Theo shuffled the Coins of Unity in his pocket. He’d gotten very good at separating and joining them back together, checking them every now and then to see if they’d reacted.

It had been months since they had, and he only really continued to do this out of some hope that they would lead somewhere interesting once more, and frankly, out of habit. They were still always in his pocket, and it was an easy thing to keep his fingers occupied.

The coins had gone dormant after that last chest in the College of Song, and no matter what Theo tried to do, or how much mana he tried to shove into them, they didn’t do anything.

Until now.

Theo pulled them out of his pocket once more, barely glancing in their direction, until he realised that there was a glow there that had been missing for far too long.

A shimmering blue map projected itself out the top, and Theo rushed off without a second thought.

“Hey!” Only then did he realise that Jenny had been lying in his lap seconds ago, and was rudely deposited onto the grass rather abruptly.

He turned around, sent her a sheepish grin, and ran back to apologise to the strong, nigh-invincible warrior he had the privilege of calling his girlfriend. She crossed her arms, and gave him a look.

“I know you won’t rush off for no reason. What happened?”

He held up the coins, and the map barely visible in the daylight. “The Coins. They’ve activated again.”

Jenny’s eyes went wide, and she grabbed her things and followed after him. “Why now?”

He shrugged. “No idea what this is about, but at least we know they didn’t break. There just wasn’t anything to point us to until now, apparently.”

Theo used his hand to shield the projection from the sun, and they both rushed off, running as fast as possible to try find what (or who) was their target.

He ran along the road, propelling himself onto brick walls and leaping onto roofs, using Striding Wind to gain momentum with every tap of a surface. It was like he changed gravity to stick to whatever surface he was on, yet leave them undisturbed as he danced through the city.

Jenny, meanwhile, was a missile. Theo tuned out the sound of backfires going off in rapid succession as she used them to launch herself into the sky. Explosions came out of her feet, as she unfolded a large wing from her bag and held it, gliding above him.

Eventually, they came to the Outskirts.

Which confused Theo.

All of the other locations indicated by the Coins of Unity pointed to something of importance. And while he loved the place he’d lived in his whole life, the only thing important about it was its lack of sanitation.

Still, the thought that something important was hidden here filled him with an odd sense of pride. That yes, this place was rough, but that didn’t mean there was nothing to appreciate.

He wondered if it was another secret hidden in a cellar, like when Alan showed him the coin and started this whole treasure hunt.

Theo waited for Jenny to land, and wordlessly they set off.

---

It took them an hour of wandering the tight, narrow confines of the Outskirts to get to what could be the location of the signal.

It was a shack, not unlike his own.

“Are you sure this is the right place?” Jenny asked, uncertain. Theo felt similarly, but didn’t show it.

“The Coins of Unity have never steered me wrong before, and I’m sure they won’t now.”

He looked at the worn, wooden slab of a door, and knocked.

For a moment, nobody answered, and his faith in the coins faltered.

With the sound of wood grinding on wood the door shifted by a sliver, before being shut again with a squeak.

“…Hello?” Theo called out.

“Nobody’s home, go away!” A slightly muffled voice came through, as if spoken through a piece of fabric. It was also clearly the sound of someone higher-pitched trying to disguise their voice by speaking as low as possible.

Theo looked helplessly at Jenny, who nodded and prepared to smash open the door.

“Nonono, please don’t.” He put himself in her way, waving his arms. For the first time he truly understood how intimidating his girlfriend could be.

Theo cleared his throat, and in the most upbeat voice he could muster, tried again. “We’re just here to have a chat. We’re not going to hurt you.” He glanced at Jenny, and hoped that would hold true.

After a moment, he prepared himself, leaning slightly into a more combat-ready posture. They had no idea who this was. It wouldn’t hurt to be ready just in case things went south.

The figure inside sighed, no longer trying to disguise their voice. “…I can’t really stop you now, can I?” Theo admitted that they were right. Then again, considering that between the two of them they could probably bust open most doors or walls, it wasn’t an indictment on their living quarters (the way everything else about their living space was). The door opened.

The person standing there was short enough that he had no choice but to physically look down upon them. They wore clothing as ratty as what he wore (but with less combat-related friction burns/cuts/holes). It was practical, if not stylish, a pair of loose pants and a shirt and vest. Their hair was messy and short, uneven like it was cut with a knife.

“It took a year, but you finally tracked me down. Are you going to take me to a jail or kill me where I stand?”

Theo was taken aback, and Jenny squinted, looking carefully at him. He shook his head, denying wrongdoing and panicking as he tried to remember if he knew this person.

If “it” took a year, then it would have been before Tome of Memories made his life infinitely easier. Shit.

He tried the non-magical technique of talking instead. “I’m sorry, but I don’t think we’ve met. And I wasn’t trying to track you down, no.”

The person looked genuinely stumped, cycling through surprise and relief and disappointment, but recovered quickly.

“Well shit, I don’t know what you’re here for then. You really don’t remember me, huh?” They opened the door fully, gesturing for the two of them to enter.

“I’m Theo, and this is Jenny.” She waved, trying not to act confused and awkward (and failing).

“I know about you, but I haven’t met you before.” They paused, taking a moment to steel their nerves.

“I’m Annie. A year ago I was in a gang. A gang that you and The Dancing Wind confronted.”