Chapter 25 – All Alone

"She... she's gone..." Hershel said faintly, trying to process what had just happened. He was in utter shock; he didn't know how to react. Flora had simply disappeared into thin air for a reason that was completely unbeknownst to Hershel. He quickly got up and ran out the door, downstairs and out the door and quickly tried to make his way to Celeste's place. He felt that something else was odd as he ran down the street, but he couldn't quite put his finger on what.

As he passed the park, he stopped and stared at it. The park, usually so busy and filled with small children playing either together or with their parents, or with people walking their dogs, was completely deserted. There wasn't a soul in sight today, a Saturday, the busiest day of the week for the park. Hershel sighed worriedly. He began to suspect that Flora wasn't the only one who had disappeared.

He continued on to Celeste's house, dreading the empty house and coming to terms with the fact that the other's had probably gone too. He began to wonder why he hadn't disappeared too. What was so special about him that he had to stay put while everyone else was gone? He reached Celeste's front door and hastily knocked. He wasn't sure if anybody was even there, but he had to be certain.

Meanwhile, Little Emmy was crouched down on the floor beside her uncle, tapping him lightly on the face to try to get him to come round. She had been doing this for the last few minutes, but to no avail.

"C'mon, Uncle Leon..." Emmy said desperately, tapping him a little harder.

Still nothing.

"Hmm..." Emmy got up and filled a glass up with water. She then knelt back down again beside her uncle and splashed the water over his face.

Leon suddenly took a deep breath and sat up bolt upright, much to Little Emmy's relief.

"Uncle Leon!" Little Emmy cried joyously, flinging her arms around his neck.

Leon jumped at this and tried to pry her off. Emmy eventually let go and beamed at him. "I'm so glad you're okay, I sought zat you vould never vake up!"

Leon frowned at her. "Who are you...?"

"Is me, Uncle Leon, is Emmeline!" Emmy said. She remembered the helmet that had been placed on his head and sighed. "Oh, yeah... you don't remember me..."

"Too right I don't remember you," Leon frowned, holding his head. "Come to think of it... can't remember anything at all... but I feel terrible... Uurgh!" And for the second time that day, little Emmy was covered in puke.

Little Emmy scowled down at the vomit stain down her front. Leon's washed out face looked rather sheepish.

"Oh dear. I'm very sorry Emily..."

"Emmeline," Emmy corrected. "Is okay. Ve get cleaned up now, yes?" she got to her feet and pulled up her uncle. As they headed out the kitchen and were about to ascend the stairs, there was a sharp knock on the door. Little Emmy looked out the door through the stained glass and smiled. She would recognise that afro anywhere.

"Hershel!" she cried, wrenching the door open.

"Emmy! Flora just disappeared and there's no one on the street— what happened to you?" he asked, pointing at the large putrid stain on her yellow turtle neck top.

Emmy rolled her eyes. "Uncle Leon puked on me."

"Is that my name? Leon? I never knew I was an uncle! I never even knew that I had any siblings!"

"You do, a sister, but I am not her child, you adopted me," Emmy said. "I suppose I should explain zat to you after we clean up your puke. Come." She took Leon by the shoulders and led him up the stairs.

"I'll put the kettle on," Hershel offered, stepping into the kitchen. "I suppose this means that everyone else has gone too..."

Once all traces of puke had been leaned away, Little Emmy, Hershel and Leon all sat in the kitchen, trying to figure out what had happened to the others.

"So, tell me exactly what happened Emmy," Hershel said.

"Eh... vell, ze crazy lady vas here, and she putted a helmet on Uncle Leon's head and said zat it vould make us all disappear, and ze next sing I know, Uncle Leon is sleeping and everyvun else is gone!" Emmy shook her head, tears forming in her eyes and look of worry etched on her face. "Is really crazy shit."

"Right." Hershel turned to Leon. "Can you remember anything at all?"

"I remember Emmeline pouring water over my face to wake me up, and I remember getting sick... but that's all," Leon said weakly. He was still very unwell.

"I see..." Hershel said. "Perhaps you should go and lie down," he suggested.

Leon nodded and stood up, wobbling slightly. Little Emmy wiped her eyes and hurried over to help him. After they left, Hershel began to think.

"Leon is showing the same symptoms that Desmond and Flora were showing, and Andrea is behind it all, so I'd guess that this helmet is some sort of a contraption that makes one's memory disappear. Desmond's symptoms were lesser than Flora's because Flora had more memory wiped, and Leon here is in a very bad way because all of his memory is gone. Fatigue must be a side effect of memory loss via the machine. But that still doesn't explain why everyone else in, basically, the entire world disappeared..." he sighed heavily, trying to think. He ran his fingers through his thick afro, trying his hardest to concentrate.

Little Emmy returned, sighing too.

"He doesn't remember anysing," she said miserably. "He doesn't even remember me." She still looked on the verge of tears.

"Emmy..." Hershel trailed off. He didn't quite know what to say to that.

"I have nusing now," she sniffed. "Ve are trapped in the future vis no ozer person on earth, and now ve are trapped here. Vat if ve never go home?" Emmy was crying now.

Hershel stood up and put an arm around her. "There, there, it's alright," he murmured. The truth was that she was right. Hershel hadn't even thought of there being a possibility that he would be trapped forever in a time which he wasn't familiar with. He had always thought that his older self would get him home safe and sound and that everything would be alright. But now that his older self had disappeared along with everyone else in the world, probably, then he was trapped with a younger version of his future girlfriend and her uncle. He realised that Emmy was right in thinking that they were trapped, as far away from home as they could possibly be, with probably no return. He would never see his Ma or Pa again...

They were all alone now...