My name is Ax.
Actually, my full name is Aximili-Esgarrouth-Isthill. Not a typical human name, as you might think. It is because I am not human. I am an Andalite. And I am also the only one of my kind on the planet earth.
This sometimes proves difficult for me. As an aristh, I am expected to be brave and strong, but also cultured. I try to live up to these expectations, but every so often I notice the wind rustling the leaves of the trees in the forest I live in, and wish I were back home with trees that could speak back to me. The variety of earth's natural inhabitants is stunning, but I miss the simple things like the stoola trees framing the ponds, and the kafit birds flying freely through the air.
My human allies have treated me well, and I am very grateful for that. They have opened their lives and their hearts to me, and in some instances, even their homes. (Cassie's father makes the most wonderful chili) The least I can do while I am here is to learn the most about humans that I can.
I do not want to worry my friends, most importantly, Prince Jake. But they seem not to trust me to take care of myself while I am in human form. This is unfounded, I think. How could they find my human morph dangerous, with its tottery, unstable legs, when in Andalite form my deadly tail strikes fear into the hearts of those who are familiar with the great Andalite species? Human thinking can be backwards, at times.
The bus would be arriving shortly. It is a covered structure with rotating rubber objects at the bottom. Humans exchange money to step into the bus in order to sit inside, which involves resting on the fat deposits that are located near their lower back. I had learned this while doing surveillance as a harrier. I had also been able to find money on the ground, and was in possession of a "five dollar bill."
I had dressed myself earlier that morning with clothes that Rachel had given me. She had given them to me soon after I had bought my copy of the World Almanac, a most invaluable book. I think that I have been getting better at putting on the artificial skin, and I made sure not to put my underwear on my head like I did last time. My friends became very upset when I did that.
The bus rolled up, and I managed to climb the stairs with relative ease, proud that I had mastered my balance on these flimsy legs. I put the five dollar bill into the machine as I had seen others do, and began to walk forward.
There was a clattering noise.
"Ay," the bus driver grunted. "Ain't you gonna get dat?"
I turned around very carefully, remembering that looking behind me would almost always result in the loss of balance.
"I have inserted the five dollar bil-luh. Billll-uh. And now I require a seat. Eet."
"Yeah, but you put too much money in, you gotta get your change. It's all over da floor." He jabbed his finger toward the ground, pointing to many round, shiny discs that littered the floor. "Don't you want it? You're makin' a mess," he said, in rising agitation.
The human seemed very anxious that I receive the change, so I picked them up and put them in my pockets. Rachel had shown me how I can deposit small objects into them.
The bus driver turned toward the front of the bus, and muttered, "Whack job…"
The bus had a few other humans in it. Some sat together making mouth sounds, some sat alone. The bus jerked forward and I was caught by surprise- the sticky floor soon met my face violently, and a few of the humans laughed. So much for keeping my balance.