Thank you for waiting.

Chapter Twenty-Five

Ali and Will had taken a couch out of their storage room and brought it into Mr. Nicholson's office. Flor had removed all the papers and journals from her identification card and put them on top of Mr. Nicholson's desk, letting him sift through them.

He was taking notes left and right, smiling like a kid on Christmas. "This paper... It's got so much magic in the pages! It's like it wants me to figure out how this stuff works!"

Flor laid down on the couch, crossing her arms and slightly frowning. "I hope this is successful very much... This makes me so nervous..."

"Sure do look cute down there, though," said Will, leaning up against the back of the couch. Then, he looked up to Ali, who was right about to comment. "I don't like her, so I can say that without being weird."

Ali crossed his arms. "No, you're still being weird."

Mr. Nicholson passed what looked like little nodes to Ali. "You mind putting these on her forehead? They're usually used so you don't have to type when you do magic, but we're using them a little differently today."

Flor gritted her teeth. "These are what Trotsky-schi used," she mumbled under her breath.

"Right, right." He pulled back her bangs and begun applying the nodes. "Hey, how do you feel about all of this, not just the nodes?"

"I'm scared," she replied as honestly as possible. "But it's a strange kind of fear. I don't feel like shaking. I feel like a rock."

"How'd you get your hands on these journals, again?" asked Mr. Nicholson, getting his computer ready. "I mean, did your friends just trust you to carry them?"

Flor's voice became much quieter. "They were killed."

"I see..." he answered. "I'm sorry. That's awful."

"It's alright..." she sighed. "I'm going to put them back. I want to be one who fixes things."

"If you get lost," explained Mr. Nicholson, "We'll have your journal right here and we'll be watching it the whole time. I can probably work something out to help you. Just take it easy, alright?"

Flor looked up to Ali. "Hey... Do you remember the first night? When I went with you to translate for the Ryonogun?"

He laughed. "When you had that panic attack?"

"Yes. Do you remember the oath you gave to the Ryonogun?"

"That I would die for them? Absolutely."

"What if the world really ends?" She waited a moment. "Would you be breaking your oath by helping me?"

He thought about this for a moment. "That's a chance I'm willing to take."

"I'm confused... They seemed to mean so much to you. Were you lying when you said that?"

"No! Hell, no!"

"Then what was it?"

"Florence... let's just say that I went to the Ryonogun looking for something that I found right here. I mean, I know how you feel about everything so far, but that doesn't change that I'm going to be right here."

She smiled at him, looking down towards her feet. "I... I guess I also apologize for my behavior."

"Look, you don't need to apologize for not being into me."

"I was very, very angry at you."

"And I was being a dumb ass kid, go figure."

She smiled at him. "Thank you for being a very good friend, Ali. And you as well, Will. You have been very kind and gracious to me since I met you."