Twins:Takehiro
I still felt sorry I didn't do our monthly dare that day. Zoe must have been pretty depressed. But that day was when Ax suddenly got sick. And then we all got sick, one by one. Until Cassie and a certain Yeerk saved the day. Strange how some Yeerks are peacemakers.
Here's how the story went. While five of the Animorphs were sick in bed, Cassie bravely sneaked into the lair where the Yeerk pool was as one creature. A Yeerk. She rescued a Yeerk named Aftran who knew about us Animorphs because if Visser Three finished her off, he would know everything. And with Aftran's help, Cassie was able to save Ax from a sickness that could have ended his life.
And I won't tell you how because then Ax would be threatening me to never tell a single soul by holding his blade at my neck.
After we all got better, we went off to the beach to see where Aftran was. Who has now morphed into a whale and now lives her whole life in the ocean. Never expected to see the day some Yeerks would be so soft-hearted.
"Glad that was all over," I said to myself, dropping onto the couch and grabbing the remote. If I had to go through another day of flu, I'd suffer the bitter taste of Grandpa's remedy soup. Ugh! That was always the foulest thing I'd ever tasted! And for four days straight.
Heh! Everyone kept on trying to top each other with stories about who felt worse when they were sick. Well, when I gave them a flask of the remedy soup, they couldn't top my story with its stinking smell and bitter taste.
"Takehiro?" Grandpa called as he entered into the living room. He was holding a bowl.
"No!" I yelled when I sighted the bowl. "Don't tell me I still have to drink that stuff again! I had enough of your remedy soup! For god's sake, it tastes terrible!"
"Well, you should have thought that before you got sick. One must be healthy in mind and body at all times. I'm sorry to interrupt but...do you think you could give some rice soup to her?" Grandpa asked, giving me a smile and handing me the bowl.
"Her?" I uttered. And I soon knew why.
Zoe was in bed. Thermometer in her mouth. Icepack on her sweating forehead by a rod and string. Thick blankets over her. And a hot bottle wrapped in a blanket as her pillow.
"Kaoru?" I said, surprised to see her like this.
"Hey..." Zoe said weakly. "I think... Koff! I got a cold. Koff!"
"What did you do? Get caught in the rain?"
"Actually, yeah. Two days ago... Koff! Sorry... Didn't mean to bother you, Takehiro... Koff!" Zoe mumbled.
"It's all right. Just eat this and you'll get better," I told her. I pulled over a seat and sat down next to her. I scooped a spoonful of rice soup. I puffed a bit to cool the hot rice soup and helped her eat it.
This wasn't the first time I had to feed my sick sister. Colds can be a pest in the wet and cold seasons in Japan. She got them a lot after rains and during winter.
"...Someone knows that I'm a ninja," she suddenly said.
I dropped the spoon into the bowl. That traumatized me. Like I was struck by lighting.
"What?" I yelled. "When?"
"When you got sick."
I cannot leave my sister alone for four days without herself getting into trouble. Now she tells me someone found out that ninjas do exist!
"I'm sorry, Zack. I should have been more careful. Now that kid's probably gonna tell the media about me," she said and hid under the covers. She whined. "I blew it. The secrecy of ninjutsu and ninjas of Japan... I really blew it..."
I gave a sigh. She was taking all the blame so badly. I pulled the covers away, seeing her eyes look up. I gave her a brotherly smile.
"...Look, it's okay, Zoe," I assured her.
"No, it's not. Miaso won't forgive me when she hears this. Neither will everyone in Japan."
"Nobody will. If Miaso was around, she'd tell us we'd need to spellbind him. It's okay. I'll talk to this kid. I'll make sure he don't tell anyone about us ninjas."
"Don't have to," someone said. Behind us stood Erek.
"What the heck is he doing here?" Zoe screamed.
"How'd you get up here?" I asked sharply.
"The stairs," Erek replied. "Your grandfather let me in."
"Wait! You know each other?" Zoe yelled.
"Uh...sort of," I admitted.
"NANI?" (Meaning: "WHAT?")
"I never knew you two are actually ninjas in the flesh. I wonder if I should bribe you both to do something interesting for me," Erek chuckled.
I wondered where he was going about.
Erek may look like a normal kid if you first meet him. He looks like Jake, a little shorter though.
But Erek's an android. Part of a race called the Chee. And what you see when you look at him is just a hologram. Underneath that hologram is the real deal. Erek looks a little like some robot dog walking on its hind legs.
Now Zoe was panicking. She was freaking out when he said that.
"Please! You found me out already! Just don't involve my brother! You can expose me to the news! You can tell anyone! It's my fault you found out what I am! So there! Go ahead! Just don't involve Zack!" Zoe screamed.
"Zoe, he's not going to bribe," I said but she didn't listen.
"...Okay, I won't tell anyone," Erek said.
"What?" she gasped.
"Well, I don't think anyone will believe me unless I have some evidence. I only said that because I wanted to see your face. You should have seen it."
"Let...me...kill...him," Zoe muttered as she struggled to grab Erek by the throat but was far too weak to do so. I then told her to rest and led Erek out of the room.
"So, you know what we are, huh?" I asked.
He gave a nod. "The others don't know about this. I didn't tell them yet."
"Erek, can you not tell the others what we are?" I asked. "We...we don't think they're ready for that yet. About ninjas. We're already dealing with aliens. And...we kept an oath with some friends back in Japan...so-"
"Don't worry, I understand. I won't tell them. It just explains how you get the missions done so easily," Erek said.
I laughed meekly.
"But it's great that I got to meet a real ninja. It's interesting reading about Earth and everything stored in my brain," he said.
"So, you've been around for so long and never seen a ninja before, huh?" I asked.
"Well, I wasn't in Japan."
Ah, that reason.
"There was one thing that puzzled me about them. How does one ninja cross the water? And what kind of weapons do ninjas use?" he asked.
"Let's not ask questions about shinobi, okay?" I said. I did not want to spill anything about ninjas. Miaso would kill me.
Twins: KaoruAfter a week of recuperation, I got out of bed and back to life. Back to boring school days and daredevil stunts with Zack. Even if he was always acting weird since the night at the construction site. But who cares. At least now, he's spending more time with me. Other times, he spends with Marco and Jake for who knows what. Maybe just to play at the video arcade.
But still, as the days grew longer, so was the weirdness. I still had the visions. There was still weird news about animals running about with no explanation to their presence. Kids after being a member of the Sharing start acting freaky.
I don't know. Maybe it's just my imagination.
"Hey," someone shouted out. I closed shut my locker and met face to face with a boy. He was around my age, had blond hair.
And this was weird. No other guy in school would ever talk to me, being an outcaste, except Zack or Marco (with his stupid jokes).
"You're Zoe, right?" he asked. I didn't reply. I just looked at him. As usual to strangers at school. "I want to talk to you. About something. You're not afraid, are you? Come on. Near the dumpsters."
I raised an eyebrow. Where was this kid going about?
But I followed. If this kid was up to something, I'll make him pay dearly. We were around the corner of the school where I met the right of his friends. Three more boys. One girl. I zipped my lips shut and examined them cautiously, in case they were going to pull a fast one on me. They didn't.
"Ah, come on. Enough with the silence. Me and my friends just want to talk to you. We were deciding to ask you to join a club of ours," the blonde-haired guy said.
"We noticed that you never associate with anyone except your brother," one boy said.
They were talking about my life. Gossiping away what I have been doing in school for so long.
"Don't you get tired of being alone, Zoe?" another asked.
"It must be so lonesome without any friends," the third boy said.
"You can't always be an outsider. You gotta have friends," the girl uttered.
Those words were like stones and sticks being hurled at you.
"So the gang and I are asking you to join the Sharing. It will help you gain some friends, be popular and all. It will be a good opportunity. So what do you say?" the blond-haired boy asked.
"...Get lost," I replied.
They shunned, surprised at my remark.
"Zoe, you'd better think carefully. We're just trying to help you out."
"Why do I need help from a club? The Sharing? What kind of stupid name is that?" I asked rudely.
"It's not stupid," one of them hissed.
"You don't know what you're missing," the girl said. "You don't even have any friends here. The club has those."
"I have friends back in Japan, you jerk," I snapped. She shrunk away.
"Come now, Zoe. Do you really want to remain an outcast of this school? Everyone will look down at you till graduation and forever more. You need to be more social. Need to get along with people. We're asking you to join because we want to help you, Zoe. What do you say?" the blonde asked.
"...I'd rather drop dead," I said. I pulled a raspberry at them. "Get lost. I don't have time for a wasteful guild. Even if you force me into it, I'll never join with you dim-witted jerks. Don't waste your time bribing."
I turned away and walked off. I don't know what the big deal is about a single club. And I didn't need to join it because I wanted to change my reputation.
Before I knew, at the corner of my eye, I saw a hand. A fist.
POW!
I fell back, touching the sore on my face. I felt someone kick at my shin and I tumbled down in pain.
"Call us dim-witted, will you?" they said, ganging up around me. "You have the nerves to mess with us."
"We gave you an offer," the blond-haired kid said. He kicked at my stomach. "Now you're backing out? What a weakling you are. Not as tough as you are, aren't you?"
"Well, we let you be an outcast. Don't come to us begging if life becomes hard for you."
I wanted them to shut up. I wanted them to leave me alone.
"Maybe we should ask your brother instead, wimp," one of the guys said. "I doubt that he'll back off being a member."
That was when I lost it. I was too angry to say anything. Too upset to demand him to leave Zack alone. It was like my anger just snapped.
I sharply glared at him. And kicked him right at the face.
As he collapsed onto his bottom, the others backed off, scared. I wiped off the blood from my mouth and stood up slowly. I stood fixed in my position, standing boldly and angrily. I only glared and clenched my fists tightly. The kids reared away slowly. Fear was gripping at them. Soon, they gathered up their courage. I could see why. One against four. How low they were.
But I held my glare. They were still shaking. Afraid that I'd hurt them.
"HEY!" someone cried. Coming around the corner of the school was Zack. Jake and Marco were behind.
The boys groaned and cursed. But the blonde-haired guy gave one smirk at me, before he walked up to Zack.
"Hey there, Zack, that's your name, right? I was just asking your sister to join a club called the Sharing. She didn't take the offer. So we're thinking of asking you. You'd give a good impression to her."
Zack kept quiet. The atmosphere was quiet.
Marco was about to say something but was stopped by a rise of Zack's arm. Zack took a few paces. Then, he fired a fist into the boy's stomach. That was a surprise to me, to all of us. As the blond-haired boy stepped away, clutching his stomach, Zack glared angrily at him.
"No one hurts my kid sister and gets away with it! Now get lost before I give you a knuckle sandwich!" he suddenly snapped.
This was the first time I ever saw him stand up so bravely. He was always a wimp when the bullies were after him. He'd never raise a fist to defend himself in school grounds.
Now...I saw a new side of him.
The gang then took off, tails between their legs. Zack came up to me with a concerned face. I heaved out a smile.
"Who'd thought you'd get all so tough?" I chuckled lightly.
"Zoe, are you alright?" he said.
"Yeah, yeah. Just hurting in the ribs but I'm alright."
"Whoa!" Marco cried out at the back. "Never knew you had it in you, Daredevil."
"Do you need to go see the nurse?" Jake asked. I shook my head.
"No, thanks for asking. I'm more disturbed about something else."
"What?" Zack asked.
"You! Idiot!" I yelled, giving my stupid brother a light knock on the head. "What were you thinking? Those guys by now are on their way to the Vice Principal! I still can't believe you're my brother."
He just gave a smile. Took my arm and hurled it over his shoulders, helping me onto my feet.
"Then we're just go together in detention," he said.
I couldn't help but smile. Sometimes having a brother the same age is a good time.
Twins: TakehiroSince we came to this school, Zoe hadn't made any friends for the past months. More kids were avoiding her like a disease since she rejected the offer to be a member of the Sharing.
Tobias was the one who told us Zoe was in trouble. Being a hawk. And we made it in time before those kids would gang up on her. I couldn't let those goons get away with hurting her. I still couldn't believe I punched that guy. Man, if Grandpa hears about this, we'd be looking for trouble.
However, Zoe was able to silent those guys up with her appalling glare. So we didn't go to detention.
Now I know that she won't go to that Sharing if she was the last person on Earth. I was so relieved she didn't. Otherwise, I'd lose a sister and gain a Controller.
Few weeks have passed since then. With countless days of fighting the Yeerks (I've lost count).
It was another school day. Another boring day. And I flunk a test that day...
For Zoe, her day went as usual. Okay, it was a little different from any other day she had. She usually had lunch in the cafeteria alone while I ate with Marco and Jake. That's when Cassie insisted on eating lunch with her. I thought Zoe might finally make friends with her.
To my surprise, she refused and walked away. I felt sorry for her, not wanting to involve friends and still wanted to have friends. A tough time for her.
After school ended, I caught up with her in the hallway. We talked about our day and homework. It was then I came up with this question.
"Zoe, isn't it about time you make friends?" I asked.
"Huh?" she uttered.
"Back in the cafeteria. I saw Cassie wanting to eat with you but you refused. Not to mention it's been months and you haven't been with anyone else except me. Maybe you should just forget about the past."
"What about you? You're still holding on it too."
That's true. Our dad died when we were five. Or so we think. He disappeared one day and never came back. We don't know why. But since then I told myself that I didn't need a dad anymore. To tell you the truth, I hated my dad when he went away.
When I was a kid, I was jealous with most kids who had fathers. Ever told someone that your dad was good at something? Competed someone by saying, "My dad could do this way better than yours"? Some of you might have.
I hated my father for that. For leaving our family. I told myself I didn't need a father. I have Zoe and mom. Of course, Zoe believes that our dad's alive if there was no body found. I don't care whether he is or not anymore.
"You're right... I should be making friends now," Zoe sighed. "Sorry, if I was too harsh just now."
"It's alright," I said.
"...It's just lately a lot of things has happened. I don't know why..."
"Hey, you're not alone on this. I'm still confused on what the heck is going on here."
She giggled. It made me feel glad that she giggled. We rode off and reached the forest.
"So, Zack, I'll see ya later," she told me, taking her bike from the bike rack.
"Where are you going?" I asked.
"To bike around for a while. Tell Grandpa that-"
"That you'll be late. I know."
"Thanks. See ya later." She took off.
I took off to Grandpa's bungalow, our home now. Since Grandpa was Japanese, he made the bungalow like a house from Japan. Most of the doors were sidling doors and there was a room where we can train. Wind chimes were held outside over the garden. Trimming crooked small trees in flat vases is his favourite pastime.
I guess Zoe needed some time off. She's been looking stressed later. By now, I think she would be doing whatever she was doing.
A/N: New chapter added here. Hope you'll all enjoy this one, since I modified a lot. Just to let you know, no one from the Sharing will be asking the twins again to join.