The desolate streets mirror the feeling of helplessness. An ashy gray blankets the sky. The stone buildings loom above, shrieks of passing wind echo through their alleyways.

Among the barren roads walks a boy. Aimlessly wandering under the haunting clouds. A singular child dragging his feet along the lonely pavement.

Devoid of sounds. Devoid of people. Devoid of purpose.

Hours pass. The brewing storm still hangs above. Still the same shade of nothing.

He saunters along the mountainous walls of the city. Thier colossal size puts into perspective how small he really is.

He's in another world. A likely massive, expansive world full of billions of people and animals. Each one likely has problems, things they wish they could do.

The thought makes him feel his own problems are even more insignificant.

Hoary visions of the past assault his tired mind. Melancholic moments of himself as a boy. Lost in a rain infested city, calling out for his unseen mother.

How old was he? Four? Five? It feels so long ago, the memory is washed in uncertainty. Yet the feeling from then translates to now. Lost and alone. Without knowing what to do.

If what that man said is true... this memory too will fade.

...

A narrow divergence in the wall stops his drifting. An extensive corridor covered in shadows. He pushes the hesitance to the back of his thoughts. What else am I going to do?

Quiet footsteps reverberate down the dingy passage. Normally, this kind of alley would invoke fear or unease. Right now, he just wants to reach its end. He doesn't care.

As he steps through the grimy hall, a torrent of childhood impressions remind him of those times. His brother runs by. Him and Canopus playing hide and seek in their old neighborhood. No matter how much time passes, those childish games stick with him.

Or rather, the feelings he had when playing them.

The corridor comes to a fork. To the left, a hefty wooden door. The thick metal lock tells him it's impassable. To the right, the hall stretches further. At its end is the soft glow of natural light.

He approaches the light; a slim metal gate stands at the source. The smell of humid air rushes inside the narrow passage. The hollowing melody of a gale echoes through the hall.

He stops at the foot of the gate. It's flimsy, it could be easily kicked down. There is no handle, so he presses his fingertips on the rusty door. It opens grudgingly, releasing a clamorous creaking song.

Another memory steps forth. He's seen a gate like this before. Back in elementary school, him and Canopus would explore the woods behind their house. Deep in the trees was an abandoned gate much like this one.

The brothers always imagined it a portal to another world. Repeatedly, they would pass through the frail bars, hearing its hinges squeal. Why are these memories coming back now? I haven't thought of them in so long...

He steps through the gateway, planting his feet into the checkered grass beyond.

The sprawling plains of grass mean he's outside of the capital. Auretta seems to rest on top of a highly elevated hill. Walking out into the lone greenery, he spots a distant incline wrapping towards what he assumes the entrance to the city. A handful of carriages ride along the natural ramp. They look like ants; they're so far away. The walls of the city stretch so far, he can't see any other paths.

He stands in a secluded patch of grass. There is nowhere to go from here. The gate has led him to a cliff. A large overhang overlooking the fields and distant mountains. It's strange, there are large gates in the city leading outside the walls, surely, they can't just lead to cliffs. Maybe it's just this gate that leads to one?

On the edge of the cliff rests a massive draping tree. Its knotted roots hang over the edge. The braided green and white leaves pop out amidst the shrouded sky.

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Sirius walks towards the towering tree, its grandeur almost beckoning him. A gentle breeze sweeps by. His feet shuffle in the tall grass. He reaches the zenith of the green slope. Weeping leaves hang over the boy's head.

His eyes stare at the expansive view. What should be wonder, only leaves him feeling smaller.

His mother used to take him to sights such as these. They would ride their bikes over hills, just to reach the view at the summits. But those sights were beautiful. Those sights were seen through youthful eyes.

A dull gray envelops the sky. The sun no longer shines on the bleak horizon. Even in a new world, everything seems so dreary.

-When did life lose all its color?

...

"Man, that's quite the view."

The boy Sirius thought he abandoned stands right beside him. It doesn't quite sink in at first. Sirius has to double take.

Sirius steps back a little.

"W-When did you get here?"

"Huh? Oh, I've been following you the whole time."

"...Seriously?"

Sirius can't help but pity his own lack of self-awareness.

"Well, not the whole time. I lost you for quite a while, but then I saw you moping around. I didn't want to bother you, so I just trailed you. Dang, that alleyway was creepy. When you opened that gate, the sound almost gave me a heart attack."

Korlin is his usual chipper self.

"Ah... sorry." Sirius doesn't know what to say. He feels ashamed. "Look, sorry for... running off back there. I just got... overwhelmed, I guess."

Korlin lightly punches Sirius on the shoulder. "Don't worry about it. I get it." His soft smile calms Sirius.

Sirius slaps his hands over his face and lets out a groan. He tucks down and sits, only a leg-length away from the edge of the cliff. "I'm so stupid."

"Maybe a little, but anyone would have reacted that way." Korlin sits down beside Sirius. Both stare off towards the faded mountains.

"You didn't."

"True... I don't know, I just... don't feel scared. Maybe it hasn't hit me yet. Maybe I don't even care..."

-Scared? Am I scared of something?

Both of them sit quietly. The breeze gently brushes against their hair.

It's peaceful. It's like a tiny corner of the world pieced off just for them.

They sit with their thoughts. So much to say, no knowledge of how to say it. Sirius looks up at the tree's branches.

"There was a tree like this back in my hometown." Melancholy laces the words. "My... brother and I would always run out through a field to get to it. We would play there for hours, sometimes with other kids too. It was... fun." The dragging wind speeds up. Sirius buries his head in his sleeve. "I... miss the old me."

"...Yeah," Korlin's word is drowned out by the howling air. Suffocating desolation embraces the cold children.

Sirius struggles to say any further words. He's choking on his own thoughts. He doesn't know why, but he wants to tell him... something.

"I... used to be such a happy kid." For the first time in his life, he opens the floodgates of his thoughts. "Carefree, just going by and enjoying life. I hung out with friends every day, going to sleepovers, birthday parties... But now..." Sirius trails off and buries himself deeper. "What happened to me?"

The ambience of an incoming storm both soothes and shivers.

"...I get it." Sirius turns his attention to Korlin, his head still stuffed in his arms. "When I was a kid, my friends and I would ride our bikes until sunset, going to stores and messing around, laughing the whole time..." The boy sucks in a weak breath. "I lost all my friends and closed myself in. And I... never tried again. My only friend was my sister, but that was... kind of sad." He lets out a feeble chuckle. They both do. "I only did stuff I wanted to do and yet... none of it made me happy."

The haunting shrill of nature nestles their ears. The silence among them isn't awkward, it's peaceful. Comforting.

Hearing the boy's story, the looming question reenters Sirius' mind. Seeking validation, maybe confirmation, he asks it.

"Do you... want to keep your memories?"

Korlin thinks about it a moment. "...I don't know. Do you?"

"I... don't know either. It'd be nice to keep the happy stuff, but at the same time... all it causes me is regret. It reminds me of how much of an idiot I am."

"Nostalgia is a hell of a drug."

"Yeah... do you... want to remember your sister?"

The question strikes Korlin. He seems shocked.

"Well... yeah but... heh, she was the only person who seemed to care for me. The only person I cared for. That made me happy, but... it still made me feel lonely. Maybe she was just pitying me."

Sirius remembers the pity he felt in those eyes previously. The pity he hates so much. But right now, it doesn't matter. He doesn't feel that hatred. In fact, he can feel their bond growing closer.

And that scares him.

Korlin's throat swallows harshly. His hands begin to shake. "And what happened at the end... I don't want to remember that."

Korlin is on the verge of tears.

...

"What... happened at the end?"

"..."

Sirius remembers the instant Korlin burst from the ground. He desperately shouted someone's name...

Zora.

They sit together in blissful silence. Watching the tree blow in the passing wind.

For some reason, the thought of Korlin's sister brings up memories of his mother.

"I-" Sirius chokes up. He fakes a cough in his arm to play it off. He rapidly blinks to sell the act more. "Sorry."

Korlin smiles sadly. A warm tear trickles down his cheek.

"It's okay to cry you know."

Sirius is taken aback. It is the same words his mother told him after his dog passed.

"I'm not going to cry. I would never cry in front of someone." He coughs one last time. "Besides, I only cry for other people. I wouldn't cry over myself like that."

"...You're an interesting man, Sirius."

"That so?"

"I think we are more alike than I thought."