Tourist From Another Planet

Slowly, the remaining smoke vanished. I was still in shock, not able to process the loss of my camera, as well as the girl in front of me. She was a bit taller than me, and while she looked human enough, she was also a bit... odd. Her bright green hair pooled at her feet, with movements of its own, as if it was a second pair of arms. She blew her fringe out of her eyes, a bit of it yellow instead of green. Even her eyes sparkled green, and it seemed like they reflected the stars better than human eyes ever could.

"W-who are you?"

I managed to get the words out, my head still spinning. What's going on? Did that girl really eat my camera? Who is she? What is she? She can't be... no way... is this a dream?

"Hello."

She waved at us with a big smile. On her face, little star-shaped stickers adorned her cheeks like freckles, and with every move, the necklaces, earrings and bracelets on her body glittered and jingled. Her fashion was... colorful, to say the least. She had seemingly incorporated all the colors of the rainbow in her outfit, wearing layer over layer of clothes and stacked accessories on every free space. Still, it looked somewhat coherent, if messy. She gave us a big smile before introducing herself.

"Hello! I'm ARX-U."

Surprisingly, it was Pudding who said something first.

"It's nice to meet you, Arisu. Do you know what happened to the meteor? We thought we would be the first ones to find it?"

"Meteor? Also, I like how you pronounce my name. Funny."

The girl - Arisu - looked confused, before looking down the crater.

"Oh. You mean my ship."

"You're an alien."

The words escaped my mouth, even though I still couldn't quite believe it. This had to be a dream, right?

"Hm? That's kind of rude. I'm basically a tourist."

"A tourist?," Maria echoed.

The girl shrugged, looking at the stars.

"You know, just visiting somewhere else for a break? Do you humans not do that?"

"S-sure, we do, but..."

Maria went silent, looking at us for help.

Erica cleared her throat, looking straight at Arisu.

"What do you want from us?"

I was happy not to be at the receiving end of her fiery glance. At least we had her to protect us! From what, I wasn't sure, but....

"A place to stay would be nice." She grinned at us. "Oh, and something proper to eat. That snack was nice, but a bit dry."

"My camera..."

"Ah. Sorry. Is that a delicacy? I should have consulted PURIRIN beforehand."

Arisu pulled out something that looked like a toy UFO, with a creature inside that reminded me of a cross between a jelly-bean and a duck. The creature let out a tiny quack as the girl opened the ship up like a flip-phone, looking at a screen.

"I didn't mean to take it from you, I was just very hungry after traveling for that long."

"It's not a delicacy,” Erica explained.

"We don't eat electronics," I added, wiping away the tears in the corner of my eyes.

"Ah. I'm sorry." She looked at me with genuine regret. "It seems like it was important to you."

"It was, but..."

I couldn't finish my thought or my sentence. In the distance, sirens wailed.

"I guess others have come to see the meteor, too." Erica concluded. "We should go."

The others scrambled to get away from the crater, but I looked back. Arisu watched us with mild interest.

"Come on!"

I reached my hand out to her.

"You want me to come with you?"

"Better us than some weird science lab."

Even though I always thought I'd boast everywhere when I found an alien, right now I just wanted to keep her safe.

"You can stay with me," I offered.

"Really?"

Her eyes lit up.

Maybe this is a mistake. But what can go wrong, really? It's not like I never had a sleepover before. Just not a sleepover with an alien.

"Just follow us."

The others were already gathering our equipment. We were still near the crater, so I grabbed Arisu's hand, running downhill to catch up with the others. At my side, Arisu giggled.

"Oh, I knew it was the right decision to come here!"

"What do you mean?"

I kept my focus on the group, even though I wanted to look back at her.

"I wanted to have fun. Make some friends. You know, normal stuff."

I smiled.

"Glad to hear that's normal stuff."

"What do you mean by that?"

"Nothing, nothing."I dismissed the question with a wave and a grin.

We slowly stopped near the others, who had already gathered everything we managed to save from our stargazing spot.

"Hey, I've offered that Arisu can stay with me for the night, if that's alright with you girls? Do you need help with the equipment?"

Erica shook her head.

"Thank you, Sara. We'll handle it. Have a good night."

I guess we’re all not quite understanding the situation right now, and keep it as normal as we can. The three girls looked determined. I gave them a small smile.

"Thank you. I'll see you in school."

Together, we hurriedly got away, before the cars and interested people got the courage to come closer. The noise around us got louder, disturbing the otherwise calm night. I only then noticed that I still held Arisu's hand, and awkwardly let go. Quick, say something! I don’t even know her...

"So, you're a tourist. Why did you come here?"

"Earth seems pretty interesting."

Arisu shrugged.

"And you traveled here in your... ship?"

"Yes. How else was I supposed to get here?"

Arisu grinned at me. She didn't seem to take any of this seriously. I couldn't fully understand it yet. If what she said was true, then... I violently shook my head. This thinking made my head hurt. Maybe it’s better to be like her, and not take this seriously.

"I feel like I understand nothing. But hey, maybe that's not so bad."

"You don't need to understand this," she said, still smiling at me.

"Hmm. I think you're right."

I didn't need to understand this. It was easier, and maybe better, to just go with the flow. Still, I remembered my camera, dearly. It had been so expensive... I would probably need to wait for Christmas, and beg my parents for the whole month of December, so I could replace it. And going so long without a proper camera would be hell.

"I'm going to make you something good to eat, later."

"Oh, great! I'd love to try Earth's real cuisine."

"Uh. Yeah."

Soon, my home came into view, and my steps got quieter the closer we got. There was no light in any of the windows. Still, I worried that I could wake up my parents, and have to explain Arisu to them.

"We need to be quiet," I whispered to her. "We can't let my parents know about you."

Arisu nodded, a somewhat serious expression on her face.

"I understand. I will be completely silent."

With that, her hair moved, lifting her in the air while some kind of hair-arms started to walk next to me. It felt more like she was floating next to me, like this was some kind of horror movie. Eerie. I need to focus. If anyone is making noise, it’s me! With shaking hands, I took out my key chain, unlocking the door with a soft click.

"Upstairs," I whispered.

I closed the door behind me, taking off my shoes before showing Arisu the way up. She was still floating, her arms grasping at the stairs while my mind raced. I was hungry, and my stomach let out a low rumble. I guess we have to plunder my snack stash...

Though I was lost in thought and it was completely dark around me, I easily managed to find my way to my room. I looked behind me, and while my eyes were adjusting to the darkness, I couldn't see the other girl.

"A-are you still there?” I whispered.

Did I lose her, somehow? No, this can't be. But she doesn't make noise, and if I can't see her... I just have to trust her. So I sneaked into my room, and only then dared to turn on the light.

Arisu was right in my face.

"Waaah!"

I didn't want to scream, but my instincts took over. Seeing someone basically floating on the ceiling, hair-arms everywhere, was a surprisingly scary sight. She tilted her head, wondering.

"So, is it alright if I make noise again?"

"Uh. Yeah. Make yourself at home."

As Arisu slowly went to the ground again, I looked at my room. It seemed messier than usual, but then again, I usually didn't have guests come over. I gestured towards my desk.

"You can eat the sweets, if you want."

"Oh!"

I slowly closed the door to my room as she ran towards the various plastic bags that were my... um... study snacks. That was the moment I heard a noise outside. Someone - probably mom - was walking around.

"Go hide in my closet! Now!"

I frantically gestured between Arisu, holding several bags, and my closet, its doors slightly open. She nodded, opening the closet with her hair before vanishing in it. I dashed towards the bed, pulling the covers up to my chin.

"Honey? Are you alright?"

Mom opened the door wide enough to peek inside my room with a groggy expression.

"Y-yes. I had a nightmare. That's all."

"Oh no. Do you need anything?"

"N-no, it's all good."

I managed to smile at her.

"Ah, well then. Goodnight, dear."

With a big yawn and a small wave, my mom switched off the light and closed the door. At once, all tension exited my body, and next thing I knew, I was completely knocked out.