Yeah, I'm joining up a little late... sorry.

********

At age twenty-one, the Headmaster's right-hand man looked more like a punk teenager than a high ranking official of the Order. Tattoos covered his upper back and arms, and his face, while relatively attractive, was scarred from a knife fight. He wore eyeliner, like some member of a boy band, and the tips of his spiky black hair had been dyed an electric blue.

Currently, he was perched up in the top bunk of his bed, devouring a turkey-and-tomato sandwich. For someone who had been at meetings for the last seventy-two hours straight, the hasty snack was better than a tray of gourmet. Each bite was savored, but the experience ended too soon, and he was left staring regretfully at his empty hands.

The door flew open, and Sanza, his roommate, burst in. "Kyo! Kyo! They've captured one of the Runaways!"

His head snapped up. "Where?"

"In the Omega wing, cell 632."

"The psychiatric ward? He's going to try that?"

Sanza nodded, but bit her lip in hesitation. "He's probably going to call for you soon. They'll be needing you for interrogation, if all doesn't go as planned."

"Huh. Where the Runaways are concerned, nothing goes as planned. I'll be down there in a sec."

"Um, Kyo? There's something you should probably know, before you go..." Her voice trailed off, and she tugged worriedly on her braids. "Look, I don't want you to freak out or anything, Kyo, but-"

"Spit it out!"

"The Runaway they captured; it's Rhyanna."

Kyo gagged slightly, and stiffened. In a moment, he had regained his composure, but he was sure that the tiny slip hadn't been missed by the watchful eyes of Sanzo.

"Rhyanna?" he asked in a carefully modulated tone. "Lovely. After all these years, a family reunion with my favorite cousin. I wouldn't miss it for the world." He snatched his bag of tools off of the bunk and hopped down. "See ya!"

~Crysanth

A bizzare-looking man burst into the room. Rhyanna let out a little gsp of recognition as he apologised to the headmaster for being late.

"I know you! You were there... when my mom and dad were signing the forms for me to go here!" she cried. 

"Yes, yes..." the headmaster said impatiently. "Now, I could tell you why if you just would let me...."

"Why is your nose so big?" she asked, realizing that stalling might just hold him off long enough.

"None of your business!" he snapped.

"What's this cell called? "

"632, psychiatric ward,"' he droned, knowing the sooner he got the runaways together, the better.

It's 632, Nissa. Psychiatric ward.

And somewhere, Nissa heard her.

(Sorry so short, I kinda have writer's block.)

I'm kinda pressed 4 time, so this is gonna be short.

Mindy, Nissa, and Carter had been walking in the woods for what seemed like hours.  All of a sudden, Nissa stopped short.  "Whoa, what happen..." Mindy started, as she banged into Carter.  "Shush!" he whisperd to her. 

"She's in the psychiatric ward," Nissa murmured. 

"So...um....how do you get here from, say, the woods?" she asked.

"Just follow the paths lined with whitish-gray stones, my dear" he smiled.

"And, is it a long way? On the path, I mean?" Rhyanna asked, slowly, as to not reveal what she was after.

"Not at all, my dearest. It is but half a mile."

"And the building looks like...?"

"It is tall and gray, my dear little girl. Call your friends over and we'll all hear about your parents, okay?" he glared at her. He meant do it, now.

"But-"

"Please, I do not want to have to have your cousin deal with you.."

"Okay, okay I'll do it! " Nissa, follow the path with the gray-white stones for half a mile, then enter the tall gray building. But BE ON YOUR GUARD!!! 

"Excellent, Rhyanna, now, sit here and wait, but don't try any mind reading on your cousin, for this is the Psychiatrist's Ward. It would do you more harm than good," the headmaster cackled.

"Nissa, are you okay?" Mindy asked.  "She's in a trance," Carter told her, "Rhyanna mut be trying to comminicate."  Nissa had been sitting on a tree stump with her eyes closed for about an hour.  "If she doen't come out of it soon, I'll just carry her the rest of the way," Carter added. 

"No need," Nissa said.  Mindy gasped.  "Nissa, finally!" she shouted.  "Follow the path," Nissa said.  Mindy looked down at her feet.  There was a path of stones.  "That was there the whole time and I didn't notice?!" she shouted.  Probably because I was so worried about you she thought But still I always notice things.

Nissa stepped forward and added, "Oh, and she is so excited to see you."  Me? Mindy thought.  "No, Carter," Nissa interrupted her thoughts.  "I thought you were a contortionist," Mindy said.  "Oh, everybody in the circus get a chance to hone thair psychic skills," Carter told her, "Even the elephants."  "That's how the circus runs so smoothly," Nissa chimed in.  "Ya, right!" Mindy shouted, then ran along the path.  When she was far enough away that she couldn't hear them anymore, she rested. Mindy, think of a number. Nissa's voice cut through her thoughts.  Mindy looked around.  Nissa was nowhere to be found.  Must be still behind me. Yes, now think of a number. There she was again. Fifty- one,  Mindy thought.

Nissa and Carter came walking up behind her five or ten minutes later.  "Fifty- one!" Nissa shouted.

I will get Nissa back online.  It may take a few days though.

"Nissa Nissa Nissa!" sang Rhyanna as she sat, guarded by her freaky cousin. "Where are are yoooouuuu!?"

She looked around. No one but Kyoto. And he was to weird to talk to. All those tattoos...

"Hey!" she yelled. "Your tattoo has a picture of Nissa!"

"Uh huh," he grunted. "You're not my only cousin."

"We're all your cousins? So that guy, the headmaster, is your DAD?"

"Yup," he said.

"And my uncle! Um...sooo..where's my dad?" said Rhyanna.

"You'll know when The Runaways come." 

"Oh."

Rhyanna thought about that. What was so special about all the Runaways being together. Then she remembered something Nissa had told her.

"We stick together 'cause a lot of kids are more powerful than just one," she had told her when the Runaways formed.

"Why do we need power? Are we in trouble?" Rhyanna asked.

"No, but there are many people who would love to get us in trouble," Nissa had answered. 

With a shudder, Rhyanna realized  she had been caught by one of those people.

"They're coming," whispered Rhyanna.

"Headmaster,  Rhyanna says the Runaways are close," Kyoto said into a walkie talkie.

"Good," crackled the reply, "I'll have Gregari and Mokley escort them in."

"Excuse me, um, Kyoto? The cargo is on solid ground." A young woman, probably a little girl transformed, poked her head in the door.

"The Headmaster says to bring it on board," he answered. Rhyanna figured this meant the Runaways had arrived and were to come in.

"Nissa? Are you there?" she called.

"Rhyanna!" the older girl rushed in with the Runaways. After them came the Headmaster.

"So we are all well aquainted, yes? Now, my friends. I will tell you your story and, ah, where your parents are," he smiled.

"No! Guys! Don't listen to him!" cried Rhyanna.

"But you do want to know. It is in your hearts..".

"Well, now, don't you want to know where your parents are? A little girl needs a mommy and a daddy," the Headmaster smiled, fakely.

"Leave my sister ALONE!" cried Nissa.

"I don't want a mommy and daddy! They sent us to your horrible school! They were bad people. I only need Nissa!" wailed Rhyanna.

"LIAR!" screeched the Headmaster. "I know you've been searching for them. I know you mindread the crowds at every performance! I know your mother is Alice Von Broom and your father is Alexander Von Broom! I know everything! EVERYTHING!!!".

"Okay, I-I guess we want to know about Mommy and Daddy. Runaways?" Rhyanna asked, slowly.

The Runaways slowly nodded, although inside they were sharpening their psychic  swords.

"Then let us begin," the evil man cackled.

Mindy had felt like she was in a trance while the headmaster and Rhyanna were talking.  Curse that evil headmaster, she thought.  The headmaster's evil laughter cut through her mind, releasing her from the trance, just in time to hear Nissa, Carter, and Rhyanna give in.  "Wait, no!" she shouted, "He'll toy with your minds!" Suddenly she sensed that was why they were giving in. She supposed that once he was dissecting their minds, they could do the same thing to him and find out exactly why they were here. She slowly felt something that felt like a dagger piercing through her mind. She cried out and folded up in pain. He had started. And no word of Rhyanna's parents.  That lying freak. THANK YOU FOR THE COMPLIMENT, MINDY!!!  Soon she got used to the pain.  Now to work the reverse...

The italics are Mindy's thoughts. 

The all caps, italics are the headmaster's thoughts in her head.

You're going to join ME, little girl! came a voice in Rhyanna's head. Now, just think your darkest secrets and this will go over peeeeeeaaaaachyyyyy...

No. You can't make me! 1 and 1 is 2. 2 and 2 is 4. 4 and 4 is... oh, why can't I go to school? Rhyanna thought.

So you don't go to school? Intellectually weak, hmmm? the voice teased.

"THINK DULL THOUGHTS!" cried the girl.

Now, now, little miss intellectually deprived, we can't have that strain on your weensy mi-ind! the voice taunted.

I AM NOT DUMB! I AM NOT!!! she mentally screamed. It threw the Headmaster back.

Touche... now if you're not dumb, prove it. Sign your name on this contract, said the voice.

Well, mister smarty pants, I know that as soon as I sign that contract, you'll transform it into a document saying I joined your ranks. Therefore, I prove I'm not dumb by not signing it, so THERE! she thought.

Dear, dear, it appears I'll have to hypnotize you. Clear your mind....

Rhyanna remembered something like this in A Wrinkle in Time. So she began,

I am Rhyanna. Rhyanna the Runaway. I am nothing but Rhyanna. And so, like the book I am so fond of, MARY HAD A LITTLE LAMB!!!! and so began the Battleof the Brains.

Carter watched his sisters and friend being pulled into the headmaster's trance.  He knew by the look on their faces that he pulled them into alternate realities, at the same time.  He took a deep breath, then plunged into Mindy's reality.

"I'm here, Mindy," Carter's voice called out in Mindy's head.  Just... ogay ntoiay ishay indmay*.  She thought her hardest.  "What?!"  Don't you circus people know Pig Latin?!?!?!  "Oh, ah... oh, I see what you're doing.  I'll do my best!"  All of a sudden, the headmaster's voice burst through her mind.  WHAT IS THIS PIG LATIN?  WHY DO I NOT KNOW THIS ONE LANGUAGE?!?! 

Because you don't.  Nyah Nyah Nyah Nyah Nyah! Now don't think about Pig Latin.  Anything but Pig Latin.  Ummm...

Under the sea... Under the sea...

YOU TRY TO DEFY ME, ME!, BY SINGING A DOGGONE DISNEY SONG?!!?!!?!?!?

Yes...  Darling it's better down where it's wetter, take it from me!!!

"I got into his mind.  Er, tried.  Ya see, he's kind of a robot replaced by an evil person in place of my... uncle, I guess.  He should shut down if I can get out of your mind and into Nissa's," Carter said.  You do that! Mindy thought happily.  Up on the shore they slave away... 

*=Go into his mind.  I might have translated this into Pig Latin wrong.