I hope you enjoy this story the kid in me wanted to do for so long. I've made a few changes, added some more dialogue, and hopefully made it more consistent.

Sweat beads roll down the side of my face as I lay on the couch. The fan that I bought yesterday blows hot air on my body as it oscillates between me and the curtains. I couldn't sleep upstairs last night, the humidity was too much for me to deal with, so I crashed on the couch. I need to shower again, I feel gross lying in my sweat. The sun in this world is strong, although not as strong as the one back home. After getting off the couch and going to the bathroom upstairs, I take an ice cold shower. When I get out, I wrap myself in a towel and look at my reflection in the mirror. My hair's gotten longer since I came to this world, now it's down to the middle of my neck. "It's so long," I marvel at my reflection, half-smiling. I got my bangs trimmed yesterday while Mizuki got her hair trimmed; it was only me and Mizuki out to town. I never would've thought in a million years I would be hanging out with someone other than Seth. I have friends who I eat with, shop with, and get my hair done with, although Risa didn't join us after we finished our missions.

Speaking of her, I haven't seen her in over two weeks. I hope she's feeling better. I feel too guilty to go visit her at Angel Island, what she said about me not stopping Seth scares me. What if, despite all the things I went through and how much I grew up, I really didn't change? What if I'm still the little girl who depended on Seth for everything? Maybe, I really didn't change. I go into my room, slip on my undergarments, and then a tank top with grey denim shorts. "That stuff Mizuki gave me worked," I say while I stare deeply into the bedroom mirror. The black eye Risa gave me is barely noticeable, the "Chinese" stuff Mizuki put around my eye really helped. I'm glad to have both Mizuki and Risa as friends, even if Risa's really upset with me. Don too, he's a cool friend even though he's been distant lately.

Friends…I have so many of them. Yet, I feel that it doesn't change anything-I still can't open myself up to everyone, I still feel useless. I can't save my world from Darkness, and I can't save Seth. I lower my eyes and sigh, leaving the bedroom and going downstairs. Even though it's a hot day, I should go to Mr. Erick's office. Working on missions takes my mind off these things. Grabbing my bo staff and placing it in the carrier on my back, I leave the house. I'll grab breakfast at that café in the city, "croissants" have become my guilty, buttery pleasure. I stroll onto the desolate main street, glancing at my swinging arms. The sun made me a shade darker, that's how I get in the summer in Moonlight Town. This heat's nothing compared to Moonlight Town in its hottest months, although last night's humidity was pretty bad. Before I have time to wallow in homesickness, a harsh groan interrupts the cicadas' and the birds' songs. "So loud, where's that coming from?" I ask myself as I hear the groans from behind me. Nobody's ever out here except Don, occasionally. Since he doesn't ever sleep and can't go into the city, he just roams the area. Could that be him? "Don?"

I turn around and sprint towards the pained grunts, the source coming from the bushes to my far left. I walk off the road and follow the noise, the moans becoming louder and more anguished. I quickly find someone lying in the bushes, nearly covered in twigs. "What happened here? Are you okay?" I ask the uncomfortable stranger. The woman winces and then grunts as she tries turning on her side. "What should I do?" I ask myself worriedly. I don't have a phone, this woman is dying, and the hospital is miles away. "Can you stand up?" I ask. She groans once more and suddenly thrashes while stuck in the bushes. "I'll get you out of there, you have to stop," I urge as I try reaching for her hand. The moment I touch it, she flinches back. "I'm gonna get you help, don't worry." I wipe the sweat off my hands and gently tug on her arm. She sounds exhausted, and she probably is since she's stopped fighting me off. She's a lot heavier than she looks, but I get her to stand up. She instantly collapses on me and we hit the pavement. "We'll get through this-somehow."

I'm sweating profusely by the time I get her leaning against me. She's breathing softly, I still have a chance to save this stranger. Keeping my legs apart and pulling her arm over my shoulders, we start walking down the street carefully. "There's a hospital a long way from here. I'll get you there as fast as-"

"Wa-" she utters feebly as her ghostly white hair drapes over her shoulders. Abruptly, she starts panting, bringing me to a stop.

"Huh? What're you saying?"

"Wa-t-"

"Wat-water? You need water?" I guess. The stranger hesitates and then nods slowly while panting excessively. Maybe she got dehydrated from the heat earlier this morning? If that's the case, then the hospital in the city would take too long. I need to bring her to my place and rehydrate her quickly. Moving slightly faster than before, we waddle to my house.

"Okay, we're here!" I unlock the door and leniently kick it open. "I'm putting you on the sofa." By the time we reached the path to my house, I could barely hear her breathe. I hope she didn't pass out on me. I lift her limp arm over my head and hold her side as we head to the couch. Then I lay her down on the couch and rush to the sink to get a clean glass of water. I hurry over to the couch, sit her up, and slowly tip the glass so the water reaches her mouth. Her eyes open instantly as she snatches the glass and gulps down the water. "More?" I wonder. She nods enthusiastically, so I run to the sink and back. Again, she gulps the entire glass down in two seconds. "You should slow down, you could choke," I suggest. She squeezes the glass so hard, I'm afraid it'll break; silently she gazes at empty glass. With a strained expression, she looks at me and shakily hands me the glass.

"More," she says louder than before. I make a mad dash to the refill the glass and give it back to her. The dehydrated stranger takes another two gulps and then crushes the glass. "Water," she firmly says she curiously looks at the glass shards stuck in her palm. I gasp as I take her wrist and pluck them out one by one. "Why did you do that? I mean, you didn't get cut that bad-you're really thirsty," I observe while taking out the last two bloody shards. "I'll get something, just don't move." I step over the broken glass and pick up a steep bowl from the sink and fill it up. As soon as I bring it back to her, she chugs the entire bowl down and some of it spills on her face and the couch. Without her needing to say anything, I refill the bowl until it's practically spilling over and bring it to the thirsty stranger. This time she sips the water and pours the rest of it on her head. "Your hand-?"

The stranger's hand doesn't have a drop of blood on it. I know I didn't imagine blood on her hand, did her cuts heal up that quickly? And how could she break the cup with just her grip?

"Under…the water," she says excitedly as I take the bowl back before she destroys that. I glance at the bowl and give her a confused look as she stares at her hand, and then the glass fragments on the floor. "Uh what?"

"Under….I need to be underwater."

"Wha? Not with your cuts."

"Underwater."

"Are you feeling better?" I ask as I refill the bowl again. After gulping it down and letting it cascade down her head, she nods and repeats, "Underwater." The beach is so far away from here, I don't think she can walk by herself all the way there. She'll want to be underwater right away. I have to work with what I got here-hey, the bathroom!

"Okay we're going upstairs, come on," I get her arm over my neck and stand her up cautiously. We avoid the broken glass and make it upstairs; now I can get a closer look at her. Her beige arms and legs are covered with red markings, also encircling her eyelids. I bring her to the bathroom and lean her against the door while I turn the faucet on for the bathtub I never use. "You can't drink this water," I tell her as the tub fills up. I have feeling she might try to. At the sight of the water, she widens her eyes and moves towards the tub. "Wait, wait. One more second," I urge as I block her. She overpowers me easily, pushing me to the side as she slides into the tub. "Hey you're gonna have to take off your clothes-"

She's already comfortably in the tub, positioning herself so that her face receives all the water pouring out of the faucet first. Is she some kind of fish? I've never seen anyone who likes water that much. By the time the tub starts overflowing, I turn the faucet off to her disappointment. "I'll give you your privacy." I leave the room and sigh tiredly. "What a weird adult." Was picking her up a good idea? She doesn't seem to be a normal grown up. "Is everything okay in there?"

"Yeeees, not very spacious though," she says her first sentence clearly and then sighs peacefully. She sounds refreshed, that's good. I have so many questions for her, I can't wait for her to get out of the tub.

"Can I come in to talk to you?" I ask her nervously.

"Yeeeees," she replies, her tone thick with water. I open the door to find her submersed under the water. The bottom of her dark blue cloak, spotted with blotches of white specks, drifts as she remains underwater. She stares at me with curious, dark honey eyes and emerges from the surface. "Is this your ocean?"

"My ocean? No, there is one, but it's far away. Is this 'nough water for you?"

"For now."

"Umm…what happened to you?"

She plunges herself under the bath water and sighs while staring at me cautiously. She comes back up and I glance at her big-boned body, wondering how I got her here on my own. I guess I have gotten stronger, even if it doesn't show. What are those red markings around her eyes and her arms? "Something took me."

"What? You were kidnapped?"

"I don't know."

"Where do you live? What's your name?"

"Underwater. I need to get back."

"You live underwater, or your name is Underwater?" Judging by how much water she drinks and her constant need for water, I think she might live underwater. She's definitely not a normal human, what do I do from here? What would Mizuki or Risa do in this situation? "Can you tell me anything else?"

Her stare intensifies, as if trying to figure me out. She seems really wary of me, even though I just saved her from dehydration.

I suddenly remember. "Ah, work! I'm sorry, but I've gotta go. I'll help you out later."

"Why would you help me?" asks the stranger distrustfully. That's a weird question, I know why I'm helping her, but I can't explain why. I sit back and think of a good answer, then I reply, "I couldn't leave you out there, it would be wrong." She's taken aback, she obviously didn't expect that answer. What kind of life does she have? "Anyway I'll help you out later, I've gotta go to work."

"You're leaving me here alone?"

"Is that okay? The towels are in that closet and the guest room is next door. Have any food you want!"

' ' '

Maybe I shouldn't have entrusted the house to a stranger I just met. That was really bad judgment on my part, but it's not like there's a lot for her to take. She seemed more interested in water more than anything else, so maybe she'll just drink more water after bathing. Crossing the street over to Mr. Erick's office, I catch a glimpse of Mizuki and Risa walking together towards the office. The city is bustling with children and teenagers, free for summer vacation. It almost makes me miss school. I wonder if Mizuki and Risa ever went to school, Mizuki's complained about it once or twice. Risa hasn't said anything to me, so I have no idea.

I quickly wave at them, grabbing their attention. "Hi guys!"

"Hey Mia," Mizuki greets warmly while Risa waves. I cross the street when I don't see any cars coming and flash a smile at both of them. "Good timing, I've got something to ask you," says Mizuki. She appears well-rested, but flustered. We all move to the side.

"What?"

"Have you seen a blind child wandering around today?" At first, I think it's the starting line for a joke, but Mizuki's serious face disproves that theory. I shake my head and she swears.

"I am looking for two people, both have markings on their skin. One might be wearing all red and the other blue, have you seen either of them?" asks Risa urgently. She seems a lot better than she did the last time I saw her. I apprehensively look down and then answer, "I haven't seen anyone in red, but there's a girl who was wearing a blue dress at my house. She had red markings on her skin."

"That could be who he was speaking of," Risa tells Mizuki. "But first, you need to talk to Erick, right?"

"Yeah," Mizuki says determinedly with a nod.

"What's going on here, guys?" I ask confusingly.

M.C.