Gears and Steam

Amishi

Edmund

I was surprised to find that my good mood lasted. Why shouldn't it though? Jules was still here, we'd made it to the semi-finales in a Grand Prix, and we were racing Crystal Queens today. For the first time in, well, forever, I felt like I would be okay. I felt like I would be happy. It was nice not to be completely broken all the time.

"What are you looking for?" Jules questioned, observing me jumping up and down to see over the crowd.

"My friend. I told you, I know the leader of Crystal Queens," I responded as I searched for the girl I hadn't seen in about two and a half years. I finally spotted her among the other teams. It wasn't that hard; she sorta stuck out.

I ran over to her, Jules chasing behind me. "Amishi!" I yelled, stopping in front of her.

Amishi tucked her long dark hair behind her ear, studying me with confusion for a second. "Edmund?"

I quickly nodded and she rushed forward to hug me. She hadn't changed much since I last saw her. Her glossy brown hair still fell to her waist in soft waves, and her dark eyes still shown with joy. She was wearing a red dress and black corset, along with red gloves. She must have been dying under the summer sun.

I pulled back from her hug. "Amishi, this Jules Vincent. Jules, this Amishi Silvane."

Jules's eyes widened. "But that's your last name."

Amishi shrugged. "He didn't have one, so I gave him mine."

"Hm, I figured it might have been the other way around."

"Why?"

"Well, Silvane is an odd last name for an Indian girl," Jules explained.

"How'd you guess I was from India?"

Jules let out a short chuckle. "Well, your skin tone is pretty specific to the region, along with the rest of your features. If that wasn't enough, that bracelet has an Indian design." He pointed to her gold bracelet with different colored stones set in a flower pattern. "Or, I think it is, at least."

Amishi raised an eyebrow. "You have a very perceptive friend, Edmund," she commented.

More than just a friend, I thought. Then, out loud, "It gets annoying sometimes."

"I can see how it might," Amishi chuckled. "My mum was from India, Da was English though. Mum picked my first name, Da got the middle one, making me Amishi Rose Silvane. They both died when I was about nine. I met Edmund in the orphanage." She wrapped her arm around my shoulder and ruffled my curly hair. I wasn't used to people other than Jules touching me, but Amishi was a rare exception to my boundaries.

"Ah, that's how you know each other," Jules said. "Well, it's nice to meet you."

"You too," Amishi responded, smiling brightly.

I gave my old friend one more hug, then walked back over to Jules, linking my arm with his. I figured that wouldn't draw too much attention. "It's nice to see that you started your team; this was always your dream. You always said that you would name it Crystal Queens."

"Yep!" Amishi exclaimed proudly. "I collected the best girls from all over Asia, and now we've made it all the way to the semi-finals! What about you? What are you doing here?"

We really should have done a better job of keeping in touch. "Gears and Steam, I'm that mechanic. We're racing you today, actually."

"Oh, well that sorta sucks, but hey, let the best team win."

I nodded in agreement.

"So, where's the rest of your team?"

"Theo and Freddie are over by the track." I gestured over to where Theo and Freddie were arguing about something. "Jules stays with me."