"What's with that crowd of students standing in a circle there?" Gina asked Tracey after he picked her up from Waterfront Park.
The two friends made haste to return to Wentworth Street, but they had to hide behind a building when they saw a group of students standing around, phones in hand, before the Liberty Café. Liberty Café was on St. Phillip's Street, the main street where college classes were held. It was beside the Liberty Residence Hall and was one of Tracey's favorite dining spots. However, he knew that the crowd was looking for him. All of them were on their phones.
Tracey ducked behind a trash can, Gina hovering beside him. "Here's the thing, Gina. The only way Emilee and Jesse could enroll me was if they told the school board that I'm a prince."
"Wait a minute! They told them you're a prince? Dude, what the heck?" Gina's beak dropped—she was so shocked.
"Don't get your feathers in a bunch," said Tracey. "They don't know I'm a claxton prince."
"Not yet!"
"It's not going to happen. Trust me. Come on. It's time we return to the dorm. My roommate is going to be there any minute now." Tracey pulled Gina out of the sky and hid her in his arms. He vanished from sight using his ninja skills, but reappeared before McConnell Hall.
Gina poked her head out of his arms and examined the immense building. "Wow! That's your dorm?"
"Pretty impressive, isn't it?" Tracey asked in a proud voice.
"The brick could use a little touch-up."
Tracey chuckled nervously, scratching the back of his head. "Look at that, Gina. For once, we agree on something." He again tucked Gina into his arms, which forced him to hold his Cougar Card between his teeth so he could swipe it. The only way to get into the McConnell building was by swiping your Cougar Card.
Tracey casually opened the door and wandered inside.
However, he did not get far before the RA sitting at the front desk shouted, "Ah! Prince Tracey!"
"Prince Tracey? Who's Prince Tracey?" Tracey asked her.
"Ahh!" Blushing, the RA picked up a folder on the desk and hid behind it. "Instagram wasn't lying! You really do have the appearance of a ninja! I mean—!" She dropped the folder to collect herself. "Your roommate is here! He's eager to meet you! Come on out, Aiden!" Momentarily, she turned away from Tracey and waved into the first floor's lounge room, which took students out to the dormitory's courtyard.
Tracey peered down at Gina, who remained well-hidden, whispering, "So, his name is Aiden," but his eyes widened, and his cheeks puffed out when a loud, deep voice yelled at him from the lounge room:
"Ah! If it isn't my whippersnapper of a roommate!" A huge, beefy, young man, who was at least two whole heads taller than Tracey, emerged from it. He had short, brown hair and blue eyes. It looked like the shirt and pants he wore were about to rip at the seams. That was how big he was.
"He's my roommate?" Tracey accidentally cried out.
"Sure, I am, Whippersnapper!" Aiden gave him a hearty laugh. He set his enormous hand down on Tracey's head and ruffled his hair. "Wow! I didn't expect the prince to be so tiny!"
"I'm not tiny!" Tracey argued. "You're just tall!"
"Come on, Whippersnapper! Give your old man a hug!"
"I'd rather not." Tracey held out his left hand to his roommate and turned away. He didn't want Gina to get squished.
"Aw. Well, that's too bad. How about we work together to move me in, eh?" With those words, Aiden stomped back into the lounge room. When he came out, he was hefting a piano over his left shoulder.
Tracey's eye twitched. "A piano? What did you bring a piano for?"
"Why not? Music is my passion, Whippersnapper."
"Heh. I see. Um, will you excuse me for a moment?" Still staring, Tracey side-stepped into the hallway. He gave Aiden a nervous wave before ducking into the men's bathroom.
Tracey hurried over to the sinks, only to see that his face was as white as the restroom's walls. "He's my roommate?" he asked again, that time to Gina, who floated out of his arms.
"What? Is he not what you were expecting?"
"Are you kidding? He's going to snap me like a twig!"
"I'm sure there's a reasonable explanation, Trace."
"Of course, there is! He's another Peter Nelson, only ten times his size!"
"You're jumping to conclusions too fast," Gina explained. "I think he likes you."
"As if! He's going to mince me and serve me on the table of America's Number One seafood restaurant! Fins, the Perfect Dish! Ahh!" Tracey jumped ten feet in the air when a loud knock came from the bathroom door.
"Is everything all right, Whippersnapper?" asked Aiden.
Again, Tracey's eye twitched. "Uh, never better!" Chuckling nervously, he scratched the back of his head.
All Gina could do was sigh.
***
Tracey eventually found the guts to come out of the bathroom and help Aiden with some of his luggage, even if he did remind him of Peter Nelson.
Gina was proud of him. She had tucked herself in his hair, where she gave him reassuring pecks on his cheek.
Tracey remained a good ten feet back from Aiden as they hiked up the stairs to the third floor. Though nervous, he tried to stay brave. He attempted to pull some hair behind his left ear, but Gina pecked him. She didn't want anybody to see his pointy ears. That would instantly give away his secret.
Aiden and Tracey reached the third floor, and Aiden said, "Wow! This dorm is quite a treat! Eh, Whippersnapper?"
"For the last time, my name is not 'Whippersnapper.' It's Tracey."
"Ho! Ho! Ho! But you're so tiny!"
Tracey growled deep in his throat. This reminded him of his and Makenna's early days when she used to call him "Ninja Boy." He tried to pass Aiden, but that didn't go so well. Tracey tripped again and went sprawling to the ground. Gina fell out of his hair, and Aiden's bag slid forward on the white-tiled floor. Ugh, this was frustrating! Tracey just wasn't used to walking.
Aiden heard him fall. "Whippersnapper!" While he turned around, Tracey slid Gina behind him. "What happened to you?" asked Aiden. "Here, let me help you up."
"No!" Tracey shouted. "I mean—!" He thought fast, coming up with an idea quickly. Grabbing his ankle, he pretended that he twisted it. "Ouch! I think I twisted my ankle!"
"Twisted your ankle? Poor Whippersnapper! What do you want me to do?"
"Why don't you get my other two suitemates?" Tracey suggested. "Our Suite is Room 308. Go all the way down the hall and take a left at the end. Just tell them that you're our new roommate."
"As you wish, your Highness." Aiden saluted and set his piano down before Tracey. He then followed his orders and headed toward the end of the hallway.
Behind, Tracey sighed. He removed his hands from his ankle, tilting back his head.
Gina appeared from behind him, saying, "That was smart thinking, Tracey. Thank you."
"No problem. That's what friends are for." Tracey gave Gina a small smile. He scratched her under the beak, where Gina liked to be rubbed, before telling her to hide back in his hair. She did just that, right as Tracey heard the door to his suite open.
Rising to his feet, he brushed himself down. Next, he heard Aiden speaking with Luna and Candice.
"Hello. I'm Aiden Macon, your new suitemate. His Royal Highness was helping me bring my things up, but he tripped and twisted his ankle. He sent me to come get you."
Tracey tried to sneak away, but couldn't because Candice, Luna, and Aiden soon appeared from around the corner.
"Tracey!" Luna called, and Tracey flinched.
He quickly got back down on the floor behind Aiden's piano and grabbed his ankle again.
Before he knew it, Candice and Luna reached him, but they had to squeeze by the instrument.
"Whose piano is that?" Luna asked.
"Um." Tracey scratched his chin. "Gorilla's?" That would be Aiden's nickname.
Further down the hall, Aiden raised his hand, saying, "It's mine. Forgive me, girls. I just didn't want to leave Whippersnapper alone."
"Whippersnapper?" said Candice. "Oh, that's an awesome nickname for you, Tracey."
"Thanks," Tracey replied, slightly offended.
"Oh, I'm sorry!" Candice blushed when she saw his face. "I didn't think before I spoke."
"It's okay," Tracey said.
"It is?" Candice nervously asked. She pulled her shirt over her nose and mouth, hoping that nobody would see her smiling.
"Well, Tracey, you have a knack for getting yourself hurt. Don't you?" Luna chuckled.
Tracey ensured the game continued. "Of course. It's kind of second nature to me, ya know?" He let Luna pick him up from the floor. She wrapped her arm around his shoulders, and the two students' eyes met. Suddenly, they blushed at one another.
Luna, though, quickly shook out her head. She led Tracey down the hallway, past Aiden's piano, and into their suite. She and Candice worked together to sit him down on the couch. They got some ice from the freezer and placed it on Tracey's ankle. They ensured he was comfortable before returning to the hallway to help Aiden.
Once the coast was clear, Tracey lifted his hair off Gina, saying, "You can come out now, Gina."
"Oh wow! So, this is your suite!" Gina flapped her wings, starting to soar around the room. "You have a little bit of everything! A TV, a small kitchen, and even a microwave!"
Tracey removed the ice from his ankle and stood. He held his arm out to Gina, and the tern landed on it. Next, he searched the area. "I have to find a place to hide you."
"How about your room?"
"No can do. Aiden's moving in. What about the bathroom? I hate to do that to you, Gina, but—"
"If it's all we have, then I'm game."
Tracey made it quick because he heard his suitemates coming down the hallway. He hid Gina in the shower and pulled the shower curtain before her. "Promise you won't get claustrophobic?"
"I promise." But Gina was already starting to feel queasy.
Tracey closed the door right as Candice, Luna, and Aiden reentered the suite.
"Tracey, what are you doing?" said Luna. "You're supposed to be resting your foot."
"Oh, um, I'm just stretching," Tracey nervously lied, although he hated lying. He stretched his arm across his chest and tugged on his shoulder until it popped.
Luna gave him a funny look. She set down two of Aiden's bags and questioned, "Is it just me, or are you acting a little weird?"
"Weird? Whose acting weird?"
Aiden laughed. "You're hilarious, Whippersnapper!" He set his piano in the heart of the room. "Give me a second, guys. I'm going to slip into the restroom."
Tracey's face grayed, and it grayed further when Aiden headed toward the bathroom where he hid Gina. "Uh! You don't want to use the one on our side of the suite!" Tracey pushed Aiden toward Luna and Candice's bathroom.
As soon as Aiden disappeared, Luna asked Tracey, "Tracey, what is going on?"
"Here's the truth, girls. I didn't twist my ankle, okay?" Tracey explained. "I brought an animal back from the water, and I'm just trying to protect her."
"Animal? What animal?" Candice looked just as confused as Luna. "You know you're not supposed to have pets in the dormitory."
"She's not a pet. She's a friend. There's a difference."
"What is she?" Luna wanted to know.
Before Tracey could answer, a loud screech came from his and Aiden's bathroom.
"What was that?" Luna added.
"She's probably claustrophobic," Tracey guessed. He turned on his heel and opened the door to the bathroom. "Well, Gina. You sure didn't last long."
Gina fluttered over the top of the shower curtain and joined him. "Oh, I'm not claustrophobic. I just realized I have something to do."
"Is that a tern?" asked Luna.
Candice cheered. "This is so cool! My prince's royal steed is a tern!"
"I'm going to the Cistern," Gina explained.
"The Cistern? Why?" Tracey said.
"Just meet me there, okay?" Gina gave her wings a quick flap, and she fluttered out of the suite's open window.
Tracey prepared to chase her, but before he could, he felt the Octopus Man.
The Octopus Man's voice overtook his head. "Follow your friend, Tracey. She has something to show you."
"What are you doing here, Octopus Man?" Tracey asked. "We made a deal!"
"I asked you to find your father. I never said I was going to leave the harbor. Listen to me, son. You don't belong on land. You fear humans just as much as I do."
"Tracey, what's wrong?" Luna and Candice asked in frightened voices.
Tracey couldn't answer due to his struggle. He fell to his hands and knees and told the Octopus Man, "I'm not going to let you use Gina as an excuse to lead me back to the ocean."
Amid the strange phenomenon, Aiden came out of the bathroom. At the sight of Tracey, he asked Luna and Candice, "Whoa, what's with him, dudettes?"
"He's just having a moment," they replied.
Poseidon kept on tormenting Tracey. "Return to the sea, and we will work together to wipe the humans off the face of the Earth! They do not deserve us. Follow your friend!"
"No! I'm not going to! Stop! Stop!" Tracey begged.
Luna and Candice kneeled to him, and they each grabbed one of his hands.
"You need to fight it, Tracey," Luna whispered.
"Stop scaring my baby!" Candice yelled at the Octopus Man's invisible force. "We still need to go on a date!"
Aiden was so confused. "Seriously, girls. What is wrong with him?"
"He's having a moment!" they repeated. The girls tightened their grips on Tracey when he started to twitch. However, he shoved them off him, and the girls went tumbling to the ground. Hugging each other, they crawled back.
Tracey closed his eyes. He clutched his head with both hands, slowly rising to his feet.
"Return to the sea!" Poseidon demanded.
Tracey's head shook like crazy. He tried to fight the urge to go with Poseidon, but it was difficult.
At the sight of him struggling, Candice now knew that what Luna told her in their room earlier that day was true. A few tears ran down her cheeks. "You're right, Luna. He and Poseidon are connected. They're family."
"What?" Aiden's jaw dropped. "Can somebody please tell me what is going on?"
Poseidon almost succeeded in turning Tracey full claxton, but the sound of the suite door flying open broke his concentration. He released Tracey, sending him collapsing onto his side.
Aiden, Candice, and Luna yelped. The girls jumped to their feet, and Aiden pulled them behind his arms.
The figure in the doorway was covered in shadows, but it was obviously that of a man. Beside him floated Gina. That was a quick trip to the Cistern.
The figure in the doorway pointed at Tracey. Using magic, he released him from Poseidon's curse. Then just like that, he vanished without a trace.
Aiden, Candice, and Luna were frozen in time. What just happened? What was that figure? His entrance was so brief that they never got a good look at him.
Gina was the one who got him. That was why she flew to the Cistern. She had a feeling the Octopus Man would try another trick on Tracey, and sure enough, she was right.
The tern floated to Tracey's side.
Sitting, he lowered his head when he had another magic vision. That time, he saw an underwater kingdom that was nothing but ruins. A sunken castle covered in seaweed seemed to call out to him. Atlantica. Tracey was looking at Atlantica.
His head stopped throbbing, finally giving him a chance to open his eyes.
Aiden, who sweated, stared at him.
Luna and Candice looked traumatized, now that they knew what they were dealing with—not only the God of the Seas, but also his nephew. Now it was even more crucial that they found King Tamesis, Tracey's father.
With the image of the castle burned in his brain, Tracey said just three words:
"Thank you, Gina."