“Ummm…are we too early? Is school not even open yet?” asks Ashley. She turns to Tobias.

“No way, I’ve been here earlier than this a zillion times before,” he replies.

“Yeah, me too,” River says.

“In fact, isn’t part of the school’s policy that the doors are always open in case we need access to the library or labs for our homework?” asks Ashley.

“Yup. Hang on, step back,” says Tobias.

We take a few collective steps down and then Tobias walks forward, Aero flying close behind him. The doors slide open for him and he walks inside.

“Must’ve just been a glitch,” says Ashley. She walks ahead of me, Jupiter trotting at her heels, and passes through the doors without difficulty.

My stomach sinks, but I try not to think about it. As I walk back up the steps, my worst fears are confirmed. The doors won’t open for me.

“Oh no,” says Kai.

The doors open again as Ashley steps through to find out what’s happening. Her face goes ashen as she realizes what this means. It’s me.

I’m no longer allowed into Profectus.

“Come on!” says Kai. He grabs me under one arm, River grabs the other, and between them they hustle me into the building. I get through the doors. They don’t slam shut. No alarm goes off. I wonder if I can breathe a sigh of relief.

But then there’s a flap of wings and the sharp tap of heels on the rich mahogany flooring. It looks like my entrance back into school isn’t going to be as simple as I thought.

“Miss Lacey Chu? Can you come with me?” Dr. Grant, our principal, does not sound pleased to see me. Last time I spoke to her, though, I was pretty rude. Maybe she just wants an apology.

“See you later.” I give Team Tobias a small wave, and they look at me with varying degrees of concern on their faces.

“See you in Gathering,” says Tobias, with a reassuring smile.

But the look in Dr. Grant’s face tells me that might be a long shot.

Slick has been unusually quiet, and I reach up to my shoulder to make sure he’s there. I follow behind Dr. Grant’s neat beige block heels, shuffling along in my winter boots. Just a little longer, and then things will go back to normal, I think. You’ve been away for a month. Maybe they’ve changed the settings on the door, or they need to do a new orientation. There must be an explanation for all this.

She leads me into her office, shutting the door behind her. None of the secretaries lift their eyes to greet me. It’s as if they don’t even see me anymore.

“I’m sure you had difficulty getting into the school this morning.”

Heat rises in my cheeks. “Yes, ma’am,” I stutter.