I'M SORRY! THAT TOOK SO LONG! I HAD A REPORT TO DO AND MY INTERNET CRASHED -_- …SO I HAD TO WAIT TILL IT CAME BACK. PLEASE ENJOY!

Ch.14: Past Memories

Peirce and I were at the tower before we even knew it. Literally. We nearly ran into the wall. Guess we were running faster than I thought. I rubbed my head and turned to Peirce, "Well, I guess I'll see you later Peirce!" He looked at, ears slightly leaned back. "You really didn't get to play at the park. Goland gave you a pass, right? If you want, I could come and get you and Alice when Blood's not there." I tilted my head, "Really? How would you know if he were coming or not?" He looked down at his boots, "He never comes unless he has to. So I'll come get you when he doesn't have to talk to Goland." I grinned, "Thanks Peirce! That'd be great!" He smiled and turned to go home. I turned to the doors of the tower and walked in.

I was greeted by the hectic scene of Gray chasing Nightmare throughout the tower. I twitched and, right as Nightmare was running past me, I stuck my fist straight out. Nightmare's throat caught on the crook of my elbow as he charged full speed right into it. He gasped and fell to the ground in a heap, hacking and coughing. Gray caught up, "C.J! Your back! And you caught Nightmare-sama!" I picked Nightmare up by the collar and threw him to Gray. "Yup! Good to see you Gray. Hey, I haven't slept since leaving the castle, and it's been a rough day. I'm gonna turn in." Gray nodded, "Of course. Alice said the same. She's resting in her room right now." I smiled as I turned to the stairs, "Thanks Gray. Later."

I climbed the stairs and found my room. I thought about talking to Alice, but decided against it. I shouldn't disturb her. It then occurred to me that my time with Peirce was the first time I'd been apart from Alice since meeting her. I opened the door to my room and closed it behind me. It was exactly as I left it. I went to the dresser and selected a night gown. This one was dark blue, long and had long sleeves. It was really soft cotton. I tossed my bag near the bureau. Haru spilled out. I paused for a moment, then walked over and picked up the floppy stuffed toy. I trotted back over to the bed and set my hat down on the nightstand and undid my hair. I tugged at one of the hay-colored, mid-length locks. It was getting a bit long for my tastes. Maybe I should cut it short again soon.

I lay down, pulled the covers over my head and hugged Haru to my chest. I closed my eyes, feeling like a little girl again. Only this time, there was a silence that roared through the air, the absence of the breath of another person like a hole in my heart.

"C…Clo…Cloud!" I opened my eyes slowly. My honey brown eyes were met by big, green ones. A girl with dark brown hair above my smiled, "Cloud, you're so lazy! You're always napping out here!" I sat up, straightened my dress and dusted grass blades off my side. "What? The boys never come here, so it's the only place I get some peace and quiet." The girl and I were sitting inside the leaves of a great willow tree. The nearby creek babbled incoherently, though I couldn't see it past the masses of willow leaves. She giggled and tugged a leaf out of my super long hair. "Mayree and I were looking for you. Mom says that she'll take us to the duck pond!"

I smiled and stood up on my skinny legs. They hurt a little bit from sleeping on the ground. "I wish I could, but I'll bet Miss. Joni's having a conniption right now. I should go home before she starts a hunt." The girl wrinkled her nose, "Conniption? Where do you hear that?" I grinned, "Bye!" I ran off, leaving the little girl with a puzzled expression.

I ran for a little while before slowing down, tired and still groggy. "Hey, little Cloud!" My head turned around to see a few boys by the corner of the lot I'd been running through. I took a step back. Two of the boy's were brothers, one older and the other the same age as me, both brunette, and one was blonde. But the tallest one, the with black hair and was one year older than me, the one that had called to me, stood in front of the small group .The one I was really afraid of. Siv."Aw, is little Cloudy lost? Maybe we should help her get back to her mommy, right guys?" He turned his head to the other boys. The older brother and the blonde nodded enthusiastically, faking friendliness. The younger brother looked at me with a sad, helpless expression. I didn't blame him for not helping me. Siv was irregularly tall and muscular for an 8 year old. And unnaturally cruel.

I spun around and started running as fast as my feet would carry me. Luckily, while Siv and his friends were all taller and stronger than me, I was really fast. I managed to lose them by hiding in the corner store's freezer section. After they left, I carefully emerged from behind the milks, shivering. The store clerk peered over the counter at me. She was a young woman who had first shown me the hiding place. Her expression was one of great concern, "Miss. Cloud, Will you be alright? You look cold." I looked at her and grinned, "I'm fine! Thanks for covering for me again!" I ran out of the store without letting her say another word.

I was a lot more careful as I made my way home this time. I kept my eyes peeled for Siv and his crew. Once I was home, I opened the door, "Miss. Joni! Mr. Joni! I'm back!" I got no answer. I looked around and shrugged. They probably had to work late. I trotted into the kitchen. After all that running, I was famished! It was about then that I noticed a really bad smell coming from the upstairs hallway. I dismissed it and rummaged around in the pantry and found a low cal bar. I got a glass of milk and padded up the stairs to investigate. Maybe the neighbor's cat got in and dropped a dead bird.

Upon reaching upstairs, I notice the hallway was clear and that the smell was really coming from one of the storage rooms. I was about to throw the door open when I heard footsteps in the hallway.

An ominous sense of dreading fell over me. Instead of running into the smelly room, I rushed into the room next to it. Once inside, I looked around desperately for a place to hide. I set the bar and milk down behind some boxes, threw an old sweater over them, and ran to the closet and found that there was a small space in the top. I climbed up there and squeezed as much as I possibly could into the space. Then the ceiling of the closet gave way. The sound of the footsteps were getting closer and closer as I shoved the panel up and crawled into what must have been the attic. I looked around desperately for a place to curl up. I knew that cornering me would be signing a death warrant, so I started to creep to the center of the attic. My hand landed on something metal that cut a bit into my hand. I looked down to see it was a vent that led to the room that the smell emanated from. I peeked through the vents narrow slits to peer into the room.

Alls I could see was a red puddle and an arm, pale and stained with red.

My eyes jerked open from the dream as I jacked upright. I was hot and sticky from the sweat. I put a hand to my forehead, whipping the sweat from my brow. I need a shower. I pulled untangled myself from the covers and did just that.

The steaming water felt nice against my skin. My gaze got hazy as I recalled the dream. It's been more of a memory really. It was after I'd been stuck in the orphanage for a year that Mr. and Mrs. Joni had become my foster parents. Mrs. Joni had been unable to have children, and the doctor had said that her heart was too weak to deal with the stress that comes with a baby. But she had desperately wanted a child, so the couple had agreed to become the foster parent of an older child. Somehow, they had chosen me.

I remembered how kind and caring they'd both been. And I also remembered the day that it had all ended. It had been about a year after they brought me home. I had come home one day to find Mrs. Jodi dead. The man that had murdered her, a psychopath that had broken in and brutally murdered her, had been out in the back yard having a smoke when I'd come home. When I tried to escape, he caught me and tried to hurt me…he didn't get a chance though. I had taken a kitchen knife from the rack and given him a taste of his own medicine. Though, I hadn't gotten out of it without injury.

I stepped out of the shower and glance in the mirror as I toweled off. On either side of my jaw, were 4 hairline scars were he'd cut me. They were old, thin and shallow, so they only appeared when they got wet. A reason I almost never went swimming. I ran the towel over them. They were already disappearing.

After that incident, Mr. Joni couldn't handle raising me on his own. So, I was sent back to the orphanage. I never saw that town, those boy's, of that girl again. They probably don't even know what had happened to me.

Oh well, it's not like I don't have other scars…. I was referring to the small, circular scar on my left shoulder. It had a twin on my back. When I was about 5, I'd been shot straight through. Luckily, the bullet had gone clean through and hadn't hit and veins or major organs…like my heart. That scar was as clear as spots on a Dalmatian. Another major reason I never went swimming.

I left the bathroom and got dressed. I left my room after fixing the bed and slinging my bag over my shoulder. I rapped my knuckles on Alice's door. "Come in!" I opened the door and peeked in. Alice was sitting on a chair in front of the vanity, brushing her long dark hair. She turned her head, "C.J!" She rushed over to me, "I'm so sorry about yesterday, but there was a part I had to pick up for Julius! Did Peirce get you back O.K?" I ginned and nodded an affirmative. "Yeah, Peirce is awesome! When he saw how pissed I was, he took me to coffee! Then I got to have this really great coffee and a civil chat with Blood!" Her eyeballs nearly popped out of her head.

"B-b-bl-Blood? You ran into him AGAIN! And your still alive?" I shrugged, "Yeah, but I guess we were both tired. He, Elliot, Peirce and I all sat down and had coffee." Alice shivered, "I don't know how you do it." I grinned and grabbed her hand, "Come on!" I pulled her out the door.

We made to down into the dining room to see Gray and Nightmare just starting to tuck in. Alice glanced around, "Hey guys, where is Julius?" Now that she mentioned it, the mortician was the only one not present. Gray spoke up, "Probably still working. He got a title wave of clocks from Heart Castle, so he's been working all night." Alice and mine's expressions varied; hers slightly annoyed, mine curious. I turned to Alice and smiled, "I'll get him!" She smiled at me, "Thanks C.J!" Gray stood up, "I'll go to. I'm done eating." He walked up to me as Alice was sitting down. I couldn't help but notice the strange way that Nightmare was staring at me. Come to think of it, last night was the first time he hadn't shown up in my dream. Gray and I then set off to drag the clack maker back.

I climbed up the stairs 2 at a time. Gray was trying to keep up, loping up 3 at a time to keep up with my quick pace. "C.J, wait up!" I paused on the stairs, letting him catch his breath. "Y-y-you're really fast, you know?" I smiled, "Sorry Gray. I'll try to be slower." "Thank you." We continued to make our way to Julius's office. It was like that guy chose the highest room in the freaking tower!

Gray broke the silence, which I was grateful for 'cause it was driving me nuts. "So…do you like animals?" I turned to look at him, surprised he had started a conversation. "Yeah, I do. I have this cat back home, Leftover." His eyebrow raised, "Leftover? Why would you name him that?" I shrugged, "I used to have his mom, but she left after having kittens. Normally I give them away, but after 6 hours of standing outside the store, he was the only one left out of a batch of 7. And so, his name is Leftover." "What does he look like?" "A huge gray and black stripped short haired tabby. His head is about the size of your fist. Gez, he must weigh at least 15 pounds! Don't know how he got that big though, I don't feed him very much. Then again, it can't all be fat. He pulled me right off the couch once!" Damn it, I know I was babbling now, but I missed my Lefty!

I heard a short chuckling. I turned to see Gray, "What?" He looked up, "Nothing. You just seem more like a dog person." I shrug again. I actually got that a lot. "Not really. Cats are self bathing, you don't have to keep them on a leash, they can take care of themselves when you're gone, and you're not technically responsible for the crap they do. For someone who's away at work a lot like me, they're the perfect pet." Though I will admit that not all of them are the most social able creatures. "What about you? You don't strike me as someone interested in animals."

He actually blushed! "I just like them." I gave him an eye and shrugged. I looked ahead to see Julius's office door ahead of us. Finally!

I walked right up to the door and threw it open so hard, it probably made a dent in the wall when it hit. "Yo, Julius! Breakfast time! Get your workaholic ass down there and eat before I clobber you!" Julius's dark eye's widened in alarm at my sudden and violent entry. Then he just looked back at the pile of broken clocks sitting near him. "I can't. I just got a new shipment and I have t…" I grabbed him by the scruff of his neck and hulled the watch maker out the door, right past a slightly stunned Gray. I let go of Julius's collar and turned him around to face me, "Sorry Julius, but if I don't have your hide for this, Alice will." He nodded grimly and didn't object as I herded him down to the dining room. Gray followed absentmindedly.

Our trio made it to the dining room to find that Nightmare had already eaten and left, while Alice had patiently awaited our return. Her turquoise eyes light up at the site of us. "There you are! I was beginning to think you'd gotten lost, C.J!" I laughed, "Yeah, maybe I would have! But Gray lives here!" I sat down next to her and proceeded to both eat and chit-chat at the same time; a fine art only females seem to master. Gray and Julius tried to keep up with our constantly changing topics, but after awhile they gave up, finished eating, and went back to work.

"So Alice, what are we going to do today?" Alice smiled, "I have an errand to run for Julius today. I suppose that means you're free." I pondered for a time. I was still pondering when I finished breakfast and went back to my room to ponder some more. I tossed my bag to the floor and flopped down onto my back on the bed.

Hatter's was out of the question. I doubted I was welcome. Peirce said that he'd come get me when Blood wasn't there, so I didn't think the Park was a good idea…so that left Heart Castle, right? I rolled over to my stomach and snapped my fingers, "Oh yeah! I haven't seen Black and White since I got here! And Alice did say she wouldn't come to see them." I hopped to my feet and grabbed my bag, before I stopped. Was seeing them really such a great idea?

I shook my head for even asking such a question. Of course it was a good idea. Even if they had helped me for their own reasons, they still helped me. Plus, if they did, I might be able to find out why. I opened the door and took off. Alice had already left to run Julius's errand, so I couldn't tell her where I was going. And the guys were all busy working and I didn't want to bother them. And so I began my journey to visit the Jokers Black and White.

CHAPPY 14 IS NOW UP! I HOPE YPU ENJOYED! PLEASE REVIEW, COMMENT, RATE, VOTE, THE WORKS! I DON'T OWN ANY CHARACTERS SEEN/MENTIONED IN THE CHAPPY ABOVE EXCEPT C.J! AND HER CAT, LEFTOVER!