That night, even though it was always dark, a car pulled up in front of a new building. The back door opened. Cole stepped out wearing a black suit and adjusting his tie. He then turned and bent down to help Celes out, who was wearing a sparkling black gown, followed by Calista, who was in a sparkling red evening dress.
After that, Cyrus, also in a black suit, got out and helped Charlotte, who was in a slightly tight, sparkling white gown. All five of them stood together, looking up at the tall, brightly lit building before them.
"Let's go inside, crash this building opening party, and talk to Calvin," Cole said.
"Okay," replied Celes, Calista, Cyrus, and Charlotte.
***
Earlier that day, after eating, Cole and the others spoke with the barista, who was actually the owner of the cafe and ramen restaurant. The barista had asked what their relationship was with Calvin, the owner and founder of Homonculus.corp. Cole explained that Calvin was his missing brother who grew up with them in an orphanage, without mentioning what they were or the year they were at the orphanage. Celes, Calista, Charlotte, and Cyrus also helped explain the situation to the barista.
"So you all came to this city... to this whole continent even... because you were looking for your brother, and he's Mr. Calvin?" the barista asked.
"That's right, sir. How can we meet him? By the looks of it, he seems like an important person who probably won't just meet with anyone," Celes replied, being more diplomatic than Cole.
"Hmm... wait right here for another hour. That person usually comes in to eat and grab a coffee," the barista replied.
"That person?" Cole asked.
"He's the City Mayor's Secretary. He comes in every day, and there's a good chance he was invited to attend that building's exclusive opening party, which is only for the city's higher-ups and some invited public figures... but I can't guarantee he'll help you," the barista answered.
"That's fine, sir. We understand," Celes replied.
They all went back to their seats. The barista even brought out more free coffee for everyone. An hour later, the man they were waiting for arrived. They waited for him to finish eating first, then asked to speak with him. The man's name was Harold, and he was the city mayor's secretary. After Celes, with help from Calista and Charlotte, gave him a dramatic retelling of their story, he seemed moved and agreed to help. He even lent them the clothes they were now wearing, as his wife, who was a Draugr, owned a salon and a boutique.
He even lent them the car to get to the party and agreed to wait for them right at the lobby entrance so they could all go in with him.
***
Back in the present, as they entered the ballroom with Harold, the eyes of Cole, Celes, Calista, Charlotte, and Cyrus widened. The place was packed. The Draugr were disguised as humans and dressed formally, while the humans looked young, all about their age. The room was massive, with long tables of fancy food and wine along the edges. Groups of people stood around, talking seriously as if they were networking. From the high ceiling hung a giant, beautiful crystal chandelier.
"I've never been in a crowded room like this before... it feels... suffocating," Cyrus muttered.
"I know. I don't like crowds like this either," Cole added.
"Hmm... the food looks good," Celes said.
"Yeah, for once, I agree with you," Calista added.
Then, they turned to see Charlotte, who was anxious, clearly searching for Calvin as she looked everywhere with a worried expression.
"Just relax. We'll find him eventually," Calista said, putting a hand on Charlotte's shoulder.
"Yeah... Ugh, where is he?" Charlotte replied.
"Come on, let's go further inside. We shouldn't stay right by the door like this," Cole said.
"Okay, come on, Char," Celes urged, taking Charlotte's arm.
"Hmm... for some reason, I have a bad feeling about this... but not a really bad one," Cyrus muttered.
They walked further inside. Naturally, many heads turned to look at them because Cole, Celes, Calista, Charlotte, and Cyrus were so striking. As they passed a few clusters of people, they saw a large group of girls, both Draugr and human, gathered in front of them. And of course, in the center of the crowd, stood Calvin, tall and looking powerfully built.
"Ca... Calvin," Charlotte said, shocked and happy to see him.
But suddenly, Charlotte grew furious when she saw Calvin's arm wrapped around the waist of a beautiful girl standing next to him. Without a word, Charlotte immediately started walking toward the cluster of girls with Calvin in the middle. Cole, Celes, and Calista tried to stop her, but Charlotte ignored them and kept pushing through. Cyrus just trailed behind them.
"Oh boy," he mumbled softly.
Without any fuss, Charlotte pushed through the crowd, confusing the girls, and "plak," she immediately slapped Calvin. Calvin's face, which had been smiling a moment ago, froze in shock as he held his cheek. But when he saw Charlotte's face,
"Wait... Cha... Char? Is that you, Char?" Calvin asked, looking totally confused.
"Who is she... explain, who is she?" Charlotte screamed, pointing at the girl next to Calvin.
"H-hey, why are you so mad... you're... you're here? I've missed you, Char," Calvin said, stepping forward to hug Charlotte.
"Plak," Charlotte slapped Calvin again, making him even more confused.
"Why are you slapping me?" Calvin asked.
"Explain... who is she? You promised to marry me when we were kids, so tell me who she is right now," Charlotte yelled, pointing at the girl next to him.
Hearing Charlotte's scream echo through the room, everyone immediately fell silent and turned to look at Calvin. The music that had been playing suddenly stopped. Everyone waited for the drama about to unfold. Then the girl next to Calvin stepped forward, wrapped her arm around Calvin's and placed her hand on his chest. She glared at Charlotte.
"Hey... who are you? Don't just go around slapping my dad," the girl next to Calvin shouted, defending him.
Hearing what the girl said, and seeing her look angry while clinging to Calvin so intimately, as if it was completely normal for her, Charlotte's face changed drastically. She glanced at Calvin, her hands dropping, then clenching into trembling fists.
"W... what? Dad? You're married?" Charlotte asked, completely devastated. Tears began to stream down her face, her eyes fixed on the silent Calvin, begging him for an explanation.
The crowd of girls surrounding Calvin slowly started to back away. Cole, Celes, Calista, and Cyrus just stood frozen, trying to process what was happening in front of them without being able to say a thing. But then, suddenly,
"Oh, so this is what they talk about on D-Tube, the story of the ex-wife seeing her ex-husband has moved on and is happy and has a kid. No wonder I had a bad feeling about this," Cyrus said, as if he'd just had an epiphany.
"Why do you even know things like that?" Cole asked, turning to look at Cyrus beside him.