"Higher, Ethan!" the little girl laughed. She soared through the air, wind flinging blonde curls in her face. "Higher!" He sighed, but it was with a smile, and grabbed the chains on either side of her, pulling the swing back to send it flying forward. She cheered.

Their mother watched on with an amused smile, almost hesitant to interrupt their game. "Food's ready, you two."

Both children stopped and ran through the grass towards her, eager to eat. She slid two plates onto the glass patio table. "Cara, I want you to eat the green beans this time."

"But—"

"No buts."

Cara scrunched her face into a pout but took a fork without another protest.

"When will Dad be home?" Ethan asked.

"He's working late but he'll be back before you go to bed."

They sat down to eat, a blissful family with no idea of what was to come. What might have been.

I had to break it. They wouldn't understand what I'd done yet, not for some weeks still, but now was the time to put things into motion. I stepped into the little backyard, greeted by the children's shouts as both leapt up from their plates.

"SAM!" they cried in near-unison, running to me with identical smiles. I caught each in my arms, unable to help a

smile of my own. They were so young, so innocent.

"What are you doing?" Ethan asked as he stepped away. "I wanted to see you." I brushed a stray curl from Cara's

eyes. There was no trace of anything but joy in her young soul—safety. "Let me look at you both. Cara, little Blue, what do you hear?"

Her brow furrowed in concentration as she studied my face. "Lots of things. It sounds like music."

The edge of my apprehension eased; her answer was far from a clear reassurance, but it was on the right track. "Good girl. Go on back to your lunch." She returned to the table without question, though her mother gave me a quick, worried glance. I didn't return it. Not yet.

Ethan waited patiently until I turned to him. "What do you see?"

He took a long moment to answer, searching my face. I could see the struggle in his eyes, and knew it was the difference between them. Cara answered with the fullest truth she could; Ethan would find the balance between the truth and what he thought I wanted to hear. "It's like light," he told me finally. "And it's gold, but there's black around it, too."

I nodded, the brief triumph I felt at Cara's success wavering. I held out one hand to him, letting a single silver orb collect itself in my palm. "Take it." He reached to it, but yanked his hand back sharply as soon as his fingertips made contact. It left no mark on his fair skin, but he studied his fingers cautiously, and then the orb. "It's alright," I assured him, letting it dissolve into air again. "You don't have to be able to take it yet."

"What is it?"

"Don't worry about that now. I want you to listen to me, alright?" I waited until he nodded to continue. "Soon you won't need me anymore. You'll have to learn on your own."

"How do I learn on my own? You're supposed to teach

me."

"I've taught you what you need to know, but you have to teach yourself some, too. Do you understand?"

"I don't know."

I put my hand to the side of his face, looking into his eyes. The deep, scared eyes of a child on the edge of a cliff— he'd walk away from the edge or fall off, and it was his choice alone. "You'll have to be strong. You'll have to be strong for your sister and for your parents and for me. I know you can be, because it chose you and it doesn't choose the wrong people. It will be scary and difficult, but you must promise me that you'll be strong through it all. Can you do that?"

He blinked and looked down to the ground, but nodded. "I-I can try to."

"Promise me, Maize."

"I promise. Will Cara be okay? And my mom and dad and you and everybody else?"

I stood, giving him the warmest smile I could. "Everybody will be fine."

Cara looked up, eyes wide. "Don't go! Come eat with us."

"I have other places to go. I'll see you again soon, like always."

"But you just got here." Her face fell, and I suppressed a laugh as I crossed the yard to her.

"I need you to make me a promise, too, Cara. Can you do that?" She nodded eagerly, straightening up. "I need you to promise you'll always take care of your brother like he takes care of you. Always, whatever happens."

She looked surprised at such an easy request but did her best to mimic my serious tone. "I promise."

"Good. Don't forget."

Ethan stopped me again as I turned to go. "Wait, SAM! When will you leave?"

"Never." I put a hand atop his head, upsetting his ever-

tousled dark hair. "I'll always be watching over you, making sure nothing happens to you. But you'll know when our lessons are over."

"I made a promise to you so you have to make a promise to me. Promise you won't leave. You can stop teaching me but you can't leave."

"I promise, Ethan."

"Forever?"

He was so young, he couldn't understand the meaning of that word. Not truly. But even so I had no heart to lie to him.

"Until the day I die."