Anna remembered the incident as if it had just happened. A group of Taelons had been touring London when they insisted on seeing the slums, to the tour guide's displeasure. She herself had been running errands for the shop owners in the busy downtown, going between a floral shop and an apartment in the “uppity zone”, as she called it.

It had been when she had delivered a bouquet of roses for a rich gentlemen when she turned the corner and felt her hat knocked off her head seconds before she fell onto the pavement.

“Ow! Watch where yer...” she trailed off as she stood up and saw that she had run into, of all things, a Taelon! “Oh...beggin' yer pardon,” she said as soon as she got up, “I didn' hurt ye none, did I?”

“No, I am unharmed,” he replied.

“If ye'll be excusin' me, then,” she said and quickly ran back to the floral shop to see if there were any other errands to run. The owner had shook her head and paid her for her time, then sent the girl on her way.

She hadn't thought about it until a couple of ours later, when she was on another errand for one of the taverns in her home area when she heard a language that made her blood run cold.

Tha's fire, and nae the kind tha' folks make tae keep warm.

“Cor Blimey!” she snapped and ran towards the source of the fire. Within minutes, she saw that the tavern that she had been running the newest errand for was in flames. There was a crowd looking on in panic.

Aw bloody 'ell! Anna thought and shouted, “Don' jus' stand 'ere, call the bloody firehouse! You, get some buckets o' water!”

The crowd dispersed quickly, then she looked right at the fire and asked, “Awright, who brought ye tae life?”

The answer was immediate. Peter Higgs.

“Wot caused it?” she asked and thought, Tha' bloody idiot!

He was furious at the owner for refusing to serve more drink, so he went around the back and gave me life.

“What are you doing?” she heard a somewhat familiar voice behind her.

She replied, “Wha' do ye think I'm doin'? I'm talkin' tae th' fire to find ou' whodunit! Do me a favor an stop bein' a wallflower--”

After she turned to the speaker, she turned pale, with eyes wide.

In front of her had been the Taelon she had run into before.

“Yer the one from b'fore! Beggin' yer pardon.”

“We will talk later. I will see if anyone is inside while you see to putting out this fire.”

“Let me find tha' out,” she said, “”ey, anyone inside?“

The owner and two patrons were not able to get out.

She relayed the information to the mysterious Taelon, who merely nodded and went into the flaming building.

Wot's he thinkin'? He'll get killed in there! She thought as she saw another Taelon come near.

”'ey, you help ou' too! There's a hydrant a' th' corner, see if ye can get th' water flowin',“ she said.

”That will be simple enough,“ he said and went over and flashed blue...right before he picked up the entire structure, causing water to flow as though in a geyser.

Tha's nae wot I meant, but it'll work!

By then the first Taelon came out, carrying two people over his shoulders. As he set them down, both were coughing and gasping for air.

”Th...Thank ye,“ one of the people, a middle-aged man, managed to say to him. The benefactor merely gave a small nod before going back into the flames.

It was right then that the people came to the water and filled their buckets, forming an assembly line.

This'll 'elp until the firemen come, Anna thought as she joined the chain. Surprisingly enough, the Taelon that had destroyed the hydrant was right behind her.

”Jus' pass th' bucket to me when it's full an' pass it b'hind ye when it's empty. Got it?“

”Yes.“

For a few minutes, the humans and Taelons worked to pass buckets to try to put out the blaze. Within a couple of minutes, the first alien came out with the other person, a young woman, and set her down carefully before joining the bucket line. A few minutes later, the paramedics and fire truck arrived

Once the fire was put out and the survivors were taken to the hospital, the two Taelons turned to Anna.

”It seems that you are able to talk to fire,“ one of them stated.

”Aye, an' nae jus' fire. I talk tae the feathered friends o' mine, too.“

”Feathered friends...? Oh, you mean birds.“

”Don' ye be callin' them by tha' word 'ere. 'ere in London, th' ladies are birds.“

”Very puzzling.“

”I reckon it'd be to ye gents. Thanks fer helpin' wi' puttin' tha' fire out.“ She took a breath and continued, ”Come tae think o' it, I've nae tol' ye who I am. Anna Newkirk, a' yer service!“

The Taelon who had spoken before said, ”I am Quo'on, and this is An'or.“

”Nice tae be meetin' ye two.“

”Perhaps we should escort you to your domicile while we speak on the way.“

”Dom'cile? Oh, ye mean my 'ome. Ain't got one o' those.“

”What about your parents?“

”Ain't got any o' them, either. I sleep on th' rooftops an' earn me daily bread by runnin' errands 'bou th' city.“

”I see.“

”'ow 'bout we do any chattin' o'er at this one deli I knows 'bout? I goes there for errands an' for me supper.“

* * *

For the next few days after that, she added errands for the Taelons to her list of tasks. However, instead of paying with money, they made sure that she ate three square meals, instead of maybe one or two.

Kinda odd tae be workin' fer my daily bread this way, but I likes it, she thought, But 'ow do they pay fer the food, I wonder?

Now, five days later, Anna felt pecking on her shoulder, which was her method of being woke up.

”Ow...nae peckin' sae hard, okay?“

It's a little early, but I have a request from the Taelon Leader Quo'on, the crow replied, Go to the Kingsfield residence and escort Abigail to the auditorium, then remain there for the second half of the testing.

Anna brushed herself off and laughed, ”Tha's one request I'd gladly take any day! All right, lemme get intae m' best ones an' I'll go.“

Within minutes, she scurried down the pipe from the roof. Once she was on the ground, she turned a corner and got into her totally brown outfit and shoes. As soon as she was changed, she quickly went towards the ”uppity zone“.

This's one time tha' not even Forbes can chase me off, nae withou' trouble from th' Taelons. It's funny, I'm guessin' tha' Quo'on don't trust those snakes any more than I do.

Within a few minutes, she was at the front door of the Kingsfield residence. Anna took a deep breath and rang the doorbell.

The door opened and the stern butler, Forbes was in the threshold.

”Top o' th' morning tae ye, Forbes me pal!“ she greeted.

”I am not your 'pal'. Do you have business here, or should I call the police?“ he asked in a cold voice.

”I'm 'ere on business, all right. I've been sent tae escort Ab'gail Kingsfield tae th' testin' a' th' 'ditorium.“

”Is that so? Odd, since we were told that the Marks sisters were going to be here to pick her up. Now I suggest that you leave--“

”Aye, 'tis all true. 'Course, if'n ye don' b'lieve me, I can always tell th' Taelon Quo'on tha' ye wouldn't let me do as he wishes me tae do.“

That made the butler go pale.

”Quo'on, you say?“

”Yeah, as in th' 'ead o' th' Taelons. Ye know, tha' Quo'on.“ She snapped her fingers and said, ”Ye know wot? Ye got one o' those global thingamajigs? We can go an' call o'er tae the testin' site an' ye can ask 'im yerself--“

”Th-that will not be necessary. Wait here and as soon as miss Abigail is finished eating, I will send her out to you.“

”Thank ye, Forbes! I knew ye'd come 'round. Jus' tae be nice, I won' tell 'im abou' this little chat.“

”Of course,“ he replied and closed the door again.

By the time that the sunrise peaked through the trees, Anna was still standing, shuffling her feet about as she waited.

Wot's takin' 'er so long? Her mum or maybe th' butler didn't tell 'em I'm ou' 'ere? He better not be doin' tha', or I'll ha' tae be nice an' noisy!

Right then, the door opened and Abigail came out and closed to door, not looking to see who was there.

”Abou' bloody time, Abby! Your mum give ye an earful again?“

* * *

An'or came out a few minutes after Abigail had returned and merely said, ”Anna Newkirk.“

The black-haired girl jumped from her seat and quickly followed the Taelon into the main part of the auditorium and over to the listening areas. An'or gave the same explanation to the others.

”How many o' them ye want me tae do?“

”All except for the third station.“

”Why's tha'?“

”We used a recording of the fire as test material on that one.“

Anna laughed and said, ”Yeah, nae sense in me usin' tha' one since I was in it meself. Awright, then, 'ere I go!“

As she went to each of the stations, Quo'on stood in a nearby area, observing all four of the girls and their reactions.

Of the four, I would say that the strongest two would be Abigail and Anna. The sisters have a lot of promise, despite their...attitudes. With the right Patron and the difficult regimen that the school provides, they should improve.

Anna went with An'or outside, where the cat was. A couple of the birds flew towards her, one landing on her shoulder while the other was on her cap.

”Top o' th' mornin', Tainbel,“ she greeted, ”How're ye runnin' th' garden t'day?“

Quite well other than the sisters coming by.

”Yeah, I know. They're a pair of snakes fer sure. Yer nae terrorizin' th' feathered friends, are ye?“

Why would I do that? The cat replied, to which the birds spoke the contrary.

”Blimey...this may be yer garden, but they live 'ere too. Ye've gotta learn tae share th' place, ye hear me?“

You can't change a cat into a dog, Tainbel growled.

”Aye, but ye can learn tae live with 'em. Looks like I gotta get goin' now. Ye behave yerself, ye hear me?“

The cat merely blinked and meowed innocently.

”Innocent my arse....yer as innocent as th' two snakes,“ she muttered.

As she and An'or went to the waiting room, they noticed that it was now empty.

”Nae need tae ask wot 'appened,“ Anna grumbled, ”Those two sn...sisters took off with Ab'gail right after she was done with testin'. Do ye an' Quo'on need anythin' else?“

”No, not at the moment. I or he will send one of your friends if we do. For now, you should get in a meal.“

”Thank ye kindly,“ she replied and saluted in the Taelon manner before taking off.

* * *

Nine days later

The day had been a busy one. She had gone to each of the businesses that she ran errands for and told each owner that she would not be doing so anymore, as well as why. They each took the news well. One of the clothing shops presented her with a gift: a pair of outfits and a nightgown.

”You'll be needing them where you're going,“ the owner, a middle-aged woman explained. Anna made sure to thank her properly.

The floral shop where she had run many errands gave her some money as a parting gift, while one the deli had made sure that she had a good meal for lunch.

The inn where she had run almost as many errands as the flower shop had given her a free supper, and then surprised her by insisting that she spend the night with them. She had insisted on paying for the room herself, until she found out that the room had already been paid for...by Abigail Kingsfield. That fact on its own made her accept the offer.

Surprisingly enough, there was a visitor: Wendy, Abigail's maid. The woman took one look at the Cockney girl and decided to personally attend to giving something that Anna hadn't had in some time: a hot, soapy bath.

”That hair of yours is just too short, near your ears. You look like a boy,“ she had said after Anna had dried off and gotten into the new nightgown.

”So wot? I like it! Lets me do jobs tha' call for either chaps or birds!“

”So, you're going to have to let it grow out.“

”Aw, bloody 'ell...“

”Now now, no complaints. You'll be too busy to keep it that short anyway.“

”I s'ppose. Oh, m'thanks to ye an' Abby 'bou' th' room 'ere. Nice an' comfy, it is.“

”You can tell miss Abigail tomorrow...but you're welcome, just the same.“

It had been a short time later that Wendy set up a wake-up call and then left, letting the Cockney girl get some sleep.

The next day

Anna grumbled as she got up, carrying a bundle to a nearby room. When she came out of the bathroom, she was wearing a pair of black shoes that were a little tight for her liking, as well as white socks and a dress that was the color that was popularly called Taelon Blue. At the collar and sleeves was a single white stripe.

This's gonna look all weird on me, she thought as she gathered her things and checked out of her room.

”You look very nice in your uniform,“ the innkeeper commented.

”It looks all wrong,“ she grumbled.

”You'll get used to it. I have a message from the Taelon Quo'on. You're to go to Heathrow, where you'll gain transport across the pond, to the city of San Francisco. You've got your passport, right?“

”Yep, I got it yest'rday.“

”Good. Now get going...and good luck.“

”Thank ye. God bless ye.“

* * *

Anna had planned on running the whole distance to Heathrow, but as soon as she had left the inn, she heard a honk coming from a car horn. She turned and found Forbes driving, with Abigail in the backseat, wearing her own uniform.

”Wendy, Abby! Mornin' tae ye!“

”Get in,“ the young girl said in a tone that did not allow for any objections.

”Yer th' best, Abby,“ Anna replied with a smile and got into the passengers' side of the car, beside her friend. ”How'd ye manage this?“

”It wasn't easy, I'll admit. I told Forbes that it would bring good karma to the family to give a fellow student a ride to the station.“

The black haired girl laughed at this. ”Wha' abou' Wendy?“

”Most likely, she'll either be working in another part of the house or dismissed, now that there is no need for me to have a maid now.“

”Tha's a shame.“

The girls chatted quietly until the car pulled up in front of Heathrow station. They got out and Abigail said a quick farewell to the butler before heading for the ticket booth.

”May I help you?“

”Abigail Kingsfield and Anna Newkirk. We're going to the Songcrafter school in San Francisco,“ Abigail quickly explained and showed her passport, while Anna followed suit.

”Yes, everything is in order. Follow this person to the waiting area,“ the person behind the booth.

”Thank ye, 'ave a nice day,“ Anna replied.

The two girls went to the designated area and found ten students, five boys and girls, all in similar uniforms as Anna and Abigail.

Amongst the girls, two familiar voices spoke up, loudly.

”My, my...now we know why Kingsfield was not at her home when we arrived this morning,“ Catherine said.

”Don't tell me that the little guttersnipe's a student too,“ Elizabeth added while looking down at Anna.

”Yep, I am. Gots me uniform an' passport, too. Got news fer ye, Ab'gail's th' one tha' picked me up, nae th' other way 'round.“

”Hmph. Think what you like, little dreamer,“ Elizabeth replied in an icy voice before turning her back to Anna and Abigail.

Oi! A new future's startin', but those twits want tae drag in th' past...attitudes 'cluded. I hope An'or's right, tha' they'll d'cide to get along wi' me an' the others.

”Oh, did you hear?“ Abigail said, cutting into Anna's thoughts, ”An'or's going to be transporting with us students via shuttle. He's going to be the headmaster at the school.“

”Get outta 'ere!“

”I'm serious.

Now I know things're gonna be interestin'.