Okay, so call me crazy, but I just couldn't get the idea of this story out of my head. Plus I love doing comfort stories with hugs and tickles. :) Am I crazy? Yeah, I'm pretty sure I am. XD

Balan Wonderworld belongs to Square Enix. I own nothing.

A/N: For those of you that don't know or haven't played the game yet, Yuri is the girl from the chapter "The Girl Who's Gaga For Bugs". :)

A Friend That Helps Your Wings Appear

Yuri sighed as she put her things away, looking at the bugs in their cages. All had been fed and were doing good. She looked at a caterpillar that was almost ready to go into a cocoon and become a butterfly. "I wish they could all see how neat you are," she said to herself.

Everyone always ran when she brought the bugs out and it saddened her. She now grabbed her bag and headed out, her head down and not seeing a tall stranger watching her intently from his hiding spot.

The girl left the school and heard whispering, looking up to see some of the kids looking at her and whispering to their friends, but she heard what they said.

"She likes bugs. That's so freaky," one kid said.

"She lets them crawl on her," said another.

"Eww. Bugs are disgusting," said a third.

Yuri turned to them. "They are not," she said. "They're really cool."

The kids looked at her disbelievingly. "No, they're not," said the second kid. "I don't know how you can stand them."

"I like them," the girl said softly.

"What a weirdo," said the first kid. "Come on, let's get out of here."

"Yeah, don't want to be around the creepy things," said the third kid.

Yuri managed to hold back her tears until she turned away, her tears spilling over before she looked up and began walking away, feeling very much alone.

"You like bugs, my dear?"

That new voice made her startle and she turned quickly, gasping as she saw a very tall person in what looked like a ringmaster's suit, complete with a top hat that seemed to cover half his face and become a mask as well as a hat. He wore a smile that stretched from ear to ear, which made the girl even more nervous and she backed away. "Um, I'm sorry, sir, but I must be going," she said politely before going to walk away.

"You shouldn't be ashamed that you do," the same voice said in front of her and she looked up with a gasp to find the stranger in front of her now and he was still smiling. She quickly looked over her shoulder at where he was before and then back at him, getting a bit scared now as she wondered how he moved that fast without seeing him move by her. His golden eyes seemed to glue her feet to the street, but she managed to move a step back.

"Um, please don't think I'm rude, but my family is expecting me, so I must be going," she said before turning and heading away from him. After a few steps, she turned and saw he was gone and she blinked, rubbing her eyes. "Where did he go?"

"Right here, my dear."

Hearing his voice right behind her, she jumped with a yell and began running, not knowing who he was, but getting a bit startled by his sudden appearances.

Yuri was a bit afraid to run home as she didn't want this stranger knowing where she lived, so she ran into the city, checking behind her to make sure he wasn't following, but as she ran, she spotted a few white tops hats here and there, making her even more frightened that the guy seemed to be following her.

She ducked behind a dumpster before seeing the old butterfly building up ahead. It had been closed years ago, but still have some stuff from the exhibits inside. Quickly, she moved towards it, finding the door to be opened and she went in, closing the door and setting her bag down before going over to the display cases. They were very dusty, but she gently blew away the dust to reveal the contents of the cases and she smiled at seeing the different models of bugs and she even saw a book that had been placed in a display case, but the viewers could reach in through special holes and turn the pages to read what the book said.

Suddenly, she felt someone behind her and hands rested on her shoulders, making her jump and gasp before she turned to see the same stranger she had been running from was behind her and his grip on her shoulders gently tightened before she could even think to squirm to escape. She looked up at him with fear, to which she saw his smile and eyes soften. "Easy, young one," he said, his voice soothing. "I have no intention of hurting you."

She shivered. "Who are you?" She asked. "And how did you find me here? No one knows that I come here."

He chuckled gently. "I am Balan, the maestro of Wonderworld," he said. "And if memory serves me right, your name is Yuri, correct?"

She was surprised. "How did you know that?" She asked.

"I've been visiting your school out of curiosity and have heard the teachers call your name," he said.

Yuri looked at him. "Out of curiosity?" She repeated.

Balan chuckled. "I find the human world to be as fascinating as Wonderworld and was curious about why children gathered in a building and went to certain rooms," he admitted. "Though my observations, I learned that it's a school you go to, and when I saw you in the room taking care of those bugs, I grew intrigued that you seemed quite fearless of them. Rather, you embrace them."

She was surprised and looked at him, noticing that he seemed interested, but then she looked away. She heard movement and turned her head a little to see he had kneeled down, his hands still on her shoulders before one hand gently tilted her chin up so that she was looking at him, seeing him smile at her. "What is your favorite bug?" He asked her.

She blinked in surprise. "Well, I like the caterpillar," she said. "Because it becomes a butterfly."

He nodded. "I'm not surprised," he said. "You're very much like a butterfly yourself. You just need your wings to appear."

Yuri looked at him. "What do you mean?" She asked.

Balan's grin grew before his hands moved from her shoulders to her sides. She felt his fingers wiggle into her sides and she burst into laughter, squirming to escape, but he pulled her closer to him, one arm looped around her to keep her from escaping while his hands continued tickling her sides, even moving to her stomach, to which her laughter grew. The maestro chuckled. "Seems like my fingers are just like caterpillars tickling you, hmm?" He asked teasingly.

She laughed and squirmed before feeling him pick her up and set her in his lap as he sat down, still tickling her, to which she laughed, her shirt riding up a little as she squirmed and Balan wasted no time wiggling his fingers into the exposed area, making Yuri squeal. "Cootchie, cootchie, coo!" He cooed to her.

"AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! STOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOP!" She pleaded before squealing her loudest at feeling him blow raspberries right over her belly button. He chuckled against her stomach, making her jump before she laughed her hardest at feeling him playfully munching on her stomach. "OHOHOHOHOHOHOHO! PLEEHEEHEEHEEHEEHEEHEEASE!" She pleaded through her laughter.

Chuckling again, Balan stopped, helping the child sit up again, his right arm wrapped around her back while her head rested against his shoulder. His left hand came up and began stroking her head to help her calm down.

As she caught her breath, she looked up at him, his golden eyes gazing at her in a friendly manner and she couldn't help smiling. She then looked away for a bit. "You're the first person to even say something nice about my liking bugs," she admitted.

"Then let me help your wings appear and show the other children how interesting bugs are," the maestro said, standing up and setting her down on her feet before his magic surrounded her and a beautiful pair of pink butterfly wings appeared behind Yuri's back. She gasped as she felt that and looked up at her new friend, who smiled at her again. "Take flight, my dear."

She knew what he meant and took a deep breath, smiling and nodding as the wings vanished, turning to leave, but then she stopped and turned, hugging Balan, which caught him by surprise, but he smiled, hugging her back. "Thank you," she said softly.

"You're welcome, Yuri," he said before watching as she headed away to show a group of students the collection of bugs she looked after. As the students gathered around, they were fascinated by what Yuri showed them and what the bugs could do. Balan smiled as he saw this and nodded, quietly heading away, but then looking at the bespectacled girl and smiling again.

Yuri looked over at him and smiled again, her pink butterfly wings appearing briefly before fading away again, but she felt better now, thanks to a friend that not only helped her feel better, but also helped her wings to appear too.

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GoldGuardian2418