There's a Catch…

Kai

"Come with you?" I asked, pushing myself away from him. I was confused, repeating his words over and over in my mind. What did he mean, come with him? Did he want my help when they packed their ship? Did the others want to say goodbye as well? I was positive, with Piper's feelings about me, that it was not the case.

"I mean it. Come with me. Come with us! When we leave…" He smiled, his hands returning to his side.

For a moment, I smiled, but it faded with thoughts of home. "Aerrow, I can't… My dad would kill me. He's not even here for me to ask!"

"Exactly! He's never there! What's the point of making someone stay somewhere they don't feel at home? Have you ever been away from home when your father came back?"

I nodded slowly. "He came home and I was out running errands. Though I didn't come back until later, he didn't seem all that surprised that I wasn't home."

"Then why ask him if you can come with us? He's just as much of a father as I am a Talon. Here…," he paused, fishing through his pockets. He handed me a folded up piece of paper. "Your license wasn't the only thing I had signed at the Hall." Taking an authoritative stance, he stared me down. "I had Aldridge grant you conditional emancipation."

I read over the letter again and again, lost in the terminology. "Emancipation? What?"

"So long as you're supervised by a responsible party, you don't need your father's permission to do… well, anything. Technically, that makes you an adult, now. But, it's conditional. I'm supposed to be a responsible party, right?"

I looked to him for any signs of a prank gone wrong, but his grin remained. "So, what, is this your way of forcing me to come with you?"

He shook his head. "No, this is more a chance of freedom for you. My request, however, is unconditional."

I sighed. "Look, I don't need any hand-outs. I've done just fine on my own."

"Then say the word, and I'll rip up the page right now."

I folded the letter in my hands, staring blankly past it. He was right—the document meant more freedom than the license alone. Was I really willing to rip it up, and throw it all away? What would that freedom mean to me? "Come with you…"

"I'll take you to all the different places you've never even heard of."

"Why me?" I asked, placing the paper in his hand.

He shrugged. "Not really sure… You're pretty cool to be around. Kinda cute, don't wanna forget that…"

I rolled my eyes. "Fine. I'll come with you. But you have to let me leave, at any time, if I want to come home."

"Deal!" He stepped forward, as if to give me another hug, but brushed himself off and cleared his throat. "You'll have to pack your things, whatever you want to take with you. Do you want me to help out?"

"No, I'm okay, I'll go pack."

"Don't take too long. The guys are almost finished loading the supplies; then, we're out of here."

I nodded. "I'll meet you over by the docks." I rushed through the garage and into my room, scanning every surface and running through my drawers. Takings trips was not on Dad's to-do list, and preparing for one was never part of the plan. I wasn't sure what exactly would I need. Whatever you want to take with you… I pulled a pack from my closet and quickly loaded it with things I used every day. "Toothbrush, hairbrush, hair ties… God, what else…"

It felt like ages, sifting through my belongings. It took more thought than expected, trying to remember things I use habitually. Before I knew it, though, my pack was filled, and I was out of both room and time to gather anything else. I took one last look around, taking in the empty house. In a way, I was glad to be rid of the place; even if it was only temporary.

As I stepped out of the garage, rolled my bike onto the driveway, and tied down my pack, I felt a weight lift off of my shoulders. "Good riddance," I grumbled, speeding away from the house. The ride down to the docks was pleasant—I didn't feel that nagging voice, that piercing scream telling me something was wrong. For once, a decision this large felt right, without a second thought. Minutes passed as I felt the docks grew farther and farther away. As the houses scattered, I could see the Condor in the sky, looming in the clouds. Dots like flies neared closer to the carrier ship, disappearing into the hull. Aerrow came into view, watching as the last of the boxes were flown off by the team. He turned to face me, yet another charming smile on his face.

"All right, do you have everything? Are we good to go?" he asked, brushing his hands free of any dust.

I watching him quizzically before jetting off the edge, flying toward the ship. "If you don't hurry, I might beat you to the punch!"

Idling in the air, I shouted toward Aerrow, "Are you coming or what?!"

He smiled, rushing to his bike. With the last of the load taken care of, and the others having left, we were free to go to the ship. Speeding off of the edge with as much acceleration as he could gather, Aerrow was in the sky in no time.

With a smile, I followed after the vapor trails left by his crew and prepared to board the Condor. Once we landed, I retrieved my pack from under the seat and stepped a little further into the Condor, examining my new home.

"Looks a bit different than last time," I decided.

He nodded. "Except for the new supplies, it looks like Piper cleaned up around here."

Suddenly, an alarm went blaring through the halls and the ship went on lockdown. Windows were barred with a bang, doors were shut, and even the table seemed to disappear.

"What the hell?" Aerrow rushed off, following after the source, and I was quick to follow.

The blond man rushed into the hallway, clamoring after us. "Where is it?! I'll kill it!" With his cross-bow in hand, Finn aimed at just about anything that could move.

Aerrow stopped in his tracks, staring at Finn. "What's going on?"

Stepping out from behind Aerrow, I became worried. "What's going on?!" I echoed.

Piper rushed in behind us, staring directly at the loaded crossbow. "Stork! False alarm!" she sighed, shoving the crossbow downward. "It's just Kai!" She didn't seem too thrilled to see me.

Aerrow sighed as well. "Is it possible that we could all talk in the bridge?" he shouted over the alarm.

Finn and Piper turned to walk in the opposite direction, exiting as the alarm quickly quieted down.

"I should probably introduce you to the team. Formally, I mean," Aerrow stated.

I shrugged. "Haven't I met everyone?"

Aerrow shook his head. "You've met Finn and Piper. I don't think you've met everyone else."

Once it seemed like he had everyone in the same room, Aerrow gathered everyone together, seated comfortably around a large round table. "Finn, Piper, I know you guys have already met." Finn quietly interrupted, winking at me from across the table. "For everyone who hasn't had the pleasure of meeting her, this is Kai. She's a friend of mine."

Fearing for his life, a Merbian creature continually stepped backward, holding his arms in a defensive position. "Is that the Talon I saw?!" Though Merbs were known to be smart, yet skittish, creatures, I felt I was easily distinguishable from a Talon.

"No, she's not a Talon, Stork. She lives on Atmosia. However, she does own a SwitchBlade. I want to make everyone aware of that until it's fixed. Now… If no one has any objections, I'd like to propose she stay with us for a little while. Her father had other priorities and had… well, pretty much abandoned her. So for the time being, she shall call the Condor her home."

I smiled, trying to keep my gaze off of the group. Without much practice with people, shyness was a trait that weighed heavily on my shoulders. However, I was surprised to hear a lack of objection from Piper, someone who seemed to have it out for me.

"Sweet! One more chick on board!" Finn cheered. "I'm down!"

"As long as she's not a Talon," the Merb muttered, turning to adjust some controls before returning to the conversation.

"So if it's not too much trouble, Junko, we'll be setting one more plate at the table every night."

He smiled and nodded, welcoming me to the ship.

I returned the smile and continued to listen, until a strange creature launched himself onto my head, trying to keep me immobile. Piper laughed.

"Radarr! Radarr, this is Kai, she's a friend."

"This is Radarr?" I questioned, startled. From the tidbits of information Aerrow shared about Radarr, I thought he might be a kid, not a creature! "Is he your pet?" I asked, scratching the top of his head.

Everyone in the room cringed, the tension rising. I suddenly felt as if I'd made a huge mistake. In Radarr's furry little language, he began cursing, scratching at any exposed skin he could get his paws on.

Struggling to remove the creature from my head, Aerrow soon advised me of a slight problem, "Whatever you do… avoid calling him that. He's our mission specialist, not a pet." An apologetic look crawled over Aerrow's face as he unstuck Radarr from my scalp and set him on the ground.

Radarr stood up and crossed his arms across his chest, muttering something to himself.

I sighed, seeing the hair fall in front of my eyes. Loops and tufts had been pulled from the hair tie, creating a mess. I removed the tie and continued to listen as I remedied the issue.

"Kai, I have to talk to you about the rules of this place," Aerrow began.

"I'm sure they're not too bad," I grumbled, rolling my head downward as I wove my hair back into a braid.

"Well…," he paused, unsure. "They're less like rules and more like guidelines. Everyone on the ship has to do their part—that includes chores, helping with dinner if Junko can't cook that night…"

"Or if it turns out entirely inedible," Finn agreed.

"Oh, I completely understand! It's only right of you to ask me to help out around here."

"There's… one more thing," Aerrow laughed nervously. "As a policy from the older Storm Hawk days, in exchange for room and board, you have to help out with mission points…"

"Meaning…?" I asked.

"If you live here, you're part of the team."

I gave a half-smile, raising a brow. "You're serious…?" I was sure not to seem repulsed by the idea when, in fact, I was almost over-joyed.

He nodded, rubbing his neck. "I can understand if you refuse—"

"I love the idea," I cut him off. "I'd rather be helping out friends than sitting at home alone."

Aerrow smiled. "Good. Everyone else okay with this?"

Before Piper had the chance to object, the majority had their say, and I could finally call this place home. Ecstatic, I turned and hugged Aerrow. "I hope this is better than helping Mrs. Jenkan with her repairs.

Returning the hug, Aerrow laughed. "Now…," he whispered to me, "we have to do something about your Switchblade before you get hurt…"