chapter near Christmas and I guess this is close enough. Enjoy! :D

Strolling down the hallways with Indie, Savannah talked with her silently.

"How are you going to make your school council meeting and the cheerleader tryouts?" Indie questioned. "Not to mention that assignment you've got due next week."

Savannah frowned. "Oh, shush," she replied, having been avoiding the thought of juggling them all and Indie knew it. As the head of the cheerleading squad, she was expected to oversee the tryouts and to help pick who would make the team. It was something she rather enjoyed doing, in fact. "I'll make it work. I can go to the start of the meeting, say I'm not feeling well, then head to the tryouts. Besides, Mason doesn't go to all the school council meetings."

Indie gave her a look as if to say, you're not Mason.

"Yeah, yeah. I know. He's not exactly missed. But I can hardly get into trouble for missing one," She pointed out.

"If you say so," Indie replied, her walk confident, knowing that no other daemon would get in her way. "Are we stopping at Blake and Fang's tonight?"

There was a hopeful note in her voice, but Savannah purposely ignored it. That side of her would only cause her to lose her focus. He was a slight weakness that she couldn't indulge herself with very often. "Not tonight. You know we have enough to do."

Indie made a sound of disappointment, although she didn't argue further on the matter, knowing it was the smartest option.

Passing by a boy leaning against a locker, Savannah locked eyes with him for a moment. It took her a moment to locate his name, remembering the majority of the students at the high school. Aspen. He wasn't exactly in her friendship group or in anything else she participated in, so she had little reason to talk to him.

Intending to pass by, she paused when he spoke. "Ah, Savannah. You had fun yesterday, didn't you?"

Narrowing her eyes, she turned back to face him. "I don't know what exactly you're referring to."

"Don't you?" he replied, drawing out the word. He brushed some black hair from his face, looking a little smug. "I think you do."

Did he know about her and Blake in the bathroom? She wasn't sure how, unless he had seen them go in and had spied on them. Indie glanced at her nervously, but she kept her expression even. "I really don't know why you're annoying me, Aspen. How about you go and mind your own business? I'm very busy."

"Oh yes, it certainly seemed like it," Aspen said with a sharp smile on the edge of his lips. His gaze shifted to the side. "Ah, there he is."

Blake had already started down the hallway with Fang, and Savannah kept her gaze on Aspen.

"Don't go to Fang," Savannah said silently to Indie, willing her to behave.

Aspen straightened, pushing off the locker. "You two were very busy in the closed off bathrooms yesterday. I saw you go in and the rest well… I heard."

"I don't know what you're implying but-…" Blake started, sounding annoyed, and Fang moved to step in front of him, as if to protect him, growling.

"He knows," she said simply, not seeing how denying it any further would get them anyway. She was a problem solver, wanting to eliminate the threat if she could.

"The thing is," Savannah continued, taking a step closer to Aspen. "I have a lot of power here, so if you're thinking of spreading anything around, I'd advise against it. I could make your life at school very unpleasant. You should be smart about this. Besides, listening at doors like some pervert isn't a good look."

Aspen merely laughed, shaking his head. "I'm the one with the power here. Don't worry, I'll keep my mouth shut for now. But it will be in exchange for some help in the future when I need it. If not then… well, it wouldn't look good to everyone else, now would it?"

Bristling, Indie spotted Aspen's daemon and leapt forward, grabbing the snake's tail in her mouth. It was a warning – careful with it between her teeth. The snake, while hanging in the air, moved to position its mouth – and fangs - near her.

"Cersei bites, and it could end up deadly," Aspen said, studying his nails. "I wouldn't advise it."

"Put her down, Indie," Fang urged, before Savannah could say the same, surprising her.

After a pause, Indie dropped the snake, taking a step back, although she eyed it closely as it righted itself. The snake hissed in annoyance, before moving back towards Aspen.

Savannah was not impressed with the whole situation. He thought he could blackmail her, a captain of the school? Sure, she had used questionable methods in the past herself, but she thought she was smart enough to avoid the same from happening to her.

Blake gritted his teeth. "Whatever. It's not even that bad for me if it gets out. You have nothing over me."

"But it does affect her," Aspen pointed out slowly with a flick of his hand towards her.

Straightening, Savannah's gaze didn't leave him. "You've made your point. I'll help when you need it. But I won't forget this little… stunt."

"Good, good. Then my lips are sealed," Aspen replied, making the motion and giving them a quick wink, before he started away, back down the hallway. "Enjoy your day," he called out, his snake following close behind.

"I could kill him for this," Savannah muttered under her breath.

"That wouldn't exactly help," Blake said, his expression carefully neutral. "I don't want to be drawn into this."

"You won't be," Savannah sighed, feeling a little weary now that Aspen was gone. She glanced over at him briefly, lowering her voice. "I told you not to be too loud," she said, although there was a hint of jest in her words to show that she wasn't actually blaming him.

"It wasn't just me," he muttered, looking a little embarrassed. "And it's not like it was my idea."

She just gave him one last glance, before heading out as well, wanting to think over what it might mean. Indie looked disappointed that she couldn't play with Fang, although she followed, knowing better than to slow her down.

"Good luck," Rye said with a sweet smile, looking up to his brother. Milo was already dressed in his football team's uniform, running his fingers through his hair. "Although I'm sure you won't need it."

"Thanks Rye," Milo grinned. "It's nice to have you here for our first game back after the break."

Rye hesitated. "I'm sorry Mum and Dad couldn't make it," he said, after a pause. They had a meeting with a new doctor, and he knew it often meant Milo missed out.

"Don't worry about it. It's fine," Milo assured him, waving his hand as if to dismiss his words. "You'll have to cheer loud enough for me to hear, okay?"

Rye nodded enthusiastically, Kalanie flying over their heads. "Of course! We'll see you when you finish."

Milo made a sound of agreement, before getting distracted by a few of his friends nearby who waved him over.

Watching his brother go, Rye turned his gaze to the spectator's stands. He didn't know where to sit, feeling a little nervous by the thought.

"It's fine. We can find a spot by ourselves," Kalanie urged him, and he swallowed, before starting up the stairs.

School had always been a foreign concept to him, even if he loved the thought of it. There was so many people milling about – a mix of students and parents there to watch. Seeing a row of seats that was mostly empty, Rye made his way towards the end, sitting near a girl with a long blonde plait, who was engrossed in reading a book. It was an odd place to read, but she didn't seem to mind. He glanced at her shyly, seeing her deer daemon sitting beside her at the end of the aisle. Kalanie seemed curious, and he couldn't stop her from flying over to peer at the book.

The girl seemed startled, glancing up.

"Oh, sorry," Rye said, shyly. "Kalanie was just wondering what you were reading."

"That's okay," the girl smiled. "I'm Steff by the way, and this is Zell. I'm rereading Sense and Sensibility, by Jane Austen."

"Is it good?" he asked, Kalanie flying to land on his shoulder again, still in her sparrow form.

"Oh, I like all of her books. I would recommend them all. Especially Pride and Prejudice," she said, her blue eyes alight as she talked about them.

"I'll have to look for them at the library then," Rye said, warming up a little as their conversation continued. The cheerleaders had started their pregame performance, but he found he was a little too interested in the conversation to watch.

"Do you go to school here? I'm pretty new so I don't know everyone yet," she admitted, "Although I especially don't know the younger grades."

"Oh ah… no. I'm home-schooled," he admitted after a moment. "But my brother's playing. I didn't want to miss his first game," he said, trying to spot him, although it was difficult with the mix of students getting ready to play and their daemons.

"Home-schooled?" Steff repeated, exchanging a look with her daemon. "I can't imagine that. I don't think my parents would be the type to do that… I'm here with my brother too," she said, staring out at the field.

"Do you prefer to read than to watch?" Kalanie questioned.

"It's not really my kind of thing," she admitted. "But I don't really have a choice. May as well do something I enjoy though, right? I don't know the rules or how to play, anyway."

"Yeah, I guess so," Rye nodded. "I've always wanted to play too, like my brother. But I don't really have the chance."

"You must be close," she said with a brief smile, almost looking a little sad.

"He's great." Rye found it easy to talk about his brother. "He taught me how to play and he helps me out with my homework and stuff like that. He's pretty busy, so it's nice that he takes the time to do things with me."

Steff adjusted the book in her hand. "That is nice," she agreed.

"Which one is your brother?" Zell questioned, raising his head as he glanced at the players.

Rye looked for a long moment. "There," he pointed. "With the German shepherd daemon."

"I'll cheer him on," Zell said. "I'm sure he's a good player." Neither Steff nor Zell pointed out her own brother.

"He is," Rye confirmed, leaning back in his seat. "And thank you – that's nice of you."

They grew quiet as the cheerleaders finished up their routine and the players entered the field. It wouldn't be fair if daemons played too, so they watched from the sidelines, not straying too far from their partners. Rye clapped, his gaze tracking his brother. He seemed confident – he'd told Rye that the school they were versing wasn't as well-known as their own, and they were also playing on their home turf. He quietly adored his brother, always looking up to him and wishing he could be more like him.

ooOoo

His brother's team won by fifteen points, and Rye was happy for his brother, cheering when the crowd did. As people started to disperse, Rye stayed where he was, knowing his brother would come and find him when he finished up with his friends.

Looking over to the side, he noticed Steff getting up in a hurry. Closing her book, she tucked it into her bag. "I've got to go," she said, scanning the crowd with Zell a step behind her. "It was nice to meet you…?"

"Rye," he replied, realising in embarrassment that he hadn't offered his name in return.

Steff smiled. "Rye. I might see you at the next game," she said, before turning away. Before long, she and her daemon had disappeared into the crowd of people trying to get down the stairs.

"She was nice," Kalanie remarked. "I wonder if she's in your brother's class?"

"Maybe," Rye said, although he wasn't so good at guessing ages. She looked close to his brother's age, but he couldn't tell. "Although she could be in the grade below."

Kalanie agreed, taking flight again as she flew around his head. "Maybe if you get better, we can go to school too."

Hesitating, Rye bit his lip. Did Kalanie feel like she was missing out, being tied to him? "… Yeah," he said, finally. "I hope so."

Coming out of a detention that Finn had been forced to go to alongside Aspen and a couple of other students, he frowned when he heard a voice cry out in a corridor nearby. Whoever it was sounded… distressed. The detention had been boring – Aspen had been there for not doing his homework, and Finn himself was there for playing up in class. He couldn't help it, however. Sitting for such long periods just made him and Sunny restless.

At another sound, Finn exchanged a look with Sunny.

"I'll go check it out," she said through their connection, moving to scurry down the hallway. Finn turned that way as well, wanting to see.

Once he made it to the end of the hallway, he found Aspen was already there. "What's going on?"

"Jai's Mum has lost it again," Aspen remarked, giving little away in his expression as he watched.

Frowning, Finn looked over at the next corridor. He remembered that Jai had stayed late for one of the school clubs that he attended – there was quite a number of them, so Finn could never remember them all.

Finn sighed as he spotted Jai's Mum crying as she sank to the ground, seemingly hysterical. Jai stood nearby, bending down as he tried to calm her down.

"Where were you?" she cried out, loud enough to draw a number of gazes of passing students. "You weren't at home, and I was looking and looking."

Jai's donkey daemon, Evie, bumped her head against her shoulder, as if to comfort her. "You know I have things on after school," Jai said, keeping his voice low. "Let's go home."

"Do you hate me? Is that what it is?" she sobbed. "Are you turning into him? I bet you want to leave me too."

Sunny ran back over to Finn, climbing up his arm. "Yep. She's hysterical," she confirmed.

Aspen rolled his eyes. "Jeez, thanks for that, Sunny."

"I've gotta do something," Finn said, wanting to help although he wasn't sure how. "I'll go talk to them. You keep everyone else away." The last thing that Jai needed to deal with was other students making matters worse.

Seeing Aspen nod in the corner of his eye, Finn walked over closer.

"I'm not going to leave you," Jai murmured quietly, and Finn could tell he was embarrassed, even if the signs were subtle. There was a pink tinge to his cheeks, and his movements were more flustered than his normal calm nature allowed. "Did you take your meds this morning? You know the doctor said you have to."

"They just make me feel sick," his Mum only just managed to get out, around her tears. "You know I don't like them."

"We really need to go now, okay," Jai said, bending down to take one of her arms. "You'll feel better when we get home."

"I can help," Finn offered, bending down to take her other arm.

Jai swallowed, before moving to pull her up, with Finn helping. Evie then moved to support Jai's Mum and to keep her upright.

"Hey, Mrs Westmont. You'll be okay," Finn remarked, keeping an eye on her, in case she looked like she was going to go somewhere. She had always been unpredictable, especially in her uncontrollable mood swings. He'd always felt sorry for Jai that he had to deal with it.

Jai directed them towards the doorway, and she seemed a little less reluctant than before, keeping a hand in Evie's hair.

"I can help get her home," Finn offered, moving to follow. "Don't you have work?"

Jai shook his head. "I've got it."

"It's no trouble, I promise," Finn pushed, feeling bad. "Really I-…"

"Just stop," Jai said, forcefully, and Finn fell silent in surprise, not used to such a tone from him. "I don't want any help. Got it?" He gritted his teeth, looking tired and uncomfortable. "Just-… I need to deal with this on my own. I'll just have to call in sick."

Finn held up his hands, slowing down. "Okay okay, I'm sorry. I'll… see you tomorrow then."

Jai stared at him for a moment, looking a little regretful, before he turned away, trying to direct his mother towards the exit. Finn caught a glimpse of her salamander daemon, its head peaking out from under her sleeve as she followed.

Finn watched them go with a hint of worry in his expression.

"He's never snapped at me like that," he said through his connection to Sunny.

"You can check on him tomorrow," Sunny assured him, watching from his shoulder. "He's probably just a bit stressed and overwhelmed. At least you tried."

Glancing back, he saw Aspen directing some students away with a quick, "There's nothing to see here."

"Yeah… At least I tried," Finn sighed.

He felt a little better when Sunny jumped into the air and landed in a cool way, trying to cheer him up. She was a constant source of entertainment, and he couldn't imagine a better daemon as a companion.

Getting home from school a bit later after his debating club, Kellan was surprised to see Grace sniffling. It wasn't often that she cried, and he frowned, quick to walk over to her. Lu flew over to her swiftly, gathering some strands of hair in her thin beak to try and cheer her up.

"Gracie, what's wrong?" he asked, concern in his voice.

"It's not a big deal," she said, sniffling and straightening up, as if not liking to be caught in such a state.

"Come on... What is it?" he pressed, wanting to help if he could. "You know you can tell me."

She held up a letter that she had clutched in her hands. "I tried to get Dad to sign this for me – I've been trying for days – and he still hasn't. It's for my excursion tomorrow – the one to NASA - and tonight is my last chance, or I miss out. I've really been looking forward to it. We're meant to go on a tour and do all these cool robotics workshops." She averted her gaze, and he could tell she was trying to hide her disappointment. "I guess I'll just have to stay at home."

"No, I don't think so," Kellan said after a pause, reaching out a hand for the letter. "Here, let me try."

"… Thanks," she said, passing it to him, although she did look a little doubtful. "See how you go."

Kellan gave her a brief nod, before heading up the stairs, wanting to get it sorted. It wasn't fair that she should miss out on that trip when he knew how excited she had been about it.

Lu landed on his shoulder. "If he won't sign it, then maybe we could take her there sometime."

"No, I don't want her to miss it. I'll make it work," he responded, keeping his tone purposely confident.

Stopping at his Dad's study door, he knocked, before waiting for a response. When he received nothing, he pushed the door open. "… Dad?" he said, spotting his father in his usual chair by the window.

He'd been having a bad day for a few days in a row now. As his condition slowly deteriorated, he had good days and bad days. It was hard to explain to people that his Dad had a form of dementia so early in life. But one of the worst symptoms was the fluctuations in attention and alertness. They could last for hours or days, and when affected, he would stare into space, often drowsy, and when he did speak, his speech was disordered. Often, it was like he was in a different world.

Lu landed on the desk as she watched, spotting his honeybee daemon asleep nearby. Her head and tail were tucked in, her wings resting on her body. His Dad on the other hand was staring out the window, mostly unblinking.

"Dad?" Kellan said again, stepping into his view. "I know you're… not really here right now, but Grace needs you to sign this letter. It's important. Can you do that for us?"

There was no response, and Kellan supposed he shouldn't have expected otherwise. Walking over, he gently placed the letter on his lap and a pen in his hand, closing his fingers around it. As if subconsciously, he did grip the pen, but it didn't move it otherwise.

"Please, Dad. We need you," he urged, watching for another long moment. His father didn't move, his gaze still fixed on the window. Kellan may as well have been invisible.

"Fine. I'll just sort it myself then," he said, a little more harshly than he'd meant to in a rush of frustration, and he reached to take the letter and the pen back.

"Kellan. Calm down," Lu urged him, always a voice of reason. "You know he can't help it."

"I know. I don't mean to be like that," he said, instantly feeling guilty.

Swallowing, he took a step back. "I'll cook some ravioli for dinner tonight," he said, lowering his voice. "I'll bring some up for you too, in case you get hungry."

There was no response, and he gave a brief, sad smile, before he walked back to the doorway, with Lu following close behind, closing the door behind them. Heading back down the stairs and to the kitchen, he rested the letter against the benchtop, staring at it.

"What are you going to-…" Lu started, before pausing as she watched.

Gripping the pen, Kellan signed for his father on the dotted line, before folding it up neatly and placing it back on the benchtop. It wouldn't be the first time he'd had to forge his Dad's signature. Lu sighed, but she didn't berate him. What was important to him, was important to her too.

"Grace," he called out, moving to get a saucepan out and the packet of ravioli from the fridge. "I've got your letter. Dad signed it."

Grace came running in with her daemon - who'd adopted her favourite hare form – and she made a sound of excitement, as she picked the letter up and gave him a big hug. "Thanks Kellan! You're the best."

Kellan merely gave a smile, looking at her fondly as he returned the hug. His family was his life, and he would take care of them, if no one else would. They needed him to step up, and that was something he could do. "The ravioli won't be far off. Go set the table for me."

She nodded, moving to go and get some cutlery and some glasses of water. He knew she would have a great time at the excursion, and he couldn't bring himself to feel bad about having to forge the signature to achieve it.