The Power of Music and Other Things
Finally, a chapter with another song! Again! Anyway, chapter summary: Two words- well three: EXTREME cabin fever. It's also a clue as to what the song is.
Shute woke up for the first time that night after a... not quite nightmare, but what he called a "worry-mare", a dream that didn't scare him as much as just making him uneasy. The second he opened his eyes, he forgot most of the dream; all he remembered was a big wolf and a feeling of claustrophobia. He sniffed, turned onto his stomach, and stretched out in his bed. "Yume desu..."
Asleep.
The second time he woke up that night was a certain Gundam nudging his shoulder. His eyelids fluttered open to see Captain kneeling beside him. Wait a minute, had he been crying? His face was wet, and his eyes were tinted red.
"Cappy?" Cappy was a nickname Shute had assigned Captain a ways back when they first met. He never called Captain by "Cappy" unless no one was around; Captain was still a little hung-up on how nicknames worked. "What's wrong?"
Captain folded his hands and quickly bowed like he saw Shute do once. "Shute, I'm sorry to bother you, but could I stay in here for a while? I had a nightmare."
"A nightmare?" Shute began to wake up more, as his eyes were now focusing.
"Well, not exactly a nightmare; it didn't scare me, it just made me feel a little uneasy."
Déjà vu.
Shute sighed and scootched over. "If you stay in my bed all night like last time, people are gonna yell at us."
"How was I supposed to know that your mother woke you up in the morning?" Captain scooped up a big portion of blanket and snuggled himself in. "Besides, you always said you hopped in bed with your parents whenever you got scared, and you're-"
"I'm the closest thing you have to a parent, I know." Shute leaned forward and touched Captain's forehead to his. "Goodnight."
"Thank you." Captain placed on hand on Shute's forearm and went to sleep. The young one giggled.
"You always act more human whenever nobody's there to watch." Shute closed his eyes as Captain began to mumble in his sleep. "Oyasumi nasai."
The third time he was woken up that night was upon hearing Zero fiercely whispering at Captain.
"Captain? Hu- what are you doing here?"
"Wha-?" Captain was always a little out of it when he slept.
"Get out of here!"
Shute didn't dare open his eyes, so he had to guess that Zero was hitting Captain with his sword or something while chasing him out of the room. Shute faked stuffing his face into his pillow to keep from laughing at the mental image.
Another Gundam hand on his forehead made him think Captain was back, but only for a second. This hand was slightly more slim, with the fingertips smooth and soft in a way only Gundams could be. In short, they were Zero's.
"Il est un petit ange. (He's a little angel.)" It must've been Zero talking in another language; the auburn one could understand what he was saying even though he'd never heard anyone say anything in that language before. Shute let himself be placed into Zero's lap as the Winged Knight went on in English. "Shute, I know there tests are hard; I took my share of hard times too. But you're different. You've got a special gift, one that's one in a million."
He felt a soft feeling against his body, like his was being wrapped in silk; he had no idea what it was, but something told him it was nothing to be afraid of. Zero began hugging Shute to his stomach. "I am so proud of you. I know I don't say it much, but I am. You and me are not that different, young Shute. You and me both share the determination we need to get through something like being a magical being. Just hang in there."
Zero clutched Shute's hand in his. "And know that you're not alone."
And the young boy heard this all, whether Zero knew this or not. He pulled the knight's hand to his cheek (trying to make it look unconscious) and covered up his watering eyes. Zero sighed and patted Shute on the head. "Je t'aime, peu d'ange (I love you, little angel)."
Shute felt the mystery silk pulling away as Zero flew upwards, gently putting his head back on the pillow. He felt the silk one last time as a cold metal plate placed itself on his forehead and quickly warmed to a pleasing sensation. Shute wasn't sure of what it was for only a split second before hearing the recognizable sound of a peck; Zero was kissing him on the forehead! The silk pulled itself away, and a soft purr confirmed that Zero had left.
He pulled the thin blanket around his ears and sniffed, wiping the tears away. He sighed and mouthed to no one, "It feels good to be loved."
The fourth and final time he was woken up that night was by three triplets (is that redundant?).
"WAKE UP!"
Shute felt himself literally flying out of bed and landing roughly on the floor, Coah, Doah, and Noah sitting where he would have been sleeping.
"The sun's up!" shouted one of the triplets, unidentifiable because he had no crown.
"Gotta wake up, the sun's up!" another triplet fell onto the ground, scrambling to Shute on all fours. "Sun's up, sun's up!"
"Gotta go get breakfast!" said the last triplet, bouncing on the bed. Shute began to laugh.
"Look's like you guys already had your morning sugar, and plenty of it!" Shute grunted as one of the triplet sat on his chest.
"We didn't have any breakfast yet!" he said. His voice was rough sounding; he was probably Noah.
Shute raised an eyebrow. "Then why are you acting like capuchin monkeys who've just eaten a whole carton of Zinger cakes?"
"We were excited 'cause we get to spend all day with you!" said another triplet with a deeper voice; maybe that one was Noah...
Another triplet with a softer voice, definitely not Noah, finished with, "Nobody ever takes the time to play with us, you're all we've got!"
They threw up their hands and yelled in unison. "You're like the brother we've never had!"
Shute blushed. "Aw..." He stood up quickly, lifting the triplet on his chest up with him. "Okay, time to wakey wakey, eggs and bacey!"
Each triplet giggled and laughed at the new, exotic Neotopian phrase. Shute blushed deeper and began to carry the kids away.
&&&
It was The Dining Hall again, this time with the jesters reading out current Lacroan news while the night robe-decked royalty ate their breakfast. It wasn't a breakfast Shute was used to, as there were no eggs, no waffles with maple syrup, or anything like that. There was a large amount of white bread (no toast, though), three types of meat and fish, and an odd assortment of drinks. He looked about fervently until he found something that remotely smelled like bacon, grabbing it with his hands and digging in. The one part he loved was that he wasn't fussed at for eating with his hands because that was the only way to do it! Due to the lack of forks or anything vaguely utensil-like, everyone was forced to eat everything with their hands, even Princess Aresia and Zero!
It was Bakunetsumaru, Zero, Captain, Prince John, Princess Aresia, Coah, Shute, Doah, and Noah sitting left to right at the head table in that order. Coah pointed to different food items and pointing out to his favorite brother figure (I.e. Shute) what was good at the table and what wasn't.
"And that's salmon, and that's trout, and that's some kinda fish called a gudgeon that I don't like." Coah stuck out his tongue, only to be smacked by Aresia in the back of the head. "Ow!"
"What about the meats?" Shute asked. He held up his current foodstuff, the bacon-smelling thing. "What's this?"
All three triplets answered, "Bacon."
Shute blushed and bit into it again. He should've guessed it was bacon, it just wasn't bacon strips.
"That's mutton," said Noah, pointing to a rather dark cut of meat near Prince John. "You should try it, it's really good!"
Shute nodded and reached for the mutton, only to have it snatched away by Bakunetsumaru. "Oi!"
"Sumimasen!" Baku dug this face into the mutton and ripped out a huge chunk of meat, chomping it down. Shute could actually see his tiny Gundam teeth at work at he ate away. "But I'm hungry!"
Shute went "aaa" and tore off a piece of white bread and popped it in his mouth. It was at this point that his mouth started to get really dry. "Guys, what do we have to drink?"
Noah passed him a small pewter cup filled with something that looked like apple juice. Fizzy apple juice, and it sure didn't smell like apple juice. He shrank back in fear. "What's that?"
"A special brew of the king's ale," Princess Aresia informed the boy. "Made with special spices; it packs a larger punch than common ale."
Shute pushed the cup away slowly. "No thanks..." He leaned forward. "Prince John, may I be excused?"
"And me!"
"And me!"
"And me!"
Prince John sighed into his cup of ale. "Yes you may."
"Thank you!" Shute bounced away, the triplets following and cheering. Aresia stood up to follow him- I mean, them, but Prince John sat her back down.
"Aa, aa, Aresia, you need to finish your breakfast."
Aresia sighed and bit into a piece of salmon.
&&&
Shute was missing his morning apple by this time. He remembered something that Zero had told him long ago.
"Hey, Coah, the-"
The triplet he was addressing interrupted. "I'm Doah."
"Oh, Doah," Shute blushed. "Well... Uh... Ha ha ha..."
"Keep asking your question," said the offended brother.
"The castle is sitting on a tree, right?"
The triplets looked at each other, back to Shute, and nodded. "Yep, a spirit tree. The biggest one in all of Lacroa!"
"Then that means the tree has fruits, right?"
The triplet's eyes began to shift towards each other again. "Uh..."
Shute eyebrow shot straight up. "What? What's wrong?"
They spoke in unison again. "The Spirit Tree hasn't bloomed since the Dark Axis took over."
Shute's face squeezed itself into a determined look. "Let's go double check."
&&&
"Shute's magic is very strong," Prince John stated, inciting a "duh" from Bakunetsumaru. "As such, it may be dangerous to put him back with normal people. Such a strong magic force has the ability to lose control."
"He hasn't blown anybody up yet!" Bakunetsumaru yelled.
"I agree," Captain stated. "Shute has never harmed anyone with his magic, and thus he is no danger to anyone."
"Well, the thing is..." Prince John raised his index finger on his left hand. "Shute didn't show any signs of being magic until I levitated him." He placed his hand parallel to the floor and rocked it back and forth to demonstrate the levitating. "He had the magic; I just unsettled it and now it's popping out everywhere."
"It's like shaking a can of soda," Zero explained to his magic-ignorant friends.
Baku and Captain looked at each other. "Ooohhhh...."
"And as such, h-"
The castle unexpectedly moved back and forth slightly, and the sound of a thunderclap rumbled outside.
"It is raining?" Captain asked.
"No, that's The Spirit Tree talking!" Zero screamed.
Prince John's eyebrow went up his forehead. "But only Davis and I can talk to th-" The surrogate king turned on his non-existent heel. "SHUTE!"
&&&
A window not far away led right onto a huge branch of The Spirit Tree, which looked relatively healthy and colorful. The leaves were green, pink, and blue, and the branches were a light purple. All the extra colors made Shute's eyes hurt, but he quickly adjusted and stepped onto the middle of the limb. The other three slowly followed him, walking on their toes, apologizing with every step.
Shute straddled the branch and grabbed onto a twig, which wiggled under his fingers. A low rumble surged through the tree, into his legs, and straight into his ears.
#Who are you?#
"The tree talks, cool!" Shute thought. He turned around to see Coah, Doah, and Noah all bunched together and screaming about an earthquake. "I guess they can't hear it..."
Shute cleared his throat and spoke to the tree. "Excuse me, Mr.- Mrs.- um... Spirit Tree, but do you have any fruits I could eat?"
The tree rumbled again. #Not yet...#
Shute didn't quite understand. "What does that mean?"
#It takes a long time...#
Shute stroked the tree lovingly. "Aw, poor thing... Is there anything I can do to help?"
The twig of The Spirit Tree jerked itself out of Shute's hand as another branch, this one with a multicolored flower, lowered itself into Shute's face. #Ask the flower...#
Shute stared into the twitching plant, feeling a little goofy. "Uh, excuse me... Um... Do you have any fruits we could eat?"
The flower responded by closing in on itself and opening again with an apple hanging from its center!
"COOL!" Shute plucked the apple and bowed. "Thank you very much!" He turned around and gave the apple to Coah. "Come on guys, all you need to do is ask the flowers to give you some fruit!"
Coah gulped and grabbed a branch with a few small flowers. "Um, could I have some fruit please?" He waited for the response, but got none. "Well, excuse me for asking!"
"Maybe they're not big enough to make fruit," Shute thought, remembering the Merlin movie he had watched a long time ago. He wiggled his fingers over the little buds. "Grow grow grow!"
The leaves twisted and twirled and grew bigger and bigger as the triplets watched. They giggled and clapped their hands as the flowers grew them a pear, grapes, and an orange.
Shute rested on his laurels and watched as the tree began to blossom like crazy. He softly plucked an apple off of a flower and bit into it, savoring the juiciness. "This is the life."
"Hey, Shute, you wanna do something else?" Coah asked. "There's still a bunch of castle to explore."
"Not while it's sunny out!" Shute moaned. "We've gotta enjoy the sunshine before it-"
KAJABOOWOOWOOWOOOooooo!
The water fell onto his shirt through the tree limbs. "Rains... Let's go..."
&&&
"Something keeps bugging me..." the older one admitted. "Remember Camille?"
"How could we forget Camille?" Noah moaned, looking back to the viscous warg that was supposedly a magic test.
"Well, she seemed really sad to me..." Shute rubbed his head in thought, his hair ruffling softly. "I mean, the whole puppy thing-"
"SHUTE!"
The four boys turned around to see a feminine figure running towards them. Coah, Doah, and Noah smiled. "Aresia!"
Shute waved. "Aresia-hiime, ohayo gozaimasu!" The Princess stopped just before him, bending over and gasping for breath. Shute leaned forward and watched the girl. "Man, you're a wimp."
"I... I just... Wanted.... (gasp)..." Aresia straightened herself, took a big breath, and tried her best to keep her dignity. "So, what were you about to do?"
Shute felt a drop of sweat rolling down the back of his neck. "I was just gonna go talk to Camille."
"CAMILLE!?"
Shute winced as all of the royal siblings shouted into his ears. "I'm not actually going down there with her! I'm just gonna go on that balcony thing Captain was on and talk to her!"
"You're loony!" screamed Doah.
"No, I'm sympathetic, because there are two thing I hate, and that's dogs and mothers who are upset! And if I can fix one of the things, I'll fix it! Now come on!"
Shute snatched Aresia by the arm and pulled her along behind him, letting the triplets catch up.
&&&
Camille looked up at the boys towering over her, her lips twitching on the verge of a snarl. Shute became pale in fear, gulped it away, and smiled. "H- h-h-h-h-h-hi, Ca-Camille."
Camille howled, and Shute's ears picked up words. #Go away!#
"No! I want you to tell me what's wrong!" Shute leaned onto the guardrail. "Who took your puppies? Can you remember what he looked like?"
#No human can understand!# Camille began to whimper. #Humans took them away, humans will not take them back!#
"I'm not promising to give them back," Shute said. "I'm saying that I can help you feel better."
"What's going on?" Aresia whispered into Shute's ear, tickling him to the point of him slapping her away.
"I need to concentrate, Aresia-hiime, cut it out!" Shute waved the triplets closer. "We're not gonna hurt you, Camille. We're puppies too, see?"
Noah began to laugh. "Yeah, we're human puppies!"
Coah tucked in his hands and yapped while Doah laughed. Princess Aresia rubbed her temples. "Brothers..."
#You can't be puppies,# Camille barked. #Where is your mommy?#
"My mom's back in another dimension," Shute lowered his head. "And my dad, and my sister, and the rest of my family."
"Mummy's with Maana now," Aresia pointed out. "She caught something from a bad piece of fish."
"And Daddy's on a sacred quest," said the triplets. "We haven't seen him in a while."
"We're lost puppies, Camille," said Aresia. "Just like you're a lost mother."
#No! No lost puppies!# The immense warg put her front paws up on the wall, looking straight up at the children. #I hate lost puppies. If you'll be my puppies, I'll be your mommy.#
"Really?" Shute gasped.
Aresia looked over at the boy who was a little bit shorter than her. "What?"
"She says she's willing to be a surrogate mom if we let her!" Shute smiled. He listened to the royal siblings cries of approval and looked down at Camille. "You're the nicest dog I've ever met Camille!"
#WARG!# said the horse-sized wolf-dog. #Dogs are stupid human sucker- uppers!#
Shute giggled. "Yeah!"
&&&
Prince John floated into Camille's cave, expecting for the big warg to come out and jump at him. He shined a light into the cave when he wasn't jumped; there were a great deal of cow bones, but no Camille. He flew back into the hallway where Zero, Baku, and Captain were waiting. "That boy let the dog out, I know it!"
"Shute hates dogs," Captain stated. "Remember?"
"He's more trouble than he's worth, that Shute boy!" Prince John grunted, not paying attention to the non-Lacroan Gundams. "Zero, how do you put up with him?"
"He's usually not this bad, sir," Zero pleaded. "Please, m'lord, he's just a boy, he can't control himself."
A stone gargoyle shook himself and lowered his head. "Sire, news from the third floor corridor."
&&&
"You guys have a swimming pool?!" Shute gasped, staring at the huge pool of water that stretch out before him. Although the room it was in had little lighting, speckles of light still danced on the surface as speckles of light are want to do on water.
The triplet raised their fingers. "What's a pool?"
"That's part of the moat." Aresia placed her hand on Shute's shoulder. "This is the place where we feed the moat monsters."
Shute began to feel his eye twitching. "How can you have a moat if you live in a tree!?"
Aresia blushed. "I... I don't know..."
SPLOOSH!
"SHUTE!" Aresia screamed as she lurched forward without warning. She was able to keep herself from falling, but it took a few minutes to realize that Camille was standing next to her and Shute was in the moat monster pool. "What are you doing?"
The boy who had been completely submerged at the time she said it popped out of the water oblivious to her shouting. He spit out a big mouthful of water. "Come on in, it's warm!"
Camille barked out to the boy. #GET UP HERE! HURRY!#
"I can swim!" yelled Shute.
"So can all the moat monster's food!" Noah shouted.
Shute began to go pale, as he always did when scared. "The what?" A sharp blade-like thing brushed past his heel. He panicked and began to sink. "AA! JAWS! JAWS!"
Coah screamed and focused his magic on the water around Shute, pulling it (along with the 10-year-old) up and out of the moat just in time to see a huge, sharp horn and a wide set of jaws snap at the water below him.
Shute gulped and looked at Coah. "You are so cool. You are so much better at water magic than me."
Coah blushed. "No, I'm not..."
"Yes you are! I nearly pass out every time I try to do something water related! You just picked me and a bunch of other water up! It's cool!"
Coah blushed again as his brothers hugged him. "Aw... Thanks..."
"So now what are we gonna do?" asked Doah.
"We could walk laps around the edge of the lake," suggested Aresia. "That's what I do in my time off."
Shute looked at Camille, and they both shared a wide grin.
&&&
"WAAAAH!" Shute clung to Camille's fur as she rocketed around the pool at a full gallop with him resting on her back. The triplets were howling from behind, sitting in a wagon attached to the great beast's shoulders. Aresia sat in the cart with her brothers, but her arms were wrapped around Shute's waist. "THIS ROCKS!"
A woman in a regal gown suddenly stepped into the hallway, right in front of the stampeding warg! "Camille, look out from the Countess of Devon!" Coah shrieked.
Camille roared and bounded over the countess. She, unfortunately, didn't look where she was going and crashed into a box of crystals.
KABOOM!
Aresia took a few minutes to catch her breath while Shute laughed with every ounce of air he had in his body. "That was fun!" He reached down and picked up one of the crystals, which was yellow. "These are prett- wait a minute. What the-?"
He switched hands with the crystal and saw that it had left a yellow powder on his hands... Like chalk...
"Sidewalk chalk!" he drew a yellow smiley face on the floor. "Coah, Doah, Noah, look!"
"Cool!" the boys each grabbed their favorite color and began drawing. The Aresia tentatively picked up a pink crystal and began writing in calligraphy. She put a very fancy version of her name on the floor.
Noah wrote his name on the floor roughly. "That's my name, N-O-A-H."
"My name is spelled D-O-H-A." said Doha, formerly Doah.
"Do-ha?" Shute spoke the word phonetically.
"The 'h' is silent," said Doha.
"My name doesn't have an 'h'!" said Coah, or Coa. "C-O-A, see?"
"My name's spelled S-H-U-T-E. Not S-H-O-O-T, 'cause that's like a gun."
#I'm C-AMILLE!# barked Camille, enticing laughter from the peanut gallery.
"Best dog-"
#WARG!#
"Warg, sorry!" Shute got over his blush and continued. "Best warg ever!"
Camille smiled and barked. It wasn't a bark that said anything, it was just a bark for the sake of being a bark. The human boy gripped his chalk crystal tightly. "Oo, man..."
The crystal started to glow in his hand. "I've got Cabin Fever!"
The triplet raised a crystal in salute. "CABIN FEVER!"
&&&
(An unexpected mariachi beat rang through the hallways. As the music picked up, Shute leapt onto Camille's back and began to ride, holding his crystal- holding arm out to the side. As he galloped down the hallway, the crystal (no idea how it did it) left yellow chalk-like marks on the wall. And it wasn't even touching it!)
Shute: I got cabin fever, it's burning in my brain!
I've got cabin fever it's driving me insane! (TRIPLETS!)
(The triplets can feel they have a song on their hands and began singing. As they danced, patterns of red, purple, and green etched themselves on the wall.)
Triplets: We got cabin fever
(They tipped their crowns in salute.) We're flipping our bandanas.
Been stuck out here so long that we have simply gone bananas!
(Shute noticed that the Countess of Devon was still on the floor, gasping for breath and muttering about wargs. Camille skidded to an abrupt halt. He pointed the crystal at her face; there was a bright flash of light, a beam of yellow shot towards her-
And when she got up, she had been Carmen Miranda-ized.)
Countess: Ariba!
(She began to swing her hips, although she looked goofy and was obviously being forced to dance against her will.)
Chica chica boom
A chica chica boom boom chic!
(Shute joined her at her side and danced along with her, moving his hands like he was shaking maracas.)
Shute and Countess: Chica chica boom
A chica chica boom boom chic.
(The triplets were screaming in delight. They pointed the crystals at themselves and fired; when the light had subsided, they were in jester clothes!)
Doha: We got cabin fever, we've lost what sense we had.
Coa: We got cabin fever-
(Aresia suddenly stepped in.)
Aresia: We're all going (shrieking) MAD!
(The music suddenly changed to a square dance tune. He clutched Aresia- hiime's hand in his, shooting them both with the yellow crystal and changing into cowboy clothes.)
Shute: Grab your partner by the ears- (He snatched a chunk of her hair.)
Aresia: Lash him to the wheel! (She answered by grabbing his ear and yanking it.)
Shute: Do-si-do, step on her toe- (He planted his foot onto hers.)
Aresia: Listen to him squeal! (She pinched him back, and hard. He whimpered in pain.)
Shute: Allemande left, allemande right,
It's time to sail or sink!
Aresia: Swing your partner over the side
Drop him in the drink! (Aresia swung the boy around dangerously fast, threatening to toss him into the moat. He gasped and jumped inland, dragging her down to the floor with him.
(Coa, Doha, and Noah each "changed" into fancy aristocratic clothes, drawing tea cups into midair from which to drink.) Coa: We got cabin fever
No if's, and's, or but's
Noah: We're disoriented
Doha: And demented
Coa: And a little nuts!
(Shute waved his hands. "Oo, oo, watch this!")
Shute: Ach du lieber Volswagen car! (Camille: Yodel-lay-ee-hoo)
Saur braten viener schnitzel
Und a vunder bar! (Camille: Yodel-lay-ee-hoo)
(Aresia spread out her arms and twirled her skirt merrily.)
Aresia: We were sailing, sailing the wind was on our side-
(Evil, minor organ chords played in the background as a cow's skeleton rose out of the moat. Underneath it was the moat monster, although all you could see was his long horn.)
Aresia: And then it died. (Shute: Oh, I get it!)
Shute: (Hey) I've got cabin fever,
I think I've lost my grip.
(Coa and Doha bounded up next to Shute, dressed in a chalky sombrero and poncho.)
Coa: I'd like to get my hands on
Whoever wrote this script.
Doha: Si!
(Aresia floated past, strumming an imaginary lute, her eyes lost in a fanciful dream.)
Aresia: I was floating 'neath a tropic moon
And dreaming of a blue lagoon,
(Her eyes suddenly flared as if a bomb had gone off in her brain.)
Now I'm crazy as a loon
(Shute threw his fists into the air. "GO PRINCESS! BIG FINISH!"
The triplets simply had to wave their crystals, and a huge crowd of chalk people appeared on the walls, singing with the five young ones.)
Shute, Princess, Triplets, and Crowd: Cabin fever has ravaged all aboard;
This once proud vessel has become a floating psycho ward!
We were sailing, sailing, headed who knows where.
And now though we're all here
We're not all there! Cabin fever!
&&&
"WOO HOO!" Shute bounced up into the air, all of the chalky residue falling off of him and the kids and the wall; by the time the chalk had settled, most of the third floor corridor was colored a weird mix of yellow, red, purple, and green.
"DO IT AGAIN!" Coa shouted. "Do it again!"
"Yeah, do it-" Noah covered his mouth as he yawned. "Again."
"I'm tired..." Doha admitted, falling into the floor. "Let's rest."
The other four (five if you counted Camille) felt the exhaustion like a punch in the stomach and agreed. Camille the warg settled herself against the wall and let the chalk-colored kids rest their heads against her stomach. Shute sighed and scootched backwards so that he could lay his head on Camille's leg. "Need to rest... And then have some more fun, right guys?"
A little cough sounded in his left ear. "And Princess?"
"Yes, that sounds like fun..." Aresia stifled a yawn and tucked her legs under her dirty skirt. "For now..."
"Nap time."Shute closed his eyes and let his mind wander as the other kids drifted off to sleep. What else could they do today? They could go into the Music Room and play Cartoon Freeze Tag. Maybe they could just take a break and tell each other stories like he did with his cousins; maybe he'd learn some cool Lacroan folklore, like who Maana was or something like that. Or maybe they could find a bone and play fetch with Camille since she had waited through most of that song doing nothing. Or maybe...
His thoughts were cut short by a tight, punching feeling in his chest. He was suddenly pulled upwards by a tight force on his lungs, rocketing into the air. He opened his eyes and saw the royal children sitting beneath him (upside down), their faces aghast. As he was flipped to his feet, he made out the brown form that was Camille jumping to his rescue. He was too dizzy to see anything past that point, but once he was righted he was staring into the face of Prince John.
"You let Camille out!" Prince John screamed, scaring Shute into a little ball of himself.
"Uncle John, put him down!" Aresia begged. "Please!"
"He didn't do anything wrong, please, Uncle John!" cried the triplets.
"She was depressed, I thought I'd cheer her up!" Shute gulped in fear. "She's really nice, a whole lot nicer than I thought a dog would be!"
#WARG!# Camille bound into the air and tried to catch Prince John by the robe, but her teeth closed around smoke.
Prince John grappled Shute's neck and hissed, "You let loose my magic test warg and ruined my creativity crystals!"
"The sidewalk chalk?"
John tightened his grip. "You be quiet-AAH!"
Prince John jumped into the air while shrieking in pain. In his place stood a laughing Bakunetsumaru, holding a katana and pointing it in John's direction. Shute giggled and flung his arms around the samurai Gundam. "Bokku no shite!"
"Ano... Arigatou." Baku patted his head softly.
John landed roughly, a large red vein stamped onto his forehead. "You MORONS! DO YOU KNOW THAT YOU HAVE ASSAULTED A KING?!"
Bakunetsumaru looked behind him and saw that Zero and Captain had caught up with him. He waved the kids down a hallway. "Get going, I'll take care of this guy."
"Thanks, Baku." Shute hugged the red Gundam while the royal siblings raced into a different corridor. Camille gave Shute a soft nudge; he jumped onto her back and trotted after the kids, leaving a confused Bakunetsumaru behind.
&&&
The wall before them began opening up into a door. Prince John passed through the small opening without effort while the Gundams waited for the door to be big enough to allow them through. Zero floated through sideways and addressed his king. "M'Lord, I am so sorry about Shute's behavior. Just give us a chance to talk to him, and we'll set him straight, I swear!"
"I don't want to hear it, Zero." Prince John waited for Captain and Bakunetsumaru to enter before sealing the doorway behind him. He had retreated the Gundams into a small study about the size of a typical apartment; it was a modest room with an intricate rug, a few books, and very good lighting. Prince John cleared his throat. "I have had enough of this boy running around the castle and ruining everything he touches!"
Bakunetsumaru leaned over to the fuming Captain Gundam. "He's just still sore because I caught him in the back end with my sword."
Captain stifled a giggle.
"Therefore, I believe I have no other choice. The boy Shute will have to stay here and learn to control his magic powers as well as his behavior." Prince John patted his chest; he was having trouble breathing after being around all that chalk dust. "Excuse me." And then he coughed.
"Alright then," Captain responded. "How long are we staying?"
"No, Captain," said Zero. His voice sounded lower than usual, and his eyes wouldn't come to meet with Captain or Baku's. "Shute will have to stay here. Magic training takes years..." He sighed mournfully. "You'll have to go on without him."
Captain stepped back as if he had been punched. Baku felt the blood draining from his face. "What? But... How? Shute will be here all by himself, you can't do that! He's just-"
"He won't be here by himself!" Zero snapped. He froze as he realized he had screamed at Bakunetsumaru and Captain in cold blood; he hadn't told them yet. He gulped back his pride and softly spoke, "I... I'm staying here with him."
Bakunetsumaru stood motionless, his eyes wide. "No..."
"I'm sorry," Zero sighed, lowering himself to the ground. "But, my mission is done! Lacroa is saved, my princess is alive again... What else is there for me to do? I have no reason to leave!" He looked into Baku's heartbroken eyes. "I'm sorry."
The red Gundam turned away, trying hard to hide his watering eyes. He took the speechless Captain by the arm. "Come on, Captain, let's go."
He gave Zero once last glance over his shoulder; the Winged Knight was standing there, his hands held stiffly at his sides. Baku could tell he was trying hard not to show any emotion by the way his eyes didn't quite focus on his face. "We have no reason to stay."
The Neotopian Gundam choked back a sob while the Blazing Samurai led him through the exit door. Zero watched them exit and then stared at the wall for some time. That was the hardest thing he had ever done in his life; tears he had held back began to flow down his cheeks.
Prince John stood up and placed a hand on Zeros' shoulder; the knight turned to face him without hesitation. It was strange looking at Zero like this, because to John, Zero had always reminded him of a deer. The way his eyes were shaped, it always looked as if he was about to cry. Now that he was, Prince John immediately felt as if he was looking into the eyes of a child.
"You did the right thing."
Zero looked to the floor. His tears ran onto his Soul Stone; the large amount of energy running through his heart made his circuits short, and he would feel small stabs of pain with every breath he took.
"I hope so."
&&&
"How could he do such a thing?!" Baku screamed into the hallway, his fists clenched so tightly that the wiring in his hands were beginning to ache. "That heartless piece of scrap metal!"
"It's for Shute's own good." Captain was trying his best to convince himself that what Zero was doing was a good thing, but (bless his heart) it wasn't working. His sad eyes were fixed onto his face. "And with Zero here with him-"
"Zero's gonna go fawn after the Princess while Prince John beats Shute over the head with his Electro-Scepter!" Baku roared, his face dangerously close to Captain's. "How's that for his own good?!"
"Zero wouldn't let that happen!" Captain shrieked in a rare moment of anger, his expression changing from sad to angry. "He's still our friend, and I trust him!"
Baku heaved a sigh. "It's not that I don't trust Zero. It's that I don't trust that floating sham of a magic-using king! He'll make it so that Shute and Zero never see each other, I know it!"
Baku took a few deep breathes while Captain sat in an uncomfortable silence, his eyes finally switched back to their normal screen. Captain unsheathed his face and rubbed his cheeks in a desperate sort of way, his normal sharp-as-a-tack mind fogged with fear and emotion.
"What are we going to do, Bakunetsumaru?"
"What else can we do?" Baku looked at Captain's shoulder; it seemed like there was something missing. "Where's your beam saber?"
"In my room," said Captain.
"We'll be leaving soon, go get it." Baku watched Captain walk past him, but made no move to follow. He took a right turn and headed towards the middle of the castle.
"But what can I do..." he spoke to himself. "That's a different story."
&&&
The Music Room; just where he thought he'd find him. Baku stepped into the large room to see Shute sitting between the legs of the baby song dragon between the legs of the largest song dragon. The triplets sat in front of them, their hands connected in a strange way. From the looks of it, Shute was teaching them how to play that stupid "Down by the Riverside" game where you slapped each other's hands in a circle. Aresia sat next to Shute on the baby dragon's right paw (her head came up to its shoulder), watching Shute from over his head. Camille was sprawled out on the floor like some giant mutant Beanie Baby, watching Bakunetsumaru with a silent eye.
Shute's eyes darted upwards as Baku took a few steps forward; he recognized the sound Gundams made when they walked. His small face lit up as Baku walked in. "Baku-san! Ogenki desu ka?" Shute noticed that Baku exerted a strange, uneasy air. "Daijoubu desu ka?"
"Iie, daijoubu janai." Baku took a deep breath. "Shute, it's Zero."
"Is he mad at me?" Shute shrunk back a bit. "I wanted to apologize for messing up the corridor, but I couldn't find him."
"We went back and cleaned it up ourselves," said Coa.
"And I found out what magic I am!" Doha laughed. "Watch!"
Doha pointed to a hidden window; ice began to form on the edges of the opening, extending towards the middle until ice covered the whole thing. "I control ice! Isn't that cool? Can you believe Uncle John doesn't test for it?"
Baku felt himself being crowded by the brothers assaulting him with all this magic stuff. "Yes, well, I-"
Shute interrupted Bakunetsumaru's statement. "I'm really sorry that I didn't behave better earlier, Baku, but I couldn't help myself! I promise to behave better, really!" He gulped to wet his throat. "I just want Zero to be proud of me. You understand, right?"
Baku felt his throat closing in on itself. "Perfectly," warbled the samurai. "But that's the problem! Zero wants you to stay here in Lacroa and learn to use your magic!"
"Cool!" shouted the boys. Aresia could feel her insides flipping about in excitement; it felt like there were a million tiny Nns in her stomach.
"NO, BAD!" Baku could feel his anger coming back into play as well as his voice. "Zero says learning magic takes years to do, and you'll have to stay here the whole time while me and Captain leave to fight the Dark Axis!"
The happiness quickly disappeared; Shute's face went pale as the happy brightness left his eyes. "What? But- bu- but what about Zero?"
"He's supposedly staying here with you, but I don't just that Prince John as far as I could throw him!" He looked to the royal kids. "No offense."
The kids enthusiastically replied, "None taken."
Camille barked, leaving Shute to translate. "She agrees with you."
Baku nodded his thanks. "He'll probably keep you two separated while he tortures you into some kind of magical submission spell. I just know it!"
"But- but-" Shute's pupils began to shrink while his voice got higher and higher. "What about Nana and Mom and Dad back home? I can't stay gone that long, they'll think I'm dead! What's Captain gonna do without me? What am I gonna do without Captain?! What am I-"
"Shute, calm down!" Aresia threw her arms around Shute as he collapsed into a whimpering fit. "It's okay!"
"Not it's NOT!" screamed the auburn one. "I'm never gonna see my family or my best friend again, you can't say it's okay!" Shute lurched forward, jumping off of the dragon, crawling over Camille and launching himself into Baku's arms. "Baku, you can't let him take me! You have to take me with you!"
"Calm down, Shute!" Baku held the human one at arms length. "We're not gonna get anywhere with you panicking!"
Baku set Shute down near the whining Camille and approached Coa, Doha, Noah, and Aresia. "Kids, is there anyplace in the castle Shute could hide from your uncle?"
The siblings replied with a group "Huh?".
Baku felt a migraine coming on. He closed his eyes and hissed through his teeth. "Shute hides from your uncle until my and Captain are ready to leave. We smuggle him out of the castle when he's not looking, problem solved!"
"Are you sure that'll work?" Aresia twittered.
Baku shrugged. "It worked for me and my sister."
"But what about Zero?" Shute cried.
Baku was hesitant to answer, but he couldn't hold back the truth. "Zero decided to stay here. Whether you're here or not, Zero's not leaving Lacroa. Trust me..." He turned his eyes to look at the floor. "I know him."
Shute whimpered and wiped off a tear on Camille's muzzle.
"Uncle John knows every place in the palace by heart, and even if he didn't he could use the essence gem to sniff out any magic anything," Coa declared. "But my dad always told us that there was always a place we could hide if the kingdom was ever in trouble."
"The Dark Hole?" Shute guessed.
"Sort of, but not quite," Aresia continued. "It's an old cave that dragons used to nest in; magic from within the cave can't be detected from outside the cave. It's the perfect place for anyone magic to hide."
Noah cut in quickly to show off what he knew about the cave. "And it still smells a lot like dragons, too, so a lot of animals are afraid to go in there!"
"PERFECT!" Baku shouted. "Shute could hide in the cave until me and Captain come back to get him, and then leave Lacroa for good!"
Shute felt the words in sort of a mixed blessing; he was practically free, already feeling the weird sensation of traveling through other dimensions running through his chest. But he also felt terrible guilt and the same time; he would have to leave behind Zero, one his best friends after Captain. He wasn't sure what exactly to do; he had a family to look forward to seeing again. If he stayed in Lacroa, it'd be a guaranteed go-back to Neotopia after a certain amount of time, but with the Gundams each day was completely uncertain. His heart was pulling him in both directions. He didn't know which end to follow.
"How do we get to the cave?" Shute finally asked.
"Dad always put us on his pet song dragons to bring us to the cave," Noah stated. "Uh... Anybody know where Uncle John put the real song dragons?"
Aresia looked up at the two statues above her. "I haven't seen the real ones since Daddy left."
"What does that mean?" Baku moaned, worried already that the plan might fall apart.
Coa clenched his little fists. "Uncle John put in these two fake dragons in the music room not long after Dad left, and they look just like-"
"That's not what they meant, you doofus! The caves are way on the other side of the kingdom, so we can't get there without the dragons!" Doha spoke very quickly, scaring himself in the process.
"You mean we can't go?!" Shute hollered in shock.
The kids were afraid to answer.
Baku then proved as to why the kids were afraid to answer.
"NO! This can't be HAPPENING!" The samurai pounded his fist against the leg of the baby song dragon statue. "THIS ISN'T FAIR!"
"What are we gonna do now?" Shute squealed.
"I don't kn-" Bakunetsumaru felt the statue under his palm beginning to crack. "Oh, shimatta, I broke something."
There was a loud KABANG as the black shell of the song dragons cracked into a billion pieces; underneath it stood a bright, silver shell of a living, BREATHING dragon.
Baku and Shute both screamed in terror. The 50 foot tall dragon and his 9 foot tall baby stretched themselves for the first time in ages, shaking their shimmering scales and sounding loud, booming yawns that sounded suspiciously like tubas. The royal siblings' faces split into wide grins.
"Sterling!" Aresia ran forward, her arms stretched out as wide as they could go. Sterling lowered his head into Aresia's chest and nuzzled her as she hugged his huge maw. "So that's what Uncle John did to you! Poor baby, Sterling!"
"How's your baby?" The triplets each gave the smaller dragon a pat on the nose. "How are you, Mercury?" They laughed as she responded with a loud grunt and rolled over to be petted on her belly. "Can you fly yet?"
"Eeeaaaa!" Mercury pawed at the air like a kitten, flapping her premature wings against the floor.
Coa grabbed Shute by the arm and pulled him towards the big song dragon, Sterling. "This is Sterling. He's Mercury's daddy. Say hello, Sterling!"
Sterling sniffed Shute's body, ruffling his hair with each intake of breath. He moaned a note that sounded like a French Horn. Shute didn't exactly know what to do because he didn't hear a voice behind it. "Um... Hello?"
"There's no time for this now!" Bakunetsumaru suddenly yelped. He ran behind Shute and pushed him up Sterling's neck. "You kids take Shute and hide him in that cave thing! Me and Captain will find you later!"
"Okay!" The triplets signaled to Sterling, who lowered his wings and let them climb up. Camille tumbled after the boys with a typical dog-like glee. Aresia went to follow them, but Bakunetsumaru snatched her by her skirt.
"Um, Aresia-hiime, Prince John doesn't care about your brothers, but he'll notice if you go missing."
"I don't care!" Aresia bounded up Sterling's wing. "I've never had so much fun in all my life! I'm not going to let my Uncle John beat the life out of him!" She latched herself to Shute's arm. "I'm going with you!"
"Um... Uh...." Shute leaned over to give Baku one last goodbye. "Promise to come and get me soon?"
"I'll hurry," Baku hushed. "Just go."
"Domo arigatou." Shute nodded in head in agreement.
"Let's go, Sterling!" Coa gave one of Sterling's scales a kick (it made a sound like a church bell). "Hee-ya!"
"AAAAAAAAAAARRR!" Sterling reared onto his hind legs without warning and, with one fell swoop, tore down the entire west wall!
"GAH!" Doha grabbed onto the person closest to him, Noah. "What are you doing?! Bad dragon!"
"Baku, move out of the way!" Shute screamed. It was too late; baby Mercury had caught Bakunetsumaru in her mouth and flung him into a wall, knocking him unconscious. Sterling took his daughter into his mouth and barged forward, breaking down two more walls before reaching the outside.
&&&
"A DRAGON IS TEARING DOWN MY CASTLE!"
Prince John rushed up to the highest turret of his tower, Zero and two other human guards following him. Sterling flew into view, his huge wings flapping as fast as they could. Zero could make out seven different figures on his back; one was Mercury, three of them were the triplets, one was-
"Princess!" He shot forward instinctively. "That dragon's got Princess Aresia!"
"Shoot him down!" Prince John pointed his scepter to the dragon. "Aim for his wings!"
A multitude of archers ran out of the castle and began firing upon the dragon; few arrows pierced the membrane of his wing, but it was enough to drive him out of the air. The metallic dragon fell to the ground with a-
He didn't finish falling! A blue field surrounded him and pushed him away from the ground! It was about that time that a little flash of red appeared on Sterling's neck.
"SHUTE'S ON THE DRAGON!" Prince John's face became bright red. "I DON'T BELIEVE THIS!"
"I've got to do something!" Zero soared down from the tower with hopes of catching the children from off of Sterling's back. The song dragon spied Zero out of the corner of his eye; his tail snapped upwards and flicked Zero out of the air and into a branch.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAR!" Sterling gave one last roar before diving to the ground, galloping into the horizon.
DONE!
I don't feel like typing notes, I'm tired!
Finally, a chapter with another song! Again! Anyway, chapter summary: Two words- well three: EXTREME cabin fever. It's also a clue as to what the song is.
Shute woke up for the first time that night after a... not quite nightmare, but what he called a "worry-mare", a dream that didn't scare him as much as just making him uneasy. The second he opened his eyes, he forgot most of the dream; all he remembered was a big wolf and a feeling of claustrophobia. He sniffed, turned onto his stomach, and stretched out in his bed. "Yume desu..."
Asleep.
The second time he woke up that night was a certain Gundam nudging his shoulder. His eyelids fluttered open to see Captain kneeling beside him. Wait a minute, had he been crying? His face was wet, and his eyes were tinted red.
"Cappy?" Cappy was a nickname Shute had assigned Captain a ways back when they first met. He never called Captain by "Cappy" unless no one was around; Captain was still a little hung-up on how nicknames worked. "What's wrong?"
Captain folded his hands and quickly bowed like he saw Shute do once. "Shute, I'm sorry to bother you, but could I stay in here for a while? I had a nightmare."
"A nightmare?" Shute began to wake up more, as his eyes were now focusing.
"Well, not exactly a nightmare; it didn't scare me, it just made me feel a little uneasy."
Déjà vu.
Shute sighed and scootched over. "If you stay in my bed all night like last time, people are gonna yell at us."
"How was I supposed to know that your mother woke you up in the morning?" Captain scooped up a big portion of blanket and snuggled himself in. "Besides, you always said you hopped in bed with your parents whenever you got scared, and you're-"
"I'm the closest thing you have to a parent, I know." Shute leaned forward and touched Captain's forehead to his. "Goodnight."
"Thank you." Captain placed on hand on Shute's forearm and went to sleep. The young one giggled.
"You always act more human whenever nobody's there to watch." Shute closed his eyes as Captain began to mumble in his sleep. "Oyasumi nasai."
The third time he was woken up that night was upon hearing Zero fiercely whispering at Captain.
"Captain? Hu- what are you doing here?"
"Wha-?" Captain was always a little out of it when he slept.
"Get out of here!"
Shute didn't dare open his eyes, so he had to guess that Zero was hitting Captain with his sword or something while chasing him out of the room. Shute faked stuffing his face into his pillow to keep from laughing at the mental image.
Another Gundam hand on his forehead made him think Captain was back, but only for a second. This hand was slightly more slim, with the fingertips smooth and soft in a way only Gundams could be. In short, they were Zero's.
"Il est un petit ange. (He's a little angel.)" It must've been Zero talking in another language; the auburn one could understand what he was saying even though he'd never heard anyone say anything in that language before. Shute let himself be placed into Zero's lap as the Winged Knight went on in English. "Shute, I know there tests are hard; I took my share of hard times too. But you're different. You've got a special gift, one that's one in a million."
He felt a soft feeling against his body, like his was being wrapped in silk; he had no idea what it was, but something told him it was nothing to be afraid of. Zero began hugging Shute to his stomach. "I am so proud of you. I know I don't say it much, but I am. You and me are not that different, young Shute. You and me both share the determination we need to get through something like being a magical being. Just hang in there."
Zero clutched Shute's hand in his. "And know that you're not alone."
And the young boy heard this all, whether Zero knew this or not. He pulled the knight's hand to his cheek (trying to make it look unconscious) and covered up his watering eyes. Zero sighed and patted Shute on the head. "Je t'aime, peu d'ange (I love you, little angel)."
Shute felt the mystery silk pulling away as Zero flew upwards, gently putting his head back on the pillow. He felt the silk one last time as a cold metal plate placed itself on his forehead and quickly warmed to a pleasing sensation. Shute wasn't sure of what it was for only a split second before hearing the recognizable sound of a peck; Zero was kissing him on the forehead! The silk pulled itself away, and a soft purr confirmed that Zero had left.
He pulled the thin blanket around his ears and sniffed, wiping the tears away. He sighed and mouthed to no one, "It feels good to be loved."
The fourth and final time he was woken up that night was by three triplets (is that redundant?).
"WAKE UP!"
Shute felt himself literally flying out of bed and landing roughly on the floor, Coah, Doah, and Noah sitting where he would have been sleeping.
"The sun's up!" shouted one of the triplets, unidentifiable because he had no crown.
"Gotta wake up, the sun's up!" another triplet fell onto the ground, scrambling to Shute on all fours. "Sun's up, sun's up!"
"Gotta go get breakfast!" said the last triplet, bouncing on the bed. Shute began to laugh.
"Look's like you guys already had your morning sugar, and plenty of it!" Shute grunted as one of the triplet sat on his chest.
"We didn't have any breakfast yet!" he said. His voice was rough sounding; he was probably Noah.
Shute raised an eyebrow. "Then why are you acting like capuchin monkeys who've just eaten a whole carton of Zinger cakes?"
"We were excited 'cause we get to spend all day with you!" said another triplet with a deeper voice; maybe that one was Noah...
Another triplet with a softer voice, definitely not Noah, finished with, "Nobody ever takes the time to play with us, you're all we've got!"
They threw up their hands and yelled in unison. "You're like the brother we've never had!"
Shute blushed. "Aw..." He stood up quickly, lifting the triplet on his chest up with him. "Okay, time to wakey wakey, eggs and bacey!"
Each triplet giggled and laughed at the new, exotic Neotopian phrase. Shute blushed deeper and began to carry the kids away.
&&&
It was The Dining Hall again, this time with the jesters reading out current Lacroan news while the night robe-decked royalty ate their breakfast. It wasn't a breakfast Shute was used to, as there were no eggs, no waffles with maple syrup, or anything like that. There was a large amount of white bread (no toast, though), three types of meat and fish, and an odd assortment of drinks. He looked about fervently until he found something that remotely smelled like bacon, grabbing it with his hands and digging in. The one part he loved was that he wasn't fussed at for eating with his hands because that was the only way to do it! Due to the lack of forks or anything vaguely utensil-like, everyone was forced to eat everything with their hands, even Princess Aresia and Zero!
It was Bakunetsumaru, Zero, Captain, Prince John, Princess Aresia, Coah, Shute, Doah, and Noah sitting left to right at the head table in that order. Coah pointed to different food items and pointing out to his favorite brother figure (I.e. Shute) what was good at the table and what wasn't.
"And that's salmon, and that's trout, and that's some kinda fish called a gudgeon that I don't like." Coah stuck out his tongue, only to be smacked by Aresia in the back of the head. "Ow!"
"What about the meats?" Shute asked. He held up his current foodstuff, the bacon-smelling thing. "What's this?"
All three triplets answered, "Bacon."
Shute blushed and bit into it again. He should've guessed it was bacon, it just wasn't bacon strips.
"That's mutton," said Noah, pointing to a rather dark cut of meat near Prince John. "You should try it, it's really good!"
Shute nodded and reached for the mutton, only to have it snatched away by Bakunetsumaru. "Oi!"
"Sumimasen!" Baku dug this face into the mutton and ripped out a huge chunk of meat, chomping it down. Shute could actually see his tiny Gundam teeth at work at he ate away. "But I'm hungry!"
Shute went "aaa" and tore off a piece of white bread and popped it in his mouth. It was at this point that his mouth started to get really dry. "Guys, what do we have to drink?"
Noah passed him a small pewter cup filled with something that looked like apple juice. Fizzy apple juice, and it sure didn't smell like apple juice. He shrank back in fear. "What's that?"
"A special brew of the king's ale," Princess Aresia informed the boy. "Made with special spices; it packs a larger punch than common ale."
Shute pushed the cup away slowly. "No thanks..." He leaned forward. "Prince John, may I be excused?"
"And me!"
"And me!"
"And me!"
Prince John sighed into his cup of ale. "Yes you may."
"Thank you!" Shute bounced away, the triplets following and cheering. Aresia stood up to follow him- I mean, them, but Prince John sat her back down.
"Aa, aa, Aresia, you need to finish your breakfast."
Aresia sighed and bit into a piece of salmon.
&&&
Shute was missing his morning apple by this time. He remembered something that Zero had told him long ago.
"Hey, Coah, the-"
The triplet he was addressing interrupted. "I'm Doah."
"Oh, Doah," Shute blushed. "Well... Uh... Ha ha ha..."
"Keep asking your question," said the offended brother.
"The castle is sitting on a tree, right?"
The triplets looked at each other, back to Shute, and nodded. "Yep, a spirit tree. The biggest one in all of Lacroa!"
"Then that means the tree has fruits, right?"
The triplet's eyes began to shift towards each other again. "Uh..."
Shute eyebrow shot straight up. "What? What's wrong?"
They spoke in unison again. "The Spirit Tree hasn't bloomed since the Dark Axis took over."
Shute's face squeezed itself into a determined look. "Let's go double check."
&&&
"Shute's magic is very strong," Prince John stated, inciting a "duh" from Bakunetsumaru. "As such, it may be dangerous to put him back with normal people. Such a strong magic force has the ability to lose control."
"He hasn't blown anybody up yet!" Bakunetsumaru yelled.
"I agree," Captain stated. "Shute has never harmed anyone with his magic, and thus he is no danger to anyone."
"Well, the thing is..." Prince John raised his index finger on his left hand. "Shute didn't show any signs of being magic until I levitated him." He placed his hand parallel to the floor and rocked it back and forth to demonstrate the levitating. "He had the magic; I just unsettled it and now it's popping out everywhere."
"It's like shaking a can of soda," Zero explained to his magic-ignorant friends.
Baku and Captain looked at each other. "Ooohhhh...."
"And as such, h-"
The castle unexpectedly moved back and forth slightly, and the sound of a thunderclap rumbled outside.
"It is raining?" Captain asked.
"No, that's The Spirit Tree talking!" Zero screamed.
Prince John's eyebrow went up his forehead. "But only Davis and I can talk to th-" The surrogate king turned on his non-existent heel. "SHUTE!"
&&&
A window not far away led right onto a huge branch of The Spirit Tree, which looked relatively healthy and colorful. The leaves were green, pink, and blue, and the branches were a light purple. All the extra colors made Shute's eyes hurt, but he quickly adjusted and stepped onto the middle of the limb. The other three slowly followed him, walking on their toes, apologizing with every step.
Shute straddled the branch and grabbed onto a twig, which wiggled under his fingers. A low rumble surged through the tree, into his legs, and straight into his ears.
#Who are you?#
"The tree talks, cool!" Shute thought. He turned around to see Coah, Doah, and Noah all bunched together and screaming about an earthquake. "I guess they can't hear it..."
Shute cleared his throat and spoke to the tree. "Excuse me, Mr.- Mrs.- um... Spirit Tree, but do you have any fruits I could eat?"
The tree rumbled again. #Not yet...#
Shute didn't quite understand. "What does that mean?"
#It takes a long time...#
Shute stroked the tree lovingly. "Aw, poor thing... Is there anything I can do to help?"
The twig of The Spirit Tree jerked itself out of Shute's hand as another branch, this one with a multicolored flower, lowered itself into Shute's face. #Ask the flower...#
Shute stared into the twitching plant, feeling a little goofy. "Uh, excuse me... Um... Do you have any fruits we could eat?"
The flower responded by closing in on itself and opening again with an apple hanging from its center!
"COOL!" Shute plucked the apple and bowed. "Thank you very much!" He turned around and gave the apple to Coah. "Come on guys, all you need to do is ask the flowers to give you some fruit!"
Coah gulped and grabbed a branch with a few small flowers. "Um, could I have some fruit please?" He waited for the response, but got none. "Well, excuse me for asking!"
"Maybe they're not big enough to make fruit," Shute thought, remembering the Merlin movie he had watched a long time ago. He wiggled his fingers over the little buds. "Grow grow grow!"
The leaves twisted and twirled and grew bigger and bigger as the triplets watched. They giggled and clapped their hands as the flowers grew them a pear, grapes, and an orange.
Shute rested on his laurels and watched as the tree began to blossom like crazy. He softly plucked an apple off of a flower and bit into it, savoring the juiciness. "This is the life."
"Hey, Shute, you wanna do something else?" Coah asked. "There's still a bunch of castle to explore."
"Not while it's sunny out!" Shute moaned. "We've gotta enjoy the sunshine before it-"
KAJABOOWOOWOOWOOOooooo!
The water fell onto his shirt through the tree limbs. "Rains... Let's go..."
&&&
"Something keeps bugging me..." the older one admitted. "Remember Camille?"
"How could we forget Camille?" Noah moaned, looking back to the viscous warg that was supposedly a magic test.
"Well, she seemed really sad to me..." Shute rubbed his head in thought, his hair ruffling softly. "I mean, the whole puppy thing-"
"SHUTE!"
The four boys turned around to see a feminine figure running towards them. Coah, Doah, and Noah smiled. "Aresia!"
Shute waved. "Aresia-hiime, ohayo gozaimasu!" The Princess stopped just before him, bending over and gasping for breath. Shute leaned forward and watched the girl. "Man, you're a wimp."
"I... I just... Wanted.... (gasp)..." Aresia straightened herself, took a big breath, and tried her best to keep her dignity. "So, what were you about to do?"
Shute felt a drop of sweat rolling down the back of his neck. "I was just gonna go talk to Camille."
"CAMILLE!?"
Shute winced as all of the royal siblings shouted into his ears. "I'm not actually going down there with her! I'm just gonna go on that balcony thing Captain was on and talk to her!"
"You're loony!" screamed Doah.
"No, I'm sympathetic, because there are two thing I hate, and that's dogs and mothers who are upset! And if I can fix one of the things, I'll fix it! Now come on!"
Shute snatched Aresia by the arm and pulled her along behind him, letting the triplets catch up.
&&&
Camille looked up at the boys towering over her, her lips twitching on the verge of a snarl. Shute became pale in fear, gulped it away, and smiled. "H- h-h-h-h-h-hi, Ca-Camille."
Camille howled, and Shute's ears picked up words. #Go away!#
"No! I want you to tell me what's wrong!" Shute leaned onto the guardrail. "Who took your puppies? Can you remember what he looked like?"
#No human can understand!# Camille began to whimper. #Humans took them away, humans will not take them back!#
"I'm not promising to give them back," Shute said. "I'm saying that I can help you feel better."
"What's going on?" Aresia whispered into Shute's ear, tickling him to the point of him slapping her away.
"I need to concentrate, Aresia-hiime, cut it out!" Shute waved the triplets closer. "We're not gonna hurt you, Camille. We're puppies too, see?"
Noah began to laugh. "Yeah, we're human puppies!"
Coah tucked in his hands and yapped while Doah laughed. Princess Aresia rubbed her temples. "Brothers..."
#You can't be puppies,# Camille barked. #Where is your mommy?#
"My mom's back in another dimension," Shute lowered his head. "And my dad, and my sister, and the rest of my family."
"Mummy's with Maana now," Aresia pointed out. "She caught something from a bad piece of fish."
"And Daddy's on a sacred quest," said the triplets. "We haven't seen him in a while."
"We're lost puppies, Camille," said Aresia. "Just like you're a lost mother."
#No! No lost puppies!# The immense warg put her front paws up on the wall, looking straight up at the children. #I hate lost puppies. If you'll be my puppies, I'll be your mommy.#
"Really?" Shute gasped.
Aresia looked over at the boy who was a little bit shorter than her. "What?"
"She says she's willing to be a surrogate mom if we let her!" Shute smiled. He listened to the royal siblings cries of approval and looked down at Camille. "You're the nicest dog I've ever met Camille!"
#WARG!# said the horse-sized wolf-dog. #Dogs are stupid human sucker- uppers!#
Shute giggled. "Yeah!"
&&&
Prince John floated into Camille's cave, expecting for the big warg to come out and jump at him. He shined a light into the cave when he wasn't jumped; there were a great deal of cow bones, but no Camille. He flew back into the hallway where Zero, Baku, and Captain were waiting. "That boy let the dog out, I know it!"
"Shute hates dogs," Captain stated. "Remember?"
"He's more trouble than he's worth, that Shute boy!" Prince John grunted, not paying attention to the non-Lacroan Gundams. "Zero, how do you put up with him?"
"He's usually not this bad, sir," Zero pleaded. "Please, m'lord, he's just a boy, he can't control himself."
A stone gargoyle shook himself and lowered his head. "Sire, news from the third floor corridor."
&&&
"You guys have a swimming pool?!" Shute gasped, staring at the huge pool of water that stretch out before him. Although the room it was in had little lighting, speckles of light still danced on the surface as speckles of light are want to do on water.
The triplet raised their fingers. "What's a pool?"
"That's part of the moat." Aresia placed her hand on Shute's shoulder. "This is the place where we feed the moat monsters."
Shute began to feel his eye twitching. "How can you have a moat if you live in a tree!?"
Aresia blushed. "I... I don't know..."
SPLOOSH!
"SHUTE!" Aresia screamed as she lurched forward without warning. She was able to keep herself from falling, but it took a few minutes to realize that Camille was standing next to her and Shute was in the moat monster pool. "What are you doing?"
The boy who had been completely submerged at the time she said it popped out of the water oblivious to her shouting. He spit out a big mouthful of water. "Come on in, it's warm!"
Camille barked out to the boy. #GET UP HERE! HURRY!#
"I can swim!" yelled Shute.
"So can all the moat monster's food!" Noah shouted.
Shute began to go pale, as he always did when scared. "The what?" A sharp blade-like thing brushed past his heel. He panicked and began to sink. "AA! JAWS! JAWS!"
Coah screamed and focused his magic on the water around Shute, pulling it (along with the 10-year-old) up and out of the moat just in time to see a huge, sharp horn and a wide set of jaws snap at the water below him.
Shute gulped and looked at Coah. "You are so cool. You are so much better at water magic than me."
Coah blushed. "No, I'm not..."
"Yes you are! I nearly pass out every time I try to do something water related! You just picked me and a bunch of other water up! It's cool!"
Coah blushed again as his brothers hugged him. "Aw... Thanks..."
"So now what are we gonna do?" asked Doah.
"We could walk laps around the edge of the lake," suggested Aresia. "That's what I do in my time off."
Shute looked at Camille, and they both shared a wide grin.
&&&
"WAAAAH!" Shute clung to Camille's fur as she rocketed around the pool at a full gallop with him resting on her back. The triplets were howling from behind, sitting in a wagon attached to the great beast's shoulders. Aresia sat in the cart with her brothers, but her arms were wrapped around Shute's waist. "THIS ROCKS!"
A woman in a regal gown suddenly stepped into the hallway, right in front of the stampeding warg! "Camille, look out from the Countess of Devon!" Coah shrieked.
Camille roared and bounded over the countess. She, unfortunately, didn't look where she was going and crashed into a box of crystals.
KABOOM!
Aresia took a few minutes to catch her breath while Shute laughed with every ounce of air he had in his body. "That was fun!" He reached down and picked up one of the crystals, which was yellow. "These are prett- wait a minute. What the-?"
He switched hands with the crystal and saw that it had left a yellow powder on his hands... Like chalk...
"Sidewalk chalk!" he drew a yellow smiley face on the floor. "Coah, Doah, Noah, look!"
"Cool!" the boys each grabbed their favorite color and began drawing. The Aresia tentatively picked up a pink crystal and began writing in calligraphy. She put a very fancy version of her name on the floor.
Noah wrote his name on the floor roughly. "That's my name, N-O-A-H."
"My name is spelled D-O-H-A." said Doha, formerly Doah.
"Do-ha?" Shute spoke the word phonetically.
"The 'h' is silent," said Doha.
"My name doesn't have an 'h'!" said Coah, or Coa. "C-O-A, see?"
"My name's spelled S-H-U-T-E. Not S-H-O-O-T, 'cause that's like a gun."
#I'm C-AMILLE!# barked Camille, enticing laughter from the peanut gallery.
"Best dog-"
#WARG!#
"Warg, sorry!" Shute got over his blush and continued. "Best warg ever!"
Camille smiled and barked. It wasn't a bark that said anything, it was just a bark for the sake of being a bark. The human boy gripped his chalk crystal tightly. "Oo, man..."
The crystal started to glow in his hand. "I've got Cabin Fever!"
The triplet raised a crystal in salute. "CABIN FEVER!"
&&&
(An unexpected mariachi beat rang through the hallways. As the music picked up, Shute leapt onto Camille's back and began to ride, holding his crystal- holding arm out to the side. As he galloped down the hallway, the crystal (no idea how it did it) left yellow chalk-like marks on the wall. And it wasn't even touching it!)
Shute: I got cabin fever, it's burning in my brain!
I've got cabin fever it's driving me insane! (TRIPLETS!)
(The triplets can feel they have a song on their hands and began singing. As they danced, patterns of red, purple, and green etched themselves on the wall.)
Triplets: We got cabin fever
(They tipped their crowns in salute.) We're flipping our bandanas.
Been stuck out here so long that we have simply gone bananas!
(Shute noticed that the Countess of Devon was still on the floor, gasping for breath and muttering about wargs. Camille skidded to an abrupt halt. He pointed the crystal at her face; there was a bright flash of light, a beam of yellow shot towards her-
And when she got up, she had been Carmen Miranda-ized.)
Countess: Ariba!
(She began to swing her hips, although she looked goofy and was obviously being forced to dance against her will.)
Chica chica boom
A chica chica boom boom chic!
(Shute joined her at her side and danced along with her, moving his hands like he was shaking maracas.)
Shute and Countess: Chica chica boom
A chica chica boom boom chic.
(The triplets were screaming in delight. They pointed the crystals at themselves and fired; when the light had subsided, they were in jester clothes!)
Doha: We got cabin fever, we've lost what sense we had.
Coa: We got cabin fever-
(Aresia suddenly stepped in.)
Aresia: We're all going (shrieking) MAD!
(The music suddenly changed to a square dance tune. He clutched Aresia- hiime's hand in his, shooting them both with the yellow crystal and changing into cowboy clothes.)
Shute: Grab your partner by the ears- (He snatched a chunk of her hair.)
Aresia: Lash him to the wheel! (She answered by grabbing his ear and yanking it.)
Shute: Do-si-do, step on her toe- (He planted his foot onto hers.)
Aresia: Listen to him squeal! (She pinched him back, and hard. He whimpered in pain.)
Shute: Allemande left, allemande right,
It's time to sail or sink!
Aresia: Swing your partner over the side
Drop him in the drink! (Aresia swung the boy around dangerously fast, threatening to toss him into the moat. He gasped and jumped inland, dragging her down to the floor with him.
(Coa, Doha, and Noah each "changed" into fancy aristocratic clothes, drawing tea cups into midair from which to drink.) Coa: We got cabin fever
No if's, and's, or but's
Noah: We're disoriented
Doha: And demented
Coa: And a little nuts!
(Shute waved his hands. "Oo, oo, watch this!")
Shute: Ach du lieber Volswagen car! (Camille: Yodel-lay-ee-hoo)
Saur braten viener schnitzel
Und a vunder bar! (Camille: Yodel-lay-ee-hoo)
(Aresia spread out her arms and twirled her skirt merrily.)
Aresia: We were sailing, sailing the wind was on our side-
(Evil, minor organ chords played in the background as a cow's skeleton rose out of the moat. Underneath it was the moat monster, although all you could see was his long horn.)
Aresia: And then it died. (Shute: Oh, I get it!)
Shute: (Hey) I've got cabin fever,
I think I've lost my grip.
(Coa and Doha bounded up next to Shute, dressed in a chalky sombrero and poncho.)
Coa: I'd like to get my hands on
Whoever wrote this script.
Doha: Si!
(Aresia floated past, strumming an imaginary lute, her eyes lost in a fanciful dream.)
Aresia: I was floating 'neath a tropic moon
And dreaming of a blue lagoon,
(Her eyes suddenly flared as if a bomb had gone off in her brain.)
Now I'm crazy as a loon
(Shute threw his fists into the air. "GO PRINCESS! BIG FINISH!"
The triplets simply had to wave their crystals, and a huge crowd of chalk people appeared on the walls, singing with the five young ones.)
Shute, Princess, Triplets, and Crowd: Cabin fever has ravaged all aboard;
This once proud vessel has become a floating psycho ward!
We were sailing, sailing, headed who knows where.
And now though we're all here
We're not all there! Cabin fever!
&&&
"WOO HOO!" Shute bounced up into the air, all of the chalky residue falling off of him and the kids and the wall; by the time the chalk had settled, most of the third floor corridor was colored a weird mix of yellow, red, purple, and green.
"DO IT AGAIN!" Coa shouted. "Do it again!"
"Yeah, do it-" Noah covered his mouth as he yawned. "Again."
"I'm tired..." Doha admitted, falling into the floor. "Let's rest."
The other four (five if you counted Camille) felt the exhaustion like a punch in the stomach and agreed. Camille the warg settled herself against the wall and let the chalk-colored kids rest their heads against her stomach. Shute sighed and scootched backwards so that he could lay his head on Camille's leg. "Need to rest... And then have some more fun, right guys?"
A little cough sounded in his left ear. "And Princess?"
"Yes, that sounds like fun..." Aresia stifled a yawn and tucked her legs under her dirty skirt. "For now..."
"Nap time."Shute closed his eyes and let his mind wander as the other kids drifted off to sleep. What else could they do today? They could go into the Music Room and play Cartoon Freeze Tag. Maybe they could just take a break and tell each other stories like he did with his cousins; maybe he'd learn some cool Lacroan folklore, like who Maana was or something like that. Or maybe they could find a bone and play fetch with Camille since she had waited through most of that song doing nothing. Or maybe...
His thoughts were cut short by a tight, punching feeling in his chest. He was suddenly pulled upwards by a tight force on his lungs, rocketing into the air. He opened his eyes and saw the royal children sitting beneath him (upside down), their faces aghast. As he was flipped to his feet, he made out the brown form that was Camille jumping to his rescue. He was too dizzy to see anything past that point, but once he was righted he was staring into the face of Prince John.
"You let Camille out!" Prince John screamed, scaring Shute into a little ball of himself.
"Uncle John, put him down!" Aresia begged. "Please!"
"He didn't do anything wrong, please, Uncle John!" cried the triplets.
"She was depressed, I thought I'd cheer her up!" Shute gulped in fear. "She's really nice, a whole lot nicer than I thought a dog would be!"
#WARG!# Camille bound into the air and tried to catch Prince John by the robe, but her teeth closed around smoke.
Prince John grappled Shute's neck and hissed, "You let loose my magic test warg and ruined my creativity crystals!"
"The sidewalk chalk?"
John tightened his grip. "You be quiet-AAH!"
Prince John jumped into the air while shrieking in pain. In his place stood a laughing Bakunetsumaru, holding a katana and pointing it in John's direction. Shute giggled and flung his arms around the samurai Gundam. "Bokku no shite!"
"Ano... Arigatou." Baku patted his head softly.
John landed roughly, a large red vein stamped onto his forehead. "You MORONS! DO YOU KNOW THAT YOU HAVE ASSAULTED A KING?!"
Bakunetsumaru looked behind him and saw that Zero and Captain had caught up with him. He waved the kids down a hallway. "Get going, I'll take care of this guy."
"Thanks, Baku." Shute hugged the red Gundam while the royal siblings raced into a different corridor. Camille gave Shute a soft nudge; he jumped onto her back and trotted after the kids, leaving a confused Bakunetsumaru behind.
&&&
The wall before them began opening up into a door. Prince John passed through the small opening without effort while the Gundams waited for the door to be big enough to allow them through. Zero floated through sideways and addressed his king. "M'Lord, I am so sorry about Shute's behavior. Just give us a chance to talk to him, and we'll set him straight, I swear!"
"I don't want to hear it, Zero." Prince John waited for Captain and Bakunetsumaru to enter before sealing the doorway behind him. He had retreated the Gundams into a small study about the size of a typical apartment; it was a modest room with an intricate rug, a few books, and very good lighting. Prince John cleared his throat. "I have had enough of this boy running around the castle and ruining everything he touches!"
Bakunetsumaru leaned over to the fuming Captain Gundam. "He's just still sore because I caught him in the back end with my sword."
Captain stifled a giggle.
"Therefore, I believe I have no other choice. The boy Shute will have to stay here and learn to control his magic powers as well as his behavior." Prince John patted his chest; he was having trouble breathing after being around all that chalk dust. "Excuse me." And then he coughed.
"Alright then," Captain responded. "How long are we staying?"
"No, Captain," said Zero. His voice sounded lower than usual, and his eyes wouldn't come to meet with Captain or Baku's. "Shute will have to stay here. Magic training takes years..." He sighed mournfully. "You'll have to go on without him."
Captain stepped back as if he had been punched. Baku felt the blood draining from his face. "What? But... How? Shute will be here all by himself, you can't do that! He's just-"
"He won't be here by himself!" Zero snapped. He froze as he realized he had screamed at Bakunetsumaru and Captain in cold blood; he hadn't told them yet. He gulped back his pride and softly spoke, "I... I'm staying here with him."
Bakunetsumaru stood motionless, his eyes wide. "No..."
"I'm sorry," Zero sighed, lowering himself to the ground. "But, my mission is done! Lacroa is saved, my princess is alive again... What else is there for me to do? I have no reason to leave!" He looked into Baku's heartbroken eyes. "I'm sorry."
The red Gundam turned away, trying hard to hide his watering eyes. He took the speechless Captain by the arm. "Come on, Captain, let's go."
He gave Zero once last glance over his shoulder; the Winged Knight was standing there, his hands held stiffly at his sides. Baku could tell he was trying hard not to show any emotion by the way his eyes didn't quite focus on his face. "We have no reason to stay."
The Neotopian Gundam choked back a sob while the Blazing Samurai led him through the exit door. Zero watched them exit and then stared at the wall for some time. That was the hardest thing he had ever done in his life; tears he had held back began to flow down his cheeks.
Prince John stood up and placed a hand on Zeros' shoulder; the knight turned to face him without hesitation. It was strange looking at Zero like this, because to John, Zero had always reminded him of a deer. The way his eyes were shaped, it always looked as if he was about to cry. Now that he was, Prince John immediately felt as if he was looking into the eyes of a child.
"You did the right thing."
Zero looked to the floor. His tears ran onto his Soul Stone; the large amount of energy running through his heart made his circuits short, and he would feel small stabs of pain with every breath he took.
"I hope so."
&&&
"How could he do such a thing?!" Baku screamed into the hallway, his fists clenched so tightly that the wiring in his hands were beginning to ache. "That heartless piece of scrap metal!"
"It's for Shute's own good." Captain was trying his best to convince himself that what Zero was doing was a good thing, but (bless his heart) it wasn't working. His sad eyes were fixed onto his face. "And with Zero here with him-"
"Zero's gonna go fawn after the Princess while Prince John beats Shute over the head with his Electro-Scepter!" Baku roared, his face dangerously close to Captain's. "How's that for his own good?!"
"Zero wouldn't let that happen!" Captain shrieked in a rare moment of anger, his expression changing from sad to angry. "He's still our friend, and I trust him!"
Baku heaved a sigh. "It's not that I don't trust Zero. It's that I don't trust that floating sham of a magic-using king! He'll make it so that Shute and Zero never see each other, I know it!"
Baku took a few deep breathes while Captain sat in an uncomfortable silence, his eyes finally switched back to their normal screen. Captain unsheathed his face and rubbed his cheeks in a desperate sort of way, his normal sharp-as-a-tack mind fogged with fear and emotion.
"What are we going to do, Bakunetsumaru?"
"What else can we do?" Baku looked at Captain's shoulder; it seemed like there was something missing. "Where's your beam saber?"
"In my room," said Captain.
"We'll be leaving soon, go get it." Baku watched Captain walk past him, but made no move to follow. He took a right turn and headed towards the middle of the castle.
"But what can I do..." he spoke to himself. "That's a different story."
&&&
The Music Room; just where he thought he'd find him. Baku stepped into the large room to see Shute sitting between the legs of the baby song dragon between the legs of the largest song dragon. The triplets sat in front of them, their hands connected in a strange way. From the looks of it, Shute was teaching them how to play that stupid "Down by the Riverside" game where you slapped each other's hands in a circle. Aresia sat next to Shute on the baby dragon's right paw (her head came up to its shoulder), watching Shute from over his head. Camille was sprawled out on the floor like some giant mutant Beanie Baby, watching Bakunetsumaru with a silent eye.
Shute's eyes darted upwards as Baku took a few steps forward; he recognized the sound Gundams made when they walked. His small face lit up as Baku walked in. "Baku-san! Ogenki desu ka?" Shute noticed that Baku exerted a strange, uneasy air. "Daijoubu desu ka?"
"Iie, daijoubu janai." Baku took a deep breath. "Shute, it's Zero."
"Is he mad at me?" Shute shrunk back a bit. "I wanted to apologize for messing up the corridor, but I couldn't find him."
"We went back and cleaned it up ourselves," said Coa.
"And I found out what magic I am!" Doha laughed. "Watch!"
Doha pointed to a hidden window; ice began to form on the edges of the opening, extending towards the middle until ice covered the whole thing. "I control ice! Isn't that cool? Can you believe Uncle John doesn't test for it?"
Baku felt himself being crowded by the brothers assaulting him with all this magic stuff. "Yes, well, I-"
Shute interrupted Bakunetsumaru's statement. "I'm really sorry that I didn't behave better earlier, Baku, but I couldn't help myself! I promise to behave better, really!" He gulped to wet his throat. "I just want Zero to be proud of me. You understand, right?"
Baku felt his throat closing in on itself. "Perfectly," warbled the samurai. "But that's the problem! Zero wants you to stay here in Lacroa and learn to use your magic!"
"Cool!" shouted the boys. Aresia could feel her insides flipping about in excitement; it felt like there were a million tiny Nns in her stomach.
"NO, BAD!" Baku could feel his anger coming back into play as well as his voice. "Zero says learning magic takes years to do, and you'll have to stay here the whole time while me and Captain leave to fight the Dark Axis!"
The happiness quickly disappeared; Shute's face went pale as the happy brightness left his eyes. "What? But- bu- but what about Zero?"
"He's supposedly staying here with you, but I don't just that Prince John as far as I could throw him!" He looked to the royal kids. "No offense."
The kids enthusiastically replied, "None taken."
Camille barked, leaving Shute to translate. "She agrees with you."
Baku nodded his thanks. "He'll probably keep you two separated while he tortures you into some kind of magical submission spell. I just know it!"
"But- but-" Shute's pupils began to shrink while his voice got higher and higher. "What about Nana and Mom and Dad back home? I can't stay gone that long, they'll think I'm dead! What's Captain gonna do without me? What am I gonna do without Captain?! What am I-"
"Shute, calm down!" Aresia threw her arms around Shute as he collapsed into a whimpering fit. "It's okay!"
"Not it's NOT!" screamed the auburn one. "I'm never gonna see my family or my best friend again, you can't say it's okay!" Shute lurched forward, jumping off of the dragon, crawling over Camille and launching himself into Baku's arms. "Baku, you can't let him take me! You have to take me with you!"
"Calm down, Shute!" Baku held the human one at arms length. "We're not gonna get anywhere with you panicking!"
Baku set Shute down near the whining Camille and approached Coa, Doha, Noah, and Aresia. "Kids, is there anyplace in the castle Shute could hide from your uncle?"
The siblings replied with a group "Huh?".
Baku felt a migraine coming on. He closed his eyes and hissed through his teeth. "Shute hides from your uncle until my and Captain are ready to leave. We smuggle him out of the castle when he's not looking, problem solved!"
"Are you sure that'll work?" Aresia twittered.
Baku shrugged. "It worked for me and my sister."
"But what about Zero?" Shute cried.
Baku was hesitant to answer, but he couldn't hold back the truth. "Zero decided to stay here. Whether you're here or not, Zero's not leaving Lacroa. Trust me..." He turned his eyes to look at the floor. "I know him."
Shute whimpered and wiped off a tear on Camille's muzzle.
"Uncle John knows every place in the palace by heart, and even if he didn't he could use the essence gem to sniff out any magic anything," Coa declared. "But my dad always told us that there was always a place we could hide if the kingdom was ever in trouble."
"The Dark Hole?" Shute guessed.
"Sort of, but not quite," Aresia continued. "It's an old cave that dragons used to nest in; magic from within the cave can't be detected from outside the cave. It's the perfect place for anyone magic to hide."
Noah cut in quickly to show off what he knew about the cave. "And it still smells a lot like dragons, too, so a lot of animals are afraid to go in there!"
"PERFECT!" Baku shouted. "Shute could hide in the cave until me and Captain come back to get him, and then leave Lacroa for good!"
Shute felt the words in sort of a mixed blessing; he was practically free, already feeling the weird sensation of traveling through other dimensions running through his chest. But he also felt terrible guilt and the same time; he would have to leave behind Zero, one his best friends after Captain. He wasn't sure what exactly to do; he had a family to look forward to seeing again. If he stayed in Lacroa, it'd be a guaranteed go-back to Neotopia after a certain amount of time, but with the Gundams each day was completely uncertain. His heart was pulling him in both directions. He didn't know which end to follow.
"How do we get to the cave?" Shute finally asked.
"Dad always put us on his pet song dragons to bring us to the cave," Noah stated. "Uh... Anybody know where Uncle John put the real song dragons?"
Aresia looked up at the two statues above her. "I haven't seen the real ones since Daddy left."
"What does that mean?" Baku moaned, worried already that the plan might fall apart.
Coa clenched his little fists. "Uncle John put in these two fake dragons in the music room not long after Dad left, and they look just like-"
"That's not what they meant, you doofus! The caves are way on the other side of the kingdom, so we can't get there without the dragons!" Doha spoke very quickly, scaring himself in the process.
"You mean we can't go?!" Shute hollered in shock.
The kids were afraid to answer.
Baku then proved as to why the kids were afraid to answer.
"NO! This can't be HAPPENING!" The samurai pounded his fist against the leg of the baby song dragon statue. "THIS ISN'T FAIR!"
"What are we gonna do now?" Shute squealed.
"I don't kn-" Bakunetsumaru felt the statue under his palm beginning to crack. "Oh, shimatta, I broke something."
There was a loud KABANG as the black shell of the song dragons cracked into a billion pieces; underneath it stood a bright, silver shell of a living, BREATHING dragon.
Baku and Shute both screamed in terror. The 50 foot tall dragon and his 9 foot tall baby stretched themselves for the first time in ages, shaking their shimmering scales and sounding loud, booming yawns that sounded suspiciously like tubas. The royal siblings' faces split into wide grins.
"Sterling!" Aresia ran forward, her arms stretched out as wide as they could go. Sterling lowered his head into Aresia's chest and nuzzled her as she hugged his huge maw. "So that's what Uncle John did to you! Poor baby, Sterling!"
"How's your baby?" The triplets each gave the smaller dragon a pat on the nose. "How are you, Mercury?" They laughed as she responded with a loud grunt and rolled over to be petted on her belly. "Can you fly yet?"
"Eeeaaaa!" Mercury pawed at the air like a kitten, flapping her premature wings against the floor.
Coa grabbed Shute by the arm and pulled him towards the big song dragon, Sterling. "This is Sterling. He's Mercury's daddy. Say hello, Sterling!"
Sterling sniffed Shute's body, ruffling his hair with each intake of breath. He moaned a note that sounded like a French Horn. Shute didn't exactly know what to do because he didn't hear a voice behind it. "Um... Hello?"
"There's no time for this now!" Bakunetsumaru suddenly yelped. He ran behind Shute and pushed him up Sterling's neck. "You kids take Shute and hide him in that cave thing! Me and Captain will find you later!"
"Okay!" The triplets signaled to Sterling, who lowered his wings and let them climb up. Camille tumbled after the boys with a typical dog-like glee. Aresia went to follow them, but Bakunetsumaru snatched her by her skirt.
"Um, Aresia-hiime, Prince John doesn't care about your brothers, but he'll notice if you go missing."
"I don't care!" Aresia bounded up Sterling's wing. "I've never had so much fun in all my life! I'm not going to let my Uncle John beat the life out of him!" She latched herself to Shute's arm. "I'm going with you!"
"Um... Uh...." Shute leaned over to give Baku one last goodbye. "Promise to come and get me soon?"
"I'll hurry," Baku hushed. "Just go."
"Domo arigatou." Shute nodded in head in agreement.
"Let's go, Sterling!" Coa gave one of Sterling's scales a kick (it made a sound like a church bell). "Hee-ya!"
"AAAAAAAAAAARRR!" Sterling reared onto his hind legs without warning and, with one fell swoop, tore down the entire west wall!
"GAH!" Doha grabbed onto the person closest to him, Noah. "What are you doing?! Bad dragon!"
"Baku, move out of the way!" Shute screamed. It was too late; baby Mercury had caught Bakunetsumaru in her mouth and flung him into a wall, knocking him unconscious. Sterling took his daughter into his mouth and barged forward, breaking down two more walls before reaching the outside.
&&&
"A DRAGON IS TEARING DOWN MY CASTLE!"
Prince John rushed up to the highest turret of his tower, Zero and two other human guards following him. Sterling flew into view, his huge wings flapping as fast as they could. Zero could make out seven different figures on his back; one was Mercury, three of them were the triplets, one was-
"Princess!" He shot forward instinctively. "That dragon's got Princess Aresia!"
"Shoot him down!" Prince John pointed his scepter to the dragon. "Aim for his wings!"
A multitude of archers ran out of the castle and began firing upon the dragon; few arrows pierced the membrane of his wing, but it was enough to drive him out of the air. The metallic dragon fell to the ground with a-
He didn't finish falling! A blue field surrounded him and pushed him away from the ground! It was about that time that a little flash of red appeared on Sterling's neck.
"SHUTE'S ON THE DRAGON!" Prince John's face became bright red. "I DON'T BELIEVE THIS!"
"I've got to do something!" Zero soared down from the tower with hopes of catching the children from off of Sterling's back. The song dragon spied Zero out of the corner of his eye; his tail snapped upwards and flicked Zero out of the air and into a branch.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAR!" Sterling gave one last roar before diving to the ground, galloping into the horizon.
DONE!
I don't feel like typing notes, I'm tired!
