#2 – Final
Marco
I stared at the third question on the page blankly. 'How many countries fought with the Axis during WWII?' A simple, straightforward question with one answer. Too bad I didn't know it.
I'd spent the night before "studying" for final exams before Christmas break. We'd had two skirmishes with the Yeerks that week, and I was feeling stretched a little thin. A little thin, as in if somebody farted too loud, I'd jump through the nearest window. My study session had consisted of me staring at the material I was supposed to learn, absorbing none of it, until I passed out from exhaustion.
I was already wondering which military school my dad was going to send me to for flunking when a thought-speech voice almost sent me jumping out of my desk. (The answer is nine. Nine countries fought with the Axis.) Ah, Tobias. Me and Tobias may not have been the closest of the Animorphs, but in that moment as I wrote down the number nine as my answer, I decided he was my favorite person on the planet. I wanted very badly to ask him how he knew it was right, but it didn't even matter; Tobias had a clue, I didn't. I was going to listen to him. He must have known what I was thinking, because he said, (I can read the cheat sheet the kid three rows over from you has out. When you're stuck on a question, draw a little star by it, and I'll tell you the answer.)
Miraculously, the system worked, and I walked out of the classroom feeling like a million bucks. Tobias had rescued me from certain doom. I felt the urge to thank him right then and there. I knew he was watching, so I jogged across the street, behind an old stand of trees.
Sure enough, Tobias perched ten feet above me shortly after I got there. "Dude, you saved my bacon back there," I told him, trying to infuse my tone with gratefulness.
(Yep,) he said, sounding satisfied. (I got your back – I'm doing the same for the others for the rest of the day, and tomorrow.)
"Why stop there?" I wondered out loud. "I mean, let's make this a weekly thing."
(That's about right,) Tobias said dryly as he spread his impressive wings and flew away. (You're welcome.)
"Thanks!" I yelled after him belatedly as he flew away, and I faintly heard his thought-speech chuckle in reply.
A/N – These are fun! 411 words – not bad!