A/N: Yay! I'm going on another field trip today and it's about to be awesome. I'm actually writing this from the bus. Wow. Okay here's the chapter!

A high pitched scream rang from Sophie's room followed by a loud crash. Immediately, Sandor and the other guards rushed in to see the blond haired elf collapsed on the floor.

"Call Grady and Edaline," Sandor commanded, leaning beside Sophie's unconscious body. One of the guards dashed down immediately and brought the two parents up to Sophie's room.

They rushed up in a flurry of panic, unsure of what to expect. Was it the Neverseen again? Keefe? The Black Swan? The Council? In these circumstances, it could be anyone.

What they didn't expect was to see their daughter passed out on the floor, barely breathing with no signs of injury.

Edaline choked back a sob as Grady pulled out his Imparter and called Elwin.

"What happened to her?" Edaline asked softly, not sure if she wanted to hear the answer.

"We don't know," Sandor truthfully replied. "All we heard was a scream and a crash. It could be anything."

Grady hung up on his Imparter call and wrapped his arm around Edaline. "Elwin is coming as soon as possible," he told her. Slowly, he turned to Sandor.

"Was Sophie acting oddly in any way before this happened?" he asked.

Sandor shook his head. "Miss Foster was acting normal for the situation," he informed, referring to Keefe's betrayal. "She seemed rather sad... But not to the point where it would take her over."

They refused to say the words that were on everyone's mind.

Soon, Elwin was in the room, flashing orbs in front of Sophie's face, trying to wake her up in any way possible, but to no avail.

"There's only one more possibility," Elwin said, confirming their worst fears. "If I give her this elixir and she stays quiet, she is probably just knocked out. If she screams... Her mind is broken."

A sob escaped Edaline's lips as she buried her face in Grady's shoulder, not ready to see what would happen next.

Carefully, Elwin poured the exile down Sophie's throat. One second passed. Another.

Then the screaming began.

*~*~*~*

Fitz was in his room pondering what had just happened when he received the call on his Imparter.

He wanted to ignore it. He didn't know if he could take any more after what had happened with Keefe. Who could he even trust anymore?

Sophie. That was who he could trust. He trusted her with all his heart. Honestly, he could become Cognates with her tomorrow if he needed to.

Then again there was that one thing she refused to tell him during Cognate training.

He pushed the thoughts out of his mind as he went to see who was calling him.

Sophie Foster

He smiled. Of course it was Sophie. Carefully, he accepted the call.

"Hey Soph-" his voice trailed off when he realized it was not Sophie who was calling. "Edaline? What happened?"

Edaline's usually beautiful eyes were red and puffy from crying, her hands trembling. From fear or worry, Fitz couldn't tell.

"It's Sophie," Edaline told him, taking a shuddering breath. "She's... Broken."

A million thought rushed through Fitz's mind as if the dam to a rushing waterfall had suddenly been opened. How could Sophie be broken? She was supposed to heal broken people. And if she was broken... Who would fix her?

"No, no, no," Fitz muttered. "Nobody can fix her."

Edaline nodded, and when she spoke, she sounded like she was about to burst into tears. "That's why we called you."

"Me?" Fitz asked incredulously. "Why me?"

"You and Sophie have a special connection," Edaline told him, saying the words he had heard countless times in telepathy training. "Maybe you can fix her in some way nobody else can."

It was a last ditch effort that had so little merits it was almost pointless to try. But Grady and Edaline had already lost one daughter, and last ditch efforts were something they needed to rely on if they weren't going to lose another.

And if Sophie stayed broken, the elvin world was as good as gone. All of the Black Swan's plans relied on her. If she wasn't able to carry them out... Who would?

As for Fitz... He couldn't imagine what would happen if Sophie broke. They were supposed to become Cognates, the unstoppable duo of Telepaths. And she was his friend.

So, even if this was a last ditch effort, it was all they had. Fitz took a deep breath, knowing all the pressure would be on him after he said the words.

"I can try."

A/N: So what do you think? Think he can fix her? We'll just have to see!