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situation. I hope he will help us.
     

     
    Jacob had nearly made it to the tree when Akeno caught up with him, hand on his top hat to keep it from falling as he ran.
    “You didn’t come back. They were worried—sent me to check on you.”
    “Yeah, I’m heading home. Let them know I’m not going, and tell them I said good luck.”
    Akeno stopped walking, then hurried to catch up. He met Jacob’s pace, glancing sidelong at him. Jacob ignored him. He wasn’t about to let the Makalo convince him to stay.
    “Well . . . I’ll come with you.”
    Jacob looked at him in surprise, but continued on. If that’s what Akeno wanted, that was okay. The Makalo would have to explain to Jacob’s family why he was there—some random alien in their town. That would definitely make the news.
    They entered the forest, walking in silence for a while. It wasn’t nearly as awkward as Jacob had expected it to be—Akeno didn’t act disappointed or disapproving.
    After some time, Jacob groaned in frustration. “I don’t understand why I’m the one they chose to go. I mean, Matt’s older, stronger, and he always knows what to do. So, why me?” He hesitated, but Akeno didn’t say anything. “I mean, this isn’t even my planet. And it’s not my problem. I’m not the one who lost the Key, and I’m not the one who thinks it should be protected. And I don’t have magical abilities!”
    Jacob paused to think. “Besides, I’ve got my own things to deal with. I was supposed to try out for varsity today. And I know I would’ve made it. I’m actually really good at basketball. If it weren’t for those . . . those stupid wolves . . .” He let out a long breath. “Oh, forget it. It doesn’t even matter.”
    Another silence. Jacob guessed they were about halfway through the forest. Akeno stopped, and Jacob slowed to see why.
    “Hold on a second,” Akeno said. He plucked a couple leaves and sat on the ground. Rummaging through a bag strapped across his chest, he pulled out a tape dispenser and started taping the leaves to his shoes.
    Jacob’s eyebrows went up as high as they could. “Tape?”
    “It keeps the leaves on my shoes, and the leaves keep the dust off me. I use my Rezend—which is our form of magic—and as long as the leaves are fresh, they do what I ask them to do.”
    “But . . . where did you get tape?”
    Akeno glanced up. “From the humans. They gave me a lot of it last time they were here, along with a ton of books—I love reading books from your world.”
    “Humans? What humans?” For some reason, Jacob had assumed he was the first human to step foot on this world. The fact that there had been others caught him off guard. Were they like him? Did they have special abilities? And why did Akeno care if some dust got on him?
    “Oh, they didn’t tell you? Humans used to live in the tree. That’s why it’s human-sized.”
    “What? Where’d they go?”
    “They moved. They used to visit, but it’s been a long time—several years, in fact. We still keep in contact with them through the Minyas.”
    “Oh, yeah, Minyas. You guys sent them to tell Matt where I was, right?”
    Akeno taped the last leaf to his shoe, put the tape dispenser back in his bag, and got to his feet. “Yeah. It took them a while to convince Matt that they were real, living things. And even longer for him to believe you were safe.”
    Jacob turned, but Akeno grabbed his arm.
    “What?” Jacob said in irritation, facing Akeno again.
    “The wolves.” Akeno gestured with his other hand. “I should’ve made sure they weren’t here before we entered the forest.”
    Jacob looked ahead and froze. The two black wolves were sitting on their haunches about twenty feet away, just staring at them. There was a rustling sound on either side of them, and at least ten more wolves—the smaller, gray kind—appeared, stepping forward to form a semi-circle around the boys.
    “What’s going on?” Jacob whispered.
    “I don’t know.”