Author's Note: The search for Eriol continues. But this time, Madison will hit a roadblock. If you want to know what it is, then keep reading.


Dateline: Friday 5:00 PM (17:00)

Location: Camden Café

It was a long day so far. Madison felt like she scoured practically all of London, but nobody she encountered had any idea where Eriol was. She was hoping she could find him out in the street somewhere, but there was no such luck. Then it happened again. Madison's stomach growled.

So she went out to a quaint little café she found outside of Camden Market. It was definitely a higher quality place to eat. One other thing she noticed was how beautiful London looked from out there. So she chose to eat at a table outside. She sat down with her menu and put her purse on the chair next to her. Madison began to think about her trip to this point.

So far, Madison's search hadn't gone very well. And there was nothing that guaranteed her that she would find Eriol anytime soon. Maybe someone here would know, but Madison wasn't holding her breath. She was beginning to wonder why she went so far in the first place. Why did she go so far as to rush to England herself?

My tea's gone cold I'm wondering why I…

Got out of bed at all

The morning rain clouds up my window…

And I can't see at all

And even if I could it'll all be gray,

But your picture on my wall

It reminds me, that it's not so bad,

It's not so bad…

Madison took out Eriol's picture again. That's why she came. She came to find the one she loved…no matter how long it took.

She was just about ready to order. But then something happened.

"Coming through! Hot soup! Out of the way! Hot soup! Oops!"

Someone tripped on their way to one of their tables. He didn't look like a waiter. In fact, he was an Italian-looking man with a leather jacket and a beret. He went stumbling forward until…

"AAH! Oh! My dress!"

…he fell, spilling the soup on Madison's dress. The entire front of her purple dress was soaked.

"Sorry, 'bout that," the man said in his Italian accent. "Let me help you with that, little lady."

The Italian man picked Madison up and grabbed a nearby napkin. He desperately tried to dry her off, but the damage was already done. She was soaked. When she finished with her meal, she'd have to end her search for the day. She couldn't run around London covered in chicken soup.

When he finished helping dry Madison off, the Italian man bowed his head and tipped his beret. "Please accept my apology, Miss. I can be a total klutz sometimes."

"It's…ok," Madison sighed. "Really."

The Italian tipped his hat again and walked away. This was certainly a mess. But she wouldn't let a stained dress ruin her meal. The dress would ruin things later.



Sakura couldn't believe what she just saw. She was sitting about three tables behind Madison and witnessed everything that happened. What made things worse was that Madison was completely oblivious to what happened.

"Li, did you see that?" Sakura asked.

"I saw it," Li huffed. "And he won't get away with it."

Li got up and started heading out. She admired him standing up for Madison, but the guy was long gone. Could he catch up to him?

Sakura looked back at Madison. She hoped that nothing bad would happen, but she knew that was just wishful thinking. Something bad WAS about to happen.



Madison hadn't eaten so much since she left Japan. The food at the Camden Café was to die for. She had almost forgotten everything that happened…until she felt her dress. The wetness was still there and the soup stain was clearly visible. Of course, there was no use in crying about it. She would just go back to the hotel and change. It was no big deal.

Just then, the waiter came up to her. "Madam, your bill."

Madison looked at the bill, and it was quite a hefty price tag. It was nothing she couldn't handle, though. She grabbed her purse and reached inside…and nearly turned white. She was petrified. She hoped this was just a nightmare, but it was really happening.

Her coin purse was gone. Madison had been robbed.

The waiter was getting impatient. "Madam, you do have the money, don't you?"

Madison gulped nervously. She didn't know what to say. She had just been robbed of her coin purse, which also contained her ATM card, her only source of money. Madison was broke and there was no way she could pay for her meal.



Sakura hung her head down as she watched Madison get confronted by the irate waiter. She had long since turned off the camera. There was no need for her to catch this embarrassing moment on tape. She felt so sorry for her best friend. This was the worst thing that could happen to her. Hopefully, things could get better. After all, Li got up and went right after the creep who stole Madison's coin purse.

At that moment, another waiter walked up to the disguised Sakura. "Madam, your bill."

Sakura looked at the bill and practically winced over the price. She was about to reach to pay for it…and nearly turned white. She just remembered that Li was holding all the money…and he was gone. He was out somewhere looking for the thief. Sakura was broke and there was no way she could pay for the meal.

The waiter huffed. "Do you have the money, Madam?"

Sakura looked up at the waiter nervously. "I'm sorry…I'm kind of short right now."

The waiter groaned. He slapped his forehead, just before he was approached by his colleague. It was the same waiter who had just taken Madison inside the restaurant.

"We've got another deadbeat," the first waiter said.

"Then she can join the other one," the second waiter responded. "She's already gotten started washing her share of dishes."

Sakura groaned. She did enough dishwashing at home. She knew she should've gotten some money from Li before he rushed off. Now she was stuck, but something worse popped into her head. She would be washing dishes…right alongside Madison. She was disguised, sure, but what if she recognized Sakura? Then there would be trouble. There was only one thing she could do that would ensure Madison wouldn't recognize her.

Dateline: Friday 5:45 PM (17:45)

Location: Lone alley in London

Li kept on following that thief down the street. He was a short little creep who wore a derby and a muscle shirt. Li didn't want to start anything now. There were too many people around. But this guy stole Madison's coin purse while her back was turned. Li wasn't about to let him get away with that.

Just then, the thief turned the corner into an alley. Li quietly crept in and sneaked behind a dumpster. This thief was waiting for someone, and that someone just came out of the shadows. Li immediately recognized him. It was the guy who spilled the soup on Madison. Was he in on this the whole time?

"I got it, Vito," the short thief cackled.

"See, I told you," Vito said. "We're good. We're very good. That's the third time this week we got someone with that whole soup spilling routine. See Mario, we got lucky to get one of those stupid tourists. So let's she what she has in here."

Vito and Mario began to look through Madison's coin purse. Li had seen enough. He walked out from behind the dumpster and approached the two thieves.

"Give it back!"

The two Italian thieves turned their heads towards Li. They weren't expecting someone to actually get the drop on them.

"What'd you say, you little meatball?" Vito demanded.

"You heard me!" Li growled. "Give me the purse!"

"Hey, Vito," Mario said. "This guy wants to move in on our racket."

"Yeah, well I got news for him," Vito said threateningly. "He ain't getting this purse without a fight. Hold my beret, Paisano. I'm about to kick the sauce out of a little meatball."

Mario cackled as he took the beret. "Reminds me of our days in Vienna. Go get him, Vito!"

Vito rushed Li, but Li was a much smarter fighter. He sidestepped the rushing Italian and Vito went crashing into a dumpster. He was unshaken, though. Vito grabbed a nearby trashcan lid and swung it right in Li's face. Li staggered back. Vito lifted the lid to swing again, but Li punched it right in the Italian's face.

Vito held his nose, but as Li approached to follow up, the Italian punched Li in the stomach. Li ducked down to one knee. Vito reached back for another big punch, but Li's quick reflexes took effect. He caught Vito's arm and flipped him over. He held on to Vito's arm and held it in a painful armlock.

"Give me the purse!" Li demanded.

Li looked out of the corner of his eye to see Mario coming up behind him. Li gave the smaller man a stiff sidekick, sending him to the ground. Li managed to maintain his grip on Vito's arm.

"I said GIVE IT TO ME!"

"Hold it right there!"

Li and the two thieves looked to their right to see that they weren't alone anymore. Someone else had crashed the party and it was…

"Police! You're all under arrest!"

Dateline: Friday 5:45 (17:45)

Location: Camden Café (The Kitchen)

Madison was ready to cry. This was the worst thing that could happen to her. All she had to survive on for her trip to England was her ATM card…and that was stolen. Not only could she not pay for her food, but also she still needed to pay if she wanted to stay an extra night at the hotel. She couldn't extend her stay without any money. Then she realized that that still wasn't the worst thing. Madison had only bought a one-way ticket to London. Without her ATM card, there was no way for her to get home. She was stuck in London.

She saw a few tears fall onto the plate in her hand. Madison was crying. And was there any reason not to? Her search for Eriol had taken a complete turn for the worst. Now Madison had to just worry about surviving.

"I got good news for you."

Madison turned around to see the waiter that put her in here. He still had that sneer on his face.

"You won't be alone," the waiter continued. "I've got another deadbeat right here."

Madison looked over to see another girl walk in. She had blonde hair, wore a big trench coat, and was about Madison's age. Something about her looked very familiar…as if Madison had seen this girl somewhere before. The girl walked next to Madison and sighed deeply. Madison tried to get a closer look at her.

What was so familiar about her?


Author's Note: Hmm…Madison's been robbed, Sakura's doing dishes, and Li's headed for the slammer. Yeah, I think I shook things up good. So what'll happen next? Will Madison recognize her best friend? And where will the search for Eriol take her next?


Any comments? Please review below and let me know.