A 21-year-old Genki sat in his small room, looking contemplatively at two pictures on his wall. One was of his older cousin, which was taken only a week before her disappearance. It was her semi-pro picture as a roller blader, getting ready to do one of her famous tricks. She had signed it, and it read, `to my favorite cousin, hope to have one of you like this some day, love Speed-demon.' That was her nickname at the park they had skated at.
The other was a drawing of Holly he had done once when checking up on her. She looked to be about 18 or 19 in it, and was writing in a book on a table, the window behind her giving her a luminous glow.
He thought about how they may have gotten along if they had ever been given the chance to meet. But he knew it was impossible. Holly was in another world, and his cousin was …missing…and presumed dead. Genki was so lost in his thoughts that he barely noticed his pendent glowing until it was blindingly bright.
"Hey…what's going on…!!!" Genki blinked in surprise as the Phoenix appeared and landed on his arm.
"Hello, Son of Clear-eyes," said the Phoenix. "Are you ready to return?"
"I'm there!" said Genki, grabbing his blades and backpack off his bed, glad for a change of pace. Living by him self in the apartment had gotten fairly lonely.
"Good," said The Phoenix, "I'm glad you haven't forgotten your friends or me…"
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Holly looked at the stars longingly, unaware of the two figures watching her from the sky, floating just outside of her line of vision. A shooting star streaked across the sky, it's tail glowing brilliantly.
She sighed, and made a wish like Genki had taught her to.
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"What's she doing?" whispered Genki to the Phoenix.
"Why don't you go and ask her?" asked The Phoenix slyly.
"What…."
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"I wish that…" Holly was cut short as Genki landed in front of her suddenly, causing her to yelp in surprise. "Ow…baka Phoenix…" groaned Genki, getting up slowly.
"Genki?" asked Holly, eyes wide in amazement.
"In the flesh," said the Phoenix, landing on her shoulder. "He's back, Daughter of Pure-heart." `And yes,' he said to her in her mind. `I do grant wishes.' Holly blushed slightly, hoping it was too dark for Genki to see.
"Holly? What's going on out there?" asked someone from inside.
"Genki's back!" she called, letting him pick her up in a bear hug.
There goes that hope for a romantic get together… thought the Phoenix as he disappeared into the shadows.
Suezo, Pink-eye, their three kids, Jarel, and Coltia rushed out as Genki put Holly back down, welcoming him warmly. Letting of Holly, he looked at Suezo and said, "Looks like you're a family man now, buddy."
"Knock it off, kid," said Suezo, grinning from `ear to ear' (yes I know Suezo doesn't really have ears!!!)
Pink-eye hopped forward and introduced their young ones. "This is Rei-Rei, Holly Jr., and Yosho," she said as a pink, yellow, and a cross between the two baby Suezos crowded around him.
"Hello, little friends," said Genki letting them head butt him playfully.
"Wow…" said Coltia, eyes big and wondrous.
"What?" asked Genki, sweating slightly.
"You're really cute. Can I go on a date with you?" asked Coltia, snuggling up to his side. Genki backed away, sweating more as he tried to stammer out an excuse.
"Um…I dunno…Colt…" Genki didn't want to hurt her feelings, but he really didn't want to date her either.
Holly put her arm around Coltia's shoulders as she led her back into the kitchen. "What did I tell you about scaring guys like that?"
Genki mouthed his thanks as she glanced back quickly at him. "Man, did she ever save you…" muttered Jarel, finally coming up to say his welcome.
"Why's that?" asked Genki curiously.
"Coltia has the ability to set up a date and plan it out before a guy can refuse. Holly's the only one who can get her to stop mid-way through it, and she's only done it a few times. Usually she lets her so the guys won't bother her. It's like Coltia protects Holly from tough spots by scaring the guys witless," explained Jarel.
"What do you mean by `tough spots'?" asked Genki.
"Holly doesn't have the heart to turn a guy down, so it's just easier for her not to see guys at all. She won't even attend to them in her shop unless Colt or I are present."
"You mean she hasn't dated much? Wonder what she'd afraid of."
"I don't know, kid. But I do know she's glad to see you," said Jarel frankly.
They all went inside and finished the celebration they'd been having earlier. It was Pink-eye's birthday, and they were having a blast! Genki did a quick caricature of her as a last minute gift, which she though was the coolest thing. There were other gifts from the rest, a tail ring from Suezo, and book from Jarel, a new blanket for the baby Suezo that she was going to have soon, and some flowers from her kids.
Holly and Genki went into the living room as soon as it was over and talked long into the night, catching up on all that had happened since they'd last seen each other. She told him of all their old friends and how they had been lately. Pixie and Blue had been there just a few days before, and Tiger and his new pack had been down to see her not even two weeks before. Moochi was up with Golem in the forest, and they were having fun with all his old friends. Hare had been gone for a couple of years, but had written occasionally so they knew he was ok. Bluefur and Rover were a few towns over, fighting for monster rights at a rally and wouldn't be back for a week or so.
Genki told her of all that had happened in his world, but for some reason omitting the part about his cousin. He still wasn't comfortable talking about it, and didn't want to risk a stray tear in front of Holly. They then recounted the entire adventure they'd had together 5 yeas ago, ten for Genki, starting from the time they'd met up to the end. But they fell asleep before they reached the end like they had when they first came this house and told the story to Jarel one night.
Coltia found them there the next morning, and stood there for a minute. "Ooohhh! How kawaii!!!!" she said, waking Holly in the process. She blushed when she saw Colt, and untangled herself from the blanket before covering Genki back up with it.
"Is he your boyfriend?" asked Coltia, eyes shimmering with excitement.
"No, Colt. We just stayed up too long, that's all," replied Holly, hoping she sounded more convincing than she felt.
"What ever you say," said Colt in her `I don't believe you but I'll shut up anyways' voice. The 16 yr old had learned to control her hyper-ness to a certain extent with Holly's help. She had taken the young woman as her helper when the original owner of the store gave it to her and she had no one to help.
Colt now put all her extra energy into making clothes, and together they came out with the most beautiful dresses and suites. People came from all over to have their fine clothes made by them and all the towns people had their clothes made by them as well.
Changing into some old pants and a loose shirt in her room, she slipped on her roller blades and grabbed a stack of packages next to the door. Skating down the road in her usual patter, Holly dodged and darted her way through the crowd forming in the market place.
Drop off the packages, buy some food, get some more supplies for the shop, and race back home before anyone else gets up. Holly wasn't completely focused on what she was doing and completely missed the store where she always dropped off some new blankets for them to sell. Mrs. Trimble watched in amusement as Holly stammered out and excuse and apology before rushing off. She had been warned by Jarel earlier that day that Holly may not be all together this morning and wondered what could be distracting her so.
Genki was up and watched from the window of his old room as she leapt up and pulled both skates off in one motion. `Man, has she gotten good,' he thought to himself in surprise. She was probably as fast as he was, and that was saying something!
Holly rushed into the kitchen with her parcels. "Morning, Pink-eye." She said, quickly unpacking and putting away everything she's purchased that morning.
"Aren't we running a little late this morning," she teased motherly. Pink-eye had lost a lot of her former sarcasm with the birth of her first child.
"Be quiet, Pink. Everybody has one of those days…" panted Holly, running up the stairs. Dashing into her room, she changed again and washed quickly, putting in he usual work clothes. She plaited her hair into a long braid and rushed down the stairs to help Pink-Eye Finish breakfast.
"That was quick," observed Genki from the table. He had his sketchbook and pencil with him and had been waiting for Holly to come down stairs so he could draw a new picture of her. Making sure she wasn't watching him, he pulled out a fresh piece of paper and began to draw.
Holly was flushed and excited, the morning run having gotten her going. Her eyes were sparkling, as if she were laughing inwardly at some private joke. With her hair pulled back and wearing tunic and pants, she reminded Genki of an elfin princess from one of the comics that he had been co-illustrator of.
She skipped eating breakfast herself and hurried to open her shop with Coltia in time for customers they knew were coming. All appointments were made early in the morning and toady was no exception. They worked quickly through the morning, both slightly distracted and their customers noticing their careless mistakes.
"My lands, Miss Holly, that's the third time you've pricked yourself," said Beth, the local milkman's wife. "Are you sure everything's ok?"
"Yes, Beth," said Holly, sucking on her finger. "Everything's fine, I just didn't get much sleep last night."
"Geez, I wonder why," muttered Coltia so only Holly could hear.
"Knock it off, Colt," she said, hoping to silence her friends tongue before it got away from her.
Genki came to see them at lunchtime with the basket of food they'd forgotten on the table that morning. They ate together in the back room and closed the shop for a short while so no one would interrupt them. "Hey Holly?" asked Genki.
"Yeah?"
"Can you make me a set of clothes to wear around? Nothing as fancy as some of the stuff you've go here, but people notice how different I look from them." Genki was wearing a pair of kaki pants and blue t-shirt with a black Nike swish on the front. "I have a drawing of some stuff I saw earlier and maybe you could do something like that.
Holly and Coltia were amazed at the detail he had drawn them in. They agreed on a black tunic and pants set with silver and blue trim in a winding pattern. They matched his book bag and skates, making it a complete set.
Genki followed Holly to the front of the shop so she could take his measurements for the clothes. She quickly transferred them to a dummy near by for guy's clothes. Coltia watched from between the shelves as she gathered the cloth they would need to make it.
`She said they weren't going out,' she thought to herself. `That makes him fair game…' The 16 yr old girl planned her next move as Holly got the patterns from the back room cabinets.
"Hey Genki," said Coltia; keeping her voice low enough so Holly couldn't hear her. "How do you think this dress would look on me?" It was a blue silk gown with a low front and tight bodice. The big storeowner in town had ordered it for his wife for the Monster Day Celebration in New Port. It wasn't for another three months, but he knew the little shop would be swamped with orders and he didn't want to add one more burden to their list.
"It's a nice dress," said Genki carefully. "But I honestly couldn't tell you how it would look on you since I've never seen it on you."
Colt was about to reply when Holly came back into the room. She was puzzled when Genki sighed in relief and Colt shot her a `look,' but ignored it for the moment.
"We've got everything we need, so why don't you go back to the house and catch up with everyone else? Me and Colt have got a lot of work to do and it's harder to work when you've got friends around. We'll talk more tonight, okay?" Holly had to almost push Genki out the door to get him to leave.
"Bye," he said to the door that was quickly put between him and the two women in side.
Coltia picked up her needles and began to make more lace for one of the dresses. "What are you going to work on?" she asked curiously.
"Either Genki's clothes or Mrs. Jennings's dress and since I only have a little left to do on the dress I'll start Genki's clothes," she replied slowly.
"Will you use the machine?"
"Yeah, but I'll have to be careful. It's starting to chew up clothes that aren't watched properly again…" Holly sighed and went to work. She was still working when Colt left for dinner, promising to bring her back some food.
She didn't stop until around 8:00 when Genki came by with food for her. He tried on her new clothes, and let her pin on the decorations that were left to be sewn, talking as she did.
"Holly, could you do a favor for me?" asked Genki.
"Sure, what is it?"
"I need you to tell Colt to back off. She's been flirting with me since after lunch and I don't' want to hurt her feelings."
"Whoa!" said Holly, eyes getting big. "I agreed to do a favor, not agree to a slow and painful death. Colt cannot be reasoned with when she likes a guy. Do you have any idea what she'll do if I step in??? Go ask Jarel what happened last time I tried to do that."
Genki could tell there was no way she was going to step in this time. He left soon after ad went in search of Jarel. He found him, writing another letter to a large company about his newest campaign about Monster rights.
"Hello, Genki," said Jarel, looking up for a moment. "Just give me a sec and I'll be right with you."
He made himself comfortable in one of the chairs by the fire and waited patiently. Soon they were sitting near each other and talking amiably about Monsters in general.
"So, Genki my boy. What can I do for you?" asked Jarel at last.
"Holly refuses to step in with Colt, and I'm sure you know what I'm taking about. She said something about last time and said to ask you about it if I wanted to know more."
Jarel chuckled softly. "She has every right to be scared. The first few times Holly stepped in when Colt was younger, she just backed off with out a word. This last time, though, Colt started to get suspicious. She accused Holly of wanting the guy for herself, and she was just jealous that Colt got all the guys and she didn't.
"You know as well as I do, including you Genki, that Holly could have any guy she wants within a 10 mile radius of this place and more. They made some sort of deal about guys and I guess that it'd would affect it some how if she defended you."
"Let me guess, she'd have to declare that we're more than just friends, right?" said Genki softly, "There goes my lope hole…"
"I'd love to help you, kid. But Coltia's just a little too scary for me…"admitted Jarel, showing the young man to the door.
Genki went and hid in the back yard, falling asleep under the stars until Holly came home much later. He followed her noiselessly up the stairs and watched as she laid a package in front of his door.
Holly went into her room, unaware that Genki had been behind her the whole time. Tomorrow was the day the shop was closed, and she had an extra hour of sleep before she had to make some deliveries. Boy did she ever need it after two nights in a row of staying up late.
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Genki rapped lightly at Holly's door, two plates piled high with his famous pancakes and honey piled on them on a tray in one hand and two cups of juice in the other. He listened to her sheets rustle around for a moment. "What?" she called groggily, still half asleep.
"Breakfast," he said, opening her door and walking in. Holly quirked her eyebrow at him and sat up in bed.
"What's this for?" she asked, slightly suspicious.
Genki colored slightly. "Oh…you know…the clothes fit great…and I know you worked late to make them so…"
It was Holly's turn to blush now. Changing the subject quickly she said, "Do you have any idea how much Coltia's gonna hate me if she finds out about this?"
"Are you going to tell her? She won't be around for a while and Jarel's covering for me if she comes. For all she knows, both of us are still asleep in bed."
"And how did you accomplish that?" asked Holly.
"He and Suezo both have large stacks of my famous pancakes in front of them and there's a huge pile left for Pink-eye and her young when they get up."
Holly tried the pancakes hesitantly, not being entirely convinced that Genki could cook yet. She hesitantly bit into one and was in for a surprise.
"Do you like them?" asked Genki, eyes pleading like a dogs.
"They're great. Where'd you learn to cook?"
"Being a bachelor, you know, I had to learn to do a lot of things," admitted Genki.
Holly shook her head sympathetically. "Why didn't you go live with your friends or family?"
Genki's face twisted, his eyes narrowing slightly as well. "The family who would help are gone, and I had only one true friend after returning, she is gone as well. My father did leave me a considerable sum to live on, but funerals are expensive and it only went so far."
"I'm sorry, Genki," whispered Holly, eyes sadly watching him. "I know it's hard to remember…"
"It's alright. You didn't know. And all that matters know is I'm back and hopefully I'm not going any where for awhile," he replied, changing the subject quickly.
Holly nodded and they continued to eat for another half an hour before she shooed him out of her room. She had to change and wash up before making deliveries that morning and he couldn't hang around while she did.
Genki met her outside, skates already on. "Can I come?" he asked.
"Just try and keep up, ok?" said Holly, smiling slyly. She launched herself from the porch into the street with more skill than Genki thought was possible. He followed her through the crowed streets, darting and dodging as she did, copying her exactly.
Holly ignored that amused looks on peoples faces as she passed by. Genki was hard pressed to keep up with her. She finished her deliveries and sped her way to the forest, daring Genki to follow her with a wink. He took the hint and weaved through the trees after her.
The towns people tittered about the strange young man as the pair went over a set of natural jumps in the woods. Holly turned around in time to see Genki get cloths lined by a branch she had ducked under moments before. "Are you ok?" she asked worriedly, helping him to his feet.
"Yeah, just got the wind knocked from me that's all," he wheezed. Even bending over he was still an inch taller than her.
"I still can't get over how tall you are," she commented quietly, craning her neck to look him in the eye.
"Oh, it's not such a bad thing," teased Genki as they skated slowly back to the house. " No one will think I'm your little brother any more and it makes you quite useful as a leaning post." He demonstrated only to almost fall again when Holly shrugged him off.
"Compared to both of you, I'm a shrimp," said a voice sourly above them. They looked up to see the Phoenix on a branch in a tree. "Hello, Daughter of Pure-heart and Son of Clear-eyes. I have been waiting for you."
"I have a question, Phoenix. Why do you call me Son of Clear-eyes and Holly Daughter of Pure-heart?" asked Genki frankly.
"That is something I cannot tell you, but you will find out when the time is correct. But now I must tell you of the real reason I have come," explained the Phoenix. "There is a man far to the North who has inherited some ruins from his father and learned to use the equipment in it. It is one of the old labs used to create monsters and he is using it to take monsters and create new one from them. He has begun to experiment on humans as well and has an army at his beck and call. They call him the Creator, but his name it Raymond and is known widely as the General. He and his army have moved to a fortress farther North of the lab and are starting to trap villages of human and monsters to experiment with. You must go and stop him, before he takes over the Monster World. I will lead you through the stone, and will appear when you need help the most. Go gather your fighters from the old group, and destroy this new evil."
"You will help us, right?" asked Genki.
"The pendent will help you as I will it to," said the Phoenix as he disappeared.
Holly and Genki stood there for a moment, thinking about what he had said before snapping back to reality. "We have to go tell the others," aid Genki, tearing off down the path.
`Another adventure,' thought Holly as she followed close behind him, `And this time it's not my father we're facing. But will that make it any easier?'
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Crosseyedbutterfly here, but that's a mouthful to type (let alone say) so I'll refer to myself as Butterfly. So far so good, and I think I got this up fairly quickly after the first one. Haven't checked the reviews yet, but the more I get the faster the chapters come so good and type something in that box so you won't have to wait a month in between each part, k???? Butterfly signing off until next time!!
ï¹ pretty butterfly!!!
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