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nJohn stared out the window from his office, sweeping his spiritual sense throughout the city again.

nNothing. The only supernatural beings he detected were himself, Bai, Qing, Alphy, Betty, and Titor.

nNot a single trace of either Yue or Meg.

n“Where are you two…?” John muttered.

nHe would have thought that they would arrive nearby if they came to Earth. That they would be somewhere in Tokyo, or Japan at the least. But they weren’t. And neither were they anywhere in the world… nor anywhere else in the nearby cosmos.

nAnd then there was the fact that tracking down the devices that sent those messages in the stream led to a dead end with nothing more than garbled data…

nA cold chill in his heart. And as if in response to John’s mood, snowflakes drifted past his window, covering everything in a pure white.

nLike the moon.

nLike Yue.

nJohn let out a deep sigh and shook his head, walking back to sit at his desk.

nIt was noon.

nRight now, Rin should be streaming upstairs and doing a karaoke stream for the Ohana. Alphy should be relaxing in her room playing some games. Betty was having a girl’s day out with Asako. Meanwhile, Bai and Qing were setting things up for the stream, finalizing business negotiations and the other preparations required for John’s stream later that evening.

nJohn placed his elbows on his desk and then covered his face. “Did I upset you that much…? Or are you hurt?”

nHe couldn’t detect them anywhere nearby. Neither Yue nor Meg. But if they were coming after him, then they should have arrived somewhere close. After all, it wasn’t like he was hiding his powers.

nWell, he was, but not to the extent that someone like them couldn’t notice it.

nSo he was worried. Still worried.

nLogically, he knew that they were probably fine. Meg wouldn’t let anything happen to her dear mother, and Yue was too meticulous to have run into harm.

nBut what if? What if they did?

nHe couldn’t sense them, but there was no mistaking those messages. Furthermore, his instincts were telling him that they were here. That Yue and Meg were somewhere on Earth.

nBut he couldn’t sense them. His ‘eyes’ covered the whole world, but they were hidden from his gaze. As if some invisible force were blocking them from his view… Or was he just so worried that his senses were being distorted?

nWhat if-

n“Hah. Get a hold of yourself, John.” He shook his head and then got out of his chair.

nThere wasn’t any point to worrying. He just had to believe. Believe that the two were out there safe and sound. That they were just upset and hiding from him.

nStaring out the window again, John found himself fiddling with his wedding ring. The golden dragon, holding the jade moon…

n“You never really learn to appreciate something til it’s missing, huh?”

nJohn had gotten so used to Yue’s presence that he didn’t realize just how much he missed her until now.

nAnd then there was Meg too.

nDid she finish mastering the 64 hexagrams from the book of changes? Was she eating properly? Did she encounter any problems in her cultivation while he was gone? Did she cry after he broke his promise with her to take her along with him to explore the void?

nJohn blinked and then let out a wry laugh. “Damn. My age is catching up with me, huh? Acting like my parents…” He shook his head and then pulled out his phone.

nThe stream was already scheduled, and it looked like there were already around a thousand people waiting.

nJohn glanced at the chat, scrolling through the messages in the hopes that he could catch a glimpse of Yue or Meg. That either of them were in the chat with a message for him. But…

n“Not that easy, huh?”

n…There wasn’t any sign of them. Not any real sign, that is.

nJohn noted a few people pretending to be Yue and confessing their love.

nTo those, he immediately destroyed their routers and deleted their accounts.

nGiving him false hope like that-!

nA sudden notification and a ringtone.

nPlay The Eye of the Tiger.

nJohn glanced at the caller id and then swiped his phone, answering the call. “Yeah, Bai?”

n“Alright Boss. I got it sorted out.”

nJohn walked back to his desk and sat on it. “Calling me, Boss now, huh? Well, I guess that’s better than ‘Master.’ Fits your character better.”

n“And bas- Ahem. The copyrights are all sorted out. All the negotiations about streaming privileges and broadcast rights are sorted too. We’re marketing this as a virtuoso performance so we managed to get on some television networks too.”

n“Oh?” John crossed his arms and said, “You did pretty good.”

n“Damned straight I did. I’m not about to have a pissed off Timeless Savant after me when I just got out of that damned cage.”

n“…Sorry about that.”

nSilence on the other side of the line. And then a sigh. “Damn. You really love her.”

n“I do.”

nHer smile, her laugh, her words. The way she scolded him for getting out of line. The exasperated but accepting expression when he came back after causing some trouble. How she waited on his words even though she could have found anyone else…

n“…Tch. I can’t talk with you when you’re like this. Gives me the creeps.”

nJohn laughed. “Sorry.”

n“Stop that. Hearing an uncompromising and troublesome guy like you apologizing makes me think existence is going to turn upside down.”

n“Heh.” John smiled. And then his face became somber and he stood up. “Have you found any signs of them?”

n“Not yet. But I’ve gathered up some forces around the world already… And damn that was weird. How do you live in a place like this where just a single spatial jump turns night to day and day to night? And with everything so different in each country too?”

n“You get used to it. Now, call me the moment that something else comes up.”

n“Yeah, yeah. Talk to you later.” With that, Bai hung up.

nJohn put his phone away and then frowned. Glancing back out the window at the snowy day, he shook his head and said, “I might as well keep practicing.”

nAt least then he could keep his worries out of his head…

n—–AI|IA—–

n“…I still don’t get why you’re hanging out with me, Beta.” Asako rubbed her hands together and glanced to the side. “Don’t you have better things to do?”

nBeta adjusted her scarf and nodded. “I do. But I rarely get the opportunity to get out, so better to take it while I can, right?”

n“I mean, you’re paying so I can’t complain. Still weird though…” Saying that, Asako took a look around.

nAfter grabbing breakfast, Beta had grabbed Asako and taken her on a whirlwind tour around Tokyo.

nAn aquarium, a manga museum, even a maid cafe. Though that last one ended quick when the owner started giving Beta some weird looks and she got a dangerous glint in her eyes looking at Asako.

nAt the moment, the two were wandering around the mall in Roppongi Hills, looking around for a place to grab some lunch before going out on a shopping spree.

nAsako stuck her hands into her pants pockets and then glanced at Beta walking beside her.

nAs always, Beta was dressed like a model. Her crimson hair trailed behind her like red flames while her bright orange eyes… or were they red too? Anyway, they were covered by leopard print shades. With a cream-colored long coat and fluffy white scarf, she gave off the appearance of a nouveau riche foreigner out to see the sights… Which wasn’t completely wrong.

nAs for Asako… After seeing Beta’s outfit, she subconsciously examined her own.

nA Nikeys sweatshirt. Nikeys sweatpants. Nikeys sneakers… Even though she bought some more clothes last time, Asako’s outfit still primarily consisted of just sportswear.

nBeta glanced over and said, “Worried about your clothes?”

n“N-No!” Asako huffed and said, “I’m just a bit cold.”

n“Oh. Then here.” Without hesitation, Beta took off her coat and handed it to Asako. “I was getting a bit too warm anyway.”

nAsako blinked, staring at the offered coat. At the same time, she noticed people looking at them, and more than a few older folks whispering to each other. Realizing that, Asako flushed and pushed the coat back. “Keep it to yourself! Let’s just hurry and find a place to eat already.” Saying that, she marched forward without looking back.

nBeta laughed and quickly caught up, once again wearing her coat. “My. I did not realize that you were so reserved, Asako-chan.”

n“Shut it, Betsy.”

nBeta smiled. “Well, if you are so eager to eat…” She looked around and then pointed to an udon store off to the side. “How about there?”

n“Hm?” Asako blinked and then read the sign. “Maji Toraki Udon?”

nThe name was written out in English letters, but the Japanese characters over the letters read ‘Really Tiger Breath Udon’.

nAsako frowned. “You think a place like that’ll be any good?”

n“I am certain it will be a pleasant surprise. Now.” Beta took Asako’s hand and said, “Let us be off.”

n“O-Oi! I told ya to stop pulling me along like that!”

n“Your dialect is slipping again. And I will stop when you stop being cute.”

n“T-T-The hell are you saying?!”

nBeta smiled and tapped Asako’s nose. “Got you.” The moment she did that, she let go and started dashing off ahead.

nAsako blinked, shocked at the sudden turn of events. But then she cursed and ran after Beta. “Dammit! Betty! I told you to stop harassing me!”

n—–AI|IA—–

nRin waved at the wall monitor and smiled. “Sorry everyone! Alfi was helping me out with some technical difficulties… Thanks for waiting!”

nFrom her place at the stream control center, Alpha let out a sigh of relief. “Finally got it working…”

nRin glanced back and gave Alpha a thumbs up.

nAlpha gave one back and then turned her attention to the monitor. “It’s a good thing I asked Betty to show me how all of this worked the other day…”

nThe chat flowed by on one side of the screen and there was a panel open to moderate it. A portion of the screen displayed a bunch of numbers that Alpha didn’t understand, but it seemed to be just data about the stream status. The numbers were green though, so it was… probably fine?

nMost importantly though was the set list at the bottom part of the screen. Fortunately, it was the same as the one in her room, so she knew how to use it.

n“Okay!” Rin smiled and said, “Now, for the first song today… I’ll sing *A Thousand Words* It’s from an old game, but I think it’s pretty!” She glanced back. “Ready. Alfi?”

n“One second… There!”

nPlay A Thousand Words, FFX-2

nRin nodded and then turned back forward, closing her eyes to get ready to sing.

nAfter hearing the instrumental start, Alpha sighed and then huffed. “Those two… they could have at least told me they’d be busy today…”

nAlpha shook her head and then went back to carefully monitoring the stream… and desperately praying that nothing broke.

n—–AI|IA—–

nAround 7 PM PST, California. A certain famous theme park with a mouse logo.

nTsuki ran ahead, pulling Omega along with her. “Come on, Meggie! Let’s go through Galaxy Wars again!”

n“H-Hmph. Such a trifling attraction could not-“

n“I’ll let you pilot the Millennium Raptor this time!”

n“Really?” Omega’s eyes widened and she quickly said, “You can’t take back your word!”

n“Promise!”

n“Then what are waiting for! Let’s go, go, go!” That time, Omega took the lead and started dashing off, pulling Tsuki behind her. But it seemed that Omega was conscious of the other girl, since Omega didn’t run in a full sprint towards the attraction.

nFrom a table nearby, shaded by a big mouse umbrella, Yue watched the two girls duck into the line for the Galaxy Wars Star Fighters attraction and let out a faint smile.

nKai walked over, carrying a tray of food, four wrapped burgers and boxes of fries, as well as a bag of soda bottles. His gaze followed Tsuki and Omega before he said, “Seems like the girls are having a good time.”

nYue glanced back at Kai and nodded. “It would appear so. But I’m surprised. My daughter can be a bit… well, difficult to handle.” She shifted her gaze back towards her daughter before saying, “I’m glad that she found a proper friend.”

nKai sat down across from Yue and placed down the food. “I’m glad too. It’s been hard for Tsuki to make some friends that she can play with.” He paused. “Well, I suppose there’s Rin, but she’s a bit too old to play with Tsuki like Meggie.”

n“Mm.” Yue gave a noncommittal response and then glanced towards the food. “That… may I?”

n“Of course.” Kai waved his hand and said, “Help yourself.”

nYue nodded and then grabbed one of the burgers and a bottle of orange soda. After carefully unwrapping the burger, she glanced at it and said, “So this is the food of my husband’s homeland…”

nKai glanced at her and frowned. “Did John never take you out to eat burgers?”

n“No. My dear husband has served me this fare before. However, he mentioned that there was a certain flavor he couldn’t replicate, and I’m fairly curious on what that may be.”

nWhat was it again? Something about trash food…? No, junk food. Yes, it was that he couldn’t replicate junk food because his cooking skills were too high…

nYue took a bite… and then instantly grimaced, placing the rest of the burger to the side. She didn’t spit out the bite, considering that it’d be rude. But still, she felt an instant repulsion towards the taste and had to force it down. “Urgh…” She took a napkin from the tray and wiped her mouth. “Disgusting.”

nKai laughed and said, “That’s American food for you.”

nYue opened the bottle of soda and took a sip from that next. When she did, she winced and quickly closed that as well. “Such acrid taste and sweetness…”

nKai frowned and said, “Should I get something else?”

nYue wiped her mouth again and shook her head. “No. I suppose I can simply wait until afterwards to have a proper meal. More importantly…” She tilted her head and said, “You were telling me more about my dear husband’s recent affairs?”

n“John, huh?” Kai mumbled and then grabbed a soda from the bag. Mount Dew. Cracking it open, he took a swig and said, “Well. To start off with, I met your dear husband when-“

nA soft pitter patter.

n“Hm?” Kai paused and then looked off to the side. “Rain?”

nYue frowned. “…Were the skies not just clear?”

n“They were. Huh.” Kai shook his head. “Guess California’s weather really is volatile. Must be all of that pollution.”

nThe soft patter of rain slowly grew in frequency and intensity, turning into a steady shower.

nSeeing that, Kai glanced at the line where Tsuki and Omega were standing. “…Maybe we should head get the kids and head back for the day. It’d be bad for them to catch a cold, and I’ve heard that this place is infamous for spreading germs.”

nYue paused and stared at the sky.

nStormy gray clouds with the occasional flash of lightning.

nYue subconsciously brushed her abdomen and said, “…Yes. I believe that may be for the best.”

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