So you think you can tell heaven from hell,
Blue skies from pain?
Can you tell a green field
from a cold, still rail?
A smile from a veil?
-Pink Floyd
"Wish you were here"

Someone was most asuredly cooking sausages. God, they smelled really good. Now, would he rather get out of bed and consume said sausages or stay here and sleep more? This was truly a puzzling question. Quite notably he hadn't slept for nigh on a week until now. But he also hadn't eaten anything but Jell-O and the occasional chip. There was also probably coffee accompanying the sausages. Oh, and scones! With honey! Nice and warm with their golden, flaky goodness...

Clearly, the sausages were winning.

Fordo's eyes blinked open and registered the pile across from them. He was in the loft, he remembered, in the Green house. He was free. Suddenly, a huge need came over him to thank the girl who'd helped him. After all, he couldn't remember having done so and it was certainly in order.

He sat up and looked around him. There were tiny windows all around the loft that let the feeble morning light flow in. The sky outside told him it was still early, seven at the most. He turned to the foot of the mattress, or at least what he considered the foot of the bed. "Hey, I just wanted to HOLY SHITE!"

The creature at his feet jumped about ten metres at his scream. "What the hell's the matter?"

"Who're you?!?" It was female, judging from voice and body structure but he wasn't sure. She had black hair and large, currently terrified Asian eyes. But her body...Christ, it was blue! Out from under the covers came a long blue tail with a spear-like end and a mind of its own. He gaped fearfully. "What've you done with her?!?"

"Her? 'Ho's-" She paused and looked down at the covers. "What do I look like right now?" she asked quietly.

"I sure as hell don't know!"

She swallowed, still staring at the covers. "Do I have a tail?"

"Shouldn't you know that?!?"

"Is that an affirmative statement?"

"I should hope so!"

The creature sighed. "Damn, damn, damn, damn, DAMN."

"Is everything all-right up there?" Mrs. Green was below them.

"Someone's here, ma'am," yelled Fordo.

The girl threw him a withering glance and wrestled out of the bed. She went to the ladder and lowered it to the floor, following after Mrs. Green had fully secured it. "G'morning, Rosie."

"What's the matter, dearie?"

"I forgot to tell him about it," she replied.

"About what, Hiro-" She stopped. "Oh, love. You didn't, did you?"

"Would someone kindly tell me what the hell is going on?!?" Fordo demanded from his perch in the loft.

"I did."

Shaking her head sadly, Mrs. Green turned to look up at him. "It's all-right, love. Come down; your breakfast's getting cold. I daresay you've given my six-year-old a more colourful vocabulary..."

The girl followed her down the stairs and, he assumed, to the kitchen. Fordo was shaking all over and utterly confused, but climbed down the ladder none the less. He too wandered down the stairs and found the kitchen bustling with activity. A small boy with flaming red hair tripped over his shoelaces as he ran to greet him.

"Tommy, slow down. You'll have to learn to tie your shoes before you run in the house." Mrs. Green set two heaping plates of scones, sausages and cheese at the huge table near the centre of the room. "Please sit, Fordo." She offered a seat across from the person he'd woken up to. "I assure you Hiroko will explain everything."

"Hiroko?" His eyes widened on the girl who smiled feebly.

"G'...G'morning."

"What the f-" Mrs. Green coughed from the sink. "I mean, what...what happened?"

"Well, I sort of...forgot."

"Forgot what?"

"To tell you that I...don't look like what...you thought I did."

He blinked. "Excuse me?"

"Please sit, Fordo-san. You're making me nervous!" Something about her pleading eyes made him unable to resist. He went to the chair and sat down, still completely aghast at the current situation.

Mrs. Green floated over, somehow balancing a pot of tea, two cups and the honey jar. "I promise you, it's not poisoned. All-though it may be frigid by the time you get to it." She set down her burden and looked expectantly at her guests. "Eat up!"

Hiroko poured herself some tea and continued to explain. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you before. Basil tells me that I shouldn't meet people looking like myself because then they'll get scared and won't want to join. See, I have these...abilities that let me make people believe anything I want them to. So I can make them see me without seeing me."

Fordo paused halfway through a scone. "Not following."

Her eyes rolled. "I'm telepathic...sort of. That's the technical term at least."

"How does this relate to the whole blue thing?"

She swallowed some tea. "Born with it. Don't know why."

He watched her for a moment. "Is it medical or something?"

"Probably." She started cutting a sausage. "No one I've met could ever explain it and, after a while, I stopped asking."

"So why'd I see you today if you didn't want me to?"

"I can't control it when I'm asleep and once I was awake, I'd completely forgotten about it."

Looking at her now, Fordo thought it obvious for this girl to be the one he knew. She looked exactly the same...minus the tail and blue...ness. But that didn't matter, really. It had shocked him initially, yes. But part of that was simply that she was not what he'd been expecting. Of course, he'd been taken aback, he wouldn't deny that. However he could think of no one who wouldn't freak out a bit. After all, it wasn't very often you woke to see someone you know be a completely different person. It was, well, weird.

"I wasn't lying about those sausages. They are getting cold." Mrs. Green brought over two bowls of steaming porridge and set them down before Hiroko and Fordo. He picked out a sausage and ate gratefully. God, he missed solid food. Too much Jell-O did that to you.

*

Mr. Green brought out the truck after breakfast to check the oil and get ready for their trip into town. Up in the loft, Fordo packed up his bag and Hiroko finished pulling up her hair. Though everything seemed in order, she sensed a prescense that did not seem so light in tone.

"Is something wrong, Fordo?"

He was silent for a moment, pondering over whether he should bother bringing it up. "Why are you helping me, miss?"

Questions she couldn't answer had always bothered Hiroko. He was watching her, waiting for an answer. She smiled sadly and set a hand kindly on his shoulder. "Now is neither the time nor place for me to tell you that, Fordo-san." She turned towards the ladder.

"Then when?" His voice seemed somwhat lost.

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There was another short part that basically said "and then they left" but I hate it so it's not there anymore. For those of you who wouldn't know what the crap is going on next chapter, they're leaving and going to Westmarch. Just so you know.

Even though practically no one read Kap. 11, even though some of you had no excuse *glares at non Les Mis-ers*, I put up Twelve because I have too much written and want it read. So do so. Please.

Kirily WOod.