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Akshay nearly squeaked. One second he was sitting innocently next to his girlfriend, getting ready to watch TV and settle himself in for a night of pizza and chatting; and the next he suddenly was pounced upon (by a very beautiful pouncer he must add) and was pinned down to his sofa! Akshay had been startled and assumed that something was wrong with Emerald, but one look at her face and it was obvious that she was fine. Well, not really “fine”, but at least there was nothing for him to panic about.

Still, though, he was a little worried by the expression on her face. AND the growl coming from her lips! Needless to say he really didn’t know how to interpret any of this since he had never seen this side of her.

Cautiously he opened his mouth to speak but she had beaten him to the punch…

>> "Akshay, I know you are just trying to be nice, but, damn it, it's making it worse! I want... I want to be with you…"[/color]

He blinked…

>> "You are one of the only people I trust enough to let you see me weak. You are one of the only ones who can calm me down if I’m angry. You are so many things to me, and I want to be with you in bed before I freaking explode or tear your clothes off! Probably both!"[/color]

Akshay had DEFINITELY never seen this side of Emerald before. In the time that they have been together, Emerald revealed, pretty much, how scared she really was about getting intimate with a guy. Honestly, he couldn’t blame her, not after everything that she had gone through. And though he wondered if the two of them would ever reach that level, Akshay stayed with her. He stayed because he liked her, he liked being with her, he liked the type of man he was when he was around her.

That was why he never pushed the issues of intimacy. Sure there was a bit of frustration now and then but it was something that Akshay was slowly getting used to. He would wait for her, whenever she was ready, because he respected her.

But now, added with the look in her eyes, heaviness of her breathing, the tremble of her skin, and the fact that she was straddling him, Akshay could respond in the only way that trustworthy man could respond…

“Okay,” was his reply as he leaned up and kissed her full on, on the lips. It was a kiss that would last a second or two before he finally forced himself to stop, resting his forehead against the nap of her neck. He would kick himself if she said no, but he was not going take advantage of a desperate girlfriend, so he had to ask— “Are you, you know, sure?”

>> "Hello."

Akshay was at such a loss for words that he could not even comprehend of what he was looking at right now. Just standing in his own shop, staring with eyes wide open, he watched what he could only assume was a living, breathing, goblin! It was just so wild that he really could not wrap his head around the concept. This was like something out of a movie or a comic book and yet, here he was, looking at this mythical creature that seemed vastly interested in his display case.

Never did it cross his mind that this creature was a mutant or anything having to do with the real world. All he saw was a Monsters and Mazes being standing full of life. Just, how was it possible? It was not until then that he noticed that the statue he hauled all the way over from the alley was gone. The statue…that now that he thought about it…looked exactly like this creature.

No…wonder!

He almost wanted to slap himself for not seeing it a second ago. Goblins, when in contact with direct sunlight, turn to stone! That was probably what happened! Some innocent goblin was wandering, lost, in the streets of New York and as caught in the sun before he could get away. It was so obvious!

>> "Need help?"

The creature was still keeping its focus intently on the creatures in the case. Akshay could only wonder what it thought. Did it think that those other miniatures were is smaller brethren? Maybe it thought it was in the realm of some wizard that had turned all his friends into stone? The possibilities were endless!

Akshay was going to have to make contact.

Standing still far away (since he didn’t want to spook the beast), he cleared his throat and responded in his best and most polite manner of Goblin speech that he learned from his years of playing Monsters and Mazes…

“R'mmu! O us ouun vno't,” he said with pride. Roughly it translated to ”Hello! I am your friend!”[/u]. At least that is what he hoped it meant. Been awhile since he spoke goblin-ish.

For a moment Akshay felt like maybe he was wrong. He had tested his theory, by calling this young woman the name that he had always known Alma as, and it seemed to be proving wrong. The lady looked confused, as if he were accusing her of being a llama or something. Nah, there was no way that Alma would have forgotten that name. Obviously, this woman was not her.

With an apologetic look he started to open his mouth to say how sorry he was. But, there was a flash of recognition across the woman’s face. Puzzle pieces were coming together and suddenly Akshay knew that he was not wrong. This was Alma.

>> “Akshay, is that you?”

He suddenly grinned, wide, and nodded his head eagerly. His mind was whirling as her began to realize exactly who this person was. Alma, a friend from before he actually came to New York; a person he never thought in his wildest dreams he would see again; Alma, his only real friend from when he lived in his foster home. She was actually here, standing before him, in the flesh and blood.

If he were not in more control of himself, Akshay would probably be bouncing on his heels! And, thankfully, that enthusiasm seemed to spill over onto Alma.

>> “No way! It’s good to see you!”

“Llamaaaaa!!” he laughed heartily as he accepted the hug.

Though it may have seemed weird for these two grown ups to act like this, especially since they barely recognized each other, Akshay didn’t mind in the least. To him this was like unearthing a sister that he had long ago left behind. Though, at twelve he could have sworn that he was in love with her sister, in reality he actually cherished the time that he had with Alma. There was a vast difference in their ages but she was still considered one of his best friends. That was why it hurt so much when he did get adopted and had to leave.

He truly never thought that he would see her again! And yet…here she was!

Finally his arms loosened from hugging her and they pulled away from each other. He was still all smiles as he looked down at her. He couldn’t believe that the little seven year-old he knew in Buffalo actually grew up into a young woman! It was ludicrous thought!

>> “How have you been? What have you been up to?”

“Haha! Fine! I’ve been living here since I was adopted!” he grinned wide. “This is actually my comic shop you managed to wander in! As in, I own it.” he beamed proudly! But it still looked funny considering that he was still in his superhero costume. But the puffed chest and the demeanor of pride slackened a bit as he turned the attention on her. “What about you? What’re you doing in town? Have you moved here?”

He hoped so. They were a good friends. And people could always use good friends in their lives.

Akshay spoke of the comics that he felt were perfect for the pretty mutant. She was seemed enthralled by all of them and peered at them each with interest. When he actually got to his own comic though, Akshay, of course, talked it up! Like a proud father showing off his new child, Akshay displayed his comic joyfully.

When he finally revealed that he was actually the artist and writer behind the piece, though, he was nearly floored by the young woman’s reaction…

>> "What?! You wrote and drew that?! That's awesome! She's so pretty! You must be really good at these comics!"

He blushed and of course he chuckled. Though Akshay loved to talk up his own piece of work, he really was not expecting such a fan-girlish type response! She obviously had never read the comic before but she seemed so happy and shocked by the fact that she was standing there, talking to the very artist of the piece himself! It was definitely the type of reply that made the young comic writer blush and feel just a tad bit shy.

But just as quickly as the notion came to his mind, he wiped it away. He smiled, warmly as the young woman eyed the comic. He always loved to make new fans.

“Haha, well, I try,” he responded. “Maybe one of these days I’ll break into the big market, but for now, I really just do it for fun.” He then thought for a second as he smiled. He moved over to his counter, plopped the comic onto it and grabbed a felt tip pen from his pen cup. Quickly he scrawled out the signature “Akshay Malik”. Once it was dry, he returned to the young woman and handed it over to you. “Please, take it, as a gift. I hope that you’ll enjoy reading her as much as seeing her.”

He beamed, brightly. Akshay…such a nice guy.

Akshay just could not shake the thought. As he stared at this young woman he saw someone from so long about that she seemed more like a dream now than an actual person. The odds of this being the same person were so astronomical that they simply couldn’t be true. As a matter of fact, the young wordsmith was beginning to chastise himself for actually calling her that name. What right did he have to assume that she was someone else? She was just another paying customer, that was all.

He took a breath and tried to shake away the thoughts. It was time to get his head back into the game and selling comics. After all the customer always came firs--

>> “No…My sister’s name is Sophia, but the mistake is totally common. We have been mistaken for twins.”

There was a moment at which Akshay felt a bit of relief. He was wrong and then he could simply move on from this. It would be awkward for a second but then they could move on to talking about comic books and then a possible sale. But, just as he was settling into this train of thought…she continued.

Sophia…was her sister. Instantly that sent Akshay for a whirl. And it was such a bad whirl that he almost didn’t hear the rest of her statement.

>> “My name is Alma, I’m going to be in-town for an undefined amount of time, so saw fit to look about for potential haunts. Such as comic book shops.”

Alma…Sophia…the dots and connections were coming so fast that the wordsmith could scarcely keep track of them. He wanted to say that it was all just a coincidence, or that maybe it was just a figment of his imagination, or even that he was just having a dream…but no. All this, all of it, it was reality. His world spun as he felt his memories momentarily overtake his vision…



A twelve year old Akshay nodded as Sophia ran off to play with some of the other girls from the neighborhood. Akshay always thought that Sophia was so pretty and tended to be her slave and do whatever she asked of him, even if it never garnered her genuine attention. According to his twelve-year old logic, so long as he did what she asked then he was her friend! And “friend” was only one word away from “boyfriend”!

But…his actions were not completely selfish. As he walked across the park, he smiled as he watched the young Sophia clone, her 7 year old sister, sitting under a tree by herself holding open a comic book. It was last month’s issues of “Raccoon Man” that he had lent her. He liked talking to Alma. Even if she was young and quiet, she was actually pretty fun to talk to…for a girl. At least she was pretty open to comic books that he was teaching her, unlike her sister.

He beamed when she caught sight of him and plopped down next to her on the ground, back against the tree.

“Hey Llama,” he beamed as he eyed her comic. “Wow, already finished huh? Well, good thing…” he said as he produced another comic from his backpocket. “I already got this month’s issue! Want to read it together?”

He smiled as the smiling face of Sophia’s younger sister nodded eagerly and leaned in eagerly to read…



Akshay blinked twice as he suddenly returned to normalcy. He remembered to breathe as he peered at the woman who seemed to be standing there, a little uncomfortable from all the attention. There was simply no way that it was her, just…none at all! But…damn she looked like a grown up version of her sister so what were the odds that she weren’t? No…he had to test this…and there was only one way…

Reaching up, he grabbed the edge of his eye mask and slowly pulled it off. As he did, he revealed his true face to her. Gently he moistened his lips, took a breath, and called her the one thing he knew that no one else in the world called Alma…

“Llama?” he inquired…

>> "Sounds like fun. I may stop by some time. What's your comic about?"[/color]

Akshay beamed. He loved to talk anything about his comic book. Maybe she would eventually become a fellow fan of it? He had to admit that he was happy to consider it. Akshay’s little comic was doing quite well by indie standards but it was still not a complete launch success. Instead it had its cult following that people seemed to enjoy.

Now, don’t get Akshay wrong! He loved the fans of his work to pieces and they usually always tended to be the nicest of people. But Akshay needed to make sure that he reached a broader audience before his fans got bored of him and didn’t talk about it anymore. Obviously he wanted his comic to be successful but he knew that it was going to be a lot of work. He couldn’t depend on the fans alone to give him in his numbers, he needed to make connections of his own.

But, for now, he would wow this potential new fan with a most glorious summing of his pride and joy, his comic book.

“Stuff.”

…

…Yeah he was not always the most articulate when it came to talking up his own material. He loved his comic, he wanted it to be a success, but he was also terrified of that. The last thing he wanted was to build up success around it, only to let his fans down by not keeping up with the quality and freshness. So far that has not been an issue, though. And it’s an issue he never wants to have.

“I mean, it is pretty much just a fantasy/horror comic,” he explained, better this time around. “Woman named Slaagathor has to battle all these monsters and creatures in the real world. Actually pretty exciting stuff if you don’t mind a little gore here and there.”