I made the mistake of smirking. Snarling, he rushed me. Thrust, block, counterattack. He took a step back and twirled his stick. The stick shifted and changed shape until it was a sword. A nasty sword with serrated blade and a guard that looked like it was forged by an evil monster.

What are you doing? someone snapped inside my head. Sir Kellion or Master Kenta, I wasn't sure.

Teaching the little imp a lesson, Sir Norath snarled, and swung.

I tried to block his sword, but the blade sliced through my staff like it was made of b.u.t.ter. Dang! I needed a sword. I ducked and teleported to escape his blade. But he was waiting when I reappeared. The sound of metal hitting metal resounded in the air.

My sticks had changed into swords. Sweet. They didn't look as evil as his, but they would do. I didn't have time to marvel at my first non-clothing solid transformation. He had me on the run, but I knew it was only a matter of time before I turned the tables on him. The silence in the field was thick.

From my training with Master Kenta, I knew that I loved sword fights, and I put every trick I knew into use. I let one sword go, controlling it with my mind and forcing Sir Norath to deal with attack from two angles. The more I outmaneuvered his moves, the angrier he got. Soon, I had him on the defensive. He tried to get inside my head, but I pushed back hard.

He stumbled, his free hand going to his head. Why did you do that?

You tried to get inside my head, Sir Norath. You don't want to do that.I could hurt you.

He lost it. The rage that shot out of him told me he would to do something stupid. I must have teleported, or maybe I was having out-ofbody experience, because one second I was facing him, and the next I was in the air watching the two of us fight.

Yelling, he swung his sword at me, hoping to knock the swords off my hands or slice me in half. A tingle started at the base of my spine and shot up my back. With it came a surge of heat. In seconds, my entire body was covered with the ancient writings. They were the same writings that often appeared before I healed someone. I started to glow. Not just my hands. My entire body.

It was weird being in two places at the same time, seeing and feeling the same things. Sir Norath's eyes grew red as he closed the gap between us. The glow from my body was for healing, but this time, it did something different. It sent off a pulse of light.

Sir Norath's sword burst into flame before it could connect with mine. He dropped it and reached for my arms, his right knee lifting to ram my ribs, but he didn't touch me. His face contorted as though he was in pain, and then he, too, burst into flame. The crowd scrambled back, people tripping over each other to get away from me. Those closest to me burst into flames, too. Lightning came from everywhere and blasted them.

The next second, I was back on the ground, watching Sir Norath advance toward me with a murderous expression. Realization hit me hard. What I saw hadn't happened yet. It was just a premonition.

The tingle at the base of my spine came alive and panic coursed through me. My premonition was about to come true.

Stop!

Sir Norath froze. Not in shock. He became like a statue, his face contorted and teeth bared, and his sword raised to attack. I sighed with relief, but it was short-lived. Sir Kellion and everyone on the field were standing still, too, weird expressions on their faces. To my left, Master Kenta, Callum, and Ruby were also frozen.

I stepped back and racked my brain. What had I done? How could I unfreeze them?

"What happened?"

I whipped around, so happy to see Green Eyes that tears rushed to my eyes. He closed the gap between us and I walked into his embrace. His arms closed around me. My tongue tripped as I recounted what had happened.

"It's okay," he said. "This is perfectly normal."

"Normal?" I asked, my voice squeaking. I pushed his arms away, but he wasn't letting me go.

"Yes. That powerful mind of yours does amazing things all the time, and you always fix them."

I believed him. For a moment, I let his warmth and strength steady me. Calmer, I became aware of his body pressed against mine. His tense muscles. His scent. He smelled amazing. My heartbeat picked up its tempo.

I didn't get our relationship. I had walked into his arms as though I'd known he'd comfort me. Everything about him, his scent and warmth, was familiar. I wanted to stay in his arms. Hang on to him and never let go.

It would never work between us. I stepped back and avoided making eye contact. "How did I do this? How do I fix it?"

He cupped my face and pressed a kiss onto my forehead. "You stopped time. You've done it before, so don't worry about it. You'll unfreeze them by just willing it. But the premonition is new. It's going to become handy in the future."

I didn't care anymore how he knew so much about me. What mattered was that he was here to help me and he'd kissed me. Well, kissed my forehead. I could still feel the imprint of his lips. He stroked my face, his touch gentle.

"I control time," I murmured, remembering Solange asking about my abilities after my lightning fiasco.

"Yep, and from what I saw from my hiding place, your earth powers are coming along great. As for me, your ability to stop time and everything in it doesn't work on me anymore."

"Anymore?"

He grinned, dimples winking on his cheeks. "Yep. Know why?"

"Why?"

His eyes gleamed. "Because you're crazy about me."

I turned my head, forcing his hands to drop from my face. "I don't even know your name."

"You do; you just don't remember it. If Raphael ever crosses my path again, he's leaving wingless. Hear that, you sanctimonious p.r.i.c.k?" he called out, and shook his fist at the sky.

Having a conversation with him was maddening. "Look, just tell me what to do to fix this. You can rant against the Archangels later."

"But I was just warming up to the subject of us," he said, faking hurt.

"How about you focus on them first?" I pointed at the frozen fighters. "What if I've frozen the entire island?"

"You haven't," Green Eyes said. "Now, if your powers were fully back, you would have done it." He walked around Sir Norath. "Poor b.a.s.t.a.r.d. He should have known better than to agree to fight you. What do you want to do with him?"

"Not kill him."

"What were you thinking before you froze him?"

"I wanted to stop him before he attacked. His attack was the reason I turned into a murderous torch."

Green Eyes laughed. "You're not a murderous torch. That was your body protecting itself from an attack. Perfectly normal."

I stared at him in disbelief. "My body turns into a weapon when someone attacks me?"

His eyelids dropped, so I couldn't read his expression. "Something like that. Okay, unfreeze him."

I studied Sir Norath while trying to wrap my head around my body being a weapon. Unfreeze, Sir Norath.

Sir Norath staggered forward, the sword arcing down hard and sinking into the ground. I locked it in place. He tried to pull it from the ground, his eyes darting right, then left, as though expecting me to attack, a growl rumbling through his chest. Then he saw the frozen people and me. Green Eyes was long gone. His eyes narrowed suspiciously. "What's going on?"

"I froze them so you and I could talk," I said.

He glanced at the others again and tugged at the sword. "You cheated."

"Calm down, Sir Norath. You were about to hurt me with your sword. I don't think either of us wants that or the consequences that go with it."

He let go of his sword and stepped back, a sheepish expression settling on his face. "Sorry, Princess," he said slowly, bowing. "I have a temper, you see. Cost me my position as head trainer of the knights."

I heard the shame in his voice. I'd bet Sir Kellion had deliberately chosen him to further humiliate him. "I'm sorry, too, Sir Norath. I tend to act before thinking when I get angry as well. Got me in plenty of trouble, like this time."

He smiled. "You are very kind, Princess. What do you want us to do?"

"You are a skilled fighter, Sir Norath, and so am I. We need to stop this fight without either one of us losing face. What do you think we should do to stop it?"

His eyes narrowed. For the first time, I saw intelligence in his gray eyes. "You told Sir Kellion we'd train the minions if you won."

I nodded. "Yes."

His eyes narrowed. "Then I'll let you win."

"No, Sir Norath. Your reputation is on the line here, too."

Sir Norath and I looked at each other. I shouldn't have agreed to this when Sir Kellion had suggested it. It was stupid.

"What if someone intervened and stopped the fight?" Sir Norath suggested.

"Who? Sir Kellion?"

"No, he won't do it," Sir Norath said. "He thinks training minions is a waste of time."

"What about you? Would you train them if you were still head of the knights?" I asked.

Sir Norath nodded. "Yes, Princess. We need more guards and fighters. We lost a lot in the last two battles. Not having powers doesn't stop them from being skilled fighters."

"That would be great. You can teach them so much more because you're an amazing fighter. You are fast and you have great technique."

Sir Norath smiled with pride and bowed. "Thank you, Princess. You are pretty bada.s.s yourself."

I laughed. "Thank you."

"Would Kenta stop the fight if you asked him to, Princess?"

I shook my head. "No. He and Sir Kellion hate each other. Let's get my father to intervene. He doesn't know about our little sparring this morning, but I can have someone whisper it in his ear."

Fear flickered in Sir Norath's eyes. "I don't want to be punished, Princess."

"You won't be," I rea.s.sured him. "We'll put on a show for them until Father arrives. No one will know we are doing it except the two of us." My eyes went to Callum and Ruby. "I'll unfreeze one of the guards to warn him."

Sir Norath still looked unsure.

"I give you my word you won't get in trouble," I promised.

He nodded, but I could tell he was still uneasy. I unfroze Callum, who looked thoroughly confused, but he agreed to go to my father, then Sir Norath and I resumed our positions and waited for the signal from Callum.

Father was going to go ballistic, but anything to stop the fight.

-11-.

"You're never ever to go to the training grounds or interfere with the guards again. Never challenge my knights to a fight like that. Never make a bet based on your abilities. It was reckless and stupid," Father yelled.

He'd been at it since we left the field.

"It was for a good cause. Sir Kellion treats them like punching bags."

"Then you tell me what's going on; don't take matters into your own hands. Don't accept a challenge from a seasoned fighter like Sir Norath. He will face disciplinary-"

"No, please. It's not his fault. He was reluctant to fight me, but I got c.o.c.ky and insisted. Don't punish him or Sir Kellion because of my decision. I just thought someone should stand up for the minions."

"There are ways to do that without putting your life and everyone else's in danger. Take up their cause, become their representative at the High Council if you must, but no more reckless behavior."

"Okay. So, you won't punish Sir Norath?"

"I haven't decided yet." Then he was gone.

His words stayed with me for weeks, as did the smug smile on Solange's face. She was the worst sister ever. To make matters worse, I didn't know if Sir Piece of c.r.a.p Kellion stopped using minions as punching bags or if Father punished Sir Norath.

I trained and studied my b.u.t.t off. My powers continued to fluctuate in ways that didn't make sense. It had nothing to do with using my energy powers, either. Some mornings, I woke up tired and lethargic and couldn't lift a feather with my mind. Other times, I was unstoppable. My staff transformed into swords, daggers, shields with a touch. Lightning sizzled in the air with little effort. Master Kenta loved it.

Green Eyes continued to be Mr. Mysterious, appearing when I least expected him and then disappearing. I didn't think he was a spy, despite what I'd said, but it was obvious that he was more than he seemed. Maybe he was my guardian angel. He seemed to be around a lot when I needed help, but he still refused to explain how we knew each other, what demons were, or why he thought I was already linked with the Kris Dagger. I tried a couple times a day with no response.

I saw Lottius and Katia on weekends. At times, we just stayed around the castle. Other times, we went to West Coronis Beach to hang out or shop. Everything was charged to accounts set up by our parents.

"What if your parents don't have money?" I asked.

"Like the minions?" Katia asked.

I nodded. "Yeah."

"Then you're freaking out of luck," Lottius said.

Katia sighed. "Really, Lottie. The High Council takes care of their needs, just like Queen Coronis did."

I studied the bodies soaking up the sun on the sandy beach and the ones moving in and out of stores. Except those working in the stores, I hadn't seen any minions. I was becoming good at recognizing them. Their psi energy wasn't bright or large. I also hadn't seen the children who'd followed us around during the rides.

"Don't they come to the beach? I mean, I don't see them around, and it can't be fun being cooped up inside the mountain all the time."

Katia and Lottius exchanged a glance.