Bad Order

Ribbon Rail

Sunspot chirped gleefully as Luno shoveled one last helping of coal into the firebox before closing it.

"Are we ready?" Solano asked.

"Yes."

A moment later, Solano gave the whistle cord a good tug, and they were off.

Luno set the coal shovel aside and sat down in his seat with a sigh, wiping dust from his hands on a towel.

"I still feel quite guilty." he said. "I hadn't even considered the effect it would have on him, especially with the background he has."

Solano shrugged.

"He broke our things! Never mind fixing Caelestis, we have to repair the turntable as well!"

"I think the wellbeing of our fellow man is more important than our equipment. Equipment can be replaced. Life cannot."

"Hm. I guess you're right." Solano chirped. "Wish he didn't run off, though. He's causing us even more trouble!"

"He is acting as he knows how. I do not blame him too much."

"Suit yourself."

"I will."

The Eclipse sailed past the boundary of the Station Between Time and the realm that surrounded it, soon chugging peacefully across space and time. Luno sat back in his seat and looked out his window.

"I warned him against returning to where he came from." he said. "I only pray we arrive before he winds up in too much trouble."

Solano hummed, adjusting the throttle a bit.

"At least hopefully he'd learn his lesson! And we will not have to go through this again!"

"He is not the only one that is learning a lesson."

"That is true as well!"

Comet tumbled endlessly through space and time.

He didn't know which way was up, or down, or left, or right, and couldn't seem to find his balance no matter what he did. When he cried out for any sort of help or fear or whatever else, his voice echoed back to him and across the universe, bouncing around in his own head when it reached his ears.

He didn't know when nor where he was going to land! Of course he had to just jump into the void! Now that he was falling to an undetermined fate, he understood just how silly the entire thing was. Why did he feel like running away was the best thing to do?

Oh, right. He'd screwed everything up for himself.

But it felt like it paled in comparison to getting himself tangled up in the fabric of time. Color and sound and light raced past him as he fell, still striking his limbs out to try to grab hold of something, anything within reality, until he finally felt like he was slowing down.

Wherever the universe decided to drop him, surely the twins would find him. If they wanted him back.

Comet blinked, and he found himself standing on solid ground. A sudden wave of nausea hit him, like he'd suddenly stopped after spinning around for several minutes, but as he got his bearings, it faded away.

He was in his old bedroom.

At least what was left of it.

His computer and books and model trains all sat in cardboard boxes on his bed and on the floor. His bedspread was otherwise untouched, and everything looked like it had been thoroughly dusted.

Comet sighed and reached into one of his boxes, pulling out one of his favorite models, which now had a couple of details threatening to break off. Otherwise, it appeared everything was packed inside deliberately and with some care.

Odd.

He sat down on the bed.

Luno had mentioned how his family would all think he was dead. Was this just a postmortem spring cleaning? Or was it fall when he left? He didn't quite remember.

Comet could hear footsteps in the hallway outside his door.

There was no way his parents would have taken such care like this.

Still, though, he froze, and his blood ran cold when he heard a hand on the doorknob. He managed to shoot back up before the door opened.

The face he saw was not one he expected.

"Halley?"

His sister. The very sister that had left without looking back so long ago.

"Jess?" Comet whispered in response. Jess stared at him wide-eyed, then stepped into the room.

"Halley, you...you're dead." she said, keeping her voice low.

Comet scratched the back of his neck.

"It's...complicated." he replied. "Why are you here? You wanted to leave me and Mom and Dad in the dust!"

"They somehow got a hold of me to tell me the news." Jess answered. "You went to bed and never woke up, I..."

Comet could see tears welling up in her eyes. He set his model back in the box and pushed his hands into his pockets, staring at the floor.

"You were the one that packed everything up."

"Yeah." Jess said. "Mom wanted to just throw everything away."

"Why'd you come back to take it all?"

Jess sighed, wiping her eyes.

"Because. I regret just leaving you here with them, you know? I should have taken you along. Even if I don't know a whole lot about raising a kid, it would have been better than you staying here."

"...Oh." Comet said flatly, then took a couple of steps toward her and wrapped his arms around her in a tight hug.

Jess held him just as tightly, taking a shuddery breath.

"You're not a ghost."

They both stood there for a while, in silence, until they broke away from each other. Comet pushed his hands into his pockets again. A slight smile came to his face.

"You'll never believe it."

"I think I might, seeing as you're standing here after being presumed dead, dressed smarter than I've ever seen you."

"I got picked up by a couple of guys running a railroad. So I work for them now." Comet said, then frowned again. "Well, I did. I screwed up pretty bad, so...I came back here."

Jess just stared at him.

"You came back here willingly?"

Comet shrugged.

Jess sighed.

"Doesn't explain why Mom and Dad found your corpse."

"They, uh...had to kill me. I guess. They being the twins. The railroad guys." Comet replied. "Like I said, it's complicated."

Before either of them could speak any more, they could hear the front door open, and two painfully familiar voices shortly afterward.

Comet felt sick.