(Before you read on: Just letting you know this chapter has some slightly gory sections in the movie being played while Ash is on a date. I would love feedback on this and whether it's okay. Thanks for reading. Enjoy! Sam.)

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Will:

It was Saturday afternoon when Will knocked on the Rendwick's front door. Whilst homely and inviting on any other day that he'd visited Marianne, the door loomed like a gateway of stained glass animals. Ash was beyond the gateway, and if he let his guard down for one moment it could spell serious danger for all. Lücan was risking a lot so Will could be back in her life—so many things could trigger her old life, her old name.

Will pressed the doorbell. The three-toned chime resonated through him as if it alerted to the end of the world. There was movement inside the brick house, several pairs of footsteps walking excitedly, along with the murmur of voices in the final moments of readying themselves, or rather two panicked female voices and the laughter from a man.

Will straightened his hair, then tousled it—either way it didn't really matter. She's going to hate it the way I do.

Earlier today, Lücan had insisted that Will visit the hairdressers. His hair was now a chestnut brown. It wasn't permanent, but in Ash's memory of him after today it might be. Will scowled. Not about the new tint so much, as the necessity behind it. Lücan had a plan. Ever since Ash's collapse, her mind had been in an unpredictable state, and Lücan couldn't be sure what a date with Will might dredge up from her memory. In the event that Ash remembered too much, Will would be blurred in her mind, becoming a dark-haired boy that she had once dated.

With a quick swipe at the purple irises beside him, Will plucked one from the garden. The front door started to open and Will flung the iris back into the garden. He had been expecting to be greeted by Ash, but saw David instead.

"Will, is that you?" Peering through the wire security door, David chuckled quietly. "Good god, what have you done to your hair?"

"Say nothing. This is Lücan's doing." Will put his head down for a second, wishing for a hat. "How bad is it?"

"It's disgusting. No, it's not so bad, not really. No, it's fine, really. Tip top."

Will shook his head, following David down the hallway and into the kitchen. Is David living here again? Marianne would be a fool to take him back. Maybe I should ask? But David was acting so cheerful, acting as if things had never changed, so Will never did ask.

"Ash should be along shortly. That's if you're lucky," David said. "Marianne is trying to speed up the process. Let's hope she hasn't overdone it. Sometimes her projects turn out a tad garish. So beware, your date may well be as unrecognisable as that hair of yours."

Will grimaced and took a seat on a barstool. Ash's grey cat wound around his legs. He picked up the cat, and Willow purred with the extra pats he'd become accustomed to. The cat did little to calm his nerves.

"You're looking a bit peaky there, Will." David slapped him on the back and handed him a glass of water. Will downed the water in one go, nearly choking. "I'm going to have to take you to the emergency ward if your color doesn't improve. You look dreadful. I have some horse tranqs in my bag if you want 'em?" He made a syringe jabbing motion in the air. "One stab of those and no worries."

Will glared at him.

"Or maybe not. I'm impressed anyway. First medically diagnosed case of sickness by first date jitters. That might even make the medical journals. You'll be famous."

"Fame's overrated." Will swayed, tipsy on nervous energy. "I know," he said, thinking of his life on Lyrethan. He couldn't walk anywhere without someone recognizing him.

"I hear that you do. Anyways, you'll be fine. Ash isn't all that scary."

No, she's gorgeous, Will thought as she appeared in the doorway. He stood up quickly, clutching Willow for support. Marianne had overdone it alright, to the point that he should have been taking Ash to a high class restaurant with an ocean view.

Ash's hair had been transformed into silky ringlets that swept to one side. The make-up was flawlessly natural, but highlighted the soft curve of her cheeks, and her smile had a hint of gloss. He'd been expecting Ash's jeans and t-shirt look, but her dress made him happy it was Springtime. It was a strappy white dress that shifted above her knees and fit snugly over her chest and waist. It made the girl he'd adored as a child look like a woman.

Marianne smiled. "You must be Will."

Will breathed tightly. Marianne seemed too familiar with him, and if Ash noticed...

"Yes, well," David coughed. "Ash, kiddo, after much careful interrogation of your date I'm afraid he's not up to scratch. I think you better leave now, lad."

"Huh?" Will and Ash said.

Will lowered Willow to the floor, contemplating on whether to leave or not.

David can't be serious. Can he?

Ash gaped at her Dad, then lowered her head.

"Only joshin'." David grinned.

"David!" Marianne said. "Be nice to our guest." She winked at Will, for he knew the Rendwick's too well to be called as such.

He smiled. Some help at last.

"Ash, aren't you going to say hello to your date?" asked Marianne, searching for Ash, who was hidden behind her.

Ash took two steps toward Will and looked up shyly.

He gulped.

David turned cheerily to Will. "Lucky you didn't bring her flowers."

"Dad!" Ash shouted.

"Now, now, kiddo, it's a good story and I don't mind this lad, so I'm gonna help him out." David squeezed Will's shoulder. "Every boy that has given Ash flowers has never been seen or heard of again, not in this household anyway. It's as if they all fall into the garden waste bin along with their gestures of love."

Will smiled stiffly.

David lowered his voice and went on, "You see, Will, my daughter's very astute, doesn't like boys buying her gifts, doesn't like to owe them anything. They have to earn her respect the hard way. It's about character when it comes down to it, lad, and Ash is a good judge of character. I made sure of that."

"Thanks for the advice, Mr. Rendwick. I'll be sure never to buy Ash anything. Ever." Glad I piffed the flower away earlier, thought Will. Who knew a flower could ward off girls? Theo told me they love all that romantic stuff. Never listening to Theo again.

"Good lad." He gave Will's shoulder an extra hard squeeze—another warning. Not that David would win in a fight against Will, both of them knew that, but if Will hurt Ash in any way he wouldn't be so welcome in the Rendwick house.

"I think we might go now," Ash grumbled, snatching her clutch bag from the bench. With a quick look at Will, she grabbed his hand and led him down the hallway. "See-you!" she yelled, as they walked out the door.

"Be good you two!" David called.

"Leave them alone, David. Of course they'll be good," Marianne snapped. "You could learn a lesson about being good. Popping by for one afternoon doesn't count as parenting."

Ash shook her head as she walked with Will up the driveway. Will considered asking Ash about her parents' divorce, but he could feel her mood calming. Once they reached the curb, he opened the car door for her. Ash froze.

"You drive?" she asked. "But you're not eighteen yet. You're not even seventeen."

"Yes I am." Today, he thought. "And I was granted my license early. Special permission," he said, helping her into the passenger seat. He got in behind the wheel and started the ignition, turning on the radio for a distraction.

"Your military school sounds pretty high up in the ranks if they can get a government to break the law for you. Are they training you to be a junior undercover spy or something?" she asked, teasing him all-too-happily.

His mouth twisted to the right, thinking of a clever reply.

"You're not a spy, are you?" Ash turned in her seat, her eyes sparkling even when they held suspicion. "My god, you are!"

Will laughed. It was all he could do. Either a reply of yes or no could sound like a lie. "Hi, Ash," he said, remembering he'd forgotten to say it earlier.

She smiled, barely meeting his eyes. "Hi."

The moment became awkward. Even the music playing from the speakers couldn't help fill the silence between them. He started driving, glancing over to her every so often. It was during those times when he wished he could lean over to Ash and kiss her—a proper greeting.

Few words had been spoken in the time it had taken to buy popcorn and drinks, and before long they were in the movie theatre at the local shopping complex, sitting rigidly in their seats and attempting an air of ease, which to anyone watching was far from comfortable.

Ash clutched the jumbo popcorn in her lap, offering it to Will at regular intervals, in which he declined. When he spotted Lücan and Alründ walk into the theatre and towards the back row, he scooped up a big handful of popcorn, distracting Ash. On the outside, Will was smiling. On the inside, he was terrified of the Sepheri surveying his every move. Lücan would be checking that Will behaved like a gentleman. Any potential for fun and spontaneity seemed to die now that the Sepheri were watching.

"New look, hey?" Ash asked.

Will ruffled his hair. "Shh... It's part of my spy cover. We have to go incognito occasionally."

"Seriously." She huffed.

"It's to blend in when I'm doing raids at night, to match my black ninja uniform."

She thumped him on the leg. "I'll remember to keep my window locked when I sleep, in case some mysterious boy casts a shadow over me like Peter Pan trying to lure Wendy off to Neverland. Though you'd need to be able to fly for that to work."

"Oh, but I can fly." He laughed, while raking his brain for the fairy-tale. Marianne had read it to them a few months after Ash had moved to Earth. Will had been given one day to visit her—a birthday gift for him—and he'd cried when her memory had been erased at the end of the day. It still stung, but he forced a smile and joked, "But I, unlike Peter, would never come through your window uninvited."

"How chivalrous of you." She turned a little in her seat and flicked a piece of popcorn at him. When the next assault of popcorn flew at him, Will captured her hand mid-throw and lowered it to the armrest. Ash faked a pout, relaxing her fingers in his.

The cinema lights faded as the audience quietened and the previews begun. Finally, they were at ease to talk, only to be silenced by the entertainment they were here for. To Will it felt as if the Earthly custom of a movie was desecrating his date. All he really wanted was to ask her questions, endless questions, so he could rediscover the girl who was his best friend.

Twenty minutes into the film, the screen displayed a small surgical theatre, and a fluorescent light shone upon an operating table. Scientists were pulling innards out of the carcass of an extra-terrestrial who was lying in a semi-conscious state.

Ash squirmed beside him, her hand clammy. At first Will thought she was simply reacting like any human would to the sight of something so grotesque, but the more she watched, the more her emotions spiked Will's empathic sense. He already found the alien's torture difficult, but now he wondered if Ash's distress and sympathy were because subconsciously she knew that she was an alien in this world.

Will, what the Fate? Alründ shouted in his mind.

Will flinched.

Ash glanced at him in concern before squeezing her eyes tight at the gore around her.

This is a vile piece of art, continued Alründ. I know art is meant to evoke emotions, but this! This is a blight against our kind. And Lücan is—you have no idea what Lücan is. "Gahh..." He gagged loudly from the back of theatre.

Will and Ash turned back to see Alründ dry retching at the sight of the alien waking up on the table and seeing its organs missing. The entire audience turned to the back of the theatre, making noises of disgust, some sympathetic.

I can't tolerate much more, Alründ said.

Will shivered. Neither can I. Ash has had her eyes shut for the past ten minutes. Maybe we should just leave, spare us all the agony?

Please. Leave. So we can, too.

Ash looked white as she watched the dark shadow of Alründ. She returned her attention back to the screen only to become more shaken, tears rolling down her cheeks as the alien was tortured in an interrogation with various instruments.

"Oh, Ash," Will hushed, pulling her from the chair and shuffling her toward the exit. As soon as they made it outside the theatre doors, she covered her eyes. Will hugged her tightly to his chest, but it didn't feel like enough. Alründ and Lücan passed by, unseen by the girl crying in his arms. This was not a good start to their date.

After the horror they'd just witnessed, the twilight air was refreshing. The sky was a multitude of vivid colors that nearly brought him back home to the daylight of Lyrethan. Maybe Ash felt that, too. She seemed happier as they walked under a coffee shop umbrella.

"I should've taken you out of there earlier," Will said. "Sorry."

"Me, too." Ash smiled, wiping the residue of mascara around her eyes. "I don't know what happened to me. I hardly ever cry, let alone with people there to witness it. Come to think of it, I do blame you. You asked me to a movie."

Startled, Will slowed his pace. "And who picked the movie?"

"That would be... Ah..." She pouted. "Well, I didn't know! It got good reviews. Those critics are sickos, that's all I can say. How they think capturing and mutilating a creature which might have come peacefully to explore this planet is... You'd think they'd try and find out if it was a friendly alien before doing that shit to it. Seriously!"

Creature? Creature? She thinks of us as creatures. Will almost laughed. But he nodded agreeably, enjoying her passion for alien protection. Somewhere she still knew about her origins, he was sure of it. Unfortunately, it was also the topic he had been ordered to avoid. Lücan's warning echoed in Will's mind, 'Anything may trigger a memory from her past life, so be of the upmost care, no matter how harmless it may seem'. Now he felt Lücan and Alründ's presence nearby, felt their concern, their eyes pressing upon Ash and himself.

"Do you mind if I pick the movie next time?" he asked.

"Next time?" She scoffed. "That's very presumptive, don't you think?"

"Is it?"

"Hey, there's Lücan!" She pointed to a table in the distance.

"So it is," Will said, feigning surprise.

"And the other guy... I think I know him," she said, pointing to Alründ.

Will groaned softly. "That's Sasha's brother. They're twins." He prayed that fact would be enough to stop Ash questioning further.

"Huh. That must be why he looks familiar. We should say hi."

Ash dragged him towards the table. Alründ and Lücan were drinking take-away coffee, pretending to be in deep conversation. They were very unhappy with this latest development. Will could tell by the tension in Lücan's posture, the twitch of Alründ's favored dagger throwing hand that always became antsy when he was under duress.

Ash just spotted you both, Will informed. Be prepared, we're coming over.

Make up an excuse not to approach us, Alründ said. Tell her we've had a fight and we're not speaking. This will be true if you don't get rid of her.

Lücan had not replied at all. Instead, he was watching the street traffic.

"Ash, I don't—" Will begun, but they had already reached the two men. She was waiting for the introductions, and so he said, "Ash meet Alründ."

Alründ nodded, his nostrils flaring slightly. "Hello." He began retying his hair, then shifted his gaze to the park behind Lücan. It was the same park where the festival had been. Will was sure there had been more going on with Al and Ash that night, but he'd never been able to dredge up Ash's memory of it. Alründ had buried it deeply.

Ash hid a fraction, and Will put his arm around her. "And you know Lücan."

Lücan put on a charming smile, but as he stood from his chair and offered his hand to Ash, the Head Sepheri's hand trembled slightly. Lücan rarely faltered. It wasn't like they were strangers. "Hello, again."

"Lücan," Ash said, mulling over his name. She rested her hand lightly in his. It was a brief handshake, but for all involved and the two boys looking on it felt momentous, as if time had slowed during those few seconds. Ash became very quiet, her eyes stuck on the curious man who lived across the street.

Lücan studied her face with caution. "Ashleigh?"

Ash gasped, her eyes widening as she pointed at Lücan. "You! You've been lying to me! You're not just the neighbor across the street, you're—" She clutched her head, hyperventilating.

Will delved into her mind. Memories were flying everywhere, so fast that he could barely make sense of them. Her panic compounded his own panic and he held her to him.

She remembered. Everything!

And then Lücan stole it all away from her in seconds. And Will's seventeenth birthday became a memory blurred in her mind, and he became a nameless, faceless, brown-haired boy that she had once dated.