A/N: Chapter five, now! Even though says it's chapter 6, but that's because of the announcement thingy after chappie 3. Thank you for being interested in this fic enough to be reading this far! But can I please get some reviews, here? Apparently Memories Forming was an excellent fic, from all the good reviews I got. I think I only got one flame, but it's been a while since I've read my reviews again, so don't quote me on that…

Teek: Just get on with the fic or I'll give your readers and early introduction to the Sanity Report!

Trunks: ((groans and rolls his eyes)) Please, anything but the SR!

Me: ((giggle)) Okay, okay, I'll go on with it. Whose turn was it to narrate again?

Everyone else: YOURS!

Me: Oh yeah, huh?

----Bobbi----

Several weeks had passed since the search party first went out. We'd gotten used to Mizu's presence, and I managed to introduce her to my closest friends: Crystal (Azui), Patricia (Ookami), and Rebecca (Sidra). I would have introduced Kage to Dawn, but poor Dah had to move at the end of our freshman year. But I did manage to tell Dawn about her through e-mail, so at least she was aware of the newest addition to the Menagerie. That's what Sidra calls Teek, Phoe and them, the Menagerie. I call them "Da Gang," but I'm just weird like that.

At one point, Kage started sinking into depression. No one had been able to find Riku yet, and no matter what anyone told her, Mizu began to lose hope that she would ever see her ashke again. And before you can ask, if you haven't read any of Mercedes Lackey's Valdemar books, ashke is the Tayledras word for "beloved." The word ke'chara, which I had used before, only I spelled it kechara, I use as a way to show that someone's a close friend—a very close friend—when I'm talking to them. I don't know why I do that, it's just an odd habit I picked up from the books.

Anyway, when Kage got sunk into such a well of depression that she couldn't climb back out (pardon the horrid metaphor), I found myself drawn to her, to try to comfort her. Under normal circumstances, she would not have let me do that. It was either a sign of how deep her depression was, or how much she had come to trust me over time.

When I found Mizu, she was huddled in on herself in the middle of a small clearing deep in the forest of that little pocket-dimension in my mind. In all honesty I don't know how I found her, I just… did. She was crying hard, somehow managing not to sob, but it was plain even to me that she was upset about something. I could practically taste the depression around her. About then I kind of felt like Herald Talia from those books I told you about, who had Empathy as her primary Gift. But then, Talia did remind me of myself sometimes…

Without even pausing to think, I walked up to Mizu and gently wrapped my arms around her. She clung to me and let her tears flow freely without even thinking about it. In that moment, I was more than just a guardian to her, more than someone who just happened to be able to house her soul so she could continue living. I was an emotional anchor for her, which was an odd sensation for me, since I was usually the one who needed emotional support.

"It's alright, Kage," I started whispering as I gently stroked her hair, trying to be at least a little more comforting. "It's okay. I'm here, ke'chara. You're not alone anymore. Cry all you want, I'll still be here, don't worry. Everything's gonna be alright. Shh, it's alright…" I kind of lost track of what all I was saying, but whatever it was, it apparently helped. Mizu was still crying, but not as hard as she had been.

After I had her calmed down a bit, I wriggled a little so I wasn't sitting on my ankles anymore. Mizu kept her head lying on my chest, still crying, and still hurting inside. I didn't know what to do, but it was apparently the right thing, because she started relaxing a little more, and a little more. I just kept on whispering to her that everything was going to be alright, and trying to be as comforting as possible.

I saw a blinding flash of blue not far off in the woods, and from that flash emerged two girls, Sidra and her yami, Semira. They started walking towards me, but when they saw what was going on, they looked at each other and apparently decided to leave Mizu and me alone. Sidra waved at me, and I waved back, and then the two were gone in another flash of blue. Luckily for all of us, Mizu hadn't noticed them.

After a while, Mizu had cried herself to sleep, but I still didn't leave her. This had happened on a weekend, so I didn't have to worry about school stuff and I could spend as long as I needed to with her. After she fell asleep, I rearranged myself again, getting into a more comfortable position, with Mizu's head resting in my lap—a very lover-like position, granted, but it was more comfortable for both of us.

I don't know how long we sat there, but eventually Mizu woke up again. I fully expected her to pull away, but she didn't. Instead, she looked up at me with red-rimmed eyes (she was not a pretty crier), and smiled sweetly.

"Thanks for staying with me, Bobbi," she whispered.

"Anytime," I half-laughed. "What're friends for, if not a shoulder to cry on when you need it? What were you so upset about anyway?"

That was apparently the sign that whatever kept me able to comfort her had abandoned me, because that was the last thing I should have said. Tears welled up in her eyes again.

"Oh, crap, Mizu," I said, "I'm sorry. I guess my comforting ability just flew merrily out the window, didn't it?"

Mizu shook her head. "No, that's not it. It has nothing to do with that. It's just… I feel so hopeless. How long has it been since they started looking for Riku?"

"Beats me, I have no sense of time what-so-ever."

"It's been a few weeks, and they still haven't found a sign of him. I keep thinking that they won't find a sign. And I know that's stupid, because they said they had experience in finding people, but… And I know they'd tell me if the search was completely hopeless, but I can't help but think that maybe they're a little over-confident, and they're over-estimating their abilities, and they really won't find him… I know that's not the case, but I can't help but think it, and that's not fair to them, because I know they're trying their hardest… I can't help it…"

"It is kind of stupid that you'd think any of that. They're the best sky-hunters there are. Teek and Trunks alone could probably find Riku, but they decided to ask Phoe, Saya, and 'Lazul for help so they could get Riku to you faster. And they would tell you if the hunt was futile. I know that Saya and 'Lazul aren't exactly sky-hunters, but since they're on the ground they could spot something the others might miss. You just gotta believe in them. So far all they've found is stuff that, if they told you about it, would only raise your hopes, but shouldn't be counted on. Old tracks, I think they said…"

Right about then, Teek and Phoe came running up to us, totally breathless.

"Mizu!" Phoe called. "Mizu, we think we've found him! Or, at least, we have a distinct trail this time!"

Mizu immediately perked up. "Really?"

"Yeah," Teek said, grinning wide enough to split her face. "It won't be long now. Just give us a few more weeks, and we'll get him to you."

Teek sat down with an inelegant plop next to us, looking as smug as if she was the one doing all the hunting, and all too much like a dragon after it's first successful hunt on it's own. Phoe was looking more like a sated hawk than a dragon, though, but both were obviously pleased with themselves.

"Phoe, Trunks and I will be going out in sweeps as soon as Saya and 'Lazul confirm everything," Teek was saying as she plopped. "But we're positive that we've found him this time."

"Lucky for us we've learned to operate outside of the time-flow of the dimensions we travel to, so while we spend what seems like hours or days looking, only a few seconds actually pass by. You'll never guess what we saw while we were there!"

"Since time there is practically at a stand-still compared to time here, we got to see the after-math of the Destiny Islands getting destroyed."

Mizu blanched, but Teek just kept right on going.

"Don't worry, kid, every one's fine, there's really nothing to worry about. You, Sora, and Riku managed to land in a relatively safe place. We haven't found Kairi yet, but we're not exactly looking for her, either. Anyway, you and Sora somehow managed to land yourselves in the same world, but we had to really hunt for Riku. We found him, but we're not exactly certain where exactly he is, we just know what world he landed on. We still gotta look."

"Teek," I warned. "Remember what I said…"

"Oh, don't worry, Bobbi, I'm not gonna say anything that'll endanger her. But anyway, you, Riku, and Sora are still unconscious from the attack and then the jump between worlds, so we can make contact with Riku when we find him. Quite honestly, with how fast time moves in that dimension of yours, you two could spend half a century here and only be 'gone' from your home for a few seconds, so you don't have to worry about anything in that department."

"Teek, I think you should get some rest," Trunks said, coming in behind her. "You're babbling."

"Don't be an idiot, Trunks I'm f-f-fine," Teek said, stifling a yawn. "Okay, okay, I'm beat. Tell ya 'bout it later, alright, kiddo?"

Mizu nodded and smiled. "Sure. You just go get some sleep."

"I'll go let Link know I'm back. I haven't talked to him it a long time," Phoe said, starting to walk off, but then turning back to me. "By the way, Bobbi, do you think you could get Dart to untie him? I think it's about time the Hero of Time returned home…"

"I'll see what I can do, Phoe," I replied, "but I can't make any promises. You know how Dart is…"

Phoe laughed. "That I do. Maybe I can get Lea to seduce him into it, the slut."

"She may dress like one," I admonished, "but she's not, really."

Phoe laughed again. "I know, I know. But I still like to tease her about it."

"We all dress like sluts, Phoe," Teek said. I made a little noise of protest, and Mizu looked offended, so Teek corrected herself. "Well, most of us dress like sluts. Anyway, I think I'll go to bed."

Phoe, Teek, and Trunks left then, leaving me and Mizu alone in the forest.

"Well, there you go!" I said after a while. "You had no reason to worry after all!"

"I shouldn't have doubted them…" Mizu said, still staring after the trio.

"Damn right you shouldn't have," Elazul said, walking in from the opposite direction the others had left in.

"'Lazul, what's with you and the word 'damn'?" Saya asked from behind Elazul. "Aw, never mind, I know it's Bobbi's favorite word, too. Anyway, where'd Teek, Trunks, and Phoe run off to? We gotta report. Finally found him."

I pointed in the direction they went. "They went that way. So why didn't you bring him back?"

"We figured it would be best if one of the flyers brought him in," 'Lazul said. "Neither of us felt up to hauling him along. We had a long ways to go, after all, since we had to walk."

"Makes sense, I guess. But be warned—Teek's sleeping, or she should be anyway. You might wanna wait until tomorrow to report, guys."

"We'll take your word for it," Saya said, then grabbed Elazul by the arm and started walking away.

"Why don't you two go to bed, also?" I called after them. Saya looked over her shoulder at me and raised an eyebrow, a very sly look on her face. "To sleep. You guys are making me feel like Savil from the Last Herald Mage trilogy!"

Saya laughed. "Alright, alright, to sleep. Geese, Twerp, go join the priesthood, wouldja?"

I stuck my tongue out at her. "I just haven't found the right guy yet and you know it!"

'Lazul looked back over his shoulder and winked at me. "Oh, you know we don't believe you there, Twerp. There's at least one person I know you'd like to hop into bed with!"

I blushed. "I—but—that's not—ELAZUL!"

Saya and 'Lazul laughed, and walked off again, leaving me in a brilliant shade of scarlet and Mizu in a lovely shade of blue from choking back a laugh.

"Oh, laugh all you want, Mizu," I snapped. "Just don't give me any education when Riku gets here!"

Mizu started howling with laughter, doubled over holding her stomach, and trying her hardest to breathe, while I blushed harder.

A/N: I can't believe Elazul said that, much less winked at me! It's just not something he does!

Teek: Who's the lucky guy, Twerp?

Me: ((blushes again)) You know very well who, Teek!

Teek: Yeah, we do. But you'd never admit it to him.

Me: Of course not! Besides, we're both trying to keep this on a friendship level, and you know it! It wouldn't work out if it went deeper than that!

Trunks: It's Sh—

Me: ((claps a hand over Trunks' mouth)) Don't even dare, Trunks! And you know very well who it is, too! And if you don't mind, I'd like to stop giving the readers an unneeded insight to my love life, thanks!

Teek: I could say something, but…

Me: Shut up!

Mizu: Te-sty!