Kapri had looked nearly everywhere for her sister. Including Storm Chargers only to discover she’d already left. Then she remembered Shane was supposed to be practicing at the beach. With Dustin. And Dustin was watching Ninja. Marah had probably gone there as well.

Kapri teleported to the beach and sure enough, her sister was there. She was sitting by the firepit, wearing Dustin’s jacket with her head on his shoulder. Kapri hated to break up the cute scene, but she had to get to Marah’s PAM.

Her light of teleportation had barely faded before she was headed in their direction. Plans and lies to get to the PAM were created and rejected with each step.

“Kapri!”

She heard Shane calling her, but almost didn’t stop. She turned to see him approaching, a staff in hand and beckoning her to meet him halfway. Reluctantly she headed over.

“Hey! Glad you could make it. Here,” he put the staff in her hands. “Thanks for helping like this.”

“Helping?” she looked down at the staff curiously. “Was I… oh,” she stopped. It took a moment, but she remembered.

Shane had asked her to help him train today. She’d gotten so wrapped up in the parent problems that she’d completely forgotten. Forgotten Shane was training, and then forgotten she’d agreed to help.

This was not good.

“What? Everything okay?” Shane looked concerned about her uncertainty.

“Yeah, I just…,” she glanced over at Marah and Dustin. Dustin looked curious. Marah looked uneasy.

Kapri turned back to Shane, and saw the pleading look on his face. Shane usually wasn’t one to ask for help. If he was asking for hers now, then he really needed it.

“Totally,” she smiled, and tried not to act like anything was wrong.

“Great. Because you’re actually the perfect person for this.”

“Really?” she asked. Her curiosity was enough to pull her attention back to him. She had been staring over his shoulder. She couldn’t see if Marah had her PAM.

“Yeah,” he started walking back, leading her to where he was working. “You’re an Air Ninja, so you can stand up to the air attacks. And you can use your force field against the fire.”

“Wow. Um, thanks.” That Shane had such confidence in her, well, wow. On any other day…

But she was in the middle of a crisis here. This was serious. If she didn’t fix things with their parents now, there wouldn’t be an ‘any other day’.

“So what do I--,” she was cut off as the first blast hit her. She barely had time to remember how to pull up the force field, let alone actually get it up. So basically she needed to be prepared for whatever he threw at her. Got it.

At least this way she could keep an eye on Marah.

She cast a glance her way and saw it. The PAM.

Marah was pointing out something on it. Dustin was reacting in a not-so-happy way. Like not mad or anything. But he definitely looked concerned. Good. Dustin got how bad this all was. She’d rather that they’d been able to keep all this quiet. But Dustin would stand beside them if it came to that.

Marah and he were talking now. Loudly even. But between Shane and the ocean she couldn’t make out any of it.

“Kapri!”

She looked back just in time to jump out of the way. Shane ran up beside her.

“You okay?”

“Yeah, I just got a little distracted.” She glanced over and saw an empty log. She turned her head quickly, searching the beach. But they were gone.

Shane followed her gaze and commented. “Guess I lost my fireman. Dustin told me he was going to have to leave early. He wouldn’t say why though.” He sighed lightheartedly and shook his head. “Should have known it would be hard to hold his attention here once Marah showed up,” he joked.

Kapri laughed and agreed, but her mind was whirling. Hopefully she could talk Shane into quitting soon. She didn’t have to hide her intentions from Marah any more. She obviously knew what was going on if she was showing Dustin her PAM. And now Dustin knew too. She had to find them both before it was too late.

Tori took a deep breath and stepped through the door. The sun was bright, lighting the field in front of the school building. Tally, Dustin, and Marah were playing with Ninja. But everyone stopped when they saw Tori. Even Ninja stopped, and ran up to her.

They had been waiting for Tori in the hallway outside the classroom. But as the tryout took longer and longer, they had moved outside so Ninja could run.

They all turned to her expectantly, waiting for her to say something. Yes. No. It will be posted by the end of the week. Anything.

“I made it,” she said quietly, a small smile on her lips. Barely had she said it before she was engulfed in a group hug. Ninja jumped and barked, desperate to be included. They congratulated her, and she thanked them all in turn. And when everyone backed off, Tori reached down to scratch Ninja’s ears. She let her dance bag slip off her shoulder to the ground. She seemed happy to just stay there petting the dog.

“Are you okay, Tori?” Tally asked.

“Yeah, you don’t look very excited,” Marah added. Tori turned her head to see her friends. And she didn’t miss how Dustin subtly moved closer to Marah. But her mind was too full of her own problems to ask what was wrong. She tried to make a mental note to talk to Dustin later. But she doubted she’d remember.

“Yeah, dude! I mean, you’re on the team! You worked so hard for this!” Dustin said enthusiastically.

“I’m not on the team,” Tori started.

“But you said—“

“I know. I made the team. They offered me a spot. I don’t know if I’m taking it though.” Tori sat on the ground beside her bag.

“Why not?” Tally asked, joining her on the ground. Marah sat too, calling Ninja to her. Dustin actually looked around before he sat down beside Marah. Like he was scouting the area. Okay, maybe she wouldn’t forget to ask him what was up. Especially if he kept acting so weird.

“It’s just well…”

“Blake?” Marah guessed.

“Boy troubles,” Tally nodded knowingly.

Tori almost laughed. It was great to have girlfriends to talk to. Especially ones who knew about her double or triple life. She knew she could talk to them about this. They may joke, but she knew they would help if they could.

“Yes, Blake. But no, no boy troubles.”

“So what about Blake would make you not join the team?” Dustin asked. “Dude, he’d be so psyched for you!”

“I know,” Tori agreed. “And I think that’s part of it. He’d want me to do it, but I’d just get to see him less.”

At their confused looks she continued, “I should have thought about all this before. But I didn't. It was like it was a, "I'll deal with it when it comes" kinda thing. But now it's here. I made the team, and I have to make a decision."

She shrugged, "I’d have to travel with the dance team. Basketball games, football games, our own competitions. I get to see Blake so little now as it is. If I join the dance team, what little time he can get away to come here, I’ll be gone. Either in practice or at games. And who knows what it would do to my Academy teaching schedule.”

She flopped back on the grass dramatically, staring at the clouds as if they held the answers to her questions. Yes or no. Join the team or don’t.

She felt something wet on her face, and turned her head to see Ninja licking her happily. She laughed and sat back up, looking around at her friends.

“Thanks, Ninja,” she said, ruffling his ears.

“Tori,” Tally started, “what do you want to do?”

“I want…,” she paused, but she knew what she wanted to say. “I want some time to think about it. They told me I had to get back with them by Monday. Can you guys keep this quiet till I figure this out?”

Tally nodded and stood, “Sure thing.” She checked her watch as she shifted her backpack to her shoulder. “I gotta run to class, but we’ll talk about this tonight, okay?”

“Yeah, I’ll see you,” Tori waved as her roommate walked away.

“Hey, Tori, we’re going to drop Ninja off at the apartment, then head to the Academy to grab dinner.” Dustin looked at Marah, as if looking for a confirmation. Or maybe a denial. But when neither came he turned back to Tori. “Let us know if you wanna hang or something.”

“Thanks, guys,” Tori said, glancing at her watch too. “But I need to study tonight. I have this MAJOR exam I so have to be prepared for. I’ll catch up with you guys this weekend though. Yeah?”

Marah and Dustin shared a glance, and Tori wondered at the significance.

“Totally,” Marah finally nodded. “We’ll see you.”

They stood, and as Tori waved good-bye she again saw Dustin discretely scouting the area. He did this while Marah reined in Ninja, like he didn’t want his girlfriend to notice. But Tori had gotten to know Marah well enough over the months to know that she wasn’t as oblivious as she acted. Just like Dustin.

Maybe she should skip out on studying tonight. If only to find out why her friend was acting so strangely.

Or well, stranger than usual.

Kapri heard the voices in the hallway. She knew it wouldn’t go well when Marah found her waiting for her in her room. But at this point, she didn’t care. She had to get that PAM.

The door opened, and Marah stopped mid-step. The surprise quickly left her face, replaced by a determined look. She turned and spoke to someone in the hallway, before entering her room and closing the door behind her.

“What are you doing here, Kapri? This is my room.”

Kapri stood from the bed as Marah reached for her backpack. “You know why I’m here. Where’s your PAM?’

“Safe,” was her only answer.

She threw up her hands in frustration. “Marah, this isn’t something to joke about. The PAM needs to be destroyed. You don’t want them finding us.”

Marah paused in stuffing things in her backpack to glare at her sister. “Why not? I don’t remember them, Kapri. I’d like to know my family. You know, like we got to know Cousin.”

“I remember though. And these people aren’t like Cam. I’m telling you that you don’t want to know them.”

“You were young too, Kapri. Do you really remember our parents? Or are you just reacting to what we’ve always heard about them?”

Kapri just started at her darkly. There wasn’t any reasoning with Marah right now.

“It’s my decision. If I want to meet them, I’ll do it.”

“You’re making the decision for both of us! You let them find us here and we’re dead! And don’t think they’ll let the Rangers go either. Not with them being responsible for taking down Uncle!”

“Marah?” There was a banging on the door a second before it burst open. If it hadn’t been so serious, Kapri would have laughed at the look on Dustin’s face. He had been torn between respecting her privacy by not barging into her room, and protecting her when he heard the fighting.

Marah threw her backpack over her shoulder and headed for the door.

“Marah,” she made a grab for her sister’s arm, but Marah avoided her. “You have to turn it off!”

“No, I have to stop letting everyone tell me what to do.”

“Not the time to grow a backbone,” Kapri sniped.

Marah’s expression darkened. “I’ve always had one. It’s just time you realized that I’m not your little sister who needs protecting anymore!”

Kapri opened her mouth to retort, but was shocked speechless. Marah took the opportunity to grab Dustin’s hand. They disappeared in a flash of teleporting light.

Several students had left their dorm rooms by now. They had been watching the fight from the hallway, only to see one of their teachers disappear into thin air with a fellow student.

“What?!” Kapri shouted before slamming the door in their faces. She teleported back to her own room and threw herself down on the bed.

That so hadn’t gone well.