I have that same dream again... I'm in school at night, and I try to go home... then I get stabbed from behind by that same girl. I wake up covered in sweat, breathing heavily and trying to separate myself from the dream... trying to claw my way out of the darkness and remember that I'm alive...

“Azul! What's wrong!?” A voice.... it's her. My Magic Knight's Force, the Azure Dragon. She must have seen me and woke me up when it seemed like something was wrong with me. “Are you alright?”

Huh?

“I'm sorry. I should have explained the link before I just started talking to you like this.”

“Please, do explain.” I believe I just “said” this to Azure.

“Look. As long as were connected, we can speak telepathically, like this. No one can hear or see me but you.”

“Oh, okay.” I start sending things without really thinking about it, odd as that may sound. It's a lot more different from talking than it probably seems...

I sit there, in my bed, trying to regain myself. “Well... I'll be fine. Thank you.”

“Are you still going to school today? You could just tell your family you're sick if--”

I interrupt her. “It's okay. I've been having that same nightmare for years, now... and I'm well rested after the fight from yesterday. I don't really have an excuse to stay here...”

Azure seems surprised at this. “Every night is like this for you...?”

I nod. An awkward silence starts to creep in, and both of us are getting uncomfortable...

“Listen. I'm gonna shower right now. Shouldn't take too long, alright?”

...

So after all that, I put on my uniform and talk to my family in the dining room. “Did everyone sleep well?” Normal morning, normal greeting, normal smile. Gramps nods.

Miko then says something that surprised me... “I heard something outside last night and saw some lights. Was it the police?” She must be talking about... oh, okay.

“Don't worry about it.” I look out a nearby window. “I don't see any police cars, or officers, so it must be okay.” After that, I finish up breakfast, and run out the door. I still have a little time before the bus comes, but it doesn't hurt to leave early. On my way to the bus stop...

“Your family seems like some really nice people, Azul.”

I smile. “Yeah. Grandpa is one of the most friendly people I know. Miko's a nice kid, too.”

“Say, Azul.”

“Yes?” What is she going to ask, I wonder?

“So that's your Grandfather?” I nod, wondering where Azure's going with this. “I see... sorry. Forget I asked about it.” Silence. She must have cut the link for now... Ah... that's okay. Anymore, and the conversation may have gotten awkward, probably for both of us. I continue walking slowly towards the bus stop...

It comes on time, I get on, and the ride to school begins. A little later, Trace gets on. Today, she's sitting directly behind me.

“Hey, man. What's up?”

I just sorta smile. I tell her about my Knight Force, her name and other things. Azure is really polite and she seems to like talking.

“So Trace, what's Grey like?”

She rolls her eyes. “Grey likes to play the hero... It's thanks to him that I fight. Not that I have a problem with doing that. Grey's pretty chill, so I can do this for him.” Trace kind of laughs as she says this.

This makes me happy. I had friends back at my old school, but to see that I'm making new ones so quickly is encouraging.

Time passes, and Cleo gets on. Today she has blonde hair and blue eyes... does she dye her hair a different color everyday? She comes and sits next to me. “Um, hey, Blue...”

“Hehehe...” Trace starts giggling. What's so funny?

“How are you, Cleo?” I ask.

“I'm... okay, but I felt unusually cold last night... It was nothing, though.” Trace starts laughing out loud.

I have to ask her... “Trace, what in the world is so funny!?”

She shakes her head. “Ah, it's nothing... Just... you two...” She goes back to watching us.

Trace... you're weird. Anyway, I enjoy talking with Cleo. It seems like she remembers me well, but aside from that she's just fun to be around. She just smiles and speaks, then she listens when I say something to her. I can't help but wonder if there was something really important that I'd forgotten about her, but I'm okay, just talking about stuff like this...

More laughter from Trace... “Haha! Oh man, I'm glad I decided to sit here.”

Cleo frowns a little. “Oh, come on, Trace, don't be like that...”

“Ah, it's okay, I'm only playing around... I won't bother you two anymore.” She gave Cleo a funny look, and continues to chuckle.

“What!? Trace, stop that!” Cleo starts to blush, then she flicks Trace on the forehead.

“I was just joking...” We all start to laugh.

Lunchtime. It's been a pretty plain day of school. Nothing really happened today, so far. Well, I did decide to go see the nurse again after school, just so she could know I was okay. “So the headaches and voices have stopped?”

I nod. “I guess I was just adjusting to this new school.” I've gotta stop lying like this... or at least get better at it. At least she seems relieved.

“That's good. So, what about your nightmares? Are you still... having those nightmares?” I hesitate. If I tell her the truth, she'll probably think I'm sick...

“It's all good.” She doesn't believe me... I can tell.

The young nurse sighs, then says, “Okay, I want you to come back if you think something's wrong. Don't be shy, you can come talk to me, alright?” She smiles and lets me go home.

So I got on the bus with Trace and Cleo. I ended up asking about their Knight's Forces, so we talked about that a little.

“Azure's power is strong, blue flames. Each one has unique powers, right?”

“Yeah,” Trace answers. “Grey has the ability to make weapons stronger and easier to use. It's called WarMaster.”

Cleo speaks about her's, now. “Mine's name is Flèche. She calls herself a Blade Archer. That bow we use turns into two blades. Flèche has wind magic, too.”

Interesting... “Hey, Cleo, what do you mean by magic? I thought all Magic Knights used, well, magic.”

“Oh. Well, it's like this. Based on what I know, a Magic Knight Force is like one very complicated spell. Flèche was a Magic Knight who could cast wind spells as part of the power she got from her Birth Star, while other Knights have more special, unique abilities, instead of spells.”

“Sounds kinda... complicated, but I think I get the gist.”

She laughs. “It's no big deal, just a bit of useless information, pretty much.”

We just talk and laugh some more after that. If I'm with these two, this year is gonna be great. I just know it.