Unedited.

By the first meeting point the four elves were panting. "Found Iner." Wylie wheezed, and he bent over, his hands on his knees.

"Good enough, let's get out of here." Sophie said, her hair having come out of it's braid, now hung in her face. "What about-" Tam started but Sophie shook her head vehemently. "No, we have to leave now." Fitz agreed. "What about who?" A voice asked. Sophie spun around, and jumped away from the others, hoping to draw attention away. There stood a cloaked Neverseen.

Tam and Fitz could do nothing about the shield that went up around them. "Ruy!" Sophie spat. Ruy glared at her, shoving his hand out towards her, Sophie flung as much mental energy as she coil pout through her finger tips. Ruy fell back, gritting his teeth. Shadows filled the shield, as Tam and Fitz combined their abilities and energy to shove against it.

"Let them go." Sophie said, as her gut tugged with the exertion of pushing a steady stream of mental energy and inflicting against the shield. Ruy seemed to realize he was out matched, at the moment. "No." He bluffed. Sophie ripped off her pin and threw it at Ruy's feet. Smoke flew up just as Tam and Fitz broke through the shield. Wylie was slumped to the floor, "Get him up. Let's go." Sophie said as she grabbed the bag from Wylie, and reached in to pulling out another square she ran to Ruy who was coughing. Sticking the square to his chest Sophie gave Ruy a firm kick to the chest making him fall back. Sophie raced after Tam and Fitz who carried Wylie between them. "Left!" She shouted as a muffled

Whoosh!

Sounded from Ruy and the square. Fitz and Tam turned left. "Right." Sophie transmitted as she mentally went through the map, keeping four blue tags on Fitz, Tam, Wylie and herself. A red one on Ruy. "Straight ahead." She said, as she ran beside Tam. "I don't think s-" Sophie launched herself over the hole the dwarf popped out of, she tossed a square in hole, as she landed on the other side.

The dwarf sank back into the ground the hole disappearing as it panicked racing after the square to get it out. "Hurry." Sophie said as she reached the tunnel Sori was holding open. She made Sir Tam and Wylie were in the hole. Fitz stumbled in after them and she was right at his heels. Roots wrapped around them, and they were swept away.

~

Coughing, Wylie came back from the black out. Over joyed, Sophie hugged him without thinking. "Wylie, you're okay." She laughed. Wylie grunted in pain. Sophie jerked away, "Sorry, sorry." She breathed a sigh of relief. Besides a few scrapes and scratches everyone was okay.

"My head..." Wylie groaned laying back on her bed. "That's to be expected." Linh said as she looked through Sophie's bathroom, for the correct healing potions. Wylie winced, "Must have hit my head." Tam nodded. "You did." Sophie took a deep breath. "I'm sorry guys. That could of gone a lot better." She said. "It could have gone a lot worse too." Fitz said, "Yeah, you got us out of there." Tam said. Sophie shook her head. "I should have been more careful. So many things could have gone wrong." She said. "Well, it's good you always have luck on your side." Keefe said.

Sophie didn't feel like luck would be on her side for long. "I can't depend on luck, Keefe. None of us can. I should have been more careful." She said. "We should have been more careful." Wylie said sitting up on his elbows as he took the elixirs Linh handed him. Sophie smiled at him, "I'm glad you're okay...all of you." She said looking at Tam and Fitz.
"Yeah, you too." Wylie said as he sat up, finishing the last of the elixirs. Sophie leaned against the wall, her arms wrapped tightly around herself. "There is something else." She said shivering.

"I'm guessing none of us are going to like it." Keefe said seriously as he went to stand beside Linh. Sophie shook her head. She wanted someone to stand beside her, like Keefe and Linh stood next to each other. "There was a dark elf there." The room seemed to freeze, tension appeared as fast as lightning. Sophie wrapped the brown leather coat around her. It had a faint scent of Kyle's cologne, calming her nerves. One problem at a time. She reminded herself. 'Just stay calm, and speak carefully'. Kyle had said. "It was in a cell. They called it subject one." Sophie said. The coat caused her shivering to stop. She took a deep breath, "I thought Sophie had found a name." Fitz said. "When we looked in, the thing slammed against the door."

His voice had an edge of panic in it, as he sat down shakily. "Well it's understandable." Biana said softly. "Understandable? Biana, how is keeping a killing machine in Exile understandable?" Sophie asked. "They should just kill it." Sophie shook her head. "Kill it?!" Nearly everyone echoed. Sophie nearly rolled her eyes. "Yes, kill it." She said meeting everyone's gaze one by one. "Remember the one I fought in the house? I read it's mind, and all it was thinking about was killing me, killing us. We all saw the way the one on the plane was, how desperate it was to kill us. Or draw blood. Those things, they have no other thoughts besides death. We saw the war." Sophie said. Uncomfortable Biana shifted under Sophie's gaze.

"It's still alive." Biana said. "It's not." Sophie argued, her shivering coming back. "They have no kind of...thoughts that can be changed or rehabilitated. They can't.... They can't do anything besides kill." Sophie said. "So we just kill them?" Tam asked coldly. "Because it's an inconvenience to us?" He asked. "No. Because if we don't who will? The council thinks they can lock up a whole army of those things in Exile."

"Hold up! Army? You said there was only one." Keefe said. All eyes turned to Sophie, and she was to late to realize her slip. She sighed, all she wanted to do was go to sleep and forget everything. She didn't want to deal with this. She looked at her boots, this wasn't fair. Once this was all over she was going to demand a vacation or something. Dex stood up from his normal seat beside her window, in the corner. "Sophie..." He said warningly, much as Sophie had done to get him to talk. Sophie looked at him. His eyes felt like he were digging out her secrets. "There is an army." She found herself saying. "How do you know?" Fitz asked, though the way his angry eyes glared at her she had a feeling he knew she had done something no one would have wanted her to do.

Sophie clenched her jaw shut, determined not to answer. She stared at the room full of people. Sandor stood beside her door, his thick arms crossed. "Think of the innocent lives that will be lost if one of those things are let loose." She said. "An army would be chaos." Sophie said. "Sophie, how do you know there is an army?" Fitz asked, not giving the subject up. "We have to stop them." Sophie said ignoring him. Before she knew it her back had hit the wall, and hands held her shoulders. Fitz's face was only inches from hers. His teal eyes glaring down at her. "How do you know?" His soft voice didn't match the glare. The coaxing tone was not what Sophie was expecting. "Demise told me." She whispered.

"Demise?!" Dex yelped. "The very Demise you said is the brother of Iver, the two who held you and Alvar captive?!" He asked. Sophie closed her eyes, "Remember you guys thought I was in the cave?" Sophie asked. When they didn't say anything Sophie looked up to see the distance Fitz had made, as he leaned back, he was holding her shoulders softly. "I went to talk to Alvar. Demise and him struck a deal, to take down the Neverseen. Demise is giving out information on his brother's plans, Alvar and I are trying our best to deflect those plans." Fitz ripped his hands off her shoulders, stepping back as if she had burned him.

"Iver is creating an army." Sophie said, Fitz looked hurt and betrayed, emotions flew across his face so fast, that Sophie couldn't read them. "I have to stop them..." Sophie looked around the room. "I can't do it by myself. I'm not that strong, I..." Sophie took a deep breath before forcing the words out.

"I need help."

"Than let us help." Dex said, "You keep shoving us away, I know we all hurt you in our own ways but let us help. We're here. That's what friends are for. That's what family is for. Trust us." He said. "How am I supposed to trust you, if you hurt me? How am I supposed to continue on while the people I trusted the most keep hurting me? How am I supposed to keep loving you all, when you've hurt me more than anyone?" Sophie asked, not even caring that her voice cracked.

"You tell me to trust you, and when I do, you turn on me. Betray me and hurt me worse than anyone else could. I've forgiven you all...over...and over again, and I don't know if I....." Sophie's vision blurred. "I don't know if I can anymore." Sophie said.

"Biana...remember when you first met me? You completely ignored me except for insulting me, than you only became my friend because Alden wanted to keep tabs on me. You and Fitz both turned your back on me when I needed you most. I was broken and you guys didn't even care. Keefe you left. You left me when I thought if everything changed we wouldn't. We wouldn't be torn from being friends, I know it's been bumpy and more than rocky, but I thought of all people, you wouldn't leave."

Sophie flicked away the tear that rolled down her cheek, but more followed. "Grady and Edaline...they weren't going to adopt me. They were going to give me up, they want me to be Jolie when I'm not....when I can't. And Dex...." Sophie couldn't handle to it anymore as she turned to her periwinkle eyed cousin. A sob ripped out of her throat as she shrank against the wall sliding down to the floor. "Jealousy and your own pride got in the way of our friendship. You turned you back on me when I needed...we I needed somebody. Anybody really, but you turned your back on me. All my life, the people I love most have hurt me the worse." Sophie wasn't screaming, she wasn't shouting, she sounded broken and hurt.

She sounded completely and utterly defeated. She was afraid to trust them again. "And now....now the only two friends who haven't hurt me, don't even remember me. The ones who helped me the most are gone. Y'know." Sophie said brushing her tears away. "I know I'm clumsy, I know I can be an idiot and a stubborn, blind and ridiculous girl, but I know what love is." Now the tears streamed faster. "And I know love isn't supposed to hurt this much!"
Sophie stared up at her friends. "I know, love is about sacrifice, about being honest even if it does hurt, it's about trusting each other and caring. But it shouldn't hurt as much as it has, and" Sophie cursed at her tears as she put her hands over her face, as she brought her knees to her chest.

"I'm tired of hurting. I'm scared to trust you all! I hate, loving you all so much that I wind up forgiving you the moment you look at me. I hate that I want to trust you all no matter how much I know I'll pay for it later. I love you all so much, I don't want to lose you to anyone else...and yet I don't want to trust you...love shouldn't hurt this much, it shouldn't be this painful.... And...enduring." Sophie cried. The room was silent except for her sniffing, and occasional sobs. A deep voice broke it, with unusual lightness. "Well I'll be the first to say this." Sophie heard Wylie stand up.

"You have a terrible choice in friends." He said. Sophie gave a garbled laugh, as Wylie kneeled in front of her, handing her his handkerchief. "Thanks Wylie." She said, somehow the laugh calmed her, and got out the last knot of emotions. She wiped her eyes and blew her nose, taking a deep breath. Wylie smiled. "Well you did save my life...let's call it even?" Another strangled laugh came and Sophie nodded. "Deal." Wylie grinned and patted her head. "Well you know how to reach me if you need me. I'm going to talk to Tiergan about subject one and an army." He said, he glared at her 'friends' before leaving. Sophie felt better, but not healed. She wiped away her stubborn tears, with the handkerchief.

"Let's just talk later-" she said, but was cut off by Keefe. "No. We're talking about this now." He said. "We've been complete jerks, and everyone here can agree we don't deserve Sophie as a friend. She's forgiven, our idiocy, our pride, and our mistakes. We've neglected her, and it isn't fair, not to her." He said. Biana nodded, brushing away her own tears.
"We've put her off to long. We've shoved her feelings aside, and we haven't even considered what she is going through." Keefe continued.

"Guys, don't worry about this, let's jus-"

"No!" Linh said, before taking a deep breath. "No, Sophie. We need to talk this out. We'll make it up to you, somehow, and clearly you aren't okay." She said. Sophie was fine...right? Who was she kidding? Her chest ached like she had been punched, and a numbness was starting to sink in, but talking about it felt like opening wounds she didn't want to touch, and pouring lemon juice on it, than rubbing salt into it.

"Clearly." Fitz agreed as he stood beside Sophie before sinking down next to her. He didn't try to touch her, but he was close enough Sophie felt his presence like a warm heater. Biana joined them, sitting across from Sophie, before she knew it, Sophie was surrounded by her friends. "How are you feeling right now?" Linh asked softly. "Tired." Sophie grumbled. She felt a lot of things. She felt angry, she felt betrayed and hurt she felt alone, and defeated. She felt despair, as her hope dwindled.

"That's..." Keefe clamped his mouth shut. Silence. It was weird how silence could be so loud, how it could leave eardrums ringing, how it filled and echoed in a room. Sophie stared at her flower laced floor. She didn't want to talk about feelings, she didn't want to loose her grip again, she didn't want to cry in front of them she- she really needed someone to just hug her and tell her everything would be okay. She needed someone to look her in the eyes and see her without asking questions she wished they could see her pain, but still leave her with privacy, she just needed someone to stop the aching in her chest. Fitz scooted closer and nudged her shoulder with his own.

"Hey..." He said softly. "Talk to me..." He said. Sophie closed her eyes and started talking about the first thing that came to mind. "'We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.'" The Declaration Of Independence was the first thing Sophie thought of, she didn't even explain what she was saying, she didn't start at the very beginning, she just started where she remembered best.

She then repeated Albert Einstein's equations, theories and then she found herself talking of the difference and impossibility of light leaping. "It is physically impossible, to have your body break down, cell by cell and leap on a light beam." She said. No one tried to interrupt her and no one asked who or what she was talking about. They let her talk, and they listened. "Not to mention the heat should be searing." She said. "It should be painful, but instead it's tickling, feather light, and warm. That's not how it should be. That'd not....logical."

That's how Sophie's mind worked. She had always thought logically, she looked at the facts, she observed the details, made a deduction, came to a conclusion and based on those facts, and that conclusion she went on. "Elves aren't logical, yet here I am...it's weird how I've always considered myself human, then I'm torn away from everything I know, everything I love, and everything logical, I was torn away by a teal eyed elf who is way to good looking for his own good. I was feeling confused then. Why someone like him would be talking to me. Not to mention the impossibility of Eternalia, tribunals and councils, and a prestigious academy named after fungus. I learned he was like me."

Sophie leaned closer to Fitz, their shoulders brushing. "He could hear thoughts like I could. I wasn't alone anymore." That threw me off balance more than ever, how was I supposed to go on, living logically and balanced if I knew all these impossible things were real? The elf promised to come back for me. He promised he'd take me somewhere I belonged, where I was normal where I'd be accepted. He promised to take me home. Knowing he was out there...somewhere. Gave me something I hadn't had in a very long time...he gave me hope." Sophie stared overt her knees and at her boots.

"Then I met the parent. The perfect parent with a perfect smile, a perfect and sweet character. He was to perfect to be human. Yet he still calmed me down, spoke to me like he understood how scared I was, how terrified I felt, how confused and muddled I was he looked st me and smiled. 'I'm sure there is no reason to worry' that's what calmed me." Sophie said. "The sister came next. Just ad perfect as her Dad and brother, she...she and I didn't get to talk and I felt insulted about what she said about my people...my world, my life. Then the heart attack of seeing the mom, made me embarrassed. She vanished and appeared ad she walked. Looking like an angel of sorts. It was everything I wanted."

Sophie watched ad a fat tear splattered onto her boot. "A perfect family. A family that loved and thrived together, a family that didn't push away differences. It was a family that didn't know each others hidden thoughts, and deepest secrets. In every way looking at the elves, was like looking at a picture, knowing I would never belong, that I would never have a family like that. That was the second time I read a mind, meaning to. The elf told me I wasn't allowed to do that. That it was breaking rules, but I had already read it. I was going through a test....a trial, to see if I was 'fit' to enter the prestigious academy named after fungus."

Dex gave a small snicker at that. "I did impossible things that day. It ripped up every bit of knowledge I knew, it defied every rule I followed, it cut through my reality, and tore me from what I've always known, what I've always obeyed, and set me down in a new world, with new rules, and no way to get out of it, no way to undo what was already done. No way to escape or withdraw.

"Then I was left with a choice." Sophie said as more tears plopped on her boots, and knees. "I made my choice, and I left what I knee behind. I left what I loved, I left what I held dear, and I went to the new world. A couple took me in to their home. They took care of me, and I met a friend. With periwinkle eyes and dimples, he was mischievous and full of happiness.... He helped balance out my sadness, he teased me about Wonderboy, he teased me about a lot of things, and for those reasons I loved him. He helped me, he gave me hope, he loved me and he treated me like someone normal.

"Then the curly haired girl, with boy crazy instincts, and who knew everything I needed to know, entered my life with a over energetic boy who first welcomed me to the prestigious academy. They kept my mind off of dark thoughts, they kept me laughing and stuck in the present, so I didn't think to much. Then came the time I turned a cape to silver and met another elf, ditching in white walled halls."

"I was ditching from universe. Lady Belva still has the weird crush on me." Keefe said smiling. Sophie nodded. "Then the perfect siblings entered my life again, my group was strange, it was out of the ordinary and mostly denied all stereotypes. The princess, the golden boy, the little guy, who isn't so little anymore, the freak, the troublemaker, the gossiper and the odd ball. I thought things were going alright when my life flipped upside down.

My best friend and I...we were kidnapped, we were burned and interrogated, tortured- I didn't know what they wanted, I didn't know why I was there." Sophie's voice took on a panicked edge and Fitz pressed against her shoulder. "I was scared, I didn't know what they wanted from me. I didn't know if my best friend was dead or alive. I didn't know if he was hurt like I was, I didn't know where he was. I didn't know where I was, I was confused....so I reached out. I reached out to the only person I knew was like me. The person that had seen me weeping like a child, in the middle of my living room floor after I had made my decision. I reached out to the first elf that told me the truth, that took me to a place I was supposed to belong to."

Sophie curled up tighter as she leaned closer to Fitz.
Fitz wrapped his arm around her. "It's okay. You're here now." He said lowly. Sophie nodded. "Maybe it was both our own desperation hoping I was still alive, maybe it was my terror that made him acknowledge me, my pain that refused to be ignored, but by some miracle he heard me. He heard me." Fitz had always heard her. He had listened, he always believed her. "Just like the first time. He came back and got me. Like he promised. He brought the troublemaker and the princess, my best friend was alive. We had survived, we were okay, we....we were alive. Scarred, hurt, and haunted, but we were alive."

"Yeah. We are." Dex said quietly. Sophie wanted to reach over and squeeze his hand, but Fitz's arm war still wrapped around her. "Over time I came to love each and every individual, I met more friends. Some have gone now, others have stayed but even though they stayed....they hurt me." Sophie said, sitting up straight pulling away from Fitz. "I'm just tired of it all. Of being hurt over and over. I'm exhausted of forgiving, and well...I do love you all, I remember once, loving someone as much as I love you all, but that person is gone now, he can't cone back and I made my decision and so did he, but once you love something you can't stop." Sophie said, wiping her tears away. She blew her nose for the last time and pulled her jacket closer around her.

"Sophie,...we have no right to ask this, but will you give us another chance." Biana asked. "We promise, we won't mess up this time. Just one last chance. Please?" Sophie looked around at the elves.

"One last chance." She agreed.

(-_\-) (Oh, Sophie, Sophie, Sophie.)