"Hmm..." Sara groans. "Don't tell me! I know this one..."

The two of us sit on opposite sides of my couch. In my hand is a flashcard; a random one I pulled from the stack I prepared for her. Each one has a term on one side and its definition on the other. I hold the side with the term to Sara who is currently wracking her brain for the answer.

This is how we study. Although I'm sure she could just as easily do it on her own, I'm always happy to help. The faces she makes when she's trying to remember an answer are honestly so funny. It also serves as a review for me. I can never be too prepared, least of all when finals are right around the corner. I got so distracted with Magna Gratia and the Remnants that I forgot about my own life. Now that Mr. Grant and his settlement have agreed to join us, I've left matters in Nick's capable hands.

Now is the time to focus on myself.

"Come on, Sara. I know you know this one." I encourage her. "Do you want a hint?"

"No! I can do this. Give me a chance, Jeannie..." She pouts.

"You get one more minute." I sigh. "Remember, if this happens in the exam, skip it and move on."

While she continues to ponder the answer, I glance left, toward my bedroom door. It's been a while since I've had anyone over at my place. Sara is the first person in the three months since I first started my little 'project'. Bringing unfamiliar people into the house would've been scary for them in the early days. I already told them I'd be having a guest over so there would be no surprises. I even brought all of our study material out to the living room beforehand so that I wouldn't have to go in to get it. 

"Okay. Defining federalism." Sara says slowly, unsure of herself. "A compound government that combines a central one with...regional ones?"

"That's right!" I raise my hand for a high five, which she enthusiastically gives me. "Can you tell me the regional types too?"

"Ooh, I know this! Literally looked it up before coming here. They're provincial, state, cantonal, and..." 

She lets out a frustrated whine as she tries to remember the last one. Sparing her the headache, I finish the list for her.

"And territorial."

"Territorial! Oh my gosh, I forgot that one. Ugh, so close!"

"Hey, three out of four is great! The exam usually only asks for two."

"That gives me some hope." She gives me a pained expression. "Next card?"

I pull the next one from the stack and show it to her.

"Individualism? Umm... Pass." She waves her hand dismissively.

I grab the next card and show it to her.

"Nope. Pass." She says, frowning.

I then grab one more.

"..." She goes quiet.

"These are all from the same chapter. Didn't you study it?"

"I might've skimmed that one." She looks away, sheepishly.

"Mhm." I cross my arms over my chest disapprovingly.

"I'm also really tired. We've been at this all day, so cut me some slack."

"Feel free to make yourself a coffee. The pods are in the cupboard. The water's already in the kettle." I tell her as I get up and walk over to the bathroom. "In the meantime, I'm going to freshen up."

I shut the door behind me and twist the tap open. Leaning over the sink, I fill my hands with water and splash my face a few times. The summer heat has been dreadful lately. My apartment is so stuffy, even with all the windows open. It doesn't help that my AC broke down on me last week. The landlord has been dragging his feet with repairs. As a result, I've been feeling very 'sticky'. I have to wash my face twice as day or else it'll get oily. I twist the tap closed and wipe my face dry. Last but not least, I apply a cleanser to open my pores, especially around my nose.

When I step out of the bathroom, I notice that my living room is empty. The kitchen too. It's only when I look to my bedroom that I notice something is amiss.

The door is wide open.

An intense, sudden rush of dread washes over me. It doesn't take me long to put two and two together. 

"No way. She didn't..."

I rush over to my room as my heartrate starts to spike. As I enter, my suspicions are quickly confirmed. Sara is kneeling near the corner of my room, right at the border of the town. Once she notices me, she stands up and turns to face me. Her expression is one of shock, awe, and a bunch of other emotions I'm too panicked to identify. We stare at each other for a few seconds, neither one of us able to find the words to say. I'm sure she has a million questions for me. However, I only have one. Perhaps that's why I'm able to speak first.

"Sara." I say, softly. "Why are you in here?"

She blinks at me a few times and shakes her head without breaking eye contact. "You told me to reread that chapter and the book wasn't outside. I came in here to look. That's when I found..." Her voice trails off as she struggles to find the words. Instead, she simply points to the square of land by her left foot. "That."

Any hope of lying to her suddenly goes out the window. I don't think so little of my friend as to believe I could deceive her. She's sharp as a knife, it wouldn't work if I tried. The secret is already out. My hand moves to my neck, feeling my quickening pulse. I'm struggling to keep my breathing under control as panic begins to overtake me. My mind and heart race as if competing to see which can make me faint first. I take some slow, deep breaths to calm myself down. It works, to an extent. At least enough to allow me to form a reply.

I don't want to tell her the truth, but what choice do I have?

"What you see there..." I say slowly, doubting my decision with each syllable that escapes my lips. "Is Magna Gratia. It's a town of Lillis that I've been watching over." I would say more, but I want to gauge her reaction first. Depending on what she says next, I'll change how I approach this. More importantly, I don't like where she's standing. I'm sure the Lillis are terrified right now. "Can we talk outside?" 

I gesture for her to follow me out the door, but she doesn't acknowledge it. Her gaze has fallen back onto the town. She can't seem to tear her eyes away from it.

"Sara, please." I say, walking toward her. I take her hand and lightly tug her in my direction. "Can we move away from the town? You're probably scaring them."

"Them?" She says as she looks at me with a worried expression. "What do you mean, 'them'? Who is 'them'?"

Realizing she won't leave the room until she gets some answers, I decide on a compromise. I begin explaining to her as we step backward to my bed. I take a seat next to her, still holding her hand in mine.

"I'm talking about the Lillis. The same ones that built it, with some help from me."

Sara goes quiet for a moment, glancing over to the corner of my room every so often. "Is this why you've been acting odd lately?"

"It is." I nod.

I glance over to the town, wondering what my tinies are thinking as they watch me expose their existence right in front of them. I hope they understand that this wasn't my intention. I would never intentionally put them in danger. I would've locked the door, if it weren't made to only lock from the inside.

"What the hell..." She says, starting to come back to herself as the initial shock wears off. "I don't know what to say. I always knew that you cared about Lillis, but I never thought you'd go this far."

"It's because I care that I went this far."

"No, Jeannine. Not wanting to hurt them is one thing, but this..." She gestures to the town once more. "This is so far beyond okay. You bought Lilliputians! That's highly illegal. If anyone found out, you'd be facing jailtime."

"I know the risks, Sara. Give me a chance to-"

"Good." She interrupts me, standing up and taking a step toward them. "We need to get rid of them as soon as possible. I'll do it if you don't-"

This time I interrupt her by maintaining a tight grip on her hand. It stops dead in her tracks. She gives me a confused look, which I return with a dead serious one.

I will not let her set a single foot closer to my town. 

"Don't you dare even think about laying a finger on them." I tell her, making no effort to hide the anger in my tone. "I promised I would protect them from harm. If you threaten them, I won't sit by and watch."

"J-Jeanine..." Sara stares at me in disbelief. I've never spoken to her like this before, even when we had our argument a while ago. "I'm only looking out for you. I-I'm on your side, don't you know that?"

"If you really are on my side then sit down and listen to what I have to say."

Reluctantly, she sits back down next to me and gives me her full attention. I loosen my grip on her hand, holding it gently like before. 

"Alright. Help me understand why my best friend is risking her future for a bunch of specks."

I scowl at her, annoyed at her use of that term.

"I thought we agreed we would stop calling them that?"

"Yes, you're right. Sorry, force of habit."

"Is it, though?" I say, pulling my hand away from hers. "After our argument, you said you would start making an effort. I'm not seeing that."

"I am making an effort, but I have my priorities! If the choice is between your future and a bunch of tinies, I choose you. I want to stop you from making a decision that could ruin your life."

"Ruin my life? I've never been happier. Helping people is my life."

"Yes, but, these people...and yes, I'm calling them people...you don't owe them anything. You aren't responsible for them and you have no reason to involve yourself with them."

"If I don't, then who will?"

Sara goes quiet for a moment. She sighs loudly and shakes her head.

"There's no talking you out of this, is there? I've never seen you so serious about something."

"You've got that right." I take her hand back between both of mine this time and scoot closer to her. This is my best friend that I'm talking to, not some enemy. I feel guilty for calling her a threat, but it needed to be said. 

I want to believe that she'll understand me, even if no one else will. "So, would you like to hear the full story?"

"I'm all ears, Jeannie." She says softly. "This better be a good one."

I sit up straight and think back to three months ago, when this all began. I start from the very beginning, when I first began my preparations. I tell her about how I saved up money for weeks, how I set up the plot of land, and how I went to buy them from that shady pet shop. Moving on, I tell her about the rules we follow and the promises I made to the ten individuals I've been sharing my home with. Every so often Sara stops me to ask a question.

"How many are there now?" She asks me.

"With the third group, nearly fifty." I say proudly. "But don't rush me. We're getting there."

Continuing my explanation, I tell her about how I cooked for them, bought them resources, and helped with construction. My ability to recall such minor details surprises me, though it's probably because they are such fond memories. I tell her about the walkie-talking which we turned into a communication system. That part really seems to pique her interest.

"So you've heard their voices? Like, you've spoken?!"

"To each and every one of them, yes. Well, the first twenty mostly. I haven't had the chance to interact with the newcomers much yet."

And so I tell her about the ones I'm closest with: Icarus, Daedalus, Ori, and most importantly, Nick. Though I don't mean to, I end up up talking about him more than the others since we spend so much time together. He's their representative, after all. However, this does little to wipe the growing grin from her face.

"A Lilli guy? Seriously?" She snickers. "I mean, to each their own..."

"It's not like that. Don't make things weird. He can definitely hear you."

"Oh, I bet." She glances over to the corner with that same stupid grin.

Ignoring her, I move on to my experiences with handling them. 

I tell her about how it felt to carry them on my finger, and how it feels to have one in my earring. However, I refrain from telling her about Nick's first outing. I make it a point to express how important it is to be careful around them. A single misstep is always fatal to them. This causes Sara to check the sole of her shoe for any red dots.

"Don't worry, they never leave the border." I assure her. "That's why I can walk around without looking down all the time."

"I see. That's smart."

Lastly, I tell her about our plan to expand the town into a full-fledged city and our efforts to bring in Remnants. After our success with Mr. Grant's group, we're feeling optimistic about our next outing. That leads us up to the present moment. I give Sara a moment to process what I've told her. It's a relief to see that she isn't hysterical. Rather, she seems very interested.

"So that's the story. You're the only person who knows my little secret."

"Wow. It's a lot to take in, but I kind of get it." She adjusts her position, leaning back on an arm. "You're crazy, you know that?"

"Maybe so." I crack a smile. "Would I be crazy to trust you not to tell anyone?"

"Oh, come on! As if I'd rat you out. Now that you've explained it so passionately and in such excruciating detail, I'm not totally against it." She shrugs. "If this makes you happy, then go for it. They seem to be nice, based on what you've told me. Especially that Nick guy-"

"Sara, don't even finish that sentence."

"Just teasing, sorry." She winks at me. "After hearing all of that, I kinda want to meet one. Like I said before, it's easier to see them as people when you can talk to them."

"That might not be the best idea right now. Maybe later?"

"Okay. Can I at least take a closer look? I promise I'll be careful."

Against my better judgement, I nod in agreement. Seeing Sara so interested makes me happy. Somehow, I feel like I'm getting through to her in ways I couldn't before. 

Together, we walk over to Magna Gratia and stand by its edge. Sara leans over to get a better look, squinting her eyes to make out the tiny moving dots below. I stretch my arm out instinctively, to stop her in case she gets too close. Someone who has never dealt with Lillis is likely more prone to accidents. My gaze drops to her feet, watching them to make sure she's not too close. It's in that moment that I realize that Sara is wearing a skirt. She probably doesn't realize the issue with that.

"Sara, you should probably step away. Think about what you're wearing."

"What do you mean?" She looks down at her clothes and back up at me. "Oh, right. Are there many guys in Magna Gratia?"

"Yes, there are." I tell her, noticing that she isn't moving back.

"Then they're welcome for the nice view." She smirks, giving me a silly face.

"S-Sara!" I gasp.

"What, afraid I'll steal your Lilli guy?" She laughs, finally stepping away. "Okay, okay. I'm far away, see?"

I slap her arm, giving her a disapproving look. She continues to laugh, apparently finding my reaction very amusing. I roll my eyes and forcefully push her out of my room. She cooperates, giving no resistance as we return to the living room. We return to the couch in the same seats as earlier.

"Your highly inappropriate actions aside..." I shake my head in disbelief at her lack of shame. "I'm happy that I finally got to tell someone about this."

"Meh, I always had my suspicions."

"Really?"

"No, but, I'd like to think I did. I feel like an idiot for not figuring it out on my own." She slouches back in her seat, groaning. She shuts her eyes and thinks aloud. "Magna Gratia, a town in my bedroom. Oh, the fun I would have with that."

"What a terrible thought."

"What? No!" She sits up suddenly. "People would love to live in my town!"

"Mhm. I suppose you calling them 'people' is a start..." 

"I'm hurt!" She feigns offence. "So a teeny-weeny-Jeannie wouldn't want to live in my Lilli town? You'd get the privilege of looking up at me every day."

The two of us are quiet for a moment before we burst out laughing. We're both so tired that anything is funny. She wipes a tear from her eye as she tries to catch her breath.

"Okay, okay, we got hella side tracked. We're supposed to be studying! At this rate I'm going to fail my final!"

"Ah, you're right." I manage to say, finally calming down. "Okay, back to work. Where were we?"

Sara gives me a dopey look which I realize is because she didn't reread the chapter. She went into my room and forgot to get the book. I get up and put a hand on my hip, hoping my body language conveys even a fraction of how silly I think she is.

"I'll go get it."

"And I'll wait here this time."

As I walk back into my room, I grab the book, but not before kneeling down by Magna Gratia. I have no doubt that our conversation was heard by all of them. Despite Sara's very cruel idea, she was only looking out for me. After telling her the truth, she came around quite willingly. It's the result of preaching to her about this for so long. Eventually, she saw the light. I trusted her to keep my secret even before asking outright. I did that so my Lillis could hear her. Exposing their existence would've caused a panic, since she's little more than a potentially dangerous stranger to them. I hope that they can come to trust Brobs other than me, eventually.

"That went about as good as it could have. I guess we have a new ally now?" I tell them, hoping they aren't too upset with me. "If she causes trouble, I'll be sure to keep her in line. I'm asking you all to trust me, okay? Your safety is my utmost priority. I'm a woman of my word."

As I stand back up and exit the room, I can't help but wonder how things will change going forward...

I'm feeling cautiously optimistic.