“Do you hear it?” Alexis asked.

Parker was deep in thought, focused more than he had been in a while. “I think so…” He started to tap his finger on the table by the common room fireplace to the beat of her core.

Alexis bounced excitedly in her seat. “That’s it!”

“It is?” Parker asked for confirmation.

“Yes!” She jumped up and ran to him, hugging him in a tight bear hug.

Parker wiped his brow, thankful to finally have a general idea on how to notice someone else’s core. “Now let me try on Caleb.”

Caleb’s head shot up from his book. “You’re going to do what with me?”

They both started to laugh. “He’s going to sense your core. Don’t worry, you don’t have to do anything.” Caleb nodded his head, still a little unsure.

Parker focused his thoughts on sensing Caleb’s core. He dialed in on feeling Caleb’s heartbeat and then reaching deeper, as if he were digging in a pile of sand. After a moment, he was able to feel it, the subtle beat that was different from his. He started to tap his finger on the table again and he could see Alexis start to nod her head in rhythm with his tapping.

“Yes!” Parker shouted, pumping his fist in the air.

“I think you’re ready,” Alexis added.

“I need to sense someone who’s going to be a considerable distance away from me though…” The lack of confidence in his voice made Alexis feel bad for him.

Alexis thought for a minute and then said, “Well, let’s try that. I’ll go to a different part of the castle and you can try to find me.”

Parker liked her idea so she took off through the entrance and he waited for a while before trying to figure out where she was. He started to notice several different beats as he reached out. Sifting through all of the noise, he was able to sense her core. It was faint, but he could feel it. “Got you!”

“Got who?” Caleb asked, clearly unaware of what was happening around him.

“Alexis,” he answered. “She went and hid, but I found her. She’s in Master Sora’s chambers.” Parker looked at Caleb and what he was doing. “What are you working on?”

“Just the homework that’s due tomorrow. Have you finished it?” Caleb almost sounded like he was begging Parker to let him see his work if he was but Parker just laughed in response.

“I won’t be in class tomorrow to turn it in so I didn’t even try.”

Caleb looked at him confused. “And where will you be?”

“Remember?” Parker asked. “Lara is going to take me to train.”

“Ooh, yeah I remember now.”

Parker could tell that something was bothering Caleb but he knew he needed to go get Alexis. Otherwise, she would end up being down there for who knows how long and without another word, he disappeared through the house entrance.

When he arrived at the master’s chambers, the two of them were waiting for him out in the corridor. The master gave him an impressed look as he showed up. “So, how many places did you have to look before you came here?”

The look Parker gave him made even the master take a step back. “I didn’t have to go anywhere. I could tell exactly where she was.” He smiled at her and his heart started to race. The thought that he was able to make sure that she was okay at any time made him happy.

“When are you meeting with Lara again?” Master Sora asked Parker.

“Tomorrow. We’re going to work on teleporting other people.” He could see how nervous the master was but he reassured him that everything would be okay.

——

“Are you ready?” Alexis asked.

“Ready?” Parker thought for a moment. “I’m never ready for her to just take me away but once I’m there, it’s always great learning how to do new stuff. Once we’re done, I can teach you and Caleb.” He could tell that she was very interested in that, even if it meant that he would keep working with Lara.

“Hey, not to change the topic but can I ask you something?” she asked, clearly nervous to bring whatever it was up for some reason. Parker nodded. “Is something wrong with Caleb?”

“I think so…” he said, feeling guilty because he thought so but hadn’t done anything to help him.

Alexis made a face, not sure how to help him. “What do you think is wrong?”

“I have to assume that it’s Hailee. Don’t you think?”

“Yea—” Alexis started as Parker vanished from his spot.

——

“Are you ready? Lara asked.

“I think so,” Parker said, rubbing his arms. He didn’t think he’d ever get used to that.

Lara led Parker into the open clearing that they had worked in the last time and created a larger ring of fire in the grass. “You are going to teleport me into that ring of fire. And please, teleport me into the ring and not into the fire.”

“I’ll do my best,” Parker said with a smile.

“First, sense my core and tap the beats on your leg so that I know you’re sensing my core.”

Parker did as she asked. He tuned in carefully and sensed her core. It had a much faster beat to it than Alexis’s or Caleb’s. He wondered what caused the speed to change from person to person. Tapping his leg quickly with the beat of her core, she nodded her head and continued with her lesson.

“Now, focus on wanting me to be nowhere else except inside of that ring.” She pointed to the fire and Parker could sense that she was definitely nervous.

He took a deep breath and let all of his other thoughts go. The thought of being able to save Hailee gave him an extra boost of energy that helped his focus. The next thing Parker knew, Lara vanished and appeared in the ring. His eyes went wide, he couldn’t believe that he’d done it.

Lara put the fire out and walked back to him. “So? How’d it feel?”

Parker gave her an odd look. “What do you mean? It didn’t really feel like anything.”

She looked back at him confused. “You mean, you didn’t feel a tugging sensation inside you?” Her eyes grew wider. “Around your sternum?”

He shook his head. He remembered the sensation from the last time but he had definitely not felt it this time.

Parker heard Lara mumble under her breath. “Hmm… That could either be a really good thing or not.”

“Why wouldn’t it be?”

“Nothing. It’s nothing. Just the rambling of a crazy lady.” She laughed at the end of her sentence and Parker couldn’t agree more with her. “All right, let’s try it again.” She relit the ring of fire and told Parker to go again.

He stood, staring intently at her. Had she meant that he could be stronger than she thought he would be? Let’s see if we can startle her, I’m going to bring Alexis here.

Parker put his hands together in a prayer motion. He didn’t know why, but it made him focus better and feel prepared for a big jump like he was going to attempt. He reached out with his mind to find Alexis’s core. It took several minutes, but when he felt it, there was absolutely no denying that it was her core that he heard.

Tapping his fingers together to the beat of her core, Parker thought about how much he liked her, how close they’d grown to each other, even when she got mad at him for some of the decisions that he made. There was nothing more at the moment that he wanted than for her to be there with him.

Before he could open his eyes he heard, “What in the— Lara?” Alexis practically screamed her name and then Parker could hear her through fireballs at Lara. When his eyes opened, he saw Lara extinguish the flame before it even got close to her.

“What?” Was all Lara could get out before Alexis started trying all sorts of stuff while screaming at Lara at the top of her lungs.

Parker could see the confusion—and if he wasn’t mistaken, fear—in her eyes. Was she afraid of Alexis? Because if he was being honest, he was a little bit at the moment.

“Alexis!” Parker shouted through cupped hands. “Calm down.” He watched as she continued her assault on Lara. Nothing was hurting her or even reaching its target but Parker wanted her to stop. He thought about having her at his side to try and calm her down, focusing on how he could be there for her. He was what she needed at the moment and she didn’t even acknowledge that he was there.

In an instant, she vanished again and appeared at his side. She looked around confused and saw Parker looking into her eyes. Her heart slowed its beating slightly and she was able to take a deep breath. Before she said anything to Parker though, she turned to Lara and started screaming again.

“You almost killed my friend!” Alexis shouted. Parker could see the hate burning behind her eyes. No wonder she hadn’t wanted him to work with her. She just needed to see that Lara had changed. Not a lot, but at least a little. “You almost killed him! And you’re going to kill millions, maybe even billions of people! You’re a monster!”

Lara looked to Parker with a look that told him she was either actually a little frightened or impressed. He couldn’t tell which she was feeling but he was sure it had to be one of the two.

“And what?” Alexis spat out. “You’re training him because you aren’t strong enough? Then how did you hurt all of those students before?” Alexis shot question after question at Lara with absolutely no time in between for Lara to even think about giving a response. “Nothing you could say would make anything you’ve done even kind of okay. What could go through someone’s head to turn them into such a monster?”

Parker couldn’t blame Lara for the looks she kept throwing at him. He couldn’t believe the heat that was resonating off Alexis as she kept up her onslaught of questions. He felt slightly bad for Lara, she had not been expecting Parker to teleport her here, but at the same time, she fully deserved it as well.

Lara stretched her arm out in front of her and clenched her fist. Alexis’s voice left her and nothing came out as she tried to continue yelling questions at her. “Breathe child. Let me explain myself.”

Alexis wanted nothing but to keep going but whatever Lara had just done took her breath away, literally. Nothing would come out, no matter how much she wanted it to.

“Warwick,” she paused. “Sorry. Master Terra is the monster. He’s planning to steal Hailee and disappear. He wanted to rip her core from her body so that she doesn’t fall into the same ‘trap’ that I did.” Lara put a sarcastic emphasis on the word trap.

Alexis looked at her confused and Lara clearly noticed as she let Alexis have her breath back. “What are you talking about?”

Parker looked at Alexis and his eyes went wide. He knew exactly what was about to come out of her mouth and he knew it shouldn’t. Lara wouldn’t be able to handle the news, but he couldn’t stop her.

“He already has her!” Alexis shouted through tears.

Lara’s eyes practically bulged out of her face. Her mouth dropped open, and her head started to twitch slightly.

Parker stared at her. It looked like a fuse had blown in her head and she was broken now. The news that her daughter had been taken was too much. Everything she had feared had come true and somehow, she hadn’t been able to notice it.