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Inlé reappeared in his room alone, naked. Looking out the window, he saw that night was fast approaching. After dressing, he climbed out the small window and climbed the fire escape to the roof. He stood unmoving, watching as the sun sank below the tall buildings, then the horizon. When the sun had set, Inlé stepped through his bracelet, and into the school restroom. From there, he headed toward the library.

Though he could see nothing, Inlé walked unerringly to the library entrance. In the evening, the school was abandoned, the building left dark enough to mute even the light sound of Inlé's footsteps, and its various doors were locked. The library in the center of the school was no exception.

With a clink, a bracelet dropped from Inlé's wrist to his palm, and this he twisted a few times until it glowed. Silver light from the sliver of moon in the sky shone dimly, but in the complete darkness it seemed nearly as bright as a torch. Holding the bracelet up, Inlé dropped a second bracelet onto the linoleum floor, then lightly kicked it under the door. A third bracelet was at his feet, and this one he stretched with his shoe tips and fell through, rising again in the library.

In the library, Inlé walked to one of the card-catalogue computers and woke it. The computer was old, easily obsolete, and hummed loudly to life with a shudder. Inlé kept it at arm's length. He stepped forward, opened the cataloguing program, and stepped back as it loaded. When it finally activated, three frames were open. The first showed a basic search engine, the second a small list of suggested reading, and the third revealed a calendar. This third showed the current day--Tuesday, October 28--along with fun facts and famous persons relevant to the date.

Inlé stared at the calendar for a long minute. Finally satisfied, he pressed the screen's power button. The display went black, and Inlé disappeared into the darkness of the room. Soon, the room was once more unoccupied, and Inlé was home.

"Mr. Zapfino!" Inlé opened his eyes to see his teacher only a few paces away. He knew he should remember her name. It was something simple. Something Irish, he was sure. But he could not remember. "Mr. Zapfino, please stay awake. I'm sure the class is not as exciting as you would like, but you should still pay attention."

"As you say, madam," Inlé said. "Please, teach on."

His teacher turned away, continuing her lesson on the origins of Chemistry. The class was her first, it was obvious. Her enthusiasm and the sheer energy she exerted in teaching the class was incredible. But Inlé could only stare at her long red hair as she wrote historical figures and relevant dates on the board.

"Mr. Zapfino!" she yelled again, noticing him once more asleep. He looked up and saw her green eyes through the large round lenses she wore. They were almost entirely for show, he noted. She frowned slightly. "Mr. Zapfino, please. The history of the sciences may not seem relevant to you, but are still important. They are the foundation on which everything else has been built."

"As you say, madam," Inlé agreed. Her name was lost to him. "Please continue."

"Well, we were about to read a passage from Robert Boyle's The Sceptical Chymist," she said. "Perhaps you would read it? It's in the book, there. From the preface, starting, 'And for ought' ..."

Inlé held the open book up and began, "And for ought I can hitherto di∫cern, there are a thou∫and Phænomina in Nature, be∫ides a Multitude of Accidents relating to the humane Body, which will ∫carcely be clearly & ∫atisfactorily made out by them that confine them∫elves to deduce things from Salt, Sulphur and Mercury, and the other Notions peculiar to the Chymists, without taking much more Notice than they are wont to do, of the Motions and Figures, of the ∫mall Parts of Matter, and the other more Catholick and Fruitful affections of Bodies. Wherefore it will not perhaps ..."

"That's enough, Mr. Zapfino," his teacher said, a slight tremor in her voice. "Thank you. Now, can anyone other than Mr. Zapfino explain it?" A hand raised. "Ms. Garang?"

It was one of Tanya's friends, Inlé noted. The one with too-red hair. Her wide, bright smile showed even as she talked. "It sounds like he's saying that nobody really knows anything."

"Perhaps," the teacher agreed. "But why?"

"'Cause he said everything's accidents in the human body, not salt and stuff. He said chemists think too much on the hard stuff."

"Maybe. But what if 'the hard stuff' could explain the accidents?"

Inlé dozed off once more, but his teacher didn't try to wake him again.

"That was amazing what you did back there," one of the girls seated around Inlé said. "You really showed Ms. B. up, huh?"

Inlé stared at the girl for a moment. "What?"

"What Tammy means," Tanya explained, "is that nobody thought you'd actually be able to read that passage."

"Why?"

Tanya laughed. "You're so oblivious sometimes. She set you up. That wasn't in the book. She just pulled something out to fluster you."

"And here," the redheaded girl passed a bottle to Tanya, "you don't even look in the book to see she's playing you." She waggled a cocoa finger at Inlé. "You just blow in, blow up, and blow out, don't you?"

Tanya laughed again, rocking against the smiling girl. "And Mama comes in and cleans up afterwards?"

Mama shrugged. "If Mama's gotta, Mama's gonna."

"Well she won't like it," Jim said as he joined the others who'd already assembled. "Could you at least try to be normal, Inlé? Just try, you know?"

"Give up on him already," the asian girl--Miki--said with a frown. She looked more drawn than before. "He's pretty much hopeless. I mean, it's one thing trying to stand out or to fit in with just one group, but he's not trying anything. It's like his idea of fitting in here is sitting with us at lunch."

"Which was not of my doing," Inlé said. "I would much prefer to sleep these minutes away."

Miki glowered. Her mood seemed to be worsening. "And yet you don't leave or anything. You just sit around and let us talk to you like this. Even though you obviously care more about the color of the sky than whether we're around!"

A few people made disapproving noises, but Inlé answered for himself. "True enough," he said, closing his eyes.

This was enough. The girl squeaked in frustration and stormed off. Inlé heard two of the other girls--Tanya and the one she'd called Mama, by their voices--chase after her, trying to calm her. "You really are a jerk, you know that?" The first girl who'd spoken said. "You could at least try to be civil, if normal's too hard."

"Come on, Tammy," Jim pleaded. "Inlé's just answering honestly. Can you really fault him for that?"

"I can when he makes Miki cry, Jim. And you're an ass for siding with him."

Tammy stormed off to join her friends, and Inlé heard Jim sigh. Jim slid around until he was leaning against the wall, shoulder to shoulder with Inlé. He ate quietly as he sat beside Inlé, and when Jock joined them, he, too, sat and began eating without a word. When the two had finished eating, Jock asked, "What's up?"

Jim shook his head. "Inlé really is a piece of work, you know?"

Jock rolled his eyes. "What'd he do now? Piss off the girls?"

"Yep. Said he preferred the color of the sky to our presence."

"Cryptic. Did he explain any?"

"Well, actually, Miki said it. He just agreed."

"An' they all stormed off?"

"Right after she did, yeah."

Jock sighed. "Chicks, dude. They want us to agree with them, then get mad at us when we finally do."

"I guess," Jim agreed.

"You were a real jerk today," Tanya told Inlé. She'd forced him to walk home with her again. The two had walked in silence for some time before she began to broach conversation. "You could have been nicer to Miki." Inlé didn't make an answer. "Oh, come on, I know you're listening, Inlé. Why'd you act so rude to her today?"

"I was not rude, merely honest," Inlé said.

"Or tactless," Tanya retorted. "I know you're better than that."

"Whatever I said, that girl would have become more frustrated with me. Honesty was thus the least difficult course."

"So you really care more about the color of the sky than you do about us?" Tanya said. "What does that even mean?"

"If you wish to know what your friend meant, ask her. As for myself, there are laws that govern the properties of light. If one is somehow vitiated, the simplest way to discover this is to look to the sky."

"So it's part of your job, then?" Tanya said skeptically. But she still looked up to check the blue sky. "And what would I see if the laws had gone bad?"

Inlé looked up at the sky. "As an example," he began, "if you look directly above you, there is a hole in the sky where light is not refracted."

"That's bad, right?"

"No. This is normal, though hard for the eye to discern, as the mind moves to fill the empty space. Were one law to be damaged, the hole would be obvious."

Tanya thought for a moment. "What if the whole sky looked like the hole?"

"It does at night," Inlé said. "But if the sun is out and the stars are visible on their black display, there are a few laws of light broken. Or an atmospheric law has been disrupted. Neither is especially pleasant. Neither is easily noticed by most people unless such an occurrence is brought to their attention."

"Huh," Tanya said. "And what color are Miki's eyes?" Inlé was quiet for too long for Tanya's liking. "So you can tell when the sky's about to fall, but not what your friends look like? God, you're a piece of work!"

"Brown?" Inlé asked.

"They are," Tanya said. "But that was obviously a guess. Do you even remember which one's Miki? ... No? She's a little taller than me, Greek-Japanese, black hair, brown eyes, an athletic build. You ran into her when you got in a fight at school."

"Yes, I remember," Inlé said.

"Sure," Tanya retorted. "After I give you a full description. How does your mother put up with it, anyway?"

"She does not notice. I tend toward vagueness whenever possible."

"I'll bet you do," Tanya said as the two rounded the corner that lead to the office. She started to skip forward ahead of Inlé, then turned back. "Just apologize tomorrow, will you? To Miki, not someone at random. And you have to get it right, okay? See you tomorrow!" She ran off to her home, and Inlé was left alone to return to his own.

"You're something else, you know that?" the copy asked. "Making a girl cry like that, and not even feeling bad about it. Do you really even have a soul?"

"That is not a thing of your concern," Inlé answered.

"No, I suppose not. Still, though ..." The copy began to pace. "You could attempt to be civil. I know you're capable of it. Why only outside of this world? You're practically a jerk here, but a gentleman everywhere else."

"I am the same wherever I am." Inlé watched his likeness pace anxiously. Occasionally, the copy would flicker ever so slightly around the edges, as if an electrical current pulsed through it. "It is only the perceptions of those around me that change. That, in turn, changes how I appear to be. I am yet unchanged."

"And that may be the problem," the copy mused. It flashed a grin so wide it seemed to stretch beyond human measurements. "But don't worry. I'll change you. And then things will be better here."

"Do not be so sure. I have not yet fallen."

The copy cackled. "Let's not rush it. I already know when your end'll come. I don't have as much time as I'd like. But it's more than enough. I won't be able to hold up much longer in this host, but that won't be a problem once I've taken your body. And why would I care if she dies in the process?"

"Whatever plans you have, they will fail. You will be removed and destroyed. I have no use for you, and doubt greatly that there is an exception. Remove yourself now, I do not wish to be annoyed by you any longer."

"Whatever you say, Inlé. Just remember I'm still here." The copy turned and began to walk off. "Oh," he paused. "This'll be the last time I make a house call." His body flickered like a dying television screen. "My body can't hold up any more in this atmosphere. I'm too similar and too different. See you in the real world."

Inlé watched the copy walk off, fading quickly into a distance that didn't actually exist. He stood in the blackness for what seemed like hours after his impostor had vanished, looking out over the vast nothingness within himself, pondering the contents of other souls.

Friday came, and Inlé was prepared. He had spent Thursday reviewing etiquette for situations such as large group gatherings and group dates. Tanya had threatened more time with her father if Inlé acted up, so he went so far as to ask advice from Titania, who had shown up that night and sulked that she couldn't go with him.

Through the school day, he focused almost entirely on reviewing the customs he had studied, and so, by the time school was out, he had arranged to pick Tanya up at her house, and had already determined exactly what he would be doing for the few hours he would spend at the dance. The dance was informal, he'd discovered, so he only needed to return to the house to remind his mother that he would be out and to wait for the evening to begin.

At home, he went over the various scenarios that might come to pass once more before setting off at exactly the required time to reach the office three minutes before he was to pick Tanya up. He reported his leaving to his mother, and walked to the roof.

Inlé had left a bracelet beside Tanya's house that afternoon when he'd walked her home, and this he used to arrive in short order. The bands were returned to his wrist as he exited the alleyway beside the office. He stood for a minute, then approached the house door. The house door was on the same wall as the office entrance, but they were separate. Tanya had been emphatic on the point that the house door should be approached instead of the office one.

A woman answered the door immediately, opening it only enough to stick her smiling face between door and jam. "And you must be Inli! Tanya will be down in just a moment." Her head disappeared for a moment, and Inlé heard her call, "Tanya! Your friend's here now!" She reappeared, followed by a muffled response from another room. "Just you wait, and she'll be here."

"Thank you, madam," Inlé said, standing a polite distance from the entrance.

Tanya's mother smiled, then closed the door. The sounds of an energetic household echoed out the door for a few more moments before going silent. Inlé waited unmoving at the door.

"Oh, Inlé, hey," Jim called from behind him, hopping up the steps to stand beside Inlé. "I wondered if she'd get you to come."

Inlé looked Jim over once. "Victorian clothing?"

"Neo-Victorian. It's steampunk stuff." Jim shrugged. "I'm a geek, sue me. I don't expect you to understand, but it's fun. She had you come to pick her up?"

"She did."

"Huh," Jim said, adjusting a monocle. "I guess she won't need me, then."

"Why?"

Jim looked at Inlé as if he were the one who looked unusual. "What do you mean, why? She has you, so I'll be an extra wheel. It's like that."

"I see," Inlé said. "Rather, I don't understand why she would need you to begin with. She seems fairly independent."

"Well, I live next door," Jim explained, "so Tanya and I've known each other since kindergarten. She loves going out, but she doesn't like going out alone at night. So we usually walk to the dances together. But if you're here, I should probably just leave."

"You may as well stay," Inlé said. "There is no reason why you should not, and with you here, things may be more familiar. If she is uncomfortable with walking the streets, better three than two."

"The streets?" Jim laughed. "No, she's still afraid of the da--"

"Not another word, Jim!" Tanya tore open the door, dressed as a red witch. "It's not true any more, I just prefer company.

"But I guess that's the last time I get you to come walking."

"C'mon, don't be like that," Jim pleaded in a way that was either genuinely penitent or pointedly piteous. "It's Inlé. He wouldn't tell anyone."

Tanya glared. "That's hardly the point. A secret's a secret, even from your closest friends. You've known Inlé, what, a week?" She turned to Inlé. "Not that you're a bad guy, but, well, you understand, right?"

"Of course," Inlé said with a slow nod. "Caution should be taken in selecting whomever the burden of trust is given, lest your secrets be exposed needlessly."

"Right," Tanya agreed, turning back on Jim. "See? He understands ..."

Tanya paused and looked back at Inlé. "You didn't dress up." She sounded half unsurprised, half disappointed.

"I did not dress up. I was told the event was informal."

"It is informal," Tanya sighed. "It's informal so you can dress up. In costume. Like me, or Jim. You know, a costume ball."

"A masquerade?"

"Sort of, but without the masks required. Oh well, I guess you're kind of a superhero anyway, so it'll do."

"He's kind of a superhero?" Jim echoed.

"Well, yeah," Tanya backpedalled. "Like, have you ever seen him dressed in anything other than that? All his clothes are exactly the same."

"So were all of Einstein's clothes," Jim said. "He was just too lazy to pick his clothes out in the morning, so he got multiple copies of the same suit."

"And some people would argue that he's a superhero for some of the stuff he did," Tanya argued. "He was, like, the math whiz and all."

"Math and science," Jim said. "But what's Inlé done? No offense, man, but she's putting you on a pedestal."

"Apologies are not necessary. I understand your intention."

Jim and Tanya looked at Inlé, then back at each other. "You win," Jim said. "You're right, I can't see him dressed any other way. He's crazy-odd and already looks like he's in costume. Anyway, we'd better go. We'll be late if we don't leave now."

They arrived at the dance as the party had just gotten started. Music was blasting loud, and kids were dancing in costume all over the dance floor. The school gymnasium had its bleachers pushed to the walls, and a disk jockey had set himself up in a booth against the far wall. Speakers hung from the high ceiling in strategically determined locations. Wherever there weren't speakers, colored lights, strobe lights, and Halloween ornaments hung to add to the mood.

Inlé and Tanya stood beside the throng for a few minutes, watching the crowd. Tanya left to use the restroom, and Inlé waited for her to return. When she did, she was carrying two cups. "Inlé, I ..." She dropped the cups as she came to a surprised stop.

Without hesitating, Inlé caught the cups before they crashed to the ground. Not a drop was lost. He rose, to return the cups to Tanya, when he noticed the look of confusion on her face. Inlé turned to find what had surprised her, saw it immediately and knew what it was. He handed the cups to Tanya without looking at her, and began walking across the room toward the DJ's stand.

The copy had arrived.

"So you came!" the copy greeted Inlé as he approached, yelling over the noise. The copy danced well, and his dancing had formed a crowd that watched it and cheered. A crowd of students now very much confused to see twins where they had believed a singular classmate.

"I have come. Why are you here?" Inlé responded coldly. Somehow, without raising it in the slightest, Inlé's voice was able to carry over--perhaps through--the loud, energetic music.

The copy laughed wildly. "Of course I came! Didn't you hear me when I said your body would be mine? Honestly, I'm glad you could make it tonight. There are so few opportunities for me to create this much confusion.

"Look at them!" It waved its arm at the crowd. "So easily confused by seeing we two identical beings where they believed one. Cattle ripe for harvesting."

The crowd that had been watching moved away as the mirrored pneuma came together, one emotionless, the other wearing the mad face of the lost. Stoic and sensitized faced each other in silence for long moments, then the copy laughed. "Well. This is the first time we've met in person, isn't it? Are you not amazed at how well I can synchronize with my host?"

"You will destroy the body at this rate, fool," Inlé said.

Laughing, the copy said, "Inlé, Inlé! Surely you shouldn't be too worried about her. She is quite expendable. Certainly, you do not care for any of these people. Why then would you care if one or two dies?" The copy paused briefly, letting the words sink in.

"But," it sighed, "entertaining as that thought is, only one here needs die. And that is, of course, you. I know you fight well, because I fought as well as you, once. I've had just over a week to re-evaluate everything you and I know. Everything you remember, so do I. Until last week when we separated, of course. Which gives me the advantage, because while you have wasted your time in meaninglessly empty work, I have spent time focused only on how I could become you.

"Imagine my surprise when I realized what had happened! Such a sloppy mistake, really, but everyone--even you, it seems--makes mistakes."

"And what mistake was that, mimic?"

"Please. I do prefer copy. That is, of course what I am. A copy of you, a backlash from your time with Rensyd and Larjam. Surprised? You were overflowing with power--enough power to make a god! Of course there would be residual effects. Of course there would be some kind of backlash.

"All that power flowing through your blood, and you didn't spend hardly any time dispersing it. Of course, you were exhausted. You worked for two straight days. But letting something like that--that electric fire coursing through your veins--letting it sit as you rested, sit until it subsided to a dull hum you could account to fatigue, was a mistake. Because once that energy got loose, well." The copy bowed arrogantly. "I suppose I should be grateful. After all, 'Father', without you, I would not be a stain circling around within my 'mother'. Now like Zeus, and Chronos before him, I will usurp your position as supreme being and rule over these sheep in your stead."

The copy attacked, and Inlé dodged. The attack lasted for only a few moments before the entire crowd was yelling. Cheering. A fight! Excitement! Strange, but it's Halloween. Anything can happen, right?

The copy attacked wildly, punching and kicking at Inlé's dodging form. But it could read through Inlé's movements in a way no other opponent could, and soon scored a punch to Inlé's ribs. Inlé slid backward with the force of the blow, but remained standing.

The copy crowed with pleasure. "I'll bet that hurt. You gotta feel that, considering the state of your ribs. I gotta say, you're pretty limber for someone with only a week's recovery, even if it was accelerated."

"Perhaps," Inlé said, moving into a ready stance. "Come at me or I will come at you. You must be destroyed before you kill the host."

"Concerned? Why? You don't even know who she is."

"Perhaps. Or perhaps not. Either way, it is much more simple to correct this mistake while the host still lives. Her death would cause too many questions."

"You want questions, do you?" the copy asked. "How's this for questions?" It attacked Inlé, springing forward to punch up from a crouch. The blow missed, and the copy leapt into the air, following the attack. Immediately, it spun to drop a kick that Inlé was forced to block. The copy bounced off of the block and attacked with a spinning punch that was also blocked.

Each successive block kept the copy up in the air as it bounced off of a shielding forearm, elbow, or palm to continue the strike. The first two blows may have been possible, but the rapid and long succession of juggled attacks that kept the copy in the air quickly became unexplainable. The flurry ended when Inlé caught a kick and flung his duplicate to the ground.

The copy bounced agilely away from Inlé, recovering before it had hit the floor. Cart-wheeling into a ready position, it cackled wildly. "Yes! This is it! I've wanted this for so long I can't even explain it! As soon as I figured out what happened, I knew this fight would come. And here I come! I have nothing to lose, and everything to gain. How, then, can I not beat you?" He attacked again.

Now Inlé countered and occasional blows were landed by either opponent, but nothing more than a glancing blow here and there. The crowd was quieter, and had moved further from the dangerous dance at their center. The music ran on, forgotten. A few teachers had moved in at first to try and break the fight up, but had decided against trying to do so when they saw the supernatural ferocity of the fight.

The copy attacked with wanton disregard to its audience. It ignored everything but Inlé, and its attacks occasionally gave off shock-waves when Inlé could not block properly and was grazed by an energized fist or foot. Occasional bystanders were knocked from their feet by the blasts of air. The copy was fast, spinning around the relatively immobile Inlé as he struck from every angle he could imagine. Inlé's defenses were solid, and improved rapidly as the fight progressed.

After a few long minutes, the copy disengaged, panting. "How can you not be tired?" it asked in awe despite itself. "I mean, obviously I'm not fighting at a hundred in this host--it takes a lot out of you, believe me--but you're still recovering from getting seriously messed up. No way you could recover in five days."

"That is likely true," Inlé agreed. "But for me, it has been more than a month, due to meaninglessly empty work."

The copy grinned. "Ah, always a trick up your sleeve, eh? Well, I have one last trick, I guess. I'll have to finish this soon anyway, the host's about to croak. This'll be my last attempt either way. Well ..." The copy leapt up to the ceiling thirty feet above, flipping to stand squarely on one of the girders. It looked up/down at Inlé, with a manic, vicious smile on its face. The music faded as one song ended and another was slowly queued. "You ready for this?" the copy asked quietly.

Immediately, it leapt straight down at Inlé, and the crowd gasped as the two came together, Inlé catching both of his imitation's hands, holding it up. Teeth still clenched in a menacing grin, the copy's face took on a swollen look, and it vomited an enormous amount of blood down at Inlé.

Inlé's hand moved to block, but it was not enough to prevent the bulk of it from coating him. The blood began to tear into Inlé's flesh, surrounding his head and hand where they had made contact. The last thing Inlé saw before his eyes were covered was his own visage slipping from the unconscious face of one of his classmates. The asian girl. Inlé struggled once more to remember her name. M-something. Miki. Not, he noted, that it much mattered at the moment.

Inlé opened his eyes to his soulscape. The Borderlands were as bleak and blank as ever, but a red haze was beginning to rise around him. The copy stepped from the bloody mist, smiling.

"This is a coup," it said. "And this is the part where you lie down and die."

"I think not," Inlé said, readying to fight once more. But as his hands rose to a fighting position, a small weight fell to his elbow. He reached into his sleeve and pulled out a ring. It took him a few moments to recognize that it was the thing the orange goddess had given him. A bloodstone ring.

Inlé put the ring on and held his hand up. The mists flew to the stone, and were dissolved. The copy was also drawn quickly toward the ring, but it resisted.

"No," it yelled. "I refuse to fall this easily! Refuse!" It turned to run. "I'll find another way!" In a bloody spurt, the copy vanished.

Once more, Inlé found himself standing on the dance floor, looking down at the unconscious Miki. Blood ran from his body toward her, a serpentine thing flowing roughly toward her. Inlé let it reach the girl before squatting down beside her. He stretched the hand that still held the bloodstone ring, placing it on her stomach, firmly but gently holding her down.

Miki's face twisted into a strange parody of the copy's own features, and Inlé heard his own voice pulled from her lips. "Don't think you've won! You can't win! I had it all planned out! You can't win! I can't ... I can't ... !"

"I have won nothing," Inlé answered. "There was nothing for me to win. You merely lost. Rest now, this was a bad dream, and you were nothing more. Die peacefully, and let this girl live."

The possessed girl let out one more keening wail in a parody of Inlé's own voice, then fell silent. Inlé remained holding her until a mist of blood rose from her, and drifted into the ring. When he was satisfied that the infestation was thoroughly removed, Inlé stood and faced the awestruck crowd.

"Tanya," Inlé said calmly. "Make sure everyone is in this room, then close the doors." No one moved, and soon Tanya had closed the doors behind her, having found that every person in the building was in the room and watching.

Inlé walked to the DJ's booth and rose to stand on it. The music had stopped for good, and into the silence, Inlé spoke, "Everyone present, you have witnessed something damaging to your current understandings of the world. For that I apologize. I will now correct this mistake." A large bowl of incense was pulled from one sleeve, and from the other came a match, already lit. The incense was lit, and smoke wafted out into the crowd. Eyes glazed over, and people slowly fell into a trance. There was some small resistance, but not much.

Inlé held the ring up in his hand. "Many of you observed what just happened in its entirety, and so know why I am standing here, addressing you. For those of you who do not know, and those who do," he appeared to crush the ring between two fingers as he dropped it down a sleeve, "let me explain anew why you are here.

"Everyone has assembled so that the vice-principal could give a cursory greeting to relay the basic rules of this dance and to announce a costume contest where the teachers will judge in a few basic categories. The winners are to be announced Monday. Nothing unusual has happened, and nothing will. Everyone is here to have a good time, and no one wishes to do aught but have fun with their friends.

"That is all, enjoy your nights." Inlé put the censer away and walked back to where he had been before the fight, carrying the dazed, but recovering Miki with him. As the effects of the incense faded, the DJ made some brief comment, then began the next song. Everyone returned to dancing as though nothing unusual had happened.

Miki started to come to, and found Tanya and Inlé squatting beside her. Tanya looked concerned, Inlé as frustratingly impassive as ever.

"Are you okay, babe?" Tanya asked. "You just blacked out there for a sec. Here, drink this, it'll help a little."

Miki took the proffered cup and sipped. Tears welled in her eyes, then began to spill down. "Are you all right?" Tanya asked.

"I'm ... I don't know," Miki said. "I don't know why, but I just feel like I lost something." She tried to wipe the tears away, but they continued to flow.

"Was it valuable?" Inlé asked.

"I ... I don't know," Miki said exasperated. "I mean, I don't know what it is. I just feel like ... like there was something warm in me that's gone now. Like the feeling when you drink hot chocolate by a fireplace in the winter. No, like I had some kind of happiness for a moment, and now I can't ever get it back."

Tanya looked at Inlé for a moment, then back to Miki, but she couldn't think of anything to do about her friend's gentle sobs except to pull her close in an embrace. Miki leaned into the hug and cried quietly for a long, long time.

The rest of the dance was uneventful, as Inlé had suggested. And by Monday, the only excitement to be remembered would be the costume contest. Inlé, Tanya, Jim, and Miki walked home together, joined by the other two girls Tammy and Safiyya, who the girls called Mama. Jim started a conversation about the girls' costumes: Tammy in an outfit from an Indiana Jones movie, Saffiya as an African goddess, and Miki as a vampire, a simple disguise of tooth-cap fangs, black contacts, powder, and a simple black dress.

They talked more or less amiably about the nuances of costume design, as they walked Tammy, then Safiyya home, before the last four made their way back to Tanya's home. Miki was going to sleep over that night, as she was still shaken from the dance. Jim went to his house next door with a wave, and then Tanya, Inlé and Miki were on Tanya's front step, saying their good-byes.

"Are you sure we can't walk you home, Inlé?" Tanya asked for the third time.

"I am quite sure that I would prefer walking back alone than allow a pair of young ladies to walk tonight unprotected," he said.

"Like it's dangerous in Ersatz," Tanya rolled her eyes.

"One never knows what waits for the darkness. Moreover, it is best not to test this tonight. Especially with one of you so tired."

Miki smiled sheepishly. "I'm not that tired," she protested, despite her obvious exhaustion after the dance. She looked sick with fatigue.

"Nevertheless," Inlé said diplomatically, "it is far safer for me to walk alone than for the two of you to do the same."

"Really," Tanya asked. "I somehow see you getting into far more trouble in a day than the rest of us get into in a year."

"Perhaps. But I am better able to cope with such situations.

"Regardless," Inlé continued, "I will take my leave now. Rest well. You likely need a great deal of rest after tonight." Without waiting for good-byes, Inlé turned and walked off.

The next morning, Inlé was woken by a knock on his door. "Inlé? It's your mother." As if there were anyone else who would be around. "There's someone on the phone for you." This, Inlé noted, was a first. "It's a girl." Ah.

Inlé rose and went to the door. Opening it, his mother handed him the wireless receiver, open curiosity written across her face. "I thought you said she wasn't anyone important," she said, attempting to pull details out that weren't forthcoming.

"She was--and is--not," Inlé answered smoothly. "Likely, my next appointment will need moving or some other triviality." He lifted the phone. "Yes?"

"Inlé, hi. It's Tanya." The voice said.

"Of course," Inlé replied. "What may I do for you?"

"Um, I was wondering if you could help with some ... homework problems. Do you have, like, ten minutes?"

"Would I be able to answer over the telephone?"

"Uh, sure, if you don't mind."

"Very well. Please wait a moment." Placing his hand over the receiver, Inlé told his mother, "It is a classmate calling for help with some homework. May I use the telephone for a few minutes?"

"Of course," his mother answered, disappointed. "Take your time."

"You are not expecting any calls? One from Mr. Selina, perhaps?"

"Uh, no, Inlé. But he will be here around nine."

"Then you had best prepare," Inlé said. "You have twenty minutes."

Surprise lit his mother's face. "Oh! Oh! I can't believe I forgot! Should I wear blue or red today, do you think?"

"Perhaps a dark red. You wore blue last week, remember. Wear the jasper necklace, Mr. Selina will appreciate the amber pendant on it."

His mother kissed him on the cheek as she darted for her room. "Thanks, sweetie. Care to join us for breakfast?"

"Another time, perhaps, mother. I have a previous engagement today. And I have homework to do as well. Another time." He closed the bedroom door and lifted the receiver back to his ear.

"Sweetie?" Tanya asked, suppressing mirth.

"An affectionate term she is fond of. Certainly, your parents do the same."

"Yeah," Tanya agreed. "But I at least act the part."

Inlé changed the subject. "What homework problems did you wish to discuss?"

"None of them," Tanya said. "At least, not mine. I was just calling to give you an update on Miki's condition."

Inlé was quiet. "Has her condition worsened?"

"You don't have to sound so cold," Tanya pouted. "It's your fault she's like this."

"Like what?"

"Miserable," Tanya said, as if Inlé should have understood without her having to explain. "Whatever you did last night drained her a lot."

"Has she grown ill, then? pyrexic? chilled? anemic, perhaps?"

"No, maybe, no, and no," Tanya said, answering each question in turn. "Pyrexic's what, exactly?"

"An elevated body temperature."

"Ah. No, she's fine. Really, she looks better than she has all week. Whatever she was possessed with seems gone, that's for sure." There was a quiet pause, then Tanya continued in a more subdued voice, "Thank you, by the way."

"Why?" Inlé asked.

"For saving Miki. It probably would have been easier if you'd just killed them both, like with the grey guy.""

"Ah, so you remember."

"Of course. Was that your idea of a stronger hypnosis?"

"One can hope."

"Still not gonna work," Tanya said in a singsong voice. "You're stuck with me for a while, at least." She paused, then said, "So you're going to Maine today?"

"I plan to leave shortly, yes."

"And are you gonna pick me up first, or should I be heading over there?"

"What?"

"I'm saying I wanna go too. I've never been to Maine."

"No. Of a surety, no."

"Come on. If you're going to make it a day trip, you've got some secret way of getting there really fast, and I want to see it."

"I plan to walk there."

"Right, walk to Maine and back in a day. That's believable. You gotta give me more credit than that."

"Whether you believe or not is none of my concern."

"How, then?" Tanya asked. "Do you know some kind of shortcut?"

Inlé gathered his thoughts. Why was he telling her this? Because she's asking, he decided, and he refused to lie. Not outright. "Of a sort, yes. Though it is quite dangerous. Far too dangerous for me to take you along."

"And why is that?"

"What do you know of North American folklore?"

"Not much. Totems and animal spirits and ancestors, I guess."

"There is a realm called the Shadowlands that some of their lore speaks of, though theirs is hardly alone in this. The Shadowlands are something of a mirror to the lands they are attached to, and can, to a degree, expedite travel."

"That doesn't sound so bad. Is it dark?"

Inlé said, "No, not entirely dark. Merely light-less of itself. Perhaps it could be considered twilit by this world. But the paths shift, as shadows tend to do, and many creatures in that realm are less than amiable toward outsiders."

"So you're saying you don't want to have to protect me and yourself," Tanya said. "Look out for number one and all that?"

"To a degree, yes," Inlé answered. "I am unskilled in the arts of protection, and prefer to travel efficiently."

"I'd be dead weight. Way to make a girl feel worthwhile."

"Why not console your friend, or prepare for school instead? You would be better served in those pursuits."

"Maybe," Tanya agreed angrily. "But I'd rather do something fun. And you're the one going to the party. In Maine."

"It is hardly a party."

"All I know is there's never a dull moment with you around."

"That is because you are likely to die at any moment," Inlé answered as tonelessly as ever. He was becoming annoyed, but she wouldn't be able to notice.

"Only if you mess up," Tanya said. "And how often does that happen?"

"Thirty-seven point two per cent, statistically. Once in three. You have seen three successes personally. Would you truly like to risk this next endeavor?"

Tanya went quiet for a long time. At first, Inlé thought she was at a loss for words, then that she was considering her own odds. When the phone began making a tone, he realized that she had hung up.

Inlé rose fluidly from his seat on the floor and went to put the phone away. His mother came out of her room in a red blouse and russet pants. She had opted to wear earrings--a rarity. They were tiny maple leaves that shifted through the foliage colors depending on what angle they were seen at.

"How do I look?," she asked, fluffing her short hair.

"Lovely, as always, mother," Inlé answered as he replaced the phone in its carrier. "The earrings are a good touch."

"They were your father's favorites." She smiled dolefully. "He always did love the Fall."

"Certainly," Inlé agreed. "But he preferred maple candies to fall."

His mother's melancholy vanished with a twinkle. "He did!" she giggled, remembering. "He used to squirrel them away, then forget where he hid them! Do you remember how often we had to convince him we didn't take them?"

"Of course."

"He would pout for a bit, and then he'd find them and be happy as, well, as a kid with candy!" She chuckled lightly, but it faded to a sigh.

"I miss him."

"As do I, mother," Inlé answered. "But it is better to look to the future than the past. It is best never to begin a date depressed. Moreover, your date is quite perspicacious. He will notice your mood easily. Mr. Selina will arrive shortly, and you should be cheerful when he arrives."

As though summoned by the mentioning of his name, the polite knock of Mr. Selina echoed into the living room. "And here he is now," Inlé said.

"Oh! My purse is still in my room," Inlé's mother said. "Would you get the door?"

"Certainly," Inlé said. He opened the door to see not one, but two guests.

"Well, well," Mr. Selina said. "Good morning to you, Inlé."

"And to you, sir," Inlé replied. "And a good morning to you as well, miss Maslow." Tanya smiled unabashed as Inlé looked coolly at her. "Come in, please. Take a seat, sir, my mother will be out in a moment."

"Come on in!" Inlé's mother called from her room. "I just have to find my purse, then we can go!"

"Take your time, Emilia," Mr. Selina said again. "The food will wait for us." Inlé wondered what joke the teacher hid in those words. But not enough to ask.

"Would you like a drink, sir?"

"Thank you, Inlé, but no."

"And you, miss Maslow?"

"No thanks, I'm good," Tanya said, seated lightly on the couch while the men stood.

"You won't be here all day again, will you, Inlé?" Mr. Selina asked with a raised eyebrow. "You two are more than welcome to join us for breakfast, if you'd like. My treat." The offer seemed sincere, and there was a wry concern in his voice.

"It would not suit to be seen breakfasting with a teacher, sir," Inlé said. Then, quietly, he added, "Though this alteration makes the offer much more tempting."

"Ah," Mr. Selina said, understanding flashing in his eyes. Then, with a more amused look, he asked, "Unplanned, eh?"

"Yes."

Mr. Selina chuckled. "Ah well, we'll have to plan ahead next time. By the way, have you read this, yet?" He raised the book in his hand. "It's a novel about faeries in New York. Somewhat dark, but a good read."

"I have not, sir," Inlé answered. "I do not read fiction."

"No?" Mr. Selina did nothing to hide his surprised. "Hmm. I'd have thought you an avid reader."

"Sorry to keep you waiting!" Inlé's mother walked into the living room, and stopped. "Inlé, you didn't say you were having someone over!"

"I apologize, mother. She will not be staying long."

"Oh, no I don't mind. I was just ..." She gathered her thoughts. "Well, introduce us!"

"Ah. Mother, this is Tanya Maslow, a classmate. Miss Maslow, my mother, Emilia Crescenzi."

Tanya had risen as Inlé's mother had entered the room, and the two shook hands as Inlé named them. "Crescenzi?" Tanya echoed.

"My maiden name," Inlé's mother said. "I never took my late husband's name. Too much paperwork to deal with."

"No, no," Tanya said. "I mean the Emilia Crescenzi?"

"Well," Emilia said, suddenly self-conscious. "That would depend."

"My mother has some of your gardening books," Tanya said exuberantly. "And watercolors you did. Landscapes and sunsets. Wow, I never thought I'd actually meet you! And now you're a friend's mom!"

Emilia blushed. She didn't take praise well. "I'm not all that, really."

Mr. Selina chuckled. "It seems you're more famous than you thought, Emilia."

Her face flushed a red to match her shirt. "I'm ... well I ..."

"Mother," Inlé got her attention, "are you ready now? You have everything for the day, correct?"

Glad for the shift in conversation, Emilia said, "Yes, of course. My purse has everything I should need."

"Then perhaps you should go down for breakfast. You will not feel well if you do not eat something soon."

"Oh, yes," she smiled again. "We should get going. Will you two ... ?"

"Yes," Mr. Selina agreed. "The offer still stands. Join us for breakfast, at least. We'll be seeing a ballet afterward, and I've only two tickets for that, but the breakfast reservations were open for any number of people."

Inlé turned to Tanya, "I suppose you would like to go?"

"I'd love to!" Tanya said.

"Then I suppose we will join you," Inlé said.

Mr. Selina quietly chuckled as he and Inlé followed the ladies out of the apartment.

"I still don't see why you won't take me with you," Tanya complained as the two walked back from the restaurant. Mr. Selina had offered to give them a ride back, but Inlé had respectfully declined. There was no reason Inlé and Tanya couldn't walk the short distance, and it would make the couple late for their ballet.

"It is not merely that I will not" Inlé said. "I have neither time nor energy nor--to be wholly honest--strength enough to take you with me. If my information is correct, there are hidebehinds at the short end of my trip. One may well be equipped with a legendary and powerful magical weapon. I have only ever faced one hidebehind before. I was nearly killed. A rash implies several, at the least five. I would sooner face a coven of vampires or a sorcerous cabal of equal population. There are wards, at least, against the supernatural."

"What is a hidebehind, then? You're spooked by it because it's not supernatural?" Tanya didn't try to hide her confusion.

"They are quite natural," Inlé explained. "The hidebehind, Choloepus avorsus, is a creature considered cryptozoological in nature."

"Cryptozoological?"

"Cryptozoology is the study of creatures considered by most to be fictitious. For example, the yeti or the Loch Ness monster. There have been sightings, but not often by sources considered credible."

"Like Champ?"

"The Lake Champlain monster is one such creature," Inlé agreed. "The hidebehind, being a quite rare, generally solitary woodland creature, gained its notoriety due to its incredible ability and unusual diet. It is never seen by its prey, and it will hunt humans if they enter its territory."

"Hold it," Tanya interrupted. "You're telling me something is so fast it's invisible? And you call that natural?"

"The hidebehind is not invisible," Inlé corrected. "It merely avoids being seen by, as the name implies, always hiding behind its prey. Even should you turn around as quickly as possible, they will be behind you, having moved the faster."

"So they're super-fast cave-men that attack and kill you before you can see them. And you plan to hunt them. Great idea."

"They are not men. Their closest biological ties, if one credits evolution, are the pilosa. Specifically, the two-toed sloth."

"You're hunting killer sloths? Sorry, I'm calling bullshit. No way. Sloths are slow and lazy. And they eat plants. Plus they're tropical."

"The sloth can move at remarkable speeds for brief periods of time. The hidebehind has paired this with predatory cunning, though they are not humanly intelligent.

"But they are nocturnal. Should I come across them in the day, my chances of success quintuple. Were I not so delayed, I may have found the sword by now and been done without the worry of your 'killer sloths'."

"And what are your chances of success, mister all-knowing," Tanya asked, dripping sarcasm. "Surely, with such a phenomenal intellect, you've figured what your chances of success are."

"I have," Inlé answered, ignoring the mocks. "Had I arrived safely in Maine twenty minutes ago, assuming my course through the Shadowlands was successful, were I in perfect condition and there was only one hidebehind near the sword, my chances were approaching forty per cent success. That was the optimum result. Without factoring in any Shadowland activity, were I to leave now I would arrive in Maine in two hours' time, around the noon hour."

"Two hours to Maine from the middle of New York? I hate your shortcuts."

"You need not take them. Assuming my search takes me five hours--this would be assuming some slight travel, of course--my chance of success with one hidebehind is thirty-seven per cent. With five, it drops to twenty-five point eight."

"I see," Tanya said. "And what are the odds without me?"

"Those were calculated without you in mind."

"Then what are the odds with me around?"

"Factoring your survival?"

"Oh, I don't know." Tanya rolled her eyes. "Of course I have to live!"

Inlé was quiet for a while, calculating. Tanya decided to wait. He was quiet for so long that they had reached the apartment building and were in the elevator--alone--before he spoke again.

"Twelve point three per cent success, where you are injured but live. There is a point three eight per cent chance that you could manage unscathed."

"A one in eight chance we both get out alive? Most people don't even think these things are real! If they're so dangerous, why don't we hear more about them?"

"They are quite rare. There are perhaps a hundred viable females and a third as many males within the Americas. Also, they tend to attack humans only if the human is alone in their territory at night. And then only if hungry."

"Why should you be different, then?"

"Have you ever heard stories of a monster in a village?"

"Yeah ..."

"People eventually find the monster, no matter how it hides, but the animals are generally first to notice."

"Right, sure. Then they scare the monster off. What's that have to do with this?"

"Often, the monster is a predator, correct?"

"Sure, a vampire or a werewolf or whatever. What's your point?"

"Consider this: if a predator detects another predator--one that threatens the first predator in some way--what would the first predator do?"

"Attack, obviously. Nobody wants their home disturbed."

"Certainly. The hidebehinds are the first predator. I am the second."

"You're saying they'll consider you a threat."

"Undoubtedly. My first encounter was purely incidental. I was on a wholly unrelated mission, but the hidebehind woke and attacked without hesitation. I would still carry its scars under other circumstances."

"You mean if you were normal."

"Were I normal, I would be dead. On the other hand, were I normal, I would not have been attacked, and likely would not have been in Mexico at all." Inlé pushed the apartment door open and the two walked in. He walked toward the kitchen. "Would you like a drink?"

"Sure. Water." Tanya seemed subdued, pondering this information. Filing it away, no doubt, for future use. "Thanks."

They drank in silence, then Inlé said, "As it is, I have only a twenty per cent chance of reaching Maine in a timely manner. I am likely to meet resistance in the Shadowlands as well."

"So is that why you're so distant?" Tanya asked.

Inlé ignored her attempt at changing the subject. "If you would excuse me now, miss Maslow, I am already behind schedule due to an unexpected breakfast excursion." He stood and walked to the door, followed by Tanya. At the door, he opened it and waited for her to step out.

Tanya, however, still had other plans. "I know this trick," she said. "I step out expecting you to follow right behind me, gentlemanly holding the door as you are. But instead you close the door behind me, locking me out. Am I warm?"

"Perhaps you are," Inlé said, "though I was not attempting to appear gentlemanly. I am attempting to appear as a host does when showing a guest that they have long overstayed their welcome."

Tanya glared at Inlé for a moment, then her face lit up. "It's a shame your mother doesn't know you're going to be in Maine today." She did her best to look innocent. "I'm sure she'd want a souvenir."

Inlé showed no reaction as he said, "She would not believe it possible."

"And if she heard you did something awful to me?"

Inlé was quiet for longer than Tanya had expected. His eyes on her began to make her skin crawl. "Then I would hate to disappoint her," Inlé finally said. "She would likely believe me capable of whatever crime or sin you imagined up for me. But I do my best not to lie to her when only the natural is concerned. She would force me to 'confess' to her. But the only way I will tell her that I did 'something awful' to you will be because I did 'something awful' to you. Choose your slander well, girl, for it will not be slander for long. Likely more to your displeasure than my own."

Tanya believed him. Whether Inlé would actually follow through with his threat or not, she wasn't sure. But with a poker face as impenetrable as Inlé's, Tanya decided she wouldn't like to find out. It hadn't been long enough since she'd seen him kill a man in a dark alley. Or kill himself, somehow, in public. Without repercussions.

Another route must be taken.

"What if I stayed behind and got things ready for when you get back?" Tanya suggested. "You'd have a good alibi so your mom wouldn't suspect a thing?"

"She will suspect and assume more from your extended presence than from your absence when she returns. She has grown accustomed to my solitude."

"Well, I'm not leaving unless you force me out," Tanya said, angrily. "God, you might have something better to do, but I don't. I'm bored, and you're interesting. At least let me watch you leave. Then I'll go. You won't have to see me when you get back, I'm just curious to see how you do it. Is that too much to ask?"

Inlé thought for a moment, then closed the door. "You are a very foolish girl. Even moving into the Shadowlands is dangerous. You could be injured by being nearby. If you will accept whatever injury you may sustain, I will allow you to observe my passage. Observe. You may not participate, you may not ask questions. And when I have left, you will leave as well. Am I understood?"

"Not at all," Tanya said glibly. "But I'll do what you've told me to do."

"Well enough," Inlé said, walking to his room, Tanya still in tow.

Description
Inlé reappeared in his room alone, naked. Looking out the window, he saw that night was fast approaching. After dressing, he climbed out the small window and climbed the fire escape to the roof. He stood unmoving, watching as the sun sank below the tall buildings, then the horizon. When the sun had set, Inlé stepped through his bracelet, and into the school restroom. From there, he headed toward the library.

Though he could see nothing, Inlé walked unerringly to the library entrance. In the evening, the school was abandoned, the building left dark enough to mute even the light sound of Inlé's footsteps, and its various doors were locked. The library in the center of the school was no exception.

With a clink, a bracelet dropped from Inlé's wrist to his palm, and this he twisted a few times until it glowed. Silver light from the sliver of moon in the sky shone dimly, but in the complete darkness it seemed nearly as bright as a torch. Holding the bracelet up, Inlé dropped a second bracelet onto the linoleum floor, then lightly kicked it under the door. A third bracelet was at his feet, and this one he stretched with his shoe tips and fell through, rising again in the library.

In the library, Inlé walked to one of the card-catalogue computers and woke it. The computer was old, easily obsolete, and hummed loudly to life with a shudder. Inlé kept it at arm's length. He stepped forward, opened the cataloguing program, and stepped back as it loaded. When it finally activated, three frames were open. The first showed a basic search engine, the second a small list of suggested reading, and the third revealed a calendar. This third showed the current day--Tuesday, October 28--along with fun facts and famous persons relevant to the date.

Inlé stared at the calendar for a long minute. Finally satisfied, he pressed the screen's power button. The display went black, and Inlé disappeared into the darkness of the room. Soon, the room was once more unoccupied, and Inlé was home.

"Mr. Zapfino!" Inlé opened his eyes to see his teacher only a few paces away. He knew he should remember her name. It was something simple. Something Irish, he was sure. But he could not remember. "Mr. Zapfino, please stay awake. I'm sure the class is not as exciting as you would like, but you should still pay attention."

"As you say, madam," Inlé said. "Please, teach on."

His teacher turned away, continuing her lesson on the origins of Chemistry. The class was her first, it was obvious. Her enthusiasm and the sheer energy she exerted in teaching the class was incredible. But Inlé could only stare at her long red hair as she wrote historical figures and relevant dates on the board.

"Mr. Zapfino!" she yelled again, noticing him once more asleep. He looked up and saw her green eyes through the large round lenses she wore. They were almost entirely for show, he noted. She frowned slightly. "Mr. Zapfino, please. The history of the sciences may not seem relevant to you, but are still important. They are the foundation on which everything else has been built."

"As you say, madam," Inlé agreed. Her name was lost to him. "Please continue."

"Well, we were about to read a passage from Robert Boyle's The Sceptical Chymist," she said. "Perhaps you would read it? It's in the book, there. From the preface, starting, 'And for ought' ..."

Inlé held the open book up and began, "And for ought I can hitherto di∫cern, there are a thou∫and Phænomina in Nature, be∫ides a Multitude of Accidents relating to the humane Body, which will ∫carcely be clearly & ∫atisfactorily made out by them that confine them∫elves to deduce things from Salt, Sulphur and Mercury, and the other Notions peculiar to the Chymists, without taking much more Notice than they are wont to do, of the Motions and Figures, of the ∫mall Parts of Matter, and the other more Catholick and Fruitful affections of Bodies. Wherefore it will not perhaps ..."

"That's enough, Mr. Zapfino," his teacher said, a slight tremor in her voice. "Thank you. Now, can anyone other than Mr. Zapfino explain it?" A hand raised. "Ms. Garang?"

It was one of Tanya's friends, Inlé noted. The one with too-red hair. Her wide, bright smile showed even as she talked. "It sounds like he's saying that nobody really knows anything."

"Perhaps," the teacher agreed. "But why?"

"'Cause he said everything's accidents in the human body, not salt and stuff. He said chemists think too much on the hard stuff."

"Maybe. But what if 'the hard stuff' could explain the accidents?"

Inlé dozed off once more, but his teacher didn't try to wake him again.

"That was amazing what you did back there," one of the girls seated around Inlé said. "You really showed Ms. B. up, huh?"

Inlé stared at the girl for a moment. "What?"

"What Tammy means," Tanya explained, "is that nobody thought you'd actually be able to read that passage."

"Why?"

Tanya laughed. "You're so oblivious sometimes. She set you up. That wasn't in the book. She just pulled something out to fluster you."

"And here," the redheaded girl passed a bottle to Tanya, "you don't even look in the book to see she's playing you." She waggled a cocoa finger at Inlé. "You just blow in, blow up, and blow out, don't you?"

Tanya laughed again, rocking against the smiling girl. "And Mama comes in and cleans up afterwards?"

Mama shrugged. "If Mama's gotta, Mama's gonna."

"Well she won't like it," Jim said as he joined the others who'd already assembled. "Could you at least try to be normal, Inlé? Just try, you know?"

"Give up on him already," the asian girl--Miki--said with a frown. She looked more drawn than before. "He's pretty much hopeless. I mean, it's one thing trying to stand out or to fit in with just one group, but he's not trying anything. It's like his idea of fitting in here is sitting with us at lunch."

"Which was not of my doing," Inlé said. "I would much prefer to sleep these minutes away."

Miki glowered. Her mood seemed to be worsening. "And yet you don't leave or anything. You just sit around and let us talk to you like this. Even though you obviously care more about the color of the sky than whether we're around!"

A few people made disapproving noises, but Inlé answered for himself. "True enough," he said, closing his eyes.

This was enough. The girl squeaked in frustration and stormed off. Inlé heard two of the other girls--Tanya and the one she'd called Mama, by their voices--chase after her, trying to calm her. "You really are a jerk, you know that?" The first girl who'd spoken said. "You could at least try to be civil, if normal's too hard."

"Come on, Tammy," Jim pleaded. "Inlé's just answering honestly. Can you really fault him for that?"

"I can when he makes Miki cry, Jim. And you're an ass for siding with him."

Tammy stormed off to join her friends, and Inlé heard Jim sigh. Jim slid around until he was leaning against the wall, shoulder to shoulder with Inlé. He ate quietly as he sat beside Inlé, and when Jock joined them, he, too, sat and began eating without a word. When the two had finished eating, Jock asked, "What's up?"

Jim shook his head. "Inlé really is a piece of work, you know?"

Jock rolled his eyes. "What'd he do now? Piss off the girls?"

"Yep. Said he preferred the color of the sky to our presence."

"Cryptic. Did he explain any?"

"Well, actually, Miki said it. He just agreed."

"An' they all stormed off?"

"Right after she did, yeah."

Jock sighed. "Chicks, dude. They want us to agree with them, then get mad at us when we finally do."

"I guess," Jim agreed.

"You were a real jerk today," Tanya told Inlé. She'd forced him to walk home with her again. The two had walked in silence for some time before she began to broach conversation. "You could have been nicer to Miki." Inlé didn't make an answer. "Oh, come on, I know you're listening, Inlé. Why'd you act so rude to her today?"

"I was not rude, merely honest," Inlé said.

"Or tactless," Tanya retorted. "I know you're better than that."

"Whatever I said, that girl would have become more frustrated with me. Honesty was thus the least difficult course."

"So you really care more about the color of the sky than you do about us?" Tanya said. "What does that even mean?"

"If you wish to know what your friend meant, ask her. As for myself, there are laws that govern the properties of light. If one is somehow vitiated, the simplest way to discover this is to look to the sky."

"So it's part of your job, then?" Tanya said skeptically. But she still looked up to check the blue sky. "And what would I see if the laws had gone bad?"

Inlé looked up at the sky. "As an example," he began, "if you look directly above you, there is a hole in the sky where light is not refracted."

"That's bad, right?"

"No. This is normal, though hard for the eye to discern, as the mind moves to fill the empty space. Were one law to be damaged, the hole would be obvious."

Tanya thought for a moment. "What if the whole sky looked like the hole?"

"It does at night," Inlé said. "But if the sun is out and the stars are visible on their black display, there are a few laws of light broken. Or an atmospheric law has been disrupted. Neither is especially pleasant. Neither is easily noticed by most people unless such an occurrence is brought to their attention."

"Huh," Tanya said. "And what color are Miki's eyes?" Inlé was quiet for too long for Tanya's liking. "So you can tell when the sky's about to fall, but not what your friends look like? God, you're a piece of work!"

"Brown?" Inlé asked.

"They are," Tanya said. "But that was obviously a guess. Do you even remember which one's Miki? ... No? She's a little taller than me, Greek-Japanese, black hair, brown eyes, an athletic build. You ran into her when you got in a fight at school."

"Yes, I remember," Inlé said.

"Sure," Tanya retorted. "After I give you a full description. How does your mother put up with it, anyway?"

"She does not notice. I tend toward vagueness whenever possible."

"I'll bet you do," Tanya said as the two rounded the corner that lead to the office. She started to skip forward ahead of Inlé, then turned back. "Just apologize tomorrow, will you? To Miki, not someone at random. And you have to get it right, okay? See you tomorrow!" She ran off to her home, and Inlé was left alone to return to his own.

"You're something else, you know that?" the copy asked. "Making a girl cry like that, and not even feeling bad about it. Do you really even have a soul?"

"That is not a thing of your concern," Inlé answered.

"No, I suppose not. Still, though ..." The copy began to pace. "You could attempt to be civil. I know you're capable of it. Why only outside of this world? You're practically a jerk here, but a gentleman everywhere else."

"I am the same wherever I am." Inlé watched his likeness pace anxiously. Occasionally, the copy would flicker ever so slightly around the edges, as if an electrical current pulsed through it. "It is only the perceptions of those around me that change. That, in turn, changes how I appear to be. I am yet unchanged."

"And that may be the problem," the copy mused. It flashed a grin so wide it seemed to stretch beyond human measurements. "But don't worry. I'll change you. And then things will be better here."

"Do not be so sure. I have not yet fallen."

The copy cackled. "Let's not rush it. I already know when your end'll come. I don't have as much time as I'd like. But it's more than enough. I won't be able to hold up much longer in this host, but that won't be a problem once I've taken your body. And why would I care if she dies in the process?"

"Whatever plans you have, they will fail. You will be removed and destroyed. I have no use for you, and doubt greatly that there is an exception. Remove yourself now, I do not wish to be annoyed by you any longer."

"Whatever you say, Inlé. Just remember I'm still here." The copy turned and began to walk off. "Oh," he paused. "This'll be the last time I make a house call." His body flickered like a dying television screen. "My body can't hold up any more in this atmosphere. I'm too similar and too different. See you in the real world."

Inlé watched the copy walk off, fading quickly into a distance that didn't actually exist. He stood in the blackness for what seemed like hours after his impostor had vanished, looking out over the vast nothingness within himself, pondering the contents of other souls.

Friday came, and Inlé was prepared. He had spent Thursday reviewing etiquette for situations such as large group gatherings and group dates. Tanya had threatened more time with her father if Inlé acted up, so he went so far as to ask advice from Titania, who had shown up that night and sulked that she couldn't go with him.

Through the school day, he focused almost entirely on reviewing the customs he had studied, and so, by the time school was out, he had arranged to pick Tanya up at her house, and had already determined exactly what he would be doing for the few hours he would spend at the dance. The dance was informal, he'd discovered, so he only needed to return to the house to remind his mother that he would be out and to wait for the evening to begin.

At home, he went over the various scenarios that might come to pass once more before setting off at exactly the required time to reach the office three minutes before he was to pick Tanya up. He reported his leaving to his mother, and walked to the roof.

Inlé had left a bracelet beside Tanya's house that afternoon when he'd walked her home, and this he used to arrive in short order. The bands were returned to his wrist as he exited the alleyway beside the office. He stood for a minute, then approached the house door. The house door was on the same wall as the office entrance, but they were separate. Tanya had been emphatic on the point that the house door should be approached instead of the office one.

A woman answered the door immediately, opening it only enough to stick her smiling face between door and jam. "And you must be Inli! Tanya will be down in just a moment." Her head disappeared for a moment, and Inlé heard her call, "Tanya! Your friend's here now!" She reappeared, followed by a muffled response from another room. "Just you wait, and she'll be here."

"Thank you, madam," Inlé said, standing a polite distance from the entrance.

Tanya's mother smiled, then closed the door. The sounds of an energetic household echoed out the door for a few more moments before going silent. Inlé waited unmoving at the door.

"Oh, Inlé, hey," Jim called from behind him, hopping up the steps to stand beside Inlé. "I wondered if she'd get you to come."

Inlé looked Jim over once. "Victorian clothing?"

"Neo-Victorian. It's steampunk stuff." Jim shrugged. "I'm a geek, sue me. I don't expect you to understand, but it's fun. She had you come to pick her up?"

"She did."

"Huh," Jim said, adjusting a monocle. "I guess she won't need me, then."

"Why?"

Jim looked at Inlé as if he were the one who looked unusual. "What do you mean, why? She has you, so I'll be an extra wheel. It's like that."

"I see," Inlé said. "Rather, I don't understand why she would need you to begin with. She seems fairly independent."

"Well, I live next door," Jim explained, "so Tanya and I've known each other since kindergarten. She loves going out, but she doesn't like going out alone at night. So we usually walk to the dances together. But if you're here, I should probably just leave."

"You may as well stay," Inlé said. "There is no reason why you should not, and with you here, things may be more familiar. If she is uncomfortable with walking the streets, better three than two."

"The streets?" Jim laughed. "No, she's still afraid of the da--"

"Not another word, Jim!" Tanya tore open the door, dressed as a red witch. "It's not true any more, I just prefer company.

"But I guess that's the last time I get you to come walking."

"C'mon, don't be like that," Jim pleaded in a way that was either genuinely penitent or pointedly piteous. "It's Inlé. He wouldn't tell anyone."

Tanya glared. "That's hardly the point. A secret's a secret, even from your closest friends. You've known Inlé, what, a week?" She turned to Inlé. "Not that you're a bad guy, but, well, you understand, right?"

"Of course," Inlé said with a slow nod. "Caution should be taken in selecting whomever the burden of trust is given, lest your secrets be exposed needlessly."

"Right," Tanya agreed, turning back on Jim. "See? He understands ..."

Tanya paused and looked back at Inlé. "You didn't dress up." She sounded half unsurprised, half disappointed.

"I did not dress up. I was told the event was informal."

"It is informal," Tanya sighed. "It's informal so you can dress up. In costume. Like me, or Jim. You know, a costume ball."

"A masquerade?"

"Sort of, but without the masks required. Oh well, I guess you're kind of a superhero anyway, so it'll do."

"He's kind of a superhero?" Jim echoed.

"Well, yeah," Tanya backpedalled. "Like, have you ever seen him dressed in anything other than that? All his clothes are exactly the same."

"So were all of Einstein's clothes," Jim said. "He was just too lazy to pick his clothes out in the morning, so he got multiple copies of the same suit."

"And some people would argue that he's a superhero for some of the stuff he did," Tanya argued. "He was, like, the math whiz and all."

"Math and science," Jim said. "But what's Inlé done? No offense, man, but she's putting you on a pedestal."

"Apologies are not necessary. I understand your intention."

Jim and Tanya looked at Inlé, then back at each other. "You win," Jim said. "You're right, I can't see him dressed any other way. He's crazy-odd and already looks like he's in costume. Anyway, we'd better go. We'll be late if we don't leave now."

They arrived at the dance as the party had just gotten started. Music was blasting loud, and kids were dancing in costume all over the dance floor. The school gymnasium had its bleachers pushed to the walls, and a disk jockey had set himself up in a booth against the far wall. Speakers hung from the high ceiling in strategically determined locations. Wherever there weren't speakers, colored lights, strobe lights, and Halloween ornaments hung to add to the mood.

Inlé and Tanya stood beside the throng for a few minutes, watching the crowd. Tanya left to use the restroom, and Inlé waited for her to return. When she did, she was carrying two cups. "Inlé, I ..." She dropped the cups as she came to a surprised stop.

Without hesitating, Inlé caught the cups before they crashed to the ground. Not a drop was lost. He rose, to return the cups to Tanya, when he noticed the look of confusion on her face. Inlé turned to find what had surprised her, saw it immediately and knew what it was. He handed the cups to Tanya without looking at her, and began walking across the room toward the DJ's stand.

The copy had arrived.

"So you came!" the copy greeted Inlé as he approached, yelling over the noise. The copy danced well, and his dancing had formed a crowd that watched it and cheered. A crowd of students now very much confused to see twins where they had believed a singular classmate.

"I have come. Why are you here?" Inlé responded coldly. Somehow, without raising it in the slightest, Inlé's voice was able to carry over--perhaps through--the loud, energetic music.

The copy laughed wildly. "Of course I came! Didn't you hear me when I said your body would be mine? Honestly, I'm glad you could make it tonight. There are so few opportunities for me to create this much confusion.

"Look at them!" It waved its arm at the crowd. "So easily confused by seeing we two identical beings where they believed one. Cattle ripe for harvesting."

The crowd that had been watching moved away as the mirrored pneuma came together, one emotionless, the other wearing the mad face of the lost. Stoic and sensitized faced each other in silence for long moments, then the copy laughed. "Well. This is the first time we've met in person, isn't it? Are you not amazed at how well I can synchronize with my host?"

"You will destroy the body at this rate, fool," Inlé said.

Laughing, the copy said, "Inlé, Inlé! Surely you shouldn't be too worried about her. She is quite expendable. Certainly, you do not care for any of these people. Why then would you care if one or two dies?" The copy paused briefly, letting the words sink in.

"But," it sighed, "entertaining as that thought is, only one here needs die. And that is, of course, you. I know you fight well, because I fought as well as you, once. I've had just over a week to re-evaluate everything you and I know. Everything you remember, so do I. Until last week when we separated, of course. Which gives me the advantage, because while you have wasted your time in meaninglessly empty work, I have spent time focused only on how I could become you.

"Imagine my surprise when I realized what had happened! Such a sloppy mistake, really, but everyone--even you, it seems--makes mistakes."

"And what mistake was that, mimic?"

"Please. I do prefer copy. That is, of course what I am. A copy of you, a backlash from your time with Rensyd and Larjam. Surprised? You were overflowing with power--enough power to make a god! Of course there would be residual effects. Of course there would be some kind of backlash.

"All that power flowing through your blood, and you didn't spend hardly any time dispersing it. Of course, you were exhausted. You worked for two straight days. But letting something like that--that electric fire coursing through your veins--letting it sit as you rested, sit until it subsided to a dull hum you could account to fatigue, was a mistake. Because once that energy got loose, well." The copy bowed arrogantly. "I suppose I should be grateful. After all, 'Father', without you, I would not be a stain circling around within my 'mother'. Now like Zeus, and Chronos before him, I will usurp your position as supreme being and rule over these sheep in your stead."

The copy attacked, and Inlé dodged. The attack lasted for only a few moments before the entire crowd was yelling. Cheering. A fight! Excitement! Strange, but it's Halloween. Anything can happen, right?

The copy attacked wildly, punching and kicking at Inlé's dodging form. But it could read through Inlé's movements in a way no other opponent could, and soon scored a punch to Inlé's ribs. Inlé slid backward with the force of the blow, but remained standing.

The copy crowed with pleasure. "I'll bet that hurt. You gotta feel that, considering the state of your ribs. I gotta say, you're pretty limber for someone with only a week's recovery, even if it was accelerated."

"Perhaps," Inlé said, moving into a ready stance. "Come at me or I will come at you. You must be destroyed before you kill the host."

"Concerned? Why? You don't even know who she is."

"Perhaps. Or perhaps not. Either way, it is much more simple to correct this mistake while the host still lives. Her death would cause too many questions."

"You want questions, do you?" the copy asked. "How's this for questions?" It attacked Inlé, springing forward to punch up from a crouch. The blow missed, and the copy leapt into the air, following the attack. Immediately, it spun to drop a kick that Inlé was forced to block. The copy bounced off of the block and attacked with a spinning punch that was also blocked.

Each successive block kept the copy up in the air as it bounced off of a shielding forearm, elbow, or palm to continue the strike. The first two blows may have been possible, but the rapid and long succession of juggled attacks that kept the copy in the air quickly became unexplainable. The flurry ended when Inlé caught a kick and flung his duplicate to the ground.

The copy bounced agilely away from Inlé, recovering before it had hit the floor. Cart-wheeling into a ready position, it cackled wildly. "Yes! This is it! I've wanted this for so long I can't even explain it! As soon as I figured out what happened, I knew this fight would come. And here I come! I have nothing to lose, and everything to gain. How, then, can I not beat you?" He attacked again.

Now Inlé countered and occasional blows were landed by either opponent, but nothing more than a glancing blow here and there. The crowd was quieter, and had moved further from the dangerous dance at their center. The music ran on, forgotten. A few teachers had moved in at first to try and break the fight up, but had decided against trying to do so when they saw the supernatural ferocity of the fight.

The copy attacked with wanton disregard to its audience. It ignored everything but Inlé, and its attacks occasionally gave off shock-waves when Inlé could not block properly and was grazed by an energized fist or foot. Occasional bystanders were knocked from their feet by the blasts of air. The copy was fast, spinning around the relatively immobile Inlé as he struck from every angle he could imagine. Inlé's defenses were solid, and improved rapidly as the fight progressed.

After a few long minutes, the copy disengaged, panting. "How can you not be tired?" it asked in awe despite itself. "I mean, obviously I'm not fighting at a hundred in this host--it takes a lot out of you, believe me--but you're still recovering from getting seriously messed up. No way you could recover in five days."

"That is likely true," Inlé agreed. "But for me, it has been more than a month, due to meaninglessly empty work."

The copy grinned. "Ah, always a trick up your sleeve, eh? Well, I have one last trick, I guess. I'll have to finish this soon anyway, the host's about to croak. This'll be my last attempt either way. Well ..." The copy leapt up to the ceiling thirty feet above, flipping to stand squarely on one of the girders. It looked up/down at Inlé, with a manic, vicious smile on its face. The music faded as one song ended and another was slowly queued. "You ready for this?" the copy asked quietly.

Immediately, it leapt straight down at Inlé, and the crowd gasped as the two came together, Inlé catching both of his imitation's hands, holding it up. Teeth still clenched in a menacing grin, the copy's face took on a swollen look, and it vomited an enormous amount of blood down at Inlé.

Inlé's hand moved to block, but it was not enough to prevent the bulk of it from coating him. The blood began to tear into Inlé's flesh, surrounding his head and hand where they had made contact. The last thing Inlé saw before his eyes were covered was his own visage slipping from the unconscious face of one of his classmates. The asian girl. Inlé struggled once more to remember her name. M-something. Miki. Not, he noted, that it much mattered at the moment.

Inlé opened his eyes to his soulscape. The Borderlands were as bleak and blank as ever, but a red haze was beginning to rise around him. The copy stepped from the bloody mist, smiling.

"This is a coup," it said. "And this is the part where you lie down and die."

"I think not," Inlé said, readying to fight once more. But as his hands rose to a fighting position, a small weight fell to his elbow. He reached into his sleeve and pulled out a ring. It took him a few moments to recognize that it was the thing the orange goddess had given him. A bloodstone ring.

Inlé put the ring on and held his hand up. The mists flew to the stone, and were dissolved. The copy was also drawn quickly toward the ring, but it resisted.

"No," it yelled. "I refuse to fall this easily! Refuse!" It turned to run. "I'll find another way!" In a bloody spurt, the copy vanished.

Once more, Inlé found himself standing on the dance floor, looking down at the unconscious Miki. Blood ran from his body toward her, a serpentine thing flowing roughly toward her. Inlé let it reach the girl before squatting down beside her. He stretched the hand that still held the bloodstone ring, placing it on her stomach, firmly but gently holding her down.

Miki's face twisted into a strange parody of the copy's own features, and Inlé heard his own voice pulled from her lips. "Don't think you've won! You can't win! I had it all planned out! You can't win! I can't ... I can't ... !"

"I have won nothing," Inlé answered. "There was nothing for me to win. You merely lost. Rest now, this was a bad dream, and you were nothing more. Die peacefully, and let this girl live."

The possessed girl let out one more keening wail in a parody of Inlé's own voice, then fell silent. Inlé remained holding her until a mist of blood rose from her, and drifted into the ring. When he was satisfied that the infestation was thoroughly removed, Inlé stood and faced the awestruck crowd.

"Tanya," Inlé said calmly. "Make sure everyone is in this room, then close the doors." No one moved, and soon Tanya had closed the doors behind her, having found that every person in the building was in the room and watching.

Inlé walked to the DJ's booth and rose to stand on it. The music had stopped for good, and into the silence, Inlé spoke, "Everyone present, you have witnessed something damaging to your current understandings of the world. For that I apologize. I will now correct this mistake." A large bowl of incense was pulled from one sleeve, and from the other came a match, already lit. The incense was lit, and smoke wafted out into the crowd. Eyes glazed over, and people slowly fell into a trance. There was some small resistance, but not much.

Inlé held the ring up in his hand. "Many of you observed what just happened in its entirety, and so know why I am standing here, addressing you. For those of you who do not know, and those who do," he appeared to crush the ring between two fingers as he dropped it down a sleeve, "let me explain anew why you are here.

"Everyone has assembled so that the vice-principal could give a cursory greeting to relay the basic rules of this dance and to announce a costume contest where the teachers will judge in a few basic categories. The winners are to be announced Monday. Nothing unusual has happened, and nothing will. Everyone is here to have a good time, and no one wishes to do aught but have fun with their friends.

"That is all, enjoy your nights." Inlé put the censer away and walked back to where he had been before the fight, carrying the dazed, but recovering Miki with him. As the effects of the incense faded, the DJ made some brief comment, then began the next song. Everyone returned to dancing as though nothing unusual had happened.

Miki started to come to, and found Tanya and Inlé squatting beside her. Tanya looked concerned, Inlé as frustratingly impassive as ever.

"Are you okay, babe?" Tanya asked. "You just blacked out there for a sec. Here, drink this, it'll help a little."

Miki took the proffered cup and sipped. Tears welled in her eyes, then began to spill down. "Are you all right?" Tanya asked.

"I'm ... I don't know," Miki said. "I don't know why, but I just feel like I lost something." She tried to wipe the tears away, but they continued to flow.

"Was it valuable?" Inlé asked.

"I ... I don't know," Miki said exasperated. "I mean, I don't know what it is. I just feel like ... like there was something warm in me that's gone now. Like the feeling when you drink hot chocolate by a fireplace in the winter. No, like I had some kind of happiness for a moment, and now I can't ever get it back."

Tanya looked at Inlé for a moment, then back to Miki, but she couldn't think of anything to do about her friend's gentle sobs except to pull her close in an embrace. Miki leaned into the hug and cried quietly for a long, long time.

The rest of the dance was uneventful, as Inlé had suggested. And by Monday, the only excitement to be remembered would be the costume contest. Inlé, Tanya, Jim, and Miki walked home together, joined by the other two girls Tammy and Safiyya, who the girls called Mama. Jim started a conversation about the girls' costumes: Tammy in an outfit from an Indiana Jones movie, Saffiya as an African goddess, and Miki as a vampire, a simple disguise of tooth-cap fangs, black contacts, powder, and a simple black dress.

They talked more or less amiably about the nuances of costume design, as they walked Tammy, then Safiyya home, before the last four made their way back to Tanya's home. Miki was going to sleep over that night, as she was still shaken from the dance. Jim went to his house next door with a wave, and then Tanya, Inlé and Miki were on Tanya's front step, saying their good-byes.

"Are you sure we can't walk you home, Inlé?" Tanya asked for the third time.

"I am quite sure that I would prefer walking back alone than allow a pair of young ladies to walk tonight unprotected," he said.

"Like it's dangerous in Ersatz," Tanya rolled her eyes.

"One never knows what waits for the darkness. Moreover, it is best not to test this tonight. Especially with one of you so tired."

Miki smiled sheepishly. "I'm not that tired," she protested, despite her obvious exhaustion after the dance. She looked sick with fatigue.

"Nevertheless," Inlé said diplomatically, "it is far safer for me to walk alone than for the two of you to do the same."

"Really," Tanya asked. "I somehow see you getting into far more trouble in a day than the rest of us get into in a year."

"Perhaps. But I am better able to cope with such situations.

"Regardless," Inlé continued, "I will take my leave now. Rest well. You likely need a great deal of rest after tonight." Without waiting for good-byes, Inlé turned and walked off.

The next morning, Inlé was woken by a knock on his door. "Inlé? It's your mother." As if there were anyone else who would be around. "There's someone on the phone for you." This, Inlé noted, was a first. "It's a girl." Ah.

Inlé rose and went to the door. Opening it, his mother handed him the wireless receiver, open curiosity written across her face. "I thought you said she wasn't anyone important," she said, attempting to pull details out that weren't forthcoming.

"She was--and is--not," Inlé answered smoothly. "Likely, my next appointment will need moving or some other triviality." He lifted the phone. "Yes?"

"Inlé, hi. It's Tanya." The voice said.

"Of course," Inlé replied. "What may I do for you?"

"Um, I was wondering if you could help with some ... homework problems. Do you have, like, ten minutes?"

"Would I be able to answer over the telephone?"

"Uh, sure, if you don't mind."

"Very well. Please wait a moment." Placing his hand over the receiver, Inlé told his mother, "It is a classmate calling for help with some homework. May I use the telephone for a few minutes?"

"Of course," his mother answered, disappointed. "Take your time."

"You are not expecting any calls? One from Mr. Selina, perhaps?"

"Uh, no, Inlé. But he will be here around nine."

"Then you had best prepare," Inlé said. "You have twenty minutes."

Surprise lit his mother's face. "Oh! Oh! I can't believe I forgot! Should I wear blue or red today, do you think?"

"Perhaps a dark red. You wore blue last week, remember. Wear the jasper necklace, Mr. Selina will appreciate the amber pendant on it."

His mother kissed him on the cheek as she darted for her room. "Thanks, sweetie. Care to join us for breakfast?"

"Another time, perhaps, mother. I have a previous engagement today. And I have homework to do as well. Another time." He closed the bedroom door and lifted the receiver back to his ear.

"Sweetie?" Tanya asked, suppressing mirth.

"An affectionate term she is fond of. Certainly, your parents do the same."

"Yeah," Tanya agreed. "But I at least act the part."

Inlé changed the subject. "What homework problems did you wish to discuss?"

"None of them," Tanya said. "At least, not mine. I was just calling to give you an update on Miki's condition."

Inlé was quiet. "Has her condition worsened?"

"You don't have to sound so cold," Tanya pouted. "It's your fault she's like this."

"Like what?"

"Miserable," Tanya said, as if Inlé should have understood without her having to explain. "Whatever you did last night drained her a lot."

"Has she grown ill, then? pyrexic? chilled? anemic, perhaps?"

"No, maybe, no, and no," Tanya said, answering each question in turn. "Pyrexic's what, exactly?"

"An elevated body temperature."

"Ah. No, she's fine. Really, she looks better than she has all week. Whatever she was possessed with seems gone, that's for sure." There was a quiet pause, then Tanya continued in a more subdued voice, "Thank you, by the way."

"Why?" Inlé asked.

"For saving Miki. It probably would have been easier if you'd just killed them both, like with the grey guy.""

"Ah, so you remember."

"Of course. Was that your idea of a stronger hypnosis?"

"One can hope."

"Still not gonna work," Tanya said in a singsong voice. "You're stuck with me for a while, at least." She paused, then said, "So you're going to Maine today?"

"I plan to leave shortly, yes."

"And are you gonna pick me up first, or should I be heading over there?"

"What?"

"I'm saying I wanna go too. I've never been to Maine."

"No. Of a surety, no."

"Come on. If you're going to make it a day trip, you've got some secret way of getting there really fast, and I want to see it."

"I plan to walk there."

"Right, walk to Maine and back in a day. That's believable. You gotta give me more credit than that."

"Whether you believe or not is none of my concern."

"How, then?" Tanya asked. "Do you know some kind of shortcut?"

Inlé gathered his thoughts. Why was he telling her this? Because she's asking, he decided, and he refused to lie. Not outright. "Of a sort, yes. Though it is quite dangerous. Far too dangerous for me to take you along."

"And why is that?"

"What do you know of North American folklore?"

"Not much. Totems and animal spirits and ancestors, I guess."

"There is a realm called the Shadowlands that some of their lore speaks of, though theirs is hardly alone in this. The Shadowlands are something of a mirror to the lands they are attached to, and can, to a degree, expedite travel."

"That doesn't sound so bad. Is it dark?"

Inlé said, "No, not entirely dark. Merely light-less of itself. Perhaps it could be considered twilit by this world. But the paths shift, as shadows tend to do, and many creatures in that realm are less than amiable toward outsiders."

"So you're saying you don't want to have to protect me and yourself," Tanya said. "Look out for number one and all that?"

"To a degree, yes," Inlé answered. "I am unskilled in the arts of protection, and prefer to travel efficiently."

"I'd be dead weight. Way to make a girl feel worthwhile."

"Why not console your friend, or prepare for school instead? You would be better served in those pursuits."

"Maybe," Tanya agreed angrily. "But I'd rather do something fun. And you're the one going to the party. In Maine."

"It is hardly a party."

"All I know is there's never a dull moment with you around."

"That is because you are likely to die at any moment," Inlé answered as tonelessly as ever. He was becoming annoyed, but she wouldn't be able to notice.

"Only if you mess up," Tanya said. "And how often does that happen?"

"Thirty-seven point two per cent, statistically. Once in three. You have seen three successes personally. Would you truly like to risk this next endeavor?"

Tanya went quiet for a long time. At first, Inlé thought she was at a loss for words, then that she was considering her own odds. When the phone began making a tone, he realized that she had hung up.

Inlé rose fluidly from his seat on the floor and went to put the phone away. His mother came out of her room in a red blouse and russet pants. She had opted to wear earrings--a rarity. They were tiny maple leaves that shifted through the foliage colors depending on what angle they were seen at.

"How do I look?," she asked, fluffing her short hair.

"Lovely, as always, mother," Inlé answered as he replaced the phone in its carrier. "The earrings are a good touch."

"They were your father's favorites." She smiled dolefully. "He always did love the Fall."

"Certainly," Inlé agreed. "But he preferred maple candies to fall."

His mother's melancholy vanished with a twinkle. "He did!" she giggled, remembering. "He used to squirrel them away, then forget where he hid them! Do you remember how often we had to convince him we didn't take them?"

"Of course."

"He would pout for a bit, and then he'd find them and be happy as, well, as a kid with candy!" She chuckled lightly, but it faded to a sigh.

"I miss him."

"As do I, mother," Inlé answered. "But it is better to look to the future than the past. It is best never to begin a date depressed. Moreover, your date is quite perspicacious. He will notice your mood easily. Mr. Selina will arrive shortly, and you should be cheerful when he arrives."

As though summoned by the mentioning of his name, the polite knock of Mr. Selina echoed into the living room. "And here he is now," Inlé said.

"Oh! My purse is still in my room," Inlé's mother said. "Would you get the door?"

"Certainly," Inlé said. He opened the door to see not one, but two guests.

"Well, well," Mr. Selina said. "Good morning to you, Inlé."

"And to you, sir," Inlé replied. "And a good morning to you as well, miss Maslow." Tanya smiled unabashed as Inlé looked coolly at her. "Come in, please. Take a seat, sir, my mother will be out in a moment."

"Come on in!" Inlé's mother called from her room. "I just have to find my purse, then we can go!"

"Take your time, Emilia," Mr. Selina said again. "The food will wait for us." Inlé wondered what joke the teacher hid in those words. But not enough to ask.

"Would you like a drink, sir?"

"Thank you, Inlé, but no."

"And you, miss Maslow?"

"No thanks, I'm good," Tanya said, seated lightly on the couch while the men stood.

"You won't be here all day again, will you, Inlé?" Mr. Selina asked with a raised eyebrow. "You two are more than welcome to join us for breakfast, if you'd like. My treat." The offer seemed sincere, and there was a wry concern in his voice.

"It would not suit to be seen breakfasting with a teacher, sir," Inlé said. Then, quietly, he added, "Though this alteration makes the offer much more tempting."

"Ah," Mr. Selina said, understanding flashing in his eyes. Then, with a more amused look, he asked, "Unplanned, eh?"

"Yes."

Mr. Selina chuckled. "Ah well, we'll have to plan ahead next time. By the way, have you read this, yet?" He raised the book in his hand. "It's a novel about faeries in New York. Somewhat dark, but a good read."

"I have not, sir," Inlé answered. "I do not read fiction."

"No?" Mr. Selina did nothing to hide his surprised. "Hmm. I'd have thought you an avid reader."

"Sorry to keep you waiting!" Inlé's mother walked into the living room, and stopped. "Inlé, you didn't say you were having someone over!"

"I apologize, mother. She will not be staying long."

"Oh, no I don't mind. I was just ..." She gathered her thoughts. "Well, introduce us!"

"Ah. Mother, this is Tanya Maslow, a classmate. Miss Maslow, my mother, Emilia Crescenzi."

Tanya had risen as Inlé's mother had entered the room, and the two shook hands as Inlé named them. "Crescenzi?" Tanya echoed.

"My maiden name," Inlé's mother said. "I never took my late husband's name. Too much paperwork to deal with."

"No, no," Tanya said. "I mean the Emilia Crescenzi?"

"Well," Emilia said, suddenly self-conscious. "That would depend."

"My mother has some of your gardening books," Tanya said exuberantly. "And watercolors you did. Landscapes and sunsets. Wow, I never thought I'd actually meet you! And now you're a friend's mom!"

Emilia blushed. She didn't take praise well. "I'm not all that, really."

Mr. Selina chuckled. "It seems you're more famous than you thought, Emilia."

Her face flushed a red to match her shirt. "I'm ... well I ..."

"Mother," Inlé got her attention, "are you ready now? You have everything for the day, correct?"

Glad for the shift in conversation, Emilia said, "Yes, of course. My purse has everything I should need."

"Then perhaps you should go down for breakfast. You will not feel well if you do not eat something soon."

"Oh, yes," she smiled again. "We should get going. Will you two ... ?"

"Yes," Mr. Selina agreed. "The offer still stands. Join us for breakfast, at least. We'll be seeing a ballet afterward, and I've only two tickets for that, but the breakfast reservations were open for any number of people."

Inlé turned to Tanya, "I suppose you would like to go?"

"I'd love to!" Tanya said.

"Then I suppose we will join you," Inlé said.

Mr. Selina quietly chuckled as he and Inlé followed the ladies out of the apartment.

"I still don't see why you won't take me with you," Tanya complained as the two walked back from the restaurant. Mr. Selina had offered to give them a ride back, but Inlé had respectfully declined. There was no reason Inlé and Tanya couldn't walk the short distance, and it would make the couple late for their ballet.

"It is not merely that I will not" Inlé said. "I have neither time nor energy nor--to be wholly honest--strength enough to take you with me. If my information is correct, there are hidebehinds at the short end of my trip. One may well be equipped with a legendary and powerful magical weapon. I have only ever faced one hidebehind before. I was nearly killed. A rash implies several, at the least five. I would sooner face a coven of vampires or a sorcerous cabal of equal population. There are wards, at least, against the supernatural."

"What is a hidebehind, then? You're spooked by it because it's not supernatural?" Tanya didn't try to hide her confusion.

"They are quite natural," Inlé explained. "The hidebehind, Choloepus avorsus, is a creature considered cryptozoological in nature."

"Cryptozoological?"

"Cryptozoology is the study of creatures considered by most to be fictitious. For example, the yeti or the Loch Ness monster. There have been sightings, but not often by sources considered credible."

"Like Champ?"

"The Lake Champlain monster is one such creature," Inlé agreed. "The hidebehind, being a quite rare, generally solitary woodland creature, gained its notoriety due to its incredible ability and unusual diet. It is never seen by its prey, and it will hunt humans if they enter its territory."

"Hold it," Tanya interrupted. "You're telling me something is so fast it's invisible? And you call that natural?"

"The hidebehind is not invisible," Inlé corrected. "It merely avoids being seen by, as the name implies, always hiding behind its prey. Even should you turn around as quickly as possible, they will be behind you, having moved the faster."

"So they're super-fast cave-men that attack and kill you before you can see them. And you plan to hunt them. Great idea."

"They are not men. Their closest biological ties, if one credits evolution, are the pilosa. Specifically, the two-toed sloth."

"You're hunting killer sloths? Sorry, I'm calling bullshit. No way. Sloths are slow and lazy. And they eat plants. Plus they're tropical."

"The sloth can move at remarkable speeds for brief periods of time. The hidebehind has paired this with predatory cunning, though they are not humanly intelligent.

"But they are nocturnal. Should I come across them in the day, my chances of success quintuple. Were I not so delayed, I may have found the sword by now and been done without the worry of your 'killer sloths'."

"And what are your chances of success, mister all-knowing," Tanya asked, dripping sarcasm. "Surely, with such a phenomenal intellect, you've figured what your chances of success are."

"I have," Inlé answered, ignoring the mocks. "Had I arrived safely in Maine twenty minutes ago, assuming my course through the Shadowlands was successful, were I in perfect condition and there was only one hidebehind near the sword, my chances were approaching forty per cent success. That was the optimum result. Without factoring in any Shadowland activity, were I to leave now I would arrive in Maine in two hours' time, around the noon hour."

"Two hours to Maine from the middle of New York? I hate your shortcuts."

"You need not take them. Assuming my search takes me five hours--this would be assuming some slight travel, of course--my chance of success with one hidebehind is thirty-seven per cent. With five, it drops to twenty-five point eight."

"I see," Tanya said. "And what are the odds without me?"

"Those were calculated without you in mind."

"Then what are the odds with me around?"

"Factoring your survival?"

"Oh, I don't know." Tanya rolled her eyes. "Of course I have to live!"

Inlé was quiet for a while, calculating. Tanya decided to wait. He was quiet for so long that they had reached the apartment building and were in the elevator--alone--before he spoke again.

"Twelve point three per cent success, where you are injured but live. There is a point three eight per cent chance that you could manage unscathed."

"A one in eight chance we both get out alive? Most people don't even think these things are real! If they're so dangerous, why don't we hear more about them?"

"They are quite rare. There are perhaps a hundred viable females and a third as many males within the Americas. Also, they tend to attack humans only if the human is alone in their territory at night. And then only if hungry."

"Why should you be different, then?"

"Have you ever heard stories of a monster in a village?"

"Yeah ..."

"People eventually find the monster, no matter how it hides, but the animals are generally first to notice."

"Right, sure. Then they scare the monster off. What's that have to do with this?"

"Often, the monster is a predator, correct?"

"Sure, a vampire or a werewolf or whatever. What's your point?"

"Consider this: if a predator detects another predator--one that threatens the first predator in some way--what would the first predator do?"

"Attack, obviously. Nobody wants their home disturbed."

"Certainly. The hidebehinds are the first predator. I am the second."

"You're saying they'll consider you a threat."

"Undoubtedly. My first encounter was purely incidental. I was on a wholly unrelated mission, but the hidebehind woke and attacked without hesitation. I would still carry its scars under other circumstances."

"You mean if you were normal."

"Were I normal, I would be dead. On the other hand, were I normal, I would not have been attacked, and likely would not have been in Mexico at all." Inlé pushed the apartment door open and the two walked in. He walked toward the kitchen. "Would you like a drink?"

"Sure. Water." Tanya seemed subdued, pondering this information. Filing it away, no doubt, for future use. "Thanks."

They drank in silence, then Inlé said, "As it is, I have only a twenty per cent chance of reaching Maine in a timely manner. I am likely to meet resistance in the Shadowlands as well."

"So is that why you're so distant?" Tanya asked.

Inlé ignored her attempt at changing the subject. "If you would excuse me now, miss Maslow, I am already behind schedule due to an unexpected breakfast excursion." He stood and walked to the door, followed by Tanya. At the door, he opened it and waited for her to step out.

Tanya, however, still had other plans. "I know this trick," she said. "I step out expecting you to follow right behind me, gentlemanly holding the door as you are. But instead you close the door behind me, locking me out. Am I warm?"

"Perhaps you are," Inlé said, "though I was not attempting to appear gentlemanly. I am attempting to appear as a host does when showing a guest that they have long overstayed their welcome."

Tanya glared at Inlé for a moment, then her face lit up. "It's a shame your mother doesn't know you're going to be in Maine today." She did her best to look innocent. "I'm sure she'd want a souvenir."

Inlé showed no reaction as he said, "She would not believe it possible."

"And if she heard you did something awful to me?"

Inlé was quiet for longer than Tanya had expected. His eyes on her began to make her skin crawl. "Then I would hate to disappoint her," Inlé finally said. "She would likely believe me capable of whatever crime or sin you imagined up for me. But I do my best not to lie to her when only the natural is concerned. She would force me to 'confess' to her. But the only way I will tell her that I did 'something awful' to you will be because I did 'something awful' to you. Choose your slander well, girl, for it will not be slander for long. Likely more to your displeasure than my own."

Tanya believed him. Whether Inlé would actually follow through with his threat or not, she wasn't sure. But with a poker face as impenetrable as Inlé's, Tanya decided she wouldn't like to find out. It hadn't been long enough since she'd seen him kill a man in a dark alley. Or kill himself, somehow, in public. Without repercussions.

Another route must be taken.

"What if I stayed behind and got things ready for when you get back?" Tanya suggested. "You'd have a good alibi so your mom wouldn't suspect a thing?"

"She will suspect and assume more from your extended presence than from your absence when she returns. She has grown accustomed to my solitude."

"Well, I'm not leaving unless you force me out," Tanya said, angrily. "God, you might have something better to do, but I don't. I'm bored, and you're interesting. At least let me watch you leave. Then I'll go. You won't have to see me when you get back, I'm just curious to see how you do it. Is that too much to ask?"

Inlé thought for a moment, then closed the door. "You are a very foolish girl. Even moving into the Shadowlands is dangerous. You could be injured by being nearby. If you will accept whatever injury you may sustain, I will allow you to observe my passage. Observe. You may not participate, you may not ask questions. And when I have left, you will leave as well. Am I understood?"

"Not at all," Tanya said glibly. "But I'll do what you've told me to do."

"Well enough," Inlé said, walking to his room, Tanya still in tow.