A/N: After my William Redemption and Aelita Alone fanfics, I thought I was done with fanfiction in general. Then I began to wonder what would happen if Sissi ended up in the main gang. After all, there had been plenty of times in canon where she almost did.
Beta Read by Wanderingsage7
"Jeremie, you have to send me to Lyoko!"
"Aelita, it's out of the question! You will die if the Scyphozoa takes your memory, and I wouldn't count on XANA just letting our friends go even if you do give yourself up!"
Aelita Schaeffer's eyes began to sting and she feverishly shook her head. The mere thought of losing Yumi and her sisterly advice and warmth made Aelita feel cold. And then there was losing Odd as well. Despite all his bad jokes and bragging, Aelita considered him a brother to her, even if the cover story was that they were cousins.
Jeremie Belopis, the levelheaded of the group, struggled to think of a solution. With Ulrich having detonated the EMP device that Jeremie prepared, all their cell phones were turned off and he had no way of knowing whether the Xanafied Delmas had succeeded in killing their friends.
"What rotten luck..." Jeremie muttered as he put his hands to his back and got out of his chair, thinking of his next move. With his back turned on Aelita, the Guardian of Lyoko took the opportunity to go up to none other than Sissi Delmas and whisper in her ear.
"I need you to knock out Jeremie, quickly and painlessly."
Sissi glanced at the pink-haired girl that just whispered in her ear with a look of bafflement. It wasn't the biggest surprise of the day. That had been learning that her father, the School Principal, had kidnapped Yumi Ishiyama and Odd Della Robbia completely out of nowhere.
She was still processing the revelation that her father had been possessed by an A.I. known as XANA in a virtual world via an "Activated Tower". Even more shocking was finding out that this virtual world was in a Factory less than a mile away from Kadic Academy.
This really is like a James Bond movie... Sissi mused.
While Aelita and Jeremie were bickering, Sissi explored the Lab Room of the Factory. She had come to the Factory to make sure that Aelita and Jeremie weren't making a fool out of her with their virtual world story, and everything that she saw so far had proven them right. She had long suspected Jeremie and his band of friends of keeping a massive secret, but this was beyond anything she ever expected.
So when Aelita came up to whisper to her that request, Sissi stared at her. Not because she thought Aelita was crazy, but because both women were desperate.
"Please."
She saw Aelita's eyes starting to water, the fearful trembling that shook her body. The degree of agony in her whispered plea. And Sissi couldn't help but sympathize.
Seeing no other option, Sissi walked towards Jeremie until she stood directly behind him.
"Oh, Jeremie?"
Jeremie turned around to see Sissi holding out her hands in a Pencak Silat stance. Before the young genius could process what was happening, Sissi kicked the nerd in the knee and punched him in the gut. Jeremie fell against the chair, knocked out cold.
"Nice job. Where'd you learn to punch like that?" A surprised Aelita asked.
"I took Pencak Silat classes." Sissi explained. "To impress Ulrich."
Then she closed her eyes and put her hands against her hips, saying "It didn't work."
Sissi was never a violent person. True, she could be manipulative or even creepy at times, but never had the young girl ever wanted to hurt someone. Nonetheless, for around three months, Sissi trained in the martial art of Pencak Silat before showing Ulrich her skill, only for the brunette to be totally unimpressed.
Shoving her frustration to the side, Sissi focused on her curiosity instead and asked, "By the way, why did you ask me to do that?"
"I have to help Ulrich, Odd and Yumi." She explained. "Only I can deactivate the Tower that is possessing your father. And Jeremie would never let me do it."
"How does that even work?" Sissi pressed, seeking details. "And why would he not want you to do it?"
"When XANA launches an attack like this, he deploys countermeasures to stop me from reaching the Tower." Aelita explained. "You heard us mention a creature called the Scyphozoa. Long story short, it's like a giant jellyfish that can drain my memory and kill me before I reach the Tower. As much as I wanted to go by myself, I know I'll be caught going at it alone."
"But if you knew that, why did you make me knock out Jeremie? You have nobody to go with you now."
"Not true, Sissi."
Sissi's eyebrows furrowed in curiosity, wondering if James Bond or someone like him was about to pop up out of nowhere to escort Aelita to this virtual tower she spoke of. The wheels of Sissi's mind struggled to process all this information, so she let Aelita keep talking.
"Because I cannot get past the Scyphozoa alone, I need an escort. And the only escort available is the girl I am looking at right now."
But the only person in the room is-
Sissi gasped in realization, and Aelita took that as a sign to provide some explanation.
"If I'm going to reach the Tower, save my friends, and free your father, you have to come with me to Lyoko."
Sissi's jaw dropped. "M-Me? G-Going in there?!" She pointed to the computer, "To a virtual world?! I...I can't do that!"
"Sissi..." Aelita went on over to her and took the pale-skinned girl by the hands. Sissi's look of utter bafflement only increased as Aelita continued talking.
"We could spend all day arguing about this. But we can't. I know you can do this. You were brave enough to lie to those detectives about your father committing a bomb threat. You clearly saw how the situation was getting dangerous and deadly, yet you stood by us. Not only with the police, but you're also here. In the factory. You're here for your father, right?"
Aelita's steady eyes bored into Sissi's, not looking away from her for a second. Sissi just stared down at their wrapped hands, trying to let Aelita's conviction fill the spaces where her doubt and fear lived.
"R-right. Aelita, look, I-I know you want me to help. B-But..."
"I know you can." The pink-haired princess insisted. "You've been here before. I don't have time to explain but I know you can do this."
How...how does she think I can do this? Sissi internally panicked. I've never been here before. This is crazy!
"H-How would I even begin?" Sissi stammered.
"Take the elevator under that trap door over there and step inside one of the open Scanners. You'll know when you see it. That will create your Lyoko Avatar and let you enter the virtual world with me."
Sissi gulped and began to sweat, fear overtaking her.
"Sissi. If we don't do this together, we could lose everything and everyone. We have to be strong, for them."
I can't lose daddy...and I can't lose Ulrich. Sissi thought about Aelita's words, realizing how right they were. He's everything to me.
"Just follow my instructions and this will all end okay. Take a deep breath and just listen to me, then we put an end to this."
Taking a deep breath, Sissi turned to the trap door and descended the ladder to the bottom, seeing three large coffin-like machines around the room.
"Huh, these look like coffins." Sissi muttered. "Like tombs of the Egyptian Pharaohs!"
She let out a yelp when she noticed one of the machines opening up, jumping back a short distance.
"If it makes you feel better..." Sissi looked up, hearing Aelita's voice on the speakers. "Then just think of them like that. Now, just step into one and I'll get you set up."
Sissi took a step forward but hesitated from there.
"Aelita..." Sissi whimpered. "I-I don't think I can do this..."
"Yes you can. I believe in you."
"You think I can do this?!" Sissi snapped. "That I can go into some virtual world and fight monsters?! I'm going to be killed! This is-"
"If Ulrich and your father were here," Aelita interrupted. "They would give the same amount of faith in you as I do."
Aelita was probably exaggerating, but nonetheless, Sissi took one last deep breath and stepped inside of the Scanner. The door closed on her a second later.
"A-AELITA!" Sissi cried.
"It's okay. I'm just scanning you and setting up your Avatar. Close your eyes and this will all end soon."
Sissi obeyed, shutting her eyes and dig up something in her mind that could calm her fear. One conversation with her father came to mind.
"If you're scared of something, dive into it and there is a reason, and you can grow from understanding that fear."
Sissi knew exactly why she was afraid. Of coming into physical harm or even death by venturing into this virtual world. Yet it was entirely her choice to knock out Jeremie for Aelita, to step into that Scanner, to help her against this XANA thing. So much had happened today, and it was all so hard to process...
Suddenly, the Scanner opened up and Sissi soon saw Aelita descending the ladder into the Scanner room.
"Your Avatar is all set." Aelita said as she rushed into the Scanner across from Sissi. "I've started a delayed virtualization program. We're going into Lyoko now."
Sissi trembled in the Scanner, asking "A-Any advice?"
"Just follow my lead and do exactly as I tell you. And we'll make it out of this."
Her breath shaky, Sissi asked "How can you be sure?"
Aelita just flashed her a sweet smile.
"You're stronger than you think Sissi. You've always called Ulrich a Knight in Shining Armor. You don't know this, but there are times where you were his Knight too."
"W-What?"
The Scanner doors closed immediately and Sissi found herself suspended as a bright light washed over her.
What was she talking about? Sissi's mind was entirely consumed by the meaning of Aelita's statement. It's not like I've ever saved his life or anything...
Sissi closed her eyes as sounds of machinery worked around her.
In the Ice Sector, Aelita fell to the ground and looked to the right to see another feminine figure falling from the sky. The girl landed next to Aelita on all fours, her hands on the ice.
"Sissi. Are you able to see me?"
Sissi slowly stood up and looked to the right, seeing that Aelita's ears were pointed, like an elf's. Sissi saw a small dangle earring that looked like a fishing lure on her left ear. Sissi examined Aelita's body, seeing an off-white baggy jumpsuit with light pink-and-maroon mini skirt and a matching top over it and matching shoes.
"Is that you, Aelita? You look...so..."
"Strange?" Aeilta finished for her. "Take a look at yourself."
Sissi looked down to examine her legs, seeing orange pants and her white boots. She looked at her arms and she was wearing a full-sleeved shirt mixed with orange and white. She felt the back of her head and noticed her hair was a very large ponytail. It reminded her a lot of her cheerleading outfit, especially her boots.
Aelita looked at her face, which reminded her of an anime girl. Her sparkly white face, pointy ears and wide purple eyes. She had seen a few anime designs and became impressed by the graphical achievements quickly. Jeremie had casually remarked that the Lyoko world would be considered "inferior" in terms of top-notch graphics.
"Wow..." Sissi spun around, twirling her hair. "This is amazing!"
Sissi had thought herself beautiful, but this was on a completely different level. She thought all the girls at Kadic would be jealous to see how pretty she looked.
"What's that thing on your back?" Aelita asked.
"Oh?" Sissi reached out and discovered a massive stick strapped to her back. "Oh, wow! It looks like some kind of big baton, like I use in cheerleading!" Then she examined one of its tips. "Oh, it has a sharp end right up here."
"It looks like a spear." Aelita surmised, before she pointed at Sissi's hips. "Look! There are pom-poms on you too!"
Sissi looked down to see an orange pom-pom on her left hip and a green pom-pom on her right hip.
"Oh, wow! What do these do?"
Sissi was about to reach for them when Aelita's eyes suddenly widened. Seeing that Aelita was staring in her direction, Sissi turned to see what looked like three potatoes with very small legs advancing towards them.
"AH!" Sissi shrieked. "MONSTERS!"
Aelita grabbed her shoulders, attempting to calm her down. "Focus, Sissi! Try throwing your spear at them."
Sissi turned to the monsters, noticing that they resembled cockroaches. Spotting Aelita's new companion, the monsters stopped advancing to stare at her. They turned to each other, clearly confused at her presence.
[Alert: New Lyoko Avatar detected. Initiating Identity scans.]
Obeying the command, Sissi raised her spear and aimed, then tossed the weapon in their direction.
The weapon went far off to the side, missing the monsters entirely. So far off that the spear was sent hurtling off the edge and out of sight. It was much farther than she had intended it to be. It was as if Sissi had gone to the Olympics.
The Kankrelats and Aelita stared over the edge where Sissi's weapon fell.
"Um..." Sissi awkwardly rubbed the back of her head. "You cockroaches wouldn't mind if I go pick that up? Right?"
The "cockroaches" in question turned back towards Sissi and Aelita.
[Identity confirmed: Sissi Delmas of Kadic Academy. Love interest of Lyoko Warrior Ulrich Stern and daughter of Jean-Pierre Delmas]
"Uh...Right?"
[New Secondary Objective Added: Neutralize Sissi Delmas]
The Kankrelats replied by firing lasers at the girls, resuming their advance.
"AHHH! RUN AWAY!"
Sissi's bravery swiftly faltered and she shouted nervously as she ran off, jumping down the icy slide at the end of the path. Aelita swiftly slid down after her.
[Analysis: Threat level low. Hindered by inexperience and cowardice.]
One of the Kankrelats slid to a stop right in front of the edge, apparently considering the logic of following them down there. The second one bumped into him and then the third bumped into the second one, causing all of them to slide right off the edge and into the tunnel ahead of them.
Sissi screamed in terror as she and Aelita slid down the tunnel.
"THIS IS INSANE!" The virtual cheerleader cried out. "How do you handle this?!"
"It gets easier with time!" Aelita shouted back before the girls heard firing sounds behind them.
Sissi and Aelita turned to see the first Kankrelat firing wildly. Sissi saw it trying to control its feet and firing lasers at them, Aelita ducking under a laser aimed her way. Sissi continued screaming in absolute terror, although her worries slightly lessened when she saw the first Kankrelat accidentally take out the second one.
Aelita and Sissi turned back to see the exit approaching. The girls slid out into the open air as the first Kankerlot followed.
"Oh, this is going to hurt!" Sissi nervously shouted.
Aelita and Sissi crashed onto the ground near a mini glacier. The second Kankrelat collided directly onto the glacier, destroying itself.
"Well..." Sissi sighed. "At least I'm not the only clumsy one here, but I thought the fall would hurt more."
"Pain is significantly lessened in the virtual world. When you get hurt, you just lose life points" Aelita explained. "Furthermore, you can't actually die on Lyoko. If the monsters shoot you down, you'll just go back to the real world. You're human after all."
"We're essentially immortal here?!"
"Everyone except me." Aelita quickly corrected. "If I'm devirtualized, I'm dead. I'll be erased for good. That's why I need an escort at all times."
"But you're human just like the rest of us. That should mean we're both safe now, right?"
The gears of Aelita's mind began to work as she realized that the most explosive part of the group, that Aelita was in fact no human, was still unknown to Sissi. Sissi had already been freaking out so much, but knowing the truth about Aelita would throw her completely off her rockers.
Aelita's attempt to change the topic was suddenly halted when the third Kankrelat was launched out of the tunnel. It slid on the icy floor, its sharp legs screeching along the ice to stabilize its landing.
Me and my big mouth... Sissi lamented.
The monster stopped skidding a short distance away from Aelita and Sissi, whom it began to advance towards.
"I SURRENDER!" The cheerleader shouted, throwing up her arms.
Aelita facepalmed. "Sissi, they don't accept surrender."
The Kankrelat charged up its laser and fired at Sissi, who screamed, running around in a circle as the monster continued shooting at the cheerleader. It paid no attention to Aelita, seeing that the Guardian of Lyoko had no weapons.
Aelita, however, wasn't about to just stand around and let her newest ally be slain so quickly. She ran up to the Kankrelat and smashed her foot against it. The monster fell and spun around, its legs flailing widely.
The monster, unable to get up, squirmed on the ground and randomly fired lasers around in a circle.
"That didn't work!" Sissi cried as she ran around trying to dodge.
"I have another idea!" Aelita assured her. "Try throwing your pom-poms at it!"
"Oh! Right!" Sissi brought out the orange pom-pom and tossed it directly onto the monster. The pom-pom glowed a bright orange before exploding, engulfing the monster.
[Alert: Target possesses exploding projectiles. Adding to data.]
"My pom-poms are actually explosives?!" Sissi exclaimed. "Wow, this really is like a James Bond movie!"
"Great work, Sissi!" Aelita gave her a thumbs up. "You just killed your first ever monster on Lyoko!"
Sissi looked at her, wide-eyed. "I can't believe I just did that!"
"It's called a Kankrelat. However, it's by far the weakest and most fragile of XANA's monsters. Stick with me and we get through whatever else stands between us and the Tower."
Sissi began to walk back to Aelita, but froze in her tracks as a familiar whirring noise was heard. Aelita's entire body tensed.
"Huh?" Sissi turned her head around "What's that noise?"
Sissi didn't have to wait long to receive her answer, which came in the form of some sort of levitating giant squid approaching Aelita. It had eight tentacles and a bubble shaped head, its brain visible. There were some small green claws on its pink body.
"Ew!" Sissi shouted in repulsion. "What is that slob supposed to be?!"
"The Scyphozoa..." Aelita muttered in terror, before turning back to Sissi. "Quick, throw your other pom-pom at it!"
Sissi took the green pom-pom and tossed it onto the Scyphozoa. While she had expected a big explosion like with the Kankrelat, it simply dispersed into green dust that washed over the monster and Aelita. Both virtual organisms glowed green for a bit, but nothing appeared to change for either of them.
Aelita backed away but found herself pressed against a rock. The Scyphozoa paid no attention to Sissi, focused only on its prey. Sissi was stricken with panic, hands tugging on her hair like she was a helpless infant.
"What do I do now?!"
"Try-" Aelita had no time to finish when the Scyphozoa wrapped its tentacles around her waist. Sissi watched in horror as three more tentacles wrapped around Aelita's head. They turned red, and Sissi saw Aelita go completely limp as if her free will was literally being drained from her.
"AELITA!"
Sissi ran forwards. She had no weapons, but she couldn't just stand there and let this horrible creature steal her away. She jumped up, grabbing Aelita's legs in a desperate attempt to pull her out of the Scyphozoa's hold.
To the surprise of both the victim and the predator, Sissi simply yanked Aelita out of the Scyphozoa's grip and disrupted the mind-draining process.
"Go away, you big monster!" She shouted.
Aelita looked at her, baffled. "How did you just-"
The Scyphozoa emitted a shrieking noise and roughly grabbed Aelita with its tentacles again, only for Sissi to yank her away from the monster's grip again.
"Hey!" Sissi shouted. "You Scipio thing or whatever! Stop messing around with her head!"
The Scyphozoa once more grabbed hold of Aelita with its tentacles, and once more Sissi pulled her free. But this time, Sissi ran away with Aelita in her arms.
"Leave us alone and give me back my father!"
The giant jellyfish emitted another whirring noise, this time with laces of frustration in it before levitating after them.
[Power detected: Target possesses supernatural strength. Adding to data. Deploying countermeasures.]
The Scyphozoa just so happened to be the only monster that had no laser to fight with, but what had baffled the monster even more was Sissi's ability to simply pull its victim off. Ulrich, Odd and Yumi always opted to shoot it or slice its tentacles until Aelita was free. No normal Lyoko Avatar should be able to simply pry its victim free. They would need huge physical strength for that.
Luckily, XANA had a solution for the interference of its newest enemy. Sissi stopped running when she noticed a massive red creature materializing in front of her. It had four long slender scythe-like legs and a circular head. There was a mysterious eye-like symbol on top of its head, not that Sissi was paying any attention to that.
Now, it was one thing to be faced with a few small potatoes and a giant jellyfish. A creature like this, however, got on Sissi's nerves and compelled her to drop Aelita.
"Sissi!" Aelita called out. "Try calling back your weapon!"
The Krab reared its head at Sissi, who stepped back as her body quivered in terror, clearly too scared to acknowledge Aelita's advice. Seizing its chance, the Krab fired a single laser that hit the virtual cheerleader in the chest. Sissi screamed as she fell, clutching her chest and gasping.
Then the Krab stood above her. Sissi noticed a vent of some sorts on its underbelly. The vent opened up and emitted a blue glow.
"MOVE, SISSI!" Aelita screamed.
Too late. The pulse beam fired, vaporizing Sissi's virtual form in an instant.
"NO!"
[Target Neutralized. Pursuing Primary Objective.]
Crying out from the loss of her companion, Aelita made to run but the Krab fired a laser to keep her place. Finally, without any interference, the Scyphozoa wrapped its tentacles around its prey once more...
I'm dead. I'm really dead.
Sissi saw nothing but darkness after being obliterated by that massive crab creature or whatever it was called. And she was swift to assume the worst.
I'm sorry, daddy. Ulrich. I did my best...
But then Sissi felt herself falling to a cold metal floor and she looked up to see that she was in the Scanner room once more.
"I...I'm alive...I'M ALIVE!"
Sissi shook her head as she remembered Aelita's explanation of immortality on Lyoko, having completely forgotten it in the heat of facing that Krab monster.
Any celebration that Sissi might have undergone was halted by her realization that Aelita was alone and she rushed over to the ladder to get back to the lab room. Jeremie was still slumped against the chair, unconscious.
Sissi sat down on the chair and looked to see a screen that had a picture of Aelita and her brain, with a number that was steadily decreasing. She raised her hands as if to type on the keyboard, but hesitated.
"Ah, forget this!" Sissi swiftly abandoned the attempt. "I might as well be trying to find a needle in a haystack!"
At that moment, Sissi looked down to see Jeremie moaning. He was waking up, rubbing his head as he muttered "Oh, my stomach..."
Sissi hoped that he wasn't too mad as she told him, "Jeremie, we have an...um...an issue. Aelita is there in the video game. Or the uh, virtual world..."
Sissi stammered, her head still trying to wrap around everything that just occurred but came out with it. "And with some kind of giant squid."
Now that got Jeremie's attention. Shouting "What?!", Jeremie leaped up and saw the screen.
"Oh no! Aelita, are you crazy?!"
Sissi opened her mouth, about to add the part where she had gone with Aelita, when she noticed the elevator opening up. Odd and Yumi came out of it, and Jeremie promptly yelled at them, "To Lyoko! FAST!"
"Yeah!" Sissi said. "I delayed it the best I could, but she needs help to get rid of that Scipio thing or whatever!"
If Jeremie, Odd or Yumi noticed Sissi's claim to have "delayed" the monster, they paid no mind to it. Yumi raced to the trap door and climbed down the ladder immediately. Odd was preparing to head down too, when she noticed something else.
Ulrich went to help them, but he's not with them...
"Where's my father? And Ulrich?"
"Couldn't be better." Odd quipped. "He's on the Factory bridge playing with Ulrich."
Sissi's blood went cold and she paced around the Lab room. Jeremie was shouting about a virtualization procedure, not that Sissi was paying any attention to that. If her father was possessed and Ulrich was "playing" with him...
No, no, no. Ulrich...
Sissi grabbed a nearby crowbar and went over to the elevator, quickly pressing the button to take her down to the main floor as Jeremie was shouting "Move it! Ulrich must be taking a beating up there!"
Please, no...
Sissi gripped the crowbar tightly in her hands. As much as her father's strictness annoyed her, that didn't stop Sissi from loving him. But she could not let him hurt Ulrich. Whatever this A.I. had done to Mr. Delmas, he wasn't the man who loved and cared for her all her life, not anymore.
As the elevator opened up, Sissi heard Ulrich screaming and the sound of lightning. Racing to the ropes that brought her to the bridge level, Sissi climbed up to see her father spewing lightning from his hands as if he were a Sith lord, electrocuting the man she loved.
"BANZAI!"
Without a second's hesitation, Sissi ran up to her father and struck him in the chest as hard as she could. Mr. Delmas moaned and fell backwards, his body flickering like static. While she had never seen a person flicker like that before, Sissi assumed that meant he was stunned and turned her attention to Ulrich.
He sat on the edge of the bridge, moaning and barely unconscious. His shirt had scorch marks on it and there were bruises on his face. No doubt this XANA thing had wasted no time in having Mr. Delmas brutalize him.
For Sissi, it was disheartening to see the vulnerability that Ulrich showed. She knelt down and touched Ulrich's face with one hand, asking "Ulrich, are you okay?"
Ulrich softly moaned and Sissi picked him up, wrapping him around her shoulder as she sought to carry him away from danger. He was heavy, but that didn't deter Sissi. She would bear any burden or weight to save her beloved.
"S...Sissi..." He muttered.
"I'm going to get you out of here. Even if it kills me." She vowed.
Even if he doesn't love me back, I love him. Nothing will ever change that.
Suddenly, Mr. Delmas stopped flickering and rose to his feet.
"Daddy, NO!"
He rose to his full height and took a few steps forward. Sissi saw a strange four-pronged symbol in her father's eyes, replacing his normal pupils.
That's the same symbol I saw on those monsters on Lyoko. He really is possessed...
"Please, leave him alone!" She begged her father.
Mr. Delmas grabbed Sissi by the shoulder and sent a thousand volts through his daughter's body, before tossing her to the other side of the bridge.
"NO! STOP!"
Sissi's father turned back to Ulrich and raised his hand, which crackled with electricity.
"DADDY! STOP! I'M BEGGING YOU!"
Mr. Delmas zapped Ulrich, emitting a scream from the brunette.
"STOP IT!" Sissi screamed, her voice cracking from exertion. "PLEASE STOP IT!"
It was fruitless. The lightning surged and Ulrich continued to writhe in agony.
I can't let this happen. Even if it kills me...
"NO!" Sissi shrieked, suddenly leaping to her feet and sprinting towards the two men until she grabbed her father by the waist. "STOP!"
Mr. Delmas, annoyed, turned towards his daughter and raised a hand to electrocute her again.
"I LOVE HIM!"
The symbol within her father's eyes suddenly vanished, as if he were considering her pleas. Ulrich took notice as well, lifting his head up at her.
"I CAN'T LIVE WITHOUT HIM!"
The symbol returned instantly.
"Then die with him."
The demon possessing her father tossed Sissi next to Ulrich and raised both hands, now simultaneously electrocuting both of them.
I'm gonna die. I'm actually going to die here.
All because of this man-turned-monster by an evil A.I. had them pinned against a wall. She heard demonic chuckling, but she knew that it was not from her father. It was from the demon that was inflicting a torturous death upon them for pure sadistic pleasure.
Sissi, with the last of her strength, grabbed Ulrich's hand and whispered "I'm sorry..."
Mr. Delmas prepared one more surge of lightning. Sissi knew it was the end.
Goodbye father. Goodbye Ulrich. I love you both.
Sissi shut her eyes and prepared for death.
It never came.
Sissi opened her eyes to see the symbol in her father's eyes vanishing. Mr. Delmas fell to the ground, motionless and limp.
"D-Daddy?"
She crawled up to her father in concern as he's not moving. "Is he..."
"No, just knocked out." Ulrich called out. "Don't worry."
It's like he's been through this a thousand times before... Sissi thought to herself, noticing the exasperated tone in his voice.
"What's gonna happen to him now?" She closes her eyes, lightly touching him. "I mean, with the kidnapping and everything?"
If my father goes to jail not only for kidnapping students, attacking one, and also with him being under suspicion for bombs, I'll be all alone...
The very thought began to break Sissi's heart, as if the physical agony weren't enough.
Seeing this, Ulrich sought to reassure her. "Everything's gonna be alright. No one will remember anything. Neither will you, for that matter."
Still unable to stand, Sissi slowly crawled over to Ulrich until she sat next to him. To know that she wouldn't remember the utterly horrifying day that was today brought her mixed feelings.
On one hand, Sissi was so desperate to understand why Ulrich had bonded so well with the team and not her. She still had so many questions, but seeing that she would not remember the answers, she opted not to ask, instead sitting next to Ulrich.
On the other hand, she couldn't imagine having to bear the weight of all this. The virtual world, seeing an evil A.I. possess her father and nearly die at his hands along with the boy she loved the most. It was all so much to take in.
"And you?" Sissi asked.
"I will. For me, it's not the same."
"Okay," She leans in towards him. "Then you'll remember this."
Sissi leaned over until her face was mere inches away from his. Ulrich's eyes were wide with surprise as he realized what she was doing.
"May I kiss you?" She asked him.
Ulrich stared at her, as if surprised that she was only asking. Sissi remembered the last time they had kissed, when Ulrich offered it to her as a "down payment" for helping Yumi when she was in trouble with the principal.
At first, Sissi felt like she was in heaven, but the memory gradually turned sour when she realized that Ulrich didn't kiss her out of love, but because he was desperate. Their month of dating afterwards felt hollow. The 'romantic tension' between them felt forced, almost. She noticed he felt miserable during those times and didn't want to be there with her.
She didn't want to force it out of him. After everything that happened, she wanted his permission first.
Ulrich nodded and Sissi kissed him on the lips. Closing his eyes, Ulrich went with the kiss.
This feels so much better... Sissi thought before reluctantly pulling away.
To know that Ulrich actually consented to her kiss surged her heart like never before. She was about to say something else, when she heard a voice say "You can go ahead, Einstein. I wonder which would be worse, being blind or having to see this."
Sissi turned around to see Odd on the phone, presumably talking to Jeremie. She would normally give him a scathing retort for his quip, but she was in no mood for that. Ulrich held her hand and whispered something to her.
"I wish you were more like this." Ulrich admitted, "We used to be friends...and I wish we could be again."
Sissi barely had enough time to process this before a white light engulfed her.
Why on Earth would I just let her do that?
Ulrich Stern had mixed feelings for the girl who was obsessed with him, but they have never become more mixed than today. Sissi had been in danger more than once, shown her courage and bravery several times, but it was always undone by the Returns to the Past.
But today, he had just let her kiss him. After everything that the stalker girl had done, Ulrich had simply sat there on the bridge and let her kiss him. He was stupid for allowing that.
Ugh...If only it were that simple.
As he stood in front of the cafeteria with Aelita and Jeremie, Ulrich put his hands in his pocket and sighed in frustration.
"You okay there, Ulrich?"
"No." Ulrich shook his head. "It's about Sissi. If I tell you what's wrong, will you keep a secret?"
Aelita and Jeremie gave him a thumbs up, at which point he said, "She asked if she could kiss me on the bridge and I let her."
Aelita and Jeremie's jaws practically dropped to the ground.
"I should have said 'no'. At any other time, I would have said 'no'. Other times, I might have straight up shoved her to the floor for suggesting it."
"Yumi would have done much worse than you." Jeremie suggested. "Remember the time you had amnesia?"
This was probably the most frustrating memory of Sissi that Ulrich had. When XANA launched an attack that gave him amnesia, Sissi wasted no time in manipulating his memories. When the others described it to him, Ulrich felt more repulsed by Sissi than he ever had before. Yumi had even described her fantasies of breaking Sissi's nose for her stalkerish actions that day, but because Sissi didn't remember any of it, she backed down.
And it wasn't the only time he felt that way. Sissi had even stolen Ulrich's diary one time, though she didn't remember that either. Yumi had literally punched a wall when she learned about that. Yumi was also quite furious to learn of Ulrich's first kiss with Sissi. Ulrich imagined that if anyone in the group really hated Sissi, it was Yumi.
But if she ever learns that I actually let her kiss me? Both of us will be dead for sure.
"I don't understand it." Ulrich confided. "I should despise her for everything she's done, yet I couldn't help but feel terrified for her when her father nearly killed us both. She stepped up to defend me against her father. Sissi can be stupid sometimes but she's not dumb. She knew the risks."
"Maybe she's braver than we think." Aelita suggested.
"Sissi? Brave? Like hell."
Or at least, that was what Ulrich wanted to say. But he found himself incapable of making his lips form the words and again sighed in frustration.
"Why am I so hung up about this? We all know why she's not our friend. She betrayed our secret about the Supercomputer at the first opportunity. She can't be relied on, and she's so selfish. But..."
"But, from what I heard, she only did it to save you and because she thought you were in over your heads." Aelita pointed out.
"Yeah..." Ulrich shook his head. "But what makes it the most frustrating is that none of it mattered. We lived, yeah, but now Sissi's right back to her annoying self that she always was. It. Never. Changes."
"She sat with me in an elevator when I broke my arm during a XANA attack. She stood with me and Yumi when we were being chased by that Alien thing XANA possessed. I could go on and on, but everytime, she loses her memory. Sissi could be better, but we keep taking that opportunity away from her. Every. Single. Time!"
Ulrich stopped his ranting as he came to a realization. He had wanted to denounce his frequent stalker as a coward, but when he tried to form the words, he couldn't come out with them. Not because they were hard to say. No, it was much worse.
It was because they were wrong.
"Never imagined you would be the one to defend Sissi, Aelita. Did you two bond over knocking me out?" Jeremie half joked.
"I'm very sorry that I had her do that to you." Aelita sincerely apologized. "I was desperate to get to Lyoko and-"
"No need to explain," Jeremie interrupted. "I understand. I hope you understand that I only insisted on you not going to keep you away from the Scyphozoa."
"I do." Aelita affirmed. "And if a situation like that happens again, I'll try my best not to resort to something that violent."
"Thank you, Aelita."
"And Ulrich" Aelita turned her attention back to the brunette, "There's something I want to ask you."
Ulrich didn't turn around, still deep in thought.
"How was the kiss with Sissi this time?"
Ulrich whipped his head around in an instant, his eyes wide with surprise.
"Why would you ask that?" He demanded.
"You're trying to figure out your feelings for Sissi." Aelita surmised. "Whether you hate her or you admire her as a friend. You say that you hated that she kissed you, just like last time. But seeing that you let her do it, ask yourself this: how did it feel?"
Ulrich paced around them, the wheels of his mind trying to sort out the tide of emotions that were swirling within the Lyoko Samurai.
"I wasn't under pressure to do it. I didn't need to bribe Sissi for anything. Yet, just hearing her screaming for me as her father was electrocuting me. Seeing that she was willing to die just to keep me safe..."
Ulrich let out a groan. "Oh, I don't know!"
"Yes, you do." Aelita retorted.
"Oh, fine!" Ulrich came out with it. "Yes, the kiss with Sissi felt better this time. It even felt good! HAPPY?!"
Ulrich put his hand to his mouth instantly. Aelita and Jeremie stared at him, their jaws dropping to the ground.
Why...Why would I ever say that aloud?!
Once Ulrich picked himself back together, he added "You tell Yumi I said that, and she's going to erupt like the biggest volcano in the whole damn universe."
"No danger of that happening." Jeremie assured him "Now that Sissi's memories are erased, only you could talk about it and there's no point in it since she doesn't remember."
Aelita coughed, earning the attention of the boys. "There's a problem with that. There's something I need to tell you both."
Huh? What problem?
Jeremie and Ulrich gave her their full attention. "Jeremie, you asked if me and Sissi bonded back in the lab while you were out cold. Well, we-"
"ULRICH!"
Aelita, Jeremie and Ulrich turned to see Sissi approaching them. When they reached this point in time before, Sissi was merely walking alongside her two minions, Nicholas and Herb. And yet Sissi was full-on sprinting and was completely alone.
"Huh." Jeremie observed. "This isn't what happened last time."
Ulrich cocked an eyebrow, obviously wondering what she was doing.
"Oh, dear..." Aelita muttered.
"What is it?" Jeremie asked, before an epiphany came to mind.
As Sissi stopped in front of them and caught her breath, Jeremie remembered, "Wait. Sissi mentioned something about 'delaying' the Scyphozoa as best as she could."
Ulrich's eyes went as wide as dinner plates as he stared at the panting Sissi.
No...
"But if she wasn't on Lyoko, how would she have been able to..." Jeremie stopped, piecing together what had happened as he turned towards Aelita.
No, No, No...
"Aelita..." Ulrich asked a bit too calmly as he turned towards the pink-haired princess. "What happened at the lab while we were away?"
Sissi caught her breath, saying "I saw my father in his office. He was completely alright. He didn't remember a thing. Nobody does! It's a miracle, like nothing ever happened! It's as if mind snatchers invaded the whole world!"
Oh, God...
The Return of the Past should have erased her memory, as it was specifically programmed to erase the memories of everyone who never went on Lyoko. It had even happened to Jeremie the first time he had tested it out. That could only mean...
"No, you did not." Ulrich directed at Aelita. "You did not do what I think you did."
"I needed an escort." Aelita nervously explained. "Jeremie wouldn't let me go, so I had Sissi knock him out. And then...I asked her to go to the Scanners, so I could-"
"So you could make Sissi an Avatar and bring her to Lyoko..." Jeremie ended it for her. Ulrich felt like vomiting.
Please tell me that I just need to get my ears checked.
Sissi stared at them, saying "Yeah, Aelita was begging me to help. She turned me into some kind of virtual cheerleader with one of those weird coffin things. I got shot by those monsters that helped the Scipio thing grab Aelita and-"
"The Scyphozoa." Jeremie corrected out of instinct before he put his hands to his head.
This is all just a bad dream. I need to wake up, right now.
Ulrich walked up to Sissi and asked her "Pinch me."
"What?"
"Pinch me. Get me out of this dream."
"Uh, Ulrich. It's not a-" Jeremie started to say, only for Ulrich to insist, "Please pinch me."
Sissi pinched him on the shoulder, and he let out a small yelp. Nothing changed. Everyone was still here. In reality. Sissi still remembered everything. She knew their closest secret and there was nothing he could do about it.
It's not a dream...She knows. She knows everything.
And it wasn't just the recent attack that she knew about. The Supercomputer, XANA, all of it. And this time, a Return to the Past wouldn't change anything. She was stuck here, with them. Sissi wasted no time to begin ranting and raving.
"You said I wouldn't remember any of this, but I do. I don't know how or why, but I do know one thing: we need to shut down that horrible machine! And fast!"
How are we even going to begin explaining this to her? She'll blab about everything the second we leave her alone. And Yumi...
Before any of them could explain the situation, they heard a feminine voice asking, "What's going on here?"
"Oh, no..." Ulrich muttered.
A certain Japanese girl along with a braggart walked up to the four. Seeing Ulrich and Sissi standing in close proximity, Yumi narrowed her eyes. Instantly, she sensed that something was wrong. If Sissi was making Ulrich uncomfortable, Yumi would be sure that was the last time she did that.
Ulrich's blood turned cold when he turned around to see Yumi and Odd walking over. Sissi just stared at everyone, obviously wondering what their next move would be.
Yep, this is hell.
"Ulrich, Sissi, care to explain?" Yumi asked.
"Well...uh..." Ulrich stammered.
"And I heard Odd on the phone, wondering if he'd rather be blind than see something that he noticed." Yumi added "Odd was going up to you, last I heard."
Ulrich's heart sank to the bottom of his chest.
On second thought, I'd take hell over this...
A/N: I based Sissi's Lyoko form and powers on a reddit post I saw a while ago on the Lyoko subreddit, with Sissi on Lyoko in a cheerleading-like outfit. The function of the green pom-pom will be revealed the next time Sissi goes to Lyoko, though you can probably guess what it does.
XANA's PoV is inspired from The Boy in the Computer, an Aelita/Jeremie swap fanfic (seriously, read it when you have a chance. It's great!). The A.I. is very much displeased at having yet another enemy to deal with. I won't show too much of his PoV aside from foreshadowing the plots/attacks that it decides on, though.
I can't be the only one who thought that Sissi was being a total creep in that Amnesia episode right? The way she touched Ulrich in the infirmary while he was unconscious, taking advantage of his memory loss, etc. Ulrich and Yumi's feelings for Sissi are really complicated and are gonna be tearing them up.
Next up: Arguments and tensions heat up as the Lyoko Warriors debate what to do with their newest member.