The overhead speakers crackled to life. "We are experiencing some unexpected turbulence at this time, please fasten your seatbelts and hold on."

No sooner did Hazel's mind register the last word did the plane list to the left. She shrieked and held Chione tightly against her chest. Julia's book went flying into the wall.

"Are we getting attacked or something?" Hazel shouted.

Julia looked out the window. Her face paled. "Captain wasn't kidding when he said-"

The plane tilted dangerously to the right.

"-hold on!" Julia finished, ducking to avoid being beaned in the head by her own rebound book.

For all the times Hazel had been on a plane, she'd never experienced turbulence this bad. It only got worse. The entire plane flipped three-sixty degrees. Chione almost fell out of her pouch. The carrots were not so lucky. They slipped out and rolled around. Hazel was glad that she'd only eaten a light breakfast that day. Even so, her stomach felt lodged up in her throat as the plane tilted and turned every which way.

"Hazel!" Julia shouted. "Stop them!"

"Stop who?" Hazel barely had the words out when a howl pierced the air. She looked out the window.... and immediately wished that she hadn't. A pack of over a dozen wolves was circling the plane. Their bodies looked created from rough grey tornadoes, and their eyes glowed with a terrifying shade of blue. They ran alongside the plane, howling and yapping, having seemingly no trouble walking on the thin clouds. A few jumped onto the wings of the plane, causing it to creak and sway side to side. One of them rammed straight into the window like an angry bull.

"Stop them!" Julia shouted again.

"How?" Hazel demanded. She had only a bunny and a suitcase. Not great combat advantages. Plus, she was stuck inside a plane cabin! Did Julia expect her to get out and walk on the clouds like the wolves?

The more Hazel panicked, the bolder the wolves got. They howled and the winds picked up. The wolf who'd rammed his head into the window now bared his very sharp-looking teeth. He got ready to charge again.

Hazel did the only thing her panicked mind could. She threw her hands in the air and yelled, "Stop!"

The wolf closed his jaws. He tilted his head with what looked like curiosity. Hazel imagined he was thinking something along the lines of Did this puny girl just tell me to stop?

Hazel wasn't even sure how he'd heard her behind the plane's walls. Or maybe he hadn't. Maybe he was thinking instead, What did she say?

Or he was contemplating the best way to rip her apart.

Hazel took the wolves' silence to her advantage. She stared them in the eyes.

"Go. Away." She ordered firmly, sounding like her father on his throne.

The head wolf lifted his head and bayed quietly. Then the entire pack dissolved into thin air.

Hazel stared at where they had just been. How has she done that?

Beside her, Julia grinned. "I knew it!"

Hazel frowned, her pulse still racing. "K-Knew what?"

"I knew you could control them! Well, if you hadn't, we'd all be falling to our deaths right about now."

That was a cheery thought Hazel said to herself.

A few more hours and no more wind-wolves later, they touched down in Besamor. Hazel checked her phone. It was around three p.m. when she and Julia walked into the airport terminal. Hazel couldn't believe how big the place was, much bigger than the one at Avaehan. The ceiling stretched high above her head. The floor was covered in mosaics. People milled about. No one seemed to notice or care that Hazel was carrying a bunny around with her. She spotted a few police officers, most with what she assumed was the Besamor crest on their caps, but she noticed a few with the same angry owl symbol.

Julia turned a half-circle. "This way."

She walked to a door that said Employees Only and used the golden button to open it. A creak and a whir, and the door opened.

"This will take us straight to the palace," Julia said, walking down the ramp. Hazel followed, dragging her suitcase behind her. The tunnel looked identical to the one they'd taken to get into the airport at Avaehan. Except that this one stretched on for as far as Hazel could see.

She stared down the corridor. "How far is this?"

"Not far," Julia assured her. She tapped a part of the concrete wall, and a flap opened up. She punched in a few numbers, and the floor in front of them opened up. Hazel backed away from the dark pit.

A long conveyer belt, like the ones they had at Avaehan's airport walkways, raised up from the pit. Julia stepped on. "Come on."

"Where did this come from?" Hazel asked, stepping aboard.

"We have the best engineers and technicians in the world," Julia said. "Now, hold on tight."

Hazel had learned enough from the plane. She gripped the black handlebar. Julia pushed a red button, and the converter belt shot forward. Hazel squeaked in alarm and almost fell on her butt. The air whistled in her ears.

"Why is this thing going so fast?" She half-asked, half-screamed.

"Because if it didn't, it would take forever to get there," Julia said calmly.

When the conveyor stopped, the inertia made Hazel stumble forward a few steps. She felt extremely lucky that she hadn't faceplanted.

Julia gripped the handle of Hazel's suitcase. "We're here. Remember all your etiquette lessons. Just because you don't look like a princess at the moment doesn't mean you shouldn't act like one."

Hazel nodded, and they climbed a ramp that led to a large square room. It had to be a basement or crypt, judging from the dank smell, the peeling beige paint on the walls, and the fact that there were no windows. There was a set of stairs in the corner.

So much for a first impression of the palace, Hazel thought.

She heard footsteps descending. Julia straightened her posture.

A man wearing a crisp white suit and the same angry-owl-symbol hat walked down. When he saw them, his stoic expression broke into a friendly smile. "Hello, Julia."

"Zachary," Julia said, smiling back.

The man, Zachary, scrutinized Hazel. "Another powerling?"

"Mhm," Julia said.

"Where are you from?" He asked.

Hazel supposed that she could trust him if Julia did. "Avaehan."

Zachary's eyes widened. "Dangerous place, that Avaehan..." he muttered.

Hazel raised an eyebrow. Avaehan could be boring at times, but dangerous? She'd never heard about anything worse than the occasional shoplifting. Most of the palace holding cells were empty.

Julia's face tightened. "You see she needs training, yes?"

Zachary nodded. "Of course. The winter training starts tomorrow. We have seven other trainees so far. This way, please."

The mention of seven other 'trainees' lifted Hazel's curiosity. Did that mean there were seven other kids with powers as clueless as her?

She and Julia followed Zachary up the stairs, and the place they emerged was so grand it took her breath away. A high vaulted ceiling stretched far above her head. Several crystal chandeliers hung down, bathing the room in golden-white light. The floor was covered in a dark red carpet. Two grand staircases with golden rails led upwards into an elaborate network of hallways. Several small balconies looked over into the space, making it feel more like a fancy hotel courtyard but with a roof.

Sure, her palace at Avaehan was impressive, but this place was on a whole different scale. Plus, Hazel had lived in the Avaehan palace her entire life. She was used to it. Not this one.

"Whoa," Hazel breathed.

Zachary smiled over his shoulder. "Princess Hazel of Avaehan, welcome to the palace of Besamor."

"And this is only half of it," Julia said quietly.

Zachary pulled a cell phone from the inside of his jacket. He scrolled around and clicked on something. "Room 1034 is yours. Orientation is tonight, at dinner, in the main dining hall. Tomorrow, training starts at 7 A.M., sharp. Good day, ladies."

He saluted and walked off.

"You know that guy?" Hazel whispered.

"An old friend," Julia said. "Now, let's get you settled in before dinner starts."