A/N: Hello. So I got some response to this fic, Yay!! I’m very happy! Thanks! Anyways, please R&R!

Disclaimer: I do not own the Lost World.

Chapter 12:

“How do I look, Kieran?” Veronica asked eagerly, looking down at herself.

She couldn’t help fidgeting. She was definitely nervous. Kieran hadn’t been kidding about meeting her mother right then. He had led them immediately to stand in front of two huge wooden doors-- the only wooden thing she’d seen so far.

“You look enchanting, Veronica,” Kieran answered demurely.

Veronica looked at him strangely. Kieran was going to take some getting used to.

“Thank you,” she replied. “Now can we go in?”

“In a minute, I just want to explain what you will see when you go in. It can be quite overwhelming the first time,” Kieran started quickly.

“Oh that’s all right. I just want to go see my mother,” she said, stopping him from giving the long speech that was sure to follow.

“All right then,” he agreed. “Let us go in.”

She watched as he pushed open the two huge doors easily. He stepped back and waited for her to step forward. But she stood there frozen from her nerves.

“Veronica,” Kieran spoke gently.

She glanced at him and he had such an understanding look on his face that she was instantly comforted. She walked to his side where he put a reassuring hand on her shoulder, guiding her inside.

The minute she stepped foot inside she could see why Kieran had wanted to warn her first. It was overwhelming!

She had only taken two steps into the gigantic, auditorium-style room, but she could still see the entire room laid out before her. Looking from her left to her right, there were benches lined up in rows on either side. Sitting in them were at least two hundred people. She was standing in the aisle separating the two sides. The aisle led down to the front of the room. There she could see five people sitting at a head table.

“This way, Veronica,” Kieran said quietly at her side.

He led them forward, down the sloping aisle. Inch by inch they were getting closer to those five people. And Veronica was pretty sure that one of those five was her mother. Oh, the butterflies in her stomach.

Halfway down the aisle Veronica looked up towards the table and sure enough there were two familiar faces. She glanced back and forth between those faces, mesmerized.

“Veronica, over here,” Kieran said to her.

She looked up to Kieran and realized they had reached the front of the room. Kieran was pointing over to a spot directly in front of the five.

Once there Kieran left her. She watched him go sit with four other people. Veronica turned her attention back to the head table.

She glanced at Summerlee first; he was smiling warmly at her. It set her stomach somewhat at ease to see him. And then her gaze travelled down the line of people to where her mother sat at the center, two advisors at each of her sides.

Veronica took the silence as an opportunity to study the Protector, her mother. She looked different, yet the same. She could see the same intense blue eyes staring intently at her. Her facial features were the same. And yet she could see the few lines at the corners of her mother’s eyes that weren’t in Veronica’s memories. Her hair was pulled back into a severe high bun, making her look older then her 45 years. And she wasn’t smiling. Something Veronica’s mother in her memory barely did.

Veronica stared at her mother anxiously. Thoughts racing through her head: Why wasn’t she smiling? Was she not happy to see her?

She was thoroughly worried over the lack of sound in the vast room and the absence of affection on her mother’s face. Until, she heard, her mother clear her throat. And her face broke into a radiant smile.

Finally, the silence was broken.

“Hello my daughter. I have missed you.”

“All right,” Roxton began. “We’ll start with something simple.”

“Ok,” Kyra said tentatively.

“What I want you to do is punch me right here,” Roxton told her, indicating the palm of his hand.

“I can’t do that, I’ll hurt you,” Kyra protested.

Roxton chuckled. “Trust me, you won’t.”

Kyra still stared at him warily. But, she nodded her head, pulled back her right hand in a fist and swung.

“Whoa!” Kyra yelled. She had missed his hand completely and the momentum of her swing, swung her completely around. She would have fallen if Roxton hadn’t caught her.

“What happened?” she said in a daze.

Kyra and Roxton had gotten up bright and early to begin her ‘warriors’ training. Kyra had tried to talk Raye into going along with it. But her sister just wasn’t having any of it. Instead Kyra had got dressed up in her workout clothes and went along with Roxton.

“Ok, so here’s the thing, you need to stand with your feet wider apart. That way, you’re steadier and less likely to fall,” Roxton explained, amused.

“Ok,” Kyra listened attentively and did as told.

“Secondly,” Roxton continued, he took her right hand in his, “when you make a fist you want your thumb on the outside of the fingers. That way it’s less likely to break.”

“I could break my thumb?” she squeaked.

“Not if you do it right,” Roxton assured. “Now, try again.”

Kyra did as told, widening her stance and making sure her thumb wasn’t inside her fingers. She pulled back and punched. She made impact that much she knew. But, her eyes were closed; she didn’t know what she hit.

She heard Roxton chuckle and she peeked. Her fist was against his palm. She’d done it!

“I did it!” she exclaimed.

Roxton laughed out loud. “That you did. But next time we’ll try it with your eyes open.” She smiled up at him sheepishly. “You did good, now let’s continue.”

Well that’s it for now. Let me know what you think.

I just wanted to say thanks to Gemini Explorer for reviewing the last chapter 3 times! I know Finn wasn’t in this chapter, but she’ll definitely be in the next. Which I will have up as soon as possible.

Thanks Again!