Sinful Behaviors

APPLY YOURSELF, RUDY:




A small bottle was lifted up into the air. Inside, a clear liquid rolled back and forth. The lid keeping it inside was soon removed. The bottle tilted to the side. Gravity went to work. The liquid flowed down towards the opening. It dripped out of the front like a leaky faucet and down into a small cup sitting down below. The liquid stopped only when it reached the half way point of the cup.

Seconds later, something cylinder and white was dropped into the liquid. It floated, no, sank to the bottom like a heavy rock. There it rested as a torrent of white shot out from its sides. The reaction was violent at first, but soon it calmed down. The white torrents still occurred, but at a much slower pace. It would go on like this for a very long time, if it were allowed.

But there was no time for that, not where this was taking place.

"Ta-dah!" Rudy exclaimed proudly, his arms outstretched like he had performed some kind of miracle. "And that is what happens when you mix chalk with vinegar!"

Rudy wasn't sure what he was expecting, but dead silence wasn't one of them. None of the students looked impressed with his experiment. Well it wasn't that he expected them to be, but he had hoped that they would at least compliment on his attempt. It was still a reaction, wasn't it?

He could hear grumblings from Mr. Wilter. Rudy couldn't believe that he was still stuck with the same teacher from five years ago. Every year he would return to school, there was Mr. Wilter. It was okay at first, but then as years passed, it became harder to sneak anything by him. And just how was he getting these promotions anyway?

He found his thoughts interrupted when Mr. Wilter began to speak. Rudy's ears were aching from the familiar ring of Wilter's yelling.

"Mr. Tabootie! That was the worst experiment I have ever seen!" Mr. Wilter's eyes seemed to bore into Rudy. "If you had done this experiment in the sixth grade, I might have considered giving you an admirable grade. But Rudy, you are fifteen years old and this is the best you can come up with? How shameful! Maybe if you spent more time studying than watching cartoons, you would have come up with a more age appropriant experiment!"

Rudy could hear chuckling from students behind him. He glanced over his shoulder. Everyone was sniggering at him, except Penny of course. He heard a few comments like 'What a lame-o, thinking that would get him a winning grade', 'Man how did this kid get this far?', and 'He's just as stupid as I've heard.' He tried not to let those words get to him. He concentrated any anger he felt into a brief shudder that, thankfully, Wilter did not notice.

"So...I'm getting an F, aren't I?" Rudy said softly.

A silence. Then a reply. "..no."

Rudy looked up in surprise. "No?"

Mr. Wilter shook his head. "As much as I am appalled by your lack of effort, I'll give you a passing grade. C+!"

A C+? That wasn't what he wanted. Rudy wanted at least a B-. He felt a wave of disappointment strike him. He should be happy to be getting a passing grade. He had been coming home with F's too often. Even a C+ would bring a smile to his parents' faces.

But he couldn't bring himself to be happy. He wanted a better grade. He wanted to show his parents and his classmates he was capable of getting good grades despite being a 'mere artist'. He should have gone with something better. Why hadn't he gone with Snap's idea and do a volcano experiment instead? That would have at least been more impressive to look at.

"Next time, I expect more from you, Rudy. I think you can be quite the capable young man if you spend some time away from your...art...and more time on things actually important, like your work." Mr. Wilter said.

Rudy turned his head away, a frown finding its way on there. Again with the art insults. It was bad enough the students gave him a hard time for it. Why did Mr. Wilter feel the need to deride him for it, too?

"Take your seat Rudy." Mr. Wilter said as he stacked some paper together.

Rudy returned to his seat in less of a good mood than he was before. He watched as the next student, whose name he always forgot, impressed and wowed many of his classmates, and even Mr. Wilter. Rudy didn't know what he did. He had his head turned. He was not in the mood to see the other experiments, for they were just a painful reminder of how things could have gone if he had put more effort into his work.

He felt a hand on his shoulder. Penny, who sat just behind him, gave him a reassuring smile. Rudy, despite his bad mood, smiled back. If there was any experiment he wouldn't mind seeing, it would be whatever she dished out. His smile faded. Why hadn't he asked Penny for help? Why did he insist on doing his own thing? Things seem to work better when they are partnered up. Maybe it was because she was more no-nonsense than him and actually got the work done.

"You give it your best shot, Rudy." Penny said, leaning forward so Rudy could hear her better without her drawing attention from Mr. Wilter.

"Yeah, but it could have been better." Rudy murmured under his breath.

"It's the thought that counts." Penny replied. "A C+ is better than an F. Sure, it isn't exactly a great grade, but think of it this way. It's going to raise your grade point average a little. That is something at least, isn't it?"

"You heard Mr. Wilter. My love of 'stupid cartoons' is making me stupid." Rudy said. It was more of a slip of the tongue, but it still got the message across.

Penny shook her head. "You know that's not true, Rudy."

As Penny searched for something to cheer Rudy up with, they both were startled by the sound of something heavy falling and hitting the tile floor. The two students looked left and ride, eyes widened, frantically looking for the sound, as if some predator were about to lung at them.

They immediately stopped when the sound of laughter swept through the room. The two finally saw a book near Mr. Wilter's desk. Mr. Wilter was standing right in front of it, his eyes looking through at them. It took seconds for them to realize what had happened. With the laughter all around them, they began to sink down into their seats.

"Am I interrupting anything?" Mr. Wilter asked, hands on his hips. The laughter had stopped as soon as Mr. Wilter spoke. "Or are you two lovebirds finished now?"

At the word 'lovebirds', a blush developed on both Rudy's and Penny's faces, which caused a few extra sniggers from some classmates.

Mr. Wilter pointed at Penny. "Ms. Sanchez, since you are so eager to speak, why don't you do your experiment next?"

Penny stammered. "W-Well I..."

Mr. Wilter leaned toward her, almost towering over her. "Or did you take some lessons from Mr. Tabootie and slacked off?"

Penny glared at him. She wanted to defend Rudy, but knew that Mr. Wilter rarely ever apologized. Instead, she took in a deep breath and got out of her seat. She took a few steps towards the front. She stopped next to Mr. Wilter.

In a harsh whisper, she said, "Okay..I will..."

Mr. Wilter blinked at her. He said nothing and returne to his seat. He got out a pen and watched as Penny started her experiment.

sss

After class, the bell rang for lunch time. For many students, this ring was like taking ice cream on a hot summer day. It was the only time in school where students didn't have to listen to a teacher blab on about something. Recess didn't exist for the older students, which was a source of frustration for many. Rudy especially, as it meant he had less time for ChalkZone.

Speaking of ChalkZone, that had been on Penny's mind since they sat down to eat. It was the very thing she had wanted to tell Rudy about earlier, until they were interrupted by Mr. Wilter. Her own mood was soured by what the man had said about Rudy. But ChalkZone usually brightened up her day, as well as Rudy's.

And today was a very special day, for two reasons.

"What do you say we take a trip to ChalkZone after school?" Penny suggested as she chewed on a carrot stick.

Rudy fiddled around with a small piece of meat on his plate. He still looked forelorn from earlier. "I dunno Penny... I mean usually I am for going to ChalkZone, but not today."

"Huh?" Penny looked genuinely surprised. "But you love going to ChalkZone."

"Sorry Penny. I'm just worried about what my folks are going to say." Rudy said, staring at his food. "I promised them I'd get a good grade..."

"And you did. So stop moping about it." Penny placed her hand on his. "And if it really troubles you that much, I'll help you next time, okay?"

Rudy did start feeling a little better. Penny usually knew what to say to drive out any feeling of doubt he was having. She was right. There was no point in being upset about it. What's done is done. He straightened himself up and offered the best smile he could at the time.

"Thanks Penny." He paused, and said, "So was there a particular reason you wanted to go to ChalkZone? Or is it just my 'get better soon' gift?" He gave her a wink.

Penny chuckled and shook her head. "No, silly...well yes I want you to feel better and a trip to ChalkZone usually does the trick. But there's more to it this time, than that. Today is a special day, Rudy." He looked at her with a perplexed expression. Penny tilted her head. "What? You don't remember? Rudy, it's the seventh year anniversary that you found ChalkZone."

Rudy's eyes widened. "I totally forgot..."

"And that also means that it's Snap's seventh birthday." Penny added.

Rudy stared at Penny in disbelief. He felt like a total jerk for forgetting this stuff. There was no excuse. Even though he was busy with school, he felt he should have paid more attention to the dates. Had Snap made plans already? Had he been too late now? Rudy struggled against the thoughts multiplying in his head.

Yes, yes, he was remembering now. Snap had spoke to him a few days ago about his upcoming birthday. He had been planning a birthday bash with all his friends and invited both Rudy and Penny to show up.

"I can't believe you forgot." Penny said, the tone of her voice backing up what she said. "ChalkZone and Snap mean a lot to you. How did it slip your..." She paused and thought about it. It had been a rough few days due to all the school work they had to deal with, so she kind of understood how he could have forgotten. "Well anyway, did you wanna go? As if I have to ask."

"Of course I do. I just wish that Snap would have planned his party on the same day as the anniversary." Rudy said with a smile.

He recalled Snap specifically wanted the party the day after. It amused him every year Snap does this. He insisted on being more recognized and felt that having the celebration on the same day as the anniversary would 'cramp his style', though Rudy thought it was because people would be more focused on Rudy's anniversary of finding ChalkZone than on some blue superhero boy.

"You know how Snap can be." Penny said as she finished up her lunch. She looked up at the analog clock hanging on the wall. "Lunch time is almost over. We should get ready to leave."

Rudy nodded. "The good thing about lunch is that it is in the middle of the day. Only a couple more hours of school left and we are home free."

sss

School was finally over. The final bell at rung. Students ran out of the doors, eager to return home. Even some of the older students displayed a similar eagerness to run outside after the final bell rang. And Rudy certainly was no exception. He was running down the halls, not being able to waste another second in that dingy building. He couldn't wait to get out of there and into the chalk world, where everything was always bright and colorful.

He stopped in the hallway when he heard someone talking pretty loudly. He recognized the voice as Mr. Wilter. He frowned as that name floated in his mind. Oh how he would love to prove him wrong, to show him he is just as capable as any of his 'prize' students.

Despite his mind screaming at him to leave, Rudy felt an unusual compelling to listen into Mr. Wilter's conversation. What could it hurt? Not like he would be surprised by anything that man said. It was probably another argument with a parent about cartoons. Although still angry, Rudy sometimes found Wilter's almost paranoia of cartoons to be a source of hilarity.

He leaned himself against the door to Mr. Wilter's room. He pressed his hear flat against it and strained to hear the conversation. With most teachers, this would be hard to do. But with Mr. Wilter, it was almost assured that one could hear practically every word he said.

"Who is calling me? I am busy right now grading my students...oh it's you! I'm sorry, Mr. Cosmo. I didn't realize that today was...oh you want to come to the school tomorrow? Why? Oh, I see. Yes, yes, you are fully welcome to come to my classroom. I assure you that you will be...okay I understand you're busy too. I will see you tomorrow, Mr. Cosmo."

A clang and Rudy knew the conversation was over. The name Mr. Cosmo sounded familiar. It alluded him as to what it was, though. If this person was friends with Mr. Wilter, he wasn't sure if he would like him very much. And knowing Mr. Wilter, they would not get a notice of the man's visit until the day of the visit.

He gave himself a mental reminder to let Penny know of the visit. She always liked to know things ahead of time so she can prepare herself and look good. He didn't fully understand it, but he didn't question it.

He took a few steps before something hit him like a ton of bricks. He suddenly remembered who Mr. Cosmo was and why he sounded so familiar.

He was a reporter he heard about a few months ago. Or rather, he ran a small news group, but still did some reporting of his own, off and on. That was about as much as Rudy knew about him. The fact that he was involved with a news crew filled him with unease. Could he be looking at another Terry incident?

Now he knew he really had to tell Penny about this. And Snap. He could only hope that Mr. Cosmo is as easy to foil as Terry was.

OVERSTEPPING YOUR BOUNDARIES:




Rudy was at a loss of what to think. He felt a pressure in his chest. A weird feeling rising inside of him. It was uncomfortable and he tried to fight it. The sudden appearance of this woman, being thrust in this predicament so soon after such a great party, it didn't mix well in his mind. The shift was so jarring he could feel his head hurting and he was feeling a little queezy.

He worried that Ms. Saffron worked for Terry. It was very possible. Terry may have been considered a nutcase by many, and most were wise not to listen to her. Even her old partner, whom helped her kidnap Snap, had turned his back on her. But Terry was unpredictable; she could have added another player to her game.

But maybe he was just misjudging Ms. Saffron. After all, he didn't know why she was here. For all he knew, it may just be for something considerably small, such as his opinion on the current state of the roads or something. Okay, that is a bit of an exaggeration; he doubted a reporter would ask a 15 year old boy something like that. Still, it could just be something small, nothing to worry about.

Rudy found his way to the kitchen table. His mind was so focused on this woman, he didn't realize Penny had moved in behind him. With no place to sit, she just hung back behind Rudy. Neither of Rudy's parents asked her to leave and the reporter didn't seem upset with her presence.

Rudy bit his tongue to keep himself from looking too much on edge. Admittingly, the Terry incident had left him with a sour taste for reporters, and Penny and Snap didn't blame him. Terry had nearly revealed the existance of ChalkZone. And before that, she had folded Snap up like he was some sort of blanket and shoved into her purse. That kind of treatment of Snap, who he looked at as a sort of little brother he never had, rubbed Rudy the wrong way.

There was silence for a while. No one said anything. The reporter looked as if she were struggling to find the words to say. This sent an alarm to both Rudy and Penny. What was she so hesitant about? Could she really believe in the chalk world like Terry? Could she have come here to interrogate them, get them to reveal its location? And in front of Rudy's parents, it would be hard to come up with lies that wouldn't contradict with what they say. What if they screw up and say something completely different than they told Mr. and Mrs. Tabootie?

Rudy and Penny had been keeping ChalkZone a secret for years, Rudy two years longer. The lies they had to tell their parents, as well as everyone else, was staggering. They just piled up and up. It would be so easy and slip up and say something contrary to what they said before. And while it was possible that the people they told won't remember exactly what they said, there was still the possibility that at least someone would, and that could potentially be enough to cause a stir. Especially if said person were very vocal about it.

The silence was finally broken with the sound of the reporter clearing her throat. She got out a notepad and a pen and set it in front of her. She interlocked her fingers and leaned forward slightly, her eyes staring into Rudy's.

"Rudy...how is your school life?"

That question shattered all the tension out from Rudy and Penny's bodies. School? Is that what this is about? They started to feel a little foolish, and even wanted to laugh a little. They had been worried for the past few minutes, thinking of worst case scenarios and questioning some of their plans in the past.

And yet it turns out this reporter was going to ask questions regarding school. Nothing about ChalkZone. They couldn't feel more relieved. Rudy immediately looked more relaxed and even smiled a little. Answering questions about his time in school isn't what he had in mind, but it was better than what he thought he'd be doing.

"Yeah, school is fine." Rudy put his finger in the palm of his hands, tapping as he began to name some things off. "I get up in the morning. I get dressed. I go to school. Slave away for half the day. I come home, hang out with Penny, do my work, sleep. And I begin the cycle all over again."

Ms. Saffron nodded her head once. "Yes, that is standard for students. I expected you to go. But that isn't what I was getting at, Rudy." She took one look at Rudy's confused expression and raised her head up a little. "I will rephrase my question. How are you performing in school?"

Rudy blinked. Whatever comfort he obtained earlier was gone. "I...I am doing fine..."

Ms. Saffron raised an eyebrow. "Are you sure about that?"

"Yes, I'm sure." Rudy said, narrowing his eyes slightly. "What is it any of your business?"

"That's strange, because I spoke with your teacher, Mr. Wilter." Rudy's eyes widened at this. Ms. Saffron continued before she would be interrupted by questions. "And he told me that you are one of the worst performing students he's had. He ranted on and on regarding you paying more attention to art than to the rest of your subjects. Judging from that..." Ms. Saffron's eyes narrowed. "...I don't think your school life is just fine, Rudy."

"Excuse me." Penny interrupted, holding out a hand to draw the woman's attention to her. "But what exactly are you doing a report on if it requires talking to Rudy about his school performance?"

"Yeah, I'd like to know too." Mr. Tabootie said.

Mrs. Tabootie couldn't agree more. "Enlighten us." Her tone had an underlining hint of anger, as if she was not happy about where this was going. "We would be most interested."

Ms. Saffron sucked in a deep breath. Her expression hardened a little, showing she was not joking about what she was about to say next. Her fingers fumbled for the pen as she formulated her thoughts in her mind.

"I am doing a report on student performance in school. I've interviewed several students based on their academic performance, from best...to worst." She almost glared in Rudy's direction as she said this. "The report is crucial into figuring out how to improve our education system. The only type of person left I need to report is the school deliquent. Someone who performs exceptionally terrible."

She saw the looks in the others' eyes. Rudy's parents looked visibly angered. And they hardly ever get truly angry. One must really try to tick them off. Penny looked shocked, but also clearly upset. And Rudy...Rudy was just staring at her with widened eyes.

Ms. Saffron continued, "I have taken an interest in you, Rudy Tabootie. Granted, you aren't the worst student at your school. No, there's a few others with worse grades. But you...you are by far the most interesting delinquent I could find. Because unlike the others, you aren't failing because you're stupid. You're failing because you are obviously making stupid choices. You are keeping yourself a failure. And that is why I have taken great interest in talking to you, Rudy Tabootie."

Rudy stared blankly at Ms. Saffron, watching her almost mocking smile spread on her face, as he felt the full impact of what was said hit him. It was amazing how much a negative comment about him could practically erase all previously happy memories. He forgot about Snap's party. He forgot about Penny's encouraging words. All he could think of now was what Ms. Saffron said.

He normally didn't let it bother him. Some other students teased him about his grades. He usually let it roll off his back. It helped that adventures with Penny and Snap helped him forget all that.

The reporter's words caused all those hurtful words to come back tenfold. It hurt him. It stung him deeply. He didn't want to be thought of and remembered as the purposeful failure, the person who deliberately failed. He didn't want to be remembered as the guy who could have made a difference in his life, but did not. He tried to push out the taunting words. They would not leave him.

Ms. Saffron's words didn't just impacted Rudy. If Rudy's parents were hiding their anger before, they let it be known crystal clear.

Mr. Tabootie slammed his hand against the table, shaking it slightly. Once he had Ms. Saffron's attention, he said, "Now just a gosh darn minute! Are you saying you came all this way just to humiliate our boy?!"

"Well I..."

"I just don't believe it. The nerve of people like you!" Mrs. Tabootie waggled her finger back and forth as if she were scolding a child. "Coming here and tormenting my Rudy just so you can make a quick buck at your news station! The things you reporters come up with for a so-called good story!"

Penny decided to chime in. "Rudy is not stupid!" She put a comforting hand on his shoulder, staring firmly at the woman who caused his current state of mind. "You don't know anything about him!"

Ms. Saffron just shrugged her shoulders. "I never said I did. That is why I wanted to ask him questions." She paused, and then said, "I also did not say he was stupid. But he still qualifies as a delinquint in my eyes and..."

Mrs. Tabootie gripped Ms. Saffron by her business suit and yanked her from the seat. "What you think does not matter here, missy! I will not let you sit around her toiling with my son's mind with your lies! I want you to get out of my house. Now!"

As she was being pushed towards the door, Ms. Saffron still offered up some resistance. She planted her feet firmly on the ground. She gripped the sides of the kitchen entrance. She pushed back on Mrs. Tabootie until she released her.

"You don't understand! This research is very important! It can help students everywhere!" The reporter glanced momentarily at Rudy. "Including your son!"

Mr. Tabootie stood next to his wife. "My son doesn't need your kind of help!" In agreement, his wife and Penny nodded. "Now do us all a favor and get out of here..."

Ms. Saffron opened her mouth to speak, but soon shut it. Everyone in the room, except Rudy, were still glaring at her. If they could shoot beams, she'd surely be burnt to a crisp by now. She let out a soft sigh, realizing she had overstepped her boundaries. She turned around to leave, but then she paused and looked over her shoulder, directly at Rudy.

With what could be best described as an apologetic look, she said in a barely audible voice, "...be careful, kid."

As soon as they heard the door close, and knew the reporter was gone, Mr. and Mrs. Tabootie turned to each other.

"Can you believe the nerve of that woman?" Mrs. Tabootie grumbled.

"Some people are so insensitive!" Mr. Tabootie agreed. He turned and looked at Rudy. "Are you going to be okay, son?"

Rudy, who had been in something of a trance, snapped out of it and nodded his head wearily. "Yeah...I'll be okay, dad."

His voice didn't sound sincere, and his dad caught it. "Well, if you ever need to talk someone, we'll be here. You can tell your mother and I anything."

"That's right, dear." Mrs. Tabootie went over and gave Rudy a hug. "Don't listen to anything that...reporter said about you, okay?"

"Oh...okay..." Rudy mumbled, his eyes downcast.

Penny leaned in towards Rudy. "Are you sure you're all right?"

Rudy looked at her. She was surprised by the near absence of emotion that were in his eyes. "I told you, I'm fine. I just..need to rest."

When Rudy reached his room, he collapsed on his bed. He couldn't believe what he had been told by the reporter. No one had ever called him a delinquent before, not even Mr. Wilter. And he realized, with a lump in his throat, that it was because he didn't fit a delinquent profile, not in his eyes. He hadn't thought of it then, but now he realized there was another reason why his parents got so angry at Ms. Saffron.

A delinquent was a juvenile who commited acts of crime and was uncontrollable by authority. Now the woman's words sounded all that much more harsher. She wasn't just calling him a failure. She was calling him a criminal.

For someone whose job was to protect an entire world, unseen and unknown by most people in the real world, being called a criminal didn't exactly bring warm feelings. And what was worse, perhaps he really was a delinquent.

How many times had he broken in somewhere? What of the times he trespassed? Or the time he had tampered with the mail due to his own mistake? Granted, he had no malicious intentions. But that wouldn't matter to a cop. Heck, he had gotten himself and Penny nearly arrested when he trespassed on an old school to get some love letter for his dad. The officer seemed willing to allow Vinnie to press charges against him; he only stopped when Vinnie seemed to have lost his mind.

He looked over at the chalkboard. He thought about going back into ChalkZone. Snap's party, which he knew was still going on, might be able to cheer him up again.

He soon put his head down. No, he didn't want to go ChalkZone, not now. A good night's sleep would help him feel better. Yes, tomorrow would be a better day...

...except for Mr. Cosmo. He had forgotten all about that man. He was going to be at the school tomorrow. And he was another reporter, just like Ms. Saffron. A sickening feeling rose in his gut. Was he going to interrogate him, too? Did he think of him as a delinquent, like Ms. Saffron called him?

In a split second, Rudy snapped his eyes wide. He had forgotten to tell Penny and Snap about this man. Snap, he could tell later, but he needed to tell Penny now. In an instant, he let go of what transpired in the kitchen, his mind now filled with dread as he realized he may have to deal with a second reporter. He was about to get up and go get her when he heard a knock on his door. Opening it, he was relieved to see it was Penny.

"Rudy, I..."

Rudy cut her off. "Penny, I'm glad you came up here!"

Penny looked surprised. In what looked like a matter of seconds, Rudy went from being depressed to suddenly being more alert. It was almost like he had forgotten about what that nasty woman called him.

"What is it Rudy?" She asked.

"On the way home from school today," Rudy explained. "I overheard Mr. Wilter talking to some guy. It turned out to be Mr. Cosmo!"

"Mr. Cosmo? Isn't he a renouned reporter?" Penny asked.

Rudy nodded. "Yes, and he's coming at our school tomorrow!"

"Oh my..."

Rudy had the same thoughts. Just his luck. This is just what they needed. Another reporter to worry about. They didn't know what to expect. One reporter was bad enough, but two? They would have to be on full alert tomorrow. Until they knew his intentions, they would not put their guard down around him.

I BRING YOU A PROPOSITION:




Mr. Cosmo smiled as he noticed Rudy's reaction. Just like how he expected him to look. It was amazing how powerful a simple gaze could be. And just like he hoped, the girl, Penny he believed her name was, was looking just as shocked. He kept his gaze from her, instead focusing on Rudy. He studied the boy, reading his expression as he mentally thought about how he was going to handle him.

He dared not stare at the boy too long. A gaze held after a length of time would invoke suspicion from Mr. Wilter. In truth, he didn't consider Wilter a close friend. He had little understanding of what he was going to do, and the less he knew of his motives, the better. The other students might get suspicious as well. It would be hard to pull off anything if half the dang school distrusted him.

He had to play it safe and cool. In a swift motion, he turned his head away from the boy. He turned his gaze onto Mr. Wilter. The man had moved aside, sitting back down in his seat. Mr. Wilter looked up at him and motioned with his hand for him to start.

Mr. Cosmo had prepared for this moment. In his mind, he rehearsed it over and over again. Being here, it was different. Had it not been for his gigantic ego, he would have faltered and stumbled, which may or may not have exposed him. With a single clearing of the throat, he began to speak, his professional speech lessons paying off.

"Greetings, as you all may know, I am Mr. Cosmo of...well I don't really need to go into details. Most of you already know who I am. Now I am sure you are all wondering why a renowned reporter like myself is doing here."

Mr. Cosmo glanced at the classroom as whole. Everyone was looking at him with curiosity, well except Rudy and Penny who were clearly hiding any indication they were skeptical. He continued his speech that he replayed in his mind many times on the way to the school.

"My fellow co-reporter, Ms. Saffron, has scoped out some of the students in this region and spoken to them. It is with great concern that I tell you all that she has noticed an alarming rate of students dropping their performance. Only a small portion of the students she found have been doing well in school. This is worrying considering not too long ago, this area had high education standards."

The reactions were just what the reporter had expected. Most of the students didn't seem to care. How could they? They were still a little too young to understand. A few of them did, he was sure. He wasn't dumb enough to believe no student was uncaring. But he was smart enough to know that students, as a whole, wouldn't be too concerned at this age.

Mr. Wilter looked visibly upset. He had never had the guy frown at him like that before. He didn't blame him. After all, he was a teacher here and with his own words, he had pretty much insulted the guy. A negative trend of education for the young ones can and is often traced back to not just the students' willingness to listen but also the competence of the teacher. And since Mr. Wilter prided himself with being a top of the line educator, his words didn't exactly glow in favor for him.

And out of the corner of his eye, he could see Rudy and Penny looking confused. Had they expected him to talk about something else? He was certain of that. On the inside, he smiled. He still had the upper hand here, and as long as he can keep them in the dark about what he really wanted, his plan could commence. The two teens would be none the wiser until he was ready for them to know.

And by then, it would be too late.

"But I have a solution. Now I know what you're all might be thinking. I am just a reporter, not someone who teaches. I don't have the level of experience and I couldn't possibly compete with someone like Mr. Wilter." He gestured to the man behind him. Mr. Wilter smiled a little, happy that his expertise was acknowledged. "Ms. Saffron and I have discussed a different way of teaching. Of course this would only be, for the time being, those who are struggling the most. Those who need the most help."

"And just what is this method you speak of?" Mr. Wilter asked.

"I can't tell you a whole lot." Mr. Cosmo replied. "I do not wish to give you false information. I could tell you what we had in mind, but if you were to attempt it and get negative results, you can't exactly blame us for it." He turned his gaze onto the class. "Instead, before I can inform you, Ms. Saffron and I will need one student to try our methods on. Depending on how well that student performs, we will tell you. We are certain you would benefit greatly from this information."

Mr. Wilter nodded in agreement, his fingers interlocking as his hands rested on the table. "I greatly appreciate what you are trying to do for this school, Mr. Cosmo. Did you have any idea of which student you would like to use this method on?"

Mr. Cosmo glanced to the classroom. "Well I was thinking of one of your students. If you don't mind, of course."

"Certainly not!" Mr. Wilter smiled. "I mean, of course I don't mind. I actually have someone in mind for you. He's out sick today, but there's Reggie Bullnerd. The worst student in my class. He would definitely benefit if your ideas work."

"Hmm...is there someone else?" Mr. Cosmo asked.

"Any other students of mine who don't perform well? Yes, but why?" Mr. Wilter asked. "I just gave you a suggestion. I think Reggie Bullnerd is..."

"Yes, yes, I know, but..." Mr. Cosmo gave Rudy a sideways glance. A small smile crept onto the reporter's face. "Are you sure there's no one more...deserving...?"

At this, Rudy lowered his head a little, while Penny looked at him sympathetically. Mr. Cosmo smiled at him for another second before turning his head to Mr. Wilter. He wondered if he had picked up the clue he was giving him. He still had to be as subtle as possible, so he couldn't just outright say Rudy. A few clues with body language and the right words should do it.

Mr. Wilter didn't seem to understand where he was getting at. He started at the reporter, confused. He then glanced down at his papers, probably looking at the grades of his students, to recheck to see if Reggie really was the worst student. He didn't come across any such student as he soon put the papers down and shrugged his shoulders.

"I'm sorry, but I don't know what you're talking about." Mr. Wilter said. "If there's one student here who is deserving, it's Reggie Bullnerd. You would get more potential out of him. There's a few other students of mine who do poorly, but none of them are that horrible." He spoke softly under his breath. "Even if they do draw useless cartoons..."

"What was that?" Mr. Cosmo asked, cupping a hand around his ear. "I didn't quite hear you."

Mr. Wilter blinked at him, as if wondering how he heard. Then he narrowed his eyes slightly. "That isn't any of your business, Mr. Cosmo. Now would you be so kind as to tell me what you are getting at?"

Mr. Cosmo's eyes narrowed just a tad bit. Okay, so maybe things weren't going entirely as planned. Perhaps Mr. Wilter was a little more clever than he imagined. For the plan to commence, he would need to be a little more forceful now. A little more...manipulative.

"I know it's quite easy to think this Reggie student would be the best choice for this test. And perhaps you are right. If he has the worst grades, then why not use him?" Mr. Cosmo said, his eyes upward cast and his hand rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "But then..." The tone of his voice changed, becoming a tad darker and more serious. "...do you think we'd be able to come out here tomorrow? What if the next time we come, Reggie isn't here? We can't exactly show up to his house either. I doubt his parents would approve of a total stranger coming to his house. The testing must be done here."

"And you will be able to do that when..." Mr. Wilter began.

Mr. Cosmo cut him off. "With all due respect, sir, does Reggie show up at school on a regular basis? Or does he skip out a lot?"

"Well I..."

"He sounds like the kind of student to do that. Maybe not all the time as he is not suspended I see." Mr. Cosmo said. He began to pace in front of the classroom. The students watched him, mostly in curiosity, while Rudy and Penny were tense. "That is why I need someone who doesn't skip out. Someone who doesn't have a potential attitude problem. Someone who understands how to do the work and just needs some extra help. A push in the right direction, if you will."

Mr. Cosmo looked at the teacher and waited for a reply. He had been struggling not to point his finger at Rudy. He hoped that, now, the man would have an idea of who he wanted. He watched as the teacher scanned his entire classroom. His expression never changed, no matter whom he looked at.

Frowning, the reporter moved back towards the teacher. He didn't foresee Mr. Wilter being this stupid. And he was supposed to be a teacher? He wouldn't understand subtlety if it came and bit him on the nose. He wondered if, even if he pointed at Rudy, that Mr. Wilter would still be clueless. Yet he still had to do this. He couldn't just take any student, no matter how bad they are, and drag them off somewhere. No, he needed permission to keep the others off of him.

In a friendly gesture, he put his arm around Mr. Wilter's shoulders. Holding out his other hand at the side, he began to make conversation with Mr. Wilter, as if making a proposition. "Would you mind if we talk out in the hallway? Where there are less distractions and more capacity to think?"

Mr. Wilter hesitated for a moment. Then he gave a nod. "Sure, I don't see why not." As he headed towards the door with Mr. Cosmo, he turned to the class and waggled a finger at them. "Now I don't want to hear a word out of any of you while I'm talking with Mr. Cosmo. If I hear just one word, you all get detention! Do you understand me?"

The classroom nodded solemnly, all of them not too keen on the idea of serving detention. Mr. Wilter might have been bluffing. He sometimes did that when he wanted to get a point across. But why take the chance?

As the teacher and reporter walked out of the room, Rudy and Penny were finally able to voice their concerns to each other, albeit in low voices so no one could hear them.

"I don't like this, Rudy." Penny said softly. "What could he be up to?"

Rudy turned his head so he could speak with Penny more easily. His expression showed not only worry like Penny's, but also a tad bit of fear. "I don't know...I don't like the way he was looking at me. It's like he knows something about me..."

Penny nodded her head. "I...I think he might know our secret, Rudy... He seems to be targeting you specifically. Out of everyone in the class...it has only been you he looked at with those eyes." She shuddered a little, clearly not wanting to think about it.

Rudy bit his lip as he turned to look at the door. It had been shut, but he could see the shadows out of the door window quite clearly. He watched as Mr. Wilter and Mr. Cosmo were chatting about something. There was little movement. Maybe a sway of the hand once or twice. But, with the angle they stood at, it was almost like they weren't talking at all.

While he could not read lips anyway, seeing the lips move in this case may have been a benefit to him. He could easily pick out when they said something similar to his own name, and he would know they were talking about him. Even though he was nervous at the idea of this man seeking him out, not knowing what he was talking about was even more nerve wracking.

If the man really did want him, his mind flooded with thoughts of what he would do. If this man knew about ChalkZone, what were his plans? Exposing ChalkZone was very much a possibility. That's what both Vinnie and Terry wanted to do when they found out about that world's existence.

Yet he knew that just because of what Vinnie and Terry did doesn't mean that is what Mr. Cosmo had planned. Rudy was more scared by not knowing, than knowing. After all, there was the belief that things that are unseen are more frightening. And he would completely agree. He had no idea what this guy was going to do. For all he knew, Mr. Cosmo was going to torture him for information and then destroy ChalkZone.

He wiped that thought out of his head. No, he couldn't get carried away in his imagination like that. Like with past threats, he needed to scope out Mr. Cosmo and understand what he is planning. He saved ChalkZone many times in the past, against many threats, both of the real world and chalk world. Mr. Cosmo wouldn't be any different than any of them. He had to believe that.

As protector of ChalkZone, he had to believe in himself.

"When we get the chance, we should warn the others in ChalkZone about this." Penny said, snapping Rudy out of his thoughts.

"Yeah, you're right, Penny." Rudy replied. "They need to know about this. If this guy is really after ChalkZone, then..."

His thoughts were cut off once again. But this time, it wasn't be cause of Penny. It was because the door had swung open, a tad too hard because it hit against the classroom wall with a tiny bit of force. The students returned their gaze in the front as the reporter and teacher came walking back in the classroom.

Rudy and Penny watched as, instead of returning to his seat, Mr. Wilter stood next to Mr. Cosmo in the front of the classroom. Mr. Wilter's hands were folded behind his back while Mr. Cosmo looked along the classroom before he began to speak.

"Mr. Wilter and I had come to the conclusion of who should be a part of this program. The person I am about to pick will have the honor of being the first to try this brand new method of tutoring. This person should be pleased that he or she will be helping students everywhere who are struggling. Do not be disappointed if I don't choose you; your time may come eventually."

Rudy could feel his heart starting to race in anxiety. He tried his best not to show his nervousness. A part of him wished that Mr. Cosmo would hurry up and announce who he picked. The other just wanted him to leave.

There was still that chance it wasn't him Mr. Cosmo wanted. That him staring at the boy was just a coincidence, or done to mess with him. There was the chance that he was getting worked up over nothing and Mr. Cosmo would leave him alone.

But then, given all he had to deal with regarding those who sought to do him or ChalkZone harm, since when did he have that kind of luck?

Mr. Wilter, who seemed to almost read his mind, said, "The student we feel would be the best candidate for Mr. Cosmo's testing is..." He looked over at Rudy and said, "Rudy Tabootie."

Hearing his name, Rudy slumped lower in his chair, his eyes widening. Penny looked at him, feeling sorry for him. Rudy looked like he wanted to disappear, to be anywhere but hear. The other students smirked at him, obviously relieved they weren't the ones chosen for this.

Rudy felt cornered. He was mentally backed up against a wall as Mr. Cosmo walked up to him. With each time the man took to get closer, the more visibly shaken Rudy started to look. Despite telling himself to be calm, telling himself that Mr. Cosmo would get more suspicious of him if he kept this up, Rudy couldn't help but give off a slight tremble.

Mr. Cosmo took notice. "Are you cold, boy?"

"Y-Yeah. I am a little cold." Rudy said, an idea formulating in his head. "I might have a fever. Mr. Wilter, I'm going to the nurse and..."

Before he could get up, Mr. Wilter slammed a fist against his desk. "You will do no such thing, Tabootie! I know you are not sick, so don't try to fake your away out of this!" Rudy lowered his head. "Good. Now go with Mr. Cosmo. He will take you to another room for the testing."

Following Mr. Cosmo's gesture, Rudy got out of his seat. He looked over at Penny. She didn't say anything, but judging by her look, she was worried about him. Rudy wanted to say something to her, but he was ushered away when Mr. Cosmo put a hand on his back.

"Don't worry, kid. This won't be too hard for you. If you are worried you will do poorly, push those thoughts out of your head." Mr. Cosmo said as he took Rudy out of the room with him. "Even someone of your level of...missing the point...would be able to get it." At this, Rudy glared at him, but the man ignored him as they continued down the school halls.

Penny stared at the now shut door. Slowly, she turned her eyes towards her desk. She didn't react as Mr. Wilter attempted to start class. She still brought out her book, but it was almost in an automatic fashion. Her mind was clearly elsewhere.

"Rudy...I hope you'll be okay."

A FAMILIAR THREAT:





Rudy felt relief wash over him as he stepped into ChalkZone. The beautiful, though chalky, scenery was a welcome sight from the prison of a classroom he had been stuck in. He felt safe in ChalkZone. He always felt safer in a world where he could draw things in midair. If Mr. Cosmo ventured in here after him, he would be in for a nasty surprise.

Rudy never exploited his powers that much. He, even years later, only used them to do good things. Defending ChalkZone is certainly one. In the real world, he couldn't really do much to defend himself from Cosmo shoud the man decide to restrain him. But in ChalkZone, just a few scribbles and Rudy could fling him back into the real world.

He would stay in ChalkZone for a while, but that would not do him any good. It wasn't just the citizens of ChalkZone that would have an issue if they were suddenly in the opposite world. Rudy himself was not exempt from the rules. He would not be able to eat or drink anything in ChalkZone, really. It would dissolve before his body could digest it, and even if he could eat or drink, there was no way chalk had any nutrients that would help him.

Rudy took a step forward, putting his hand over his eyes and looked around. His first instinct was to locate Snap and tell him what was going on. Snap was often the first zoner he told revelations to. Very rarely did he break this trend.

He didn't see Snap, so he guessed he was probably at his house. He decided to walk there. It wasn't too far from here. He took another step forward before stopping himself, eyes widened in realization.

The portal...he forgot to erase the portal.

Rudy turned around and ran back to the portal. Mr. Cosmo said he'd be gone a while, but who knew if he was telling the truth? Rudy couldn't take chances. He reached his hand through the portal and felt around for the eraser. He couldn't hold back his gasp of shock when he found there was none. But how? He was certain he saw an eraser before. Where could it have gone?

He stuck his head back into the classroom and looked around for the eraser. His eyes trailed the room and finally he spotted an eraser. It was on the ground, resting up against the wall. Rudy reached down for it. His fingertips barely grazed along the top of the eraser. All he managed to do was knock it over onto its side.

"Come on...come on..." Rudy said as he pushed himself further through the portal to grab the eraser. He almost got it when he heard a call behind him.

"Rudy! Bucko!"

In surprise, Rudy moved his head up sharply at the sound of Snap's voice. His head hit the top of the portal. He let out a cry of pain and began to rub the back of his head and neck. Portals might be interdimensional gates between worlds, but they, at least on the earth side, were quite solid around the edges. Chalkboards aren't that soft.

Rudy turned around and saw Snap running at him. He couldn't help but be a little perplexed. Snap wasn't that close to him, in fact he was still a good distance away. Yet he sounded like he was right behind him. That...was never a good sign. Rudy wondered what could have alarmed Snap so much. It couldn't be Mr. Cosmo...could it?

The blue superhero kept calling Rudy's name as he ran over the grassy and chalky ground. When he got up to Rudy, he had to take a moment and catch a breather. He hunched over, his hands on his knees, and panted heavily.

"Snap?" Rudy looked at him, eyes wide and showing great concern. "What's wrong?"

When Snap got his breath, he started jumping up and down anxiously, waving his arms in the air and pointing off to the west. "It's Skrawl! He found this...big...destroying stuff! Skrawl trying to...control it! You gotta hurry, Bucko!"

Unfortunately for Rudy, Snap talked so fast he could barely understand him. The words slurred over each other, and there was barely a pause between words.

"Whoa whoa!" Rudy motioned with his hands in front of him. "Slow down! Now what's going on? You say it has to do with Skrawl?"

Snap nodded his head rapidly. When he spoke, his words slowed down somewhat, but he still spoke a little fast. "Yes! I was just wondering around, minding my own business, when something large, brown and furry, nearly ran me over! So I hid in the bushes, you see, and I saw Skrawl chasing after the thing, saying how he was going to harness the beast's power!"

Rudy snapped his head back. "What?!"

"Yeah! And that's not all!" Snap jumped up and down. "Skrawl's chase of the beast has caused it to stampede into town! A few buildings are a little knocked up and in one there's a huge whole in the wall!" Snap waved his hands wildly to emphasis that last statement. "Then the beast, when trying to escape Skrawl, just trampled over some other zoners, including Rapsheeba!"

"Is everyone okay?" Rudy asked worriedly.

Snap said, "Yeah, for the most part. Bruised, but okay." He latched onto Rudy, who was now much taller than himself, and gripped onto his shirt. Rudy had to bend himself backwards as Snap put his face close to his. "You gotta do something, Rudy! If Skrawl gets a hold of that thing...with that kind of power..." Snap began flailing his arms. "Rudy you gotta draw something!"

Rudy picked up Snap and put him down. "Okay! Where is this beast now? Do you know?"

"Yes! Follow me!" Snap said, grabbing Rudy by the arm and dragging him away.

Rudy followed closely behind Snap. He completely forgot about erasing the portal. He forgot about warning Snap about Mr. Cosmo. Right now, there was only one thing on his mind, and that was preventing Skrawl from attempting another scheme to take over ChalkZone.

What was with that guy, anyway? For five years, he has been trying to take over ChalkZone. He hardly ever tries anything different. It was either take over ChalkZone, or find ways to eliminate him and his friends. It was like the guy had nothing better to do.

He did used to fear Skrawl, at first, in the beginning. The jellybean, or potato, or whatever he was, did manage to trick him and many others into a museum and nearly dropped them into the Waitin' Sea, and they only won by pure luck and chance. But the more he faced Skrawl, the more predictable he became. He still took him seriously, no doubt about that. But his overall fear of the stubborn and repetitive zoner weakened over the years.

Well, Skrawl certainly was dedicated. Rudy had to give him that. To persistantly go after the same goals for years, that took dedication. He certainly couldn't say Skrawl wasn't focused. But it was still getting tiring having to clean up his mess all the time. It got to the point where he thought of a permanent solution.

He shook his head to get rid of that thought. No, he supposed to be a savior of this zone, not some kind of merciless bringer of justice. He couldn't do that. Such a thing was forbidden. If he did it, the citizens of ChalkZone would probably hate him, even if Skrawl deserved it.

His thoughts were interrupted by Snap suddenly grabbing onto his arm. Rudy, upon hearing Snap's cry to get his attention, looked over at where his blue friend was pointing.

Up ahead, he could see Skrawl. Oddly, he wasn't accompanied by his Beanie Boys this time. That came off as suspicious to Rudy. Skrawl rarely went anywhere without his henchmen. He wouldn't leave them behind on the pretense of them being stupid, because they weren't. As goofie as the Beanie Boys looked, they weren't incompetent and were good at their job. So what would be the reason to leave them behind this time?

He ignored that little detail to focus on what the jellybean was doing now. He was running around in a circle in a somewhat open field with very few bushes around it. Rudy looked to see what he was chasing.

It appeared to be some kind of bat at first. The huge wings flapped up and down, yet the creature did not take off. Rudy wondered if it had been injured or just wasn't meant to fly. When the beast turned around to bite at Skrawl, Rudy took quick notice of the face. Wolf-like in appearance. A bat/wolf hybrid? That wasn't what he was expecting.

He knew he had to protect this creature. He couldn't blame it for its earlier rampage. It was just scared and frightened. He needed to get it away from Skrawl. Rudy stood up straight and held out a piece of chalk. The light shining from its tip confirmed it was magical.

"Hey, back off Skrawl!" Rudy called out.

This caught Skrawl's attention. He lashed out and grabbed the beast by its tail. As it whined and struggled, Skrawl looked over in Rudy's direction and a wide sneer spread across his face.

"Well well well, if it isn't Rudy Tabootie and his comical sidekick, Snap!" Skrawl said nonchalantly. "What brings you two out here?"

Snap fumed. "Comical sidekick? I'll give you a comical sidekick, you hideous, growling jellybean!" Rudy grabbed onto Snap's cape to keep him from running towards Skrawl.

Skrawl glowered at the insult, but unlike the first time Snap called him that, he remained calm and didn't lose his temper. Instead, he pulled the hybrid creature closer to him and said, "While I would love to stay and chitchat, but I have more important things to do, chalk boy! So why don't you make like a little mouse and run through your maze that way!" He pointed in the direction behind Rudy.

Rudy pointed the chalk in Skrawl's direction threateningly. "Not until you release that zoner!"

Skrawl chortled at this. "Do you really think I am going to let my ticket to ruling ChalkZone go just because you asked me to, Master Tabootie? But if you really want it so badly..." With a display of strength, Skrawl lifted up the now enraged creature off the ground. "Catch!" He tossed the beast in Rudy's direction.

The creature's jaws split open wide and it let out a horrible high pitched sound as it focused its attention on attacking the nearest thing, in this case, Rudy. It landed on the ground and snapped its jaws wildly. It missed as Rudy and Snap jumped out of the way.

"Let's see you get out of this!" Skrawl gleefully said, rubbing his hands together and watching the fight begin.

The beast stalked in Rudy's direction. Its ears flatted against its skull. Its fangs were bared as it kicked the ground with its sharp talons.

Rudy pleaded with it, "I am here to help you. Please calm down. I know you're scared, but I promise I won't hurt you." These words fell on deaf ears as the beast leapt for Rudy.

Snap cried in horror. "Rudy! Draw something!"

Rudy had very little time to think of what to draw, let alone what to draw. And he knew that. As the beast closed the space between the two quickly, Rudy had no other choice but to jump out of the way. The beast landed on the space where Rudy once was, gnashing its jaws into the chalky ground. Rudy realized, in horror, that could have been him a second ago.

Snap jumped back as the beast now stood between him and Rudy. It, being closer to him than Rudy, decided to turn its attention on the little blue boy. It dove in his direction, jaws split wide open. Reacting quickly, Snap jumped into the air, the beast sailing just underneath him. They were so close, Snap could feel the fur bristle against his feet.

Gravity soon took control of the situation and he fell back down. Snap landed on the creature's back. He slung his arms around the beast's neck and hung on tightly. The beast began to buck wildly, but he refused to let go. He moved himself up so he could now hold onto the jaws. He held them tightly shut while his legs pressed against the wings, making it hard for the beast to take off into flight, if it had that capability.

"Now, Rudy!" Snap cried as he held on as tightly as he could. "I don't know how long I can hang on!"

Rudy's mind raced as he tried to think of something to do. He had to think fast. The beast was temporarily restrained by Snap, but he needed a longer lasting solution. If he didn't hurry, the beast could hurt Snap. At first, his mind was mostly blank; he was so pumped up with adrenaline that he couldn't think of exactly what he needed to draw. He just kept staring at Snap and the beast.

"Rudy!" Another cry of Snap prompted Rudy out of his thoughts.

"I'm coming, Snap!"

Rudy rushed over, pulling out his magic chalk. Without thinking, without knowing what he was going to do, he began to draw. He looped the chalk around the beast's snout, creating thin rope. He did this four times before then looping it two times around the neck, creating a sort of muzzle. He grabbed the two ends and started to pull.

Snap released his grip and jumped off the beast. He backed away, keeping a good distance between him and the bat/wolf hybrid. His eyes grew wide as the beast yanked and pulled hard, nearly knocking Rudy onto his knees. Snap rushed over and grabbed the ropes and assisted Rudy. The beast began to flap its wings a few times. The gust of air pushed against the two, but they continued to work together pulling the beast, trying to restrain it.

Rudy held on tightly, struggling to keep himself from losing his grip. The beast was being pulled forward. It pressed its feet into the ground, trying to maintain its position. A few whines and growls escaped its mouth. Rudy didn't want to do this, but there was no other option. The beast was going to attack him if he didn't do something to restrain him. If he could make the beast lay down, maybe he could then try something to calm it down.

The beast, however, was having none of this. With a sudden burst of strength, it yanked its head upwards. Rudy and Snap were thrown into the air. The beast snapped the rope from its jaws and let out a roar, spreading its wings wide.

As it did this, Rudy and Snap, after being in the air for a few seconds, had slammed against Skrawl. The trio rolled on the ground for a couple seconds. When they stopped, Rudy was laying on his back next to Skrawl, who had Snap laying across his head, blocking his view.

When Skrawl came to his senses, he let out a hiss, "Get off of me!" He grabbed Snap by the leg and threw him to the side. He then turned his attention onto Rudy. "And as for you..."

Rudy got up and got his magic chalk. He and Skrawl glared at each other, prepared for a fight. For a split second, they both forgot about the rampaging beast, instead their minds focused on each other.

They were soon reminded of the beast when they heard pounding feet to their side and the sound of Snap's cry.

"Look out!"

Rudy and Skrawl looked over and saw the beast rushing towards them. Its head was low, mouth open with teeth bared. Snap was on the beast again, trying to hold it back. This time, the beast was flipping its head so much Snap could not get a grip.

Realizing what was going to happen if they didn't get out of there, Skrawl and Rudy ran away. Thinking fast, Rudy drew a hoverboard. He jumped on it and he rose a couple feet off the ground. Rudy thought he was going to get an advantage, but then Skrawl grabbed onto the end of the hoverboard. His weight pulled down the hoverboard, making it harder for Rudy to rise higher.

He glared down at Skrawl. "Let go!"

"No way, chalk boy!" Skrawl declared. "I don't know about you, but I am not about to be trampled by that thing!"

"Why not?" Rudy said, raising an eyebrow. "You were fine with it trampling other zoners."

Skrawl growled, "Because the future ruler of ChalkZone can't afford broken limbs and a bruised body!"

Rudy couldn't believe this. Even in the midst of danger, all Skrawl could think of was becoming ChalkZone's ruler. He wanted to pry the evil jellybean off his hoverboard, but he stopped himself. Such an act would be something he'd expect Skrawl to do. He couldn't sink that low. Instead, he focused on keeping away from the beast long enough to try to figure out a plan.

Then he got an idea. It was tricky, but if executed right, it just might work. Looking to the side, he saw a patch of trees. They weren't too big, but they would do. He veered off in that direction. Just as he hoped, the bat/wolf creature came over towards him. Snap was still hanging on tightly, pulling on the beast's ears to try to put it at a disadvantage.

Rudy dove towards the trees as fast as he could. He narrowed his eyes, licking his lips. He waited for the right time. He could hear Skrawl's shouts for him to change direction. He didn't listen. As they reached a certain point, where he'd only have a few seconds left to react before he collided, he suddenly jerked the board upwards and flew up towards the sky.

The action was so swift that Skrawl didn't have time to react. He clung onto the end of the skateboarde for a few seconds, his stomach scraping against the bark of the tree as they went up. He found he couldn't hang on anymore and his grip loosened, then released form the hoverboard. He fell onto the ground in a heavy thud.

"Whoa!" Snap cried as the beast flapped frantically to change direction.

It wasn't enough. In a matter of seconds, the beast smashed against the tree. Its wings stiffened up for a few seconds, then wing limp as the beast slowly slid towards the ground. It landed on top of Skrawl. The two just laid there as Snap jumped off from the pile and went up to Rudy.

"That was some smart thinking, Bucko!" Snap said. He turned his head back to the two. "So, uh, what do you want to do with these two?" He asked as he rubbed his head thoughtfully.

"I..."

Then it dawned on him. There was something he had completely forgotten about. No, two things he forgot about. He stared at Snap, eyes widening. He looked as if an apocalypse was about to be brought down. He looked in the direction where the portal was. How could he have forgotten about it? He stared at it, looked back at Snap, then ran towards the portal.

"Where are you going?!" Snap called out after him.

"I forgot to erase the portal!" Rudy shouted.

At this, Snap let out a gasp. "You what?!"

"Hold on, this will just take a second!" Rudy said as he reached the portal. "After this, there's something I must tell you!"

Rudy was so focused on getting the portal erased that he didn't hear Snap's cry of pain as something heavy struck him. He didn't hear the footsteps racing towards him. He didn't hear Skrawl's shouts of frustration. And when he did finally notice the shadow falling upon him, it was too late.

Without warning, Rudy felt something heavy thrown against him. Despite the relatively small size of the portal, the force of the throw was enough to squeeze both of them through at the same time.

Rudy hit the ground of the classroom in a heavy thud. His head banged against a chair and he groaned in pain. He lifted himself up and rubbed the sore spot on his head. He got up onto his feet and went over to erase the portal. He didn't get far when he was suddenly pushed into the ground.

That's when he realized who had been thrown out with him.

"Hey, Master Tabootie...fancy meeting you here..." Skrawl sneered.

TO AID THE ONE YOU HATE:





Rudy stared down at his injured toe. The bleeding had stopped, thankfully, and the wound didn't appear too deep. He was about to grab his magic chalk to draw something until he remembered he was still in the real world. Frowning, he looked around the room to find an alternative. The only thing was a small box of tissues and some clear scottish tape. Oh well, it'd have to do.

Knowing Skrawl would not be of any help and knowing there was little time before Mr. Cosmo would come in, Rudy limped over to grab the items. Walking on the foot was a tad difficult and he took great care to keep the big toe off the ground. After he got what he needed, he sat back down on the nearest chair and began to dress his small but very painful wound.

Looking at his toe, the tip of it looked flat, as if it had been sliced off. It didn't feel like any bone was effected, so that was good. He still didn't understand how this could have happened, though. It happened as soon as Skrawl's toe was partially erased. Comparing the two in his mind, Rudy noted that, taking body size into account, the wound was on the same toe and the same size as both of them. And Skrawl's previous reaction when he touched his own toe confirmed what he said before.

Somehow, someway, they were able to feel each other's pain. This frightened Rudy. How could it have happened? And when did it start? Clearly it had to have been sometime after they came into this room together. Did the portal have something to do with it? No, it couldn't have been. He'd been through a portal at the same time as Penny or Snap a good number of times over the years. And never once did such an issue arise.

There was a thought he had, and it wasn't a very pleasant one. It was that Mr. Cosmo had something to do with it. There were many different types of chalk, many with their own powers. He shuddered at the thought of red chalk, and how each drawing it created was like the fires of the underworld in the form of a red-tinted beast. No matter what it was, even as simple as a ball or line, beings made out of red chalk were dangerous and hostile towards anyone, even, at times, each other.

Could Mr. Cosmo had gotten a hold of some special chalk that had an effect he never heard of before? But that would require an extensive knowledge of ChalkZone, or at least enough to know about magic chalk and where the Chalk Mine was. No, that couldn't be the reason. It was impossible. Not even Terry and Vinnie figured that much out on their own.

Yet...he couldn't think of anything else. His eyes moved towards the box what read White Lightning. Could he really believe Mr. Cosmo gave him the real White Lightning? Could the chalk, despite still being white, be something else? It sounded way too farfetched. It still wouldn't leave his mind. If Mr. Cosmo did know a lot more than he was letting on...then...that would mean...

"How did you hurt your toe?" Skrawl said, breaking the silence. The large jellybean had moved towards Rudy, his odd-eyes staring at the now bandaged toe. He seemed to notice the flat tip as well. "It looks like you cut off part of your own toe."

Rudy, gingerly, pulled his sock back on. He was relieved that there wasn't a sting this time. "I don't know what happened, Skrawl, but somehow, you and I are connected."

Skrawl's eyes widened. "What? Are you sure?"

Rudy nodded as he slipped his shoe on and tied it. "There's no other explanation, Skrawl. And before you ask, no I don't know how this happened. I'll need to get back into ChalkZone and talk to Biclops. He may know what to do."

Skrawl's face contorted into anger. "Well you better! I have important things to do!" He gripped Rudy by his shirt collar. "I can't be ruler of anything if I have you attached to me like some kind of freaky parasite!"

Rudy grabbed Skrawl's hand pushed it away. "I'll do what I can! In the mean time, we'll just have to be careful. Since we can feel each other's pain, it's best that we..."

"...form a truce?" Skrawl finished for him, his voice full of disgust at the idea.

"We don't have a choice and you know that. If I attack you, I get hurt, I feel the pain. And the same is in reverse. You can't lay a finger on me to hurt me, because then you'd be hurting yourself." The 15 year old explained. He got up from the desk and took a step towards Skrawl. "And until we figure out exactly what happened and how to fix it, we should both take precautions and not fight each other. We should also take care not to hurt ourselves."

Skrawl grinned at this. "So if I were cut myself, you get cut too?"

Rudy nodded once. He could see where this was going. He had to discourage Skrawl from doing anything rash. "If I bang my knee against a hot iron, you'd feel the same thing I do, and trust me, it wouldn't be pleasant."

Skrawl's grin faded. "Oh." He said with great disappointment. "So I guess I can't annihilate you...yet."

"No, you can't. How disappointing." Rudy was being sarcastic of course. Like he would want Skrawl to be able to kill him. That was the only good thing about this connection. Skrawl can't, for now, do anything to harm him directly. Although he still could hurt his friends...

"Rudy! I'm coming in!" It was Mr. Cosmo.

Snapping out of his thoughts, Rudy frantically looked around for some place to hide Skrawl. He couldn't let Mr. Cosmo see him. It would be disasterous. With Snap, at least he could pass for a student. But Skrawl...he looked nothing like a real world animal, let alone a person. As much as he hated Skrawl, he couldn't let him get captured, even if they weren't connected.

He thought about the chalkboard, but what if Mr. Cosmo decided to stay in here? He wasn't sure how long Skrawl could hide, and then there was a chance of him getting erased. And if Skrawl got erased...Rudy's body shook at the idea. If erasing just one small portion hurt as much as it did, he didn't want to imagine how much it would hurt even more if all of Skrawl got erased. It could even kill him.

The door knob was moving. Rudy didn't have much time. He erased the portal first before pulling a large dirty map that was laying down in the corner, unused. He wipped it over Skrawl, covering him up.

"Tabootie! What is the meaning of this?!" Skrawl screeched at him. "You can't...!"

Rudy held onto Skrawl and shushed him. "Be quiet, Skrawl! Just keep still! I know you don't take humans seriously as threats, but you have to listen to me on this! If Mr. Cosmo finds you here, he could..."

He didn't have time to finish. The door swung open. Skrawl immediately went stiff, reluctantly following Rudy's orders. Rudy put on the best fake smile that he could as Mr. Cosmo walked into the room. His arms were folded and he had a glare on his face. He looked rather disappointed.

"Oh Rudy..." Mr. Cosmo shook his head. "Did you spend the whole time in here creating that useless statue?"

Rudy felt Skrawl shake. He noted that it must be taking Skrawl all his willpower not to lash out at Cosmo. A part of Rudy wished he could do that, but that would not be right and it would land him into more trouble.

Mr. Cosmo looked around the room and sighed as he saw the flipped chairs and desks. "Tsk, tsk...and it seems you couldn't control your temper." He gave Rudy a sideways glance. "Perhaps Ms. Saffron was right about you. Perhaps you are a juvenile delinquent."

Rudy growled at him, but held back. Despite the pang of pain he felt in his heart, he couldn't do anything to strike out against Mr. Cosmo. He could only stand around and take it.

"I was hoping that I could prove her wrong. After all, you don't seem like a kid that would be a criminal. But after seeing this..." He gestured to the chairs and tables strewn about in the room. "...perhaps I was the one who misjudged you." He finished in a low voice. He walked over and picked up the heavy textbook. "Maybe Reggie Bullnerd was the right choice for this experiment after all. You may leave. I will give you one more chance, at a randomnly chosen time, and this time I will be keeping an eye on you. If you do better then, perhaps I will take back what I said about you."

Rudy glared at him. "How very kind of you..." He said in a low voice.

"Don't look at me that way." Mr. Cosmo said. "I gave you a chance. You were the one who chose to ignore it. Be grateful I am considering trying again with you." He waved a dismissing hand. "Now get out of here. I have to report your rather...unfavorable behavior in here to Mr. Wilter. Be hopeful that he'll be...understanding."

Rudy had enough. He didn't want to hear anything more from this man. He gripped Skrawl tightly, forgetting about the connection, ignoring the clunching feeling in his own side, and began to walk away. He paused in the door way, and, for a brief moment, locked angry eyes with Mr. Cosmo. Then he walked away, pushing Skrawl with him.

What nerve that man had. How dare he judge him like that. How could he do that? He didn't know him that well. His thoughts went back to Ms. Saffron. It seemed fitting that they were working together. They both shared the same, horrible habit of accusing innocent students of being criminals.

Or did they? He didn't know much about them either, now that he thought about it. Would he really be in the right to judge them so harshly? Perhaps it was just a misunderstanding, and he was blowing it all out of proportion. Perhaps...

..no. He shook his head. As he guided Skrawl down the hallways, trying to find a place to hide him for a time, he only knew one thing.

He was going to prove them wrong. Somehow, someway, he was going to show them how wrong they were about them.

As he disappeared down the hallway, he did not notice Mr. Cosmo giving him a smile, faint, but full of eeriness and knowing.

sss

"So...how did it go?" Ms. Saffron asked cautiously as she stood outside the classroom Rudy had been in. She had heard someone talking and realized that Mr. Cosmo must be done.

She didn't get an answer. Maybe she had spoken too softly. She edged closer into the room, and peered inside. She could see Mr. Cosmo standing there, his face unreadable. He was staring at the chalkboard as if it had sprouted glowing horns. She tried calling out to him again, but he didn't pay any attention to her.

"Mr. Cosmo sir...?"

Saffron was starting to get a little worried. What...just what had happened in here? Why was he unresponsive? She thought that maybe there had been an argument and Rudy had said something terrible to him. No, she told herself, that would not make any sense. Mr. Cosmo never came across as the kind of guy to let something so small shake him up.

Indeed, upon closer inspection, she didn't see any signs of hurt on the man's face. It was still blank, but it wasn't totally devoid of emotion. She had to look real close, but she could see the faint ghost of a smile.

She deduced it must have been a success. He wouldn't be smiling, even faintly, if it hadn't. She knew him well enough. She felt a strange sensation of relief. Had she been worried something would have gone wrong? As much as she didn't want to think about it, she had been worried for him. She had been worried what the chalk creature would have done. She could have easily walked in on a massacre...

She thought back to what she was instructed to do. One of the tasks anyway. She wasn't sure it was a good idea. In fact, it seemed like a terrible idea. But Cosmo had insisted that she do it. He promised her that things would work out in the end. But could she really believe that?

"Everything is falling into place." Mr. Cosmo's voice game, startling Ms. Saffron. "The boy is making this too easy."

"Mr. Cosmo?" Ms. Saffron asked. When the man finally turned to look at her, she gave a hard swallow before saying, "I...I finished that task...but...are you sure it was a good idea? What if..."

Mr. Cosmo interrupted her. "Next phase will soon be in progress, Ms. Saffron." He began to walk towards the door. He gestured her to follow with a movement of his finger. "Come along. We mustn't waste time."

Ms. Saffron stared after him. She knew what he was going to do. And she wasn't sure it was safe. Still, though reluctant, she followed him.

sss

Hiding Skrawl in broad daylight had been difficult. Rudy knew that he couldn't just keep walking down the hallways with Skrawl covered up. He had temporarily placed Skrawl in a janitor's closet while he went to get Penny. Skrawl was none too happy about it and started to complain. These were muffled as he shut the door, keeping him locked inside.

If anyone would have any suggestions on what to do with him, Penny would. He looked at the time and knew it was almost lunch. He could talk to her now and they could work out a solution. He needed someway to get Skrawl back into ChalkZone before anyone spotted him. The janitor wasn't set to clean until sometime after school ended. While this meant that Skrawl wouldn't be discovered yet, it did mean they didn't have all the time in the world to diddle dally.

When he finally got a chance to speak to her, he couldn't believe what she suggested. The idea, it was ludicrous. It was dangerous. It put his family in danger, himself. How could she think of such a thing.

He stared at her, mouth agape. He was holding a spoon in his hand, but he hadn't tried to eat the food. Instead, he was focused on staring at Penny, wondering if she had truly gone off the deep end. But Penny's expression told him she was completely serious.

"Rudy, it's the only way." Penny said in a soft voice. She leaned closer to Rudy. "How else do you expect him to get back to ChalkZone before someone finds him?"

"B-But...to go home and..."

"Rudy, it will be fine." Penny said with as much reassurance in her voice as she could muster.

Rudy wasn't convinced.

Penny sighed. "Look, you said you two were connected, right?" A nod came from Rudy as a response. "He can't do anything to you."

Oh...that was right. Rudy had forgotten all about that. But there was still the matter of his parents. What would stop Skrawl from doing something to them? He knew the jellybean hated him greatly. He wouldn't put it past Skrawl to do something to his parents to get back at him.

"I know what you're thinking, Rudy. And I don't think you have to worry about Skrawl doing anything. You and I will be there the whole time, and if he tries something, we'll catch him." Penny assured him, placing a hand on his shoulder. "As soon as lunch is done, I'll grab the cart so Skrawl can pose as an unfinished art piece. That way, we won't draw much attention from people as we take him to your house. Okay?"

Rudy still was unsure, but he knew he had to have faith in Penny. This would work. He knew it. He smiled the best he could and said, "All right."

Rudy's mind then went to Snap. He hated having to erase the portal when he knew Snap was somewhere on the other side. He had no idea what happened to him. That scream...it had to have been something terrible. He was left with a worse feeling having to leave, since it felt like abandoning his friend.

He needed to get back to ChalkZone as soon as possible. But it would be hours before he could head back. School day wasn't over yet, and then he and Penny had to hide Skrawl, which could slow them down greatly. He bit his lip, hoping Snap wasn't too far away.

"Rudy?" Penny asked. "What's wrong?"

Rudy looked at her, confused, until he realized he didn't tell her about Snap yet. He mentally slapped himself for forgetting to do that.

"I was in ChalkZone...and there was this beast that Skrawl tried to capture. Snap helped me ruin Skrawl's plan, but then Skrawl flew out of the portal, like he had been pushed...and I heard Snap scream..." Rudy's voice was low and his eyes were downcast.

Penny looked at him sympathetically. "I'm so sorry Rudy... We'll get back to ChalkZone. I'm sure Snap will be okay."

"I sure hope you're right, Penny..."

sss

"Easy..easy..." Penny said as they worked to get the cart they were allowed to use for one day into Rudy's house.

They hit a bump, causing the wheel to go over Rudy's injured toe. He stifled a scream, a tear coming to his eye. There was a cry of pain from Skrawl, who began to rant.

"Watch it will you?!" He snapped. "I can't have...!"

"Shh! Be quiet Skrawl!" Penny told him. Her eyes widened, she looked around to see if Rudy's parents were coming. When no one came, she let out a sigh of relief. She glared at Skrawl, who was still completely covered, though this time with a light pink sheet she found in the art room. "Do you want Rudy's parents to find you?"

A scoff came from the potato-shaped zoner. "As if I care! What are they going to do? Hug me to do death with parental love?" He shuddered as he said the last two words.

"That's not how parents work, Skrawl." Rudy said as he got the cart towards the stairs. "You aren't their son. You don't have to worry about them hugging you to death. I don't think they'd even want to touch you."

"Well good! The future ruler of ChalkZone..."

"Shut up!" Rudy snapped at him. He was not in the mood to hear another one of Skrawl's rants on how he will one day rule ChalkZone. He wished that, for once, Skrawl would be quiet.

But Rudy's demand didn't do much to stop Skrawl. Instead, it enraged him. He could hear Skrawl's cry of anger rise up, getting louder. If it hadn't been for their connection, the zoner would have lunged at him in a fury. The only thing that made him stop moving was the sound of Rudy's father coming in from the kitchen. Rudy and Penny froze too.

"Hey there, son!" Mr. Tabootie said with a smile. He took notice of the object on the cart. "Fancy! What is this for?"

"It's...uh..." Rudy struggled to think of something.

"For an art contest!" Penny finished for him.

"An art contest? How lovely! What is it? Can I see?" Mr. Tabootie said as he grabbed the cloth to pull it up.

Rudy yanked it back down. "You..You can't see it yet! It's...uh..unfinished! I brought it here so I can complete it. I don't want anyone to see until it's done!"

"Oh...okay." Mr. Tabootie sounded disappointed. "Can you at least tell me what it is?"

Rudy hardly took time to think of an answer before spewing out a reply, "It's a giant cootie monster!"

Penny put a hand on her mouth and tried not to laugh. Rudy felt a sensation of embarrassment take over him. His dad looked at him, eyes a little widened to indicate shock. He could hear Skrawl's growls of anger from underneath the cloth.

Before Mr. Tabootie could say anything, there was a low 'Rudy' drawl from the so-called 'statue'. He immediately snapped his head over to it. "What was that?"

"That was me!" Penny said, drawing the dad's attention to her. "I was practicing my ventroliquism!"

It was hard to tell if Mr. Tabootie was convinced by that or not. Nonetheless, he smiled at them and didn't question them any further.

"Okey dokey then! Good luck on the contest, Rudy!"

Rudy didn't thank his dad. He and Penny were racing upstairs. He wasn't worried. To his dad, he was merely in a rush to get his piece of art finished. A part of him couldn't believe that actually worked. But another part of him felt guilty.

More lying. More lies just piling on. How long would he be able to do this?

They entered the room and shut the door tightly. Skrawl jumped from the cart and ripped the cloth away. He looked pissed off for having to wear a cloth over his head for so many hours. Even in the closet, he had been instructed not to take it off just in case. Rudy didn't want to take any chances.

"Finally!" He shouted, stretching his feet. He swiveled around and glared at Rudy. "I can't believe you called me a cootie."

Penny looked at Rudy. "Why did you say that, anyway?"

"My mind was drawing a blank. I had to think of something!" Rudy told her. "But we shouldn't dwell on this now. Skrawl, I'll draw you a portal to get back to ChalkZone."

Skrawl snarled at him, but said nothing. Rudy got up and picked up one of his magic chalk pieces. He pressed it against the chalkboard and began to draw a circle...

...which didn't appear at all. His eyes snapped wide in panic. He tried again. Nothing was showing up, not even the faintest of light.

"No..."

"I'm waiting." Skrawl tapped his foot impatiently. When he saw Rudy just staring at the chalkboard, Skrawl raised a fist in the air. "Didn't you hear me, chalk boy?! I said I'm waiting!"

Penny sensed something was wrong. "Rudy? What is it?"

"The chalk, it's..." Rudy looked over at her. "..it's not working."

Skrawl's furrowed expression relaxed as a wave of shock hit him. "What? But..but I've seen you use this particular chalkboard before! How could it not..."

"I don't know." Rudy said. He tried again. No luck. "It just won't work..."

"And I think I found out why..." Penny said in a whisper. Skrawl and Rudy looked over towards her. She picked up a small can that was laying on the ground. "Someone sabotaged your portal, Rudy..." There was strong disbelief in her voice. She glanced at Skrawl. "You will have to spend the night. It's too risky to attempt to take you anywhere right now."

Rudy was stunned. His mind was numb from the information Penny gave him. Sabotage? But...but how? How could have...?

Then he realized the cold, chilling truth. There were only two people he could think of..how could have done something like this. And it wasn't Vinnie or Terry. They were both out of town.

"Mr. Cosmo...Ms. Saffron..." Rudy said in a low voice, grinding his teeth. What were they trying to do?

...and Snap? What about Snap? He had no idea if he was all right. Had he been captured? Killed? Did that beast do something to him? His mind swirled with uncomfortable thoughts of what might have happened. And to make it all worse, there was no way he could find out tonight. He'll have to sleep knowing Snap could be in great danger, and there was nothing he could do about it...

Rudy took in a shuddering breath, fighting back tears. He ignored the look Skrawl gave him. He couldn't possibly care. He turned his attention to Penny. She looked at him worriedly, just as concerned as he was. She walked over to him and wrapped her arms around him. Rudy hugged her back.

Trying to think of something to say, Penny whispered, "It's okay...we'll find him as soon as we can...things will be all right, you'll see..."

As much as Rudy wanted to believe her, he couldn't shake off the feeling of dread rising up inside of him.

THE VICTIM ENEMY:





How could this have happened?

How did he not forsee any of this?

How could he have been so stupid?

Rudy had known something was up with Mr. Cosmo. He knew there was an odd vibe coming off of him. He had been suspicious of him, never letting his guard down around him. He had a feeling that Mr. Cosmo had been up to no good. He had the ability to think ahead, and come up with a plan to get him out of a situation like this...

...and yet he did not. He didn't heed to the caution that clouded his mind, the caution he knew he needed when approaching Mr. Cosmo. He could have done something earlier to prevent this. He could have come up with a plan and informed Penny what to do should a trap such as this was sprung.

But now it was too late for that. Rudy had been foolish enough to allow his parents to come with him. And now they were taken somewhere. What had Cosmo done to them? Was he being truthful and they were just being taken outside? Or did he have something far more sinister planned for them?

Rudy couldn't believe he had been so stupid. There was a good chance his parents were going to suffer for his mistake. He wanted to scream. He wanted to unleash all the tension that was building up in his head. But he was so struck down in shock and fear that he could barely move from his spot.

Now he stood in the middle of the room, with Mr. Cosmo and Ms. Saffron watching him from their desk. Ms. Saffron was standing a little bit off to the side. Her expression was blank, unreadable. What was going on in her mind? How involved was she in all this? That visit he got from her, had it all been part of this plan? Was Ms. Saffron just as bad as Terry, or did she have her own agenda, separate from Mr. Cosmo's?

Most of Rudy's mind paid more attention to Mr. Cosmo, whose eerie smile never faltered from his face. The light was so dim that it made his red hair look much darker than it really was. It almost looked like the same color his dream had turned into, the red hue. It caused the uncomfortable vibe the man already carried to intensify, causing Rudy to unconsciously take a step backwards.

"Are you afraid, child?" Mr. Cosmo asked tauntingly. His smile widened a little as Rudy took another step back and glared at him. "You should be. You played right into my trap."

Rudy wanted to say something in his defense, but he knew Mr. Cosmo was right. He had fallen into this trap of his. And what was worse was that he knew Mr. Cosmo would do something like this. Yet he still came. He still entered the building. He allowed himself to get caught.

How foolish he had been.

"Don't beat yourself up too much, Rudy. My plans are well thought out. I was always one step ahead of you." Mr. Cosmo interlocked his fingers together and leaned across the table. Somehow, like this, he looked far more menacing, maybe something to do with how the dim light casted shadows on his face. "I like a good game of chess...don't you, Rudy?"

"What does that have to do with anything?" Rudy demanded, taking a defensive stance.

"Aren't we overreacting? No matter, you will soon learn what I mean, kid. In time..." Mr. Cosmo nodded slowly. "In time..."

Rudy tried to come up with a plan in his mind. There had to be a way out of here. There had to be a weak point in Mr. Cosmo's plan. If he could figure something out before the man had time to...

...just what did he want? So far, Mr. Cosmo had not asked about the magic chalk, or anything similar. He didn't ask Rudy about Skrawl, which was very odd considering Skrawl looked nothing like any real world creature. Potatoes and jellybeans do not have legs or a mouth or antenna. Yet despite that, Mr. Cosmo hadn't tried to demand Rudy explain Skrawl's existence. And if he wasn't going to ask about that, just what was he going to interrogate Rudy on?

Wait, was this even an interrogation? Rudy wasn't sure what to think. His confusion now intermixed with his fear. He wished Penny were here. She would be able to figure out what was the appropriate course of action. She'd know how to bail him out.

Rudy wanted answers.

"What do you want?" He asked in a low but still audible voice.

"I thought you'd never ask. I will be glad to answer." Mr. Cosmo said, his voice slightly higher pitched as his voice filled with a sickening glee, as if he got enjoyment out of this whole ordeal. He got up from his chair and walked over to the tank. He placed a hand against the thick glass. "You see this marvelous thing in here? Well he's going to be part of a little experiment. You see, new weapons are in high demand, and this guy in here...he may just be the answer."

Rudy's eyes snapped wide at this. He stammered, "You're...you're going to use Skrawl as a weapon?"

"You make it sound like a bad thing. He'd be perfect. Not many would protest because he's made of chalk, right? He was created by humans...so he must serve humans, yes?" Mr. Cosmo said happily. "So therefore...think of this as a way for him to repay his debt to the species that gave him life."

Skrawl let out an angry roar and pounded on the glass. "I am nobody's tool! You hear me! You can't make me do anything! I will not stand for this!"

Mr. Cosmo looked calmly at Skrawl. His smile became a little smaller, a little more smug. "Oh, but I can and I will."

Skrawl laughed at this. "Oh really? And just how are you going to do that?"

"I have my ways. Don't worry." Mr. Cosmo told him. He looked over at Rudy. "As for you, child...what does it matter what I do with this thing? It's not like you are friends with him."

"He's a living being too!" Rudy shouted. He took a step forward, clutching his left hand in a fist while his right pointed an accusing finger at the man. "You can't just strap a dog collar on him and expect him to be your loyal servant! You're sick, you know that?!"

Ms. Saffron narrowed her eyes. "Now see here, you can't..."

Mr. Cosmo put a hand on her shoulder. "No, let the little runt continue. I'd like to hear what else he can spew out."

"What kind of person do you have to be to sink so low? To force another clearly sentient being to be a pawn in your scheme of weaponry..it's disgusting! I don't know how anyone looks up to a vile person like you!" Rudy shouted at him. "You're...you're a monster!"

Rudy didn't like letting his temper get out of hand. He didn't like allowing his anger to control him and make him say terrible things. He wasn't proud of himself when he did it. He often tried to make sure he acted as rational as possible. Ever since the poison pen letter incident, he had been a bit more careful on not letting anger cloud his judgment...usually.

There were still cases where he failed to do this, and this was one of those incidents. Granted, Skrawl did a lot of bad things himself, but that didn't mean Rudy himself wanted Skrawl subjected to being turned into a weapon. Rudy wasn't cruel or heartless. He wasn't going to allow Mr. Cosmo to hurt anyone, whether it be Skrawl or someone else. He couldn't allow it.

Rudy took in a few deep breaths to calm himself down. He wondered if his words had any impact on the man. When he stared back, he wasn't exactly surprised by what he saw.

Mr. Cosmo just stared at him, completely tranquil. All signs of a smile were gone. But nothing indicated that he was particularly angry. He stared at Rudy for what felt like a minute before he made any kind of movement. He rested his chin in the palm of his hand as his elbow supported both.

"Why do you even care, child?" Mr. Cosmo asked.

Rudy felt his anger return. "What do you mean?"

"I know you and this...Skrawl you call him? I know the two of you are not on the best of terms. There's little reason for you to care what happens to him."

Rudy asked, "How would you know what we think of each other?"

Mr. Cosmo let out a harsh chuckle. He turned his gaze towards his desk. "Because I sent a little...spy into..what did they call it..oh yes..." He looked back at Rudy. "..ChalkZone, is it?"

Rudy gasped and took an involuntary step back. "H-How did you..."

"How do I know about ChalkZone? Oh little Rudy, you'd be amazed by how knowledgeable I am." Mr. Cosmo explained. "Let me give you a taste..." He raised a hand and snapped a finger. "There's someone I'd like you to meet."

Rudy looked around cautiously. He could hear footsteps and a clang of something hitting the hard floor, but he couldn't see the source. It was still quite dark in this large room. He could hear low growling and the hairs on the back of his neck stood on end. Then the footsteps broke into a run, a louder growl sounding out.

He looked to his side, where he thought the sound was coming from. The footsteps got louder. He heard something flap against the air. He knew something was getting closer, but he couldn't see what it was. He thought he saw a bright glint in the shadows, and he prepared for a fight.

Suddenly and without warning, something large and brown jumped from the shadows. Rudy didn't have time to react as something sharp pressed against his neck and upper chest. He was thrust into the ground quickly, his head banging against the ground.

"Ow...hey watch it!" Skrawl hissed. "You're not the only one who feels that, okay?"

But Rudy didn't hear this. His full attention was on something else. And that something was holding him down, teal eyes glaring at him in the dim light. Rudy couldn't believe what he was seeing.

It was the beast..the same one he and Snap encountered in ChalkZone, the same one that was in his nightmare last night. The very same, and now it was holding him down, flashing its teeth at him. It opened up his mouth to let out a few gutteral growls. It licked its lips and looked like it fully intended on killing him.

"Rudy, this is Draow." Mr. Cosmo explained, watching the scene nonchalantly as if nothing was going on. "He's one of mine. I sent him to ChalkZone to scope out for a potential...chalk person...I should capture. And Skrawl here was the perfect one."

Rudy pushed against Draow's muzzle as the thing was getting uncomfortably close. "Why?"

"Because of your mutual hate for each other. You see, if I captured one of your friends, you would be much more resistant...But if I captured Skrawl, sure you may still not be so...receptive, but you wouldn't be as gun-ho about saving him either."

"And...and what if I had tried to erase him?" Rudy asked, still fighting against Draow's massive form.

"Ah, that's where the connection came in."

"What...?" Rudy asked, bewildered.

Mr. Cosmo snapped his finger. Draow, on cue, got off of Rudy and walked back towards his creator. He stood behind the man, placing his muzzle gently across the man's shoulder as a sign of affection. Draow's eyes still glared at Rudy as Cosmo placed a hand against his head, stroking the fur gently.

"You see, I knew that you would think of hurting Skrawl to keep me from using him. Not that I think you'd go through with it, but the potential was there. So I had to think of a way to stop you. And I came to the conclusion that, if you were in danger of being hurt too..." He paused for a moment. "...you wouldn't try anything."

Rudy wasn't sure how to take all this in. Did Mr. Cosmo confess that he was the reason why he and Skrawl felt each other's pain? How was he able to do this? How could he pull it off? Just what did he do to achieve this? So many questions swimmed in his head, making it ache.

This, all this...it had to be some kind of twisted dream, right? None of this was happening. It was all in his head. Soon, he would wake up and this nightmare would be over. He'd be talking with Penny, they'd be meeting with Snap, and everything would be more or less back to normal.

Yet, in the back of his mind, he knew the truth. He knew this wasn't a dream. This was all happening. It was worse than a nightmare.

It was reality.

"How...how did you do this?" That was all Rudy could manage to say after he forced himself to break his stunned silence. "How did you...connect us?"

Mr. Cosmo grinned at this. "I knew you'd be curious. But I'm afraid I cannot tell you." Rudy stared at him with a perplexed look. "You are smart enough to figure that out on your own. Perhaps a trip to ChalkZone will help?" He asked, his voice taunting. "That's right, you can't get there...not here, now can you?"

Ms. Saffron watched this and shook her head slowly. "Sir, why don't you get straight to the point? You can't leave the boy hanging, you know."

"True..you are right, Ms. Saffron. "Mr. Cosmo said as he got out of his seat. "I will rectify that now."

Rudy tensed up as the man approached him. The gap, slowly but surely, was closed. Rudy wanted to move. Oh how desperately he wanted to get away. But it was like his feet were glued to the floor. He couldn't make his muscles move. He was too petrified in fear to do anything.

The man stopped only a foot away from the boy. Rudy leaned back, giving a glare of determination at the man, but fear still shined through. And Mr. Cosmo saw it.

"I frighten you, don't I child? I can see the fear in your eyes." Cosmo said as he reached a hand out towards Rudy. Lightly, he brushed the back of his fingers down Rudy's left cheek. In response, Rudy jerked his head away. "But despite it all, you still have fight in you. Impressive. It's just a shame you are all alone here, boy. Maybe if you had one of your friends here, you would be a threat."

Upon hearing this, Rudy had a thought. A terrible one. It wasn't something he wanted to think about. He hoped it wasn't true. He pleaded with fate that it wasn't true. Anything but this... With how things were going for him lately, he wouldn't doubt that it happened. But there was still that chance he was wrong, right? Maybe he's just overreacting.

He would only find out through asking. And the man he wanted to direct the question to was standing right before him. Cosmo had gone silent. It was like he expected Rudy to ask him something. He just stared at the boy, his hands folded behind his back. He was quiet, saying and doing nothing.

"Did you...are you the one who..." Rudy tried to form a coherent sentence. His tongue twisted in itself, making him stumble upon his words. He finally got the words out, coming out as a low whisper, "Did you do something to Snap...?"

Mr. Cosmo just stared at Rudy. Seconds later, a wry smile spread across his face, but he remained silent.

That was all Rudy needed for him to have an idea on what happened. As it sank into his head, the old fear for Snap's safety came in, as well as a newfound anger for the man that may have been responsible for his disappearance. No, not may...this man practically confessed to it, and he didn't even need to say a word.

Rudy practically leapt for the man, gripping him by his shirt and pulling him forward. "What did you do to Snap?!"

Rudy only let go when Draow raced towards him, snapping his jaws at him in an attempt to protect his creator. Rudy took several steps back as Draow placed himself beside Cosmo like a faithful guard dog. He let out a continous low gutteral growl as his teal eyes pierced into Rudy's eyes. No words needed to be said for Rudy to understand Draow's message.

"You'll find out..." That was Cosmo's answer. "Got any more questions for me, Rudy?"

There was just one more. There was one more thing Rudy had to know.

"Why are you doing this...?"

Mr. Cosmo's response came almost immediately. "Because, Rudy, you have so much potential... But you haven't yet fulfilled that." His voice was cold as ice. "I am here to help you fulfill that potential. There is so much more you can be, Rudy. Believe me..." His eyes narrowed as he said that.

Rudy took a step back. What was this man talking about?

THAT BOY IS SMART, BUT NOT ENOUGH:





Ms. Saffron stopped in her tracks when she heard a familiar sound. Those machines...she shuddered at the sound of them. Her mind briefly forgetting about Rudy and Skrawl, she had to pause and think for a moment.

The machines had always made her feel uneasy. She never even seen them, yet they still filled her with dread. The whole time she worked here, down in this area of the building, she'd hear them come on every once in a while. She didn't know what it was. And that was frightening to her. Working here and not knowing what that sound was.

She had once tried to talk to Mr. Cosmo about it. But he refused to tell her. The only bit of information he'd give her was that it was something important he was working on. He told her not to worry about it and that it wasn't any of her concern. She had tried again to make him elaborate but with no luck.

She had been behind Draow and Cosmo, so they didn't notice when she stopped running. It wasn't like she was really needed. All she had to do was chase Rudy and Skrawl, and they ran right where Mr. Cosmo wanted them to. With a chalkboard inside, they would most certainly head back to ChalkZone. She wasn't entirely sure why Mr. Cosmo wanted them to do that. It didn't really make a lot of sense.

She knew there was a reason for it. As she saw the man walk out of the room with a smile on his face, it was clear things were going the way he wanted them to. It seemed counterintuitive to let the boy and the chalk monster to escape. Why hadn't he just forced Rudy to stay and tell him what he wanted to know? That wasn't something she would have liked to happen, but it made more sense to her than just letting him escape. If special chalk was needed to access ChalkZone...

There were pieces of the puzzle she was missing. She started to wonder, briefly, if Cosmo was purposely hiding details from her. Were there some things he didn't want her to know? Was there more to his plan than just simply exploring ChalkZone and making sure it was safe?

That is what she had been told this whole time. That he simply wanted to go to ChalkZone to help her observe it, see if it was truly dangerous or not. His methods were unorthodox, she admitted, but she had been told, in the long run, it was for a benevolent purpose. Understanding ChalkZone was top priority before she could give out any news of its existence. Understanding was key to making sure, should the two worlds collide, it would be easy to subdue ChalkZone in case of a deadly riot.

But some doubt emerged in her mind when she recalled the conversation Rudy had with Mr. Cosmo. The way Cosmo talked to the boy, it sounded a lot more threatening than it had to be. And the things he was implying didn't sound like mere observation and study like she had been told. Even Draow's behavior seemed off, though Mr. Cosmo stated that he had given Draow a guard dog-like personality to dismiss any feelings of doubt from her.

Nonetheless, Ms. Saffron still trusted Mr. Cosmo. Everything was happening the way he said it would. And any statement he made about ChalkZone had also been right. He had quite the intelligent mind and she appreciated that. She did feel safe preparing this exploration to the world of chalk with him.

She just hoped that the ends truly justify the means. She felt bad for helping trap Rudy. She had pleaded with Mr. Cosmo for another way. He insisted it had to be done that way in order for Rudy to, inadvertantly, open up the next step in the plan. He claimed he didn't like it himself, but the way he spoke to Rudy told a different story. She pushed that in the back of her mind. She would ask him about it later.

Mr. Cosmo walked down the hallway, Draow by his side. He still looked happy, satisfied. He stopped beside the woman and looked at her.

"He entered ChalkZone, didn't he?" Ms. Saffron asked, despite knowing what the answer would be.

"Yes, so he did." Mr. Cosmo confirmed with a nod of his head. "Just like I hoped he would. He is smart, heading for this room first. But...it's also his biggest blunder."

Ms. Saffron shook her head. "I still don't know why you wanted him to go back to ChalkZone."

"That is simple." Cosmo stroked the head of his wolf bat creatre. "It was to open up a gateway for us to use."

Ms. Saffron raised an eyebrow. A gateway? He expected Rudy to open up a gateway for him? She knew the boy would have erased the portal. He was smart, clever. Maybe not to the same degree as Mr. Cosmo. Still, if the portal was erased, how did this man think he was getting into this chalky place?

"But he erased the portal didn't he? I don't think he'd make the same mistake again and leave it open." Ms. Saffron asked.

The man gave a peculiar smile. The one that caused her to shudder, yet at the same time filled her with awe. It was the smile that indicated a lot of things. Plans going the right way, knowing something she didn't, a mischevious 'I can make things happen the way I want to' kind of look.

"Remember when I told the boy that he'd have a chance against me if he knew half of what I did?" Cosmo said slowly. Before Saffron could reply, he took the liberty to answer for her. "Of course you do. Let me explain..."

Mr. Cosmo gestured the woman to follow him. They headed back into the room, the one where Rudy and Skrawl had escaped into. The chalkboard looked the same as it did before, except a lot of the formulas and equations had been erased. Chalk dust covered the metal grooved platform and the ground, probably from the boy so hastily erasing.

Mr. Cosmo walked up to the chalkboard. He pressed his finger against the grooved platform and moved it along. He lifted up his finger and looked at the white dust that collected there. He gave a smile as he turned to Ms. Saffron and showed her.

"See this? Chalk dust." He said.

With a perplexed look, Ms. Saffron said, "Um..yes I can see that. What does that have to do with anything? It's chalk dust. Chalk leaves that behind. It's pretty much a given."

"But it's not any ordinary chalk dust." Mr. Cosmo grinned. He pressed his thumb against his finger and rubbed it back and forth. Particles of chalk fell towards the ground, barely noticeable in the dim light. "It's magic chalk."

Ms. Saffron almost scoffed at that. "Magic chalk? How can that white stick be magical? It's like any other..."

She stopped when Mr. Cosmo pressed his finger against the chalkboard and pulled his finger downwards. Very faintly, she saw a golden glow come from it. Mr. Cosmo pulled away and took a step to the side. He smiled at her shocked expression. She couldn't believe what she was seeing. A glow on the chalkboard? Was it real? Yes, it had to be real. She was wide awake.

She walked up to the chalkboard and placed her hand on it. The glow didn't seem to hurt. In fact, her fingers seemed to sink in a little. She pulled her hand away and looked over at Mr. Cosmo. Was this how he managed to get Draow in the real world? He never outright told her before. She knew there had to be some way, but she didn't imagine it would be something like this.

Mr. Cosmo wiped his palm across the faint glow, stopping it almost immediately. "That, Ms. Saffron, is magic chalk. It is the gateway key between our world...and theirs." He put his hand on Draow's head and gave it a few pats. "And because of this portal, anything from our world can get into ChalkZone, and the reverse is true." He shifted his gaze to Draow. "Including your own creations."

So that was how. Ms. Saffron didn't understand the mechanism of this whole thing. She doubted she ever would. Magic chalk still seemed quite farfetched to her, even when shown its powers right in front of her. It was clear there was something...otherworldly about this particular type of chalk.

Ms. Saffron tried to think of a rational explanation for it. But what was the use? She had a chalk creature standing before her. She had seen another in Skrawl. When chalk drawings came to life, seemingly with their own anatomy and every thing, even capable of speech, what was the point in rationality anymore? None of this was making sense. It was making her head hurt from thinking too hard about it.

She cleared her mind to focus on her next question. "With the portal gone, how do you propose you..."

"Already taken care of. See, you'd be amazed by how much I learned about ChalkZone. That boy must have been visiting that place for years, and still he doesn't know one quite amazing fact."

"And that would be?"

Mr. Cosmo smirked at her. "It is possible to create your own type of chalk, with its own abilities..."

Ms. Saffron took a step back. "You managed to...how?"

"It is pretty easy, but I won't elaborate on that. Let's just say I...had a little help." Mr. Cosmo replied. "The chalk that the boy had taken, it's the same kind he used while in the classroom. Tell me, did you ever wonder how Draow was able to use that portal to carry in...what was his name...Snap?"

Ms. Saffron was silent. She hadn't thought about that. During that time, her job had been to go to Tabootie's place and spray his chalkboard with a substance that made creating portals impossible. This would force Skrawl to stay put in the real world and they would then capture him during the night, which had been a complete success. What wasn't on her mind was how Draow got Snap in the real world.

"Explain..." Ms. Saffron managed to say.

"This magic chalk has an additional ability to it. It's permanent...well kind of. Water can still erase it permanently. But it wasn't like Tabootie was going to figure that out." A dark chuckle. "This magic chalk actually 'comes back' per say. The portals drawn with it, after erased, will come back, but only at about 10% opacity. This makes them practically invisible to everyone unless they took a very good look. Why at such low opacity? It gives us a sort of 'stealth entrance'. This will come in handy as we begin exploring more of this world..."

"But if you already know quite a bit...and I don't know how you do..." Ms. Saffron started. "Why do we still need to explore?"

"There's still things about the world of chalk that I am not aware of, Ms. Saffron. So exploration is still imperative. I know you still want to do that, so you can get an understanding of this place." Ms. Cosmo said.

Suddenly, something clicked in the back of Ms. Saffron's mind. "The connection between the boy and that jellybean creature...I know that was your doing but..did it have anything to do with that chalk?"

"Quite clever." Mr. Cosmo said with an amused tone. "That is correct. An old trick I knew would be useful at some point." He looked at the chalk dust on the board. "Yes, this chalk of mine is truly something. The only weakness it has is that it uses up faster. I guess it can't handle all that ability. Oh well, it serves its purpose just fine."

"Can the connection be undone...?" Ms. Saffron asked cautiously.

"It is...quite hard." Mr. Cosmo admitted. "That is why this chalk should be used with caution."

"Then why..."

Mr. Cosmo gave her a stern look. "When it comes to a world of chalk, you must think intelligently, differently. The way that world works is much different than ours. And so the rules of the world changes, so do the way plans are made."

Ms. Saffron thought about that. It did make sense. ChalkZone was a completely different place, much different than what she was used to. It would be understandable that things had to be handled differently. It brought about a sort of comfort to her, knowing that Mr. Cosmo had reasons for his actions. And they seemed to be intelligent ones at that. Nothing about it seemed truly malicious at the core, although she couldn't say she was entirely comfortable with them.

Then she thought about that plan. He never told her about it. Mr. Cosmo mentioned something about 'finishing what he started'. What had he meant by that? What was this true potential he talked about? Why did he think making friends in ChalkZone was meaningless?

Or maybe he didn't think that way. She could just be misinterpating him again. He seemed to be making it clear he does want to help her learn about this place. He had taken precautions to avoid as much fighting as possible. This thing that he started, it was probably just another exploration trip. He might have thought that getting too 'buddy buddy' with the locals would impede progress. And he may have deemed it meaningless to create friends and rescue people when studying and understanding ChalkZone could bring about a lot more results.

Yeah, that had to be it.

She wanted to ask for confirmation. She wanted to hear it from him. She held back, however. She didn't want to annoy Mr. Cosmo with too many questions. She didn't want to make it seem like she had little faith in him, which wasn't true. So, for now, she just nodded.

"Okay, sir." She said. "I understand."

Mr. Cosmo gave a small smile. "That is good to hear. Now..." He went over to a corner of the room. "Draow was able to bring this to me before the meeting with Rudy started. I am pretty sure it is still good." He pulled out a plate with what looked like a sandwich on it, and a glass of what could be juice but it looked...different. "Take this to our...guest."

Ms. Saffron grabbed the plate and glass. "What is this?"

"Chalk food. Take it to Snap." Mr. Cosmo said. "I don't want him dying on us."

"Can't he just eat and drink something here?" Ms. Saffron asked.

"That would kill him, Ms. Saffron." Mr. Cosmo said. "Maybe eat...but I am not taking the chance. And anything liquid here will dissolve him. Now take it to him. He is still of use to me."

Without another word, Ms. Saffron took the food and drink and headed down the halls.

sss

Ms. Saffron hated coming down here. The sounds of the machines were much louder. She couldn't tell exactly where they were, and even if she wanted to go there, she couldn't. Some passageways were sealed off with a code. Unless she knew what the code was, she couldn't enter. Mr. Cosmo assured her the codes were for security purposes. He thought that it would be best if only one of them knew the code to get in. It didn't make much sense to her, but perhaps he'll tell her the code in time.

The hallway she was walking in was dark and dank. A strong dirty smell filled the air. She flared her nostrils at it and turned her head away for a second. What an awful smell. This place hadn't been completely cleaned up when Mr. Cosmo started using it. Still it wasn't as bad as when they first started. It was amazing how much they managed to clean up in such a short amount of time.

She forgot what this place used to be. Most employees don't even come down here anymore. She didn't know how many of them even knew of this place. Where Rudy had been trapped wasn't entirely unknown. It was a storage kind of room where spare equipment was located. But this room, where she was walking in now, was more secluded. It wasn't even on the map.

It may have been the original basement and storage before a room above it was renovated to take its place. Mr. Cosmo thought it would be a perfect place to do his studies or whatever he did. There were multiple rooms, each of them converted into...she wasn't sure what they were actually. She didn't get a chance to look inside any of them.

Well except for one, but she wasn't sure if this was how the vast majority of the rooms were, or if it was just one special case. And that room was the one where Snap was being held.

It didn't take her long to reach his room. The door was locked. Nothing fancy. Just a simple lock and key mechanism. There was no code required for this. She balanced the food and drink with one arm as she brought out the small key and unlocked it.

She took in a deep breath, trying to keep herself calm. She never truly interacted with a chalk being before. She kept her distance from Draow and Skrawl. This was the first time she'd be in a room, alone, with a chalk creature and she wasn't sure how she should act. What could she expect?

Ms. Saffron walked into the room. It was fairly small and plain. It wasn't too dark. The single light above did prove quite a bit of lumination. The floors and walls were very dry. Mr. Cosmo had spent some time making sure there was as little liquid in the room as possible, and if what he told her was right, she now understood why he had been so adamant about it. The room wasn't completely empty. There was a small bed. Not the best and it looked rather old, but it seemed to suit the occupant just fine.

Snap was laying on the bed with the dirty covers pulled over him. He was twitching in his sleep. He must be dreaming. Hmm, chalk creatures dream? She narrowed her eyes. They apparently also had nightmares. She could see a faint hint of a tear on the blue boy's face. She wondered if he was having a nightmare about Draow.

The wolf bat beast hadn't exactly been gentle with him, evident from the moment he brought him into the real world. Snap was covered in dirt and looked a little banged up. A bit of red clung to Draow's wing claw, not only disproving Mr. Cosmo's previous idea about chalk creatures having no blood, but also showed Draow had used a little too much force. Upon examination, she and Mr. Cosmo found that Draow had struck Snap in the back, cutting pretty deeply and ending at the back of his head.

Even in chalky form, it was horrific to look at. It made her feel some level of sympathy for him. She still wasn't sure what to think of him, but pain was something she definitely understood. Luckily, they were able to stop the bleeding and they were able to wrap bandages around it so the wounds would be protected.

Mr. Cosmo hadn't been happy with Draow and scolded him while she placed Snap in the room. But she wasn't sure if it was because he cared about Snap's well being, or if it was because of something else. The way he said 'of use to him'...did he see Snap as just a tool? Then again, did she see him the same way?

Snap started to stir more desperately on the bed. He was crying bouts of 'No' and 'Rudy', as well as other things, some too mumbled together for her to understand. She let out a soft sigh. She placed the food and drink on the ground and walked over to the bed. She wasn't sure why she was doing this. She didn't know him. She didn't know if he could even be considered real. But something drew her to him.

She placed a hand on his shoulder and gently shook him. "Hey, calm down. It's just a dream."

Snap, slowly, stopped shaking. Ms. Saffron was about to back off when the blue boy started to sit up in the bed. "Oy caloi...what a nightmare..." He said, rubbing the side of his head. "That is the last time I eat spicey honey before I go to bed. Talk about your weird dreams. Some big wolf with wings..."

He stopped talking when he took notice he wasn't in his usual room. Ms. Saffron noted the look of shock on his face, that soon delved into panic. He quickly stood on his foot when he saw her and took a defensive stance.

"Whoa!" Ms. Saffron said, biting her lip. "I'm not here to hurt you!"

"Where am I?" Snap demanded. He hunched over as he prepared to jump off the bed. He stopped when he felt a burning pain in his back. He let out a cry and fell back. "What happened to me? What did you do to me?"

Ms. Saffron felt her heart starting to race. She took a step back from the clearly angry and pained chalk person. Perhaps it was a mistake to wake him up from his nightmare.

"Who are you?" Snap said next when he got no answer. His voice still hissed with pain. "And where is Rudy?"

"I am...Ms. Saffron." She answered hesitantly. "Calm down and I will answer your questions.

Snap stared at her suspiciously. "Okay then, explain..."