A Revisit

The computer genius typed and mumbled while Aelita sat next to him in his room. Knock-knock! "Come in," said Jeremie. Sissi, with her pajamas still on, strolled in yawning. She jumped onto Jeremie's bed and stretched out her body. Glancing back, Jeremie rose his eyebrow and shook his head. "Uh, Sissi, if you wanted to sleep, your bed's not too far."

Sissi smirked, "Well, since you're always at the computer, your bed doesn't have that weird boy smell. Your computer chair on the other hand."

Aelita sniffed, "She might have a point."

Jeremie grumbled while the two girls laughed. "Anyway, is there a real reason why you're here?"

"I'm making some electrical weapons for the others, but I need a break from it. I think you could do the same."

"No way. I have to figure out Aelita's anti-virus. The sooner I do, the sooner I'll be able to get rid of XANA once and for all," Jeremie said. Sissi rolled her eyes and looked at Aelita.

The Princess sighed for a moment, "Jeremie, maybe Sissi's right."

"I'm never going to get used to hearing that," Jeremie muttered.

"You could use a break. Besides, Sissi could use some of your help. Maybe you'll be able to crack it when we come back and-"

"I can't! I'm sorry, Aelita, but I can't! If I don't get this anti-virus then there's no telling what XANA will do, and everything I worked for will be gone!" The girls flinched at his voice. For a while, Jeremie's tapping fingers disrupted the painful silence. Aelita frowned at Sissi.

The Dragon Queen sighed, standing up, "You know, if you rush it, you're bound to make mistakes. You didn't materialize Aelita in a day, did you?" Jeremie stopped typing. "Take a break. You'll get there. Besides, it makes no sense to stress yourself out and then die from exhaustion." Sissi sniffed, "Besides, you could use a shower."

Jeremie sniffed himself and nearly launched out of the chair. "Hehe, maybe you're right. Wait, how come you didn't say anything about how I smell, Aelita?"

"Simple, with the amount of time she's around you, she's immune to it," Sissi smirked. Jeremie grumbled under his breath as Sissi threw some of his clothes at him.

"HEY!"

"Come on, stink boy. I'll go change while you shower. Today's a new day. Time to get some fresh air."

As Sissi, Aelita, and Jeremie strolled out of the dormitory, Sissi stretched her arms wide and long with a bright smile. "Ahhh, this is more like it."

"It is nice today," Aelita added.

"I guess," Jeremie groused.

"Hey, guys? Have you seen Yumi?" asked a familiar voice.

Sissi frowned, bunched her eyebrows together, and crossed her arms as she hissed out, "No, William, we haven't."

"Okay, okay, I was just asking," Will replied. "Geez, what's your problem?"

"I'm a woman out of my time, I guess," She slowly spoke. Silence hung in the air. Jeremie and Aelita nervously looked at Sissi and William.

"Well, since Mrs. Future is worked up about nothing, then I guess you could predict where Yumi is?"

"Wha- urgh, nevermind. Try the vending machines, if you're not too blind," Sissi pointed to the Japanese girl standing next to Odd and Ulrich.

"Hmm," Will scoffed quietly as he walked away. Sissi started the other way, still scowling into nothingness.

"What was all that about?" Aelita asked as she and Jeremie caught up with her.

"Hmm? I just... William has been a thorn in Ulrich and Yumi's side for a while. I remember that much about my timeline," Sissi said.

"Yeah, but you don't have to be rude to him because of it."

"But it's fun, Aelita." Sissi pouted half-serious.

"Sissi," Jeremie spoke up, "Aside from the previous timeline, you don't have to worry about him now. Things have changed."

"No, I have changed," Sissi answered. "Come on, let's get going."

"Where are we going?" Aelita asked.

"I wanted to go into town and see some gadgets."

"I thought you wanted to take a break from technology?" Jeremie remarked.

"Yeah, but I mostly said that because you REALLY needed a shower," Sissi quipped, waving her nose. As Jeremie grumbled, Aelita giggled quietly while they neared the school gate. They saw a big crowd of students swirling around the entrance. "What's happening here?"

"I don't know. Let's go check it out," Aelita suggested. They saw in the middle of the group two boys that were the center of attention.

"Wow, they're soo dreamy! I can't believe this! They're so different! Do you think they're dating anyone," came the excited whispers of the students. Sissi, the tallest of the geniuses, looked over the students' heads and could only make out someone with blonde hair.

"Well? Who is it?"

"I don't know," Sissi answered Aelita. Soon, the crowd cleared a way for the two kids. There stood a blonde kid with a straight posture and a lovable goofy grin. He seemed much taller than anyone around. He had a big maroon jacket with a dark blue shirt underneath, and his blue jeans matched him perfectly. His friend had shiny black hair, clear skin, and a slight build to his otherwise scrawny frame. He had a black leather jacket and a dark green polo shirt underneath. Jeremie noticed two small dark spots around the bridge of his nose, suggesting he used to wear glasses. His black hair was fabulously slicked back as he shoved his hands into his blue jeans. "They're coming this way," Sissi said.

"Okay, okay. It's nice to see you guys," said the black-haired teen. Sissi's eyes widened. His voice sounded so familiar, even though it came from the base of his throat more than it went through his nose. As the crowd around them dispersed, the two new teens walked over to Sissi, Jeremie, and Aelita. The charcoal-haired teen shot his eyes wide open when he saw Sissi, ran up to her, and hugged her. "Sissi! You're here! You're okay! That's amazing!"

"Yeah, you had us worried," said the blonde. His voice was even more familiar, although it was deeper and clearer than she remembered. But where did she remember their voices?

"Uh... thanks. I'm sorry, the bus must have hit me harder than I thought. Jeremie, do you recognize these guys?" Sissi asked. Jeremie shrugged.

The black-haired teen narrowed his eyes and crossed his arms. "You're with Jeremie now? I guess things have changed."

"Uhhhh I guess they have. I'm sorry, but who are you two? You look familiar, but I don't know where I've seen you," Sissi said.

The blonde laughed, "Wow, that bus must have really hit you hard."

"Shut it, you idiot," The black-haired muttered. Then he uncrossed his arms, widened his eyes, and grinned as he noticed Aelita. "Oh! I'm sorry, I didn't see you there. Who are you?"

"Oh, I'm Aelita."

"It's nice to meet you Aelita. You must be new. I don't remember seeing you here," The black-haired teen smiled handsomely. A small scoff exited Jeremie's mouth.

"You went here? That can't be. Even with the bus accident, I would have known you two," said Sissi.

"Wow, you really don't remember, do you? Jeremie?" the blonde asked.

"Sorry, I don't know either. But you do look familiar," Jeremie replied.

The blonde laughed, "Guys, it's us. Nicholas and Herb!" Jeremie and Sissi's eyes couldn't be wider.

"WHAT!" Sissi screeched. "How, what, where, when, WHAT!"

"Surprised to see us?" Nicholas gave a toothy grin.

"Like this? Yes! You two are... different." Sissi struggled to form words. "What the heck happened with you two?"

"Well, after you went to the hospital, we had nothing to do other than study for ourselves. Well, I did, anyway. I aced this big test that gave me a scholarship to a school for kids with high IQ. Jeremie could've gone, if he applied himself," Herb sneered.

Sissi's shock changed to a firm glare, saying, "Herb, stop it. When I was with you guys, I was mean to Jeremie and his friends for... different reasons. That doesn't mean you can do the same." Herb's eyes widened. Her authority was more... wholesome. He couldn't explain it. His big blonde friend rested his hand on his shoulder.

"She's got a point, Herb," Nicholas said, "It's water under the bridge."

"Why are you okay with it, Nicholas?" Jeremie asked.

"I guess getting a soccer scholarship at this new school softened me up. Plus, I got a taste of my own medicine," Nicholas smiled, scratching the back of his head. "I had to stand up for myself there."

Sissi looked at Jeremie. "How long was I at the hospital?"

"In total, about a month. Luckily, you were hit around the school breaks, so you didn't lose much school work. And it does help to be the principal's daughter," Jeremie smirked slyly.

"Hehe," Sissi nervously laughed for some reason. Just then, Ulrich, Odd, and Yumi walked over. The Dragon Queen could tell that Ulrich was annoyed by a certain black-haired hotshot. She shook her head. "Sooo, you two are visiting?"

"Yeah, we wanted to see how things have changed. Other than your cane, it doesn't seem like much has," Herb said. "But wow. I never thought that Sissi would finally be with you guys."

"Why is that?" Jeremie asked.

"She was so annoyed. I'm surprised you guys took her in."

"We are, too," Aelita hummed sweetly. Sissi silently glared at the pink-haired princess. Then she looked at the sky. Its darker blue suggested it to be 3 or 4 pm. She had to do this quickly. Sissi looked back at Herb and Nicholas with a solemn face, sighing,

"When are you two leaving? I... need to talk to you guys."

"Oh! We're here all day," Nicholas said, "We can talk now if you like."

"Why don't you go on, Sissi? We'll go to the shop when you come back," Jeremie added. Sissi nodded and slowly walked with her former pets. Odd, Yumi, and Ulrich looked at each other like Frenchmen at a Japanese party.

"What's going on? Who were they?" Yumi asked. As Jeremie and Aelita told them, Sissi sat on a nearby bench. Herb sat next to her while Nicholas leaned on the side. She relaxed her head back, breathing deeply for a moment, and released the wrenching tension in her shoulders. The cool breeze steadied her breathing, but her sinking heart shivered. She had to ask them.

"So what did you want to talk about?" Herb asked.

Sissi finally spoke, "First, I'm so sorry for treating you guys like dirt. It was lousy of me and-."

"Sissi, you don't have to apologize," Nicholas said, "We WERE idiots. We realized that the moment we transferred."

"Still, I'm sorry. The second thing is this," Sissi paused, shutting her eyes. "Why did you guys leave?" She slowly opened them back up as the uncomfortably long pause went on. Nicholas whistled way off-pitch, and Herb rubbed the back of his neck again, grimacing to the side. He tried playing with his silky looking hair. Sissi knew it wasn't helping. "It's okay if-"

"We didn't mean to leave you," they both said.

"Wha... what?"

"We didn't want to leave," Herb said, "It's just... when you went to the hospital, Nicholas and I went there almost every day for a week. But since you were gone, your 'friends' wouldn't talk to us. The only reason they talked to use in the first place was because of you. Nicholas and I talked, but not that much. So, I decided to pass the time studying more."

"And I passed it training for soccer," Nicholas added. So she didn't hold them back.

"Okay, so... what's with the fashion and face change?" Sissi pointed out. Herb grumbled under his breath while Nicholas sniggered.

"Well, it just so happens that my sister goes to the same school, and she was voted 'Queen Genius' there. So, guess who had to sit through her fashion lessons," Herb fussed.

"Sorta the same with me, only she's the best soccer player there. Here, Odd and Ulrich were the only competition, but I didn't like them at the time," Nicholas said.

"Okay, but what about the new muscles? You two look a little bigger," Sissi said, "I mean, I can understand why Nicholas's this way, but what about you?"

"Oh, the school also has a huge emphasis on the body. It wants geniuses but also people who can lift their own weight. Mind AND body. It's tough at first, but you get the hang of it after a while. I'll tell you this much, I don't think Jeremie would actually be happy there," Herb said.

"Why not?"

"It's one thing with no friends, but now you have to work twice as hard during PE? He would've hated it there. At least my sister was there for me to talk to at first," Herb muttered. Nicholas laughed as did Sissi.

She smiled wide. They never talked like this. It was nice to have them back for a while. As they talked, Sissi mentioned her judo classes and her achieved genius. Herb and Nicholas were skeptical until they saw her dorm. "Yes, I know, the bus accident did wonders for my brain," She muttered.

"Well no duh, it did! I was the one who did your homework all the time, remember?" Herb shot back. Nicholas laughed again as Sissi smiled. Nicholas got a girlfriend and Herb had a cute smart friend that he was trying to get the courage to ask out. After Herb talked about her, it was obvious to Sissi that the girl liked him back, but sometimes Herb could be very dense.

"And to think, you had a crush on me," Sissi smirked.

"What! I didn't-"

"Oh calm down, Herb. I knew," She charmingly smiled. Sissi even explained how she and Ulrich were doing. Herb and Nicholas found it weird. Weirder still was the fact she liked Yumi and the rest so much. "It's like the Wizard of Oz. When you actually pull back the curtain, the person behind isn't really what you thought. Besides, I have other projects to worry about."

"Like what?"

"It's a secret," Sissi winked at Herb with a smirk. As the day ended, she waved the two loveable lugs goodbye as they rode the bus back to their schools. As the sun's white light turned a blazing orange, Yumi came up beside her.

"So, was it annoying to have them back?" Yumi asked.

"Actually, it was nice to see them," Sissi smiled as she watched the sunset. "But I'm glad that I can put some questions to rest."

Continued...