"My other family..."

Aofil unlocks the lever holding the backrest of their sun chair up. They quickly bend forward to unhook it, and then let their weight push the backrest down to a more horizontal position. They lock it in place, and put their arm behind their head.

It's a nice day today. The sun's shining, but just enough that it's warm, and not overbearingly hot. Aofil's wearing the over sized sunglasses. For two reasons. First one being that they're a pair of sunglasses, and that the sun is out. Secondly, the bottom of the rim hides their overgrown lawn behind purple plastic.

Aofil reaches over to the table next to them. They find their glass of water with a cucumber slice in it. It's refreshing, and by golly do they need it now. Not really because of the heat, but because of their head. They need to figure out what to do with everything they've learned these past days, and it's better to do it while quenched.

These past days of frantic searching on whatever official website they can find that has any form of tangential connection to what the pastor said. Now that they're sitting here, thinking back on it all, they're not really sure if they made the right choice.

The pastor told Aofil that there was a box, told Aofil of what was in the box, and Aofil opened the metaphorical box. Now they can't close it, they can never close it. Even if this whole monster situation turns out to be a farce, Aofil will still know things they're probably gonna wish that they never did. Their mind is now burdened. A ball and chain has clamped shut, and Aofil has to drag it around for the foreseeable future. If whatever this trial turns out to be true, and that Aofil's gonna be involved in it, then people are gonna want to tug at the chain. Aofil's already dreading that day. If they're lucky it might just not happen at all. If they were lucky they wouldn't have known of it in the first place.

And just two weeks ago their biggest worry was running out of noodles.

"My other family…" Aofil sighs heavily.

It's been a week or so since Aofil went to visit their family. It's been a week since the monsters went from reserved curiosity, to being the only thing on Aofil's mind. That is, if what the pastor said was true about them. He was truthful about Aofil's family alright, but…

No, Aofil can't cross that bridge yet. Skipping right to that will only make their family matter matter even worse!

Let's try again.

It's been a week since the pastor went, what Aofil could only describe back then as, crazy. They had no idea whether he told any form of truth or not when they walked home. Their rumbling stomach didn't help them come to any conclusion. As they prepared some of their last noodles, they couldn't stop his voice echoing around in their head. His words, and how little sense they made.

If everything the pastor said was true, then it would mean that Aofil knows absolutely nothing of what they thought they did. In the pastor's words, Aofil didn't even know basic arithmetic. They searched their house, but from what they've found, or to be more specific, not found, nothing he said was true. They should've just left it very much alone at that point. The fact that they didn't find anything directly, and that they had to actively search, and despite that, they couldn't find anything.

That fact alone should've been enough for Aofil to declare that this is way too large for them. Too big for Aofil to ever handle properly if dug up.

Yet somehow, Aofil felt that they hadn't looked enough. Something deep inside them still said that there were more to this story, that the pastor was indeed telling Aofil the truth. The thought didn't strike them even tangentially once they got to searching. Something was encouraging them from within.

It didn't feel good though, almost like a subtle form of nausea. The voice inside Aofil was so distant, so faint. Almost as it was someone else. It didn't feel as someone else though, it felt like Aofil's own thoughts, just not in their head. Luckily the nausea was just as faint, but it was there. Both of them were there, even though they felt like a sigh inside a hurricane.

It hasn't gone away, even after the things Aofil's learned. Same thing with the energy they've felt ever since the monsters appeared. Aofil's been doing stuff. Actual stuff. Progress. Bought food other than noodles. Food that's taken effort to make. They've went through and researched what the pastor said, instead of shrugging it off like they did before. They went to visit their family. Previously they've dreaded to even imagine walking over there, but last week they just went. Aofil put on their shoes, and just went. They still dreaded meeting their family, but not in the same way. As if their family would be disappointed in them. Aofil thought about themselves, reflected on what they've done. Not done, to again be specific.

They even thought about running!

And they put slices of cucumber in their water that they're again drinking!

What is going on?

It tastes great! Aofil appreciates it! They should do it all the time!

With an exhale that's halfway between a sigh and a raspberry, Aofil puts down the glass on the table again. Their sunglasses almost slip off their face as they shake their head at it all.

Is it a coincidence that Aofil actually started doing things the day the monsters arrived? Or it is something else? Is it the monsters' doing? Is it magic?

Aofil closes their eyes, and sink down into their sun chair. Maybe they should try asking that faint feeling inside them. If it had answers for their family, maybe it has answers about the monsters?

…

…

What is Aofil doing? Asking a small voice inside them for advice? For help in sorting out their mind? Asking voices inside themselves is the complete opposite of that! What? Are they crazy? Talking with their dead family crazy?

Aofil rubs their templates. Apparently they are. No idea trying to get an answer now though, they've made themselves aware of how stupid this whole ordeal is, so trying to focus now would be futile.

It's like when one becomes aware of one's own nose in their field of vision. Time just have to pass before one forgets that it's there again.

Aofil sighs irritably. What would that voice inside them be even? Their gut feeling? Their soul? The spirits of their dead family?

The more Aofil looks, the deeper the hole is, apparently. Every time they thought that it couldn't be any worse, Aofil looked a bit more and yup, it got worse. From their family, all the way to that name.

That name…

A name that Aofil can't remember ever knowing, despite them wrapping their head around it like an over eagerly made Christmas present. Still, nothing. Aofil lets the name bounce around in their head again, but no, nothing. Nothing that rings a bell.

Aofil swallows some more water. They fish out the slice of cucumber with their tongue as well, and fold it with the back of their teeth. They wonder if they should put a couple of slices on their eyes to alleviate their tiredness. They haven't gotten a single good night's rest the entire week. Too many loud thoughts keeping them awake. Questions about, well, everything. What does it all mean? How does it connect to the monsters? Why Aofil? Why now? Why not a couple of years ago? Why not a couple of years in the future?

The question that rings loudest though, the one that has Aofil uncomfortable in their own house. The question that gave answers, but not the answers Aofil wanted. A dozen lesser questions answered, but another huge one has replaced them. Many drops make an ocean. Aofil could life with the drops though. Now they're alone, bobbing nervously up and down amid a vast open ocean. Dark water all around them, stretching like the infinite underneath them, and no land in sight. They have to be careful not to drown, not let the question overtake them.

Why doesn't Aofil remember?

It wasn't even what Aofil set out to search, yet they still found it.

The morning after the pastor talked to Aofil, the morning after a restless night, where Aofil first started to feel that distant voice inside them. The quiet around them was enough for them to hear it. Hear how it wandered back in forth, trying to make sense of it all. It was conflicted, still is conflicted. More so than before? That Aofil can't tell. All they know is that it kept them up, kept them from sleeping. The words of the pastor echoing through their mind didn't help the situation.

Be it because of their sleepiness messing with their thoughts, or be it their curiosity washing over them. If Aofil were to guess, it was probably both. Really, why isn't what lead them to finding out, it was how.

Aofil started searching around the house. They went through everything they can think of, folders, papers, phone numbers, yet they found nothing. No evidence of them having another family. There were no adoption papers, at least, not for Aofil though. Their brother and sister's were neatly ordered in their parent's office. Everything was on the documents. Birthday, reason for abandonment, name, health records.

Links to the government's website along with credentials to access the online portal.

Aofil remember how strange the paper started to feel in their hands after they read through those adoption documents. Anxiety flushed over them, and that nausea started manifesting. Almost like the papers were laden with poison. Aofil wasted no time though, and quickly rushed over to their computer.

The credentials were still accepted, albeit after a couple of days waiting for a security code to be delivered to their home. The worst waiting Aofil's ever had. Will ever have, probably. With the code in hand though they were granted access. It felt strange seeing that green verification mark, and the myriad of links along with their dad's name being greeted in the top left corner.

Their hand hesitated. Aofil can't really put their finger on why they couldn't put their finger on, but for some reason, they dreaded what lurked behind those links present.

Almost as if they already knew what they would see.

Aofil searched their own name, and to their delight, it showed their birth certificate. Their mother's name, and signature, along with their father's name, and signature. Barely readable, but that only confirmed it more for Aofil.

The parents that Aofil buried are their own, no doubt about it.

For some reason that didn't make Aofil any happier. Not in the slightest. Couple that with the fact that they could still use their late parents' credentials to look up their deaths…

Aofil had to walk away for a bit. Walk over to the bathroom, and splash some cold water in their face. And some more. And some more.

They held their hands up to their face the last time, could it be five or six. Aofil didn't count, they were too busy to. Their hands hid their reflection in the sink mirror from themselves. Their tears mixed with the water, diluting the salt as it reached Aofil's lips. They could still taste it though.

It took some time for them to remind themselves that they had to keep searching. If they'd known fully what they'd find they'd taken a lot longer to prepare, and even then, that wouldn't have been enough.

As Aofil returned to their birth certificate, they noticed something. Above their birth certificate was a number.

A number that wasn't one.

An arrow in the lower left hand corner of the website brought them to another certificate. The first one. Of a sibling born before Aofil. A couple of minutes, in fact. The same sloppy handwriting from their father above his name. The same for their mother. The same hospital, the same room, the same doctor, and the same midwife.

Above all of those was the largest name.

The name of their parents' firstborn, who came before Aofil.

The name of Aofil's twin.

Chara.

Just the thought of it makes Aofil feel ill all over. The fact that it's actually real…

Aofil tries to quell their nausea with some more water.

They have a twin.

Had a twin.

Chara was reported missing years ago, according to the government's website. Presumed dead. No body recovered. Not a sign after Aofil's parents reported Chara gone. Aofil has a dead twin they know nothing about.

What the actual fuck?

They had a twin for years, but they can't remember anything. No face, no voice, not even the name. It's just blank. For Aofil, seeing that birth certificate was the first time they saw that name. A stranger that Aofil's never heard of. Apparently they're twins though.

Surprise, surprise!

If there's the thinnest of silver linings though is that Aofil now understands why the wall separating two of the upstairs bedroom have the thinnest of walls. Must've been one big room to begin with.

A silver lining is pretty hard to distinguish if the entire sky is covered in black clouds though. Vicious, bellowing clouds indicating that a storm is coming. A storm Aofil's never seen before. Now they have to face it with an umbrella that turned out to be a broken one made out of nothing. No grasp to be had, not on what Aofil thought they could stay dry with. Rainy days ahead.

Aofil sighs until their lungs start to burn in pain.

Rainy days ahead.

So why can't Aofil remember? Who is Chara? Why can't they remember Chara? Aofil tries to run through their entire childhood, but there is no twin with them. Only Aofil. Aofil was the only child. Until their sister and brother were adopted, that is. That wasn't until later though. The date of Chara's disappearance wasn't when they were a baby. They were a child, almost a grown child at that.

Still nothing. Still no voice to associate with the name. Still no face to associate with the voice.

Aofil turns their head around in the sun chair. They catch their reflection in the dirty kitchen window.

They were twins, so...

"Greetings, I'm Chara!"

Nope, still nothing. Why Aofil thought that looking at an adult would somehow summon a child's face they can't really tell. What's the odds that Chara would look the same as Aofil though? If they were identical, yes, but what if Chara wasn't even the same sex as Aofil? What if Chara looked more like their dad instead of their mom? What if-

As Aofil turns their head back they think themselves see a yellow flower move, but it was only the wind. They sink back down into their chair.

So much is on their mind, it feels like it's gonna explode. Would probably take out the entire neighborhood if it did. People would wonder if Ebott shook again, only to find crumbled houses with a crater at Aofil's.

Would it be called Crater Ebott?

Now Aofil's head is hurting even more…

Crater Ebott at their normal house, Ebott Fault at their summer home.

Their summer home…

Aofil flies out of their chair. The sunglasses slid off in the hasty jump, and bounce against the hard tiled floor of the patio. They don't break, but the glass takes some pretty nasty scratches. The water in their hand splashes all over Aofil, but the fact doesn't reach their head. It's too clogged with the thought that suddenly rushed them.

Their summer home! It was abandoned after Chara disappeared? Maybe there's some stuff there about them? Their parents didn't really bring a lot from it when they abandoned it. Should be loads of stuff still there. perhaps even something about Chara. Aofil's parents owned it before they, and Chara, were born, so they had to have visited there at least once. If Aofil's memory serves them correctly, that is. These last few days have proven that to be quite the opposite though.

Dammit.

Can they even believe anything they thought about their childhood? Was there even a summer home? Was there a fault line underneath, threatening to split open and swallow the community whole? Was it there Chara disappeared?

The nausea inside Aofil grows.

That means that they're on the right path? Yes, it has to be! They felt it when they saw Chara's name for the first time, so their summer home making them feel nauseous too must mean that the two are connected.

Aofil nods to themselves.

They have to do this!

They don't even bother folding up their sun chair back again, this is way too important for the first step to be folding back the sun chair.

No, the first step is getting up to the attic. The key has to be there somewhere. It's where their parents put whatever handful of things they brought with them, so it has to be there. It's not in the office, the wall mounted key box next to the door, nor in the basement.

All signs point upwards.

And the dust collected during the year of absences fall downwards onto Aofil as they open the hatch leading to the attic. They cough out as much as they can, and afterwards they pull their chirt up over their mouth. It might not help much, but it's something.

The attic is dark. They should've brought a flashlight, come to think of it. The ones they have don't have any batteries though, so that might've been good to have thought of before.

Oh well.

With their hands in front of them, Aofil stumbles through the rubble of boxes and bags. None catches their eye though. All are things they've carried up there.

They have to go deeper. Deeper mean older, right?

Wait, what's this? A chest? A wooden chest?

Aofil doesn't recall anything about an old wooden chest. It has their name written in felt pen though. They didn't write it though.

If they don't remember anything about it...perhaps…

The floor underneath the chest creaks loudly as Aofil drags it closer to them. It opens easily after Aofil undoes the locks on each side with a satisfying clunking sound. Inside appears some toys, old dolls, striped shirts and sweaters. A jeweled case lies buried underneath a couple of stuffed animals.

Inside the case is a mirror. Seems to be a bit stained. No keys though. Aofil puts the case back, and to the side, and keeps on digging.

At the bottom is another metallic case. Small, like a match box. Sounds like a match box too when Aofil shakes it. They flip the lid open, and close their fist in joy and eagerness.

Keys.

There's even a plastic tag attached to the key ring, and it says 'Summer Home'.

Even better.

In their eagerness, Aofil closes the lid down a bit too quickly. Dust spews up like a volcano, and they start coughing, which causes even more dust to whirl up around them, which causes them to cough more and-

They gotta get out of there!

With the key ring clutched in their hand, Aofil starts inching their way back. Their hand comes dangerously close to scraping up splinters from the untreated floor, but to their luck their skin remains intact all the way back down the stairs leading down.

Aofil quickly yet carefully, as to not cause more spillage of dust than is absolutely necessary, tiptoes into the bathroom. There they try and shake off all the dust off them. They manage to get most of it off, but taking a shower would be futile now. They're about to head to their abandoned summer home, so ruining another set of clothing is just wasteful. It's not like anyone will see them covered in dust and think that they're a murderer or something.

Aofil washes the dust on the floor away with the shower, and then heads down to the kitchen. They fill a water bottle, and fetch some easy to eat biscuits from the overhead cupboard. Their old schoolbag seems to be intact enough to survive the trek around the mountain, and Aofil fills it with the water and biscuits before throwing it over their shoulder. Running shoes on in the hallway, and then they open their front door.

Looks to be cloudy in a bit, but that's alright with Aofil. Less sun to sting their eyes. They lock the door behind them, and head off to Mt Ebott.