The City of Ionia

We were at a massive shopping center that had multiple floors. Bodies were everywhere. Heads poked from above, making it impossible to see over the top. I kept getting bumped now and then, which was quite annoying. I shivered up like a crumpled leaf. It was way too crowded for my liking.

Harley dragged us to a few stores. We haven’t bought anything yet since nothing has popped out to us. But I couldn’t lie. It was pretty fun looking around and seeing everything. I wasn’t even sure if I wanted anything. Observing was good enough.

Somehow, we made it to a store that needed more people. It was in the top corner of the entire complex, so I’m guessing not many people knew about it. Harley pulled me to the feminine section, where she carefully examined the options. She then grabbed two pieces of clothing and held them up.

“Pick one.”

“They're both skirts.”

“No. This one goes a bit past your knee. And this one’s a miniskirt. Which do you prefer?”

“Is neither an option?”

Harley put the skirts back rather dramatically, “Fine. Ruby, you choose something for her. She doesn’t like anything I pick out.”

Was she really offended by that?

“Since winter is coming up, skirts aren’t an appropriate option. Have you considered a jacket and warm pants,” shrugged Ruby while picking a few pants for herself.

“But pants aren’t cute,” Harley pouted while slouching.

“I prefer comfort over looks.”

“Too bad. There’s a fitting room across the store. I’ll find a bunch of outfits for you to wear. Now go on, wear these skirts. I’ll find a cute top to go with them.”

Harley pushed me to the fitting room against my will. Neither Jeremy nor Ruby acknowledged Harley’s dominance. And it’s not like I could say no to her.

Curse her for always using her innocent voice to bend me to her ways.

I spent an eternity trying on clothes. I tried on everything from shoes to headbands. From bracelets to rings. From pants to jackets. I tried on the entire store. It was more exhausting than Randy’s training.

I could tell Harley was having a good time. She would slightly open the curtain with a smile, asking if I liked it while being out of breath. Yep, she ran around the store. What did the employees think while watching a lunatic zoom around with a mountain of clothes in their hands?

In the end, I only picked one outfit. A long-sleeved shirt with cargo pants, all black. Harley was a bit disappointed. After all the running around she did, I selected a basic outfit. I felt bad. At the same time, I didn’t care too much about clothing. As long as they fit and keep me comfortable.

“Are you sure you only want this? You can grab as much as you like. Just putting that out there.”

“Ya, I’m sure.”

Harley shrugged, “All right, whatever. If you say so.”

We rendezvous with Jeremy, who told us Ruby was in the washroom. He put his basket of clothes down and whispered something to Harley. She rolled her eyes while Jeremy was still going and pushed him away.

“Let’s make it quick before she returns,” she sighed.

We were in the sleepwear section, which wasn’t for men. It was all women's sleepwear. I was confused about why we were there, but Harley clarified the confusion without stuttering. Apparently, Harley said to Jeremy that he could pick out a night outfit for Ruby. Somehow, this was brought up after they both stormed out of the bakery. I didn’t want to know how it did. Harley tried to convince me that their conversation was sentimental and that this was her way of apologizing to Jeremy. It was one stupid way of apologizing.

“Hurry up and pick,” Harley pushed with impatience.

“Quiet. I’m thinking of the perfect color.”

“Just get the red one and move on with life.”

Jeremy held his finger up. “I can’t be so careless. Every color means something. For example, red can mean connected with love. If I were to get red, it would basically be confessing feelings, which would complicate our relationship.”

I interjected. “It’s already complicated.”

He ignored me, continuing with his speech. “White, however, is a pretty angelic color. That could be an option. Black is out of the picture. She isn’t sleeping at a funeral. Blue seems a bit kiddish…” His rambling would’ve continued the next day, but Harley slapped his nape, thankfully.

“Can you shut the hell up and pick a color? She’s gonna come back any second and question where we’ve been.”

“Alright, alright,” he said while holding his neck, “Je—ez.” His eyes were attached to a transparent bin on the right of where the nightwear was. He walked over, picking up something of interest.

“You’re not gonna find sleepwear there,” Harley sarcastically said.

“Forget that. Look.”

“Oh, it’s a pretty hairpin.” Harley turned towards me, sticking it through my hair. “Now you can’t hide those cute ears of yours.”

I took it off slowly, inspecting its design. “It’s a butterfly.” The butterfly hairpin was a work of art. The precise details on the wings of the butterfly were mesmerizing. Each scale was crafted to give the appearance of a real butterfly. The butterfly had tiny sparkling crystals which changed colors in light.

“There’s a few more of the same. You three can rock matching hairpins.”

“I can finally agree without an argument,” she smiled.

We looked around a bit more before heading to the register. We had a basket brimming with clothes (mainly Jeremy’s) and three hairpins, which were the finishing touches. The employee’s eyes sparkled when he saw the number of items we were purchasing. I guess they were making their money.

“Thirteen golden outis, please,” said the employee with a welcoming smile.

While Harley fished through her deep pockets, I leaned into Jeremy’s ear, whispering, “What are golden outis?”

“Have you been living under a rock,” he rudely asked while matching my voice.

“Just answer the question.”

“It’s a normal outis coin but worth like ten times more. There’s silver as well, but everyday people don’t normally use those. Normal people use regular copper coins. They probably will never get to touch a golden outis coin. It’s usually the rich folks who handle big money.”

“I see…”

Harley handed the cashier the proper amount. With a smile, he waved goodbye to us as we exited the store. We ran into Ruby a few seconds later. She sat alone on a bench just outside the store we were in. She was sipping on tea (presumably jasmine), staring at the wall with no emotion. Her mind seemed a million miles away as she sat lost in her thoughts. Her gaze was fixed on a point as if she was seeing something that no one else could. That wasn’t until Harley disrupted her loneliness by shouting her name.

“Oh, you’re back.”

“Why are you sitting alone?” asked Jeremy in a concerning manner.

“They have a no food or drink sign, and I didn’t want to disobey it. Forget about me. Are you all set with your shopping?”

We simultaneously nodded our heads.

She stood up, her cup resting in both hands. “Good. Alright then, there’s somewhere I want to go. You’re welcome to come if you like.”

Without hesitation, we followed her to the edge of town. Similar to the shop, this place felt deserted compared to everything else. Sure, people carelessly roaming around, but it wasn’t comparable to the center. That was an utter nightmare.

Harley’s eyebrows narrowed, giving off a sassy expression. “Another cafe?”

“It’s not a normal cafe.”

We followed Ruby through the entrance and realized her words.

“Cats!” I collapsed on my knees and was greeted by the soft meows and purring of the resident cats. Their fur was so smooth I wanted to use it as a pillow. But that would be detrimental for the cats.

Harley and Jeremy didn't have the same reaction as me. Jeremy plugged his nose, complaining about how the place smelled like litter. After a quick scan of the room, I spotted around fifteen cats. Even with a few, the place isn’t going to smell great. Harley, however, didn’t care. With her arms crossed, she ignored the fuzz ball’s existence.

An employee greeted us while walking over. She was slightly overweight, similar to the cat I was petting.

“Is Kirei here?” Ruby asked while her eyes darted around.

The employee’s face sank briefly. “I’m sorry, Kirei passed away a few months ago.”

Ruby’s eyes widened, rapidly blinking a few times. Once they reverted to normal, she said, “Is that so? Well then, I’ll take my leave,” and turned around towards the exit.

“Um, we have other cats if you’re interested.”

Ruby stopped in her tracks but didn’t say anything. Was she considering staying? That question circled my head until Ruby left the shop. I was bummed since I wanted to play with the cats a bit longer.

“Ruby, what’s wrong? Didn’t you want to go here?” Harley asked once we were outside.

With her back towards us, she uttered, “Not anymore.”

“You’re not gonna tell us anything? Damn, you’re secretive.”

“C’mon Ruby, spit something out.”

The two kept nagging at Ruby without consideration. Ruby stood there, taking the rampaging questions as if she was immune to them. She tried his best to ignore them, keeping her head down and fixed on the pavement in front. Her fists squeezed as if she held onto dear life. She squeezed so hard I felt her long nails digging into her palms. That thought alone made me check my own hands.

“Have you ever been so lost that you need something to cling onto? Have the thoughts of despair overshadowed your happiness?”

Her words were heavy with sadness. Every syllable was weighted down with an overwhelming sense of despair. It was as if each word was a burden too heavy to bear, and she could barely force them out.

She continued. “Kirei was my sense of comfort. Before every raid, I visited this tiny cafe to see Kirei. But now, he’s gone. I can never feel the warmth of his body. How he looked at me with those big, beautiful eyes, like he could see into my soul, will never…”

The sky was a gloomy shade of gray, as thick clouds hung low in the sky. The sun hadn’t shown itself. Why was that? An essential being to life. Without it, there wouldn’t be us. So why did the sun not show its bright face? Like the sun, why did Ruby, an essential figure in the Bariac Cult, refuse to show her face?

“Ruby… I—”

Jeremy tried to speak but couldn’t once he saw Ruby’s face.

A lone tear rolled down her face. A silent testament to the emotions that whirled within her. A single drop of sadness that made us paralyzed. She stood there, motionless, as the tear made its way down her face and fell to the ground.

We were all caught by surprise. Ruby never showed this level of emotion. Never once have I seen her mad, let alone cry.

Harley once told me that Ruby hardly showed affection, but deep down, she cares as much as a mother would. This was one of those times.

All she had were memories. That was all she had to hold. She couldn’t grab anything else. Kirei would never walk this planet again.

“I’m going back to camp. Stay here for a bit longer.” As she walked away, her head hung low, and her shoulders slumped

We didn’t follow her. We couldn’t even move. Shocked by a single tear, Harley and Jeremy shared a whimper. I, however, looked back at the cafe, wondering if there was any way to cheer her up.