AN: You do have a point, Crowstorm; I just find it a little discouraging that the prologue of Chilled gave more reviews than all nine or so chapters of this…and the number of people who read this and who actually review is sort of unbalanced. But that's okay, I guess it just makes each review more precious, right?

I do appreciate all of the reviews I receive, honestly. Don't listen to my spoiled demands. ^^

C h a p t e r 9

She opened her eyes to the delicious smell of something cooking. She laid there for a moment, wondering where the smell could be coming from, then yawned and sat up. To her surprise, she was in her bed; Singe was nowhere to be seen.

Frowning, she stood, waddling out of the hut. Singe was sitting on the other side of the water, poking a little campfire with a stick. He brightened as he saw her.

"Good morning, Sapphire!" he chirped happily. "I thought we could use some protein to help us rest up." He gestured to a small wooden plate, atop which laid three beautiful fried eggs.

Her stomach rumbled, and she quickly dove into the pool, using her tail to propel her onto the opposite bank. She smiled at him, and sat down to eat, grabbing one of the eggs straight off the plate, only to yelp as it burnt her hand. She threw it into her mouth to relieve her hand, only to find it burning her tongue. She opened her jaws, fanning her mouth frantically before gulping the egg down.

The burning egg definitely jolted her awake, and with her alertness came the memories of the day before. She drooped slightly, staring down at her round feet.

Singe had been laughing at her panicked fanning, but he frowned as he realized she was apparently sad.

"What's the matter?" he asked. "Don't you like eggs?"

"Why did you make me team leader?" she asked abruptly. He looked surprised.

"Because you're one of the Transformed, of course," he said, as though it was obvious.

"But is there any other reason?" she pressed. "Any reason that you think I'm capable of being team leader?"

He cocked his head to one side, watching her. "Well, you're strong, decisive…determined. You don't back down, even when you're scared…."

"But you didn't know that, when we first met, and you made me team leader anyway," she pointed out. He chuckled.

"Of course I did; I trusted that because you're one of the Transformed, you'd be good at it. Arceus or whoever transformed you wouldn't have picked you if you weren't a good leader."

"I might be a decent leader, but that doesn't mean I'm a good Pokemon," she said quietly. "I'm not…like you." She was uncomfortable, speaking of her feelings in such a matter; punching a feral Pokemon in the face would be more in her comfort zone, but at the same time, the guilt was gnawing away at her mercilessly.

Singe blinked at her, a glimmer of concern in his eyes. "Don't beat yourself up about yesterday; I think the ferals did enough of that for you," he said with a smile. "It's okay, you're still new at this. That was only our third mission, and this is only your third day as a Pokemon. Things will get easier, okay? Trust me." He gave her another warm smile.

"But you belong here," she said. "I don't. I'm not sure I ever could. I feel like I…stand out." She stared down at her blue hands. "And I wouldn't have given the reward back to that Cleffa. You did, and you didn't even know her name."

"Her name's Stella, actually, it was on the mission card," Singe said. "But, really, it's not a big deal. You'll settle in with time; I've lived here almost all my life. And it's okay that you didn't give the money back, because I did. There's a reason I found you, you know." He grinned. "Nothing happens by accident out here. I believe everything happens for a reason, even if we don't understand it. Maybe that's why you found me; I even out your faults, and you even out mine. Together, we're the perfect team." He pushed the plate towards her. "Eat another one, but try not to burn yourself this time, okay? I'd hate to have to ask Miss Liss to perform a Heal Pulse on your tongue."

Obediently, Sapphire gulped down another egg – they really were delicious – and then blinked. "What kind of eggs were these?"

He shrugged. "I don't know, some sort of songbird. I found them in a nest."

"Are you ever going to explain how normal animals can live out here?" she asked. Singe nodded, lying back on the grass, tucking his arms behind his head. His green eyes blinked up at the sky, reflecting the puffy white clouds overhead.

"Well, a long time ago, normal animals and Pokemon lived sort of at the same time," he said slowly. "But the Pokemon were obviously bigger and stronger and better adapted to their homes, so most of the normal animals died off. Humans preserved some of them; you've probably seen some old movies, right, about normal animals?"

She wrinkled her snout, trying to remember; she thought she remembered something about a class and a movie about strange animals that she couldn't quite remember, but she wasn't sure.

"Anyway, as you can see, there aren't many wild Pokemon around here, right? So the competition was removed, for most of them, and they started coming back. These animals are what most civilized Pokemon eat; we can't all live on apples, and hunting ferals is too dangerous, and we can't eat each other. There are these things called 'cows' that are really fat – like smaller Miltanks, and they walk on all fours all the time! – that some civilized Pokemon sort of take care of. They've been around as long as anyone can remember; we think some of the Psychic Legendary Teleporte them here years and years ago, or maybe Arceus made more of them for us, or something."

"So they live in the wild? Normal birds and fish and stuff?"

Singe nodded. "Yep. We could find some fish and move them to your pond, if you wanted. I bet they'd like it there, and you could eat them whenever you wanted, right? Maybe we'll do that sometime." He looked pleased by the idea.

"Maybe," she said. Her stomach rumbled again gently, and she glanced down at the third egg.

"Go ahead," Singe said, standing, brushing some of the grass off of his butt and knees. She reached out for the egg, then hesitated. Sighing quietly, she pushed it back towards him, standing up as well.

"You're the one who fought thirty-seven Pokemon on one floor," she reminded him. "Skylar had to carry you all the way home. You eat it."

"I should thank him," Singe said, picking up the wooden plate and sliding the egg off into his waiting mouth. "Mind dousing the fire?"

She nodded, shooting a small Water Gun at it, sending up a burst of steam as the fire fizzled out. Singe stepped on the remaining embers, making sure they were no longer burning, before walking over to a small, dusty brown mailbox that looked as though it could use a coat of paint.

"Hey, Sapphire, didn't they give us a feather to put in here?" he asked, peering inside. He blew into the mailbox, sending out a plume of dust. He coughed, stepping back and fanning his hand over it, sending the dust drifting away.

"I think so. Is it in the bag?" she asked. He rifled around inside, finally pulling out a brown feather, tipped with red.

"We'll put it right here," he said, tucking it into a small slit on the top of the mailbox. Then, he glanced back at the bag, and frowned. "It's so light…we really need to find some more Oran berries," he decided. "We should look for some for today's missions."

"More missions?" Sapphire asked, surprised. He blinked.

"Of course, it's early, we've got loads of time…I mean, unless you don't want to?" he asked anxiously. "I don't want to force you into anything, I just figured that we should try to hurry…I mean, we've got fifteen points now, but we're not even half way to Bronze rank, let alone Gold…."

"No, you're right, we should do more missions…I guess," she grumbled. "We need to redeem the last two before we go, though, I didn't have time yesterday."

Singe nodded, and started to head down the dusty path, before freezing. "You hear that?"

She opened her mouth to enquire about what he'd heard, before blinking as the sound of beating wings reached her ears. She looked upwards as best she could, and to her surprise saw a massive bird bearing down on them. She tensed, hands curling into fists.

The bird landed on their mailbox; it creaked and groaned under his weight. He stared at the pair of them with beady eyes. It was a Staraptor, but not a pretty specimen; his feathers were ruffled, and she could see scars underneath his slightly dull plumage. One jagged scar ran all the way down one of his large, well-muscled legs.

He carried a small bag, the strap of which looped around his neck. Opening the mailbox with one foot, he pulled out several bright pink letters from his back, dropping them in the mailbox, then closed it. With one beat of his powerful wings, he was in the air again and soaring away.

"Sarge, our mail-carrier," Singe explained, opening the mailbox. "I wonder what he's brought us, let's see…." He rifled through the letters. "Well, this one is from the Legend League, congratulating us on becoming a team and completing our first mission…wow, they're fast. This one wants us to fill out some paperwork concerning our possession of this base…easy. This one is some sort of advertisement for…." He flipped the letter over, surveying the back of it. "A storage facility, owned by someone named Lizzy….Purrloin Inc, it says. Hmm. Must be new, I've never heard of it…it'll be good to have a new business, I guess, although Libby won't be pleased. I'm not sure what a Purrloin is, but I guess we'll find out, hmm?"

He frowned. "I think that's all there…oh, wait! Missed something!" He reached into the back of the mailbox, pulling out a final pink letter. He opened it, reading in silence, a slow smile spreading over his face.

"Anew mission!" he exclaimed. "And this one we got by request! Listen:

"Dear Team Savage!

"My friend Creampuff told me all about how you saved her little daughter, Cookie! She says you even beat the boss of Sunlit Meadow! I hope you really did, because I need your help! I have a friend named Spice! She's very tough! She thought she could beat the boss of Sunlit Meadow! She's gone looking for him! I need you to save her, pretty please! You were the first team I thought of, thanks to Creampuff! Please go to Sunlit Meadow and look for her!

"Sincerely, Sugar!"

He frowned. "She used a lot of exclamation marks…it must be important." He glanced at Sapphire. "Think we can take on the boss again? It doesn't say what floor 'Spice' is on, so she might not be too far, but we should still make sure she's okay."

Sapphire nodded. "I bet the boss will be easy this time; we're loads stronger already."

Singe beamed. "That's the spirit!" He pocketed the letters. "Come on, let's go!"

. . .

They managed to pick up a few Oran berries from Zee without too much of a struggle, before visiting Miss Liss to thank her for her help, and finally going to Skylar to thank him as well and appraise their missions.

Singe beamed down at their badge, which now had a shiny '15' engraved on it, before handing it back to Sapphire. He grabbed two more missions from the board – one to rescue a Pokemon on the second floor, another to deliver a simple apple – and then they were on their way, just like that.

. . .

The badge glittered on the very first floor, which pleased them both; Sapphire didn't want to spend all day in a dungeon.

"Let's find him and deliver the apple," Singe said, and the two of them headed down the hallway together. This time, they encountered fewer ferals than usual; perhaps word had spread of the two fearless explorers, willing to take down any Rattata or Pidgey with ease.

They found the quarry quickly, handed off the apple, and watched as the badge teleported him away, before continuing onto the second floor.

The second floor mission was easy as well; they found the quarry almost immediately, teleported him away, and were on their way.

By the third floor, Singe was worried about them not having found 'Spice' yet. Sapphire assured him that even if they went all the way to the boss, they'd be fine, but he was still anxious about fighting the Pidgeotto a second time.

Finally, on the fifth floor, their badge gave off a sparkle. Singe sighed with relief.

"Thank goodness," he said. "Come on, let's hurry up and find this 'Spice' person."

"Hopefully it's not a Rattata or Pidgey; hate to knock her out by mistake," Sapphire smirked.

The two of them headed down the hallway together – they'd been careful not to split up, after what had happened last time – making short work of the ferals they encountered. They found the Flagstone fairly early on, but ignored it; they couldn't leave the floor without helping Spice, or they'd have to go through the whole thing again.

There was a sudden burst of light as they walked down another twisting hallway; Sapphire broke into a run, following the light, then stopped and blinked with surprise.

A Growlithe was growling savagely at a small Rattata; flames were leaking out of its mouth as it rumbled menacingly. The Rattata had a burn on one flank, but to its credit it stood its ground, chattering angry at the large orange puppy.

"Hang on, Spice!" Singe exclaimed, pushing past Sapphire. "We'll take care of this!"

Spice turned her eyes onto Singe, letting out a menacing growl. "My prey!" She let loose another Ember, scorching the Rattata and making the air smell of burnt fur. The Rattata whimpered with pain and raced away, disappearing into the grass, still smoking.

"It's okay, Spice, we're here to help," Singe said warmly. "Don't worry about a thing. Sugar sent us, we're here to take you home, alright?"

Spice flattened her fur, but still looked faintly suspicious. "Sugar sent you? Why? I'm totally fine?"

Sapphire glanced her over; aside from a few cuts on her legs and one on her chest, the Growlithe did indeed appear to be okay.

Tough little thing, she thought. If Singe wasn't already a Fire type, I'd suggest marking her part of the team…we can have three team members right? I think we can have a total of four…but three would be a solid number. Who will our third member be?

"Come on, we can Teleport you home with the badge; Sugar was really worried," Sapphire said. The Growlithe looked cautious for a moment, then approached. Sapphire held out her hand, but the Growlithe was slightly out of reach.

"Can I see that map?" she asked curiously, pointing to the Wonder Map that Singe clutched in his hands with one fluffy paw. Singe glanced at Sapphire, then shrugged.

"Sure," he said, turning it around so that she could look at it. The Growlithe peered at it for a moment, before her face lit up and her thick tail began to wag.

"That's where the Flagstone is! I've been looking forever!" she exclaimed, her tail wagging furiously. "Thanks, guys! Boss, here I come!" With that, she sprang over their heads, her thick paws thumping against the ground as she raced down the hallway.

"She's heading for the boss!" Singe cried. "Hurry, we've got to stop her!"

But the sound of grass flattening told them that they were already too late. They burst into the Flagstone room just in time to see Spice's tail disappearing into the sixth floor.

"She can't fight the boss on her own, no matter how tough she is!" Singe exclaimed. "Come on, let's go!"

The two of them raced after her as quickly as they could, running into Floor Six and hearing the fifth floor close behind them.

Sapphire's eyes narrowed as they charged down the hallway, towards where the Pidgeotto would surely be waiting.

Time for a rematch, she thought, as they entered the main room.

Spice was already facing off against the boss when they entered; flames leaked from the side of her mouth as she growled up at the great bird. But the Pidgeotto was not afraid; it seemed to have completely healed from its encounter with Team Savage.

It let out a Gust of wind from its wings, buffeting the Growlithe puppy. Spice quickly sprang to her paws, and let loose a valiant Ember, but the Pidgeotto was too high in the sky.

"Come on, Sapphire," Singe said quickly, striding forward. Spice saw them out of the corner of her eye; then, to Sapphire's surprise, she turned on them, raising her hackles.

" Back off!" she snarled. "I can do this myself!"

The Pidgeotto, seeing that she was distracted, swooped downwards with open talons, ready to grab her.

"I don't think so!" Singe shouted, and from his mouth came a burning Ember, blazing over the Pidgeotto's feathers. The Pidgeotto let out a shrill cry of pain, flapping quickly back up into the sky.

Sapphire readied herself for a Water Gun; that would send the bird falling straight out of the sky. She smirked at the thought, and tensed, ready for the Pidgeotto's next move.

Spice was still snarling at them. "I can handle this! Just leave me alone!" she barked.

Sapphire ignored her, keeping her eyes on the boss, who was flying around just above their heads. Sapphire frowned; what was he doing? Why wasn't he attacking them furiously, as he had done before?

It was only when the smell of burnt feathers began to dissipate that she realized the boss was simply biding his time, allowing himself to heal before he struck again. She glanced at Singe; he looked worried.

"I guess he learned since we took him down before," Singe said anxiously. "We need to—oof!" The wind was knocked out of him as the Growlithe Tackled him to the ground. Snarling, Sapphire advanced, ready to shoot her Water Gun at the stupid puppy. The Growlithe faced her without fear, her large paws on Singe's chest.

"Singe won't hurt you," Sapphire growled menacingly, "but don't think that I won't. Get off of him, right—"

"Sapphire!"

Singe's alarmed shout made her turn, and her eyes widened as she saw the Pidgeotto streaking towards her, practically falling out of the sky, wings pulled back to increase its speed. There wasn't time to move out of the way, she was too slow. She opened her mouth to unleash a torrent of water, but even as she did so she knew it would be too late—

She was dimly aware of the feeling of the Pidgeotto's beak striking her, before the pain completely wiped all sensation away. She hit the ground hard, letting out a gasp of pain, feeling all the wind being completely knocked out of her. Her chest seemed to scream, and she scrabbled at it weakly with her hands, willing to do anything to make the pain go away, make it stop….

She was aware of the Pidgeotto's wing-beats as the boss took to the air again, but she couldn't move; it was as if she was paralyzed. In the back of her mind, she could hear her screams, feel them ripping out of her body, but she couldn't hear them with her own ears.

Her vision seemed to slide, the edges darkening. She saw Singe's green eyes hovering over her; she latched onto them, staring back, trying to hold the tide of black away. She remembered that first time they came over her…that first time where she had to fight them back…that first time when she had woken up to realize that she was a Pokemon….

"Oh, Arceus, no," she heard Singe whisper. She tried to speak, to tell him something, but this time she couldn't fight off the darkness….

And then….

She snuggled against her covers, feeling the softness of her Sentret pillow. Her father had made it just for her; his hands were large, but nimble. He could make anything, out of anything; a pillow for her head, the wooden frame of her bed, the special paint that made the stars on her ceiling glow with celestial light.

"Tell me a story," she said softly, blinking up at him. His blue eyes, the eyes they shared, were dark in the shadows of the night. His lined face was gently illuminated by the glowing crescent of her Teddiursa lamp.

"A story?" he said slowly; his voice was a gentle rumble, and she could almost feel it in her toes. She wiggled them to make sure, and smiled sleepily.

"A story," she repeated. "Tell me about the prince in the stars."

Her father sat back. "I don't know," he said slowly. "I think you've heard that story too many times. How about something new? Do you want to hear about the Muk who made a mud bride? Or how about the Weedle that wove a magic bed?" There was a slight hint of a smile on his face; she could see the glitter of his white teeth, like stars themselves.

"No," she laughed at him. "Tell me the story of the prince in the stars!"

Her father sat down, and her bed creaked softly; he moved her legs slightly out of the way to give himself more room. She pulled the soft Cottonee covers to her chin, blinking at him.

"Once upon a time, there was a prince in the stars," her father whispered to her, reaching up with one thumb to brush one of her dark curls from her forehead. "This prince was looking for something, a princess. But he was cursed…he could only find this princess every thousand years. And every thousand years, he would call, 'My shooting star—'"

"Granting wishes from afar," she whispered.

"Look up at the sky and see me," he continued.

"And we will fly forever free," she finished. Her father chuckled quietly.

"What did I say? You know this story too well. Why don't you tell it to me, hmm?" He grabbed one of her plushies, holding it to his chest in an imitation of her. She frowned at him.

"I can't tell it right," she protested. "Not like you. You tell it best, Daddy."

"I'm flattered," he said with a smile. Then, he glanced at her clock, and frowned. "It's too late, dearest."

"But you've got to finish it! You have to tell about the special star and the battle and the—"

"Tomorrow, I promise," he said softly. "You've got school tomorrow."

"My first day," she said, and a smile came to her face. Then, she bit her lower lip with worry. "Will the other kids like me? Will they like the stars too?"

"How can anyone not like the stars?" her father responded. He bent down to kiss her forehead, his whiskery lips brushing her skin, before standing. Gently, he reached over to tap the lamp, extinguishing its light.

"Wait," she called to her father, as the fear of the darkness began to well up inside of her. But she could hear his footsteps, slowly moving away….

And then….

And then she could feel hands lifting her head, someone trying to open her mouth, something putting something strange on her tongue.

"Get her to swallow," she heard someone order. She felt pressure on her throat, and reflexively swallowed, sending whatever it was on her tongue sliding down her throat….

She choked, struggling weakly, but she didn't have the energy...

And then….

She was suddenly filled with a burst of energy; it felt as though her entire body was humming. Her eyes snapped open, and she blinked up at Singe's anxious face.

"Oh, thank Arceus you're okay," he breathed. She sat up slowly, then winced; her stomach felt tender. Glancing down, she saw a large mark on her chest, just to the left of the middle of the v-shaped marking on her chest.

"That's going to scar," a smooth voice said softly. She turned, and her eyes widened as she saw Lune smiling at her.

"I must have gotten hit harder than I thought," she said slowly. "What's going on here?"

"Hello! I'm Sugar!" a voice purred. A bright Skitty poked her head out from behind Lune. "You guys were taking forever! So I got another team to come and help! And what a good thing I did! Spice says you guys were in trouble!"

Her exclamation points were making Sapphire's head pound. Slowly, she stood.

"So you brought Lune?"

"And the rest of Team Darkspark," a voice growled. Sapphire turned to see a Luxio, wearing a bright pink ribbon on one ear, glaring at her. Beside her was a Meowth, who was licking his paw and drawing it over his ear, looking bored.

"They beat the boss," Singe said, gesturing towards the fallen Pidgeotto; it wasn't moving.

"Is it dead?" Sapphire asked slowly.

"Almost," Singe said quietly. He looked almost…ashamed? "It might live. I'm not sure. We had to look after you. He hit you almost on your weak spot, and it was a hard strike, much to much for the pair of us….If it had hit you spot on, you could have died. The badge would have taken you away, but it was in your hand when the Pidgeotto hit you. I'm sorry, Sapphire, I should have done something…."

"We gave you one of our Reviver Seeds," the Luxio said haughtily. "You'd better be grateful!" Sparks still danced over her black and blue coat, and Sapphire guessed that she was the one who had done most of the damage to the boss.

"Now, Luminita, simmer down a bit," Lune said calmly. "I think she's been through enough. Are you feeling better?"

Sapphire nodded slowly, then touched her chest gingerly; even brushing her hand over the wound caused it to ache.

"Go ahead and get your badge, you completed your mission," Lune ordered. "I don't think Spice will object now."

Sapphire glanced at the Growlithe; the puppy wasn't looking at her, and was instead looking at her paws, shame ruffling her coat.

The Meowth stopped his licking. "Hang on now, boss," he meowed in an irritating, squeaky voice. "She fainted!"

"And her team-mate revived her," Lune said firmly.

"With our Reviver Seed!" Luminita bristled. "Don't you know how much those cost?"

Lune glanced at the Growlithe. "We'll receive full payment for that, now won't we?"

Spice looked up, confusion in her eyes. Sugar squeaked,

"I was telling Lune on the way here about our plan! To become a legend team! And how you wanted to fight the boss to prove your strength!" she meowed excitedly. "At first I wasn't so sure! But Lune is so strong! These feral Pokemon are nothing to him! He breezed right through them! All of them did!" She beamed happily. "And Luminita told me that I don't have to be strong! I can support you in everything you do, Spice! I can weaken the opponent with Growling and things like that! So we are going to be a legend team, Spice! And we will work hard to repay Lune for his time and his Reviver Seed!" Then, she frowned. "And we are going to pay Team Savage too, because of everything you put them through!"

Spice scuffed her paw in the dirt. "Okay," she mumbled, her fluffy tail lowered slightly. "Can we go home now?"

Singe plucked the badge from the ground, holding it out to Sapphire. She took it, still feeling dazed.

Quarry acquired, the badge said. Complete mission?

"Take us home."

. . .

Spice and Sugar gave Singe a small bag of coins – four hundred, hardly worth the trouble at all – before earnestly promising Lune that he would have his payment soon. And then they were on their way, just like that, their troubles forgotten.

"Thanks for your help," Singe said grudgingly to Lune. "Things would have been…a lot worse if you hadn't come."

Lune nodded. "No problem. Always a pleasure to help out when I can." He wasn't even looking at Singe; he was smiling right at her. Sapphire flushed, but that only made her cheeks hurt.

"Yeah, well, those two had better pay us back real soon," Luminita grouched. Singe held out the bag of coins almost tentatively, but Lune shook his head.

"We were just completing Sugar's mission; she's the one that must pay us back for our troubles," he said. Then, he yawned, his black ears twitching. "I think it's time for us to be off. Good night, Sapphire." He only gave Singe a nod, before loping away, with his teammates on his heels.

Singe heaved a quiet sigh. "What a day…I didn't think I'd ever be in a position where I was actually thanking them…Sapphire, I'm sorry. It's my fault Spice even knew where the Flagstone was. I should have been more prepared, I should have been able to take on the boss easily…."

Sapphire shook her head. "I should have been aware too. But there's no point in placing blame on anyone, Singe, let's just go home."

They walked to Skylar's together, and totaled their missions - their badge now gleamed with a bright thirty – before depositing some of their money and extra items with Libby.

"If we'd lost in that dungeon, all of our money would have been gone, and half our items, too…" Singe sighed. Sapphire frowned.

"How would that happen?"

Singe shrugged. "They just disappear, right out of the bag. Some people think that might be how some items get into the dungeons in the first place, that they're scattered from losing teams' bags…I don't know…." He sighed, and she could tell that he was still downcast from their near disaster.

"We've got thirty points, though," she said quietly, hoping to cheer him up. "We're over half way there. To Bronze, at least…and once we get Bronze, we can do escort missions, like Lune did today. And we can go to Sundown Cave, too…."

Her home came into view, and she saw the mailbox, looking forlorn with its single feathered cap.

"I doubt anyone will want missions from us now," Singe said. "After today."

Sapphire shrugged. "We'll just have to do better tomorrow." She yawned slowly, and her hand found her chest again, brushing over it gingerly. Guilt clouded Singe's eyes.

"Sorry," he said again, as she sprang into the water and then onto the little island. She only blinked back at him, knowing no matter how many times she waved him away that he would still feel that guilt. She gave him a little parting nod, before retreating inside.

It was only once she was lying down on her bed, that a few pieces of her strange vision came back to her.

That was…me, right? She wondered. And there was a man…a big guy. His eyes were blue…my father, maybe? And there was something…something about a story…something about the…stars….

But her weariness whisked her away before she could try to reclaim any more of her dream.