(A.N. This extra-long chapter is dedicated to whoever wanted to see more of Jet Star on a review of Save Yourself. I'm too lazy to go back and see who it was.)

Ghoul strode into the main room. Diamond, Jet, and Pony already sat in a booth, coffee and Power Pup in front of them.

"Morning!" Diamond called to him. He smiled and went to grab his own food.

"Breakfast of champions," Jet smirked as Ghoul joined them in the booth.

"Killjoys," Diamond corrected.

"Same difference," replied Pony.

"Touché."

They ate in silence, each Killjoy trying as hard as possible to keep the dog food down. It was something that you could eat every day and still not get used to the taste of.

Ghoul piped up, "You guys wanna go for a drive? Maybe some Vend-A-Hacking?"

Jet laughed, "Antsy to get out now that Diamond has full mobility?"

"I'd be lying if I said I wasn't." Ghoul shrugged, smiling.

"I feel bad," Diamond nudged him playfully, "keeping you inside all day."

"You don't. I do."

"You over-protective parental nature does." Pony said, "But that's beside the point. I was thinking of racing."

"Racing?" Diamond asked.

"Who against who?" Jet asked, ignoring her.

"Out in the desert." Pony smiled, "Trans Am versus Dr. Death's van. Winner gets Ghoul's secret porn stash."

Ghoul and Diamond both promptly choked on mouthfuls of Power Pup. Diamond because she was laughing, Ghoul because he was mortified. Hurriedly, he recovered and tried to defend himself over the laughter of everyone at the table.

"Excuse me? I don't have-"

"Sure you don't." Pony cut him off, smirking, "And I totally haven't found it."

"But I don't have-"

"Anyway," Pony said loudly, cutting Ghoul off a second time, "I'll drive the van. Me, Diamond and Missle against Ghoul, Jet, and Kobra."

"No Party?" Jet asked.

"He had a really rough night." Ghoul said sadly.

"That means no Kobra either."

"Then it's uneven," Pony frowned, "Who'll be the third?"

"Third in what?"

They turned to look at the door. Agent Cherri Cola stood, helmet in hand, her blonde hair tied back messily. Cropped bangs fell in her eyes, which were obscured by sunglasses. She waved in greeting.

"We're racing!" Pony exclaimed excitedly, waving back.

"Jet and I in the Trans Am. Pony, Missle, and Diamond in Dr. D's van." Ghoul explained, "We need a third. You in?"

Cherri considered the offer.

"If Dr. D doesn't have anything better for me to do, sure."

After it was pointed out that this would be a race between the older Killjoys and the three youngest Killjoys, the van got a ten-second head start. Much to Ghoul's displeasure.

They would head down Route Guano, to the old traffic cone Pony had found in the back of the Diner a few months ago. Then they would turn around and off-road it back to the Diner. Simple enough.

"You're going down," Ghoul smirked at Diamond as they headed for the cars.

"In your dreams, shorty." Diamond retorted swiftly.

"I'm as tall as you are!" Ghoul exclaimed.

"Yeah. As tall as the fifteen-year-old girl. Big achievement."

Ghoul's eyes narrowed.

"It's on."

They were off. Pony floored it, jolting Diamond back. They had agreed that Missle would be better off in front, leaving Diamond in the seat-less (and more importantly: seat belt-less) back. She fought the momentum and managed to get up as close to the front as possible, allowing her to look out the windshield.

Diamond saw the cone quickly approaching. Pony jerked the steering wheel to the left, jolting Diamond sideways. She braced herself for impact on the hard van floor. Exhilaration filled her, making her laugh. This was awesome! They were winning!

"They're gaining on us!" Missle said, panicked.

It was true. While the van had an advantage on the road, the Trans Am was much better off-road and it quickly passed them. Diamond saw Ghoul turn around in the back seat and flip the bird to the van, laughing.

Pony swore loudly and hit the gas, but it was too late.

The Diner approached fast and both cars stopped in the front, kicking up a fair amount of dust. The Killjoys waited for the dust to clear before stepping out.

"Rematch!" Pony demanded.

"Not a chance," Ghoul approached the van, an unlit cigarette hanging from his triumphant grin.

"We beat you fair and square," Jet smiled.

"And with your ten-second delay." Cherri added.

"Rematch!" Pony continued shouting. Missle and Diamond just looked on, amused. They had no interest whatsoever in the prize of winning, just the idea of being able to say they beat the amazing Cherri Cola in a race.

Pony continued fuming as the door to the Diner suddenly opened. Dr Death emerged, followed by Kobra, with Party in tow.

Dr. D wasn't happy. "Pony!" he barked, "Missle! You have jobs, get to 'em! I let you slack off this week but get back to work!" Missle nodded, smiling. Pony pouted. "Yes, Dr D," they said in unison before hurrying inside.

"Jobs?" Diamond had moved over to stand next to Ghoul. He lit up the cigarette and took a quick drag before nodding.

"They help with the radio," he explained, "Pony travels the Zones, trading supplies for music. It's amazing how many Killjoys have old CDs and vinyl with them. Missle helps too. She listens to the broadcast on her own personal radio, making sure the signal isn't intercepted by BLI. If it is, she tells Dr. D, who pulls the system from the air before we can be tracked. She's really saved our asses a few times."

As he talked, Diamond saw Jet, Cherri, and Kobra begin to talk. Dr. D said something to Party who nodded, opening the door so Dr. Death could wheel himself back indoors. This left Party to stand awkwardly next to Kobra. He met Diamond's eyes and she gave a small wave. He smiled in response.

"You two seem to be getting along fine." Ghoul commented.

"I suppose." She sighed, "He's getting more comfortable being in the same room as me; so that's a start."

"He is trying, you gotta give him that."

"I do. He seems to want to get things back to how they were."

Party looked at Kobra, who was still talking to Cherri, before walking over to Diamond and Ghoul.

"They're talking about Vend-A-Hacking. You wanna go?"

"Yeah, man!" Ghoul smiled and turned to Diamond, "You coming?"

"No, thanks." She shook her head.

"You sure?"

"Positive."

"I think Jet was gonna stick around here anyway. Why don't you hang with him?" Party suggested.

Diamond considered the idea. She'd never been all that chummy with Jet. This could be an opportunity to get to know him better.

"Sounds like fun."

Jet had suggested they take a walk. They left before the Trans Am did, walking down Route Guano in silence. They had their guns on them, in the event of a drac encounter, and Diamond had her mask on. Jet had stuck to his sunglasses, preferring them to his spaceman helmet. Together they were quite intimidating.

After a while, Diamond tried to start up a conversation.

"So what do you do?"

Jet looked at her, confused.

"What do you mean?"

"Like, when it comes to the Killjoys, what's your job?"

"Oh," he smiled, "I'm the mechanic. I work on the cars and machines. Usually I work on new Vend-A-Hack models or ray gun repairs. Did you know Ghoul's broken three guns?"

Diamond laughed, "That doesn't surprise me."

"I was always the muscle of our group." Jet continued, "Even in our band. In our early days I was the one who got stuck repairing the van when we didn't have the money to hire a mechanic. But it was fun. It helped me feel like I was important for something besides coming up with cool riffs."

"So what was it like?" Diamond asked, wanting to hear more about the band.

"Being in a band? Oh it was awesome. Everything I could have ever wanted. I got to change people, y'know? Like, kids would come up to me after shows and just say 'thank you'. It gave me a purpose. I think it really gave us all a purpose. We were all together for about twelve years before the disasters. It helped us get really close, like a family. I really couldn't ask for anything more than what I've got."

They were silent, Jet lost in thought.

"So did you have a family? Before…y'know…"

"Yeah." Jet's voice hardened, "Well, not really. I had a wife though. No kids, but we were trying to have some. She had trouble getting pregnant-" he choked up.

Diamond decided to change topics. "So you've been with the guys for twelve years?"

"Even longer. That's just how long we were a band. I knew Mikey-" he paused before correcting himself, "Kobra for several years before the band."

"You can say their real names if you want," she smiled softly.

"Yeah, I know," he let himself smile as well, "I just got caught up in the past."

"Sometimes it's okay to let that happen. And to show some emotion."

He shook his head slowly, "I dunno. I've always sort've been…the glue. The force keeping everything together. I can't break down, or it'll make me seem…weak."

Diamond thought that over.

"You know, I heard a saying from somewhere. 'Crying isn't a sign of weakness. Rather, since birth, it has always been a sign that you are alive.' Maybe a long cry would do some good."

Jet sighed. "Yeah. Yeah it might."

It was getting late. They decided to turn back. As they walked, the wind kicked up and they had to fish bandanas out of their pockets to protect their faces from dust. They started to jog, wanting to reach the Diner quickly. As they neared the building, Diamond could have sworn she saw something in the distance.

As the wind died down, Diamond slowed her jog to a halt. She strained to see who was in the distance. It was obviously a person, clutching their arm. They were limping. Through their posture Diamond could see the figure was in incredible pain.

Jet caught up to her, panting, pulling his bandana down as the wind slowed to a breeze.

"What the-" was all he said before the figure collapsed.

Diamond broke into a run, Jet following close behind.

(A.N. DUN DUN DUUUUUN. Yeah. I'm awful. I know. X3 Just brace yourselves. I'll try and update this more often, I promise.)