Chapter Text
Everything seemed blurry. She saw her family, her friends, even her servants and teacher. She stood in front of a girl who smiled and shined like the bright sun in the sky. Black hair, teddy bear brown eyes, white skin and a plump belly. Was she pregnant? She took a closer look at the girl who smiled so happily and smiled back. That was herself. The dream Misheru was wearing a long white dress and was holding white lilies in her hands while people walked around her and fixed the dress a bit. She was standing in a kind of hut and from outside you could hear a loud babble of voices coming in through the window. Everything seemed so oppressive and warm as if she were no longer in cold England. She wanted to take a closer look out the window when suddenly everything turned white. It stayed that way for a few seconds until figures and buildings began to form. It smelled like flowers and you could hear soft music while the sun appeared in the sky. Slowly everything had taken shape and she realized where she was now. This was an unknown place for her, she didn't know where she was exactly and she didn't see any resemblance to cold England either. Under an arch of flowers she stood with a young man at her side, not clearly visible, but his demeanor suggested that he was nervous. The dream Misheru and the strange man look considerably pale as if they were afraid. A priest began to speak in a language she had never heard before, sounding different from English or Japanese. The couple smiled at each other and both spoke their words when suddenly something happened with the man's face. It changed, lost the white blurry face of the man and there stood Lord Nakasaki grinning arrogantly. Without being able to do anything he kissed the girl and you could hear the sharp scream of a horrified Misheru who collapsed on the floor and covered her face with her hands.
Light flooded the room as Misheru took her hands from her face and slowly looked around. The village and the wedding were gone, instead she was lying in her bed and was tickled on the nose by a ray of sunshine which made her sneeze. She groaned tiredly and fell back into her pillows as she read the time on the clock that was next to her bedroom door. 7am. Just as she wanted to cuddle up in her blanket again, the door to her room was opened and a happy humming Yuna walked into the room. Humming, she almost ran to the windows and opened them, whereupon cool morning air immediately flooded the room.
"Wake up Miss~ There is still a lot to do for you today~ Lets go, Lets go~" she shouted and pulled the soft blanket off the girl, while smiling wide.
"Today is more likely a day when I'll just lie in my bed", the girl grumbled and tried to cover herself with a big pillow. Not a second later, the pillow was pulled away from her and she sat up grumpy while stretching. Yuna had meanwhile disappeared again and had left behind a generously stocked breakfast tray. With a final sigh, Misheru carefully reached for the tablet and placed it on her lap. On Saturday there was always early breakfast in bed, which Misheru was already looking forward to, especially after yesterday evening. She didn't want to face her parents and listen to the lecture they would give her. Rather she wanted to laugh about the image in her mind, of Lord Nitobe who was covered with ice cream. Smiling, she looked down at the tray and gently lifted the silver dome from the food which was still steaming. Everything was exactly how she liked it, 2 pancakes with raspberries and a dollop of cream, scrambled eggs with fresh herbs and bacon, plus a croissant with butter and a pot of freshly brewed chamomile tea. There was also a small bowl of milk on the tray which was clearly for Snow. She happily licked her lips and was just picking up the cutlery when the bed lowered briefly and then raised again. A small white figure rubbed itself against her leg, meowing and purring loudly a few times.
"Good morning sweetheart~ did you sleep well?~" she asked the cat even though she knew she would not get an answer. Smiling, she stroked the kitten's white fur and then scratched her between the soft ears.
"You are definitely hungry~ this is just for you~" she said cheerfully and put the bowl on the mattress. The little kitten greedily began to sink her tongue into the milk and drank it fastly like it was starving. Smiling, Misheru turned to her breakfast and was about to put a fork full of scrambled eggs in her mouth when a figure entered her room.
"Can't a lady eat in peace?" The girl asked with a laugh and made room for her brother on the bed, who immediately sat down on it. He also had a breakfast tray with him, but looked a lot more awaken than Misheru.
"Well after last night you are more like my crazy sister who has completely lost her mind" the young man chuckled with a wink while he began to sip on a cup of coffee.
"Oh you. But it was funny, maybe I'll do it again" she laughed and finally pushed the fork with the scrambled egg into her mouth.
"You better not do it, father is still pissed off. I heard him yelling at mother last night. He said if you show such a behavior again he will send you personally to a monastery" Kaji replied more seriously and looked over at his sister who had meanwhile eaten the scrambled eggs.
"He won't have a chance to do that because I'm leaving this place tonight" she sighed, shrugging her shoulders and took a long sip of tea.
"Well, but then you have to- eh wait what? Tonight!?" Kaji asked stunned and choked on a blueberry that he had put in his mouth.
"I'll correct myself in two months if you don't stop screaming like that" she hissed and looked at her brother admonishingly, who had now choked down his blueberry.
"So soon?- I haven't had time to help you or to plan anything" Kaji whispered and now chewed the last bite of his breakfast before putting the tray on the floor.
"It doesn't matter, I decided last night" said Misheru, who was now chewing on a piece of her pancake and looking out of the window. Outside the sun was shining and white clouds moved across the sky while a cool breeze made the leaves rustle on the trees.
"Why tonight?" Kaji asked curiously and watched the girl munching on the pancake and sipping her tea.
"Well, according to my calculations, father will talk to the lord tomorrow and I will tell you, I have to marry him. There is no more time. Tonight it has to work otherwise I am bound to him until death and have to give birth to his children" Misheru replied, grimacing in disgust as she put butter on the croissant. There was silence for a few moments while she finished her breakfast and took a sip of tea every now and then. Kaji, however, stared at the ceiling and thought about everything while he gently stroked Snow.
"Can I help you? I can't let you fail and never be happy" he mumbled, slightly desperate, and looked at his sister who smiled at him.
"Of course you can. I would be offended if you didn't" she laughed and put the empty tray down on the floor, before she got up from the bed and stretched. "Let's talk about it later, I have school soon" added Misheru and walked to her closet where she got her clothes for class and sent Kaji out with a certain stare.
"We'll meet at 2pm, in the courtyard" the boy yelled before the door slammed shut and the room was quiet.
She didn't know if it was really that good to drag her brother into this, but if he could help her it would guarantee her success. As she thought about it, tears started to appear in her eyes. That was a tough decision... She had lived in this house for 16 years, living a peaceful life with her family and enjoying this life. And now she was at the point where she really just wanted to run away like that. From her life, her family and her home. A terribly sad sob was heard as Misheru slowly pulled on her clothes and slipped into the black shoes. She had to do this. She just had no choice if she ever wanted to live her dream and find someone she liked.
"For your dream. It's only today. Don't screw it up!" she said to herself while wiping away her tears with her hands. She hastily took one last look at her room before stepping out the door and making her way to class. She didn't knew that Yuna had just seen how she disappeared for a split second and then appeared a few meters away from her original position. Neither did she notice the maid passing out from shock. She was too far gone to notice anything strange this morning.
"Miss Sato.. damn it, what's the matter with you today. You are inattentive, distracted and pay no attention at all" Ms. Yamada snorted angrily and looked at the girl who just shrugged and then looked out the window.
"Why should I? I'll be gone soon anyway" the girl mumbled back and flicked a small beetle from the table that was just crawling over her sheet of paper. "This is the last time I'm taking lessons with you and I won't see you again" she added dryly and played with a pencil that was already a bit gnawed. The older woman groaned in annoyance and pulled one of the wooden chairs over to sit next to Misheru.
"I want to know everything that is going on, what the solution is and how I can help" she said and smiled expectantly at the girl. There was a short silence as Misheru examined Miss Yamada and sighed. If she told her everything now, maybe her father would find out, but on the other hand the woman could do an excellent job of helping her to find a place where she could hide. Since the teacher had studied geography and languages a lot, she could really be of great use to her. Misheru sighed in defeat and leaned closer to her teacher while she began to whisper just in case someone was listening.
"I want to run away. Because Lord Nitobe wants to marry me soon... So I want to run away tonight. Ms. Yamada, I know it's a lot to ask, but would you please keep it a secret and help me to find a place where I can go?" she asked quietly and looked at her teacher who first looked puzzled but then seemed to understand that it was no joke.
"So I understand correctly that you're only leaving because you don't want to marry Lord Nitobe?" the woman asked hesitantly and shook her head with a sigh as Misheru only slowly nodded. "Well, my dear. I probably can't stop you so I'll help you. So you need a hiding place where no one can find you, right?" asked the young lady and was immediately embraced by Misheru.
"Thank you, thank you, thank you! I was worried that you would tell my father.. Thank you Miss Yamada!" the girl muttered and gave her teacher a big smile.
"You can call me Ayano~ that's what my friends call me" the teacher smiled and shortly stroked the girl's head. With quick steps Ayano hurried to her bag which was under a table and rummaged around in it. When she returned she put a map of the world on the table and sat down next to her student. "So where do you want to go? Maybe the mountains or a island? Or how about a forest or a jungle" Ms. Yamada asked and reached for a pen and paper to write everything down.
"Well, I don't know... a forest sounds good, but maybe a city is better. Here maybe?" she asked, pointing her finger at Germany while she continued to look at the map.
"You know, honey, since you want to run away you really have to go far away. They will probably be looking for you tomorrow. You should avoid Europe as a whole because your father will do everything to get you back. Also not Japan, it's far away and has beautiful surroundings but it would be stupid. Several people know you as the daughter of Ambassador Yoshi Sato. That would be your death sentence and you would be home sooner than you were outside" Ayano said and began to cross out England and Japan with a red pen. She crossed out and then looked at Misheru who looked just in a bad mood. What good did it do for her to run away and stay hidden? "What about Africa? Or Russia?" the woman asked, Misheru just shaking her head.
"One is too cold and there are too many people and sand in the other" Misheru complained and crossed the countries away with another pen.
They sat there for about an hour and crossed countries and cities. Even small things led to the fact that Misheru did not want to go to the country. There were too many spiders in Australia, too many people in China, and too much of everything in Korea, somehow. Sighing, Misheru leaned back in her chair and looked at the map, which was now more red than green and blue. The only thing left was a few countries that belonged to America. Somehow she had the feeling that they would no longer be visible because Ayano was just crossing out Costa Rica.
"Personal experiences, you don't want to know" added the teacher, then sat up while she wrapped a strand of hair around the pencil in her hand.
"How many more countries are we going to delete from my list? Because if more are crossed out then I'll have to move to Antarctica" chuckled Misheru and finally put the red pen away, which Ayano did the same.
"You know, dear, you just take the map and have a look at the other countries. And if you flee tonight you will choose one. Wherever your path leads you will find your happiness there. Now you go. Lesson is over for today~ " Miss Yamada sighed dreamily but still firmly and gently stroked the girl's head. With a grateful nod, Misheru smiled at her teacher and began to fold the card, which ended up in her school bag. She quickly closed the bag and tossed it over her shoulder before hugging her teacher tightly.
"Thank you" she mumbled softly and got another stroke on the head.
"Write me a letter when you've found a place you like~" the woman whispered softly and pressed a leather bracelet into her student's hand. "So that you always have to think of me~" she added and then began to push Misheru slightly towards the door.
"Thank you very much. I will never forget you and always think of you- maybe i'll see you again someday" Misheru thanked her politely and bowed one last time to her teacher before she slipped out of the hall and closed the door behind her.
"Take care, little dreamer" Ayano whispered to herself and wiped her tears with a dotted handkerchief while she listened to the steps that were slowly fading away.
It was 2 pm, when Misheru, changed clothes, hurried down the stairs and opened the large front door. In one hand she held a large basket and under her left arm was a striped blanket. With quick steps she ran across the large yard that was strewn with gravel and got on the horse on which Kaji was already sitting.
"Look who showed up~ my lovely sister" he grinned, gently ruffling her black curls.
"I'm not that late" she replied and immediately tried to straighten her curls while her brother rode from the yard. Startled, Misheru quickly put the basket between herself, and Kaji, and put the blanket on the basket before wrapping her arms around her brother to hold on tight.
"Don't you ever do that again you idiot! You scared me to death" she shouted angrily and gently hit the shoulder of the young man who just giggled.
"So where do we meet with him? Back at the old ruins like last time?" Kaji asked his sister and rode leisurely along the path while looking at the landscape around him.
"Yes, at the old monastery as always. I hope you are hungry because I prepared a picnic with Yuna. We have cakes and fruit" she called with a smile and held on to her brother a little tighter as he jumped over a fence with his horse.
"Sounds fantastic~ I will miss your baking skills~" answered her brother promptly and grinned slightly to himself. Slowly but surely they were slowing down and the landscape around them had become a little wilder. The well-tended property of their house was far behind them and meanwhile thistles and weeds were growing out of the ground everywhere. Stone ruins were overgrown with moss and ivy grew up some stone pillars, although there was still a certain charm to this place. They finally stopped and Kaji, the gentleman he was, offered his sister to take his hand as she got off her horse. She just gently nudged his hand away and pointed to the basket.
"Make yourself otherwise useful than playing the fine gentleman" she chuckled while jumping down from the horse and took the blanket with a smile. It was a beautiful place in the middle of the ruins, wildflowers grew on the sides of the stones and a small stream gurgled ,behind some bushes, happily. With a big throw Misheru spread the blanket and immediately dropped onto it. She looked straight up into the sky, where shepherd clouds and the sun conjured up a beautiful picture.
"Isn't it beautiful here? The nature, the beautiful weather and the mystical ruins?" Misheru asked dreamily and held out her hand to the sky to perhaps tickle a few clouds.
"Yes, yes, beautiful princess~ do you want to help me clear out your basket or may I do that too?" Kaji asked with a grin and began to open the basket while a light summer wind began to blow. With a sigh, the girl slowly sat up and helped her brother unpack the basket full of food. Soon a plate full of tarts, two plates full of cut fruits and two bottles of fruit juice with cups were on the blanket. While Kaji was already munching on a tart, the girl put the basket aside and poured herself a cup of apple juice.
"Where is he? He can never be on time, right?" The young man asked after a few minutes and crumbled the picnic blanket with his little tart.
"Be patient. It's just a little later than usual. Not a big deal" Misheru grumbled at her brother and took a long sip of her juice.
"Boo" it suddenly made behind the girl what made her cry out in panic and hit in the direction of the noise.
"Hey! Don't hit me, you can't hit your best friend" the boy shouted and collapsed on the blanket between the two siblings, laughing.
"You idiot" hissed Misheru and carefully handed him a cup of apple juice.
James Brown was Kaji's childhood best friend and almost part of the family, well in the siblings eyes, the two were practically inseparable. The boy was tall and thin, his auburn hair fell loosely over his forehead and his gray-blue eyes looked like an endless blizzard. Mostly he wore a shirt with a loose tie and black pants, with patent leather shoes. He was 17 years old, enjoyed comedy, art and poetry and was the son of a well-known entrepreneur who shipped many goods to other countries. Just right for what Misheru was planning. She would just hide on one of the ships and leave the country like that.
"So why did you order me over here?" James asked and drank from his cup while he reached for a tart. Misheru rummaged around hastily in her pocket and pulled out the map from Miss Yamada, which she spread out between the plates with the tarts and fruits.
"I need your help more urgently than ever before" the girl murmured, rather quieter, and looked around briefly to make sure no one was listening to them.
"And why that? And what about this card? What have I missed within 2 days?" James asked and bit in his tart while he looked at his friend. There was a brief silence while birds were heard singing and the summer wind ruffled the grass. The girl wanted to start a sentence but her voice got stuck in her throat when she thought about yesterday. Within 2 minutes she questioned every little decision she had made and every word that had left her mouth.
"She freaked out at dinner with the Lord yesterday, now she wants to run away and she needs your help" Kaji answered now and reached for a new tart that he began to ate.
"What? As if it's so bad that you have to run away?" James asked startled and coughed briefly as he had choked on his tart. The next second, angrily, Misheru jumped up, accidentally knocking over her cup of juice.
"Of course it's bad! He wants to marry me!" she yelled and kicked a stone that landed in the closest bushes. Both boys looked after the stone and then slowly back to Misheru who didn't seem to be there anymore.
"Where did she go?- Didn't run off because of me, did she?" James asked shortly and got up to look around, scratching his head.
"I don't know, I could have sworn that she was standing here seconds ago" Kaji admitted and also looked around while he took a long sip of the juice.
"Are you two completely blind or just stupid?! I'm standing here!" Misheru snapped from the side and lifted her cup, which she filled with juice again.
"What are you talking about? We can only hear you. We don't see you" James snapped back, looked around further and saw the flying cup. At the same time, Kaji had seen the cup in the air too and gave a sharp scream.
"A ghost possessed her!" he screamed and grabbed the best thing to throw it at the supposed ghost. His cup of juice hit the figure and soaked it completely.
"What the hell, Kaji!" Misheru screamed angrily and threw her cup in his direction, which landed on the ground next to him.
"Leave you evil ghost! Your presence is not wanted! Give us Misheru back!" James shouted and threw himself on the 'ghost' which was now pressed to the ground.
"What rubbish are you talking about?! It's me!" the girl shouted and gave her friend a huge kick that made him scream.
"Okay eh, let's calm down. Misheru where are you exactly?" asked Kaji and looked around again to make sure she wasn't standing with him.
"Under this idiot here and now, get me out of here!" the girl snapped and moved under James who screamed again and immediately jumped off the so called ghost. A soaked and sticky Misheru appeared in front of the boys and wiped the fruit juice from her face.
"Have you completely lost your mind?! What are you throwing yourself at me and why are you throwing your cup at me!?" the girl screamed and looked angry at the boys.
"You just weren't there. Only your cup was floating" James shouted, rubbing his leg with painful sounds that Misheru had kicked.
"If that's one of your stupid jokes again, I'll kill you" she yelled and approached him while digging her finger into his chest and glaring at him.
"Eh Mimi? Your hand... is gone?" Kaji interjected from the side, careful not to anger his sister even more.
"I'll make sure that you're gone soon" she smirked at him and raised her hand to simulate a punch when she looked at her non-existent hand in shock. All the anger disappeared and was replaced with shock , there was nothing there, not a hand on her right arm, not even a finger. She quickly grasped the air and let out a sigh of relief when she felt her hand.
"It is still there" she sighed in relief and let out another breath of relief before punching James in the shoulder.
"Yes, it is 100% still there" he pressed out in pain and bit his lip because of the pain. Tense, Misheru continued to hold her invisible hand and shook it a few times.
"So you can make yourself invisible? I thought as your brother I knew everything about you" Kaji chuckled and grabbed her hand to take a closer look. Interested, he nudged the hand a few times and drew in a breath of shock when his finger vanished into thin air.
"How cool is that!" James shouted, touching her hand too and was missing a finger as well.
"I'm not an animal that you have to touch" the girl snapped and pulled her hand back to her, visibly annoyed, while the two boys fingers reappeared.
"That's crazy! You are a witch or something like that!" Kaji whistled enthusiastically and examined the hand a little more carefully, which was slowly emerging again.
"But how is that possible? There's no such thing as magic" Misheru mumbled and now sank back down on the blanket while the boys did the same.
"Well maybe she's not as unreal as you think, of course you are special" said James and briefly patted his friends head. They sat there digesting what they had just experienced and ate a few tarts in silence. There was silence while some birds were singing and some animals made sounds in the bushes.
"I'll come with you" James broke the silence after a few minutes and picked up the card to study it.
"Really? What about your family? They'd miss you terribly?" Misheru stated and grabbed a piece of fruit that she gnawed thoughtfully.
"Yeah, but someone has to take care of you otherwise your brother will kill me" joked James and took some of the fruit while he pulled out a pen and drew around on the map.
"Thanks James, what would I do without you" the girl sighed with a smile and laid back on the grass while she watched the clouds. The clouds were passing faster now and it seemed to be getting stormier. The air grew sultry and light raindrops pelted it. Nevertheless, the friends ignored this and did not allow themselves to be disturbed. Misheru had now closed her eyes and was enjoying the raindrops on her face while Kaji and James talked to each other. They spoke softly and concentrated while pens could be heard scratching on paper. After a while the girl felt someone shake her shoulder.
"Mimi, we have the plan ready~ Do you want to hear it? Then you can tell us if it is okay for you~" whispered her brother and brushed a strand of hair from her face while waving a piece of paper in the air.
"Show it to me" Misheru mumbled softly and yawned tiredly before she sat up. James sat down next to her and let her look at the map as he pointed to certain points.
"So we start here, of course, get on the train to Southampton and look for a ship there. If we're lucky one will run out tomorrow morning, I'll look at the plans later. Father keeps them in his study. Where we will end up after that is to be seen" he ended his short presentation and grinned contentedly as he fixed his hair.
"Sounds good, when do we meet?" Misheru asked and saw her friend who was thinking for a moment.
"I would say at midnight, at 0:30 there is a train to Southampton that takes about 7 hours to get there" he replied promptly and began to fold the map.
"But take care of my sister, I'll kill you James if she even gets a scratch" Kaji threatened and raised his finger in warning, which made everyone laugh.
"Don't worry, I'll protect her with my life", the boy promised and patted the other on the shoulder, a little scared anyway.
"But we should get going slowly. Mother and father are expecting us back soon because they still want to talk to us" interjected Misheru, who had looked at her pocket watch. A little sad that they had to go home now, the two siblings packed their things and said goodbye to the boy. It took Kaji a little longer because he just couldn't get away and kept running back to James to squeeze him and blush terribly afterwards. Finally, after a long hug and a few tears, James disappeared between the ruins while Kaji went home with Misheru.
"Where the hell have you both been?" shouted an angry voice as the two siblings got off the horse and handed it to a stable boy. In a black coat with a red tie and a top hat on his head, Yoshi Sato came up to his children in person and inspected them.
"Kaji where have you been and what does your sister look like?" he yelled and looked more closely at his daughter who just rolled her eyes.
"We were only with James and had a picnic with him" Kaji replied truthfully and handed the picnic basket to a maid who came running uo to them.
"Irresponsible, you both just disappear without saying anything and then to this kid" he hissed angrily and took one of Misheru's curls in his hand that he seemed to be inspecting. "What have you done again young lady. Have you now dared to lose your innocence to a filthy finch?!" Yoshi screamed angry and looked at his daughter.
"What do you mean, you lousy asshole, talking to me like that and thinking I would do that! And insulting James too" Misheru yelled back and tore the strand of her hair out of his fingers, glaring at her father angrily.
"That's... Kaji go to your mother and you Misheru you come with me" the older man shouted angrily before he grabbed his daughter by the arm and pulled her behind him. Kaji couldn't do anything about it because several servants dragged him to his mother. With a firm grip, Yoshi brought his daughter up to her room and literally pushed her into the pink nightmare.
"You naughty brat, how do you think you talk to your father?! I gave you a life, a home and everything you ever wanted and so do you thank me?! By interacting with an unsuitable man who does not meet my taste at all corresponds!?" the man yelled further at his daughter and pushed her onto a chair so that he could look down at her from above.
"And what is your taste?! This maggot Lord Nitobe?? I would never just touch him" she yelled back before she felt a stabbing pain on her cheek which made tears appered in her eyes.
"You naughty bitch! You will marry him and have 2 children as we decided! That is my last word" yelled Yoshi and glared at his daughter who just stared at him angrily.
"I'd rather be dead than see him again or touch him. Now leave my room, you are a horrible father" she roared and suddenly got up to be at eye level with him. Startled by his daughter's sudden reaction, he stumbled back and looked at her in shock.
"You are not my daughter! My Misheru would never have talked to me like that!" he shouted while nervously rubbing his hands and slowly stepping back to the door.
"Well, you should think about what you did!" Misheru shouted and finally pushed her father out of the room, slamming the door loudly. Angry, she kicked the first piece of furniture that came in her way and pulled herself vigorously by the hair.
"This life is a nightmare!" she yelled and angrily began to take off her dress as well as the tights.
Her shoes landed in the far corner of the room while she stomped into the bathroom in her underwear and turned on the water. She stared at the water which slowly filled the bathtub and sighed loudly. She wanted to leave now, but that would be way too early. It wouldn't do her any good and she would be all alone. When the bathtub was completely filled, she took off the rest of the things she was wearing and let herself slide into the warm water. Sighing, she looked down at herself and grumbled briefly when she noticed that her body was gone again. It was really all too much. The pressure, the problems, the arguments with everyone and now that too. But she didn't know how long it would take her to shake it all off.
After lying in the hot bath for about an hour and racking her head, she padded into the room in her nightgown. She quietly reached under her bed and pulled out a suitcase which she placed next to her bedside table as well as a brown leather bag. She had already put new clothes for the next day next to it and her shoes were freshly cleaned. Everything was perfect and ready, she just had to pack. Satisfied with herself and the world, she layed down in her bed and stretched. Indeed, she would miss such a soft bed. Tired, she stared up at the ceiling and yawned softly. All of this would soon be behind her and she could start a new, better life. Even if she didn't know where it was going and her new skills sometimes got in the way, she knew that she would somehow make it. She would marry the man she wanted and have as many children with him as she wanted. She would finally be free and never have to listen to anyone again. With a heavy heart she reached into her bedside drawer and pulled out a leather photo album that Kaji had given her for her birthday. There were memories from over 16 years in there, which was why it was relatively thick. Tired, she leafed through it a little, looked at the baby photos, while she grinned to herself. At some point she no longer knew what was happening because all she noticed was how slowly the book slipped out of her hand and her eyes closed. In the dream she had, she saw herself disappearing from this place with James. Her brother cheered them on and their families wept tears. She saw herself becoming happy at the side of a man and how she lived happily with him in a little house.
She woke up when it struck half past eleven. Half an hour later it would be time.