the animorphs

[instar]

Renée is gone in the morning, a pot of maple oatmeal for the girls and Trouble cooling on the stove and a note on the fridge, she's going to be gone all day on a day trip to Tucson with her friends.

Andi wakes up first. Bella's not far behind.

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[instar]

Bella opens the door to the garage. "Renée's not home," she says. "You can demorph and come in and get dressed the rest of the way."

[aeskhyne]

<Yeah, good plan,> he says cheerfully.

A few minuts after that, Trouble comes into the rest of the house and shuts the door behind him. He learned how to morph clothes, but not very many; hopefully no one who sees him heading for the basement in his underwear will faint with shock.

[pandion]

Well, Andi averts her eyes, but does not faint.

[aeskhyne]

He comes upstairs only a minute or so later, wearing the rest of his clothes, and flops on the couch.

"So what's this about everybody turning into Yeerks?"

[pandion]

"To check each other for icky brain-contents," Andi says. "We can probably acquire Dad's."

[instar]

"Andi and I could just about tolerate having each other run checks, if it were necessary, Robin says maybe Ethan and probably vice-versa, how about you?"

[aeskhyne]

Trouble shrugs. "I'd let you," he says. "Or Ethan. Or Robin." With a wry smile, "You might not want to, though."

[instar]

"I don't want to morph a Yeerk at all; the question is whether it's better than some appreciable risk of discovery and hostile infestation. If we're pressed for time and can't just find a way to contain you for three days."

[aeskhyne]

"It's not the only way to check, though, is it?" he says thoughtfully. "I mean. You could beat me up for a while and see if the Yeerk bails. I wouldn't mind."

[instar]

"I had thought of that, too, as it happens."

[aeskhyne]

"...Really?"

[instar]

"I don't know how well it'd work. It depends on things we don't know about how Yeerks react to injured hosts. But yes, I thought of it."

[aeskhyne]

Trouble giggles.

[instar]

"It has the additional disadvantage of not generalizing well."

[aeskhyne]

"Mm, true."

[instar]

"On a related note, we are curious how good an anaesthetic acquisition trance is."

[aeskhyne]

He perks up some more. "Ooh. Yeah, I think Robin might've mentioned something while I was down there. I'll go see."

And down he goes into the basement! That basement is having an exciting day today.

[instar]

"Have fun," Bella calls after him.

[aeskhyne]

"You bet!" he calls back.

[pandion]

"I know sooooo much more than I needed to know about so many things."

[hold_infinity]

It's another few minutes before Robin comes up and hands Bella a short page of notes.

"To summarize: It doesn't make anything hurt less, but it makes you care less about it hurting," she says. "Trouble, who already likes pain, can barely tell the difference. Ethan says there's a world of difference. I'm somewhere in between."

[instar]

"Interesting. So, worth acquiring a Yeerk shortly before squishing it. Thank you."

[hold_infinity]

Robin shrugs. "No problem."