The walk to town was incredibly tense, it didn't need to be said.

It was around 11:00 am, meaning that the daily errands of the greater population had started. People were out and about, on ways to work, buying shopping, out with their children.

It didn't matter.

What mattered was, Jay was far from alone on the city streets. As soon as he hit the populated areas, the odd stares started. Staring, grimacing, mouths gaping open as if he was some sort of alien.

It didn't do any good for his already jittery state.

He just walked forward, knowing his location, but still periodically checking his phone to see if he had been taking the correct turnings. This was not something he wanted to be late for.

Winding streets, left and right, it seemed to take so much longer than it should have, which was odd, since people literally parted to let him through without trouble.

They were that scared of trans people, were they? So scared they couldn't even bare to touch them?

Jay kept his head at the ground, but could still feel the eyes burning into his skin. Trying to figure out what they had missed before, trying to seek out any telltale signs of his... birth sex.

Jawline, eye shape, body distribution.

Being judged so deeply by complete strangers would usually have sent him turning around and going straight back to the Bounty, but, he carried on.

Luckily, nobody actually stopped him or talked to him. He heard a couple of whispers on two occasions, surprised disgust, though, no actual conflict came upon him during his whole hurried walk.

He was glad of that.

He would have taken the bus, but didn't for two different reasons. First of all, the bus cost money, and he couldn't say that he actually had any money of his own at that point, and... he would much rather be cornered by a transphobe on a street, than in an enclosed moving vehicle.

At last, checking the digital map on his phone, he was certain that he'd reached his final location.

It was a small park, enclosed with layers of houses. The domestic and solemn environment all around brought the atmosphere to a still. Jay could relax at last.

Paranoia snapped at him, so to reassure himself, he opened up the messages he had read only an hour prior.

Well... listened to.

'Hey... I, I t-tried to just write a message but, I, I... I could hardly type anymore, I was s-shaking too much! S-So... I'm sorry about this I... I just... have to get it out! You might not even see it, if you do, you can just ignore it i-if you want... but... I... I had no idea that you were trans and... I'm trans too! The people on TV... they read out my name as well... a-and I don't know what to do! The moment I have to write my name down for a-anything, any forms, or letters... a-anything like that, p-people will know! I-I... I'm sorry! You've been my hero for such a long time... coming from a p-poor background and all and, turning out to be the b-b-blue ninja! And, t-to know that, you're... trans, too? I... I've never looked up to you m-more! And I... I guess I also wanted to say that... no matter what... you'll always have people supporting you. You'll probably be having a way... way worse time than I am right now, but I just... I just wanted to tell you... yeah... I'm sorry... you d-don't need to reply...'

The sorrow and panic in her voice was painstakingly real, and as soon as Jay had listened through her message, he got back to her straight away. Promising to try and help out however he could.

A quick look at her account told him her name and her age - Mary, 16 - and when she replied straight away, they arranged to meet up.

She knew a good place, and Jay couldn't think of anywhere else more appropriate.

As Jay got closer and closer, he started being able to make out the figure of a young girl sat on one of the benches, and she saw him too.

"... Jay!" She exclaimed, shooting out of her seat and rushing over to him, though stopping a couple of metres before she reached him.

"... you... you came!"

"Well, I wouldn't stand you up would I?"

Mary didn't move closer, looking him up and down to make sure that he was real, and she wasn't just seeing things.

"... you've been my hero since I was 12... I... I'm sorry! I'm just quite, excited I guess!"

She wiped her eyes, red and inflamed from obvious crying, and took a big intake of air. Her clear relief managed to fill the entire environment, and passed over to Jay as well.

"... I have no idea what to do now..."

"Let's go sit down, and we can talk for a bit."

It still felt incredibly surreal. When he woke up that morning, he had no plans to even leave the room, let alone go and meet an entirely new person. A complete stranger, except for the few messages they exchanged.

As well as that, he'd never actually met a fan before.

He had just, filled up with determination, knowing that somebody was in desperate need of help gave him enough courage to make it outside.

He almost felt a duty to do it.

They reached the bench that Mary had originally been waiting on, and sank into it. Jay let out a little laugh.

"When you first suggested a park, I thought you were joking, but, it really is empty!"

"Yeah! I mean, if you came here later in the evening it would be full of dodgy people but, during the day? Nobody comes here. Not even the kids, it's a pretty broken down park. The council hasn't bothered to do it up in years."

"That's a relief. So, you live around here?"

"About half an hour away, same as you, but, I guess it depends on where your big ship is... parked? Do you say parked?"

"... I actually don't know. I'd say docked, but, that's usually for boats that are in the water..."

The two managed to relax pretty quickly, getting to know each other, casual chatter and a few jokes to ease the mood, before Jay brought up what the main reason for the meet up was.

"... so... what do you think is gonna happen with the whole... Dei Noctis thing?"

Mary's shoulders tensed up again, and she looked at the ground.

"I'd like to think that the government will do something about them but... I'm afraid it might be too late."

"Me too... all we can really do right now as a community is stick together."

"Yeah... I'm sorry that I got all upset and messaged you, I was, I was home alone, and I was panicking and... it was the first thing I thought to do."

"It's alright, I promise. In fact, I'm sorta glad you did. I was having a hard time too, when I woke up this morning, and your message sorta grounded me. Made me calm down."

"Really?"

"Mmh hmm."

A siren in the distance faded in and out of audibility, and if you focussed hard enough, you could make out individual motors from a nearby street.

"... how come your parents weren't home?"

"They're often out working late. I don't have much of a relationship with them, to be honest. They're... supportive? But I can't tell if they're supportive or... or if they just don't care. They let me start hormones though, and grow my hair and stuff. So I'm grateful for that." She mumbled, clearly uncomfortable talking about her parents, "... can I ask about yours?"

Jay smiled.

"My parents? They're amazing. As soon as they found out I was trans, they were supportive straight away. I'm so so lucky to have them, I know that a lot of people aren't nearly as lucky... but, you know. I don't live with them. When I saw that on TV, I had my friends around me. If I was alone, like you were, I don't know what I would've done."

Time seemed to fly, and a few worried messages from Zane managed to work their way through the limited signal.

"My team is getting worried. Should probably head back at some point."

"I'm gonna have to get going soon as well, I need to get work done for school tomorrow." Mary sighed.

Jay stared blankly for a couple of seconds.

"Sh*t, you still go to school! Yeah! I'm so used to being around people who stopped going years ago!"

Mary started to laugh, clinging onto the bench so that she didn't topple off.

"My exams are coming up!"

"Well that's something you can tell everybody when you get back, you met the Blue Ninja, and you're friends with him now!"

Jay saw her face light up and beam when he said 'friends'.

"Can... can I take a picture with you, so that they believe me?"

He nodded, and she hurriedly took out her phone, almost dropping it as she did. He leaned closer to her, and she snapped a few.

"There we go. Proof!"

Jay was almost sad that they had to part ways so soon, even though it had been a good few hours. He hadn't felt so upbeat and positive in quite a while.

"Stay safe on your way back, alright?" He said, and Mary promised she'd stay safe.

"I can't really meet up all that much, this weekend was my last sort of free one. Gotta knuckle down and revise for the next month or so, but, after that, do you want to meet up again?" She asked, nervous and clearly readying herself for rejection.

Her grin when he said yes conveyed more pure excitement than he could explain.

They hugged it out, and parted ways, walking in opposite directions. Mary kept waving back until she passed out of sight, and... Jay entered the heavily populated streets again.

All the calmness and clarity he had gathered while sat down talking dissipated immediately, and he was on alert once more.

Weird looks, disgusted remarks whispered under the breath, practically jumping out of the way as he approached.

Treated like a disease.

Jay thought he would be ok, though. The reaction of the public certainly made him uncomfortable, but he wasn't in any immediate danger.

Then, out of the corner of his eye, he spotted something. Somebody heading directly at him marching with precision and purpose.

Adrenaline filled him to the brim, and his gut told him to get out of there straight away, but he didn't.

He just kept walking.

They got closer, and closer, and closer, and as he saw them speed up, he stopped in his tracks, making eye contact, and entering a slightly more defensive pose.

They stopped.

It was a woman, mid 40s, furious, with a small baby strapped to her back.

They eyed each other for a few moments, and she was the first to speak.

"What do you think you're doing out in public like this?!" She practically shrieked, gaining the attention of everybody on the street.

Jay didn't reply.

"Don't ignore me! Why the f*ck do you think it's ok to be outside flaunting yourself?!"

Jay gritted his teeth.

Maybe if he ignored her long enough, she'd just-

"ANSWER ME, BEFORE I CALL THE POLICE!"

"And tell them what?!" He snapped, unable to keep his mouth shut any longer, "I'm not breaking the law by being outside!"

"YOU'RE ADVERTISING YOURSELF, WHAT ABOUT THE CHILDREN? WHAT ABOUT MY SON! YOU'RE FORCING YOUR DISGUSTING AGENDA!"

"I'm not forcing anything! I'm walking around!"

He raised his hands up, showing that he wasn't armed.

"If you just let me go, I'm going straight home, this doesn't need to-"

She darted forwards and grabbed his wrist, squeezing hard enough to hurt. He tried to tug himself free, but her grip was far too tight.

"YOU'RE NOTHING BUT A STUPID GIRL WHO'S F*CKED UP IN THE HEAD!"

"Ma'am, let go of-"

"HOW DARE YOU SHOW YOURSELF IN PUBLIC!"

It took a lot of self control to keep himself calm. Having somebody up close, somebody he didn't know, screaming obscenities and insults directly in his face was slowly sending him into a panic attack.

"Ma'am, you need to let go of me. If you don't I'll-"

"I'M NOT LETTING GO UNTIL THE POLICE GET HERE! SOMEBODY CALL THE POLICE!"

Jay prayed that nobody in the surrounding crowd was stupid enough to call the police on her side, but honestly, having some officials here to help him out would be a blessing.

He tried pulling his hand away twice more, to no avail.

She didn't stop screaming, and he started to get desperate.

Why didn't anybody step forward and help him? Surely the whole crowd couldn't all be transphobic. Surely there was at least somebody watching who was on his side?

So why didn't anybody do anything? Why did they all just sit watching? He wasn't some attraction to just stare at!

His heart started thundering in his chest, his binder seemed to get tighter by the second.

Maybe Cole was right.

Maybe Cole as Zane were right.

Maybe he shouldn't have come out.

Maybe he should have just stayed there.

The woman's bright red acrylic fingernails felt like they were digging into his skin, drawing blood, puncturing deeper and deeper.

He had to stay calm, he had to get out of this.

"YOU MAKE ME SICK! YOU MUTILATE YOUR BODIES, YOU GO AGAINST NATURE, YOU-"

Jay knew by now that he wouldn't be able to pull himself free, but he could certainly pull her closer.

He acted on impulse, pulling her in until she was whispering distance, and the shock of the movement briefly shut her up.

"If you don't let go of me, I'll be forced to shock you... and the current will carry through to your baby."

Finally, she was quiet, and the look of sudden fear in her eyes told him that she believed him.

He didn't let any uncertainly show itself in his eyes, and he gave her a good long stare.

"... Let. Go."

The seriousness and the danger in his voice even took him aback, and it certainly had that effect on the woman. She let go, as if his wrist had turned into a hot iron, and quickly exited the situation.

Even with her gone, nobody did anything. They all either stayed there, standing and staring, or slowly walked away, getting on with their lives as if they had never seen it.

Maybe, maybe if somebody had just asked him a quick 'you alright?' or 'how are you feeling?', he would have been able to shrug it off, put a smile on and walk home relatively calmly, but...

Nobody did. Everybody either left or stared, and he started to feel, incredibly alone.

Naked, exposed to the cruelty of the world around him.

The panic that filled up as he was openly harassed, finally overflowed its container.

He clasped a hand over his mouth to muffle the sobbing that ensued, and hurriedly got far away from that street. Nothing changed, people moved out of the way, people stared, as he cried slowly harder and harder.

He could hardly breathe, and the very moment that a smaller alleyway came into sight, he tried down it and headed deeper in, and collapsed against one of the walls when he was content that no one could see him.

Jay took a while to calm down, and even longer to regain enough composure to continue travelling.

The journey back was considerably longer than the way there. He walked slower, and he went in a much more roundabout way, using as many alleyways and empty paths that he could to avoid further human contact.

When the edges of the city came into sight, Jay felt such relief that he hadn't felt for a long long time.

Cole and Zane were right.

Going out was a bad idea.