Shalla-Bal
By Serena Kenobi
A/N: Sorry for the long wait. Hope you enjoy! Getting close to the appearance of a familiar face...
Sue sighed. "Johnny, this is Shayna, Shayna, this is my brother, Johnny."
"Ladies call me Torch," Johnny smirked, coming up to Shayna.
Shayna smiled and held out a hand. "Nice to meet you, Johnny," she said.
Johnny flashed her a charming grin and held onto the hand longer than he should have. "A beautiful name for an even more beautiful woman," he said cheekily.
Sue snorted. "Johnny, you're supposed to be welcoming our guest, not hitting on her with incredibly cheesy pick-up lines."
"Ya better get used to it," a new voice growled from behind them. Ben came plodding in, holding a drink in his hands. "Ben Grimm," he said, holding out a large, stony hand to Shayna, who beamed and shook it.
"Shayna," she replied. "It's an honor to meet you all. I look forward to my time here."
"Wait, what?" Johnny was laughing incredulously. "Did you just say: 'Looking forward to your time'? Here? With us?"
"That's exactly what she said," Reed told him while taking a seat behind one of the desks. "Shayna's going to be staying with us for a while as an assistant of mine."
Johnny's grin grew wider. "You're kidding!"
"So that means you'd better treat her with respect or else I'll kick your fiery butt all the way out of the building!" Sue snarled to her brother.
Shayna looked embarrassed. "I don't want to cause any trouble between you," she said uncomfortably.
"No," Sue shook her head, "don't worry about it. Johnny needs to learn how to treat women with respect, anyway. Come on, I'll show you to your room."
"They're so nice, Draskis," Shalla said, brushing her long raven hair as she stared at her reflection in the mirror of her recently acquired bathroom. "I have a feeling these people might be the ones to help me find Norrin. Dr. Richards, I believe, is up to the challenge. He's incredibly smart."
"Hmm," Draskis said skeptically as he lay curled on Shayna's bed in the form of her cat. "We will see. You must be patient and wait to see if they are trustworthy enough to trust with a secret as great as yours."
Shayna came back into the bedroom and sat on the bed. "Why wouldn't they be trustworthy? I have no reason to distrust them."
"My dear, you have known them for a day," Draskis said, amused.
"You doubt my ability to judge people correctly?" Shayna said, hurt.
Draskis purred. "No, Shalla, of course not. But I suggest we wait at least another month before telling them who you are."
Shalla-Bal sighed and lay back on the pillow. "Another month is another month wasted when we could – should – be searching for Norrin," she said, frustrated. "I feel as if I'm not getting anything done."
"Patience," Draskis told her. "You will find him. Just wait."
Shalla-Bal was reluctant to admit it, but she knew he was correct.
Over the next few weeks, Shalla-Bal learned everything from astronomy to quantum physics. She was grateful to Reed for allowing her to be his assistant, and he was more than happy to teach someone who didn't laugh at his geeky ramblings and was eager to learn everything he could teach her. He was also astounded at how fast she could pick things up, especially the more complicated physics. Shalla finally felt like she was making progress, and she hoped that it was only a matter of time before she was able to look for Norrin.
Four weeks after Shalla's arrival, Shalla was working the lab silently while Reed was on the other side of the room doing the same. Shalla wondered whether or not to tell Reed about her true identity, as it had been a month, but she was unsure of how to proceed. Finally, she looked at him and said, "Dr. Richards, do you mind if I ask a question?"
Reed looked up at her after a moment. "Not at all, Shayna."
"Do you... how do I phrase this," Shalla frowned. "Do you... believe in other-worldly beings?"
Reed paused to think about it. "Yes, I do. Why?"
"Oh, it's nothing."
Reed smiled. "Shayna, you know you can tell any of us anything," he said comfortingly. "Well, except maybe for Johnny," he added as an afterthought.
Shalla-Bal blushed and grinned. "He is... an interesting character."
"To say the least," Reed said, amused.
Susan entered the room, and much to Shalla-Bal's horror and amusement, was holding Draskis and petting him. "You have such a cute cat," Sue smiled.
"Thank you," Shalla choked, biting back a laugh. She saw Draskis's cat eyes glaring daggers at her. "You might want to put him down, though. He can get a little uppity if you hold him for too long." She hid a smile as Draskis silently snarled at her.
Sue placed him down. "Okay. How's it going, you two?"
"Great!" Reed said. "How was the dress fitting?"
"Oh, you know," Sue shrugged. "Normal. Annoying. And we have the rehearsal for the wedding on Tuesday, you know."
"I know," Reed sighed, rubbing his head. "But I have so much work to get done. There's been reports of a strange anomaly off the coast of Japan."
Shalla frowned. "What kind of anomaly?"
"I'm not sure yet. But I-" Reed paused as he tapped something on his computer. "That's strange," he muttered. "There's just been another unusual occurrence... this one's in Egypt. There's been... snow in Egypt!"
"Snow?" Susan echoed in disbelief.
Shalla raised her eyebrows. "That is strange." I suppose... although I really don't know much about Egypt. Well, now's as good a time as any to learn, I suppose.
"I'll have to do some more research on this," Reed said while frantically tapping away. "Shay, could you help me with this?"
"But Reed! We have the dinner in an hour!" Sue glared at him.
Reed froze. "Dinner?"
"Yes. Don't you remember? I told you last week."
"Must've slipped my mind," the scientist said sheepishly. "Where are we going again?"
Sue sighed. "We're going out with Ben and Alicia." She glanced at Shalla-Bal. "You can come too, if you want, Shayna. I don't want you to feel left out."
"Oh, that's all right," Shalla said. "As a matter of fact, I have an idea. I'll stay here and finish up the work Dr. Richards needs done."
"Are you sure?" Sue said doubtfully.
Shalla smiled. "Go out and have some fun. I'll be fine here. I'm not one for parties, anyway."
Reed shot her a relieved grin. "Thanks, Shayna, I appreciate it." He nodded as Sue dragged him out of the room.
Shalla looked at the computer screen and rubbed her head. What were these unnatural anomalies?
Dun, dun, dun DUN!! And so it begins. This story will deviate somewhat, even from the beginning, from ROTSS. Anyway, feel free to review!
- Serena
