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  Chapter Seven

  "And that," I said as the Escher Cube fshed us bato existence, "is how I ied medial cheese balls that cure cer."

  Ethan raised an eyebrow. "Henry, what are you talking about?"

  I looked around. I'd ed us right into the middle of the street outside my house, but there was nobody in sight.

  I sighed. "If anyone had been around to hear that, it would have made me sound really smart."

  "It also would have blown your cover," Jade said disapprovingly.

  "There are some sacrifices that have to be made," I said, pocketing the Cube and making for the door.

  The sun was setting, and a cool wind whispered through the trees. There was a green fsh behind me as Jade went batem, and I paused in fusion when I opehe door to find all the lights turned off.

  "Mom? Dad?" I called from the doorway. "You guys home?"

  No answer.

  "Is everything okay?" Ethan asked.

  "Yeah," I said after a moment. "They're probably just out getting groceries."

  Of course. That's where they were. Obviously. So why was my stomach still doing somersaults?

  I crept inside, keeping one hand on Sptsy, ahe door open behihan followed, his eyes darting bad forth with every tiptoed step. We made our way into the living room. It was almost too dark to see, with the lights off and the suing.

  "Wait here," I whispered, a in. Slowly, oep at a time, skillfully (and awesomely) avoiding the squeaky floorboards. There was a light swit the other end of the room. Maybe once I could see, I'd stop feeling like there was something creeping up behind—

  "HENRY, BEHIND YOU!"

  I spun around to see a tall, gaunt figure looming over me in the shadows. It raised cw-like hands, eyes glowing with sadistic glee, and threw them around me, pinning my arms to my sides with surprising strength. It squeezed me, f the air out of my lungs. Caught off guard and unarmed, I could only stand there and be crushed in its…

  "There's my baby sister!" it yelled, raising me off the floor and spinning me around.

  Suddenly, the room lit up, and I was finally able to see whose arms were practically mummifying me. He was a kon (like me) with bright blue hair (also like me) buzzed so short that I could see his milky white scalp beh it (not like me). He was taller than me, and almost abnormally thin. Emaciated may have been a better word to describe him. He wore a long, bck trench coat over a bck shirt and pants, making him the first goth kon I’d ever met.

  Not that I noticed any of that, though, because I was too busy squealing with joy.

  "!" I screamed. "When did you get here?"

  "While you were gone," my big brother answered. “But before we talk, you tell your boyfriend not to ie me?"

  "Boyfriend? What do you…"

  Wait, where was all this light ing from?

  I spun around and saw Ethan with his arm outstretched, the spellhammer shining like it had a star trapped i.

  “Ethan, stop!” I yelled, pulling free of ’s embrace.

  Too te. He already had in his sights. “Cogito et—”

  I lunged for him, but my hand nded on the hammer, and—FWOOMPH! Instant Bride of Fraein hairdo.

  “Henry!” Ethan excimed, dropping the spellhammer like it was radioactive. “I- I’m sorry! I didn’t meant to—”

  “Ethan, this is my brother, ,” I croaked, then coughed a puff of smoke. “, this is Ethan.”

  The magic faded from the spellhammer, plunging the room into darkness again, but a momehe lights flicked on, and I turo see my parents standing i doorway.

  “Wait, you guys have been here all along?” I demanded.

  “Sorry,” Mom said. “ade us promise to stay quiet.”

  Dad grinned. “He said he wao scare you, just like old times.”

  “You okay?” asked, barely holding in his ughter.

  I shook my head, getting the magiduced frizz out of it, and then hugged him again. “I missed you, big bro!”

  “I missed you too,” he said, giving me another, much gentler, hug. “How’ve things been around here without me?”

  “Iing,” I answered. “Very, very iing. Speaking of which, meet Ethan!”

  I grabbed Ethan by the arm and pulled him over. As soon as I did, though, the sparkle vanished from ’s eyes.

  “Oh, yeah,” he said dryly, lip curled. “Him. The guy who’s been living in my room.”

  “I, uh…” Ethan stammered.

  leaned in until they were o nose. “Y to repce me, you little punk?”

  “N- No, I’m just…” He eyed the spellhammer on the floor, but didn’t move to grab it. “You, uh, have it back if you want.”

  A grin broke out on ’s face. “Nah, I’m just screwin’ with ya! It’s cool that I have a little brother now.”

  “You have a what?” Ethan and I excimed in unison.

  looked at me, fused.

  “We’re not adopting him,” I said quickly, nervous sweat trig down my face. “He’s just squatting with us until…for a while.”

  grinned again and wi Ethan. “Hey, it’s cool. I said the same thing at first.”

  My stomach did another somersault. Adoptihan? Like, as my brother? No, absolutely not! That was just wrong! The very thought made me sick! How the onion fvored milk was I supposed to date him if he was my freaking brother?

  Luckily, Ethan didn’t look too thrilled with the idea either.

  “So, why aren’t you at school?” I asked, steering the versation back to less awkward waters.

  paused. It only sted a split sed, but I didn’t miss the way his eyes shifted when I asked him that. “We’re, uh, on a break.”

  “How long will you be home?”

  “I don’t…a couple weeks, I think.”

  “How are your csses going?”

  “They’re—”

  “What are you really?”

  I froze, and slowly turned my head to look at Ethan in horror.

  “Uh, w- what?” asked. “What do you mean?”

  “I was with Henry when she picked up your medie,” Ethan answered, infuriatingly oblivious to how close he was to getting his face Sptsied i. “If it turns you into a kon like Henry, then that must mean…” I spped my hand over his mouth, “…mrrphgrrblllrrphg.”

  “That’s enough for tonight,” I said, givihan my I’m going tle you if you say one more wre. “’s had a long trip and he’s probably tired. Right, bro?”

  iled weakly. “Uh, yeah. I’m pretty beat.”

  “Oh,” said Ethaing like a balloon as his enthusiasm thbbbbt-ed out of him. “Right. You probably want your room back, right?”

  “Nah!” grinned—a real ohis time—and poi the couch. “I’ll just crash here.”

  I cpped my hands. “Alrighty, the’s all get to bed!”

  Ethan looked at me like I’d lost my mind. “But it’s not even !”

  “I know, and you’ve had such a big day that you’re all tuckered out!”

  “No I’m n—”

  “e on,” I said, forcibly shoving him toward the stairs. “Upstairs! Now! A growing boy like you needs at least ten hours of sleep!”

  To my immense relief, he didn’t argue as I pushed him up to his bedroom. Just as we reached the top of the stairs, though…

  “Hey, Ethan!” called from down below.

  Ethan turo look, and gave him the most devilish grin I’d ever seen.

  “Sweet dreams…baby brother.”