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At the jail

Molly fixed her eyes intently on the sheriff. To her, his resemblance to the professor was growing stronger, not less, the more she looked at him. But if he said he wasn't--unless--no, it couldn't be. But say--what if he had lost his memory? That still didn't account for his altered appearance. Molly shook her head--it was too much for her to take in.

That was another thing. What had he said just now about not knowing there was anyone in the jail? So why didn't he go check it out? Molly suddenly had an itch to know who exactly was in there. She looked at the others, and made up her mind.

"I--I feel a little dizzy," she murmured, not untruthfully. "Maybe it's the sun--or the mist--or something. Sheriff, could we go in and sit down for a bit? I don't really want to faint on the boardwalk here."

Hannah looked at the door when Delia asked the question she was asking inwardly, "someone who hasn't made up their minds on whether they want to come in or not? Or maybe they were called away?" She replies and turns to face the door.

"Those are good snack choices by the way." Hannah adds with a small grin.

“Oh goodness, ma’am, my apologies for keeping you out in the sun. Right this way, please,” the sheriff said, doffing his hat and opening the door.

He stepped through the doorframe, but only caught a glimpse of the two ladies in the cell before manners obliged him to turn and offer an arm to Molly soas to guide her to a chair.

But Molly wasn't quite as eager to sit down so much as to see who was in those cells. So she skipped behind Milner as he turned to offer her his arm.

Then:

"Delia!" she shrieked. "What have they got you in here for?"

“Existing, apparently,” Delia exclaimed, springing up. “How’d you all get here? I thought I was gonna lay down to get rid of a migraine, and then I’m laying down on a straw mat. Same thing with Hannah, well, except the laying down with a migraine. Got any coffee? And a sandwich?”

"Oh, don't mention food," groaned Molly. "None of us have had any breakfast. What with wandering around before breakfast and getting lost in the mist and no breakfast--did I mention that we haven't had breakfast?"

Molly took her bonnet off, and looked speculatively at the fruit design.

"If I don't get something soon, I might begin gnawing on my headgear. Now, Sheriff, is there any reason why Delia and Hannah are locked in here? Can't we get them out, and all go have some breakfast?"

Hannah listened to the exchange as her own stomach growled for food, she spoke up as breakfast was mentioned, "Yea, breakfast would be good or even a sandwich--with coffee which was also mentioned."

A thought sprung to her mind suddenly, or a breakfast sandwhich with coffee, along with getting out of here?

The sheriff rubbed the bald spot on his head and frowned.

“Well I—I—well, I don’t rightly know what to say,” he said, looking befuddled and small for a moment. Then he drew himself up and regained a bit of his authority. “No one has keys to those cells but me in this town, ma’am, so I don’t rightly know how this would have happened. Last night was a rather peculiar night, and, given the rest of you all seemed to appear out of thin air, I’ll grant it was a mistake.”

He stepped forward and, with one smooth motion, unlocked the cell and swing the door open.

“Ladies?”

“Thank you, Dr. Milner,” Delia said, sailing out. “You seem to be fitting in your new occupation quite well.”

“Beg pardon, ma’am, but I’m no doctor,” he said, eyes crinkling around the corner. “Must have a mighty fine cousin in your parts, though.”

Delia stopped, studied him for a moment, then nodded crisply.

“Indeed,” she said. She turned and looped her arms around Molly and Faye’s waists. “Girls, you’ve no idea how glad Hannah and I are to see you!”

“What on earth is wrong with Lyman?” she whispered.

"Do you think he's the professor, too?" Molly whispered back. "He doesn't seem to think he is. Maybe he's got amnesia? The rest of us know who we are. I mean--well, yeah--you and Hannah are yourselves, and Faye and I, and the Baxters--we're all--ourselves. Even if we are dressed funny."

“Now, you girls said something about breakfast?” Delia said cheerily, glancing back at the sheriff.

“I don’t think, I know,” she whispered. “He’s got the same soul. And two souls can go into one body, but you can’t put the same soul into two bodies. Not at the same time, any rate. Let’s get outside where whispering isn’t as obvious.”

"I agree, I think outside would be the best option," Hannah said with a nod of agreement. She had felt her spirits lift slightly since yesterday, from what she didn't know.

Two souls in one body? That must be a close space, She thought when hearing Delia and the others speak.

"Yes, that sounds wonderful." Faye said loudly. As they exited, she turned to the young lady she didn't recognize and said, "By the way, I don't think we've met. I'm Faye Brixton, I run the general store back in Ditto Town."

As soon as the group stepped outside and were safely out of the sheriff's earshot, Faye did her best to get the two ladies up to speed: "Dr., or Sheriff, Lyman isn't the only weird thing about this place. You might've overheard us - we were trying to take a walk, get out of town a little. Somehow, Molly and I, and the Baxters, as two separate groups, ended up back where we started. Even with thick fog, that's more than a little strange."

She shook her head. "Besides, we still have no idea how we ended up here. There was a flash of light, and poof! We were all standing here, dressed up like we belonged. Milner either doesn't recognize us or is pretending he doesn't, and everyone else in town seems to know him as the Sheriff. I'd assume this was all a wild dream if I hadn't just woken up an hour ago."

Hannah listened as they spoke outside about the strange occurrence before speaking up, "that is strange, I am new in town so its quite the thing to happen when one is newly arrived. I am Hannah Soleira, it is nice to meet you Faye," she introduced herself with a warm smile.

"I was just looking around some archives when the next thing I know I found myself in a cell with Delia dressed like.." she trailed off looking at her attire again, "this."