Seeing the light despair creeping into Ramon's face, May didn't even press further. Furthermore, her mind was on something else. Something that she really doesn't want to dwell on, the "non-entity" that she really wants to forget. For some reason, she just can't. The exasperation on her face was obvious to everyone else, though.

"I think we should talk to her about-" Sam began, but Max stopped her.

"When my sister is currently angry and brooding like that, even I'd know better than to not step on her toes right now," he cautioned in a serious tone, shaking his head. "Too hazardous for anyone."

Max was able to stop Sam, but what about Ramon? "Does my predicament remind you of what you are currently going through yourself?" he asked her out loud.

"Wha-What?" May exclaimed, instantly snapping out of her stupor. "Wait, what's that supposed to mean?"

"I was just thinking, maybe you had that row earlier with," May was almost about to blow up again just as a certain non-entity is about to be mentioned, but she tried curbing it, since it's appropriate to shout at an elderly, sickly man. Ramon knew better, however, and didn't mention the name. "...was because you are just about to experience the same plight I have been through."

Taking deep breaths to calm herself down, it took a while before May could utter a proper, polite response. "I was never in any argument with anyone from earlier, I swear to you. So I'm pretty sure that comparing your plight to a non-existing situation I'm in is not applicable." What am I even saying? May asked herself. It's all because of that stupid non-entity that I'm not thinking straight!

May was shaking her head so rapidly, trying to shake off these thoughts, that she startled everyone around her. "Never mind that I said anything at all," she said, to save face.

"But you didn't even say anything," Max muttered, "that's coherent, that is." Once again, May had to shut him up with a fierce glare.

"You know," Ramon said, "the way you deny these things, it will just be more painful for you?" May didn't have an answer for that one, only turning away so that Ramon wouldn't see her face, but she couldn't move fast enough because he saw her tears.

Fortunately for May, she was saved from further embarrassment by a knock on the door. Sam got up to open it, and shortly returned with two "new" faces: Brock and Vincent, Ramon's ghostwriter/son-in-law. Upon seeing May and Max, the former of the two looked like he was about to blow his top. "There you are!" he exclaimed. "After the book-signing I looked around and found myself alone in the crowd. "You know how worried I was?"

"And you're just going to tell us how much you are worried, aren't you?" Max quipped. Faking a look of innocence, he continued, "Go on, do tell, please."

His eyebrow twitching, Brock knew he was being made fun of, so he ignored most of what Max said. "So anyway, here are May and Max, like you said, Vincent. But I don't see a certain someone else. Now where's As-"

Max moved so fast that his attempt to cover Brock's mouth only wound up becoming a slap, causing the latter to flinch. "Better you not say that name right now." Gone was the sarcasm from Max's voice, and he just gestured at his sister.

And then there was yet another knock on the door. Sam got up to answer it, revealing an old woman around Ramon's age on the other side of the door. Sam doesn't recognize the woman, nor do Max or May (the latter having followed her out of curiosity). "We seem to be getting many visitors lately," Sam muttered, then asked May, "you didn't tell anyone else about us, did you?", making a light joke of the circumstances. "Yes. Who is it?"

Sam swung the door wide open, revealing an old woman on the other side. "Hello. My name is Josephine, and I-" the newcomer started to say, but the other four all exclaimed in surprise before she could finish.

"Eh? ...EHHHHHHH?!" Those "words" were heard throughout all of Cerulean Cape, shocking anyone in the vicinity. Fortunately, there weren't any, aside from a school of Magikarp near the shoreline who started swimming away...

Josephine, if that's who she really is, was dumbfounded by their screams, blinking several times in surprise. Before she could address them, however, her eyes drifted to the other room, where Ramon lay. Without another word, she rushed past her hosts and straight toward Ramon, tackling him to the point that she also found herself laying on the bed, on the bed, with tears in her eyes.

"It's really you, isn't it?" Ramon asked, who himself is also trying to fight back his tears.

Yes. It's me. I can't believe...after all these years, you have been waiting for me. If only I knew, then I would have thrown away everything to see you again..." Josephine straightened herself up and got out of the bed to give Ramon room to breathe.

"So you really are Josephine, Ramon's long-lost love?" May asked as she stepped into the room, followed by the other three.

Josephine turned to her, a small smile creeping into her lips. "Well, yes. I believe I already told you all my name earlier, didn't I? And that bit about the whole long-lost love...?"

On the verge of tears, Brock could only sniffle and grab a piece of tissue that was handed to him by Max. "I didn't hear the whole story, but doesn't that describe your relationship perfectly?" he piped up.

Ramon laughed, although again the effort only made him have a coughing fit again. "I tried to pepper the tale I told them about the two of us with phrases like that. To be fair, it's not far from the truth, is it?"

Still wiping the tears from her eyes, Josephine couldn't help but control her own emotions and found herself smiling in spite of, well... "Perhaps," was all she could say at first. She then pulled out a book from the bag that she's holding: it's a copy of the very same volume of the Red Knight series that May has. "To think, I've been following this book series, yet I never would have thought the author is somebody I know."

"It's a bit of a long story." And Ramon quickly explained the circumstances that he told May and her friends earlier. "After all this time, you actually remember our promise to each other?" he continued. "That I am actually happy for."

"Actually," Josephine said, "I'm sorry to say that I never remembered anything at all." Ramon stared at her, but sensing that she really was being apologetic, he didn't say anything and just let it slide. "I have never even been aware that you were all this time waiting for me until a while ago.

"I felt so remorseful about forgetting our promise that once that young man refreshed my memory and updated me on the situation, I immediately took him up on his offer to take me straight here."

Everyone stared at Josephine, May especially. "He's a frequent contact of Liza, that young man who left his Charizard all those months ago. He and Liza were acquaintances for such a long time, yet I never did get to meet him in person until now. Nor catch his name."

"Oh. Are you from the Charicific Valley?" Brock asked, not realizing the depth of the question he's asking.

Completely unaware, Josephine nodded. Before she could say anything else, Max piped in. "So then, the preserve Ramon was talking about is the Valley?" he wondered aloud. "Quite a coincidence, isn't it? Wait, does that mean A-S-"

Brock looked at Max, wondering why he's spelling "it" out like that, but before he could say anything, May stood abruptly. So abrupt that both Brock and Max reeled back like they were knocked down by the mere movement. This is the second time, too. But without saying another word this time, she just about-faced and took off abruptly.

"Now where is she going?!" Brock muttered, perplexed.

For once, Max saw the dots being connected. However, he still has yet to make sense of the whole situation. "I think it's best if we sit this one out. Something tells me my sister is going to blow up again...or something..."

And Brock only got more confused. "You're the one not making sense to me, Max," he replied dryly.