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Something was wrong with Jasmine - that much was obvious. She'd been acting strangely ever since they'd met this morning. She listened but didn't really engage; she watched the ocean rather than Victor's awesome play-acting; she didn't have any input whatsoever on what to do.
Victor was playing the perfect role of Best Friend. Jasmine wasn't playing anything.
Their game of cops and robbers ended in seconds, so Victor cut off the cop part and turned it into a treasure hunt. Only, now he was watching as she bolted in a straight line towards his hiding spot for his fishing rod, and then confusion seeped in as she turned at the perfect angle straight to where his bug cage was hidden.
She's cheating, was his first incredulous thought. Then, Why doesn't she want to play fair? Why isn't she talking about anything? She doesn't look sick... has something happened?
Then Jasmine was carefully placing the objects in front of him again and looking at him expectantly, and Victor realised perhaps she was playing a role - playing at being his friend, in fact. So why were they acting roles outside of heroes and villains at all?
Victor liked to act big, but at heart he was still a kid. He'd never had to handle something like this before, and only liked confrontation when it was against a bad guy, so he was left scrambling. Maybe fishing would revive Jasmine. It always helped Victor when his thoughts got too busy. Maybe catching a bug would help her feel more in line. And yet... no such luck.
"You look like you want to keep playing," Victor said.
But her tired eyes said I want to go home.
"You already know what I'm here to say, don't you?"
Jasmine's eyes widened, then schooled back into normalcy with the tiniest nod, and Beat's little half-soul sunk.
"Ah! Thank you for the Cotton Cloth. Now we can start on the shop repairs."
Truth be told, Gertrude had been worried about sending Jasmine to the lake, but in the wake of Ivlet's attack she hadn't had much choice. Things were too hectic to ask anyone else, or to give Jasmine much more than basic self-defence lessons - her coming back without a scratch on her sopping, midnight coat was a blessed relief.
But before Gertrude could turn away to call for Stanley, Jasmine pulled a bundle of herbs from her bag - Thyme.
She blinked. "Hm? What's this for?"
Jasmine stared blankly, as if the answer were already there.
"Well, I suppose I had been short of it," Gertrude conceded. "and we're going through so many herbs and medicine after Ivlet's attack. Thank you. I'll make good use of it."
She didn't have time to wonder why Jasmine's haste came with such a muted expression. There were injuries to tend to and homes lost. But something did wriggle in the back of her mind, even so: is she pushing herself too hard?
That can't be true. The repair effort had only just begun. Hadn't it?
It was in tough times like these that Ione made the effort to bring treats to the village by her own paw. Today, it was strawberry shortcake, to be passed around in the cool summer evening when everyone was tired and needed a pick-me-up.
Shiela beamed at the gift. "Ah! Thank you very much. When I have exciting new patterns to work with I can always do with an energy boost. Did you know Jasmine brought me the Legendary Pattern?"
"Hey hey hey, tha- tha- thanks. Jasmine's been busy, actually," Kenneth said, flinching as the Zoo's boar barrelled past them from Jade Fields then carrying on. "She helped with the bricks. Didn't even need instructing! You two teach her a lot, don't you?"
"The Apollo's flower looks just wonderful in the flowerbed, doesn't it? Now we don't have to worry about awkward weather anymore, either. I can't thank Jasmine enough," Clara smiled.
Everyone had something to say about Jasmine, even though she herself was nowhere to be seen. For a village that was in ruins just yesterday, Pawville was doing markedly better for itself this evening. And how much of it was Ione's daughter?
She was unbelievably proud of Jasmine for the word she'd done, of course. But was she taking breaks? Was she eating well? Was she going to visit home?
After all, she didn't come home to sleep last night.
"Good evening, Victor," Ione acknowledged, on her visit to the police station. "You deserve shortcake, too."
"Really? Wow, um, thanks. Ada's looking after me, though." Despite this, Victor reached through the bars for a slice.
"...You're Jasmine's closest friend. Do you know why she's acting...?" Ione tried.
Victor drooped. "No... I sort of thought you might. 'Cause you're her mum and all."
She frowned. She'd have to speak to Jasmine next time she came home.
(Jasmine didn't come home.)
In the dead of night, after Ada had gone home and the village slept, Jasmine entered the police station and sat in front of the cage door.
"Jasmine? What are you doing here? I thought you were going after Ivlet now," Victor said, pawing at his tired eyes.
The bed in here was terrible. He couldn't wait to be home.
"When this is all over," Jasmine spoke, for the first time in days, "We're going to play again, right? Just like old times."
"Old times? That was three days ago," Victor blinked, but he couldn't stifle his smile. "Of course we are. What kind of best friend would I be if I let jail get me down?"
Jasmine slackened, deep tension in her frame that easing just a little bit. "Of course we are... a bit silly of me to ask, really. But I wanted to be sure."
They sat in a companionable silence, for a while, where Victor observed her in the dim light. She looked haggard as if sleepless, and shaggy as if she hadn't had the time to stay tidy. News of her constant efforts had reached him here, too, and it made him wonder. Victor had jailed himself from the guilt - Jasmine must have turned out the opposite.
Perhaps, if he hadn't taken the blame like he did, he could have shouldered that burden alongside her. But he had. And she'd acted so strangely the day of the incident, too... how far back did this go?
"Jasmine, what's going on?" he blurted.
Jasmine's head turned away. Ashamed. "...We were too late. To stop Ivlet, I mean."
"What do you mean, too late?" Victor gawked. "You've done so much. Everything's getting better, isn't it?"
Jasmine shook her head. "Ivlet's grown powerful enough that he's transformed into a beast of pure evil. Enough to destroy everything. Even if we stop him now, it won't work."
At this, ice sunk into Victor's veins.
Everything? Everything was over because... of him...? No, surely not. Otherwise more people would be panicking.
Jasmine turned back to him. Despondent. "Most people don't really know how the Magic Hat works. That it could cause this."
"If there's no hope, why why would you ask me to play again?" he hissed, but there was no bite in it. "Why...?"
"I didn't say there was no hope. There'll be a next time. I'll have to be faster... not stumble over that stupid rock," she grumbled.
The things Jasmine spoke about - the way she spoke about them - gave the impression it was a lot weightier than Victor was hearing. Her voice sounded older than it did days ago. What was Victor missing in her words?
This was beyond him. But there was one thing that wasn't.
"You know what I think you need? A good night's sleep. I sure do. You can't get the bad guy without hitting the sack sometime."
Jasmine chuckled - a quiet one, but a chuckle nonetheless.
"You're right." She stretched, ready to go home. "I think the wizards knew that, too. They could finish the Magic Shield whenever they please. They're just worried about me."
Victor paused as the words tried, and failed, to sink in. "Huh? Wizards-!?"
"Don't worry about it," Jasmine said, and then began trotting off. "See you tomorrow, okay?"
The dim light in Theophilus' mansion glanced off of the Magic Shield gently, a soft glow like the sun. It was the last hope of all living things - the sole counter to the Magic Hat.
"And now we've finished it, I'm sure Ivlet will bring the fight to us in time," Theophilus said.
He always says that, Jasmine noticed. Bringing the fight to us, like we're sitting ducks.
"Wouldn't we want to strike before Ivlet transforms?" she asked.
Theophilus and Bartholomew shared a dire look.
"If he hadn't already," Jasmine added, grimly.
Bartholomew's dire look became even more pointed. He sighed. "We could have."
"...It's my own fault. I failed to guard the Air Crystal. There's nothing that can be done now," Theophilus admitted.
Jasmine perked up. "The Air Crystal?"
The pair blinked at her. But Jasmine didn't much care how strange her reaction might seem - this was news to her and she wanted the details. Even a hopeless world had stories to tell, after all.
Theophilus seemed embarrassed, in a haughty sort of way, the face of someone who didn't like dwelling on their wrongs. "The Air Crystal used to be here in Sky Heights. With it, we would be able to create a warping spell of the sort that could bring us safely to Ivlet, even cloaked in darkness as he is."
"And it's been destroyed. Ivlet got to it while my dear brother was distracted. Where were you keeping it, by the way?"
"With all the other components," Theophilus asserted.
"Lying doesn't suit you," Bartholomew grumbled.
"In the treasure chest with the tinned food," Theophilus uttered.
"Could you not think of a worse place to put it!?"
But before Theophilus could interject again, the floorboards started rumbling, and a spark of magic crackled around them, until a portal opened like the jaws of a nightmare. The three of them took the magic shield into the purple tear in space, and were met with bright red eyes.
Ivlet couldn't speak words anymore, and his growls and howls were poor comfort. Of course, the rocks scattered around his domain made poor comfort to him, too. Jasmine played her role of monster-slayer perfectly. The dragon faded. Ivlet's form shrunk, reverted... but never disappeared.
Even as another tear in reality tugged Ivlet away, his yellowed, lupine eyes were laughing.
"You must understand that this all sounds a little implausible..." Theophilus faltered, avoiding the reprimand Jasmine could hear beneath the words: you shouldn't tell tales.
Jasmine breathed through the body of a child, but the uncountable weeks into months into maybe years that she'd lived of this summer, over and over again, made her feel rather like her own wolf in sheep's clothing. The skin didn't fit. She'd worked and helped and rescued over and over, learned about taking responsibility long ago, but nobody knew it.
(When she had a moment to breathe, a part of her longed to see just one crisp autumn leaf, as proof that times were changing and it was all over.)
"But it's true. Every time we let him escape, he's able to turn back time to the day he arrived on the island. We need the Air Crystal to get him before he transforms," she persisted.
Theophilus paused. "Well, I suppose you're right that it is possible. Theoretically, that is. But surely the move is to prevent him from getting his nasty claws on the Magic Hat in the first place?"
And Jasmine drew quiet, herself. Because she'd tried. She'd told Victor it was a bad idea, and that they shouldn't go. She'd tried to stop him in person. Curiosity always got the better of him, though, and he'd always found some sneaky way to inadvertently get the Magic Hat out of their hands.
It'd be a lot like Von Baldor, if it wasn't so tangled in a want to be responsible. To prove them wrong. To be sure the Magic Hat was the real deal, and make sure people were really safe. And the guilt, afterwards - the only way it didn't tear her up every time was if she didn't think much about it at all.
Maybe when Victor was a little older, a little more responsible, that persistence would serve him well. Until then, he was an inevitability Ivlet was counting on, and exactly why she had booked it here, this time. For the Air Crystal.
"And why," Theophilus continued, "is it that you remember these loops, and nobody else does?"
Jasmine's gaze turned to Beat, resting at her side. A blessing and a curse, together. Not even Beat remembered - but with his help, his protection, she did. He chose for her to remember, every time, and she vowed that one day, she'd prove to him his choice was right.
It happened when she was helping at Pawville.
She'd learned, in her head, not to get her hopes up, but her heart didn't listen to reason. She'd found a new lead she hadn't known was there, and - fitting to its name - the Air Crystal blew a tailwind of hope through her bones. If it were safely in her bag, Ivlet wouldn't be able to find it to destroy, and they could get him before he turned. It would finally be done.
Of course, it was helping the villagers that earned her the trust she needed from the adults. Theophilus, too. She was working on it. She'd just finished clearing Augusta's field of pests; Ada's busted guitar had yet to be stolen from her, apparently, so that was coming up; and... what else...
She mulled it over while she followed the path home from the coast. When she turned the cliff corner a clamour reached her ears, and she remembered. Climbing the slope met her with those yellowed eyes, again.
Of course. The rain. Ivlet returning to Pawville on a petty whim, casting an eternal rainstorm over their village. A cruel move to drown their hopes, drown their plants and flowers, flood them with despair for daring to stand up after being beaten down.
Ivlet, ignoring the frightened growls and hisses of the villagers around him, turned his glare to the Apollo's Flower in the centre of South Pawville, then back to her.
And Jasmine stood her ground. That's right. You can't cast any rain as long as this flower is protecting us. The others seemed to be empowered by her being here, too - they didn't cower when Ivlet glanced around back at them. And, from the group, a voice called out:
"Our Jasmine's been bringing us all sorts to protect us, you know! So buzz right off, you...!"
Ivlet snarled, accusatory, and started to stalk towards Jasmine. She picked up a pebble.
In her experience, his claws had only hurt half as much as a buffalo charge. What's the worst he could do, really, when he wasn't hiding in a bubble and simmering?
And, at the ready, she aimed for the Magic Hat and threw.
Instead of knocking it off, the pebble bounced, completely ineffectual, from its side. The hat hugged to his head like a lion guarding a rosemary. She couldn't help but feel, again, like he was almost laughing, unbelievably smug.
Ivlet lunged, and at that moment, a dawn of horrible realisation came upon her: he hurt like half a buffalo when the Magic Shield was protecting them - and seperating Ivlet from the Magic Hat's true power.
This time, a bat of his paw hurt like three buffalo and sent her flying.
This time, instead of rain, a frost swept over the grass and the temperature sunk like a rock.
Still, Jasmine stood on shaky legs and looked her adversary in the eye.
Then they stopped shaking.
Ice crept up her legs.
So cold.
...
Before she entirely froze over, she thought of Bartholomew, still stuck up on Gongoro Peak, and how he survived as solid rock for a long, precious decade.
Still too slow. Always too slow. They got her out of the ice. They used the Warm Stone. It wasn't enough. Never enough.
When would she be enough?
"So it was you who took the three crystals."
Jasmine trailed pawprints into Theophilus' home, then deposited the three prerequisite crystals onto his desk. He'd last seen her when she was but a newborn - she'd grown so much that he barely recognised her.
"You're trying to make the Magic Shield. Was it Arvin that told you how?"
Jasmine stared at him blankly.
"I must say, you've rather taken the wind out of my sails," Theophilus chuckled (politely, he hoped). "I get visitors so rarely that, well, I like to surprise them a little bit. My illusions didn't faze you at all."
Jasmine looked pointedly at the crystals. The crystals that only Theophilus should have been able to help her find.
"Ah, that would be rather too much magic for one wizard. I'm afraid I'll be needing the help of my brother," he explained.
And Jasmine shook her head, as if she knew something he didn't.
Theophilus found himself at something of a loss, here. He'd admittedly been a bit out of the loop: Sky Heights had, unusually, been caught up in storms. It shouldn't have been possible, considering it was over the clouds - not at their mercy. Theophilus could guess who it came from, of course, a tangle of evil energy that had only existed for a day or two... and hopefully wouldn't last a day or two more.
But then here was Jasmine, overflowing with good-half energy, already prepared, as if she'd done it all before. As if she knew what was coming.
"The Magic Shield can't be made by just anyone," Theophilus said.
And Jasmine nodded in understanding. I'm not just anyone.
The Water, Earth and Ice Crystals forming into the Magic Shield was a delicate and intense process: it took one to balance the energies just so, and then the other molding, making it real. Jasmine managed her part with ease.
As soon as the Magic Shield was done, he grabbed it and rounded on her. "Where did you learn to do this?"
For a moment, he thought she wasn't going to answer.
"...From you."
And then she explained. Truly delved, well practiced words as if she'd said them a thousand times. If it was true, maybe she had. Words about his brother; about the component crystals; about the fate of the world. Then, as if she hadn't already blown away his expectations, she plucked the Air Crystal out of her bag.
"I swiped it yesterday, while you were visiting Niel," she concluded. "Sorry. If I hadn't got to it, Ivlet would."
"You could have just asked."
"Well, you weren't there. I had to be quick. We have to be quick."
Theophilus took in a deep breath. It was a lot - the past day or so had been a lot. He was putting a child in danger, and taking her at her word that she was telling the truth and could handle it. She had managed to gather the crystals on her own - the hat had indeed been stolen and that had to be addressed - was that enough?
...People all over the island were suffering, but it was only going to get worse if they didn't strike while the iron was hot.
"I suppose it can't be avoided. Now is the time to act."
And when Theophilus held the Air Crystal, a blustering wind picked up in the room.
One rock. Two rocks. Three. She pelted Ivlet until he fell, disoriented, and the rift rumbled in premonition of collapse.
It was easier - of course it would be easier - he hadn't had enough time to transform, to summon the Chaotic Dragon, and she'd done this countless times before. She knew how this went. Easy.
Too easy.
She glanced desperately at the crumbling pillars and stones, the dimming sigil on the floor, and Ivlet's crumpled form, and Theophilus' urgent look. They didn't even have a minute until the rift broke down, and the pressure in the air squeezed strongly enough that their vision was starting to blur. But still, in the darkness, clear as day - a portal opened behind Ivlet and began to pull.
Theophilus shouted, "This place isn't going to hold. Let's-"
"Save him too," Jasmine yelled. "Don't let Ivlet get away!"
For a moment, Theophilud hesitated, and Jasmine had a horrible feeling he wasn't going to listen. He was going to save two, but leave Ivlet to his own devices, and lose everything again, let skepticism bring everything back to zero.
But he didn't. He called to the power of the Magic Shield, to the Air Crystal, to every magic fibre in his body, and as Ivlet came closer and closer to that portal, within inches, a warp bubble formed around him and pulled away. As one came over Jasmine, too, she closed her eyes, counted to ten, and prayed.
When she opened them again, she was under the watchful eye of the moon. She turned her head to the left - there was the mansion, and Theophilus, and the Magic Hat. She turned her head to the right - there was the bog, and all the bridges, and Ivlet thrashing about trapped under a dome created by the Magic Shield.
"Of course, the Magic Hat can't return to normal without me," Beat chirped. "I'm sure you've heard me say it a thousand times. Thank you for everything."
And he hopped back into the Magic Hat, turning its stormy skies bright once more.
Jasmine took a deep breath, staring at the hat in disbelief. She turned back to Ivlet, who growled and refused to meet her eye. She was waiting for the flood of white. For waking up in her bed, and greeting her parents, and Victor telling her about this criminal Ivlet that had just been caught for the first time, and looking at the flowerbed and seeing it barren.
Theophilus interrupted her reverie. "I must say I'm still rather shocked by your story, but your efforts have saved the entire world. Allow me to thank you, on behalf of all life on this planet."
She nodded, and waited for the familiar passing on of the hat. Only, it never came.
"...Perhaps we should visit Pawville together," he continued, picking up the Magic Hat himself. "And drop off this escaped prisoner, too."
"We told you to leave it to the adults! Do you have any idea how much danger you were in?" Ada hissed.
Perhaps there were two inevitabilities, after all. One was Victor's unfortunate decisionmaking, and the other was getting chewed out for doing a reckless thing even though it never really made them listen. Jasmine had the sense to look sufficiently cowed.
"Did you... did you fix it all by yourself?" Victor asked, as soon as he'd had enough of soaking in his new freedom.
Of course, seeing her best friend's first steps back into freedom was worth any price.
She shook her head. "I gathered all the pieces, but I could never have done it on my own."
"You've got to tell me all about it!"
"You've got to help the villagers get back on their feet, as well. We've only one cell, so no getting out of it this time," Ada jumped in.
"Ack, right. Let's go, Jasmine. If we do it together, maybe it won't be so bad."
Pawville was still in ruins. She'd been in such a hurry that this time, there really was no time to help anyone - not even Gertrude. She'd used some precarious methods to get across broken bridges and clamber past the boulders, weak as she was. She'd stolen her dad's Warp Ring. He was still pretty mad about that, but seemed to understand, something she was very grateful for.
Of course, even if she didn't - even if she were the one jailed - she would be relieved just to be free of the cursed loops. The Magic Hat was safely back where it belonged, with Arvin, but she had a feeling he was still going to pass it to her, sometime in the future. Sometime, when Pawville was well again, she would have to don the Magic Hat on her own. She'd get to play the part of Hat-Bearer.
When that day came, she'd accept her role and play it to perfection.
Jasmine woke up, greeted her parents, saw the Magic Hat on the table, saw Victor come in with a knock on the door, and felt her heart sink.
"Why do you look so gloomy? Come on, Stanley says you've gotta start your mornings strong to get anything done," Victor said, putting on a smile.
She nodded, and followed him out into the soft morning sunlight. Instinctively, her eyes drew to the flowerbed - it was barren.
"I know, it's awful," said Clara, making her jump. "There's not enough bricks. Could one of you be a dear and ask Kenneth about them?"
...
It was all real. She'd really done it. The flowerbed was in shambles, the shade over the Drug Store was still missing, and the gates to the Aquarium and Zoo were in bits. It was a grim sight, but it was proof.
"Um, I'll do it," Victor volunteered.
Jasmine nodded, and watched him go. The door to her house opened, too - Arvin was heading off to help with his own magical way.
She was sure she should be feeling more pleased and less tangled than she did right now. She really was happy - but after so long of pursuing the same goal so relentlessly, it was rather like her feet had been swept from under her. She'd had so long of one future, one assured set of events, and now it was trailing into something new. What was she meant to do with herself?
What was she doing before?
Her main goal was once just... being a child. Could she still do that? Everything from before Ivlet's arrival seemed so small and far away. Who was she meant to be, now that she'd finished with taking down the bad guy? How was she supposed to handle it, now there was no confrontation to prepare for?
But she'd made a promise to Victor, forgotten loops ago. They'd play together again, like old times, when it was all over.
When the island was back to normal, and everyone was safe again, she'd have all the time in the world to find her feet.