Warning. There's a flashback up top here inside the 3rd Plane section that's not in italics.

Anyway... Enjoy the next-to-last chapter!

"Your ability to prioritize, or lack thereof, is almost disturbing." –Jade

"Okay. I'm gonna go to Diagon Alley now." -Kairi

Chapter 13.11 – End Game
Part 121

The moment I woke up in the field of blue and violet grasses, I remembered one long conversation that I wondered how I could have forgotten it.

*Listen... Listen closely... One who has lost all ties is coming, and he will be your saving grace, but you must return as swiftly as possible.*

I didn't recognize the voice, but I knew this was important. More important than curling up in a ball and giving up, which was just about all I wanted to do at this point. So I hummed a general agreement to at least listen.

By the time she—Syal, she'd said she was—had finished explaining, I'd realized who the one who would cut me free was going to be.

Danté. Danté would save me, by breaking my Energy Core loose from the thing destroying it.

The problem was, that would kill him. And I didn't want that to happen. Syal didn't really want it to happen, either.

*Perhaps... Perhaps we can redirect that energy?* she suggested. *I could send him someplace instead of killing him.*

'Yes... He looks so defeated... let's give him a second chance.'

And we had... I think.

I wasn't totally certain. I was too busy feeling like someone had dropped me into Mt. Zaleho.

Oh, but I knew why I'd forgotten all of a sudden. I'd snapped back to my body without meaning to, without wanting to, and so my doppelganger's memories took the forefront for once while my Auldrant memories slowly assimilated themselves.

I found that reading the 'fanfiction' my doppelganger had written over the course of that time caught me up a lot faster than waiting on my memories.

When I fell asleep after finally finishing it, I found myself in a place I immediately identified as the TimeStream from my Time Chasers story. Odd... I'd been here before, I knew that much, from right after Keterburg. It stood out, because I felt like the little boy I'd met there was important, but I couldn't remember him, so I wasn't sure.

I spent a while just wandering around, watching the clockwork creatures that I was sure weren't really supposed to exist as they meandered about, acting like real animals rather than the false images of them that Victoria had created them to be.

"Where are we...?"

I smiled when I heard the familiar voice and turned to walk over to the group of four. They were too busy looking at the scenery to notice me, it seemed. Well, time to fix that.

"We're in the TimeStream, the space between worlds that exists everywhere and nowhere all at once."

Four sets of eyes locked on me, and though there was a bit of confusion—no wonder, I appeared as I did on Earth rather than my Auldrant appearance—it was obvious they all recognized me.

Dark was the first one to start grinning. Sync was the next as he walked up to me. "I knew we'd be able to find you here."

I smiled back at him. "That's nice. I'm actually a little out of it. Since I snapped back weird, my memories are still trying to line themselves up in a nice, orderly fashion... Except this time, it's my Auldrant memories that are trying to assimilate into my Earth mind, so it's really weird, and aside from reading what my doppelganger wrote, I don't remember anything that happened between the Yulia City peace conference and a conversation I had with Syal."

Jade made a face. "Well, you're definitely still Kairi either way. I take it that means you survived?"

I nodded. "Yup. Hurt like a bitch, and I've had a constant headache since I woke up, and I really don't like my desk job working for the state, but whatever. I'm just gonna wait for my memories to finish cleaning up before I come back."

That got a lot of curious looks. "Come back? But, you said—"

"Zion tore my body apart when he took the replica data for Mirage. In putting myself back together, I figured a few things out... or at least, the me sitting around on Earth with basically nothing to do figured a few things out. So yeah. I know how to consciously build a doppelganger now. The bad news is, someone's gonna have to come get me when the time comes for me to do that, because while I can wander my own mindscape for hours without getting bored, or I can wander the TimeStream, I can't step into someone's mindscape unless they're there as well."

Sync frowned. "But you always kept pulling me and Asch into yours."

I nodded. "Because it was mine. You two always got kicked out the moment I fell asleep, right?"

Asch nodded. "Yeah... So the reason we were able to get into Sync's was because he was there?"

"Oh? You guys didn't just jump straight to the TimeStream? Huh... So, what did Sync's mindscape look like?"

Jade chuckled. "Your ability to prioritize, or lack thereof, is almost disturbing."

I shrugged. "We're in a place that doesn't technically exist on one of the three planes, while simultaneously existing on all of them at the same time. It's appropriately named, since time flows weird here. We'll either go back to our bodies to find that almost no time has passed at all, or we've all been comatose for years. But it's more likely the former—about two hundred to one odds. So prioritizing has taken a rather low priority. If that makes sense."

"You ramble more when you're more your Earth self than your Auldrant self, which is bit worrying," Dark said. "Anyway... Sync's mindscape looks like the tops of mountains. Lots of rope bridges to get you from place to place, and you can't see the ground past the clouds."

"Hmm... interesting..."

"How so?"

I shrugged. "It's his base mindscape. I haven't taught any of you anything about changing your mindscape. Be glad you guys never saw mine, Sarah freaked out when she saw it before I turned it into the meadow... Anyway, the mountains and lack of visibility of the ground below are indicative of a wind affinity. You mindscape is supposed to comfort you when there's nothing else to turn to. You said the bridges were made of rope?"

"Rope, and planks, and damn they wobbled a lot when anyone other than me walked across them," Sync said. I nodded.

"That's mostly Mohs' fault. The paths between parts of your mindscape are built by self-image. That's why mine are so easy to get through. I'm to a point where I really don't give a damn what other people think. You're still working on it, though I'm not sure I'd have wanted to try to travel your mindscape two years ago. Or, well, I guess only about a year ago... Damn, the calendars are screwing with my head," I said. Asch chuckled.

"So I'm guessing mine look like Aramis Spring because of my water affinity?"

I looked over at him now. That... That shouldn't be right. Asch was water, yes, but... "I know you well enough now to know that yours should have been a beach under a night sky with a moon hanging in it. The phase of the moon would have varied based on your emotional state, much like the night sky in mine shifts sometimes to what it looks like in a season other than late summer/early fall." I looked back at Sync. "There should have been clouds above the mountains in yours too, right?"

He nodded. "Yeah. All dark, gray, and looking ready to drop rain on us, but they never did."

"You're upset, not that it surprises me all that much, but you're not to the point of breaking down yet, so it's not storming. I imagine they'll probably be breaking up or gone when you go back," I said. "That's your indicator. But Asch... I know you, better than almost anyone." I paused. "It's possible... Aramis Spring was a turning point for you, and you've got the ability when it comes to Energy manipulation... It's very possible that may not have been your base mindscape."

"Can't we just show you?" Dark asked. I shook my head.

"Not yet. I shouldn't start running around in mindscapes that are firmly rooted on Auldrant until I'm ready to make the jump into my new doppelganger body. And... I think I'm going to spend my twentieth birthday on Earth. I spent the last two on Auldrant, after all."

They all just kinda chuckled.

"Right... But, before we run off... That monolith Zion tied you to..."

"Was the Monolith of Syal, and the seal on Gnome, the aggregate sentience of the second fonon. Yes, I know. I also read about everything Luke saw... Don't ask. I told you my doppelganger saw some weird things I didn't want to know about." I paused. "Also, since I'm fairly certain he neglected to mention it, Lorelei did warn him that Myre didn't like us."

Jade sighed. "Yes, he did forget to say anything about that..."

"As for who she is... I have an idea, but I'm not going to say anything until I actually see her. If I'm right... Well, it's not gonna be fun."

"I hate it when you say things like that..." Sync grumbled. Yeah, he would... especially given my suspicions.

"One more thing... It's currently November 30. My birthday is December 7... Asch knows Earth's calendar."

"One week," he said. "Alright. I think we'll survive that long without you... Any ideas what to do in the interim?"

I shrugged. "Have people make emergency kits, but carry on like normal. I'm hoping to get back in time for the annual Blue Lights Festival in Grand Chokmah."

Jade looked amused. "You were in Kimlasca at the time last year and I know you don't listen to the gossip all that often. How did you know—"

"Emperor Peony roped me into a project for it, and I wanna see the outcome."

Asch, Sync, and Dark all gave Jade a look that said, quite clearly, 'did you have to ask?'

I giggled. "Okay. I'm gonna go to Diagon Alley now."

"Huh?!"

The relatively innocent giggle turned into an almost demented laugh. "I, or rather, my doppelganger, was in the middle of writing a Harry Potter fanfiction. I'll have to tell you all about Harry Potter later, but it's fun. But yeah, I have to take Harry, Ron, and Draco to Diagon Alley and have them come back out in one piece and not hyped up on sugar. Should be interesting. Sirius probably won't be a lot of help with the sugar thing, but alas, Severus is busy fetching his daughters from across the ocean and Molly's taking the rest of her sons shopping. And I don't trust Lucius not to hex Ron to France and back, so I don't get a lot of choice."

"Do you have any control over the characters you write about?" Dark asked, being the only one I'd explained the trials and tribulations of being an author to. I shrugged.

"I point them in the right direction, start typing, and hope it all turns out okay. Of course, they don't always pay attention when I'm pointing and sometimes get hopelessly lost, but that's okay too, 'cause all's well that ends well... unless I get any of the Guardians involved, and then all goes to hell in an hand-basket if I stop babysitting it for even a moment."

And then I had to bust up laughing, because Dark was literally the only one that got any of my comments.

"Alright, that's it, I'm leaving. Sync, your mother's worried sick, get your ass back as soon as you can, okay?" Asch said. Sync nodded, and I shrugged.

"Neh, I gotta go anyway. I have to do the laundry at some point today."

Asch looked curious. "I thought you said you did laundry on Sunday... It should be Monday for you, right?"

I grinned. "Yeah, but mom and I went to Alabama to visit Grandpa and we just got back yesterday, so I'm doing laundry today instead of going to work. Which is nice, because I stayed up all night reading to figure out what I'd forgotten. 'Twas quite interesting..."

Asch apparently decided that leaving was a good idea right then. Probably an excellent idea. I'd been so hyped up on coffee before finally crashing that it was crossing over into this mindscape now.

"See you in a week!" I called, turning and walking off.

"See you then," Dark called back. I didn't turn around to look at him, a bit more entranced by the silver and copper clockwork fox I'd just come across. He didn't comment though.

*-.-*-.-*-.-*-.-*

I stood in front of the old door and knocked. Two cars sat out front. One was my silver Kia Sportage. The other was a black... er... something. Nice little car, though.

"Oh, hey. Wasn't expecting to see you."

I smirked at Rabecah. "Oh? Expecting someone else?"

She rolled her eyes and turned around, waving me into the house she basically lived in even though it wasn't hers. I followed her, bending over to pet the cats as I walked.

"So, what do want?"

I huffed. Damn, I'd caught her in a bad mood.

"A friend's not allowed to say hello?"

"Your boyfriend still hasn't given me back my PaintShop disk."

It took me a moment to figure out what the hell she was talking about. She must have noticed my hesitance, because she looked up at me curiously when I didn't immediately respond.

Then her eyes went wide.

"Ky?"

I nodded.

"You're back again...?"

I nodded again.

Rabecah suddenly grinned and raced over to me, wrapping me up in a tackle-hug that was only slightly less forceful than Selenia's. I laughed a bit. "Yeah... So, since my memories all seem to hate each other all of a sudden, do you have any insight on my most recent art project?" I asked. She shrugged, then gestured to my bag.

"I think you've got a few drawings in there... How the Reighn from your Tales of the Abyss story suddenly ended up in a Harry Potter school uniform, I really don't want to know, especially since Valkyria and Aeon were involved, but oh well."

I couldn't help it. I pulled out the sketchbook and started flipping through, looking for the picture of Reighn in a Hogwarts uniform.

Ravenclaw, of course. And Valkyria (my character, not the cat I'd named after her), who had an arm over his shoulder in what looked like a rather uncomfortable position, given that she was quite a few inches shorter, was in Gryffindor.

When I found pink-haired Aeon Lumaria, I had to laugh.

"Damn, looks like all I'm missing is a Hufflepuff!" I said. Rabecah shrugged.

"Draw yourself."

That'd be one way to do it...

"So... Since we haven't seen you in a while anyway..."

Rabecah shook her head.

Fun Fact: I was doing a Harry Potter word crawl for NaNoWriMo and since my username on that site is Aeon Reighn, I took Aeon Lumaria and Reighn Aurelius and did both at the same time (I quickly came to regret this, because Reighn is an over-achieving, pessimistic Ravenclaw to the core). Which is why I ended up drawing Aeon and Reighn in their Hogwarts uniforms. Valkyria got thrown in because, according to their Role-Playing backgrounds, Reighn and Aerith have four other siblings. Matthias has been mentioned before, Valkyria's another sibling, and then the twins are older than Reighn. So yeah.