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He had forgotten she didn t know who he really was, or anything about him. Or maybe a week.
It s kind of hard to explain, he told her. I m not going to be a kid for very long, so I can t make any
long-term commitments.
She laughed. You really are strange, you know that? What kind of Wyr breathes fire?
There was a pebble stuck in the sole of his shoe, and he reached down to pick at it. My kind, I
guess.
Seriously, are you keeping it a secret?
As he opened his mouth to tell her he didn t know if it was a secret or not, a tall, strange girl ran
up to them. She was one of the older kids. She asked, Are you Liam Giovanni?
He nodded.
Mrs. Teaberry said to tell you to come into the classroom now.
Disappointed, he glanced at Marika, who might or might not be his girlfriend. But recess isn t
over yet.
The strange girl lifted one shoulder. Not my problem. Teacher wants to talk to you.
Sighing, he stood, and Marika did too. She grinned at him. Yes.
It took him a moment to realize what she meant. Then happiness made him grin back. Really?
Yes, weirdo. Really. See you later. She punched him lightly on the shoulder and took off.
He said to the strange girl, I m dating an older woman now.
Not bothering with a verbal reply, the strange girl curled a nostril at him before she took off too.
Cheerfully, Liam made his way back to the classroom. It was funny how everything had been so
strange at the beginning of the day, but he knew where he was going now, and the hallways and the
classrooms seemed familiar.
When he walked into his classroom, it was empty except for Mrs. Teaberry, who was in one
corner stacking plastic tubs filled with supplies on top of each other.
He asked, You wanted to talk to me?
Straightening, she turned to face him, and the lines on her face didn t look friendly at all. Yes, I
did, she said. We have two issues we need to settle. First, you need to know that liars won t do
very well in my class. They won t do very well at all.
His cheerfulness faded into confusion. More than a little disturbed, he cocked his head. Are you
talking about me?
Looking exasperated, she said, Of course I am. Surely you haven t forgotten that you claimed to
have read my entire bookshelf in a matter of minutes.
Clenching his hands, he said through his teeth, But I did.
She pointed at him. You need to tell the truth right now and admit you were lying.
His mouth dropped open, and he stared at her. You want me to do what?
You have to change your behavior, or I promise you, you re going to have a very tough first year,
which leads me to the second issue we need to address. I heard you have a cell phone, and you were
taking phone calls during morning recess. That s against school policy, and you ll have to give it up.
She walked toward him, holding out her hand.
His mind flashed back to earlier, when Andrew and Joel had been watching him with such
satisfied smiles, while Brad had disappeared from sight. Marika had said his phone would get him
into trouble, and it looked like the other boys had made sure of it.
As Mrs. Teaberry approached, he backed away. I can t. I m supposed to keep my phone with me
at all times.
Unacceptable. Give it to me right now. She wiggled her fingers at him demandingly.
Shaking his head, he said again, I can t.
Her expression turned incredulous and angry. You re in big trouble, young man. This is my
classroom, and in here, other rules don t apply. You do as I tell you. Hand it over.
Nobody had ever said such a thing to him before. And anyway, he didn t believe it. Dad s rules
applied everywhere.
His body turned very hot, then cold. This felt completely unlike what had happened with the other
boys. With them, he had acted on instinct, a certain amount of predatory cunning and on snippets he
had heard about how the sentinels handled problems, but Mrs. Teaberry was an adult and his teacher.
He was supposed to mind her, but he also couldn t go against the safety rules. Starting to tremble,
he shook his head. No.
Mrs. Teaberry s eyes flashed. Lunging forward, she grabbed him by the shoulder.
Shocked, Liam tried to twist away, but her grip on him was too strong. If you won t give it to
me, Mrs. Teaberry said, I ll just have to take it.
She rammed one hand into his pocket, searching for the phone. He struggled against her hold.
Stop you can t do that. I m supposed to keep it with me.
Her fingers dug into his shoulder like claws, and she shook him. Everybody always thinks the
rules don t apply to them, she snapped. But they do. They apply to you too, mister.
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