“What?! Ohmygosh are you alright?!” Everyone was freaking out and overreacting to the incident in the White Sand Street Asylum. Aesop was chibi crying his eyes out, clinging onto Eli and unwilling to let go. We ended up spending the rest of the day trying to pull Aesop off Eli, who had such a strong grip I suspected he worked out often. When we finally got him off, he pouted, angry that he was just touched all over. Eli gave him a pat on the head to comfort him before we continued our search.

We searched Sacred Heart Hospital, walked through Leo’s Memory, spent the night in Chinatown, but we could not find Joseph anywhere. By the time we scoured Lake Side Village and looked through half of Moonlit River Park, the sky had grown dark. A few days had passed, and by now everyone was very tired, but they kept an aura of positivity around, talking with each other and laughing (even Aesop could be heard laughing sometimes). But I knew that deep inside, everyone had a small seed of doubt growing in them with each passing day. We hadn’t had any encounters with the cloaked figure, who we decided to call Black (as in the color of their cloak).

“So who do you think Black is?” Emily asked the group. “Hm, I’m not sure, but it’s probably that annoying snake lady,” Eli grumbled. A small laugh emitted from the group. “...I don't think it’s her,” Aesop said, his eyebrows knitted together (oops they’re dolls I shouldn’t say that-). “Why not? It’s pretty obvious it’s her,” I say. “Yeah, her cloak is the same color as her tail... uhhh I don't know what else to say,” Murro commented, rubbing the back of his neck. “Well, I guess that’s true, but, sigh, I don't know, I guess it’s just this weird feeling. Nevermind what I said,” Aesop said, trying to change the subject.

After that, we mainly just talked about random things, like animals, social media, things like that. Aesop didn’t feel like talking anymore and only spoke to Eli for the rest of the day. I think they got closer thanks to that, and I made sure to let them be alone (wink). I watched and giggled as I saw Aesop getting flustered when Eli jokingly flirted with him. Emily noticed me laughing and looked where I was, then covered up her smile with a gloved hand. “What are you guys laughing about?” Murro asked, feeling left out. “Nothing,” we said in unison, then laughed again.

Our little moments of joy the next two days were what kept the hope alive, even when we saw a glimpse of Black watching us in the forest. Time went by, and before we knew it, we only had one more map to scour. The only problem was, “This is the biggest map in the world,” Eli complained. “No it’s not, you just don't have much stamina,” Emily said, walking along just fine. “I don't cAaaAare,” Eli whined, being dragged by the doctor. “Um… I can carry you,” Aesop said, blushing. “Really? But aren’t I heavy?” Eli asked, making sure Aesop wasn’t doing something he didn’t want to. “Yes you are,” Emily said, bonking him in the head jokingly before letting him fall into the dirt. “Oof,” Eli said, falling with a thump. He stayed faceplanted on the ground, refusing to get up unless someone picked him up. Aesop peeled him off the ground and carried him on his back. “Yayyy, thanks Ace~” Eli sang to him. “You’re so childish,” Aesop laughed, trying to hide his blushing face from gaining a nickname.

After wandering the map for a while, a sudden chill swept through the air. Everyone looked at one another, acknowledging the fact that we all felt it. I concentrated, listening to the winds and sorting through my memories of the map. “Let’s go this way,” I said, leading everyone to the entrance of the mines. “Uh, what’s telling you to go this way?” Helena asked innocently. “My instinct,” I replied. “What instinct?” Aesop asked. “The instinct to lead us to creepiness,” I said to him. “...” “ooookay,” Eli commented, receiving no responses.

Walking carefully through the mines, I felt a need to sneak around, as if something might try to attack us at any second. After walking through most of the mine, I felt a bit safer, relaxing my shoulders. “Let’s try the second floor,” I whispered, proceeding to climb safely down the ladder. Eli asked if we could use the minecart, but I decided the ladder was the best way to go.

We walked past the infinite mass of rocks and a few precious bits of gold until we came across a huge cluster of minerals, meaning that we had already explored most of the map. My heart sank, knowing that if we found nothing here, Joseph may not even be alive after all. Emily saw that my hope was going down, and gave me an encouraging hug from behind. “We’ll find him, don't worry,” she said. But when we turned the corner, everything fell. My entire world shattered. My hands went limp and my mind went blank. A loud gasp was heard from the survivors behind me. I could hear the tears falling from both Eli and my eyes. There, sitting before me, the reason for my hope, was tied up, bound to a rocket chair. Joseph Desaulniers. I have found you at last.