Well...we're back. And the story thankfully isn't over by a long shot.

So this arc of the story's gonna involve a lot of confronting the past, for everyone, not just Scott himself.

And with this all said, please enjoy and feel free to comment your thoughts, and let's do this thing ^^

PETALS OF THE PAST (Part 1)

Scott walked through the dream desert, searching for Ramona everywhere despite it's vastness, and after nearly giving up...he spotted her in the distance, skating off away from him. Seeing this, Scott rushed after her, not nearly as fast as he remembered the speed she skated at, but still, he tried to catch up with her...only for her to dissipate the moment he got near her, also resulting in the dream desert's sky to turn dark red and began to shoot out thunder all around much to his shock.

"Come on, Scotty..." A voice spoke to Scott, causing the latter to freeze on the spot in horror, all as a dark figure approached him from. "We both know it's inevitable..." It spoke again, but this time, Scott turned around to see...HIM! Gideon Graves, standing behind him while smirking evilly. "I'll be waiting for you..." He said before laughing out loud as three demonic versions of Scott's exes pounced on him to eat him...

In Scott's Apartment (Obtained from Ramona after she left the place to him)

Four Months Later... (Year 2005)

"You're gonna have to do it eventually, Scotty. You can't ignore that guy and you'll have to fight him eventually...or sleep with him if you're me, right?" Wallace (Age: 26. Rating: 11/10. Status: Trying to motivate Scott currently) said to Scott across the table (Age: 24. Rating: Awesome...? Mental Health and Wellbeing: Unknown...but he doesn't look so good), who was currently fixated on beating one of the bosses of his video games he'd gotten from Young Neil two months back. It had been four months since Ramona disappeared, and Scott, let alone everyone else, hadn't been the same ever since those sad times. Half the time, Scott refused to even leave his home.

And currently, Wallace and Stephen (Age: 23. Status: Checking up on Scott...) were both trying to get Scott out of the house because, and deep down, the two of them were pretty worried (Especially after everything Scott did for everyone too...) about their buddy's recent behaviour. "Come on, Scott...you've gotta snap out of this. Everyone's getting worried about you, and not to be blunt, but it's kinda getting boring without you in the streets of Toronto." He then brought up sadly, causing Scott to pause his game and slightly turn towards him (Even if he did see a magazine with Gideon's face all over it).

"And plus, you still have your job...if you really want it. Though you'd need to be awayke during the daylight hours to be successful." Stephen then brought up, almost annoying Scott slightly. "Guys, I'm fine...I don't need anyone right now. If I stay like this, then things will be fine eventually." He managed to say to Wallace. "Yeah well...listen, I uh...have a new band." Stephen then said before awkwardly bringing up something that caught Scott's immediate attention. "S-Sex Bob-Omb?" He asked with wide eyes. "Uh no, it's a new band, Scott." Stephen admitted sheepishly, though looking at Scott's disheartened reaction, he figured he laid it on him too thick.

"Am I in it?" Scott meekly asked. "Uh...no, sorry buddy." Stephen said sadly. "What about Knives...?" Scott brought up, making Stephen a bit more depressed at those words. "She isn't either..." He said, sounding almost like he missed playing with her in the band so much (Not-So Fun Fact: Deep down, he really does). "Well, does it have a name? And if not, would you call it Shatter-Band? And also do you need a bass player?" Scott then suggested along with offering to play bass in the band. At this, both Wallace and Stephen looked at each other with concern. "Those twin XXXhats broke your bass, remember?" Stephen brought up to Scott's groans.

"I can tell you, Knives will probably be upset with that, Stephen." Wallace then said to Stephen to his slight annoyance. "Things change and people move on, Wallace. Knives will learn to do that eventually too." He said to Wallace, though the two briefly heard Scott grumble in annoyance after hearing the conversation. In fact, talk of the past and things changing made Scott pretty annoyed if anything. "Ok look, if that perfect, hot XXXXXXX really did steal your girlfriend, then you've gotta win her back. That's what I'd do if he stole Mobile from me. Or, I dunno, the same with Stephen if he kidnapped someone like Joseph or Knives." Wallace (He's got a very good point overall) then said to Scott, who gave him a glare of annoyance.

"Even if that was true, how do we know she won't just reject me on the spot if I try?!" He then exclaimed to both Wallace's and Stephen's shock. "Wanna go out? I can order you chicken wings at that restaurant I visit. It's your favourite." Wallace then suggested with a smirk. "Or if you're interested, we're playing at Cameron House tomorrow and you could come." Stephen then offered awkwardly before. "Wasn't that place your thing, Wallace? And I might think about that one, Stephen." Scott then said, politely declining the offers to his friends' slight annoyance.

"Seriously, why not go out and find another girl like Ramona? I mean, aren't you always liking them?" Wallace then complained (He'd do anything to bring back his old buddy). "That's the thing, Wallace...I've never been good at that stuff. I mean, think about it. Kim was cold towards me after I moved to Toronto, Envy decided to be a XXXXX and dump me for fame, I cheated on Knives who I never should have dated, and Ramona...left because of that, and because I never told her..." Scott pointed out sadly. "Let's face the facts. I messed up everything, and now I'm paying for it with no way to fix anything. I was never good at any of it being a good person in the first place." Scott said, putting down his gaming console and putting his hands in his face.

Seeing this, Wallace was tempted (Not-So Fun Fact: And nearly about to give up on Scott actually) to leave Scott to his own sorrows to deal with...yet surprisingly didn't, even pulling out a single book-like journal that seemed important. "Hey...everyone hits their lowest point when the time comes, Scott." Wallace then said in a gentle manner, causing Scott to slightly look up on an emotion between annoyance and confusion. "Really...? And how is that supposed to be helpful?" Scott sarcastically asked, feeling like this pep talk or conversation wasn't going anywhere at all.

"I mean, you'll get good at stuff eventually. All it takes is practice. And no...you're wrong, you were a good person, to all of us when this thing started, Scotty." And with those words said, Wallace then placed the journal (Name: My Life's Work. Scott's Note: What's this supposed to be...?) in front of Scott to his confusion. "W-What is this...?" He then asked Wallace. "Read it and find out. Anyways, we gotta go. Stuff to do etc." He responded before he and Stephen (Who DID wave goodbye btw). Scott was left along, and annoyed nonetheless. But after Lil' Gideon pushed the book towards Scott's hand, when he tried to reach for his game console, he groaned.

The next evening...

At Cameron House

Scott ultimately decided to take Stephen's offer and headed to Cameron House to see them perform. It's also there that he met Monique and Sandra (The Gossip Girl and her friend), though he didn't really talk to them that much. Though what he DID hear from the two girls was that a new club, called the Chaos Theatre, was opening soon, though to his shock, Scott learned it belonged to Gideon himself, the same guy he was trying to avoid fighting, period. A few moments later though, Scott saw Stephen come in with his new bandmembers, Joseph (Age: 24. He's a new member of Stephen's band?!) and Cole (Drummer for the unknown band).

"What the hell do you want from me, Joseph?! I told you, I'm not used to playing bass, and this is like been three days now!" Stephen exclaimed in frustration. "Just saying, if we suck out there, I'll kill you." Joseph then responded to Stephen, almost sounding like this new band wasn't as good as Stephen claimed it was. He noticed Cole, and looked away (Not-So Fun Fact: He actually thought he was Gideon a while back and accidently stuck a fork on his head.) given how he was probably still annoyed with him after a certain incident. As he watched this new band set up, Scott noticed a shadow looming over him...but one he'd recognise anywhere.

"Scott! Hey!" Knives (Age: 18. Emotion: Happy...? Fun Fact: She's so glad to see Scott up and about right now) exclaimed, causing the latter to turn towards her to his surprise. "Knives?! H-Hang on, you're actually old enough to enter places like this now?" Scott then asked Knives as she sat down beside her ex. "I turned 18 last week actually." She revealed. "Wait, then that means...you were seventeen when we met, right?" Scott then asked from what he could actually remember. "Yeah, on my birthday. I can't believe you remembered that." Knives exclaimed with amazement, though Scott felt like something was pretty off here.

"So uh...how does it feel, being an adult?" Scott asked gently, though the second that he did...Knives' mood came down so much. "It's...not so good." She admitted sadly, even as tears began forming in her eyes to Scott's immediate worry. Scott wanted to ask her what was wrong, only to be stopped by his ex. "I mean, I still can't get over Sex Bob-Omb being broken up...nor the fact that Ramona left us...or even the fact that I'm moving away to McGill and UBC soon! I'll be far away from my friends...but I don't know if I'm ready for this big change in my life." She admitted, like she was getting this, something she'd be too worried to tell her parents, off her chest.

For a good long moment, Scott didn't say anything at all. "Honestly...I don't know what to say either. I mean, if I was an idiot, I'd offer you casual sex (Not-So Fun Fact: He actually did in the novels), but...seriously, I'm at a weird point in my life too." He then admitted gently...until he saw how slightly disturbed Knives was. "S-Sorry, I didn't mean to bring that up." He apologised awkwardly, though the two laughed it off seconds later. A few seconds after that though...the new band began to play...though as Scott thought, and to Knives' sadness, it didn't rock as much as Sex Bob-Omb. "I really miss, Sex Bob-Omb...we always rocked back then." Knives admitted gently.

Scott couldn't blame her, in fact, he still wish it wasn't broken up either. "Yeah...me too, Knives." He gently admitted to his ex. Stephen briefly saw how upset the two were, though he didn't hesitate for fear of sucking even more. "I just wish we didn't break up after that time four months ago...I just wish we stayed together and found a way through that mess. I just want to get the band back together and rock out like we used to..." Knives then cried silently, right before slumping onto the table sadly, leaving Scott to comfort her as best as he could. Eventually, the two went outside and decided to walk back to Scott's place together.

Along the way, the two caught up on everything that happened over the past four months. Though in terms of it all, Scott felt absolutely frustrated with all the changes (He wasn't taking any of it well). "I mean-Rgh! It just had to change, all of it! Is it so much to have everything go back to the way it was?! Before this whole mess in my life happened! Why did I screw it all up?!" He growled to Knives' concern, kicking over a garbage can at one point and slamming his fist up against a building wall and hurting it in the process. It was a few seconds before Knives eventually calmed him down.

"Scott...let's try to be grownups here for a second, ok?" She gently said, catching her ex's attention too. "Would I have been happy dating you instead or-? What am I saying...? I never should have dated you in the first place. I mean, you wouldn't be sad now, and I wouldn't have gotten into trouble and stuff. You deserve so much better than what you got, Knives..." Scott (Stage of Grief: Bargaining...) then asked before slumping down against the building wall...feeling responsible for Knives being sad right now, as he believed. For a moment, Knives was stunned by this depression radiating off him...and then sat beside him.

"Are you kidding me...? Scott, I already had so much better, thanks to you." She then said, feeling it was her turn to do the comforting. "Remind me how again without any heartbreak?" Scott slightly yet bluntly asked his ex, who merely just giggled to his annoyance. "Scott...do you remember how we both met last year?" She then asked while placing her hand on both of his. "Y-Yeah...we rode the bus together. That's how we first met." Scott responded despite the awkwardness and feeling down all in one.

Flashback: (Scott and Knives' time (Roughly One Year Ago))

S: Your Mom was suggesting you get interested in boys...and right when you dropped your books, I helped pick them up, and things took off from there.

On the bus home with her mother complaining, Knives felt pretty annoyed with being told to get interested in boys her age. "Sherman is a nice boy. You like him, don't you?" Her mother pointed out to her daughter with a simple smile. "Mom, I'm seriously not interested at all." Knives groaned as she rolled her eyes in annoyance. "But you are seventeen years old, Knives. It's time you got interested in boys." Her mother insisted, causing Knives to let go of her bag of books in annoyance as she tried to protest...only to realise she'd dropped her stuff.

"You drop books." And after hearing those words to her annoyance, Knives got up to pick up her books, though while grumbling about her luck, another set of hands in front of her handed the books back to her. "Hey..." The person in front of her spoke, causing the latter to look up and see Scott smiling at her. "Don't worry about it." He said, and after a few seconds of seeing him, Knives immediately felt like she'd found a boy she liked so much.

K: That's right! You introduced me to Sex Bob-Omb, I thought you guys rocked and then we started hanging out more often.

Over the next day or so, Scott managed to introduce Knives to his band, Sex Bob-Omb, and the first time they rocked out in front of her, she immediately found her love for rock and roll. And not to mention after school, Scott came to see her and the two hung out, having pizza, looking at clothes and even seeing Scott's parents' old place to his own 'not wanting to talk about it' issues.

S: Yeah...right before Ramona skated through my dreams and got me interested in her.

During a visit to the library one time later, Scott saw Ramona again after recognising her from his own dreams, all to Knives' confusion. Though even days after that, Knives didn't know about how Scott became slightly more disinterested in hanging with her.

K: A fact I didn't know about until seeing you and her together at the Rockit after you nearly died to that one guy. But I didn't hesitate to help defeat him at the same time.

After seeing Scott being helped to his feet by Ramona, she immediately realised that he'd become interested in her now, even looking away slightly with a hurt expression. However, she still stayed to help them and their friends fight against Matthew Patel, and as a bonus, threw a microphone at his head to stun him, allowing Scott and Ramona to defeat him together.

K: And you made a brave move in telling me the truth. Even after all those times, I stuck with you guys because you were awesome.

Before Wallace could even spill the beans to Knives, Scott stepped in and boldly admitted his faults, and the fact that he was a crummy boyfriend to her in retrospect. Yet, even after knowing this, Knives forgave Scott for that act and the two continued to be friends.

Since then on, she'd been through a lot of awesome stuff with Scott and the gang, like sparring with Ramona, fighting The Clash at Deamonhead with her ex and Ramona, becoming a member of Sex Bob-Omb, getting a job at Stacey's workplace, fending off her dad, and helping Scott in taking on the Katayanagi Twins too.

"If we'd never met, I'd pretty much still be miserable today...even though I kinda still am right now." Knives then pointed out gently despite her mood coming down again. "And we've both moved on from each other too from the obvious looks of it. Even if we did try to hook up, I don't think it would work out..." She added, being realistic about the possibility of Scott, from what he mentioned, wanting to hook up with her again. "Yeah...that sounds about right. I mean, you're probably into Stephen Stills or another boy from your school, right?" Scott then said while assuming that his ex and Stephen were dating...and then she laughed.

"Me and Stephen?! Ha! He's actually seeing someone right now, but I'd never see him as someone I'd date." She said while still laughing. Though the mention of seeing someone else surprised even Scott. "Yeah, you guys always preferred being friends anyway (Truer than you might think in the novels and anime), even after you joined the band." Scott said with a light chuckle. A moment of silence then fell between the two. "By the way...am I alright to stay with you for a while? I just need to clear my head." Knives then asked gently, sure it wasn't something she'd ask, but still, couldn't hurt right? Scott was hesitant at first, though after being alone for a while...he accepted.

Knives managed to make up a convincing lie to her parents about staying at her friend, Tamara's place. While there, she took an immediate liking to Lil' Gideon. Though all the while, Scott looked at the book that Wallace had given him earlier...and wondered why he'd give it to him even after Ramona left. Rolling his eyes, he decided to take a quick peak in the book...but what he discovered within it's contents shocked him to the core. It had something to do with the one person that he'd been trying to avoid ever since...he got that phone call.

The day afterwards

Knives and Scott decided to attend a party after she saw how pretty disturbed (Almost scarred for life) when she woke up that day. At first the pair thought they were attending another Julie party, only to discover that the party was for someone called Sarah Jane, who was celebrating her birthday. And from what they both heard off of Michael Comeau (Guy at the party. Fun Fact: He STILL knows everyone, including you), Julie had been spending the last four months at home, moping about how she wasn't relevant and/or popular anymore or something like that. Either way, Knives could barely keep a straight face at that news.

"Didn't think I'd see you two again so soon." Young Neil (Not really very young. Age: 21. Status: Just chilling on a sofa.) said as he saw Scott and Knives come his way. "Yeah...nice to see you again too, Neil." Knives said politely with a wave. And while he didn't show it, Neil was glad Scott was finally getting out of the house. "What are you guys doing here anyway...?" Neil then asked out of confusion. "I figured Scott could do with going to one more party just in case...actually, he was a mess this morning and still won't tell me why, so I just decided to take him here." Knives gently explained to Neil.

"Well, might be a bit of a weird moment for you two to show up if you ask me." Neil then bluntly responded with a shrug, all to the confusion of Scott. "Why's that...?" He then asked, cocking his head to one side. "Um...I heard from Monique and Sandra (Those two again?!) that uh...Envy Adams is here, looking so amazing and uh...I think Sandra said she-." Upon hearing this before Neil could finish, Scott jerked his head towards his friend in shock. Heck, Knives (Status: What the hell?!) was shocked that her former role model was here as well. "Wait, are you telling the truth right now?!" Scott exclaimed, nearly out loud if he hadn't lowered his voice in time.

"As in first name Natalie?!" Knives also added as she leaned into Neil's face, prompting him to gently push her back. "I didn't stutter. And man, she looks so beautiful. You guys should like...be a XXXX to her." Neil then said before suggesting that last bit to Scott and Knives. "Maybe not as a total XXXX, but still..." Scott then said as he got up to look for his ex, and instantly afterwards, Knives followed him. It didn't take long for the two to spot her, the one woman they'd fought in Lee's Palace, and the bane of Scott's life...Natalie Adams (Scott's famous ex. Age: 25. Status: Mingling with mere mortals. Not-So Fun Fact: She's going solo from here on out...).

Everyone, not just Scott and Knives, saw how perfect Envy Adams was (Bust: 999. Waist: 999. Hips: 999), all as she walked over to the bar to order something. Seconds later, Scott and Knives gently came to her side. "Well well well, if it isn't Envy Adams...we meet again." Knives immediately sand with a grin before Scott could even say anything smart. Hearing this, Envy turned towards the two, and almost immediately, Scott was nervous about speaking to his ex once again, even after all this time. "Nice to see you both again. It's been a while." Envy then spoke, her voice not sounding that aggressive or anything.

Scott tried to speak, even offering to buy his ex a drink, only to mess up his own words to Knives' immediate horror and everyone's shock. He tried to think but... (I'll spare you the embarrassment of knowing the rest of this spectacle. Let's move on.).

A little while later...

Scott and Knives awkwardly walked out of the party to spare themselves the embarrassment. The two tried to think what they could do without anymore awkwardness, though seconds later, they ran into a little rabbit who looked happy to see them both. "Uh...is it natural for a little rabbit to be alone on the streets of Toronto or is this some kind of Alice in Wonderland plot?" Knives then asked, though moments later, the rabbit jumped into the air and transformed into a familiar face, Roxie Richter (Half-Blonde Ninja and Ramona Flowers' Fourth Ex. Age: Near enough the same as Scott's. Status: Glad to see Scott again. Fun Fact: She can also turn into a Rabbit?!).

A few moments later, they also ran into Lucas Lee (Skateboarding Hollywood Legend and Ramona Flowers' Second Ex. Age: Same as Scott's too. Emotion: Chilled. Status: Just visiting for a fortnight.), who just happened to be taking a break just visiting Toronto in his free time, and the moments that came afterwards involved getting food at a nearby diner just around the corner. While there, Scott and Knives caught up with two good exes, learning how Lucas had taken his agent's advice and took things easier with his toxic skater-boi behaviour. The two also learned that Roxie had set her sights on showing the whole world how wonderful her art was.

However...when it came time for Scott to tell both exes on how things were with Ramona, he decided to spill the beans and tell them what happened, from disappearing in front of him to moping on how badly he messed up things. Hearing this, both Lucas and Roxie were shocked, and even more shocked about the fact that Scott hadn't done anything to get her back yet. "And that's pretty much what happened...nobody's seen her since and, I guess I'm barely getting by as it is." Scott finished with a sad sigh. Even Knives nodded to say it was true. "So that's it? You're giving up just like that after nearly beating all of the league?" Lucas asked with a disappointed tone.

Roxie couldn't blame him either, especially since they both of them faced Scott and got spared from defeat when he had the chance to get rid of them...and didn't. "I haven't given up, Lucas. I just...oh, I don't know...I just don't know what to do right now. I mean, I screwed up big time back then and this failure is making me feel like everything was all for nothing." Scott responded, and he felt like it was more or less true (Knives' Note: I'd give anything for Ramona to be back here too if that's what he means). "We've all been there, Scotty. Don't think you're so special here." Roxie slightly hissed at him, though a little glad he knew the pain she and Lucas felt.

"Guess this is how you guys felt when she left you both..." Scott (Emotion: Near empty, like Lucas and Roxie were) then sighed gently. "More or less...but seriously, you shouldn't give up the fight, not when you're so near the end. I mean, you also did a lot of good, for your friends, Ramona, and even the two of us." Roxie then spoke up, on a more encouraging and optimistic tone. "After I nearly tried to kill you both...? Doesn't seem good when you put it like that..." Scott bluntly pointed out though sheepishly in a way. "I mean, you saved Lucas from crashing out and spared my life when you could've killed me." Roxie pointed out.

Knives, having witnessed that event with Roxie herself, knew that was true. "So maybe we could defeat Gideon and prove to Ramona that you still love her so much, Scott." She then pointed out to Scott to his surprise. "If there's one thing I've learned from all this, it's that people can change. Ramona's done that for you guys, and maybe she's missing all of that right now." Lucas(' Note: He saved me, so now I'm helping him. Roxie's Note: Same goes for me too.) then said with confidence. "But...how? I mean, I've been a mess for four months and I don't want her to think I'm that desperate, as her eighth evil ex or something." Scott admitted with worry.

"Well...what if Ramona's a mess just like you? I mean, I might be wrong here, but who's to say she is...?" Roxie assumed, and though it seemed farfetched, Scott thought about that possibility.

Meanwhile...

In the house in the middle of the Woods of Nowhere

A TV was playing a DVD of the 1998 X-Files Movie, pretty much halfway through the entire move. Watching it from the couch that lay in front of the TV, Ramona Flowers (Scott Pilgrim's Girlfriend Age: 25 (Not-So Fun Fact: Celebrated this alone). Emotion: Gloom. Status: A total mess. Been like that for four months...) had been gazing to find any romantic scenes, like the ones from the other X-Files episodes she'd watched, and never kept her eyes off it. It had been four months since Ramona had left Scott's life, let alone that of his friends as well, but in wanting to keep any of them from getting hurt, she'd made herself miserable in the process, even if she tried to deny it.

Some days she'd sleep all day, XXXX around on the internet and was now currently re-watching all of the X-Files episodes after she finished watching the entirety of the series. And yet...she couldn't bring herself to contact Scott or any of his friends, let alone go back to Toronto to see if they were doing ok. She felt like a coward for running away from them, let alone her last problem...but yet, as she sat up, she was conflicted about returning, and what would her new friends think about her if she did return...? She was so caught up in her current thoughts, she didn't see a figure coming from behind her into the room. A figure she'd known her whole life.

"Afternoon. How's my little Ram-Ram feeling today?" The man asked with a smile, as Ramona groaned and turned towards his direction with an annoyed look. "Dad, I'm not five anymore..." She said to her father (Name: Joel Flowers. Age: Near-Late 50s. Rating: Best father to Ramona. Status: Worried about his little girl.), who was taken back a little by this. "Yeah, I know...you're an adult and you have your responsibilities, you kept telling me." Joel said while reminding his daughter what she told him. "But seriously speaking, you've been like this for four months, Ramona. And this is no way for you to live at all." He continued, even if Ramona ignored him.

"Last year you told me you have a new boyfriend, then you tell me you both moved in together and the next thing you showed up here out of the blue looking like an absolute mess, even now...I mean, I've never seen you like this in twenty years. Not since your mother and-" Before Joel could even continued, Ramona sharply cut him off. "Oh Yeah? Well she's not here now, is she?! God, can you please get the XXXX off my case?! It doesn't matter to me anymore! Nothing does..." Ramona angrily barked at her old man, right before she slumped back down on the couch. "Just...leave me alone..." She quietly yet tearfully said.

Hearing this, Joel decided to let Ramona sort herself out, though this wasn't the first time she'd done this. "Ok, well...I'll leave you to your thoughts then, Ramona..." He sadly said before leaving the room. Once he left, Ramona felt terrible for telling him off like that. She hadn't been this grouchy to anyone since she was six, never getting close to anyone growing up until she met Matthew Patel. In all honesty, all her life she'd been pushing people away, never wanting to get tied down but not because she was desperate to find the right people, but rather it was all because of Ramona's own fears.

Ever since that very incident from years ago, she desperately isolated herself from everybody, leaving them all behind so they wouldn't suffer because of her. All this...was the exact same thing she'd done to her own boyfriend, Scott Pilgrim, and the rest of his friends...but at this point, at what cost...? "Scott...I'm sorry." She said to herself upon looking up at the ceiling. This was too much for her to process, and yet she couldn't help but wonder if maybe she SHOULD return to Toronto and fix things...until she passed out.

The day afterwards...

Scott and Knives (Status: Woken up about 2:30pm. They are so unhappy about this.) were woken up by the apartment phone ringing. The caller was Envy, who gave Scott the chance to buy her a coffee, and soon-ish after that, they met up with her at a café called Lettieri. "So, how've you two been?" Envy as the pair, though it took a few moments for them to actually answer. "Y'know...been better. You?" Scott responded in a slightly tired manner, followed by Knives nodding slightly. "Been fine. So anyways, are you still living with your gay roommate, Wallace?" Envy then asked Scott, causing him to shake his head without effort.

"And how's high school been for you, Knives?" Envy immediately asked Knives afterwards, though the question made her slightly awkward. "I'll...be graduating about three months from now." She admitted, and Scott couldn't blame her for still feeling worried about the change either. "Oh, congrats. And how goes your little quest? And how's Ramona doing?" Envy said, congratulating Knives before asking the one question that annoyed Scott upon him hearing it. "Oh ha ha ha. Very funny. Like you actually care." He said, despite everything still being suspicious of his second ex. "Very mature, Scott." Envy said while rolling her eyes in annoyance.

"By the way uh...I heard it was your birthday a few weeks ago. So uh, Happy Birthday." Knives then said, breaking the tension between the two, confusing Scott in the process and making Envy surprised (And possibly gained a bit of respect from her too.). "Y-Yeah...Gideon threw this party for me a few weeks ago. But seriously, that was nothing compared to my 21st Birthday. Remember?" She said to Knives while also thinking of her 21st. "Why? What happened back then?" Knives asked gently out of curiosity. "Nothing much, only it was better. We went bowling at midnight, Julie and Stephen made a terrible cake. And Scotty over here got drunk." Envy explained.

The mention of Scott getting drunk on his ex's 21st made Knives pretty surprised, since he claimed that he never drank in his life. "Wait hang on, I don't drink. Never did." He immediately denied, mostly out of shock and offense to his ex's words...though he didn't seem to fool her. "Scott, we dated for two years. I can easily read you like a book." Envy responded with a smirk. "Yeah, two years. Then you changed for worse and dumped me, after I got a haircut, for fame and that cocky pretty boy (That being Todd Ingram)!" Scott complained, even calling out Envy for the events of what happened with them in the past.

"I did leave you alright. But because of the New Year's Eve fight we both had. A fight that you started." Envy revealed, and the instant the words sank in, Scott and Knives were stunned, unable to tell if she was lying to them or not. "Well you're the one who told me to get out of your life. You broke my heart!" Scott pointed out "Well how do you think I felt back then? That dopey guy from college I dated just turning on me just because I made a few questionable changes to my own life? You think I broke your heart? Well you broke mine too." Envy spat back venomously, though she brought her voice down after a deep breath.

"You guys made me out to be some kind of villainess back then, Scott. We were just kids when we dated, and you weren't exactually some kind of paragon of virtue. Look...we're all changing. Even me...I just...don't want you to forget who I used to be." Hearing this from Envy, the way she just genuinely spoke those words, made Scott and Knives surprised. "And for the record, you were both wrong. I wasn't some XXXXX who only cared about fame. I just wanted to show the world who I was, as Envy Adams. Not that sweet, mousey little Natalie Adams from Montreal...but I guess fame really got to my head, and you might have been right about me being a XXXXX." She also admitted while looking away slightly.

At this, Scott began to feel pretty bad at how he treated his ex a while back, and not to mention how he ruined her former band, The Clash at Demonhead...until he remembered how much off XXXXXXXX the other two members (Them being Todd Ingram and Lynette Guycott) had been to him and the others. "You know this doesn't me we're getting back together or...even having casual XXX, right?" Scott then said, assuming Envy was trying to get back together with him, though he felt pretty awkward after even saying those words too. "Oh believe me...you made it clear that night at Lee's Palace." Envy then said with a chuckle.

"By the way...you ever hear from Todd?" Scott then asked on a more personal note. The mention of her new ex made Envy a little uncomfortable. "Not since he ran away sobbing, and after kicking him in the nuts too. Didn't even bother to check up on him afterwards either. Guess we fled after being booted from that league of his. Guess karma caught up with him." Envy admitted while looking away. "But speaking of which, Scott, and while we're on the subject...maybe it's time to come back to reality, away from that stupid quest of yours. G-man's not even a bad guy. He's just...guess he's pretty much misunderstood." Upon hearing Gideon's nickname, Knives gasped in horror.

Scott seemed oblivious for the first few moments...until the words sank in "WHAAAAAAAAAAAT?!" He exclaimed in shock, his voice seeming to echo a few blocks away from the café.

Back at Scott's Apartment

Scott had been ranting (And raging like a lunatic) to himself in the bathroom for several hours about Gideon and Envy, how they probably had sinister motives despite everything. All this, while making Knives pretty concerned, so much so that she had to call for Wallace, Stephen, Lucas and Roxie for help (Mostly Scott for that matter). "We got your message, Knives. Lucky Roxie could use Subspace to get her quickly actually." Wallace said right as he and the others entered the bedroom, even complementing Roxie too in fact. "So you said Scott was ranting about Gideon and Envy Adams, right? How long's he been doing it?" Lucas then asked Knives gently.

Hearing this, Knives turned to the bathroom where Scott resided, all the while hearing his rants. "What the XXXX is the deal with them?! I swear to god, they've got sinister motives or something! Hang on, did Gideon send her to mess me up?! Are they in cahoots?! What the hell do I even do about this?!" He went on, concerning pretty much the others now. "Uh...about a few hours now." Knives responded awkwardly. "Cahoots? More like she's screwing Gideon. Or Rammy. Maybe all three." Wallace then said after hearing a part of the rant Scott let out from the bathroom, annoying the others. "Ok, that's not helping Wallace." Stephen then complained.

"Ok...well, do you think anything would cause Scott to rage out like this?" Roxie then asked, stepping in to do the questioning as to what could've caused Scott to be this way. "Well...Scott seemed to be pretty agitated the other day when he woke up, probably after reading that book, uh this one, he only looked at once." Knives explained, thinking back on what could've been the reason for Scott's rage while also showing the Journal Wallace had given him a while back. The mention of the book immediately sparked Wallace's attention in an instant. "So he actually read the journal. Took him long enough." He said with a smirk.

"Journal? What kind of stuff would make him rage out like this?" Stephen then asked in confusion. "Stuff probably relating to Gideon." Wallace said with just a sip of his own convenient martini (Q: How does he conjure them? A: No idea...). "Gideon?!" Roxie and Lucas exclaimed in shock. Heck, after politely asking for the journal, Wallace showed everyone in the room what he was on about. "Had a read of it when I first got it, but apparently this has something to do with, or at least I believe, Gideon's own life and I think how he got his whole empire. Kinda though it was a way to get Scott back on his feet." Wallace gently explained, opening to the first chapter of the journal.

The second their eyes looked at the first page, the group gasped, unable to believe this stuff about Gideon (Roxie and Lucas most of all for that matter.), given how the news and so many magazines and cities were describing G-Man as a whole. "I know, right? I was the same when I found out the first time." Wallace said as he began reading the journal, or at least the more important parts.

Flashback: (Gideon's own Life (According to the journal))

Year: 1988 - High School Days

"Well, this is it. Today's the day I finally ask Courtney, the most popular girl in Ontario High, out. I've made my 12-point business plan on why she'd date me. Despite my weirdness, I've also got my No Fear T-Shirts on today. Guess all that's left to do is do this thing. What could go wrong?"

Young Gideon (Age: 15. Status: Looking weird yet feeling confident on the inside) walked through the halls of his high school with pride, all despite everyone looking at him and thinking he was so weird. Eventually, he found the most popular girl in his school; Courtney (Knives' Note: Is she an ex of Gideon?). But she didn't look impressed in the slightest to see Gideon, especially when he smiled at her with his braces.

"Why hello, dear Courtney." He said with pride as he smiled weirdly. "Oh, it's you. The weirdo of this place. What do you want?" Courtney then responded, asking why Gideon was in her sight. "I am here today to ask you out today. And just to answer your immediate questions, I prepared a 12-point business plan on why we should be dating." He then explained while holding up his folder, labelled Why you should date Gideon, to her.

"You've got some nerve doing that. Why do you even have the balls to do this here?" One of Courtney's friends asked in annoyance, with one of them even threatening to punch Gideon too. "They call me fearless, because I have no fear of the sting of rejection. Therefore there's no downside to me attempting this." Young Gideon then said before Courtney had a look through Gideon's plan with one of her friends.

Gideon felt confident in his totally fool proof plan, and just when he assumed it would work...Courtney just dropped the book in front of him and stomped on it to his shock. And moments later, she walked off with her friends, leaving the young Gideon to fall to his knees, wondering just how the hell he'd been so easily defeated, especially with everybody in the hallway laughing at him, save for one girl with round glasses.

"It didn't work...WHY?! I spent countless hours preparing that plan! And yet in a matter of seconds, she just treated it as a huge JOKE! She doesn't get it...NOBODY DOES! I swear on my life, they'll all be sorry they messed with me! Wait...my head, is it...Glowing?"

Later that night, Young Gideon walked home from school, the failure burning up within his soul and causing him to rage out before he even reached his house. He threw his plan at the pavement, then kicked his bag to the curb before letting out a massive scream of annoyance, right before he fell to his knees...though something happened that he would never have expected: His head was glowing, to his confusion.

"A few days ago, I found my head glowing. Actually glowing! This shouldn't be possible at all. That being said however, the past few days, I've been experimenting on this strange occurrence. Testing this out every chance I got, I found that this glowing substance has the capability of not only infecting other minds, but can enhance the negative emotions of others yet decreases the positive emotions."

During the next days, Gideon discover the glowing power from his head was useable via hands, and he tested it out on a few random students and people in his town. The results proved to be...interesting. Gideon saw that the people he infected with the power (via a perspective-like test at one point) caused them to argue for a while, even turn on each other and fight at one point...until the effects wore off. Said power, ironically, gave him an idea.

"Well, there we have it. I've pulled off my plan and now I am dating Courtney! Heh, the way everyone just saw us, the looks on their faces: Priceless! They said I was weird and even laughed at me for wanting to date my girl. Well...who's laughing now?"

On a Friday, after Gideon had sneakily infected Courtney's friends with his power, she approached him and against her better judgement, decided to ask Gideon out, given her friends were giving her a hard time, to which Gideon gladly accepted. Everyone looked at this turn of events in shocked, all while Gideon himself smirked at them all.

Year: 1994/95 - Working from the ground up

"Been a few years since I wrote in this. So here I am, Gideon Graves, about to start his own business empire and build it from the ground upward. Courtney and I may have gone our separate ways years prior, but nevertheless, with my power, I will make an empire nobody has ever seen before...starting today."

Gideon Graves (Age: 21. Occupation: Accountant currently. Status: Plotting to build an empire), a mere accountant at the New York offices he worked for currently, worked away at his seemingly easy job ever since he first earned it weeks ago. Though on many days when he had the chance, Gideon used his power to infect the minds of others, including his boss, getting them to fire or get fired, all while he soared through the ranks with ease.

"There've been other girls I've met, though my relationships never lasted as long as my one with Courtney, especially with Nina and Irene, and even when I used my glow to aid me. Well...this is just a minor misstep. Besides, I know exactly how to deal with this problem, and soon enough it'll all be ready."

Over the next days, weeks and possibly even months or years of his life, Gideon had been meeting beautiful girls left and right, and despite manipulation of The Glow, said relationships didn't work out that well. Though Gideon had an idea and as of writing in the part of his journal, was already having it constructed.

Year: 1997/98 - The Age of GGG Heavy Industries/G-Man Media

"At last, I've done it! It took me nearly three whole years to create, but I've finally done it! GGG Heavy Industries, or G-Man Media, has FINALLY lifted off the ground! And they said I could never do it...well who's laughing now?!"

When his name was known throughout all of America, let alone parts of the world, Gideon Graves (Age: 24/25. Emotion: Proud. Success Status: 100% Complete!) stood proudly at the base of his building, seeing his dreams and plans finally in action like he envisioned it years prior.

"It started off slow at first, creating my own successful Music Mogul career, then it got faster when I sold portions of my power to parts of America, let alone use it to manipulate others in actually giving me my millions, and now...I have it all! Priceless Artefacts, a basketball court two record labels, a movie studio, fourteen animal shelters and so much more! And it's JUST the beginning..."

It wasn't easy at first, but eventually Gideon, having been good at making music, and not to mention had a thing for music himself surprisingly enough, managed to make a name for himself, earning himself two record label deals from a couple of companies, much to his pride. He would, in secret though, do shady business deals involving his glowing power.

Sometimes he'd sell it to others for their gain, and other times he'd manipulate others into buying his products, all to destroy a rival company if necessary. Eventually, he got so much stuff, including his own secret lair at the top of his building, a butler, priceless artefacts, a basketball court, a movie studio and even fourteen animal shelters (If you could even call them that...).

Year: 2002 - Ramona Flowers...

"About two weeks ago, during my company's 5th Anniversary party, I met a girl, named Ramona Flowers. She wasn't like the other girls I met in my youth, she was different...like she'd seen things that nobody else could have. We quickly formed a relationship when she started seeing me more and more often, and well...I went along with it, but she was pretty obsessed with me."

During the 5th anniversary of GGG Heavy Industries'/G-Man Media's founding, Gideon (Age: 29. Emotion: Happy with how his company's party is going.) was busy chatting away with many of his business partners and workers. He stepped away briefly to get himself another wine, only to bump into a young woman who'd just started working at his company not too long ago.

At first Gideon was annoyed with this woman, given how he thought SHE was the reason why his shirt was now stained with wine, but after looking at her a bit more, Gideon saw how beautiful she was. And a week after the party, she approached him again, learning that her name was Ramona Flowers (Age: 22. Love Status: Currently infatuated with her new boss) and how she'd become his new secretary.

Almost afterwards, the two formed a relationship. But on Gideon, on the other hand, didn't share the same love as his new girlfriend did. He only saw his experiment as a mere experiment.

"It took some doing, and believe me her will was pretty damn strong, but eventually...I managed to infect Ramona with my power, and boy...it's a sight to behold if you're me. I was right in thinking that Ramona was obsessed with me. Is she seriously this naïve enough to think I would love her back? She's a core essential to my whole empire, nothing more..."

The entire relationship between himself and Ramona, Gideon spent most of it pushing his new girlfriend away, assuming she'd interfere with business or such. Heck, he would even complain at her, get mad at her, belittled her at one point, and especially manipulated her into doing something shady.

Most of the time Gideon couldn't use his power on her until she was at her lowest for only one day. All of this made Ramona pretty stressed out, and almost to the point where she just couldn't take anymore of her boyfriend's abusiveness.

Year: 2004 - She's gone...

"Ramona left...I came back one rainy night to make her feel better, only to find her, having cut her long hair and had something in her hand, then suddenly my power that infected her ignited...and the next thing, she was gone."

On a rainy night, Gideon (Age: 31 Status: Rushing to his girlfriend.) rushed to his girlfriend's place to make things up to her a little before going back to some form of normality on his side...only to find her, a new haircut and with a letter to him in her hands. The way she saw him made her so stressed that the glowing power blindingly ignited, causing her to eventually vanish to his shock.

"That insolent XXXXX left me! After everything I did for her?! THIS IS THE THANKS I GET?! Well, I just found out something pretty interesting: Ramona used to date six others before me. Don't remember the details, but apparently I posted a rant on Craigslist while drunk...and a couple of days later, six others replied and complained about her. And you know...I think I found we have a lot in common..."

After she'd left, Gideon got drunk and began ranting about how Ramona was ungrateful and that he'd made her who she is and even that he owned her! Heck, he even went on his computer and onto Craigslist and posted a drunken rant about her like crazy, saying nasty stuff about her...until he woke up the next morning after being unable to remember what happened for a few moments.

Going back to his computer though, he noticed that six people had replied, claiming that they had dated Ramona Flowers too, apparently she was involved in their lives and had dumped them at some point, this all went back as far back as Ramona's seventh grade. And boy, those six individuals were pretty mad at Ramona too, all to Gideon's surprise of course.

Seeing the replies to his own drunken rant, Gideon thought about it for a couple of hours, especially during his company's meetings too, until it dawned on him that he had the chance to get Ramona back, let alone control her love life. After this day, Gideon made something new...his own league of exes.

After finishing the Journal's current chapter, the whole group (And especially Lil' Gideon) was speechless, knowing what Gideon had done in the past and how horribly he'd treated Ramona. Not even Lucas and Roxie saw it coming either. "Ok...that's pretty insane, even for Gideon." Roxie said, trying to mask her own fear despite having just read the page. "Knew he was obsessed with us fighting Scott to get Ramona back, but I never knew he had other girlfriends either." Lucas even admitted. "Dude...that's intense. Seriously, no wonder went insane." Stephen then spoke up, sweating a little too.

"Ok, it's settled: that perfect XXXXXXX has gotta go. But first things first, we need to get the Scott we all know and love back." Wallace then said before gesturing to the bathroom, and moments before a loud glass-shattering smash was heard within (Not-So Fun Fact: Scott actually thought he saw Gideon reflected in the mirror and punched it.). "And how are we gonna do that? It's not like there's anyone in Toronto, aside from Mobile, who can help him." Stephen then brought up. It did take a few minutes to think, but the answer was solved when Lucas unintentionally saw a voice message left on the phone since yesterday.

"You have one new message." The phone said before a familiar voice spoke up on the other end. "Hey Scott, it's Kim. You know, Kim Pine? I just saw a guy with a parka exactly like your stupid one and...well, that's literally the most interesting thing that's happened to me all week. It sucks back home. So, if you or the guys feel like it, get your extremely boring depressed XXX and visit me sometime." Kim Pine (Age: 24. Not-So Fun Fact: She moved back home during the last chapter. Fun Fact: She's possibly thinking about moving back to Toronto. 'Cause she misses everyone) said on the other end.

Hearing this suggestion, Wallace looked at the group with a smirk. "Well there we have it you guys. That's the solution." He said to them. "A very convenient solution if you ask me." Knives muttered slightly. "Do you think it'll work at all?" Stephen asked worryingly. "You know this is our bandmate you're talking about, Stephen. If anyone knows all about Scott, it's her." Knives then immediately said, agreeing with Wallace and seeing as how it was the only way to get the old Scott back. A few moments later, Scott walked out of the bathroom, having finished his rant, though he noticed everyone looking at him in a weird way.

"Uh hey guys...what's up?" He asked gently. Though nobody answered him for a moment, and knowing this, even from Wallace, Scott knew this probably wasn't a good sign for him. "Scott, this is a whole intervention deal. With you being, well...in this state, you're making everyone concerned. So we're doing something about it." Wallace then explained to Scott before approaching him to explain his plan (Scott's Note: Oh come on...now what...?! I wasn't trying to make anyone concerned!).

Yep, looks like Wallace's plan to help Scott is already coming together ^^

But let's save that good stuff, let alone the other stuff Ramona's going through, for the next chapter.

So stay tuned and hopefully the next chapter won't be so long

Negaboss2000 out ^^