An Awesome Friend

## Summary

While on a walk, Nayah meets an ox and the two quickly become friends, but she realizes that she can't say his real name, due to his fear and the rule, but when she gets a call from Gracie, the two have to put their fear aside and help the poor wolf pup after she says that she's been held hostage by Kamala.

## Story

It was a clear sunny spring day and fifteen-year-old Nayah Hoffmeister was taking her daily walk to the grocery store so she could get milk so Diana could make cookies and as she was walking, she saw something rustle in the bushes and moved a bit closer to the bushes and what she saw made her heart melt.

There was a blue ox standing in the middle of the bushes, shivering from the cold and the ox looked very sweet and scared so Nayah decided to try to talk to the ox to calm him down.

She knelt down on the ground and held out her hand, which had a carrot in it.

The ox slowly walked over to her, looking hungry and sad.

"Hello, little ox." Nayah said as the ox ate the carrot right out of her hand.

"Do you have a name?" Nayah asked softly.

"I won't tell you my real name."

"I'm too afraid of the letter it starts with." The ox replied as he snuggled into her as the fourteen year old laughed quietly.

"Oh, no."

"If I can't say your real name, what can I call you as a nickname?" Nayah asked as she looked inside his emerald, which had his real name printed on it.

She didn't want to say his real name out loud because she knew she would get tickled when she got home.

"Oh, I see why you're scared."

"But don't worry, little ox, I'll protect you." Nayah promised.

"Can you do me a favor?" The ox gazed at Nayah, his big orange eyes shining.

"Sure, little ox."

"I'll do a favor for you, what's up?" Nayah asked gently.

The ox knelt down and pointed to his ear, which had a big thorn stuck inside it.

"Ooh, you poor thing." "Your ear must hurt a lot, huh?" Nayah said sympathetically as she got down and took out the thorn.

"Thank you, Nayah." Little Ox smiled.

"You're welcome, Little Ox." Nayah smiled, starting to walk away from Snowflake Cave. But Little Ox ran after her, tackling her to the ground as lasers were fired repeatedly.

"Little Ox?" "I thought that I took you to Snowflake Cave a few minutes ago?" Nayah scratched her head in confusion.

"Someone is after us, I know it." Little Ox shuddered as Nayah knelt down to his level, softly murmuring the alphabet.

"Hello, babe." A voice said.

"Something tells me we're in big trouble, Nayah." Little Ox murmured.

"Run back to the Cave, Little Ox." "I'll be okay." Nayah said as Little Ox zoomed back to Snowflake Cave, resulting in Nayah standing up and looking around anxiously.

She suddenly realized that one of the X twins were after her but which one? Xavier had reformed, so the fourteen-year-old knew he wasn't after her.

Her heartbeat quickened as she realized who had said the word that was off-limits.

"Go away, Xander!" "Unless you want Nayah to freeze you, I suggest you get away from her before her angry side washes over." Xavier snapped.

"Shut up, Xavier!" Xander growled as Nayah just glared at him, shaking her head.

"Xander, you'd better run!" "Little Ox is ready to chase you!" Xavier said as Little Ox got ready to chase Xander.

"No, no way!" Xander growled as he pulled out his laser. However, the laser didn't have any effect on Little Ox because the calf was running after Xander already.

"Woah!" "He's fast!" Xavier said, amazed as Nayah nodded.

"I kinda had to train him on running, just in case an incident like this happened." "He also has asthma, but he took his inhaler a couple of hours ago so he should be fine." Nayah said as Little Ox suddenly stopped running, collapsing on the grass. The calf was also struggling to breathe, so that *definitely* wasn't a good sign.

"Nayah?" "Didn't Little Ox take his inhaler?" Xavier asked worriedly.

"Yeah." "Why?" Nayah asked, seeing Little Ox struggling to breathe.

"Oh, no!" Nayah wailed. She rushed to Little Ox and placed his inhaler towards his mouth as he breathed into it while Xavier watched cautiously.

"All better?" Xavier asked softly.

"Yes, thank you." "You're a good friend." Little Ox pressed up against Nayah as she giggled slightly.

*"Nayah, we need you!" "We've got double trouble!" Jackie said telepathically.*

*"Oh, no!" "I'm with Xavier and we'll be there in a couple of minutes." Nayah replied.*

"Okay." "Let's go, Xavier." "The team needs us." Nayah said.

"Alright." Xavier relented as he followed Nayah to headquarters. Once the two got there, Nayah saw Xander and he was smirking, so that was a definite warning sign he was up to no good.

"Nayah, you OK?" Xavier asked, seeing his partner's look.

*"Get away from HQ." "You need to run before Xander shows up and calls you b-a-b-e." Chessie whispered.*

"*Oh, no." "Let's ride!" Nayah murmured as Gracie showed up.*

"Hey, guys, what's up?" Gracie asked, noticing that Nayah looked as though she was getting ready to cry.

"Take me to Snowflake Cave." Nayah said firmly.

Gracie knew her best friend needed her so she allowed her to get on her back, then took her to Snowflake Cave.

"I need you to find out what Xander's up to." Nayah said as Gracie nodded.

"I'm on it!" Gracie giggled.

"Thanks, my sweet pup." Nayah said as she looked around, seeing posters of the letter X everywhere.

"Oh, no." "I wish there were posters of Chessie." Nayah wished.

"*Let's get glowin'!" Zane cheered.*

The posters quickly disappeared as Nayah sighed with relief.

"You're doing great, Nayah." Chester said softly. He gazed into the young girl's eyes.

"Thanks, Chest." Nayah replied. She heard footsteps as she covered Chessie's mouth to prevent him from speaking.

"Hello, Nayah." "Are you OK?" Nix asked softly.

"I'm fine, Nix." Nayah winked. She sighed deeply as Nix hugged her.

"It'll be okay." "Baby Ox is going to be just fine as long as no one says his actual name." Nix smiled. She looked at Nayah, who signed the word that was off limits as Nix nodded.

"The emerald lights up any time someone says his real name." "Luckily, none of us have." Nix smiled as Nayah shook her head no.

"Am I wrong?" "Did one of the teammates say b-a-b-e today?" Nix asked.

Nayah nodded her head yes as Nix gasped, knowing who might have messed up, but she didn't want to accuse someone without proof. She waited for Nayah to settle down before she held up a picture of Xander.

"Oooh, I knew it!" "Baby Ox is going to be so mad when I tell him." Nayah growled.

"Yep!" "He's getting chased today." Baby Ox giggled as he stretched out, yawning slightly as Nix exited the Cave, chuckling lightly.

"Hello, Baby Ox." "I need you for something." Nayah said softly as she signed four different letters as Baby Ox watched carefully. He started growling as he realized what word she was trying to sign.

"Baby Ox, you're not mad at me, are you?" Nayah asked carefully as the calf shook his head no, making the young girl sigh with relief.

"Are you mad at Xander?" Nayah asked as Baby Ox shuddered, then nodded.

"I'm not mad at you." Baby Ox giggled as Nayah helped him into his wheelchair. The calf smiled weakly at his caretaker, who smiled softly as she used her glitter magic to make him float up in the air.

"Woah!" "I'm floating!" Baby Ox giggled.

"I'll be back." "You can't chase Xander on your own." Nayah giggled as Shadow walked over, smiling.

"Hi, Baby Ox." Shadow murmured. He hugged the young ox, who smiled, hugging him back.

"It's good to see my best friend again." Baby Ox laughed.

"Okay, you two." "Let's go." Nayah said as her friends started running.

*"Nayah,* *I'll let you sign my real name in American Sign Language if you want to talk to me, but you can't let the villains find out." "I'm only letting you and your friends do this because I trust all of you." "Besides, you seem like a trustworthy person." Baby Ox whispered.*

*"Awww." "I'll keep my promise to you and I'll keep your secret, as long as you keep mine."* Nayah responded.

"Ooooh." "Once I'm done chasing these two, can you tell me what your secret is?" Baby Ox asked.

"Yeah." "Stay focused on your mission." Nayah smiled. She frowned as Xander walked over.

"Cheetah, hide!" Chessie panicked. However, Nayah stayed calm and silent as Xander smirked at her.

"Let's dance!" Nayah smirked as she started to do her dance fighting moves as she kicked, twirled, and punched Xander hard, but not too hard as she started to sing.

*I can't wait for summertime, it's going to be hot*

*Xander, do you really think I have time for your tricks? I do not.*

*One of my superpowers*

*Is definitely telekinesis*

*But you and I know*

*That the word babe*

*Is my definite weakness*

After she sang, Xander smirked at her again, so she kept doing her dance fighting moves until K walked over.

"Let Nix and I handle him for you, girlfriend." "I see you're tired, so take a break." Kace giggled as Chief walked over, frowning. Nayah felt her heart rate get a lot faster as she realized she'd broken the rule.

"Nayah, as much as I appreciate you breaking my spell, I have to punish you for breaking my number one rule." "I'm sorry, though." "Lie on your back and remove your shoes." Gloria said softly.

Nayah laid down in the grass, not feeling any sadness. She didn't feel angry with herself, either. She felt excited as the twins, Zoe and Zion, got closer, tickling her all over. She rolled over on her back repeatedly as the twins kept tickling her until they finally stopped.

"Time for a chase!" Baby Ox giggled as he started to chase Nayah, who smiled softly. She zigzagged all around HQ to outrun Baby Ox, but he pounced on her, smirking playfully.

"You've tired me out, buddy." "I'll never break my promise to you." Nayah sighed heavily.

"It's okay, I know you didn't want to." Baby Ox smiled as Xander walked over to Nayah, so he leapt in front of her to protect her.

"Go away, Xander." "Nayah and I want to spend time alone with one another." "Don't even think about saying my real name." "I'll chase you, like I did with Nayah." "She's my everything and there's *no way* I'm letting you screw that up." Baby Ox snarled fiercely.

Xander looked at Nayah, smirking. Nayah kept her eyes looking down at the snowy ground as she growled softly.

"Nayah, I know you love me, babe." Xander smirked as Nayah started to scream very loudly. She slowly got close to Xander before she slapped him twice as she counted to four as Baby Ox got ready to catch her.

"You've hurt me, X." Nayah growled as she fell into Baby Ox's arms. The calf slowly placed her on a snowy cushion, making it float all the way to HQ.

*"Time for this ox to chase.. again."* Baby Ox muttered. He slowly started to run after Xander until he had reached HQ.

"Hello." Nayah smiled. She picked him up as he started to whimper.

"What's wrong?" Nayah asked as Baby Ox started shaking.

"Nayah, look at the emerald." Shadow whispered.

"Oh, no.. I should probably set you back down on the ground." Nayah said.

"Don't set me down, beautiful." "Xander's gonna kill me." Baby Ox whimpered.

"Oh, is he?" "Well, I know what to do." "You'll have to chase me, though." Nayah said softly.

"Oh, no." Baby Ox whimpered as Nayah walked over to Xander, growling softly as he smirked at her. Baby Ox slowly started to relax a bit, waiting for the action to happen. He was excited.

She then slapped him, not once, but twice. Xander growled in frustration, trying to laser her, but Nayah smirked, firing an icy laser in his direction as Xander fell over. Nayah walked over to him, that smirk still on her face.

"I hope you know Nix isn't your babe anymore." "She dumped you because you kept playing her, so now she's dating Xavier and I'm not letting you mess that up." Nayah smirked as she started to run. She'd gotten used to being chased by Baby Ox. After all, she had told him that he would need to chase her.

"Nayah, I hope you know you're going to have to say the B word a second time." Baby Ox called. He started to slow down as Nayah saw Edward approaching her. He had a smirk on his face, so Nayah took a deep breath. She knew Baby Ox would have to chase her again, and she was ready.

"Nayah, do you want to date me?" Edward smirked as Nayah straight up slapped him like he was crazy. She then tackled him to the ground, looking into his eyes, smirking. She was ready to do *anything* to keep Edward away from her teammates.

"I hope you know K.C. and I aren't falling for any more of your tricks, babe." Nayah smirked as Baby Ox started to run after her.

She shoved Edward away and she continued to run, trying to outrun him, but she tripped on a rock and fell over. Her right ankle twisted as she struggled to get up and run. She had let Baby Ox catch her the first time, but she wanted to make sure that she was in Snowflake Cave if the ox tackled her.

Nayah ignored her ankle and ran into Snowflake Cave, collapsing onto the soft snow, watching as Baby Ox ran in, tackling her to the ground.

"Aww, you got me again, bud." Nayah smiled. Baby Ox smirked, tackling her again. He'd fallen in love with her. He hoped as soon as he told her that she would at least give him a chance.

"Nayah, I get that you're in a relationship, but it's no secret how I feel." Baby Ox smirked as Nayah suddenly got butterflies in her stomach. Not the worried kind, but the excited kind.

"How exactly do you feel?" Nayah asked cautiously. She watched as Baby Ox started to sing.

*Look up above*

*You're beautiful like a dove*

*I'm so, I'm so in love*

*I'm so, I'm so in love with you*

*You might think I'm being untrue*

*But I'm seriously in love with you*

*In my eyes*

*I see us flying in the skies*

*I'm in love*

*I'm in love with you*

"Baby Ox.. y-you're in love.. with me?" Nayah asked, feeling shocked and surprised as the ox calf nodded.

"I know you are taken, but please, please I just want your love." "I don't want to be left alone, not after what Xander did to my parents. " "He..He..hurt them.. permanently." Baby Ox sighed, tearing up.

"Whoah.. How dare he!" "That's just wrong." K.C. said, shaking her head.

"Uh-oh.. We've *got double trouble."* Jackie said as Baby Ox walked over to Nayah.

"Time to ride!" Baby Ox laughed. He looked at Nayah, who got on his back. Baby Ox looked at Jackie, who nodded, signaling for him to start running.

"Go on!" "We'll deal with Edward and Linda." Jackie was frantic.

"OK." "Hold on, Nayah, I'm going fast!" Baby Ox said as he started to speed up.

"Yeah!" "This is how musk oxen travel - on soft grass and fast!" Nayah laughed.

"Oh, no." Baby Ox growled as he jerked to a stop. He put his head down as Xander walked up to Nayah.

"Hello, babe." Xander smirked as Nayah began to scream. She stared at Baby Ox, who got prepared to catch her.

"No, no, don't catch me." "Keep running." Nayah said as she got on his back. The calf started to run and zigzag at the same time, making an impossible for Xander to even catch Nayah.

"Nice work!" "Think you can camouflage?" Nayah asked as Baby Ox camouflaged so that he matched the background of Snowflake Cave.

"Red alert, red alert!" "Turn around!" Nix called as Baby Ox turned around, seeing Linda and Xander. He looked at Nayah, who sighed deeply. She handed the calf a bright blue collar and placed an emerald inside it. She smiled at Baby Ox.

"If anyone says your real name, your emerald will light up and Dexter, Landon, and Shadow will help you chase the person who has said your actual name on purpose." Nayah explained.

"But how will I know who to chase?" Baby Ox asked as Nayah patted his head, smiling.

"You'll know because I'll tell you, and Dexter, Landon, and Shadow will tell you." "Also, I already know why you have to ride in a wheelchair, and I won't tease you about that, nor will I tease you about your asthma." Nayah said as Linda and Xander walked closer.

"Get ready, Baby Ox." "You'll have to chase." Nayah murmured.

"Hi, babe." Xander smirked as Nayah began to scream. Her screams attracted Chief's attention.

"Nayah, what's wrong?" Chief asked as Nayah sighed deeply.

"Remember how you told us to never use the words "Hi" and the word that's off limits in the same sentence together?" Nayah asked.

"Mhm.." Chief nodded as Nayah growled, swaying back and forth.

"I can tell you're swaying, but why?" "Are you tired?" Chief asked.

"No, I'm just a bit mad." Nayah responded, starting to sway faster. Chief then realized why her owner was swaying so quickly.

"Xander, do you have anything to do with the reason why my owner is swaying so fast right now?" Chief growled.

"No.." Xander lied as Nayah began to sway faster. She wasn't in the mood for talking. Chief looked at her worriedly.

"Mm, I'm OK, Chief, Xander just used the words "Hi" and b-a-b-e in the exact same sentence!" Nayah growled.

"I didn't!" Xander growled. But Nayah held up a tape.

"Mhm, sure you didn't.. Even though I've got proof, Chief will always believe you, not me.." Nayah said sarcastically as Chief snarled at Xander.

"Game's over, Xander." "You've messed up." Ashlyn said, walking over.

"And you've said the no-no word!" "You're in double trouble!" Zora and Zane smirked as they looked at Nayah, who nodded as Chief ran over.

"Go ahead, guys." "Do your thing." Chief smiled.

"Oh, babe, do you honestly think you scare me?" Xander smirked, laughing scornfully.

"Don't call me that!" Nayah snapped, slapping him.

"What's wrong, butterfly?" Xander asked with fake sympathy.

"Don't call me that either!"

"I was sure I'd make you pass out." He frowned.

"Didn't you hear what she told you earlier?" "You can't pull the trick." Beth snapped.

"Oh, Nayah, c'mon, babe." Xader smirked as Chester slowly collapsed.

"Chessie!" Nayah gently picked up her best friend, hugging him until he opened his eyes.

"Nayah, don't tell me, please reassure me that nobody has broken the rule." Chessie frowned.

"I want to, but you and I would be in a heated moment if I lied.. I'm sorry, though." Nayah said as she looked at Chester.