Hey, I'm back. I liked that how you responded both negatively and positively to the "Cole and Alexus" thing. It's nice to get some feedback. And my poll has not closed, and the majority has voted for Cole and Alexus, so that's what I'm going to do so far. Anyway, here's the next chapter, and I would like to thank those of you who have reviewed!
Alexus was once again, in her room. She was lying on her bed, thinking, as Zane would put it; past events that have transpired seven days ago. She hadn't talked to anyone about it, not even Nya. Every time she was in the same room as he-who-shall-not-be-named it was just awkward silence between them, and Alexus would always stare at her lap.
She wasn't doing anything, she didn't have the heart to sing, to read, to write, to draw. It was if though that small moment that felt almost like nothing to Alexus felt like everything to Alexus! But, she still didn't let it get in the way of her training, and yesterday had been a mile stone for her. She had completed the training course successfully for the first time! She smiled a little when she thought about it, and she suddenly heard a knock on her door. She was out of her trance, and sighing, she said, "Come in!"
Nya entered, and closed the door behind her. "Alright, we have to talk," she said, without returning the greeting. Alexus sat up, "What do you mean?" she asked. "I mean that you don't really do anything anymore! Ever since last week, all you do is train, eat, and go back to your room. I mean, you used to do that, but when you were here, you always listened to music, wrote in your countless journals, drew in your notebooks, and read your piles of books! Now, all you ever do is lie on that bed, and stare at the ceiling! What has happened?" Nya asked.
"It's personal..." Alexus muttered, but Nya sat down on the edge of the bed. "Then talk about it, it's not good if you keep your emotions bottled up like this!" Nya said. Alexus got out of bed, and pulled out a sketch pad off of the desk. She fingered through the pages, and finally found the drawing she was looking for. She showed it to Nya. It was a picture of Alexus and Cole so close in the kitchen, their lips almost touching. Nya gasped, and covered her mouth with her hands. "You kissed Cole? I didn't know you had it in you," she said. Alexus turned to the next page, which was her and Cole parting, moving away from each other, looking squeamish.
"We almost kiss, then- wait, what do you mean that you didn't know I had it in me?" Alexus asked. "Nothing, so you almost kissed him? What happened?" Nya asked. "Well, we were in the kitchen, and we were so close, then the stupid microwave just had to finish warming my pizza, and I guessed I realized what was happening, and- I don't know, I just pulled away," Alexus said. She laid back down onto the bed, "Where things ever this complicated with you and Jay?"
Nya looked astonished. "How did you know that Jay and I were-?"
"It's so obvious, it doesn't take CSI to know how Jay feels about you, just by the way he looks at you!" Alexus cut her off. "By the way, if you and Jay were fictional characters, I would so ship you two (I already do)!" Alexus said, but Nya just looked confused. "Thank you?" she asked. Alexus laughed. "Well, what do you think I should do. Now, whenever I'm in the same room with he-who-shall-not-be-named There's just this awkward silence between us!" Alexus said.
She sat up again, while Nya thought. "Well," she started, "What did Professor Dumbledore teach Harry in the first year?" Nya asked. "That he hates Berty Bott's every flavored beans, because he has bad luck with them, like at the end, he got an earwax flavor!" Alexus said. "No, the other thing," Nya said. "That standing up to your enemies takes a lot of courage, but it takes more courage to stand up to your friends, and for that reason, he awarded Gryffindor house and Neville Longbottom ten points?" Alexus asked. "No! It's that, fear of the name only increases fear of the thing itself," Nya said.
"You mean Voldemort?" Harry asked, opening the door. Alexus looked horrified, and asked, "How long have you been listening?" Harry stood in the doorway. "Since you said 'Dumbledore.' By the way, nice references," Harry said. Alexus grabbed her pillow, and chucked it at him. He caught it, and said, is that the best you can do?" Alexus stood up, and said, "Do you really want to challenge someone who trained with five ninja for two months?" Harry realized this, and his eyes widened with realization, and he started running.
They laughed at the sight of his horrified face. Then, Alexus went back to the previous subject. "So, what do you think I should do about you-know-who?" she asked. "Well, I suggest that to not be afraid to talk to him, just pretend that everything is fine between you two, and that nothing awkward is happening," Nya said, standing up. Alexus nodded. "Alright, thanks, Nya."
The night passed without anything happening, and at dinner, Cole was sitting as far away from Alexus, so they couldn't exactly carry on a conversation comfortably. Dinner passed, and everyone retreated to their rooms, and a spell felt as if though it was cast upon the Bounty as everyone fell asleep. Beneath the deck, where the rooms were, the floorboards creaked without anyone stepping on them. And the door to the ninja's room opened without anyone being in the doorway, then, closed quickly as the dead spectator realized that it wasn't Alexus' room. He walked on, and opened the door to the room across. It belonged to an old man, and the ghost closed the door to that room.
He went to the room next to it, and this one belonged to a young girl, but it wasn't Alexus. He tried the door to across from the one he just opened, and was getting frustrated at this point. When he opened the door, he was pleased. Here rested Alexus Johnson. Her shoulder length hair slightly falling across her face, and her glasses rested on the stool beside her bed.
The ghost stepped forward, and the boards creaked under his invisible feet. Alexus heard the sound, as they penetrated her dreams. She opened her eyes, and sat up, seeing nothing. She put her glasses on, and turned on the lamp. She saw that the door was open, and she peered her eyes, getting a little worried. "Hello, anyone there?" she called quietly. "Just me," the ghost replied, and her heart skipped three beats. "Do you not see what time it is!" she said in a low voice. "Can't you talk to me in the light?"
"No, I can only be heard during the most mysterious hours; night," the ghost replied. "But wait, I didn't come here to wake you up. I came here to warn you. I sense a dark presence near, and I would take caution, but I'm not sure when it will show up!" Alexus took off her glasses, and said, "Thanks for the warning, good night." She turned off the lamp, and covered her head with the sheets. "Goodnight, Alexus," the ghost whispered, and he left the room, closing the door behind him before he left for real. Alexus made a mental note to see a medium soon, and rolled over and fell asleep.
The spell was cast once more, and this time, the ghost did not show up again. But a more shadowy, evil presence made it's way onto the Bounty that night. But how he made it could not have been said when Alexus would look back at these years. The boards creaked again, and the doors opened again, and this figure fought the urge to place his hands around every throat that he saw. He came upon the last door, the one with Alexus behind it, and the door opened with ease, and the figure laughed under his breath when he realized that the doors didn't even have locks!
The boards creaked under his black feet, and Alexus sat up again. She put on her glasses but didn't turn on the lamp this time. "I though I told you-," she started, but when she saw that this figured was visible, her voice caught into he throat. "My, my, it's been a long time, Alexus," the dark figure said. His red eyes glared though the night, and rendered Alexus speechless. When he took a step forward, only then, did Alexus start to scream.
Cole didn't miss a beat this time, and he burst through the door that was slightly ajar. He looked around the room, and saw no one. Not any foes, not Alexus, just the sheets of her bed tangled, and nothing left to see, really in the dark. "Alexus?" he called in the room, as if though she was hiding under the bed. When she didn't respond, he became more worried. "Alexus? Alexus?" he called over and over, frantically searching her room, but she wasn't in ran onto the deck, and looked, no Alexus, nothing to greet him except the breeze he felt as a breeze swept his shaggy hair around.
"Alexus!" he shouted. He ran around the bounty, and saw nothing. He checked the dining room, the kitchen, the control room, but she wasn't there. He ran back down below the deck to the indoor training room, and opened the door. Nothing except the training equipment left out. He ran back onto the deck, and shouted on last time, "ALEXUS!" at the top of his lungs. He saw a piece of paper blowing by, and he snatched it out of the air. As he read it, he collapsed onto his knees, and he started to sob, as much as he hated to cry. "Alexus," he whispered hoarsely, as tears started to leak from his eyes, and fall onto the paper that only had one word on it.
Well, I'm going to end it there. Pretty dramatic, right? Do you think that all these twist and turns are too much? Should I slow down, or keep up the suspense? Let me know in your reviews, and remember to vote on the poll. And this is a lame question with an obvious answer, but what do you think happened to Alexus, and what do you think that the one word is?