Disclaimer: I do not own Oban Star-Racers or any of the characters. Bethany is mine.

Rick was trying to think of multiple ways of just dropping off Aikka's fiancé without having to actually face the Nourasian prince. Because if they waltzed in with her, he had a feeling that the prince would connect two-and-two together and get fish.

He caught snippets of the conversation going on between Bethany and Sephet because they had to shout to be heard over the roar of the wind and the engine. From what he garnered, Bethany had gotten the false arm when she was seven and her brother had pushed her into a shark tank at an amusement park. Normally, sharks would swim away when disturbed, but she happened to land on top of one that took it personally and before she could climb out, it had shredded her right arm. Rick felt a twinge of irritation, but said nothing.

The Nourasian garage was coming into view and he could see Sephet nervously twisting her hands as they drew closer. Aikka's big blue beetle was the first thing they saw but he seemed no more interested in them than he would a breeze as they stopped the transport. But that all changed when Sephet pushed back her hood and the bug went nuts, clicking and whirring up a storm.

"Shhh, Gadar, please quiet down," the princess whispered. She ran over to the beetle, stroking its side while his tongue reached out to touch her. She smiled slightly but immediately stiffened when they heard a door open.

"Gadar, is everything alright? You made quite a commotion," Aikka said. He headed down the stairs but stopped short when he noticed part of the Earth team in the doorway. "Oh, I didn't know we had guests. May I inquire as to why you are here?"

Bethany and Rick exchanged looks. "We came to deliver a package for you," Rick told him as he gestured at Gadar. The prince looked skeptical but he walked around the beetle, halting when he saw his fiancé.

To describe the look on Aikka's face was easy. Mostly shock, but there was definitely anger and perhaps even a little guilt. But the fact that he managed to display all of these at once was a talent in itself. Sephet cringed as she turned into a shrinking violet.

"Hello Aikka," she whispered.

"Wha…how…do you…" he stuttered but couldn't seem to nail down one thought. Rage eventually won out and he crossed the last few feet and grabbed her arm. "What are you doing here?" he yelled.

"I just…I just wanted to see you," she whimpered. "Please Aikka that hurts." It didn't seem to get through as he gripped her arm tighter.

"Do you know how much danger you are in? You may be a princess but that doesn't give you the right to go wherever you please!"

"I know! I'm sorry! Please Aikka!" she cried. She was in danger of being seriously hurt until Rick pried his hand off.

"That's enough, prince," Rick said. His voice was low and dangerous and it seemed to snap Aikka out of the daze he was in. He looked from Rick to Sephet, who was holding her arm. She wouldn't meet his eyes and was biting her lower lip.

The pained expression that came over Aikka even made Bethany wince. He seemed to struggle with how to apologize, like if he should hold her or touch her. But ended up just giving her a very deep bow.

"My apologies, princess. I let my emotions sway my actions. I cannot apologize enough for hurting you," he said. The princess wouldn't answer. The silence was tense and nearly suffocating. Thankfully, Cannan took the moment to interrupt.

"Prince? What was all the noise about earlier?" he asked. "Gadar is not hurt, is he?" It wasn't until he came around the beetle that he finally spotted their guest. "Princess Sephet! My lady, it is good to see you. I hope that you are in good health," he said, bowing low.

"I am fine, thank you. For now I hope that you will stay with you, as I have no other lodgings and no way of getting back home," she said. The sword master looked worried as he raised his head.

"Well certainly my lady. But may I ask why you do not have one of your ladies-in-waiting accompanying you?" Sephet winced a little but seemed to find her backbone.

"I came here under my own power. My reasons are my own," she said when the sword master opened his mouth. He looked startled but bowed again.

"Certainly. I will arrange a room for you_"

"That won't be necessary." They were all shocked by that. Her eyes were red and tears ran down her face but there was certain…determination in her visage that one wouldn't normally associate with her. "I will stay here, with Gadar. I will ask for a mat, a pillow and a blanket, but that is all."

"But my lady_"

"That is all," she said and sat down, huddling against the beetle. They were all a little shocked and more than a little uncomfortable. Aikka looked as if he might do something, but thought better of it. He turned to leave, but not before Bethany caught up with him.

"What the hell was all that about?" she hissed. There was anger in his eyes when he looked at her but there wasn't much venom behind it. It was more like he was angry at himself.

"I let my anger get the better of me. It won't happen again," he said.

"I hope so. Otherwise, she can come stay with us," Rick told him. They both noticed the Nourasian prince wince but said nothing. "You need to talk to her and resolve whatever unspoken tension there is between the two of you. Otherwise, you're in for one miserable lifetime of wedded bliss."

Aikka only nodded before heading back up the stairs. Cannan bowed before them as they watched the prince leave.

"Thank you for bringing the princess here. We will be sure to watch after her."

"Good. Just let her know that if anything happens she can always come ask the Earth team for help," Rick told him. Cannan nodded and bowed one last time before they headed out.

Rick and Bethany were silent as they got back in the transport and headed off. It was getting late as one of the suns was setting, although in only a few hours the other one would be rising on the opposite horizon. It was actually a little chilly as the wind whipped at their coats.

"It kind of reminds me of home," Rick said.

"What?" He started and looked over at Bethany. She looked…almost startled. "What did you say?"

"Oh, yeah sorry. I was saying that this weather reminds me of home. I grew up out in Arizona, near the desert and it got pretty cold at night," he replied.

"You've…never talked about your home. Or where you grew up." She didn't elaborate, didn't push him to talk, but he remembered how she'd told him all about her past. Fair is fair.

"I grew up in Arizona with my mom. As if my last name weren't a dead giveaway, we're part of Navajo nation although we lived off reservation my whole life. My dad, well I don't know what happened to him. He left when I was very young so my mom raised me by herself."

"But you obviously had some male influence in your life," she said suddenly. He glanced at her and she gestured at, well him. It took a moment to register but he laughed when he figured it out.

"The tattoos? No I got those after I was introduced to racing via our own Don Wei. But yeah, my mom had several older brothers who kind of filled in the vacancy. But even still, it's always been just me and her." The silence filled in as lights appeared in the distance.

"Must've been nice," Bethany muttered.

"What?" Now it was Rick's turn to be confused. "Nice for a mother to have to raise her son all by herself?"

"No, nice to actually have family that loves you," she said as they pulled up to the garage. She jumped out as soon as they stopped and disappeared around the corner. He jumped out too but she was already laden with her groceries and leaving when he got there. Rick sighed and started to gather his own purchases. He was going to have to finish this discussion later.

Which by the look of things, wouldn't be for quite a while as they had a crowd blocking the open door. Rick and Bethany had to push their way through, though their extra bulk seemed to help. But when they finally caught sight of what had gathered so many people, it seemed to suck the breath from them.

"I said GET OUT!" Eva screamed. Anger and hurt radiated off of her in palpable waves, but she was also stubborn as hell and stood her ground.

"And I said no!" Jordan yelled back. "We used to be partners! This used to be my team! What's so wrong with me coming by and seeing how you're doing?" It was a genuine question, one Eva didn't have a smart-ass comeback for.

"Because you're the Avatar now! It'll be seen as showing favor!" But that didn't mean she wouldn't try to use some half-assed one anyway.

Rick and Bethany both groaned and while she went up the stairs, carefully, he set about putting away the new parts and engine liquid. There was no way, as far as he was concerned, that he was going to get in the middle of this.

"That's not how this competition works and you know it! Geez, I just wanted to come see how you were doing after the crash. I haven't been able to get away from duties until now and this is how I'm treated?" Jordan sighed, not that Rick could blame him. The mechanic turned around to see that Eva's face had gone such a deep shade of red he was shocked she hadn't passed out.

Apparently she was out of retorts as she turned and started stalking up the stairs. But paused half-way up.

"Thank you. For you know, catching me. Back on Nourasia," she muttered before running the rest of the way up. This was the third time today that Rick was stunned into silence. Even Jordan seemed at a lose for words.

Rick finally snapped out of it when people started leaving since all prospect of a fight had disappeared. With fewer witnesses around, he went over and clapped a hand on Jordan's shoulder.

"So what did you manage to do that's got Eva so upset?" he asked. Jordan turned and smiled, pulling the older man in for a hug.

"Rick! It's good to see you! How have you been? What are you doing here? I thought that accident had left you unable to race."

"It did. I work for Don as a mechanic. I just couldn't stay away. But look at you, all official in your fancy robes. And you're even a few inches taller, though I still beat you," he joked. "So what exactly happened that's got our pilot all flustered?"

Jordan's smile faltered. "Ah. I really did come by to say hi and see how Mo-I mean Eva was doing, but the second she saw me she jumped right on my case. How dare I, did I know what I'd done, what gave me the right, yada yada yada." He scratched the back of his head, giving Rick a sheepish look. "I admit my intentions weren't entirely 'selfless' but still I thought she might be happy to see me. Maybe a little?" He looked so dejected that Rick couldn't help but feel sorry for the young man.

"Look, there are a lot of things that Eva has to deal with right now. One of which would explain a lot about why she was on your case like a dog with a bone. But as much as I would like to tell you," he warned as the Avatar looked hopeful, "I think it's best if she does." And all hope seemed to evaporate for Jordan.

"I would say it's a good thing I'm the Avatar and have lots of time to wait, but I don't think she'll ever tell me," Jordan said.

"Well, would it help if I said you weren't the only one having women problems?" That took Jordan by surprised, although he got cocky way too quickly for Rick's comfort.

"Really? And here I thought that Rick Thunderbolt never had women troubles."

"I don't. At least, not normally. But this one, well she's different," he said. He scowled when Jordan's smug grin widened.

"She sounds important," he chuckled. Rick punched his shoulder, which made Jordan laugh out loud. It sounded good, hearing his friend laugh.

Just then, sounds of a motorbike echoed off the walls and a tiny blue alien barged in.

"Bethany? Is there a Bethany here?" he asked. Rick pointed him up the stairs, which he was up, in and out in less than thirty seconds. It actually took a moment to register that the bike was even speeding off until after the sound had faded.

The two men were exchanging looks when the door to the office swung open and Bethany tore off towards the sleeping quarters. For a moment there was dead silence before a very loud, very angry "WHAT?" reverberated down to them. Bethany came out a moment later, yelling for Don.

"Wait B what's wrong?" Rick asked. She looked at him with wild eyes.

"The race. It starts again tomorrow morning."

AN: Dun dun dun! Ha, so far behind. But I actually like how this came out. And everyone kept asking how Aikka would respond to seeing his fiancé. Really I don't think Aikka's as big a jerk as I make him out to me. But I do think he would feel guilty knowing he has a fiancé but that he also has feelings for Eva and since no one's around to say otherwise he unwisely flirts with her. So fiancé showing up is like a slap in the face, since she already had a hunch that something was up. Also, sometimes he's just too damn proper and I just wanted to show him expressing more emotion.

Ah and Rick's backstory. I remember on the Oban forums someone suggesting that Rick was probably Native American because of his last name and it just kind of clicked for me. For some reason, it also clicked that he would be raised by a single mother. There have been studies of Native American tribes that have shown a high dependency on alcohol, so maybe his father was an alcoholic who just couldn't take what people thought of him and his family and just left. That's up for you to decide. I chose Navajo partially because it's so recognizable and also because their reservation is partially in Arizona. Don't ask me where that came up, I just think desert and Arizona pops into my head.

Thanks for reading! Please review!