Chapter 1

Joy to the world!

The Lord is come!

Let Earth receive her King!

The carol came wafting out of a set of loudspeakers next to a department store full of shoppers. I was trying to drive down the busy street, but I had to stop frequently at red lights, due to the heavy foot and vehicle traffic.

Still, it was good to be outside… on my own. Even if I was riding this crappy little motorbike. But it was the only vehicle Dr. Nambu would give me. Everyone on the team had one, as 'compensation' for being denied access to our G-Machines, now that they no longer transmuted.

Ever since I had returned to the Science Ninja Team, Hakase had regarded me with some degree of suspicion. I guess he was remembering how good Berg Katse was at disguises. It didn't help that I had been somewhat reluctant to be 'tested', given what Dr. Raphael had done to me. But after a DNA analysis of my blood, among other things, the ISO had finally confirmed that I was actually Joe Asakura, and not some imposter.

Due to these initial suspicions, I hadn't been allowed out of G-Town since I had returned, save for two missions and one motorbike ride with the rest of the team as 'chaperones'. Jun had tried to get me to see it differently, but I knew that Nambu would never have let me out without the four of them. What the Doctor didn't know was that if I wanted to, I was now capable of defeating all of them in hand-to-hand combat without even breaking a sweat.

Of course, that was the last thing I wanted to do. Ken's first reaction when I had returned was to punch me in the jaw. I had had to restrain myself, merely throwing him into the sand, and that kind of restraint was new to me. I had been trying to avoid him since, even though supposedly things were okay between us. Still, he was my commanding officer, although, as before, I found myself inclined to ignore his orders if they didn't make sense.

But none of that mattered today. I wasn't going to see Ken… at least, not until tonight. On my first solo excursion out of G-Town, I was going to see Jun.

I hadn't had a chance to be alone with Jun since I had returned, but the few times I had seen her she had made a point of smiling at me, and letting me know that she was glad I was back. Even on the 'chaperoned' motorbike ride, she had commented generally how long it had been since we had all been together, and how happy she was that I was back.

But what I couldn't get out of my mind was the way she had reacted when she had first seen a glimpse of my shadow, in that Temple on Easton Island. She had cried out for me, and in her voice I had heard my own longing reflected back at me. How many nights had I lain awake in Dr. Raphael's base, dreaming of Jun, picturing her in my mind, and remembering that Christmas Eve we had spent in each other's embrace?

And then, that day when she had run after me in New Jork, tears running down her face as she called out for me… falling to her knees amidst the rubble in that street… I had had to exercise all of my hard-earned restraint not to run and sweep her into my arms at that moment. And then later that day, I had revealed myself, and it had been she who had run to me.

I could still see the incredulous joy on her face as she had gazed up at me with shining eyes, and feel the tear that had slipped down my cheek as we had held each other.

It was at that moment that I had known that I had done the right thing, by returning.

I arrived at my destination: the Snack J. It looked different from how I remembered it. Gone was the giant letter J outside, and now there was a giant 'JUN' painted on the exterior wall that faced the parking lot.

But when I walked inside, it was so familiar that my heart leapt inside my chest. Fresh paint and new coverings for the booth benches didn't alter my perception of this place… this place that I had preserved in my memories, keeping me going through the eighteen months that I had been gone.

Jun stood up as I entered, rising gracefully from a stool at the bar where she had been having a cup of tea.

"Joe!" she exclaimed happily. "I'm so glad you're here."

I smiled back at her. I couldn't help it. Jun was everything I wanted to be: happy, vibrant… alive.

And her excitement was infectious.

"I take it that you're ready to go, then?" I asked her teasingly.

"I've been waiting for this for two years." Jun said seriously, taking my hands in her for a moment and looking me in the eye.

"Then, let's go get our Christmas tree!" I grinned.

"Just what I wanted to hear." she smiled, squeezing my hand briefly before she let go.

Jun put on her coat, pulling me toward the door even before her arms were completely through the sleeves.

"Let's go!" she urged. "Just over here."

She led me into the parking lot next to the Snack, to a newer model sedan I didn't recognize. It was hardly what I was used to driving in the 'old days', but it was a hell of a lot better than those pathetic motorbikes.

"Here!" Jun grinned, tossing the keys into the air toward me.

I caught them instinctively, grinning back as I realized that for the first time in nearly two years, I was able to drive a car. An honest-to-goodness car. I didn't count that awful bird-thing they called the Condor Attacker. That vehicle was a joke compared to 'Old Blue', my sleek, racecar-inspired G2 from the original God Phoenix. All of our vehicles now looked like they belonged in some kind of Bird-Clown Circus.

I opened the driver's side door, appreciating the simple act of just getting behind the wheel, even if this was somewhat more sedate than my preferred type of vehicle. Beggars couldn't be choosers.

"Is this yours?" I asked Jun curiously.

"No, it's Ryu's." Jun explained. "He bought it about a year ago. Ken fixed up the airfield, Jinpei and I renovated the Snack, and Ryu bought a car. That's about all our ISO bonuses were worth."

"Sounds about right." I replied, remembering the sum Dr. Nambu had given me a few days ago. Apparently he'd had to fight the ISO for it, as they had not wanted to pay 'a dead man'.

Not that it was very much. As Jun had said, enough to buy a car, and that was about it. Still, I had never been in this job for the money.

"There's one other thing." Jun smiled slyly, opening the glove compartment. She pulled something out and tossed it into my lap. I looked down to examine the object.

"My lucky racing gloves!" I exclaimed in surprise. "I never thought I'd see these again."

"Ryu thought that you might want to wear them." Jun explained, but I was already putting them on. They felt good on my hands; reminding me of old times, and races I had won.

"So, are we going, already?" Jun poked my shoulder with her finger, interrupting my reverie.

I was about to apologize for the delay when I realized that she had a pleased air about her. Jun was glad that I was enjoying this.

"Off to Hakase's forest!" I declared, turning the key in the ignition and stepping hard on the gas pedal. Jun's body slammed into the back of the passenger seat as I took off, racing out of the parking lot with her laughter ringing in my ears.

"Just make sure Ryu still has a car, after this!" Jun smirked.

I gave her a cocky grin, driving even faster while I dodged the other vehicles on the road. One annoyed motorist honked and swore at me, giving me the finger as I whizzed lazily by him.

I was in heaven.

Once we got out of the city, there was a lot less traffic and I really pushed Ryu's car to the limit. It wasn't a bad performer at all, despite the fact that it looked like something my Sicilian grandmother would have driven.

As I drove, Jun sat in the passenger seat, her eyes sparkling with delight. When I made a sharp turn she squealed happily, turning to look at me with a big smile on her face.

Jun had the same need for speed that I did. I had almost forgotten…

All too soon, we arrived at Hakase's house. Although technically Dr. Nambu still lived here, he usually spent his nights at G-Town now, in a small room off of his office. Still, despite the neglected air, I still thought of this house first and foremost as the place where I had spent my childhood… the place where I had grown up.

"Feels good to be back, doesn't it?" Jun asked, taking my hand to lead me through the trees and into the forest surrounding Hakase's house.

"You were here last year." I pointed out, breathing deeply of the crisp, pine-scented air.

"No." Jun shook her head, sending the ebony strands flying to create a soft halo about her. "I didn't go. Ken, Jinpei and Ryu went to get the tree last year."

"The Three Stooges?" I laughed. "How did that turn out?"

"They got lost!" Jun reported gleefully. "They wandered around for hours and eventually turned up on Old Man Henderson's property."

"But that's two miles from here…" I protested.

"I know." Jun grinned. "Apparently he held them at gunpoint and had them arrested for trespassing. I think they were also charged with tree theft… oh, and Ken and Ryu were charged with corrupting a minor."

I couldn't help it. I stopped, placing one palm against a nearby tree for support, leaning over and laughing until tears ran down my cheeks. I could just see the great Gatchaman… the White Shadow… arrested for corrupting a minor! And if Jinpei had raged at the police in his usual foul-mouthed way… Oh, my stomach was hurting now as I laughed like I hadn't done in a long time.

Jun began giggling, and soon she was laughing full out as well.

"Oh, poor Jinpei… being corrupted by Ken and Ryu…" she gasped.

"So, how did they get out of it?" I asked, after taking a few minutes to compose myself.

"Apparently the Chief of Police recognized them from when he had visited Hakase's house when we were younger. He let them go with a warning, after Ken explained what had happened." Jun smirked. "In a way, I wish I had been there to see it, but of course, if I had gone with them, they never would have been in that jam at all."

"Why didn't you go?" I asked her curiously.

"I…" Jun looked up at me, suddenly serious, her cheeks pink with the cold weather.

"I couldn't face doing this… coming here… knowing that you were gone." she said simply.

Jun stared at me for a long moment, her breath visible as white puffs in the cool air. Then, without warning, she turned on the ball of her foot, gesturing that I should follow her.

"So let's go get that tree, Mister Back-From-The-Dead!"

It almost sounded like a term of endearment.