(EDIT: This chapter was redone on the 21/12/2014. I fixed up many of the spelling and grammar mistakes, and rewrote some of the sections to suit the piece better. If you have the time, could you please comment on this edited version?)

Salutations!

Well, hasn't the year past just flown? To all my readers and reviewers, I hope you had a wonderful festive season, wherever you are in the world, and that you have a terrific 2013 ahead. I remember this time last year, I think, I was just releasing Chapter 4. And now, I'm up to Chapter 15 and I have 25 reviews! I still can't believe I am where I am...and I have you all to thank for that.

Chapter 15 is of course the 'Notice Me, Horton' chapter, but also reveals the extent of both last chapter and chapter eleven's damage, some more damaging that they may seem. *rubs hands together with delight*

I would like to thank Ninja-Chan42 and Spax99 (I recommend reading her story 'Please Believe In Us'- It is incredible!) for reviewing and Arixa23 for being my beta. I cannot thank you all enough.

Disclaimer: I do not own Seussical, its characters, its songs or anything Seuss, which belongs to Lynn Ahrens, Stephen Flaherty and the Seuss Enterprise. I only own Kirsty and several of the main character's first names (Mrs Mayor and the Bird Girls).

Now, on with the show, and don't forget to read and review,

~Sophie

Chapter 15: The Way I Notice You

"How many clovers do you think there are in total? There has to be at least a million…"

As she observed their latest problem, which came in the form of a field of identical pink fuzzy flowers, she noticed her friend was still lagging behind her. Pausing, she started to move over to him, her stride quickening when his legs started to wobble.

"Sit down," Kirsty told him, the girl now right beside him. "Let me have a look at you. Close your eyes if you really want to. Have a rest, please."

Horton pushed her away, standing back up again. "I'm fine," Horton told her, but as he started to walk, that claim was completely shut down, the elephant wincing and ungracefully falling back to the ground. His trunk wrapped itself around his left leg, which was covered with bruises, scratches and blisters, the pain together with his fatigue too much for him to deal with. "Maybe I could sit down for a little bit, just to catch my breath…"

Without a word, Kirsty went down of her knees, investigating the damage. As she did, Horton gasped. "Kirsty! Your…your arm! It's-"

"-not as painful as it looks," Kirsty quickly responded, getting out a large handkerchief from her bag, trying it around the elephant's foot. With every movement of her arm, she had to supress a tear, the wound now bleeding across her arm. "Stay still."

As his friend continued to tend to him, Horton couldn't help but stare at the clover field. "Even so, you have to look after yourself. I'll help you look for the clover. I have to. It's my-" He was silenced by Kirsty, who sharply put a finger to her lips, wishing to concentrate. "Are you sure you'll be okay to search without me? You need sleep to."

"I'll be fine. It's you I'm most worried about. " Kirsty stood back up and stepped a few steps away, reviewing the covering, which she had tied together with some hard leaves and moistened with some dew. "Not exactly to the book, but I think it should do. Finally all those years of reading that first aid book have come in handy!"

Quickly, she raced to her bag, getting out her jacket, and placing it over the elephant, along with the blanket she had been given from Horton. "I know it's not much, but it should it keep you from catching a cold."

Horton looked at her, eyes half closed. "Don't drain yourself. You need to make sure you get some sleep, understand?" Seeing the girl nod slightly, it gave him some relief, even though he knew that simply nodding didn't guarantee she would listen to his pleas. Slowly, his eyes closed fully, and within a few minutes, he was sound asleep, his light snoring filling the air.

Meanwhile, Kirsty was looking out to the horizon, the sun just beginning to set, stars above now almost visible. She picked up a clover and looked back to Horton, her friend's peaceful slumber growing her determination. I told him I would look for the clover. I have to find it…for Horton's sake. I have to…I just have to…

A soft pushing against her stomach broke Kirsty from her shortly lived rest, her face immediately meeting with one of an elephant's.

"I'm sorry to wake you, but you were counting in your sleep…" Horton chuckled, helping the girl to her feet. "I think you were up to three thousand, nine hundred and seventy six, was it?"

Nodding, she replied, before trying to pick out the clover fluff from her ponytail. "That seems about right." After the final fluff had been pulled, her eyes and attention moved back to Horton. "How are you feeling?"

"Great, actually. My leg's still sore, but I think it's more from the running than anything." His head now almost at lips distance away from her, Horton looked her straight in the eyes. "How many hours did you sleep?"

Doing a quick calculation in her head, Kirsty answered, with a straight face. "Seven, roughly."

Horton stepped back a few feet, shrugged, and went back to the mass of clovers, without any questioning or comments. Relieved, she grabbed her jacket from where Horton had been sleeping and made her way over to the border of the jungle and the mountain area. I hate lying to him, but I just need to keep him positive. Anyway, after a quick trip to Who, I bet we'll find the clover in no time!

"Kirsty! There you are!"

Hearing her name, the teenager spun around, only to be met by Gertrude, who was lowly flying towards her. "So, what do you think of the 'new, improved' Gertrude? Sammy, Melissa and Tayla did such a good job, don't you think?"

Kirsty tried to reply to her friend, but no words could be used to describe the young bird's tail, which was now six metres longer. "Wow!" she managed to spit out. "It certainly is impressive!"

"I know, isn't it just!" Gertrude let out a little squeal, before gasping, remembering something. "But what about your tail? Has it happened yet?"

Rolling her eyes, Kirsty sighed. "It's happened alright." Without another word, she turned to reveal her new tail, which seemed to give a small wave to the now stunned bird whose eyes were glued to it. "Anyway…what brings you over here?"

Gertrude quietly scoffed, shaking her head in disbelief. "Horton, of course! Today is finally the day where I will tell him how I really feel about him. With this new tail, this Gertrude isn't holding back! This time, he will have no other option but to notice me."

"Gertrude, he does notice you. He just needs a little time," Kirsty told her. "Besides, is this direction really where you should be going with this? Can't he just learn to love you for you? That's seems more sensible."

Looking back at her friend, she could see that Gertrude wasn't listening to a word she was saying, her mind fully made up. "Okay, this is the moment…" Gertrude whispered to herself, gearing up. She turned back to Kirsty, striking a pose. "So, how do I look?"

"'Amayzing'," Kirsty smile a small smile in Gertrude's direction, the bird immediately dragging her into a hug.

As she let her go, Gertrude's mood grew hopeful, the bird taking slow, deep breaths in and out. "Well, I'd better be off. Wish me luck!" The young bird quickly flew off to the direction of Horton, while Kirsty stood in silence, her necklace now in her hands.

Please be alright, Whoville…I don't need any more things to worry about…

Within a second, Kirsty disappeared in silence, now on her way to Who. Meanwhile, Gertrude was now almost a metre from Horton, the bird filled with butterflies as she watched him.

"It's taken all my courage to approach you, not to mention all my stamina to follow you across the hills and deserts…" Gertrude quietly sang, her steps towards Horton only small. "But I feel as if I'm ready to confess to you the feelings that I've hidden with great diligence and labour..."Taking a deep breath in, calming her nerves, she continued. "Behind the façade of your odd little next-door neighbour."

Instantly, a soft, romantic tune began to play in the background, as Gertrude moved ever so closer to him, her tail flowing light behind her. "My eyes are too small. I have very large feet. And I'm not very proud of my pitiful tweet." Her voice cracked a little, which caught Horton's attention away from the clovers for the second, but was short lived. "But I've now got a tail that is something to see..." She did a little spin and struck a pose the minute Horton's head lifted back in, praying that he would see her.

Unfortunately, it was not to be, Horton's eyes firmly set on the two clovers in his trunk. "Four thousand and two. Four thousand and three," Horton counted, sadly, throwing the clovers behind him into Gertrude.

"Oh, notice me, Horton, feather by feather," Gertrude continued, moving over to Horton's right side. "This is your next-door neighbour calling! Notice me, Horton….Horton, together we could be great!" Her voice grew louder, now growing anxious. "Oh, notice me, Horton, put down the clover! This is your next door neighbour calling. There's a new leaf your neighbour's turned over."

"Over and over, Clover by clover..." Horton sang over the top of her, hardly even noticing.

The two now stood almost back to back, both to different people. "I was just a no one only yesterday. You showed up and showed me something more. Now I've become a someone, who has someone to believe in and to be there for..." Horton quickly went back to his searching, still not seeing Gertrude.

That gesture caused her whole heart to fall, the girl now moving away from the elephant. "I will not give up hope," she sang softly, quietly determined. "I was hooked from the start, when I noticed your kind and your powerful heart." She looked back to Horton, tears starting to form in her eyes. "So notice me, Horton..."

"Oh, the world would be something new…" Horton looked into the distance, his hope also fading.

Gertrude was now begging, on the brink of breaking down. "Notice me, Horton,"

"If they noticed a thing or two..."

"Notice me, Horton…."

"The way I notice you," they both sang, the music fading away into lost optimism. Even after the music had gone, Gertrude stood, quietly gazing at Horton, the elephant continuing to stare at the flowers as if nothing had happened, before taking off, a thin crack now present in her large heart.

Many hours later, with one last gigantic yawn, Horton stepped away from one of the several large pink piles, completely drained. Five thousand clovers search through at that point in the evening, and it has all been in vain, Whoville still no closer to being found. Another thing that was also not in his reach was Kirsty, the girl still not back since her departure that very morning. Just when he was about to go in search of her, he heard a large thump from behind, and a rough panting.

"Hort…Horton."

No noise came from Horton's mouth, as he saw Kirsty, now standing, shivering violently in front of him. Her eyes were darker than usual, large rings around them, and an abundance of tears were flowing from them like streams onto her grey washed face. Immediately, his eyes drifted to the arm where her wound was, the sight shocking him, the injury much larger and aggressive that it have been only a few hours ago.

"Kirsty! Talk to me!" he demanded, yet in a calming voice. "What did you do?"

The air was filled with her quiet breathing, until her voice finally answered. "I went back to Who. Everything's in ruins. A few have been injured, but no one has died…" Out of the blue, she let out a small scream, now sobbing into her hands. "They…they sent me there…I had to tell her…It wouldn't have been right to keep lying to her…

Horton raised an eyebrow, now even closer to his friend. "Kirsty, you're not making any sense. Why are you like this? Where did who supposedly send you?

She remained quiet for a moment, the teenagers just shaking her head. "The Mayor, he sent me to…the military academy." Kirsty said, her voice on the brink of breaking, as the entire moment flashed back to her, while she began to tell Horton everything.

"Dear, please!"

Mrs Mayor slowly made her way up to her daughter's room, her husband and her daughter's tutor still sitting silently. It had all meant to be a civil discussion- they had decided to tell their daughter the news of her enrolment a few days after being notified by the General- however, as expected, it had ended with her husband raising it voice, causing her teenage daughter to run up to her room, slamming the door behind her.

"You shouldn't have yelled at her like that," Mrs Mayor had told the politician, who now had his head in his hands. "Look at you, you're regretting it already. You should go and talk to her, sort everything out…apologise even."

The Mayor shook his head. "She wouldn't listen to me. You're better at this 'parent' with her than I ever will. Would you talk to her, please?"

Straitening her skirt, his wife sighed, as she made her way up the stairs. "Okay, but you will have to learn how to deal with these situations eventually."

When she ended up at her daughter's room, her lace gloves tightly gripping the door handle, she opened the door slightly, enough to see inside. Kirsty was now standing at the balcony, her face away from the door.

"Kirsty? May I come in?" She received no response, which in one way, was a positive. "I'm sorry, sweetheart. We shouldn't have kept your enrolment in the academy a secret from you. Your father…he just didn't know how to break it to you. He has your best interest in heart, and so do I; we just have different ways of showing it." Stepping away from the door and closer to her daughter, a kind, forgiving smile tried to show on the woman's face. "We wish it didn't have to be like this, and that there was another option, but unfortunately, there isn't. But we will get, there…I am sure we will, and someday, we can be the perfect-"

Kirsty sniffed, before cutting Mrs Mayor off. "Please don't say that word. I know you want to say that, but please…don't. We will never be like everyone else, and it is my entire fault."

"Dear, don't be silly. How is it your fault?" Mrs Mayor asked her, putting a hand on her shoulder. "What have you done that is so bad?"

"I'm not your daughter, that's what. I never was, and I never will be."

Those words struckher the mother like a tonne of bricks, so much so that part of her refuse to even accept that she had heard them. "Please, Kirsty. Don't be ridiculous. Now, would you please get dressed into something more suitable? We have to meet the General in less than an hour to discuss your rooming."

Kirsty turned back to Mrs Mayor, who was walking back towards the door. "I am serious! I'm…I'm a human!"

Mrs Mayor stopped, the final word making her continue to listen to the teenager, whose voice was now hushed. "I arrived in this universe on the fifteen of May, in the Jungle of Nool. Somehow, after finding the clover, I ended up here, and got mistaken as your lost child. Now, I alternative between the two worlds, in secret. That's why I am always late home, and why I always look rushed and tired all the time, and why I don't understand half the work at school. It's because this is all so new to me, everything…especially…"

The word 'family' caught in her throat, she moved the conversation, taking out her necklace from underneath her jacket. "I use this necklace to travel between each of the words. I'm still not entirely sure how it works though…" Kirsty told her. "Before I came here, I was with Horton. He's still searching for the clover, after it got stolen by monkeys, and then by a large eagle, who then dropped it into a massive pile of clovers." Knowing Mrs Mayor still didn't believe her, she began to unzip her jacket.

"Oh my goodness! How did you do that?" Mrs Mayor exclaimed, seeing the large gash marks that now covered her dominant arm.

Looking at them as well, Kirsty's face grew anxious. "It wasn't this bad before…" she whispered, before quickly covering them up before Mrs Mayor could comment anymore. "I'm sorry I haven't been the perfect child you've always wanted. I wish I was, but I'm not. I just couldn't lie from you anymore. You deserve better that that."

Mrs Mayor sat herself down on the edge of the teenager's bed, her face visibly paler. The truth now sinking in, the woman put her hand to her mouth, tears beginning to fall from her eyes. Kirsty sat down beside her, now acting as a shoulder to cry on. The two didn't speak to each other, the silence in the room acting as the most appropriate reaction.

"Call me Helen."

Kirsty's head flashed up, hearing Mrs Mayor's gentle voice. she told her, just before she left the room. "Pardon?"

"Well, since you're not technically my daughter- although we should keep this private for professional reasons- I thought you should have the right to know my first name," she told the teenager, planting a light kiss on her forehead. "Alright, Kirsty?"

"Okay…Helen…"

Still shocked, Horton was now sitting down, while Kirsty remained standing. "What about Mr Mayor?" he asked her, turning his head so he could try and gain a view of her expression. "You know her deserves to know." When she didn't reply, he sighed, standing back up. "Kirsty? Are you listening?"

"What was I supposed to tell him?" she snapped, exasperated. "That his daughter is really a crazy, 'supernatural' creature who comes from an entirely different universe? He would never believe me! If I told him, his whole career would be in ruins, not to mention the media, and the council would have a field day…"

"Hey, take it easy," Horton told her, trying to calm her down. "I didn't mean it like that. And anyway, you don't how he would react. You're jumping to conclusion-"

Swiftly, Kirsty turned around, her eyes burning into Horton's. "For good reason! I have already messed up enough both here and in Who with all my Thinking, talking and just being here in the first place. I don't want to hurt anyone, or cause anyone any more grief! I…I DON'T WANT TO DO THIS!"

Horton staggered backwards, petrified by Kirsty's sudden outburst, especially the torture that her eyes were pouring out, even from just a quick flash towards him. Never before had he seen this side of her, the elephant now scared beyond belief. Kirsty, whose face had now changed to one of distress, tried to apologise, but froze, as her legs tired and overworked, trembled, and gave out from underneath her. Quickly, Horton caught her with his trunk, her thin body light enough for him to carry with ease. Within a few seconds, she fell asleep, her breathing slowing down.

She's finally given in. I never expected her to last this long, what with not have that much to start with. But why…why did she have to lie to me?

Softly, he laid her body down on a soft- and already searched through- pile of clovers, the girl now fully in a much needed recovery. His eyes now drifting to the star above his head, he closed his eyes, laying himself down next to his friend. Friend…that was a word that he hadn't used in a while. But what it really the right word to use for this girl, someone who was so different that anyone he had met before?

Please…help Kirsty. She's already been through too much heartbreak in her life. Please…please don't make things worse for her…