Halfway home I slow my pace to contemplate how my family and Danny will react to the information I was just given. Will they be upset? Will they think it's a good idea to go train to be a Protector? What would they do in this situation? I'm really leaning towards going with her. What could it hurt?

If I don't succeed, I come back home, sign up for college, and start a new life. If I do succeed, I have the opportunity to go to my home country, see where my parents were raised and where their final resting place is; basically start to understand my heritage. But so many other factors jump out at me too. I'd be leaving the people I love behind - my parents, Spencer, Kaitlyn, Jared, and Danny. I'd be leaving a familiar home and place to live for something unfamiliar and uncertain.

"What's going on, Tally?" Danny asks. Ah, I should have known the questions would start immediately.

"I'm thinking of going with Miriam."

Danny's eyes widen, and he freezes his movement to sit on the bed. "You're doing what?"

"I'm thinking of going with Miriam."

He starts pacing. "And why would you do that?"

"Because I want to know where I come from."

He stops and looks at me. "You are home. This is your home. This is your family."

Knowing I would press a button, I still proceed - he needs a wake-up call. "Regardless of what happened with your birth parents, they've had the chance to get to know you and spend time with you."

His shoulders tense at my words as he walks away from me, only to move back again. He paces several times before taking a deep breath and stopping. He keeps his eyes on the ground as he speaks. "You're willing to leave your family?"

"It won't be like I won't see them again. They are going to support me, no matter what I choose."

He continues. "You know I support you, but I don't understand. Haven't you had a good life here? "

"Daniel, don't twist things up. This might be my only chance to get to experience even a part of my birth family. You see these necklaces? These were worn by my birth parents once. These are some of the only pieces of them I have left." A tear leaves my eye, as I feel the metal against my skin. "Why would you try to deny me the right to experience what is left of my birth family?" Another tear leaks out at the thought of the years I lost with my parents.

He frowns. "I'm not denying you. I'm not going to do anything drastic to keep you from going."

A slight amount of heat travels through my body; he must be getting angry. "Don't be melodramatic. You forget we can feel each other's emotions. You are angry with me and sad, and I want to understand why."

"And I don't want to talk about it right now." He states and marches out.

Even though I may hurt his feelings, I have to make a decision that's right for me.

The days rush past, and I'm no closer to coming up with a decision. I want to know who I am, but is leaving going to answer that question? I don't feel like I belong in Applewine, but will I feel like I belong if I go to a new country? It would be good to see where I was born, but I would have to leave everyone behind. Although, there are some people in this town I would gladly leave behind.

I've been visiting Miriam in her shop. I might as well take advantage of the fact she runs a healing shop in Applewine. On one of these visits, she's fidgety. She keeps messing with her necklace and pacing.

As I walk to the back, Miriam takes me by the hand.

"Tallulah, please come with me. Everling and the Elders need all of the help they can get. Your parents died protecting that item."

I stare at her. "Why the urgency all of a sudden?"

"The time it takes to train as a Protector is several months, and we need all of that time to get the Protectors prepared."

"Is the rebellion that dangerous?" How important is this item? Can it be that valuable?

"The last rebellion slaughtered anybody that was in their way. I would assume that the new rebellion will be no different than the last. The leader of the last rebellion died of a fatal wound during the Erbyn Revolt, but that doesn't mean someone just as dead set on revenge didn't take over Frank Stormer's position."

I pause, collecting my thoughts. "I still need a little time. I've been trying to come up with the best option for me. Danny and my family are very important to me. I might not have made it this far without their love and support. You are asking a lot from me to just pack up, go train at some cabin in the mountains, and then move to Everling. Being a Protector would become my life. I would have to risk everything to protect something and the ideals of a culture that I have never met before."

"What would it hurt to train, and then go meet the people from your home country? You don't even know the strength that you have inside of yourself. There is a part of yourself that has been hidden for the last sixteen years. I can almost guarantee that you won't regret the decision to go. If at any point you want to return here, the Elders can put a spell back on you to repress your powers and you may come home. I'm just asking you to give it a chance."

I'm torn between what I know and what I hope to know in the future. Will leaving really give me all the answers I desire?

I pause again. "I'll think about it. May I see the dagger again?"

"Sure, just give me a minute to get it out."

I'm not sure why I ask to see it again. I carry a piece of my birth parents around with me every day. Maybe I'll gain a measure of peace by seeing it. Heck, maybe it will answer my questions. It is an exquisite piece of craftmanship. Miriam brings the dagger around and places it in my hands. It is sturdy but light at the same time. It has some sort of crystals within the handle.

The crystals on the handle are fascinating; they seem to balance each other and the weight of the knife. "What are these crystals?" I ask.

"This is Black Tourmaline," she says, pointing at a black stone with ridges on it, "is for all-around protection. This is Blue Kyanite," she says, pointing at a dark blue stone with various shades of blue streaking it, "it helps keep you head clear of worry, anxiety, self-doubt or second guessing. And the next is Black Obsidian," she says, pointing at a shiny black stone, "it helps with the breaking of curses, hexes, spiritual attachments and returning the energy to its sender. And the last is Axinite," she says, pointing at a brown stone, "said to help bring energy up from the earth to help increase a person's strength and endurance. Your father did not have this dagger with him the day that he died, but I can't guarantee it would have saved his life either. I was told he was busy protecting your mother when he was hit with the fatal blow."

When she finally gets done explaining the different stones, I tilt my head to look at her. "How do you know these things-the things about my father?"

"People who survived reported what they saw out where the battles were taking place. After I heard that both of your parents were dead, me and some other people went to their house and burned it down. Trying not to leave a trace that you were still alive, we did everything we could to erase the remaining traces of the Protector's children."

I step back and then return eye contact with her. "They were that dead set on destruction?"

"Before the Erbyn Revolt, numerous people within the Protector family lines along with Seers ended up dying mysteriously. Eventually we had no more Seers, and we weren't about to bring in more just to have them slaughtered."

I inhale sharply. "This object is that valuable?"

"This object is one of the most valuable things on the islands."

When she finishes, I hesitate before I speak again. What does this lady want from me? One minute I'm a teenager with an undecided future; the next minute I'm a teenager who could be going as part of a team to stop a rebellion from destroying thousands of people's lives.

"That is a lot of information to take in and process. Do you know how unbelievable that is? It's a far-fetched idea that I could hold so much power in my hands. Something I didn't ask for. I really have to think about this, Miriam. This will change my life, probably permanently."

I don't give her time to respond before I leave the shop. Everything blows my mind. What is the right decision in this situation? What is the right decision for me? What is the cost of making this decision? So many questions floating around in my head. The decision is still up in the air.

One night, rapping in the front of the house interrupts the movie Danny and I are watching. As I walk into the living room, the sound changes into a soft pounding. Whipping wind shakes the windows slightly, a storm must be headed our way. The knocking gets louder. Someone must be causing this and not the old oak tree out front scraping the house.

Peering through the side window, Miriam is standing outside.

I yank the door open, and the scent of rain fills the air.

"What are you doing here this late?" I ask.

"I need your answer." Her face is more serious than usual.

"Well come in, and let us talk about this."

As soon as the door is closed, Dad's footsteps break the momentary silence.

"Who is at the door, pumpkin?" he asks.

Mom and Dad come around the corner from the kitchen at the same time.

"What are you doing here, Miriam?" my dad hisses.

Miriam stands straight "You know why I am here, Robert. It's time for her to make her own decision on what she chooses to do."

My mom frowns. "I thought she had more time."

"Well unfortunately, the plan had to change quickly due to a situation that has come up," Miriam replies.

I look back and forth between my parents and Miriam. I look at Danny, but he just shrugs. As their conversation continues for a few minutes, it occurs to me. "How do you guys know each other?" I question, trembling, waiting for their answer, because it is obvious these people know each other quite well.

"Sit down, pumpkin," my dad says as calmly as always.

I back away from everyone, and my arms cross. "I think I'd rather not."

"Well, there is one more secret that we kept from you," he says.

"But it was a requirement of the Elders," Miriam adds.

Dad's face softens slightly. "Miriam has been keeping an eye on you throughout your life with us."

"Why would she do that?" I ask nervously.

Dad heaves a breath before answering. "She's your grandmother."

"Miriam is my grandmother? What other things have you kept from me?" I cry in frustration.

"Nothing but what I could not tell you until you become a Protector. I can't even tell you where your cousins were until a few weeks ago, because the locations of all of the Protectors' children was a guarded secret. I only knew about you because you are a direct blood descendant. Your two cousins, in the States, are related to you on your father's side, so I wasn't privy to that information until recently."

"You said they lived in Florida and Texas."

"Yes, and I wasn't given that information until I left to come to the US to get the Protectors' children."

"I'll have your answer in the morning. I will come down to your shop. Goodnight everyone."

I turn around and fly for the stairs to go to my room, but I don't even get to the bottom step before I start sobbing again. What other information was going to get thrown at me?

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[A/N]: The Erbyn Revolt was a rebellion led by Frank Stormer 16 years prior to this story in which all Protectors on the Avic Islands were killed.