_{"You know I love you."}

Her voice was breathy and far away. Elizabeth's eyes searched frantically through a shroud of darkness.

"Lily?" She called out into the void, her heart pounding against her chest as the darkness seemed to close in around her.

"Lil, I can't... I can't find you, I.." The words stuck in her throat and suddenly she was unable to speak.

_{"Tomorrow will be better."}

Elizabeth struggled to make any noise at all. Her eyes welled up with tears as the darkness caressed her, pressure closing in around her throat and squeezing.

"Ellie."

Lily's voice was directly behind her now, whispering in her ear. Elizabeth could feel her there, leaning into her back, with strands of her short black hair gently brushing against Elizabeth's cheek. She wanted anything in the world to turn, to see her face, but she was frozen in time. Paralyzed.

Lily nuzzled into Elizabeth's neck, her lips brushing lightly across her skin.

"I never meant to hurt you. We're in this together."

Two hands placed themselves against Elizabeth's back and after a brief pause... Elizabeth was thrust forward off of a cliff.

__________________________________

Glistening with sweat, Elizabeth frantically sat upright in bed, heart pounding. Her emerald eyes quickly scanned the moonlit room, assuring herself that she was safe within the walls of her bedroom. Angrily, she wiped the tears that had apparently been streaming down her face. She grabbed her phone on the desk next to her bed to check the time: 5:36am

She sighed and set her phone down again. Too early to go back to sleep again, if she could even manage it. Instead of giving it a try, she grabbed the journal that rested on top of her windowsill and opened up to the next blank page.

_{March 20, 2019
I think I'm cursed.}

With that, she closed the journal and set it back in place. Reluctantly she pulled herself out of bed and headed to the bathroom to take a shower. If she wasn't going to sleep, she might as well be productive; get ready, do some homework, and cook breakfast for the family when it was time.




"Do I smell bacon?"

"Good morning, sleepy. I knew you'd get up for some bacon!"

Elizabeth grinned, bright eyes meeting the tired blue eyes of her father as he padded, barefoot, into the kitchen. His hair was a mess, he still wore his pajamas and he needed to shave. He'd looked worse before, but this was not his finest hour.

"I made pancakes and eggs too. Here, I'll make you a plate."

"You spoil us. Thanks, El." He took a seat at the rustic dining table and coughed a bit, breaking up the tar in his lungs from decades of heavy smoking. "How long have you been up? Are the boys awake too?"

"Just a few hours..." She took a plate with scrambled eggs, three strips of bacon, and one pancake over to her father. "Yes, the little monsters took their food and ran back up to their rooms. Playing video games, I'm sure." She smiled and shook her head as she took a seat at the table across from her father.

The boys, Logan & Levi, probably should have been in school at this moment, but fortunately for them her father had taken them out of school for the week in light of Lily Turner going missing. He felt they would have been too distracted in class to pay attention anyway. Lily, being Elizabeth's best friend, was like a sister to them as well.

"Ready for today?" Jonathan Baker briefly looked up from his breakfast to meet eyes with his daughter, checking for an emotional reaction.

Elizabeth frowned and uncomfortably shifted in her seat, looking away from her father and out of the nearby kitchen window. "No."

The Mayor had called a town meeting a few days ago, set for today at noon in the community center with the Emerald City police department. They would discuss the disappearance of the Mayor's daughter with local news stations and any citizen who felt like attending. So far, nothing had been officially confirmed or denied, but the rumor around town was that Lily Turner was long dead. Elizabeth had heard that if you didn't find a missing person within the first 72 hours, they were probably dead. Today marked exactly one week since her best friend had gone missing. Her heart ached thinking about it. At what point did a person become numb to these sort of things?

Due to the nature of the day, The Cosy Bear Cafe had been closed. They would reopen in the morning, but there was no way the Baker family would be missing the press conference. Elizabeth had prayed that they would have some sort of good news for the town, but it was hard being optimistic these days.

Kei.

KEI.

Lifting his head from the diz he was in, the boy returned to his meal. He stared down at the breakfast before him—miso soup, a touch cold. Steamed rice, no longer steaming. Fish becoming lukewarm. And pickled veggies, sweaty and condensating.

"Kei, eat. You be school early. Today very important."

His mom instructed him in a language he referred to as mother tongue, sometimes including bits and pieces of their language, but more often, and especially since they moved to Emerald City, entirely in English with a thick accent and broken grammar. And as usual, the instruction was that which he already knew. Kei's mother never had anything new to say: She was like a doll with a string, repeating the same phrases day in, day out, month after month and year after year. He wanted to tell her to stop it, to shut up even, that she knew nothing about what her son wanted, nor how important this day was to him personally, not just to this town.

He opened his mouth.

"Hai."

---

Mounting his bike, Kei cycled awkwardly toward the school. He didn't usually sleep much, waking early to see his father off at 5:00 in the morning, and then cycling the long way through the oldtown neighborhood into the new suburban one, as gravelly paths gave way to firm roads and then into the sights of the city, where he attended high school. Kei had long loved this morning journey. He felt invigorated, starting it before it seemed the world was awake (other than his family), and then bit by bit being joined by friends and neighbors scurrying to their own locales, until he made it school, where he would slip into the broadcasting room to prepare notes for the morning announcements he helped give as class president.

But the last week was different. He didn't speed to school—Kei buckled, hobbled, merely stumbling along as if injured. His normal five hours of sleep after class activities and work and study gave way to three or two, and last night, none at all.

Until now, he had avoided giving serious news to the students on the announcements—no matter how charismatic he was, no administration would let a boy deliver disturbing news to the student body—that would be for the adults to give. But today, he would speak a benign announcement, or so it would it seem as much. For who would think that a quick report on optional excused attendance for the town hall would be so personal to a boy four years younger than (and even further in terms of class from) the mayor's daughter. No one would think he had any private connection with her, nothing intimate, not for a minute.

Well, none would think that but perhaps one. One knew of the secret. And, Kei thought as he trudged along the dirt paths, possibly one more.

--

Kei sat in the front-most seat in Mr. Akers class. As the old man lectured, he looked briefly up at the lock on the wall. 10:21 a.m.

"Kei...did you know Lily Turner?"

His head shot around as if set on a spring. He opened his mouth to respond, unsure even of what he would say, but before he could, Bobbi continued.

"Did you know Lily Turner's body was found, all cut up...and in pieces?"

The girl said so with a grimace, one that seemed to convey, I'm disgusted at this turn of events but it's a little cool, don't you think?

"Bobbi," Kei responded in a whisper, knowing that Mr. Akers was all but deaf and wouldn't hear them whispering even in the front row, "I know this town loves scandal, but if it has to do with decapitation, cannibalism, or the occult, I probably wouldn't believe what I heard."

She glared back at the boy, feeling a slight rush of embarrassment. "My source is good."

You don't have sources. You're just a stumpy-nosed, friendless girl.

"I know they are. You're always in the know, but I don't think anyone really knows what's going on right now."

"They do, Kei. Why else would they make such a big deal out of this thing in a couple hours? They know something...and it's not good."

"I hope you're wrong," Kei responded, "Because she seems really nice."

He turned and faced the front of the classroom again, acting as if he was paying attention, but the monologue inside had started. In fact, it hadn't stopped since he gave the announcements earlier, but the voice inside was now screaming, SCREAMING. That stupid girl, he thought. She doesn't know anything but...I wonder if they do know something. I wonder if she's right, that the worse has happened...

But Kei stifled the emotion within him, the screaming that wanted to come out, the howling and crying and anger and confusion. He pushed it somewhere deep, in some pit he learned that he had, an Aiba family trait it must have been, where they could put all unhappiness in a hole in their bellies where it would be swallowed and held for all time. And this was no different, even if Lily had been kidnapped, even if she were dead. He would hold it in, for that's what being an Aiba meant: You put on a show for the sake of those who tell you that you must. And so he would.

But a whisper escaped, a response to Bobbi's initial question, the one she hadn't actually meant to ask. She wouldn't be able to hear the response, either, for Kei meant it really for only himself to hear.

He whispered gently, "Yes, I know Lily. I love her."

---

“Man this blows.” It was all too expected of their small town to be up and arms about the recent incident. Indeed, a full week had passed and there was still no real word about the mayor’s daughter. The fact a town meeting had been called in place for today could only mean the worse and that meant only one thing really to Pepper. The Green Bay Theater would be closed for the day.

Much like any other sensible business, the theater decided to close its doors for the day out of respect for the town mayor. They even gave her the day off as opposed to working on menial tasks, having assumed she was deeply influenced by the tragedy. Now of course she did think the whole thing sucked and it was in fact a tragedy. But if she was being honest with herself, Pepper didn’t have much to gain. She never knew Lily like some others apparently did and didn’t have any close attachments by any means to her.

“Yeah, it all blows. But I can’t just tell my boss that. Or anyone else lest I get stoned,” she sighed to herself. With nowhere left to go for the morning until the town meeting, Pepper decided to go on a walk. It was probably to clear her mind about the week’s events or maybe just to get some fresh air. It wasn’t like she had any scholarly responsibilities to uphold now after all. In fact, she should have felt elated on a free day of no work.

So why didn’t she? “Probably because everyone around me’s feeling depressed,” she answered herself. Hands in her pockets, she picked a random direction for her feet to carry her while her mind flitted to other thoughts. Perhaps it was on unconscious instinct because when she paid attention again, she was walking past Moore University just on the other side of the street she was on. No doubt the students there would also cancel classes for the town meeting.

Pepper didn’t need to check the time to know she was still way too early for the town meeting; That meant more wandering around for something to do. “At least the weather’s nice, I guess. But that’s some kind of cosmic irony for the mood of the day,” she sighed. She continued her merry way, wandering around. She supposed she could go for some breakfast at least, assuming any place was open for today. It wasn’t like she didn’t have the time.

---

"Farewell Mistro! I'll see you when I get back." Sage grinned at her beloved feline as she gathered her belongings. Mistro was a very well behaved calico. It was very rare for a calico to be a male. In fact, only 0.03% of calicos are males. He had been a stray when Sage first moved into the Emerald City. On the day she moved in she noticed him sitting just outside her humble loft. He would affectionately meow to literally ANYONE who walked near him. While most found this trait annoying, Sage found it endearing and thought of it as him performing an intimate concert to the public. Hence the name. She saw it as a good omen that such a friendly creature greeted her at the start of her new stage in life. How anyone could have simply walked past such a pure soul was beyond her. But so much the better, their loss was her gain. The bond between the two had been instant. The first night Mistro stayed over he would lay in the crook of her arm and purr incessantly against her side while she slept. A bonus, since cat purring is found to have healing properties.

Sometimes when inspiration struck and the urge to paint became overwhelming, Sage would even set aside a smaller canvas for her companion. That way while she focused on her art, he would feel included and have a creative outlet. Sure, most would laugh at such a thing... but Sage has always seen animals as other sentient beings. It is her belief that their life is equal to that of a human.

As she got ready she twirled about the room, a mixture between a dancer and a tornado. A dancing tornado. One of the traits she mastered in was multitasking; a saving grace in her morning routine. Hair as gold as rays of sunshine had been woven in a messy fishtail braid that hung just past her mid-back. Today was her day off at school... meaning that she had to work at her part-time job. Her work consisted of gardening mostly. Occasionally when busy she would be asked to make coffee or run the register. So having her hair held back would only be beneficial. She decided to wear something sensible, something she would not mind getting dirty.
The denim bell-bottoms that she used for painting were covered in different shades of colors. Normally most businesses would not enable such attire but Sage did not work at any ordinary 9-to-5 occupation. First of all, the owners at Canis Major shared a lot of her outlooks on life. They were huge hippies like herself who agreed with her "go with the flow" attitude. It was probably the main reason they hired her. Secondly, she was going to be playing in the dirt for eight hours anyway. A brown tank top covered by a lavender zip-up jacket and hiking boots completed the look.

She slung her messenger bag over her shoulder as she walked towards the entryway. She had been using this sort of make-shift sachel for over three years now. It was a faded olive green with various patches sewn all over. Badges stating things like, "Fight the Power", "Fur is Murder", and other noble causes. She managed to juggle keys, a chai tea latte, and her phone as she looked around her loft one last time.
The cozy living space was way smaller than what she had originally set out for. However, the open floor plan mixed with glass ceiling and large windows made the living quarters appear much bigger. Even though her floor was at the very top of the building, she loved to see the stars at night and the sunrise during the day. She does have to hike up seven flights daily, but the inspiration and positive energy the room provided is well worth it. Besides, maintenance said the elevator would be fixed soon.

After confirming that she did indeed have everything, she bounded down the steps of her building and made her way towards Canis Major. Sage did have an old fashion, 1974 V.W Beetle. It was sky blue with clouds and daises painted down the side. She loved her bug Wanda very much but, she only drove her on long distance trips. During short distances, she preferred to walk in an effort to reduce her carbon footprint on the planet.

As usual, her morning routine was to listen to music on her way to work. She placed her oversized earphones over her head and grinned as one of her favorite bands played over its speakers. Bobbing her head slightly, she began to dance as she walked and sang along to the song. While doing so, she fluidly moved around, carefully avoiding passerbys.

"Out of the doorway the bullets rip.
To the sound of the beat, yeah,
Another one bites the dust.
Another one bites the dust.
And another one gone, and another one go-"

Sage looked up in that moment to see that the pedestrians within earshot were giving her confused, and even hostile glances. Some were even outright staring and shaking their head. It was then that the idea hit her like a ton of bricks.

"Oh crap. I'm so sorry!" She squeaked to no one in particular. Her face grew red as she looked down at her phone and quickly fumbled to skip to the next song.
"Across the Universe" by The Beatles began to play thus easing the pounding of her heart.

On normal circumstances, someone who knew the band Queen would give Sage a high-five as they passed. Unfortunately, these were not normal circumstances. Even though Sage did her best to stay outside of the loop of new broadcasting, word spread fast. News this big in a town this small was bound to reach everyone within its vicinity at some point.
She didn't know the Mayor's daughter... but she did know that she had gone missing not too long ago. Sage could not help but feel sympathetic. She could not imagine how the poor girls family had been feeling at this time. Hell, she barely even remembered her parents and missed them every day.

After about 10 more minutes of hiking, she finally made it over to the entrance of Canis Major. She took off her headphones and walked while placing them back into her bag. Doing so had split her attention causing her to overlook the large crack that had blossomed along with the concrete in front of her. She tripped over it and fell forward, her arms flung out in a futile attempt to catch herself.
Textbooks, art supplies, homework assignments, and personal belongings scattered about the area around her. Stunned, she sat there for a moment an exasperated sigh escaping her lips. She felt tears begin to build up at the edge of her eyes, threatening to spill over. Sniffling, she began attempting to pick up the mess she had made. She winced, noticing some of her finished assignments flittering away, using the breeze to soar and take flight.

She looked up at the sky as if to question the higher powers that be.
"Wonderful." She mumbled, voice drenched in sarcasm.
"It's going to be one of those days..."

Wednesday, March 20; 10:00am

School dragged on as per usual, it seemingly being the only thing to keep running while everything else had closed for the morning. Right now was the beginning of gym class, and Genesis Aguilar had volunteered to join the class in skipping over a jump rope despite not needing to due to her heavy pregnancy. Genesis had actually put a valiant effort into trying to keep up with some of the fitter classmates and, to the amazement of onlookers, she wasn't too far behind them in the slightest. But the classmate to her immediate right, a girl in a black and pink hoodie and red-framed glasses by the name of Dakota Stark, had purposefully slowed down all the way to a halt just when the gym teacher was no longer looking in their direction. This was unsurprising of Dakota considering she was a known slacker, but she got away with it enough times that it wouldn't have mattered in the long run. She turned to face Genesis, shaking her head all the while.

"Why're you even doing this, Gen?" she asked, "You literally have the best excuse in the world right there!"

Dakota had poked Genesis in right in the middle of her expanded belly, which caused her to let out a slight shriek of recoil as she flinched, but she was able to regain her footing. Genesis resumed her skipping, although frowned as she turned to face Dakota.

"Jesus, girl, you could've poked poor Melody right in the eye!" she angrily whispered.

"Wait, who?" Dakota was bewildered for a second, but then it clicked in her mind, "Oh right; that's what you've decided, huh? Cute."

"Mhm. We both came up with it at same time, funnily enough," Genesis mentioned.

"Hmph, LOL. So when you gonna play that card, out of curiosity?"

"I dunno. To be honest with you, I'm not even sure I want to,"

"Awe come on; the one thing a preggo gal's supposed to be doing is sitting on her ass all day. Even I know that."

"I'd like to see you try carrying someone inside you, then,"

"Yeah, aight. You wanna hook me up with some piping hot D, real quick?"

"Well... I do know a guy who knows some guys..."

...

The sexually suggestive manner in which Genesis narrowed her eyes and curved her lips into a smile was enough to make Dakota shudder. It was a good thing she didn't decide to start back up again, otherwise it would've been enough to throw her off on what she was doing and make her fall flat on her butt with entangled jump rope all around her. Both girls looked over to see what the gym teacher was up to, noting that he was coaxing along another girl who was evidently struggling. It was then that a PA system could be heard blaring to life.

"Attention all students and teachers. This is a reminder that we are to have an emergency assembly straight after this period of class, as requested by our principal. I repeat; please report to the assembly straight after class. Recess will proceed as normal afterwards."

Genesis lowered her head in sadness. She was wondering when exactly they were going to go over the news that was all the rage in Emerald City, but she never thought they'd leave it until this late in the day. She turned to Dakota.

"Ya think this is when they wanna cover that murder or kidnapping or whatever happened that day?" asked Genesis.

"Eh, beats me," Dakota remarked carelessly, breathing a heavy sigh, "Uuuuuugh, the biggest waste of time school could possibly throw at us right after the second biggest waste of time they could throw. The hell does this Lily Turner bitch think she is anyway? Ruining our day like this?"

"Are you fucking insane, Dakota?!" Genesis exclaimed in shock, "You can't throw shade at the mayor's daughter like that!"

Thankfully the gym teacher was too far away to hear the exchange, but the students that were in earshot had all glared at Dakota, one or two of them even shaking their heads in disgust. Genesis bit her lip, embarrassed by the newfound attention Dakota had garnered. How this girl could live without shame for having no amount of filter, Genesis didn't know, and on second thought, she didn't want to think about it.

"Let's just go back to skipping jump rope," she suggested.

"Tch, fine," Dakota shrugged her shoulders as she said this, "I'd have thought even PervyGymSensei would've had a limit on seeing how many small-ass jailbait titties could bounce in the air and reached it by now, but whatever..."

With that, she reluctantly joined Genesis in resuming her skipping, albeit at her own pace. She didn't want to go so fast as to give the impression that she was trying too hard, but she still made sure she went quick enough to discourage the gym teacher from getting on her back.

Jeremy Lindall

The timing, Jeremy decided, had been significantly off.

Originally, he had planned to come here as a way to escape everything, all the miserable crap he'd been dealing with back home, but lo and behold, it turns out that literally two days after he moved in with his sister, someone had gone missing. Not just any someone either, but the mayors daughter.

TWO DAYS.

If that didn't look suspicious, he didn't know what was. And annoyingly enough, he apparently wasn't the only person sharing this line of thought, at least if the nervous glances he had been getting from some of his sisters neighbors were any indication. Oh sure, they never did it when they thought he was looking, but years of having to keep an eye out for any potential details that Hannah could use to get into a fight with someone had left him with the peripheral vision worthy of jealousy from the gods themselves! Hell, he figured he'd probably caught at least eighty percent of them so far.

And then he sighed. If the situation hadn't been what it was, he probably would've felt pretty proud of that statistic. Now he just felt depressed, which wasn't helped by the way his mind had drifted back to Hannah, because of course it had.

"The gardens looking good!" Eleanor said from somewhere behind him, eliciting a yelp from the boy as he jumped up, watering can spiralling through the air. "Jeez, what the hell was that? I'm not that scary."

"That's a lie and you know it." Jeremy said, his face immediately reverting back to it's usual boring old self. "You are literally one spot away from being the scariest person I've ever met."

"Second place huh? I guess I can live with that." She said, smirking at what most would consider a completely neutral expression, but a select few would notice as a faint glare. "Anyway, like I was saying, the garden is looking good. I reckon these vegetables should be ready by this time next week."

"Are you kidding? I just planted these..." He said, pointing to the "garden", which was really just a small garden box with a few small sprouts barely beginning to break the surface. "It'll be a while before we see anything other than the radishes, and even then, we've got a good twenty days to wait for that. This is the absolute quickest scenario, by the way."

"Ah whatever, you're missing the point!" Eleanor said, waving away what must have been approaching his seven hundredth time trying to explain this kind of thing to her. "The point is that you came out here for a reason."

"Yes, to garde-"

"No, no, you know what I meant." She cut him off. "You came out here, to Emerald City, for a reason. Now you and I both know what that reason is, so there's no need to bring it up again, but the fact of the matter is that unless you stop hiding away here, unless you get out of the house and actually spend some time around the town, you're never going to get over anything. You'll go back home exactly the same person you were when you left, if not worse."

Jeremy paused, not quite sure he could think up a reply. He knew, at least on a technical level, that she was right, but still, it... It just wasn't that easy...

Unfortunately, Eleanor decided to take his hesitation as agreement, despite knowing full well that it wasn't, and continued.

"Exactly, so go out and do something! Anything! Make some friends, or go fishing or something! You used to love that! Just do something that isn't moping around here. The garden will be fine, it's not gonna die just because you didn't stare at it in a couple of hours. Hell, go buy something weeby if you really can't think of anything else! I know there are a good few shops here that sell that kind of stuff."

"I... I don'-"

"Plus I'll totally start letting caterpillars loose in it if you don't."

"God, fine! I'll go look for something to do in town, I guess! Is that good enough for you?"

"Yep." She said, a cheerful grin on her face. However, it faded noticeably just a few moments later. "And hey Jeremy? There's a town meeting later. It's about Lily. The mayors daughter." She clarified, noticing his confused stare. "I think you should go too. I'll meet you there."

"Are you sure?" He asked, letting a small, nervous smile appear on his face. He wasn't particularly used to his sister acting serious, and it always made him feel a little awkward. "I'm still pretty new here. Wouldn't it be kind of weird for me to go?"

"It'd probably be weirder if you didn't." She said with a shrug. "I've noticed the way people look at you. They're looking at the fact that you got here just before she went missing and thinking you had something to do with it. I can't see it getting any better if you're the only person not at the meeting..."

"Yeah, I guess that's a decent point. I guess I'll see you there."

"Right. Try not to be too depressing once you get to town. The moods already been brought down enough as it is. No need for you to drag it down even further, you know?"

"Yeah yeah, see ya."

He didn't wait for a response as he went back into the house, collecting a backpack and his helmet and, for what was probably the third time in total since he'd arrived at the house, left through the front door.

It wasn't long before he was out on the road, travelling at a nice, steady pace on his trusty scooter. It was about a thirty-five minute drive to the city from Eleanor's house, but the long drive didn't bother him so much. It was actually kind of nice to be driving out on the open road, as if he didn't need to worry about anything. Maybe someday in the near future he'd take a ride in the opposite direction, just to experience the country road again. It'd been pretty nice on the way up, after all, so it could only help to do it again, right?

And then, before he knew it, he had reached the city. Honestly, he kind of wished it had taken longer, but in the end, driving around wasn't what he'd been sent out to do, was it? He was here to try and enjoy himself and make a friend or two. Sure, Eleanor hadn't said that last part specifically, but he knew her, and he knew she probably wouldn't let him back in the house without a fight unless he told her he'd made at least one.

And so he parked the scooter and got to work.

By goofing off and wandering the city streets at like seven in the morning.

---

There is no point in waking up early. There is nothing productive to be doing in the morning. The only thing to get out of it is another hour of lying in bed, trying to get a bit more sleep before it's time to get up.

So why was Vanessa staring at the ceiling at six in the morning? She would have to get up to go to work anyway, but that was later in the day. She had the glorious night shift, and spent the entire evening up until midnight doing work. Obviously, by work, she meant doodling with the odd actual sketch, while just happening to sit behind the till and occasionally helping customers. Vanessa could afford to feed herself, so it was good enough.

She groaned, staring at the clock. 6:48am. Four minutes since she'd last checked, thirty since she'd woken up. She stroked the cat lying on her chest, waiting for time to pass. "Please tell me you can knock me out," she said mournfully. "Just this once, I'll let you attack me. Do you wanna do that, you little bastard? Seems like you always do." Though her words were harsh, she spoke softly, in that cooing way people use with their pets. Unfortunately for her, her cat, which she had lovingly named 'Lizard', had chosen to be nice for the first day of his life. He let out a soft meow, and did not move. But he was soft, so Vanessa allowed it, continuing to run her hand down his soft black fur.

It was about six more clock-checks until she decided to finally get up. The time was 7:24am. With a little difficulty, she pushed Lizard from herself, rolling off of the bed until she was standing on the floor. Dressed in an oversized hoodie and some shorts, she began to get ready for the day. Vanessa supposed that she may as well go out, since there wasn't much for her to be doing inside. She could do some sketches and just chill in the community centre or something. Sounded like a good time.

It took her a lot longer than anticipated until she left the house. Somewhere in the realms of ninety minutes, as a matter of fact. She was dressed simply - black jacket, grey shirt, blue jeans - but all that time hadn't been wasted for nothing. She looked nice enough. A canvas bag containing some pencils and a sketchbook was hoisted over her shoulder, and it was about time she got going.

"Bye bye, Lizard," Vanessa chirped. The cat's ears perked at the sound of his name, but it wasn't as if he could understand anything she was saying. Still, she continued to talk. "I'll be back later. Behave, and I love you!"

As she made her way to the community centre, she thought about what else she could do. She'd have to go home before work, but that still left a lot of the morning free. While it would be great for her to spend the whole time practising her art, Vanessa really didn't have the patience for that. She could go somewhere else, maybe.

Ah, but isn't the press conference today... the disappearance of that girl. Vanessa's brows furrowed as she walked, deep in thought. I hope she's okay. But if anything's happened to her, it'll probably come out today. Should I go? I guess so. She felt a little guilty, using the disappearance of this poor girl to sate her own curiosity, but it wasn't her fault the mayor's daughter had disappeared. She just wanted to know what was going on. She didn't know the girl very well, as she had not lived in Emerald city for very long, but she seemed lovely.

Vanessa was deep in thought on her way to the community centre. Much of it was just thinking about her plans for the rest of the day, as well as things she had to get done over the next week, but there was a little speculation mixed in. She was thinking about the things that could have happened to Lily Turner, of course, which quickly devolved into a competition with herself about what the most weird thing she could come up with was. Vanessa soon ended that line of thought, not wanting to give the matter any more attention. She'd find out soon enough, anyway.

The community centre was relatively close to where Vanessa lived, though her definition of close was 'acceptable to walk there', which was very, very broad. She made a beeline to the public garden. There was one specific place she sat every time she went to the gardens, and that place was where she decided to sit once more. She stretched her legs out over the grass, feeling it tickling her ankles. From her bag, she pulled out a thick sketchbook, half of the pages filled with pencil sketches. The quality varied, but none of them were particularly awful, even if Vanessa thought they were.

Right then, art time.

… I have the day off.

He shouldn’t have even been having that thought. Luke didn’t dare look at his clock, but he knew with the amount of light streaming through the window that it was early yet. Too early to be awake on what was now a day off. Too early by far. And yet… It seemed his body had grown used to his new daily schedule, whether work was open or not. Worse yet, he wasn’t able to will himself back to sleep.

But I have the fuckin’ day off.

There was no justice in the world.

He was of course referring to his lack of sleep, not the missing mayor’s daughter. Even worse, his new workplace had decided to close up shop for the day- which was fine and dandy aside from the fact that it meant he would be losing a day’s pay. Luke didn’t have the luxury of keeping a well-stocked savings account: And that meant he’d need to eat a little cheaper for the rest of the month. Where was the justice in that? Absent.

Groaning, he finally gave up and dragged himself out of bed. A quick shower and change of clothes later- his usual “I don’t care how I dress but business casual is all I own” look- Lucas stepped out of his front door and into the unjust world. In spite of the protests of his bank account, his fridge really needed restocked. And his cabinets. And his bathroom. Surely there was at least one soulless corporate dollar store that was open in spite of the town’s recent tragedy.



Of course, there was. It was rare that Luke was thankful for corporate America, but every dog had its day. Still, he hadn’t yet bought all of the groceries he needed. For one, he wasn’t mentally prepared to make that level of purchase yet, and he may as well wait until he was ready to go home for the day anyway. Instead, he’d settled on a couple granola bars, a cheese stick, and a cheap little bottle of maybe-orange-juice. The breakfast of champions? No, but it was at least cheap. It’d be his lunch too in all likelihood, so he may as well try to enjoy it.

It was then, chewing on half a mouthful of granola, that fate intervened as he was trying to figure out what to do with the day. A familiar flash of red hair from down the street accompanied by a face he hadn’t seen in several months. He and Pepper had been coworkers for some time at his old job, but while the two had gotten along he’d been too embarrassed by his firing to visit the place in the months since. Not that the easy going Lucas ever admit that, but unfortunately facts never reworked themselves for his convenience. Still, running into her meant this day had a chance at being salvageable.

“Hey Pep! Fancy-fucking-meeting you here!”

Luke called at her from across the street with a wave from the hand that was holding his orange juice. Unbeknownst to him however, his greeting had caught the attention of another who looked on from the shadows. A creature that he was unfortunately familiar with, and seemed by this point would hound him until his dying days.

STARE

---

The room was dark. The only sources of light were the small slit of sunshine peeking through the curtains and the computer screen at which Alex was sitting in front of. Yet again he had stayed up through the night editing his next YouTube video. Honestly, he did do better work at night but it definitely wasn't good for his sleep schedule. He set the video to start exporting so he could upload it and looked at the time. "Ah, crap! Already 10?" Alex quickly got out of his seat and pulled back the blinds. His roommate groaned at the sudden bright light in the room. Alex began rushing around the room gathering his books and throwing on some non-pajama clothing. Before Alex could exit the room the other occupant of the room spoke up, "What are you doing?"

"It's 10. Got class in a few minutes." The, until now, unnamed roommate Jake let out a slight chuckle. "Dude, you need to pay more attention. There is no way this is the first time you've been told that classes were canceled today." Judging by the expression on Alex's face one might have guessed that it was but, in fact, he was starting to vaguely remember at least one of his teachers mentioning this fact the other day. Well, way more than just one. Sighing Alex tossed his bag back towards his bed, "I remember now. Why are classes canceled anyway?"

"Seriously? Do you actively try to forget about anything not happening on that computer screen?" At this point, Jake filled Alex in on the information that Alex definitely should've known. "Anyway, there is some meeting at the community center at noon and since most of the professors are apart of this community they decided to cancel classes for the day."

"Seems like a publicity stunt by the school administration. How much ya wanna bet that after everyone learns what happened they hold some kinda event. Maybe a charity so they get to look sympathetic."

"No idea. Maybe. Everything just seems kinda weird. If they found her it'd probably be out already, and if there was some crime involved you'd think they'd keep it quiet for now."

"The curious case of the Mayor's Missing Progeny. Could easily be a Sherlock Holmes novel." As of late, Alex's mind has been enveloped in old detective stories and movies. This is in large part due to how his teacher tasked him to make a crime film. Whatever genre Alex had the right to choose and he was thinking along the lines of one of those old Sherlock Holmes movies but he had no real idea of how to bring it to life. Alex started thinking about his assignment but then his roommate suggested an interesting idea. "You know, if it does turn out there was some foul play involved there will be a LOT of people clamoring for details. You could go to that meeting and record it."

"Why? There's already bound to be a lot of cameras there. What point would there be in adding mine?"

"Because, if there was a crime involved it's likely the media will be used to tell the truth the mayor wants to be told. Happens all the time in cop shows. Also, it'd give you an easy out for that end of term assignment, and if it's any good may get ya some big recognition."

"So, what you expecting me to do? Be a modern Sherlock Holmes recording my exploits and putting away bad guys?"

"Pretty much. You're smart enough. These past four years I've known you I've seen you watching people like a hawk. Throw in that acting ability to get in the mind of a character and you can be a makeshift detective." Alex laughed. Sure he liked to watch people but he wasn't able to pick up the little details, and he could easily put his mind into a character but characters on a screen and on stage are a little different to actual people. He hated to admit it though that the idea sounded a little fun to him. There was also the added bonus that a real-time documentary of a crime would make it so he didn't have to put as much work into his film project.

"Okay. I'll admit I am interested in the idea but if I were to do it I'd need a Watson. Would you be up for it?"

"No can do compadre. I may want to be a cop but I'm not smart enough to be a detective. What about Kiley?"

"Nah, she's actually graduating this semester and needs to focus on getting into a good med school. I won't bother her. Guess I'll just have to hope someone else I know would be up for it."

"Good luck with that. Other than your professors you know, what maybe 10 other people?" The two chuckled a little and Alex grabbed a pillow chunking it at Jake. "Hardy har har. I'm gonna leave before your insults make me do something you'll regret." Alex picked his bag back up emptying it of his textbooks and throwing in a Holmes novel or two in case he got bored. He threw the bag over his shoulder, grabbed his camera, and was on his way.

Upon exiting the University he turned his camera on and began recording the town. If everything went in his favor then he might as well get some good shots of the general scenery for an opening shot with one of those opening monologues talking about the general information for the situation. Alex was lost in his own world until he heard the call of a vaguely familiar voice but one that Alex would have no chance of placing. He turned the camera in the direction of the voice to see that the guy was calling out to someone who Alex actually recognized. It was the redhead who worked at the cinema. Unfortunately, Alex couldn't remember her name. Only that it started with a 'P'. Alex started thinking. If he was gonna actually do this crime documentary thing then at some point he'd need some interviews. Sure these two likely knew nothing but every documentary had that set of interviews asking random locals their thoughts. However, he couldn't just straight up tell them it was about the mayor's daughter's disappearance. That'd be weird. Especially if nothing came of the town meeting. He'd have to think of something. He made up his mind and began crossing the street in their direction. Hopefully, this didn't seem too strange.

---

“Nghn....hmm?” In the short time that followed, Pepper decided sleep was much more important than food; a decision she came to regret eventually, but at the moment it seemed like a nice idea. That was why she was sprawled out over one of the benches strewn about near Moore University. As she heard a voice calling out for her, she readjusted her posture from the short nap and yawned. She rubbed her bleary eyes and noticed a few of the locals finally hustling about, before blinking away sleep.

Was that Lucas? “Yo,” she said with a wave to match his own. Seeing as he was on the other side of the street, she figured she’d make the first move and meet him. She dusted herself off from the bench and quickly crossed the street to stand in front of the boy. “Let me guess, work’s closed too? Man, this day is starting to become a real drag and not in the good way.”

If anyone overheard her words, she didn’t bother to give them the time of her eyes. They could have glared at her all they wanted but it didn’t change the fact businesses were suffering for an entire day. “So, whatcha you up to. You went dumpster diving again?” Pepper smirked casually with hands rested behind her head as she stretched. Lucas’ meager meal didn’t escape her gaze so of course she had to take the time to tease him about it.

A quick look around showed it wasn’t even afternoon yet, the light of early morning still shining on their small little town. “Maybe if you convince me I’ll treat you to a real meal later. I know that’s not a good lunch for growing boys like yourself.” Unlike the boy, Pepper didn’t much care about the circumstances that led to her former coworker being let off from Green Bay Theater. Or rather, she wasn’t as hung up about it as Lucas probably was, but that was neither here nor there.

Another round of yawning took over and she looked around to see if anyone else was buzzing around the city. What she noticed was another boy who, much like them, seemed to have the face of nothing better to do written all over him. Peering from a distance, Pepper grinned again before she tried to nudge Lucas in his direction. “Hey, see that guy? Doesn’t he look new around here? Maybe he’s got something to do with the mayor’s daughter. Ain’t it just a little bit too coincidental?” By the tone of her voice it was obvious she was teasing again.

Even so, the boy was practically making himself a red target of suspicion by walking around with no destination in mind. “Yeah, he’s gonna get himself killed,” Pepper decided before waving at Jeremy. “Yo there stranger. You looking lost or just mozzying around?” She walked towards him now with only the assumption Lucas was following. Well, she might as well cause as much interest in the few short hours before the town meeting as possible. It was barely even lunch time after all, and she knew neither Lucas nor herself had anything better to do.

---

"Whyyyyyyyyyyy? I don't want to walk! I have to finish Dream Desire!"

A distraught brunette complained to her grandfather as they drove downtown in his aging truck. The older, simple man's crinkled brow expressed every level of irritation, eyes focused on the road. Robbie and his wife Rebecca had taken care of Lindsey for most of her life, only to watch her live a stagnant life. It was a constant cycle of work and those damned Japanese cartoons. Robbie, nearing 76 now, was about tired of it. He wanted to see his granddaughter actually do something with her life other than than drown in her frankly pathetic existence. That was going to start today.

"God damnit, Lindsey. No. You need friends. You're 19, and you've never had a boyfriend." Robbie spoke bluntly. "I'm dropping you off here, and I'll be back later. Go talk to people. Go do things. Live your life, damnit."

Lindsey huffed in anguish, crossing her arms and averting her eyes away from her grandfather. "I can't just make friends just like that, grandpa! People don't like me." she halfheartedly tried to explain, but she knew her words were falling on deaf ears. He never listened to her. "I'm just gonna walk back home anyway." Lindsey could practically hear the old man roll his weary eyes in response.

The beat up, rusting truck came to a stop near Moore University. Robbie reached over and a put a hand on Lindsey's shoulder, his intense, stern visage beating down on her. The young woman scowled back at him, her verdant eyes bleeding a shallow animosity behind her glasses. "I'll be back later. Go talk to people at the university."

"Whatever, grandpa." Lindsey opened the vehicle's door and stepped outside. Not a second passed before the truck zipped off, leaving the girl on her own downtown. This definitely wasn't how she envisioned spending the rest of her day, especially since she had just gotten done working the early morning shift. She was still dressed in her stupid Lucky Stripe shirt! People were gonna think she was a big nerd dressed like this! 'Grandpa, why'd you make me do this? Everybody was, for sure, gonna laugh at her if she tried to talk to anybody, and she was, for sure, going to die. For sure.

"All I wanted to do was get to the part where Koju and Seibaru made out... But nooo! Grandpa ruins everything!" the tiny brunette nearly shouted to herself. A young couple walking by gave the curious woman a judging glare before sauntering off to enjoy their day. Lindsey didn't seem to notice though. 'Oh god, I have no idea what to do now...' Her feet carried her away aimlessly, her gaze to the ground and a hand upon her chin as she tried to remember what all was around here. "Why can't I just be home and snuggled up next to my Akiri..." she mumbled, making an oblivious reference to her Knight in Shining Armor body pillow.

Today was going to be terrible. Just the worst.

On his giant LoveSac crimson pillow, sprawled out in his Calvin Klein boxer briefs, Damon had his left arm over his eyes in defeat. His unreasonably large master closet that sported the colors of black, white, and red, was the primary home for his large collection of sunglasses and sneakers. He had to get away from the attached room of his closet, where his clothes resided in. His clothes that once were neatly folded or on a hanger in a specific place, color coordinated, was now completely on the floor, and looked like vomit.

What had he done?

Originally, his goal was to find a decent disguise for the town hall meeting, so no one would jump him, but it was turning out to be quite the chore. The downside of fame and not being the most liked in a beautiful city, amiright? Sighing to himself, he tuned out the rap song to focus on the matter at hand. The sooner he solved this dilemma, the better off he'd be. Unfortunately, he was useless without his publicist, Sylvester "Sly" Sullivan, who also took care of his wardrobe and make up. That fucker went on vacation, like it was OKAY to take a break from HIM. On top of that, he took Damon's ageless nanny mentor, Rocco Gray (or just Mr. Gray), with him! They've been gone for almost a month now and he was absolutely hopeless without them.

It's all Creed's fault for allowing them some downtime, like how Damon's been allowed some downtime to produce material he cares about. So far, six months of downtime. Like, who did Creed think he was? Calling all the shots? It was like he was his manager or something! (He was). Scoffing to himself, Damon turned to his side and stared at his large wall of shoes. His eyes zoned in on his Air Jordan 5 Oregon Ducks. He hadn't worn those in awhile. Actually, the last time he wore those was when he met...

Lily.

---

---

Jumping off the LoveSac, Damon came to the decision of what he should wear. He’d be damned if he couldn’t get in the town hall meeting! Lily was his first friend and the main reason he decided to take a much needed break for his creativity. Knowing what could've happen to her was his only agenda of the day. His music could wait. How could he live with himself if he went on without finding out more? She gave him hope for a better tomorrow, a less lonely tomorrow, so he had to believe she was okay. He had to do whatever he could, anything in his power, to make sure she was safe. She had to be safe. She had to be alive. Quickly, he ran into his clothing room, disappearing into the jungle, feeling the sting of fear from losing one of the main female figures in his life. He didn't have many.

Ten minutes later, Creed knocked on the door and welcomed himself in Damon's closet, "You need to eat, Atlas." In Damon's home, he had his staff call him by his middle name because it helped bring him back down to Earth. It made him feel normal, like he wasn't made into a money making musician as a child. Part of why he kept it a secret to the public was to keep it special. He could tell who he trusted and they could choose to call him that, or the name everyone knows him by.

"I know, I know, I know. But more importantly, how do I look???"

DDay's agent silently observed his responsibility, who wore an outfit straight out of Gray's wardrobe. "He's going to kill you."

"That doesn't answer my question!" Rolling his eyes, the idol continued to fix his sleeves.

Crossing his arms, leaning his body on a pillar, Creed nodded, actually surprised that Damon's disguise wasn't a complete give away, "Different." The sleeked hair was a nice touch, since DDay never did anything with his unruly hair.

"And one last thing!" He grabbed his Ray Ban sunglasses, nice and black, with a noticeable reflective feature, and smoothly put it on. "Killen' it! Wait, I need sneaks..."

Swiftly and with intimidating ease, Creed swiped the idol's hand from reaching for one of his obnoxiously bright sneaks, "Glasses, sure." Though he thought those particular glasses made the young man peculiar, Creed wasn't going to kill all his joy (yet), "Your shoes, however? Formal."

Damon scoffed and grumbled. "Fine. For Angel. I will. _{I hate these shoes.}"

Jeremy Lindall

@TheWindel@Snagglepuss89@SlopGoblin

Did that girl actually just say 'moseying'?

Wait, no, don't say that! That'll might lead to a fight! Say something else!

"I'm sorry, did you actually just say moseying?"

Nice job man, you nailed it.

"Uh, sorry. It's been a long week. Brain's not exactly firing on all cylinders, you know? Anyway, I'm not lost. Just bored. My sister says I have to make a friend or she won't let me back in the house, so I guess I'm also looking for a nice alley or tree or something to sleep in. That and I'm waiting for the meeting, so I can find her and disappoint her in person."

And then a small part of his brain wondered if it was as sad as he thought it was that it had taken him this long to realise he could try to make friends with these people. They both seemed to have a similar expression on their faces to the ones he usually wore on his own, and they had initiated contact with him. Then again, he was getting some very familiar vibes from the girl in a different direction, specifically some unsavoury memories from his past.

Actually, it may be best to just check quickly.

"So, just to clarify, this definitely isn't a mugging and/or fledgling lynch mob, is it? Because people have already been giving me dirty looks over the last week, and it's beginning to get a little annoying. If it is, I think it'd be best to just stop right now before you hurt yourselves. If not, then great! I'm Jeremy Lindall, professional waste of space."

He was about to go further, but he was suddenly distracted when he felt his weeb sense tingling, and turned to look over his shoulder at another woman around their age shouting some filth about an absolutely trash pairing, and before his horrified brain could stop him, he had already spun around to face the heathen.

"Kobaru is trash! Koara is way be-"

And then he finally managed to catch himself, immediately shutting up, before turning to face his two now most likely completely alienated acquaintances and coughed awkwardly.

"Sorry about that. I appear to have come down with some kind of weird cough recently..."

---

Exhausted, Mr. Wilshire watched as the entirety of Mountain View High School filed into the school's gym and took their seats among the bleachers. He had called this assembly not only for himself, but also for the staff and students. He could see the disappearance of Lillian Turner was taking it's toll on teachers and students alike. Everyone seemed distracted, tired, and some were even scared. He had heard that the students were passing around rumors that a serial killer on the loose. Ridiculous, but not surprising.

Being in class, or at work, didn't seem to be helping anyone - including himself. He had once been close to the Turner family, though they grew apart once William Turner (the Mayor) had begun his political journey. The politics of a school district was about as much as Alfred could stomach. Nonetheless, he still cared for them. Lillian had always been the brightest light in the room whenever she was around, even as a child. The thought of something awful happening to her....

He couldn't think of that now.

"Alright everyone." He stepped up to the podium that had been set up on the gym floor, complete with microphone. "Quiet down now." Only half of the students seemed to take notice and halt their conversations. He cleared his throat, loudly, into the microphone. "AHEM... I guess you all want extra homework over the break?" That worked.

He chuckled as the gym fell silent, all eyes on him in horror. "That's more like it. Now, this isn't an easy topic to talk about, so I'll just get on with it." He searched the crowd, making eye contact with every student that he could.

"As I'm sure you all know, we've lost a pillar of our community recently. I know that some of you have been affected directly. Many of you probably remember her from the school functions she has helped us with. She has donated a lot of time, effort, and even money to help our schools thrive." He paused, letting the students search their memories for everything Lillian Turner had done for them. Hell, the girl had even volunteered to be a tutor for so many of the students here. "I want you all to know that you can come to me or any of your teachers if you are struggling with anything. Don't be afraid to talk about it, to reach out. This is a difficult time... We as a community need to come together and support each other."

Some of the students, he could tell, were not impressed with this speech. They just wanted to get out of here and enjoy the rest of the day. He supposed he should let them. Dragging it out wasn't going to do anyone any favors.

"With that said, we are going to close down school for the rest of the day. If you can, please attend the press conference for Ms. Turner this afternoon at the community center." He paused for a moment, hearing the students begin to whisper to one another. "Also, we have decided to close for the rest of the week. In honor of Lillian. I know that Spring Break is next week, I didn't forget. Please enjoy your extended holiday, students. Stay safe, and help each other in this time of need. Assembly dismissed."

---

10:59am

Considering the gym was needed so that the emergency assembly could be... well, assembled, it was obvious that gym class was going to be let off just those few extra minutes early. Everyone was ushered into the changing rooms so that they could change out of the clothes they were wearing for the occasion and back into their regular ones, but Genesis found herself pausing mid-dress. Her thoughts drifted to her boyfriend Karter. He said that he'd pick her up from school in time for the two of them to attend the press conference, but if the principal were to announce what she thought he might, he'd be OK to pick her up even earlier. Genesis also had concerns about what truly happened to Lily and, more importantly, what would if the person(s) responsible had instead either herself or Karter and how they'd be able to cope. No doubt most of the other students would have the same concerns or fears, but...

"Truth or dare?" seemingly enough to snap her out of her trance, Genesis resumed her changing of clothes, not paying much attention to her friend.

"We don't have time for this, Dakota," she replied flatly.

"We won't if that's how you're gonna play this," came an equally blunt statement from Dakota. With that, Genesis sighed.

"Alright, fine; truth," this enticed Dakota to grab an egg that she was randomly carrying in her hoodie pocket and shoved it all the way down Genesis' top, crushing it all the while. Needless to say, she was taken aback.

"The hell was that for?!" she demanded to know.

"New rule; If anyone calls truth for the 5th or greater time, they get egged once for each additional time they call it," was a fierce reply from Dakota, "Next time, you get another couple of eggs to the face,"

Genesis gave a look of complete and utter disbelief, but Dakota was having none of it. Rolling her eyes, Genesis took the T-shirt that she just changed out of and used it to clean as much as the egg off of her as she could.

"My turn. Chop chop," Dakota clapped a couple times during that last statement

"Right," Genesis nodded, "Truth or...?"

"Dare! Definitely dare," Dakota intervened boldly.

Genesis took a while to think of a good dare for Dakota to undertake that wouldn't get them into too much trouble. She figured she should probably keep it simple and try not to make it too eye-catching, so that it wouldn't draw the attention of the teachers.

"Ooh, I know!" Genesis had decided, "You have princess carry me all the way to the assembly. Oh, and you can neither adjust from when you first pick me up nor sit down before you set me down, or you lose the dare."

"And we know that I won't just fall over and die how, exactly?" Dakota asked with a sneer, "I mean come on, you outweigh me by like an entire fucking ton,"

"Bullshit I do!" Genesis retorted, taking offense to such a scandalous claim, before looking at the time and realizing that they were late, "Oh crap; we're gonna have to run or we'll..."

"YOLO!!" with that, Dakota heaved Genesis up, taking her completely by surprised, and charged out of the changing room.

...

Sure enough, they made it just as Principal Alfred Wilshire was about to kick the assembly off, and by the slightest of margins as well. They still had to find seats, and Dakota had eyes on two that were right at the end of one of the back rows. Typically the back rows were supposed to be reserved for the third year students, but Dakota mentally reserved those seats for herself and Genesis anyway. She secured them just as Principal Wilshire threatened to give everyone homework on their break, but had to hold her breath for the whole thing just so she wouldn't get caught for making noise. Genesis looked over to her right and saw that, as well as Dakota obviously, she was sitting next to a boy with black hair and round glasses. Feeling guilty for not being able to ask if it was OK for the two girls to sit next to him, Genesis awkwardly looked away from the boy and focused her eyes towards the principal, as he gave his speech.

Thankfully, the assembly was rather short, which allowed Dakota to start trying to catch her breath. Genesis couldn't help but show concern for the poor girl as she struggled to take in air. Well, it was Dakota's own fault for recklessly asphyxiating herself like that, but still...

"Are you OK?" asked a worried Genesis.

"I uh... gotta go out..." Dakota replied, "Catch my breath... that sort of thing..."

With that, Dakota stood up and took her leave, leaving Genesis with the third year boy that she'd been sitting next to. Genesis stood up and stretched for a moment, before turning to face the boy in question.

"Hey, uh... I'm real sorry for forcing myself next to you," she told him, "I'd have asked if it was OK to take the seat that I did if I wasn't running late. My name's Genesis Aguilar. I'm a second year."

Principal Wilshire did not look himself. Not the most composed of men normally—rumor had it that the principal was one false note away from being fired, and even a loose connection between the school and Lily would certainly qualify as much—today he was especially distraught, disorderly, sweaty.

Kei approached him. "Mr. Wilshire, would you like me to begin the assembly?"

The principal looked at him with wide eyes, as if Kei has just said the craziest thing rather than just suggest he start the event like he usually did as student class president, with a few quick words of introduction and leading the pledge of allegiance.

"No, Kei. Please go sit in the rafters."

Kei paused for half-a-beat—he usually sat in seats behind the podium along with the other student council officers and few teachers, who were seated there now. But it was fine. He took the opportunity to scuttle away with so much on his mind, including what he planned to do following the ceremony. Walking across the floor and up the steps to the third row, he remained the center of attention as always, getting gawks from the "hillbillies" as he mentally called them, the old-timers, racists who didn't want anyone new in their cities, especially chinks like him; smiles from the "nothings," as he referred to the girls and boys who had a romantic interest in him, despite none of them really knowing what he was like, and whom he referred to as being as empty in their souls and they were in their heads; and fist bumps from those few that he knew as "friends," a term which Kei honestly didn't really understand at all.

As the assembly began, a pregnant girl and her friend loudly sat next to him. He knew the one girl's name—Genesis—for after all, they discussed her condition at various meetings. Some among administration and the student council were malicious and mean, and others spoke out of concern. Kei just thought it was no one's business.

He didn't recall ever speaking to Genesis before. She seemed shy—maybe he should say something now, or at least following the principal's remarks, but again he was caught off guard as the stilted speech ended quickly. Kei arose, first as he tended to do, and said "Goodbye" to Genesis in the brief moment he caught her eye, before walking off, first in a direction that seemed to be out the school and toward the bike racks to leave for the community center, but after securing his bike and going a little that way, he made a turn toward some residences, toward a small, gated section of town where many of the old elite, and a few of the newly rich, made their homes. In the center of the group of houses was a manor, one befitting "royalty" for the city. It was the home of the mayor and his family. It was the home of Kei's beloved, Lily Turner.

Leaving his bike a few houses down next to a fire hydrant, Kei walked the remaining steps to the estate. It felt like a ghost town—the streets were entirely clear. Of course they would be. This neighborhood was full of residents who long knew the Turners, who befriended them or otherwise tried to get into their good graces (and pocketbooks). They were all sure be at the community center, and likely early.

Kei slipped on a cap and gloves and walked to the Turner's front gate. Moving his head away from a camera on the roof ledge spotting him, he lifted up a panel on the brick facade near the gate and typed in a code: 5-3-8-9-0-7.

Entry accessed.

Kei moved quickly to the front door and entered the same combination, making his way into the house.

The entire time, he breathed quickly (when at all). His heart beat so heavily that it was all he could hear as he moved down the hallways of the impressive mansion. One could get lost here, certainly if you have never visited before. Parlor room, ball room, dining room, library—and that was only the first floor. But this was not Kei's first time here, nor his second or third. He did not know where all the stairs and doors led, but he knew his way to floor three, to the second room on the left past the palatial smoke room to the right. Not marked by anything special and only as elegant as every other door, a visitor wouldn't know that this room belonged to a missing woman, that it belonged to the lovely Lily Turner.

~~~

Kei did not know what he was looking for as he dug through Lily's belonging. He had not left anything with her, not ever. Kei was not the sentimental kind, not with possessions at least, and Lily had insisted they keep things "between them." So what trace would she have of him? Or what was is that Kei wanted of her?

It took but a minute for the normally-rational boy to remember why he was there. Slowly moving through the bedroom, crossed by tape and carefully developed out as a crime scene, he went straight to Lily's closet. Opening the door, he began to rummage through a surprisingly modest wardrobe—stylish, chic, expensive, but not large. And so he quickly found what he was looking for, a vanilla sweater, one he pictured in his mind when he dreamed of her, one he pictured when his mind, as of late, had been ravaged by nightmares.

He pulled it off the hanger, slightly crumbled it and held it to his face. It was soft, like her. And as her smell wafted into his nose, whether imagined or real, Kei grabbed for his chest. It was beating uncontrollably, and his breath was much the same. He felt faint, as if he would collapse on that floor, and started to keel over. As Kei reached out to stop his fall, he grabbed onto a sweatshirt, pulling it off the hanger and dragging it down with him.

As he sat on the floor, Kei calmed his breathing and brought himself back to a place of calmness (at least as calm as the boy could be after breaking into such a residence). He tied Lily's sweater around his waist, and was about to stand and leave when he looked at the sweatshirt he'd pulled down. In the dim light of the closet, he saw that it was black—a men's sweatshirt and marked with red letters that spelled ICON, a curious piece in Lily's collection. And recognizable, too...

Kei wondered, Where have I seen this before? Flashes came in and out of his mind. Literal flashes—like from a camera. At some event? The community center? Was it...the gala?

Running through his memories, Kei remembered the gala event he had attended, a token representation from the high school (an outsider and Asian to boot) among the rich and famous. There, he saw the sweatshirt being worn by the type of man he despised, someone with power and influence and celebrity. It belonged to Damon Day.

What it all meant, Kei dared not let enter into his mind and he took the sweater and ran out. He moved down the hallway stealthily and tried to conceal his thoughts. She saw it and wanted the same. She was at the gala, too, after all. He continued down the first stairway and then past the atrium. She had the money of course to buy one...but this isn't her. This isn't her at all... He moved toward the final set of stairs to enter the long walkway to the front door. No...the truth is...this means something I don't want to hear about...something I don't want to know...

As Kei walked past the double doors leading to the kitchen, he paused. Looking both ways, as if the room was full and people were watching, he entered in. Still wearing his gloves, Kei opened a pantry and took out a gallon of vegetable oil. He began pouring it on anything that looked wooden, on carpeting on the stairs, returning over and over to the kitchen for more, and when it ran out, he looked through the pantry and found something even better: two small containers of kerosene.

Laying them along a trail a oil, one toward one end of the house and the other on the second floor, he returned to the kitchen one more time. Ripping a piece of paper towel from a dispenser, he lit it on a stove he turned on (and left aflame), and then made the long walk to the front entrance, careful not to light anything aflame, breathing deeply and with fear at the thing he was about to do.

Opening the door, he stepped outside, and then tossed the lighted towel back into the house. He walked toward the gate, never turning back toward the cameras, except for half-a-second, and then only a twisting of his body as he intentionally snagged the sweatshirt he wore on a tree branch. It left behind a trace of a black sweatshirt, the front of which the cameras caught as well: "ICON."

And Kei hurriedly scampered away, knowing the fire department would arrive and soon stop the flames.

Sitting on the edge of her bed, tears streaming down her face, Elizabeth stared at a bright orange hoodie in her hands. She had been sitting there for at least 5 minutes, silently crying and unsuccessfully trying to pull herself together.

The hoodie had been Lily's favorite. It was bright, loud, sometimes a bit obnoxious, comfy, and cute. Just like her.

The last piece of Lily that she had to hold had been left in her room by accident. On the eve of her disappearance they had gotten into a... disagreement. Lillian had left the house in a hurry, seemingly upset. The thought crushed Elizabeth's heart. Picturing her walking out the door made it feel like her entire heart had been ripped out of her chest in the process. She was just an empty shell now. Alive, but not really.

"I-I... I'm so s... sorry, L-lily..." She pressed her face into the fabric, the guilt inside tearing her apart. She took in a deep breath, trying to calm herself as well as surround herself with the comfort of Lillian's floral scented perfume left behind.

Before the breakdown, Elizabeth had gone to her room to figure out what to wear for the press conference. What was one supposed to wear to these things? Did people dress up? Did people wear their normal clothes? Business casual? Lillian would have known. She would have told her what was appropriate for the occasion. When the thought crossed her mind, she had locked onto the forgotten hoodie that she had been sleeping with every night since her best friends disappearance.

Pulling her face away, she stared at it again. This was what she would wear. Perhaps it wasn't the right attire, it was most likely too casual. But it was Lily's and that's all she cared about. What other people thought didn't matter... not anymore.

As she pulled it over her head, Elizabeth felt her phone vibrate in the back pocket of her jeans. Her heart skipped a beat. Something inside of her hoped, prayed, that it would be Lily. Somehow, someway, it could be her.

She pulled the phone out quickly, hands shaking from the jolt of adrenaline she had gotten from wishful thinking. "Elliot..." She thought, reading the name on the text message notification. She sighed, letting go of breath she didn't realize she had been holding. It wasn't Lily. What a ridiculous thought to have. Instead, one of her other dear friends. Elliot had been in her life for a long time, and she could imagine that he was hurting similar to her. They had lost their trio and were now a duo. Even though Elliot had often been their third wheel, he always handled it graciously. He, like everyone else it seemed, was closer to Lily than he was to Liz, but it was to be expected. Lily was always the center of attention, rightfully so.

"Yeah... I think I'll need it." She paused with her finger over the send button for a moment, then continued, "Can you meet me there a little early? I don't want to sit up front alone... I should be there in about 20 mins" She hated admitting it, but she wasn't sure if she could get through the conference alone. Her father and brothers would try their best, but it wasn't the same as having someone who knew Lillian closely like she did.









She had driven alone, wanting some time to herself on the drive over to the community center. It didn't seem to do well for her. She had cried in the car and all her efforts to appear like she hadn't been a sobbing mess for 7 days straight were all for nothing. Her face seemed permanently flushed, even behind makeup, and her eyes a bit puffy and red. Not her best look, but what did she care at this point?

As she pulled into the community center, she rolled her eyes at the surrounding news station vans and all of the news anchors practicing their lines and memorizing what questions they needed to ask. This was all a game to them, wasn't it? Just another story for their job. It didn't matter who it was, it was just good for business. As she surveyed the land, she spotted a family friend sitting on a bench near the river. "Mr. Clarke..."

She exited her car and made her way over to the bench. Silently, she sat down next to him and stared out at the river. It was a little chilly out, which made her glad for the hoodie, but the clouds in the sky only reminded her of Lily. She loved clouds. They brought the rain, her favorite weather.

After a few moments of silence, Elizabeth turned to face Ollivander. "Doing okay, Mr. Clarke?" She forced a sheepish smile, knowing the answer to her question. She had no idea what else to say, and it was typical of her to make sure everyone else was okay; even if she was a wreck. There were no words that could cure this sadness.

---

---

The sun barely peaked above the horizon as Mirai moved around the farm doing her daily chores. Mirai had made the rounds giving all the animals their food and fresh water. She had collected the fresh eggs from the chickens and put them safely inside. Now she was hauling hay down to the field where she had just taken the two family horses. After she gave the two the hay, she sat on the fence watching the sun fully rise over the horizon as she took a break. Clay, one of the horses came over and nudged her almost knocking her off the fence backwards before huffing in her face.

Mirai pushed Clay's face away from her own before moving to be in a better position to stroke his mane. Clay was the youngest of the two horses and like Mirai could be a troublemaker. It is the reason why her grandparents think the young colt took a liking to the girl. Mirai pet the colt for awhile before patting him gently and hopping off the fence. "Gotta go finish up the rest of the chores. I'll be back to give you your exercise later." Mirai told the horse as she walked off towards where the hay was stored.

Collecting more hay, Mirai carried it to where the family goats and sheep were. She gave them the hay before heading into the barn to clean out the stalls and then clean up the barn as a whole. It took a little while but after she was done everything was clean. If the people she used to hang out with saw her now they wouldn't believe it. She was doing chores and doing what she was asked to. Hell, if the old her saw the new her she wouldn't believe it. It wasn't like that much had changed though. The only difference between then and now was Mirai did these chores for her grandparents because if she didn't she would be sleeping outside or in the barn if she was lucky. She'd learned that the hard way.

When she had first come to Emerald City, Mirai refused to listen to anyone and kept up with her old habits. But after two weeks of not getting through to her, her grandparents kicked her out of the house. They gave her cans of food and bottles of water and told her to find somewhere else to stay until she would do as told. It took a week until she was back and doing the chores. She tried stopping a few times only for the same to happen and found that it was best to just do the chores.

With her morning chores finished up, Mirai went and sat on the fence again, just this time of an empty paddock. She pulled out a cigarette and lit it, smoking while awaiting her grandmother to call her up for breakfast. As she sat on the fence she began thinking of the events that had happened. The girl Lily, the mayor's daughter, having gone missing. The whispers and accusatory stares. It wasn't surprising that she was being thought as a suspect, she already made herself know as a person not to mess with not to mention her grandma already spread the fact she'd been involved with the Yakuza to the whole city. Mirai may not be a good person but she wasn't gonna go and kidnap the daughter of the mayor of the new place she lived. What good would that do for her or for her grandparents. All people cared about though was the fact she was involved with the Yakuza, that immediately made her a prime suspect. She was honestly surprised she had been arrested yet to be questioned over everything. Guess she was just lucky.

Mirai was snapped from her thoughts of the recent kidnapping and her non-existent role in it as her grandmother called for her. Throwing her cigarette butt on the ground, Mirai slipped off the fence and stomped her boot down on the butt, twisting her foot around on it to make sure there was no ember left burning. Once she was sure she was fine, she headed up to the house for breakfast.

---

Now later in the day, Mirai listened to her grandparents drone on as they handed her some food containers. Simply nodding her head, she waited for them to finish as she adjusted the mask of her outfit. When they finally finished handing her the containers she loaded them into a bag and put the bag on. "Yeah I get it. Yeah yeah whatever. Okay. I'm going now."

Mirai waved them off as she walked out the door, ignoring their suggestion of taking their truck and hoping on her motorcycle. Sticking the key in the ignition, Mirai grinned as the engine roared to life. The purr like music to her ears. Grabbing sunglasses from her pocket, she put them on before kicking the stand up and revving the engine. She then took off, shooting down the driveway and kicking dirt up behind her.

Speeding through the country roads, Mirai grinned like a madwoman as she wove past the few cars around heading towards her destination. It didn't take long until she was pulling up the drive of the town's resident celebrity and her grandparents practically adopted grandchild based on all the food Mirai has had to deliver. Parking her bike, Mirai hopped off and made her way to the door, ringing the bell and knocking on it. As she waited for an answer she ran a hand through her wind whipped hair, looking around at the place. She still hadn't gotten used to how nice it was compared to any where else she'd been. It definitely went to show what money and fame can get you. Now if only the one with said money and fame would come to the door.