10-7: Sister
I'm actually a cheerful kind of person, so I'm no good at tragedies. Oh great, I spoiled it! Just act surprised anyway.
(((-7-)))
Yumi and Ulrich waited at the bus stop. They tensed as the 2884 showed up and proceeded to drop off its passengers and take on new ones. Jira stepped off carrying a shoulder bag and looked around for her sister. Yumi stepped forward.
"You must be Jira. I'm Yumi and that's Ulrich. We're Janika's friends. She told us to wait here for you because she's away on a two-day field trip with a small group of kids at school."
That was the excuse they'd thought up. It wasn't that bad, but then it wasn't that good either.
Jira laughed, throwing her braid dismissively over one shoulder. "I never expected her to pull something like this to get out of the trip home. It's just as well, I suppose, since she wouldn't have gone anyway."
Both teenagers stared at her in astonishment. Ulrich stepped forward, stuttering, "Y-you mean she's really s-staying?"
Jira handed him her bag and began walking in the direction of the school. "She called home this morning on her cell and begged Mom and Dad to let her keep studying at Kadic. She made some sappy excuse about having friends and actually enjoying herself. So they reconsidered. But since they'd already gotten the tickets for the bus, they sent me anyway."
Ulrich placed his hand on the girl's arm. "Janika actually has a cell phone?" he asked, shocked.
"Well, yeah! Doesn't everybody? She got it when she was sent here, but it's not like she ever uses it. I leave, like, twenty messages every week and I only catch her when she's in her room. She might as well have a cord-phone since she never carries it around. She's so stubborn!"
"You have no idea," Yumi muttered. "Wait a sec! She told us when she first came that her parents were separating or something?"
"Well, they were, but Mom got pregnant some time ago and it made Dad think over everything. They started going to counseling and decided to stick together after all. We're gonna have a baby brother!"
The black-haired girl looked at her friend, a bit confused and surprised at Jira's openness. Good thing she couldn't remember Lyoko or else the whole world would know about it by now. "Uh…congratulations. So you were just going to stick around for a day and hang out with her?"
"Pretty much. But since she's gone, I guess I'll just hang out with her friends." She cocked her head and looked at them shrewdly. "I feel like I've seen you guys before. Funny…I had the weirdest dream on the way over here and I think you two were in it."
They grew apprehensive and Yumi shuffled her feet a bit, thinking fast, but Ulrich saved the day. "I'm sure Janika sent you a picture of our group. Besides, you look a little familiar too."
Jira laughed raucously at that. "Maybe because I'm the twin of your best friend!"
The Japanese girl smiled at her. "You could stay in Janika's room tonight. Since you look exactly like her, no one would question you."
The girl who had the appearance of their lost friend considered their words. "I suppose I could masquerade as my sister for twenty-four hours. It's not like I haven't done it before."
(V)
Aelita and Jeremy took two-hour shifts, searching through all the data they could find. There were plenty of places to search on Lyoko and the near-void of the Digital Sea.
They were both red-eyed and tired, but refused to give up. Giving up meant that Janika was dead, and they couldn't accept that. The blonde teen insisted that she could have survived if there was a fluctuation in the Tower's modulator, especially when Odd entered.
Aelita remained silent, though, offering neither reassurance nor pessimistic remarks. Not until her fourth shift, that is. "She's not there. Jeremy, we've scanned all the Regions a dozen times. Janika isn't there."
"Then we'll scan them a dozen more times! We're just not looking hard enough. She has to be there someplace. Aelita, we can't relinquish this search, not for anything."
The materialized A.I. said nothing, but continued to look.
(V)
Odd sat on his bed. Kiwi sadly wagged his tail beside him, trying to discover what was wrong with his master. "She's gone," he told his canine friend. "She's gone and I didn't even get to say goodbye."
His eyes stung, but he refused to let the tears fall. Guys didn't cry. They just felt all the pain inside, kept it bottled up. Janika couldn't, not with her Special Ability active on Earth. She could have killed people with her Bloodlust. "I'm out of control…"
"Jeremy said he could find her. Do you think he can?" Kiwi didn't answer. He probably didn't understand the question. But he licked Odd's hand to comfort him and the punk hugged his dog tightly.
"She's alive. She has to be. Janika…"
I'm not sure how many of you guys liked this bittersweet ending, but be assured that there will be a continuation. This is not the end! Poll: Some say love makes the world go 'round. What do you say? (I think it's insanity, which is the only reason druggies and highway perverts exist, but everybody needs a little insanity in their lives or else they'd die of boredom)