(A/N): One of the reasons why I decided to start writing this story is because I wanted to write something a lot...lighter than my previous work, Amnesia. I really enjoyed writing Amnesia, but it was exhausting to write, and I have a feeling its sequel will be equally as tiring. So, I wanted to write something a little less dark, and I thought, how about an au?
It's strange writing Mai as the main protagonist (John was the narrator in Amnesia). It's not as hard as I thought it would be, though.

Also, for this au, because it's set in Ireland, assume everyone is Irish unless I say so (for example, I'm keeping Masako as Japanese). And Carlingford is an actual Irish town on the east coast of the Republic of Ireland, for anyone who didn't know. (I didn't just make it up). It's a pretty nice town, actually; I've been there a few times and I enjoyed going there.

Well, I hope you enjoy! Thanks for reading!

I can't breathe.

The waves knock into me, again and again. The water forces its way into my mouth, seeping down my throat, into my lungs. Each muscle in my body burns like fire, even though the water is freezing me.

To the left of me, I can see the boat sinking slowly, scraps of metal and wood sticking up out of the water. I can hear shouting, then nothing as I am plunged into water; the constant sound of the waves crashing over me as I surface again; nothing as I fall once more. I kick myself to the surface, and I reach out towards the boat, but my body can't move. Amid the chaos and the panic, the stars are shining, and the sky is beautifully clear.

The salt water is stinging in my eyes. I can't see. I can't breathe.

I'm falling.

The ocean is claiming me. I can't fight it. It's dragging me under. My body can't move, and I'm sinking slowly. There's a weight pressing onto me, pressing into me, but I don't fight it. I let it take me as I am dragged further and further underneath.

I don't understand what happened. How did this happen? Why is this happening? We were fine, and then the water just started pouring in. But we were in clear water. No rocks. No banks.

Why did we sink?

It's all over now, isn't it?

I'm going to drown.

Someone grabs me by the wrist.

I'm moving upwards.

What's happening…?

I cough up the water from my lungs, and exchange it for sweet air. The sky is still clear, and the stars shine down onto the ocean.

I'm not in the water anymore. I'm on something sharp and rough. A rock, I think. The sound of shouting has stopped now. I wonder vaguely where the rest of the crew is. I can't see anyone, and I can't see the boat anymore.

My vision is fading now. I look onto the sea. Everything's fading to black now. All I can see are the stars, and a flash of blue. A fish, maybe.

Then it's gone, and I'm gone, too.

My eyes snapped open in a panic.

I lay in bed, trying to calm myself with deep breaths. What a horrible nightmare…a nightmare about drowning…

My heart racing, I pushed the thoughts from my head. Calm down, it was just a dream…eventually, my pulse slowed, and I sat up, rubbing the sleep from my eyes. A beam of light crept in through my window, pulsating onto the rafters and wooden beams above my head. For a minute, I stared up at it, watching the swirling dust and taking in the peace of the morning. Then I pushed myself out of bed.

It had been three weeks since I moved with my brother to Carlingford in Ireland, County Louth, and life in Dublin seemed a long, long way away. We were renting out a small house among the crowded seaside shops, and my brother had managed to get a job at the local police station. Even I managed to get a part-time job at a restaurant and doing the paper round, so money wouldn't be a problem, it seemed. Still, I missed the hustle and bustle of the city.

As I pulled my jacket on over my pyjamas, preparing myself for what would probably be a windy day, I quickly looked at my alarm. It was half seven, so I'd have some time before I needed to start my morning round.

"Mai, you up?" A voice called from downstairs.

"Yeah, wait a sec, I'm coming!" I fumbled for the trap door. The house was quite small, with only a kitchen, one bedroom and a bathroom, so we had converted the attic into another bedroom for me to sleep in. I actually quite liked it; it had a homey feel and there was a nice view of the sea, but occasionally a spider liked to make itself home there, which was never fun.

To get down, I had to open a trap door and climb down a ladder. As I scrambled down the steps, I hit my head against the ceiling, like every morning since we arrived here.

Cursing, I stumbled to the kitchen table, sitting down in a chair tiredly.

"Morning." My brother was working his way through a bowl of cereal, his hair in desperate need of a thorough brushing. "You off for the paper round?"

"Yeah." I helped myself to some cereal. "What about you, you heading off to work?"

He nodded glumly. "Yeah. Another riveting day at work for me."

"Oh, cheer up." I grinned at him. "I'm sure, one day, the headline will be: 'Great Detective Houshou Takigawa Solves the Crime of the Century!'"

He sighed. "More like: 'Poorly Paid Detective Solves Minor Graffiti Incident in Boring Irish Town.'"

I smiled sadly. "It's not that bad here."

Again, he sighed deeply, before smiling weakly at me. "Yeah. You're right."

"Just make sure you don't forget your badge this time." I teased.

He groaned. "That was one time. Are you ever gonna let me live that down?"

"Nope!"

After getting changed, I ran to the front door, calling as I did so. "I've got a shift at SPR tonight, so I'll be back around 11."

"Ok. I'll see you later."

"See you!" Quickly, I headed outside, unlocking my bike. As I thought, it was very windy that day, and I had to pedal furiously against the gale as I made my way to the corner shop, where the daily newspaper was ready to be distributed. Leaving my bike against the wall, I hurried inside.

"Morning, Ms Mori." I greeted the shop owner: a young woman who was sitting behind the counter, sipping a coffee in one hand and ferociously scribbling something down on a notebook with the other.

She was so absorbed in her work, she barely glanced up. "Morning, Mai."

I grabbed the package of newspapers and hefted it into my arms. "What're you writing?"

She looked up with a determined grin. "An article. I know there's something behind this one, I can feel it." Though Madoka Mori owned a shop, everyone knew she was also an enthusiastic photographer and an avid writer with a burning journalistic passion, desperate to get one of her articles published as a first page story. Her writing was good enough, and she had managed to get her articles into the paper more than a few times, but it was the first page that she was really driving for.

"I'll be off, then." Gripping the papers tightly, I bundled them back to my bike, and placed them into my basket.

"I'll leave your pay behind the counter!" I heard Madoka shout after me. Knowing her, she'd probably already have left on the search for a lead by the time I'd get back.

The town of Carlingford wasn't particularly big, and tourism provided a lot of the income. Regardless, it had yet to be turned into a cheap, trashy place, and the area was well maintained – a lot better than other seaside resorts I knew. The shops were characteristic, the roads were narrow and quaint, and the old, medieval buildings were charming. A long, stone pier reached out to the ocean, and a huge, ruined castle overlooked the entire town. It was a nice place, but it was very quiet. I could tell that my brother was just as frustrated as I was.

After dropping off all the papers, I headed back to the corner shop, and as I collected my money from the counter, I felt my mobile ring.

"Hello?"

"Good morning. How are you today?" The calm, flowing voice, as smooth as a river, belonged to Masako Hara, my first friend here and my fellow waitress at my part-time job in the Seagull's Point Restaurant.

"I'm good. Wanna meet at Piccolo Corelli?"

"Of course. I'll see you over there."

Piccolo Corelli was an Italian café that, thanks to its lack of a nautical theme, was unfrequented by tourists but popular with the locals. I sat outside at a table, basking in the weak sun as much as I could, and eating an ice cream in spite of the wind and cold. It didn't take long for Masako to arrive.

"Hello Mai." There was no other way to describe her than elegant – in the way she talked, her clothes, her appearance, even in the way she walked. Today, she had donned a lacy blue dress and looped earrings of a Native American style.

She drifted into her seat, pushing her black hair out of her face.

"How're you today?" I asked, feeling unkempt in my scuffed jeans and stained jumper.

"I am well." She looked at the list of flavours. "…I think I shall have vanilla."

"You working tonight?"

"Yes, I am."

Grinning, I leant over. "D'you think he'll be there?"

Masako smiled back. "I hope so.

As we talked, she mentioned something interesting.

"Have you heard, Mai? Another fishing boat was sunk last night."

"What? Another one?"

"Yes. I sensed a feeling of departure this morning, and then I happened to meet Ms Mori on her way out, and she told me."

Masako had quite the reputation for being the town spiritualist. It's not a fact that was broadcast to the tourists, but all the locals knew who she was, and many of the older residents regarded her with an intense respect because of it.

"That's, what, the fourth fishing boat in two weeks!" I exclaimed. "Why are they all sinking?!"

"I couldn't possibly say. There was a survivor this time, though. Ms Mori was on the way to the hospital to talk to him about what happened."

So that explained what Madoka was so fired up about this morning. "Why, does she suspect something?"

"Who knows. But it is a rather unusual coincidence. Will your brother be investigating?"

"Well…I don't know…weren't they all caused by a storm or something?"

"Hm. Perhaps." Masako sounded unsure. "But…I have a feeling…no." She shook her head. "Never mind. Wait a moment and I'll go get my ice cream."

As she went to pay, I thought about what she said. It was a weird coincidence…four in two weeks was a lot, and I didn't think that the waters around here were that rough.

Something clicked in my head. Last night, I had a dream about someone at sea…yes, a sinking ship. And I was drowning, but someone saved me. And my boat was sinking.

But…no. I shook my head. No way. A dream can't be related to a real like event. That's impossible.

Yet…

"Is everything alright?"

I snapped out of my thoughts as Masako sat down.

"Yeah, yeah! Just day dreaming."

That nightmare had no relation to that ship sinking. It was just a coincidence, nothing more.

…Right?