Tricks of the Trade

Stats: We're looking at 16 chapters made from 22,885 words, published in 2004.

Summary: This is for all the Ulumi lovers out there! Yumi is a thief trying to steal a famous jewel, Ulrich is a bounty hunter trying to catch an infamous Yumi. Yes, it's as delightful as it sounds.

Author: Ransomed Heart is one of my favorite Code Lyoko authors. They've got 17 CL fics total, and some of the best Ulumi stories. They were also posting before ffnet had character tags (gasp!) so you don't always know what you're getting into when you click on the story.

however, that is part of the fun!

Moment of Tranquility

Stats: 1,758 words about Odd crushing on Ulrich from 2005? Don't mind if I do!

Summary: SAD. This is not a happy, fluffy Oddrich fic. But goodness if I don't adore an angsty crush that may or may not be requited.

Author: As far as Code Lyoko fics go, Mathais seems to have all 3 on both their ffnet and AO3, so really you could use either site. All 3 are Odd/Ulrich, but I liked this one best!

An Odd Little Survey

Stats: Published in 2007, this is peak internet culture of the time period. It's 27k words total, but each of the 16 chapters features a different character.

Summary: If you were not online in 2007, this is exactly what it was like to do stupid little surveys over and over again for your fanfiction profiles and MySpace like anyone actually cared. This fic perfectly defines a cultural experience.

Author: This is just one of Lune-Soleil's 44 Code Lyoko fics!

The Lost Boys

Stats: Another 3000-word oneshot from 2008

Summary: This is one of my favorite, favorite, favorite Yumi-centric fics. It looks at the difficulty of growing up for all of the warriors, but Yumi especially, since she sees herself as the "big sister" of the group. It also looks at her relationship with Hiroki and how the sibling relationships impacts her with the group and vice versa.

Author: Lune-Solei, another rockstar author for the Code Lyoko fandom! (https://www.fanfiction.net/u/621336/Lune-Solei)

The Necessities

Stats: This is a classic, posted in 2008, and to me, really encapsulates early 2000s fanfiction. It's a oneshot, super easy to read (3k words), and incredibly fun.

Summary: The gist is that Yumi and Aelita send the boys on a tampon run. Spoiler alert: the boys do survive, but just barely.

Author: It's written by an amazingly prolific Code Lyoko fanfic author, Kittyclaw, (https://www.fanfiction.net/u/963056/Kittyclaw)

If you like this one, I would definitely recommend checking out their other stuff on ffnet!

Late Night Phone Calls

Stats: 1,147 words of self-indulgent Ulumi fluff. Published in 2011.

Summary: Just teenagers being shy and awkward about asking each other to a dance.

Author: Me lol (I had to include one!)

Alouette

Stats: 1800 words published in 2012

Summary: MillyxTamiya! One of my favorite rarepairs. This one does need a warning though - it's kids pretending to be like teenagers.

If middle-schoolers making out bothers you, don't read it. (obviously)

Author: Senza pieta wrote both of these!

Fight

Stats: Tiny little Jeremy-centric drabble published in 2012

Summary: Reminder that Jeremy is tough af! He does almost everything the LWs do, and with less muscle mass! (He does it all for Aelita, but that doesn't make it any less impressive)

Author: Senza pieta wrote both of these!

Let's Go Dancing

Stats: 2,595-word oneshot from 2014

Summary: Aelita gets inspired to go dancing, so Jeremie enlists William to help him prepare for the date. Hilarity ensues.

It was cold out. I didn’t really get where the idea of cold being “biting” came from but it sure did sting a little. I realized, partway out the door, that I forgot my coat in my hurry. Oops. It was fine. I could deal with it.

Everyone was going to have such a nice time on their winter breaks, with their families, and… Well, anyways, it made the campus very quiet. I could hear my footsteps echoing out, like I was doing something wrong and I was going to get caught. I actually looked over my shoulder a few times to make sure Jim, or, for some reason, Jeremie, wasn’t around to catch me.

I could handle myself. I could do things on my own. I wasn’t going to bother them.

If that message was the real deal, there wasn’t much time. It was risky to send a communication like that. That was the sort of thing Xana would find and use to track dad down. Into the sewer, into the factory, delayed virtualization and into the inviting scanner.

This was a bad idea. This was probably a trap. I had to do it anyway.

I landed on Lyoko. Ice sector. It had been…quite a while since I’d been here alone. The time I called this place my one and only home felt so far away. As I approached the coordinates I was given, nostalgia of things both remembered and not wracked my brain.

Any second, I expected Jeremie to get on his headset and tell me to turn back, that I was being stupid. I found myself looking over my shoulders more than usual, in case any of the others virtualized here to come after me. And to see if any monsters were around, of course.

No monsters, no friends.

But just ahead, the simulation bubble. I slowed to a stop just short of the bubble’s threshold. There was a lot of vulnerability in stepping into a simulation bubble. You let someone else hijack your senses and decide what it is you experience.

It was ok. I had my wits. I had my exit strategy. It was going to be ok. It was going to really be him.

A new sensation of anxiety. I’d been thinking so hard about “what if it isn’t really him” that I didn’t consider “what if it actually is him?” The idea of my father, the memories of him…what I saw in his video diary. They painted a very strange picture. Of course I wanted to see him…I wanted to see who I remembered. Would he be that? Was I the person he wanted to see?

Would we both just end up disappointed?

I stepped inside.

Snow. The cabin in the mountains where I grew up, before mom…yeah. I looked behind me. I knew there was a wall, but right now it just looked like a continuation of a snowy path. Ahead was the cabin. The snow crunched under my feet with uncomfortable accuracy, and my footprints stayed put as I plodded on toward the cabin.

The music floated toward me, the same song that played on my computer, along with the message to come here. My heart rate spiked, why could I feel my heart here? I broke into a run and flung the door open. I couldn’t help myself. Daddy!

He sat at the piano, back to me, like in so many of my nightmares. He finished the measure and turned, disturbed by the noise. We looked at each other for a moment, and then a warm smile spread across his face and he crossed the room to embrace me.

I froze, for a moment, my breath caught in my throat. Then I melted, I hugged him back and felt tears streaming down my face. That was being simulated, too? After what felt like a long time, but not long enough, he pulled back, hands on my shoulders, and took a long look at me.

“We have much to discuss, my dear.”

“We do.” Of course. This was. We had to discuss strategy while the opportunity presented itself. We couldn’t just. We couldn’t just spend time together.

“Please, take a seat. I made some hot chocolate. Your favorite, if I remember correctly.”

“Yes, that’s right. Thank you.” I managed a smile and sat on the soft white couch where she once sat, and flashes of memory lit up my synapses. Christmas presents, playing the piano, late nights waiting up for dad to come home, early mornings seeing him off with a hug and a cup of coffee and…

Well.

There weren’t a lot of good memories to remember. The ones that really stood out were the bad ones, the big dramatic ones. Most of the other stuff was just…gone.

“Aelita?” dad asked, jolting me out of my thoughts.

“Yes?”

“You seemed distracted.” He handed me a mug of hot chocolate. I took a sip. It was strange, it wasn’t the taste of hot chocolate, but the memory of the taste. I guessed it was too hard to simulate taste dynamically.

“There’s a lot. Do you mind if I ask before we…talk strategy, are you alright?”

Daddy took a pause, holding his own mug in his hands. Like he was trying to decide how he wanted to answer that question.

“Xana is a dangerous and crafty enemy. It takes all of my intellect just to stay alive. I’m as alright as one can be in that situation. But seeing you, in front of me, alive and safe, is a weight off my shoulders.” I shifted my weight uncomfortably. “Are you alright?”

“I’m about the same.” I said, but then perked up a little. “But! I have my friends. We help each other a lot. Oh, speaking of friends. William-”

“Yes, your friend William. It’s a real shame, what happened to him. How goes your progress in recovering him?”

“Well, right now we’re using our virtual submarine the Skidbladnir to try and track down his location in the digital sea.” I smiled, I was sure he would appreciate that we named the ship after a precious memory.

“The Skidbladnir. What a strange name.” he mused. My heart sank.

“It’s the name of the mythical ship you used to read me stories about.”

“Ah, yes, of course. I must have just forgotten.”

95% chance Xana was using my emotions to manipulate me.

5% chance this was my father.

I had to think and had to think quick. There had to be a way I could check. What was something my dad would know that Xana would not? It would have to be something from before Xana was created that wasn’t in the diary.

Then it came to me! My mother. He avoided talking about her in his video diary. It was probably too much for him. I took in a deep breath, and noticed that there was no scent.

“You know…everything here is perfect, down to the last detail.” I started.

“Why, thank you, I made this all for you.” He gestured around.

“Except for one thing.” I cut him off. He furrowed his brow.

“What would that be?”

“My mother.” That gave him pause, so I continued. “You should know better than anyone how much I want to see her again.” There. If this was Xana, it would back him into a corner, he would make some sort of mistake. Franz frowned, was it really? I didn’t want to be right about it being a trap, but-

“Aelita. You’re asking me to puppet around a hollow image of my wife? Don’t you think that’s a little cruel?”

Oh.

“I’m sorry…” I said, without thinking. I looked over at him. Maybe he really did just forget about the Skidbladnir. It had been a long time since those bedtime stories. I really wanted him to be the real deal. But before I could relax, before I could really and truly talk to him, I had to be sure.

“...Then maybe, instead, you could let me see my big pink teddy bear? You know, the one I always slept with and greeted you at the door with and had tea parties with?”

Another slight hesitation before he spoke,

“Yes. Of course, if that would make you happy. Forgive me if some of the details are incorrect. It has been quite some time.” And he pulled a big pink stuffed teddy bear out from behind the chair he was sitting on and he smiled, satisfied. “There. Now, if we could talk about-”

But there never was a pink teddy bear, and there never were any tea parties. I made it up.

99% chance this was Xana’s trap.

1% chance this was still my father…

“There never was a pink teddy bear.” I said, standing up. “I think I should go.”

I rushed over to the door, and opened it. On the other side, William was waiting. He smirked, grabbing my wrist. From behind, I could hear distorted laughter.

The chink of trains passing by in this early spring morning were blending with distinctive rumble of a station, while announcements were fading in and out. Like in every big city, Paris had already woken up and was getting ready for the day, the wagons were full of people on their way to work in the country or planning a short weekend getaway. In one of them, three boys were sitting with their eyes on the big clock of the station, looking for something impatiently.

"They're gonna miss it, if they don't hurry up." complained Ulrich while looking back over his shoulder to the platform through the train's open door and turned his gaze back to his friends sitting across the table. The boy in the purple shirt was picking at his backpack's zip and glanced at the compartment quickly over his blonde friend next to him before answering Ulrich. "They should be there soon, don't worry."

The bag trembled with a rustling sound like something was pawing its way to reach the top, seconds later Jeremy was squinting at a panting dog that appeared between him and Odd.

"My little diggity-dog," Odd squealed while patting his head. "Soon you will run as much as you can." Kiwi licked his owner's hand as an answer, his wagging tail was showing how he was bursting with excitement for this unexpected trip.

"We risk being thrown off the train by bringing him with us." Jeremy addressed a remark to Kiwi, while glancing at his watch. He couldn't help but start to get grumpy, the absence of their other two friends that were supposed to be here a quarter hour ago, was worrying him a little bit. The boy decided to wait five more minutes before calling them.

"Kiwi is one of the other big risks that we take today, Einstein." bantered Odd with him, he knew that Jeremy deep down loves his dog too and it was always funny to him that Kiwi sometimes gets on people's nerves.

"Yeah Jeremy, speaking of that," Ulrich interrupted their conversation while raising his eyebrows "what do we do if our friend X.A.N.A attacks while we're away, huh?" He really loved the idea of showing Aelita around at first but by the time past and the girls continued not to show up, he was sharing the same concerns with Jeremy. He knew that the boy with glasses watches every step of Aelita like they all do and cares for her, wants to show how our world contains some wonders but everything is too new for now. Maybe they should have taken things easy like Yumi said before.

Jeremy crossed his arms, dropping his eyes to the table in front of him. He was very well aware about the fact Ulrich stated but he had his good reasons, so he tried to pick the right words to make the situation clear to them."We'll be only one hour ride away from city, so in case of an emergency we can go back quickly and you know, it wasn't long after his last attack." He tugged at his sleeve like brushing off the memories of recent events, they had a really narrow escape last time. "Besides I really wanted to show her the actual sea that is much more different from Lyoko's digital one." he continued while blushing with his confession.

"Just relax, both of you." Odd assured them while scratching behind of Kiwi's ears. "We'll get to see where Jeremy spends his summers, swim a little bit and then be back at the school by dinner. Just a little vacation and that's all."

Ulrich turned his gaze to look out of the train, the first glimpses of daylight were reflecting the boy's shade to the window and making it difficult for him to see the platform. "Let's hope he doesn't spare us a break." he sighed. The idea of a X.A.N.A attack while they're away was giving him shievers, he couldn't stress enough what a mess it might be.

The other boy sitting across from him nodded in agreement, staring off into the crowd on the station and taking a stroll down of his memories from Aelita's first night on earth that he walked her to Yumi's. Not just great to see her heal and hearty by his side but the thought of how even that little walk made her really happy had given the idea of today's trip to him. He really worked hard to make her real, to bring her to the earth but they couldn't managed to make X.A.N.A get off her tail, he is still with her, still theardening her life and Jeremy's hearth sinks everytime he catches the look on her eyes like a feral youngling scaring everything. He hates to let her make sacrifices to save the world and knowing this situation could go for a while drives him crazy. The boy wants her to be in safe, to make her feel safe forever and to tell her that he would never let X.A.N.A hurt her again but the so far he could only make her smile and that's enough for him to face to whole world. If this little trip would make her happy, then it worths to take the risk, he thinks. X.A.N.A can play all the tricks as he wants today but he won't back off to try to brighten up Aelita's day, not even a little.

A huge rumbling from the left disrupted his inner call-out to X.A.N.A. He scowled at Odd and Kiwi trying to decide who's making that sound while Ulrich bursting into laughs of Kiwi's confused look and Odd's querulously protests against Jeremy's judgemental glance.

"You should have let me have breakfast." grumbled Odd looking annoyed and folded his arms on his stomach. "A man has his needs"

"More like a dragon based on the sound that you made, if you ask me." Ulrich teased him.

Odd has just opened his mouth to answer him but his offended response was suppressed by a cheerful shout.

"Then it is a good thing that we brought all the snacks to feed up this dragon." a girl in black waved at them stepping into the train and followed by another girl with pink hair. Despite looking like two opposite ends of the color spectrum, pink sakura flowers on Yumi's shirt were matching perfectly with Aelita's hair.

"Finally!" squeaked Jeremy with a huge sigh of relief and continued his scolding "We were starting to worry".

"Good morning to you, too." Aelita responded to the boy half-mockingly and sat next to him.

"I'm sensing some Hiroki influences." Ulrich remarked, giggling at the girl's cynical answer and inched over to make room for Yumi.

"My kid brother's rich vocabulary is irresistible, I'm afraid." laughed off black haired girl while settling down and trying to get comfortable with her long body on the train's narrow seats. She took a paper bag from the inside of her bucket bag and threw it at Odd. "Here," girl said while Odd catching it on the air and lowering down to sniff it with Kiwi. "something to calm down your stomach."

"Someone with sense, thank you!" cheered the boy when he saw what the bag contains. He grab one of the croissants and took a big bite and immediately passed it down to his dog to split the difference. "Ulrich," then he called out his friend between his gulps "you should really go o-"

"-what took the two of you so long?" Ulrich interrupted him with a rush and on purpose, trying to ignore Jeremy and Aelita's gigglings, of course he knows what Odd is about to say.

"Well, Aelita worked so hard on our fruit salad." answered Yumi his question for the room, pointing out the tupperware that the pink haired girl is holding.

Aelita uncovered its lid and served it around. "Isn't it fascinating that fruits have all these different flavors and beautiful colors?" asked she mesmerizingly, you could tell about her excitement from her shining eyes. Finally, she took a lumpy and russet fruit from the inside and showed it to everyone. "I've never seen such a thing like that before."

"Having a hearty appetite runs in the family, as you can see." Odd determined, about to take the last bite from his apple. "We didn't make her my cousin for nothing."

"Yeah and may I ask why you bring a raw potato here?" questioned Ulrich, pointing to the fruit in Aelita's hands.

"It isn't a potato, it is a Jerusalem artichoke." Jeremy corrected him out of patience, while Yumi breaking into laughs. " and it is a species of sunflower native to-"

"Please give us a break from biology at least on the weekend, Einstein." Odd shutted him up and gave his biggest smile to Jeremy's glaring before changing the subject. "Speaking of fruits, you can't believe what Kiwi did this morning-" he started to tell Yumi.

"So it is a rare one, then?" Aelita turned to Jeremy, still examining the Jerusalem artichoke with other's chatter in the background.

"Yes, in this region I mean." gave the boy a quick answer to her before getting to the point. "Is everything alright at Yumi's?" Jeremy asked anxiously. He has no doubt that his Japanese friend is doing her best to host Aelita but he just wonders if their formally virtual friend is doing okay here.

"It couldn't be better, her family are really hospitable people." smiled the girl at him, put her hand on his shoulder to assure before continuing, because the boy still seemed unconvinced. "Everything is fine, don't worry."

"Just checking." murmured Jeremy with a warm smile and little blush on his cheeks.

"And what were you saying about what this tastes like?" she asked mischievously about the fruit that she was still holding, trying to drop the subject.

"Erhm, I'm not sure if you like it, but there is no harm in trying, I guess" shrugged the boy.

Aelita took a small bite from it and Jeremy examined amusedly her facial expressions of grimace while she tried to chew it.

"Let's say I'll stick with the berries." she commented while exchanging smiles with each other, its somewhat bitter taste isn't her style.

The station master's whistle alerted the gang that their train was about to leave. "Sun, sea and sand, here we come!" Odd yelled with joy when the doors closed and the train started to move. The classic clickety-clack sound was getting louder and riveting the train's acceleration.

"Do you know how real sand looks like Aelita?" asked Yumi and continued after the pink haired girl shook her head as a no. "It is kinda like the Desert Sector, but the pigmentation and the texture are a little bit different. Right, Jeremy?"

"Affirmative." chuckled the boy with glasses, confirming his friend's scientific attempt for the definition.

"Maybe we teach you how to surf this time," Ulrich waved his hand and paused before getting to the punchline of his joke with a deadpan expression. "since you know how to do it on the Internet."

Other's collective groans at his bad joke blended in with Aelita's laugh. "Seriously, Ulrich-" breathed Yumi a sigh while Odd completed her sentence. "You are better than that-"

As their chattering continues, the train had left the city as a beautiful meadow view is streaming from the windows. Jeremy settled back and breathed deeply meadow's scents filling the compartment, listening his friends' chitchat. Maybe it is what peace looks like; watching the pink haired girl next to him laugh with the people that means the most to him, seeing how the sun beams reflecting the perfect green of her eyes as she twinkles and realizing she is finally a real human being just like them. And when the girl suddenly holded his hand like she was reading his mind, the boy's heart missed a beat. That is what he is fighting for, he thought while smiling back at her. She is worthy to face the whole world.

—------------------------------------------------------

"Now, pass it over Aelita!"

Yumi stepped backwards to return the girl's pass, tried to lighten the volleyball's momentum with a couple of flip shots before delivering it to Jeremy.

The sun is blazing down on the beach on this hot spring day, blurring their vision while heated sand is burning their feet a little. Their wet hair had dried long before they started goofing around that begin with Yumi and Ulrich's martial arts demonstration and right now everything looks about to boil away. Even though they've only been here for a few hours, all of the kids look a few tans darker.

Jeremy setted the ball hardly enough to reach Aelita and let out a heavy breath. Sports is never been his thing but Aelita had insisted a lot and he couldn't turn down her request. Besides they need more than one person to teach her how to play volleyball before this big match between girls and boys but righ now, Odd and Ulrich are too busy trying to do chartwheels like Yumi showed them before next to the court with Kiwi running around.

"It's all on the fingertips, Jeremy." panted the black haired girl, seeing his struggle and lifted the ball little more to Aelita before shouting. "Bump pass, now!"

Aelita took the right position for an underhand pass as the ball was speeding up towards her and bumped it to Yumi.

The tall girl cheered for her friend's great pass and let out a rallying cry as she was kicking the ball as hard as she could, like she does all the time in Lyoko.

Jeremy barely found the time to run to the side, not even trying to catch the ball and yawping at the same time.

"Sorry, sorry. My mistake." chuckled Yumi, moving towards the side where the ball escaped. "I'll go and get it."

The boy doubled up, trying to gather his breath in this time-out while hearing the sound of Odd's laugh in the distance, making fun of Ulrich's bad fall.

"Are you okay, Jeremy?" the other girl came closer and asked. Her cheeks look in red a few shades darker than her hair from the effort she put in, while the sun brings out her green eyes even more.

The boy nodded his head and straightened up. "You learn fast." he complimented her. In the morning she had picked up so quickly all the swimming moves that Yumi showed her. It was just the basics though, unfortunately the sea had become rough as the time passed by and despite all the insistence of the other boys, Jeremy and Yumi had decided to call it a day. The open sea isn't a right place to mess around and it is so much different than their swimming lessons with Jim at the pool. Not to mention the amount of salty water all of them swallowed.

"I kind of like it here." Aelita smiled at him. She closed her eyes and tossed her head back as if she wanted to feel the sun even more. Its warmth was feeling like little kisses on her cheek, a feeling that she has never experienced before, almost like life itself. A breeze was carrying constantly the briny, enveloping, warm smell and every time as she took a breath of salt, seaweed and iodine; it was surprising her to have this much and kind of sensations. It is a stimulus-rich environment as Jeremy described her earlier today but to be honest, she would probably never get tired of being overwhelmed by her new three senses. They were sometimes talking about how good and realistic three-dimensional Lyoko is, but if they ask her now, it is nothing compared to what she experienced in such a short time here.

"I'm really glad that you like it." responded Jeremy slowly, trying not to disturb her little tribute to the Earth.

"I wish you would play with us too." the pink haired girl turned to him and requested for the little match that will take place soon.

"Are you kidding?" the boy chortled, he had already seen this movie before. "In sports that require a tall stature, Yumi can match both of them." pointed he at the trio in striking distance.

"I guess you're right." Aelita chuckled, while looking at the other girl circling around Odd and Ulrich that was now standing on their hands and reviewing their posture. From there, the boys looked like a couple of clumsy baby bats, trying to learn how to headstand while Kiwi sniffing them and with their hair that lost volume when wet, they made Yumi look even more taller.

"And now when you are on her side, they have no chance." continued Jeremy proudly. "I'd rather stay out of this bloodbath." He added on quickly after the girl gave him a confused and worried look. "It's a figurative expression, of course."

"If you say so." said Aelita, giving him the biggest smile she has and the boy got a feeling that he has butterflies in his stomach.

"Are you ready to wipe them out, Princess?" Yumi called out to her as she came closer and winked.

"uh-huh" nodded 'the Princess' with a grin on her face.

—------------------------------------------------------

"Both teams have a single time-out." reminded Jeremy standing next to the volleyball net with Kiwi. "Anyone want it before the game ball?"

"Yes, we are." Ulrich uttered gaspingly, trying to raise his hand as he doubled over.

"Okay then, 3 minutes." announced Jeremy. "It's 2 to 1 in favor of girls, if they win this set, they win the game."

"Yeah, yeah we know. Stop mocking with us." grumbled Odd also pantingly. He is feeling too tired to correct Jeremy's officiation terminology.

"Take as much as you want," Yumi trash talked with them as boys gathered together to discuss their strategy. "We have all the time in the world."

"You wish." snarled Ulrich at her but Jeremy could swear he was smiling before he got into a huddle with Odd.

"You play really great." Yumi turned to her teammate and addressed a praise, watching the boy's heated discussion in the meantime.

"Thanks," smiled Aelita, trying to catch her breath with a hand on her chest. "I wish we could do something against Odd's services though."

"Don't worry, it will end soon." assured black haired girl while trying to understand what the boys are up to, while Ulrich demonstrating some moves to Odd.

Jeremy clapped his hands loudly to draw their attention from the courtside. "On your positions." he called out and referred the end of the break.

Yumi took the ball from the ground and handed it over to Aelita. "Would you do the honors?" she asked the girl if she wanted to serve the ace that might be the last.

The girl took the ball and stepped back until her feet touched the field markings that can barely be seen on the sand. She casted a look at the boys through the nest that were waiting impatiently for her to start the game while trying to decide which one to target might help them to get the winning point.

Then Aelita took a deep breath, threw the ball into the air and sent it to the other side as fast as she could.

"I got it!" Ulrich informed his teammate and received the shot successfully, then delivered the ball to him, which Odd returned back to the girls' side with a blast.

"Yumi!" cried out Aelita after she bump passed it to the back, hoping she could catch it.

The Japanese girl took a step back and jumped up high, looked like for a moment that she froze in the air, then kicked the ball in force while letting out a yell.

"LYOKO STYLE!" Odd screamed at the top of his lungs and rushed at Ulrich as he went down on his knees and folded his hands to help his friend jumping higher.

As the ball touched ground on the left, both of the boys fell down on the right, tangled with each other, because Odd misstepped and Ulrich couldn't lift him enough to catch the ball.

"Game, set and match!" declared Jeremy the result with girls' screams of joy in the back. "Maybe I should have told them sooner that the gravity in here works differently than Lyoko." he muttered to himself and giggled as boys were lying down and groaning while Kiwi was licking his owner's face.

Yumi gave Aelita piggyback ride and started touring the field as a victory parade while the boys were wrangling with each other about whose fault it was.

—------------------------------------------------------

His muscles that tired from a hectic day protested again when the boy's hand slipped a third time from the cliff's rocky surface and put his weight to one arm. Ulrich looked up at his blonde friend on the way ahead of the group and snorted, they were climbing quite a while but by time the boy had started to feel dizzy due to his acrophobia and he isn't sure if he can keep this up any longer.

Yumi stopped to help him and as Ulrich took his offerend hand, she pulled the boy to her side safely. "There you go." the girl smiled at him softly while making sure he was holding on tightly this time. The boy gave a thumbs up to her and smiled back.

"Since when you became an athlete, Jeremy?" Odd made a biting comment from their left like he read his friend's mind while panting heavily because of carrying an additional weight to his own. Kiwi barked from his backpack to show his disgruntlement of this situation.

"You're grumbling just because you lost the game earlier." Jeremy brushed him off and secured himself on a big rock to see how others were doing. "We are almost at the top and it has a really great view. It's well worth it, trust me. My father and I come here all the time." he continued.

"We are a little tired, that's all." stated Aelita trying to lighten the mood, following the steps of him.

When finally Jeremy reached the peak, he waited at the rear and gave a hand to everyone until all of them safely stood up there and listened as each person let out a shout of astonishment when they saw the view.

"Jeremy, it is-" stuttered Yumi, not being sure how to describe this breathtaking beauty of the landscape, while other boys let out a gasp. "Just wow." murmured Odd as he placed down his dog on the ground.

Jeremy, being pleased with himself, turned to the pink haired girl. She is the person whose opinion he is most curious about. "What do you think, Aelita?" he addressed her a question.

Yumi took a frisbee from her bag after she saw that look on Aelita's face and showed it to other boys. "Wanna play?" she asked them while they were cheering up on her offer. "Go Kiwi, fetch!" she threw it away and drew the others further to give space to Jeremy and Aelita.

They had arrived just in time to catch the golden hour before sunset and right now, the setting sun were painting in a goldenly orange everything on their sight, while it was washing the clouds in candescent red, as they were standing on the large cliff above the sea and watching this riot of colors' reflection on the water with sound of waves hitting rocks below. The light breeze from morning had started turning into a stronger one and still was carrying the scent of salty water as the daytime smell was changing into the night while caressing Aelita's hair. The girl couldn't take her eyes off the scenery lying ahead where the sun looked like slowly melting into the sea and was dissolving its colors through the water surface.There was something about this moment like every single thing bombarding new sensations to her, evoking some experiences hat she thinks she never had this kind of before. It felt so strange and yet hauntingly familiar as if deep down the girl knows that she has already been there, already had watched the hundreds of sunsets in the past. The pink haired girl was thrilling with the realization of being a human and its luxury of getting used to the times like this, while her heart was pounding in her chest and wondering how this can become a normal for someone or if she will ever be able to normalize it one day.

"It is- I mean this is," Aelita stumbled over, when she could finally talk. "I have no idea there are so many colors like that." she trembled, trying to give meaning to her desire to cry. She didn't know until then that people's eyes form tears not just from sadness but also when they see something so beautiful.

Jeremy gave her a warm smile, watching the last sunbeams of the day flickering in her eyes and forming reddish halos on her sun bleached hair. He didn't bother himself to say something, the moment itself was already speaking for him and accomplishing his purpose of making Aelita happy.

"Watch out!" then he heard Ulrich's cry for warning from the distance but unfortunately it was too late to get away from a frisbee coming towards him at full speed.

Seconds later Jeremy was sitting on the ground, rubbing his head while Aelita was asking him if he is okay.

"Sorry Einstein!" called out Odd and took the blame, trying to stop himself from giggling.

"It is a miracle that you guys can take aim in Lyoko." Jeremy complained, still massaging his forehead.

"Yeah, that tells a lot about Odd's hit rake." laughed Ulrich at him.

"Hey!" his friend protested him by pretending to be offended. "First of all, without me-"

"Give it a rest." Yumi chuckled and stopped them. "Are you guys coming?" then she asked Jeremy and Aelita.

"Be right there." responded Aelita, took the frisbee from the ground and offered her hand to the boy while smiling at him.

Jeremy took her hand as he stood up and let her drag him to their friends where their chattering and Kiwi's excited barking filled the air with the little taste of joy.

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Rhythmic rail squeal blended with Jeremy's keyboard clicking was singing sweet lullabies to them while the minty smell of the meadow that they were passing by, was refreshing air of the compartment and making the pink haired girl shiver, but she likes it anyway. Street lamps of towns were twinkling at her from afar and she couldn't help but wonder how these people's day was going there.

Aelita glanced at her other three friends napping on each other across her. The boys' heads had fallen on Yumi's shoulders who was sitting in the middle, while their taller friend was slightly leaning on Ulrich. Kiwi's snoring coming from somewhere under the table, occasionally was drowning their slowed breathing. Maybe this is what peace looks like, she thought to herself, watching her loved ones sleep in quietness after a feverish day.

The boy next to her was still working on her antivirus, as if he hadn't done enough for her today. She wasn't sure how she could truly express her gratitude to him, so Aelita decided to keep it simple.

"Jeremy," she addressed him quietly, afraid to wake the others. "Thank you for this vacation. It was my best day on Earth." completed the girl with a soft smile.

The boy stopped typing out for a moment and turned his gaze away from his laptop to her. "So was mine." he responded, returning her smile.