I know I only posted this story a few minutes ago, but I have to the fourth chapter already typed up so I'm transferring them over to . Please let me know what you think. There have been no reviews for this story yet so I'll just get right to the quote.
"Sometimes, it's just great to bring new people into the mix."
-John Oates
On with the story!
o0o0o0o0o Ninja of the Stars Ch. 2: Meeting the Team o0o0o0o0o
By eight a.m. the next morning, Belle was all packed for her trip and dressed for the day. She chose to wear a white dress whose bodice was a billowy to the middle of her waist with spaghetti straps on her shoulders that had a bare circle on her shoulders then came to be sleeves down to the middle of her hands from her upper arm and a flowing skirt to her mid-thigh. White pumps donned her feet, white gold bangles sat on her right wrist, a golden heart necklace rested between her large breasts, and white gold moon and star earrings hung from her earlobes. Her hair went into a messy braid that reduced her hair to the small of her back versus where it hung to her thigh normally. As for her makeup, she wore none except for a lining of silver and gold on her lids and a swipe of natural lip stain. For a final touch, she spritzed on some Air White perfume by Dilis. With her outfit complete, Belle slipped her white purse over her torso and shouldered her white backpack then hopped down the stairs to the kitchen. Luckily for Belle Xander was already seated at the kitchen table,
"Morning Belle," he greeted her brightly, his right cheek holding food.
"Good morning Xan," Belle returned with small giggle as she reached around his shoulders to hug him. He readily put down his fork and knife to reach up and hold onto her arms to return her hug.
"Thank you for coming this morning."
"No problem. I'm always happy to come over and eat your mother's cooking."
Both girls couldn't help but roll their eyes at Xander's answer. Of course he would choose to answer with food. Now that Belle focused on the food, she was able to see that her mother had made different Belgian waffles for each of them with a main dish of scrambled eggs, sausage, hashbrowns, bacon, and traditional New Orleans beignets. Wow, Belle thought. Mom really went all out. Belle then sat down at her seat to tuck into her strawberry cream Belgian waffles. When Xander had finished his plate of food, he wiped his face then turned to Belle who was still halfway done with her food.
"What happened yesterday Belle?" he asked her in a soft voice. "You only have me sing to you until you fall asleep when you're upset."
Belle slowly swallowed her food and sat her cutlery down.
"My school was attacked," she admitted quietly, but Xander could still hear the confession. His eyes widened in shock.
"It what?! But I thought you were badass martial artists?!"
"We were attacked by a rival faction," Belle explained.
"What about the police?"
"The police won't be able to do a thing Xan. Technically I'm not supposed to tell anyone, but I trust you with my life. What I need you to do is keep this a secret and believe in me."
"The second one is always applied Belle."
A small smile graced Belle's lips at Xander's words, but it shifted to a frown when Belle remembered she had to tell him that she was leaving.
"Xan, there is something else I have to tell you."
There was silence that let her know that he was listening.
"My sensei was taken by them and now I have to go to Blue Bay Harbor to continue my training."
The shock was immediate, leaving Xander speechless. He couldn't believe it. His best friend was leaving. She couldn't be leaving! How long was she leaving?!
"How long will you be there?" he found himself asking.
"Until I finish my training, which I figure will roughly be a year."
"That long?" Xander groaned sadly.
"Don't worry Xan," she assured him. "You can always come visit. You just have to give me a heads up before you do. I can tell you the gist of what is happening, but you can't come to the school. And you can always call me. There is no rule about that. You just have to remember that when I don't answer, I am either asleep or training. As soon as I see that you called, I'll be sure to call you back."
"All right," Xander grumbled.
"Don't look so glum Xan. Where is my charming Slytherin?"
That was enough for a bright smile to break out that flashed his dimples.
"Right here, my lovely Hufflepuff," he told her while he swept her up to sit in his lap. A giggle left Belle as she rested her forehead against Xander's and let his presence settle her nerves. Whenever she was having a bad day or was feeling blue, she could always rely on a Xander hug or cuddle to make her forget all about it. Belle's mother let them have their moment, but she cleared her throat when she saw that it was going past ten minutes. A slight blush settled on the duo's faces and Xander reluctantly let Belle off his lap so she could finish her breakfast.
"When are you leaving?"
"Right after I finish my breakfast, but I can drop you off with the others before I go."
Seeing as though Luna had finished her breakfast first, and the two teens were still eating, she took some beignets and put them in two airtight plastic containers. Yeah, her mother might have went a little overboard for breakfast.
"Take these with you Anna," her mother insisted. "Maybe your new friends would like some good old fashioned beignets when you get there."
"Thanks Mom."
Both Xander and Belle then finished with all their food so they both stood from their chairs. Very subtly, Belle pulled out her broom from her purse and used a little magic to make it change form and appear outside in the driveway.
"Both of you give me a hug before you go," Belle's mother requested with a motion for the two of them to come closer. Belle was the first to skip over to her mother for a warm hug and a kiss to her cheek. As soon as she stepped back, Xander wrapped her mother up in a hug and picked her up to spin her around. Her mother laughed heartily as Xander sat her down and she placed a kiss on his cheek.
"Don't be a stranger now Xander James."
"I won't Mamma Luna," he promised. Both Xander and Belle then began to walk out to the front door when Xander scooped Belle up in his arms in one fell swoop.
"Xander James Bly! You put me down right now, you big dork!"
He ignored Belle's shout and continued on his way out the door.
"Don't you forget to call me Annabelle Lee," Luna reminded her daughter.
"I won't Momma."
"Good. I'm satisfied now."
Xander was now out the door and he stopped when he saw the sleek ride in the driveway right next to Luna's and Belle's cars.
"Is that yours?" Xander whistled, admiring the white motorcycle with silver and gold lining.
"Yep. This is what I'm riding to Blue Bay Harbor."
Xander still looked amazed while he gently sat Belle back on the ground. Belle couldn't help but laugh at his expression while she swung a leg over the side of the bike.
"Should you really be riding this in a skirt?"
"Calm down Xander," Belle rolled her eyes. "Now get on the bike."
"Where are the helmets?" he questioned uneasily, his eyes darting around to try to find the nonexistent helmets.
"Do you trust me?" she directed up to him with a mischievous smile with her chocolate brown eyes sparkling from under her galaxy colored bangs.
"I don't like where this is going."
Belle let out an exasperated huff that made some of her hair fly up slightly in the air and gave him a look.
"Do you trust me?"
Seeing the seriousness in her tone, there was no hesitation in his answer.
"Yes."
"Then hop on and hold on."
He looked reluctant to do so, but he eventually hopped on behind Belle and wrapped his arms around her waist. Belle smirked while Xander simply held on, not realizing that the tops of his hands were half clutching her bust.
"Uh, Xan, you should lower your hands."
"What-,"
As soon as he realized where his hands were, he quickly moved his hands down to go around her waist. He was wondering why her waist had felt so soft and squishy. Belle quickly started the engine with a mighty kick and eased the bike off its kickstand. Now that the engine was purring under their bodies, Xander settled his chin into the crook of Belle's neck where her neck and shoulder met.
"Are you okay there Xander?" Belle teased when she saw his deep breath.
"Yeah. Let's just get going."
"Sure."
With a rev of the engine, Belle sped the bike out of the driveway which caused Xander to curl into Belle's back.
Within minutes the two pulled up on the side of the street where three teens were walking down. One was a girl that had short dark hair with a white stripe, one was a redheaded guy with freckles, and the last teen was a girl with long dark hair. As soon as the bike pulled up, the teens walking had stopped and did a double take at who was sitting on it.
"Hey Chip, V, Maddie!" Belle called out to the group. Xander on the other hand was slowly peeling himself away from Belle's back. He had to say that he enjoyed the ride overall, but he felt more secure during the ride leaning against Belle's small but strong from even if his body felt like jello when he got off the death machine.
"Well look at you Anna," the girl with the pixie haircut grinned. "You look so hot Xander can't keep his hands off you."
"V/Vida," Belle and Xander both groaned to the girl.
"V is kind of right," the other girl said. "You do look good."
"Thanks Maddie."
"Where'd you get the cool bike?" the redhead gushed over the new motorcycle. "It must have cost a fortune."
"It was a present from my aunt."
"Your aunt is the best."
"I'll make sure to pass that along Chip."
By then Xander had climbed off the bike and was wobbling over to the group.
"Was her driving that bad Xander?" Vida joked when she saw his fawn legs.
"I'm not a bad driver," Belle interjected with a playful scoff.
"I'm just not used to riding something so fast without being in a car," Xander offered.
"Are you going somewhere Anna?" Maddie questioned when she saw Belle's purse and backpack.
"Yeah, I'm on my way to Blue Bay Harbor. I have to go there to finish my training."
"What?!"
"Relax guys. If you tell me ahead of time, we could schedule a time for you guys to visit. Though the actual academy is off limits."
"We'll definitely take you up on your offer," Vida decided. "But give us a hug before you go."
"We can all talk to each other as a group during your lunch break," Belle offered as she hugged each of her friends. "And if each of you want to talk one on one, then all you have to do is call me. Bye Pixie, Melody, Thor, and Oak Tree."
"We'll see you Shooting Star."
They all watched Belle speed away on her bike, weaving elegantly through cars.
"Where is her helmet?" Vida frowned when she realized that the multi-color haired girl wore nothing to protect her head while she rode.
"That's what I'd like to know," Xander huffed.
After what seemed like a small heavenly piece of eternity, Belle pulled into the peaceful town of Blue Bay Harbor. The smell of the salt water permeated through the whole town which Belle breathed in deeply while the cries of the seagulls echoed. Devil birds, Belle thought with a glare up at said birds. A squawk seemed to challenge her glare causing her to grumble. Okay, she thought once her little internal battle with the seagulls was over. I don't know exactly where the Wind Ninja Academy is, so hopefully I can run into the rangers around town. She wasn't pleased with the plan of action, but she didn't have a choice. With a sigh, she parked her motorcycle by a large park that was filled to the brim with nature. Hmm, Belle thought in contentment. This reminds me of home even if there isn't a forest.
"This is so peaceful," she sighed to herself while a soft breeze ruffled through the leaves of the trees all around her and made her messy braid flutter in the wind.
"I can see why people would want to live here."
While she sat on the grassy hill of the park, she couldn't help but take in all of the people that were there. There were joggers here and there, some with their dogs trotting alongside them. There were also groups of people who were having parties or get togethers at the picnic tables. Children were almost everywhere running around and playing tag. This is what I have to protect, Belle realized while looking at it all. I have to make sure that not one of the people are hurt by any of the monsters that happen to come and try to take over the world. All of this happiness and calm is only going to be here if I succeed at stopping the enemy. Steely determination showed in Belle's brown eyes as she looked over the crowd of people. As it was, Belle had a high percentile in maternal instincts which led her into turning into a Mama Bear when one of her friends or loved ones were in danger. Now it was magnified and spread to a wider range than just her friends and family. Don't worry, Belle thought to the people. I'll make sure you all stay safe. I swear on my honor as a Cosmic Star Ninja. The sound of the children's laughter and giggles was enough to break Belle from her thoughts. Let's now focus on that right now, she thought while her face softened at their antics. Everything was peaceful until an explosion shook the ground around her. What the fuck?! She quickly leapt to her feet and scanned her surroundings for the source of the disturbance. What in the hell could have- Her thought process was then interrupted by a canine like monster that appeared from the other side of some trees along with odd red and black creatures flanking him. Oh hell no, Belle seethed as her body flew onto autopilot. Her hand twitched and her civilian clothes were switched for her black, and white gold ninja uniform with a white gold star over her heart and the daimon for the Cosmic Ninja Academy on her back. She wasted no time in jumping into the fray and whacking away the foot soldiers from any person they happened upon.
"Get out of here!" she told them from flipping a foot soldier over her shoulder. The people did not need to be told twice as they fled from the scene. Once the people were gone, Belle could put her entire focus in defeating the grunts.
"No! My Kelzacks!" exclaimed the monster. "How could you?!"
"How could you?!" Belle threw back angrily. "Attacking the innocent! You make me sick!"
"Bring it on Girlie!"
After making sure that there were no more civilians around, Belle smirked as she held up her morpher.
"COSMIC FORM
RANGER FORM
HA!"
Bright golden, silver, and white light enveloped Belle until she emerged garbed in a form fitting ninja ranger uniform. Her main scheme was white lined with metal that shifted from gold to silver and back with a black cover going from the top of her neck to the bottom of her breasts under her top with a white star emblem on her chest, a white kimono like white material lined with the metallic color opened on either side of the emblem that was sleeveless, a black obi like wrap around her waist where a forehead protector sat with the Cosmic Ninja Academy daimon, a white with metallic color lined skirt that went to her knees in the front and back with slits up to her hips, thigh length white high heeled boots that had white gold metal lining the tops, and upper arm length white gloves that were lined at the top with white gold and white gold hand guards with white gloves. Along her limbs that weren't covered by her outfit were shielded with a dark gray mesh like material. For the final touch, she had a white helmet that only had the black visor and white gold for the metal plating around the visor with white wolf ears atop her helmet.
"Power of the stars!"
"A new ranger, huh? This should be interesting."
And with that the battle began, Belle launching punch after kick at the monster. One punch was aimed at the monster's face, but the monster dodged and instead Belle instituted a roundhouse kick that sent the monster sailing backwards.
"You're tough for a girl," he ground out, wiping blood from the side of his canine mouth.
"Oh, I can do so much better," Belle promised. "Wolf Fans!"
Two fans then appeared, both white but one had a silver backbone while the other had gold. Under her helmet, Belle grinned at the familiar weight that now rested in her hands. Throughout her entire weapon training, she had always favored the fan even though she had mastered the other weapons.
"Fans?!" the monster cackled harshly. "I'm so scared! What are you gonna do, fan me to death?!"
"You know what, that actually sounds like a good idea."
That's all Belle needed to say before she launched herself at the monster and leave slices against his skin that leaked blood.
"You little bitch," the monster growled as he stood clutching his arm in pain.
"Why thank you," Belle smirked while she launched herself into the sky with her arms crossed over the other and her fans facing her body.
"Shining Slicer!"
With a flick of her fans outward, a wide arc of white gold stars flew from each of her fans that showered down heavily on the monster. He didn't even get a chance to let out a cry of pain before his whole being disintegrated without a trace. I did it, Belle cheered to herself.
"That was awesome!" came a male voice from behind Belle that had her whipping around with her fans at the ready in case if it was another attacker.
"Woah!" cried another male cried out in alarm when he saw that Belle was ready to attack. "We're not going to attack you!"
Belle's eyes then took in three fellow rangers that stood across from her. Two were male, one in yellow while the other was red, and the other female in light blue. Belle was still wary of the other rangers who stood before her, but she willed her fans away nonetheless.
"What school are you from?" Belle asked cautiously.
"We're from the Wind Ninja Academy," the blue ranger replied. "What school are you from? I've never seen that symbol before."
As soon as Belle heard Wind Ninja, her posture instantly relaxed.
"I'm from the Cosmic Ninja Academy," she offered happily. "My school was the last one to be taken down so my sensei prepared a morpher for me and sent me here before Lothor could get to it."
"We'll get them back," the red ranger nodded to Belle, his ranger uniform falling to reveal a tan male with dark hair and eyes in a red hoodie and shorts. The yellow and blue rangers were quick to follow leaving a laid back dark haired male and a blonde female.
"Of course we will," Belle grinned as her own uniform left her to show her interesting hair color. "And we'll protect the people of Blue Bay Harbor."
"That's what I'm talking about," the yellow ranger laughed in joy.
"How about I go grab my bike and then we'll head back to the academy," Belle offered the group. "I have a feeling we should do introductions in private."
The red ranger nodded in agreement along with the others after they had shared a look. With a wave to follow, Belle led the group from the park and towards where she had parked her broom turned motorcycle.
"Oh dude!" the yellow ranger shouted in surprise when he saw her bike. "Is that seriously yours?!"
"Yep," Belle grinned in earnest. "Isn't she beautiful?"
"She is," the yellow ranger gushed along with Belle.
"Do you want a ride?" Belle offered to the yellow ranger whose eyes went wide.
"I would love a ride!"
Belle easily swung her leg around the bike and settled on the seat. The yellow ranger was quick to hop on behind her and wrap his arms around her waist. Belle flashed a wink to the other rangers before she sped off in the direction that the yellow ranger pointed out.
"Who got you your sweet ride?" the yellow ranger yelled over the purr of the engine.
"My aunt did!"
After a few more turns and a secret passage, Belle pulled up right at the edge of a forest. Both rangers hopped off the bike with the yellow ranger leading the way with his back to Belle.
"You'll have to watch your step," he advised Belle, keeping his back to her. This gave Belle enough time to switch her broom back to its original form and shrank it down to the size of her palm. She quickly stashed it away in her purse then hastened to catch up with the yellow ranger so that he wouldn't see her missing bike.
"I'll be okay," she assured him as she linked arms with him.
"Dude, how can you walk around in the forest in those heels?" the yellow ranger questioned when he got a closer look at her choice of footwear.
"It's easy," Belle giggled lightly. "Watch this."
With that said, Belle took off running into the forest with the yellow ranger quickening his pace to follow her.
"Hey! Wait up!"
"You'll just have to be faster!" Belle laughed after her. When Belle reached a very large tree where the red and blue rangers were waiting, the two looked at her with suspicion.
"Where's Dustin?" the red asked with suspicion plain in his dark eyes.
"He's coming. We were just having a race because he couldn't believe that I could run through the forest in my heels. With these heels, I was able to run perfectly through here was well as beat him here."
"Not….fair," the yellow ranger, now dubbed Dustin, gasped when he caught up with Belle.
"You'll just have to be faster dear," Belle teased with a pat to his back. "Lead the way."
The red ranger took the lead through the vegetation with Belle bouncing through to each of their sides up the hill.
"How much energy do you have?" the blue ranger inquired with an amused smile.
"I'm not even breaking a sweat," Belle told them. "For training at my school, we go for mile runs."
"Miles?" Dustin echoed in disbelief. All Belle did was nod. The other three couldn't help but feel impressed with their new member as well as feel lucky that their sensei didn't put them through the same torture.
Before long, the four came to a majestic waterfall that fell into a beautiful lake. Belle's eyes widened when she caught sight of the serene scene. The entrance to her school may have been her favored portal, but she couldn't help but admire the beauty of their portal.
"Ladies first," Dustin grinned while he playfully gestured for Belle to walk forward.
"Why thank you ever so kindly dear sir," Belle uttered playfully with a curtsy. The red and blue ranger were the first to go through, quickly followed by Belle with Dustin bringing up the rear. The first thing Belle noticed was that there was no longer a large Japanese structure that indicated this place was a school. If they don't have the building, Belle mused to herself, where is their headquarters? As if they could hear her thoughts, the rangers guided Belle over to a trapdoor like entrance that led them down a spiral staircase carved out in the stone underground. Belle felt a little confined stepping down into the base, but she held in her urge to claw her way back out to nature. She was a sorceress of the stars after all.
"Hey guys, how was...," an Asian man who looked to be in his early twenties began from his seat in front of a large computer, but let his question die out when he saw the girl standing beside the other rangers. At first he was on high alert at the new edition, however, when he saw that the others weren't wary of her he relaxed.
"Who is this?" a guinea pig in a kimono questioned from his perch on a little stand that was decorated in a Japanese style. Belle was quick to trade her clothes for her ninja uniform and rushed to sit seiza style in front of the guinea pig.
"It is an honor to meet you, Sensei Watanabe," Belle greeted him with a deep bow of respect. "I am Annabelle Dervereaux, a student from Cosmic Ninja Academy who specializes in the Star Style. My school was the last one to be attacked and my sensei urged me to come and give my aid to the Wind Rangers."
"I didn't know that the Cosmic Academy had a Star Style," the blue ranger commented.
"They usually do not," Belle said. "I am the only one in a hundred years to specialize in the Star Style. When I was first learning, I kept getting switched between the Solar Style and Lunar Style without either really sticking with me. I was severely frustrated at myself so I would practice and practice in every spare moment I had. During one of my practice sessions, Sensei Tsukiyomi was watching. Apparently, my body was falling into a natural rhythm that blended the gracefulness of the Lunar Style with the aggressiveness of the Solar Style. Sensei had told me after that training session that that was essentially what the Star Style was. He was so shocked at first because he had never witnessed the style before but he had heard stories that were passed down from his ancestors. That marked my training directly under Sensei Tsukiyomi as a Star Ninja."
"I believe our introductions are in order," Sensei Watanabe said as he pointed out everybody in the room. The first person was the serious cinnamon skinned boy.
"This is Shane Clarke, the Red Wind Ninja Ranger."
Then came the blonde.
"This is Tori Hanson, the Blue Wind Ninja Ranger."
Next came Dustin.
"This is Dustin Brooks, the Yellow Wind Ninja Ranger."
It all came to an end with the man at the computer.
"And this is Cameron Watanabe. He is my son."
"It is an absolute pleasure to meet all of you," Belle bowed again in respect to those older than her.
"Do you have any place to stay child?" Sensei Watanabe asked her as she rose from her bow.
"No, I have not. My first order of business was to find all of you."
"You could stay here," Cameron offered, making everyone turn to look his way in confusion. As soon as he had known that Belle wasn't a threat, he couldn't help but really look at her. He couldn't help but see the uniform she wore, which was supposed to make a ninja's form more uniform, was straining against her bust and was sticking like a second skin to her legs.
"I mean," Cameron stammered a bit to explain. "We have the extra room that we're not using. Plus that would make it easier for her to be near where everything is."
Everyone thought over his words with Sensei Watanabe nodding.
"I agree Cam. Annabelle, would you like to live here?"
"I would love to Sensei Watanabe."
"Please child, there is no need for such formality. You may stand."
In less than three seconds, Belle was to her feet but she still stayed at attention.
"Sensei Tsukiyomi has always drilled into us that we need to treat a sensei with the utmost respect when we meet them," Belle explained. "It's a habit."
"He always had a fondness for being polite and giving respect," Sensei Watanabe remarked fondly.
"Oh! Before I forget!" Belle let out in a rush as she reached into her backpack. "My mother had packed some beignets for you guys"
"She's knows about this?" Shane questioned in disbelief.
"She knows that I had to move martial arts schools to continue my training," Belle offered instead of outright lying. "She made a feast for breakfast this morning because I was leaving so she packed up the rest saying you might want some."
Everyone was able to reach in and grab one themselves while Belle sat one down for Sensei Watanabe. Just as Belle was sitting the bowls down, she was lifted quite high into the air.
"Ah!" she screamed out in shock while her body moved to clutch whatever could stabilize her up in the air. Which happened to be Dustin's neck.
"Dude! Your Mom is such a good cook!"
"Put me down Dustin! Mettez-moi au géant (Put me down giant)!"
"What language is that?" Dustin asked, taken aback at the language change.
"It's French Dustin," Cam deadpanned before he turned his attention to Belle.
"Anna, avez-vous peur des hauteurs (Anna, are you afraid of heights)?"
"Non, je ne veux pas qu'il me lâche (No, I just don't want him to drop me)," Belle let out in a breath.
"Dustin, put her down," Cam told the tall yellow ranger. "You're scaring her."
Carefully Belle was settled onto her feet and she instantly leaned against Cam's shoulder.
"Merci Cam."
"Vous êtes les bienvenus Anna (You're welcome Anna)."
"How tall are you?" Dustin questioned when he saw just how much of a height difference they had.
"5'0"."
"How old are you?" Tori added.
"Fifteen. I turn sixteen in October."
All present were shocked at her age. They couldn't believe that something like this had been put on the shoulders of a child.
"Your sensei trusted the world and the safety of his school to a child?" Shane almost exploded in shock and anger. Belle's eyes instantly hardened at Shane's words.
"I may be a child," she said cooly. "But I know how serious this is. I know that every time I go out there to fight, I have the safety of seven billion people on my shoulders. Seven billion people I have to protect. One wrong move could cost them everything."
Everyone but Shane looked surprised at Belle's words, not having expected her to grasp the severity of the situation so easily.
"You're still a kid," Shane pointed out. "You don't even know how to use all of your powers or are strong enough."
"Do you know how to use all of your powers?" Belle challenged evenly. "As for not being strong enough, why don't we find out during training?"
"You're on."
With a sharp turn on his heel, Shane left back up the staircase. Tori and Dustin looked apologetic at their leader's actions.
"Don't worry about it you guys," she waved them off. "If I was to join a team of people older than me, and probably more experienced than me, I knew I would have to prove myself. He is doing a good job as a leader to worry, even if he had a horrible way of wording it."
"Well," Dustin began while he rubbed the back of his neck. "I've got to head back to work. Bye Shorty."
To say his goodbye, he placed a hand on top of Belle's head with a pat. That only served to make Belle mumble in French.
"I've got to head out too," Tori added. "We'll see you later Anna."
Belle waved bye to the two rangers as they too trudged up the staircase back up to the outside world.
"I'll show you to your room," Cam offered once the other rangers had left.
"Merci, but before we go….Sensei Watanabe, when is training for today?"
"Training will be held at three."
"Thank you. I'm ready when you are Cam."
Cam then took the lead back past the large supercomputer to the actual living quarters of the hideout. Down a ways through a hallway led to a large open room that had an open kitchen to the left and a living room to the right. Past them led to another hallway that housed three doors.
"The door to the right is my father's," Cam told Belle. "My room is in the middle, and your room is to the left. You have a bathroom connected and you have some towels. If you need anything, don't hesitate to ask."
"Merci Cam. J'ai vraiment ... j'apprécie vraiment ce que vous et votre père faites pour moi (Thank you Cam. I really...I really appreciate what you and your father are doing for me)," Belle whispered in French.
"Ne pense rien à ça Anna (Think nothing of it Anna)," Cam assured her. "Je vous remercie de nous avoir aidé à vaincre Lothor (I should be thanking you for giving us some help with defeating Lothor)."
Belle couldn't help but give Cam a small smile.
"There is one thing I want to say before I go unpack," Belle told him.
"What?"
"I wanted to ask you if you could homeschool me. I'm a junior right now and I don't want to neglect my studies while I'm here."
"Of course. Give me till tomorrow to come up with a general eleventh grade test, then I can figure out what we need to cover and you can tell me where you left off and by the day after we can start with the tutoring."
"Thank you."
When Cam left Belle to her own devices, she slipped in through the door to her left and took in the bare room. Hmm, let's get this personalized shall we. The room itself was large, but it was sparsely furnished. I can fix that, Belle thought as she pulled her wand out of her purse. With a flourish of her wand, she pushed the extra-long twin sized bed to the far back wall and made it a queen-sized bed instead. On each side of the bed, she made a bedside table appear that each had a lamp on top. At the foot of the bed she put a trunk there both as decoration and a storage space. On the left wall stood a sliding door with a normal door which turned out to be her closet and bathroom respectively. Between the closet and the bathroom, Belle moved the small dresser there from one of the walls. Against the wall closest to her on her left, Belle made a white vanity table appear along with a comfortable white stool. In the right corner of the room closest to Belle, she made all of her magical supplies appear. Her cauldron was snug in the corner with shelves above it covered with ingredients and dried herbs hanging on the wall above. In the middle of the wall to the far right, was a large bookcase that took up almost the whole wall. In the little space that wasn't taken up by the bookcase held a beautiful mahogany desk that Belle moved. Once everything was where she wanted it, she unpacked everything where it needed to go. Her clothes went into her the closet and dresser while her toiletries went into the bathroom. As for her papers and what not, they went into the desk. Her spellbooks went into the free space in the bookcase and she magicked pillows and bedspread onto the bed which marked her room all but done. All she needed was to put up pictures of her family and friends all around the room. To fill up any empty space on her walls, she put up fandom posters that was arranged to fit around her pictures.
"And done," she sighed happily to herself. "Maybe I should whip up some pharmaceutical potions. I'll never know when I need them."
She lit the fire under the cauldron and started a base for a pain reliever potion while she ground up some dried herbs to make a burn healing salve. As she set about her work, her phone rang. A flick of her finger was all she needed to levitate her phone over so that she could accept the call.
"Anna!" Chip's voice rang over the phone.
"Hey Thor," Belle chuckled while she continued work on her medicine.
"How did you like the town," Maddie asked from the other side of the call.
"It's beautiful," Belle smiled, adding in ingredients for the pain potion and starting on finishing the burn salve. "There's some beaches around here that I want to go to during my free time."
"Did you pack the white bathing suit I made you buy?" Vida cut in before Belle could say another word.
"Yes," Belle laughed.
"Wait, do you mean the one that I forbid you from wearing?" Xander demanded.
"You're not my father Xander. I can wear it if I want."
"Take pictures!" Vida encouraged.
"Don't give her any ideas!" Xander complained at once. Belle couldn't help but laugh at their antics. She missed her friends. Right now if she was back in Briarwood, she would be at school right now on their lunch break in the picnic area outside.
"Have you guys picked a time yet?" Belle inquired while she bottled up her made medicine then moved on to make some medicine for aches and pains in both a potion and a salve.
"Will you be able to be back home for Thanksgiving?" Chip spoke up.
"I'm not sure. I'm going to try. What about your birthday Xan, Maddie? They're coming up in a few days. I won't be able to be there for it."
"We could always come up and visit you for it," Vida suggested.
"That's a great idea V!" Belle agreed brightly while skilled and deft fingers worked on the medicine on autopilot.
"If you guys pick a definite time to be here, I'll meet you and we could do things together."
"We'll definitely do that," Maddie confirmed happily. "I love it when we all get together to celebrate our birthdays."
"Then it's settled except for the exact day and time."
"We have to go Belle," Xander spoke into the phone. "Our lunch hour is almost up."
"Alright. I'll talk to you all later. Just to let you know, I have training at three o'clock."
"Got it," four voices chimed in at once before the line clicked to an end. Belle had her magic levitate her phone back over to her bed and had managed to get five more potions and six salves made before she ventured from her room in her white dress from earlier to make herself something to eat for lunch.
Making herself something to eat had gradually turned into Belle making lunch for Sensei Watanabe and Cam as well. A six inch sub with some broccoli cheddar soup sounds good, Belle thought to herself as she started the soup from scratch by sautéing some onions in some butter. While that was frying, she beat a few eggs in a bowl with milk. Belle continued to cook lunch while she sang softly.
"Des yeux qui font baisser les miens (A gaze that make me lower my own)
Un rire qui se perd sur sa bouche (A laugh that is lost on his lips)
Voila le portrait sans retouches (That is the unretouched portrait)
De l'homme auquel j'appartiens (Of the man to whom I belong),"
By now she was making the basis of the soup and was putting together the sandwiches that would need to be dipped in the egg mixture.
"Quand il me prend dans ses bras (When he takes me into his arms)," Belle continued to sing while she wrapped her arms around her waist.
"Il me parle l'a tout bas (He speaks to me softly)
Je vois la vie en rose (And I see life through rose-colored glasses)
Il me dit des mots d'amour (He speaks words of love to me)
Des mots de tous les jours (They are everyday words)
Et ça m' fait quelque chose (And they do something to me),"
By now she had the soup on its last legs so she began to dip the sandwiches in the mixture and brown them on each side on a skillet.
"Il est entré dans mon coeur (He has entered into my heart)
Une part de bonheur (A bit of happiness)
Dont je connais la cause (That I know the cause of)
C'est lui pour moi (It's only him for me)
Moi pour lui dans la vie (And me for him, for life)
Il me l'a dit, l'a jure pour la vie (He told me, he swore to me, for life)-,"
"That's a pretty song ," came Cam's voice who had entered the kitchen without Belle noticing. Her first reaction was to tense and throw a blade at the intruder, but she held herself back when she realized who exactly came into the room.
"It's La Vie en Rose by Edith Piaf," Belle told him with a small smile. "My mom said that it was a song that my father used to sing to her."
"Did your father…"
"I'm not sure," Belle answered. "When I was only a baby, there was a war that broke out where I lived. It tore the three of us apart as well as my aunt and her family. Mom and I lost a father and husband while my aunt lost a son and a husband. Aunt Udonna and Mom believe that everyone is dead, but I refuse to believe it unless I have proof."
While Belle told her story, she had plated up lunch for everyone and sat it at the kitchen table.
"There is a lot of personal stuff that you're telling me Anna," Cam commented uneasily. "Is that really all right?"
'Of course. If I didn't want to share, I wouldn't say anything. Where is Sensei Watanabe? I made us lunch."
Cam seemed taken aback at the kind gesture, but there was a small smile that grew on his lips.
"I'll go get him."
Before Cam came back with his father, Belle gave everyone a glass of water to go with their lunch.
"Thank you for lunch Anna," Sensei Watanabe said as he settled down to eat.
"Think nothing of it Sensei. Since you are letting me stay here, I should help out."
"You came from Briarwood right?" Cam asked to keep a light conversation going.
"Yeah, we're well known for our forest," Belle smiled secretly to herself at the inside joke she had with the forest. Cam either saw it and decided to keep quiet about it or simply put it as a simple smile.
"What is Blue Bay Harbor known for?"
"Mostly our beaches," Cam answered after a moment's deliberation.
"That is great," Belle grinned happily. "My friends from home are talking about coming up in a few days for some fun for their birthdays. It's nice to know that the beaches are popular. I thought so, but I wanted to double check."
"How long have you known them?"
"Hmm, since first grade, so...eleven years."
"Wow," Cam breathed in awe. "They must be really good friends."
"They are. They're like family to me."
Belle's happiness about her friends seemed to be contagious because Cam and Sensei Watanabe found themselves smiling. By then everyone had finished their lunch with some soup being left over in the pot.
"Do you want some help with dishes," Cam offered. "It's the least I can do after you made us lunch."
"It's alright Cam," Belle assured him. "I've got this. Consider this my chore."
"If you're sure…"
"Of course I'm sure. Just make sure to save two hours later tonight at eight for a movie."
All Cam did was raise an eyebrow.
"Is that your way of asking for a date?"
A blush settled on Belle's cheeks as she choked on her water.
"No," she denied at once. "Every Monday is movie night and I thought it rude not to invite you."
"Are you going to do this every week?"
"It depends. This week I wanted to watch this movie since last week. It will only turn into a weekly thing if you want it to."
"What movie did you want to watch?"
"Underworld."
"Hmm, I've been meaning to watch that," Cam remarked thoughtfully.
"That movie night looking good yet?"
"All right, you're twisting my arm."
Belle smirked at Cam's sassiness.
"I have a feeling we'll be great friends Cam."
Once both Cam and Sensei Watanabe were out of the room, Belle hustled around the room putting the remaining soup in a plastic container and put it in the fridge. As for the dishes, Belle rinsed them out them put them in the dishwasher then wiped down everything that she had used so that everything was as clean as she found it. Satisfied with her work, Belle returned back to her room where she continued making her homemade medicine for her stock.
Almost three hours later found all of the rangers in the dojo seated in the seiza position in front of Sensei Watanabe.
"I understand you wished to spar against Anna, Shane," Sensei Watanabe spoke in a calm, authoritative voice.
"Yes, Sensei," the red ranger replied steadily.
"Anna, do you accept the terms?"
"Yes."
"Then I give you both the permission to do so."
Both rangers stood from their kneeling positions to face each other. Shane held a look of haughtiness while Belle had one of determination. Belle was going to show him what she was made of if it killed her. The two bowed to each other before they sank into their own style stances.
"Hajime!"
Belle was the first to attack with a well executed right straight. Shane easily moved to the opposite side and then dropped to sweep kick Belle. However, she saw the beginning of him dropping so she had already jumped up before his foot could come any closer to her. Instead of landing back in front of Shane, Belle urged her body back into a backflip. While Belle was moving through the air, her eyes scanned over Shane's posture. Alright, she analyzed. He's fast but his style is too evasive like the wind. Whenever I attack, he is going to move out of the way. Right as her feet touched the ground, she came up with her solution to Shane's evasiveness. I'll just watch how he dodges and study his moves so that I can find out when to attack. Fifteen minutes went on with Belle attacking and Shane dodging, although he was beginning to tire while Belle was as fresh as a spring daisy. I've got to finish this, Shane thought desperately when he felt he was beginning to tire. There is no way I'm going to lose to a kid. By the end of those fifteen minutes, Belle had picked up Shane's rhythm. Got'cha. When Shane had moved out from her latest attack, Belle acted with a snap movement that flowed over with grace and landed with power to his stomach. An 'omph' left him as air was forced up from his gut and his body was forced to curve to go along with the blow to lessen the effects. Belle didn't even give him time to register her attacks as she floored him with kicks and punches until Shane was on his back with Belle's knuckle ready to hit the pressure point that was connected to his heart.
"Yamete!" Sensei Watanabe called out when he saw the damage Belle could do from one jab. "Well done Anna."
On the sidelines, Tori and Dustin were silent as the fact that tiny, 5'0" Belle had just defeated their leader.
"You are a good opponent," Belle smiled down at Shane while she held out her hand to help him up.
"That was brutal," he admitted with a wince when he felt the places Belle had struck him.
"Sorry Shane. I was taught that you were not to underestimate your opponent."
"I'm glad we have you on our team," Dustin commented with wide eyes. This had Belle smirking with delight. She now had the approval of her fellow rangers that she had aimed for in the beginning. Could this day get any better?
After about two hours of training, Belle went back to her room to take a shower and prep herself for the night. She made sure that she had no hair under her arms or on her legs, her skin moisturized, and her face treated with a firming face mask then moisturized. For her pajamas she wore a pair of yellow plaid short shorts with a black t-shirt that ended right around her belly button with the Hufflepuff crest on it. On her feet went a pair of badger slippers which deemed her ready for the movie night. Alright, now I just have to set up the living room and pop some popcorn. With that in mind, Belle picked up her copy of Underworld then ventured out to the living room. Because the large tv was already hooked up to a DVD player, it wasn't hard to get the movie to the title screen. To set up the floor for the both her and Cam, she magicked a foam like mattress in front of the TV with three layers of sheets on top. Tons upon tons of pillows went on top of the sheets along with a TMNT 2003 blanket for Belle and a plush green blanket that mimicked grass. Perfect, she thought to herself. Now I just have to make the popcorn and get some pop. Humming to herself, Belle took about five minutes to pop a large bowl full of popcorn and grab the two cans of mt. dew. When she made it back to the living room, Cam was already there in plaid green pajama bottoms and a green t-shirt eyeing the little pile that Belle had made.
"Sit, sit," Belle urged, gesturing towards the green blanket. "I already have the snacks so we're all set to start the movie.
"I take it you like a lot of things," Cam remarked after glancing at the TMNT blanket and her Hufflepuff themed pajamas.
"Yep," she chirped. "My best friend Xander and I love Harry Potter. I'm a Hufflepuff and he's a Slytherin. We complement each other nicely."
We both then fell into a comfortable silence as the beginning credits played across the screen. The narrative female voice then came over the screen when a female with short black hair was shown crouching on a balcony appeared. Both Cam's and Belle's eyes were glued to the screen as they watched the woman and her companion jump down from their perches. When the gun fight ensued between the Lycans and the vampires, Belle visibly tensed from under her TMNT blanket.
"Are you okay Anna?" Cam whispered in her ear when he saw her stiffen.
"I'm fine," she replied with a shaky voice. "It's just that...why would they break out in a fight when there are humans in the crossfire? If they are going to fight, they need to keep it between themselves. What if those humans were to die?"
Cam could tell that this went further than the movie, so he said nothing but scooted subtly closer to Belle to offer some silent comfort. The movie then continued on with the girl, Selene, reporting back to her boss who was focused more on a party than the Lycans. As soon as it was confirmed that a human was going to be put in the middle of the feud, Belle stiffened yet again but Cam gently bumped his shoulder into hers to calm her down.
"Cam, can I move closer?" Belle requested in a small voice. All Belle needed was the beginning of a nod to scoot over to him and wrap her arms around his waist. At first Cam was surprised at Belle's cuddliness but he took in in stride and in turn put an arm around Belle's small shoulders. While the movie continued to play, Cam couldn't help but think about Belle's reaction to the feud playing out on the screen. She's only fifteen, he thought, and she has the weight of the world on her shoulders. Her incredibly small shoulders. From what I have seen, she is a very caring person who would exhaust herself to death to make sure that there are no casualties during a fight. That must be one of her greatest fears, Cam realized with a slight start as he unconsciously squeezed her shoulders. This movie night might be what she needs every week to get her mind off of things, Cam thought. Maybe next time we could find a comedy. That should be fine. It seemed the plot of the movie only seemed to go downhill from there that had Belle gripping the excess fabric of Cam's t-shirt in one of her fists. At the end, Selene cuts off Viktor's head which had Selene on the run from both the vampires and the Lycans.
"Why is that not the end?" Belle voiced when the end credits rolled. "Why must there be an endless cycle that kills and hurts so many people?"
"It's just a movie Anna," Cam tried to soothe her. "It's not real."
"What of our fate as rangers? Are we destined to bring more and more people into this mess that never ends?"
"Anna…"
"I know, I know. A little dark isn't it."
"And I thought you were supposed to be a Hufflepuff," Cam joked in an attempt to cheer her up. Belle looked up into Cam's dark eyes at his comment and her chocolate brown eyes bore into his intensely. The longer this went on, Cam grew uneasy. Had he said something wrong? She had said she liked Harry Potter. His internal monologue was then broken by Belle's body shaking slightly while her lips twitched. Oh no! Was she going to cry?! Cam's worry about her crying was dismissed when Belle opened her mouth and tinkling laughter poured from her lips. Surprise showed in Cam's eyes that slowly melted into mirth when he saw how hard Belle was laughing. Minutes passed by with Belle not stopping her laughter which slightly worried Cam. She's supposed to be breathing yet her face is really red and she holding her sides. He was pretty sure he heard a snort in there somewhere.
"Anna, breathe," Cam freaked out in worry.
"Sor-Sorry," Belle giggled while she tried to catch her breath. "It's just that...I wasn't expecting that from you."
Cam let out his own little chuckle at Belle's flushed cheeks from her laughing fit.
"Do you feel better now?"
"Yes. Thank you Cam."
"Are you gonna be okay for tonight?"
"Yeah. I'll be fine. Goodnight."
"Goodni-,"
Cam's goodnight was cut off when Belle placed a kiss on Cam's cheek.
"Goodnight."
Belle made to pick up the remnants of their snacks to take care of them, but Cam's hand shot out to stop her.
''I can take care of this Anna. You go get some sleep."
Belle flashed a smile at him then went on her way to her room. Life is certainly going to be interesting for us now that Anna is living with us, Cam thought to himself while he cleaned up.
o0o0o0o0o Ninja of the Stars o0o0o0o0o
There you have it lovelies,the next chapter. If you have any questions, comments, or concerns feel free to leave a review or shoot me a pm. Rememeber, reviews are magic!
-White Wolf