The Songs in Our Hearts Book One: Reaching Out

Chapter Sixteen: Doubt

As the blue light faded out, Coda found himself surrounded by large dunes of sand. His lips dropped into a frown as the intensity of the sun began to have an effect on him.

"Of all the places I could end up in," he began to complain to himself, removing his sweater to tie it around his waist. "Why did I have to end up in a frickin' desert?" Northpointe was always fairly cool, so high temperatures were a thing the violinist was not used to. Scanning his surroundings, he breathed a sigh of relief as he caught sight of a nearby town.

With hope shining within him, Coda sprinted to the desert civilization. If he was lucky, either Harmonia or Andante – both of them would be preferred – would be there and they could go home. His feet sunk into the sand with each step; grains found their way inside his shoes. Coda mentally groaned about how weird the sand felt against his feet.

Upon reaching the entrance gate, Coda saw a sign. Reaching for a bottle of water, the blue-eyed boy read the sign.

"Agrabah"

As he drank from the bottle, Coda watched as people moved about in the neighborhood. In the distance, the light-colored brunette could make out a bustling marketplace, and he decided that it wouldn't hurt to start there. Coda could feel a few stares in his direction. His stomach churned as he tried to think of an excuse to use to protect the world order. Explaining that he lost his sister was one thing, but trying to work in details like teleportation and storms were another.

Unable to come up with an alibi, Coda decided to just look around for now and ask later. Agrabah's shopping plaza was large; people had to squeeze their way around each other just to get to the right stand. The sixteen-year-old glanced around the crowded space, but he saw no familiar faces.

"Excuse me, are you looking for something?" he heard a voice call out. Turning around, he saw a young woman with jet black hair and warm, brown eyes. Beneath her shawl, Coda could make out a pair of large gold earrings.

"Oh, yes actually," he answered, readjusting his violin. For a moment, he stopped to think whether to ask the woman if she had seen Harmonia or Andante. Realizing that Harmonia must be scared out of her mind, he inquired, "Have you seen a girl with long, dark brown hair? She has brown eyes, and she probably ran away if you made eye contact with her. She's also carrying a flute." The woman put a delicate finger to her lip as she thought.

"I'm afraid I haven't," she responded, crossing her arms. "Who is she?" she asked.

"My little sister. I lost her about a day ago," Coda told the stranger.

Pursing her lips into a sympathetic frown, she said, "That's awful. How did this happen?" Coda started to explain when the woman glanced over his shoulder. Her brown eyes widened, and Coda peeked behind his back. "Let's talk somewhere less noisy," she told him.

"Okay?" Coda responded, confused. The lady lead him to a secluded alleyway and sat down on a wooden crate. The distant clamor of the market place echoed in the air.

"All right, where were we?" she asked, removing the hood of her shawl. There was a pale, aquamarine head band adorned on her head, encrusted with a dark, turquoise gem. Coda began to get the idea that she wasn't a commoner.

"Um..." he began.

"Actually, let me introduce myself first. My name is Jasmine," she told him, extending a hand out to him.

Shaking her hand, Coda greeted, "Coda."

"Great, now how did you lose your sister?" The very question that Coda dreaded had been asked. How was he suppose to explain the situation without raising suspicion?