With a soft sigh, Nis let go of Earth and turned her thoughts to her wonder. Within moments, she was once more standing beside the crystalline bridge. Reaching out she gave it a gentle pat, something deep inside insisting that this bridge was important to her in some way. However, today she didn’t have the time to try to puzzle it out. It was the lake and the small cave hidden within the cliffs surrounding it that she wanted to investigate.

Taking a firmer grip on the backpack she’d brought along, she began to hike through the skeletal forest, heart heavy. And by the time she reached the edge of the lake, she was more than ready to rest a moment before zipping open the backpack and withdrawing a bathing suit. Sure, she could swim to the cavern entrance naked, she’d done it before. However, she wasn’t a fan of the sand that had stuck to her after her first visit. At least this way, she had some protection. Shedding her faintly rainbowed gown and other bits of uniform, the page squiggled into the bathing suit and then reached into the backpack once more to withdraw two large ziplock bags, each containing a towel. This time, she was ******** prepared for some of the physical irritations at least. Stretching out carefully, she place one of the ziplocs on her discarded clothing and st the edge of the other between her teeth. Then, without a backwards thought or glance, she ran for the water, diving gracefully as soon as it deepened.

It was still cold enough to make her regret her life choices, but she’d done this once before. She could do it again. And besides, now that she knew how getting in worked, she wouldn’t waste time trying to figure it out. And when she found herself at the hidden cavern entrance, she paused only long enough to draw in a great lungful of air and swam in. As she pulled herself through the water, she had a startling vision of the tunnel, not as she’d seen it before, but glowing with a warm, gentle light as water swirled around her. And something in the water sang to her.

Jolted out of the vision by swimming into the ledge at the end of the tunnel, Nis tread water for a moment, the cold forgotten as something about that ghostly song caused tears to pour from her eyes. It had been warm and alive and didn’t fit in with the way the wonder was at the moment. After another breath, Nis regained control of herself, dragging her body from the water and ripping open the ziploc. Wrapping the towel about her shoulders, she got herself as dry as possible before rising to her feet and deciding to take a good long look at the cave.

From the corner of her eye, she could see the faint illumination of her wonder’s piece of the Code. And without bothering to look at it, sniffed loudly and hissed, “I’ll thank you to keep quiet and keep your notions to yourself today.”

Satisfied that she’d be left alone for the moment, Nis wandered the cave, apartment, whatever it had been, silently righting toppled bits of furniture and collected bits and scraps of what looked like writing, setting it all on the shelves carved into the stone.

I should bring in things to make a little fire, she thought. Or maybe just a couple of lanterns and some pillows and blankets. Make the place feel a bit homier. Put lights back into the water for… Nis frowned, the thought slipping away. Who besides her would need or want lights in the lake waters? Especially as she got by just fine without them. Gnawing on her lower lip, Nis paused in her tidying and thought back to her first visit. The memory was faint, but she knew that, for a moment, she’d seen herself reflected within an enormous eye. Of course, there hadn’t been anything there, but the memory persisted.

“Do… do you need me to help you?” she spoke softly, halfway lost in thought. The Code, for all its maliciousness, had been right about one thing. Her wonder needed her. It deserved to live again, if that was even possible. Could places remember things? Maybe her wonder had missed her and wanted things more like they’d been so long ago? Was that even possible?

“I’m going to try my best to help you. I don’t know how much I can accomplish, but I suppose we can make a start. Certainly it wouldn’t hurt to bring up a broom and get this area straightened up again.”

As Nis turned to look about the cavern, she imagined it aglow with soft light and a riot of colorful pillows and throws giving it life and character. And then gasped as it became clear that she wasn’t just imagining things. But as soon as the vision came, it vanished with a whisper of laughter and the sound of something large splashing in the lake waters. And once more, she found her face wet with tears as the visions, memories, whatever they were spoke to something deep inside her soul.

“I think the next time I come visit,” she said slowly, wanting the wonder to hear her and hoping it understood, “I’m going to bring a few things to make this place a little more cheerful. After all, what good is owning an antiques shop if I can’t raid it once in a while for things to make us happier here?”

In fact, she already knew one thing she wanted to try to get up here. There was an old chaise that she’d wanted to take for herself, but hadn’t known where she’d find the time to restore it. Looking around the cavern, she had a suspicion that she’d find the time here. Of course, she couldn’t drag that thing through the underwater tunnel, but surely there had to be another entrance somewhere? How else could all of this stuff that was now crumbling to dust have gotten there in the first place?

“Yes,” she murmured to herself as she made a mental inventory. “The chaise, some pillows and blankets… I wonder if I can get any patterned silk or gauze to make curtains?”

Mind ablaze with the beginnings of a plan, Nis allowed herself to truly relax for the first time within her wonder.

“Don’t worry,” she spoke in a whisper to the memories that were surely embedded in the surrounding stone. “I’ll take care of you.”

Word Count = 1099