Shen waited outside the principal’s door. The wooden frame was ornamented with gold lining, and the wood was carved in the shape of whirling winds. It was beautiful, but Shen found himself thinking on Alice. He wasn’t sure why but she intrigued him more than any of the noble ladies he had met so far. Maybe it was because she wasn’t a noble, but a commoner. He hadn’t met many commoners. Except for the servants back home. Shen supposed that probably was the reason, Alice was different than the others he had met. She wasn’t tall like most noble ladies, nor did she have the bright red hair that was found in so many of the nobility. Well neither did he, but most of the nobility dyed their hair to red if they could. He wasn’t used to the girls here treating him with such disrespect. That in itself was strange at the academy but Shen was no stranger to the treatment. But it didn’t matter, Alice was crazy and that was something he wasn’t about to mess with.

The principal’s door swung open. Guila stood there, grudgingly ushering Shen inside. He took a breath, let’s get this over with, shall we, he thought. Upon entering he was faced with the entire school board along with to his surprise, his uncle.

“Please have a seat, Shen.” Principal Jackson gestured.

Shen took a seat and wondered why his uncle was here now.

The principal cleared his throat and began, “The board reviewed your case, but before we could agree upon a decision several incidents happened. The main one being of a student named Alice. She came in about two hours ago and testified to your account of the fight that occurred last night. We wanted to verify to see if she was telling the truth, at which point Alice showed us the same bloodied book you had carried the night before when we found you. After speaking with the head librarian, we discovered that Alice had indeed borrowed the book from the library last night a few minutes prior to the incident. We also looked into Alan Cordon’s record. He has had four infractions of harassment towards the woman of the school along with two infractions of aggressive behavior. Not to mention the doctor who attended him confirmed that he was drunk.” The principal sighed, “As such we have deemed that you were telling the truth of the fight last night. You are innocent on that account.”

Shen was shocked. He hadn’t expected the mean-spirited Alice to have actually stood up for him, especially not after the way they had parted. It made Shen see her in a new light. And it was just his luck that Alan Cordon was an idiot who had been caught for the same thing several times before. Well, not like Shen hadn’t been caught with other infractions himself, but that was beside the point. He was free.

“As for the theft of professor Guila’s exam.” Or not.

The principal continued, “There was no conclusive evidence. But seeing as none of us are idiots, and with your past record you will still be punished.” Jackson glanced at captain Stone, “However after being advised of the hope of your improvement Shen, we have decided to be lenient. You will be placed on probation until the end of the semester. But, any more infractions will lead to your suspension and worse. Do I make myself clear Shen?”

Shen tried to hold in his smile, “Yes, principal Jackson.”

“Shen, I am rewriting the history exam. Seeing as we all believe in your ability to succeed I will expect you to pass my exam with flying marks.” Guila smiled.

“That will be all Shen. You may leave.” The principal stated.

Shen ignored Guila and got up from his seat. He looked at his uncle and nodded faintly towards him. Shen couldn’t tell if he noticed, for he stood still and didn’t even look at him. As the door slammed behind him, Shen stood there for a moment. All in all, things had gone a lot better than he had hoped. He gingerly stretched his aching body. And headed down stairs, when he walked out of the building he was met with a smiling face.

“So how did it go?” Jack asked. He was reclining next to the wall. His crutch back in his hand.

“How long have you been waiting there?”

“Eternity. So, how was it?”

“Alright I guess. I only got probation so that’s nice.”

“What seriously, how did you manage that?”

“You wouldn’t believe it but remember that girl I was telling you about.”

“You mean the crazy peasant girl?”

“Yeah, her. Turns out she testified for me. My uncle also seemed to have a talk with the school board so that helped.”

“Well, congrats man. I told you everything would work out. All part of the plan.”

Shen give Jack a look, “Really? Cause all I remember of the plan was your ass flying out the window.”

Jack shrugged, “Don’t sweat the little things. Anyway, it must be nice to have a quin have your back like that.”

“Yeah I guess. My uncle is probably the nicest person I know.”

“Wait your uncle, captain Stone, ser Hector the Bloody Mist, is the nicest man you know? Are you daft?”

“No. I mean, yeah, sure he’s a soldier.”

Jack stared at him, an incredulous look on his face.

“Ok, a very good soldier. Anyway, he’s always looked out for me. He’s one of the few people in my family I actually admire.”

“Dude, I don’t want to ever meet your family.”

“No, you don’t.” Shen spoke with a trace of anger or sadness. Jack wasn’t sure which.

“Well, I have some stuff I’ve got to take care of but I’m glad you’re alright Shen.”

“The infamously lazy Jack Foxe has stuff to take care of?”

Jack smiled, his white teeth showing that characteristic cheeky smile, “Hey, I’m a busy man. I’ve got a reputation to keep.”

After leaving Jack behind, Shen made his way to the library. There he found the head librarian and asked her about the book “Biological Studies of Permaculture.” She explained to him that the book was currently not available as it had been damaged. Shen then offered to pay the cost of repairing the book and even gave extra, as an incentive to have the book fixed more quickly. After the librarian took the generous donation she told him the book would be ready in a few days. He thanked her and left.

******

In the end Dek found a small room in the corner of one of the school’s wings. It seemed a good place as any to eat lunch. The room itself was dusty, desks were stacked upon one another, a storage room then, and probably not in use. That is until he noticed a young man sitting in a desk in the corner, eating his own food. Contrary to the room the desk he sat in was immaculately clean. The man had dusky grey hair and a dark complexion, and bright amber eyes, that quickly glanced up at Dek.

“Leave,” the man’s reply came immediately.

Dek had had it. He was angry from the earlier humiliation and the recalling of old memories. He didn’t care for the nobles and he wasn’t about to be bullied by one now. Dek ignored the command and went to the other corner of the room, sat down and began eating his sandwich.

The man got up, “I said leave.”

Dek wasn’t a fighting man, far from it. He didn’t know how to fight. He wasn’t strong, nor particularly tall. Dek knew how to run though. His weapons were his intelligence and his iron will. But this stranger was tall and who knew if he was strong, he wasn’t particularly big but he wasn’t lanky either. Dek’s instincts told him to back off and leave, but at this moment he was too tired and angry to care. And so instead of being quiet and leaving he looked up, “I’m going to eat my damn sandwich whether you like it or not.” But what actually came out was, “Fuck you.” Shit, he had messed up, why did he say that, he should have said something to defuse the situation not escalate it. Oh, man now he had to run, but the stranger was closer to the door, could he make it without getting caught? No, better idea. Wait for the guy to respond then throw the sandwich into his face, then run. Yes, that’d work. The stranger raised his hands, Dek raised his sandwich.

The man laughed, “Alright, ser Dek, you got some balls. I’ll give you that. Eat your damn sandwich, but next time you insult me I’ll break your fucking nose.”

The man sat down and continued to eat. Dek slowly followed suit. The rest of the day passed in a haze for Dek. He didn’t talk to anyone in class nor did anyone try to talk to him, though he did catch some whispers of people saying he was a commoner, of course, news traveled fast in schools. Dek did notice however that the man who threatened to break his face was in his class, which would explain how he knew his name. Despite their previous encounter the man did not glance at him once. Which suited Dek just fine. He didn’t want to be friends with any of these people. Once the school day was over he headed home. Or at least where he was currently living. He didn’t bother looking at the town scenery or even visit the town market, a particular favorite pastime of his. Only giving a glance every now and then to make sure no one was following him. For the most part, he simply kept his head down and walked.

Dek walked into his apartment to find Erica tinkering with her mask. The helm was egg shaped and dyed in several shades of black and grey. Two silver discs, with dozens of grooves etched in each, culminating in a small orange gem in the middle, were attached to the sides of the mask. They served a special function for Erica, though she had never fully explained what it particularly did, though Dek knew it somehow helped Erica with her ability. The helm itself was made from several alloys that helped stop an ether blast, or so he was told. Erica was too skilled to have ever gotten shot in the first place.

“I’m back. How have you been?”

Erica gave a cursory glance and nod then continued working.

“Problem with the mask?”

“No, I’m just fine tuning it. We’ve entered a dangerous place; many eyes will be upon you. On the possible chance, you or I are recognized I’d like to be prepared.” Erica explained.

“Got it, well I’m pretty tired so I’m just gonna go knock out.”

Dek laid on his bed thinking of the day’s events. The school’s education had been adequate if not entirely all he had hoped for. Nonetheless, the day had not gone nearly as well as he had imagined. Life always had a way of surprising his expectations, mostly with bad results. The only thing that was consistent was Erica, even if that consistency took the form of being cold and harsh most of the time, she was still there, which was more than Dek could ask for. He closed his eyes and hoped tomorrow would be a better day.

He woke up to find himself in the dark once again. He got up and noted that there was a faint blue glow surrounding him. He took a few deep breaths, “Ok, let’s do this.”

He got up from bed and took a look at his surroundings. He hadn’t fallen several stories, he was still in his room. His back pack was in the corner, his bed was still next to the window, and his body was still in bed.

“What the hell?!” Dek jumped back as he saw his own dead body lying in bed. He really had become a ghost. Or was he? Dek slowly walked back to the bed and saw himself sprawled on the bed, his limbs bent at an awkward angle and saliva drooling down his chin. But he was breathing, which was nice. Note to self, work on sleeping posture. Still, though, this seemed pretty real even as his ethereal hand went right through his sleeping body. So not dreaming or dead, just a ghost, or ghostlike he surmised. He tried to open his bedroom door only to have his hand slip through, taking a deep breath, he closed his eyes and walked through the door. He found himself in the empty living room, Erica nowhere to be found. Dek looked around the apartment, touching anything, from the table to dishes or the screwdriver Erica had left. His hands went through everything as if they weren’t there. He eventually walked into the bathroom and stared at the mirror, there was no reflection. Not a ghost, he told himself, not a ghost.

After touring the small apartment Dek decided to go to the one place he had yet to visit. This time he walked through the door without closing his eyes. And found himself in Erica’s room. She was sleeping in her bed, her hand still glowing purple and her pale golden hair curled around her head. The moonlight made the hair seem aglow, she seemed majestic, almost ethereal. Dek sighed, he really had to work on his sleeping posture.

“Though, I’m the ethereal one, aren’t I, Erica.”

She didn’t stir. Dek stared at her face, she really was beautiful. When they would go to new places they’d always have to pose as siblings, seeing as Erica was in her mid-twenties, and Dek was seventeen. It seemed the reasonable choice, except their appearance. Erica had pale skin, grey eyes, and platinum hair, and though she wasn’t tall she had large curves. Dek on the other hand was skinny bordering on scrawny, his hair was a dull red, complemented by his olive complexion, and dark brown eyes. The two of them had nothing in common. But somehow, they had kept the sibling charade up, or well maybe they didn’t, seeing as they kept having to move.

Dek pondered such things as he looked at her sleeping form, normally she’d hate it when Dek stared. But at this moment she couldn’t even see him, let alone be aware of him. Usually he would try to be aware of his surroundings, be wary of the people he walked by, and always be ready to run at a moment’s notice. But for once, in a long time, he simply watched Erica’s body rise and fall. Erica may treat him badly most of the time, but she had stayed through it all, she cared, even if she didn’t show it, and that was enough for Dek. As long as they were together he was confident they could make it through this harsh world. He went to brush Erica’s golden hair only to have his hands fall through.

“Dammit,” Dek cursed in frustration. He wished he could touch something, anything really. Then it hit him. He had touched the tunnel walls last night, and right now his feet were touching the ground. He could touch things. Armed with the realization he cautiously tried touching Erica’s faint glowing purple hand, it felt warm and soft like any regular hand. He touched the other hand, it felt the same. Nothing happened this time around.

He tried to touch Erica’s hair once more and succeeded. He could feel the strands of her hair, but when he went to brush it he couldn’t. So, he could touch things just not affect them.

“So, I don’t even get all the ghost powers, huh?” But wait, what if he really did have some ghost like powers. Dek stuck his head out the window and looked at the ground thirty feet below. Maybe, just maybe. I mean what was the worst that could happen, fall to his death? I mean could he even be hurt? He fell a greater distance last night and he was fine, so hopefully not? Dek took a deep breath, clapped his hands, rubbed them together, and took a few steps back, he could do this. Dek sprinted past the wall and into the night air, his body felt light, almost weightless, as he looked out at town stretched out beneath him, and the academy in the distance. Then he fell, his body hurtling to the ground faster than he could scream, “Ahhhh!” He smashed into the ground, his body making not a single noise as it connected to the ground, well except for his screams that didn’t stop for several seconds. Gasping for breath Dek realized he was alright, unharmed in fact, except for his pride. So, he couldn’t fly, check.

He glanced around to see if anyone was watching. Seeing the coast clear Dek quickly got up, and walked down the street and pretended nothing had happened. Despite being invisible to others he still kept a watchful eye for anyone who might be watching, he was being hunted and he didn’t know the extent of his ability after all. There were few people up and about at this hour, most of them coming in and out of the local bar. Dek popped in for a bit and observed the drunk folks, no one noticed him. He then explored the streets of Emerald town, finding different ways to get to school or home faster and where less eyes would be watching. Erica had taught him it was never good to have anyone know where you lived. After a few hours of sightseeing Dek’s vision blurred and he woke up in his bedroom, exhausted. He groaned in fatigue.

He grudgingly got out of bed and made his way to the kitchen. Erica was there eating some toast and coffee, a second cup of coffee steamed on the counter. Dek grabbed it and sat down, sipping his coffee in silence.

“I’m sorry, what was that Dek?” Erica looked at him, an eyebrow raised.

“Hm, what?”

“’What’, nothing. ‘Thank you so much for the coffee Erica,’ ungrateful brat.”

“Oh, yeah, um, ‘Thank you so much for the coffee Erica.’”

“Better,” Erica’s thin lips curled up in a smile.

“Erica, I was wondering if you knew about quins users with out-of-body-experiences or abilities or something.”

“What’s up with these questions recently. Did something happen?”

“N-no, not at all I was just curious. After all, we might go against quins later might as well be prepared, uh, right?”

Erica stared at him, “Uh-huh. Well, there is no way to be prepared for what you’re asking about. There are a few people that have an ability known as astral projection. It allows them to disconnect their consciousness from their body using ether particles as a vessel, and scout out the surrounding areas and spy on one’s enemies. Quite useful and practically impossible to detect. So, if we are being spied on we’ll have no way to know. So, let me know if something happens.”

“Yeah for sure. Thanks for telling me. Is there anything in particular they can do, like I don’t know shoot lightning bolts from their hands or something?”

“What? No, you idiot, of course not. The range of powers of an ability varies slightly from one person to the next but it doesn’t diverge that much. Now drink your coffee, you have to go to school.”

“Oh, yeah, got it. Thanks for telling me. I’ll hurry up, don’t want to get late to school.”

Erica calmly sipped her coffee, “You already are.”

“Huh?”