He finally saw the girl with the sphere walking towards what looked to be her house. Benjamin and his sidekicks quickly hid behind a nearby trash can next to the planter wall. They needed time to contemplate what to do next.

Seeing as though they had little time left before the girl entered her house, Benjamin and his animal sidekicks tried to devise a plan to get the sphere back from her.

“Alright, so what’s the plan?” Benjamin turned toward his companions and asked.

Harry looked puzzled at his master’s inquiry. “But I thought you’d be the one to—?”

“Why not jump at her and kidnap the girl?” Chi-Chi chimed in.

Harry and Benjamin looked at Chi-Chi with amazement. Had she, of all beings, said that?

Benjamin liked the idea and rolled with it. He would wait for the right time to strike and, with the help of his wand, to do the deed. After waiting, he rushed out from behind the planter wall and noticed the girl had already gone inside.

Now, what should we do? Benjamin thought aloud.

“Aw man, we were too slow...” Harry scratched his head.

“Not to mention too late,” Chi-Chi added.

“Hey, uh, Master?” Harry pointed toward the horizon. “It’s getting late. Soon it will be close to bedtime. Where will we stay and sleep?”

Benjamin noticed the sun getting close to setting in the distance. Harry had a point. He would draw suspicion if he were out roaming the streets after dark.

“Hmm, I’m not so sure actually...” Benjamin scratched his chin, thinking, “Perhaps we can stay at someone else’s house?” Benjamin muttered, his face brightening up. “Hey, wait, why go to someone else’s house when we can make our own?”

“What do you mean by that?” Chi-Chi inquired, blinking in confusion.

“I’ll just make a house appear beside the girl’s so we can watch her carefully and not come across as creeps!” Benjamin replied with a smile. “And with my new technique, it’ll be done in a cinch!”

Benjamin shouted the word ‘house’ in his head multiple times so the wand could fully register that and make the place appear. It took a lot longer than expected to complete. Surprisingly, it appeared beside the girl’s house as he wanted. It was good that beside her house lay an empty lot, not an actual house, or there would have been a problem.

Surprised and ecstatic that it worked, even making a rather lovely-looking house, Benjamin, Chi-Chi, and Harry all ran across the street, but not before looking both ways for oncoming cars as Chi-Chi insisted. Benjamin turned the doorknob and discovered that it was already unlocked. He opened the door and eagerly walked inside.

.-.-.-.

After entering the place, the gang marveled at how normal and not suspicious-looking the house had turned out to be from the inside. The walls had a beautiful light-colored blue, a yellow-orange chandelier hung from the ceiling, and a red-violet staircase that could lead to more bedrooms and bathrooms. Hanging on the walls were mint-colored picture frames, which have no pictures inside of them yet, and a jade green carpet beside the door when you’d first enter that would be hard to miss. The place may have looked lovely, but the color choices could use some work.

“You guys can sleep there.” Benjamin motioned toward the living room, pointing at a regular-sized light green couch.

The hamster and guinea pig settled in on the cushiony couch adorned the living room. Another sizable, colorful rug spread across the floor, decorated with large potted plants on both ends of the chamber.

“I’m going to sleep in a nice comfortable bed in the next room,” Benjamin said over his shoulder as he heard the critters arguing over who would get the most massive cushion.

Benjamin went to the chamber next to the living room to check how the bedrooms looked. When he got there, he made a ‘shocking’ discovery. The bedroom looked cute and girly, with flowers on the bedsheets, a rainbow on the rug, and a stuffed bunny on the chair. It was everything a young girl could ask for in her room, not a dark magician such as himself.

“Ugh, not even if it was the only bedroom on this planet!” Benjamin exclaimed as he left the room to head back to where his sidekicks were. “Hey guys, I changed my mind. I call the couch for tonight.”

“Aw, but where are we supposed to sleep, the floor?” Harry looked pitifully at his Master while hugging the large cushion that he enlisted from his sister.

“Sure, why the devil not?” Benjamin shrugged. But then he scratched his chin and noticed something that hadn’t occurred to him until now.

“Wait, we’re next to the girl’s house, right? Let’s go see what she’s up to.”

The three went to the window and peeked at the girl’s house from a distance. Unfortunately, the house lights were off, and they couldn’t see a thing inside.

“Ugh, what is she up to, and what will she do with my sphere?” Benjamin whispered under his breath. “I won’t leave until I get it back from her, no matter what.”

“So... what now, master?” Harry asked, yawning and stretching his back.

“Let’s call it a day. I’m tired,” Benjamin said as he returned the contagious yawn.

“Good idea,” Chi-Chi chimed in.

Benjamin slept on the couch, while Chi-Chi and Harry slept on the rug beside the sofa. It was almost as comfy. It had been a long day for the three of them, and hopefully, it would be better tomorrow as they dreamt the night away.

.-.-.-.

The next day, Harry and Chi-Chi woke up early and tried to wake their Master quickly. When they got Benjamin up, he yawned and stretched as they pulled down on his coat, agitating him to some extent.

“Master, Master!” Harry and Chi-Chi exclaimed in unison.

“Ugh, what is it, you two?” Benjamin tried to rub the sleep from his tired eyes.

“There’s no more food in the fridge!” Chi-Chi said, pointing toward the kitchen.

Harry lightly punched his sister in the arm.

“And the girl already left her house!” He finished.

“Oh... what?!” Benjamin woke up in a flash. He grabbed his coat and hat, lying on the couch arm, and headed for the front door.

“Wait for us!” Harry and Chi-Chi exclaimed, following him toward the exit.

“You guys stay here and watch the base for me.”

“Yes, sir- wait, what?!”

“I’ll go find them myself. Don’t want to be conspicuous.” Benjamin said as he opened the front door. Having no time to waste at the start of this new day, Benjamin rushed out of the door of his new house in search of the girl.

.-.-.-.

He felt excited and worried as he ran down the sidewalk.

He almost bumped into another girl while running and looking all over the place for her. This girl seemed to look like her, but was a bit taller, older, and had yellow streaks in her hair.

“Oh, sorry about that. You looked like someone else I knew.” Benjamin politely said as he held his hand up in apology. “Say, have you seen a girl that looks like you come around here earlier today?”

“I have.” The female replied, “I think she went inside that school over there.” She pointed toward a sizeable two-story schoolhouse in the near distance. The sidewalk led directly to the school entrance.

“Oh wow, I’m glad I asked,” Benjamin replied. He tipped his hat and bid the girl a good day as he ran down the sidewalk toward the school. The magician noticed a small group of students entering the front door. Otherwise, the courtyard appeared empty. He feared classes were already in session.

Benjamin rushed up the stairs to open the door, determined to find out if the girl was there. Almost immediately after going inside, the girl from yesterday talking to some tall guy in the nearby hallway caught his attention. The dark sunglasses reminded him of Lauren and her icy stare. Benjamin hid behind the wall and tried to eavesdrop on the two.

“Hey Nicky, I hope I wasn’t late.” The young female with spectacles said as she walked over to him.

“Not at all. You’re about three minutes early.” The large-framed young man replied, checking his watch.

“Ooh, how neat!” She appeared intrigued that she was early for once.

“So, was there a reason you wanted to talk to me? You look like—” Nicky started before the girl cut his words.

“I need to tell you something shocking and exciting...” She whispered, pausing for added effect.

Benjamin heard his heart beating in his chest. Oh no, could they be...? He thought, hanging on to what she had to say.

“It might seem hard to believe, but you’re the only one I trust with this who won’t backstab me.” She told the young man.

Benjamin didn’t dare peek around the corner, but he convinced himself she would show him the crystal sphere. That would be a disaster! He’d have to deal with two earthlings knowing his secret weapon.

“Of course, so what could it be? The suspense is killing me here!” The young man leaned in closer, hoping that she would share her secret with him, but to his surprise, she walked away.

“Where do you think you’re going?” He called out after her.

“I’ll tell you during lunch. It’s not safe to talk about it here.” She glanced back over her shoulder.

She couldn’t shake the uncomfortable feeling of being watched, but that wasn’t possible. At least, she thought so. How could that guy know where to find her? The girl grew careful when she returned home yesterday, trying not to get caught. Still, she had a sick feeling that she had not seen the last of that magician fellow.

“Alright then, I’ll be looking forward to it.” The large, framed teenager turned and headed toward Benjamin.

The magician contemplated overpowering the young man with magic, perhaps taking his place at the lunch meeting. Could he transform himself into looking like him? It’d take a lot of high magic to turn his small framed body into that massive muscle-laden one, but was it worth a try?

He looked over to reach for his pocket to the wand handle out. Wait for it.

“What do you think you’re doing?” Benjamin jumped at the sound of someone directly behind him. “Don’t try to explain; I know what you’re going to say.”

“Wait, you do?” The young man passed him as he turned to face the familiar voice that startled him. Benjamin watched as his golden opportunity walked down the hallway and disappeared out of sight. Benjamin had to devise another way to retrieve his sphere from her, but how?

“Yes, come with me for a moment, ok?” The lady appeared too old to be a student, yet dressed like a typical teenager. Benjamin recognized her as the young woman that directed him toward the school. It was that look-a-like from the sidewalk earlier today. Why was she in the school now?

The look-a-like led Benjamin away from the hallway of green walls, red flooring, and yellow doors. One of them had a sign on top, which looked like the principal’s office. She told him to wait there while she went inside. He wondered why he got called at a time like this. After a short while, a voice told him to come in; he slowly opened the door.