Days in the Immune colony were pretty good, as far as good goes. They all had food, water, a place to sleep, and were free of the Cranks. But some of the Immune kids weren't adjusting well to their new home. A lot of them looked as if they were lost, or just very sad. Brenda couldn't just watch them be mopey all the time, so she called them all over one day to tell them a story.

"Kids! Come here, sit around in a circle. I have a story to tell you." She smiled at them as they all gathered around her, eager to hear the story.

"What kind of story?" asked a short blond-haired boy.

"Does it have kissing?" asked a little girl, who could only have been three years old.

"This," said Brenda enthusiastically, "is a story about some kids, just like you. Living their lives in a normal world. And no Evangeline, there isn't any kissing. Unless you count Minho kissing a dog."

"Eww!" shouted most of the kids.

"Mr. Minho's in this story?" asked another small girl.

Brenda chuckled, "Yes, he is. But don't call him that. He doesn't have the privilege to be called, 'mister.'"

"Start telling us already!" shouted a taller boy from the back of the group.

"All right, all right. Here we go."


STORY ONE: Newt gets a Puppy


One rainy, spring day, Thomas and Minho were playing in the rain. They loved to jump in the puddles, and get Newt all wet. Newt hated the rain. Well, he didn't really hate rain, he just hated getting wet. He pouted as he stood on the sidewalk, shivering from the cold.

The ten year-old boy felt superior to his younger, eight year-old friends, and he really wanted to tell them off, but Newt didn't, because he knew it would ruin their fun.

"Newt! Newt! Come jump in the puddles with us!" The boys would shout, trying to get their friend to come play with them. But Newt would always just shake his head, and continue shivering. He couldn't go back inside his house, or he'd have to play with Sonya, his younger sister. She was in a make-up and hair phase, and would ambush everyone who entered the house, covering them in lipstick, mascara, hair bows, and barrettes, all in the wrong places. Yes, shivering in the wetness was better than a sister makeover any day. If only Newt had a friend who could shiver with him, and would be there to drink tea with him after. But Newt didn't have very many friends. He and his family had only just moved here a month ago, and Minho and Thomas were friendly enough to let him in, but Newt still felt like he needed something else. He recalled the day he met Minho and Thomas. It was bright and sunny, and the boys were playing outside when Newt first introduced himself.

"Hi! My name's Isaac, but everyone just calls me Newt. Can we be friends?" Newt smiled, and held out his hand. Minho and Thomas looked at it as if he had a tentacle for an arm. They each shook it cautiously, then introduced themselves.

"I'm Minho! And I'm faster than Thomas! Why do you talk so funny?"

"And I'm Thomas! And he's not faster than me! Yeah, why do you talk so funny?"

Newt glared at them. "I'm not the one who talks funny, you talk funny."

"No we don't," retorted Minho, "we talk like everyone else here. You must be from somewhere else."

"We just moved here from England. Everyone talks normal there." replied Newt.

"I'm bored." said Thomas, "Can we keep playing now?"

"Fine." sighed Minho, "But he still talks funny!"

Newt wanted to protest, but proceeded to play with Thomas and Minho. They eventually did grow on him, but he still got very annoyed with them when they did stupid things. One day they tried running up a wall. That got Thomas sent to the emergency room for a small fracture, and Minho ended up with a large scar across his forehead. Newt had tried to tell them not to, only to be met with, "You're not our Moms!" and ignored. The next day they tried something even stupider: matches. Yes, Thomas and Minho had found a box of matches, (don't ask where,) and decided to play with them. It was fun, until they both almost got third-degree burns on their hands. Newt couldn't believe he was friends with such hooligans. Watching them get all wet wasn't helping his situation.

"Guys!" he shouted, "Let's go inside! I have something to show you."

"Ooh!" shrieked Minho, "Is it big?"

"Is it fun?" asked Thomas.

"You'll just have to see." Newt replied nonchalantly.

Newt approached his front door, and opened it, gesturing for his companions to enter first. Thomas and Minho stepped in, then were immediately ambushed by a girl their age.

"Yay! Some new models!" she shrieked. She then, with amazing strength, pulled both Minho and Thomas down a hallway into her room.

"Newt!" they shouted, "save us from your sister!"

"There's nothing I can do about that. She's inescapable. I should know." Newt stepped into his warm home, and took off his wet coat; he instantly felt relieved. He closed the door, and sank into a giant chair in the living room. Judging from how evil Sonya's face looked, he had about an hour of peace and quiet before she presented her, 'models.' Newt was going to savor this moment; it hardly ever got this quiet.


One hour later, Thomas and Minho came out of Sonya's room, feeling much too pink.

"Dude," said Minho, "your older sister is not cool." He was covered in glitter from head-to-toe, and he had make-up smeared all over his face. He could have been mistaken for a really bad clown. Thomas looked just the same, except he had tiny little bows braided into his hair. Both boys were evenly covered in a dusting of a pink substance, and Newt didn't even want to know how Sonya did that.

"First, you guys look great. Second, I'm older." Newt rolled his eyes, many people thought he looked many years younger than he actually was.

"So, she's eight, and you're a few months older?" asked Thomas, confused.

"No! I'm ten, and she's eight." Newt huffed, "Why can't anyone get my age right?"

"I dunno. You look eight to me. Maybe even seven." Thomas replied. But before Newt could protest, his mom called the boys into her office.

"Boys! Come here for a minute. I have something important to tell you."

The boys looked at each other, Thomas and Minho with faces of excitement, Newt with a look of dread. They stepped into the office, expecting big news.

"Newt, your father and I have been thinking about this for a long time now, and..."

Oh no, Newt thought, she's probably going to tell me that I have to clean up the mess these shanks left on the ground.

"...we've decided to get a puppy!" Newt mom smiled at the boys, waiting for a response.

"That's a relief." sighed Newt.

"What?" asked his mom.

"Nothing." Newt lied.

"Well anyway, we want you three to walk down to the pet store around the block, and pick one out. I've called and told them you're coming, so they'll have their best puppies ready to show you. This will make that gloomy day seem a little better, won't it?"

Thomas and Minho jumped up and down like they were trying to squash the floor, "Newt's getting a do-og! Newt's getting a do-og!" They sang. They were even more excited then Newt was. Newt wasn't disappointed though, he was actually very happy. He would finally be getting his own friend, who wouldn't mind just sitting inside on a rainy day. He wanted a calm, lap-dog for sure.

The boys ran outside as fast as they could; Thomas and Minho quickly trying to wash the make-up off in the rain, then they darted to the pet shop, eager to get the new puppy.


Once the boys arrived, they were all out of breath. They stood on the mat inside the door for almost a minute, trying to catch their breath. Once they had recovered from their small marathon, they looked around for the puppies. There were only two other people there; a store employee, and a young girl about Thomas and Minho's age. Thomas, Minho, and Newt recognized her as the girl who lived across the street. They were acquaintances, but hadn't really gotten to know each other very well. Thomas went up to her to say hi. She was looking at the bunnies, all huddled up in a corner, sleeping.

"Hi Teresa!" he exclaimed, "Whatcha doin'?"

"I'm looking at the rabbits," she replied coldly, "please don't shout at me. You're going to wake them up."

Thomas was about to respond with his own snarky remark, but Newt interrupted him.

"Guys, why is this lizard named after me?" Newt was pointing at a newt.

"Dude," replied Minho, "I think you were named after the lizard."

Newt's face was priceless- a look of pure shock. "I was?!"

"Calm down," laughed Thomas, "I think you were named after the scientist. The little newt here has nothing to do with you."

"Or so you think!" Minho interjected.

"Shut it Minho." scolded Thomas.

Newt decided that he was not going to waste any more time looking at lizards. He walked up to the front, (dragging his friends with him,) and approached the checkout stand.

"Hi, I'm Newt. My mum sent me to get a puppy?"

The employee girl didn't look friendly at all. She had two nose piercings, and tattoos covered her arms and neck. Her skin was pale, but her hair was coal black. She wore bright red lipstick, and Newt could almost see a skull shirt underneath her uniform vest. But her nature was completely unlike her appearance.

"Oh, you're Newt? Hi Newt! I'm Katie, let me show you to the puppies. Your mom called me earlier and told me you would be coming. Are these your friends?" Katie's unexpected friendliness surprised the boys. They'd expected a crabby teenager with not a bit of happiness showing through. Katie was quite a shocker.

"We have plenty of puppies back here," she said cheerily, "there's a beagle, a poodle, a schnauzer, and a mutt."

"What's a mutt?" Thomas asked.

"Great question! A mutt is a dog that is a cross of two or more breeds. I think this one is a cross of a lab and a spaniel of some sort." Katie showed off the dogs proudly, as if they were her pride and joy.

The little mutt caught Newt's eye. It had big eyes, floppy ears, and auburn-brown fur. The puppies were all in a large pen in the back of the store. Each one of the puppies was tripping over the large blanket mountains, and each others' paws. The mutt was the smallest of the group, but it seemed like it was the friendliest. It came right up to a Newt, trying to lick his finger through the holes in the pen.

"Can I hold this one?" Newt asked.

"Sure!" replied Katie. She picked up the puppy and set it in Newt's lap. Its fur was as soft as velvet, and it had the most adorable little face.

"Is it a boy or a girl?" asked Minho.

"She's a girl." replied Katie. "We haven't named her yet, but she loves to cuddle. That's probably one of the friendliest dogs you could ever have right there."

"I like her." said Newt. "I want this one."

"Great choice! I'll go get the supplies box." Katie left to get the things, which left the boys alone with the dogs. Newt sat on the ground with the puppy. She curled up in his lap, trying to fall asleep. Minho and Thomas tried to poke some of the other dogs go get them to move. It seemed to be nap time for them.

"Come on! Please move!" begged Minho to the dogs. "Please, please, please, ple-YUCK!"

One of the dogs decided that he was fed up with Minho's whining, and gave him a big, wet, slobbery kiss on the face.

"Haha!" laughed Thomas. "You're disgusting!"

"Hmph." Minho pouted and crossed his arms.

Soon Katie came back with the box of pet supplies. "Your parents have worked out all of the boring money-things. Here's the paperwork for you to take home-" she handed it to Thomas, who immediately gave it to Newt. Both Thomas and Minho knew that he was ten times more responsible than they were. "-and here's the collar and leash!" She clipped it onto the puppy, who was just waking up. Katie handed the leash to Thomas, and the box to Minho. The rain was starting to clear up a bit, so they didn't have to worry too much about things getting wet.

The boys walked out of the pet store feeling very happy indeed. Newt started to think about names for the puppy on the way home. Alice? No. Honey? No. Petunia? No. Newt went through all of the classic dog names he could think of, but none of them seemed to fit. Next, he tried book and movie characters. He liked the name Scarlet. But he couldn't decide whether one or two 't's at the end was better. Sonya would have to help him with that.

Newt was going to enjoy his new puppy.


Thanks for reading! Constructive criticism is wanted. :)

More little stories will be coming soon.

-Bunny