Were any of you syked to see that I updated? I sure was excited to put this up. It took me most of the day to write, but I wanted to finish for you guys. Now, I can see there really isn't anything exciting or cliffhanging or just out of the blue scenes in this, but I hope this ending catches you all by surprise...

Chapter 10: Dreams and Nightmares

"Kiki…Kiki…" I could faintly hear my name being called. It sounded like Osono, but I was too tired to answer her. I was out late the night before, walking around town with Jiji. I didn't feel like sitting at home doing nothing, and I needed to clear my head with everything that had been going on.

"Kiki, you can't stay in bed all day," Osono said, "You have to work."

"Tell them I can't work today," I replied, "That I'm sick or something." I curled up into a ball under the covers and closed my eyes. I was not in the mood to get up and work. I didn't even want to fly.

All I thought about the night before was Tombo. I couldn't stop thinking about him and how he was still in that coma. I couldn't help but think it was completely my fault, that there was something I could have done to prevent him from falling into that deep sleep somehow. Now, he was trapped in that prison, and I wasn't sure if he would ever wake up.

"Kiki, I want to see you up and ready for the day in half an hour, got it?" I had almost forgotten that Osono was still in the room. Jiji was sleeping next to me, but he didn't hear us.

"Fine," I groaned. I flung the covers off of me and sat up. Osono smiled and walked to the door. I rubbed my eyes and pulled my long, black hair back into a ponytail so it was out of my face. I placed one foot on the wooden floor first, and then the other. It took me a while to stand up and walk to my dress.

"Why bother getting up? What can I do there that I wouldn't be doing here?" I asked Jiji, who couldn't care less what I had to say. He would rather sleep in or be with Lilly. Everyone had someone they loved with them except me it seemed.

"Ready Jiji?" I asked. He moved his tail up and down, up and down. I was annoyed with his lack of energy, and I knew how to change that. I grabbed a bucket of water and walked towards him. Slowly, I was about to pour it…

"Do it and you get the claws," Jiji said coldly. I stopped midway as he opened one eye and stared back at me.

"How did you know I was going to do that?" I asked him.

"You're not that subtle," he replied. It didn't matter that he knew my plan. I shrugged my shoulders and poured the bucket of water all over him. He stood up and ran off. Jiji screeched and jumped onto the windowsill.

"What was that for?! I just told you not to!"

"Well, now that you're wide awake, we can both start the day." I walked over to the windows, undid my hair and brushed it. The ocean looked so beautiful from where I stood. The waves crashed up against the coast, and when you're really far out you could feel how peaceful it could be.

"I thought you were the one who was against that." Jiji replied. While that was true, I figured Osono could use some help. She had been so kind to me since I returned to Koriko, and she probably needed an extra pair of hands in the bakery.

"Yes, but Osono may need us. Plus, if we have any more deliveries today we're going to be super busy!" I placed the comb on the table and ran out the door. I had a sudden burst of energy and needed to get outside. The warm air was so fresh and you could smell the saltwater. It reminded me of when I was younger and had just become a teenager, starting my training to become a master witch.

"Jiji, don't you remember that?" I asked. He jumped onto my shoulder and looked around.

"Remember what? All I see is a big puddle of water."

"You said that last time! No, don't you remember the feeling? Didn't you feel all warm inside when smelled that ocean air?"

"Nope! I say you go inside and get to work while I go and see Lilly. I want to get out of here before the little brat comes out." He jumped down from my shoulder and scurried off to the neighbor's. I shook my head and walked to the back door. Kimi wasn't that bad of a child, she was like any other kid I knew.

Before I entered, I could slightly hear my name being called out.

"Kiki!" I looked to the street and saw Ursula crossing the street to meet me. She was wearing her normal outfit, but her bag seemed lighter than usual.

"Ursula, hi!" I ran up and gave her a hug, demanding her to tell me what happened the night before. I had so many questions for her I didn't know where to start. I was curious about everything that happened during her date.

I was happy for Ursula. She needed to get out and have a relationship with someone other than the birds. Of course she knew people, but I could tell she had been waiting a while to find someone to spend the rest of her life with. Luckily for her, she had me to back her up.

"So how did your date go? What did you say? Did he kiss you? Did you kiss him back? I knew it, you did!" I began clapping excitedly.

"Kiki, quiet! Yes, it went well, but we didn't kiss!"

"Why not?" I asked, "He's cute!"

"Yes he is, but it doesn't mean I have to kiss him on the first date."

"Well, then what did you do?" I asked. Before she could answer, Osono came rushing out.

"Did I miss anything? I want to know everything that happened!"

"Okay," Ursula started as she sat on the grass. Osono and I sat close by, paying close attention to what she was about to say.

"At first, when we sat down at the restaurant, I was really nervous. I didn't know what to say and I froze. I just sat there staring intensely at the menu. Luckily, he broke the silence by talking about himself."

"So is he everything you expected him to be?" I asked.

"At first I was thinking, 'Kiki, why would make me go to this?' But he's so much better than I thought he would! We have so many things in common and the night just seemed to go on forever! It was a dream come true!"

"So what did you do after? Did you go to his place?"

"Kiki, aren't you a little too young to have knowledge about all that?" she asked me.

"I am almost twenty-one! I am at a very mature age!" I responded.

"Well, to answer your question he actually drove me back to my cabin. He led me to the door, but I wasn't going to let him kiss me yet."

"You're no fun!" I shouted, "Why not? You like him, I can tell."

"Because I want to know if he feels the same. Otherwise, I would just be wasting my time on a relationship that wasn't going anywhere."

"But you do like him, right?" Osono asked. It took Ursula some time to answer.

"I...I think I do, but what if I'm not what he expected me to be?"

"Ursula, you're better than he expected you to be," I replied, "I know it. Witches have a way of knowing these things." I winked. Ursula blushed and we all burst out laughing. I knew it was going to go well.

"Okay, well I just wanted to tell you both how glad I was that you forced me into that. I had a great time." I gave her a big hug as a thank you.

"Any time. And tell us when your next date is so we can help again." She nodded and waved goodbye.

I, however, was not in the mood to work, whether it was selling bread or flying around town. There was one place I felt like I needed to be. I had to go visit an old friend.

"Hey, Osono, do you mind if I skip work today? I'll work tomorrow extra late."

"Not at all! Go, have fun!" She was practically begging me to leave. I smiled as wide as I could. I ran upstairs to the attic and gabbed my broomstick. Running back, I could see Osono still where she was.

"I won't be gone long! Thanks!" I hovered over the bakery and soared into the air. I didn't need Jiji for a trip like this. He was busy, and I wanted to be alone with this person anyway.

The Koriko Hospital wasn't too far from the bakery when taking a broomstick. I didn't like taking any other form of transportation there. I floated near the ground and held the broom upright. I walked through the doors and saw many visitors checking in on their loved ones. We all had one thing in common: we all wanted the person we came to see to be all right.

I walked to the counter and signed my name, as well as the patient I wanted to see. The nurse directed me to the hallway I was supposed to go down. I thanked her and walked along.

"Room 204..." I must have whispered the number a hundred times before finding the right door. At first, I just stared at the door. The window was blocked with shades with no other way to see what was inside.

But I already knew what was there. The one person I fell in love with was lying on a hospital bed and there was nothing I could do but wait and see if he woke up. There was no guarantee that he would ever come out of the coma, and that tore my heart into a million pieces.

I reluctantly reached for the doorknob, slowly turning it and opening the door. The light was turned on inside. I could hear a soft sound coming from the monitoring screen. His heartbeat was normal, meaning he was the exact same way he had always been for the past three months.

I walked towards one of the chairs that sat in the hospital room and stared intensely at Tombo. His head dressing seemed to have been replaced shortly before I came. At least he was breathing on his own, which the doctors said was improvement from before. He still needed a ventilator, but I could tell he was getting better.

But still, it wasn't good enough.

"Tombo," I whispered, "Tombo, I know you can hear me. I know you can't respond, but I could use someone to talk to. I've waited a while to tell you something, and I felt like now would be a good time. I just wish you would know what I was saying."

The silence from his lips told me to continue.

"Tombo, we've known each other a long time. Even though we didn't see each other for quite a while, I still got your letters, and I'm sure you received mine. You would call me every evening, even when it was the middle of the night in Koriko. Though I knew there was something wrong when you didn't respond, I just thought you didn't have the time anymore."

All I received in response was the beeping noise coming from the monitoring screen. It infuriated me.

"Why didn't you return my calls? You stopped almost two months before your accident! I felt lonely, and I didn't have you there to tell me that everything was okay! I came back for you, and this is what I get? Me sitting next to your lifeless body is not what I was hoping. I wanted to tell you how much I cared about you. I wanted to tell you I..."

The noise began quickening in pace. I looked to the monitoring screen and the lines representing the heart rate increased in size. Not a second later did doctors start flooding in.

"Miss, what happened?" One doctor asked me.

"She needs to go. Someone get her outside." Another said.

"What's going on? What happened to Tombo?" I was led out by one of the nurses, struggling to stay in and see what went wrong.

"Miss, we need you to stay out here."

"What happened? What have I done? I made things worse than they already were!" I walked back and forth, crying into my hands. The nurse patted my back, telling me it wasn't my fault.

"We were expecting this to happen soon. The same thing happened a few weeks ago. We were able to return him back to his original state, but we feared that if this occurred again..." I looked directly into her eyes.

"What? What might happen?" She cleared her throat before throwing everything in me at once.

"As a result of this, there is a slight chance he will awaken."

"That's...that's amazing! That's perfect!" I smiled as big as I could, but I could still see the sadness in her eyes.

"Wait, there is something else, isn't there?"

"Unfortunately, yes there is." I went from the happiest person in the world to the saddest in the blink of an eye.

"While there is the chance he will wake up, there is an even greater chance he will... continue to be in this state for the rest of his life."

As you can see, the title is very accurate. While Ursula's date went well, Kiki's did not. Tombo is going to have to use all his strength if he wishes to return to normal. I doubt any of you figured I would twist things up like this! And that is what makes the story exciting. I hope to update soon, but until then, please review. Any questions, comments, compliments; all are accepted. Thank you!

Anabelle ;)