I had gone to this coffee shop by my old high school. I wanted coffee and to get out of the house, so it seemed like a great way to kill two birds with one stone.

I had no idea why I woke up craving coffee. I didn't really even like the stuff. I only drank it if I was close to crashing from my weird sleep schedule. Even then, I tried to avoid it when I could.

It took a few minutes for the person at the counter to make my coffee. Once they had, I went out on the patio. I wanted to take my time and I didn't feel like bringing a jacket. It seemed like I was always cold in that coffee shop.

Anyway, I sat at a table in the sun. I wanted to soak some up while I was out, and it was naturally warmer, which was always a plus.

I found myself spacing out.

I found myself unable to get warm in spite of being in the sun.

Someone was coming. They were gliding across the ground, but I could still faintly feel their ripples. There was a familiar air about them...

It was a girl with fiery red hair and deep green eyes. She was definitely not short. She was at least around my size even with the height her shoes gave her.

She felt similar to Chastity in some way, but I couldn't put my finger on how. Her face was almost a spitting image of the Vanny I remembered from my childhood.

"What did I ever see in you? Why did I ever call you my friend?" Her words oozed acid.

My voice shook. "W-wh-what?"

"You heard me, Watanabe." Her eyes looked metallic. "Why did I ever call you my friend?"

"W-what d-did I d-do?" I asked.

"It's what you didn't do, you pitiful shrinking violet."

Shrinking violet? I was a shrinking violet?

"W-what didn't I do?"

"It's your fault I was torn away from my family. If it weren't for you, I'd still be living with Cha-cha."

I was shaking. "I-I didn't mean for you to get caught up in this. I didn't know they took you. I didn't have the chance to stop them. I didn't have the chance to do anything."

"Don't make excuses. It's your fault. It's your fault."

That was when I come out of the nightmare or whatever that was.

Vanny, please. I wanted to save you. I wanted to save you so badly. But I can't do it. I can't do it 'til I can get to you. Help me. help me, please.

That was when I felt ripples. These were more intense than when Vanny showed up.

"Hiya, Alain." I couldn't tell who this was, but I was sure they were a guy. I hadn't been seeing great lately. My ripples weren't helping, either, so that was all I could figure out.

I heaved myself out of the chair. I felt dizzy. I felt unsteady. Still, I stumbled forward. I wasn't sure at the time, but I thought I might have thrown up.

Either way, I felt a little better afterward.

I felt fur rubbing against my leg and looked down to see a dog with golden fur in a red harness. That was when I recognized their faces. Alastair was the one who said hi to me. His brother who helped Eni before was at his side.

"Feel better now?" Alastair asked.

"Yeah..." I said.

His brother jumped in here. "Are you on your way home?"

I shook my head. Big mistake. It felt like my brains almost got scrambled. "I need to check something before I go home."

"Mind if we join you?" Alastair asked.

"No."

And so, they and Alastair's dog followed me. I wanted to go to the park where I met Chastity again for the first time. There was a place I had to see. It was a long shot, but I hoped it'd give me something to go on.

I sat on this hill. The ground was more dirt than grass, but I didn't care. I didn't care if I'd get my pants dirty.

Alastair's brother put a blanket over my shoulder. He spoke before I could say anything. "You might not realize it, but you're shivering."

The dog put its head in my lap. Its fur was so soft and warm.

Alastair sat beside me while his brother chose to squat. "Hey, Noah?" He kind of gave his brother a blank expression. "Why is there a blanket in Honey's bag, anyway?"

"Hannah told us to take it, remember?" There was something about how Alastair's brother was speaking to him, but I couldn't put my finger on what it was. "She said to bring a blanket if we were gonna be stubborn and not bring jackets."

"Oh, yeah!"

With the blanket on my shoulders and the dog's head in my lap, it felt like my body was finally starting to thaw.

"Why did you guys decide to go to the coffee shop, anyway?"

Alastair had a big smile on his face. "We're stalling!"

"Jeez, Star!" His brother just had this look of something... on his face. Was it fear? "I don't think he's gonna tell anybody, you shouldn't just blab something like that to people."

The kid was right about that. I didn't know if I'd tell that to someone like Duke. The kid wasn't always good at not mentioning things.

"Why are you stalling?" I asked.

"Hannah wants us to get a place closer to where Noah goes to school with our brother, Del, and my friend."

The kid sighed. "I don't need Hannah much as some of my other siblings have. As for Star and Del, she probably wants them to have their own place since they're older now."

"That's the reason I suspect. Dunno if I could ever live on my own even with Honey or any other dog I might get, but I had a place with Cole and Del in my other world. That part wasn't that bad."

"Was it hard to live in your other world?"

"I've never been good at being around people and I've had issues with nightmares and those sorts of things. It didn't help I had some pretty rough experiences there."

I ran my hand across the dog's back. "That isn't fun."

"You've had that problem, too?" his brother asked.

I looked to Alastair. "I imagine Hannah told you why I left?"

"She did tell En and me about it." Alastair gazed at the sun. "I don't think I could've lived all that time knowing someone I loved needed help and I couldn't do anything about it."

"It definitely wasn't easy..."

Everything was so simple when Vanny was still in my life. As much as I loved T and Eni, I missed those times.

"You'll find her soon," Alastair whispered in my ear. "You didn't know where your sister was when you set out to find her, but you found her anyway."

That's right... I didn't know where T and Eni were, but I found them, anyway. As long as I didn't give up, I would find her eventually.

It felt like something was unlocked in my heart. That was it! It wouldn't be hard to get into Taradita. I was a Key Keeper. I could open its gate just as I opened my own.

Alastair patted his brother's back. "Out with it, Noah! If you're gonna ask, ask!"

The kid was redder than a tomato. "Can I come over...? I'd like to see your brother again."

"Eni would love that." I got up. "He doesn't get a lot of visitors. He deserves to have his own friends, too."

"Thanks..."

"It's nothing. I just want my little brother to be happy."

***

Thoughts on what happened to Ain? Star, Honey, and Noah? Theories? Predictions? 

~Shino out!