Two months later

[Alright, the procedure is ready again. Everything is in order.]

[…]

[Hey…before you go, I just…]

[…]

[I know the reason why you visit Niko…]

[But I still want to say thank you.]

[I, too, want Niko to be happy.]

[So…]

[…]

[Anyway, the procedure is ready.]

[Just say the word, and I'll take you to the village.]

Niko was lying on their bed, staring up at the ceiling of their room.

Once again, the time was there. They'd seen it on the calendar. They still felt tension, but it was notably less compared to last times—especially since the time gaps between the Person's visits only became smaller.

The real problem was that the Person might not even appear in the right spot. Last time, they appeared in the wheat field, which delayed their ultimate meeting with Niko. Perhaps they really only could appear there.

Unfortunately, the time gaps were never exact; it usually took a few days more or less than 'officially' scheduled. This meant that Niko had no idea when they had to start looking for the Person.

But Niko was determined.

They eventually hopped off their bed.

Thankfully, the nervousness some of the villagers shared about the apparition had decreased.

Niko was relieved when they heard that. Apparently, some villagers had seen glimpses the Person—right before they disappeared. Seeing such a strange figure vanish into thin air had been enough to cause some tension.

At first, it had been believed to be nothing more than someone's imagination—until it turned out that several people had seen the exact same thing. Niko had gotten a few questions—since they had been the one talking to the Person—but this soon stopped, and everyone began dismissing it as funny coincidences.

Even so, Niko made a mental note to be more cautious in the future. They didn't want to scare anyone else, nor did they want to get their friend into trouble. Or themself.

As Niko walked around the wheat field in search of the Person, the child began to grow less and less certain that they'd find them today. That uncertainty turned out to be unnecessary—after a few minutes of wandering through the wheat fields, something happened.

A figure was visible up ahead. They were moving in Niko's direction, yet the soft sounds of wheat stems being pushed aside were absent.

"Hello…?" Niko called out.

The figure froze. "Hello?" they called back. Their voice was unmistakably familiar.

Without hesitation, Niko strode towards the figure, who met them halfway.

It was them.

Upon seeing Niko, the Person smiled. "Hey, Niko."

"Hi," Niko greeted back. An uncertainty in the back of their head was suddenly put to rest.

The Person nodded towards where Niko had come from. "Shall we go to the village? We can catch up during the walk. We've got twenty minutes, so…"

"Sure," Niko said. "Although…we can't really get too close to the village itself…"

"Why's that?"

"Well, um…some people saw you…disappear. They got scared and asked questions."

The Person frowned. "Is everything okay?"

"Yeah," Niko said. "Everything's okay now, but I don't want anything bad to happen. So I just…I thought it'd be best if we stayed out of the village."

"That's fine."

Niko smiled. "Hey, you remember last time you were here?"

"Yeah. Why?"

"Someone helped you get to the village, right?" Their smile turned into a grin. "Guess who that was? It was mom!"

The Person looked surprised. "That was your mother?" They smiled a bit as well. "Huh. I didn't know that."

"I'm really glad you met her." Niko's eyes suddenly lit up. "You know what? We can meet her again!"

"I'd like to, but I thought going to the village wasn't a good idea…?"

"We can still go near it. Mama's working somewhere in the wheat field right now. We just have to find her and make sure no one else sees you."

They nodded. "Alright. Sounds like a plan. We'll have to be careful, though…"

"Of course! I'll make sure no one sees you. C'mon, let's go!"

A few minutes of walking was all it took before they got close enough to the village. Deciding not to take any risks, the duo didn't continue forward, instead scouting out the surrounding portion of the wheat field in search of Niko's mother. Fortunately, not many people were working there, so the risk of being seen was small.

Their disadvantage was time; for roughly fifteen minutes, they continued searching. That didn't bother them too much, though; during the search, they told each other more about their respective worlds to pass the time.

A question eventually popped up in Niko's head. They'd been meaning to ask it during their previous visit, but they'd forgotten all about it. Now was their chance.

They looked at the Person. "Hey, I was wondering…"

The Person looked at them questioningly.

"You visit this world sometimes with the World Machine's help," Niko said. "That got me thinking… Are there any other worlds you visit?"

Before the Person had a chance to reply, another voice rang out from nearby. The two looked to its source.

A familiar woman stood there.

"Mama!" Niko greeted, forgetting about their question.

Their mother smiled. "Niko! What are you doing out here in the wheat field?" She looked at the Person. "Actually, I think I know the answer to that."

"Ma'am," the Person politely greeted.

"Hello," the woman greeted back. "Hey, you're Niko's friend from two months ago! It's nice to see you again."

"Likewise."

Niko's mother looked down at her child, smiled, and looked at the Person again. "You two want something to drink? It's a pretty sunny day today, so…"

"Yes!" Niko exclaimed.

"Thank you for the offer," the Person said, "but I'm afraid that's not an option for me."

"Why's that?" Niko's mother asked.

The Person turned to a nearby wheat stalk. Niko's mother followed their gaze, and her eyes widened when she saw the stalk—which was bent forward by the wind—pass through the Person without any resistance. The Person didn't seem to be affected by it.

"So I didn't imagine that last time," Niko's mother whispered. "But how…?"

"It's complicated."

Niko suddenly remembered something. They looked at the Person. "How much time do we have left?"

"I'm not exactly sure." They paused. "Though I don't know if we can ever know for sure. I was sent back a little too early last time, so that might happen again."

"So there's no telling for how long you'll be able to stay," Niko's mother deduced.

"Yeah." As if on cue, the Person's figure flickered slightly.

"You have to go…?" Niko asked.

"No, not immediately. I've been told this might happen from now on; according to World Machine, it should mean I have about fifteen seconds left."

"How long until you can come back?"

"A month and a half." They paused. "Well…I'll see you then?"

Niko smiled. "Definitely."

[…]

[No…]

[No, this can't be…]

[Why…]

[How…]

[…]

[I must have made a mistake. Running the test again.]

[Please tell me I made a mistake somewhere…]

Guest: Thank you!

Alex: I'm actually kind of apprehensive about including other villagers; I try to make this story as headcanon-friendly as possible, and I fear that adding other characters who have not been mentioned in the game might weaken that.

Guest: I probably won't discontinue this story—but should I do so anyway, I will be sure to leave a message in the author's notes.

NightWing4390: Thank you! I'll do my best.

Laila: I will do more. The chapters just take a long time to write, partly because I'm afraid that certain events in my life might cause their quality to degrade.

Unknown Kitty: Thank you!

And yet another update for one of my special stories is here. And once again, I found the experience of publishing a new chapter for this story particularly nerve-wracking. You'd think I'd get used to it.

Oh well, that's fine. Hope you enjoyed.