Hilda was, by all outward appearances, an average eight year old girl. She was clearly well looked after, as her build was athletic but not slight. Her blond hair and watery blue eyes the product of her Swedish mother. Those eyes twinkled when she was on the roof of her flats gazing at the stars, the starlight reflecting in the deep wells of intelligence. She twisted her hair through her fingers thoughtlessly while jotting her observations down in her notebook. Her mum was away again but Susan’s mums were looking after her. Susan, Hilda’s best friend, understood what it was like being Hilda; she knew when she needed space and when she needed company. Hilda wanted space tonight. Kate, the nicer of the two mums, was an awesome cook and Hilda would almost look forward to the days she could taste her jelof rice, almost.

Hilda doodled hearts on the edge of her page and had written ‘mum’ over and over. She sighed, she was missing her more than usual tonight. She shivered despite the balmy night and went back to twiddling her hair. Her mother worked for Greenpeace. She would disappear for days at a time; travelling the world to interview oil company CEOs and recycling researchers on the cusp of a world changing discovery. There was always someone about to save the world. Her mum reported it for the website. It was more than a job, it was a passion.

“It past nine, Sweetheart, past time little girls were in bed on a school night.” Kate chided gently. She’d managed to sneak up on Hilda while she was dep in her own thoughts. She smiled weakly.

“Sorry, Auntie Kate. I lost track of time.” Kate glanced at the notebook and nodded sympathetically. Hilda didn’t ask permission, she didn’t need to. She turned and grabbed Kate in a bear hug. Kate kissed her hair.

“It’s OK, Sweetheart. She’ll be back soon.” Hilda held on tight for a moment longer and returned to her most prized possession, her telescope. She needed to pack it away. It was the only thing of her dad’s she owned and it added to the mystery of his identity. It was something her mum would never talk about.

She tucked every lens into their velvet beds and made her way down to her own. Kate left her to it knowing she would not be long. However something stopped Hilda at the door. A nagging feeling tickled her mind like she had forgotten something. There was something left to do.

She tottered over to the edge, where she’d been working. There was the low wall, her white plastic patio chair and a small pile of pencil shavings. But there was nothing out of place. Not a thing. She wandered around the rooftop with a growing sense of unease. That was when she saw it.

It was subtle at first, just a pinprick of starlight drifting westward from Orion’s Belt. Hilda was puzzled because the International Space Station was not due to fly over London tonight. She carefully put her telescope case down and flicked through her notes. No satellite should be in the area.

“What on earth is that?” she asked.

“Funny you should ask it like that.” Said a man’s voice behind her. Hilda leaped out of her skin. She span around and saw a bizarre little man. He looked like a teacher. His checked shirt tucked into jeans and a pair of old trainers. He had a frayed piece of string in the place of a tie.

“Who are you?” Hilda demanded. She thought about calling for Kate but there was something that stopped her. This man would not hurt her, she was sure of that, she didn’t know why but she was.

“I am Eaph, but you haven’t met me yet. I just popped up to say hello and to tell you to go inside. That light you’re watching is a Hunter and a particularly nasty one too. It’s called Auslander and he’s looking for you.”

“Why would he possibly be looking for me? I haven’t done anything wrong.” Hilda gazed back in to the sky. The light grew brighter, larger, like it was getting closer. Then, as suddenly as it appeared, it vanished. Hilda did not think this was a good thing and one look at Eaph’s face told her she was right. All colour had drained out of his face.

“This calls for drastic action. I will need to find a role here on Earth, close to you.” He pulled out a long silvery stick and began to run his finger up and down it whilst pressing several triangular buttons. “When I press this next button, you will forget any of this happened. However, if you remember anything at all from tonight, beware the name Auslander.” He hit the final button and the air wobbled like she was surrounded by heat haze.

Hilda was in the doorway, gripping it like it was all that was holding her up. She was alone, since Kate had just this second gone downstairs. Her telescope and notebook in her other hand, she turned to go down to bed. A nagging feeling tickled her mind like she had forgotten something. There was something left to do. This time she dismissed it as déjà vu and went to bed. The next few days would be very interesting for Hilda but she would never remember this night.