Disclaimer: I don't own Lilo and Stitch.
Thru New Eyes
Chapter 3: The Date
I'm coming Lilo. I am coming, and I will take him and everything you hold dear. You have not escaped, you can NEVER escape. Nothing will save you from me.
Lilo awoke with a loud scream, her heart pounding, and her muscles tense with fear. Her wings were out and had begun to charge in reflex to her fright. This was the third time this week to have the same dream. She never saw anything; in fact, she could almost swear she wasn't dreaming. She would just be lying there, and then suddenly, she would begin to hear the voice. It was her own voice, but it wasn't her voice; it was dripping with evil and malice. It was Lilith. She would try to move, try to get away, but her body would refuse to respond. She could only lay there, helpless, as the voice came closer. Then she felt the crushing, Lilith was trying to smother her. She still would not be able to see her, but there was no mistaking the source. The malicious force would whisper her threat in Lilo's ear, and then she would awaken.
She got up out of bed, still breathing heavily. She flipped on the light. There was nothing in her room. No evil twin bent on killing her and the rest of the world. She retracted her wings, and went downstairs to get a drink. She crept fearfully in the dark, the dream was still fresh in her mind, and every noise made her jump. It was raining and thundering outside, and as she left the kitchen, lightning flashed. She turned and saw a winged figure against the wall. She screamed again, thinking it was her greatest fear. Actually, it was her looking it the new mirror Pleakly had brought home from the mall. The lightning had caused her to sprout her wings in reflex, as she was still extremely shaky.
"Stupid mirror." Lilo said as she tried to retract her wings. They wouldn't go back in. When she looked back at the mirror, she realized she had transformed into Sora. "Great, now I'm so shook up I've went into experiment form."
She turned to see the door to the guest room. She knew she shouldn't, she and Stitch would be in serious trouble if she did, but right now she was so frightened that she didn't care. She slowly turned the knob on Stitch's bedroom door. The door creaked open, and she made her way to Stitch's bed. The room was a complete disaster: comic books, trading cards, and various other things covered the floor. In summary, a typical twelve-year old's bedroom. Lilo noticed that Stitch was sleeping in experiment form, which wasn't surprising, since they both preferred to sleep in their original forms. She climbed up into his bed and lay down next to him. One of her feathers tickled Stitch's nose by accident, and he woke up.
When he saw what woke him, he shot up. "Lilo? What are you doing in my bed?"
"Stitch, I'm scared." Lilo said as she reached for him.
It was at this point that Stitch realized that Lilo was in Sora form; her wings were at full, and slightly charged to boot. They glowed a pale blue, lighting the room only slightly. He knew she didn't sleep in experiment form, and she kept her wings retracted most of the time. The fact they were out AND charged meant she was telling the truth, something had scared her badly.
"Lilo, are you okay? Did you have a bad dream?" Stitch said with sympathy. She turned to him, and the look in her eyes told Stitch everything he needed to know, she had had a nightmare. She spoke softly, her voice still full of fear.
"Had and been having. Stitch it was horrible, I dreamt she was coming to kill me. She said she was coming and that I could never escape her."
Stitch instinctively knew who 'she' was. He held her close, and kissed her cheek. "It's okay Lilo, it was just a bad dream. She isn't coming back. She's gone."
Lilo however wasn't calming down. "But Stitch, remember when you had that nightmare? What happened the next day?"
She had him there. He sighed and held her closer. "It's okay Lilo. If you need to, you can spend the night here."
She looked up and smiled at him, and then she closed in for the kiss. The two met for just a quick peck, and then Stitch laid back down. "Now try to get some sleep." He said as he pulled the covers over himself. Lilo crawled under the covers herself and nudged closer to him. The fear subsided, and sleep claimed her.
What she didn't realize is that Nani had heard her screaming and got up to check on her. Seeing that she wasn't in her room, she ran downstairs, afraid she had gotten hurt, or worse. She came down just in time to her Lilo talking to Stitch in his room. She crept silently to the door, and listened as Lilo convinced Stitch to let her sleep there for the night. Nani smiled slightly, she knew if Cobra found out they would be in trouble, but Lilith was still a great fear of Lilo's and Nani knew that being around Stitch would comfort her. She slowly crept away, deciding that she would talk to Cobra later about Lilo and Stitch possibly sharing a room again, Lilo had not been sleeping as well without him, and it wouldn't cause any harm. As she walked back into the kitchen, she saw that David had gotten up as well. (They finally decided to move in together.)
"Lilo have another nightmare?" David said as he shut the fridge.
"Yeah, I think she's been having the same one for awhile. She's sleeping in Stitch's room, she needs the comfort." Nani said in a slightly worried tone.
"What she having nightmares about? When she became an experiment?" David said as he drank the glass of milk. David had been at a surfing contest on the main island when the Lilith incident occurred, and came back to find Lilo an experiment and Stitch a human, sort of. Nani kept the truth from him for a while, but finally got around to telling him when he realized all the stuff in the house was new, about a month later. The news was the most shocking thing David had ever heard in his entire life, the fact that Lilo could do anything nearly that bad was unbelievable. After that, David decided to finally move in, thinking that Nani needed all the help she could get after all the family had gone through. He had been a big help, and it was just last month he finally asked the question everyone had been waiting for him to ask for years. Now he and Nani were engaged, and were to be married in the summer.
He looked over at his fiancé and saw her troubled look. He got up and wrapped his arms around her. "What's bothering you Nani. You look worried."
Nani sighed. "It's just when Stitch had a bad nightmare like this, something bad happened. What if it happens again? I don't think I could handle it." She said as she began to tear up.
David held her closer. "It's okay Nani, its okay to be scared. Lilo is your little sister, and the both of you have been through a lot. But don't worry, everything will be okay. Now lets get back to bed, you need to rest."
Nani smiled. "You're right. Jumba said Lilo couldn't become evil again; she was immune to Angel's song. But why can't I get over this sense of dread?"
"You're just worried about Lilo. That Lilith thing scared both of you. You just need to calm down. Tell you what, tomorrow you and I will go surfing. That will get your mind off your troubles."
"Okay David, but I am still worried about Lilo. And tomorrow I'm going to ask Cobra if they can stay in the same room together, at least until Lilo gets over her nightmares."
The two made their way up to bed, and silence fell over the house once more.
The sun shone brightly the next morning, without a cloud to be found. Lilo opened her eyes slowly. She looked around, and realized she wasn't in her room. Where am I? Oh that's right; I slept in Stitch's room. Oh no, what time is it? If Nani finds out I was in here last night, she'll blow a fuse! Then she'll tell Cobra, and both I and Stitch will be in trouble. Lilo shot out of bed, startling Stitch.
"Huh, what's going on?" Stitch said groggily. "Lilo, what's wrong, you didn't have another nightmare did you?"
"No, but our lives are going to become one if Nani finds out I slept in here!" Lilo said as she peeked out the door.
This got Stitch up. He realized they had just broken another rule. "Wait Lilo, let me go out first and distract the family. Then you sneak out and back upstairs." Stitch then took human form, and walked out the door.
He went into the kitchen to see Pleakly cooking breakfast. Nani was sitting at the table, and Jumba and David were no where to be found. Pleakly turned to see who had come in, and greeted Stitch. "Morning Stitch, would you like some breakfast?"
"No thanks, has anyone seen Lilo, I'd like to ask her something." Stitch said, trying to bluff.
"What, you didn't notice her in bed with you this morning? Or did she get up before you woke up?" Nani said as she looked up, smiling.
Stitch suddenly became very nervous. "Umm…I don't know what you are talking about."
"Drop the act Stitch. I heard Lilo wake up screaming last night, and I saw her go into your room. It's okay. Lilo had a nightmare, and she needed comfort. I understand."
Just then Lilo walked into the room. "Morning everyone." She then gave Stitch a peck on the cheek. "Sleep well?"
"With you next to him all night, I'm pretty sure he slept better than usual." Nani said as she started eating.
"What are you talking about?" Lilo said, unconvincingly.
"Forget it Lilo, Nani knows." Stitch said as he sat down.
This got Lilo scared. "Nani, please don't tell on us! I got scared last night, and I went to Stitch for comfort. I'm sorry, don't tell Cobra. Please!"
Nani chuckled at her sister's begging. "Lilo, I'm not going to get you in trouble. You're good enough at that by yourself."
Lilo breathed a sigh of relief. "Thanks Nani, I had a bad enough nightmare last night, I don't need to live one this morning."
Pleakly looked up from his cooking. "Is that why there is a blast hole next to my new mirror?"
Lilo became worried again. "Sorry, Nani. I saw my reflection last night, and I thought it was her. I must have let a blast go out of reflex."
Nani smiled softly. She understood completely. She too was afraid of that monster returning. Jumba said that Lilo would never become that again, and yet she was still afraid. "It's alright Lilo, I'm sure Jumba can patch the hole."
"Speaking of which, where is Jumba? It's not like him to miss breakfast." Pleakly said as he plated eggs for Lilo and Stitch.
Jumba was outside in his ship, concerned. He could not have possibly imagined that doing a simple thing such as revealing 628's name to him would have such a drastic effect. 628 learned his name, and knew from his inherent knowledge the legend behind that name. But he was an apprentice experiment, designed to learn and created new technologies. Why then was he given the name of a powerful warrior, one that was said to have destroyed an entire armada in one swing of his sword? Jumba saw this concern in his creation, and made another mistake, revealing that 628 had another function. A function that Jumba never wanted to activate. It was a defense mechanism. After he told 628 this, he realized that he could not reveal how the program worked, because of the inherent danger. This upset 628, and when he awoke this morning, he was gone. Jumba knew that 628 would eventually return, but what could be causing this reaction? He had explained it well enough that 628 should have understood that the second function was trivial, which although an outright lie, should have been an acceptable answer. But there was nothing he could do but wait for 628 to return, and try to straighten things out. He stepped outside and spoke to himself as he stared into the morning sky. "Little one, what is going through you mind now?"
Meanwhile, Stitch had gotten an idea to cheer Lilo up. He went to his room and dug a small box out of his dresser. He opened it up and took out the money it contained. Stitch had been doing odd jobs around the island, helping Mrs. Hasigawa with unloading new fruit shipments, helping Mr. Jameson with cleaning out the storage room of his hotel, etc. He had at least $200, and he knew just what to do with it: he was going to take Lilo on a date she would never forget. He knew everything needed to be perfect, and so he decided to do the one thing he would never normally do willing: he took a bath.
When Lilo heard the bath water running, she figured it was Nani or David, getting ready to go out. But when she looked outside, she saw both of them with surfboards in hand, walking down the driveway. Then she looked in the kitchen, and there was Jumba and Pleakly. Jumba was trying to eat, and Pleakly was chewing his ear off about the fact that he had been late to breakfast and wouldn't tell him why. That meant only one person could be in the bathroom, but that was impossible. Stitch never took a bath of his own free will. It was a task just to get him to bathe before school. But when she went upstairs, she heard Stitch humming to himself, in his human voice. "That's odd; Stitch never baths in his human form." She waited for him outside. The door opened, and a cloud of steam escaped as Stitch walked out in his bathrobe. She stepped in front of him, and he jumped back.
"Don't scare me like that!" Stitch said as he fumbled with his bathrobe.
"Why were you taking a bath, on a Sunday of all days? I have enough trouble trying to get you to bathe during the week." Lilo responded.
Stitch smiled. "It's a secret."
As he walked past her, she grabbed his robe. "What's a secret? What are you up too?"
He stopped, but didn't turn around. "Remember that money I earned doing those odd jobs?"
Lilo gave him a quizzical look. "Yeah, but what does that have to do with anything?"
Stitch's smile became larger. "I finally figured out what I wanted to spend it on."
"And this made you take a bath, why?"
He turned around, to see the expression that his next statement would undoubtedly put on his girlfriend's face. "I want to spend it on you. Will you go on a date with me?"
He got an expression alright. Lilo's face lit up, and she hugged him tightly. "Of course I will!"
Stitch pushed her away. "Okay, okay. But let me finish getting ready."
Lilo smiled a smile that let Stitch know that she wasn't going to let him get away that easily. "Ok, but I need two things first."
"What?" Stitch asked.
He got his answer a second later, when Lilo grabbed him by the collar and pulled his face into hers. The two became locked in a heavy kiss, which Lilo was reluctant to end. She finally pulled away when she realized she was kissing her boyfriend in his bathrobe. Now both were too young, both human and experiment wise, for this to mean anything, but that didn't matter, it was still embarrassing. She laughed nervously as she let go. "Umm…sorry about that, I got carried away."
Stitch was still in a daze. When he was finally able to snap out of it a few seconds later, he remembered that Lilo said she needed two things, and although that was one heck of a kiss, that was still just one kiss. "What else did you need?" he asked, his voice still a little detached, he hadn't fully recovered from Lilo's powerful show of affection yet.
"I need time to get ready myself. Give me about an hour and half okay?" she said as she went into the bathroom.
Stitch smiled to himself. Yep, life couldn't get any better for me.
It took Lilo over an hour to get ready, but by that time Stitch had already gotten everything in order. He decided that they would go to lunch at French-fry and Dupes new bistro, then head for the movies to see "Revenge of the Beach Mummies", which had just come out and Lilo was dying to see. Then they would get some ice cream and walk along the beach. A perfect date.
As Stitch finished leaving Nani a note that they would be going out, since Pleakly was out getting groceries and Jumba was locked up in his ship, he turned to see Lilo come down the stairs. "Well, are we ready to go?" she asked as she came up to him.
"Everything is ready." Stitch said as he took her hand. "Ready for the perfect date?"
Lilo turned to him and said "It's already perfect, it's with you."
It took the pair about 20 minutes to reach the bistro. When they arrived, Lilo was a bit surprised. "Stitch, are we stopping to say hi to Dupe and French-fry?"
"Not exactly. We are eating here." Stitch said with a grin.
Lilo's face became one of shock. "Are you kidding? How much money do you have? The stuff here cost like $30 dollars a person!"
"Don't worry about it, I have enough." To illustrate his point, he opens his wallet.
"Stitch, you can't spend all this on me. I wouldn't feel right about it." Lilo said as she pushed the wallet away.
Stitch just held her for a moment. "Lilo, I owe you more than I could ever repay. You have always been there for me, now let me treat you like the goddess you are."
Lilo blushed heavily at Stitch's words of devotion. "Stitch, I love you more than anything." She leaned in for a kiss, just as the waiter arrived.
"So what brings you two here, a romantic date perhaps?" said the waiter as he came up to the table. It was none other than Dupe. Of course he spoke in Turian, since most of the experiments spoke better Turian than English.
"Yeah, I wanted to take Lilo on our first real date." Stitch said as he and Lilo sat down.
"And you chose our fine establishment? We're flattered." came another voice. It was French-Fry, who had also noticed Lilo and Stitch walk up. "What can we get you today?"
Lilo and Stitch looked over the menus, and finally decided on what to order: Lilo got a French Dip, and Stitch ordered a Caribbean Jerk Chicken Sandwich. Dupe and French-Fry headed back to the kitchen to prepare their meals. 10 minutes later, the pair returned. "Here you go. Enjoy." French-Fry said as he put down the plates.
"Thanks. It looks wonderful." Lilo said as she picked up the sandwich.
As the two enjoyed their meals, they couldn't help but notice that some of the other people were taking glances. They could hear voices saying, "Ah isn't that adorable?" and "Young love. Such a wonderful sight."
"People are looking at us Stitch." Lilo said in a whisper.
"Yeah, I noticed. I guess kids our age don't go on dates all that often." Stitch said as he finished his sandwich.
"Not to bistros, anyway." Lilo said as she finished off her salad. She then glanced down at her watch. "Stitch, we need to get going or we are going to miss the movie!"
"Check please." Stitch said to the waiter.
"Right away." the waiter said as he gave Stitch his check.
It turned out that Dupe and French-Fry had given them a bit of discount. Lilo looked at the check, and saw what they had done. "Wasn't that nice of them?" Lilo said as she reached for her purse.
Stitch put his hand on her arm. "Nuh-uh. I'm paying for this bugee-boo."
"Stitch, I don't want to impose." Lilo said as she took his arm off hers. "At least let me leave a tip."
"No Lilo, I want to. I want you to feel special today." He replied with a smile.
"But Stitch," Lilo said as she leaned in close, "you make me feel special everyday."
She kissed him lightly, getting an "Ahhhh" out of some of the other patrons.
When she pulled back, Stitch whispered back. "The feeling's mutual."
The pair made it to the theater just in time to get tickets. Lilo decided that she was still full from lunch, but Stitch, being Stitch, got the biggest thing of popcorn the theater sold. They normally got seats at the back of the theater, since Stitch liked to throw food at unsuspecting people (ironically, couples used to be one of his favorite targets). But they decided to sit up close, since Lilo wanted to minimize the chances that someone big would sit in the way. And wouldn't you know it, ten minutes into the movie, and an M&M bounces off Stitch's head. Stitch turns around to see PJ flicking candy into the crowd. Stitch just about got up, but Lilo held his hand and said "See, now were the couple, and PJ's throwing the food. How does it feel now that you're on the receiving end?"
"Fine, I won't throw any more jellybeans." Stitch grumbled as he sat back down. He could have sworn he heard PJ laugh from behind him.
The movie was as good as Lilo had heard it would be, and at the part where the mummy princess and the hero fall in love, Lilo turned to Stitch. "What does that remind you of, Stitch?"
Stitch smiled slightly and turned to her. "Us."
Stitch was rewarded for his correct answer with an embrace and a deep kiss. At the same time the two characters on the screen where kissing, no less.
Then Stitch got walloped with a fistful of chocolate coated peanuts.
When the two left the movie theater, Stitch was still grumbling about how he was going to pay a 'special' visit to PJ sometime VERY soon. Meanwhile, Lilo had turned her attention to a memorabilia store, when she stopped dead in her tracks. There in the window was a ring, one any diehard fan of Elvis would recognize.
"Stitch, look." Lilo stuttered out.
Stitch turned to look at the store window, and saw the ring as well. However, not being as a diehard fan of Elvis, he didn't recognize the ring. "What Lilo, I don't see anything special."
"Stitch, that ring is an exact replica of the one Elvis wore at his 'Aloha' concert! It was made special for him, and it was the most expensive piece of jewelry he ever owned!" Lilo said in excitement. She then became depressed when she saw the price. "Three-hundred bucks? I'll never come up with that kind of money."
Stitch felt his girlfriend's disappointment. He couldn't afford the ring either, but he vowed that one day, he'd save up enough money to buy it for her. Even if it was a guy's ring, he knew she would find a special place on her mantle to Elvis for it. But he couldn't tell her about it, she would stop him from buying it for her. He smiled as he attempted to cheer Lilo up. "It's okay Lilo, let's go get some ice cream."
Lilo looked up at her boyfriend and smiled. "Sure, I'd love to." Then Lilo looked him in the eyes, "And Stitch, don't even think about buying me that ring. Its way too expensive, and I don't want you to blow everything you earn on me. It's isn't right, and it makes me feel guilty."
"Whatever you say, Bugee-Boo." Stitch said as he took her hand.
"I mean it Stitch. Do not buy me that ring." Lilo said in a sterner tone.
"And why not?" Stitch said in a false defiant tone.
"Because I want a husband who can manage his money and not spend it on stupid things." Lilo said to him in return.
Stitch went into 'pretend submissive' mode. "Yes dear." Then he added. "You're thinking about marriage THIS early?"
Lilo smirked. "Why not? I mean it's never too early to start planning for the rest of our lives, and we are going to stay together forever, RIGHT?" Her tone was suggesting "you better answer yes or there is going to be trouble."
Stitch gulped. "Yes, of course. Forever!"
Lilo began to giggle uncontrollably. "Stitch, you know you are so easy to tease."
Stitch's cheeks turned a light shade of pink. "Very funny Lilo." Then he smiled a mischievous smirk. "And you are so easy to do this to."
Before Lilo could react, Stitch scooped her up into his arms, like a bride.
"Stitch, put me down!" Lilo said, half attempting to be stern, but the giggling was a dead give away that she found this just as enjoyable as he did. He held her there and gave her a kiss. After about a minute or so of Lilo pretending to try to break free and Stitch carrying her like he was going to run off with her, he put her down. Both had to catch there breath from all the laughing they had been doing. Lilo finally said, "Now who's getting ahead of themselves? All ready to carry me off?"
"You bet." Stitch said. "Now let's get some ice cream."
On the other side of the island, Siron walked slowly, contemplating the truth of what he was. Why did Jumba give me a second function, if he never intended me to use it? What sort of function could possibly warrant giving me the name of a legendary warrior? He then thought back to last night.
To the conversation that challenged everything he believed about himself.
Flashback
"I do not understand." Siron said to his four eyed creator. "Why is that my name? Siron was a supposed legendary figure that the founders of the Galactic Alliance were said to have encountered at the end of the First Inter-Stellar War. I am but a mere apprentice with no combat abilities, how does that correlate to me?"
"Little one should not be worrying head over name he was given." Jumba said as he patted Siron on his head. "It bears no importance to what you are supposed to be doing."
"But why? Why name me something like that? I know that it's is not in your nature to name something without a reason for the name." Siron said as he moved away.
"How are you knowing what is in my nature?" Jumba said in a tone that let Siron know he didn't like this line of questioning.
Normally, this would have been where Siron would have stopped, but he felt he had to know the answer, even if he would be going against his programming. "You are a scientist, and scientists usually give names that are relative to what is being named."
Jumba couldn't help but crack a smile at his creation's ability to reason. "Is true. And yes, name should correspond to function. Perhaps a renaming is in order?"
"I want to know why my name is what it is now, not what it should be." Siron said, never losing the calm in his voice. Inside however, the reality that he might not know everything about himself was tearing at him. He was supposed to seek knowledge about the world around him, but what was the point if he did not know everything about himself? How could he focus on the task of finding new discoveries if he knew that there was more to be discovered about himself?
"Am understanding, but name was based on old function, one you were suppose to be having before."
This got Siron's attention. He knew that reworking an experiment was difficult and that erasing one function while replacing it with another, unrelated function was impossible. So either Jumba was lying, or he had another function. "It is impossible for me to have had another function and lost it, unless I still possess it."
Jumba had made a blunder. Siron could see it in his face. Jumba finally just gave up. "Fine, you are being right." He said, exasperated. "You have another function. But is not as I said, you were always intended to be an eventual replacement for my genius in my old age. But things changed, and thus the added function and the name I gave it, and you."
Jumba had hoped that this would be the end of it, that Siron would be satisfied with the answer. But of course he knew better, 628 would not be happy until he learned everything.
"What is that second function? And how come I was programmed with no knowledge of it?" Siron said as his voice became happier, more expectant.
Jumba sat down. "It was a defense mechanism. And you are having no knowledge of it because it was such a late addition, after programming had been mostly completed. Is not mattering anyway, is trivial ability."
To Siron it was by no means trivial. "I understand, but how will I be able to use it?"
"When activated, it will trigger additional programming that is being for the moment dormant." Jumba said as he turned to his computer.
It was apparent that he was starting to get apprehensive about something. And this only worried Siron further. Could his secondary function be so powerful that Jumba wished it not to activate? Siron did not like violence, it was counterproductive. Still, he had to know the truth. "Why did you give it to me? And what does it do exactly?"
Jumba broke at that moment, knowing good and well that revealing the truth would upset his creation even further. "I will not be answering any more questions tonight! You should be worrying about primary function, not some trivial defense function!"
Siron saw Jumba's anger, and sulked away. He went to his room, where he had sat in thought until morning. Then he decided that exploring the island would aid him. Perhaps in observing the other experiments perhaps he would find insight into his own hidden purpose.
End Flashback
He had observed some of the other experiments during their daily activities, but this gave him no insight. In fact, it seemed as if the experiments were restraining themselves. Siron figured this was due either to the fact that they wished not to draw attention to themselves, or to the mysterious little girl, Lilo. He did have Jumba's knowledge, but not his memories, so Lilo was only a face. A person of which Siron knew nothing about, other than the fact that he was to stay away from her.
As he walked along, he had just about given it up. Without his files, he might never find out the truth, and he was sure after last night Jumba had probably locked away the information he sought. As he was about to turn around and head back, a voice broke him from his thoughts.
"You seem to be doing a lot of thinking."
Siron turned to see a small human child sitting on a bench. He had a strange hat on that covered most of his blond hair, and had a smile on his face. But nothing else stood out about him, until his next statement.
"The questions about ourselves are always the hardest to answer."
End Chapter 3
Next Chapter
A 'Chance' Encounter