Dearly Beloved

by Inhumunculus

After being rescued from a devastating fire, a mysterious girl vows to become the ultimate Otome and succeed Natsuki as the Headmistress of Garderobe Academy. However, as civil unrest begins to stir, her dreams may be put on hold. Hentai in later chap NXS

14. Accidentally In Love

Told you this one would be posted up fast and yay! I told you I'd get a 20,000 word chapter in! And it's 20,000+ to boot! New record!

Thank you to all of you guys who patiently awaited this chapter. It means a lot to me that everyone still reads this stuff.

Anyways, let's see what kind of trouble Anberlin and Irina will get into on their first big night out. Happy reading~ XD

---

Together they walked in close proximity, but not close enough in which they felt the need to grip each other. Being inexperienced, personal space was a big factor and Anberlin and Irina kept a respectable distance from each other. Also, neither made eye contact or uttered a word because they feared that if they should, then they'd run the risk of uttering something stupid and walk away flushed and embarrassed.

Nonetheless, it didn't matter one way or the other. Both girls were young and fresh to the world of dating and therefore felt no urgency to rush. They would take their time in doing things that couples did, and that was that.

As they strolled along the streets of Wind City, they drew minor attention, but nothing beyond that. Same-gender couples were still a very debatable thing and it was only natural for people to stare at which they deemed alien. Anberlin and Irina were unbothered by it, keeping mostly to themselves, but Anberlin was always on the lookout for anyone who might approach them with hostility. As the "man" of the evening, she had an obligation to protect Irina (even though the Pearl Otome could very well protect herself) and had no intentions of letting her guard down.

The streets were busy with people out for the lazy Sunday evening. Many other couples strolled along the sidewalks looking for perfect hangout spots while others went about their daily routines in preparing for the coming week. There was a certain life that was given to the city whenever its people hustled about and it was very warm and welcome. It was a reminder that the world acted as a whole and not solely around one individual being. It was very selfless and, in a way, comforting.

As the dying rays of the sunlight slowly gave in to the shining radiance of the moon, long purple shadows cast over the streets and slowly the city became illuminated in its own glory. Brilliant displays of streetlights and neon signs painted the night the colors of the rainbow and set every heart ablaze with yearning for a night out.

The twilight air was alive with a myriad of scents and smells. The foods from various restaurants mixed together in a delicious concoction that was a flavor all its own. The exotic flowers being sold on the streets added a sweet accent to the foods floating in the air and there was even a hint of a lady's perfume. These smells, bundled together in one, enticed the young girls' senses in one alluring assault and it wasn't long before they succumbed to it.

Anberlin's stomach purred softly in her gut and she glanced over to Irina. "Are you feeling hungry by any chance?"

The pink-haired Otome nodded. "Yes. Actually, I'm starving!"

"Great! Me too," Anberlin exclaimed. "But where should we go? Everything looks good."

Irina took a sweeping look around on the street. They were in a section that was familiar to her and one of the restaurants she frequented was close by, but she fought against the habit to return to it. Tonight was a special occasion and as such it deserved a change of pace.

"Mm . . . How about there?" Irina pointed across the way to a popular pizza joint just down the street. People crowded around it like bees on a flower and swarmed away with their prize of freshly boxed pizza in hand.

Anberlin glanced to where she was pointing and pursed her lips. It looked like a nice place and it seemed quite the hot spot so it had to be good. She glanced up at the large green neon sign that read "Giorgio's Pizza" and tilted her head.

"Hey, what's pizza?" Anberlin asked meekly and Irina had to do a double take.

"What?" Irina cried, stunned. "Tell me you're joking."

Anberlin shook her head. "No, what is it?"

"Only one of the greatest things ever to grace humankind!" the other girl replied. "Come on, let's go!" She reached out and grasped Anberlin's wrist tightly, dragging her down the street.

Just as it looked from far away, up close the pizza place was packed. There was a large line leading up to the front door and even then inside was full to bursting. It made it very difficult for the two girls to pick their way through the sea of people and the stood off to the side and assessed the situation.

Irina disappointedly scratched at her cheek. "Wow, I didn't think it would be this bad."

"Tell me about it," Anberlin replied as she folded her arms over her chest. With each passing second it seemed like more people came to add to the already mile-long line. This was a complete flop. She didn't want their first date to be blown over something like this.

As Irina watched more and more people come flowing in, her spirits fell. She really wanted Anberlin to experience something she never did before with her, and it disappointed her to know this, but if there was nothing she could do then it couldn't be helped.

"Here, we can go somewhere else," Irina offered. "I'm sure no matter where we go, it'll be great. Wind City is known to have good cuisine."

Anberlin chewed the inside of her cheek and tapped the toe of her show on the concrete, thinking. "Hang on one second."

Her eye flicked around the line and the restaurant and everywhere else, trying to think of some way they could get in easily. They certainly couldn't just barge in and demand service, that would be rude and unethical, or cut in line for that matter. It made no difference if they claimed to be Otome and asked to move ahead, they were still common people and it wouldn't be fair to everyone else if they got to jump ahead just because they went to Garderobe. No, this situation would need some expert planning and a good dose of fortune.

Fortune seemed to be on her side that night. A small gasp caught in her throat as a group of teens darted out of the line and into an alleyway that segregated the pizza joint from the building next to it. A smile split her face and Anberlin automatically thanked her lucky stars.

"Come on, this way," she said and began striding forward through the wall of hungry night goers.

Irina stalled for a brief moment, wondering just what Anberlin's plan was. Still, her hunger and curiosity got the better of her and decided to simply trust her date and followed her into the alleyway.

The alley was much like any other: narrow, dark, damp in some places, with a museum of street art and posters plastering its walls. The smell that accompanied it was of rotten water and mildew and colorful graffiti spelled out public opinion on the cold concrete walls. Dazzling posters advertising some famous motorcycle race helped to add to the chaos of the décor.

Irina made a point to stick close to Anberlin as they drew further and further into the alleyway, keeping her eyes peeled. This seemed like a place where girls liked them normally got jumped, she thought, among other things and she prayed that nothing of the sort would happen to them.

Keeping the teenagers in sight, Anberlin kept her steps light and silent like those of a cat sneaking around. She was anxious to see if her hunch was right about where the group was headed and by the lovely smell that wafted in her nose it had been.

The teenagers stopped at an outside counter of sorts that was little more than a direct link to the kitchen of the restaurant. It was from there a burly man with bulging arms and tanned skin would stick his head out and take the teenagers' orders and then promptly come back with the food. It was almost too good to be true for Irina and Anberlin, that they would have access to pizza so easily, but they didn't question it once and when the group had left they approached.

"Hey! Wait up!" Anberlin called just as the man was about to return to his duties in the kitchen. She dashed to the counter just in time to catch his eye.

The man, a terrifying one up close, peered down at Anberlin with a scruitinous gaze. His black eyes were like perfectly cut obsidian stones and poked out beneath his bushy ebony brow. His expression was anything but friendly. "No free handouts," he grumbled out roughly, retreating to the warm safety of the kitchen. "Get back in line with everyone else."

Anberlin blinked, hating that her luck had just run out; everything had a limit. She pursed her lips and tapped her toes against the ground before shrugging nonchalantly and shrugging. "Alright, fine," she replied, trying to take on a hip attitude to guilt the man into feeling like he had brushed off one of the coolest kids around. "Be like that. I see how it is." She turned on her heel towards Irina and motioned with her head. "Come on, let's dash."

They had not taken two steps before the man called them back, "Wait a minute. You with the tie. Come here for a second."

Anberlin instantly froze up, but she fought down her panic. This was definitely a good sign that her stars hadn't burnt out just yet and winked at Irina. "Wait here," she mouthed, then spun on her heel towards the man again. "Yeah?"

"Come into the light," he demanded, waving her over, "let me get a better look at you."

Without hesitation (and a whole lot of self-control), Anberlin did as she was bidden to, approaching the man until they were almost face-to-face. She even dared to go as far as lean against the cool metal of the window counter and stare him in the eye. "Yeah?"

"Let me see you." The man reached for his sauce-smeared apron pocket and pulled out a pair of spectacles. He balanced them on the bridge of his nose and peered down at Anberlin for a few seconds, analyzing every feature of her face. In a moment, his stern expression lifted and joy lit up his eyes. "Jami Phoenix, is that you?"

Anberlin blinked, completely and utterly confused. She had no idea who this Jami Phoenix was nor how she had managed to remind the man of her, but . . . if there was a chance that she might get free food out of it then there was no harm in playing pretend for a little bit.

A fake smile cracked her lips and she nodded. "Yeah, how you doing?"

The man seemed to laugh heartily and reached out of the window to shake Anberlin's hand. "Bless me, I hardly recognized you. It's been so long. I thought your hair used to be blonde, what happened?"

The gears in Anberlin's head worked fast and she instantly came up with an excuse. "I got bored of it," she replied casually. "I thought something different might suit me more."

"I see, well it'll certainly keep you out of trouble with those Shaolin boys," he replied. "What're you doing here? Last I heard you skipped town for Florince so that the heat could cool down."

Quickly, Anberlin concocted another lie. "Came back to take care of business," she replied. "You know how I hate to leave doors unclosed."

The burly man nodded again, leaning his weight against the other side of the window as if the entire world rested on his shoulders and he was in dire need of support. "Aye, true that is. I would never think I'd live to see the day when young Jami Phoenix would come and take back her reputation. And to think, I almost believed the rumors that you were dead were true!"

Once more Anberlin froze. If that was indeed true and the real Jami Phoenix was dead, then she may as well dug her own grave. Still, she fought back her uncertainty and panic and nodded. "Yeah, the nerve of those fools who think they could keep me down. A phoenix always rises from its ashes."

The man seemed impressed and nodded. "You must have got some fancy learning from those scholars in Florince to be saying things like that. But enough of all this gloom talk, how about the usual eh?"

Anberlin nodded vigorously. "How can I say no?"

"Right then." The man turned towards the belly of the kitchen. "Larry, the Phoenix usual, you hear!"

"You got it, Frankie!" Larry called back.

No sooner had the word been given did Frankie present Anberlin with two steaming slices of pepperoni and pineapple pizza. It smelled delicious and it was steaming hot. The cheese bubbled like lava and the thick slices of pepperoni sunk into it deeply while the pineapple chunks were just barely able to stay afloat. Two paper plates were piled on top of one another to keep the orange grease from bleeding through.

"Here you are," Frankie said as she shoved the pizza towards Anberlin. "Something to keep your strength up while you go get your reputation back."

Anberlin smiled gratefully and took the pizza in hand, reaching into her pocket for the money Natsuki loaned her. "How much do I owe you?" She blinked when Frankie erupted into a bout of hearty chortles.

"You're full of surprises aren't you!" he said. "That time in Florince must have made you civilized. You know that your money isn't good here, put it away, girl and save it for a rainy day."

It was almost too much for Anberlin. Free pizza and getting away with impersonation? She was living the dream now. "Thank you for reminding me." She stuffed the money I her pocket once more and nodded to Frankie. "I'll see you around when I get things ironed out, but don't be surprised if you don't see me awhile."

Frankie nodded. "I hear you. These streets can be rough in the wrong hands. Take care of yourself, Jami. Phoenix always rises from the ashes."

Anberlin nodded. "Phoenix rises from the ashes," she repeated, then strolled off into the surrounding darkness of the alleyway and out of Frankie's sight. She met up with Irina and breathed a huge sigh of relief. "Wow, that was a close call."

Irina, who had been watching the display from afar, peered at her incredulously. "How were you able to act like that? He actually believed you!"

"I know huh," Anberlin said. "I'm a lucky person. Now are we going to go and enjoy our meal?"

Irina thought for a minute. She knew deep down that getting things while under impersonation was wrong and she had half a mind to demand that Anberlin take the pizza back and tell the truth, but in a way she was excited by what had happened. It showed that people can get what they want if they were smart enough and on occasion it would be okay . . . especially if it's something as minor as getting food. And besides, it wasn't as if Anberlin had stolen the pizza. She just happened to be in the right place at the right time.

She nodded slowly. "Sure."

They slipped back into the crowd of hungry consumers from within the shadows of the alleyway. Anberlin made it a point to keep her prize out of sight in case someone wanted to be a wise guy and jump her. Though it did sound ridiculous for someone to beat someone else for a couple slices of pizza. Though with the way the line was, it wasn't probably your average pizza! Anberlin hoped it was, at least, or else she had stolen someone's identity for nothing. No one noticed them slip away down the street and more towards another block close to the downtown area.

They paused at the doorstep in front of a comforting coffee shop where people fiddled away on their portable phones texting, playing games, or having a legitimate conversation with people on the other line. Warm golden light streamed out through the large glass windows of the shop and the air smelled of freshly ground coffee beans. A variety of iron cast tables and chairs were set up in a small-gated patio of sorts just outside the shop's door and Anberlin gestured to an open table.

"Want to sit there?" she asked. It was ideal sitting, as there weren't many people around it and it offered a good view of the beautifully lit city street; a perfect place to relax.

Irina readily agreed. "Alright."

They passed through the entrance of the gate and strode over to the table with ease. No one seemed to notice their presence and regarded them with as much interest as someone regards an ant: it's there, but not to be bothered with. the girls sat on opposite ends of one another and the pizza was set between them, transparent tendrils of white steam wafting from the cooling cheese.

Anberlin removed one of the plates and handed it to Irina. It was stained with grease, but the pink-haired girl didn't seem to mind.

"The grease is what makes it taste so good," she explained.

Anberlin then handed her a piece and set it upon the plate. Almost immediately Irina set into it, wracked with hunger as she was, but Anberlin was a little skeptical. This was a new delicacy and she wanted to remember every aspect of it down to the last detail from how hot the bread was, to the tantalizing smell to the sluggish manner in how the cheese melted off the side of the crust.

"Aren't you going to eat it?" Irina asked as she swallowed a mouthful of pizza. She dabbed at the corners of her mouth with het thumb and licked up the grease from there. "It's really good."

"No, I am," Anberlin replied.

Anberlin stared at the pizza slice one last time before picking it up in her hands. It was still hot, but not enough that it burned her fingers; it was perfect. She glanced at Irina and mimicked her, folding it down the middle so that none of the grease ran out and bit off a piece.

Instantly flavor exploded in her mouth that it was like fireworks. The rich flavor of the cheese was accented by the variety of spices embedded in the pepperoni. The bread was firm and full of taste and when all of it mixed in her mouth it was heaven in its own right.

She swallowed and instantly went for more.

Irina looked on at her date with amusement. It was as if Anberlin had never tasted something so common before, and even though Maria on occasion would whip up a pizza for lunch, it was nothing compared to the real thing. In a way Irina almost felt sorry for Anberlin for missing out on the casual pleasantries of life, but felt good that she was the one who introduced them to her.

"Slow down!" Irina chided with a slight laugh. "You're going to get a stomachache eating so fast!"

Anberlin licked her fingers clean of grease while still munching on the portion in her mouth. "I can't help it. It's so good!" Another bite disappeared into her mouth. "I think I might go back and get some more!"

Instantly the mood changed and Irina bit her bottom lip, setting down what was left of her pizza and averting her gaze from Anberlin. "I don't think you should."

"Why not?" the taller girl asked. "I'm sure I can make something up that'll convince Frankie to fork over another slice. Maybe with the right words I can swindle some sodas along with it."

Irina shook her head. "It's not right. It's bad enough that you impersonated a dead person, but to knowingly abuse that identity? That's just wrong."

Anberlin blinked. She had no idea Irina had such a sore spot for identity theft, but she guessed it was made worse by the fact that it was a dead person. Disrespecting the dead was one thing Anberlin did not approve of and she spat on those who did so . . . and unfortunately she was one of those people.

Anberlin sighed softly and set down the rest of her pizza, suddenly losing her appetite, and leaned into her chair. What a hypocrite I am, she thought with a wince.

"I know, what I did wasn't right," Anberlin said in a quiet voice, "and . . . I honestly do wish I can take it back."

"You can't take it back," Irina replied, "but you can still make up for it. Go back and tell the truth and pay for it like everyone else." Her serious expression didn't fade as Anberlin raised a skeptical eyebrow. "If you really mean that you're sorry then you'd do it."

Anberlin sat there a few seconds more, rubbing the back of her neck. She truly did want to make up for her transgression, but the thought of getting into trouble frightened her. She already had to deal with nearly daily abuse from Natsuki and the thought that she will receive more wasn't appealing.

Irina stood up from her seat and walked around the table to Anberlin's side. She smiled warmly and touched her shoulder, giving it a squeeze. "I'll even go with you."

The feeling of Irina's touch on her shoulder lifted some of Anberlin's stress. Knowing that someone was there for support was a great comfort and it was one she found sanctuary and confidence in.

Reaching over, Anberlin patted Irina's hand and glanced up at her, nodding. "Alright. Let's go."

With a proud smile, Irina picked up their plates and began walking over to the trashcan when Anberlin grasped her arm tightly and pulled her back.

"I'm going to eat that though," Anberlin said seriously. She pointed at the crusts left on the plates and snatched them up before Irina could blink. After all, once Anberlin confessed to her crime, there was no telling when she'd be able to get another meal.

---

When they went back to Giorgio's, the line was still as long as ever. In fact, it seemed longer. Anberlin and Irina picked their way through the crowd and back to the alleyway. It was just as dark and cold as when they left, but to Anberlin it seemed colder, as if the narrow expanse of street and wall knew of her impending punishment. The blood chilled in Anberlin's veins as the familiar window came into view. She stood frozen to the spot, staring.

Irina gave her a nudge forward. "Go on. It'll be over sooner if you do."

Anberlin glanced over her shoulder and offered a pleading look. "Can't we just let it slide? Please?"

Irina shook her head and gave her another nudge. "Nope."

Anberlin planted her heels into the ground, becoming immobile. "Please? I won't do it again." Frankie's shadow moved in front of the window and the breath caught in her throat.

"No, now go." Irina was having no trouble giving Anberlin a push; she was very strong when she had to be. "He's right there."

"No, I can't go!" Anberlin hissed back, trying her best to stay in the shadows. "Irina, don't make me go over there. Irina, please. Irina, he's going to eat me. Don't make me go."

The pink-haired girl gave an irritated huff and grasped Anberlin's arms tightly. "I may be your date, but I am still one of the Trias and the Number 2 Pearl Otome. Which means, I can very easily tell the Headmistress that you stole someone's identity just so that you could get something to eat."

Anberlin's eye snapped wide and she gasped. "You wouldn't!"

"Try me."

The one-eyed girl pursed her lips and tapped her toe against the ground. She really didn't want to own up to her mistake and deal with Frankie (he was a very big man after all and could probably dole out a hefty punishment), but she knew Natsuki and Natsuki had a very short fuse, which meant that her punishment would be even worse. In all respects, Anberlin would rather take a reprimanding from a stranger than her master.

With a dejected sigh, Anberlin swallowed her fear and strode forward into the patch of rectangular light that spilled from the window. No one was around on either side of her (save for Irina), which meant that no one would be around to save her if need be, and Anberlin was certain that she couldn't take on Frankie by herself – even with the GEM. The man was a bear!

Fear leaped into her heart, panicking it, and all nerve abandoned her. Anberlin began taking steps back until she turned and broke out into a full-on run. Screw morals! She would die if she owned up to her crime! Her escape came to an abrupt halt as she slammed into Irina's waiting palm.

Irina, with a tight frown perched upon her face, pushed Anberlin back and watched her fall. She firmly pointed back to the window. "Go."

There was no room for argument this time. With a whimper, Anberlin stood to her feet and approached the window. It was empty, but she could see shapes wandering about the kitchen. Swallowing hard, she raised her fist, closed her eyes . . . and rapped on the glass.

For a few agonizing seconds no one answered and Anberlin began to gain hope . . . but once Frankie's imposing figure approached, her stomach flipped and it felt like she was going to puke.

Frankie's face lit up at the sight of Anberlin's face and he opened the window to stick his head out.

"Hey, look who's back!" he beamed. "And not a scratch on you! I guess those Shaolin boys really had it coming. Tell me how you did it." He leaned in, ready to hang on Anberlin's every word.

Once more, Anberlin's stomach did somersaults. Her first instinct was to reply to Frankie's questions, make up some dashing story about how she singlehandedly took down the Shaolin boys (whoever they were) without getting so much as a scrape. However, moral pushed back the learned ability to lie and won out in her mind.

"Actually, sir," Anberlin murmured, "there's something I have to tell you . . ."

As quickly as she could, Anberlin relayed how she had stolen Jami Phoenix's identity and what occurred afterwards. She felt loathing and disgust for herself the more she spilled her guts, but it was also a cleansing process. Her conscience praised her for admitting the truth and once her tale was through, it was as if a boulder and been lifted from her shoulders.

"And that's how it is," she finished quietly. "I'm really sorry, sir."

Frankie listened and pondered, emotion never showing on his stern face until after all had been said and done. It was clear that he was not too satisfied with Anberlin's apology.

"You little punk," Frankie hissed, smoothing back his hair in frustration. "To have the nerve to take the name of a deceased person . . ."

"I know, I know," Anberlin said remorsefully. "I know it's wrong and I'm really, really sorry!"

"Sorry isn't going to make it go away!" Frankie suddenly snapped and Anberlin jolted back a step, fearful. "You unrightfully desecrated the dead!" His hand shot out from behind the window so fast that it was a blur and grasped Anberlin's collar tightly, pulling her close. She slammed into the counter of the window, the breath forced from her lungs, and peered at Frankie through the glass, trembling.

"I should send you to Hell where you belong myself!"

At this point Anberlin began to panic. Whoever said that doing the right thing was good was an absolute fool. She was going to get her butt handed to her on a silver platter!

Irina instantly made dash forward, eyes narrowed. She wouldn't let Anberlin get hurt – under any circumstances.

"But I'm not going to." Frankie loosened his grip on Anberlin's collar and allowed her to take a step back. Disappointment and remorse was ever present on his mug, but so was sorrow. "I don't get it with you young people in trying to con your way through this world. Whatever happened to working hard for what you got and pulling yourself up by your own bootstraps?"

Anberlin, startled, made no move or sound.

Frankie rubbed at his weary eyes. "This world is tough, you probably should know that, but there are ways you can make it work. Get yourself an education, find someplace good that will hire you and work your hardest. It isn't easy, but it molds your character and that's what you want to be – a man of good character."

Anberlin completely disregarded that Frankie mixed up her gender, but she knew what he was saying all the same.

"It's not easy," Frankie continued, "and the path is filled with temptations, but regardless of it you need to do the right thing simply because it's right. If you do that, then you'll never go wrong."

His words were powerful and true, awfully so, and it made Anberlin feel lower than dirt to know that she had gone against it. All of this time she had been trying to prepare for adulthood and what kind of adult would she be if she continued impersonating, lying and stealing? A downright lousy one.

Anberlin clenched her fists at her side and nodded. "Thank you, sir, for telling that." She took a step back and bowed at the waist. "Forgive me."

Irina, who had taken refuge once more in the shadows, blinked. "Anberlin . . ."

"I already have forgiven you, but you will have my true forgiveness once you have changed your ways," Frankie replied. "And when that day comes . . . then you will have truly earned the title of Phoenix."

Anberlin rose to her full height again, determined now more than ever to straighten out her ways. "Yes, sir. Thank you, sir." She turned to leave.

"Not so fast."

Her tracks ceased instantly.

"Just because I forgave you and had that pretty little talk, doesn't mean you're off the line," Frankie said. "To make up for what you have done, you're going to work for your food. You're on intense kitchen duty for the next hour."

Anberlin nearly choked. She was so hoping she'd get off easy. "Uh . . . I don't know how the business would hold up if I manned the kitchen. I mean, don't know hide or hair about making pizza."

Frankie nearly laughed. "Whoever said you was cooking? Ain't you got no home training?"

"I do."

"You know how to clean a dish and dry it?"

Anberlin raised an eyebrow. Who didn't know how to do that. "Yeah."

"Then you can be on kitchen duty. There's a door around the side. Get moving, Miss Phoenix."

Now Anberlin really wanted to run. She didn't want to work on her date! Yet, it was all to pay off a debt and she had a strong feeling that Frankie would thoroughly, willingly and knowingly beat her down if she indeed did try to run. No, it was better if she would perform the task asked of her. And it was only for an hour – it wouldn't be too hard.

With an apologetic glance to Irina (who just smiled her approval and motioned for her to move) Anberlin made her way towards the kitchen door.

---

An hour later, Anberlin emerged from the door she had entered, exhausted. Her brow was damp with sweat and the skin of her hands was scalded red. Her muscles ached and all she wanted to do was sleep.

Irina met up with her at the front door and offered a comforting smile. "I can tell it was hard work," she pitied, "but don't you feel better?"

"No," Anberlin grumbled. She rolled her shoulder and winced as the muscles strained. "I feel horrible."

"Well, either way it was a good thing you did," Irina said, "and because you did it, you're now a better person." She raised an eyebrow. "You learned your lesson right?"

"Yeah," Anberlin nodded. "Next time I take and run." Irina flicked her nose and she yelped, clutching it in one hand. "Ow! I was just kidding. Gee whiz."

The frown still remained. "I believe you, but next time think twice before you do something, okay?"

Anberlin nodded. "Of course, but next time I'm just giving him money."

The alley way turned into another street and since both girls didn't feel like dealing with the onslaught of people that still crowded the shop they took it. The street was a little less packed than others, probably because it served as a border for the less profitable section of the city. The buildings were a little rundown and litter clogged the drainage pipes on the curbs. Graffiti was everywhere and the only people they encountered were kids who looked up to no good.

Anberlin shifted uncomfortably as they strolled along the desolate sidewalk. "Eerie."

Irina nodded. "No kidding." Even though she was an Otome and could very well handle herself, she stuck close to Anberlin's side. "I don't like it here."

"Me either." Anberlin looked down either side of the road and, seeing that no one was coming, stepped off the curb. "Come on."

Abruptly, the rip of a motorcycle roared down the avenue and it was only by pure dumb luck that Irina was able to yank Anberlin back onto the sidewalk before she was hit.

"Hey I'm walking here!" Anberlin hollered at the motorcyclist, waving her fist in her air. "Watch where you're going, numbskull!"

No sooner had the words left her mouth did the biker perform a U-turn and zoomed right back to where the girls stood, engine roaring.

Anberlin stood her ground the more the biker approached while Irina stood behind her, wary but willing to take flight rather than fight. They become more on edge when the biker pulled into a stop right in front of them and pulled off his helmet to glare.

"What did you just say to me?" he asked in a not-too-friendly tone.

He, like Frankie, was a big man, if not a little less muscled. He was dressed all in leather that seemed far too small on him and every flex of his muscles rippled with power. His gloved hands adjusted their grip on the handles of his Harley Davidson frequently.

Anberlin was unfazed by his gruff appearance. "I said watch where you're going, jackass. You could have killed me."

"Wish I had," he retorted, regarding Anberlin as if she were little more than an insect beneath his heel. His venomous eyes glanced behind her towards Irina and a dangerous smile peeled his lips. "So who's your friend?"

Instantly Anberlin snapped to Irina's side, blocking her from the brute. "No one you should be concerned with," she growled. "Clear off before I make you."

He snorted, almost in a laughing manner, and smirked. A chill swept down Anberlin's spine.

"I could snap your neck with a pinch," he threatened, looming over the girls threateningly. Anberlin growled harshly, lifting the edge of her lip to show off her teeth. The biker seemed unimpressed. "However that'll be too easy. You want to man up, then I challenge you to a race. Winner gets your girl and, if you manage to survive, I'll even leave you be. What say you?"

Normally, Anberlin would have just beaten the guy to a pulp and let the rats clean up the bloody mess afterwards, but for some reason that didn't seem as fun. She had endured her fair share of races before and, for the most part, she had won. This guy looked like his bulk would weigh him down in a running race so victory was guaranteed. There was nothing to lose.

"Alright, you're on," she declared and Irina gasped. She wasn't some trinket to be bartered over!

The biker smirked. "Fine then. I see you're not one to back down; good. In one hour I want you back here for the Max 300, bring your best bike with you and all the luck in the world. You're going to need it." He revved up his motorcycle, startling the two girls. "Remember my name, little girl: Claude Night. Or the Grim Reaper."

Anberlin held no fear." I don't fear death."

Claude seemed surprised. "Good answer. Who might you be? I want to know what name I am to carve on your headstone."

Anberlin didn't miss a beat. "Jami Phoenix."

Irina gasped. No . . .

"Alright then, fire bird. I hope you don't get reduced to a pile of ashes when I'm through with you." With another blow of his engine, Claude sped off down the roadway, leaving the pair behind.

Instantly Irina whirled on Anberlin. "What was that?"

"That was me protecting you," Anberlin replied. "Don't worry, I won't let him get to you." She was instantly met with a slap to the face. The burn stung her cheek and Anberlin froze for a few seconds, stunned.

Irina glared. "That's not the point! you have no idea what you've gotten yourself into - you just signed your own death certificate." She lowered her hand and crossed her arms. "The Max 300 is one of the biggest motorcycle races in Windbloom, if not the world. Only true professionals can participate in it and even then the people who manage the races aren't held responsible for any liabilities."

Anberlin blanched. "Wait, he meant motorcycle race? I thought we were running!"

Irina face-palmed. Wow. "And on top of that, you used Jami's name again! After you promised Frankie that you would turn over a new leaf. Did you only say that to get him off your back?"

"No! Technically he gave me license to use that name so I'm using it. Besides, if I used my real name then that would have tipped off anyone who -" She suddenly paused. Irina didn't know about Anberlin's affiliation with the Black Hand or that Tomoe had nearly killed her. she thought up another excuse. "I mean, the Headmistress might know I'm going to enter the race, so I used a fake name."

"What do you mean you're 'going to' enter? You can't do this!"

"Why? Because you don't think I can do it?"

Irina shook her head. "No, because I don't want you to get hurt!" She blushed pink; she didn't want Anberlin to know how much she actually cared for her . . . yet. Her tone softened. "Anberlin, please, don't do this. I appreciate that you want to protect me, but I'm an Otome, I can take care of myself, and my honor isn't worth your life."

Anberlin, no matter how touched she was b y Irina's words, still remained the mule she was. "I know you don't want me to get hurt, but guys like that . . . they won't go away unless you deal with them off the bat. Please, let me do this and I promise you nothing will happen." She pressed her hands together in sort of prayer position. "All I'm asking for is one shot."

Irina thought on it for a minute. This was still dangerous and could definitely get them into a lot of trouble, still she trusted Anberlin and in the back of her mind knew that she would come out of the race alive. With a small sigh, she gave in.

"Alright, but you're going to need a bike."

---

They quietly and quickly slipped back to Garderobe, entering through the gate (it was never locked until about 8 o'clock) and snuck towards a section that Anberlin had never been before. It was close to the pool area and less decorated with plants and trees. They stopped at a long building that looked like it could be used for storage and Irina withdrew a key from her pocket. She approached one of the garage plots along the building and unlocked it, pulling up the orange metal door and revealing a dark space. Yet something was visible lurking in the darkness.

"Come in," Irina welcomed as she strode into the darkness. She flicked on a light and revealed that the storage garage was actually a mechanics workshop outfitted with tools, parts and the works. Set in the middle of it all was a beautiful yellow and black motorcycle that had Anberlin staring in wonder.

"Whoa . . ." She approached it and ran a hand along the handlebars and seat. "This is amazing. Where did you get it?"

Irina looked on proudly. "I built it. Professor Yohko helped me get the parts and then I put it together. You see, I'm very handy with these kinds of things."

"You're very good." Anberlin examined the bike from every angle, marveling at the sleek design and beautiful color scheme that complimented it perfectly. She noticed that the name Phoenix 600 was tattooed along the tail end of it and found it odd how it coincided with her fake name. Anberlin met Irina's eyes. "Can I actually ride this?"

"As long as you take good care of it. I have parts enough to improve it and/or fix it if need be, but it took me a while to makwe this so please be careful."

Anberlin nodded. "Of course." She smiled over at Irina and hugged her tightly. "Thank you so much. I promise you, I won't screw this up."

Irina was caught off guard by the sudden embrace, but made no move to pull away. She didn't notice it the first time they hugged, but being in Anberlin's arms made her feel secure, safe. Irina closed her eyes and hugged her back, leaning into her. "You're welcome."

Promptly Anberlin let go and moved to the bike once more, running her hands along the tires and smooth seat. "Can we get going? I want to get there fast so that I can wipe the floor with that lame guy."

"Wait, we're still missing a few things." Irina disappeared further into the garage and bent down near a toolbox. With another key she opened it and pulled forth a striking yellow and black rider suit. She held it out to Anberlin. "It might be a little big, but here."

Anberlin lifted an eyebrow. "Okay . . . why do you have that?"

Irina fingered the material of the suit. "My brother used to race dirt bikes. Then he retired once he got a career in engineering in Romulus. Before he left he gave his rider suit and helmet as a sort of parting gift and I've had it ever since. He was actually the whole reason why I became interested in mechanics."

"Wow, that was nice of him." Anberlin took the suit in her hands. The material felt nice. "Are you sure you want me to wear this? I mean, it's your brother's . . ."

Irina nodded. "I'm sure. He wouldn't mind either way. I'm not a very big rider." She bent down behind a work bench and pulled forth a sleek black helmet from behind it. It didn't look faded or old and its visor was in perfect condition; it looked new. "Take this too. It'd be pretty stupid if you got hurt just because you weren't wearing your helmet."

Anberlin nodded, finding mild humor in the jibe. She took the helmet in her hands and set it down on the bike seat. She turned around and changed into the bike suit (while Irina admired her from behind) before picking up the helmet again and tucking it under her arm. She felt professional now.

"I was right!" Irina cried as she scanned Anberlin from all angles. "You and my brother are just about the same size."

"Pretty close." The suit was a little big, both width and length wise, but that was okay. It gave Anberlin just enough slack to really move around in. "This is great. Thanks for letting me wear this."

"Don't mention it. If you really want to do this then I'm going to support you . . . not to mention I worked long enough on this bike. It might as well be put to good use." Irina went to another portion of the garage and grasped a satchel sitting on a stool. After placing it around her shoulders, she walked over to the bike and sat down on the seat, but left enough room in front of her for Anberlin to fit. "Let's do this."

Anberlin smiled and nodded, putting on the helmet (it was a bit snug). Once it was secured, she moved in front of Irina and sat down, gripping the handlebars. Being on the bike almost felt natural.

"Cool," she breathed. "Uh . . . how do I turns this on?"

"It's touch activated." Irina reached around Anberlin and touched a small screen in between the handlebars. Instantly, the bike flared to life and the engine vibrated beneath them. A rush of adrenaline pumped through Anberlin's veins and all she wanted to do was go fast forever.

"Sweet," Anberlin whistled.

"You see those two pedals by your feet?" Irina asked, pointing to where she meant.

Anberlin nodded, seeing the twin pedals on either side of her legs. "Yeah."

"I made it so that gas is on the right and brake is on the left, like a car. I like my bikes to be unique." She wrapped her arms tightly around Anberlin's waist, hugging her close and resting her cheek against the one-eyed girl's back. Now this was more like the perfect date. "Don't go too fast, okay?"

Anberlin nodded and gave the bike a little gas, enough so that they were easily able to leave the garage. Irina hopped off the bike quick to close and lock it before mounting the bike again. Then the pair took off at a moderate speed down the pathway and out of Garderobe's polished gates.

---

When they arrived back at the street they had met Claude on, it was as if magic had swept through it. The street was coned off along the sidewalk with ropes, keeping the main road free. Many people walked down the sidewalks towards a collection of tents located in a vacant lot at the end of the block. Many people were paying admission to spectator the sport while other bikers rolled through another section of the lot.

Anberlin fell in line after a rider in orange, hoping to blend in with the other racers, but was immediately stopped before she was allowed to enter.

"Name?" the man operating entrance asked. His eyes were hidden beneath the curved rim of a blue baseball cap.

Anberlin swallowed but kept her cool. "Jami Phoenix."

The baseball cap man flipped through a few papers on a clipboard and nodded once he found the name at the bottom of the list. "Ah yes. You're the audacious newcomer Night's been talking about. And who is that with you?" He glanced at Irina.

Anberlin looked over her shoulder. "This is my manager, Louis." When Irina opened her mouth to question her, Anberlin stomped on her toes to shut her up.

The baseball man nodded half-heartedly. "Right. Fifty dollar entrance fee."

Both girls nearly stumbled at the amount. If they were racers then they didn't need to pay a fee! However, now was no time to argue and Anberlin reached into the side pocket of her biker suit and pulled out the money Natsuki had given her. The bills counted out to fifty dollars exactly and Anberlin handed it over to him.

"Welcome to the Max 300," he said, depositing the money into a steel safe box. "You're tent number eleven."

Anberlin nodded, "Thanks," and sped down the length of the lot towards the gathering of tents. It didn't take too long to find it, as all tents were marked with numbers on them, and Anberlin slowed the bike to a stop outside the tent.

"Bring it inside so that I can give it a glance over," Irina said as she swung off the seat and passed through the flaps of the tent.

Anberlin nodded, turned off the bike with a touch to the screen, and walked it into the tent.

The tent was big and spacious and lightly furnished with a couple of chairs and even a bench to sit on. Anberlin parked the bike in the middle of the tent and put down the kickstand. She sat in one of the chairs and relaxed into it, closing her eyes.

"Here. Put this on."

A wig suddenly landed in Anberlin's lap and she glanced up at Irina.

"Just in case," Irina winked.

Anberlin nodded and got up from her seat to stand in front of the bike's rearview mirror.

"So have you ever raced before?" Irina asked as she put the finishing touches on the sleek motorbike. She had made sure every mechanism, every gismo within its engine and overall design was in perfect working order so that tragedy could be avoided.

Anberlin removed the snug loaner helmet from her head fixed the angled bangs of her spiky blonde wig. It had been Irina's idea that she'd go in disguise so as not to be noticed by someone, either the Black Hand or otherwise. Any precautions were better than no precautions. "Nope," she replied bluntly upon tucking the helmet beneath her arm.

Irina faltered and slipped as she tightened a bolt on the bike, snapping her eyes up and peering over the rim of her oval glasses. "What? Tell me you're joking."

Anberlin shook her head. "No, I have never been on a motorbike in my entire life."

"And you're about to take on one of the biggest and famous motorcycle racers in the entire world, just because he cut you off in the street?" This seemed a little too much for something that could have ended with a few swear words and finger gesture, maybe a beat down or two.

"That's right," the younger girl replied in a singsong voice. "I think it'll be fun. I mean, how hard can it be? All you have to do is keep your eye on the road."

"It's a whole lot harder considering Claude entered you into one of the biggest underground bike races in Windbloom!" Irina cried, desperately trying to get Anberlin to see the error of her ways. When the girl refused to pay attention, Irina reached over and grasped her shoulders. "This is serious! There are going to be hundreds, if not thousands of spectators along with some of best bike riders in the world! Doesn't that bother you?"

Anberlin shook her head. "Nope, because I have the utmost confidence in myself and know that I can beat this guy." She stared into Irina's disbelieving eyes for a minute more before letting down her bravado in one big shot. "Okay, you're right, maybe this isn't such a good idea."

Irina sighed. "You think? Why did you agree to this anyways?"

Anberlin shrugged. "Pride? Hot-headedness? Take your pick."

"Whatever the reason is, it's not worth your life. You can still forfeit now while you still and we can turn away and go home."

"Even if your Phoenix doesn't get commissioned by major bike producing companies?" Anberlin asked pointedly.

The older girl halted her next statement to think. This would be a good opportunity: if Anberlin raced her bike and others admired it, then there was a high chance that the design could become legit and there was a lot of money to be had in the engineering industry. Still, despite all of it, if something terrible happened to Anberlin then there was no way Irina would live it down.

Anberlin raised an eyebrow further, knowing she had played upon a sore spot. "Right?"

Irina shook her head. "Even if that's true it wouldn't matter if you were to get hurt," she said again. "If the Phoenix becomes big then they'll be a dime a dozen, but you . . ." The pink-haired girl blushed and reached out to touch Anberlin's cheek. It was the first time she noticed how soft the younger's skin was. "There's only one of you," she said softly, as if she was telling a secret, "and I can never build another you."

The sentiment made Anberlin blink. No matter how cliché that was, it still sounded very beautiful and she couldn't help but smile bashfully. "Thanks . . . but nothing's going to happen to me. I've been through worse than a small bike race and I seem to be very lucky. The worst that's going to happen is that I'll get a few cuts and scrapes."

Irina sighed and took Anberlin's face in her hands, forcing their eyes to meet. "You're still not listening to me. This isn't a small race and when it comes to these things, people don't mess around. People have died on more than one occasion just because someone didn't want to be a sore loser. I don't want that to happen to you."

Anberlin's face fell and she became serious. "So you want me to drop out completely, without even giving it a shot?"

"Yes!" Irina said. It took Anberlin long enough to understand. She liked her, but she was so hardheaded sometimes that she was dense.

"And what will happen if I don't go through with it?" Anberlin asked a little roughly. "I'm pretending to be some world-renown underdog racer and am going up against some brute for fifty thousand dollars and the race is in ten minutes. Seems a little too late to back out now."

"Then make something up!" Irina howled, running out of options. "Make an excuse that you're sick or hurt or something and then forfeit. Whatever money or pride you have riding on this isn't worth your life."

"It's not about the money or pride," Anberlin retorted, feeling a little hurt that Irina would think her greedy or vain. "It's about keeping a promise and taking it like an adult."

"And another part of being an adult is knowing how to choose your battles." Irina stroked Anberlin's cheek with her thumb. "I feel honored that you tried to protect me from Claude, but this is a little too far. What good is a knight if the knight is dead?"

Once more Anberlin smiled and a soft blush covered her cheeks. "I'm flattered that you think so highly of me, but I can't back down now. It's a little too late for that." One glance of Irina's worrying look softened her gaze and she squeezed her hands. "Have faith in me like you did during the Survival Race. This is just like that."

"Only you have a lot more to lose," Irina brooded as she took time to focus on the feeling of Anberlin's hand in hers. This wasn't the kind of circumstances she thought of when she imagined them holding hands. She just hoped that it wouldn't be the first and last time they did so. "Be careful, okay?"

Anberlin blinked again, wondering just exactly what Irina was saying. "Wait, are you going to let me race? No complaining?"

Irina met her eyes. "I don't want you to because you're inexperienced and are going up against professionals, but . . . I know I won't be able to deter you from it. You're mind is made up, but that still won't stop me from worrying about you."

The other girl smiled wider. "Thanks. I'll be fine don't worry. Everything will be okay. Trust me." Anberlin pulled away from her to grab her helmet and gave Irina's hand a comforting squeeze. "Trust me."

Irina nodded and squeezed back. "I will." Anberlin began to leave the small tent, but Irina stopped her before she completely left. "Wait, let me put this in." She reached into her pocket and pulled out a small communication device. She clipped it to Anberlin's ear and then hid it beneath her hair. "This will help me communicate with you during the race. I'll have the track on a computer screen so I'll be able to tell you if something is in the way or not."

Anberlin smiled her thanks and nodded. "Great. It'll certainly come in handy." She winked and did a two-fingered salute. "Wish me luck."

Irina watched her leave the tent "Luck? I don't wish you luck, I wish you sense!"

Anberlin smiled to herself at Irina's comment. She did have sense, and she planned on using every bit of it to win the competition, even past just beating Claude. This could actually be her chance to make a fake name for herself. She could already see the headline: Mysterious Racer Jami Phoenix Wins Fifty Grand! It tickled her pink just thinking about it and that's what made it all the more fun.

Anberlin was so caught up in her thoughts that she didn't bother to look where she was going and bumped into another racer. She took a step back and offered an apologetic smile.

"Sorry, my bad," Anberlin said as she peered up into the racer's face.

The racer, a young woman of maybe twenty-three or so with striking silver hair and beautiful eyes stared back at her, seemingly in shock. She was gorgeous and was clad in a red and black bike suit that hugged every curve like a skin. She wasn't very muscular but she was lean and towered above Anberlin by about four inches or so and even though her body would have caused anyone to stare, Anberlin was transfixed on her eyes. They were a brilliant gold but held flecks of green, making them the most striking eyes Anberlin had ever seen. She had to excuse herself for staring.

"Sorry," Anberlin apologized again, taking her eye off the woman's. They were so enchanting that Anberlin wondered if they were really her real eyes and not just contacts. "I didn't mean to stare."

The woman, getting over her unexplained stun, composed herself and pasted on a smile. "No, it's alright. And I should have watched where I was going. I'm sorry."

Anberlin nearly lost it. Her voice was strong and soothing, like a rushing river. She couldn't help but blush slightly upon hearing it.

"No, the fault's mine," Anberlin replied. "I was the one daydreaming." Her eye couldn't help but wander back up to the woman and she decided to enlighten the situation by extending a hand in greeting. "A – er – Jami Phoenix." Anberlin was tempted to use her real name, but then remembered in the nick of time that she was incognito. She hoped that her mistake was lost on the beautiful racer.

Hm, never heard of her before. What a creative name. The racer nodded and shook Anberlin's hand with a firm grip, a productive of racing. "Duran Zephyr," she introduced. "Nice to meet you."

Anberlin nodded with another smile and drew back her hand. "Likewise."

Duran hummed in thought for a moment, placing her chin between her the knuckle of her forefinger and thumb. "I haven't heard of you before. Are you new?"

Anberlin nodded, suddenly feeling like a fool that she wasn't some renowned motorbike racer to impress her. "Uh yeah. I'm not in any major races, but I do a decent job," she lied, hoping to weave a tale that would wow Duran. "I honestly wouldn't be here if I wasn't going toe to toe with this one clown."

"Is that so?" Duran said in her hypnotic voice. She scanned Anberlin up and down, not looking as impressed as she was a little irritated. "Whom are you going up against? I might be able to give you some pointers. After all, I've raced everyone here at one point or another."

Anberlin smiled. She couldn't have asked for a better advantage. "This guy named Claude Night. He tried to run over my girl, I mean, friend!" Irina wasn't her girl, She owned no one. "And he challenged me to a race for calling him out."

Zephyr bit her lip and placed her hands on her hips, a nervous habit of hers. "Claude Night, huh? You picked a tough opponent."

Anberlin blinked. "Why? He just seemed like brute."

"Exactly," Duran replied, "and he fights like one too. In all of the races he has competed in, he has played the dirtiest, even at the expense of others' lives." She made direct eye contact with Anberlin and the girl shied away under the might of those green-flecked eyes. "Listen, when the race starts, stay close to me. You're still young and therefore can't afford to die at the hands of someone like him. I'll protect you."

Anberlin said nothing more for a moment, marveling at how a racer as cool as Zephyr would want to concern herself with her. It boosted her confidence by three hundred percent. "Thanks! But . . . I mean you're young too and it would be bad if you got hurt from him too."

Duran smirked. "I appreciate the concern, but I can handle myself very well. I have gone up against Night a few times and every time he has tried to send me to my grave, but you don't have to worry about me because I've had more experience with these types of races than you. That's why you should stick close to me, so that you can keep both feet out of your grave."

They were suddenly interrupted by a announcer voice booming over the bustling and crowded streets. "Attention! All racers report to the course, your race shall begin in five minutes!"

"Well, I guess we better get going." Duran stood to her full height and glanced down at Anberlin. "I'll wait for you at the starting line. Make sure you're not late." She gave a small wave and then disappeared into the sea of tents and spectators.

For a long while, Anberlin followed Duran with her gaze even until she could no longer see her. Even though they had just met, she was now Anberlin's hero. She knew that she must have sounded like a childish fan-girl, but that was how she felt. Turning back to the side of the tent, Anberlin pulled forth Irina's Phoenix 600 and mounted it. She then put on her helmet and rode smoothly through the sea of people towards the starting line at the top of the avenue.

The starting line was in fact a street that had been closed off for the purpose of the race. People swamped the sidewalk on either side of it, cheering for their favorite competitors and sporting their colors with banners. A black and white checkered banner hovered over a painted white line on the street that read "Start" on one side and "Finish" on the other in big, bold, black letters.

The first few racers were cruising their way up the street and towards the line, earning cheers from the excited crowd. They all were seasoned professionals of varying genders and ages, with the oldest being around forty-five and the youngest fourteen. The youngest, of course, being Anberlin. She felt out of place among the adults, but behind her helmet she hid her anxiety. She would be fine as long as she stuck close to Duran.

Where is she? Anberlin wondered as she looked all around her, but finding no sign of the gold-eyed beauty. She stopped her bike at the finish line between two other racers and glanced all around again, keeping her eyes behind her to see more racers pull up the street. However, none of them were Zephyr and Anberlin began to worry. If Duran didn't show up or if something happened to her then Anberlin would surely be in hot water.

A sort of static emerged in her left ear, right where the communicator was, and Irina's voice soon followed. "Concentrate," she said. "What're you looking for?"

Anberlin didn't answer right away, but glanced around for Duran once more before giving up. She felt a little betrayed that her new hero would abandon her in her time of need, but dwelled on it no longer after that. "Nothing," she replied solemnly.

Anberlin gripped the handles of the Phoenix 600 tightly in her gloved hands, testing out the engine a couple times and listening to it roar. She blinked, as the crowd seemed to cheer louder and revved the engine again. The people hooted and hollered and she couldn't help but smile at the attention she was getting just by simply making some noise.

"Okay, don't get too excited," Irina said again. "You need to focus all of your energy on winning this race in one piece – as well as beating Claude. You can't afford any distractions."

Anberlin nodded. "I know, I have everything under control." She blinked suddenly, as if struck by a thought. "Wait a minute, how did you know I was looking for someone? And that I was revving the engine?"

"I rigged the streets with security cameras so that I can watch you and look for any dangers," Irina informed as she tapped away at a laptop set upon her legs. She was sitting on a chair in the tent with the communicator in one ear and her yellow-green eyes focused on the many angles of the streets provided by the cameras. "There doesn't seem to be any traps, but that doesn't mean they're not there. It is a curvy road too so be careful on the turns."

Anberlin nodded and let her bike idle for a second as she relaxed in the seat. "Right, thanks." She fell into a silence for a minute before asking, "Hey, Irina, can you do a favor for me?"

"Hm? What is it?" the other asked.

"I want you to look up the name Duran Zephyr. She's one of the people I'm racing against and I just want to see how good she is on the track," Anberlin requested, as she took one more sweep down the row of racers on either side of her. "You know, to see if she's someone I need to be worried about." And find out more about her . . .

Irina nodded. "Sure thing. I'll get back to you soon."

She hung up and Anberlin deterred her attention back to the road in front of her with a small sigh. Well this would certainly be the last time she trusted a racing professional. Duran probably lured her into a sense of security so that she could take her out herself. It would be a clever ruse if Anberlin planned on falling for it. Oh well, now I'll just have to watch my back.

A hush fell over the crowd then a magnificent uproar as an particularly obnoxious engine roar rippled through the streets. Everyone turned their heads to see a magnificent purple and black bike pull up to the starting line a few rows down from Anberlin. The rider removed his helmet and Claude grinned as he picked out Anberlin among the crowd, recognizing her by her lone aquamarine eye.

"Well, you did show up," he said. "Not that I'm surprised. You did seem pretty adamant about facing me."

Anberlin tried not to let her despise get to her and gripped the handlebars tightly. "You're just a person, if not an arrogant one at that. Why should I be afraid of you?"

Claude didn't feel so good about being called arrogant and decided to scare the girl. "If you've heard of me then you would be scared. Everyone competing on this track is a lost soul and I am the reaper."

Once more, Anberlin rolled her eyes. She had had her fair share of death threats before and this one was no different. She opened her mouth to give a smart reply when a familiar voice did it for her.

"Some might call you a jackass," Duran said pointedly as she pulled into an open space beside Anberlin. She removed her shining red and black helmet, tossing back her snowy hair to peer down the way at Claude. A small smirk tweaked her pink lips. "Don't you have anything better to do than to beat up on small children?"

Claude frowned terrible and snorted in Duran's direction. "Are you crazy enough to take me on a third time? I'd think you'd have enough when I almost broke your back the last time."

Anberlin gasped slightly and looked back to Duran, her brow furrowing slightly.

Duran frowned slightly, but came back with a nonchalant shrug. "You call that little scar a near-death experience? You may call yourself death, Night, but I have cheated you thus far and I intend to again." She then reached over and placed a hand on Anberlin's shoulder, keeping her unusual green-flecked eyes on Claude. "And you will not have this girl."

Night glanced from Anberlin to Duran and back again, a twisted smile taking place upon his face. "If you have anything to do with it, Zephyr, then I surely will not have her, but her friend with the glasses." He shrugged. "Who knows. I may just be the reason she drops out of school."

Instantly Anberlin growled and gripped her handlebars a little bit tighter. Even though her eye remained its normal color, the pupil slit into a narrow black line. It was only Duran's hand that kept her in place. "Over my dead body!" she hissed.

The man grinned devilishly. "I think she would be better off with someone like me, someone who can give her a better time than some half-pint, flat-chest like you."

"You won't touch her!" Anberlin howled, but was forced back down onto her bike by a strong hand.

Duran pulled her closer and murmured, "Don't take it out on him, but the race. He's all talk and no bite anyways. Trust me, he threatened to harm someone very close to me too."

Her words did little to easy her nerves. "But I can take him," she seethed, eye planted firmly on Claude as he replaced his helmet.

Duran pulled her a little closer, holding her against the side of her cherry red bike. "I know you can, but now isn't the time for fighting. Stay close to me and I promise nothing will happen to her."

Anberlin took a deep breath and loosened her grip upon the handlebars. Her palm hurt from the force with which she held it and nodded slowly. "Alright . . . but if he goes after her I will kill him."

An alarm went off suddenly and the same announcer came onto the speakers once more. "Welcome to the annual Max 300 street race!"

An uproar went up from the crowd. Some of the racers ate up the attention while others mentally prepared.

"This year top competitors from all over the world are have come to take their chances upon one of Windbloom City's deadliest streets for a chance to win bragging rights and a cash prize of fifty thousand dollars."

Duran smirked as she tossed back her hair and placed her helmet over her head. "Can you imagine what you can do with that money, Phoenix? Imagine how much candy that will get you."

Anberlin rolled her eyes and gripped her handlebars again, her eye bent on the road ahead of her. "Sorry to say, but I'll use that money for more practical reasons and I don't have much of a sweet tooth."

"Hm. Is that right?" Zephyr said, focusing her eyes on the road as well, though she would keep darting them to Anberlin. "If you don't mind me asking, what would you do with it if you did win?"

"I don't know," Anberlin replied, rolling her shoulders in an attempt to release some of the tension in them. "Probably give it to someone who needs it most . . . or maybe donate it to my school. It might show my half-rate principal that I'm not all she thinks I am."

Duran blinked, averting her eyes to glance at the speedometer absently, as if in deep thought. "I see, so you and . . . your principal don't get along so well?"

Anberlin nodded stiffly.

"Well, I hope you do change his mind," Zephyr said in a quiet voice.

"Her," Anberlin corrected. "Change her mind, but then again Natsuki Kruger has such a hard skull I'm starting to wonder if anything can bust through it. Changing her opinion of me is going to be a long shot."

"Hm . . . Natsuki Kruger, huh? That bimbo in charge of running that Otome school?" Duran asked, sarcasm and humor dripping from her voice.

Anberlin nodded, smiling with her. At least someone else saw Natsuki the way she did. "Yeah, that's her."

Zephyr hummed and took on a quieter voice. "I may not have personal history with her, but I hear she isn't so bad. She works very hard, you know, and I can imagine it's not easy running a school jam-packed with rebellious, hormonal girls. You never know who's PMSing or not."

The girl rolled her eye behind her helmet's visor. "Still, not my problem. Maybe if she pulled that five-foot stick out of her butt and learn to trust me then she could be a little more relatable."

Duran chuckled lightly, but it was forced chuckle. "You might be right, but have you done anything to make her trust you? It takes a long time to earn trust once you've lost it and I'm sure she wouldn't trust you if she found out you were out here racing in the most dangerous tracks in the world, seeing as how she is so protective of her students and all. Still, she isn't all that bad. In fact, if you work hard enough at it she may in fact end up trusting you and her opinion just might change." She sighed and adjusted her grip upon her handlebars. "Anything is possible, Phoenix."

At this point Anberlin had to raise an eyebrow. The way Duran spoke of Natsuki, as if she knew her, made her wonder just what secrets the racer was hiding. "I thought you said you didn't have any personal experience with her."

The gold-eyed woman shrugged. "When you've traveled around as much as I have, you tend to hear things."

A man stepped dressed in black and white out into the street next to the bikers and looked down the row. "You all know the rules, anything goes. May the best man, woman . . ." His gaze landed on Anberlin, but she paid him no attention. " . . . or child win." He raised a shotgun into the air. "On my mark."

"Stay close to me, no matter how fast I go," Duran said hurriedly. "Keep your eyes on me."

Anberlin nodded. "Right."

"Get set."

The racers all tensed, revving their engines as a way to intimidate the competition and to secure their own confidence. Their breath fogged up their visors and the crowd began to crow louder than ever before, adding to the intoxicating mix of adrenaline.

The referee squeezed the shotgun trigger and the loud pop of the blank went off. "Go!"

In the blink of an eye they took off like rockets, speeding down the street way at breakneck speed. The crowd cheered for their favorites and wished them good luck as they whizzed by. Arial camera crews monitored the racers' progress as they sped through the first half-mile or so.

Anberlin felt a pure wave of fear rush through her body as the bike roared to life beneath her, growling like an angry tiger as it ripped across the asphalt. Her heart pounded every moment she felt like she was going to lose control of the steering and completely grind on the street. This was her first time riding a motorcycle after all, especially one so powerful as the Phoenix 600. She began to slow down, feeling like she should take it slow and then speed up once she gained confidence.

Her earpiece flared to life once again.

"Anberlin, what's going on? Why are you slowing down?" Irina asked. "You're doing great!"

"I just want to get comfortable," Anberlin replied as she kept her eyes on the rows of bikers in front of her, following their position. She felt herself go on autopilot, moving the handlebars only when necessary to make a turn.

Irina sighed. "Anberlin, why didn't you tell me you weren't ready? We would have had some more practice before you went on the track!"

"I'm sorry!" she cried back in return, finding Irina's chiding more than a little distracting. "Look, I can't afford to lose this. That guy Claude said he'll be the reason you'll leave school if I lose." Her eye narrowed as thoughts of the biker's brutish hands all over Irina and her blood began to boil. Slowly, she steadily began to increase her speed, passing one of the riders close to her. "I won't let him have you."

"Anberlin . . ."

Anberlin continued to speed up, now completely focused because she had a goal to protect Irina, and passed a couple more racers on her fiery yellow Phoenix. The crowd of onlookers lining the street watched in amazement as she slowly began to gain upon the top four racers; Duran was still in the lead. Perhaps there was hope for her yet.

Claude, now hot on Duran's tail, glanced behind him to see the others that trailed closely behind. They weren't his true concern, but his expression turned grim once he settled upon Anberlin. She was gaining fast and it would only be a matter of time before she came up to him. I won't let her have the chance. I'm the grim reaper! Steadily, Claude eased up on his gas and began to withdraw from his competition with Duran.

From her side view mirror, Zephyr stole a glance back at Claude and narrowed her eyes as she watched his retreat. What is he doing? She continued to observe and gasped as dangerous-looking scythes protruded from hidden compartments on the sides of his bike. No! Her eyes landed upon Anberlin's reflection in the mirror. Jami!

The other racers seemed to be a little suspicious when Claude began to fall back to be in line with them, but thought nothing much of it. They believed that he was simply giving up, as no one had been able to defeat Zephyr in a race, but it soon became apparent the true reason why he was falling behind and they didn't see his scythe blades until it was too late.

One blade whipped out to the left, catching on the rider's front tire and popping it instantly. The rider immediately lost control and bucked off his bike as it plummeted into the asphalt, skidding across the road. The rider in question skipped along like a stone upon a lake, every bone in his body crunching each time he would hit the ground. He eventually stopped at the feet of onlookers, his neck snapped from the impact, as his bike smashed into street and promptly combusted in a shower of flames and shrapnel.

Anberlin winced and hugged herself close to her bike as a piece of metal flew over her head. "Crap!"

The blade on the right made a mad slash for the other biker's front tire, but the female rider tried to deter death at the last moment by speeding up. The scythe missed its mark and instead bounced off the side of the bike in a flurry of sparks, coming close to the rider's foot and missing it by a fraction of an inch.

Claude cursed vilely, burning a hole through the fleeing biker with his eyes. That one may have gotten away, but at least he took out one rider form the competition. His venomous purple eyes flicked to his side view mirror and smirked as more bikers approached. The next one who came within fighting distance wouldn't be so lucky.

The next biker, a young man sporting fantastic designs of orange and white, dared to approach him on his slick motorcycle. Claude and the young man both exchanged a glance before pressing buttons on their dashboards that would give them the advantage. Claude's scythes whipped out once more and a set of saws spun near the young man's heels. Both parties inched their bikes closer together and waged battle as they sped down the curving expanse of road, each one trying to outdo the other. Claude popped a wheelie as the saw came close to slicing his front tire and at the same time one of his scythes sliced the calf of the orange-and-white rider, the blade getting lodged deeply in the muscle. The young man screamed and attempted to rip the scythe free of his leg, but that only made the problem worse. He lost control of his bike and went down, flinging from his seat at breakneck speed to skim across the road, ripping the mechanism of the scythe free of its compartment on Claude's bike. No sooner had the young man collapsed to the ground did his bike take a grinding on the asphalt and rip a hole in its gas tank. A moment later, it combusted in an explosion of heat and fire.

Claude snickered to himself as he sped away from the wreckage, watching the others approaching the blazing inferno of flames. "That ought to hold them. And I'll have the money and that brat's girl in no time."

Anberlin growled as the wall of flames appeared in her path, her gaze piercing through the inferno to stare ahead at Claude. "What kind of race is this? Is that even legal?"

"It's an underground street race," Irina said. "Which means the only rule is that there are no rules. Murder is a common occurrence."

The young girl swallowed hard. No wonder Duran wanted them to stick close, it would have spared her from falling at the hands of Claude. Her eye narrowed. Or was it so that Duran could kill Anberlin herself?

Anberlin pressed down further on her gas pedal and kept her gaze clear on the wall of fire ripping across the oil-spilled ground in front of her. She could already feel the heat through her suit the closer the got.

"Wait! What're you doing?" Irina cried loudly. "There's no way you can get through that safely."

"Stop doubting me," Anberlin replied.

"I'm not doubting you, I'm being your common sense! There is no way you'll get through that unscathed and you're putting your bike at risk of catching fire too!" Irina began to plead. "Anberlin, please, don't do this!"

Anberlin ignored her cries and pressed the gas harder, the glow of the fire bouncing off her helmet. "Shut up and let me drive."

She began timing herself, counting down from ten and keeping her eyes on the dancing tongues of flame. If she could make it through a break in the blaze then she would be fine and with the speed she was going injury would not be an issue. She would be going so fast that the fire wouldn't even have a chance to catch on her. The seconds ticked by slowly, agonizingly so, until the last one fell away and that's when Anberlin pushed the bike as far as it would go and rocketed through the fire, as if it wasn't even there, just as it flared up again.

The crowd cheered for her daring dash as Irina sighed in relief.

"That was close," the pink-haired girl said. "You're going to give me a heart attack before this is done."

The other Otome smiled, finding humor in the prediction as she slowed the bike to a reasonable speed. "I'll hold you to that, though I doubt I will."

"As long as you don't pull another stunt like that anytime soon you should be fine."

"Alright," Anberlin nodded. "Thanks."

Irina nodded right back. "No problem. Hey, Anberlin, I looked up that racer you told me. Duran Zephyr?"

Anberlin's attention immediately left the road to focus more on what Irina was going to say. "Yeah? What'd you find?"

"That she's a world-renowned racer who has won her fair share of races, though her specialty seems to be dangerous ones like these," Irina reported as she read the file on her computer screen. "She's young and began racing at the age of fifteen. However, I wouldn't recommend getting too close to her."

"Hm? Why's that?" Anberlin veered the bike some to turn a corner.

"She has never been defeated and has the highest death record of any other racer, even Claude Night," Irina reported.

A shiver rippled through Anberlin's frame and she suddenly felt like a fool for trusting Duran like she did. She would not fall for that mistake twice. "Alright, thanks for letting me know." Anberlin ducked close to her dashboard as she entered into a low-ceilinged tunnel. "Does it say what kind of weapons she uses?"

Static filled her earpiece and she blinked.

She blinked and tried again. "Hello? Irina?"

There was no reply but the same static.

Anberlin growled and focused on the road ahead. "Crap."

From way ahead, Duran stole glances into her rearview mirror to track Anberlin's progress. She had worried when Claude had taken out the other two competitors, thinking that the teenage girl would meet the same fate, but regained confidence when Anberlin emerged from the wall of flames like some mighty demon.

Or a phoenix rising from its ashes, Duran thought with a touch of humor.

Her green-flecked eyes stared straight ahead at the roadway in front of her, making turns only when necessary and generally staying out of everyone else's way. This would be another easy win for her and then she could return back to her menial day job until another race beckoned her presence. Granted, she would be around fifty thousand dollars richer, but that made no difference. She already lived like royalty anyways.

A sudden flash of quicksilver purple and black came from her peripheral vision and her eyes narrowed. Claude had caught up quickly to her and that wasn't very good. She certainly was in no mood to deal with him.

"Haven't your blades drunk enough blood tonight?" Duran asked as Claude came within earshot of her voice.

Claude smirked and sped up so that he was right alongside her. "I could ask you the same thing, Zephyr. However, my blades will never be sated as they still have yet to sample your blood. And not to mention that quirky brat's as well."

Duran frowned tightly and adjusted her grip on the handlebars. "Leave her out of this. She is only a child."

"That didn't seem to matter before," the Grim Reaper replied casually. "How many children have you taken with your hands? She is just one more."

For a moment, Duran fell silent, thinking over what he had said before shaking her head. "No, I refuse to kill another selfishly anymore. She doesn't deserve to die just because we're fighting for the same thing."

Deep, throaty laughter came from Claude's mouth and Duran had to suppress a shudder. "How noble of you, but you'll never hold up to it. You're just as heartless as me and you'll never stop until you have all that you want." They made eye contact and nothing could hide the pure evil lurking in Claude's irises. "Embrace your inner evil, you'll find that the dark side is very entertaining."

Zephyr shook her head, tearing her gaze from the intimidating Reaper and back to her path, however curvy it was. "Thank you for the invitation, but no. I have a lady that likes me just where I am and I don't want to disappoint her." Without another wasted word, she put the pedal to the metal and raced away from his side.

Claude watched her go and suppressed the urge to give chase. His time to reap Duran's soul would come soon enough. "Spoken like a true romantic," he praised, "but you only prove my point. You raced off for your own safety and left that defenseless little lamb for me to slaughter." He smirked and glanced over his shoulder to see Anberlin approach. "You're no better than the evil you claim to condemn."

Once she emerged from the tunnel, the static buzzing in the earpiece ceased and Irina's energetic, if not panicked, voice came through.

"Anberlin!"

"Irina!" the other cried. "I am loving the sound of your voice right now." She was lucky she couldn't see Irina blush. "What happened? The communicator just cut out."

"Radio interference when you went into the tunnel," Irina explained. "It happens sometimes when a clear signal can't get through."

"I see. Well, you're back now and that's all that matters."

Irina smiled. "Thanks." She glanced back at the computer screen and frowned, noticing the small fluorescent dot with Claude's initials above it begin to fall back from Duran's tail. "Anberlin, Claude is slowing down. Stay as far away from him as possible. Don't let him get at your tires with his scythes."

Anberlin nodded and shifted her bike more to the outskirts of the street, close to the sidewalk. Her eye was kept on Claude the whole time, moving only when necessary just to stay out of his reach. However, Claude wasn't one to be shaken so easily. He kept trailing in close to Anberlin and would keep coming back every time she lost him, like a disease that always managed to flare up again. Anberlin growled when her fifth attempt to lose him failed.

"I can't shake him!" she cried, more to Irina than anyone else.

"Keep trying to outrace him," Irina instructed, her worry flaring up once more. "No matter what just keep away from him." She gasped as Claude's blip on the screen promptly caught up to Anberlin's. "Behind you!"

"Huh? Ah!" Anberlin barely veered out of the strike of a scythe in time to save her head. She fought to regain control of her bike and cursed, glaring at Night's smug expression.

"Can't take the heat, you bastard?" Night sneered as he pushed his bike closer to Anberlin's, squeezing her tighter against the edge of the road. "You're precious savior has left you for the wolves." Seemingly out of nowhere, appeared a barbed dagger and he raised it high above Anberlin's head, preparing to strike. "And I'm the one who will take the first bite!"

"Anberlin!" Irina screamed.

Suddenly, the Phoenix's ignition flared to life and roared tremendously, as if some monster had taken possession of it and given it a life of its own. Anberlin barley tightened her grip in time as the motorcycle shot forward at the speed of light, red-hot flames shooting out of the exhaustion.

Claude howled in fury and raced after her, keeping the barbed dagger close. "You won't get away!"

At this point, Anberlin was freaking out. She had no clue how her bike sped up so fast without her pushing the gas and still managed to remain as fast as it was. Every muscle in her body tensed to keep her grounded to the speeding thing.

"I-Irina!" Anberlin screamed (or at least tried to). The wind rushed into her open mouth and threatened to tear her hanging jaw clean off.

The Phoenix began to decrease in speed (though it still remained fairly fast) and Anberlin was able to loosen up and get back to a more comfortable sitting position. Her muscles ached from flexing for so long, but ignored the pain.

"Irina, what happened?" she asked, certain that she was out of harm's way – for the time being. "Your bike just went crazy."

"That's because I made it," Irina replied, obsessively observing Anberlin's position on the computer screen. Claude was gaining and it wouldn't be too long until Anberlin had to outdistance him. "I specifically made the Phoenix to have a jump-drove feature. You can enable it by pressing a little yellow button on your dashboard."

Anberlin took a moment to locate said button and nodded when she found it. It could come in use later on. "Then how were you able to activate it if I have to push a button?"

"I have a remote control that can activate it." As if to prove a point, Irina fiddled with said remote. "That's how I was able to save you."

Anberlin nodded. "Thanks for that. I owe you, again."

Irina smiled. "You owe me nothing. Anyways, the jump-drive will increase your speed by 80 miles per hour maximum, but I wouldn't recommend using it for long periods of time," the pink-haired girl warned, "as it more or less guzzles through your gas."

"I see. Neat trick." As Anberlin rounded a corner, she kept her eyes peeled for Duran, but saw no one in front of her. Her eyes narrowed. That woman had left her on her own to deal with Claude all by herself! So much for "I'll protect you". "Where's Zephyr?" Anberlin asked. "I don't see her in front of me."

Irina glanced back up at her computer and honed in on the blip with Duran's initials. "Around the corner, literally." She looked further down the way and gasped. "Anberlin, you better hurry. She's on the last stretch of the course. You won't have much time to catch up."

"Roger-dodger," the one-eyed teen replied. She glanced down at her speedometer and the small gauge next to it with the letters E and F on it. She growled. "I'm running out of gas, too. I'll have to make this quick – agh!"

As Anberlin screamed, Irina lurched in her seat, her heart seizing in her chest. "Anberlin? Anberlin!" She found the computer screen and grimaced as Anberlin and Night's blips overlapped each other. "Claude!"

Claude smiled wickedly as he pulled the dagger out of Anberlin's shoulder. A spray of blood followed, staining the street and the sides of their bikes. "Got you, little lamb!"

Anberlin grunted and glared up at Claude and for a moment she saw Tomoe instead. Her mind backtracked to that fateful night when Tomoe attacked her and tried to kill her. The same thing . . . over and over. She veered away just before Claude could land another blow, this one aiming for the muscles of her upper arm.

Deep inside her heart, rage began to flare and she could feel the GEM begin to kick into gear. No . . . Not here. She took in deep breaths, focusing on the pain in her shoulder than on her resentment towards Claude. There would be time to kill him later, but right now the best revenge she could have was to beat him and save Irina. Anberlin glanced sideways to the maniacal Reaper, giving him a warning not to catch up to her again, and pressed down the yellow Jump-Drive button on her dashboard.

With a fascinated awe and a deep writhing hatred that she had escaped, Claude growled deeply. He was hoping to give Anberlin a quick death so that she wouldn't have to suffer, but if she wanted to be in pain then that was her fault. Nonetheless, he would collect her soul by race's end and that was a promise. Pushing the gas as far as it could go, Claude gave chase.

Anberlin kept the Jump-Drive in place for as long as it would go. Sure it was guzzling the rest of her gas, but that didn't matter. She heard tell that motorcycles could last on fumes at least for a few miles and that was all she needed.

The earpiece buzzed and she listened closely as Irina spoke, "Anberlin, are you okay? That stab looks bad."

Anberlin blinked. "How did you know I have . . . oh right the cameras. It's nothing, I'll be fine. I've had worse from when Tomoe stabbed." She inwardly winced as Irina gasped. It hadn't been her intention to disclose her fight with Tomoe; she would have a lot of explaining to do.

"Tomoe?" Irina cried. "How is that possible? She left the school!"

"She decided to take revenge on me for taking her place," Anberlin explained. "So she tried to kill me."

"Are you okay? I mean, are the wounds still fresh from where she stabbed you? Do you need to forfeit the race?"

"No way," the other replied instantly. "I'm finishing this to the end." She peered down the road and zeroed in on Duran's speeding bike. Her eye narrowed. "In first place at that."

Irina couldn't help but shake her head. "Anberlin, you don't have to prove anything. As long as you beat Claude you'll be okay." She glanced at the computer monitor that held small screens from every camera she put up and zoomed in on Anberlin's bleeding shoulder. Irina bit her lip. "I don't want you to push yourself."

"But I can get her," Anberlin whined. A red light began blinking on her dashboard and she saw that it was her gas tank, the small red arrow now almost at empty. She swore. "Irina, please believe in me. I can do this."

"I do believe in you, but I worry about your health and safety too."

"I'll be fine." Anberlin was getting rather annoyed with how Irina kept wanting her to pull out. She never wanted to quit, especially in a high-stakes competition like this.

She was approaching Duran now, they were less than ten feet apart. I have to get passed her somehow. A ramp caught her eye and she smiled. If she could get enough speed and enough air then she might be able to surpass her without being put in harm's way.

Now Anberlin had never jumped over a ramp at 120 miles per hour before but she was fairly confident that she could manage.

Veering off to the side, she got even with the ramp and pushed the Phoenix as far as it would go in terms of speed. It's wheels sailed up and the curve of the ramp and was ready to jump over the lip . . . when Anberlin lost feeling in her wounded arm and relinquished her control over the mighty Phoenix.

Anberlin's eyes widened as the front wheel began to swerve beneath her. Nonetheless, the motorcycle still remained on course and passed over the ramp . . . but it went straight down into the ground while at the same time catapulting Anberlin from the seat, like a slingshot.

She went tumbling end over end through the air, propelled by speed before gravity could take over. Her heart beat wildly in her chest and she could hear Irina scream her name in fright. Was this really the final straw, after all of her breaks, did her luck finally run out?

From nearby, Duran gasped in horror as she watched Anberlin's progress in her mirror. The girl was going to crash into earth soon and then Claude would truly get the soul he wanted and where would that leave Duran? The winner, of course, but she didn't want victory if it was at the expense of a child's blood – a child that she could have saved. A child she vowed to protect. I won't let her die.

Steering her bike so that it was beneath Anberlin, Duran relinquished one hand from the bike handles and reached upwards, hoping to grasp Anberlin's hand in time.

Anberlin, in the middle of a flip, stared down at Duran with surprise. She was helping her, but why? They were enemies on the track, right? Wasn't Duran supposed to kill her, like Claude? It made no sense, but Duran was indeed giving Anberlin the opportunity to live one more night and Anberlin would be a fool not to take it.

Her luck hadn't run out just yet.

Anberlin reached out her hand towards Duran, hoping to meet her halfway. Their fingertips brushed and for a split second, panic crossed both of their minds as well as the thought that they could do nothing to cheat Death again, but Fate was on their side as both of their hands clasped together and Duran pulled Anberlin from the air. With some swift reflex skills, Anberlin twisted her body so that she landed just behind Duran in her seat, lopping her arms around her waist tightly.

Duran released a sigh of relief as Anberlin held onto her tightly. That had been a close call and her conscience could rest at ease, for now.

"What were you thinking?" Duran snapped, intensely pissed off and scared. That had been a lucky break. "You're too inexperienced to be jumping at those kinds of speeds!"

The tone of Duran's voice was frightening and Anberlin was glad that she couldn't see her face. "Sorry, but how else was I going to beat you?" She buried her face in Duran's back and breathed in. She blinked. Why did Zephyr smell so familiar? Like mint, she thought.

Zephyr shook her head and sighed deeply. "You hardheaded little runt. Victory isn't that important. All you wanted to do was beat Claude and save your important person, right? Why did you have to put me into that equation?" She slowed her speed gradually as they approached the finish line.

Anberlin frowned and held her tighter, as if she would crush Duran's ribs. "Because you lied to me. You told me that you would protect me, but you just went on right ahead with the race. Were you hoping that Claude would kill me so that you wouldn't have to?"

They raced through the finish line in a hurry, Duran not stopping or slowing down until they were well beyond the painted white line. Bells and whistles rang out into the streets, congratulating the two winners on a victory well earned. Duran screeched the bike to a halt and put down the kickstand before removing her helmet and tossing her head back, pushing her flowing silver hair out of her eyes. Others in the crowd marveled at how stunningly beautiful she was and Anberlin couldn't help but marvel right along with them.

Duran placed the helmet in front of her and turned around so that she could look in Anberlin's eye. "No, I never planned on killing you," she said truthfully and honestly. "I am truly sorry for not protecting you from Claude, but I did protect you nonetheless." She reached under Anberlin's chin and unfastened her helmet, carefully sliding it off the girl's head. Once she was able to see Anberlin's face, she offered brief flicker of a smile. "I saved you from being turned into road kill."

At first Anberlin didn't know what to say. She was shell shocked from having another near-death experience and even more stunned that Duran had removed her helmet for her. This amazing woman owed her nothing and yet she was doing everything she could for her. She smiled back.

"Thanks," Anberlin replied.

Their attentions turned to coming announcement blaring along the avenue. "For the seventh year in a row, Duran Zephyr retains her title as reigning champion and for the first time in her career Jami Phoenix wins the Maxx 300!"

People ran up to them in admiration and cheer, giving them a wide berth when the judges and referees approached with medals and the cash prize. Anberlin blinked curiously as the gold medal was placed around her neck and she held it in her hands.

"Wait how did I win?" she asked, looking up at Zephyr.

"Anything is allowed on this race," Duran explained as she banished away rabid fans and tabloid photographers. "Which is why Claude boldly attacked the other racers the way he did. If one racer loses their bike and catches a ride on another, then both of them win the same placing." She smiled at Anberlin and the girl blushed. Her smile was dazzling. "Lucky for you that you managed to catch a ride with me."

Anberlin nodded. She was indeed very lucky. "No kidding."

A pushy onlooker bumped into Anberlin in order to get to Duran and pushed Anberlin's wounded shoulder. The wound flared to life with pain and Anberlin cried out, dropping to one knee and cradling her numb arm tenderly.

Duran gasped and dropped to Anberlin's level, grimacing at the wound. She reached out towards it. "Excuse me." She grasped the zipper of Anberlin's bike suit and pulled it down just enough so that it rested at the at the beginning of her cleavage. Anberlin tried to pull away, embarrassed that she was being exposed publically, but Duran held her firmly in place. "I'm not going to hurt you." With tender fingers, the gold-eyed woman peeled back the suit and hissed as bright red blood clashed against pale skin. "We need to get you some help."

Anberlin shook her head. "No, it's okay. It's not as bad as it looks." She didn't need to have a doctor examine her and expose the fact that she was a student at Garderobe. If that happened then word would get out and soon it would reach Natsuki and Anberlin didn't want to deal with her wrath. "I'll be fine."

Duran raised an eyebrow skeptically. "How can that be fine? Your arm is like a dead fish."

Anberlin shook her head. "No it's not." She twitched her fingers just to prove a point. "See?"

Still, Zephyr wasn't having any of it. "If you're fine then lift your arm up."

Suddenly Anberlin didn't feel so confident. Her arm hurt to high Heaven and she really needed to get out of here and to Yohko before too long. Still, if she had to put on a brave face in order to make that happen then so be it. Biting her lip and concentrating, Anberlin slowly began to raise her arm up until it was at a 90-degree angle with her body. She panted hard from holding in her screams and looked up at Duran. "Told you."

Even though she had completed the challenge, Zephyr still remained skeptical. She knew better than to dawdle while Anberlin had a serious injury, but it wasn't her position to mommy her. Anberlin could certainly handle herself if she finished the race in, relatively, one piece.

"Alright," Duran said with a gentle sigh. "If you insist."

The sound of hurried feet approached and Anberlin barely had time to steel herself as Irina launched herself at her, wrapping her arms tightly around her neck.

Irina buried her face in the crook of Anberlin's neck and held her close, her heart hammering. "You had me so worried. I thought you were going to die."

Anberlin blinked and looked around at everyone surrounding them. Her face turned a deep red, but she ignored all of the questioning stares and focused solely on Irina as she hugged her back with her good arm.

"I'm sorry," Anberlin replied gently, feeling the way Irina trembled and quivered. She truly had been scared for her. "But I'm okay now. I'm alive."

Irina sniffled and nodded, wiping at the tears beneath her glasses. She looked Anberlin up and down, wincing at the gash in her arm, and smiled softly. "I know," she said. She turned to Duran and bowed. "Thank you for saving her. We're in your debt."

Duran nodded, offering a small smile to Irina as well. So this was Anberlin's "special person"? They look cute together. "No need," she replied. "I made a promise to protect her and that's all that I was doing." She smirked and decided it would be fun to embarrass Anberlin further. "Keep a better eye on her. She's a pain in the arse when she wants to be."

"Hey!" Anberlin roared, frowning.

Irina only smiled and nodded, hugging Anberlin tightly to her and cuddling into the crook of her neck. She could feel Anberlin grow rigid, but that didn't matter. Irina knew that Anberlin wouldn't do anything to push her away in public and she abused that knowledge and snuggled further against her. "Don't worry. I will."

By now Anberlin was chili pepper red and floundered around for something to say that would get Irina off her. However, the more Irina continued to cuddle her the more her mind remained like a blank, lifeless slate. She couldn't breathe, couldn't think, and couldn't move. She was completely at the mercy of Irina's affections.

Duran nodded again. "Good." She shuffled the wads of money in her hands and thought for a second before dealing out evenly. She held two stacks of bills in both hands and offered one to stack to the two girls. "Here. Workman's compensation."

Anberlin released her hold on Irina to take the money in hand and stared at it in wonder. She had never made a buck before and now she was standing with a good chunk of cash in hand, feeling like she owned the world. She felt excited. "How much is this?" she asked.

"Twenty-five grand," Zephyr replied, as if the amount was nothing more than pocket change to her. She smiled as Anberlin and Irina exchanged glances. "For that school of yours."

The two girls sifted through the edges of the money and for a moment they felt as if the world had stopped. This was really happening: they really dared to take on a deadly, competitive bike race, Anberlin really nearly got killed, she had really won shared first place, and was now holding the prize money. It was surreal.

Anberlin smiled as she looked at Irina and mentally counted out half of her twenty-five grand and placed it in Irina's hands. "For my manager's hard work." She winked.

The pink-haired girl stared at the money in her hands for a second. "I can fix the Phoenix with this." She looked back up at Anberlin before breaking out in a large smile and hugging her tightly. "Thank you. So much."

Anberlin nodded and hugged her back with her good arm, the other hanging limply by her side, but she took no notice of it. She had become numb to the pain. "You're welcome."

Someone else suddenly began picking his way through the crowd, pushing over people and shoving them to the side until the gathered crowd parted like the sea for him to pass. Duran and Anberlin became tense as they laid eyes on Claude Night as he stood only a couple feet in front of them, his eyes narrowed dangerously.

He pointed an accusing finger at Anberlin. "You cheat."

Anberlin growled and moved a step in front of Irina. "Looks like the pot's calling the kettle black."

Claude ignored the jibe. "You didn't beat me on your own. That was the deal. Since you had outside help, you lose." His gaze drifted towards Irina and he smiled wickedly. "And your girl has to come with me."

Rage. That was all Anberlin could think about as it coiled inside her chest, burning her heart and maddening her mind. The GEM was taking hold again and she could feel its effects as he body began to change. Oh how she wanted to kill him.

"Never," Anberlin hissed. "You never said anything like that. All you said was that I had to race you, but not once did you say it had to be on my own. And how dare you say that when you're the one who kept trying to stab me? Follow your own rules before you make me bend to them."

Irina clutched onto her from the back. If it was any normal say then she would have simply materialized her Robe and beaten the guy into a pulp, but as she had no authorization to do so, she was powerless. "Anberlin, don't," she murmured in her ear. She hoped that no one heard her use Anberlin's real name. "Don't start another fight."

Claude's sneering smirk remained as he stepped closer, causing Anberlin even more distress as she struggled to keep her emotions in check. "Prove that I didn't."

"That's enough," Duran snapped and the man focused his attention on her instead. She didn't even seem the least bit afraid. "Leave them alone or you will have to deal with me."

Anberlin and Irina glanced up at Duran, surprised. Why was she defending them again?

Claude sized Duran up, rising about a couple inches taller than her. They engaged in a staring contest that seemed to make the tension more and more palpable. The crowd held its breath as they waited for something to happen.

Claude raised an eyebrow, daring Duran to make a move. "And what're you going to do if I don't?" He reached out and grasped her chin between his thumb and the knuckle of his forefinger, tilting her chin up as if he would steal a kiss. Duran growled. "Will you be willing to take her place instead?"

In one swift movement, Duran had slammed her knee hard into Claude's unexpecting crotch. The burly man gasped and tore away from Duran, as if he had been burned, and clasped his middle, falling to his knees. Duran capitalized on the attack by pulling out a handgun and pressing it to the back of his head. A sudden uproar occurred amongst the people, but Duran silenced them with a glare.

"I would be more than happy to pull this trigger," she said, leaning in low so that she go in Claude's ear. "It would spare a lot of innocent girls, but . . . you're not even worth wasting a bullet on. Do not go after those girls again and if I find out that you have in any way, shape, or form . . ." She squeezed the trigger and Claude whimpered, but blinked as a click met his ears and no bullet buried itself in his brain. "I won't hesitate to use bullets next time."

Duran shoved him away with her boot and placed the gun in the waistband of her lower back. She turned back to Anberlin and Irina and escorted them off the course and away from the crowd.

---

Once they were back amongst the tents, Anberlin spoke, "Thanks for helping us. Though I could have taken him myself."

"I know you could have," Duran said as she walked beside them. She was kept on high alert in case anyone else decided to try something. "However, while you still remain on this track, you're still under my protection." She glanced at Anberlin's arm. "And in any case, you're in no position to fight."

Anberlin rolled her eyes. "Yeah, yeah."

They arrived at Irina and Anberlin's tent and the trio stood outside it, face to face.

"I would offer you some refreshments at my tent," Duran said, "but it's getting late and you two had better hurry home."

"Actually, we still have a date to finish," Irina said, taking hold of Anberlin's arm gently.

Duran blinked. "A date?" She looked at Anberlin incredulously. "This is your idea of a first date?"

Anberlin stammered and shook her head. "This wasn't my idea! It just sort of . . . happened." She blinked. "Wait a minute, how do you know this is a first date?"

Duran stammered for a second before composing herself. "Uh, well, I just know these things by body tells, you know."

Anberlin tilted her head to the side. From her time with Shizuru, she had gotten pretty good at identifying body language. Duran definitely was hiding something, but Anberlin dared not ask because doing so would make her seem pushy. Instead she let it slide and shrugged. "Okay, whatever. Lucky guess."

Inwardly Duran gave a sigh of relief. That had been a close call. "Well in any case, have fun with the rest of your night." She suddenly grew serious, but it was a mock seriousness. "Remember, no tongue on the first date. That's very un-lady-like."

Both Irina and Anberlin stuttered at this. The thought hadn't even crossed their minds and the mere mention of it set both their cheeks ablaze.

"W-We weren't going to do that!" Irina yelped, feeling a little more embarrassed than Anberlin. She had, after all, thought about it at one point or another.

"We don't know each other that well," Anberlin defended. "And besides, what kind of date would I be if I let something as indecent as that happen?"

Irina inwardly winced and felt her spirits fall. Anberlin really thought kissing was indecent? If that was so, then Irina was indecent for thinking about kissing her.

"Hey, good answer," Duran praised. "Very gentleman-like, if you'll pardon the expression." She looked at Irina. "You definitely have a keeper. A reckless, hardheaded keeper, but still a keeper. Just take it slow and you'll both be fine."

The one-eyed girl nodded. "Thanks for the advice, but we'd better be going now."

Irina stammered. "Uh . . . about that . . . how are we going to get back? The bike is totaled and it'll take some time to drag it back to the school."

Anberlin smiled sheepishly and rubbed the back of her head. "Oh right . . . sorry. I take full responsibility for the damage."

"I can let you borrow one of mine," Duran offered and the girls blinked at her again. She raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"You saved me from being road kill," Anberlin began to list, "you shared some of the prize money with us, defended us from Claude and now you're giving us one of your bikes? Why are you so cool?"

A touch of pride found its way into Duran's heart and she smiled. "I told you: as long as you're here, I'll take care of you. And besides, this one is a backup and is smaller than the one I race with." She turned to leave. "Wait here." With a graceful turn, Duran walked further into the camp of tents, her silver hair waving gently behind her.

Anberlin and Irina exchanged a look.

"How did you meet her again?" Irina asked, wanting to know very badly how Anberlin had come to befriend such an incredible person.

"I literally bumped into her outside the tent," Anberlin replied. "We started talking and then boom, friends."

"Hm, is that so?" Irina said. "She seems familiar somehow, but I don't think I've met her before."

"I know right!" Anberlin agreed. "But I've never seen her before in my life." She stared down the way where Duran had disappeared. "You'd never think she was a killer to . . . she's actually pretty cool."

Irina nodded in agreement.

The sudden screech of tires at their feet brought both girls to nearly jump out of their skin and yelp in surprise. Duran smiled and laughed as she tugged off her helmet and tucked it beneath her arm.

"Glad to know you have that opinion about me," she said as she stepped off the bike. It was indeed smaller than the one she had used in the race and was painted a nice silver color rather than the icy blue of the other one and had a wolf spray-painted on the tail end. Despite its small stature, two people could definitely fit on it. Duran presented it to the girls. "Here you go."

Irina was all over it in a heartbeat, examining it from all angles and admiring the craftsmanship. She would make a statement about hoe perfectly streamline and proportionate it was before making another comment about its design.

Anberlin shrugged at Duran. "She has a thing for machines."

"I gathered." Zephyr turned back to Anberlin and looked at her arm. "Maybe you should let someone else take you home. You don't look like you're in any condition to drive."

Anberlin glanced down at her arm and shook her head. "I'm okay. Look." She raised her arm again and even though it hurt a little bit, the movement was still good and intact. The nanomachines seemed to have some effect on her wounds and that was good. "I can drive."

Duran nodded, though for some reason she didn't seem too surprised at Anberlin's fast recovery. "Alright. Good girl." She held the key out in front of her. "Here you go." She ripped it away just as Anberlin was about to grasp it. "You break it, you buy it."

"I got it," Anberlin complained as she successfully snatched the keys from Duran's hand. She held it close by. "I'll be careful, don't worry. Now, do you know where we can get a chain? I want to at least drag the Phoenix back –"

"Already taken care of," Duran said in her smooth, deep voice. "I had my assistant make sure it was towed back to the school for you."

Once more Anberlin gaped. "Why did you do that?"

"Consider it my gift to you for surviving Claude," Duran replied kindly. "It's not an easy task. Though you better hurry back to the school, or else you might get into trouble."

Anberlin snapped out of her dumbstruck stupor and nodded again. "Y-Yeah. You're right." She stretched out a hand. "It was nice meeting you and a pleasure to race against you, Duran Zephyr. Let's do it again sometime."

Duran nodded and gripped Anberlin's hand, shaking it. "Likewise, Jami Phoenix. Though next time let's a pick a race that will be easier on both of us. Though you might want to practice a little bit more on your control."

Anberlin smiled and nodded. "Right." She released her hand and walked over to the bike. Irina (once she had fallen from her mechanics high) had already packed up their things and set them on the bike. Anberlin and Irina mounted it and Anberlin gave a last wave goodbye before taking off through the crowd.

Duran gave a small wave back and let out a sigh of relief once they were gone. Of all the trouble she had to go through tonight, she really didn't count on meeting them here. "I seriously wonder what she's thinking sometimes," Duran said as she began walking back to her tent. It wasn't too far of a walk and when she entered the two flaps she made a point to stick them together so that no prying eyes could follow her.

Within the tent, a warm smile and a pair of equally warm crimson eyes greeted her. "She took the bike then?"

"Yeah." The racing champion walked over to a chair and picked up a hand mirror. She carefully removed the gold colored contacts in her eyes, revealing a deep shade of emerald, and then pulled off the itchy silver wig she had been wearing, releasing a cascade of blue-black strands. "Though if she dares put one scratch on that bike I'm going to make sure she's on clean up duty for the next six weeks!" Natsuki vowed.

Shizuru smiled, amused at how much Natsuki cared for a bike. "It's not like it would cost much to repair it," she said, "considering how much you've won from all of these races. In fact, you can even replace it with a whole new bike if you wanted to."

Natsuki sat down in the chair, scratching at an itchy spot on her head left by the wig. "True, but that would be a waste of money. Not to mention most of the funds I make go to the school anyways." She pulled out the winnings and handed it to Shizuru. "Here, add this to our budget."

Shizuru counted it and blinked. "This is only twenty-five. I thought the grand prize was fifty."

"It was, but I gave half of it to Anberlin," Natsuki said. "After all, she came in first place too."

"You're trusting a fourteen year old with twenty-five thousand dollars?" Shizuru sounded skeptical and she had every right to be. She liked Anberlin, but she had to admit that she could be irresponsible.

"I wasn't fine with it at first, but she'll be fine. She and Irina are heading back to the school now so they should be okay, given that they don't get into any more trouble."

Natsuki reached into a cooler beside her chair and pulled out a soda for herself and handed a water to Shizuru. The blunette pulled the tab on the soda and sighed. "One of these days I'm going to get myself killed over that girl." She took a long drink, feeling the carbonation burn the back of her throat.

Shizuru swirled the water around in the bottle, thinking. "That may be, but you're awfully good at saving her in the nick of time. She could have died tonight, Natsuki."

Natsuki set the soda down and nodded. "I know and it was only by the grace of the Predecessor that she didn't. I'll have to keep a closer eye on her, but I know for sure that I won't let her fall into harm's way." Natsuki blinked as Shizuru walked over to her and leaned down, kissing her cheek then her tender, pink lips. Natsuki blushed and Shizuru smiled.

"You really would make a good parent," Shizuru said quietly.

---

The ride back to Garderobe was uneventful which was a good thing. After all of the adventures they had, all they really wanted was to spend the duration of their evening quietly. Anberlin pulled up the walkway and slipped the bike into a set of bushes just outside the school. She made sure to keep it well hidden in case someone decided to be funny and steal it. From there, the two girls crept outside the grounds and found a weak point in the fence from which they could climb through.

Anberlin slinked through the fence easily, taking a look around the grounds to see if anyone was about. Though they had permission to be off campus, she didn't want to take any chances. Seeing no one, Anberlin reached out a hand and helped Irina through the fence.

Irina smiled up at her, though her real attention was focused on the feel of their hands clasped together. "Thanks."

Anberlin nodded. "No problem."

She released their hands and looked around the main courtyard of the school. It was very quiet, but in a peaceful sort of way and that was comforting. It was a lot better than the eerie silence that occurred right before something unfortunate would happen. The fluorescent lighting cast a bluish tint over the many trees and flowers embedded along the stone walkways, almost the color of moonlight. The silver stars twinkled above their heads in a winking manner, like guardians assuring their presence. Anberlin closed her eyes and took a deep breath. For the first time in a while she actually felt . . . safe.

She gasped gently as Irina took hold of her hand once again and looked into her eye.

"Walk with me?" the pink-haired girl asked.

Anberlin nodded and Irina continued to smile, drawing ever closer to Anberlin as they strode up the walkway that led through the courtyard. Their pace was slow and deliberate, not rushed because there was nothing to rush to. They needed time to relax after all of the excitement.

"I had a good time tonight," Irina said, hoping to start conversation. She didn't like it too much when Anberlin was quiet. It made her wonder if Anberlin had nothing on her mind to say, or had a lot more on her mind than she'd like to say.

"Yeah," Anberlin replied. "Me too . . . well, except for the getting stabbed and nearly dying part. I could have done without that."

Irina couldn't have agreed more. "Me too. It really scared me . . ." She tightened her grip on Anberlin's hand and edged in closer until their sides pressed against each other. "I thought you were really going to die."

Anberlin didn't seem to mind too much how close Irina had gotten to her; her mind was elsewhere. She certainly loved to entice Death, but one day she would certainly fall to the Grim Reaper's blade. "Me too."

They stopped where the grounds met the stairway that led to Yohko's lab and the two girls stepped away from one another so that they could see into each other's eyes. Irina tilted her head to the side and frowned.

"You still don't look like yourself." She reached out and pulled the wig from Anberlin's head, smiling as her hair fell around her face. Irina gently fixed Anberlin's bangs and nodded. "Much better."

Anberlin smiled back sheepishly, running her fingers through her hair so that it was just how she liked it. "Thanks. That thing was getting itchy."

Irina nodded. "No problem." She fell into a silence and shuffled her feet as she fingered the inside of the wig nervously. She remembered what Duran had told them about no tongue on the first date and Anberlin's reaction to it. Was she truly that opposed to it? Sure a first date seemed a little soon for that, but every fiber in Irina's body screamed for Anberlin's lips. She tried her best to ignore said urges, but it would only be a matter of time before her desires took over. She swallowed.

"Hm? What's wrong?" Anberlin raised an eyebrow and tilted her head slightly. "You don't look so good." She touched Irina's forehead and blinked as the pink-haired girl's face reddened. "You're really hot."

The blush only deepened as Irina took the statement the wrong way. "U-Uh, I'm fine," she stammered, heart hammering. Why was it that whenever she stood so close to Anberlin, her mind would go numb? "It's just a little warm out here, you know?"

The one-eyed girl frowned and tilted her head back. A soft breeze played across her face and she inhaled the fresh air, feeling it ice her nose and chill her lungs. It certainly wasn't hot at all (considering it was still summer), but Anberlin thought it better not to argue.

"If you say so." Anberlin walked over to the stairs and sat down upon the first step, leaning forward and resting her elbows on her thighs while her hands clasped together in front of her. She chewed the inside of her cheek before murmuring, "I still owe you an explanation about Tomoe, don't I?"

Tomoe? Irina peered over the rim of her glasses at Anberlin before she got it. "Oh! You don't have to tell me if you don't want to," she said kindly. She strode forward and turned, sitting down beside Anberlin, but keeping a small gap between them for personal space. "I was just worried about you, that's all. Don't feel like you owe me anything."

"Are you sure?" Anberlin asked as she looked at her, but held her breath. The way Irina looked off down the way with that calm and relaxed expression was cute, to say the least. And the way the blue light from the streetlamps bounced off her creamy skin and those shimmering yellow-green eyes; Irina was almost glowing.

Anberlin blushed and turned away. Why was her heart beating so fast? And why was she feeling cold and hot at the same time? Perhaps some virus had wormed its way into her bloodstream via the wound and she was sick. Yes, she was sick. That had to be the reason.

Irina took in a small breath and let it out. Her desire for bodily contact was irking her and appeased it by scooting closer to Anberlin and taking her arm gently in her hands. When Anberlin didn't stiffen to the touch, Irina leaned in and laid her head upon her shoulder, mindful of the healed wound. She closed her eyes, focusing on the feel of Anberlin beneath her fingertips. "Are you still hurt?"

The other shook her head. "No."

"Then that's all that matters," Irina stated. "I could care less about how she gave them to you. All I need to know is that you're safe."

Irina's words pierced Anberlin's heart and she couldn't help but smile. She had people that cared about her safety, but it felt different coming from Irina. Maybe it was the way she said it, like a promise, or the sincerity in her voice. Whatever the reason, Anberlin liked it and she reached over to overlap one of Irina's hands with her own.

"Thank you," she said, "that means a lot."

Irina smiled wider, enjoying how soft Anberlin's hands felt, if not a little sweaty. She attributed it to nerves of being so close. "You're welcome."

It all seemed so perfect. To be sitting close to the one she liked on such a beautiful night after a nice dinner and an exhilarating bike race, it was easily one of the best dates Irina had been on. Granted, Anberlin could have relaxed a little more and not been so ready to jump into a death-defying competition, but she had defended Irina's honor and showed up Claude and that was all Irina could ask for.

And yet, despite it all, it just didn't seem to be enough.

There was a need, a deep yearning for more, but it was the finishing touch on a perfect day, like a cherry on top of a sundae. It was something that Irina had been thinking about for a long while and it would be a tragedy if she didn't at least make an effort to make it happen. However the only question was, how would she be able to do it?

She pondered long and hard for a few more minutes before Anberlin patted her hand and stood up, breaking the physical contact between them. Irina immediately missed the warmth as it left her side, but she relaxed when Anberlin offered her a hand up.

"Come on," Anberlin said. "I'll walk you to your dorm."

Irina took her outstretched hand and stood up, though she refused to let go once she was on her feet. She wanted to keep the contact for as long as possible. "You're so sweet."

Anberlin blushed but hastily shrugged it away, maintaining her cool demeanor. "No, just being a good date."

"Well you're a very good one," Irina said and they began walking off through the courtyard again towards the dormitories.

---

The halls inside the dorms were silent and each fall of their footsteps seemed as loud as an explosion. They were certainly afraid of waking someone up and then having to explain their late-night activities. Though they could simply give the excuse that they had come back from their date (all of Garderobe knew that Irina had asked Anberlin out so it really was no big secret that they needed to keep).

It seemed to take forever until they reached Irina's dorm room but once they did, Anberlin released her hand and stood off to the side.

"Well, here you are," she said. It was a fun night, but all she really wanted was to get to her bed and sleep and she intended on making that happen as soon as possible.

Irina nodded. "Thank you, for walking me. I appreciate it."

"Don't worry about it. I was just trying to be courteous." Anberlin swallowed, feeling butterflies flutter in her stomach and her palms begin to sweat even more. She definitely was sick! "I had fun tonight. We'll have to do it again sometime."

Irina beamed, happy that she had been given the green light for a second date. "Definitely. My schedule is a little backed up because of the upcoming Graduation Battle, but maybe we can have lunch together tomorrow?"

Anberlin nodded. "Yeah, that'd be great. And afterwards I can come by and clean your room or whatever it is that I'm supposed to do." She truly wasn't given the details on what being a room attendant meant, but she gathered it was just limited to doing Irina's chores.

"Alright, then it's a date," Irina said. "And don't worry, I'll try to make sure there's not too much you need to do." She lapsed into another brief silence and took in a deep breath. Along the trip here she had been gathering her courage to do what she wanted and now was the prime time. "Hey, Anberlin, I, uh . . . I have something to give you . . ."

"You do? For what?" Anberlin really wasn't expecting anything. She thought that she'd drop Irina off and then be on her way.

Irina shrugged bashfully. "I don't know, for surviving and winning the race." She peered over the rim of her glasses. "It's to show my thanks."

Anberlin blinked. She didn't think Irina would feel obligated to owe her anything, but she didn't want to hurt her feelings by refusing. "Oh, okay." Anberlin stretched out her hand. "What is it?"

"No. It's a surprise," Irina said. "You have to close your eyes and no peeking."

A moment of confusion and suspicion crossed the other girl's face. Anberlin would have liked to see what she was being given, but there was a certain mystery in anticipating Irina's gift, especially if peeking wasn't allowed, and she began warming up to the idea of a surprise more and more. She closed her eyes and waited.

Once Anberlin had closed her eyes, Irina waved a hand in front of her face to make sure that they were indeed closed. She didn't want anything to interrupt her surprise.

The nerves were starting again and along with it came the desire. Her body was heating up fast and manifested in the form a blush. Her palms began to sweat and legs began t tremble. She had Anberlin right where she wanted her and now was the perfect chance. She swallowed and inched forward, removing her glasses just before their lips softly touched.

Warm. That was her first thought of Anberlin's lips. They were a little dry, but that could be overlooked. Warm with a hint of their dinner. Irina could still taste the pizza, but she didn't care. She liked pizza and was more than ready to devour them.

Gentle was the word Anberlin used to describe Irina's kiss. It was as if a feather had touched her lips. Her heart beat wildly against her ribs and she trembled slightly, but the nerves had drifted away leaving nothing but soothing calmness. The feeling of being kissed and kissing back . . . it was as if everything had suddenly become right in the world, all of her problems had melted away and left nothing but peace. Things like fighting, Natsuki, Shizuru, Tomoe, the GEM, and the Black Hand all seemed like minor annoyances; that was how powerful Irina's kiss made her feel.

Her eye suddenly snapped open and she gasped, breaking off the kiss. Anberlin took a step back as she stared back at Irina's confused and hurt expression.

The Black Hand. Their forces were already making moves to eradicate her and if they found out about Irina, then it was a real possibility that they would use her against it and Anberlin couldn't handle it if Irina was hurt because of her.

"Irina . . ." Anberlin murmured. "I'm sorry, but . . ."

The pink-haired girl went into a panic. It was just as she feared: she had scared Anberlin and now was driving her away. Her heart shattered into little pieces and she crossed her hands over her chest, as if she could literally hold the pain in. She shook her head.

"No, I'm sorry," Irina muttered, her head downcast. She could no longer look Anberlin in the eye. "It was too soon." She didn't wait fro Anberlin to explain more as she made a dash for her room, opening the door and whispering a curt "Goodnight" before shutting and locking the door behind her.

Anberlin stood out in the hall shell-shocked and crushed. She had every intention of giving Irina an explanation on why, but now that she had a chance to think about it, the less Irina knew the better. In any case, if Anberlin had disclosed her situation then it might drive Irina away and that would have been bad.

Sticking her hands in her pockets, Anberlin made the trip back to her room. Her pace was slow and deliberate, feeling no haste in getting back despite how tired she felt.

When she finally arrived at the room, she opened the door as quietly as possible and peered around. Miyah was sound asleep and the room was completely dark, which made sneaking in a whole lot easier.

Anberlin closed the door behind her and made a quick detour into the bathroom, making a point to close that door as well. She stood in front of the sink and removed her riding suit before tossing it on the ground. The part over the shoulder was torn, but she would fix it later. From there she grasped a washcloth and wet it before wiping off the dried blood around her shoulder and upper arm. Not once did she look herself in the mirror.

Once she was clean and the blood was washed away, Anberlin exited the bathroom; stood next to her bed and grasped the loaner pajamas Natsuki had given her some time ago. After that, she turned down the covers of her bed and nestled into it, turning towards the wall and staring at it, thinking.

It had started out as a great night and everything turned out fine, but in the end Anberlin just had to be the one to pull away and scare Irina half to death. It had hurt to see the pain upon her face and Anberlin was certain that there wasn't much she could do to save whatever relationship they were building. If worse came to worse then they would have to go to lengths to avoid one another completely and that would mean being discharged from her room service. Anberlin knew she was being paranoid and thinking awful things on purpose, but the fact that they were possible frightened her and she ended up crying herself to sleep that night.

---

Morning brought little relief and Anberlin wasn't in a good mood. Her body ached from the race and her heart was still torn over what had happened that night. Her movements were slow and sluggish; a far cry from her normal attitude, and Miyah took notice as she finished dressing.

"Are you alright?" Miyah asked, her brow furrowed in worry. "You don't look too good."

Anberlin sighed softly to herself and lowered her hands from the buttons on her nightshirt. "Actually, I'm not feeling so well today." She sat down on the edge of her bed and laid down. "Can you tell Ms. Yukariko that I'm calling in sick today?"

Miyah nodded. "Okay, get some rest. And you might want to see Professor Yohko just in case." She headed for the door. "I hope you get better." She closed the door and left Anberlin alone.

Anberlin rolled onto her side and pulled the covers over her head.

It would be a few more hours until she decided to get up. It was quite tiresome in a room all by oneself and with Anberlin's raging emotions keeping her company, it made for a very dreary time. Her thoughts did nothing to improve themselves and she decided to go and seek advice lest she keep everything inside and explode. Pulling on her jeans and a tee shirt, she tied up her shoes and stepped outside the door.

---

She wasn't the only one who had recently awoken from a sleep as Natsuki yawned slightly and rolled her shoulders to work out the stiffness. She rubbed her eyes and Shizuru looked on fondly.

"I told you it was a bad idea to race last night," the tawny-haired woman chided gently. She placed a glass of caffeinated coffee on Natsuki's desk, thinking that it would do her a lot better than the usual tea.

Natsuki nodded her thanks and leaned back in her seat, taking in a deep breath. "Wasn't entirely my fault," she complained. She turned pink. "You're the one who wanted to 'celebrate' my win. How are you not tired?"

Shizuru gave a small shrug. "Natural energy, I guess. But it was good, wasn't it?"

Natsuki held her tongue. Last night had been more than good, but she would never openly admit it. She shrugged. "It was okay . . ." A small smirk played upon her lips as Shizuru pulled a face.

"Just . . . good?" Shizuru almost sounded disappointed. She always made it her personal goal to blow Natsuki's mind and when the blunette would make comments like that, it always crushed her spirits.

Natsuki nodded and sipped the coffee. "Yeah, pretty much." A chill rippled through her as a very familiar glint shone in Shizuru's blood red eyes and she made her way over to stand beside her.

Shizuru smiled as she leaned in close to Natsuki's ear and looped her arms around her neck. "Well then, I guess I'll just have to try harder." She snickered as Natsuki turned a deeper shade of red and kissed her ear.

Natsuki kept her moans to herself, though she couldn't ignore how Shizuru's fingertips stroked her upper chest and then drifted downwards slowly to stroke her cleavage. It was amazing how much Shizuru's libido controlled her actions, but at this point Natsuki wasn't complaining. "Shizuru . . ."

The phone suddenly rang and both women were forcibly shaken from their erotic stupors. Natsuki gentle pried Shizuru off of her, tossing the upset woman an apologetic look, and picked up the phone.

"Hello?" Natsuki listened for a second before groaning and rubbing her eyes. "Shizuru, look out the window for me."

Shizuru blinked, confused as to why Natsuki would request such a thing, but she did so.

"Is Anberlin walking around?" Natsuki asked, more than a little miffed.

Shizuru's eyes scanned the grounds quickly and fell upon Anberlin as she walked up the walkway towards Yohko's. She couldn't help but sigh and nod. "Yes."

"Thank you for informing me," Natsuki said into the receiver of the phone. "I'll deal with her promptly." When she hung up, she glanced up at Shizuru. "Can you get her please while I finish up this last bit of paperwork?" The blunette reached for her discarded pen.

Shizuru nodded. "Alright. I'll be back." She strode towards the door and looked over her shoulder just as she was about to leave. "I'm sure she has a good reason for ditching. Maybe she's going to have Yohko check out her wound from last night. It did look pretty bad."

Natsuki grunted. "That might be a logical explanation, but I don't want to buy it off the bat. Just bring her here." She glanced up and added a quick, "Thank you."

---

Anberlin stalked up the stairway towards Yohko's, blissfully unaware that Shizuru was on her way to retrieve her. Her mind was elsewhere and she heaved a heavy breath, wanting to have some of the stress alleviated. If someone had told her that love was such a complicated matter, then she wouldn't have ventured forward with it in the first place.

She stopped at one of the landings on the stairs and turned around to take in the scenery. It was a very beautiful day. The sky was clear without so much as a cloud and the recent thunderstorms had turned the grass and trees a healthy shade of green. The air smelled fresh and Anberlin had to take a breath of it.

The sound of approaching footsteps shook Anberlin's eyes open and she snapped her head towards the sound. She bit her lip as Shizuru finished the walk towards her.

"Uh . . ." Anberlin rubbed the back of her head. "I wasn't feeling too good and I came out for some fresh air and . . ." Her voice dropped as Shizuru simply stood there and stared, an expressionless look in her wine-colored eyes. She wasn't buying any of it. Anberlin cursed and stuck her hands in her pockets and began walking towards Natsuki's office.

---

At the sound of the door opening, Natsuki looked up from the paperwork on her desk and raised a nonchalant eyebrow. "Anberlin, nice of you to drop by."

Anberlin and Shizuru entered into the room together but dispersed the more they approached Natsuki. Anberlin stopped in front of the desk while Shizuru stood beside the headmistress.

Anberlin pursed her lips and looked off to the side. "Uh . . . you see I wasn't feeling so good and I went out for some fresh air –"

"Save it," Natsuki snapped and Anberlin instantly shut up, which surprised the blunette. She always expected some form of argument and the fact that Anberlin had surrendered so quickly was cause for concern. She won the race; she should be on cloud nine right now. What happened after that? Natsuki leaned back into her seat. "Why aren't you in class?"

Anberlin kept her eyes averted. She really didn't feel like dealing with Natsuki. "I'm not in the mood."

"Whether you're in the mood or not makes no difference," Natsuki said. "Anberlin if you keep cutting class like this then I'll have no choice but to expel you, no matter how dangerous that might be." She looked at her pointedly, green eyes shining. "Do you understand?"

Anberlin nodded solemnly, not having the energy anymore. "Yes ma'am, though in all honesty, I'm not really feeling too well today."

Instantly, Shizuru's instincts picked up. "What's wrong? Are you hurt?" She thought it might be the stab to the shoulder Claude had given her last night and wanted to ask, but she didn't want to betray her and Natsuki's nightly activities.

Anberlin bit her lower lip. "Yeah, you can say that." She slumped into one of the chairs surrounding the coffee table and put her head in her hands, heaving a big sigh.

Natsuki and Shizuru exchanged a worried glance. They had never seen Anberlin so defeated before. What had happened last night?

"Remember when you asked if I was willing to accept the consequences of my actions?"

Shizuru nodded. "Yes."

Anberlin rubbed at her temples. "I don't want to anymore . . ."

"What exactly happened last night?" the crimson-eyed woman asked, deeply concerned.

"Well . . ." She relayed what happened when Irina kissed her and the feelings she experienced during it. "And now I think she thinks I don't like her . . . because she kissed me."

Natsuki frowned slightly, pityingly. "For an Otome, love can be very potent. You can be torn apart by the world and the chances that you will stay together are slim."

Anberlin nodded. "That's what Yohko said, but I guess you two are the exception." She glanced from one woman to the other. "You're made for each other."

Shizuru offered a small smile and touched Natsuki's shoulder, giving it a gentle squeeze. "I'd like to think so."

"But it's not that I love Irina, but I do like her . . . more than friends even and if that means I swing that way or am even confused I don't know. All I know for sure is that I want to keep her safe from the Black Hand and Tomoe . . . but I feel that the only way to do that is for her not to be with me . . ." Anberlin put her head in her hands once more. "I don't know what to do."

Shizuru thought briefly, motioning for Natsuki to sit back while she went to talk with the distressed girl. She stood in front of Anberlin and placed hand on her shoulder, prompting Anberlin to look up. Shizuru's expression was soft as always.

"I know that love is never easy for anyone," the tawny woman said in a smooth flowing voice that made Anberlin feel a sense of calm. "However, if you truly care for someone then don't deny them. Being an Otome, I've had my fair share of enemies and I was terrified that they might come after Natsuki just to hurt me. However, I didn't push her away just to protect her – I loved her with all my heart and vowed to always be there for her and protect her no matter what and I still do. The risk might be high, but in the end it's worth it."

Natsuki had a misty look in her eyes. "Shizuru . . ."

Anberlin bit her lip. "But –" She paused when a finger pressed to her lips, quieting her.

"There are no buts," Shizuru replied. "Just answer me truthfully: do you like Irina?"

Anberlin nodded. "Yes."

"Do you want to protect her?"

"Yes."

Shizuru, satisfied, nodded and crossed her hands in front of her like she normally did. "Then make up with her and care for her as much as you can." Shizuru walked back to squeeze up to Natsuki's side and linked their hands, lacing their fingers together. "And someday you may end up with a bond as strong as ours."

Anberlin observed them silently. She did envy their strong love and had wondered what it would be like to have it for herself. She already found potential for that in Irina and if Anberlin truly wanted to experience love then she would have to work for it and make it blossom, like a rose.

"Alright, you're right." Anberlin lifted up her head and stood to her full height, offering a cleansing. "Thanks for the advice. I honestly don't know what I'd do without you guys."

"Thank you," Shizuru replied.

Natsuki simply nodded. "Now get back to class."

The teen grumbled but shrugged it off and nodded. "Alright. I'll come back later." She began stepping towards the door to leave.

Natsuki's voice stopped her. "And you don't have to worry about paying me back the money I gave you," she said nonchalantly, a Cheshire smile spreading her pink lips. "I'll take it out of your winnings."

A cold chill swept down Anberlin's neck and she blanched. "Oh my God . . . How did you know how about that?" Natsuki knew about the race? Her life was officially over – literally.

Natsuki raised an eyebrow as Shizuru snickered. "Well it was me who you were racing against. And by the way, you're welcome."

Anberlin's jaw dropped ten inches. "Wait . . ." She approached the desk and peered straight into Natsuki's eyes. They were the same kind of green that speckled Duran's gold eyes and the smell that Natsuki gave off . . . Peppermint.

"It was you the whole time?" Anberlin hollered.

Natsuki's smile grew as Shizuru full-on laughed. Anberlin continued to freak out.

"I knew it! I knew there was something up when you knew it was my first date. How come you didn't say anything?" the girl questioned.

"Did you think you're the only one who wears a mask in public?" Natsuki asked pointedly. "I don't want people to know my life. However, I don't appreciate what you said about me at the starting line. I am going to hold you responsible for it."

Anberlin pursed her lips. " . . . Sorry . . ."

Natsuki softened. "However I'm going to disregard it just because you said I was cool." Her expression melted away just as quickly as it had appeared. "But thank you so much for tossing my spare bike in the bushes like it's not worth anything. That was really nice of you."

Anberlin winced. "I think I'm going to go to class now." In a rush she approached the doors and passed through the doors, but stuck her head back through it a second later. "Thanks for saving me. I owe you."

Natsuki nodded to her and watched as she left. "More than you know."

---

Lunchtime rolled around quickly and the students enjoyed it so much. They all gathered in their usual cliques and ate happily in the dining hall. Everyone was happy and in each other's company.

Everyone except Irina.

Her mind was conflicted over why Anberlin had reacted the way she did but knew exactly why: the kiss. It was a mistake and it was a universal rule not to kiss on the first date, but Irina just couldn't help herself. Anberlin's lips were just so inviting that she couldn't let them be a moment longer. Yet Irina was paying for her mistake.

She sighed softly and put her head down on the table. Anberlin probably hated her now and she wouldn't blame her. It was uncalled for, but the kiss . . . it was something to remember. The warm and tenderness of Anberlin's pizza lips was amazing – it was actually a kiss Irina would bother to remember. She just wished that it wasn't the last kiss she would have with Anberlin.

"Irina!"

The pink-haired girl lifted her head up off the table and froze at the sight of Anberlin. She was probably here to tell her off, she thought, and it terrified her. Irina got up from her seat and swallowed, hoping to delay the impending punishment as long as she could.

"Anberlin, before you say anything I – mmph!" Anberlin's lips cut off her apology and a rush of emotion swept through her like a wind.

What was Anberlin doing? Wasn't she going to tell her off? Well it didn't matter anymore as Irina closed her eyes and kissed her back.

Anberlin pulled away with a smile and blush. Many girls were murmuring around them, but she didn't care. "That's for last night. I'm so sorry." She got down on one knee and grasped Irina's hand in hers. Many of the girls gasped and while others blushed. Irina stiffened, yellow-green eyes wide.

"Alright then, the first thing you need to know is how to charm her. Let me demonstrate." Without warning, Natsuki was yanked out of her seat and pulled into Shizuru's arms. Shizuru then dipped her back, holding one of Natsuki's hands and her waist with the other. They almost looked like they were dancing.

"Irina Woods, I'm willing to protect you no matter what. Can I still be with you?"

Irina kept her eyes focused on Anberlin, not letting anyone influence her choice. "You moron." Without warning she tackled Anberlin in a tight embrace, pinning her flat on to the floor. She came to sit in Anberlin's lap and removed her glasses, looping her arms around the one-eyed girl's neck. "Do you even have to ask?"

Anberlin smiled back and held Irina tightly, one arm coiling around her waist while the other held her back, her hand pressing against Irina's spine. Their bodies squished together even as both girls shared in another kiss.

---

Finally! The thing is done! Over 20,000 words! I'm going to take a break after this.

Next chapter will have a little more depressing tone to it so be prepared.

Chapter theme: Accidentally In Love by Counting Crows

Thank you for your time and reviews~

Peace!