Chapter 8Tragedy sat rocking back and forth with a blanket pulled tightly around his shoulders as the rain pelted down around him. It had been a week since Mijahu stormed off, a week he had spent alone. A few days ago he searched the ruins and even climbed the large hill to see if he could spot anyone else. It was worthless. They were all gone. With nobody around, he befriended a volleyball named Wilson, or Willis for short. Now, Willis stared blankly at him from a tree stump as streaks of lightning crossed the sky. Tragedy whimpered and curled into a ball, attempting to have a good night’s sleep.
As the sun rose the next day, three figures stood watching him sleep from the edge of the forest.
“Maybe we should do it today,” said the first.
“No,” said the second. “He’s not ready.”
“How can you be sure of that?” the first asked.
“We can’t be sure,” the third said, looking at the other two. “He’s spent a week alone now. It’s hard to say whether it’s the right time.”
“You’re not suggesting that we reveal ourselves?” the second questioned.
“That could be risky,” the first added. “All this progress for nothing.”
“We’re not even sure if he’s made any progress,” the third retorted. “It has to be done. Tonight.” The other two were hesitant but eventually they nodded in agreement. It was time.
That day Tragedy walked back to the ruins with Willis under his arm. Occasionally he would mumble a few incoherent remarks to his friend, who would stare back in response. He built a fire and cooked some scraps as the evening drew closer. He ate slowly, thinking about everything that had happened over the past couple of weeks. It still made no sense, no matter how hard he tried to piece things together. At this stage he welcomed capture, if only to save him from this solitary hell. The sun set and he sat beside the fire.
“Do you see that?” he asked, pointing to the edge of the forest.
“…” Willis said.
“There, coming towards us. Three people.” He watched them approach and felt a surge of emotions. Not only was it nice to see real people again, but these faces were familiar.
***
One week earlier…Mijahu looked at the three figures surrounding him and nodded.
“Yeah,” he said quietly. “I think I do.”
He knew these people. They were residents of 667 Dark Avenue. Their names were Libitina, Katekor and Emma Squalor.
“You’re the ones that keep taking us, aren’t you?” he asked.
“Yes,” Libitina said. “I’m sorry about the stress we’ve put you under but it was necessary.”
“That’s right,” said Emma. “You wouldn’t have learned your lesson otherwise.”
“Wait,” Mijahu said, confused. “The others…”
“Are back home, at 667,” Katekor said, putting her hand on his shoulder. “They’re better now.”
“Better?” Mijahu asked.
“You were all chosen for a reason,” Libitina said. “667 has been suffering. People haven’t had the same respect for our community as they used to. Certain people were particularly responsible.”
“You mean us,” Mijahu said, referring to the sinners.
“We brought you here to UE to teach you a lesson,” Katekor said. “Each of you needed to have this experience as a kind of purge. The others redeemed themselves earlier. Now you have too, after climbing this hill without stopping.”
“You’ve proven yourself,” Emma agreed. “You’re not the same Mijahu any more. We’re impressed.”
“Thanks,” Mijahu said. “But I’m still confused. How did we get here?”
“Emma’s sister used to live here,” Libitina said. “She told her that the citizens of UE were leaving a few months ago. Emma told her they should make their way to the city. They took her advice, some even taking apartments in our building. So we knew UE was deserted.”
“The next step was simple” Katekor said. “I flirted with Tragedy for a few minutes the day before you got here. I took the keys from his pocket as I hugged him goodbye. That night we took you from your rooms.”
“It was a rash decision,” Emma said, “but we realised we needed to burn down the UE village once we got here. We couldn’t risk any of you finding evidence that we were involved, like my sister’s letters.”
“I did find a letter this morning,” Mijahu said. “But it was written by the president. Things make more sense now.” He smiled and let out a sigh of relief. It had been a tough week but, in retrospect, maybe he needed it. It was true; he had abandoned his sloth and now felt like a fuller person. He was grateful. The saviours took him by the hands and led him back down the hill.
“Let’s go home,” they said.
***
Tragedy stood up as the saviours got closer.
“Ladies!” he said smoothly. “Aren’t you a sight for sore eyes?”
“Ugh, I told you this was a mistake,” Katekor said. “He hasn’t learnt a thing!”
“Give him a chance,” Libitina hissed. They walked over to the fire and sat down.
“Hello, Tragedy,” Emma said. “How are you doing?”
“I’m fine now that you’re here,” he said, winking. “I don’t believe you’ve met my friend Willis.” He motioned to the volleyball lying nearby.
“…” Willis said.
“He’s perverted and he’s mad,” Katekor said. “We got this all wrong.”
“Maybe Katekor’s right,” Emma said. “It might be time to give up.” Libitina frowned. She had an idea but wasn’t sure if it would work. Well, it was their last chance. She moved over to Tragedy’s side. Slowly, she put an arm around his shoulder, tickling his neck as she did so.
“Oh, Tragedy,” she sighed. “You’ve had a tough couple of weeks, haven’t you?”
“What’s she doing?” Katekor whispered.
“I have no idea,” Emma replied.
“Oh, you know me,” Tragedy said. “I’ll survive. Especially now that I have you girls for company.” Libby squirmed but kept smiling.
“Oh stop,” she said. “You’re too kind. There’s just one problem…”
“What’s that?” he asked.
“Well, you don’t belong here. This isn’t your home.” A flicker of pain crossed Tragedy’s face as he thought about 667.
“Oh… well it’s not so bad here,” he said. “I mean, it’s no Dark Avenue, but…”
“You miss it, don’t you?” Libitina asked. “667 misses you too, you know. Some girl that keeps rolling her eyes took over your position as landlord and the tenants aren’t happy at all. They need you. Of course, we’d stay here with you if you like. But 667 will never be the same again.”
Tragedy had never felt this way before. Here were three women offering themselves to him and for some reason he felt compelled to turn them down. It was a revelation that he hadn’t expected. Sometimes it’s hard to see how much you love something until it’s gone. In Tragedy’s case that something was his home. 667 was the only woman he needed.
“Libitina, Emma, Katekor,” he announced, standing up. “It’s time to go home.”
The saviours agreed.
With an admin power surge, Tragedy reclaimed his title of landlord of 667 Dark Avenue. His fellow ex-sinners were waiting for him with a party when he returned.
“It’s nice to see you again,” Elle said, with her arm around TK’s shoulder.
“We weren’t sure if you’d make it,” Dante said as he offered Charlotte a pastry. She politely declined. Shelly, her leg fully healed, was laughing at Mijahu who was doing an energetic dance. BSam and Trikip shook one of his hands each and then ran off to play a prank on some unsuspecting 667ers. Libitina, Emma and Katekor patted him on the back and tapped a fork against their glasses for attention. Once the noise had died down, they stood up.
“Thank you all for coming here tonight,” Emma said. “You all know by now what our friends have been through. I’m sure they’ll be recounting the story for years to come. Of course, there has been a purpose behind it all.” At this she raised her glass.
“To friendship,” she said.
“To peace,” Katekor said.
“To virtue,” Libitina said.
“To 667 Dark Avenue!” the 667ers cheered.
THE END