Friends are found in unexpected places

Part 9- In which something is lost

Since they couldn't really just leave the kids' section of the Barnes and Noble in the state Tamari had left it, Arcadia, Ophelia and Tamari set to work tidying up the mess. When she arrived, Angie helped them too, and together the room was good as new in no time. The Barnes and Noble employees were not super pleased that Tamari and Arcadia had just abandoned the nook in disarray, but no one got banned from the bookstore because Angie talked them out of it. Working in advertising had its benefits, apparently. After all of this, Arcadia approached Ophelia and asked,

"Ms. Ophelia, can- I have your phone number? So I can keep in touch with Tamari. Since we're friends now. I always do this with friends I make at the park, sorry-"

"I can make phone calls," Tamari interrupted. "Just tell me your phone number, and then I can call you."

"Wait, really? Arcadia responded, amazed.

"Yes, it's true." Tamari then received Arcadia's number, and saved it to their memory storage thingy so they could call her later. Arcadia then left to go home because she was pretty sure her mom was waiting for her. Tamari also had to leave, because Angie and Ophelia needed to eat dinner. Also, they couldn't just spend all day at the Barnes and Noble. But, as they turned to leave, Tamari noticed something laying on the floor of the kids' section of the store.

It was Arcadia's Tamari plush, abandoned in one of its owner's attempts to keep The real Tamari from destroying the place. Tamari turned to tell Arcadia she'd forgotten it before she left, but she was already gone.

* Timeskip brought to you by the Deathbody and Uncanny mashup*

"Tamari, what do you have?" Angie asked as the two humans and an android entered Ophelia's house.

"It's another one of these squishy toy versions of me," Tamari answered. "It belongs to that girl I met in the bookstore today.

Ophelia overheard the conversation from the kitchen. "Then why do you have it, Tamari?" She called to them.

"She forgot it," Tamari explained, "and I couldn't just leave it behind."

"Well then, I guess you should call her,"  Angie suggested. "You have her number."

And so, thus, Ophelia and Angie witnessed Tamari making a phone call. Their body began ringing, like those ringing sounds that play when the call goes through but the other person hasn't picked up yet. A minute or two later, they exclaimed, "Hello Arcadia! Yes, I just wanted to tell you that you left something behind at the bookstore today." 

Now, to Ophelia and Avery, this conversation was rather one sided (for some reason, the call itself did not come out of Tamari's speakers like the ringing did),  but because I am the author and therefore omniscient, I can provide you with both sides of the conversation in an easy to read Tumblr text post format.

Arcadia: Hello?

Tamari: Hello Arcadia! Yes, I just wanted to tell you that you left something behind at the bookstore today.

Arcadia: Oh, you found my Tamaranoid? I think I left it in the kids' section....

Tamari: Yes, you did... is that what you call it?

Arcadia: Yeah, that or Tamari. Or my Tamari plush companion friend, sometimes. Do you have them???

Tamari: Yes, I have your 'Tamari plush companion friend.'  How would you like it returned to you?

Arcadia: Do you just want to meet at the bookstore again? I live, like really close, but I don't know where you are.

Tamari: yes, that would be fine.

Arcadia: Okay, great! Is tomorrow okay?

Tamari: Okay! I'll see you then, Arcadia.

Tamari ended the call, and the night went on as usual, except that Tamari refused to explain the finer details of the call to their guardians. Ophelia and Avery caught them asleep (or whatever you call what Tamari does) with the Tamari plush, and both of them took pictures. All was good.

Until the next morning. 

Ophelia awoke pleased to note that the smoke alarm was not singing the song of its people. She wandered into the living room, surprised that Tamari hadn't woken them up in some other way.

That's when she realized. 

Tamari was gone.