Iris M'leigh stretched her legs as she put on her AT's. She almost smiled when they still fit perfectly after a year. She looked at her twin sister's sleeping form and heard the monitor beeped in a constant rhythm. No matter how many times Iris visited the hospital; the room still reeked of antiseptic. Iris casually twirled a lock of brown hair. She smiled faintly as she imagined what her sister would say if she knew that she dyed her fairytale blonde hair, into a chestnut brown.
Suddenly the door opened, Iris didn't look up; she merely assumed it was a nurse doing regular checks. "You're still here?" Iris looked up and saw that it was her friend—well classmate, back in the days. "Hey Jess," replied Iris, Jessica sighed while placing recently bought flowers into the vase. "You should really move in to the hospital, then you won't have to travel 30 minutes just to get here." Iris didn't answer as Jessica stared at her silently and her gaze traveled down to the ground. Jessica did a double-take when she saw the AT's. "I thought you stopped." Iris looked at with her, "Yeah well, as you said. It takes longer by car than AT's," Iris continued with a half-smile "I can make it here in 5." Jessica stared at her in disbelief, but chose not to reply.
They waited in the room in silence, and Iris couldn't bear the tension anymore. She walked towards the open window, "Where are you going?" Iris didn't look back "Out." So with that, she climbed out the window and stared at the sky. The sun was setting and the sky was dusted lightly in a rosy pink. Iris felt a cool breeze rush towards her. She jumped.
She was in the sky, with the wind blowing against her hair. She had missed this feeling. This feeling of being so free, so free of problems, and it was also the exhilaration she loved the most. But in a few seconds, those precious moments she so loved would be replaced by grey concrete. Her problems were blown back to her.
"Hey!" Iris turned around, and saw Jay gliding towards her. "Dude, you forgot this." He said while tossing her cell phone. Iris caught it easily, "Thanks." Jay smiled and said "I see, you're ridding the Treks now," "What made you change your mind?" Jay asked more seriously. "Nothing, just wanted to feel the wind. That's all," answered Iris. "Bull." Iris turned around, now facing him "What did you say?"
"That's bull, and you know it. C'mon, I had known you for 4 years now." "I know something's up, which made you change your mind." Jay then demanded "Now, tell me the truth."
Iris didn't answer. Jay scoffed "Whatever." He walked over to the ledge "You know, you used to be cool. Like, free-spirited and I respected you." "But ever since that accident, you've been like this. This empty-shell of the girl I used to know." He walked closer, ready to jump—"Wait." Jay stopped, "He called." Jay's eyes widened "H-how—"I don't know, but he told me something," Iris said "Come to Japan." Jay asked "That's it?" "Yeah, that's it." "Shit," he sighed while taking a joint out of his pocket. "Well? Are you going?" he asked while lighting it. Pungent, acidic smoke filled Iris's nostrils. Iris didn't know how to answer, but said hesitantly "Maybe." Jay exhaled the smoke out and said "It'll be dangerous, you know that right?" But Jay smiled "That's why I'm going with you."
"What?" "You don't think it's just between you and him? Naw, if he messes with a friend, he messes with me." Jay gave her a dopy smile which made Iris smile for real, this time. "Alright, enough with the gush; you can come."
Jay spoke again; his words slightly slurred "Will need Jess as well." "No." Iris's voice hardened, "Do you think, you can get two plane tickets to Japan now?" "Especially during the summer?" He continued "We need Jess as our supplier, for hotels and shit. You and I both know we don't have the money for that."
Iris stared at the now dark violet stained sky. The city lights twinkled innocently before them. "Fine, but don't think she can tag along everywhere we go." Jay didn't answer and continued taking puffs of his joint. Iris stared at him "You know that stuff will kill you someday right?" Jay smiled "Someday, but not today." He passed the joint to Iris, and said "Welcome back." Iris inhaled it, and smiled again. For the second time.
When Jay and Iris asked Jess if she would like to go to Japan as a road trip just the three of them, Jess was ecstatic and immediately called Peter, her family's private pilot. It was quite hectic, packing everything in their suitcases in a short amount of time. They decided not to tell Jess the truth, for now, and just stick with the road trip. She'll find out soon enough, they decided.
Approximately 15 hours later, they had finally arrived in Japan; jet-lagged, stoned (mostly Jay), and in need of a long shower. When they got to their hotel (Iris and Jess stayed in one room while Jay stayed in the room next to theirs), all Iris wanted to do was to lay on the bed and sleep.
But as usual, due to Jess's chatty nature she kept her up by telling gossipy stories about her sisters. Iris let her mind wander as Jess blabbered on. "Why would he call now? What does he want?" she thought repeatedly in her head. She then realized Jess stopped talking and found her deep asleep. "Already?" thought Iris amused. Iris silently walked towards the window, and heard the city's noise below them; even though it was midnight. Iris saw Jess stir, but she wasn't worried about her waking up. She knew Jess well enough to sleep through anything. Iris put on her AT's and smiled, as she climbed through the window. She jumped and felt the wind rushing towards her. She leaped towards the other building and went for a stop. "So you're here already?" asked a voice.
Iris gritted her teeth; she knew this voice very well. ".." Sora Takeuchi simple smiled and said "Well, I want you to help me," Iris opened her mouth to protest, but Sora cut her off "Now, I know that you had no in the past." He let out a wide grin "But I want you to consider it carefully." Iris scoffed "What, you're going to kill me then? If I say no."
"Now, why would I do that?" he asked, "You have such a potential in being a rider, one of the best I had ever seen." Iris glared at him, "And you still have that menacing kill aura of yours." "But…your sister…is she getting better?" Iris's eyes widened "No, don't you dare get her involved in this!" she snarled. Suddenly a phone rang, Sora picked it up "Ah, hello? I see, so you're finished?" "It's just as I expected, she said no." He spoke on the phone as if she wasn't there, Iris's eyes widened every time he spoke "No, please, please let her be okay…Please…" she thought. "It seems your sister is involved in this as well. But don't worry, we won't do anything bad to her." He said almost sincerely; Iris couldn't move. She wanted so desperately to lash out at him, but her body wouldn't move.
He smirked as he saw her pretty eyes filled with tears, and in a moment he was gone. Iris hit the ground with her fist "Damnit." "Damnit!" "DAMNIT!" She cried. Her fist was now bloody mess. She was so stupid! Why? Iris felt a presence behind her, she swung her leg back. "Shit! It's me!" said a familiar voice. Iris stopped just before her AT hit his head. "Shit, that was scary…Don't ever do that…" "How did you know I was here?"
Jay didn't answer "So, they got Clarissa huh?" He said while ripping a part of his shirt, Iris stepped back "No, I'm fine…It's just a scratch." "Stand still!" he demanded. Iris did so hesitantly; she had never seen Jay this angry. "J-Jay?" He didn't answer as he tied the cloth around her hand. "I'm going to get her back." She heard him say quietly "I have to!"
Iris's heart felt for him. She knew he had taken Clarissa's accident the hardest; he had a crush on her for years, and they had finally gone out together…
Iris hugged him tight. Jay stood there surprised, "We are going to get her back." Jay smiled softly while hugging her back, "Yeah…of course."
The next morning, Jay and Iris decided to tell Jess the truth. In a nutshell, Jess didn't take it very well. In fact, it was safe to say that she had threatened to call Peter and fly home herself, leaving Jay and Iris the hotel bill and no flight back. It wasn't until Jay explained that Clarissa was indeed missing (they received an urgent call from the hospital) that Jessica had finally calmed down.
"So, what do you guys plan on doing?" she finally asked, her voice slightly hoarse from all the yelling. "We need to contact someone we know, an AT rider who knows the current situation and how serious this is." Stated Iris, "But who?" he continued "As much as I hate to say this, but I don't think a lot of AT riders would want to help you…especially after you disbanded so many teams…"
Jay was right. Iris had been to Japan before, since she wanted to compete with more challenging teams. She had beaten every single one. Of course, they weren't too happy about that. Iris sighed, she had been trying to keep her emotions in place but lately, it was getting very difficult.
"What about a Parts War?" asked Jess enthusiastically "You know a B-Class battle? Ask for whoever the strongest team is so far, and challenge them to a battle. You can probably ask them about that guy Sora or whatever to see if they know anything about him!"
Jay and Iris both stared at her, "What? I hanged out with you guys for 3 years, I know a thing or two about AT's!" exclaimed Jess angrily.
Jay smiled "Wow, that's impressive—you know, I think it's going to work!" He turned to Iris "Do you still have your emblem with you?" Iris shook her head; she had chucked that thing out ever since she quit using her AT's. "Damn…" muttered Jay "I'll bet 10 million dollars cash." Iris shook her head, "No, Jess, your father would kill you and this is not your battle."
Jess stood up abruptly and slammed her hand down on the table "Like shit it is!" She gasped and clasped her hand to her mouth; Jess had never sworn before, but she still continued "I care about Clarissa as well, and I would do anything—anything to get her back! Even if I have to empty my bank account!" Tears were brimming in her eyes.
Jay patted her on the back "Calm down. We all want Clarissa back as well; shouting isn't going to solve anything." "Sorry, I just thought…" mumbled Jess, "No, I should be sorry. I mean, we're all in this together right?" said Iris while managing a weak smile. They sat there for a minute or two in silence. "So, it's a Part-B battle then?" Iris smiled "I guess it is."
Minami Itsuki sat there gasping for breath. Kazu was also there sweating heavily, "T-this is so hard…" he gasped. Agito wasn't pleased, "Fuck! This isn't time to be slacking off you fucking idiots!" Itsuki simple sighed "Calm down Agito, it's just a battle…and it's 5 against 1…" He took a swig of water "6, if you count Emily."
"Which is exactly why, we need to train harder! Fuck!" Agito spat, as he stalked off. "What's his problem?" asked Onigiri
Agito was angry—no, he was fucking pissed. They had recently received notice that someone had challenged them to a B-Class battle. It was some foreigner named Iris M'leigh. Itsuki was right; it was a battle of 5 to 1. But what worried Agito the most was, this uneasy feeling in his stomach. This girl had to be strong in order to be part of a B-Class battle, especially against them. Agito didn't know how far the fame of Kogarasumaru spread in the States, but she should have a gist of who they were. "Fuck!" he swore while kicking the concrete wall. The paint crumbled away, leaving a deep scratch in the middle.
What was even worse was that, Agito didn't know a thing about this girl. What her attacks are, how well she can ride—nothing. He had nothing to work with, and that was what worried him the most. "Hey, Agito? You should drink something, your throats really dry," said Akito, and as if on cue, he felt something cold against his cheek. He looked up; it was Yayoi Nakayama holding a can of BOSS coffee. "You haven't had anything to drink have you?" she asked
Agito stared at her, but spoke "Um, yeah…thanks…" he took it as she gave him a smile "Fuck…" he thought as he stared at her as she turned around to join Emily.
Iris panted heavily; she had never been this tired before. "C'mon! You can do better than that!" shouted Jay as he once again dodged one of her attacks. This is getting ridiculous, thought Iris. She was trying to prefect her road; something she had started a while ago, but stopped after the accident. But she saw that Jay was also breathing quite heavily, she feinted an attack and saw Jay dodge.
Iris leaped through the air and plucked the balloon out of the sky. "I won!" she grinned cheerfully, but Jay didn't look very pleased "Iris, that took you 3 minutes to get past the obstacles and through me," he continued while grabbing a water bottle "If you did this before, this would've been done under a 1 minute."
Iris didn't smile, she knew this, of course, and he was right. If it was her before, this would've been a piece of cake. Jessica handed her a towel and a bottle of water "Here! I think you were still amazing!" "Thanks." Iris smiled. But it wasn't good enough compared to the battle she was going to have with Kogarasumaru. She had heard of them in America through Jay who still kept up to date with the AT world. Apparently they were very good, and had defeated countless of other teams. If this was her younger self, she would have been excited at the prospect of combating another team. But now, she was worried; she hadn't expected it to be so hard to get in shape with her AT's. A splash of water was thrown in front of her and she dodged in the nick of time. "Ready for round 2?" Iris smirked "You bet."
Sora Takeuchi stepped into a white room; a girl laid there peacefully sleeping. Her dark brown hair contrasted greatly against the white bed sheets. He heard Nike step inside, "Why do we need her anyways?" Sora grinned down at the sleeping girl, gently stroking her hair "She was a child prodigy, just like her sister," he explained "But unlike Iris, she leaned towards the direction of music and arts, and became very good at it." He started to caress her smooth cheek "When Iris started using AT's, she became disappointed that she couldn't ride along with her sister because of her weak body. So, she became her sister's tuner, and did everything she could to help her sister reach her goal of becoming the best AT rider." Sora's eyes glittered menacingly "Even construct a Regalia."
Nike was very surprised; he didn't know that anyone besides the Tool Toul To could create a Regalia. He looked up and realized Sora had started talking "Of course, I was interested in her immediately, how could she create a Regalia, without any of the correct materials?" "But she did it, she created a Regalia that had struck me as impossible, with a 95% efficiency, even greater than the Focke Wulf, and more powerful." Sora smiled even more widely "This girl was a true genius, but such a pity…" He stared down at her sleeping form, "She'll wake up very soon…I made sure of that."
It was finally the day of the battle, and Iris couldn't keep her nerves in place. She had no idea of why she was acting this way, before she had the ability to keep her cool in any situations. But now…Iris suspected it was because she hadn't participated in a Parts War for a long time. Jessica was extremely giddy and insisted that she buy her an outfit for the occasion. Iris was now worried, she knew her friends taste in fashion wasn't exactly modest. But she had more worries on her mind, the leader of Kogarasumaru; Itsuki Minami. Iris had seen him battle on the video against Behemoth; he was amazing. Iris focused on him specifically, and was excited. He reminded her of herself when she had first started to ride AT's.
Then there was also the Fang King, Agito Wanijima. To be honest, Iris wasn't fazed by him, she could handle him. It was Itsuki she had her eyes on. Iris heard a soft tap on the door, "Come in." Jay entered, "You're still watching that?" Iris was watching for about a millionth time the battle against Behemoth. She couldn't keep her eyes of it. Jay leaned over her shoulder "That guy is pretty good, wow, he's almost like you from be—"Look what I got!" interrupted Jessica.
Iris sighed "You got my outfit?" Jessica grinned widely "I even got new makeup for you!" Iris glanced at Jay who was obviously trying not to laugh. Iris stared at Jessica's happy face "Um, yeah, that's great." Iris said, trying to be enthusiastic. Jessica was now shooing Jay away "Go! Iris needs to change!" Jay was already laughing, as he walked outside. "Go on then, try it on!" 'But, you know that the battle doesn't start until 5?" "But that way, if it doesn't fit, I still have time to buy you a new one!" said Jessica matter-of-factly. Iris couldn't worm her way out of this one, so she sighed mentally in defeat and said "Okay, show me your worst."
It turns out; Jessica went on a shopping spree and bought several items of clothing. Mini-skirts, jeans, tank tops, t-shirts—everything. Iris had to try out every single one. It wasn't until an hour later, Jess had finally chosen a denim mini-skirt (so short, that it could probably pass off as a belt), a Superman logo t-shirt that showed her flat stomach, the whole outfit was completed by several leather bracelets on her left arm. "Do you like it?" asked Jessica while beaming at her, "I absolutely love the t-shirt on you!" she gushed. "So, what do you think?" asked Jess. To be perfectly honest, Iris hated what she was wearing; she was never the type of girl wearing short skirts or any kind of dresses. But seeing Jessica's hopeful face, as she waited for an answer, Iris mustered a bright smile "I love it!"
Jessica's whole face light up and smiled even wider. "Oh, really! I'm so glad! Alright, let me do your makeup!"… Finally, after the whole outfit changing was over, they met Jay at the lobby. Jay did a double-take when he saw Iris, and he couldn't stop smiling "Don't." Iris warned him, "I wasn't going to say anything, except that you look great." Jay simply said while taking something out of his pocket. "Here, it's for you." It was a charm bracelet. Iris gasped "W-where did you find this?" Jay grinned "I have my ways…" Iris fastened it on her wrist; it was a charm bracelet her sister gave her when she had first started AT's. Whenever there was a Parts War or when she was just riding for fun, she'd never take it off. It was kind of her good luck charm.
Jay smiled at her as Iris bent down and adjusted her AT's "So…you ready?" he asked her raising an eyebrow, Iris smirked "When was I never?" They both walked towards the door, with Jessica waiting for them outside. Iris's heartbeat grew faster and faster, but not because of nerves, but because of excitement. She was back.