Melancholy

It all started with a curious little question.

"Hamtaro, where did you move here from?"

The golden hamster blinked. "I think this place called Osaka...why?"

"Oh," Maxwell sat back on his stool, settling with his thick book. "Just wondering..."

"Well..." Hamtaro thought for a split second. Then: "How 'bout you?"

Maxwell scratched his head. "Hmm...I think I've lived in the bookstore for just about my whole life...anything else I don't recall."

"Well, everyone," Bijou cried, clapping her furry little paws together. "Let's tell eachother about our past!" That's Bijou. Always getting an idea to get us moving.

"Great idea, Bijou!" Boss appeared next to me, immediately choosing to kiss up to his crush. "Don't you think so, Pashmina?" he eyed me.

I shrugged. "Sure." Boss was satisfied.

"Then you can have the honor of telling first!" he grinned, patting my back. Penelope agreed blithely behind me.

"Oh Boss," I smiled, hitting him on the shoulder lightly. Everyone leaned in around the table to listen. I was nervous, and just thought of anything random to say. I gulped. "Well, when I was a baby, I moved here from a faraway place that I hardly remember...New...New Yo...well, there were a lot of bright lights, good smells, and very fashionable humans. June loved it there." I nodded, showing that I was finished. I nudged the closest Hamuhamu, whom was of course, Boss. He cleared his throat and grinned.

"Well, I can't say my whole past, but I might as well try. All my life I learned everything on my own. To sniff and dig in the best spots for stray veggies. And they were delicious," he sighed. "Anyway, I learned the best places for the best acorns and the ripest fruit. I knew some of the spots where the cat lay, waiting for us. I knew-"

"Get on with it, Boss!" Howdy interrupted rudely. I glared at him, shutting him up immediately. Boss did the same as me, and went on. "As I was saying, you don't need a fancy old home to be a great hamster. Just trust your instincts, Hamuhamus!" He gave us one last wink, and sat down. I nodded agreeably, admiring his speech. "C'mon, Sandy, you next!"

It went on until the last one was Panda, whom was the most interesting of all. "Well," he started uncertainly. "I was born bare." I giggled. His face turned pinkish. "...about a couple of months before Hamtaro moved here, I came from China." Stan stood up.

"Man, China, that's awesome! That's...what is that?" he cocked his head, putting down his maracas. Panda smiled.

"China's not too far from here. Just on a boat...you..." he glanced at Maxwell for help. The "Intellegent One" stood up. "China's mostly a land with a lot of mountains and hills, deserts, and plains. It's, like Panda mentioned, is not very far from here by ship. Their famous animal is endangered. It is called the Panda."

"Wow! That's Panda's name!" Hamtaro jumped up. "What does it look like?"

Maxwell grinned. "It's fur marks are very similar to Panda's."

"I would like to go there sometime..." I added in wistfully. Penelope looked at me. Panda also. "Maybe I'll take you sometime..." he responded quietly. I don't know why, but my face grew warmer. Dexter took the chance to barge in.

"I'll take you, dear Pashmina!" he told me sweetly. I was uncomfortable.

"Um...that's very nice, but..."

"No, you stupid goody goody! I'll take her!" Howdy grinned at me, pushing Dexter away. I frowned.

"Howdy, please don't call Dexter stupid!"

"Oh, I'm sorry..." he lowered his voice in embarrasment. Dexter smiled smugly at him.

"Well, that's enough, right?" Sandy yawned, showing her teeth. "It's, like, a bit late. Let's get going." Maxwell and the others nodded.

They left, one by one, until only Panda, Sandy, Maxwell, and I were left. Luckily, Cappy had agreed to walk Penelope home.

"Here, Sandy, I'll walk you home," Maxwell held her paw. Sandy blushed. "Aww...Maxwell, you're so sweet!" They walked out with a last "See you tomorrow!" to us.

Panda stared dejectedly as the pair left. "You know, I liked Sandy..." he said quietly, not looking at me. "...even when she was with Maxwell..." He sighed softly. "I was always hoping that they would break up, but I forced myself to stop thinking such selfish thoughts." His downcast gray eyes looked at me.

I was stunned. Why was he telling me this? "Don't worry, Panda," I smiled gingerly. "You're such a sweet guy. Any girl would fall for you." I gave him a last smile, and headed out. Something told me that what I said came straight out of my heart.

- - - -

Three days later, Panda arrived late, looking rather nervous. "Umm...hamuha...I have...someone for you to meet." He stood aside, revealing a rather pretty girl whom had similar marks to Panda's, besides that she had a spot on her right ear and a shallow wave of gray on her lower body. A blue and white bandana was wrapped around her head, and she wore a very loose cloth as a necklace. She grinned as she raised a hand.

"Hamuha!"

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A/n: Sorry the first chapter was so...lame. Next chapter coming soon!