No, for reals. Little girls are some of the sweetest people I know.

How do I know this? Well...

I stood, with my back against the wall, and tried to take my mind away from the boredom I knew would inevitably come from standing around and waiting.

This Institute was unlike any place I'd been to before- that I could remember, that is. Just outside the storage closet, the balcony had been metal, and the architecture cold and unassuming. Further in, however, things became more... posh. Metal doors were replaced by stylish oaken features with old fashioned brass doorknobs. The hard floor below was softened with a maroon carpet, patterned with silver and gold designs on the edges. Intricately designed lamps lined the walls, casting a dim, but pleasant light. It all seemed to give off the impression of an old fashioned mansion, belonging to some rich governor in the 1800's.

I leaned against the wall, taking it all in, when footsteps coming around the corner drew my attention. To my disgust, the approaching figure was none other than Pole Dude.

He glanced at me as he walked by, not seeming to recognize me. But then he stopped in surprise, and turned back.

"You?!" he exclaimed, quite appalled by my presence. "They're letting you walk around unattended? What on earth is their idea? Do they want to get us all killed?"

"What? What are you talking about?" I burst out.

"Oh don't be like that! You think you can fool me? I don't care if the vice principle is blind enough to let one of your kind prowl around the Institute like you're one of us. I will always protest. You mark my words you filthy spy, I will be taking every opportunity to see that you are out of here!"

"Look, I don't know what you're trying to prove, but-"

"Just shut up!" he interrupted angrily, shaking his head. "I'm going to the principal to see you're sorry face out of here forever. It's hard enough already without spies making us all uneasy." And with that, he whipped around and stormed off.

I gaped at the empty hallway, seething. I wanted to shout out to him, call him back and challenge him to call me spy one more time. So much fenced-in frustration threatened to burst out of me, like a dam collapsing under the pressure of the lake behind it.

I sat down on the carpeted floor, trying to contain the sudden rage that had overcome me.

I began to burn up with anger. Resentment ran through my body as my heart started to race. I had never felt so infuriated before. It scared me.

Pole Dude had no right to call me a spy. He claimed things about me before getting to know me. I began to wish he would come back, so I could rage and scream right back at him, and let out all my confusion and hurt in one fiery breath of anger.

Someone came around the corner, passing by me. I took no notice, content to curl up in my own little corner and fume quietly. But then they stopped, and came back. I glared at their shoes.

"What are you doing sitting around in the hallway?" said a little girl's voice. My anger sort of slipped away at her tone, and I looked up.

She was looked to be around six, with bright blue innocent eyes that said "I can't do any wrong." Her pudgy little nose was dappled with freckles, and blonde hair hung in her face like she had been playing recently. I don't know why, but I felt myself smile.

"I'm waiting, actually. I'm supposed to be going to the Counseling office, but my escort ditched me."

"Oh. Why are you going there?" she asked, rocking back and forth on her heels.

"I'm new here." Her face brightened considerably when I said that.

"Wow, really? So what's your Flair, then? Or maybe you're really, really smart!" she exclaimed. I let out a sigh, and shook my head, thinking to myself, "There's another random term I don't know."

"Well, I know for sure I'm not really smart. Sorry, I don't know what "Flair" is, at least, not in this case... anyway, people have been pushing me around a lot lately, and it's getting kind of irritating, not knowing where to go, or what to say. So I sat down here to try and calm down a little." I smiled weakly up at her.

The little girl cocked her head to the side and frowned. She tapped her head like she was thinking. Then she grinned.

"My mommy will know what to do!" she said, grabbing my hand. I stood up just as she began to run, dragging me along with her. I left knowing full well that Taylor would panic when she saw I was gone, and probably kill me when she found out I'd left her guidance and replaced her with a speedy six year old

She raced down the halls with surprising agility for such a small kid. I followed behind, keeping pace and still clutching her small hand. Running took my mind off of things, and the bad feelings I'd felt before were a figment of the past.

Our footsteps thudding softly against the aging carpet, we tore down the dimly lit halls haphazardly. We ran into a couple of bewildered adults, and accidently knocked down a kid around Taylor's age.

Running gave me time to reflect on the weird emotional surges I'd had today. The first one had been when I'd been unable to recognize my age. The second had been after Pole Dude had randomly lashed out at me, his humorous sneers from our first meeting turning into daggers of hatred directed at my heart.

Sure, his sudden anger gave me reason to be upset and bewildered, but I was having murderous thoughts, and feelings unnatural to me. I was frightened by myself. Suddenly, I was very grateful that I had been interrupted by that little girl who now led me to her "mommy".

Finally, the little skidded to a stop in front of a big green door. There was a sign out front that read, "Tillie Anderson, Vice Principle". She opened the door and pushed me inside.

I was in an office, much like Stephan's from yesterday, but bigger and less organized. A frazzled woman sat at the desk, hurridley scribbling something on a piece of paper. She didn't look up as we came in.

"Isabelle is that you sweety? Where have you been all-" she glanced up and noticed me standing their awkwardly. I shuffled my feet and opened my mouth to explain, but the blue-eyed girl beat me to it.

"This is my new friend, mommy. He needs help, okay?" she said it so seriously, it was almost comical. I smiled down at her, feeling hopeful. Maybe her "mommy" actually could help me. It was a long shot, I knew it, but it was worth a try.

"I'm sorry she hauled you here," apologized mom- er, the lady. She had the same blue eyes as her daughter, except that hers were older somehow, with a hint of sadness. "She gets this idea that the whole world is a great big adventure."

Isabelle was still holding my hand. She tugged it. When I looked down, she gestured with her hand for me to come closer. I bent down and she whispered in my ear.

"Tell mommy about your Flair problem, okay?" she said. I nodded, smiling, and she beamed at me. Satisfied, she scurried over to her mother and wiggled onto her lap.

I glanced at her mom, Mrs. Anderson. She had raised her eyebrow and had a questioning smile on her face. She seemed to be waiting for me to speak.

"Mrs. Anderson," I began, "My name is Ryan Everfrost." her eyebrows shot up and she gasped sharply. Yeah, I know I thought bitterly, that's usually how people react when they hear my name.

"I woke up about two days ago in this building with no memory of past events, and no clue as to who I was. I keep thinking someone will tell me what's going on, but they never do. Every time someone tries to explain to me what's going on around here, I get cryptic warnings, or confusing answers that make no sense. I was locked in a storage closet for a long time. When I was finally allowed to come out, I was treated like dirt. Everything I do is turning into a huge problem, even though I've been trying my best to stay out of trouble. So please," I was breathless. I took a huge gulp of air. "Please help me out here. I'm just so confused." I ended my rant feeling bitter and lost. I gazed unseeingly at the ground. It wasn't the first time today I'd flown off the handle.

I felt a reassuring hand on my arm. I glanced over and saw Isabelle smiling up at me. Mrs. Anderson stood up.

"I'm truly sorry Ryan," she sighed, "I wasn't informed of your awakening. You see, there's a lot going on lately. The hospital dorms were packed until today, and that dusty old supply room was the only place we could put you. We assumed you wouldn't wake up for at least another week, after all the trauma you'd gone through. Though it seems," She winked at me, "it seems you are much tougher than we anticipated."

I ran my fingers through my hair, flinching again at how dirty it was. I was still so confused, but this lady seemed willing to help me out.

"Okay," I said, "but why was I asleep in the first place, then? And what do you mean, by trauma?"

She shook her head wearily and sat back down.

"You poor boy. You really have lost a lot haven't you?" I shrugged uncomfortably, the seriousness of this conversation weighing down on me like a sack of flour.

"If you mean losing my memory, then yeah, that is quite a lot."

"Yes... Stephan told me about the memory thing. That truly is unfortunate. I'll try to explain as much as I can-" a fluttering sound interrupted her, and something whizzed by my head. I gaped as a bird-shaped origami flew around the room and landed softly on her desk.

"Excuse me, Ryan, this is urgent." She said, unfolding the bird. She read whatever was written on the paper, her eyes narrowing. When she finished, her head shot up with alarm. She reached for something on her desk, fumbling through a mess of papers.

"Isabelle, can you please take Ryan to Rosetta? I'm sorry dear," she said, this last comment directed to me, "I wish I could explain more, but there's something I need to attend to right now." with those final words, she rushed out of the room with a flurry of papers flying up in her wake.

I groaned. So close and yet so far. Luck was really having fun with me. every time I came close to getting answers, something had to interfere. Every time...

"Hey mister, why didn't you tell me you were Ryan?" Isabelle said. Her face was full of wonder.

"What do you mean?" I asked. She rocked back and forth on her feet like a kid does when they're impatient.

"Oh you know! You're famous! Everybody knows about it! Because they found you in the woods alone, and knocked out cold, and you have no memory, and some people think you might be a spy, but others say you are an escape guy from the Supernaturalists! Well, that's what mommy says." She finished embarrassed.

Interesting... It seemed as though my arrival here was kind of famed... more or less.

MONOCHS;