A splitting headache threatened to burst her brain and pour out of her eyes with each heartbeat. That, more than anything caused her to regain consciousness. She groaned, tenderly touching her head, afraid it might burst. She was back in the hobo barn on the lowest bunk with no recollection of how she got there. Her last memories were of Mr. Germain. And Charles! Charles was there at the S.E.A., administering the formula to her! He must have more skill than she imagined, being able to hide in plain sight like that.

She raised herself up only a little before the headache was almost too much.

“You okay?”

It seemed as though the thudding of her heart caused more pain to her head, but when she heard that way too familiar voice, her heart stopped and the pain in her head kept going.

What was Mr. Germain still doing here?

Her body filled with both panic and relief. Yes, she still remembered everything, but now she would again have to act like she forgot everything. This time Mr. Germain would be watching her.

Marie raised her head, seeing Mr. Germain standing at the doorway. He walked in a few paces before studying her closely.

“I said, are you okay?” He acted concerned, but Marie knew better. He may have succeeded tripping her up once, but many lives depended on her acting skills now. Marie swallowed as panic ran its course through her emotions.

“Yes.” Marie struggled out of the bunk bed. She rested against the edge, rubbing her head. “I’m so confused. What’s going on?”

Her heart rate increased, and the blinding throb made her vision swim for a moment. Turns out the omnitocsil could take a double dose, but it was quite the battle going on in her body right now.

“You’ve had quite the traumatic experience,” Mr. Germain said. “You’ve come back from over the wall that protects this city. It’s a miracle you’ve survived, especially one so young.”

Marie rubbed her head as the headache lessened. “I… I don’t remember.”

From the corner of her eye, Marie noticed Mr. Germain watching her closely, while at the same time pretending not to watch her closely. “Do you remember anything? At all?”

The nerves in her stomach threatened to burst through her abdomen. Marie tried to use the nerves as she scrambled to put together every ounce of acting skill she had inside her to pull this off. She even felt tears fill her eyes that she refused to wipe away.

“What’s happened to me? I can’t remember anything,” Marie whispered.

Mr. Germain slowly nodded. “It’s as I feared. Your brain forced you to forget the traumatic event of whatever happened to you over the wall, and by so doing, it also blocked quite a number of things from your memory. But don’t worry. We at the S.E.A. are working on a way to bring your memories back.”

Tears slid out of her eyes. “You’re very kind. Thank you.”

Mr. Germain gave her a smile Marie could almost believe. “Come on, I’ll give you a tour.”

With all the strength she could muster, Marie started forward to follow Mr. Germain as he gave her another tour of the place. Thankfully the pounding in her head turned into a dull ache as the minutes pressed on. Marie tried to speak as little as possible and look as scared and as frightened as she could. The less she spoke, the less Mr. Germain could catch her in a lie.

It was such a strange experience. Mr. Germain was acting kindly toward her. If Marie didn’t know him, she could have sworn he had her best interest at heart.

“Now, I’m going to deliver some news to you that might be a little concerning,” Mr. Germain said, turning to Marie and giving her his full attention. “This is the second time you’ve been given this tour.”

Marie did her best to act surprised. “What?”

“You got lost yesterday, and it’s quite triggering. We’ve seen it in multiple hobos. Getting lost in the city made you remember getting lost in the woods, and it brought back some unpleasant memories and you repressed them all over again.”

Marie didn’t respond. She tried to keep the surprised look going, using it as an excuse not to look at Mr. Germain and instead studied the ground in horror.

“Hey, there she is!”

Marie glanced up to see Poet, Numbers, and Pusher coming out of the cafeteria. They ran over to her, and Marie glanced around, trying to see if there was anyone else they were talking to, because newly forgetful hobo Marie wouldn’t know these three.

They slowed to a stop in front of her.

“We were so worried,” Pusher said. “Hobos get lost way too often in Musical Land.”

Numbers glanced at Mr. Germain. “She must have had the tour again. Did she forget everything?”

Mr. Germain nodded, checking his phone. “I’m afraid so. Hobos get lost, sure, but we didn’t expect it to be so soon after she came over the wall. I’ve been assigned to help her adjust to this new life. We don’t want any more of these triggering episodes. They can be quite dangerous to a hobo’s mental health. I’ll be interviewing you once a week to check up on you.”

“Oh,” Marie said, not sure how she as a newly forgetful hobo was supposed to take this new information. Was she supposed to be happy? Relieved? Nervous? She tried to let all the emotions play across her face before she simply closed her eyes and rubbed her temples again. “Do I need to know where to meet you?”

“Don’t find me, I’ll find you,” Mr. Germain said in a nonchalant way. “Stick with your friends here until you get a better feel for the city. I don’t want you wandering off alone.”

Marie nodded. Mr. Germain gave her a final, calculated look. “See you next Saturday.”

“See you next Saturday.” She broke eye contact to meet the gaze of her friends.

Marie couldn’t help but give the smallest of relaxed smiles as she watched Mr. Germain leave the gated area. She didn’t know what kind of interview Mr. Germain would give next week, but she forced herself to forget about it. It was terrifying enough that she promised to meet her friends tonight so she could confirm she was fine. If she got caught, it could ruin everything.

She glanced at the friends she made a couple days ago and was now supposed to forget. How was she going to do this? She struggled to keep her stories straight before she was a hobo. Hopefully it wouldn’t be too much of a stretch if she just didn’t talk much for a few days to make sure she got her stories straight.

“Come on, we’ll help you adjust,” Pusher said. “They need us to help weed the farms the next few weeks anyway.”

“It’ll be good to stay with the group and do some work to keep your mind off things,” Poet said.

Marie and her friends made a quick stop at the cafeteria. They were just cleaning up, but Audrey gave her half a banana anyway, and her friends filled Audrey in on what happened to Marie. Audrey gave Marie such a sad look and an extra squeeze of the hand before they left. Marie ate the banana on their way to the farmlands.

Marie’s new friends prattle on about the life they thought she forgot about. Everyone shared their nicknames again and the short stories behind them. They talked again about life as a hobo, and Marie listened quietly, nodding every once in a while as they knelt in the dirt pulling weeds. The farmlands were big but she hadn’t imagined how big until she was faced with the reality of needing to weed it all. At least there were enough hobos, and it was a similar vein of what she used to do at the clearings. She needed to do something a normal hobo would do.

The hours stretched on. Marie let the three of them chat, getting lost in her own mind. She was relieved she found Billy, Abe, and Albert. She reminisced about their conversations and though she was dreading what would happen if she got caught, she also wanted to see them again and update them on everything. They needed to be aware that Mr. Germain was watching her, and most likely them, too. Marie closed her eyes as she thought of it. If she got caught again without her watch, she knew Mr. Germain wouldn’t fill her with the forgetting formula again. She’d most likely get arrested and thrown into the basement. Until she told the underground what was going on, her life was too valuable to do anything risky like sneaking out without a good reason. The more she thought of it, the more she felt dread for promising to meet up with the guys tonight. However, these were dangerous times, and all of them still had the chip in their heads. If she didn’t show up tonight, who knows what songs they would sing. Sure they had a loophole, but the stress they would feel wasn’t something she wanted to play with. She’d just have to do a quick visit, then leave. Too much was at risk.

Marie noticed Sophie a few rows down all by herself, quietly weeding. Marie bit her lip and glanced at her friends. They were talking and laughing amongst each other. It was a strange sight. Marie grew up thinking hobos forgot everything, even how to laugh.

She considered ‘stumbling’ into Sophie again, but what with everything that happened, she wasn’t brave enough. She needed this day to do normal hobo stuff in order to justify seeing her friends later tonight. She turned away from Sophie and kept weeding.

Marie stayed curled up in a ball as she waited for it to be eleven thirty. She was scolding herself for being so incredibly stupid to promise such a thing tonight. She was on such a high yesterday seeing her friends that she readily agreed to seeing them tonight, but she shouldn’t have made such a decision so wildly. She could have simply written a note and left it somewhere for the boys to find.

Deep down she knew why she agreed. She was too eager to see them again after so long. If she didn’t go, she wasn’t sure what the guys would do. Especially Billy. He was a bit unpredictable and did most things with a dramatic flair.

At eleven thirty, Marie took off her watch and left it by the flimsy blanket she used. She tried to be as close to the door as possible without raising suspicion, which meant no bunk beds. She hoped everyone was asleep, or at least assumed she was only going for a bathroom break.

The streetlamps made her feel like she couldn’t truly hide. They seemed so unnecessarily bright right now. Marie’s heart pounded in her chest as she quickly made her way through the streets to their designated spot. With each step away from the hobo’s gated area, she felt more certain her luck was going to run out.

She entered the alleyway to see her friends already there. An anxious smile crossed her face, and she could have sworn they relaxed too when she showed up. She couldn’t help but notice Edgar wasn’t there.

“Where’s Edgar?” Marie whispered.

“He was given permission to visit home over the weekend,” Billy said.

Marie gave Billy a look. “You have to ask permission to visit your parents?”

Billy shrugged. “Yeah, it’s weird. President Arnold’s request, though. And before you ask, he’s had his permission since Wednesday.”

Marie rubbed her forehead, the headache still lingering a little. The fact that Billy knew she didn’t trust Edgar wasn’t surprising, but still embarrassing. She tried to push it away. She had to be fast. She was safest in the barn, asleep.

“I can’t stay. Mr. Germain himself is checking in on my case, which means they might be suspicious of you guys as well. I’ve got to be a normal hobo until I see you again Friday.” Marie couldn’t bring herself to speak in a normal tone. She still felt like whispering.

Abe’s eyes widened. “Whoa. Mr. Germain? He and his wife really threw themselves into their work after Sophie’s disappearance. They practically live at the S.E.A. now.”

Marie frowned. “Sophie’s a hobo. I’ve seen her a few times.”

The three boys remained quiet.

“So, what? They bought out the media to keep pictures of Sophie as a hobo from the newspaper?” Albert asked.

“Oh Albert, Albert.” Billy patted Albert on the shoulder. “It’s clear you’re only an amateur with all things conspiracy. They didn’t have to buy out anyone. The S.E.A. already own the media.”

Marie felt her anxious energy transferring itself to her feet, making her sway from side to side. “I found Charles.”

“Wait, what!” Albert said as the other two shushed him.

“He works for the S.E.A. He must be incredibly close without being a member. Abe, you’ve been studying the S.E.A. Do you know a bit more why Charles would be there?” Marie asked.

Abe thought for a moment. “You say he seems the type to work at a hospital?” Marie nodded. “Maybe he works in the S.E.A. as a medical professional. They like to keep a group of them around for themselves. I don’t know where they’re stationed, though. He probably works in the S.E.A. skyscraper.”

Billy gave a low whistle. “To work as a scientist for the S.E.A. Boy’s got skill. Do you want us to go for him? Or still try and find Harriet?”

The headache was coming back. Working in the sun didn’t help. “If he works at the skyscraper, there’s no way I want you guys near there. It’s far too dangerous, and far too dangerous for Charles to be approached there as well. Let’s stick with Harriet. Charles should be our absolute last resort.”

Her friends nodded.

“Okay. I’ve really got to get back. If I get caught again, it’ll be-” Marie wasn’t sure she should go into detail about what she assumed would happen. The best course of action was to still keep them in the dark as long as possible. “-bad.” Marie winced at the word choice, but she had no other option. “I’ll see you all Saturday.”

They nodded. She’d see them after her interview with Mr. Germain. Worries of the interview forced her to push the thoughts out of her mind so she wouldn’t start panicking.

Marie found herself in a strangely comforting group hug with her friends, trying to gain the security from them to last her until she got back.

“Please be safe,” Albert said as they all broke away.

“I will.”

Marie didn’t wait long as she turned and slipped back out of the alleyway. She kept her breathing easy as she made her way through the streets. She kept her head down, trying to dodge the light of streetlamps as though they were people. She just needed to get back. As soon as she got back, she could be a normal hobo for a week.

Marie slipped past the gate and almost gave a sigh of relief when she froze. There was a light on in the barn. There weren’t lights in the barn, so someone must have brought a flashlight or something. Hobos don’t have flashlights, but there was a very good possibility S.E.A. agents do.

Marie’s heart sank as she stood frozen in her spot. There was no way she was going to escape this. Were the agents checking on her? Did they get suspicious she might do something and came to find her?

Marie crept forward, wondering if there was even the smallest possibility she could get back to her sleeping spot before anyone noticed. As she snuck up to the barn, she realized she should sprint to the bathroom and pretend to come out to prove that she was simply on a bathroom break. She could at least stick with that story if Mr. Germain started to grill her. She almost turned toward the bathroom when she glanced through the broken panels and saw one woman, kneeling beside a sleeping Sophie, wiping tears from her eyes. Marie’s eyes widened as she recognized Mrs. Germain.

Mrs. Germain was here and she was crying over Sophie.

She remembered everything Sophie said about her mother. How they’d fight all the time about Sophie’s decision to study math. Her parents tried everything they could to get Sophie away from math, and Sophie fought with everything she had to keep studying it. Sophie almost made it a game to shame her parents with her math studies. There was so much argument and almost hatred between Sophie and her parents, that Marie almost didn’t see them as normal parents. And yet, Mrs. Germain being here seemed like what a normal mother would do.

Marie blinked, then blinked again. She couldn’t help but notice the absence of Mr. Germain, though to be honest, she was glad he wasn’t there. There was a good chance he’d find her missing.

Marie couldn’t possibly imagine going back inside now. She had to wait for Mrs. Germain to finish… whatever she was doing with Sophie.

Marie frowned as the more practical thoughts entered her head. How was Mrs. Germain managing this? Wasn’t she in risk of having one of the hobos wake up and spot her? She couldn’t have done this for long, because then she would be spotted. But Marie realized this explained everything with the blankets over the winter and Sophie magically getting better. Marie wasn’t sure if this explained the blonde hair, though. Was Mrs. Germain somehow dying Sophie’s hair too?

Marie’s frown deepened. Now she had plenty of time to think. She always imagined the Germain’s as being President Arnold’s number one couple. From what she remembered, Mr. Germain seemed comfortable in President Arnold’s office. If they were such a powerful couple, how was Sophie still in the position she was? They could have hidden her anywhere else, so why a hobo?

Marie tried not to make a sound as she sank to a sitting position away from the barn door. She wasn’t sure how long Mrs. Germain was going to be there, so she might as well get comfortable. She tried not to feel compassion for Mrs. Germain as she heard her quietly crying, but it was hard not to.

Since she didn’t have her watch, she wasn’t sure how long Mrs. Germain stayed there, but it was a while. Eventually, she heard Mrs. Germain stirring and Marie tensed. Marie slipped to the back of the barn to keep from being spotted. Mrs. Germain left the barn, and Marie waited until she left the gated community. Mrs. Germain’s usually proud shoulders were slouched and her arms folded as she walked with a bowed head.