FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Morning came. His eyes blinked open as he felt a sense of peace for the first time in his life. Silence. But not the empty absolute sort of silence, for he still heard faintly the sounds of people cutting lawns and gentle mumbling from beyond the window above the bed he slept in. As his senses started to return to him, he felt a solid but gentle weight upon his belly as he looked down to see Koopin sleeping against his side, his arm softly draped across James' brown scaled skin. The smaller koopa was smiling sweetly in his slumber, body pulsing with every tender breath he made turning thick and warm against James' stomach. He dared not even wake him, perfectly content to just lie there and watch the world fade on by past his hearing as he slid one arm over his head to put behind it against the cushion. There were no fears inside of him, no monsters, no thoughts to bury himself with as he waited for Koopin to wake up. Eventually he couldn't resist sliding one hand along to the naked koopa's back to pull him closer. "Mmmmornin'." He woke up with a smile returned to James as the raptor chuckled softly. "Morning cutie. You sleep good?" "Mmhmm...better without being watched by a pair of cheap garden shears." "Hmhmhmhmhahaha...ahhhh yeah...well, technically that's not true." "Huh?" "I mean I still had to buy a pair of shears to keep my gardening job up." "I said CHEAP garden shears, your new ones cost like fifty coins." "That's true...hahaha, god...it's...kinda weird to think that...it's all over." "I know. It's like that same feeling again when you came back, you were just expecting something bad to happen." "Yeah. Totally...but, seems like everything hasn't exploded yet so uh...you want to start the day off?" "In a bit...I think I need another hour of sleep." "Sounds good. I think I'll join you." "Alrighty." The two cuddled back into bed and for a good few minutes it seemed as if they would get their wish as they closed their eyes and pulled each other close. But not more than twelve minutes after they snoozed off, they felt something jump onto the bed and almost smoosh the air out of their lungs with deafening voice as they sprang up with a panicked start. "RUFF! RUFF-RUFF!" "J-JESUS FU-GOD CHARLIE!" "WHAT THE HECK, C-COME ON FOR PEACH'S SAKE!" The chain chomp was panting happily in front of them, oblivious to their sleepy time and feisty like always with thickening sloppy tongue holding a leash between his jagged white teeth, which made Koopin smirk. "Hhhhah...hhahah, awwww...I wanted to sleep a bit." "Can I pay you to leave us alone for like two hours?" asked James. "RUFF!" "Yeah I thought not...alright then, you wanna go for a walk?" Whimpering pants of excitement encouraged them to get up finally as they decided to have a light breakfast before leaving. They dressed themselves in their usual clothes, they ate up some buttery bread with ham and cheese slices, and were soon off with Charlie being held by James by the leash which clasped at the base of his chain-like tail. It was a lovely sunny day, pure and sweet. The blue sky with softest clouds, the grass greener than ever with the hills smiling through their black beady eyes marked with bluish swirls and the odd polka-dotted landscape. People waved amidst their lawn-mowing, their discussions and latest gossip as James and Koopin felt the sleepiness drift away from them with each new step. It had been almost a week since the departure of their most accursed enemy, forever gone to never sully their lives ever again as they wandered their way out of the settlement's outskirts. Koopamuir was basking in the glory of a hot spring, with bob-ombs reclining in the shade sitting peacefully under trees whilst toads were playing hopscotch along the pathway. Koopas wandered to and fro playing catch, goombas sunbathing whilst a pair of yoshis were having picnics on the open grass. Charlie was well-behaved, Koopin had trained him well clearly despite the dozens of temptations in the form of food and strangers. They wandered up towards Toad Town and roamed amicably around all their usual haunts such as the bar, the forest entrance, the small club at the port's harbour until returning back, as well as occasionally having a brisk run to see if they couldn't tire out the chomp any faster before they let him back home. James continued to work as a gardener for hire with sharpened blades sculpted into a perfect tool and nothing else until an opening would be made at the bar he once worked at to reacquaint himself in all its sweet gaiety. He memorised the drinks by scent, he welcomed every customer from the smallest boo to the most lively pirahna plant hopping forwards in its pot whilst Koopin continued to work at his job at still showing people around the strange old ruins of castle forts left littered around the Mushroom Kingdom. Eventually however James needed to keep his word on other promises, which Koopin allowed on certain conditions. With now a steady job to root himself into the world once again, James began to work out reasonable times for him to leave Koopin's world for at least a couple of days to meet old friends and reassure them of his safety. Koopin at first was admittedly nervous but the raptor soon explained himself at the dinner table with Koopin's parents to bring them altogether at the discussion. Back inside their family home amidst sandstone walls he faced down three koopas and a shy guy who came to tea as he explained his reasons. "See with all the problems sorted out back home, it's gonna be a LOT easier for me to get back and forth, and I promised my old friends that I'd go back and visit them just so THEY know that I'm okay. I'd honestly only be gone for a few days but I am staying here with you guys for real." "How often would you be planning this?" said Klair calmly. "Only when I have enough time off from my job, not like every week or something that's just too much, just maybe once every few months. Koopin told me that he would only agree to this once I had a job again so I could prove I was serious about living here. I know you guys have been worrying about that, especially you Shelldon." "I have to admit," stated Shelldon, "I had my doubts when you came back but, considering all the efforts you have been putting in to reintegrate yourself, I have to commend you for it." "I quite agree," squeaked Shybert, "I don't really know James quite well but, you don't go establishing yourself an occupation if you were only temporary visiting, hwoh." "It's been a very...confusing past month admittedly. First you came back from this conflict at your home, then you explain to us that you were cursed which was causing you to be rather irascible, of which you have now managed to cure it thanks to the Star Spirits I hope." "Absolutely," said FG. "It's all just so...strange, everything about you, nothing seems particularly standard with you. I just hope at some point you want to truly settle down." "I do. I absolutely do, I mean...I owe everything to Koopin. I don't want to leave, I WANT to stay. But the same feeling that you guys are having, are also the same feelings that my friends are having, they're afraid of not seeing me again. That's why I want to go back, see them for a few days, then come back and just live here." "And to be fair," added Koopin, "I do have my own trips that I go off on around the world exploring stuff, so...it'd be kinda hypocritical to not let him go out and see his friends again." "I agree," said the mother, "as worried as I am because of recent things, I will put my trust in James. He's done a lot of things for us and he is genuinely trying to reinstate himself back into our kingdom. It's your choice Koopin." "I trust him. Absolutely, he told me everything and I trusted him. I trusted him to come back and he did, he trusted me to help him get rid of his curse fully and I did. We both...I just feel we both have a much deeper connection than before now in that first month since he came back." "Alright then. I won't stand in your way and I know your father won't either if we trust your instincts." "Can I just say," continued the shy guy, "...these...fruity burgers are absolutely rhapsodic, I have NEVER tasted such a magnificent snack in all my life!" "OH, hohohoho thank you Shybert! Seems everybody loves the way I make them." "I missed them badly," said James earnestly, "like one of the biggest things I missed when I was away was all of you, and your cooking...you're the best family I've ever known. I feel like the luckiest person in the world to have ever known you three." It was that statement alone that had all the koopas melting in their hearts as Shelldon nodded convinced. "Alright...a-alright then. You can come and go as you please just so long as you tell us in advance, and also! Bring us souvenirs." "You got it Shelldon. Okay well I'll just make some plans, there's gonna be a point where I won't be like...leaving as often, I mean it's only just so I can say to my friends 'hey guys I'm still here, don't you worry, you all take care' and that's it really." "That's fine with us. Just remember what we said. You're always welcome here." With that the raptor began making his schedule out to visit each of his friends that he could reasonably meet with again, charting down on his calendar in the omni-tool of when to leave in order to notify Koopin in advance. He never planned to be out longer than three days per visit, but due to the fact he would be moving back and forth between worlds, he also had another person to speak with regarding dimensional trips. Koopin's parents and Shybert would never know the exact nature of his trips, but there was one group in particular that did.

Wandering up towards the great terrifying castle of the Koopa Kingdom, the neighbouring realm of wicked hellfire all around the dark pulsing walls of reptilian ancestry, James had called on a request for invitation up to the great King of the Koopas. He was joined with by Koopin who carried with him a small package to deliver personally as they were checked in by the guards at the gates. Despite feeling as if he were entering the gates of hell, there was still an odd sense of charm to the place as they knelt before the great king himself. Claws of stiffening white, pendulous muscular belly of glistening amber with firey red hair upon his horned pudgy face, the grand crimson throne of sculpted rock creaked underneath his spiked green shell as Bowser spoke with deep resonance: "So...you came back huh?" "Yes," said James bowing, "I'm sorry for being away so long your majesty." "All yer business done?" "Yep." "No more big long trips?" "Not that long no. You know why I came here right?" "Askin' me permission to leave on smaller trips to see yer ol' pals? Yeah...how long you plannin' THIS time?" "Just three days max. I made a schedule, I just wanna tell my friends that I'm okay, check up on them and so forth." "Hm. Well, considering yer a pretty harmless dude, least from whut I heard, I'll let you have my permission to come an' go, but on one condition." "What's that?" "Anytime you come back here, you come STRAIGHT to me the moment you drop off, cuz I don't want any weird stuff getting snuck over across the border of this...dimension or whutever. Which reminds me, where are yer garden shears?" "They got destroyed. I'm not gonna miss them." "Heh, good, they looked stupid. I mean, whut kinda idiot walks around with a giant pair o' scissors?" "I don't know your majesty. Thank you for your blessing." James resisted the urge to quip whilst bowing with gratitude. "Wuzzat it?! Cuz yer lucky you even get an audience with me that quick, not the peak season fer my usual plans." "I also have something," said Koopin with package in hand, "I came with an offering, a present for your son." "Huh...really? S'not his birthday, that wuz months ago." "I know, your majesty but...it's from a friend of his." "...friend? Who?" "You can look inside and see for yourself, it's just a small gift that he'll appreciate." Despite having had it checked by the guards as being clean and not-dangerous, Bowser cautiously opened the package by a gentle crack of the lid and found there was nothing dangerous within. In fact to him it looked a rather useless present before his eye widened upon recognition, staring towards Koopin with a slow grinning smirk. "Hhhhheh heh heh heh heh...so...this wuz you all along...who'da thought, haha. Alrigh' then." Koopin said nothing with a pursed beak, blushing gently before Bowser closed the package and stood up from his seat. "Well, considerin' this friend gave my son a pretty good birthday party, I think he'll love to see this so I'm gonna take it to him right now. You're dismissed." "Thank you, your Majesty." The koopa nodded to his master and regent with firm respect along with James who started walking. But not before Bowser grabbed him by a firm hand upon his shoulder and pulled James closely with dark seething breath: "Just a word of advice buddy. If I see that li'l koopa, or any of 'em start blubbin' any tears cuz of you... your game is over." "R-...r-right...what about the Koopa Bros.?" "Pffft, those dudes are useless, I don't wanna be seen anywhere near those half-shell twerps, but...you get whut I'm sayin' right dinoboy? Nobody hurts my people." "Understood...thank you, your majesty." "Good, now go on git outta here, I got go-karts this afternoon an' I need to get foked fer it to start winnin' like always." And with that, he left with gracious authority of the king on the promise he would return to meet and ascertain that there would be no danger of any further anomalies to be caused by his visits back and forth. His plans were now set, and so he would begin a long fruitful existence of many months staying in the Mushroom Kingdom, whilst interspersed with the off-wordly visit to his old friends and other places. The first person he returned to, was Sarah naturally. After having spent at least one month away since he had left her place, she was much more excited than usual with a hug and deep kiss along with the old knuckleslam into his shoulder for good measure. Jenny gladly welcomed him back in turn, along with the regular cityfolk that popped in whilst he visited. The city already looked that much brighter than usual, the roads somewhat less cracked, the lights working more beautifully at night, and the people smiling with such greater tolerance amidst shopping days and bar drinking sessions. But perhaps it was because of his own increasing optimism and joy for everything that was right in the universe that it looked better, as they both sat up on the bar's roof lounging in deckchairs cracking open bottles of McEwan's Export, whilst FG showed Sarah the small interview he had with Koopin. "Alright, I'll say it, that kid's cute, you got a real winner there James." "Heheh thanks. Soooo what's been going on around with you?" "Retirement. Finally got to live through to see the end of it." "I bet, what are they planning to do with the Armee building?" "Thomas is pushing to make a hospital, full anthro and human services at least as best we can, there's all that science stuff still inside there so the mayor's currently searching out for any medical companies that are needing a free place." "You not worried about more experiments?" "The mayor's office and Thomas both laid down new laws prohibiting any shit in our city. Tighten the hell out of regulations to make sure nothing like this happens again." "Nice," said FG softly gulping a cool drink back, "what's Jenny gonna do now that you're uh...criminal mafia's all done with?" "Run the bar of course," replied Sarah, "I'm givin' her all the shit to deal with, she runs the place now. Also give her my now-official duties as neighbourhood watch guardian. An' this time that's not a euphemism." "Hahaha." Another gentle drink, a few moments of silence between them and for a moment James thought that Sarah had dropped off in her age. At least until she spoke out: "So, you seriously work in somebody else's bar?" "Well yeah, I mean it's the one good thing you taught me, I might as well use it." "Hmm, true, you always did have a nose good for quality drinks." "Just make sure to keep these stocked up, I should be able to come back once every few months when I got a break." "That's fine, you got yer life an' all. So, what's this bar like?" "It's a gay bar." She rolled her eyes upon hearing this. "Not THAT kinda bar, it's just a place where you can meet and talk with people the same gender as you." "I thought this Mushroom Kingdom was all happy shiny perfect, why would they need separate bars?" "Because it's really annoying to try and guess in a regular bar if somebody's gay or straight. Koopin's had that happen a few times which was why he went over to the gay bar instead, at least before I met him." "Fair enough. So he wanted to make me a pen pal huh?" "Well, generally just people to talk to, I mean you don't have to if-" "Course I want to." "Seriously?" Sarah put down her lager drink and sat up slightly whilst the chair creaked underneath her weight, giving the sense of her pudgy belly that came with olden years. "This kid's gonna be your boy, I may not be able to see him for real but it'd be nice at least to shoot him a call over your omni-gadget." "Haha, alright sure I mean he'll love that definitely lemme get this set up." Sitting up to face her properly, his left arm began to shimmer bringing up the recording function as a cinematic view of the mellow skyline stretching across the cityscape of Illinois with the dolphin leaning back comfortably as James started: "So it's nice for once to see the city in daytime, we're out here chilling on the roof, knockin' back a couple of brewskis." "Brewskis?" said Sarah questioning. "Yer not Canadian kid." "Actually I'm half-Canadian, my dad was from Nova Scotia thank you." "Huh, really?! Damn, I guess Anseed came through on his ol' PDA gift." "He did, I mean for all the shit he's done, he actually gave me a pretty amazing gift to find out everything about my parents." "And what you find out?" "Dad was a patents lawyer from Canada, really shy and awkward. Mum was a neurophysicist from Scotland, wild and feisty." "Hehehe, I wonder which one you take after." "I can show you next visit when I bring my PDA round but, this is about you today. You got any words for Koopin?" "I guess, hey there kid!" She took a moment to languishly drink back a quarter of her lager bottle with steady gulps of her wrinkled neck and a smack of her lips. "Like James said we're just chillin' in our days of retirement, well, my retirement, you still gotta work." "We're not on pensions yet," said FG, "I dunno what age we get those in the Mushroom Kingdom." "Well Koopin you're a turtle right?" asked the dolphin. "I mean I sure hope you don't hafta keep workin' until yer a hundred, that would be shit." "I...a-a-actually don't know how long koopas live." "You'll be alright, you reptiles tend to live longer than us mammals anyway. Anyways...lemme ask ya a few things Koopin. Firstly, what was James like when ya first met him?" "Awww come on!" "No no, I wanna hear it from his own mouth, it'll be more fun that way. Secondly, how long you been a tour guide and why didya go into the business? Thirdly, what sorta movies do you like?" "Why am I not surprised you would ask that question?" "Fourth, what's yer favourite drink, and lastly...who do you most admire in your life? Get back to me on those, you can ask me anything you want in return. Alrighty that's that, so here's a toast." Sarah raised her bottle towards the raptor as he raised his in turn. "Here's to a healthy long retirement." "Hehelllll yeah."

The two clinked glasses and gulped as they watched the Chicago sunset over Lake Michigan. It was definitely not his own sense of optimism turning it so bright before him as he nodded calmly in the peace and solitude of the bustling city. But the sunset would be different upon the next world that he revisited after coming back to Koopin, spending a few more months with him and then departing once again when he had his schedule free to do so as he found himself sitting upon a beach, far from any universe and somewhere a slight ways south of a small city. He stared out across the sea, endlessly shimmering with gentle amber waters lapping across the seashore as he felt claws wrap round his head and mask his vision briefly in darkness. "Dooooon't tell me, I know this." A sound of someone's deep chuckling breaths. "Is iiiiiiit...dragonite?" He could feel the creature's head shaking side to side behind him. "Is iiiit...kangaskhan?" Growls of confusion said no. "NO WAIT, It's PIKACHU!" Snarling outrage came mockingly. "God dammit I'm terrible at this!" Oh stop it James, you're just being silly now. "Says the giant floating face." I am mischievous by nature, you are not. "Okay okaaaaay...I knew it was you Red." The claws pulled away from his eyes as a large dragon head swivelled upside down above him, a slick orange scaled face that smiled fiendishly before slurping across FG's snout. "Hhhahahahaha, ooookay come on bro sit down by me." A flump of sand beside him signalled Red's presence fully, the Charizard's rigid wings stretching taut slightly as his firey tail swished gently back and forth with brilliant warm flames that fanned across the beach. The Lapras known as Sarah was out on the bay just to the left of their vision, smiling whilst she conversed with a rather hefty-looking feraligatr, a blue crocodile beast of red ridges that was calmly languishing on his back across the waters in front of her. The two spoke in their various ways too far out of reach to be heard by FG as he asked the absent air: "Where's Shin?" He's rather old for this sort of thing, he's currently sleeping with the kangaskhan families at the park. "Aww...heh, still protecting them huh?" So it seems. The air began wisping with a cold gentle breath across FG's face, darkening clouds of thick indigo smoulders transforming into a wide grinning face as Kirie smiled with jagged lips. James also felt another creature next to him in the form of a constant buzz just briefly sweeping across his head, the sight of a large yellow bee at least 3 feet tall hovering round in a circle above him. How are you James? "I'm doing great. Just stopping by to check on you peeps, you guys doing okay?" We are well thank you. The rangers at the park have been exceptionally kind to let us roam separate with pokemon who are not allowed to be caught by visitors. "That's good...heh, any trouble you guys been giving?" Red keeps trying to scare people into thinking he's about to set fires in the forest. He got quite a scolding and if I remember rightly, Claude the feraligatr threatened to dunk him into the ocean barehanded. "Reeeeeeeed." The charizard smirked with a snorting look of derision across his face, shrugging massively with his claws. "Come ooooon I thought you were better than-...oh who am I kidding of course you're not." The dragon cackled a deep bass rippling laugh as he jostled James firmly with a nudging shoulder that almost tipped him completely over. The raptor pushed back until both of them started grappling at each other's hands in a slowly increasing playfight before James shoved him down against the stand, cackling until Red grabbed his waist and rolled him hard to the side to lay on top of him. A toothy grin beamed from him before he suddenly smooched the raptor deeply which both surprised and disgusted him to feel the hot charizard tongue slurp deep into his throat. "GH-MMMHHHPLAAGH! R-RED, WHAT THE HELL!?!" He's just saying that he just wants to return the cooties back to you after all those years, back when you gave them to him when he was but a little 'meleon. "WHU...awww j-jesus god D-DAMMIT RED, pfffthahahahaha!" Hugging him tightly by the neck, the two let their noses meet whilst laughing hot breaths against each other before getting up slowly as FG had an idea. "Hey guys, you wanna give my boy Koopin a small interview?" Red almost barked with gladness nodding in approval whilst Spike readied himself for a duck-and-dodging look as if posing for the camera. Kirie however stated: You do realise that I cannot be recorded on your device correct? In fact I had to get you another silph scope just to make you see me again. "Well...draw a picture, you got a piece of paper or something to put on your face?" Are you suggesting...hm...hmhmhaha, very well then. Poofing a piece of yellowish faded paper into existence, she manipulated her illusory powers to create something that was more visible to the naked eye. A rather surprisingly accurate sketch of a Haunter creature to bring up before her face. To the omni-tool it would look as if some strange transient energy was possessing a picture floating mindlessly in the air, the raptor turning it on to show Fuchsia City rising up behind them above the beach's sloping entrance. "Okay, so now another group of friends I wanna show you Koopin. Now uh, problem is I can't really translate what they say so we have Red." "Gruuuu-RUH!" "Then there's Spike." "BZZzzzzt!" "And finally Kirie." The painting flipped itself around with a fiendish whispering cackle whilst FG turned the camera towards the ocean bay seeing the silhouette of the lapras. "We have a few others but, Shin is tired out and Sarah is way over there cuz she's a...sea creature and sorta busy with some friends. Not MY Sarah but the...other Sarah okay I did not plan this naming out sooooo back to the rest of the group." Panning back towards the three creatures who remained standing or floating next to each other. "Red here is a Charizard who's all about punching and burning, I rescued him from a bad person and he's been my best buddy ever since. Spike is one feisty Beedrill that loves to sting and stab repeatedly who I bested in combat back when he was a little bug boy. And lastly you got Kirie who just...does...really creepy stuff that-no Kirie don't, please, hahaha...she talks through telepathy sadly so uh, can't really quite pick that up on the recording but she's nice. She's really great, one of my closest friends to be honest...always by my side...even when at my worst and...even when I wasn't well or when on my last legs, you know she's the real reason I managed to get back to you Koopin. She...I never did get to say this properly but...thank you Kirie. You saved me a lot more than I can even remember counting. I'm glad we met." The picture trembled slightly with a tightening aura that became sharp with sweetening whispers across the wind as the raptor chuckled with shaky hand. "HOOO alright, almost got emotional there, I think that's enough to give what you think guys?" "BZZZzzzZZZT!" "Alrighty then! Aaaand out." He clicked off his recording and went back to sit down next to his group. Red shuffled himself closer to wrap his wing softly around James' body allowing him to lean against his friend. He couldn't help but press his head gently against Red's thick warm heated waist, smiling as they watched the sunset together whilst Kirie floated down along James' right, with Spike the waspy Beedrill planting himself upon FG's head, standing upon him lightly to keep his stinger-tipped abdomen safely away from James as they sat together in calm solitude. Thank you... "Hmm?" For...for forgiving me. "I think considering you were the one that helped me throughout my whole journey I should. In the end you only had good intentions." Even so, I am glad we have remained good friends. You are looking so much more peaceful without a trace of dark aura about you. "For once." The same sense I felt of you when you first woke back from the recesses of Oddscar's mind. Your primal self also had goodness in him too. "I like to think he had more good than me, not as much selfishness as I did back then." You were not so selfish, reckless and irrefusable but not QUITE as selfish as you think. "Well either way...heh...god, I can't believe we only had a month of adventures together in Kanto." It felt...much longer I admit, hmhmhm! "This island is so small...and yet it's so big." That is true of almost every world James...that you should know easily. "Heheh yeah...hey, did you ever talk to um...Hau'rhun, the Watcher guy ever since I got back home?" Occasionally, he is not available nowadays due to having been arrested for his interference with dimensional arrays. "Shit, he got done for it?" Yes, but due to the fact that his plan involving you managed to obliterate the great terror of Spacetime Seven in a much more economical fashion, they have decided to be lenient with his sentencing and instead of incarcerating him in punishment, began to severely limit his abilities and scientific equipment under a constant heavy watch from his own superiors. "Oh, soooo basically community service, that's cool. I'm kinda glad he didn't go to prison for it, I mean I know I'm sort of torn about him but he DID get me home in the end and well...that's more than enough for me." You should visit him, his home is still the same place you met, it just has a few extra security measures in place and a lot less equipment to fuss with. "Alright then...you know, I think we could have gone the distance. I mean all of us seemed pretty good in fighting, we could have all gone to get all the badges." You had obtained three, which I must say for someone with no experience of pokemon was a decent effort! Perhaps you really could have been the very best, like no one ever was. "Yeah well, grass people weren't exactly any problem, right fireboy?" Red chuckled with breathless grunting sounds and a smile of pride as he brofisted FG almost instinctively, clawed knuckles tapping against each other before the large beast started to make a low trembling sound whilst cocking his head towards Kirie. "Um...what's he saying?" He asked if we thought Isaac was alright. If he was someplace...happy. "He's fine Red. I know he is, he's...back home with his family." The confidence of James' answer made him happy as Red smiled with thick teeth, bending down to slurp James' cheek in gratitude for reassuring him as he turned his head back towards the darkening rays of light over the bay of Kanto Island. It would be a strangely brighter sunset when he returned to West Side Island which no longer contained the shadowy Death Egg satellite hanging above it like some eerie moon of destruction. Instead, many of Robotnik's former servants who had been left abandoned on the wayside, became a small community coexisting with the natural world. He only came to visit two people in particular, wearing military hard hats standing amidst the very centre of the junkyard where he had first met them, now repurposing itself to be some sort of new settlement. Strange robots hovered, grinded and walked from one end to the other building pieces of houses like toy blocks together whilst a metallic rooster and drill-based mole stood prominently upon the highest mountain of waste. Currently both of them were being given an interview via omni-tool as Grounder started with: "You know you REALLY need a new phone, I keep phonin' ya but it NEVER goes through!" "I think I keep losing my signal," said FG, "I mean I am off away in other worlds, that reception gets terrible." "DON'T ENCOURAGE HIM!" squawked Scratch. "He knows his phone is a pile'a crock!" "HEY!" shouted the mole. "I paid good service fer this, I got minutes fer free!" "IT'S NOT EVEN PLUGGED IN, WE HAVE NO PHONE LINES ON THIS ISLAND!" "Well MAKE some mister smarty-farty, yer the one bossin' people to build stuff!" "Are you?" asked FG. "I didn't think you had it in you Scratch." "Well yeah!" cried the rooster. "Somebody's gotta keep this place runnin' right?! I got blueprints right here!" The robot chicken pulled out from a small compartment a rolled-up parchment, detailing rather finely the establishment of a small robotic colony. James however noticed one thing off as he pointed towards a name inscribed on the bottom right. "Miles...Prower?" "Uhhh YEAH! That's uh...that's my uh pen name I go by, yanno, fer security reasons!" "Ahhhh huh...suuuure it is, okay then." He handed back the blueprint not even convinced despite the squawking Scratch's look of desperate eagerness, sweating bolts of slickening exhaust fluid from his cheeks as he rubbed his neck slightly. From the top of the junk mountain they could see the sun sink away behind the great mountain tops as James asked: "Sooo uh, what happened to that fat egg dude?" "I dunno!" shrugged Scratch. "Sonic an' his li'l buddy bolted off someplace else, they come back sometimes to their ol' workshop over there but ehhh, we don't bother 'em, they don't bother us." "Whut if we need sugar?" asked Grounder sweetly. "We're gonna need lotsa sugar fer our tea parties!" "...huh, yanno that would be cool, tea parties! I should go ask 'em if they know where to get any!" "Goodie! Maybe we can invite 'em over!" "SURE, why not, let's all have a biiiiig tea party, you wanna come too FG?!" "Sure!" replied James. "I mean, I dunno when you guys'll have it but I'll try to be round every once a while to check up on you." "Great! Invite yer boyfriend why dontcha?!" "He's not able to come sadly, not got my uh...special skill." "Awwww! Welp, that means more sugar fer me, BUHA-HAHAAAAA!" "Heeeey!" cried the moletank. "Don' worry FG, we'll wrap up a cup of tea fer you to take home an' give to Koopin, if he wants it." "DOH, you can't just wrap up a teacup!" "Sure I can!" "And how ya gonna do that WITHOUT spillin' the tea numbnuts?!" "Um, FREEZE it dummy, so it doesn' go slipsliding all over, then you can reheat it an' have it nice an' pipin' hot to drink!" "You-...do you have ANY IDEA how stupid you sound right now?!" "Why not give me a thermos?" replied James. "Yanno, put the tea in a bottle that keeps the heat in." "...but...how's the teacup gonna fit in that?!" "......are you seriou-okay no we're done that's it, god damnit you two."

It wasn't too soon after that he left the two brotherly robots to fight and bicker over pointless things amidst a kingdom of outcasts, something he had seen more often than once and appreciated their efforts in building. He did not try to return back to Michael who had long since gone into the depths of Canada, safely out of range of the bioterrorist zones that had begun to escalate in his decaying world. Nor was he able to find the Sole Calibrators anywhere across the wider galaxy even after inquiring at the Citadel itself, which appeared to be in a very complicated state of affairs concerning a greater conflict, one that he did not care to get himself involved in and frankly had no right to be. He left a message for Dahnus Drumarien down at Citadel Security, passing along his wishes and hopes that he could contact the band wherever they were now amidst the confusing galaxy. They had little to say due to the fact that most of their conversations previously had been off-the-record and were therefore concerning illegal matters. However James did learn some things that put his mind at great ease thanks to downloading various omni-tool reports courtesy of Dahnus. Firstly, the Sole Calibrators were still touring actively, and were busily entrenching themselves into a charity concert scheme to raise money for war-torn regions across the length of the galaxy. Secondly, Dahnus' family were still safe and sound, with Jarren especially who still remained in regular school, but was given biotic dampeners to protect himself and other children. Lastly, the terrorist organisation Facinus had become almost entirely obliterated by the Turian Hierarchy after a brief escalating war had ensued between the sociopolitical faction, and the might of the Turian flotilla before soon ending with the execution of the Facinus leader, Kihilix Tanus. The leader had demanded a duel with pistols against the head of the Turian army, the commander of which had won fair and square despite protests from Facinus' followers to the contrary. James only was glad that the organisation got what they deserved in the end, downloading various reports on his omni-tool to prove such to himself. His next destination however would be a much smaller world, yet one more vast in its emptiness compared to where the Citadel was amidst the stars. Diana was first to hug him upon returning back to Jamestown after having installed itself officially as a firm establishment, allying itself with the Beech further north of the place protected by the Brotherhood of Steel's Midwest remnants as a coalition of various types. Mutants, ghouls and humans all banded together in what was once a slave colony, now repurposed as a sizeable small trading centre in the middle of the wastes. The sight of having several establishments selling weapons, armour, food and shelter all underneath his name still brought a few tears to his eyes in gratitude. "You're looking good," said FG. "You think so?" asked Diana. "Totally, you got way more badassitude about you now." "Thas not even a word." "Yes it is." "Whut, no it's nah." "Jerry, is badassitude a word?" "No?" replied Jerry. "The hell you hear that?" "I dunno!" "Do you even READ?" mocked the girl. "Um, YEAH I do, whose fucking name is that up there huh?!" "Jerrystown," said Jerry smirking, "we had it changed, James just wasn't quite cutting it." "WHA-BULLSHIT I'm not illiterate!" "Might as well be if you think badassitude's even a word." "Fffffuuuuuuck." Diana giggled at James' mocking frustration as he flopped himself out onto his back, sitting between the black young lady in a fine set of leather armour and the pale ghoul in dark studded outfit for scouting missions. The sun was bleak in the wastes of Illinois, and yet somehow James imagined it to look nicer than the one in his own world's Illinois if only for the more honest hope that sprung purely from the hearts of Jamestown and the Beech. "Been keepin' good?" asked the ghoul. "Yeaaaah I been alright." "Yer boyfriend don't look so bad though uh the...yellow skin's pretty weird, he got radiated too?" "Nope that's just his natural skin." "Huh, lucky him, yanno he looks like a fire gecko but without the bitin'." "I like dem," added the lady, "they're kinda cute, so's Koopin, how'd you guys meet?" "We got drunk," said James. "I took him home, he made me breakfast in the morning." "Heheheh, you get drunk dat often?" "N-n-nooooo?" "You totally do." "I was never drunk ONCE in the entire time I've known you, come on." "Uhhhh yes you were, when you had dat barfigh' with uhhh mister Hawk." "Okay then ONE time but I...ugh, whatever...oh, hey that reminds me, so I told Koopin about you and the friendship bracelet, I have it at home so don't worry-" "OH, damn I didn' even notice, you still kept it!" "Sure did, of course I did, it was a gift from you! Anyways, Koopin made this." He brought out from his satchel an immaculate-looking band of string cloth woven together in green, blue and yellow binding. Diana gasped as if she had been given the holy grail as James put it in her hand. "He thought you were really sweet when I told him about you, so he wanted to make that for you because 'any friend of James is a friend of mine'." "Whu-...a-a-awwww maaaan! Th-thanks James!" She hugged him tightly with honest joy at such a gesture. "You wan' I should tell 'im thank you on yer recorder thingy?!" "Sure, why not!" "Hey-ey what about me?!" said Jerry. "I'm sittin' here with half a face gone what do I not get anything?!" "Well...DID you want anything?" "YEAH I want sumthin' fuckdammit, how 'bout a bottle o' brandy or sumthin' ripe!" "I'll buy you something from Koopin's home that'll really knock you out, that's a promise alright?" "Yeah, you better." " Typical." A deep voice emanating of a demonic stance came thickly from beside them, with all three suddenly startled by the 10-feet tall creature who was the closest thing to Satan in this world. Despite his smile which was a good attempt for something with teeth that could easily impale their heads one by one. " Humanity's reliance on the fermenting of poisonous yeast remains truth even in this apocalypse." "Ugh, great, here comes mister temperance, you wanna tell me about why meat is bad fer you too?" " Oh do not worry about that...I find great pleasures in meat of all species." "...iiiiiiiiii shouldn't have said that." "HEEEEY GRUTHAR!" James ran up to hug him with earnest cheer wrapping his arms around the huge beast, who simply chuckled with white eyes of gentle surprise and petted James' head with ruthless 12-inch claws. "I was just gonna come and see ya, how ya doing?!" " Good as can be, thank you. I sensed your arrival in the presence of the air, so I came to investigate." "Awwww...you shouldn't have. Um...are you guys still okay with him?" "Whut?" said Diana. "Course I'm okay with' im, he fuckin' ATE Kieran, he always cool with me!" " Indeed." The deathclaw offered a brofist to Diana who gladly tapped her solid tiny black fist against one knuckle of the monstrous hand which James couldn't stop grinning from the sight of. "Hhhahahah, that's awesome, so you two are pretty good then?" " She was the first of the humans to befriend me. I admire her spirit as a foundation for a brighter future." "Awwww yer jus' sayin' dat!" said the young lady with a blush. "I jus' wanted to thank yah wuz all, ahm not afraid'a any monsters." " Bravery can become foolishness if pushed too far. But nevertheless I appreciate your candour, young lady." "Well don't tell yer mom about this," said Jerry knowingly, "I mean I know we're friends with ya Gruthar but it's kinda hard to explain stuff like tha-" " Do not worry, I do not enjoy being at your settlement regardless. It is not a place I can feel comfortable with, but I am always appreciative of its presence nearby. I will gladly keep my distance, long as a friend or two can come visit me. If not Diana, then one of your robotic delegates." "Hey where are those dudes anyway?" asked FG. "I was expecting Roosevelt to come round at least stirring up shit." "He's on the council," replied the ghoul, "we needed a new one in the Brotherhood ever since Crow kinda zilched on our old one so we had all the presidents be our Elders. I mean it's the bestest place, they got all the knowledge to handle shit, but they don't just sit up in their high chairs doin' nuthin', hell no. I mean fer starters Jefferson keeps working out on the fields." "Wait really? Thomas Jefferson?" "Yeah he said he wanted to go back to his roots...I think that wuz a pun." "That's cool...so you're all good here." "Best as we got in this place. I mean we were all worse until you came along with this li'l hotrod to stir up some trouble." "It's awesome." Diana smiled up at the raptor who gave a solemn nod in turn. "Is it...gonna be like dis...fo'ever?" "Long as you make it to be," said James. "It's your world Diana...you make it any way you want it to be." " Indeed it is," said Gruthar knowingly, " you are part of the next generation Diana, so we must rely on you to keep this world safe when we become old and long in tooth to face against our adversaries of any futurestance." "I ain' afraid'a nuthin'," said Diana proudly, "after all we gone through, I ain' gonna let anybody ever be a slave again." "Heheh, that's my lady." James ruffled her hair with a tender noogieing as she giggled with fiendish lips staring towards the bright desert sun creeping into the long pale wastes of the Midwestern US. The next world he would visit whenever his schedule would free itself, was a place he had not seen at any point of his travels and one he was most curious to be upon rolling hills of pristine perfection. A grand open lake with bountiful forest for building materials and food where a small town had been built next to it. Stone paths and sturdy houses, almost picturesque in its simplicity reminding James of a more medieval Mushroom Kingdom. To see the once-begotten and filth-ridden Lemmings now in clean smocks with shining faces of wide-eyed innocence, was a refreshing sight that gave James all the confidence he needed to walk into their small settlement. Fearful clamouring came at first but once he showed he was an unarmed threat, and after greeting his old friends Arino, Alestes and Sophelie, the town began to breathe once again as they roamed merrily about their happy lives building, trading, fishing, drawing and writing. He was invited into Arino's place which was a humble two-story house of solid wood at the end of the town's main road alongside the barn owl Alestes and the grand albatross Sophelie. Out of all the creatures he had befriended over the years, he found this group to be the most strange of all as he recorded them for an interview, the owl sitting on a perch next to the French-fluent albatross with Arino the chief lemming using an umbrella like a crutch. "So would you like to tell everyone who you are again?" "Have you forgotten already?" said the owl. "I expected you to be of sharper wit." "Not all of us were here at the time we ran through the old prisons so come on, spill, tell us what you've been up to." "Very well. I am Alestes, disciple of Acanthropsis and studying sorcerer in the arts of sun-wizardry." "I am Sophelie, oracle of the gods and protector of all that is good within the span of my wings." "And I am Arino, chief of the Lemmings and magistrate of our future along with my friend Twinsen." He pointed with umbrella towards his friend hunched over a desk behind them continuing to write incessantly. "It has been almost seven years since we last met you James. You appear to be well." "I am thank you," said FG, "I was really worried about how you guys were doing after all...you know." "Indeed." "You're looking great Arino, enjoying retirement or something?" "Hmhmhmhm...no, no retirement for me, a chief's work is never done." The leader said this knowingly despite an honest warm smile upon his face, something wondrous to replace James' memory of a constant scowl as Alestes added: "We have very little to return to, so it was decided by both Sophelie and myself to remain here and assist the Lemming folk in their daily existence." "It has been wonderful," spoketh Sophelie en Francais, "all of them have been so kind and supportive, so thankful to be free of the tyranny of younger days, we have all been settling in to a vibrant community. I have mostly been studying new techniques in curing magic as well as simplifying it for future generations to learn." "Whereas I have been instructing those upon the dangers of dark offensive magic and how best to wield it safely, for those that have become adept at using it. We have found a home here, and though the prison has now long since been abandoned and the island of Myst left greatly forgotten behind us...we know that our friends and former enslaved allies have for the most part made their journeys respectfully." "But we could not have done this without you James. I do not know what god brought you to us but I shall bless them in my prayers every day. Thank you." Arino nodded firmly in return and walked up towards FG with a small pink hand outreached. His smaller body did not make him any less intimidating in his stately position of the land as he shook FG's claws in gratitude. "Thank you. I have paid my debts and now can embrace a future anew thanks to you. For saving my people, you are welcome back into our world at any time." "I appreciate that." James grinned with a joyful spurt in his heart, before leaving a few days later once he had bade himself a good rest and moved on across the various worlds he had once been to. It had been too long since Dream Land and he decided best not to come back for a simple visit and greeting, nor did he ever plan to return to Crossville for any reason whatsoever. In truth he was more worried that he would be arrested for any outstanding warrants and decided to just let everything that had happened to him be a suitable equative punishment. But out of all the worlds that he travelled to, it was Ivalice that warmed his heart the most.

Not long after landing within the walls of Lea Monde, he was almost instantly greeted by all of his closest friends with a rousing cheer of excitement. And in truth he knew that they were by the sheer bond through the passage of time more with them any other group, the grand cathedral now well-cleaned of any long-forgotten debris as the spoils of war had all but since been erased from the city's streets. The people went bustling about as usual within the ancient grey stone houses and granite walls that protected the city sternly with defiance as his old clan came to greet him, hugging and shaking hands with delightful joy whilst at the chocobo stables. "I told you he'd be back!" boasted Kruz. "Good thing I didn't bet!" shouted Baldwin. "The smartest thing you never did," jibed Navarro. "You look so well James how are you?!" cried Dahlia. "Prithee tell usszh all that you have gone through!" said Fayne. "Hokay okay guys, guys let's...let's ju-H-HEY-EYYY!" "KWEEEEEEEEH!" Cadbury's surprise glomp from behind almost threw him off completely as a playful bite came down on his shoulder, nibbling and headbutting FG from behind as he pulled the beastly neck close, grappling his feathered throat. "Hhhahahaha cummere you fuckboy." "It is good to see you kupo," said Navarro. "How have you been?" "I'm great thanks! Everything's perfect, the demon's gone and banished completely, I'm back with my boyfriend and all the problems back home have been fixed. Everything is fine." "The demon's gone?!" squeaked Dahlia. "OHOHO YES! OHHH I am so glad to hear that, I was so worried ever since you left through that portal!" "What was even on the other side?" asked Kruz. "I don't remember," replied FG, "I just got some help from a little friend and then I was off again...found a way to stop you-know-who and well, I'm back here." "Do you plan on sszhtaying long?" inquired Fayne. "We have sszho much to tell you about how reparasszhionsszh of the town are coming along." "Only for a couple of days, then I'm back home to Koopin. I'll come visit you guys every once a while but...I'm living with Koopin, I got a job now-" "What job isszh that?" mocked Baldwin. "Professzhional cockmilker?!" "Fuck you Baldwin you're better at that than me." "HAH! Wanna bet?!" "I see the way you suck on a beer bottle, trust me you're a natural." "OHOHOHOOOO no, you don't wanna crosszh me, you dunno what I'm capable of!" "Neither do you," said the moogle smirking. "The only difference I have seen is you are a stronger thicker-headed oaf than before." "New an' improved baby." Cracking his fingers the monk smiled with all his muscles suddenly pulsating a brittle darkness that shuddered through him, cackling lewdly as he smiled with one eye shining from his right, his left eye still hollow and bloodless of all that laid within as Navarro asked James: "What occupation have you made yourself, kupo?" "Bartender's assistant," replied James, "I work in a nice place, serving drinks, yanno like Wootie except I don't own the place. Plus I do some gardening jobs on the side." "Hmm, I should be surprised. But then I remember your impressive skills with alcohol." "Uhh..thanks? What about you, what have you been up to?" "I have taken claim of the stables here and manage it as part of my family ranch, with Dahlia as co-proprietor kupo." "Ohhh yeaaaaah, I noticed the new sign. That's awesome, is business going good?" "Wonderfully, the stables are always in need for Lea Monde is a pilgrimage city, and as such there are plenty people who are in need of steeds with reliability. Father and mother have also come out here to appropriate its funding and it's come along extremely well kupo." "Do they know about you and...Dahlia?" "Yes. In fact we are to be engaged in the future." James almost choked on the air itself, gagging with shock as the other males smirked behind him giggling whilst nudging each other. "GHK-...a-a-are you...m-m-MARRIED?!" "Yes, kupo." "Are you se-...h-holy shit that's awesome, congratulations! I just...wow, I never thought you would want to settle down." "It is purely for economical reasons. Once we are wedded, we can access greater benefits financially in order to support our stables, and should one of us be stricken down with unfortunate circumstances, the other shall at least be comfortable in fiscal security." "Aaaaaand yep there it is, that's the Navarro I remember." "Heeeheehee!" the nu-mou giggled sweetly. "I understand her reasons, and I support her fully. But...I-i-i must admit, I am quite excited to become wedded and be part of the Rocino family." "You gonna take her name Dahlia?" "I have no family of my own. I could care less about the name Orosco frankly, so I would be honoured to become Mrs. Dahlia Rocino." "Huh...you know that...that really suits you actually. I'm very happy for both of you." "Th-thank you. Will you be able to attend?" "Next time I come back I should be around by the time you start sending out invitations, I'd love to come." "I have agreed to offisszhiate it," said Fayne smiling, "I admit I am mosszht exsszhited to be able to bind two of my mosszht dear of friendsszh in holy matrimony." "Is Lea Monde...okay with that?" "After the great battle a lot of thingsszh came out...more than we had originally planned and in the end the people here were more grateful to have usszh alive and well and continuing our duty than to be consszherned about who we become bonded with." "Are you two gonna be married?" Fayne looked at Kruz with a sudden gulp of nervousness as the kremling smiled wickedly, setting the bangaa priest off with a stammering of confusion. "W-w-i-i-i-i-...um...w-w-we have not made any plansszh of that sszhort. Whereasszh Navarro may consszhider the prosszhpect in a monetary quotient, I would want it to be more...emosszhional." "I don't mind either way," replied the kremling, "I just want to be with Fayne no matter what, whether we're lovers or husbands. I'll follow you with anything you want, dearest." "Th-...th-thank you...m-my love." "Ohhh god are you gonna be like this?" said James grimacing. "With all the lovey pet names and all this, uuuugh." "You had worse pet names," added Kruz, "I remember at least half the stuff we called you back on the galleon, good thing we didn't have pens on us." "Woah, okay no, let's not talk about that." "What do you mean?" asked Fayne. "No no, nothing you need to know...I'm sure Kruz'll tell you just like he told you about me in a dress in a theatre." "You in a what?" James' eyes turned blank with sudden realisation of what he had done. It was his greatest mistake as the smile that crept on Baldwin's face was of disgustingly mirthful glee amidst Fayne's confusion. "I remember the um...plan to infiltrate the archive but a theatre, I don't...I don't quite remem-oh...ohhh dear-" "PFFFFFT AAAAAAAAAAHAHAHAHHAAHAAAAA, AWWWW THISSZH ISSZH GREAT YER SSZHUCH A MOLLY!" "I-I-IT WAS JUST A JOKE," cried FG, "IT DOESN'T MEAN ANYTHING I WAS IN-" "Youuuuu are sssszhuuuuuch a moooooollyyyyyyyy, pfffffaaaaaahahahahhahahaaa, ohhh thisszh isszh fuckin' great, my former leader'sszh a real crosszhdresszher PFFTHAAAAH!" "I THOUGHT YOU TOLD THEM KRUZ! YOU ALWAYS DO, YOU LITERALLY LET ME WALK INTO THAT I MEAN JESUS FFFFFFUUUCK!" "To be fair," said Kruz in defence, "it was a favour to a friend of mine because we were down one dancer at the play and I desperately needed a backup cancan dancer. I still appreciate what you did to help save the show." "Wait, you were dansszhing? On a sszhtage?" "James was, I wasn't at the time because I hurt my ribs from a fight, so James very nobly took my place, did his dancing, wasn't hard to do at all, everybody loved the show and he was fantastic. You really helped me out James, thanks for that." "Heh," the raptor stuttered, "i-i-it was...nothing, k-kinda fun actually. I see why people like to do it, I mean it was odd at the time and I was super embarrassed but...anything for a friend." "See this? This guy right here is my best friend and the closest thing I ever had until I met Fayne. If I had a glass on me I'd be toasting you right now." "When DON'T you have a glass in your hand?" added Dahlia playfully. "Hhheheheheh, hey now!" "THAT REMINDSSZH ME!" cried the monk. "We wisszhed fer you to come back on a sszhtar yanno! A sszhooting sszhtar, an' look at you now!" "I heard it," said James proudly, "I actually...heard all you wishing for me." "W-wait...what?" "I heard you guys praying for me to come back. Like in a dream or something...you were all making a wish together and...well...you're the best friends I ever had in all the worlds I've gone to. Thanks for being there for me." "Well....y-yanno...a-aww sszhit I got sszhumthin' in my eye." "Hhhahahah...awww cummere man." He grabbed Baldwin and gave him a tight hug, the bangaa quickly embracing him without a second thought as he grinned with sweetening gentle streams from his eyesockets before James continued speaking. "Actually uh...Kruz are you still a captain or...-" "I quit that," said the kremling. "All my crew went off elsewhere, I disbanded the Broken Petal which frankly half of it is being placed in parts around the city to put better use to it. I've retired my captain's hat and wanna settle down with Fayne right here. We actually bought ourselves a house in Lea Monde so we can be close to Baldwin." "I wanted to be," replied the bishop, "I could not really live...without my brother, and I know that he cannot...leave asszh for hisszh predicament sszho I wanted to sszhtay. I wanted to become more fully in my duty to the Light of Kiltia and not need to wander off on any further adventure." "And that's okay by me. Frankly I could do with a nice long rest, be nice to not be ordering around people for once. That and...I think I could do with some spiritual cleansing for my soul." "Why you say that?" asked James. "I got a lot of bad blood on the inside, stuff I need to redeem for, to repent...I feel a lot better when inside that church, I feel...cleaner more than usual." "You actually usszhing sszhoap fer onsszhe," said Baldwin mockingly, "yanno that'sszh a thing right?" "Yeah, too bad you don't eat enough of it for that mouth of yours." "HAH! Look who'sszh talkin' cockbreath!" "B-baldwin!" stammered Fayne. "Whaaaat we're jusszht messzhin' around." "It's alright Fayne," said Kruz reassuring, "your brother's just jealous that I took you first instead of him." "Oh pfffft sszhuuuuure, like I really wanna grab onto your sszhtrapping musszhlesszh in bed." "You didn't mind when we were play-wrestling." "Do you want me to break your armsszh?! Cuzzh I can!" "If you do then you're the one that has to buy me new ones so enjoy spending twenty-thousand gil. You break it you bought it." "Really, sszho how much wasszh my brother when you broke hisszh arsszhe?" "Oh for gods' sake," said Dahlia done with this. "Typical men," replied Navarro, "everything comes back to sex with them kupo." "Not like us. We are reasonable astute businesswomen taking a more practical finance." "Bullshit," said Kruz accusingly, "I heard noises from your ranch, and they sounded waaaaay too high-pitched for a chocobo to be making that noise." "THAT...w-was...simply us enjoying a ribald session of reading novellas THANK you!" "Oh, good good so uh did you lick the pages yourself orrr-" "PFFFTKUHOHAHA!" Navarro's laughter still surprised James that made him startle straight out of his skin. "SNRRRT...hhha ha ha ha ha, okay...okay fair point to Kruz, that one was well-played kupo." "N-NAVARRO!" squealed the nu-mou. "Oh come now Dahlia, we are all friends, if we can survive death together I think we can survive a little blow to our dignity since we are not a clan any longer." "Wait you're not?!" cried FG. "What happened to the clan?!" "Well, you disappeared, and as you well know, if a clan leader suddenly takes leave of absence then there are two choices. Either the deputy must take their place, or dissolve the clan completely. We decided that the latter would be best, kupo." "W-wow...I...totally did not expect that from you." "We all have our own lives now, but we are still good friends thanks to your bringing us together. We have all decided to stay in Lea Monde and pursue our own choices, Fayne and Kruz to become happy together, Baldwin to remain in the church as protector and future patron in place of mother Mariel, bless her soul...and of course Dahlia and me to pursue a much less stressful career in chocobo husbandry, kupo." "Khhaha, husbandry," added Kruz, "was that a joke?" "Perhaps."

The moogle simply grinned looking proud of herself, the former members of Clan Koridai whiling away the day to each other as James explained as best he could on what exactly happened to him in the following months after he had disappeared from Ivalice. He was much more open to explain things with his most trusted group of friends as they took in everything, including the rather strange surreal parts that he had great difficulty in elaborating. It was soon night time in Lea Monde with streetlights flickering on in powering magicite crystals within glass as the raptor sat up in a spare room of the Equestrian for his visit, with Kruz sitting alongside him as they talked closely. "I'm glad you got back together with Koopin. After hearing him finally I uh...yeah I can totally see why you'd need a guy like that." "He's wonderful," said FG earnestly, "he really helped me deal with a lot of things." "You really planning on your whole life with him?" "I don't wanna be anyplace else. I don't care if we end up in the most boring life, day after day, working, watching, sleeping, eating, it just feels so much more...better than anything else we've done." "I can totally relate, I'm starting to feel that way with Fayne. I worry about him too much to want to leave, he's happy now and in the best time of his life but I always worry that he might fall back into a state of...things so it's up to me and Baldwin to fix him up." "Long as he has both of you I'm sure he'll be fine." "If not me then Baldwin, I mean considering his uh...condition, I know that he'll be with Fayne forever." "How is he by the way? I didn't wanna ask in front of everybody." "He's doing really well. Apart from the occasional struggling with the Dark whenever it tries to sorta take him, but he's damn good at holding it back, got a lot of mental spirit. I really admire him fer that, plus Fayne helps with the odd blast of Holy to keep things in check. It turns out mother Mariel kept a lot of diaries hidden away about handling the Dark, which we swore never to show people and kept her room locked for...well, we call it to preserve her memory but the real reason is to not have any problems." "I thought people would know about Baldwin's state," said James, "after the battle." "It's hard to remember," replied Kruz, "lots of smoke and fighting, people just remember a demon that came by the gods' blessing but nobody believes it was Baldwin. Kinda glad actually." "So what happened to Cid and Rzepka and all your peeps?" "Just went away, found new jobs, I think Cid and Rzepka headed back to Bhujerba to go into the mapmaking business together. Cid drives, Rzepka draws, they got a really good business going as cartographers, they're even getting royal requests!" "Huh, that's awesome. You wanna talk to Koopin?" "Wait, what?" "I mean, you can drop him a recording so next time I come back I'll have a new message from Koopin for you." "Oh, yeah that's good, sure I can do that, might as well reply to him!" "I'll ask the others tomorrow but, since I have you alone..." "Woah...h-hey now." The kremling put up his hand and hook defensively with a grin as FG brought up his omni-tool. "We both got people to settle down with come on Rex." "Shut uuuup. Okay, recording." "H-hem...hey there cutie. Khheh...gods this is weird huh, who'da thought you'd be talking to somebody straight beyond the stars? I sure didn't...James talks a lot about you, he obviously loves you deep, and hey I totally see why you love him. Heheh, probably same reasons I did, but before you start worryin', don't worry, I have someone already and he's a very sweet kind person that I wanna be with for the rest of my life." "Koopin was really impressed by your dancing by the way, remember your symphony thing?" "Ohhhh yeaaaah, that thing...khheheh, yeah I am still uh...pretty flexible in my age, let me tell you." Clicking his tongue he pointed with a finger and winked. "I'm really glad you're looking after James, if there's anyone I can trust to keep him safe, it's the little guy that won his heart good and kept him sweet. I DO however want to ask you sum questions so you can get back to me anytime you want...or until James shifts his ass to come on back up here." "Try to keep it PG-13 Kruz." "Whut does that mean?" "Um...not for an audience at an evening play." "Ohhhh right, watershed gotcha. Hokay...number one, what's your favourite kind of food and do you cook anything yourself? Number two, what sort of entertainment do you like, do you enjoy plays or the theatre or reading books? And lastly...heh...what do you love most about James in the bedroom?" "Wha-Kruuuuz!" "Whaaaat it's a perfectly innocent question!" "NOTHING is innocent with you, Koopin you've got no reason to answer that!" "Why? What's the problem......unless you do sumthin' naughty you don't wanna be heard." "No, no no, we're not doing this, we're done." "Does he wear a dress in the bedroom? I knew it, I knew you liked it." "NO I DIDN'T HOLY SHIT KRUZ!" "You can't resist that sweet crimplene rubbing round your luscious thighs and I bet you that Koopin tops, the li'l cutie he is I bet he's packing a lot of energy inside that shell." "HE-...U-UM...okay I'm not gonna speak for him so he can get back to you on that bu-" "I'm right aren't I? I'm totally-" "SHUT UP NO YER NOT!" "KHHHAHAHAHA, AHAHAHAHAA, OHHHhhhh shit...Rex yer still great to wind up." "You are SUCH a dick, I hate this." "That's why you love me, cuz I'm a dick an' you just can't resist can you? Khhahaha." Kruz winked sweetly at the camera with perfect smugness in his toothy grin, giggling incessantly as James made the rest of his stay in Ivalice just as light-hearted and carefree as he could before leaving a few days later. His last revisit back and forth would be to the last person that he had met and friended with a promise to return, down in the swamps of a mysterious bayou far from the madding crowds of Americana in an undisclosed state as James sat up on a stump. He took the time to enjoy the peaceful solitude of the constant chittering of the deep American south, swarming creatures from beyond the dark barrier of trees all around him. "Ugh these fuckin' flies, they never bothered me before." "Thet's good," said Mz. Ruby, "cuz back befoah you had a dark evil aura 'bout you thet kept thuh flies away from ye." "I'm starting to miss it at this rate, jesus fuck." "Hhheheheh, don' say nuttin' you can't take back boah." The gator smirked with long crooked teeth, pulling a long drag of a thick cigarette from the edge of her lips as a thickening raw smoke drifted from every inch of her wide green snout like a fumigated house. The raptor smiled politely trying not to cough asking: "When did you start smoking?" "Ah never stopped, 'cept fer Stoptober when you's came round, wuz doin' it fer charity." "Ah...didya raise money good." "Sure did, helped thuh town a lot, got me a free mug an' a roll'a coupons." "Niiiiice." Her pendulous belly was topped with a soft green T-shirt saying "Look Like Barbie, Smoke Like Marley" in pink and black lettering, her hooped earrings tapping gently against her cheeks. The raptor was softly drinking up a good bottle of cheap whisky which surprised him at how decent it was. "Damn this stuff is nice, you got some good taste." "Heh...thank you." "No, thank you. If it wasn't for you, I wouldn't be able to have a good life right now, I'd be gone and dead or something worse. I really appreciate what you did." "An' ah appreciate you fer keepin' thet promise, though it took you sum tahm." "I had a lot of stuff to clear, if I was able to come back sooner I would." "You goin' off to see anybody else?" "I tried to contact Hau'rhun but...he's rather busy and not expecting visitors after all the shit he pulled, I guess I gotta put in a request or something." "Prison visits tend to go rather official-lahk, you wanna go visit sum peeps in there, you gotta go through thuh channel lahk e'rybody else. Trust me." "I gotcha. Shame I can't go and see him, I guess I just have to try and see if there's an appointment of some sort, you'd think that an advanced alien race would be above bureaucracy." "Pffftheheh, boah you gotta lot to learn abou' thuh system, it don' matter where you from, you always gotta wait fer anythin' thet you want." "I guess so...speaking of, um, when would you like me to come back again?" "Well...not TOO often, ah understand thet, mebbe if you came back once every six months or sumthin'...or three." "Hehehe...I won't crowd you often, if I have time off from work I'll come back and drink with you." "Drinkin' is not sumthin' you oughta do when you's all bah yerself. Ah usually rack up a good quart every new season when best offers are runnin' so yeah, cummon back every few months or sumthin'." "That's fine by me...Mizz Ruby." "Heh...ah reckon you can drop thuh formality bah now, after droppin' yo' ass insahd o' yo'self, ah lahk to think we's can go without titles." "Alright then...here's to you Ruby." "Heh...to whutever." She clinked her bottle with him as they drank up watching the sweetest little fireflies roaming back and forth across the thickening swamp, the foetid heat enough to send James almost to sleep with his scales drenched in sweat. By the time he had managed to earn enough time off to visit his last friend, it had almost been a year and a half of living with Koopin, heading back and forth between worlds with his friends, staying a few days, returning back to the Mushroom Kingdom for a few months of carefree job and living with his beloved, and then heading out again. In the end Koopin became accepting of his small trips as being nothing more than a cycle similar to his own of leaving the house for a hiking trip across the mountains or an ocean cruise around islands. Both of them were essentially doing the same thing, and even though Charlie became rather lonely for one daddy leaving than the other, they never left at the same times for just as Koopin had to wait on James' returning, so did he have to wait on Koopin. The chain chomp became just as he always had planned to be to them, a rooted responsibility to always return home without fail. Not a chain of imprisonment, but a wire of hope that always lead them back to love and warmth. But of course, they always stayed together, and they were never apart from each other any more than one week, with at least two or three months. James started to visit his friends a little less often, once they had become reassured of his safety and he was assured of their happiness. They understood he wanted to live his life content, but none would ever forget him. Two years would pass since his return to Koopin fully, a life that was slowly sinking into a state of normalcy. No great and terrible threats, no monstrous demons, no portals unexplained. The greatest threat they had to encounter was a double booking, the most unsightly beast would be whatever Charlie brought home from a long walk and the most fearsome horror they ever faced, would be available at 9pm on Channel 6 during the monster movie marathon. They found themselves sitting in a field of flowers watching the next sunset upon a warm summer's eve, a full hill of daisies bristling amidst buttercups and daffodils mixed between the long bending white petalled stalks. The way the sun looked dipping gently over the hills beyond their reach turned the entire world into a child's drawing of thick crayon-like streaks of brown and orange with deep green undertones like mint ice cream. The stars were just starting to creep out from underneath their soft pinkish cloud blankets up above as night soon approached, hitting the point of a deep sweetening amber interlaced with rose-dappled touches from sweet cumulonimbus as James gasped with simplistic awe. "Woooow...what a beautiful day." "I know," said Koopin, "it...all these colours, it's the perfect sunset." "It is...I've seen a lot of sunsets from different lands, some are more grainy like a desert in an old photograph, some are more pale and sharp like winter's last. But this...this is wonderful." "What's the most beautiful sunset you ever seen?" "You mean besides the one I watch with you?" Koopin looked up at him with a glowering smirk as he shook his head. "Okay that was smooth, but seriously, what's the most beautiful one in the sense it was the most unusual." "Hmmmm...do dreams and mental experiences count?" "No." "Then it would have to be the one while on Kruz's airship. Any sunset really but, there's something wonderful about seeing it on a flying ship knowing you're in the air with it." "Yeah...I mean I never got to be on one of Bowser's airships but I should ask my cousin what it's like." "You know I never met your other family, you mention your cousin often." "It's a pretty distant family, we don't talk too much but I know he's there." "Ahhh...so...Koopin." "Yes?" "...I need to ask you something." He began clasping his hands nervously, twitching and squeezing the fists together as his throat suddenly became dry with sandpaper roughness. The last time James took on this tone was for something terrible to happen. Koopin immediately began to tense up as his thoughts silently pleaded to the stars for not more of this. "Oh...kaay." "There's something I uh...n-never thought I would ever do so uh just...bear with me okay cuz um..." "Wh-wh...what? You're not reading up on those questionnaires again are you?" "No, noho no god no it's...something else." James built up his strength as best he could with a deep breath as he carefully placed all his words together inside his head before turning towards Koopin. "Everything I do with you...is the best thing I ever do in my life. No matter where I go, no matter what I did, I always thought of you. Every day I spend with you is the greatest day of my life. Even the worst days we had were better than the most incredible days I had without you. All my life...I always felt something was missing." He carefully took Koopin's hand as if he were made of glass. "For all the stuff I've done, good or bad, I always felt incomplete. I thought at first that...tha-that maybe I just needed a job or someplace to be fulfilled. That wasn't it so I thought maybe it was a home. That wasn't it. Maybe it was friends. That helped, but it wasn't it. I just never felt like I belonged anywhere. Not in any world, not even my own...until I met you. You and your family are the sweetest people I've ever met in my whole life, and then I realised...that was it. I knew what I was missing." "James, wh-...th-that's really sweet of you but...wh-wh-what are you saying-" "I want to stay with you." "...um, y-yeah I know you do and you are but-" "I mean I want to be...a part...o-o-of your family. I know they still worry about my commitment to you, even just a little, they always have to worry and I understand that. I'm going to fix that now...I want...to be with you for the rest of our lives. Koopin." James shifted softly to where the sun was now behind him, gently on his knees before Koopin still holding his hand within his. Koopin had never seen James so nervous in his life, the hand shaking as it held his as the koopa's eyes widened in a sudden shock on realising what it was as the raptor's eyes began to blear with tearful emotion. It turned into the most difficult thing James ever had to ask. "...oh...o-oh stars i-i-is this...is this what I think-" "Will...w-w-will you...h-hhhhh...god...dammit t-trying to get this out, will, you...m-marry me?" He almost fell forwards onto his face in a mental exhaustion as his breath stifled and stuttered gasping to keep breathing. Koopin's throat suddenly became parched and voiceless, his hand trembling against James' own that still shook with anticipation. "I-...I-i-i-i-...o-o-oh you...c-c-can't be-...HHHHH!" Koopin swallowed his breath too fast turning dizzy as he put a hand to his mouth, whimpering as James started giggling out of panic as he struggled to try and fix this. "UM...l-look, i-i-it's not like-um, you...y-y-you don't have to say yes, I mean...I'll still be with you, I don't ever wanna leave, I just th-thought you, you would wanna-" "Yes." "-right that's totally fine, I am COMPLETELY okay with that, we can just live on as two boyfriends together I don't have to-......wait...w-wait, did you...wh-what did you say?" "I...I-i will. I said...I said yes." The heart of the koopa was cracking open as he felt a deepened love bloom from his body, pulsing hot breaths of a shivering heat as his eyes watered thick, gasping breathless from his beak. "Yes...o-oh s-stars above, yes...I...I-i-i never...thought you would even...h-h-h-hoh James." He lunged into him with arms swept round the raptor's neck who clasped Koopin tightly, fully weeping together as they felt burning hot inside of each other's chests with hearts thumping inside their ears. James began sobbing as Koopin joined him in, rocking back and forth. "Oh god...o-oh god, Koopin you...y-you want to? I-i-i mean...d-don't just say yes for me, I-i want you to be happy with me no matter what we are!" "I know...I...I still want this. James. P-please...I want to be with you...I want you...to be with my family." "......thank you." They both pulled back to gaze into each other's eyes, now streaked with tears of relief and gratitude as James pressed his lips against Koopin only once. But it was a deep and precious heat that they felt from each other's breath that anymore would completely overwhelm them. "Th-thank you...oh god thank you Koopin...I...I love you more than anything." "I know...I'll always be with you, no matter what James. I love you too."

The next six months would become but a whirlwind of incessant details and constant fact-checking that frankly James could barely keep up with. The announcement would be made to Koopin's parents who were ecstatically overjoyed to the point they almost worried that Klair was going to faint. She became an emotional vale of tears in bliss and excitement, whilst Shelldon did his best to be her stately rock whilst also hugging his son and shaking James' hand in earnest pride and respect for such a step forwards. He felt as if he had fully regained the family's trust from this point forwards. There was a moment he almost regretted giving this decision not because of any hesitance for his love, but rather because of the almost-immense mountain of preparation that was required. First came the booking of the venue, then came the invitations for the guests, then came the hiring of suits for the main party along with the catering and the band. Money was surprisingly not an issue which James should have expected in a world where coins were found in floating boxes down the street. The entire family poured in together, along with James of course as the Kennidon family home became a base of operations, planning out almost tactical maneuvers on how best to approach the wedding procession. Surprisingly they did have one extremely useful assistant to engage with and meticulously root out every single possible problematic hiccup in the form of Shybert, with tie and clipboard at the ready. "OKAY, everybody ready, hwoh?! Let's get on board this train and ride all the way to the marriage station, Koopin!" He stood in the middle of a clothing shop with mirrors between two small velvet display stands where a raptor and koopa were being tightly restrained into cloying white suits, with half-a-dozen boos floating around with measuring tape "Howwww are the suits coming along?" "D-doing grea-EEET!" whimpered Koopin. "J-j-j-just...g-getting...measurements." "Now we want to make you absolutely comfortable so no hiring out suits, that and well frankly you told me once that James doesn't really have anything quite fancy in his wardrobe is that not true?" "W-w-well...y-yeah, bu-" "JEEEESUS!" James shrieked feeling the most vicelike grip on the seat of his pants. "JUST..NNNNNGUH, s-s-so glad I'm not a mammal." "Wh-what do you mean by tha-AAAAIEE!" The boo tailors noted the distress in the koopa's voice turning into a falsetto. "I...I-i-i-i...kno-o-ow...what you mea-ean now." "Right," said Shybert firmly, "just need to get down your sizes to the right millimetre and we're solid, NOW, Klair!" The scene changes to a small ballroom venue as Klair sat with trusty piano amidst a small group of a goomba on drums using his feet, two koopas with trumpets, a toad on double-bass. "How, is, the, band goinnnng, everything all good?" "Perfectly!" said Klair proudly. "The Desert Blues are just rarin' to go, I'm just covering our songs for the big day." "Brilliant, absolutely ruddy brilliant that's top class from you Klair! You're a diamond, hwoh!" "Hahahaha, don't think I was going to slouch on my own son's wedding, I've been DREAMING of this for years!" "I'm getting positively tickled myself! Right, that's CHECKED, and now Shelldon!" Moving onwards, the shy guy was tapping his pen feverishly against his clipboard as he watched the father of the groom bending over towards a meticulous-looking a wedding cake in a bakery, surrounded by gorgeous vivid icing colours despite Shybert's growing frustration. "Are you done yet, we've got to GO!" "Nooooot yet." "WHU-YOU-HWU-we're on a SCHEDULE good sir!" "Just...wait, excuse me but what's this icing made of?" "What are you DOING?!" "I think I can drive a harder bargain for the white-and-brown cake over there." "But, we already have one planned, the bundt cake!" "If you're talking about that thing in red I will not have my name involved with that." "Well what's wrong with it, it's STRAWBERRY, everybody loves strawberry and it's a bundt cake!" "Do you see THIS cake? This one is perfect, look at the contours of the icing, look how it's SET so perfectly, that monstrosity in red is like a drunk angry wiggler, it's just all over the place!" "Shelldon I know that you're a grocer but do you think perhaps you might be getting just a LITTLE bit too precocious?" "My son's wedding is nothing to be precocious about, plus I wasn't kidding when I said it was all over the place. That wasn't hyperbole." "For the last time there's no such thing as cakes that move, you're just having wedding jitters!" "I don't get jitters, I'm a successful business owner please, I know that thing moved and I wasn't trusting it." "WELL I'M HAVIN' JITTERS RIGHT NOW JUST PLEASE PICK SOMETHING WAAAAAAH!" Shybert was strangling his tie as if trying to form a Rubik's cube out of cloth watching Shelldon scan over every cake with an intense scrutiny before he made his decision. "I think...thhhhhat...one is perfect." "OHHH thank stars, that took three hours!" "Patience Shybert, you don't grow fruit in a day." "It's a WEDDING CAKE, NOT SODDING CUCUMBERS!" "That's a vegetable. And thank goodness this wasn't a souffle or else you'd popped those to oblivion with your voice." "Right...well...h-hwoh, alright, catering is going to be QUITE difficult to plan but we can still do this. Aaaand lastly James. How is our profit coming along?" "S'GOING FINE THANKS!" Standing in the midst of a garden covered in darkness, the raptor was desperately trying to dodge beneath some rather nasty-looking vines with thorns twisting around each and every bush, whilst brandishing a firm pair of garden shears in his hands. Slashing and hacking against the vicious plant fiend, he frantically cut through the trees wrapped tight by cruel thorns as Shybert remained completely oblivious of the impending danger of an overrun rebellious flora as James replied: "I've been pulling extra at the bar, and basically...HRAAAH, every DAY, I've got a NEW gardening...THING, JESUS CHRIST!" "It's Shybert! Honestly James it's not that hard to remember I mean I am PLANNING this entire thing and you keep calling me Jesus Christ the past five minutes, I mean who IS that?!" "THAT'S NOT YOUR NAME!" "Yes I KNOW it's not, that's what I just SAID hwoh." "NO I MEAN-...SHI-LOOK OUT!" The shy guy turned quick seeing something lurch out behind the trees as he stumbled frantically before a vile vine whipped out to almost strike him, with Shybert bumbling hard straight into FG's leg and causing him to fall just before he shot a fireball towards the unseen plant. The misfire went straight into the nearest tree which set itself ablaze by the canopy, scorching downwards into the trunk where apparently the main root of the plant's nefarious activities had been hiding, before it began to scream rippling with insane agony as it burned completely inside of the wooden trunk. A highly successful hit as James stood up panting heftily. "I got...hhhhh...four-hundred coins on me...right now and...a-after this...frickin' job I am DEFINITELY going to ask for extra." "Great, excellent!" said Shybert remaining stoic. "Well, I think we can just about pull this off, it's going to be a great wedding!" "I didn't know you...were a wedding planner...Shybert." "Well it's all part of the planning, and I know how best to do planning quite so!" "I just thought you needed somebody official for that." "Well...no, not really." "I just preferred a friend helping," said Koopin. They were all back inside the Kennidons' house with planning charts and invitation requests, completely covering the dinner table in a sea of white paper and folded gilding whilst Koopin explained. "Rather than have a stranger pushing us in places, I know Shybert's good to help." "Precisely," said the planner, "I think you'll find that I won Most Organised Worker of the Year throughout the entirety of my work in the TGA, UNBROKEN if I may toot my own hwoh." "He's not kidding, hahaha." "Well alright then," said FG uncertain, "And uh, no limes remember?" "Already cleared out any citrus," said Shelldon, "they have been banished from Marrymore on the day that we are there." "Good, thank you. Hhhah, you know, this is kinda awesome. Or maybe I'm just trying not to freak out." "Why would you freak out, we have everything planned." "I-i dunno, just...I wasn't expecting THIS much preparation." "A wedding is VERY meticulous," stated Klair proudly, "it's like putting on a stage play, you HAVE to get everything right or else the audience is going to lose the feel of magic behind the scenes." "That is very true Klair," incited Shybert from the couch, "absolutely, you're very right about that because any party, any occasion, any engagement is not just some willy-nilly bash you can just hammer out with a couple of balloons and a cheap cake, you have to have an experience to remember hwoh. You remember the parties you've been to the most because they were the best prepared." "I admit," said James, "the best parties I went to felt really well planned out, so I guess you got a point." "Exactly. Now...we have the catering, the suits, the band, the venues and the money now we just...oh...o-o-oh no...NOOOOO!" "What, what!?!" "I forgot to register the vows!" "Wait what?!" "THE VOWS, WHO'S TAKING WHOSE NAME, THE FORMALITIES! Ohhhh stars noooooo how are we going to decide I mean you have your name but there's the family name here oh goodness we're going to have to debate on this all nigh-" "I'm taking his." There was not even an ounce of hesitation in James' voice as it cut clear through the confusion that came briefly to the room. Shelldon and Klair turned with shock inbetween their envelope-licking whilst Koopin gasped softly looking up from writing the invitations. "Are you...w-w-wait...what?" "I'm taking your name." "But...b-but James, you-are you...are you sure?" "You never talked about this?" asked Shelldon. "W-w-we...i-it just never came up, we told you about us getting married and then all THIS happened!" "And you thought I was crazy," said Klair, "keeping our closet full of wedding-related bits and pieces that I found on the sales." "No I still think you're crazy," replied her husband, "but that's why I love you for being so forward-thinking." "You were PLANNING this?!" cried their son. "Oh no, not planning specifically. Just to save us a little money down the road if it ever happened." "And if I never married?!" "Well, we didn't lose anything, we can always give the bunting to a friend who needs them, nothing goes to waste Koopin. But seriously, I thought you two would have at least had the time to sit down and talk about who was taking the name." "I thought so too...I just...sort of forgot but James......are you really wanting to take my name, as yours?" "I absolutely do," said the raptor calmly. "I wanna be a part of your family. I meant what I said, if you still want me to be." "Of course I want you to be. But...but what about YOUR family, your parents?" "They're not here Koopin. I'm sure they're watching over me, and I think they'll both understand that I don't have any reason to hold onto my name. I'll take your family name...and treasure it always." The parents' eyes softened with a heartfelt sense of honour at his choice, Klair almost starting to break and cup her beak into her hands to try and stop her tears from staining the envelopes. James felt as if he had broken a rule and smiled awkwardly, but Shelldon simply nodded with a smile of gratitude as he said: "I'm very...honoured that you want to take my son's name. Thank you James. I...I admit I was expecting you to keep yours." "You know what, I thought I would too but...really I don't have much connection to my own name so it...doesn't really matter to me that much, but you're already a family, you're all here and I want to give you what I have which is why I'm here. I'm not here to take anything from you, I want to...to...g-give myself over to you because you're the only place I ever f-felt like...like I was...h-home." For the first time since they knew each other, James finally saw Shelldon start to break with tears in his eyes next to his beloved wife. Koopin rushed over with the urge to calm them before Shelldon pulled James close and hugged him tightly. Shybert said nothing still with a face firmly stoic beneath his mask, turning most uncomfortable by this emotional development as he mumbled cautiously to himself and went busily back to planning out the seating arrangements.

Six months later, the day of reckoning had come. Everything was prepared, the entire schedule had taken three rewrites and Shybert almost ate his own tie but they had managed to reach the day itself without casualty. Marrymore was positively buzzing, a wondrous huge chapel of resounding regal yellow stone carving and solemn blue roofs that almost reflected the sky at night. It also doubled as a rather pricey hotel with only the best of service for what was the very font of all the most ceremonial occasions that occurred in the Mushroom Kingdom A gentle knock on the door alerted Koopin whilst he fumbled with his suit, half of it having the back exposed to allow his shell to come through without tearing whilst his front body was suited up, his boots now replaced by thick pristine white shoes. "Koopin?" "UHH, y-yeah?!" "You need any help sweetie?" "M-maybe, I'm just trying to-...d-darnit." The door opened to reveal Klair smiling fondly, dressed in a gorgeous white lace dress with summer yellow patterning whilst wearing a crown of flowers on her head. "May I?" Koopin rolled his eyes slightly but agreed, allowing his mother to carefully shift the suit so it wouldn't look scruffy or out of place to Koopin's body. The waiting room of the chapel had fine red carpet and solid cream-coloured stone walls with wardrobes of fine oaken sculpt and a full view mirror behind Koopin. Eventually Klair managed to realign the suit perfectly with a chuckle to herself, along with straightening the koopa's little black bowtie. "Your grandma had to do the same with your father too...hhhmhmhm, the men in our family are just terrible with suits." "I hope James is getting along better, he's not wearing a shell after all." "I'm sure he is...are you alright dear?" "Hmm? O-oh yeah I'm fine, don't...don't worry about me really." She stood up and planted her hands on his shoulders. "You know being too calm is just as bad as too nervous." "I-i'm fine honestly. I just...hhhhh I can't believe this is happening, I don't think it's really sunk in." "If I can be honest...I can't believe it either. Look at you." Klair pressed a finger softly underneath her son's chin. "You are such a beautiful boy...I always dreamed of this day when I would see you so handsome like this." "...can I ask you... something weird?" "Hmhmhm, I think you know you can by now Koopin." "Were you ever...disappointed because I um...wasn't going to take a wife?" "What?? Koopin no, why would you ever think that?!" "I-i-i dunno! I mean...i-it's one of those things I always wondered and well, it's not something that ever came up but now I'm gonna be married I just thought-" "I have never been disappointed in you. Never." The mother's kiss planted itself on his cheek as they were both desperately hanging upon the edge of tears. "The closest I ever came to disappointment was during your rather sorry state when James left us. But I understood, and you pushed through it because I begged you to, knowing that was not what James wanted either. You managed to pull yourself out of it and became something wonderful from it, you became a celebrity, a fine musician! I was so proud of seeing you in all those clubs commanding the beat, hearing that little storm of sensation brewing on the internet made me quite positively giddy! And yet despite all that you beared with, you are still the most kind and thoughtful son, brave and sweet. That was all I ever wanted you to be. Kind, brave and sweet." "Hhheh...I-i...I-i-i remember the day I first told you...I musta been twelve?" "Ten. You were so scared and confused because you had feelings for a cute little boo boy at school and I couldn't make sense of what you said because you were babbling away all frightened. I only asked you once if you were certain that you were gay, and I knew you were not mistaken. I know when you're not certain, and I know when you are from your eyes, your voice...and yet all I asked was that you still be the most wonderful son I could ever wish to have and you kept my wish...h-h-hhhh...o-oh stars I need-h-hold on please." She couldn't stop herself as her cheeks turned wet, gasping but pulling away to prevent her tears from staining the suit as Koopin pulled out the handkerchief in his front pocket. She dabbed her eyes until they were dry and smiled softly before she gave him another handkerchief from the dresser next to the mirror to replace it, giving one last look at him and her together before the new family would grow just a little larger. James was busily out at the chapel's front hall in an equally white suit and bowtie which made him look quite lean and thin with tail swishing out behind him as he handed two devices to different people. One was a boo with an old burn on his face sporting a cute little red bowtie, whilst the other was a female koopa with dark brown hair in a ponytail and black bands on her crimplene brown dress. "Okay Boona, you hang onto this. Shellina, you have this." The boo was given a small black rectangle with a strap for the hand whilst the koopa held an equally-sized radiant-looking stone of amber, stating: "What is this...odd thing?" "That's a memstone, it uhh records things, I thought since you're the magic expert you might wanna have this." "How does this work?" "You tap it three times right there...then say the spell I wrote down on the tag and just point the sharp end towards the rest of the hall where I'll be." "And this?" asked Boona. "This is kind of a weird camcorder, it's really tiny!" "Yeah it's from my homeland, it's super easy, you just gotta tap the record button and hey presto." "Why do ya need two devices fer recording?" "Because they're from different worlds," explained Shellina, "clearly one built of technology and one built with magic, he wants to share this moment with all his friends. Is that right?" "Exactly," said FG. "Heh...this is kinda weird, I um...didn't expect to see you again but Koopin explained it all to me." "I know. I'm honestly surprised he invited me, and father said I should come to show my sense of...amnesty." "I'm really thankful for that. I never got the chance to do this and...I'm really sorry about-" "No. It's fine, we...we're past that now. I helped Koopin out with some certain matters along with Boona on some uh...supernatural problems that were occurring a couple years back, so we've resolved our issues. I can sense from your aura too that you've had a lot to deal with yourself, and any anger that was left in me has long since dissipated. Truce?" She offered her hand scarred with magic as the raptor shook it in turn. "Truce. You sure you're alright being the cameraman?" "I'm used to being in the back, I'm not really a centre stage sort of koopa." "Awwww I was hoping to see you dance, you probably own the floor with all your sweet moves that I remember from when we fought." "Hhhahahaha, I never said I wasn't going to dance, but beware that if I do, there will be none left standing against me." "Is that a threat?" "Maybe...how is your dancing skill?" "Good enough I fooled a hotel full of people into thinking I was rich." "...that, I have to see." The two smirked chuckling to each other before James explained one last thing: "Alright then so, these things have plenty of life in them to go through a whole day, but obviously you wanna wait until people are coming in." "Obviously, how do I turn it off if I need to?" "Say the spell backwards and tap three times again. Boona, to stop yours you just gotta press record again." "Gotcha," said the boo, "you know you should visit me more often, I thought you totally forgot about me!" "Heheh, weeeellll it's been a little difficult I admit." "Yeaaaah I know, Forever Forest is kind of a pain." "That too." "At least Koopin managed to see me often, so it's not like I was really out of the loop." "Yeah, I'm real glad and...sorry again for being absent a lot." "Ahhhh it's fine, you got your life and I got my afterlife. Your buddy Kirie kept me up on things too so it wasn't too bad." "She...she did?" "Yeah, she helped Koopin out a lot a few months back and told him you were okay, it really reassured him and helped him through whenever she had time to come down and tell me about things." "...she never told me she came back here." "No? Huh, musta slipped her mind, oh well, so it's just the record button then." "Yeah just that, you point and shoot." "Noooo problem buddy." With preparations setting up, James realised this was the first wedding he had ever been a part of, yet at the same time it felt so familiar despite a few differences to what he had known weddings to have. Brides and grooms could meet with people if they had time to do so in the proceedings, and there was less sense of formality than James had seen back on TV in his home world. There were no ushers for starters but instead there would be a single shining star with smiling face of childlike joy hovering above the arch the size of a koopa's head. A "star kid" according to Shelldon who gathered the wishes of all who came through the doors to bring blessing to the happy couple, before ascending to the heavens to ferment and bless this happiness in its purest form. As a result, the star kid essentially became usher allowing people to take which side of the hall they could have, so long as their wish was earnest. A surprising number of guests arrived, mostly concerning that of Koopin's friends and family as both grooms mixed in with the crowd greeting everybody that came personally past the door, the star kid wondrously beaming with heartfelt honest glee at such happiness from everyone he would meet. Out of the people in James' side was Yonny, Boona, and various well-wishers with no particular allegiance to either side. Out of Koopin's side was Shellina, Shybert, various coworkers of his ranging from toads to bob-ombs to goombas, along with Yoshitaka who made a surprise appearance with his wife beside him as they squeezed into their seats. The towering green mountain clearly dwarfed everyone in Koopin's side as James looked rather wistfully at his emptier side but he knew this would happen. At one point of the proceedings, there came a red-shelled parakoopa with severe-looking eyes and staunch expression, landing suddenly outside the entrance to the chapel with dust sweeping out from underneath. His wings flapped stiffly before folding on his back as he entered behind the congregation, to which James asked: "Um...h-hi, are you a friend of Koopin's?" "I am a delegate of His Majesty, King Bowser of the Koopa Kingdom." He bowed graciously like an age-old knight which put James rather off as he bowed gingerly back. "...oh...um...sh-yeah we...we invited him didn't we? Is he...coming?" "His Majesty appreciates your invitation greatly, but he cannot attend unfortunately as his duties compel him first in ruling the kingdom. And the Mushroom Kingdom in futurestance." "Right...so uh...well, it's nice he told us but frankly I sorta knew he wasn't gonna be able to attend." "The thought was appreciated. His Majesty must always receive invitation to any major event involving his people, be they births, funerals or weddings. He may not be able to attend all of them but to not invite him would be most...egregious." "Ahhhh...I see, so are you staying?" "I am, yes. Because I'm Koopin's cousin." "Wait what?" The koopa smiled and relaxed himself despite keeping a firm military stance as he shook the raptor's hand with surprisingly strong grip in his taut muscular arms. "Kaleb Shellahim. Klair is my aunt." "Shellahim? Huh...well it's nice to meet you, Koopin talks a lot about you." "That's good. It will be strange since the last time I saw Koopin he was still in high school." "Wow...well, it's great to have you here, Koopin's brother from another mother." "Father. Did Klair never tell you she had a brother?" "I'm sure she did but it's been ages back so...is he doing well?" "Well as can be, he wanted to attend dearly but he is off on confidential business for His Majesty." "Woah...is he in the army too?" "It's a family business it seems. I'm very glad we had the chance to meet mister Campbell." "After this day you can call me mister Kennidon." "Really? ...well, welcome to the family. Do you know where Koopin went?" "I think he went back to the waiting room, we're almost done with everyone coming in so I should get going to." "May the stars shine upon you."

They shook hands once again as he went to find his seat, whilst James headed off to his own waiting room to prepare himself. He found walking to be slightly troublesome since despite the fact he never wore shoes his entire life, he still needed to have some form of footwear to look the part which ended him in having shoeless spats that wrapped round his feet with buttoned-up sides that kept his claws free and easily exposed. It was an odd feeling, one he never quite got used to but he ignored as best he could. An agreement was made between the parents for who would take who down the aisle. Klair stood with her son shakily waiting in the wings to be first, being that it was his name that would be retained as he felt an intense pressure suddenly crush his wrist. "Mom...m-m-mom you're crushing my hand." "I can't b-believe...it's...f-finally happening..." "I-it's fine, it's fine come on it's...it's like being at one of your concerts it's nothing." "Oh...o-oh my s-stars I'm so nervous." "Just take a deep breath, follow my lead." "Wha-I'm not the one going to be married!" "I-i-i know that! Hohhhh jeez, now you're making me nervous." "Good, I can't stand being the nervous one." "Th-that's not a good thing to be happy about." "TH-TH-that's us, here we go!" "Remember, nice and cool...it's like coming onto a concert, we both been through that right? Just go to your happy place." "Right...h-happy...hhhhhh." Reassuring his mother as the chapel organ burst into life, he slowly took her up the aisle trying to keep her steady as the rows upon rows of visitors in large pews with resplendent oak and red carpet seats gazed upon the two. Klair did everything possible not to break down in tears of gratitude as Koopin kept focus on her to be steady. It helped him greatly to keep his own mind off of his fear and anxiety as wedding jitters pushed themselves away from his body. They both knew how to shut the spotlight from their bodies and walked with prouder stance as Klair left him waiting in front of the altar, stardust trailing from the star kid at the door who sweeped past them once to shower them in glittering wishes of wellbeing from all inside the room. A podium stood with a toad standing upon a seat behind it with register book open and ready to be used, an organ at the corner of the hall behind him with white pipes and reddish lipped rims waiting to announce the other half of the blessed couple. James waited on his side of the chapel's wings with Shelldon right beside him, the koopa wearing an immaculate black suit with whitish bowtie and brown formal shoes. James hadn't noticed before how strange formal shoewear looked in the Mushroom Kingdom, still very thick like boots yet at the same time having an odd shapely look of elegance as if sculpted rather than crafted. "Are you okay?" asked the father. "S-sort of...talking to people really helped, I hate these things on my feet." "Hmhmhm...footwear I see is rather odd to you." "I was never rich enough to get good shoes when I was back home...my original home." "I understand. Well...now you can wear whatever you want, I hope this does you good." "It should. I feel really happy about this, I mean I'm nervous as hell but...I'm also really happy." "May I just say...I take back what I said when you first came back." The koopa firmly looked straight into James' eyes with soft wintry grey. "You are the fine upstanding hero my son has always believed you to be. And after all you have done, after all you have laboured through to make this wedding work and to ensure a good supportive life with your exceptional work ethic, I could never ask for a better son-in-law." "Th-...th-thank you Shelldon. You know I was worried that one of us would have to wear a dress." "My son is not wearing a dress, that is where I draw the line. If anything you would have to." "Wha-awwww man, don't do this to me!" "It's my son and my family name so if you had to wear a dress, then you're wearing one for this." "Trust me...wouldn't be the first time." A curious smirk from Shelldon before it was time for them to leave the wings. Taking his father-to-be, he watched the widening sight of the congregation before him, friends and family all turning with wonder at the strange newcomer dressed in finest white attire. A small purple flower from the thistle was tucked into his suit's pocket as Shelldon walked him down. Koopin was already waiting for him, the toad chaplain marked in blessed-looking robes with yellow spots on his head above his bristling grey moustache. The organ played softly to announce the ceremony beginning. The raptor felt the wishes of all who had come blessing him in stardust, tinkling upon his head from the star kid as he sighed with sweeter bliss than ever smiling at his beloved. He smiled back in turn as his father handed over James to the pulpit, before making his way over to where his wife was struggling to compose herself on her seventh tissue. Shybert was also struggling on his twenty-seventh whilst still in his green-and-yellow tie as the chaplain began with voice booming across the hall. "Dearest travellers, we are gathered here under the blessing of the Stars to unite these two into a bright and wondrous future, one that we hope shall be filled with riches and the best of memories to their wellbeing. Now...repeat after me." Koopin began to repeat the words of the chaplain, with James sucking his lips in to not giggle out of nervous respite with camcorder and memstone recording for their separate audiences at a later date. "I, Koopin Shellacque Kennidon...take your hand in marriage...under the guidance of the star spirits...as our friends and family bless the two of us...with strength, courage and kindness...even after the stars have blessed us with the gift of love." James spoke next. "I, James Robert Campbell...take your hand in marriage...under the guidance of the star spirits...as our friends and family shine upon our hearts with warmth, hope and in great health...for the gift of love that we are blessed with." The chaplain then asked: "Do you have the rings?" They both nodded and turned softly towards Charlie sitting on their right, who stood proudly waiting with daisy chains wrapped into his own chain along with a magnetic clip bow tie on his front. With box clenched within his mouth gently he hopped forwards offering it to his daddies as the two patted his head, opening the box to reveal two rings glistening in the chapel's light. Black obsidian domes topping each ring with a precious star symbol engraved within, almost crystalline like a tiny snowglobe. A light within darkness as they exchanged their rings and slipped them onto each other's fingers. James was slightly problematic with his claws but he smiled patiently as the chaplain continued his speech. "By the light of the Elder Star's radiance upon us, I blesseth thee." He placed his hands upon their heads, a strange pulse of gold from his fingertips that felt like a mother's kiss. "May both your smiles never fade, may your hearts be filled with warmth and may your light shine greatly forever even after your lives have passed. I now pronounce you both to be entwined together in the most pure of matrimony. You may now seal your love before us." The two gazed upon each other's eyes for only the briefest instant before their hands clasped to keep the other's still from shaking powerfully, struggling to resist the urge to shed tears as they made a deep soft kiss. The sound of a rousing cheer came from the chapel with a wondrous wave of clapping, joyful resonance across the room as the two newlyweds soon spun round each other and walked down the aisle together, with arms entwined as the star kid twinkled beautifully sending showers of radiant stardust towards every single corner of the room. It was like fairy dust, harmless and almost making them think they were about to fly as they walked towards the open doors of the chapel out into the brilliant light, of purest summer afternoon. People began to follow them to outside as James turned his head softly towards Koopin, oblivious to the grand swarm of love and excitement from behind them as Koopin said: "Come on James. It's time to go home." He smiled from his heart feeling light as a feather, his eyes sparkling with love as they walked off into the Mushroom Kingdom. A place where wishes came true, and happiness was never far away from his grasp. They would remain together for the rest of their long fruitful existence...no matter what may come to their future.