Disclaimer: I do not own Code Lyoko. I do own Musa, Cascada, this story's plot, and any other character that is not in the show.
Already Ahead…or Not
"This is a disaster!" Jeremy said pacing back and forth furiously while the other watched. They were all nervous and on edge…except for Musa and Cascada, who were strangely calm. "Do you know that now they have records to all of our files? They'll find us and put us in jail! No. Worst then jail!" the boy said practically pulling his hair out.
It was then that he was hit on the head by a very large bag.
"Ow! Why did you do that?" the boy asked rubbing his head while glaring daggers at the plant A.I.
"Because you're overreacting," Cascada said while leaning against William's chest, eyes trained on the sketch pad before her, pencil running smoothly along the paper.
"Hai," Musa nodded from her place hanging upside down on the boy's bed, Odd next to her on the floor. "Do you really think that we hadn't seen this coming? Look inside the bag Einstein."
Jeremy looked skeptically at the bag that lay near his feet before at his friends. He sighed before kneeling next to it and opening it. Inside, he found dozens of CDs, each with the band's name Evanescent Dream written on it.
"What are they?" Aelita asked.
"What do they look like?" Musa asked grinning.
"They look like CDs for our band," Odd said picking one up and examining it.
"That's the point," Cascada said still not looking away from her pad. "They look like they're for the band when in reality they're files that Musa copied from the supercomputer before erasing everything on it."
"You mean…" Yumi began.
"Yep," Musa grinned proudly. "When those government guys try to search around the supercomputer they won't find anything. It's completely blank. Everything that was ever on the supercomputer, including the bugs, is all on these files."
"Go Muse and Cas," Ulrich grinned.
"So you see, Jer," Cascada continued looking up, "Musa and I had it all covered. Just relax."
"But how did you guys know?" William asked.
"Better yet, what are we going to do with these disks?" Jeremy asked. "We can't use them without a supercomputer."
"Musa, do you think you can answer this? I'm a little busy," Cascada murmured already in her own little world as she continued to sketch.
The wolf A.I. sat up right from her former position, her face red from hanging at such an odd angle before laying on her stomach on top of the bed and playing with Odd's hair.
"Well to answer Will's question, Cas and I aren't sure exactly how we knew we just…did. Like a tiny voice in the back of our heads was telling us what to do and no we're not crazy," Musa said quickly.
"Speak for yourself," Cascada murmured before a concentrating look returned to her face.
"Anyway, we just had to act on what we were feeling. If it turned out that we were just overreacting then we could always restore the supercomputer back to what it was before. That was part of the reason why I was late for practice. I had overslept in the factory but I managed to get everything. I even added a coat of dust to everything to make it look like no one had been in there though I doubt the computer looking dusty would have stopped them from believing that someone was using the computer. I'm surprised it took them so long to find us though. It must have been due to the events when we destroyed Xana. We did use a lot of energy, more then usual. That could have signaled them…" she said trailing off, thinking.
"So we don't have to worry about them finding us, right?" Aelita asked.
"Hai," Musa nodded. "Now, for Jeremy's question. I know you're not supposed to answer a question with a question but do you really think that there is only one supercomputer after the whole deal with the replicas?"
"It's not that I didn't know that there were other supercomputers," Jeremy said pushing his glasses, "it's just that with dealing with the replicas, all the supercomputers were far, FAR away from Kadic. Now tell me where are we going to even find a moderately close supercomputer?"
"Well it's is summer break," Odd said, "So we don't really have to worry too much about school. At least not for now."
"He's right," Musa nodded. "We can all just go to the location of the nearest supercomputer."
"Where is the closest supercomputer?" Yumi asked.
"The Alps," Cascada said sitting down her sketch pad. "That's where Franz, Aelita, and Elena used to live before this all turned into a nightmare. It's also where the prototype for Lyoko is. When we get there all we need to do is make a few updates and we should be back and running."
"Now the only problem is figuring out what our excuse will be to allow all of us to go there without causing suspicion," Ulrich said.
"Already ahead of you," Musa grinned pulling out a folded piece of paper from her pocket. She unfolded it and handed it to Jeremy before placing her chin on Odd's shoulder, letting the boy gently stroke her head.
Jeremy looked at the paper he had been given. This is what it read:
Kadic Academy's Annual Summer Ski Trip in the Alps
All students invited as long as they are a dorm student or have the consent of a parent.
This year sponsored by Emeric McArnald, CEO of Lycoris Incorporated.
"This is too perfect!" Aelita grinned, looking over the blonde's shoulder.
"It is," Jeremy said frowning as he handed the sheets to the others to look at. "But who is this Emeric McArnald and why is he sponsoring this?"
"Why does any rich CEO do anything?" Ulrich asked. "It's just to get publicity. My dad's company does it all the time."
"Still, I can kind of understand Jeremy's uneasiness about the situation," Yumi said. "I remembered that last year this was canceled because no one would sponsor our school. Actually when I think about it, I'm pretty sure that Kadic hasn't been sponsored for anything in like…years."
"Well why don't we ask someone who would know," Musa said getting up and walking over to the door. She opened it and in tumbled Sissi.
"Looked who dropped by," Odd said.
"Konichiwa, Banshee-chan," Musa grinned looking down at the girl. "What brings you here?"
"Nothing that you need to know about, weirdo," the principal's daughter said flipping her hair over her shoulder as she stood back up. "But if you must know I heard your little conversation."
"What did you hear?" William asked coolly.
"Just that the nerd over there," she said jerking her manicure thumb at Jeremy, "is suspicious about Mr. McArnald. What's wrong? Don't approve of something that forces you to leave your little computer and room?" she mocked.
"What do you know about the guy?" Ulrich asked.
"Who? Belpois?" Sissi asked.
Cascada let out a frustrated growl before slamming her sketch pad down. "No, you brat, about Emeric McArnald!"
"What did you just call me?" Sissi snorted in shock.
Cascada simply got to her feet, standing before the girl with her hands on her hips to give the impression she was towering over the younger girl.
Sissi gulped nervously, intimidated. "Look," she said loosing her resolve, "all I know is that one of Mr. McArnald's assistants came saying that he was going to fully sponsor the trip and all the expensive. He didn't give a reason."
Hikaru smirked. "Good girl. You can leave now." Sissi was happy to comply as she sped out of the room. "Vague answers," the plant A.I. murmured, "Did they answer your questions, Jeremy?" she asked the boy.
"Not all of them," the boy replied.
The strawberry blonde sighed. "I guess it would have been too much to have just gone on a simple vacation. I'll sign us up," she said heading towards the door but before she left she murmured, "Our work is never done, is it?"
Musa nodded sadly. "When will we ever be able to live normal lives?"
CODE TWILIGHT
Silent footsteps made their way through the dorm's dark halls with ease as Kadic slept before stopping at the door that led to the dorm of Ulrich Stern and Odd Della Robbia. A pale hand lightly touched the doorknob, sending a shock of electricity through it and causing the door to unlock. Without making a sound, she stepped into the room before shutting the door silently with their foot.
She looked around the room, with no need for light. She saw the brunette hair boy and the Japanese girl curled up in one bed and the spiky blonde alone in his own. Setting a small kitten next to the sleeping the dog in the pulled out drawer, the girl noiselessly eased her way into bed with the blonde, taking in the boy's warmth and smell.
She wasn't too shocked when she felt herself being pulled closer to the boy. This had become a nightly routine for everyone in the group despite the punishments they would be given if caught.
"You're awake," she said softly so as to not wake the other two occupants of the room.
"You should know by now that I can't sleep without my muse," the boy grinned snuggling his face into her neck, placing soft kisses along it.
"Stop! That tickles!" the girl whispered trying to hold back her laughs that would undoubtedly wake up the whole school.
The boy did as he was told before taking the girl in his arms and flipping her so that she was lying on top of him. "Something is on your mind," he said softly, his face serious as he brushed a strand of hair behind her ear.
"It's nothing," the girl said waving it off.
"Musa, do you think that after all we've been through that I wouldn't know when you were lying to me? I'm not as dumb as people think I am," Odd asked arching a brow.
"I don't think you're dumb!" Musa protested before clamping her mouth shut and looking over at the other bed to see if she had awakened Ulrich and Yumi, luckily the two were still appeared to still be sleeping.
"That's good to know," the purple loving boy grinned, "But don't try to change the subject."
"Honestly, Odd. I'm fine," Musa said, "now go to sleep."
"What if I don't want too?" the boy asked flipping her onto her back. "Can it be negotiated?" he asked leaning over her and kissing her jaw lightly.
"Maybe," the girl grinned wrapping her arms around him bringing him closer to her.
"Hey! There are other people in the room!" Ulrich said before he threw a pillow at the two. Odd sighed turning to see that his best friend and his other friend that happened to be his best friend's girlfriend were up and staring at them.
"Aren't you two supposed to be asleep?" the purple loving boy asked, shifting off the girl.
"It's hard to sleep when your friends are about to make out," Yumi said, laughing at the blushes that were on the younger teens faces though Musa's was the darkest.
"Whatever," Odd said getting up, "I need to go to the bathroom."
"Ow! I'll come with you," Ulrich said after Yumi elbowed him in the side, gesturing for him to go. Odd gave his friend a weird look as the brunette rubbed his sore side before shrugging it off as the two left the room. Now it was just Yumi and Musa.
The two were friends but they weren't as closed as they were with the others. They never really had a conversation with the other unless initiated by someone else and even then they never exactly talked directly to the other. In retrospect, the two had never spoken more than polite casualties to the other.
"Ano, uh…" Musa began before Yumi cut her off.
"So how far have you gotten with Odd?" the older girl suddenly asked.
"Nani?" the girl asked startled by the girl's question as another blush graced her features.
"You heard me," the Japanese girl grinned. "We never really get to talk, just you and me so I wanted to talk."
"About this?" the wolf A.I. asked in disbelief still not overcoming the initial shock.
"Come on," Yumi prodded. "You know you want to talk to someone. Besides, Cascada is too reserved for this type of conversation and even if she weren't anything that she deemed interesting would be told to William and I don't think you want Odd killed by your brother. Aelita, though she has learned a lot since coming to Kadic, is still naïve and hasn't done anything with Jeremy besides holding hands and a few pecks on the cheek so therefore that only leaves me."
"I hate how your logic makes sense," the younger girl muttered.
"So?" Yumi asked standing up and plopping next to the girl.
"Well, uh, we really haven't made it passed what you just awoke to," Musa said sheepishly.
"You mean making out?" Yumi teased.
"Actually, we haven't really even done that," Musa said hiding behind her curtain of hair. "Every time we try to we either get interrupted or I get nervous."
"You didn't look nervous to me," the Japanese girl smirked before frowning as she saw the girl's hands twist the hem of her shirt nervously.
"I was," the girl said. "I really like Odd and I know he wouldn't do anything that would hurt me but I feel like he wants to do something much more then kissing."
"Of course" Yumi chuckled. "All boys want to. What really tells you whether a guy is good for you or not is whether they'll let their desire overshadowed what's best for you. Odd loves you so you don't have to worry about it. But you already know that. He probably tells you that all the time."
"Not really," Musa murmured. "I mean, he's implied it but…"
"You shouldn't worry," Yumi said putting a comforting arm around the girl. "I've known Odd for years and despite his goofy attitude it's hard for him to express his true feelings. I mean, I didn't even know he had a dad and out of nowhere Ken pops up! Don't worry; it's just hard for boys to express their feelings. Ulrich is a good example of that. Three years it took him to ask me out!"
Musa nodded, smiling. "Thanks Yumi-chan."
"No prob, Musa-chan," the older girl grinned.
"Hey, Yumi? Can I ask you a question?"
"Sure," the girl shrugged.
"When you were asking me if I had gone further with Odd…umh…what is further?" she asked.
Yumi arched a brow. "You mean you don't know?"
The wolf A.I. shook her head. "When Cascada, Leon, and I were back on Lyoko, mother and the Hoper wouldn't let me download certain parts of human relationship." The girl pouted suddenly. "They let Cas and Leon download them though. So unfair!"
At that point Yumi felt her body shaking from the laughs she was trying to hold in. "Maybe I was wrong saying that Aelita was the naïve one of the group," she chuckled.
"Nani? What?" Musa questioned confused as the other girl continued to quietly laugh at her expense.
Unnoticed to the two girls, outside, concealed within the trees was a figure watching them. "Musa Utada," the person thought. As the trees' branches swayed softly in the breeze the figure disappeared as if he hadn't existed.
Okay, so short compared to what I usually have but it's the beginning of the story. I'm just trying to set up the story line which was one of the reasons why I had Yumi and Musa have their little chat. Before I go on I want to remind you that this story is rated "T". Their wont be anything like lemons unless implied but that's highly slim. I'm only 14, people! I shouldn't even know half the stuff that I know now but that's the world we live in, sadly. Anyway, just wanted to mention that the dead guy in the prologue and the sponsor guy are two different people though they are related in some way. Just thought to say that so wou wouldn't be like, "Isn't he dead?"
Another thing, the men in black are not Will Smith or Tommy Lee Jones, nor will the ghost busters be joining the plot. I didn't make that name for them, the show did. Hopefully I'll think of another name for them but as for now the men in black in this story have nothing to do with aliens though I am thinking about them having those flashy memmory thing. I wished I had one. That would be so awesome!
Next chapter will probably be preparations, formal meeting of some of the new charaters, and the beginning of the trip itself. If any of you have been skiing it would really help if you gave me some ideas since I've never been. I perfer warmer weather.
Thanks to all my reviewers I already have about 22 reviews and I only posted two chapters. I feel so special. Thank you!
Nothing more to say so...PLEASE REVIEW!