CLANG.
    “You’re not paying attention, are you?”
    Faris shakes her head, trying to recover from the hit Thomas just dealt her. She’s not hurt, but her arms hurt like hell from trying to block it. “I’m just not into it,” she replies half-heartedly. Her thoughts keep wandering back to James, and that’s wreaking hell on her swordplay.
    Thomas nods sympathetically. “It’s because of James, isn’t it?” he guesses. Her flinch tells him, to his satisfaction, that he’s right. “You were awfully quiet when I walked in on you, so I figured you might have had an argument. I didn’t comment, though, because I didn’t want to pry.” Faris sits down at the end of the arena, and he joins her there. “If you want, you could talk to me about it.”
    She sighs and turns her face away from him. “…Maybe later.”
    He nods. “I understand. It’s a touchy subject, and you don’t want to talk about it to a stranger. I won’t pursue it. But, if you want someone to talk to, you can always come to me, all right?” He smiles charmingly at her, a smile that would make a lesser woman melt into a puddle of buttery goo.
    Faris has gone through hundreds of such would-be suitors, however, and is a pro at resisting such smiles. She manages to return the smile weakly, however, purely out of politeness. “I’ll keep that in mind.”
 

    Starr wanders the halls humming with a big happy Gourry Gabriev-esque smile on her face. Things couldn’t get any better right now. Mike really likes her, Faris and James are getting along (as far as she can see ^_^;)...true, maybe they’ve landed in an alternate dimension, but hey, if worse comes to worst she can always get on a sugar high and scare the beejeezus out of Orion-tachi....
    WHUMP.
    “OUCH!”
    “Excuse me.”
    Starr looks up.
    Then sweatdrops. “speak of the devil...” she mutters under her breath.
    Unimpressed emerald eyes meet playful forest-green ones as Starr blinks at one Orion Abraxas.
    “I was just looking for you,” Orion says, smiling charmingly.
    Starr puts a hand on the back of her head. “Oh...heeeeeehh...well, I was looking for Faris, have you seen her?”
    Orion shrugs as though to brush this off. “She’s getting a dueling lesson from Thomas.”
    Starr WANTS to crash to the floor. She really does. But not in front of Orion, he’d probably take that as an invitation. She she only wobbles a little, standing her ground. “Oh?”
    Orion nods. “It’s not really safe to walk into a kendo room in the middle of a duel. I wouldn’t want any of my guests to get hurt.”
    Starr decides not to favour Orion with her smart-alecky remark about untouched virgin sacrifices, as he might also take that as an invitation.
    Fortunately, Orion hasn’t seen the I-will-not-be-a-wise-ass-this-time look on Starr’s face. He’s looking off into the distance at the rose garden, which Starr can just see out one of the windows. She thinks she sees James still in there and wonders what he’s doing by himself, but she doesn’t have much time to contemplate this before Orion comes out of nowhere with, “Faris certainly is beautiful.”
    Starr isn’t sure how to respond to that one.
    Orion isn’t expecting a response, thankfully. He goes on, “...as are you, and the other girls...even Misty...” He laughs a little. “She’ll be gorgeous when she’s older.” He turns to Starr. “It’s not every day we’re favoured with guests as lovely as Faris and yourself.”
    Once again Starr wills herself not to fall flat. “Thank you.......” she manages in a weird voice.
    Orion starts to leave, but before Starr can heave a sigh of relief and finally crash to the floor, he turns.
    Starr thinks, ‘oh shit....’
     “Since you’ve given me the honor of a beautiful girl’s presence, perhaps I should repay you by showing you something beautiful in return.”
    “What, the ends of the world?” Starr says lightly.
    Orion laughs. “Intelligent as well as beautiful! But not yet.” He puts a hand on her arm and starts leading her off down the hall.
    Starr politely shrugs him off. “I kind of need to talk to Faris.”
    “This won’t take long.”
    Starr is staggered by how easily she’s finding double entendres these days.
    “Where are we going?”
    “Don’t worry, it’s not far.”
    Orion flashes a knee-melting smile.
    Much to her horror, Starr feels herself almost caving. A tense fifteen seconds of flailing wildly for ANY excuse go by before Starr refreezes her knees and says, “Sorry...not right now, okay? Where’s the kendo room, I really NEED to talk to Faris.”
    “Down the hall to your right.” Orion points, then smiles, stroking Starr’s hair. “It’s been nice talking to you.”
    Finally, thankfully, he leaves.
    Starr listens to the receding footsteps.
    THEN she crashes to the floor.
    This act done, she leaps back to her feet and dashes down the hall. Now she has two things to tell Faris: one, Michael likes her, and two, she’s successfully evaded becoming a member of No-Tell Motel. Disturbing though her most recent experience has been, she’s not about to let that screw up her good mood.
    She turns to where Orion was, says, “Feh. Lechboy,” and strides off to the kendo room.

    Thomas is showing Faris the finer points of sword-thrusting (not like THAT, gutter-brain) in a mock duel when Starr walks in on them. Faris blocks a hit from Thomas’ bamboo sword with her own, then slices wide in front of her to ward him off. With a quick duck-step, she touches the end of the sword to his chest, and the mock duel is over.
    “Well done,” Thomas says with some measure on honesty in his voice. “Especially for someone who ‘wasn’t into it’ only moments before.”
    “Well, you were going easy on me,” Faris retorts. She drops her sword, stands up straight, places her hands on her hips, and faces Starr. In her familiar mild tone, she asks, “What have you been doing?”
Starr draws a deep breath before replying in a dignified manner, “Practicing evasive maneuvers. Can I talk to you for a minute?”
    Faris gives Thomas a slight Sephiroth grin, hands her practice sword back to him, and she and Starr head for the girls’ changeroom.
    Once they’re inside and have made sure there are no humans present other than themselves, Starr announces, “I have just been hit on by Akio-lech.”
    Faris regards Starr with genuine sympathy. “Oh, no. Are you okay?”
    Starr regards her jeans with interest. “I never knew it was humanly possible for somebody’s knees to melt...”
    Faris rolls her eyes. “That’s Akio for you.”
    “He asked if I would come to see something with him.”
    “The ends of the world,” Faris guesses with slight contempt.
    “Surprisingly, no. Although I did guess that. That made him crack up and say I was ‘intelligent as well as beautiful’.” She shudders. “I have never in my life felt so acutely nauseous. And I almost caved, too! How can such a slimy human being manage to be alluring?”
    Faris shakes her head. “One of the mysteries of the universe.”
    Starr looks pensive. “Is there a planetarium here? Maybe that’s where he wanted me to go.”
    Faris gives a wan smile. “I wouldn’t be surprised if there was...that’s Akio’s number-one make-out spot, along with the Akio-car.”
    Starr shakes her head. “Ew.”
    Faris’s smile gets bigger and eviler. “He’s probably going to hit on you again, you know. That was only the first time, and if you think THAT was bad...”
    Starr yowls. “AAAAAUAUAGH! WHY??????”
    “You almost caved?”
    Starr nods. “Sadly. It’s a low point in my life.”
    Faris closes her eyes and shakes her head, still grinning. “Poor Starr. You almost fell for it but you got away.”
    “So...?” Starr prompts, wanting to know but scared of what she might hear.
    Faris’s ruby eyes close and she smiles like a certain purple-haired Mazoku trickster priest (ssolleX).
    “Now he’s gonna think you’re fun to play with.”
    Starr’s eyes go wide.
    Seconds later there’s only blank air and some stirred-up dust where Starr used to be, the cherry-haired Rocket having dashed out with an indignant scream of, “EWWW!!!!”
    Faris regards the current of air Starr stirred up with sympathy and respect. Her friend has just survived a brush with the real-world counterpart of possibly the horniest male in existence, and survived with only slightly wobbly knees. It really isn’t fair that Orion’s going to go after her again...
    But, Faris admits a bit guiltily, it’ll be fun to watch.
    However, she only has thirty seconds to savor the thought, for Starr strides back in, looks at Faris with an evil smirk of her own, and points out, “Well, if he thinks the flirt-resistant ones are fun to play with, he’s gonna LOVE you.”
    Faris facefaults. “Shit.”
    Starr smiles. “Don’t worry. if all else fails, we can borrow Jessie’s paper fan and knock him into next week.” She eits the changeroom stage right, saying, “I’m gonna go check if this place has a swimming pool. It’s frickin’ hot here.”
 

    James, in the meantime, has wandered over to the dress room, where Jessie and Nathalie are having a deep philosophical discussion about the impact of figure-fitting clothes on boys. James bites his lip, hesitating to interrupt Jessie, but he decides in the end it’s worth it.
    He taps her on the shoulder. “Jessie?” he says, barely above a whisper. He hadn’t realized he was that upset, he muses to himself…
    “What is it, James?” she snaps impatiently, not looking at him.
    “Could I talk to you for a minute? It’s really important.”
    Something about his tone breaks through to Jessie, and she glances over at him. Seeing his forlorn expression, she sees a chance to get back in his good favor. “Okay, sure.” She turns to Nathalie. “I’ll be right back, okay? I won’t take long.”
James flinches a little at that, but neither girl notices.
    The two Rockets walk off together until they’re out of earshot. Eager to get this started, Jessie prompts him with a “Well?”
    He hesitates. “Well…” He pauses for a second more, then rushes on as if afraid she’ll interrupt, “Jessie, do you think I’m an idiot?”
    Jessie’s patience immediately flies out the window. “An idiot?” she snaps. “James, you interrupted me to ask me a trivial question like THAT!? James, you are the biggest idiot I’ve ever known. Do you want me to list all the stupid things you’ve done since I met you?”
    He grimaces. “No, that’s okay,” he whispers, dragging himself away. “Sorry for bothering you. I’ll go talk to someone who cares.”
    The last sentence is lost on Jessie, who’s already walking back to join Nathalie.
    The next person he finds is Ash, who’s complaining about Gary’s obnoxious attitude to Brock. “…and HE has the guts to call ME a loser!? When he just thinks of Pokémon as tools for success!?! I can’t believe the NERVE of him!!” Ash rages as Brock nods sympathetically.
    “Is this a bad time?” James says from the doorway.
    “No, not at all,” Brock replies. “C’mon in. It’s just $5 a customer.”
    “Huh?”
    He laughs. “Don’t worry, James, I’m just kidding. If Ash gets to gripe to me, you do too. You look like something’s really bothering you.”
    Ash, in the meantime, grumbles to himself about the audacity of his rival to be so insensitive towards his Pokémon.
    James smiles weakly. “Thanks,” he almost-whispers. “This won’t take long… I just have a question to ask the two of you.” He pauses as Brock and Ash both give him inquisitive looks. “Do you… do you guys think I’m… stupid?”
    Ash stares at him a moment longer, then busts up laughing. “One word,” he grins, holding up a single finger. “Magikarp.” Then he starts to laugh again.
    Brock knocks him over the head. “If you’re not going to help, keep quiet!” He turns back to James. “Now… well… why are you asking?”
    James scuffs his foot on the floor, eyes locked on the rose-printed marble tiles. “I… I was just wondering what you guys think of me… that’s all.”
    Brock considers this for a moment more before replying. “I guess you’re only as smart as you make yourself out to be.”
    “Meaning…?” James presses.
    “Well, if you think you’re an idiot, then you’ll be an idiot. But, if you think you’re smart, and you work at studying hard and becoming smart, then you’ll be smart,” he clarifies. “Does that help?”
    James frowns a little, then sighs. “Not really,” he says, downcast. “I guess that says enough by itself. Thanks anyway, though. Sorry to be a bother.” He turns and wanders off before Brock can reply.
    Ash stares after him, eyebrow raised. “I wonder what’s up with him?” he muses.
    “He seems really bummed out,” his close-eyed friend comments, holding his chin. “That’s really not like him. Maybe he had an argument with Faris?”
    “You think so?” Ash queries, a tinge doubtfully. “They seem to be getting along fine now.”
    “Yeah, but they could have had a fight. Faris could have called James an idiot, and that’s why he’s asking us what we think of him,” Brock points out, arms crossed. “I know exactly how he feels.”
    Ash gives him a slightly exasperated expression, a small sweatdrop adorning his cap. “You do, huh?” he mutters.
 

    James finds Starr with Faris at the pool with Thomas. The three of them are splashing each other and laughing. As much as he wants to approach them and get this misunderstanding (“That’s what it has to be,” James assures himself) worked out, he can’t bring himself to do it with Thomas there. He’s obviously older, cooler, more mature, more handsome, more gentlemanly, smarter (James’ shoulders sag at he ticks the reasons off in his mind)… all around better than himself, in short. Better for Faris. He wouldn’t blame Faris if she decided that he was just a waste of her time and started going out with Thomas instead… wouldn’t blame her at all…
    Tears blinding him from the thought, James quickly walks away, with intent to leave the Ends of the World Arena. He just can’t stand it anymore; it hurts too much to stand there and listen. Besides, Starr would call him an idiot too, of course she would, that’s what he is…
    James bumps into Misty on the way out.
    “Hey, watch it!” she says in an annoyed tone. James doesn’t reply; he instead shields his face from her and rushes past her.
    Misty blinks, staring after him. ‘What was that?’ she wonders. However, James had an air of not wanting to be bothered around him. Misty figures Faris will know, and so she starts searching for the lavender-haired Rocket.

    James takes a deep breath, then lets it out in the form of a long sigh. He’s taken a walk to a nearby park, and is resting on a bench in the shade. There’s nothing he really wants to do, nowhere he can go except back to the Arena, and that’s the last place he wants to be right now… He stares sightlessly off into the blue afternoon sky, looking at but not seeing the world around him. Who cares anyhow, he never did fit into the world, ever since he was born…
    “Hey.” James blinks, then looks over at the smiling boy sitting next to him. He has light beige-white hair and red eyes, and a strange smile that is oddly comforting. The boy offers him an ice cream cone. “You look down. I don’t suppose you like strawberry ice cream?”
    James blinks again, startled by the generosity of this total stranger. “Err… sure,” he says, taking the cone but not taking his eyes off the strange boy. “Thanks… thanks a lot. …How much does this cost?”
    The boy laughs a little, still smiling that strange, cryptic smile. “Nothing. You look like you’re lost, and someone who’s lost usually can’t afford the small pleasures in life. Consider it a gift from someone who cares.” He takes a lick from his own cone (vanilla). James smiles, blushing a little at the generosity of this slightly odd but kind stranger, and takes a bite out of his own cone.
    Moments go by as they eat their ice cream. When the strange boy finishes his (minutes after James had finished his), he stands. “Well, I guess I’ll be seeing you.” And he starts to walk off.
    James stands with a suddenness that surprises himself. “Hey, wait!” he says with noticeable urgency in his voice. The boy stops and looks over his shoulder at him, still smiling. “I just want to know… what’s your name?”
    The boy closes his eyes and turns around. “I’m Kerry Nelson. You are?”
    “James Dupont,” the blue-haired Rocket replies. “Why’d you give me that ice cream?”
    The boy, Kerry, opens his eyes again, still smiling. The wind ruffles his messy hair slightly. “Because you looked so upset, like you wanted to run away from life. Kind gestures, even a simple smile, can bring someone back from over the brink. Now I have a question for you, James. Why were you upset?”
    James blinks at this. “Oh… well… because I had a fight with my girlfriend.”
    Kerry raises an eyebrow, but his smile doesn’t leave his face. “A fight?”
    “Well, not really a fight,” he adds hastily. “More like… a misunderstanding, I guess. She called me an idiot, and I guess I took a little more offense to it than I should have.”
    Kerry chuckles a little, walking over to James and sitting down next to him again. James sits as well. “And why do you say that?”
    “Well, because I am an idiot,” James explains. “I’m no good at anything. I never win Pokémon battles, and whenever I’m out on a job for Team Rocket, I fail.” He pauses, realizing what he just told him. “And I say incredibly stupid things with no provocation at all.”
    “Like what?” Kerry prompts him.
    He gives the albino boy a strange look. “I just admitted that I work for Team Rocket to a stranger,” he says a little slowly.
    Kerry gives him a warm smile, a smile that tells James he’s not so stupid for doing that. “I don’t care, personally,” he tells him, “and I won’t tell anyone. It’s your own choice to do what you do, and I don’t have a right to order you around. Especially since I don’t know you.”
    James… blinks. And blinks. And blushes slightly. “How old are you?”
    “Fourteen,” Kerry smiles. “Although lots of people have thought I’m older than I really am. You?”
    “Nineteen,” James replies.
    Kerry’s smile continues. “It must be tough, thinking you’re stupid and no good when you’re nineteen years old.”
    “No, but, you don’t understand,” he insists. “I am stupid. Once I bought a Magikarp for $300.”
    “Really?” Kerry looks intrigued. “What’s a Magikarp?”
    “What’s a—” James gives him a long stare. “It’s a Pokémon.”
    “Ohh, I see now,” Kerry nods. “I have no interest in Pokémon, so I don’t know these things.”
    “Well, I’m a Pokémon trainer, so I should,” James says glumly. “Magikarp’s no good at all. It’s a water Pokémon, and it can’t even swim!”
    Kerry smiles a little more, but James gets the feeling it’s not at him. “Pokémon training is a tough business,” he says. “That’s why I stay out of it.”
    James tilts his head slightly. “Stay out of it…?” he repeats, not following his line of thinking.
    He closes his eyes and laughs a little. “Hey… tell you what, James. Let’s meet back here at 10 tonight, okay? There’s something I want to show you then.” He stands. “Until then, I’d like to talk more with you. Would you like to come over to my apartment?”
    Although James knows he should be going back to the Ends of the World Arena, Kerry’s smile is so friendly and inviting, he finds himself saying, “Sure, I’d love to. Just lead the way.”
 

    “NyaAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAha!!!” Starr laughs evilly, sending a huge splash of water at Faris. What began as a simple, innocent splash-fight has now become a full-scale water war to the death. Thomas began dunking Faris and Starr every once in a while five minutes ago. Faris found a stash of pool noodles (you know, those colorful foam floaty woggle things) somewhere, and at this moment she proceeds to clobber Starr with one.
    “OW! OW! That’s cheating!” Starr grabs a pool noodle herself, screams, “CLIMHAZZARD!” and defends herself with it.
    Faris blocks the barrage of pool noodle hits—or at least most of them.
    Thomas shakes his head at Starr. “That’s no sword technique.”
    Starr hits Thomas with the pool noodle.
    Thomas shakes his head again with a faint grin, then picks up Starr, holds her over his head, and drops her.
    SPLASH.
    On the way down, Starr thinks she sees a figure in a blue T-shirt disappear from the doorway, but this sighting can neither be confirmed nor denied because one second later Starr is underwater with a very nice view of the rose-patterned pool tiles.
    She surfaces sputtering and shaking water out of her hair. She makes the time-out sign with her hands and says, “Hey Faris, did you see anyone near the door?”
    Faris shakes her head. “I was busy laughing at Thomas dropping you.”
    Starr makes a face at her. “Ha ha ha.”
    Then, from behind them, they hear a familiar voice say, “Hey, Faris?”
    Everyone turns to see Misty standing on the deck near the windows with Togepi in her arms, looking concerned.
    “What happened?” Starr and Faris both ask.
    “Faris, is something the matter with James? I bumped into him in the hall a little while ago, and he looked really odd. Did something happen between you guys?”
    Before Faris can answer, however, the solemn quiet is shattered by, “WHAT ARE YOU DOING WITH MY BIG BROTHER?”
    Thomas flinches.
    Starr and Faris whip around at the sound of the eardrum-shattering screech and see a certain blonde looking VERY pissed off.
    “YOU’RE TRYING TO SEDUCE MY BROTHER!!!!” Nathalie screams.
    “Au contraire, mon amie pénible. HE’S trying to seduce US,” Faris points out.
    “LIAR!!!!!”
    “You’re spitting,” Starr points out.
    “You two are so SHAMELESS,” Nathalie huffs.
    Thomas only grins a subtle you’ve-hit-the-nail-right-on-the-head grin.
    Starr snickers.
    Nathalie glares evil flaming horrible nasty badness at Faris, Starr and Misty.
    None of them even so much as blink.
    This effectively pisses Nathalie off even MORE. “YOU WON’T GET AWAY WITH THIS! I’LL—”
    “Punish us??” Faris suggests. “You already have. You’re giving us a headache.”
    “Check that. She’s giving me the mother of all migraines.” Starr massages her temples.
    Nathalie draws breath for another screech, but her mouth snaps shut into a pout when Thomas says, “Nathalie, that’s enough.”
    “But—but——”
    “Nathalie....”
    Nathalie pouts for a few seconds more, just for dramatic effect, then storms out of the room, nearly tripping on a pool noodle on the way out.
    Starr shakes her head. “That was needlessly irritating.”
    Misty looks squiggle-eyed at the spot where Nathalie was, then turns back to Faris. “As I was saying, what’s up with James?”
    Faris looks at the water, then calmly meets Misty and Starr’s concerned gaze and explains.
    “Fariiiiiiiiiiiiis!” Starr exclaims. “WHY? James is still really sensitive!”
    Faris sighs. “I don’t know...I was trying to explain about how he might not understand Shoujo Kakumei Utena, and he didn’t get the subtle hints, so I snapped into blunt mode and said he was an idiot.”
    Starr crosses her arms. “Faris, I know you feel bad, but would you mind not looking as though you expect me to put the smack down any second? I’m upset, but it was an accident. All you need to do is talk to James again. He’ll be sad, but he trusts you. He believes you. Tell him the truth. He may be clueless, but he’s certainly not an idiot. In some ways he’s got a real edge over the average person.”
    “How?” Misty looks guilty. “I mean, I want to agree that James isn’t dumb, but...”
    “He’s perceptive. He knows how he feels. He’s never confused. Sometimes his conviction about how he feels can hurt him, yeah, but if you ever take time to talk to him so he’ll understand, he catches on right away and he’s right into it.” Starr breaks off and looks at Faris, cheeks a little pink. “I mean, when I talked to him before...he really has a sense of things, Faris.  If you really talk to him, he’s so understanding, and he isn’t afraid to let his true feelings show up. He’s the only guy I know like that.”
   Thomas is just listening, with the slightly detached, disinterested look of the true cool guy. “There’s a reason for that.”
    Starr gives Thomas a Look. “I happen to like sensitive guys. You can talk to them, and you know they’ll never let you down. I’d prefer a sensitive guy to...I don’t know...a jock or a playboy. James is kinda girly, but what good’s total masculinity if the guy is a total jerk?”
    Thomas blinks.
     “And by the way, I did not just call you a jerk. I said that to explain James,” Starr adds.
    Thomas nods, looking satisfied. “I guessed that. You don’t seem l like the type to insult anyone directly, you’re too sensitive to their feelings.”
    Faris looks at Thomas with a faint grin. “Was that a compliment?”
    “Depends how she takes it. I prefer strong girls...like you.” Thomas smiles and runs a gentle hand through Faris’ hair.
Misty, meanwhile, has begun staring at...something, cheeks bright red, sea-green eyes wide.
    Starr follows her gaze and grins.
    “At least he isn’t wearing a Speedo,” she whispers to the orange-haired Cerulean Gym leader.
    “EEE!” Misty squeaks at the mental image, both hands covering her mouth, dropping Togepi, and then swiftly recovering and catching the baby Pokémon before it can hit the concrete floor. “STARR!”
    Starr loses it.
    “Don’t laugh, you’ll sink!” Faris announces, dunking Starr.
    “ACKPTH.” Starr surfaces and spits out a huge mouthful of water. “So are you going to talk to James?”
    Faris sighs again, but smiles a bit and nods. “Misty, where did he go?”
    Misty shrugs apologetically. “I don’t know, really...”
    Suddenly a PHS rings faintly from the changeroom. Starr recognizes the ring as that of her cell phone and runs for it. She removes the phone from her jeans pocket and answers, “Hello?”
    “I’m going to be out for a while. Don’t worry. I’ll be back.”
     “James!?” Starr says, relieved. “Are you okay? Where are you?
    *Click.*
    Starr glares at the phone, annoyed. “Dammit.”
    “Who was it?” Misty asks, poking her head around the door frame.
    “James, but he didn’t say where he was.” Starr sighs and replaces the PHS in her pocket. “Damn’t. At least he sounded okay. A little sad, but not as bad as you said he was.”
    “Oh, good.”
    Starr and Misty wander back into the pool area, planning to relay the information to Faris. However, they’re greeted by the sound of splashing and pool noodles bashing over human heads. Looking into the fray in the pool, Starr sees the top of someone’s head… someone with azure hair.
    “Mike!” she waves.
    Michael looks up at Starr and freezes, cheeks pink at the sight of the green-eyed Rocket in a swimsuit.
    This effectively gives Thomas the chance to clonk him one.
    Michael goes under.
    “Damn’t....” Starr drops her head. “Sorry...”
    Michael surfaces and shakes the water out of his hair. “Ah heh...” he says.
    “Sorry about staring like that....You look....erm....emmmrnsb......”
    Thomas messes up Michael’s hair. “What Mikey is trying to say is, you look beautiful.”
    “Thomas, cut that out...” Michael says mildly, ducking away. But he smiles at Starr, letting her know that was what he meant.
    Starr smiles at Michael and slides into the pool. “Thanks.”
    Faris smiles knowingly at Starr.
    Now Starr blushes.
    Michael swims over to the deep end of the pool with the diving well, motioning for Starr to follow. She does. Once they reach the opposite end of the pool, Starr looks back at the water fight, which has come back in full force thanks to Misty joining in. She still blushes whenever Thomas says anything to her, though. Michael is also smiling. “Looks like Faris and Thomas are getting along in spite of Nathalie...”
    Starr nods, then asks, “What’d you want to talk to me about?”
    Michael says a few indistinct things before clearing his throat and saying,
    “Starr, would you like to go to the Cinnabar Festival with me tonight? I’d really like it if...I mean, if you want....”
    Starr taps him on the shoulder. When he turns to her, she smiles and nods. “I’d really like to go to the carnival with you.”
    Michael smiles hugely. “Great!” he says happily. Then he turns pink again, but this time he holds his ground without trailing off. “...I’ll pick you up around seven, then?”
    “Seven is good,” Starr agrees.
    “HEY!” Thomas calls. “Quit flirting with Starr and get over here! I need someone else on my side! I’m being tag-teamed.”
    Faris and Misty proceed to laugh evilly and beat him with the pool noodles again.
    Starr and Michael look at one another.
    Before Michael even asks, Starr grins and shakes her head. “Not a chance. I’m on Faris’ team.”
    Michael smiles back. “En garde.” he says, brandishing an imaginary sword before swimming back into the shallow end with Starr close behind him.
 

    “Wow…” James breathes, taking in as much as he can in the first sweeping glance of Kerry’s two-room apartment.
    Kerry smiles over at him. “I live alone, so I can’t afford much; but I don’t mind. I have my books, and my music.” He pats his bookcase filled with theology, poetry, philosophy, legend, and fantasy books.
    James blinks. “Where’s your music?”
    Smiling, Kerry taps his temple. “Right here.” He spreads his arms wide, spinning around the room. “All the happiness I need is right here, in me.” He looks back to James and his smile grows a bit. “I guess that’s the biggest difference between us.”
    James stares at him for a moment; then his eyes soften and he nods. “Yeah…I think I know what you mean.”
    Kerry gives him a curious, regarding look. “Oh? So what do I mean?”
    “You mean…” He struggles to find the right words. “You’re happy with who you are, and I’m unhappy with who I am. But you don’t understand, Kerry. I wouldn’t care at all if it was just me. I never used to care that much. But the girl who’s more important to me in the world—she deserves so much better than me. She’s beautiful, she’s smart, she’s kind, she’s smart, she’s strong, she’s… she’s SMART!!” James finishes with no little frustration. “I’m too dumb to deserve her. I don’t know what she sees in me.”
    The albino boy sits down on his bed. “What made her fall in love with you in the first place?”
    James sits down next to him. Though he’s not sure himself why he’s being so open with such a stranger, he still relays to Kerry the entire story of how he kept trying to woo Faris, how she kept rejecting him, and eventually she relented and they fell in love. When the story’s over, Kerry looks thoughtful, and his face is hidden behind his hands.
    “I can’t tell you Faris’ feelings,” he finally says after a long silence. “I don’t feel the same way as her. But I like you, and at least I can explain my own reasons. It’s because you have an air of innocence around you. Even though you’d done lots of bad things in your life, you remain innocent. Only now, after nineteen years of living, has that innocence truly started to crumble. This intrigues me, James. You intrigue me. With the exception of one, you are by far the most fascinating human I’ve ever met.”
    James blinks and stares. “Human?”
    Kerry simply smiles.
    He stands and crosses the room to the bookcase. After a couple seconds of searching, Kerry pulls a thick, black book out from one of the shelves, then flips to a page. “Here,” he says, handing the book to James. “Read this. It’s one of my favorites.”
    James takes it, then silently begins to read.
 
 

                         “CRIME OF INNOCENCE”

    Darkness. Darkness. Everywhere you turn, darkness. Everlasting darkness, encompassing darkness, darkness, darkness, darkness. It seems as if there is nothing you can do to escape it. You cry out into the darkness, hoping someone will hear you, hoping someone will help you, but the only thing that answers is your own echo. You shiver within this horrible darkness, the darkness that hunts, the darkness that chases you into an abyss-like fear, darkness with no hint of light.
    Yet, you feel you are not alone.
    There are others like you in this darkness, calling out, yet only hearing themselves mirrored a thousand times over.
    How you know this is a mystery to you. You simply know.
    So you do not give up. You do not pray for death. You continue to search throughout the darkness, searching for someone like you, searching for someone to comfort you, searching for someone you can comfort. It doesn’t matter who it is.
    At last, you can hear someone! Someone besides yourself shuffling in the darkness! You call out, and they call back, a voice different from your own—not an echo, another living creature. You keep calling out to each other, until you can almost touch each other. You reach out your hand to grasp theirs, and something brushes against you—
    Then they are gone. You cry for them over and over again, but there is no answer. It is as if that person, whomever it had been, had been spirited away. As if they had been swallowed up by the insatiable darkness.
You sob in the darkness, great sobs that wrack your entire body, but to no avail. You are again alone. That other person had betrayed you, given you false hope—now you know there is no such thing as hope. You have paid for being so trusting, thinking that you could find someone like yourself. You have paid dearly for your crime of innocence. Feeling exhausted from the entire ordeal, you lie where you are, weeping.
    But because you are human, you do not give up. Even though you are without hope, you do not give up.
    Because that is what it means to be human—never giving up, even though there is no hope left.
 

    I have no hope for the future. Perhaps this quest of life is meaningless, and I think it probably is. I ponder death, I question life, but I do not end it. Maybe I am weak. Maybe I am not. Maybe I’m in denial, and maybe I’m lying to myself. I just know that, as long as I am alive, I have not given up. Even though I want to die, I am not dead yet, and I do nothing to kill myself.
    So I keep searching for that hope for the future.
    Maybe, one day, I’ll find it.

    A cold, tingling sensation washes over James as he reads the passage. Softly, he closes the book; on the cover, flowing, golden lettering spelling out, THE TRUE HUMAN MAGIC. Beneath it, more simple silver lettering writes, “An Anthology of Poetry and Passage”. He hands the book back to Kerry.
    “It’s…” James searches for the words, and fails. “Beyond description.”
    Kerry smiles. “Everything in here is. Everything in here holds pure emotion, so no matter which path the piece takes, you simply can’t describe what you feel as you read. That passage I showed you reminds me of someone important to me. It’s the only book I’ve found with it, and that’s why this anthology is my favorite amongst all of the many books I’ve read.”
    “Oh…” James gazes at the engraved lettering, tracing them with his finger. The book has an air of ancient age to it, even though the lettering is still as bright as if it was new. He wonders where his train of thought could possibly be coming from to think such things…
    “Would you like to borrow it?”
    The sound of Kerry’s voice snaps James out of his daydream. “Wh- what?”
    Kerry smiles, closing his eyes. “That book is for enriching the mind and soul. I’ve read it many times over, myself. I think you’ll enjoy it.” He opens his eyes slightly. “Would you like to borrow it, James?”
    James stares at him, flabbergasted and struck speechless. After a moment, he blushes a little and stammers out an assent and thank-you.
 

    Faris lies face-up on one of the white leather couches at Ends of the World Arena. True, that’s a dangerous thing to do, but at the moment she doesn’t really care. Her thoughts are dwelling to something she hasn’t thought of since they all left Pallet:
    The mission to capture Mewtwo.
    ‘I should probably call the Boss to let him know how things are going…’ she thinks to herself, brushing some hair out of her eyes. Pulling her PHS from the same void where Touga keeps his own cell phone, Faris presses one of the three speed dial buttons, then puts the phone to her ear.
    -It’s me,- a familiar voice sounds on the other end.
    “Hey, Boss,” Faris replies in a less-than-enthusiastic voice. “We’re at Cinnabar.”
    -Good, good. I’ll have my pet scientist give you the information you need on Mewtwo, Faris. I’ll call you back once I’ve set it up.-
    “Ano NA… you know I told you I don’t want to be referred to by my real name in Rocket dealings, Giovanni,” she reminds him dryly.
    -Point taken. My sincerest apologies, Sami.-
    “Hai, hai… Ne, Boss, I’ve been meaning to ask you something.”
    -Yes?-
    Faris closes her eyes and crosses her legs. “You only told me about this mission, yet you sent Jessie, James, and Starr along too. If you think they’ll mess things up, why did you have them come along too?”
    There’s a dry chuckle on the other side. –I was actually wondering when you’d ask that. They’re cannon fodder.-
    Faris raises an eyebrow. “Nan desu tte?”
    -Despite being a top-secret project, if Mewtwo is found missing, all of Cinnabar Island will be in an uproar. I don’t want you getting caught, so you’re to use Jessie and James as scapegoats. It’s a win-win situation in the end. As for Starr, I sent her along as well because those idiots would suspect something if she weren’t sent along as well. If you can, try to keep her from getting arrested, but if you have to, throw the blame on her as well. Just make sure you get out of it alive and with Mewtwo.-
    “You really want that Mewtwo, don’t you.” It’s more of a statement than a question.
    -Anything to achieve what I desire.-
    “And what exactly is it that you desire? World conquest?”
    To her mild surprise, he actually laughs. –It would appear that way on the surface, wouldn’t it?-
    “You mean to say you’re searching for something greater?”
    -Something I doubt you’d understand.-
    Faris remains silent for a moment. Finally, she says softly, “Might it have anything to do with Lenna Inverse? She was your lover, after all.” And she hangs up. Who cares if she was rude? Giovanni doesn’t have her livelihood in his grasp, like he does with the majority of the Rocket members.
 

    A bell gongs, and the shadows of two girls, one with a bow on her head and the other with two pigtail braids, appear on a red-tinted rose print. They are in a rowboat. The girl with the bow, A-ko, is in a pirate captain’s costume; the other girl, B-ko, is in a pirate henchman costume. B-ko rows the boat.
    A-ko holds up a hand, which is covered by a hook, and announces, “Behold! this vast expanse of ocean! Bringing a hundred men with me, I have set sail on the seven seas! I am a pirate. All the world’s riches are now in my hands.”
    B-ko looks up at A-ko, still rowing, and wonders, “I wonder, I wonder, but Boss? Why’s your treasure chest missing ONLY what you want?”
    A-ko stares down at B-ko. “What I really want?”
    B-ko nods up at her boss. “‘Cos… That’s why ya can’t quit being a pirate boss, ain’t it?”
    A-ko murmurs, “What I really want…”
    B-ko continues, as if to urge the kashira on, “Boss, what you really want… what you really, REALLY want is…”
    A-ko seems to decide and finally declares, “What I really want is—”
    “Oops,” B-ko murmurs, cutting her off. Water gushes into the boat and they sink rapidly as B-ko finishes that thought: “Boss, we’ve sprung a leak!”
 

    The night breeze is cool against James’ skin as he and Kerry walk back to the park. In the distance, the festival is alive, but this park is sacred ground; it’s as serene as if there was no festival at all.
    “Here. Come on. It’s just a little further,” Kerry says to James, pulling him past the bench they’d sat on earlier that day. “We can’t get a good view from there.”
    “What are you going to show me?” James queries for the hundredth time.
    Kerry’s smile is cryptic, yet comforting. “Something that every human needs to look at, once in a while. Don’t worry, we’re almost there.”
    After a few more minutes of walking, the two reach an open field. Kerry brings James out to the middle of it, then sits. “We’re here.”
    James blinks, then takes a look around. “I don’t get it,” he says in a puzzled tone. “What’s so special about this?”
    Kerry points up to the sky. James follows it… and remains puzzled. “What? There’s nothing out of the ordinary in the sky tonight.”
    Kerry laughs a little. “Lie down,” he suggests. “Relax, and look at the stars. That’s what I brought you here to see. I’m going to tell you something.”
    Not quite understanding the point, James complies, and Kerry lies down next to him. A moment of silence stretches between them.
    Finally, Kerry says quietly, “James. How many stars do you think are in the sky?”
    “Huh?” James blinks, then looks, really looks, at the stars for the first time. “I dunno… a million?”
    “Even more,” Kerry smiles. “Because for every one star you see in the sky now, there are billions more that you can’t see. Maybe it’s because they’re too far away. Maybe it’s because they’re not bright enough. And maybe it’s because the earthly lights are blocking them out. But in a sky with millions, there are trillions more you can’t see. And of those millions, only a handful is bright enough that we can notice them. Do you understand what I’m saying?”
    “…No.”
    “Hmm. Well, as we become interested in earthly things, like money and power, we begin to forget that in the cosmic sense, we are nil. Gaining money and power is good for within your lifetime, but what about after? Do you want to rot in the dust, or shine in the heavens with the stars? The stars continue to live and die, but that’s okay, because we’re the same way.
    “In other words, humans are a lot like the stars.”
    Kerry pauses a moment to let this sink in, then continues. “Though there are billions of humans in the world, only a few thousand can be seen by one human in one place, and of those few thousand, only a handful are bright enough to be noticed by other humans. As you get closer to places where man-made lights are more prominent, fewer and fewer stars can be noticed. Humans are the same way. Once you’re in the city, you’re nothing unless you can make a name and place for yourself.” He sits up. “Do you understand?”
    James pauses a moment, then nods slowly. “I think so…” he says, also sitting up. “You’re saying that, only a few people are great enough to be something special.”
    “That’s close, but not quite,” Kerry smiles. “Everyone has the potential to be great. Everyone has the potential to become a legend in their own time. However, not everyone has the means to do so… and that’s why we often curse our lot in life.”
    James’ eyes soften as he gazes up at the sky. “Yeah… I understand. We all want to be someone important… but sometimes, you just can’t get any higher than the bottom of the barrel.” He sighs. “I know how that feels…”
    To his surprise, Kerry laughs. “You’re too negative! Whatever past experiences you may have, if you learn from them, you become richer and stronger. Think of what you do have instead of what you don’t, but avoid fooling yourself into thinking you’re something you aren’t. Even if you lived on the streets at one time,” and James flinches at this, “surely you would have learned something from that ordeal? It is learning from life that makes you great. Those who refuse to learn condemn themselves.” Kerry places a hand on James’ shoulder; James jumps a little, and stares at him. “From what you told me, I believe you have been granted a miracle. You’ve been given a chance to be reborn from the ashes of your present life. As you are, you aren’t very much. You live in the shadows, fearing capture by not only police, but your own boss as well. The missions you and your partners go on, you fail. They say if at first you don’t succeed, try, try again, but there’s no sense in dragging something out if it’s obvious you aren’t good at it. If you’re no good at being a Rocket, then quit and do something else with your life.”
    Kerry’s gentle smile and voice sooth James’ nerves; he smiles back gratefully. “I don’t think I would have thought of that on my own,” he confesses. “But then, I don’t have anywhere to go to other than Team Rocket. I don’t have any money, and I don’t have any decent skills. Team Rocket’s the only reason I’m not living on the streets right now… like I used to…” He sighs, flicking his eyes away. “When I ran away from home, I didn’t have any money or skill then either, so I ended up having to beg on the streets to survive. I knew Jessie from school before then, so when I met her on the streets, she helped me out, and introduced me to Team Rocket. Ever since then, we’ve been partners. It’s kind of hard to leave something that’s the world to me…” He looks up suddenly, cutting off anything Kerry might have had to say to that. “But then, that’s what it means to grow up, right? I’m starting to understand what you’ve been saying. I’ve got to grow up if I want to shine, and leaving Team Rocket behind is a part of growing up.” He smiles nervously and glances back at Kerry. “Or did I mess it up?”
    Kerry’s smile seems to glow in the moonless night. “No. You got it exactly right. I couldn’t have said it better myself, James.” His crimson eyes turn back to the stars. “I think, just now, you’ve grown up a little. You used to see things in plain black and white.” He closes his eyes, smiling. “But, things are not black and white. Sometimes things are a spectrum of colors, so many colors you can’t even see them all…”
    “And sometimes,” James adds, “things are so crystal clear you can’t even see them in front of you.”
    Kerry’s smile could warm up the coldest of nights. “That’s right, James. That’s exactly right.”
 

    Starr and Michael walk hand-in-hand down the boardwalk, looking out at the lights glittering across the bay.
    Starr looks up and smiles. “I’m surprised so many stars are out tonight. Usually they kind of hide away from bright lights, and you need to go out where it’s dark and quiet to see them all.”
    “I have all the stars I need right here…” Michael says shyly.
    Starr’s response is to blush and be thankful Mike can’t see her pink cheeks in the moonlight. However, the same moonlight makes her green eyes eternally green as she looks up at Michael and asks, “Do you want to go someplace else…? I mean, where there aren’t so many people… I never really got a chance to talk to you except when you were playing the piano, and even then, that was a better time for just listening.”
    Michael looks quizzical for a minute, then nods. “All right. What do you have in mind?”
    Starr indicates the gondola ride. “That okay? I mean, you aren’t afraid of heights or anything?”
    Michael shakes his head and laughs. “You kidding? One trip up to the arena and your fear of heights goes out the window—it HAS to, or you’re doomed. I agree, today’s been pretty hectic. Let’s go.”
    Once on the ride, the first five minutes are spent in silence. Starr isn’t quite sure how to begin. Fortunately, fate picks that time to step in and create a diversion.
    Starr glances out the window and says. “Wow! Mike, how pretty! Look!”
    Mike follows her gaze...
    Colored and silver lights like tiny stars below...
    Fireworks scattering their golden blue and red light over the bay....
    The ferris wheel like a pinwheel in the darkness.
    Finally Starr remembers what she’s come up here to do. She faces Mike, hands in her lap.
    “Michael...this is going to sound really funky to you, I know it...but....do you ever get the feeling that you’re not seeing a person’s real self....?”
    Michael looks surprised, but he nods. “We all hide behind some kind of mask at one time or another of our lives. It takes a lot of courage to come right out and be yourself around someone.”
    “Have you ever?”
    “…Once,” Michael finally says. “When you sat down by me while I was practicing....it was so weird…but…it made me feel real.”
    Starr blushes, but answers, “You, too.”
    “Really?” Michael puts a hand on the back of his neck and smiles. “....”
    Starr nods. “But....I haven’t seen that side of you since then. Only little glances of it, like when we were in the pool. You seem to hide around Thomas and the others… why?”
    Michael looks uncomfortable and shrugs. “I don’t know… Orion’s kinda overbearing...so’s Thomas...they’re older, they have more power...Kevin acts all cold constantly...Nathalie’s just loud...Julie’s the only one I really talk to, and even then not often. I just never really get a chance to be myself.” He laughs a bit. “If I did, I’d probably scare them.”
    “You don’t have to hide. Aren’t they your friends? They’d understand.”
    Michael shrugs again. “I really don’t know...”
    Starr reaches across the car and takes Michael’s hand. “I’m not that scary, am I? I’m not gonna laugh if you be who you are around me.”
    “I know… I guess I’ve just gotten used to being the quiet smart guy…strong silent type, you know. It gets annoying, but what can you do.”
     “You can stop.”
    Michael blinks. Big blue eyes meet emerald green eyes.
    Starr grins. “I’m serious. It’s not easy and it takes time, but I was quite and I hid like that once too, and look at me now: The walking sugar high.”
    “You aren’t that bad,” Michael scolds gently.
    “You’ve never seen me on Jolt!” Starr retaliates.
    Michael finds that funny, but soon his grin fades away and he looks seriously at Starr. “So, what do you want? I want to make you happy.”
    “What do I want? Michael, I want to meet you.”
    Michael blinks. “But I’m right here.”
    Starr shakes her head. “I know I’m going about this very oddly, but please bear with me… I want to meet you. Not just what you are there at Ends of the World, but who you really are…the Mike Corwin inside. I saw who you were that time you played the piano, and I want to see it again, because I like what you are.”
    “Really?” Michael looks genuinely surprised and happy.
    “Really.”
    “That’s good.” Michael squeezes Starr’s hand. “Because I like who you are, too.”