I spent the rest of the day with Biana, and I'm pretty sure we're going to be best friends in this universe too. It feels good to have a person stay the same when everything else is changing. Then all too soon, the day of my tribunal arrives. I can barely eat breakfast from the nerves. Biana helps me get ready again. I decide on a light purple gown with diamonds sewn into the top. It's simple and elegant. Biana gives me purple eyeshadow and some light pink lip gloss.
"Don't worry. You'll do fine. And, hey! We're the same age, so we'll be in the same level at Foxfire!" I smile, my worries not gone. Soon, the people escorting me there arrive. Sophie and Edaline, Tam and Linh, and Alden, who had apparently slipped away to do some business for the council. They all step back into the Leapmater and we head to Eternalia. To my shock, Grady is there. I stay away from him. Every time I look at him, I remember seeing him how he looked when I came back from being kidnapped. But that was my Grady. Sophie's seemed to be doing just fine. My mind flashed back to before I was kidnapped, when I still thought that the Elvin world I seemed to be a part of had no flaws. Grady showing me a tour of the house. Me helping him try to get Verdi to eat her vegetables. Him gently showing me how to correctly brew a concoction for alchemy. I realize I'm staring and I give a small wave. I smile to myself as we walk. I guess I'm glad to have a Grady who can still function. But this brings up a whole new set of worries. Who will adopt me? I'm still legally a minor, so I know someone will have to. Will Grady and Edaline take me in again? They already have Sophie. Maybe Alden and Della will? Ugh, I hate not knowing things. We arrived at the tribunal hall. I breathe slowly to calm my nerves, but it isn't helping.
"Will I be facing the entire council because I'm a new case, or just 3, since we'll be seeing if I can go to Foxfire?" I whisper to Alden.
"In between. Six of them are going to be here." He replies. "If I had to guess, I would say it will probably be Oralie, Emery, Bronte, Alina, Noland, and Clarette." My heart fell at the name of the harshest Councilor. And I wondered if Oralie was Sophie's mom too. Maybe if we have different parents, that's why we're so different. I step into the room and drop a curtsy. The six councilors look intimidating on their large thrones. Alden’s guesses were spot-on. I am relieved when I am not required to talk much. Alden explains the story of how I got there to them, then they ask what my abilities are. I tell them I’m a telepath, inflictor, polyglot, and a seeker.
“Excuse my interruption, but what is a seeker?” Emery is the one to voice the question everyone seems to have been thinking. I look at Alden. He responds with a look that says, how about you explain your weird ability that none of us have ever heard of? I sigh and realize that I’ll have to do a bit of talking after all.
“Well, I suppose you’re all familiar with how a spyball works? It’s kind of like that, except I can hear them too, and on the way back, most people who manifest get their consciousness shredded by mental beasts. I was lucky to have manifested outside the normal range, and after I had so much practice and control of my telepathy that I could quickly figure out how to not accidentally send myself somewhere I didn’t want to be. That’s what happens to most prodigies who manifest. They go somewhere they don’t mean to and aren’t prepared to fight the dangers on the way back.” I say. It’s not the best explanation, but it’s the best I can do.
“What do you mean by ‘mental beasts’?” Oralie asks.
“Well when you go to the place you want to go, you just appear there. But to go back, it’s… hard to explain. It’s like running through a forest you know is filled with all sorts of dangerous animals, except you can’t see them. You have to sense them with your mind, and if one gets you, there’s no way to fight it off. So many elves were broken, most of them young.” I shuddered. So did the rest of the room. Thinking about how many wanderlings were planted for them is a sad thought, but one I must face. The councilors  seem to be having a telepathic conversation.
‘“We won’t ask you to demonstrate your seeking, since it comes with such a risk. But we would like you to demonstrate your telepathy.” Emery announces after 524 seconds. “Can you read Councilor Alina’s mind?” Councilor Alina doesn’t look happy about it, but it was clear that this had already been discussed. I reached my mind out and heard her thoughts fill my head.
It’s ridiculous that I’ve been chosen for this pathetic task. She’s probably faking her other ability too. A seeker? Ridiculous.
While that is not an ideal thought to catch in a person who will vote on my future, I recount the thought to the council, and assure Councilor Alina that being a Seeker was a very real thing in my old universe. The look on her face must have assured the council that what I guessed was correct.
“Well, I suppose it’s time to vote.” Emery says. “You certainly have mine.”
“And mine.” Oralie pitches in.
“You are all ridiculous. I vote against it.” Alina says.
“You’re just sour because she read your mind,” Clarette says. “I vote for.”
“I am against all these strange cases,” Bronte says, his eyes darting from me to Sophie. “And I will vote accordingly.”
“What happens if there’s a tie?” I whisper to Alden.
“Most likely, they will continue with a telepathic debate until someone changes their mind.” he replies. My anxiety is put to rest when Noland votes in my favor.
“Very well, it looks like Ms. Ruewen will be starting at Foxfire. You’ll be in level 4, where you would be in you had been coming here since 11. We will deliver your scheduel tomorrow, and you will start the next day. Any objections?” Emery says. I don’t bother mentioning that I already know how aging collides with the levels, since I had been attending in my universe. “I have already told Leto not to make a big deal of your arrival, so that you can keep a lower profile.” He continues, staring at Alden. “Now we come to the matter of who you will be adopted by.” This is the part I have been dreading the most. What if it comes down to me to choose who I get adopted by? How can I pick one family without the other feeling disappointed? “Of course, Alden and Della have volunteered, but so have Grady and Edaline. I assume that they were your parents before, given that you have taken their last name?”
“They were. And… if they’re offering, I would be happy to get adopted by them again.” I say awkwardly.
“We would love to bring you into our family.” Edaline says, and Grady nods his agreement. I notice Sophie staring at me, and I realize that this would technically make us sisters. Not sure how to feel about that. But I decide not to focus on the more confusing aspects of this, and walk out relieved that I am going to Foxfire. Suddenly, an invisible figure jumped on me!
“Biana!” I cried.
“What? I’m excited! We’re in the same level!”
“Of course we are! Did you think that they’d let me skip a level?”
“No, but it’s still exciting!” I notice Grady, Edaline, and Sophie waiting for me.
“I’ll hail you later,” I tell her. “I’ve got to go introduce myself to my parents.”
“Bye!” she says, then I walk over to where my sort of new family awaits.
“Thank you for taking me in,” I begin, not sure how to do this. I’m not exactly shy around them, but I have to keep reminding myself that they won’t remember any of the things I do. The Great Ripplepuff Bake-off, Verdi on Ice, or watching human movies with Dex. And those were the first things that came to mind with Grady and Edaline, before I was kidnapped. Then I realize that this is a perfect opportunity to have a fresh start. And maybe, just maybe, the Ripplepuffs from my universe are better than the ones here, so I can beat Edaline.
“It’s our pleasure.” Grady replies, snapping me out of my thoughts. “Are you ready to see your home?” I noticed that he just said home instead of ‘new home’. I don’t know if it was on purpose, but the little detail made me feel better.
“Yeah. I am.” I say, and we all leap away together.