Enjoy the Power and Beauty of your Youth...

"God damn it, NO! Take them back! THIS IS NOT THE RIGHT TIME! Are you even LISTENING to me? Hello? Jesus..." Jet Black put the phone back in the holder. It's a wonder he didn't break it.

"So what happened?" asked a young woman, in her twenties. She looked changed. She had longer hair, it seemed (though all she did was take off her headband), her eyes were dull, and you could tell she was covering a body that was meant for show and fighting. Her eyes were bloodshot as well. Faye Valentine was becoming a normal girl. A depressed one. She agreed, this was not the best time for anything. Whatever anything was...

"They're still gonna send those kids to our ship... God damn it... I don't need anymore kids around here, messing with my bonsai trees... Just more mouths to feed..." Jet rambled on and on for ten whole minutes, just mumbling under his breath, keeping himself busy. Of course, Jet hadn't changed at all. He was still the same muscular owner of the Bebop (for lack of a better term), still cold on the outside, only around 30 years old. But he was never happy anymore. Unlike Faye, he still wore that pink tee shirt, blue vest, and blue pants. Always the same... And now Faye was all alone. "Those poor kids... they'll be depressed on this ship, what with all of my crying and Jet's and my fights... I can't believe he left me just last night..." She put a hand over her mouth to soften her sobs. She hadn't put on mascara after He left. There was no point. It wasn't waterproof, so all it would do would run...

Three seventeen-year-old girls giggled on the ship that was taking them to the Bebop. The pilot was young; only just turned nineteen. He could handle them. And it was true. He didn't yell at them to shut up or anything. He just smiled sweetly the whole way up.

The first girl was the tallest. She had reddish auburn hair that was finally long and straight, put up into a loose ponytail bun at the back of her head. She had blue eyes that were fading to gray, a look of pure sadness within joy. She'd obviously been somehow hurt at a young age; she masked it well. Her skin was light, and her face was lit up in a smile with nice pink rosy cheeks. She was surprisingly fit and strong. She had worked hard since she was thirteen to lose weight and succeeded, and was now strong as hell. She wore a white wifebeater and a girly, flowy, sheer, layered, black skirt. She was the shiest, but the funniest of the group. Her name was Erin Muhalei, though that wasn't her last name. No one knew her last name, not even herself. So she made up a name. It was from a story she'd written. Erin also had a nickname: Phineas, Phinneas, Phinea, whatever. She said something quietly and they all burst out laughing. Then they went to subjects like school and how much they hated their grade school.

The second girl had dark brown hair that was cut in the same fashion as Faye's, though she didn't use a headband. Here eyes were bright blue, and her skin was light as well. She was the shortest of the three, and youngest. She was like Erin; they'd both worked until they sweated like hell and dieted. It was all worth it in the end. She wore black fishnet armwarmers, black pajama pants, and a white tee shirt that said some odd phrase on it that had to do with art. Her name was Jackie Katimaka, a.k.a. Miriallia and Mir .She was an artist; they all were. They all drew, Erin wrote stories, and Jackie wrote stories and songs.

The last girl was Britney Shainkai. Yes, they had all made up last names, as their original ones sounded strangely odd. Britney was the oldest by two months. She had shoulder length brown/blond hair. Originally it was super curly, but she had straightened it, and it was now in an elaborate twist on her head. She had curious brown eyes, always joking around. She was called Blue, after a woman they saw on television, from some show called "Wolf's Rain". She was between the heights of Jackie and Erin, and her figure was the same as theirs. So of course they all shared clothes... Speaking of which, she wore a pair of white shorts, which were made of an odd type of cloth. Her shirt was long sleeves and had a picture of cherries and a monkey on the front: her two loves.

The girls were quiet for a moment, looking at the pilot. He'd said something... But of course they were too busy ranting and raving about how wrong spandex was to even notice.

"Sorry, what was that?" asked Britney.

"I said, we're about to land. Prepare your things," he almost sounded sad, and he was staring directly at Britney. She grinned. The girls put their cards away, put their drawing notebooks away (all but Erin), and threw away their trash.

They pulled into the hanger of the bebop, the large door closing behind them. Once it was safe to exit, they did so. They waved goodbye to the pilot, and Britney blew him a kiss. Once he was gone, they all burst out laughing, having to sit down.

"I can not believe you actually did that... It was small yeah, but funny..." Jackie said, her stomach aching from the laughing. Erin was too busy laughing to care. So they sat there laughing until Jet wondered what all that noise was and went out to find that there were three teenagers on his doorstep, laughing like crazy.

"What the hell is so funny?" He asked, one eyebrow raised, his hands on his hips. They immediately stifled their laughs. Erin spoke first.

"Nothing really. Hey, are you Jet Black? We're those dumb kids they sent to stay with you and those other two people. They wouldn't tell us what we're doing here. You wanna explain?" She asked, standing up and brushing herself off. The other girls stood up as well.

He sighed. "Just come inside..." he said, turning around and walking inside. They immediately followed feeling slightly excited. "Drop your things here for now," he directed, pointing to the living room. Erin dropped her things on a yellow couch she would learn to love. He walked out of the room for about ten minutes, going to look for Faye. She had gotten dressed and was back in her normal yellow outfit, and she put on a mask of happiness. Erin saw through her the moment she walked in.

The girls, Jet, and Faye talked for awhile about what exactly they were doing there. Since Spike's sudden... disappearance, the world of bounty hunters had begun to become small, and crime rates had increased. They were handing every bounty hunter an "apprentice" to train. It was sort of like a temporary law. Once the new hunters were out, half of them had to train. And so on. It all depended on how they performed.

The phone rang and Jet picked it up. As he was talking, Erin wondered where everyone else was. They were told that there was also another young man, in his twenties, another girl, probably fourteen, and a little dog. Oh well.

"WHAT?" Jet exclaimed, startling everyone. He talked for a few more moments and set the phone down, an unbelieving look on his face.

"What is it, Jet?" Faye asked softly.

"They've... found Spike. He's alive..."

Faye shook her head. "He can't be... I was there when he fell on those stairs that morning. I saw him fall. He's dead."

The girls watched them argue over whether he was dead or not.

"Excuse me, but did that person say anything else? Like maybe you should go pick him up?" Jackie asked, an eyebrow raised. She and Britney were seated on the floor in front of the couch, and Erin was sprawled out on it. She breathed in the strong scent of the couch. It smelled like a mixture of smoke, musk, and wet dog. She coughed. The only thing she could stand out of all of those was the musk. Her parents had smoked since as long as she could remember, and then they suddenly stopped when she was ten. Her lungs were already poisoned, so it didn't matter anymore. She fell asleep, listening to the sounds of argument and whispers.

When she awoke, Erin found that she was in a strange room. She sat up. It was a normal room, nothing really odd. The walls were a shade of gray, metal. The floor was metal as well, but there was black carpet laid down. The sheets were white, and the comforter was black, as well as her pillows. Everything smelled like vanilla, now that her stuff was in the room. The frame of the bed was metal. There was a desk on one side of the room and a box at the other side as well. What she didn't expect was to see someone staring at her, leaning on the end of the bed. She didn't know who it was.

"Can I help you?" she asked, watching him. He was grinning and smoking.

"Well it's not every day I find a pretty young girl sleeping in my bed..." he said, still looking at her. He had green hair, and it was sort of in a 'fro, but it looked awesome on him. His eyes were different shades of brown, though it was hard to tell from where she was. They sparkled playfully. He was flirting. He was only in a pair of blue pants; his entire chest and abs were covered in bandages, as well as his left shoulder and arm.

He made a move to come closer to her, but he had to stop, his hand on his shoulder, then his abs.

"Oh, here..." she said, getting out of bed. She pulled back the covers and helped him into her bed –well, his bed— and pulled the covers over his lower half. She stopped when she saw red on the clean white bandages. "Stay here..." she said. She quickly went out of the room and returned a few minutes later with, pretty much, a first aid kit. She looked around for a moment, realizing her hair was down. She rummaged through her bags and finally found a ponytail holder. With a few flicks of her wrist, she'd achieved a messy bun. She leaned over him.

He raised an eyebrow. "What's your name?" he asked.

"Erin. What's yours?"

"Spike..." he said. He cringed as she began to remove the bandages. He grabbed her wrists and stood up. She began to unwind the bandages. As she did so, she spoke.

"So you're the infamous Spike Spiegel. When did you get here?" she asked ever so quietly, setting the bandages aside. She stared at his chest and abs in something that was a little less than horror. She crossed her arms, using one arm to support her head under her chin. "Sit." She commanded, finished looking at all of his wounds.

"Maybe about a day or so ago... I'm not completely sure. I was asleep most of the time." He said, sitting. He was smiling slightly, wondering why she was so quick to get to know him instead of screaming and throwing a tantrum, demanding that he get out of her room, even though it was his. Well, that's what Faye would do. He'd definitely been around her way too long. "When did you get... Oh... Jesus that feels good..." he changed subject when she started to give his front torso a massage, around the wounds of course. She rolled her eyes. After a few more minutes of this, she finally changed the bandages. Within ten minutes, she was done.

"As for the question you were about to ask earlier... I got here probably a few hours before you did. But I've been sleeping most of the time." She said, sitting on the bed.

"How did you learn to change bandages like that?"

"When I was going into fifth grade, my brother's foot was ran over by a huge truck thing, I don't remember what it's really called, and since my parents were so busy with work, I learned how to change his bandages. Though I made him or someone else change the bandages on his thighs." She said, fondly remembering her brother. He would be turning twenty-two this year.

Spike nodded, not saying anything for a moment. "I want to train you... when I'm better, I mean." He said. "You look like a hand to hand fighter..." he exited. And with that, he left Erin speechless, for once...

And so the weeks passed. Spike came to Erin's room every time he needed a bandage change, even when he didn't need them anymore. He always came with an excuse to see her. Yes, Spike had changed. Now that Julia and Vicious were both dead, he could lead a somewhat normal life. The girls had arrived in late May, exactly two weeks after Jackie's birthday, which was on May 5. So they arrived on May 19. Now it was August 10th, Britney's birthday. She was the first of the girls to turn 18. The Bebop had landed on Earth for this wondrous occasion. They stopped in a bar where soft jazz music was playing. Later on, they'd go have more fun, but for now they would listen to some jazz. Of course, since the girls were all underage, they lied and said it was their friend's 22nd birthday, instead of 18th. After a few drinks, Jackie said she needed to go do something, and she'd catch up with them. The other girls met up with Jet, Faye, and Spike. Not ten minutes later, Jackie returned.

"Alright! Get into some nice clothes, and let's go!" she said, looking at everyone.

"Go where?" Jet asked.

"It's a surpriiiiiise..." she said, grinning. They did as she said, and so she led them down into a highly populated town. And into a restaurant. A nice restaurant. She talked to the host for a moment, and he led them to a table next to a piano. They all sat down and looked at the menus. It wasn't hard to decide what they wanted, so they ordered and waited. And waited and waited. Finally, Jackie stood up.

"I'll be right back," she said.

She stood and they nodded, continuing their conversations. She grabbed Erin and pulled her off to the side.

"Alright. Here's the surprise. You are going to sit on that piano bench and play 'Happy Birthday', and begin the song. Then, if you want to, you can keep playing until we get our food. Then we eat, and you go back to playing."

"Hey, why do I have to do it?"

"Because that's the only instrument and you play it..."

"But what about after dinner... Oh never mind... I haven't played for awhile... But I'll try I suppose..." Erin said, smiling. Jackie sat back down and Erin walked up to the old grand piano. It was on a platform, with five stairs leading up to it. She sat on the bench. Her back was facing her friends.

'Okay. Sit up straight, foot on the pedal, hands ready... and...' she thought. She hit the first notes of the song. She was aware of someone's eyes on her back.

"Happy Birthday to you... Happy Birthday to you... Happy Birthday dear Britney... Happy Birthday... To you..." Gradually, her friends joined in the song, and when it was finished, there was a little clapping.

Erin ran her fingers over the old ivory keys. And then the black keys. She searched her memory for a song. She smiled slightly when she thought of the perfect song. It was very, very old. It came from the 18th century: Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata. Sure, no one knew what the heck she was playing, but it was a beautiful song. It was so soft at first, it was barely audible. Suddenly, all the talking in the room had stopped.

'One two three, one two three, one two three...' she thought. And then she let her mind wander. And it got louder, then softer. She could feel tears begin to form, but she wouldn't let them fall. So many memories floated back to her.

'Louder... louder... Louder... softer...' and her eyes were bright with tears as her pale hands glided from the lowest notes to the highest, then to the lower ones again. She played all six minutes of the song. Minor to major... and softest to loudest. She smiled slightly. She felt every person's eyes on her as she continued the soft song. And towards the end, she let all of her anger out, pounding the keys, though the sound came out low and mellow, due to the pressing of the soft pedal. And after the last two notes were played, her hair fell onto her shoulders, shielding her face, and the single tear that fell on the C# note.

She regained her posture, and smiled when she heard the clapping. She played songs at random, songs she remembered from when she took lessons. The Tempest, House of the Rising Sun, The Piano Playin' Chocolate Eater's Blues, Rain Ripples, Little Mazurka, and many more. Finally, their food had come. Apparently, the cooks had been so busy listening to her song; they'd stopped cooking, and just listened. She returned to her seat. She sat on the left of Spike, the right of Britney. Spike spoke softly to her, so she leaned in.

"I didn't know you played..."

"You don't know much about me..."

"Well, we should fix that... tonight, you'll start your training with me. And we'll talk, I suppose..." he said, grinning slightly.

"Sure you're going to be up to it?" she whispered, smiling slightly.

"Of course... I'll try not to whoop you too hard..."

"Sure... sure..." she said, narrowing her eyes. She twirled the pasta in her fork and swirled it in some alfrado sauce. She took a bite, still looking at him. He just grinned and shook his head, going back to his meal.

Later, after they were all finished eating, the host approached Erin as the group was exiting. He complimented her on the music, asking her if she'd like a job there. She politely declined, as she had a different job already. They walked back to the docks, and back into the Bebop. Everyone, save Erin and Spike, was tired, and declared that they were going to go to bed. So they all went to their rooms, and Erin and Spike changed clothes. She waited outside his door, clad in a white tee and a pair of old red shorts, with pink and black skate shoes on her feet. Spike emerged a few moments later, with just a white wife beater and a pair of gray sweats on. They walked outside without a word.

"So. What are you going to teach me first, sensei?" she asked, almost sarcastically. She whipped her hair in a tight messy bun, this time with a black lacy headband keeping the shorter parts of her long hair out of the way.

"Well... We're going to fight first." He said, grinning. She just shrugged and grinned.

"Okay... I guess... But I don't know anything..."

"Sometimes, that's the best knowledge there is..." he said. He threw a punch at her left shoulder, and she quickly dodged, grabbing his wrist and twisting it and herself around. He felt a quick jolt of pain surge through his arm. He quickly kneed her stomach, causing her to keel slightly, letting go. She acted as if she was going to hit him, but changed her mind at the last second and kicked him in the stomach: Hard. The kick caused him to fall over backwards, flat on his butt. Within two seconds, he was up again, punching and blocking. Finally, he put his arm around her neck and pushed her onto the side of the Bebop, using all of his weight to crush her.

"Uncle, UNCLE, UNCLE!" she yelled. Immediately, he let go. She turned around and slid down the side of the ship, breathing heavily. Her hands wrapped around her neck gently massaging it. She closed her eyes for a moment.

"Sorry..." he said, sitting down next to her. She just nodded, not saying a word. After half an hour of deep breathing, in through the nose, out through the mouth, she was feeling better. "Next time, try not to strangle me..." she said, grinning slightly.

He grinned right back, then looked up at the stars. She did as well. Her eyes slowly closed, and her head fell limply onto his shoulder.

"Huh?" he asked quietly, feeling the extra weight. He smiled slightly and picked her up. He carried her inside the Bebop, and into her room. He laid her on her bed and went into the bathroom to take a shower. After that, he went to bed.

The next morning, they both slept straight through breakfast and almost missed lunch. They walked in just as everyone was about to step outside. Faye noticed the two sleepyheads first. "Hey, want to come to lunch with us?" she asked. They both nodded, and each was dressed in a few minutes. Of course, Jet, Faye, and Spike had caught a bounty before Spike ran off, and it was a lot of money. So they went out quite a bit. But, they decided that since no one could agree on where to eat, they would just grab some takeout and eat at the Bebop. And so they did. But when they got back, there was a little surprise waiting for them.

AN: Oh dear that took forever... Hmm. What could this surprise be? Well, find out next chapter! If you didn't know before, I am Erin, and Britney and Jackie are my real life best friends who don't know they're in this fanfic... ehehehe... –sweatdrop- please R 'n' R! And just so you know, my other story, OWWD, is on hiatus for awhile due to writer's block. Well, WB for that story... Oh yes, I have plans, my friend. Many, many plans... –cackles evilly- Ehrm. Sorry...