Rain didn't know how far she'd gone, or how far there was to go. She'd been traveling along the bank of the Vinkus River-or was it the Gillikun River? She'd been out of Oz for so long, she didn't know Munchkinland from the Glikkus. Soon Rain came upon Nether How; her childhood home. It was abandoned with overgrown ivy vines and moss taking a home on the rocks. I must be in the Vinkus, Rain reasoned. The air was chilled, so Rain decided to travel by foot rather than freeze in the air from traveling by broom.
Oz seemed different than she remembered. True, the war was over-long ago when she was a little girl. She knew not what to expect, whether memories of a cheerful past, or little ghosts from a nightmare coming back to haunt her. So much had happened; memories that seemed to be coming back now awaited her arrival. What would she find? Would he-or she- be there? Did Tip-now Ozma-finally take the throne after all these years? Did the queen of Oz have a family? Questions, Rain thought. Questions give me nothing but grief, which is why I stopped asking them because the answer always hurt more than the question.
The night curtained the day, but Rain kept on. She stopped for a moment, reflecting on her past at Nether How. Her father tried telling her the story of how came upon here, but she never listened. Rain was young-yes-but she just didn't want to believe that she had a mother or a father because, growing up with Lady Glinda, it was apparent to Rain that her parents never existed. So much of Rain's life, wasted. No father to look up to, no mother to comfort her when she was hurting; so much love never existed to Rain.
Rain wiped away the tears that were streaming down her face. Lost memories. But memories, whether lost or past, were not important. Rain had somewhere to go and intended to keep at it.
Morning came and Rain ventured on. The terrain was getting harder to cross and just over the Kells she could see the castle-her grandmother's castle, then Liir's castle, and now her castle. After all this time, Rain pondered. That damn castle is still standing? She decided not to question it; questions weren't relevant to her now. She straddled onto her broom and took off. She would come back to Kiamo Ko soon, but right now she had a more important place to go.
Rain landed just outside the gate of the EC. She would now find out whatever it was she came there to find out. No questions asked.