It was true what Aldaris said, almost. I didn't see him for a long time. Instead I started school, and normal stuff happened. I had to drop my online tax course because it was too much work and too nitpicky to be online, and managerial accounting is proving...interesting, for reasons I probably shouldn't gossip about.

I know, I know, you guys are reading my journal here because you want to be entertained by alien adventures, not see boring stuff in my personal life. Well, I'm sorry. There's not much in the way of weird stuff to report, unfortunately.

Aldaris kept his side of the deal, though. He reported in to me once a month, grudgingly. By "reporting in", I mean he signaled me (how in the world was he doing that? What kind of comm system can signal directly into my head?) and left sort of this...I don't know, presence in my head. He didn't actually say anything, but I knew he was there. And then he was gone.

Really, that's all. No wackadoo adventures or anything. I'm starting to think this whole alien thing is a bit overrated. That's one of the reasons it's been taking so long to update this journal. Since nothing much has been happening, I've been feeling really lazy. I guess it's for the best, because I really do have a lot of schoolwork that needs to get done. My economics teacher literally bickers at me if I don't get an A - I'm the class nerd, you see.

Fortunately I at least have a little bit to mention, and somehow...I don't know. If wackadoo adventures haven't been happening, I just have this weird feeling that they will soon. Either that or I'm going to get arrested. I've giggled to myself for days on end at the thought of being a secret conspirator, but the truth of the matter is that I could very well be punished for my actions, and I'd deserve it. Hiding an alien presence from the authorities is in fact morally questionable. There's a lot being gambled on our Judicator's good mood.

This feeling isn't entirely out of nowhere. The last time Aldaris contacted me, I decided to probe a little. John is really starting to get antsy about us hiding important information from the public. He thinks what we're doing is wrong. I love Toby, because he thinks the whole thing is as hilarious as I do. But even he's getting a little bored, and well, I want to know what's going on too.

So I was sitting at my living room table (my whole first floor is one room, so I can't exactly have a kitchen table), and expressing with unintelligible grunts my distaste for the tedium that is Quickbooks homework. It broke my concentration when I sensed that Aldaris was there, but honestly, he might as well interrupt it. There are a few times when accounting is as boring as it sounds.

"Hey, Charlie," I said before he could go away. "Any news on your ship?"

This question startled him, for some reason. Maybe he wasn't expecting me to catch on to him so quickly. Or maybe he didn't want me to ask.

"It is of nominal status," he answered smoothly, not quite smoothly enough to be convincing, but just enough to imply that I should shut up. "The repairs are progressing. It is more work than I had at first estimated."

Somehow I doubt that the Judicator know all that much about ship repairs, but maybe Aldaris took some engineering classes or something. I don't know his life.

"Huh. You're not missing any parts, are you?"

"No."

"Charlie, the past three months you've been telling me that you'll be gone soon. Is it true this time, or is my own personal meaning of the word 'soon' too narrow?"

"So you grow impatient with me? I should like to see you attempt to cross over from an apparently fictitious world to your own. Or were you under the impression that such doings are the simplest of child's play? Perhaps you wish to give advice on on this matter with your wealth of knowledge on such forms of travel."

I blinked. That was a whole lot more information than Aldaris had given since August. Normally he only answered me with "yes", "no" and silence. Maybe I was assuming too much about his ship.

"Well, sorry then, but I have no idea what's going on up there."

"I fail to see how any of it is your concern."

Facepalm. I swear, I'm not going to have this conversation again. How many times already do I have to explain to Aldaris that an alien hanging around my planet is kind of my business? Whatever. No more.

"I'm not asking for the specs of your ship." I rubbed my eyes. Between Quickbooks and this, I was risking a tension headache. "I'm just saying that I'm kind of worried about you. You're stuck by yourself in a flying box, trying to keep yourself hidden. I f you're not going to talk to those few of us that know about you, then you might just go stir-crazy up there."

I didn't remember it until I spoke, but I'd forgotten about the Kensley property. Aldaris could probably take walks or whatever there, and even when that Kensley guy comes home he can find somewhere else. There's probably some wilderness areas around the world he could hang out at. Still, he does need a social life of some kind.

Aldaris took a minute to answer. I think my colloquialisms got in the way of him understanding what I was saying. Weird. The guy can talk the most perfect, formal english, and I say the slightest redneck thing ("stir-crazy" is redneck?) and he doesn't get it. Isn't the Starcraft world full of hicks anyway?

"Your concern is unnecessary," he said. "And I do not require your help. As I recall, the last time you attemped to make use of yourself you very nearly shorted out my engines and left the acrid smell of a rancid corpse to waft ever through the ventillation."

Translation: stay out of my business, human twerp.

"One, I was not touching your engines," I huffed. "I was trying to spare you having to mess with a bag of rotting oranges. And two: are you sure it's fine? Iffy as it might be, you may have to consider getting human substitutes for broken things on your ship or fuel. I've still got that cash from earlier, and I converted some of it to dollars, so if we figure out that anything needs replacing and can find a substitute, there's always that."

Oh great, now I'm going to get in trouble for providing machinery to an alien. I'm just asking to be charged with treason. Fortunately, I guess, Aldaris was rather less than enthused with the idea.

"That is laughable. To replace highly sophisticated Protoss technology with mere human substitutes, and obsolete substitutes at that? No thank you."

"Son of a bleep, Aldaris, I'm just presenting to your your options." Quickbooks homework was really starting to sound a whole lot more appealing. "You have some resources down here if you need it, that's all I'm saying."

"I understand you perfectly well, Bethany. You are helplessly excited by the novelty of a being foreign to your narrow experiences. You delight yourself in any opportunity you might have to please me, in the hopes that I might shine my favor upon a groveling creature such as yourself."

Is there any good way to reply to that? Okay, fine, I like hanging out with aliens. Is that a flaw in my personality just to like new things? It's definitely not my personality to tolerate this sort of nonsense.

"My dear Aldaris," I began. "You certainly have a funny way of treating someone who has every intention of just being friendly to you. It's okay. I know you're under a lot of stress right now, and I can guess that you're having a lot harder of a time figuring out how to get back than I thought. I forgive all of your petty insults. Though I will say, it's rather unbecoming of a Protoss Judicator to lower himself to such name calling."

I shouldn't have said that. Instantly the connection was gone, and I knew Aldaris was up there trying to decide if he was more mad at himself or me. After all, it wasn't me that lost my cool. But still, the smile faded from my face. I didn't need to put any more pressure on Aldaris than he already had on him. He's far away from the world and people he knows, and he might never see any of that again.

"I wonder how that would affect Starcraft..." I wondered out loud. "I guess that means his followers have to go on without him..."

Ouch. Aldaris couldn't like that. Well, for now, I'd have to forget about my cranky Protoss and just get going on the Quickbooks nonsense. Yay...

"Seriously, Cheonha, I don't see why you don't like this store." Choi Eunha pushed her reluctant friend through the doors of the Bang Bang clothing store in the Namdaemung shopping district. "They have the cutest shoes here."

As much as Cheonha balked, Eunha was still stronger than her. The joyful South Korean girl gave Cheonha a pat on the back, which was also a push to go further into the store.

"See? It's actually nice once you're inside to see what it has to offer." Eunha chuckled.

"This place is too expensive," Cheonha said, her face as unyielding as her eyes circled the shop. "I don't like to spend so much."

"Come on, Cheonha. You know what they say. The clothes make the man!" Eunha happily passed her friend and went for the shoe racks. "Besides, what are you going to save all that money for?"

Cheonha's face tightened, and she showed just enough dismay. Eunha sighed. She'd done it again, being too enthusiastic about something so personal to Cheonha. She liked Cheonha, but it was hard for her to be so sensitive all the time. Swallowing her pride, she silenced her sunshine and rainbows. She did know why Cheonha was saving money. It was in the file.

"I'm sorry," she said, reaching out of Cheonha's hand. "I should have remembered. Well, anyway, you should still look around. You might find something here that she'll like, after all."

Cheonha instantly brightened. "Yes, that's a good idea!"

"Of course it is. Now come on, I need to find some new shoes. I'll feel greedy if I get some and you don't."

Cheonha nodded, and though her face returned to its neutral expression, she did wander off toward the racks of shirts. Eunha let her go. There were too many shoes to focus on, and a pair of Minnie Mouse slippers were calling her name. Eunha pulled them off the shelf.

These shoes are perfect! I know I'm too old for cartoon shoes, but these are just darling...Eunha checked the size and was not disappointed. I have a red bow at home that matches these...

Eunha paused. Something about the air felt different, and as her eyes peeped over the shoe racks. She caught sight as one of the Bang Bang employees approached Cheonha. This employee, as stylish as the clothes she sold, approached Cheonha, smiling brightly in a way that Eunha's practiced eye could tell was both polite and fake. Cheonha equally politely declined the offer of help, and the employee left for her old place near the register, where a male employee stood. The two of them bent their heads together, whispering.

Choi Eunha replaced the instantly forgotten Minnie Mouse shoes on the shelf. Why were these strangers whispering about Cheonha? Cheonha, distracted by several shirts with stylish looking but innaccurate english prints, didn't seem to notice that they were whispering. Or she was ignoring them. Eunha, however, did not use such evasive tactics. She came out from around the shoe racks and went for the register.

"Shillyehajeeman..." Eunha approached the two with firm steps. "Are you two talking about my friend?"

"Please excuse us." The female employee bowed. As she straightened again, Eunha could see her name tag: Chung Ae. "We didn't mean any offense."

"Then you shouldn't have gossiped about her in the first place," Eunha retorted. "I know it's obvious she's from the north, but she is still a person and a customer, and she deserves respect."

"We weren't saying anything cruel," the male employee, Tae Hyun, added. "We were just saying that we've seen her here before."

"What?" Eunha glanced back at Cheonha. "She never told me that."

"It was months ago." Chung Ae added. "She was here with an American, and they both looked horrible. The American didn't even have shoes on, and they looked like they went swimming in their clothes."

As much as Eunha knew she should probably hear this, it all felt wrong. She'd pledged to help Cheonha no matter what, and gossipy people irritated her no matter what they were talking about. Eunha forced a stiff frown on her face, and clenched her hands at her sides. This silenced Chung Ae.

"That's enough," Eunha hissed. "I don't appreciate you spreading stories about my friend. I don't care if she came in here with an assortment of soggy internationals - you still should not talk about your customers like that. Did she or the American cause any trouble while they were here?"

"Well, no..." Tae Hyun admitted.

"Then you have nothing to talk about," Eunha retorted. "And you should keep what you see to yourself. If I come back and see you gossiping again, I'll report it to your manager. Do you understand?"

"Ne, agassi." They bowed politely.

"Good." Eunha nodded. "Hey, Cheonha, they don't have anything new today, and - "

Eunha's gaze lingered on the disrespectful employees as she spoke, and once she turned to Cheonha, she saw that the latter needed no convincing to leave. Cheonha stood there, a grim statue, dark-eyed with wrath. She wasn't angry with the workers, but stared with sullen anger at her own defender.

"Come on, Cheonha." Eunha hurried and pulled on Cheonha's arm. "Let's get out of this store. It's too expensive."

The two girls slipped past the shoe racks, hastily making their way back to the thick nightlife of Seoul. They had to dodge a crowd of three young guys at a kimchi stand before they could get duck into a side street and sort out what had happened. Or that was what Eunha had in mind; Cheonha ignored her and began stomping away.

Eunha grabbed her arm. "Cheonha, wait!"

Cheonha snatched her arm away, glaring. They stared each other down for a minute, exchanging in silence hours of conversation. Eunha, confused, did what she always did when she didn't understand: she talked.

"Cheonha...I don't know what's going on with you, but you don't have to hide it from me." She took a step forward. "You know I never think anything bad about you."

"I don't want to talk." Cheonha folded her arms, shrinking into herself as she stared at the ground. "It was really embarrassing."

"Why? ...Did the American do something bad to you?"

Cheonha's head instantly snapped upwards, and she glowered bitterly. "So is that what they told you? No, the American was fine. I just don't want to talk about her."

"Then we won't, alright?" Eunha managed to approach her friend without the latter running off. She tugged Cheonha by her sleeve. "You need to not be so sensitive. I'm your friend, and I understand if you want to keep your past private. All you have to do is say so, and I'll leave it alone. You don't need to go running off, okay?"

Cheonha nodded, and exhaustion removed some of the anxiety from her face. She retreated back, and returned to staring at her shoes.

"I just don't like people talking about me, that's all. It's no one's business but mine."

"I won't tell anyone," Eunha said, forcing a cheerfulness into her voice that she didn't feel. "And we won't go back to Bang Bang either. There's lots of places to shop in Seoul besides there. Now come on, there's no need to be upset! Let's get something to eat. I've been craving fried fish all day and if we don't get some soon, I'll get a stomachache."

Cheonha did relax some, and for a moment, Eunha almost thought she saw a smile on her friend's face. However, her own smile wasn't so genuine. Eunha had always wanted to be friends with a northerner, but she never imagined how hard it would be to cope with everything Cheonha found odd about the outside world. She was clustered in so tightly into herself that sometimes Eunha wondered if she was friends with a walking lockbox.

With Cheonha distracted, Eunha glanced quickly back at the Bang Bang store. She had told them not to talk, but there were questions that needed to be answered. These questions would be asked, but not by her. Eunha pinched her finger, hoping the pain would make it easier to remember to make a note of things.

\\\\\\

Author's Notes New:

- So, yeah, late. My bad. Only one day, though. Honestly, I think I should have worked a little harder editing these part 1 chapters, but I've cleaned it up a bit, at least. I mainly wanted to give myself time to get parts 2 and 3 going. Don't worry, I'm going to work harder on getting stuff done on time. I promise!

*hopes no one sees me crossing my fingers because as much as I mean to keep my promises, life is life.*