One brain scan, and an incredibly confounded Xander, later and Leia was back outside the doors of the hospital, completely ignoring the conversation taking place between Rex and the Head of the City Guards. It was about her and her antics over the last two days, but that was no surprise to her. After all, she was acting far more mature than she'd used to before. That was only to be expected, though. Leia doubted anyone could live through what she had and still come out as a happy naïve little bunny. It was impossible. Nightmares ate into her sleep, her chest sometimes aching as she remembered the feeling of the cold harsh blade that'd killed her and apparently sent her back into her thirteen-year-old self.

Still, she didn't like how Xander seemed to be dogging her every move, even though a few days had passed. It was either him or Carla staring at her in shock as she read through a good number of books she'd checked out from the library. Suspicious glances were always cast her way whenever she went out running, people wondering what sort of prank she'd be pulling around the next corner. Little did they know she wasn't planning anything, other than how to save Ithuriel City.

"You're still at it..." Xander appeared beside her as she jogged around the city for the fourth time. "Honestly, I thought you'd have given it up by now."

Leia gritted her teeth, turning sharply down a nearby alleyway, trying to throw the brunette off using some of her skills from her last life. It worked, unsurprisingly enough. After the fall of Ithuriel City she'd been through a lot, and that included being trained under some of the greatest assassins to have even lived. Her footsteps were completely silent even as she ran, her body somehow seeming to remember the technique from before... though that seemed to be the only thing. She knew she'd have to practice all the techniques she'd learnt from scratch if she wanted to be a half-decent assassin again. In other words, if a certain brunette decided lay waste to the city there and then she'd have no chance in hell of stopping him.

The thoughts made her run faster, ducking inside the library, quickly finding her way to one of the private study rooms. Piles of books she'd made there over the last few days were still there, but no one else was, thankfully, so she had no qualms about locking the door behind her. She'd managed to sneak some food into the library, so she knew she had plenty of time for uninterrupted training. Xander wouldn't be able to breathe down her neck like the irate dragon he was. After all, only certain people had access to the special study rooms, and she'd stolen Xander's access card.

Pickpocketing seemed to be another of the skills she'd retained, and boy had it come in handy.

Smiling at the memory of stealing her self-appointed guardian's card, Leia sat down, pulling over the closest book. Any ordinary thirteen-year-old wouldn't have been able to understand half of the words on the pages, but she no longer defined the word ordinary. She'd been flung back in time for an unknown reason.

She hadn't gone back far enough to save her parents from the bandits who'd slit their throats just outside Ithuriel City, but she had come back with time to save the city... and she needed to be fully prepared to do just that. Which was how she ended up nose buried in an advanced alchemy textbook.

After all, her opponent was an alchemist... and like he'd told her before, only a fully-trained alchemist could beat another.

That was why she'd died.

She was a failed alchemist who'd had to give up halfway through her training, thanks to her illness.

Now was her chance to correct that mistake, and she knew just what to do: apply for the Alchemy Exam. The earlier she started, the better.

The only problem was that alchemists were often thought of as weaklings, and they didn't do much physical training. Hence why alchemists and assassins didn't get along... and also why there was rarely anyone who had both sets of skills.

Her killer was one such person.

And she needed to be able to match him in every single way before she even started thinking about a way to take him down.

"Right." She stood, deciding her other exercises could wait. "Off to the Alchemist's Lobby." She declared, poking her head out into the main library, looking out for a certain Head of the City Guards as she crept towards the front door.

"I'm not an idiot, brat." The all too familiar voice sounded. "Now gimmi back my access card."

Leia stiffened, her head cranking around to face the exasperated grey-eyed man. "No."

One eye twitched. "Brat!"

The brat in question stuck out her tongue, sprinting off towards the centre of the city where her destination was. It was safe to say she made it to the gigantic white building in a record time, all but slamming the doors off their hinges as she raced inside the Alchemist's Lobby, skidding to a stop in front of the man behind the reception desk.

She inhaled sharply, hearing the doors slam open again, knowing she only had seconds before Xander decided to drag her off to his office. "I'd like to take the Alchemy Exam, please."