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Can someone help me identify from which anime/movie the scene is from? Judging from the style, it's probably pretty old. Other than that, I have no idea at all. Thanks in advance.


EDIT: Found out that it's an anime named Gene Diver.

Quote:Chapter 16: Take The Time to Listen


The event on Annie's ranch had been over, and all of us had arrived back home. At the end of the event, Annie had given the trophy to Strawberry's team. However, it had been decided by every single member of the team that the trophy should have been given to both teams. So, we had had a group shot photo with both teams holding the trophy and the event had been closed with everybody happy.

Just one day after the trip, after a good night sleep on my bed, I went back to my working table to finish the new device I had been working on. Almond woke up some time later and then he went outside without saying much to me, probably because he didn't want to disturb.

I finished the new device just before lunch time. I wanted to test it out, but I needed something more. Therefore, I walked to the phone in the living room and called Strawberry's house.

"Hello. Strawberry Shortcake here," Strawberry answered the phone.

"Hi, Strawberry," I said. "Blackberry here."

"Hi there, Blackberry! How are you?" she said.

"Good, thank you," I said. "Strawberry, I think I need your help with something."

"What is it? I'll be glad to help!" she said.

"I've just finished a new device and I want to test it out. I'm wondering if I can borrow one storybook or two from you," I said.

"Of course you can! I'll bring them to you!" she said.

"No, you don't have to. I'll come and take them," I said. There was no answer. "Strawberry?"

Suddenly, someone knocked my home entrance.

"Come in! Door's not locked!" I said. The door then opened and to my surprise the guest was Strawberry. "Strawberry? But how...?"

"See?" suddenly Almond followed behind her, and the two of them giggled. "We got him!"

"Almond... Figures..." I said after sighing a little.

"I'm berry sorry for surprising you, Blackberry," Strawberry said, still giggling a little. "Almond was visiting me when you called. He heard everything you had said, so he went to my bookshelf, took two books, and brought me here with Albatross."

"Albatross? But you said two days ago that there would be no Albatross for two weeks," I said.

"It was a mistake. I came up with that time thinking that I was still the one transforming!" Almond said. "My other half here has his own soul power reserve, though much smaller than mine. He can't keep Albatross for long if my reserve is dry or I'm too far from him."

"Your power has been growing so fast lately," I said. "I remember when you only could be Albatross once a day for five minutes. Now Albatross can last for one hour in your normal condition."

"Yeah, indeed, and I don't know why," he said. "But as long as I can always use my power to help others, I have no problem."

"Alright, Blackberry. Now that the storybooks you need are here, what are you going to do with them?" Strawberry asked.

"This," I said, taking the new device from my working table and putting it on the table in the living room. The device was a thick box with an insertion on its top, which was large enough to put a book in. Attached to one side of the box there was a vertical support pole and at the top end of it there was a scanner with the shape of a gun pointing at the insertion of the box. At the butt of the gun there was something similar to a radar dish.

"It looks cool, Blackberry!" Strawberry said. "What does it do?"

"If we put a storybook in this insertion, the device will scan the book and make a dimension door which will bring us into the world inside the storybook," I said.

"That's berry cool, Blackberry!" Strawberry said.

"How do we return once we're inside?" Almond asked.

"I have also made a remote controller for this device. It will take care of everything," I said, showing a small remote controller.

"That's good to hear. So, when will we go?" he asked.

"After lunch I guess," I said, looking at the clock in the living room wall. "Let's have lunch together, Strawberry."

"Thank you berry much, Blackberry," Strawberry said. I then went to the kitchen and quickly prepared bread slices. I then brought them all to the dining table which had a collection of jams on it, and we all sat around it.

"You have so many kinds of jams, Blackberry!" Strawberry said, astonished by the amount of jam jars.

"I like making jams based on the names of my friends," I said. "Actually, I just started making those about one week ago. With my Jam Maker."

"Though some names cannot be made into jams," Almond said. "I can't really imagine about 'angel jam', 'crepes jam', 'frosty jam', or 'tea jam'."

"That would be berry funny!" Strawberry said with a giggle. "Look at these jams! You even have peach jam, mango jam, persimmons jam, and jackfruit jam!"

"The last one is very spot on," Almond said and we all laughed.

"We've only met them for a very short time, but they're our friends too, and I believe they will be in the future. I mean, our future," I said.

"You're berry right, Blackberry!" Strawberry said, and the two of us started having lunch. But soon enough, Strawberry noticed Almond not eating.

"Why are you not eating, Almond?" Strawberry asked.

"Ah yes, I haven't told anyone other than brother about this," Almond said. "I don't need to eat. I never feel either hungry or full."

"Really? But nobody said that you shouldn't eat, right?" Strawberry asked, looking at me afterwards.

"For that matter, I let him decide," I said. "But I think you should eat sometimes, Almond. It's a pity if you never experience the taste of food."

"Blackberry is berry right, Almond," Strawberry said. "You should try eating once in a while."

"Well, if you say so," Almond said. He then took a bread slice, smeared a random jam on it, and ate it. "Well, this one is good enough."

After we finished our lunch, we went back to the living room table where the device was put. I took my backpack from nearby my shelves and put in a number of devices, along with the new device's remote.

"Ready?" I asked. Both Strawberry and Almond nodded. "Alright, put the storybook into the insertion."

Strawberry then took one of the two books and put it into the insertion. I then activated the device, which immediately scanned the book. Less than one minute later, the radar dish behind the scanner gun let out electricity waves, which created a dimension door. All three of us then jumped into the dimension door. When we got out of the dimension door, we saw that we were on an open field of grass with a few trees and bushes around us. I looked around and noticed a castle in a distance.

"Blackberry, where are we?" Strawberry asked.

"Inside the world of your storybook of course," I said.

"I know that, but which part of the story?" she asked.

"If my device works right, it should be the beginning of the story now. Unless there's a flashback to some time before the beginning. In that case we would be brought to that part," I said.

"Well..." Strawberry said, thinking. "This story has one."

"Hey, isn't that Banana Candy?" Almond said. We then looked towards where Almond was looking at, and indeed we saw Banana Candy walking towards us. She looked troubled.

"Definitely not. She's just a character in this story, who happens to look like her," I said.

"She looks troubled. Let's help her out," Strawberry said. We then approached her. She seemed a bit surprised.

"Who are you all?" she asked.

"We're... travellers from far away," I said. "You look troubled, so we're wondering if we can help."

"Oh, I see," she said. "Well..."

She then told us about a celebration of the birth of Princess Strawberry Rose and she was tasked to deliver invitations to the people of the kingdom. Her trouble had been from one house which was completely surrounded by thorny brambleberry bushes, which had made it impossible for her to deliver the invitation. While she were speaking, all four of us walked towards the house she had mentioned and we arrived right when she finished telling.

"It's indeed completely surrounded by thorns. How does the house owner gets in and out from there?" I asked, taking the invitation scroll which had been left there on one of the bushes.

"The owner is a fairy. She can just fly over them," she said.

"Hmm... any ideas?" I said, looking at Strawberry and Almond.

"There are other fairies, right? I think you can kindly ask one of them to deliver the invitation," Strawberry said.

"Oh yeah, you're right! Why didn't I think about that?" she said. "Thank you! I'll get to it right away! Oh, here are invitations for you all! Be sure to come!"

"Thank you berry much!" Strawberry said, receiving the invitations.

"See you soon!" she said, running off.

"So... what will happen now?" Almond asked. "What we just did will make the story different than it's supposed to be, right?"

"I'm actually not sure about that. Let's just wait and see what happens next," I said.

"According to this invitation, the party is still two days away. What are we going to do until then?" Strawberry asked.

"Hey, backpack. Give me the remote for the new device," I said. My backpack then immediately gave me the remote. "We can use this to skip time right to the day of the party."

"Let's get going then," Almond said. Strawberry also agreed, so we skipped time to the day of the celebration. When we arrived at the castle entrance, we gave our invitations to the receptionist, who happened to look like Plum Puddin'

"Let's see... The guest list has 'three travellers' written at the bottom. I suppose you are them, right?" she said. "Banana has told me a bit about you all, but she somehow forgot to ask for your names. Anyway, please come in!"

"Thank you berry much," Strawberry said, and the three of us went inside. The event was held in the castle courtyard, and we could see a baby bed placed at the main stage of the courtyard. The bed had its curtains closed so we couldn't see the baby. Right next to the bed, a puppy which looked exactly like Pupcake was sleeping on the floor.

"I wonder how the baby looks like," Almond said.

"Well, judging from her name and Pupcake sleeping next to the bed, I won't be surprised if she looks like Strawberry," I said.

"The fairies should come berry soon if the event still stays true to the book," Strawberry said, and she was right. A group of fairies soon came flying from above. It was pretty surprising that the fairies looked like our friends. To be more exact, they looked like Tangerina Torta, Orange Blossom, Ginger Snap, Rainbow Sherbet, Apple Dumplin', and the last one which I didn't recognize at first but actually looked like Angel Cake but with darker skin and dark purple hair. They flew straight to the baby bed, greeted the puppy, and opened the bed curtain, which then revealed the baby inside. Indeed, the baby looked like Strawberry.

"The story is different now," Strawberry said. "The purple fairy shouldn't be here yet because of the failed invitation delivery."

"What is supposed to happen here?" I asked.

"Each fairy will give one gift to the princess with her spell, but after four fairies give their gifts, the purple fairy will suddenly come, angry for not being invited. She then will place a berry horrible curse on the princess and leave," Strawberry said.

"Curse? What kind of curse?" I asked.

"A prick from a brambleberry thorn will make the princess vanish forever," she replied.

"That sounds horrible indeed," Almond said.

"But after that, the last fairy who has not given her gift yet will use her gift to replace vanish with sleep," she said.

"But now that all fairies are here, let's see how things will go," I said. "Looks like it's starting."

"I give you wisdom, my darling girl. Be the wisest ruler in all the world," Rainbow fairy said, casting her spell.

"You'll be a gifted ruler when you become our queen. Not just of people, but nature's creatures and all things green. I give you a green thumb, darling girl," Tangerina fairy said, casting her spell.

"For now and always ever after, my gift is one happy laughter," Ginger fairy said, casting her spell.

"The gift of true friendship is my gift to you. You'll be patient, forgiving, and a good listener too," Orange fairy said, casting her spell.

"My turn then," the purple fairy said. "Or maybe you want to go before me, Appleberry?"

"I'm still thinking, Brambleberry. Please go before me," Appleberry said.

"Alright," Brambleberry said, waving her wand. "Since everyone else has taken care of your inside, my gift to you is healing. Be all wounds you will ever receive, healed with no scars staying."

"I think my gift will be this," Appleberry said, waving her wand. "Generosity is my gift to you. Whenever there is someone in need, you'll be more than happy to aid."

After Appleberry had finished her spell, there was a beeping noise from my pocket. I knew that the noise came from the remote, so I took it and examined it.

"This part of the story is over. It's time to skip time again," I said. "And it's for... 11 years? That's a huge jump."

"Yes, after this part there is a time skip until the princess is about as old as me," Strawberry said.

"I see. Let's go in any case," I said, and I used the remote to skip time to the next part of the storybook.

We arrived at a place unknown to us. We were in the middle of a forest, and there was no sight of anything that could be used to lead the way.

"Where are we?" Almond asked.

"I have no idea," Strawberry said.

"Don't ask me," I said. "But I'm sure we're still somewhere within the storybook world."

"I guess so. Let's walk around... Ouch!" Strawberry said, suddenly holding her back neck.

"What's the matter?" I asked.

"I think I got bitten by a bug here," Strawberry said. I then examined her back neck, and indeed one part was red and swollen.

"Yeah, indeed. Are you all right? Do you feel anything wrong now?" I asked.

"I think I'm..." Strawberry said, before she suddenly fell down and fainted. Almond quickly held her body so she didn't fall to the ground.

"Strawberry! What happened?!" Almond said, slowly putting her on the ground.

"Her fever is high. Whatever bit her is probably poisonous," I said, touching her forehead. "Can you do something with your healing power, Almond?"

"Bro, you know my soul power reserve is empty and won't start refilling for two weeks. Even if it is not, my healing power can only heal physical wounds, not intoxication!" Almond said.

"Even if we bring her back to Strawberryland, I don't think there's anyone who can cure her there," I said. "We better bring her to one of the fairies. They should be able to help her, hopefully."

Almond then carried the unconscious Strawberry on his back and we started moving to one direction. Unfortunately for us, similar with Greenhill, the world inside the storybook had no soul, so Almond couldn't use his scanner ability. We could only hope that we would run into one of the fairies.

"Hey! What are you doing there?!" suddenly we heard a voice. We looked to the source and saw that the voice came from Brambleberry fairy.

"We're..." I said before interrupted.

"Isn't that Princess Strawberry Rose?" she said.

"No. She is..." I said before interrupted again.

"I see! You two are kidnapping her! You no good kidnapper!" she said.

"You're wrong! We just..." I said, but once again I got interrupted.

"I'm not listening!" she said, and then she casted a spell on us. I didn't know what happened next.

Some time later, I woke up not knowing where I was. The first thing I could notice was the fact that I was locked in a cage which was not even large enough for me to stand up. Beyond the iron bars, I could see that I was in a small stone house. Across the room was a bed, and I could see Strawberry lying there covered in blanket from neck to toe and without her hat. She was fast asleep but she was breathing heavily, which meant her condition was still bad.

"Finally awake, you kidnapper?" a voice suddenly said. I looked to the left and saw Brambleberry sitting on a chair.

"I'm not a kidnapper!" I said.

"I see no other explanation for you two hurrying, bringing unconscious Princess Strawberry Rose in the middle of a forest," she said.

"That was because..." I said.

"Because you kidnapped her and you were running away from the kingdom!" she interrupted.

"Put that aside for now! Her condition is bad!" I said.

"Yeah, because you two poisoned her to make her unconscious," she said. "I've been trying to cure her, but I can't do anything if I don't know what poison you used!"

"That's not..." I said.

"I'm not listening!" she interrupted. "Now I will only listen if you tell me what kind of poison you used on her."

"We didn't even..." I said.

"I said, I'm not listening anything other than what kind of poison you used!" she interrupted, and I couldn't say anything. "Not convinced yet? Then how about this?"

After saying that, she waved her wand towards a part of the room which had been covered by a curtain. The curtain then opened, and I was horrified by the sight of Almond being unconscious and entangled by brambleberry vines which were growing from a pot.

"Almond! What have you done to my brother?!" I shouted.

"Well, right outside that window is a pile of brambleberry thorns," she said, waving her wand. The vines then brought Almond near the window she had mentioned. The window was wide open and large enough for a person to go through. "I suppose you don't want me to throw your brother there, do you?"

"NO!" I shouted. Of course I knew Almond would regenerate any injuries, but he would still feel the pain and I didn't want that to happen.

"Then you know what to say," she said.

"Uhh... Bug!" I said, suddenly getting an idea. "We extracted the poison of a bug!"

"Interesting. What bug?" she asked.

"Uhh... the poisonous kind that lives around here!" I said.

"Be more specific! There are two kinds of poisonous bug around here, and if I give her a wrong potion she'll only get worse!" she said.

"I... I don't know," I said.

"There's no way you don't know!" she said, waving her wand. The vines brought Almond closer to the window. "Tell me or..."

"I really don't know!" I said.

"You don't think I wouldn't really throw your brother out of the window, do you?" she said, waving her wand again. The vines moved as if they're getting ready to throw Almond out. The situation was really grave, but suddenly someone knocked on the front door.

"Hmph!" she said. Putting her wand on the table next to her. "Coming!" She then flew to the front door and opened it.

"Hello, Brambleberry!" a voice said, and I could recognize the voice as Huck's voice.

"Oh hello, Prince Huckleberry! Welcome!" Brambleberry said. "But I'm afraid the situation is bad now."

"Bad? What's the matter?" he asked as the two of them entered the house. Indeed Prince Huckleberry looked like Huck. He then noticed me and Almond, but he had not noticed Strawberry on the bed. "Who are these guys?"

"These no good villains kidnapped Princess Strawberry Rose and made her unconscious with a poison. I'm now trying to make him tell me what poison they used so I can cure her," she said.

"They kidnapped Princess Strawberry Rose?" he said. "That cannot be right."

"But that's what happened," she said, showing him the unconscious Strawberry. "See?"

"Princess Strawberry Rose...? This... cannot be..." he said.

"Unbelievable indeed. That's why I'm gonna get the information right now," she said, looking at me.

"Brambleberry, do you know why I said that this cannot be right?" he asked.

"Huh? No. Why?" she asked.

"Hello, Brambleberry! How are you? I've just picked brambleberries from your garden for your berry delicious treat you have invited me for!" suddenly someone none other than Princess Strawberry Rose came into the house bringing a basket full of brambleberries. Brambleberry was very surprised.

"I have been with her since this morning," he said. "Whoever this girl is, she is not Princess Strawberry Rose."

"What are you talking about?" Princess Strawberry Rose asked. She then noticed everything and got very surprised. "What's going on here?"

"Then... who is this girl?" Brambleberry asked in disbelief, and she looked at me.

"She is my friend Strawberry Shortcake. We are travellers from far away and she got bitten by a poisonous bug," I said.

"Well, I think I can guess what happened next," Prince Huckleberry said, looking at Brambleberry. She was speechless, seeming embarassed and afraid. "Better release them now, Brambleberry."

"Uhh... Yeah. Right away," Brambleberry said. She then took her wand from the table and waved it. My cage opened and the vines released Almond, who landed on his feet fully awake.

"So you were awake all this time?" I asked.

"Yeah, but I couldn't get free anyway, so I just kept pretending to be unconscious," Almond said.

"I... Uh... I..." Brambleberry said, being very afraid and embarassed.

"Put that aside for now. Now the thing to do first is to cure her," I said, though it was pretty obvious that I sounded upset.

"Which part of her was bitten?" Prince Huckleberry asked.

"The back of her neck," I said. He then examined the back of Strawberry's neck.

"Oh, I know this," he said. "Brambleberry, please get the potion for Berry Wasp poison."

"I... I'll get to it," Brambleberry said. She then took a vial from her shelf and carefully put the content into Strawberry's mouth. She then waved her wand and Strawberry's body shined. After it was over, I could notice her breathing normally again and her face became more peaceful than before.

"Is she alright now?" I asked.

"She should be. Just let her sleep more for now," Prince Huckleberry said. All of us then walked outside the house.

"I believe it's time to settle things between us now," I said, looking at Brambleberry.

"I... I... I'm sorry!" Brambleberry said, kneeling on the ground.

"You accused us of kidnapping, put me in a cage, threatened to harm my brother, and now you expect everything to be settled with 'I'm sorry'?" I said.

"The last one was just a bluff! There's only soft grass there," Brambleberry said.

"That doesn't make you any better," I said. "Everything could be avoided. Strawberry could be cured faster. If only you took a time to listen to me!"

"Please calm down, traveller," Princess Strawberry Rose said. "I admit that Brambleberry made a mistake, but could you please forgive her? I believe she has learned from her mistake."

"I can't ever deny such polite request," I said after sighing. "Alright, fine. Just do me one favor."

"I'll do anything! What do you want?" Brambleberry said.

"I heard someone saying about brambleberry treats," I said. "I'd like to have some."

"Not only some! I'll give you many! As many as you want!" Brambleberry said.

"Did I hear something about brambleberry treats?" suddenly Strawberry came out from the house saying that.

"Strawberry! You're okay!" I said.

"Yeah, I'm berry fine now. Though I have no idea what have been happening while I was asleep," she said.

"This fairy, Brambleberry Fairy, helped us to cure you. Other than that, nothing special," Almond said, which pretty much surprised Brambleberry.

"Thank you berry much, Brambleberry!" Strawberry said.

"I... I... It was no problem... really..." Brambleberry said.

"Also, this might be a bit awkward but... Strawberry, meet also Princess Strawberry Rose and Prince Huckleberry," I said.

"Hello," Prince Huckleberry said.

"It's like I'm looking at a mirror! Nice to meet you," Princess Strawberry Rose said.

"You're berry right! I'm Strawberry Shortcake, and this is my friend Blackberry Bun, and his brother Almond Cookie," Strawberry said.

"Well, now that we're done introducing, let's get inside for the brambleberry treats," Prince Huckleberry said, and we all went into the house. I really hope Brambleberry has learned her lesson about taking the time to listen to what others have to say.


-End of Chapter 16--

Just realized what day it is today, so, yeah.

Happy Birthday, bro!

Have you ever thought of the day when you would finally be able to play a game of Gradius, Super Mario Bros, Ice Climber, or Castlevania on the go?

Well, with custom firmware an emulators, this has been possible for several years on various handhelds. But I'm not talking about that....

I'm talking about taking REAL Nintendo Game Paks and playing them on the go.

Feast your eyes on this...


Nintendo Portable 1 by cpd2005, on Flickr

This is the "FC Mobile" handheld game system, first released in 2008 by a company called "Hyperkin". This is not the first Famiclone portable. Some of the previous portable Famiclones were the PocketFami, the Game Theory Admiral, and the legendary GameAxe, but those were primarily designed to play Japanese Famicom carts, and you had to use a flimsy adapter to play US NES carts. The FC Mobile is made for US NES carts from the get go.

I got this off eBay recently. It is nearly brand new. The seller listed it as "new", but a more accurate description would be "used, but barely". The console came complete in it's box with plastic holder. All that came with it were two instruction manuals in different languages and an unused AV out cable. The build quality is very good overall, as it doesn't feel like the plastic will crack as you pull out a cart. The console uses 3 AA batteries, and you can use the included AV Out cable to play the games on your TV! The only thing that was an issue is the LCD bezel and it's thin plastic protector film. I'm not sure if it's due to age, but the protector film was a pain to remove. It was on so tight that it caused the LCD bezel to break free from the casing. Luckily, I was able to put it back on using a small drop of super glue, and all is well.

The system has a 2.5 inch LCD screen, and the games look fairly good on such a small display. The colors are vibrant for the most part, save for some yellow colors which appear more dull than on a TV set. There is one built in speaker that sounds decent on full volume, as well as an AV Out port and a headphone port.

While the system is fairly nice overall, there are some issues regarding the controls. First off, the D-Pad is much like a PlayStation D-Pad, and all four directions can be pushed down simultaneously. This has different effects in different games; in SMB, Mario stops moving, and in other games, your character will either move a certain direction or duck. Another issue is the A and B button placement. As you can see in the photos, the layout is reversed. (Normal NES control is B, A). In games that don't use the SMB control setup, it works fine, but if you try playing SMB with this sort of setup, it's actually quite difficult when coupled with the problematic D-pad.

Now, the D-Pad isn't bad. The response varies depending on the game, as every NES game has a different sense of control. Games like "Dragon Spirit", "Gradius", "TMNT", and simple games like "Pinball" and "Ice Climber" have good control. It appears that only SMB is problematic with this D-pad.

Another issue is the cart slot. NES carts go in just fine, and have a solid physical connection. However, the contacts on the cart need to be clean, or close to clean as possible. Otherwise, a small movement to the unit may cause your game to either crash or the graphics will become distorted. If the cart connections are indeed clean, the game remains stable even if you shake the unit (similar to say, going over a bumpy road in a car)

Finally, the accuracy of the Nintendo-on-a-chip. It's the typical NOAC, with slightly different sound from a real console. The majority of my game carts work fine, but with two exceptions. "Castlevania III" doesn't work at all, and there is an even stranger problem with "Zelda II." The game starts up fine, but when you get to the save file menu, some of the graphics are corrupted. Try to play one of your games, and the game will either freeze upon appearing in the palace, or Link will fall through the floor and die. "Zelda II" works fine on my other clones.

My verdict? Despite it's flaws, the FC Mobile is actually very decent. Sure, playing SMB is an issue, but I only got the FC Mobile to play simple games like "Pinball", or shoot 'em ups while on the go. It's rather neat being able to play a Nintendo game while waiting at a doctors office, or sitting in a car, or anywhere else where you can play them without issue.

PS: I am aware of an upgraded model of the FC Mobile, simply called the "FC Mobile II", but I chose the first model because it was cheaper and it looks nicer in my opinion.

I have been a strawberry shortcake fan since 2003 and have seen some of those movies/the first GCI one?
I have also read a 80's book.
My name is Tyler and i'm 14.
Without me liking strawberry shortcake i would have never seen some tv shows i like (My little pony for a example).

Quote:Chapter 15: Over The Top


A week had passed after the trip around the world. Strawberryland had once again been saved from Purple Pie Man's grasp and all of us were glad. During this one week, nothing special had happened. Every single person on Strawberryland enjoyed their peaceful time without having to deal with Purple Pie Man or any other threat. On this peaceful day, I was sitting on my working table making a new device, while Almond was playing outside.

"Hey bro! Check this out!" Almond said, right after he came back.

"What is it?" I asked, turning my working chair around.

"Our friends are going to go here tomorrow! Let's go there too!" he said, giving me a piece of paper. I took the paper from him and read it. It was a brochure of a ranch where people can come to breathe on the country air and experience the life down on the ranch.

"Who are going there?" I asked.

"Lemon Meringue, Plum Puddin', Watermelon Kiss, Tangerina Torta, Rainbow Sherbet, Banana Candy, Blueberry Muffin, and Apricot," he replied.

"I'm not sure about this," I said.

"Why not?" he asked.

"I just don't feel like it," I replied. "I'm not really fond of going out anyway."

"Come on, bro! Please," he said.

"Can't you just go by yourself?" I asked.

"Not without you!" he said. I then pondered for a while.

"Alright if you want it," I said after sighing. "This device can wait anyway."

"Yaay! I'll tell them then!" he said, leaving the house running. I could only hope I had not made a bad decision.

At the next morning, the thing that woke me up was my telephone ringing. I picked it up while still being drowsy, and Almond was still fast asleep.

"Hello..." I said.

"Blackberry, are you coming or not?" the voice on the other side asked. "The bus is about to depart!"

"What?! Oh my, both me and Almond overslept!" I said in surprise.

"Do you want us to wait for you?" the voice asked. "But we can't hold the bus for long!"

"Uhh..." I said. "Go without us!"

"Are you sure?" the voice asked.

"We will come with another means! Don't worry about us!" I said.

"Alright if you say so. We'll wait for you at the location. See you soon, Blackberry," the voice said.

"See you soon, Lemon Meringue," I said, hanging the phone up.

"What happened...?" Almond asked, still in his drowsiness.

"We overslept," I said.

"I guess that can't be helped then..." he said.

"Yeah..." I said. "I'll get ready."

"I'll sleep for five more minutes then..." Almond said, going to sleep again.


About two hours later, the bus arrived at the ranch. All the girls on the bus were getting off, and then they were greeted by the owner of the ranch, who was a girl with orange ponytail in cowboy outfit.

"Welcome to Berry Prairie Dude Ranch! I'd like you to meet your ranch hands; Strawberry and Angel Cake!" the owner said. The girls were surprised that their ranch hands were indeed Strawberry Shortcake and Angel Cake, who were already in their cowboy outfit.

Soon, the teams were divided. Lemon, Banana, Blueberry, and Plum were in Strawberry's team, while Tangerina, Apricot, Watermelon, and Rainbow were in Angel's team.

"Is this everybody?" Strawberry asked.

"Well, there are supposed to be two more, but they overslept," Lemon said.

"Really? That's too bad. Who are they?" Strawberry asked.

"Blackberry and Almond," Plum said.

"But when I called them Blackberry said that they would come with another means," Lemon said.

"Well..." Strawberry said. "If it's them, they will come... about now."

Right after Strawberry said the last line, something familiar to most of the girls there came. It was Albatross, and when it arrived right above the front gate of the ranch, Almond and I jumped out from it. We landed safely because of Albatross' gravity field keeping our fall slow enough, and right after we had landed Albatross deformed back into necklace form. Almond caught the necklace and put it around his neck again.

"Sorry we're late!" Almond said.

"We're berry glad that you two made it here, Blackberry and Almond!" Strawberry said, welcoming us.

"Well, I guess I'm the only one who needs an explanation about what just happened, huh?" the ranch owner said.

"Annie, meet Blackberry Bun and his brother Almond Cookie," Strawberry said. "Blackberry and Almond, meet Annie Oatmeal."

"Nice to meet you," I said.

"Let me explain that the spaceship you saw was my true form. And before you ask, yes I'm not human. But let's just put that aside, alright?" Almond said.

"Alright, nice to meet you two. Welcome to Berry Prairie Dude Ranch!" Annie said. "Now pick your team."

"Team?" I asked.

"There are two teams here: Strawberry's and Angel Cake's. The two teams already has the same number of members, so it will be best if you two are in separate team. However, if you really want to be in the same team, I can arrange," Annie explained.

"What do you say, bro?" Almond asked.

"I'm fine either way actually," I said.

"Same, so let's separate," he said.

"Alright, I'll be in Strawberry's team," I said.

"Then I'll be in Angel Cake's team," he said. "Good luck, bro!"

"Good luck to you too," I said. I then approached Strawberry's team and Almond went to Angel Cake's team.

"Welcome to the team!" Strawberry said.

"Almond Cookie. With all his special abilities he's certainly the best competitor of the entire Strawberryland. With him in my team, this is gonna be an easy win!" Angel Cake said with low voice and grinning. Nobody heard her except Almond himself, who then decided not to talk about it.

Later, all teams were gathered at the horse area. We all had changed to cowboy outfit, except Almond who only put on a cowboy hat.

"Hey, Blackberry," Banana said. "Why Albatross... I mean, Almond, didn't change his clothes?"

"Well, the detail is hard to explain. To put it simply, his clothes can't be removed," I said.

"They can't?" Lemon asked.

"Does that mean he sleeps without changing to pajamas?" Blueberry asked.

"Yeah, he sleeps with those clothes, shoes included," I said. "The only thing that can be removed from him is the necklace, and you all know for what."

"Wow, that sounds terrible if it's us," Plum said.

"But the funny thing is that no matter how dirty he becomes during the day, he will be perfectly clean by bedtime," I said.

"Hey, Blackberry," Annie said while approaching me with a black horse at her side. "I'm going to pair you with this horse. He likes a rider who's calm and also smart. His name is Black Currant."

"Eh... what...?" I asked, not believing her last line. "Did you say... Black Currant?"

"Yes, that's his name," Annie said. "What's the matter."

"I had a cat with the same name," I said.

"What a coincidence! But that makes it even better to pair you with him, right?" Annie said, and I didn't say anything.

"Uhh.. Annie. I think we should pair Blackberry with another horse," Strawberry said.

"Huh? Why?" Annie asked. Strawberry didn't answer and instead she looked at me.

"Black Currant, my cat... He died protecting me six years ago," I said, which seemed to surprise Annie. "Without his sacrifice, I wouldn't be here now."

"Uhh Sorry. I didn't know," Annie said.

"It's not your fault," I said, stroking the black horse. "And don't worry about pairing me with this Black Currant. I'll get along with him just fine."

Later, all people had been paired with their horse and were riding them. I could see Almond riding a brown horse skillfully, which surprised me because he had never ridden any horse before. He then approached me.

"Hey bro, doing good with Black Currant?" he asked.

"You already know his name?" I asked.

"I can hear anything you hear if I want, remember?" he said. "You seemed down when Annie brought Black Currant to you, so I got curious and activated that trait."

"I see," I said. "By the way, I'm pretty surprised seeing you riding your horse so well," I said.

"My telepathy, along with him helping me with language barrier, really helps. Glad that ever since I split my soul, I no longer have any headache while connecting to him in human form," he said. Suddenly we heard someone screaming. We then rushed to Strawberry and Annie to ask about what had happened.

"What happened? I heard someone screaming," I said.

"It was Plum Puddin'," Strawberry said. "Her horse jumped over the fence and she was frightened."

"Is she going to be alright?" Almond asked, looking at a distant horse running around the field with its rider looking scared.

"Don't worry. Thunder knows where he's going," Annie said calmly.

Later that night, there was a chili cooking competition between the teams. I had no idea about cooking chili, so I only watched. I was standing close enough to the other group so I could hear Angel Cake bossing towards her team.

"Hey, Almond. Use your fire on this pot!" Angel said.

"Huh? But..." Almond said.

"We need to keep the fire hot, so do it now!" Angel interrupted.

"Alright..." Almond said. He then used his Flame Stone power on the pot. I was worried about the pain and burn damage he had to endure, but I decided to believe in him, so I didn't say anything.

"Hmm... Smells berry good," Strawberry said, smelling the chili from her team's pot. Blueberry then took a spoonful of the chili and tasted it.

"Could use some more chili powder," Blueberry said.

"Plum, could you do it?" Strawberry said.

"I'm on it," Plum said, bringing a bottle of chili powder. She was about to shake the bottle above the pot when I interrupted.

"Wait a second, Plum," I said, approaching her. "Before doing that, make sure the cap is sealed tight. Don't want to risk the cap falling and all chili powder in the bottle getting into our chili, right?"

"Oh yeah, you're right," Plum said, tightening the bottle cap. "Oh my gosh, glad you said that! The cap is loose!"

"Berry great job, Blackberry!" Strawberry said as Plum carefully added the chili powder to the pot.

Not long after, Annie went to the other group and tasted their chili.

"Ouch!" Annie said right after tasting.

"What's the matter?" Angel asked.

"This was delicious," Annie said. "But it's too hot! I mean, the heat. You probably had the fire too big. But don't feel bad about it."

Annie then went to our team's pot and tasted our chili.

"Hmm... This is... Perfect! Well done!" Annie said. "Team Strawberry is the winner for this match!"

Our team cheered for our victory. But my cheering didn't last long because I heard Angel Cake scolding Almond.

"We lost and it was your fault!" Angel said.

"I was about to say that the fire from Flame Stone is hotter than ordinary fire, but you wouldn't listen!" Almond said.

"You should have controlled it! It's your..." Angel said, but I came and interrupted her.

"He did everything as you told him, and now you blame him?! Do you know how hard it was for him?!" I shouted.

"Huh...?" Angel said in surprise. I then pulled Almond's right hand which he had been keeping inside his pants pocket. There was severe burn damage all over his hand.

"Look! This is what always happens if he uses the Flame Stone power continuously for more than one minute!" I shouted.

"Calm down, brother! It will heal by tomorrow morning!" Almond said, but I didn't listen.

"He did all those for you, and you scolded him?! I had better thought of you, but now I hate you, and I will never forgive you! NEVER!" I shouted from the top of my lungs. There was a silence, and I walked away from the crowd still holding Almond's hand. However, suddenly everything went dark and I didn't remember anything that happened next.

When I woke up, I was on a bed, but not the bed in the bunkhouse. I had no idea how I suddenly had ended up there, but I noticed that it was already the next day in the morning from the sunlight coming through the window in the room.

"Morning," suddenly a familar voice greeted.

"Hey, Almond. Where am I? What happened?" I asked, looking at Almond who was sitting on a chair next to the bed.

"This is Annie's bedroom. I knocked you out, with my soul power," he replied, which surprised me.

"Huh? Why? For what?" I asked.

"Because I needed you to calm down," he said. "Do you realize what you've done? Do you know what happened after you threw a tantrum like that?"

I couldn't answer, so I kept silent.

"Angel Cake broke down and cried! She was so shocked, and she fainted not long after! Not to mention the atmosphere became so bad that Annie decided to call the entire event off!" Almond said, standing up. "Everyone else should be halfway home by now."

"But she..." I said, but Almond interrupted.

"I know! You had a point that what Angel Cake did wasn't right, but you didn't have to be so outraged! You said it yourself that anything done out of rage wouldn't bring anything good, but why did you end up doing that?" he said. "Everyone else said that it was not like the usual you."

"Because..." I said, but I couldn't bring myself to speak further.

"Tell me, brother," he said, sitting on the bed.

"Because I love you," I said. Almond seemed a bit surprised. "I love you as my brother. I'm determined to guard you from anything at all cost, even if it means losing everything else. I won't mind the entire Strawberryland hating me, as long as I can always guard you I don't need anything else."

"Well, I'm flattered," Almond said. "But that still cannot justify what you have done. I appreciate you defending me, but you went too far and it won't bring any good for your future."

"Yeah, I pretty much have lost some of my friends' respect towards me. I'm aware of that," I said. "But the damage has been done and I have to live with the consequences."

"Brother, can you promise me one thing?" he asked.

"What is it?" I asked back.

"Never defend me out of rage again," he said. "If you want to defend me, keep your head cool."

"That may be a bit hard to do," I said.

"Promise me, brother," he said. I kept silent for a while.

"Alright, I promise," I finally said. I saw Almond smiling after I had said that.

"Thank you, brother. That's what I want to hear," he said. Suddenly, his necklace started to shine.

"Almond? What's happening with you?" I asked. Almond didn't say anything. He just kept smiling as his necklace emitted even brighter light to the point I couldn't see anything but white.

"We lost and it was your fault!" suddenly I heard a familiar voice.

"I was about to say that the fire from Flame Stone is hotter than ordinary fire, but you wouldn't listen!" I heard another familiar voice as I regained my sight. I was very surprised that I was back at the chili cooking competition again. Almond had somehow turned back the time.

"You should have controlled it! It's still your fault!" Angel said. I was once again angered by what Angel had said, but I had promised to keep my head cool. Therefore, I just calmly approached her.

"Angel Cake, did you really want victory so bad that you now blame my brother?" I asked.

"Eh? No... I mean... I..." Angel said, losing her words.

"If you want to blame someone, then blame me," I said. "Blame me for your loss because I prevented Plum from accidentally pouring the whole bottle of chili powder to our team's chili,"

"I don't think that makes sense, brother," Almond said, still with both hands inside his pockets.

"Well, does blaming you make sense either when you did what she had told you to the letter?" I asked.

"Alright, sorry for interrupting but I really need to say something here," Annie said. "Angel Cake, I don't mean to corner you, but you are really becoming what we have been trying to avoid."

Angel just bowed down her head, not saying anything.

"We all need to remember that the whole team competition is just for the fun of it, not for the victory or the trophy. So no bragging if you win, no whining if you lose. The participation and putting all your heart in it should be the main point," Annie said.

"Yeah, I guess you're right," Angel said. "I'm really sorry, Almond. I was carried away."

"Ah, no worries," Almond said.

"Alright, now that we are settled, let's eat our chili together!" Annie said.

"I'll pass, then," Almond said.

"Why is it?" Angel asked. "Are you still hurt because of what I said?"

"No, not that," Almond said. "I suddenly don't feel too well..."

"I think he needs some rest after using that Flame Stone power," I said. "I'll take him to the bunkhouse and return later."

"Oh I see," Angel said. "Good night, Almond."

"Good night, Almond!" the others said. The two of us then walked away from the group.

"Can't have her feel more guilty because of seeing this," I said, pulling Almond's left hand from his pocket while still walking. The hand had severe burn damage.

"Yeah, thanks," Almond said.

"And thank you to you too," I said.

"Huh? For what?" he asked.

"For turning back the time to give me second chance," I said.

"I did that?" he asked.

"Yeah. You don't remember?" I asked.

"I see. So that's why suddenly my soul power suddenly depleted and I felt so weak," he said. "Yeah, I can turn back the time, but I don't get to keep my memories of the future. Only one other person I choose will get to keep the memories."

"Oh..." I said.

"What had happened that I turned back the time?" he asked.

"It's embarassing. I'd rather not talk about it," I replied. "But I'm very grateful that you averted it."

"You're welcome," he said. "Though there will be no Albatross for at least two weeks because of this."

"A small price to pay," I said.

"If you think that's a small price, I'm starting to wonder what kind of trouble you got into," he said.

"You're better off not knowing," I said.

"Come on, bro. Tell me!" he said with a smirk.

"No!" I said, running away from him.

"Hey, wait!" he said, chasing me, and the two of us ran all the way to his team's bunkhouse.


-End of Chapter 15-

Quote:Chapter 14: We Meet Again


One week had passed after the day when Albatross had healed me from the injuries I had gotten. During this one week, I have been taking trains to chase Strawberry and Peppermint, who were three days ahead of me. Because I pretty much used the train of same schedule, chasing her was difficult. The only way I could catch up to her was to keep taking the immediate next train in every station, hoping that the two girls would stop to look around or rest from time to time. I even took any available night train so I could keep chasing her even while asleep. However, I was not even sure if I got closer or even passed her without knowing. Albatross couldn't use his scanner while in necklace form, so I had to wait until he could transform again.

This day, while standing around at a station waiting for the next train to come, suddenly there was an announcement that the next train would be delayed because the train two schedules ahead had been obstructed by a herd of sheeps for one hour.

"What a waste of time," I said.

"Can't be helped," Albatross said.

"I'm not sure whether I should hope they are in that blocked train or not," I said.

"I see what you mean," Albatross said. "If they're in that train, at least you're not falling behind again. But if they're not and already ahead, they have better chance to finish the challenge."

"Right," I said.

"I can transform again if you want me to," he said.

"Better save it for later," I said.

"Okay," he said. "By the way, bro..."

"What is it?" I asked.

"We better not talk anymore for now. You look like a weirdo doing that," he said. I then looked around and noticed that some people are looking at me with confused face. I felt pretty embarassed, so I walked some distance from them.

Three days later, while waiting at another station, I heard an announcement that all train schedules on that day had to be cancelled because the railroad was blocked by a big fallen tree.

"Albatross, I guess it's time," I said.

"Alright," he said. I then walked to an area behind the station where there were no other people around. In there, I threw the necklace up and it transformed into Albatross. He then sucked me into cockpit and flew along the railway.

"While you're here, can you use your gravity field to move the fallen tree out of the way?" I asked.

"Sure, no problem," he replied. Soon, we saw the fallen big tree which was blocking the railroad. There was a train in front of it, unable to proceed because of the fallen tree. Albatross then flew closer to the fallen tree and slowly lifted it using his gravity field. He easily moved the tree to an open field. After the tree was safely put down, he flew away quickly, leaving some people below staring in confusion.

"Can you scan for Strawberry?" I asked.

"Sure. Wait a minute," he replied. He then stopped and hovered above a jungle. "That's pretty strange. According to my scanner, Strawberry and Peppermint are right below..."

Before Albatross could finish his sentence, he suddenly deformed again. Once again, I fell down screaming. I fell through something like a sheet of cloth, ripping it open, and then I landed on something hard. I didn't get any injuries because the cloth I had fallen through had miraculously absorbed my fall, but hitting the hard surface was still pretty painful. Soon after, the necklace fell right on my chest.

"Blackberry?" suddenly I heard a very familiar voice.

"Why are you here?" another very familiar voice asked. I opened my eyes and saw that they were indeed Strawberry and Peppermint.

"Oh, hi, Strawberry, Peppermint," I said with a little laugh, still trying to endure the pain from falling.

"You surprised me, y'know. Suddenly falling right here through the umbrella," Peppermint said.

"Are you all right?" Strawberry asked.

"I guess so..." I said, trying to get up into sitting position. "Hey, if you keep repeating this, you'll eventually kill me for real."

"Sorry..." Albatross replied, sounding ashamed.

"Umm, who are you talking to?" Peppermint asked. "Did you hit your head?"

"Well, I guess I have a lot to explain," I said. "By the way, where am I?"

"We're riding an elephant to get through the jungle because the railroad was blocked by a fallen tree," Strawberry said.

"I see," I said, then I told the two girls everything.

"So before this you already fell once and got injured? Seriously, if I were you I wouldn't ride him again. Do you have any fear in you?" Peppermint said.

"Of course I was afraid," I said. "But my friends are worth more than myself and I will take any risk to keep them safe."

"I appreciate that berry much, Blackberry," Strawberry said. "But none of us want any of our friends to risk themselves so much. There is always be a way to overcome any obstacle without risking yourself berry greatly."

"I'm not so sure about that," I said.

We all then continued the trip with the elephant ride. The jungle was so huge that it took many days. Every day, We continued the trip from the morning until evening and we stayed overnight at small villages we came across. I saw no sight of Purple Pie Man and Sour Grapes during the trip through the jungle, but I felt that I still needed to be careful.

"We've made it! We're out of the jungle!" Peppermint said in excitement when we were indeed finally out of the jungle.

The elephant then stopped near a coastline and sat down for us to jump off. Strawberry and Peppermint jumped off to the right while I jumped off to the left. After that, the elephant stood up and walked away.

"Thanks for your help, my friend, and thank you, nice elephant!" Strawberry said, waving her hands.

CRACK!

"What is that sound?" Peppermint asked.

"I don't know. Blackberry! Are you all right?" Strawberry asked, looking at me, who was looking away from her.

"Well, not too good," I said, turning around and showing my broken glasses I held in my hands.

"What happened?" Strawberry asked.

"My glasses fell off when I jumped, and I carelessly stepped on it," I said.

"What a bummer," Peppermint said. "Can you still see now?"

"Of course I still can. But now I'm pretty much blind for anything further than 5 meters away," I said. "Never mind that. Let's move on."

"Strawberry Shortcake? Is that you?" Suddenly we heard a familiar voice.

"I know that voice," Strawberry said, looking back. "Tea Blossom!"

I then saw a blurry figure running to Strawberry. I finally could recognize her as Tea Blossom when she got close and hugged Strawberry. We all then walked together while Strawberry explained everything to Tea Blossom.

"So you see, now we need to find a ship to take us the rest of the way back," Strawberry said.

"If we can get home in three weeks, we can cure Almond without that rotten Pie Man getting our berry fields," Peppermint said.

"I'm sure we'll find what you need," Tea Blossom said. "By the way, Blackberry. Where are your glasses?"

"I broke them by accident," I said.

"I see. I might be able to find something for you too," she said. "Let's go to my house first. It's almost lunch time."

All of us then went to Tea Blossom's house and had lunch there. After we were done Tea Blossom left the house saying that she knew someone who could help me, so the three of us remained inside the house for a few minutes until she came back bringing a girl in red clothes.

"Mint Tea?" Peppermint said, surprised.

"Ah yes, you both know her already," Tea Blossom said. "Strawberry Shortcake, meet Mint Tea. Mint Tea, Strawberry Shortcake."

"Nice to meet you, Mint Tea!" Strawberry said, standing up and offering a handshake. Mint Tea accepted it reluctantly.

"So, who needs help?" Mint Tea asked, a bit cynically.

"Uhh, me," I said, showing my broken glasses to her.

"This? Are you kidding me? This is broken beyond repair!" she said. "But alright, I'll see what I can do."

"Thank you," I said.

"Thank her instead," she said, looking at Tea Blossom. "If not for her, I wouldn't accept this."

"Thank you for your kindness, Mint Tea," Tea Blossom said.

"Hmph!" Mint tea replied with slightly blushing cheek, looking away from Tea Blossom.

"Strawberry, Peppermint, let's go find a boat to bring you home," Tea Blossom said.

"Yeah, let's go. We must get back as soon as we can!" Peppermint said.

"We'll be back soon, Blackberry and Mint Tea," Strawberry said, and the three of them left the place. Mint Tea then put something that seemed like a toolbox on the table in Tea Blossom's living room and started working on something.

"How did this happen anyway?" she asked while still working.

"They fell off when I jumped off an elephant ride, and my foot landed on them," I replied.

"How careless of you," she said, examining the remains of my glasses. "Minus 5? Not only your glasses, your eyes are also horribly broken!"

"I don't even know how they became like this," I said.

"You're strange," she said. "And so are your glasses. They don't seem like any ordinary glasses..."

"Well..." I said.

"Tell me. Are you an inventor?" she asked.

"Uhh, yes.." I said.

"Figures. The frame has tiny cables inside. What do they do?" she asked.

"They help me to see in the dark. Blind person can also use it to see," I replied.

"That's... quite cool," she said.

"But you can't use it for too long or you'll have very bad headache," I said.

"How long did it take you to make them?" she asked.

"One hour," I replied. "But without my tools, I can't do anything here."

"Alright! Here!" she said, giving me something. "Of course I can't repair your glasses, but I've made a replacement for them!"

"Let's see..." I said, taking the new glasses from her hand. I then wore them and my vision became clear again. I then looked at myself on a nearby mirror. The replacement glasses she had made for me looked just like my original glasses. "This is great! Thank you!"

"Really?" she asked.

"Definitely! It was surprising that you can do this," I said.

"Surprising?" she asked, getting upset.

"Oh, umm... I mean..." I said. Getting timid because I didn't expect my last line to upset her.

"Yeah, that figures. We only met once before and I acted like a complete brat back then," she said.

"No, you didn't!" I said. "You were just being cautious. Me and Peppermint were complete strangers back then, so it was just fine!"

"Really?" she asked.

"Of course!" I said. Immediately after, the girls who had left returned.

"We're home!" Tea Blossom said.

"And we got a boat ready for us tomorrow morning!" Peppermint said.

"Wow, Blackberry! I'm berry surprised that Mint Tea has fixed your glasses so quickly!" Strawberry said, noticing that I was wearing glasses again.

"They're not my glasses. She made a replacement," I said.

"Replacement? But they look exactly like your old glasses!" Peppermint said. "You're amazing, Mint Tea!"

"Nobody can match her when it comes to handcrafting," Tea Blossom said. "She's a master of it."

"Stop it, Tea Blossom! That's embarrassing!" Mint Tea shouted with her cheeks completely red, the rest of us just laughed.

When Mint Tea went home, I went with her because I also wanted to walk around the area. She offered to give me a tour around the place, and I gladly accepted. With her, I saw a lot of places such as a bamboo forest, a beautiful riverside, and The Great Wall of Chocolate itself. Later, we found a small pier at the coastline and there was a boat docking there.

"Maybe that boat is the one I'll be using tomorrow?" I said.

"Well, I have no idea. Why don't you ask the captain if you want to make sure?" she said.

"Yeah, let's go there," I said.

Both of us then walked to the boat to make sure if it was the boat I would use at the next day. When we arrived there, there was nobody on the boat, but we got on board anyway.

"Hello, anybody here?" Mint Tea shouted. There was no answer.

"Maybe the captain is somewhere else for now?" I said.

"Maybe, but now I'm curious," Mint Tea said. "Let's check the lower deck."

"I don't think we should. That's trespassing," I said.

"No worries. We can just say we're lost," she said, walking to the lower deck entrance. I followed without saying anything. Later in the lower deck, there was nobody inside.

"Let's just go. The captain isn't here right now," I said.

"Well, alright," she said. However, soon someone entered.

"What are you doing here?" a voice familiar to me asked. It was Purple Pie Man disguising as the boat captain.

"Uh, we just wanted to make sure if this boat is the one my friends will be riding tomorrow," Mint Tea said.

"Yeah it is. So?" he asked.

"Then we're leaving. See you tomorrow," she said, starting to walk to the entrance. I followed behind her, hoping that Pie Man wouldn't recognize me.

"Not so fast, child," Pie Man said, grabbing my arms. "Did you really think I wouldn't recognize you? The weird boy with his weird devices?"

"And it seems you knew that I saw through your thin disguise," I said. I tried to get free, but I naturally couldn't match the strength of an adult.

"Hey, what are you doing to Blackberry?!" Mint Tea said. Suddenly, Sour Grapes came from behind her and grabbed her arms. "What are you doing?! Let me go!"

"Nice work, Sour Grapes," Pie Man said.

"Now what are we going to do? We can't let them go, but if we don't their friends will get worried and suspect us," Sour Grapes said.

"Hmm..." Pie Man said, thinking. "Hey, girl. There must be a telephone in the place this boy's friends are staying, right?"

"If yes, so what?" Mint Tea replied.

"My sister there has a cellphone. Call them and tell them that this boy is going to stay at your house tonight and meet them at this boat tomorrow," Pie Man said.

"And why should I do that?" Mint Tea said.

"Because you don't want me to pour this poison on him," Pie Man said, holding a green vial with his left hand while holding my arms with his right hand. Mint Tea did as Pie Man had told her because of the threat.

"Hmph! There you go!" Mint Tea said after her call had ended. Pie Man then opened the green vial and drank all the content.

"Apple syrup. Tasty!" he said, followed by a laugh. Mint Tea was very angry because she had been deceived, but Sour Grapes had already grabbed her arms.

And so, history repeated itself for me. I got locked up inside the lower deck of a boat with my hands tied behind my back. Though this time my legs were tied as well and my mouth was gagged. I could only sat on the floor quietly, leaning to the wall, and the same applied to Mint Tea. She tried struggling to get free, but it was of no use.

"In trouble again," Albatross said telepathically.

"Yeah, can you do something?" I said in my mind.

"Afraid not," he replied. "I can't do anything in necklace form, and if I transform right now you'll be crushed by my spaceship body along with this boat."

"So I guess we have no choice other than wait," I said in my mind.

Later, nightfall came and I felt really hungry and tired. I believed the same applied to Mint Tea, but there was nothing we could do. Suddenly, we heard someone coming. The place was dark so we couldn't see clearly, but soon we could recognize that it was Sour Grapes bringing a lit lantern and some other things. She then hanged the lantern near the deck ceiling and kneeled in front of us. She then removed our gag.

"I brought some food for you both," she said.

"And you expect us to eat with our hands tied?" Mint Tea said.

"Of course not. I will help you," Sour Grapes said. She then patiently fed us until we were done with the food.

"You're much nicer than that man," Mint Tea said.

"I'm sorry about my brother. I actually don't agree with him myself," Sour Grapes said.

"Then why did you help him?" Mint Tea asked.

"Because I have promised him that I would help him forever, no matter what. I'm sorry," Sour Grapes said. She then gagged our mouth again and then she put an old mattress with two old pillows on the floor right in front of us. "Lie down here and sleep. Both of you."

We did as told by her, and then she put a blanket over us.

"I know this is not comfortable, but hang in there," she said. Both of us nodded, and we could see her smiling warmly before leaving the place. Having to sleep with our hands and legs tied and mouth gagged was of course not comfortable, but much better than without the mattress, pillows, and warm blanket. Both of us fell asleep soon enough.

I had no idea what Pie Man had told Strawberry and Peppermint in the following morning, but we could feel the boat departing, which meant Strawberry and Peppermint were upstairs on the boat and they were somehow convinced not to look for me. Mint Tea struggled hard and tried to scream, but all she did were in vain. The two of us spent the rest of the day doing nothing at all other than sitting idly, being unable to move. Nobody came downstairs at all. I was really bored and my body felt really sore, and I knew the same could apply to Mint Tea. I really wondered how Pie Man managed to prevent Strawberry and Peppermint from looking down here, but bed time came again so we just went to sleep.

In the following morning, not long after the two of us woke up, we heard someone rushing downstairs. It was apparently Strawberry and Peppermint. They looked really horrified.

"Blackberry! Mint Tea!" Strawberry shouted, running to us. "Are you two okay?"

"That no good Pie Man! How could he have done this to you?" Peppermint said.

"I'm berry sorry for not knowing this earlier," Strawberry said as she released me.

"I'm sorry too! I should have not trusted him!" Peppermint said as she released Mint Tea.

"What took you so long?! Are you two dumb or what?!" Mint Tea said, looking very upset.

"Calm down, Mint Tea," I said.

"How can I be so calm when...!" Mint Tea said before someone interrupted. It was Pie Man himself, no longer in disguise.

"Alright, now that you have had your reunion, get out of my boat," Pie Man said.

Soon, the four of us were left stranded on a beach which seemed far from Strawberryland. According to Strawberry, we were already at the same land with Strawberryland, but we were far south. To make matters worse, there was only one week left.

"Now, what should we do?" I asked.

"Now we're really not going to make it," Peppermint said.

"Don't give up yet, Peppermint. We will overcome this obstacle," Strawberry said.

"How? We're still far from Strawberryland, and we have no vehicle!" Peppermint said.

"I don't care about that!" suddenly Mint Tea said.

"What?" Peppermint said.

"I don't care about your contest or whatever it is!" Mint Tea said, starting to cry. "I don't know this place! I'm scared! I just want to go home!"

After saying it, she broke down crying. I could understand her. That day had been supposed to be just another ordinary day for her, but all of a sudden she had been kidnapped and had been brought far away from her home with no idea how and when she would be able to get back. I then looked at my necklace.

"Albatross..." I said.

"Yeah, I know," he replied. I then threw my necklace upwards and it morphed into Albatross. Mint Tea seemed very surprised.

"Mint Tea, this is Albatross, my spaceship. He will take you home in a flash," I said.

"Spaceship? Did you...?" Mint Tea said before I interrupted.

"He can't fly for long, so you should go now. Save any questions for later, okay?" I said. She then smiled and nodded, and Albatross immediately took her and flew away.

"Uhh... Blackberry. Do you know about what you have done?" Peppermint asked.

"She wants to go home, so I helped her with Albatross," I said. "What's wrong with that?"

"Did you realize that you have just thrown away our chance to get back home in time?" she asked.

"Aren't we supposed not to use jet planes for this challenge?" I asked back.

"Pie Man cheated by doing this to us! That rule doesn't matter anymore!" she said.

"Peppermint, it's true that Pie Man cheated on us, but that doesn't mean we can cheat as well!" Strawberry said.

"So how are we going to make it now?! We're in the middle of nowhere!" Peppermint said.

"Not really, I think," I said, which confused Peppermint. "Don't you think this beach looks familiar?"

"Huh?" Peppermint said, looking around. "Oh yeah, this place does seem familiar..."

"We're near Tangerina Torta's place," I said, and the two girls seemed to be delighted. "Let's go."

We then walked into the forest, and not long after that we found Tangerina Torta's house. Just as we arrived, she greeted us from the balcony of her tree house. All of us then sat together inside her house, and Strawberry told her everything including our need for a vehicle to get us home in time. Fortunately, Tangerina had a scooter available. But it could only fit two persons so I had to stay. I needed much treatment anyway, because I had spent the previous day without any food and water.

"Be careful on the way," I said as the two girls were about to go.

"We will!" Strawberry said.

"Pie Man thinks we're going to fail for sure, so I guess he won't get in your way now," I said.

"That's good to hear and I really hope you're right," Peppermint said.

"Thank you for your help, Blackberry! I hope you will catch up soon!" Strawberry said.

"I will. Once Albatross returns I will go straight to Strawberryland and wait for you there," I said, and the two girls left the place.

four days later, after lunch time, Albatross came flying near Tangerina's house and soon reverted back into a necklace. I picked the necklace up and put it on.

"What took you so long?" I asked. "I actually expected you to come three days ago."

"Sorry," he replied. "She needed some treatment after spending a full day without food and water so I used my soul power to heal her."

"I see," I said.

One day later, Albatross was ready to transform again. After saying goodbye to Tangerina, we left her place and flew straight to the clubhouse Strawberryland. When I arrived, Blueberry and Orange were there sitting in the main room. They looked surprised when I entered the building.

"Blackberry Bun!" Orange said. "Where have you been?"

"You absolutely made us confused with your disappearance," Blueberry said.

"Yeah, sorry. I was in a hurry," I said, then I told them everything.

"Really? That no good Pie Man!" Orange said.

"Let's hope Strawberry will make it in time," I said. "Eh, not hope. Believe is the better word."

"That's right. Absolutely!" Blueberry said.

Two days later, I was waiting for Strawberry at the gazebo used for the finish line. Angel, Ginger, and Orange were also with me, as well as Almond's body which was put on the gazebo bench. Not long later, the wagon we all knew and not love came. Both Pie Man and Sour Grapes came off from the wagon and approached us. As I had expected, they were surprised seeing me.

"You? How did you...?" Pie Man said.

"Jet plane. Therefore I don't count for your challenge," I said. "Strawberry will come soon. You'll see."

"I will just wait here for my berries then," Pie Man said, seeming relieved.

"Give me the antidote," I said. "Or rather... the vial where you contain his soul."

"So you knew..." he said. "Why should I?"

"Either Strawberry makes it in time or not, you'll give me that vial anyway," I said.

"He's right," Sour Grapes said. "Don't make him suffer for any longer!"

"Alright, alright," Pie Man said, and then he took a purple vial from his pocket and gave it to me. "Open this under his nose and let him inhale it."

I then immediately went to the gazebo bench where Almond was sleeping. I could notice Strawberry and Peppermint coming right after I had received the vial, but I didn't care much because I just wanted to return Almond's soul to his body. I took his necklace from my neck and put it on him, and then I did as Pie Man had told me. Purple smoke came out from the vial and Almond inhaled it. Just one second later, he opened his eyes and got up to sitting position.

"Hey, brother," he said, then without saying anything I hugged him tight. "Hey, what are you doing?"

"Welcome back, brother," I said, leaking tears.

"Oh..." he said, seeming to understand. "But you need to let me go."

"Let me do this, just for a little longer," I said, still hugging him tight.

"I need to settle things with that Pie Man," he said. I then released my hug.

"Settle things?" I asked.

"Come with me," he said, standing up and walking to Pie Man. I followed him and when I came close I noticed both Pie Man and Sour Grapes being upset and my other friends cheering. It was obvious that Strawberry had won the challenge.

"Hey, Pie Man," Almond said.

"You won! Are you happy now?" Pie Man said, still upset.

"Not in your life," Almond said, coming closer to Pie Man. "Do you know how it felt for me?"

"What do you mean?" Pie Man asked back.

"I repeat! Do you have any idea, about how it felt for me being trapped inside that vial?!" Almond said. He seemed very angry.

"Huh? But..." Pie Man said before Almond interrupted.

"Imagine yourself, being hanged, unable to move, bound by chains from all directions, inside nothing but emptiness!" Almond shouted. "That's how I felt! For eighty! Straight! Days!"

"But... That's impossible!" Pie Man said in disbelief. "Any soul trapped by the potion should be in deep sleep, and when it returns to the body it shouldn't even remember anything!"

"Let's just say that my soul is a bit... special," Almond said, raising his left hand to about the same height as his shoulder. He then used the Flame Stone power to set his left hand on fire. That of course surprised both Pie Man and Sour Grapes, and probably my other friends as well because none of them had ever seen Almond doing such thing.

"W-what are you...?!" Pie Man said, taking a few steps back.

"You have ten seconds..." Almond said, increasing the size of the fire on his hand and starting to count down from ten. Both Pie Man and Sour Grapes didn't need explanation at all. They both ran to their carriage and rushed it to escape. After Almond's countdown reached zero, he was about to throw his necklace. However, I hugged him from behind.

"Stop it, Almond. Please..." I said.

"Let me go, brother. I must do this," he said.

"I know you're upset and angry for what Pie Man has done," I said. "But anything done out of rage won't bring anything good."

"He is berry right, Almond," Strawberry said.

"Please take a rest and calm down," Peppermint said.

"You are all too soft," he said, putting off the fire on his hand. "If you keep this up they will just keep coming back for more."

"Let them come, and we all will work together to make sure they won't get our berry fields, ever," I said, followed by all girls nodding. Almond then sighed.

"Alright, if you all say so," he said. "You can let me go now, brother."

I then released my hug, and all of us agreed to go home and rest.

"By the way, brother," I said as the two of us walked to my home.

"Yes?" he said.

"Do you realize that what you did will possibly backfire on you?" I said.

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"Now that Pie Man and Sour Grapes know that you're special, when they return their first priority will be to get rid of you with any scheme they can come up with," I said.

"Let them come and try," he said.

"Also, I'm glad that you didn't go completely insane," I said. "I don't think I would be able to stay sane after being trapped for 80 days."

"80 days is nothing compared to my previous life as a stone," he said.

"Oh yeah, I forgot about that," I said. "But then why did you bring that up if it was nothing for you?"

"Just to make him feel guilty," he replied. "Though I'm not sure if it worked or not."

"Well, let's just wait and see if he will ever dare to return," I said. "And if he does, we all will make sure that any scheme he has will fail."

"Count me in for that," he said.


--End of Chapter 14--

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The Philippine Government has now implemented a new Cybercrime law, which, according to it, can penalize individuals posting "libelous" or inflammatory statements on Facebook and elsewhere. However, the Electronic Frontier Foundation has expressed concern over it, and with the possibility of a SOPA-style act being in the way, the interwebs might end up being less than savoury for Filipinos.

DON'T BE A VICTIM OF TYRRANY! FIGHT FOR YOUR RIGHTS!

My laptop suddenly died without any warning, and cannot be turned on again. The light on the adapter becomes dim and flashing, but backs to normal again if the adapter is unplugged from the laptop. I only can assume that my laptop stopped receiving electricity from the adapter. Which part do you think is broken based on this limited information I can give? Are all the data inside safe?

For now I can use my brother's laptop, but I'm worried about my data.

I feel terrible for my husband. It's after 8 PM on his birthday, and he hasn't been able to get off work or even have time to use the phone before texting... all day. On his birthday. On a Saturday birthday!