//------------------------------// // Chapter 7: Beginnings of Harmony // Story: Return of the Dawn // by pchn00 //------------------------------// Chapter 7: Beginnings of Harmony I watch Erin drive down the path until she turns out of the gate and disappears from sight. Sighing a little I shut the front door and head back to the others. Ignoring his protesting sister, Lucas is working to clear the table. Doing a pretty good job for having to hobble around on those crutches too. I clear my throat as I enter the kitchen. “Alright everyone. I think we should get started on the clean-up. Becky you found that broom, was there other cleaning stuff?” She nods. “Sure. Lots of it. The stuff’s all in that closet down the hall there.” Stepping into the hall I tug the closet doors open. Sure enough a number of brooms, mops, rags, and dust pans sit within. There are even some containers of cleaner though I’m not sure how good they’d be after all this time. I grab a few brooms leaning them against the wall. “Alright! Ellie, Becky, Meg? Can you girls help me get the table out of here? We’ll move the furniture and go room by room. We can start with the sweeping then when the water gets turned on we’ll move to mopping.” Lucas is busy with the dishes and Jules looks ready to keel back over and start snoring any second now. Erin’s table looks pretty expensive; I’d hate to have something happen to it. We each take a corner and heft it off the ground, carrying it carefully through the large doorway and resting it against the wall. The chairs soon join it in the hall. Once the floor is clear I pass out the brooms and we get to work. Even with the four of us working this is going to be… A lot of work. There’s an almost noticeable tension in the air that started to form the second Erin was gone. I was even starting to feel it myself. While I wasn’t exactly thrilled with my changes, suddenly I’m feeling like I did back in the hospital. I hadn’t even realized how much better I’d been feeling. All the laughter and good cheer from yesterday seemed to be dissipating quickly. Ellie keeps flaring her wings open and closed, while Meg glares upwards at her horn every few seconds. My tail won’t stop lashing back and forth, while Becky just seems to be getting a deeper and deeper scowl. I’m sure Jules would be looking equally surly if she wasn’t back in her room asleep already. Which is starting to bug me. Why should SHE get to sleep while the rest of us work? I take a few steps down the hall when my ear swivels back around. Someone’s started to hum a little. I look over my shoulder and see Ellie’s started to sway a bit. She sees the other eyes on her and looks hesitant… For a moment. Then she clears her throat; It’s time for us to come together! It’s the only way things’ll get better! For a moment I can’t believe my ears. Or my eyes. She’s singing? She’s REALLY singing. Not only is she singing but she’s singing a song from the Equestria Girls movie. Meg and Becky are staring at her with equal incredulity that I must be feeling. But she continues on, sweeping in broad motions as she belts out the next line. It’s time for us to take a stand! So come on and lend a helping hand! I knew she was a bit of an airhead but is she totally insane? What in the hell does she thinking singing is going to accomplish. Then it gets worse. Eyes glinting Meg joins in on the next line. We’ll fix it up! Make it alright! We’ll get it ready for her by tonight! Lucas is grinning widely. Looking as confused as I feel, but he’s enjoying the sudden spectacle as his sister twirls by him her tail swishing around her hips as she sweeps. I turn to Becky, my last bastion of sanity in the kitchen. Then she starts in. Mix it up! We’ll help our friend! We’ll come together in the end! All three of them are singing as they work to sweep the huge dining room. I actually have to jump back, wings flapping a bit to hold my balance as Ellie races by me grinning like a lunatic and sweeping a swatch of floor clean. I jump away from the doorway in surprise as Jules bursts in, broom in hand and singing at the top of her lungs, cheek to cheek with Ellie. Show her that we’ve got team spirit! Come on raise your voice and let everyone hear it! Now all four of them are singing and sweeping as if they stayed up all night choreographing their movements. My right ear twitches and I could almost swear I hear the tune to the song playing. The gloom I was feeling earlier seems to be… Lifting. Filling the depressed part of my heart with something else. Something I like a lot better truth be told. Meg and Becky round on me simultaneously, both grinning wide. It’s time to show her that we’re strong! So come on everybody and sing along! There’s the faintest pause in their movements. I can hear the tune thumping in my head. It’s faint… But I definitely hear it. It almost feels like my heart is beating in time with it. The girls are all staring at me expectantly. Tightening my grip on the broom handle, almost against my will I’m adding my voice to theirs. Look how we’ve come together! Things are only just starting to get better Look how we've all come together Things are only gonna get better, better, better, better! Now all five of us are singing are lungs out. I can only imagine my smile matches the girls’. The negativity I’d been feeling since Erin’s departure is rapidly disappearing, leaving the same warm pleasant sensation I had barely been aware was there in the first place. Fix it up, yeah, it's all right We'll get it ready by tonight Mix it up, yeah, help our friend We'll come together in the end I don’t even care how weird it is we’re singing in tune flawlessly, while our movements match the music to a tee. The floors are getting clean in record time and everyone’s happy again, myself included. Fix it up, yeah, it's all right We'll get it ready by tonight Mix it up, yeah, help our friend We'll come together, together now! Everypony working hard, we’ll make our Princess proud! The kitchen and dining room are pretty much dust free by the time we finish. The girls are all laughing and smiling again, happy spirits restored. I have to admit even I’m feeling pretty proud. But something about the lyrics sticks in my head a little. Who’s the ‘her’ we kept referring too? And that was definitely an extra line on the end. What Princess are we trying to make proud? *** The miles fly by as I drive Jake’s truck back to the city. I feel a constant twinge of concern for my li… Everyone back at the cabin. But with the exception of Lucas they’re adults. They can look after themselves for a few hours. I don’t know why I’m getting all flustered about it. I shoot my rear view a vaguely dirty look. “I bet that’s you up there, isn’t it?” Of course having just taken my medication, my mental passenger is silent. I’d actually thought about skipping my pill, but instantly my thoughts flashed back to the institute. The needles, the shocks, the men in the masks. I shake myself briefly to push the memories away. Traffic is starting to slow to a crawl as I get closer to the city. My eyes widen and my heart rate quickens as I see the military blockade at the exit to Detroit. I consider cutting across the grassy part in separating the two sides of the freeway and driving back the way I came, but I’m pretty sure that might look suspicious. I take a deep breath and force myself to calm down. They’re looking for pony people I’m sure. And I’m not showing any signs of changing. It’s slow going as they check the cars and wave people through. I come to a stop as I reach the stern faced military men. “Are you aware of the emergency situation in the city ma’am?” I frown. “Only a little. Some kind of mutation outbreak or something right?” He nods. “There are sections of the city blocked off that are off limits for the foreseeable future while we work to round up the infected. What’s your destination?” I give him the address for Doctor Corddis’ office and he checks it out on his data pad. “Looks like that’s in a clean zone. Go on through. If you see any red signs pay close attention. If you’re found inside a quarantine zone you’ll be detained indefinitely.” At my vigorous nod he waves me through. Traffic is flowing somewhat smoother on the other side. The apartments are on the way to Corddis’ office. I don’t run into anymore military vehicles or red signs along the way to Becky’s building. Her list is relatively short, for which I’m grateful as Jules and Ellie have a pretty extensive one. I pop into her place. After a little hunting around I find her phone charger, her iPod and gather up the collection of movies she requested. I gather all the bedding from her bed and toss it in the back of the truck. The last item on her list is the first aid kit from her bedroom. I don’t bother to look inside but I assume it’s pretty impressive with it being the size of a small suitcase, and weighing more than a little. Jake’s place is next. He also has just a couple items. Phone charger like Becky, and ‘the metal foot locker at the end of my bed’. Said footlocker is considerably larger than Becky’s first aid kit, but I know everyone’s counting on me to bring as much of their home as I can. I’m about halfway to the door when a voice speaks behind me. “Looks heavy. Need a hand?” I shriek and drop the trunk whirling around too fast and tripping over the thing, landing flat on my back. With a little groan I look up into the face of Officer Haggerty. “Hello again Miss Rockwell. You’re looking a little jumpy.” I can’t quite bring myself to smile as I right myself, getting to my feet. “W-well you surprised me is all.” He only nods slowly looking me up and down then letting his eyes roam the apartment slowly. “Miss Rockwell I wonder if you could answer some questions?” I shift from foot to foot now trying to keep from wringing my hands. “L-like what?” “Like where Jake Matsen and Rebecca Robins have gone.” I can’t help but gasp as my eyes widen. He doesn’t miss the glaringly obvious look of guilt on my face. Sometimes I can be a terrible liar. “W-why do you think I have anything to do with them disappearing?” Officer Haggerty frowns at me, then slowly turns back to the Jake’s front door and closes it. “This can go down one of two ways Miss Rockwell. You can either tell me what happened to my buddy here, or you can tell me what happened to him down at the station. I think we’d both prefer it if you told me what happened to him here.” Now I’m starting to breathe faster. For a minute I consider trying to get passed him, just make a rush for the door. But he’s a trained police officer and I’m pretty sure he can drop a hundred and thirty pound woman trying to bowl him over. I can’t really read his expression. He’s keeping his features arranged in a stony mask giving me no hints whatsoever as to what his intentions toward Jake are. Can I trust him? He IS a friend of Jake’s after all. Again, my lack of a poker face tells him everything he needs to know. “I’m worried about my friend Miss Rockwell. If he’s hurt or sick and needs medical attention I want to know. If it’s something else… Well… I want to know that too.” Now the sincerity is showing on his face. He IS worried about Jake. I take a deep breath and sit on the couch. “I… DO know where they are. And I can tell you if you promise me you won’t like… Bring the whole precinct charging up to them.” He sits in the arm chair across from me, laying his hat in his lap. “I can promise that if you can promise me he’s safe Miss Rockwell.” I nod smiling a little now. “I CAN promise you that much. And you can just call me Erin.” He doesn’t return my smile, but he does look like he’s relaxing some. “Mike.” “Alright Mike. You know about the quarantine of course.” He nods, his frown returning. “Obviously. Wait, wait. Are you saying Jake has whatever the other people have? That… Mutation disease?” “Yes and no. He is changing like them, but it’s not a disease. Doctor Adams at St. Joe’s said there’s absolutely no virus, bacteria, or other foreign bodies in the changing people. They’re just… Changing.” “For no reason?” I briefly consider telling him ‘magic’ is the reason, but if he’s been staking out my and Jake’s places waiting for me there’s a good chance he knows my medical history. No sense hammering the ‘crazy’ angle home. “You’d have to talk to her about it; I’m not up to date on the latest medical procedures and terminology.” He grunts softly leaning back in the chair. “So where is he? Is Miss Robbins with him?” I nod, slower this time. I’ve already told him I broke the pair of them out of the hospital and passed the quarantine. Might as well go all in. “They’re at my cabin up in Thilton.” “So if I call him right now, he’ll answer?” I shrug. “Assuming his phone isn’t dead, of course.” He stands and crosses the room to Jake’s wall phone, dialing into it without delay. He leans against the wall while it’s ringing. He perks up suddenly though. “No, this is Mike. But she’s here with me.” Mike eyes me for a moment holding the phone away from his mouth. “I’m stepping into the other room. I suggest you sit tight.” I only nod as he walks down the hall to Jake’s room. Again I consider flight, but I highly doubt Jake’s truck can outrun a police cruiser so I wait. It’s only a few minutes before Mike comes back and hangs up the phone. “You’re pretty ballsy lady. Lemme guess, they were under all the crap in the truck bed yesterday?” I can’t help but smile wryly. “Yup. Them and three others.” “Mmm. Cute.” He settles his hat back on his head. “Quit driving his truck around the city. There’s an APB out for it and if someone sees his plates you’re busted.” I frown. “But I have a lot of stuff to move! My car can’t possibly fit it all.” He gazes hard at me, jaw set firmly. Finally he pulls his own cell phone out of his back pocket dialing it in. “This is Officer Haggerty. I have a family emergency, can someone cover my route? No, no it’s fine. Y’know sorta. Mom took a fall and hurt herself. I doubt it’s too serious but y’know how they get right?” He laughs at something the person on the other end says. “Thanks a ton. Tell Frank I owe him big.” I just watch curiously as he closes his phone. “We’ll go get my SUV. You can borrow it for… For as long as you need it to help Jake alright? You said you owned a car right? I can just use yours for civilian stuff.” I blink, clearly taken aback. “I… Are you sure? You’re just going to GIVE me your car?” “No. I’m going to temporarily exchange cars with you. There’s a pretty big difference. Look Jake’s been a really good friend to me alright? We were in the academy together and a couple times well… He kept me goin’ when I thought I couldn’t go any further. First person to really stick by me like that. So if he needs a hand now, I’ll do all I can to help. You sit tight. It shouldn’t take me too long to be back with my car. We can” Slowly I nod. “Ok. I’ll uh… Grab a shower. Water wasn’t turned on at my cabin yet. My car’s at the hospital by the way. I have a couple more stops to make while I’m in the city but we can add that on there too.” Mike nods and makes his way out. I breathe a heavy sigh of relief as he goes, heading to my own place for a shower. With a small frown I realize Meg and Lucas did a really thorough job cleaning out my cupboards. It’s about lunch time and I could go for a bit. Oh well, I’ll just stop somewhere on the way to the hospital I guess. That Mike seems like a nice guy, I’m sure he won’t mind. I take my time in the shower. Normally it’s a quick and easy affair but I’m feeling extra icky. I had a lot more physical activity the night before than usual. Add that to the general buildup of the day and I was pretty ripe. I feel a twinge of guilt about showering while Jake and the others can’t. No doubt they’re pretty miserable by now. *** ….cause tomorrow Spriiiiing iiiiiiis heeeeeeere! Everyone finishes what must be the third go through of Winter Wrap-up, our good spirits holding strong. The big sitting room is swept, as are the hallways and the stairs between the ground and second floors. Ellie tilts her head in consideration. “Oooo! We haven’t done Pinkie’s Smile Song yet!” Her mouth opens wide, no doubt about to belt the opening line when Lucas’ call from downstairs cuts her off. “Car! There’s a car coming!” I peer downstairs at him. “Is it Erin?” He shakes his head. “No sir.” Heh, sir. That cracks me up. Still, it shows he’s a good kid. “It’s a white van I think.” I nod. “That’s either the power or the water guy. Alright everyone we’ll hole up in the big room at the end of the hall.” Becky frowns faintly. “Didn’t Erin ask us not to go in there?” “No she told us not to sleep in there. We don’t know how long we’re going to be up there. We don’t want to squeeze together in a tiny room. No offense but some of us aren’t exactly fresh as daisies.” Jules nods. “I’m with him. We all stink. Big room.” Relenting with a shrug I herd everyone down the hall and into the master bedroom. We all pile in shutting the door tightly behind us. I guess I’m a little extra on edge because of the call from Mike. Thinking about it, of course we’d be reported missing and of course my place would be staked out. We had a huge bit of luck that it was Mike watching our apartments and not someone less friendly to me on the force. Five sets of ears perk up, and swivel toward the door as we pick up the loud knock. I can hear voices but I can’t quite make out the words. I hear the door shut and the sound of someone trudging around the house causes us to follow. Before anyone can stop her Ellie is pulling the curtain back peering down at the city worker below. Gritting her teeth Jules claps a hand around her girlfriends’ mouth dragging her away from the window. “What’s the matter with you, you derp? You want to be seen?!” A look of regret flares in the cheery girls eyes and I ease Jules’ hand away with a sigh. “It’s alright. No one was spotted ok?” The sound of the man’s heavy tread comes to our ears again as he makes his way back to the door. Once again I hear muted conversation before the door shuts again. There’s a long pause before Lucas calls up. “We have water!” Whoops of delight come from Jules and Ellie as the pair race downstairs to what I assume is a bathroom they found. Becky and Meg both excuse themselves with a slightly hasty pace of their own to use the newly restored facilities. Personally I just want a long, hot shower. I pause before leaving. I’m in the room of the man who raised Erin. A woman who I admittedly don’t know as much about as I’d like. I take a few moments to look around. Everything is large, and very solidly built. No doubt her uncle was a big man. He sounds like it from the way she talks about him. A closet full of musty, moth-eaten clothes comprised mainly of flannel shirts and blue jeans doesn’t give me much insight. A bookshelf filled with murder mystery novels dominates on side of the room while the other has a rather impressively stocked gun cabinet. The doors are locked when I try them though. I’ll have to ask Erin about the key. Taking one last brief look around I step out of the room and shut the doors behind me. I can already hear running water down the hall where Becky’s probably showering. But Erin said there were multiple bathrooms to a floor. I find another easily enough. It’s just as bad as the rest of the house. The tub has years of dust and caked on grime within it. I turn the faucets experimentally. There’s an audible rattling from the long unused pipes as they force the water through them. At first it comes out with an unpleasant odor and a faint red color. I realize it’s just the water clearing away some rust however. Soon enough clean, hot water is blasting from the old shower head. I spy a scrub brush under the sink and shrug. Might as well scrub the tub while I scrub me. I don’t have any soap or shampoo but just hot water will have to do until Erin gets back with the groceries. I can’t help but smile at the thought of her. My girlfriend and my lover. That sounds nice. My good mood dims a bit when I glance downwards. I’m becoming a pony, Spitfire specifically. Who is definitely not a stallion. I wonder if I’ll become a mare before my change or if whatever’s changing us will have some pity on me. Ears drooping I heave a sigh. No sense dwelling. What happens, happens. We’ll get through it together. I know it. I drop to my knees as the water runs over my back and get to work scrubbing the tub. It’s not quite as fun without everyone singing beside me. *** By the time Mike’s gotten back I have Jake and my TV unplugged and ready to be carried down. He gives me a hand moving everything from Jake’s truck into his big, black SUV. “What’s with all the TVs?” I shrug. “There’s seven people there and only one TV between the bunch of us. I know I’m kinda unique in my whole ‘I’d rather read or be outside’ line of thinking.” He frowns. “Are all of them sharing the same condition?” “No. Most are. One is a girl I found dumpster diving. Her kid brother’s thirteen. He’s not changing. But there’s Jake and Becky. Then a couple friends of a uh… Friend. Jules and Ellie. Meg and Lucas round out the bunch.” “So you basically have Jake, and five strangers living in your house?” “Mmm yup. Basically.” “And you’re alright with that?” There’s a break in the conversation as we heft Jake’s heavy locker into the SUV. “Yup. I’ve been thinking about it myself and I mean, it’s obviously weird right? But they’re all good people. I feel comfortable with them and I can help them out. I think this mess is going to get worse before it gets better y’know?” “Oh it definitely is. Word from up top is they want us to start rounding up family of the infected folks. Try to ‘contain the outbreak’.” My eyes widen. “That’s ridiculous!” He shrugs. “It’s not my decision. But people are getting scared. Seeing your neighbor changing into something not human can do that to a person. And it’s a sad fact of life that fear can turn into anger pretty quickly. The idea is if it looks like we’re on top of things, people won’t start to panic.” I frown at that. “I suppose it makes sense to a degree. But what about the afflicted people? What’s happening to them?” “They’re working on setting up facilities for them until we can figure it all out. That’s really all I know. They have experts flying in from all over but word is this is happening all over the world.” I sigh a bit climbing up into Mike’s big car and gazing out the window. “I see.” “But hey you got Jake out. He’s safe right? Your place up north nice?” I nod. “Very. Need to get it cleaned up a bit but there’s plenty of space.” “So all your stops done or what?” I shake my head. “I need to stop by my uh… Doctor’s. It’s on the way to the hospital but we can switch cars first. I don’t want to make you wait. I also have to get some stuff from Jules and Ellie’s place. …mostly video games it looks like.” He chuckles. “It gonna take all day? Because I took the day off for my ‘family emergency’. I can wait a few.” I consider it. I have a pretty serious question for Doctor Corddis but I can’t imagine it would take too long to answer. “No it should be quick enough really. If you don’t mind it’d make my life a little easier.” “Why not? I’m already ignoring you aiding and abetting a couple fugitives. Five of them from the sounds of it. What’s a couple errands right?” I laugh. “Right. So are you going to get in trouble?” He shrugs. “If you get caught and tell them I knew what you were doing, yes. I don’t think you’re going to though.” I smile. “No. No I wouldn’t do that. Thank you Mike.” “Just doing my job ma’am. Serve and protect even if they’re growing tails.” I can see how Jake could be friends with this man. He seems like a very good person. Jules and Ellie it turns out, live in a flat not three blocks from Doctor Corddis’ office. The place is kind of a pig sty, not entirely like my own apartment really so I don’t have a lot of room to say anything I suppose. Suddenly I was glad for Mike being here. He very deftly disconnected the dizzying array of wires and started neatly coiling them up. A third television was added to the truck, along with all the bedding from the girls’ shared bed and a few stuffed animals Ellie ‘couldn’t live without’. She had left very detailed instructions on her list regarding which were to be included. “This is a chick’s apartment?” I laugh at the confusion in his voice. “Two of them. They’re a bit odd but y’know.” I shrug. “If they want a few personal things while I’m in the city anyway I figured it wouldn’t be too much of a hassle.” “Well they have an excellent gaming set up I’ll give them that.” We cart down a few loads of electronics before hitting the road again. I’m beginning to feel apprehensive about my coming confrontation with my doctor. He’s been good to me for many years. If he kept something like this from me I’m sure he had a good reason. Mike rolls up the drive to the small brick building that serves as my psychiatrists’ office. “Alright I shouldn’t be long.” He nods and I slip out of the car heading up to the office door. I sort of wish I’d called ahead, but no use lamenting it now. I push the door open and step inside. For the first time since coming here I don’t see Elizabeth behind the desk. Maybe she had the day off? The door was unlocked so someone must be here. That’s when I hear it. A solid ‘thump’ coming from behind her desk. There’s an almost ominous feel in the air as I approach. Slow steps bring me closer to the desk. Periodically another ‘thump’ comes from the other side. I consider running to get Mike but my curiosity drives me forward. Ever so slowly, wincing at each thump I hear I peer over the desk. Elizabeth is sitting cross legged on the floor. Eyes glassy and unseeing. As I watch she leans back, and brings her body forward, striking her forehead solidly against the desk and revealing the source of the thumps. Eyes wide in concern I kneel down beside the young woman. “Elizabeth? Lizzy? It’s Erin. Erin Rockwell? Can you… Can you hear me?” At first she doesn’t react to my touch. Then she slowly turns to regard me. She’s looking at me… But I can tell she’s not seeing me. Without so much as a blink of recognition she looks away and resumes thumping her head against her desk. I’m about to pull her away when Doctor Corddis enters through the doorway to his office. “A shame. Most days are good for her. Every now and then though her medication has unpleasant side effects.” My frown doesn’t fade as I stand. “Isn’t she going to hut herself?” “No, no. She’s not striking herself hard enough for that. She’ll be fine in ten, maybe fifteen minutes. I think this is preferable to a stay in Bellvue don’t you?” I can’t suppress the shudder of terror and revulsion the name of that awful place brings up. “Y-yeah I guess so.” He smiles suddenly. “What brings you by Erin? Not another episode I hope?” “No! No, no. No. I-I’ve been taking me pills.” Hearing the name of the institute has made me more jittery than I’d expect. Now I’m feeling my nerve failing me. But I’ve come this far, it’s stupid to leave without asking. “I… I want to ask you something.” He gestures toward his office and I follow him inside, taking my customary seat. “Doctor I don’t know how to say this delicately so… Did you know Markus is my brother?” I recoil at the brief flash of rage in his eyes. But it passes quickly. He sits behind his desk shuffling some papers as he considers my question. “I did.” He finally answers. “I… All this time you knew I had a brother? A twin brother and you never saw fit to tell me?!” He sighs sadly. “It wasn’t my place to tell you Erin. Don’t you think it odder still that your Uncle never told you? This is really more the sort of thing that should come up between family. I’m not at liberty to be giving out confidential patient information you understand.” What he’s saying makes sense. It doesn’t make me any happier, but it makes sense. Why DID my Uncle never tell me about Markus? Was there some truth to Markus’ guess that Uncle Pete didn’t know I had a twin, or was it something more? Obviously I can’t question the man himself. He’s been dead for half a decade now. Doctor Corddis regards me with a sympathetic frown. “I am sorry Erin. I don’t know why your Uncle never told you, but it wasn’t my place to go against his decision.” I take a deep breath and nod slowly. “No. You’re right of course. I’m sorry I snapped.” His frown becomes the faint smile I’m used to seeing on his face. “It’s fine my dear. I’m sure it’s been a stressful few days. With the bad episode and now this shock coming. How did you learn of this anyhow?” “Oh. A friend of Markus’ brought me a video disc. He uh… Asked her to deliver it if he didn’t come home that night.” I look up meeting his eyes now. “Doctor do you know where he is? Is he alright?” His smile drops instantly. “I’m afraid I do know where he is, but alright is certainly not the word I’d use to describe him. You’re aware that he routinely skips his medication I assume?” I nod. “He asked me to do the same.” Slowly he shakes his head, sighing sadly. “I suspected he might. It’s why I asked you to avoid him; he’s a bad influence Erin. He was found a few streets from your apartment attacking an unarmed woman. He was in the midst of a psychotic episode and had beaten her half to death. The authorities arrived in time to save her fortunately. I had no recourse however but to have Markus committed to Bellvue.” I shiver again at the name. “I… I see. W-well I’m glad the woman is alright. And I’m sorry to hear about Markus. He seemed… So nice.” “Well that’s the real danger of a condition like the two of you share Erin. He can be perfectly ordinary one second, and a completely different person the next. The person he becomes is not at all like the one you did Erin. She’s wild, violent, and cruel. Hopefully his stay in the institute will help break him of his bad habit of letting her run wild.” This doesn’t sound at all like what Jules and Ellie told me about Markus and his other persona. Nor does it sound like the other him I saw speaking on the video. Something about all this doesn’t feel right to me, but I don’t want to push too hard. Doctor Corddis has been very forthcoming. “Well thank you Doctor. Would it be possible for you to call me if and when he gets released?” He seems to consider my request. “I’ll tell you what. If I feel he doesn’t pose a threat to your continued well-being, I’ll get you two together myself. How’s that?” I fake a smile. “That sounds great Doctor Corddis. Really I’d just like a chance to talk to him. Get to know the brother I never knew I had you know?” He stands walking me to the door. “I understand dear. And if there’s anything else my door is always open. But next time call ahead hm? Elizabeth can be a bit… Sensitive about people seeing her in such a state.” I wince as I hear a ‘thump’ come from her desk. “Y-yeah I understand. Sorry Doctor.” “Not at all. Have a pleasant day Erin. Oh! I nearly forgot to ask. Things still going well with you and Jake?” I nod feeling a genuine smile coming on now. “They are thank you.” “Well good, good. Be safe out there. Things are starting to get a trifle… Chaotic.” He smiles strangely before shutting his door. I stare after him for a few moments before kneeling by Elizabeth again. I gently turn her away from her desk. She does little to resist me, simply sways forward as if she were still aiming for the desk. If that’s all it took to stop her from banging her head into it why didn’t Doctor Corddis do it? I stand to leave when something in her purse catches my eye. The leather bag is sitting open on her desk and a large pill bottle is plainly visible inside. Casting her a sideways glance and finding her paying as little attention to me as ever, I ease the bottle out. Inside are pills identical to the ones I have in my own purse. I drop the bottle and leave a tad hastily. Why is she on the same meds as Markus and I? Could she have the same problem? My hallucination of Celestia’s words come back to me. She thought Doctor Corddis might be Discord in disguise? That was starting to seem more and more probable really. Mike’s regarding me with a frown when I climb back into the passenger’s seat. “You don’t look happy.” I shake my head. “I’m not. Do you think I could ask you for a huge favor? Something I’d need a police officer to do but don’t necessarily want a lot of people hearing about it?” His frown deepens. “It depends on the favor.” “I’d like you to look up a couple people for me. Doctor Chance Corddis and Elizabeth Swanson.” He raises an eyebrow. “Anything in particular I’m looking for?” I gaze at the Doctor’s office as we pull away. “No. Nothing specific. Just… I feel like something’s wrong here. Can you do it for me?” He shrugs. “Sure. It’s easy enough really. It might take a couple hours though.” “That’s fine. There’s no particular rush I suppose.” He nods. We make small talk the rest of the way to the hospital. I mostly tell him about the people staying with me now, and what the cabin is like. It turns out Mike’s a pretty avid hunter and uses my Uncle’s calls. I promise to get him an original carved by Uncle Pete next time I come home. As thanks for all his help. We find my little smart car right where I left it. I can’t help but laugh at the look of dismay on Mike’s face as he realizes what he’s trading his SUV for. “I thought you said you had a car. Not something from a carnival.” I huff. “It gets excellent mileage thank you very much. And I mostly take the bus everywhere. I’ve done more driving the last two days than I have the last two months.” He turns over his keys less than enthusiastically, accepting mine with a sigh. “Maybe bring me back TWO originals from your uncle.” I grin. “Deal. Call me as soon as you have that information I need will you?” He nods. “I will Erin. Good luck with everything up north. Try to drop me a line now and again. Better yet tell JAKE to drop me a line now and then.” “I promise. I’ll talk to you soon?” He nods again. “First thing I’ll do is check out those names for you.” “Thanks again Mike. I’m glad we got to talk and not have me get arrested.” He waves over his shoulder. I laugh again watching him visibly sag when he gets to the door of my tiny car, slowly lowering himself into it. I have to pass through another military checkpoint before I’m on the freeway, but it goes quickly as before. The scenery passes by at a sedate pace. The drive is definitely lonelier without Lucas up front with me, or the sounds of everyone laughing and chatting away in the back. An empty box that used to contain an unhealthy amount of McNuggets rests on the seat beside me. Definitely have to get rid of that before anyone sees it. My phone ringing is a welcome relief. I don’t recognize the number, but really I’d talk to a telemarketer if it broke up the monotony. “Hello?” “Erin! It’s Mike.” “Oh! Hey. Is this about the uh…” “Yeah. I checked those names out. Some pretty interesting stuff about both. Or in the Doctor’s case, uninteresting. As in there’s literally nothing about a Chance Corddis anywhere in the system.” “What? How is that even possible?” For a brief moment I wonder if I imagined the Doctor too, but that’s stupid. I have the pill bottle in my purse. “That’s exactly what I’m wondering. I’m going to look into it more soon. Now the other name, you’re absolutely sure it’s Elizabeth Swanson?” I nod… Then feel stupid realizing he can’t see me. “Yeah. She’s been his receptionist for I dunno, six? Seven years?” “Well the only Elizabeth Swanson of note was a little girl who was abducted from the hospital maybe ten hours after she was born. It took a lot of digging to find it too. The case got stuffed in the cold cases quite some time ago. If this is the same girl you might have solved a pretty big mystery for us.” I can’t believe what I’m hearing now. “Do you think the Doctor is involved?” “Shady guy not in the system handing out weird pills to crazies… No offense… With a missing girl as his receptionist? I can almost guarantee it. I think it’d be a very good idea for you to steer clear of him in the near future. I’m going to look into all this and call you back when I find something.” “O-ok. Thanks Mike. And Um… Be careful. I think he might have done something to my brother already.” “Your brother? What’s his name?” Now I feel stupid. I could have had Mike looking up Markus already. Where he lived, maybe even where my mother lived? “Markus King. See what you can find on him too place. Anything could help.” “Will do Erin. Stay safe. Keep Jake safe too.” “I will Mike. Thanks. You be careful!” “Always.” Then he hangs up, leaving me alone with my thoughts. Darker thoughts than I had a few minutes ago.