^^ Raul Fulminate + Cobalt Eyes ^^

--- Danny ---

Calculus, in my opinion, was evil.

Truly, the source of all evil.

Maybe Hitler read calculus in Hebrew, and bam! Evil. Probably not, but a gal can dream.

Anyway, I hate calculus. It's needlessly complicated, and I can never solve the equations like I'm supposed to. I always find a different way to get the same answer, which teachers 'loved'. (Slight sarcasm.)

"Solve for (X-4Y)." A guy sitting next to me tapped a piece of the equation with his pen, and then returned to his work, solving them easily, but not working as fast as he clearly could.

I hummed and did as I was told, then grinned when my answers matched, finally. I marched up to the front of the class, and placed my paper down before the teacher, Mr. Manuel. "Aaaaand finished!"

Mr. Manuel, (who had recently come to California from Chile,) sighed. "Hmm... Hector, next time you want to help someone, be a bit more subtle. But good job, Ms. Attwell. Now you may begin-"

The door slid open slowly, and a giant of a man ducked through the door. He blinked when he saw us all staring at him, and moved his chocolate hair out of his eyes. "Yo Soy Raul? I was told this was my brother's class?" He asked in a deep voice, befitting his size.

"Your last name, sir?" Mr. Manuel asked.

"Fulminate. My brother is Hector." He nodded, searching the room with a cobalt gaze at odds with his dark skin and hair.

"Ah, yes. Hector!"

The boy who sat next to me got up, gathering his things, and proceeded to speak in Latin of all things with the taller, beefier copy of himself. "Quid est problema, frater? Est autem haec quaestio daemoni?"

The large man nodded. "Sí. Lo siento, Señor Manuel, the dogs at our Zoo have been let out, and I need his help securing them. He will be back in a few hours, and I will make sure he finishes his course-work."

Mr. Manuel nodded. "Of course, thank you for telling us. Be safe, and good luck."

The tall man bowed his head, then lead the smaller boy out of the room, speaking softly in Latin.

"Ms. Attwell? Is there an issue?" Mr. Manuel asked me.

"Well... He didn't say 'dogs', sir. He said 'demons'. But I suppose the dogs are just really difficult." I chuckled softly.

He smiled. "Indeed. Now, complete pages 7-12, Ms. Attwell."

I groaned and sat down, starting my work.

---

Just as chemistry ended, nearly four hours later, the next to last class of the day, the door slid open, and the tall man was back, with Hector.

"Ah, Professor, lo siento, I did not mean to interrupt-"

"Not at all, class is ending-... is that blood?" She pointed at his shoulder.

"Hmm? Ahh? Yes, one of the dogs tagged me, and Hector as well. The vet checked us out, we're fine, just sore." He chuckled and patted the boy's shoulder, causing him to flinch.

Hector limped to his desk, and sat down with a groan of relief, and his brother nodded. "Bien. Hasta Pronto, mi Hermano, sí?" He walked out, rolling his shoulder, which was wrapped in an ace bandage.

I looked at Hector. "You got bit by a dog?"

He shrugged. "They get scared when you try to catch them. When animals are scared, they lash out, just like humans." He murmured.

I hummed. "And you're okay?"

"Sure, just sore. It'll be fine in a few days. I was wearing ar-padding." He corrected himself swiftly

I raised an eyebrow slowly. "You wear armor when you catch dogs?"

He blinked, then looked up as the bell rang. "Stercore... what did I miss?"

I hummed. "Not much. We finished up to page 16 of the calculus worksheets, then in English we started reading 'to kill a mockingbird', uhh... yeah, and in Spanish we started to learn about past-tense... and in chemistry, we just did an experiment with making syrup from water and sugar." I showed him my notes.

He nodded slowly, taking down the notes in Latin. "Alright, thanks! We have history next, yeah?"

"Yes. Are you sure you can make it?" I gazed at his knee, which was covered in gauze.

He chuckled. "I've had worse, don't worry. Thanks for the notes."

"Sure... why did you write them in Latin? You studyin' or something?" I looked over his shoulder curiously.

"Maybe it's my first language." He shrugged, and stood, slinging his backpack over his shoulder.

I stood and followed, chuckling. "Right. Latin is a dead language, man."

"So is Elder Futhark, supposedly. An entire country speaks it unofficially. Almost all catholics speak Latin to some degree, and Protestants as well. I'm not very religious, but Latin was the first language I was taught. Spanish was second, then English." He refuted, and began limping towards the history hall.

I hummed. "I guess that makes sense, but why? Latin isn't very useful."

"It is when you're a scientist or doctor. Almost every word in a pharmacy or chemistry textbook is Latin or Greek." He smiled, and laughed when I blinked, shocked. "And there you have it. You now know the Fulminate Family Secret. My family are all total nerds." He shook his head faux-sadly.

I snorted. "Well your brother looks like a body builder, if that helps."

"Hmm? Ah, Raul. Yes. His Latin is rudimentary, he prefers Spanish... and sports, as opposed to science." He nodded, and held the history room door open.

I took my seat, near the front of the room, and hissed after him when he headed to the back. "Where are you going?"

"My seat." He sat down, and pulled out his history book.

"Quiet down, please, children..." the teacher sighed. Mr. Tadello was very old, and had the stories to prove it, making this my favorite class.

He stood slowly, leaning on his cane, and then sat on the edge of his desk just as slowly. "Hello, children... I see some new faces, and faces from last year, that's good, you came back! Hmph. In my day, school after 8th grade was optional! Only geeks ever came back on purpose..." he grinned.

I laughed. "Says the teacher!"

He smiled. "Touché, little one! Now, today we'll be talking about some small events, that all together were called the Cold War. Anyone have an idea? Ringing any bells?"

I raised my hand. "The Cold War was between Russia and America, right? But no one actually shot at each other, so it was called Cold."

"Close, yes, that is almost true. In fact, Russia, China, and Korea did fight with America, but actual 'War' was never declared by the congress', which means that we never technically went to war." He sighed.

"What about the US-Russia battle in Ukraine in '62? The Korean War, where Russian Fighter jets took to the skies against American forces? Or the military and commercial flights shot out of the air over Europe, Russia, and China for the entirety of 1947-'91?" Hector asked.

"Ha! Indeed. Your name, young man?"

"Hector Fulminate." He responded easily.

Mr. Tadello blinked slowly. "Grandson of Marco Fulminate?"

Hector grinned widely, and spoke in Latin. "Vos scitis fratres mei, magister?"

"HA!!! My Latin is a bit rusty, sparky. I served with your Grandfather in The Baltic. Anyway, yes, you're correct. The Communists did their best to provoke a formal American/European response, but, of course, they failed." He nodded and snapped his cane against the desk of someone facing away from him, talking to a girl behind her.

She yelped, and he nodded. "If you'd have been paying attention, you wouldn't have been surprised. Now, can anyone tell me the name of the heads of State in America and Russia during the Cold War?" He looked around.

I raised a hand. "Stalin, Malenkov, Khrushchev, Brezhnev, Andropov, Chernenko, and Gorbachev, for the USSR, and for the USA was Truman, Eisenhower, Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon, Ford, Carter, and Bush Sr."

"Correct. Now, let's see... where was I in '47..." he scratched his white beard thoughtfully.

I leaned back. "Awesome. Story time."

"Ah!!! Yessir, I was in the London Channel, swimming across the channel with my friend, Loyd Balten, a man from Ireland. He challenged me to swim across the whole thing, naked, while he rowed his row-boat next to me, as a Race!!! Well, we had a friend with a motor boat and a camera, of course, riding maybe thirty meters away to reduce the Wake." He laid his cane across his knees, and nodded slowly.

"Anyways, about halfway across, Loyd goes and whacks me in the head with one of his Oars! I nearly drowned, but the boys in the boat pulled me out, and took me to the shore for some medical attention. But when I get there, the police show up!!! See, my blood-alcohol level was just a bit, (maybe 97cc's,) over the legal limit in France, plus I was as naked as the day I was born, and the borders were a little tight back then, so they didn't exactly like me and my buddies riding up onto the beach like it was D-Day all over again,-"

---

"- and that's how I watched the forming of the USSR in a French Prison Cell, before getting Deported to Mexico." He grinned widely.

"And they still let you be a teacher for 40 years?" Hector laughed.

He nodded, just as the bell rang. "Eh?!? Ah... ahem. Read the chapter on the Cold War in your book, write me 5 pages on the Escalation and De-Escalation of the conflict by both sides, due Friday!" He nodded and sat in his chair slowly.

I grinned. "I love this class."

He giggled merrily. "Don't we all? Off you go! Oh! And whoever delivers me a fully finished, grammatically correct paper first, one that I grade as an A, gets an A on the test automatically, but you can take it anyway, if you're... well, a nerd."

We laughed and filed out of the room, heading to the parking lot for the busses or our cars. I saw some of the seniors head off to their own cars, and tsk'ed. "Stupid seniors, always bragging they get to drive their cars to school." I grumbled.

Hector limped past me, and a truck pulled up on cue. In the back was a silver motorcycle, which I was insanely impressed he was able to simply lift out of the back without any visible effort, and then kickstart.

"Hasta Mañana, Danny." He nodded, and started driving in front of the truck.

I hummed and shook my head. "Fulla mysteries, that boy."

I sat on the first open seat in the bus, and opened my sketchbook, looking out over the ocean that we were quickly driving next to.

I drew some of the sailboats to pass the time, and then blinked when I saw a large shark, on top of a Buoy, slashed nearly in half.

"Whoa! You guys see that?!?" One of the guys leaned over me, gaping out in fascination.

I placed a hand on his chest, and simply pushed him back slowly. "Space, please." I grumbled.

"Oh, sorry. Hey, anyone know what did that? I mean, that's a big-ass shark, what ripped through it like that? And why's it on the buoy?" He hummed and sat on the top of the seat, grinning widely.

"Probably some fisherman got him in a Net, and then left him there, cause he knows he can't sell or eat Shark Meat." I shrugged.

"Yeah, true." He nodded, and went back to talking with his friends.

I looked back at the shark, and then hummed softly. "Weird..."

---

"Danny, dea'? Where are ya?" My aunt yelled up the stairs.

"Here, Auntie Shae! What is it?" I leaned over the rail.

"Can ye go up teh the store for yer auntie? The cash-boy always says he can't unda'stand me! So rude, ya'know?" She huffed.

"Well, if you weren't the most 'Scot'ish' 'Scot'ish' woman I've 'eva' met, maybe he would." I grumbled.

"What's that, dea'?"

"Nothing, Auntie. What do you need?"

"I need some lamb and some potatoes. And salt! We're almost outta salt!" She nodded seriously.

"We bought salt like two days ago?" I sighed, and pulled my shoes on, then walked down the stairs. "Alright. Money?"

She nodded and handed me $50. "Should handle it, eh? Good luck, dea'." She patted my cheek happily.

I sighed and nodded, then started walking.

The streets of L.A.'s London-Town during the day were a very interesting place, and the store wasn't very far away, so I didn't really have a problem going to the store, I just wished she'd learn some names of ingredients so she could shop for herself.

I bought the stuff she asked for quickly, and then some other stuff we needed in the kitchen, and then headed back quickly, in case she tried to cook without the main Ingredients again.

The door opened with a nudge of my hip pocket, which held my magnetic key-card, and I set the bags of groceries on the counter, then patted my dog's head, who was staring at me the moment I went near the cabinet we held the treats in.

I smiled and tossed him a piece of bacon, filled his food bowl with his standard baked chicken and beef cubes, then looked in the living room. "Ma, auntie, I'm back."

"Oh, good, luv! Bachelorette is comin' on!!! Would ye mind tossing those Lamb Chops in the stove for us?" Auntie Shae asked me, smiling widely.

I nodded slowly. "Sure, auntie Shae. Ma, any preferences?"

She grinned. "Char mine, baby."

I chuckled and nodded, turning on the stove, just before the earth shook a bit, and I yelped, turning off the stove quickly. "Earthquake!" I barked, and dove into the doorway.

"Oh! And that's something I do miss about Scotland, luv! No earthquakes!" Auntie Shae giggled when the quake stopped, only a second or so after it started, and then she helped mother back into her wheelchair.

I chuckled and nodded. "True, true. An' the hunky Scot'ish men must not have 'urt anything, eh luv?!" I copied her accent a bit, teasing her.

She laughed. "Oh dearie me!!! Did I ever tell ye about ol' Jack Gahldham? Arms as big as me thighs, he had, an' hands to match! Whoa there, luvvie!" She fake-swooned against mother's shoulder gently.

I smiled and started cooking, searing the lamb chops on both sides, then sliding them into the oven to finish, while I boiled and cut the potatoes when they were almost done, stuffing them into some of the lamb-stomachs I'd pulled from the fridge, along with the spare pieces of meat and fat I'd trimmed off the chops, then finally some peas and corn. I then cooked some spinach, for a 'healthy' side. (As if.)

"Ooh! An' a bi' of American haggis, eh?" Auntie Shae wrapped her arms around me suddenly, and kissed my cheek. "Smells delicious, Danny Dea'! Are ye goin' teh add any salt or pepper?"

"Hmm... it's got the fat cuttings in there, so no salt, but maybe some pepper." I nodded.

"Good girl! We'll make a chef of ye yet, eh?" She winked and patted my hip. "But ye've fergot'en yer apron! Yer mum had one made for ye an' ev'rythin'!!!" She reminded me quietly.

I gasped and quickly laced it on, then smiled. "Thanks, Auntie Shae. Now go watch your show, hmm? I've got dinner almost done."

She smiled and nodded, sitting down next to mother. "She's cookin' up a storm in there, she is! Makin' American Haggis of all things, an' lamb chops, an' spinach! She's born to cook, she is." She nodded as if it was settled.

Mother smiled. "She's got a gift, that's for sure, but she wants to be a Vet, like her mum, right luv?"

"A Doctor, mum, not a Vet. I'm going to be a Doctor." I corrected her.

"Ah, yes. Even better!" She smiled widely, and the show started. "Oh! See that one? Ryan is his name, yeah? Shoulda seen yesterday, he was in the pool, ooh! I could do laundry on his abs, yes luvvie!" She squealed and patted her sister's shoulder.

"Ooh, yes, very nice." Shae nodded. "But I like the dark one, what's his name?"

"Ooh, that's Marcus! He's got a nice butt, see? But you can't say that, here, sister. Very rude." She chided her gently.

"Ah, yes. But he does have a nice derrière..." she purred.

I laughed and pulled the chops out of the oven, settling them on plates, then setting each helping of almost-haggis and spinach next to them. "Soup's on!" I called.

"Ooh! I love you, darling!" Auntie Shae rushed in, and hugged me, as overenthusiastic as always. She poured herself and mother a glass each of red wine, and I sat next to them, sipping my own, and cutting into my chop.

"Ooh! And where did this lovely specimen come from?!?" Mum exclaimed, as a woman in a bikini laid out next to the men to tan.

"Oh that's the bachelorette's older sister, 'Lori', I think. Her sister sent her to see if the men would be... well, men." I said.

"Ahhh, spying! Temptation! Entrapment! Llllovely..." She giggled.

I laughed and nodded, then started eating, leaning my head on her shoulder when we finished. She pet my hair slowly, and then when the show ended, I gathered the dishes, and set them in the sink. Before I reached for the dish soap, Auntie Shae snagged it. "Ah-Ah! You cooked, I clean, those are the rules, missy!"

I smiled and nodded, then gathered the trash. "Fine. I'll just take this out then!" I huffed in faux-annoyance.

She smiled and shooed me out of the kitchen.

I carried the trash down the two flights of stairs, not bothering with the elevator, and then tossed the bag into the dumpster.

An odd hissing sound came out of it, and I blinked, peering in. "Is a Cat or something stuck in here? Here, Kitty, come on out-"

A giant, rabid dog sprung out of the trash, and I reared away, just as a giant foot connected with it's skull.

I fell on my ass, and looked up at my rescuer, to find none other than Raul Fulminate, though his eyes were green now, which was kinda weird.

I focused, shaking my head. "Raul? What are you doing here? Omigod, are you alright? Did it bite you?"

He seemed surprised, but simply chuckled and grabbed the limp dog, and threw it over his broad shoulder. "No, no. I'm fine. You?"

"Uhm, no, I'm not, not by a long shot, but I didn't get bit, if that's what you're asking." I shivered.

He nodded. "Well... good, I guess? Sorry about this one, we're still tracking down some of the more crafty ones."

I hummed. "Ahhh, right! Well... okay, I guess? Thanks for the save, and good night?"

He smiled widely, just like his brother. "Oi, all's well that ends well, cierto?" He waved and trotted away, humming a melody.

I returned slowly to the apartment, and sat in the shower for almost an hour, unable to comprehend how close I'd come to death.

I eventually got out, and fell into my bed, then immediately into a deep, deep sleep.