She looks so beautiful when she does that, the boy mused, watching his friend dance in the street ahead of him. The rare glimpses of sunlight that found its way through the mess of skyscrapers made her amber hair glow with a sheen that seemed to reflect and find its way into the darkest corners of the alley. Jerek gazed pleasantly on as Calista danced, twirling and spinning about, her hair flying around her as it caught the sunbeams that gave it a life of its own.

She stopped and dropped her arms to her side, staring up at the buildings as she sighed. Bringing her sight down, she looked into his eyes and a smile spread across her face. She let out a laugh, girlish and youthful, a laugh full of innocence, but one that gave her a way to hide her insecurity. The wave of natural fear that had washed over her when her eyes had met his, a typical adolescent reaction, had startled her. She loved being in Jerek's presence and she enjoyed his company, but his eyes seemed to hold so many more feelings than he showed, more than they were allowed to express. It was almost unbearable to contain her own feelings, but her intense training had formed instincts that told her to dam them up and keep them behind a rigid face and blank eyes.

No, she told herself, No, I will not. Her defiance went unspoken, however. She was sure that he felt the same way, that the Dragoon Knights were too restrictive, that they tried to strip them of all feeling, of all emotion, to become their perfect soldier. She knew he felt that way, but she could not bring herself to say it. It was such a decisive act, with such permanence that she felt she should not. The words could never be taken back, once they had been spoken, her rebellion was written in stone, inscribed for all to see. Her comfort with her own feelings and with Jerek did not yet extend to that point.

He smiled at her laugh, but he cringed inside. He had heard something in that laugh, something that wasn't quite right. Was it that she didn't like being around him, that she wasn't in the mood today or something like that? It invoked a fear of his own, but he quelled it. It was not true. He had seen her enjoy his company and spending time with him so many times before, this time would not change that. Jerek had been around Calista enough to know that.

Calista. Her very name conjured up warm images in his head, and sent tingles down his spine. His feelings for her went so much deeper than friendship, and he hoped hers did too. How he could ever find the courage to express his emotions, he did not know. Every time he was with her, he felt like pouring it all, letting it out and telling her everything. But time and time again, he didn't, he couldn't. It was the training that the Knights had instilled in him. Or perhaps it was something else, a deeper fear or inhibitor that prevented him from speaking out. He thought she felt the same way, yet she never said anything either. Perhaps they were both cursed, to be forever unable to speak truthfully.

The smile faded from her face. He was thinking, and she knew, about her. Her lips curved up again, but not as far as they had before. "What?" she asked. Maybe he would say what he was really thinking. She hoped he would.

Her question interrupted his thoughts, but he gave an instinctively quick smile. "Oh," he shrugged, "Just thinking about how you dance."

Calista felt her cheeks flush and grow warm, but she smiled back anyhow. She liked having her skills appreciated, she didn't get to show them much anymore. Her days with the Live Wires were pleasant memories, but fleeting. She was rarely able to just show off her moves anymore, no one really cared except Jerek. She giggled, considering that to be the reason she liked him so much. It was a childish reasoning, and she amended it immediately. It was definitely not the sole reason that she was drawn to Jerek.

"Thanks. Maybe I'll get you to do some with me someday," Calista teased, her eyes dancing with glee at Jerek's squirm at her suggestion.

The boy shuddered. Dancing was for girls, first of all, and second, he could never do the kind of moves that Calista could pull off. "Err, no, I don't think so. I'll just keep watching you, if that's alright."

The girl just gave a shrug and turned on her heels. She skipped a ways down the alley, spinning around to glance back at Jerek, her hair spinning again in the process. Grinning, Calista twirled again and headed around the corner, into the midst of a heavily trafficked street. Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted Jerek emerging from the alleyway as well, and slowed to let him catch up.

As Jerek turned onto the street, he had to dodge out of the way as a hurried man rushed by, brushing into other citizens along the way. He had the urge to shout at him, but he would be a voice among many. Several others were yelling at him, their comments laced with various forms of offensive and colorful language, and in several languages. The boy shook his head and jogged to catch up with Calista. He slowed down as he caught up and matched her stride.

The pair walked for a ways before a figure caught Jerek's eye. It appeared, at first, to be a statue of some sort, but no one would put a statue in the middle of the walkway. It then occurred to him that the figure was moving, its body composed of some sort of fluidic metal. It didn't make sense. As the pair drew closer, the figure came into better view, and Jerek could make out its shape, the distinctive shape of a humanoid female. He shook his head, thinking it was a trick. No, it was still there. Gesturing in its direction, he turned to Calista, "Have you ever seen anything like that?"

It took a few moments for her eyes to find where Jerek was pointing, but when they did, Calista drew back at once. It was a figure composed entirely of metal, and it seemed to be moving. The Dragoon Knights instructed them in the variety of races in the galaxy, but she had never heard of one made of metal. It could be a droid or robot, but the figure's metallic surface seemed to flow as if it was liquid or molten metal. No droid could do that. Astonished, she asked, "What is that thing?"

The figure spoke, or seemed to, as there was no movement of anything that could be called lips. The voice issued from her entire body, and at the same time, it had the air of a disembodied voice. It seemed unnatural, but then again, the figure's entire existence, at least sentient existence, seemed unnatural as well. Neither Jerek nor Calista had ever been faced with, nor had been taught about, a creature made of metal such as this.

Calista was the first one to speak, and after she did so, she clasped her hands to her mouth in instinctive embarrassment, "It talks!" She kept her hand to her face, which betrayed her action with an expression of surprise and wonder. The figure's surface, its 'skin' if it could be called that, maintained continuous motion, like the surface of a river flowing in a confined space, entranced Calista, trapping her gaze in its movements.

"Cali!" the boy exclaimed, breaking the girl's stare. He chided her, "That's rude!" He folded his arms over his chest, but let them down again. He shouldn't be angry at her, she just said exactly what he had been thinking. The figure that stood before them was an oddity. No, he thought, Something like that just shouldn't exist. It makes absolutely no sense. A sentient being, made out of metal? It defies all science!"

The girl frowned and turned to Jerek, "Well? Don't tell me you weren't surprised too." She, too, folded her arms across her chest, but they stayed there as she spoke, "I didn't even see its mouth move, if it even has a mouth."

Jerek had the urge to yell at her, Calista, his friend. He wanted to tell her, to scream at her, that whatever the creature was, it had feelings too. But no, he couldn't. Not just because he was curious too, but because he held his friendship for Calista in too high a regard. He wished to say nothing to hurt her, perhaps only because he felt the exact opposite of hurting her. He was balanced on a fence, one that he could topple to either side with his reaction. If he backed her up and went along with her, he would gain more of her adoration, her respect. But he would have betrayed his own mind, his conscious thoughts and even his conscience itself. But if he went along with those, how would Calista like him anymore? He would have betrayed her, and he could not bring himself to do that. Nothing, he vowed, would make him betray or hurt Calista in any way.

The girl stared at the boy, watching his face. He seemed to be caught in some thought or another, as he often was. She watched for a what felt like a long time, but he said nothing. He had done this to her before, it was his nature to think over what he said before he spoke. She fidgeted, impatience growing. Why couldn't he think faster? her mind screamed. Her eyes searched his face, and she realized that she was angry at him for nothing. His eyes, she saw, spoke for him, even if his mouth could not. The sudden perception that Jerek's eyes conveyed caused her to drop her folded arms and her face relaxed. She turned away from him so that he wouldn't see the small drop of moisture that had pooled in the corner of her eye and was now running down the side of her face.