It was a relief to finally be free of the stitches that plagued him over the past week. There was an even greater relief to be free from the pain killers that he had been prescribed to take. Carter hated medicine; hated the side effects that came with it. Drowsiness was the worst of side effects for him. He couldn't stand the idleness it forced upon him, his limbs slow to move and unresponsive when he wanted to get up and move around. It was something that had always bothered him, the feeling of weakness when all he wanted to do was get up and do something when he couldn't.

The dull throb of an itch still lingered on his back and leg, its unseen claws merrily prickling away at his will to resist the urge to scratch. The doctors had been surprised at his recovery rate. They should have been on for another week they told him. But young people these days like himself somehow healed faster than before. Was it something in the water? In the blood? Just to be sure, we're going to take a small blood sample and send it to the lab.

He didn't care. All Carter cared about was the cool wind on his skin and the feeling of freedom. There were no more painkillers to take (aside from a few left over, "just in case" they told him), no more stitches to be worried about, nothing more to --

"Carter? Hey! Carter!"

Carter turned, fishing one of his hands out of his pocket to return the wave. "Allie! Hey, Allie. What're you up to?"

"I can ask you the same thing!" The girl that ran up to him panted, taking a moment to bend over and rest her hands on her knees to catch her breath. Allie was a classmate of Carter's -- a close friend, but not close enough to be considered best Best was Damian through and through. Nothing could replace his teammate, even if said teammate had hit him a couple times with his meteors. Her voice brought Carter back to the present where he realized he was absently rubbing the back of his head. That was a favorite place for the meteors to hit, and thankfully they tended to land after he had finished soaking himself with his own attack. Being soaked had its advantages, such as not catching on fire.

Carter lifted a shoulder in a half-shrug, thumb jabbing sharply over his shoulder. "Just got my stitches out and figured I may as well amble over to the skateshop and pick up a new board. Wanna come?"

"Carterrrr you shouldn't be walking around after surgery like that!"

"It's not as if I have a car." His skateboard was his car. It was how he managed to get around Destiny City. While it was true that he should have spoken to his roommate about getting a free lift after the surgery, he was... hesitant. Unsure. The amount of alcohol that Damian had been consuming lately was worrying Carter to the point where he had a couple brochures dedicated to the topic tucked away into his pockets. "Unless you mean my invisible one. Do you want a ride?" Carter wiggled his eyebrows at his friend and mimed opening a door before throwing up his hands in feign cowardice as she smacked him. "Hey! Stop that, I'm recovering from my injury here!"

Allie rolled her eyes, making a point to lean back as she did so just to accentuate the over-the-top gesture. "Sure, sure, pull the injury card out now. Poor baby." She shook her head, citrus-orange locks bouncing around her cheeks before linking arms with the bluenette. The weight was warm and comforting; he found himself looking away and taking a sudden interest in the buildings nearby.

He actually missed her question when she asked it, the tug on his arm bringing him back into reality. "Huh? My old board?"

"Yes. What happened to it? More importantly, what happened to you? You were gone all this week! Some people said you were in an accident, others said you were attacked by a terrorist..."

He would have stumbled if the pavement was uneven. Maybe he would have caught himself with Allie's assistance on his arm. Instead, Carter paused with one foot in the air, staring. The foot was lowered, his weight shifted from his healing injury to his good leg before he answered her. "It's... a bit like this. See, I was kind of mugged then had my skateboard run over by a truck which meant I had to pretty much haul a** with my back torn up and my leg stabbed. I think they had some sort of dog or cat or something, since my back was covered in scratches."

Allie stared. "A... cat? You mean to say that there's a group of muggers out there that specifically carry around a cat just to scratch people." He nodded. "Scratch them hard enough to require stitches." He nodded again. Allie continued to stare before she shook her head, rolling her eyes yet again. "Right, right. You know, there's no shame in admitting you fell off your skateboard and took a fall so bad that it ruined your back."

"But what of my leg?" He protested, gesturing to it. "I was stabbed!"

"By someone's leftover bottle, or some scrap laying around."

"And my wallet?"

"Fell out of your pocket. I mean -" Allie's hand shot out, snatching at the chain that dangled from his pocket. Triumphantly she held up her catch, pointing at it mischievously. "If you were mugged, you wouldn't have this!"

He was ready for this. "I got another one!"

The wallet came flying at his face, the bluenette doing all he could to catch it quickly. "You know," Allie began as the disgust crept into her voice, "You really suck at lying. I made you that wallet for your birthday." Oh. s**t. "But," she continued, wiggling her finger back and forth mockingly, "I'll forgive you. This time. Do you have a new board in mind yet?"

Glad for the topic change, Carter snatched it. "Not really," he confessed, "Before it was horribly mutilated, that board lasted me quite awhile. I guess I wore it down in all the right places? It's like: sure there's lots of other skateboards, but this one was mine." He fell silent, slowing as they came to a bus bench. He didn't stop to sit down. Instead one hand alighted its back, his weight shifting and allowing him to press down on it. Carter could feel the weight of Allie's questioning magenta eyes on him, the revelation of their color today almost distracting him from his thoughts. Allie was a fan of collecting contacts, favoring the unusual colors and styles over the normal eye colors. As a joke, he had given her a pair of sunglasses once to hide them; in return she wore white contacts that gave her eyes an unsettling otherworldly look, her pupils the only visible splash of color in them.

"I didn't like walking that much," he said slowly. "I'd rather get a ride, y'know? Between dad working and mom getting a job, at the time I didn't get rides. The bus was out of the question, too." Wordlessly, the hand resting on the bench rose to flick against one of his earrings. The gesture was enough in his eyes; he didn't need to elaborate.

"Walking was just so slow. And boring. I didn't even have a CD player or iPod to listen to, y'know? And if I did, I'd probably lose it." A quick grin darted across his face as he continued to walk, opting to not ignore the comforting squeeze that still made his skin tingle when she gave it to him earlier. "It wasn't until I passed a skatepark that I actually saw a skateboard. I mean, you see people on those all the time goin' down the street right? When I saw what they were doing, with the flips and grinds and ollies and --" he broke off, laughing at her expression. "Fine, fine. Basically, I thought skateboards were a poor man's roller skate. After seeing them in action, I just had to try it for myself. I still owe those guys big time for getting me hooked. Walking just... isn't my thing."

Silence fell between them as some of the pieces clicked together in Carter's mind. Walking, her arm, the pace -- did he just insult her? He glanced over towards her, biting his lip uncertainly. She wasn't looking at him. Was she supposed to? The uncertainty gnawed away at him, prompting him. "W-Well walking isn't that bad of a thing," he blurted out, "I mean you can't really hang out with your friends when you're going somewhere on a skateboard since it's hard to talk while moving, but at the same time it's like... er... I mean... Oh! Sweet, there's the shop! Have you been here yet, Allie?"

While there were many different skateshops in Destiny City, Carter liked this particular one the most. It was small shop, wedged between a Mexican mini-mart and a cell phone store. The apartment complex built on top of it didn't help in making the store look bigger than it was. It was narrow, allowing Carter to reclaim his arm as they entered single-file past the racks of discount out of date and out of style clothes. He offered a wave to the cashier as he hung a left, Allie crashing into him as he stopped.

The left side of the store was covered in racks, each holding a skateboard of various lengths and sizes. The collection was enough to assault the eyes with the riot of colors each underside displayed. It didn't matter that they were half-stacked and half-packed together to display only half of the board. A smile tugged at the corner of his lips as he stepped closer, hand running alongside one of the boards.

"This... this is it?" Allie asked, taking a step back from him to stare. She didn't sound impressed; he couldn't blame her. "I thought you just... you know. Go into a store, buy one, walk out. I didn't know this was like Build-a-Bear. They're just pieces of colored wood."

"Not all of them. Some are more concave than others. The flatter the board, the better it is for cruising but it's the bend in the board you want if you wanna do tricks. Let's see, seven inch, seven point five... hm." Carter picked up a board and looked at it, turning it this way and that before carefully setting it on the ground. He held his food over it, closing one eye and tilting his head to stare before kneeling down to pick it up again. "What's important now is to try and remember what sort of board I used last time. It's a pile of splinters now, so I can't exactly get the measurements aga- Allie? Allie, you okay?"

Allie opened her mouth to say something, closing it and looking aside. "I really hope you don't intend to buy that one. I didn't know you were that shameless!"

"What do you m-" Carter broke off as he stared at the design. "Oh come on Allie! It's not like nobody even looks at the bottom of boards anyway. Besides, it's art."

"That doesn't change the fact that the woman is topless, Carter."

"I didn't think demons counted as being women."

"Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned, now kindly please put that back."

He couldn't help but to laugh as the board was put back into place, the bluenette making sure to take several steps away before returning his attention to the task at hand. It was as if it was on the tip of his tongue; the measurements he had boasted about so often after he bought his skateboard last time. What were they again? Or -- wait.

Carter began to pick boards up at random, running his hands across their surfaces. If he couldn't remember, his hands could tell him. He knew the dip and curve he was looking for, one that was gentle. While a skateboard for cruising would be most ideal given how much time he spent going from place to place on it, being able to perform jumps outside of the skateparks was useful. How else were you supposed to get up a sidewalk after passing someone? He certainty wasn't going to hop off, pick up his board, and move around someone. He needed to jump. He needed to perform his kickflips and spacewalks for attention. This board was too long, that one too short, and this one -- he stared. There was a specific type for girls now? Huh. He stared at the board, marveling at the fact that it wasn't overdosed with neon pink before putting it back.

It had taken him nearly fifteen minutes of examining skateboards and trying to entertain Allie with idle chatter before he found the ideal skateboard. Eight inches wide and thirty-two inches from nose to tip, it had the sort of bend Carter was looking for. It may not be exactly like his old one, but it would do. He turned it over. The belly of the board bore an unremarkable abstract green designed that was begging him to cover with stickers. That was what his old board was like: every inch was covered in stickers and sharpie doodles, drawn on by himself and his friends out of sheer boredom before school started. It was one way to gain memories, but Carter wasn't so sure he wanted to do it again. Stickers were one thing, and he was annoyed more than once when someone either scratched out or covered up something someone else wrote. He liked to think that his skateboard was a way to keep a hold of memories.

It couldn't do that now obviously, given the splinters it was reduced to. He hoped the dragon-phoenix-youma thing that crunched down on it in the first place managed to choke on a few splinters. "Hey, Allie." Carter began, gesturing to the board. "Wanna help me find a board that matches these measurements? This is what I'm looking for, but the design..."

Her magenta eyes rolled skywards as she pushed herself up and off the bench she had sat down on, legs crossed as she waited. "What, you don't want to have a naked lady on your board?" She teased, sliding up beside him to browse. "It's not that I'm jealous, but... Man. I didn't know you were into skateboards so much."

Carter froze. It's not that I'm jealous, she said. Warning flags were already going up in Carter's mind as he glanced sideways at her, meeting her gaze briefly before dropping it back. She was jealous. Was he supposed to be paying attention to her? He wasn't aware of that. A tinge of guilt began to creep over him as he handed Allie the skateboard he had found, letting her take a look at its measurements. Allie was a friend of his. He didn't see her as anything more then that. Did she see him otherwise? No, he was pretty sure she was dating Rick. Rick was a pretty swell guy in Carter's books. While he was older than him, Rick tended to be a bit outlandish for Carter's tastes. He was bold, and didn't fit very well in any high school stereotype. Not enough accessories to be a punk, not enough black to be a goth, no skater to be a skater. He didn't play sports as far as Carter could recall, and Rick had grades just as bad as he did. That left... what?

Nervously he ran a hand through his hair, trying to focus on the task at hand. "Hey, Carter? How about this one?" Allie waved a board in front of his face, catching his attention.

The bluenette shook his head. "Too blue."

"Don't you like blue?"

"Not all the time," he confessed. "It's one thing to have blue hair, but if I were to dress up in too much blue..." He shrugged.

"Oookay, then what about this one?"

Orange was a color Carter had an on-and-off relationship with. He liked how bold, loud, and obnoxious the color could get. Plus it shared its name with a fruit of the same color. How cooler could it get then that? In Carter's eyes, at least. He set the board he was looking at down to take the board she offered, staring at it. It wasn't just orange; there were streaks of yellow and red outlined in black on it as well.

It took him a couple moments to realize that the colors ultimately formed a shape. He was familiar with it. "Nice find," he laughed, tucking it under his arm. "I think we have a winner. C'mon, we've got the rest of the board to get. There's trucks, wheels, and grip-tape. And -- hey," he laughed, reaching out to pat her on the shoulder, "Don't give me that look. Now you know how I and other guys feel when you girls start discussing makeup and things like feelings."

"Hey right back! Feelings are important! You don't want to get ditched, do you?"

Was she dropping hints? Carter stared, one eyebrow raised. "Hurr, me Carter. Me ride skateboard. Go very fast. Zoom into wall, hurr hurr."

"I'm sure you run into walls real good," she laughed, shaking her head. She followed him as he spent time agonizing over the various different types of wheels and trucks, letting out a loud sigh when he went back to switch out a particular set for a different one only to ultimately go back for the former one. Allie did her best to contribute to the process with more idle chatter. Did you enjoy Easter? You had it with your skater friends? Wait -- you had tacos on Easter? You don't eat Tacos on Easter. What are you supposed to eat? Well, I had ham... Okay, fine, tacos are acceptable, especially considering the fact that you had leftovers. What about your roommate? Damian? I haven't seen him around, and he was quite -- wait, what? You haven't seen him this week? I wouldn't worry too much, he probably went to go celebrate Easter with his family. Anyway...

Carter let Allie ramble on as he purchased the parts, borrowing the cashier's assistance and the store's own tools to put the skateboard together. Already he was pleased with how it looked, going so far as to hop on it in front of the cash register and block the customer behind him as he rolled back and forth, testing it. So far, so good. The receipt was crammed into his pocket and the new board tucked under his arm as he left, Allie following.

He parted ways with her after she realized the time. "Damnit Carter! You're as indecisive as a prep in a shoe store, you almost took an hour! But -- wheel safe, okay? Or whatever skateboarders do." It was hard to tell if she was upset or not, what with her wide grin and exaggerated wave she gave when she looked back. It was hard to tell with her sometimes. Then again, it was hard for him to tell what people were thinking of lately. He wasn't psychic, and his experience with girls remained solely at a friendship level. Was she giving him hints?

Part of him suggested talking to Damian about it. The other part pointed out that Damian wasn't himself lately. Carter had been neglecting the trash as it became heavier and heavier with Damian's empty bottles. He even made a point to spend the weekend at the Pleiades base. It was hard to face Damian without feeling uneasy. He was worried about him, but... how do you go about telling someone that they have a drinking problem? It was no secret that Carter was intimidated by his taller and stronger teammate. Not to mention Damian was also Super Sailor Orion. If Damian ever henshined up while under the influence...

Quickly those thoughts were pushed from his mind as he approached their shared apartment, his nose wrinkling. Did someone spill something around here? He hurried to enter, nearly dropping his new skateboard as the smell intensified. "Ugh! What the balls?!" Carter closed the door behind him as he entered, his jaw falling open in shock. The stench of alcohol was strong; several broken bottles were next to the wall, the wall itself stained with the dark liquid. He spotted another bottle on the table. Quickly, the bluenette embarked on a crusade: every window in the apartment was soon pulled open. The closets were pillaged until he located a fan before that was placed in front of the window, turned on to its highest setting to drive the stale air out.

Carter stared at the mess left behind. He didn't know what happened, or how several bottles of beer managed to become smashed against the wall with their caps intact. Did Damian throw them? Was he okay? He summoned his senshi phone as he went to find a garbage can and a pair of rubber gloves, trying to call Damian. No answer. It was like that the entire weekend. Damian simply would not pick up. He was sure his teammate was fine. If he had died, his number would be "unavailable" and he wouldn't be able to call him, right?

He had called Alba and Simon too, and had been unable to reach them at first. Persistence paid off, and both didn't know where Damian was when he asked. Maybe he should have told them that he was missing? Too late now. The phone disappeared back into the subspace as Carter found what he was looking for. The bright yellow gloves looked awful on him, and the black garbage bag took several tries to get open. He hated them -- he could never tell which end was the opened one until nearly ripping those stupid things apart. It wasn't until he tried putting some garbage into the bag that he realized it was upside down.

Now armed with an open bag, Carter carefully picked up the shards of broken bottles that were big enough for him to grab. The area reeked. He wasn't sure if it was possible to get the stain out. Maybe they could cover it with a rug and call it good? The wall would need to be repainted. The biggest shards were clinking harmlessly in the bag before Carter turned his attention to the coffee table. Damian had left it behind -- he could still see the liquid in it. Carter snatched it up and walked over to the sink, disgust written across his features as he poured it down the sink. He nearly hurled the bottle into the bag before dropping it, storming over to the refrigerator.

"Son of a --" he swore. Damian had a stock. Had a stock. Carter grabbed the alcohol, picking the bottles up and making a move to put them on the counter before doubling back to the refrigerator and putting them back. He removed the rubber gloves to retrieve his skateboard, stashing that away in the closet where his old one was stored. The gloves were put back on, the refrigerator opened again to stare. He wanted to badly take the alcohol and open them one by one and pour the bottles down the sink before throwing them out. He didn't want to see them again, didn't want to deal with them. But...

Was he in the right? It was Damian's. Even though he didn't like how it was affecting his best friend, was it really his place to tell him what was okay and what wasn't? The effects of the spirits were making a large enough impact for him to take notice. As a friend, it was his place to tell his roommate hey man you've got a problem. But he wasn't Damian's mother. Or father. Or brother. Did he have the right?

Carter was also Sailor Merope, captain and leader of Team Pleiades. It was his responsibility to make sure his team was okay. It was his duty to make sure they all came back in one piece after going on a patrol. But did he have the right? He was a Sailor Senshi; Damian was a Super Senshi. Damian technically out-ranked him. Actually, his whole team did. Why did they still follow him if he was weaker then them? Carter didn't understand it.

He reached out and picked up the bottles again, taking two at a time. The rest of the kitchen would have to do. Carter got down on his hands and knees, setting the bottles aside. He began to take out pots and pans, clearing a space in the back. It was in the darkest corners of the cabinets that the beer was moved to, half of Damian's supply going there before the bluenette returned the pots and pans to their original place. There were still some bottles left; these were stashed behind other objects until Carter was left with three. He didn't think he had any other place in the kitchen to hide them. As much as he wanted to dump some of them out, Carter was faced with the harsh truth: he had no idea how to work a bottle opener. He had seen Damian to it many times, and wasn't keen on learning how to do them himself.

With no other choice, Carter did the next best thing: he went into the bathroom. The top cover of the toilet's reserve-well that made the ceramic seat flush was removed. One by one Carter set the bottles in there before closing it. The cover didn't sit down all the way like it used to and wobbled a bit, but it would have to do.

Satisfied, Carter returned to where he had dropped the bag of broken bottles. He tied the bag off and stuffed it into the trash before taking it out, tossing it into the dumpster. That was done, at least.

One inside again, Carter sat down on the couch. He summoned his senshiphone and called Damian again, hanging up as he received no response. There was nothing more the bluenette could do but wait at this point. He fidgeted on the couch before standing up, going to the closet to retrieve his new skateboard before sitting back down. He flipped it over, exposing the colorful art. Carter couldn't help but to trace the graphic some artist had taken time to slowly render out. In all honesty, it was the sort of design he would have passed up. Given the recent events, he wasn't able to shake the memories. While he was a sailor senshi, he felt like he was... lacking in some regard. The encounter against the large youma was something he was sure he could never forget.

The phoenix emblazoned on his skateboard also made sure of that fact. While his old board was gone, his new one would enable him to cruise again.