AN: Yeah … this was one hard chap to write, so I apologize for the wait. Here's the new chap!
CHAPTER NINE
Day 6
There was one day left before the deadline for the wormhole to open, and despite their best efforts, no one had been able to come up with a way to get the wormhole to work. It was a Monday morning, and everyone aside from Josie was in class. The red headed girl was asked to stay in Katrina's room until they came for her. However, Josie was getting rather impatient, and an idea was brewing in the back of her mind.
She let her nature pull her out of the dorm room and head down the stairs. Because class was in session the halls were empty. Still, Josie knew enough to be cautious of running into Principal Eiley – he hadn't been too happy when he saw the visitor yesterday. Fortunately Eiley didn't seem as concerned about it as the group had expected. Still, he was suspicious, and Josie didn't want to take that chance.
She felt lucky that Z's classroom hadn't been moved since her time period. She knew that Katrina had advised against it, but at the moment, it seemed like a good idea to Josie. She stopped outside the science room and took in a deep breath before knocking.
She poked her head in, and looked around. "Professor Zachary?" She asked.
At the voice many bored students looked up. Then whispers began as she walked across the room to Z's desk where he was attempting to unlock a stubborn drawer.
"That's the girl who beat-up Vinny Pearson!"
"I heard it was about his sister, Jovee."
"No, no, I heard …"
"Professor Z?" Josie asked.
"You know you're not supposed to be in here, Josie," He said distractedly.
"I know, but I was just wondering if I could borrow your cell phone. Finley mentioned you had one. It will only take a moment, I promise," Josie replied.
Z finally looked up. "What do you need a phone for?" He asked.
"Don't worry, Z. It's all been approved by the others. It will only take a moment, and I'll give it back to you when I'm done," She said almost innocently.
Z narrowed his eyes, and then slowly pulled the phone out of his pocket and handed it to Josie. "Return it at the end of class, okay?"
"Sure, no prob," Josie said, taking the phone and pocketing it. "Thanks." She quickly backed out of the room with a grin. Once she'd found an empty girl's room, she pulled a strip of paper out of her pocket. She swallowed, quickly peeked around and then turned on the phone.
"Only one person can help me," She said stubbornly. She dialed in the number and let the phone ring, impatiently tapping her foot against the floor. After a few moments, the answering machine picked up.
"Hello, you've reached Corrine -."
"-And Marshall!"
There was a slight chuckle. "Wheeler. We can't come to the phone right now, because we're enjoying our anniversary on the beaches of Florida. However, if you leave a message we'll get back to you as soon as we can."
Josie raised her eyebrows, and then waited for the beep that usually followed the recorded message. When it did come, she took in a deep breath. "Perfect time to go on vacation, guys! Look, I really could use your help. It's me, Josie, but not exactly the Josie you remember. I came through the ever-so-friendly wormhole, and now I'm stuck! I need that 172 IQ of yours, Corrine, to figure out some way to get back. You can get in touch with me through Z. Hurry! Oh, and … you're married?"
Josie quickly flipped the phone closed, and looked around. Then she put the phone away and slipped back upstairs.
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Principal Francis Eiley squinted at the scribbled number on the sheet of paper. When Josie and Vinny had been brought in yesterday, he had taken down the number of 'Jade's' parents. He'd called the number, which in all actuality was just Katrina's cell phone number. He'd called then and there, but when no one answered, they allowed him to believe no one had been home. Now that he finally had the chance he decided to try calling again.
He called in the numbers, and waited for someone to pick up. Finally Katrina, who was in a study hall, took the call, ducking down low so that no one would notice.
"Hello?" She asked.
"Mrs. Trent?" Eiley asked on the other line, tapping his pencil against the table top. Katrina straightened up, and waited a moment to get her bearings.
"Ah, yes, who is this?" She asked, attempting to sound more professional.
"Principal Eiley from Blake Holsey Preparatory Academy. It is my understanding that your daughter, Jade, was staying here for a short visit."
"Yes, that's true. Oh dear, she hasn't gotten herself into trouble, has she?" Katrina asked, unable to keep a grin from her face with how believably worried she sounded.
"Yes. I regret to inform you that your daughter has gotten herself in a fight with one of our prominent children," Eiley replied.
"I was afraid this would happen," Katrina said. She picked up her pencil and began to try and solve her math homework. "Is everyone alright?"
"Nothing too serious," Eiley reluctantly admitted. "A bloody nose."
"Oh no! Not my Jade, I hope," Katrina said.
"No, no, it was the other child," Eiley replied quickly. Katrina let out a relieved sigh. "Uhh, Mrs. Trent, I was wondering if perhaps it would be possible for you to retrieve your daughter. In all honesty, I was not aware of this visit at all."
"Oh no?" Katrina asked, feigning confusion. "I sent a letter to you three weeks prior. Did you not receive it?"
"No," Eiley replied, sounding baffled. "I was not aware of your daughter's arrival. Is - is it possible this letter may have gotten lost on the mail?"
Katrina almost started cracking up laughing with how gullible the old principal was. "Yes, I suppose so," She said in reply, barely containing her amusement. "Well next time I should better call, hmm? The post office can be so unreliable now a day."
"Yes," Eiley agreed. "As I was saying, though, would it be possible for you to come and pick your daughter up?"
"Oh, I don't know," Katrina replied. "I mean, Jade was so looking forward to this visit. We were thinking of transferring her there. I just don't know. Not to mention I'm so busy at work and all. Perhaps I could come for her tomorrow? It would give her time to ready herself, and I just so happen to have the day off. A week earlier than planned, perhaps, but convenient to you. Does that sound alright?"
"Yes," Eiley said with a laugh. "That sounds just fine."
"Good. Then I shall call her and inform her of this arrangement. Thank you for notifying me of this little incident. It's very clear you are an attentive man of your job."
The little man couldn't help but be flattered. "Why thank you, ma'am."
"Bye." Katrina clicked off the phone and slipped it away, before finishing her math homework, feeling great about pulling one over the all-knowing principal.
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Josie moved quickly around the school. The bell would ring soon, and while she didn't want to get caught by one of the Science Club members, she did have a purpose. She stopped to peek into another room. Seeing her target, she grinned and leaned back against the wall, waiting.
After a few moments the bell went off and the door opened, students spilling out. A few kids glanced her way, but she paid no mind. She waited until she caught a glimpse of platinum blond hair before moving out. She followed in quickly behind him, grabbing his arm and pushing him against the wall.
"Hey!" He exclaimed. His eyes narrowed when he looked at Josie. "What are you doing here?"
"We need to talk," Josie replied. Vinny rolled his eyes, pushing past her and walking away. "Don't walk away from me!"
"Didn't we do enough talking yesterday? Or did you just not get the point?" Vinny asked, glancing back.
"So I'm stubborn. And I'm looking out for a friend," Josie replied.
"I doubt Jovee's at all concerned about this," Vinny snapped.
"Well you'd be wrong," Josie said. "Look … could you slow down?"
Vinny slowed to a stop and turned, waiting for her to continue. "I have to be to class in three minutes."
"Then I'll make this brief. I can understand the need to distance yourself from a parent. But don't you think you're being a little extreme? You're shutting out your whole family. Don't you care at all about Jovee?" Josie asked.
"Of course I do," Vinny snapped. "She's my sister."
"What about your other sister, and your Mom?"
"Yeah, sure," Vinny said with annoyance.
"So what do you have against your Father?" Josie inquired.
"None of this is your business," Vinny replied.
"Like I said – I'm helping a friend," Josie repeated.
"Even if Jovee was worried about this, she wouldn't send some girl she just met to try and talk to me about it. And she would do it herself," Vinny pointed out.
"I never said I was helping out Jovee," Josie said. Then she sighed. "It's complicated. Could you at least pretend you're listening? I can't relax if I don't try to do something."
"Fine, but make it quick."
"Vaughn – err, your Dad, always had trouble getting along with his Father because Victor Pearson was distant after his wife passed on."
"What do you know about that?" Vinny demanded.
"It doesn't matter," Josie said quickly. "The point is that Vaughn would do anything to get his Father's praise. He tried to be the best at everything – wrestling, science – anything that his Father could not insult him for. I – err, my cousin – could see the pain he was going through. Now you're putting him through that again."
"You don't know anything about my Father," Vinny replied.
"I know a lot more about him than you do," Josie said. "But that is completely beside the point."
"I have to go," Vinny said, moving away.
"Will you consider it?" Josie asked.
"Will you leave me alone if I say yes?" Vinny countered. Josie nodded. "Then I'll consider it. Now stop stalking me."
He moved quickly away, leaving Josie to relax a bit. Now she just needed to let things work themselves out. Nathaniel appeared beside her.
"Where did you come from?" Josie asked.
Nathaniel took in a few sharp breaths. "You need to come quick."
"What's wrong?" Josie asked.
"It's Z," Nathaniel panted.
"Is he in trouble?" Josie demanded.
"… Sort of," Nathaniel said. He grabbed her hand and started pulling her along. "You really need to take a look at this."
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"Alright, someone tell me again what exactly happened," Josie said slowly.
"The bell rang, we got up to leave, Z asked us to stay behind because he wanted to talk to us, and then he just … changed," Douglas replied.
"I didn't change," The six year old insisted, crossing his arms over his chest.
Josie couldn't help the laugh that escaped her. "This is definitely Blake Holsey weird," She said.
"Have any suggestions?" Finley asked; turning to look at her while the little boy started climbing onto the desks.
"Well first you have to do something about his classes," Josie said.
"Maybe we could say they had to be canceled?" Nathaniel suggested.
"Better yet," Finley said. "We can send them to the lunch room for a study hall. Explain to the lunch ladies that Professor Zachary had some last minute business to take care of at home, and had to leave them in charge of his students."
"Oh sure, Eiley would never notice the difference," Douglas said sarcastically.
"It worked last time," Finley countered.
"Hold up, this has happened before?" Josie inquired.
"Sort of -."
"Stop that!" Nathaniel exclaimed, darting towards the back of the room. The others turned around to see Noel Zachary standing on top of the desks with a container of some sorts.
"Noel, give me the flask," Douglas said, reaching out. The boy jumped back with a laugh. "You can't catch me!"
"I feel so sorry for his mother," Nathaniel said.
"Could you take this seriously?" Finley demanded. "Go tell the lunch ladies the new plan, okay?"
"Yeah, and while you're at it get on the loudspeakers and announce to the whole world the secrets of Blake Holsey High," Douglas said.
"Noel, could I please see that?" Josie asked, trying to snatch away the article from the child's hands. He bounced back while shaking his head. "You give me that or I'll pummel you to the -."
"Talking to a child, Josie," Nathaniel reminded her.
"You can't hurt me," Noel taunted, leaping across to the other desk top. At that moment Katrina chose to walk into the room. She stopped dead at the door, took in the scene, and then walked out of the room, shaking her head.
"Get over here you little twerp!" Josie exclaimed, reaching for the child's shirt.
"Can a student even beat up their teacher? Isn't that like, child abuse or something?" Nathaniel asked.
"Lunch room, Nathan," Finley snapped.
"Fine, fine. But surely you must see the humor in this whole situation," Nathaniel said.
"Go!" Josie, Douglas, and Finley chorused.
"I'm goin', I'm goin'," Nathaniel murmured, darting quickly out of the door.
A crash behind them had the three heads swiveling to where they'd left Noel. In front of the table was a broken beaker.
"Oh man," Josie said; face scrunched up in a pout. The boy giggled menacingly before sneering.
"That's just one," Noel said, holding up another beaker, the container he'd had before miraculously gone.
"I'm never having children," Josie vowed, causing Douglas and Finley to exchange a humored look.
"Professor Zacha -?" The girl stopped mid-sentence, stepping into the room. "What's going on in here? Where's Professor Zachary? And who's that kid."
"Mildred Denley," Douglas grumbled.
"This is Professor Zachary's son, Aiden. Professor Zachary had to go home – family emergency. Instead your class will be having a study hall in the cafeteria," Finley said quickly. The girl tilted her head to the side.
"If Professor Zachary had to go home, why did he leave his son here?" Mildred inquired.
"You know what, I'm not really sure," Finley said. "He just asked us to look after him while he stepped out."
"Is he supposed to be hanging upside down from the table?" Mildred asked. Then she finally noticed Josie who was jumping around the room trying to catch the elusive Noel Zachary. "Aren't you the girl that got in a fight with Vinny Pearson?"
"Mill Dill, don't you think you could get a move on, now?" Finley inquired.
"Doesn't seem like you have things under control," Mildred countered, crossing her arms over her chest and ignoring the comment from Finley.
"Nope, not in control. No control here!" Noel piped up, before throwing up all over the floor. He groaned, and sat up on the table. "I don't feel so good."
"Well that's what you get for jumping all over the place. Now sit still for a minute while we try and find some way to clean this mess up," Josie said. The boy nodded obediently, looking almost green.
"I'll get the nurse," Mildred said.
"Don't bother. We already sent Katrina down there."
"But he just got sick," Mildred replied.
"Yeah, but he was acting funny before," Douglas replied.
"You're going to be late for your study hall," Finley announced.
"What's with the dork-fest?" Chuck Burger demanded, the rest of the class beginning to collect behind him.
Finley cleared his throat, moving quickly to stand in front of the vomit before anyone could notice. "Professor Zachary had to run home. He says class will have a study hall in the lunch room."
"Alright!" Chuck exclaimed, quickly heading away with the rest of the kids. Mildred stayed behind, narrowing her eyes.
"You guys are up to something," She said.
"Don't want to ruin your perfect attendance record, do you, Mill Dill?"
"Quite it," Mildred snapped. She looked at the clock, however, and saw she had less than a minute to get to class. Glancing back at the others she quickly darted out of the room.
"Suck up," Douglas murmured.
"We're here," Katrina called, walking into the room followed by Jovee.
"Who did what?" Jovee inquired.
Josie gestured to Noel, and then the mess along the floor of beaker and barf.
"Nice," Katrina acknowledged just as the bell rang. She grinned. "Thanks Z, now I have an excuse to get out of Math."
"I feel sick," Noel replied.
"Oh, don't worry, honey," Jovee said, maneuvering her way to his side. "We'll get this all cleaned up in a minute, okay?"
"They're mean," Noel said, gesturing to Josie, Finley and Douglas.
"Well that's because they're boys and a bully. They don't know how to take care of kids," Katrina said.
"Hey!" Douglas and Josie exclaimed. Finley simply shrugged.
Nathaniel darted into the room. "All taken care of," He said.
"Now what?" Josie asked.
"We wait?" Douglas suggested.
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Corrine stretched out on the blanket, before settling back down and allowing the warmth of the sun to cover her. Beside her, Marshall was wrapped up in a new book on quantum mechanics. The couple had greatly been enjoying their holiday from work.
Marshall put down the book and turned to his wife. "Three more days left. You ready to give all this up and go back to work?" He asked her.
"Not really," She said, turning on her side to look at him. "You didn't forget Grant's going to be stopping up tomorrow with Tamara and the kids, did you?"
"Yea, I did," Marshall said with a groan. "I don't see why he feels he has to ruin our anniversary."
"I thought you two worked everything out last time," Corrine said.
"Everything was worked out. But it's our anniversary – our getaway from everyone and everything."
"Sure, that's why we get at least three kids coming up and asking for your autograph everyday," Corrine joked.
Marshall smirked, taking Corrine's hand into his. "Besides all that, I just want to relax."
"And we've relaxed for two weeks. Aren't you excited about meeting with your brother again? I know I can't wait to talk to Tamara," Corrine said.
"Yeah, I have a few things Grant and I could discuss. It's just all going to be over too soon," Marshall replied.
"Well we'll just have to enjoy the last of it while we can."
"Have you checked the phone messages yet? Finley mentioned something about calling today."
"No, not yet. I'm sure he's still in school."
"We should probably check. You know how he'll get if we don't check in," Marshall said. Corrine laughed.
"He worries too much. Just give me a minute, I have the phone here somewhere," She said, turning on her side to search through her beach bag. She pulled out her flip phone and began to check through missed calls. She frowned when she noticed there was a message from Professor Z.
"Looks like Z called," She said, her eyebrows lowered in confusion. Marshall leaned over her shoulder.
"What's he calling about?" He asked.
"I'm not sure, there isn't a subject. Let me check." Corrine put the phone to her ear, replaying the message from Josie. Slowly her frown deepened. "It's from Josie."
"Josie? Is something wrong at Pearadyne?" Marshall asked.
"Not that Josie, Marshall," Corrine said quickly, shoving the phone at him. "Listen." She replayed the message for her husband, his face suddenly darkening with each word.
"Oh no," He said finally, handing the phone back to Corrine.
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The group was sitting around, trying to keep Noel from becoming hyper again while the phone began to ring. Noel, the first to jump up, snagged it off of his desk and turned it on.
"Professor Zachary?" The voice on the other end asked, sounding a little confused.
"Hello," Noel replied, looking back at the group.
"Z, what's going on? We got a message from Josie saying she came through the wormhole. What's she talking -?"
"Is that my parents?" Finley demanded, quickly stepping over to Z's side. "Give me the phone."
"No!" Noel snapped, tugging the phone back.
"Give me the phone," Finley repeated, becoming quickly involved in a game of tug-of-war with the six year old.
"Finley?" Came the confused voice over the phone.
"Noel, give him the phone," Katrina cooed, stepping closer to the little boy.
"No! I talk on da phone."
Give … me … that … phone!" Finley snapped, jerking the phone out of the kid's hand, causing himself to fall back into the bookcase while Noel fell down on the floor, his eyes quickly watering up.
"Now look what you did!" Jovee exclaimed; she and Katrina falling beside the small child, shooting dark glares at Finley. He rolled his eyes, trying not to feel bad, and put the phone to his ears, turning away.
"Mom?"
"What's going on? You better tell me the truth, Finley Mathew Wheeler," Corrine said in a sharp voice.
"Well, it's sort of a long story, Mom," Finley said, glancing back at the group.
"Josie's not really there, is she?" Marshall asked.
"What?"
"We got a phone call from Josie saying she came through the wormhole, and was stuck here without a chance to get back," Corrine said, sounding worried.
"Did you?" He asked, turning a look to Josie, sitting in the corner with her head in her hands.
"Is she there?" Marshall pushed.
"Yeah, she is. She's sort of resting right now, though."
"What is going on?" Corrine demanded.
"Okay, okay, short version? Josie from 2004 came through the wormhole. We weren't too worried because Professor Z said that Josie told him back in 2004 that when she went to the future she was there for a week before the wormhole opened up. But then things started … reversing themselves. Douglas was an elf, Nathaniel became a pyrokinetic, Katrina became a cat, Jovee had to release pent up stress. Nothing's happened to me yet, but Z's been turned into a six year old."
"… Oh boy," Corrine said.
"What'd he say?" Marshall asked.
"Josie's there and now everything's been put into reverse," Corrine said quickly.
"I knew we shouldn't have sent you to Blake Holsey," Marshall said into the phone.
"Yeah, that's great. Anyways, Before Z made his …" Finley glanced at the kid who was now happily sucking on a lollypop. "… transformation, he had this theory that Josie being here and learning so much about the future is somehow altering the way thing have gone in the past year. To add on top of everything it turns out the wormhole won't be opening up, and that we have to be the ones to find a way to open it – without letting Josie and Vaughn find out."
"Why can't you ask Josie? Wouldn't she know the answer?" Corrine asked.
"Douglas is really against that. In all honesty, you weren't even supposed to know about this."
"Put Josie on the phone," Marshall commanded.
"Big Josie, or -."
"The other one," Marshall said.
"Josie, my parents want to talk to you," Finley called.
Josie looked up, seemingly confused, and then slowly walked over and took the phone in her hands. "Hello?"
"Refresh my memory, Josie. How did you get through the wormhole?" Marshall asked.
"Marshall?"
"Yeah, it's me."
"Is Corrine there?"
"She's right next to me. Could you answer the question?" In a way Josie wasn't liking the way Marshall spoke to her like she was a child. All things considering, though...
"Lucas and I were working on a project in Z's office and the wormhole opened up, pulling me through," Josie explained.
"Hold on a minute," Marshall said. The line fell silent, and Josie had a suspicion they were discussing the situation together. After a moment Corrine came back on the phone.
"Marshall and I are going to try and catch a plane into town tomorrow afternoon. I'm sure we'll be able to get in before classes end. Until then we'll try to come up with a way to help you, alright?"
"What'd they say?" Finley asked.
"You're parents are coming into town tomorrow to try and help," Josie replied.
Finley frowned. "But they still have three days of vacation," He said with a frown.
"That's fine," Josie said. "I can't wait to see you, Corrine … we really need to talk."
"So I'm guessing," Corrine replied with a laugh. "We'll see you tomorrow."
"Alright," Josie said.
"Will you put Finley on for a bit?" Marshall asked. Josie quickly agreed and then handed the phone over. Then she moved back to check on Noel. The little boy was now playing with some puzzle on the solar system that Katrina had pulled out for him. She took a seat back at a desk, and glanced at the clock to check the time. Unfortunately, the clock seemed to be stuck at six. She frowned, before turning back to Katrina.
"What time is it?" She asked.
Katrina glanced at her cell phone. "Uhh … twelve eleven. Why?" She looked up and met Josie's eyes. The other girl looked back at the clock, then Noel, and then the clock again. Nathaniel noticed the confusing look, and glanced at Katrina, who also seemed unsure. Josie climbed up on a counter and pulled the clock down. She turned it over just as Finley hung up.
"What's she doing?" He inquired.
The others shrugged. Josie fiddled with the clock for a minute, and then hung it back up, muttering, "I hope this works," As she did so. As soon as the clock hit the wall, Professor Z sprouted back into his normal self. He looked around; eyebrows narrowed, and then pulled the sucker out of his mouth.
"What, eh, just happened?" He asked.
"You were six again," Nathaniel said plain and simple.
"Right," Z said, climbing down from the desk. "Let's … never speak of this again, okay?"
The kids started laughing.
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Mrs. Randall tapped her fingers against the table, glancing across from her. "So Corrine said she would call when they get in," She finally said.
Vaughn nodded. "That's good. I'm just still confused about why they're cutting their vacation short."
Josie shrugged. "I'm sure it has something to do with whatever the kids are up to."
"So it's not just Jovee, then," Vaughn said.
"It's all of them. The weirdest thing is that I feel like all of this has happened before," Josie said.
"You think this was when you'd … gone to the future?" Vaughn asked, seeming doubtful.
"Maybe," Josie said with a nod. "I just wish I could remember what it was I had to do. Then I could help – if that is what's really going on."
Vaughn nodded and the two fell silent. Finally Josie met Vaughn's eyes. "I'm sorry about flipping out on you – at the labs. I was just stressed."
"I know what you mean," Vaughn agreed. "And you've been working so hard lately. At least we don't have to worry about Microne anymore."
Josie nodded. "I can't believe all their stuff got wiped out," She said, shaking her head. "Still, it's good for everyone, right?"
Vaughn smirked. "Yes, but don't you find it odd that everything happened the day the students went on a field trip to the labs?" He inquired.
Josie looked at him, a small smile gracing her lips, the look on her face showing she knew he what he was getting at, but she was also interested in what really happened.
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A drop of water fell from the ceiling. After a moment, the janitor looked up, meeting Josie 2's eyes. "Checkmate," He said.
Josie 2 just grinned. "Play again?" She suggested, moving the pieces from the chess board and re-setting them with her child-like smile. The janitor nodded, and the two started over again.
While Mrs. Randall and Vaughn discussed what had been going on with their children, and the janitor and Josie 2 played chess, Josie peered out the window, her mind reflecting on the whole time she'd been there. Despite the fact that everything had been fun, she just wanted to go home, and she couldn't resist the desire to return home to her friends.
Katrina sat up in bed, watching Josie. "Nervous?" She asked.
Josie nodded, looking back. "What if the wormhole doesn't open tomorrow?" She asked.
"You can be my new roommate," Katrina suggested jokingly.
Josie smiled a sad smile. "That would be great," She said before looking back out the window. "But I can't stay here forever."
"We'll figure it all out," Katrina vowed, quickly turning off the light.
"Yeah," Josie agreed, climbing away into her bed. Still, the doubt was there.