Don't own the characters.

Part 3

Zach had a secret and the gang all knew it. It was a fact that Zach had been diligently working on something for awhile now and he wouldn't let anybody know what it was or why.

"What do you think he's up to?" Magenta asked suspiciously.

"I don't know," Ethan said, "But whatever it is, it's not very big."

"Why do you say that?" Layla asked curiously.

"Because it fits in his bag," Will answered for his friend, "Ethan and I have seen him stuff something in his book bag on a couple of occasions. What do you think he's doing?"

"Maybe Zach's working on a surprise for somebody," Layla suggested.

"Like who?" Will asked with a grin.

"Magenta," Layla chirped.

"Yeah right! He's not that romantic," Maj snapped, "And if he's developing romantic tendencies then he'd better not be making anything for anybody else but me."

"Maybe he working on school work," Ethan suggested.

"Who? Zach?" Will laughed, "No way."

"Idiots," Warren growled from behind his latest novel, "Why don't you just ask him?"

"I've tried," Magenta griped, "He keeps saying 'nothing.' He's up to something."

"You guys are just paranoid," Warren said standing up and throwing his bag over his shoulder, "I'm out of here."

"Whatever," Maj grumbled, "Thanks for the help."

"You know that Zach comes to us with all his problems, right?" Warren asked everyone.

"Yeah. So?" Maj answered for the group.

"He'll let us know when he's ready. Just be patient," Warren said with a smirk, "I'm sure the glo-worm isn't into anything life threatening. Give him some privacy for Christ's sake."

After Warren left the group sitting on the school steps, the remaining friends all sat in uncomfortable silence.

"He can bite me," Magenta snapped, "I want to know what Zach's up to and I want to know now."

"I hate to admit it, but I do too," Layla said with a giggle, "It isn't like Zach to keep secrets."

"Well, I'm in," Will said as Ethan nodded in agreement.

The group put their heads together to come up with a plan of action. They all agreed that the next day would be the beginning of Operation Find Out. Zach beware!

Tuesday

Mission:

Distract the subject so that others can look through his book bag.

"Hey Zach," Will greeted on the bus ride to school, "How's it hanging?"

"Pretty good," Zach said as he yawned, "How's it with you?"

"Can't complain," Will responded, "Did you enjoy that new XBox game I loaned you?"

"Dude! I loved it," Zach enthused as he turned to face his friend, "Final Fantasy so rocks."

"I know what you mean," Will grinned back as he watched Magenta advance on Zach's bag, "Don't you just love the fighting babes in the skimpy clothes?"

Maj was sent flying backwards before she could swipe the bag when an irate Layla barreled into her from the next seat.

"Will Stronghold!" Layla yelled hitting her boyfriend on the top of the head with a book with each sentence she made, "What a sexist statement to make! And what are you doing looking at half-naked girls on video games! I'm going to tell your parents! You pig!"

"Ow! Layla, ow! Stop it," Will whined trying to fend off his enraged girlfriend, "Ow! It's just a game! The girls aren't real! OW! OW! OW! OW! OW! OW! OW!"

"PIG!"

Still Tuesday

Mission's logs:

Mission a failure

Never make Layla angry again.

Destroy all video games with skimpily clad women.

Scratch that.

Destroy all video games with women in them so as to save your life.

The gang found themselves once again brainstorming to figure out a new course of action. Warren still refused to be a part of what he called a "silly bunch of twits' plans on invading the poor chump's privacy."

Wednesday

Mission:

Make mischief so that subject has to leave his book bag at the lunch table.

The next day at lunch, Ethan hung back as the rest of his friends went and sat with Zach. Even Warren had joined them today. Ethan walked calmly to the table and sat down his tray before he walked over to Warren who just happened to have Zach sitting next to him.

"Hey Warren," Ethan said smiling, "Can I ask you a favor?"

"What do you want Popsicle?" Warren asked looking up from his ever-present book.

"I can't get this apple juice bottle open. I think it's stuck. Would you give me a hand?"

"Sure," Warren agreed taking the bottle, "Why didn't you just ask Stronghold? He was closer to you."

"Oh…um…I didn't think about it," Ethan lied as Warren looked at him suspiciously as he popped the top off the bottle, "Thanks Warren."

"Welcome," Warren mumbled returning to his book.

Ethan pretended to walk around the table and trip on his feet. He purposefully sent the juice bottle flying so that it mostly poured all over Zach.

"Aw man!" Zach gasped as he bolted up from the table, "Dude! That's cold. Ethan!"

"Oh. I'm so sorry," Ethan apologized, "It was an accident. Why don't you go dry up in the bathroom and I'll watch your stuff."

"Better yet," Zach said as he grabbed his book bag much to his friends' disbelief, "I'll just go change into the clean clothes in my bag. I always carry a spare just in case as I was taught in Boy Scouts."

"Darn," Ethan groused before startling in surprise when he was spun around and hoisted into the air by his shirtfront.

"Some of the juice landed on my jacket," Warren growled in anger, "What the hell are you playing at?"

Still Wednesday

Mission's logs:

Mission is again a failure.

Who knew that Zach had Boy Scout tendencies?

Did find out that Ethan could run really fast and that he could hide his liquid form in very small places.

He won't be on Warren's good side for quite some time.

Magenta came up with a full-proof plan that would reveal Zach's secret once and for all. It would be on the next day.

Thursday

Mission:

Once again distract the subject so that an identical book bag can be switched with the subject's bag.

"Zach," Layla said as she pulled her tall friend to sit beside her on one of the lower walls in front of the school, "Can I talk to you for a moment?"

"Sure Layla. What's up?" Zach asked as he set his book bag on the wall beside him.

"I…I've been needing to ask you about…" Layla began as her boyfriend moved in for the switch.

"About what?" Zach prompted.

"Oh…um…about Will and I," Layla said as her boyfriend swiped Zach's book bag, "Do you think Will still finds me attractive? All he ever does is kiss me?"

"What?" Zach gasped as Will froze and looked at his girlfriend in complete horror.

"Do you think that I still turn him on?" Layla whispered in mortification as she realized what she was saying.

"I can assure you that Will finds you very attractive," Zach said nervously, "Why don't you discuss this more with Magenta?"

"I needed a guys opinion," Layla said as she witnessed Maj jerk the two bags out of Will's hand and put the decoy down for Zach to pick up, "I've got to go now. See you later."

Layla left a shocked Zach sitting on the wall wondering about her sanity. It was Ethan that discovered that Magenta had swapped for the decoy rather than the real bag. Warren wouldn't stop laughing since he witnessed the whole thing.

Still Thursday

Mission's logs:

Mission a failure.

God damn, son-of-a-freaking-BLANK!

How hard is it to switch a BLANK-ing book bag? How the hell do you switch a bag with the same BLANK-ing bag?

And why the hell did Layla bring up our love life?

Was that the best she could do?

Kill Warren Peace!

ARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHH!

Warren could take no more of his friends' idiocy and the next day at school he pulled everybody, including Zach, into an empty classroom.

"Okay. Spill," Warren demanded of Zach.

"What?" Zach asked in confusion.

"You guys 'outed' my coaching for the community center and now I want these idiots to stop trying to figure out what you're up to," Warren growled, "So, out with it."

"It's nobody's business, but my own," Zach snapped.

"You're seeing another woman, aren't you?" Magenta demanded angrily, "You're making things for her!"

"No I'm not!" Zach denied, "I'd never do that to you."

"Whatever! Then why won't you tell me what you're doing?" Maj said clearly upset, "I though you trusted me. I thought you trusted our friends."

"I do," Zach said softly, "Fine. Here."

Maj eagerly snatched Zach's offered bag and took little time in pawing through it. She pulled out Zach's secret and gasped in surprise. Magenta turned her shocked face towards Zach and was completely speechless.

"KNITTING?" Warren gasped doubling over in laughter, "These morons have been plotting to find out that you were knitting?"

"Shut up!" Zach huffed as he snatched up his small, pink creation, "Look! My grams taught me how to knit when I was a kid. She was sick a lot and couldn't really play with her grandchildren so she sat us all down to show us how to knit scarves, blankets, you name it. I was the only one who enjoyed it and that made her happy, okay?"

"I think it's cool," Warren said as he took the pink creation out of Zach's hand, "My mom taught me how to macramé once. I loved making all those stupid bracelets as a kid. Is this a blanket?"

"That's what I though it was," Layla said as she leaned over to examine Zach's work, "You are really good Zach."

"Um…thank you," Zach said blushing, "My grams always knitted a baby blanket for all her grandchildren. My aunt just had a baby girl, but my grams passed away last spring so my new cousin won't get a blanket. I just thought since Grams taught me that I would make the blanket in my Grams' place."

"That's so sweet," Layla gushed.

"So why didn't you tell us?" Will asked.

"I didn't want you to make fun of me," Zach admitted, "It's not everyday that you find a guy knitting a pink, baby blanket."

"I think it's awesome," Magenta said, "It's wonderful that you would do this for your cousin. I'm sorry that we all got paranoid. Especially me. I want you to know that Warren refused to help us until today. He said we had 'no right to invade your privacy' and he was right. I apologize."

"Me too," Will and Layla chorused together.

"I'm really sorry too," Ethan said, "I'd love if you would teach me to knit sometime."

"Really?" Zach asked as his other friends all nodded in agreement, "Sure. I accept your apology and I'll show you how to knit a scarf as soon as I'm done with little Kaylen's blankie.

To everybody's surprise it was Will who developed an amazing talent for knitting under Zach's tutelage. Go figure!

To be continued…

I need your help!

Okay people. This is your mission if you decide to accept it. What are some scenarios that you envision your favorite characters doing are getting into? Review or email and let me know. I will write the ideas that I love the most.

Thank you ahead of time for those who chose to help.

Love ya,

Fiery Peace