"Hey, Johnnycakes, don't worry. Tess loves ya," Dallas said.

"Yeah," he said gloomily. "I hope we can fix this."

I could feel the anger that was still radiating off of Tess, despite the fact that she was down the hall. Maybe this'll score me some points with my Mentor. When I didn't have to touch Sophie to read her emotions, it scored me some points. That was when we were a few feet away. This is a couple yards. At least.

"Don't worry, about it. Y'all are gonna be fine," Dallas said. "Y'all will be fine."

"Okay," Johnny whispered.

I could feel waves of worry coming off of him, and I wanted to tell him to chill. But I didn't. Sometimes you need to worry, in order to feel better. I learned that much from hanging out with Foster.

"What's your first class?" asked Magnate Leto.

"What's your name?" Johnny asked.

Smart. Answer a question with one of your own. I'm starting to see that there's some spunk deep inside of him. He's just shy. Takes some time for him to open up.

"Magnate Leto," he replied. "So what's your first class?"

Johnny glanced at the schedule he'd received earlier today. "Alchemy with Lady Galvin."

I inwardly winced, but Sophie couldn't hide her horror.

She winced. "Careful. She isn't nice. She hates me, so I wouldn't mention your connection."

"But the whole school knows about how you went and rescued them!" I shouted.

It was true. Once they got here, everything just exploded.

"Lady Galvin isn't easy to get along with. Sophie can show you to her room," said Magnate Leto.

The two of them left, as I asked Magnate Leto, "Magnate Leto, can I have a pass?"

He handed me a pass, and without a word, he shooed me out of his office.

"Listen, Lady Galvin is one of the toughest Mentors here," Sophie said. "Stay calm. Don't panic, and if it says WHAP, it means wash hands and present. Not whip. I made that mistake, and it was not pretty."

"Yeah, Foster. You burned a hole in her prized cape!" I shouted. "Yeah, Magnate Leto let me out of his office. He gave me a pass, but I'm just going to walk slow. There's only thirty minutes left in class."

I really didn't want to go to class. Ditching is way better.

"If you really want to," Sophie said, rolling her eyes. "Just don't fail midterms."

"Sheesh, Foster. Stop worrying about me." I fanned my arm, as if to wave away her waves of worry. "Oh. Hey, Ro."

My ogre bodyguard stepped out of the shadows. "It's easier to protect you from the shadows. That way I can surprise any potential threats," she said, shaking her ashy hair out of her face. "But it's up to you."

"I'm fine. I've got these," I said, pulling my cape aside to reveal a row of goblin throwing stars. "My aim's gotten a lot better."

"Keefe," Sophie said. "Let her help keep you safe."

"I don't need to be watched like this," I protested. "Remember? I got the caches back from Fintan."

"At what cost?" Sophie asked.

"Well, um," I stammered. "We got them back."

"But we nearly lost you. And you lost pretty much everybody's trust," Sophie said. "That was reckless, Keefe. Reckless and stupid."

"We can't trust him?" Johnny asked, his voice trembling. "What happened? Why?"

"You can trust him now. He's back for good," Sophie said, quick to reassure the nervous boy standing between us. "He's back," she whispered, mostly to herself.

"You'll get sick of me soon," I joked.

"Sick of you? Never," Sophie said. "Annoyed? Definitely."

"Ouch, Foster. I'm hurt," I said, dramatically clutching my hands to my chest.

"Johnny, you should probably go to class. Lady Galvin's room is right there," she said, pointing to her room.

"You think I should drop in and say hi?" I asked. "See how the silver table is."

"No," Sophie said firmly. "Absolutely not. Let's try to not put her in a bad mood before Johnny even walks in."

"Foster, Foster, Foster," I said. "Stop worrying. It'll be fine. Isn't it always?"

"No," Sophie said. "Mr. Forkle's twin died. Kenric. We nearly lost you."

"Okay," I said. "Other than that."

Sophie's eyes were cold, yet filled with tears. "Keefe."

"I'm sorry," I whispered. "But we'll pull through. We'll be fine. We can't stop believing, otherwise we won't be fine! Okay?" I shouted, my voice ragged.

"I'm gonna go," Johnny said softly, walking into Lady Galvin's room.

"Keefe, it's okay. I shouldn't have snapped like that," Sophie said.

"Let's just forget about this," I said. "Just forget about it."

"If you really want to," Sophie said. "If you ever need to talk, I'm here."

"I know, Foster," I said, managing a grin. It wasn't up to my usual standards, but it was good enough. "Get to class. I know how much you love learning."

"Oh, Keefe. What will we ever do with you?" Sophie said, laughing as she walked away.

"Love me!" I called back.

If I didn't want to go to class, where should I go? Maybe I could visit Elwin. Or just wander the halls. I think wandering the halls. That way I can help the greasers if they get lost. Or just lounge around.

I found my usual bench, and flopped onto it, letting my legs hang off of one end, and my head off of the other. I knew I was wrinkling my clothes, but I didn't care.

"Ro?" I asked. "What should I do if I wanted to impress a girl?"

A certain girl with the prettiest blue eyes I've ever seen. Big, bright, full of innocence. I wanted to be able to look at them for forever. But that would be creepy.

"Well, it depends on the girl," she said, still hidden in the shadows. "I can't say based on the fact that you want to impress a girl."

"Oh," I said.

I wasn't ready to let other people know, but I knew that Ro would keep asking, now that she knew I wanted to impress someone.

"If it was someone like Maria-" she said.

"It's not her," I said quickly.

Maria is definitely someone I'd want as a friend, but that's all. Besides, I can see the way she looks at Steve. And how she feels. She has strong emotions too. All of the greasers do. Maybe it was whatever the Black swan did with their DNA.

"Then who?" Ro asked.

"I-I'm not ready to tell," I said.

"Okay. When you are, I'll be waiting," Ro said, a mischievous glint in her eyes. 

"Fine," I said.

That glint in her eyes. I knew she was planning something. Something big. And potentially scary.