Ed moved immediately to catch the smaller girl in his arms when she fell for the sweep. "And that..." He finished in a softer voice, "And that is why you feel so angry right now. You think you're right. She believes she's right and together you can't compromise on the subject because you two are literally night and day."

"Like me and Al. We're brothers, but we'd fight like this, and even if I was older, I never won. Even if you can't come to blows like this, this is the lesson that I'm giving you right now: People aren't going to want to listen to reason, and even if you feel like giving up on them is abandoning, sometimes it's the right thing to do, especially in a closed space like this. Because in the end, she will have to decide for herself if she ever wants to join the new kid-squad, considering all of her older friends are gone now."

He sighed. "You okay? I didn't hit too hard did I?"