I'M SORRY IT TOOK SO LONG! I did not mean to take forever to write this chapter. The holidays were busy, and pregnancy is more exhausting than I thought. But I'm determined to finish this story, maybe not before our daughter arrives, but I'll have plenty of time during my maternity to finish this novel by the end of summer.

Chapter 16: The Prank

I arrived at the coffee shop right when Jinx told me to be there. As I reached the cozy little cafe between Sweet Whisk Bakery and the Bloom & Blossom flower shop, I wondered if Jinx was already there waiting for me. I did not see her on the bus to the town, but she might have taken another one to get there early. She did mention that she wanted to get some studying done before our meeting.

I entered The Last Drop Cafe expecting to find Jinx pouring over her schoolbooks at one of the tables closer to the entrance, but where I saw her was at the last place I expected. She was sitting at the checkout counter and appeared to be laughing with...Xavier? But was she not the one who had told me to be careful around him? Then why was she acting so friendly towards him now?

Hesitatingly, I approached the two at the bar, wondering how I would bring up the subject of Xavier now. When she sensed I was there, her face lit up with joy.

"Kory!" She cried, throwing her arms around my neck to pull me into a friendly embrace. "I'm so happy that you could make it here!"

I returned the hug gingerly. I did not take Jinx as someone who would freely give out hugs. She seemed like someone who tried to look 'cool' around her peers.

"Yes," I told her as she pulled away from me. "I had no other plans for today. That was why I agreed to meet you."

I glanced toward Xavier, smiled at him as a simple greeting, and then returned my attention to Jinx. "I did not realize you and Xavier were friends."

Jinx laughed. "Oh, ol' Xaviey and I go way back! I was just catching up with him!"

I must have looked confused when she said this, as Xavier replied, "Don't worry, cutie. You're still my favorite Titan."

I laughed briefly in response, still not knowing how I would proceed with this meeting with Jinx if Xavier were there.

"Do you ladies want me to make up a couple of lattes for you?" Xavier asked us.

"Sure, Xavier! That sounds great!" Jinx replied, smiling brightly at him.

When Xavier turned away to start making our drinks, I leaned toward Jinx and whispered. "I thought you told me to be careful around Xavier."

Jinx snorted, "Yeah...to be careful around his masterly crafted drinks here! Girl, you wouldn't believe the amount of calories in these lattes!"

She continued to laugh, and I decided to giggle with her, even though I did not think that statement was funny. Was this who Jinx was when she was not around her usual group of friends?

"Do you come here to study often?" I asked her. I decided to try to keep our encounter casual without looking obvious that I wanted to sit somewhere not directly next to the boy who was currently making our lattes.

Jinx shrugged. "Sometimes. I mainly come here to escape from my idiot friends since they never seem to leave me alone whenever I'm on campus. Even if I'm in my dorm room. They always find a way to bug me. Here, I can finally find some peace to read my books."

It sounded like she and Rachel would get along in that respect.

"This is certainly a great place to do that," I said, adding, "Have you read any good books lately?"

But just as I asked that question, Xavier returned with our drinks and proudly placed them in front of us. "So, have you asked her yet?"

Seeing that he had directed his question to Jinx and not me, I asked, "Ask me what?"

Jinx took a quick sip from her drink before saying, "Oh! One of the reasons I asked you to come hang out with me tonight was to ask if you wanted to help Xavier and me pull a little prank on the Elites when they go on their field trip to Gotham next week. I know you want to get back at them as much as we do."

"Oh," I blinked. A prank? Gar always threatened to 'pull a prank' on the Elites, but Rachel firmly advised him against it. Not knowing quite what a prank was, I began to stutter. "I...do not...know. I have never done...a prank on anyone before."

That probably made me look the opposite of cool to Jinx, but what else was I supposed to say? I did not have any experience in that event to provide valuable wisdom on what they wanted to do.

"Oh, come on, Kory!" Jinx pushed. "The prank will be harmless! We're just going to mess with some things in their house that will take them hours to put back together. It's really just to annoy them more than anything. The last time they went to Gotham, they were gone for most of the day, so we'll be in and out of there before they return. But we'll get everything set up faster if it's three people doing it."

Yes, but why me? I thought to myself. They could have asked someone who had more experience with doing pranks, for example, Gar. Xavier seemed to have wanted to answer that question in my mind for me.

"You want to get back at Babs for that fight at the beginning of the year, don't you?" Xavier asked, leaning closer to me.

Yes, but I planned on doing that during the tournament in front of a larger audience. "Yes, I do. But I do not think how I could be of assistance when-"

"You'll be great!" Xavier reached out to cover his hand over mine and said in a lower, more soothing tone. "You're great at everything."

He smiled at him, and I smiled back. As far as I know, Xavier was still my friend and has always been so kind to me, so maybe that was why I said, "Yes. I think I would be able to help."

"Perfect!" Jinx clapped the counter with her palm. "I knew we could count on you, Kory!"

And before I could say anything else, Jinx laid out her scheme. "They'll be leaving next Saturday, I'm assuming sometime later in the morning, so I'll meet up with Kory in the dining hall after breakfast. We'll probably pretend we're studying until we see Vic's car leave since he's the only one with a car, and I know they all use him for rides. And I know the perfect spot where we can sit to keep an eye on the mansion and the car."

"It sounds like you've spied on him before." Xavier teased.

Jinx's face reddened. "My stupid friends told me to spy on the cyborg."

Xavier chuckled. "Sure, whatever you say."

Jinx cleared her throat and went on. "Anyway...once I see their car leave, I'll text Xavier to meet us at the back entrance near the mansion. That will probably be the best way to sneak Xavier in without teachers noticing. Not like they would even if they decided to leave their living quarters. I swear, all the teachers here are so blind to everything that goes on at this school."

"How will we get into the Elites' house?" I asked. "Would they not have some type of security system that would alert them if someone were to break into their house?"

I knew Vic was highly skilled with technology and could create all sorts of genius gadgets. Therefore, he had to have a system like that to guard the house from any intruders breaking in. They must have cameras to watch me specifically, but the Elites all seemed to be very secretive and private people, and it would have made sense if they made it difficult to keep others out.

"You don't need to worry about that," Jinx smirked. "I've learned a thing or two on how to hack into security systems from Mikron, and I have a foolproof plan so you can leave that to me."

"Ok," I said, still unconvinced that this was a wise idea. "And are you sure the teachers will not notice? And what about the other students? Do you think they will alert the teachers if they catch us entering the house?"

Jinx snorted. "I doubt it. I think they would root us on and have our back if someone were to spot us. All the students want to prank the Elites, but they just don't have the guts to go through it. We'll be considered heroes once we pull it off! And like I said about the teachers, they forget that we even exist once the weekend comes around. Trust me, Kory! It's going to be fine! Your model student reputation will not be ruined."

"And I'll take the heat if we get caught," Xavier added. "What's the worst they can do? I've already been expelled. It's not like they can do it again."

Before I could stop myself, I asked, "Why do you want to return to the school? You went to the dance with me knowing you may not be allowed in, so why are you risking it all again?"

Xavier flashed a very predatory smile. "Because it's fun. It's my way of showing those rich snobs that they don't control everything in this town."

Revenge was his motive. I was beginning to understand now. "Oh, then the only reason you wanted to go to the dance with me was to get back on the Elites?"

Jinx coughed a little in her throat, then immediately brought her cup to her lips and started to drink the contents quickly. I was surprised that she did not burn her tongue with how fast she was drinking.

"No," Xavier said sharply, taking my hand in his. "I went to the dance with you because I really like you, and I was kind of hoping that we would hang out more afterward. And I guess you can say I want to help Jinx because it would be another opportunity to be around you."

I have read romance novels where girls would probably have swooned at that line, especially from someone with the looks of Xavier, but after hearing that he might have an alternative motive for hanging out with me, I felt less affected by his charms.

I pulled my hand away from him and said, "I will see you at that time then." I paused and smiled at him before I said. "Thank you for the latte, but I should probably get back to the school. I just remembered that I have a big assignment due tomorrow that I have not started yet. But I will meet you at the dining hall next Saturday morning, Jinx.

I nodded at Jinx as a farewell and grabbed my drink as I left them. I half expected Jinx to call after me to ask why I was going so soon, but she did not. I knew they were both watching me leave as I walked out, and they were probably wondering why I decided to leave so abruptly, but I could not stop thinking about what Xavier had said, and I needed some time away from him to process it.

Was Xavier only wanting to be my friend because he wanted a way to get back on campus? He could have used Jinx for that since they seemed like close friends. And if that were the case, why would they have asked me to assist them with their prank? They both seemed capable enough to get the job done themselves, but there was that rebellious side of Xavier that was somewhat concerning. Between trespassing in that abandoned house and now breaking into the Elite's home without a second thought, I should label him as a 'bad boy'.

However, another side of me did like that rebellious side as we both share the common interest of 'getting back at' the Elites for everything they have done to us and the students. And Xavier did have a justifiable reason to have his revenge. He was forced to leave the school, his friends, and even where he lived because of them, and that would make anyone upset enough to take the actions that he had. I suppose I should be a bit more forgiving for that, but can I trust our friendship is genuine? And with Mikron being suspended from the events at the dance, did Jinx only want to be my friend so that I could help her set up a prank?

I barely made it back to the school in time for dinner, and when I reached the dining hall, most of the students had already left to go back to the dormitories for the night. I was grateful for that, considering I had a lot on my mind and was not in the mood to be my usual chatty self with everyone.

I thought about Dick warning me to stay away from Xavier. Could he have been right? And was the road I was going down by being around him destructive? I shook my head at that thought. Since when did Dick care about my well-being? His warning seemed invalid to me. But Jinx did say to be careful around Xavier, but she seems okay with being around him now.

My head ached with so many confusing questions that I had no appetite to finish my dinner. I left my plate half-eaten and trudged back up to my room, asking myself, "Do I meet up with Jinx next Saturday, or do I not?" I repeated the same question over and over until I found myself crawling into my bed without changing into my sleeping clothes or speaking to Rachel. Rachel did not seem to mind, as her attention was completely captivated by one of her books.

I had hoped that if I slept on the question, I would have awoken with a confident answer for myself in the morning, but that answer did not come. And it did not come the day after that or the days that led up to the morning I was supposed to meet up with Jinx. I thought about hiding away in the library to torture myself with studying for the French exam or going to one of the gyms we were allowed to train, and if Jinx came back asking where I was, I would act like a fool and pretend that I forgot.

As tempting as my escape route was, I knew I was a miserable liar, and I did not like the thought of breaking a promise I made to another. Therefore, when the time came for me to meet Jinx, I found myself waiting for her in the dining hall.

"Are you ready to do this, Miss Badass?" Jinx greeted me and held her hand up so I could high-five it.

"Yes, I am," I replied and completed her gesture. A strange rush of excitement flowed through me at that moment. It was as if being included in something so coveted gave me the confidence I needed to be rebellious. "I cannot wait to see the look on Babs's face once we are victorious with this prank."

"That's the spirit!" She winked. "And you will be able to see that look on her face with the plan I have cooked up. Before Mikron was suspended, I got his code to hack into the Elite's security cameras outside the mansion. The moment we see them leave, I will replace the live feed with a loop I'm recording so they won't be able to see us break in. Fortunately for us, they stupidly have the camera pointed at an angle where not much of the school is seen, so nothing should break the illusion of having the same people walking by repeatedly."

As Jinx began revealing her genius plan, she motioned me to one of the tables next to the largest window with a direct view of the Elite's mansion. We could still see Vic's car parked outside, meaning they had not left yet.

"What if they have an alarm system that goes off once we enter?" I asked as I sat across the table from her.

"Child's play," Jinx smirked. "We've figured out a way to disable their alarm system a long time ago for this exact purpose. However, my sissy friends kept chickening out every time we had an opportunity to set this up, so I've never been able to unleash my master plan until now. Once I see their car leave, I'll disable the alarm with another clever code Mikron created that bypasses the notification sequence that would alert Vic on his phone."

"Oh," I said, astonished by how prepared they had been. "It seems like you and your friends have been planning this for a while now."

"Impressed, aren't you?" Jinx wagged her eyebrows at me. "See, the thing with those stuck-up assholes is that they think most of the students here don't have the intelligence to break into their precious mansion. So, they dumb down their security system so that anyone can hack into it. Big mistake on their part. This prank will show them not to underestimate us, and we'll let it be a warning to them not to be so cocky to think they have the tournament in the bag."

Jinx paused to look at me straight in the face. "I know you will beat all of them at the tournament. I've watched you train on the field with those dummies you barely leave intact. They have nothing on you, and we're relying on you to save the school. No pressure or anything."

Though I could only make sense of half of what Jinx said through her slang and her knowledge of 'hacking,' I did hear the compliment on my fighting abilities. I had not realized that so many people depended on me to defeat all the Elites. "Thank you," I told her, "I will do my best."

She did not say anything after that, going on to stare out the window for the moment the Elites left. In our silence, I suddenly remembered the reason why I wanted to talk to her in the first place. I felt like I had earned her trust enough by agreeing to help her with this prank, and we were finally alone to talk. Now was the perfect time.

"Jinx," I began, and after talking about Mikron, I knew exactly what I wanted to ask her first. "You remember Joseph, yes?"

"Yeah, unfortunately." She responded unenthusiastically, her attention still focused on the Elite's mansion.

I was not expecting a curt reply, but I pressed on anyway. "Well…Mikron was only suspended for the term for a prank that put everyone in danger. I know that it was an accident, and it was not supposed to go the way it did, but I do not remember Joseph doing anything that bad to be expelled permanently from the school. Maybe it should not concern me, but do you know what he might have done? I understand your friends confronted him shortly before he left, so I thought maybe you would know."

Jinx did not look at me for a while. Perhaps she did not hear me, but she gulped before saying, "Joseph might look and act innocent, but you have no idea what kind of upbringing he is from." She sighed before deciding to look at me. "I don't know what he did, but knowing the family he came from, I'm sure he was working on some secret terrorist attack on the school, and the teachers found out, so they kicked him out to try to protect everyone. That would be my best guess."

I felt like that was not the whole truth, but I wanted to know more about the family he came from. Just as I was about to ask, Jinx jumped to her feet. "They're leaving now! It's time to let Xavier know and get this party started!"

I followed Jinx outside and then toward the entrance, where we were to meet Xavier. Jinx looked calm and determined as she trekked forward. If she was nervous about getting caught as we quickly approached the back entrance, she did not show it.

"Um...Jinx?" I started to ask. "How do you know for sure they are going to Gotham and will be gone for the whole day?"

"I overheard Wally talk about it with Garth as I passed them in the hallway," she said. "Again, it was a dumb move on their part to talk about their plans so openly in front of everyone. And I know they will be gone all day. It's about an hour's drive to downtown Gotham, and if they are going to Wayne Manor, which I'm assuming they are, it's even further out. Or so I've heard. Don't worry. They'll be gone for a while."

I wanted to trust everything she said to be true, but as we neared the mansion, I could suddenly make out where each of the cameras was placed and prayed that Jinx was correct about how they were angled. We had to pass the mansion to get to the back entrance, where we were to meet with Xavier. The moment we passed the Elite's home, Jinx pulled out her phone, and I watched her thumbs tap furiously over the screen.

"And the loop feed is running...now!" She announced and proudly placed her phone back in her pocket. "And perfect! Xavier is here right on time!"

I looked ahead to see Xavier from behind the gate barrier, leaning against the stone wall that held the gate within it with a smug look on his face.

"About time you two showed up." He said while Jinx yanked the gate open to let him in.

"Yeah, yeah," Jinx replied. "You can blame those rich kids taking their sweet ass time."

"It's fine," Xavier said, sauntering through the gate. "It's finally nice out, so I didn't mind waiting a little longer."

Walking alongside Jinx and Xavier as we started to head back toward the mansion, I noticed the weather for probably the first time all day. It was, indeed, quite lovely out, and the Earth season of Spring was finally revealing itself after what seemed like a very long and dark winter. I could finally see blue skies, and all the snow had melted away. The trees were still barren, but I knew it would not be long before I started seeing little buds sprout from the branches and wildflowers begin to bloom everywhere. Or at least, that was what I read about what would happen during this time of the year.

"Are you enjoying the weather too, Cutie?" Xavier's voice broke me from my daydream.

"Oh, yes," I told him. "I always love it when the sun is out. I always have...or I feel like I have more energy when it is not hiding behind the clouds."

"Yeah, I feel that." Xavier agreed. "The winters are so long here, and I feel like most people turn into zombies between December and February."

"Only between December and February?" Jinx questioned him. "I feel like the zombie-turning season is much longer than that, don't you think?"

"We should probably start walking faster if we want all the time we need to set things up, don't you think?" Xavier responded with an answer that sounded like he was mocking her.

Jinx rolled her eyes and widened her steps to move forward toward the mansion faster. They did not say anything to each other until we reached one of the back entrances to the Elite's mansion. Jinx hopped up the steps to stand before the door, then held her hand up to stop Xavier and me from getting closer.

"We've got to disable the alarms first." Jinx smiled and took her phone out again to let her fingers dance across it.

As Jinx did whatever she had to do on her phone, I glanced around to see if anyone noticed us trying to break into the Elite's home.

"Are you still nervous, Cutie?" Xavier asked. Noticing my concern for our surroundings. "Don't worry. No one is going to bother us. Trust me, ok?"

"How are you so certain of that?" I asked him.

"In!" Jinx cried as she opened the door and twirled gracefully into the mansion. That was way too easy! Vic is an idiot for setting up the security system the way he did."

"After you, Milady," Xavier said while holding the door for me to enter.

Following Jinx into a massive corridor with Xavier behind me, I noticed the large kitchen directly to my left. This must have been how Gar sneaked into the kitchen that night when I first met him. I did have to agree with Jinx. Vic probably should have put more effort into his security system because this would be the second break-in without them noticing.

We eventually found our way into the foyer, where Dick gave me one of his first of many warnings throughout the school year. Jinx dropped her backpack on the floor and unloaded multiple items. She pulled out a box of food coloring along with multiple spray cans of various colors, and one can look to be filled with whipped cream instead of paint. Finally, she pulled out a packet of unfilled water balloons and placed that next to the whipped cream.

"Alright!" Jinx said while she stood up straight and looked deviously over her prank items. "Here's the plan. I'm going to spend my time here on the first floor setting up my booby traps at all the entrances, and then I'll work on my art masterpiece in the main living here. Xavier, you brought those speakers, right?"

"Sure did," Xavier said, pulling out his hand from his pocket to reveal multiple tiny devices that I assume were supposed to be speakers. "I've got all the sounds programmed to go off right at the witching hour."

"Sounds?" I asked. "What kind of sounds?"

"Spooky sounds." He winked. "The Elites will think their house is being possessed or haunted right at the alleged witching hour of 3 am."

"That does sound spooky," I said, only to appease him. I highly doubt with the intellect that most of the Elites have that they would believe their house would have been haunted.

"Kory, you'll be helping Xavier set up those speakers in areas where it will be difficult for the Elites to find. I suggest any bookshelves you find in their rooms behind some books or behind the curtains. And while you're doing that, we'll need your strength to turn as much furniture upside down in the rooms as you can."

"Why are we turning the furniture upside down?" I asked. Are all human pranks as bizarre as this one?

"Because it's funny," Jinx replied. "It will take them forever to get everything back together, and the whole point of this prank is to annoy them."

Jinx went on to finish her instruction. "Xavier, I will place the rest of the speakers around the mansion and…" She threw the box of food coloring at him. "To try to sell the haunted house bit...you think you can find where the water supply is located so that you can put all that red food color in it? It will look like blood will come from their faucets."

"Sure," Xavier said. "Give me the hardest task, why don't you?"

Jinx ignored him. "We're running out of daylight here by just standing around. Let's get to work!" With that, Jinx plucked two cans of spray paint and shook them vigorously.

"I guess I better get to finding that water supply," Xavier muttered to me, then took my hand to put half of his tiny speakers in it. "Let me know if you need any help with those speakers. They are wireless, so they can go literally anywhere."

"I will let you know. Thank you." I said before turning on my heel to begin my ascent up the grand marble staircase in the foyer. I realized that my attitude toward him was cold, but I could not get rid of the feeling that he was trying to use me to get something for his gain.

I dropped the speakers in my jacket pocket while marching up the stairs. Once I reached the second floor, my eyes had to adjust to the darkness as the hallways were only lit with a few vintage lamps with dark shades that barely gave enough light to see where I was going. It contrasted the first floor with the floor-to-ceiling windows that had let in so much natural light. Now, I felt like I was walking down corridors that led to a dungeon. Perhaps that was what the Elites were going for...

The hallway was lined with several mahogany doors that I imagined must have led to each of the Elite's bedrooms. Most of those doors were closed, but I found one room where the door was slightly ajar, and a tiny bit of light was coming from it. I heard the voice of X'hal speak to my soul to go to that room first, so I did without much thought.

Slowly, I opened the door so I could sneak through and immediately was blinded by the light that had poured into the spacious room I had entered. My breath was taken away from the sheer majesty of where I was standing. The room almost resembled the bedroom I had grown up in at the palace of Tamaran; though my room might have been slightly more extensive, it did match its regalness. A large four-poster bed sat on one side of the room, with luscious crimson bedding and matching curtains pulled back at each corner of the bed. At the other side of the room was an impressive-sized fireplace that looked like it had not been used for a very long time, but there was a sofa set facing the fireplace where a group of people could have gathered around it if they wanted to. But I suspected that no one had sat in that furniture, judging by the layer of dust exposed by the direct sunlight.

This must have been the master suite. Who was the lucky one to claim this bedroom out of all the Elites? But I already suspected who that might be, and my speculation was about to be rewarded.

A small picture resting on a dresser caught my eye, and I immediately went to it. I had plenty of time to turn all the furniture here upside down, and it would be no effort for me at all. Therefore, I thought doing a little 'snooping' would not hurt.

The picture I picked up from the dresser showed three people wearing matching red, green, and yellow leotards. One was a very beautiful woman with her arms wrapped around a tall, handsome man. A young boy sat on his shoulders, appearing to be laughing the moment the picture was taken. The boy shared the same black hair as the man but had the woman's blue eyes.

"Dick," I whispered once I realized that the boy in the picture the younger version of Dick Grayson. Undoubtedly, it was him, and the two other people must have been his biological parents.

I tenderly touched the picture and suddenly felt sad. He and his family looked so happy and prosperous with love. What tragedy had happened that caused Dick to lose both of them? My heart started to break at the thought that there was a happy and carefree Dick Grayson at one point, with this picture being the proof of it. But something terrible must have happened that turned him into what he was now.

"Hey!"

I jumped so high that I thought my feet had left the ground for a second. I whipped my head toward the door to find Xavier walking into Dick's room. I thought he was downstairs figuring out where the water supply was. Was he already finished with that task?

Xavier whistled as he paced around the room, admiring the majestic space. "This room certainly brings back memories. It's much cleaner but stuffier than I last remembered it."

"Was this your room before you were expelled?" I asked, placing the picture of Dick's family back on the dresser and hoping Xavier did not notice.

"Yeah, it was." He said bitterly. "And I guess I'm not surprised Dick-tator took it over. He seems to know how to always get his way. Like every other rich kid, huh?"

"I suppose," I said meekly as my eyes drifted over to Dick's bed. I felt myself involuntarily blush. He sleeps in that bed...I wonder what it would be like to share it with him.

"Whoa!" I heard Xavier cry out, and I gulped to break myself out of my daydream. No, that would be most inappropriate. Stop thinking about it.

"I didn't realize Grayson was into such grotesque stuff!" Xavier said, and I returned my attention back to Xavier. He was standing in front of a desk with a giant board with several of the most gruesome images I have ever seen.

As I approached the desk, I could see that each picture was of a townsperson or what was once a townsperson. I took particular notice of a picture of a man lying lifeless in overgrown grass with half his head missing, just like the body I saw at the clinic. Did both men share the same terrible fate? There was handwriting on the picture that read: suicide or murder?

Each picture seemed to have a string attached to a thumb tack, leading to another picture or note. There were also drawings of what looked to be monstrous fusions of humans and animals embedded with the photos. This strange collage did not make much sense to me, but the strings were all going to one specific picture. It was a very blurry picture, as the figure in it seemed to be moving quite fast, but I knew from the faint details that it was Red X.

"What does this all mean?" I asked before realizing I was saying it out loud.

"I don't know," Xavier replied. "Maybe it's all of Dick's victims, and these pictures are like trophies to him that he wants to show off."

"Why would he want to show off that?" I asked him.

Xavier shrugged. "Creepy dude. Creepy stuff. Maybe it's a source of inspiration for him. But it is a little weird to have this type of material in his bedroom."

"Yeah...it is," I heard myself saying, but those words did not mean much. My mind had gone someplace else entirely.

"This guy's room is bumming me out," Xavier said. "I need to find a place with more joy to work in. Did you plant the speaker in here yet?"

Speaker? Oh right...we were still setting up a prank. "Yes," I lied. "I only need to rearrange his furniture now."

"Cool," Xavier brightened. "I'm sure Grayson will get the scare of his life once he hears the recording I have set to go off! I'll meet you back downstairs with Jinx once you're done messing with all the furniture."

Xavier left, but I did not find a spot to hide the speaker after he was gone. Nor did I move any of his furniture. I wanted to look at the strange display of pictures a little longer and figure out what it all meant. Was Dick also trying to figure out what was happening in the town? Did we want to find out the same thing? Or was this a blueprint for what he was planning? But he was not Red X; I knew that for sure, but he must know or have come across him at some point for a picture of him to be on this board.

I left Dick's room untouched. Well...maybe besides the picture of his family.

I then lost interest in the prank we were setting, but I knew I could not leave the mansion and not do anything to help. I made a promise to Jinx. I went into the other bedrooms on that floor to turn a variety of tables and chairs upside down in their rooms without taking much notice of whose room I was messing up. And I did find some clever places to hide the remaining speakers I had in each room, and then I ended up putting the speaker that was meant for Dick's room in one of the potted plants in the hallway outside of the bedrooms.

I had too much on my mind to know what I was doing. I was trying to determine if Dick was a friend or foe. Ok, maybe not a friend...but could he be an ally? No, he was not totally out of the clear yet. He kept too many secrets to be completely innocent. But the most troubling part was that he knew Red X somehow. And if he knew Red X, then maybe Dick knew what he was collecting, and more about this 'underworld' Red X mentioned.

Again, more questions, but will I ever find the real answers?

Whew, another chapter down, and now, finally, I get to write the really crazy stuff! The next chapter is going to be the tournament (finally), and that one might take me some time to write because I want it to be one big chapter instead of two. Which means I have to figure out some choreography for the fights, but hopefully it will be worth the wait!

And I feel like I'm a broken record saying this, but thank you so much for the reviews! Knowing that people are reading this and expecting updates keeps me motivated to finish this story, and then we'll see where it goes from there!