Sick Day for Dragon-Girl

Karen

White was coughing up smoke, so her teachers said that she couldn't come on the field trip. She watched out the window as the dark green started smoking and then she and the others flew off –

Danger! She had to virtualize Dark-Gold to Lyoko do rescue the Skid and hold off William –

She lay in bed, relieved at being able to stay still.

I opened my eyes with a violent cough. Great. Why did I have to come down with the flu, anyway? What else could it be?

"Are you all right, Karen?" I looked at Aelita, sitting up on her bed looking very worried.

"I. Am going. To the infirmary. I think I came down with something. Guess I won't be going on this field trip, huh?"

"Don't worry. Someone will have to keep an eye out for Xana, and since everyone else will be gone, then-"

"What about Yumi?"

"She has a test, so she can't come either. Don't worry."

I sighed, a sigh which ended in a cough. "I'm more worried about Sissi. She started blowing off some serious smoke in my dream, and I don't even know what about. I'll probably hear about it from her tomorrow, so could you possibly tell me what the problem is?"

Aelita nodded. "So, what's going to happen around campus?"

Yumi

I sighed. "Not one: two tests! You lucky dogs, I wish I could go with you."

Ulrich answered, "I'd sneak you along, but we already have a lucky dog aboard, and you know who I mean."

"Well, I've got to get to my Math class." I hung up and walked in. Sitting down next to the clone of William, I complained, "You're lucky you're a computer program, this math test is going to be a piece of cake for you."

Then he made me feel not so certain. "What's a math test and a piece of cake?"

Five minutes before my French class I got a phone call from Aelita telling me that there was no reception at their island, so I would have to check the supercomputer regularly. So I ran off to the factory.

When I got there, Karen was sitting at the supercomputer with a kerchief tied over her mouth and nose, already checking things.

"Is there anything there, Karen?"

Karen looked at me and answered, "No, but don't leave. There will be an activated tower in a few seconds, and you're the one going to Lyoko."

Sure enough, the alarm went off.

Aelita

I was very relieved when Jeremie used the antenna I found to contact Karen. He started giving directions to her for running the program when Odd and Ulrich ran back over to us.

Odd reported, "The diversion's all set, but we'll need Aelita."

I nodded and ran with them, and soon I was under a blanket in a rubber dinghy with Ulrich. Rather quickly, he started rowing frantically, so the electric monster was probably catching up.

He let out a yell and fell forward, unconscious, while the dinghy drifted to a stop against the shore. I lifted my head up and looked over at the luggage that had been left behind, a piece of which was Sissi's bike.

I smiled. "Let's see how fast I can pedal!"

Yumi

I managed to destroy both of the Crabs that were guarding the tower, getting shot into it in the process.

My fan flew back to me and I started back out. Then I felt like someone was behind me.

It was William! He kicked me out of the tower and proceeded to try slashing me with his sword!

After chasing me for a while, he managed to kick me over, pin me down with his foot, and he was ready to devirtualize me then and there. I begged, "No, William! You're a Lyoko warrior, you swore to it!"

And William…stopped! Then he dropped his sword, fell to his knees, and started yelling in pain. I got up and backed away until he finally stopped moving. When he looked up, his face…it was more distressed than murderous. This was the real William!

I helped him to his feet and he looked down at his sword. Karen could have described his face then in many poetic ways. I think he just looked sad. I reached slowly for his face and his hand moved up over mine, almost touching.

Then he grabbed my wrist and kicked me over again. Xana was back!

"Yumi, Aelita just finished running the program for the Skid. Now she'll be virtualizing as fast as I can manage."

I backed right to the edge of the sector and barely held my balance there. William was all set to slash me when Aelita's Energy Field blew him over the edge.

"Just in time!"

I was still looking after him.

"Yumi, is something wrong?"

I looked at her. "For a second there, the real William came back, Aelita."

"That means that we will rescue him someday."

"I've set up the coordinates for the return trip, Aelita. Get that tower deactivated!"

Aelita ran for the tower, got in, and entered the code. Then I heard Karen's voice.

"Return to the past now."

Karen

I let out one last cough, then called Aelita.

"How are you feeling?"

"Better, now that I can finally relax."

"Well, I don't know how you'll feel when I tell you what Sissi was 'blowing off some smoke' about."

I sat up straighter. "What? Talk."

"Well…by student vote, she isn't the most popular girl in the school anymore."

"Awesome! She took that title way too seriously." Then I realized that Aelita had said that with a laugh in her voice. "Um…Aelita? Who is the most popular girl in the school?"

I heard her muffled voice on the other end. I think she asked one of the others if she should tell me. Then she got on again and answered the question. "You are, Karen."

I sat in shock for a minute. I was the most popular girl in the school? Well, I was nothing less than polite to all the students. Oh, all right, I wasn't that polite to Sissi, but she didn't give me any reason to be polite. "Well now," I said into the phone, trying to sound indifferent, "this is a case of the right dragons coming to roost."

I heard Aelita's laugh on the other end as I burst into another coughing fit. "Well, I had better let you get some rest."

"Goodbye, Aelita."

"Goodbye, Karen."

I hung up. I needed more time to think about this turn of events. At least it wouldn't interfere with our Lyoko battles. Not if I had any say about things.