Chapter Three: August 28, 2002
"How shall we sing the Lord's song in a foreign land?"
Psalm 137:4
It amazed me how quickly those three days passed. I stood before Light and his family, bags packed, at two-thirty in the afternoon on Wednesday. Sachiko, Light's mom, looked as if she might cry. Soichiro smiled at me sadly, and Light stared at the ground, scowling. Sayu, his sister, merely stood next to her mother, rubbing her arm nervously.
"Aw, come on, guys. It's not like I can't talk to you from England."
Sachiko began to cry. Light stepped forward and pulled me into a hug.
"I can't believe I'm letting you do this." He whispered next to my ear. I squeezed him tight, fighting back tears.
"I can't believe I'm going, either. You're not alone in this." My voice cracked a little, although I had been trying to lighten the mood. Light stepped back, and Soichiro took his place, enveloping me in huge, well-muscled arms.
"I'm going to miss you, but I'm glad you're getting this opportunity." He held me at arm's length and beamed. "Go out there and don't ever give up."
Sachiko almost bowled him over when it was her turn to say goodbye. She sobbed into my shoulder until Soichiro pulled her away, smiling apologetically.
"I'll make sure to send you my report cards." I assured her. She smiled through her tears and nodded.
Now all that remained was little Sayu. Although I hadn't talked to her much, I had learned that she was the average little sister, sweet and cute and secretly kind of a pest. I took the initiative this time and knelt in front of her. She stared at me with big, wide eyes, seeming a little surprised.
"Come here." She came a little closer and inclined her ear toward me. I glanced mischievously toward Light and whispered, "Keep up with the good work. I could never bug Light with as much talent as you do." She giggled a little. "And after I leave, make sure you bug him extra for me, okay?" To my surprise she threw her arms around my neck and laughed.
"I will." she said, linking her pinky with mine.
At that moment, the soft squeal of brakes sounded in the driveway. We all turned as one toward the sound; a black, four-door vehicle with tinted windows sat waiting on the pavement.
I turned back toward Light, who smiled weakly and gestured toward the car.
"Your chariot awaits."
Ten minutes later I sat in the backseat of the car, tinted window rolled down as I waved goodbye to the family that had harbored me for the past two weeks. To my surprise, no tears were forthcoming. I merely waved until I could no longer see them, and then rolled the window back up, feeling as if my parents had been murdered all over again.
Mr. Ruvie, who had insisted I call him Roger, turned around in the front passenger seat to face me.
"You made quite an impression on that family." He said softly. I glanced up into his blue eyes, so full of concern and sincerity.
"Thank you." I murmured, unable to break the gaze. Not that I minded. It was comforting in a way.
"I don't think there's anything I can do for you, other than offer you some refreshments." He said. I smiled weakly.
"Unless you have a pitcher of iced sweet tea lying around in here, thanks but no thanks."
The time it took to get to the airport was spent answering questions about my likes and dislikes, my favorite things, and what I would like in my room. I noticed that the driver purposefully avoided going down the street leading to Comfort Inn and Hertz, and was silently grateful.
The driver turned into the massive parking lot and hunted for a spot near the entrance.
"Now, you have that bag, don't you?" Roger asked as we clambered out of the car.
"I don't own anything electronic. My mother's camera was turned over to the police for the investigation. I got to keep a lot of the pictures, though. They even paid to get them developed."
Roger nodded with approval.
"I trust you. And that's less work for us."
I managed a small smile as we passed through security.
About an hour later, finally settled in on the plane, Roger informed me that the trip would last for about ten hours. We would arrive back in London at approximately nine in the morning, and at twelve we had a brief meeting with Dr. Wammy and the House's top advisor. Roger wouldn't tell me this advisor's name, no matter how much I bugged him.
"Get some sleep." He said, leaning back on his neck pillow. "You don't want to appear before our mystery guest half-awake, do you?"
I sighed and mimicked him, settling in for the trip.
"Well, the fact that we're going back in time doesn't help the sleep factor, either."
Roger just chuckled and faced the window.
At approximately eight o'clock London time, Roger shook me awake.
"Go freshen up. We land in an hour."
I followed his instructions, pulled my carry-on bag from the overhead luggage compartment, and headed toward the bathroom.
When I emerged twenty minutes later with hair neatly arranged, make-up applied, clean jeans and my nicest blouse on, Roger nodded his approval.
"Good. Very good. I like your blouse, by the way. Very professional looking." I examined the light blue garment and grinned.
"Thanks."
Upon landing, we passed through security once more and proceeded to the parking lot, towing our luggage behind us. I found it slightly odd that although our driver traveled with us, he hadn't said one word to us the entire time. He walked briskly beside us; he seemed a little more confident now that he was back in his native country.
We all piled into another black car.
"Do you have a fleet of black cars all around the world or something?" I asked as the driver smoothly whisked us into the early morning London traffic.
"Yes," Roger replied. "It just makes things easier for us on the occasion that we have to travel. Our students come from all over the world, so it does happen."
Our car crawled through the busy traffic. Although I had slept throughout the entire flight, I felt as if I could doze for a week.
Approximately thirty minutes later, we reached the outskirts of London and picked up speed. My face was glued to the window as ancient homes and beautiful moors sped by in a green and gray blur.
Roger glanced back at me with a smile.
"So, Miss Benjamin, how do you like England?"
"It's beautiful," I replied, forcing my eyes from the rolling green land. Roger beamed at me and turned back around with a sigh.
"Yes, it's good to be home." he said. With his words came a sudden rush of homesickness and longing for my parents; I bit back welling tears. It was so hard to believe that it had only been a little over two weeks since their murder. And now, here without the Yagami's, in this strange place, I felt like the biggest foreigner known to man.
As a result, I slumped in my seat, ignoring the world around me.
"Miss Benjamin?" I gasped and sat up quickly. I'd fallen asleep with my cheek against the window, and I hurriedly wiped my mouth on my sleeve. "The House is just ahead." Roger took a peek in the visor mirror and laughed when he saw my face. "And you may consider a re-application of lipstick."
I pulled a compact from my purse and scowled while Roger chuckled in the front seat.
Once I'd corrected the damage my impromptu nap had caused, I took a good look at the House in the distance. It towered at least four stories above the surrounding land, like a white beacon in a sea of green.
"You weren't kidding when you said 'in the English countryside'." I commented. "How long was I asleep?"
"About two hours." Roger said. "It's about eleven thirty now, so we'll arrive right on schedule."
As the House loomed closer and closer, my anticipation grew. What would the other children think? How would they react to my presence?
Father, help me!
Sooner than I would have liked, the driver passed through massive iron gates and eased to a stop beside the front doors.
"Thank you, William." Roger tipped his head gratefully toward the driver, who responded similarly. He then turned back to me and smiled. "Well, we're here."
His statement of the obvious did nothing to bolster my confidence. I managed a nervous smile in return and forced myself to leave the safety of the car.
After assuring me that my luggage would be taken care of, Roger escorted me up the white marble steps and through the imposing double doors. As we entered the establishment, my apprehension gave way to astonished wonder. Although the exterior of the building had seemed stark and austere, the inside was much more colorful and grand. We walked along a corridor lined with dark blue carpet and lit with three large chandeliers. The walls were a calming sky blue, and the doors every few feet were made of oak and boasted silver plaques bearing their purpose.
We didn't encounter a single soul coming up that hallway, and this continued as we turned to the left into a much larger corridor and stopped at the first door on the left. I glanced up at the plaque on the door.
Dr. Quillsh Wammy, it read. I gulped and glanced up at Roger.
"Smooth some of the wrinkles out of your blouse." He said with a soft smile. I hurriedly did as I was told, and Roger placed a hand on the doorknob. "Ready?"
"As I'll ever be." I replied, trying in vain to still my trembling hands.
Father, guide me.
Roger turned the doorknob and ushered me inside.
