--

"Is the Handbook safe?" Lucy asks cautiously, bringing her eyes up to my tired face. She seemed to have a worried expression from what I could register, which is surprising seeing as I could barely even listen to a word she's saying. The lack of sleep that I've had is probably extremely unhealthy, but it's almost impossible to sleep without the nightmares..

I blinked tiredly at her, wondering if she was more worried about the book or if that expression was for me; as though she was concerned for my well being.

"It's safe, Lucy," I replied, rubbing at my eyes and letting out a small yawn before putting my forehead on my arms.

"You need sleep," she stated, and I felt her put a hand on my back. "A lot of it."

"I'm fine." I shook my head and ran a hand through my hair, glancing at her out of the corner of my eye. "Really."

"I don't believe you."

"Your point?"

"Faye. Seriously, you can't just go on like this." She sat down on the couch beside me, frowning more.

I grit my teeth to keep from snapping at her; she was only trying to help after all. Instead I close my eyes for a moment to think of calmer words.

"I assure you," I started, shifting slightly so I was facing Lucy more, "that I'm okay. Honestly, I'm glad I've not slept a lot."

Her eyebrows shot up in surprise, obviously taken aback by my words. "You're glad?"

"Yeah," I replied, nodding my head.

"Could you elaborate please?" she asks cautiously, a new suspicion rising in her expression. Did she think I was going to announce I was a vampire or something?

I shrugged casually, leaning against the back of the couch. "Well, I get more work done. I mean a lot more, too. I get through at least five files every three hours."

"That can't be healthy."

"Look," I say, rubbing my hands together. "There's something going on with this whole thing, Luce. The deceleration of war, the Handbook, all these papers." I gesture to the files on the coffee table. "Something's wrong-"

"Obviously there's something wrong," Lucy replied shortly, crossing her arms. "Otherwise we wouldn't be in this would we?" She softened a little at my pleading expression. "Faye, I think that most of this is just old or unimportant."

No, that wasn't it. I knew it wasn't, because there's something that's connecting all these papers together, something very important. Something dire.

If it were fake, old, or unimportant why would Lucy's parents keep it, all perfectly fit together and carefully filed?

But if it is important, then why would it be so easy to find? Most of all, why did they have the Handbook, and not bother to hide it better?

Unless..

"Faye?" Lucy snapped her fingers in front of my face. "Faye, what're you thinking?"

"Lucy.." I couldn't help the rise of despair in my chest.

Her eyes flashed with concern and seriousness. "Faye what is it?"

"If your parents knew all this was important," I said, darting my eyes around the room. "Why isn't it better hidden?"

She furrowed her eyebrows, frowning deeper as she thought. "What are you-"

"Think!" I urged, staring intently at her. "If they didn't want anyone to find it don't you think it would be somewhere else? Somewhere well concealed?"

Realization dawns on her face, causing her to pale. "You're saying-"

"-that they somehow knew we were coming here," I finished, slumping against the couch once more. "And they didn't stop us."

Lucy began to nibble on her fingers, her face filling with panic. "Someone who knew must of.."

"No. The traitor was Ken," I state, shaking my head. Nobody but my parents and and Leto knew. "I don't.. I don't think that's it."

"Maybe they suspected.."

"Lucy! Faye!" Quince runs out of the office, face flushed with fear. "There's something you might want to see."

Lucy and I share a long look. This can't be good. We get to our feet and follow her to the office.

The office was a mess, a large one. As we entered we stepped over piles and rows of papers so not to disturb or mess them up.

"What is it?" I demand, walking over to Jackson. He was leaning over a paper, his face as white as snow.

Quince was glancing between me and Lucy with a worried expression. I had a feeling this had something to do with us, and not something good. At all.

"Tell us," Lucy demands, crossing her arms. "Please. Just get it over with."

Jackson took a deep breath. "Faye, you aren't going to be happy. Or you Lucy. This isn't good."

"Nothing is good anymore," I retort, trying to get at look at the papers. "Please just tell us what it is."

"Alright." Jackson fingered the corner of the paper nervously. "Faye..your mom had a sister."

"Yeah, Jen's mom," I replied, frowning.

"Not that sister," he replied. "A twin sister. She was cast out of the family and the Hover when they were sixteen.."

"A twin?" I whisper. "Is..is it someone we know?"

"All to well," Quince said quietly.

"Who?" Lucy asks shortly.

Jackson slid the paper towards me. "Faye, your cousins with Lucy."

A long silence fell upon us. A long, long silence. "No, Ken is," I said, my voice shaking. "Ken is Lucy's cousin because Lucy's mom-"

"Faye, Ken isn't related to Lucy in any way," Jackson said softly, his eyes light with sympathy. "Lucy's mother is your mother's twin sister."

I felt like someone had put a boulder on my shoulders and left me to carry it. It pushed me down, making me hard to breath.. I glanced at Lucy, who liked she was suffering the same thing.

"But..if we're cousins..that explains.."

"Why I have a dragon," Lucy finished quietly, her face pale. Her hands shook and Quince wrapped her hand around one of Lucy's. "My mom is a dragon rider."

"No." Jackson shook his head. "I'm afraid she isn't. She had the blood, meaning she could of had a bond. But according to these, she never found her dragon. In a Hover, when a teen reaches sixteen they get two weeks to find their dragon. If they don't, it means they're not a rider."

"Plain Blood," Lucy summed up quietly.

"Plain Blood?" Quince and I ask at the same time, causing us to glance at each other. Both of us didn't know what it meant.

"I-it's a term used to describe Someone who is born into the rider's line, but has no magical abilities or ability to bond with a dragon," Lucy explained in a shaky voice.

"So your mom was a Plain Blood..and she was exiled?" I turned to Jackson.

"By the leader of the Hover, your father's grandfather," Jackson told us, nodding.

"I think," Quince said after a long silence, "that its time we find out what's really going on."

I nod. We were going to get some answers, one way or another.

--

Hehe. Didn't expect that did you? I'll update again when I can.

Until next time.

-Grace xx