As Marcia slept curled up in a protective ball, dreams invaded her mind and caused her to moan and cry. Kathy stood at the door watching and listening to her wishing that the spirits would leave Marcia alone. Suddenly, Marcia unfolded her body and lay flat on the bed arms tight against her side as if standing at attention. She started to talk as if she were a soldier reporting to a superior officer. Nothing Marcia said made any sense, but Kathy listened intently for clues to who was talking through Marcia. After a few minutes, Marcia relaxed and went back to her normal sleep posture.

Before class broke for lunch, Klaus came home and woke Marcia to allow her to join her friends. He explained what he told them and she understood to continue with the story. She hurried to the dining room and joined her friends who accepted her back without question. Franci and Daria watched Marcia with the hidden suspicion that she hid something important from her classmates. Lunch proceeded without incident and Marcia joined her classmates for the afternoon. Everything went well, and the lab exercises were simple and reviewed what they learned in classes at the castle.

The class broke early and the students allowed to wander around the barracks and shoreline until dinner. Marcia left her friends and wandered along the lakeshore looking out at the choppy blue-grey water. As she rounded a small curve in the shore, she saw a broad sandy inlet that was beach area for swimming and sunbathing. Ahead on the straight expanse of shoreline, she saw a lone figure waving a thin shiny sword practicing a disciplined routine. She approached slowly wary of the person waving the sword as if to fight an unseen foe.

Franci danced around kicking up sand as she thrust and waved the sword in a dueling scenario. She stopped and bent over recovering her breath watching Marcia approach. "What are you doing here? Were you following me?" Franci menacingly said.

"Um, uh, I didn't know you were here. I just wanted to get away from everyone and think. Sorry, if I interrupted your er, um, swordplay. May I watch you for a while? It looked interesting the way you moved." Marcia hesitated as she watched Franci move around in the sand.

Franci moved around the sand with a fluid motion using the small sword in a beautiful sweeping motion. Marcia watched her closely fascinated by her motion, but more interested in the sword. The Bard School banned students from having weapons, but Franci seemed to be the exception. The sword seemed small enough to be of no danger, but it was a weapon nonetheless. Franci appeared comfortable using the bayonet and as she moved, the dance and weapon moved as one.

Franci slowed her movement, and Marcia asked, "That is an interesting weapon. It looks very old, where did you get it?"

Franci stopped and held the sword bayonet loosely in her hand at her side. "My grandfather gave it to me when I turned thirteen. He wanted me to learn about swords and defending myself. It is a Japanese Type 30 Bayonet. I use it for practice, but at home I have a full-size sword that is twice the length of this." As she stood facing Marcia, she swiftly in one fluid motion swung the bayonet over her head and stopped its downward motion to point directly at Marcia.

Marcia fell backward, ending up sitting on the sand looking up at the wicked, sinister smile on Franci's face. Dizzying thoughts flooded Marcia's mind as she sat on the sand. She slowly rose to her feet, looked at Franci, turned her back to the girl and walked swiftly away. As she walked toward the school, Marcia reasoned that Franci was a person who needed watching as summer school passed. Chantel was one person who tried to take Marcia down, but now Franci became her next nemesis. All thoughts of Daria and her plots of revenge took a back seat to this new threat.

When Marcia walked back to the school along the shoreline, she looked at the trees and plants bordering the sand. She spied a break in the trees and a cut in the vegetation that roused her curiosity. She stepped in the direction of the break to examine the cause. She saw a small boat that sat in the weeds well above the water line of the lake. The bow faced toward the lake and looked easy to drag to the water's edge.

Marcia thought back to the times in her childhood when her family spent a week each summer at Lake George in New York. She enjoyed the peace and solitude of being out in a boat rowing near their cottage. Thoughts of rowing out on the lake flooded her mind as she looked at the boat. She examined it closely looking to see if it would be possible to drag it to the water and use it to explore. As she got closer, she saw a set of oars tightly tucked under the seat in the middle of the dinghy. There was a large coil of rope in the bow with a construction block used as an anchor.

She smiled and grabbed the rope tugging on it trying to move the boat. At first, the boat held fast, but with continued tugging it slowly moved out of the weeds and onto the sand. On the sand, the boat moved easily from the shore to the water's edge and into the shallows. Marcia laughed aloud, as the boat floated easily in the shallow water. It drifted slowly away from the shore, and Marcia found that she needed to use the anchor. She smiled with pleasure at her discovery and wanted to use the boat immediately, but it was time for dinner. She pulled the boat onto the sand and dropped the anchor further away from the water's edge.

Dinner was quiet with no one saying much, but Marcia noticed Naomi and Stefan sitting closer than normal. Occasionally, they would look at each other and smile when Naomi blushed brightly. Polina sat away from them with a disapproving look on her face as if she wanted Stefan. Marcia snatched a glimpse of Daria when Naomi and Stefan touched. She saw Daria get red with anger and Franci could not quiet her, but Daria's anger was strong and spread. Soon, Franci was almost as angry as Daria and watched the couple continuously expressing herself vehemently over their behavior.

When dinner ended, Marcia stayed with her friends and walked outside with them chatting about the day. Speaking to Naomi and Stefan, she asked, "When did you become closer friends?"

Naomi blushed as she looked away from Marcia to Stefan smiling coyly and then looking at the ground. She slowly looked at Marcia and replied, "We decided it this afternoon during our free time. We like being around each other and decided to become closer friends. He makes me feel comfortable and more secure. Does our relationship bother you?"

"No, in fact, it is about time you became better acquainted and found out that you like each other. I was hoping that summer school would bring you closer." Marcia smiled and beamed at them.

"We do have a problem, though. Daria and Franci don't seem to like what is going on, and we better watch them closely." Polina piped into the conversation.

"That is their problem. The world does not spin around them and their silly desires and thoughts. We are all free to do and be what we want," used Marcia. Everyone at the table nodded in approval.

When dinner ended, the group walked to the pier where the ferry docked. A cooling breeze blew off the lake forcing the group to huddle closer. As they looked off at the rippling water, a small boat loaded with boxes approached the dock and moored. Two men quickly unloaded the boxes as a lorry pulled up. The boxes contained supplies for the dining room and labs. The group watched as the men quickly filled the lorry and shoved off back on the lake. As the lorry departed, the group split up and returned to the barracks for the night.

As Marcia walked along the shore before going to Kathy and Klaus's home, a maniacal laugh invaded her mind. She stopped looking to see who followed her but saw no one nearby. The laugh reminded her of her dead mentor Chantel, who had been Franci's roommate. She continued walking, but her mind interrupted her again with a more vivid vision. Franci stood o the shore waving her bayonet sword not in her practice stance, but in a menacing way at Marcia.

Marcia stood quiet trembling at the approach of the menacing girl. The closer Franci got, fear rose in Marcia's heart and mind, and she felt powerless to prevent the outcome of their entanglement. Sweat beaded on her forehead and down her neck onto her back. A numbing cold feeling enveloped her body, and her mind drew an ominous picture of the upcoming encounter. She wanted to run away, but her feet seemed frozen in place. Her arms hung useless at her sides, and her voice became a whisper like the sound of a soft breeze.

"There you are," came the sound of Kathy's voice breaking the spell that held Marcia. "It is time to get into the house. Come along now, let's go."

Marcia shuddered as if released from confinement into a cold breeze. She stiffly moved to follow Kathy as she moved away from the shore. Kathy turned around, saw Marcia's plight and went back to her. As she touched Marcia's arm, a strange cloud entered her mind sharing Marcia's vision. Kathy felt the fear and depression that festered in Marcia and knew that she was troubled. Kathy hugged Marcia tightly and willed the cloud to dissipate and vanquish all the fears. Within a minute, Marcia collapsed in Kathy's arms and passed out. Clinging to Marcia's limp body, she dragged and carried her home.

The door banged hard against the wall, as Kathy kicked it open, dragged Marcia into her kitchen and dropped her on the floor. At the sound, Klaus came quickly to help carry Marcia to a chair at the kitchen table. "What happened, Kathy?" He muttered with surprise.

"I don't know," Kathy replied. "I found her standing like a statue on the shore. When I touched her, I saw a vision of Marcia attacked by a sword-wielding student. She seemed powerless to defend herself and froze awaiting the onslaught. Her body felt frozen, and a cloud filled her mind blocking everything. She needed help, and I took the cloud away easily. As soon as it melted away, she became unconscious and collapsed in my arms. Let's get her warm and fix her a brisk hot cup of French Vanilla tea."

Klaus made tea for everyone, and as he placed the cup near Marcia, she woke and looked curiously around her. She smiled weakly at Klaus, "How did I get here? What happened? Where have I been?" Marcia raised her head up and reached shakily for the cup of tea. As she inhaled the soothing vapors, her mind cleared, and a look of fear hung on her face.

"Kathy found you near the shore, under the spell of some visions of your future. She removed the visions, but you remained limp and lifeless. Do you remember anything that happened?" Klaus inquired.

Marcia looked at Klaus blankly as if what he told her was news. After Marcia had sampled her calming tea, she shook her head indicating no. Kathy returned to the kitchen and sat next to Klaus. She watched Marcia's face as Klaus talked to Marcia. Kathy saw that Marcia had no knowledge of the earlier events, but there was a lingering feeling of future trouble.