Chapter 8
Party foods?
It was an exciting day, or at least it should have been. It was Reika's engagement
party. It felt a little wrong celebrating when she had such doubts, but
she figured that the party couldn't hurt. Besides, it was a gift to
Motoki.
It was a little of surprise when Mamoru Chiba offered to host the party. He
and his girlfriend Usagi planned everything...all she had to do was present
the two with a guest list. They were even understanding when she called
them two days ago to add three to her list. Admittedly, she was a little
worried about how it would turn out when it was decided it would be at the
arcade...and that they weren't going to use outside caterers. Now she
realized that all of her fears were unfounded. The arcade actually looked
classy after all the decorating...and Makoto's food was amazing. 'Maybe
I should get her to cook for the wedding too,' Reika smiled to herself.
She looked across the room. Motoki was surrounded by friends, still
receiving congratulations. He looked so happy. Reika eyes clouded briefly.
Since he seemed so happy, so sure, she hadn't been able to talk to him
about her doubts. Obviously she must have had them for awhile.
How else could she have just up and gone to Africa for a year? None of the other
couples she knew would have split for that long. She sighed. She really
hated the feelings of doubt and guilt she'd been having lately. And
then there were her dreams.
The dreams were getting weirder. In her dreams she saw all kinds of people,
even Mamoru...in the oddest outfits, one in particular that seemed familiar
beyond her dreams. She thought she had seen it while in Africa...but that
wasn't what disturbed her the most. What disturbed her was that Motoki was
nowhere in these dreams. It was like she was dreaming that she was about
to marry someone else. What did that mean for her wedding plans today?
As Reika was about to go seek out her maid of honor so that she could
talk to someone and ignore these feelings for awhile, she noticed that
the arcade door opened and in walked May...although with two guys.
Reika crossed the room and hugged her new friend, "May! I'm glad you
could make it."
The other woman smiled, "Hey, I couldn't refuse this invitation. I love
parties. And weddings are exciting!"
"And stressful," Reika added. "These two men with you must be your
cousins."
"Yes, forgive me for not introducing them sooner. This is Terry and
Yusuke."
Reika looked at the two people with May...who looked nothing like her.
"They must really be distant."
"My family is American military," May said. "They tend to intermarry
a lot."
"It is nice to meet you. Congratulations on your engagment," Terry
said as he smiled and handed Reika a dozen roses. Yusuke just stood there,
looking very uncomfortable.
"Thank you," Reika smiled.
"As you can see, of my two cousins, Terry was the one that received
'home training'" May laughed.
"Hey!" Yusuke objected.
"So, can we meet the lucky guy?" Terry asked.
"Um..." Reika looked over her shoulder. Motoki was still very occupied.
"He's completely surrounded at the moment, and I'd hate to interrupt."
"That's okay," May assured her. "We can meet him later." She looked
around, "It looks like you've done a lot of work for this party. I'm
impressed."
"Oh, I can't take credit for that," Reika admitted. "One of my fiance's
friends planned this whole thing with his girlfriend. I just had to
show up." Reika laughed.
"Think you could get them to plan your whole wedding?" May laughed.
"Don't I wish!" Reika answered.
Reika probably would have continued if a dark haired young man hadn't
walked up to her just then. "Reika-san, Motoki sent me to check on you.
How are you enjoying the party?"
"It's great. Thank you so much for doing this for us."
The young man smiled, "You're welcome. Usagi and Makoto loved working on
it away. It was all they could talk about for weeks."
"Actually, Mamoru," Reika said, stopping him before he could leave, "there
are some people I'd like you to meet. Mamoru, this is May and her
cousins, Terry and Yusuke," Reika began, pointing out the other people
with her. "They were my last minute additions to the guest list, but May
has helped me so much since I met her that I couldn't not invite her."
Reika said a few other things, but the four people around her didn't notice.
May stared at the young man, not really believing her eyes, or her luck. 'I
found him. I found the oldest son. I didn't think he'd be here. Hoped, but
didn't think. I may be able to pull this off in less than a week after all.'
Mamoru was also staring at the group in front of him. None of them
appeared to be from anywhere around Toyko, but two of them looked a lot
like him, especially the teen on the right, the one introduced as Terry.
He remembered Setsuna's warning about strangers, but he couldn't help
wondering, 'Who are these people, and why do two of them look so much like
me?'
Terry was staring at the man in front of him, who could almost be a mirror
image. Shocked as he was, he uttered one of his thoughts aloud, "You
have got to be kidding me." He turned to May, "It's like looking into
a mirror."
"Or seeing double," that came from Yusuke, who seemed - for once - as
stunned as everyone else.
May had decided that now that she had met the oldest son, she had to keep his
interest. To do that, May decided to play dirty, even though her conscience
bristled at the idea of the lie she was about to tell. Noticing that Reika
hadn't used Mamoru's last name when she introduced him, May decided to fall
back on some of the "basic knowledge" she had about her latest target.
She just hoped his curiousity got him to talk to her. She addressed Mamoru,
"Your last name wouldn't happen to be Chiba, would it?"
Mamoru stared at May, "Well...yes, it is. But what-"
"Oh, I'm sorry," May summoned up a blush. "It is a little rude to ask and
I'm sure that it's just wishful thinking on my part, but-" May broke off
and looked down at the floor while twisting her hands. Out of the corner
of her eye, she noticed that Yusuke was staring at her like she was crazy...
But Terry had figured out what she was doing, "May, I know you are still
hoping after all these years, but you have to face it. They are gone; it
was a senseless accident. Yes, it is odd that he looks so much like me,
but that doesn't mean-"
"Accident? What accident?" Mamoru asked as he took the bait.
"A long time ago, my aunt was here in Japan, visiting one of her brothers,
my uncle Colin, that was serving in the US army base in Japan. While
here she met the love of her life. She married...against the wishes of
many in my family. They forgave her when she had her first child, a
son. One rainy night, they were on the way to the airport, my cousin,
her husband, and their son. They were coming to the US for a family
reunion...but there was an accident." May made her voice break off.
"My family didn't know what happened for about a week. When we finally found
out, we were told that they were all gone. And here you are, with the
same last name, looking so much like Terry and-" May stopped...and
forced herself to shake.
Terry, understanding the game, gave May a hug, "She was five at the
time. She loved her Aunt Terra. And she always hoped, since she was
told they were 'gone' and not 'dead', but....We are sorry."
May pulled herself together, "I'm sorry. You probably think I'm a little
crazy." She smiled, "Hey, at least you have a funny story to tell your
parents about the psycho foreigner who thought she was related-" May
stopped as she saw her quarry's face. "Um...are you alright?"
Mamoru said very quietly, "My parents are dead."
"Oh, oh I'm sorry," May contrived to look embarassed (and not guilty) at
this statement, "Now I'm prying and insensitive. I really am sorry; I
didn't-"
"They died in a car accident, a long time ago when I was a little boy."
Terry touched his arm in sympathy, which he didn't have to fake, "My father was
murdered recently. It hurts like hell to lose a parent. Sometimes the
memories just haunt you," Terry finished as his voice dropped off.
If anything, Mamoru's eyes got bleaker, "I was in the accident with them,
but I don't remember anything that happened in the accident or before. If
I had known about other family, I wouldn't have known to contact them," the
young man said quietly.
At this point, May didn't have to fake the tears in her eyes. But these
weren't the hopeful tears that Mamoru and Reika would assume they were; these
were tears of guilt. 'I'm bringing up old pain, pretending that I have a
solution that I don't. I'm really hurting him here. I almost hope he
doesn't make the connection that I'm angling for. Maybe we could all just
comfort each other because we've all felt death,' She looked at her hands,
and then at Yusuke, 'In one way or the other.' "I'm really sorry for
bringing this up," May started. "It is obviously painful for you. I-"
May floundered for a moment.
But Mamoru filled the pause with a question, "Do you...do you have a picture
of your Aunt Terra and her husband? Maybe one with their son? I know it
sounds odd-"
May just nodded as tears ran down her face, 'I'll make one,' she thought
to herself. 'I'll make one if it stops your pain. I'm sorry. I will
be able to offer you a family, but not the one you are seeking here. I'm so
sorry.' May realized that she needed time, both to backpeddle and to try
to think of a way to fix the mess she just created. She remembered Reika
was still standing there, "Oh, Reika, I'm sorry. Here I am, crying and
making everyone upset at your party." She turned to Mamoru, "We should
probably finish this discussion later." May wiped her eyes, "I really do
want to talk to you so more. Getting some answers, finally, after all
these years...it's worth the effort...and the fact that I've completely
wrecked my make-up."
Everyone in the group smiled. Mamoru, looking both shell-shocked and
hopeful, nodded. They began to arrange a time and place to meet. And,
although Pluto's warning still rang in his hand, he decided he needed
answers more. Answers that Pluto wasn't providing.
*****
As he thanked another person for their well-wishes, a voice next to him
said, "It's great to see you so happy. Liking the party so far?"
Motoki turned to see Usagi standing next to him, with a pretty big smile
on her face. "Yes. It was really nice of you and Mamoru to do this for
me and Reika. And Makoto's cooking is amazing."
"I'm glad you're having fun. And I'm glad I haven't tripped in these
heels yet. Of course, I'll also be glad when the arcade is back to
normal. I miss playing the Sailor V game."
Motoki laughed, "The more things change the more they stay the same.
Still the same Usagi. Don't ever change."
Usagi's smiled dimmed a little, "I could probably be a little more
mature and sophisicated. I mean, I'd hate to embarass Mamo- I mean-
I'd hate to embarass people around me."
Motoki turned to her, "Usagi, you don't embarass any of us, not really.
You have the biggest heart in the world and an innocence most of us
would love to have back. We all love you, especially Mamoru. Don't
worry so," he finished. Then, after a pause, he asked, "Has Mamoru
said anything that made you think-"
"No, no." Usagi reassured the man who was like the older brother she
never had. "I just think sometimes that he'd be happier with someone
who was older and more mature and smarter than I am. If it wasn't for-"
she stopped suddenly, remembering who she was talking to, but, after
a pause, she finished the thought with, "I just wonder if things had
been different, if he would have picked me."
"Usagi," Motoki began, "I have never seen Mamoru happier, more in
touch with the world than when he is with you. Before you he was
so closed off from everyone, including me. I used to worry about
him a lot. Yes, when you first met, it wasn't smooth sailing,
due mostly to Mamoru's hang-ups. But you saw beyond that and
hung in there. He needs you." The blond smiled, "Someday,
Reika and I will be planning one of these for you, okay?" At Usagi's
nod, Motoki said, "Why don't we go find your boyfriend and my
fiancee, okay?"
The two began to look around the room for the most important people
in their lives. After looking around for a few minutes, Usagi spotted
Mamoru walking her direction...and she also saw two people who looked
familar. Her eyes widened as she recognized the two guys she met in
the arcade a few days ago. Remembering Pluto's warning, Usagi made a
mental note to call another senshi meeting and tell them about this
occurance. Those two men might be dangerous.
As Mamoru approached them he seemed to force a smile that didn't reach
his eyes. Motoki was too happy to notice, but Usagi did...and wondered
what had happened that caused his eyes to be so sad. "Hey Motoki. Finally
got away from the crowd of well-wishers?" Mamoru asked as he put an arm
around Usagi.
"Hey, there are worst things to be caught in. Speaking of well-wishers,
have you seen my fiancee, the reason that I'm receiving all of these
congratulations?"
"Yeah. She's by the door, talking to her friend May. I just left them."
"Great. Thanks." Motoki said as he left his friends to meet up with
his fiance.
After Motoki left, Mamoru finally looked down at Usagi. He was debating
with himself about how much to tell her about the conversation he just
had, when he noticed the look on Usagi's face, "What's wrong, Usako?"
Usagi mentally shook herself. Maybe she shouldn't burden him with her
fears just yet, she might be overreacting. She'd just keep an eye on
him the rest of the night and tell the others about it in the morning...
after she talked to Luna. She forced herself to brighten. "Nothing, I just
missed you," she said as she gave her boyfriend a big hug. And she
added to herself, 'And I was worried that you'd be taken from me...either
by what plans these strangers have or by your realization that I may not
be what you want.' Usagi tightened her hold on her boyfriend, 'After
all we been through, I'm still very afraid of losing you.'
-to be continued-
I only have one word to say: ethics, ethics, ethics. Without them,
even the best of intentions don't yield the good we wish. Should
be interesting to see how May gets herself out of this one.
And I have another word: sorry. I know it has been a long wait for
this chapter, and it may be a longer wait for the next one. The
up-swing of this is that I'm editing and improving on the story.
An improved chapter three will also be available this week. Please
let me know what you think of everything.
Thanks for reading
~December
Party foods?
It was an exciting day, or at least it should have been. It was Reika's engagement
party. It felt a little wrong celebrating when she had such doubts, but
she figured that the party couldn't hurt. Besides, it was a gift to
Motoki.
It was a little of surprise when Mamoru Chiba offered to host the party. He
and his girlfriend Usagi planned everything...all she had to do was present
the two with a guest list. They were even understanding when she called
them two days ago to add three to her list. Admittedly, she was a little
worried about how it would turn out when it was decided it would be at the
arcade...and that they weren't going to use outside caterers. Now she
realized that all of her fears were unfounded. The arcade actually looked
classy after all the decorating...and Makoto's food was amazing. 'Maybe
I should get her to cook for the wedding too,' Reika smiled to herself.
She looked across the room. Motoki was surrounded by friends, still
receiving congratulations. He looked so happy. Reika eyes clouded briefly.
Since he seemed so happy, so sure, she hadn't been able to talk to him
about her doubts. Obviously she must have had them for awhile.
How else could she have just up and gone to Africa for a year? None of the other
couples she knew would have split for that long. She sighed. She really
hated the feelings of doubt and guilt she'd been having lately. And
then there were her dreams.
The dreams were getting weirder. In her dreams she saw all kinds of people,
even Mamoru...in the oddest outfits, one in particular that seemed familiar
beyond her dreams. She thought she had seen it while in Africa...but that
wasn't what disturbed her the most. What disturbed her was that Motoki was
nowhere in these dreams. It was like she was dreaming that she was about
to marry someone else. What did that mean for her wedding plans today?
As Reika was about to go seek out her maid of honor so that she could
talk to someone and ignore these feelings for awhile, she noticed that
the arcade door opened and in walked May...although with two guys.
Reika crossed the room and hugged her new friend, "May! I'm glad you
could make it."
The other woman smiled, "Hey, I couldn't refuse this invitation. I love
parties. And weddings are exciting!"
"And stressful," Reika added. "These two men with you must be your
cousins."
"Yes, forgive me for not introducing them sooner. This is Terry and
Yusuke."
Reika looked at the two people with May...who looked nothing like her.
"They must really be distant."
"My family is American military," May said. "They tend to intermarry
a lot."
"It is nice to meet you. Congratulations on your engagment," Terry
said as he smiled and handed Reika a dozen roses. Yusuke just stood there,
looking very uncomfortable.
"Thank you," Reika smiled.
"As you can see, of my two cousins, Terry was the one that received
'home training'" May laughed.
"Hey!" Yusuke objected.
"So, can we meet the lucky guy?" Terry asked.
"Um..." Reika looked over her shoulder. Motoki was still very occupied.
"He's completely surrounded at the moment, and I'd hate to interrupt."
"That's okay," May assured her. "We can meet him later." She looked
around, "It looks like you've done a lot of work for this party. I'm
impressed."
"Oh, I can't take credit for that," Reika admitted. "One of my fiance's
friends planned this whole thing with his girlfriend. I just had to
show up." Reika laughed.
"Think you could get them to plan your whole wedding?" May laughed.
"Don't I wish!" Reika answered.
Reika probably would have continued if a dark haired young man hadn't
walked up to her just then. "Reika-san, Motoki sent me to check on you.
How are you enjoying the party?"
"It's great. Thank you so much for doing this for us."
The young man smiled, "You're welcome. Usagi and Makoto loved working on
it away. It was all they could talk about for weeks."
"Actually, Mamoru," Reika said, stopping him before he could leave, "there
are some people I'd like you to meet. Mamoru, this is May and her
cousins, Terry and Yusuke," Reika began, pointing out the other people
with her. "They were my last minute additions to the guest list, but May
has helped me so much since I met her that I couldn't not invite her."
Reika said a few other things, but the four people around her didn't notice.
May stared at the young man, not really believing her eyes, or her luck. 'I
found him. I found the oldest son. I didn't think he'd be here. Hoped, but
didn't think. I may be able to pull this off in less than a week after all.'
Mamoru was also staring at the group in front of him. None of them
appeared to be from anywhere around Toyko, but two of them looked a lot
like him, especially the teen on the right, the one introduced as Terry.
He remembered Setsuna's warning about strangers, but he couldn't help
wondering, 'Who are these people, and why do two of them look so much like
me?'
Terry was staring at the man in front of him, who could almost be a mirror
image. Shocked as he was, he uttered one of his thoughts aloud, "You
have got to be kidding me." He turned to May, "It's like looking into
a mirror."
"Or seeing double," that came from Yusuke, who seemed - for once - as
stunned as everyone else.
May had decided that now that she had met the oldest son, she had to keep his
interest. To do that, May decided to play dirty, even though her conscience
bristled at the idea of the lie she was about to tell. Noticing that Reika
hadn't used Mamoru's last name when she introduced him, May decided to fall
back on some of the "basic knowledge" she had about her latest target.
She just hoped his curiousity got him to talk to her. She addressed Mamoru,
"Your last name wouldn't happen to be Chiba, would it?"
Mamoru stared at May, "Well...yes, it is. But what-"
"Oh, I'm sorry," May summoned up a blush. "It is a little rude to ask and
I'm sure that it's just wishful thinking on my part, but-" May broke off
and looked down at the floor while twisting her hands. Out of the corner
of her eye, she noticed that Yusuke was staring at her like she was crazy...
But Terry had figured out what she was doing, "May, I know you are still
hoping after all these years, but you have to face it. They are gone; it
was a senseless accident. Yes, it is odd that he looks so much like me,
but that doesn't mean-"
"Accident? What accident?" Mamoru asked as he took the bait.
"A long time ago, my aunt was here in Japan, visiting one of her brothers,
my uncle Colin, that was serving in the US army base in Japan. While
here she met the love of her life. She married...against the wishes of
many in my family. They forgave her when she had her first child, a
son. One rainy night, they were on the way to the airport, my cousin,
her husband, and their son. They were coming to the US for a family
reunion...but there was an accident." May made her voice break off.
"My family didn't know what happened for about a week. When we finally found
out, we were told that they were all gone. And here you are, with the
same last name, looking so much like Terry and-" May stopped...and
forced herself to shake.
Terry, understanding the game, gave May a hug, "She was five at the
time. She loved her Aunt Terra. And she always hoped, since she was
told they were 'gone' and not 'dead', but....We are sorry."
May pulled herself together, "I'm sorry. You probably think I'm a little
crazy." She smiled, "Hey, at least you have a funny story to tell your
parents about the psycho foreigner who thought she was related-" May
stopped as she saw her quarry's face. "Um...are you alright?"
Mamoru said very quietly, "My parents are dead."
"Oh, oh I'm sorry," May contrived to look embarassed (and not guilty) at
this statement, "Now I'm prying and insensitive. I really am sorry; I
didn't-"
"They died in a car accident, a long time ago when I was a little boy."
Terry touched his arm in sympathy, which he didn't have to fake, "My father was
murdered recently. It hurts like hell to lose a parent. Sometimes the
memories just haunt you," Terry finished as his voice dropped off.
If anything, Mamoru's eyes got bleaker, "I was in the accident with them,
but I don't remember anything that happened in the accident or before. If
I had known about other family, I wouldn't have known to contact them," the
young man said quietly.
At this point, May didn't have to fake the tears in her eyes. But these
weren't the hopeful tears that Mamoru and Reika would assume they were; these
were tears of guilt. 'I'm bringing up old pain, pretending that I have a
solution that I don't. I'm really hurting him here. I almost hope he
doesn't make the connection that I'm angling for. Maybe we could all just
comfort each other because we've all felt death,' She looked at her hands,
and then at Yusuke, 'In one way or the other.' "I'm really sorry for
bringing this up," May started. "It is obviously painful for you. I-"
May floundered for a moment.
But Mamoru filled the pause with a question, "Do you...do you have a picture
of your Aunt Terra and her husband? Maybe one with their son? I know it
sounds odd-"
May just nodded as tears ran down her face, 'I'll make one,' she thought
to herself. 'I'll make one if it stops your pain. I'm sorry. I will
be able to offer you a family, but not the one you are seeking here. I'm so
sorry.' May realized that she needed time, both to backpeddle and to try
to think of a way to fix the mess she just created. She remembered Reika
was still standing there, "Oh, Reika, I'm sorry. Here I am, crying and
making everyone upset at your party." She turned to Mamoru, "We should
probably finish this discussion later." May wiped her eyes, "I really do
want to talk to you so more. Getting some answers, finally, after all
these years...it's worth the effort...and the fact that I've completely
wrecked my make-up."
Everyone in the group smiled. Mamoru, looking both shell-shocked and
hopeful, nodded. They began to arrange a time and place to meet. And,
although Pluto's warning still rang in his hand, he decided he needed
answers more. Answers that Pluto wasn't providing.
*****
As he thanked another person for their well-wishes, a voice next to him
said, "It's great to see you so happy. Liking the party so far?"
Motoki turned to see Usagi standing next to him, with a pretty big smile
on her face. "Yes. It was really nice of you and Mamoru to do this for
me and Reika. And Makoto's cooking is amazing."
"I'm glad you're having fun. And I'm glad I haven't tripped in these
heels yet. Of course, I'll also be glad when the arcade is back to
normal. I miss playing the Sailor V game."
Motoki laughed, "The more things change the more they stay the same.
Still the same Usagi. Don't ever change."
Usagi's smiled dimmed a little, "I could probably be a little more
mature and sophisicated. I mean, I'd hate to embarass Mamo- I mean-
I'd hate to embarass people around me."
Motoki turned to her, "Usagi, you don't embarass any of us, not really.
You have the biggest heart in the world and an innocence most of us
would love to have back. We all love you, especially Mamoru. Don't
worry so," he finished. Then, after a pause, he asked, "Has Mamoru
said anything that made you think-"
"No, no." Usagi reassured the man who was like the older brother she
never had. "I just think sometimes that he'd be happier with someone
who was older and more mature and smarter than I am. If it wasn't for-"
she stopped suddenly, remembering who she was talking to, but, after
a pause, she finished the thought with, "I just wonder if things had
been different, if he would have picked me."
"Usagi," Motoki began, "I have never seen Mamoru happier, more in
touch with the world than when he is with you. Before you he was
so closed off from everyone, including me. I used to worry about
him a lot. Yes, when you first met, it wasn't smooth sailing,
due mostly to Mamoru's hang-ups. But you saw beyond that and
hung in there. He needs you." The blond smiled, "Someday,
Reika and I will be planning one of these for you, okay?" At Usagi's
nod, Motoki said, "Why don't we go find your boyfriend and my
fiancee, okay?"
The two began to look around the room for the most important people
in their lives. After looking around for a few minutes, Usagi spotted
Mamoru walking her direction...and she also saw two people who looked
familar. Her eyes widened as she recognized the two guys she met in
the arcade a few days ago. Remembering Pluto's warning, Usagi made a
mental note to call another senshi meeting and tell them about this
occurance. Those two men might be dangerous.
As Mamoru approached them he seemed to force a smile that didn't reach
his eyes. Motoki was too happy to notice, but Usagi did...and wondered
what had happened that caused his eyes to be so sad. "Hey Motoki. Finally
got away from the crowd of well-wishers?" Mamoru asked as he put an arm
around Usagi.
"Hey, there are worst things to be caught in. Speaking of well-wishers,
have you seen my fiancee, the reason that I'm receiving all of these
congratulations?"
"Yeah. She's by the door, talking to her friend May. I just left them."
"Great. Thanks." Motoki said as he left his friends to meet up with
his fiance.
After Motoki left, Mamoru finally looked down at Usagi. He was debating
with himself about how much to tell her about the conversation he just
had, when he noticed the look on Usagi's face, "What's wrong, Usako?"
Usagi mentally shook herself. Maybe she shouldn't burden him with her
fears just yet, she might be overreacting. She'd just keep an eye on
him the rest of the night and tell the others about it in the morning...
after she talked to Luna. She forced herself to brighten. "Nothing, I just
missed you," she said as she gave her boyfriend a big hug. And she
added to herself, 'And I was worried that you'd be taken from me...either
by what plans these strangers have or by your realization that I may not
be what you want.' Usagi tightened her hold on her boyfriend, 'After
all we been through, I'm still very afraid of losing you.'
-to be continued-
I only have one word to say: ethics, ethics, ethics. Without them,
even the best of intentions don't yield the good we wish. Should
be interesting to see how May gets herself out of this one.
And I have another word: sorry. I know it has been a long wait for
this chapter, and it may be a longer wait for the next one. The
up-swing of this is that I'm editing and improving on the story.
An improved chapter three will also be available this week. Please
let me know what you think of everything.
Thanks for reading
~December