Hey, Czechm8 back here with Chapter 2. I was pleasantly surprised by the number of views I got last chapter. Thanks for viewing my piece. It meant a lot. Again, not much happens during this chapter. Be warned, there are minor cuss words. If I get complaints, I will remove them. I will post up a poll on my profile shortly after I post this. Vote for who you want to join the Supah Ninjas. I will leave it up for about a week and a half, maybe even two weeks. I will expand on that in Chapter 3. If I don't get any responses after two weeks, I will continue with what I had originally planned. Disregard that last message. It would appear as if my word count has more than doubled! So much for being shorter.

Owen's POV

Same day, about 5:00

I peered outside. Indeed, it was Connor. He still looked the same following the floating sword accident. A scar, identical to Kagema's, ran down the left side of his face. His right hand was wrapped in surgery tape, probably from trying to grab the floating sword. I would not want to meet him in a dark alley.

"Yikes," I exclaimed, in order to avoid suspicion. I couldn't let Marty know I knew he would look like this.

"Hey, Marty. I know, I must look terrible. My father, who my mother divorced because of alcoholism, came back last night drunk as a skunk. My mom was out and I was in the house alone when he came," Connor began. He shuddered as he relayed the story.

"I told him, "My mother didn't deserve a bastard like you." Sorry. He must not have liked that and slashed me across the face with a knife."

"And the hand?" Marty asked.

"I had to break a window to escape. That hurt like a bitch. Sorry, Marty. I'm not sure what hurts more, my hand or my face. Can I please stay with you? I don't want to go back to that hell hole. Sorry, excuse my language. Please, can I stay? Please?" Connor begged.

"Okay. Hop in the back," Marty sighed. He always cracked down on cuss words. I didn't think they were that bad.

Connor did a short dance celebration before hopping in the squad car.

When Marty wasn't looking, Amanda and I gave Connor an "I'll hunt you down" glare. Connor just shrugged and enjoyed the ride.

After dropping Amanda off, Marty brought me to a halt in front of my house. I bade Marty goodbye and headed in the comfort of my own house.

"Are you going to be okay? Maybe the kidnapper will go after you next," my mom reasoned. (See Ch. 1 for reference.) Kagema just might, but I wasn't going to tell my parents that. I instead insisted I would be okay.

"Amanda and I are going to meet up later to grieve, about 7:00. Is that alright?" I asked, quickly changing the subject. My parents were completely okay with it.

"How's Marty?" my dad asked. I admitted he was feeling a little down. They already knew Marty had lost his wife almost a decade ago.

"Let's make them dinner for tonight. Could you call the McKay's and ask them to bring a meal over?" my mom suggested. In response, I grabbed the telephone and dialed the McKay's home number. They picked up on the second ring.

"We're gonna make some dinner to bring over for Martin and Connor. How about bringing some dinner over?" I asked. Mr. McKay thought that was an excellent idea and would meet us at the Fukanaga's house about 6:15.

I hung up and told my parents the news. I also added Amanda, her parents, and Connor would be eating as well.

"We're gonna make plenty of food. Wash up and help your dad peel the potatoes." My mom ordered. I nodded and left to wash up.

After washing up and texting Amanda about the change in plans, I joined my dad in peeling the potatoes. The hard work took my mind, momentarily, off Mike. I probably would have enough left in me to cry with Amanda. Assuming I don't cry during dinner that is.

A good 45 minutes later, it was time to go. We had made scalloped potatoes with ham and cheese for Connor and Marty. If I wasn't too sad when I arrived, maybe I could eat some of the McKay's dish.

When we walked in the Fukanaga house, Amanda told Mrs. Reynolds to place the dish on the table. While the two adults brought dinner to the table, Mr. and Mrs. McKay approached me.

"Hey, Owen. Listen. Amanda may be going through a tough time in the next few days. Will you promise to be there to comfort her?" Mrs. McKay relayed quietly. I promised the McKay's I would take care of Amanda. Mr. McKay patted me on the back and led me to the table. It had already been set for 8.

"Yo. Don't we need a place for Mikey?" Connor asked. Utter silence fell upon the room.

"Mike was kidnapped," Amanda dared to explain.

"I'm sorry. I had no idea," Connor pleaded. I didn't believe Connor for a second. He probably brought it up to remind us of the pain we are in. He took advantage of us earlier (see Season 1 finale), and I am sure this was another try.

The mood around the dinner table changed dramatically. Amanda, Marty, and I lost our appetites. I just kept on pushing my food around. Finally, around 7:00, Amanda and I got up abruptly.

"See you guys later. We gotta go," Amanda announced.

"Go where," Connor asked. He could be so snoopy sometimes.

"They're just taking a long walk. They need sometime alone to let their emotions out. It's best to let them be," Mr. McKay spoke up. Amanda and I claimed that's what we would be doing and left.

We entered the tunnels leading to the dojo, and were at practice at 7:10. Neither Hologramps, nor Kid Q was in sight. Kid Q probably went home.

"You were supposed to be at practice over four hours ago. Where's Mike," Hologramps cried, appearing out of nowhere. Amanda and I remained quiet, not wanting to break the bad news to Hologramps. Amanda finally explained to Hologramps Mike was kidnapped by Kagema.

"Oh," Hologramps muttered. With no warning whatsoever, Hologramps played "God Gave Me You" through the dojo. As the chorus rolled on, I felt tears slide down my face.

"God gave me you for the ups and downs." I never was much of a Christian, heck I only went to church on Easter and Christmas, but that line stood out to me. Could God have given me Amanda so I could have a friend to mourn with? I was not ready to go that far, but I did realize I needed Amanda.

When the song had finished for the second time, Hologramps reappeared. He looked at the two of us and said, "Owen, Amanda, I know you are going through a hard time, and I know the pain you are feeling. You must not fight this battle alone. Even the great Achilles needed someone to watch his heel. As you discover yourselves over the next few days, depend on each other, comfort each other, look out for each other, trust each other, and live for each other. Live for each other, live for the future, and live for Mike." With that, Hologramps shut down.

Amanda and I continued crying after Hologramps left. Finally, there were no more tears left.

"Let's go back. People are probably wondering where we are," Amanda deduced. I ended up walking straight to my house.

"Glad you're back, Owen. We saved your dinner," Mrs. Reynolds spoke up upon my arrival.

"I'll take it for breakfast," I quickly said. In truth, I was starving. It had been almost twelve hours since I last ate. My parents probably knew this, but didn't push the issue. I excused myself, got ready for bed, and was asleep by 9:45.

After a huge breakfast next morning, I got a text from Amanda reminding me ninja practice was soon. She was smart and referred to ninja practice as our study session.

"Can I meet Amanda for our chemistry study session?" I asked.

"Of course. But Owen, you don't need to lie to hang out with Amanda," Mrs. Reynolds expressed.

"I know," I stumbled. Mom's response caught me off guard. Good thing she doesn't suspect I'm a ninja. I excused myself and headed out the door.

We reached the tunnels about quarter to 10 and found it abandoned. We were supposed to have practice now. Where was Hologramps?

In response to my question, Hologramps appeared, and with a grave voice announced, "I have decided to shut down the dojo."

Let me know what you guys think of Hologramp's speech. Feel free to leave a review. Don't forget to complete the poll on my profile.

Qxg2#