Here's the special chapter on Umbra. Just a bit that's more along the lines of her daily life after we parted ways. But it may be clunky, because while I am trying to put myself in Umbra's mindset, I've never been good at that sort of thing, which is actually one of the reasons I prefer doing these self-inserts. But, anyway... Hope you guys like it. Disclaimer: I do not own Spider Riders, and do not claim to, either. All credit must go where it is due, with the actual creators. What I do own is the plot line of this fic and my OCs, though some credit for Umbra goes to TL-Chan, for helping me set her up early on.

I walked through Slipstream Village, trying to stay calm but failing utterly. Being a Spider Rider means I have to be really brave, and never give up. But I just couldn't help being so nervous. After all, I was going to see Magnus.

I still remember that first time we met 7 years ago. We'd both grown up in the village, but his father, a fisherman, tended to take him with him on a lot of fishing and trading voyages. So half his childhood was spent on the river, rather than in the village. Plus, we were both kind of loners growing up.

For Magnus, that ended after his father chose to quit fishing and join the town guard. Suddenly he wasn't out on the water every few days and could spend time with the other kids. He became well known for being fun to hang out with, and made it his personal mission to ensure everyone had plenty of fun, not just him.

My case was more complicated. I did enjoy other people's company, it's just... I had a tendency to play too rough with the others. I may have been small, but I was also strong. See, my father is the village smith and I liked helping him out, usually by carrying things since I was too young to do much else. So I got kinda scared that I would end up hurting them.

But Magnus wouldn't have any of it. When he heard about me, he went up to me and pretty much dragged me into a game. Pretty soon, I was having so much fun I thought I'd died. With help from him, I broke my self made exile and had more friends than I thought any single person could have. But Magnus, he was my best friend, and a lot of the time I was among the first people he asked to hang out with.

I'm not really sure when I fell for him, though. I didn't even realize how much I cared until he started dating Ruby. I'd been made into a Spider Rider not long before that due to Glace rescuing me from a rabid wolf. But after I left for Arachna to make it official and returned, he told me he had asked her out. I was totally heartbroken, and it was a rather cruel way for me to find out how I felt.

But that idiot with a half built raft did manage to do me a favor, whatever he'd been up to. He'd been right that they just didn't belong together. Ruby had learned what had really happened and apologized for overreacting, but had also decided that they were better off seeing other people. Magnus had been pretty upset, and while I feel a tiny bit guilty about it, I was overjoyed. Here was the chance I'd been waiting for!

I stopped outside his house and stalled for a moment, checking to make sure the dress I'd bought for this would do the trick. Of course, I realized I was procrastinating and knocked on the door before I ended up standing there for an hour too scared to move. The door opened and Magnus stepped through.

He looked me over for a second. "Do I kn- Hang on, Umbra? Why're you of all people in a dress?" Swallowing my nerves I gave a little spin like the girls in the stories did.

"I just wanted to try something else. Whatcha think? Do I look nice?" He nodded and I had to keep myself from jumping with joy. "I thought you could do with some cheering up. Come on, I hear Whitley has some treats she's handing out," Whitley, one of our old friends, was a girl about a year younger than us whose family had a talent for making tasty desserts and snacks. She was also the only person in the village besides my parents who knew how I felt about Magnus, and when I'd asked her to help me, had decided to intentionally make too much last night to fit in the shop's inventory. So far, everything according to plan!

Magnus in particular had always loved her family's foods, and he quickly grabbed a small sack he had for special occasions like this. I had to laugh at the way he was tripping over himself to get out the door, and he tried to glare at me, but instead ended up laughing himself. "I bet I looked ridiculous, huh? Now come on, before it's all gone!" He grabbed me by the wrist and started running, which I'm glad about. It gave me a good excuse to be turning red.

When we got to Whitley's shop, she was handing out the treats with a smile. Once we came in, she filled up Magnus' sack and when his back was turned shot me a wink. I made a cut it out gesture and followed him out. "Thanks, Umbra. If been kinda down ever since Ruby and I split up. You've stuck with me through a lot during the years," I could feel my heart going wild as he said this. This was my chance! But he wasn't done yet. "You're like a sister to me. Family, without a doubt. We'll always have each other's backs, right?" I felt my heart, which had been soaring mere moments ago, crash down hard enough to shake the ground.

"Yeah, friends till the end, that's all. No worries, I'll always be sure to look out for you!" And maybe with a bit of time, he'll realize just how much I love him. He offered me some of the sweets, but I shook my head, claiming I wasn't hungry. Then I told him goodbye and went home to take off the stupid dress I'd worn for nothing.

Well, that was a unique challenge. I've never written something like this before, and from a girl's perspective. I know, it's short, but that wasn't easy for me to write. I'm no expert on this sorta thing after all. And I'm gonna write another chapter real quick, too. Please tell me what you think. Later!