Home Alone in Pure Heart Valley

Chapter 10

Night had fallen at Lunarton City's aeroport, and the first aero-transport out was preparing to leave. Passengers headed that way were in the middle of boarding, and it was getting close to full capacity. Right at the entrance of the boarding gate, however, a short black cat and a smaller teal bat were occupied with haggling with a couple other would-be passengers.

"Please, come on!" Mao Mao was aggressively doing what he could to keep the two people's attention on him, hoping to stall for a little more time to negotiate. "You don't need to be anywhere in less than a day, do you?" The two shook their heads but got ready to say something else, but Mao Mao interrupted them at the first hint of the word 'however'. "This is an emergency! We don't have much time!"

"I can see that," one of the two said, "but we've already put our time and energy into making this trip." They heard the intercom behind them abounding that boarding was going to end soon. They turned to leave and head through the gate.

"Just wait, please!" Eugene called fearfully.

The other two stopped and turned again to look at Eugene and Mao Mao with frustration. "What could be so important that you want us to switch with you and delay our own plans?" the other one of the two said exasperatedly.

Eugene paused, unsure of how to properly express his intentions. But it all came out with a restrained sob, coming directly from his heart. "I'm desperate." The two strangers looked at each other as their faces gently morphed into that of concern. Eugene kept going. "From a father trying to get home to his little girl, please."

The two looked at each other again. "Oh alright," they conceded, handing Eugene and Mao Mao their own aero ticket.

Eugene and Mao Mao couldn't be happier. "Oh thank you!" they said to the two good strangers. "Thank you, thank you, thank you so much!" Without wasting further time, both cat and bat seized their gifted chance and went straight to boarding.

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Late at night, Adorabat nestled herself comfortably on the triple-decker bunk bed. While she hung upside down on her part of the bunk, which was the middle, she stared wistfully at the framed picture of herself, Mao Mao, and Badgerclops for long time. As she looked, she thought about all the wonderful and awesome times she's had with them together. She couldn't deny it: she was starting to miss them.

"I didn't mean what I said," she quietly told the figures in the photo. "If you come back, I'll never wish for you to go away again." She took another spare glance at the cold winter weather outside the window before looking back at the photo once again. "Good night."

Adorabat gently kissed the photo and placed it on the middle bed below her, since she was actually hanging upside-down by her feet under the top bed above her. She closed her eyes and waited for sleep to come.