After a Long Day...

Chapter Seven —————— We went back shortly. Don't get me wrong, the way back was fun too. Prox softly requested, "Master, it's getting kinda hot. Do you wanna head back?" And after another long glance at the garden, I answered, "sure." I didn't realize how worn out I was until we headed back on the trail. It was a straightforward way back to the inn from there. "Master, lunch!" "I was gonna mention that too!" There was a big place in town where we could enjoy the atmosphere if I remember correctly. It was just a large brown building, but at least there wouldn't be smoke filling our noses. "A table for three?" A waiter was already present. We saw tourists bunched up in one place for the first time since we got off the train. I let out a long breather once I sat down promptly. "Silver, where are we going next? Master said I can go to the beach today!" That's the first time she's initiated a conversation with Silver. Wow. Maybe she can befriend other people soon on her own. "We are. I'm gonna stay here for a while to relax first." "Me too, Master." And it was a while before any of us spoke again. My hands were drooping in laziness, preventing me from opening the menu. Prox had it open near me, of course. "Prox, what about broth… and rice and fish for us?" "Okayy~" she winked. Was she trying to charm me or something? I tossed my order at the waitress and she went gliding back to to kitchen. "Rowl. Remember the lab?" I didn't feel unpleasant hearing that since I got over what happened a long time ago. "The crystals you made. They had everything, right?" "Yeah. The 'hard drives' I was referring to were already burnt when I handed them to you. Whoever did this must have been watching us react to their doing. I had at least that much in mind when I drove my bike over." I sat back and smiled cunningly. "Wait.. so those drives were fake?" "You still have them?" "They're back in my basement. I don't know where they are, but they're there." "The fruit of your research. The findings of my plans. They're all in the crystals. Remember my hype on quantum computers? You could store everything a computer store on Black Friday has—all in a few atoms if you do it right. Of course, I used a few tiny Niobium crystals, packed them into my favorite gemstones, and gave them to everyone." "..." Silver paused, realizing what I had truly done. "So that means.. everyone has their own copy of everything, if I'm not mistaking you for the guy I know you are." "Bingo." I eyed him even more tense for the sake of drama. Prox was basically napping, so I could continue to binge up the story with the petty details. "I didn't consider that anyone would betray or begrudge a poor little lab like ours. I can't think of anything right now that they would have wanted. But anyway, I'm the only one who knows where everything is stored. And while at least one of us is alive, our progress hasn't flamed up." "You act like it's fine if the rest die. Sigh. I'm not mad—I know what you mean." "Okay." "We can put the lab back together. Well, probably not that pile of tiles.. and bricks.. but what about just using new equipment?" "I'm much more worried about who did this than getting back there. True, though; I'll need some money eventually to keep living with Prox on our own." I looked at her again and smiled warmly. "Prox.... Prox is from the other world, remember?" Silver didn't seem to remember anything we did with that portal. It was purely an experiment to the other world. It was my idea, and I wanted to test it. I guess it worked— someone from the lab was sent in once the portal started working and came back alive. He was covered in snow which turned into a sort of white corn starch. I don't remember much, but the portal shut off right after. Silver started talking right as the trays came. Prox pounced her head off her arms, ending her nap. "Still… who could have had the nerve to flame-" "Master, these carrots. So red!" "Yeah. It's time for lunch. We all ought to take a break now." The rice was nice and fluffy. I reached for it first, and Prox reached for her fish over my arm. We laughed. It was the most fun I had in a while. A man with blonde hair sat in the table next to us, watching her curiously. He smiled at us when a woman took the chair across him. She was holding babies too— twins. "Master, do you want some of my fish?" "Okay.. I guess." She had a large smile on her face. I loved how much fun she always had. "Master, look!" Prox held a carrot in front of her face. She held it up and dropped it into her mouth. She took another one and tossed it up, catching it. I didn't pay any more attention and wanted to start on my food soon enough. But once I got away from her, it was Silver's turn. Of course. "Rowl, what are you working on back home again?" "Wings. They're robotic and awesome, and I used aluminum flaps." "To make them light?" "Yes," I said, taking another sip of water. "They're thin and powerful enough to easily fly. I put a couple of thrusters on the back for now but I want to recreate flapping soon." "Good luck." "Master, can I swim at the beach? There's water there, right?" "I don't know. You could get dirty easily. The water is salty." "Who put salt in the water?" I didn't respond, but instead waited until she saw the beach for herself. "I want to swim at the pool again, then. Master, can you come too?" It wouldn't take any energy to just stay in the water, so I agreed. "Okay." I didn't realize she liked the pool that much. I left cash on the table and made sure someone came to collect it before we left. The inn was surprisingly nearby and no more than a four-minute-walk all the way to our room. I put in the key, twisted, and pushed. It didn't open. Oh. It's my house key. Would you look at that? This time, I took out the correct key and opened the door. Prox dove headfirst into the pillows and stuffed herself under the blanket. "You should take a shower if you're gonna sleep." I tried to wake her up. She only relaxed more in her spot. "We came from outside. And walked all the way to the garden. You have to wear a swimsuit too anyway, remember?" I took out our towels and set them aside on the table for now. It was kind of hot just an hour ago, sure, but not enough to make you sweat. I guess it would be fine for now. Besides..- "Master, do you want to sleep too?" "Actually..." I couldn't decide whether I was really tired or not, but this was another chance to see Prox's face up close. "Sure then." "Rowl, can you hand me that milk? It's on the table. For coffee?" I indeed saw a steaming cup of coffee in front of him. I couldn't tell which kind. There were containers and pouches on the side of the closet from the inn for us to use. There were no microwaves, so he must have gone downstairs to heat it. "Here." I handed one of the pouches over to him, realizing they were all the same. Right after, I joined Prox in bed, trying to get into what space was left under the blanket. It was almost attached to the bed, or at least tightened around some mattress. She was seriously a bundle of blankets. I was surprised when I found an eye staring back at me. "Master, do you have any space to fit in?" "Well, it's not a big bed." "Then I'll make more room." She climbed on top of me and lay in a position to sleep. Something big and plushy came in the way and distanced our heads. I flushed and she bantered me about it. She didn't look like she was going to get up again, so I pet her ears and let her be. It got hot real quick, so I peeled off the blanket. My eyes opened, and it was the middle of the afternoon judging by the sunlight blinding me. "Did Prox wake you up?" Silver asked. "No, I got up of my own accord." Prox was still sleeping, and I found her on my side this time. She was rolled up in sheets and was clearly uncomfortable from the heat. I wonder if she liked the cold better. "Aah." I pulled myself off the bed and tried to take the blankets off her. She was holding them, unconscious why she was in discomfort. "Prox.. Prox?" I didn't want to be annoying waking her up. She did expend the most energy of any of us, like always, so it made sense for her to be like this. One of her eyes opened. She really was cute lying like that with her wavy hair spread down on the pillow and her ears spaced apart and relaxed. I almost wanted to pet them again. She yawned. "Master…? Master." She looked out the window to check the time of day. "Phew. I didn't sleep until night. We can still go to the pool, right Master?" "Yes. It's good we didn't rest too long." "Master, I feel kind of dizzy." "It's because you just got up. Don't worry, it's normal." I assured her. She knew that we had to change first, so we got into the bathroom. I pulled out her swimming clothes from last time, making sure they were sufficiently clean to wear again. She always tried to get me to change her clothes for her—she hates the static shocks she gets after she tries putting them on. "Master, what's wrong?" Her presence alone was candy for my eyes every time. It was delightful seeing anyone, of course. "Nothing. I'll get changed now. You can get your towel from the table right outside the bathroom we're in." Silver gestured that he was going to stay in, so I stepped out with Prox and closed the door. I left the keys with Silver since it obviously wasn't a good idea to bring them into a pool or leave them on a table. I had my hopes up—I wanted to talk about something intriguing with Prox for once. "The pool's probably just as warm as last time. I can go in first." "I kinda wanna try jumping in. Master, move aside!" She actually cannonballed in. Did she seek inspiration from Silver? "Master, come in too!" So I came in too, but by stepping in bluntly. Prox walked forward into the water and walked straight to hug me. She first went down and looked up with her eyes turning smug, then climbed on me, pushing me down into the water except for my head. She then pillowed me and fawned over me even more. "Master, you get red so easily~" "N-no. Prox, what are you trying to do?" "Win you, Master." "…" Doesn't she mean seduce? And for the fun of it!? She put us at an even level again and tried to ride on me like a boat. I went with it and swam forward. Or tried to, only to start sinking before I did my first stroke. I lifted her legs on my shoulders and stepped around. It was somewhat easier than doing it normally because I didn't have to worry as much about my weight. She made a beaming smile and I walked around to the deeper side, wanting her to float around now. "Prox, do you remember your world? The other world." There was a lot of bedlam surrounding it. The extreme temperatures from the test. The mysterious description Prox first gave of it. But now I wanted to shine more light on the darkness. "Yes. Master, you asked me once. I think. It doesn't have anything compared to this world. There's high mountains made of rock and small villages people live in. They look a lot like me. The air is always foggy and white. It's also cold and there's blizzards. They make it super cold." "Woah." "I wasn't able to stand the boring place I lived in for so long, so I went away. I tried going far. Very far. " She was toggling with the water, equipped with a look that said she was struggling with remembering everything rather than being serious. "I was wandering around, and I could barely find shrubs or trees. Back at the mountain where my small village was, I ate meat cooked by other people and tried to play with other kids. But after I went alone, there wasn't any meat, because I didn't know how to hunt." "When did you come here, like, what were you doing?" "You saved me, Master. I was walking around. And I realized it was just as bleak as back home. But I wanted to find somewhere fun to live. I could wish for that from the Orbis Annulus. But I fell into this world and found my life. Thank you, Master." "Oh.. you're welcome. Thanks for everything too! You're the best person I could ever ask to be with." Orbis Annulus, meaning 'World Ring'? It must be some sort of special artifact. I'll ask her about it later. I didn't realize why she valued me to the caliber she did until now. It clicked and my eyes opened wide. She truly would have lost hope if it weren't for the portal. This world is the perfect place for her, there's no doubt about it. "Prox, do you want to stay here? Do you like it here more than anything?" "Of course! Master, I love you." Her voice softened gracefully. "Me too," I replied sentimentally. "Prox, I want to see your world. It might be a better place than it was last time, right? And I was working on learning about it anyway." "That's nice. But how are you going to get there?" "It's complicated, but I think I can." "Good luck, Master. I don't want to ever be apart from you, so make sure you can come back! Is it dangerous?" "No, I don't think so. I will try building another portal when we go back home, okay? So there's nothing to worry about right now." "Okay… another? So you built a portal already?" "Yeah. Silver and other people at a place I used to work before it caught fire—we built a portal." "Is it the place I came here first?" "Yes. The lab." We both relaxed on the side of the pool, branching our arms behind our backs onto the concrete above. It felt just as hot as before I stepped into the pool. The research which led me to all this happening was part of my forte. I used an extremely dense gravitational field to completely flip space-time at the epicenter of the portal. What I didn't foresee was that there would be another world on the other side. There are two parities the universe could take; it turned out that there was a universe with each of them, making the other world technically the 'mirror world'. The alternative world is on the other side of the fabric of the same space. It's the counterpart to ours. I took Prox's imagery of it always being misty and coined its name: The Caligo.

Chapter Eight —————— "When is Silver coming?" "I don't know. He should be coming down the stairs soon. Are you cold in your swimsuit?" "No. Thanks for the big towel, Master! Feel me, I'm warm. See?" She placed my hand on her belly. It was pretty warm —the sun did a great job heating us up while we dried on the chairs. I was afraid my hand felt too cold, though. "Yes. We're about to go to the beach by going on an enjoyable walk there, so we don't need to hurry. Or maybe we do. It's bad if it gets too cold." "Then we can see the stars." "Yeah, but the ocean makes the air around colder, especially at night." She was avid to go, so she didn't want to wait all day for Silver. Then a pair of old sandals clanked down the staircase. "Lads, let's go. Sorry for the wait." "Prox, your physics are nice." "What?" "Nothing." By the time we stepped out again, the warm air swept my face. We turned around a shop and entered the main area of town. "The ground is so shiny and orange." "It's almost sunset. Yeah." The buildings around us were bustling far more than they were just a few hours ago, restaurants and stores alike. It seemed most people were inside them, dining and chatting. There were people heading the same way as us too—the beach. In fact, I could already see it in the distance. "Master, my tail is hard to keep in my shorts. I think it's getting out." Every time she wore them, I tried bending it around and tucking, and let it free once Prox went inside the pool. But this time, I can't hide it in water. Maybe I could finally let her reveal herself. It couldn't be that bad even if we attracted attention. "Prox, you can let out your tail. I know it's been hard to hide it for so long." "Huh? Okay, Master, but are you sure?" "Yes. Don't worry about hiding it anymore." With that, she toggled her shorts, out of which her tail springed out. She rejoiced and curled it up and down. "Thank you, Master! Now I feel more free." Silver smiled at her. "Woah, we're at the beach. It's so sandy..." I looked for a place to sit down. "This is a good spot, right?" "Yeah." There was slightly darker sand than the sand at the outskirts of the beach. The sand was just humid enough and soft, and the ground was covered in sharp rocks. I didn't want it to be too wet or too hot, but it felt ample once I sat down. I dove my hand into the sand and let it sprinkle like an hourglass. Prox took off her sandals and was astonished by how it felt to be on the beach. She was in the moment so much she didn't have any words for me. "It's still warm. Look, I can see the sand on your feet." "Wow, I didn't notice." She was delighted to the point of not wearing sandals at all. "You should still be careful of the rocks. Let's go near the water." "Yes!" The beach was ironically quiet, just the waves hitting the shore and a few people here and there. I took Prox to the boundary made by the waves. Speaking of waves, a big one was coming our way. It was tall and strong, and it would take us by surprise. I felt like it could reach past us easily. "Master, I don't want to get wet anymore. I might get too cold." "It's okay. It'll only reach some part of your legs." The wave came crashing down, washing the beach away and then the next one came. Both of them layered up and washed our knees. Our feet were sunken in sand by the time the waves cleared. "Master, I'm getting buried." "Haha, yeah." Prox reached down to feel the water gush through her fingers and probably to wash the sand off of them. I was feeling chilly already and got saved by what I saw when I turned around—a grill only across the beach. I looked back and made sure Prox didn't fall on any rock due to the waves. "Let's get a picture. It's gonna look amazing!" "That's exactly what I was thinking, Master!" I took out my phone and showed Prox the camera screen. She corrected her hair after seeing herself. "Okay, are you ready?" "Yes!" Silver had already walked next to us, ready. The first photo was of the beach, which was lit up by the rainbow sunset. I zoomed out the camera to fit the three of us and took the photo. "That looks great! Look, look! You look so cool!" "I do?" I was surprised by the way my hair was thrown to the side by the wind in a glamorous way. Silver always looked like that, though. He might want to keep it just as much as me. "Should I send you it, Silver?" "Yes. Thanks." The water was too cold for me to stand in forever. I walked back to where we set our bags down and started digging a hole in the sand. I piled it up everywhere around the hole until the sand was too stiff for me to burrow with my bare hands. I started making a sandcastle out of the piles. I stared at the sun until it became a cool-looking white circle. That was something only I would do. I batted my eyelids and changed my view to some clouds, remembering back to what brought me to that lab. I just wanted to be on the other side of the screen. You know, when watching people with amazing talent show up on TV. "The water here isn't soapy. There's almost no white at all!" Silver remarked. The cold water could be insidious and even make Prox sick if she stayed there too long. I walked back to where she was standing, still looking all around at the vast ocean which stretched past the horizon we could see. "Prox, it's not safe to stand in cold water for so long. Let's go back over there." "Huh? Oh, okay. Master, there's blue everywhere." Well, that's true. "Nevermind." "I'll come, Master. I think I spent too much time in water today. Can we eat dinner now, please?" "Sure. I'll get Silver." My feet sunk into the sand with every step toward the warmer rear of the beach. I didn't know how I would get the sand off of my arms and legs. Or all of us for that matter. It was salty, too, so we would have to wash it somewhere else. Just then, I saw a few people lined up at a small spot with a pipe. "Let's go over there first," I said, pointing, "Prox, you have to wash your hands and feet before we go to the grill." "What grill?" "The restaurant over there." "That's so nice of them. I hope it's as good as the one we went to for lunch." "Me too." A big man with thick eyebrows was at the hose, and no one was using it. By the look of it, they were waiting for something. He started switching and turning the lever on the bibb faucet until a few drops came out. He twisted it clockwise and back again and water poured out of the faucet. "Thanks so much." People in line smiled. "No trouble. Ask the counter." When he turned, he was wearing a tourist guide-type shirt and went to a small building neighboring the grill we were going to. "Master, what happened? Was it broken?" "Yeah. He fixed it." When it was our turn, Prox stepped forth right away to use it. She was covered plenty in sticky water and sand. She spent a long time rinsing each spot, but rightfully so—it didn't get off easily. Silver and mine were quick. "Silver, we can talk more about the Caligo here." "Sure can." We walked into the diner and a small crowd in front of us split to give us an opening. I led the others to a table in the middle, but away from the entrance. The dialogue around me sounded brusque and lively. Prox flipped open the menu set on the table first. "Master, all of this is barbecue." "That's… the point." "Okay then. Let's get the blocky ones on skewers. You might enjoy them the most." "How will I eat them off of a stick?" "I'll show you. Anyhow, the steaks are really expensive, so do you guys want bread?" "I snacked on your chips back at the hotel, so I can just have the barbecue." Silver informed. "WHA-!?" "Sorry. I didn't know you were going to even eat them, Rowl. You and Prox spent so long at the pool and I was waiting…" "Sure. It doesn't matter. Anyway, what about you, Prox?" "Yes!" The waitress walked toward us just then. "Do you want some of the town's favorite specialties? We can serve any of our dishes with sauce for the same price!" "Okay then—two large skewers with sauce. And add bread to both of them. And one more skewer but without anything." "Three in total, right?" "Yeah." "I'll come to charge you before you leave, okay?" She turned around and walked back toward the counter, handing a paper over to a chef. I realized how steamy the kitchen was by all the steam going off and the workaholic environment in there. We were in quite a busy place. "Thanks," said Silver. "It's good." My attention shifted to Prox as she called for me. "Master." "Hm?" "How do you know how to do all of this? Have you traveled by yourself before like this?" Asking out of awe, huh? "No. Not really. Silver did all the booking after all. I always order at places by myself back home, right?" "That makes sense now.. Thanks, Silver." "It's a pleasure," he replied, closing his eyes. "Silver, the Caligo. I don't know how to get the materials…" "You'll have trouble finding those without the real lab. Will you even be able to recreate such a portal?" "I'm the one who proposed it in the first place. Of course." "Peep." Prox made a ring with her hand and looked through. I noticed her tail was still out, waving around publicly. A child walking behind her seat got hold of it and brushed her fingers around it out of interest. Her face instantly reddened from insecurity. "H-hey, can you please let go of my tail?" The girl was even more astonished when she saw her ears moving. She let go of it out of fear and sprinted somewhere else. "Are you okay, Prox?" "Yes, Master." I stared at the ceiling fan for a moment, then continued conversing with Silver about the Caligo. I couldn't take my eyes off the half-lit moon out the window. "I just need the strange matter. How would I get that in a manageable time?" "True. I can get some from the collider… Oh. It burned down along with the lab. Or probably burst its composition and can't function anymore." "That's fine, then. I made one at home. I can improvise it to be more efficient." "In your personal lab!? That's impressive to say the least. You're on your own then—Good luck…" "Yeah. Wait, do you remember where the laundromat is?" "No." "But we need our clothes." "Don't worry. It was near the hotel, so I'm bound to find it. I can just ask if I lost it." "Do you know which washer you put our clothes in?" "Yes. Don't have such premature anxiety about it." A waiter came with two black, smoking trays and set them flat in front of us. He scurried to the counter to fetch drinks —fizzing coke in tall glasses—and handed each of us a glass. "Here you go. Enjoy!" He ran back to the kitchen before I could thank him. Must be busy with all these customers. "Ha. It's here." I grabbed one and dipped the spice-coated cube on its head into the sauce laid on the side. Prox tried it too but made a weird face after her first bite. She didn't put it near the sauce afterward. None of us spoke a word until all of us were done. "Should we go?" "No, Master. I want to stay here. The fan is batting the heat away." "So… was the water cold?" "Yeah, Master, but I liked that. Also, I have something I just remembered about the other world—my world, I mean." "You do? Is it about the Orbis Annulus?" "No, I don't think it has anything to do with that. I remember being told tales of men who used to oppress us. They were a higher species…" Both Silver and me immediately sat at the edge of our chair, hearing news so interesting it seemed like it came out of thin air. After pausing to recollect her memory, Prox continued. "They were clad in gray and never showed theirselves. There were rumors that if they did, they would die, but I don't know how true that is. They weren't the worst, but they trapped a lot of us. They had technology and tools nobody understood, so that's probably why I haven't been told about what it even looked like." "Weren't they just a powerful race? A race, like yours, but different." "No, anyone who tried to resist them were powerless, and in the end, nobody knew who they were or where they came from. I'm sure that they weren't from here. I mean, my world. They hid underground for some reason, and were eventually wiped out as part of a mythical divine judgement." I'm stupid. I entirely forgot to ask about details I should have been curious about. Ones I could use to identify what her world was like! "Prox, there must have been a star, or stars, for your planet. Right?" "Yes. There was a big one and some nearby ones. They were annoying when they got in my eye, so I like this world better. It has a beautiful moon too, and my world doesn't." "You're just sheepishly complaining at this point." Neither of us had a solid reason to speak, so we remained silent. "I might sleep here if we stay too long." As Silver indeed, the waitress from before came to collect her coins. "That was really something." "All done?" the waitress checked. "It's going to be seven thousand yen." I counted the cash in my wallet and gave her the sum. "Here, ma'am." I drowsily got out of my chair and my eyes blacked out. Maybe I needed more rest than fun right now. "Let's go now. Let's head back." "Okay." Prox almost skipped the whole way. My eyes met our room door at last. '306', it read. There were rooms just like our decks around the halls. "Master, I want to try putting in the key." "Sure. Here," I said as I put it in her palm. I looked down at the nighttime pool while Prox was attempting to find out how to use a key. There were a couple of friends sitting on the chairs, chatting just like we did. It was a quiet inn overall. She opened it, took off her sandals near the entrance inside, and immediately shook her hair. Water dropped left and right. She must have gotten water in her hair at the beach. "I wanna sleep.." "Let's sleep then, Master." "Master, can I read on your laptop?" "I guess so. You can watch stuff instead, though." "Nevermind. I don't need to kill time if I always want something lively." How can she have any energy left? The current night would be the last for this trip. It was surrounded by forests and there was no guarantee they would have any internet. I hadn't gotten on the computer once since stepping foot her. But that's a good sign. Prox was already playing with the window locks, unable to open it. "Wasn't it cold outside?" "I just got a little bit chilly. But I don't want it to get too hot either when I sleep" "We're in a cabin room. We should be fine. It's perfectly warm, right?" "Yeah. You always make good decisions, Master!" I chucked. "Thanks." Prox started to mess with the disks and the DVD player inside a cabinet. She dusted them off first. "You know, you probably can't play them. There isn't even a DVD or cassette player in here." "Aww." "Sorry. I guess you'll have to wait until we head back to watch anything. I just realized—there's likely no internet." "That would be nice. I can't wait to watch some stuff." "Same. Are you interested in a show or something?" "No. It gives me more time to enjoy with you, Master." Wow, her fidelity is really something.

Chapter Nine —————— "I didn't remember any duty left for me to tend to before bed, other than brushing my teeth. I quickly got that done in front of a hospitably large mirror in which I could see Prox's reflection. She was on her knees atop Silver's bed, looking widely out the window at the town and sky. The moon was there too, flaunting its light zealously for all to admire. I made my way to the bed and let the others do as they wished… "Master?" I softly opened my eyes to find a pair of red, decorated pajamas weighing down me. And her wearing them. She was sitting with her legs split and was facing toward me. An erotic reaction ensued, of course. I looked at the clock up on the wall overhead. It was ten. Why am I so tired anyways? It's not that late. "Yeah, Prox?" "Aren't you going to change your clothes?" "... that's tru-" "Why do I feel something hard underneath?" "It's nothing. Probably a belt." No. She won't fall for that. We know every inch of each other after living together for nearly two years. Wait, years…? "Prox, when's your birthday? We never celebrated it because you said you didn't have one." "Yes. At home—My old one, there's no celebrations for each of us. Only one for victories and when our community becomes older. Anniversaries." "Oh. That's kind of sad." "It's okay. We're told the month we're born in. For me, it was June but closer to July." "Wait, what do you mean? Victories?" My breath was running out. I ought to sleep after all. "When monsters come, the small ones, they said. People defend us from them, and then we hold a feast. It happened all the time, yet I don't think I've seen the monsters with my own eyes." I got up and sat with the pillow behind my back."Okay. Do you remember anything else?" "No. The artifact, maybe? It's from a fun tale—that it can grant any wish. It's called… the Orbis Annulus." I recognized the form of the words. "Isn't that latin? I know the second part means ring. Probably translates to World Ring." I gestured a circle with my hands. "Woah." "Prox, can you get off? It's… distracting me." "I know you. You like it, don't you, Master?" She saw right through me. More concerning, though, was the fact that Silver in the same room overhearing all of this! "Anywayy, when should we hold your birthday when it comes the next year around?" "Let's do June twenty-fifth!" "It's decided!" I slipped under the covers once again. She didn't want to disturb me by how she was curling on the side, slowly coming in along with me. Right, the lights! I don't want to make Silver an errand machine, though. "Master, your clothes are the same. You said to change them from the beach, but you forgot to." "Of course…" At least I could turn off the lights now. I dragged my bag into the restroom, dimmed the lights, and slid the door shut. I was about to take off my shirt, but that was when two pieces of fur caught my eye. It was Prox. Whatever, it's just a couple of pieces. I proceeded, then flipped the light switch, got out, and went back to bed. It sure felt better in new clothes. World Ring? It sounds awesome. I hope it's not rudimentary. My alarm was the first to go off, so I slapped my phone and sat up. A minute passed before I actually opened my eyes. Prox was cuddling the blanket again and had a grip on my left arm. I wanted to work on the portal; I was already excited to. "Prox?" She opened her eyes almost immediately in response. "Hello." "The train leaves at ten. It's…" I looked at my phone, "almost nine. We can eat breakfast, but Silver's car takes half an hour to get there." "Let's leave, then, Master." She rubbed her eyes while stretching, then climbed onto me. "Come on. Wake up Silver!" I got out of bed and walked over to his bed. He already had his eyes open because of the noise. "It's been fun, mate." "We're going on the same train, though." "Right! Forgot," he awkwardly said, putting his glasses on. Breakfast was served until nine downstairs, according to the innkeeper. We didn't have all the time in the world, so the best we could do was pick up a warm box from the counter. Their style of making meals in boxes was awfully convenient. "I'll go get three boxes from downstairs. I can't get them if I wait too long, so can we eat them outside?" "Master, the town is nice." "But that's still a few minutes away. There's plenty of benches on the way." "That's a good idea," commended Silver. "Prox, are you fine with it?" "Of course, Master!" We walked out of the room without changing and grabbed one each. Prox got stuck between two boxes with differentcolored designs. "They're the same." "Wait, really?" She took the yellow one and ran to catch up with me. Sure enough, we found a bench right around the back of the inn. There was a better sight with bushes up ahead, so I walked there instead. There was a large arbor too, and it had a short bench in it. Silver realized it too. "I can eat without sitting," he proposed. "No, no. That's fine." "Master, I can sit in your lap if there isn't room!" "But I can't eat then. And you're heavy." "Sit in mine then!" "Prox, that isn't the solution to everything…" Can she harbor it, though? She took a seat at the far edge and left no room for me to sit there. "Here, on my legs. Please?" I sat down because she wanted to, but didn't ever intend to eat like that the whole time. She had just enough width for me to sit. "See?" "Doesn't this hurt?" "Not really." Silver tried to hold in his laugh. My embarrassment leaped, so I sat down on her side instead. "I can't just sit there the whole time. I'll eat here." "Okay!~" It turned out there was space for another if Prox and Silver sat partly on the edge. Even so, we clearly couldn't keep it that way, so they sat facing away from each other. Prox wanted otherwise, but she went with it. I opened it and finished before I thought I would. To my surprise, she wasn't as hungry as usual. Is she actually trying to take it slow for once? Her eyes were fixated on the depth of leaves in the tall bush in front of her. "Prox. It might have been an accident—that you came here at all. But everything became better for you, right?" She redirected her attention. "Yes." "If I didn't meet you, I would still be reconciling myself with fake friends I make up in my diaries." "What does that mean?" "I didn't really have anyone if it weren't for you. You saved me, in a way." "Aww, Master. You saved me too. I was so scared and hopeless from being alone. You took me in without hesitating." Heh, I have to wonder why... "Thank you, Master. Thank you so much." She held my hand. I could see the border of a shadow over it. I had a feeling she might get teary-eyed. "Prox." "Y-Yes?" "We're as attached as anything could be. Don't forget that. There's no way I would let you be alone again. And have to be without me." I didn't move toward her since she was still... nevermind. Her box had nothing but crumbs left. She advanced toward me and suddenly kissed me, my shoulders in her grasp. I didn't think anything and let her. "You're right. I will never forget. I can't, Master." I still had crumbs on my face, though; She started licking my face and pressed me down. I laughed and put the box down behind my head. I didn't know how much longer she wanted to stay like this, but my train of thought was the same as hers: wanting this to last forever. I finally got up and walked to throw away my box. Prox got on her feet too. Her chest bounced as she hurdled toward me. Then I remembered. "Prox, we have to run! For the train." "Yes, Master. Silver, hurry, we need to get to the car!" We already had our bags packed up, since we didn't really take much out, but they were back in our room. Silver headed to the car parked in a parking lot nearby. He didn't use the car after all during our stay. None of us knew about the nature of the town. I, on the other hand, ran up to our room to get our stuff. Prox dutifully picked up bags with me. After equipping my backpack, I took the stairs down. It was my last glance at the pool before I left. It really is big. I was already panting by the time we hit the lobby, but Prox, of course, gleamed for more action. "Where did Silver go?" "The car. Yes, the garage somewhere outside, Master." "Let's get him" I walked behind the wall of trees to see Silver waving. He motioned for us to get in and we did exactly that. "I need to kick the pedal, or our clock's gonna tick!" Silver spoke in fashion, even in a time like this. The car slowly backed out while turning, then zig-zagged around the bushes in the middle of the parking lot. It was open-skied to the vast blue above us. It finally got out, and I rested my head against the window to my right. Prox looked through the moonroof in awe, watching the clouds slowly pass by. There wasn't an end to the random huts on the side of the road before we got to the forest. Prox gasped. "Master, that's where I fell!" She pointed to the cliffside we couldn't forget about. The one atop the mountain we hiked. "I'm glad I could recover quickly." "True." She was wearing gray pajama pants from last night, and above her belly button, a navy blue crop-top. It was much closer to a shirt, though. I looked back out the window and opened it. Comfy air lazed my face as I set it outside. I felt Prox in my lap not that soon after. "Master, it feels so nice." "Yeah." I took my hand over her arms and held her so she could sit back. She took out the kitten magnet I got her a few days earlier and looked at it. Then she put it back in her pocket and leant her head out the window. She opened her mouth to let her tongue catch the breeze. Meanwhile, I closed my eyes. "Master, it's here." Prox had her hands on my shoulders and her large green eyes in my face. I looked to the right and saw us parked at the station. "Yeah. We have to go, then." I got our bags from the front and handed Prox hers. Silver went to the desk to hand over the renting card for the car. The train was already here and was about to leave in a few minutes. "I registered our tickets online. Let's retrieve them from the counter." "I'll tell them our names." "Sounds good." Me and Silver walked to the short line behind the desk, but realized there was a ticket claim on the side too. I walked there instead. "Rowl, Prox, and Ludwig Silver. Three tickets for that train," I gestured to the one currently parked. "Okay." The lady shuffled folders and entered something on a small computer to validate us. A printer started whirring and printed our tickets on a single page. She clipped them and handed them to us. "Was it Prox? We'll need your headband off for your I.D. next time." "Huh? Okay." Prox caught on to what she meant—her thought-to-be-fake ears. I noticed her tail was already tucked into her pants. She probably felt nervous being weirded out in a large crowd, so she hid it for now. "It's all fine. You can let it out on the train. Nothing will happen even if you look different." I pet the top of her head. "Thanks, Master. I kind of understand." We both walked over to the train. The station was filled with people rushing to and from. Prox was holding my hand, still dead nervous from what the lady said before. "I'll go to the bathroom. You and Silver can go ahead and wait at the train for me, okay?" "Sure. I'll keep watch so you know where to come." With another "okay", she ran off. I put my back against the train car, inspecting how thick my sleeves were. It had been a couple minutes, so Silver brought light to it and asked, "when is she coming? I think you… should check or something, right?" An announcement commenced, "Doors shutting. Boarding closed," and after a moment, "Next stop: two hours fifteen minutes." It'll be fine, she'll come any time right now, won't she? A loud, long whistle startled us. I realized we had to board the train right now and then. "You can go into the train, Silver. I'll get Prox." "Make sure you make it in time." I was almost the only one outside the train, so I got anxious and went on the outer steps of the train. There was a walkway coated with a railing since the train appeared traditional despite its modern interior. I stepped onto its diamond-plate surface and the doors had shut. I was sure I could always knock for someone to open it as long as I was on the train. The sound of chugging was followed by a light acceleration. It was then that I saw the goofball frantically run towards me. "Prox. Prox!" "Wait, I have to get on the train!" She was able to get close, but the train started speeding faster. It had surpassed a comfortable running speed now, so if she fell back now, she won't make it onto the train. "Aaaaahh! NOOOoOo-" "You can do it!" The grass around me began to woosh by—the train was going at about thirty… no, forty miles an hour. Wait, how was she keeping up! Her legs were a mess from desperation, but soon turned into something which didn't look like a fluke. Then she got on all fours, and it actually helped her! The only thing that resembled her was a cheetah. She went from scampering to running, then from running to leaping, and the train was definitely going past sixty. After catching up, she gripped my arms with one hand and the railing with the other, tears of worry streaming down her cheeks. I was purely dumbfounded. "Holy smokes…" Prox shook me back and forth, shakily exclaiming, "Master, why did the train leave me?" "You left when it told us to board, remember? And HOW DID YOU DO THAT!?" "It felt natural. I think it something only my species can do. You know how much I like running, so why are you surprised, Master?" "That wasn't running, it was zooming." "I'm glad I made it." "That was a close one." I lightly knocked twice on the door and someone sitting by it opened it for me immediately. They probably thought we had come from the inside to get a look, or maybe that we had snuck onto the train. But the conductor checks the rooms to make sure people are only in the right ones, so we're safe. I shifted my attention back to what just happened. "I'm…" "Prox, if you hadn't made it on, even I don't know what would've happened, you know." We both paused, unknowing of how to react. "Anyway, let's get ready." I placed my backpack on the floor and went to my small suitcase near the door to place it in the corner. After sliding the door closed, I heard the click of the door lock from somewhere outside the room and locked mine too. "What do you think, Prox?" "Oh, I was just thinking about... what's wrong, Master?" My face filled with exasperation. "I forgot my toothbrush." "Oh, that's it? There's a shower in the room, though." "It's the same bathroom as last time, so the stuff they leave there for us is the same too. There aren't public toothbrushes or anything." "We can ask them for one, right?" "Maybe. If they have one. It's good it's not something big." "What about our clothes? The laundromat, Master. Did we collect them?" "Yes. I nearly forgot until I remembered at night, so I got up early in the morning to fetch them." "Phew." "Thanks for remembering." "No problem, Master!" After a while of unpacking, and perhaps searching for snacks, Prox said, "I'm gonna go to the bathroom. I'll be right back, Master." "Okay." She unclicked the lock and went off her way. I turned to the front of the room and noticed a large capsule on the table. Taking a closer look, it had white font spelling 'Games Box'. There's activities in here? I plopped off the lid and found a few cards and smaller boxes inside. I took one card out and opened it to find a sudoku puzzle. A few thin sheets fell from the same card, and they all had puzzles. I strapped them back and returned them to the capsule. I heard someone's footsteps and heard Prox humming. "Master, what is that?"

Chapter Ten —————— I felt games, a small paper, and… I held it out in my hand. "Board games." "Like Monopoly?" Prox asked. I thought back to the time I pulled out board games from my closet to satisfy our boredom when it was raining. She much preferred looking outside the glass, though. "Yes, kind of. You should try…" I reached in, jumbled my hand around for a larger board, then opened it. "Chess." "Master? There's other things to do here. Look." She held open a drawer from the nightstand. I stood up to see paper and pens contained in it. I closed and returned the chessboard to the collection of games. "I wanna use that, then." "Okay." "Let's draw, Prox." "Yes!" She clenched her hands in excitement. I felt bad since she made it seem like she was waiting on me for something fun to do the whole time. There were three identical pens arrayed on the side of the stack of paper. I took a couple pages for myself with a pen and sat beside Prox and the stand. I put my paper on the top and so did Prox. Not knowing what to spell with the ink, I was motivated to plan out the portal to the Caligo. To start with, I jotted down metrics and equations from memory. "There's a sharpener too. Look!" she said, pushing the drawer back in. Assuming the portal consisted of purely strange matter and was a few millimeters thick, it would have to be at least… twenty-two feet and an inch across. Wait, but that would rip anything near it to shreds from the gravitational tide. How did the lab survive at all, now that I consider it? I tapped my pencil on the wood surface and thought some more. "Master, look, it's you! I drew you." She equipped a proud expression. It was a detailed attempt to capture my eyes, hairstyle, pants, and… glasses!? "Prox, I don't have glasses, though." "But it's to show that you write down random symbols whenever you get a pencil!" She pouted. It was math, but she didn't know anything beyond basic arithmetic. "I can add anything I want, Prox. Anyway—it's my drawing, so yeah." "You're not wrong…" Something didn't click right with the calculations. It should have been impossible for Prox's world to exist. There can't be another world on the opposite side of our space's fabric, can there? But that would give away to the impossibility that Prox IS from here, perhaps born in some cuckoo lab like where I worked. Nonetheless, I was distracted by another one of her spontaneous issues. "It's getting hot. The sun is all over the window." She stretched out her socks and started taking them off, then her coat. I noticed a brownish-gray switch above the window, on the roof. It stood on the bed and flicked it, watching shutters lower and twist. She was suddenly enveloped in shade now. "Thank you so much, Master! I can return the favor~" She laid on me with her chest plush over my neck. I flushed completely. "Oh Master, you always react the same way." She smirked. "You're Prox. That's why." I slowly slipped out and crawled back to the nightstand. Anyhow, it would be impossible to enter a portal with such extreme density in the middle… and you could only enter the Caligo through the spacetime warp on the side. Of the portal. That time someone entered the old portal. , they got sucked in and dropped out; it was a miracle they journeyed it all in one piece! A better, and the real way, to make the portal is to lay the strange matter compactly in a ring—so that one can enter the Caligo via the middle. Even if the warping isn't even, it's space that's bending, not you. Let's see… I jotted down the new form of the field equation and calculated. It was simple enough to do by hand. Twenty degrees off, but a ring of any size would work the same way. Now I just need a portal width that would be practical. Then feet should do. If I could get it from a collider, then everything would be set! "It needs a thick ring to cover the whole space." "What does, Master?" "The portal to your world. I'm finding out how to build it." "Wow." She sat back and let out a long sigh. "Master, I'm getting tired. It's good we're going back home now." I smiled. "You're finally tired, huh?" "Say what?" "Nothing." She was apathetic for anything except fun. And when it came to fun, she was as avid as could be. "Let's go get lunch, Prox." "Yes, but won't they deliver it to us?" "Yeah but it's not as hot. And I want to get up after sitting around." "Me too," she agreed. "Master, can we choose what we get to eat?" "I don't think so." "Okay." She stood up and took a long stretch. I got up too and put her coat on me before unclicking the lock—I didn't want to spill anything on my shirt. Prox is more likely to do that, isn't she though? "Prox, take your coat back. In case you spill any food when we eat." "No. It's okay, Master. You can keep it~" I couldn't resist that lovely expression, so I kept it on. We walked out and turned left to navigate to wherever the food was. There was a line already there to my surprise. It was getting hot with the crowd, so I unbuttoned the top button of my shirt. I looked over to Prox, but she seemed completely okay. Wait, didn't she take her socks off? I looked down at her feet and she wore shoes without her socks. It was fine… actually might be comfortable. "Master, I can't see the food." "It's at the end. That's why the line's here." I didn't understand why it was so standstill, though. Shouldn't it be moving rapidly if you're here just to collect a box? Oh… maybe the food isn't ready after all. "Prox, do you wanna go back?" "Are they even serving it? You're right, Master." I took her hand and turned back to the direction of our cabin. It was a couple cars away, but not a long walk. We came across a man trying to booze himself off with a long bottle of beer. He noticed us and moved out of the way "Maybe people are just.. extra hungry right now. Are you?" "Yes, Master." "Yeah, I can see why." I looked at her body top down— two years of overeaten meals all worked up into a sturdy, meaty frame. "Master, I don't want to eat too much. We have a scale back home, right?" "You can check it there. Right." We got inside the room after traversing the marine green carpet. I closed the slider and sat on the small couch-type seat on the wall. Prox lay on the bed to take a nap. "Master, can you sleep with me? I want to stay with you." "Sure, then. But what if lunch comes while we're asleep?" "Just for now." "Alright." I lounged down on the bed and relaxed my legs. It occurred to me how lethargic I was feeling. "M-Master…?" "Yeah?" "Are you okay? With everything going on? I can make breakfast when we get back if you're tired." "Huh? Why are you saying things like that?" "I don't want you to tire yourself out constantly." She took the pencil which I forgot I had put in my ear and gently set it on the table, then joined me. She put her hand over me and moved it over my arms. It felt nice, I guess. "Prox, let's go on another adventure soon. Something more loose and unexpected." Prox responded, "You're saying that when we haven't even gotten home, but I agree! Hah. Still… Master, you've been doing things all the time even when you had work, remember? All the time at night, I come up to you when I wanna play something fun. You… it looks like you're held back by something." "It's old habits. I don't have obsessions over books, I swear!" "Sorry, I didn't mean to say something bad about that!" She looked at her hands and timidly placed them together as if she was about to gather her confidence. And then, said, "You're enjoying everything, right? But you keep worrying about the portal… I can't tell, Master. That's why I'm asking you." "You're right. I shouldn't hide myself in a hole every chance I get. We'll talk about things all the time. I really wanna get words with whoever was responsible for obliterating my job! That's right, we don't have a source of money. I'll see when we get back, though." We both smiled at each other. "Master, what do you think about the ocean? How deep is it?" "You're curious?" "I was scared to go into the water when we went to the beach because I thought I could drown in it. I didn't know how deep it went." So that's why she was like that! "It goes really deep. The floor of the ocean is lower than how tall the tallest mountain is." "I don't know how tall that is…" "Just think if it as how high an airplane flies. It starts shallow, so you can walk kind of far from the shore and be safe. Even if you go into the ocean, I don't think you sink that easily." I paused to rub my eyes. "Prox." "Hm?" "I'm really tired. I don't know when I'll sleep. It could be any one of the next ten seconds." "You make everything seem like a game, Master. It's… interesting." "Thanks." Neither of us put the blanket over, knowing how hot it was. I drooled off the moment I closed my eyes. The sound of a ring got me up. It was about time for dinner by the pitch black filling the room around me. "Boxed dinner, we're serving it now." It was a kind female voice. "Coming. Sorry." I yanked the lock and quickly slid the door open, anxious she might leave marking my room off. I saw her smiling and holding a cart, boxes stacked on both of its panels. "It's okay, here's your dinner. Enjoy!" "W-wait. Can we get another box? If it's allowed." "Sure! You can always come to the back and ask," she said, gesturing to the way me and Prox walked before. "Thanks." She handed me three boxes and rolled along. I walked back in and woke up Prox. She was drowsy, so I wrapped the blanket she was resting on around her and put her against the wall. She wanted to lay back down, though. I let her head fall in my lap until she was aware of it. "Master…" She looked up at me and her stomach gurgled incidentally. "Thank you." "Here," I said, holding the two boxes I got for her. "I got another one since we skipped lunch." "Let's share it." "I'm not that hungry, but you need it a lot more." "That's… you're right, Master." She sat back up and took the box on top, immediately opening it and tearing the eating utensils out of their package to eat with. "Look, it has pasta!" She rejoiced and drove her fork into the food. I didn't hesitate either. She ended up eating both boxes as I warranted. Prox slept apart from me, rolling around all night in the blanket. The air inside our own room was hotter than outside, so I couldn't blame her. Half an hour later, I heard an AC—one that finally came to save us from this lethargy. For the next day, we didn't do much but take turns pointing at weirdly shaped trees and rocks out the window. I went on my computer once and Prox wanted to pick out a movie. We got to watch it in the dark with another type of warm box dinner. Our stop came near the end, so I had to pack and step off with Prox without getting to see the ending. The cold weather kept throwing chilly wind in our face, so I put my jacket back on. Prox buttoned her coat too. "Master, can we watch it when we get home?" "I guess. We're finally back!" She held out her arms and spun in circles. "Yay!" Silver walked out of the train and saw us. He dropped his brown bag midway, then leaned to pick it up and continued walking. "Silver." "It's been good seeing you two. This is where I part, then." He faced away and then turned back to me and just as he was about to leave. "Here," he said, giving me a green crystal, "here's my crystal. Rowl, you deserve it, and you'll probably need it." I was too flabbergasted to react. "Wait, wait no-!" "Stay safe, man." He waved behind his back and walked off fast enough to ensure I couldn't chase him down to inquire. "Master, was that his crystal? The one just like mine?" "Yes. He has a green one," I said, showing it to her, "and you have a violet one." "You said you made these, right? Why did you make multiple? They're beautiful too…" "Prox, it's a super secret. I can't tell you, sorry." "Aw, but we always tell each other everything." "It has something to do with data. It's like a tiny hard drive you put into a computer." "Oh..." After a pause, she spoke again. "Master, I don't want to wear my necklace all the time. Can you put it in the bag now and then I can wear it again sometime!" "Sure, yeah, that's a good idea" " I'm thirsty they didn't even have enough water on the train let's get home fast." She looked up and puffed. "Woah! Master look, there's so many stars just like in the other place." " actually there are" Night hadn't settled long ago, but it was already pitch black everywhere around us— I couldn't even see the trees! I could tell prox was quite tired too because of her downgrade in the constant questioning she usually had going on. we got a taxi as a lot of them were passing by and I slipped the cash into a driver's hand and exchange for a drive straight home. When we got there, Prox was resting —no, sleeping—on my shoulder since it was past the time she always slept. I opened the cab door and witnessed nothing but deafening silence surrounding our house. "Good night, sir." "You too!" I nodded and waved, helping the dreaming Prox up. "No… I want to sleep." She closed her eyes again. "Look. See? We're almost there—we're already at our home." "Yeah. Finally, Master." I took the keys out of a hidden pocket in my baggage and unlocked the door, pushing it open. Prox rushed in gleefully and looked around commemorative before maneuvering to bed. I put my bag on the table, slipped out my clothes and dropped them in the laundry basket nearby, then followed Prox to the bedroom a couple minutes after. I had comfy clothes underneath my jacket, so I didn't have to do much to prepare for bed other than brush. When I joined Prox, I saw that she hadn't even changed out of her jacket and that she wanted to worry about everything in the morning. I agreed with the thought. Looking out the window, I pictured the buildings far out that were meant to be seen there instead of the foggy, hazy air. Wait, that means there should be a lot of rain. I didn't want to think anymore and silenced my mind to the quiet in place. "You want pancakes. Super pancakes! Wow!" My ears deployed indecipherable dialogue and I realized I was awake. The sun gently shined through my eyelids and colored my sight red, so I sat up and rubbed my eyes. "Golly prices, only now!" An ad was playing on the TV in front of the bed. Prox, responsible for switching it on in my sleep, was sitting crisscross on the left corner of the bed, seated up front. When the ad ended, sharp chirping commenced and a group of kids with food in front of them we're sitting by a tree. Prox's tail came into motion. It seemed to be a cartoon series. "You woke up." Prox must have heard me. She was looking back with a wide smile. "It's good to see you, Master… I know! Let's make breakfast!" "Let's-?" "Together." "Are you sure about that? Nothing's at risk… maybe we can." "Yes~" She jumped up to my side, hinting for me to pet her. I did so until she rested her head on my chest. I wanted to teach her how to give a massage, since it's something I can't do on my own. I brought my fingers up and down her back, then in circles, inside and outside, all over… She heaved relaxingly. "Master, this feels so nice. Can you do it a bit longer?" "Forever. But you do it too." "Heh, sure, Master." Anyone would want someone to help a stiff shoulder. Man, I wouldn't let this stop even if there was a robbery in action… I kept at it until Prox's stomach growled again. I could tell she wanted to ignore it and stay like this by her apathy, but I knew it would be best to stop now. "Prox, let's go cook now." "Sure." She stretched again and we walked downstairs, her in front of me. She tried to speed-step the whole way down and nearly tripped on a step. That's Prox for you. "Where is the flour?" "Behind the top cabinet." "Why did you put it so high, Master?" "I don't know, actually. All the cabinets are up top." "Yeah, that's bad." Prox knew where I kept my recipe book, so she already had it open and did astonishingly well following it. "I watched you Master. You put the egg in for a minute or two. Until it flattens, right?" "Right. Don't touch the pan yourself. You'll get hurt." "Okay, I'll be careful, Master." I let her be and tended to my lab downstairs to dust off books and tabletops. I looked at an edge of the room and pictured the portal there. I had the space to put it, but not what I needed to build it. Worried, I ran back up. "Master, look, they're ready!"

Chapter Eleven —————— She had a cute cooking apron with a bear on it, her symphonic humming tickled my ears, her smile glistened as she set the pancakes down in plates on the table. They looked perfectly fluffy—I couldn't hold myself back from grabbing some syrup from the cabinet. We always set the forks and knives long before we ate, so I grabbed the one in front of me and sliced out a bite. "Do you like it…?" It must have had at least twice as many eggs as in the recipe, but that didn't wash out the taste. Personally, I appreciated the sole taste of bread without jam or pancakes without syrup, so I poured it on a minute later. "It's amazing, Prox. You should cook again next time." "Thanks, Master! But it was so tiring." "You don't have to run around that much." She took a seat on my right and dove into hers. "Sure~" I wonder how the old portal's doing after all these years—it couldn't possibly be standing, could it? "Prox, I'm going somewhere right after. I need to see something." "Okay, take me with you!" "No, it'll bore you. It's nothing special. And I'm going to go and come in under an hour anyway." "What is it, though?" "Remember when you dropped into this world? I'm going to the same place where it all happened, to find the old portal and see whether I can use it or not." "What did you mean by boring? It's exciting to see that!" "Yeah, true." The pancakes were small and petite, so I finished a few of them and swiped a short sip of water before heading to the front door. I put on my shoes and got ready to look for my bike as Prox caught up. "Master, I'm not wearing any socks! I don't know whether there's any that aren't in the laundry." "Wear mine. Look in my drawer by my bed for a pair." "Huh!? But…" "You're as big as me, so they'll fit." "Wait, Master. I am, actually," she said, comparing our eye levels—she was hardly an inch below mine. "Let's bike fast, Master!" I took off the bike lock as she dashed and seated her in front of me. It was a long seat for a bike, so it went well when I got on the road. "Woahuaa-" She was definitely not used to the turning and side-to-side shifting, so I tried driving in a straight line as much as I could. "We're almost there." I remembered the fire but brushed it away. That was the past, and I was here to make myself I new future—I already had. I told Prox to get off first, and she cautiously tipped one foot down and then the other. We were here. Like I remembered, it was nothing more than the site of concealed ashes in a plain field. I immediately recognized where the portal used to be by the large iconic ring pushed on its side. I rolled us downhill and applied the brakes, but one of them didn't do anything. This bike sure is old. The terrain got too bumpy, so I kicked the floor to put a hard stop. "Prox, you get off first." She struggled off and stretched her arms, feeling her hair too. "The sun is making my hair hotter." "Oh yeah? We don't need a hat, though—it's only for a bit." I looked closer at the ring and deemed it damaged beyond repair. I knew the material inside wouldn't be of any use since it must have decayed long ago, but I wanted to open it up anyway. I took a thin rod from the debris to crowbar open the aged portal. There was nothing inside, not even remains of the strange matter I put in there years ago. "Master, what's wrong?" She looked over from behind me. "Uh, nothing. We're going back now." "What? But we just arrived." "I know. I told you it would be boring, right?" "But… Nevermind, you did." "We can ride around for fun." "It's too hot for that, Master." I could see a hint of sweat dripping down from her hair, so I rubbed it off and fetched the bike. "Now that we're here, we can just stay home." "You're right… that's the only thing we can do right now, Master." "We can finish the movie, but it will be better to watch it at night." I looked across the street and recognized the building. "There's a new pizza place that opened up, and it's right there!" I pointed. "Master, let's go there today. Can I?" "For dinner. We just ate." "Okay. I can help with your portal if you need. I can carry things if you want." She made a proud expression. "I have to get something, but anyone carrying it will be dangerous—It would go on the back of a truck." "Is the bike big enough to carry it?" "No. It's hard to understand. Anyway, sit on the front of the bike and let's ride home." I put a hand on her hair to check whether the heat was a brain-melting one. She was fine, so there was nothing to worry about. I put my foot on the pedal and took a grassy route back to our house. I have to wonder how the Caligo would be. Would some things be the opposite of this world? "Hey, Prox." "Hm?" "Is-was your world different from mine in a special way? Like something fundamental." "No, not really…" That's right; only things on a quantum scale would be flipped. The spin of particles would probably be inverted… and what about black holes!? The serrated physics underlying them would be solved if white holes existed—if what went into a black hole and the tear of space came out the Caligo! "There should be some things really different, but they don't really matter." "Master? You don't tell me much about what you do—you said I can't understand." "Yeah. Sorry, it's nothing anyone has to waste their time on. But I do. Because that's me." She laughed and her tail flapped up into my face, nearly making me lose control of the bike. "Prox! Your tail!" "Huh? Sorry!" She calmed it down somehow and I regained sight of the turn ahead. We were already home. "I'm more than interested to build this portal. I'll bike somewhere else to get a little something." "Already going?" "You can play with my piano. It's fun even if you don't know what to do. Sorry, this the last for going out." "No-no, it's okay. You can do anything you want with me, Master." "Says the one who always dominates on the bed… Uh. Um." I said too much. Nothing could go terribly wrong, right? "I know what you mean, and you always enjoy it. Even if you think you're being naughty and push me aside." Her chuckle traded for my anxiety. For my past reactions, they were only inevitable, so the least I could do was admit my nature as prey. "Ready? Hop off and lock the door with my keys. I'll be on the outside, so you have to, Prox." "Gotcha." I got off, realizing I was practically sweating all over, but not at the level to warrant an immediate change of clothes. Hah, I wasn't the type to fret over these matters anyway. Prox was in behind a half-closed door, clearly wanting to wave to me. "Bye, Masterrr~!" "See ya." It would take me about twenty minutes to get to the collider the lab used back then. Guess I'll just go fast. "Aighty, long road, long sun." I was always really scared of disaster and danger; Listening to music while riding was out of the question since it could be the end of me if I didn't hear a passing car. The wind went along nicely to cancel what disturbance the sun might have brought me. I arrived at the collider, coated by trespassing warnings like usual. The management knew me as the errand boy for the lab's occasional materials. They were the reason we always thought we were in good hands. I stepped in without a second thought and let my bike gently onto the dirt on the side of the building. "Hello? Is there anyone to talk to?" I saw a guard sitting fastidiously with his legs on the table, turning side to side. He noticed me after a few seconds. He exited the side door after giving me a boorish look through the long window. "Hey, I'm Rowl. You probably don't know me, but I'm here for something." "I know. They told me all about you." I expected him to have a French accent after judging his face, but he had none. He suddenly smiled and brought an arm forth to knock my shoulder lightly. "Heya, it's the nice guy who came to pick up the contracted gadgets and sketchy stuff. Are you?" "Yes, if you mean that." He briefly went back inside his post to call someone, then returned to stand firmly in front of me. A familiar face I saw now and then from the management walked up beside the guard. "Sorry, bud. It's closed off to everyone. Even you. I heard the sad thing that happened to your place—it all turned into ashes. It burnt to the ground, right? But after that, the contract was also repealed. By someone from your agency." "What are you on about…? Sorry, I mean, I know what happened but the contract should still be on. As an alliance, a partnership, isn't it?" "I can't supply anything anymore, Rowl. And this is from me to you: one of your men did this. I can't say much— anything at all, really—or he'll cut down the new funding our lab needs to stay up." I knew every word of what he meant, but this wasn't what anyone could have deserved. After everything- "Robbie, there must have been a misunderstanding. Even so, there can't be all of the lab's fate put in one member's hand to cut off our contract. Obviously, isn't that right?" He looked like he hated admitting it even more. That came to show the death of the situation. I still couldn't grasp the reasoning behind any of this, though. "I just want to borrow some strange matter. Don't tell him if you can." "That won't be difficult to hide once we make some, but getting it produced would be entirely under his control and sight. I can't go far myself to get anything done, but I want to cherish our former kinship under all this." "Wow. I didn't know how it got to be this way. I'll look into it… later… but right now, I'll borrow one of your modules. I've figured he wants to make use of your collider's capacity to create something he wants. So, he likely stepped up production in his favor." "You amaze anyone with your cunning Sherlock thoughts you always got going." I didn't know what he meant. He was a weird fellow, not gonna lie. "Thanks. Is it too much to sneak out a module, right now?" "It's okay. But I don't want to risk losing anything like your wonderful lab anymore. This is a last." I sighed. "Sure, carry one in your truck and you can follow me to my house. It's only five minutes or so if you drive your truck there." "Poor you. Always using a bike. You can hop it on the back of my truck if you need." "I'm fine." It would be awkward after all to sit next to him for the drive. Robbie, as I first found his name to be written, followed me to my one-story abode. When he went somewhere back to get his truck, he must have wedged the module onto it then. I saw a large engine-like part on the back of the truck when I parked my bike, and got ready to unload it. He walked out and unlocked the hatch at the back so that I could slide it out. He didn't say anything as we struggled to carry it onto a ready-placed cart he had lying in his cargo bed. "That was a lot of work." "True. I can't say anything but I'll miss you, Robbie." "I can only speak the same of you lot. Take care!" He drove off, presumably rushing back to not look out of place. I wanted to forget about everything I just learned if honesty was on the plate. In fact, that was my tactic back in school when some teacher dropped a huge project or another stack of homework I could have replaced with days of video games. Robbie left the cart with me; he must have pitied me this whole time. Prox was nowhere immediately in sight, nor near the piano, nor cuddling a pillow in a spot on the floor. I guess she had other virtues to seek, after seeing how much the world has. I whipped up some tender chicken into sandwiches the best I could, then hoped to find Prox again. I looked to the park behind our house and had no choice but to feel like an idiot. "Master, you're finally back! There's so many colors again in the sky." She wasn't entirely audible, exclaiming through the glass. I put the sandwiches in a small carry-bag and walked to her. She already knew I had chicken if she was sniffing it this much. She started running across the garden, where the trees were most vibrant and her hair was a deep teal which darkened as it reached the top of her head. In fact, some of her eyes matched the grass and the rest the trees. The horizon was yellowing and the demeanors of the clouds were purple. It was a familiar sight she never could rid her interest of. I felt her excitement through our bond. Her tail was lapping itself. Without further ado, it was time to feast on what I brought. She took out one of the sandwiches from the bag and she was on it faster than lightning. The next sandwich was in her hands before I even looked down again. I also took two for myself so that I could stand up already. I stared at the things around me and thought of the Caligo. Maybe things there aren't as vivid as this. I would feel bad if Prox had to live in a world any more bleak than this. A hand on my shoulder made me jump out of my skin. "Master, have you eaten?" "Yeah, thanks, I'm full now. Go ahead, I'll go back inside and work on something." "You're always thinking! Just do things, Master, you don't have to think so much. That's advice from me~" Welp, that explains everything she does.

Does it all end here? There isn't any true hope left, or is there...?