It just occured to me why I like this story so much. I have pretty much complete control over where I want to go with it. I have to include Shoko (probably my favorite character right now). I have to include the dojo, relate armlessness to her parents and their computer fetish, and I have to make it end with PB and her amulet. Everything else is mine. I can create all the OCs I want. There's no mandatory plot sequences until right at the end. Every little bit of this story is my creation and I love it.

I can only hope you're enjoying this story as much as I am :)

"My name is Shoko," she said, still looking straight into his eyes. They were so strange, the color of a really full moon.

"Tommy…?" she muttered, "Are you the one that bites?"

He looked surprised, but it took him only a moment to catch onto her fleeting smile. He matched it with a wide array of teeth, all spread out across the inside of his mouth. A few gaps were visible, and through them she could see the darkness beyond.

Tommy laughed, "Yeah, that's me. Don't worry though, I won't bite you."

"That's nice," Shoko said.

"What happened to your arm?" Tommy asked brazenly. The question surprised her, and threw her off guard. She never expected anyone to venture near that subject. It was too painful, too obviously sensitive. Shoko felt this told her something about Tommy, but she didn't know what.

"I… it…" Shoko tried to say, but she was too shaken up by the reminiscence.

"I'm sorry," Tommy said, abruptly realizing her discomfort, "I'm not supposed to talk about that, am I?"

"It's okay," Shoko said, "I'm… I'm not too upset."

"You don't have to tell me if you don't want."

Staring at Tommy, Shoko found herself comparing him to Sam. She didn't know why she did it, just that she did. Sam hadn't mentioned her arm, just like everyone else. Whenever anyone saw her, the first thing they noticed was the useless half-limb, but no one said anything. They always wanted to bring it up, or to stare at it, but no one did.

Shoko often found it irritating to watch someone awkwardly skirt around the subject. At least Sam had managed not to stare or stutter. Tommy, on the other hand, dove right in.

"It happened a long time ago," Shoko said, delving back into the past, "I don't remember all of it, just a few bits. I can remember it hurting, and I know it was dark out. I couldn't see at all."

Tommy's face sympathetic.

"It's all a blur. I woke up with two arms, then I woke up with one of them missing. I had this big bandage on for a long time too."

Having finished her fragmented story, Shoko sighed dejectedly. It always made her sad to think about it. That night was a hole of bad feelings and Shoko wished she could just lock it away where she'd never have to stumble over it again.

Tommy saw the sadness and started to apologize for asking. However, he paused mid-word and looked at her for a long moment. He was just staring at her and Shoko couldn't help but stare back at him. He looked so focused on her, as if he was trying to figure something out.

Then, all of a sudden, his eyes rolled back into his skull. They were all white and Shoko was, in turn, captivated. She was a little horrified too.

"Wh-what are you doing?" she asked, confusion and impatience both audible in her voice.

"I'm cheering you up," he said, eyes still blank. Tommy looked like a zombie, a talking zombie. Without any warning, he bent down and began to stand on his hands. Watching him totter around like an upside down zombie, Shoko couldn't help but crack a smile.

He just looked so, stupid.

A weak chuckle popped out, and was followed by a full laugh. Tommy was acting like a freak, drawing her attention away from how much of a freak she herself was. In a sudden fit of poise, Tommy lost his balance and fell flat onto his back.

It seemed that the air was thrown out of his lungs, since he didn't move. However, a few seconds passed without so much as a twitch. He wasn't breathing.

Shoko gasped and got down beside him, feeling totally unsure of what to do. She just stared at him, looking from his face to his still chest. From his still chest to his slowly reddening face.

She flinched backward as Tommy burst to life. He sat halfway up and started to suck up air. His face was still red, and he was still breathing hard as her turned round toward Shoko.

"I was dead!" he exclaimed.

"You were not!" Shoko cried out. She couldn't help it, getting caught up in his stupid antics. There was just something about Tommy's foolish crusade that drew her in and made her forget about everything. She had to focus on him to make sure he didn't actually die or turn into a real zombie or anything like that. There was simply no room left in her head to think about her missing arm or her missing parents.

"I so was! I was dead and you let me die! Some friend you are!" Tommy said accusingly, crossing his arms and turning away from Shoko in a faux sulk.

"But you weren't dead!" Shoko protested.

Friend

"I was too! You just didn't care enough to find out for sure."

"I would care," Shoko explained, "If you weren't being such an idiot!"

"An idiot, am I?" Tommy recoiled, "I thought you liked me."

"I do like you!" Shoko insisted. However, there was a moment of silence before she caught her words and exclaimed, "I mean… I…"

"That's all I needed to hear," Tommy said confidently, climbing to his feet. Without so much as another word, Tommy rose to his feet and started to walk away. Feeling excited and flustered, Shoko followed him.

While walking, Tommy peeked over his shoulder once and acted surprised to see her there. Picking up his pace, he started toward the mass of children. Without even thinking, Shoko followed him onto the battlefield.

Visibility was low in the forest of short trees, and it was hard to keep up with Tommy. His semi-active evasion didn't help.

To Shoko's frustration, he disappeared suddenly. She continued to search around for him for a few minutes. It never even occurred to her that she was right in the middle of the group of children. In fact, she didn't think of anything outside the pursuit until she found herself face to face with Sam.

"Hey!" Sam exclaimed happily at the sight of her, "Look who decided to come play after all."

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