Edea remained awake for the rest of the night. She sat on the side of her bed, thinking about the well being of Ellone. I should consult Cid about this. She thought, silently. It surprised her when the sun shown through the window and into her eyes. She had been up half of the night thinking about Ellone. Edea stood up off of her bed and walked over to her dresser. She began rummaging, slowly, through her drawers, looking for a decent outfit to wear for the day. She found a clean, black dress and took it into the bathroom. Once she closed the bathroom door, she removed her dark blue nightgown and her under garments. She reached into the shower stall and began adjusting the water temperature. When it was just right, she climbed into the tub and shut the shower door behind. I'll talk to Cid about it after breakfast. She thought, as she took the soap off of the shelf.
After a brief ten-minute shower, Edea climbed out of the shower after shutting off the water. She grabbed a towel off of the towel rack and began drying off. She dried herself as best as she could, and then got dressed in the black dress that she had chosen. After tossing the wet towel into the dirty clothes hamper, Edea went back to her bedroom to see if Cid had awoken. Cid was awake and fully dressed, with a light blue sweater vest covering a clean dress shirt. "Good morning, Edea." He greeted.
"Good morning." Edea said, nodding her head to her husband.
Cid walked over to stand in front of his wife, and then said, "You look troubled. What's wrong?"
Edea shook her head, as she looked down at the floor. "I'll tell you after breakfast." She said.
"Ok." Cid said, as he took her hand.
The two of them walked hand in hand out of their bedroom and to the children's room. Inside, most of the children had gotten dressed with the aid of Ellone. Zell, however, was sleeping in again. Edea pulled her hand from Cid's grip and walked over to Zell's bed. "Ellone," She said to the young girl. "Could you take the others to breakfast, please?"
"Ok, Matron." Ellone agreed, and then started gathering up the other children, with Squall by her side.
Edea, slightly, shook Zell, as she said, "Zell, wake up. It's morning."
The young boy yawned, and then smiled up at Edea. "Hi, Matwyn." He greeted.
"Hi, Zell." Edea said back. "Are you ready for breakfast?"
Zell jumped up and out of bed. "Yeah!" He exclaimed.
Edea giggled a bit, as she watched Zell run out of the children's bedroom with just his little red underwear on. Then, she walked back to Cid. She smiled to him, and then walked by his side to the kitchen. At the kitchen, the couple went separate ways around the table. Edea stopped at the refrigerator to begin gathering the necessary ingredients to feed all of the children. Cid began heating up the stove, and then helped Edea with the ingredients. A sudden 'ow' sounded from behind the two and they turned around. Zell was holding onto his left leg, while Seifer sat across from him, laughing and pointing. "Seifer," Edea said. "To your corner. You'll be getting your breakfast there."
"Aw, but Matron!" Seifer pleaded.
"No 'buts', young man. To your corner." Cid said, and then turned to check the food.
Seifer slid out of his chair and began walking out of the kitchen with his head down. "Cry baby, Ze-ell." He whispered, as soon as he stood up.
Within a half an hour, the children were enjoying their breakfast. Cid watched them all happily, but Edea couldn't stop thinking about Ellone. The young girl was sitting between Squall and Irvine, completely oblivious to Edea's gaze. However, Cid caught the woman's gaze. "Edea," he said. "Please tell me what's wrong."
Edea looked away from Ellone and at her husband. She shook her head, as she said, "I… I'm worried about the well-being of Ellone."
Cid looked over at Ellone, and saw the young girl happily talking to her friends. "She seems all right." He said, turning his gaze back to Edea.
"Last night," Edea started. "I was inside the mind of a man named Laguna. Afterwards, I was talking to Ellone subconsciously. I think Ellone has the power to allow people to see things from a past person's point of view. I remember meeting this Laguna a few months ago. He was looking for Ellone. When I was inside of him, he was in Esthar, thinking about Ellone."
"Why should you be worried? This doesn't sound urgent." Cid said.
"I just have a bad feeling about this power, that's all. What if someone wants to use Ellone's power to change the world?"
Cid pulled out a chair from the table and sat down, crossing his arms. The children finished their breakfast and ran out of the kitchen. Edea straightened one of the chairs, and then sat down. Cid pushed up his glasses and said, "How about if I take Ellone somewhere safe and protect her. You know, keep her hidden from evil."
Edea pushed back a strand of her hair, considering the thought. "But she's so happy here. Do we really have to take her away from her friends?" She asked.
"What else can we do?" Cid asked.
"Can we, at least, leave her play with her friends for one more day?"
"Okay, Edea. I'll leave with her tonight, when the other children are asleep. There'll be less tears."
Edea sat back and twirled her thumbs, wondering if this was the right thing to do. Cid leaned forward and placed a hand on her knee. "Are you, absolutely, sure we should do this?" He asked.
Edea set her hand down upon Cid's and said, "I feel horrible about taking her away from her friends. But, I think this is for the best."
Cid removed his hand and stood up. He nodded to his wife, and then walked out of the kitchen to supervise the children. Edea stood up and began clearing the table, putting the dirty dishes into the sink with warm running water. As she slid her hands into the soapy water, she began thinking about what the other children would do when they find Ellone missing the next morning.
* * * * * * * * * * *
As soon as the lighthouse light flashed on, the children were being stripped of their clothing in pairs to take their baths, pair after pair. An hour and a half past after all of the children were washed off and in their pajamas. Ellone, with Squall beside her, helped Cid and Edea tuck everyone into their beds. The last one to enter their bed was Squall. Once he was safely tucked in, Ellone began climbing into her own bed, when Cid stopped her. "Ellone, wait." He whispered.
"What?" Ellone asked, smiling.
"Ellone, I'm taking you on a journey, okay." Cid said.
"Where are we going?"
"We'll go all over the world."
"Neat! Can the others come, too?"
"No." Cid said, and then smiled. "Nobody helps Edea and I as much as you do. This is a little treat for you."
"Ok. Let me get some stuff."
"I already took care of that." Cid said, gesturing to a suitcase
Ellone jumped off of her bed and ran over to Edea, who was standing at the doorway to the children's room. "Are you coming, too?" Ellone asked.
"I wish I could, Ellone, but someone has to watch the rest of the children." Edea said.
Cid lifted the suitcase and carried it to the doorway. "Are you ready, Ellone?" He asked.
"Yes. Let's go!" Ellone said, running out of the room.
Cid stepped up to Edea and looked at her. "We shall see each other again. I guarantee it." He said.
"I know we will. Take care of her." Edea responded.
Cid nodded, and then followed Ellone down the hall. Edea watched them go, until they left the orphanage, and then turned out the light in the children's room.
Outside the orphanage, a chocobo stood at the end of the walkway. Ellone ran over to it and petted it. "Are we going to ride it?" She asked, excitedly.
"How else are we going to travel the world?" Cid said, smiling.
Cid put the suitcase down to pick up the excited Ellone. He mounted her on top of the chocobo, and then tied the suitcase to the back of the chocobo. After making sure the knot was tight, Cid climbed atop the chocobo, behind Ellone. He grasped the reigns, with Ellone's hands in the center of the reigns, and gave the chocobo the go ahead sign. Within seconds, the chocobo disappeared into the night.