Andie woke up to the sound of a dog barking outside. She opened her eyes and looked up. It was already bright outside. Glancing sleepily at her clock, she saw it was almost ten in the morning. Her mother usually never let her sleep this late... she suspected her father had intervened. She sat up, stretched and slid out from under the bed covers. She went to her dresser, looking for a pair of socks when a voice said:

"What are you doing?"

Whipping around with a gasp, she exhaled loudly when she saw who it was.

"Balon?"

After catching her breath, she said:

"Don't do that, you scared me half to death!"

"Forgive me," he said, unrepentant. "It was not my intent."

"... Never mind... what do you mean, what I'm doing? You're the one who came into my room unexpected."

She'd been tempted to say "uninvited" but didn't think it was wise.

"I wanted to speak with you." he said.

"... What about?" Andie asked warily.

The last time, that hadn't gone too well... and she shuddered to think how she'd explain to her parents why they could hear her yelling at ... no one.

"I want to know what you're doing with Bane."

Andie frowned, perplexed.

"What? I'm not doing anything with him, what are you talking about?"

"Perhaps I should have made myself clearer." Balon conceded.

After thinking a moment, he said:

"I'm sure that by now, you are aware that he has... feelings for you."

Andie frowned slightly. Where was Balon going with this?

"Yes..." she admitted carefully. "What about it?"

"But you do not reciprocate those feelings?" Balon demanded, ignoring her question."

Why did everyone seem obsessed with how she felt about Bane? Couldn't she have any peace?

"... I don't know," she said, finally. "I care deeply for him. Of that, I can assure you. But... I don't yet know exactly what I feel."

"They why let him think things that are not and cannot be true?"

Andie bristled.

"What is that supposed to mean?" she asked. "That I'm not good enough for him? Or that he's not good enough for me?"

"Neither," Balon said, sensing the rising tension. "I merely meant that whatever you feel, you would have little perspective of a future together..."

"We are not you and Ardente!" Andie retorted, remembering just in time to lower her voice. "And besides, whatever happens between Bane and me, it's none of your business!"

"It is if you're dragging Ardente into something that could get her killed!"

"You're already dead!" Andie snapped.

But as the words left her lips she immediately regretted them. There was a stunned silence.

"... I'm sorry," she said at once. "I... I didn't mean it like that... I..."

"No, you're right." he said evenly. "We are no longer alive. We can take on human form but for a limited time..."

"Balon... I just... everyone's been on my back lately about Bane. I'm trying to figure it out, and all this questioning isn't helping! I know he's a good guy, and that we get along great, and that we have a connection thanks our powers. But... I'm not sure where I am, yet."

"... I suppose you're right." he said. "I should get back."

"Yeah..."

She meant to ask him not to be too hard on Bane as he turned to the window, but thought better of it.

"Balon?"

He turned round to look at her.

"Yes?"

"... The last thing I want is to hurt Bane. I just wanted you to know that."

He looked her over a moment.

"I do know that."

And he disappeared.

Their training sessions were still rough, if not rougher over the next couple of weeks, but the girls were getting better. All the former masters agreed. Well. Almost. Balon wasn't quite as encouraging. Or he didn't show it if he was. Andie wondered if he wasn't trying to keep himself from caring. Ardente had once mentioned something like that once when Andie had asked her about it.

"He was our Guardian, and believed it was up to him to keep us safe." She'd said. "But since we all gave up our lives to stop Zorak..."

"... He feels guilty," Andie had completed.

Thinking back, Andie realized how much implicit pressure that must have been on Bane. Balon was probably transferring, intentionally or not, all his frustration at failing and refusing to let it happen again. But according to what Ardente had described, they hadn't had any choice. If they hadn't, Zorak could have done far more damage than he had at the time. After yet another tiring practice session, Andie and the others walked to their cars, and Jessica called for attention:

"Hey, I was thinking, since no one's got any plans next weekend, we should go have some fun, what do you say?"

"I'm in," Emily said.

"What had you in mind?" Bane asked.

"Oaks, of course!"

"What?" Isabelle asked.

"It's an amusement park in Portland," Andie explained. "Our parents took us there a few times when we were younger, remember guys?"

"You know we do," Emily laughed.

"Sounds good to me," Isabelle said, "Bane?"

"Sure, why not. Is that okay, Balon?"

Andie glanced at him, certain he'd refuse. But to her astonishment, he said:

"Why not. You've earned a break."

Andie wondered if Ardente had spoken to him and explained the meaning of "All work and no play makes Jake a dull boy". Well, it was an effort on Balon's part, so that was good.

"So it's settled. Meet there Saturday at noon?"

Everyone agreed. Then, satisfied, they all went on their way. Andie still hadn't quite figured out her feelings for Bane, and though he appeared a little wistful at times, he genuinely seemed to accept it. Andie just hoped she would find a way for them to both be happy.

The days were becoming increasingly challenging. Up for class, then at least an hour of training, often punctuated by small attacks, but Balon was certain they were getting more dangerous. For one thing, each time the demons were more aggressive and more numerous.

"Why do you think this is happening, Balon?" Emily asked one evening.

They had just come out of a particularly nasty assault. Andie was even still nursing a wound on her shoulder. Isabelle was helping her by bandaging it.

"Sorry..." Isabelle said when Andie winced.

They were gathered in Bane's house, which was the safest to talk in, as Bane's uncle knew everything already.

"To be honest, I'm not sure why Zorak is doing it," Balon answered.

He was leaning against the wall in his spirit form, frowning thoughtfully.

"I think I know," Ardente said. "Zorak clearly knows that you are the ones who received our powers. And if we work on that assumption, I think he's quite possibly trying to see just what you can do."

"But why? Why wouldn't he just take them?"

"Because he doesn't want it to be too easy," Balon said darkly. "He always was one to like a challenge..."

"So you're saying he's helping us... get better to be able to destroy us? Like pigs for the slaughter?"

"No, I don't think that's it." Balon said, shaking his head. "There's a fairly strong chance that that was his first plan, but the recent increase of demon attacks makes me believe that he is getting impatient."

"So now he really is trying to catch us." Jessica said.

"Possibly," he agreed, nodding darkly.

"Great... so what do we do now?"

"I don't think there's anything more we can do, at present." River said. "Just keep training. We can't send you into the Demon Realms now, it would be far too dangerous."

"What if Zorak or someone just as bad is sent to us?" Emily asked, trying to hide her nerves as she spoke.

"... We'll have to fight back," Andie said. "Because I don't intend on letting myself be killed without leaving a few scars."

They were all waning, so they soon went home to get some rest. Not to mention it was getting late, their families would start to wonder what they were doing. Andie's shoulder was still painful as she drove home, and she hoped she would manage to keep it from her parents. How in the world could she ever explain it? Keeping secrets wasn't much better than lying, of course, but it was much easier to do.

"Mom, Dad, I'm home," she called as she pushed the door in.

"Oh, perfect timing, honey, diner's ready!" Hank said.

Andie was more tired than hungry, but she knew she couldn't miss too many meals or they would ask slippery questions.

"Great, I'm starved," she said.

It was her favorite, too, so she forced herself to eat and sound normal. She had seen people living double lives on television and in movies, but she was only now starting to realize that they weren't even close to what she was feeling.

"Is everything alright, honey? You seem a little worried." Hank said.

Of course he was observant at the worse time possible...

"Yeah, I'm fine, I'm just a little tired."

No lies there. She quickly finished her plate to not be forced to talk, put her plate away and went to her room with a hurried "I'm tired, I'm turning in, goodnight". She closed the door and leaned against it, wincing slightly when it jarred her shoulder.

"Is it still painful?" Ardente asked, glancing at her shoulder.

"A little. But I'll be okay. I just need some rest."

She changed and soon fell asleep.

The next day, Andie arrived at school, trying not to move her arm too much. She saw Jessica and the rest of the gang talking by the entrance. Jessica saw her and ran towards her, arms outstretched to grab her arm...

"Jess!" Andie warned, raising her good arm. "Bad shoulder."

"Oh, sorry."

"What is it?"

"They'll be announcing the winner of the auditions today!" she said.

"Really? How?"

"A live broadcast on the radio over lunch!" she said. "The band members are going to announce the name of the lucky one themselves, and perform a song live! I've already requested that we listen to their channel. Of course, I barely needed to because a bunch of other students here auditioned."

Andie had completely forgotten about the audition for the concert that winter. She didn't even know if she wanted to win or not.

"I'm so excited, I'm sure you're going to win."

"The other candidates were good too, Jess. I wouldn't get my hopes up too high."

The bell interrupted Jessica's reply.

"Anyway, see you at lunch!"

She and Emily walked off to Biology while Isabelle went to History class. Andie and Bane had Spanish.

"Hi, Bane," she said.

"Hey," he smiled. "How's your shoulder?"

"It's a little sore, but I'll be fine, don't worry."

"Want me to carry your bag?"

"Thanks, but I can still do that myself." she smiled.

And so they made their way into the building and to class.

As the bell rang for lunch, Andie made her way out trying to ignore the sting in her shoulder. She spotted Isabelle by her locker and walked over to her.

"Hey, Isabel-Ow!"

Someone had knocked her shoulder.

"Hey! Be careful!" Isabelle chided, but no one answered.

She turned to Andie.

"You okay?"

"Yeah... it's been sore all morning, I'll be okay."

"You want me to take a look at it?"

Isabelle had indeed discovered she could heal small wounds.

"It's okay. A couple days rest and it'll be back to normal."

"Why wait that long, come on."

She was careful to take her good arm and led her to the nearest bathroom. Conscientiously making sure it was absolutely empty, Isabelle removed Andie's jacket carefully.

"Oh, my gosh, Andie!" she gasped.

On her shoulder where the demon had bitten her was a nasty black mark.

"Here, let me take care of that." Isabelle said.

She ran some water on her hand and then gently placed it on the wound and closed her eyes. Then, a warm tingle flowed through her shoulder. After a few minutes, slightly breathless, Isabelle stepped back.

"How is it now?"

Gingerly, Andie tested it. It was still a little tender, but it was quite endurable.

"A hundred times better, thanks so much, Isabelle." Andie said. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. I just need to catch my breath. It takes a lot out of me when I use that power."

"Thanks, Isabelle. You're the best."

"Don't mention it." Isabelle smiled. "Come on."

And they slipped back into the flow of students going to lunch like two normal teenagers.

Andie could sense more excitement than usual in the cafeteria when she came in with Isabelle. She imagined it was because of the live broadcast. The Devil Riots were a very popular band. Jessica had managed to grab a table near one of the speakers. She waved them over excitedly.

"Come on, let's go see what she wants." Isabelle smiled.

"It's probably about Devil Riot's live broadcast," Andie shrugged, though only with one shoulder, just to be safe.

They made their way to Jessica's table where Bane and Emily were already seated. Isabelle sat next to Emily while Andie sat between Bane and Jessica.

"They'll be starting the broadcast any minute now!" Jessica said feverishly.

Andie was just taking a swig from her bottle of fruit juice when the school radio jingle filled the cafeteria and everyone fell silent.

"Hello, Olympia High Titans! Now, as you know we've had a lot of requests for today's radio hour, so here it is, guys. Live for you from Seattle, Devil Riot!"

There was loud cheering while the music of the show came on.

"Hello, this is Macy Callahan and I am with Devil Riot, here for a special broadcast today. So, tell me, guys, how was the audition stage? Neal?"

Jessica gasped. Neal Harrison, the singer, was her favorite member of the band.

"Oh, it was great," he said. "It was really amazing to get to hear all this budding talent, and let me tell you, Macy, there was a lot of it in Olympia."

"Was it hard to chose?"

Neal and his acolytes, Jason Boyd and Dan Chase, all made noises of assent.

"It was incredibly hard, and so heartbreaking to cast so many out, but we all knew we could only have one opening act. But to all of you contestants who are listening, you were all incredible, we had a hard time making our choice."

Andie glanced at Jessica who was shaking on the end of her seat. If the name announced wasn't hers, she honestly wasn't sure how Jessica would react.

"The winner will also be sent all the details by post, in case they don't hear this broadcast." Neal said. "The proud winner who we'll have the pleasure of sharing the stage with for the opening of our tour..."

Andie felt Jessica's nails dig into her arm.

"...is Andie Galestone."

The cafeteria was instantly full of conversation as the band began their live performance of their latest song. Several people even glanced at Andie, who sat still, her eyes wide, her mouth half open.

"Andie? You okay?" Isabelle asked.

She nodded, still unable to believe it.

Jessica, of course, was thrilled.

"I knew it!" She squealed.

And before Andie could stop her, she threw her arms around her. But fortunately, Isabelle's intervention proved efficient. It didn't hurt her.

"Oh, you're the best!"

"I don't know about that," Andie smiled. "But apparently, the band liked me."

"Oh, let's go to your place, see if the letter's arrived!" Jessica said.

"No!" Andie laughed. "We have classes this afternoon. But I promise I'll call you as soon as I have it, okay?"

"Alright," Jessica conceded, though she looked a little disappointed.

"Honestly, Jess, you'd think you auditioned, not Andie!" Emily chuckled.

"I think it's more that she auditioned through Andie," Isabelle grinned.

"Come on, guys, be nice," Andie intervened with a smile.

"I would have auditioned myself, if I could actually sing," Jessica said, rolling her eyes.

It was true that she had never been the musical type, and was notoriously tone-deaf.

They finished their meals and went back to class, though Andie could still hardly believe she'd actually been chosen. She couldn't decide whether she was happy or not. Getting up on the stage for the audition had been hard enough... but for the concert, it would be very different. The opening act was very important, and if the crowd didn't like it, the band would have a harder time getting them interested.

"Hey, Andie, hold on!"

They had classes in the same area, so Bane going her way wasn't surprising.

"Sorry, I forgot you had a class this way too," she said.

"Well, it's not like you have nothing on your mind," he smiled. "Congratulations, by the way."

"What?"

"I didn't get a chance to congratulate you for winning the contest."

"Oh... that..." she said. "Thanks. I'm still not sure what to think of it... I mean... it was supposed to be a one time thing... I wasn't expecting to win..."

"You don't give yourself enough credit." Bane said. "You've got a lot going on, and I think you're actually handling it pretty well..."

"Not as well as Emily and Jessica, or Isabelle..." she sighed.

"Are you joking? They keep telling me they're always freaking out when they see their element for fear it might do something weird when their parents are around!"

Andie was thrown.

"What...? But they never told me that..."

"Because they see how much more you have to handle."

"What do you mean?"

"Haven't you noticed the demon attacks are mostly aimed at you and me?"

Andie hadn't really thought off it, but now that she did, it did seem the demons came after Bane and her more than the others...

"I haven't," she admitted.

"Plus, you have your mother, your sister..."

He faltered.

"You and me..." Andie finished, knowing that had been what he was thinking.

"... Yeah..." he admitted quietly.

"... For what it's worth, I swear I'm not doing this to string you along... I really... I care about you. That, you can believe. I just still don't know exactly in what way."

Bane nodded.

"I'll see you later." he said with a smile that looked sightly forced.

"Right." Andie said, smiling back with a hint of apology in her eyes.

He walked away, but Andie didn't miss the flicker of wistful pain in his expression.

Zorak was pacing in his throne room. The sound his footsteps made, their steady rythm, helped him think. There had been progress with the last attack. The new masters of elements had struggled to overcome such an onslaught, but they had. His patience was running out extremely fast.

"Zarias!" He roared.

The tall dark haired man appeared before him. Zorak stopped pacing and turned to look at him.

"You called, father?"

Zorak sat down in his throne.

"I believe the time has come to proceed to the next phase." he announced.

"The next phase?" Zarias inquired.

"Yes. Clearly, the Umbras are not enough." Zorak nodded. "And I am not yet powerful enough to cross into their world. But I can give you that power."

Zarias looked at his father in confusion.

"Father?"

"My power is not yet strong enough for me to go through again. My last attempt took all I had. But it is enough for you to." Zorak mused. "Yes... that is the perfect solution."

"... I am honored you would trust me with your power. What is it you wish me to do?"

Zorak considered that a moment.

"It seems we have been waiting for them to be together to strike them all at once. It would appear that was inefficient. So watch them, wait until they are alone and vulnerable, and then, take their power."

"Very well, father." Zarias nodded with a bow.

A malevolent grin appeared on the Demon Lord's face.

"And start with the masters of fire and light."

Saturday morning arrived. Andie got up early to get ready to go as soon as possible. She was fairly sure there would be plenty of other friends and families going. It was a beautiful Saturday morning. She glanced at herself in the mirror on her wall. The sun was out, even if the fog outside announced cold. Andie was just tying her hair up and sliding on her jacket when there was a knock on her bedroom door.

"Honey, breakfast is ready," Hank said, peering in.

"Great, thanks, Dad, I'll be right down."

She was feeling much better today. She'd done a lot of thinking that week. Her life was complicated. And even that was understatement. But it also had lots of good things in it. She had a sturdy home, reasonably good grades, a loving family, however imperfect (was there such a thing as a perfect family, because Andie didn't think so), great friends... and she had to fight to keep that safe. And she was just about to have a good time with her friends. That was something to be happy about.

"You're looking cheerful, today," Lauren said as she sipped her coffee.

 "It's a nice day," Andie smiled before taking a long swig from her glass of orange juice. "And we're going to Oaks today."

 "Oh, yes, you did mention that," Hank said. "That sounds fun."

 "Oh, can I go, can I, Dad, please?" Hannah asked.

 "I'm afraid not, honey." Hank said. "It's their outing."

 "Are you going with Bane?" Lauren asked.

 "Uh, yes," Andie said, flushing slightly. "But Jessica, Emily and Isabelle will be there, too. We're meeting there at noon."

 "I see."

She had her breakfast then made sure she had everything she needed. When she was sure that she did, she set off.

***********************

Uh oh, it sounds like Andie and Bane are in trouble! I don't like this at all, no siree!

Have you ever been or wanted to go to an amusement park? Let me know in the comments!

What will Zorak and Zarias plan against them next? WIll Andie and her friends be alright? Let's find out in the next chapter!