"I'm the beautiful part," Veronica said, gesturing to herself with a shake of her head, clearly just joking. "Someone else has to do the lazy bit, though, with all the Council work, and that's where you come in." In point of fact, she'd seen nothing to indicate whether or not that was true. These things were harder to tell on the island, where no matter how hard people worked, there was still ample free time.

They were getting deeper into the jungle now, though it was still quite a walk. With different company, it would have been unbearable, but it was almost surprisingly pleasant instead. Reaching up, she tucked her hair back out of her face from where it had been clinging to her forehead.