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Butterflies

At exactly 12 noon, the ringing of the store entrance bell informed the staff of Steep Wisdom of the arrival of a new customer.

"Good morn-uhm... just-about-to-be-afternoon, Miss." From the kitchen, Zane could hear Kai greet the – apparently female – visitor. And the flirtatious tone in the red Ninja's voice suggested that she was rather pretty. "Would you like to purchase some tea, or can I interest you in our lunch menu?"

"Actually, I am here to see Zane." The Ice Ninja immediately recognised the beautiful voice of his lovely new friend. "He has invited me to visit him here for lunch."

With a huge smile on his face, Zane excitedly removed his pink apron before he went to greet PIXAL.

"O-okay." Zane could literally hear Kai's jaw drop. "Just gimme a sec, I'll let him kn-"

"Thank you, Kai." Zane said as he came through the kitchen swing doors. "That will not be necessary." He turned to PIXAL. "I am very glad that you have decided to accept my invitation."

"Of course." She smiled back. "I very much enjoyed our dinner last night. It really was a great idea from Nya and Jay, and-"

"Whoa." Kai interjected. "You went on a double date with my sis and her boyfriend? And I thought Nya was working again last night..."

"No, Nya very rarely does night shifts." PIXAL naively told the spiky haired male. "But she was at the autobody shop earlier this morning, before her classes. She and Jay arrived together on his motorcycle, suggesting that she may have spent the night at his place if she was not at home."

"Oh, I can't wait for that sneaky bastard to turn up for work." Kai muttered angrily. "Someone's gonna be in serious trouble..."

"If you are referring to Jay, he will be here in approximately half an hour." Zane informed his colleague/teammate. "His lecture has finished already, but he has left his bike at the autobody shop for a service and now needs to take the bus from college."

"Well, I am not here to see Jay." PIXAL flashed a smile at the male Nindroid. "I was rather hoping to spend some time with you and, of course, to try one of your highly commended creations."

"And I was hoping for that too." Zane replied, offering his arm to her. "Unfortunately, I cannot abandon the kitchen until Jay is here, as I do not trust Cole with the cooking and Kai is needed here in the shop. So, what about I teach you how to prepare some of the dishes before we get to enjoy them together?"

"That sounds absolutely perfect." She replied, taking his arm. "Please lead the way, chef."

"As you seemed to enjoy the sushi last night, I was going to make a seafood risotto for you." Zane said as they entered the small but spotless and well organised kitchen.

The couple had just finished gathering all the ingredients and were chopping the onions, when someone burst through the back door. "Have you seen my nephew?" Zane's boss, Sensei Wu, the owner of Steep Wisdom and the Ninja's teacher, asked.

"My apologies." Zane replied. "I have not seen or heard from him since this morning. He was leaving for school just when I arrived."

"The school's just called to say he didn't turn up for classes this morning." Wu said worriedly. "They know about his-" He glanced at PIXAL. "well, our situation, so they wanted to ask if he was off sick or..."

"I am sure he is fine." Zane tried to comfort his teacher. "According to what I have heard from my colleagues, it is not uncommon for teenagers to occasionally skip school. Have you tried calling him?"

Wu sighed. "He does not answer his phone."

"I will try to locate the signal." Zane promised. "And I would recommend to ask Kai if he knows anything. Our young friend seems to trust him the most." He suggested.

"Mmh, that's a good idea." Wu contemplatively stroked his long beard. "Thank you. And please let me know when you've found him."

He then looked at the female Nindroid who was wearing the same kind of pink apron as the Master of Ice. "And who is this young lady?"

"This is PIXAL. She is a colleague of Nya's, and my new friend." Zane introduced her. "PIX, please meet my boss, Mr Wu." The Ninja did not use the term Sensei in public.

"It is very nice to meet you, PIXAL." Wu greeted her. "But in the future, please do not bring strangers into the kitchen, Zane. It is against Health and Safety Regulations."

"Please don't worry, Mr Wu." PIXAL smiled. "I am a robot, and my outer shell is made of surgical stainless steel, I do not carry any infections."

"Alright. Just... be careful." He nodded at Zane - who of course understood the true meaning behind this comment - before he left.

The white Ninja knew perfectly well that he should not have brought anyone (luckily, Wu did not even know that PIXAL was a Samurai) here, nonetheless one with an integrated scanner function, but, to be honest, he had been simply too happy to care. And maybe he could just distract her enough – not that this was in any way an unpleasant task – so that PIXAL would not insist on receiving the full tour of their facilities.

"My apologies, I have to leave you alone for a minute." Zane apologised. "Would you mind continuing with the onions?"

"Of course not." PIXAL nodded. "Mr Wu's request seems to be rather urgent."

"Thank you, it is." Zane smiled as he took off his apron - again – and went to the small office to locate Lloyd's phone using the Ninja's computer. It didn't take long.

Lloyd's phone is at the arcade. He sent a message to his Sensei and teammates.

Seems like you were right. Came Kai's reply. So probably nothing to worry about.

My bus goes by the arcade. I can look for him. Jay offered.

Thank you. Wu answered. Please keep me updated.

Zane closed the laptop and went back to the kitchen.

"Did you find Mr Wu's nephew?" PIXAL asked, a pile of perfectly sized and shaped onion pieces on the chopping board in front of her.

"Yes, he appears to be at the arcade." Zane replied, placing a deep pan on the stove.

"I have heard of this venue." She remarked. "But I have never been there."

"Neither have I. But, being friends with Jay, I have heard so much about it that it almost feels like I have visited it myself..."

"I can imagine that." PIXAL chuckled. "Do you have to leave now to go looking for ..."

"Lloyd." Zane told her. "Wu's nephew is called Lloyd. But no, Jay will take care of it, he is in the area anyway."

"Are you sure he is the right choice?" PIXAL questioned. "If he likes the arcade this much, Jay might get distracted there himself."

"No, he may normally act quite immaturely, but Jay always takes his missions seriously." The white Ninja stated. Well, nearly always.

"I hope his mission will be successful." Luckily, PIXAL did not comment on his choice of word.

"So do I." Zane agreed. "Mr Wu is extremely worried about his nephew. As far as I know Lloyd is his only living relative - the boy's parents are both presumed dead - so he is very protective of the child. Especially as Lloyd has a tendency of getting into trouble. But he is still not as protective as Kai is of Nya..."

The Fire Ninja was another reason for Zane to hope that Jay would soon find Lloyd at the arcade. Having Jay bring the boy home safely would not only give Sensei Wu's his peace of mind but also appease Kai who considered the fifteen-year old to be his honorary little brother.

"I do not think anyone could be as protective as him." PIXAL's laugh sounded like little bells, and Zane was suddenly reminded of that one time when he had had actual butterflies in his stomach.

But he had secretly checked twice already, so he was certain that there was not even a single one there this time. Yet, it still felt very much the same.

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