It only took Ivan a few minutes to gather up whatever he was planning to take with him. He also put on a long coat, scarf, and boots that put Arthur's to shame. A faint smile appeared on the tall man's face as he told us he was ready to leave. We started for the door, but Ivan paused before we could reach it.

"I should tell my sisters we're leaving." He turned around and walked away in the same direction Katyusha had dragged Natalya away earlier.

We waited in silence. Arthur stood with his arms crossed, and Cutter had a butterfly knife out this time and was expertly flipping it around. I was starting to understand why people called him Cutter. Alfred also watched the sullen man, but his eyes would occasionally flit toward me. His blue eyes that were usually so easy to read seemed blocked off and unreachable. He had been like that ever since the accident at the Fire Islands. Nothing was ever said about it, but there was an unbreachable gap between us now. We were friends, and that was all.

Ivan reappeared as those thoughts ran around my mind. "It is time to go now, da? And I would run if I were you. Katyusha can't hold Natalya for long."

His voice was deceptively calm, but the message was clear. We hurried out the door as fast as we could and hightailed it down the hill. I wasn't in any position to judge, but from what I had already seen of Natalya I knew that I didn't want to stick around to see how she would react to Ivan leaving. It was so much easier running down the hill than walking up, and I easily kept up with the men. The only one falling behind was Alfred, whose face began to betray the obvious pain he was in. I tried to get him to stay on the ship, but he insisted he was in good enough condition to join us.

"H-hey! Hold up a sec!" We slowed to a halt to wait for him. He was breathing hard and could barely speak when he caught up with us. "I need...to go in there...for a bit." He pointed to the same bar he had entered earlier to find Ivan's house.

"This ain't no time fer a drink, boy!" Cutter snapped.

"It'll be...fast...promise!" Alfred ran for the tavern.

"Son of a-" Christov nodded up to the top of the hill.

We all looked to see a small figure emerge from Ivan's house and swivel her head in search of us. Something that looked suspiciously like a carving knife gleamed in her hand. Ivan tensed and looked around frantically. There wasn't anywhere to hide except for the pub, but I got the feeling we wouldn't be welcome there. Especially with a crazy girl intent to kill following us.

"We need to go. Now," Ivan murmured. "Your friend will just have to stay behind."

"No!" I shouted a little too loudly. Natalya must have heard because her head instantly snapped in our direction.

"We have no choice!" Ivan began to run with Cutter and Christov close behind.

"We need to leave, love." Arthur pulled on my arm. "I don't know about you, but I would like to live another day."

"But we can't leave Alfred!"

"We have to."

By that point, Natalya was already halfway down the hill. I could see the strange glint of something ferocious in her eyes, even from this distance. Inexplicable fear coursed through my veins, and all thoughts of Alfred were erased from my mind. Then he burst out of the bar carrying a big bag that clinked as he walked.

"Okay, we can-"

"Move, brother!" Arthur grabbed his arm too, and we all ran for our lives.

By the time we got on the ship and raised anchor, Natalya stood on the docks and shouted things that put Arthur's curses to shame. I watched as her figure grew smaller and smaller. At least she didn't jump into the water. She had some rationality at least. My fears dissipated with each passing moment as the Queen Lady sailed away from Berd, but to where I had no clue.

"So, what was so important that you had to stop?" Arthur asked Alfred. The two stood behind me on deck.

"Had a little bet to win." Alfred held up his large bag and shook it. Whatever was inside clinked and jingled.

Arthur raised a large brow. "A bet? You were gambling? May I ask what on?"

"Me," Alfred said with a tired grin. "I bet some guys that I would come back alive if they told me where the big guy lived. Apparently, they thought they had a good chance of winning." He opened the bag to reveal it filled with gold coins.

"Maybe we can make a pirate of you yet," Arthur murmured. He wouldn't let it show, but I had the feeling he admired Alfred's cunning.

Alfred's smile grew almost cocky. "Was that a compliment, Big Bro?"

Arthur opened and closed his mouth several times before replying. "Look, about what I called you earlier. That just came out! I didn't mean-"

"It's alright. I get it. It did make me a little happy though."

Arthur appeared to be at a loss for words. He stared at his half-brother as if trying to figure out who was the crazy one. I thought they were both crazy. It would be so much easier if Arthur just got over himself, but that wasn't my choice to make. I just watched and hoped for the best.

"I never wanted a little brother." Alfred and I both looked at Arthur in surprise. "I thought I would be such a bad elder brother. I don't really have a choice now, so I might as well make the best of it." Arthur's cheeks flushed, and he wouldn't make eye contact with anyone. "Is that okay, brother?"

"You're the best big brother anyone could ask for!" Alfred jumped at Arthur and began hugging him tightly.

"Dang it, Alfred! Get off me before I pound your bloody face in!"

"Is this normal?" Ivan appeared next to me out of nowhere and looked down at me questioningly.

"N-no!" I answered, startled.

"How odd." He said that, but he smiled at the two brothers, who were now wrestling each other to the ground. "I wonder what it would be like to have a brother."

"You don't have any?"

"Nyet, just Katyusha and Natalya, and they are quite a handful. Perhaps it is good I do not have a brother," he said thoughtfully.

Suddenly, a shout came from the two wrestling on the deck. "Take that, you little git!" Arthur had Alfred pinned on his stomach with his arm behind his back.

"Okay, okay! I give up!"

"Say 'Captain Kirkland is the best'."

"Captain Kirkland is the best!"

"'Captain Kirkland is the strongest'."

"Captain Kirkland is the strongest!"

"'Captain Kirkland is the most handsome'."

"Captain Kirkland is...hey, that's not true!"

"Why you little!"

"Da," Ivan said with a nod. "Perhaps I do not need a brother."

I softly laughed at the crazy antics going on in front of me. As much fun as it was, I couldn't help but think of my older brother. What was Ray doing? Does he still work in the Guard? Is he well? I pondered all of this as I wondered if I'd ever see him again.

~000~

It was the morning of the second day after leaving Berd that we finally saw the infamous mist. I wasn't sure what I was expecting, but it wasn't this. Usually, fog is everywhere. That wasn't the case here. It was as if some kind of invisible wall kept the fog from going out too far. I tried to see where the mist began, but I couldn't. I couldn't see through the fog either. There was definitely something magical at work.

"Now what?" Arthur asked Ivan.

"Just keep going straight."

The tall man had fit in pretty well during the short time that he had been here. Mostly because he kept to himself. The crew didn't bother him, and he didn't bother them. Peter was the only one who had no qualms about approaching Ivan and talking to him. Ivan was polite enough to indulge the boy for a while, but always managed to find a way to escape. The only ones he didn't seem to mind talking to was me and Arthur, but he despised Alfred for some indiscernible reason and never talked to him. Maybe it was a personality issue.

"How are we supposed to know where to go once we're in there?"

"You don't." Ivan watched the mist grow closer and closer. "It takes you where you need to go."

Arthur raised a questioning brow. "How?"

"It seems alive, doesn't it?" Ivan saw our confused expressions and smiled. "You will understand soon enough. I suggest you do not stay and watch if you are not strong in the mind."

His words sent a chill down my spine. I didn't know what to think of Ivan. On the surface he seemed normal, but his words said otherwise. That same innocent smile of his lingered as we slipped into the fog, but it soon was hidden from view. I knew he and Arthur were standing on deck beside me, yet I felt so utterly alone. The mists swirling around me seemed to be the only thing around.

"The beginning is the worst," I heard Ivan say from somewhere nearby, although he felt very far away. "Whatever you do, don't jump overboard."

I didn't know what to make of his words. They were sucked back into the fog so quickly that I almost forgot what he had said. I was tempted to reach out and find someone in the thick vapors surrounding me, but the overwhelming sense of isolation made me think I wouldn't find anyone anyway. Then it started moving. It was very subtle at first, but I was sure the fog was swirling with a mind of its own. I watched as it formed shapes and scenes that should not have been possible.

Right in front of my eyes, a figure that resembled a mermaid gracefully swam through the swirls of fog. She flicked her tail back and forth almost mockingly. My heart clenched, and my eyes flickered down to my legs. I couldn't see them through the fog. Suddenly, the mermaid was struck by mist lighting and melted back into the swirling vapors. My breath hitched in surprise. I knew it wasn't real, but I braced myself for a bolt of lightning to fly down and strike me as well.

Another figure emerged from the fog, but this time it was a human. A life-size human. She smiled wickedly at me and waved. I was too shocked to do anything in return. She watched me closely and took a few steps in my direction. I should have been terrified, yet I felt nothing. She raised a translucent hand and closed it around my neck. Her gray lips formed words, but nothing came out. I felt no pressure around my neck, but I couldn't breathe. I gasped and strained for air. Try as I might, no amount of struggling gave me relief. My thoughts were becoming hazy and the edges of my vision were becoming dark.

The darkness was swallowing me up. I couldn't move. I couldn't breathe. Not even a tear slipped out of my wide, panicked eyes. My mind raced, but could not focus on anything coherent. There was someone, someone important. I couldn't remember. But I had to!

A face. I remembered a face. It was scowling, which seemed to be the most natural expression for this particular face. The large things perched above its eyes seemed to be eyebrows. I wanted to laugh, but felt that I shouldn't. What drew my attention the most were the eyes itself. Green. A bright, clear green like the sea on a beautiful summer day. Beautiful. Absolutely breathtaking. I wanted to lose myself in those eyes, forget everything else, but I couldn't. The face began to fade from my vision and was replaced by the mist girl strangling the life from me

"No!" I shrieked. Even without air, my scream was piercing. "No! No, no, no!"

The mist girl smiled horribly. A low whistling sound filled my ears for just a moment, and then the smile faltered from the girl's face. We both looked down to see she had been sliced in half. Her expression contorted into one of rage before she melted back into the fog. I fell to my knees and coughed for air. It never occurred to me how wonderful it was to breathe. Once my breathing was under control, I looked up to see Ivan walking toward me through the fog.

"Are you okay, (y/n)?" He offered me a gloved hand, and I used it to help me stand.

"Y-yeah...yeah." My knees felt like mush. "What was that?"

"I told you. It is like it's alive." Ivan laughed softly. "Most people go crazy and jump overboard or are found dead. That is why they find empty ships. How silly of them, da?"

"How can you stay so calm?"

"With this." He held up a long metal rod with an odd looking fixture on the end. "I slash everything apart."

His words made me uneasy, and there seemed to be some strange aura around him that wasn't there before. I began to wonder if maybe Ivan was a monster. "What do you see in the fog?"

He smiled that same innocent smile. "You would rather not know."

The Captain was lost. He couldn't remember where he was, or even why he was there at all. He couldn't remember why he was surrounded by fog, or why the fog seemed to be watching him. He felt eyes watching him, but there was never anyone there. Arthur was completely alone.

Usually, that wouldn't have bothered him, but there was something nagging him from the inside that said he was forgetting someone. Who he was forgetting, he had no clue. The fog stretched out in every direction, and the Captain didn't dare to take more than a few steps in any one direction. Where was he again? He didn't remember.

Something hit his boot as he shuffled a few steps to his right. It was wooden and looked an awful lot like some kind of railing. Arthur couldn't see anything beyond the railing, but it looked like there wasn't a floor on the other side. Maybe there was and he just couldn't see it. He decided he didn't want to find out. The discovery of the railing made him feel a little better. At least he was oriented with something now. If he got lost again, he could always backtrack to the railing.

The railing made Arthur curious. Why was it there? What was it for? Where was he? He was about to try to find something on the other side of the wooden fixture when something moved in the mist. It was too fast for him to make out the first time, but the second time he thought he got a glimpse of something humanoid. Without thinking, his hand flew to the handle of a something strapped around his waist, but he couldn't understand why. What was this thing? Why did he reach for it? He didn't know.

It moved again. This time it was much slower, and the Captain was able to discern the shape of a woman on the other side of the railing. There must be some kind of floor over there, he thought to himself. The figure moved a little closer, and more of her features became recognizable. Arthur gripped the railing tightly.

"Mother."

It wasn't a statement or a question, it just was. He didn't know why the word came out of his mouth, but he knew it was important. The misty woman smiled, and Captain Kirkland found himself smiling too. He liked the woman's smile. He wanted her to smile again.

"Mother."

This time, the word brought something with it. A meaning, or a feeling. He felt sad, but he didn't know why. The woman also looked sad. He wanted to go to her. He wanted to tell her she didn't have to be sad. If the word made her sad, he wouldn't use it anymore. The Captain raised a foot onto the railing when something grabbed his shoulder.

"You can't."

He turned around to see a bespectacled young man holding him by the shoulder. Something about the boy seemed familiar, but Arthur couldn't put his finger on it. The youth's lips twitched upward in amusement, yet there was no mirth in his eyes.

"You see her too, huh."

"Who?"

"Mother."

"Don't say that. It makes her sad."

The boy laughed. "You've really lost it, huh, Big Bro?"

Big Bro. It sounded so familiar. The boy looked so familiar. In more ways than one. Arthur looked out to the ghostly figure of the woman, and back at the youth. There was a strange resemblance between the two. Especially that strange bit of hair that stood up on both of their heads.

"Do I...do I know you?" the Captain asked.

"Apparently not," the boy answered. "What were you doing over here, Bro? Looks like you were going to jump off the ship."

Ship? What ship? Arthur couldn't remember.

"You were, weren't you?" The youth sighed. "I don't know what this fog did to you, but you're not thinking right. Why don't you come down before you do something stupid."

Arthur found himself disliking this boy more as the conversation progressed. "Who in bloody blazes are you?"

"Ah ha! So you still remember your pirate lingo! I guess that's something."

"You didn't answer my question."

"I'm Alfred. Alfred F. Jones."

The words triggered something in the Captain's mind. Things came flooding back. Images, names, faces. It was a big mess, however one thing stood out above all the rest.

"Where's (y/n)?"

"Do you remember now? Sheesh, I was getting worried, Bro."

"No. All I remember is a name."

The smile fell from Alfred's face, and he swore softly. "Crap. This is worse than I thought. Just get down from there and we'll try to find the others."

Arthur was reluctant to listen. He wanted to go out to the woman in the mist, but the boy had told him he'd fall overboard. The Captain took one last look at the figure in the fog, but she was gone. He wondered if he had actually seen her at all. Without a reason to stay at the railing, Arthur lowered his foot back onto the deck of the ship. That was apparently what he was on after all. A ship.

"Where now?"

"Don't know." Alfred shrugged and began to walk. "We can look for the others, or we can just wait until we get out of this fog."

"Who are 'the others'?"

"(Y/n) and that big guy, Ivan. Everyone else is below deck."

"Why are they there?"

"You told them to."

"Why would they listen to me?"

"Because you're the captain of this ship! Seriously, Bro. You don't remember anything?"

"I remember..." What did he remember? Everything was a blur. The last thing he could remember was being somewhere surrounded by swirling fog. "I remember (y/n)," he said without thinking.

"Well I'd hope so. You're in love with her."

"Really?" Arthur couldn't conceal his surprise. "That doesn't sound like me."

"Yeah, no kiddin'. You're about as lovable as an angry wasp, but somehow you love her and she loves you. It's sickening to watch."

"You sound jealous."

There was a pause. Alfred had walked a little ways ahead, and the Captain could only make out the outline of his figure in the mist. "It's probably because I am."

Arthur didn't know how to respond to that. "Why are you limping?"

"Because you shot me in the foot."

"What?"

"Yup, it was an accident, but it hurt like crazy. I'm pretty sure you punched me in the face once too."

"You probably deserved it."

"You know, it's weird talking to you like this. It never usually happens."

"I think I know why."

"Oh?"

"You're an annoying brat."

"And you're still a grouch even without your memories," Alfred said with a laugh. "It's weird to think we're related sometimes."

"Are we?"

"Yup. I'm your half-brother."

"Only half?"

Another pause. "It's a long story. I'm sure you'll remember once the fog clears."

"Why are we here?"

"We're looking for the Lunar Islands. The mercouncil told us they would know how to fix (y/n), or something like that."

"What's wrong with (y/n)?"

"She's got legs!"

"And what's wrong with that?"

"Mermaids aren't supposed to have lets, Bro. And there's also something about her dying if she uses too much magic."

Mermaids. Magic. It all sounded like rubbish to Arthur. Or did it? He felt something tugging at the back of his mind. Something important. Something he should have never forgotten.

"(Y/n)!"

"Do you remember now? This game of twenty questions was getting old..."

"Alfred, you little git!" The Captain reached out and grabbed his brother by the collar. "Tell anyone about this, and I swear I'll cut you open for fish bait."

Surprisingly, the boy laughed. "Don't worry, Big Bro. Your secret's safe with me." There was a goofy grin on his face, but his words were sincere.

Arthur let him go and turned away. He didn't speak for a long time. "Thank you...for not letting me jump off the ship." He crossed his arms in an attempt to hide his embarrassment.

"Don't worry about it. That's what brothers do."

"...yes. I suppose you're right."

Just then, the fog cleared. It was like the Queen Lady passed through some barrier that held the fog back. She sailed smoothly over the calmest, bluest water the Captain had ever seen. He could just make out the peaks of an island in the distance, and knew that his goal was almost in reach. His quest was almost at an end.

"Arthur!"

The voice was music to his ears, and he turned to behold the most beautiful creature he had ever seen. The mermaid leapt into his waiting arms and held him tight.

"I missed you," she whispered.

"I missed you too." She didn't even know how literal he was being. It didn't really matter. He had her, and that's all that did matter.