Wow, this story is really moving along! I hope y'all like Tybalt being a Traveler! :3 Anyway, I don't own the Pendragon series, or Romeo & Juliet. Please review? I wanna see what y'all think! Now, on with the show. Hobey-ho, let's go!

First Earth

Journal #2 (cont.)

So, after I'd explained everything I could, I decided to take Tybalt and Mercutio to go see the flume. They weren't nearly as creeped out by the Capulet crypt as I was. Maybe it's because they've been there more often than me. Anyway, we made our way down the stairs, into the cavern that housed the flume.

"W-why does it have to be so dark in here?" Mercutio asked with a shaky voice.

"Wait, you're afraid of the dark, but not of being killed in a duel with me?!"

"Why does everyone keep bringing that up?!"

"Because it only happened yesterday!" Tybalt and I exclaimed in unison, which was very weird, by the way. Mercutio just stood there, frozen, and staring at us like we had each grown an extra head. "Well, I guess we shouldn't do that again. Ugh, why do we keep sounding like twins?!"

"Uh, guys...?"

"What?"

"B-behind...you!" We both slowly turned around to see that the flume had been activated. Tybalt stares in wonder at the glowing, crystallized tunnel that seemed to be playing its own sweet music. I had a bad feeling in the pit of my stomach, the kind that means I'm about to get in a real natty-do. I was right. An older man in rich robes stepped out of the flume and walked over to Tybalt. "Lord Capulet!" I heard Mercutio exclaim.

"Ah, my dear nephew, Tybalt. Tell me, how does it feel, knowing you're a Traveler?" the man asked, his eyes flashing the all-too-familiar blue. Luckily, Tybalt saw this, as well.

"You are not my uncle, Saint Dane, nor will you ever be!"

"Then how do you explain all the years we spent in the same house? All those years I spent raising you and Juliet as practically siblings?"

"My uncle never raised me as dear Juliet's brother. He always made sure I knew my place. What have you done with the real Lord Capulet?!" Tybalt demanded, drawing his blade. Seeing that he could no longer deceive the lad, Saint Dane returned to his true form. His bald head was on fire, and crisscrossed with bulging veins, and he was about as tall as Tybalt. His piercing blue eyes seemed to stare straight into each of our souls. Mercutio let out a small squeak and hid behind me. Tybalt, on the other hand, had a smirk on his face that showed he wouldn't back down. "Ah, exactly what I expected of a demon. I've seen you, before!"

Believe it or not, Saint Dane was actually surprised, for once! I guess they don't call Tybalt the 'King of Cats' for nothing! "What? You have? How? I've never used this form in Verona...!"

"Aye, but you have plagued my dreams for as long as I can remember. In each one, you attempted to ravage a different realm, and each time, you were defeated brutally. You used to have silver hair, correct?"

"I-I...Y-yes, I-I did, but-" The stammering demon was cut off by Tybalt's sharp tongue.

"Then someone, a boy not much younger than myself, set it on fire, didn't he?" He scoffed as his victim nodded sheepishly. "Serves you right!" At this, I couldn't help but grin. The guy was making a complete fool out of someone who could easily annihilate him! It was truly the funniest thing I'd seen since I'd become a Traveler! "You're pathetic, Saint Dane. Instead of facing your enemies, and fighting like a real man, you hide behind your foolish disguises and manipulate them into traps. You're nothing more than a coward!"

"If I'm just a coward, then why did you even become a Traveler? Surely, a mewling quim such as myself would be so far beneath you that you wouldn't even bother with trying to stop me!" There was literally steam puffing out of Saint Dane's ears at this point. His face was redder than Tybalt's hair!

"You are only partly right. You are far, far beneath me. However, I became a Traveler because I am needed to protect Verona from all of the trouble a blundering idiot like yourself is capable of causing, and because I just couldn't pass up the chance to tell you that to your hideous face!" Now, Mercutio was doubled over in laughter, and I was finding it incredibly hard not to join him! Our foe was standing there, looking like he was about to start crying his eyes out because of Tybalt's bullying! As quickly as he possibly could, Saint Dane turned away and told the flume to take him to Zadaa. Once he and the lights and music had disappeared, Tybalt gave a huge sigh of relief. "Oh, thank God...!"

"That was brilliant, mate! I thought you almost had him in tears! Never have I seen anyone win a battle of wits with Saint Dane!" I said with a gigantic grin plastered on my face.

"Thank you, but I'm still in shock that it even worked...!"

"What? You mean you had no idea what you were doing?!" Mercutio piped up.

"No. I just...things kept pouring out of my mouth, and I could hardly stop it. I was absolutely terrified of that man...or demon!"

"You certainly didn't look it, mate!" I laughed, and the other two joined in. We must've spent nearly half an hour doing nothing but filling the whole chamber with laughter before I finally remembered why I had brought them here. "Alright, alright, believe it or not, I actually had a purpose for this little visit. You guys have already seen at least part of how the flume works, but Tybalt needs to get used to actually Traveling."

"What about me?" Mercutio asked, just as I'd expected.

"Sorry, kid, but acolytes and other non-Travelers can't use the flumes. Trust me, I know from experience..." I trailed off, remembering everything that had happened to us on Eelong. God, I hope Gunny's okay. In any case, Mercutio seemed to understand, and didn't argue with me. When I told him to step back from the tunnel, he obeyed, and even hid under the stairs. That kid... "Alright, when you want to go to a territory, face the flume and say the name of that territory. You've gotta speak loudly and clearly, otherwise you might end up somewhere totally different. Now, I want you to try taking us to my home, Cloral." Tybalt nodded and we turned toward the flume.

"Cloral!" And with that, we were off. The bright light quickly rushed out of the flume and pulled us into its current. The familiar music made me instantly relax, and we had an easy ride all the way there. I automatically crossed my arms over my chest and made myself as streamlined as possible, preparing for the drop into the lagoon. Unfortunately, I had forgotten to warn Tybalt. Oops. While I gracefully dove into the water like a torpedo, he screamed and hit the water flat on his back! "W-what the blazes was that?!" he spluttered as he came up for air. I had already changed into my aquaneer's uniform when I saw him surface, and couldn't help but chuckle.

"Sorry, mate. I forgot about the water slide!"

"Sure, you did." He glared at me, which only made me laugh more.

"It's been a while since I've been home!"

"Oh...right...my apologies."

"Aw, don't worry about it. Just get outta the water and change. We aren't supposed to mix the territories, so you'll have to wear these." I tossed him the clothes, fins, and air globe. He looked a bit clueless, so explained how they each worked, then turned away while he changed. Hey, I'm nothing, if not polite.

"This...Air Globe, as you called it, will really allow me to breathe underwater, and to talk to you?" he asked after he was decent. I turned to answer him.

"Yep. It's one of the many marvels of Cloralian engineering!" I grinned. He put the air globe on, still skeptical, then freaked out when it molded to his face!

"Gah! Th-this must be witchcraft..!"

"Oi, you calling me a witch, mate?" I laughed. "You just told off a demon and traveled clear across the universe, and you think a simple air globe is witchcraft? Seriously?" He just glared at me. "Boy, have I got my work cut out for me..."

"Oh, bite your tongue."

"Nope, I'd rather not."

"That means 'Keep your mouth shut before I run you through1'"

"Yeah, with what sword?"

"What..?" Tybalt looked down among our Verona gear, and was furious when he couldn't find either one of our weapons. "Where are they?! I've never lost my blade!" he roared. I just smirked.

"Actually, this makes the second time you've lost a sword to me. I nicked it from you before we ever left Verona, and left both of them with Mercutio. I didn't want them to rust down here." Okay, that was only half the truth. I also didn't want him sneaking it onto Grallion and starting fights. And Mercutio had no idea he was supposed to look after them. Anyway, he was still steamed, and decided to take it out on me the old fashioned way. "You shall pay for this!" he yelled, aiming a punch right at my face. I ducked, and used his own momentum to flip him over my back. I guess at least some of what Loor and Bobby taught me must've stuck.

"Sorry, mate, but we've gotta be a team. We can't do that if you keep wanting to fight me every chance you get, and if we aren't a team when Saint Dane makes his move in Verona, he WILL use that against us, and he WILL win! He's a manipulative sonofagun, and we can't give him ammunition to use against us! Understand?!" Shocked that I'd let my own temper slip, he nodded, and followed me when I jumped in the water. We had a silent swim out of the cavern and up to the surface, where Yenza was waiting with a skimmer. I finally smiled when I saw her. "Well, aren't you a sight for sore eyes!"

"Yeah, says the idiot who forgot to write for months on end, then outta the blue expects me to pick him and his new mate up in the middle of nowhere!" she ranted, while smacking me on the back of the head.

"Ow, hey! In my defense, it only felt like a month on Eelong...OW!" She smacked me again. "Jeez! What an abusive acolyte! Ouch!" Okay, I might have deserved that one, even if I was joking...

"I THOUGHT YOU WERE DEAD, YOU MORON!"

"Really?"

"Yes!" And then, she did the unbelievable. Wu Yenza hugged me. Seriously. A real, genuine bear hug. Needless to say, I was even more shocked when I looked down and saw that she had tears in her eyes.

"Alright, I'm sorry, Wu. I didn't mean to worry you like that. I honestly didn't know you cared so much," I said, using as gentle a tone as I could, and hugging her back.

"I don't. But don't you ever do that again, you hear?"

"Of course not," I replied with a grin.

"Erm...Hello..." Whoops. I almost forgot about Tybalt.

"Ah, you must be the new Traveler," Yenza said, pushing me away and walking over to him. She offered her hand for a shake, and he took it, nodding in agreement. "I'm Wu Yenza, Spader's acolyte."

"Tybalt Capulet, at your service, m'lady." She giggled as he bowed to her.

"He's gonna be a real good influence on you, Spader. Maybe you should ask him to teach you manners!" Tybalt smirked slightly at her remark.

"Yes, you certainly need them!"

"What was it that you said to me at the flume? Oh yeah. Bite your tongue," I jeered with a pretty decent imitation of his voice.

"Oh? What happened to 'We've gotta be a team, mate!'?"

"Spader said that?!" Yenza laughed, turning back to me. "If he's right, you're starting to sound more and more like Pendragon!"

"Yeah, but don't tell him that!" We all laughed, and headed back to Grallion for sniggers and a tour. Yenza and I showed Tybalt all of the farms, which he marveled at, and the docks where the aquaneers worked. We even taught him how to play Spinney-Do. He gave me a pretty good run for my money, and almost broke my record! After the tour and games, we all went to Grollo's so Yenza could treat us to sniggers. Tybalt seemed to like them more than Bobby, and downed about three before we left! Yenza insisted that we both stay the night at her place, instead of mine, so we headed there after Grollo's. I think she's starting to fancy Tybalt...

Did I just write fancy? I must've spent too much time in Verona. Mercutio was teasing me at dinner the night before about what girl I "fancied," and I of course told him your name. Yes, my new little brother knows about you. Of course, I never told him you were on Second Earth. It was before our encounter with Saint Dane.

Anyway, we stayed in Yenza's apartment for the night, then left for the flume in the morning. "Do you really have to go...?" she asked. "I just got you back..."

"I know, but I'm needed in Verona. This is how it was meant to be." It felt strange, saying those words. They were the last words that Press Tilton had said to me and his nephew before he died. He was our mentor, guiding us when we were brand new to being Travelers. Now, I'm mentoring my own new Traveler. At least, I'm trying to. There's no way I'll be even half as great as Press. Yenza smiled sadly, and gave us each a hug goodbye.

"Don't forget to write, okay?"

"I won't, I promise," I said, leading Tybalt onto a skimmer. "Ready, mate?"

"Of course. I was born ready!" I couldn't help but grin at his enthusiasm.

"Alright. Hobey-ho, let's go!" And once again, we were off. We made good time on our way back to the flume, but once we had changed back into our gear from Verona, we ran into a problem. The flume looked fine. Nothing had changed. I called out "First Earth," expecting to wind up back in the Capulet crypt. I was completely wrong. When the flume set us down, we were in the Manhattan underground. In, you guessed it, the 1930's. "What? How?! This was supposed to bring us back to Verona, not New York!"

"Spader..."

"I just don't understand it!"

"Spader."

"How are we supposed to get you home?!"

"SPADER!"

"What?!" I finally turned around to face Tybalt. He just rolled his eyes.

"Allow me. Verona!"

"That won't work. Verona is a city, not it's own...territory..." I trailed off as the lights and music started up, proving me wrong, once again.

"It is, now, apparently. I'm really getting the hang of this Traveling business," he said with a smug grin. I scowled slightly. Sure enough, we were back in the crypt before we knew it. As soon as we landed, Mercutio ran forward and pretty much tackled us into a hug. How that kid managed to get his arms around both of us, I'll never know!

"Spader! Tybalt! You're back! I'm so glad you're safe!"

"I-I, erm, thanks, but I'm not much-"

"Aw, come on, Tybalt. Give the kid a hug!" I laughed, putting an arm around my little brother. Reluctantly, Tybalt did the same, although I did see a small smile cross his face.

"Juliet's missed you almost more than I have! She was so worried when I told her you'd gone on a long journey. Of course, I told her you went to Venice, not Cloral. She still wouldn't come out of her room for days!"

"Days, you say? Exactly how long have we been gone?"

"A week and a half."

"Hobey, that is a long time..!"

"Aye, and just long enough for me to have gone to Venice and back. Good job, Mercutio." Tybalt smiled, tousling the boy's dark hair. "Now, hurry back and tell her I'll be riding in later today."

"I've already thought of how. I took the liberty of leading your horse out of the city limits. I'll go tell her, but make sure no one sees you. As for you, big brother, Romeo and Benvolio have been wondering where you disappeared to. I just told them you were making yourself scarce after the fight."

"Thanks, kiddo. I guess we should be off, then. Good luck, and Godspeed, Tybalt. We'll meet up tomorrow." He nodded, and we left the crypt, Tybalt heading toward the edge of town as stealthy as a cat, and Mercutio and I walking back to the square.

When we got there, Romeo and Benvolio were waiting for us. "Ah Spader Dorsett! Good to see you!" Romeo said, clapping me on the back.

"Aye. We were beginning to wonder if the King of Cats had finished you off in secret," Benvolio remarked, breathing a sigh of relief. "It is good that you've remained safe, my friend."

"Yeah, I'm glad to see you guys, as well. The streets of Verona aren't the kindest streets I've walked, but I had to lay low. I didn't want to spend a night of my life in prison!"

"No, I doubt you did. You're too much of a free spirit!"

"You got that right, mate!" We all laughed, and headed back to Benvolio's house for dinner. His family, like Mercutio's, was gracious enough to let me stay the night. I really will have to find a place of my own here, though. Something tells me I'll be spending a very long time in Verona, and I can't keep imposing on the city's most important families. I intend to look into getting an apartment, tomorrow. But now, it's getting late, and as the sun dips lower on the horizon, it becomes harder to write. Don't worry, Courtney. I'll see you soon, I'm sure.

All my love,

Spader