Disclaimer: I do not own Animorphs, though that would have been the best birthday present in the world XD

A/N: OK, chapter 2! I know I told some reviewers that I'd be on hiatus until after my exams, but then again how long does posting one chapter take? This is probably the last until November, though.

Once again, it totally floats my boat that people actually like this story and want an update :)

Oh, and just thought I'd share: when I write, I have an Animorphs playlist to listen to XD Here are the theme songs for my group.

Steve: It's Not My Time - 3 Doors Down

Hannah: What Have You Done - Within Temptation

Jon: Violet Hill - Coldplay

Maria: Dare You to Move - Switchfoot

Will: There And Back Again - Daughtry

I know some of the songs don't really fit in terms of lyrics. In fact, I think the only one with a good fit is Steve's :p Mainly, I choose them because they sound like what the character, to my mind, would sound like if they were a song (in terms of mood as well as tune etc.) For example, Jon just sounds like Coldplay. Melodic rock. Yeah.

Anyway, enjoy! I'm proud I managed to get this chapter up at all - it took a 20 minute pitched battle with the library computer XD

Chapter Two

Detention did nothing to make me forget their weird behavior. For one thing, Jon, Will and I were sitting a few seats apart in an empty classroom, occupying ourselves with homework. We rattled around like three peas in a bottle. Communication was impossible since Nicholson was sitting at the front of the room.

So, once boredom had set in, I had nothing to do except think. And obviously, I tried to figure out what Hannah and her friend – Maria – wanted. The theories grew wilder as the time went by, until I was almost crazy to know what was going on.

We met them at the school gate. I think they'd been waiting. Hannah was looking annoyed, and Maria even more nervous than she had been before. Jon was pushing Will's wheelchair and as we approached I saw the two girls look at each other. It was a look that said, This wasn't part of the plan.

We walked out of school as a group. There was an awkward silence for a few moments, and then Hannah said, "It's no good, you might as well do it now, because I'm sure as hell not gonna go through this for you again."

She was talking to Maria, who turned red and motioned ineffectually towards Jon and Will. Hannah huffed impatiently, grabbed Jon's arm and dragged him and Will ahead down the sidewalk.

I stayed where I was. Maria looked at me, took a deep breath and dropped her bombshell.

"I – I like you, Steve."

Wow. OK, I seriously had not been expecting this. I'd seen Maria around school sometimes, and had known her by sight. She was usually the centre of attention, with a joke for every moment. Now she was staring down at the sidewalk.

If that's what hormones do to you, I seriously don't want that to happen to me.

"Um – well, I'm flattered and all, I guess… But, um, I don't… you know… like you. In that way. It's not that I don't like you… I mean, I don't know you all that well! Um…"

Smooth, Steve, very smooth.

I was terrified that Maria would be upset, and that I'd get the blame from Hannah for that. She can be very scary. Like, once when I broke something of hers, I can't remember what, she chased me up a tree in her garden and waited underneath for me to try and climb down.

Of course, I didn't think she'd do that now. But then again…

Maria wasn't upset. I think she had an inkling that it wouldn't work. Instead, she was laughing. Her shoulders were shaking.

"Oh man, Steve, am I sorry! That must have been really awkward for you. Truth is, I've had this stupid little crush on you since – oh – two years ago? Hannah convinced me to tell you. But if you don't feel the same, I guess I can survive."

Her laughter was kind of infectious. I felt myself starting to grin.

"But you looked really scared at lunch! And just now – you looked like you would've liked the sidewalk to swallow you up!"

"Oh, that! Yeah, it was kind of intimidating. With your friends alongside, watching me. Terrifying! At least it's off my chest now. Give it a few months and you'll be kicking yourself that you missed this golden opportunity." She stuck her chin in the air and made a mock-snooty face. I laughed.

"OK there, lovebirds?" Hannah yelled up from ahead. She'd been talking with Jon, and the three of them were waiting for us some way away.

"Oh, fine!" Maria started off towards them, me following behind. "It's just that Steve obviously doesn't know a good thing when he sees it…"

We continued down the street like that, a tight-knit group. Maria's humor was infectious; soon we were all grinning along to her ridiculous jokes. Even Will had lightened up a bit and was actually looking up at her instead of straight ahead.

It was winter, and the weather was cold. And when I say cold, I mean really, freezingly, bitingly cold. To help matters along there was a wind blowing and soon our faces and fingers were numb and red. We pulled various jackets and scarves around us and walked a bit faster. It had gotten dark already.

It was Hannah who finally spoke up.

"Look, if we stay out here any longer we'll turn into human popsicles. How about a short-cut? Through the park?"

We all looked doubtful. Cold as the street was, there were at least lampposts, so we could mostly see where we were going. OK, so the park had lamps at strategic intervals, but if we cut through the park there'd be trees on all sides, so most of the light would be blocked out.

We wrangled a bit, and I found that the others were all looking at me for a decision. That annoyed me mildly. Since when was I the one making the choices? It wasn't even if we were a proper group.

But the night was really, really cold, and they were all looking at me with different degrees of hope and anticipation.

I made my decision.

"OK. Park it is."

Looking back, I think this was the point where things really started.

We cut across the street and into the park. Even Maria had stopped talking. I think everyone was nervous, to some extent. I mean, we'd just left the relative light and safety of the street and had entered darkness. I tried not to think about all the crazies who, Dad had warned me, hung around at times like these.

Jon's voice came out of the night.

"Are you sure you know the way?"

Hannah sounded annoyed – and a bit uncertain.

"Y-Yeah. It's this path, I think. Right, Steve?"

"You think?" I had used the short-cut exactly twice before, and none of those times in almost-complete darkness.

"Great," Maria said with finality. "We're lost. You think we should yell for help or just wait until morning?"

Hannah swatted her friend on the shoulder. "We are not lost, idiot! I'm just… not sure which the right path is."

We all looked at her.

She threw her hands into the air, dimly visible in the weak light from the lamps. "OK, fine. We're lost."

I think tempers were getting a little frayed at that point, but before an argument could be started Will shocked us all by yelling, "Look out!"

Now, in all the months I've known him, Will has barely spoken to me. And he never yells. So when he did, Jon and I both froze for a moment, astounded.

The girls weren't as acquainted with Will, and when he'd shouted they'd followed his gaze. Hannah grabbed one of my arms and yanked me back. I overbalanced, doing a face-plant into wet, slushy mud.

I was going to shout at her when I realized what the others were staring, wide-eyed, at.

A ball of light was careening towards us from out of the sky.

There was almost no time to react; the thing crashed not ten feet away from us. The resulting shockwave threw the others off their feet. Will was blasted out of his wheelchair and landed heavily on my stomach, making me yell in pain. The UFO skidded a bit, plowing up a long furrow and spattering us all with mud.

I admit it; I've never been more terrified in my life. I was sure that the thing would run us over during its crazy slide, and that my life would end right then and there. I guess the others were just as scared – they were mostly silent, but Maria gave a sound that was halfway between a gasp and a scream.

My eyes were closed as the thing crashed. Every nerve in me was screaming, praying for a quick death.

When it didn't come I opened my eyes.

It had been smashed open after the rough landing. Debris was everywhere. Its lights had cut out after it crashed. Peering through the darkness, I thought I could make out glimpses of its original structure. Sometime, it had had two stubby wings, and something that looked like a tail that curved up and over the ship's body.

I guess Jon had done the same observations as I had, because he suddenly blurted out, in an excited voice:

"It's an Andalite fighter!"

We were getting to our feet by this time; Hannah and I hooked Will's arms around our shoulders and managed to lift him back into his wheelchair. We all turned incredulously towards Jon.

"Um, Jon…" Maria said tentatively. "No Andalite fighters come to Earth anymore, not since the war. It's, I dunno, trespassing on our galaxy-space?"

She laughed nervously.

"This is probably a freighter or something…"

"No!"

Will. He'd gotten more or less settled in his chair and was leaning forward, an intense expression on his face.

"Jon's right. It's a fighter. Can't you see the tail?"

OK, so an Andalite fighter had crashed and nearly flattened us, Maria had confessed her crush on me and Will was suddenly chattier than he'd been in months.

Anything else, universe?

Suddenly Hannah pointed to the fighter. "Something's coming out!"

She sounded scared, which I'd never seen before.

We watched, mouths open, as one side of the battered ship opened.

An Andalite emerged.

Even though Andalite tourists were allowed on Earth for holidays, whenever they went out in public they would be in human morph. There were a couple of pictures of Andalites in our schoolbooks, but none of us had ever seen an Andalite in the flesh before. I speak for all of us when I say we were stunned.

See, pictures can never duplicate an Andalite's grace, and how dainty they look – until you notice the scorpion tail poised ready to strike. Pictures can't express how lethal that tail looks either, and I knew that the Andalite, if it wanted to hurt us, would make mincemeat out of all five of us without even breaking a sweat.

(I will not harm you.)

Maria still looked scared. "Gee, you think?"

The Andalite took a few steps away from his battered ship and came towards us. We stood, eyes wide.

I still don't know why I did it. It was as if my body worked on its own. I felt myself taking tentative steps forward, until the Andalite and I were face-to-face. He wasn't much taller than I was, if you take into account his centaur-like legs. As I looked into his eyes, I could see something like desperation in them.

Just like that I realized. The Andalite was probably about my age, or younger. But you could tell that he'd seen one hell of a lot more than I had. There were burn marks marring the blue-and-tan fur and a long, bloody scrape down one of his flanks.

The others took my lead, gathering around to stand a little way behind us.

"H-hi."

Hey, I never said I was all that good at making speeches, OK? Try making conversation with a wounded alien that has just so happened to crash-land his spaceship in your town's park, why don't you?

The Andalite didn't seem to notice my stuttering. (Likewise, greetings to you,) he said. Inclined his head towards the others. (All of you.)

There were various mutters from behind me. The Andalite turned back to face me. Although I couldn't pick up much expression from his mouthless face, the feeling I got now was of urgency.

(There is not much time. They will be here soon.)

"Who?"

(The Yeerks.)

Suddenly I became much more aware of the freezing wind. It seemed like all my body heat had seeped away, in spite of my jacket. My mouth moved, but nothing came out.

(My name is Jalilan-Sorrum-Dakandyth. I have been tasked by my people to bring Earth a warning.)

It was strange listening to thought-speak for the first time. It's like, not exactly words resounding in your head, but you can understand the feelings of the speaker. As Jalilan said the word Yeerk, I experienced his hatred and desperation.

(The Yeerks wish to try for Earth again. Their mother ship is hovering just outside Earth's atmosphere.) He forestalled me as I tried to ask a question. (Time is short. All I ask of you is that you listen and heed my words. Tell everyone you can in authority, people who will be believed. That was my original assignment, but as you can see) - he indicated his damaged fighter - (I was attacked by Yeerk forces. I have no way of getting to your authority figures.)

Now I could feel despair eating through his thought-speak.

(We were taken by surprise. We thought the Yeerks vanquished. But…)

I guess Jalilan had run out of ways to explain, because a cry of anguish ran through all of our minds, and we saw the downfall of the Andalites. We saw the final battle. Andalites falling and bleeding, going down, only to be hauled upright by aliens I assumed were Controllers and forced together, ready for infestation. Linked as I was to Jalilan, I felt his grief when two Andalites I somehow knew were his parents died.

"I-I'm sorry," I muttered. Behind me, I heard a gulp and knew someone was crying.

(They died like warriors. Better honorably dead than forced to endure life as a slave.) Jalilan's thought-speak was calm, but we could all catch the undercurrent of sorrow.

(You must let me continue, there is no time! The few Andalites who escaped the mass infestation have taken refuge on one of the homeworld's lesser moons, shielded so the Yeerks are unable to locate them. They sent me to convey the news to Earth – it is certain that the Yeerks will try again. I repeat, you must spread the news! As far as we have been able to tell, the invasion is only in its very earliest stages. If you can make enough noise straight away, the population of Earth might yet be alerted.)

I'll confess, at that moment, I was terrified. I was trembling with my whole body. I didn't feel capable for what Jalilan wanted us to do. He must have realized that because he reached out and took my hand in one of his six-fingered ones. As I looked up into his eyes, I felt courage running through my veins. And it was right then that I realized; understood why I had to do this, and my realization in that deserted park became my strength for what was to come.

I had to fight. It was my duty.

I think Jalilan got some sense of my thoughts, because he dropped my hand and patted me on the shoulder.

(You have strength now.)

The look in his eyes was warm and approving.

Suddenly, it turned to barely-disguised terror.

(They are here.)

Yay, thanks for bearing with me! XD I hate making the thought-speech normal brackets, but ff is anal :(