• The sound of knocking on her door woke her from her dream. She looked toward the window to see that the sun had already risen. She was surprised by this. Normally, Gihan would wake her before the first signs of dawn appeared in the sky.
    "Who is it?" she asked.
    There was no answer, so Jana rose from the bed and went to the door. Looking through the spyhole, she saw a well-dressed man standing in the hallway. She wasn't sure if she should open the door, and without realizing what she was doing, she sent a telepathic message to Gihan.
    Should I open the door, Gihan? she asked.
    Jana, is that you? he asked.
    Yes, she said. Why?
    I have never heard of a changeling being able to use telepathy before, he said. Who is at the door?
    A short, well-dressed man with a mustache, she replied.
    What does he look like?
    He has muscular arms, black hair, and blue eyes, she said, looking through the spyhole again.
    Does he have any scars or distinguishing marks?
    None that I can see, she said. Wait--it looks like he has a thin scar running through his left eyebrow.
    Do not open the door, he said. I will speak to him first.
    Okay, she said.
    Gihan finished his breakfast, then donned his lightweight robe and opened the door to his room.
    "Do you require assistance, sir?" he asked. The man turned to look at him, and disbelief crossed both their faces.
    "Gihan Mohamo, is that you?" the man asked. Gihan nodded.
    "I cannot believe what I am seeing!" he said. "I thought you died years ago!"
    "No, although once or twice I very nearly did," the man said.
    "There is much that we have to catch up on," Gihan said. "But first, there is someone you should meet."
    Dress quickly, Jana, he said telepathically.
    Why? she asked.
    You will see in a few moments, he said.
    Alright, I'll be out in a few minutes, she said.
    Fifteen minutes later, Gihan, Jana, and the stranger were seated in the back room at the café.
    "Jana, this man is the reason I was able to find you," Gihan said. "This is Briar Greyspoke, an old friend of mine. Briar, this is Jana."
    "Has she no surname?" Briar asked. Gihan shook his head.
    "None that I know of," he said.
    "Why does she not have a surname?"
    "My parents had different last names," Jana said. "My siblings and I weren't sure which one we should use, so we chose not to use either one."
    "How many siblings do you have, Jana?" Briar asked.
    Something in Briar's voice and eyes told Jana not to answer, so she asked instead, "Does it matter?"
    "Yes, actually, it does," Briar said.
    "Why does it matter?" Gihan asked.
    "I've been keeping track of Jana for several years now," Briar said, "but until recently, I had no idea that she has siblings."
    "Why were you keeping track of me?" Jana asked, slightly disturbed by the thought.
    "For your protection," Briar said.
    "How long have you been keeping track of me?" she asked.
    "Four years," he replied.
    Immediately, there was a flash of red light around Briar, and Jana sensed that he was lying. Just then, Briar's voice spoke in Jana's mind.
    What does it matter that I've been watching her since she was five? he was thinking. She'll never find out the truth, either about this or her parents.
    Jana blinked when Briar thought this. What did he mean when he said she'd never find out the truth about her parents?
    "You must have a good reason for wanting to know how many siblings I have," she said. Briar shrugged.
    "I'm just curious," he said. There was another flash of red light, and Jana heard his thoughts again.
    Why doesn't she just tell me, so that I can get permission to capture and relocate them? he thought. Once that's done, I'll come back for her.
    "If you've really been watching me for as long as you say you have," Jana said, "then you should already know how many siblings I have."
    Watching Briar's face, she saw annoyance flash briefly in his eyes.
    "I never saw you with anyone that I thought might be related to you," he said. The resulting flash of red told her he was lying.
    I'm starting to grow tired of this conversation, he thought.
    "You've surely seen me around someone you thought I might have been related to, at least once before," Jana said, trying to trick Briar into telling what he knew. Whatever he did know, however, he wasn't going to say aloud. Thus, Jana had to rely on his thoughts to reveal what he really knew.
    I'm not about to tell her that I know she has two older brothers and an older sister, he told himself.
    He's lying, Jana told Gihan silently. He knows exactly how many siblings I have, and what gender they are.
    How do you know? Gihan asked.
    Every time he lies, I see a flash of red light, she said.
    How many times has he lied?
    Three, so far, she answered. Once about how long he's been watching me, once when he said he was just curious about my siblings, and once when he said he'd never seen me around anyone that he thought I might be related to.
    How do you know he knows about your siblings? Gihan asked.
    Apparently, I possess some of the abilities of the golden dragons, she said. I can hear every word he thinks.
    Does he know you can hear his thoughts?
    If he does, he hasn't shown it yet, she said. And he said something odd.
    What was it?
    He said that I would never find out the truth about my parents, whatever that means.
    "What is your true reason for wanting to know how many siblings Jana has, Briar?" Gihan asked.
    "I told you, I'm merely curious," Briar said. The flash of red appeared again, and this time, Jana tried another approach to get him to talk.
    "What do you want with me and my siblings?" she asked.
    "Nothing, Jana," Briar said. "There is nothing that I want from any of you."
    No flash of red appeared, so she knew he was telling the truth.
    "I think you misheard me, Briar," she said. "I asked what you wanted with me and my siblings, not what you wanted from us."
    "All I wish to do is protect all of you," he said. Red flashed around him, and Jana shook her head.
    He wants to capture and relocate my siblings, she told Gihan. Then, if he's able to accomplish that, he plans to come back for me.
    Let me try something to shake him up a bit, he said.
    Go for it, if you think it'll work, she said.
    "Briar, you claim you have only been watching Jana for four years," he said.
    "That's true," Briar said.
    "But surely you have done your homework and researched Jana's family?" Gihan asked. Briar looked confused.
    "No, I didn't, Gihan," he said. Red flashed. "Was there some reason I should have done so?"
    "Yes, there are several reasons," Gihan said, nodding. "Number one being that Jana and her siblings are orphans."
    Briar blinked once when he heard this, but the look in his eyes told them both that this was not news to him. If anything, the look in his blue eyes suggested that he knew far more than he was telling, or willing to tell.
    "From the look in your eyes, you are hiding something," Gihan said.
    "What would I have to hide?" Briar asked.
    "You know something that you do not want us to know," Gihan said.
    "Like what?" Briar asked.
    "Like the fact that you are not what you seem to be," Gihan said.
    "Is anyone truly what they seem to be, Gihan?" Briar asked, looking directly at Jana as he spoke.
    "What are you looking at me for?" Jana asked.
    "Not everyone is truly the way they seem to be," Briar said, "especially when one loses their parents at such a young age."
    "I thought you didn't know anything about my family," Jana said.
    "I don't," Briar said, and red light flashed.
    "You're a horrible liar, you know that, right?" she said. Briar blinked, momentarily caught off guard.
    "I haven't been lying!" he said indignantly.
    "Yes, you have, Briar," Gihan said.
    "What proof do you have against me?" Briar demanded.
    "The way you hold your eyes when you lie has always been a dead giveaway," Gihan said.
    "Name one lie that I've told you," Briar challenged.
    "You've been watching me for 15 years, not four," Jana said. "You already know exactly how many siblings I have, as well as what gender they are. You have seen me with someone that you thought might've been related to me. And you don't really want to protect me and my siblings."
    "You have no proof of anything you just said!" Briar exclaimed. "How do you know all those things?"
    "Shall I tell Gihan what you're thinking right now, Briar?" Jana asked quietly. "Or do you start telling the truth?"
    "You don't know what I'm thinking!" Briar said. "It's impossible!"
    If she somehow knows what I'm thinking, she's even more dangerous than I first thought, he thought. She mustn't learn of the prophecy!
    "Why am I more dangerous than you first thought, Briar?" Jana asked. "What possible danger or threat do I pose?"
    He also said something about a prophecy, she told Gihan.
    "You don't pose any threat to me or anyone else that I know," Briar said. No red flash occurred, so he was telling the truth.
    "Then who does Jana pose a threat to?" Gihan asked.
    "Or what do I pose a threat to?" Jana put in.
    "You pose no threat to anyone or anything that I know of," Briar said. Again, there was no red flash.
    "So if I pose no threat to anyone or anything, why do you think I'm more dangerous than you first thought?" Jana asked.
    "It isn't that you are a threat, because you aren't," Briar said.
    "Then what is it, Briar?" Gihan demanded.
    "It's what may happen if she continues to travel," Briar said.
    "What could possibly happen if I continue to travel?" Jana asked. "I want to travel and see new places, meet new people, and learn new things."
    "Then you must prepare yourself for what you may find," Briar said.
    "What do you mean?" Jana asked, confused. "Will I find something that could harm me in some way?"
    "That is a possibility," Briar said.
    "What about the prophecy?" Jana asked.
    "What prophecy?" Briar inquired.
    "You tell me, Briar," she said. "You were the one who thought of it."