Shelby and Shauna Kitt and the Dimensional Holes. P. H. C. Marchesi
she said. “You better not try again.”
Shelby, ignoring his sister’s advice, tried again and staggered backwards as a more painful shock pierced his hand.
“That was really smart,” said Shauna, crossing her arms in disapproval. “Keep trying, and eventually you’ll lose that hand.”
Shelby smirked at his sister, and decided to look through Dale’s science books. Shauna began to wander aimlessly through the room. She thought she heard something – was someone calling her? She stood perfectly still, and finally made out what the sound was: it was the word “help,” echoing persistently in her mind by a faint chorus of tiny voices.
“Oh, no,” she muttered. “Not again!”
“Did you find something?” asked Shelby, putting aside a physics book full of diagrams he couldn’t begin to decipher.
“I’m hearing voices calling for help,” she said. “They started right after I walked past the closet curtain.”
“Maybe it’s not a closet,” said Shelby, pulling the curtain aside.
To Shauna’s horror, Shelby was right. Instead of clothes, the nook behind the curtain had a small desk with a microscope, and the shelves had all types of animals imprisoned in glass containers. Most of them were insects, although there were some glass containers with frogs and mice.
“Ugh,” mumbled a disgusted Shelby. “He’s a total sicko!”
“I’m getting all these guys out of here,” said Shauna, grabbing the nearest glass container and marching to the window. Shelby tried to open it for her, but the thick, metal screen would not budge.
“What’s up with these windows?” complained Shelby, trying to open the other one with no success. “It’s like a prison in here!”
“We need to figure something else out,” said Shauna, seeing that the spider inside the jar was hardly moving. “Some of these guys won’t make it if they stay here much longer. We need someone else to help us with these windows.”
“Looks like I got here just in time, then,” said a flirtatious voice. “I can get in through any window.”
Shelby’s whole face melted into a smile as he saw Loola.
“I thought Lendox sent you back to Miriax!” he cried.
“He did, S,” said Loola, with a provocative smile. “I decided not to, though. Hanging out with you seemed more interesting.”
“We need to get these guys out of here,” said Shauna, showing Loola the closet. “Can you fly them out, and drop them someplace safe?”
“That’s it?” asked Loola, disappointed. “It’s not exciting enough!”
“It is for them,” said Shauna, shoving the jar she was holding towards Loola. To Shauna’s surprise, however, Loola jumped back, looking horrified.
“There’s a spider in there,” she said, shuddering. “Novians don’t like spiders.”
“I don’t, either!” said Shelby, enthusiastically. “How cool is that?”
“I’ll take all the other ones, but not him,” said Loola, staring at the spider inside the jar. Shauna could hardly believe it: Loola’s usually confident expression was horror-stricken.
“But it’s in a glass case,” protested Shauna. “It can’t even get close to you!”
“It’s too close already!” said Loola. “No, no, and no.”
“Please, Loola!” cried Shauna. “It’s gonna die if we leave it in here! Don’t you think that’s awful?”
Loola looked at Shauna for a moment, and then dramatically rolled her eyes.
“Ok, fine,” she said. “But only if we can meet up later and do something really fun.”
“Deal!” cried Shelby. “When?”
“I’ll call you,” said Loola, giving him a brief but irresistible smile.
“How are you gonna call me, though?” asked Shelby. “I don’t have a phone!”
Loola, however, had already transformed herself into her water drop shape. She floated past the different glass containers, and each disappeared behind her emerald trail. When they were all gone, the emerald trail headed towards the window, getting smaller and smaller, until it floated right through the metal screen.
“I wish I could shrink like that,” said Shauna, admiringly.
“I wonder if she’s really gonna call,” said Shelby, sadly. “Do you think she even gets what a phone actually is?”
Shelby looked so worried about the possibility of Loola not calling that Shauna might have laughed, had she not heard footsteps by the door.
“There’s someone out there!” she gasped.
The door opened before they could do anything, and Marina walked in.
“You should see the look on your faces!” she said, with a chuckle. “I wish I had a camera!”
“How did you know we were here?” asked Shauna.
“Lendox asked me to keep an eye on you,” she said. “What are you doing here, anyway?”
“You gotta see this,” Shelby said, grabbing her hand and pulling her to Dale’s computer.
“Look at these folders here!” he cried, pointing to the folder entitled “Klodian stuff.”
Marina frowned, and touched the keyboard before Shelby could warn her. She jumped back, shaking her hand and wincing at the shock she had received.
“Sorry,” said Shelby. “I meant to tell you – my hand got fried too.”
“What kind of sick person would come up with that idea?” she cried.
“Can you figure out how to get through?” asked Shauna.
“Probably, but not right now. We need to get out of here before Dale gets back, and that’s going to be any second now.”
Shelby and Shauna had no choice but to leave with Marina, and hurry back towards the dining room’s double-door. As Shauna went in, she nearly ran into Dale as he walked out.
“Sorry!” she said, her cheeks flushing miserably.
“You didn’t go on a virtual tour?” he asked, his watery eyes fixed on her.
“No. Actually, we were…”
Shauna’s voice trailed off as her mind went blank. Under Dale’s unwavering stare, she couldn’t think of a single way to finish her sentence convincingly.
“We were looking for Tippy,” intervened Marina, to Shauna’s great relief. “Have you seen her?”
Dale shook his head, looked at Shauna again for a moment, and then walked away.
“Well, Shauna,” said Marina, with a teasing smile, “I think you got yourself an admirer.”
“Or a stalker,” said Shelby.
Shauna, thinking that either option was pretty awful, smirked at her brother and went into the dining hall. Everyone except for Lendox was standing absolutely still, with their petrified hands clutching the surprix tickets.
“They are all on virtual tours,” said Lendox, eating a plate of macaroni and cheese with enthusiasm.
“Can they hear us?” asked Marina, glancing at general Falconbridge, whose forehead looked as if it had been petrified in the middle of an unpleasant thought.
“No,” said Lendox. “Not at all.”
“In that case, I