The Hornets

Jeremie, Odd, and Yumi saw Sissi walking across the schoolyard. Her cane stood at her waist, dark brown with shiny varnish, and she limped like an injured soccer player. "Here comes our recovering mechanist," Odd announced as Sissi waddled over to them. "It's good to see you hobbling- err… walking around again."

"As long as I'm not wobbling like your dog, I should be good," Sissi griped in her bratty voice. Her eyes scanned the courtyard, failing to find the two people she was expecting. "Where are Herb and Nicholas?"

"They transferred. Herb got this scholarship to a better academy, and Nicholas got transferred on a sports scholarship," Jeremie explained.

"What! How can they leave me like that?! The traitors!" But the gut-wrenching thought couldn't be ignored. Was I holding them back?

"Calm down, Sissi. I'm sure you'll find new pets," Yumi smirked. Sissi raised an eyebrow and blinked. Her crossed arms, black attire, and the smirk were normal, but that smirk on Yumi's face seemed menacing. Sissi stared silently until Odd started talking.

"In either case, welcome back to Kadic academy, O Dragon Queen of the Cane." With a regal bow, everyone laughed at the comedic blonde.

"Well, if you clowns keep this up, you'll be my court jesters and cooks," Sissi grumbled.

Jeremie laughed, "I hope Odd's not the cook. Otherwise, you'll die from one of his concoctions."

"Hey! My brilliant ideas are flawless. Just you wait, I'll show you! Odd the magnificent will create something so spectacular that you can't even fathom it!"

Sissi sniggered as she leaned more on her cane. A slight grin graced her lips as she looked at the blonde like a spirit waiting for their victim. "Spell 'fathom'."

"F, a, fa, fan… Oh you know what I mean," Odd shouted as everyone laughed. Sissi tucked her hair behind her ear. She gazed at all of them, from Jeremie to Yumi. It felt surreal being with them. Then Ulrich came up next to Yumi. Sissi's quiet reflection shattered. It captured her heart for a brief second. The Dragon Princess swooned slightly, but she shook her head. Ulrich's eyes looked at the ground, his hands in his pockets, and his shoulders shrugged up. Sissi had known Ulrich long enough to know when he was anxious.

"Well, we have to go to the track. See you later, Sissi," Jeremie waved as Odd followed him. Sissi caught an uncomfortable look from Yumi. The Japanese turned to leave, but Ulrich caught her hand.

"Sissi, do you mind? Yumi and I need some alone time," Ulrich asked politely. Sissi clamped her lips together before nodding and walking away. "Yumi, I… I wanted to say that I… um… I wanted to say that I… I hope that you have a good day."

"Uh… okay? Thanks? Uh… I need to get to class, see you later." Yumi ran off, leaving Ulrich alone before Odd and Jeremie called for him.

Sissi rushed to her room. The weakness in her legs worsened when she climbed stairs. She had to go slowly, much to her dislike. "Stupid stairs." Her leg pain wasn't the actual problem though. She thought it would go away with her whole situation: flung back in time, hit by a bus, and entering a whole new reality with Lyoko and XANA. That's enough to make anyone distracted.

She shook her head again and focused on the tedious action of climbing stairs. The pain was good, a good distraction anyway. Anything to forget that feeling when she saw Ulrich. He loves Yumi. Just let him go. As somber as it was, that thought was the reality. There was nothing she could do to change that. Finally, at the girl's hallway, she trundled to her room, fishing for her keys as she opened the door. She slapped the door shut before plopping her bottom to her bed. The pain in her legs couldn't distract her, and she actively changed the screaming topic in her sobbing brain to a different one: Yumi's behavior. "She doesn't trust me… I mean, more than normal." She remembered all the snide comments, the growls of annoyance, and the 'subtle' threats from Yumi before the Incident.

But Yumi was never like this. Truthfully, she didn't care much for Herb and Nicholas, but Sissi still found it weird that Yumi would call them names. She thought back to earlier. Yumi was the one who thought she was using Jeremie to get secrets. While Yumi was right, her actions suggested something more. The principal's daughter sighed loudly, groaning at the slight back pain. Sissi just had to be more careful with the information she found; otherwise, Yumi would cause all of them to shut down on her.

She could probably tell them; they know enough about the factory to believe her. But they wouldn't trust her. It would take time, so it was better if they didn't know. That and she didn't know if she would be any help to them.

Sissi sighed and got up from her bed with the help of her cane. She couldn't go to class for another week. In the meantime, she was told to rest, which meant a lot of alone time. Looking around her room, she found her next project.

Ulrich was in the locker room with Jeremie and Odd. The brunette was sulking, and the other boys couldn't figure out why. "Come on, Ulrich, if something's bothering you, tell us."

"Nuh-uh. I'm not doing that. Besides, I don't know if it's a good idea to tell you yet."

"Okay, what about Jeremie?"

"I'm not telling anyone about this, okay?" Ulrich sighed before leaving.

"Hey, Odd? Why did you tell him to talk to me?" Jeremie asked.

"What can I say? You're the shrink in our group."

"Yeah right, and you're supposed to be the comedian?"

"Of course! Everyone laughs at my jokes. I'm a funny guy, don't you know?"

"And yet you can't get a girl with your jokes," Jeremie laughed.

Meanwhile, Ulrich took Kiwi for a walk. In the forest, they lofted around as Ulrich looked at the sky. "How am I gonna tell her? Should I even tell her?"

YIPE YIPE YIPE! Kiwi came barking to Ulrich, lying down at the kid's feet. Harsh red bumps decorated the dog's furry body.

"Kiwi, what did this to you?" Then he heard the buzzing. Swarms of hornets flew towards them, barreling down on their target. "Come on! Let's get out of here!" Kiwi and Ulrich sprinted through the forest, not stopping for anything. Panting and gulping air down, Ulrich finally stopped by the mess hall when he heard no more buzzing. Kiwi limped behind him and plopped to the ground. More bites laced his body.

Sissi stood up and cracked the stress points in her back. All the posters were torn down. The shelves that occupied trinkets, photos, and vinyl albums now had gray pieces of metal ranging from parts of old TVs to strings and wirings. Her large mirror now stood at the dark corner of the room while a computer screen sat on the desktop with the motherboard tucked underneath. There were pieces of wrapping and computer hardware still scattered on the floor. But she would come back to that later. Thankfully, room inspection wasn't anytime soon. Taking her cane and leaving the room, she hobbled down the stairs just as Yumi rushed up. "Hey, Yumi, what's the rush?"

"Nothing." She hid a bag behind her back. Sissi's eyes darted from the bag to Yumi as she walked down the hall with her. "Don't you have somewhere else to go?" Yumi asked.

"Yes, and now I'm here," Sissi said as Jeremie opened the door. She spotted Kiwi lying on the bed with large whelps on his side. "What happened?" Ulrich explained the situation as she rushed to Kiwi's side. She slowly placed her hand in front of the dog, and after sniffing her hand, Kiwi relaxed under her gentle rubbing. "Poor boy."

"I brought pills and anti-venom compresses."

"Thanks, Yumi," Jeremie said as she passed the bag to him. Odd patched Kiwi up while Sissi examined his bruises.

"This is weird. Hornets don't viciously attack animals unless they threaten their nest," She said, "Ulrich, could you tell my dad about the hornets?"

"You think it's serious?" Odd asked.

"If bugs did this to a dog, imagine what they'll do to a person." Carefully touching the dog's whelps, Sissi continued her restless examination.

"Hey, Yumi, could I talk to you for a second?" Ulrich asked.

"Sorry, I have to get to class. We can talk later, okay?" she smiled but frowned as she turned to Sissi, "And aren't you supposed to be resting, Sissi?"

A stress vein popped out on the girl's forehead. "Yes, 'dad'," She grumbled, struggling back up with her cane. "Tell me how it goes, okay?"

"Will do!" Odd nodded. As both Yumi and Sissi exited the room, the two black-haired teens glared at each other. Then they left through opposite doors without another word. Some strange feeling lingered in the room, like a monkey licking a coat hanger.

"What was all that about?" Ulrich asked the boys.

"You know, Yumi. She's not very fond of Sissi, especially since she's been such a pain in the past. Give them some space," Odd replied.

As time went on, Sissi typed away on her computer to figure out Jeremie's codes, when suddenly, a scream came from the window. The groundskeeper ran at full speed from a horde of hornets. "What in the world!" Grabbing her cane, she swiftly staggered to the ground floor. Meanwhile, Ulrich ran as fast as he could. The hornets, charged with an angry venom, swarmed at him. As he jumped off the stairs, Yumi tackled him out of the line of buzzing fire. The two scurried inside and shut the door where Sissi saw the entire thing. "What happened?"

"Hornets. They took down Mike and they're more vicious than ever," Ulrich panted.

"Hornets don't act like this. Something must be aggravating them."

"Or using them. XANA," Yumi whispered to Ulrich.

"What?"

"Nothing, Sissi, make sure your dad knows about the hornets." She nodded but stopped and leaned on her cane. A half-lidded stare and a slight side smile adorned her face. "What?" Ulrich asked.

"Um, are you two going to stay like that forever or-" Yumi and Ulrich realized that they had fallen on each other, Yumi on top. She quickly got off of him as Sissi giggled behind the cover of her hand. "Ulrich dear, make sure that Yumi's okay while I tell my dad what happened." Then she limped away. A suspicion tension coiled around Yumi's body as she glared the privileged daughter down.

"You okay?" Ulrich asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine," She replied. "Don't you think it's weird that Sissi is so helpful and nice. I mean, she called you 'Ulrich dear' but wanted to make sure I was okay. What if she's doing this just to gain our trust?"

"Right now we can't worry about that. We have to get to the others."

"It's bad. Had Mike taken one more sting."

"The principal called for help. I don't know about you guys, but I-"

"You think it's XANA. Oh, come on, hornets have been around all the time. Accidents happen," Odd interrupted Jeremie.

"Not like this. They were after us. I say it's worth a shot," Ulrich replied.

"I'll contact Aelita." Jeremie sat down and typed away on his computer.

"I'm going back to class. Keep me posted, okay?" Yumi said walking out of the hall. Ulrich's gaze locked tight on her until Odd waved his hand in front of him.

"You okay? You've been off, Ulrich."

"I know… I just don't-"

"Give him some space, Odd. If he doesn't want to talk about it, don't pressure him." Sissi wobbled into the infirmary lobby. A gray bulky device was strapped to her back. It had a large lightbulb on it with different mismatching buttons like the ones on vending machines. Odd could have sworn they were the school's vending machine buttons. Tiny holes held what looked to be a speaker, but no one could tell from the metal casing.

"What's that? The battery pack to your beauty?"

"No, dog for brains. My dad said that the insecticides didn't work against the hornets. So, I have a different idea that might work," Sissi smirked.

"You have an ultrasound transducer capable of the hertz needed to ward off the bugs?" Sissi nodded to Jeremie's excitement. "Wow, does it work?"

"I don't know, but since I'm crippled, I'm giving it to you guys to see."

"Oh, so you need guinea pigs, is that it?" Odd rose his eyebrow with his hands firmly on his hips. Sissi rolled her eyes.

"No, idiot."

"Why give it to us?" Ulrich asked. His narrowed eyes made her glance around the room. Sissi gulped as her bones shook. Stop looking at me like that.

"You guys… are the most capable? Look, I don't know everything that happens in your gang, but I trust you guys. I know you don't trust me," She paused, "Actually, I know Yumi doesn't trust me, but I'm not the Sissi you remember."

"How do we know?" Ulrich asked. Sissi's eyes met his. They stared for a lifetime before the girl relented.

"You won't, and I know that. Just take this and use it against the bugs." She gave the backpack to Jeremie. "This thing should work. It has a limited battery life, so use it carefully. And don't get it wet." She thought of the sewers.

"Why would we get it wet? We're nowhere near water," Odd commented.

"Yeah, but knowing your dog, he has a tendency of licking everything and everyone," Sissi rallied back.

"Where are you going?"

"I'm going back to my room. I'm no use hobbling around in the yard with these hornets," Sissi answered Ulrich as she left the lobby.

In a flash, a pinging alarm rang from Jeremie's laptop. "Come on, let's get to the factory," Jeremie said.

"We'll stay with you. Those bugs are going to be a handful. And you're not exactly the fastest runner, you know?" Odd sniggered as Jeremie glaringly grumbled.

Odd, Ulrich, and Jeremie raced through the sewers, but as they got to the bridge manhole, huge nests of hornets nestled in the corners blocked their way. Dense hornet swarms buzzed ominously above the water.

"Darn it, XANA planned a surprise for us," Jeremie grumbled.

"What do we do now?"

"Hey, Sissi's box! Use it, Jeremie," Ulrich said. The blonde genius pressed several buttons on the mechanical backpack, and then a high-pitched noise beeped from it. Mats of bugs suddenly cleaved a path for the boys. "Whoa."

"Wow, Sissi's a genius! Huh, I never thought I would say that," Jeremie said. "Come on, I'll go between you guys." Buzzing threats echoed around the sewers, and the hornets noisily swarmed around the three but, thwarted by the machine, they couldn't touch them. As Odd then Jeremie climbed out, Ulrich noticed the noise from the backpack slowly die.

"The backpack stopped. How come?"

"Uh… batteries dead."

"What?!" The Hornets saw their chance and charged towards Ulrich. The brown head scrambled up the ladder and clawed out of the manhole before Odd and Jeremie slammed it shut. "That was close. This is definitely XANA. I'll call Yumi."

Yumi started running across the yard to meet the others. "Yumi! Wait!" she winced at the voice and turned around with furrowed eyebrows. Sissi limped to her, carrying another machine on her back.

"What do you want?"

"Right now? A strong, handsome man to carry me so I don't hurt myself." Hands clasped together and blinking at the sky with fake yearning in her voice sold the sarcastic act. Yumi's scowl stood firm. "I'm here to give you this. It should keep the bugs away."

"Does it work?"

"Have the others called you?"

"Yeah."

"Then it works if they're still alive. It has a temporary battery life, so be careful with it, okay?"

"Why are you helping us?" Yumi crossed her arms with her scowl flying at her. Sissi's eyes squinted as her fingers wrapped tightly around the cane. She spoke slowly and carefully,

"Why don't you trust me?"

"Maybe because of what you've done in the past?" Sissi folded her lips inward. "Look, I don't know what kind of game you're playing, but you're not gonna win."

"And what's 'winning' in your head? Ulrich liking me instead of you, or figuring out how you guys seem to know what's wrong with the hornets?" Eyes bore into eyes, venomously piercing the other. But Sissi huffed and looked towards the green forest by her right. "It doesn't matter either way."

"Why?"

"Because either way, I don't get what I want," Sissi answered sadly. Soon a familiar buzzing rose over the stillness. "Take this pack and get going, now!" She handed the machine to Yumi and hobbled back to safety right before the hornets started pelting the doorway. Through the glass window, she saw Yumi safely running towards the factory. Sissi plopped to the floor, exhausted. She couldn't move much with the cane, and her leg weakness made it more difficult to get around. Tucking her knees to her chest, she wrapped her arms around them. Her eyes drifted to the faint buzzing horde out the door. They angrily looked at her and buzzed away. Sissi took a deep breath and sighed loud and long. Her stomach churned as she felt familiar feelings flush to her frontal lobe. Her traitorous brain flew to a familiar chestnut-haired teen. She knew that he wasn't interested, but the feeling was still there. Sissi shook her head, picked herself up, and walked to her room. "They'll take care of it."

Soon, Sissi was in a familiar place, walking onto the academy grounds. Spotting Jeremie, Odd, Ulrich, and Yumi near the pillars, she smiled with a sigh. They did it; they were safe. "There she is. The woman of the hour, the returning princess of the academy, the Dragon Queen herself, the one, the only Sissi Delmas!"

"Odd, you don't need to be dramatic," Yumi said, "It's good to see you back, Sissi."

"It is?" Sissi said, truly surprised.

"Of course, we missed you around. This place got a little boring without you," Ulrich said.

"And without you and Odd fighting, we don't have any entertainment to see," Jeremie smiled.

"Well, you can always have Kiwi bring a bug's nest to make Odd scream like a little banshee," Sissi joked. The four Lyoko warriors looked at each other for a silent moment then burst out laughing. "It wasn't that funny," Sissi said, pretending not to know the real reason they were giggling their hearts out. Then she saw Yumi's glad smile and simpered. A small sign of trust… or at least the start of it.

Continued...