Chapter XXV: Expressions
(I think we're about due for another disclaimer: I do not own the PSO setting, trademarks, or NPCs. I just develop them more than Sega bothered to. And most of the characters in this story are of my creation, except Isis, who is from Pioneer Alley.)
Isis stood in front of the class, now that Galactica's mother had finished her impressive presentation. There were several more people than usual, because it was a special day. "Very good. Bring…Mother to School Day is off to a good start."
"Who would like to go next?" Galactica asked. "Just follow my mother's example."
Misha's mother giddily raised her hand and called out, "Ooh, ooh! I do! I do!" Pick me! Pick me!" She wore a dark grey schoolgirl dress over a sky blue blouse with a white collar and miniature red tie. Her hair was tied in a ponytail with a burgundy ribbon.
"Oh boy," Misha muttered.
"Alright, Mrs. Kuhra," Galactica said, never seeing an adult act like this before. "Just settle down first."
"Oh, sorry!" she said, hopping from her seat. She dashed clumsily to the front of the class, accidentally knocking Misha out of her seat in the process. "Okay, hi everybody. My name's Starr Kuhra, Misha's mom. I'm 13 years old, about 5 feet and 7 inches, um…135 pounds, um…my blood type is…uh…AB…I think."
Galactica looked uncomfortable and said, "Perhaps you would like to tell us about your career, hobbies, or give the students some of your…er, wisdom?"
"Oh, okay," Starr complied. "Let's see…Right now, I'm a Ranger in the Hunters Guild and I'm supposed to be the only Newman Ranger on the entire ship and I'm called a RAnewearl, but I used to be a police officer on Motavia, but me and my partner got fired for um…what did they call it…something about being gross and incompo-something, but I don't remember doing anything gross at all…unless it was that time I ate all those powdered donuts and got sick…"
"Why am I here again?" Cloud whispered to Taya.
"Because today's Bring Your Mother to School Day," she whispered back.
"I'm not even your legal guardian," he complained. "Isn't Xero supposed to be here for this?"
"Wenji said he'd be here tomorrow for Bring Your Father to School Day," she replied. "He said you're the closest person to being my mother." Cloud began to grumble to himself about Xero attacking his masculinity.
Meanwhile, Starr continued to ramble mindlessly. "…and then there was that time I crashed the entire network at the office after I spilled coffee on my computer, or that time me and Junko got caught kissing…"
"Um, that'll do," Galactica said, feeling very uncomfortable by now.
Misha snapped out of her daydreaming when she heard that last part and wondered, "Who's Junko?"
Yami had been sent back to the Caves to maintain security. It was inevitable that more monsters would appear over time. She was somewhat disgusted that they had sent her on such an errand. This was all to be in preparation for the exploration of the newly discovered Mines. A transporter had finally been successfully launched and it was expected to be in quite a bit of use for a while. Until the flow of adventurous hunters slowed a bit, she would be stuck with this job for a while.
It did not help her mood that she was in Caves 1, which was filled with fire and lava. She entered the designated area and decided to stop. She leaned on her scythe, pulled her hat off, and began to fan herself. It had been long apparent that Force clothing was not made for such hot conditions. The moment she closed her eyes to relax, the teleporting sound went off and she found herself surrounded by Evil Sharks. She sighed and raised her scythe. Before she could swing, a chain of electricity fried the sharks all around her. She turned around and looked toward the door. Chronos was standing there with his hand outstretched from casting the technique.
"Are you okay?" he asked, stepping forward. "I hope I wasn't too late."
"Oh, I'm perfectly fine," she smiled, unconsciously returning to fanning herself with her hat. "I appreciate your assistance."
"Megumi?" he asked, raising his eyebrow. "Is that you?"
"…Um, yes," she said, hesitating. "For now though, call me Yami. What are you doing down here?"
"Nothing in particular," he shrugged. "Just treasure-hunting, I suppose."
"Quite a place to choose," she huffed, fanning herself faster and leaning on her scythe. "Perhaps you would like to come with me to a more pleasant area?"
"I certainly wouldn't mind," he said, releasing a small cloud of cool air around her.
As Misha and her mother rode home in the hovercar, the only sound was that of blaringly loud J-pop. The thought of Junko was the only thing on Misha's mind, while her mother mentally went through her driving training. Finally, Misha turned off the music. Her mother didn't seem to notice, focusing on the traffic.
"Mommy," she said quietly.
"Mmhmm?" her mother replied.
"Who's Junko?"
"We were partners on the force, back when we were police," Starr answered. "I think I said that in class…or did I?" As her mind drifted into thought, she had to suddenly swerve to stay in the lane. "Sorry about that! Um, anyway…we've been dating for a while."
"Dating!" Misha exclaimed. "What about Daddy?"
"Oh," Starr said, realizing what the problem was. "I'm sorry, Misha…but it doesn't seem like we're going to see Daddy again."
"So you're replacing him!" Misha asked.
"Well, yes…I mean no! No!" her mother panicked. "Uh, what I'm trying to say is I loved your father and no one can replace him."
"Except Junko."
"That's right, except Junko," her mother nodded approvingly. "…No, wait! That's not right! Absolutely no one can replace your father…but you'll like Junko. We've been best friends forever…We're just taking the next step." She glanced and saw an unhappy face on her daughter. "This is exactly what Junko said would happen. Maybe you two should meet. Besides, I'm sure Junko will be a much better person for Bring Your Father to School Day than your sister Daniela."
"Please tell me you did not just say Daniela was supposed to come in for me that day," Misha muttered.
"I didn't have a better idea at the time," Starr blushed. "And she doesn't have to know about it anymore, okay?"
After a few moments, Misha noticed that they were not going home. Instead, they stopped at a tall office building. "Mommy, where are we?"
"You're going to see a therapist," she said quietly and nervously. "Daniela said it would be a good idea, since you were so upset when you and Taya weren't talking."
"Oh, come on! Even if I did need a therapist, everything's fine now."
"But it's still a good idea to talk to a professional," her mother said cheerfully. "Besides, I already paid for the appointment."
Yami and Chronos walked quietly through the Caves 2, enjoying the serene surroundings and the ghostly jellyfish that disappeared into the walls.
"It's beautiful, isn't it?" he asked, staring at the semi-reflective walls.
"Very much so," she said, watching their reflection in the water. "Discounting the numerous hazards of the area, I find this place to be the most pleasant on Ragol so far. It's very…romantic."
"Uh…yes," Chronos said, reddening again.
Yami giggled and entwined her arm with his. "You're so bashful…I find it rather charming." They walked along until her ISL beeped.
"Is something wrong?" he asked. "Is there a trap?"
She looked at her ISL and frowned. She quickly typed a message into it and looked up at him. "Nothing more than spam."
"Here?"
"You know how annoying bored hunters can be," she said.
"Ah." They entered the next room, which was large, bright and contained several tall trees. There were several deep pools of water. Their quiet moment was disrupted by the appearance of a Grass Assassin.
"Allow me," Yami said, halting him. She extended her scythe underneath the creature blade-first and cut its belly open upon retracting it. With a mighty sweep of her blade, she knocked the entire beast into the water, letting it sink into the depths. "How was I?" she asked, turning back to Chronos in mid-stance.
"Brava," he clapped. "You're rather strong." When a flurry of teleporting photons appeared next to her she instantly sliced through them. When sharks appeared in their place, their upper halves slid off. "And quite fast."
"Thank you," she bowed. "I've been trained to act on my feet. There is almost nothing that I cannot handle."
"Oh, really?" he said, feeling unusually mischievous. "What about that Poison Lily over there?"
"What?" she said, turning around instantly. He gave her a gentle shove from behind with his blue Pole. She attempted to turn around as soon as the Pole touched her, but ended up stumbling into one of the ponds with a splash.
"Ha, ha, I'm sorry," he chuckled. "I couldn't resist."
She resurfaced and began to thrash and splash about in a panicked fashion. "Help! I can't swim!"
"Oh, that's a good one!" he laughed. "Even someone who couldn't swim would be able to reach a ledge two feet away."
"I'm not joking!" she screamed, beginning to be overtaken by the surface. "I…can't…swim!"
"Alright, that's enough," he chuckled. "Here, I'll help you." He outreached his Pole to her. At this point, she was too far under to reach it, despite her continued struggling. He became concerned when she did not resurface for seconds that seemed to be moving by too quickly. "Megumi?" There was no answer, except for the bubbles rising to the surface. Without another thought, he jumped into the water and swam downward. It was dark underwater, but there was just enough light to see her slowing form. He grabbed onto her and pulled her to the surface. He pushed her onto the ledge and got out himself. She coughed and hacked and finally lay on her back, panting.
"Megumi, I'm so sorry!" he said, kneeling beside her. "If I had known that you couldn't swim…"
She grabbed his collar, silencing him, and sat up to stare him in the eye. Then, she kissed him on each cheek and embraced him. "Thank you."
"But Megumi," he argued. "It was my fault. I shouldn't have…"
She placed a finger on his lips and smiled gently. "It was all in good fun. Besides, how were you to know I couldn't swim?"
"You're taking this awfully well after nearly drowning," he frowned.
"My dear, there's something strangely…stimulating about having your life saved by the one you love…even if he was the person who put you in danger."
"I still feel the need to apologize," he said guiltily.
She smiled placidly. "So full of humility. If you feel such a strong need to apologize, would you do so by holding me?"
"I…suppose," he blushed, carefully wrapping his arms around her.
"I love it when you blush," she sighed, burying her head into his chest and closing her eyes.
"That's nearly the same thing Mina said," he spoke.
"We obviously have similar interests," she said serenely. There was a moment of silence as they sat together. Chronos was actually enjoying their quiet moment and stroked her hair gently. He was quite impressed with the consistency of the redness that started near the tips of her otherwise jet-black hair. It had been quite some time since he was last with a woman in this manner. The added thought of the look on his brother's face if he were to see Chronos brought a smile to his face.
Suddenly, their peace was disrupted by the panicked cry of a female's voice on Yami's ISL. "Mistress Xi'san! If you're down here, please respond! Lady Loris is in trouble!" Yami snapped her eyes open, broke away from Chronos, and tapped her ISL.
"I'm here, Fina!" she said urgently, getting up. "What happened?" Chronos rose up, listening in.
"You must come quickly to Regalia!" the android yelled. "Lady Loris has been kidnapped!"
"Regalia?" Chronos said. "Isn't that the Dezolan-owned brothel? And who is Loris?"
Yami set a Telepipe and stepped inside. "She's my sister. I have to go now." She disappeared before Chronos could say anything more.
"And why did she call you Xi'san?" he asked aloud. That name had carried a very bad reputation on Dezoris. That worried him a bit, but he decided to not think about it too much, hoping it was a harmless nickname.
Misha sat on the couch, pouting in the quiet therapist's room. The burgundy room looked like a cross between an office and a miniature library. There were shelves of books and CDs on two of the four walls. All of the corners were concealed with decorative items like plants, small statues, or even a lamp. Behind the therapist's desk and chair was a large curtained window that simulated sunlight and a quiet suburban town outside. The therapist himself, Dr. Par, sat in his large chair, taking notes.
"So, Misha," he began, adjusting his glasses. "Do you know why your family brought you here?"
"Because I got a little upset over not seeing my best friend for a while," she frowned.
"Is that what you think?" he asked. "Or is that sarcasm I'm hearing?"
"Alright, what am I here for?" she asked, getting annoyed.
"You're here because your family is a bit concerned about your mental health."
"So, they think I'm crazy."
"No, not at all," he said a little too calmly for her liking. "You said you were upset over not seeing your friend for a while. How long was it?"
"At least a week," she answered.
"With absolutely no contact?"
"Well, we saw each other at school," Misha admitted, "but she wouldn't talk to me."
"You certainly seem to be doing better now."
"That's because we're together again," Misha said proudly. "She came over to my house and we made up. Simple as that."
"What was the issue?" he asked. Misha remained silent and made it obvious that she did not plan to answer that. "I see. So, it's a secret."
"Something wrong with that?" Misha asked irritably.
"Of course not," he smiled. "It's not unusual at all for close friends to keep secrets amongst themselves. Would you mind telling me a little about your friend?"
"There's not much to say," Misha said flatly.
"Just tell me as much as you want to," he said, scribbling into his pad. "You could start with a name and what this person is like."
"Her name's Taya," Misha answered. "She's a newearl about my age, but shorter with cerulean hair and eyes. She's the nicest person I know and my best friend. We visit each other everyday. We've known each other since…almost before I can remember."
"I see," the therapist said, writing down a few more notes. "I would think it would take quite an effort on her part to avoid you. Tell me, was there a boy involved in this?"
"How did you know?" Misha asked, somewhat baffled.
"Many friendships are disrupted when a member of the opposite sex comes along," he explained. "It happens to boys and girls, men and women. So, do you know this boy?"
"Yeah, his name's Van," Misha sighed, rolling her eyes.
"Is there any friction between you two?"
"Oh, don't get me wrong," said Misha, brightening her tone. "Van's an okay guy. It's just that…the guy is so…so…boring. He's pretty quiet most of the time. He'll occasionally make a lame joke, but most of the time he's just his friend Jared's shadow. And I hate Jared. He's annoying, stupid, keeps calling me Kitty, and can't get it through his thick head that I don't like his dumb ass! Van's way better by comparison, but he's still pretty lame. I don't even know what Taya sees in him besides shyness…But I guess that's just her being the nice person that she is…Like when he first asked her, she didn't even hesitate to say yes…I don't know whether she actually likes him or she's just being nice…" She seemed saddened by that ambiguity.
"Interesting," he said, scribbling some more. "Have you met anyone you're interested in?"
"…No," Misha said, raising an eyebrow.
"Where do you see yourself in 10 years?" he asked.
"Oh, that's easy," Misha smiled for the first time in the office. "Me and Taya, world-famous hunters and best friends forever! Oh, and both of us with kids that know each other just as much as we know each other. It'll be great!"
"My, my, aren't we aspiring?" he said approvingly. "Any idea what kind of husbands you'll have?"
Misha seemed unprepared for that question. "Uh…no clue. I guess I could see Taya with Van, but…"
"What about you and Jared?" the therapist smiled jokingly.
"I can see a murder-suicide," Misha replied in a similar tone.
"I'm happy that you opened up to me as much as you did," he chuckled. "The more a patient tells me, the more I am able to help them. Since our time is about up for today, I'll send my full diagnosis, from what I've gathered so far, to your mother. What I can tell you is that you are simply experiencing a change of pace. Change is a part of growing up. A little acceptance and adjustment will suit you well. You've already started in the right direction by making amends with Taya. Just be mindful of the issue that you've decided not to share, as well as the possibility that Taya may need to spend some time with Van as well as you."
"Okay," Misha nodded, satisfied with his advice. "Thanks." She left the building and found her mother talking on an audio-only phone.
"Oh, don't worry so much Juny," Starr giggled. "She'll be fine with it…" Then, Misha caught her attention. "In fact, she's right here…What? What does 'antagonize' mean…? Really? Okay, fine. But I still can't wait to introduce you tomorrow. Love ya!" she said, clicking off the phone.
"Was that Junko?" Misha asked.
"Yep," Starr nodded. "So, how was the doctor?"
"He was okay," Misha said. "He said he'd send you the diagnosis."
"Good," her mother said. "Oh yeah, and Taya called earlier. She said she would meet you at Serenity's house."
"It's nice that everything's finally back to normal," Misha said, lounging into the car seat.
Notes: Well isn't she in for a nasty surprise… But let's do one thing at a time, shall we?
On the next focused episode of Sidestory: Loris has been kidnapped, along with several of her employees. Looks like the organization wasn't happy with her decision and plans to make use of her. It's up to Xi'san to rescue her sister. The ugliness of the underworld is revealed in "Risky Business." Every business decision has a risk…Only Toonami!
