Author's Note: Huh. I just noticed something odd: Arbron seems to have evaporated.
Mob: WELL, WHAT HAPPENED TO HIM?
Me: That's what I'm getting to. I think he deserves a chapter to tell his fans what happened to him.
Mob: DARN RIGHT HE DOES!
Me: Oh, be quiet. And be warned—it's rather short.
Disclaimer: As you all hopefully know by now, the Animorphs are not mine, and thus, neither is Arbron.
Chapter Twenty-Three: Arbron's POV
Typically, no one seemed to realize that they had left me in the barn, never mind realizing that I had to stay hidden for a week, too. I stayed in the same area as most of the uninfested Taxxons that the Yeerk Empire had stationed on Earth most of the time, but my Taxxon morph, being a tracker, had a distinctive scent as well as its distinctive sense of smell. In a best case scenario, someone would realize that there were two of me and ask me awkward questions. In a worst case scenario, my past self would discover me, panic, and kill me outright.
I tried going over my options. None of them sounded too good. If I stayed in the barn, I would be discovered, either by Cassie and the Animorphs or Cassie and her parents. If I went back to the tunnels, I ran the usual risk of being eaten or eating myself to exhaustion, with the added risk of meeting my past self. If I went to Loren's place, the past her would tell the past Elfangor about it, and my past self would find out.
Wait a minute. My brain slowed down, sped up, and reeled backwards at the same time.
Do you know how, in human cartoons, a light bulb turns on over a person's head when they have an idea? That's how I felt at that moment. I knew what I couldn't do, and now I knew what I could.
The tunnels. If I could use one of the older, abandoned tunnels, I could put myself into hibernation for a week!
Now I just had to figure out a way to leave the barn. The past Animorphs would be here soon. If I went out the front, I would be in plain sight of Cassie's parents. Leaving a hole in the barn's dirt floor was probably not the best idea. Decisions, decisions. Why couldn't things ever just be easy?
The choice came more quickly this time. I could risk Cassie's parents seeing me to avoid the past Animorphs from seeing me. They probably wouldn't even know what they were seeing.
I raced out of the barn and into the woods. There were no humans nearby. There was, however, an Andalite a short distance north. Most likely that was Aximili's past self. I bit into the dirt and started burrowing, determined not to be discovered.
Reaching the oldest tunnel that I was aware of didn't take a very long time. Settling myself down to hibernate did. Taxxons are restless creatures by nature, due to their constant search for food. It took me several hours of total inertia to calm down enough. I excited myself again when I brought the image of meat into my mind.
[Okay, Arbron,] I snapped at myself. [You are going to calm down. You are going to relax. You are going to start a week long hibernation... right... now.] I gave my physical body the command to shut down. All Taxxon bodies have this reflex, so as to avoid hunger pangs when forced to go without food, and so that they can ignore their pain when and if they are eaten alive. My Andalite ability to keep track of time was miraculously still intact, so I was confident that I could wake myself up in a week, even if I was forgotten by everyone else.
Author's Note: I-
Mob (angrier than usual): HEY! WHY DID YOU END IT THERE?
Me: As I was saying, I warned you that this would be short. I still have writer's block. This is a bit of an add-on so I can figure out what I did from Arbron.
Mob (still angrier than usual): THAT WAS WAY TO SHORT!
Me (sarcastically): Any ideas to make it longer?
Mob (rather embarrassed): NO.
Me: Oh, I should warn everyone that I'm back at school now, so updates will be father apart. Here are the review responses:
Dragon: I wasn't actually planning on killing anyone. Good idea, though... especially if 'The Illusion' doesn't prove inspiring... Maybe I will kill someone.
Aldrea: I'm not planning a sequel to 'Disclaimer', but then again I wasn't planning on writing 'Disclaimer' in the first place. I might, I might not. Plushies are unnecessary. Reviews will do. Sorry you're stuck with that Yami.
Tobias1452: Not a bad idea at all. That might happen. If it does, that chapter will be dedicated to you.
Korean Pearl: Read and review whenever it's convenient. I'll enjoy it any time. Don't forget my idea about Ax falling for Maya!
Anonymous-cat: Actually, when I said I couldn't please everyone, I was addressing some moron who said that they hated my story. If it were the first chapter, okay, people are entitled to opinions, as we agreed, but really: WHAT KIND OF IDIOT READS TWENTY-TWO CHAPTERS OF SOMETHING THEY KNOW THAT THEY HATE? Kind of like Baranth with 'The Self-Insertion'... Different name though.
Al Fangor: I'm going to quote a fellow author here (I forget who) and ask: Did you actually read my story or are you just advertising? I happen to really like Cassie, and am not interested in joining a Cassie Haters' Club. If D.H. L'Orange wants to make that club, fine, but I won't be joining it. Sorry, Oh Burner of the Cassie Books and Recruiter of New Members. (Oh, by the way, Ricky did go to the Pool. Were you intending to say Tom? Ask properly, and I'll explain.
Wraithlord42: I realize that you haven't reviewed in a while, but I just want to say the following: While I respect the individual's free will and right to personal opinions, I CANNOT BELIEVE THAT YOU SINK TO JOINING A CASSIE HATERS' CLUB! I hope that you are proud of that choice, because everyone who reads this now knows that you are The Tactical Officer In Charge Of Nasty Pointy Things For the Stabbing And The Slashing And The Ow-Ow-Ow-It-Hurts-Me (according to D.H. L'Orange's Bio.)
D.H. L'Orange: I like your story, too, but I disprove of this Cassie Haters' Club idea. I think she's sweet and her character is quite well developed. She's very spiritual. Still, as Anonymous-cat and I have been 'discussing', everyone is entitled to their own opinion.
galaxytree: Thanks. Perhaps you could provide some of this 'inspiration'? Yes, Elfangor had much more self-control in the Andalite Chronicles, but that was before he met Loren's brother and developed a mutual hatred with him.