Chapter 8: The Big Home Welcoming

The trip from the airport to the suburbs of L.A. seemed to take a long time. Simon eyes would not divert from the window. He was astonished with how some neighborhoods changed in the past five years. His brothers, the Chipettes, Miss. Miller, and Dave all glanced back to the long lost chipmunk. Jeanette leaned forward to Simon as they passed the old roller skating rink. The building now has a big 'Closed' sign. Simon's gasped when he saw the sign.

"They had closed that old rink about three years ago." Jeanette whispered.

"Oh," Simon sighed. "That's too bad." He remembered the days when he would skate there with his brothers and the Chipettes when they were eight years old. They were happy memories.

Soon, they arrived in a neighborhood that stayed pretty much the same right up to a familiar house. Simon's face lit up. It was his home, finally. Dave pulled up on the driveway and stopped. Everyone leapt out of the vehicle and lead Simon into the house. As soon as he walked in, Simon recognized the smell, especially coming from the kitchen. 'Someone's been baking,' he thought.

He took a moment to have a good glance around the inside of the house from the door. Not much had really changed in five years. However, what caught his attention was a big sign hanging above the entrance to the living room that said, 'WELCOME HOME SIMON!' With a deep sigh he silently prayed that this wasn't another dream.

"We have a surprise for you!" Alvin said as he grabbed his brothers' arm and led him into the living room. The living room looked pretty much the same, except there were gifts most of them in Christmas rapping lying on the coffee table. Simon frowned, had a good idea on who they were for, but didn't want say anything. As he sat down on the couch Alvin and Theodore started handing him gifts he would have received for Christmas and Birthday for the past five years. Simon tried not to be annoyed with all of this, since he had not really celebrated Christmas or Birthdays during the time he'd spent on the Island.

"Here Simon! We kept these for you for when you would one day come home again!" Theodore chirped.

Simon slowly accepted the gift that Theodore was holding and opened it. He let out an even bigger sigh at the box that had jacket that looked like would fit a 10-year-old chipmunk. He then let his head fall back on the soft cushion of the couch behind him.

"What's wrong, Simon?" Dave asked.

Simon looked up and realized that everyone was looking at him with a worried expression of his or her faces. "I'm just not use to all of this, yet. That and it has been a long trip." He finished with a very tired look on his face.

"Oh, Simon, you've must have been through a lot, haven't you." Jeanette said softly.

Simon didn't answer; he just stared at the little jacket in his hands, so many mixed emotions and thoughts ran through his mind. He felt angry that he was taken away from his family for five years ago, but happy to have been returned home again safe and sound. Yet, he was also sad too. This is the first time he has been separated from his four friends from the Island. He worried about each of them and what they are doing right now. "Can we do this some other time? I'm really tired!" He finally said.

"But aren't you hungry? We are about to make a big dinner in celebration of your safe return home!" Theodore said.

"Thanks Theodore, but I'm too tired to eat right now."

Everyone began to notice that Simon could barely keep his eyes open, and felt pity for him.

"Ah, sure Simon! Alvin why don't you go help him upstairs to get settled in?" Dave said.

"Sure Dave!"

Alvin led Simon up the stairs when Jeanette called out, "Goodnight Simon!"

"Goodnight!" Simon replied as he followed his brother up the stairs.

Alvin opened the door to their room and when Simon walked in, he felt a sense of security. He noticed that Alvin and Theodore's beds changed very little, but his bed, most likely, hasn't been touched since the day he was taken away. Simon walked up to his old bookshelf and pulled out one of his old books. It seemed to be a little dusty, so he blew on it and a cloud of dust floated in the air causing him to have a coughing fit.

"D'oh, I knew I forgot to do something before leaving this morning!" Alvin punished himself, as he slapped his hand over his forehead.

Simon began to chuckle, "Don't worry about it, Alvin!" He said as he placed the book back on the shelf. He then turned towards his bed and saw a pair of old pyjamas. Simon remembered wearing them when he was a kid; he looked down at his new body and picked up the small pyjamas. "Ah, we have a small problem!" He announced with a slightly embarrassed smirk.

"Oops!" Alvin said, trying to hide a smile. "Maybe I have something you can use until we can get you some new cloths" Alvin went to his dresser and pulled out a clean pair of red boxers and a white loose t-shirt. He then handed them to his taller brother. "This is all that I have that might fit you."

"Thanks Alvin."

"Is there anything else I can get you?" Alvin said, trying to be helpful.

"No, I should be alright! I'm just going to wash up and go to bed."

"Ok Simon!" Alvin started to head out the door, and then turned to his brother. "Oh, and Simon…?"

"Yea?"

"Welcome home!" Alvin said with a big smile and Simon retuned a smile back at him.

As soon as Alvin closed the bedroom door, Simon's smile faded. He walked up to the side of his bed and placed Alvin's borrowed cloths over the railing. He then turned toward his old desk where his old computer still sat. Simon opened the top drawer and began to fish in the inner pockets of his jacket and pulled out the phone numbers and address of his friends and put them in a small address book. He then patted his jacket to see if there was anything else he'd missed. With a big sigh he went into the other pocket and pulled out a package of cigarettes, he shook it slightly to confirm that he still had some left and placed them under some loose paper. After closing the drawer he begins to take off most of his uniform, except his pants and walks into the bathroom to have a shower.

He turns on the water and after removing his pants he steps in the tub. The warm water felt good running through his furry face, especially since he was only aloud cold showers' at the 'so-called-school' on the Island. He begins to remember the first day arriving to that place and his face starts to tense up.

OoOoOoOoOoOo

FIVE YEARS AND SIX MONTHS AGO

Simon had just been called into the office, he pondered on if it was a mistake and if they had meant to call Alvin instead. He walked through the office door and saw the principal and secretary there waiting for him. "Go on through into my office, Simon. There is someone that wants to see you." The principal said with sort of a blank look on her face.

Unsure of all of this, Simon decides to go ahead anyway. He enters the principal's office sees a strange man in a dark suit sitting behind the desk with a smug look on his face.

"Simon Seville? So you're the little genius I've heard so much about!" The man said. "I have been talking to your dad, and he agrees to send you to a very special school where there are other genius kids just like you!"

"What?" Simon yelled. He started to feel uneasy with this news.

"Relax Simon, it's all been taken care of." The strange man pulls out a legal document and hands it to Simon. "See, your dad had already signed the papers and everything. You can leave with me today!"

Now Simon really did not like any of this. Even though the signature did look exactly like Dave's, it just didn't seem right. Why would his dad send him anywhere without consulting it with him first? Simon looked up at the man and felt uncomfortable about the whole thing. He had the urge to leave and fast.

"Ah…!" Simon thought quickly as he slowly made his way to the door. "I'll just go get my things!"

Simon was about leave when he felt a sharp prick on his arm. "Ouch!" Simon tried to look up at his attacker, but darkness took over his vision and started to fall back.

The man caught him with one hand and held a surgeon's needle in the other. "That won't be necessary. Those old items are not useful to you anymore, not where you're going!"

OoOoOoOoOoOo

Simon started to regain consciousness and discovered quickly that he was no longer in the principal's office, but as he looked around he realized that he was on a plane. He looked out the window saw that the plane was coming down for a landing on an Island in the middle of an Ocean. Sitting beside him was the strange man from the principal's office. "Ah, good you're awake," the man said. "Welcome to your new home, I'm known as the Dean."

"You…you kidnapped me!!" Simon said after finding his voice. He found himself backing up against the window of the plane. His only hope of escape was if he could only 'ghost' through walls and to freedom.

"It was for your own good. You should feel honored for you are but one of the few chipmunk children we found that met our requirements."

"W-w-what do you mean?"

"The regular schools including private schools have no place for a special kid like you. Like the other children we teach at this school, will grow up knowing a lot more then the world best known scientist, philosophers, and even the best known spiritual people in the world. If you think you're smart now, wait till the brain chemical enhancer we put into our blood stream begins to work."

Simon wasn't quite sure what he meant, but he knew he didn't like the sound of it.

OoOoOoOoOoOo

The Dean lead Simon down the hall, he had Simon caring a uniform. As they walked, Simon could see many classrooms and laboratories with kids of all ages studying and calculating problems at enormous speed. There was something hypnotic about their gazes as they worked through their studies. One of the children looked up to see Simon and the Dean walk passed the room. He looked pale and had a neutral expression on his face.

They finally came to the live in quarters. The Dean first knocked then opened one of the doors. Inside there were three beds and a bathroom, he also noticed two chipmunk boys getting up off their beds and standing strait as if they were in some kind of cadet camp.

"Tom! Brian! This is Simon, your new roommate!" The Dean said.

"Yes sir!" The boys said in unison.

"Good, now you'll assist him and get him ready for your next class. I believe it starts in 15 minutes. Don't be late now." The Dean said with a smile.

"Yes sir!"

As soon as the Dean left both boys relaxed and ran up to Simon to make sure he is all right. Tom, the oldest spoke first. "Are you ok?"

"No!!" Simon yelled throwing down his uniform. "The first thing I know, I'm at MY school and the next I'm on a plane coming to this…Island!" He looked down at his new uniform that he was to put on and glared hard at it. He then looked up in a confused manner to his new roommates, as he couldn't figure out one thing. "Where are we anyway?"

"We're not sure exactly!" Brian said, while picking up the uniform and placed them on Simon's new bed. "But according to the position of the stars we're somewhere in the Atlantic."

"Oh that's just great! I just want to go home!" Simon wined.

Tom placed a reassuring hand on Simon's shoulder. "Well, until we can find a way to get home, we'll just have to stick together." He said, then he pointed to the door, "And we'll have to do it by their rules. Come on we got less than 13 minutes now to get you ready for our next class!"

"Yea," Brian said, "they don't like it if you're late!" He pulled back one of his sleeves to show Simon scars on the inside of his wrist. It looked like he was slashed with a wipe. They appeared to have been made only two weeks ago. "I found that out the hard way!" He said with a solemn look of regret.

Simon suddenly became very frightened and gulped down a huge lump he felt in his throat. He knew he was in a lot of trouble and for the first time, Alvin was not involved to cause it.

OoOoOoOoOoOo

Simon rinsed the soap from his arms, even though he couldn't see clearly without his glasses, he could tell there were still scars on the inside of his wrists. He filled his hands with water and splashed his face trying to ignore the pain from the memory when he received those scars.