Agent Moonlark

Chapter Eleven

Keefe

Keefe was led through a maze of hallways and doors. A part of his mind mapped out the places, but the other wondered when they were going to get there. Finally, Sophie opened two reddish-brown double doors.

"This," she announced, "is the cafeteria."

Keefe had been expecting the cafeteria to be like the Dining Hall in the Neverseen's headquarters. The Dining Hall was a cold, empty place. Three long, sleek grayish-black tables took up most of the room. There were never more than a few people in it at a time. There were barely even whispers. No one talked. They just ate silently. But the Black Swan's cafeteria...was a whole different matter. The sound of laughter and chatter filled the big room. The room was full to the brim with agents seated at round wooden tables. It was homey in a way the Neverseen had never been.

Sophie walked over to a table with five other teens there. There were three boys and two girls. The first girl had dark hair and teal eyes. She was pretty, but Keefe could tell that she was dangerous. She should not be underestimated. The other girl was Linh, looking as serene as ever. Next to her was a boy who looked very similar to her. He had the same pale skin, the same silver eyes. He had the same black hair. His bangs were even dyed silver, too. For some reason, Keefe immediately took a disliking to him. There was another boy who looked like the first girl's brother. Keefe figured this must be Fitz. The last boy was Dex. He was staring intently at the small black cube in his hand.

"So," Sophie said. "This is Keefe."

"Hi!," the brunette said. She smiled brightly. "I'm Biana, and this," she gestured to her lookalike, "is my brother Fitz." She leaned forward and said in a stage whisper, "Though he hasn't been in a good mood in the last few days. Tam and I have this theory that he's Grumpy Cat reincarnated."

Fitz rolled his eyes. "I'm just annoyed at the Collective."

"Sureeeeeeeee."

"This is Tam," Linh jumped in. She pointed to the boy next to her. "My twin."

"Can I call him Bangs Boy?," Keefe asked.

"No," Tam answered.

"Yes."

"No."

"Yes."

"No."

"It's a free country, I can do whatever I want!" Keefe grinned triumphantly.

Tam just glared at him.

Keefe took a seat next to Fitz and discreetly poured the contents of the green vial into Fitz's soup. Fitz was too busy sulking to notice.

"Keefe," Biana said, "tell us about you."

Keefe shrugged. "I live with my mom. My parents are married, but they have a...rocky relationship. Hey, 'rocky' reminded me of that Granite dude. You know what, I'm calling him Granny. Any nicknames I should call you?" He veered off the subject of his life, though only Sophie seemed to notice.

"Call him," Dex pointed to Fitz, "Wonderboy."

Keefe snickered. "That's good one."

"That's Nico," Biana said, tilting her head towards Tam.

"Sorry," Keefe told her, "but I can't. I'm calling him Bangs Boy."

Biana nudged Tam. "Now, that's a new one."

"Stupid free country," Tam grumbled.

"No, free countries are good," Biana teased. Keefe instantly saw that they had feelings for each other. He had a knack for knowing what people felt.

Fitz finally took a sip of his soup. His eyes widened and he started gagging. His face took on a green tint.

"Fitz?," Biana asked her brother, "are you okay?" Worry filled her eyes.

Fitz gave no answer because he had started coughing. Then, slowly, starting from the roots, his hair turned neon green. He shivered, probably one of the extra effects from the vial's contents.

Keefe fell on the floor laughing. Dex's eyes shone with glee, Tam snickered behind his hand, Linh giggled, and even Sophie and Biana cracked a smile.

"Sorry," Fitz apologized, "I must have choked a bit on my soup." The funniest thing was that he didn't seem to know that his hair had changed color. This only made the others laugh harder. They were gasping for breath now. People at other tables were turning to look at them, but once they saw Fitz, they too had to stifle their laughter.

"What?," Fitz asked. "I don't find it funny that I choked." He frowned. "Okay, I know that since I'm a spy, I shouldn't choke on small things like soup, but it's not that humiliating-" A strand of green hair fell into his eyes. Fitz stopped talking and grabbed the strand. He held it up and studied it.

"Biana," he said slowly, "do you have a mirror?" Biana passed him a compact mirror. Fitz looked at his reflection for a full minute.

"Tam, did you prank me again?"

"I wish," Tam sniggered. "If I did that, I would be very proud of my work."

"Dex?"

"It's hilarious, but no, not me."

"Biana?"

"Okay, just because I pranked you once in my life, doesn't mean I'll prank you again."

"Sophie?"

"Seriously? When have I ever done something like that?"

Fitz's eyes narrowed. "Keefe?"

"Guilty as charged," Keefe said proudly. It sure had taken Wonderboy long enough to trace it back to him. Just like it had taken Principal Alina at Foxfire High a whole day to figure out that he had vandalized her desk (he spray-painted a bunch smiley faces and even his initials on her desk, but she was so stupid that she had to hire a private investigator to find out who had the initials 'KS,' even though only about five people at that school did.)

"How do I change it back?," Fitz asked. He glared at Tam, as if he had something to do with this.

Keefe whistled and looked anywhere but at Fitz. "It's permanent."

"Permanent?!" Keefe could already tell that this guy had some serious anger issues.

"Relax, for about a week. Maybe people will like you better with green hair." Keefe winked at him.

"Hey, Keefe," Dex called across the table.

"Yeah, Dexy?"

Dex scowled briefly at the name Keefe called him. "Well, that was awesome." He held his hand up, and Keefe high-fived him. Dex grinned, his dimples becoming more prominent.

"My pleasure," Keefe smiled cheekily.

Sophie

Sophie shook her head, but could not hide the smile on her face. Less than a day in, and she could tell that Keefe had gained most of her friends' respect. Especially Dex.

Sophie wanted to tell her friends not to get too attached to him. But even she was enjoying his company. A little more than she should have.

She had to admit, the prank with Fitz's hair was priceless. The look on his face when he realized that his hair was green was one that Sophie would always remember.

Her eyes were drawn to Keefe. The way his eyes sparkled with laughter, but hid the sad, broken look behind them. The way he smirked to cover up his sadness. She was fascinated by him.

She stood up abruptly. "I'm going to get some food."

"I'll go with you," Keefe offered. Sophie gave him a nod.

They walked to the buffet. Sophie grabbed a plate and started piling rice, zucchini, and mushrooms on it. She glanced at Keefe and saw that he put the same things on his plate.

"How did you manage to sneak the green substance into Fitz's soup when it was right in front of him?" She was curious.

Keefe winked. "I'm not exactly a beginner, am I?"

Sophie's lips turned upwards in a smile. No, he was not.