Festival of Fire

by RockyRoadSmith

When the Searchers find themselves at a quaint festival, turmoil seeps from the group when a young man suddenly shows affection toward Holly. As secrets unfold, however, there may be more at stake than just emotions.

4. Chapter 4: Stage Three – Fully Developed

Sorry this is taking a while to get these chapters out! I need to learn how to utilize my time much better than I have been. I have no excuse, I've been a lazy bum. XD

I want to thank lalalei, Yangdude28, and Guest for your awesome reviews on the last chapter of this story! Truly, thank you so much for your support! Reviews really help me to see if what I write is something the Monster Rancher community would even like to read, so the feedback is very much loved!

This takes place after the episode "The Sand Assassin, Renocraft" and right after the start of "Magic Stone Mayhem".

Festival of Fire

Chapter 4: Stage Three – Fully Developed

Just like the prior morning, gentle rays of sun creeped through the hotel windows and bathed the quiet room full of sleeping anti-Moo rebels with warm light. The beckoning of a new day only fazed one of the Searchers, however, and the once sleeping member of the team slowly opened their eyes to greet the morning sun.

Genki yawned and rubbed his drowsy eyes; his body movement still restricted by the sleeping form of Mocchi clung to his chest. The young boy extended his arms for a quick stretch and he patted Mocchi's shelled head, but the baby monster didn't react to the touch. Genki smiled as he looked at his sleeping best friend, and he was certain the little monster would be full of energy once they were ready to explore the festival together.

Exploring the festival. Together.

The conversation he had with Holly the night before suddenly came to his mind, and he still couldn't believe he was able to go through with asking the wielder of the Magic Stone if she wanted to spend time with him at the festival. Even more so, Holly had agreed to spend the day with him.

'Just be casual! It's gonna be a good day as long as I just act normal. Even if Hunter hangs around us, if I keep things casual, it'll still be a good day. Just follow Hare's advice and everything will be fine!' Genki let out an anxious sigh as he tried to talk himself up for the day ahead of him. A shuffle of sheets in the bed next to him snapped the energetic boy out of his thoughts, however, and his attention was redirected to the member of the team his anxieties all revolved around.

Holly was lying on her side still fast asleep in the bed neighboring Genki's with Tiger sleeping against her legs. Her eyes were shut tight and her arm was tucked underneath her head, leaving her other arm to dangle freely off the side of the bed. Strands of untamed hair trailed down across her face and moved ever so slightly with each breath of air she took. One particular long hair tickled the tip of the sleeping girl's nose and Holly let out a tiny sneeze before she subconsciously rubbed her nose with the back of her free hand.

Genki's heart melted at the scene and he wasn't sure a more adorable moment existed in history.

With a quiet moan, Holly's brow furrowed before her eyes slowly opened, and Genki could feel the blush streak his cheeks as the duo's eyes met. Immediately, the young boy shifted his gaze down to the sleeping monster in his arms in hopes of avoiding any uncomfortable questioning.

'Why was I looking at her while she was sleeping like that?! I hope she doesn't think I was being creepy or something!' Genki mentally prayed his friend wouldn't look too far into it.

Holly sat up slightly and used her elbow to prop herself up, but didn't sit up fully to avoid waking up the sleeping wolf monster at the foot of her bed. Genki, in turn, shifted Mocchi around just enough so he could lay on his side to better talk with the wielder of the Magic Stone. Luckily for him, Mocchi was a deep sleeper and didn't stir at being moved.

"G'morning, Genki," Holly slurred tiredly while brushing a stray hair out of her face.

"H-hey, Holly! How'd you sleep?" Genki blushed at the sudden attention, not really expecting the brunette girl to wake up as suddenly as she had.

"M'kay, just a little tired. It took longer to get Suezo away from those magazines than I thought it would, so I got to bed a little late. How about you?" the wielder of the Magic Stone asked quietly, her voice low to avoid waking up the rest of the Searchers.

"I slept like a rock, honestly. I didn't even hear you guys come back! I guess all the walking around we did yesterday tuckered me out for once," he replied while using his hands to try patting down his messy hair to look more presentable.

Holly smiled at the boy's response and she scooted a little closer to the edge of her bed. "Are you ready for today?"

"Yeah, today is gonna be great! How about you?" Genki whispered, the boy barely able to contain his excitement.

"I'm really looking forward to today, too. Unlike yesterday, we don't have to worry about errands today so we'll be able to really enjoy the whole festival together," the young girl replied, a smile on her face as she pushed another strand of stray hair to behind her ear.

Genki couldn't put an emotion on how Holly made him feel anymore.

Even with her slightly messy bedhead, there was something about Holly that just drew the clear-eyed boy to her and it bothered him that he felt nervous talking to her. In that moment, however, even with the other Searchers asleep in the room, it felt like it was just him and Holly in their own little world. The rays from the morning sun created extra warmth between the two anti-Moo rebels and made the small distance between them feel even smaller. Genki didn't realize just how close they actually were to one another and it made his stomach do a flip. Between how close their beds already were and how close they had gotten to the edge of their beds to make talking easier, they were only inches apart. Genki could see his own reflection in Holly's eyes and the blood began to pound in his ears since a part of him knew exactly what emotion he felt for Holly even with his own denial lingering.

"Hey, um, Holly? I was just wondering, uh…" Genki wasn't sure what he was even trying to ask, or why he had subconsciously leaned over the side of his bed to get even closer to the young girl laying across from him. His eyes stayed locked onto Holly's own chocolate brown eyes while his stomach ached with nerves as he mentally willed himself to stop, but his body leaned forward anyways. His face was close enough to Holly's that he could feel her warm breath on his skin, causing goosebumps to crawl up his arms. The gap between the two anti-Moo rebels became smaller as Genki leaned forward even further and then-

"GET SOME HIGH QUALITY RICE CRACKERS! THEY'RE A GREAT SNACK!"

"BEAT THE SUMMER HEAT! EAT SOME ICE CANDY!"

"FRESH MANGOS ON SALE! BUY TWO FOR THE PRICE OF ONE!"

Genki and Holly almost fell out of their beds from surprise at the sudden loud sales pitches being shouted out from the crowded streets outside the inn; the moment of serenity completely destroyed. Immediately, Genki backed away from Holly as if she was Moo himself and accidently elbowed Mocchi in the process, causing the baby monster to wake up with a yelp of surprise. At hearing the shouting from the vendors, Mocchi dazedly leapt up onto the bed and got into a clumsy fighting stance.

"Whaz goin' on, chi?! Is it the Baddies, chi?!" Mocchi clenched his tiny fists and whipped his head around frantically to find the potential enemy; the young monster ready to defend his friends even in his confused state.

At hearing the word "Baddies", Tiger's eyes snapped open from his slumber and the wolf monster quickly leapt in front of Holly with his fangs bared defensively. "Baddies?! Where?!"

With the added shouts from Mocchi and Tiger, the remaining three Searchers woke up in a panic with their adrenaline at its peak. Golem hoisted himself to his feet and towered over Holly, hands out and ready to defend the wielder of the Magic Stone. Suezo rolled out of his pile of blankets like a bowling ball and immediately began scanning the room to get sight on their opponent. Hare flung his arms out from the large nest of blankets he had built, but the poor rabbit monster became tangled in the sheets and awkwardly smashed onto the floor in a disorientated heap.

"Wait! Guys, it's okay! It's just the vendors outside shouting!" Holly called out to try calming down her frazzled friends.

The room fell into an awkward silence before everyone in the room let out sighs of relief.

"Oh, come on! You've gotta be kidding me! Do these guys ever stop with the early morning sales pitches?!" Hare wailed angrily while pushing his way out of his burrow of blankets.

"Golem is just relieved… there aren't any Baddies… here…" Golem smiled while easing up from his battle stance.

With an angry scowl, Suezo hopped over to the hotel window and flung it open with no care. "As tournament champion, I demand you stop being so loud! Sheesh! Can't a guy get some quality sleep around here?!"

"I highly doubt they'll listen to you, Suezo, so save your breath," Tiger sighed.

As the other Searchers bantered amongst one another, Genki let out a sigh of relief that the commotion in the room had died down a bit. Mocchi, now fully awake from the abrupt awakening, hopped on their shared bed before launching himself a bed over into Holly's open arms. The wielder of the Magic Stone caught the young monster and pulled him in for a tight hug, one that melted Genki's heart.

"Good morning, Holly! Chi!" Mocchi greeted giddily.

"Good morning to you, too! Are you ready for today?" Holly asked the baby monster, a smile playing at her lips.

"Yeah, chi! Mocchi slept a lot yesterday and missed most of the festival, but not today, chi! Mocchi's gonna eat all the candy!" Mocchi declared with determination.

"That's an awful lot of candy to eat! How about we get you a real meal before you start with the snack food, okay?" the brunette girl reasoned with a chuckle.

Genki watched the exchange and couldn't help but smile. It was rare when the group didn't have many worries and simple moments of innocence Mocchi was able to experience were uncommon. He was happy that, in that moment, Mocchi's biggest concern was whether or not he'd get to eat candy and not about a life or death situation involving the Baddies. Genki squirmed nervously as Holly turned her gaze to him once more, however, and the energetic boy wished she's go back to focusing on Mocchi and not on him.

"What were you about to ask me before we got interrupted by the vendors?" Holly asked with a curious tilt of her head.

Genki felt his heart palpitate as thoughts of his moment earlier with Holly filled his head and the action of leaning in to the brunette girl making him feel sick to his stomach. He didn't want to think about what he almost did and, instead, laughed nervously in response. "Oh! Hahaha, uh, you know, I was just going to ask, uh, what you wanted to do today first?"

"Hmmm… let's have breakfast with everyone and then we can split off together. Mocchi needs to eat actual food before he starts on his candy journey, otherwise he'll get sick," Holly suggested.

"Yeah! Good idea! Let's get ready for this day and get some breakfast!" Genki hurriedly agreed.

Without another word, Genki clumsily made his bed and started to get ready for the day along with the rest of the Searchers. He wasn't sure why he had the urge to look, but the young boy turned his head quickly anyways and stole a glance behind him just in time to see Holly begin brushing her tangled hair, and he couldn't stop the heat from crawling up his neck. As he turned to get back to getting his clothes ready for the day, he locked eyes with Hare from across the room, and the rabbit monster gave him a playful thumbs up while pointing at Holly with his free hand. Genki immediately turned away from his friend with an embarrassed blush at knowing Hare had seen him steal a glance at Holly, and the young boy mentally kicked himself for being so obvious.

Genki could only hope the day would go well.

---

Just like their first night at the festival, the group of anti-Moo rebels piled a variety of food onto Golem's hands from various food stalls and made their way to the same spot they had sat at to enjoy the meal. Genki and Tiger helped themselves to skewers of smoked meat while Hare and Suezo greedily stuffed their faces with seared fish. Holly tore a piece of bread in half and handed the other half to Mocchi, in which the baby monster happily accepted, while Golem ate some of the high quality stones they had gotten.

"What are everyone's plans for today?" Genki asked to no one in particular.

"I want to see what kind of card games they have here. Last night it was too dark to see everything so I only found the dice games, but I'd rather bet on a game where I have some control and it's not all just luck," Hare was the first to speak up, even with a mouth full of food.

"Those games are nothing but scams. You'll be wasting your time and money if your try them," Tiger warned.

"Hahaha, don't worry about me, buddy! I've got a quick wit and can tell when I'm being cheated," the rabbit monster replied with a playful wink.

"Still, you should be careful. Tesca even said they've had problems with thieves stealing prize money from people in the past. Even if you do happen to win some money, you don't want to become a target for some petty crook, either," the blue wolf monster's expression stayed serious.

"Oh my, Tiger! You actually sound like you're concerned for me! I'm flattered!" Hare chuckled impishly.

"S-shut up! I'm not concerned for you! If anything bad happened to you, Holly would be upset so I have to make sure you're alright! That's the only reason!" Tiger defensively bared his fangs.

"Well then, little puppy, why don't you come with me today, then? If anyone tries to steal my money, you can use them as a chew toy," the rabbit monster smiled slyly.

"Grrr! I'm being serious!" the horned canine monster snarled. "And don't call me a puppy or I'll barbeque you!"

"Come on, relax! We're at a festival! I'm just playing with you! We fought with each other enough yesterday, so let's be on better terms today and just have some fun. I owe you for your help with getting our food rations yesterday, after all. I'll buy us a couple rounds of drinks, too!" Hare tried to reason.

"Grrrr, fine. But if you annoy me, I'm leaving you to your fate!" Tiger huffed.

"Hahaha! I'll be good, I promise!" the rabbit monster winked at the wolf monster teasingly. "What about the rest of you guys? What are you gonna do at the festival?"

"Golem is going to… listen to the music… for a while… and maybe later… go to the… flower crown making stand…" Golem smiled.

"That sounds like a nice, relaxing day, Golem! You earned it after having to look after our whiney tournament champion for most of yesterday," Genki grinned.

"H-hey!" Suezo scowled.

"Yes… Golem does not want… to walk around… too much… since the streets… are narrow… so I will stay… in open areas…" the rock giant spoke softly.

"We'll make sure to meet up with you once we finish walking through the festival. I'd love to make a flower crown, too, since I haven't made one since I was a child," Holly smiled up at her giant friend.

"Golem would… like that… very much…" Golem's eyes sparkled with delight.

"Mocchi made Holly a flower crown before, chi!" Mocchi puffed out his chest proudly.

"That was such a nice part of the birthday party you guys threw for me and you did such a great job on it!" Holly praised the baby monster.

Mocchi beamed at the praise.

"Well, while all of you are doing peasant things, I'm gonna be busy signing autographs! The people want to see more of their tournament champion and I don't have the heart to let them down!" Suezo piped up with a smug grin.

"Who in their right mind would want an autograph from you?!" Hare snorted.

"People who appreciate a celebrity when they see one, you uncultured swine!" the eyeball monster scowled.

"Don't worry, Suezo. I'm sure there are plenty of people here who are looking forward to getting the chance to talk with the Festival of Fire tournament champion," Holly patted her best friend's head and smiled warmly.

"Hey, you're a Festival of Fire tournament champion, too! You should join me!" Suezo perked up, Hare's comment no longer dampening his mood.

"Oh, I definitely don't deserve that title. You did everything, Suezo. I'm no champion," the brunette girl chuckled.

"No way! We're a team and I wouldn't have won without you supporting me! I definitely wouldn't have even tried my Teleport technique during my last fight if you hadn't yelled out to me!" the eyeball monster spoke seriously.

"You're too sweet to me, Suezo. I'm really lucky to have you as my partner," Holly smiled. "I already have plans today, though, so I won't be able to join you to sign autographs right away. I'll try to swing by a little later, though."

"You already have plans? With who?!" Suezo's eye widened in surprise.

"I'm going to explore the festival with Genki and Mocchi," the wielder of the Magic Stone replied with a bright grin.

Suezo's eye narrowed at the only human boy of their group. "Really?"

Genki gulped nervously under Suezo's gaze. "Y-yeah, we're just gonna walk around and see if there's anything cool we haven't seen yet."

"Yeah, and eat lots of candy, chi!" Mocchi grinned eagerly.

The Searchers quickly finished their breakfast so they could start their last full day at the festival; each member of the group excited in their own way for the day. Hare and Tiger took off towards the gambling section of the festival while Golem stayed near the band that was still playing peaceful melodies. Genki, Holly, Suezo, and Mocchi walked together for a few minutes until the eyeball monster found himself at the center of the festival, where he had originally announced he would be giving out autographs to his "fans".

"Have fun, you guys!" Suezo called out to his friends.

"You too, Suezo! Good luck with the autographs!" Holly smiled to her best friend before turning away from him and beginning to walk towards the shopping section of the festival.

Before Genki could walk away with Holly, however, a long tongue wrapped around his wrist and he turned around to meet the serious stare of Suezo.

"Huh? What's up?" Genki asked with a raised brow.

"Yeah, chi! We have to go, chi! Candy awaits!" Mocchi impatiently frowned.

"Mocchi, go keep Holly company for a second. I have to talk to Genki really quickly, then you guys can go," the eyeball monster instructed.

Mocchi looked back at Holly, who had stopped a little further away when her friends hadn't joined her, before he looked up at Genki. The young monster pulled at Genki's shorts, unsure what he was supposed to do, and hoped his best friend would give him direction.

"It's okay, Mocchi. I'll be right over. Just stay with Holly, okay?" Genki patted Mocchi on the head and flashed him a reassuring smile.

"…okay, but be quick, chi! The honey candy from yesterday was really good and I wanna try more flavors, chi!" the young monster took one last glance over to his two friends before bounding over to Holly's side, and was quickly picked up by the girl like an infant.

"So, what's going on?" Genki couldn't help but feel nervous.

"…Holly's been acting a little different recently," Suezo's voice was low and oddly calm.

"Different? How so?" Genki blinked.

"She's been more, I dunno… reserved. Like, she's hiding something. It reminds me of when she didn't tell us about Moo being her father. I could see something heavy weighed on her mind, but I couldn't pinpoint it. Recently, the more I watch her, the more I see she's hiding something and I also realized you've also been acting a little differently, too," the eyeball monster frowned.

"M-me?! What do you mean?!" the leader of the Searchers could feel his heart rate skyrocket at the idea that Suezo, of all people, potentially knew about his feelings for Holly.

"Yeah, you! I see the way you look at Holly and how much time you seem to want to spend with her! Don't deny it!" Suezo whispered hoarsely.

"It…! It's not like that!"

"Admit it, Genki! Holly's been confiding in you about her love life and you must know who she has feelings for! Tell me who it is!"

"I…wait, what?"

Genki blinked in surprise and face faulted as the realization dawned on him: Suezo didn't know how he felt about Holly. The eyeball monster appeared to notice Holly had admiration for someone, but hadn't realized Genki was also harboring secret feelings of his own. A small part deep within his soul cheered in relief at the revelation and he quickly recomposed himself.

"I can see the look of love in her eyes, there's no denying it! Holly is always comfortable with you and with the amount of time you two have been spending together, there's no way she hasn't confided in you who she has feelings for! Especially since you've been acting a little off, too, as if you know what she's hiding! So, spill!" Suezo glowered.

Genki wasn't sure what was luckier; that he had dodged having to admit his own feelings or that he wasn't entirely positive if Holly really did have feelings for Hunter, so he didn't have to lie to his friend. "I don't know, honest! She hasn't told me who she likes!"

"…but you do admit Holly does have feelings for someone, though! I knew it! Who is it?!" the eyeball monster's voice rose.

'Oh, shoot! I'm an idiot!' Genki mentally cursed himself for his careless choice of words, since he knew Holly confided in him the day before about her feelings with the trust he wouldn't tell anyone. Still, the young boy stood firm that he wasn't sure who she liked since they had been interrupted by Hunter before he could find out. "I really don't know! I swear! She didn't tell me!"

"…dang it! I bet it's that pompous guy from earlier! Hunter or whatever! Why would she like someone that wears weird clothes and has such messy hair, though?!" Suezo gnashed his teeth together into a tight snarl.

"H-hey!" Genki scowled while subconsciously looking down at his world's clothes while patting down his own messy hair.

"Okay, then. Even if you don't know who Holly has feelings for, why have you been so fixated on her recently, then? I thought it was because she was confiding in you her about her secret feelings, but since you don't know who it is she likes, you must have another reason for watching her like a hawk," Suezo's eye narrowed with suspicion.

Genki felt himself getting backed into a corner again, and he spewed out the excuse he had used throughout his entire time at the festival. "I've been watching out for her just in case the Baddies show up!"

Suezo blinked, taken back by the boy's reasoning. "You think they'd attack the festival?"

"I-I mean, I dunno. They've attacked places with way more people and I'm just being cautious, is all. Especially since Moo can sense Holly's presence, we have to be extra careful. We can't fully trust anyone, not even people that come off as nice like Hunter, because we've been tricked before. I just want to make sure Holly's safe," Genki replied with a hesitant smile, the boy only half telling the truth.

"…good, I'm glad you're on alert. We can never be too careful when it involves Holly, right?" the eyeball monster's voice was stern.

Genki nodded numbly in response, surprised Suezo accepted his answer so easily.

"Well, anyway, let me know if you find out who Holly has feelings for since I have to show the person who they're messing with! Make sure you keep a close eye on her, too, and you had better make sure she has a good time today," Suezo stated seriously.

"O-of course," the young boy hesitantly smiled.

With a weak wave of his tongue, Suezo hopped away from his friends, looking a bit defeated. Once he was out of sight, Genki let out one of the biggest sighs of relief he had ever released in his life. He felt as though he had just faced off against all four members of the Big Bad Four all at once and it was a strange thought that Suezo, of all monsters, could make him feel so nervous. The energetic boy took in a large breath of air, released it slowly, and casually caught up to Holly and Mocchi as if the conversation with Suezo had never happened.

"What was that all about?" Holly asked curiously.

"Oh! That? Hahaha, you know Suezo! He's a character!" Genki laughed anxiously while trying to change the subject. "So! Let's finally explore the festival! Are you guys ready?"

"Yeah! Mocchi wants to see everything, chi! Especially the candy stands, chi!" Mocchi cheered happily from his place in Holly's arms.

"I'm going to have to start lifting weights if you keep eating so much candy," Holly mused while hoisting Mocchi up so he wouldn't slip from her grasp.

"So, what do you guys want to do first?" Genki asked his other two companions.

"Get candy, chi! All the candy, chi!" Mocchi excitedly flailed his arms around.

"I guess we're getting candy first," Holly chuckled with amusement.

"Alright, then! Let's go!"

Unlike the previous morning, the streets weren't packed enough to make the walk unenjoyable. Instead, Genki walked side-by-side with Holly while Mocchi still took full advantage of being carried by the girl as the group of Searchers looked around for a stall selling candy. Luckily, the festival had no shortage of desserts and they were quick to find a candy stall being manned by a purebred Ape. The trio shared a grin of victory before hurrying over to the stand and they couldn't help but take a moment to appreciate the large selection of treats.

"Good morning! Please look over my array of sugary sweets! I recognize you as one of the tournament champions, so please pick out some candy, free of charge!" the purebred Ape grinned.

"That's awfully generous of you, but it's okay, really. We can pay for the candy," Holly offered with a shy blush.

"Not to worry, my dear! This is just part of the festival tradition. We prepare for this each festival so don't worry about accepting the offerings of the vendors here. You and your Suezo friend gave us some good entertainment at the tournament, so this is the least we can do. Not accepting our offerings would go against our traditions," the orangutan-like monster replied.

"Oh, in that case, we'll accept your kind offer. I don't want to offend anyone. It's very kind of you, though, to give us this opportunity. Thank you so much!" the wielder of the Magic Stone smiled.

"All the candy looks amazing!" Genki could feel himself salivating at the sight of all the different colored candy. While looking at the large selection, a blue popsicle-like candy labeled "ice candy" caught the energetic boy's attention and he instantly knew what he was going to choose.

"Yeah, chi! It looks like a rainbow, chi!" Mocchi chirped happily as his eyes scanned over all the sugary choices.

"Do you happen to sell apple cakes?" Holly asked the Ape with curiosity.

"Nah, I sell desserts you can make in bulk, but there may be someone else here that sells them. They're rare, though," the salesman shrugged.

"That's okay, you have a lot of other great looking treats to choose from," Holly smiled before looking down at the baby monster in her arms. "Okay, Mocchi, which one do you want?"

"Hmmmm… that one, chi!" Mocchi pointed his tiny hand at a brown lump of sugar.

"Good choice, lad! That's rock candy, it's a very popular treat! It's shaped to look like an actual rock, but it's really just sugar," the Ape vendor grinned while handing the candy to Mocchi.

"Out of all the pretty looking candy, you choose the one that looks like a literal rock," Genki mused.

"Yeah, 'cause it's cool, chi! Mocchi wonders what Golem would think of this candy! It looks like what he already eats, chi!" the young monster grinned widely as he held the large lump of rock candy in his hands as if it were the Holy Grail.

"What about you two? See anything you'd like to try?" the Ape smiled.

"Ice candy, please!"

Genki blinked in surprise before he turned his head to make eye contact with Holly, whom had asked for the same dessert as he had at the same time. The two anti-Moo rebels stared at one another for a moment until Genki jerked his head away to hide the blush on his face.

"Aww, how adorable! You know what they say about lover's telepathy!" the Ape grinned playfully as he grabbed two ice candies and gave the two humans a spirited wink.

"A-anyways! What's ice candy taste like?!" Genki asked frantically to change the subject.

"Yes, I'm curious, too, since I've never tried it before either," Holly spoke with intrigue.

Genki was just relieved Holly had gone along and changed the subject, too.

"Ice candy is a great summer delicacy because not only is it a frozen treat, which is great with the hot weather, but it's also mint flavored so it feels even cooler. It's definitely my recommendation for the perfect summer dessert as long as you eat it before the sun sets. The night air still gets pretty chilly here, so you won't enjoy eating these later! You picked a great time of day to try this," the orangutan-like monster grinned proudly as he held out one of the blue popsicles to the wielder of the Magic Stone to take.

Genki watched Holly's eyes shine in happiness at seeing the dessert as if she was a child, and it warmed his heart seeing her be able to enjoy herself instead of worry about the Baddies. He couldn't help but chuckle as he watched the only female Searcher struggle to take the treat since her arms were preoccupied carrying Mocchi, so the young monster in her arms took the dessert for her instead.

"I know your girlfriend is cute, but you have to take your ice candy sometime today."

The leader of the Searchers had been so wrapped up in watching Holly, he didn't realize the Ape had been holding out an ice candy for him to take, as well. With a blush, Genki quickly snatched the dessert and adverted his gaze to the ground in hopes of avoiding any more embarrassment.

"…thanks for the food," Genki mumbled bashfully.

"It's my pleasure! I hope you enjoy the rest of the festival and feel free to come back for more candy anytime!" the Ape waved.

The three Searchers moved away from the candy stand so the Ape could attend to other potential customers, which gave them the chance to regroup. Genki watched as Mocchi demolished the rock candy like a termite to rotting wood while Holly smiled happily at the young monster's joy. The ice candy Mocchi was holding dripped a little from the frozen treat beginning to melt, and the young boy cleared his throat to get his friends' attention.

"Mocchi, why don't you walk on your own or climb onto my back? Holly's been carrying you around the entire time we've been at the festival. She needs a break so she can at least eat her ice candy before it melts," Genki suggested.

"But, Mocchi doesn't wanna walk 'cause the crowd knocks me over and if I climb on Genki's back, I won't have free hands to eat stuff with, chi! Plus, Holly's the most comfortable, chi!" Mocchi beamed while snuggling against Holly.

"She's not a taxi, you know," the young boy frowned.

"Genki's just jealous that Mocchi gets carried by Holly, chi! Next time, Genki should ask to be carried by Holly before Mocchi does, chi!" the sweet cake-like monster stuck his tongue out at his friend.

Genki blinked, his brain firing at a million miles per second trying to absorb what Mocchi was saying, before his face turned crimson at the mental image his head conjured. "What are you even talking about?!"

"Oh, Mocchi! Even if he asked, I'm definitely not strong enough to carry Genki," Holly smiled with amusement.

"Genki's carried Holly before, chi! Why doesn't Genki carry Holly more? Being carried is the best, chi!" Mocchi tilted his head.

Genki got the sudden urge to shove his ice candy into Mocchi's mouth to stop the young monster from speaking any further, but since he didn't want to make a scene, he restrained himself.

"Oh! Well, um, Genki carries me when he's trying to protect me from Baddies, but otherwise that's something that's kind of… well…" Holly trailed off, the girl clearly unsure how to give Mocchi an explanation.

"S-so, Mocchi! Want to try some ice candy?" Genki quickly suggested in hopes of redirecting his attention.

"Ooooh! Yes, please, chi!" the young monster didn't need to be told twice and he excitedly plunged the entire ice candy he was still holding into his mouth.

"Geez, Mocchi! You were supposed to try mine, not eat Holly's entire candy!" the young boy scowled, although he was relieved he was able to change the subject.

"Oh, I'm sorry, chi! Mocchi didn't understand what Genki meant, chi," Mocchi looked at this friend apologetically before he licked his lips. "Mmmmm! Cold and minty, chi!"

"It's okay, there's no need to be sorry. I don't eat sweets often and I'm sure we'll be eating a lot of different food today, so I wouldn't have wanted to eat an entire candy, anyways," Holly smiled.

Genki looked down at his own ice candy, small beads of melted sugar dribbling down to where the popsicle stick met with the frozen treat, and the young boy swallowed the lump that formed in his throat.

"Hey, uh, Holly? Um, if you want, we can share mine," Genki offered with the confidence that matched Ducken.

Holly blinked. "Really? Are you sure?"

"Y-yeah! I don't need that much sugar this early into the day, anyways, and we can both try something new. Plus, you would've struggled to eat yours since your hands are already full carrying Mocchi, so this'll make it easier for you," the young boy let out a hesitant chuckle, more so out of anxiety than anything else.

"Thank you so much, Genki!"

Genki's heart fluttered when Holly rewarded him with a sparking smile, and he did his best to not let his nerves get the better of him.

"N-no problem!" the young boy tried to play things off casually.

With shaky hands, Genki extended the ice candy out to Holly for her to try, and the wielder of the Magic Stone cheerfully leaned towards it and took a small bite of the frozen treat.

"Oh, wow! That's really good! I wasn't sure if I'd like the mint flavor, but it's wonderful!" Holly smiled while licking the remaining minty treat from her lips.

Genki couldn't stop his heart from beating faster than Hare's Machine Gun Punch attack, and the young boy bashfully looked down at the popsicle in his hand to avoid looking at the brunette girl. Genki stared at the corner of the frozen treat that had been nibbled off by his fellow Searcher and he wasn't sure why he suddenly felt uncertain about eating the ice candy. He had shared food with Mocchi plenty of times before, but it felt different when sharing with Holly.

'It's just candy, for crying out loud! I'm the one who offered to share, so don't be awkward about it!' Genki thought to himself with determination.

"Genki? Are you okay?" Holly's voice broke the silence that fell over the trio.

"Hahaha, yeah! Of course! I was just, uh, admiring the festival! This is such a cool place to explore!" Genki spoke up with vigor.

"That's true, it's a nice change from where we've been traveling recently," the brunette girl smiled. "Still, you should try some of the ice candy before it completely melts."

"Yeah, chi! Genki's gotta try it before it's all gone, chi!" Mocchi agreed with the girl holding him.

Genki looked down at the popsicle, which was slowly melting down to the base, and the young boy hesitantly brought it up to his mouth. With care, Genki bit off a small corner of the cold dessert and he smiled as a surge of minty flavor burst in his mouth. He wasn't sure if it was because they had recently traveled through a desert or if it was because he had been getting so nervous around Holly throughout his time at the festival, but the frozen dessert felt like one the of the most refreshing delicacies he had ever eaten.

It really was good.

"So? What do you think?" Holly asked.

"You're right! This is an awesome dessert!" Genki grinned.

Holly smiled in response and leaned over to take another bite of the frozen treat without a care in the world. Genki followed afterwards by taking a bite after his friend had, and the only two humans of the anti-Moo rebels smiled at one another in blissful enjoyment. Their eyes locked for a moment, one in which Genki could see the happiness in Holly's eyes sparkling back at him, and it made a shiver go up his spine.

"Are you cold?" Holly asked curiously.

"No! The ice candy is cold, is all!" Genki blushed with embarrassment.

"Can… can Mocchi have a bite, chi?" Mocchi stared at the remaining popsicle with wide eyes and a little drool collecting at the corners of his mouth.

"Yeah! You can have the rest of it!" the young boy immediately offered to avoid any more awkwardness with Holly.

"Yeah, help yourself, Mocchi," Holly smiled down at the baby monster in her arms. "Just take it easy with the desserts after this so you don't get sick, okay?"

Mocchi nodded his head frantically in agreement and happily accepted the remaining ice candy from Genki. The young monster immediately devoured the frozen treat with such speed, other festival attendees watched with surprise.

"Ah! That was the best, chi! Thank you!" Mocchi patted his dessert-filled belly and sighed happily at getting his sugar fix, at least for the moment.

"So, now that we got candy, what do you guys want to do now?" Holly asked.

"Games, chi! Can we see what games they have, chi?" Mocchi asked, his eyes sparkling with excitement.

Genki looked over at Holly and the duo caught each other's gaze. Holly gave Genki a reassuring smile, and the young boy returned it before patting Mocchi on the head. "Yeah, that sounds like a good plan. Let's go to the game section!"

Genki marched through the crowd with his friends in tow and every couple a seconds, he would glance behind him to make sure he didn't lose Holly again like he had the day before. Fortunately, the section they were exploring wasn't as packed as the merchant stands were, so Holly was able to keep up with Genki even with the added weight of carrying Mocchi.

The game section of the festival was filled with simplistic looking games all made of aged materials and weren't nearly as flashy as the games Genki was used to seeing in his world. Several boards with crude bullseyes painted on them were posted near stands where throwing axes and knives were laid out. One stand contained a group of empty bottles standing up straight with balls at the counter while another bottle-themed stand had wooden rings hanging off the very tops.

"Woah! What's that, chi?" Mocchi asked, his eyes glued to the strange bottle setup in front of him.

"That's a game found in my world, too! It's a ring toss!" Genki exclaimed with excitement.

"A… ring toss?" Holly blinked, a little uncertain.

"You've never seen one, either?"

"We never had huge festivals like this one in my village and the closest I've seen to things like this was at the amusement park ruins," the wielder of the Magic Stone admitted.

Genki puffed his chest out and grinned proudly. "Well, both of you are in luck! Not to brag, but I'm pretty good at carnival games back in my world!"

"Really? Show us how it's done, then!" Holly smirked playfully.

That's all it took for Genki to march confidently over to the Weed festival attendant manning the ring toss stand with an extra beat to his step.

"Welcome, my friend! It's good to see you once again!" the Weed greeted while adjusting his red festival uniform.

"Are you the same Weed attendant from the tournament?" Genki asked.

"Ah ha! I am, indeed! Since the tournament is just for one night, I fill in at other stations for the remainder of the festival," the hybrid Plant smiled. "So, are you ready to try your skill at our little game here?"

"Yeah! I'm ready to win!" the brunette boy stated with determination.

"Great! All you have to do is throw these three rings and if you get all three of them to land on the bottles, you win a prize! Perhaps you're doing this to win a prize for your girlfriend?" the Weed enthusiastically bounced to Genki's side and elbowed the young boy teasingly.

Genki refused to look back at Holly; his stomach clenched from yet another festival attendant mistaking them for being a couple. An embarrassed scowl found its way on his face and his eyes shone with determination. "Just give me the rings!"

"Hahaha, fantastic! Best of luck to you!" the plant-like monster handed Genki three wooden rings and slinked to Holly's side to watch.

'Just focus, I've got this! This is something I can actually do!' Genki let out a soft breath of air, thoughts of only winning the game he was playing allowed to enter his mind, before his eyes snapped open and he tossed a ring with a gentle snap of his wrist. The ring bounced off the bottle at the front of the line, but proceeded to flop onto the one behind it and stayed hooked around its neck.

"Yay! Genki got the first ring, chi!" Mocchi cheered giddily.

Genki stayed focus, his eyes staying glued to the bottles in front of him, before he extended his arm and flicked the next ring with slightly more force than the first time. The ring bounced between several bottles before rolling onto the neck of one of the middle bottles.

"Genki, you can do it, chi!" the baby monster continued to cheer his best friend on.

The leader of the Searchers felt his hands becoming sweaty with the pressure of having to throw the last ring, and Genki couldn't stop the feeling of dread from sinking into his stomach. He felt like an idiot that such a trivial game made him feel so intense and he knew for onlookers, he must have looked pretty silly with how serious he was. The question of why Genki cared so much about winning the game lingered in his head and he knew it was the same reason he wanted to win the festival tournament so badly.

To impress Holly.

Genki clutched the ring tightly in his hand as his thoughts drifted to the girl he was showing off for and it only made him less confident. He had never felt driven to impress someone for the same reason he was now, and it was a confusing feeling. It didn't feel like the same theatrics he pulled in the past to gain attention, like his stunts on Jim's boat to gain the older man's approval. At that time, there was a feeling that his pride was on the line and that Jim didn't see him as an equal, in which he fortunately ended up being wrong about. With Holly, it was a strong pull for approval, but it was also for her to see him as something more than she already did.

More than just the reckless boy she had unlocked from a Mystery Disc.

More than just her friend.

"You've got this, Genki! I know you can do it!"

Genki's eyes widened as he heard Holly's voice over the festival crowd, and he turned slowly to lock eyes with the wielder of the Magic Stone. The world felt like it came to a halt in that moment and when Holly gave him a reassuring smile, Genki suddenly felt like he could take down General Durahan by himself.

He wasn't going to let Holly's faith be misplaced.

With an intense glare towards the old bottles standing before him, Genki reeled his arm back before extending forward with the ring clasped firmly in his hand. Just as Genki's hand fell parallel to his chest, the young boy released his hold on the ring and allowed the item to fly from his hand. A bead of sweat rolled down his face as he watched the ring bounce on the tip of one of the bottle rims and it balanced on the bottle behind it. With a little vibration from the heavy steps of other festival attendees, the ring gentle toppled over and fell onto the neck of farthest bottle; the ring settled down and ceased moving.

For the other festival attendees, it was a much less intense moment. For Genki, however, it was as if he had just faced off against Naga again and the feeling of victory erupted in his chest.

"Yeah! Got it!" Genki cheered and pumped his fist in the air.

"Wow! Great job, sir! I'm impressed!" the Weed festival attendant exclaimed while making his way to Genki's side.

"Oh, thanks! It's been a long time since I've played this game, so I'm just glad I'm not as rusty as I thought I was!" Genki sheepishly scratched the back of his head.

"Well, you most certainly earned a prize for that display! What would you like?" the Plant hybrid ushered Genki over to a small table.

The prizes were nothing like what Genki would have won in his own world. Instead of large stuffed animals or small colorful trinkets, the table was filled with old knick-knacks and tools. The young boy blinked in surprise, not expecting the selection of prizes to be so different than his world, until something glossy peeking out from under a rusty plate caught his eye. A rectangular stone block sat at the bottom of the pile and although a little scuffed, was still smooth to the touch. For a moment, Genki's mind flickered back to thoughts of the battle with End Bringer, and he immediately grabbed the block and held it up for the Weed to see.

"Can I have this?" Genki asked.

"That's an odd choice, but it's yours to keep," the Weed said with a shrug.

Genki thanked the plant-like monster and jogged over to his friends with an extra pep in his stride. A prideful smile found its way to his face and when he reached the other two Searchers, he bowed in a jesting curtain call. In response, Mocchi clapped giddily in Holly's arms while the wielder of the Magic Stone could only smile with amusement.

"Thank you! Thank you! I'll be here all day!" Genki grinned playfully.

"I guess you really are good at these games," Holly mused.

"See? I told you I was! You have to start having a little more faith in me, Holly!" the clear-eyed boy playfully winked.

"What did you get, chi? Is it a candy bar?" Mocchi eagerly leaned over from his place in Holly's arms to try getting a look at Genki's prize.

Genki chuckled at his best friend. "You definitely wouldn't want to eat this, Mocchi! This is a whetstone."

"What's that, chi?" Mocchi cocked his head to the side in confusion.

"Whetstones are stones typically used to sharpen tools and weapons," Holly explained to the young monster in her arms before turning her attention to the orange hat wearing boy. "Although, I'm not sure why you'd want one, Genki."

"I figured we can use it to sharpen your dagger, that way you can use it to defend yourself if you need to. I was hoping to win you something nicer, but the selection was kind of terrible…" Genki trailed off.

"No, no! This was really thoughtful! I wasn't expecting you to win me anything. I thought you'd win something for yourself, but that was really kind of you. Thank you so much! " Holly beamed and looked down at the weapon hanging on her hip. "I've never sharpened a weapon before, but I watched my father do it a lot when I was a child. This dagger really could use some maintenance."

"I can help with it! My dad taught me how to sharpen knives since he has a knife collection, so I have some experience," the energetic boy offered.

"Really? That would be great, thank you for your help," the wielder of the Magic Stone grinned.

Holly's warm smile was enough to make the air feel like the sweltering desert they had just faced Renocraft in, so Genki turned his attention down at the young monster still sitting in the wielder of the Magic Stone's arms to avoid her noticing his reddening cheeks.

"I'm gonna just take a couple minutes to sharpen Holly's dagger, so why don't you play some festival games until I'm done?" Genki suggested to his monster companion.

Mocchi's eyes lit up and the young monster leapt out of Holly's arms before landing clumsily on the ground. "Okay, chi! Mocchi will win a festival game like Genki did! Don't take a long time with Holly's dagger so we can keep exploring, though!"

"Don't worry, Mocchi. It won't take long and when I'm done, we'll get right back to exploring," the clear-eyed boy reassured.

Mocchi seemed to accept his human partner's explanation, and the little monster merrily skipped towards the ring toss game Genki had just beaten in hopes of doing as well as his best friend.

With Mocchi preoccupied with talking to the Weed festival attendant, Genki walked over to one of the food stalls and talked with the food stall vendor. After a moment, the young boy acquired a cup of water and sauntered carefully back towards his very confused friend. The clear-eyed boy ushered for Holly to follow him to a nearby wooden picnic table, and the wielder of the Magic Stone followed him without question. As duo sat across from one another, Genki placed the cup of water and whetstone down before extending his hand out to Holly.

"Can I see your dagger?" Genki asked.

Holly didn't respond to the young boy and, instead, pulled out her prized dagger from it's sheath before carefully handing the weapon to Genki. After pouring some water onto the whetstone, Genki proceeded to move the edge of the blade along the whetstone in long smooth strokes. The young boy kept his concentration on ensuring he added even pressure with each stroke as he moved the blade from one side of the whetstone to the other and he added a little extra water after each stroke. The once dull blade of the dagger was already beginning to sharpen and it gleamed dangerously up at the young boy sharpening it.

"You're really good at this," Holly watched Genki work with intrigue.

"Thanks! After all of my dad's knives I accidently destroyed learning how to sharpen them, I'm glad I'm able to do a better job on yours," Genki replied, a wryly smile plastered on his face. "I wish we had more time since this is easier if the whetstone had time to soak in the water for a little while first, but this should still work fine."

"What made you think to get a whetstone? That was a pretty odd choice of a prize," Holly asked.

Genki stopped moving the blade along the whetstone for a moment and his eyes lingered on the shining blade. He wasn't completely conscious during the entire battle with End Bringer and he only just barely remembered being held up by Holly as she navigated them both to the damp cave in an attempt to escape the robotic monster. The loud beeping End Bringer emitted after being stabbed by Holly still echoed in his head every so often, as did the faint glimmer of the jeweled dagger embedded in the robotic monster's knee that saved both their lives.

"I don't remember much, but I kinda remember seeing your dagger stabbed in End Bringer's knee. I figured that must have dulled the blade a bit and your dagger won't do you much good if it's dull," Genki replied while moving the dagger's blade along the damp whetstone. "I mean, I hope you don't have to use your dagger again, but we have to be ready for anything, right?"

The air fell into silence, with only the scraping sound from the dagger's blade being sharpened faintly heard over the crowd.

"…thank you for always looking out for me," Holly's response was so quiet, Genki almost didn't hear it.

"Of course, Holly! You look out for everyone and because I can be reckless, you probably look out for me the most. I'll always make sure I can keep you safe, although with End Bringer, you were the one protecting me!" Genki wryly smiled. Gently, he wiped the blade of the dagger dry before carefully handing it back to its owner, and Holly placed the weapon back in its sheath.

"I'm not a skilled fighter, but I'll do my best to fight to make sure you're safe, too. You can more than take care of yourself, but whenever you can't, I'll do whatever it takes to protect you," Holly's eyes shone with a determined flicker.

Genki blinked, the boy surprised to hear Holly's determination to keep him safe just as she had told Hunter the day before, and he smiled. He didn't like the idea of Holly risking her life to protect him, but he couldn't stop the feeling of admiration from blossoming in his chest at the thought. Even though he wanted to turn away, he couldn't find it in himself to break his attention away from Holly's warm eyes and he subconsciously let out a deep breath.

"Look at this, chi!"

Genki immediately tore his gaze away from Holly at the shout and looked over to his monster companion. Mocchi held up a large throwing axe from one of the game stalls and waved it around in the air like a warlord.

"Mocchi's a warrior, chi!" Mocchi grinned playfully.

"Mocchi?! Is that an axe?!" Genki gaped.

"Woah! Hang on there, Mocchi!" Holly leapt out of her seat and sprinted over to Mocchi faster than a hunting Cabalos; her motherly instincts in overdrive. The wielder of the Magic Stone quickly took the weapon away from the young monster, who sulked in defiance, and the brunette girl sighed in relief she had reached him so quickly.

"Hey! Mocchi was gonna throw that, chi!" Mocchi scowled.

"That's dangerous, though! Why not play a safer game, like the one Genki did?" Holly replied hesitantly while putting the throwing axe back on the game stand it belonged to.

"But, Mocchi wants to play with weapons like Genki and Holly are, chi! Mocchi already played the ring toss, chi!" the young monster pouted, but he still put his arms in the air in hopes of being carried.

"Oh, Mocchi. Genki and I weren't playing with my dagger. He was just sharpening it just in case I ever need to use it again," the brunette girl smiled as she lifted Mocchi off the ground and held the young monster gently in her arms.

Genki sighed in relief Mocchi didn't hurt himself and he picked the whetstone off the table before joining his two friends. As he approached Holly, he held the whetstone tightly before clearing his throat.

"Do you want to keep this or toss it now that your blade is sharp?" Genki asked.

"I definitely want to keep it. I may need to have my dagger sharpened again someday and…" Holly trailed off for a moment before a bright smile crossed her lips. "…it's a gift from you."

Genki blinked in surprise before blushing red. "O-oh! Um, yeah! Want me to put it in your purse?"

"Yeah, that would be great."

The young boy didn't wait for a response and he clumsily opened the purse hanging off Holly's shoulder. The whetstone fit snuggly inside the leather bag and Genki closed it up quickly to avoid invading her privacy.

"Thank you," Holly smiled.

"Y-yeah, no problem," Genki replied absentmindedly, for he was distracted by his own thoughts. 'Don't read into it! She didn't mean it in any way other than her friend got her a gift!'

Still, the small comment gave Genki him something he wasn't anticipating: hope. He didn't want to give himself any false hope that Holly saw him as anything more than a friend, but he couldn't help but feel her tone of voice was laced with a kind of admiration he hadn't noticed before.

'Or, I could be reading into things because it's how I wish she'd feel, not what she actually feels,' Genki thought quietly to himself.

"So, what do you guys want to do now?" Holly asked, breaking the silence.

"Let's get more candy, chi!" Mocchi chirped.

"You're gonna get sick if you keep eating so much candy!" Genki frowned.

"I agree with Genki. If you get sick, Mocchi, you won't enjoy the rest of the festival. That wouldn't be fun, would it?" Holly asked the young monster in her arms.

"But! But candy is the best, chi! Mocchi never had so much candy until the festival and we're leaving tomorrow, chi!" the young monster whined.

"Too much of a good thing isn't actually good, though."

Genki didn't want to turn around to greet the newcomer, but he knew it was inevitable. With a sigh, the young boy turned around to see the person he was least looking forward to seeing at the festival and he put on a fake smile. Hunter gave the Searchers a friendly wave as he approached them while Surmal bounced energetically next to his partner. Even though he felt disheartened at his time with Holly being interrupted, Genki replayed Hare's words in his head and he did his best to look content.

"Surmal can tell you from firsthand experience that if you eat too much of something that you'll get horribly sick. Isn't that right?" Hunter looked down with amusement at the lion-like monster standing next to him.

"I still like seafood, though! Seafood is still tasty!" Surmal licked his lips.

"You didn't like it at the last festival, though! You were so sick from overeating seafood, you cried all night and refused to eat seafood for weeks afterwards!" the older boy chuckled.

"I was dumb to give up seafood. Seafood is the best! Don't listen to them, Mocchi! Eat everything you want!" the purebred Garu cackled wildly.

"Don't give him terrible advice! You're the worse person to get any kind of advice from!" Hunter shook his head in shame at his partner. "Definitely don't listen to Surmal, Mocchi, if you want to avoid getting sick."

"Mocchi doesn't want to get sick, chi! Maybe Mocchi will get more candy later instead, chi…" Mocchi gulped nervously at the thought of vomiting from too many sweets.

Hunter turned his gaze to Holly, an aura of confidence emitting from the older boy, and Genki did his best to not interrupt him. His conversation with Hare the night before was still fresh in his mind and he knew the only thing he could do to preserve the pristine feeling of the festival was to do one thing: don't act on negative emotions.

"It's good to see you both. How are you two doing today?" Holly greeted the two newcomers with a smile instead of a wave since her arms were still preoccupied carrying Mocchi.

"We're doing well so far! We just finished getting some snacks and we ran into Suezo at the festival center," the tall boy extended his arm out to show the blue sleeve of his jacket with the name Suezo written in cursive. "For some reason he threatened to rip out my jugular if I did anything to you and then he proceeded to autograph my jacket."

Holly blushed in embarrassment. "I'm so sorry, Hunter! He's just a little protective of me!"

"It's all good, don't worry! Plus, now I have an autograph from a Festival of Fire tournament champion! I'm so happy, I'll never wash this jacket again!" Hunter joked while fake swooning.

"If you joke like that in front of Suezo, he'll really think you're his biggest fan," Genki chuckled.

The group shared a laugh, and Genki felt his confidence rise. Even if he didn't want to spend the rest of his time at the festival with Hunter, he patted himself on the back for being civil. The fact Holly was happy was enough for him right now and he wanted to keep it that way.

"So, what are you guys up to now? Have you played any of the games yet?" Hunter asked.

"Mocchi played some games, but didn't win, chi," Mocchi frowned.

"It just takes practice, Mocchi. You did great, though," Holly patted Mocchi on the head before her attention redirected towards the orange hat-wearing boy of the group. "Genki played one of the games, too, and he did really well. He won a prize and everything."

"I didn't do that well…" Genki blushed at the praise.

"That's great, though! I played some of the games earlier and I did terrible! Although, Surmal did even worse than me since he wouldn't stop trying to eat the game props," Hunter wryly smiled.

"They looked tasty! Like dessert!" Surmal huffed.

"Whatever you say," the older boy rolled his eyes. "Anyways, do you guys want to look around together? There's a magic show going on right now if you guys are interested?"

Genki felt a defiant "no thanks" creep up into his throat, but as he looked over to catch Holly's warm glance, he remembered Hare's advice and put on a forced smile instead. "Yeah, that sounds like it'll be fun to watch."

"Great! I think it's mostly done, but we should be able to catch the end of it," Hunter smiled and motioned for the Searchers to follow him.

As the older boy led the group, Genki watched in silence as Hunter stayed glued to Holly's side; a wide smile ever present on his face. The anti-Moo rebel leader felt disappointment rise into his stomach since, just a few minutes earlier, it was him who was at Holly's side. Genki kept quiet, however, and followed the two teenagers with the hope that his time with Holly at the festival would still be memorable and, perhaps, they would eventually part ways with Hunter.

Hunter led the group to a small clearing where a variety of different monsters and humans circled around a small stage. On the stage, a purebred Joker swung his sharp scythe into the air and suddenly, a bouquet of flowers fell out of the sky and landed in his free hand. The Joker then placed the flowers in his Spot Dino (Dino/Hare) assistant's hands before tapping it with his weapon, and the flowers suddenly turned into doves that flew in the air. The crowd broke out into a wave of cheers at the display and the two magician's bowed happily the trick was well received.

"Magic shows are pretty neat, huh?" Hunter commented.

"Yeah! Yeah! I wanna learn magic, too!" Surmal grinned giddily.

"I wonder how they do tricks like that," Holly tilted her head in wonder.

"There are a lot of guides on how to do magic tricks in my world, but I never learned," Genki shrugged.

"Genki should learn magic someday, chi!" Mocchi grinned and leapt from his place in Holly's arms into Genki's arms. "Then you could use it to trick the Baddies and stuff, chi!"

"Hahaha, yeah! Maybe someday I will! I don't think I'm patient enough to learn complicated tricks, but I wouldn't mind learning a few simple card tricks or something. I'm not sure how well that would go over with the Baddies, though," the young boy smiled down at his best friend.

"May I have your attention, please?"

The Joker's voice carried through the area and the crowd fell silent in response.

"Alright, on to the last magic trick of the day! For this one, I'll need a volunteer! Anyone daring enough to accept?" Joker twirled his scythe and scanned the crowd for their response.

"Oh! Oh! Me! Me!" Surmal flung his hands in the air and flailed around like a maniac.

"Haha! I need someone a bit older than you, little one! How about the pretty lady you're with?" the clown-like monster stopped twirling his blade and pointed it directly at the wielder of the Magic Stone.

"Oh, I'm so sorry, but I'd rather just watch the show," Holly shifted nervously at the attention.

"Nonsense! This will be much more exciting than just watching the show! You'll be amazed, I promise! Now, come on up!" Joker clapped his hands together and without hesitation, his Spot Dino assistant grabbed Holly by her wrist and pulled her towards the stage.

"H-hey! Wait!" the only female Searcher was roughly yanked onstage and she struggled to catch her footing. At realizing she was on the stage, Holly's face turned pale as the crowd's full attention fell onto her. The Spot Dino assistant didn't waste any time in pushing the anxious girl onto a wobbly wooden chair and tying her down with a ragged piece of rope.

"Hey! Holly said she didn't want to be a part of the show!" Genki shouted with an angry Mocchi in his arms.

"Yeah! Pick someone else! I'll even take her place!" Hunter followed up, his hands clenched into tight fists.

"Relax! This will impress you, I swear!" Joker smiled, pulled a mango out of the sleeve of his cloak, and raised his scythe above his head. With a cackle, the magician tossed the mango into the air and swiftly cut the fruit cleanly in half, leaving the severed fruit to roll to the stage floor. "Everyone can see my scythe is the real deal, correct? That it was able to cut through that mango without any issues?"

The crowd murmured in curiosity at the building tension for the next trick while Genki and Hunter exchanged concerned looks; both boys not liking the direction the magic trick was taking.

"Well! I'm going to cleave this girl completely in half with my scythe! Will she survive or is this the end for this poor girl?!" Joker announced with a devilish laugh.

The crowd cheered in anticipation for the magic trick, but not everyone in the crowd was excited in the same way.

"What?!" Genki and Hunter both stared with mouths agape at the magician.

Holly's eyes widened and she whipped her head to face the magician. "W-wait! I really don't want to do this!"

"Nonsense! You'll be fine! I've done this trick many times!" Joker whispered to the bound girl, a merry chuckle exiting his throat before he lifted his scythe above his head. "Alright, everyone! It's time to see what fate has in store for this girl!"

Genki's eyes widened as he watched Holly shut her eyes tight and flinch at the sound of Joker's voice, the girl obviously distraught at the situation. Suddenly, memories surfaced in the young boy's head of their journey through the underground tunnels where Hare had almost left them. He remembered the many times during that adventure, how often he and Holly stayed close to one another. He wondered if he had subconsciously gravitated towards her during that adventure or, perhaps, it was the other way around. A vivid memory of the Joker who attacked them flashed in Genki's mind, with his Baddies crest glimmering even in the dark tunnels while wielding his deadly scythe, and the leader of the Searcher felt his blood run cold at the recollection.

With the reflexes of Kato, Genki shoved Mocchi into Hunter's arms and bolted towards the stage with a fire burning in his eyes. The young boy pushed through the crowd with no regard for anyone but the girl his attention was focused on. Even when an orange blur passed by him, Genki kept his eyes glued on Holly and even without a plan, he was determined to protect his friend at any cost. When he made it to the stage, Genki leapt up onto the platform and without care for his own safety, dodged the Spot Dino assistant and flung himself at Holly. The young boy brought his friend in for a tight embrace to shield her from the oncoming danger and he subconsciously tightened his muscles in anticipation for the impact. Genki could feel Holly shiver against his body and even though he was scared, this made him only hold her closer.

"Genki, run!" Holly's voice was laced with fear, more for Genki than for herself.

The warmth of Holly's breath against Genki's neck caused a wave of goosebumps to crawl up the young boy's arms and for heat to paint his face crimson, but he didn't listen to the girl and, instead, remained ready to defend the wielder of the Magic Stone at any cost.

The sound of the scythe swinging and the gasp of the crowd echoed in the otherwise quiet air, which was followed by a bout of silence.

Genki clenched his eyes tightly, waiting for the searing pain that was bound to come from being sliced through by Joker's scythe, but he was more surprised when he heard a roaring round of applause.

"That was amazing!"

"How did he do that?!"

"That was the best show yet!"

"I don't know if that kid running up to save the girl was part of the show or not, but that was a great touch!"

Hesitantly, Genki opened his eyes and was surprised to see he was uninjured and, instead, a swarm of butterflies fluttered around them. One butterfly flew towards his head until it landed weightlessly on the brim of his baseball cap, leaving Genki to stare at it in confusion.

"Um… Genki?"

A meek voice caught Genki's attention, and he realized he was still holding Holly in his arms as if their lives depended on it. With a yelp, Genki tore away from Holly, his face flushed several shades of red from embarrassment, and the butterfly on his hat fluttered away in a hurry. For a moment he caught Holly's gaze, her shining eyes staring back into his own with surprise swirling in them, until the young boy tore his gaze away.

"Hahaha! What a dramatic show! Just like a knight saving a princess, am I right?" Joker chuckled while using his scythe to cut the rope binding Holly.

"Wow! The scythe turned into butterflies and then back into a scythe again! How did you do that?!" Surmal jumped up with excitement towards the Joker, the purebred Garu already on the stage.

"A magician never reveals their secrets! Although, it doesn't hurt to naturally have illusionary abilities," the magician spoke with amusement.

"You're the best magician ever!" the purebred Garu giddily caught one of the butterflies, looked around frantically to see if anyone was looking, and shoved the insect into his mouth.

"…what a weird monster," the Spot Dino assistant watched Surmal in disgust.

"Hey! Chi!" Mocchi ran as fast as his little legs could carry him and flopped onto the stage before running into Holly's arms. "Genki and Holly are okay, chi!"

"Of course they're okay! It's just a magic trick, like I said," the Joker spoke with confidence.

"Sorry for jumping in like that. I just, uh…" Genki looked down with embarrassment at the floor.

"Don't be sorry! At first I was a little annoyed you interrupted my show, but the crowd loved your noble sacrifice! Romance and drama really sells, you know!" the magician swooned happily.

"We've never gotten this many tips before, so the crowd really must have liked the dramatic feeling from your stunt. We'll have to keep that in mind for future shows," the Spot Dino toothily grinned while she counted their pile of gold coins.

Genki didn't know how to respond to the two magicians so he stayed quiet instead. A wave of embarrassment washed over the young boy as he looked back to the way he held Holly so tightly and how he thought that was how he'd be spending his last moments. Instead, it had all been just a spectacle for amusement, and Genki wasn't sure whether to feel relieved it really had just been a magic trick or to feel sick to his stomach that he had made such a scene.

"Genki?"

Holly's voice almost made Genki jump, and the young boy turned to face his friend with a sheepish laugh.

"Hey, Holly! That was some show, huh?" Genki chuckled nervously.

"Yeah, that was really nerve-wracking! Maybe it's because of all the Baddies we've had to face, but I was definitely really nervous!" Holly smiled, although the girl was visibly still a little shaken. "Even though it was just a magic trick, I really appreciate you coming to my rescue. I'm just relieved it was a magic trick because I don't know what I would have done if you had actually been hurt or worse."

"O-oh! Well, uh… You know me! I'm the Monster Champ, after all! It's what I do!" Genki laughed hesitantly and turned his head to hide the blush creeping up his face.

"Talk about a dramatic display!"

Genki frowned as Hunter approached the stage, and he felt his stomach twist as he made his way over to Holly. The anti-Moo rebel leader wanted to intervene, but he held back and, instead, allowed Hunter to jog up to Holly and place a hand on her shoulder.

"That was definitely an intense show! Joker had me fooled up until he lifted his scythe. I noticed when he lifted it in the air, a cold feeling came over me, and I knew he had cast his illusion ability on the crowd," Hunter smiled wryly.

"Even if it had been real, though, Genki would have saved me anyways," Holly smiled.

"Y-yeah! I had it under control!" Genki stammered.

"You would have been cleaved in half if that had been real, though. The best action to take would have been to attack Joker directly, not to shield Holly, since what you did would have gotten you killed had he really been trying to attack," the older boy stated.

"Yeah, well, I didn't see you leaping up to do anything," the frown on Genki's face only grew.

"I sent Surmal up to the stage at the same time you ran up to Holly just in case Joker tried anything, Surmal would have attacked Joker directly before the scythe hit either of you," the messy-haired teenager smiled.

Genki went to retort with a snarky comment, but he stopped as he noticed the concerned look Holly was giving him. His mind drifted back to Hare's advice from the night before and the young boy let out a defeated sigh. "I'm sorry, Hunter. I really appreciate you sending Surmal up to the stage to help in case we needed it. I'm just a little on edge from the adrenaline, I guess."

Genki wanted to smack the smile off of Hunter's face at receiving his apology, but he kept in control and swallowed his pride.

"No need to apologize! You just went through a pretty tense situation so I understand being a little on edge and it's hard to think of the best course of action to take when you only have a second to make a decision," Hunter gave the younger boy a pat on the back.

Genki rolled his eyes in response.

"That was certainly enough excitement for one day! Why don't we choose something a little more low-key to do next?" Holly suggested.

"Yeah, chi. Mocchi doesn't want to be scared again, chi," Mocchi frowned, the young monster still a bit unnerved from the magic trick.

"Oh, yeah! They have a fortuneteller just a few rows away. Want to check it out? I don't really believe in that sort of thing, but it's still kind of fun! Surmal and I already had ours done earlier, but you guys should do it, too!" Hunter grinned.

"I haven't talked to a fortuneteller since a traveling soothsayer visited my hometown once. It can definitely be interesting. What do you think, Genki?" Holly turned her attention to the clear-eyed boy standing next to her.

"A fortuneteller? Uh, sure! Let's go check it out!" Genki smiled nervously as he glanced over to Holly and his mind raced at the information he was hoping to find out. 'I wonder if they'll see love in my future...?'

Just like before, Hunter stuck close to Holly for the entire walk, leaving Genki to trail behind with Mocchi on his back and Surmal at his side. The young boy continuously repeated Hare's advice in his head from the day before to keep from saying something snarky and, instead, just followed the two teenagers quietly.

The fortuneteller stand stood out compared to most of the other stands due to the over use of decorations and candles, which made it easy to find. A vacant chair was in front of a table and a Jinnee (Pixie/Bajarl) sat across the table with an atmosphere of mystery surrounding her. Her skin was tan, which was a stark contrast to her white baggy pants, crop top, bracers and jeweled turban. Even the wings that jutted out her back were a sparkling white color and they stayed folded behind her. A tan vest hung loosely over her shoulders and her feet were adorned with simple brown shoes. Her short brown hair framed her petite face and her thin tail hung loosely behind her.

"Ah, welcome, my dears! Which one of you would like to get your fortune read first?" the Jinnee smiled playfully.

"Mocchi will, chi!" the young monster quickly volunteered.

"Very well then, little one. Give me your hand and I will tell you what I see," the Pixie hybrid extended her hand out.

Mocchi hopped up on the vacant chair and had to sit at the edge of the seat so he could reach Jinnee, but the little monster succeeded in grabbing onto her hand.

"Hmm… Oh, my! I see great power in your future, little one! I see you changing this war stricken world in an eruption of fire and willpower! The world won't be able to survive without your unlimited courage!" Jinnee raised her hands up dramatically. "This is an incredible future!"

"…there's nothing about candy, chi?" Mocchi tilted his head.

Jinnee blinked. "W-what? After a fortune like that, your concern is… candy?!"

Mocchi nodded his head vigorously. "Yeah, chi! Mocchi is curious if I eat more candy, if I'll get sick or not, chi."

The Pixie hybrid face faulted before recomposing herself with a frazzled smile. "Uh, sure. Um… wait an hour to eat more candy, that way you bring down your risk of getting sick."

"Yay, chi! Thank you!" Mocchi beamed as he leapt off the chair, satisfied with the answer.

"Uh, okay, sure," Jinnee sweated. "A-anyways! Who would like to get their fortune read next?"

"How about you go, Genki?" Hunter suggested.

"I… I guess…" Genki gulped nervously before sitting down in front of the fortuneteller and extending his hand out to her.

Jinnee held Genki's hand for a moment and her eyes widened. "Oh my! Another destiny of great power! You're a bridge between souls and without you, a savior cannot be resurrected! I see a swirl of both sadness and happiness in your future, but everything you go through now will only make you stronger! You will be one of the souls who decide the very fate of our world! This is unbelievable!"

Genki sat for a moment, taking in the fortuneteller's words, before looking behind his shoulder. "Hey, Holly? Could you, uh, get me some water? My throat's pretty dry…"

"Yeah, sure thing," Holly smiled and walked towards one of the drink stalls without hesitation.

At seeing Holly's departure, Genki cautiously leaned over the table to whisper to Jinnee. "So… anything about love?"

"L-love? Seriously?! What is it with you guys?! I just gave you predictions about great power and world changing potential, yet you fools worry about trivial things like candy and love?!" Jinnee seethed, her face turning a little red from frustration.

"I'm just curious!" the young boy scowled.

"I pray we're not going to have to rely on you guys to save the world or anything serious like that," the Pixie hybrid rolled her eyes. "As for love, I do see love in your future, but it's filled with obstacles."

Genki smiled. "But… it's still there, right?"

"Yes, fool, it's there."

The leader of the Searchers just about jumped out of his seat to celebrate, but he contained his emotions as Holly returned to the group.

"Here you go," Holly handed a small cup of water to Genki.

"Thank you, Holly!" Genki grinned from ear to ear.

"What made you so happy?" the wielder of the Magic Stone asked.

"Oh, nothing! This fortuneteller stuff is just a lot of fun!" the clear-eyed boy smiled before taking a sip of the water.

Hunter walked to Genki's side and nudged him playfully with his elbow. "Is there a reason why you don't want Holly to know about your fortune?"

"N-no!" Genki blushed and almost spit out his drink.

"It's Holly's turn, chi!" Mocchi piped up.

"Y-yeah! It's your turn to get your fortune told, Holly!" Genki quickly agreed with Mocchi to change the subject.

Holly smiled and sat across from Jinnee before extending her hand out. The Pixie hybrid held Holly's hand and closed her eyes in concentration, but her eyes quickly snapped open in fear. Jinnee recoiled away from the brunette girl as if she had been burned by acid and she shakily pointed an accusing finger at her.

"O-oh, my! Death and suffering follow you wherever you go! A terrible evil cloaks you and follows your every step! You will lose everything, even your friends, and you will be left alone in the world!" Jinnee's voice quivered as she spoke. "This evil that follows you, I can feel it's watchful gaze even right now! You bring danger and death with you! Please, I need you to leave!"

The group stood in silence, mouths agape in shock at the dark fortune, until Holly cleared her throat.

"Thank you for the fortune, Jinnee. I apologize for any fright I may have given you," Holly smiled weakly as she stood up to regroup with her friends.

Genki looked over at Holly with sympathy, knowing full well what Jinnee's vision revolved around: Holly's relation to Moo and the destruction caused by his uprising. A glimmer of anguish shone in Holly's eyes, and Genki immediately tried to think of something to say that would raise his friend's mood.

"Fortunetellers are fake, anyways. She was probably just messing around with you because Mocchi and I annoyed her before," Genki tried his best to be of comfort. "Don't worry about it!"

"Yeah, chi! She was just annoyed! Don't listen to that faker, chi!" Mocchi agreed with his best friend.

"You guys are probably right," Holly forced smile on her face.

"Wow, though! You certainly know how to make a scene, Holly! What'd you do? Make a blood pact with Moo?" Hunter laughed and gently slapped Holly's back with amusement.

Genki felt a flood of anger erupt in his chest at Hunter's comment, and even more so at the dejected expression on Holly's face at the joke. For Hunter to joke about something so serious while not understanding what Holly had been through with her father being Moo and the suffering she had endured because of it made Genki's blood boil. Half of him wanted to listen to Hare's advice and to stay civil, but the other half of him was ready to chew Hunter out for his careless words towards the wielder of the Magic Stone.

Genki wanted to have a good time at the festival, but he also couldn't sit back and let Hunter's joke slide.

"Back off, Hunter! You don't know what you're talking about!" Genki balled his hands into tight fists.

"Woah! I didn't mean to pick a fight! I was just making a joke!" Hunter held his hands up defensively.

"Yeah, well, be a little more sensitive! That stupid fortune obviously hurt Holly! She doesn't need you making fun of her for it!" the clear-eyed boy clenched his teeth.

Before he could speak any further, Genki felt his body relax as a gentle hand grasped his shoulder, and he slowly turned to meet the gaze of the girl he was trying to defend.

"Genki, it's okay. He was just trying to make light of the situation," Holly's eyes were filled with worry.

"Yeah! No fighting! We have to have fun!" Surmal piped up from his place at Hunter's side.

"Surmal's right, chi! No fighting!" Mocchi tugged at Genki's shorts to better get his friend's attention.

Genki looked down at his monster companion and frowned. 'I lost my temper in front of Holly again, just as Hare told me not to!'

"Hey, Genki?"

Before the leader of the Searchers could get too far trapped in his own thoughts, the warm hand on his shoulder squeezed him gently and Holly's voice lingered in his ears. Hesitantly, Genki lifted his head to catch Holly's gaze, and he did his best to keep calm. "Yeah?"

"Can we talk for a moment?" Holly asked.

"Yeah, sure," Genki made sure not to look towards Hunter and, instead, followed Holly away from the rest of the group.

He wasn't sure why he felt so anxious about whatever discussion was about to happen with Holly, but Genki felt as though his heart was going to burst out of his chest.

"Genki, you've been acting a little cold towards Hunter ever since we met him. Is everything okay?" Holly asked with concern reflecting in her eyes. "I know you were trying to defend me just now, which I do really appreciate, but Hunter doesn't know about Moo being my father so he didn't realize his words would hurt me."

The dreaded conversation he had been avoiding finally came up, and Genki felt his stomach clench. Although he had tried so hard to follow Hare's advice, he couldn't stop the moment of weakness from overcoming him and he couldn't reverse time to prevent the slip up from happening. Frantically, Genki tried to formulate an excuse in his head, but only two options came to mind: either tell Holly the truth about his feelings for her or stick with the excuse he had been using throughout his time at the festival.

Option two sounded much less humiliating.

"I'm just being cautious because we don't really know Hunter and he could be working for the Baddies!" Genki hated using the Baddies as a cover for his jealousy and overprotectiveness towards Holly. It left a burning sensation in the back of his throat.

Holly blinked in surprise. "…really? You think he could be working for the Baddies? Why?"

"W-well, I mean, he wanted to be our friend really quickly and he wants to constantly hang out with us. I don't mean that he is working with the Baddies, I just mean that we should be careful, is all. Hunter seems like a really cool guy and all, but I don't think we should let our guard down until we really get to know him," the leader of the Searchers surprised himself at being able to spew out a comprehensive explanation under the pressure he was under.

The two anti-Moo rebels fell into silence, with only the sounds from the surrounding festival filling the soundless void. Genki couldn't stand the uncomfortable feeling and opened his mouth to say anything, but he stopped when he noticed the brunette girl standing in front of him catch his gaze with her own.

"…you're right. I didn't even think about it, honestly. I guess I've been caught up in the comfort of the festival atmosphere that I kind of got lost in the feeling of security," Holly admitted with a sigh.

Genki felt a bubble of guilt burst in his chest at seeing Holly's crestfallen expression, and he couldn't stop himself from going into his traditional "cheer up Holly" mode. "Hunter's a really nice guy, though, and we should still hang out with him! Baddies don't seem to like working with humans anyways, like what we saw happen to Allan with the Seed Sisters, so Hunter is probably just a normal guy! I only got upset because of his comment about Moo!"

When Holly looked up to meet his gaze with a gentle smile, Genki's heart melted. Seeing the only female Searcher in a good mood was something he cherished and he only wished he could make her happy forever. Although painful, Genki would defend Hunter if he had to since he would do whatever it took to bring up Holly's spirits.

'It's like what Hare said. Even if Holly has feelings for someone else, I have to support her no matter what,' Genki thought to himself, a sad smile playing on his lips.

"Hey, Genki?" Holly's voice broke Genki out of his thoughts.

"What's up?" Genki asked.

"Thank you for defending me. That was really sweet," the wielder of the Magic Stone beamed.

Genki's knees felt weak as he took in Holly's gleaming smile, and he did his best to keep up his usual "nothing phases me" attitude.

"O-of course, Holly! You're one of my best friends!" Genki smiled before turning his attention to the older boy he had been angry at, who was keeping an eye on Mocchi and Surmal. "But, I have to go make things right with Hunter since I shouldn't yelled at him like that."

With a feeling of boldness, Genki marched towards Hunter and the two young monsters before stopping in front of the teenager. An uncomfortable feeling bubbled in his stomach, but he pushed it back and cleared his throat.

"Hey, Hunter. I… I'm sorry about snapping at you. You didn't deserve that," Genki awkwardly extended his hand out to the older boy.

Without hesitation, Hunter grasped Genki's hand and gave it a solid shake. "No need to be sorry! I'm the one who hit a soft spot trying to make a joke. Even if those fortunes are just silly nonsense, it obviously hurt Holly and I made light of it without knowing the situation. That's completely on me."

The two boys stared at one another for a moment until they both smiled in mutual understanding for once. Even though he still didn't know how to feel about Hunter, Genki mentally swore he would try his best to keep the peace, at least for Holly's sake.

"Mocchi's thirsty, chi," Mocchi tugged at Genki's shorts and looked up at his friend with a puppy-eyed expression.

"Alright, Mocchi. I'll get you something to drink. Anyone else want a drink?" Genki offered.

"I'm okay right now. Thank you, though," Holly smiled. "I think I'll stay here for now, though, so I can give my legs a break from all the walking we've done."

"Yeah, I'm fine, too, since we finished eating before we ran into you guys. Thanks for the generous offer, though!" Hunter gave Genki an appreciative grin while giving Surmal a little nudge.

"I'm thirsty, too! Can I come with you?" Surmal wagged his tail.

"Yeah, sure thing! Just no crazy stunts, alright?" the clear-eyed boy stated.

"Yeah! No stunts! I'll be good!" the purebred Garu nodded his head frantically.

"Don't take too long, though, since it's starting to get dark and it'll be harder for you to find your way back here," Holly mentioned. "We'll stay near the last row of torches just beyond the fortuneteller stand so you'll know where to find us."

"Don't worry, Holly! We'll be quick!" Genki waved to the wielder of the Magic Stone before looking down at the two young monsters at his side. "Let's go, guys!"

Mocchi and Surmal took off towards one of the drinks stands like two hyperactive children and Genki wondered if this is how the rest of the Searchers felt whenever he energetically ran off during their journey. The brunette boy strategically weaved his way through the crowd to keep up with the two young monsters and, by some miracle, he was able to keep up with them.

Genki sighed in relief when Mocchi and Surmal finally stopped running and he immediately recognized the drink stand he went to the night of the tournament. The purebred Ghosts were still running the stand and serving a variety of drinks, although it looked like they were still running low on their inventory.

"Good evening, my friends! Can I offer you three some free drinks? Anything for friends of the Festival of Fire tournament champions!" one of the Ghosts greeted with a wide grin.

"I never thought being friends with Suezo would actually be helpful," Genki mused to himself.

"Mocchi wants apple juice again, chi! That was tasty last time, chi!" Mocchi licked his lips at the thought of the fruit drink.

"Me, too! Me, too! I want apple juice, too!" Surmal giddily hopped up and down in anticipation.

"What about you, my good sir?" the Ghost asked while pouring two cups of apple juice.

"Ah, nothing for me right now. Maybe later, though," Genki smiled.

"No problem! Here you go!" the spirit monster flew down to hand the cups of juice to the two young monsters before flying back to behind the stand.

"Thank you, chi!" Mocchi grinned.

"Yeah! Thank you! Thank you!" Surmal held the cup tightly as if someone was trying to steal it.

As soon as the trio walked away from the drink stand, both Mocchi and Surmal quickly guzzled their drinks down as if they had just escaped from Gali's fortress. Other festival-goers watched in surprise while Genki could only sweat at the scene.

"Geez, guys! You don't need to rush!" Genki frowned.

Mocchi wiped his mouth with his free hand before tossing the empty cup into a nearby trashcan. "But Mocchi wants free hands for getting more candy and playing more games, chi!"

"Me, too! A feeble cup won't keep me from grabbing all the seafood I can without Hunter noticing!" Surmal threw his cup in the trash and pounded on his chest like an angry gorilla. "Seafood!"

"None of that stuff yet, you guys. Let's meet back up with Holly and Hunter so we can figure out what we're gonna do next," Genki didn't wait the two young monsters to reply and, instead, grabbed Surmal's hand so he wouldn't lose the hyperactive monster. Mocchi, in turn, climbed onto Genki's back so he wouldn't be knocked down in the crowd.

The walk through the sea of festival attendees was getting more difficult now that people had joined the festival at sunset, since the torches that lit the area and the stars beginning to peak out from the sky made for a beautiful ambiance. Genki held Surmal's hand tightly as he pulled the little lion-like monster along and he felt a sigh of relief at seeing the fortuneteller stand they had gone to before he left.

'Finally! Almost there!' Genki thought to himself with a relieved sigh.

The young boy smiled as he saw the last row of torches beyond the fortuneteller stand; hopes of regrouping with Holly and giving Surmal back to Hunter being at the front of his priorities. As he rounded the corner, however, his eyes widened and he felt his heart drop into his stomach.

Hunter held Holly's shoulders and, like something out of a fairy tale, leaned his face down towards the wielder of the Magic Stone. The older boy looked confident, like the way Genki wished he was like, and the distance between the two teenagers lessened with each moment.

Genki couldn't watch.

Holding back a quiet sniffle, Genki turned around and ran towards the inn with Mocchi in tow without looking back; leaving Surmal to stand alone with drooped ears.

---

Hunter's hands grasped Holly's shoulders firmly while he slowly leaned his head down towards the young woman standing in front of him, his eyes closed tightly and lips slightly puckered. It was a moment out of a storybook, with beautiful festival lights flickering in the background combined with the setting sun making the lighting for the romantic mood just perfect. The air had begun to cool down with the sun's disappearance, which only further emphasized the heat radiating between the two teenagers. Calming music played in the distance and it tied together with the cicadas singing their own tune in complete harmony with their surroundings.

Holly's eyes widened and her face flushed crimson.

With one swift motion, Holly leaned her head to the left and clumsily flung her arms around Hunter's body, bringing the older boy in for the most awkward hug of either teenagers' lives instead of reciprocating the intended kiss. The air around the duo was filled with an uncomfortable silence, one that even the quietest pin drop could be heard in, until Holly slowly pulled away and uneasily cleared her throat.

"Hunter, I… I'm so sorry!" Holly glanced timidly up at the older boy, her face almost as red as Falcon.

"Oh, no, please don't be sorry! I'm the one who should be sorry. I misread the situation, I'm really sorry for making things awkward," Hunter scratched the back of his head sheepishly while blushing furiously.

"No, no! You didn't make anything awkward! You're a really great person, Hunter! Please don't take this personally; it's not you, I promise!" the wielder of the Magic Stone quickly spoke.

Silence fell upon the two teenagers once again, with the sounds from the busy festival drowned out by the incredibly uncomfortable atmosphere. Holly's eyes stayed glued to the ground beneath her feet, the girl unsure how to ease the tension. The wielder of the Magic Stone felt nauseous and she subconsciously toyed with the sheath at her hip to keep her mind preoccupied by anything other than the current situation. Something about the dagger usually calmed her down in moments of distress, but it didn't do much for her now.

"…it's Genki, isn't it?" Hunter abruptly asked, eyes filled with intrigue.

Holly blinked, surprised by Hunter's sudden question, before a feeling of dread constricted her lungs. Her eyes lingered down to her prized dagger once more, and her thoughts drifted to her fight with End Bringer. She could still remember the feeling of her dagger plunging into End Bringer's knee right before he could deliver a lethal blow to both Genki and herself. Memories of the robotic monster releasing sounds of distress before falling motionlessly to the ground still haunted her, for End Bringer was the first monster she ever actually used her weapon on. The reason why she used her weapon that day in a very real attempt to take a life was clear to the wielder of the Magic Stone, however, and it was a reason that terrified her.

"…yeah, it is," Holly's reply was so quiet, it was almost drowned out by the ongoing festival noise.

To take another life was something Holly took seriously and, to her, was an absolute last resort. In the battle against End Bringer, however, Holly hadn't used her dagger against the robotic monster once, but twice. It was a rare fight for the young girl; for an opponent to force her hand and to make her become the attacker. It wasn't a normal battle with the Baddies, one where there was a threat but not something the Searchers couldn't handle. End Bringer had brought the anti-Moo rebels down to their knees in just a few minutes and was seconds away from killing Genki. That day, Holly was willing to do anything to save the orange hat-wearing boy, even if it meant taking a life or by trading her own life to do so.

The dagger hanging against her hip once reminded Holly of her father, but had now become a reminder of the lengths she would go for Genki.

Holly was always fond of Genki. They had become fast friends and reliable allies during their journey filled with war. The wielder of the Magic Stone was no fool, however, to think the way she felt about her friend hadn't climbed a little further than she had intended. She was angry with herself for letting that information slip at times, however, and for sometimes letting herself have hope they could ever be something more.

Holly, deep in thought, almost jumped as Hunter placed a gentle hand on her shoulder before giving it a soft squeeze.

"Why don't you tell him how you feel?" Hunter asked.

"…Genki doesn't have feelings for anyone right now, so he couldn't possibly feel the same way about me that I do about him. I don't want to possibly ruin our friendship over something he has no control over," Holly replied sullenly. "But… anyways, Genki should have been back by now. I need to go look for him."

"I think I saw him run off when I went to kiss you," Hunter admitted.

Holly's eyes widened. "He saw…? He… he must have left thinking I wanted privacy…"

"Or, have you considered that he may have run off because it hurt him to see what he thought was us about to kiss? The whole time I've seen him at this festival, he seems to have a special place in his heart for you," the older boy reasoned. "Also, even if he doesn't feel the same way you do about him romantically, if your friendship is really that important to him, he wouldn't throw it away just because you have feelings for him, right? Keeping your feelings a secret could end up doing more harm than good in the long run. It's not healthy to carry that burden around with you for as long as you have and, eventually, he'll start to notice you're hiding something from him."

"I… I suppose that's true…" the brunette girl hung her head, a bubble of shame erupting in her chest.

"Don't worry, Holly! I have an idea! We should buy an apple cake that you can give to Genki and then you can confess your feelings to him! Yesterday you said you wanted to get one for him and it would be really romantic!" Hunter grinned.

"You… you think so?" Holly's nerves made her stomach flip at the thought of confessing her feelings, whether they were reciprocated or not.

"Yeah! It would definitely be memorable! I found a store selling apple cakes in town last night, but I didn't have any money with me so I didn't get to buy one. I was hoping to get one for Surmal anyways, so let's go to the store before they sell out of them! It's a little further away so we'll have to move quickly," the older boy smiled from ear-to-ear.

Holly couldn't stop the grateful smile from finding its way across her lips, but she immediately felt a wave of guilt wash over her as Hunter's attempted kiss suddenly replayed in her mind.

"You don't have to help me with this, Hunter. You've already been so understanding with everything and I don't want you to have to push aside your feelings to help me," Holly spoke with a sympathetic gaze at the other teenager.

"Holly, you're my friend. Even if you don't feel the same way about me that I do for you romantically, that doesn't change the fact that you're my friend and that I care about you. I'll do anything to help my friends and doing this will help both you and Genki. It's a double win for me," Hunter flashed Holly a bright smile and a playful thumbs up, any indication of hurt feelings being nonexistent.

"…thank you so much, Hunter," the wielder of the Magic Stone smiled appreciatively.

With a grin, Hunter ushered for Holly to follow him, and the brunette girl was quick to follow behind the older boy. Even though the situation earlier still made Holly feel a bit embarrassed, she was relieved Hunter didn't appear to hold anything against her. The young girl, realizing she was falling a little behind her friend, quickened her pace and followed Hunter away from the festival and towards the actual town. Hopes of gifting an apple cake to Genki and possibly confessing her feelings for the clear-eyed boy caused butterflies to form in Holly's stomach, which only made the trek towards the bakery more nerve-wracking.

The alleyway was dark and quiet, and even more so as the sun completely disappeared from view. Several wooden barrels of stored water were clustered throughout the empty alleyways while collapsed market stands were leaned up against the surrounding buildings. A few tarps were still held up by ropes even though all of the store fronts were closed and they only served to cast a further shadow over the vacant streets. The chirps of crickets were the only sounds besides the tapping of two teenagers' boots against the cobblestone streets as they walked in complete silence; the alleyway's stillness the complete opposite of the festival taking place just a few minutes' walk away.

"It's getting really dark out," Holly broke the silence while shivering slightly, the cool night air beginning to settle in.

"It's okay, we're almost at the store selling apple cakes and then we can get back to the festival. I haven't had one in so long and Surmal's never even tried it before, so this'll be great! Genki's gonna love it, too, I just know it!" Hunter replied with a grin.

"I'm just surprised the shop is so far away from the festival," the brunette girl noted.

"I talked to the baker about that since I only found it because I accidently got lost yesterday. The baker is old and so he can't set up a temporary stand at the festival, so he sells his baked goods at his actual store. It's a little out of the way, but it'll be worth it to make Genki's day and maybe get the chance to tell him how you feel, right?"

"Yeah, of course."

The air only fell in temperature, and Holly subconsciously rubbed her arms to create friction in a sad attempt to keep warm. From the corner of her eye, she could see Hunter had completely zipped his blue jacket up so it even covered his mouth and nose while he shoved his hands in his jacket pockets. Holly only hoped the apple cakes would be warm, since a part of her wondered if Genki was getting cold wearing just a short sleeve t-shirt and shorts. A warm dessert might be something the boy would appreciate, at least Holly hoped so.

Just as the duo rounded the corner, something round abruptly smashed into Holly's face and burst open, causing a purple powdery substance to spurt out and create a blinding cloud. The young girl let out a shocked yelp and coughed as the powder lingered in the air and involuntarily entered her lungs; her vision obstructed by the haze and her throat burning from the powder.

"W-what's going on?!" Holly coughed while stepping backwards to get away from the cloud of smoke. The wielder of the Magic Stone immediately used the back of her hands to rub away some of the powder on her face and from around her eyes, although her eyes were already red from irritation.

"Oh, that's just some of Weed's Toxic Pollen attack. Since it's not as fresh as coming right from the source, it's probably lost some of its potency even though it's been kept encapsulated. Since you got hit with a large amount of it and you seem to have breathed in a lot of it, though, I think it'll still do the trick."

Holly's blood ran cold as she realized who was speaking to her, and her heart dropped into her stomach. "H-Hunter…? Why? What is this?!"

Hunter stood underneath one of the abandoned store tents, away from the cloud of pollen with his jacket pulled over his mouth and a serious glint in his eyes; one that made a chill go up the young girl's spine. Holly hesitantly took her eyes off the boy in front of her to look around for her assailant, and her eyes widened as she noticed Surmal perched on the roof of one of the nearby closed shops. The purebred Garu grinned merrily and playfully waved to the wielder of the Magic Stone, his tail wagging with excitement.

"I actually hit you! I'm so lucky! I only had one shot, too! I did good! Really, really good!" Surmal cheered giddily, the young lion-like monster clapping his paws together with delight.

"S-Surmal? I… I don't understand! What's going on? Why are you two doing this?!" Holly's heart raced with panic.

"I'll explain everything to you later. For now, though, you're coming with me," Hunter firmly stated, eyes filled with malice as he took a step towards the struggling young girl.

"I don't understand…! Are you working for Moo?!" Holly asked anxiously while taking another step backwards, and she felt panicked as her vision began to blur.

"Stop talking already and come with me! You'll lose consciousness soon anyways from the Toxic Pollen, so there's no point in fighting this. We're far enough away from the festival that no one will hear you scream, either, so don't waste your breath," the older boy coldly replied, completely ignoring Holly's questions.

The tips of Holly's fingers began to feel numb and her vision swirled as she did her best to stay standing. She opened her mouth to scream, the names of her friends being the first words to come to her mind, but her swollen throat wouldn't allow the sound to escape her lips. A weight on her hip caught her attention, and her hand subconsciously drifted to her prized dagger. A part of her was prepared to use the weapon in a desperate attempt to escape her attackers and she slowly grasped its smooth hilt.

'Surmal's on the roof so I'd never be able to reach him. If I attack Hunter, though, I could possibly kill him. Am I ready to take a life that the Phoenix can't bring back?' Holly thought anxiously to herself.

The brunette girl felt her breath quicken as her vision became more unclear and she felt a heavy weight of defeat fall on her shoulders.

'No… I… I can't… I can't bring myself to do it if it's just for myself. For my friends, maybe, but for me? I just can't!' Holly could feel frustrated tears prickle at the sides of her burning eyes. 'There has to be another way!'

The wielder of the Magic Stone took a wobbly step backwards, the strength in her body beginning to fail her, while her blurry eyes frantically scanned the surrounding area as best as she could. The alleyway didn't contain much that could be of use, and the only things that stuck out to the young girl were the store front tents that stood vacant.

Holly's eyes widened. 'The tent…!'

With a look of determination, Holly drew her dagger from its sheath and its sleek sheen from where Genki had sharpened it gleamed back at her. Although not the most confident, Holly took a leap of faith and threw the weapon at the rope holding up the tent Hunter stood under, although the wielder of the Magic Stone wasn't too certain she would even hit the rope, let alone cut through it.

Although not strong enough to cut though the rope entirely, the dagger miraculously hit its mark and sliced through the rope just enough to cause it to fray before clattering harmlessly to the ground below. With its binding cut almost fully, the rope snapped and the tent fluttered down to completely envelope Hunter, causing the young man to trip to the ground and flail around in a mad attempt to escape the large cloth sheet. Instinctively, Surmal quickly leapt from his place on the rooftop and pulled at the tent to help free his friend, leaving Holly to stagger away unnoticed in a weak attempt to escape.

With one last tug, Surmal pulled at the tent and his human companion was able to crawl out from under the tarp. At realizing Holly was gone, Hunter gritted his teeth and clenched his fists tightly.

"Don't just stand there, Surmal! Use your sense of smell and track her down! She won't make it far in her condition, but we can't risk someone finding her!" Hunter ordered while getting back to his feet.

With a frantic nod, Surmal got on all fours and sniffed the road for Holly's scent; his mind set only on locating his target. The purebred Garu perked up with success, a huge grin forming on his face, and he took off down the alleyway with Hunter in tow.

---

The alleyways were dark and lonely, with only a sole figure shakily wandering down the void shadowy streets. Holly's body swayed as she limped painstakingly towards the mass of lights in the distance, and the young girl could only pray they were lights from the festival. She staggered ahead, leaning against the buildings for support the whole way, before she stumbled forward and just barely managed to catch herself on one of the barrels of water.

'I… I'm not gonna make it…' Holly thought weakly as her vision blurred further, and she leaned up against an open barrel to catch her breath.

With a weak groan, Holly clasped the rim of the barrel tightly to prevent herself from falling over, and she feebly looked down to see her reflection in the water. Even though her vision was blurry, she could still tell she looked like a complete mess with her hair falling out of her ponytail and purple pollen coating her skin and clothing. She swallowed the lump in her throat to prevent herself from crying from the overwhelming feeling of hopelessness she felt, and the wielder of the Magic Stone clasped her chest as her lungs tightened from the pollen she breathed in.

'…I'm such an idiot… Genki was right… but I still let my guard down…' Holly mentally reprimanded herself, the girl angry at herself for ending up in her current situation. As she held her tight chest, the young girl's eyes widened when she felt something hard underneath her shirt, and it took her a second to summon the strength to remove the object.

With shaky hands, Holly frailly removed the Magic Stone from around her neck and she looked it over with forlorn eyes. The last time she had taken off the Magic Stone was when she tried to save Genki from End Bringer. It was a moment where she truly thought there wouldn't be any second chances, that she would surly fall to such a powerful opponent. It felt odd that her thoughts had gone back to the battle with End Bringer multiple times that night and she wasn't sure if it was because of the actual battle with End Bringer, her close brush with death from the robotic monster, or the entire events revolving around Genki during that nightmarish day.

Her thoughts drifted to Genki, the boy with unlimited courage that had changed her life, and she weakly smiled.

'Genki…I know you'll find the Phoenix… I trust you with everything and… I'm sorry… I'm so sorry…' Holly allowed the string of the pendant to slip from her fingers and for the Magic Stone to drop into the water barrel. The Magic Stone slowly plunged down into the water with a gentle splash before settling at the bottom, its vibrant sparkle only just showing with help from the emerging moon.

A pained wheeze exited Holly's throat as her knees buckled and she collapsed to the cold cobblestone road; the girl barely able to keep her eyes open from fatigue and her breathing becoming more labored with each passing moment. Holly gritted her teeth as she tried to force herself to stand, but she found she couldn't even hoist herself into a sitting position, let alone get to her feet.

For a brief moment, through her blurred vision, a hazy image slowly formed in front of Holly in the shape of a human and it extended their hand out to the young girl to take. The figure had striking clear eyes that were as much intense as they were inviting, and Holly feebly reached out to the figure with a shaky hand.

"Ge… Genki…?" Holly whispered hoarsely, a weak smile making its way to her lips as a feeling of comfort blossomed in her chest at the arrival of her friend. Her hero. Her love.

"Not quite, I'm afraid."

A shadow loomed over Holly, and the disoriented girl slowly craned her neck up to blurrily see the figure turn into Hunter; the young man standing over her fallen body with Surmal clung to his back. The hope Holly felt at Genki's arrival crumbled as his image disappeared, leaving only the young man who had betrayed her. The wielder of the Magic Stone tried to speak, to force the person she thought was her friend to answer her questions, but she found it hard to breathe, let alone talk. Her throat felt as though she had swallowed a dozen razorblades and her lungs were so constricted, just breathing normally was exceedingly painful.

"W… Why…?" Holly raspingly asked, eyes glassy and filled with hurt.

"No more talking for you for a while, okay?"

Holly's vision was so hazy, she didn't see Hunter's boot coming towards her until it was already slammed into her face; the force of the blow knocking out the disorientated girl without waiting for the Toxic Pollen to finish disabling the girl. With a grim glance to his monster companion, Hunter roughly picked the unconscious girl up in his arms and the duo took off into the night without a word, leaving the alleyway the same way in which they came.

The Magic Stone shimmered at the bottom of the water barrel as the moon's light reflected off its sleek surface; the precious pendant left behind once again.

---

I'm so sorry for the length of this chapter. I don't know how to plan at all. Over 20,000 words, I have problems. XP

The battle with End Bringer is one of my favorites in the show. He had to be one of the strongest monsters in the show, it took the entire team to beat him and even then, he literally died after falling off a cliff. He's a beast! Plus the Genki/Holly moments, I practically foam at the mouth watching this episode every time! XD

I know this is a very predictable story, I'm sure most of you knew Hunter's intentions with Holly weren't pure from the start. I'm always so cliché! X3

This story has mostly focused on Genki's perspective, so it was fun for me to switch to Holly's perspective for the final part of this chapter. Holly always gets the crap end of the stick in my stories, CP would be proud of all the Holly Torture category stuff usually found in my stories. XD

Thank you so much for reading this chapter! I really appreciate all the Monster Rancher fans still out there! Let's keep this fandom alive forever!

Chapter Preview (Chapter 5) – The Searchers rush to find their missing friend, but Hunter is their only lead and time is running out. Stay tuned!

RockyRoadSmith: Signing off! :3