Chapter 3

The house Richard brought him to was in desperate need of repairs, to say the least. If it was a little less dilapidated, it would be beautiful.

A traditional Japanese house was rare to find these days, but every house in this town was one. Even the shops had an archaic theme to them. Kitty had discovered Japanese architecture when he was younger. The soldiers gave him a book about Japan back when he lived in the refuge camp. He couldn't read, so he looked at the pictures instead. One photo he was particularly drawn to was one of a house from 1185, one which still stood to this day even after thousands of years. He found it fascinating. He wanted to see one from the inside, but the book never showed that. But now, he was going to be living in one. The excitement bubbled up inside him.

As soon as they entered the house, Kitty could smell a burnt fragrance, like scorched roses mixed with smoke. It was surprisingly pleasant. When he asked what it was, Richard told him it was something called incense. It was burnt to purify the house to keep bad spirits out. This made Kitty a little frightened. Were the ghosts so bad in this town that people had to light sticks of dried flower gunk to stay safe? He also noticed that Richard took off his shoes when stepping into the house. He was a bit confused, but copied him and removed his own tattered trainers. They must not have liked mud in the house. The interior of the house was better than the exterior. Kitty had never been in a house so fancy. Actually, he'd never been in a house before. In the camp, everyone slept and lived in tents. There were toilets and bathing facilities on the premises. Other than that, you lived your whole life either in the tent or out of it, doing daily chores or socialising. It wasn't much of a home, though he liked to call it one. There were no hallways in this house. Every door led to another room. That must have been a bit confusing.

They walked through to the kitchen, Kitty still looking around in awe. This amazement then turned to anxiety. Who else was living here? Were they nice? Would he get along with them? Richard seemed to notice his nervousness. He smiled and gestured to a tall stool in front of the long table in the middle of the room.

"Sit down. I'll make you something to eat."

Kitty did as he was told. Richard began pottering around in the kitchen, gathering the supplies to make a sandwich. He put a strange red paste on it, which baffled Kitty. Weren't you supposed to put cheese or ham on a sandwich? He'd never seen anyone put red gloop on one before. He asked what this was, and Richard told him it was jam. Kitty ate it cautiously. It was good. Tasted like strawberry. Richard also got him a glass of milk, which he drank straight away. But after one bite, he abandoned the sandwich, even though it did taste nice. He didn't have much of an appetite right now.

"Where exactly am I, sir?" Kitty asked. "The buildings are so strange, but familiar, but they're not from where I come from."

Richard came over and sat down next to him. "You're far away from home, I'm sorry to say. We're in Japan. Do you know Japan?"

"I know a little about it." Kitty nodded. "Is it far away from America?"

"It's relatively further away, but not too much. About an eleven hour plane ride."

A painful knot bubbled up in Kitty's stomach. Eleven hours wasn't too far away, but none of his family could afford to board a plane or boat. How on earth would they get to him? Unless they could swim for a week, it was impossible to get to Japan from America without some mode of transport. Tears filled his eyes again. He wiped them away before they could fall, mentally chastising himself for being such a crybaby.

It seemed that Richard noticed his misery, as he changed the subject. "So, tell me more about you. What are your hobbies?"

"Hobbies?" Kitty was genuinely stumped. "I don't really have any. I like colouring and doodling."

"Is that it?" Richard raised an eyebrow.

"There's not a lot to do in a refuge camp in the middle of nowhere. The soldiers would bring us toys and books. But most of us couldn't read, so they were only picture books." Kitty twirled a strand of his blond hair around his finger. "Most of the time, we just sat around talking to each other or doing chores, like growing food and collecting water. Stuff like that."

"That's..." Richard paused, before chuckling, "Incredibly boring."

"What else do people do?" Kitty grumbled, frowning at the table. He wasn't boring.

Richard smiled. "Things are a lot different here. We have more to do, things that are more fun. We have technology, so you can listen to music and watch TV." He got up, picked up a black mug and put a triangular sack full of black dust in it. He offered some to Kitty, calling it tea, but he declined. "Granted, we don't have as much technology as some cities, but we're still better off than where you came from. No offence."

He was a little offended. It wasn't like he was primitive or anything. "We had music and TV. People used to sing and play instruments, and we had a portable TV with a few movies." He said with pride. "We didn't have a ton or nothing, but they were all so good, no one complained."

With a polite nod, Richard returned to the table, his tea prepared. "Well, we have many movies and professionally created music here. I think you'll enjoy it."

Kitty smiled back at him, then the reality of his situation came flooding back. He felt guilty for feeling even a shred of happiness.

"Do you think..." Kitty began, then reworded what he was going to say. "Why do you think you couldn't find my family?"

With a short sympathetic glance at Kitty, Richard stared at the mug in his hands. He opened his mouth to speak, then closed it before sighing. "I'm sorry, but I'm not sure. They could have moved to a different area, they could be out looking for you-"

"They could be dead." Kitty interrupted with a hollow expression. He was avoiding saying it, but he had to accept the possible truth. He couldn't live in a fantasy forever.

Richard perused Kitty's face. "It's a possibility, yes." Richard tapped his mug with his fingernail. "But we'll do our best to find them, if they're out there. Our hacker is searching as hard as she can."

That didn't make Kitty feel any better, but he was grateful for the comfort effort. He nodded and thanked Richard for everything he was doing for him.

The door to the kitchen clacked open and a lady with wavy brown hair, dark skin and a baby pink dress stepped inside. She gave Kitty a sweet smile.

"Hello. I'm Claire Beaumont. It's OK, I already know your name." She said. Kitty noted her French accent. She bounced over to him, her hair bobbing with every step. "How are you doing? I know you've been through a lot, but we're here to help you however we can."

"Thanks." Kitty smiled despite himself. He appreciated their concern and help, but he just wanted to be alone right now. He didn't want to be a burden on anyone, so he would hold in his emotions in front of them. He chewed his lip. "Sorry, but would you mind if I went outside? I need some air."

Claire nodded her head with a sorrowful face. "Of course. But please be careful. You need to keep your wits about you around here. There's a lot of shady people."

This made Kitty a little worried, but he put it to the back of his mind. He needed to get out of there. He needed to be on his own for a bit.

He excused himself from the table and left the room. He struggled to find his way out of the house. It was like a maze. He was too stressed to think it was interesting right now. He just wanted out.

After opening too many doors for his liking, he was back in the entranceway. He put his dirty shoes back on and stepped outside. He inhaled, exhaled, and began walking as far away as he could. As soon as he was further from the house, far enough for them not to be able to hear, he started crying. More like wailing. He couldn't hold it in anymore. He cried so hard his head ached. He couldn't breathe through his sobs. The intensity of his tears blocked out the sound of two pairs of footsteps coming closer.

"Are you OK?"

Kitty turned to the source of the voice and saw two men, two humans, standing before him.