Hi! Sorry it's been taking me so long to get back to this. Thanks for still reading. Even though I wrote this many years ago I still love the characters and I hope you do too. :)

I followed them until they were about to park, then I skidded to a stop and hid myself and my bike in the massive, scratchy bushes of the neighbor's house. I watched until I saw him open a window on the second story of the house. It was clearly his bedroom. A little part of me told me it was creeperish to be here, but if I was honest with myself this was just for my own safety. Afterall, I'd almost gotten shot on his behalf today!

I looked around, he seemed to be the only one there, then I saw a shadow in the window just to the left of his, but they soon left out the front door and down the drive away. The man was tall with a beak-like nose and thick dark hair, he wore a suit like he was Alfred from Batman. I was now pretty positive no one else was in the house. I climbed up the side of the house, like the squirrel that was my spirit animal, and came in through the window. I landed on the floor with a disgraceful thud and an apologetic smile, he was sitting on his bed in shock.

"How did you -- ? That's just scary." He told me shaking his head in disbelief. I laughed, and he smiled.

"I guess I really can't get rid of you." He teased.

"You're the only one home right?"

"Well, there's my personal guard my Parents hired, but ya know. That's normal now." He shrugged casually and I raised an eyebrow.

He beckoned me over to come sit by him on the bed. I tiptoed across the floor, now wary of said "Guards" and gingerly sat on the edge of the mattress beside him.

"Come on, how can I prove that I want to go with you wherever you're going?" I inquired tilting my head like a sad puppy might. He sighed raggedly, he looked thoroughly....exhausted, the happy light that had been in his cobalt blue eyes at the park was now dull and thin as a paper.

"How many times do I have to tell you? If it was my choice I would, but it's not my choice."

I was quiet for a moment, unsure of what to say. The cumbersome silence finally got to me and I changed the topic.

"So, what's up with the personal guard?" I tried to seem casual despite obviously prying into something that wasn't any of my business.

"Just an extra precaution because of recent...events that have occurred such as what happened today at school."

"Will you just tell me what's going on?" I blurted out in exasperation, it felt relieving to ask him in such a forward matter, blunt honesty was a characteristic I made sure I cultivated. He smiled.

"Not yet. Maybe sometime soon, but not yet." I noticed that he was playing with something on his right ring finger. It was a gold ring, Was that what fell in the dirt the other day? I wondered staring at it curiously, he saw my gaze and covered the ring with his left hand.

"What is that?"

He glanced around his room as if there were secret spectators hiding in the room.

"Just a ring, it amplifies certain, uh. Emotion like qualities."

"Like a mood ring?" I decided pretending to be stupid was a smart move in this case, he might accidentally slip up and tell me more.

"Kind of, see it does things when you feel certain emotions especially very prominent emotions." He said, then clears his throat and I knew that I'd gotten out of him all I'd be able to get for now.

He blushed, I leaned closer to him, I was a hopeless romantic and despite all the secrets he kept he was still really hot. It made it hard to help myself. My hand brushed his, he looked nervous, but then relaxed. I decided to not rush things too much, and only kissed his cheek. He tensed, but then seemed to untangle from the inside out, as if remembering our familiarity in our youth, and slipped his hand into mine.

"Can I try it on?" I nodded to the ring still on the finger of his right hand which was holding mine. He didn't answer right away, but then he slowly nodded.

"Sure." He took it off and handed it to me, I put it on. I felt like I was floating. Then I realized I was physically floating!

At first I panicked but then Jethro took my hand and helped keep me from floating away to his ceiling and I grinned, This was so cool!

"Has this happened to you before?" I smiled and laughed quietly. He looked at me with a lopsided smile.

"Nope, I told you, it's personality based." He replied, he gently pulled me into him so I was just hovering over the floor and slid the ring off my finger. I landed with his arms still around me, I wasn't floating and yet I still felt like he was my anchor the one that was keeping me grounded. He smiled, before there was a knock on the door.

"Jethro? Jethro, can I come in?" It was that girl from the field, I recognized her firm but caring tone.

I quickly squirmed under the bed, I wanted to know what was going on.

"Jethro? Are you okay? I thought I heard you talking to someone."

"I'm fine," He reassured her, though I couldn't see I knew he probably said that with that dazzling smile of his.

"It's done, by the way." She told him, I heard him take in a sharp breath before releasing it as calmly as possible.

"And the contract?"

"Done. All of it. It's just you, her, and the people now. Of course until the wedding when you're eighteen, she will pose as your girlfriend."

"I just hate this, I don't like having no choice in any of this. Being betrothed is a nightmare, especially to her."

I sat there under the bed and nearly swallowed a dust bunny when my mouth fell open in shock.

"You'll be okay, you know this is for the good of the people right?" She said, I heard nothing so I assumed he nodded or shrugged.

"Look, I hate having to make you do this too. In some ways I wish it was me, but it's not. I'm just the diplomat, the ambassador you could say." She said, a heavy silence consuming the moment following. "I'll give you some alone time." She sighed then I heard the door close behind her. I checked and made sure she was gone before I came out and sat next to him on the bed.

"That's why I'd be in so much trouble if they saw me with you." He whispered not looking me in the eyes.

"I'm sorry, could I help you stop it?" I offered, he shook his head.

"Unfortunately my sister's right. It's for the good of the people, the girl, her family has been warring with my family for generations. This would heal those old war wounds, before things get worse." He tentatively turned to me.

I paused letting his words sink in, then something registered in my brain and I spoke,

"Wait, so does that mean you'd be in trouble because you like me? Or just because I'm a girl?"

"Uh, umm. Yes. I mean...What?" He stumbled over his words in a flustered mess again, I smiled hoping that slip of the yes was in response to my first option and not the second one. I changed the topic for his sake,

"Why can't you just TALK to them? I mean, if there's going to be a marriage, there will be a LOT of time to talk." I reasoned with him.

"It's not that simple." He muttered this kind of haltingly as if slowly coming back from his flustered state. "They -- well they're only doing this for the rest of the family. But they hate me."

"If they hate you why are you marrying their daughter for 'the sake of the rest of the family'?" I asked him.

"Because our family wants to end all the fighting and some of them do too. She's also their only eligible person in the family I could marry." He explained.

"Well, that's stupid." I consoled with him, he gave a weak laugh. Not anything like the sweet ringing laughter of before.

"Can't you still work out the 'family feud', so to speak, by just talking to them?" I inquired, he shook his head.

"They refuse to solve it any other way, it has to be blood ties. As soon as I marry her the deal is done and they'll stop fighting us. It's just their way." He shrugged. I was silent before I rubbed his back and said the only genuine words that came to mind,

"That sucks."

He sighed, and relaxed at my touch putting his head in his hands.

"Are you sure that this isn't a set up just to kill your family? They seem awfully insistent that the only way to solve the fighting is that way." I pointed out with concern.

"That's the thing, we don't know. For all we know I could be walking right to my grave." He ran his hand down his face. I continued to rub his back and we both sat just like that for a while.

"Hey, I'm sorry, but I have to go home. Are you sure there's no other way to contact you besides danger buttons?" I asked and he chuckled quietly.

"Not any that I know of right now. Sorry."

I shrugged.

"It's okay, I was just curious. I'll see you at school tomorrow then?" I smiled trying to be cheerful for him, he winced,

"Actually you might see me on the News, and Stormy. Whatever the News tells you. It's not what you think, okay?"

"Okay...Why are you specifying that?"

"You'll see." He replied. I realized he wasn't going to tell me and I said goodbye and went out the window. Before mounting my bike slowly and taking one last look at his forlorn house prior to biking swiftly home.

I immediately went to watch the News, but none of it was about him. I listened anyway just in case.

The reporter smiled at the camera, she had perfect teeth. I hated her immediately for being so fake, then I panicked. The sound wouldn't work! By the time I got it to work the broadcast was over.

I dashed to the computer to Google what the News had to say, all I found was a bunch of related searches about some humanoid species called the Souls.

I clicked on the link anyway. It all seemed like they were talking about something similar to the ring Jethro had. It said:

Science has found a new psychological rumor going around of humans whose natural personalities enhance qualities in them making them do incredible feats and miraculous things. We're not exactly sure how it works yet. Or if it's all a hoax by some crazy cultists.

I thought that made enough sense, though I sincerely hoped he wasn't a cultist, why would that worry him so much?