"Okay, so you got your tip book on stalker prevention, stalker responses, you got your whistle. Self-defense handbook outlining how to defend yourself with your car keys. You've got car keys, right?" Shin eyed her. "... maybe house keys will do."

Shin and Kealey were in her room. The bed was absolutely covered in bound paper printouts, various valuable trinkets, a whistle, cans of pepper spray, an inflatable baseball bat, a brown wig, and aviator sunglasses... Shin had already outlined most of the uses for each and every device for Kealey. He'd drummed up a heavy guide book on how to survive stalkers from the internet, and built her a kit. After the scare with the photographs, they couldn't be too careful. He'd taken a page out of his good friend Yamada's book. He was going to stick with her, and protect her. He'd walk her to school, and he'd walk her home. If the stalker wanted to stalk her, he'd be there.

"Is that everything...?" Shin wondered. He looked around at the mess of things he'd placed on her bed. All that was missing was a plushie defense force. Maybe he could stick pick one up...?

Kealey looked at each item in turn as Shin pointed them out on her bed. They’d been sitting there, going through things for quite some time now, and the blond looked at the assembled materials with a mixture of trepidation and amusement. Shin was dead serious, though, so Kealey kept her face straight and nodded as he asked each question.

There were hats, brochures, whistles, pepper spray, books, and even an inflatable bat. She almost failed at holding together the straight face when she looked at the inflatable bat. Out she reached, grabbing the hat and tucking her hair up underneath it. Next came the aviators, the effect was supposed to be at least a little comical. Keeping a positive outlook on this situation was something Kealey was finding helpful. Dwelling on the fact that someone was following her, taking pictures, and burning down places of distinct personal meaning….was bad.

”Do you recognize me?” she asked with a grin, then got more serious, ”I’ve got everything Shin.” she said, reaching out and patting him on the shoulder. ”And with you escorting me everywhere, I’m going to be perfectly safe.”

”I’ve got house keys.” she added.

It was silent for a moment, and Kealey sighed, glancing to the doorway, ”I haven’t heard about any more fires…maybe whoever it was got their message across with the pictures…”

His uncertain eyes swung back to Kealey. She had everything. Okay. He put a hand to his chest. That was a relief. No plushie army was needed. He wouldn't have to rush out and get her stuffed animals and anime characters, or make her X-men-themed dolls. His eyes locked on hers.

She said she was fine. With him with her, she'd be safe. And fires hadn't happened. Maybe the person had... But maybe they hadn't, and they were still out there, and...

"I'm sorry," Shin looked down at the bed. "I guess I'm just worried. Even if I know things will be fine." It had been scary. He'd been losing sleep.

He took a deep breath. If he wasn't calm, she wasn't calm. This was serious, but he didn't need to be so serious.

"So," Shin changed the subject. "I think we still need something." He looked up from the bed, back to Kealey. "Your bed's kind of empty, in thorough need of a plushie army. Maybe we could... make some? And you could teach me a bit about costume-designing, for little stuffed Shin-dolls? Electric Soldier Porygons in tophats... with monocles? ... oversized Sams, with googly eye..." He tapered off, omitting the (s). Shin wasn't worried, now. He was cracking joke(s).

Shin was relieved for a moment as Kealey pointed out the fact that she had everything. It was true, she had everything she needed, and Shin had showed her how to use it all. They were set. Not quite though, their eyes met, and Kealey could almost feel the gears in Shin’s head shift. Over the next few moments he grew progressively more nervous, more worried. As a result, Kealey got more nervous and worried. Maybe she was taking things too lightly….maybe the stalker was just biding their time for the right moment. Maybe all of that was the point…

Shin took a audible deep breath, and the nerves slowly skidded to a halt. Kealey mirrored the deep breath and fists she hadn’t realized she was clenching loosened. She didn’t need to say thank you…he’d known. "It's alright..." she said, taking another deep breath and releasing it, "I'm actually glad you care enough to worry...it's nice not being alone."

Shin switched topics as fast as he’d pulled himself from the nerves a moment before and now he was talking about making little plush figures because her bed looked lonely. Kealey turned her head and looked at the bed. Right now it didn’t look lonely at all…it looked like a library and self-defense catalogue warehouse all bundled into one. The thought was funny and she grinned a bit.

Shin still wanted her help with costume designing, and he thought they should make her a little army of stuffed animals. He suggested a porygon doll, and a him doll, and…at the image of the Sam doll with his roving eye, Kealey burst into giggles.

”I don’t know about that one Shin…I think I might feel like it always had its eye on me…” The joke was bad, and probably wrong…but it was so funny that Kealey couldn’t help herself.

”I think the dolls are a good idea, though…” she said, rising from her perch on the bed to move to her closet and returning with a large canvas bag, ”I’ve even got a bag full of scraps and samples right here.”

One thing though, they were inside. Kealey pulled the hat and sunglasses off, letting her hair fall free again and tossed them on the bed with the rest of the stuff. ”Where do we start?”

>> I'm actually glad you care enough to worry...it's nice not being alone."

Shin nodded, still looking at the bed. Then, he changed tactics. The plush army offensive had begun.

A plush army is a very convincing force to have at one's command. With fearsome fluff stuffing and threatening threaded threats, they fight in every theater, and battle their ways... into everyone's hearts. They wage a war of wibbles, cut down opposition with cuddles, and use napalm.

Smile napalm. They are a force to be reckoned with. They are a force... of comfort!

Kealey needed that army. Shin would organize the troops.

Kealey grinned. He fired a volley of grins right back.

>> ”I don’t know about that one Shin…I think I might feel like it always had its eye on me…”

"Ha ha!" Sergeant Shin's chest staggered with laughter. He hadn't been expecting that shot. He was wounded... with amusement. Shin nodded slowly, containing his mirth. "No. I don't suppose we'd want that. He wouldn't be a very good cuddle companian, either. Probably very cold..." He held his chin with a nod.

He watched as she rose, to gather supplies. Shin's eyes followed her and he continued the conversation across the room. "I'm glad you like it," He smiled. "There are all sorts of things we can make."

So many choices, and where to begin?

"White Tuxedo Shin doll?" Shin suggested innocently. "Or maybe a steadfast Bulbasaur guard?"

Kealey grinned as her slightly inappropriate joke was well received. Grinning was helping the situation. Vastly preferable to the dwelling and frowning that had been going on before. Shin was very good at these kinds of things, but before she could get all sappy and grateful again, Kealey busied herself going through the bag of scraps and pulling out pieces that could possibly be relevant.

Shin agreed that a Sam doll probably wasn’t the best idea, or companion, and Kealey nodded her head. That would have been strange. Things hadn’t been awkward between the two of them, even after the “date” they’d gone on….but still. Surely there were better options.

…like a bulbasaur…and a white tuxedo Shin. Hmmm. Shin had been asking her for some time now to show him how tuxedos were put together. Kealey had agreed to show him, and on a small scale like this, the teaching would be easier than working with full sized materials and such. When they were done, hopefully Shin would have something to work off for the costume he was determined to make and Kealey would have a few different cuddle companions for her room at the mansion.

The whole idea was endearing and she nodded her head, ”I think we should make both.” she paused and laughed again, blond ringlets bouncing as she shook her head, ”With those two standing guard, I’ll be the safest person in the mansion!”

>>”I think we should make both.”

Shin grinned. She was cute when she laughed.

With those two standing guard, she'd truly be safe. Then, he could rest at ease.

"Well then," Shin said with a slight grunt, pushing up off his knees to rise from the bed. He walked over to look at what she had. "Which first? Where do you want to start?" He rested his hands on his hips, smiling down at the bag of supplies.

Warm and fuzzy was so much better than nervous and cold. Kealey put up with a lot of negative emotions because of her powers, but on the flip side, she got to feel the good ones too. When people were laughing and playing and genuinely enjoying themselves Kealey did too, and if she was already having a good time, it was twice as nice. This was definitely one of those times.

Shin moved over to check out the scraps and extra fabric Kealey had in the bag and she pulled out a haphazardly cut piece of linen that she’d had left over from a school project. ”I know most tuxedos aren’t made of linen, but I think this would serve our purposes quite well.” she said, laying it to the side. More fabric followed for all the necessary components. Bulbasaur was next, and soon they had a nice little pile of fabric for each doll set aside.

”Hmmm, do you want to learn how to do the tuxedo right off the bat, or do you want to watch me make the bulbasuar then tackle the tux? Either way works…though we need a frame of reference for bulbasaur…”

Luckily…Kealey hadn’t returned Shin’s Pokemon books yet, and they were still stacked on her shelves. Over she skipped, then returned while flipping through the pages. ”Here we go.” she said, laying it down and tilting her head. ”He’s so cute! This was a great idea.”

That said, Kealey moved to her desk, pulling out pattern paper and her notebook, pins, thread, needles, and scissors. Hands on her hips, she looked from all the materials to Shin, ”What do we think?”

>> ”I know most tuxedos aren’t made of linen, but I think this would serve our purposes quite well.”

Shin held his chin thoughtfully, and nodded. "Okay," He agreed. He paid close attention as she selected materials. Green fabric, and white fabric, and fabric in colors he couldn't quite decipher, that might have had fanciful names like 'salmon' and 'kiwi breeze' went into the pile. Soon, they had a manly stockpile. Shin sat down on the floor next to it, picking up odds and ends for examination. He glanced up at her from a piece of nice forest-green fabric when she asked him a question.

"Bulbasaur, first," He decided. Shin wiggled the fabric in his hands. "This will be perfect for the bulb on his back."

He watched her skip to retrieve the book, then deposit it on the desk. Shin dropped his attention back to picking out fabrics in colors that matched the bulbasaurs of his memory.

>>"What do we think?"

Kealey asked him. Shin looked up from the piles and selections he'd separated by colors. "I think we've got everything we need to make the best Bulbasaur ever, Kealey." He replied.

Bulbasaur was first. Kealey nodded to Shin as he continued to pull materials from the scrap bag. He settled on the floor and Kealey started gathering materials to do the same. The book and all the sewing things went with her and down she sat. Shin suggested that they had everything they needed to make the best bulbasaur ever and Kealey had to grin. ”I think you’re right.”

”Okay.” she said, holding up some of the pattern paper and a pencil, ”You don’t just cut the pieces out. First you have to cut out the different pattern pieces. Then we pin them to the fabric, cut out the pieces, then we sew.” she said.

Checking the picture for reference, Kealey quickly sketched out the pieces that would come together to make the bulb. Handing the sheet to Shin, she nodded to the scissors, ”Go ahead and cut those out, then pin them to the green fabric and cut them out.”

Back to sketching Kealey went, drawing out the pattern for what would ultimately be the body. There was a nice light blue that would serve the purpose well. It wasn’t the exact shade of a bulbasaur from the games, but they were working with scraps here.

It was quiet in the room while they worked, but it was a comfortable science, and the emotional climate was more relaxed for Kealey than it had been for days. She sighed happily and glanced at Shin, ”So, Shin. What‘s your favorite food?” she asked. Their conversations so often veered towards the serious…and lately they all seemed to be about Kealey. She was curious, and now seemed as good a time as any. As far as she could remember they’d never talked about food outside of waffles…and food was always a great subject.

>>”Okay.

Kealey began.

Shin listened, raptly. He nodded. "Patter pieces. Got ya. So, it's like a jigsaw puzzle?" With each part of the costume, there was a specific piece? It wasn't all made up like a knitted sock. There wasn't one long process of knitting on the same object... the pattern had to be outlined first? He supposed that would give them an idea of how it would look. It'd define the shape and look of the suit. From the groundwork, they could ascend to the final costume.

It was curious. How would he do something like that with his shards? Shin thought for a second, coming to a quick conclusion. Perhaps, individual shapes and pieces of the outfit could be conceptualized at a time? He could start with, say, a glove, then work from there, up to the jacket, pants, and hat? Aha!

He kept his 'aha' moment to himself, moving to do as she requested. His eyes swung to take quick note of what she was doing while he was cutting out bits and pieces. She was planning the concepts out on paper. Mmm, that made sense too. Perhaps, he could use a computer program to make a three-dimensional model... or maybe he could maintain one in his head?

Fun stuff.

As he worked, Shin tried to guess what shapes they'd want for the pieces. She hadn't explained her vision. At one point, he skittered over to compare what he'd been doing with her sketches. He didn't talk, just eyeballed it, and showed her what he was doing. He focused on the shapes and colors, measuring carefully with his eyes before he cut. He was so engrossed with his work in the silence, Shin was surprised when Kealey asked him an unexpected question.

What was his favorite food? Hmmm.It wasn't a hard question to answer.

"Curry rice," Shin said. "With vegetables and chicken, or beef. Sometimes, I like it spicy. Sometimes, a bit sweet. It's always got this kick of flavor, you know? And the veggies are so good. Have you had it?" He looked to her. "Another food I like in New York a lot is the Sea Dog." He paused. That reminded him about Kasumi. One of their first dates, he'd taken her to the aquarium to eat sea dogs. For a moment, his emotions turned bittersweet... then, they shifted away from that. He wasn't dwelling on those thoughts. He'd left her for the team. He hoped she would some day understand. He hoped she was alright.

Shin turned the question back on Kealey with a small smile."What about you? What's your favorite food?" Maybe he could try making it? He was no Aurum, but he could try!

The best thing about working with Shin, at least on this project, was that he was completely focused. If Kealey had been asked to guess she’d have said it was because of his plans to make his own tuxedo out of his shards. It didn’t matter though, she’d gotten over that a while ago. Attention to detail was good when making little dolls.

The pattern pieces for the body were cut out now and Kealey quickly pinned them to the scrap of fabric she’d picked out a few minutes earlier. Two pairs of scissors meant the work went twice as fast and soon Kealey had cut out the individual body pieces.

Shin answered her question about food with a long description of something that sounded slightly exotic but incredibly good. ”I haven’t….” she said, tilting her head and frowning slightly at the momentary shift. She almost asked, then decided to shrug it off when Shin did the same. ”I’ll have to try it some time.”

The question was flipped, then tossed back at her, and Kealey really had to think.

”I…don’t really know Shin….” she said, slightly embarrassed, ”Just like everything else, food makes people feel things, strong things. A lot of times the spillover makes me confused…”

Kealey thought for a moment as she went back to the scrap bag, pulling out the various sets of googley eyes she had in there. The cheeseburgers at that place Jacen had taken her too had been awesome…twice. Then there was the Italian food…and lots of other things. Kealey almost laughed, remembering just how much she’d eaten around him. The more she thought, the more her mind went back to the burgers. Then there’d been that cheeseburger place with Sam. Yup.

”Ummm, cheeseburgers.” she answered definitively. ”I know that sounds silly…but it’s true. I love cheeseburgers.”

Hmmm. What else. Kealey thought for a moment and her mind harkened back to the first time she’d met Shin, at the Full Circle. The Badger had waved her in and a case of mistaken identity had caused Kealey to respond to a cat’s name.

”How about your favorite book? And which eyes?”

She hadn't had curry rice. It was decided, then. He'd have to try making her some. It'd be like waffles with peanut butter, a sharing of favored flavors. It would be good.

She said she'd have to try it, and Shin nodded. "Some time."

Shin knew what he liked. He figured she'd like it, too. But when he asked her about her own favorites, she couldn't immediately give an answer. That made him pause. Emotions even influenced what foods she liked? Huh.

She was a little embarrassed about it, it seemed. "I understand," Shin tried to evaporate the embarassment with a subtle smile. "I've had times where it's been like that. People are so excited about some food, they go overboard... and then, you have to tell them you like it, even if you don't. And if you aren't careful, they make you more because they think you like it... kind of silly." Silly Japan.

He supposed if she was with someone who really liked something, she could enjoy anything. That was interesting. But she had to have things she liked on her own. It was probably just a little harder picking it out.

He'd been right on the money. She answered him with certainty. Cheeseburgers.

"Cheeseburgers are yummy," Shin smiled. "With bacon, or without?"

She had a lot of questions for him today, it seemed. Now, it was his turn to be uncertain. Shin held his chin thoughtfully. "Hmmmmm... I dunno. You remember when I gave you all those reccomendations, right?" Back when they'd first met?

Some day she would try this curry rice. Kealey nodded her head and smiled. Maybe it would be like the waffles. That had been an excellent, late night, experience. Waffles with peanut butter…who knew? Kealey’s horizons had broadened that night, and it had been wonderful.

She was embarrassed about not knowing her favorite food, but Shin said he understood. Kealey stopped cutting for a moment look at him as he explained. The more he spoke, the wider she grinned. He did understand what she was talking about. It was the first time anyone had even understood what she’d meant about the food, let alone empathized with her. Sure, the situation Shin was describing was slightly different, but the gist of the thing was the same. The blond nodded enthusiastically.

”Exactly. Or, I’ll eat something in a restaurant, then get it again later and hate it.” she said, laughing. ”Fascinating.

Shin seemed to approve of her final revelation about cheeseburgers and asked a follow up question. ”Hmmmm. Both ways, depending on the other toppings.” she answered non committally.

The book question was apparently a little more difficult and Kealey watched closely as Shin worked through indecision to try and answer her question about books. She grinned when he asked about the recommendations he’d made, ”Of course I do. That was the first time you made my day better. I was actually just thinking about it.” What she said was true. She'd been avoiding her apartment that day and had wandered aimlessly into the book store. Had it really been that long ago? Memories surfaced unbidden, some Kealey wished had stayed where they belonged.

She stopped talking and shook her head for a moment, ”Those poor books…the anthologies and such. I’d checked them all out from the library, you know? They were in my apartment when Roland burned it down.”

She screwed her face up in concentration as she thought, trying to remember, ”I know you got really excited about a couple books…maybe it was Foundation? Or something by L’engle. Am I close? I still need to finish those.”

>>”Exactly. Or, I’ll eat something in a restaurant, then get it again later and hate it.” she said, laughing. ”Fascinating."

Shin smiled. "Indeed."

Truly fascinating.

More fascinating than bacon. Not quite as fascinating as books.

There were so many good ones. He remembered that day quite well. It seemed she did, too. Book-talk and palindromes, and happy badgers. It was a nice memory.

Shame Roland had to tarnish it with his presence. Come to think of it, she'd had a bruise that day he'd made efforts not to notice. Had that been him too? Who could say? Shin's mood dipped slightly at her comment.

"... Oh. That wasn't nice of him." He said. It was best not to dwell on it, though. This was supposed to be something happy, to keep Kealey's mind off the troubles in her life. He wouldn't forgive himself if he forced his way into sad waters, and dampened the mood.

"I can lend you some of my own, if you'd like?" He volunteered. He definitely remembered L'engele, and Asimov, and Mary Shelley, and... so many other names. "Shelley, L'engele, Asimov... I'm trying to read a book right now, actually. I don't think it's in that list. Atlas Shrugged? ... I don't really like it yet, though... I think it might be more Aurum's cup of coffee..." He screwed up his face.