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"Charting?" Starr repeated curiously.

"Mapping," Earendil smiled, sitting between Lin and Starr. "That's part of my job while we're on this trip, to map any of the lands that we find. Lin and I are going to head out to see the rest of the island starting tomorrow, and we were wondering if maybe the two of you wanted to come along. You don't seem to be enjoying the beach as much as you did when we first arrived, and I thought you might like the change."

"Yes!" Storm said, almost vehemently. "Please! Let us leave the beach, at least for a while!"

Starr seemed alarmed at her brother's reaction, and she put one hand on his shoulder to calm him. "It's okay," she murmured softly. "I told you, this isn't that place."

"I know," Storm frowned in reply. "That doesn't change anything."

"Nowhere," Storm said sourly, looking away deliberately.

"Storm!" Starr exclaimed. "Don't lie!"

With a hmph, Storm turned away from the others, putting his back to them.

Starr looked absolutely dismayed. "It wasn't your fault, Storm," she said anxiously. "Really it wasn't ... I told you that a hundred times!"

Earendil blinked at the two, completely confused by their conversation. What was going on?

Storm shook his head stubbornly, but Starr ran to stand in front of him, folding her arms across her chest.

"Don't lie, Storm!" she told him harshly. "Mama told you this would happen! That if you kept it all inside you would only get worse and worse And now you're making other people sad, too! If you just talk about it you'll feel a lot better!"

"No I won't!" Storm shouted back, jumping to his feet, his black wings trembling with anger. "I can talk and talk but it won't undo what happened, all right? So let's just forget about it!"

Storm whirled around and glared at Lin, his fists clenched, his milky eyes bright with fury. "Don't you even talk about it!" he shouted at her. "You weren't there! You wouldn't understand! She just-"

He broke off and dissolved into tears, falling to the ground and burying his head in his arms as if he were trying to hide.

Starr knelt next to him and wrapped her arms around him. She was crying as well, but her tears were quiet, more calm.

"She came after both of us," she whispered, her voice hoarse as she fought to control her tears. "But she - she especially went after Storm. And then ... and then when she came after me, he ... he ..."

Storm sat up and wrapped his arms around Starr protectively, burying his face in her shoulder. "And I'd kill her again if I had to!" he said fiercely. "I won't ever let anything happen to you again!"

Storm flinched as Lin drew nearer. "Stay back!" he told her, his arms tightening around his sister. "You can't help us! No one can!"

"Storm, calm down," Starr tried to soothe him, hugging him tightly. "We're safe here, it's Lin! She would never hurt us ..."

Earendil was silent as he watched them all, his expression anxious. He had never heard of such a thing as women abusing little boys ... it made him sick. It was no wonder Storm felt so awful ...

"Lin," he said softly, rising to his feet, "perhaps I should talk with Storm for a while ... he might be a bit more comfortable with a man rather than ..." He faltered, not wanting to name the thing that Storm seemed to be so afraid of.

Starr looked up at Lin, and she nodded slowly. "I'll talk to you," she murmured as Earendil came over to them.

Earendil put one hand on Storm's shoulder and urged him gently to his feet. "Come on," he murmured. "Let's go, just you and I."

Storm headed off with his cousin reluctantly, leaving Starr and Lin alone.

Starr shrugged one shoulder and looked up at Lin. "I'm doing better than Storm," she said quietly. "But ... she didn't hurt me as much ... she hurt Storm really badly, but even so when she came for me he protected me ... and he killed her ..." She frowned and closed her eyes, remembering back to the incident. "It was on the beach in the Second's World ..."

Probably close to a year ago by this time.

"I just want Storm to get better," she murmured. "But I don't know how to help him, he won't let me ..."

Starr nodded slowly, but she still seemed hesitant.

"It's just ... this is the first thing that he hasn't let me help him with," she murmured, "and ... it's almost as if he forgets that I feel the same pain as he does ... I think, in a way, we're kind of like Shiro and Ura, what one feels the other feels ... what one knows, the other knows. We're connected ... and for him to shut me out like this ..."

She bit her lip anxiously. She had never felt like this before, and she didn't like it ...