Chapter 3

*Part One of Three*

"Thanks again for what you did Star..." I started, trying to start-up a little conversation. On our way back, an uneasy silence had grown between us, only ever broken by an occasional slam of a locker from down another hallway, or the clink of the metal doors as someone when outside the school.

"What did I do again?..." she asked, looking at me with a confused look in her eyes. I kindly reminded her with a point to my side, stopping to stand up as I do. It took her a moment to realize what I was doing though, as she had to stop and stare at me for a few moments to get it.

"Oh, the healing..." she finally says, her tails whisking back and forth on the ground behind her. I wanted to ask how she had forgotten something she did not even five minutes ago, but I decided against it. Another question loomed in my head...actually, there were quiet a few come to think of it...

"Star, do you know why those 'mon were trying to hurt me?..." I asked, still looking at my side as I did.

"That...Baku, do you know what hazing is?"

"Hazing?... Like the move?" I asked, unclear about what she ment.

"No not Haze, hazing...it's like a..."rite of passage" for newcomers. Something that has to be done before you can get accepted..." she trailed off, a duller look in her eyes. Did she go through it herself?... I focused my attention on her as she caught herself again. "Usually it's either painful, embarrassing...or really degrading...depending on who you were and where you came from, it varied..."

"...does everyone get..."hazed" here?" I asked, feeling a bit worried about her. She dully nodded her head, avoiding my gaze as she did.

"Sometimes they taking a liking to the females, though not in a good way...that Treeko who had you pinned...he had convinced me to follow him to the top before holding me down to where I couldn't get free..." she continued, her voice getting more and more grave. Her body began to tremble, her head tucked low with her ears flat against her head. I could tell this must've been traumatic for her...

"Star, y-you can stop..." I started, walking up to nudge her gently to see if she was okay. Without any warning I found myself quickly enveloped in a surprise hug, her fore paws wrapped around my throat as she started to cry... I didn't want to upset her anymore than she already was, so I let it happen, trying desperately to hide my embarrassment from having her latch onto me like she did...

"I wish I could've stopped them sooner..." I hear her say, her legs going limp under me. I was starting to struggle under our combined weight, but still held my ground under her. "You were lucky they just wanted you roughed up...they wanted more from me..." she continued to sob, rubbing her chin into my back. Again I can feel the embarrassment grow within me as I look away, my face starting to burn a bit. "... I was lucky my Hypnosis landed on that Pidgeotto...and that the other two hated fire... I would've been a mother by now..."

Instantly my blood started to boil hot from that thought...how could they be so despicable, especially at their age?...and why were they so mean to begin with? Were they just the bad eggs that were lucky enough to hatch?... My thought process was cut short as my little legs began to buckle under the strain. I tried to get Star to at least take her own weight again, but she didn't seem to catch my words in time as we both crumbled to the ground. My landing was again ungraceful as I slammed back first onto the cold floor, Star dropping down on my stomach chin first. Out of pain I tensed up, closing my eyes to groan in pain for a moment. The room goes silent again afterwards... I let it go for a few moments before peeking out again, seeing Star looking at me, her face bearing a look of embarrassment. I feel the burning in my face return as I realize how bad this must look...

"S-star?"

"Y-yes Baku?..."

"... Could you please get off me?" The little Vulpix nodded as she tried to squirm off me again, looking away as she did. I did my best to look the other way as well, being sure to wait a moment before getting up just to be sure she was free.

"L-let's agree that never happened Baku..." she said, tucking her head down again.

"Sure...let's get back to class now...we're already late as it is..."