"Eclipse, don't touch that," Agatha scolds, snatching the unknown instrument away.

"I was only looking at it," I reply, a little miffed.

"It's a knife. Do you want to watch me explain to the next poor scientist who walks in why I'm letting an alien subject handle potentially dangerous objects?"

"Dangerous for me or dangerous for you?" I ask flatly, using a sarcastic tone despite being perfectly serious. "Besides, that is not a knife--it, er..." I frown, waiting for the word to come to me. "It is a scalpel, right? Not the same thing."

"No, but--" Agatha cuts herself off, waving her hand. "Oh, it's no use arguing. Bottom line: if it's not expressly given to you, don't touch it, okay? You could pick up a live wire or something."

"Or a scalpel."

"You enjoy frustrating me, don't you?" She asks shrewdly, and I shrug.

"Only when you do not notice," I manage to say with a straight face, but I immediately crack a grin when she gives me an unimpressed look. "Of course! I am naturally honorary."

"Ornery," she corrects, and I nod.

"That too," I agree, and she laughs. "But, I am not as irascible as I could be. Nor as satirical."

"You know 'irascible,' but you don't know 'ornery'?" She asks, raising an eyebrow.

"Cantankerous," I reply, not even managing the straight face this time. Agatha makes an amused snort, barely stifling a laugh.

"Okay, okay. Really. I actually wanted to ask you about something serious, and I'll never get to it if you keep using the dictionary against me," she chastises, still smiling.

"Yes?" I ask, curious now. "What is it?"

"Well, it's about Shadow--" I cut her off with a groan. It is a bit rude, I know, but I cannot help it.

"Why him?" I ask, already discouraged.

"I know you two have a personal history, and I wanted to hear your side of it."

"Why? Did he talk to you about it?" I question, confused.

"No, actually," Agatha says, pausing. "But, he has people he can go to if he needs to share his story. I don't think you've had that."

"Well, that is quite true," I agree, surprisingly sober. "But I prefer not to delve into it."

"I won't make you talk if you don't want to."

"That just makes me feel like I should," I sigh, moving to perch on the chair behind me as is my wont. I really do not want to talk about anything involving Shadow, but I know it is probably not just Agatha's idea to get my opinion on things, and I do not want to cause her trouble by fouling the plans of her superiors. "If you really want to hear it, it is rather long."

"I'm willing to listen," she promises, her lavender eyes meeting my golden ones.

"Alright," I sigh, wishing dearly for a different topic. "Firstly, you have to understand that Shadow is more than just a member of my species. He is my half-brother, in fact, so we are very closely related." Agatha seems a bit surprised to hear that, but she continues to listen as she said she would. "I guess I ought to feel more of a connection there. I did, once. But, that childhood admiration has long since faded into anger.

"I offered him a chance to join us. I suppose that would make you uncomfortable," I sigh, "but I thought he would take it. I really did. Deep down, I believed with all my hearts that he, the traitor I had heard so much about and been created to destroy, would come back to us. I should have listened to my father, to Shadow's own history. But, I could not imagine fighting him. He was a lost soul, someone who had seen the wrong path, and I was sure I could change him.

"I was an idiot. Naive, foolish. I cannot believe I was ever that trusting. But, Shadow was like an idol to me, an older brother I could change and grow up with. I had no one, really, besides my father, and he was already tolerant enough of my childishness; I knew not to expect anything more from him. I wanted someone to truly call a brother, someone who would care for me." I look up from fidgeting with my foot, absentmindedly scratching my talons over my other arm's crest. "It was my choice to spare him. I had him completely at my mercy, and I let him go. In reality, my race's extinction is as much my fault as it is his." I hang my head a bit, not wanting to look at Agatha's reaction to this.

"But, do not tell him I said that," I add, just for good measure.

"I won't."

"Thank you."

"...Eclipse," she begins hesitantly, and I sigh. "Do you still care about Shadow? About having that bond with him?"

"No."

"Really?" She asks, unconvinced. "Not at all? But..." She trails off, suddenly hesitant to give voice to her question. "He's your family. How would you feel if you never had the chance to make up with him?" The question is careful, cautious, unlike hers usually are, and my mood sours even more than it usually does at Shadow's mention.

"Well, I suppose I could be sad," I say bitterly. "But, why should I grieve for him? I won't play and say that I would be worse for his absence. If anything, I would be cheered."

"Why?" Agatha sounds a bit shocked at that, and I raise my gaze to meet hers.

"Because when a villain falls, no one mourns their passing. After all he put me through, even if he and I could one day make up, I would never count on it. No, I would not mourn him. To me, he is a monster, and that monster is one I have known for most of my life now. In just a short span of time, my life on the New Black Comet will become so small a part of my existence that it is almost laughable. I will not lie to you--I would not miss him. I do not wish to keep him with me. It would make my life much easier, if I did not have to face that invasive reminder of what was." I take a deep breath, trying to gather myself before the emotions roiling at my mental gates burst through.

"I wish I could tell you that I would feel empty, that I would grieve the loss of the person I looked up to through my childhood. But, I honestly do not think I would."

"I understand."

"Do you?" I ask doubtfully. "This seems like a very villainous thing to say, something you would not agree with."

"Actually, it seems very human to me, to use the expression. I would feel disturbed if you just said you wouldn't care, or if you could look past everything Shadow's done with ease. That would be concerning. But, you have a reason for why you wouldn't mourn him, and I understand it. It's a solid reason, and it's a just one."

"Really?" I ask, taken a bit off guard by her softer stance on this.

"Yes. But, I do hope you can find a place to fit with him, one day. Shadow really is a good person, though I imagine it's hard for you to see now. Not that I hold it against you."

"Well, I spent long enough looking up to him. I know there are many things to admire, many redeemable qualities to him. But, you are right. It is hard for me to see him that way, now."

"I understand. And thank you for telling me. I..." She trails off, tilting her head a bit. "I think you have a lot of redeemable qualities, too. Many likeable, quirky things that make you different."

"Not in a bad way?" I ask, calling up a weak grin. It is hard, so soon after talking about Shadow, but I manage it.

"No, definitely in a good way. I happen to like you and Shadow very much, the both of you. I hope you don't mind," she adds, and I shrug.

"He is a hero to your world. I get it."

"Yes, most of the time. He does his best." I shrug again in response, understanding her angle, though I have trouble accepting it. "But, enough of him, for now. I have something else to ask you."

"Yes?" I ask, eager for a change of topic.

"Why do you speak without using contractions?"

"I just do not like them, I guess," I reply, a bit exasperated by this question now.

"Oh. Alright."

"You are not going to tell me to use them?" I ask, playfully suspicious.

"No, I was just wondering. I thought it might be because you learned English differently."

"Well, I did."

"You did?"

"I learned from the mind of an immortal alien overlord. That does count as 'different,' right?" I joke, and she laughs.

"Yes, I would say so," she chuckles. "Did other members of your race eschew contractions, as well?"

"No, just me. I actually used them on the comet, but I stopped after I faced off with Shadow and his minions on Angel Island. I found it far too hard to understand when they used them, so I quit speaking with them."

"Oh, you find them hard to understand?" Agatha asks, concerned. "I can stop using them, if it helps."

"You're fine." For a moment, I do not realize what I did, but Agatha laughs, and I chuckle as I see why.

Oops. Guess I am falling back into old habits.

It should be difficult, moving so quickly to a different topic, but I find myself eager to escape the heavy clouds that always cover me when my past surfaces in my mind. I chat amiably with Agatha Topaz, and she indulges me, likely understanding my desire for lighter conversation. I have only known this human for a few days, but she already seems to have a remarkably good read on me. She also sympathizes with my troubles on Mobian things, though she has never teased me for things I do not know. With that thought, as well as our previous conversation, it occurs to me that I should ask her something.

"What are some English expressions?" I ask her, legitimately interested. "I have been hearing some that I thought I understood, but a few sentences here have gone completely over my head." Surprised, it takes her a moment to answer.

"Oh, there are all sorts. Like... Well, to 'kick the bucket,' 'buy the farm,' and 'push up daisies' all mean to die. To have a 'chip on your shoulder' means to hold a grudge. 'The pot calling the kettle black' means to be a hypocrite. And, er, buying something expensive might cost you 'an arm and a leg.' Those are all I can think of, though."

"Really?" I inquire, filing those away for later use.

"Yes... Well, 'beating around the bush' means to dilly dally or avoid the main point. And, to 'cut to the chase' means to bring up the main point right away. There's a lot of expressions in English. I could look up a few for you, if you'd like."

"That'd be fun to learn," I reply, grinning.

"Alright. I'll ask around and get some, and I'll tell you if I think of any, alright?" She smiles back at me, and I nod my thanks. "I could bring in a book, too."

"Oh. Er, yeah..." I say, suddenly sheepish.

"Is there something wrong with that?" She asks, puzzled by my reaction.

"Not really. Only, I cannot read..." I admit, embarrassed. "It wasn't one of the skills put into the hivemind."

"Oh. Well, I could get you a beginner's book and help you learn," she offers, and I find myself touched by her generosity. She really does not seem to be mocking me, as I would expect from a human. She appears to genuinely want to teach me, and, before I can help it, I find myself liking this human a great deal more than I had expected would ever happen.

"That would be really nice of you," I say, sincerely meaning it.

"Well, it probably wouldn't be too hard, since you already know spoken English fluently," she replies, humbling herself. "And we'll have plenty of time when we're just waiting for an appointment or something."

"Still," I respond, but I fall silent. The thought that I am having a conversation like this with a human, it makes me uncomfortable. I am used to hating humanity; it is what I have done for the past half of my life. But, this one woman is managing to overturn that, and it is unnerving me.

How can I even let myself talk to these people like this? I ask myself. They are as much the ones responsible for my species' demise as Shadow. I should have an impenetrable hatred of them. But, looking at them... I glance at Agatha, seeing as if for the first time her friendly smile and posture. ...they sure do not act like they wanted to drive the Black Arms extinct. Not these ones, at least.

The observation unsettles me. It takes into question the conviction I have lived on for most of my life--that Mobians committed an unnecessary and cruel act when our homeworlds battled, something they did out of malice, not self-defense.

The introduction of the idea my species' destruction was justified is unwelcome. I immediately cast it out of my mind, internally growling at even considering, for one moment, that such a large-scale genocide was in any way acceptable. My race was cruelly obliterated, and, while I may never get my revenge, I need never forget that. Shadow and his planet are equally guilty, and it would do me good to remember just how vicious they--

"Eclipse? Is your shoulder hurting again?" Agatha asks, yanking me unceremoniously back into the present. Caught unawares, I fumble for a moment before finding an answer that will not let onto my momentary existential crisis.

"A good bit," I reply, forcing a sheepish grin. "Is it obvious?"

"You're tense," she says by way of explanation, and I nod. That, I am. "If you're worried about the surgery, don't be. Our doctors are a skilled bunch, and they'll be sure to be careful operating on someone with a foreign form."

"Oh, I am not worried. Just an old wound flaring up," I sigh, mentally kicking myself afterwards. Talk about being transparent!

"Oh," she says noncommittally, but I can tell her sharp mind has caught my mistake.

Too late to fix it now, I think, sighing. Drat my mouth.

"Speaking of the surgery, we really should go. I don't want you to be late for something that will help you," Agatha worries.

"Right," I reply weakly, giving myself another mental kick for the lack of energy. "Let us do that, then." I stand up straight, pretending I do not bear the weight of thousands of years of life on my shoulders. It does not fool either of us, but I feel better for having tried.

With a concerned glance at me, Agatha leads me to where my shoulder will be remedied. Truth be told, I am a little nervous, but I would never admit it to anyone. I remind myself that this will get rid of the constant pang my shoulder has had since my sky-high adventure several days ago. At least, that is what the surgery is meant to do. I try not to fret that it either will not work or is a cover up for something more sinister.

If it is, I think, I wager Agatha does not know it. I do not believe she would be one to condone lying, especially when I am already in G.U.N.'s grasp. They would hardly have to resort to trickery if they wished to experiment on or implant something in me. Oddly enough, the thought, which should be terrifying to realize, comforts me. I suppose it is the knowledge that there is no feasible reason to be tricking me about this, but I drop the musing as we arrive at the set place.

I set my resolve firmly and step into the operating room with clear confidence. I follow the instructions I am given, lying back and allowing my arm to be injected with anaesthetic. A very unnerving situation, I can attest, to have an arm but be unable to feel it.

Apparently--unfortunately, I should say--anaesthesia is not effective enough on my species for me to be knocked out entirely, so I am stuck with being awake throughout the process. As is, I am already harboring what would be a deadly amount of the stuff for a human in my body, and I will need to have it reinjected at several points as my metabolism defeats it.

The thought makes me uneasy, but I think Agatha is right about what she told me yesterday; numbness is preferable to pain for operations. If this were to be a life-changing event, I would want to feel everything, but it is not, and I do not like to make a habit of inviting pain. So, I agreed to the process of rendering my arm dead to the world.

Well, that is hardly a reassuring way to phrase that, I mutter internally, nerves heightened. I look over to the doctor preparing her tools, and I catch an ironic glimpse of a scalpel.

That would be funny, if I were not about to be sliced open while awake, I cannot help observing, but, again, the thought is far from calming. I am unprepared when the woman walks over, and I cannot do more than nod dumbly to questions I am too frazzled to hear. Then, it is time to start, and I watch, transfixed, as she makes the first careful incision.

Then, upon sight of my own blood welling up beneath the ministrations of a human in an operation I agreed to be helpless for, I feel everything turn rather fuzzy.

My last thought before falling unconscious is how embarrassed I will be explaining my lapse to Agatha.

Author's Note: Wednesday has come again! I'm glad to see this story is getting some interest--I really appreciate it. I hope you enjoyed Eclipse's adventures this time around. Please consider leaving a comment or vote to tell me if you did! I loved hearing so much from you all last week; it makes my day to have a conversation about a story.