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Odd One Out

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Disclaimer
I don't own Code: Lyoko. No-sir-ee-bob.

Summary
AU Past.Yumi and Ulrich. Jeremy and Aelita. Odd feels like some sort of fifth wheel and it's driving him mad. Little does he know, this creates the perfect opportunity for X.A.N.A., and Odd finds himself stumbling into something he's not sure to escape with his mind intact.

Author's Note
Alright, I bet you can tell I can't really get around to updating often. –dodges any thrown items- I'm concentrating on my totally not CL fic right now, because those reviewers are scarier somewhat. (More pressure if you know what I mean.)

Thanks SO much to my reviewers – American-Kitty, Eddo, Dragon C. Chan, and 'guest'. Thanks especially to my unknown guest for the long review; made me feel great! You should get an account for PMs or something.

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Odd One Out
Feeling Alone?

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Odd had been sitting in silence on the cold, blue ground of Sector Five for what seemed like almost an hour. Of course, though it seemed that long, in reality it was perhaps a grand total of ten minutes.

Odd was actually very…bored. In Lyoko. Truth be told, he hadn't thought that would ever happen.

Of course, there were no monsters anywhere to occupy him – a thought that triggered many questions. Why weren't there any monsters? He was in Sector Five. For that matter, why was he in Sector Five in the first place? And why, why did he have to be stranded over the digital sea with no escape?

"Hey, Carmelita?" the blonde signaled her, as she jumped slightly at his voice.

"Yes, Odd?" the android girl replied, sounding almost excited to be talking again.

Odd questioned, "Is there anyway you could get us out of here?" He noticed her face pinched up slightly.

"Well, I haven't found a way. I've always been in Sector Five."

Odd opened his mouth to say something, but decided against it. The uncomfortable silence reigned once again, and Odd directed his gaze to the digital sea - the only changing thing in the mundane environment of Sector Five.

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At this time, an hour really had passed and gone, leaving Odd as bored as ever. Of course, he had no idea of how much time he had actually been in Lyoko – three hours. Three hours of boredom and few words exchanged between the pair; Odd wasn't really sure how to talk to Carmelita. She wasn't like Ulrich, Yumi, Jeremy, or even Aelita. He wasn't even sure what he would talk about if he felt he could.

"You can't sleep in Lyoko, right?" Odd interrogated, though he already knew the answer. Lita slowly nodded her head, as if trying to recall exactly what 'sleep' was. Odd sighed deeply and dramatically as he turned on his side and closed his eyes. Sleep didn't come, and he knew it never would in his current location.

Odd wondered exactly what had happened to the others. He really was worried by now. Had they been attacked?...Killed? The blonde shivered slightly at that thought. No…they couldn't have died. They always lived.

Always…

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In the boys dorm hallway of Kadic, Ulrich fumbled in his pocket for the keys to the room he shared with his best friend, Odd. He growled in frustration when he realized he had left his set in the room. (1)

The brunette knocked on the door to his dorm room. "Odd, it's me," he spoke, providing confirmation. He received no answer, however. "Odd…I forgot my key. This isn't funny."

Still receiving no answer, Ulrich leaned back on the door with a sigh. Odd must've gone somewhere that night, too. The athletic teen trudged down to hallway to another room, cautiously knocking on that door. Several banging noises echoed from the inside, along with Jeremy's muttering voice. The door opened soon after, revealing a disgruntled blonde with his thick-rimmed glasses absent.

"Jeremy, can I sleep with you tonight?"

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"Lita, you know I'm from Earth don't you?" Odd started another conversation with his only companion. The brunette girl nodded. "What do you think would happen if I was never materialized back? Would I lose my human identity and become a program like you?"

Carmelita paused, lost deep in her mind with her face blank. "It…It is possible. But you'd probably have to stay in Lyoko for over a month or so. Or at least that's my idea. …Don't worry, Odd. I'm sure they'll come back for you."

The android's last words hit hard in Odd's heart. But what if his friends had died? What if the world was in danger, and there was nothing he was doing about it?

What if they'd left him there on purpose?

Odd shook that thought of his head the moment it appeared into existence. Sure, he wasn't exactly as much of a part of the group as they were, but they wouldn't leave him. Even if they no longer cared about him, all of his friends had good hearts – they wouldn't be able to go through with it.

Still, the thought hauntingly stayed, regardless of how outlandish it was.

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Yumi swiftly dashed out her front door with a quick 'Bye, love you!' and rushed off to school that morning. She was wearing her usual black attire; still no makeup whatsoever. Yumi never claimed to be girly, anyway.

The dark-haired teen was running somewhat late that morning, something she chided herself for since classes started so late on Saturdays; she couldn't sleep last night. A slight blush rose on her cheeks – she had been thinking of Ulrich. Now that she knew he felt the same way…

Her thoughts halted abruptly as she arrived in the school courtyard. Yumi soon spotted her group of friends – though they seemed to be one member short.

"Hey, guys," greeted Yumi as she placed down her schoolbag and sat by Aelita, "Where's Odd?"

Ulrich was the first to speak, "I'm not really sure. I don't think was in our room last night – I left my keys so I had to stay with Jeremy. I thought he'd be back later…but I haven't heard from him since."

"You don't think it was XANA, do you?" Aelita questioned about the main source of group's troubles.

"No," Jeremy spoke up, "I did a scanner check this morning and just an hour ago. No activated towers." Silence followed the genius's statement, all of them pondering the fate of their friend.

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Odd had no plausible idea how long he had been trapped in Sector Five, but he did know it was several hours at the least. His worry for his friends peaked; he felt as if he'd go insane if he had to stay confined for another minute.

Lita was nice company, though she didn't speak much. Occasionally, Odd would catch her giving him an unusual look, but as soon as their eyes met, she turned away. He figured he was probably the only human (well…virtual human, anyway) she'd seen in perhaps years.

He really wondered about that android girl. She herself said she could predict future events – even read people! He shuddered at her comment about his friends. Was she right?

…Wait. Carmelita said she had been watching them. But for how long? And why? Odd decided he would feel awkward asking those questions, so he refrained from voicing them.

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For the brief time before they parted ways for differing classes, Yumi and Ulrich had the privilege to chat.

"Ulrich," Yumi started, "Why the change of style?" She hadn't really noted the fact earlier, but she now realized it wasn't his usual kind of attire. In fact, it looked somewhat…nerdy. Yumi giggled.

Ulrich looked annoyed. "I had to stay with Jeremy, remember? All my clothes are in my room. Lucky for me, Jeremy has some clothes that aren't quite as…ah…" Yumi giggled more, knowing what Ulrich was planning to say, though he felt uncomfortable saying it.

"Ulrich, no worries. I love you no matter what you wear."

"Even if I wore purple like Odd?" the boy countered.

Yumi's face scrunched up slightly at the thought. "You have to admit, that only works for him." Alas Yumi's classroom was to the right and Ulrich's to the left. "See ya, Ulrich! And don't worry…we'll find Odd!" spoke Yumi as she turned in the opposite direction, the girl thoroughly hoping her words would be true.

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Even though Saturday classes were so short, Ulrich found the time dragging along even slower than on weekdays. Perhaps it was because of the hope that maybe, just maybe Odd would be back in their dorm room when Ulrich returned there.

When the final bell rang at last, Ulrich jumped from his seat, earning a smirk from Mrs. Hertz. "Eager to leave, are we, Ulrich?" she joshed, though Ulrich didn't really care. He was the first from the classroom, followed closely by Jeremy and Aelita. They soon met up with Yumi, whose class actually ended five minutes beforehand.

"No news, huh?" Yumi questioned sadly, as everyone shook their heads.

"Jeremy, maybe you should do another scan…" Aelita started, still going with her XANA theory.

The blonde genius sighed. "I told you, nothing. But I'll try again." Tapping keys on his laptop with lighting speed, Jeremy had started the super scan in less than a minute. "It's just as before; no activated towers."

"Do you think something human could've gotten him? We could be going about this the wrong way," Yumi supplied, and Jeremy nodded.

"I think that's the most probable…though plenty harder. We don't even know where Odd went last night," Ulrich added.

Aelita said nothing on that matter; she still couldn't shake off the sense that XANA was the one responsible, despite all evidence against it.

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"Jeremy?"

The blonde in question abruptly turned from his computer screen at the sound of Aelita's voice. Running a hand nervously through his hair, he answered the door to his dorm. "What do you need, Aelita?"

The virtual girl looked unsteady, almost as if she was choosing the right words to say. "Ah…um…well, can I come in, Jeremy?" Jeremy opened the door wider in a gesture of confirmation. Aelita hurriedly came in, sitting on Jeremy's bed, who had closed the door behind her. The pink-haired girl held her head in her hands.

"Jeremy, its XANA," was all she said.

Jeremy's expression quickly changed from confusion to worry. "More memory visions?" he questioned.

"No, it's not that…" the girl began, searching for words, "It-it's just a feeling. Can we go to the factory, Jeremy? Please?"

The blonde looked into her pleading eyes, contemplating his decision. Classes had ended; it would be unspeakably easy to sneak out like they usually did.

"Sure, Aelita."

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(1) – If you remember, Odd left his room by the window, leaving Ulrich effectively trapped outside. Poor guy.

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Authors Note II
Well, it's been sitting around for awhile, andI finally posted it. Sorry, ya'll. Poor, poor Odd; trapped in a 2x2 square over the virtual sea with a non-talkative android as his only companion. The guy seriously needs love right about now.