"Good morning, Blossom Hill!"

The neighbor's booming radio blasted against the porch's flaking white gates.

"Xandra!" Jasmine threw open the house's screen door, a familiar black cat under her arm. She raised an arm to shield her eyes from the rising sun. It speckled her face in a golden, shining glow. "I knew you'd come."

Xandra's eyes dropped to the cat. It meowed and pawed at Jasmine's arm, begging to be let out of her clutches. It hissed and scratched at her. Jasmine dropped it to the ground with a hiss, "Bad kitty! Bad!"

The cat hissed back and sauntered back inside their house with a regal air. "Man what a brat. Brat!" Jasmine called back to the cat. It hissed back before finally turning around the corner and disappearing.

Xandra said with cautious words, "Is that...?"

"Aw no, no. He...moved on a few years ago. This is a new one, Jiselle named her Butterscotch but she was nowhere near sweet." Jasmine stepped out of the newly painted white porch, tying her hair in a high ponytail. It fluffed past her shoulder and bounced when she skipped down the porch steps and to Xandra.

Once she was near enough, Xandra sighed with closed eyes, "I could see that." She opened her timid eyes and asked, "When did you repaint the house? I remembered it differently." She frowned.

Jasmine walked toward the garage, Xandra in tow. She answered with a chuckle, "Just recently. The pink paint was flaking off and I suggested painting it new once I got back." She took a red bicycle and turned to Xandra, a slight teasing smirk Xandra has learned to fear. "What? D'you get lost?"

Xandra scoffed, crossing her arms over her chest, "No." After a pause, "maybe a little."

Jasmine guffawed, jogging to her with the red bicycle.

"What's it for?"

"A ride around town!" Jasmine took Xandra's hands and forced her to grasp the bicycle's handle. "I visit here frequently...mainly for Ja–ehem!" Her ears burned. "I mean, mainly for Jamie! Right, my little sister Jamie!"

Xandra sighed, "You don't have to be embarrassed, you've been talking all about him last night."

"Did I?" She exclaimed, running out with a pink bicycle. "But enough about that! We need to show you around town! Where should we go first, then, m'lady?" She winked with a laugh.

Xandra sighed again, but hopped on the bicycle anyway. Jasmine had a weird way of flirting with her friends, though Xandra didn't mind. She's been used to it, and frankly, she missed it. Xandra steadied her bicycle, "I want to see the old ice cream shop."

***

Thankfully, the ice cream shop miraculously stood against time for eleven years. Though there were some changes, like the signs on the glass doors and the new flavors on display, the calm interior and neatly made lavender lace pillows were as close to the original ones as it could get.

The bell rang as the two girls filed in. The shop was small, with sweet scented candles on shelves and cute kiddy tables, each a different pastel color.

"Oh what do we have here," a familiar teen with red hair and a cunning smile set down his ice cream scrapers to greet the two.

"Yo ginger!" Jasmine ran to give the teen a high five. "Ace my dude, my lil bro!"

Ace frowned and placed two hands on his hips. "I will call the witches on your ass if you don't stop calling me that." He said slowly enunciating each word.

Jasmine gave a dramatic gasp, "Man, Anton didn't beat you enough did he?"

"Where's Anton?" Xandra interrupted. She had her hands clasped behind her, looking over the counter for the old man. "I want the usual." Her voice was low, shy even.

Ace and Jasmine shared a look, glancing at Xandra. Her eyes were wider than usual, though her face remained neutral. She almost looked innocent, like a child.

Jasmine spoke first, "Xandra..." She chuckled, "Oh! Yeah I forgot to tell you about that but." She paused, then continued, "It has already been eleven years, the old dude's gone off to heaven now." She smiled calmly.

Xandra blinked, as if breaking from the trance. "Oh? Oh."

She nodded and cleared her throat, "Right, right. That's only logical, he was already old after all." In a second, she retreated back to herself. Eyes calm yet drooping, hands relaxing to cross over her chest.

"In that case, you must be..." She looked at Ace with a questioning brow.

"His grandson," Ace confirmed. He grabbed his ice cream scrapers and smiled like every other employee should. "What would you like?"

"Mint chocolate chip," She paused. "If you still have it."

"Then I'll have chocolate fudge!"

"Sold out on chocolate fudge hag, choose another one."

Jasmine sputtered, offended. "How are you so kind to her and not to me?" She shouted.

"Because she's not you. Now which one will it be?" Ace deadpanned, scooping out the mint chocolate chip ice cream. He took a small container and raised an eyebrow at Xandra. She nodded. Ace handed her the ice cream and took the money as Jasmine ranted on.

Jasmine chuckled menacingly and gently shoved a confused Xandra aside to catch Ace's eyes. "Oh ho and now you're ignoring your elder's teaching? Your guts, young man. I want your guts."

"Wait–!"

***

Jasmine walked out with her double chocolate overload with free sprinkles and extra chocolate chips. "Now do you want to go visit Jason? I can't wait for you to meet him!"

Xandra chucked her empty ice cream cup on a nearby trash can. "No thanks." She mounted her bike and waited for Jasmine to finish her ice cream. "Hurry up, I want to see something."

"Okay okay hold on!" Jasmine gobbled up her ice cream and closed her eyes when a brain freeze kicked in. She spoke through cold scoops of chocolate, "I swear if that ginger put some kind of brain freeze overload thing here I will make sure he and his shop goes bankrupt."

"Jasmine, it's ice cream. You'd expect it to be cold."

"Okay captain obvious, I'm not as dumb as you think I am," She shot back.

After finishing it up with a warm bottle of water, she chucked the container in the trash can and hopped on her bicycle. "Alright, where are we headed, love?"

"I want to see who's going to prepare the bouquets for the festival." Xandra stated plainly.

Jasmine skidded to a stop. "I won't lead you there unless you say it with enough gusto, m'lady. Say it like a captain, a princess, or a queen!" She shouted to the heavens.

Some neighbors started leading their children back home. Xandra sighed with a hand over her red face.

"F-fine...To," She inhaled. "To the festival preparations...!" Xandra added a tiny, "Yey..."

"Good enough! Let's go!"

***

The festival preparations were held at the town's basketball center. People fleeted here and there, carrying supplies and huge cardboard boxes. Jasmine and Xandra hopped off their bike and walked with it instead.

"What are they building?" Xandra asked, peeking through the white gates guarding the covered hall. A huge mess of blues and pinks stood out on a caravan, what seemed like colorful pieces of long paper and cardboard protruding from a single yellow ball at the center.

"What's it supposed to be?" She mumbled.

"I think it's supposed to be some kind of flower," Jasmine whispered back beside her.

Xandra couldn't help but snort, "It's all over the place. The petals look like something out of a bloody puddle in a horror movie."

"Wow," Jasmine widened her eyes at her. "I expected you to be a brutal critique at these things but I'm still surprised."

"Anyone with enough of a creative eye would notice." She stood straight and handed Jasmine the red bike. "I'm going to meet the person who designed this."

Jasmine stuttered, "Wha–what but–wait huh? Xandra, wait!"

Xandra didn't mind her, running analytical eyes across the court instead, arms crossed over her chest and chin high. When her family handled the design for these flower paper sculptures and sponsored for the flower bouquets, she always remembered it being drastically different, and a whole lot more magical. This one, though, was just a disappointment.

She walked toward one table with papers and crafts, a person drawing some kind of blueprint on a piece of paper.

Before she could approach the woman, Jasmine pulled her back. Xandra's steely blue eyes met Jasmine's warm, concerned ones. "Xandra, just listen! That..." It was like the night they reunited again.

Jasmine was at a loss for words, gulping as if to try and bring out what she needed to say. She opened her mouth and let out in a small whisper, pulling Xandra's ear close. "The person designing that is..."

She didn't need to say more. But she continued anyway, words dipping lower. "Manasseh's mother."

Xandra stepped back, hands falling to her sides and grasping her pants. She gulped, shaking her head.

The stack of papers that hid the woman's face was brought up, revealing someone she couldn't forget. She smiled, carefree. Eyes crinkling at the corners.

How dare she?

Xandra turned around and left, not bothering to wait for Jasmine.

***

"Hello?" Xandra pulled her phone to her ear.

"Hey this is William, just wanted to check in."

"You didn't need to. I've been taking my meds."

"I'm aware. Xander was so shocked to see you actually comply." There was a slight chuckle on the other end. "But hey."

There was a pause.

"I'm not sure if this'll be of any help to you, but remember the woman who brought you to the hospital when you passed out?"

"I remember. Vaguely."

"Do you really know this woman?"

Xandra stopped her incessant typing and went to grab a pen and paper. "I won't have a clue who she was until you describe her to me."

William laughed, "As blunt as ever. I take it, you're going to draw her? I've seen one of your drawings, you should find a way to profit off it somehow."

Xandra twirled her pen and leaned against her chair with a sigh, "Estimated age?"

"Old...but not too old. Late 50's to early 60's."

"And she carried me there?"

"Yes, you should've seen her muscles."

"Alright." Xandra leaned back to her table and started drawing.

"Hold on wait–!" He sighed. "If I told you she had pure white wings and a halo, would you believe me?"

"William, It's five in the morning and I haven't slept. My cabinets are talking to me."

"What's the use of meds if you don't take care of yourself! I'm calling Xander."

"And you all act like I can't handle a joke," Xandra mumbled. "I just woke up around an hour ago, and yes, I managed to get a full seven hour sleep."

Xandra heard some slight shuffling on the other end.

"I won't take up much of your time anymore. But what I said about the woman having wings and a halo was true."

Xandra hummed in recognition as she started to draw an initial outline.

"I think she was cosplaying? Hold on, I managed to get the CCTV footage of her, let me just find it...there we go."

"You managed to do what?"

There was a rough sigh, "Xandra, you need to know something."

He was silent for a moment. Xandra gripped her pencil, growing impatient.

"For the past two weeks, you've passed out in four different places. The park, the waiting shed, the subway, and in front of the church. This woman always brings you to the hospital. But no, not in her arms. She has you in an old shabby jeep and I had to haul you back. She'd pay for the expenses each time. Always dressed in that corny angel outfit."

He paused to let her take it in. Xandra answered almost immediately, "tell me more."

"She was skinny. Smaller than you, maybe around five foot four? She always smiled. I asked for her name but each time she would deflect it, or when I'm not looking, she'd just run off with her jeep. At first I found it helpful, but four times? That's no coincidence."

"Tell me what she looks like," Xandra's voice was stern now, completely invested.

"Very triangular face and long chin. Beady gray eyes, long hair, all white. She was old, the wrinkles around her eyes were prominent. Straight hair that dropped over one eye."

Xandra hesitated, drawing the final strokes on the hair. "Are you sure this is her?"

"I couldn't forget such a suspicious person, Xandra. Though the footage was always blurry. Tsk, they should really consider changing those cameras."

"Did she say anything? Anything helpful? Does she know me?"

"Seems so. She calls you...Sun? Xander told me that was your childhood nickname."

Xandra inhaled a deep breath. "Did she...say anything else?"

"Something about taking care of you. Whenever I'd ask her why she's doing this, she'd tell me it's to repay. And then she'd be gone, driving off the hospital parking lot."

"Thank you for the information William. I think I do know this person."