Jaid: Hi everybody! Thank you all for the wonderful reviews. *gets starry –eyed* I got reviewed by Mookie and Wolfcking of all people. I'm so happy!
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"I wonder how Bit's doing." Leena commented. "What do you think, Harry?"
"Hmm?"
Leena frowned, as they walked along the docks. "You don't seem to be listening to me very well."
"Sorry." Harry blinked. "I'm just…a little preoccupied."
"Why?" Leena asked.
"Family."
"Oh." Leena looked at the lake. "What happened? You run out of money or something?"
"Not really." Harry answered. "I have some." He bit his lip. "Leena, would your dad be interested in buying another Zoid?"
Leena looked at him, then shrugged. "I don't know. Probably." She began walking again and Harry fell into step with her, offering his arm. Taking it, she said, "Why? Do you have one to sell?"
"Yes." Harry answered.
"What type? I think Dad wanted to get another flying one for Jamie."
"It's ground-type." Harry said. "Besides, you're going to need a new one."
"Yeah, you're right." Leena nodded. "But what is this about buying another Zoid? I mean you collect them like-" She broke off and stared at him.
"Harry," she asked. "You're not…?"
"I don't have a choice really." He stated. "My Father's pulling my allowance unless I go back home. I figure, that if I sell my Zoids and thier weapons, I can have enough to live on for awhile, while I look for a job. Something in computers or mechanics or engineering I guess."
"But…" Leena looked down. "You wouldn't be battling anymore?"
Harry sighed and avoided her glance. "No, well maybe." he said. "I do love battles, but I don't have the heart to rebuild Benjamin or Sebastian, and I can't look for new team-members a week before a tournament. Besides my hearing…" his voice trailed off.
"But then, we, I mean-" Leena blinked. "We wouldn't see each other that often."
"No, that is a downside." Harry admitted. "But we can write and we'll still be friends, right?"
"Yeah." Leena smiled. "You'll be our friend. You did save my life after all."
They began walking again, but it was a quiet trip.
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"Hey, Brad!" Bit shouted from the lounge. "Where do you rent boats around here?"
"You have money to rent a boat?" Brad answered, attempting to read a message that Naomi had sent him.
"Not much." Bit said, standing in the doorway of Brad and Jamie's room. "You don't have any I could borrow, do you? I'll pay you back."
"Why do you want a boat?" Brad asked, eyes not leaving the computer screen.
"Jade likes the lake."
Brad turned, to see a very sheepish-looking Bit. "This is the girl you were steadfastly trying not to talk to?"
"Yeah, so? She's nice."
Brad sighed and shook his head. "I can lend you a little bit, but not much. You'll have to ask Harry about the boats." He stood and grabbed his wallet. Handing some cash to Bit, he raised an eyebrow. "Try not to blow it all at once, okay?"
"Funny." Bit muttered as he took the money. "Thanks."
"You're paying me back. With interest!" Brad called as he sat at the computer again.
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Leena closed the door to the room she shared with her father and sat on her bed. Dr. Tauros was at the desk, working at the computer.
"Something wrong?" he asked, not looking at her.
"Why would something be wrong?" Leena said, hugging her pillow.
"Because, when something's wrong you usually yell at Bit, or if he's not available, then you come into whatever room you have and hug that pillow." He said, then turned. "You're my daughter. I do know a little about you. Not much but a little."
Leena rolled her eyes and Dr. Tauros chuckled. Standing he came over and sat next to her. "What's wrong? Not feeling well?"
"No, I feel fine." Leena said. "I just…Harry's giving up Zoid battling."
"Ah. Well, that's a shame. I'll miss him." Dr. Tauros said. "He going back to his family?"
"No!" Leena shook her head. "He's going to try to find a job. But…" She looked down. "I thought that…well, maybe he'd join us. I know he's somewhat of an idiot, but I just got…"
"Used to him being there?" Dr. Tauros suggested. Leena shrugged.
"I guess. I mean," she sighed. "He was with me while I was in the coma and when I woke up, he was the first person I saw. And then after every surgery, he was always the last to say good-bye and the first person to say hello when I woke up. At first, it was a little annoying, but…I liked the attention. And sometimes, when you guys were off trying to get bills paid and find places to stay and take care of the Zoids and he was the only one there, I was glad that he was there. I would have been really lonely if Harry had left too." Leena gave a dry laugh. "I can't believe I'm saying this."
Dr. Tauros looked away. "I can." He said softly. "I expected this eventually."
"Expected what?"
Dr. Tauros looked at her. "Nothing." He said quickly and smiled. "Don't worry about it, sweetie." He stood and kissed the top of her head. "You can write to him and there will be times we'll see him, I'm sure."
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Kirin bit his lip again and gave a sideways look to the dark-haired woman beside him. Sky was concentrating on her work, her turquoise eyes never leaving the job she was doing. Kirin sighed.
"What's wrong?" Sky asked, eyes still on her Zoid's insides.
"Nothing." Kirin said quickly. "Just,…I'm kinda worried about Jade."
"Why?" Sky looked up for the first time.
"Well, she's just seemed kinda depressed lately." Kirin mused.
"Doesn't she have hormonal blues now and then?"
Kirin thought. "Yeah." He admitted. "But you know, she's my sister and I guess I like it better when she's happy."
Sky smiled. "She'll get over it, I'm sure." The woman turned back to her work and there was silence for a while.
"Sky?"
"Yes?"
"Do you have any family?" Kirin asked. Sky's face became stoic.
"No," she said softly. "I don't." Then she turned away again. Kirin looked down and bit his lip.
"Do you?" Sky asked after a pause. Kirin looked back up.
"Do I what?"
"Have a family besides Jade?" She smiled.
"Yeah." Kirin grinned. "Probably take you all day to tell all about 'em too."
"Well?" Sky cocked her head, eyes as bright as her smile.
"Well…" Kirin said slowly. "There's Mama and Papa. And Aunt Esponsisa, Uncle Jack, Aunt Mary, Uncle Cory and let's not forget the cousins…"
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"The offer is tempting, Harry, but I just can't afford it right now." Dr. Tauros admitted. Jamie hoped he had a straight face on. He just couldn't remember a time when the Doc or Leena for that matter, had ever refused to buy something.
The sandy-haired man sighed. "I understand."
"I wish we could work something out." The older man said. Harry nodded.
"Believe me, I understand." He said again. "I have to get going…"
Jamie and Tauros stood.
"Of course." Dr. Tauros said. He held out a hand and Harry shook it. "We'll see you around then?"
Harry smiled a bit tightly and nodded, then left. Jamie and Tauros sat back down.
"If we win in the tournament, I might consider it." Tauros said.
"Because then we'll have the money?" Jamie asked. Tauros shook his head.
"No," he answered. "Because without a Zoid, Leena doesn't have an excuse to be out in the ring."
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Jade hummed to herself as she put on some light pink lipstick. The door opened and she heard Kirin's voice as he and Sky entered the girls' room.
"So, anyway, Jade just gave him one of her glares and-" Kirin stopped as he stuck his head in the doorway. "Hey sis." He frowned. "Where are you going?"
"Hmm?" Jade looked down at her nice black pants, high-heeled boots and then at the silk shirt that was the same color as her eyes, and looked back up again. "What?"
"Where are you going?" Kirin asked again. Jade turned back to the mirror and put on a pair of hoops and a silver necklace.
"Out." She answered.
"Where?"
Jade scowled. Kirin was beginning to sound exactly like Dad.
"On a date." She answered finally, while running a brush quickly through her thick, curly hair.
"With who?"
Jade turned. "You're in my way."
Kirin crossed his arms. "Who are you going out with?"
Jade sighed. "The pain-medication guy."
Sky started to laugh.
"Blondie?" Kirin grimaced.
"His name is Bit." Jade said, rather defensively. "And he asked me this morning, after you guys left. Now if you'll excuse me…?"
"Bit?" Kirin repeated, rather redundantly. "What kind of a name is Bit?
Jade glared at him and put on a black jacket, then grabbed her purse. "I should be back in a few hours, Sky."
"Okay." Sky answered. Jade smiled and left the room. Sky looked over to the bathroom and cleared her throat.
"If you don't mind," she said. "I'd like to take a shower."
Kirin blinked, blushed and moved out of the way. "I'll see you at dinner I guess."
"Okay."
"Right." Kirin mumbled and left the room. Sky frowned.
What's up with him?
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Leena raised her hand to knock on the door when it opened and she was met by the rather startled look of Bit.
"Uh, hi." He said.
"You look nice." She commented, and then grinned. "Oh, I see. Going out with Jade?"
Bit mumbled something under his breath that didn't sound so complementary, but that only made Leena's grin get bigger. She moved out of his way.
"Have fun!" she said cheerfully.
"Excuse me?" a soft voice said. Jade stood there. "Hi Leena."
"Hi." Leena strove to keep from giggling. Bit always looks exactly like a tomato when he's mad!
"Ready to go?" he asked Jade. The tiny girl nodded. Bit stepped out and Leena went into the room.
"You kids have fun!" she said cheerfully. Jade smiled over her shoulder and Bit muttered under his breath again. Leena shut the door and then collapsed with laughter. Brad and Jamie looked up from the TV.
"You okay?" Brad asked.
The red-haired girl nodded with some difficulty. "Did you see his face?" she gasped. "I thought he would explode."
Jamie smiled and shook his head, while Brad just rolled his eyes.
"He's going to kill you later, y'know." The long-haired man commented.
"As if he could." Leena said, standing. "Phew. Next time, remind me to collapse on the couch and not the floor."
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(A week later)
"We ready?" Kirin asked. Jade looked up and nodded.
"Just about." She called. "Lemme ask Sky."
"I'm ready." The dark-haired woman called. She jumped lightly to the ground and looked at Jade. "We need to leave soon, so if you want to say good-bye, you'd better do it."
Jade nodded and left the hanger. Kirin watched her go, then sighed, shaking his head. Sky looked at him.
"What's wrong?" she asked.
"I…" Kirin shook his head again. "It's just…I don't know. I guess my over-protective brother genes are kickin' in, y'know? I mean, I've never had this trouble before; Jaid never took that much interest in guys."
"Well why shouldn't she?" Sky asked as Kirin climbed down. "She's what, nineteen? Some girls are married by that age."
"Don't remind me." Kirin commented dryly. Sky laughed and Kirin did too.
"I guess I see her as a kid sometimes."
"Not hard to do." Sky admitted. "She's so short and innocent looking."
Kirin laughed. "Yeah, but don't ever say that to her face."
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"Bit?"
The young man looked up and smiled. "Hey, Jade."
Jade grinned back. "Hey."
Bit stood up and walked over to her. "What's up?"
"I'm going to be leaving in a few minutes, so-"
"This early?" Bit asked. "I thought you said you weren't leaving till tonight."
"We were, but…" Jade shrugged. "Kirin decided to pull out early. Sky says it's a good idea; we'll get a better hanger for cheaper if we go to the battlefield early."
"Oh." Bit blinked. His own team had always used their hovertransport…
"I just came to say good-bye." Jade said quickly, breaking into his thoughts.
"Right." Bit said. Somehow it didn't seem real; the past week he had spent with Jade didn't seem like enough.
Jade bit her lip at the awkward silence and inwardly wished she wasn't so short. It was hard to keep looking up at him, trying to gauge his reaction.
"Um, good-bye?" she said.
"Yeah, bye." He answered, sounding slightly dazed. There was an awkward pause, then Jade turned and began to walk away.
"Jade, wait!"
She turned. Bit walked over to her and hesitantly placed his hands on her shoulders. "I'll see you there, right?"
"Yeah, I guess so."
Bit grinned. "So, you'll be free for dinner or something?"
Jade looked at him and her eyes lit up. "You bet!"
Bit's grin got wider. "So, I'll see you later then."
"Yeah." Jade grinned back. "I'll see you in town."
Bit nodded. "Good."
"Um," Jade said after a moment.
"Oh." Bit removed his hands from her shoulders. "Sorry."
"That's okay." Jade said, began to turn, then turned back and impulsively hugged him. "Bye."
Bit hugged her back. "See you later." He softly corrected and heard Jade chuckle slightly.
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"Hey, don't go in there!" Leena half whispered, half hissed. Brad and Jamie stopped.
"Why?" Jamie asked.
"Look." Leena pointed. Near the entrance, Jade and Bit were locked in an embrace.
"Oh boy." Brad muttered. He looked at Leena, who had a humongous grin on her face.
"Now you guys can't tease me anymore." She said, with obvious enjoyment.
Brad and Jamie rolled their eyes.
"How long are they going to be?" Brad asked. "I need-"
Leena smacked his arm. "You're not interrupting them for anything."
"He won't have too." Jamie sighed. "Look."
Bit and Jade jumped apart as Harry entered. The sandy-haired man seemed completely oblivious to the fact that he had interrupted an intimate scene. Face flushed Jade quickly said good-bye to Harry and left. Bit walked over to his Liger.
"Harry!" Leena moaned as he walked over. "How could you?!"
"Pardon?" Harry blinked in confusion. "What did I do?"
Brad patted him on the shoulder. "You'll soon find out, believe me."
"Yeah." Jamie put in, as he and Brad left. Harry turned back to Leena.
"What'd I do?!" he asked, starting to sound worried. Leena crossed her arms and scowled.
"Nothing." She muttered and walked away.
"Leena, wait!" Harry hastened after her.
"Poor guy." Jamie said, as he handed Brad a tool. "He has no idea what he's gotten into."
"Not many of us do." Brad sighed, thinking of Naomi. Shaking his head, he got back to work on Jamie's Raynos.
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I know, I know. Once again, not the best place to break off. I wrote this without thinking about how to divide it into chapters, so sometimes it falls in a lousy way. . Gomen, gomen.
And now for the monster Author's Notes…
Mookie – Thank you for your comments! Really? Oops, heh, heh. I could have sworn I heard Liger referred to as an Organoid at least once…oh well. My gosh, it is! Lol, that's funny, considering that was the first eppy I had ever seen. I don't think Mary is a "complete-you-know-what" either. I really hate it when people don't take time to think about her character and just portray her as a major ditz or as a huge b****. Oh really? I knew that the guy who played Harry also played Quatre (He plays Mousse from Ranma ½ too…^__^). What are the other two?
Thunderstorm – Thank you very much. I will, of course, give you credit for the armor…if I can figure out a way for Bit to have it.
December – lol, that's what my friend said. Shayna did a lot of Bit's characterization, because, to tell the truth, I had a really hard time getting into his head for some reason. You don't have to worry about that, December. I'm getting pretty good at making realistic OC's and I don't think I've had one that is perfect. I try really hard to present them as realistic, 3D people. But if I ever stray, I know I have a lot of people who will point that out and make me fix it. ^__^ And just so you are wondering, Jade isn't supposed to be me, even though we share the same name. I did base a few of her traits on myself (such as being moody, hee, hee) and I based her relationship with Kirin on the relationship me and my brother share, but that's about it.
Wolfcking – Wow! You reviewed! I'm so excited that you like it. Really? Thanx! I was a little worried about characterization…I really have only seen about five of the episodes, but my friend had seen two that I hadn't seen and my brother had seen three that I hadn't seen, so between the three of us, I think we were able to come up with something. (didn't confuse you there, did I?) Yeah, I usually am pretty good with background/scenery description, but it didn't flow into this fic for some reason. I think it gets better towards the end. I'm really glad you like my OC's!
Firestorm – Er, I'm not sure now if I'll even being using any new armor for Bit. I just don't think it will fit in. Both you and Thunderstorm had really good ideas tho! I couldn't really choose.