Eden walked the streets of Tokyo in the early morning. The sun was only beginning to light the sky, and only the earliest of risers had already woken. She'd left Yohji's bed with no little regret. She didn't lie to herself and say he wasn't providing her as much comfort as she provided him, but she couldn't think clearly there.
She no longer felt like she belonged anywhere. That was her own fault, there was no doubt there. If she had gone along with her original plan and focused on Weiss as a target instead of a having little fun, there would have never been a problem. Even now, she wondered if it could all be undone.
Joey.
The little kid could control time. He was her only chance. If they could save him from Esset, convince him that things were best before they even came to Japan…
Maybe he could even undo the accident.
She could forget all about Aya, Yohji, Chel. Not Chel. But she wouldn't have to worry about hurting the other girl's feelings. She wouldn't even worry about hurting the other girl's skin, she would enjoy it.
"Stop wanting the past," a voice interrupted her musing. Eden looked up from the sidewalk and saw a young girl standing there alone, already dressed for school. She had green eyes and strawberry blond hair and smiled at the assassin.
"What?" The girl pulled down on the skirt of her school uniform in a nervous gesture, but after a pause continued confidently.
"You don't know what you want. Stop wanting the past and go forward."
"Why do you say that?" Eden asked, confused. The little girl giggled and ran forward. She grabbed Eden's hand and started pulling her down the street.
"I want to show you something."
Eden let the girl lead her down a block and then into a building. She waved at the security guard and punched the up button on the elevator as if she'd done this a million times, and turned to Eden again.
"I live here. With my parents and my little sister. We moved here when I was five. That was when I found this place." She pulled Eden into the elevator and pushed the button marked R. Eden felt the elevator lift up, and looked at the girl questioningly.
"What are you showing me?"
"You'll see." She smiled again, then held out her hand suddenly. "I'm sorry! My father is always telling me I'm not polite enough. My name is Seona."
"That doesn't sound like a Japanese name," Eden replied, smiling as she shook the young girl's hand. Seona looked at her strangely.
"Do I look Japanese?" she asked, raising her eyebrow amusingly. Eden shook her head.
"I'm sorry. I guess I thought you meant you moved to this building." The doors to the elevator opened into a hallway and Seona grabbed onto Eden's hand again and pulled her towards the door at the end.
"Common, you need to see it. Then you'll forget all about your problems!"
The door opened onto an elaborate flower garden. The sun rose behind a wall of jasmine that filled the air with its fragrance. Rose bushes trimmed carefully back lined the walkway into the main area. Lilies, tulips, and daffodils grew in large numbers around a courtyard. A statue of a selkie woman, curled around a cross made of driftwood stood in the center of a small pool, water trickling across her skin to disturb the water lilies below.
"Its beautiful," Eden whispered, in awe of the rooftop garden. She smiled. "But I don't see how this is going to get my mind off of the past."
"Think about it, Eden. You'll figure it out." Eden turned to look at the little girl, wondering how she knew her name. Seona was gone, and they were too far from the door inside for her to have left that quickly.
"Seona?"
"Think about it, Evelyn." The young girl's voice seemed to blow on the wind. Eden turned around, but she was alone.
