Both his hands are pressing up against the back of her thighs. He is holding onto her as if his pathetic life depends on it. She does not seem to be bothered by his steel grip and lion pants. She does not seem to mind being wedged in between his well endowed body and the cliff side. Quite on the contrary. She seems to be enjoying it all... including the part where they are both stranded on a dangerously thin ledge in the middle of nowhere.

"... ... ! Where the are we?" He tries his best to control the unevenness in his voice, but it proves to be extremely difficult at such a high altitude.

"3N1 129 14 13:39."

"What?"

"3N1 12—"

"No... I don't need you to repeat that. Doesn't this place have a name? Where the are we and why are we here?"

"There's no other name for this place. It already has an identifier attached to it. Why does it need another? We're here because you agreed to go on a trip. Look down."

He looks down. A very unwise move on his part. "Holy !" There is no bottom to this wide rift. The ledge chips as he fumbles to get a better grip on her. "This is a dream, right? This is a nightmare, right? I'm ing asleep, right?"

"Then you wouldn't mind jumping off this ledge, right?" Is she telling him to jump? What the ? This crazy . He should have never approached her. Crazy .

"It's just a dream. So jump."

"No!" Damn, crazy .

"You should. By choice, you really should. You don't want to keep your pride? I can make you jump. It's not hard. I know where you're most ticklish. I know your body like I know my own body. But I'm giving you the chance to keep your pride. You don't want to keep your pride?"

He looks down again. Still an unwise move. He closes his eyes, feeling the ledge move beneath them. ... "This is really just—just—it's not really—"

"We don't have all day." She gives him a little poke. He immediately loses his grip on her thighs and tumbles backward into the rift.

She looks down at the tiny black dot, presumably his falling body, and smiles. "Works every time." After she is satisfied with the results, she tilts her head back to look up. Beautiful. Not a single cloud obstructs her view. "Blue Skies."

"Blue Skies. We hear you, One Night. Confirm your location and status."

"3N1 129 14 13:39. Hitoya Won Knight. Awake."

"Welcome back. I see he's arrived safely on board the train without you. Tickled him off again, did you?"

"Every time, sweetcakes. Every time."

• • • • • • •

"This is weird." He is sitting next to her on a train headed to... probably another nowhere. "Are you sure this isn't a dream? Because... I swear... weren't we just in a lounge, on a cliff side... and now on a train to... to..."

"To our destination."

"Right. This is a dream, right?"

She glances at him without seeing him. The expression on her white face is like that of a porcelain doll. Creepy as .

"This is all a dream."

He glances back at her without seeing her. "How reassuring..." Maybe if she repeats it again but in a different tone while wearing a different expression. Maybe... just maybe... No, nothing is going to make him feel better about this whole trip. He glances down, surprised to find his hand wedged happily between her thighs.

How the did it get there? He withdraws it. Not too fast. Not to fast. Need to make it look casual and smooth. He clears his throat and comes up with something quick to distract her. "Do we—"

"? Yes. Yes, we do. But only when you need it. What? Do you need it now?"

The people sitting next to them stare. They are so judging.

"Are we, you know... are we—"

"Heavens forbid, no. If we were lovers... if you actually loved me, I wouldn't be here right now."

He exhales, vaguely aware of his reflection in the foggy windows. She has a good point. Everyone he had ever loved is gone.

Long dead.

"I hope I never love you."

"I pray for that daily... and I'm not even religious."

The train slows. Their final destination.