And after that mild surprise, I had fallen asleep for a few more hours, before waking up with even worse bearings attacking my skull and ribs. It was the doubts from before, elongated like arrows, stabbing into my lungs, telling me to find some answer, any, for why I was being followed by this lone fish.

Rush a stairwell down to a secretary of sentinel whatnots. Called in, called away for that day. Personal issue. Maybe I should use those stored-up days to rest, but there is no rest for a solider like myself, because otherwise, who is there to protect Sugarteara? And then the stairwell carried me back up. Everything looked just the same as before. In the same place. Still water. Anxious waters.

A spare bag was hung along my rightside shoulder, a spike pointing towards watersurface keeping it in place, and the slow sound of a zipper rendering the fish trapped after a small coax. It was an obedient thing, which bodes well, but nothing seemed to bode at all. The voice I had with the kindest lady downstairs was one that shook, displayed an inner crack at my bearings, and that determined me even more to find the source of such emotion offset. And with that, I had rushed out of the door, with only the barest of belongings, my fish, and my body dragging behind my wills and worries.

Taptaptap on the door after a half-hour of light jog, and on the other side of the door, with an inch in the doorway lenient for it to move and shake as I knocked, a jingle-bell rang. The old lady behind whispered for me to enter. It opened, and there she was, our city's wildlife expert. One arm on a cane, and with a head that barely met my breast's height. Short, old, but trustworthy. Setting the bag on a counter, my words, in the same off, awful, tremulous, and other words tone as before, explained the situation with such a furious speed that she asked for a repeat. With that, and the same sound of zipper, my fish slid out, remaining still, and with her examination, a low hum in the air from her, and the other noises of waterchimes, she gave a nod.