Taeyo looks up at the sky. “Is the sun too bright? Sorry, Emmett. I should have brought my sunglasses for you. I have two pairs, so I definitely could have given you one of them!”

He is completely oblivious to Emmett’s sarcasm, and for some reason, that makes me warm to him. Sure, Taeyo’s vibrant color palette is a world away from Emmett’s all-black uniform, but there’s an earnestness about the guy that makes him easy to be around. And anyway, I actually think his outfit’s kind of cool—even if he is a bit overdressed for the zoo.

He holds up what looks like Boris but also doesn’t quite look like Boris. “I think you guys forgot your friend.”

He unfolds the scooter and wheels it toward us. Blue scales. Wagging tail. Cute little wings. It’s Boris, all right. But now he’s almost twice his original size, and he’s been souped up with fancy new wheels and some mysterious new toggles at the handlebars. It even looks like he’s had a good polish.

“Whoa!” Emmett exclaims. “What happened to him?”

Taeyo grins. “Our engineers gave him an upgrade this morning. He was returned to your room, but you must have missed him.”

Emmett pulls Boris protectively toward him and narrows his eyes at Taeyo. “Is this some kind of trick to bait us? Did your mom put you up to this?”

Taeyo frowns. “My mom?”

“Sora,” I say. “Did Sora tell you to follow us?”

Taeyo looks confused. “Sora’s not my mom. Not really.”

Not really? What kind of answer is that?

Taeyo glances at me. “My parents were killed in the conflict, too. Sora and Austin and some of the other adults took me in, so, in a way, they’re all my parents, I guess.”

Emmett and I exhale sharply. Yesterday, Sora had looked at me and Taeyo weirdly when she was talking about the innocent lives Sookhee had taken. Was this why?

“I made it clear I don’t want to join your clan, so if that’s why you’re here, you can go back to campus.” I feel bad speaking so bluntly, but there’s no time to beat around the bush. “Unless you can help find the last fallen star, you’re not much use to us. No offense.”

“Well, actually, I think I can help with that.”

Emmett and I look at him suspiciously. If he knew a way to find it, why was he telling us instead of his clan?

“Elaborate,” Emmett says.

Taeyo holds up his phone. “I’ve been working on an app. It’s still in beta phase, but if I’ve programmed it right, it should allow us to talk to gwisin.”

“Gwisin?!” Emmett and I both yelp.