Chapter 7

The sun had risen quite high in the sky by the time Quote and Curly decided to get up. Neither of them really wanted to move, but they both knew they had to go home at some point. However, that point hadn't come just yet.

The two held hands as they looked out onto the water. They both smiled at the gentle rolling of the waves. "Let's go for a swim," suggested Curly, however it was more like a command since she tugged Quote forward with her. If his face was able to get any more pale, it would have. He tugged Curly back and shook his head.

"No, no way."

"What? Why not?" Curly looked agitated, but also worried.

"Curly, we can't swim." Quote was still not sure why they couldn't. Maybe they were too heavy? Was their atomic density too high? Whatever the reason was, all he and Curly could manage to do in water was sink. "And... You remember the last time we went for a 'swim'..." Quote's face was full of worry, and... what appeared to be fear, not for his own safety, but Curly's. She said nothing. She understood why Quote was concerned.

During their adventures in the Floating Island, they had made an attempt to sink the island by destroying its Core; a multi-headed beast made of what appeared to be plant-matter. When they had just nearly killed it, Misery, a witch, and servant to the Doctor, appeared and teleported the core away, preserving it in an undead state to keep the Island aloft. Before she left, however, she filled the room with water. This is where Quote's fear stemmed from. He was surrounded, engulfed by water, unable to breathe, dying, slowly. He could feel it filling his systems, his vision was fading. He eventually blacked out. Some time later, he found he could breathe. Curly had crafted an Air Tank, which had allowed her to breathe underwater by generating a bubble of air around her. In a last attempt to keep her friend alive, she had transferred her air tank to him. She had put her life at risk to save him, and at that point, she barely even knew him, or who they were. This action surprised and horrified Quote, who immediately connected her body to his with a Tow Rope he had found earlier. He carried her out of the room and into a dangerous waterway, which he navigated cautiously. Eventually, the current spat him out onto dry land, where he found a cabin. It was here where he learned how to dry and revive waterlogged robots, and he did so. He frequently had dreams about this, as he had almost a week ago. Some were of the battle, some were of drowning, and some were of saving Curly, however, she did not always revive. These instances still haunted Quote, and he had feared and hated water ever since. He was quite fine looking at water, just not being in it.

Curly blinked. "Are you... worried for me?" Quote nodded.

"Yes," he said. "I am."

Curly blushed a bit. She couldn't tell if he was just being protective again, or... did he genuinely care for her?

"I don't want to lose you again." This came almost as an answer to Curly's unsaid question. Quote wasn't doing this out of protection for a comrade, but for fear of loss of a friend. Curly smiled.

"... Alright." She stepped back, grabbing Quote's hand again. "We don't have to go for a swim."

"Awww," said a voice behind them. They turned to see Balrog. "But I wanted to take a dip!"

Curly laughed. "Balrog, you can fly. I'm sure you're safe to swim. Go ahead." Balrog's face lit up, as he exclaimed, "Huzzah!", flying into the air. He came down with a large splash into the water, and began to flap around.

As Balrog attempted to swim, Quote and Curly used the time to take a walk. They assumed Balrog could be left alone to swim. He was after all a grown... entity... He could take care of himself. The pair strolled down the beach front, hand in hand. They smiled in the sunlight, enjoying their freedom. But, it was this freedom that brought back a dark memory to Quote.

"... Curly," he said, turning to her. "I had a dream..."

"Oh, really?" Curly sounded excited. "So did I! Aren't they wonderful?"

"No... Wait, I mean yes, but," Quote was at a loss, trying to explain. "This... wasn't a normal dream."

"Ohh," said Curly, concerned. "Was it another memory of the Island?"

"No, not quite," replied Quote. He wasn't quite sure how to explain this one. "It... it started out with just thoughts, just me thinking. Then, it took shape. I saw the plains, where we live. I saw you and Balrog, it was nice, and... generally a happy scene."

"Aww," said Curly, blushing slightly. "I'm glad I was in it!"

Quote smiled at her. "Yea, it really was a beautiful scene. But..." Concern crossed Quote's face. "We weren't alone."

"O-oh!" said Curly, blushing even more. "I, I didn't think you... wanted to dream about things like-"

"No, no," said Quote, agitation clear on his face. "The three of us. You, me, and Balrog, we weren't alone. There was another presence."

"Oh," said Curly, slightly relieved, slightly disappointed. Quote didn't seem to notice. "What was it?"

"It... it was the dark figure we saw in the woods."

Curly's eyes got wide. "Really?"

"Yes," said Quote, still concerned. "It... The figure spoke to me."

"It spoke?" Curly looked slightly confused. "What did it say?"

Quote's brow furrowed. "It said we hadn't completed our mission, that after we destroyed the Crown... we were supposed to return home."

"Return home?" Curly's eyes widened. "Return home! To the base!"

"There was a base?"

"Of course," said Curly. "Or, well... there must have been... I can't remember."

"Well, wherever it is, if it even exists, I think we were supposed to return to it."

"But," Curly looked a bit saddened at this thought. "We're happy as we are here, right?"

To Curly's surprise and delight, Quote nodded in agreement. "Yes, quite. I wouldn't want to leave this place for somewhere I don't even remember. And even if I did," Quote looked at the sky. "It would never be as beautiful as here."

Curly smiled. She wasn't sure what had changed inside Quote, but she liked it. "Well," she said. "Then it's good it was only a dream, right?"

Quote looked back to her, a half-smile on his face. "I suppose so," Curly could tell he was worried. What if it had been more than a dream? She didn't want to think about it.

"Come on," Curly pulled Quote back towards the beach. "Let's go get Balrog and head home."

Quote nodded, walking along. He paused for a minute, however, before saying, "I want to come back here some time."

Curly looked back, smiling. "Me too!"

Quote laughed. "Maybe we should fashion some air tanks."

Curly nodded, she liked the idea of adventuring underwater.

"But," Quote looked away. He wasn't sure how he felt about what he was about to say. He looked back, a smile on his face. "Next time, let's go alone. Just the two of us."

Curly blushed a bit, but nodded, a bit slower than before. "I... I'd like that."

The two walked back to where Balrog was still trying to swim and reeled him in. They walked directly back to the house this time, over a few dunes and then through the wide green meadow. They weren't in any particular hurry, so they left at around noon. The walk lasted around four hours, with breaks in between to admire the flowers and to shoot a few rogue Pignons. It was a quarter past 3 when they arrived back at the house. Balrog informed the two androids that he needed to go somewhere, and he'd be back late that night. Neither Quote nor Curly were worried, they knew Balrog could handle himself. They asked where he was going, but he only replied, "Oh, you know, some place. It's really nice there, though. I go there quite a lot!" They didn't ask him any questions after that.

After Balrog left, Quote and Curly walked out to the Garden. They tended to the plants and basked in the remaining sunlight. As the sun began to set, they laid themselves down in the grass, and looked for stars. Curly laughed as Quote found several constellations. Normally, Quote may have been offended, however, he was bringing Curly's attention to each constellation saying things like, "Alright, so that big one over there, you know, with the stars and things, that one. It kind of looks like a bear when you tilt your head sideways, squint your eyes and balance on your nose. It's called Ursa Major." He intended for these to be comical, as he knew Curly apparently had more of a sense of humor than he was capable of.

Eventually, it got a bit cold out. Neither Quote or Curly were terribly affected by the cold, but they could both feel it. Curly shivered a bit, and moved in closer to Quote, putting his arms around her. Quote didn't mind, he realized that Curly was bothered by the cold, and he was perfectly fine sharing his warmth. But then, there was a feeling. Quote could tell that the unidentified emotion was again resurfacing... He still had yet to understand it, or even figure out what it was. The emotion... It made him feel as if he was happy, yet sad at the same time. Obviously, he was able to control both of these emotions, however, the one he felt was a strange mixture of the two which he could not reign in. He felt warm, yet he felt empty... He realized he wouldn't be able to understand this emotion by himself. Quote attempted to ask Curly about the emotion, however, he couldn't bring himself to do it. He was really quite stumped now. Was there something wrong with him? Why couldn't he control his actions? Was he suffering from paralysis? Had a connecter broken? What if-

"Stop fidgeting," said Curly. "It's making me nervous,"

"Oh, sorry..." Quote was still a bit lost and confused. "I'm... I'm just a bit stressed right now is all..."

"Stressed?" Curly turned to Quote, confusion on her face. "About what?"

Quote paused for a few seconds before speaking. "... About the dream," he lied. He was even more confused now. He had no reason to lie. He had never lied. He wasn't even sure if his program allowed him to lie. It must, since he had just done it...

Curly's confusion melted into concern. "Oh, the dream..." Curly closed her eyes. "I... don't know really what it meant... Maybe it did mean something?"

"Maybe," said Quote, glad to take his mind off of this feeling. "Or maybe it was generated from a sense of paranoia..."

Curly nodded. "I'll admit, some strange things have happened recently, the flower cubs being aggressive, pignons running around everywhere... and that dark figure..."

Quote said nothing. He had been relieved to stop stressing over his own problems, however, he felt guilty for causing his friend to stress over them. He decided it had been enough. "... Let's go inside."

Quote walked Curly in, his arm around her shoulders. He hadn't chosen this position, Curly had been reluctant to leave his side. She seemed very troubled. Quote did not object. If this would calm her, then he would do it. They only separated once to climb up to the second floor, where the two of them slept. As they neared Curly's bed, Quote thought they would separate for good for the night, however, Curly continued to walk, and passed her bed. Quote still walked with her until they reached his bed, which Curly promptly laid down in. Quote closed his eyes and shook his head. He got into the bed next to his friend and put his arm around her. He could feel the tense hum of her machinery slow down, he sensed she felt more at ease here. Quote was glad for his friend, but at the same time, began to regret this action. The feeling was resurfacing, and he could not quell it. Quote knew this was going to keep him up.

It was late into the night when Balrog returned, as he said he would. Balrog "roosted" in the attic of the house. He would fly in through large barn-looking doors, and would sleep up there by himself. He never complained, in fact, Quote was fairly sure he liked his room in the attic. Curly had fallen asleep hours ago, however, Quote was still awake. He was awake still hours more after Balrog had gone to sleep. Or, at least Quote thought he had gone to sleep. He was never quite sure with Balrog. Quote sighed. He did not sleep at all that night.