Chapter 2: Supposed to be a Scientist
Jumba walked in soon after the class had begun. Taking a seat on the available bench, he watched the girls dance. As he watched, his scientific mind couldn't help but notice and pick out the differences between the dancing of the older girls and the dancing of the younger girls.
The older girl's steps were more sure and definite, whereas the little girl's steps got subconsciously re-adjusted every time they put their foot down. Jumba could also tell the difference between the girls that were talented, such as Lilo and a few other girls, and the ones who were not. The talented girls movements seamed effortless.
An hour later, the practice ended, and the girls disappeared from the stage and went into their different changing rooms. After only a few moments, elevated voices started coming from the younger girl's dressing room. Jumba picked out Lilo's voice and Myrtle's voice, though he couldn't understand what they were saying. Then they came back into the main room, and their words became clearer.
"…Isn't that color, even the eyewitnesses that saw it say that it was dark colored," Lilo said into Myrtle's face as they walked out of the dressing room.
"Well, they forgot to ask one eyewitness, me," Myrtle spat back.
"You didn't see the wolf, and even if you did, it wasn't white!" Lilo nearly shouted, flailing her arms about.
"Yes I did, and yes it was! The wolf had white fur and black eyes! I saw it!" Myrtle growled. Her eyes darted quickly around the room and rested on Jumba before snapping back to Lilo. "I know how to settle this," she said. Myrtle stalked over to Jumba, quickly followed by the three other little girls that always follow her. Lilo followed once she saw where Myrtle was heading. "You're supposed to be a scientist, right?"
"I am a scientist, yes," Jumba frowned at the insult that Myrtle didn't even know she had given.
"Then you should know what it's called when an animal is all white," Myrtle said, glairing at Lilo.
"Albino," Jumba said simply, "Albino."
"See, I told you, it was white. It must be an albino, that must be why it's acting so weird," Myrtle threw it in Lilo's face. Lilo stole a sideways glance at Jumba, her expression slightly hurt.
"I would be doubting that," Jumba quickly interjected, "Albino is a genetic mutation that causes the body not to make any pigment, which colors the body. The result is extremely pale skin, white hair, and pink eyes, not black. Besides, being albino does not make you crazy. There is, however, another medical condition that might cause an animal to 'act weird'."
"Oh, I know, rabies," the little girl with the blond pigtails said.
"Very good, other little girl. However, according to the news people, this wolf is not showing any symptoms of rabies. So that means that it is not albino and it currently has no explanation for its strange behavior," Jumba concluded, cocking a small smile.
"Well, you're both stupid, and I'm right," Myrtle shot back, turning around with a flip of her hair. She walked out of the room, followed by the other three girls.
Jumba smiled slightly, "Come, little girl, we should be getting home. Larger girl will be being there soon."
Nani drove swiftly across the wavy street that overlooked the ocean. She knew that this was not the safest road, with the threat of being thrown out into the 100 ft. drop if you made a wrong turn or got hit. But it was the fastest, and she needed to get home. Besides, it there wasn't anyone else on the road to hit her, or so she thought.
Her car suddenly jumped, nothing to worry about, she must have hit a bump. But her car jumped again, more violently this time. There had been no bump or pothole large enough to shake the car like so, not any she had seen. Now she was being cautious to the point of being paranoid, looking at every inch in the road in front of her while driving slowly. It didn't help.
For the third time, her car lurched violently, nearly tossing her out of her seat. That time, she knew that there had been nothing on the road to make her car toss at all. She looked in her rear-view mirror and saw nothing. There was no explanation for what was happening. Nani scrambled for her seat belt, trying to buckle it whilst driving. But before she could get it fastened, her vehicle lurched for a fourth time.
The car was tipped over and landed on its side, sparks flashing as it continued to slide from the momentum. Nani was helplessly thrown from her seat out into the open air over the ocean. As she came down, she managed to catch the side of the cliff she was on. So she hung on the border of life and death by one hand loosely gripping a piece of crumbling stone.
Tears ran down her cheeks as she desperately tried to get a better grip to no avail. She couldn't die, she had a family, and there was so much that she hadn't done. But she knew that death didn't care what her accomplishments were, and who she was leaving behind. It only saw her as another life to be extinguished. The rock she was holding gave way, and Nani began to fall through empty space.
She suddenly stopped falling, but she hadn't hit the ground. It was a hand that had stopped her descent, a single white-gloved hand gripping her wrist. The hand slowly pulled her up and back onto the cliff. Looking up from the ground, she saw her rescuer, a single man wearing a long white coat and a white wide-brimmed hat.
"Thank you," she whispered, having trouble finding her voice.
"Don't mention it," the man responded, keeping his head down so that the brim of his hat covered his face. He stood up and turned around, beginning to walk away.
"Who are you?" Nani asked, her voice quivering. The man stopped, and it was then that she noticed that he had the image of an angel worked into the back of his coat.
"I'm nobody," he answered, a hint of amusement in his voice. Nani blinked, and the man was gone.