(Prologue: Lucas)

On the whole, I am quite unimpressive.

That's it. That's my entire personality. Unimpressive.

If anything, I suppose you could call me a loner. I think a lot of people are lonely, even if they don't show it. I think even my best friend, Ness, is lonely under his confident exterior.

I wasn't so much of a loner before Claus left.

"Lucas, I'm going away for a little while."

I was eight years old when it happened. He left while I was painting, talking like it was nothing.

"Where are you going?" I asked. Even though we'd only arrived in Onett a couple of months ago, I already knew how bad the streets were at night. In my small world, I did not understand why Claus would go out there alone.

But he was determined. He swept back his flaming orange hair.

"Somewhere important," he said.

And Claus was my rock, my twin brother, the only person I trusted more than myself. In my eyes, he couldn't do anything wrong. So, I made the worst mistake of my life.

I let him go.

"Stay safe," I murmured.

"I will," Claus said. He paused, nodded, and then with one last hug, he was gone.

My father thinks Claus's disappearance was my fault, and I suppose he's not wrong. But Claus was a stubborn child, and I think he'd have found a way to go regardless. That was over eight years ago, a long time in my past.

I don't blame myself anymore.

That doesn't mean it isn't hard. Nowadays, it's difficult to remember much about Claus without it hurting. He was sad sometimes, actually quite often, especially after Mother died. I don't think Father saw that side of him, though, because Claus was always Father's favourite. He liked the outdoors and was the most popular boy in class. I did not have many friends, even in Tazmily, and I liked art, writing, and music. Girl stuff, I'd been told.

Nowadays, Father and I rent quarters in Onett's First Residential District. It's not incredible, but we're lucky, I think. Father's a coal miner, and he doesn't earn much, which is why I help out by selling things, buying things, and trading on the streets. Ness has often tried to give me things to contribute, but I usually turn him down, because I like to do things my way. This is my burden, I think, for letting Claus go.

I met Ness the day after Claus left. He's the best thing to ever happen to me. He knows when I'm in over my head, and even when he doesn't, he's able to cheer me up. He's always there for me, always warm towards me, always willing to talk. I think I'm getting better at being honest with him, too, though he still doesn't know about Claus. The one time Ness came to my house, I lied, telling him Mother and Claus were out. I'm working on being as honest as he is, but still. Old habits die hard.

Not to make my life sound like a tragedy. It upsets me when people get all pitiful over me about it. I think that's part of the reason why I haven't told Ness about Mother and Claus. I haven't told him a lot of things, thinking about it, but there are some things I can never say.

He wouldn't be able to see me the same way again.

If I had to blame someone for all of this, it would be the detestable Porky Minch, a powerful businessman and general nuisance. He has a bad habit of always popping up in my life, trying to sell things to me for huge prices and blackmailing me with information about my brother. In fact, it was thanks to him that this Christmas break was so tough. It did not help that I missed Ness more than usual, and the only gifts I'd been able to get him were some books, ones I was given for free in the marketplace. He gave me fancy new art equipment, expensive-looking brushes and paints.

They made me feel guilty.

But I suppose that's all over now. School is a different story, an unfamiliar life of luxury. This is what I save up for, what all my money goes towards, the life I dream of living...

.

.

.

~~o00o~~

Chapter 2: Something Broken

(Lucas)

~~o00o~~

.

.

.

Ness's revenge comes in the form of a snowball aimed right at my face.

"Ness!" I exclaim, brushing the cold from my hair. "That's not nice."

"What can I say?" Ness gives a smug smile. "You play with fire, you get burned."

Sighing, I roll a new snowball. "I see you've chosen your fate."

"You really mustn't do that," Red says suddenly. "It's a hazard—"

Whump.

"Ha," Toon Link squawks. "How's that for a hazard?"

"Toon Link! That was uncalled for," Villager says. "You okay, Red?"

"C-Cold…"

With a vengeful grin, Villager gathers up a snowball, launching it at Toon Link, and the pair are soon engaged in a full-on snowball war. Taking advantage of my distraction, Ness gathers up another snowball, and there's an explosion of cold against my cheek.

I smile, despite it. Something about snow brings out the childishness in us all.

Except for Bowser. I grit my teeth as he storms over. I hate him, nearly as much as Porky Minch.

"Why aren't you walking to school?" he demands.

"Nobody else has set off yet, Professor." Toon Link chucks another snowball at Villager who performs an impressive spinning dodge.

"You lead, and the rest will follow," Bowser snarls. "Or will I have to make you?"

"Possibly," Toon Link says, scampering behind him. I try to move from Bowser's line of fire, but unfortunately, Bowser rounds on me.

"And you. Snow on your clothes? Disgraceful!"

"I can explain—"

"Is that so?" Bowser pounds his fist into a hand. "If that leaves a stain, there will be trouble!"

"It'll melt, it won't leave a stain—"

"Are you lying to me?" Bowser narrows his eyes. "It looks very… white."

Unsure what to say, I catch a glimpse of Toon Link gathering up a snowball. No, Villager mouths, but he's too slow, as Bowser turns towards them, and—

KABOOM!

Silence rings out.

"Wow..."

"Who threw that?"

"They'll be for it now…"

All of a sudden, Bowser points at me, shaking with fury.

"COME WITH ME."

My eyes flare with outrage. Toon Link wasn't even anywhere near me — the snowball didn't come from my direction! How did it look like I'd thrown it?

"Actually, Professor," Red pipes up, but Bowser turns on him, growling.

"Would you care to come too?"

"No..."

"Good." Bowser grabs me by the scruff of my neck. "As for you, there'll be trouble!"

He starts to drag me up to school, and I sigh. It's not the first time this has happened. I'm often blamed for things others do. I'm supposed to be a quiet boy, not a troublemaker, but misunderstandings seem to get me in a lot of bad situations. That, or Bowser is out to get me.

But suddenly, a burst of snow explodes against him! Bowser whirls around, furious, and a rush of pain darts across my neck — stars flash, and I scramble, and—

"WHO THREW THAT?"

"It was me," Ness declares.

"Ness," I croak, tearing at Bowser's grip. "You - idiot—"

Bowser stomps over, looking deadly. He grabs Ness by the neck, and we exchange a begrudging grin as he's hauled alongside me.

"Any more behaviour like that," Bowser snarls, glaring at the other students. "I'll send you to the gallows, understand?"

They all look nervous. Bowser is the type of person to carry out a threat.

And so, Bowser makes the long walk past the forest and towards the school, gripping onto our collars all the way. The school itself is more of a castle, standing four storeys high and at least six centuries old. I've always found it pretty, like something I'd find in Tazmily, with a great dome curving over the top, supporting an immense clocktower that ticks and chimes. Moss and ivy snake up the walls, creeping around turrets and sneaking into cracks, encasing the school like weaving tendrils.

Bowser kicks open the front door. The school is full of hallways, strange classrooms, dormitories, and sitting-rooms, all covered with the same dull crimson carpet. The whole thing is constructed out of massive stone bricks and illuminated with the warm light of modern gas lamps, kept running by an old lamplighter named Charizard. The corridors are lined with strange paintings and posters, and in term time, they're alive with the latest gossip, or more often than not, the same old rumours. Rumours of secret passages, ghosts, witches…

However, it's hard to appreciate the gloom while Bowser is dragging us through it like wounded animals. We're forced into his office, a circular room with walls covered in pictures of hellish demons.

Bowser sits in a grand, throne-like chair on one side of a table, cackling. Ness and I sit dutifully opposite him, restricted to a small wooden bench. Even Ness looks a little nervous now; Bowser is known for his bad punishments, and the decor doesn't ease my mind. Though, compared to that Face thing we saw on the train…

I find myself shaking from the memory. Those horrid eyes, that hair, the blood, teeth... it had felt powerful, in a way I couldn't quite understand. I wish I wasn't such a coward when it came to this sort of thing — Claus would never have been afraid; Father has often reprimanded me for being less of a man than him.

At least Ness wouldn't think less of me. Ness was afraid as well. He looks at me and nods assuredly, seeing my expression. It's okay. We'll be okay.

I breathe easier.

Bowser's ultimate punishment turns out to be detention with Headmaster Hand, which is almost a relief. Headmaster Hand is unusual, but in a nice way, I suppose. He'll be fairer than Bowser. Still, if he writes home… My heart sinks as I contemplate what my father will say and what Ness's father will think of him. Both of us have fathers with high expectations — well, mine might not care about me one bit, but that's probably because I'm not good enough for his attention.

He wants me to live up to Claus, which isn't going to happen. I am the family disappointment, after all. I think back to Giant's Mine, to walks in the forest, the few interactions I had with Father after Claus's death. In my mind, they all confirmed the same thing.

He wished I'd been the one to go missing.

Soon enough, Ness and I are sent out of Bowser's office to unpack our things, and when we reach our room, our bags are already there – at least, Ness's bags, since I sold everything I owned over Christmas. Even that hadn't been enough to pay the school fee, but Headmaster Hand took pity on me and accepted an IOU. Ness told me once that we could share everything while we're roomed together, and even if I feel a little guilt that I'll have to depend on him this term, I suppose it's a fair arrangement. For once, I'll take what I can get.

"At last, time to ourselves," Ness says, collapsing into bed with a sigh. "We'll do such wonderful things this year."

"Yes, like exams and studying," I say flatly. "Incredible."

"I've done enough studying to last me a lifetime." Ness rubs his eyes. "I'm not sure I have the mind to do any more."

"What do you mean?"

"Father commanded I study through the holidays," Ness says. "I had no time… I did not even get a chance to read those books you got me! I promise I'll read them this term."

I feel a prickle of guilt. "Sorry about those. I didn't have much to spend."

"You're apologising?" Ness sits up, coming over at once. "My father wouldn't let anything but books in the house. They look fascinating, honest."

Bless his kindness. I beam at him, pleased.

Ness unpacks, and I help. I take out the gifts from Ness I chose to bring with me, a blanket and the art equipment included.

"You saved some things," Ness says.

"Only the things you gave me," I say, blushing when I realise how that sounds.

"That's sweet," he comments, continuing to unpack.

Soon after, we get a knock and a call from Professor Rosalina to gather in the main Hall for supper. We make quick work of the walk to avoid any potential conflict with our good friend Professor Bowser, and — woah! The main Hall has been done up, with ribbons hanging down, tables lined with rows upon rows of food, cushioned chairs...

Pleased, Ness and I sit. Toon Link comes over to us amid the general chatter, apologising once again for the snowball incident.

He shakes his head. "What happened? What did Bowser do to your innocent souls?"

"Just a detention with Headmaster Hand," Ness says.

"He's not punishing you himself?" Toon Link looks puzzled. "Perhaps Headmaster Hand has some special reason for seeing you two..."

"Perhaps," I say, but I shut up when Headmaster Hand rises to the podium to give a speech. A lot of muttering breaks out, and Headmaster Hand has to silence it. Headmaster Hand's twin brother is infamous for having blown up a library, which means he's not always been too popular.

"Welcome, one and all, to a new term at Onett Boarding School." He genially looks around at us all. "I hope you're ready for this difficult term of preparing for exams in the summer. I have faith that you'll try extremely hard."

Bold faith, Headmaster. I'm the laziest person I know.

"Firstly, there is a new rule," Headmaster Hand says, his tone drying considerably. "Professor Bowser wishes me to inform you that throwing snowballs on school grounds, especially in his direction, is now prohibited."

There's a small laugh, and Bowser roars, shaking his fists.

"Now, education..." Headmaster Hand says, poring over us all. "Has always meant a great deal to me. It's not just forcing numbers and letters into you, expecting you to regurgitate them onto a page. Education is about developing the skills needed for life. I know this school is unusual for our time, as we allow both genders inside our walls, but I believe that for marriage to work, both genders need to truly experience each other. For the boys in the room, education is also about learning how to build successful businesses and make money. It's the same for you girls, since men make mistakes, and they need a helping hand every so often."

There's another laugh at that. But I don't understand what is so different about boys and girls, other than class. In Tazmily, women had owned businesses; Tessie with her inn, Caroline with her bakery...

"Furthermore," Headmaster Hand continues. "Education is also important because of the rising conflicts in Onett and Tazmily."

I squirm a little. Speak of the devil. Tazmily was a really pretty place, full of sunflowers and full of Mother. Her grave is there. Ness senses my momentary sadness, I think. He knows a lot about my home village from my constant ramblings about it, and he moves a little closer to me.

"...And a reminder about the Wilderness Survival Week, which will be happening in a fortnight," Headmaster Hand says. That cheers me up. Wilderness Survival Week is a yearly event where we venture into the Great Forest, armed with nothing but the clothes on our backs. We partner up, figuring out how to survive in the wilderness. It's a sort of hell, what with the dirt and hunger, and it may sound utterly insane (on my first Wilderness Survival Week, I was terrified) but it's outweighed by the fact that Ness and I get a week to ourselves.

"Pair?" I whisper to Ness.

"Well..." he begins, uncertain. "I was rather thinking of going with Toon Link this year..." My stomach drops, but Ness laughs. "Your face! Of course we're a pair, you goof."

Headmaster Hand continues, "I would also like to remind you about your summer exams, coming in six weeks. Obviously, for younger years, these will just be progression exams, to mark your progress. But for older year groups…" His gaze flickers to the back of the room, where we sit. "Doing well in these exams will be pivotal to those of you with university applications."

I sit up a little straighter. I have my eyes firmly fixed on the science degree at Onett's university. I've always loved science, to me, it's like discovering the secrets of the universe.

However, Headmaster Hand doesn't say any more on the subject, and he eventually finishes with a jolly 'Enjoy your supper!', before sitting down to enjoy a plate of roast beef. Ness takes a fair portion of sliced bread, and he lathers it up with butter and honey. I rake my eyes across the table — the chicken pieces catch my eye, and I take some, avoiding the bowl of my least favourite food of all time, mashed potato. The meals aren't usually this luxurious, but at the start of term, they like to make an effort.

"This is lovely," Ness says, grinning as he stuffs his face. Ness likes to call himself overweight sometimes, but he's not even close. I just say he's well-fed.

I eat slowly, lost amid the ambient chatter of the main Hall. I find myself staring around at the paintings on the wall, wondering if one day, one of my paintings will make it up there. Father's always disapproved of my artistic side, but painting's the only thing other than science that I really enjoy.

I've daydreamed a lot about it. It's a habit of mine, I think, but it's helpful. It comes from being calm and logical. I'm the polar opposite of Ness's rash and hasty self. Though, he's a daydreamer too, and often, we'll sit in silence, just thinking together.

"...Lucas?" Villager says.

Ironically, I'm pulled out of my daydream.

"We're talking about our least favourite professors, d'you remember that one about Wario?"

Oh, yes. That. I don't like telling that story.

"It was two years ago," I grimace. "I got detention in his class, and the punishment was paying him a hundred shillings."

"Wow." Toon Link whistles softly. "Cruel."

"It was awful," I say, and it was, Business is my least favourite subject. In codependent fashion, Ness and I take the same courses; Arithmetic, English Literature, Sport, and Science are compulsory, but we chose Art, History, and Business Studies ourselves. Those choices were mostly thanks to a chaotic summer, which involved pressures from Father, me not speaking to Ness, and my least favourite man of all time (not Porky!), but I don't like to dwell on such things.

Even though some of the professors and classes are quite terrible here, I do like Onett Boarding School a lot. The subject choice is much broader than elsewhere, and anything is better than the horrors of the public school. That makes me sound like one of those rich businessmen in the Financial District, but that place is awful, next to Onett's cesspit of a river. There is no freedom, only complete silence. Beatings are commonplace. So is death, according to Ness's little sister, Tracy.

With that morbid thought, I finish my meal.

"Who's for a game of pool?" Red asks, when supper is over and we're sat in the Games Room, our usual room of choice. We start playing.

"Did any of you see that face on the train?" Ness asks casually. I scowl. I'd almost forgotten about that stupid face. I expect to see it in my nightmares tonight.

The others seem puzzled. "Face?"

"Well, remember how it went all dark and cold?" Ness says. "Lucas and I were looking out the window, then this horrible face appeared. It was awful, really. We think it got on the roof, because then there was this banging from above. It stopped when the professors came in."

"It got on the roof?" Red looks up, interested. "Did you see it get off the roof at any point?"

Ness and I exchange a look.

"Well, no…"

Toon Link raises an eyebrow. "What is to say it did not find a way into the train?"

Ness and I exchange another, more frightened look.

"And perhaps, now it's arrived at the school, and perhaps it's haunting the corridors? It could be anywhere, you know, waiting for you to close your eyes..."

The gas lamps flicker. I shiver.

"I doubt it," Ness says, seeing my worried expression. "It must've fallen when the train started moving."

But Toon Link rubs his hands together. "I don't know, Ness... perhaps the Face is on its way to this very location? Perhaps it's already in the room..." He looks directly at me, and he grins. "Right... behind you!"

"RAARGH!" Something grabs my shoulder, and I scream — panic flooding through me — I whirl around to see Popo, his hand on my shoulder, laughing his head off. I try to calm my breathing. It's okay.

"Sorry Lucas, it was too hard to resist," Popo says, guffawing.

I sigh. In my books, Popo is a bit of a menace. He can be nice, but he's quite strange and isn't great at making friends. Thankfully, his twin sister is pleasant. She's in art class with me and Ness.

"Seriously, that's not funny!" Ness says. "That face was horrid, okay? You wouldn't have liked it either."

There's a pause.

"Wait, what? I thought you were having us on," Villager says, frowning. "You really saw a phantom face?"

"Well, it had a body," I reason, still recovering. "But yes."

"I missed most of the conversation, what is going on?" Popo asks.

"None of your business," Toon Link huffs. "I shouldn't bother to recount it all."

I'm surprised by how sharp Toon Link sounds. It's not like him to speak that way.

"Rude," Popo says, rolling his eyes. "I sure hope that doesn't come back to haunt you…"

"Toon Link, calm down," Red says. "We cannot—"

"There might be a phantom face in the school! How do you expect me to be calm?"

"Don't worry, so long as it gets Bowser first," Villager attempts to joke, but there's a feeling of unease over us now.

However, it's broken by more people entering the room. I sigh, seeing that it's Meta Knight and Olimar. They're cruel, especially to me, the poorest boy in school. One time, they'd broken into my dorm and covered everything in red paint. I don't know what they get out of it; I think they're just the sorts of people who enjoy causing as much suffering as possible.

"All right?" Toon Link asks, tipping his cap.

"How delightful to see you," Meta Knight says, grinning, doing that annoying thing where upper-class boys pretend to be your friend, and you're supposed to act grateful for it, or something. "Who's winning the game?"

"We haven't started yet." Red puts his hands on his hips, offended. "There are no balls on the table, see."

I internally groan. Red's very good at accidentally being rude.

"Yes, good point," Olimar says, smirking. There is a tense quiet, in which he probably contemplates beating us to a pulp.

"We'd better go to our dorm," Meta Knight decides suddenly.

"Yes, we got business to attend to," Olimar says, and Meta Knight hits him.

"Shut it! The boss said to keep it a secret," he growls, before turning to look at us. "You heard nothing, or you end up in the medical ward for a month."

The threatening pair depart.

"Lovely," Toon Link says. "Some great foreshadowing there. I'm sure their boss won't cause us any trouble in the near future."

"I hate them," Red complains. "Up on their high horses... it's a shame they haven't got the brains to do anything good! Don't they know we'll be the ones in power someday?"

Everyone knows better than to gratify Red's ramblings with a response.

"Did anyone see Zelda on the train?" Villager asks, trying to sound casual.

Everyone sighs. It's a badly kept secret that Villager has been fond of her for ages, even though he tries to hide it. Truth be told, without being too mean, she doesn't seem like the type for him. She's hugely popular, and everyone knows about her and Link kissing in the broom cupboards. It's a hopeless case. I've never really seen what all the fuss is about girls, anyway. All the other boys seem to spend their lives chasing after them, and it never ends well. I mean, haven't they read Romeo and Juliet? To me, girls aren't even that attractive. Even boys are prettier.

One game of pool later, it's time for bed. Ness and I wave a cheerful goodnight to the others, and we take the trek to our dorm corridor. Popo must've wandered off at some point to find Nana. I feel guilty that our group excluded him, but to be fair, he has other friends. Though, I don't know... perhaps I should talk to him more? But as Ness and I climb the stairs, my thoughts drift elsewhere, and I grow worried again.

"What do you think Olimar and Meta Knight meant? What if they've done something to our room?" I need to work on keeping that edge of panic out of my voice.

"I don't think they would," Ness says, though he doesn't sound fully convinced. "It sounded rather official. And probably illegal. I wouldn't mind getting them busted for it, so long as they don't bust our faces in the process."

"Yes… that'd be good. What is it, though? Perhaps they have slaves?"

"That's unlikely," Ness says, laughing.

"What do you think then?" I shoot back.

"Perhaps they're dealing some drugs," he says, but he doesn't sound sure. "It could be anything, really."

We open the door to our dorm. It looks just as we left it earlier. It's a nice little room, with a painting of some sunflowers on the wall, which reminds me a lot of Tazmily. Mother used to make and sell sunflower oil there before she died. We got by a lot better back then, me, my mother, my father, and Claus. Father did not mind my presence so much. Even though I probably see Mother through rose-tinted spectacles, I know she loved me and Claus a lot. In a way, I'm glad she passed before Claus left us, actually. I'm not sure what the stress of it would have done to her. And as for how Mother died, we're still not sure. She was found dead in the sunflower fields. The police told us that sunstroke did it, an awfully hot day. It could've caused a lot of complications.

I think once again about how Ness doesn't know, how he doesn't know anything about my family, or about my life outside of school. It makes me feel guilty. He tells me all about his little tomboyish sister, Tracy, his pressuring father, his kindly mother, and, I don't know. Am I ashamed? Is that it?

We get changed in relative silence. Thankfully, Ness looks away. I'm not the most comfortable with my body. The lowerclassman shows on my chest, my ribs jutting out like some sort of rack. I'm below-average weight, and I barely have any muscle, which means I'm unattractive by typical standards. But after we're changed, we sit on Ness's bed. It's a strange thing we sometimes do, at the end of the day, we catch up, talk, and have some time to be friends without everyone else getting in the way.

"So," Ness begins. "How were your Christmas Holidays, really?"

It suddenly hits me that this might be a difficult conversation. I breathe deeply. I can trust Ness with anything. I keep myself composed.

"It was hard," I admit. "More bills, and Porky raised the rent again. Father's pay was cut, and it was hard to get by." I try not to sound too pathetic.

Ness looks guilty. "I'll speak with my father, to see if he can get the wages back up…"

But I rub my arm. "I traded and sold. I made some money. It was fine in the end."

"That's good." Ness smiles, though it's hesitant. "Did anything else happen?"

"...Then Porky appeared."

"What did he do to you this time?" Ness's angry expression says it all. Porky's been messing around in both of our lives for a long time.

"He tried to kidnap me when I was selling," I say. "I got away, it was easy. But then…" I shiver, realising I might have to explain some things. Personal things.

"What happened?" Ness asks.

"Well—"

"You don't have to say anything you don't want—"

Am I really going to admit it? At long last? The temptation to deny it, to carry myself decently rises up, and I'm not sure what to say.

But Ness never cared about being proper. He touches my hand, sensing my discomfort, and I take a deep breath.

"Ness, do you remember my brother?"

"Yes. Claus, right?"

"He went missing eight years ago, and—" I gasp for breath. "I'm sorry I did not tell you sooner. I thought he'd be found, but we never found him, and I don't know where he is, but I want him back, and I'm - I'm sorry—"

I turn away, the guilt burning my stomach. These eight years, I've been lying. Never mentioning it, hoping it goes away. I don't even know what drove me to talk about Claus, all the words just fell out, it's ridiculous. I'm ridiculous.

But Ness touches me on the shoulder, coming close. What have I become? Behaving like a man — why is it so hard?

"I'm sorry," I mumble again.

"Lucas, don't be sorry. Please, it's okay," Ness whispers. "I promise. We'll find him."

"No, we won't." I shake my head slightly. "He's gone, he's long gone, I'm sure of it. I should have told you — I don't — I cannot—" I plunge my face into my hands, taking a deep breath. "I should've told you sooner."

"Lucas, it wasn't my business," he says calmly. How can he be so calm? How does he put up with me behaving like this — how would anyone?

He pats me on the back, and I bite my lip, slightly more at ease now. But the guilt is there, still strong. Anytime I talk about how I'm feeling, it makes me feel ashamed. Ness doesn't deserve this. They're my problems, not his.

"You were saying about the Christmas Holidays," Ness says softly. "What happened?"

"A lot," I mumble. "Porky told me he could sell me information on Claus, and Father agreed to pay. He signed the deal, it was a trick — he did not know, he knew nothing. And now we're in bigger debt than ever."

"He did what?" Ness stands, and I look up at him, alarmed. "That's a new low. That's evil! That terrible man. Lucas, I'm sorry. I'm so sorry." He comes near again, holding me close. "I swear, I won't let him hurt you ever again."

But I stay silent. Porky is hard to combat. Porky gets his way. Porky always gets his way.

"It's been a long day," Ness says after a while. "A difficult day."

He's right. I'm usually better at keeping composed. But the Face, Bowser, Olimar, Meta Knight, I suppose it had all built up. And this morning, Father not answering the door, not saying a word, not even a goodbye...

I breathe easier. It'll be fine.

"We should go to bed," I agree. "Sorry… again."

But Ness isn't having any of it. "Lucas, please don't apologise. You're good to me when I'm sad, and I want to be good to you too. It's what friends do." He smiles, looking goofy. "So come on. Let's go to bed."

It's hard to say no to him. I nod, feeling a little stronger, going over to close the door. "Just in case The Face comes back," I joke.

"Good thinking," Ness says, and to my surprise, there's fear in his eyes.

Perhaps he's just as afraid of that thing as I am.

Either way, he's right. I need sleep. I tumble into bed, rolling up in the covers, and Ness does the same on the other side of the room. My blanket is warm, soft, and I almost feel like I'm floating in it, rising into the sky, where the clouds are fluffy and warm. And it's all right, up there, and Ness's whisper of "sweet dreams" makes my worries go away.

It always does.