Kiesha did not sleep very well that night. Her head was hurting because of the decision she was going to have to make. Her parents were entirely supportive of whatever she would decide, but they lovingly refused to choose for her.

"Honey, you're seventeen now," her mother had said. "You're old enough to make your own decisions."

"Besides," her father added, "only you can decide if this is something you want to do."

So Kiesha lay in her bed and began to cry. If she were honest, she knew that this was an opportunity she did not want to miss. All her life, no matter how hard she tried, she had always been merely ordinary. Now, she was being offered a chance to be extraordinary. On the other hand, she would have to leave her family behind. She knew that, if she left, nothing would ever be the same. Inside her, excitement over the opportunity to be someone special battled with the fear of the unknown.

Thursday morning dawned, and Kiesha still had been unable to make a decision. Time, however, was running out, and Kiesha knew her vacillation had to end. As she brushed her hair that morning, she made her decision. The stranger had promised that she could have unlimited video chats with her parents. That knowledge made her decision easier to make, though it was still hard.

"I've made my decision," Kiesha said as she walked into the kitchen that morning. Her mother looked up from the table, and her father stopped in the process of retrieving his car keys from their wall hook.

"What are you going to do?" her mother prompted.

"I'm going to go with Mr. Alastair and be trained for the Society of the Golden Lion." Kiesha had said it, and somehow voicing it had lifted some, though not all, of the weight she had been carrying since Alastair's visit.

All was silent for a few seconds. Then Malina and Charles seemed to explode into jubilance.

"Oh, honey! We're so happy you've chosen to train!" her mother exclaimed.

"We're very proud of you, too!" her father chimed in.

Kiesha became very confused.

"I thought the two of you left the Society. Why are you so excited that I'm joining?"

"We left the Society to raise you, Sweetie," Charles said.

"Yes, we wanted to give you a normal childhood, without the pressures the Society places on a person," Malina agreed. "But now you're old enough to handle those pressures and face them head-on!"

Kiesha's parents both came over to where she was standing and embraced her. Kiesha realized this might be the last time for a long while that there would be a family hug, and she enjoyed every moment of it.

Charles rushed out the door a few moments later.

"I'll be late for work if I don't hurry," he exclaimed.

Malina made Kiesha a large "celebration breakfast" complete with eggs, bacon, sausage, and waffles with maple syrup.

When breakfast was complete, Malina called Alastair to inform him of Kiesha's decision and ask him what Kiesha should pack. After all, Malina and Charles had grown up in the Society, but Kiesha was being taken into it, so they had no idea what their daughter might need.

"A small suitcase containing a few clothes, personal hygiene items, and a couple of keepsakes would do nicely, I think," Alastair told them. He also assured them that anything Kiesha forgot would be provided by the Society. Before disconnecting, he reminded Malina that Kiesha must be brought to him by check-out time the next day if she wanted to accompany him back to Society Headquarters.

The tone of the family's supper that evening was both joyful and subdued. Even Kiesha was beginning to get excited about joining the Society. But everyone knew this would be their last dinner together as a family, at least for a very long time. Charles had to leave before breakfast, as he always did, to go to work. Despite this, the family managed to make the most of their final meal together. No one mentioned the Society or Kiesha's upcoming move to its headquarters. The conversation was, instead, filled with mentions of family memories. By the time Kiesha retired for the night, she felt good about her choice. But she already felt a little homesick when she saw her suitcase packed and ready at the foot of her bed.