The next few days crawled by on spindly legs as school went on and Deldja returned to classes. Things went right back to normal, though now it was only Deldja's cronies (and all the other students who weren't Deldja) who did the picking and the throwing and the shouting. But with Mace walking Roxanne to classes, that diminished some.

It was nice.

Mace's friends continued to hound him on who his date for the dance was, and Deldja, having caught wind of the news the moment she stepped into school on Kruleday, tried to tell everyone she was his date. When everyone (and it was most definitely everyone) called her on it, she started saying Roxanne had brainwashed Mace into taking her.

Maybe a few of her close friends fell for it, but for the most part, no one took the bait.

Mace was too intelligent for a stupid human to trick him like that, after all. And what he'd said about Alshzheck's blade certainly applied—the simpler explanation was usually the correct one.

But Mace just ignored all the speculation about his date, just smiling a little smugly every lunch hour as he made his way to his and Roxanne's table at the back of the room, listening to all of the whispers and amused by them all. His favorite rumor was the one where he was sitting with Roxanne every day to stir up sympathy. He knew better, though. She wasn't his charity case.

She was just a wonderful, beautiful, intelligent girl who just so happened to be an alien.

Why would she need a charity?

***Break***

"Mace?" Isst asked as she opened the door Aldaday evening. He had dressed in his best yet again, and held a bouquet in his hands for Roxanne.

"Good evening, Lady Cerebellum," Mace greeted, dipping his head.

"What are you doing here?" Isst asked. "I thought you'd be going to tonight's dance."

"I am," Mace answered. "But I can't very well arrive without my date, now can I?"

"Date?" Isst asked. "Who are you taking?"

"I'm taking Roxanne, of course!" Mace laughed, not quite noticing the shocked look that crossed Isst's motherly face.

"Roxanne is—Roxanne is upstairs," Isst answered, stepping back to allow Mace entrance into her home. "Why don't you go up and see if she's ready? Knock first!" she added as he ascended the stairs.

After standing another moment in the doorway, Isst turned and ran through the house, searching for her minion and/or husband.

***Break***

"Come in," Roxanne called as a knock came upon her door, and she beamed as Mace first opened the door a crack, then threw it wide open. From the look on his face in the mirror, he was almost bursting with excitement. Then she turned around, and her smile became shy. "You look dashing," she said, averting her eyes with a blush.

"You look breathtaking," he said, shutting the door and leaning back against it. "Is that the dress you're wearing?" he asked.

"I was planning on it. Why? Do you think I should find another one? Does it make me look too pale? Maybe I should be wearing make-up—they don't have to know who I am right away, right?"

"Calm down," Mace laughed. "You look great! And I refuse to let you wear any make-up. You look beautiful just the way you are." Roxanne's face darkened with blood, but she smiled a little wider all the same as she stood up and made her way to the door. She was wearing a long yellow dress with puffy sleeves and lacy ruffles reaching to the floor. A black cape, complete with a dark hood, hung down her back, the insides scarlet, matching the outfit quite nicely.

"These are for you," Mace said, handing her the bouquet, and he grew worried Roxanne would soon pass out from all the blood rushing to her face. But she took the flowers, thanking him, and rushed into the adjacent bathroom to put them in some water.

"Where's Minion?" Roxanne asked, coming back into the room and bringing Gilda, who had remained silent so far in, over to her suit and dropping her in through the top before rolling her sphere into the middle and closing the ramp.

"He's waiting outside," Mace replied. "Keeping the jetbikes company. You don't mind flying do you?"

"Well how else do you get from place to place besides walking?" Roxanne laughed. Mace shrugged.

"I have no idea, but some Ceruleans just seem to have this illogical fear of flight. It's completely baffling, but I figured it was safer to ask now than be sorry later."

"Thank you for the sentiment," Roxanne returned. "Who let you in?"

"Your mother, why?" Roxanne forced a smile.

"No reason. No reason at all. Let's just go. We don't want to be late, right?"

"No, I suppose not," Mace replied as Roxanne took him by the hand and rushed out the door and down the stairs with Gilda following quickly behind. "Wait," Mace said as Roxanne threw open the outside door. "Isn't it tradition for me to meet your father first to assure him I'll have you back before curfew and—"

"Isn't it tradition to date inside your own species?"

"Well yes, of course, but—" They were outside and rushing down the walkway before Mace could say anymore, and he gave up on the argument, wondering why she was so eager to get out of the house when she was clearly nervous about going to the actual dance.

But he put it out of his mind for now, and focused on getting her to the dance safely as he and Minion boarded their respective motorbikes, with each of their dates getting on behind them.

He didn't think there could possibly have been a better night for flying.

***Break***

"Here we are," Mace announced as they approached the doors to the school. "Do you want to go to the courtyard, or around back?"

"The…courtyard, I guess," Roxanne decided, shaking all over with nervousness as she chewed on her bottom lip. "Are you sure we shouldn't just ditch the dance and go somewhere else? We can see the eclipse just as well from the woods, or a roof, or we could just opt to see the eclipse at some later date and—" Roxanne was silenced by a kiss, and practically melted.

"Are you ready?" Mace asked when he released her, and taking a deep breath, she nodded.

"As ready as I'll ever be," she replied, and when she looked to Gilda, her minion nodded to tell her Mistress that she was also ready to go.

"Then let's make ourselves a scene," Mace said, holding out his arm, which Roxanne took gratefully. Minion and Gilda did the same as Mace reached for the door handle. He pressed down and pulled out.

And they stepped out into the courtyard.

Author Notes:

Transition chapters. Ugh. . Admittedly, this one isn't as bad as most of them, but, still. *Sigh* Oh well. That's life. Bad with the good. MOVING ON.

Next chapter will be the dance.

UGH. I APOLOGIZE FOR THE WAIT! Life, you know. Gets in the way of everything. That and school. Stupid school...Anyway, so yeah. Hopefully you won't have to wait too much longer for the next chapter. :F

AND TO EVERYONE WHO GOT THE NAMING THING (most people did): *Showers winners with pop-ped corn* For those who didn't, all the last names have to do with parts of the brain. :3 AND SO HUZZAH VERILY THEREFORE THUSLY ANON! BECAUSE I CAN! !
INSANE? ME? OH NO, I'M NOT INSANE, MY NAME IS MOONY. YOU HAVE THE WRONG HOUSE, GOOD SIR! SO LONG! *Doorslam* *Is a crazy lunatic* XDXD, ENJOY!

OH, ALSO, I ALMOST FORGOT: I want to thank all of you reviewers yet again, because it's you guys that keep me writing. I swear, if it weren't for you guys I might have abandoned this story a long while back. I GIVE YOU MY LOVE! *Gives love* 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3