Hey guys, NightFall here, with the next installment of HDD, and I'll say it right now that this is a chapter that I've wanted to do for a long time since I decided to do these chapters about the different characters, but then again that's more to do with the fact that I've also been thinking about different situations for each one. With this chapter, I'm going back to a character that I think needs more touching on, and if that isn't any indication enough, then the first few lines of the chapter will help you to figure that part out. I'm kinda surprised, to be honest, at some of your reactions to my making the MaayaxTakeru shipping, although, I did have plans for each of the characters to be paired up with someone eventually, well, not really, but I'm figuring it out as I go along. The only problem with shipping is that I'm not very good at it, and maybe throughout the next chapters, I'll be able to get better, and make a story you're all sure to enjoy.

DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN POKÉMON, BECAUSE IF I DID, GHOSTS AND DRAGONS WOULD NOT BE WEAK TO THEMSELVES.


Chapter 8: The Truth in Terror

What's the thing that you're most afraid of? The one thing that chills your blood solid, and makes it impossible to breathe; think about what that is for you? For everybody, there is something that makes them so afraid, they can barely move, or they run away in terror, normally never to venture in the same area until they know it to be safe. Fear is, unfortunately, a very powerful and unrelenting force against anyone, not just those who seem to be cowards by nature. There is nobody who walks this earth and doesn't, hasn't, or will not have a sense of fear at some time in their life, but the difference between people who understand this, and those who give themselves up to fear is simply this; a life. It was once said that if we all things to scare us, life itself would no longer be worth living; and this is where the true defining line comes into play. The line between whether or not you lose yourself to your fears, or you engage a sense of courage, whether to stand up to your fear, or, an even scarier idea, admitting that you are indeed afraid of what is facing you.


The room was dark, and yet everything could be seen, the distinct smell of a small bottle wafting through the air towards where she sat, tears streaming down her face. All her ears could hear were the stomping sounds of what sounded like hundreds of Mamoswine, all aimed at her, ready to end it all, and yet they wouldn't dare grant her that satisfaction. All she could do was curl into a ball, and wait for whether or not it would be safe, or until the smell was gone, and the booming sounds were finally gone. But she knew something very sad that would follow her around for the rest of her life…she would never be safe, the stench would stain her nose, and the stomping would deafen her ears for all eternity. As she looked up, all that was there was a gleaming set of teeth from a smile that meant only one thing for her; terror.

As her eyes shot open, and her back sprang up out of reflex, Amira began breathing as deeply as she could, sweat dropping from the tips of her bangs and forehead, Kirlia and Duosion both springing from the top bunk of her room to where she was. As she regained control of her lungs, Amira began looking down at her hand, and then clenched her fist as tightly as she could, releasing it as she turned back over towards her pokémon, a forced smile on her face, easily accepted by Duosion, who was more interested in going back to sleep. Kirlia however stood back on its feet, and stared directly into Amira's eyes, a light membrane surrounding the irises.

"I'm fine, Kirlia," Amira tried to assure, but was not received by her partner. "No matter what I say, it's not going to change your mind, will it?" she asked, Kirlia gently spreading the Hypnosis attack from where it stood to where Amira sat up, Kirlia slowly placing her head back on the pillow as her trainer drifted back off to sleep; hopefully one that didn't include a constant reminder of who Amira truly was all those years back.

Despite being under the Hypnosis' influence, Amira was still partially conscious, having grown accustomed to being put to sleep with the same tactic over time, barely keeping her eyes open as she stared at the bed above her. "I wonder if he's having any other problems with getting used to others, still?" she questioned, allowing the influence of the attack to put her blissfully to sleep. After falling back to sleep, Kirlia stood up from where it stood on its twig-like legs, and looked over at the locked journal Amira was writing in the evening before, silently walking towards.

Quietly unlatching the lock on the small book, Kirlia looked down at the last page Amira wrote in, reading it to itself, and then looking up at its sleeping trainer. "It's not getting much easier for me to get used to others yet. Maaya-chan is still my only friend I can handle for a long time, but I really want to be friends with her like Natsu-kun and Judai-kun are. He's really amazing when I think about it, Natsu-kun. He's been going to this school for about five or six weeks, and already many of his own fears are beginning to fade away. I wonder if there's anything I can do to make it so much easier for me to the same thing. Maybe that way I can finally stand up for myself when that monster comes back for me." After closing the journal, Kirlia relocked the latch, and floated back up to the top bunk with Duosion, a smile on both of their faces, knowing what would be the best way for Amira to get rid of her fears, whether she liked it or not.


The next morning came all too early for Amira's liking, having woken up halfway through the night, but she gave in fairly quickly to the sun's rays peeking through her window, climbing out of her bed, and turning towards her desk where both Kirlia and Duosion sat.

"Am I in trouble?" she asked both of her pokémon, the two sneering at her as Kirlia levitated a small day planner towards her, having one of the subjects highlighted. "Part-time job? I don't have a part-time job," she said, both Kirlia and Duosion chuckling as Amira quickly became aware of the situation they were making for her.

Within a few minutes, Amira was being forced down the staircase, her legs moving only by the influence of her pokémon's psychic attacks, the struggling of her body apparent as she took each step down the staircase. Resisting silently against both of them, Amira was forced outside of her dorm, and looked out at the scenery of the campus before being pushed forward by her pokémon.

"Let me go, you two," she commanded, neither of her pokémon listening to her thoughts as she dragged her feet against the floorboards of the front porch of the dorm. "I'm not kidding, this is getting really old, really fast, and I don't want anyone thinking I'm being kidnapped by my own pokémon."

Kirlia and Duosion, however, merely passed her off, and continued pulling her along the dirt road towards the train depot about a quarter mile off of campus, leading into Nimbasa City's main square. After passing by other people, staring at how Amira was walking, noticing the drag in her footsteps going in the opposite direction she was currently moving, the psychic trainer merely gave into her pokémon, letting out a depressed sigh, allowing both Kirlia and Duosion have their way, and walked alongside both of them.

"Both of you are so spoiled," Amira said to both of her pokémon. "When did you two find the time to sign me up for a job off campus, anyway? It's not like there are any businesses even hiring, I checked, believe me," she explained, both of her pokémon posing a questioning look to her as they showed her a flier. "You can't be serious; I figured you two would know that even if that was the only option, I would never even consider going into a place like that."

Amira's fear of what her pokémon had done was soon confirmed as they boarded the train, and she looked down at the application her pokémon had already filled out for her; the bright pink of the stationary sending a shiver down her spine as the subway car came to a stop. Staying determined to remain in her seat, Amira folded her arms over her chest, only to be picked up by both Kirlia and Duosion once again with their psychic power, the train leaving as soon as she stepped off, making her turn around with a look of despair, both of her pokémon sneering down at her, forcing her up the stairway back above ground.

"I won't do this, do you hear me!" Amira shouted at her pokémon, neither of them paying any attention, Duosion just giving off a loud yawn for her to hear. "This can't possibly get any worse for me, but I know you two are gonna find a way, aren't you?" she asked, both of her pokémon turning to her with another evil grin as they motioned for the building on the application just ahead. "I'm asking you two, please don't make me do this," she pleaded, Kirlia and Duosion picking her up off of the ground, and placing her in front of them, extending her arm out.


Knowing what they were planning to do, Amira resisted as strongly as she could, trying to keep them from moving her hand any further to the door as they morphed it into a fist to knock it with. Gripping her right arm with her other hand to keep it from going any further, Amira continued to strain against her pokémon's psychic power, both of them giving one last push against Amira, her hand smashing against the door of the building. As her pokémon relaxed, Amira instantly stiffened as the doorknob in front of them began to turn with a young girl about Amira's age walking through, wearing an outfit that made the business of this place very clear to anyone.

"Welcome back to Café Assouplir, milady," the girl said, making a small curtsy in her maid outfit as Amira stared in silence as both her pokémon kept her from moving any further back. "Is there something I can help you with?" she asked, Kirlia's eyes glowing a light blue as Amira's hand shot up with the application in her hand.

"Please say no," Amira pleaded to herself.

"You wish to work here?" the girl asked, Duosion forcing her to nod as the girl's expression lit up as though she were just handed some kind of prize. "Oh, this must be some kind of work of fate to have such a beautiful girl such as yourself to join our family. Come in!" she said happily, grabbing Amira by the arm, beginning to drag her in.

The sudden contact with this girl quickly made Amira take in a sharp breath, looking down at the hand grasping her arm, the grip intense, and tightening as she led Amira through the brightly decorated room. With her eyes widening out of fear, Amira quickly jerked her arm back, grasping it quickly, trying to keep shuddering in terror, the girl knocked off of her feet, looking back at Amira, seeing her fight back her fear. For a few minutes it seemed like everyone in the small shop had turned to stare at Amira, the sight of her afraid of even a girl grabbing her with such force making them begin to walk towards her to see if she was okay.

"Please get them away," Amira pleaded to herself, instantly feeling the presences of the people around her beginning to dissipate, everyone around her whispering to those around them, trying to figure out what was wrong. "What just happened?" she questioned, looking up, the sight of the girl that led her in front of her with a Graveler by her side, giving her a good idea.

"Are you okay?" the girl asked, kneeling down to eye level with Amira. "I didn't think you were the kind of girl that didn't like to be touched. You seem like a person that the boys all flock to. But you can be sure that if anyone tries to give you trouble, they'll have to get past me, and my partner here," she said, patting the top of the rock pokémon's head. "By the way, I don't think we've been introduced; I'm Natsuki Kobayashi," she said, extending her hand, Amira shying from the contact. "Sorry, it'll take some getting used to. Can I ask your name?"

"Amira," Amira wrote, showing her notepad to Natsuki. "Amira Khumalo."

"A pretty name for a pretty girl," Natsuki said, hailing over to the back room. "Come on, I'll show you everything you'll need to know while on the job," she said, Amira following after, holding her notebook behind her for both Kirlia and Duosion to see.

"Thanks, you two," she had written, both of her pokémon snickering as they followed their trainer into the back room, Graveler closing the door behind the two of them, a different sneer decorating his own face as it watched Natsuki and Amira go further into the back room.


Later in the day, a similar scene was being shown as Jiro and Judai both dragged Natsu along the sidewalks of Nimbasa, the ghost type trainer doing his best to keep from being pulled, literally, into another of their plans. Noticing how much of a struggle Natsu was putting up, Judai turned around, and noticed Lampent floating behind him, motioning to the ghost and fire type mix, the pokémon nodding in agreement as it began pushing Natsu in the same direction the other two were pulling him.

"It'd be easier for ya to just give it up, bro," Judai said, both he and Jiro beginning to strain while pulling Natsu along. "Come on, all we're askin' for is an hour, tops, at a little shop that just so happens to have their servers dress up as maids."

"It's a good day to be alive, isn't it?" Jiro asked. "And if I get a few more points on my card, I can get us free drinks if we come next week," he said, looking back at the other three, all of them sharing a similar look of distaste. "What, you have your hobbies, I have mine."

"Except mine don't involve goin' to this place more than once a month, if that," Judai responded. "I'm just tryin' to get my bro to be a bit more comfortable around the ladies. He's already charmin' most of 'em, so why not do a bit better, and get him to like it while doin' so?" he asked, Natsu making one final pull against the other two, which ultimately ended in his tripping over his own foot, Lampent keeping him up, but now, no longer able to resist.

"Ah, the spoils of victory," Jiro said, reaching the door to the café with the French title. "Ah, the good old Café Assouplir, one of the truly great places in Nimbasa to go to. Trust me, this place will turn you into a real man, or my name's not Jiro Matsushita," he said.

"Well then, ya better start thinkin' about a name change," Judai said, looking back down at Natsu, the young ghost trainer already out cold from looking at the young girl greeting them. "If this is how he reacts to a girl just talkin' to him, imagine how much of a smoke cloud is gonna appear over this entire establishment."

"Ah, Matsushita-sama," the girl started, looking at Jiro, the latter embarrassed by the title. "I see you have brought some new masters for us to serve. Would you be so kind as to introduce them to me?"

"Sure, Natsuki-chan," Jiro said, Judai doing his best to hold the barely conscious Natsu. "This is Judai Ryuzaki and Natsu Kohashigawa from my school. They're my underclassmen, and I thought it would be a good chance to show them some of the fun things to do around town."

"That, and help my bro grow a backbone around girls," Judai joked, holding up Natsu, Natsuki staring into his eyes, making his face turn beet red before going out cold once again. "See what I mean. It's a cool trick, it just gets a bit heavy when I'm the one that's gotta carry him."

"It just means you're a good friend," Natsuki said, showing all three in, their pokémon following after them. "Oh, since Matsushita-sama is one of our most well-behaved, and best customers, would it be all right if one of our newest members came to wait on you today?" she asked, Jiro nodding as his answer. "Thank you, Matsushita-sama; I'll go get her for all three of you. Are you sure he'll be okay?" she asked, pointing over at Natsu.

"If it doesn't happen, we figure somethin' must be wrong with him." Judai said jokingly, trying to get Natsu to wake up as Natsuki disappeared behind the back door. "So, exactly, how often do ya come in here, Jiro-senpai?" Judai asked, Jiro looking away, trying to avoid the question. "Come on, with how many girls you've hit on in the past two hours while on the train, I doubt the number of times you're in here'll surprise me," he said, Jiro leaning over the table, whispering the answer. "You, sir, need professional help, and not just a little bit."

"With how depressive my love life is, you kinda get noticed by people in this profession," Jiro said. "Besides, these kinds of places aren't as bad as they're made out to be on TV shows, and such. I usually just talk to the waitresses here, so it's never something that turns into what many people think. Who knows, maybe even the little guy will enjoy himself in here," he said, Natsu finally coming to his senses, looking around at the scenery, blush still covering his face.

"Man, this is a serious problem, bro," Judai said. "A lot of the guys in the school are still questionin' whether or not ya are a girl from how many times they've seen ya in the locker rooms. Sometimes it just turns into a bloodbath from the nosebleeds, and I'm gettin' tired of dealing with it."

"It's not as easy as it looks to get rid of a fear like this," Natsu simply said, the door from the back opening up, another of the waitresses walking towards their table, her head titled down, not wanting to look at who she was serving. "I've lived like this for a long time, and it's not as easy to just suddenly snap out of something like this," he explained, a glass of water being placed in front of him, forcing him to look up at the waitress, both of their faces erupting into a deep red shade.

Seeing Natsu's reaction to the girl standing in front of them, Judai looked up as well, a bewildered look decorating his face as he recognized the dark skinned Amira standing in front of them, wearing a black dress with white laced lining, and a white headband to keep her hair back. "Well, it just seems like me and my bro are always in the middle of seein' others the way they don't want to see them. How ya doin', Amira-senpai?" he asked, Amira blush not leaving her face as she began stuttering in her writing, quickly ducking back into the back room, Jiro leaning over his chair.

"Dang, she looked good like that," he said, looking back over at Natsu, his faced still in a daze, and colored a dark shade of red, both he and Judai noticing the steam coming from the ghost trainer's head. "Here we go," Jiro said, counting down on his fingers until Natsu fell back into his chair, and to the ground.

"In all fairness, he did see his crush in a maid outfit," Judai said. "That'd put anyone into a catatonic state. But for my bro, it probably just about killed him."

"A fair assumption," Jiro said, both of them looking down at Natsu, still seeing his mind wander after seeing Amira in the way she was dressed, the latter peeking through the door, still afraid of coming any closer for fear of making the situation worse, or causing any further damage to Natsu's psyche.

"So, who was that?" Natsuki asked from behind her. "Obviously, one of those boys has been targeted by our new Amira-chan, and the rest of want are gonna wanna know so we can have some real fun with you, if you get my meaning."

"They're my classmates," Amira wrote. "The smallest one is just afraid of girls, and I just didn't want to get him hurt by showing up like this," she continued, Natsuki looking at her with a questioning look on her eyes. "What?"

"I've been working with girls of all kinds for the past three years in this place," she answered. "I can tell when one of them is lying, especially if they write it down. I've had three other girls communicate with the writing board before, it's not a new gimmick, trust me. You seriously have a thing for that little guy, Natsu-kun, don't you?" she asked, Amira blushing, trying to avoid the question. "Oh, I wouldn't worry about it. I think he likes you in the same way," she whispered to her. "Although, with the way he looks, it is quite a shame he's a guy; put him in one of these uniforms, and we could market to both guys and girls."

"Please don't do that kind of stuff to him," Amira wrote down. "He's already gone through enough with other girls, I don't think we should make it any worse for him."

"What happens if it's an unavoidable situation?" Natsuki asked, Amira looking at her confused. "I'll be right back, and I'll be sure to get you some alone time with your little friend; it's how to start any kind of relationship," she said, walking out of the back room, Amira about to step out of the room, but gripped onto her own arm in fear, afraid of speaking up against her, simply sticking her head out of the door, trying to see what Natsuki was going to do.


From where she watched, Amira could see Natsuki walk up to the table where Jiro, Judai, and Natsu were seated, seemingly apologizing for her own behavior. From what she could see, Natsu was still nervous, just now able to keep himself from falling back over, but not able to face Natsuki, despite the latter ending up right behind him, reaching around to clean up part of the table. Slightly annoyed by seeing her new coworker next to Natsu, Amira swallowed her anger, and continued to watch, and suddenly found herself in shock as the next thing she saw were Natsu's clothes dripping with the water she had brought them earlier.

"Oh, my sincerest apologies, sir," Natsuki said, feigning an attempt at drying his clothes, giving a wink off to Amira. "I guess we'll have to dry you off, and dry your clothes off. We'll have to find something else for you to wear until then," she said.

"Say what?" Natsu, Amira, Judai, and Jiro all said to their own selves at the same time, Natsu quickly getting whisked into the back room.

"Amira-chan, will you help our customer out of those wet clothes?" Natsuki asked, Natsu and Amira both turning to her as though she were crazy, although by this point, she may as well have been. "You're not making this easy, you know, girl," Natsuki said, grabbing Natsu's shoulder, the latter shuddering slightly from the water's near frigid temperature. "At least, find something he can wear," she said, Amira nodding, hoping to find something less than feminine, trying to preserve whatever kind of masculinity he had left.

Listening at the door, Judai and Jiro leaned closer, hearing a series of fumbling around in the other room, three different voices mixed with each other. Hearing several indistinct sounds, both Judai and Jiro began making their own interpretations of what was happening on the other side of the door, Jiro's causing a small trickle of blood to begin travelling down his nose.

"Sure have been in there a while," Judai said. "What do you think's goin' on?" he asked, noticing Jiro twitching on the ground with the blood still pooling around the top of his lip. "I obviously asked the wrong person," he said, turning back to the door, only to hear the front door swing open, smacking one of the patrons across the face, an all too familiar face standing in the doorway.

"Alright, where is she?" Maaya shouted into the café's confines. "I know you have my friend, and I'm not leaving this dump unless I get her out of here," she said, walking in, Takeru following after her. "What are you two doing here?"

"Well it was the three of us, but one of the other maids had a little accident with our third, and he's in there, right now," Judai said. "The better question, is what are ya two doin' here, and better yet, why are ya here as a 'two'?" he asked, noticing Takeru staring in all different directions, instantly captivated with everything happening in the small shop.

"My friend heard that Amira-san got prior approval from the headmistress to work off campus, and finally found a job this morning, but she decided that working at a maid café was less than acceptable for her," Takeru explained. "I, for one, have been fascinated with ideals of a maid café, and simply joined in so I could conduct my research. Out of idle curiosity, who was the third in your group of three?" he asked, both Jiro and Judai turning away to avoid the question.

"No way!" Maaya shouted. "You dragged that little brat, Natsu, with you to a place like this? How fast did it take him to pass out after he got in? Or did he even make it that far?" she asked, neither of them hoping to inform her she was right. "Wait a sec, if Natsu's in there, and he had an accident with another of the maids, that can only mean one thing, and I have to see this."

"No ya don't," Judai said, hearing a series of footsteps approaching the door. "Oh please no," he pleaded, Natsu being the first pushed out the door, wearing a similar dress to Amira's, who followed closely after. "Please no reaction, please no reaction, please no reaction."

Despite his silent prayer, Judai looked back over at Jiro, seeing him back on the ground twitching continuously within a puddle of his own blood, and Maaya unable to control her laughter as Natsu let out a depressed sigh. Takeru simply sat down at one of the tables, quickly writing everything he saw in his small notepad, not even looking as he grabbed for one of the glasses of water presented to him by another of the waitresses.

"This is too rich," Maaya said, turning back to Amira. "Well, now that that's over with, let's get out of here, Amira. This place it fine for a kid like that brat, but for a girl who still has better options, you don't have to work here, and even if you say that you'll stay here, I won't accept that kind of decision," she said, beginning to walk towards her, quickly being cut off by Natsuki. "What's your problem? Give me back my friend, and we'll forget this all happened, well, except for this."

"As the manager for this establishment, I cannot allow you to do anything to those that wear the noble garb of the maid," Natsuki said. "As long as Amira-chan is on her shift, and until Natsu-kun's clothes finish drying off, they will not be leaving this place, unless if it is of their own accord, and nobody, especially you, can change this decision."

"You're cruisin' for a bruisin', girlie," Maaya said, rolling up one of her sleeves. "I said I'm taking my friend out of here, and that's that," she said, walking past Natsuki, only to see Amira's notepad staring her in the face.

"Please just let me finish this one day, and then I'll decide whether or not I'll quit," Amira wrote, her hands shaking out of fear from going against Maaya, her friend looking down at it, and then back up at her, seeing her trying to keep her grip on the notepad despite her fear.

"If one guy makes the wrong move against you, that does it, and we leave once and for all, okay?" Maaya said, Amira looking up at her with a smile, thanking her silently, Natsuki chuckling as she looked back down at Natsu leading him back into the back room. "That kid would probably be good for business if you decide to rent him out to the girls that come into this place," she said, Natsuki chuckling again as Natsu bolted for the back door.

"Are you sure you're okay with leaving our classmate like this?" Takeru asked. "From what I've seen, your friends are the most important parts of your family to you, and you'd never compromise on dealing with people that would hurt them."

"Amira's not doing this for the sake of more money, or even for the sake of just gaining a life skill, not that this job would qualify," Maaya started. "She's sticking with it because she knows it can help her overcome her fear of speaking to others, and to help with another fear she has. But something like that isn't going to happen if she does this for a single day. She's going to stick with it to get the memory of that man out of her life forever, and finally live her life."

"Living the way she has is something most of us can scarcely imagine," Takeru said. "But for her, it acts as though it repeats itself, day after day, and yet must end for only that brief moment, making it all the more terrifying before it happens again. Out of twelve of us, I don't think any of us have experienced such hatred as much as she has, never having someone to even talk to."

"In order to ease her into this, we need to make sure nobody gets anywhere close to her," Maaya said, pulling out her phone as Takeru did the same. "We better call in the troops."


It didn't take long for the remaining six dorm heads to come to the maid café, Kaname acting all too eager as he stepped in, Gabriel behind him, trying not to look around aimlessly, the other three girls all looking around spitefully at the shop, June being the only exception.

"I suddenly have an urge to puke with all of these frills and everything," Sienna said, walking towards one of the back tables next to Mika and Mitsu, June seated next to Maaya and Takeru. "What kind of idiot gets turned on by this kind of thing?" she asked, looking back over at Kaname, seeing the dark trainer instantly stiffen his stance before shuffling towards the back of the shop. "I guess that kind of idiot."

"Every time I see these places on TV, it just shows woman as being objectified by a man's desires," Mitsu said, folding her arms across her chest with her eyes scanning the scenery. "I can't think of a single male who would actually look at this place as a simple shop."

"I actually find this kind of a place fascinating," Takeru said from the other table. "The design of the waitress' outfit is based on the traditional ideals of a French maid, which also explains the use of the French term for 'relax,' or 'soothe.' Essentially, this place is to give people a sense of pride in themselves, allowing them to be the kind of person they can never show, or have interactions with people that they never could before."

"Only Takeru-kun would come to a maid café, and not drool over these girls," Mika said, looking over at Gabriel, noticing he was leaning against the wall, not at all interested in the attire of the service provided. "Make that two examples. By the way, I heard Natsu-kun was already here, where is he?"

"In the back, currently waiting for his clothes to dry," Takeru said plainly, the other male dorm heads all turning to him with anger, as the other female dorm heads gained a sudden glint in their eye. "Did I say something wrong again?" he asked, Mika and June both bolting towards the door leading to the supply room. "Let me guess, it wasn't the best idea to tell them about Natsu possibly cross dressing as he once did before?" he asked, Judai and Gabriel both nodding in unison. "Noted."

Turning the doorknob silently, Mika and June both began to peek through the crack in the doorway, despite the latter not being able to see. As the two peered inside, Mika looked through the darkened storage room, instantly freezing in shock, bolting from the opening in the doorway, June reaching inside to see what she ran away from.

"It doesn't feel like Natsu-kun," June said, feeling a rough, rocky surface against her hand as she ran the appendage down the rounded figure. "Somehow, though, I feel that I should move right now, huh?" she asked, Natsuki peering from the other side with a large sneer on her face as she motioned for her Graveler.

"Nobody endangers one who wears the cloth," she said, June instantly staring up at her with her blind eyes. "Graveler, punish her," she commanded, the rock pokémon rearing one of its fists back, about to thrust it forward. "Nobody does this in my store," she said to herself as June instantly tried to back away from the attack, unable to feel anything in the different environment.

Unable to see the attack come at her, June instantly folded her body into a protective position, not noticing that the rock pokémon's fist had been stopped in mid-swing, a light blue membrane surrounding it with Amira standing next to her pokémon with her hand cast out. As Gabriel ducked under the fist, he picked up June, and nodded to Amira with a smile as he carried the steel trainer back to her table.

"Amira-chan, what are you doing?" Natsuki asked, looking down at Kirlia still holding Graveler's fist in place with no sign of letting go. "Those two were trying to assault Natsu-kun while he's suffering from this embarrassment, and now you're trying to keep me from delivering this punishment against them."

"There's a difference between punishment, and just pointless violence," Amira wrote. "While I have no right to say this, but I believe that they were being harmless, and that no matter what you say, attacking a girl with your pokémon is no way to go about this," she finished, Natsuki gritting her teeth as she hailed her pokémon back into the back room, looking spitefully at the psychic trainer.

"I've also dealt with girls like you with backbone," Natsuki said, walking past Amira. "I've broken them all, no matter how tough, but you really feel that way, you can leave for today, and we'll continue this tomorrow, whether with words, or the only power that really counts," she said, motioning towards the Kirlia giving her a similar look.

"I'll gladly protect all my friends against anyone," Amira wrote, walking into the back room, Natsu walking out at the same instance, his clothes still slightly damp, but still more comfortable for him rather than what he was forced to wear earlier, Mika giving a depressed sigh. As the door behind her closed, Amira instantly broke down to her knees, tears beginning to fall from her face. "What am I doing? This is the way it always works," she said, hiding her face in her hands. "I begin to find my strength, and then somebody takes it away from me as quickly as it takes to throw a punch my way. Do you think I'm doing the right thing, Kirlia?" she asked, looking up at her pokémon, the latter simply shrugging her shoulders, looking over at the boulder form of the Graveler, grunting at the two of them, Natsuki watching the scene from the small sliver of vision in the door.

"I know just how to break you, Amira-chan," she said, turning to where the other dorm heads were standing or sitting. "And I swear that you'll definitely see things my way when we're done with our little disagreement. Everyone does."


Back alone in her room, Amira was still brooding over her act of heroism back at the café, her face planted on her desk, holding a pen in one hand, her other keeping her journal steady, looking as though she were trying to write in, despite not having anything to say about what had happened. Looking back up at her two pokémon, Kirlia looking down at her with a smile of approval, as opposed to Duosion, the cell based pokémon simply looking down at her as though she didn't show off enough strength. Lifting her head back up to face the page of her journal, Amira began writing down her current thoughts, Duosion still being the only image in her mind.

"I caught her as the Duosion she is now, and quite frankly, I still wonder if that was a good idea," Amira wrote down. "The pokémon records show that she was once an abandoned pokémon, never having to rely on another person, or pokémon, for that matter, to grow up, none of the guidance from other pokémon having helped her with such an attitude. And yet, there are things about her I'm glad make her who she is, it's like with Maaya-chan's Hitmonlee. The two don't get along very well, but when they really want to, they pull together, and become unstoppable. But Maaya-chan has such a strong presence, that it almost forces her pokémon into doing what she wants them to do. I just don't have that strength, and I don't think I ever will. Tomorrow I'm supposed to confront my supervisor about her tactics in keeping her customers in line, and yet, I don't know if I'm going to be able to go through with it. I want to protect my friends, but something keeps telling him that she'll just be a better battler because she's willing to do what it takes to win. Something I could never do…," she continued before hearing a knock on her door.

Motioning for Kirlia, the psychic pokémon followed Amira's command, and opened the door, Natsu standing on the other side of it, all three in the room sharing a certain kind of surprise at the sight of the trainer and his Lampent behind him. Amira instantly closed, and locked her journal closed, walking up to Natsu, already writing in her notebook.

"Is there something you wanted to talk about?" she wrote, Natsu nodding as his response.

"Um…Mika-senpai and June-senpai both wanted me to tell you that they said thanks for what happened earlier, and to tell you that you looked really cool when you were standing up for them despite what they were trying to do," Natsu said, his voice failing in several parts of the sentence.

"You can tell them that I don't want it to think about it again," Amira wrote. "Something like that isn't what you should expect from someone like me. I don't think I can go through with the battle tomorrow. I know you must think I'm a coward for thinking that," she said, turning away.

"I-I," Natsu began, stuttering slightly over his words, making Amira turn around, surprised to see him more vocal than usual. "I think that anybody who can stand up for their friends is no coward," he said, unable to face her as his face was covered in a red tint. "I couldn't do anything while I was watching what was going to happen to June-senpai, and yet you were able to talk back to her coworker, and show what you truly believed in."

"There have been several times I wanted to say something about something, and just couldn't find the voice to do so," Amira admitted, walking back into her room, allowing Natsu to follow her. "If there was one thing I could always be sure of, it was that I would be afraid of others."

Neither of them said anything after Natsu entered the room, both too flustered to say a word, barely able to look at each other, noticing that both had a face covered in blush. Both Kirlia and Duosion watched the two as Lampent floated towards the top bunk in Amira's room watching the two of them try to find something to say, neither succeeding. Lampent looked back down at Amira, noticing her rubbing the back of her neck, seeing a spot in her skin noticeably darker than the rest of her skin tone, and then looked back at both of her pokémon, the two nodding in affirmation of the ghost pokémon's suspicions; Amira was able to speak against violence because she was used to it. As Lampent was about to float back to get Natsu's attention until he noticed his trainer standing up.

"I think I've overstayed my welcome, I'll leave you alone with your thoughts," Natsu said, hailing for Lampent, the ghost and fire pokémon, instead releasing a small Hex attack, making Natsu trip over himself, and fall to the floor before reaching the door.

Seeing Amira get up to check on him, both Kirlia and Duosion released their own attacks, making her fall forward as well over to where Natsu was trying to get, the latter being pressed back down against his upperclassmen's weight. Opening their eyes at the same time, both Amira and Natsu found each other face to face, mere inches apart from each other, their lips looking as though they were preparing themselves for what would happen next. However, Natsu's own system kicked in, his head beginning to release a steady stream of vapor before he subsequently blacked out directly underneath Amira, the psychic trainer still in a daze from where she was.

Barely able to look back at her pokémon before they placed their psychic power over her, Amira found herself facing directly at Natsu unconscious form, her head being forced down towards his, the trainer knowing full well what her pokémon were planning. Raising her hand, Amira quickly clamped it down over Natsu's mouth, her lips coming into full contact with the back of her hand, both of her pokémon giving up on the endeavor. Staying there for several seconds, Amira quickly jumped back up, shivering at the thought of being that close to someone, seeing Natsu still breathing peacefully, completely unaware of what was happening.

"You two need to learn that you can't force something on some people, Natsu-kun in particular," she said, both of her pokémon sneering at her with a mischievous look in their eyes. "Lampent, take him back to his dorm," she said, Lampent bowing to her, wrapping one of its arms around Natsu's back to support him on the way out.

On the way out of the dorm, Lampent noticed Natsu beginning to stir from his current state, able to walk by himself on the way out of the psychic dorm, some of the other students noticing the way he walked out of. As one of the students walked back to Amira's room, she saw the head of their dorm lecturing both of her pokémon, chuckling slightly.

"I don't want you two forcing Natsu-kun into anything, again, do you hear me?" she asked, both of her pokémon nodding unconvincingly, simply passing off her words as nothing. "That's right, why should they listen to me, maybe I really am no good at any of this. Maybe I don't deserve to have pokémon as powerful as these two, maybe I should've just let Natsuki have her way," she began to say to herself, suddenly realizing what she said, quickly turning around to punch her own reflection in a mirror out of rage. "No! I can't think about such a thing being the right thing to do, no matter how much it may hurt me. I've endured so much pain, I think I can take a bit more," she said, clenching her fist with a small drop of blood falling from the ends of her finger.


On the outside of the psychic dorm, Natsu looked back up at Amira's dorm room, noticing the lights still on, walking down the path with Lampent following after, noticing the sound of the breaking glass. Not saying another word, Natsu walked away with Lampent in tow.

"Do you think she'll be able to win the battle tomorrow, Lampent?" he asked. "She didn't seem really strong in her resolve, maybe she isn't ready to fight someone who is so much stronger in their opinion than she is," he said, receiving a smack across the back of his neck from his ghostly partner. "What was that for?" he asked, noticing Lampent place its hand aside the mark appearing on his neck. "What does this mean?"

"It means that Amira is a lot stronger than you think, brat," a voice said from further up the road. "If you start thinking that she isn't as strong as you just because she doesn't speak as often, then you really are as much of an idiot as I thought," Maaya said, walking towards the psychic dorm. "Amira is a person who knows what it means to be hurt, physically. There hasn't been a day that I don't blame myself for not being able to protect her back when that kind of stuff was happening to her. Every day I have to look at what he did to her, is a day where I know I could never be as strong as she was. She lived through it, and that is her reward, but such a trophy doesn't come without a price, and look at what it has cost her. Her voice and her opinion are passed over because of what she lived through, and now all she has to show for that life is her own body."

"You really care about her, don't you, Yoshida-senpai?" Natsu asked.

"I think about all the time that I could've left her alone because of how quiet she was, and think that if I ever wanted to leave her alone, I should've been shot right then and there," Maaya replied. "I'm not going to tell her how to go about the battle tomorrow, but all I know is that you are going to see a side of Amira she shows only to those she considers friends, even if that does include you," she said walking into the dorm, Hitmonchan following after her, bowing to both Natsu an Lampent.

Natsu was left alone in the dark once more, his voice had left him, unable to say anything, but was left with the thought that Maaya had talked about. He should've been attacked for ever thinking that Amira was weak in her power, and as he walked down the path, he was sure to get his wish. With a sudden grasp around his face, Natsu could feel a cloth being placed over his mouth and nose, slowly losing consciousness again as Lampent looked as though it was about to attack, but was quickly subdued from behind with a large rocky fist. With the low, gravely chuckle barely sounding from the bulky figure, another figure picked Natsu up from underneath his arms, a sneer appearing across their face.


With the next morning, the first thing Amira did was look out over the scenery of Nimbasa, both of her pokéballs holding her pokémon as she walked in front of the other dorm heads still present towards the maid café, Natsuki waiting for all of them outside the door. Reaching the door, Natsuki gave off an expectant look, Amira's face not eliciting any kind of anger, however, there was a notable annoyance in her eyes with how Natsuki was seizing power, the blonde flipping her hair back as she led the eleven inside.

"I figured I should make the battle a bit more interesting, Amira-chan," Natsuki said, motioning towards the back of the room with Natsu seated, still unconscious. "See, I tried to think about what was the best way I could hurt you psychologically, and I figured it would be to take one of the things you value most."

"I'm sorry, Natsuki-san, but even if you do something like that, my resolve will only become stronger," Amira wrote down. "Natsu-kun is one of the most popular students on campus; if you think the rest of the student body will hear about this and do nothing, your sorely mistaken. Besides if you harm him in anyway, I may have to give you your own brand of punishment."

"Big words, but can you back 'em up?"Natsuki asked. "We'll have a simple one on one battle, and the winner gets to decide on one things; which one between you and Natsu-kun will work here part-time from now on," she declared, the other dorms heads all freezing in position, given the sudden, and utterly pathetic, declaration she made. "What do you say, Amira-chan? Are you willing to bet your boyfriend's last shred of dignity on a battle you're sure to lose?"

"I'm not going to bet anything," Amira wrote on her notebook. "Because I'm going to win," she declared herself, Natsuki already tossing her pokéball back and forth in the air, ready to begin.

"Will you, the handsome man, please be our referee?" she asked pointing towards the large group, not specifying which of the five, Jiro straightening his stance before stepping out. "Not you, you idiot, why would I mean you?" she asked, Jiro's face freezing in place with his jaw dropped to the ground before falling over unconscious. "The one with the Archen on his shoulder," she said, Gabriel stepping forward, Natsuki striking a quick pose for him.

"Don't think your sweet talk is enough to sway my opinion," Gabriel said, passing by Natsuki. "If you decide to harm Kohashigawa, I will not hesitate to silence you…permanently. You may both begin after you step outside," he said, both Amira and Natsuki leaving the café building itself, and went through the backdoor, a large field behind it, the perfect size for the battle. "Begin!" Gabriel shouted, both trainers throwing their respective pokéballs, Amira sending out her Duosion, and Natsuki sending out a Krokorok.

"Already this is off to a bad start," Judai said, sitting down by the chair Natsu was still seated in. "Amira-senpai's Duosion not only doesn't take her seriously, but also the Krokorok has a dark typin'," he said, Kaname sitting down on the other side of him.

"Dark types specialize in their physical attack power, and psychic types rarely capitalize on their regular defense," Kaname said, look at both pokémon as they stared each other off. "However, if Amira-san can pull of a move to attack is super-effectively, the high special attack power of Duosion would kick in, allowing to even up the battle since dark types aren't as defensive either. This battle is going to be decided based on whose strength isn't only the better of the two, but the one that's used the wisest," he said, both pokémon not taking an order from their respective trainers, and simply diving into each other, head first.

Without any word said from its trainer, Krokorok jumped into the air, and dived back down with its fangs bared, ready to clamp down on Duosion as the row of teeth looked as though they were growing darker in a harsh, black light. Amira made no reaction to the attack, simply looking down the way at Natsuki, the wild look in her eyes making her forget all about how just yesterday she seemed to be as sweet as any of the other girls, but with her teeth showing like her pokémon's, Amira knew that she wasn't the same as what she had hoped for, and instead was the same as something even more frightening. Simply moving her hand to the side, Amira closed her eyes, hoping for some reaction from her pokémon as the ground and dark type reached closer.

"Please, just listen to me this once," she said to herself, hoping her thoughts would reach Duosion, but to no avail as the psychic type charged one of its own attacks, an Energy Ball that blasted through the air, ripping up towards Krokorok. "Am I really that useless?" she asked herself, seeing the ground type contort its body to wrap around the spherical attack, and clamp down with its jaws on Duosion. "No!"

"Heh," Natsuki sounded, looking down at the pokémon she was battling, the sight of it struggling against the jaw of her own pokémon bringing her a certain amount of pleasure. "This is what happens to those who oppose me, Amira-chan. Do you think that any business can be run without strict guidance? It's like we truly are a family, and I will always be the head of that family. Everyone knows what happens when you go against the head, right?" she asked, Amira gripping the top of her arm near the shoulder.

"Maybe she's right," Amira contemplated, not noticing Duosion look back at her with a disappointed look in her eyes. "Maybe I was wrong to try and do this again. It always happens this way; I begin to think for myself, I begin to think I can do things that I shouldn't, and in the end, I always got hurt for it," she said to herself, a faint scent wafting through the air, and entering her nose, making her widen her eyes with fear. "What is that? Please don't tell me, it can't be," she said, closing her eyes, the figure of a man with skin as dark as hers, holding a long neck bottle in one hand with a devilish smile appearing on his face come into her mind. "He can't control me anymore, and even if he were here, I can't let him," she said looking back up at Natsuki, only to see a shaded figure resembling the man again behind her, making the same pose as her.

"What's the matter, Princess?" Natsuki asked, the voice of the man mixing with her own. "A battle like this too difficult? I guess this means I could always accept your little friend into my family, as well. What do you say?" she asked, Amira looking back over at Natsu, her eyes beginning to sharpen in anger at the mere thought of such a thing. "I'm sure he would make a great addition to our group, wouldn't you agree? And I think he wouldn't go against me as often," she said, bursting into laughter as Amira's fist began trembling with her anger.

"Shut your stupid mouth!" Maaya shouted at the top of her lungs from the sidelines, Natsuki and the other dorm heads taken by surprise at the sudden declaration of the fighting trainer. "You have no idea what Amira is capable of because you're too busy in your own little world. And it's people like you that are going to get passed by, and feel proud of that fact."

"Funny how you seem to be more vocal than your friend, here," Natsuki said. "I guess she really is the quiet type, doesn't even have the strength to voice her opinion."

"Actions speak louder than words," Judai said from the side, as well. "Show 'em what ya got, Amira-senpai, for my bro's sake."

Amira looked between both Maaya and Judai, and then back at Duosion, the psychic type having finally broken away from the attack, wavering in its strength, Krokorok sneering the psychic type down. Barely able to meet her second pokémon in its eye, Amira turned away, gripping the side of her arm as hard as she could, Natsuki looking down at her with a triumphant look.

"I guess you really are as weak as I thought," she said, motioning for her pokémon. "Another Crunch attack should be more than enough to finish off a weakling like you off. Beat you back down to where you belong," she said, Krokorok leaping into the air again, Duosion staring it in the face, another Energy Ball beginning to form before the attack was taken away by a shadow appearing in front of the psychic type.


With the completion of the attack, the dorm heads, either by watching or hearing the drops of blood fall from her arm, saw Amira standing on front of her pokémon, holding her arm in front of the Krokorok, keeping the ground and dark type in place with its jaws stuck in her arm. Cringing slightly from the pain, Amira looked back over at Natsuki, her eyes no longer afraid of her words, and instead trying to intimidate the young girl. Duosion could barely move, seeing her trainer taking the brunt of a blow for it, despite barely being able to speak her own mind in words, and floated back towards the edge of the battlefield, unable to make out what had just happened in front of it.

"I…I'm not weak," Amira said quietly. "Words don't hurt, and I'm used to pain," she said, looking back over at Natsu. "And I always protect my friends," she said, watching his eyes open with a small smile on his face. "Let's begin."

Without another word, Krokorok released Amira from its grip, landing back at Natsuki's side, Duosion looking back up at Amira, seeing the blood trickling down her arm. As Amira placed her hand on the psychic type's head, and gave a small smile to her, Duosion was barely able to react to anything, still in shock at how much bravery was shown to her.

"I'll never abandon you," Amira whispered, Duosion's confusion turning into a smile as it faced down Krokorok, much like it had before, but even Natsuki could see something different. "This time, we work as a team," Amira said to Duosion in her thoughts, the psychic type nodding before her trainer cast out her hand, another Energy Ball beginning to charge within the pokémon's cell based body.

"I can't lose to you!" Natsuki shouted, Krokorok jumping out against Duosion.

As the two prepared their attacks, Amira snapped her fingers as soon as Krokorok came with inches of Duosion, the psychic type releasing the Energy Ball against the ground below, launching itself into the air, causing the Crunch attack to miss, and place Krokorok on the ground. With its opponent helpless to stop it, Duosion released another Energy Ball directly downward, the ground and dark type unable to move from the sudden impact. Before the grass attack could hit, Natsuki shut her eyes, not wanting to see her pokémon attacked, but could hear the agony filled cry it gave off, bringing her almost down to her knees, the shaking in her legs apparent to everyone in the room.

Opening her eyes for a second, Natsuki could only see Amira's face staring her down with a look of scorn, her face not changing in emotion as she directed Duosion's movements with her hand. Natsuki began cringing all the more, Krokorok standing back up, and jumping over towards where Duosion stood, quickly trying to attack. With another snap of her fingers, Amira looked back up at her pokémon as the psychic type was surrounded in a light blue veil that soon disappeared. Krokorok chuckled as it opened it mouth as wide as possible, Duosion quickly dropping back to the ground level, the ground type soaring above Amira before charging back towards the battlefield, suddenly taken aback by the look of terror on its trainer's face.

"Stop it," Natsuki said quietly, barely bringing her voice above a whisper. "Stop staring at me like that," she said, looking back up at Amira, her eyes never leaving the blonde girl, following every movement she made. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

"This was the way he looked…," Amira started, stretching her arm out. "…before he scared me," she said, swing her arm in front of her as fast as she could, Duosion instantly springing back into action, tackling Krokorok while it was preoccupied with its trainer.

"No, I'm the strong one here," Natsuki said. "I even was able to take him to force you into this battle. And no matter what you do, I'll have at least one of you by the time this battle is over."

"That may be so," Natsu said, Natsuki finally aware of his being conscious. "But what do you gain in this loss? You either deal with a girl already much stronger than you, or a boy who is always protected by the people that care about him. If you lose this battle, you will lose everything, no matter what you win. Amira-senpai is too strong to be scared of you. I'm sure she's seen something much scarier than a girl like you."

"…I have," Amira said, moving her side from side, commanding her pokémon with each movement, Natsuki still unable to move, but her pokémon able to fight off much of the attacks made against her.

As Krokorok charged after Duosion one last time, the same blue veil appeared around the psychic pokémon as it did before, the membrane moving from where Duosion floated, and concentrated itself into a single blast. Looping over the instigator of the attack, the blast of psychic power passed through Krokorok, temporarily blinding the ground and dark type in its sky blue light. Despite the power displayed by the attack as made apparent by the silhouette in the ground behind Krokorok, the attack proved itself ineffective if not completely useless against the partially dark type.

"Why would ya use a move that does nothin' to it, Senpai?" Judai asked, Natsu smiling as he stood up weakly from the chloroform used on him.

"Future sight isn't the actual attack," Natsu said, Judai looking back over at the battlefield, the smoke clear around where the attack was made, Duosion no longer there, sharing in Krokorok's confusion. "It was the way to beat him without speed," he said, Duosion appearing out of the dust behind Krokorok, the dark and ground type not having any time to react as Amira swiped her hand across her front.

Taking the silent command, Duosion powered up its attack, with the green energy beginning to assemble in the center of its being before launching the attack directly out at the opponent. Amira kept the same straight face, not caring about the blood falling from the tips of her fingers, as she watched Krokorok fall from the second Energy Ball that struck it, Natsuki still shivering from the look in her opponent's eyes, Amira beginning to walk towards her. Trying to cower away at the sight of the dark skinned trainer, and the serious look in her eye, closing her own, ready to accept her inevitable beating. Instead, she felt a hand on her head, moving as she was being petted.

"I'm sorry for scaring you," Amira wrote, a smile on her face as she cringed while touching Natsuki's head. "If it's okay with you, I'll take Natsu-kun back to the school with me, and I'll see what I can do about keeping my employment here, okay?" she asked, Natsuki's eyes filled with tears as Amira move her hand away, still clenching her other fist with the blood from Krokorok's attack pooling in her palm.

"I…I'm sorry!" Natsuki shouted out, tears streaming down her cheeks as she looked back up at Amira's gentle eyes. "I was supposed to be the one who was mature, but instead, I just caused you to get hurt. I thought I was doing the right thing by making others do things my way; I never thought that anyone would go so far as to hurt themselves to show me I was wrong," she said, looking back up at Amira's notepad, her eyes beginning to well up with tears again.

"I know," she had written. "There are people like you who think that the only way is their way, but you're one of the smarter people. You learn from making that mistake, and I look forward to working with you, Natsuki-chan," the note finished, Amira giving a wide, gentle smile as she and the others left the café, Amira gripping onto her arm, Natsuki's cheeks completely red, her eyes looking as though she had been struck with Cupid's arrow, her eyes focusing on Amira's form.

"So beautiful," she said, both Graveler and Krokorok looking at each other, cringing at what their trainer was suggesting. "For such a woman to teach me something, this feeling can only be one thing, which means that there is a roadblock that must be crossed," she said, Natsu shivering just before leaving the store.


Later in the day, Amira was seated in the infirmary wing of the school, the entirety of the left arm bandaged from the attack made against her pokémon she had blocked. Looking out the window at the grassy hills, Amira kept her headphones over her head, allowing the soothing sounds of her music to block out all other distractions, not noticing somebody walk into the same room, stopping at least ten feet away from her. Feeling the addition of another presence in the room, Amira removed her headphones, and turned back around, surprised to see Natsu looking at her with Lampent floating behind, trying to find the courage to say something.

"Um…," Natsu began, Amira waiting for him to say something, her headphones draped around her neck. "Thank you for helping me today. I feel like you keep helping me, and I'm nothing if not useless to all of you. You've all been so kind to me since I came here, and sometimes I don't think I deserve it. So I apologize for making this day more difficult for you. The last thing you needed to think about was me," he said, receiving a small chuckle from Amira.

"Anyone who is my friend, is never useless to me," she wrote down, showing it to Natsu, the ghost trainer finding the strength to bring a smile to his face. "Besides, I could never leave you with somebody like that. I would never make you go through what I had to."

"I know what kind of life you had, Amira-senpai," Natsu said. "While I don't know the details, I know the kind of life you had to lead. You weren't seen as a whole person, barely above being the rank of a pokémon. You weren't seen as anything but a girl that was there, and couldn't fight back. And yet, you were able to survive; whoever it was that made you feel this way didn't know that you were stronger than you looked. You could endure what he did to you, and never ever force yourself to be this person. You were stronger than he was because you didn't fight back, you were stronger because you could take what he gave you, and show it to him for what it actually was."

"How do you know any of that?" Amira asked, Natsu motioning for her injured arm.

"When you scared Natsuki-san today, you just had to show her your arm," Natsu answered. "She saw what she had done to you, and she knew immediately that it was wrong what she did. You taught her that she was being a coward for hiding behind violence like this, and because of that you made her a better person, I think," he said, looking down at the time. "I have to go, I'll see you later, okay?" he said, Amira nodding before looking back down at her arm.

"If only the world worked the way you wanted it to, Natsu-kun," Amira said to herself, placing her headphones back on her ears. "But Natsuki-chan is a rare case; barely anyone learns from the mistakes they make from all of this. And even when they do see what they've done to you, many of them will simply relish in it, using it as proof of their power. I've heard the legends of Aura, and I know mine is no Aura of Bravery or of Strength. Mine is something just as powerful, but I'm sure is much less of an Aura one would wish to have. I know that my Aura is of Fear. Fear that that man will soon come back for me, and take me to wherever he wants, do what he wants, and no matter what I say or do, he will look at me with that same terrifying look in his eyes, and make me remember where I truly belong. But I do thank you for your words of hope, Natsu-kun. That could be one of the things I truly do see in you."


Character Appearances:

Amira Khumalo: Kirlia & Duosion. FlyPandaBear

Jiro Matsushita: Bibarel & Tauros. GoldenfeatherKyru

Judai Ryuzaki: Monferno & Torkoal. Jexo

Natsu Kohashigawa: Lampent & Golett. NightFall00

Maaya Yoshida: Hitmonchan & Hitmonlee. Emmausgirl94

Takeru Sanjero: Mothim & Heracross. Moth's Aflame

Kaname Misaki: Sableye & Absol. Ariesbird

Sienna Smith: Vibrava & Fraxure. Fluttersong

Mitsuta "Mitsu" Ichihana: Glaceon & Sneasel. Crossroade32

Mika Saito: Ledian & Pidgeotto. Cyanide the Sneasel

June Kurosaki: Lairon & Skarmory. Lady Island Rose

Gabriel Volantis: Archen & Tirtouga. WereDragon EX


Notes:

Maid Café: A common sight in places like Akihabara is the famous maid café. Essentially, that's all it is, nothing more than a café with the waitresses dressing in the traditional styles of the French style maid, and a lot of the time they're given a pretty bad reputation for being places where perverted things can happen. In reality, though, these are legitimate businesses, and they're more for a social aspect, rather than a romantic or sexual one. While some people in Japan do have a fetish for this kind of thing, there are strict rules about what you can and can't do with one of the waitresses; anything more than simple conversation, provided you don't lace it with double entendres is off the table. However, many people will engage with different kinds of games with the maids, such as card games or video games upon their request, and a lot of them will have times where they and the customers can perform karaoke. Since I will have to go to Japan eventually for my major, I do plan to go to one of these places at least once, just to say I did, but chances are it'll be like with Takeru; research only.

Amira and "Princess": As you recall from the battle scene, Natsuki referred to Amira as "Princess," and while this may be nothing more than a scathing remark on her backbone, it is actually the literally translation of the name "Amira." For those of you who also read the story "Fear in Numbers" by FlyPandaBear, in which she uses the same character, there are instances where it is explained that this is the literal meaning of her name, but that also got me interested in what some of the other names of the other characters might mean; Natsu's meaning Summer, Judai's loosely translate to a specific generation or teenager, Maaya's name is more difficult, but based on other people with the name it does mean something along the lines of True and Ceremony (if taken from the original Chinese), Kaname means Vital Point, Sienna is Reddish-Orange Brown, Takeru means, depending on the kanji, Warrior, Fierce, Health, or Noble, June is, well, the month of June, Jiro is a Japanese expression meaning the Second Son, Mika means Beautiful Smell, and Gabriel's, whoo boy, means Able-bodied One of God. Dang man.


Chapter eight complete. Well that certainly took a while. Sorry about that everyone, but I've been busy, and I won't like writing this chapter was a bit harder than the others. Part of why this story works out so much better than the rest of them is that I'm coming up with my own ideas that I'm not trying to compare them to, or trying to make my own spin off of things, which is why so many of stories crash and burn. So, with this, we learn more about Amira, kinda, and next time, I plan to do a character I think needs a bit more touching up on, and I promise you that next time, we'll introduce a new pairing that I actually kinda like, almost as much as the MaayaxTakeru pairing, although, I'm trying to come up with an actual name for the shipping; kinda like Jetshipping, Pokeshipping, Ikarishipping; what do you guys think? Well, I gotta go, and until we meet again, whether in person on the computer screen, goodbye, good luck, and everyone take a likin' to ya. Ja nee.