I have recently found (what I think is) the coolest thing ever: Bakugan in Cantonese! And since I'm Cantonese, I can understand a couple of the words they're saying. I tell you, Shun's voice (or A Jun, as he's called in the Cantonese version) is really hot. You have to watch it.

Since the Cantonese version is following the Japanese pretty closely (they haven't edited it as much as in the English), I've discovered some things they neglected to put in the English version. Surfing around the Japanese Wikipedia article for Bakugan has also given me some new facts. Seriously, the English version edited out so many things they should have left in! I'll tell you about what I found at the end of this chapter :)

There's my rant about Cantonese and English Bakugan, so onto the story!

Disclaimer: Bakugan belongs to TMS Entertainment, not me.

jewel; n. a precious stone; a gem; one that is treasured or esteemed

Shun leaned backwards in his chair, staring up at the ceiling. His last date with Alice hadn't gone too well, so now he was asking for advice from the other girls. He figured they would have more experience in the area than Dan and Marucho.

"I just don't get it," he murmured to himself, picturing Alice as she appeared when he had come to pick her up for their date. "She showed up wearing this pretty dress with matching jewellery and everything. When I asked her why she decided to wear all of that, she got upset and ran off."

"You can't blame a girl for wanting to look pretty." Runo told him gently.

"But why? She's already beautiful." He said, sitting upright again.

"Yeah, in your eyes. But sometimes, it takes a little longer for a girl to really accept herself and see how much she's really worth. Just talk to her, and I'm sure it'll all work out." Julie said and clapped him on the back.

...

"Alice, I just want to talk," he said slowly, edging closer towards her. Her hair obscured most of her face, and he wasn't sure if she would be ready to talk to him yet.

She turned to look out of the corner of her eye, but she was still not really making eye contact with him.

"Can you please explain to me? Why you went to so much trouble for a date?"

Silence lingered in the air for a while. He wasn't sure if he should leave her alone, but then her quiet voice answered him.

"I wanted a change. I thought… that I was plain, and boring. I wanted to look pretty: for you."

"What on earth made you think that?" He shook his head, stepping closer to her. "You don't need jewellery or fancy clothes; you're beautiful already. And I love you just the way you are."

When she turned around to face him, he smiled at her and smoothed the hair away from her face, wiping away the few tears that had begun spilling from her eyes. Then he began taking off her jewellery until he was left with just Alice: the one he knew and loved. She flew into his arms, and he just held her.

Someday, she would come to see herself just as he saw her. A jewel: beautiful, unique and precious. Something which no treasure could ever replace.

Curious about some facts from the original Japanese series? I know Wikipedia can be unreliable sometimes, but I thought these were interesting:

1. Shun's mum is named "Shiori Kazami". I haven't watched enough Japanese episodes to confirm this, but it seems real enough.

2. Skyress is actually a birthday gift from Shun's mum. Again, I can't find episode 12 in Japanese to confirm this.

3. She died in the Japanese version. Like, died for real. Not just recovering from a coma or whatever it was in the English. Seriously, I was sitting there, crying my eyes out watching episode 12 in Cantonese - it was actually... kinda embarrassing.

K for Kids is the next chapter. Please review!