“She took the boat?”

            “It is her boat.” Brujo pointed out.

            Indigo looked close to tears. “Yes, but that was our way off this island! Our chance at fame!”

            “We were a band before she came, and we’re no worse off now. So maybe we’ll find her, maybe we won’t, but we’re still going to follow the plan.” Dura stated firmly, her eyes belying the sadness behind her tough words.

            “How?” Tad interrupted. “Our boat left us, Cheno took yours, and it would take weeks to build a new one big enough for all of us.”

            Dura raised an eyebrow. “All of us?” Tad reddened and said nothing. Sumea took over diplomatically.

            “Well, we want to find Cheno, who will likely eventually end up on the mainland. You want to get to the mainland, and find Cheno. Anyways, we don’t need to build another boat, or did anyone else consider, there’s one more ship in the marina!”

            Tad looked scandalized. “You don’t seriously mean for us to ask that Odd sea scum for passage, do you?”

            “Why not? We need to get to the mainland, and I’m sure they wouldn’t say no to eight paying customers.”

            “It's not getting on the ship I'm worried about, but getting off alive and with all our possessions intact.”

            “It’s worth a try! Don't be so over-suspicious!” The fair-haired boy spoke up, eyes shining at the possibility of adventure.

            Dak smiled. “Well, I guess it’s set then. Welcome to Raegwilde, new friends. We leave at noon.”

            “You guys’ll need a place to stay, won’t you?” Brujo spoke up. The group of newcomers shifted, looking extremely embarrassed.

            “Well, Cheno’s house is now free for the girls, and the guys can bunk at my place.” Brujo grinned. “It may be a little crowded, but I promise my cooking is worth it. I’ll stop by the girls’ cabin with some food before bed, so they won’t starve.”

            “That’d be great.” The shorter girl said. “Thank you all so much.”

            “No problem! Here, Indigo will show you to the cabin.”

            The group then said their goodbyes and split up, going their separate ways.

            Indigo looked at the two girls with interest. “Sorry, I didn’t quite catch your names…?”

            “I’m Sumea Rae, and this is Greka Prowan. We’re from a little mainland town called Periwinkle. Well, not really, we’ve just lived there the past year or so, Greka and I. We’ve traveled together for almost a year before then, after meeting in Tropomet, the biggest city in Caprice. I was born there. Greka was just visiting.”

            “I loved it there…”

            “So did I, but eventually it…just wasn’t the place for us. So we traveled around and eventually found our way to Periwinkle. A bit like Cheno, I guess. There we met Tad and Griff, who’ve lived there their whole lives, and the rest, as they say, is history.”

            “Wow…I’ve never traveled further than some of the nearby islands. All this is the most out of the ordinary thing that’s happened since…”

            “Since what?” Sumea prodded gently.

            “Since the fire. Five years ago. There was a big party on the other side of the island; half the island was there, as well as lots of alcohol. Of course, we were too young to go, so we stayed home, with Alba looking after us. There was a freak storm, came out of nowhere; lightning hit the building and a fire started, and with all the alcohol around, the building was a charred husk within minutes. Nari Tenom, the bartender, was the only survivor. She was about our age at the time. She was outside with her sweetheart, Dura’s brother Koi. He was a good man. When the fire started, he ran inside to try to save someone, anyone...That’s when the roof caved in. The loss devastated everyone on the island. Nari was so heartbroken she almost gave up on life, but I think having all of us needing someone to look after us kept her going. After that night, alcohol was forbidden on this island. She still runs the old beachfront bar, but it only serves juices and other non-alcoholic beverages now. As soon as we were old enough, we moved into our parents’ old homes. When Cheno came, she lived with Nari for a while, working at the bar with her. Just last month, actually, we built her the house you’re going to be staying in. There’s not much to it, but it’s all one needs, really.”

            They walked soberly for a little while, until Greka asked, tentatively, “Was she happy here? Did she open up to you?”

            “I suppose so. At first she rarely smiled, but…more, in the later weeks. She never really talked about herself, but she seemed so fascinated by life on the island. She went swimming every morning at the lagoon, she sailed often by herself to the other islands, went fishing…she’d spend hours napping in the sun, though like Dak and I, she never seemed to get really tan. Dura and Brujo do. Anyways, to answer your question, yes, I think she was happy here.”

            “Understandable…this is a lovely place. I’d love to come back here, when all is said and done.” Sumea said, breathing in the thick, fragrant night air.

            The path eventually meandered its way to a neat little hut. A large tank protruded like a great chimney, to collect the frequent island rains. A thin stream of smoke rose from the roof, and Greka looked at Indigo questioningly. She caught the look and smiled.

            “Those are coals. There’s an air vent, but they’re enclosed by stone, so they can’t start a fire. Every day some coals from the forge, and the ones from the cooking fire are put in there, along with some dense wood. They burn very slowly, we make sure of that. The only trouble is all the soot, which Dak comes down to clean out every other day. Keeps him busy, I guess. Don’t know what’s gonna happen to the place after we leave.”

            “What’s it for?”

            “To heat the water for washing, of course.”

            “You have…heated water? Heated running water? Out here? I haven’t had hot running water since Tropomet!”

            Indigo laughed gently. “Yes, it is rather amazing, isn’t it? Modern amenities on a tiny obscure island like this. We have Alba to thank for that, believe it or not. She’s actually quite skillful with mechanical things.” She brushed a stray strand of hair back behind her ears and smiled. “Anyways, here it is. There’s a bed, and other furniture, but not much else. She didn’t bring much, and had all her stuff packed before she ran. Brujo will pop by in a bit with some food, and if you need anything, Dak and I live right down the path. Rest well!”

With this, Indigo left them, and the two weary travelers entered the empty hut cautiously. Greka flopped down on the bed immediately after setting down her bag.

“Aren’t you getting changed for bed?” Sumea queried.

“Nah. Too tired.”

Sumea shrugged and got changed herself, but explored rather than going to the bed immediately. There were only two rooms, the main living room, with bed and cooking area and little table with chairs, and the bathroom.  The bathroom, as promised, was equipped with hot running water, and she briefly contemplated a shower before bed, before a knock on the door sent all thoughts of that out of her head. She opened the door, revealing Brujo, with a plate of cheese, cold meat, breads and fruit.

“Good evening, ladies! Sorry you won’t get to sample my superb cuisine until the morning, but this should tide you over until then.”

“Why thank you, um, Brujo was it?”

“That’s me! I’m honoured, that such lovely visitors to our humble island should know my name.” He grinned and winked.

Greka laughed from her place on the bed. “Well, it’s not difficult, when you’re a member of that super-famous band, Lucid Dreams, right?”

“Hey, we’re gonna be so super-famous, ladies from all over the mainland are gonna know my name!”

“I don’t doubt it. Thanks for the food, we’ll see you in the morning, all right?”

“I look forward to it.” He bowed in mock deference and left, singing a bawdy song at the top of his lungs. Sumea sighed and smiled, then wandered the small room, glancing in drawers and on shelves.

“Come to bed, Sume. We’ve got a day ahead of us.” Greka murmured sleepily.

“Mm…not yet.”

“What are you looking for?”

“I dunno, it’s just…there was a person living here for three months! Our friend! How can an individual affect people so deeply but leave no physical trace of themselves behind?”

“Well, three months isn’t that long…and she’d already packed up to leave before she dodged, Indigo told us.”

“Still, it’s odd…” she smiled. “Maybe not the best choice of words. Strange. There.” She got onto the low bed, and got comfortable. She frowned as she lay her head down on the pillow, then reached into the casing and pulled out a worn, leather-bound book. “Hey!”

“Hm?”

“I remember when Cheno bought this book! It was just after we met her, she said she wanted a record, to remember those days. She must have forgotten it.”

“Hm. Maybe she left it for us. Should we take a look?”

“How would she know we’d stay here? That anyone would find it? No, I won’t read it; I’ll just keep it for her, so when we find her she won’t have been betrayed, if you’re wrong. And if we’re right, perhaps she’ll let us read it once we’ve found her.”

“Why don’t we ask the others tomorrow?”

“Okay. A diary is a private thing…such things should not be sneaked around, in the middle of the night. We’ll ask the others. Goodnight, Grek.”

“'Night, Sume.”