Lilo & Stitch Fan Fiction ❯ New Genesis ❯ Chapter 1 ( Chapter 1 )

Lilo lay lost in thought, troubled thoughts tumbling tumultuously through her head. Something about Stitch's new upgrades haunted her mind, robbing her of sleep. Stitch had always been smaller than her, with the brief exception of that fiasco with Short Stuff and assistant evil genius Pleakly, but now the thought of that changing filled her with a myriad of unidentifiable emotions.

Sighing in frustration, Lilo rolled onto her side lost in thought, so she could be forgiven  for not noticing Stitch's silent approach to the bed. He looked at her curiously, turning Jumba's news over in his head, before reaching out to gently rub her back, a well practiced gesture that went unnoticed by the young Hawaiian girl. When she was little, he would often curl up with her and hold her fast against her fears and the night, and though her body may have changed, her distinctive scent of honeysuckle, jasmine, and gardenias was still the same.

Stitch ran his claws gently through Lilo's waist length ebony hair, a particularly soothing gesture that always calmed the young Hawaiian. Tonight was no different, and soon Lilo's breathing settled into the deep even patterns of sleep. Stitch carefully arranged the covers around her and then, with a last look at his own bed, he gently climbed over her body to curl softly between her breasts. With a happy sigh he, too, fell asleep.

The dawn broke warm and clear as Lilo slipped fluidly from her bed, carefully untangling herself from her cutely snoring companion.

I do like holding him like this, but these days he feels less like O'hana and more like... Scrump. Lilo thought, running her hand gently over Stitch's back with a slight twinge of shame. I won't force him to change, but if he asks...

Lilo let the unfinished thought trail off as she descended the elevator shaft to the rest of the house. "G' morning Pleakly." The teenager mumbled shambling over to the coffee pot.

"Good morning -SWEET MOTHER OF MARMALADE, YOU'RE NOT-" Pleakly's impassioned inquiry was cut short as Lilo clamped one hand over his mouth as the other wrangled her favorite mug, black ceramic with a red fanged smiley face and a drop blood in the front and the words "Bite Me!" scrawled in an  eerie font meant to simulate dripping blood, out of the cabinet and onto the counter before she released the one eyed alien. "You're not going to planet Turo dressed like that are you?"

"Yes Pleakly." She mumbled caustically as she prepared her coffee. Dark and sweet.  Kinda like Stitch. She thought. "I'm going to see the Grand Councilwoman in my panties and an oversized sleep shirt."

"Well, you don't have to be so sarcastic about it." Pleakly grumbled, moving about the kitchen as the dark haired Hawaiian sipped her coffee. "Breakfast will be ready in about ten minutes."

"You should know better than to ask me incredibly obvious questions before I've had my first cup." Lilo grinned, saluting with her cup. "I should go do preflight."

"I do hope you're gonna put on some make up. You've got these nasty bags under your eyes."

The younger Pelekai's eyes narrowed as the grin fell from her face. "I didn't sleep well." She ground out, crossing to a second elevator platform leading still deeper into the house. "Strange dreams, you know." She glared coldly as the elevator sank out of sight and a metal iris closed above her.

Lilo sighed as she stepped off the lift into the cool subterranean workshop and hangar area grabbing her lab coat off a nearby rack out of habit.

"Ah, good morning little girl." Jumba called jovially as he stuck his head out of his lab.

"I'm not so little anymore, Uncle Jumba." The teenager replied allowing herself to be swept up into a hug by the large four eyed alien.

"Nonsense!" Jumba exclaimed, carrying the giggling girl into the hangar bay. "No matter how big you are to be getting, you will always be my little girl." Jumba said with a last affectionate squeeze before setting Lilo back on the floor.

Lilo took a deep breath and let her eyes sweep over the familiar hangar, every line of every vehicle singing of the limitless freedom of the sky, and the stars beyond. There Stitch's stolen red police cruiser sat awaiting a recalibration of its steering controls. Nearby their old buggy was jacked up needing new shocks, and Jumba and Pleakly's old ship was opened up awaiting a new hyperdrive. And there on the launch platform was her ship. My baby. She thought fondly, letting her hand trail lightly over its smooth black lines.

When Stitch resigned his commission aboard the BRB 9000, Captain Gantu had been ecstatically reinstated to his former post. In gratitude, he had turned his old ship over to the young Turian ambassador, despite the protests of the Galactic Alliance,  many of who said she was too young for the responsibilities  of a starship, and the rest who claimed that recognition of her deeds merited an advanced star cruiser, not an old outdated model. Lilo had replied that the still serviceable ship had belonged to a member of her extended family and she already knew her way around. She had passed the standard permit test and was allowed to operate her ship anywhere in Allied space accompanied by a licensed pilot, usually Stitch, but either way the ship was hers. "So is my baby ready to fly?"

"Of course!" Jumba said indignantly. "Jumba is being evil genius, starship technician, and all around handyman. Although... something is to be troubling me. We have state of the art communications equipment with top of the line encryption protocols written by the Alliances brightest minds, and then Jumba is getting his hands on it and making even better!" The Kweltikwanian scientist laughed merrily for a moment, then sobered. "Point Jumba is trying to be making is, why go through trouble of calling little girl  all the way to planet Turo?"

"Good question." Lilo said sipping at her cooling coffee. "I think it's one of two things, neither of them particularly good. Either the Grand Councilwoman believes communication lines have been compromised, or there's some threat that she feels I'd be safer closer to Turo."

"Little girl is being right. Both choices leave, how are you to be saying, a bad taste in Jumba's mouth. But Jumba is also thinking that whatever happens, it will all be working out for the best." The large alien  said soothingly. "Now! Little girl should be getting showered and changed before you go."

"But the preflight-"

"Little girl, you have been doing preflight checks so long you can do them in your sleep and Jumba has been doing them longer still. You just leave everything to Jumba! Now go!" The larger alien chuckled giving Lilo a friendly swat pushing her back towards the lift.

"All right, I'm going!" Lilo laughed as she headed back to her small workshop between Jumba's main lab and the lift back to the house. She stuck her head in to check on one of the three resident experiments at the Pelekai home, Glitch, and found the computer terminal where he normally resides dark. "That's weird. Where'd Glitch go?"

"Glitch headed over to the power station to see if he could help out Sparky." Nosey said from his perch on an bench.

"Hey Nosey, what ya got for me?" Lilo looked at the small crimson experiment who brought her the daily news from about the island.

"I hear you're heading off world for the day?" The information gatherer asked. Lilo nodded and he continued speaking. "I'll have Victoria and Snooty do your rounds. Kixx dropped off Sparky's discharge batteries at the power plant this morning."

"Good. I want to help the people of the island, but I don't want any experiments getting hurt in the process."

Nosey nodded and tipped his head to one side as he tried to remember all the gossip that Lilo might find pertinent. "That's pretty much it, but I heard from Whoops who- er, anyway... I heard around that Tank may be having some dental problems."

"Right then. I leave the power plant in Sparky's hands until I get back. He has full authorization from me, standard rules. I want Tank in here so Jumba can check him out."

"You know he's not really crazy about you." Nosey warned.

"I'll deal. He's got 24 hours, then we drag him in. That being all... I gotta go wake up my copilot."

Several hours later Lilo's little black cruiser emerged from hyperspace and was cleared for landing on planet Turo, homeworld of the Galactic Alliance.

"Lilo, look!" Stitch pointed out the port window, where an impressive red battleship lay docked nearby.

"Wow... the new BRB 9000 X. Gantu must be here." Lilo murmured, letting her eyes trace over the ship's cool sleek lines. Her one time nemesis did not disappoint.

"If it isn't the little earth girl and the abomination."

"Hey Stitch, it's the big dummy and sandwich boy."

The two former rivals and their partners glared at each other, the experiments growled with all their alien appendages extended, then Lilo burst out laughing as Gantu scooped her into  a spinning hug.

"You've gotten bigger, Lilo." Rueben said, grabbing Stitch in a one armed hug as Gantu lowered the young terran back to her feet. "Your head has officially cleared Gantu's knees."

"All right you two, spill." Lilo demanded. "What's so urgent that the Grand Councilwoman called us all the way out here?"

Gantu opened his mouth to respond when Rueben cut him off. "The GC is gonna tell her soon enough, big G. No sense in winding her up unnecessarily." The teenager opened her mouth to protest but the mustard colored experiment changed the subject. "Here kiddo, I found this great new cheese on a supply run in Delta Quadrant. It's only so so cold, but heat it until it melts and..." The sandwich making experiment began to drool slightly. "Well, I made you a meatball sub so you can see for yourself."

"Mahalo Rueben." Having resigned herself to the fact that she wasn't getting any answers yet, Lilo bit into the foil wrapped sandwich and chewed thoughtfully. A moment later her face lit up in ecstatic glee. "Oh Rueben this is..." The young Hawaiian trailed off savoring the taste.

"Yeah, the ads say it tastes like fireworks going off in your mouth. I thought it was just some clever marketing hype, but sister, am I glad I was wrong!" Rueben  grinned reaching back into the cooler. "For my little brother Stitch, my spicy chicken salad, now with three kinds of hot peppers from the Olmec nebula."

"Oh..." Stitch looked at the sandwich that had given him his first case of heartburn and indigestion. Stitch had found he loved the feeling of perfectly flawed misery and enjoyed the meal at his every convenience. Rueben, to his credit, kept trying to make it hotter and hotter hoping to eventually reach a level that the blue experiment would finally admit was unpleasant. "Takka buddy." Stitch whispered before taking carefully measured bites.

"That's my bro, a glutton for punishment." Rueben chuckled. "Gantu, I made your classic egg salad sandwich, low fat as per your request."

Lilo paused long enough to raise an eyebrow at the large whale like alien. "Some of my uniforms are getting a bit tight in the middle. Not enough exercise." He mumbled before chowing down on his sandwich.

When the brief repast was finished Gantu stood to leave but Lilo waved him back down. "Don't go just yet, guys." She smiled and produced a Tupperware container from behind her back. "I brought dessert."

"Coconut cake!" Stitch called happily.

"Is your nose on the fritz, bro?" Rueben exclaimed slobbering. "That is pure chocolate!"

Gantu leaned down and took a big sniff as Lilo began doling out the precut slices. "Actually, you're both right, but is that chocolate syrup I smell?"

"All the better to hold it together." Lilo said, passing a quarter slice to each extraterrestrial and splitting the remainder in half for herself.

"Ambassador Pelekai, Captain Gantu? The Councilwoman will see you now." A page announced from the door of the private audience chambers.

The quartet looked down at the chocolaty mess they had made of themselves and found only one term quite fitting for the moment. "Oh blitznak." The muttered in unison before Rueben  dove into his cooler and pulled out some damp soapy towels which the group hastily used to make themselves presentable.

"Lilo, wait." Stitch said, pulling the taller girl down to his height. "Youga got stubborn spot right there." He said leaning in close to her cocoa tinted cheek. Rather than just slurp it off like he would at home , the little blue experiment leaned in close and quickly swirled his tongue over the offending spot in a bizarre little kiss, causing Lilo to blush a brilliant crimson as Gantu lead the group into the private chambers.

"Thank you both for- Galley officer  Rueben,  you have chocolate cake on your uniform."

"Sorry Ma'am." Rueben said looking futilely for a cloth  before slurping the stain off and tucking his uniform back in. The irony of this was not lost on Stitch who chuckled softly before regaining his composure.

"As I was saying, thank you all for coming on such short notice. Captain Gantu, anything new?"

"No ma'am. No addendum to my prior reports."

"I see, thank you. Ambassador Pelekai, I'm sure you're  wondering why I asked you here today."

"Yes ma'am, I am." Lilo answered, nervously toying with her ruby earrings before forcing her hands back into her lap.

"Nine terran months ago, Dr. Jaques von Hamsterville effected his escape from the maximum security penal asteroid where he was to serve out the remainder of his sentence."

"Did he take experiment 6-2-8?" The ambassador asked pinching the bridge of her nose.

"Yes. The original 6-2-8, designated 'Leroy' by Dr. Hamsterville, disappeared from our science labs at the same time and security footage shows the two escaping together."

"Lovely." Lilo drawled sarcastically.

"There is more you need to know, ambassador." Gantu said. "A month after his escape, Hamsterville went to ground, eluding our searches. two weeks ago he appeared briefly on a merchant planet in Gamma quadrant."

"What was he after ?" The Hawaiian asked narrowing her eyes.

"The merchant said he took possession of this." The reinstate captain answered, sliding a personal display device over to Lilo and Stitch. "I suspect that is familiar?"

"Too familiar." She growled , glaring distastefully at the small  silver egg mounted on  a display base. "This is a storage system  for dehydrated genetic experiments."

The Councilwoman resumed at this point. "You are correct, miss Pelekai. While we are conducting a full investigation  of everyone Dr. Hamsterville has been in contact with in his career, we still have no leads as to his whereabouts or who could be producing these experiments for him."

"I assume Hamsterville's assets have all been frozen." Lilo mused.

"Standard procedure for this scenario." Gantu replied. "However if he's working through a proxy agent, one not readily linked to him-"

"It's possible that something was overlooked, hence how he's bankrolling this." Lilo mused aloud. "But why? Why go through all this trouble?"

"Revenge." Stitch said gravely. "We always ruin plans. Gerbil boy want Lilo out the way so he can take the cousins."

"It is a reasonable hypothesis." Gantu said, stroking his chin. "Hamsterville has always desired Dr. Jookiba's experiments and often Lilo was the only one standing in his way. Experiment 6- er Stitch is personally responsible for his apprehension and incarceration on at least three different occasions."

"In that case I have no choice but to ask that you remain here under Alliance protection." The Councilwoman said.

"Unacceptable ma'am." Lilo  said crisply. "Now more than ever my place is on Earth with my experiments."

"You do realize hat you would be putting yourself in grave personal danger?" The blue skinned alien said with a frown.

Rueben piped up at this point. "Actually ma'am this could be just what we need."

"What do you mean, Rueben." Gantu asked.

"Think about it, Captain. The island of Kauai may be inconsequential in the grand scheme of things, but for Hamsterville, it's the most important place in the galaxy."

"I get it." Lilo said with a grim smile. "That inconsequential little island has over 600 of the things Hamsterville wants most. We may not know where he is, but we know where he's going"

"Are you suggesting that you use yourself as bait?" The Councilwoman asked.

"Exactly." The terran girl said, punching her open palm. "Everything he wants is on earth and that gives us an edge."

"You can't seriously expect me to just let you go-"

Gantu cut in. "Madame Councilwoman, perhaps if Rueben and I went back to earth with the ambassador? She would be under the protection of an officer of the Galactic Alliance, and I would be that much closer should our suspicions prove correct and Hamsterville does come to Earth."

"Captain, if this is about what happened all those years ago, I bear you no ill will." Lilo said softly. "Surely you can do more good here with  the BRB than you can  in some backwater planet in Gamma quadrant."

"Part of being a member of the Galactic alliance is knowing that you can count on the other members. The BRB has a good crew and a very capable first officer. They can continue field operations without me, although the BRB is quite noticeable."

"We can have our excursion shuttle transferred to the BRB." Lilo said with  a sense of finality, as though the  matter were already decided. "Dr. Jookiba outfitted the shuttle with the same stealth  technology as the ship. You can go with the BRB to throw Hamsterville off the track, then  return to earth with that."

"That... is acceptable I suppose." The Councilwoman murmured, her demeanor clearly showing her distaste for the idea.

"Rueben, I want you to go back to Earth with the ambassador."

"And set up a base of operations?"

"You know me too well." The captain said.

"If that is all, you are dismissed." The quartet rose and filed towards the door. "Oh yes, Miss Pelekai."

Lilo paused and looked back over her shoulder. "Yes ma'am?"

"There is one other matter. The results of your last licensing exam are in." Lilo held her breath expectantly as the Councilwoman smiled maddeningly before sliding a slim plastic card across the table. "Congratulations, Lilo."

"I passed?" Lilo gaped, staring at the license in awe.

"You passed." The Councilwoman replied, a slight smile teasing at her lips. "Your parallel parking could stand to improve, but all things considered you did... a 'bang up job' I believe is the terran expression."

"Thank you, Madame Councilwoman." The ambassador said, inspecting the little card more closely. "Your first name is Zoe?" The terran girl asked curiously.

"Er, well yes. In my native language it means 'fair, yet just'. It's a daily reminder of what I strive for in my position."

Lilo pondered this for a moment before extending her hand to the blue alien in a friendly manner. "Hi! I'm Lilo. I hope we can be friends."

Zoe stared at the proffered hand a long moment before covering it with her own. "I am Zoe. I think... that would be nice." The Councilwoman stepped from behind her desk and began walking with Lilo towards the hangar. "Our friendship will not be easy, Ambassador." She said, quietly reminding her friend of their professional relationship. "There are many in the council who believe that I have been showing you and your world preferential treatment."

"Remember 'Firm yet just.' Madame Councilwoman." The young girl reminded her. "At no point did I ever ask for anything more than Stitch."

"True enough, but why not resign your commission as ambassador?" The Councilwoman queried.

"I'm... not really sure." The brunette said. "Maybe going from a whole family to a broken one to my patchwork o'hana has made me realize just how alone in the universe one person can be." Lilo's eyes glazed over slightly as she stared out into the vast starry blackness of space surrounding planet Turo. "It's  like looking into the abyss," She murmured quietly. "and realizing the abyss is looking back."

The pair fell silent for a long while before Lilo spoke again. "Madame Councilwoman, I may not be able to repurpose these experiments like I did with Dr. Jookiba's. What would you have me do?"

"I'll not have you bloody you hands on my account. If you can turn them as you say from bad to good, then I give you full authorization to do so. If you cannot, subdue the experiment by any means necessary and dehydrate it for transport."

Lilo thought for a moment about what would happen to those experiments. I've become Gantu to her Hamsterville. Lilo thought abruptly, then  pushed that thought away. "Very well then, Madame Councilwoman. I bid you good day."

The Grand Councilwoman nodded in dismissal and watched with  some amusement as Lilo scampered over to the two 600 series experiments, showing them her license. The look of elation was short lived as Stitch said something to her before ambling up the docking ramp, followed by Rueben. Lilo shook herself out of her horrified daze and scrambled up the ramp as it retracted.

The Grand Councilwoman couldn't help but smile as she returned to her chambers. "He must have told her she was driving home."

Author's Notes: Yay! I have finally managed to produce another chapter. Go me. Considering I have a full time job and write this out by hand on my breaks this is pretty cool.

Lilo became an Ambassador and primary caretaker for the experiments at the beginning of Leroy and Stitch, however at the end of the movie, she never officially resigned her commission and thus is still an ambassador. The Grand Councilwoman's first name is taken from her voice actress, Zoe Caldwell. I thought it would be interesting  to show the pair in  a not as formal light.

Let's see, in general responses to my comments. Many of you asked me to write more. I'm going to assume that those people didn't bother to read my author notes on the first chapter and are likely not going to read these either. For those of you that do, please I like feedback telling me what my readers like and dislike about my stories, so give me that instead of demands to write more. The chapter's will come out as I get them done, no sooner no later (yes curse me for having a real life) so all I can ask is that you be patient.

Some people have complained that I didn't explain what the various text variations mean. All my notes are here at the bottom, so by the time you reach them, I'm sure all my bright readers have already figured out that my typing one way means thinking and another means speaking in another language, most likely Turian, so really I feel this is quite redundant. Another response I got concerned the overall length of the first part. Yes, it was relatively short, as it was meant to be a prologue. I have endeavored to make chapter one longer. Did I succeed?

Anyway, I look forward to my new reviews so please, feed the review monster.