As the hours slipped by at work, nightfall quietly settled upon us. After closing the cafe, we made our way home. The night was serene, with no clouds and stars shining brightly. A cold wind breezed past, and one could hear the rustling of the leaves.

But my heart was beating furiously, in stark contrast to the calm night. Tomorrow was the day we had decided to visit my childhood home, the cottage where I had lived with my mother. I had checked it one last time just after meeting with Sunny, it's been years since.

I have always had these strange visions, but rarely I was able to make sense of them. They usually came in the form of nightmares, disjointed and confusing. Nothing ever seemed clear, just small, subtle hints.

As a child, I mostly ignored them since they were rare occurrences, but soon I started noticing patterns, similarities between these nightmares and real-life events.

At first, I speculated that they were warnings, omens of something bad about to happen. And to some extent, I was right.. they always appeared before a tragic event. But there was a problem, these 'warnings' didn't come every time, and that left me confused.

The most troubling issue was that they never revealed anything concrete, not even a glimpse of the tragedy that was about to unfold. The visions seemed irrelevant, often tied to my past traumas. It was up to me to stay sharp, to keep an eye on any anomaly. And though not particularly useful, they forced me to stay vigilant. It was one of the reasons I suspected something was wrong with Lily and the car.

But the vision I saw yesterday was different. It wasn't a nightmare, nor was it related to any of my traumas. It was the first time I had experienced something like that. It was clear, I saw something there. What did it mean? What was the shape about? Was it one of the only things my mother had left me?

I wasn't sure, but I was about to find out. We were going there tomorrow for the same reason.

We reached home and I went to sleep. Tomorrow was going to be a long day.

---

It was around 10 in the morning when I reached our meeting place. The same 'cafe' as before.

Toby spotted me from afar, his eyes narrowing, his expression a mixture of confusion and something... off.

The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

"What's she doing here?"

I glanced down at Sylvie, her small hand clutching mine. I sighed.

"Long story short, I couldn't bring myself to leave her behind. Especially after everything we talked about."

I almost mentioned the part about people targeting me, but held back.

"Sylvia, say hello to Uncle Toby. He's Papa's friend."

Sylvie hesitated but stepped forward, introducing herself. Toby smiled, though there was a trace of unease in his eyes as he greeted her.

"Nice to meet you, Sylvie. Now, if you don't mind, could I speak with your father alone?"

She lingered for a moment, unsure, but eventually nodded. Toby gestured for me to step aside, his voice dropping to a sharp whisper

"Sirius, we're not here for a picnic. I can't possibly understand what that mind of yours was thinking bringing a child with you? "

I'd expected this, the moment I made the decision to bring her. The headache had been inevitable.

"I don't know, Toby. I wasn't planning on it initially, but then I thought.. what if something happened while I was gone? I know it's not the brightest idea, but at least this way, I can protect her if anything goes wrong."

My voice was quieter than I intended.

Toby's expression remained unconvinced, and to be honest, I wasn't entirely convinced either. But what choice did I have?

"And what if someone targets you? You've brought her right into the line of fire."

"Yeah, I've thought about that too," I muttered. "But I couldn't come up with a better plan. The last thing I wanted was to go home and see her de- "

I couldn't complete my sentence, my words faltered. Maybe it was the weight of Lily's death still pressing on me, or maybe I was just losing it.

Or maybe it was simpler than that.. just a father trying, in his own desperate way, to keep his daughter safe.

There was a moment of silence. Toby closed his eyes, as if carefully weighing my words. Despite his usual lighthearted, joke-cracking demeanor, deep down, he was a serious and responsible man.

I sometimes wondered if this persona was a facade to keep himself sane. Afterall, we all wear masks, and not just one but multiple.

"Alright, but keep your guard up "

He continued with a cold smile. " And if a situation arise, where I have to choose between saving you and her, keep in mind that I will be saving this child."

I merely smiled and nodded. I would want that as well. Glancing back at Sylvie, I found her trying her best to somehow eavesdrop but failing miserably.

" Were you perchance trying to eavesdrop, dear Sylv? "

Her eyes widened in surprise. She didn't expect me to voice it, but she was my daughter after all. How could she just accept it? Her expression returned to innocence real quick.

" Hawww... ofc not. " She placed her hand over her mouth, mimicking the sound with exaggerated playfulness.

" I would never do such a thing! Eavesdropping is bad... very bad. Didn't you teach me yourself ? "

I rolled my eyes at her antics and left her be. But inside, I was glad to see her act that way. It was much less than it had been, but she was trying, and so was I, to be normal.

" Btw, where are we going papa? "

" We are going to a special place, a place where your father grew up " I replied.

She looked at me with curiousity. Maybe she was thinking about the place and imagining how and what it would be.

With a nod, I gestured for Toby to move on. We made our way to the nearby parking lot where his car waited.

I felt somewhat nostalgic seeing that car; after all, it was the car we relied on the most.

It was about a two-hour drive to the mountains, and during the trip, Toby and I discussed a lot of things. The words that couldn't be spoken aloud were communicated through our eyes. After working together for so long, we didn't need many words to understand each other.