*AFTERMATH OF HEROISM*
The next couple of days went by in a slow-motioned blur. Izzian was regretting his wish to become a valued and needed member of society. It was too much responsibility. He and his friends were politely invited to attend every single obligatory meeting. Their opinions were continually sought, which made it embarrassing when Izzian was caught snoring.
In his mind, Izzian cried for freedom after spending countless hours in tedious meetings. Most discussions focused on whether or not the Al203 Telescopes should be destroyed or remain in use. Izzian also slept through several of Gala's chaired meetings, questioning the legitimacy of and rethinking the entire scope of the Goodwill Project.
After spending six days withering away in dull conference rooms, followed by six nights of parties and fattening gourmet meals, even The Guardians craved normalcy. Soon, old Yarn was ready to leave.
"I'm meeting Laddie, remember? It's time for a vacation," the old woman said when the rest of the group begged her to stay.
Yarn had been the stabilizing force of the group and would be dearly missed. She was even appointed the Honorary Mayor of Klesia. During the award ceremony, President Twoeyes presented Yarn with the most beautiful tea set in Klesian history as a thank you for saving the world.
Yarn politely accepted the perfectly formed cups and saucers, exclaiming her profuse thanks. Izzian knew she'd probably chuck the sparkling dishes, store them away forever, or pawn them somewhere else in the galaxy.
It was a melancholy day when Yarn and her SpacePod full of Fester Tails lifted off out of Comet Central Station. Huge crowds gathered to watch Leon blast his way into the universe. Izzian's new little family was dissolving. Everyone had their own lives to attend, their own galaxies to explore, their own adventures to experience.
For once in his life, Izzian sought out Reddle F. Girth, the girl who had taunted him and picked on him his entire life. He relished the thought of showing off his accomplishments to that know it all, tiresome girl.
But Thilillian destroyed his dreams of revenge by informing him that Reddle had made it to Grotanoa before Klesia was shrunk, as had many of his other peers and classmates. Learning that most of his Klesian classmates had already departed on their Goodwill Projects, he was left with a deflated spirit. They had missed all the fanfare in his honor.
He supposed Reddle F. Girth and the others would have to eat Beaky Buzzard another day. Izzian took solace in the fact that at least Dr. Yangsley and Mr. Seebot, the irksome lab duo, had witnessed him being named a Guardian of Klesia.
After the hubbub had died down, things on Klesia Moon Prime got back to normal, more or less. Izzian and Eliza sat in the green afternoon light, dangling their feet in the warm waters of a nearby lake. Thilillian had joined them as they'd hiked through the Klesian wild, looking for the perfect spot for some good old-fashioned feet dangling.
After about an hour, Thil announced that she had personally had enough of nature to last her a lifetime. She dried her feet and headed home. Thil had lived like a feral beast in the forest of Sudden Bluff all summer long, so Izzy and Eliza understood.
It was obvious that Thil missed Paksha, as well. They all wished he could be at the lake soaking his own feet, but Paksha belonged on earth, attending school with the humans and watching reruns on television.
"Watch out for that grove of Whoosper Trees!" Izzian shouted out an anxious warning to Thil as she left the water's edge.
"You're the only one that's scared of a harmless Whoosper Tree," Thil shot back over her shoulder.
As Thil retreated into the woods, Eliza and Izzian pulled out individually sealed envelopes containing their new school schedules, excited to compare classes. Even though Izzian hadn't technically completed his Goodwill Project, he had passed with flying colors. He would be attending equidistant school with Eliza on the main planet.
No one was quite certain what would befall Thilillian, but her father, Dr. Yangsley, insisted she travel to Footfall Freighter and live there for a year. Apparently, upon realizing the extent his daughter would go to in order to get what she wanted, he had decided it was a good time to become a better parent.
"Wait, don't open that schedule yet," Eliza said. "I have a confession to make."
Izzian sighed in exasperation. He was sick of confessions, but knew better than to say it. He was currently recovering from several thump wounds and didn't need another.
"I knew the truth all along, you know," Eliza said with a wicked look in her eyes. "I knew you were an alien and I knew you were the one spying on me. I just had to hear you say it."
"Sure, Eliza," said Izzian. He knew the girl was an untrained Preytell, but she couldn't have known he was an alien all along. It was too farfetched. Izzian decided to let her believe whatever she wanted to believe. It was a lesson that had been hard learned.
They counted to three and then ripped open their school schedules.
"This can't be," Eliza said in confusion, rechecking her schedule. "This can't be right. Izzian, look!"
"I know," he said, while scanning over his own scheduled classes.
Just after first period Fragmental Particle Accumulation/Redistribution with Muckleback, of all teachers, Eliza and Izzian both shared second period Universal Literature. The newest Universal Lit teacher happened to be named Mrs. Aloris J. Maddlington, the dreaded teacher from earth.
"How did that happen?" Eliza asked, truly puzzled.
"Well, I suppose Paksha was right. Mrs. Maddlington was an alien all along. I guess she just came home," he said dejectedly.
"What luck," Eliza said as she folded up her schedule and rammed it in her back pocket. "I travel all this way and figure, well at least I'll avoid Maddlington's class. Apparently I'm not so lucky, or much of a Preytell. I had no idea."
Izzian would send Paksha a message about Maddlington being an alien and could imagine the look of contentment upon the boy's face when he discovered he had been right all along. Maddlington really was an alien. Perhaps Paksha had some Preytell abilities too. Then again, Paksha believed that every teacher was an alien.
Eliza and Izzian had an entire year of school ahead of them, suffering through Muckleback's no nonsense science class and trudging through Universal Lit with Aloris J. Maddlington. The most feared teacher of Sudden Bluff might turn into the most feared teacher on Klesia, too. Time would tell.
"Is it too late for me to go back to earth, I wonder?" Eliza said, opening a bag of Swedish Glotfish Gummies to dull the pain.
"How bad can it be, Eliza? At least we've got each other," he replied.
After all, I'm with Eliza Allready, what could possibly go wrong?
Izzian and Eliza dangled their feet into the lake for the rest of the afternoon, until the sun rested on the horizon like a fat apriguavo and their green toes shriveled up like prunes. And as they hiked home over the hills, swatting away the flying Pleverts, Eliza reached for Izzian's hand, smearing it with the remains of her last Swedish Glotfish Gummy. The two walked into the green sunset of Klesia Moon Prime.
***