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"Hey Renako, do you want to come to the zoo with us?" Yukiko asked. Four excited and somewhat impatient girls stood behind her.
"The zoo?" Renako couldn't remember ever going to the zoo before. "Sure, I'll come!"
"Good. It'll be fun, I promise. Now let's get in the speeder before Ben honks the horn again," Yuki said, leading Aisu, Asellus, Kairiku , Chouko and Renako out the door.
"Are we there yet?" Aisu asked.
"Yes," Ben said, parking the speeder at the Coruscant Planetary Zoo.
Renako couldn't wait to see the zoo. She heard it had all kinds of animals, maybe even some from Earth. She quietly tapped her small foot, waiting anxiously for Ben to lock up the speeder.
"What should we see first?" Yuki asked, once they were inside the zoo. She adjusted her sunglasses and looked at the map.
"I want to go to the butterfly cove, please Yuki?" Chouko asked, her blue eyes shimmering.
"I don't see why not," Yukiko said with a smile.
Renako skipped happily along, her black hair bouncing on her shoulders. Never had she seen such exotic creatures, such beautiful landscapes. The sounds of happy people and playful animals flooded her ears, and she smiled.
"Oh, wow! Sugoi!" Chouko cried in amazement. The butterfly cove was one of the most beautiful things she'd ever seen. It had all kinds of exotic trees, surrounded by hundreds of colorful butterflies. She opened the gate and stepped inside. The butterflies didn't seem frightened of her; in fact, a few of them landed on her outstretched arm, fluttering their vivid wings. She giggled as one small purple butterfly landed on her nose.
"This is really amazing," Kairiku said. Asellus and Aisu nodded in agreement.
After seeing three more animal exhibits, Yuki, Ben, and the five girls decided to have lunch. They chose a lovely spot near the otter display. Renako guessed that otters were Earth animals, since she had never seen anything like them.
"What should we see next?" Ben asked, taking the map from Yuki and studying it.
"I want to see the Kowakian monkey-lizards," Asellus said as Aisu said, "Seeing the leopards would be really cool."
"I wanted to see the otters," Kairiku said.
Renako wasn't paying attention to what anybody was saying. She was staring into space, watching the people who walked by. She suddenly noticed that one of them was staring right at her. It was a boy, about thirteen years old, with burgundy-plum hair and glittering golden eyes. His eyes lingered on hers for a few seconds, then he walked away. The world stopped going in slow motion, and Renako looked down, blushing slightly.
"Renako? Where do you want to go?" Yuki asked.
Renako looked up. "Huh? Oh, um, it doesn't really matter," she said.
"Well, then why don't I take Asellus to see the Kowakian monkey-lizards, Yuki can take Aisu and Chouko to see the leopards, and Kairiku and Renako can go see the otters. Is that okay with everyone?" Ben asked. They agreed.
"Kairiku? Do you believe in love at first sight?" Renako asked carefully. She waited for the older girl's answer.
"Well... I guess so. I mean, that's sort of how it went for Anakin..." she smiled. "Why are you asking?"
"Oh, I just wanted to know," Renako said, trying to sound nonchalant.
"Look, here we are! The otters," Kairiku said, looking in awe at the graceful movements of the swimming otters.
"They're sooo cute," Renako said, watching as an otter twisted in the pond.
"Do you like the otters?" asked a voice in Renako's ear. She jumped. Standing there was the boy she had seen walking by.
"Oh yes, they're wonderful," she said, her eyes shimmering.
"I take care of them," the boy said. He extended his hand. "I'm Xell Rezatonia. What's your name?"
"Renako," Renako said shyly, shaking his hand. She blushed and hoped no one would notice.
"Like I was saying, these otters are my friends. My job is to feed them and train them. I love animals. I work here so I can earn enough money to help my mother. She's really sick, and we're too poor to afford proper medical help," Xell explained.
"That's really sad," Renako said softly. She looked into Xell's golden eyes.
Xell looked down in embarrassment. "I've... revealed too much again," he said, more to himself than to Renako.
"No, it's okay. I promise I won't tell anybody. Maybe I can help you," Renako said hopefully.
"You're very kind, Renako-chan," Xell said. "But I... have to go now. Yeah, that's it." He ran hurriedly away.
Renako's eyes stung with tears. Didn't he like her? Was she too pushy? She looked at the ground and noticed something glinting in the sun. She picked it up and saw that it was the chain Xell had been wearing around his neck. It looked very valuable, like it was the most priceless thing he owned, considering how poor he was. "You - dropped this," she whispered, holding the chain in her small fist.
"Hi, Renako. Sorry I left, I had to get something to drink. What's that?" Kairiku asked, looking at the chain Renako was holding.
"Um, it's just - well - I was talking to this boy - he dropped it," Renako said numbly.
"Oh... why didn't you give it back to him?" Kairiku asked, sipping her soda.
"He ran away before I had the chance. He seemed so sad and kind of scared. I wonder if I'll ever see him again," Renako said, more to herself than to Kairiku.
"You might," said Kairiku. Then she added slyly, "So, what did he look like?"
"He had odd-colored hair - it was sort of like a mixture of burgundy and plum. He was wearing Chinese-style clothes and had the loveliest golden eyes," Renako said, trying not to sound too dreamy.
"He sounds really cute," Kairiku said.
"He works here, taking care of the otters. Hey, maybe he'll be here tomorrow!" Renako said excitedly.
"Yes, maybe he will. I could come with you if you want," Kairiku offered.
"Thanks, Kairi-chan. I'm sure I'll see Xell again - that was his name, Xell - Xell something. I forgot," Renako said.
"There you are! We're going to leave now," Yuki said. She was dragging a bunch of shopping bags with her. Leave it to Yuki to find so much stuff to buy at the zoo!
On the way home, Renako stared out the window and remained quiet as everyone else described their day. She couldn't wait to go back to the zoo tomorrow.
Renako sat in her dimly-lit room, listening to music and staring at the gold chain. Poor Xell, she thought. This is probably the most valuable thing he owns. I bet he's really worried that he lost it.
"Renako, Kairiku told me that you wanted to go back to the zoo tomorrow. I could take you," Yukiko said, walking into the room.
Big-mouth! Renako thought. "Oh yeah, I just wanted to return something. There was this boy, and he dropped this," Renako said, dropping the chain into Yuki's hands.
"This is very nice," she said, examining it. "It must be worth a lot. I'll make sure you give it back to him," Yuki said with a smile. She waved and left the room.
Renako sighed and wondered what she did wrong at the zoo today. Why did Xell leave in such a hurry? Didn't he like her? She turned off the light and buried her head under the covers.
"I don't see Xell anywhere," Renako said unhappily. The ribbons in her thick black hair danced wildly in the breeze.
"He'll show up," Kairiku said, although she wasn't sure herself.
"Is that him?" Yukiko asked. A boy was running towards them.
Renako's heart leaped. "Yes it is!" she cried.
"Renako-chan, I have very bad news. I lost the only present my mother ever gave me. It's a -"
"Gold chain?" Renako asked, holding it out to the relieved boy.
"Thank you so much! I was very worried that I had lost this," Xell said, smiling.
"You dropped it yesterday, but you already ran away before I got the chance to give it back," Renako said quietly.
"Um, I'm really sorry that I left so abruptly. I just - didn't really want anyone else to know. You know, about my mother. She hates charity," Xell said.
"I just wanted to help," Renako said.
"And you're very sweet for that, Renako-chan. Why don't you come to the park with me tomorrow? I have the day off. It would be fun," Xell said.
Renako felt Yuki and Kairi-chan watching her and blushed heavily. "Yes, I'll go to the park with you," she said.
Xell smiled and went to feed the otters.
