Good morning dearies! I hope everyone's having a good week :) please enjoy this pain in the butt chapter and let me know what you think!

"It's so great to finally meet you! Luke has been talking about you non-stop." Gwen gushed as she held out a hand to shake. Lilli stayed silent, not willing to greet this viper. That is, until she caught Luke's sharp glare and deliberate nod in Gwen's direction. Play nice, the look screamed, or there will be trouble.

Drawing in a calming breath, Lilli reached out and shook the proffered hand, muttering, "Nice to meet you." Before letting go as quickly as possible. She saw Gwen's expression harden in annoyance for just a moment but then it was gone and she was smiling even brighter than before.

"I'm so glad you like the dress! It can be so hard to shop for someone you don't really know."

"You bought it?" Lilli blurted, before she could stop herself.

"Yes, of course! Luke asked me to provide you with something appropriate for…"

"She doesn't know yet." Luke interrupted firmly.

"You didn't tell her?" Gwen asked sharply.

Luke shrugged, "Wanted it to be a surprise."

Lilli was left staring between the two of them in utter confusion. Tell her what? What did the dress have to do about it? What in the world was going on?

"Well! No wonder you look so confused, poor thing!" Gwen crooned at her before hooking her arm through hers, "Come on. We'll get this all cleared up for you!" With that Lilli found herself dragged back up the staircase by a chattering Gwen. Glancing back, she found Luke silently following them, his attention on a small device in his hands. So apparently he had no qualms about whatever his "girlfriend" had planned. They went up three floors, then Gwen pulled her unrelentingly down the hall to stand before the marble, larger-than-life, fallen angel who hid the staircase to the Inner Sanctum behind herself. Only here did Lilli balk, attempting to pull away from Gwen.

"I'm not allowed in the meetings." She muttered, wrestling her arm from Gwen's surprisingly firm grip.

"Well you are this time, silly. Come on!" Gwen made another grab for her arm but Lilli ducked away only to back into Luke who threw an arm around her shoulders.

"C'mon Lil, stop kicking up a fuss." He ordered,before guiding her firmly up the stairs, "Besides, you're going to love this."

Somehow, she couldn't quite bring herself to believe him. Nevertheless, there wasn't much she could do at this point. They reached the top of the spiral stairs and Luke pressed his hand to the security pad. The door opened with a slight hiss and Lilli froze in horror.

Gathered around the huge meeting table that dominated the room were Bryce and another one of Luke's friends, Gabe, as well as three teenagers a little older than her. Two boys and one girl. But they were not who held Lilli frozen in the door.

Sitting at the far end of the table was an older gentleman dressed all in black in an impeccable suit. There were fine lines around his eyes and mouth that hadn't been there the last time she'd seen him and his thick, dark hair held more silver in it than she remembered, but there was no mistaking those sharp, green eyes. Even in the low lighting of the Sanctum.

"Lilliana," his deep, resonant voice cut through the idle chatter of the room's other occupants and drew all attention to her, "My little bird, come here."

Sing for me, little bird.

Lilli remained frozen where she was until Luke prodded her in the back. Startled out of her state, she quickly made her way around the table to stand before the man. However, when one dark eyebrow winged upward she remembered herself and knelt before him, placing her head on his knees like she had as a child.

"Grandfather." She murmured in greeting. Long fingers stroked into her hair and Lilli worked to suppress a shiver, stiffening at the touch.

"You've grown since the last time I saw you, my dear." Julius Steele's voice rumbled through her, "How long has it been now? Two years?" His fingers tightened in her hair, tugging sharply enough to make her wince.

"I'm sorry, Papa." She murmured, automatically reverting to the endearment of her childhood in the face of his disapproval. His grip softened and he resumed petting her.

"Luckily for you, your brother has explained how busy you've been during his monthly visits." He emphasized his words with another, softer, tug to her hair.

"I'll do better, Papa." She was quick to reassure. What else could she do? The man was supposed to be locked away for life. She had been assured that she would never have to see him again. Unless she took the initiative to visit him; something she'd actively avoided despite Luke's best efforts to persuade her otherwise; and yet, here he was.

"Good girl." He crooned, "Now, I'm sure you're wondering why I'm here."

She nodded in answer.

"We have a surprise for you, little bird, and Luke was kind enough to arrange it so I could be here to see your reaction. Sit up, dear."

She waited until his fingers left her hair before doing as she was told. Sitting back on her heels, she kept her head down in deference to the man. That is, until he lifted her chin so he could look at her face properly.

"What is this!" He demanded sharply. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Luke shift uncomfortably.

"An accident." She whispered, keeping her eyes firmly locked on him.

"Really. This "accident" strongly resembles the mark of a fist. Who dared to strike my granddaughter and have they been dealt with?" This last question was directed at Luke, who went to answer only to be interrupted by Bryce.

"It was my fault, Master. I lost my temper while trying to protect her and accidentally hit her." He confessed boldly.

"But I've seen to it, Grandfather." Luke was quick to put in.

"Did you?" Julius murmured, causing Lilli to flinch. The softer he spoke, the more dangerously angry he was. "Come here, boy."

Bryce swallowed hard, but approached nonetheless.

"Luke, look at your sister's face. Do you see a mark?"

Lilli found her face tipped further up until she was looking at Luke. She saw him nod and mutter something in response.

"Speak up, boy!" Julius ordered harshly.

"Yes, Sir." Luke answered sharply.

"And do you see a mark on your friend's face?"

"No, Sir."

"Clearly, the situation has not been handled." And that was the only warning he gave before his hand whipped out and caught Bryce's wrist.

"Papa, no!" Lilli tried to protest but her words were drowned out by Bryce's howl of pain. He dropped to his knees, his wrist still held firmly in the older man's hand. Before their eyes, her grandfather's hand glowed molten silver as he forcibly pulled Bryce's power from his body. Bryce was screaming in agony now.

"Papa, please!" Lilli begged, unthinkingly reaching out to catch his sleeve and give it a tug. Julius turned to look down at her for a moment, seemingly unaware of Bryce writhing in his grip, slowly getting weaker.

"He made you suffer, little bird." He pointed out coolly.

"It was an accident." She insisted.

"Hmm."

Bryce was no longer screaming. He didn't possess the strength. After another, agonizing second her grandfather released his hold on him and allowed him to slump to the floor.

"Bryce!" Lilli cried, automatically moving to go to him but drawn up short by her grandfather's hand on her arm.

"There, there." He murmured, turning her to face him and gently swiping tears off her cheeks that she hadn't even realized had fallen, "He'll live. Not that he deserves to."

"Get him out of here." He ordered Gabe, who was standing nearby looking pale and sick. Lilli looked to Luke, trying to understand why he hadn't intervened, and felt her heart sink. His face was that blank mask of his that she loathed. His eyes, cool and emotionless.

"Well! Now that unpleasantness is out of the way, shall we move onto happier subjects?" Her grandfather continued, as though almost pulling the life out of a person was an everyday occurrence as simple as having tea. In fact, no one seemed particularly perturbed as they all took seats around the table.

"Sit, dear." He ordered mildly, pulling out the chair next to him. Lilli hesitated but, seeing his eyes narrow slightly at her, she quickly sat. Acts of disobedience, no matter how small, were unacceptable to her grandfather. She was lucky he hadn't taken offense at her interference of his punishing Bryce. Luke took his seat on his other side.

"Now, Lilliana, for your surprise." So saying, Julius handed her an envelope he'd procured from within his suit with a flourish. Years ago she might have smiled at his antics, maybe even laughed, and it was clear he fully expected that reaction from her now. But she couldn't bring herself to play along. Instead, she simply took the envelope from him and opened it without preamble. His hand fell to the table and his finger tapped out three beats in slow succession. That was all it took for her to know he would deal with her lack of reaction later. And it wouldn't be pretty.

She bowed her head low and focused on pulling the letter out of the envelope despite her shaking fingers. All these years and she still remembered his unspoken messages. It scared her how much control he still had over her but what did she expect? He had trained her to respond to him since infancy.

Unfolding the letter, she focused on the first line.

Dear Miss. Lilliana Hart,

We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted to Sky High School for Powered Individuals.

She froze in horror. No!