Taneshia Rogers and her parents entered the office of Sheriff Sanderson, where he sat waiting patiently.
     When he noticed who had entered, he was slightly surprised.  “Taneshia?  You’re the one with some additional information?”
     “Yes, sir,” she said in a near whisper.  “I also told Mr. Cranston about what the car looked like.  I also…know a lot more than that.  I’ve just been…too afraid to come forward.”
     The sheriff nodded but was not very surprised.  “Let me guess, someone didn’t want you to say anything; otherwise he or she would hurt you for telling the truth.”
     “Yes.”
     He then asked her to sit down in front of him.  “Okay, Taneshia.  Just tell me calmly and slowly what you know about the accident.  Take as much time as you need, okay?”
     Taneshia took some deep breaths and soon began explaining the whole story about Valerie’s accident…

     On Monday afternoon, Taneshia was called into the main office of Vagley High, located near the front door.
     Mr. Cranston’s secretary gave her the message.  “Your parents just called, Taneshia, and they said they’re going to run late because their car’s become disabled about five miles away.  Do you have any other ride home?”
     “No, I don’t.  Maybe I can get one of my friends to get me home.  Thanks, Mrs. Stansbury.”
     As Taneshia headed for the front door of the school, she ran into Valerie.  “Hey, girl.  Man, Spirit Week is off and runnin’ already.”
     “Yeah, Wild and Crazy Day went so cool today.  I can’t wait for Retro Day tomorrow.”
     “Cool, and I’ve got an outfit already for that.  Mom’s got one of her wild 70s outfits that’ll fit me perfectly.”
     “I think Mom and Dad are looking through the attic to see if they can find one for me,” said Valerie.  “Well, I’d better go.  I’ve got a load of homework tonight and a big test come Thursday in English.”
     “I’ve got that one in Chemistry on Friday…those periodic elements are gonna give me nightmares.”
     “I had to deal with it last year, and I’ve got a sure-fire method that’ll help you get through that chart.  We’ll talk tomorrow about that, okay?”
     “Great.  I’ll see you tomorrow.”
     Valerie walked out of the building, as her house was only eight blocks away from the school.  She could walk to and from school with very little problem.
     Taneshia, though, still had a problem:  no ride home.  However, she noticed Angel and Cassie.  “Hey, guys.  Mom and Dad can’t come pick me up.  Their car’s gone down.  Would you mind if I, um…”
     Angel put her arm around Taneshia’s shoulder.  “Need a ride home?  Of course you can.  We were just on our way out anyhow.”
     Cassie smiled, too.  “Yeah, Angel’s gonna drop me off at the house.  You can sit in the back if you want.”
     “Thanks.  I owe you big time.”
     “Nah, it’s cool,” said Angel.  “You’re good with us.  Let’s get outta here and head home.”
     The three cheerleaders went to Angel’s blue four-door sedan, with Taneshia taking the back seat and Cassie in the front passenger seat.  Angel took the steering wheel, and within minutes they were out of the school parking lot.
     On the drive home, Angel started up a conversation about the upcoming game against Gurney.  “Oh, man, I can’t wait to trash Gurney on Friday.  Only one team’s going to the playoffs, and it’s gonna be us, not them.”
     “Got that right,” said Cassie excitedly.  “This is the week both schools have been waiting for.  The winner of this game is guaranteed a spot in the playoffs.  We’re gonna thrash Gurney into the ground.”
     Taneshia laughed heartily.  “And I thought trash talking only existed where I came from up north.”
     “Oh, no,” said Angel.  “We have our fair share around here, too.”
     “You would not want to be up there…they go as far as serious cursing, even in school.”
     “Whoa…no wonder you came down here to Gurney, North Carolina.”
     “Yeah, when it was the big rivalry game, there would be an average of about 100 students from the two schools who weren’t allowed to come to the game for cursing.”
     Cassie shook her head.  “That’s a scary thought.  Would attendance be down?”
     “Mm-hmm.  And security would be upped a little bit to make sure there wouldn’t be any fights between students and parents.  You know how that is nowadays.”
     “Yeah, I’ve heard reports about parents getting into fights at their kids’ games.  That’s just stupid…ruining the fun for the kids.”
     Angel listened intently to the conversation when she noticed Valerie walking up the street.  “There she is,” she said, her voice turning cold and face becoming mean.
     Taneshia noted, “There who is?  Oh, it’s Val.  I didn’t know we’d catch up with her right away.”
     “Yeah…and she’s going to pay…”
     “Pay for what?  What did Val do?”
     Cassie answered, “Simple, we caught Valerie talking to someone from Gurney last week, some girl named Ellie Peterson.”
     “So?  What’s wrong about that?”
     Angel angrily said, “No one from Vagley is ever allowed to speak to anyone from Gurney High School.  Doing so makes her a traitor…and she must suffer the consequences.”  She then started pushing her foot down on the accelerator.
     Taneshia noticed the speed increasing.  “Angel, what are you doing?”
     Cassie smiled wickedly.  “Go for it, Angel.  Make that traitor pay.”
     Valerie started to cross the street, but she was almost completely oblivious to what was happening behind her.
     Taneshia gasped in fear.  “Angel, stop it!  You’re going too fast!”
     Cassie yelled, “Run her down like she deserves!”
     Angel soon swerved the car into the side of the street Valerie crossed.  “You’re going down!”
     Valerie heard a screeching sound behind her, but before she could react, the car hit the backpack on her back, which sent her a good 25 feet forward.  She landed with a hard thud on the ground and was unable to move.
     Angel quickly returned to the right side of the road and slowed her car down to the speed limit again.  “Nailed her but good!”
     Taneshia turned around and saw Valerie lying unconscious on the ground.  “Turn around, Angel!  She needs help!”
     “I don’t go back to help turncoats,” she said angrily.  “She got her just desserts for speaking with the enemy.”
     “Got that right,” Cassie stated with a nasty attitude.  “Vagley students need to stay away from the Gurney garbage.”
     Taneshia was in near panic.  “Give me that cell phone, now!  I’m going to call for an ambulance!”
     Angel shouted, “You will do nothing!  Get an ambulance and then the cops trace it back to us…and then you’ll go to jail, too!”
     The junior cheerleader became very frightened.  “Me!?  I’ve never done anything wrong in my life!”
     “Believe me, my dear Taneshia,” said Angel.  “If we go down, so will you.  If you don’t want to go to jail, you will say nothing.  If we find out you’ve told anything about this…we’ll make sure you can never say anything again.”
     Taneshia had no other choice.  The two cheerleading captains were bigger in height than she was.  “All…all right.  I won’t say anything about it.”
     Cassie smiled with a nasty grin.  “Good, Taneshia.  We’ll make sure of that…”

     “Will you…arrest me for concealing information…or as an accessory to a crime?” asked Taneshia tearfully.
     Sanderson then walked up and kneeled next to her.  “It’s all right, Taneshia.  I’m not upset with you.  Apparently you were just in the wrong place at the wrong time.”  He then rubbed her shoulder for some comfort.  “Now, I know you had no intention of this happening, but you were in the same car.  Even though that is being an accessory to the crime, I believe you were just an innocent bystander.”
     Her parents were very surprised at her confession.  “Honey, why didn’t you say anything sooner?” Willis asked with worry.
     “I couldn’t, Dad.  They threatened to hurt me if I said anything to anyone.”
     “Who, Taneshia?” asked the sheriff.  “Who are they?”
     She took a couple of deep breaths and finally said her answer in a near whisper.  “Angel Marrero and Cassie Robbins.  Angel drove the car while Cassie encouraged her on.”
     When Jerria heard the two names, she was in complete disbelief.  “The two captains of the cheerleading team!?”
     “Yes, Mom.  They threatened me if I told the truth.  I was scared…I didn’t know what to do.”
     Jerria came up to her daughter and hugged her tightly.  “Oh, sweetie, I wish you had told us, but we understand.  When something like this happens and you’re forced to keep quiet, it’s hard to find the courage to speak out.  Somehow, you did, though, and for that we’re proud of you.”
     The sheriff smiled as well.  “I’m also proud of you, Taneshia.  It takes a lot of guts to come forward and tell the whole story.  Now, can you describe the car completely?”
     “Yes, sir, I can.  It’s the same blue four-door sedan with North Carolina plate 026MTO.  It belongs to Angel.”
     “Thank you, Taneshia.  With this information we now can place an arrest warrant for both Angel Marrero and Cassandra Robbins.”
     Willis then asked, “What about Taneshia?  Will she be arrested?”
     “No.  She’ll be placed into protective custody because she’s willing to testify against them both in court.  Of course, we have to arrest them first.  Taneshia, whatever you do, don’t leave your home for any reason until we’re sure the two are in custody.  I don’t want you to get hurt.”
     “I understand, Sheriff,” said Taneshia in a surprisingly calm manner.  “I’ll stay in the house with Mom and Dad.  Besides, I’ve got a lot of homework and that test tomorrow in Chemistry.”
     “Good.  That’ll take your mind off the situation for a little while.  Mr. and Mrs. Rogers, I will personally notify you when we have both girls in custody.”
     Unbeknownst to all of them in the office, Angel and Cassie had followed Taneshia and her parents.  They overheard everything.
     “I don’t believe it,” Angel whispered in anger.  “That idiot’s sold us out!”
     Cassie hesitantly said, “Yeah…she did, didn’t she?”
     “She’s going to pay, and we’ll kidnap her at her house.  We’ll need your car.”
     “But…Angel, I—”
     Angel grabbed Cassie by the shirt.  “Don’t argue with me!  We’ll snatch her from her room.  Her parents won’t suspect anything.  Now come on!”
     “Okay, okay, if you say so.”
     The two girls quickly left in Cassie’s car and went to a spot about one block away from Taneshia’s own house.
     About 20 minutes later, after Willis parked the car in the garage, all three family members walked into the house.
     Taneshia said, “I’m gonna go ahead with the homework, especially the periodic chart.  That’s a key tomorrow in chemistry class.”
     “Okay, Tan,” said Jerria, “we’ll let you know when dinner’s ready.”
     Taneshia then went to her room on the far side of the house.  “Hmm, it’s a little warm in here.  I’ll just open the window.”
     A few seconds after she did open the window, though, someone put a hand over her mouth and pulled her through the window.
     Angel covered her mouth and made sure Taneshia could not scream.  “So, you thought you could get away with telling everything to the sheriff, huh?  Well, traitor, you will pay for your treachery.  Cassie, grab her feet.  We’ll put her into the trunk of the car.”
     Cassie took Taneshia’s feet but then said, “You sure we need to put her in the trunk?  She’ll have no air to breathe.”
     “I don’t care!  She needs to be taught a lesson for being a traitor against Vagley!  I just don’t want her to know where we’re going!  Now move!”
     The two girls put her into the trunk and quickly sped away for an undisclosed location.

     Meanwhile, Mrs. Marrero sat near the dinner table and wondered where her daughter was.  “Where is Angel?  She was supposed to be home more than an hour ago.  Where could she be?”
     Just then, the telephone rang.  “Hello?”
     “Mrs. Marrero, this is Sheriff Sanderson.  Is your daughter Angel home?”
     “No, Sheriff, she’s not here.  Why?  Is she in some kind of trouble?”
     “I’m afraid so.  She’s one of two people we’re searching for in connection with the hit-and-run accident on Monday.”
     “Hit-and-run?  You mean she—no, the car…”
     “The car?  What kind of car?”
     “My daughter’s car: blue, four-doors, North Carolina plate 026MTO.  It has a huge dent in the front fender.  She claimed a shopping cart hit it.”
     This caught the attention of the sheriff.  “Where is the car, Mrs. Marrero?”
     “In the garage.  Would you like to see for yourself?”
     “Yes, of course.  Thank you, Mrs. Marrero.”
     In a matter of minutes, Sheriff Sanderson was in the garage of the Marrero home.  “I’m sorry about this, Mrs. Marrero.”
     “No, don’t apologize.  I should’ve known my daughter was involved in this mess.  Why did she have to do this here?”
     “According to Taneshia, she obviously has something against students from Vagley having any type of communication with those from Gurney High.”  He then added, “I hate to do this, but we have to impound the car.”
     “In this case, I am glad to let you have this car.  If my daughter is the one responsible for running down that cheerleader, I will not bail her out!”
     “Calm down, Mrs. Marrero, calm down.  I know you’re upset, but this won’t—”
     “I…I’m sorry.  This is what I wanted to get my daughter away from.  I guess I can take her out of the area, but I can’t take the area out of her…”

     Cassie drove her car with Angel to a spot on the outskirts of Gurney, which also bordered against the forest.  “Okay, we’re here.”
     “Good,” said Angel.  “Now to teach little Taneshia a lesson.  Let’s get her out of the trunk, shall we?”
     The two cheerleaders removed Taneshia from the trunk and dragged her into a lonely alley.
     Cassie again tried to act tough.  “You shouldn’t have told anything, Taneshia.  Now…you have to pay the price.”
     “Oh, yes,” added Angel, “and believe me, you will suffer the consequences for turning your back on us!”
     Taneshia slowly awakened after her ride in the trunk compartment.  “Wha…where am I?  What’s going on here?”  She then noticed Angel and Cassie.  “Wait, guys, let me explain!”
     Angel grabbed her by the shirt.  “What’s there to explain, Taneshia!?  You told everything when you promised you weren’t going to!  Because of your big mouth, we’re going to face jail time, but so will you!  However, I’d rather give you a punishment street style like I did growing up in South Central L.A.”
     “I had to do it, Angel.  It was eating me up on the inside, and I couldn’t take it anymore.  I had to tell the truth…even if it meant going to jail myself!”
     “You would rather risk going to jail!?  How stupid could you possibly be?  I’d rather see the rivalry go to all-out war, like it should be!”
     Cassie was shocked at Angel’s mean behavior. Taneshia decided to take a stand against us, but I feel bad for her and worse about myself for going along with Angel to begin with.  Perhaps Tan was right to go on and tell the truth.  I only wish I could do something to help her right now, but then Angel could threaten me, too.
     During this time, none of the three cheerleaders noticed they were being closely watched…by something not human…

     At Ellie’s house, she and Rob had an earlier dinner time so they could work on the biology review for the big test the next day.
     “Man,” said Rob sarcastically, “I wish the teacher would get sick or something, so we wouldn’t have to deal with a test on Spirit Day or the day of the game.”
     Ellie shook her head.  “Come on, Rob.  When all those other holidays come around, what do you think the teachers are going to do?  They’ll hit us with lots and lots of homework.  I wouldn’t even worry about Spirit Day tomorrow.”
     With a shrug, Rob agreed.  “Yeah…you’re right.  We’ll probably be pounded with so much homework it’ll make us rot.”
     Ellie noticed a familiar word.  “Hmm…photosynthesis.  I remember this word growing up on Naturia.”
     “Really?” asked a surprised Rob.
     “Yes.  My parents taught me some of the basics of nature.  I started learning when I was six years old, and one of the first words I remember was ‘photosynthesis,’ the process of the leaves in trees able to convert carbon dioxide into oxygen in sunlight.”
     “Wow.  We didn’t learn anything about photosynthesis until at least the second grade.  I was…eight years old.”
     “Oh, well…at least this is one concept I can easily remember.  There are others, though, that are strictly Earth-based.  That’s where I’m having the most problems right now.”
     “That’s why we have this review to look over.  We’ll be ready for that test tomorrow.”
     “Good.  I hate to have a bad grade…on…the day of…”  Ellie’s voice trailed off.
     Rob immediately became worried.  “Ellie?  Ellie?  Hey, are you all right?”
     “Don’t…know…hear…wind…”  She then walked to the window and opened it.  “The wind is…talking to me?  No, this can’t be possible.”
     “Actually, Ellie…it just might be possible.”
     She quickly turned to her friend.  “How could you know that?”
     “As a military brat, it’s easy, going one base to another for years.  One base in Arizona’s about 200 miles from the Navajo Indian Reservation.  Every month my parents and I took a three-day family excursion up there, and I learned a lot from my experience.”
     “I don’t understand what that has to do with me.”
     “The Native Americans have a strong relationship with nature, in a way like you do.  I remember stories about the elders hearing nature’s voices through the wind, the trees, you name it.  The way you’re acting now, I think you can hear those voices.”
     “It…still doesn’t make sense to me.”
     “Why not consult the Spirit?  Maybe she knows the answer.”
     “It’s worth a try.”  Ellie closed her eyes and calmly said, “Spirit of the Nature Crystal, please come forth…”
     In mere seconds, the Spirit appeared in front of Ellie and Rob once more.  “I felt something within you, Princess.”
     “This may sound crazy, but I thought I heard voices in the wind.”
     “You heard voices?”  She thought carefully and then gasped.  “You possess your mother’s special gift.”
     “My mother Queen Hydrana had her own ability?”
     “Yes.  Queen Hydrana had a rare gift, even for Naturians.  She had the ability to feel the very core of nature’s essence.  She could hear voices within the winds, the trees, the water…”
     Rob added, “Like an old saying we have here on Earth: ‘Every tree has its own story to tell.’”
     “Yes.  Princess, I believe you have your mother’s innate ability to feel nature’s essence.”
     Ellie felt unsure of herself.  “I don’t know if I can—”
     “I know you can, Princess Elementa.  You must feel nature’s essence and learn what message is being sent to you.”
     The young woman faced the window and closed her eyes.  “I must…open myself to the core of nature’s heart…”  Despite the complete silence in the room, Ellie was soon able to hear a voice in the wind.  “Something…different…winds shifting…”  Then, she heard the voices of some of the trees from the forest nearby.  “The trees…speak to me…I hear words of…danger…not in the forest but close to it…”
     “Hold on,” said Rob.  “There are about four or five streets here that lie right on the border of the forest.  That’s probably the where part.  Anything else, Ellie?”
     “Two…against one…”  She opened her eyes.  “Two people are threatening someone else close to the forest.”
     “We’d better call the sheriff,” said Rob as he started for the telephone.
     “No, Rob.  We can’t explain to Sheriff Sanderson that someone’s in danger because I heard the wind and trees tell me.  He’d think we were both crazy, and that could jeopardize my secret.”
     “Point taken.  So, what can we do?”
     Ellie said, “We are not going to do anything.  I’m going to find this one out myself…by following the wind and the trees.  Rob, I want you to stay here.  I don’t know if my mother’s power is real, but I don’t want to take the risk and have you getting hurt.”
     “Okay, but be careful.  I don’t want you getting hurt, either.”
     “Neither do I,” added the Spirit.  “Take care, my princess…”  The apparition soon faded once more.
     She rushed downstairs past her father, who said, “Pumpkin, where are you going?  Don’t you have a test tomorrow?”
     “I’ll explain when I come back, Dad.  Please, just trust me.”
     Rob soon joined Harold downstairs.  “Um, Mr. Peterson, I think there’s something really weird I’ve got to tell you, but I don’t know if you’ll believe me.”
     “Remember when I first learned about Ellie being Princess Elementa and didn’t believe it at first?  I’ll listen this time.”
     Ellie put on her helmet and quickly rushed away on her bicycle.  She followed the voices in the wind and the trees, which soon led her to a spot in Gurney which bordered the forest.  “This seems to be the right location, but I’m not sure.”  She listened to the trees once more, which spoke loudly in her mind.  “This is the place…the danger is somewhere here.”  This erased all remaining doubt of her mother’s ability.  “Thank you, Mother,” she whispered.
     She quickly dismounted from her bicycle and started walking around in curiosity, that is until she heard real voices, including one screaming in pain.  “Uh-oh, I’d better see what’s going on.”  Following the sound of the harrowing screams, she found a spot where she could see what was happening without being spotted herself.  “Two against one,” she whispered.  “But who is it?”
     Both Angel and Cassie were taking punches at Taneshia.
     “Traitorous dog,” said Angel angrily.  “You don’t deserve a future, like Valerie never deserved hers for communicating with that Gurney garbage.”
     Ellie remembered something.  “I spoke with Val at Wilbur’s last week about an upcoming event involving all three local schools.  That’s not important right now.  Who are they beating on?”
     Cassie still pretended to act like a tough girl.  “Sorry, Taneshia, but you’ve left us no other choice.”
     “Taneshia!?” gasped Ellie.  “Oh, no…she must’ve been the one who told about the car.  I’ve got to change into Princess Elementa now, but my chant takes too long, and Taneshia looks like she’s in really bad shape.  I don’t know what to do…”
     She then heard the Spirit from within herself. Princess Elementa…you need only to summon Nature’s Spirit within the Crystal.  The love of your parents will always go with you.  Let your new chant come to you…
     “Of course…I understand.”  She felt the words coming from her heart.  After crossing her arms, she calmly said, “Nature’s Spirit…”  Then, her voice became louder. “…I hereby summon your power!”
     The Nature Crystal somehow appeared on her forehead, which began her transformation into her true identity.  Flames went downward as they replaced her clothing with the royal purple jumpsuit.  The snow conformed into her jade-green arm-length gloves and high thigh boots.  The wind enveloped the upper part of her body, creating the turquoise mini-dress with jade-green shoulder sleeves.  The bolt of lightning changed into her purple belt around her waist.  And lastly, water went up over her head, changing her blue eyes and brown hair into purple eyes and purple hair, along with the disappearance of her glasses.  The metamorphosis was complete.
     She took a look at herself.  “It worked.  Now, I must help Taneshia before it is too late for her.”  Looking around the area, Elementa had an idea.  “Perhaps some mist and fog will shield her from more harm.”  Closing her eyes, she mentally reached out to the crystal.  Nature Crystal, I call upon you to convert me to a misty fog to protect her.
     The crystal heeded her silent command and changed her into a cloud of foggy mist, which soon started to make its move into the area where Angel and Cassie were beating senselessly on Taneshia.
     “Stop it!” Taneshia yelled in fear.  “This has to stop!”
     Angel shouted, “Not until you completely suffer for being a stool pigeon on us!  I don’t like stool pigeons!”
     Mysteriously, a strange fog started overtaking the area.
     Cassie was surprised.  “That’s strange…why is there fog this early tonight?  The forecast didn’t call for it.”
     Then, all three girls heard a voice.  “No harm shall befall anyone here…”
     Angel let go of Taneshia and let her fall to the ground.  “Who…who said that!?  Who are you!?”
     In the midst of the fog, someone emerged and materialized into a seemingly human form.  She knelt down to Taneshia.  “Are you all right?” she asked calmly.
     “Yes, but…who are you?”
     “I’d like to know that myself!” yelled Angel.  “This is none of your business!  Just who do you think you are!?”
     The young woman in her strange costume stood up and answered, “I am Princess Elementa, sworn protector of the innocent and defender of justice.”
     Cassie did remember the name.  “She’s the one who saved the forest from two different forest fires about a month ago.”
     “I don’t care what she did a month ago, idiot!” Angel shouted.  “You’ve got no business here, Princess Elementa!  This is between Taneshia and us!”
     “I cannot agree with you,” said the princess sternly.  “When an innocent life is in danger, I shall always become involved.”
     “Oh, yeah?  Let’s see you defend yourself against this!”  Angel tried to land a punch on the princess’s cheek.
     “How can you attack…what you cannot see?”  The princess quickly disappeared and became mist once again.
     Angel landed her punch against the brick wall.  “Ow!” she yelped.  “Why don’t you stand still, you phoney princess?  Or are you afraid of me?”
     “I do not fear you,” echoed Elementa’s voice from what seemed to be everywhere.  “I do not fear of someone who has no heart…one who wishes to harm another out of spite.”
     “Look, I have the right to make war between the two schools.  They’re rivals, there shouldn’t be anyone from either school communicating with the other!”
     Cassie finally snapped at Angel.  “Shut up!”
     Angel snapped back.  “What did you say!?”
     “You heard me, Angel!  I’ve had it with your attitude!  I thought you were my friend.”  After shaking her head, Cassie added, “Now I know you’re anything but a friend.  I haven’t been able to speak to any of my old friends from elementary school for the past year because of you.  Most of them attend Gurney and Radler now, but I grew up with them for years!”
     Taneshia heard Cassie’s words and felt sorry for her.  “Oh, Cassie…you poor thing.”
     “When I met you last year, I thought you were the coolest person in the world.  Unfortunately, it took more than a year to realize at what cost you were my friend…being unable to talk to any of my old friends I grew up with, not able to hang with them at Wilbur’s.  Thanks to you…I ended up feeling alienated.  You’re no friend…just a jerk!”
     Angel grabbed Cassie by the shirt again.  “Are you going against me!?”
     “Yes, jerk, I am.  It’s time I stopped listening to you and started listening to my own instincts!”
     “Then I’ll let you suffer alongside little Taneshia!”
     Just as Angel was about to throw a right jab against Cassie, a bolt of lightning struck Angel’s left hand.  “Stop!” yelled the princess.  “I will not allow you to harm anyone else!”
     “You don’t have the authority to stop me!” Angel yelled.
     “You are wrong, my friend…I am an honorary deputy in the Sheriff’s Department.  I have legal authority to stop you, and I shall.”
     Princess Elementa soon materialized about 10 feet behind Angel and said, “Perhaps some time in Mercurial ice will help you learn your lesson.”  Nature Crystal…lend me the power of the Mercurial ice.  The cold gathered in her hands, and as soon as she put her hands forward, she released the power of the ice against Angel.
     In a matter of seconds, Angel was frozen from neck to toe in the ice of the planet Mercury.  “No…p-please…it’s so…cold…”
     Cassie looked in awe.  “Wow…the princess really is powerful.”
     Princess Elementa walked forward to see if the others were all right.  “You are Cassie?”
     “Yes…and I’m also so ashamed of myself.  I actually encouraged Angel to run over Valerie…Now I regret it so much.”
     “Tell me, Cassie,” said the princess calmly.  “Why did you want to be friends with Angel?”
     “I wanted to become popular, but I ended up paying a high price for it…I lost most of my old friends.  I gave into peer pressure.”
     Elementa looked confused.  “What is this…peer pressure?”
     Taneshia stood up and answered, “Peer pressure means you’re basically trying to fit in with the popular crowd, sometimes not realizing what you could lose as a result.”
     “Like Cassie losing her closest friends.”
     “Exactly.”
     The princess then looked around.  “Is there a device I can use to contact the sheriff?”
     “I have a cell phone in my car,” Cassie answered.  “You can use it.  Just call the sheriff’s number and then—”
     “Press the ‘send’ button.  I have learned to use one of these in the past few weeks.  Thank you.  Can you make sure Taneshia is not seriously injured?”
     “Sure, Princess.”  She then looked at Taneshia.  “I hope I didn’t hit you too hard, because I was making sure my punches weren’t half as hard as Angel’s.”
     “So that’s why I didn’t end up being worse off,” Taneshia said in surprise.  “You didn’t want to hurt me after all.”
     “Nope.  Angel struck a nerve with me when she didn’t like the three schools working that special festival last month.  I…have a cousin being treated for leukemia in that hospital.”
     “So…you had a reason to turn against Angel.”
     “Right.  I thought she was cool…I should’ve listened to my instincts and realized she was never cool.”
     Princess Elementa pressed all the buttons to contact the sheriff’s office.  “Now, send.”
     In his office, Sheriff Sanderson answered.  “Sheriff’s Department.”
     “Sheriff Sanderson, this is Princess Elementa.”
     “Princess?  Am I glad to hear from you.  We got a call from Taneshia Rogers’s parents that she was missing from her bedroom.  Have you seen—”
     “Yes, sir.  Taneshia is safe, the main attacker is encased almost fully in Mercurial ice, and the second attacker…has had a change of heart.  I have looked at the street signs.  We are located near Sutherland Avenue, very close to the forest area.”
     “Stay right there, Princess.  We’ll be right over.”
     At least five police vehicles appeared on the scene within 10 minutes, along with Taneshia’s parents, Cassie’s parents, and Angel’s mother.
     Princess Elementa soon released Angel from her icy prison.  “Angel, I believe you have something to tell Sheriff Sanderson, do you not?”
     “I…I hit Valerie with my car on Monday afternoon, but Cassie and Taneshia were in there with me!  If I go down, so do they!”
     “No,” said the princess.  “Sheriff, Cassie was the one who had a change of heart and turned against Angel.  She deeply regrets her part in this.”
     Cassie agreed.  “It’s true, Sheriff.  I know I’m an accomplice, and I’ll take whatever punishment is given to me.  I deserve it.”  She turned to her own parents.  “Mom, Dad, I’m so sorry.  I know I can never be forgiven for what I did…”
     “That’s not true,” said her mother.  “You just made a mistake.  You can learn from it.  You started by turning against Angel when you realized she wasn’t the…cool person you thought she was.  We’ll work together to help you get through this.”
     “Thanks, Mom.  That means a lot to me.”
     Taneshia was happily reunited with her parents.  “I was so scared for a while, but Cassie didn’t hit me as hard.”
     “I guess she really cared after all,” said Jerria.  “At least you didn’t have to face this by yourself.  Princess Elementa sure came to the rescue when the time was desperate.”
     Taneshia then turned to Elementa.  “Princess, there’s just one thing I have to know.  How did you know I was in trouble?”
     “Let me best put it this way…I listened to the wind and the trees.”  She smiled afterward.
     Jerria smiled.  “Whatever helped lead you here, I’m just glad my baby’s safe.”
     The only person who did not look at her relative was Mrs. Marrero.  Princess Elementa came up to her.  “Excuse me, are you…Angel’s mother?”
     “Yes, regrettably, I am her mother, Corona Marrero.  I thought I could get her away from all this…”
     “I do not understand.”
     “I know you have not been on Earth very long, so you probably don’t know about South Central Los Angeles?”
     “No, but I have heard of Los Angeles itself.  I have been studying the geography of this world, and I believe it is located in the state of…California?”
     “Yes.  There is a section called South Central…a very dangerous place.  A gang problem is so prevalent there.”
     “A…gang problem?”
     “Yes.” She then put her face down.  “The gangs in that area are among the most dangerous in the world.  They create nothing but destruction and death.  My daughter wanted so badly to be a part of that.”
     “Why?”
     “She thought they would make a better family than what she had.  I lost my husband and my son to gang violence.”
     “You mean…they were…killed?”
     “Yes, but my daughter didn’t care.  She wanted into the gang so badly…”  Mrs. Marrero pulled on the top of her fleece shirt to reveal a scar around her right shoulder area.  “She was willing to stab me as part of her initiation.”
     Princess Elementa was in complete shock.  “Your own…daughter stabbed you…just to join a dangerous gang?  I could never forgive myself had I done that to my own mother.”
     “Princess, if my daughter had committed such an act on your world, what kind of punishment would she have?”
     “If it were an accidental stabbing, nothing.  If it were intentional, though, my father King Argon would have placed her in solitary confinement for one year and hard labor for five years.  Although we did have that rule, it was rarely applied because we had no ‘gangs’.”
     “After what she did, I decided to move her and myself away from that element, hopefully make her change into a better person.  I have failed as a mother to do so…”  Mrs. Marrero then started to cry.
     The princess held Mrs. Marrero’s hand as a gesture of comfort.  “No, you have not failed.  My parents sacrificed their lives to send me somewhere safe.  You did everything you could to get her away from the danger.”
     “I know, but it seems I can’t get the gang element out of her.”
     “Perhaps she needs more help than imprisonment.  However, that is not my decision to make.  I wish I could do more.”
     “No, Princess Elementa.  I am just glad you were able to stop her before the rivalry became all-out war.  Perhaps the game tomorrow night will be much better now.”
     “I certainly hope so…there is so much I still do not understand about Earth.  Will you be all right, Mrs. Marrero?”
     “To tell the truth, I don’t know.  It seems my daughter only wants to resort to violence.  Maybe some time in jail could start teaching her a lesson about the value of life and friendship.”  She then noticed the sheriff.  “I need to go.  I have to accompany my daughter to the jail.”
     When she walked away, the princess shook her head in sadness.  “I hope I will never do anything like that to the people I love.”
     Sheriff Sanderson then asked one of his deputies to read Angel her rights.  Cassie decided to go willingly, so she did not have to be handcuffed.  Taneshia went home with her parents.
     Princess Elementa took to the air and quickly returned to her adopted home with Harold Peterson.
     “I am sorry for leaving without giving any explanation,” she said sadly.  “I had to help Taneshia.”
     “Pumpkin, it’s okay.  You did what you knew was right, and I’m glad Taneshia’s okay.  Rob told me about this new power you’ve discovered, being able to hear nature’s voices.  Was that what led you to Taneshia and the others?”
     “Yes.  It is a gift I have inherited from my mother.  I can hear nature’s essence within the trees, the wind, the water.  Their messages helped me find Taneshia.  The two people behind it were named Angel Marrero and Cassie Robbins.”
     Harold could not believe this revelation.  “They’re the co-captains of Vagley’s cheerleading team.  Why?”
     “Angel did it to create war between the two schools.  Cassie, though, regrets her part in this.  She only went with Angel to try to become popular.  She gave into peer pressure, but she found her way out by standing up for herself and listening to her heart.  I also learned something horrible about Angel.  She stabbed her own mother as part of a…gang initiation.”
     Rob gasped, “Oh, man.  Not even Misty does anything like that.  She’s a hand-to-hand bully.”
     Elementa realized she had one more important thing to do.  “I need to visit Valerie in the hospital for a few minutes.  I must give her this news.”
     “Okay, Ellie,” said her father, “just don’t be too long.”
     “I will return as quickly as possible.  I do have that test tomorrow.”  She then took to the sky and flew to the hospital.
     There, Rob’s mother Kim was hard at work as usual when she noticed the princess.  “Princess Elementa is here?”
     She saw Mrs. Walker but opted not to address her by name for fear it would compromise her secret.  “Excuse me, where can I find the girl named Valerie?”
     “She’s in room 332 with her parents.  What brings you here, Princess?”
     “The ones responsible for her accident have been captured.  I need to give her and her family the news.”
     “Mind if I go with you?”
     “Please.  I believe you know this hospital much better than I.”
     A few minutes later, after Elementa explained everything to Valerie and her parents, Valerie shook her head.  “I can’t believe Angel would do this to me just because I spoke with Ellie last week.  At least Cassie’s no longer swayed by her cool looks and charm because they’ve all crashed on her.”
     “I must leave now,” said the princess.  “I feel sad you cannot be at this…football game tomorrow night.  I know this hurts deeply.”
     “I know, Princess, but knowing the creep who did this is caught more than makes up for that.  Thank you for helping me.”
     “I was honored to have helped.  Farewell, all, and take care.”  She then floated through the window and into the night sky, she knowing that Gurney, North Carolina, was peaceful once more…

Proceed to the Real Conclusion!