Sitting in front of him gave Iris a sense of uncertainty as he stared at her. Telling him of what occurred over the past few days, from the deal The Screws initially made with the Student Council, to requesting Ikki's help with the promise of making him Vice President, and ending it with her decision to leave the Student Council and why she did so. The blank look was something she was not used to seeing on the man before her. Everyone knew him as a jolly man who cared for each of his students. An individual who would listen to the students and gave them hall passes for talking to them for long periods of time. Even his Medabot, who shared his unreadable expression, made her feel uncertain.

"I see," Mr. Principal sighed and turned away from his desk to look out the window behind him. The sound of kids screaming could be heard from his office, though the screams did nothing to mute the second sigh that escaped him. "When it occurred to me that The Screws got to use the Student Council room for their own purposes through a bet, it also was brought to my attention that the Student Council already had plans to get their room back. With that information known, I decided to leave it to you children to figure out a solution without an adult required. The ability to problem solve on your own or through a group of peers instead of relying on a superior is a lesson I wished more people learned through their life."

"Lessons such as those are important to learn young else mistakes will be made while growing up." Mr. Principal's Medabot and companion, Samurai, spoke up from behind her. She was so focused on Mr. Principal that she hadn't registered Samurai moving from this spot.

"That is right Samurai. A lesson that I thought would be good to learn. Yet, of any of the end results I expected from everyone involved, what you told me was not one of them. I am sorry for not seeing the level of corruption brewing from the Student Council. Because of my negligence you had to go through a rough moment between your friends Iris. For that I am sorry."

"Its okay Mr. Principal." Iris nodded before placing the object she was fiddling with in her hands on his desk. The object itself was, to her, the last physical strand attaching her to her role as a Student Council member. She hardly used the object in question, which showed her just how minimal and useless she was to those she once called peers. "I just wanted to inform you of the situation so you understood why I am resigning so suddenly from my position. I will no longer be needing this as these are specifically required for the Student Council to possess." Looking at the object in question, Mr. Principal picked it up before letting out an unexpected laugh. "Sir?"

"Between you and me," Mr. Principal took the object and rubbed his right thumb across its screen, "this never leaves the room. Being on the Student Council does not automatically give you a Medabot."

"It doesn't sir?" A booming laugh came from Mr. Principal and Samurai.

"Nope!" Both spoke at the same time, causing the two to laugh in sync once again.

"Each Dr. Bokchoy comes out of my pocket so anyone on the Student Council does not feel alienated from the other students. Being given the Dr. Bokchoy gives the members on the Student Council a constant reminder to have fun instead of hitting the books to study every day. Everyone needs a moment to unwind, and seeing this on your wrist is incentive to relax." Looking at the object in his hand reminded Iris that she barely made use of the Medawatch for anything other than a show of force requested by the Student Council President. It caused her to think whether or not she even had its medal inserted into the watch or the actual Medabot. "To me, ensuring that all of my students can have something in common, may it be pride in their school or a shared hobby that even the faculty participate in, is worth every penny."

"Though, if memory serves me best, you hardly used your Medabot Iris." Samurai's words made her nod. She wasn't one to robattle, nor did she have a need to seek out fights or custom parts for something she hardly used.

"I feel best if you kept the Dr. Bokchoy though sir. It would do me no good." Mr. Principal tapped his chin, his eyes darting between her and the Medawatch he held. Then, for a moment, he looked over to a direction that made no sense. Glancing over to where he looked, Iris noticed a sealed door (perhaps a storage closet?) that had a clipboard hanging from a hook.

"Iris please come here." Slowly standing from her seat, Iris walked over to the spot Mr. Principal pointed to. He opened the door, letting it slowly reveal a dark room. With a flick of a switch the dark, unknown space became revealed as a room filled to the brim with various Medabot parts. Even she could appreciate how many parts were hidden in this room. She could only imagine what kind of reaction Ikki would have at seeing so many parts!

"Are you sure this is wise sir?"

"Samurai, do you know what the word Iris means?"

"No I do not." Iris, not knowing where Mr. Principal was going with his question, stayed silent. What did her name have in context to the situation?

"Depending on the culture in question, the word Iris can take on various meanings. When I look at our Iris in this garden known as school, I see the wisdom to separate herself from a bad situation. The faith to believe in your values instead of folding to others is another meaning. But do you know what shines brightest in her?" Mr. Principal walks into the room, glancing around before grabbing something small from a nearby shelf. Turning around to her, he tossed the object that, had she not caught it at the last second, would have hit her chest.

"Sir?" The object was a white Medawatch with scarlet red wiring circling the outer rim of the display screen. She noticed a blinking icon on the screen, as if prompting her to stare at it to see into its gaze, but Mr. Principal's words made her flush in embarrassment.

"But, after hearing the events you partook in, especially of renouncing yourself from people you considered friends, I can clearly see the valor within you burning brightly. I can only wonder what Ikki will think of you when you see him next." Ikki standing in front of her flashed into her head for a moment. She still felt silly about how she reacted to him protecting her from the Student Council, but there wasn't anything she could do about the past.

"W-What about Ikki sir?" A light laugh came from Samurai as he gave her a pat on the back.

"Ikki is a good kid much like yourself. Good kids tend to find each other and make the best of bonds that traverse all types of battlefields. You two will most definitely help each other out."

"Plus I bet Ikki would be a great tutor for teaching you all about Medabots."

"But sir..." Iris ran her thumb across the Medawatch. Its scarlet red wires bumping into her thumb as she thought of what to say next. She did not care much for Robattling, at least until she watched Ikki analyze Samantha's fight with the Student Council President and his match with her just yesterday. There was just something about him that made her feel lacking in comparison. Could it be as simple as she didn't have a Medabot she was excited about? "What is the point in giving me a Medabot if I am trying to give you back one?" A laugh came from Mr. Principal as he grabbed a cart from Samurai. Just what was so funny about what she said?

"Do you know what part of the fun is about having a Medabot?" Knowing little about owning a Medabot, Iris shook her head. Instead of immediately replying, Mr. Principal grabbed what looked to be a metal skeleton with a pink head and laid it on the cart. Its hollow, lifeless eyes stared at her as it laid limp in the cart, making her uncomfortable at how off the sight was to her. "Part of the fun is customizing your Medabot with either your favorite parts, a unique weapon set, or maybe making your own custom armor. Its the idea of making something yours instead of keeping to a stock setting that makes owning a Medabot so popular. Unlike me of course, where the most I will do is get Samurai a new katana every now and again."

"Its all I ever need sir. Most armor types these days just aren't as sturdy as they were from my generation. Just like how you complain at how cheap modern cars are produced in comparison to those of twenty years ago."

"I'm just saying, Samurai, that the car that nearly hit me wouldn't have lost its tire so easily from making such a sharp turn if it was made like my car twenty years ago. The more modern cars want everything to be cheaper instead of higher quality."

"If that is the case, then can we get rid of your ever growing CD collection since you have vinyls to play? I could use some aerial targets to practice with." Medabot and Medafighter stood silent to one another, looking dead center to their eyes before exploding with laughter. The overall interaction between them was odd, to say the least, but seeing how they acted with each other reminded Iris of Ikki and Metabee. Why didn't she see more people act like them with their Medabots?

"Oh I could never get tired of your lip Samurai."

"Thank you sir, if I had a pair I'd be smiling right now. But you should hurry this up sir. Iris still needs to get to class after all." Looking down at his watch, Mr. Principal jumped where he stood before rushing back into the room. It was a good thing that Iris always got to school an hour before classes began, else she would have been as panicked as Mr. Principal right now.

"I really need to work on getting straight to the point when I talk." She heard him mutter as he placed random parts on the table. A knock made itself known to the main door, causing her to turn to it.

"Excuse me sir, but your eight o'clock appointment showed up early and is demanding your attention."

"I'll be one minute Mrs. Suzumiya!" Mr. Principal poked his head from the closet and gave Iris an apologetic look. She had a feeling she knew what was going to happen next. "I'm really sorry about this young lady, but could you come back after school today for me to hand you your gift?" She nodded, politely thanking him before walking out of the room. When she left the room no one stood in the hallway like she was expected, making her glance down at the Medawatch to see the time. Though the screen was hard to see, she could make out the numbers four and three. It was time for her to get ready for her morning classes.

The school day had, for lack of a better term, felt foreign to her so far. It seemed as if no one knew of her no longer being on the Student Council. A fact that acted as both a blessing and curse to her. Perhaps people knew of it yet didn't want to confront her about it? It made the idea of people talking behind her back shake her to the core. She didn't want to be the center of attention. The idea of being the focus of everyone made her nearly slip on several questions she was asked to answer. Why was everything so quiet throughout the day?

When lunch finally came Iris walked to the lunch hall to partake in her food. She didn't wish to open herself to any dialogue about the Student Council, seeing as normally she hung around with them whenever she could. As she walked down the stairs to the main floor, she came across someone she wanted nothing to do with. An individual who, in some ways, was the main reason she no longer had a place on the Student Council.

Ikki Tenryou.

"Hi Iris!" Ikki's shout made a girl with brown hair pop up from in front of him. Erika (she believed that was her name) looked at her with a calculated look that quickly turned playful like a cat. Bringing her arm around Ikki's neck, she ran her knuckles on his scalp while looking down at him.

"When did you befriend someone who wasn't me or Henry?" Ikki managed to pull himself away from Erika with a few coughs. What Iris didn't expect was for the brown haired girl to pull a camera out and take several pictures of her within seconds, making it impossible to shield herself from the flashing camera. "I mean this isn't exactly a front cover scoop or anything grandiose after all. But for a small column on the last page? Yeah, I can work with it."

"Well we became friends yesterday after my fight with The Screws actually." Iris wanted to question Ikki about what he said. When exactly did they become friends? Did he mean when he saved her from the Vice President? The moment flashed back, making her close her eyes to try and erase what happened again.

"Well that is nice to hear. I was always worried about members of the Student Council not being able to interact with anyone due to their elitist attitudes." Suddenly, without warning, Iris felt her right wrist being raised. The alarming act got her to open her eyes, seeing Erika looking at the Medawatch she obtained from Mr. Principal. Did she really obtain it when she felt more like she 'traded' it for something else?

"E-Excuse me?" Iris began as she tried to free her wrist from Erika. She certainly had a strong grip on her. "Could you let me go now?"

"I didn't know that you had a Medabot that wasn't a Dr. Bokchoy Iris." Letting her go, she gave Iris a slap on the back. Why was this girl so physical with everyone? "Its pretty brazen to see someone on the Student Council keep their Medawatch out in the open. Who knew you could be such a rebel!"

"I-I'm n-not-"

"Back off Erika!" Ikki caught Erika's attention with his shout. "Can't you see that you are bothering her a lot." Ikki's eyes shot to the Medawatch, taking in its looks for a moment. That was, until he took a few steps towards her and pressed a button near the top of the device. The screen, which had been too dim to see anything, began to brighten up. Little icons made themselves known by blinking on the main screen. "There you go. Now you can see everything again, hey!" Ikki looked at her with a frown. "When was the last time you called out your Medabot at all? It hasn't been brought out in, sheesh, I can't even tell." Kicking her feet together, Iris sighed before telling them what happened between her and Mr. Principal. Both of their eyes gleamed with excitement by the time she finished talking, though for what Iris couldn't imagine. What happened wasn't as interesting as it was weird to her.

"So wait. Let me get this straight." Erika pointed at the Medawatch. "Mr. Principal gives you the watch for a Tinpet he is preparing for you right now because you returned the Dr. Bokchoy he gave you. Yet he doesn't know that your Medawatch is not only housing a medal, but is still connected to its original Tinpet?" Iris, not knowing how to register what was said, only nodded. It was only a few moments later that a question formed from everything.

"What do you mean the Medawatch is still connected?" Rather than Erika speaking out, Ikki pointed to a black hexagon shape near the top of her watch. Like most of the watch, she didn't know it existed until he managed to brighten the screen.

"Any time a Medawatch has this shape on it, it means that the Medawatch is linked to a Medabot with its medal in the watch's housing chamber. Which," Ikki reached around to the bottom of the watch and made something 'click' in response. It made the watch open, revealing a rusty, copper red gold medal with a blurry picture on its center.

"Hey that thing must be older than Metabee Ikki! I guess I can say that there is something older than your Medabot now!"

"Shut up Erika!" Watching these two react to each other, conversing in a way that Iris never participated in, made her feel pain in a way she did not know could exist. Was it the way they freely talked to one another? The pace which they spoke without hesitation? The familiarity the two shared with each other?

What was it about them that made it hurt to be near them?

"Hey, we've killed about twenty minutes just chit chatting right here. How about we go down to the lunch hall and keep on talking?"

"Yeah," Ikki shrugged and turned back downwards to the lower stairs. He turned to her with a curious look on his face. "You wanna come with Iris?" She nodded, staying several steps behind the two friends as they began to talk about Coach Mountain, The Screws, Metabee, and piano lessons. Only a few of the topics made any sense to her, leaving for her to be walking through a verbal cloud of confusion that made her nervous to speak up at any point. Though, if anyone were to be looking at her as she walked behind the two, they would have seen her quivering with every step.

Quivering, but smiling.

-Author Note-

Hello readers, reviewers, and followers! Here is another addition to Doing What Is Right that took me a few revisions to finally complete. I had a difficult time trying to figure out where I wanted to end this chapter due to not wanting to end it at an awkward place. Too much content in a chapter and it throws off the 'progression' I am trying to set up with Iris, yet too little and the chapter would be too small. I'm enjoying how Iris is being challenged so far, and cannot wait to see how she progresses being in the main character role rather than a stock character in the background. With that said, before I get to working on one of my other stories, its time to do something I haven't done in a while: reply to reviews!

Guest: Why thank you for calling this story a gem at the moment. To me, this story still has quite the journey before being called a gem. But your words do inspire me to get more chapters pumped out for readers such as you and those who follow this story too.

James Birdsong: Thank you for your review. Hopefully this chapter is just as good as the others, if not better!

Fallenstreet01: Thank you for thinking this is good thus far. As you can see I do plan on continuing this story. To be honest, I am working on a one-shot (maybe a multiple chapter story) featuring Samantha for a what-if scenario that has not left me for two years now. Hopefully I can dedicate some time to writing it out and adding it to the wonderful category that is Medabots fiction.

To the silent readers in the back: Thank you all for reading this story. I can only hope that, one day, you all will drop a review or two to let me know your thoughts or ideas on this story or on others. If there is one thing I love to do with my fiance, it is to brew stories for series we enjoy.

So, until next time everyone, stay golden!

Kazikamikaze24