A message from Yami Horus:
Hi everyone! I just came to say I'm not dead and this story is not in hiatus! (I just had a serious case of writer's block! But really, that kind of block when you"re writing certain parts and it flows like water, but the one you're supposed to be finishing remains unfinished for unknown reasons) Hope you're still interested in this thing, I'm not so sure you even like it! xD
7. PLANS
"Friday night. So many things could be done on a friday night, proof of that are uncountable troubles that start at a friend's house, numerous plans that go wrong and are later a great story to tell or too embarrassing to remember; memories that start while chatting and sitting on the floor of somebody else's place. Meetings like this are surely a very poetic way of …"
"What are you reading…?" Ella questioned him as she found him cross-legged in the darkest corner of the shop.
"Nothing, just a book…" The dark-haired boy answered immediately and quickly while holding the hard-pasted-book up for her to see the cover, but not the text on it. The girl squinted her eyes,
but not to try and see the book's title, but to read the young man's body language —eyes hiding behind the book, hard shrug, rigid smile. Those were the behavioral clues of someone who was hiding something. More specifically, the boy's when he was trying to hide something.
"Is that from where I think it is…? From whom I think it is…?" A slight flinch, a stutter…
"Perhaps…" He finally admitted. She sighed.
"We already told you," she knelt to see him face to face, "there are no shortcuts. There's no easy way to..." He eyed the floor, trying to evade her blue eyes.
The door's newly installed bell chimed. Ella turned around and found three familiar faces.
"Hi Ella!"
"Hi Sam, Mr. Mayor." She took a witch apron and hurriedly put it on with a smile on her face. "What can I offer you today?"
"Toad Juice, times five. Oh! And a Poisoned Apple too, please" The goth girl ordered, smiling more for social courtesy than actual joy or calmness.
"Hey Engel" Tuck called beside her "What are you doing down there?" The pale boy's neck almost snapped when he looked in their direction.
"Me?! Nothing, I- I was-" he muttered and stood up with an awkward movement and not finding the words that would justify his hiding place nor to respond at all.
"He was about to get this book back to the person he borrowed it from." Ella intervened with the same tone a mother would use to induce guilt on any child, all the while she cut the cold fruit that would turn into the ordered beverages. "And apologize for deceiving him" she added scoldingly. Engel rolled his eyes exasperated and sighed.
"Ok, I got the message, I won't do it again. No shortcuts" The boy repeated while putting up his hood and went inside the backdoor to take the beach umbrella from behind it.
"Tell that to Gigi, not to me." The blond added.
"Yeah, yeah…" his voice came weakly before he went out through the front door.
"What's up with him?" Tuck questioned with an arched eyebrow and pointing over his shoulder in his general direction with his thumb.
"English class." Ella responded. "He's strong points are neither spelling nor grammar; he has an essay about "Crime and Punishment" due on thursday and we have this… acquaintance who's tutoring him and happens to still have one of his old english notes from college, featuring the main ideas from the book..."
"Oh, I get it…" Sam nodded knowingly "Well, raise your hand whoever that's never been tempted to do something you shouldn't for the sake of your grades". They all laughed, the two friends paid and took their orders on a tray (made of 100% recycled carton). After they left the place, another presence came in from the back door.
"Why did you not raise your hand, my angel?" The one known as 'D' came and asked with a smug smile.
"Quiet, you devil!" She elbowed him with a little smile.
…
Valerie drank her Toad Juice furiously as she analyzed and assimilated the new information she had been given. So, Danny had explored an alternative timeline, and met an alternative adult version of her… (The juice was good). And they both almost died while fighting an... Alternative. Adult. Evil. Danny? (She took the spare juice still in the paper bag) Oh and the evil Danny had tried to ensure said timeline by creating the very event that made everything go downhill himself? (Wow, that Toad Juice was really good. Perhaps she should visit The Witch's Brew whenever she could from then on…?)
Ok, estaba empezando a divagar.
No more road trips with the Survivalist Club out of town. She left for two days — two days— and now everything was a mess. Unfair.
"He is not even supposed to exist" Jazz's worry and confusion resounded louder than the light murmur it had actually been. "...the mere idea of him is just a simple possibility, he exists in the realm of mathematical probability, not the reality! He's just a like the square root of a negative number!" She continued an paused as soon as she realized she was starting to panic. "Why is it happening?"
"Whatever the reason", interrupted Valerie who had yet to still her nerves from the impression the info had left in her "it is here and we must deal with... him." She surprised herself with her tough and wise-ish comment (she decided she deserved a juice; and also kicked herself for letting her mind wander all the time). "I think you guys already have something planned…?"
"Well… yeah, kinda…" Danielle responded. "I've been training doubles and Tuck's been reviewing some ecto-guns —you know, the new ones"
"Ok, anything impossible for him to either remember or know should work, so we'll have the element of surprise" The huntress thought for a minute. "I think… I have the last package Vlad sent me still unopened somewhere… The last thing he did, after his failed heroic attempt, was to send me a bunch of boxes with weird prototypes. I think we could make the stuff work with the new systems. What else do we have?"
"Mmm… my blood blossom patch bloomed a couple of weeks ago" Sam added.
"Why are you growing blood blossoms, again?" Tuck questioned— part horrified-part surprised.
"Just in case another plant-like ghost gets in my garden and over-shadows me, maybe?" The politician made an 'o' with his mouth. "I think I have enough for us to use, in case we lose ectogun power" The young major was about to say something, but was cut off by his goth friend. "And, before you say anything, Tuck, I mean lose, as in 'I ran at top-speed and dropped my gun'"
"How did you-?"
"-know you were going to ask why would we lose an ectogun?"
"Witchcraft" The teen boy declared. The others chuckled at the techno-geek's reaction.
"I wonder…" Jazz got everyone's attention. "… I've been having dreams about Danny… maybe my subconscious is picking some signs…" She looked up and added: "Dream interpretation is different for every person, but it is heavily charged with cultural symbolism. Maybe, I can find a behavioral pattern… "
"It's fine Jazz…" Valerie assured her. "In defense and counterattack, no idea is bad."
"Guys, it's getting late," Tuck sighed, his eyes were directed to the ceiling as if he could be able to see the sky and make someone hear his prayers. "Time to go with the City Council… ugh! Why having meetings at this hour? I mean, I know they have their own full-time jobs to attend to but, couldn't they pick a weekend? Maybe on Sunday?"
"Strange social conventions created by the sick western way of thinking of this time" Responded the goth.
"What she tried to say," the ghost girl talked "...was that she was not sure, but she understands."
"Actually, she was referring to the social phenomena known as social pressure; in this case, Sam was referring to the notion that sundays, or weekends in general, are meant to be days dedicated to relaxation, leisure and rest, never anything else related to work or the likes. I believe it comes from the beginning of the judeo-christian societies… which is fascinating. But yeah, we understand Tuck. Work is work."
"In my next life, remind me to stick to videogames, the life of a developer should be free of boring stuff and unnecessary interactions with people." the technogeek stated as he got up from his sitting place and went towards the main door. "If you need a lift home, the office's car is coming to pick me up"
"Yeah, thanks Tuck!" The Fenton girls were right behind the young politician, and the black-haired one was about to go with them too, but the host took her by the shoulder, gently, and whispered:
"Sam, can you stay a little more...?"
How the others left and at what time became a blur. Now, there was only Valerie and Sam looking at each other behind the main door.
"I guess it's time to discuss it" Said Valerie.
"Yeah…" Admitted the goth girl with resignation. She knew they would reach this point sooner or later. She always avoided talking about it, especially with Jazz, but she could no longer do it. Especially not with the hunter "...we both have a crush on Dani"
Silence fell for some moments, like they both were taking the time to comprehend what was happening in that moment.
"...and she seems to have a crush on me..." Valerie added, tentatively.
"I know" She responded. Oh, how she knew it! She knew Valerie had a thing for the hero-in-training. She and Danny had a thing, —a short thing, but a thing, nonetheless— And Dani seemed to have that in common with him; a thing for Valerie. A thing that made her boil inside with both jealousy and guilt. She was contributing to the idea that Dani was some kind of substitute —even when she was very well aware she wasn't that similar to Danny— the least she wanted was for the girl to have an identity crisis. She was supposed to be her friend, her mentor, her guide through the hellbound battlefield that was high school, and yet... "...I guess you have something to say to me?" She cut her thoughts, expecting Valerie to give her some kind of bomb like, she was dating Danielle or something like that.
"Actually, yes: you are a bisexual disaster," she declared with a very serious expression.
"Gee, thanks"
"...and she's technically… what? Two years old?. That's way far from legal."
"Ha-ha-ha… I thought you were being serious"
"I didn't want to make this conversation as awkward as it sounded in my head"
"Well, congrats, you just achieved it" The goth answered, unamused.
"Ok, I'll just say it. The three of us should talk. I mean, this is not an easy thing and I don't want any drama keeping us apart. Really, we're all friends, we should be able to talk this stuff" Sam couldn't help but smile at those words. Valerie was right.
"Yeah, we should…" She admitted "...as complicated as it sounds, we should" She sighed. "We're gonna need somewhere neutral and where we're al comfortable for it not to be awkward"
"Could it be the place where you get the juice? These things are great!"
"Now you're making this awkward again!"
"WAKE ME UP! WAKE ME UP INSIDE...!" A phone rang.
"It's my parents" Sam declared. "I'm supposed to go with them to some fancy dinner with their friends"
"Something tells me they'll lose their nuts when they know about your preferences…"
"Ugh! Don't mention it"
