This is the Cirno News Network with a breaking news story! The Lord Mayor of Dublin has just announced a celebration as the leaders of the continent converge on the city for their biannual meeting. Even though there have been concerns about the encroachment of nature leaving the dignitaries wide open to attack from unknown monsters, the Mayor has persuaded them that they are safe with the assistance of a mysterious man in a derby. Perhaps this one dapper fellow availed to them the wonderful delicacies of fudge?

…Perhaps we should write these articles while we are hungry. Digressing!

Thank you, and enjoy the show. This has been THE STRONGEST! Now back to your irregularly scheduled fic.

Touhoumon: Gray Version
Chapter 14: The Rocky Road to Dublin

Waves rocked our train as we puffed down the tracks, hurrying on the way to island on the other side of this massive pond. Three of us were sitting in the last car as we stared out the window, watching the rails disappear into the sea below as we passed over them.

"It's a whole lot of nothing, isn't it?" I turned my head, looking at the ibis beside me. "It's been a long time since I saw the sea. Not that I ever saw it going this fast, mind you. Just… Just not often that I could see the big water."

"We know, Tokiko. You've said that before." Above me, the kappa had herself perched precariously on the edge of the car, also staring at the waves. "It is just a whole bunch of water. If you wanted, we could have just stayed in the last city and you could have gone in those lakes. I think they'd be big enough for you."

The youkai just shook her head, snorting under her breath. "Bite me." Shooting the kappa a grin, she responded. "Besides, I know that your kind is aquatic. No desire to go jump in the water and swim along?"

Chuckling, the kappa shook her head. "Not in particular. Besides, I'm a freshwater kappa. Not a saltwater one."

Tokiko tilted her head, her headwing flapping back and forth. "But should that matter to you?"

"Nope." She grinned down at the bird. "But that's my story and I'm sticking to it. Besides, there will be plenty of water down the road. I don't have to go stick my head into every puddle that comes along."

Clearing my throat, I asked, "So, Nitori, why do you hog the bathroom as it is? Not to mention that you practically slept in there the last night."

Nitori just whistled innocently. "Since I'm the one keeping this train moving, not to mention keeping the water hot and running, I believe that I am entitled to enjoy the fruits of my labors. Am I not?"

We laughed for a few moments, before I sighed and leaned against the wall of the car behind me. As I did, I let my feet dangle over the edge, letting the spray hit up against my legs. "As pleasant as this is, I believe we have other things that we need to be worrying about."

The other two nodded slowly, frowns marring both their faces. Looking out of the corner of her eye, Tokiko nodded to me. At the same moment, Nitori slipped down from the roof and she joined us on the floor of the car. "Unfortunately, you're right. We're not too far out from our next destination. As far as I know."

"Well, you did say we'd be getting there about three our time." Glancing at the sky above us, I shrugged. "But I believe that we didn't account for the fact we're nearly a quarter of the world away from where we just were."

Absently, the kappa nodded. "True. Good thing it's still summer, or it might be dark by the time we arrive. Still pushing it, though."

"Shouldn't that mean you need to be up in the cab, though?" Tokiko glanced at her, still thinking. "Even though this train can pretty much drive itself from what we've seen, if we're going to be coming up on land soon…"

"I'll get it, don't worry." Nitori shrugged. "We've got about an hour before that, though. We just need to figure out what we're actually going to be doing here." She slowly shook her head. "I'd rather not go through all that again just to find some sort of reporter. There's no telling whether or not that it will actually be successful."

Nodding even as a snorted in derision, I couldn't help but to agree with her. "True. That's the best we could have done. Unless we could have hot-wired the train to take us somewhere else."

Nitori glanced towards the engine, unseen to us all the way at the rear, her face contorting. "I'm not sure if I could do such a thing or not. There's nothing on the engine to hot-wire. The magic itself is what guides it." Again, she shrugged. "I'm sure I could drive it just as I could a nonmagical one. It is but a train, after all…"

"But what would be the point?" I sighed at the thought. "Sometimes, I wish this was not coming so soon. It'd be better to do this right."

"Well, it isn't as if we have the luxury of time." The kappa sighed, before standing back up once more. "Still, we should at least have a plan before going in. Without it, the shirikodama won't be stolen."

"Would you not use metaphors that involve stealing souls out of my rear?"

Nitori just grinned at my glare. "Whoever said I was talking about you?"

"Alright, back on topic." Clearing my throat, I turned towards Tokiko, ignoring Nitori. "So, what should we do? Government types this time, or the same old from before?"

The two lapsed in silence, thinking. "I'm not sure. It'd be hard to tell, considering I don't know the situation over here. Is it bad? Worse than back home? Or is it better." I shrugged, more to myself than anything else. "I'm not too sure. I don't even know if they got away from the Brits again."

"That's assuming they are even under their control in the first place." We all turned to glance at the newcomer. Sister had poked her head out the door, glancing at all of us in turn. "I'm afraid I don't know too much, but the rule is just a nominal thing. They'll probably split once more once the world has stabilized. Until then, though, they are in effect one government."

"Convenient time for you to drop by, Sister." I shot a grin up at her. "Sure about that? Don't know if it was any different than what I read…"

Joy shrugged. "Slightly, I suppose. Have heard anything in years, myself, so I've no idea what we'll be seeing." Glancing back the way she came, she sighed before shooting a look at Nitori. "Mind if you come with me? I think I've had enough of her that I can stand. I'd like some sane conversation."

The kappa groaned noticeably, before she slowly trudged towards the door. "If I must. Hopefully she hasn't done anything too crazy, yet." The four of us paused for a moment, complimenting that question. Nitori broke the silence with a weak chuckle. "Long odds for that, isn't it? Come on, let's just go."

At that, she left, leaving me alone on the deck with Tokiko. We lapsed back into silence, staring once more at the blue rails that we were traveling on. My mouth thinned as I thought back to the night before.

Tokiko glanced at me after a few more seconds. "You know, she should consider herself lucky. She doesn't have to deal with the poltergeist visiting her in her dreams, after all."

A small chuckle passed my lips. "That'd be nice. I have a feeling that the poltergeist wouldn't do that, unless it felt that she'd be able to annoy her even more than me."

Smiling just slightly, Tokiko looked back away. "I think that's the only thing that she cares about. If I could, I'd like to rip her wings out just for the annoyance that she's been."

"A little violent, there?" I couldn't help but to laugh at the petulant look on her face. "Besides, it's not as if she has wings in the first place. One little tidbit you missed, there."

"Hrmpf." The ibis glanced down, her headwing flapping as she thought. "In that case, I'm going to stick some wings in her. Just so that I can take the pleasure of ripping them out."

"Funny." I reached out and patter her shoulder, leaving my hand there. "Besides, I can take it. She's just annoying, but she's not trying to scare me to death." After a moment, I decided to clarify. "More like she wants to scare the gray into my hair."

"I thought your hair was already Gray." She grinned back at me, enjoying the groan from the pun. "Sorry, I had to go for that one. But if you start turning gray, you might start looking like me."

"Heh, maybe." My eyes flickered toward her hair. "Don't know if I can make that look halfway decent. At least it works on you. …Is that the right turn of phrase?"

"Damned if I know." Tokiko shrugged for a moment. "Still think it's odd how your plumage is so dull. Aren't you supposed to use it to attract others?"

I rolled my eyes at the statement. "If you haven't noticed, the only ones with real crazy hair colors are you youkai. Humans are a bit more subdued." After a few moments, I shrugged. "Besides, it's more to keep us warm than anything else."

"So is mine, you know." She shot me another grin. "It's supposed to keep a body warm, not to feel soft. That's just the bonus."

For a few moments, I don't respond, staring out over the ocean. "We spend quite the odd amount of time talking about hair. Are we obsessed about it, or something?"

"Yes, you are." The laughter in her voice was a good change after the frustration of last night. "It's just odd, speaking about something mundane. Considering what we're going to be up to again soon."

"Yeah." Sighing, I watch the waves for a little bit longer. "Although, it has been relatively peaceful. Remember when we were going to Chicago the first time? We barely got any rest between fights."

The birdie hummed for a second as she remembered. "There weren't that many. But at least once a day."

"And now, we've gone a couple of days without anything." I sighed as I glanced out. "Granted, there were a few points where it looked as if we were going to have to, but we never did. So, I'll take the small blessings where I can." Patting the floor of the train, I continued. "The mundane is nice. Although, for me, mundane is either hunting or tending to crops. Not talking to a girl with three wings."

Tokiko glanced at me for a second, raising an eyebrow. "So, a girl, now? Not a youkai or a monster?"

"I haven't thought of you as a monster for quite a while." I returned her looking, turning away once I had made my point. "But yes, I do suppose. If it looks like a duck, walks like a duck, and talks like a duck…"

"Then…?"

I shot her a flat look. "A vicious, man-eating duck. Or a witch."

Shivering unnoticeably at the thought of certain witches, she glanced away, refusing to meet my eyes. "You know I never-"

"I know."

"I wouldn't do that."

I know."

"You're just going to say that, even if it makes no sense to do that."

"I know."

Shoving me gently, not quite sending me sprawling out of the train, she laughed softly. "You know, I'm not sure if this is just you, or Merlin being a bad influence."

"…It's not like I want to have her in my head." I pull myself back upright before returning my vision to the sea.

Tokiko chuckles once more, before giving me another look. "I know." After a few seconds, she moves over, before leaning against me. "You want to talk about it?"

I initially shrug, stopping myself before I shake her off of my shoulder. "It's nothing horrifying or anything. Just annoying. You know how she is." After a moment, I grin at her. "Besides, do you want to be discussing her?"

"No." Still, she flicks her headwing to bat the back of my head. "But waking up floating in the wrong compartment doesn't make it sound like it was trivial, either."

"Especially as you found it so hilarious."

She was quiet for a few moments, before a giggle passed her mouth. "What can I say? It's amusing to see someone afraid of flying. Most everyone back… Well, back there was familiar with it." After I was silent for a few moments, she prodded me. "Go ahead and tell, even if it's pointless. I'm starting to get curious, now."

As I woke up, my eyes struggled to see in the darkness that was in the train. Glancing around, I saw nothing but darkness out the window, not even the lights of a distant lamp nearby. However, the wind was howling noticeably, buffeting the train car as it continued down the tracks. "I must have woken up early. Who would have thought, after the late start last night…"

Sitting up, I rubbed the back of my head, trying to get the cricks out of my neck. As I did, I heard fabric shifting on the leather seat. I snapped my head up, only finding an empty seat in front of me. I steady my gaze for a moment before I cast my eyes away. Before I can do so completely, the lightning flashed.

Suddenly, there was someone sitting there.

Giving a start at the sudden intrusion, I do my best to calm myself down. Still, the girl in a pink dress before me merely eyes me, her face covered with shadow. As my breath calmed, I took a good look at the intruder, mind finally recognizing who it was. "Merlin, what do you think you're doing? For that matter, why did you do that last night?"

The girl just looks at me, before tilting her head to the side. Eventually, it kept tilting, until it had gone far enough to break a human's neck. "What did I do last night? All I did was join you, right?"

Pinching my nose, I tried to ignore her rather eerie voice. "You did do that. But why did you capture yourself in the ball? You should know what they do."

"I do? Did you tell me?" She began to giggle in place, not moving. "It would have been nice to know beforehand. The things that it did to my mind. The twisting, the pinching." Her head began to slowly turn around, the skin tearing as it did. I winced at the sight of blood beginning to drip down her neck and onto the floor.

"And you know what is most terrible?" Eventually, she met my eyes once more, even though they were hidden by the shadows. "I can't stop laughing. What am I supposed to do?" Her giggles started to get worse as she jerked around, head snapping from one position to another, sickening cracks echoing in the compartment. "Is one supposed to be depressed by this? As meat hooks rip at my mind, and begin to unravel my brain with their rusty edges?"

By now, she was shaking, her hands and feet jerking to and fro. "And you know what's worse? I don't get sad. I don't get angry. All I can feel is this mania within me, laid bare for all to see!"

"I can tell…" Her face was beginning to split at her laughter, the cheeks tearing apart with every movement of her jaws. "Are… are you alright, Merlin?" I'd have to admit I was starting to get concerned. Was this one of the times when she was playing around, or was she truly out of her mind?

"How can I not be alright? Isn't it right to be happy? To suffer from the wonderful delusion, and not to wake up…" Even more suddenly than her previous movements, she froze up, staring at me. "Aren't you happy? That's what the tendrils in my head tell me to make sure of…" Floating out of her seat, she began to approach me, talons rising toward me as she did.

By this point, I was doing my best to scramble away, knowing that she wasn't well in the head. Even if she wasn't well in the head normally, this was certainly nothing to take lightly. As I found myself backed against the compartment door, I did my best to jiggle the handle open. No matter what I did, the latch wouldn't engage. No amount of force would even catch the mechanisms within. "Merlin, please, I'm perfectly fine, you don't have to-"

"But I must, little human." Her ruined face, covered with blood as it slowly streamed from her torn cheeks, continued to grin down at me. Teeth clacked together as Merlin exposed them all. "Why don't you join me? If you are happy, you should be laughing. You should be smiling." The lightning flashed in her eyes as her hands approached me. "I'll help you with that, human. I'll help you smile."

Knowing that it would be fruitless to resist, I instead clenched my eyes and began to pound on the door. If only one of the others could hear me, maybe they could do something. But what could one do against a ghost? "Merlin, don't do this…"

The geist did not respond as I felt her hand grow closer to me. I shivered at the cold touching my cheek, her nail dragging itself along it slowly. Tempted to open my eyes and see what she was planning, I was interrupted by her hand slapping my cheek gently. "Gotcha."

"You damned ghost…" My eyes opened up, only to see the poltergeist standing just where she was. Instead of the wounded sight she had been but moments before, she had returned to normal. There were no wounds, no cackling, and no sense that she would try and butcher me. Not that I was appeased in the slightest. "What kind of game do you think you're playing here?"

"Not a game at all, Gray." Grinning broadly, but thankfully not as she had been doing but moments before, she floated back over to her seat. Sunlight shone through the window as she moved, with no storm clouds on the horizon to darken the mood. "I was curious to see how you'd react… Terrible, really. Who would have imagined that you wouldn't have even put up a fight."

Shaking my head, I just stared at her incredulously. "Last I checked, you're a poltergeist. What could I possibly do to stop you?"

Her finger tapped on her lips for a few seconds as she thought. "Excellent point. I do suppose that I forgot to think this through." Her expression quickly shifted as she grinned again. "But enough of that. I do believe that it is time for us to talk. Tea?"

Glancing at the cup that she was offering, and that she had just summoned to her hand, I couldn't help but to sigh. "So, let me get this straight. You just scared the pants off me, and now you're offering me tea?"

"Really, now, you should already have understood that. I offered you tea last time, did I not?" Giggling slightly, she sat the cup down on the table that came into existence the moment she sat the cup down. "Pish posh. You really need to keep up. Besides, I didn't scare the pants off of you." Her grin turned a bit dangerous as she stared at me. "I wouldn't want to summon another green-eyed monster into our little group, would I?"

"I wasn't aware that we had one." Was she talking about Nitori? I wasn't quite sure on that point, but I did not wish to follow it up. "So, I take this is just another dream for you to torment me in?"

The girl pouted, before leaning back and sipping from her own cup. "You say that like it's such a bad thing. You really should loosen up. Sanity is quite overrated, don't you know?"

"I'll have you know that I liked my sanity quite well." Seeing no way out of this, I took my seat once more, before pointedly looking away from the giggling ghoul of a ghost. "I was quite happy with my life before I had to deal with all of this."

"Were you, now?" Taking another sip, the poltergeist watched me as an eerie calm settled on her. "Would you truly give up the memories and return to what you were before?"

My head began to nod before she finished the questions. "If it would give me back those who died, I would in a heartbeat."

Merlin looked at me for a few seconds, before shrugging her shoulders. "If you say so. Not that I know that much of your personal history." Her grin began to show itself again as song crept into her voice. "But I do believe you'd be missing something…"

Rubbing my forehead, I glared at her. "So you say. But are we here for any particular reason, or are you just going to continue to play like this?"

Not answering initially, Merlin took another sip of her drink, which was mysteriously still full. "Oh, is there something wrong with chatting with a neighbor? One would think that you might appreciate some familiar company." Setting down the glass before lacing her fingers together, she sung along. "Here I thought you wanted to know why I did what I did…"

"And you're going to tell me, just like that?" I couldn't help but to raise my eyebrow at the idea. "You're not the type to be direct."

Clapping softly, the poltergeist grinned. "You've got me there!" She giggled, before turning her head to the side. "Conversation is more fun when it is shown as a tangled web, not as a straight line. Doesn't one learn more when they are provoked to pluck the strands from one another, and to cut the ones that are too tangled to save?"

"Frankly, I'd just burn the whole web down." Massaging my aching temple, I did my best to continue. "Not that you'd allow me to, would you?"

"No, I wouldn't." Her head kept turning about, twisting all the way around until she faced me once more. "Besides, you should be glad. I'm rather direct compared to some that you could be dealing with. At least the dream demons don't know about you, or it would be much worse." Merlin's smile widened. "You wouldn't even know whom you were talking to."

"…Right. And what do they have to do with this?"

She giggled slightly. "Nothing at all!" As Merlin spoke, her head tilted to the side. "Or perhaps it means everything. Perhaps I'm not who you think I am. I could just be wearing another's face…" She stuck out her tongue, before floating up into the air. "It wouldn't be too hard, after all. You're still just a little human."

As my eyes started to dart towards the door, trying to tell if I could open it up now, I slowly replied. "If you say so. I just have the feeling that you're trying to scare me again."

"It's working, isn't it?" With another laugh, she flew closer, her grin bearing down on me. "But don't worry. I'm just making sure you're paranoid. After all…" She disappeared, only to reappear scant inches in front of me. "Is it really paranoia if they're out to get you?"

Without further ado, she began to rise to the ceiling. By the beckoning of her finger, my body began to float up, unbidden by my will. "Just remember, Gray… I'm a performer. You don't know when I'm telling the truth." As she disappeared from view, her voice whispered about the compartment, echoing off the oaken panels. "But do trust me on this. It is time for you to wake up."

"…Which is when you found me, floating in the air." I grimaced, trying to keep the red off my face from that memory. "Not exactly the best feeling to have upon waking up. I'm just glad I didn't lose my lunch."

Tokiko giggled to herself softly, before patting me on the shoulder. "Well, I'd agree with you on that point. I wouldn't have cared to see that." Her expression slowly fell before she glanced back at me. "But I'm not sure whether to be amused or concerned over her actions. Getting in your head like that…"

Shrugging, I looked back at the water below us. "I don't know. It's just hard to understand that girl." Snorting softly, I look down at her. "It wouldn't be hard to say that there is something wrong in her head."

"That was obvious…" Sighing, Tokiko looks down with me, staring at the water as it ripples in our wake. "At least it's good that she really can't follow through in her threats. I wouldn't want to try and taker out. I am not sure if either Nitori or I could even do a thing against her." She shakes her head from side to side, glancing back at me for a second before looking down again. "How do you kill something that isn't dead?"

My eyes turn to her, gauging her expression. "I think it might be a bit much to call for that much, Tokiko. She hasn't done anything that could endanger us. I think that she just takes pleasure in keeping us off-kilter." As she turns to look at me, I shrug once again. "I'm more concerned about that comment about the dream demons, whatever they might be. If she is nothing compared to them…"

"I'm not sure if she's telling the truth, to be honest." Her wings twitch to and fro as she thinks, a frown marring her face. "Those two, if they even exist at all, are supposed to be the rulers of dreams." Shrugging, she looks back at me, her eyes shining. "And you'd have to do something major to grab their attention. I just hope that such a thing has not occurred."

"Not much that I could do about it, now could I?" Glancing away, we both look at the water as we travel along. "We're in over our head with this whole mess. There isn't much that we can do. Only thing to do now is wait and see what happens in regards to everything else."

"I suppose… Still don't like keeping her around."

In an attempt to lighten the mood, I shoot her a grin of my own. "Hey now, weren't you the one who was planning to eat me back when we first met?"

The ibis blinks, before slowly nodding. "I do suppose… That feels like it was a lot longer ago than it has been. Only a few days?" Tokiko sighs before getting to her feet. "Not that we're getting much done just sitting around here, right?

"Right. Well, what else we can do? We're riding across the ocean on a train." Snorting, I grab the railing and hoist myself to my feet. "Not that there is much that we can do but wait. At least we don't have to take a boat. I've heard that a single trip can take weeks."

"Too bad you can fly like some of us. Then it wouldn't take long at all." Tokiko shoots a cheeky grin at me. "At least some of us can fly properly. You were just floating earlier."

Rolling my eyes, I turn back to the door. "You know that was probably all Merlin right? Damned poltergeist." Tokiko immediately giggles, and I freeze. "She's out here right now, isn't she?"

"Yup. You might want to get going, before she tries to do something else to freak you out."

"Great…" Placing my hand on the doorknob, I sighed before turning it. "Once more, into the breach.

Fortunately, the poltergeist seemed amused enough by her earlier antics, and satisfied herself with playing her horn around us. Knowing what she could do with the horn, I did freak out a little bit, but I just gritted my teeth and kept moving. Not to mention resisting the urge to jump up and start dancing.

Fortunately, she seemed reluctant to go to the cab of the train. Personally, I think she's just reluctant to do something to the train and make us get stuck. For as crazy as she is, she knows that we're the only company that she'll have… And it's a long swim back to the mainland.

At the least, Nitori seems to appreciate the company, although Joy is nowhere to be found. The next few hours pass relatively quickly until evening grows near. I glance out of the side of the engine and look towards the sea in front of us. After a few minutes, I spot something that looks like a star.

Unlike a star, though, it grows as we approach it.

"Oi. Nitori, do you see this?" Glancing at the kappa, I wait for her to take her own look out of the side. After just a glance, she darts back inside and starts checking gauges. "I suppose you do. Is that what I think it is?"

"Yup, It's land alright. …Forget that it's harder for you to see in the dark. What with everything else that has changed in you…"

I just shrug at the statement while backing away, making sure to stay out of the kappa's way. "Who knows what I'll end up being. I'm just glad that I haven't started to sprout any extra appendages in the process."

"Indeed." She shoots me another glare as she takes hold of the throttle. "You do remember that you should at least let me see what is going on with you, yes? If only for a little bit…"

I shake the thought off. "Not now. There was no time to do it when we were rolling along. And we'll have stuff to do once we're on solid land again. It can wait."

"Maybe it can. Maybe." She turns her eyes back away from me, pointedly not looking. "Still need to be careful. We don't want you to be getting hurt. Even if it's your own strength that does you in."

Blinking my eyes, I stare at her for a few moments before nodding. "Roger that. …I didn't think you cared so much."

"Neither than I. But I'm quite sure you realize that there is something else involved in the current state of things." Nitori sighs as she pulls the throttle down, causing the train to shake as the cars we were pulling attempted to overtake the slowing engine. "Maybe that's my sentence in the end. I might just come out of this even better than I was before."

"That's assuming that we come out of it in the first place. I have a feeling that they were just toying around with us in the first place." My eyes turn to the moon once more, curious to know if they could see us. "We'll have to be cautious… I'm sure that many of them would like to get their own hands on the three of you."

Nitori turns her head to meet me with her tired eyes. "Maybe. Just don't count yourself out of that as well. If I was working for them, and knew of someone like you… Well, you'd be on an examination table ready for dissection."

"…And the reason I'm not already?"

"You know that one." She turns back as she reaches up and adjusts a knob, the engine slowing further as a result. "Not like I exactly can harm you… Even if I wanted to." Suddenly, the kappa laughs and turns to look at me. "I was pretty sure we had already figured this all out. Not getting paranoid, are you?"

"With Merlin around? Of course." I sigh before pushing myself up from the windowsill. "That, and we haven't exactly talked much."

"Yup. You're usually with the birdie." Nitori shoots me a grin. "No worries. I'm used to being alone. Although your sister does spend some time up here, even if we don't talk."

Still, I can't help but to wince at the reprimand. "True, I am. Still, I don't—" A sudden scream of metal grinding against metal pierces my ears, causing me to hunch over with my hands trying to block out the noise. "Damn it all… What was that?"

Nitori glances at the controls once more before sticking her head out the side of the cab once more. "We're about to hit land, that's for sure. But did we run aground on some old ship?" She continues to talk to herself as a light glows in the cab, right around the destination indicator.

Before she spots it or I can say anything, the train shifts. Thrown onto the floor by the encroaching cab, I barely notice a thing as we tumble to and fro inside the engine. The groan of the metal only gets louder, and the tender as well as the cars we are hauling also shrink slightly.

Eventually the noise stops, and I manage to pull myself to my feet. "Did anyone get the number of the train that hit us?" It takes me a few moments to steady myself, and I can already feel a lump forming on my head. "Great… Just great."

For her sake, the kappa was not dislodged at all, although the metal of the cab's window was bent quite noticeably. Clucking her tongue once she saw what she had done, Nitori looked over the edge once more. "…If my calculations are correct… The train shifted so it could get on the standard lines here."

"I suppose. Not like I would know." That might make sense, but it was hardly something I had thought about. A train is a train is a train. Shrugging the thought off, I glance out once again. "We're hitting land here in a few minutes."

"Of course. Just hold on to your seat." A few moments later, and the dark sea below us gave way to the darker ground of a forest. "Oh, and you might want to pull your head back in if you don't want to get smacked around."

I immediately do as she said, removing my head from the window just as a tree branch passed by. "…I didn't think that we'd be going through a forest this thick… Is the train gonna be alright?"

"Should be fine. It is running on magic for the most part, so it should be fine." She turns her head. "Shouldn't be long now if your sister was correct on geography. Might want to get the others."

"Roger that." Some ice for my head might not be a bad idea, either. Minding the gap between the engine and the tender, I headed down towards the cab. "Just give a shout if we run into anymore trouble between here and there. Wouldn't want to be upended by any more moon people… Or rabbits. Or leprechauns, for all I know about what is real."

At her nod, I just headed back to the car, intent on grabbing my gun as soon as possible. "What a bloody rocky road… Have to wonder what is going to be there in Dublin… Or if we shouldn't even bother and head on from there."

A/N Been a while, eh? Well, what can I say? I've had a few other projects crop up, and I was stuck halfway through this chapter. So, here is to hoping that the next one doesn't take nearly as long. After all, I have plans for Dublin… Many plans I have held off too long.

If you care to know what I have been working on, PM me. And if you're wondering if I've abandoned a story, go ahead and do the same. No use beating around the bush, is there? Ah well. Digressing, until next time!