Naru and Umino sat at the end of the dock at the lake, dangling their bare feet into the cool water. It was the middle of a weekday morning, and the park was nearly deserted. Naru was cutting a University class, and Umino had ended up not starting classes at all. "Umino, are you sure about going?" Naru asked.

Umino was silent for a moment. "I'm positive this dock is thirteen centimeters shorter than the old one."

"Please don't try to change the subject, Umino. Do you really want to go away for a whole year?"

"Naru-chan, this is a great opportunity for me. Usually only fourth-year students and grad students get invited to go on these field research trips. It's a big honor, and there's no way I could turn it down, even if I wanted to. You could still come with, though. That position I told you about, for a porter and cook, is still open."

"Like I really want to spend my first year of University hauling luggage around the Amazon jungle and cooking over campfires while you look at gigantic bugs. Honestly, Umino."

"I told you, it isn't campfires, it's gas stoves. And at least half the time would be spent at the base camp."

Naru didn't deign to respond to this.

"Besides," Umino went on, "what are you doing here that's so exciting? I mean, child development and psychology?"

"It's what I'm interested in. I want to be a counselor or something like that, to help kids." Especially teenage girls who are as messed up inside as I am, she added silently.

Neither of them spoke for a few minutes. Naru had a sudden longing to tell Umino she would go with him, even if it did mean hauling luggage and cooking over campfires for a year. Anything to keep from being left alone with the darkness that lay just beneath the surface of her consciousness, that inexplicable and frightening sorrow and loneliness that she was sure would overwhelm her, smother her, bury her, if she tried to look at it.

But it wasn't fair to Umino for her to cling to him just because she was afraid of being lonely and sad. And she doubted that being a porter/cook on a research expedition in the Amazon jungle for a year would do anything to banish the darkness. If anything, it might only make things worse....

"Umino, there'll be girls along on this trip, won't there?"

"Of course. Women can be entomologists too, you know."

"So you might meet someone that you have more in common with than you do with me."

"It's possible," Umino said carefully, his expression unreadable behind his thick round glasses.

Umino was crazy about her; Naru knew that. But she also knew that, more and more, he wasn't always happy with their relationship. This was her fault. It was so hard sometimes to hide her boredom when he got started on his favorite subjects, computers and insects, or her embarrassment when he was acting especially geeky. When the day came that Umino found a girl who shared his interests and appreciated his uniqueness, Naru knew that she would probably end up on the losing side. That was okay, she wanted Umino to be happy, but she didn't think she could handle being dumped. It would be better to take defensive measures now. "If you do meet someone, I don't want you to feel like you owe it to me to not get involved," Naru said.

"I guess I feel the same way," Umino said. "I mean, you might meet someone too. We never did have much in common."

"No..."

"And who knows, maybe we'll get back together again after I come home."

"Maybe." And it was over, Naru thought, just like that. She had always thought she would either be relieved or heartbroken when this day came, but all she felt was a little bit of numb sadness. She liked Umino, they had had some good times together, and he had kept her from having to face the darkness inside her. But they were growing up, and away from each other, and maybe it really was time to move on. She didn't want to keep him away from the grand adventure that was waiting for him, and just as much, she didn't want to share in that particular adventure.

Umino rubbed a hand through his dark hair, making it stand on end. "I'll be pretty busy next week, getting ready to leave," he said, "so I might not have a chance to see you very much. So maybe we'd better say goodbye now."

"Okay," Naru said. She and Umino leaned towards each other, and their lips barely touched.

"Aaahh!"

Before Naru could look up, something struck her head a glancing blow and knocked her into the pond. She was a strong swimmer, and was able to get her head back above water easily, but she barely had time to gasp for breath and notice a red-haired child splashing in the water near her when there was another yell. Something else landed on her shoulders, pushing her back down under the water.

Naru disentangled herself and swam back up. "Naru!" Umino shouted. "Are you okay?" He reached down a hand to pull her out of the lake. Naru managed to get one knee back up onto the dock.

"Loook out!" Something knocked her back into the water again.

Naru pulled herself up, sputtering and gasping and clinging to the pilings of the dock. Two red-haired children, a boy and a girl by the looks of it, and a slightly older girl with blond hair were treading water. "Where's Tosh -" the boy started to say. His words were cut off by a fourth yell, "Hey, here I cooome!"

Another child splashed into the lake. Naru was just able to duck out of the way and avoid being knocked underwater again. A yellow-haired boy bobbed to the surface, then all four of the children swam to the dock and started pulling themselves out of the water. Umino straightened his glasses and stared at them with his mouth wide open. "It's raining kids," he finally said.

Naru climbed onto the dock and reached down a hand to help the red-haired girl up. Something about the shape of the girl's face and eyes made Naru suddenly feel as if she knew her. But she had never seen any of these kids before in her life. "Are you guys okay?" she asked as soon as all four were huddled, dripping but safe, on the dock.

They nodded, staring at her as they pressed close together. The boy and girl with red hair and greenish-blue eyes were clearly brother and sister, and from their similar size Naru guessed that they were very close in age, possibly even twins. They looked about eight or nine years old. The blond boy with violet-blue eyes looked about the same age, and didn't appear to be related to them. The other girl was tall, with golden hair and strange pale gray eyes. Judging by her not-fully-developed figure, Naru put her age at about twelve. They were all wearing outfits that looked vaguely like school uniforms, dark blue pants and skirts with white sailor shirts and blouses, but Naru couldn't connect them with any school that she knew.

"Where did you all come from?" Naru asked. "Are you lost?"

"Maybe they fell out of an airplane," Umino said.

Naru rolled her eyes. She did that a lot around Umino, though she knew she shouldn't and she felt kind of bad about it, but sometimes she couldn't help it. For someone so smart, Umino could be very disconnected from reality. "If they'd fallen out of an airplane, they probably would have been killed," she said. But she couldn't really think of another explanation. "Where are your parents?" she asked the children.

They glanced at each other, then the older girl spoke. "They couldn't come with us."

"Oh." That wasn't very helpful. "Well, is there somewhere where you're supposed to be?"

"Here," the same girl said.

"Don't you have relatives or anyone to meet you?"

The four of them traded glances again. The red-haired boy said, "You -" then was cut off when his sister said, "Be quiet. She'll think we're crazy."

"But -" the boy started to protest.

"Mitsu's right," the older girl said. "We'd better wait until we're sure."

Naru sighed. Maybe they were being deliberately obtuse in order to tease her. But their mysterious behavior certainly went along with their bizarre, spectacular arrival. "I guess I'd better look after you until we get this sorted out. What are your names?"

"I'm Meiko, and this is my sister Mitsu," the red-haired boy said. "We're twins."

"I thought so." Naru smiled at them. They were cute, with their big greenish-blue eyes and thick, wavy hair that was turning out, as it dried, to be a color between bright red and auburn. Again, something about the shape of their faces seemed familiar, just for a fleeting moment, but she couldn't place it.

"I'm Toshiro," the blond boy said.

"He's my best friend," Meiko put in.

"My name is Jasmine," the older girl said shyly. She gave Naru a quick, shy glance, then looked down again, light eyelashes veiling her unusual eyes.

"My name is Osaka Naru, and this is my -" she almost said "boyfriend," then caught herself in time - "friend, Umino Gurio."

"Told you," the red-haired boy, Meiko, said to Jasmine. The blonde girl sighed. "Oh, okay."

Meiko turned a charming smile on Naru. The smile tugged at something inside her, and she caught her breath. "You're the one we're supposed to look for, Miss Osaka. Our parents said we're supposed to stay with you until they can come to get us."

"Your parents?" Naru asked. "Do I know them?"

"Yes, but you probably don't remember them," Mitsu answered. Her brother and Toshiro snorted with repressed laughter, and Jasmine rolled her eyes.

"Very funny," Naru said, wondering exactly what it was that was supposed to be funny. She stood up and shook out her drying skirt. "Come on. We can all squeeze into Umino's car." She started walking towards the parking lot, Umino and the four children following obediently.

"Where are we going, Miss Osaka?" Mitsu asked, hurrying up beside Naru.

"I can't just leave you all here. First we're going to the police station, to find out if anyone's filed a missing person report on you guys. And to let the police know where you are in case someone files a report later. Then, I guess we'll go to my apartment. You'll need a place to stay until someone claims you."

At the police station, Naru explained to the officer at the front desk that she had found the four children lost in the park. "How did you all get wet?" the policeman asked.

Meiko spoke up. "My sister and I fell off the dock into the lake, sir, and everyone else got wet when they jumped in to save us. We don't swim very well, you know."

Naru listened to the boy lie so convincingly that she almost believed him even though she knew what had really happened. I'm going to have to be careful with this one, she thought.

The children were photographed and questioned by the officer. They all claimed to be from Tokyo, but weren't clear on what part of the city they were from. But after all, Naru thought, it was a huge city, and they were only kids.

"Full names?" the officer asked.

"I'm Ryu Meiko, and this is my sister Mitsu," Meiko said. "She's Iwashima Jasmine, and he's my best friend, Okada Toshiro." Naru wondered why she got the feeling that these were not the children's real family names. Probably because it was Meiko who spoke up for the rest of the group.

"Mm-hmm," the officer mumbled, dutifully writing down the names as Meiko gave them to him. "Ages?"

"They're all nine, and I'm twelve," Jasmine said, her voice betraying pride in being the eldest.

"All right. And you're going to let them stay with you?" the policeman asked Naru.

"Yes, sir." Naru gave her full name and address. "That's the OSA*P jewelry store. My mother owns it." Umino also gave his name and address, as a witness.

"All right, then," the officer said as he finished with the form. "We'll be in touch, then, Miss Osaka, and you let us know if you find out anything more."

"Thank you, sir." Naru stood up, then bowed slightly and led the group out of the police station back to Umino's second-hand blue car.

As they drove to the jewelry store, Umino said, "You know, Naru-chan, maybe Usagi can help you out with this. Remember she had that weird pink-haired kid move in with her for a while, that just kind of appeared one day?"

"You're right. I'd forgotten about that." For some reason, a lot of Naru's memories of things having to do with Usagi-chan were blurry, especially the ones covering a two or three year period from junior high and high school. Sometimes Usagi seemed to be living a life that was completely disconnected from the real world. Naru occasionally worried about her, then Usagi would trip over nothing in the middle of the sidewalk or get forty percent on a test or have another quarrel with Mamoru and come crying to Naru, and Naru would be reassured that it was the same old Usagi after all.

Umino dropped Naru and the four children off in front of the OSA*P shop. Feeling empty inside, Naru watched him drive away. Then she turned her attention to the kids. "Okay, you guys, come with me," she said to them, and led them through the private entrance and up to the second floor. She unlocked the door of the apartment she shared with her mother and herded the kids inside. "Wait here," she said, then went to her bedroom. She found two pairs of flannel pajamas that weren't too girly-looking for the boys - the pajamas would be a little too big for them, but not by a lot, since Naru was short and slender - and two flannel nightgowns for the girls. Their clothes would have to be laundered right away, of course, and she would probably have to get them a few new things, to hold them over till their parents came to claim them. Naru wondered yet again who on earth their parents could be and why they had told the children to look for her.

The children were sitting around the kitchen table in their pajamas while Naru heated some canned soup when Mrs. Osaka came in from the store. She stared at the assembled children. "What --?"

"I found them in the park when I was there with Umino," Naru explained. "They seem to have gotten separated from their parents somehow."

"Did you try to find their parents?" Osaka Midori asked.

As Naru served the children their soup, she described the stop at the police station. "So I was thinking they could stay here, in the other apartment, until someone comes to pick them up," she concluded. There was a second apartment in the building, across the small hallway from the Osakas', that Mrs. Osaka occasionally rented out when she needed extra money. The apartment was vacant at the moment.

"I suppose that's all right.... But I'm not sure they should stay there by themselves."

"It's okay, Mama," Naru said. "I'll sleep over there, and keep an eye on them when I'm not going to classes."

"All right, then. I suppose I could check on them every once in a while during the day. Hopefully it won't be for too long. Do you have any idea where your parents are?" she asked the kids.

Meiko and Mitsu nodded, but Jasmine interrupted them. "We're supposed to wait for them here. That's what they said."

"Well, it isn't what I would do..." Midori shrugged a bit, then something seemed to catch her eye. She stared at the twins for a moment, a puzzled, thoughtful look on her face. "But you're welcome to stay with us, of course."

Naru took the children's clothing out of the washer and put it in the dryer, then went across the hallway to make up the beds in the two-bedroom apartment. The boys could share one room and the girls the other room, though Naru doubted there would be a lot of sleeping going on. This was a perfect setup for a slumber party, where of course slumber was about the last thing on the agenda. She could sleep, or try to sleep, anyway, on the couch in the front room. Finally, she turned on the TV to make the apartment seem more welcoming.

When she brought the children across the hall, they were all yawning and droopy-eyed, and went uncomplaining to bed. Poor kids had had a rough day, she thought, tucking them in and assuring them that she would be in the front room all night. The boys looked up at her as she settled them in the double bed, looking lost and scared for the first time. A wave of tenderness that she couldn't explain swept through her. She brushed their unruly hair from their faces and kissed their foreheads. "Don't worry, guys. Everything will be all right." At that they both curled up and closed their eyes.

She also kissed Mitsu and Jasmine goodnight, still feeling this tenderness that she couldn't explain. Mitsu rolled over and closed her eyes right away, but Jasmine lay awake, staring wide-eyed at the ceiling. "Is something wrong, Jasmine?" Naru asked.

"No, La - Miss Osaka."

"That's so formal. You can call me Naru-oneesan."

"Okay. Thank you for taking care of us."

"Hey, I couldn't just leave you, could I?"

"No, I guess not."

Naru smoothed the covers over the girl, then left the room, closing the door quietly behind her. As she settled down in front of the TV again, she thought how cozy it was to be sitting up watching TV after the children were in bed, how warm and safe it had felt when she was the child and it was her parents making the comforting, familiar sounds of conversation in the other room.

A few minutes later, Midori came over with Naru's cell phone, pajamas, and toiletries. "I thought you might want these, dear," she said, handing the things to Naru. "Usagi called a few minutes ago, and I said you'd call her back."

"Thanks, Mama."

Midori turned to leave, then hesitated. "What happened with Umino this afternoon? Or should I not ask?"

Naru shrugged. "It's okay. He's going to Brazil, and I'm not, and we're free to date other people but we can still be friends. You know, the typical civilized breakup."

"I see." Midori came to Naru and gave her a hug around her shoulders. "Are you all right with this?"

"Sure," Naru said, despite the small knot of sadness around her heart. "We're growing up and changing, that's all. It's time for both of us to move on."

"Well, if you're sure, then." Midori kissed her daughter on the cheek. "I've got some paperwork to do now, but I'll come check on you again. Will you be all right over here?"

"Mama," Naru laughed, "I'm nineteen. I'm old enough to sleep across the hall. I'll be fine."

Midori laughed too as she left, saying, "I'll still stop by later, to see if you need anything else."

When her mother was gone, Naru settled down cross-legged on the sofa and called Usagi.

"Naru, I heard you and Umino broke up!" Usagi said.

"But no one knew except for - Don't tell me Umino was gossiping about himself."

"Well, why wouldn't he?"

Naru just laughed.

Usagi went on. "So, are you okay with this?"

"Yeah. It was very amicable. And we can still be friends. You know the drill."

"Well, I don't, actually. Every time Mamo-chan and I break up, we swear we never want to see each other again. Of course, you know how long that lasts."

"About two days," Naru said. "Umino said we might get back together when he comes back from Brazil next year, but I don't think it'll happen. I just don't think we had the kind of love that transcends time and place, if you know what I mean."

"Yeah. That's what Mamoru and I have, I guess. That's why we keep getting back together every time we - oh wait, Umino said you might want to ask me about something? Something to do with some kids you found in the park today?"

"It was the weirdest thing, Usagi. We were sitting on the end of that dock there, on the south shore of the lake, you know? And I could swear these four kids just fell out of the sky, though that's impossible, of course. Anyway, they fell into the lake, and knocked me in too, and when I asked them where their parents were they said their parents couldn't come with and they were supposed to find me. Weird. Anyway, we took them to the police station to file a report, and now they're staying with me till we find their parents."

Usagi was silent; Naru started to wonder if she was still on the line. "Usagi-chan? Are you there?"

"Do any of these kids happen to have pink hair?" Usagi asked in a strange, rather choked-sounding voice.

"You mean like Rini, that weird little girl who stays with you sometimes? No, two of them are blond and two have red hair. It's weird, they seem to know me, especially the redheads - they're twins, a boy and a girl - but I can't imagine where I might have met them before."

After another long silence, Usagi spoke again, sounding more serious than Naru had ever heard her sound before. "Naru-chan, we need to talk. Tomorrow, in person, in private. In the meantime, be very careful."

"What? Usagi, is something wrong?"

"When kids fall out of the air above that dock, it means trouble, Naru-chan. Big trouble. I can't tell you right now on the phone how I know that, just believe me. I'll tell you all about it tomorrow. Lunch at Pizza Palace, okay? One-thirty?"

"Sure, Usagi-chan, but -"

"I'll talk to you tomorrow. Just be careful until then. Bye."

"Bye," Naru said doubtfully, even as a click indicated that Usagi had already hung up. She set her cell phone down, wondering what on earth had gotten into Usagi now. Well, with Usa-chan as a friend, life was never boring, that was for sure. Something dark and painful stirred just beneath the surface of her consciousness, and she turned on the TV to drive it away.

* * * * * * * *