[A/N: Cliffhangers...OOF. Also, I made an error in my Character a/n early on and didn't realize until recently (so stupid, I know.)....and it concerns Tobias so IT'S KIND OF IMPORTANT AND I APOLOGIZE! >_<']

-Tobias' POV-

A state trooper stood in the doorway of the Rodanbaugh residence, and as he was invited in he took in his surroundings. He carried around a load of papers and folders with a high and mighty attitude.

"May I please ask anyone other than...Adair Ashton and Anneka Mira to step out of the room?" He announces in a loud voice, looking at his stacks of what was presumably paperwork.

"Let's go camp out in my room..."

"Alright, Erica." Cecilia replies for the whole group. No one said another word.

Once they had made it upstairs, Erica does something...odd. She tries to move her bed.

"Well, don't just bloody stand there! Someone help me!"

Tobias and Michael go and help her, in which they succeed in moving the bed.

"Everyone...over here. There's a vent. You can hear everything in the house from here."'

"Can't we just crack the door open?" Emmaline asks.

"It would look suspicious. This is better."

Everyone leaned in, trying to hear.

"The person that was murdered was a parent of one of your students. Do you happen to have any violent students?"

"No, sir. We can assure the sudents safety."

"It is not a matter of safety, Mr. Rodanbaugh. It is a matter of figuring out a murder."

"It was right at our school gates. I'm sure you understand why he thinks safety is important!"

"I did not ask your opinion, Mrs. Rodanbaugh."

"Don't talk to her like that!"

"I am conducting an investigation!"

"Despite your rank, you have no right to talk to my wife that way! And, if you continue to do so, I will have to ask you to leave!"

It was Adair, but his voice did not possess tranquility; instead it was harsh and cruel.

It remained silent for a moment. Almost too long.

"Y-Yes...um, my deepest apologies, Mrs. Rodanbaugh."

As questions went on, there was no more arguing.

"Alright. Can I now see....Erica Cordelia? And a Tobias Zephyrus Pelletier?"

"What?! How'd he know you're here, Tobias?" Erica asked immediatly.

"I'm not sure."

The door suddenly swings open to Anneka.

"What the HELL are you all doing?!"

Erica stands up and gives an innocent smile. "Oh, nothing, just listening Mother. You know, he's quite invasive..."

"He's investigating a murder, Erica. He has every right to be invasive."

"I guess you're right..."

"Now, you and Tobias. Down, now, please."

Once they made their way down the stairs, they walked into the living room where the state trooper sat with Adair. He was a young man with green eyes and light brown hair. His appearance was nothing to gawk at, and he looked like the kind of guy you'd expect to get beaten in a bar fight because he was drunk and cocky.

Erica, Tobias, and Anneka sit down.

"Could one of you leave for a moment?"

Erica replied to him before anyone else could.

"No. Whatever you ask me and what answers I give you shall not affect his statement. Now proceed and let us get this damn thing over with."

"You--!"

"See here, Mister......uhh Johnson...? I don't particularly like you. We shall not get along. Not now, not then, not ever. Proceed."

He seemed taken aback, but began to ask questions.

"Did either of you know the victim?"

"I've met her twice. Once at the gathering before term and once when returning a lost cat that belonged to the family with Tobias."

"And, you, Pelletier?"

"Only once, with Erica when we were returning the cat."

"Are you close with the victim's daughter?"

"No." They said in unison.

"We are both aquanted with her, but do not know her personally. Now, are you done?! I'd very much like to eat, and besides, we have somewhere to go."

"The both of you?"

"You heard me. I said 'we', didn't I?"

"Where are you going?"

"I think that is enough questions... I'm leaving."

She stands up and walks into the hallway.

"Don't let the door hit you on your way out, Mr. Smartass. Tobias? Want to eat before we leave?"

"Gladly."

Once they were out of earshot from the state trooper, they began talking.

"We should probably leave as soon as possible. We don't want Smartass tailing us."

"How'd you talk your way out of his evasiveness that easily?"

"I told him, straightforward. I don't like him. I took one glance at him and knew I wasn't going to like him."

Anneka walks into the kitchen, ahead of Erica and Tobias.

They move to the kitchen and they see her sitting by the island counter.

"Erica? Do me a favour?"

"Wine glass?"

"Wine glass." She repeats.

Erica walks to a cabinet and gets one wine glass out of several that were sitting in there.

"Wha-."

"Merlot."

She then walks to the fridge and gets a bottle of wine out.

"Be careful, Mother. We don't need a Christmas relapse~."

As Erica starts pulling more things out of the refrigerator, Anneka replies to her.

"I'm an adult, Erica..."

"The wine, however, says otherwise. Where the hell are the leftovers?!"

Tobias walks around the counter to where Erica is.

"For some reason...the container was in the back. There's a note on it..?"

Do not touch.

"That's Michael's handwriting!" Erica shouted. "MICHAEL! WHAT THE HELL?!"

"What?!"

"STOP HOGGING ALL THE LEFTOVERS!"

"DON'T EAT IT, ERICA!"

"OH, YEAH?! I'M GETTING A FORK!"

"STOP!"

Suddenly, he runs in from upstairs.

Erica looks at him with a devilish smile and a wild look in her eye.

She slowly opens the container...

Michael rushes towards her reaching for the container, when she just shoves it at him.

"Honestly. It's not worth fighting for. Take it, damn it. I'll find something else."

"Y-You--!"

"What? I can't have fun every once and a while?!"

"Erica..." Tobias cut in, softly whispering. "We'll be late. Let's just quickly get something on the way..."

"Alright..."

Rushing upstairs, you could hear Erica yelling at everyone cooped up in the room and could see them coming out of the room one by one. First Garry, then Adele, Cecilia, and Emma.

After changing into a black AWOLNATION shirt and black jeans, he walks downstairs with his light grey duffle bag and goes to put his plain, black boots on on, which are sitting by the front door.

"Erica! You ready?" He shouts, from the door.

"OW! MY FACE! I'M COMING. COMING!"

The door then swings open to Erica, dressed in a long-sleeved black sweater and black jeans, clutching her face.

"Shit, shit, shit, shit, SHIT! MY FUCKING FACE! WAIT, I ALMOST FORGOT!"

She quickly runs back in her room and comes back out with her crossbody bag.

"OKAY! I'M DONE!"

Erica hastily makes her way to the door and grabs her long, grey coat and then proceeds to attempt to put her books on with one hand, while the other is still clasped to her face.

"This....isn't working! AHA!"

One shoe down, one to go.

After a lot of awkward watching and a sense of guilt, Erica is finally ready to head out the door as she eventually puts her hand down, and they turned right.

"Agh! Sun! My eyes! IT BURNS!"

Tobias smiles and asks,"Are you a vampire?"

She jokingly replies, "Damn! We've been found out! I'll have to sacrifice you now!"

"Better be quick, or they'll be witnesses!"

"What if I killed them, too?"

"Then the whole town would go into hiding..."

"Very true....very true indeed."

A noise then rang out from Erica's bag...

"Huh? Oh, someone's calling me......E-Emma? Hello?"

She picks up the call with a quizzical look.

"REALLY?! How cute!! I'm sure Tobias wouldn't mind if we made a couple more stops coming back, but of course I'll ask. Your house is in the direction we're going in...I'm sure Uncle Blasius won't mind....Oh, right! Today is his work day. And, I'm assuming that Aunt Catronia isn't home, either? Is the key in the hiding spot like it was back at our house in London? .... Alright. We'll talk soon. Later!"

"What was that about?"

"I'm sorry to ask this of you, but can we make some extra stops later?"

"It's fine. Of course."

"Thank you."

"It's nothing."

They then walk a little longer and turn into a restaurant, the place busy and noisy. Erica, quite honestly, looked nervous.

"Are you alright."

"Uh, I-I'm fine. I'm fine."

"You sure? You're looking around much too quickly. How about you tell me what you want and I can order for the both of us."

"Y-You'd...do that...? But, in return, y-you have to let me pay! Here's thirty dollars. Keep the c-change."

She reaches in her pocket and pulls out crumpled bills... a twenty and a ten.

"I feel bad taking your money."

"N-No! It's fine! Really!" She spat out immediately. "Keep your money. It is well earned. Please..."

"Alright; what would you like?"

All I could hear was a mumble. Why would she be so embarrassed to say what she wanted?

"S-Sorry?"

"A children's meal...they...remind me of a time we went around the city...w-with everyone. It was before...That's a story for another day..."

Erica begins to walk off and then proceeds to run into a wall where the walkway is.

"Owieee....!"

Her glasses are really affecting her vision...She needs to get them fixed...

"Are you okay?!"

"F-Fine!"

Tobias smiles sympathetically, and goes to get in line.

-Erica's POV-

How could I be so stupid?! God, you really do look like an idiot... Just, no. Don't be so hard on yourself! It's your glasses! Definitely your cracked glasses! You just need to focus on something else until he comes back...! DON'T DWELL!

She grabs her phone and AKG K845BT headphones out of her bag and sits patiently, scrolling through various artists.

My Chemical Romance...? No, not right now... Ooo what about Panic! At The Disco?! Yes!

She selects the first song she sees, which is The Ballad of Mona Lisa.

Soon enough, Tobias comes back with food. She quickly opens her phone, pauses her music, and puts both her phone and headphones back in her bag.

"Yay! We have to hurry though..."

"Yeah, but at least we're eating."

"True..."

Not much conversation happened, but what was going on around them was interesting to Erica.

"Did you hear? There was another murder in town. It was discovered early this morning."

"No, I didn't where?!"

"Not far from here... I think it was to the west of here."

"I hope they don't get any closer than they already have..."

Intriguing... She thought as she continued to eat. How close will they get?

"I'm done! We should leave!" She says, breaking the silence.

"Alright. I'm ready."

"I'll get the tray....since you went through the trouble of ordering for me..."

"It was nothing, really."

"I-It was to me...!"

"Well, if you're ever anxious, I don't mind doing it again."

"T-Thank you..."

Erica stands up and takes the tray which held all of the trash from their meal and takes it over to the trash can.

"Where to next?" She asks.

"I was thinking a florist."

"A florist? Because of your father's flower garden?"

"You remembered? Yes, that's correct. His favourite flowers are--."

Erica finished his sentence swiftly. "Hydrangeas. That day...you were giving him blue hydrangeas in the prettiest little vase."

"That vase belonged to my father's mother. Right before the flowers die, my aunt takes the vase and lays the flowers outside, so perhaps the seeds will spread. The next time she goes to work, she'll take the vase and have it inside waiting for me. When she's not at home, my cousin takes care of my father, so everything works out pretty well. I try to visit whenever possible, but my mother was making that difficult."

"I'm surprised she hasn't done anything rash. She was quite upset when I went there."

"I know...and, I'm sorry."

They walk out the door and back onto the sidewalk, with the bustling roads noisy and the cacophonous cars passing by.

"Tobias, there's nothing to be sorry about. Hell, you were almost bludgeoned...you have nothing to apologize for!"

"Oddly, I feel bad leaving her in the house alone. Who knows what she'll do without anyone there."

"I'm not sure, I just hope it never really happens."

"Yeah...I know what you mean."

The sunshine was eventually replaced with heavy, daunting clouds; layer after layer of gray. No one engaged in conversation. Until, they both reached a small white building with a quaint little sign fixed to the roof as well as a very small parking lot with a few cars residing in it.

"This is where my aunt works."

"It's very cute. It's even got a little bell on the door."

"That, it does. Here."

He opens the door, unexpectedly. The small bell giving a chime and knocking on the glass.

"Oh...I'm sorry. I didn't realize--."

"It's perfectly fine. Go ahead."

Walking slowly, she goes into the doorway.

A woman's soft, entrancing voice rang out with welcome as soon as she walked in.

The woman had dark brown hair and the same warm and comforting amber eyes as Tobias.

The place was filled with any flower imaginable: from daffodils to roses, and all in between.

"Hey, Aunt Judith."

"Oh, Tobias! You brought a guest?"

"I-I'm Erica...Erica Rodanbaugh."

"Go on and look, Tobias."

"U-Um, is it possible that I can come back to pick up a bouquet? My cousin said that my sister has an announcement and wants to have a little fun in telling my parents. Only my cousin and I are in on it. I think it'll be a nice little surprise..."

"Of course, sweetie! Come here whenever you like!"

"T-Thank you! Do you make them custom made, as well?"

"I do, but let me tell you something Erica..." She began, lowering her voice. "It's nice seeing Tobias out and about, especially with someone! Have this bouquet made on the house, because you must be pretty special if he invited you on this little trip of his. He never lets anyone know about my brother. Perhaps, because he's so alone, so when he started to get attached, he hid it. But, he must of saw something in you. He told me that you first met him when he had blue hydrangeas. He also told me that that was the first time he had told someone about his father. Now, I've gone on long enough. Go pick out flowers for that surprise!"

"Thank you...for telling me."

She walks off and looks longingly at the roses.
"Now, Cecilia likes roses, but Adele prefers nepeta. Luckily, they complement each other, like they do. So, a pale pink and a dark purple?"
Erica picks a few particular flowers and arranges them so the roses are the circumference of the bouquet. Then, she takes two white lilies and places them in the middle.

Soon after, though, there was a ring and a look of worry on Judith's face.

"Tobias! Call your uncle! Get everything you want and get in the car; quickly!"

"SHIT! Shit! Shit! Shit!"

He's pacing. He's nervous, scared, even though he doesn't know anything...

"Tobias...I know this might sound stupid right now, but calm down!"

"Calm down?! HOW IN THE HELL--?!"

"YOU CALM DOWN BY TAKING A MOMENT TO YOURSELF!"

Tobias immediately stops, and looks taken aback.

"I'm s-sorry...I didn't mean to yell."

"Honestly, I think I needed it. Let's....Let's hurry up."

"If only I knew in August....what I know now."

"E-Erica, it's--."

"The way you were the first day....of course, I seriously doubt that you'd remember some random girl near the end of July, who was trying her best to hide her accent....I-I'm rambling. F-Forget I s-said anything...."

She starts quickly digging through her bag. Erica pulls out a spool of twine and begins to unravel it.

"Can I tie your bouquet when you get in the car? That way there's no worry of dropping any...."

"S-Sure."

As they walked, she starts playing with the twine. The bell jingles, and the door closes behind them.

A running, shiny red car was parked in front.

"A Buick, right? My mother used to own one..."

Tobias opens the door. "Right! What happened to it?"

"Broke down...so we got a different car. That was when I was six, I think."

She goes and sits down, scooting over to the left side, and carefully sitting her unraveled bouquet in her lap.

Once Tobias sits and closes the door, with the clicking sound of a seatbelt, he hands her the bouquet of hydrangeas, with the car now moving steadily.

Erica takes the twine and straightens it out in her lap, little by little. She goes back in her bag and pulls out a silver pocketknife, and then uses it to cut the twine.

We're going faster...

"Why do you have twine with you in the first place?" Tobias asks, as Erica begins to tie his bouquet.

And faster...

"You never know what you might need! I honestly have no idea what's in here most of the time..."

"I guess it's always good to be prepared."

"Mhmm!"

She begins to cut more twine off.

Shit! Even faster!

Suddenly, the car comes to a screeching halt.

Both Erica and Tobias slam into the seats.

I've injured myself, oh you idiot!

"Agh! Shit!"

Blood drops from her face onto her leg...

"Are you okay?! You cut your cheek!"

"It's fine...it's just a flesh wound!"

"Oh, God! I'm so sorry!" Judith yells, beginning to cry.

"It's okay! You just focus on getting there safely! Besides, it was pretty stupid for me to grip the knife when bracing for impact...so it's really my fault..."

"I still feel bad..."

"Heh...it's not like this knife hasn't met with my own blood before. It's perfectly fine."

It seemed like everyone looked at her.

A dinging sound comes from Erica's bag.

She goes to her bag and gets her phone out, as well as a couple of tissues.

Erica wipes her leg and her face off and then looks at her phone.

Father...?

When you get home, I have something I wish to discuss with Michael and yourself. It's very important, alright? That damn detective gave me an idea...Although, I'm not sure how your mother will think of the idea. It seems civil enough...

What the hell is he talking about?!
What does he mean?

What are you talking about? Is this going to be some conversation about Noah being near here? To not go to him?

No. That is not my intention. Besides, Cecilia said that you've already run into him. When he's ready, he'll come back. Really, it was nice for you to think of painting his room for whenever he feels like he's okay returning. I think he still thinks he is a burden. He's scared that you'll try again. It scared him. He's the one who found you. To answer your question, it is about the school.

Hmm...what's he getting at?! I guess I better not question it for now...

I know...and I feel bad about that...but this place has made me feel much better! Honest!

I'm sure it has, Erica.

Maybe it's the fresh air. Not always hearing sirens! No more constantly hearing damn ambulances.

Quite true!

Father? When school begins back on Monday, can you give me the master key when we get home? I want to look at something in the school.

Why? Is something wrong?

It's about a student. I'm not telling who, though...I don't want you to get the wrong idea! I'm just curious about something. Oh, and disable the alarms. It might get noisy.

How about I just give you the passcode? You can arm it when you leave.

Alright...

It's 14298. Use it well.

That looks familiar....where have I seen that series of numbers?!

Yes, sir. Understood. Oh, we're here. I have to stop talking; it'd be impolite.

Okay. Be careful. We love you.

Love you...

She locks her phone as the car slows down and turns right into a large parking lot.

This is the same hospital I was at... so, this area is quite compacted? That means the hotel should be nearby, if I'm going by assumption. Perhaps this is the road on the other side? Interesting. That limits the capabilities with everything going on....! Though, I can't help but be suspicious about others.

The car stops, and turns into a parking space.

As the sound of the engine quits, Erica quickly takes a tissue she already used to wipe up blood, and cleans the knife off, closes it and pushes them both down into her bag, undoes the seatbelt and opens the door.

The sound of her boots hitting the pavement, headphones that are around her neck, thumping as she walks, in the intense wind with the now cloudy and dark sky, seemed so unreal in that moment. In the same damn parking lot, at the same damn hospital!

"Looks like it's going to rain soon..." Tobias yells from the other side of the vehicle, as Erica closes the door.

"Yeah. Hopefully we'll make it home before then."

As they all walk in, Erica glances around curiously, while Judith went to the front desk.

No one stands out...Shit! Except him! WHAT THE FUCK IS HE DOING HERE?! Why is Joseph here, the bastard? Fuck! Lay low, or he'll start a riot.

In a hushed voice, she whispers. "Tobias! Move back two steps and cover my right side! I can't be seen..."

He does as instructed.

"Why?"

"You see that man with the dark hair and the green eyes? That's Joseph, Rina's husband. He hates my family with a passion. I bet Brandon got a lot of shit for letting 'scum' in his house."

"Doesn't sound like a very pleasant person."

"No, but he'll never get rid of me! I'll one day be related to him, whether he likes it or not! Ha! If we all make it that far...."

"Okay, come on you two. They'll let us see him..."

They move, with Erica and Tobias walking in unison, past Joseph who was sitting in the waiting room.

Room number thirteen...? Superstition? Or a bunch of bullshit?

She puts her hand on the doorframe.

There is no doubt that sorrow and pain covers this room. I do hope that another is not added to the long list of souls involving this family....whoever they may be....

Fifteen...

Sixteen...

Seventeen...

We've stopped.

The seventeenth door is slowly opened by Judith, revealing a sickly man who looked to be in his thirties. He has Tobias' eyes, but not his hair. No, his was darker, almost pitch black. A smile spread across his face when Judith and Tobias walked in, but Erica stayed still.

"Ah, you've brought a guest? It's nice to see a bit of the outside world, not worrying about when I do finally collapse."

His voice is calm, but very weak.

"Dad, don't say that! You're not going to collapse!"

"Tobias, you and I both know it is inevitable, no matter what. Now, you don't want to keep someone waiting!"

"M-My apologies. I'm Erica Rodanbaugh."

"I've heard that last name somewhere....it is associated with the school, perhaps?"

"Yes, sir."

"Oh, don't be a stranger! Please sit down."

She does so, and adjusts her bag with the bouquet only slightly showing.

"Dad, what happened?!"

"I dropped my fork and it landed in the floor. I thought I could get it by reaching for it, but it was farther than I thought. So, I got up and tried to get it, and I tripped. Quite stupid, no?"

"You could've asked Naomi!"

Naomi....a very pretty girl. Maybe a couple of years older? Her short black hair, and amber eyes....with those half-framed glasses. Certainly pretty.

"She was in the other room studying. I didn't want to bother her."

"Uncle James, you wouldn't have bothered me! It would've been fine!"

"Perhaps I'm just stubborn?"

"Yes, you are!" Naomi shouts, "Ask for help every once in a while!"

Suddenly, Erica's phone goes off once more.

"O-Oh, I'm so sorry. Pardon my rudeness, but I should probably take this..."

"It's okay, Erica. Go ahead and take it." Tobias kindly replies.

"Thank you..."

She goes and gently opens the door, closing it behind her.

Aloysius...?

"Hello? .... N-No! You're fine! Wha-What are you calling about? .... The h-house?! I wanted to go over there but, that place gives me anxiety. .... Go...together? That'd be really helpful...but I have no way of repaying the favor! .... Alright, alright! I'll text you to make plans later! Bye!"

Call ended...

God, I hope I can get through to him.... I really want him to be there!

"Excuse me, Miss. Could I go in that door?"

A man in scrubs...

"Oh, pardon me!"

Erica walks to the right, and the man steps inside.

Does that mean that everyone else has to come out....?

The door begins to open.

Judith....

Naomi....

Tobias....

Aww, no! He's clearly upset! Is he c-crying? Are they moving his father? Or, is it something more serious?

"T-Tobias?" Naomi began to say more, but he just walks off.

"W-What happened?"

"Uncle has to have an CT."

"What for?"

"They didn't say."

"It can't be all bad, right? Maybe they're just taking extra precaution?"

"Maybe, but Toby gets really upset whenever Uncle is kept longer than expected. He's expecting the worst, even though he knows it'll be soon."

"D-Do you know...what Tobias' favorite food is?"

"That's easy. Maultaschen."

"That's...German, right?"

"Mhmm. Mom once took Toby to a German restaurant. He loved it so much, they'd pick one day every year to go, up until this year."

"So, in late July, this had been going on for a couple of months?"

"Uncle was diagnosed with small-cell lung cancer in April."

"Oh my God..."

"Toby didn't take it well."

I feel so bad for Tobias! He's clearly upset and he even ran off. Where did he go?!

"Um...can I have your number? I'd like to ask a favour of you?"

-Tobias' POV-

God damn it! He's dying now, isn't he? He didn't even get to see the school....and all the beautiful flowers planted in the grass. Man, he would love that.

"T-Tobias! Tobias!

Tobias, sitting in the middle of a bench, moves over and Erica sits down.

"Are you--?"

"No."

"Please don't be cold. You're just being so pessimistic....which, I completely understand with the matter of life and death--."

"You don't understand!"

Erica's eyes widen and she stands up.

"Don't understand?! Tobias..." She grabs her sweater from the bottom and brings it up halfway, revealing a scar going from her left side, across her stomach area, which ends on her right. "I know what the brink of death is. I understand, okay? Even if it's in a different way." She lets go of her sweater, and it falls down crumpled and wrinkled.

That means....did she....?

"W-Why did you--?!"

"That was in the last two years. I...couldn't tell you when, exactly...but, I decided I was worthless. I had no purpose there. Yet, I'm still here. Those damn doctors sure know what the hell they're doing."

Rain drops began to hit the pavement, steadily growing heavier.

"Come on, Tobias. Let's get out of the rain."

"I...don't want to go back in there..."

"We don't...have to go inside. We can just sit under the awning, or we can go across the street. I saw a fast food restaurant over there."

"Won't they wonder about where we went?"

"That can be taken care of. I just don't want you catching cold. That wouldn't be good. I'll go inside and tell Judith. Just don't stay in the rain too long!"

Erica runs towards the door.

The rain began to soak his clothes and hair. Tobias walks over to the door and stands outside, sheltered from the rain. He grabs his shirt and wrings it out a bit. Erica comes back a minute later and reaches in her bag, pulling out a small,black, compactable umbrella, unhooks it and opens it.

"Here. You take it."

Reluctantly, he takes it and holds it up.

"We'll share it. We....don't want to get sick. School starts back in two days. We have midterms coming up, too..."

"Quite right! Let's get going, I guess?"

The monotonous droning on from the rain continued as they made their way across the sidewalks, and to the restaurant.

Once inside, Erica closes the umbrella.

"It seems a lot of people had the same idea."

"Yeah, it's picking up quickly. Do you want anything while we're here?"

"W-Water?"

"Okay! I'm sorry for earlier."

"It's okay! Honest!"

He goes to get in line, while Erica finds a visible table and pulls out her phone.

Tobias comes back a minute later, and goes to fill up the cups.

Once he sits down, Erica speaks, "Hey. About 10 minutes from here is Uncle Blasius' house."
She slides her phone over to him, showing the map and directions.
"I need to go there. If we time it right, Uncle will be home about three minutes after we get there. I've only visited the house once...when I was three. The house has probably changed since then."

"When do we need to leave?"

"In five minutes."

It was silent between them for a moment.

Soon, the rain began to slow down.

"Oi, Tobias? How about we leave now? The rain is letting up."

"Alright. Let's go."

They begin to walk out and Erica opens the umbrella as the door is opened by Tobias.

"It feels a bit better out. The wind has died down!"

"Yeah, it does!"

"Turn left."

The light rain hit the umbrella as they stepped out and onto the sidewalk, and turned left, as told by the navigation.

"I can't wait for summer...at least it'll look nice out! Just eight more months! I wish June would hurry the hell up!"

"Yeah, but it's not even December yet..."

She sighs, "True....last December was rough, though. No one really wanted to do anything around that time. Noah....came here in late November. A lot of his things are in my closet right now...who knows if he'll even want them. Anyways, we tried to continue on like normal...but it felt empty. I-It was my fault...."

"Turn right."

They stop at a crosswalk, and wait for the traffic to stop.

"How is it your fault, Erica? You didn't make him run away."

"H-He...thought I was dead."

The cars stop at a red light, and the crosswalk signal changes, so they begin to walk to the other side.

"In 100 feet, turn right."

"Hey, Erica!" Called a man's voice from a silver Subaru BRZ.

"Uncle...it seems you're right on time, as usual."

"A Rodanbaugh is never late. I'm sure your father has said that many times. You two, get in. I'm holding up the line."

A loud honk from the car behind him breaks the calmness in the air.

"'Ey! Shut it, you shithead!" Blasius yells out of the window.

Tobias opens the car door, as Erica passes him the umbrella. She gets in, followed by Tobias, who shuts the umbrella, and closes the door.

"Now, why are you guys all the way down here?" Blasius asks, as he continues driving.

"I want to take a look at your box. See if anything matches up with Father's. And, I wanted to borrow some books from you...Ah! And, I have some news!

"Alright! Oh, and, keep those books as long as you want. I sure know you'll get more use out of them than I will. We're almost there..."

"Woah, wait! Stop a second!"

The car immediately stops. Luckily, no other cars were in the road at the time.
Erica unbuckles the seatbelt, and gets out of the car, going over to a distant object. She comes back holding...

A puppy? And in this weather?! Damn...

"Uncle. It has no collar, and it's hurt. Blood...left front paw."

"I know you always wanted one...Emmaline always told me that. I'll call Adair and see if you can keep it. If not, we can keep it and you can visit it anytime you want."

"A win either way!"

Blasius laughs, "You really are odd, Erica. Now, get out of the rain! Get in where it's warmer!"

Erica replies, smiling, "Okay, okay!"

She opens the door, and gets back in.

About five minutes later, Blasius pulls into a driveway. The dark brick and mortar house had many windows, and looked to be two stories tall.

"Hey! The rain stopped!" Erica yelled, as she opened the door to the sedan.

Blasius unlocks the white door to the house, and opens it, stepping inside and turning on the lights. Erica walks into the house, and looks in the doorways throughout the hallway.

"One more!" Blasius shouts.

"Thank you!"

"You're welcome to borrow books as well, Tobias."

"Thank you, sir."

"Erica, I'm going to go get the box."

"Before you go, can you look for something? Emmaline mentioned that you have a blank meter size roll of paper? Can I have some of it? Maybe two feet?"

"Sure! In fact, I think I know where it is."

"Again, thank you."

When Tobias reaches the door that Erica went in, there were already three books starting a stack.

"Psychology?"

"Yes! There's many books here. Blasius gave me an occult book one year. I've read it time and time again, and I still find it interesting. There's all kinds of subjects and genres. Fantasy, Science Fiction, Fiction, Non-Fiction...and that's just scratching the surface!"

"You really seem to like books."

"Like...is an understatement." Blasius says, standing in the doorway.

"True!"

"Do you have any books on economics?"

"Many. Over this way."

Once they both finish picking out books, they follow him to the kitchen and dining room.

"Tea, anyone?"

"I'll take some!" Erica replies.

"Earl Grey?"

"Yes, sir!"

"Tobias?"

"Please?"

Blasius takes two cups out of the cabinet and takes teabags, puts them in and pours water in.

"Erica. What are you going to name that little guy?"

"S-Sebastian."

To be continued...

(Edit 4/17/18: Fixed errors.)