‘So who do you think you are, then?’ Ureshino said, trying to provoke Rion. ‘What happened so you can’t go to school, eh? Spit it out!’

Rion’s eyes popped wide. Everyone was listening carefully for his response.

For an instant he seemed to hesitate. He pursed his lips and looked straight at Ureshino. ‘I am going to school.’

‘What?’ The others all gasped. But Ureshino wasn’t having it.

‘You’re lying! This late in the game, to lie like that – don’t you think it’s disgusting? I’m being serious here.’

‘I am not lying!’ Rion said. He grimaced and shook his head a few times, as if shaking off his thoughts. ‘But it’s not a Japanese school. I’m at a boarding school in Hawaii.’

Ureshino stared at him blankly.

The same astonished look spread around the group.

Hawaii.

A far-off southern island, gentle breezes, sea, hula dancing and palm trees – these images fitted the tanned Rion perfectly. It made sense.

‘In Hawaii, it’s night now, not daytime. I come here when school is finished. I’m staying by myself in a dorm, away from my family.’

She remembered that Rion always wore a watch. She hadn’t noticed it recently, so she hadn’t thought of it before, but he did always seem overly concerned about the time. And he was wearing a watch now, too.

Once Kokoro had asked him what the time was. He’d glanced at his watch, pointed to the grandfather clock in the grand foyer and said, There’s a clock over there, you know.

He knew that the time shown on his watch wouldn’t help her. Because it showed Hawaiian time.

‘Hawaii?’

It was Masamune who voiced the surprise they all felt. A crooked smile came over his face.

‘You mean – that Hawaii? You came here all the way from there?’

‘The mirror in my dorm room was shining,’ Rion explained with a frown. ‘Probably as it did for all of you. And I passed through it. The distance is irrelevant.’

‘Now that you mention it …’ A high-pitched, clear voice spoke up. Kokoro turned. It was Fuka. She looked intently at Rion. ‘When the Wolf Queen first explained things to us, she said the castle was open from nine to five, Japan time.’

Ah, Kokoro thought. She’s right.

‘It struck me at the time – why did she say Japan time? She said it for your sake, didn’t she?’ asked Fuka.

‘I don’t think that’s the only reason,’ countered Rion.

‘Then why?’

‘Because you’re an elitist, that’s why.’ Masamune didn’t mince his words and it clearly made Rion uncomfortable. He fell silent. When he eventually looked up, in that flash of an instant, Kokoro couldn’t help but notice the hurt lingering in his eyes.

He shook his head.