I gently knocked at the oak, wooden door. The door creaked open, my gaze being greeted by an angry scowl.

The glare quickly faded as the figure looked up at me, eyes widened by a fraction. A quick hug was given to me, tight but comforting.

I gave a dry chuckle, brows furrowed sadly at her joy. "Hey." I greeted, smiling kindly at her as I started to pat her head.

"Took you long enough..." She muffled out, tightening her grip at me. I wheezed in response, quickly trying to push her away.

"A-Aya, listen. I'm glad y-you care about me but please, leT ME GO." I breathily stated, continuing my act. She let go, seeming reluctant.

She gave a halfhearted grin, looking down on the ground. "So, uh, what made you come over? You said it'd be a while before you actually do."

I mustered up the most fake smile I could give.

"Just thought I'd visit. Not that hard to understand, right?" I shoved my hands into my pockets, my grin turning lopsided.

She smiled brightly, a sense of joy flickering in her eyes.

My smile falters for a moment.

"Alright, so, what do you wanna do then?" 

I took a small sigh and grinned wider, grasping at her hand. "We have a place to go to first." I started to walk off, pulling her away from the small cabin.

"What the- Where to?" Aya stumbled between her words, as she was literally stumbling as well. "It's kind of a secret place where I used to take Bloodie, but today, I'm taking you."

She smiled at the response, but it quickly faded upon hearing Bloodie. "Are you...ya know, feeling alright about this? You don't have to if you don't want to..." 

I just snickered at her reply, smiling kindly. "It's alright. I want to, I need to." I continued to sprint off to the destination, glancing around.

After a while, we finally arrived. The place was in full blooms, hundreds of flowers littering the grassy field.

There were beautiful,pastel colored roses. Partially bloomed and covered in dew, glistening in the sunlight. 

Large, golden sunflowers scattered around the field, the nice brown spot in the middle showing off in the middle of golden petals.    

Small patches of gorgeous hibiscuses, blooming beautifully in the sunlight as well. I turned around, looking at Aya's amazed expression.

She started to turn her head at every direction, smiling widely.

It was the happiest I've ever seen her.

I gently pulled her over to the middle of the field, continuing to smile at her gleaming face.

But I feel so horrible that I have to break that smile.

We both sat down, her happy grin still stuck across her face. I picked up the nearest flowers of different kinds, starting to hum a tune.

Let's go in the garden,

I started to fold them all together, branches going over each other. Aya finally snapped out of her daze and started to look at me, raising a brow.

You'll find something waiting.

I continued to form the crown, swaying along to the tune. Aya stared, tears threatening to spill from her eyes.

Right there where you left it,

I looked up and smiled softly, gesturing her to bow down. She slowly lowered her head, shaking a bit.

Lying upside down.

I gently put on the crown over her head, chuckling at how her hands quickly held mine. She held my hands down over her head, not letting go.

When you finally find it,

I smiled softly at her, feeling her hands tremble. "It's...been so long...since I've had this much fun with you..." She mumbled softly, but was still audible to my ears.

You'll see how it's faded.

"...mom..." My smile broke at the word, gaze locked on her head. I felt tears drip onto my thighs, looking down to see her breaking down.

The underside is lighter...

"Please...don't let go..." I stared, feeling small tears prick at the corners of my eyes. Her grip on my hands got tighter, her breathing turning deep and heavy.

...When you turn it around.

I quickly but gently lifted her chin, making her face me. Tears were rapidly dripping down her cheeks, her dark brown eyes glistening with sadness. I quickly gave the girl a hug, rocking back and forth on my spot.

"Everything stays...right where you left it...

Everything stays, but it still changes..."

I quietly sang, stroking her hair. I leaned my face onto her head, a few stray tears dripping from my eyes as I shut them.

"Ever so...slightly...

Daily and nightly...in little ways..."

She sang along, softly but sweetly. I smiled, but it quickly faded. I held her tighter under my arms, a sigh escaping my lips.

"...When everything...stays..."

  I ended the short song, stroking her hair under my arms. Her grip on me was still tight, her tears already soaking my clothes.

"Aya...look up." I mumbled, giving a small smile. Her body shifted, her head shuffling under my arms. She lifted her head up me, beaming like a light. "...Thanks."

I quickly started to laugh, feeling the tears fall down from my eyes. "Oh...Oh Notch, how am I going to say this..?" I blubbered out, placing a hand over my face to cover the tears.

"Wh...Hey, what the hell? Dude, are you feeling alright?" She grabbed my shoulders, shaking me as hard she can. I looked down and started to whimper.

"Aya...sweetie, I have to go...I...have to..." I quickly stood and ran away. Cowardly.

I can never tell her.

===

I watched the sun's rays pass through the trees, little specks of light hitting the ground. I was sitting by the porch of my new home, the silence relaxing.

The silence was quickly broken by a small oink, quickly snapping me out of my trance. I looked down, seeing an oh so familiar pig in front of me.

"Oh, hey there Jeffrey. Been a while." I picked him up, stroking his head gently. He made a small noise as I took out a carrot, tilting his head at the side under my hand.

"Hm? What was that?" I gave the carrot to the small creature, watching him start to chew on it. "Where's Jason?" I continued, feeding him as I stroked his head.

I smiled and looked up, watching the sun start to go down, small specks of stars starting to appear. I watched the sky turn from orange to a dark blue, small patches of different colors starting to appear.

"...I don't know either, little buddy."

I feel a weight lay down on my thighs, my gaze quickly looking down. I stared as Jeffrey was starting to fall asleep, being as quiet as a mouse.

I smiled once again, looking back ahead of me. A familiar silhouette stood before me, cape flowing with the wind. His face was as stoic as usual, but he quickly flashed a small smile.

I smiled a tad bit wider, my eyes starting to blur. I showed my teeth, shutting my eyes as I let the tears flow.

"But I'll know soon enough."

===

Kia faced the large portal once again in a long time, hands shoved in her pockets. She bore holes into the portal, her gaze intent on the machine.

A small tap on her shoulder broke her trance, her head turning over behind her. A shorter figure stood behind her, a kind, soft smile shining brightly in the dark room.

Anne, Bloodie's passed mother, stood there, figure translucent. "How are you feeling?" She asked, quite softly. 

Kia's eyes lowered slightly, but she continued to respond with a smile. "I...don't really know if I'm excited or sad."

She looked up to her and held the tall girl's cheek, brows furrowing in concern. "Why sad?" She asked, smiling a bit.

Kia remained in silence, eyes staring at the floor. She sighed and held the mother's hand with her own, burying a part of her face on the palm.

"What if they don't want me back? What then? What if I don't even find them?" Kia said, blinking away the tears the started to form.

Anne smiled a bit more, rubbing her thumb on the single tear that rolled off the girl's cheek. "You worry too much, my dear...you truly are more similar to Bloodie than I would've thought."

Kia perked up at the response, but her expression seemed to turn gloomier as she did. "Always worrying..."What will I do if I get a new friend? What do I say? If they leave, what do I do while they're gone? When they come back, what do I say?" Haha, he was so sweet..."

"I wonder...what made him think that he was too dependent..." Anne glanced down, making Kia quickly look at her. "...he always did things on his own, going off to make trouble sometimes as well."

She smiled and looked back up at Kia, raising up a brow. "Perhaps, he simply misunderstood your love?" She smiled a tad bit wider, watching Kia's gloomy expression shift into hope.

Kia finally smiled and grab the lady's hands, holding them gently in her (slightly) larger hands. "Thank you so much." 

"Ah, and before you go," Anne quickly let go and reached for the thin string at the sides of her neck, pulling the glowing blue crystal necklace off her.

Kia instinctively looked down and lowered her head, making the lady chuckle. She carefully placed the necklace around her neck, seeing the MASSIVE hair the girl had.

After the small event, Kia quickly squeezed her. The hug wasn't crushing, but it was tight. Anne simply giggled and hugged back gently, burying her face onto the girl's shoulder.

They quickly let go right after, smiles spread across their faces. Anne gave a small peck on her forehead, like a mother would to her child.

Kia faced the portal behind her, hearing the hum of the machine. A small beam started to appear in the middle of the portal, but quickly filling the whole with bright light.

A strong wind quickly appeared when it turned on, yet it didn't budge Kia a bit. She took a small gulp and sighed, taking small, slow steps toward it.

Notch was watching at the back of the room, eyes beaming a golden glow. A black wisp started to form next to him, eyes purely glowing white.

The wisp started to follow Kia, but was halted by the man next to him. "Don't you even dare try following her, Hero."

The wisp turned to look at him, and started to hiss, like the Endermen would. Notch cocked a brow, but quickly responded to it with a glare.

"Do you really wanna ruin this for her again?" He asked, looking back at the girl. The hissing quickly stopped, eyes dimming slightly.

The wisp faded away into the shadows, leaving the rest alone.

Kia placed a hand through the portal, the sensation quite like water. She pushed herself and entered completely, light engulfing her vision.

Birds were singing...