Capitulo Veinticinco
Silver Lining
The Hooves family went their own way to repair other parts of Ponyville after they separated from the gathered crowd at Town Hall. Derpy walked more focused than usual, her crossed eyes in a hardened stare as she still felt sore about the sudden fear over Starrk and Lilynette; the red filly was wearing a stoic expression while she trotted next to her adoptive sisters; Dinky was slightly downcast at the fact that Starrk was going to be gone for a while until things clear up, but she was more focused on making sure Lilynette was happy.
The only pony that felt no sorrow from this turn of events was Sparkler, who was deep in thought as she traveled with her family 'So now that I've cast aside a formidable obstacle, there only remains the time where I'll rise again once my powers have returned completely...' She shifted her eyes towards Lilynette, giving off a light glare 'To think that a simple filly like her is actually a part of Coyote Starrk...it wouldn't have been wise to send her off with him knowing there could be a large connection between them other than their stagnant familial relationship.' She hid a smirk 'I just have to keep an eye on her and make sure she won't do anything that will upset my goals...'
In their search for areas in need of repairs, the Hooves family stumbled upon a gaggle of ponies tending to the shambles in the market square including many merchants tending to their respective stalls. In Lilynette's eyes, the familiar faces distinguished in the clean-up crew were Cheerilee, the Cutie Mark Crusaders, Snips and Snails, Vinyl Scratch and-
Her eye widened slightly when she caught Pipsqueak working alongside her sister, and she felt her heart quiver. She shook it off and grunted to herself in anger 'Why does that keep happening? I don't even like him that much!' Before she could grow used to the strange feeling in her heart, she also spotted the last two fillies she wanted to see; Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon. She noticed they were reluctantly working next to Cheerilee. The very sight of them made Lilynette's ire steadily grow.
Oblivious to the red filly's rage, Derpy's spirits lifted at the sight of more friendly ponies hard at work rebuilding the square and turned to her daughters "C'mon, girls. We got a town to fix. Maybe we can visit Starrky once we're done with everything." She waved over at Cheerilee "Hey there, Cheerilee! Need some more help around here?"
Cheerilee turned to the approaching family and smiled warmly "That would be appreciated. The ponies that work around here are all downcast about their supplies getting ruined." She watched over the other depressed ponies cleaning their own areas with a sympathetic gaze "Not only is it taking a toll on their business, but this could very well eat away at their earnings." Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon managed to roll their eyes in unison without getting caught, but then they both wore apprehensive expressions when they caught the sight of Lilynette leering at them.
Derpy frowned as she watched alongside Cheerilee "I can't believe Cerberus just came along without warning again." She then smiled again "But on the bright side, nopony was hurt, right? That counts for something, doesn't it?"
Cheerilee sighed before sharing a smile with Derpy "You're right. All that matters now is rebuilding our town." She looked at the mailmare and her family before realizing what was missing "Wait a minute...Where's Coyote Starrk?" She said as she looked around.
Derpy looked down with a miffed expression "He's in the Everfree Forest thanks to some ponies being afraid of him!" She said angrily "I dunno what's gotten into them all of the sudden, but they certainly weren't afraid of Starrk before!" She turned to Lilynette "They were about to do the same to Lily, but I stood my ground that time." She stated triumphantly.
Cheerilee was surprised at the news and looked down at Lilynette "I'm so sorry about this happening to you so quickly, Lilynette. I hope this doesn't bother you too much." She said in a comforting tone.
Lilynette turned to Cheerilee after hearing her call her name, her leer refusing to soften "It doesn't. And I don't want your pity, neither." She said as she trotted past Cheerilee, Diamond Tiara, and Silver Spoon "I'm gonna go talk to my sister's friends now...C'mon, Dinky." Dinky frowned at her adoptive sister's attitude, but decided to let it go in hopes of her cheering up later. She followed Lilynette as they went to talk to the crusaders.
Sparkler watched Lilynette leave with Dinky and hummed "Such bitterness. And I thought she was a hoofful before..." She murmured innocently.
Cheerilee was downcast at Lilynette's cold response and turned to Derpy "She must be taking this so hard. How long do you think it would be before they see each other again?"
Derpy huffed "I know it won't be long, once we put a stop to this. It turns out that the ponies afraid of Starrky have been hit with dark magic somehow."
Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon widened their eyes "Dark magic?" They nervously parroted in unison.
Cheerilee gasped "Are you sure?" She asked in surprise.
Derpy nodded "Twilight brought it to our attention earlier, but we're gonna do something about it soon." She looked down with a sigh "A good friend to Ponyville leaving because of some powerful and forbidden magic; it's the Alicorn Amulet all over again."
Sparkler was lost to the world for a short moment after hearing those words. If what Derpy said was true, then it could very well be the only thing needed to boost her power to incredibly higher levels. She turned to the mailmare "We're talking about that amulet?" She said with feigned innocence.
Derpy smiled at Sparkler "Of course we are! You know, the same amulet Trixie wore one time that made her go all batty banana bonkers on us and made Twilight leave Ponyville?" She rubbed her head with a pensive glance in her rotating eyes "I wonder how she's doing right now. Maybe she has a better career now that she isn't such a meanie anymore..."
Cheerilee shook her head "Wherever she is, I'm sure she's learned her lesson by now." She smiled "But I digress. Why don't we get back to work?"
Sparkler flinched before voicing herself "You know, I'm actually curious about where the amulet is right now. Is it back in hiding?"
Derpy shrugged "I thought the same thing, but I think Zecora has it in the Everfree Forest. Maybe she's using it as one of her doorsteps." She said absentmindedly before giggling "That'd be funny, wouldn't it?" She patted Sparkler on the back "But we shouldn't worry about that now. Let's get to work, Sparkler!" Derpy said as she and the amethyst unicorn followed Cheerilee, Diamond Tiara, and Silver Spoon to another part of the market square.
Sparkler could barely contain her excitement as she wore a grin on her face 'I cannot believe it! The very item that can grant my ascension to power is closer than I thought!' A second thought dampened her good mood 'Of course...I've sent that lazy stallion into that same forest. Coupled with the fact that another pony takes residence in there, acquiring it will be tough...' Sparkler started to think of a brilliant plan to acquire the amulet for herself.
_____
Meanwhile, Dinky and Lilynette ran into Applebloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo attempting to repair a tomato stall. Scootaloo was the first to notice and grinned "Hey, girls. How's it going?" She greeted brightly.
Dinky waved at Scootaloo "Hi there, Scootaloo. We're doing fine right now." She looked over at Lilynette "We just followed Mommy to this place and we managed to find you all here."
Lilynette stole a glance at Pipsqueak working next to Vinyl Scratch a few feet away from them before she shook her head "So, you girls are just as busy as us, huh?"
Applebloom grinned "Sure are! Everypony's givin' it their all t' take care o' all these damages; we can't just sit around and do nothing."
Sweetie Belle tilted her head at Lilynette after noticing her bad mood "Something wrong, Lilynette? Is all of this bothering you?"
Lilynette looked away towards Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon "Not exactly, but what I wanna know is what those two morons are doing here." She said venomously.
Sweetie Belle followed Lilynette's gaze and gave a knowing nod "Oh, them? Well, Diamond Tiara's dad was away on a business trip, so she's being watched by Ms. Cheerilee. I think Silver Spoon's with her just because they're friends."
Scootaloo frowned "Ms. Cheerilee's the only reason they're not giving us trouble right now, but we're not really happy to have them around us like this, even if everypony in Ponyville's involved." She stated roughly.
Lilynette averted her gaze and turned to Scootaloo "Preaching to the choir on that one..." She murmured. The red filly raised her eyebrow at the crusaders "Say, why aren't you two with your sisters like Dinky and I?" Lilynette asked inquisitively.
Applebloom scratched the back of her head "Well, we planned to before an' stuff, but we kinda wanted t' work together as friends."
Sweetie Belle shrugged "Besides, if we ended up working with them, they'd probably have us doing smaller jobs like watching the equipment." She said flatly.
Scootaloo stared with a frown "I don't have a sister..." She then grinned brightly "But I'm tight with Rainbow Dash!" The orange filly waved a hoof to her fellow crusaders "As for the reason, I'm with them; we're repairing Ponyville as friends."
Dinky smiled "Then why don't we join you? We can make things easier if we work together. Maybe we can be as fast as Mr. Starrk." She instantly regretted bringing up Starrk when she remembered being next to Lilynette. Dinky looked over at her sister's restored bitterness and frowned penitantly.
Scootaloo gave a wistful sigh "I wish! I wonder if him and Rainbow Dash would ever challenge each other again." She voiced her thought eagerly. Scootaloo perked up after the mention of Starrk and blinked at Dinky and Lilynette "Isn't Coyote Starrk with you right now?"
Lilynette growled "He isn't...And I don't wanna talk about it. Why don't we just get back to rebuilding everything?"
Scootaloo's ears folded as she craned her head back from Lilynette's response "Did something happen?"
Dinky sighed "A group of ponies across town were afraid of Mr. Starrk and he left because he didn't want them to feel worse. Ms. Sparkle says that it's because somepony was using dark magic."
The crusaders' jaws dropped simultaneously at the news "That's awful!" Applebloom blurted out "But who could be doing that sorta thing here in Ponyville without gettin' caught?"
Lilynette gritted her teeth "Whoever it was is gonna get their's soon enough." She said threateningly "But I don't wanna focus on that, okay!? Just drop it already!" The red filly snapped at the others.
"Hey, kids, what's going on over there?"
The group of fillies noticed Vinyl Scratch and Pipsqueak drawing near them, the former having an eyebrow raised behind her glasses "You fillies having a disagreement or something?"
Dinky shook her head "No, not at all. We were just about to help our friends."
Scootaloo frowned "But what about the pony doing dark magic? Shouldn't we try looking for them before they do something evil again?" She asked.
Vinyl Scratch gave a chuckle, passing off Scootaloo's question as a childish game "Oh, I get it; you're all getting bored. I don't blame you for wanting to just stop what you're doing and go have fun, but you know how it is right now." She then noticed Lilynette and grinned "Hey there, Lilynette! How's it going?" The DJ greeted vigorously.
Pipsqueak smiled and waved at Lilynette "'Ello!"
Lilynette turned to Pipsqueak and wanted to lash out at him, but as she stared at his bright smile, it was as if her own anger was fading slightly. She took a deep breath and looked away with an irritated huff "Hi, Pip..." She murmured.
Vinyl tilted her head with a smirk "What, no 'Hi, Vinyl' for me?" She then examined Lilynette's face and hummed "You know, you kinda remind me of Octavia with that angry look on your face."
Lilynette blinked and turned to Vinyl Scratch "Octavia? Wait, did you mean Octava?" The red filly couldn't really handle dealing with the same espada she was referring to living in Ponyville. A part of her wondered if he was responsible for driving away Starrk if he was even around.
Vinyl laughed "No, kid, I know what I said; Octavia's my marefriend, you see. You were just a spitting image of her a second ago with that look in your eyes. Something on your mind right now?"
Lilynette shook her head "No, nothing." She looked towards Pipsqueak and instantly turned away with puffed cheeks and a light blush on her face "Nothing at all..." Dinky and the crusaders watched Lilynette before trading glances amongst themselves.
Vinyl Scratch just stared at Lilynette in silence until a gleam of light flashed across her shades while she gave a wide grin 'Oh, that's just cute. She's definitely like Octavia, but I never thought she'd have the hots for my little bro...' The DJ looked down at Pipsqueak "Hey, Pipsqueak. Now that we've taken care of that popsicle stand back there, I think you should try and mingle with these girls and help them out while I go find Cheerilee and the others. "
Pipsqueak looked up at Vinyl in confusion "Huh? But why, sis? Can't I jus' come with you?"
The DJ tussled her brother's mane with a confident smile "Trust me, it's good to at least socialize with some ponies your age, even if they're girls. You just play nice and I'm sure you'll do just fine around them."
Pipsqueak rubbed his head before he returned his sister's smile "Okay." He looked over at Lilynette "Maybe we can talk more while we work since we're friends and stuff." He stated in a chipper tone.
Lilynette growled and instantly turned away as her blush became nearly visible to her friends. She hated the way he was talking to him like that, yet somehow, he's making the feeling inside of her grow "Just don't get carried away..." Lilynette stated firmly.
Pipsqueak blinked at Lilynette and tilted his head in confusion "What's wrong? Aren't you happy we're working together?"
Vinyl leaned down to whisper in Pipsqueak's ear "Trust me, Pip; it might not show on her face, but she's happy. You just gotta give her time to open up." She then lifted her head to grin at the fillies "So, gals, can I trust you to be nice to my little bro?"
The crusaders snapped a salute while Dinky gave a polite bow "You can count on us!" They said in unison. Lilynette merely huffed as her blush faded.
Vinyl nodded "Awesome." She looked down at Pipsqueak and patted him on the back "I'll come back to pick you up later, Pipsqueak. Have fun, okay?" She trotted away to find the other mares, leaving the children by themselves.
Applebloom turned to her hammer "Well, we better get back t' work, y'all." She picked it up with her teeth and turned to the tomato stall with renewed vigor "Mrr's grt tr rt!"
Dinky stared at Applebloom before cocking her head to the side "What did you say, Applebloom?"
Applebloom drooped her ears before spitting out her hammer "Ah said let's get to it!" She said with a confident smile as she picked it up again.
Sweetie Belle faced Dinky and pointed at the stall "We got some nails set up on the other side if you three wanna help out. Why not go there?" Her and Scootaloo picked up their own hammers and joined Applebloom as they continued their work.
Dinky nodded and turned to Lilynette and Pipsqueak "Okay! It's time to help our friends, everypony." She nudged her toolbox near them "Let's make this stall better than the last one!" The purple filly said as she grabbed a hammer with her mouth
Pipsqueak grinned eagerly "Alright then. Let's get started." He said before he followed suit with Dinky
Lilynette watched how they grabbed their own tools and hummed to herself before reaching into her own toolbox to pull out a hammer with her foreleg. She felt it was a lot better than carrying one in her mouth. The three made their way to the other side of the tomato stall, with Lilynette trailing behind as she walked with three legs.
When they reached the other side, Dinky and Pipsqueak studied the nails that stuck out in a vertical line along the planks before hammering some on the left part, leaving Lilynette to decide on one for herself at the right side. The red filly squinted her eye when she found one and reared onto her hind legs as she reeled back her foreleg containing her hammer and swung it at the nail.
However, she swung it too hard and ended up cracking the wooden support on her side in two, startling her, Dinky and Pipsqueak into distancing themselves as the stand began to topple from its damage. This also shocked the crusaders as they drew themselves back from the collapsing stand. They stared at the pile of wood until all eyes were on Lilynette, who shifted her glance between them "Don't look at me! I thought I'd be able to get the nail in with one strike!"
Scootaloo sighed dejectedly as she faced what was once the tomato stall "Well, there goes another one."
Applebloom huffed "An' here Ah thought we coulda repaired at least one stand."
Lilynette blinked "Wait a minute...You mean to tell me you haven't repaired anything yet?"
Sweetie Belle nodded to Lilynette "We tried a few times, but we've had better luck repairing Fluttershy's table way back when." She gave a wry smile "You don't have to feel bad about this, since this is your first time helping and all."
Lilynette dropped her hammer before she landed on all fours. Were these fillies as easygoing as Starrk? Dinky approached the red filly with a comforting smile "You don't have to feel so bad about this, Lily. All you have to do is keep trying until you get better; it's what Mommy usually tells me whenever I mess up sometimes."
Pipsqueak was next to be near Lilynette with a comforting smile of his own "I can relate to messin' up sometimes myself. My sister is usually nice to me about it." His smile widened "But now I see how you're so strong! That was pretty cool!" He praised wholeheartedly.
Lilynette backed away from Pipsqueak slightly, her pupils trembling "Really?" She whispered before perking up and turning her head away with an angry expression "I-I mean, of course I am! I came from Starrk, after all! What, you didn't believe me before or something?" She said rashly, making Pipsqueak's smile waver as he craned his head back and blinked at Lilynette.
Scootaloo tilted her head with her ears folded back "Is it just me, or is she hiding something from us?" She whispered to her friends.
Sweetie Belle leaned towards Scootaloo while staring at Lilynette and Pipsqueak with a smile "That's what I was talking about yesterday. I think Lilynette likes Pipsqueak." She whispered back.
Applebloom grouped with her friends as she shared Sweetie Belle's gaze "But when do ya think she'll come out with it? Y'all don't think this'll be one of those 'I-like-you-but-don't-like-you' relationships, will it?" She asked.
Sweetie Belle kept a careful eye on Lilynette "We'll just have to see how this plays out..." She and the crusaders neared Dinky, Pipsqueak, and Lilynette with their own chipper expressions "Say, why don't we try repairing another spot? Maybe we'll get it right next time." Sweetie Belle offered innocently.
Lilynette sighed "I don't know if I'll be of any help, since I'll only break things." She grumbled bitterly.
Sweetie Belle waved her hooves at Lilynette "You don't have to if you don't want to Lily, in fact, maybe you can watch while Dinky works with us."
Dinky was surprised by the sudden plan "Huh? But I wanna work with-" She was interrupted by Sweetie Belle quickly whispering into her ear. The white filly winked at her and Dinky paused before the message sunk in "I mean...that sounds like a good idea, don't it, sis?" She said to Lilynette with a reassuring smile.
Lilynette frowned "What's so good about you working while I can't?"
Pipsqueak shared Lilynette's frown "That does seem a bit unfair..." He perked up when he had an idea "Maybe I can keep Lilynette company while you're working?"
Lilynette felt her spine tingle as she froze in position "D-Do what now!?"
Pipsqueak pawed at the ground "Well, I don't think it would be fun for you to just watch everypony repair Ponyville by yourself, so maybe I could stand by you so you won't feel left out."
Lilynette stayed frozen before turning away from Pipsqueak, her expression unreadable to him "I never asked for you to do that, you know..." She said in a low tone.
Pipsqueak tilted his head before he donned a friendly smile "I don't mind it, really. Nopony should be by themselves, you know." There was silence before Lilynette's head hung down a little; Pipsqueak could've sworn he heard the word 'Thanks' coming from the red filly.
Sweetie Belle grinned in a fashion similar to Pinkie at the scene "Then it's settled! Let's try and repair the cabbage stall next."
Scootaloo shook her head "I know he had a business and all, but that cabbage owner was so melodramatic about his loss." She smirked "I think he'll feel better with our help."
Dinky stared at the shambles that was once the tomato stall "What about the tomato seller? I don't think she'll be happy..."
Scootaloo stared at the pile of shambles before waving a dismissive hoof "I'm sure she'll be fine. Let's go!" She said as she and her friends set off for the next stall.
_____
Dinky and the crusaders were pouring serious effort into their repairs while Lilynette and Pipsqueak sat by themselves and watched. As they did so, Pipsqueak turned to Lilynette "Say, Lilynette. Can I ask you a question?"
Lilynette glanced at Pipsqueak from the corner of her eye before turning her head away "What is it?" She said calmly, albeit defensively.
Pipsqueak scratched his head "How come you always act so tough when you're already stronger than everypony else at school? And why do you act so cold around me?"
There was silence, until Pipsqueak was rewarded with a response "Because I feel like it. What's it to you?" Lilynette asked roughly.
Pipsqueak fidgeted his forehooves with an unsure frown "Well, do you not like me at all? I thought you would be happy if we were friends."
Lilynette grunted "I said I was okay with being your friend, alright? There's no need to prod me for useless information." She snapped irritably.
Pipsqueak stared at Lilynette facing away from him and hummed to himself before an idea came to his mind "Say, do you like music?"
Lilynette shifted her head slightly towards Pipsqueak "I never really listened to any music other than the last two parties we had, and that song that everypony sang for some stupid reason. Why are you asking me this?" She asked calmly again.
Pipsqueak waved a hoof "My sister says that music's one way to cheer somepony up or make them feel much better around anypony they meet. Maybe you'd like t' listen to some more music sometime?"
Lilynette shifted her head closer to where she made slight eye contact with Pipsqueak, an inquisitive gaze seen on her face "What makes you think music would even make me feel better?" She asked skeptically.
Pipsqueak smiled "Well, it would never hurt to try at least; you can even whistle a tune if you feel up to it, like this." He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, and Pipsqueak began to whistle a tune that caught Lilynette's attention.
She was still skeptical at first, but she had to admit that the rhythm and sound were kind of catchy. Lilynette watched how happy Pipsqueak appeared as he continued to whistle, and was almost curious if she could do the same. When Pipsqueak stopped, he pointed at Lilynette "Go on. You try it." He said encouragingly.
Lilynette took a deep breath and then puckered her lips as she attempted to whistle. So far, she only succeeded in blowing without any whistling sounding from her mouth. She tried again with the same results and scowled "Great, so much for that..." She said angrily.
Pipsqueak held up a hoof "Not to worry, Lilynette, I can help. Try closing your lips more next time. You jus' gotta keep practicin' til ya get it right."
Lilynette huffed, but tried to follow Pipsqueak's advice as she puckered her lips more and blew from her mouth. There was no results the first couple of seconds, but then a sharp whistle was heard that startled Lilynette as she stared at the air with a perplexed gaze "Huh? Did I just-?"
Pipsqueak grinned "Yeah, that's it! Keep goin'!" He said with vigor.
Lilynette was hesitant, but she tried again, and she managed to whistle much better than her first attempt. She tried to whistle different notes, but messed up easily, to which she stomped at the ground "Come on!"
Pipsqueak shook his head "Don't stop now. You almost got it!" Lilynette went to retort, but the colt continued before she could speak "I know you can do it, Lilynette! If anypony can do it, so can you!" He said in a spirited tone.
Lilynette growled at Pipsqueak's persistence, but decided to comply to his words; there was something about the way he talked that managed to convince her to continue. She hesitantly whistled again, and when she tried a different note, she made sure to do so carefully. The red filly slowly tried to mimic Pipsqueak's song by ear when she felt confident in her actions.
Pipsqueak listened while lightly bobbing his head, a bright grin on his face. When she stopped, she looked down while Pipsqueak applauded "Wonderful, Lilynette! You'll do much better in no time!"
Lilynette puffed her cheeks as a light blush was seen on her face "It was dumb to try it..." She muttered.
Pipsqueak frowned "Huh? But why? You were doing so well earlier."
Lilynette looked away as her blush grew slightly "N-No I wasn't! Don't patronize me!" She growled.
Pipsqueak shook his head "I'm not, I promise." He smiled at Lilynette as he drew closer "You did pretty good for your first time. I dunno where you lived before to feel so bad, but at least you can try and keep yourself happy with some music."
Lilynette remained silent until she sighed "Maybe..." She stole a glance at Pipsqueak "...Thanks..." She murmured.
Pipsqueak nodded in reply "No problem." He then paused before frowning "Can I ask you a question?"
Lilynette raised an eyebrow at Pipsqueak "What is it?"
Pipsqueak placed a hoof under his chin "Does Mr. Starrk know how to whistle?"
Lilynette narrowed her eye at the question "Why does that matter to you?" She said angrily.
Pipsqueak was intimidated by Lilynette's sudden mood shift before he felt confident to speak "I mean, if he doesn't, then maybe you can teach him to whistle, too. Maybe he'd appreciate it once he tried it himself."
Lilynette's anger faded at Pipsqueak's explanation. She couldn't really imagine Starrk whistling, let alone acting as energetic as her, but perhaps she could take it upon herself to teach him how to whistle and see if he would be willing to learn.
That is, if she didn't have to resort to forcing him to.
She hummed to herself before she spoke up "That would be good. Maybe I could when he comes back."
Pipsqueak blinked "Huh? Where did Mr. Starrk go?"
Lilynette grunted "It's nothing, okay?" She paused before she looked away again "But...Thanks..."
Pipsqueak smiled again "Well, I already said 'You're Welcome', didn't I? I'm glad t' teach you to whistle."
Lilynette growled "No, you idiot. I meant for keeping me company..." She sighed "You're right about one thing, nopony shouldn't be by themselves...Thanks for staying by my side. I feel a little better..."
Pipsqueak's smile widened "Well, it was my pleasure!"
"Oh, and Pipsqueak?"
Pipsqueak blinked "Yea-WHOA!"
The colt didn't expect to be forcefully pulled forward and be held by his chest with one hoof. He was nose-to-nose with what appeared to be a scary-looking Lilynette; her uncovered eye was narrowed to a slit, already causing him to break into a light sweat "You tell ANYPONY I said that, and you're dead meat..." She hissed threateningly.
Pipsqueak gulped and nodded "O-Okay..." Lilynette gently released her hold on the colt and looked away again. Pipsqueak frowned at the sudden action, not expecting that kind of contact from Lilynette after he taught her how to whistle. He looked away himself as he rubbed the area where the red filly grabbed him, wondering if he had to act better around her.
While he did so, he was unaware that Lilynette lightly scooted closer to him.
To be continued...