DETAILS CHANGED IN LIGHT OF SEASON 3!!!

Before I continue, let me just say one thing: you try out for a musical, and then see what happens when your fanfic readers are demanding more, while you have evening after evening of rehersals, then the shows themselves. Oh, in case anyone's wondering, our production of "Beauty and the Beast" was loved by all.

you

purplelover - How will they deal with X.A.N.A., indeed...

SamandMax0569 - Thanks. Glad to know I have everyone in character.

Odd: Yeah, the story is going pretty well (to random girl), huh?

Girl: I TOLD YOU NEVER TO SPEAK TO ME AGAIN!

Odd: Ohsorry!

Ahem, anyway...

deadinside72 - That would really be trouble.

katfish xX - (shrug) All I can say is, I'm far from an expert on foreign ways of communication.

Lyokogal7503 - I had Ricky all thought out since longbefore they even started airing Season 2. And, after awhile, I figured they'd be the perfect friends. XD

Mewberries - Hope you're all vented out there. Anyway, that's a good suggestion, but... well, you'll see what they'll do...

lyokobattler - Just you wait, Henry Higgins... XD Sorry, couldn't resist.

Rick73 - Ricky: XD

Kitty - (points to the top of the page, cause he's not making the same statement over again) ... -.-

urichXyumi plus long night 9 months later i was born - ..; Woah... long name...

And, without further adu...

My Cousin, Ricky

Chapter 5: X.A.N.A.'s Attack

"She's going to monitor you?" asked Odd, when the two were together in their dorm room. "You mean like, follow you around all day, keeping an eye on you?"

"Yeah, that's pretty much it," said an unhappy Ulrich. "This is bad, Odd. She could learn too much, snooping around like that. What if X.A.N.A. attacks and she finds out about him?"

"Then, you'll probably just have to stay out of the fight against X.A.N.A. until this whole thing blows over," Odd told him. "After all, it's not like she's monitoring me, Jeremie, and Yumi, too. How did you get into this mess, anyway?"

Ulrich sighed and said, "She said I seemed like someone who could 'benefit from her counseling skills'. Other than that, I have no idea."

In the empty science room, no one was there to notice the electrical outlet short out... or the black smoke that poured from it. Undetected, the smoke surrounded one of the nearby Bunsen burners and quickly seeped into it.
"What is a counselor, anyway, Jeremie?" asked Aelita.

"It's someone who helps advise kids on their life problems, if they need the help," he explained. "Apparently, someone thought Ulrich needed the help due to the fact that he's always being Mr. Mystery."

"Well then, a counselor seeing to Ulrich would be a good thing, right?" she said.

Jeremie shook his head and said, "The problem is, at the level of supervision she's giving him, she could go as far as finding out about Lyoko and X.A.N.A. If she finds out about something as serious as the Super Calculator, she could tell the authorities, they'll shut it down, and you're history!"

But, ever faithful Aelita just gave him a reassuring look and said, "Don't worry; I'm sure you and the others will figure out a way out of it."

Jeremie blushed, Aelita smiled, but her thoughts were suddenly interrupted by the very distant sound of a low growl and pumping. "Pulsations?" she asked herself, being overheard by Jeremie.

"What is it Aelita?" Is X.A.N.A. awake?" he asked, now alert.

"It would seem so; I sense pulsations, but I can't tell where they're coming from."

Hearing that, Jeremie launched the tower scanner and said, "We'll know in a few minutes."

As Ricky walked along the academy campus, he observed the different kids. He saw a lot of 13-15-year-olds hanging out, as well as a couple of 10-year-olds playing around the edge of the forest. However, what he should've been observing was were he was going--for he bumped into a 13-year-old girl.

"Hey, watch where you're going!" she snapped.

"Sorry," he said with a smile. "Hi, I'm Ricky! My cousin, Ulrich, goes to this school!"

"Oh, Ulrich?" asked the girl. "Yes, of course. I know him very well?"

"Really?"

"Yes, I'm his girlfriend," she said, striking a rather vain pose.

Ricky frowned and shook his head. "Cousin's girlfriend? No, I already met Yumi, and you're not her."

The girl scowled. "No, not that tomboy! I'm Sissi!"

The little boy's eyes lit up. "Oh... Lizzie! Cousin's wannabe girlfriend!"

Sissi's eyes lit up, too... with flames. "WHAT? Oh, you're going to pay for the comment, you little brat!"

"Bingo!" said Jeremie, as the scanner picked up the activated tower. "X.A.N.A. is definitely on the offensive. The activated tower is in the Forest Region."

"I'm off," said Aelita.

Jeremie nodded. "Right. I'll pick up Odd and Yumi, and we'll meet you at the factory. In Ulrich's current situation, it's probably best that he sits this one out."

Ulrich sat in the library with Miss Clark next to him. "So, where are your friends right now, Ulrich?" she asked. "Surely you'd have activities you kids do together."

"They have their own lives," said Ulrich. "I'm not the type who would snoop on what they do."

The door suddenly swung open and a little boy scampered in followed by an enraged teenaged girl. "Run, run, run as fast as you can! You can't catch me, I'm Ricky, the hyper, little man!"

Ulrich groaned. "What happened?" he asked.

Sissi chased the boy around the table and shouted between laps, "Ulrich dear... you cousin... is the most... annoying... little pest... in the history... of annoying... little pests!"

"What's all this ruckus?"

The chase suddenly stopped when Jim Morales appeared in the room. "Well?" he asked, then spotted Ricky. "Who's this."

Ricky stepped up to Jim with a somewhat hyper grin on his face. "Hi, I'm Ricky; I'm Ulrich's cousin!"

"He's a relative from the United States, taking part in a school program," Ulrich hastily explained.

Jim grunted softly, considering this. "Well, he's going to have to learn to behave if he's going to be tagging around the campus." He pointed to Ulrich and said, "As his older cousin, he's your responsibility."

"Oh, and then Ricky taught me this cool trick! Did you know that when you mix baking soda and vinegar together, it bubbles up and creates a lot of gas?" said Hiroki. He'd been having a lot of fun, since he and his new friend got together, but was getting on Yumi's nerves.

She sighed and responded in a flat tone, "Yes, Hiroki. I knew that."

At that moment, she felt her phone vibrate. A quick look at a text message revealed this:

S.O.S

XANA

J.

"Um, listen, how about I get some extra baking soda and vinegar at the store, so we can try it out?" lied Yumi. "Mom and Dad wouldn't want us using what we already have."

Her little brother stared at her for a moment, as if suspecting the fib, then smiled and said, "OK."

"Great!" she said, sprinting out the door. "See you later!"

Once the Bunsen burner, in the empty science lab, gathered enough energy, it burst to life, with long strings of flame stretching into the air. Moments later, it toppled over, setting the nearby desk on fire...

The heat is on...

Cogsworth: Oh, spare me the stupid puns!

625: What's with the talking clock?

Cogsworth: And, what are you supposed to be?

Ricky: Funny. XD

625: Thank you. I'll be here all week!