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Episode X: Part 7:

Undreas woke up, hearing the rain rattle on the windows of his room. He got up and opened the windows, taking a deep breath of the fresh outside air. It was a bit foggy and windy this day. Maybe not the best day to go back to the mainland.

If the weather got better after sunrise, he'd go. For now, he closed the windows and headed down to the lower floor, realizing that everyone in the house were sleeping. So he stepped outside, having his backpack with him.

Where was he going to now? He didn't very well want to sit around in the house, all alone. So he went to the harbor.

The waves were a bit higher than usual, sometimes splashing up onto the bridges.
No one seemed to be outside, or even awake. And this weather... could have been caused by the release of the clouds yesterday.

He went to the stone pier where the ferry docks. It would arrive between one and two hours.

Would he go back? He had no business here anymore. And Joreth would understand if he left the island without a goodbye. Undreas had done it before.

And the clouds were breaking up in the horizon, showing the coming rise of the sun. Soon he could see the ferry in the distance.

"So have you had a good time here?" a voice asked behind him. He turned around to see a catwoman smile at him, softly wagging her tail.

"Oh, good morning!... well let's say I had business here that I had to finish. Glad it's all over."

"You're... Undreas? Aren't you?" she said and leaned forward a bit.

"Yeah.. that's right... why do you ask?" Undreas looked a little surprised.

"Oh, I've just heard people speak of a werewolf by that name... words move around quickly here, it seems... You visited the Demon's Island, didn't you?"

"That's right..." Joreth didn't keep his word. Not that it mattered... The old fool. Undreas laughed. "I'll never have to go there again." He finished.

"I see... well, I'm glad to see I'm not the only one around here with a tail." She said and smiled at him, hiding her face by lowering it.

"You are? So you came here all alone with no friends of your kind?"

"Nope. Just here to explore, and I needed no company for that."

The boat signaled in the distance. Another five minutes and it would dock. People who were standing under distant shelters at the huts were showing up a little here and there, walking up to the pier to board the arriving boat.

"Explore? Did you find anything?"

"Well, I did find a carved ruby. Look..:" she said and took it up from her bag. It was as big as the palm of her hand.

"Wow, you've made some discovery then. I hope you didn't get into too much trouble getting it." He smiled.

She pursed her nose. "I had some trouble..." she leaned in towards undreas and started to whisper "But I'm used to that." she said, and smiled, giggling a little.

He smiled back at her. "Good times..." he thought when he got reminded of how he used to explore, himself. The boat was there now.

"You coming?" she asked and waited for his reply.

"Sure." he said and climbed up the board to take him back.

It took another hour before the ship left the docks. Undreas went to the back of the ship to see the island off.

Joreth was standing at the edge of the pier, leaning on his walking stick. Casually waving at Undreas. He waved back. They could easily have talked to each other, saying goodbye, but... they didn't. It would probably the last time they saw each other... and words just seemed to be in the way.

The catwoman found him standing at the edge of the ship.

"You like this place, don't you?" she asked, standing by his side, leaning on the railing.

"It sure is... one of a kind..." he said, still looking at the island. The fog was still in the air, so it didn't take much time until it vanished in shrouds.

The sun was rising on the other side of the ship.

"And I'm going to miss this place." he continued.

"So why don't you go back here more often?"

"... I... I don't know. My keen feelings for this place will be kept alive by my distance to it, I think."

"Wwwhat?" she asked, looking slightly confused.

"Nothing..." he smiled and turned around letting his back rest on the railing.
They both stood there for a long time, not talking to each other. They were both pretty satisfied with the silence and the smell of the ocean.

"Well, I'll go get some rest" she finally said, before they said goodbye to each other and she left.

The rest of the trip was just as calm as it started. The sun was on its way down when they reached Calahas. He could not see the catwoman on the way back. Nor did he care. He already had his fair share of goodbyes for now.

It would be like a final struggle to get back to the juvie camp. He was starting to get worn both in mind and body from everything that had happened to him. But at least he felt like he had accomplished something. He was no longer troubled by the thoughts about Eriah.

He decided to take it slow on the way back, only walking the main roads. It took him a few days to reach the forest with the swamp "shortcut", but he walked around it, too. On his last day of travelling, he got back to the juvie camp around noon. He opened the door to his bunk, no one seemed to notice he was ever away. Some of them noticed him while others were too busy with their doings.

So he hung his backpack on the edge of his bunk, lying down on the bed. And he smiled.

What next?

...

The End.