Dedicated to Miss Envie Black, hope this cheers you up in some way

"Life is like a symphony, it takes the right keys to make a great melody just as we need the right people to lead a great one" 

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The day started so innocently. Matthos let Neva sleep longer as he planned their breakfast. Barney was in his room, snoring loudly. He showered much longer now and then gathered the herbs both for the food and Neva's bath. 

He opened the fridge, grabbing the tray of Lox he prepared last night. He also took the cream cheese out and proceeded to make the bagel. The coffee was already brewing and the ale was set on the table. Once he was finished, he went to wake the two. Barney was easy to wake. You only had to shout medical terms and he'll jump up. He was cursing as he went down to the dining room. Neva, on the other hand, was a more complicated case.

She always kept a stick around. Even without that, her hands rarely miss its target even with her eyes closed and her mind was in a dreamy state. 

Tying a pillow in front of him and wearing a large hat, Matthos took a deep breath and then prepared himself for the battle. 

He did not notice that the Neva was awake this time. When she turned around and saw him nearing, she stared at him and laughed out loud. Matthos was surprised he tripped and the stick on the side of the bed made a loud sound. A minute later, Barney appeared on the door panting and confused. When he saw the state of his friend, he ended up laughing too.

Matthos glared at them as he clutched his own stick. He was gritting his teeth in pain and doubling over, the other stick was already on the floor. 

"Is your manhood alright?" she asked so innocently

"My manhood is fine" he winced, clutching the bed sheet as he tried to stand up

"Manhood huh?" Barney laughed hysterically

"Fudge you" Matthos whimpered which made the Neva gasp in outrage

"How could you curse him like that?" 

It dawned to them both that the word fudge was once a derogatory term

"My dear sweet innocent Neva, fudge is now a condiment for desserts" Barney explained, dodging the lamp and hiding behind the door for safety measures

"Oh well, we do learn something new every day, I'm afraid" she frowned at the thought 

"Yes, we do" Matthos smiled and stood up and helped Neva stand up

"And they say chivalry is dead" Barney snorted 

"Let's just eat breakfast" he growled at his friend which shifted into a charming smile for the lady behind him

The morning went out fine for the three of them. They learned that Neva was a fast learner. Fate had other plans for them.

The three were sitting on the floor, armed with popcorns and soda as an attempt to teach Neva about film arts. They were in the middle of Gone with the Wind when the news break appeared

"A report on the sudden comatose state of children all over the area. The investigators have found no proof of lead poisoning or any signs of abuse. A hysterical mother reported hearing a strange song that came from nowhere before her child stopped breathing. As of now, the case remains unsolved-"

The Neva whimpered and a cold chill enveloped Matthos and Barney. They should've been baffled at the unlikely correlation between strange lullabies and death, but somehow, with Neva's reaction, and the sudden comatose of those in the area, they were able to put the pieces together. 

"We need to leave" Barney carried Neva to the couch as Matthos rushed upstairs to get their things ready. 

Matthos wanted to bang his head on the wall. Their parents' case, the mysterious deaths, the song, Neva. It was connected. But in what way?

He pulled himself together as he grabbed all their necessities. They couldn't take a simple car for this. It was time to use the Raven.

Normal houses aren't supposed to have one. But this wasn't a normal house, and Matthos was nowhere near normal. 

With his pocket watch, he opened its back case that revealed a built-in remote with three buttons. He clicked the one on the right and continued hauling stuff. Neva's whimpers reached his ears, and all he wanted now was to run and say they are safe. But how can he lie? There was no point in lying. Her innocence, combined with a rare type of intelligence and basic instinct was a mix that Matthos has not encountered before. In this situation, there was no white lie.

The muffled screams downstairs made Matthos move faster. Once he went down, he saw the reason or rather, he heard it

He and Barney only frowned as they did not understand the words, but whatever they were, it was causing Neva to cry hysterically. She covered her ears and knelt down at the sweet sounding voice

"AVAUNT! AVAUNT!" she continued to cry 

Suddenly, something was banging all the windows, and loud wind can be heard

"Oh Fudge balls" Barney uttered when he brought out his talisman. A red bag filled with enchantments as he started to pray. Matthos opened the secret door and grabbed Neva, Barney following closely as he yelled "Wag kang susunod, wag mo subukan!" 

The loud engine made Matthos sigh in relief. He opened the doors and threw their things inside, guiding a frantic and apprehensive Neva inside with Barney closing all the doors. Going behind the wheels, Matthos spared no time in having the whole house turned off with the secret passage lighting its way as the Raven roared into life and pass by the whole neighborhood underground. 

"Damn, that was close" Barney wiped the sweat from his forehead and sat beside Neva. 

"What did the old bat say?"

"Why were you telling it to go away?" Matthos asked, which made Neva stop crying and stare at him in incredulity

"Because she's not her best behavior" Barney deadpanned, which made her snort

"Neva, do you know what year it is?" Matthos asked

She shook her head

"It's 2017" he waited until the familiar ramp appeared and they were blanketed by the night sky with a dazzling array of constellations that are visible to the naked eye. An event that is becoming more and more uncommon due to the things that are happening around the world.

The shock on Neva's face only proved that she was having spaces in her history. Her speech, her manners. Barney shared the same idea as they traveled silently

"Neva, whatever you know, you have to tell us. What you don't know, we have to find out. None of us will ever be safe until we get to the bottom of this" 

"Barney's right. We can't stay in one place for a long time."

"Under normal circumstances, and I mean normal in our circumstances, I would've found this fun. Think of it as a mini road trip" Barney caught the immense sadness on Neva's face and amended his statement "Now, it's an educational mini road trip, which I think, is beneficial for all parties involved" he gave Neva a brotherly hug that finally calmed her down

Matthos snorted at the poor attempt but was relieved. 

"I think we can send our parents there"

Barney pondered at the idea and agreed fast "Indeed we can" he proceeded on letting Neva sleep before dialing his mother's number

"Hello?" an accentless voice was heard as Barney sat beside Matthos

"Mudra dear, we have a lead on your case and before you say we're interfering, we're on our way out of the neighborhood"

Issa Bello-Bello is a Filipino who works at the headquarters as the head researcher. Her husband, Markus Bello served as the department head. 

"So what is your lead?"

"No trauma on the bodies. Victims just went into a comatose state. All at night, hysterical mother reports hearing a song with indecipherable lyrics. Victims are all infants"

If this were an editor who was supposed to cover a story, they would've hung up on Barney. However, aside from the fact that this was his mother, Issa works for a supernatural organization. Which means she must entertain all notions that could give them answers. 

"We'll get onto it. The headquarters is in a state of unrest. Any lead will be accepted. Not bad Barney" she commented "Alright sweety, I have to go and report. Stay safe and eat your breakfast, love you!" 

"Love you too Mudra" Barney ended the call

"Well, that was easy" 

"So where are we going?"

"To the land where the ghost would have a bloody hard time to find us"

When Matthos explained his plan, Barney whacked him in the head

"Yes, because once we land there, the monsters that already live there will leave no trace of our existence behind. Find another place!" 

The two carefully discussed their next plan, and with that, put Neva as their highest priority

She was both the key and the lock of a mysterious matter that hasn't been dwelled on that is, for a long time.