The trip flashes by and soon we're all climbing out of the rovers, ready to walk the last klick due to the thickness of the vegetation. The ride to this point had started off chatty, everyone working through their nerves, but after a short time, all conversation died off as we were all stuck in a deep sense of awe as we looked out the windows of the rover.

This planet is beautiful, there's no other way to describe it. We each struggled to look through the bars on the windows, trying to get a better glimpse as we road on. There were brilliant colors in every shade imaginable, all melding together right where they were supposed to be. It was like the planet was colored by a cosmic artist, their paint dripping and blending with the colors around it to make such a masterpiece.

My favorite thing we passed, was the giant lake not too far from the colony. We'd gone over the lake on a bridge, the water surrounding us in a deep blue that reminded me of home. Despite all that had happened on Aoria, a part of me will always think of it as home. That same part of me will still mourn my lost loved ones, every day, and guide my hands to my Link to talk to Shawn and Micah. It's my inner-Aorian, raising her head and saying, "I must be heard!"

A small smile finds its way onto my lips as I step around a lone white flower that had taken root in the middle of the pathway. "It's not far now, I assume that you all are ready to meet with the ambassador?" My smile fades and I look at the people around me, the severity of Bartlett's words weighing us down.

No, we're not ready, you can see that on all our faces. But will that make any difference? Will it keep us from meeting the ambassador and have more time to think of what to say? No. That was what the ride here was for, even though I'm sure the majority of us hardly thought about the meeting along the way.

"Rina?" A hand takes mine and it starts to swing between us as we walk. "We're not ready for this meeting. If one of us botches their part of the interrogation, we could lose the Celxian people forever."

I shake my head, here goes her unneeded panicking. "Astrid, first of all, it's not an interrogation, it is an interview of sorts—"

"Sounds like an interrogation to me."

I ignore her and press on. "Second of all, we all only have a few things to say. I'm sure that we can handle a few sentences before flaring."

"Are you kidding? I'm flaring right now, and look at Elena," Her voice drops to a whisper and I briefly glance back at the girl. "She's one spoken word from a complete flare-out. You know what happened during the welcome party."

I shake my head. "Of course, I know what happened, I'm the one that covered for her." I look forward again and give her hand a small squeeze. "I have to believe that she has adjusted enough to the spotlight that comes with our positions, that she will be able to get through her part."

"Rina—"

"Astrid," I drop her hand and grab her shoulders, forcing her to face me. "You're stressing me out with all your worrying. If you continue, it will be me that flares out first. Got it?" She frowns and nods her head. "Good, now let's keep going. The sooner we start, the sooner it's over."

Just short of the small village we were set to meet the ambassador at, the officers each pull out small vacuum-sealed bags and blankets. "Okay everyone, listen up." Bartlett walks the center of the slight clearing we've stopped in. "I know this will sound unnecessary, but we need you all to change."

Elena begins to sputter and almost trips over an exposed tree root. "You want us to what?"

Bartlett purses his lips briefly. "Take a moment to look at one another." I raise my eyebrows and he motions at each one of us. "Go on, do it."

The eight of us take a breath's moment to hesitantly look at the others. We're each in our own sort of comfortable clothing. Sweatshirts and jeans, sweaters and leggings, you name it, there's a combination for it on one of us. While we don't look particularly professional, it seemed fine considering we wouldn't be meeting the ambassador until tomorrow.

"Okay, yes, we don't exactly look 'elder material' right now, but we don't meet the ambassador until tomorrow. We're just being shown where we're staying then sleeping for the night, right?" A few affirming murmurs rise around us after my question and Bartlett just shakes his head.

"Yes, that's correct, but what about the people showing you to your rooms? What about what they see? It's not only the ambassador you have to worry about right now, but it's also the Celxian people that are generous enough to house you for the next few days. They are just as important to this meeting as the ambassador." He pauses for a moment and cocks his head to the side. "What if it were the other way around? Would what your people see matter? Do you think that they would speak to you before you meet with the Celxian group the next day and try to tell you a bit about what they learned just from a few minutes?"

Jaws drop around me, mine going just as far to the ground as the others. Not only was that a good point, the words "your people" hit us like a ton of bricks. In five years, the GTA officers will be leaving to help with other planets and we will be left alone to govern a planet by ourselves.

"Holy Jesus," Elena grips her temples and stubbles back into Jax, his arms wrapping around her to keep her from falling. Her breathing quickens and my heart speeds along with it.

Suddenly, I'm on my knees, pack in front of me with my hands digging through it. "Rina! She's flaring out, what do we do?"

I wave Astrid off and she steps back. "Don't you think I know that. Just get everybody else changing, I'll handle it."

Bodies move around me and I release a sigh of relief when I find the silver tin in one of the zipper pockets of the inner lining of the bag. I step around people, trying to get to Jax and Elena, happy to see that she's still on her feet and hasn't passed out yet.

"Okay, Elena," I set a hand on her shoulder and she looks up at me, eyes really looking through me. "Close your eyes and breath with me, okay? Long and deep breaths." She shakes her head in affirmation and we start to take very long breaths together.

After a few breaths, I can hear the difference, her airway has opened a little. "Good, that's good, Elena." She nods again and we take another few breaths. "Now, I'm going to put something under your nose, just keep your eyes closed and keep breathing."

Her mouth moves with the word "okay" and I open the tin, slowly lifting it up to her nose. The soft scent of lavender wafts around the three of us, almost immediately enveloping us in a cloud of calm. Now, we just have to wait for said calm to chase away the panic that swims in her veins.

We're still breathing when everyone else has finished changing. Bodies move to watch the spectacle of one girl calming another with a breathing exercise and a silver tin. From the outside, I'm sure it's quite the sight.

Finally, she starts to breathe freely and on her own, so I pull the tin away from her nose and shut the lid over it, closing the aroma back inside the capsule. Slowly, her eyes flutter open and she looks at me with watery eyes. "How—how did you do that?"

"Stop the oncoming panic attack?" She nods and I grin at her. "Breathing exercises and smelling salts. It's a wonder what the body can do to you, so it's good to know how to take control again." I hold up the tin and shake it, the salts singing from inside.

She nods and jumps towards me, wrapping her arms around me in a tight hug. "Oh," Such an act from the girl that seemed to be part ice when we first met was unexpected, but I welcomed the affection. If we're to govern a planet together, we should probably get along.

When Elena finally lets me go, I look past her to Jax. "She's really not out of the woods yet—no pun intended," I add, seeing the humor glint in his eyes. I'm not sure what it is about this guy, but puns seem to be his vice. "Help her get changed."

They both stare at me with shocked expressions and I raise my brow at them. "You expect me to believe you haven't seen each other naked yet?"

Elena blushes and Jax nods. "That's a good point." Elena's jaw drops at his comment and turns in a flash to punch him in the stomach.

"Ugh—" He doubles over, a hand holding his stomach and Elena simply looks at him with a look that could paralyze a man. The eyebrows raised, frown pinned, arms crossed look.

"Come on you oaf." She grabs him by the arm and starts to walk to a group of officers holding up four blankets as a make-shift changing station.

Laughing under my breath, I shake my head and walk back to where I dropped my pack in the rush to find the smelling salts. I briefly think about looking for a more accessible spot for the tin but opt for the original since I know where it is now. Rummaging around to get to the specific pocket, I hear the crunching of leaves come up behind me.

"That was quite the display. How did you know to pack that—whatever it was." A pair of black dress shoes appear to my left and then the figure squats at my side so we're eye-level.

I zip up the pack and look at Raiden. "It's lavender-scented smelling salts. I figured after Elena's flare-out at the welcome party and Astrid's insistent over-thinking all week about the meeting, it would be better to be prepared."

"Hmm," He nods and seems as though he's trying to work through a problem in his head. "Why lavender?"

I cover my mouth, snorting as I try to hold back a laugh. Raiden leans back quickly, confused by my outburst. "No, sorry—ah," My words dissolve into a short fit of laughter. I wipe at my now watering eyes and force my lungs to calm. "Sorry, that was funnier than it should have been."

"I wasn't aware that I was making a joke." He frowns at me and almost looks offended.

"Listen, you looked like you had some serious question and then you just asked 'why lavender'..." I stop short and clear my throat. "You know, it was just funnier in the moment."

I quickly get up and brush the dirt off my knees, noting the mix of green and brown now stained on the white material. Astrid and Elena are going to kill me, they'll probably take turns stabbing me with the same sewing needle repeatedly.

"So, why lavender?" I sigh at his repeated question but nod for him to follow me.

I walk towards the only officer with a vacuum-sealed bag left and thank them as I take it in my hands, soon surrounded by four blankets in the make-shift changing room. "It's because of the way the aroma interacts with the chemicals in the brain."

"Okay...and?"

I change and laugh. Why is this guy so interested? "Lavender is a natural relaxant in that it used to be suggested for help sleeping—back when it wasn't such a rarity.

"The lavender interacts with gamma-aminobutyric acid, a neurotransmitter also known as GABA, in the brain that regulates anxiety. The stimulation of GABA reduces anxiety and the sense of fear by attaching to certain proteins and preventing the attachment of other neurotransmitters. Happy?"

"I would be happier if I understood half of what you said."

"Ah," I pull down one of the blankets slightly to look over it. "So, the terminology trick was a one-off?"

"No," His voice quiets and I almost don't hear the next part. "She just didn't get farther than general terminology."

"What do you—"

"So, what does it mean?"

I look at him with a furrowed brow and he refuses to meet my gaze, preoccupied with the dirt under his fingernails. I let go of the blanket and continue to change, starting to fight with the black pencil shirt I was given. "In simple terms, flower smell make brain happy."

"Ah," Is all he says.

What is up with him? One minute he's this cocky-know-it-all, the next he's retreated into himself and hardly speaks.

"You brought up that lavender is scarce, which is understandable considering Prime 3 is one of the only planets that have the sustainability for it. So, how do you have the salts?"

Again, with the weird questions?

"On Aoria, we grew a lot of lavender. Really, lavender should've been our planetary flower or something because it was everywhere. It was in all our soaps, shampoos, lotions—really anything aroma related, you would find it lavender-scented on Aoria. Though, not many people realize it because they're too busy focusing on the type of people we are."

I've finished dressing and I walk out, the officers holding the blankets disappearing and someone new holding a pair of shoes appearing. It all happened in the blink of an eye. What kind of drugs are these guys on? How do I get some? It would probably do Elena and Astrid some good. They would be too busy bouncing off the walls to worry about anything.

Raiden moves to my side as I take the shiny black heels from the officer and offers an arm to steady myself on while I change my shoes. I slip off my canvas shoes and socks, goodbye comfort. I take a moment to savor the feel of the grass under my toes and frown at the shoes in my hands, hello torture.

I set a hand on Raiden's offered arm and slip into the almost ten-centimeter heels. Now clad in the stilettoes, I waver for a minute before finding my balance. Looking down at the ground, I'm grateful for the clear heel stoppers keeping me from sinking into the ground. Damn, these guys think of everything.

"I'm guessing you're not a huge fan of heels."

I look at Raiden, now at the same height as him and take a step back, having been all to close to those dark eyes. "I—uh, yeah, you could say that. I never really needed to be, I'm tall enough as it is."

Realizing I was still holding his arm, I drop my hand to my side and turn away, looking at us all now in formal attire. Us girls are all in matching shoes and black pencil skirts then each has a satin long-sleeve V-neck in our according colors. The boys are all in dress shoes, black slacks, and cotton button-ups in their colors.

"Hmm," I glance at Raiden and watch as his eyes not-so-subtly move up and down my body, giving a little extra time to the length of my legs. His eyes reach mine and he looks directly in them as he speaks. "I think it fits you," He winks and cracks a side-smile. "Stuck-up and looks like a pain in the ass. Very fitting."

The growing heat in my stomach at his eyes on me turns to a burning rage and I groan, balling my hands into fits. "Very mature, Raiden."

Fueled by my irritation, I hurry over to Astrid's side and all but hiss at Will, letting too much of my anger out on him. "Your roommate's an asshat."

"Serina Marie!" I walk away, moving in the direction of the other two girls, only feeling a little bad for almost pulling Astrid off balance and making her stumble to regain her footing as I drag her behind me.

Elena and Lorna watch us with attentive gazes as we approach. When we reach them, I'm still fuming, my face flush with the anger that makes my heart pound.

"Knew the tension between you two was there, I just didn't realize that it was enough to make you like this." Elena smiles, voicing her thoughts.

"Or make you walk away just to keep from jumping him," Lorna adds.

My anger is washed away by confusion and Astrid pulls her arm from my grip. "I—" I scoff and shake my head. "Excuse me?"

"They're right." Astrid shrugs and moves to stand next to Elena, making it the three of them against me.

"Hold on," I hold up my hands and look between them. "What are you talking about? Me," I point to myself. "And R—Raiden?" I look back but don't point, not wanting to make the obvious conversation anymore, well, obvious.

They all nod with expectant looks, almost like it will push the meaning into my head and force me to understand. After I moment, I realize their seriousness and laugh. "Yeah, no."

They each roll their eyes, almost like some sort of hive mind doing the action all at the same time. "The two of you have been eye-fucking all week."

I narrow my gaze at Elena and shake my head, she can't be saying what I think she's saying. "Again, no. I don't know what you're talking about." Another eye roll. "Now, don't get me wrong. I may have entertained the idea when we all first met, but I don't play that way. Only meaningless sex. That would be hard to keep meaningless considering we all see each other every-fucking-day. I don't do attachments."

"Come on, Rina. I find that hard to believe. What about Micah?"

"Ew, A, we never slept together. He's basically my brother."

"Oh," She crosses her arms and seems to deflate. "Well, you never really talked about him, so I didn't realize who he was to you." She taps her chin and her eyes light up. "What about Darren or Ryker?!"

Now I roll my eyes. "I haven't talked to, much less even thought about them, since leaving Aoria. They were just good for passing the time."

Even Lorna raises a brow at this, the badass was surprised by my cold, retracted tone. The three of them look at each other before Elena speaks. "You really don't do attachments?"

I bristle at the concern in her voice. "No, the only people in my life besides you all, are my brother and Micah. That's it."

Tired of the emotional interrogation, I turn on my heel and walk to where Cavanaugh and Bartlett are talking, ready to tell them to get the show on the road. As I'm walking away, I hear Elena speak. "I wasn't expecting such a reaction. If I had known it would upset her, I wouldn't have brought it up."

"It's not your fault. It's a long story, but Serina's lost a lot of people..." Astrid tries to reassure Elena, but I block out the conversation, not wanting to know if she says more.

"Colonel, Major," I straighten my shirt as I approach them, and they turn to look at me. "What's with the wait? Let's get going, it's time to meet our neighbors."