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conversation in which she and Eddie had discussed combat and defensive moves, giving me the impression that Jill was fairly athletic. She and Eddie had even talked about practicing later that night and -

"The sun," I groaned.

"Huh?" asked Micah.

I'd mentioned my concerns about the sun to Stanton, but she'd dismissed them. She'd just advised that Jill be careful to stay inside - which Jill did. Except, of course, when school requirements made her take a class that kept her outside. Forcing her to play sports out in the full blaze of the Palm Springs sun was cruel. It was a wonder she was still standing.

I sighed, making a mental note to call the Alchemists later. "We're going to have to get her a doctor's note."

"What are you talking about?" asked Micah. The game was back on, and he shifted into position beside me.

"Oh. Jill. She's... she's sensitive to the sun. Kind of like an allergic thing."

As though on cue, we heard Miss Carson exclaim from the other court: "Melrose Junior! Are you blind? Did you not see that coming right toward you?" Jill swayed on her feet but took the criticism meekly.

Micah watched them with a frown, and as soon as Miss Carson was off picking on someone else, he darted out of formation and ran over to Jill's game. I hastily tried to cover both his and my own positions. Micah ran up to a guy beside Jill, whispered something, and pointed back at me. A moment later, the guy ran over to my team and Micah took the spot beside Jill.

As class continued, I realized what was happening. Micah was good at volleyball - very good. So much so that he was able to defend his spot and Jill's. Without seeing any blatant blunders, Miss Carson kept her attention elsewhere, and Jill's team grew a little less hostile toward her. When the game ended, Micah caught hold of Jill's arm and quickly walked her over to a shaded spot. From the way she staggered, he seemed to be all that was holding her upright.

I was about to join them when I heard loud voices beside me.

"I'm getting it tonight. The guy I talked to swears it's gonna be badass." It was Slade, the guy who'd sparred with Trey earlier. I hadn't realized it out in the sun in the middle of the game, but he was the player Micah had swapped places with. "It better be," continued Slade, "for how much he's charging me."

Two of Slade's friends joined him as they began heading toward the locker room. "When are tryouts, Slade?" one of his friends asked. In chemistry, I'd learned Slade's first name was Greg, but everyone seemed to refer to him by his last name, even teachers.

"Friday," Slade said. "I'm going to kill. Like totally destroy them. I'm gonna rip Juarez's spine out and make him eat it."

Charming, I thought, watching them go. My initial assessment of Slade had been correct. I turned toward Jill and Micah and saw that he'd gotten ahold of a water bottle for her. They seemed okay for the moment, so I caught Miss Carson's attention as she walked by.

"My sister gets sick in the sun," I said. "This is really hard on her."

"Lots of kids have trouble in the heat at first," said Miss Carson knowingly. "They just need to toughen up. You handled yourself okay."

"Yeah, well, she and I are pretty different," I said dryly. If only she knew. "I don't think she's going to 'toughen up.'"

"Nothing I can do," said Miss Carson. "If I let her sit out, do you have any idea how many other kids would suddenly 'feel tired in the sun'? Unless she's got a doctor's note, she's got to stick it out."

I thanked her and went to join Jill and Micah. As I approached, I heard Micah saying, "Get cleaned up, and I'll walk you to your next class. We can't have you fainting in the halls." He paused and considered. "Of course, I'm totally happy to catch you if you do faint."

Jill was understandably dazed but was with it enough to thank him. She told him she'd meet him soon and walked to the girls' locker room with me. I eyed the grin on Micah's face, and a troubling thought occurred to me. Jill seemed stressed enough so I decided not to say anything, but my concern grew when we left for last period. Micah walked with Jill, as promised, and told her