Four thumbs and no brain cells
Krel sat in his chair, criss cross, pushing a few buttons on the motherships control board. It was too late at night for him to be doing this, but he felt he had to. If was going to be kept up at night, he would at least have something to do. And that something was searching. Searching for more videos of the boys' supposed alien technology. He had access to most security cameras, so unless they were to reprogram certain things, the footage was his oyster, and the 'alien' boy was his pearl. A pearl he needed in order to make a necklace. Basically, he needed the boys help to fix the daxial array.
"Mother, can you rewind this footage a few times?" Krel requested.
"Of course, my royal." the Mothership obliged. The screen replayed a clip of the 'cat robot' that they had seen with the boy. He zoomed in on the video, trying to get all the details on the cat.
"Hmm." Krel squinted at the video. "It has fur. So how could it be a robot?" Krel changed the video to another one of the 'cat'. "Nothing really mechanical."
He spun around in his chair before changing the video again. It was harder for him to focus without his music, but he didn't think Aja or Vex would like him doing that in the middle of the night. He observed the video and noticed something amazing. No. Not just amazing, strange. The cat was engulfed in mist and grew larger, with wings. "How did I miss this!?" Krel asked himself, putting one hand on his head. "This guy's cat is like, like some uh, what were those toys Stuart mentioned again...? Ah! Those Morph-formers!" He realized. Yes, it may have looked mystical, but Krel wasn't too inclined to believe in such things.
"So, let's see, this guy has a bracelet made of some sort of advanced technology, a mechanical cat that transforms, and, uh, dyed hair." Krel noted. Everything was lining up. There was one thing missing. The boy's name. None of the footage had audio on it, and neither Krel nor Aja heard his name from anybody. Yes, they knew where he worked, and how he looked, but his name would tie everything together. The second he knows who the boy is, the second they can ask him for some help getting home. Aja, of course, would say they needed to be friends with him, then confront him on being an alien, but Krel wanted to know more before he showed.
Krel pulled out his phone to check the time. "12 am? How long have I been working?"
"About 2 horvaths my royal." Mother informed him. Krel could've gone to sleep upon hearing that, but he didn't. His eyelids weren't halfway shut, he didn't feel like stretching or yawning. So, he figured it would be fine to stay up a little longer. He changed the video on the screen. It showed a video from a few days before. The boy entered a bookstore with his cat, and the two seemed to be doing some sort of ritual or experiment. Krel fast forwarded the footage, it showed them exiting, locking it up for the night.
"So, he works at the bookstore too!" Krel spun around in his chair once more. He felt like moving around a bit. Aja and Vex were asleep, and Krel had shut down the blanks for the night. No one was in his way. The night was young. Kind of. He'd only have like 4 hours, but still time. "I guess I could go do my own investigation..." Krel hopped out of his chair. "I'll be right back before anyone wakes up."
- - - -
"You think there'll be anything out tonight?" Douxie asked, opening the bookstore door.
"I don't think so. You did a lot of fighting last night." Archie pushed up his glasses. He walked into the store, Douxie following after. The store had technically closed for the night, but Douxie needed to get some magic stuff done.
"Got that right!" He laughed. "Hey, what do you think those siblings and their grandpa had to do with everything?"
"I'm guessing one of them saved you." Archie poofed into his dragon form.
"Well, that's the thing. I'm not sure which one of them it was, or if it was any of them." Douxie said. He began climbing up the staircase, his bracelet glowing and making some objects float around. "The tracking spell gave us clues to these, creatures, not straight up answers." He sounded a little unsure of the word creatures, he found it a little odd to call them that, but he couldn't think of anything else to call them.
"What if that old man was the first clue? And when those two came near the wand it gave us another clue?" Archie suggested.
"Yeah, but remember what we saw in that weird illusion thing?" Douxie reminded Archie.
"The blue people with multiple arms?" His feline friend asked.
"Yeah them. What if that man's grandkids are those two?" Douxie thought for a moment. Archie paused, feeling something off about that statement.
"If they had been them, they would've recognized us. Then again, since they stayed hidden during that fight, they must not want to really be around us." Archie walked over to the stores front door and looked outside. Nothing seemed amiss, though it felt as so. Theres always a calm before the storm.
"Kind of explains why that guy acted that way." Douxie said, leaning on the banisters in the sort of loft of the store.
"Yeah," Archie mumbled, not really focusing on his friend. "Something feels off about tonight."
"What? Is it just that we've got a night to not fight monsters?" Douxie asked playfully. He began walking down the stairs to see what Archie was on about.
"No. Something feels off. Like there's someone out there. Something." Archie told his friend ominously. He didn't really know what it was, but he knew something was coming their way. Whether it was dangerous or not would be up to fate.
Douxie looked outside the store's windows and squinted. "It does seem a little too calm outside.." He agreed. "Should we go out and look?"
"Thought tonight was a break?" Archie joked.
"We're protectors. Which means we have to protect and stuff, even if that means not having a day off." Douxie declared, sighing at the end of his sentence.
- - - -
"Ok, the bookstore should be about a mile or 2 away." Krel told himself, shifting his weight on his hoverboard so he could turn. The night was going very well. Not a human or alien in sight. "Things are going well. Too well." He scratched his chin.
Something felt odd. Krel felt safe, but he still felt like something was going to happen. Yes, it seemed illogical for him to feel that way, but that's just how he felt. He rounded another corner, keeping balance with one set of arms and holding his gps and serrator in the other. Krel focused on where he was going, ignoring the world around him (except for looking for anyone watching of course).
A snakelike creature crawled in the shadows. It's claws scratching on the concrete below, like nails on a chalkboard. The ears on it twitched, they didn't look like ears though, more like spikes. It crawled up the wall of the alley, exiting it and following after Krel. Its body was slimy and green, its texture looking like that of a slug.
"I'll check the place, see if it's got anything interesting, and be on my-" The creature screamed as it pounced at Krel. "AAAHHH!" He activated his sword and swatted the creature away, slamming it onto a wall. The creature flattened on the wall before sliding down. It stayed dormant for a few seconds. Krel stood still on his hoverboard, his breaths heavy from shock. He sighed out of relief, though the creature quickly got up. "Oh kleb." He cursed. The creature began crawling near Krel, who began to scream. He quickly began speeding ahead on his board.
He sped through the street, swiftly passing the bookstore. He was still screaming, activating his blaster in case the creature caught up. He looked like a ball of blue light as he passed the store.
"What was that!?" Douxie exclaimed, eyes wide as Krel passed by. He ran out the store, staring down the road. He watched Krel race throughout the park, the creature chasing him down.
"Looks like a regular Blaskin," Archie observed, following Douxie. "And it's chasing after a screaming blue light."
Douxie squinted at the 'blue light'. Yeah, no, it was not just blue light. It was one of the figures in the illusion. Out of impulse, he ran after.
"Douxie!" Archie called out, but his friend was already too far to listen properly. He scoffed and flew towards his friend.
Krel, still screaming, grunting, and zipping around the park, equipped his serrators blaster. He shot at the creature a few times, missing all but once. He only nailed its tail though, which didn't seem to affect it. "What even are you!?" He groaned, turning around his board back to the bookstore. Douxie was right in front of him though, so, of course, they crashed into each other. Again. Neither of them can catch a break. The wizard was knocked onto the ground, and Krel was partially knocked off his hoverboard. He laid on his back, the lower half of his body sitting on the hoverboard.
"Fuzz buckets..." Douxie rubbed his head. Krel struggled to get up for a bit but quickly shoved his legs off the hoverboard and lifted himself off the ground. Douxie looked up at him. "Wha..." He could barely believe his eyes. Barely because he knew that Krel was real, he just didn't think he'd ever see him.
"Uh. Hi." Krel backed away. He could've run, but the creature was still nearby. Archie was currently distracting it, though that wouldn't last long.
"Who- What- uh..." Douxie stumbled on his words, trying to find the right ones. He marveled at the sight in front of him. A glowing alien creature with 4 arms, electric blue everything, and cool weapons. He couldn't believe what he was seeing. "You're-"
"Not important right now." Krel groaned. He hopped onto his hoverboard. His exit was quickly stopped by the creature though. Archie had held it back, but it ran back to attack after seeing the commotion. "Ah kleb!" He sneered, blasting the creature again. It took the hit, though rised up just as fast as it fell. Douxie shot up and readied his spells.
"The Blaskin!" Douxie yelled.
"Excuse me!?" Krel exclaimed as he shot the creature again. He had mistakenly thought Douxie had insulted him.
"He means the creature!" Archie swooped in to scratch the creature.
"Thought we took you guys out last month!?" Douxie slightly chuckled, panic dipped in his words. His gauntlet glowed, magic symbols swirling around. Krel's eyes widened a bit. He hadn't seen this up close and in person, right in view, before.
"Looks like they came back for another round!" Archie flew above the creature. He blew flames at the Blaskin.
"What is going on!?" Krel asked, swerving his hoverboard so he was behind the creature. He blasted it several times, but the creature wouldn't stay down.
"This creature is hunting you down!" Douxie shot a spell at the thing. "What was that spell again?" He asked himself, messing with his bracelet.
"You learned it like two weeks ago!" Archie yelled before blasting more fire at the Blaskin. "How did you forget it!?"
"Just give me a minute to remember!"
Krel rolled his eyes and scoffed. Maybe this 'alien' guy wasn't the best person to help them back home. No matter, he had to get home before sunrise, so he'd have to make it quick. His serrator sprouted its spear. He quickly swerved around everyone to confuse the creature. Its eyes spun around, searching for its victim. Krel quickly stabbed it. It shrieked, spinning its head around.
"Oh. I guess that'll work..." Douxie stared at the screaming creature. "I don't think that'll hold though."
Krel pulled the spear out of the Blaskin. It laid still. "How so?" He asked curiously. The creature twitched for a second.
"You need a specific spell to defeat things like this. Not just stabbing." Archie explained. "I hope you remember that spell now." He sorts of asked his friend, landing on the ground.
"I do now!" Douxie tapped his bracelet, blue mist emerging from it and encasing the Blaskin.
"Woah...." Krel gasped quietly. He watched as the creature was pulled into a sort of underground prison.
"That wasn't so hard, was it?" Douxie asked his friend smugly. Archie rolled his eyes. He chuckled before turning his attention to Krel. "Hey, sorry about that. You, okay?"
"Yeah.." Krel stepped off his hoverboard. This was bad, and also good. He just got saved from a strangely spikey creature, but now the guy he and his sister had been watching/sort of stalking was right in front of him. But that was bad because he was, y'know, all four armed and blue. Though it was good because now he might be able to question the boy. But you know, when he thought about it more, it was bad.
"Uh." Douxie struggled to find something to say. Krel wasn't really matching his energy, so he didn't exactly know what to say, especially since he'd never seen someone like him before. He cleared his throat. "So, um, I'm Douxie. What's your name?"
Krel blinked a few times. Now he knows his name I guess, but now he'll be forced to introduce himself. He had to think of something, and he had to think quickly. He looked at his hoverboard, then at Douxie and his cat. He had to think fast. Douxie raised an eyebrow and stepped closer to Krel, who knelt down to pick up his hoverboard.
"I know I already asked this already, but are you okay? That Blaskin was really-"
SMACK!
"Merlin's beard!" Archie gasped as Douxie collapsed onto the ground. Krel stood in place. He held his hoverboard just above Douxie's body. He couldn't believe it. He'd just knocked someone out.
"Seklos and Gaylen! I just- I-"
"You knocked him unconscious!" The cat exclaimed, stepping towards Douxie's body. "Why did you do that!?"
"I- I panicked, ok?" Krel held his board close to his chest. "I'm not exactly comfortable with talking to human-ish creatures." He lied a bit.
Silence ringed through the street as the two panicked a bit. Archie nudged Douxie's body. "We've got an hour or so before he wakes up."
"How do you know that?" Krel asked, stepping towards the cat. He was surprised at how quick Archie accepted his friend being knocked out.
"Believe me, this isn't the first time he's been knocked out." Archie sighed. Krel knelt down. "Now, help me get his body into the store before sunrise."
"Well, I've got to go home so I'm not sure if I can-" He interrupted himself after seeing the look on Archie's face. "Fine. I'll help."
"Good. Because I don't really have the hands to do this." Archie blatantly stated, causing Krel to roll his eyes.
- - - -
"Wow, he's kind of light." Krel said, dragging Douxie by his legs. He backed up towards the bookstore, opening the door with one arm.
"Yeah, seems a little unexpected." Archie shrugged, flying into the store.
"So, uh, when he wakes up can you pretend, he never saw me?" Krel asked, a little unsure while he was speaking.
"Why would I do that? You knocked him out after he saved your but." Archie pondered.
"One, I saved myself and he just finished the job. And two, I was a little overwhelmed by everything. " Krel reasoned, carefully backing up into the store as to not hurt Douxie.
"Uh huh. You really thought that knocking him out would be fine?" Archie landed on a table.
"I don't know! I just saw my hoverboard, and him stepping closer and I panicked." Krel explained. "And- I, I, I'm sorry I reacted that way and I'm sorry for knocking him out." He apologized, struggling a bit to find the right words. He closed the store doors, placing Douxie on the ground.
Archie sighed, knowing that Krel was being sincere. "You are forgiven, though, I'm not sure Douxie here will say the same when he awakes. Well, if he remembers it."
"If?" Krel questioned, lifting Douxie up again to place him somewhere else.
"Sometimes when someone gets knocked out, they don't entirely remember the events that conspired before." Archie explained, hopping off the table to check on Douxie. Krel gave a confused look as he backed up and placed Douxie down. "What? You've never been knocked out before?"
Krel looked away meekly and twiddled his thumbs. "I'm not sure I've experienced being knocked out. At least not the way I knocked out your friend here." He answered. Back on Akiridion-5 he never got injured, and not much had happened during his stay on earth (minus getting punched by Steve).
"Hm." Archie nudged his friend. "Do you think you could check his pulse? I don't exactly have the hands to do it."
"Pulse?" Krel asked, tilting his head in confusion.
"You know, your heartbeat?" Archie questioned. Krel continued to look confused. "It shows if you're alive or not." Archie explained. Krel looked around blankly. "You seriously don't know what that is?"
If he was being honest, Krel had not paid too much attention to human anatomy, and when Mother had explained some of it, he didn't find it worth his time.
"No. We don't exactly have human hearts where I am from." Krel admitted, kneeling down. "He'll be fine. My sisters hit others with her hoverboard, and most of them were fine after."
"Most?" Archie asked. Krel scratched his head meekly, revealing that he wasn't sure. He poked Douxie's face and raised an eyebrow.
"That doesn't matter right now, what matters is that your friend is ok, and I didn't kill him." Krel stated, walking off to observe the store. "Can I ask something?"
Archie walked over to Krel. "Sure, what would you like to ask?"
"Are you and your friend, uh," He began, but shook his head. "This could sound a little weird but..." He thought for a moment. He wanted to ask about all the alien stuff but revealing that he was an alien would be too risky, especially this quickly. He needed to ask something less suspicious. "Are comfortable with me being, a uh, how should I say this, an other-worldly being?"
"I'm a talking cat who wears glasses, you're pretty ordinary to me." Archie chuckled. Krel nodded, turning away.
"So, then, can we make a deal?" Krel asked.
"A deal?" Archie repeated. "What kind?"
"You don't tell your friend about me, and I'll give you something in return." Krel said.
"That depends, what are you offering?" Archie questioned.
"What would you want?" Krel asked.
"High quality smoked salmon." Archie stated. Krel blinked a few times, confused at the simple request.
"That- that's all you want?"
"Yes."
"O- ok, I'll bring it here next Saturday night. Till then neither of us say anything." Krel stated.
"Alright. There is one thing though." Archie said.
"What?" Krel asked.
"You're going to have to deliver it to me without being seen." Archie reminded him with a slightly smug tone. Krel shook his head, frustrated with himself. His panic was clouding his decision making.
"Uh, I'll go in and give you it, and you can make some sort of distraction for your friend." Krel sighed, giving up on formulating an actual plan. He was exhausted, it was almost morning; he was ready to go home already.
"Alright. Guess you should be going then." Archie nodded, sensing that Krel wanted to make things quick.
"I will." Krel groaned, heading towards the stores exit. He turned back to look at the cat. "Please don't peep a thing to your friend."
"I won't. You have my word." Archie assured him. Krel smiled, opening the door and leaving. It went well, though considering the time it was, it still wasn't the best.
- - - -
"Easy Peezy-"
Aja yawned and hit her alarm clock. "Time for school!" She stretched, hopping out of bed. After getting dressed she skipped over to the kitchen.
"Good morning!" She greeted the blanks and Vex. She scanned the kitchen for her brother. "Where's Krel?"
"Varvatos Vex has not seen the prince since last night." Varvatos answered. Aja raised an eyebrow. She opened her mouth to ask something but was interrupted.
"Ugh! I am never going exploring alone again!" Krel complained, opening the back door and entering the house. The night hadn't gone the best. No sleep, hard labor (at least in his opinion), and negotiating with a cat. He felt happy, but he definitely had trouble getting home that night. The lack of sleep had really taken a toll on him.
"Where have you been!?" Vex demanded to know.
"I don't even want to talk about it. I'm too tired." Krel groaned. He entered to kitchen and sat down. "What's for breakfast?"
"My famous blueberry pancakes!" Lucy answered, handing Krel a plate of them. Famous was a strong word but he was famished.
"Thanks!" Krel cheered weakly. He quickly scarfed the pancakes down. Aja's eyes widened a bit at this.
"You had a really rough night, huh?" His sister asked, putting a hand on his shoulder. "You haven't eaten like that in a while."
"Yeah. I'll talk about it later." Krel said, getting up. "I'll go get ready." He walked over to the fireplace, and it opened, revealing the main part of the ship. He rubbed his head, contemplating if he should actually tell his sister everything. They're twins. They told each other everything! So why would Krel second guess telling her? It's simple. He made a mistake. A mistake which he knew could've been avoided if he had just thought it through more. So, as he walked to renew his transduction, and he thought on his decisions. It wasn't exactly flooding his mind, but the feeling was like a dripping faucet.
"Are you alright my royal?" the Mothership asked. Krel smiled at her voice.
"Yeah, just a little tired." He answered, hopping into the transduction chamber. This action made him think of another thing he did wrong. He hadn't bothered to disguise himself. But if he hadn't, he would've been recognized immediately. You'd think that's where he would conclude it, but his thoughts quickly turned into a cycle of what decisions he could've made. As he walked back into the main part of the house and into his room, his family stared at him. He knew they were staring, and when he looked at them, they quickly turned away. He needed something to brighten up his day. Especially since it was a Thursday and not a Friday. He entered his room and began pacing around, looking at what he had to work with. His guitar wasn't exactly the easiest to fit in a locker. And nothing else seemed to be available. Except for his boombox. The other students at school found it a little bulky and old, but he admired it. It made him smile just looking at it.
"You're coming with me!" Krel declared, grabbing his boombox and backpack.
- - - -
"You're really bringing that again?" Aja asked as she and Krel walked into school. She stared at her brother, who was holding his boombox like a lunch box instead of over his shoulder.
"If we can bring our serrators to school, I can bring this whenever I want." Krel stated, giggling a little. He felt a little high and mighty carrying his boom box. Aja smiled, sensing her brother was happy.
"So, what did you do last night?" She asked. The twins began walking towards their lockers.
"I went to go find more information on that alien guy. I saw him talking to his cat again, and I found out his name!" Krel shared, leaving out the obviously embarrassing/secret parts.
"That's great! How did you not get caught though?" Aja opened her locker.
"I hid surprisingly well." Krel lied a bit, opening his own locker. Their lockers were pretty close for plot reasons. He placed his boombox in, Aja placing items in her own locker as well.
"He must be slightly blind since he couldn't see you." Aja guessed, acknowledging how bright she and her brother are in their Akiridion forms.
"Are you doubting my awesome hiding abilities?" Krel giggled, closing his locker.
"Maybe." Aja teased, closing her own locker. The twins laughed together before walking away from their lockers.
"I can't believe they're giving us another test." Krel groaned.
"Mother said it's an essential part of this planets education system." Aja began. "And if-"
"If we want to fit in, we have to do it." Krel finished for her sister. His sister stuck her tongue out at him. "What? Mother and Varvatos give us that lecture every other day!"
Aja rolled her eyes playfully as the bell rang. The twins smiled at each other and waved goodbye, feeling on top of the world.
This day is pretty good so far! Krel thought, walking over to his next class. He looked around the hall and spotted something. A poster. " 'The battle of the bands'? " He read, raising an eyebrow. He thought about it for a moment but shrugged it off.
- - - -
Douxie rolled around the ground. He'd been unconscious for a few hours, and his body was finally waking up. Archie flew over to his friend. He nudged him, causing Douxie to lazily shove him away.
"Five more minutes..." the wizard groaned, patting his friend's head as if he were an alarm clock. Archie sighed.
"Ugh. Wake up Doux! It's time for school!" Archie yelled. Douxie rolled over, opening his eyes to look at his friend.
"What? It was just nighttime..." Douxie remarked, sitting up and rubbing his head. "What happened?"
"Some creature knocked you out and I had to drag you here." Archie explained. He could've told Douxie the truth, that he was knocked out by some alien creature, but he pitied Krel a bit and decided to keep most events secret.
"How did you drag me here?" Douxie asked.
The cat's ears lowered for a second before he thought of a lie. "Let's just say that you owe me." Archie said in a slightly mysterious and dismissive tone. He walked towards the bookstores entrance. "Now I suggest you hurry up; you're going to be late to school."
Douxie stood up and looked out the window. "Alright. Guess we should get going?" He asked. Archie stayed silent, only giving a nod. Douxie nodded back. "Should we run?"
"You run. Cats don't go to school." Archie reminded him, flying over to a nearby chair. He curled up on the chair.
"I guess I'll be going alone." Douxie proclaimed, exiting the store.
- - - -
Unfortunately, Krel's lack of sleep was catching up to him by lunch. He slouched as he sat down next to Aja, a tray in hand. He was wishing he still had the same night routine as he did back on Akiridion-5. There, they never need much sleep but now that he was on earth, his body was getting used to the ways human's sleep. His eyes fluttered, his body begging him to take a nap. His head bobbed back and forth as well.
"Krel?" Aja tried getting her brothers attention. He didn't notice his sister calling out and continued to fade in and out of sleep. His head lowered a bit, then began plunging into his tray. Aja quickly grabbed the back of his shirt to keep him from getting a face full of food. "Krel! You need to rest so you can pay attention and not die!"
"Huh- oh- is it morning already?" Krel said, his voice lazy. Aja bonked her brother on the head, reminding him of where they were. "Oh yeah. Sorry, todays work, and last night has me a little drained."
"Krel, you've got to take care of yourself!" Aja frowned, raising her voice a bit.
"I will. I think I may have gotten carried away with the investigation thing." Krel yawned. He slouched forward in his chair.
"In that case, I'll do the investigating tonight, you can rest up." Aja told him, putting a hand on his shoulder. "We have to take care of ourselves and each other."
"I know." Krel nodded. "I kind of wish my body wasn't getting used to the earths time though."
"Yeah..." Aja sighed, leaning back in her chair. "Did you hear about the battle of the bands?"
"Yeah. I saw some posters." Krel responded.
"Do you think it's an actual battle?" Aja wondered, excited at the prospect of a battle.
"I don't think so. I heard it's a musical competition where they try to see who's the best." Krel told her. He rested his head on his hand and picked up some fries from his tray.
"That's still a battle. It's in the name and description." Aja said, crossing her arms.
"Uh huh." Krel yawned, eating some of his lunch. His sister raised an eyebrow at him. She felt that Krel wasn't entirely telling the truth (and we all know he wasn't) and wanted to know what really happened last night.
"Little brother. Be honest with me." Aja began. Her brother looked up and raised on eyebrow. "What really happened last night. I know you didn't just follow that guy around without getting caught and then get home at 7 in the morning. You may be the smart one but that doesn't mean I don't have any problem-solving skills. So please, tell me what really happened."
Krel froze for a moment. He wanted to tell his sister everything, but there was so little yet so much to it. It was embarrassing to tell. He'd gone out without his disguise, attacked someone, and made a deal. Things that the tech wiz prince of Akiridion 5 would never do. Well, in his opinion at least. But it was his sister, the person he told all his secrets and interests. He may have made a deal with that cat, but that was less important than his sister.
He sighed, preparing what he was going to say in his head. "Last night I was attacked by some creature, it was chasing me around and the guy happened to be around, so he helped me. But when he tried to approach me, I didn't have a plan. So, I panicked and hit him with my hoverboard." He said, hesitating a little at certain parts. "And then he was knocked out, so I had to help the cat get him somewhere safe."
Aja nodded, smiling softly.
"So, I made a deal with the cat." Krel sighed.
"Well, if you made a deal then what did you offer him?" Aja asked.
"He asked me for some human delicacy in exchange for him not telling the boy about it." Krel answered, playing with his food.
"How do you know he won't tell?" Aja questioned.
"He said I had his word. I don't really know what that means, but I assume it means he promised." Krel explained. His sister nodded. "So, next Saturday I'm going to meet up with that cat and give him what he asked for. Until then we have to keep this a secret."
"Then I guess we can chill for the next week." Aja concluded.
"Chill? It's not cold outside." Krel said.
"Oh no, it means that we relax, like how cool means awesome!" Aja explained. Krel raised an eyebrow for a second but sighed. He wasn't really getting used to Aja using human teenager's slang. The siblings smiled at each other and picked up their trays, knowing the bell would be ringing soon.
"Then I guess that's what we're doing this weekend." Krel said, picking up his backpack.
"We're going to do so much chilling!" Aja cheered.
- - - -
Douxie was still in a bit of a daze, constantly rubbing his head, trying to remember what happened. Archie wouldn't tell him much, only that he owed him, which frustrated him a bit. He could understand why he wasn't saying the whole story, seeing as he is just one cat and Douxie is over a hundred pounds. Even so, he couldn't shake the feeling that something was off.
"Douxie! Hey! You, okay?" Zoe called out to him. Douxie raised his head, letting out a 'huh'. He had had one hand holding his head up. "You've been spaced out all day!"
"Sorry, just a little disturbed by a creature I fought last night." He explained. His friend shook her head.
"You can't do this stuff on school days! You have work, sleep, fight monster, and go to school." Zoe reminded him, crossing her legs.
"I know. It's just that I was knocked out and Archie had to drag me over to the bookstore." Douxie sighed, trying to avoid more pestering from Zoe. As much as he cared for her (seeing as she was his only other magical/immortal friend other than Archie) he didn't exactly like when she told him to take care of himself. It felt a little out of character for her.
"Finals are coming up, Doux! You gotta focus more!" Zoe told him. She wanted to say more, but their teacher gave them a look. This calmed Douxie a bit, he was too confused about the night before to get pestered.
The teacher was going on about how to draw something. Douxie had heard things like this for hundreds of years, each time garnering new phrasing. That made him think of the fact that in all his years of being alive, he'd never seen anything like those beings in that illusion. He only saw an image of them. The only real clue he had was some old man and his grandkids. Nothing odd about them. Though, considering what he heard about the latest Troll Hunter, there was probably something going on with them. Were they housing those creatures? Are those their friends? Yes, his first thought was that the twins were the glowing blue figures, but he'd never met either of them properly (minus the kid he bumped into at the park and his sister). He knew that an obvious answer like that would have more to it. So, he got an idea. A wonderful, smart idea. He would make friends with the siblings he met at the park and eventually get them to reveal their secret. This would be easy all he'd have to do was find them and-
RRRRRRRRRRIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIINNNNNNNNNNNNGGGGGGGGGGG
"Class dismissed!" The teacher yelled out as the bell rang. Everyone grabbed their backpacks and ran out the door. Douxie quickly picked up his bag, getting bumped into by some of his classmates who were also lagging behind. He looked around for Zoe, but she had already dashed off. He checked the time on his watch before running out the door. One more period and he could set his plan into motion. Well, that is, part of a plan.
- - - -
"Today was easy! Those kids were joking when they said those tests were hard." Krel laughed, opening his locker and taking his boombox out.
"You're just saying that because you only took, like, 5 sektons to finish." Aja said, placing some books in her locker.
"You took 20 mekrons on yours." Krel giggled, closing his locker. His sister stuck her tongue out at him and laughed.
"Hey Aja, Krel!" Steve greeted the twins. He leaned on the lockers and grinned.
"Hi Steve." Aja giggled. Krel rolled his eyes.
"So, what's up?" Steve asked.
"Nothing much, just school stuff." Aja answered. Her brother scoffed at this. Romance wasn't his thing, and he wasn't planning on it ever being it. He turned away from the lovebirds and walked off. He had other things to do (kind of). Especially with his lack of sleep. So, he decided to head home without his sister. Nothing was off about today, so he'd be fine. Probably. Most likely.