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Remember, Remember what? I don't remember anything past the moment when I woke up on a street corner in Barton.

Zaki blinked twice, before she could fully take in her surroundings. She was standing on a street corner, with several shops across the street. 'Where am I?' she thought as her eyes scanned the town of Barton. An odd sight caught her eye, a cat climbing a brick building, she arched a brow and walked toward him.

"What are you doing?" she asked, not entirely sure why she was speaking to a cat. The cat glanced her way and sighed frustrated as he jumped again, "well.. ugh! I'm.. trying to take down... this banner!" the cat lunged up again after falling and scrapping the glass with his thick claws. Zaki glanced up at the big white banner that read in bold red words; 'Barton Sale!'

"Do you want me to help?" Zaki said looking back at the cat who was examining his claws with a scowl, he looked up startled, "oh? Would you?!" his eyes glimmered with joy as he spoke, "PLEASE!" he shoved her leg and pointed up, "just stand still!" Zaki opened her mouth to ask why, when she felt claws sink into her bare skin. "Ouch!" she said glancing up at the cat who was now standing on her head.

"Thank you for your help!" he shouted as he undid the banner and jumped off her head, landing neatly on the ground. "Anytime." Zaki murmured rubbing the red marks on her shoulders, "actually, I was wondering if you could tell me where I am."

The cat glanced up at her with a strange expression, "Well, you're in Barton." he said simply as he began to fold up the banner. Zaki decided it would be best not to mention that the name meant nothing to her, and just shrugged lightly before going into the shop named; Barton Boutique. The shop was filled with interesting things, but she wasn't really looking for anything here. Instead she wanted to talk to a human-being, that's when she spotted the shop-keeper.

"Excuse me, do you know how I can get a house?" she blurted without moving her eyes staying emotionless, because she had no emotion to feel.

The shop-keeper looked startled, "Uhh, I'm not really, the person you should be asking..." he said slowly, unsure of how to answer. He placed a box on the counter that he had heaved out from underneath the large wooden desk. "Then, who can I talk too?" Zaki pressed, taking a step toward him.

"I'd say you need to see Josie, she's the one who handles the houses, well her and several other people. I mean you really can't expect someone to take care of all the house business by herself!" the man smiled and chuckled a little, but Zaki just stared. "Look, I don't know where she is...so perhaps you could help me."

Something in the way she spoke made Ian melt, he couldn't turn her down, no matter who she was, it was obvious to him that she was lost. "Ok, I'll show you the way... But you should know, it's a...bit of a journey to Aekea from here." Zaki shrugged, "I'm not worried."

Ian nodded and came out from around the counter, "Rufus, watch the shop while I'm gone O.K?" he shouted as he straightened his jacket and left the shop, not waiting for Rufus to complain. "C'mon, follow me." Ian said waving his hand.

"By the way, my name is Ian. You must be new here to not know who Josie is." he said calmly, glancing at Zaki who simply stared forward, unsure of why she was dragging a sack around. "Oh, yeah..."

Ian arched a brow, but who was he to complain, some people didn't know about courtesy. He shrugged it off and continued on, "so where did you come from?" he asked, trying to sound casual. Zaki stopped, and at first Ian didn't notice, then he turned to look at her and stopped too, "what's wrong?" he asked confused. Zaki looked up, "I don't know..."

"Well, that's OK that happens a lot." Ian said waving his hand, trying to sound reassuring. "No, that's not what I meant." Zaki interrupted, "I don't know where I came from." she looked directly at Ian and for a moment Ian shuddered, it was strange looking into her blood-red eyes that seemed to be lifeless. "Wait... you mean you have amnesia?" he asked arching a black brow.

"Ian...I don't know what I have." Zaki replied honestly, her blue hair falling over her left eye, Ian had noticed that it had been over her left eye for most of their conversation and only recently had she pushed it away only to have it fall back into place. "Yeah, sorry, I didn't...I mean..." Ian stuttered, not sure what to say. "Well, anyway, let's just...go." he said waving a hand at the road, embarrassed that he couldn't think of anything comforting or nice to say. Zaki nodded and continued with him down the road, her blue pants swayed at the bottom, they were flared down there and she didn't know why but something about her tank-top bugged her, she twitched and then tried to ignore it, she had more important things to worry about. Such as, who had left her on the street corner, and why? Who would be so cruel as to erase her memories and dump her in a strange town with a sack full of heaven only knows what, near a talking cat? Zaki wasn't sure who or what had done this, but she did know one thing...she was going to find out who they were and why they had done it.

Upon arriving in Aekea, Zaki could only stare in what Ian could only assume was amazement at the giant crane in the middle of the town, he smiled comfortingly, "it's been there for a while, no one's really sure why it's there, but we all like to think it's because Gambino got a big head and just left it there after he found out he couldn't use it." Ian chuckled as he strode around the large machine. Zaki blinked rapidly, still a bit shocked by the large object, but she followed Ian, taking her eyes off the massive beast in the middle of the town.

"Woah, what a line." Ian suddenly said, he sounded shocked so Zaki glanced around him to observe, indeed there was a long line. "Oh, well, you can go back to...where ever your shop is if you want." she said glancing at Ian side-long.

"No, it's OK, I really think I ought to stay." Ian said, 'Josie might think she's a crack-head if I just leave her...'

Hours passed and finally, it was their turn, Zaki was beyond agitated and when Ian asked the woman handling the house business where Josie was, the woman merely shrugged, "All I know is that I am on duty... so what can I do for you?"

"I want a house." Zaki said flatly, her patience growing thinner by the second. "Oh yeah? Well, I want a flying horse too and you don't see me getting angry, but hey that's life! We don't always get what we want...currently there is a house shortage, how that happened I haven't the faintest, so if you don't have the cash..." before the woman could stop speaking, Zaki slammed her hands down on the table startling Ian and the woman.

"Look, I'm this close," she measured with her pointer and thumb a slim line in the air, "to wanting to just take the paper and be done, if you woke up the way I did you wouldn't be a very agreeable person either!" she hissed, her voice becoming menacing, further scaring Ian and the poor woman who was now quivering in her seat. "Now, just stamp the paper and give it to me! I'll pay the darn stinkin' money right here and now! So give me the gosh darn town-house before I flip this table over and take it without your help."

The woman slammed a huge stamp down on a piece of paper and shoved it at Zaki without a word, as Zaki placed a bag filled with gold on the table, she took the paper and stepped back, "Thank you." she said before spinning on her heel and getting out of line. Ian stared dumb-struck at Zaki, as if he'd never seen someone so violent before in his life. "Uhh, it looks...like you've got everything you need, so..I'll just be..ya know, going!" Ian took off in the direction of the exit to the town, leaving Zaki to stare curiously after him. 'Strange, I wonder what I did wrong...' she knew her reaction was odd, but she couldn't pin down why and so, she shoved it away and began her journey back to Barton, where apparently now she owned a townhouse in the small place.

It was when Zaki arrived and went inside, and dumped all the things out of the strange sack that she decided it was time to go for new clothes, everything in the bag wasn't anything that she could or would ever wear in public. Zaki sighed, though she may have no memories of the past, she knew on instinct that the clothes wouldn't do.

Zaki picked up a map from one of the stores and went back around Aekea and into the town of Durem, she glanced around a moment before strolling in the direction of Durem Depot. It sounded like a nice place for clothes, though Zaki wasn't entirely sure why, she stopped in front of the shop and stared in, it looked reasonable enough, with a sigh she pushed open the door, having no idea that from across the street, she was being watched...

Edmund, had fully intended on having a wonderful day, though with Louie living with him it made it rather impossible, but he would try his best no matter what, but everything came smashing to pieces when he saw her, he would know that girl anywhere. The only thing he didn't know was why she of all people would be wondering around town, alone. Edmund cursed under his breath and ran to the phone, dialing quickly.

"Gambino, we need to talk." he hissed.


To Be Continued...