The journey back to Ember's home was a long one; however I was thankful to be out of that Hospital. As we had tried to leave, many humans surrounded us and began shouting and asking questions, none of which I wished to answer. I ignored them, and made my way out to the taxi. I sat next to Ember within the Taxi, deep in thought, and beside her, sat Mr. Fredrick. He chatted on and on, about strange things I did not understand.
By the almighty silence yourself PLEASE… I growled in my mind. I remained polite though, and did not say anything.
"So my boy," Mr. Fredrick addressed me. "From where do you hail?"
"Hail?" I asked.
"LIVE boy, where do you LIVE?" he said a tone of irritation in his voice.
"I live where the ocean and the land sparkle with the light of the golden sun. Where the Ocean is the warmest of all and no sharks dare t-t-trespass my home." I replied calmly, thinking bout my home. Perhaps I began to daydream, as Mr. Fredrick looked at me oddly.
"Er… he used to live on a houseboat!" Ember said suddenly. "He just loves the water, so he lived out in a houseboat on the ocean." I looked at her, suddenly realizing exactly what I just said. I mentally slapped myself, but was thankful Ember was able to come up with a cover story.
"I see…" Mr. Fredrick said, eyeing me. "And what happened to your boat?"
"Er… in the recent violent storm it was destroyed, as was Ember's. It was fffortunate that we happen to be so close to each other at the t-time. That's how I found her." I replied. He thought about this for a moment, and then seemed to accept the bluff. He leaned forward and began to chatter with the driver of the taxi, and I sunk back in my seat, sighing silently in relief. Ember leaned close to me and whispered quietly.
"Nice job Ecco. That as really smart." She giggled. I merely nodded. "Hey Ecco you're getting a lot better at talking, you're barely stuttering at all anymore." She smiled at me. In all the recent events I hadn't noticed my speech improvement, but now that she brought it to my attention I now noticed I have improved greatly.
"So my boy, how's your leg? I'm still not sure if it was such a great idea to let you leave the hospital." Mr. Fredrick stated bluntly.
"My leg is fine, I assure you. It throbs slightly, but other then that I am in mo discomfort." I smirked smugly.
"Well, you're a tough kid aren't ya?" he asked with a chuckle. "Say boy, how old are you anyways? 20? 25?"
I fell silent, for I could honestly not remember my age. "…I have lived for many seasons, and shall live for many more to come." He looked at me, a skeptical look upon his face. Ember giggled at this.
"He's almost 22 Mr. Fredrick, he just likes to say that to confuse people." She giggled more.
"Ah… I see." Mr. Fredrick snorted. I looked at Ember with amazement.
Once again you keep my cover safe! Such cunning and intelligence, in such a small child! You have yet to cease to amaze Ember…
Finally the taxi arrived at Embers home. Ember helped me from the Taxi, while Mr. Fredrick gave the driver money. Then he led us up and into the house.
"You're lucky I have friends in high places." He told us. "The police wanted to keep this house marked off as a crime scene, but I was able to convince them to leave it be." He finished smugly. I did not answer as we walked into the living room. Ember sat on the couch, and I sat next to her. Mr. Fredrick then sat down on a chair next to the couch. "Well boy now that we're home I have a few questions I'd like to ask you." I did NOT want to answer any of this human questions however, and thankfully, Ember once again came to my aid.
"Ecco, it looks like your bandages need to be cleaned, why don't you go up to the bathroom and make sure they're okay?" she pointed at my leg. It felt just fine, but seeing the excuse to escape I took it.
"Yes, it feels strange, I best tend to it." Without another word I stood up and headed to the bathroom on the second floor. Mr. Fredrick snorted as I went. I limped slightly, but could feel the wound healing. I arrived at the bathroom, and walked inside, closing the door. I sighed in relief, and looked at my reflection in the object Ember called, a "mirror".
Oh Ecco… what shall I do? I must get rid of this human, before he may expose me. But he is a friend of Ember's; I simply cannot just order him to leave… I must think of a plan, and quickly, for I do not trust this human. Something about him…there is something sinister…I should not have left Ember alone with him. I must return.
I turned on and off the water pipes a few times, as to pretend I was cleansing myself. Then I walked out and walked downstairs slowly. I reached the bottom of the stairs and stopped at the corner, looking at Ember and Mr. Fredrick. They had failed to notice my return. I saw that Mr. Fredrick had now moved to be seated next to Ember. I watched silently as they talked with one another, but something felt very wrong.
By the almighty… what is this feeling? I sense danger, but I see none…what do I feel…?
I stood at the corner and watched them, not moving or making a sound. In all my life I have become very good at stealth. Even in this form I could make myself seem invisible and silent if I wished. Ember and Mr. Fredrick began to speak of her family. This upset Ember, and then Mr. Fredrick took her hand in his own, then brushed his other hand against her cheek. Ember seemed to shake slightly at this, and I watched curiously as Mr. Fredrick brushed his hand down her neck onto her shoulder as he talked to her. I understood that touch would often sooth a human, but Ember seemed to be becoming tense at these touches. She jerked back slightly and called out to me.
"Hey Ecco? Are you all done up there yet?" As she said this Mr. Fredrick backed away, and returned to his chair. His actions confused me, but I shrugged it off as yet another strange human behavior. I walked around the corner, still limping.
"I am here. I examined my wound, it is improving." I said calmly. She smiled at me and allowed me to sit next to her once again. Mr. Fredrick seemed annoyed at this, but then quickly changed his expression.
"So you two would either of you like something to eat?" he smiled. I did not like the smile at all, it seemed fake to me. However Ember did not notice this and giggled.
"Me! Me! I'm hungry!" She laughed as she waved her arm. "Ecco are you hungry too?"
Come to think of it, I was rather hungry…
"Yes, I am very hungry." I replied calmly.
"That's good, what would you two like? I'm ordering out." He grinned.
"I dunno, I like anything. Ecco what would you like?" Ember looked at me. I did not know what was deemed 'normal' human food, so I had to think carefully. But my mind wished for fish. I have seen humans fishing before; I doubt that fish is unusual…
"Fish. Any type of fish." I stated finally.
"Oh, a seafood fan eh?" Mr. Fredrick asked. "Seafood it is then." He walked over to the telephone and pushed buttons on it. He talked to it for a moment, and then set it back down. "Alright, it'll be here in about half hour, but for now, let's watch some TV." He sat back in his chair and turned on the TV. After a few moments of what Ember called "channel surfing" he finally settled on a station. "Oh good, I'm not missing the fight." He said suddenly.
"Fight?" I asked. "Who is fighting? And why?"
"Killer John and the Black Target are in the boxing ring tonight, and I put a hundred bucks on Black Target." He stated excitedly. I looked at him, then at the TV confused.
"It's Boxing Ecco, The two guys are fighting for money." Ember told me. She looked slightly un-amused with this.
"Why? Do they not have their own?" I wondered.
"It's for fame! Glory! The want of a good ass kicking!" Mr. Fredrick stated as he watched the TV intently. I watched as well, as two strange humans appear, and began to battle. I did not understand WHY these humans wished to battle, but I became intrigued by it.
So this is how humans battle? Fascinating! Perhaps I could learn something from this 'boxing' the TV shows us.
I, as Mr. Fredrick, became completely occupied with the TV and its boxing that we failed to notice Ember slip away. While he began to yell and become very excited about this, I sat in silence, watching and studying their moves and actions.