AN: Welcome, Welcome! Welcome back to this little misadventure, anyone who's still out there reading this! I hope everyone out there is enjoying the misadventures of a young woman named after a fairy (though she lacks wings), a former baseball player (though it was only up until the high school level), and their mixed bunch of friends. I know I'm enjoying writing it! Well, most of the story's written but a lot of it is being put back together. I've lost copies of this story my times than I can count, especially this part, actually. Maybe there's something behind that! Some reason why this part of the story tends to disappear more often than any other part of this little misadventure. I don't know! Anywho, I hope you're all enjoying whatever it is you're up to! I'm bouncing between school, getting ready to take my Master's Exam, the fashion show my Girl Scout troop's planning, and, of course, dancing! Pretty please, let me know what you think about this chapter. I'm open to any and all comments….good, bad, or indifferent!

Disclaimer: I own nothing except the characters I made up and their Real World alter egos. I don't own The Matrix, The Animatrix, or any of that cool stuff. I'm broke and in graduate school studying biology. All I own are my Pointe shoes.

"It's a feeling like this

It's centrifugal motion

It's perpetual bliss

It's that pivotal moment

It's impossible

This kiss…" (from "This Kiss" by Faith Hill)

The young woman had to admit that spending the evening with her friends and adopted family was what she needed. It took her mind of off everything that had happened and made her smile. Well, except for the fact Aisling brought Conall along with her. That made her a bit nervous, to tell the truth.
P

ixie wasn't exactly sure where Aisling had met Conall since Pixie didn't recall ever hanging out with the boy during her days in the Academy. She had a vague memory or two of him, possibly, being in one or more of her classes but that was about it. She'd never talked to him or anything like that. Actually, unless she had friends in her class, Pixie rarely spoke to anyone in her lessons. She could never pluck up the courage to do so for some reason.

Either way, Conall seemed to have become a member of their little group by virtue of him, for lack of a better word, dating Aisling. They seemed to be a rather close pair, though, that was none of Pixie's concern. Aisling was a big girl; she could do as she pleased. Sure she was happy for her friend- just like Pixie figured Aisling would be happy for her if she did something great- it was just that Conall and Wheeler didn't seem to like each other.

Like each other as friends, anyway. Both seemed to annoy each other but, in Pixie's eyes, it was very unlike the tension between Hawk and Wheeler. Hawk and Wheeler just didn't get along because Wheeler didn't like how Hawk treated people and Hawk, well, he just didn't like Wheeler for some reason. This was different for some reason but Pixie couldn't put her finger on why. She just sort of knew it was, felt it in both her head and her gut.

Pixie was loath to have the night end but she knew it had to. Everyone had to get back to their own lives and their own jobs. Sitting back and having fun wasn't really the order of the day anymore. Everyone had responsibilities now.

"You don't really have to walk me back to my place Wheeler," Pixie protested, as they made their way along the catwalks that made up the sidewalks of Zion, "I know how to get home and I don't think anything's going to happen to me."

Everyone had parted ways outside of Rain's home, thanking her for the meal and promising to call her soon. Well, the latter was more Pixie than anyone else. After all, Rain had adopted her and Pixie figured she owed it to her mother-figure to stay in touch. It seemed like the kind and proper thing to do.

Though it was out of his way- Pixie knew that much was true- Wheeler had insisted that he had to walk her back. Normally, she didn't mind spending time with Wheeler. He was a good, true friend. She like talking to him about anything and everything. Everything including her past in the Matrix. She hadn't told him the whole story- Pixie still wasn't sure if she wanted to tell anyone about her entire past in the Matrix or just forget it and let it fade into her past. - but he knew more than the others. Her logical mind was screaming at her not to reveal too much of her past but, some other part of her mind, was telling her it was alright to share. Wheeler was a person she could trust and he wasn't going to use her past against her. What's more, he wouldn't tell the others what she told him. He'd kept her secrets safe.

Tonight, and mostly thanks to Chian's words and comments made during her time with Rain, Torrent, Eli and her friends, Pixie found herself uncomfortable around her friend. She was having trouble looking at him without blushing and, away from the noise and distractions her friends and adopted family provided, her mind went back to mulling over the ideas they'd planted there. Ideas that maybe, just maybe, Wheeler liked her as more than just a friend.

To Pixie, it seemed that they were taking the long way back to her home because the young woman felt they had been walking forever. It never took her this long to get back home. It might have just been her imagination, though, the fact it seemed to be taking so long to get back. This odd discomfort-that-wasn't-really-discomfort she was feeling was wreaking havoc in her head and causing an uncomfortable silence to grow between her and Wheeler.

"I'd forgotten that Rain was that good of a cook," Wheeler commented, breaking the silence between them, "Natasa was never that good of a cook. I remember back during our Academy days, I use to look forward to when we all studied at Rain's house. At least I knew I was going to get something good to eat and I got to know you. That was fun too."

Pixie gave a short laugh, almost glad that Wheeler had the nerve to break the silence that had started to grow between them. It had been fun, back then, studying at Rain's. They'd all sit around, sometimes on the floor, sometimes not, trying to get through whatever work they had to do. Sometimes it would be all of them- even Hawk before he departed- and sometimes it had been just her and Wheeler.

It had been back then, in those arguably simpler days, that Pixie had started sharing stories about her past. Just little things, really, about her time with her aunt and uncle or her days as a ward of the state. She might have told him one or two of her hospital tales but never the worst of it.

Wheeler, as always, was a good listener. He hardly ever interrupted her, letting her get on with her stories, unless he had questions for her. It wasn't that he remained silent, though. Wheeler had stories of his own to share. Pixie remembered sitting and listening, with rapt attention, as he regaled her with stories about his town and the baseball games he'd pitched.

Oddly enough, Wheeler never talked Natasa, even now. All Pixie knew about her was that she worked with metals and believed strongly in the idea that objects could protect people. It had been Natasa who urged Wheeler to give Pixie the charm she wore around her neck; both in the Matrix- Somehow it had become part of her normal Matrix clothing. - and in the Real World for her eighteenth birthday. It seemed silly to believe that a little object could protect her but Pixie still wore it every day.

She figured that, in her line of work, she needed every advantage she could get. Including those of the more mystical nature, even if she wasn't sure she believed in it. Still, Pixie believed that it was probably worse to tempt fate by not wearing it.

If the fairy she wore didn't give her any advantage, wearing it wasn't going to hurt her. Not wearing, and finding out that it provided some sort of protection, might hurt just a little. Best just to wear it and not mess around with fate.

Besides, wearing it reminded her of Wheeler. Just having something Wheeler gave her- especially when it was something that she could hide under her clothing and not be forced to answer questions about what it was and where it came from- made her feel better. It was like having her friend with her even though they were separated by space and time.

"I guess she's had a lot of time to practice. What surprised me is that she was actually on a ship. I lived with her for a while and she never talked about her working on a ship. Kind of odd, really. I'm sure she has her reasons, though," Pixie pointed out.

"Maybe something happened to her or her crew. Something she doesn't want to talk about in front of the lot of us and Eli," Wheeler added a thoughtful look on his face.

Wearing a very mischievous smirk, Pixie stated, "Well, Rain did tell us she use to work on a ship called the Edge of Victory. Maybe I'll just go and look up what happened to the ship. It's not all that hard"

The scruffy blond male did a double take, looking at Pixie for a long moment before understanding what he was seeing. It wasn't what she was saying that caught him off guard- Wheeler knew that Pixie had a curious mind. She had to in order to get herself out of the Matrix. - but the look she was wearing. A certain sort of realization set in as he looked at the crafty expression Pixie was wearing on her elfy looking face.

"So that's why you call yourself Pixie," Wheeler noted, almost laughing to himself for not realizing it sooner.

"What do you mean?" Pixie questioned, pausing her steps and turning slightly to face Wheeler but keeping her eyes staring someplace over his left shoulder.

"When you smiled like that. I never realized it before but you really do look kind of like a…well…a pixie. Not that it's a bad thing of course," he answered, speaking very quickly.

Wheeler realized that pointing out the fact Pixie bore a slight resemblance to a mythological creature might not have been the brightest thing to do. He wasn't sure if it was offensive or not to say such a thing. It was just what he figured.

The funny thing was, Wheeler decided it wasn't a bad thing, the fact Pixie looked like her namesake. It was sort of funny, actually, because it was really fitting.

He just hoped Pixie saw it that way. He'd never seen her angry and Wheeler really didn't want to see that. Pixie was quiet and there was the old Matrix expression that read "Tis the quiets ones to watch out for." He wasn't exactly sure what that expression really meant but Pixie was quiet and he wanted to watch out for making her angry…just in case.

Oddly enough, Pixie didn't look angry. As a matter of fact, she looked like she was use to hearing such comments.

"That's, actually, kind of why I was given the name 'Pixie.' My aunt and uncle use to call me 'elf' and 'pixie' when I was a kid but they always said it like it was a bad thing. Then Hawk brought it up when we were working out a hacker name for me. For some reason, I thought it fit so I took it as my name," Pixie stated.

With a small giggle, she added, "Pixie is an improvement over what he wanted to call me. Hawk was initially going to have me call myself rabbit but I nipped that idea in the bud. It was too weird to share a name with a hawk's prey."

"Hawk named you?" Wheeler asked, sounding rather incredulous, "Why in the world would you let him do something like that"

It didn't really make any sense to Wheeler. Pixie was one of- if not the- smartest person he knew. It seemed odd that she'd allow someone like Hawk to name her. Wheeler was still trying to figure out just how Pixie and Hawk ever were friends in the Matrix. That also seemed sort of odd.

Hawk, in his opinion, was one of those people who used and abused others to get to his own ends. He couldn't be anything else in Wheeler's mind. Not after the display he'd put on when breaking himself out of their small circle of friends and the one the night of their Gathering when he'd tried to get Pixie to dance with him. Wheeler had been taught, as a boy in the Matrix, that you weren't supposed to treat females like that. Anyone who did was a coward or worse.

"You know he and I use to be friends or whatever the Matrix told us we were back before we were both freed. I guess I felt it was his place to give me my name since he was teaching me the basics," she replied.

It still seemed strange to Wheeler but, at least, it made a bit more sense now. Pixie had allowed Hawk to name her because she felt it was right for him to do so. Sort of like parents naming their kids because they brought them into the world…err….the Matrix. Pixie had allowed Hawk to name her because he'd brought her into the hacker's world.

Still wearing her mischievous little smile, Pixie brought up, "Why Wheeler?"

The scruffy looking young man gave Pixie a sheepish sort of smile. He still felt the reasons for choosing his own moniker were sort of silly. After all, he'd started off hating the name he'd, eventually, take as his hacker name.
"

Back home in Arcadia, Texas, my baseball team nicknamed me Wheeler because I use to just sort of wheel back and throw left handed fastballs. I hated that name for a long time but I figured it would make an alright hacker name. Best nickname I could think of," Wheeler answered with a shrug.

Pixie laughed a bit, successfully imagining her scruffy haired friend as a baseball player. The image of him, standing on a mound in the middle of a field, was easy enough for her to conjure. It seemed fitting for him to be a baseball player. She'd never played much baseball but knew a fair few things about it from watching the games on television.

"I use to watch baseball back in the Matrix. Never went to a game in person, of course, but I saw the games on television. I don't pretend to be an expert or anything but I really did like watching it. Especially the pitchers," Pixie admitted.

That was something Wheeler hadn't been expecting to hear. Pixie, all bookish and quiet, didn't exactly look like the type to enjoy a loud and sometimes chaotic game like baseball.

"The pitchers?" he asked, stunned, "Why them?"

Pixie shrugged, starting to walk again, and replied, "I don't really know. I just always found them fascinating. As if they had the hardest job on the team. I mean, sure home runs are impressive but nothing's more fun than watching a well pitched baseball game."

Wheeler laughed- a surprised sort of sound- and agreed, "There's nothing more than any of us pitchers like than a well pitched game, especially when we're the ones doing the pitching. Getting beat up on the mound is absolutely no fun. It's embarrassing, really, more than anything else."

The two discussed Wheeler's sport of choice for a time, bringing back some of the old comfort that had existed between them before everyone put their two cents in. Pixie found that time passed more quickly when they spoke in comfortable conditions. It just seemed to be easier to be friends with Wheeler.

Yet another reason why Chian and the others were wrong. She and Wheeler made better friends than anything else. Not being friends, being something more, would take away the comfort between them. That was something Pixie was almost unwilling to lose.

"Someday, maybe after the war and stuff, I'd like to start a baseball league here," Wheeler, dreamily, commented as he stopped short in front of Pixie's bright red door.

Pixie had to admit that was something she'd never even thought of and commented, "That might be interesting, considering we have no grass here for an outfield."

Her comment elicited some nervous sounding laughter from Wheeler. The same sort of laughter that started to bubble out of her. The pair of the stood in front of Pixie's red door, acting almost as if neither of them knew what to do next. Something had changed, bringing back the nervous feelings of not quite discomfort from before.

"So," she said, stammering a bit, "um...thanks for walking me hom.e"

"No problem," he said, "it's what us gentlemen do."

Pixie found herself at a loss for words, one of her arms slipping behind her to find the wheel that opened the door to her small home. Part of her wanted to run away, go back inside where she could be safe. Another part of her just wanted to stand out here with Wheeler and, maybe, try to figure out just what was going on between them. The latter was the part Pixie ignored.

She turned to slip into her home, but found that Wheeler was still staring at her. His hands were clasped behind his back, his posture showing that he was a bit nervous about something. Not exactly normal for Wheeler to say the least. Usually she was the nervous one and he was the relaxed one. The one who was comfortable in any situation. "

What's wrong?" Pixie asked, giving Wheeler an odd but concerned look, "Are you alright?"

Wheeler shifted his weight and gave Pixie a nervous, lop sided smile. He, himself, wasn't sure what was wrong. All he knew was that he and Pixie were getting on as well as they normally did one moment and, the next, it was back to that strange, uncomfortable state between the two of them. Wheeler didn't know what had changed or how it had changed. It just did and it bothered him.

"No…nothing. I'm alright," he assured her, "Just….nah….I'll talk to you tomorrow."

He took a step towards Pixie, giving her a confused look as she took a step back. He didn't know why she'd stepped away from him and, in truth; she wasn't quite sure why she had either. It just seemed like a natural reaction to someone stepping into one's personal space.

"I guess so. I don't know how long we're going to be in Zion but you're more than welcome to come by tomorrow. I know I'll be here for that long and I don't really have anything else to do," she said, her words coming out in a rush.

"That sounds like a plan," Wheeler countered, putting a hand on Pixie's shoulder and feeling her stiffen a bit at his touch.

The stiffening was an unconscious reaction since he'd never given Pixie a reason to fear him. They both knew he was too much of a "gentleman-" taught at the hand of the father he never really talked about- do something bad to Pixie. Hurting her was the last thing on his mind.

Pixie wasn't sure what had happened to Wheeler. The look in his bright hazel eyes was strange, almost foreign really. She wasn't quite sure how to place it. His hand on her shoulder was strange in the fact it was comfortable but odd all at once. She wasn't sure what he was getting at. Pixie, honestly, thought he wanted to go home.

All at once, Wheeler leaned in towards her and did something she really didn't expect.

He gave her a simple, and very polite, kiss on her lips.