Chapter 4: Others...?
He stared at her, utterly amazed. "So that's how you saw me in the dark!"
The cat-like girl blushed, rubbing her paws together. "Sorry. I just love mice."
"Uhh..." his heart began to race.
"No, not like that! I mean, as a pet. Or...a friend?"
"S-sure, yeah." He went around the bed and over to the girl. "My name's Gar– I mean, Sh'par. Who are you?" he held out his hand for her to shake.
"I'm Tania, princess of Trillo." She shook his green hand, smiling sweetly.
"Wow. Princess? I'm just an ordinary guy."
"No you're not, silly!" she laughed. "You can change into any animal you want, plus back into a person!" She sighed, looking down. "I wish I could change into a person. Then I'd fit in."
"Hey," he said, lifting her chin up. "You're unique. Don't ever wish to be any other way."
"Mr. Logan says I'm unique, too, but I never–"
"Who?!" he asked, surprised.
"Mr. Logan. My mentor? He's a little weird, but he's helping me control my urges. You know, to eat anything meat?"
"I'm sorry, how did you say you know him?"
"He's my mentor."
"Mine, too!"
"No way! He never mentioned any other apprentices before."
"Do you trust him?"
"No..." she said slowly, "not really. I don't like him much either. But he's helping me."
"You can control yourself on your own. At least, now you should be able to. I mean, when you caught me, I wasn't sure what you were going to do..."
"You're really nice, you know that, Sh'par?"
"Uhh, how 'bout we go exploring?" he changed the subject, taking her arm. He pulled her to the door, but she stopped.
"Can't I get dressed first?"
"Oh, yeah. Sure."
She disappeared into the bathroom, taking a change of clothes. When she emerged, her outfit wasn't the only thing different. Her hair had been styled and she had various accessories on.
"We aren't going to a concert, you know," he teased her. "Now let's go!"
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"Sh'par, I'm scared!" she clung to him as they slinked down the hallway.
"Tania, don't you want to know if there's anybody else besides us here?" He ignored her soft fur on his bare arms.
"Sorry. I just...this place creeps me out, okay?"
"Oh. well, I'm here. C'mon!" They followed the long rug down the hall, opening doors and convincing other alien children to join them. There were boys and girls of all shapes, sizes, and ages, all following his lead. "Sheesh! Why are they all so scared?"
"Because we aren't allowed here," replied a little boy of 7 or so. He was a purple alien, with four arms and no hair.
"Uhh, that's okay. We won't get caught. Let's move, people!" Soon, all the bedrooms had been explored and there were no more alien children left. "Well, that's everybody. Now what?"
"I thought you had a plan," Tania said, fear creeping into her big orange eyes.
"Well, I...uhh, that is...I just thought I'd explore on my own, to be honest. I didn't plan on meeting anybody else here. I mean, it's great that I met everyone, but I had no idea..."
"Yeah. Well, we have to wing it, so why don't we bust out?"
Sh'par was surprised at her sudden burst of courage and energy. "I thought you were scared."
"I'm getting over it...slowly..." she looked down the hall. "I just don't know how to do it."
"That I've got covered." He proceded to explain his plan to her, and she helped him tell the rest of the children. Some of them didn't know the language, but they nodded to basic sign language.
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"This is great! I think I can actually do this, Sh'par!"
It felt good having someone other than himself say his name. "Yeah, as long as everyone knows the plan." He looked at the group, confirming that everyone was there. "Okay, let's get it on!" He morphed into a leopard, carrying three children on his back. They had all gone back to their rooms and gathered only their most treasured belongings to take on the way back home. Each child (or teen, I guess) held their own bag, using the other arm(s) to hold onto Sh'par. He then would leap out the window to the balcony, morph into a pterodactyl, and fly them all past the high metal fence. They would run to the large rock formation out about 100 feet towards the nearest civilization, and he'd go back for thre more. The process was slow, but it worked. Soon enough, they were all by the rocks and ready to make the trekk to the city. Sh'par, however, was wiped out from the escape, and decided to catch up in a couple minutes. The group went ahead without him, all but Tania that is.
"Are you okay, Sh'par?" she asked, concern clear in her voice.
"Yeah...I'll be...okay if I...catch my breath..." he said in between pants. He morphed into a dog, panting furiously.
Tania laughed, thinking it was a joke. "A dog, right? You're so funny, Sh'par! Here, let me help you. Change into a mouse again, and I'll carry you." He contemplated her offer, but was hesitant. She was a cat creature, he would be a mouse. "You don't trust me?" she asked, obviously offended.
"No, I'll go. I'm sorry, it was just instinct."
He rode on her sholder until he felt better, in which he jumped from and changed back to his regular form. "Thanks, Tania." Silence ensued, but it didn't last long. "You said I was funny...why?"
"Because you were panting, and changed into a dog. Aren't they known for panting?"
"Yeah...I guess. But I wasn't trying to be funny." They walked with the group, who they caught up with a couple miles back.
"Mr. Sh'par, sir? We're getting tired. Can you carry us again?" asked a small girl with three eyes.
"Uhh, sure. Why didn't I think of it before?" He morphed into a tyrannosaurus rex, waiting until everyone was on his back.
"This is cool!" said the little girl. "Thanks!"
"No problem. I think we're almost there!"
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Once they had all reached the city, the large group of kids thanked him. Most of them all headed into different directions, but some lagged behind. "Some of us are from here. We'll go to our homes now. Thanks again, Mr. Sh'par!" the three-eyed girl followed a friend, and they skipped north to the city's border.
"Now what, hero?" Tania asked, leaning against a tree casually.
"Now I find a ship and fly back home to warn my people."
"What?" she said, alarmed.
"My home world. Mr. Logan said he had planted explosives all over it. I need to get there and evacuate it before he implodes it!"
She searched his eyes, then smiled. "He was lying."
"Huh? I'm confused. Why would he lie about such a thing?"
"He's a human. He only wanted you to do what he wanted. He told that to me, too, and some of the other kids. The ones from another planet, of course."
"How do you know he lied?" he asked, suspiciously.
"Because I can sense that kind of thing. It's a sixth sense, I think they call it here."
"Well, even if he's lying, I'm still going back. I miss them so much. I haven't seen them in almost a year!"
"Oh," Tania said, disappointed. "Well, good luck then." She turned and gathered the remaining kids, making her way to the city.
"Wait, are you just going to leave? Just like that?"
She turned, a tear in her eye. "Yes, Sh'par, I'm going to leave. Just like you."
He paused, thinking about her words. He ran to her, putting his hand on her shoulder. "Tania, why don't you come with me?"
"And leave all these kids here to fend for themselves? No way." She shrugged his hand away, ushering the children forward.
"Well," he said, his mind racing, "they can come too then!"
She stopped. Then she spun around, hugging him tight. "Deal!"
End Chapter 4! I'm in love with this story!!
Okay, I know the name "Morphoboy" is probably really stupid, but oh well!
