*Jordan's POV*

"Yeow!"

"Sorry, Jordan. At least we're back at your place now," Tucker said apologetically as we landed on the roof of one of my towers. He was carrying me on his back. "Now where's your bedroom, again?"

"In the basement," I said, bracing myself for the inevitable jolt of the elevator. Every movement sent shooting pain through my back and wings. Apparently someone used healing magic on my wing last night. I couldn't remember, but it sure didn't feel like it. The whole night was a blurry mess after I drank the potion Dianite had given me. I knew something had happened, because the others kept looking at me strangely ever since I woke up this morning. No one would tell me what happened though. They weren't laughing or teasing like they would if I'd done something stupid. I'd have to figure it out later once I could move again. Right now I had to survive the trip to my basement. That was challenge enough.

I clenched my jaw and shut my eyes as Tucker activated my elevators, trying to hold back strangled cries with each short teleport. Finally we were in my basement. "Past the curtain," I said when I remembered that Tucker hadn't been by my place since I'd added the room. We really should hang out more considering we're neighbors.

Tucker gently pushed the curtain aside and flipped the light switch. "Oh, wow! My eyes! Too many colors!" Tucker exclaimed, pretending to shield his eyes. I rolled my eyes at his theatrics upon seeing my room. At least he was acting normal around me again. "Ok. I'll just set you down on your bed. Then I'm getting out of here before I go blind."

I bit my lip as he set me down on the edge of my bed. I exhaled slowly, letting the pain subside, before answering, "Thanks for putting up with me on the way over here."

"No problem, man. Sorry you're hurting. Donella said you should be feeling better once the healing spell finishes in a few hours. She seems to know what she's doing. Until then, just hang in there, and don't take off your angel ring," He pointed a finger at me while using a stern parent voice.

"Yeah, I know," I said, waving him away, pretending to be annoyed. "Now go find Wag. I'll come help as soon as I can fly. Could you turn the light off on your way out?" I asked as I carefully rolled onto my stomach on top of my covers so I could try to rest without bumping my wings. I didn't feel tired, but I couldn't do anything else when it hurt this much to move.

"Sure. See you later, Jordan." Tucker turned off the light and left. I could here him go back up the elevator to my towers.

I took off my sunglasses and set them on the night stand. I started to fall asleep despite myself in the dark and quiet, that is, until Ianita and one of her clones came running into my room giggling and excited that I was home. They all looked the same to my friends, but Martha and I could always tell which one was the original. Maybe she was more animated than her "sisters", or her eyes were a slightly different shade of violet. The clone jumped up and hit the light switch as they entered. "Sperioles!" Ianita yelled with a big smile plastered on her face. I smiled back at her and braced for impact, expecting my usual greeting of being hugged/tackled. Thankfully she spotted the bandage still wrapped around my chest and wing before she jumped on the bed. "Sperioles hurt!" She cried, stopping at the edge of the bed and gingerly touching the bandage. Her clone skidded to a stop next to her.

"I'll be okay, Sweetie," I reassured her and ruffled her purple hair, making her frown turn back into a grin. "I just can't move for a few hours. Sperioles is going to take a nap to help him feel better, okay?" I couldn't help but grin wider when I used Ianita's nickname for me. She'd heard Tom call me Sparklez, but couldn't quite manage the hard k sound yet.

"O-ay, nap time!" Ianita skipped over to the light switch and turned it off again. If only she was this enthusiastic about her own naps. I expected her and her clone to go back to playing with the others. Instead, both of them climbed onto the right side of my bed and curled up under the covers next to me. They are too cute. My heart warmed and I smiled as they settled in. What did I ever do to deserve them? I thought as I snuggled my head back down into my pillow and drifted off to sleep.

I woke up shivering slightly and realized I was still lying on top of my covers. I tried not to disturb the Ianitas as I carefully shifted the covers out from under me. My back didn't hurt nearly as much now as it did earlier, but my wing still throbbed. I guess the spell hasn't finished quite yet. Managing to pull the blankets up over myself I started to drift right back to sleep. Before I was completely asleep, I felt one of the Ianitas snuggle into my side under the covers. Surprisingly, I didn't have any nightmares.

When I finally woke up again, it was mid-afternoon. There was an empty space in the bed where the Ianitas had been sleeping earlier. I yawned as I sat up on the edge of my bed and pushed the covers off me. They must have gotten hungry. I did sleep through lunch. The Ianitas were quick learners for 5 year olds and Martha and I had shown them how to make a few simple snacks for themselves when I was running late and Martha or Mot couldn't watch them. Their favorite thing to make was peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.

I stretched, noting that my back and wings didn't hurt at all now. I reached for my shades on the nightstand, but my hand found something soft instead. Speak of the devil, there was a sandwich next to my sunglasses. I laughed as I put my sunglasses on and cautiously walked the few steps to the light switch. Yep, they left me a PB & J and a glass of water. The sandwich was sitting on the corner of a piece of paper. Curious, I picked up the sandwich and paper. I grinned and took a bite out of the messy sandwich while looking at a crayon drawing of me flying above the Fortress of Fury with one of the Ianitas on my back. The corner of the picture was a sticky pink mess where some of the jelly had leaked out of the sandwich.

After finishing my "lunch" and draining my glass, I pulled a tissue from the box on my desk and cleaned as much jelly as possible off of the picture before setting it back down on my nightstand. I'll have to hang that up later. They may not have technically been my daughters, but I loved those girls.

Now that my hands were free, I found the end of my bandage and started unraveling it carefully. I didn't realize how bad the injury had been until I got down to the last couple of layers and saw the alarming amount of dried blood there. I thought they said they stopped the bleeding before they re-bandaged it. I knew that I'd broken my wing, but I didn't think it had been that bad. Finally I had all of the material off, and I removed the splint as well. It was a little hard to reach, but I managed. I extended my healed wing and felt where the break had been; the only evidence of the trauma was a slight thickening of the bone. Oh, wow; I look horrible, I thought as I saw more dried blood trailing down my wing. I reached around to feel my back, and yep, there was dried blood present there too.

---Time skip to after Jordan's shower---

I was squeaky clean after getting all of that dried blood and dirt off of me and changing clothes. I'd had to wash my battlemage leggings too. They would take a while to dry; so I'd be flying around in my void robes until then. They were decent armor; the reason I didn't wear them more often was the voice that seemed to inhabit them. I called him BroRobes. I had no idea why or how he was there (and neither did he, for that matter), but he was not helping with my friends thinking I was crazy. Sometimes Martha or Sonja could hear him, but the others definitely couldn't. The other reason I tended not to wear the void robes was that Sonja had made a set of them right before I got mine. Yeah, "Copycat Sparklez" was strong with this one.

I'd just have to deal with the names for now. Wag was still missing, and I needed to help look for him. Time to see if I can actually fly, I thought as I took my elevator up to the ground floor.

Yeah! The boys are back in business! BroRobes announced his presence as I walked outside. What did I miss?

Hello, BroRobes, I replied cheerfully. Nothing much, just Wag going missing and me breaking my wing. I stretched my wings and crouched, ready to take off.

Um, dude, not to be a downer, but you'll... I took off... and immediately lost balance and fell back to the ground, tumbling down the mountain a few feet before coming to a stop on my back. ...probably need to adjust your balance. Even a tiny weight difference will throw you off.

Gee, thanks, I thought back sarcastically as I stood up. I rubbed the healed break on my right wing again, remembering that the bone there was thicker. Could such a small weight really throw me off? Apparently. Let's try this again.

Another try or two, and I managed to stay in the air, though I was far from graceful. I figured the others would be getting worried about me, since I hadn't checked in yet. I turned my communicator on and let everyone know I was okay. "Hey, guys! Guess who's up and flying."

"Jordan!"

"Hey, what's up?"

"Sparkley Pants! Good to have you back. Your wing okay?" Tom asked cheerfully.

"Yep. Having to relearn to fly though. My balance is all off. Any luck finding Wag?"

An exasperated sigh followed. "No, we've even got the wizards and Champ and Dec helping us look now. Dianite went to go get Martha too. Maybe she can track him down."

"Well, I'm here now. Where do we still need to look?" I asked.

"No one's checked the region between Dagrun and Wiztopia yet. You could look there," He said. "But don't push yourself, kay?"

"Sure, I'll take it easy." Right after we find Wag.

"If it were up to me, you'd sit this out entirely," An unfamiliar female voice said. That must be Donella. "But time is of the essence. Stop and rest if you need to. You lost a lot of blood before I got to you."

Tom cut back in before I could say anything, "And Sparklez, get inside before nightfall. You probably missed my message, but tonight is going to be a blood moon according to the wizards."

"What?! We have to find Wag!" I started flying faster, veering in the direction of the wizards' town. We all went back to searching for a while. My flying was getting better the longer I went. I started to tire after an hour or two, but I couldn't stop yet. I was flying over the Taint. Just a little further, and I'll head back.

Bro, you can finish checking the Taint later. You're more pale than a sheet, BroRobes interrupted my thoughts.

Fine, I replied tiredly. I started turning for home when I caught a glimpse of something below me that wasn't purple. I circled a little lower to get a better look at it. A tainticle had caught a dark grey cat and was dragging it underground. That's an awful way to go.

Without thinking further, I swooped down and pulled my scythe off of my belt. I cut the tainticle near its base with one slash and landed next to the severed limb and its prey. The cat appeared unconscious and free of taint infection; its chest was still rising and falling slowly. I carefully pealed the barbed tentacle off the furry creature, noting the swelling on his back leg and tail, as well as a small wound on his neck. This must be one tough cat to make it this far into the Taint. I debated what to do with him until I recalled a ritual I'd read about in one of my witchery books yesterday. I wonder if he'd make a good familiar?

I dug through my bag until I found the golden lasso I always kept there. I looped it around the cat's neck, making him vanish; then I pulled out my spectre key and vanished myself. The familiar, brightly lit space met me like an old friend. I grinned as I walked over to my ME system. Hey, BroRobes, what do you think would help the cat? I asked as I accessed my stored items.

I dunno, Bro. Maybe some milk for whatever poison he picked up in the Taint? My lady friend never had cats, man.

Okay, so milk and healing potions probably wouldn't hurt, I thought as I pulled up the items.

You should probably take a potion yourself, dude, and some steak. They're a good source of iron. For once he was right; I would need plenty of iron to rebuild the blood I'd lost.

BroRobes, I'll rest and eat once I'm sure this cat's staying alive. I rolled my eyes as I picked up the items I'd withdrawn from my system. I quickly dialed in the address for the portal at my reactor and walked through the orange portal frame. A short flight later, I found myself at my witchery area. I walked around the side of the hut to where I'd planted some graspers and critter snares the day before. I don't know this cat's temperament, and I'd really prefer not to get bitten or scratched, I thought as I released the large cat from my lasso into one of the critter snares against the wall of the small wooden structure. The vines would coil up around him if he tried to move. I gently pried the cat's mouth open and poured a few sips of milk down his throat, hoping I wouldn't choke him. After I got no response, I set the milk aside and tried the healing potion.

That did the trick. I'd gotten maybe a quarter of the flask down the cat when he woke up and started weakly thrashing around. I backed up as the critter snare did its job and gently restrained him until he calmed down. The cat gagged repeatedly before settling. I guess he doesn't like healing potions? Well, if he won't drink more, I can at least pour the rest of it on his wounds.

I cautiously approached the dark grey feline that was now staring at me calmly. "Hey there, kitty. Feeling a little better now?" I asked as I crouched and held a hand out for him to sniff. Wait, that's what you do to greet a dog. How do you greet a cat? The cat sniffed my hand and rubbed the side of his face on it. Okay, maybe it works for cats too. I gently scratched behind his ear, staying away from the injury on his neck. "Kitty, I'm going to have to take care of a few of your injuries; please, don't bite me."

I used one hand to raise his head and used my other hand to pour half of the remaining potion on the open puncture wound on his neck. The cat shuddered slightly, but didn't move. When I went to examine to his leg though, it became apparent that it and his tail were still painful. I ended up pouring the last of the potion over the area without getting to see precisely where the injuries were. The cat was grumbling and squirming against the critter snare the whole time. Once he realized I was done, he settled down again. Those orange eyes seemed to hold uncommon intelligence for a cat.

BroRobes agreed with me. Dude, that cat staring at us is freaking me out. There's something...

He was interrupted by my communicator beeping, followed by Matt's high-pitched, excited voice, "Guys! I found him!"

I sighed in relief. "Thank Ianite." I had been really worried about him. I stood up and started walking back towards the front of my hut.

Matt spoke again, but sounded less excited this time, "He seems a bit banged up, but um... He's not acting like himself. He's really freaking me out." A million questions raced through my mind, and I think a few of them found their way to my lips, but I couldn't even hear myself over everyone else as I walked into my witchery hut.

"Enough!" Donella barked across the communicator loud enough to silence the others. "Everyone regroup at the wizards' town. We'll decide what to do there." The way she took charge of that, I suspected she had some experience giving orders. My communicator was silent after that.

I went to a chest in the corner and removed a wrapped bundle carefully. The cat meowed loudly as I walked back around the corner of my hut and started struggling against the critter snare, trying to get loose, though his movements still looked pretty feeble. "Easy there. Don't worry, you're not going back in the lasso," I said in what I hoped was a soothing voice as I set the bundle down and started unwrapping it. Inside were a few ender brambles I had brought back from the End. Ianite had them growing in her garden before she disappeared. They were dark stemmed, thorny little bushes, but Ianite loved them for their five-petaled white flowers. They were also magical. They could stay dormant out of soil for weeks, and if one of the thorns accidentally pricked your skin, they'd teleport you miles and miles away.

I started talking to the cat—but mostly myself—as I worked. The cat was watching me closely. "I'm going to plant a couple of these around you to keep the monsters away; there's a blood moon tonight. The critter snare will keep you from running off until I can come back tomorrow morning; then we'll investigate that binding ritual to make you my familiar." I dusted my hands off before standing up to inspect my work. The dormant brambles had already started to get their green color back in their leaves now that they were properly planted.

"Welp, I gotta go; see you soon, kitty!" I waved before leaping into the air and winging towards my still active portal by my reactor. I could hear pitiful meows as I left. The failing sunlight was casting long shadows as I reached my portal. Once back in my spectre dimension, I deactivated the portal and entered the coordinates of the portal I'd built outside Wiztopia. I stared at the portal frame as nothing happened. Phil. I pressed the talk button on my communicator. "Phil! Did you destroy my portal again?"

"...Maybe." The guilty wizard answered.

Ianitas and BroRobes, oh my. The Ianitas are so adorable! ^.^ I love how Jordan keeps making characters for the story team to work with. Season 1 he invented Ianite, and in season 2 he brought us the first Ianita and Lil' Wheezy (hopefully spelled that right). XD