Will:

"Home Economics is this way," said Principal Wallinger, pointing to the hallway on his left. He frowned at Will. "You don't strike me as the cooking type. Are you sure you don't want to transfer to something else? Now's your chance..."

"I'm sure," said Will, trading an uneasy look with Sasha. The closest either of them had come to using an oven or a hotplate was when they'd watched Jasper in the kitchen. They had Lücan to thank for their choice of subjects. The Head Sepheri had purposely forgotten Sasha's enrolment form last Friday just so he would have an excuse to go back and hypnotize the principal into matching their timetables with Ash's. Actually, he blamed Ash for choosing these subjects in the first place.

"Your father taught you physics and cooking? Impressive."

"It's Lücan," snapped Will, hating that the principal could make such an oversight. No one could replace his real father. "And yes, he taught me." A lie, but Will was too annoyed to give this man the truth.

Principal Wallinger squinted up at Will, his friendly demeanor gone. Will wasn't about to endure a lecture, not about his father, and so he reached into the principal's mind only to discover that Sasha was already pulling the last few sentences from the principal's head. When it was done the principal glanced around the hallway, dazed.

Thanks, Sash, said Will, sending her a grateful smile.

She placed a hand upon his back. Told you—you need me.

Maybe. A little.

"Now, where were we...?" Principal Wallinger asked.

"I believe you were taking us to the Home Economics room, Sir?" Sasha smiled.

"Oh, yes. Righty-o, then."

As the principal took off down the hallway students shifted out of the way, huddling in groups by their lockers. Will wondered if they were intentionally avoiding eye contact with the principal in the mismatched suit, because the second the principal had passed students on both sides of the hallway they began looking around again. Girls smiled at Will. There seemed to be an abundance of them. Smiling back, he guessed they could spot a new boy a mile away, like their radars were set on new blood. The boys' radars were clearly tuned differently, eyeing Sasha like she was a swimsuit model strutting down a runway. Grumbling, Will stepped closer to her, remembering each of their faces for later. If it wasn't for Principal Wallinger's presence, Will would have probably been in a fight about now. No one looked at Sasha like that. No one. It didn't help that Sasha made a point of smiling at each and every one of them. His first reason not to like school.

Will had never been inside a school before. After years of guarding Ash from the outskirts of the school grounds, he'd always wanted to know what it would be like to sit in one of those classrooms and learn from the different teachers, or have more than four classmates. Now he was starting to miss Lücan's grueling lessons in the library on Lyrethan, the tutorials in the galaxy dome, the marathon running sessions at dawn, and the sparring and dance training in the ballroom. To be honest, the dance training he could live without. With Sasha being the only female Sepheri that left Alründ, Theo, or Flynn as dance partners, neither of whom wanted to dance the girl's part. Another reason for Ash to return home.

Principal Wallinger stopped at a crowd of rowdy students by the last classroom. He cleared his throat several times before he piqued their attention. Will spotted Ash at the back of the group. Her eyes might have been on the principal, but whatever Emmy and Lara were whispering had Ash giggling. Lücan would never tolerate that kind of behavior in his classes. Just another hint that their worlds were nothing alike.

"Good morning, 11C," said Principal Wallinger.

The students continued talking, and the principal's shoulders heaved. He pointed at a guy with scraggly black hair and a big smirk who was playing on his phone. Despite never meeting the guy, Will knew who he was right away—couldn't stand him. Trent Mason was a promising tennis player, already playing a semi-professional career in junior tournaments. He also happened to be Emmy's twin brother, and had made far too many advances on Ash over the years.

"Mr. Mason, put that phone away now or I'll confiscate it," said the principal.

"Just got to shoot one more alien, Sir," replied Trent, tilting his phone this way and that.

Shoot one more alien?  asked Sasha, appalled.

I know!  replied Will. What the hell kind of game is that? I'm almost tempted to reveal where we're from. Let him try and shoot us then.

Sasha laughed softly.

Principal Wallinger waited, eyes narrowed on Trent. "Are you done?"

"Almost...." Trent poked at the screen. "Yep!" he said, slipping his phone into his pocket before grinning at the principal. If Will hadn't known better, he would have thought Trent possessed some sort of mind control to manipulate a teacher like that. But in reality it was because the principal treaded carefully around his prized sports star.

The principal smiled impatiently. "Now that Mr. Mason has finished, I'd like you to give a warm welcome to Mont Albert Height's newest students, Sasha..." He whispered across at Sasha, "I never caught your last name. Come to think of it, it was absent from your enrolment form."

Will tried not to laugh at the awkward smile on Sasha's face, or the fact that Lücan had actually made a mistake for once. He'd left out Sasha's surname with the intention of writing it in later—once they'd invented one for her. That had proven difficult as she'd disapproved of every name thrown at her over the course of an hour. Sasha and Alründ had never needed a surname before. Why bother when they had titles such as 'Princess Sasha of Astaria' and 'Alründ, Prince of Astaria'?

"It's..." Sasha began, looking at Will for help.

"White," Will said, seeing her whitish-blonde hair. "Sasha White."

White? That's the best you can come up with?  she yelled in his head.

Will shrugged. He liked the color of her hair.

She rolled her eyes. Now I'm stuck with that name for the rest of the year. Maybe two!

He grinned, knowing it would irritate her further.

"Yes, Sasha White," the principal said more clearly. "She happens to be an exchange student staying with our other new student, Will Javü."

As Principal Wallinger nodded to Will, Ash was peering intently through the crowd, her honey-colored eyes locked on the new boy. Will tried not to stare at her, made a point of smiling at his new classmates, but he was dying to look back at her once more. To know what she was thinking right now... He could... No. To read her thoughts just before meeting her always felt underhanded. Besides, his telepathy was needed for other means.

As the door opened into the kitchen, he weaved his way through the bustle of students, making sure he hovered near Ash and her friends. Students began scattering towards the six work stations that consisted of stainless steel benches and two sinks in the center of each one. Will noted the back work stations had filled fast, with two students on one side and two on the other. It all looked so odd. Where were the desks? The books? Instead, ovens and stoves divided the middle of the room, and at the front of the classroom was a small workstation and whiteboard, with a woman standing between them. The woman's lips were pressed tight, organizing food as if it was a puzzle being timed. As for her grey curls, they made her head appear too big for her body. The pink blush on her cheeks—severe. How this woman could put fear into Will after fighting the likes of Keenan was mystifying.

With all that time spent gazing at the décor, Will had wasted time. He'd almost missed his opportunity for stage one of the plan, because Ash and her friends were approaching the front work station, choosing their spots. Simultaneously, he entered Emmy, Lara and Holland's minds and planted a seed in their brains, Not this work station. The one near the window is free.

Emmy, Lara, and Lara's boyfriend Holland rushed across to the work station near the window. Ash stared at them for a moment, her hurt obvious. Feeling a pang of guilt, Will took the spot opposite—thankfully with his back to the uptight teacher.

"Do you mind if I join you?" he asked nervously.

"Go ahead," Ash said, waving unenthusiastically at the empty spots. She blinked several times at Will, her smile broadening with every passing second. "Will?"

"You remember?"

"The festival was only a few nights ago. How could I forget?"

How could I forget?  He wanted to laugh at the absurdity of it all. Then the guilt kicked in further as she rushed around the bench and threw her arms around him. His arms were around her in an instant, that is until she pulled back, blushing.

"Oops. I got a little carried away there," she said. "We hardly know each other anymore, and here I am draping myself all over you."

"Anytime."

"I'll remember that." She squinted up at him, pondering something. "I don't understand. You're here. What about military school?"

"Change of plans," Will said, his spirit plummeting.

"Oh. Not in a good way?"

Will felt as if he'd been knocked to the ground, as if she'd just read his spirit as easily as he could read hers. If she only knew how his mother and father had been taken in one swift moment, or that Keenan had learned of Ash's identity. So many other things... "Why do you say that?"

"A feeling, I guess..." she said softly. "Are you okay?"

He nodded uneasily.

Just thinking about his parents brought back that horrible heat at the corners of his eyes. He would not cry here of all places! He'd managed weeks without crying and three words from Ash and the grief was back with full force. He inhaled slowly, pushing down the pain.

"Alright," Ash said, but it was clear she didn't believe him.

The teacher began talking and writing on the board, but Will never took in a word of it.

Rein it in, Javü, Sasha said. Now is not the time to fall apart. Ash is on to you. The girl is more attuned to you than I thought.

Sasha's hand on his back might have been comforting, her words not so much, but it did refocus his mind on where he was. I am not falling apart.

Liar. She ran her hand down his back in a way that was far too intimate for a classroom. He couldn't believe she would be so bold, especially in front of Ash. I could ease the pain like before. Just say the word...

His anger dissipated as he remembered Sasha's methods for easing his pain—the nights she'd come to his room, waking him from nightmares, helping him to forget for a while. No. He couldn't let himself become addicted to her again, not when he'd spent the past month adjusting to her absence from his bed.

You shouldn't go there, Sash, he said.

She laughed quietly behind him. You're barely resisting.

She was right, of course. But Will couldn't entertain the idea another second, not with Sasha on one side and Ash on the other. He didn't know who to turn to. That's when he realized that Ash wasn't looking at him anymore. She was staring over his shoulder.

"Do we know each other?" Ash asked Sasha.

Will shifted out between the two girls, thinking he'd just walked into another nightmare.

Sasha smoothed her ponytail, her glossy smile a little too bright, her presence as haughty as ever. "Yes. We were young. It's okay, you always had a bad memory. I see that nothing's changed."

"I did?" Ash rubbed her forehead, torn between confusion and anger. "I do?"

Sasha!  Will chided. You know perfectly well why she can't remember!

Better for her to think the fault lies with her. At least she won't be questioning her memory later.

I guess your logic's fine. Your delivery needs some work. Be nice.

Not that easy. I have not a thing in common with her. Except you. Two very good reasons to keep my distance.

Let's not bring other issues into this. You're supposed to befriend her. If you remember, you were friends once. It shouldn't be that hard.

She is nothing like the girl I used to know. I much preferred her at age seven. She was feisty, refined, disciplined. Now she is a jok—

Sasha, please.

I hate you, Will Javü.

Sure you do.

Sasha brightened her smile and held her hand out to Ash. Ash looked reluctant to take it, but when she did her gaze dropped to the bracelets on Sasha's wrist. Ash touched the starshard bracelet, trailing her finger over the diamond of swirling red and gold, then over the band of silver embossed with Lyrethian symbols.

"Stars shall shine in times of darkness," Ash read quietly.

Sasha and Will stilled.

She can read it! Sasha said.

This doesn't bode well, Will replied. Do you think we should inform Lücan?

Later.

"I've seen this before," Ash said, meeting Sasha's eyes.

Sasha pulled her hand away and rubbed the bracelet. "You must have seen me wearing it as a child. Will has one, too."

Ash glanced to Will, and he begrudgingly held up his wrist, showing the bracelet. Will thought it was a bad idea to bring attention to the fact that he and Sasha both owned the same bracelet. It would only lead to more questions, each one more difficult to answer.

He could still remember when Ash had worn a starshard bracelet. Up until the age of seven, she had fiddled with the bracelet constantly. It had driven her father crazy. 'Ashala, that starshard is not a toy,' her father would say, 'Cease using it as one'. Then she would apologize. Seconds later she would be playing with the starshard again, making the diamond come to life by sending out wisps of light, creating miniature creatures that danced in the air, small enough to disappear the second her father turned around again. Will still couldn't create forms that delicate, only weapons. Alründ, on the hand, was the only other young Sepheri to master both.

"Miss Rendwick and Mr. Javü, will you be joining us for class today or do you expect us to serve you morning tea once the rest of us have finished cooking?" the teacher snapped.

"Sorry, Mrs. Wilson." Ash sped back to her spot on the other side of the bench.

Will turned to the teacher, bowing his head respectfully. It was a habit hard to break after years of apologizing to Lücan. "Sorry, Mrs. Wilson."

"Thank you." Mrs. Wilson looked over the class, daring somebody to step out of line.

"I'd take the morning tea over this any day," Sasha whispered to Will.

"What was that, Miss White?" the teacher asked, rounding her bench. But Sasha was staring at two guys waving at her from the hallway. "Miss White?"

Sasha, you're Miss White. Turn around!  Will ordered.

For Fates sake! Sasha beamed at the teacher. "I was just remarking on how excited I am to be here. You have a lovely kitchen."

The class laughed. Whether they were laughing with Sasha or at her, Will wasn't about to read their minds to find out.

"Ah—" Mrs. Wilson scrutinized Sasha a moment, but Sasha kept on smiling. "—Thank you, Miss White. I agree."

Overdoing it a bit, aren't you?  Will said.

Sasha said. You're no longer the teacher's pet.

I am not Lücan's pet.

Whatever you say...Pet.

Ten minutes later, Will had his sleeves rolled up over his burgundy school jumper, whisking butter and sugar in a metal bowl. From time to time, he would peek over at Ash to copy her technique, trying to match the smooth consistency. He peered across at Sasha, pleased that her mixture was still lumps of butter caked in brown sugar.

Mrs. Wilson peered into Will's bowl, surprising him. "Whisk faster, Mr. Javü, or we will be here all day. You, too, Miss White!"

Sasha grunted with indignation.

After adding the egg to the mixture, Will groaned as the teacher chose that moment to return, her voice snipping over his shoulder, "Your egg has curdled. Toss it out and start again."

Will stared down at his cake mixture that had separated in the bowl, then turned to her. It looked fine. Just a little more whisking, surely? "You're serious?"

"Very. Unless you want your cake to resemble a biscuit?"

"I'll start again." Will turned back to the bench, poured his work down the sink and slammed his bowl down a little too loudly, catching Ash's attention.

"I take it you don't want to be a chef one day?" she asked.

He looked across at her, trying to brush away his anger. This assignment was proving harder than he'd imagined. "Somehow, I don't think that's my true calling."

Ash put down her spoon and leaned on the bench, as if sharing a secret. "What is?"

"Good question." A Sepheri. At least that was the first thing that sprung to mind. It was a role he'd been born to live. He ruffled his hair, knowing he could never say 'Sepheri.'

"Let me put it this way... If you could be anything, what would you want to be?"

"A writer," he revealed, not knowing where that thought came from, but he liked the idea. Sometimes, at the end of a day, he would find himself writing, not realizing that hours had passed and his pages were filled with a short story or a poem. It happened more often lately, ever since his parents...

"I like it. That's what you should be. A writer."

"Yeah?" Will laughed, rinsing his bowl in a bid to start again.

"Totally." Ash's light mood changed at once. Her hands splayed on the bench and she closed her eyes as if in pain.

"Ash?" he whispered.

When she didn't answer, Will rounded the bench and took her arm. "What is it?"

"I can hear...someone," she breathed, squeezing her eyes tighter. "I think I'm losing my mind."

Will didn't worry about crossing boundaries, he dove into Ash's mind, hearing a rich but slightly nasal voice at the edges of her consciousness. Ashala?  Keenan called to her. Ashala?

"Look at me, Ash!" Will hissed, grabbing her by the shoulders.

Slowly, Ash opened her eyes, and there was no missing the fear captured in her gaze. "A guy keeps calling out a name. It's almost my name, but it's not. I don't feel so good." And she swayed to the side and began to faint, Will catching her before she could hit the floor. Mrs. Wilson and Sasha ran in his direction as he swept Ash up into his arms.

"What happened?" Mrs. Wilson asked, checking Ash's pulse.

There was no way he could answer Mrs. Wilson, not when he was putting up a protective wall around Ash's mind. As it was, he wasn't strong enough to keep the protection there for very long.

Sasha cut in front of Mrs. Wilson. "She fainted."

"Someone inform the principal and the school nurse. I'm calling an ambulance." The teacher pulled out her phone and began dialing.

Will wanted to tell the teacher not to worry, but how could he possibly explain the truth. Emmy, Lara, Holland and Trent had now rushed over, too. He was just grateful that Mrs. Wilson didn't like distractions while on the phone. The woman shooed them back to their work station and gave the rest of the class the same cautionary look.

Will mouthed to Sasha, "Channel Lücan."

The moment she nodded he walked from the classroom. Ash's arms dangled limply, along with her hair. It killed him to see her like this, missing that spark he'd always loved.

Mrs. Wilson stormed after him. "Where do you think you're taking her, Mr. Javü?"

"Home," he shouted behind him. Then he ran down the hallway and pushed through the doors, out into the daylight. Not a soul in sight, he sprinted across the basketball court and burst into flight, faster than he'd ever flown unaided, so fast that to people in the streets he and Ash were a blur in the sky. Seconds later, he was descending into Jasper's back garden, passing her into Lücan's waiting arms.

Lücan bowed his head to Ash's. It felt like time had stood still before he let out a sob and lifted his head.

Will had felt Ash's presence just a moment ago, but now that he'd relinquished her mind protection to Lücan, he feared the worst. "Is she..." Will couldn't finish the words aloud. Is she dead?

Unconscious, said Lücan. He laid Ash down on the sofa, adjusting a cushion under her head and fixing her arms comfortably by her sides. Kneeling before the sofa, Lücan stroked the ringlets back from her forehead, then sat on the floor beside her, his gaze wandering between the rose garden through the doors and Ash. It was a rare moment to catch Lücan's thoughts, and Will couldn't stop himself from listening, She has been through so much, and what awaits her is soul destroying. My life all over again, and she will have to endure it. She is not strong enough. I cannot imagine she will ever be.

Will felt compelled to speak, just so he would break Lücan's train of thought. "How did this happen? How could she become unconscious after one interaction with Keenan?"

"I believe that Ashala's mind shut down the second it went into overload. Keenan was trying to force his way in, and her first inclination was to reject him, given that they are natural enemies. It took all of her strength, along with your protection. If it wasn't for you, we could have lost her. Perhaps you would be gone, too, as you are bound. But as you have not lost consciousness, consider yourself lucky that the bond between you is not complete."

Lucky? No one would miss me anyway, Will thought. I have no family.

Lücan gave him a stern look. "I would miss you. Your friends would miss you. We have always been your family. You must know that?"

Will shrugged, kneeling beside Ash and taking her hand. "How long do you think she'll remain like this?"

"It has already been too long, I fear." He stood and stared down at Ash with a look of helplessness. It was hard to watch. Lücan always had the answers. But now...now Will wasn't so sure.

"There must be something I can do, a way to bring her back?"

"Your bond isn't strong enough," Lücan said gently. "I must take her back to Lyrethan to heal."

"But that will put her in considerably more danger, closer to Keenan and his father."

Lücan nodded gravely. "It will. Sometimes we must fly close to danger to pass above it. Sometimes that is the only path."

"How long will we be gone?" He hoped it would be forever. He wanted the old Ash back, and that could only happen if she were to stay on Lyrethan permanently. With him.

"As long as it takes for her to recover and nothing more."

"I'll get my things," Will said, watching as Lücan scooped Ash up into his arms.

"No. Stay with Sasha. Inform Marianne and David of Ashala's condition. And above all, keep watch over them."

"You're taking her without me? But I'm her Guardian."

"Theo and Alründ will be there, as will the Elders. She will be protected."

"Lücan, please!"

"Goodbye, Will."

As Lücan tucked Ash up against his chest and walked out into the rose garden, Will followed, praying Lücan would change his mind.

"Take me with you!" Will yelled.

The Head Sepheri's shoulders heaved as he looked up at the sky. Lücan took off faster than the eye could see, and a second later the world boomed, the windows rattled, and the ground shook beneath Will. He couldn't imagine what the neighbors thought about the thunderous explosion in the midst of a sunny sky. Perhaps a small earthquake that was isolated to a few suburban streets? Because the magnitude of this explosion didn't normally happen when Lücan took off, not on Earth anyway. But Ash was his one weakness, and if she was in danger nothing else mattered.

An unwelcome voice interrupted his thoughts, Ah, Will.

Will knew better than to answer. To answer would open a telepathic channel between them, giving Keenan access to prod and pry until he unearthed the location to where Ash was hidden.

I know you're listening... Keenan sing-songed.