Gentle Moonlight

Chapter 9

Isaac looked identical to a plump Proxian grandmother, Jenna decided, according to all of Felix's stories. Swallowed in cloth from head to foot, bright eyes peeking out of the folds of the blanket. All that he needed was a few dozen children squished around him and she'd start calling him "O Honorable Mother." Jenna smiled a little at the image, until he commented abruptly, "So, I see that you've cut your hair."

"Oh, y-yes!" was her reply. She grabbed at her short locks and laughed nervously. "It feels strange this short, but I think I'll be able to get used to it, and mornings certainly won't be as much of a hassle, I think. And I think this is a good change, a good one, you know — and, do you like it?"

"Yes... yes, it looks nice." He twisted his head in the blankets, like a screw, to seek confirmation from Mia. She stood next to him just as wrapped up as he was. "Don't you think so?"

She met his eyes and nodded warmly. "I agree. It looks very pretty like that, Jenna. I don't remember you saying anything about cutting it, though; when did you decide to have it done?"

"Uh..."

"Yes, when?" Isaac prodded.

Jenna gulped hard — hard like an outhouse plunger stuck in a drain pipe. There was no escape from this one, it seemed. 'THINK!' she screamed at herself. "Erm, you see, I've felt recently that... it was necessary? Yes, necessary; the haircut, I mean. You see, I had a problem. A problem... I had one."

"A problem, you say?" Isaac asked, a puzzled look on his face. "You know that any time you there's something wrong, you can always come to one of us. I'm curious to know what was bothering you, now... Go on, and tell us what it was."

"Sure," Jenna croaked. "Sure... It was... that my hair... in my hair... there was, in my hair, a colony of fleas."

"Fleas?" gasped Mia.

"Fleas!" Jenna cried. "Yes! Fleas are a problem that all Fire Adepts have to face! Something about the charcoal smell of our hair just drives those little critters crazy!"

"I-is that really true?" Mia asked, her eyes widening by the second.

Jenna gained momentum. "Why yes, of course! Just take a look at Garet some time, and you'll notice that he's always scratching his head, and with a perfectly uncomfortable look on his face."

"I thought that that was his 'thinking' face..."

"That's absolute nonsense! Poor Garet is trying to drive the fleas out of his broom! Erm... hair! But take care not to mention it to him; being such an unpleasant thing, this problem of ours is kept pretty top secret. We, the Fire Adepts, must suffer anonymously... It wouldn't do to go blabbing to everyone about it."

"Oh, I understand completely," Mia said, her eyes bright and sympathetic. "Sometimes people keep very important secrets, ones that would be just devastating if anyone ever found out about them. Believe me, I understand your feelings. Your secret is safe with me and Isaac. Right?" She turned to the blond warrior hopefully.

"Yeah, we won't tell anyone. But I grew up with Garet, I thought I knew everything about him..."

Jenna chuckled, starting to blush a little. Mia's words just then, about important secrets, had almost made her feel... a little bit guilty...

"Oh!" she cried suddenly, her hair bouncing lightly on her shoulders. The diary was still in the pocket of her dress, right in front Mia! If her calculations were correct, she was not in a very safe situation. In fact, if Mia were to at that moment find out, especially after all that talk of embarrassing secrets, Jenna would probably be mauled on the spot. Hoping to escape, she said quickly, "I'm sorry I just remembered there's something I have to do!" and while Mia and Isaac were still watching her with surprised confusion, she barreled past them and down the path that led up to the ship.

'I wonder how Sheba's doing with the boys,' she thought, glancing over her shoulder at the couple lost in the snow. 'Hopefully she's made some progress... Right now, all I want to do is to get that diary read!'


Meanwhile, Sheba was stomping down one of the several halls of the mazelike ship. Felix and Ivan trailed helplessly behind her, their limbs flailing about like the Just-Married cans that people stick to the back of merchant caravans. Every now and then she stopped to kick open a door, peer inside, and deem it unworthy of being a conference room. Then she would slam it closed and move on. One door, when she came to it, was kicked open to reveal Kraden huddled up amongst mops, brooms, and dustpans. The light hit his face and he gazed up and stretched an arm out to her, his toothless gums knocking together happily.

"EWW! An old person!" Sheba cried, shutting the door.

As Sheba gave another jerk to Felix and Ivan's collars and was off down the hall again, the Earth Adept mumbled, "So that's where Piers put Kraden after cleaning the ship last month..."

Ivan snickered, thumping beside him with Jenna's wig on his head.

At long last, the trio arrived at the door to Felix's bedroom. Sheba halted and let the boys drop. "Felix's room will have to do," Sheba announced. "Because I don't want perverts in my room and every other place is filled with Lemurian cobwebs."

"From Lemurian spiders?" Ivan asked.

"No, Lemurian cobweb-making machines," Sheba snapped. "Now let's get to business. C'mon, boys." She took hold of their collars again and dragged them into the room. After they were sat down in a comfortable little circle facing each other, Sheba said, "This meeting has opened. We are gathered here today to find out what took place in my room earlier between the witnesses, Ivan and Felix. I have reason to suspect that it was of a malicious nature" —she glared evilly at Ivan — "but I don't want to judge before I have all the facts. SO HURRY UP AND 'FESS UP, MIDGET."

Ivan hung his head. "I didn't think it would be such a problem... I just wanted to play a joke on you. I thought it would be fun."

"You think playing with poor little baby Felix's feelings is FUN!?"

"Little baby Felix?" Felix asked.

Sheba ignored him and plowed on, "You should be more respectful of your leader! He's fifty feet taller than you, about ten years older, and is kind to ladies." She smiled fondly at Felix, then turned to Ivan. "Have I ever told you about the time he jumped off of Venus Lighthouse to save me, and—?"

"Sheba, I was THERE. I saw. And you tell that story every night at dinnertime, so it's not like I don't know how much you care about him," Ivan grumped, glaring at his folded hands.

Sheba blushed. "Y-you must be crazy! Just because I tell a story every... Well... the point is, be nicer to Felix."

Ivan scratched at his wig, pouting. "Fine. But only because he's an okay guy. Not because you told me to!"

"Fine then! Now that that's settled, why don't we have you two tell me what happened in my room? Do you think you can you do that, Felix? It's not too much trouble?"

"Uh, I don't think it's too much," he said, clearing his throat awkwardly. "Well... It all started when Jenna told me that you wanted to speak with me in your room. I went there, but when I came in you were sitting on your bed with your back facing me." He pointed to the bed and started to blush. "You starting saying all these things, like you lov—"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Sheba shouted suddenly. "The person on the bed? That was NOT me!"

"Who... was it then...?"

Ivan scratched his wig again. "This thing sure is itchy."

"That's right," Sheba said, "the culprit is Ivan! It looks like he dressed up like me in order to trick you... dressed up and lied just so he could have 'fun.'"

Felix was shocked by this sudden turn of events.

"True, it was me," Ivan grumbled. "But it was all in good fun! I wasn't trying to mess with you, Felix. Just with her."

"S-so... Sheba doesn't really have a teddy bear?"

"You said I had a teddy bear?" Sheba asked Ivan, blinking. "...How did you know?"

Ivan stuck his tongue out. "I'm a Jupiter Adept too, you know. I know things."

"You're such a weirdo. Well, anyway, now Felix knows that everything Ivan said in that room was a lie and should not be believed. Except the part about my darling teddy bear. Oh how I do love my teddy."

"Erm... I see. It's just good to know what actually happened back there. For a while I thought that..." Felix turned away. "N-now that I know... I should probably be on my way. Isaac and everybody will want to go get that Magma ball thingy. We'd better get ready soon."

"You're right," Sheba said, and pushed him out the door. Felix floundered in the hallway as she slammed the door in his face. He turned and stared at the door. Was he dreaming, or did she just kick him out without even a goodbye?

He got to his feet and dusted his pants and armor off. Perhaps it was true that Sheba didn't care for him. Perhaps she felt nothing. Beyond admiration, at least... And even though he'd had a chance to confess to her, he'd chickened out and stayed quiet. It was just, Ivan was there, and Sheba wasn't paying attention, and the mood wasn't right, and—

All of a sudden Jenna raced up, knocked him down, and trampled over him, flying into the room shouting, "GUYS, I HAVE IT!"

Then the door banged shut in his face. Again. Picking himself up for the second time, Felix said, "She has what, I wonder," and shuffled sadly away down the hall.

Poor. Little. Baby. Felix.


Yugi: Hi! Wow, I wrote an actual chapter this time! Quite a feat, especially considering the fact that my writing style is completely different now than it was four years ago. Back then I was like, "HAHAHA Isaac just got a lemon meringue pie to the face HAHAHA!" Now I'm like, "Uh... Can't I just blow everyone up? That'd be funny."

Hehe.

This story isn't supposed to be Humor, not really, but you'll have to deal with it. The Romance will start appearing more and more as the story progresses, just to let you know, so keep your eyes peeled. Here, let me help you out in your time of need.

(hands binoculars)

Oh, I'm so nice!