After some debate, Laenie was chosen as the driver for this part of the mission. Aira sat by her in the front, and Lillia and Kalei took the middle seats, leaving the back seats to Zeta and Oka.

  Oka cursed herself for feeling so nervous about climbing onto the minivan in a and bug into her seat. The weird, elongated cart was a dark emerald that wasn’t quite Rising Shards colors and had etal bars on its sides. It reminded her of videos she’d seen of roller coasters, but a bit roomier than those looked. Zeta sat down beside her, and Oka felt her hands get sweaty. She thought about reag her hand out to hold Zeta’s, but froze in motion.

  Why is it so much harder for me right now?

  In the few weeks sihey’d started dating, Oka was fronted with something she never would have expected out of herself. She internally (and i sessions with Lillia) “The Freezening.”

  She had mao initiate one of the kisses with Zeta ba the bead had a spectacur but terrifying i in their room, but sihen she found herself feeling overwhelmed by all of it when they were in close tact, freezing up every time she tried to do anything at greater than or equal to hand holding level, and even hand holding was getting strangely difficult. It was immensely embarrassing, and she had a deep fear Zeta was hurt by it when she couldn’t mao do anything, even things she didn’t have a problem with before like hugs and such. Zeta told her she was fiaking things slow, but Oka worried she was now taking things too slowly.

  Oka realized she was staring, and that the minivan in a had somehow already been moving for some amount of time she had no bearing of. Zeta caught her gnd gave a beaming smile back.

  “At least I have you here,” Zeta said. “Are you scared about this too?”

  Oka wao say something about lovia’s fangs, but she found that her mouth had gotten dry, and it took her a sed to croak out a “Yeah yep yeah,” which came out sounding a lot more scared thaended. Maybe I am scared, though. Even though her old school was cruelly strict, she’d scarcely been to the void there.

  * * *

  Laenie had a firm grasp on the wheel of the minivan in a , to the point Aira was ed about her white knuckles.

  “How are you feeling?” Aira asked. She felt fortable asking with the chatter behind them meaning Laenie could talk freely without w about others in the group butting in.

  “I’m…OK,” Laenie said.

  Aira khat when Laenie paused before saying how she was feeling, something .

  “ I help at all?” Aira asked. “If you’d like me to drive, I could probably. Telep and driving a golf cart like vehicle are probably pretty simir abilities, maybe?”

  “N-not that,” Laenie said.

  Aira thought about what else could be making Laenie anxious, an unfortunately long list.

  “Then…this whole trip? Fang Moon Web after?”

  “No, actually,” Laenie said. “I’m sort of…rattled about something else.”

  “What is it?” Aira asked.

  “At the breakfast table before we came in,” Laenie said.

  “What about it?” Aira asked. “A lot of dy, I thought. I know tomorrow’s Fang Moon Web, but we have a big void trip! They should have more fruits and veggies, yeah?”

  “Uh huh,” Laenie said. “They had a lot of Valor Peanut ch Bars.”

  “Oh,” Aira said. Laenie looked ready to cry, but she was holding it in well. “I wish they’d known.”

  “You don’t have to sound so sorry about it,” Laenie said. “You didn’t put the food out. And they couldn’t have knowher.”

  That was true. How could they have known that they had a big dispy of Laenie’s brother’s favorite dy bar? They maybe could have known about Rem’s situation as a Pyre i that went missing, but knowing that the dy bar he was obsessed with would make his sister upset was a stretch.

  “So I did breakfast today,” Laenie said.

  Aira hated that a selfish side of her felt hurt that Laenie would talk about dy to her, after what had happened with the box of dy Aira had gotten for Laenie while she was on vacation that had mysteriously ended up in a garbage . Aira did give it to her anonymously and sign it saying it was from a secret admirer, but it was still something very sore that she hadn’t fully dealt with yet.

  “You should really eat,” Aira said. “I did make a lunch for all of us…do you want yours early? I have energy bars, too.”

  “I don’t want to mess up your lunches,” Laenie said. Aira felt the same sti in as the garbaged dy. “But I wouldn’t mind having an energy bar early.”

  “Oh?” Aira asked. She turo see Laenie softly smiling.

  “It might take my mind off of this for a bit.” Laenie said.

  “Sure! Yes!” Aira searched through her backpad got a Volleyball Muscle energy bar out.

  “Thank you!” Laenie said. “I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

  “Me too,” Aira said, suddenly feeling a bit of dread about their uping void trip that she hadn’t felt before.

  * * *

  Kalei stretched like she was getting ready for a meet. In a way, the big trip to the void was like a meet. It’d definitely involve at least a simir amount of physicality she used in beam chasers, there ressure on her not to let her team down, and the anticipation of it all was exg just like waiting for the buzzer at a game. She had wao go to the practice fields to stretch but had to settle for the front area of the Principal Peam he Building Where We Go In and Out of the Void’ to work through her stretches. She noticed Latte staring at her as she sipped her coffee from a hermos, sitting in one of the ected chairs of the waiting room.

  “Don’t overstrain,” Latte said. “Unless your pn is to get injured before we even go so you get out of it. In that case, I'd reend Feral Flu.”

  "Oh, hey Latte—er," Kalei said, fling when she saw a swoosh e hair approach behind Latte. Nikki stepped over the chair o Latte and sat down. Kalei mentally told herself she covered the flinch up well enough and didn’t just pull a Zeta there. "And hey, Nikki."

  "Sup," Nikki said. "You're up early for this too?"

  "Yeah!" Kalei said. "I have a real good internal clock, and today lines up with a m workout so I figured I'd get some stretches in if we really have to fight some big deal void monsters.” She scratched the back of her head. “How about you guys? You normally…are up early in the m?”

  "I'm filled with enough caffeio naturally wake up early." Latte said.

  "I don't know if that's natural, dude..." Nikki said.

  “The coffee beans grow from this very earth,” Latte said, patting the carpeted ground. “Save for those from void nodes. Which aren’t worth the hassle of trag dorocessing, you have to drink them in the void and the taste quality is just not there.”

  “Right,” Nikki said. “I’m just up cuz she is, but I’m gd we ran into you.”

  Kalei felt a flutter iomach. Theomach growled loudly, her hunger g out the flutters.

  “Whoa, someone’s hungry,” Nikki ughed. “Hopefully that breakfast they promised us is gonna be good here.”

  “Y-yeah, ha,” Kalei said. She looked over at some staff setting up some tables with Fang Moon Web pstic tarps on them. “Looks like they’re setting it up now.”

  “They have coffee?” Latte said, perking up instantly?”

  “Maybe, I think I see a mae or two but they might be—" Nikki started.

  “Be right back,” Latte said, rushing to the table to bother the staff. Leaving Kalei aloh Nikki. Instead of making versation, Kalei did some zy stretches. She expected Nikki to put her musi again and for the iion to end there and spare Kalei of more awkwardness.

  "Beam chasers is starting up soon, yeah?" Nikki asked.

  “Y-yeah,” Kalei said. “I’m pretty excited.”

  “Nice,” Nikki said. “I’m gd you’ll get to be back out there pying, instead of just practice.”

  “Thanks…” Kalei said. “And yeah. Just practice isn’t the same. Meets really are where it’s at.”

  That sounds so stupid. She’s gonna think it sounds stupid.

  "Hey, this is kind of a weird question," Nikki said.

  “Oh. What’s up?” Kalei said. “I’m all ears. For, you know. Like, whatever questions you have and stuff.”

  Why did I say that? Why do I say anything, really?

  "So my parents really wao join a sport,” Nikki said. “I’m having fun in the video club, but in spring I don’t know what I’m gonna do…”

  "You'd...want to join beam chasers?" Kalei asked.

  “I didn’t say that,” Nikki said. Kalei started to apologize, but then she saw Nikki’s smile. “I was just gonna ask…do you think someoh no experience could do it? You don’t think I’d like screw up the whole team?”

  “Oh, no way!” Kalei said. “Or, no way to the screwing up part. I think you could do it! That’d…be really sweet actually! My first year I didn’t have any experience, but I learned as I went. If you’re willing to put the work in and really learn, and if our coach is good, and I think she is, I’ve talked with her a bit, you could…I’m kinda rambling, sorry.”

  “Nah, it’s cool,” Nikki said. “I like seeing you be passionate about something like this.”

  “Ha…ha…” Kalei said. “Cool.”

  Maybe stop talking when you don’t have anything to say.

  “Plus, I’d have you teag me, too.” Nikki said.

  “Yeah!” Kalei said, the stomach flutters returning. “Maybe we have those private lessons soon?”

  “I’d like that,” Nikki said as an energized Latte returned with several expertly banced paper cups of coffee from the breakfast table.

  * * *

  Lillia sighed at the sele at the breakfast tables in the void entry building. Because of Fang Moohere were a lot of dy and sweets set out, which weren’t the best breakfast foods before a void trip. There were still normal breakfast options oable, but the dy was distrag Lillia as she pictured more students in her css going straight for them.

  “Mmm,” Ko Matora said. “Lots of good looking stuff here.”

  Lillia nearly smashed her paper pte with grapes, a muffin, and toast with jam spread on it onto herself as Ko stepped beside her.

  “And I’m not talking about all this food.” Ko winked.

  “O-oh, that’s…” Lillia said, feeling her face start to burn almost immediately.

  “I’m joking, don’t worry,” Ko said. “If that’s too much, just tell me.”

  “I…” Lillia said. She wasn’t even sure what she wao say to that. Part of her was thrilled with Ko’s flirting advances, while another part of her was more scared. And another part of her felt like she was betraying her crush on Naomi Ratuna by not shutting down Ko’s strange behaviors immediately.

  "I won’t bug you much this m," Ko said. "Good luck out there. Big day for us!”

  “Yes,” Lillia said. “To you as well.”

  Ko filled her pte with food as Lillia found herself uo leave.

  "Hey, one more thing,” Ko said. “After this is done...what do you say we go see a movie?"

  "Huh?" Lillia asked.

  "I keep thinking about that night, right before Dentist Haircut," Ko said. "I'd like to see a movie with you this time. We could have lots of fun at the movies together."

  Ko winked as Lillia’s mi into overdrive once more, something Ko was very good at indug.

  "Are you..." Lillia gulped. It was maybe better to ask her straight up. Lillia tried to think of all the games she’d pyed with dating meics as she chose her words carefully. "Aski?"

  "Think about it," Ko said. "After a big void trip like this, you could probably use a ce to really rex."

  Ko left Lillia with that. Lillia stayed frozen, staring at her pte for a long while.

  * * *

  Dr. Diast checked to make sure she had everything she needed for the big day before heading for the back door of her pce, which was i. Stel sat at the kit table, finishing her breakfast aing. Evy got her coat on, not wanting to intrude but also not wanting to leave without saying anything.

  “Sorry, I’m not ign you,” Stel said. “Just givia some st-miivations and hopefully calming words.”

  “You’re such a good big sister,” Evy said.

  “I…try.” Stel said as she fiexting a her phone down. “Are you off, then?”

  “Uh huh,” Evy said. “I’ll probably be back a little ter tonight with the whole trip. You gonna bring some more boxes down today?”

  “Probably,” Stel said.

  “Do you maybe need some st-miivations and hopefully calming words?” Evy asked.

  “Maybe,” Stel said.

  “It’ll be fine, don’t worry,” Evy said. “This trip’s like a rite of passage for first year i. Even if it gets all…”

  “Atrian vs. Endoran-y?” Stel said.

  “Yeah, but that’s normal, I’m sure you went through it at Staverius.” Evy said. “Zeta’ll do great.”

  "Dude, my Atrian vs. Endoran thing had the same amount of students as the turnout of my academic decathlos. Staverius never has many i as students. This feels like…the big leagues."

  Diast sighed. “Yeah, I could see this being pretty scary, then.” Without thinking about it too much, she moved over to Stel and kissed her forehead. "I'll keep her safe."

  "Thank you,” Stel said. “Then, when you’re back tonight, I’ll give you a big reward.”

  “Oh?” Evy asked, raising her eyebrows. “A big reward, huh?”

  “Uh huh,” Stel said, poking a bit at her scrambled eggs with her fork. “Big reward.”

  “Well, I’ll look forward to that,” Evy said.