Home X: Big Changes

"But, where are you going?" Asked Conza. He sits on a couch in his friend Nick's room. There wasn't much left in there besides that furniture he sat on and several boxes. "You were the first one here, why are you leaving?"

Walking up to a table and setting down a large box, Nick begins to store several...Upon several bars of chocolate inside. "I can go on and keep fighting, but I don't want to anymore. I've got to move on from...All of this. I need to get a real job, that makes real and steady money. My parents are letting me move in with them in Dobuita until I get back on my feet. And maybe I'll actually get a girl when I'm able to tell her I work at a more...Respectable place."

"But you're already on your two feet here! Y-You're standing right now!" Conza stood up from his seat, fists balled and raised. "You're what brought a bunch of us here and--"

"Am I what made you stay?" The other man interrupts. Conza quiets soon after that. Nick bows his head a bit before continuing. "Not only me and you, but all of us, we've had so many experiences here and made so many friends. It doesn't feel like its been so long but look back sometimes, will ya?"

"Well...What are you thinking about doing?"

"I've actually got my foot in the door at a few places. Nintendo is looking for people to join their new R&D1 team. Sure, I'll be an outsider...And working long nights...Probably gonna go insane and look at Mario enough that I wanna punch his smug, mushroom eating face...But--" Nick stopped when Conza wrapped his arms around his body for a hug. He looks down at his much shorter friend and pats his head.

"I'm gonna miss you..."

"Be the Face, Conza."

The shorter man looks up. "W-What?"

"You always look to others to be the hero you want to be. Be that hero for yourself."

"Well, how do I do that?"

"If you plan on being here and doubling down on your efforts, I suggest getting back in the ring as a start. Don't bite off more than you can chew, got it?" Nick pushes himself from Conza, scooping up the box of chocolate and walking towards the door. "I hear the Kawaii League just changed up their rules a bit, maybe you'll have a better chance there."

"I'm still shorter than them, and a guy! You asshole!"

"I'll send for my things!"

--------------------------

The sounds of hits and chains rattling sound through an empty gym. "So he packed his mechanical tail through his legs and left. Talked about getting a real job, and leaving us behind?"

"He said we could always visit him when he wasn't working."

"But will we?"

"I would. Wouldn't you?" There was a silence. Conza looks out from behind the punching bag he held onto. "Jay?"

Jay took some steps back from the bag, feeling up his bare knuckles that were reddened and roughed up from hitting the bag. "Maybe. You know we were never so close like that. Besides that, he lives in Dobuita now, you say? I wouldn't even wanna step over in Yakuza territory without being strapped up at the least." He walks over to a bench and picks up some wrap for his hands.

"What about you, you're not thinking of leaving are you?"

"Are you kidding? I've fought all my life, why would I stop now?"

"Point...Taken." Conza noted. "He said that I need to become the hero that I want to be. I was hoping someone like you could give me some clarity on what he meant."

"So you ask someone who does mostly for himself and is borderline heel how to be a hero type?" Jay cracks a smile. "You really still see something in me, after all this time?"

"You've changed a lot since you've been here, have you not?" Conza asks back. While Jay responded, his phone buzzes with some texts.

"I guess you could say that. People don't change so much as learn and experience. I never thought I could become stronger than I already was but I did, in more ways than one." Finishing wrapping his hands, he continues. "For example, staying in one place means I gotta hear the same people a lot more bitch and complain about shit." He then take out his phone, looking at his lock screen. A picture of himself and Lina, along with some of her friends. "But that also means that I get someone to talk to."

"I'm gonna head out. Anampo texted me. She and Ryan just dropped off Yoshiro at the airport, she and I were gonna go out for lunch. Do you wanna join?"

"Birdie's leaving too? Back to America?" Jay shook his head. "I'm good on lunch. I gotta go too."

---------------

Conza opens the door to the ramen shop. Walking out were two women chatting. They both were really out of place, even for Japan...At least maybe they were? One wore an orange sweater and a long, pink scarf that hung down past the waist. To see that in summer was quite the confusing site but..The other woman...Wore an entire outfit or cosplay or something, dragon-like it looked to be.

Conza was still going to compliment where it was due. He let them leave out before he went in. "I like your outfit, miss!"

"So, Xuan, if you wanna start going after that ninja, you're gonna need some back up to help ya ou--Ah, thank you young man. She gave him a quick thumbs up before talking to her friend again. "She could kick your ass maybe, but two asses at once is a lot of ass to kick...."

Conza walks into the small place, easily finding Anampo at a small booth which he quickly slides into the other side of. "Hey."

"Hi..."

Conza pauses, looking over at Anampo's long face. "What's...Happening?"

"I heard, about Nick..."

"Ah, well good that I don't have to break that." Conza picks up a menu. The two order from a waitress before carrying on their talk. "But, is something else wrong about that?"

"Juniper didn't take that well...At all. She went on a short romp and rampage around the grounds and she kinda ended up getting arrested."

"Oh no, what are we doing here then? I-I'm sure I could post her bail and--"

"She was in Japan illegally. Juniper was deported back to America days ago. Her contract with AFW was suspended indefinitely until she's able to come back. But I don't think she's going to go through with all of that."

"That's...Rough. Have you heard from any of her friends around here? Like Clyde or--"

"The only one I talked to was that Diane girl, but she seemed too busy vetting herself in some rivalry she's been having forever with someone to really to talk. Besides, I'm not the type to talk to people and investigate around, you know that. I'm just...The shy girl who's in a place she doesn't belong and I've always been that. Sure I have support but...I don't even support myself anymore." The rabbit wraps her arms around her body.

"You're right." Conza agreed. "You, don't belong here. But that doesn't mean you can't make yourself belong here."

"Make myself belong here?"

"Yeah. Just like I want to make myself belong here." He pauses, looking over Anampo's shoulder to a TV up high in the corner. "Uh, c-can someone turn that up? The news?"

-Part time Idol, part time wrestler Raira Belheart strikes it big with the release of her debut album. Going from singing lovely cover songs to the ring for some bouts and back to the booth to record songs of her own, Raira is to soon go on her own world tour-

Conza scoffed. "Unbelievable. I was totally going to call her for a date...Sometime..."

"You?" Anampo giggled. "You'd have a better time joining The Brat Pack then trying to talk to her now."

"You know what, that isn't such a bad ide--HEY WAIT!"

Anampo starts to break through her small depression and giggle louder. "Aren't the all bigger than you too? Would you be like, their pet or..."

Breaking up what would have been a roast of Conza's height, the waitress returns with two large bowls of ramen. Being thanked, she bows her head and starts to move off.

"Excuse me, Miss? Is that...A copy of the Odyssey in your bag there?"

"Uh..W-Why yes it is. Why?"

"It looks so old, like real old. Is it in the original language? What's someone that can read something like that working here for? You must be pretty smart."

"Pretty, and smart, are my main attributes, yes." She gives off a slightly off putting smile. "You're also forgetting tough, a very deadly trio of sorts to obtain and balance." She gives him a bow. "But thank you, sir. Enjoy your food." She walks away after.

"Wow...Someone's gotten a lot better at talking to women from the days of stammering and flat out losing to their phobias."

"Those days are long gone. I promised myself not to let anything hold me back anymore and that I'd try a lot harder. After all, I have to be the face that I want to be, not the ones I just look up to."

"What does that mean? You're gonna grow a couple feet taller too?"

"No, it means more like--HEY!"

Anampo couldn't help but laugh again, with Conza joining in soon after, too...