“That name is famous all over.” The waiter gravely replied. “Twilight, Steve, Jerry, Matt, and I were sent on a trip to gather up all the DTD’s. We’re all pretty famous in our own little circles, but Twilight’s the only one who decided to stay with the Drenks and battle the Bandaa.” The waiter added in a low voice. “That’s partly because his wife is Drenk.”

     “How do you read this menu?” Dienna asked after a few minutes of silence.

     “Oh, sorry. It’s in Grankin.” The waiter apologized. “I’m Tyler, by the way. Um, about that menu, I’ll just assume you all want hamburgers and, what kind of soda do you want?”

     “Mountain Dew.”

     “Root Beer.”

     “I’ll get right on it.” Smiling, Tyler walked away as he scribbled on his note pad.

     “Is that weird, or what?” Dienna asked.

     “What’s weird?” Tia replied.

     “That Twilight came in a group of five and we came in a group of five.” Dienna replied.

     “It’s probably just coincidence.” Corazon said.

     “I don’t know.” Felicia argued. “The odds that hostile aliens would just happen to land at our school and that you,” She looked at Corazon. “Would get us all beamed on Twilight’s ship are not that good.”

     “They’re odds none the less.” Corazon said. “It could have happened, and it did. It’s coincidence, guys. Relax.”

     “It does seem kind of fishy.” Giselle agreed with Felicia.

     “Would you all drop this, please!” Corazon snapped. “I refuse to even think that our getting beamed about Twilight’s ship and sent on this crazy adventure was anything more than being at wrong place at the wrong time.”

     “You don’t think this is part of our destiny?” Giselle asked.

     “With all that talk earlier about hope,” Dienna said. “I would think that you’d be thrilled.”

     “That’s emotions.” Corazon protested. “Emotions rarely comply with the logical mind.”

     “Or a person’s reluctance to accept the truth.” Dienna reiterated.

     “What are you implying?” Corazon demanded.

     “That your destiny is to save the universe and you don’t want to accept that.” Dienna replied.

     “My destiny is not to save the universe.” Corazon said. “I have no destiny. Destiny does not exist. What a person ends up doing he, or she ends up doing because of the choices he, or she made in the past, not because it’s written in some book that Corazon Heart is going to save the universe and nothing can go against that.”

     “You’re sad.” Dienna muttered.

     “Look who’s talking.” Corazon mumbled to herself.

     “Are you trying to start something?” Dienna demanded.

     “No, but you apparently are.” Corazon said to Dienna. “I’m tired of being pushed around and told to believe in things that I don’t.”

     “I’m not asking you to believe in destiny.” Dienna said. “I’m telling you to accept yours.”

     “My destiny is what I make it.” Corazon replied. “You can’t change that.”

     “Yeah, well I think you made it to save the universe.” Dienna said.

     “I cannot save the universe.” Corazon said. “What power do I have that puts me ahead of the Bandaa?”

     “Remember what Twilight said?” Giselle asked. “About what’s in your heart?”

     “That’s just poetry.” Corazon argued.

     “It may just be poetry to you,” Tia said, “But it means a lot to the person who hears it, or reads it.”

     “Whose side are you guys on?” Corazon demanded. “How could I do anything that would alter the future of the universe?”
     “I don’t know, but your dream apparently did.” Dienna said.

     “Do you have any idea how much that hurt?” Corazon yelled. “It may be just a dream to you, but it hurt. I felt it. I heard their screams. I felt their pain. I don’t want to go through that again, in real life, or otherwise. It hurts.”

     “Hurts, like it stings?” Felicia asked.

     “No.” Corazon said as she calmed down. “It hurts like there’s something missing. It hurts like when someone you love dies and you don’t feel whole anymore, only times that by each person you feel it for. Imagine hearing someone else scream and feeling like that scream came from you. Imagine watching someone die by torture and feeling like that pain is yours. Just try.” Corazon paused a moment. “If I could avoid it, I would. If I could stop all of it with a wave of my hand, I would have done that so many years ago.”

     “You mean you’ve felt like that?” Giselle asked.

     “Yeah.” Corazon said. “It’s like I was born with it, or something. I watched this movie once where everyone killed everyone else. I cried for an hour afterwards. It hurt. I know it sounds really bizarre, but it’s true.”

     “Here’re the burgers!” Tyler said as he placed normal-looking hamburgers in front of the girls. “And the drinks.” He put the drinks down in front of their appropriate owners. “Enjoy!” Then he left.

     Corazon took a hearty bite of her burger. It tasted pretty normal, as well.

     “Where are we going after lunch?” Tia asked.

     “To buy whatever you want.” Bernard replied.

     “We’re going to need clothes.” Felicia said. “And hygiene supplies for at least as long as we’ll be docked here.”

     “And some of those music things.” Corazon said. “What did Twilight call them?”
     “Chips.” Giselle said.

     “In that case we should probably go to ‘the mall’ as Steven calls it. There are many different stores all on one street so that you do not have to go traveling all over the place and waste energy.” Bernard suggested.

     “Sounds good to me.” Tia said just before she sank her teeth into her burger.