-11-

-Of Fake, Green and Ridiculously Long Eyelashes-

"Mimi...?" I look up from folding my borrowed uniform.

"Hi, Tia, I was just about to return your uniform."

"That's not why I'm here," She bites her lower lip, leaning against the wall slightly with one hand repeatedly rubbing the other that was crossed across her body. "Mei and I...uh, ran into Sinedd." I froze, still bent over the half-folded top, waiting for her response for the question I hadn't asked.

"And?"

"He mentioned he came to see you." I straightened and turned to face her.

"He did? Well I haven't seen him, and I can't imagine why he'd want to see me." I keep my voice a casual neutral.

"Me neither," She pauses, as if trying to pick her next words carefully, "You know at the end, when he said something to you, what was it?"

"Why? What did he say to you!" I couldn't help it as urgency and desperation leaked into my tone. She looks at me, pale jade eyes piercing through me.

"Nothing. I just wondered." She says at last.

"He," What do I say! "he told me I played well for a newbie but I wouldn't last a minute in the Cup."

"Hm." I wait with bated breath for her to suspect; she's not dumb. Unlike somebody I could mention, saying no names. "Ok. See you later." Tia left, and I let out the breath I hadn't realised I'd been holding.

"Mimi! Over here!" I smile back at Micro-Ice as he waves me over to his table frantically.

"Hey, Mirco."

"You were great today, you know, and-" He stops suddenly, looking over my shoulder at the crowded café with a disbelieving look on his face. "No freaking way." He breaths. I twist to see his mum embracing a girl with a pile of blonde frizz sprouting from her head.

"What?" I ask, looking back at him.

"That looks like this girl I used to know from primary school, but she moved planets years ago." His mum's pointing out where we're sitting to the girl; she turns and grins widely at Mirco-Ice.

"Icy!" She squeals loudly – I can hear it from the other side of the café, even above the clamour of customers, which is a considerable feat. Trust me.

"Crys!" She leaps at him, wrapping long arms around his neck. I can see her more clearly now. Complete with enough piercings to open a shop, she's decked in a combination of bright colours that would make Mei have a seizure and her large brown eyes have ridiculously long and green fake eyelashes framing them, with tiny stick-on jewels at the corners.

"Oh my god, Icy! You haven't grown at all!" She breaks into a peal of laughter at Mirco-Ice's indignant pout. "Seriously though, you've bulked up! Must come from playing for a professional team, eh?" He preens happily.

"I guess." She turns blindingly white teeth, restrained by pink braces, on me. "Oh! This is Mimi, D'Jok's twin sister who's our substitute now. Mimi, this is Crystal."

"Hi." I wave warily.

"Hi!" She cries, before grabbing a fistful of my hair. Normalness doesn't seem to be one of her traits. "See, Icy, this is a nice colour hair – blonde isn't! It's so...so..."

"Barbie-doll-ish?" I offer.

"Yes!" She yells at a decibel level that scares me.

"Don't worry, Crys, you're, like, the least Barbie-doll person I know." I glance at him, eyebrows raised. "Well, second. Mimi comes in first, undisputedly."

"Aw! Ickle-likle-Icy-poo learned a new word!" He tries, and fails, to glare at her. "See! I knew you could never be angry at me! That's why I brought a t-shirt!" She rips open her aqua-marine trench coat (I didn't know you could even buy those), to reveal a Snow Kids shirt with Mirco-Ice's face and a pair of boobs that Mei would probably kill for. I smirk at Mirco-Ice whose eyes are bugging out. It's one of the funniest things I've ever seen.

"Icy? Are you ok?" Crystal asks, letting the coat fall and touching his face, concerned.

"Wh...? Oh, right, yeah." He mumbles after I've, subtly, stamped on his foot. Hard.

"Ok then! Damn, I'm meeting Jacob, like, now – see ya, Icy!" She hugs him tightly, "And nice to meet you, Mimi!" I get the Crystal-hugging-treatment too. Then she whirls out.

A/N: So, sorry for the wait munchkins! Ok, that probably didn't make things better, but you know :S. So the next chapter will be from Micro-Ice's pov since i had 2 votes for him and 2 for D'Jok so I decided on Mirco-Ice since, as much fun as writing a rampaging D'Jok would be, that comes later :D! So, what do you think? hint hint reviews help me write faster!

Becki

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