Chapter 6: Contemplation& Rebirth
(This section will focus on Yazoo as the speaker) I woke up the next morning, and realized Kadaj was holding onto me in her sleep. I decided to stay put to avoid waking her, especially after that mess at Shinra Headquarters yesterday. The sky seemed as bright as it was the last few times I woke up in the morning, so I figured my wake up time was the same as usual. I sighed “Now what are we gonna do? No way am I going back to that place. Not after what happened.” I didn’t have any dreams, either, so I was really at a loss of where to go next. I thought about going back to sector 6 to take an off day and relax at Damion’s, but I knew he would notice how overwhelmed we all are if we went to see him. And I wanted to avoid having to tell him the truth about it and explain the Shinra mess from yesterday, because I figured it was probably reported on the media and if he found out we were responsible, I was afraid he’d kick us out and get mad about us breaking into their HQ. But I didn’t even know if he would care about it at the same time. The way he talked about Shinra made it seem like he really didn’t like them, and that he distrusted them and everything they do and say. I wondered if the best thing to do sometimes was take a break day and wait for a sign from Mother about what to do next. The dreams that both me and Loz had were connected to things that happened in reality later on, and that made me figure they were signs from Mother about what’s on the way or warning us to stay away from certain people. Just like the man with the red hair that Loz said he saw in his dream: we saw him in real life later on, and he tried to take us away and throw us in jail. Luckily, Kadaj’s special power we still don’t know much about saved us that time, but the Shinra infiltration job that was supposed to be a rescue mission was a different story. That went way wrong—and quickly, too. Some scientist man with long black hair did it all just to get his hands on us. More than likely, he was interested in our unique powers that humans don’t have. I really don’t like the idea of being another one of Shinra’s personal playthings to do whatever they want with. Especially with the way this man was talking. He was crazy; it only took one encounter for me to see all he cares about is science and his stupid research. He clearly didn’t care about the well-being of any living person or creature he was interested in; why, he even called us specimens! I heard Loz yawn and he sat against the wall beneath where my feet were resting “What’s the plan today?” He didn’t sound very excited. Loz sounded like he was still very tired. I replied “I don’t know… we checked the mansion, the Nibelheim reactor, and the Shinra building… And I didn’t have any dreams, either.” Loz sighed “Neither did I… I guess we only have the dreams when Mother has something important to show or tell us. Maybe nothing else has come up yet?” I decided he was right “Yeah, seems that way. You feeling up to a trek back to Damion’s in sector 6?” Loz replied “Sounds good, but… you don’t think what happened at Shinra yesterday was reported TV, do you? If it was, and they have us on their wanted list, I’d rather not go…” I answered “I don’t know… He said Shinra is a shady company, right? Maybe he wont believe it, even if it was reported on a news program… but I cant say I don’t understand why that would make you wanna not go. The only problem is, sector 6 is the only real safe haven for us at the current time… if any other kinds of people see us, they’re gonna go nutts.” Loz moaned “This is tough… what do you think we should do, Yazoo? You’re the smartest of us… you’re a better judge than I am no matter what it is…” I was surprised with his response, but decided to answer “Well, I don’t think this is a good time to figure out the next mission. We’ve all been through a lot lately, so I guess risking being heard about in sector 6 is our only option. We’ll have to wait for Kadaj to wake up, though… it’s probably best that way.” Loz asked “You don’t think she’ll sleep all day again, do you?” I replied “I don’t think so. Her deep sleep should be over by now…” We waited for a little bit in silence, and Kadaj yawned, and let go of me after opening her eyes “Oh… oops. Sorry, Yazoo… I must’ve had a dream and accidentally, um… got too close.” I sat up, and she sat next to me “It’s alright. You seemed pretty relaxed, so it couldn’t have been bad. How do you feel?” Kadaj replied “I’m fine. Where are we going though? Any guess about where Mother might be?” I shook my head “I don’t know. We’ve tried several places, and came to a dead end every time. Yesterday ended the worst way so far though through all the searching we’ve done. We’re thinking of going back to sector 6 to have an off day, maybe relax a little and give ourselves a chance to recharge. Might be the best choice when we havent received further orders. How does that sound to you?” Kadaj nodded “Sounds like fun, actually. Do you know any people there?” I replied “We do. We met this nice guy who gave us directions to Nibelheim so we could come get you. Of course, we didn’t tell him that part, but we knew what we were supposed to do. Or, we had an idea, anyway. You and Loz up for the walk there?” Loz grumbled “What else is new? We always have to walk to get where we need to go! It stinks!” Kadaj said “Calm down, Loz. I know you’re still cranky from yesterday’s mess, but take it easy.” I replied “Don’t mind him. He whines and complains about everything… just leave him be. He knows we have no choice.” Kadaj understood “Um, ok. If you say so…” I led the way during the walk there as usual. When we arrived back in sector 6, we went straight to Damion’s place and went inside. He noticed us right away and smiled “Hey, kids! Welcome back!” Me and Kadaj looked at each other briefly, and we decided he still didn’t hear anything about the Shinra incident yesterday. We went to the counter, and Loz helped me up. Kadaj was able to get up on her own, and Loz sat on my other side. We were all sitting next to each other. Damion started the conversation “So, you guys have a Sister you were looking for too? Glad to see you found each other unharmed.” Kadaj giggled and smiled at him. Damion continued “My oh my, though… Be glad you kids werent down here yesterday. Shinra was making a huge ruckus above and they brought their noise down here. They sent people demanding answers, all of them kept asking the townspeople ‘Where is Sephiroth?’ We all kept giving them the same answer though: we don’t know. They came in harassing everyone, and they scared my customers away! Talk about being rude! Most of the people here don’t even recognize the name, moreover. But you know that Shinra, tell them what they wanna here or pay the price. Even if you’re telling the truth.” I grumbled and shook my head “They did? Geeze, they’re crazy…” Loz added “They’re so scary… I cant stand them…” Kadaj agreed “Me neither… one meeting was all it took…” Damion sighed “But why would they be chasing you kids? They know about your special powers?” I shrugged “They probably do. With their huge intelligence network and ever-advancing tech, it wouldn’t surprise me.” Damion smiled at me “You there, Yazoo… You’re one smart kid. I’ve never seen kids your age as smart as you. I’ll bet you could work for them when you grow up, but I cant blame you for not wanting to. But if you choose to later, you’d be really successful. I know you would.” He suddenly started listening in on the TV, and glanced at it on the other side of the area. We also followed his attention, and there was a reporter dressed like a Shinra employee talking on screen. I thought Oh no… this cant be good. They were showing pictures of a ravaged floor in the Shinra building, machines were destroyed, and there was blood smeared across the floor. Kadaj mumbled “Uh oh…” then we saw pictures of ourselves on TV, showing each of our faces on them. Loz gasped “Ohhh no…” I felt myself tense up again, and tried to hide my anxiety. Damion gazed at us in disbelief “No way! That lying Shinra! You kids couldn’t make such a mess! Whatever did it, it wasn’t human, that’s for sure! I’ll bet they ain’t telling us everything either! Another half story, I’m sure of it!” He continued listening, and sometime later the TV returned to its regular programming. Damion turned back to us and shook his head “They said three specimens escaped, and that’s when they showed you three… did they catch you kids? Be honest, I’m not someone who’s gonna go telling the world. I’m better than that.” We nodded, and I explained “Yeah, and we got out after that big mess they showed on the screen… but we had no involvement with it. They said something about doing research on us and experiments or something, but I don’t understand why. I don’t even understand what they’re talking about…” Damion paused, then said “Hmm… I guess something went wrong for them, too. That area they showed was ransacked… blood all over the floor, busted machines and broken stuff everywhere… what in the world happened yesterday anyway?” We remained silent. Damion shrugged and continued “Well, I guess we know why they were making such a fuss down here, at least. Whatever happened clearly put them on edge. But why’d they think we had anything they want? And why did they accuse us of knowing where this Sephiroth person is?” I sighed “I don’t know, but… they probably think we’re connected to him or something if that’s what they were asking. Especially if they showed our faces on TV.” Damion was still confused “But why in the world they think that? Sephiroth got reported dead ages ago—long before you kids’ time came around. That doesn’t make any sense!” Kadaj replied “I know, and you are right about that… but Shinra seems like just the sort of group who would target us with those thoughts in mind. If they think we’re even slightly affiliated with him in any way, they’re coming right at us.” Damion shook his head “I suppose that’s typical of them… darn group is always looking for trouble, no matter how you put it. But that’s awful cold-blooded to target such young children. No way I’m forgiving that!” We were too speechless to continue responding. The truth was that we knew exactly why Shinra wanted us: they knew we were looking for our Mother, JENOVA, and that immediately proved that we are in fact related to Sephiroth. But we didn’t wanna tell Damion that. We couldn’t tell him; it was too risky. I realized I was crying silently again, and Damion asked “Yazoo, what’s wrong, little man?” I wiped my tears away with my sleeve “It’s nothing… I’m just tired. We’ve been running all over the place nonstop… having to avoid danger at every turn and possible angle… I don’t know if I can do this..!” Kadaj worried “Yazoo…” Loz seemed concerned too. Kadaj suddenly turned serious and slipped down from her seat “This is crazy. We cant go on like this, Brothers… We’ve gotta come up with a plan. Running away nonstop wont get us anywhere!” I asked “And what are else are we supposed to do? There’s nothing left…” Kadaj turned to glance at me and waved for me and Loz to follow. We both slipped out of our seats and she led us outside of Damion’s place. Loz asked “What else are we supposed to do if we’re no match for those bullies?” Kadaj shook her head and hardened her expression “We’ll just have to get help from someone who can fight them. And mister in there isnt an option. If he learned the truth about us, that’d be another number on our already endless list of enemies.” I asked “And how are we gonna do that? That’s no different than finding a needle in a haystack.” She nodded “I know, but after the Shinra fiasco yesterday, we don’t have a choice. They’ve probably doubled up on their security by now. We cant continue like this. My Brothers, do you remember anything about Sephiroth, our Big Brother… anything that might lead us to him?” We both shook our heads, and I said “I wish… this would be a lot easier if we had his help.” Kadaj nodded in agreement “That’s exactly why we’re going to find him.” Both me and Loz cried “What?!” Loz cried “But how?! He died so many years ago!” I shook my head “I hate to say it, but Loz is right… is it even possible he’s still out there?” Kadaj sighed “I know it sounds crazy, but we have to try. And if he is dead, we’ll just have to gather everything we need to give him new life. I have an idea as to how we can do that, at least… but I have to warn you two, it’s gonna get very, very bloody. Literally.” I asked “So then where do we start?” Kadaj explained “We’ll just have to find his body first. After that is where the real challenge begins: reviving him. If you control the life energy of people who die and wither away, and prevent them from going to the Planet itself… you can use it for your own desires. In this case, we want this energy to be given to Big Brother. It will take a lot to fully revive him with a human’s energy, especially since our kind runs on JENOVA cells, but it’s not impossible.” Loz turned grim “Whoa… but I don’t know how to control that stuff. Yazoo, do you know how?” I shook my head “Not a clue, I’m afraid… Kadaj, don’t tell me you too..?” She smiled and nodded “You two are lucky: I actually do know how to do that! That’s one of my magical powers. But we need someone strong enough to carry our Brother’s body… that’s out of my power.” Loz laughed “You leave that to me! I can move anything.” I smiled “Alright, then that settles our next objective. But this is awfully dangerous… the minute we begin going on a rampage, we’re gonna have some nasty company. I hope you two have good stamina, because you’re gonna need it on the mission.” Kadaj agreed “Of course. But even if Mother isnt physically present, never forget she will protect us when we’re working on something very important. Especially when it concerns Sephiroth, I’m sure we have her full support.” Loz asked “Right, but where did Sephiroth die? If we don’t know that, we cant find his body…” Kadaj answered “Hmm… I think I might have an idea where he is… we’ll go there tomorrow at dawn. I hope you’re ready, Brothers, because things are about to get hairy—and fast. It’s impossible for us to sacrifice people like that without drawing attention, so get ready for a brutal skirmish, guys… it’s not gonna be easy. But we have to try; Mother is counting on us to help, and we cant let her down.” Then Kadaj led the way back upstairs, and we ended up returning to the alley near Nibelheim where we slept last time. We decided to have a conversation that night, after hours of walking back here. Loz asked “Kadaj, do you really think this is the best thing for us to do..? I mean, especially if we do help Big Brother… Shinra’s gonna have us on their radar 24-7.” I agreed “I know it’s risky, Loz… but I have to admit she has a valid point. If we keep running away like this, we wont make any progress. We arent strong enough to fight those people ourselves, and trying to get Sephiroth back is our best bet. Even if it is reckless, it’s hard to argue with Sister’s explanation…” Kadaj sighed “I know, Yazoo… I know this is really reckless decision on my part, but it’s our best shot. Big Brother knows all about the legacy, so finding Mother and getting around with him on our side will be a lot safer for us.” Then we all laid down and went to sleep, and I peeked in front of where I was laying, and Kadaj once again crawled over and laid in front of me with her eyes closed. I smiled and felt a warm glow inside myself “Aww… dang, she really is cute… Mother, I swear… I wont let anything happen to her. I promise…” Then I closed my eyes and fell asleep.
The next morning…
I woke up, but this time Kadaj wasn’t sleeping in front of me. I sat up and glanced around “Hm? Where’s Kadaj?” I gasped, suddenly noticing that both Kadaj and Loz were missing. I felt a heavy rush of fear inside myself and hurried to my feet “Ohh shoot! They ran off without me?! I have a bad feeling about this!” I immediately drew my revolver and hurried outside, glancing around the area to see where they might have gone. I laid eyes on a thin trail of green and black, noticing they were JENOVA cells. I cried “Mother?! I hope this isnt another trap!” I followed the path of Mother’s cells, running as fast as I could “If that crazy man with the black hair and the glasses got them… ohh, I swear I’m gonna kill him! I hate that stupid guy!” I realized I was both angry and scared at the same time, and my expression was hard. After a long time of running, the path ended at a large and towering cave. I looked up, then turned to look inside “This cave… why would they be here? I don’t get it…” Suddenly, Loz bursted out from outside, panting heavily. I hastily asked “Loz! What happened? Where’s Kadaj?” He noticed me and shook his head “I… I don’t know! Kadaj, Little Sister, she’s… she’s gone berserk again! Just like when that guy with the red hair saw us!” I replied “What?! Did you try talking to her?” Loz turned grim and shook his head “I did, but… but she didn’t even hear me! It’s like her mind wasn’t even there, like she didn’t know I was there! She turned and went deeper inside, and then I got lost… she’s crazy!” I put my hand on his shoulder “No, I’m sure she’s not. If Mother really is semi-active inside of her, she wouldn’t endanger Sister. Do you know which way she went?” Loz nodded and pointed inside, he cried “That way! Hurry!” I followed him in, and he led the way while we walked through the cave. There was a lot of green and black all around, and I said “Loz, look… Mother’s cells are everywhere in here. This place, it’s like a JENOVA cell plant of some sort… a powerhouse for Mother, I think.” Loz asked “Do you think she’s deeper inside, then? Maybe that’s why Mother took her over?” I replied “I don’t know, but if we reach the end, I think our answers about this might be there… at the very top. I think that’s where Kadaj went…” We did a lot of running and walking, the entire way. Sometime later, we ended up at an open area that had a strange vortex of purple and white inside of the wall ahead. It was so bright, it almost hurt to look. In front of it, Kadaj was kneeling on the floor, holding her hands together in silence. We carefully came up behind her, and I gasped at what was in front of her: there he was, Sephiroth was laying motionless on the ground before her. He didn’t show any signs of life, but his body appeared fresh and new even still. It almost seemed like his death was recent. Beside him, laid his masamune katana; it looked almost as if he was attacked from behind and fell dead right after. I tried talking to Kadaj “Sister… what’s going on?” She didn’t answer, just moaned under her breath as if she couldn’t hear me. Sephiroth’s body began to glow a bright green, and Loz asked “Now what? She cant even hear us!” I hushed him and said “Quiet. I think it’s best we leave her be. Just hold on…” Kadaj suddenly cried “Ugh, ow!” She fell down, and I watched as a bright green ball slipped out of her arm, and bounced twice before being absorbed into Sephiroth’s body. She reached her hand out “Ahh..! My materia!” I asked “Are you ok? You’re not hurt. She turned around and saw me “I’m fine. Why? But I cant say the same for my materia… I don’t know how, but I dropped it while I was… wait, what was I doing? I forgot… but I know I needed it for us to help Sephiroth. And now that it’s inside of him, we’re toast.” Loz sighed put his hand on his face “You forgot..? Oh man…” I asked “Your materia… that green ball that just bounced?” She nodded “Yeah… I don’t know how to use it very well, but I do know that it was super important… and since Sephiroth has it now, I wont remember how to use its powers. If I don’t have it, I cant practice.” I shrugged “Oh boy… well, I think I found a black materia in the Nibelheim mountains, at least. Maybe we can use that instead until we can get yours back or find you an extra, if possible.” Kadaj shook her head “I guess we’ll have to do that… I found Big Brother’s body, at least. But without my materia, how am I supposed to help him? I needed its power to redirect the life energy required to revive him! And now I cant interfere with the life cycle, which means I cant give Sephiroth new life.” Loz groaned “Ugh! Again with these stupid accidents! Why does this always happen to us? Its not fair!” Kadaj moaned “Ungh… I-I’m sorry..! I didn’t mean to…!” She sniffled and began sobbing quietly, and I slapped Loz “Oww! Hey, what did I do?!” I firmly replied “You idiot! You made her cry!” He grumbled, and I helped comfort Kadaj, and said “It’s ok, don’t worry. We’ll figure something out. Look at all these JENOVA cells… surely there must be another one around here…” She nodded and calmed down, and I heard a man moan from someplace. We all froze in silence, wary that we’d been caught again. Loz began trembling and held his head “Oh my god…! No..!” I put my hand over his mouth to silence him, and I carefully studied the area to make sure no one was nearby. I glanced back at Sephiroth’s body, but his eyes werent open. I grumbled under my breath “Ugh, great… here we go again..!” Kadaj whispered “What was that..? I don’t see anything…” I whispered back “Stay put… enemies can come out of nowhere.” I let go of Loz and aimed my revolver, carefully aiming around in case something ambushed us. Loz and Kadaj slowly came close to me, staying near to each other. I felt a large hand touch my shoulder, and screamed, racing downstairs to escape. I cried “Guys, run!” They hurried after me, and I a man shout “Wait, stop! I’m not going to hurt you!” We decided to hide behind the closest boulder there was, staying as close and quiet as possible. Kadaj panicked “Oh my goodness… what was that?!” I put my hand over her mouth to silence her, and was gasping for air. Loz moaned “Ohhh no… not the Shinra people..!” We heard fast footsteps that drew closer and closer, but it didn’t sound like a group; it sounded like one person. I panicked as the noise drew close, making a tiny moan as I held my hands in front of my face and looked downward. The man sounded like he was right in front of us now, but I was too scared to look. I realized I was trembling with fear. Kadaj nudged me from the side trying to get my attention “Yazoo, look… it’s…” I decided to trust her and looked up. I gasped “You’re…?” I saw a grown man with long silver hair who was dressed in black. He wore silver gauntlets on both wrists, and had heavy silver plates on his shoulders, along with two leather straps over his chest. He had a long leather cape draped behind his legs that almost touched the ground. I suddenly began to calm down, noticing he also had green eyes like us “Brother..? But… how did you?” He knelt down to me and gave me a signal to hush “Doesn’t matter. Let’s get out of here before the enemy shows up. I’ll explain later.” He helped us to our feet, and handed me my revolver “You poor child… you dropped your weapon when you and your siblings ran away. I presume this belongs to you, Yazoo?” I nodded, and he handed my weapon back to me. I said “Thanks… Sorry for running away like that. You startled me, and… I thought it was another Shinra guy… there’s so many of them, and I never know what they’re thinking…” He understood “Don’t worry. Your reaction was natural. You three have been running from them long enough that it is expected.” I asked “Big Brother Sephiroth, where’s Mother?” He shook his head “It’s too soon for me to know… I’ve only just woke up. My abilities are still acting a little funny, so it’s hard to tell. If I walk around for a while though, that should get my powers going.” I said “Then let’s go outside. Can you fight anything off?” Sephiroth answered “Yes, but I’ll have to rely on physical attacks until my magic is realigned… fortunately, that should be easy enough when it comes to Shinra soldiers. They’re no match for me. I’ll lead the way. Stay close, my young Brothers and Sister.” Sephiroth went some ways ahead of us, and revealed his masamune katana. I smiled in amazement “Wow…” We began following him, and Kadaj said “I wonder if my materia saved you when I dropped it… You woke up right after it ended up inside of you, right Big Brother?” He answered “I did. Mother was right to entrust something that valuable to you, even if you are still young. We’re very fortunate you didn’t drop it when you died several days ago… if you did, I would still be dead.” Kadaj was confused “Huh? What do you mean I died?” Sephiroth replied “Oh, nevermind that… You’re too young to understand that advanced levels of Mother’s reunion. It’s impossible for to explain in a way that you would understand, my Sister. My apologies. I shouldn’t have brought that up.” I asked “Where are we going?” Sephiroth replied “Wherever this road takes us. The only way we’ll find our Mother is by focusing on feeling. Mental bickering makes feeling her near impossible. But more than that, there is a certain somebody I must protect you three from… he also happens to be the only person to ever defeat me. I cant let the man touch any of you. Once he lays eyes on me, there’s no stopping the traitor at all. Not without a fight.” Loz grumbled “You don’t think we’ll run into him, do you?” Sephiroth answered “Let’s hope not. I prefer we evade him as much as possible for the sake of the mission. This man doesn’t play nice. But for now, I think we should go to the ruined Nibelheim site. Even if it’s in shambles, it’s safer for us than anywhere else in Midgar is. Too many foolish people know about me.” I was confused “Ruined? It wasn’t destroyed when we went there…” Sephiroth replied “What you saw is known as New Nibelheim, a reconstruction of the original town nearby. Even though it’s a separate location, the Mako Reactor around there is still close to the new site. In order to help Mother, I need the powers of a very special and particularly rare materia… the Black Materia. With its powers, their games of playing cops and robbers will be over. None can escape its power.” I suddenly remembered the materia I found in the mountain caves and that I used it on myself. I felt worried and thought Oops… I hope that wasn’t the one I have… Sephiroth immediately read my mind “You found one and used it, my young Brother?” There was no lying to him now, so I confessed “I did… I’m so sorry, so very, very sorry..! I had to help Kadaj and Loz, and there wasn’t anything else to use…” Sephiroth sighed in disappointment but understood “It’s not your fault… you are too young and probably didn’t know what it was in the first place. We’ll just have to look around and hope there’s a second someplace…” I asked “But, cant you just teach me how to use it?” Sephiroth disagreed “No. You arent strong enough to use its unique power without being sacrificed. Only I am. Meteor uses far too many JENOVA cells for you to possibly complete the attack… you wouldn’t make it. I don’t want you to kill yourself.” I moaned in disappointment. I had what he needed and couldn’t even use its full potential. Now I felt really bad. I shook my head “I really did it now… ohh man…” Sephiroth tried to comfort me “It isnt your fault. Don’t blame yourself. We’ll just have to find another one… somehow. Don’t weigh the needs of the legacy all on yourself like that; we have to work together to end this war. Accidents happen, and most likely, they will continue. It’s all part of fighting on and regrouping; we have to work this out together. Just take it easy.” I actually smiled at him after that, and realized we were in the abandoned Nibelheim town that was ruined. Sephiroth led us to a ruined house near the end, then stopped and turned to us “There’s a mansion downstairs. It’s a good hiding place for us since almost nobody knows about it. Follow me.” He led us to the mansion below, and saw the book on the floor that me and Loz looked at before the Shinra mess happened. He picked it up and sighed “So this is why you boys thought Mother was at Shinra Headquarters… if only I’d been here to stop you kids… I’m sorry. That chaos couldn’t have been easy for any of you.” Kadaj said “It’s alright. The important thing is we’re ok, even if it was really scary.” He went to put the book back where it was found, and came back to us “It’s a bit dusty and dirty, but we can still call it home. I’ll do the cleaning for you, my Brothers and young Sister.” Loz smiled at him “Aww, thanks, Sephiroth… you’re so nice to us already.” He nodded in understanding “Naturally. I respect my own kind. We are all a family through Mother. I’m supposed to help protect new family members like you. And maybe this time, I can…” Then he got to cleaning things up, and me, Kadaj, and Loz decided to read some of the stuff on the shelves while we waited. I finally felt more secure, instead of on edge all the time. I knew we could count on Sephiroth to keep the bad Shinra people away from us. He seemed really smart, too. Kadaj was right when she said he’ll know what to do and how to find Mother. We relaxed and played together for the rest of that day, until Sephiroth told us to get some rest so we could get going tomorrow. There was a big bed in a room across the hall that he told us to share. After he tucked us in, he sat down in the hallway as if waiting for something. I decided he was just making sure no one came who wasn’t welcome, and let myself relax and sleep.
To Be Continued…
(This section will focus on Yazoo as the speaker) I woke up the next morning, and realized Kadaj was holding onto me in her sleep. I decided to stay put to avoid waking her, especially after that mess at Shinra Headquarters yesterday. The sky seemed as bright as it was the last few times I woke up in the morning, so I figured my wake up time was the same as usual. I sighed “Now what are we gonna do? No way am I going back to that place. Not after what happened.” I didn’t have any dreams, either, so I was really at a loss of where to go next. I thought about going back to sector 6 to take an off day and relax at Damion’s, but I knew he would notice how overwhelmed we all are if we went to see him. And I wanted to avoid having to tell him the truth about it and explain the Shinra mess from yesterday, because I figured it was probably reported on the media and if he found out we were responsible, I was afraid he’d kick us out and get mad about us breaking into their HQ. But I didn’t even know if he would care about it at the same time. The way he talked about Shinra made it seem like he really didn’t like them, and that he distrusted them and everything they do and say. I wondered if the best thing to do sometimes was take a break day and wait for a sign from Mother about what to do next. The dreams that both me and Loz had were connected to things that happened in reality later on, and that made me figure they were signs from Mother about what’s on the way or warning us to stay away from certain people. Just like the man with the red hair that Loz said he saw in his dream: we saw him in real life later on, and he tried to take us away and throw us in jail. Luckily, Kadaj’s special power we still don’t know much about saved us that time, but the Shinra infiltration job that was supposed to be a rescue mission was a different story. That went way wrong—and quickly, too. Some scientist man with long black hair did it all just to get his hands on us. More than likely, he was interested in our unique powers that humans don’t have. I really don’t like the idea of being another one of Shinra’s personal playthings to do whatever they want with. Especially with the way this man was talking. He was crazy; it only took one encounter for me to see all he cares about is science and his stupid research. He clearly didn’t care about the well-being of any living person or creature he was interested in; why, he even called us specimens! I heard Loz yawn and he sat against the wall beneath where my feet were resting “What’s the plan today?” He didn’t sound very excited. Loz sounded like he was still very tired. I replied “I don’t know… we checked the mansion, the Nibelheim reactor, and the Shinra building… And I didn’t have any dreams, either.” Loz sighed “Neither did I… I guess we only have the dreams when Mother has something important to show or tell us. Maybe nothing else has come up yet?” I decided he was right “Yeah, seems that way. You feeling up to a trek back to Damion’s in sector 6?” Loz replied “Sounds good, but… you don’t think what happened at Shinra yesterday was reported TV, do you? If it was, and they have us on their wanted list, I’d rather not go…” I answered “I don’t know… He said Shinra is a shady company, right? Maybe he wont believe it, even if it was reported on a news program… but I cant say I don’t understand why that would make you wanna not go. The only problem is, sector 6 is the only real safe haven for us at the current time… if any other kinds of people see us, they’re gonna go nutts.” Loz moaned “This is tough… what do you think we should do, Yazoo? You’re the smartest of us… you’re a better judge than I am no matter what it is…” I was surprised with his response, but decided to answer “Well, I don’t think this is a good time to figure out the next mission. We’ve all been through a lot lately, so I guess risking being heard about in sector 6 is our only option. We’ll have to wait for Kadaj to wake up, though… it’s probably best that way.” Loz asked “You don’t think she’ll sleep all day again, do you?” I replied “I don’t think so. Her deep sleep should be over by now…” We waited for a little bit in silence, and Kadaj yawned, and let go of me after opening her eyes “Oh… oops. Sorry, Yazoo… I must’ve had a dream and accidentally, um… got too close.” I sat up, and she sat next to me “It’s alright. You seemed pretty relaxed, so it couldn’t have been bad. How do you feel?” Kadaj replied “I’m fine. Where are we going though? Any guess about where Mother might be?” I shook my head “I don’t know. We’ve tried several places, and came to a dead end every time. Yesterday ended the worst way so far though through all the searching we’ve done. We’re thinking of going back to sector 6 to have an off day, maybe relax a little and give ourselves a chance to recharge. Might be the best choice when we havent received further orders. How does that sound to you?” Kadaj nodded “Sounds like fun, actually. Do you know any people there?” I replied “We do. We met this nice guy who gave us directions to Nibelheim so we could come get you. Of course, we didn’t tell him that part, but we knew what we were supposed to do. Or, we had an idea, anyway. You and Loz up for the walk there?” Loz grumbled “What else is new? We always have to walk to get where we need to go! It stinks!” Kadaj said “Calm down, Loz. I know you’re still cranky from yesterday’s mess, but take it easy.” I replied “Don’t mind him. He whines and complains about everything… just leave him be. He knows we have no choice.” Kadaj understood “Um, ok. If you say so…” I led the way during the walk there as usual. When we arrived back in sector 6, we went straight to Damion’s place and went inside. He noticed us right away and smiled “Hey, kids! Welcome back!” Me and Kadaj looked at each other briefly, and we decided he still didn’t hear anything about the Shinra incident yesterday. We went to the counter, and Loz helped me up. Kadaj was able to get up on her own, and Loz sat on my other side. We were all sitting next to each other. Damion started the conversation “So, you guys have a Sister you were looking for too? Glad to see you found each other unharmed.” Kadaj giggled and smiled at him. Damion continued “My oh my, though… Be glad you kids werent down here yesterday. Shinra was making a huge ruckus above and they brought their noise down here. They sent people demanding answers, all of them kept asking the townspeople ‘Where is Sephiroth?’ We all kept giving them the same answer though: we don’t know. They came in harassing everyone, and they scared my customers away! Talk about being rude! Most of the people here don’t even recognize the name, moreover. But you know that Shinra, tell them what they wanna here or pay the price. Even if you’re telling the truth.” I grumbled and shook my head “They did? Geeze, they’re crazy…” Loz added “They’re so scary… I cant stand them…” Kadaj agreed “Me neither… one meeting was all it took…” Damion sighed “But why would they be chasing you kids? They know about your special powers?” I shrugged “They probably do. With their huge intelligence network and ever-advancing tech, it wouldn’t surprise me.” Damion smiled at me “You there, Yazoo… You’re one smart kid. I’ve never seen kids your age as smart as you. I’ll bet you could work for them when you grow up, but I cant blame you for not wanting to. But if you choose to later, you’d be really successful. I know you would.” He suddenly started listening in on the TV, and glanced at it on the other side of the area. We also followed his attention, and there was a reporter dressed like a Shinra employee talking on screen. I thought Oh no… this cant be good. They were showing pictures of a ravaged floor in the Shinra building, machines were destroyed, and there was blood smeared across the floor. Kadaj mumbled “Uh oh…” then we saw pictures of ourselves on TV, showing each of our faces on them. Loz gasped “Ohhh no…” I felt myself tense up again, and tried to hide my anxiety. Damion gazed at us in disbelief “No way! That lying Shinra! You kids couldn’t make such a mess! Whatever did it, it wasn’t human, that’s for sure! I’ll bet they ain’t telling us everything either! Another half story, I’m sure of it!” He continued listening, and sometime later the TV returned to its regular programming. Damion turned back to us and shook his head “They said three specimens escaped, and that’s when they showed you three… did they catch you kids? Be honest, I’m not someone who’s gonna go telling the world. I’m better than that.” We nodded, and I explained “Yeah, and we got out after that big mess they showed on the screen… but we had no involvement with it. They said something about doing research on us and experiments or something, but I don’t understand why. I don’t even understand what they’re talking about…” Damion paused, then said “Hmm… I guess something went wrong for them, too. That area they showed was ransacked… blood all over the floor, busted machines and broken stuff everywhere… what in the world happened yesterday anyway?” We remained silent. Damion shrugged and continued “Well, I guess we know why they were making such a fuss down here, at least. Whatever happened clearly put them on edge. But why’d they think we had anything they want? And why did they accuse us of knowing where this Sephiroth person is?” I sighed “I don’t know, but… they probably think we’re connected to him or something if that’s what they were asking. Especially if they showed our faces on TV.” Damion was still confused “But why in the world they think that? Sephiroth got reported dead ages ago—long before you kids’ time came around. That doesn’t make any sense!” Kadaj replied “I know, and you are right about that… but Shinra seems like just the sort of group who would target us with those thoughts in mind. If they think we’re even slightly affiliated with him in any way, they’re coming right at us.” Damion shook his head “I suppose that’s typical of them… darn group is always looking for trouble, no matter how you put it. But that’s awful cold-blooded to target such young children. No way I’m forgiving that!” We were too speechless to continue responding. The truth was that we knew exactly why Shinra wanted us: they knew we were looking for our Mother, JENOVA, and that immediately proved that we are in fact related to Sephiroth. But we didn’t wanna tell Damion that. We couldn’t tell him; it was too risky. I realized I was crying silently again, and Damion asked “Yazoo, what’s wrong, little man?” I wiped my tears away with my sleeve “It’s nothing… I’m just tired. We’ve been running all over the place nonstop… having to avoid danger at every turn and possible angle… I don’t know if I can do this..!” Kadaj worried “Yazoo…” Loz seemed concerned too. Kadaj suddenly turned serious and slipped down from her seat “This is crazy. We cant go on like this, Brothers… We’ve gotta come up with a plan. Running away nonstop wont get us anywhere!” I asked “And what are else are we supposed to do? There’s nothing left…” Kadaj turned to glance at me and waved for me and Loz to follow. We both slipped out of our seats and she led us outside of Damion’s place. Loz asked “What else are we supposed to do if we’re no match for those bullies?” Kadaj shook her head and hardened her expression “We’ll just have to get help from someone who can fight them. And mister in there isnt an option. If he learned the truth about us, that’d be another number on our already endless list of enemies.” I asked “And how are we gonna do that? That’s no different than finding a needle in a haystack.” She nodded “I know, but after the Shinra fiasco yesterday, we don’t have a choice. They’ve probably doubled up on their security by now. We cant continue like this. My Brothers, do you remember anything about Sephiroth, our Big Brother… anything that might lead us to him?” We both shook our heads, and I said “I wish… this would be a lot easier if we had his help.” Kadaj nodded in agreement “That’s exactly why we’re going to find him.” Both me and Loz cried “What?!” Loz cried “But how?! He died so many years ago!” I shook my head “I hate to say it, but Loz is right… is it even possible he’s still out there?” Kadaj sighed “I know it sounds crazy, but we have to try. And if he is dead, we’ll just have to gather everything we need to give him new life. I have an idea as to how we can do that, at least… but I have to warn you two, it’s gonna get very, very bloody. Literally.” I asked “So then where do we start?” Kadaj explained “We’ll just have to find his body first. After that is where the real challenge begins: reviving him. If you control the life energy of people who die and wither away, and prevent them from going to the Planet itself… you can use it for your own desires. In this case, we want this energy to be given to Big Brother. It will take a lot to fully revive him with a human’s energy, especially since our kind runs on JENOVA cells, but it’s not impossible.” Loz turned grim “Whoa… but I don’t know how to control that stuff. Yazoo, do you know how?” I shook my head “Not a clue, I’m afraid… Kadaj, don’t tell me you too..?” She smiled and nodded “You two are lucky: I actually do know how to do that! That’s one of my magical powers. But we need someone strong enough to carry our Brother’s body… that’s out of my power.” Loz laughed “You leave that to me! I can move anything.” I smiled “Alright, then that settles our next objective. But this is awfully dangerous… the minute we begin going on a rampage, we’re gonna have some nasty company. I hope you two have good stamina, because you’re gonna need it on the mission.” Kadaj agreed “Of course. But even if Mother isnt physically present, never forget she will protect us when we’re working on something very important. Especially when it concerns Sephiroth, I’m sure we have her full support.” Loz asked “Right, but where did Sephiroth die? If we don’t know that, we cant find his body…” Kadaj answered “Hmm… I think I might have an idea where he is… we’ll go there tomorrow at dawn. I hope you’re ready, Brothers, because things are about to get hairy—and fast. It’s impossible for us to sacrifice people like that without drawing attention, so get ready for a brutal skirmish, guys… it’s not gonna be easy. But we have to try; Mother is counting on us to help, and we cant let her down.” Then Kadaj led the way back upstairs, and we ended up returning to the alley near Nibelheim where we slept last time. We decided to have a conversation that night, after hours of walking back here. Loz asked “Kadaj, do you really think this is the best thing for us to do..? I mean, especially if we do help Big Brother… Shinra’s gonna have us on their radar 24-7.” I agreed “I know it’s risky, Loz… but I have to admit she has a valid point. If we keep running away like this, we wont make any progress. We arent strong enough to fight those people ourselves, and trying to get Sephiroth back is our best bet. Even if it is reckless, it’s hard to argue with Sister’s explanation…” Kadaj sighed “I know, Yazoo… I know this is really reckless decision on my part, but it’s our best shot. Big Brother knows all about the legacy, so finding Mother and getting around with him on our side will be a lot safer for us.” Then we all laid down and went to sleep, and I peeked in front of where I was laying, and Kadaj once again crawled over and laid in front of me with her eyes closed. I smiled and felt a warm glow inside myself “Aww… dang, she really is cute… Mother, I swear… I wont let anything happen to her. I promise…” Then I closed my eyes and fell asleep.
The next morning…
I woke up, but this time Kadaj wasn’t sleeping in front of me. I sat up and glanced around “Hm? Where’s Kadaj?” I gasped, suddenly noticing that both Kadaj and Loz were missing. I felt a heavy rush of fear inside myself and hurried to my feet “Ohh shoot! They ran off without me?! I have a bad feeling about this!” I immediately drew my revolver and hurried outside, glancing around the area to see where they might have gone. I laid eyes on a thin trail of green and black, noticing they were JENOVA cells. I cried “Mother?! I hope this isnt another trap!” I followed the path of Mother’s cells, running as fast as I could “If that crazy man with the black hair and the glasses got them… ohh, I swear I’m gonna kill him! I hate that stupid guy!” I realized I was both angry and scared at the same time, and my expression was hard. After a long time of running, the path ended at a large and towering cave. I looked up, then turned to look inside “This cave… why would they be here? I don’t get it…” Suddenly, Loz bursted out from outside, panting heavily. I hastily asked “Loz! What happened? Where’s Kadaj?” He noticed me and shook his head “I… I don’t know! Kadaj, Little Sister, she’s… she’s gone berserk again! Just like when that guy with the red hair saw us!” I replied “What?! Did you try talking to her?” Loz turned grim and shook his head “I did, but… but she didn’t even hear me! It’s like her mind wasn’t even there, like she didn’t know I was there! She turned and went deeper inside, and then I got lost… she’s crazy!” I put my hand on his shoulder “No, I’m sure she’s not. If Mother really is semi-active inside of her, she wouldn’t endanger Sister. Do you know which way she went?” Loz nodded and pointed inside, he cried “That way! Hurry!” I followed him in, and he led the way while we walked through the cave. There was a lot of green and black all around, and I said “Loz, look… Mother’s cells are everywhere in here. This place, it’s like a JENOVA cell plant of some sort… a powerhouse for Mother, I think.” Loz asked “Do you think she’s deeper inside, then? Maybe that’s why Mother took her over?” I replied “I don’t know, but if we reach the end, I think our answers about this might be there… at the very top. I think that’s where Kadaj went…” We did a lot of running and walking, the entire way. Sometime later, we ended up at an open area that had a strange vortex of purple and white inside of the wall ahead. It was so bright, it almost hurt to look. In front of it, Kadaj was kneeling on the floor, holding her hands together in silence. We carefully came up behind her, and I gasped at what was in front of her: there he was, Sephiroth was laying motionless on the ground before her. He didn’t show any signs of life, but his body appeared fresh and new even still. It almost seemed like his death was recent. Beside him, laid his masamune katana; it looked almost as if he was attacked from behind and fell dead right after. I tried talking to Kadaj “Sister… what’s going on?” She didn’t answer, just moaned under her breath as if she couldn’t hear me. Sephiroth’s body began to glow a bright green, and Loz asked “Now what? She cant even hear us!” I hushed him and said “Quiet. I think it’s best we leave her be. Just hold on…” Kadaj suddenly cried “Ugh, ow!” She fell down, and I watched as a bright green ball slipped out of her arm, and bounced twice before being absorbed into Sephiroth’s body. She reached her hand out “Ahh..! My materia!” I asked “Are you ok? You’re not hurt. She turned around and saw me “I’m fine. Why? But I cant say the same for my materia… I don’t know how, but I dropped it while I was… wait, what was I doing? I forgot… but I know I needed it for us to help Sephiroth. And now that it’s inside of him, we’re toast.” Loz sighed put his hand on his face “You forgot..? Oh man…” I asked “Your materia… that green ball that just bounced?” She nodded “Yeah… I don’t know how to use it very well, but I do know that it was super important… and since Sephiroth has it now, I wont remember how to use its powers. If I don’t have it, I cant practice.” I shrugged “Oh boy… well, I think I found a black materia in the Nibelheim mountains, at least. Maybe we can use that instead until we can get yours back or find you an extra, if possible.” Kadaj shook her head “I guess we’ll have to do that… I found Big Brother’s body, at least. But without my materia, how am I supposed to help him? I needed its power to redirect the life energy required to revive him! And now I cant interfere with the life cycle, which means I cant give Sephiroth new life.” Loz groaned “Ugh! Again with these stupid accidents! Why does this always happen to us? Its not fair!” Kadaj moaned “Ungh… I-I’m sorry..! I didn’t mean to…!” She sniffled and began sobbing quietly, and I slapped Loz “Oww! Hey, what did I do?!” I firmly replied “You idiot! You made her cry!” He grumbled, and I helped comfort Kadaj, and said “It’s ok, don’t worry. We’ll figure something out. Look at all these JENOVA cells… surely there must be another one around here…” She nodded and calmed down, and I heard a man moan from someplace. We all froze in silence, wary that we’d been caught again. Loz began trembling and held his head “Oh my god…! No..!” I put my hand over his mouth to silence him, and I carefully studied the area to make sure no one was nearby. I glanced back at Sephiroth’s body, but his eyes werent open. I grumbled under my breath “Ugh, great… here we go again..!” Kadaj whispered “What was that..? I don’t see anything…” I whispered back “Stay put… enemies can come out of nowhere.” I let go of Loz and aimed my revolver, carefully aiming around in case something ambushed us. Loz and Kadaj slowly came close to me, staying near to each other. I felt a large hand touch my shoulder, and screamed, racing downstairs to escape. I cried “Guys, run!” They hurried after me, and I a man shout “Wait, stop! I’m not going to hurt you!” We decided to hide behind the closest boulder there was, staying as close and quiet as possible. Kadaj panicked “Oh my goodness… what was that?!” I put my hand over her mouth to silence her, and was gasping for air. Loz moaned “Ohhh no… not the Shinra people..!” We heard fast footsteps that drew closer and closer, but it didn’t sound like a group; it sounded like one person. I panicked as the noise drew close, making a tiny moan as I held my hands in front of my face and looked downward. The man sounded like he was right in front of us now, but I was too scared to look. I realized I was trembling with fear. Kadaj nudged me from the side trying to get my attention “Yazoo, look… it’s…” I decided to trust her and looked up. I gasped “You’re…?” I saw a grown man with long silver hair who was dressed in black. He wore silver gauntlets on both wrists, and had heavy silver plates on his shoulders, along with two leather straps over his chest. He had a long leather cape draped behind his legs that almost touched the ground. I suddenly began to calm down, noticing he also had green eyes like us “Brother..? But… how did you?” He knelt down to me and gave me a signal to hush “Doesn’t matter. Let’s get out of here before the enemy shows up. I’ll explain later.” He helped us to our feet, and handed me my revolver “You poor child… you dropped your weapon when you and your siblings ran away. I presume this belongs to you, Yazoo?” I nodded, and he handed my weapon back to me. I said “Thanks… Sorry for running away like that. You startled me, and… I thought it was another Shinra guy… there’s so many of them, and I never know what they’re thinking…” He understood “Don’t worry. Your reaction was natural. You three have been running from them long enough that it is expected.” I asked “Big Brother Sephiroth, where’s Mother?” He shook his head “It’s too soon for me to know… I’ve only just woke up. My abilities are still acting a little funny, so it’s hard to tell. If I walk around for a while though, that should get my powers going.” I said “Then let’s go outside. Can you fight anything off?” Sephiroth answered “Yes, but I’ll have to rely on physical attacks until my magic is realigned… fortunately, that should be easy enough when it comes to Shinra soldiers. They’re no match for me. I’ll lead the way. Stay close, my young Brothers and Sister.” Sephiroth went some ways ahead of us, and revealed his masamune katana. I smiled in amazement “Wow…” We began following him, and Kadaj said “I wonder if my materia saved you when I dropped it… You woke up right after it ended up inside of you, right Big Brother?” He answered “I did. Mother was right to entrust something that valuable to you, even if you are still young. We’re very fortunate you didn’t drop it when you died several days ago… if you did, I would still be dead.” Kadaj was confused “Huh? What do you mean I died?” Sephiroth replied “Oh, nevermind that… You’re too young to understand that advanced levels of Mother’s reunion. It’s impossible for to explain in a way that you would understand, my Sister. My apologies. I shouldn’t have brought that up.” I asked “Where are we going?” Sephiroth replied “Wherever this road takes us. The only way we’ll find our Mother is by focusing on feeling. Mental bickering makes feeling her near impossible. But more than that, there is a certain somebody I must protect you three from… he also happens to be the only person to ever defeat me. I cant let the man touch any of you. Once he lays eyes on me, there’s no stopping the traitor at all. Not without a fight.” Loz grumbled “You don’t think we’ll run into him, do you?” Sephiroth answered “Let’s hope not. I prefer we evade him as much as possible for the sake of the mission. This man doesn’t play nice. But for now, I think we should go to the ruined Nibelheim site. Even if it’s in shambles, it’s safer for us than anywhere else in Midgar is. Too many foolish people know about me.” I was confused “Ruined? It wasn’t destroyed when we went there…” Sephiroth replied “What you saw is known as New Nibelheim, a reconstruction of the original town nearby. Even though it’s a separate location, the Mako Reactor around there is still close to the new site. In order to help Mother, I need the powers of a very special and particularly rare materia… the Black Materia. With its powers, their games of playing cops and robbers will be over. None can escape its power.” I suddenly remembered the materia I found in the mountain caves and that I used it on myself. I felt worried and thought Oops… I hope that wasn’t the one I have… Sephiroth immediately read my mind “You found one and used it, my young Brother?” There was no lying to him now, so I confessed “I did… I’m so sorry, so very, very sorry..! I had to help Kadaj and Loz, and there wasn’t anything else to use…” Sephiroth sighed in disappointment but understood “It’s not your fault… you are too young and probably didn’t know what it was in the first place. We’ll just have to look around and hope there’s a second someplace…” I asked “But, cant you just teach me how to use it?” Sephiroth disagreed “No. You arent strong enough to use its unique power without being sacrificed. Only I am. Meteor uses far too many JENOVA cells for you to possibly complete the attack… you wouldn’t make it. I don’t want you to kill yourself.” I moaned in disappointment. I had what he needed and couldn’t even use its full potential. Now I felt really bad. I shook my head “I really did it now… ohh man…” Sephiroth tried to comfort me “It isnt your fault. Don’t blame yourself. We’ll just have to find another one… somehow. Don’t weigh the needs of the legacy all on yourself like that; we have to work together to end this war. Accidents happen, and most likely, they will continue. It’s all part of fighting on and regrouping; we have to work this out together. Just take it easy.” I actually smiled at him after that, and realized we were in the abandoned Nibelheim town that was ruined. Sephiroth led us to a ruined house near the end, then stopped and turned to us “There’s a mansion downstairs. It’s a good hiding place for us since almost nobody knows about it. Follow me.” He led us to the mansion below, and saw the book on the floor that me and Loz looked at before the Shinra mess happened. He picked it up and sighed “So this is why you boys thought Mother was at Shinra Headquarters… if only I’d been here to stop you kids… I’m sorry. That chaos couldn’t have been easy for any of you.” Kadaj said “It’s alright. The important thing is we’re ok, even if it was really scary.” He went to put the book back where it was found, and came back to us “It’s a bit dusty and dirty, but we can still call it home. I’ll do the cleaning for you, my Brothers and young Sister.” Loz smiled at him “Aww, thanks, Sephiroth… you’re so nice to us already.” He nodded in understanding “Naturally. I respect my own kind. We are all a family through Mother. I’m supposed to help protect new family members like you. And maybe this time, I can…” Then he got to cleaning things up, and me, Kadaj, and Loz decided to read some of the stuff on the shelves while we waited. I finally felt more secure, instead of on edge all the time. I knew we could count on Sephiroth to keep the bad Shinra people away from us. He seemed really smart, too. Kadaj was right when she said he’ll know what to do and how to find Mother. We relaxed and played together for the rest of that day, until Sephiroth told us to get some rest so we could get going tomorrow. There was a big bed in a room across the hall that he told us to share. After he tucked us in, he sat down in the hallway as if waiting for something. I decided he was just making sure no one came who wasn’t welcome, and let myself relax and sleep.
To Be Continued…
