Animorphs Re-Read: #6 The Capture (Chapters 9-12)

 Chapter 9

The chapter begins with Jake playing basketball with some friends. I admit I find this odd since...well...it's so normal. I'm used to morphing and Yeerks in this series, but not something as simple as a game of basketball.

Jake doesn't end up making the shot and a guy jokes about seeing why Jake didn't make the basketball team. Jake then reflects on how he used to hold basketball in such high importance but didn't anymore. He has a war to fight.

Jake and the two others joke around. Then one of the guys brings up how good Tom is at basketball. Oh, dear, I don't like where this seems like it's heading. As the other two guys talk about it being too bad that Tom had stopped doing basketball, Jake reflects on the fact that it was the Yeerk inside Tom's head that had decided to stop playing basketball.

Jake can't think of any real reason for the Yeerk to do that except it must have had other plans. And here is where there is a plot hole. Yeerks are supposed to be secretly invading Earth and when they're around other non-Controllers they need to make it appear like nothing is different about them. So why would Tom's Yeerk risk its cover like that?

Marco is waiting for Jake outside the showers and makes a 'I am totally not gay' comment. I have found that my fellow Fanimorphs tend to side on Marco not being straight. Marco then tells Jake that the Governor will be going to the hospital on Tuesday.

Even though the information is secret, Marco explains that he got it through pretending to be a reporter and using the information they had found out during the Sharing meeting the other day. He is a clever boy.

Marco asks if they should do the mission Saturday and Jake's expression causes Marco to show concern. Jake reassures Marco that he's fine and asks why Marco is so ready to fight all of a sudden. Then the revelation from the last book is brought up. Marco tells Jake he doesn't want the others thinking differently of him.

I will say that Marco is always wanting to play a part instead of wanting to be an actual person. He wants the others, and himself it seems at times, to believe he's one thing while he's actually something else. Sometimes that's a good thing but I think it doesn't let Marco be as free as he could otherwise be.

Jake jokingly replies that no one could feel sorry for Marco because he's very obnoxious. Marco agrees.

Jake agrees that they'll do the mission on Saturday and they'll need to think of a morph for the situation. Marco says that Cassie has an idea and Jake says he's worried since she was the one to suggest the ant morph.

Marco doesn't say what the morph is and only gives the hint 'dog poop'.


Chapter 10

Jake, Cassie, and Rachel are at the mall. Jake is looking for something to buy his mother for fifteen bucks. The two girls are there to help Jake find something good since when he had asked Marco to help him with his mother's birthday last time...his mother hadn't been impressed with the gift.

Oh, Marco.

Jake knows that Cassie won't be a big help. She's a great person, but as a shopper she's not talented. Rachel has quips ready to reply to each of the other two's suggestions. Rachel practically lives in the mall and even Cassie comments on it. Cassie says that Rachel owns the mall and Jake replies that shopping is one of Rachel's specialties.

Rachel finds something she thinks is perfect for Jake's mom and she replies like she's the Hermione Granger of clothes.

Jake says that the blouse costs too much and Rachel replies that he saved money. Jake doesn't get the shopping math and Cassie says it's not worth asking for his cousin to explain it. Rachel then leaves the two totally not love birds alone by using the excuse she has somewhere else to check out.

Jake asks Cassie what her idea for a morph is. Jake tells her that all Marco told him was to 'think dog poop' which didn't sound very promising to him. He says he feels jealous that at least Tobias doesn't have to morph insects. He might have to live as a bird and be losing himself, but at least he didn't have to morph an ant.

Yeah, but he did have to suffer while helplessly watching as his friends nearly died as ants.

Jake says that he misses the days of morphing cool animals since now they're going to morph flies. The two then talk about both The Fly movies. They then realize how dumb it was to talk about a horror movie before morphing flies.

Cassie suggests other insects including bees. But Jake is adamant about not doing any social insects ever again. Part of the reason the ant morph was so terrifying was because the insect didn't have any sense of self. Cassie then points out that flies aren't social insects.

They then head over to the food court to meet up with Rachel. They reassure themselves that if they do choose to do flies that they won't have to be in that morph for very long. Hell, if they cause enough confusion then they can get out another way.

The chapter ends with them quoting the movie The Fly.


Chapter 11

Jake starts off the chapter by saying that being a fly is awesome but morphing one is a whole different matter.

He then says it's no secret that he "kind of" likes Cassie. Dude, you love her so much that even a wall could see it. And walls can't think, much less see.

However, when Cassie started morphing into a fly he screamed loudly. So loud that the dead in China started to wake up. Marco reprimands him but Jake points out that Marco has his eyes closed. The joker refuses to open them until Cassie is done morphing. Rachel then rushes off to find somewhere to vomit.

Jake defends their reactions by pointing out how Cassie was morphing a fly. And...yeah...I'd probably puke, scream, and have my eyes closed.

Ax, however, isn't disturbed by Cassie morphing fly. I wonder if he isn't or if he's trying to appear superior. He then asks what Jake means by "willies". Jake explains what he meant by "willies" to the Andalite.

Then Tobias tells them he's not coming back into the barn until Cassie is done. I'm just dying of laughter over here. He has hawk vision which means he can see Cassie's transformation to fly a hell of a lot clearer than the others can. So I'm both sorry for him and laughing at his comment.

When Tobias enters, Rachel tells him to keep an eye on Cassie so something bad doesn't happen to her. Tobias tells them to relax since it's daylight at which time his hawk vision is the best. He doesn't like how flies look, though.

Cassie finally replies and seems to be okay. Hell, excited even. The others are concerned of course. Cassie continues to reassure them that she is fine and that being a fly is beyond awesome. This reminds me of in #4 when they morphed dolphins for the first time. And this is the only series where there is a valid similarity shown between flies and dolphins.

Jake tells the others that it's time to morph flies. All of them aren't excited, except for Ax.

Jake doesn't like morphing a fly, but he finds that Cassie is right. Being a fly is awesome. He starts to compare everything he's morphed that flew to a fly. He says that flying as a fly is completely different than anything he has morphed before. He then starts to go off on how awesome being a fly is with some nice facts to boot.

The others start to talk to each other about how awesome being a fly is. Marco makes a joke about looking for poop.

Jake then reminds them that they still have to go to the hospital. The 'bus' that will take them there is Tobias. Birdboy then comments that his situation is enough to "gag a maggot" and Marco reprimands him about dissing their children. I know this is meant to be for the whole group but I'm imagining Tobias and Marco having maggot children.

I'll go to my corner now...


Chapter 12

Jake is clinging onto Tobias which is easy to do. Flies are good at hanging onto stuff. Rachel remarks that the fly's interest is similar to the shrew she morphed previously. The fly and the shrew both look for decaying animals. What a lovely reminder of what happened in the second book!

Jake yells out when he sees something and Cassie asks what. It turns out that there's a flea on Tobias, which Birdboy isn't happy about. Jake lies and says that the flea jumped off while the flea is really sucking Tobias' blood.

Tobias says they're near the hospital and that they'll jump off of him like in a war movie. Marco is an optimist when he says those people usually get shot. Don't worry, Marco, you will be alive after the war.

Tobias says there's an open window with no screen on the third floor. After Marco questions him, Tobias says his eyesight is so good that he could even tell if there was a strand of a spiderweb there. It turns out that all the Animorphs, minus Ax, watched the original The Fly the previous night. Our heroes, everyone!

Ax, of course, is confused about the reference.

The gang jumps off of Tobias and it takes a second or two for them to start to control their flight.

Ax says he sees the window and so Jake starts to follow him. However, the Aristh actually saw a sign. Tobias then guides them to the actual window. Once inside, Jake tells the group to remember how the Yeerk pool in the first book felt and to look for something like that.

Jake tells the group to split up. Oh, yes, because splitting up always works so well!

Cassie remarks that flies are so good at finding poop that you could hire one to find poop for you. Cassie finally smells something strange that her fly brain doesn't recognize. They assume it's the Yeerk pool and head towards it.

Jake tries to ask Marco and Rachel for an update but they're too far away to reach via thought speak.

They find the door and Cassie asks how they open the door as flies. Jake says to go underneath it.

They enter and Jake says for Ax to demorph to make double sure no one is there. While Jake says it's because Andalites are more useful for fighting than humans, it makes sense to hide their identities as human children.

Ax and Jake share a "Prince" "Don't call me Prince" moment. Once Ax finishes demorphing, he knocks a human Controller out.
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Animorphs Re-Read