It... It couldn't be. No, this couldn't be real. It had to be some sort of prank or something. A joke, surely. Mason must have read the letter at least five times, before it really set in. It was signed, Ellie Johanson. James' sister. It was real.

James was dead.

Mason lifted his hands and buried his face, letting the letter drop to the floor. He wanted to cry. Scratch that. He was going to cry. He could feel the tears coming no matter how manly he was.

But suddenly, the loud barks of his dog, jerked him back to his kitchen. He almost had forgotten where he was. He sniffed and walked a few steps to look out the front door only to see Noodles attacking a red blob. What was that red blob, anyway? Wait, it was a person... Hey, that wasn't just a person, it was:

"Cora!" Mason exclaimed. Oh, it probably would have been a good idea to warn her about Noodles. He was really a nice dog, he just got excited really easy. Especially with strangers. Mason jogged out of his house just as Cora pointed her wand to the dog's nose.

"Hey, he just wants to play." He said with a little laugh. He whistled for the dog, and Noodles' ears perked up as he ran back to Mason. He walked over to the love of his life Cora and extended his arm out to help her up. "How's the weather down there?" He asked with a smirk.

But that smirk soon faded because of the letter that still lingered in his mind. And the sting in his eyes returned, as he tried to push those thoughts away.