“We’ve arrived,” Papa said as he looked out the window. I looked to see a castle built into a mountain, just like our Healing Tides Debrik’s mansion. Papa got out first, then Mom, then I did. The inside of the castle was magnificent, and the ceiling was high and painted like the night sky.

“May I see your invitation?” a man with green eyes and blue hair asked. Papa handed an invitation to the blue-haired man. “You’re good to go, Mr. Charles Grimes, Mrs. Meredith Grimes, and Miss Aurelie Grimes.” We walked inside, and I saw the boy from my vision this morning. I immediately made a beeline for him. The look he gave me when he first saw me was like announcing to the world that he fell in love.

“Hello,” I said, “My name is Aurelie Grimes. What’s yours?”

“I’m Allister Carmen,” the boy said, “You’re really beautiful, Miss Grimes. Are you a recent Returner, too?” I nodded.

“I just returned a few days ago,” I said.

“Oh,” Allister said, “I returned about four months ago. My family is weirdly strict for not raising me themselves.”

“They are a little weird,” I said, “But I think it’s better than not having anyone at all.” Allister looked away.

“I agree,” Allister said, “But can I tell you a secret?”

“We only just met,” I said, “But if you want to.”

“I think this place would be cooler if there weren’t the whole giving up your babies to people you don’t trust,” Allister whispered. I wouldn’t exist if they didn’t. “But I guess it’s just a really weird custom.”

“It is a strange custom,” I whispered back, “But it probably weeds out the ones without any talent for magic.”

“You’re talking like you already know your magic classification,” Allister whispered.

“I’m a healer and a seer,” I whispered. Allister suddenly pulled back and bumped into someone, only to fall forward, knock me down with him, and kiss me. I heard the monster roar, but Allister was too shocked to move even an inch. I saw someone out of the corner of my eye who had the same face as the one I saw at the end of my vision holding a Tomkin. I splashed water in the Tomkin, and the noise from the monster started getting fainter as if it was leaving. Allister finally got off me when I couldn’t hear the monster anymore. He looked a little shy and a little scared.

“What happened?” Allister asked.

“You fell on top of me, and we kissed,” I said, “And then you wouldn’t get off of me or stop kissing me.” Allister frowned and licked his lips.

“Oh, that’s what tasted good,” Allister said.

“Pervert,” I said.

“That’s my brother,” Allister said, “Not me.”

“You stole my first kiss in front of everyone,” I said, “And just say ‘that’s what tasted good?’ How are you not a pervert?”

“I thought perverts were the ones who touch people who don’t want to be touched on purpose,” Allister said, “But I didn’t take your first kiss on purpose. Just like I didn’t fall on purpose.” I sighed; it was hard to be smarter than the average 10-year-old.

“I don’t want to fight,” I said. Suddenly, Allister grabbed my waist.

“Please dance with me,” Allister said, “A weird man is glaring at us.”

“I don’t know how to dance,” I said.

“It doesn’t matter,” Allister said, “Just follow my lead.” So, we danced, and I stepped on his feet too many times to count. We danced to three songs, and he took me to a terrace.

“I had much fun,” I said.

“I did, too,” Allister said, “I hope we’re in the same class at school. That would be fun.”

“I agree,” I said.

“Can I kiss you again?” Allister asked, “As I can’t remember the first time?” I laughed.

“You didn’t ask for permission the first time,” I said. Allister took that as a yes and immediately kissed me. I heard boys his age usually thought girls were icky, but he’s different.

“You do taste good,” Allister said as he pulled away. All of a sudden, I felt a stomach cramp. I had gotten my period at age 9, but it wasn’t time for me to get it yet, not for another week. Allister looked at me with concern. “What’s wrong with your stomach?”

“I need to sit down and get something to eat,” I said. Allister brought me to a bench, and then he ran to get food. Nobody came to the terrace while he was gone.

When he came back, he had two platefuls of food.

“I didn’t know what you liked,” Allister said, “So I picked a bit of everything.”

“I can’t eat all of this,” I said.

“Well, it’s a good thing that I wanted to eat with you,” Allister said as he handed me a plate with silverware wrapped in a napkin. The two of us ate in silence. I hoped I was hungry, but something told me it wasn’t. Most of the food was very good, but the meat wasn’t to my liking. “Are you going to eat that?” Allister pointed to the meat.

“No,” I said.

“Can I have it?” Allister asked.

“Sure,” I said. Allister took the meat from my plate.

“I didn’t think you wouldn’t like meat,” Allister said, “It’s not something an orphan can be picky about.”

“I wasn’t an orphan,” I muttered. Allister looked over at me and smiled.

“I’m glad there are no arranged marriages here,” Allister said, “You can marry whoever you want and have children regardless of the sex of the individuals of the couple. That’s the only good thing.”

“Did you notice anything off about this place?” I asked.

“There’s too much off about this place,” Allister said, “I told you only a few of the more important ones, but the biggest one by far is that nobody here is pregnant. In the human world, there are pregnancies everywhere, but here? Not even one.”

“But…” I started but couldn’t figure out my train of thought.

“And since the youngest people here are ten,” Allister said, “It makes everything weirder. Our first meeting with our family starts with, ‘Hi, we’re your parents who abandoned you when you were a baby.’ Don’t they realize how weird that is?”

“It’s tradition,” I said, “They don’t want to break tradition.”

“You asked someone already?” Allister asked.

“Not directly,” I said, “But that was their answer.”

“I can’t believe you were able to get an answer out of someone,” Allister said, “I couldn’t get anyone to answer me. What’s your secret?”

“I’m a rank 12,” I said. Allister frowned.

“I’m a rank 10,” Allister said, “The highest in my Burning Embers Debrik.”

“You’re a fire, Flouppzich?” I asked.

“I guess,” Allister said.

“You wouldn’t be in a fire, Debrik, if you weren’t a fire Flouppzich,” I said, “But then again, there are a few outliers.”

“You’re acting like you know everything,” Allister said, “But you’ve only been here a few days.”

“I’ve read 20 books on the Flouppzich culture since I got here,” I said. Allister stared blankly at me.

“You read how many books?” Allister asked.

“20,” I said.

“How big?” Allister asked. I held my hands out to show him how big they were. “That’s too much to read in only a few days.”

“I like reading,” I said.

“Can I call you Aurelie?” Allister asked, “You can call me Allister. I don’t care for formalities because they didn’t do that in the human world where I lived in America. I also think it’s weird that everyone here speaks the same language and has the same accent when we’re raised all over the human world. It’s like we have little translators in our heads.” I frowned.

“I was raised in Washington, D.C.,” I said, “Where did you grow up?” Allister laughed.

“I was raised in Texas,” Allister said. I let out a chuckle.

“That’s weird,” I said, “I don’t hear your accent.”

“I know,” Allister said, “It’s like they erase part of who you are by doing this.” I noticed that the sun was starting to set.

“I better go find my parents,” I said. Allister frowned.

“Don’t leave me,” Allister said, “I hadn’t had any fun here until you came over to me.”

“But we have to go home,” I said, “We can still meet at school.”

“Okay…” Allister said, “Can I have one more kiss?”

“You’re being greedy,” I said, “But only one more.” I kissed Allister. I finally tasted him properly, and he tasted like lemon candy. He put his hand behind my head so I couldn’t get away. I ended up getting weak in the knees from the kiss, and Allister put his other hand on my waist to hold me. When he finally pulled away, I glared at him and smacked him with little strength. He instantly let go of me.

“What was that for?” Allister asked.

“That was more than enough, Allister,” I said, “Stop being a pervert.”

“I wanted to remember the way you tasted,” Allister said.

“What? Are you going to eat me?” I asked, annoyed.

“When we’re older, maybe,” Allister said jokingly.

“You’re too much, Allister,” I said, “I’ll see you at school.”

“See you at school, Aurelie,” Allister said. I left in a hurry to find Mom and Dad in a room full of adults. I didn’t want to go in, so I went to find someone to talk to. I ran into a boy who had dyed pink hair and a half-shaved head.

“You must be Aurelie Grimes,” the boy said, “I’m Jason Dax Moore, but I like being called Dax.”

“Oh, you’re from the Healing Tides Debrik, too, aren’t you?” I asked. Dax nodded.

“I am,” Dax said, “But I’m one of the mid-range families. I saw you and that redhead boy kissing earlier. That must’ve been embarrassing.”

“Wait, you didn’t notice the monster?” I asked, “You noticed us kissing more than the monster?”

“I did notice the monster when it was leaving,” Dax said, “But I was more impressed that you kissed someone for that long and purified someone’s Tomkin simultaneously.”

“That is embarrassing to think that people noticed that,” I said, “But how did you know that I purified someone’s Tomkin?”

“Well, it was black until you splashed water on it, Miss Grimes,” Dax said, “If that’s not purification, I don’t know what is.”

“You’re rather observant, aren’t you, Dax?” I asked, “You can call me Aurelie.” Dax smiled.

“Oh, your boyfriend is coming over here,” Dax said. I looked behind me to see Allister coming this way angrily. I looked back, and Dax was gone.

“Why are you talking to other boys when you said you would leave?” Allister asked.

“I couldn’t go into a room filled with adults as a child,” I said, “So I guess I’m staying, and besides, I don’t see anyone but you as a romantic interest.”

“A what now?” Allister asked.

“You’re my boyfriend, Allister,” I said, “I’ve never liked anyone except for you.” Allister smiled.

“So, I can call you my girlfriend?” Allister asked.

“Yes,” I said.

“What a wonderful decision,” Nicholas said, “The only problem is that you’re a quarter human, so you get periods, and you will get pregnant.” Wait, a quarter human? “Your grandmother on your mother’s side is a Flouppzich. Her maiden name is Moore, like Dax.”

“I don’t want you to leave,” Allister said as he grabbed my hand, returning me to reality.

“I don’t want to leave you either,” I said, “But I need to rest.”

“What’s wrong?” Allister asked. I put a hand on my forehead, thinking why I needed to rest.

“I hurt my ankle,” I said. Allister hugged me, picked me up, and walked with me in a princess carry. I was so embarrassed.

“I’m sorry, Aurelie,” Allister said, “I’ll help you into a different room.”

“Thanks,” I said.

“What a beautiful couple,” Nicolas said, “I can’t wait for you two to tie the knot.” Shut up, ancestor, we’re only ten years old. “Flouppzich can wed as early as 14, with their parents’ permission. But that’s only because once Flouppzich hits 10, we age faster than humans and are considered adults at 16 when you’re scheduled to graduate from the academy. But before 10, we age like humans do. We live longer than humans do, which is surprising if you think about it.”

“What’s wrong?” Allister asked.

“I need to use the restroom,” I said.

“Oh,” Allister said, then he put me down in front of the restroom. I quickly went in and did my business, but I did get my period. Then there was a scream. I peeked out of my stall to see a girl covered from head to toe in mud, who must have been the one screaming, and two girls laughing at her.

“Serves you right for glaring at me,” said the one girl.

“I told you I wasn’t glaring at you,” the girl covered in mud said, “This is my face.”

“Like I’d believe that,” the first girl said.

“Go marry each other,” the mud girl said, then the two girls left abruptly. I washed the mud off the girl. “Who’s there?” I left my stall and washed my hands. The girl had black eyes and dark hair.

“Just me,” I said, “I didn’t mean to eavesdrop on your conversation, but I was already here.”

“You’re the girl who got kissed by the boy who’s now outside the bathroom, right?” the mud girl asked.

“What about it?” I asked.

“I think you’re quite bold,” the mud girl said, “But it’s a shame that you aren’t like me. Mind control isn’t all that easy, you know?” But it is, isn’t it? “Besides, you seem like too much of a goody-two-shoes for my liking.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I said, “You don’t know me or my name, and I don’t know you or yours.”

“I’m Elytra Peppers,” the mud girl said, “You are Aurelie Grimes, right?”

“So, you did know my name,” I said, “But why do you think I’m a goody-two-shoes? I’m the opposite of that completely. I can’t tell you how often I broke the rules or ran away from home.” Elytra laughed.

“So, you’re a little runaway?” Elytra asked, “I don’t believe you at all. Go make out with your loverboy for all I care.” I didn’t move an inch, and she looked at me weirdly. “I said, ‘Go make out with your loverboy.’ Why won’t it work? Go make babies.” I frowned.

“That won’t work on me,” I said, “I’ve already mastered both sides of that spell: mind manipulation and mental fortitude, both at 100.” I lied that there was a number, but I mastered that magic type at age 5.

“What a joke,” Elytra said, then she left. I waited a bit longer before leaving the bathroom because I had to put on some padding, but Allister still awaited me right outside the door.

“Are you okay, Aurelie?” Allister asked.

“Yes,” I said, “Please take me elsewhere.” Allister nodded and picked me up in a princess carry again. He carried me to another room, where Mom and Papa stood next to another couple who reminded me of Allister. I guess they were his dads.

“Aurelie, these are my Dad and Papa,” Allister said, “Dad and Papa, this is Aurelie Grimes.”

“It’s nice to meet you,” I said.

“It’s nice to meet you too,” one of Allister’s Dads said.

“Allister, this is my Mom and Papa,” I said, “Mom and Papa, this is Allister Carmen.”

“May I ask why you’re holding my daughter?” Papa asked.

“She hurt her ankle,” Allister said, “So, I decided to carry her around. She’s light.”

“I didn’t even get to carry her around yet,” Papa muttered.

“Do you want to carry her?” Allister asked, “I can hand her over to you if you want.” Do they think I’m a doll or something? Why do they want to pass me around?