Disclaimer: I have temporarily lost my claim to Kanata and Miyu, but not to worry, I am sure I'll find it back! ^o^

*Is sent to an asylum* ... ToT

Lost

Kanata opened his eyes as the sky grew light outside. The house was strangely quiet and he marveled at it. Where was the usual chaos of school day mornings? Tendrils of sleep still clutched at the edges of his consciousness, and he took his time letting go. What had been that dream he had been having? He couldn't quite remember, but it felt strangely haunting…

Deciding that they would both be late to school if he didn't get up right now and wake up the stupid klutz next door, he stretched his arms out above him and finally got up with a sigh. He padded to the bathroom, wondering where Ruu had gotten to. Usually the little squirt would be up and raising hell by now. Stuffing his toothpaste in his mouth, he walked back down the hall. Delicious smells of cooking wafted through the air and Kanata perked up at the thought of Wanya's breakfast.

Reaching Miyu's room, he knocked on the rice-paper sliding door. "Miyu," he grunted around a mouthful of toothpaste, "wake up, or we'll be late."

There was no response, as usual.

Kanata sighed. "I'm coming in," he warned the probably sound asleep idiot on the other side, before pushing open the door. He took one step and abruptly halted. Wha…?

Miyu wasn't in her room. And, not only that, but the room was bare. As in, nothing was in there… Where was her futon? Her bag? Her books? Her desk? And her uniform that usually hung on… Where was the hanger?

Completely baffled, Kanata backed out of the room, trying very hard to conciliate the empty room with his memories. Was she supposed to be away on a trip? Where did she go? When did she go? Why didn't he remember?

Wheeling around, he thundered towards the kitchen, intent on getting some answers. "Wanya, Wanya, have you seen Mi—"

"Kanata?"

Kanata froze as the woman in the kitchen turned around, a ladle gripped in her hand. A stray lock of rich auburn hair fell over her face and she brushed it away. Her warm eyes sparkled as she looked at him happily. "Oh, you're up! I was just coming to wake you. Good morning!"

His eyes widened as he watched the woman, looking at him with a smile as though she had never left. What… how… dream… was this… real?

"Kanata?" she asked, worried, as he continued to stare at her.

"M-Mom?"

"Yes, Kanata, are you okay?"

Mom? She was here? She was alive? No… what… Slowly, Kanata stepped towards her, bringing up his arm as he came closer. He reached out to touch her, flinching when his hand didn't just pass through her.

Hitomi Saionji stared worriedly at her son. Why was he staring at her disbelievingly? "Kanata, are you alright?" she asked.

Kanata stared dazedly at where his fingers rested on her apron. He could touch her. He could touch her. How did… Abruptly, he pulled back his hand. His gaze darted to her face and an odd, almost panicked, look crossed his face.

Hitomi frowned. Did he have a fever? She reached out, trying to touch his forehead, her fingers extending and—

Kanata jerked back as if slapped. His mother gasped. Belatedly, realization of what he just did settled in and he staggered back, looking immensely guilty. "Where's… where's Dad?" he asked breathlessly.

"…In the temple," his mother answered, slowly.

He cast one last wide-eyed look at her, before he whipped around and fled.

Hitomi stared at where her son had stood just a moment ago, worry gnawing at her heart.

Kanata found his father kneeling in front of the mokugyo inside the temple. The old man was busily beating on the mokugyo and chanting to its rhythm with one hand held in front of his face. When did he return from India? Kanata could not remember.

"Dad," Kanata called hoarsely, not caring that he was interrupting sacred morning rituals, "DAD!"

Hosho Saionji paused and turned to look behind him in surprise. "Kanata? What are you doing, son? I am in the middle of—"

"Forget the prayers! Mom… Mom is here," he breathed, "in the kitchen." He looked desperately at his father, confused and unsure.

Hosho looked back at him, looking equally baffled. "What do you mean?"

Exasperated, Kanata grabbed his father by the lapels of his robes and shook him. "Is that all you've got to say? Mom is here! Mom is back! Mom is ALIVE! What is going ON, old man?"

His father looked at him, uncomprehending. "What are you talking about, Kanata? Why-why wouldn't she be here? Where else would she be? And what do you mean, alive?"

Numbly, Kanata loosened his hold on his father. "D-didn't she d-die?"

Hosho stared at his son, horrified. "NO! No! No… How could you… Kanata, what is wrong, son?"

Kanata didn't believe him. His mother was supposed to be dead. He had accepted it by now. It didn't even hurt him anymore when he remembered her, or thought about her. He had made peace with the fact that she was no more with him, but that she would always be in his heart. His dad was supposed to be in India. He wasn't supposed to be back for another year. But he was here, acting like he never went away. And she was here, acting like she never left either. And where was Miyu? Ruu? Wanya?

Narrowing his eyes suddenly, he asked his father sharply, "Where is Miyu?"

"Miyu?" his father repeated, unhelpfully.

"Yes, Miyu. Where is she? She isn't in her room. Her things are gone too, her futon, her clothes, bag, everything. Where is she?"

Hosho Saionji stared at his son with apprehension. "I," he hesitated, unsure of what to make of Kanata's sudden strange behavior, "I have no idea who you're talking about, Kanata. Who is Miyu?"

Kanata reeled back in shock. What? The old man, he was saying he didn't know? "Miyu!" he screamed in exasperation, "Miyu Kozuki! I am talking about the girl who has been living with me for the last one year! Where is she?"

Bewildered beyond all means, Hosho shook his head, at an utter loss about the situation now. "No one has been living with us, son. Just you, me and your mother."

"NO!" Kanata yelled, "You're LYING!" It couldn't be. He was lying, she was lying! They were both lying. Miyu had been living with him for the last whole year. And Wanya. And Ruu.

Hosho stood up slowly, his eyebrows drawing together in mounting alarm as he tried to reach out and hold his panicking son. Kanata shot away from him, backing up furiously. "NO! Stay away from me!" He was breathing heavily now, and his blood was pounding madly in his ears. "Her parents," he abruptly said, "Miki and Yuu Kozuki. Do you know them?"

Hosho slowly shook his head in the negative.

"They are astronauts," Kanata blurted, "They are famous. They went to NASA. They were on TV. They left their daughter with us, with me. You are best friends with them. Mom was best friends with them. What happened to them?"

"I… don't know any Kozuki. I have never heard of them. I… don't think there are any Japanese astronauts called Kozuki who joined NASA." The old man paused for a moment, trying to make his voice sound calm and unthreatening. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Hitomi cautiously approach the foot of the staircase to the temple, where she stood hesitantly, not daring to climb. "Son," he tried again, "why don't we go inside? I am sure you can tell us about what is wrong." He slowly tried to inch closer to the distraught teen, taking one step at a time, "We will help you look for these Kozukis, if you want. Let's go inside. You're making your mother worry too…"

But bringing up his mother had been the worst thing to do. Kanata growled as he shoved his approaching father with all his strength. The old man stumbled back and fell, clattering on the mokugyo. The frantic teen wheeled around and dashed down the stairs blindly. His mother stood at the bottom, her eyes frightened. She cried out and tried to stop him. Nimbly, he dodged her open arms and made a mad dash towards the exit. Thundering down the long main stairwell, Kanata didn't stop to look back as he took off, running harder than he ever had, trying to escape the strange nightmare that his home had become.

Nightmare, that's right. That's what this must be. A nightmare, a dream, just a dream. And it would be gone when he woke up, and they would all be there – Miyu and Ruu and Wanya. And his father would be in India, and his mother would be watching over them silently.

His feet pounded on the pavement, as he ran without any purpose. What was he doing? He didn't know. Where was he going? He didn't know. He needed to look for Miyu, for Ruu and for Wanya, and that was all he knew.

He should go to school. They would know. He should ask his friends, she might have told them where she was going. Or the principal would know.

He had never ran to school so fast in his life. The bell rang just as he made it through the gates. He leaped up the stairs, three at a time, and slammed open the door to class 2-1.

Mizuno-sensei stopped in the middle of roll call and turned to frown at him. "You're late, Saionji-kun. I'll forgive you this time, only because this is your first time, but don't do it again."

Kanata was past caring. "Miyu," he demanded harshly, "where is Miyu?"

"Miyu? Whom are you talking about?"

Kanata ignored the teacher and raked his eyes over the students, who were staring at him transfixed, stunned by his disheveled appearance and furious eyes. His gaze landed on Nanami, and she looked back at him apprehensively. Ignoring Mizuno-sensei's loud demands to explain himself, he strode up to the short-haired girl. "Tell me," he said, his voice demanding and pleading at the same time, "Tell me that you know where Miyu is."

Nanami stared into his gaze in bewilderment. His eyes looked so pained, and she didn't understand why he was asking her of all the people. They hadn't even spoken ever before. She shook her head, apologetically, "I am sorry, Saionji-kun. I don't know any Miyu."

"YOU'RE LYING!"

Nanami flinched at his sudden cry.

"You're lying!" He turned wildly and was suddenly standing beside Aya's desk. "Konishi, you know. Tell me," he begged, "tell me!"

Aya scooted away in fright, shaking her head.

Why, why, why had everyone forgotten her? How could they forget her in a day?

Santa stood up from his seat, coming to his best friend's aid. "Kanata, calm down, man. What happened to you?" he asked, his eyebrows wrinkled in worry.

Santa would know. Santa would tell. Santa was his best friend. He wouldn't lie. Gripping his shoulders tightly, Kanata desperately shook his best friend. "Santa, do you… do you remember M-Miyu? She is gone. I can't find her. And there's someone at my house, who looks like my mom. Tell me, Santa, tell me that you remember Miyu. Tell me you haven't forgotten her too…" His voice broke and he couldn't continue. His eyes bore into Santa's, looking lost and helpless and so immensely pained.

Santa stared at his best friend in dismay. What was wrong with Kanata? They didn't know any Miyu. Heck, even he hadn't told him about any Miyu till yesterday. And what was up with his mom? "Kanata," he tried to soothe his friend, "calm down, man. You're not making any sense. Who is this Miyu you're talking about?"

Kanata reared back. Slowly, the look in his eyes turned angry. Betrayed. He stepped back and away from his best friend, from his classmates, shaking his head disbelievingly. This was a ploy. They were hiding the truth from him. Why, he didn't know. But he would find out.

He backed away from Santa and felt around for the door behind him. Thrusting it open, he fled down the corridor and the stairs, heedless of Santa's voice calling after him.

First, he needed to find Miyu. The public library would have records of news articles. Her parents would be in there. He would find them, and he would call them up. He would tell them their daughter was missing. His heart squelched painfully at the word, but he plowed on. They were rich, they would have resources. They would help him look for her. And when he had found Miyu, she would know how to find Ruu. She had been able to do it before when Ruu was kidnapped. And Wanya would definitely be with Ruu.

He stopped, out of breath, at the front desk of the library. The bespectacled librarian looked at him in surprise. He was still in his pajamas, he realized, uncaring.

"Can I help you, young man?" she asked him.

"I need to… to look at newspaper clippings from about a y-year ago…" he wheezed out between gulps of air.

"Take the thirty second aisle, turn left right at the end and you'll find a smaller room branching off to the side. We keep all old newspapers there."

He nodded to her in thanks and set off. The smaller room was full of every Japanese language newspaper ever published. Kanata ran his eyes over the labels in the shelves, looking for the date when Miyu had first moved into his house. He found the shelf towards the back of room, and began pulling bundles upon bundles of newspapers down. They would be in here. Front page article on one of these. He would find her soon enough. Soon enough. Very soon…

He flipped the first newspaper on the stack. Some singer had just tied the knot. He tossed the newspaper away over his shoulder and looked at the next. A Tokyo U student won some national contest. Next. The new model of some motorbike was in the market. Next. Earthquake, somewhere. Next. Relief funds. Next. Prime Minister's speech. Next. Football. Next. Aeroplane. Next. Movie. Next. Car accident. Next. Global warming. Next. Nuclear power. Next. Next. Next. Next. Next. Next. NEXT! NEXT—

No! No! It wasn't there! It wasn't there! It had to be! Kanata desperately rifled through the strewn papers, clawing at every picture he could find. None of them belonged to a short haired astronaut and her husband. They weren't in here. Why, why? The internet. He would have to try the internet. Even if the library had somehow misplaced that news article, it would still be on the internet.

Leaving the mess of rumpled paper scattered all over the floor and the single table, Kanata raced out of the small room and headed up the aisles towards where he had seen several computers sitting in a row. Sliding into the seat in front of one of them, Kanata brought up the browser and typed in the names of Miyu's parents into the search box.

Heart thudding in his throat, he read the first result that popped up. "Miki Yamadoshi and Hotaru Kozuki win 400 meter swimming championship in Seika High School."

They weren't there… Her parents weren't there, or they would have been the top result in the search. He had lost the last chance he had of finding her.

Dazedly, Kanata rose from his seat and staggered to his feet. What was he going to do now? Miyu was gone, really gone… Why didn't he remember where she went? How could she be gone overnight?

He stumbled out of the library, the librarian giving him concerned glances at his drawn face, and stood for a while on the sidewalk, immobile. Where would he go now? Should he return to the temple? Where else would he go? But she wouldn't be there. He couldn't give up now. But where else could he look? He didn't even have Wanya's communicator with him. Maybe she was waiting for him somewhere, watching the communicator, waiting for it to ring? 'I want to see you, Miyu…'

He stepped off the sidewalk.

There was a loud blare of a car's horn.

There was a wild cacophony of screams.

Someone was yelling at someone to get off the road.

There was a screech of tires on asphalt—

Author's note: I understand that typically, Kanata should be overjoyed to find his mother alive. However, I don't believe that is true.

Kanata is not a person who indulges in fantasies or whimsical wishes. For example, in episode 17, even when he hears his father calling for help, he doesn't believe it and he ignores it. Kanata always takes a logical-rational approach to things, unless blatantly proven wrong. While Miyu is quick to trust the supernatural, as evidenced when she suspects Nozumu of being an alien, Kanata is not. Therefore, I believe that Kanata would find it hard to accept that his dead mother is back amongst the living so suddenly.

In the anime, when he does see his mother in episode 72, he knows that some kind of time traveling magic has been unleashed, and so he is more amenable to meeting his mother. But if the same were to happen suddenly one day, when he wakes up from sleep like any other day, I believe that he will be less susceptible to accept the fact. Hence, his reaction to his mother's presence. Moreover, his known world, Miyu, Ruu, Wanya are gone - pile up the paranoia!

Okay, enough ranting~ Please review and let me know what you think~ ^_^