The Master

"What?" Akira said, jumping to his feet. "What are you talking about?"

Pako raised his left paw and gave it a lick. "I'll be staying here with you for a while. Max told me to spend some time with you and help you prepare for your exam. They actually let me out of prison on that condition."

"They sent you to prison!?"

"Yes," Pako said.

"On what charges?"

"Let's see." Pako started counting on his paws. "For illegally entering your planet, causing damage to public property, and putting earthlings like you in danger. But I told them all this is nothing but lies. I told them that I'm not the guy who did all this because that Kitod is already dead. Luckily, Rin woke up and told them about the things I did to help her. So, instead of serving my next six months in prison, I'll be living here with you."

"So they let you go because of that?" Akira asked.

"Let me go?" Pako rolled his purple eyes. "Kid, I'm still stuck here. I can't leave Earth unless they allow me to do it, and it was not her who convinced them. That masked guy, he suggested this training thing."

Akira nodded slowly as things started making sense to him.

"So here I'm," Pako said and waved his fluffy tail, "to teach you how to control and use cosmic energy. Call me Master Pako, or you can call me Pako, the ultimate life form. Your choice."

"Master Pako sounds good to me," Akira muttered.

Pako jumped down the bed. "I'm hungry. You got any milk?"

"Yes... I think I do." Akira turned around and began walking towards the door. "Let's have some breakfast together." He suddenly stopped dead in his track, turned back, and glanced at the wall clock. It was well past noon. "Damn it! I missed my school day," he shouted, tugging his hair.

Since his grandma had died, Akira hadn't missed a single school day. At least, not until today. He began restlessly walking around the room.

"Kid, will you stop dancing and give me something to eat-yo?" Pako shouted from the floor.

Akira peered down at the black cat, his dark raven fur shining in the afternoon light, and sighed. Slumping his shoulders, Akira said, "Guess there is no point in panicking about it. Come, let's go to the kitchen, Pako."

"Call me master," Pako said as he ambled behind Akira.

"Yeah, master, " Akira said. He led Pako into the kitchen and towards the fridge.

"What's this-yo?" Pako asked, poking his under Akira's legs.

"Don't creep in between my legs. It's a fridge," Akira said. "I keep all my food here." He opened the door and got greeted by a blast of cold air.

"All your food?" Pako asked, awed.

"ALL MY FOOD," Akira said dramatically. "I never lock it, though. But I'm thinking of locking it from now on. Since now we have a thief nearby..."

"Theif? Where?" Pako started looking left and right.

Akira sighed and shook his head. "Anyway, let's eat," he said and quickly fixed two salmon sandwiches and poured some milk in a bowl for Pako to drink.

As they sat down (Akira in the chair. Pako on the table), Akira peered down at the cat. He was expecting the alien feline to eat and drink like any other cat. He was expecting Pako to lap the milk with his tongue, but the little guy just made the bowl move to his lips with his powers and gulped it down as a human would.

"This was perfect," Pako said. "Ahh my whiskers, my pride! They are all dirty and wet. Kid, clean them."

"Oh, yeah, yes, master," Akira said, leaned across the table, and wiped Pako's face with a clean cloth.

Akira had just got done cleaning Pako's mouth when he heard a knock on the door.

"Who could that be?" Akira wondered out loud and went to answer the door.

As soon as he opened the door, a dirty sole of a boot came flying towards his face. Before Akira could react, the foot smashed into his jaw and sent him sliding across the floor.

"What the--" Akira coughed, closing his eyes.

"You skipped school," Kenji, Akira's guardian, said. "I thought you had made your dead grandma a promise!"

"Agh." Akira sat up, holding his bruised jaw. "Kenji, what are you doing here?"

"I got a call from your school," Kenji said. "I got worried. You have never skipped school. I thought something bad happened to you."

"You were worried, and you still kicked me?"

"I'm sorry about that. Since you didn't go to school, I thought you were bedridden. And if you were bedridden, then I assumed it was a burglar who opened the door and not you," Kenji said and pushed his glasses up his nose.

"What kind of burglar answers the door?" Akira asked, massaging his jaw.

"I told you, I'm sorry," Kenji said and pulled Akira up with his thin, lanky hand. "So, why did you skip school?"

"I-I was tired," Akira said. "I know you'll think I'm kidding, but I was really exhausted."

Kenji nodded. "I see." But Akira was sure that that hadn't convinced Kenji at all. "I'm tired too. I ran all the way here to check on you." Kenji removed his shoes and started walking into the kitchen.

"Hey, where are you going?" Akira asked, hurrying after him.

"I want some water," Kenji said and went to the fridge. "Uh, Akira, I think a stray cat is sitting on your kitchen table." He pulled out a bottle and began chugging it down.

"Oh, no, it's a regular visitor. I-i feed him sometimes." Akira hurried past Kenji to pick up Pako.

But before Akira could pick him and tell him to stay quiet, Pako looked at Kenji and said, "Yo."

Kenji spat out water, ruining the front of his shirt. "It...It." He coughed. "It spoke!"

"Naaah, it didn't," Akira said, stood in between Pako and Kenji, and covered the cat's mouth. "Don't a say word," he whispered to Pako, gritting his teeth. "If you want to say something, say meow."

"No, it definitely spoke." Kenji insisted. "It said yo."

"I-i think it made a 'meyo' sound," Akira said. "This cat sounds funny." He started laughing nervously. "Come on, kitty, purr." He scratched Pako's neck.

Pako gave him a blank.

"PURR," Akira said, gritting his teeth.

"Meow," Pako said. "Meow. Meow. Meow."

"It's not making a sound," Kenji said, eyes wide. "It's clearly speaking the word."

"I told you this cat sounds funny. Seriously, I think you are too tired," Akira said and forced Kenji to sit in a chair. "Just sit down and relax while I'll go and put this cat outside." Akira added, lifted Pako, and took him outside.