~~~~~~~~~~~

"Hey, Runt, I dare ya to stick your tongue out and touch that pole."

Five-year-old Risa Manticore eyed Han, her oldest brother, warily. "Why?" she asked curiously.

"It'd be really cool," piped in Han's shadow, Teshi Roshaun.

Risa's face brightened. If there was something she could do that her older brothers thought was cool, then maybe…

"C'mon, Runt, I double dog dare ya," Han egged her. That clinched it.

Thirty seconds later she was stuck to the frozen pole holding up the stop sign. She would have cried in frustration if she thought it would do any good. She couldn't believe she was dumb enough to fall for it again, just because Han had used the d-word. She tried again to pull away from the pole, gently this time, to no avail. Not only was her tongue sore, her mouth was getting rather dry from hanging open for so long.

She could have cheered when her savior, her twin brother, Ike showed up, holding a steaming mug. He held the rim against the pole about three inches above her tongue.

"This might hurt," he cautioned. Risa shrugged as best she could in her position. If it worked, she didn't care.

She winced slightly as the hot water trickled down the frozen pole and onto her already pained tongue, but Ike was careful not to dump the entire contents all at once. After several agonizing minutes, Risa was finally free of the pole. She grabbed a handful of snow and shoved it in her mouth to numb her throbbing tongue.

"Fanks," she mumbled, trying very hard not to press her tongue against her teeth as she spoke.

The two of them walked back into their house together. Normally their mother would have suspected something was up if she had noticed that the two older boys arrived home without the twins, but she was preoccupied with a crying and colicky infant at the moment.

His good deed done, Ike went off to tag along after his brothers. Risa went to the room she shared with Ike and clambered to the top bunk. She lay on her back, her hands behind her head. It was time for payback. This time she'd leave Ike out of it. He had already helped her enough, and she needed to watch her only ally's back.

The next morning, Han's cry of horror sounded throughout the house. Their mother ran to the laundry room with Risa hot on her heels.

"What is the matter?" Izzy Manticore asked her son anxiously.

He was pulling his garments out of the dryer one by one. Pink sock. Pink underwear. Pink T-shirt. Pink, pink, pink. "I can't wear these to school!" he wailed. Realizing that there was no major crisis to contend with, their mother pressed her hand to her head, heaved a sigh of relief, and went back to the kitchen to prepare breakfast for her brood.

Risa howled with laughter as her mother's figure retreated.

"Runt, you're going to die for this," he warned her.

By now she was doubled over, tears in her eyes. "But pink is so cute!"

He grabbed her in a headlock and vigorously applied a noogie to her scalp. "Pink is for girls, you little pest!" he grated.

"Ahanu, Risa, stop fooling around in there and come eat breakfast!" their mother called. Risa pulled free and stuck her tongue out at her brother before fleeing to the safety of the kitchen.

Izzy placed a plate in front of her eldest son, frowning as she regarded his sullen expression. "Ahanu Yukio Manticore, wipe that puss off your face and eat breakfast. No one is going to see your socks if you're wearing boots."

Han sat up straight and dug into his breakfast, shooting one last warning glance at Risa before pasting an overly bright grin on his face for his mother. He felt a small bit of satisfaction as his mother said, "And Risa Amena, do not think that I am foolish enough to think you are entirely innocent in this debacle. You will take care of Ahanu's laundry duties for the next week."

Risa shrugged. The only way to get out of laundry duty was to tell her mother what had happened with the pole, and Han knew she wouldn’t do that. Her mother might think it unwise to let her hang out with her brothers if that were the case. It was worth it to see the look on Han's face, anyway.

~~~~~~~~~~

Fourteen-year-old Han Manticore stood over his sister as his thirteen-year-old sibling held her down. Risa was kicking at Teshi ineffectually. Han let a long strand of spit hang over her. She watched in horrified fascination as it grew longer and approached her face.

"Let me GO!" she screeched, turning her head aside just in time to avoid catching the strand of saliva in her mouth.

Teshi released her immediately, and Han slapped him on the back conspiratorially. The two brothers laughed as Risa scrubbed at her cheek with the back of her sleeve.

"GROSS!" she declared, then launched herself at Han's ankles, causing the older boy to stumble. Teshi reached down and picked up his seven-year-old sister by her shirt collar. She swung at him in frustration.

"You guys suck!" she fumed.

Teshi put her down and ruffled her long brown hair. "So do little sisters, Runt" he informed her before walking away with his older brother.

She stuck her tongue out at their retreating backs.

By dinner, Risa had forgiven her brothers. She never stayed mad for long. After supper, she played peek-a-boo with little Rio, who was now two, then she went off to play with her brothers. She and Ike usually teamed up against Han and Teshi. They got pounded mercilessly, because the other two were not only older and smarter, they also cheated. The games almost always ended up in a wrestling match to settle the dispute. Risa loved these times; she really felt like one of the gang. Sometimes her brothers teased her because she was a girl, but they didn't treat her any differently than they treated Ike, and for that she was extremely grateful.

That weekend, Koto and Izzy took their children to the park for an old-fashioned picnic. Izzy carried the picnic basket as Koto carried Rio in a papoose on his back. A blanket was laid out under a tree, and food was passed around. Izzy had to remind the older boys to let Ike and Risa have a share of the food as well.

Koto and Izzy exchanged a glance, and Izzy nodded.

"Why don't you ragamuffins each take a plate of food down to the picnic tables instead of hanging here with your 'rents," Koto said with a grin. This suggestion met with whoops of approval as four rambunctious youths grabbed their food and raced to a table near a bunch of teenage girls.

Han couldn't resist looking over at the girls at the table nearby briefly. Then he turned his attention back to his siblings.

"Hey, Runt, you like seafood?" he asked.

Risa wrinkled her nose in disgust. "No," she said, hoping he wasn't going to force one of those shrimp into her mouth like he had on their last picnic.

He opened his mouth and showed her his chewed up food. "See? Food!" he said, spraying a portion of it at Risa in the process.

She flicked away the half-masticated food in disgust.

"I said no, you big jerk!" she said, throwing a chicken leg at him and hitting him in the forehead.

He dove over the table at her, landing in her plate of potato salad. When he heard the squeals of laughter from the next table over, his face turned beet-red.

"You are so dead, Runt," he growled. Risa fled as if her life depended on it.

He was after her in a flash, and tackled her to the ground. The two of them rolled over as she pelted him with her tiny fists.

"Ow," Han said, rubbing his chin when one of her punches connected. He grinned at her, then squeezed one of her biceps. "Geez, Runt, you are building up quite a bit of muscle there," he teased.

Risa practically preened under his praise. Han regarded her thoughtfully, then grabbed her hand and dragged her back to the picnic table.

He sat opposite her and pushed the remnants of their meal aside, ignoring the protests of Ike and Teshi. He put his elbow on the table and held out his right hand. Risa understood the gesture, having watched Teshi and Han arm wrestle many times in the past. She rested her elbow on the table as well and clasped his hand tightly.

Teshi recognized what they were doing and stood up, standing at the edge of the table to officiate.

"Ready?" he asked. At the nods of his siblings, he counted, "One, two, three…GO!"

Risa didn't have time to do more than blink before Han slammed her arm down so hard, the back of her knuckles hit the table. She rubbed them and scowled at her brother, who was grinning at her like a fool.

"Hey, Runt, don't be mad," he said. He saw the scowl change to a look of disappointment, and felt a momentary twinge of guilt. He flicked a forkful of potato salad at Teshi, and was rewarded with Risa's snickers as Teshi's mouth dropped open. A large glob was hanging from his bangs. Risa's hands covered her mouth and she started chortling. When she realized Ike was fighting to contain his own laughter, she couldn't help it. She fell off the bench and curled up, laughing hysterically.

"What are we going to do with them, Makoto?" asked Izzy, watching the antics of her children as she fed Rio.

He laughed. His wife was an only child and sometimes wondered if it was normal for siblings to act this way. He put an arm around her and kissed her on the cheek. "We let them grow up," he said.

~~~~~~~~~~

"C'mon, Ike, one more time," Risa begged.

Ike rubbed his shoulder tiredly. "I said no, Risa," he said.

"Do you think I'm ready to challenge Han?" she asked eagerly.

"Not yet," she heard her father say. She whipped around, surprised to see him standing there.

"Come here, Risa," he said. She stood up and walked over to him. He put his hands on her shoulders.

"See this?" he asked, holding up her right arm and pushing two fingers against her biceps. She nodded. "This needs work. See this?" he said, this time pointing to her triceps. She nodded again. "Needs work, too," he told her. He repeated the process as he pointed out the various muscles in her arm.

"So what do I do, Dad?" she asked.

He looked at his daughter. She could cling to an idea stubbornly once it was in her head. In some ways, she was more like him than any of his boys.

"You could start off doing push-ups," he suggested. "It will build up strength in your arms because you have to support your own body weight. It will also tell you if your wrists are weak. Weak wrists can be a deciding factor."

Risa eagerly dropped to the floor and began pushing herself off the floor. "One…" she said as she lifted herself up. "Two…"

Her father smiled at her. After the two boys were born, he knew that Izzy had longed for a little girl, someone she could put in pigtails and dresses. Unfortunately Risa was at that age where she wanted to be just like her brothers. Her only girlish vanity was her long hair. Izzy loved brushing her daughter's hair and putting it up in various ponytails and braids. Once or twice she'd tried some more elaborate styles with bobby pins and barrettes, but they never lasted long.

Koto actually thought Risa would tire of the entire arm wrestling idea, but she was doggedly determined to defeat Han. She began lifting weights, starting with mere 1-pound dumbbells, then working her way up a pound a time until she was able to easily lift 10 pounds and do several repetitions, altering her regimen to work each muscle. Koto knew that she stubbornly pushed herself until every muscle in both arms was sore. She also continued to set aside 15 minutes before bed every night for her push-ups. She had started off trying to count them, but it seemed to take forever that way, so she eventually settled on doing as many as she could in 15 minutes, even if she had to pause and recoup in between reps. Koto wondered in amusement if Han knew what he was in for.

Risa asked Koto to arm-wrestle her after a couple of weeks, and he complied with her request. Once a week, she would challenge her father to a match, and every week she was defeated.

It was several months before she finally managed to pin her father's arm to the table. She raised her arms in victory. "I did it!" she crowed.

She frowned as she saw her father shake his head.

"I did win, didn't I, Dad?" she asked, wondering what she had missed. Her father was brutally honest, so she knew there was something she must have done wrong.

"Yes, Reese, you did win, but you still have a long way to go."

Risa was confused. Her father explained. "One victory does not a champion make, despite what you see on television. Take Zoid battles, for example. One day, a team wins. The next battle, they have different opponents and they fight like they've never been in a Zoid before. See what I'm saying?"

Risa nodded slowly. She thought she did.

It was six months before she had the nerve to ask her father his opinion again. Despite the fact that she preferred her father's "shoot from the hip" style, it was tough to swallow the truth at times.

"Dad, do you think I'm ready?" she asked, after defeating him again.

He smiled at her. "I think you are."

Her grin went from ear to ear. "Alright!" she exclaimed, doing a victory dance around the kitchen before running to the bathroom to brush her teeth.

"What was that all about?" Izzy asked.

"Grizelda, you don't want to know," he laughed.

"You know I hate that name," she complained, swatting him with a dishtowel. He grabbed the end of the towel and pulled his wife into his lap. He put his arms around her and kissed her. "Be prepared for a very moody Han next Friday night," he said.

~~~~~~~~~~~

A week later Risa challenged her brother to a rematch. Her brother looked at her in confusion, having forgotten about the long-ago arm wrestling match.

She sat at the table and placed her elbow on the table, her right hand open and waiting. Han shrugged. What was it to him if this pipsqueak wanted to waste a few seconds of his time?

Teshi officiated again. Ike came out of nowhere and stood behind his twin as Teshi counted to three.

Han's eyes grew wide as he realized he was really struggling to pin Risa's arm to the table. He slowly lowered her arm halfway, his arm straining. To his utter amazement, Risa gritted her teeth and started forcing his arm back up.

Ten minutes later, Risa had somehow overpowered him and his hand touched the surface of the table. She even held him there for a full five seconds before releasing him.

She grinned at him triumphantly. Teshi started laughing.

Han was furious. He wasn't just beaten by a girl; he was beaten by an eight-year-old girl, and not just any eight-year-old but his puny sister! To top it off, his younger brother, the one who idolized him, was laughing at him! That set Risa off, and she giggled uncontrollably.

He grabbed the end of Risa's braid with one hand and a pair scissors from the utensil cup with the other, holding the scissors against the pigtail menacingly.

"Think that's funny, Runt?" he threatened. She just laughed harder.

"Um, Han," Ike interjected.

"Shut up!" Han barked at him. "You always stick up for her."

Risa and Teshi continued laughing, and Han wasn't sure what to do. Usually he was the one who dominated. Risa wasn't falling for his idle threats to scalp her.

"What is going on here?" their mother's voice thundered, surprising them all.

Han's fingers tightened involuntarily, closing the shears against Risa's braid.

The room fell silent as Risa's hair fell slack. Han stared in dismay at the length of hair left in his hand. Risa looked at it, too, her laughter having died abruptly. Then she ran from the room crying.

"I will deal with you later," Izzy warned her son, then ran after her daughter.

"Man, Han, that was really cold," Teshi said. Ike actually went up to him and punched him in the chin. "You made Risa cry!" he said. "Risa never cries!"

"I know that!" he yelled. "Do you think I meant to do that?"

His brothers just stared at him.

"Stop looking at me like I just kicked a dog. I didn't do it on purpose, ya know."

Ike shook his head and left the room. Han looked at Teshi in desperation. Teshi sighed and sat down next to him.

"I believe ya, bro," he said quietly.

In her room, Risa sobbed into her pillow. The only thing that made her look like a girl was gone. Most people thought she wished she was a boy, but she didn't. She just liked spending time with her brothers, and that meant doing boy things. The fact was, she was a girl, and girls were supposed to have long hair.

Izzy climbed up the ladder to Risa's bunk bed and stroked her hair gently. "I know," she said softly.

"I look like a boy!" wailed Risa. Izzy smiled sadly.

"When I was about your age," she said, "I had hair a little longer than yours. It was much lighter then, reddish brown, I think. My mother used to roll my hair up in little rags before bed so it would curl during the night."

Risa didn't turn to look at her mother, but her sobbing had slowed down.

"I was so proud of those curls," Izzy sighed. "I thought they made me look like a princess."

Risa's face was still buried in her pillow, but she couldn't resist smirking at the idea of her mother being an idealistic young girl with fairy tale dreams.

"One day I went to school, and this boy in my class pulled on one of my curls. I told him to stop it, and he just wouldn't do it. I remember stomping my foot in frustration, and then walking away. The next thing I knew, I felt something hit me in the back of the head."

Risa turned around and looked at her mother.

"It was a wad of gum," Izzy said. "I tried to pull it out, but in my haste, I only made it worse. I still remember going to the bathroom and looking in the mirror as I tried to free my hair. Of course, in my distress, I forgot to take into consideration the fact that everything in a mirror is backwards. The more I tried to pull out the gum, the more strands of hair got involved. Eventually I went back to class in tears. The teacher sent me to the nurse to have it removed. Unfortunately, due to the amount of hair stuck to that little pink wad, out came the scissors. I went home with hair shorter than Daddy's."

Risa couldn't help but laugh at the idea of her mother with hair that short.

"I cried, too, Risa, but the hair did grow back. I don't think your brother really meant to hurt your feelings," she said, running her hands through Risa's hair. "Besides, this is nothing. Your hair isn't going to be as short as Daddy's."

Risa hugged her mother.

Izzy cut Risa's hair in a short bob. It was almost shoulder length and not at all masculine, but that didn't stop her brothers from calling her "Boy" for the next few weeks. Since Han had to do all of Risa's chores until her hair grew out, she didn't mind the nickname quite so much.

~~~~~~~~~~

Risa and her friend Jason were arguing. Their fourth grade teacher hadn't noticed yet.

"I'm telling you it's true," he insisted.

She shook her head in disbelief. How could it be true? It made no sense to her. Besides, if it were true, why would Jason know and not her?

They were arguing over the length of time that it would take two different objects, dropped at the same time, to reach the ground. Jason told her that they'd reach the ground at the same time, but Risa stubbornly insisted that was impossible.

Jason knew the only way to convince his friend was to either present her with a valid argument or prove her wrong. Since his nine-year-old mind couldn't grasp the science behind this theory in order to use the former, having only just overheard his brother mention it last night, he was left with the latter option.

"Want to find out?" he asked her with a mischievous grin. Risa nodded eagerly.

He motioned for her to follow him to the back of the room. She risked a glance at the teacher, who was currently helping a couple of their classmates with something. Risa followed Jason to the third story window, which was open about six inches to allow for cross ventilation.

Jason gestured to the plants that were lined up on the windowsill. The previous week the class had saved their milk cartons from lunch and used them as flowerpots. The assignment was to fill the carton with soil and plant the seeds provided. Everyone's plant project was already sprouting tiny green shoots. Everyone's but Risa's. She frowned at her barren soil. What was the point of growing this stuff, anyway? She wasn't familiar with the term "green thumb" yet, but she knew she didn't have one.

Jason interrupted her reverie by snapping his fingers in front of her face. "C'mon, before she looks over here," he hissed at her. He picked up Risa's poor excuse for a plant and put it in one of her hands. He quickly glanced around and spied a rock from the lesson they'd done on minerals a few weeks earlier. He grabbed the stone and placed it in Risa's free hand.

"OK, on the count of three, drop them both at the same time and we'll see what happens."

Risa looked a bit hesitant at the thought of heaving objects out a school window until Jason leaned over and said the magic words.

"I dare ya."

She held both hands out the window and looked at him expectantly.

"One. Two. Thr - "

"Miss Manticore! Mr. Venn! Get away from that window this instant!" bellowed their teacher, who was in a state of panic seeing two of her students practically leaning out the window.

Startled, Risa snatched her hands back in, releasing the objects and smacking her knuckles against the bottom of the windowpane in the process.

"Ouch," she hissed at Jason. They both suddenly remembered their experiment and took furtive glances out the window to check the results. They couldn't see anything, but it was apparent that both had hit the ground by now.

"Next time," Jason promised. Risa winked at him conspiratorially.

~~~~~~~~~~

By the time Risa turned 10, her older brothers had discovered social lives that involved the opposite sex. She and Ike therefore found themselves the de facto leaders of their five-year-old brother. Risa felt a perverse satisfaction in turning the tables on Rio. She knew Ike did, too, even if he always looked like she was forcing him to do it. That worked in his favor when they got caught, because it was usually his sister who was tormenting poor Rio. Was it her fault that she thought it would be funny if Rio went door to door trying to sell himself as an indentured servant? Ike had mastered the art of looking innocent, but Risa exploded with laughter when her parents confronted her to ask if she knew anything about it.

Her hair had grown past her shoulders, but she kept it pulled into a ponytail that started high on her head. She had developed a fascination with bubble gum a year ago, and since hearing the story about her mother's hair mishap, Risa was taking no chances of getting gum in her own locks. Especially since she had a habit of blowing her bubbles just a little too big, causing them to explode on her face and coat her nose and cheeks with the sticky pink substance. Her mother had tried stopping her daughter's rather messy habit, but when Risa had turned to nail biting, her mother decided bubble gum was the lesser of two evils.

Risa was going to start her job delivering papers the following day. She disdained the term "newspaper courier" as a pretentious title. She was a papergirl, pure and simple. She finally had a "grown-up" bike like her brothers, and not one of those prissy bikes with the flowery basket and the bell. She had promised her parents that she'd try to find some way to earn some extra money, as long as her grades didn't suffer, so she could buy the hockey stick she wanted.

The job lasted all of a week. She was up early every morning and had the papers delivered on time, but then she realized she actually had to go from house to house and collect money for the papers. The very idea of spending part of her weekend going door to door did not appeal to her in the least, and she quit. She didn't even care that she wouldn't get paid for the week that she had worked. The job had been rather boring anyway. She had thought riding her bike in the morning would be fun, but there was nothing to see and no one to talk to at that hour of the day.

She tried walking dogs a week later. That was a job she enjoyed, even if she disliked doing "dooky duty." The problem was that not everyone liked to hear her opinion.

She'd been walking the dogs for almost two weeks when she showed up promptly to pick up the first dog, a little white poodle with the unimaginative name "Fifi." Risa couldn't help laughing when she saw what the dog was wearing on this particular day. A pink sweater.

Fifi's owner frowned at Risa's display of mirth. "Is there a problem, young lady?" she asked haughtily.

Risa covered her mouth in an attempt to hold in her giggles. She pointed with the other hand at the dog.

"That sweater," she gasped. "It looks ridiculous." It might not have been that bad if Risa had stopped there, but she continued. "She's a dog - she has fur. Why does she need a sweater? Crikey, it's only October!" She started laughing all over again, oblivious to the fact that Fifi's owner was glowering at her.

"Young lady, I do not appreciate your insults," she said stiffly.

Risa's laughter died. 'Insults?' she thought. "I'm sorry, ma'am," she said apologetically. "I'm just stating the obvious."

To Risa, it was a logical argument. Dogs had fur. Therefore dogs did not need sweaters. The dog probably was going to die in that sweater after running around the park at the end of her leash. Risa was doing Fifi a favor by pointing this out.

Fifi's owner didn't see it that way, and she practically kicked Risa off her doorstep.

It went downhill from there. For some reason, following the episode with the poodle's owner, Risa felt the need to test all the dog owners by volunteering her opinion on everything from the dog's haircut to the owner's landscaping. Only one person laughed at Risa's frank observations.

So it was with one dog and one dog only that Risa jogged around the park. Mindy, the Irish setter was a beautiful animal. Risa mused that dogs were like people. Although there were definite personality traits inherent in different breeds, there were no two dogs alike, no matter what their breeding was. Risa was oddly fascinated by this. Her ten-year-old mind liked things to be compartmentalized neatly. Black, white. Good, bad. Big, small. It seemed there were a lot of gray areas in life, although she hadn't fully grasped that concept yet.

After the dog-walking fiasco, Risa managed to convince a few local cat owners that she could groom their feline friends. She was surprised that she had as many customers as she did. Apparently some cats were less fastidious than others, or were just too fat to reach all the areas of their fur. She went home with a few scratches after tugging a comb through a rather testy tabby's fur. She spit out her gum when she got to the kitchen. It was full of cat hair. She supposed it wasn't the smartest thing she'd ever done, blowing bubbles while combing a cat. One cat had swatted at her bubble and the two of them were coated with pink bubble gum. Risa was relieved that the specks of pink combed out of the cat's fur easily. Thank goodness for the animal's rather oily fur.

By the time she had the money to buy the hockey stick she wanted, she had grown bored with the game and ended up buying a few comic books instead. She sat on her bed with a stack of comics and a bag of potato chips, a can of diet soda in her hand.

She wasn't sure when or how she'd started drinking diet soda. It wasn't as though she needed to watch her weight or anything. She just felt that regular soda was too sweet. The aftertaste of the artificial sweetener was interesting, and she thought it complemented her salty snacks much better. She sipped the soda noisily threw a straw and turned the page.

"Risa, you aren't ruining your appetite before supper, are you?" her mother called.

"Nope," she replied, stuffing a handful of chips into her mouth.

~~~~~~~~

She sat down at the supper table, hiccuping loudly. She struggled to rid herself of the hiccups by holding her breath, breathing through a paper bag, and even drinking water upside down. Nothing was working. She sighed as her chest heaved again, then shoveled a forkful of meat and gravy into her mouth.

"You should really take smaller bites," her mother cautioned. "I would hate to see you choke on your food."

Risa tried to comply with her mother's wishes, she really did, but the food was so good, it was torture to limit the portions she fed herself. She managed to take three small bites in a row before shoveling a large section of meat into her mouth on the fourth.

"Hey, Runt, know what else is good for getting rid of hiccups?" Han asked her. She looked up at him doubtfully. Teshi nodded in agreement as though Han had already told her. She glanced at Ike for confirmation of a conspiracy, but he looked just as puzzled.

After supper, she still hadn't gotten rid of the hiccups, and Han placed an arm around her as they did the dishes.

"Want to get rid of those hiccups?" he asked.

"Sure, duh," she said.

"Follow me when we finish here," he said, then went back to washing as Risa dried.

Half an hour later, Han and Teshi led Risa outside. It was growing dark, but Risa didn't care. Her hiccups were starting to hurt her chest, and if they could get rid of them, she'd play along.

Han held a flashlight up under his chin as if he were telling a ghost story, which, in fact, he did.

"Before Mom and Dad bought this house, there was a couple who lived here. They had children, but their children grew older and moved away."

Teshi picked up the tale. "Their children never came to visit them. The couple grew older and never heard anything from their children. Years passed, and still no sign of their offspring."

"They often considered selling the house and moving to a warmer region, but they retained some hope that their children would one day come back home," Han said. "So they sat out on the porch night after night, waiting for the day they'd see one of their children coming up the walkway."

Teshi grabbed Risa by the hand and tugged. She followed him, with Han right behind her, as they went around to the back of the house.

"Eventually the old woman grew ill, and she died there on the porch, rocking on the rocking chair with her husband," whispered Teshi. Risa held her breath, waiting for something, but she wasn't sure what.

"Her husband was inconsolable," Han murmured. The three of them huddled around the back porch. He didn't want her to leave him. He decided to bury her right here in the backyard."

Risa couldn't help but feel a chill go up her back, even though she knew her brothers were putting her on.

"Right here," Teshi whispered, pointing under the stairs and turning off the flashlight.

Risa snorted.

"Shhh…sometimes they say, that when the night is quiet like this, and the moons are new, you can hear her crying JUST LIKE THIS!" Han shouted at her as Teshi grabbed her in the darkness.

Risa couldn't help but scream in fright. Her brothers laughed at her reaction. She frowned. She knew it was all make believe, but she couldn't help reacting to the loud noise in the darkness.

"You guys suck," she said angrily, snatching the flashlight from Teshi and marching back to the front of the house.

"Hey, Runt, do you still have the hiccups?" she heard Han call after her.

Drat him, he was right. Her hiccups were gone.

~~~~~~~~~

The following year, Han got his first Zoid. It wasn't much to look at, but most of the Manticores thought it quite impressive. Han puffed up with pride.

"It's a Molga," he informed them.

Risa eyed it somewhat distastefully. Ugly bug-looking thing. Not that she was squeamish around bugs, especially not after her brothers had dared her to eat them on more than one occasion. The thing looked like it was ready to fall apart. It was missing parts of its armor, and the door to the cockpit was cracked. She was surprised it had made it to their house, and she voiced this opinion.

Han smacked her on the head. "No one asked you, pipsqueak," he growled.

Koto cuffed his son on the side of the head. "Don't hit your sister," was his automatic response.

Despite Han's annoyance at his younger sister's blunt remark, he had to admit she was right. That was the only reason he had been able to afford it. He had a lot of work to do to get this thing up to speed.

Oddly enough, Risa was fascinated with the process. She would sit outside as he worked on the Molga after dinner, sometimes bouncing a rubber ball against the sidewalk, sometimes jumping rope, sometimes sitting on the steps reading one of her blasted comics. A couple of times she'd stand over him, saying nothing, just snapping that stupid gum she was always chewing.

One evening he handed her a wrench. He said nothing, just waited. She looked at him, then at the wrench in her hand, then at the Zoid before squatting down in front of the insect and tightening a few bolts. The two of them worked together in silence for a while.

Risa actually enjoyed helping her brother fix his Zoid. He never admitted he appreciated her company, but the two of them made a good team. Risa seemed to anticipate what Han was going to work on and what tasks he was leaving for her as soon as they headed outside. Han couldn't help wondering if what they said about twins was true. If that were the case, she must really be in tune with Ike.

When the Molga was finished six months later, he asked Risa if she'd like to take a ride in it. She eyed the cockpit dubiously. "Isn't this a one-seater?" she asked.

"You can sit on my lap and pilot it," he teased. Her jade eyes flashed with excitement.

Han actually didn't think it would work, but the Molga seemed content with the two siblings sharing one seat, and responded rather well to Risa's clumsy attempts to get it moving. Their father was going to have his hands full when Risa was old enough to drive, that was for sure.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Han and Teshi were busily constructing something at the kitchen table when Risa waltzed in looking for something to eat.

"Whatcha doin'?" she asked, reaching into the fridge and pulling out a can of diet soda.

"Shut it," Han said, as Teshi snapped together some of the smaller pieces.

Risa wasn't curious by nature, but her contrary side didn't take kindly to her brother's response. She pulled up a chair and put her elbows on the table, resting her chin on both hands and assuming an expression of vast interest in their project.

Han thought of ignoring her, but then he remembered his sister's level of patience. He scooped up a handful of pieces and held them out to Risa.

"Really?" she asked. At her brother's nod, she examined the pieces in her hand. "What's it s'posed to be?"

"Um..." Han said.

Teshi picked up the box the pieces had come in. "This one's a Blade Liger."

Han nodded. "Oh, yeah, that's right. Cool," he said. "There aren't many of those around anymore."

"Any more of those as in real Zoids or as in tiny wannabe plastic models?" Risa asked, fumbling with the tiny pieces in her hands as she tried to assemble them.

"Zoids," Han said, sharing a knowing glance with Teshi.

It took a little longer than they'd expected, but finally Risa attempted to snap one piece into place, disconnecting all the other pieces she had put together in the process. A shower of plastic model pieces rained down on her head.

"Aaaahhh!" Risa cried in frustration. "Laughing fingers!"

Teshi snickered. Risa hated working with anything small. Her fingers wouldn't cooperate, and she explained this phenomenon as laughing fingers. Now that the plastic pieces were all over the floor instead of in her hands, she rubbed at her fingers as if they were in pain. She insisted that her fingers got all "weird and tingly" when she tried to manipulate tiny parts. Teshi actually felt sorry for her. He knew she hated to find out that there was something the rest of them could do that she could not. On the other hand, it was almost hysterical to watch his normally jovial sister throw a near tantrum over something so minor.

Han waved a fist at her. "Hey, pipsqueak, you gonna pick those up, or am I gonna have to introduce you to The Fearsome Five?" he needled his sister.

Risa picked up the pieces and carefully set them back on the table, then looked at Han with a half scowl, half grin on her face.

"Nah, I would hate to come between you and your date," Risa said defiantly. Then she grabbed her soda and hightailed it out of the room.

"I have to kill her for that," Han commented to his brother, who had slid off the chair and under the table in a fit of laughter at their sister's cheeky rebuttal.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Han and Teshi went off to college the following year. Han had decided to wait a year after graduating from high school so he and his brother could go together.

Risa thought it was awfully quiet in the house with the two of them gone, even if she hadn't seen much of them since they'd both started dating. She felt she'd gotten rather close to her older brother when they worked on his Molga together, and was surprised at how much she missed him.

It was different with Ike. Risa felt a bond with her twin. She always had. It was just that Ike was like the flip side of her coin. Where Risa was easily amused, Ike took things so seriously. Risa was a sucker for a dare, and Ike treaded carefully. Risa ate junk food, and Ike preferred more balanced meals. Risa loved cartoons, and Ike preferred more dramatic live-action shows. In truth, Risa felt like her brother was downright boring. The funny thing was, she was closer to him than to any of the others, even seven-year-old Rio, who followed her around like a puppy.

Risa was rummaging through a trunk in the attic when she heard footsteps. "Rio, beat it, I'm busy," she said, her voice muffled as she dug deeper into the trunk trying to find a stack of vintage comics her father said was up here.

The footsteps continued to approach, and Risa sighed. "Listen, Rio, Mom is going to freak if she finds out you climbed the ladder by yourself to come up here as it is. I don't want to get blamed for encouraging you." The footsteps slowed, but continued to approach softly.

"Ilario Kaseko," she growled in her best 'mother' voice. "Don't make me beat you." She pulled her head out of the trunk, ready to pounce on her younger brother, who by the sound of it was about three feet away. Her heart nearly stopped when she realized she was alone in the attic. Her shriek could be heard downstairs, and Ike raced up the ladder to see what had happened.

Risa pointed to an empty spot on the floor, her hand shaking and her eyes wide.

"Reese, what's wrong?" Ike asked her, alarmed at her stricken face.

"Where's Rio?" she managed to choke out.

"He's watching TV downstairs, just like I was until I heard you screech like a banshee. What's going on?"

"Someone was up here," she whispered hoarsely.

Ike looked around quickly, and then walked over to his sister. "Very funny, Reese, but I'm not falling for it."

She shook her head adamantly. "Someone was here. I heard footsteps."

Ike gave an uncharacteristic snort. "Oookaaaay, whatever you say, Reese. Let's get downstairs before Mom comes charging up here."

Risa nodded mutely, and climbed down the ladder first. When Ike descended behind her, he walked over to her. She was white as a ghost. Normally her bronze skin had a rosy glow, but she looked deathly ill. Ike was worried. "Reese, I'm gonna get Mom," he said, backing away and heading for the stairs.

Risa reached out and grabbed his arm, her powerful muscles straining to hold on to his sleeve. "Isaac. Don't."

He sighed and turned around. "Reese, you look like hell."

She shook her head vigorously. "Please, Ike, it's nothing. It's just…"

"It's just…what?" he asked impatiently.

"I think the house is haunted," she blurted out.

Ike laughed. "Nice. Your prank is pretty elaborate, Reese, but I told you, I'm not biting."

She tightened her grip on his arm. "Ike, I'm serious. I swear I heard footsteps up there. I thought it was Rio at first, but when I looked up, no one was there."

Ike looked at his twin with his eyes narrowed. After a moment, he shook his arm. "Mind letting me go?"

She complied, giving him a self-deprecating grin. "I know you think I’m nuts," she said.

Ike slowly shook his head. "Nah. I've known you were nuts for years."

She swatted him on the shoulder. "Yeah, I love you, too, bro."

He took one last look at his sister before heading back downstairs. Sometimes she got the oddest ideas in her head.

~~~~~~~~~

A couple months after the twins turned 13, Risa began to suspect she might not grow to be anywhere near as tall as her brothers. Her mother tried to explain that girls went through growth spurts just like boys, and that although she might not be as tall as the boys, she would probably grow taller in the next few years. Risa shook her head pessimistically.

"I'm never going to be tall, and I'm never going to have boobs," she said bitterly, looking down at her flat chest.

Her mother tried not to laugh, but she couldn't help it. "Risa Amena, honestly, don't you think that you might just be a late bloomer?"

Risa shook her head in dismay. "I wish," she said.

Izzy gave up and just hugged her daughter. 'I was a teenager once, too,' she reminded herself.

That was also the year that Risa realized that her friends were primarily composed of the opposite gender. It seemed that most girls her age were into the whole dating scene, whereas Risa still wanted to just hang out after school and shoot the breeze, sometimes getting into heated debates with several guys from her class regarding the latest issue of whatever comic she was reading that week.

The Manticores firmly believed that dating started at the age of 16, but they knew that many of Risa's friends were guys, and they made no objection when she told them where she was headed. She wondered if she should be complimented or insulted by her parent's trust in her.

She couldn't understand what all the fuss concerning boys was about. Girls were huddled at the mirror at school, brushing their cheeks with blush and smoothing eye shadow on their lids. Risa more often than not shoved her way into the bathroom, not caring who was in the way. If any of them complained she'd just glare at them and say, "I have to pee, if you don't mind." She'd drop her head in her hands once she was in the stall as she heard things like "Too much information!" What the heck was the bathroom for, anyway? She would never understand the fuss these girls put into painting their faces. Her mother never used cosmetics, and Risa didn't think any of the girls Han had brought home had, either. OK, so Teshi had brought home a few Barbies now and then, but at least those relationships hadn't lasted long.

"Puberty sucks," she stated baldly on one of these occasions as she flushed the toilet with her foot then kicked the door open.

"Excuse me," she said to the girls lined up at the mirror. They wrinkled their noses at her, but moved to allow her access to the sink. She washed her hands carefully, flicked off the excess water, and grabbed a paper towel.

She'd always liked having her hands clean. You never knew when there would be an opportunity to eat. The fragrance of the rest room soap wasn't as nice as the fresh clean scent of the soap she used at home, but she still thought it smelled better than these girls, all of whom literally reeked of perfume. Who did they think they were impressing, anyway? They were more likely to knock the guys flat on their butts than to ensnare them.

The ironic part was that most of the guys Risa hung out with were actually quite popular. This did nothing for Risa's own popularity with her peers, and they took great pride in stage whispering how much she looked like a boy and how the only reason the guys hung out with her was because she was just like them.

At first it hurt her feelings, although she refused to let the bitchy girls in her class make her cry. She'd taken poundings from her brothers without shedding a tear; she wasn't about to let something like that get to her. When it came down to it, it wasn't even like the girls were saying anything bad about her.

Therefore Risa's thirteenth year was quite philosophical. She and Ike hung out with the same crowd, and they actually had rather mature conversations about life and religion and freedom of will. She and her twin both firmly believed in destiny, although she was surprised to hear that Ike viewed fate as absolute. Risa didn't agree with that. She felt that fate was more like an assistant who handed you the choices, but it was up to you when it came down to grasping opportunities. Many a Friday night was spent with Ike, Jason, and the rest of the guys, lying on their backs on the grass, staring at the stars and the moons and waxing philosophical. Risa loved those nights. Aside from the sheer enjoyment of good conversation, she felt like she fit in. She could never have these debates with the vapid girls in her class who thought she was some kind of freak.

"I think that you'll have more regrets in life if you fail to act on your impulses," Risa said one night. Ike, who was lying next to her, snorted.

"Yeah, like that time you decided to tell Old Lady Murdock that her nose hair looked like it was ready for dreadlocks." This was met with chuckles from the other boys.

"Well, it did," Risa insisted.

"Maybe, but only you would have the guts to point it out to her," said Jason.

"I wish I coulda been there," came the voice of another.

"You rock, Reese," a third one stated.

Risa felt a glow of pleasure. This was where she belonged. These were her friends. They liked her for who she was and didn't mind that she said what was on her mind. In fact, they seemed to like her more for it.

"I'm just saying that you always wonder what 'might have been' or 'should have been,' and I would rather follow my gut instinct than sit around later wishing I'd done something."

"So instead, you sit around and wish you'd done something differently," Ike pointed out.

"Hey, at least I don't sit around waiting for someone else to make up my mind for me. Besides, 'tis easier to ask for forgiveness than to ask for permission," she said flippantly.

"Reese, remind me never to hire you if I need a PR agent," Jason remarked.

"You couldn't afford me," Risa retorted.

~~~~~~~~~

Risa and Ike were spying on Teshi and his gal pal Lynn who were sitting on the porch swing. That is, Risa was spying, and Ike was trying to escape the iron grip she had on his neck.

"Shhh!" she whispered. "This is getting good."

"So nothing is wrong," Teshi was saying.

"No," came the soft reply. "I'm fine."

Risa could imagine Teshi's scowl. "You don't seem fine," he said.

"It's nothing," Lynn replied, looking at Teshi with unshed tears in her eyes. Risa rolled her eyes in response.

"Great," Teshi beamed at her. "Let's go - Han and Kate are waiting!"

With that, the two departed.

"What was that all about?" Risa asked. "Five minutes of hemming and hawing just to say she's fine?"

Ike rubbed the back of his neck since Risa had released her death grip. He hated having to be the one to explain these things to her.

"Reese, sometimes you have to listen with the heart as well as with your ears."

She snorted. "Translation?"

"She obviously likes Teshi," Ike explained.

"Well, duh, of course she likes him. She wouldn't hang out with him if she didn't."

Ike wanted to strangle her. Did she always have to be so literal?

"I mean she likes him. As in romantically."

Risa wrinkled her nose. "How can you tell?"

"Risa Amena," he said, "sometimes you have to pay attention to the nonverbal cues more than the words. If you could see that, then you'd understand that Lynn just told Teshi - "

Risa cut him off with an impatient wave of her hand.

"Listen, Love Doctor, this is all very fascinating, but why make it so complicated? If she likes him, she should just say, 'Hey, Teshi, I like you.' This speaking 'with' and 'from the heart' is crap and you know it. Only cowards and people who lack conviction in their feelings take the easy way out." Risa warmed to her topic.

"If you really feel something for someone, why hide behind blushes and fluttery eyes and crocodile tears? Oh, wait, I got it now. If you don't say anything, it's easy to pretend you never had feelings at all. Beating around the bush makes it easy to deny everything. Geez, what's the point in even having feelings? AAARGH!" she finished, pulling her hair. "Forget it, Ike, just forget it. I'll never understand this, and I certainly won't ever agree with it." With that she stomped away, muttering under her breath about Ike getting his own call-in show giving advice to the lovelorn.

He watched her go, smiling in amusement at his sister's surprisingly passionate opinions on love. 'Risa,' he thought. 'I'm sure you would say how you felt, no matter what the consequences would be.' He paused in his thoughts. 'That is, assuming that you even recognized your own feelings. If not, heaven help the guy you eventually fall for.'

~~~~~~~~~~

"Petri Dish Babies From Outer Space," Risa read aloud.

She and Ike and a few of the guys were all in the same class. To their collective disappointment, this semester they were studying poetry. Their teacher, who Risa had nicknamed "Spanky," had asked everyone to come up with their own creative verse.

The wizened literature teacher looked at Risa expectantly. She cleared her throat loudly and continued.

"Petri dish babies from outer space
Created blindly by another race
They came to Zi at a rapid pace
Full of hellfire, they began their chase…"

Risa continued narrating the adventures of the alien race that came to Zi using iambic pentameter and rhyming couplets as weapons, causing the inhabitants of Zi to flee in "unholy terror" before someone finally defeated the aliens armed with nothing more than cans of Lysol and jars of Cheez Whiz. She actually expected Spanky to call a halt to her so-called poem every time she introduced a few more "colorful" words, but he allowed her to finish it, even when she switched styles midstream.

"And in closing…I did not like the petri dish…erasing them is what I wished. I did not like them in the south, I did not like them in my mouth. The petri dish was here and there, I did not like it anywhere. Cheez and Lysol helped me there, am no more petri dish I swear."

"That was very…creative, Risa. Would anyone like to offer their interpretation to this piece?"

Those who weren't still in shock at Risa's rendering offered their critiques of her metaphors, symbolism, and verse structure. Ike just looked in the opposite direction as if he didn't know her.

Jason winked at her, then leaned back to the kid sitting behind him and held his hand out, palm up. The kid groused, but reached into his pocket and pulled out several coins. He glared at Risa briefly before dropping them into Jason's hand.

"Sodas are on me after school, Reese," Jay whispered.

~~~~~~~~~~

Risa, Jason, Ike, and Stan, one of the guys from school, were sitting in a booth at the local ice cream shoppe. Risa was eating her dish of pistachio ice cream with gusto as the guys stared in amazement.

"Where do you put it all," marvelled Stan.

Jay, who was sitting to Risa's right, reached over and ruffled her hair. "Her stomach is like a black hole," he teased.

Ignoring his comment, Risa reached over to his plate of fries. "Gonna eat these?" she asked around a mouthful of ice cream.

"What I don't understand," mused Stan, "is how you can eat like a pig, and yet you drink diet soda."

"Ah, Grasshopper," Jay shook his head at their friend. "You have much to learn about the Master."

At this, Risa elbowed him. "Are you calling me bossy?"

He grinned cheekily. "Would I dare insinuate such a thing?"

She snorted in reply, then reached over and snagged another handful of fries from his plate. As she shoved them in her mouth, she spied something on Stan's plate. Her eyebrows quirked upwards in query.

"Go for it," he sighed, his stomach churning as he mentally inventoried the various food items Risa had put away.

Risa's mouth watered as she plucked the pickle off his plate. She bit it in half, closing her eyes in near ecstasy as she munched on the crisp dill.

Stan watched the expression on her face with horror. Jay snickered.

Risa's eyes snapped open. "What?" she asked accusingly.

"You know, if it weren't for the fact that you were only thirteen, I'd wonder about your weird cravings, Reese," Stan confessed. "Pickles and ice cream?"

Risa made a sound of disgust.

"First off, you perv, it is entirely possible for a woman my age to have those 'cravings' you're alluding to. Not me, of course, but duh, being thirteen has nothing to do with it. Second, you make it sound like I put all these things in a blender and hit frappe. That would be gross. This is different. There's only one taste in the mouth at a time. It cleanses the palate. Kinda like eating a big juicy hamburger and then having a hot fudge sundae for dessert. Moron," she added.

Jay leaned across the table and whispered something in Stan's ear. Ike watched the two of them with one eyebrow raised, but wisely stayed out of it. He got enough from Risa at home.

Stan looked doubtful, but Jay nodded encouragingly.

"Um, hey, Reese," Stan began. She paused, the spoon of ice cream halfway to her open mouth.

"My treat," he choked out.

She gave him a kilowatt smile. "I knew you had some redeeming traits, Stan My Man," she said.

Ike risked leaning over to Stan and whispering, "She's never yet turned down a free meal."

Risa ignored them all and finished her ice cream, then sat back and let out a satisfying burp.

"What?" she asked as they all stared at her.

~~~~~~~~~~

Risa was watching the microwave oven intently. She had a box of marshmallow cereal in one hand. Every now and then she'd reach into the box and take out a handful of cereal, stuff it in her mouth, and chew slowly. Her attention didn't waver.

"Lucky Charms for lunch. Ever hear of a bowl?" Ike asked her. Risa didn't answer immediately, as she was busily chomping on a mouthful of cereal.

"Check this out," she said, motioning her free hand to him.

He walked over and peered in the glass window of the microwave.

"Marshmallow Peeps?" he asked.

"This batch was frozen. They don't melt the same way as room temperature Peeps do," she said.

The microwave beeped. "Want some?" she asked, pulling out a paper plate full of gooey marshmallow and presenting it to him with a flourish.

Ike shuddered. "Not everyone has your cast iron stomach," he reminded her.

She set the plate and the box of cereal on the table and patted her stomach proudly with both hands. "It's a gift," she said.

Han and Teshi wandered into the kitchen.

"Geez, Runt, what is this, an episode of Science Geeks Run Amok?" Han said, opening the fridge to look for something to eat.

"Hey, this is important research," she proclaimed.

Teshi looked at the plate of molten Peeps and at the open fridge, then elbowed his older brother. Han met his eyes, and they grinned at each other.

"Hey, Reese," Teshi said. "I'll bet Peeps do taste better melted."

Risa shrugged. She had never been a big fan of Peeps for anything other than their entertainment value. In fact, except for Lucky Charms and pistachio ice cream, she'd never been overly fond of sugary foods.

"Teshi," Han said, pulling something out of the fridge. "You know the pipsqueak doesn't have much of a sweet tooth. She prefers to eat something a little spicier, don't you, Runt?"

Risa rolled her eyes. "Well, duh," she said.

Han handed a bottle to Teshi, who uncapped it and sprinkled it liberally on the now congealed yellow marshmallow mass. "Tabasco sauce," he said. He handed it back to Han, who handed him a jar. Teshi opened the jar of dill pickles and took one out, dropping it on top of the plate with the Marshmallow Peeps. "Kosher dills," he said.

Han took a red squeeze bottle from the fridge, then moved to the cupboard and pulled out a plastic bottle full of brown liquid.

"Everything tastes better with ketchup," he said, "but then again, maple syrup will complement the marshmallow."

He and Teshi continued to add various food items and condiments, commenting on the ingredients as they did so.

"OK, guys, enough watching the Iron Chef. Mom is gonna kill you when she sees that you've wasted all this food," Risa said, laughing at them.

"Waste? I don't plan on wasting it, do you?" Han asked innocently, before sharing a rather evil-looking grin with Teshi.

Ike suddenly remembered that he had to clean his room and left.

Teshi picked up the plate and presented it to his sister with a flourish.

"Ugh. That's disgusting," Risa said, wrinkling her nose, trying to hand it back.

Han presented her with a spoon.

"No. No way. Uh uh," she said, shaking her head.

"Chicken," Teshi murmured.

"What?" she said, turning her head from the revolting mess on her plate to glare at her brother.

"Runt, I dare you to eat all of that," was all Han had to say.

She dug into it with forced gusto. She didn't wince until she'd swallowed the last bite, then she stuck out her tongue and closed her eyes. Although she prided herself on, as Ike said, her "cast iron stomach," her taste buds hadn't appreciated the snack nearly as much. She stood up straight, opened her eyes, and handed the plate to Han and the spoon to Teshi.

"Mmm, mmm, good," she commented, licking her lips, then heading to the fridge to pull out a can of diet soda, which she guzzled quickly. She started hiccuping almost immediately. She ignored her brothers' snickers and strode out of the kitchen with her back ramrod straight.

"Man, I'm going to miss this when we go back to school this weekend," Han sighed to Teshi.

~~~~~~~~~~

Risa and Ike turned fourteen in the spring. The weekend after their birthday, they dutifully sat at the kitchen table, looking at the small stack of gifts on either end.

"This one is from Aunt Eudora," Izzy said, carefully handing a gift bag to her daughter.

Risa could tell that whatever was in it was in danger of tipping over, so she set the bag back on the table and stood up to reach inside and draw out the gift within.

She placed the potted plant on the table and sat back down, staring at it with a look of horror.

Ike kicked her under the table, but she paid no heed.

"It's a plant," she said baldly.

"Yes, it is," Izzy responded. "It's dumb cane," she said, gesturing to the long oval leaves with their white centers. "Very good for beginners," she added approvingly. "But don't dare your brother to eat any of it. It's also poisonous."

Risa continued to stare at it. "A plant," she said in disbelief.

"Young lady, that is a very thoughtful gift, and you will write Aunt Eudora an appropriate thank you card. And by appropriate," Izzy said sharply, shooting Risa a warning glance, "I mean that it will convey only the utmost respect and appreciation for the gift."

"So you want me to lie," Risa nodded as if realization had just sunk in.

"Risa Amena!"

"Got it, Sergeant Mom, no prob," Risa replied. Ike looked down at his hideous brown cardigan sweater, also courtesy of Aunt Eudora, hiding the smirk on his face. Well, she wasn't going down alone.

"Hey, Isaac, how's that sweater?" she asked sweetly.

"Warm," he replied, giving her a look that said 'You'll have to try harder than that.'

Izzy moved the sweater and plant to the opposite end of the table then handed them the next gifts in the pile.

~~~~~~~~~~

"Dumb cane," Risa scowled at the plant. She and Ike were in her room, staring at the potted plant that she'd placed on the windowsill. "Good name for it, dontcha think?"

Ike shook his head. "You're either getting braver or dumber, Reese," he said. "Telling Mom that Aunt Eudora's gift sucked? Pretty bold, even for you."

"It does suck," Risa pouted. "I hate plants. Why does she get me one every year?"

"I don't know. Why does she insist that I like cardigan sweaters? Have you ever seen me wear a cardigan?"

"There was that one time…" she teased.

"Hey, first of all, I was only two at the time, and second, the only reason you remember is because of the family picture that's in the living room."

"Well, at least your gift isn't boring," she complained.

"Oh, yeah, this sweater beats a plant any day of the week," he said sarcastically.

"Well, at least yours has personality. It jumps up and says, 'Hi, I'm tacky and tasteless!' Besides, ugly can always be hidden at the bottom of your dresser. Mine, on the other hand…why must I suffer such a high maintenance gift?"

Ike laughed. Risa had never kept a plant alive for more than two days. The twins didn't know it, but even their mother winced, albeit inwardly, every time Risa received one of Eudora's infamous 'living gifts,' knowing she was going to find a dead moldy plant somewhere in her daughter's room a month later.

The twins sat down on the floor and went through the rest of their gifts, trading and commenting on each. When they were through, Risa ended up with all the comic books and Ike had the handheld video game. They nodded at each other.

"Mission accomplished," they said in unison.

"Now take your booty and scram," Risa said, climbing up to the top bunk and opening the first issue of a new comic series. "I've got a lot to catch up on."

~~~~~~~~~~

"You've got to be kidding me." Risa stared at her friends in utter disbelief.

"Oh, come on, Reese, it'll be fun," one of them cajoled.

"Actually, Risa, it wouldn't just be fun, it would be funny," a second one piped in. "Hysterical, even."

Risa actually looked like she was considering it.

"Hey, Reese," Jason said. "Don't tell me you're chicken."

"Fine. You're on," she grinned at him. "But only if you're my 'date.' I need a straight man, after all."

Jason grinned back. "Wouldn't miss this for the world."

"One more thing. If you value your life, you'll show up on time," she growled at him.

And so it was that Risa found herself shopping after school for something to wear to this dratted school dance. Nothing looked good on her. They were designed with curvier figures in mind. Risa gave up on the dresses and made her way to the pantsuits.

Half an hour later, she was ready to pull her hair out. Why exactly did so many of her classmates think shopping was fun? She was getting tired of trying on outfit after outfit with no success. All the pants were too long.

She finally found a short skirt and blouse on the clearance rack that she figured would have to do. She was sure she wouldn't blend in with the other girls, but that had never been her style anyway. She was just glad to find something that fit.

Jason picked up the tickets before the week was out, and made a point of flashing them at Risa with a grin.

"You're evil, Jay," she told him. He laughed.

Koto dropped Ike and Risa off at the school that Friday evening. "Make sure she behaves," he winked at Ike. Ike shuddered at the thought of being responsible for whatever Risa managed to get talked into before the night was through.

Risa's flowing skirt was green and gold, and picked up the highlights in her jade eyes. The blouse was made of shimmery pearl-colored satin that reflected the lights in the room. Depending on where in the room she stood, the two pieces either matched perfectly or clashed horribly. She winked at Jason as she deliberately chose where she wanted to stand. He lifted his hands in amused resignation as he followed his friend to the middle of the room.

Once he'd joined her, he leaned over and whispered in her ear.

"You do realize this is the dance floor, don't you?"

Risa hadn't really thought about it, but she wasn't about to move now. "So?"

He laughed again. "So I don't suppose you want to dance, do you?"

She gave him one of her looks, and when the music started, the two of them pantomimed several dance moves that they'd seen on commercials, much to the amusement of their friends.

One of them approached Jason and whispered in his ear. Jason grinned from ear to ear.

"Hey, Reese…"

Risa rolled her eyes. "Whatever it is, I'm not doing it," she stated flatly.

He ignored her, grabbing her by the elbow and dragging her towards the stage as he told her what the gang wanted her to do. She shook her head, but couldn't help laughing as he explained.

"See? You think it's funny, too!"

"But it's so stupid," she giggled.

"That's the beauty of it!"

She shook her head again, her giggles threatening to run out of control.

"Reese," he said, "I dare ya."

She doubled over laughing, then wiped her eyes and nodded. "Just remember, you asked for this," she warned.

He grinned again, and gave her a gentle shove towards the stage before walking back towards the others.

"Well?" they asked, even though they suspected the answer. Jason nodded and they started laughing.

"What's so funny?" asked Ike, who had just joined them.

"Ladies, gentlemen, and members of the jury," came Risa's voice over the sound system. Ike covered his face with his hands.

"I'd like to dedicate this next number to a very special friend of mine, Mr. Jason Venn. Jay Baby, this is for you."

She nodded to the band, who started playing the melody.

Risa grabbed the mike with both hands and starting singing. Like a lounge singer.

"Why do birds….suddenly appear…" she sang in an exaggeratedly deep voice.

"…every time…you are near…" she added gestures to accompany the words, then held up her free hand with the middle two fingers folded down. She followed this with a "head banging" motion of her head, then twirled her head in a circular motion, sending her brown hair flying. She walked across the stage as she did this until she reached the band, then ran back the way she had come, dropping to her knees and sliding a few feet as she played air guitar.

"Do those birds appear for you like they do for me?" she adlibbed. "Dahlin', just like me, they long to be…close to you…."

At this point, she stood up and started with stiff, disjointed dance moves, a parody of her earlier moves on the dance floor. Completely out of sync with the music.

About a third of the room was tittering nervously, another third was watching her with horrified fascination, and the rest of them were howling with laughter. That was all the inspiration Risa needed to further butcher the song.

She switched from a lounge singer style to a country twang, accompanied by disco moves, then went to a hard rock version for the next verse with what looked like tap dance moves, her white sneakers squeaking on the wooden stage.

She was only halfway through a combination line dancing-slash-ballet parody when the microphone was taken away from her by one of the teachers.

"Thank you, Miss Manticore, for that rather...inspired...performance," he said. Risa bowed to the crowd, then stood up and used both hands to blow kisses. "Thank you, thank you," she said, her voice loud enough without the microphone to carry across the room. She dabbed at her eyes as if wiping away tears, curtsied, then jumped off the stage.

When she rejoined her friends, she was greeted with a round of backslapping and elbows in the ribs.

"That was great," one of them said.

"Oh, man, I can't believe you really did it," said another.

"Yeah, I have all the grace of a deaf three-legged ox walking across a floor full of marbles," she said proudly.

"How'd you get her to do it?" the first one asked Jason.

He laughed. "You just have to know the magic word," he winked.

Risa noticed the guys were suddenly crowding around her, and immediately suspected something was up. She looked around at their faces, and they all stared at the ceiling and started whistling. She narrowed her eyes and tried to figure out what prank they were pulling.

She saw Ike's eyes quickly glance to the floor and then back up, and she caught the message. She looked down as well, and saw the shoe mirrors. She burst out laughing.

"Sorry to disappoint, guys," she said, pulling up the hem of her skirt. Half of them averted their eyes out of habit, and the others started laughing as they saw the pair of bike shorts Risa had on underneath the skirt.

At this point, a couple of girls approached them hesitantly, then just stood there awkwardly. Risa tapped her foot impatiently. What were they gawking at?

"Take a picture, it'll last longer," she quipped.

They blushed, shooting furtive glances between Risa and Jason.

"We were just wondering," they began together, then stopped. Finally one of them summoned enough courage to ask the question. "Are you two, um, together?"

Risa threw an arm around Jason's waist and gave him a big, noisy, and very sloppy kiss on his cheek before facing the girls again.

"Yes," she sighed. "I adore him. He is the very reason I breathe." She fluttered her long lashes at him.

Jason picked up her cue, and put his arm around her shoulders. "And Risa is the very reason I get up in the morning."

"He's the sprinkles on my donuts."

"She's the milk in my cereal."

'I don't like milk on my cereal.' she thought. "The beans in my chili."

"She's the icing on the cake."

The two of them continued like this, with Risa clasping her hands in front of her and assuming a fake swoon with every word Jay uttered, until the two girls, growing increasingly more uncomfortable, slunk away.

Jason and Risa started laughing, collapsing against each other in a giant hug.

"As if," they agreed heartily.

Risa punched Jay in the arm for emphasis. He winced, rubbing his arm and scowling at her. "Hellfire, Reese, you pack quite a punch, ya know."

She flashed him an impish grin in response.

Risa wasn't sure if it was her charismatic personality, her onstage performance, or the fact that she associated with so many of the popular guys, but an hour later, one of the few girls she hung out with on occasion came over to talk to her.

They exchanged idle pleasantries, and then the girl gestured to her own dress and spun around to flare out the bottom.

"What do you think?" she asked Risa.

"I think that pattern would look better on a set of curtains," Risa commented.

The girl looked at her in shock, then walked away.

Ike slapped Risa on the back of the head.

"You hurt her feelings," he informed her.

"But it would look better as a curtain pattern," Risa defended herself.

Ike shook his head. His sister didn't exactly have a handle on tact, but he wouldn't have her any other way.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Halfway through her fourteenth year, Risa still hadn't hit puberty, but by then she no longer cared. She knew that worrying about it wasn't going to change anything. Besides, the few female friends she had seemed to lose IQ points every time their cup sizes increased. Or maybe IQ was inversely proportional to the amount of time you spent sucking face with a boy, kind of like artificial resuscitation in reverse.

She didn't so much mind the hand holding that went on when she was with her friends and their significant others, but ugh, did they have to get all lovey-dovey when she was with them? She tried to bite her lip most of the time, figuring to each his own, but one day, she'd had enough with listening to one of the girls coo at her boyfriend.

"Alright, you two! Enough with the mushy stuff already. I would like to keep my lunch from making a return trip, ya know."

"Sorry, Risa," her friend apologized.

Risa smiled at her. "I know you are. Hey, listen, I think I'll leave you two lovebirds alone so you can get all goopy and not worry about me. I wanted to check something out anyway." With that, she left them alone.

"Goopy?" the young man asked Risa's friend.

Risa hadn't lied. She definitely wanted to check something out. She'd heard that one of the local radio stations was sponsoring an arm-wrestling competition. She knew that she was likely going to be outclassed, but she couldn't resist the challenge. Arm wrestling was one of the few things she hadn't grown bored with. She continued to do vary her weight lifting routine and religiously did push-ups every night, and whenever Han and Teshi came back home from college during school vacations, she challenged them both to a match every night. She knew that when she beat her brothers, it was because she was better. They would never throw a game and let her win, even though they did seem to soften around her at times. Of course, Han still greeted her with a headlock and a noogie, but Risa didn't mind. That was just Ahanu's way of saying "I love you."

At first, the only person she told about the arm wrestling competition was Ike. She knew her family would be supportive, but she wanted to get Ike's input first. No one in her family would lie to her if she asked for their opinion, but she knew that Ike's meant the most to her.

To her surprise, Ike was all for it.

"Reese, this will be so cool!" he said ecstatically.

"OK, who are you and what have you done with my brother?" she asked him, one eyebrow raised.

Ike laughed. "Oh, come on, Reese, you know you're good. You really should go for it. Imagine how cool that would be, to win an arm wrestling competition at your age!"

"What do you mean, at my age? You're the same age as me!"

"You're older," Ike reminded her. Risa laughed. He was never going to let her forget that he had come into the world a full twelve-and-a-half minutes after his twin.

The two of them excitedly talked about the competition all the way home.

"OK, you two, what's up?" Izzy asked them as she sat down to dinner with the family.

"I was thinking the same thing," Koto agreed. "You two look like the cat that ate the proverbial canary."

Risa looked at Ike, who nodded.

"I'm going to enter an arm wrestling competition, if that's OK," she said in a rush.

"Do you think you'll have a leg up, or an arm up, on the competition?" her father chuckled.

Risa rolled her eyes at yet another of her father's feeble attempts at humor, but laughed nonetheless. He was entitled to his off days.

The rest of dinner was spent with Risa telling them all the date of the competition and how many people had signed up so far. After dinner, during which Risa had three large helpings, she pulled a permission slip out of her pocket.

Her father skimmed through it and passed it to her mother. After both her parents read through it and nodded to each other, they both signed the permission slip for her.

"Thanks, Mom, thanks, Dad!" she said enthusiastically, then bounded off to do her homework.

~~~~~~~~~

"Ah, three day weekend," Risa said, collapsing on the sofa.

"Ree-ree, wanna play a game?" Rio asked, launching himself at her.

"Oooof!" Risa expelled a long breath. "No. Now beat it, squirt. I'm busy."

Rio looked at her quizzically, cocking his head to one side.

"Whatcha doin'?" he finally asked.

"Absolutely nothing," she said, stretching out her arms and slouching further into the couch.

"Don't bother, Ilario," Ike advised their younger brother. "She won't move for at least two days."

"You owe me," he mouthed to Risa as he led Rio outside to play.

Risa sighed in contentment. She did owe Ike for this one, but right now…

The only thing missing was a big bowl of cheese popcorn, a can of diet soda, and the latest issue of Zoidmania, the satirical spoof of Zoid battles that she had recently added to her comic book favorites.

'Oh, well,' she thought, reaching over to grab the remote. 'There's always cartoons.'

She was absorbed in a two-part episode when her mother called them for dinner. She grimaced, then eyed the VCR. "Can I tape the rest of this?" she called.

"Go ahead," her mother replied from the kitchen. "Then get your butt in here."

"You can bring the rest of you in with your butt," her father added.

Risa rolled her eyes but couldn't resist cracking a smile at yet another of her father's lame jokes.

"Hey, look, the bottomless pit is here," Rio announced loudly as Risa entered the room. Three sets of eyes swung around and stared at him. Ike calmly picked up his silverware and polished each piece with his napkin.

Risa walked over to her twin's chair. "Isaac Garvey, where do you suppose Rio heard something like that?" she asked, throwing an arm over his shoulder.

Ike returned her gaze coolly. "I would hazard a guess that he must have picked that up from Tweedle Dum and Tweedle Dumber," he said, referring to their older brothers.

"I'd watch for 'hazards' myself," Risa muttered, concealing a grin. Leave it to Ike to slip in a few digs now and then, even if he did delegate the dirty work.

Her mother set a plate in front of Risa before sitting down herself. Risa eyed her plate. It looked suspiciously familiar.

"Awww, man, leftovers?"

~~~~~~~~~

The arm wrestling competition was a bigger deal than Risa expected it to be. There was a literal mob swarming around the radio station to enter the contest.

"Not much happens in this town, does it?" Ike asked her wryly. She laughed, then went up to the desk to turn in her permission slip and sign up for a spot.

The man behind the desk eyed the petite brown-haired girl up and down before elbowing a man standing next to him. Risa tapped her foot impatiently as she waited for them to finish their inspection.

"There ain't much to look at," she said drolly, pointing to her chest.

Both men turned scarlet with embarrassment before hastening to fumble with some paperwork on the table.

Risa placed both hands on the table and leaned down to face the man who was seated.

"Listen to me carefully," she said. "I want…to enter…this competition."

He snatched her entry form and permission slip without looking at her, then handed her a slip that had information regarding the competition, including the entry fee.

"Here ya go," she said cheerfully, dropping the bills on the table in front of him and skipping off to rejoin her brother.

Han and Teshi weren't going to be in town for the big event, but they didn't want to miss out entirely. The day they had to leave to return to college, they had a brief powwow before turning to Risa.

"Hey, Runt," Han said. "I dare ya to…"

~~~~~~~~

Risa gritted her teeth as she waited for her turn in the first round. How she let herself fall for another of Han's stupid dares was beyond her comprehension. 'What is wrong with me,' she thought. 'Aren't you a little old for this type of thing?' she scolded herself.

She couldn't help laughing. Well, Teshi had jumped in with the whole double dog dare after Han told her his proposal. It wasn’t even that big of a deal, no pun intended, she thought, as she glanced down at her chest.

She pulled off her sweatshirt just before entering the stage, leaving her upper body covered by a simple white tank top. Under the tank top was a set of inflatable boobs, courtesy of her brothers. Of course she had asked them where they'd gotten these, and Teshi just laughed and said that one of Han's suitemates thought it would be funny if he gave them to Han's then-girlfriend as a gift. With a card signed with Han's name, of course. She had stormed into the dorm the following day and threw the gag gift and the card at Han's head before slamming the door behind her.

Han had merely shrugged when Teshi told her the story. "Hey, if that's what she thought of me, then it was better that she broke it off," was all he said. "Besides, I hate girls who can't take a joke."

Well, now the shoe was on the other foot, so to speak, Risa thought in amusement. The latex breasts were fully inflated, causing the tank top to strain at the seams slightly. She took her seat opposite her opponent, who tried unsuccessfully to avoid looking at her "endowments." Risa started to snicker as she moved her arm and hand in position, because the action caused the latex boobs to rub together, making a squeaking sound. Her opponent's eyes grew wide, and Risa wondered if he actually stupid enough to not realize the dratted things were fake.

She was rather disappointed in her opponent, because his attention was on her breasts more than on the match, and she easily defeated him. Not that she was sorry she won, but she hated to think that she wasn't going to get any decent practice in before the second round.

Everyone had to have noticed that she'd shed her pseudo-boobs between Round 1 and Round 2, but no one had the guts to say anything to her.

By the end of the fifth round, there were only four competitors left. The sixth round would eliminate two more of them.

Risa stretched her arms above her head, showing everyone that she was indeed flat as an ironing board, then waited for the MC to announce Round 6.

She grasped the handle on the side with her left hand as her right hand grasped her opponent's. She felt the muscles in her arm strain with the effort, but she managed to force his arm to the mat below, setting off the alarm that indicated the end of the match.

It was down to two of them.

"…and the surprise underdog in this competition is the diminutive Risa Manticore…" the MC was saying. Risa strolled casually out onto the stage, clasping her hands above her head and shaking them to the oeft and right.

"Go, Brutus!" she heard someone heckle from the audience.

'Brutus,' she thought, nodding. 'I like that.'

She and her opponent, a man who had to be at least twice her size, eyed each other as they sat down. They both flexed their hands and got into position.

The buzzer sounded, signaling the start to the match.

This one was the hardest yet, Risa realized, feeling her arm slowly lose its ground. She gritted her teeth again and pushed against her foe with all her might.

Sweat trickled into her eyes as her arm quivered, struggling to keep from giving her opponent any more of an advantage.

"BRUTUS, BRUTUS, BRUTUS!" she thought she heard from the audience.

She closed her eyes briefly, trying to center herself, and slowly felt her opponent's arm go the tiniest bit slack.

She opened her eyes, meeting her opponent's, and felt the muscles in her forearm straining.

"GO BRUTUS!" Han's voice was heard.

A grin split Risa's face. That jerk. He had planned on being here the whole time, she thought cheerily.

She didn't know that her smile unnerved her opponent. As she slowly forced his arm closer to the table, the shouts from the crowd grew louder.

"BRUTUS, BRUTUS, BRUTUS!"

She beamed at the brawny man opposite her as the back of his hand touched the table, setting off the alarm.

The crowd went absolutely wild. Risa started laughing, remembering Ike's comment about nothing much happening in this town.

"The champion of the sixth annual arm wrestling competition is Risa "Brutus" Manticore!" the MC declared.

Risa bowed before the audience before grabbing the MC's hand and holding it over her head in a gesture of victory.

~~~~~~~~~

"Geez, Brutus, nice tits," mocked Han as the family filed out of the auditorium together.

"Watch your mouth, Ahanu," warned Izzy. "There are innocent ears nearby."

Risa doubted that 9-year-old Rio hadn't heard the word "tits" before, but for once she decided to keep her size 5 foot out of her mouth and not inform her mother of that fact.

Instead she pulled the inflate-a-boobs out of her jacket and threw them at Han. "I do believe these are yours," she said sweetly.

"Han, Risa, put those away," Izzy said. "And Koto, stop laughing, it's not funny!" Their father's laughter continued anyway.

When they got home, their mother admonished them both for Risa's inappropriate display of false charms during the first round.

"Hey, all's fair in love and war, right, Reese?" Han winked at her.

"Amen," she agreed, trying to keep from busting a gut laughing again.

The following Monday at school, the guys were all crowding around her. Some of them were congratulating her, some teasing her about her sudden leap into womanhood, and others just wanted to check out this odd girl up close as if seeing her for the first time.

The unusual amount of attention paid to Risa didn't go unnoticed by some of the snootier girls in Risa's homeroom. One of them paused by Risa's desk and said loudly to the girl behind her, "This one right here is a prime example of white trash," before moving past Risa and to her own desk.

Risa turned around and gave the girl a thumbs-up. "Thanks for noticing, Your Highness."

The bell rang before the girl could respond, and Risa turned back around, struggling to keep her giggles at bay while the teacher took attendance.

~~~~~~~~~

Jason and Risa sat at the edge of the river, throwing rocks into the crystal blue depths.

"Hey, Jay, if it's a penny for your thoughts, why do people always throw in their two cents?" she asked, heaving a rather large stone into the water.

"Inflation?" Jason guessed, sending an even larger stone after it.

Risa fell uncharacteristically quiet. They continued to toss rocks for a while, then Jason broke the silence.

"OK, spill," he said, standing up and putting his hands in his pockets.

She had never been one for pretending. She dropped the rock she was holding and got to her feet.

"Do you think I'm pretty?" she asked.

Of all the possible answers Risa could have given, Jason was unprepared for that one.

"What?" he asked, blinking at her in disbelief.

She kicked at the stones at her feet, then looked him straight in the eye.

"You heard me. Do you?"

Jason struggled to come up with an appropriate response. Risa watched the expressions cross his face and nodded.

"Yeah. I kinda thought so," she said, then shrugged. "Don't worry about it, Jay, it's no big deal."

Jason bit his lip, then walked up to her and put a hand on her shoulder.

"Brutus," he said softly. "What's this all about?"

She sighed. She wasn't about to pull any punches.

"I'm thinking of dropping out of school," she informed him.

That was twice she'd floored him in less than five minutes. He rubbed the bridge of his nose tiredly. This complex girl in front of him seemed so unlike his best bud and partner in crime, he was tempted to feel her head for a fever. The Brutus he knew was smart and funny, but when she got philosophical, it was always with wry amusement or flat out belly laughs.

Drop out of school? He couldn't imagine why she'd want to. Sure, she tended to zone out on occasion, but then, so did many of their classmates, himself included. It wasn't as if she were failing or anything. She was actually pretty smart and applied herself when need be.

As he continued mulling over the recent change in Risa's behavior, she stepped up to him and put her hands on his shoulders.

"Kiss me," she said.

Jay looked into her jade green eyes in surprise. Almost without realizing it, he leaned closer and gently pressed his lips against hers. Risa's lids fluttered shut, and she tentatively kissed him back. Less than a second later, she pulled away and gave him one of her trademark grins.

"Not bad, Casanova," she teased.

Jason stared at her, wondering if he'd been taken advantage of or merely insulted. She laughed at his bewildered look.

"Jay, you know I'd never say anything I didn't mean, right?"

He nodded slowly.

"OK. I really am going to drop out of school, assuming Mom doesn't have a major cow when I tell her." Risa winced slightly at the thought. "I'll probably finish off the year. I'd hate to throw away all the time I've invested in helping Spanky develop a sense of humor, and I still plan on winning that bet about the big spring homecoming dance shindig. But I think…no, scratch that, I know I need to try something different. I'm uninspired," she said by way of an explanation.

Jay just looked at her expectantly.

"Oh, that," she said, looking rather sheepish. "I was getting to that. I was just thinking that I am going to experience a lot of things for the first time in the next year or two. I thought it would be nice if maybe the first time I kissed someone, it was someone who wouldn't tell me I sucked at it - no pun intended. And it would be nice if it was someone I kinda cared about."

He stared at her. She'd just dropped several rather large bombs, but as far as she was concerned, everything she'd said made perfect sense. He supposed that, in Brutus Logic, it did. You had to admire someone who followed through with their convictions. Risa never had been one to sit around and wonder "what if."

There wasn't much left to say after that. He walked her home.

"I'll miss you, ya know," he said once they reached her doorstep, giving her a hug as if she were leaving the next day.

"I'll see you tomorrow, you goober. Ya know," she began coyly. "If I didn't want to muck up a perfectly good friendship, I might have gotten all goopy on you back there."

He laughed, knowing that she meant every word.

"And if I didn't want to ruin my relationship with my best friend, I'd probably have told her long ago that I've always thought she was kinda cute. And that she has the most amazing eyes," he added, leaning over to plant a chaste kiss on her lips before waving farewell and leaving her staring after him.

"Loser," she said fondly. "Hmm. Cute's not so bad," she added, grinning from ear to ear.

~~~~~~~~~

Risa turned fifteen in the spring. That summer, she dropped the bomb on her parents.

"I want to go out and see the world," she stated calmly.

"What was that, dear?" Izzy asked, sure her ears had deceived her.

"I said, I want to go out and see the world. You know, now, while I'm young enough to enjoy it."

Izzy was taken aback by her daughter's statement. It wasn't as if she was surprised by her daughter coming up to her and blurting out whatever was on her mind, but it had never been something of this magnitude before. She looked helplessly over at her husband. To her further shock, he seemed to actually be considering what Risa had said.

"Koto!" she exclaimed sharply.

He turned at looked at her, then faced his daughter again.

"There must be more to it than that, Brutus," he said.

Risa nodded.

"Well, what else is there?" Izzy prompted. She had never felt like strangling one of her children before, but her fingers were itching to do so now.

"I'm bored."

"Oh, well, in that case, since you've presented such a reasonable argument, ARE YOU NUTS? WHAT DO YOU MEAN, YOU'RE BORED?" Izzy was standing over her daughter, her fists clenching and unclenching.

Koto stood up next to her and gently guided her back down to the couch.

Risa shrugged. "I was kinda hoping you'd understand," she said simply.

Koto murmured something in Izzy's ear. His wife shook her head vehemently. He repeated his words a bit firmer. Risa could make out the words "choice" and "trust" but not much else.

"No, Koto," she said softly. Koto tipped her chin up and kissed her on the nose. "I know," he whispered.

Risa started to shift her weight from one foot to the other.

"Brutus, would you mind leaving your mom and me alone for a minute?" her father asked.

"Uh, yeah, sure, no prob," she said, walking out to the kitchen to grab a can of soda. She popped the top, threw a straw in it, and sipped at it as she paced the kitchen. This was like waiting for a stay of execution, she thought. A few hiccups interrupted her train of thought.

"Risa, can you come in here?" her father asked.

'Uh oh, no "Brutus" this time. This can't be good,' she thought.

To her vast surprise, her mother embraced her as she entered the room, then removed her arms from her daughter and smiled at her sadly.

"OK," she said.

Risa looked at her mother in bewilderment, then at her father, who gave her a weak smile of his own.

"Really?" she asked in amazement.

"Yes," her mother said, her eyes full of unshed tears.

"Wooo hoooo!" Risa whooped. She felt bad that her mother was so sad, but she knew that she needed to get out there and find her calling. The only things that she enjoyed were comics and arm wrestling, and neither was exactly a vocation in life. She would miss Ike and Rio and a few of the guys, especially Jay, her partner in crime, but she knew she would go insane if she hung around waiting for inspiration to hit. She honestly felt that these early teenage years were wasted in school. As it was, her attention span could be measured in nanoseconds.

She wanted to travel light. The worst part was deciding what she really needed to bring and which things could be left behind. Her father insisted on giving her a car. She protested weakly, but in the end, she knew she'd be a lot safer traveling in a car than on foot or by bike. If worse came to worst, she could always sleep in the car in relative safety. She was sure her father was providing her the vehicle more for his own peace of mind than to make things easier for her, not that he wouldn't want to help her in any way he could.

She packed a single change of clothes, a jacket for the colder months, and a stack of her favorite comics. Hey, no one said she had to rough it entirely on the road, right? She shoved the roll of bills her parents gave her into her front pocket, where it would be safest, and kissed them both good-bye the following morning.

She climbed into the station wagon her father had given her and drove away.

~~~~~~~~~~

The station wagon was a godsend, Risa realized the first few nights. Her parents had thought to load the back with several pillows and blankets, and she did indeed camp out in the car every night.

She reached Leo City a few days later and decided it was a good a place as any to find a job.

To her dismay, she didn't find anything she liked. She didn't mind getting up early if she had to, and she was always at work well before the scheduled start time. She put 110% into everything she tried, and was willing to work overtime whenever she was asked.

However, she found that the jobs she had tried were boring. Office work was the worst, followed by the food service industry, then janitorial work. She had even given proof reading a try, but she tended to get too involved in the stories to effectively catch all the punctuation errors that peppered the manuscripts.

She managed to get a position as a veterinarian's assistant at a dumpy little anizoid clinic a few months later. At first she was hesitant to take a job there, wondering how clean and safe it was for the patients, but she realized that the vets there really did care for the anizoids. Apparently it was in the state it was because there were a lot of factions out there that disapproved of anizoids, so much so that clinics like this one received death threats if they were lucky, and were bombed or set on fire if they weren't.

Risa's sense of justice won out over any fear she might have had for her safety, and she told the veterinarian in charge that she'd be happy to help them in their fight to save anizoids.

Unfortunately, the anizoids didn't know friend from foe, and one day Risa found her hand in the jaws of a digital animal. She would have normally pulled her hand away sooner, but she stared at it, fascinated, wondering how it was possible to feel pain from a holographic image. Then she realized with a start that it was chewing on her right hand. She jerked her hand away rapidly. Unfortunately for her, her sudden motion panicked one of the other assistants, who thought Risa was attacking the anizoid. He pushed her away from the R.U. violently, and she lost her balance. Her right hand crashed into a table full of beakers and vials, smashing the glass into pieces.

"Moron," she muttered, as she sat on the floor picking pieces of glass out of the back of her hand.

A couple of the vets heard the crash and ran in to check on their patients and their assistants. One of them squatted in front of Risa and removed all the bits of glass from her hand, then pulled her over to a sink and washed it. She winced as the water stung the numerous cuts on the back of her hand.

The vet glanced at her wounds after they were clean and frowned. "I think they'll be OK," he told her. "I don't think stitches would help at all. Either way, it's hard to say if there will be any scarring."

Risa waved her left hand in the air. "So I won't become a famous hand model," she said. "No biggie."

The vet bandaged up her hand and sent her home early.

The next day the two assistants were questioned about the incident in the clinic. The vets were relieved to hear Risa's side of the story, and let her stay on.

Of course, Risa grew bored with that soon, too. It wasn't that the anizoids were boring. It was that she was no longer learning anything new about them. All she was learning these days were the politics regarding anizoids. She sighed. She supposed she'd have to find something else to do.

She had followed her father's advice and made sure that half her wages went to the fund her parents had set up for her, for a "rainy day" they told her. That meant she was free to spend the rest of her wages on anything else. Room, board, entertainment…

For the most part, Risa spent it on food. Her appetite hadn't changed; she still loved to eat. She had discovered chilidogs at a little food stand on the street corner one day and was firmly hooked.

She thought she'd found her dream job when she found part-time work at a comic store, until she realized that some people viewed the illustrated stories a bit differently than she did.

She and her co-worker Dave raved about some of the newest issues. When Risa's break rolled around, she pulled one of her favorite comics out of her back pocket and sat down in the back room to re-read it. She was deeply involved in the story when Dave came back to tell her she had only two minutes left, so she didn't see his eyes nearly pop out of his head.

"What are you doing!" he cried. She jumped up guiltily, then realized she wasn't doing anything wrong.

"What?" she asked, looking around at the chair and the floor to see what was making him look like he'd seen her committing murder.

"That's an original release premier issue of Chakasu!"

She looked at the comic in her hands and grinned. "Yeah! It's one of my all time faves!"

"What have you done to it?" he cried in dismay.

She raised an eyebrow at him in question. "Done to it?"

He began to blather about cardboard backing and acid free polymer covers and mint condition before she tired of his prattle. She rolled her comic back up and stuck it in her back pocket. He looked like he was going to faint.

"Break's over," she said, then walked past him and back into the store.

Her views of proper comic care and Dave's were vastly different, and he never failed to find an opportunity to criticize her for not recognizing the gold mine she would have had if only she'd taken proper care of the various manga she had.

She didn't take it lying down, and dished out comments about his anal retentive nature. One day they got into a raging argument when a customer walked in. The following day, both she and Dave were given a dressing down by the owner of the store.

"So do you two have anything to say for yourself?" he asked, looking from one to the other.

"Yeah," Risa said. "He's an idiot," she said, pointing at Dave. "Bye." She gave the owner a smart salute and walked out. As she reached the exit doors, she turned. "I'll pick up my final check," she added.

Once outside, she closed her eyes, leaned her head back, and let the sun hit her full on the face. It hadn't been as much fun as she'd thought, and she ended up spending more money than saving it anyway with all the temptation nearby. Besides, if she had to listen to Dave lecture her one more time, she was ready to give him a wedgie he'd never forget. She laughed at the thought. It was too bad it hadn't worked out, but at least she could go back to reading her well loved comics in peace.

She turned sixteen the following year, and realized that puberty had finally crept up on her. Sure, she didn't exactly have curves to die for, but she did have them. In fact, she thought as she examined herself in a mirror one night when she rented a room at a hotel, she had an athlete's body. Curvy enough to say "That's right, I'm a woman" but slender enough to jog around the block without getting a set of black eyes. She laughed at the visual image she'd conjured. Han would find that highly amusing. She patted her stomach to insure that her eating habits hadn't added any unwanted curves to her body, and was pleased to see that her metabolism was handling her steady diet of burgers, Buffalo wings, and nachos rather well. She popped open the can of diet soda she'd gotten out of the vending machine and plopped down on the bed to watch cartoons.

She found a job cutting sheet metal a few weeks after her birthday. That lasted all of three days before she managed to get into an argument with one of the foremen. She pointed out a safety hazard in the area, and he informed her that she hadn't been there long enough to recognize hazards. She told him where she thought he was keeping his head in order to draw conclusions like that. She was sure she was going to be given her walking papers, but then another foreman came by to ask what the problem was. She led him over to her work area. The carbide saw blade was guarded on three sides to prevent the worker from sawing off their fingers. However, there was a hinge that held the top guarding in place, and it was not firmly attached. Both foremen shook their heads, and Risa exploded.

"Can't you see that this is an accident waiting to happen?"

One of them apparently realized that arguing with Risa was not going to work, so he assumed an "OK, I'm listening" expression and asked her to show him how she performed her job.

Of course the hinge chose that moment to let go, trapping her hand between the guarding and the table top. The first foreman panicked, worried that Risa would sue him since she had warned him of the hazard, and grasped her wrist, pulling her hand free in one tug.

The three of them stared at Risa's cut and bleeding hand. "Dammit, why is it always my right hand?" she complained.

After that, she told them in no uncertain terms what they could do with the job. They ended up paying her two weeks severance when she returned to collect her paycheck. She knew it was hush money, but she took it anyway. She knew she hadn't really been bought. After all, they'd fixed the problem after her little incident, so at least she knew no one else would get hurt. That was enough for her. She had no desire to become a crusader for occupational safety.

A few days later, she was admiring a Cannon Tortoise that was resting outside a Z-shop. Risa grinned as she thought of the hours she and Han had spent on that stupid Molga.

"Like it?" a voice said behind her.

She nodded, then turned to face the owner of the voice. It was a young man with a rather unsettling grin on his face.

"It's really neat," she said. "Can I touch it?"

He looked her over, then nodded. "Go ahead," he said.

She ran her hands over the thick armor, wishing she were taller so she could better see the mortar cannon. As it was, she still hadn't hit the five-foot mark.

"What brings you to Leo City?" the young man was asking.

Risa looked at him square in the eye. "Why do you want to know?" she countered.

He looked perplexed that she would ask. "I'm sorry?" he asked.

"You're kind of giving me the creeps," she said.

His face flushed. "And you're kind of making me think you're a skank," he said.

She grinned at him as if he'd just handed her the biggest compliment. "Hey, thanks. Ya know, I never thought I'd hit puberty, but hell's bells, I guess I did," she said, gesturing to her body's new curves.

He scratched his head, wondering what the hell to make of the blunt young woman in front of her. Like how she could talk about her womanly attributes when she'd so obviously indicated that he made her skin crawl.

He noticed a small glint of silver hanging out of the pocket of her ripped jeans.

"What's that?" he asked, pointing.

She gazed at him steadily for a minute before glancing down. "Oh, this?" she asked, pulling her key chain out of her pocket. She touched the little emblem that dangled from the key ring. "Regional Champion, Sixth Annual Arm Wrestling Competition" she read aloud, then grinned at him and bowed.

He started laughing, and despite her initial unease, Risa joined in. He walked over to her, towering over her, and pointed his finger at her.

"You're telling me that you - " he began, but his finger got just a little too close to Risa's face, and she snapped. She pointed her own finger at him, poking him in the chest sharply with each word.

"Do…not…EVER…get in my face…AGAIN!" she said, her voice increasing in volume with every breath. A small crowd had gathered at her sudden violent outburst.

He backed away, holding his hands up. "Listen, you little freak, sorry. I just find it hard to believe that a scrawny thing like you could have beaten anyone. I think maybe your father or brother or boyfriend -"

Now that he was out of her personal space, Risa had calmed down. "I am the regional champ of my hometown," she grinned. "And I'd be happy to prove it."

He threw back his head and laughed again, this time long and loud.

"OK. If you don't think I can do it, what do I get if I win?" she asked. He stopped laughing and stared at her.

"You're serious," he said.

"Serious as a heart attack," she said, her chipper voice belying the truth of her words.

He laughed again. "Sweetheart, what do I get if I win?"

"What do you want?" she asked brashly.

He gave her figure a full once over. "A date," he leered at her. The way he said it made it sound like he had more in mind than that.

Risa mulled it over. A date in a public place should be fairly safe. That is, assuming she lost, which she had no intention of doing.

"Fine. And if I win," she said, nodding towards the Cannon Tortoise, "I get to take Pokey over there for a spin."

"Sweetheart," he drawled. "If you win, I'll give you the tortoise." He laughed again.

They both went inside a nearby diner and sat at a booth, ignoring the curious glances of the patrons and staff within.

Risa placed her elbow on the table and held out her bandaged hand. Drat, she'd forgotten about the injuries she'd acquired recently. It didn't matter, she told herself, this was for Pokey.

The young man smirked at her and grasped her hand tightly, insuring that he squeezed her hand tight enough to make her wince.

'Keep smiling, chuckle head,' she thought. 'You won't think it so funny after I take Pokey away from you.'

The bout lasted longer than Risa had hoped, and her bandages started to turn red as some of the cuts opened back up. She hadn't expected that, but there was nothing that could be done now. Besides, her hand would heal. How often would she come across the chance to win a Zoid of her very own?

At one point, the waitress came by hesitantly to see if they wanted to order. Risa couldn't help but notice the woman's bountiful bosom, and she started to snicker, remembering when she wore her brother's falsies during the championship match. As a result, she came close to losing this impromptu match, but as Han would say, 'close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades.' She felt herself weaken briefly, then glanced at the window at the Cannon Tortoise. She wanted that Zoid. The muscles in her arm flexed as she slowly sent the tide of battle in the other direction. Her opponent's eyes widened with shock as Risa's brute force sent his hand crashing into the table. She grinned at him broadly, then held out a hand.

"Pink slip," she said, pointing to her palm. He would have protested if he hadn't noticed the diner was now full of witnesses that had been outside when he'd boasted that he'd give her his Zoid if she beat him. His father was going to be pissed. He reached into his wallet and pulled out the ownership paperwork. Risa glanced at it quickly and pocketed it.

"A real pleasure doing business with you, Ephram," she said, using the name that she'd seen on the papers. She stood up and gave an exaggerated bow to the crowd, then started blowing kisses.

"Thank you, ladies and gentlemen, you've all been beautiful. I'll be here all ze week -"

"No, you won't!" bellowed the owner of the diner.

"I'm just kidding, geeeez," she said, then waved farewell and backed out of the diner.

She admired the Cannon Tortoise one more time before climbing into it. Maybe this would be her calling in life. If she remembered anything Han had said, it wouldn't hurt to get hired by a Zoid team so she could register as a Zoid warrior. Once that was done, there would be more than just this simple slip of paper proving that she owned Pokey.

No matter, she'd head off with Pokey and do what she could. She'd find a hiding place for the station wagon until she could come back for it. She'd heard of an upcoming convention in one of the neighboring cities later in the year. If she couldn't find anything before then, perhaps she'd try her luck there.

"Well," she said, "I wonder how comfortable it is, sleeping inside a Zoid cockpit." She laughed again, sounding much like a girl half her age.

"Let's get acquainted, Pokey, shall we?" she asked as she put the Cannon Tortoise in motion. The controls weren't all that different from Han's Molga. She wasn't worried about maneuvering the Zoid, but she'd have to figure out how to handle things like firing the mortar cannon. If she hoped to become a Zoid warrior, she'd have to quickly learn the various functions of her newly acquired prize. Then maybe she could save up some money to upgrade her arsenals if needed. If nothing else, at least she wouldn't be bored.

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