Chapter Four:

"So," Silver said after a very long and vibrant discussion, "Finally Academy student 'ey? Ya probably do yer parents proud." Dav thought about the statement. With three other older siblings, (all teenagers), Amelia and Doppler don't get individual time with each of their children. Even as infants, one was always demanding their attention more over the others. Dav wasn't surprised that they didn't notice he was missing.

"That's one way of putting it..." Dav said twiddling a piece of grass in between his fingers. Silver laughed his hardy laugh. "Now, don' go takin' after Jimbo an hate everyt'ing that brings ya joy an' reason ta live!" The young adult nudged his friend. "Aw, come on, I wasn't that bad!"

Silver nudged Jim back, "Oh, come on, ye know ya were!"

The two old friends argued playfully at each other. Dav wasn't looking at them though, he was looking at a huge lit glass window of the Academy in the distance. They were serving food in there. Most of the teenage aliens, and their parents were having a good time. Dav saw the cold-eyes girl again, she was talking to another grey haired women that appeared to be her mother. He looked at the mother. Her eyes weren't cold like the girl's. They were blue. Dav thought that was odd, because he herd of genetics, so he assumed they would have the same color eyes. Then he thought maybe she had her father's eyes, but he saw no other human in there that was male. Then, he noticed the girl turned her head, away from her mother, and looked strait at Dav. A chill ran down Dav's spine. She kept looking right at Dav with her cold grey eyes in curiosity. But she still had that strange look about her that told Dav that she was looking beyond him. Her mother spoke something to her, and the girl looked away from Dav, and continued talking.

"Dav?"

Dav looked at Jim. Jim noticed something was wrong. "What are you lookin' at lad?" Silver asked curiously. Dav looked back at the girl. "Jim, Silver, do you know who that girl is?" he asked. Silver and Jim squinted at the lit window.

"That one?"

"No, not her, that one!"

"The one over there"

"The bird one?"

"No, the human!"

"The one with the grey hair?"

"Yeah! You know her?"

Silver cocked a smile. "Why, ya checkin' her out!"

"Wha?!" Dav sputtered. "What? No! Not like that- I mean-"

Silver laughed again, and Dav was relived to know that he was joking yet again.

Jim looked at the girl. "No, I've never seen her around Montressor before. Must grow up on different planet." Jim cocked a grin on his young face. "Why? Are you interested about her?" The cyborg and the young adult exchanged suggestive glances.

Dav shook his head. He thought Jim would be more understanding.

"No, it's not like that you guys- I mean- doesn't something seem... strange... about her? I mean- her eyes?"

Jim took another look at the girl, who was still talking to her mother. She seemed troubled about something, and nervously fidgeted with her heart locket pendent. Jim looked at the girl's eyes. They were the color grey. But something did seem odd about them.

"Not sure." Jim said frankly. "Hard to tell from here."

Silver, having better vison then the both of them put together, opened his cyborg eye. "Well, well!" Silver exclaimed as he closed his eye.

"Well what?" Dav asked frantically, wanting to learn more about the mystery-girl.

Silver shook his head, a smile on his face. "Not'ing ta worry bout lad."

Dav looked at Silver. He had that smile on his face that said he knew something he didn't. Dav stared at the girl. "There's nothing... wrong about her is there? I mean- she looks kinda..." Dav thought of a way to describe it. "..Abnormal?" he finally settled on.

Silver smiled. "Well if ye want ta know, I suggest ya ask 'er." Silver winked at Dav.

Dav knew that Silver knew the answer, but he decided he wouldn't press him on the matter. Jim checked his watch as he stood up. "Well, I suppose we better get back in before your mom throws a fit, Dav."

Silver smiled at them both and stood up as well. "I better get goin' also, can't stay in one place fer too long."

Dav sighed. "Do you have too?"

Dav knew once Silver left again, the world would resume, and he'd be dealing with the Academy again. "Fraid so." Silver replied. Morph, who was on Silver's shoulder the whole time during the conversation, wailed and cuddled Silver sadly. Silver stroked his old companion. "Oh, come off it Morphy, I'll be back."

"I'll be back.." Morph burbled sadly as he licked his old owners cheek and flew over to Jim. Jim smiled as the blob landed on his shoulder. Then he looked at Silver. "Keep in touch." Jim said to his friend as he hugged him without the slightest hint of humiliation. Silver patted the young man's back. "Don' worry I will."

"I sure hope so."

Dav nodded and found himself hugging the cyborg too. "Group hug!" Morph squealed and joined in the embrace, cuddling Silver. Finally, all three of them came out of the group hug.

"Know where your going?" Dav asked. Silver shook his head.

"But I'll write ta ya when I get there, if that'll make yeh happy."

"It would." Dav said beaming.

"Me too." Jim said also beaming. Silver smiled at them both. "Do me a favor will ya Davy?"

"What's that?" Dav asked. Silver placed his hand on Dav's shoulder. "Do me proud." and with that final word, Silver flew himself away in his skiff, parked by the lake. Morph waved one of his protoplasmic hands at it's old master.

"G'bye!" Morph squealed. "G'bye! G'bye! G'bye!" Jim waved at his old friend. Jim smiled. Then it looked as something had just come to him. The young adult shouted at the retreating skiff.

"Remember to stay out of trouble!!" He shouted to Silver, almost in a mocking and playful way. Then Jim herd the faded chuckling reply, sounding as mocking and playful as Jim had. "Always have Jimbo, always will be!"

Dav just stood there, lost for words. How was he supposed to make such a vague promise to Silver when he hated the Academy already? How could he do him proud when he was barely proud of himself for being here? And what about the girl with the cold eyes? What did Silver know that he didn't? Dav watched the skiff vanish off of the planet. He had been so eager to see Silver so he could answer his questions and relinquish his doubts and fears, but now, a fresh new batch of them went into his head. Jim patted Dav's shoulder, sensing his uneasiness. Dav looked up at the man's young face. "Don't worry about it." Jim reassured him. "All he means by it is ta get good grades and the like, didn't mean nothing by it." Jim thought about what he said. "At least I don't think so..." he considered, then he chuckled.

"Think ya know a guy..." he muttered. Jim and Dav then walked back to the Academy, were they were greeted by a frantic Amelia trying to get order on getting everyone back home for the last time.

When Dav entered his room, he threw his formal uniform off, and into his suitcase. His room was still trashed. Dav sighed and reluctantly began to put his stuff back into it's rightful place. This was a lengthily and tiresome process, but he eventually got it done. Dav took out his duffle bag from under his bed and began to pack what he needed. He threw his uniform in there, and then a whole bunch of jeans, and some dark colored t-shirts. He wasn't really looking at what clothes he was packing. He then spotted his old blue notebook, and his new sketchbook on his bed. Dav put his notebook into his duffle bag, and automatically picked up his sketchbook. He picked his pencil off his bed and began to draw on the first page. Then, as if in a trance, began drawing one of the girl's eyes. It had the same cold effect that her real eyes had. Dav stared at it carefully, as if studying it. There was something odd about them. Unnatural... Dav looked at the eye on paper he drew. He then suddenly got an idea of what may be wrong with them, but his mother's voice from downstairs interrupted his thoughts.

"Daniel! I hope you remember to pack everything! Because I'm not running up there to bring you anything!"

"Sure Mom!" Dav responded, annoyed that he had lost his train of thought.

"Did you pack all your school books!?" she shouted from downstairs. Dav abandoned his sketchbook and pencil on his bed, got up to his closet, and found his schoolbooks lying in there. He picked them up and dumped them into his duffle bag.

"Yeah Mom!"

"Did you pack your personal hygiene items?!"

Dav walked to his dresser, and on the top of it lay his deodorant, comb, conditioner, travel toothbrush, and the like. He shoved all those into his duffle bag.

"Yeah Mom!" Dav shouted back.

"Did you pack extra underclothes?"

Dav herd his sister's laughter from the next room.

"MOM!" Dav said annoyed. "I'm not an idiot!"

"Don't use that tone of voice with me, young man!"

Dav glared at his empty doorway where the sound was coming from.

"Yeah, okay, Sorry Mom!" Dav said trying to sound sincere. Then he turned back to his packing as he muttered, "Stupid know-it-all feline."

"Oooo!" he herd from his doorway. He saw Kit standing in his doorway. Now that the ceremony was over, her hair was down, and the conditioner was out. So it looked like it always did, curly and frizzy. "Ya better not let mom hear you, Daniel." she said his full name in a mocking way. Dav turned back to his packing. "Shut-up, Kitten."

She looked angry. "Don't you dare call me that!"

"Don't you call me Daniel then." He said calmly. Kit glared at him from the doorway, and then marched off. Dav then closed his door. "Ya think by now I would of learned to close the door a long time ago." he muttered to himself. Dav turned back to his packing. Packing only a few things extra, like his notebook, his new sketch book, a pack of his favorite solar surfer cards, and his art kit. When he was finally done, he fell on his bed and without even taking his clothes off, he fell asleep.

"Wake Up Stupid!!!" Dav woke up to Amy kicking his bed that morning. "Five more minutes mom." Dav said as he pulled his pillow over his messy hair. Amy seized the pillow and shredded it with her fingernails. Dav sat up in bed. "Hey! I gotta sleep on that!"

"They got pillows at the academy, and we're late!"

"Big surprise..." Dav said sarcastically. They were nearly always late when it came to things like this with a family of six, and because Amy and Amelia were both very punctual women, this drove both of them to near insanity. "Get dressed you lazy bastard!" Dav glared at her. "Get out of my room then! Unless you're a pervert and enjoy seeing things like that." Amy pushed Dav down on his bed. "Look! Just get ready alright! If we're so much as one minute late for our first day at the academy! I'll kill you!" She stormed out of his room and slammed the door. Dav groaned and changed his clothes quickly. "Do this, do that." He mimicked. "She's starting to sound just like mom." Dav slung his duffle bag over his shoulder, checked to see if he forgotten anything, then went downstairs. He was greeted by a nervous Doppler and Kit, a livid Amelia and Amy, and Suz was just leaning against the wall her bag slung over her shoulder too. Wearing jeans and a t-shirt that said "We can't all be morning people"

"What's going on?" Dav asked. Suz gave a small laugh. "Oh, well dad burnt breakfast horribly, so now we got nothing to eat. I would of helped him of corse, but I wasn't up then. So now mom's in total meltdown mode." Suz giggled a bit as she watched Doppler cowering at his wife. Dav could hardly blame him. Amelia looked so mad, you would of swore she was the devil itself. He could hardly hear her yelling complaints over Amy's. "And Amy and Kit?"

"Remember that nail polish you told me she destroyed your room for?"

"Yeah..." Dav said slowly knowing what was coming.

"Well turns out Kit had it the whole time." Dav leaned against the wall with Suz, waiting for the fire to die down.

"YOU CAN'T EVEN COOK A SIMPLE-"

"GIVE ME MY GENUINE PUPPY-"

"DELBERT! WE ARE GOING TO BE-"

"OF ALL THE STUPID STUFF YOU DO, KITTY YOU-"

The rabid overlapping complaints lasted about for one full minute. When it was over, Doppler and Kit looked quite frightened, and Amelia and Amy looked as if they were going to kill any being that would make contact with them.

"I'll just grab some toast on the way out before we go then should I?" Dav asked when it was finally silent.

Everyone had toast for breakfast that morning. No one complained that much, they were running late. When they finally got there, Dav, along with the rest of his siblings hugged their mother and father goodbye. The three teens looked at the campus. Each with a new thought and opportunity. Amy immediately thought popularity. Kit thought of the new knowledge she'd gain. Suz thought of new sports teams she could try out for. And what Dav thought, he knew this would be, unmistakably, the worst day of his life.