Chapter 5

The Tea Nook

Cocoa and all her characters are mine. Just fyi.

They took me to a cafe. Not the- Maddie's dad's cafe. A small one on the outskirts of the village, called The Tea Nook. It was cozy, warm. Lucas ordered some tea and cookies. I got out of the wagon and sat with them.

"Do you want to know how we became real first or why the others called us ghosts?" Sophie asked.

"Um, why you're real." I thought for a moment.

"We're real now because this is a different world. Some Earth rules don't apply here, mainly that in order for a character to real, the book they're in has to be published so people can read them. Understand?" She played with her napkin.

"Yeah. What happens to you when we leave?" I looked at Lucas and Harrison. He hadn't left yet.

"We go back in your brain." Harrison answered simply.

"Ok. Why'd they call you ghosts then?" I found a teacup in front of me and drank from it. It was milky and honey tasting.

"We look like ghosts to them because they haven't read our stories. Don't let Grimm read ours yet. We need to prepare for when he," Lucas jabbed at Harrison, "goes insane again. We'll revert back to the way we were before if they do. The readers see us as how you written the story. You see us as how we ended up and with bodies."

"Oh, do you just go in and out of my brain?" I nibbled on a cookie.

"Pretty much. We'll come out when you need us or when we want to talk. Any other questions?" Lucas drank his tea.

"Not yet." I couldn't think of any right now.

"It's ok, we'll answer them later. Let's talk about Mr. B. Nimble." Stephen, the father from my very first series, pulled up a chair and swung into a lazy-head-in-hand-elbow-on-the-table-position. He was in his trench coat.

Lucas looked at him like "Right now?"

Stephen's look is like "Yeah. If not now, when? Not at school."

Then Sophie joined. She said with her eyes, "Can we sent Harrison back first? He doesn't need to hear this."

"Yeah. Harrison, go back inside. Now!" Stephen glared at him.

"Fiinne." He left, rolling his eyes.

"Okay. What about Mr. B. Nimble?" I couldn't think that he did anything wrong.

"Well, have you noticed that he's been sneaking little touches? A brush of the hands, playing with your hair. Stuff like that. And the nicknames! I don't like it." Stephen cracked his knuckles.

"Hey, it could be nothing. Remember that." Sophie warned.

"Cocoa, what are you doing here? School doesn't let out until 4." Mr. B. Nimble asked, sitting in Lucas's chair. They disappeared. Stephen waved bye and glared at my English teacher as he faded.

"I left early. Got bored." I shrugged.

"I heard you got to talk to Grimm. How'd it go?" He asked.

"Bad. He said I couldn't see you anymore. "I'm better", I guess." I sipped my tea with scorn.

"That's horrible. I'll help you with your English then." He winked. I giggled.

"Hey, are you trying to get with Cocoa? Cuz Dad won't like it." Mint, Stephen's daughter, told him.

"Get? Oh, God no. She's like my little girl. I don't want her." Mr. B. Nimble blushed in horror and embarrassment. Wow. His cheeks were such a deep red.

"Ok, that's great. I'll go tell Dad. He'll talk to you later." Mint shimmered out of sight.

We drank the tea my "ghosts" left in silence. B. Nimble was working on getting his face back to normal. He screwed his face up trying to forget what Mint said only to start blushing again. I tried not to laugh.

"Cocoa, this is serious. What if that wasn't your character? What if they didn't know why you needed me," He scolded, "Sorry, I just realized it. This isn't fair to you. You can't be that girl who hooked up with a teacher. Grimm, you've screwed up." He told the ceiling. I wasn't sure who he meant. Was Grimm a swear, too?

"What, should we stop talking because you're afraid it might sound bad?" I tested him. He paused.

"No, that'd hurt you. I love you like my own daughter, Cocoa-bear. If I had one, anyway. Do you feel like telling me anything today? The owner knows not to tell." He wanted to use this time well.

Breathing in, I nodded. Then I told him everything that Grimm did to me. I began to cry like I did on the first day. B. Nimble was hugging me again. His embrace was warm and caring. His love was nothing but fatherly.

"Shh, Honey. It's okay. Grimm's injured. He's not here." He moved me to his lap so I wouldn't get sore from leaning. I didn't scream or babble. I just sat and cried, cradled in his lap. He rocked back and forth. After I stopped crying, I was hungry.

"I'm hungry." I looked up at Mr. B. Nimble. He put me back on my chair and got up to find the waiter. He came back with a plate of pork chops and mashed potatoes. They looked fancy.

"Where's your food?" I took the plate from him.

"I'll make him raid the kitchen. This was all he had cooked. We're friends so I can take his dinner." He smiled like it was a inside joke.

"Ok." I ate some potato. He sat back down and drank the water he got. My knife wasn't meant for cutting meat so I went to get one that did.

"The fall carnival is tomorrow. I thought, um, we could go together. Like a father/daughter date. Only if you want, I mean." He got light pink in the cheeks.

"Yeah, that sounds fun." I said, munching on a piece of pork.

"Good. Now, let's eat." Mr. B. Nimble stuck some salad in his mouth. We ate and went back to school. Mint walked with us and we, me and her, played games as we walked. Skipping, kicking rocks, tapping on trash cans. It was getting darker. We just got on the road to the school when something tackled Mr. B. Nimble. Mint and I ran towards them. Mr. Badwolf had pinned him to the ground.

"What the hell are you thinking, Jack? What are you doing with Cocoa so late?" Mr. Badwolf growled, pushing into his shoulders.

"It's not what you think. Honest. She needs therapy. Grimm's done things. Cocoa trusts me, BW." Mr. B. Nimble struggled under the stronger, Villainy teacher. Mr. Badwolf let out a low "ah" when he understood and let my teacher up.

"Can you tell me what or is that not ok?" They brushed themselves off.

"No, I can't. Just trust me. Grimm is a sick man." Mr. B. Nimble put his hat back on after dusting it off.

"Are you hurt?" I ran to my father figure and grabbed his hand. Mint had gone back to my brain.

"I'm fine, Cocoa-bear." He kissed my forehead. It was a little longer than a peck, but I didn't mind.

"So, what were you doing, Jack?" Mr. Badwolf asked again, now calmer.

"I found Cocoa at my friend's cafe. We talked and ate dinner there. That's it." He was holding me close.

"Hey, don't get snap at me. I understand. You took her under your wing and now she's like your daughter." Mr. Badwolf said.

"Yeah. Why are you out here?" I hugged Mr. B. Nimble. The night air was cold and he was warm.

"I was running when I smelt Jack and you. I sleep better after I run. Let's go back inside. You're getting cold." He noticed. We got to the front door and found it was locked. Mr. B. Nimble made fire come out of his hand so Mr. Badwolf could get his keys. I shied away from the flame.

"It won't hurt you. I'm careful." He lead the way into the dark main hall. Mr. Badwolf was behind us. We were quiet until a night guard's flashlight shined at the stairs to the girls' dorm, which was at the end of the hall.

"HEY, are you supposed be there?" Red Riding Hood's villain yelled then whispered to us,"Jack, get Cocoa to her dorm. If we get caught..."

"I know. Come 'ere, I have to carry you, Sweetie. You don't know how to Skulk yet." The flame lower itself with jerky stops into his hand and he picked me up. He ran without making a sound. I held on as best as I could. We made it up the stairs fine, but then I sneezed. We froze for a minute. Someone stirred and opened their door.

"Hello?" It was Cerise. In the dim light from a hall light that were suppose help you see when you went to the bathroom, I saw one of her ears from my angle. It was wolf like. Don't look out. Don't do it. She shrugged and went back inside.

"Whew. Almost there. The end of the hall, right?" Mr. B. Nimble whispered in my ear.

"Yeah." I whispered back. We got to my dorm the rest of the way without a problem. He kissed my cheek and said good night. Then he ran to his own dorm without so much as a breeze. I got inside and changed. My clock said it was 10 pm. I fell asleep quickly when I got in my bed.

For those who haven't read the books(Go read them. They're written well and are interesting.), skulking is like stealth. "Misdirection for the non magical." as Jack put it. The reason Mr. Badwolf yelled was because a. to distract and b. he was scared that the guard might go upstairs to the girls' dorm as his own daughter was up there. That's a no-no. Jack has fire powers because he jumped over a open flame that could have set him on fire and I think it fits. And he knows about Cocoa's characters because he reads her work and the students talked about them. So, review and tell me if you liked this or have something to say.