Alyssa had once asked him what it was like to listen to someone else's heart. He had told her it was like hearing an echo in a canyon and being able to point to exactly where it came from. She claimed that was impossible… but it wasn't, not for someone who had walked that canyon a million times before.

So he walked the familiar canyon of human compassion yet again, this time from a perch on the orange railing outside the Life Sciences building. Students hurried past in every direction, spilling out of this building and its neighbors to join the sidewalk traffic in the ten minutes between classes. He let them flow by, confident that he would not miss one echo among thousands even in this chaotic whirl.

A flash of white and the words "Noble Tiger" were visible for less than a second, but he had already hopped down from the railing. Pushing his way through the crush of bodies and books, he followed her heart's echo unerringly until that red-streaked brown hair came into view once more. She was alone and walking quickly, and he had to lengthen even his ground-eating stride to catch up with her.

"Hey, Alyssa!" He fell into step beside her, reaching for her books when she glanced over at him. "Where's your bike?"

Her face broke into a dazzling smile when she realized who it was, and she surrendered her armload immediately. "Hi Cole," she said, pulling her backpack over her other shoulder and hooking her thumbs through the straps as they walked. "I let Danny borrow it so he could do some errands. What are you doing here?"

"Carrying your books," he answered easily, grinning when she rolled her eyes at him. "Following you," he added. "Where are you going? I thought you got out early today, so I figured I'd walk you back."

"Normally I do," she agreed, laughing at his expression of confusion. "But I said I'd help set up the Jessie Doe Haunted House this afternoon, so I have to do that first. You can come if you want to."

"Sure," he said eagerly. Then he paused, frowning. "What's a haunted house?"