A.N.: Come on, Pur, I'll help you pack," Red said. 'Pur?' Purple thought as Red dragged him upstairs.
"I've scared you. I don't scare people. Well, OK, I do, but not when I'm not trying," he exclaimed. Purple looked at him with a wide-eyed expression.
I must say, those really are two of my favorite lines. And I love how much Red just assumes things, like Purple needed help ordering, or that their tastes in food were the same. Purple is kind of being bowled over. :D
Sorry about the long interval, but I lost my disk. I had to start this chapter all over again. I had a good bit done, too. I don't exactly remember how I worded everything, but I hope you will like this new version. (Not that you can compare it to the old version…)
Now, time for a bit of FORSHADOWING. The title DOES have a meaning. A promise WILL be made. But who between? And I've already planned a sequel, to be called "An Irkin Never Smiles". What do you think?
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The next morning, Purple was up long before Red. For lack of anything else to do, he decided to make breakfast. "I hope Red won't mind me snooping through his cupboards," Purple muttered to himself as he opened the fridge. What found was less than appetizing: old curly fries, fizzles soda, and various mould gardens. In addition to that, something had spilled all over the inside of the fridge. Purple located some cleaning supplies under the sink and got to work cleaning out the fridge.
After the fridge had been cleaned out of said old curly fries, fizzles soda, and mould gardens and the stains were scrubbed away, Purple turned his sight to the cupboards. They turned out no better, having naught but a few rusty cans and some sparse dirty dishes. 'I guess Red doesn't cook much,' Purple thought. He threw away the cans and set the dishes in the sink to soak. He then went to get what little money he had, intent on buying what groceries he could.
He came back with eggs, bread, jelly, and juice. He set off to make breakfast after the dishes had been washed. Red woke up just as Purple was setting breakfast on the coffee table (for lack of a dining room table). "Oh. You didn't have to make breakfast, Pur," Red said when he saw breakfast laid out.
"Sorry," Purple said meekly.
"No, it's nice. I don't remember the last time I ate at home. How much do I owe you for the groceries?" Red said.
"Oh, uh, nothing, it's all right. You paid for dinner last night," Purple replied as he sat down on the couch. Red sat down next to him. 'I wonder if he's mad about last night,' Red wondered, watching Purple as he ate for a moment. Red tried to forget about it, since Purple didn't look or act too mad.
After breakfast, they headed down to the transport station to go downtown. Once again, they had to sit around and wait for their stop to arrive. Purple spent it nervously fidgeting and looking slightly sick. Red spent it watching Purple. He started feeling sorry for Purple as he started looking sicker when the transport pulled into the station.
"The building where the government officials are is right down here," Red said, leading Purple down a busy street.
"Um, w-who are we going to see?" Purple asked.
"I think that we're going to see the late Tallest's council," Red answered. Purple paled a bit. "Oh, don't worry. They're more confused than we are."
When they got to the correct building, they were directed to a third-floor conference room. When they went in, they found the old Tallest's council waiting for them.
"So, you two are the two who tie for the position as the new Tallest?" a sour-faced Irkin asked them.
"Yes. I'm Red and this is Purple," Red answered. He looked around the room and noticed that senator Kejin, Purple's old boss, was glaring at them across the room.
"Ok, well. Since one of you will become the new Tallest, you can, at that time, make some changes in this council. It is recommended that you don't change the whole thing at once, because we can help you figure out the state of affairs," the sour-faced said.
"And you will i/certaintly/i need it," Kejin growled, looking at Purple. Purple looked down at his feet.
"So, who will end up being the new Tallest?" Red asked, flexing his claws.
"i/Hopefully/i not THAT one," Senator Kejin said, throwing another dirty look at Purple. Purple quickly left the room.
"Well, if I become Tallest, YOU will be the FIRST one I fire," Red said as he left the room in search of Purple.
He found him in a bathroom down the hall, trying to regain his composure. He was splashing his face with cold liquid (A.N.: I think it would be a strong base, since water causes them burns). "Are you OK?" Red asked.
"Why does he always have to do that? Especially in public," Purple said.
"He's just a jerk. Besides, he's getting fired soon," Red said, and Purple looked at him. He had a wicked smile. Purple slowly smiled, catching what he meant. "Come on. This meeting will be over soon enough." Red lead Purple back to the meeting.
When they got back, Kejin was looking properly chafted. "So, in the next week, we need to decide how to choose between you two for the Tallest. You two might discuss it before our next meeting," sourface said. "Are you both staying in the Capital?"
"Yes, we're staying at my apartment about 10 minutes from here," Red answered.
"Good. We will meet again in two days," sourface said, and the councilors walked out. Red and Purple followed soon after.
After they took the transport back to Red's apartment, Purple insisted on cooking dinner. Red didn't object too much, remembering what had happened the previous night. Soon, good smells started filling the apartment. 'He sure does know how to cook,' Red thought as dinner was set out.
"How are we supposed to 'discuss' how we want one of us to be chosen Tallest?" Purple asked after they started eating.
"They're hoping that we will settle this amongst ourselves. There have never been two Irkins exactly the same height AND taller than everyone else before," Red answered.
"How are we supposed to do that?" Purple asked.
"I don't know," Red answered.