I lay staring at the ceiling of my new room. Yesterday was exhausting dealing with Theo and Skyler, but even given how tired I was last night, not much sleep was acquired. This new bed was one more comfortable than I had slept on in years, so foreign to the point it almost felt uncomfortable. Every time my body seemed to give in and relax, I tensed up again. It was dangerous to be too comfortable, especially in an unfamiliar place. The best thing I could do was become familiar.

Sitting up I looked at the window, it was nearly sunrise. I was tired and sore, but I needed to move. Getting up for the day, I reassessed my situation. Judging from my dealings with Theo and Sky, I thought that I could trust them. But Mariah, I still needed to examine.

The conversation I had with her yesterday came into mind, what she said about my father... This triggered memories that I wanted out of my head. I splashed water in my face at the wash stand. When I looked up into the mirror, I could spot his face in mine. It had been a while since I looked in a mirror, the refection took me by surprise. It stung to see his face in mine of all places. I turned away, and walked out of the room.

I closed the door and looked down the hall towards Skyler's room. She seemed cool. The idea of taking a morning run came into mind, something to get my adrenaline pumping. When I turned to go, a noise caught my attention. I looked back over to see something unexpected, yet completely expected.

Theo quietly closed Skyler's door, boots in one hand, shirt untucked, hair in disarray, and a smile still lingering on his lips.

"Well, well, well," Theo's head jerked at the sound of my voice. "This is a surprise." Theo replied to my grin with narrowed eyes, and I continued speaking. "Theo, you look tired. Didn't get much sleep last night, did ya?"

"Shut up, Flynn. It's not what you think."

"Not what I think? What, did you two do something last night that goes beyond my imagination?"

He raised an eyebrow, "Really?"

I shrugged, "Hey, the mind goes, where the mind goes."

Theo opened his mouth to speak, but closed it again when his eyes looked behind me. I turned around to see Mariah who seemed to be passing by. She stopped when she spotted us, and walked over.

"Theo," her eyebrows creased after she looked him head to toe.

"Umm... I was just training," he lied and put his hand on my shoulder, "And came up here to talk to Flynn."

I laughed, "What you been training for? A-" His thumb pressed down harshly on my shoulder, cutting off my words. Mariah gave us a questioning look, then turned her attention back on Theo. "You've been training? It's barley sun rise, I thought you were going to take it easy and rest today?"

"I thought you wanted us to train harder to prepare for the next mission?"

"After rest. You're no good at half strength. No training today till at least twelve."

"How about ten?"

"Eleven, now go rest. Oh, and while I have you here, tomorrow morning we'll discus the plan for the next mission." With that, Mariah left.

I shook my head, and clicked my tongue, "Don't you know lying's a sin?"

"And don't you know my hand's still on your shoulder?" He suddenly pressed down harder than before. With a smirk he walked off.

"Good luck on your 'training', by the way!" I called to his back.

"Will do." He laughed.

***

When I woke up that morning, thoughts of Theo were engraved so deep in my mind, I felt they would never fade. I breathed in the morning, his scent still lingering on my pillow. It was a enjoyable feeling of calm warm memories sauntering through my hazy morning mind, before reality set in along with giddiness, embarrassment, and all together not knowing what to do with myself. Looking at his empty spot on the bed made my cheeks burn. Yeah, we'ed slept on the same bed before, but it was different this time. Very different. Last night we kissed... we kissed a lot! Then what do I do? I ask him to stay the night! I buried my head in my pillow, a smile stuck on my face. And he actually stayed! The scent of him overwhelmed me, tingling my body. Pulling myself away from the pillow, I got ready for the day.

My feet froze in front of the door. Me running into Theo today was inevitable, me acting cool around him was highly unlikely, but not impossible. I took a deep breath, cleared my head of all the ways I might embarrass myself, and walked out the door.

I went to the kitchen, I couldn't resist the smile on my face, but it quickly dropped when I only saw Flynn.

"Oh, hi Flynn." I said dully.

"You really that disappointed I'm not Theo? Well, I'm sorry I'm not good enough for you."

"Why do you bring up Theo?"

"Don't play all innocent, I know what you two did last night."

I could feel the blush coming, and I pulled my hair over my shoulders to hide my cheeks. Clearing my throat, I said, "W-what are you talking about?"

He stood up from his seat and patted my shoulder, "Don't worry your secret is safe with me. Theo really isn't one for stealth, no wonder you two got caught in Riystone." He laughed, and stopped when he reached the door. "Lover boy's in the library, by the way." It wasn't long after when I found myself at the library door.

I opened the door to see Theo, ankles crossed in a window seal. His eyes never left the book in his hands, but the small smile that rose on his lips told me he knew I was here. He pulled up his legs, making room for me at the window, and I sat down, my back towards the window. Once I was sat, he looked over the side of the book, his smile was now focused completely on me. Those lips that were once pressed against mine seemed to be taunting me with that gorgeous smile.

"Hey," he said.

"Hey," my reply was more breathless than intended. I shooed the butterflies from my stomach by changing my focus.

"What are you reading?"

He glanced down at the book before linking his eyes back on mine. "History of Cathyious, vol. one. The other nine are there." He nodded at a stack on the floor next to the window. I grabbed a fair sized book and flipped through the pages.

"Umm... why?"

His smiled widened. "Well, the final Arikan is in Cathyious, and I was bored so I decided to reread these books."

"So, there's nine books about this, what city?"

"Nation."

"Nation. And you, having already read them, are willingly rereading them because you were bored?"

"Yes, that is correct."

"I'm going to ask this again. Why?"

He laughed, "Believe it or not Sky, I find these books interesting. Besides, it could prove useful on our next journey."

"Whatever you say." I leaned over and put the book back on his pile, while he changed his position.

"Now, you hardly glanced at the books here, and you obviously don't seem interested in reading up on Cathyious with me. So," he scooted closer to me, "Tell me, what brought you to the library?" That smile was still on his lips, but this time, dangerously close. I couldn't help but wish them closer.

"Umm... w-well I needed..." I could feel myself leaning into him, carving his kiss.

"Yes?" I needed him closer.

"You..." I breathed the final word, and closed the gap to meet his lips, but instead, I meant air. Theo had pulled away just before our lips could touch. For a moment I sat there confused, then I spoke. "What the hell just happened?" Theo laughed, but not out of mockery, there was warmth inside it.

"Oh Skyler," he cupped my cheek, "Don't be too hasty."

"What?"

"Is all you can think about kissing me? You've been staring at my lips from the moment you walked in here."

"That's not what I've been thinking about!" He raised an eyebrow. "Well... maybe it's been on my mind a bit, but that's a given after last night." Theo chuckled, his eyes seemed to be gazing into the past at the memory.

"It's not just the glitter of gold that makes it so valuable, it's also the rarity."

"How did gold come into this conversation?"

"It was the obvious leap of logic while looking into your gorgeous eyes." My cheeks reddened, which seemed to deepen his smile. "What I'm trying to say is if you have too much of something too fast, it can lose it's spark."

"That's why you won't kiss me?"

"It's always been a philosophy of mine."

"So you're afraid of becoming bored of me?" The smile dropped from his face, and his eyes glowed with sincerity.

"Skyler, that's far from my worry," he traced his finger along my jaw, and came in closer. "What I'm afraid of is forgetting. Forgetting about last night, how wonderful, sweet, and perfect that moment was. I'm afraid that one of these days, for a moment," his cheek brushed against mine as he leaned onto my ear. "I might forget just how much of a blessing you are, Skyler." After he pulled away, I breathed. This conversation was not helping my need for him. This man was killing me with his words, and from the smug look that came upon his face, he knew it.

"Your just messing with me now, aren't you."

He laughed. "I'll admit, it is fun watching you like this, but no. Everything I've said is sincere."

I sat in silence for a moment then said, "You can't be serious."

"Oh, but I am." There was another pause, but I was at a loss for words. Theo leaned back against the wall with his book. "We'll resume training at eleven, in the meantime you may do as you please." This left me unsure, I wanted to stay, but at the same time all I wanted to do was leave. I couldn't just sit there deciding, so I let my hands choose my closest option. Picking up a book from Theo's stack, I leaned against the wall opposite him.

After going through the first page for the third time, and only having actually read the first sentence, I decided that reading right now was hopeless. It was much of a surprise after a conversation like that. The conversation had gone far from what I expected, and ultimately just left me frustrated and confused.

I looked over the top of my book, and smiled. Theo's calm and content expression told me that at least he was enjoining this moment. He was just to dang cute reading, It made me want to kiss him more! Moving back to my book, I thumbed through the pages to distract myself. I stopped flipping through when I found pictures.

The picture was a map with four large islands, the map of Cathyious. Looking at the islands names, Prodmere was at the top with Canthom over to it's right. Earon was at the bottom, and Quenton in the middle. Besides the labels of the land, the map just showed the geographical aspects if the country.

"Hey Theo,"

"Hmm?"

I moved to the center of the large window seal, and Theo moved next to me.

I showed him the map, "So where in Cathyious would we be going?"

"Here," He pointed at the top of Quenton, at the rim of a large bay. "The capital. I've been to Cathyious once, but I never had the opportunity to see the capital. That is one thing I'm looking forward to."

"What does the capital have that you want to see?"

"Well, it has great history, and has all ways been described as beautiful, but I also want to go because my mother was from there."

"Oh... if your mom was from there, how come you've never been?"

Theo shrugged, "I've just never really had the opportunity." He paused for a moment. "Mariah actually goes often, but it's never been under circumstances where I could go with her. Now that I think about it, she may have been going to visit the queen. Mariah said she had known for a while that the princess was an Arikan. She might have gone there trying to convince the queen."

"I still don't understand why you've never gone? I mean, she's bound to say yes at least once."

"Yeah, maybe if I asked more, but I didn't want to push it. Mariah already does enough for me."

I thought for a moment, "You know, the princess isn't going anywhere."

He gave me a questioning look.

"I mean it wouldn't really hurt the mission if we spent a few hours before hand exploring the city."

Theo smiled, "Now that's an idea!"

"You like my plan?"

"Like is an understatement." He wrapped his arm around my waist, and pulled me closer to him. I tilted my head up towards him.

"Maybe it's even worth a kiss?"

He chuckled and pressed his forehead against mine."It's very tempting." Wow, he was too much.

"I think maybe you should give in a little."

His smile deepened, and he kissed my cheek.

"Really?" I said.

"Take it or leave it, but this is who I am."

I rested my head against his shoulder, "I'll take it."

Theo rubbed my arm, "Nice to know you accept me." Twirling a strand of my hair around his finger, he picked back up his book and continued to read.

Eleven o' clock came sooner then I wanted it to. I was in the training room with Theo once again. It had been less than a week since I'd been down here, yet it felt like a month. A lot had happened in the past week, but now we were back at the beginning.

Theo glanced at the door annoyed. Fifteen minutes had passed, and Flynn still hadn't showed.

"Maybe he got lost," I suggested while stretching my left leg. "Almera's a big place. Should we go look for him?"

"No, he'll figure it out eventually." Theo stood up, and gave me a hand. "In the mean time, let's continue your training. Hand to hand combat, let's see what you remember." He assumed position, and I replicated. With a deep breath I made the first move. The sparing went on for a considerable amount of time, and while I was giving it my all, Theo moved naturally through the fight with ease. But eventually it ended with me on my back panting.

"Good," Theo said, "Seems you remembered what I taught you." He offered me his hand, but I shooed it away, and continued laying on the floor. Folding his arms, he smiled down at me. "From today on we going to start your real training."

This made me sit up. "What are you talking about? What have we been doing if not real training?"

"Oh before I was just taking you through some of the basics so you'd have something under your belt. First we'll start with an exercise routine. Your natural form gives you strength, but you shouldn't only rely on it, plus the exercise will help you build endurance."

I heaved a sigh, "Alright, what first?"

"Wait, first change into your human form, then we'll begin."

"Why?"

"I don't want you relying on the strength of being an Arikan." He held out his hand again, "Hey, I'll even do it with you." I pulled myself to my feet with Theo's help, and changed forms. Just as I emerged from the pool of gold, Flynn walked through the door.

"Look who finally decided to show, what took you so long?" There was slight irritation in Theo's voice.

Flynn leaned against the door with a calm expression, a smile hinting at his lips. "Just taking my time to familiarize myself with this place, and I thought you to might need a moment alone, I wanted to be careful not to walk in on anything."

The irritation in Theo's face grew, and a tight smile formed on his lips. "Well, now that you're here we can begin your... assessment."

Flynn frowned, and Theo explained. "I want to see how much you know, what your strengths and weaknesses are."

"In what field?"

Theo assumed position, "Combat."

Flynn gave Theo a look I couldn't figure out. "Is this a challenge?"

"If you'd like to look at it that way, then sure."

"Well in that case, I accept." Flynn walked up more confident than I expected after Theo took him down within seconds yesterday.

I walked over to the corner, as Flynn opposed Theo. Their fight began, and escalated quickly. Flynn moved fast, even Theo found it difficult to keep up with him. But Theo was fast enough Flynn wasn't able to land a solid hit, but neither could Theo. Then a moment came when Flynn took the lead. Theo absorbed his punches easily, and a small smile appeared on his face. Theo came in stronger, and with three solid blows nocked Flynn off his feet.

"That was pretty good for a first go." Theo said.

Flynn popped back on his feet, a fire in his eyes, "Who says we're finished." He sprang forward with a kick that made Theo stumble back.

Theo's eyes darkened, "Flynn-" Three punches came at Theo, and he barely managed to dodge them. For a moment, Theo took the defensive, then came in hard, knocking down Flynn for a second time.

"What are you doing, we finished the assessme-" Flynn grabbed Theo's ankle, pulling and bringing Theo down on his back, then continued his attack.

"Flynn, stop!" I said stepping forward. Theo kicked Flynn off, and held up his hand telling me to stop. Both of them got back up on their feet, Theo gave himself into Flynn's fighting drive and took the offensive. Flynn was struggling, but none the less keeping up with Theo. Flynn switch offensively, and drove a punch hard towards Theo, but Theo was ready. Catching Flynn's punch, Theo flipped and pinned him to the ground.

Flynn tried to get out, but found it useless. There was a moment where they looked at each other with unreadable eyes, and no words just the panting of the two boys.

"Finished?" Theo finally said. Flynn gave him a nod, and Theo backed off. "You're pretty good, Flynn. Your quick and that's your greatest strength, but you're too predictable. You need to expand yourself so you're not repeating yourself as much." Theo offers Flynn a hand, and he took it. Flynn seemed calm, yet the fire in his eyes still remained.

"You've won this fight, but take me on my terms, you wont have a chance."

"Sure, think that if it makes you feel better."

Flynn clenched his jaw, but didn't respond.

"Well then, let's get to work."

We began with the exercise routine Theo had mention, then on to the training. I watch the two guys puzzled. Something had definitely happened between those two, then they went on normal yet giving each other unreadable expressions. Over all, I was just confused as to what was going through their heads.

The end came, and I was exhausted. Flynn left the room with some comment I didn't catch, I was too distracted by my inflamed limbs. I sat down and leaned against the wall giving my body a break. Theo slid down beside me.

"Here," he handed me some water.

"Thanks," I gladly accepted. After taking a large drink, I continued on. "Hey, so what exactly happened between you and Flynn?"

"Do you mean the fight? He was just showing what he was made of." I waited for him to elaborate, but he never did.

"Okay, but why was everything fine, then he kinda flipped out and you were like 'what the heck', but then you switch to 'oh, okay'. Then you two like had a moment, and after acted like nothing happened, but at the same time like something did happen, 'cause you two kept giving each other weird looks. But I have no idea what those looks mean, and now I'm confused. So what was going on?" Looking to Theo for the answer, I only found confusion on his face. I sighed, "Never mind, it doesn't matter."

"No, no, it's fine, I can answer your question. Just what exactly is your question?"

I laughed, "It's nothing," and handed him back the water.

Giving me a questioning side glance he took the water, "Alright..." he took a swig of the water. "Have any other questions that you don't want the answer to?"

"Haha." I pushed his shoulder.

A smirk on his lips, he stared down at the water skin in thought. "I have a question though, what's your name?"

"Oh, my real name's Malinda. Sorry about the whole 'Skyler' mix up, sometimes I just like to introduce myself under a false name, keeps things interesting."

His smile deepened and he clicked his tongue, "I always knew there was something off about you." He turned his eyes to me, "Now, would you like to add your last name to that?"

"Peterson."

"Hmmm... Malinda Peterson. I think Skyler was a nice change, you should look into making it permanent. Skyler Peterson."

"Why suddenly asking about my name?"

He shrugged a reply, "I don't know, it just came to mind."

"Your turn to answer."

"First name is Theairin."

"You can't steal my false name joke."

He chuckled, "This isn't a joke. My name's actually Theairin."

"So Theo's only a nick name? Where does the 'O' come from?"

"My last name, Obron. Yeah my mom actually gave me the nick name, and she thought it was important to include my last name."

"Theairin Obron, I like it."

"Glad my name has your approval, thank you."

I gave a small laugh, "You're welcome."

Theo went silent for a moment, then leaned his head against the wall with a sigh. "You know you're making this very difficult for me. Do you know how bad I want to kiss you right now?"

I slid infront to him, "Then why don't you?"

He cocked an eyebrow, "It hasn't even been a whole day yet."

I leaned closer to him, "Practically has."

"True." he smiled. "Maybe," he tossed the water to the side, and pulled me in between his legs, "Just one kiss wouldn't hurt."

I never had the chance to react before he locked his lips on mine.