"Indrani!" Gray's voice rang through the hall as the girl stumbled to the ground, desperately trying to keep a mound of papers in her arms. "Can't you see I'm busy? I have a human-born moonshadower to deal with!"

The girl swept a lock of orange hair out of her eyes, a nervous grin crossing her face. She was a complete wreck with her uniform grey polo untucked, a pencil tangled in her hair, and numerous papers clinging to the fuzz of her grey sweater. Perfectly, her mousy voice matched her freckled face and wide, purple eyes.

"So sorry Teacher Gray, but patrolman Eniko caught that girl trespassing through the forest again..."

"Did you do the right thing and tell him to handle it?" Gray asked as Maddox found his footing again. He grinned at the appearance of the girl, although he wasn't sure why. It was too hard to distinguish his emotions while the numbness felt like a heavy weight on his mind. Indrani grinned again, desperately holding the mound of papers close to her chest.

"She...uh...she's in your office."

A groan reached Maddox's ears as Gray wrapped a hand around his wrist, dragging him stumbling towards the wooden door. Maddox bobbed his head to try and keep up, his entire world shifting in the emotionless bubble he was trapped in.

"Call her father," Gray spoke firmly as the door opened. "And I have my hands full for the rest of the day. Just send the rest of the problems to Eniko." Indrani nodded hastily, bouncing on her toes before darting towards the main entrance. Orange hair flew behind her like a wave of sunlight, although it didn't take long for Maddox's attention to shift again as Gray yanked open the door.

A spark of diluted emotion rose up inside him as he caught sight of the deep, strawberry brown hair, a gorgeous curve of a face and hazel eyes narrowed in pure rage. Fear. He realized as he stared at her perfect, flawless features. He was terrified of the perfect girl before him with eyes that saw straight through his soul.

"I have been here for three hours!" She screamed, beautifully stained red lips bending into shouts. Maddox felt his eyes widen, unsure how to react when he could hardly walk straight. "What kind of sick mind game is this?!"

"You break the law and you work with my schedule," Gray noted harshly as the girl bent her hands into fists.

"But I just went into the forest!" She shouted back and Maddox stared into her hazel eyes, so beautifully matching her flawless skin. He didn't even think there were enough skin care products in the world to make someone so free of acne and blemishes. "And who on earth is this?" She bit the words and Maddox stumbled back protectively into Grays' arms. Feeling the warmth of his own rapid breath, he stared back, paralyzed by her glare.

"His name's Maddox, and he's a pyro so he's not quite all there right now. He just burned off all his light when he tore down Florenta's fruit stand." Gray led Maddox into the room a few steps, although hesitance laced his movements. He couldn't find the words to say, couldn't seem to form a phrase in his mind.

"Why do you keep staring at me?" She growled, almost complaining as Gray shut the door behind them. Maddox stumbled back, his feet catching as he fell back into a chair with a thud. Instantly, he held his breath, the words hardly easing through the muted emotions.

"You scare me."

The girl bent her eyes as if deciding how to end him as he suddenly realized how poor of a statement it was. Finally, she turned around, glaring at Gray who had collapsed at his desk.

"He's a freak." She stated, far calmer but still ribboned with hate. "How much longer do I have to stay here?"

"Until your father shows up." Gray had his hands full of paperwork, hardly interested in her rant at all. Narrowing his eyes at the paper, he shook his head as if something just wasn't adding up. "Why did you steal volcano mice fur from the forest, Robin? You can get that at the market for almost nothing." The girl who must be Robin rolled her eyes sarcastically with a dramatic groan before leaning against the wall.

"Why do you care?" she shot back with a glare, and Maddox gradually felt the fear begin to fade. She was loud and terrifying, but after falling through a painting and ending up in a new world, she seemed like a silly thing to worry about. Maddox leaned forward in his seat as Gray opened his mouth to respond, although he hardly got more than a squeak out before the door flew open.

Maddox jumped, the tall figure looking over the room with uncertainty and a lopsided smile twisted into confusion. With his heart pounding, Maddox reached into the very back of his mind, trying to pull back the face, the lopsided smile, and the paint-stained clothes through the fog that coated his mind.

"Kadri?" he asked hesitantly, his words slurred and slow. The man turned, a bright, lopsided grin spread across his face as he saw him.

"Hey, kid!" Waving his paint-stained hands like a grade schooler greeting a friend, he bared his teeth in a smile. "I see you've met my kid, Robin."