.* XXII

GHOST

          ❝  The summer heat is always a pleasant reminder of what gifts nature is capable of giving … especially when the sun begins to set,  and the breeze kicks up.  It’s calming, ❞  Manako whispers to herself,  eyes shut to align her senses with the forest.  oh,  if only she could live in solitude,  deep into the heart of the woods … next to the library,  of course.

        Spirale is an every day wonder, always brimming with peculiarities, and for the past weeks, festivities have begun. there’s something nostalgic about it, Gekkoukan had been preparing for their own when the storm came. resting on bed for a couple days had drained him of any energy, or the will to wonder how the school festival would have been. now, he ponders if it would have been fun — Yukari’s complaints against her maid uniform aside, he is sure that spending time with everyone would have been wonderful.

                                everyone…

the river below Ophiuchus is a spectacle. a place with no graveyards, and yet it celebrates death and life without pessimism. it’s beautiful but lonely in equal measure, a balance that never ceases to surprise him.

     “Here.” in his hands, he gently carries a flower raft before letting it drift away through the river. it floats towards the others he had already placed a few minutes earlier. the one left for his mother greets his sister’s and his chest aches slightly but his smile never leaves. “You were forgetting someone.”

@deathsfool​​​​ – spirale fes

  with the festival came nostalgia. bittersweet in its entirety, it accompanied her through the past month like her shadow-- always there, quiet but constant and ever a thing she was aware of. she remembers fondly the preparations for the festival at Gekkoukan and the disappointment of many when the storm cancelled any plans of it. she had been so excited and was sure to have shared in that disappointment, had she not spend those days bed-bound and drifting between being awake and asleep. 

                now.....now, she wishes the storm had waited a bit longer, just for a few extra days..

    that is what she thinks as she quietly watches the tiny flames of the candles flicker on the rafts. one had been lit for them-- each member of S.E.E.S, her closest friends, those she came to love in under the span of a year. and then one for her mother and her brother, all of which floated carefully along. she didn’t know if she had any right to wish them well after everything, but she still selfishly wanted to. it is his voice that draws her out of her thoughts, blinking a few times at his words.

        his steps are silent against the floor, gaze always on the sky. it never ceases him to surprise him, how beautiful the night is. sure, he lived for a whole month to experience the world he had left for everyone, but there is nothing like experiencing it for yourself. for longer, without a deadline getting closer and closer until breathing becomes an agony rather than a joy.

he had never understood what it meant to be grateful for every day. not until december. or january, if he’s more precise. the truth is — if he had revealed those thoughts, akinari would’ve chastised him. but near the end of everything, he is sure that all his friends understood, gone or not. especially shinji.

     his eyes widen slightly. he’s never seen her before. strange is what crosses his mind when he lays his eyes on the girl, nearly a thought but not quite. instead he searches with his memory for her face and struggles. if he’s never seen her before, then why does she feel so familiar? and there’s part of him that whispers to him to tell her to not leave him alone again.

again? he ruminates the word, but it does not tell him anything. it merely reinforces the idea that he’s missing a crucial part of him, someone precious but gone. similar to his mother, and yet not quite. even as he contemplates, searches for any answers, it becomes clear that nothing matters until he asks her name.

     “you should be more careful.” a pause. “you could fall.”

    oh. she had thought she was the only one up here. a product of getting lost in her thoughts and from staring up above for too long is what led her to failing to notice the other until he had spoke. but rather than jump in surprise or startle at the voice breaking the serenity of the night, she remains calm. it was....peculiar. it felt like she knew that voice and knew him, but Minako has never seen him before. that’s what she thinks, but everything else is saying she has. she could remember each face of each person in her life, their name, what their favorite food was...

                   but all she gets at looking him is a blank. just a familiar feeling with no reason for it to even be there.

     “ Thanks for the warning, but I’ll be fine. I’ve hung out on enough rooftops to know the do’s and don’ts. “ she had no intentions of being careless enough in her gazing to fall, but even so, there’s a small shift back, a fraction of distance put between her and the edge. a mostly unconscious reaction and one Minako didn’t even notice herself.

Aigis pondered on the other’s words, head tilting to the side now as she rubbed her head. In truth, the video game comparison flew right over her head. She knew of them, though it wasn’t something she had the chance to partake in yet. The fact that there didn’t seem to be a reason behind the taking of so many people was certainly odd… 

Had it not been solved twice over now, Aigis would have been worried this had to do with the Dark Hour. Though that couldn’t be… 

She shook the idea away, frowning as she pushed past that. It wouldn’t do any good on dwelling on things the other didn’t have any idea of. At least, as far as Aigis knew anyways.

“At the very least, the general populace seems normal. When I first arrived, I was worried something more sinister was at play… but it may be less severe than I hypothesized.” 

Ah, that’s right, she should move onto a more pressing matter at the moment. At the very least, one more pressing now that she knew they weren’t in immediate danger. 

“If it is alright with you, could you perhaps show me around? I would like to get a feel for the area but the scenery changes have left me more bewildered than when I had begun.”

       it was easy to assume what the other was thinking. that this city and the strangeness of it all had something to do with the Dark Hour. it was a possibility that crossed Minako’s mind, especially considering it had never really been solved in her timeline. but she has stayed up nights, waiting and watching. waiting for that eerie green glow to encompass everything as coffins replaced bodies and blood stained the streets. but it never came. here, there was no Dark Hour. it was....comforting to know it no longer was a problem. it was something else too, but she could not quite place what that feeling was.

                      ( a reminder of her failure to fix it? maybe. )

     instinct wants her to reach out a hand to rest on the other girl’s shoulder, to offer reassurance in that confident way she always did. but she couldn’t. not yet, anyways. it seems like it’ll take a bit longer to get used to playing a stranger than she assumed. 

Aigis was relived the other was at least understanding of the slip-up. She still wasn’t sure what had possessed her to think she knew the other– what was still making her think such. Maybe it was just her regaining of her proper emotions playing tricks on her. 

She smiled as she heard the other’s name, head tilted slightly to one side as she considered. Even the name brought on a wave of bitter emotions she couldn’t put her finger on. Still, the girl did her best to not let it show. It was probably the jitters from being brought to this place. 

One excuse after the other. It wouldn’t make sense to really bring it up to a stranger…

“Thank you, Minako. If it is not too much to ask.. do you know much about this place? I only just arrived and most people seem…” she hesitated, trying to think up the word. They seemed normal, though that normalcy was in and of itself odd. “A touch oblivious when I bring up how I got here.”

   it was....harder than she thought.

at the moment, Minako wanted nothing more than to simply hug the other. to pull her in tightly and not let go. but that is something she can’t do. after all, they are strangers. ( ah, that was never a word she would have associated with the other before. but it’s the truth. they are strangers now. ) but that doesn’t mean they couldn’t become friends once more. or, at the least, acquaintances. Minako would be fine with just that and couldn’t ask for more. 

         despite what she’s done, despite the fact that Aigis did not know her....she still wanted her in her life. 

@deathsfool  /  starter call.

☱  : the lights the alraune place on the rafts and set down the river from the base of the grand tree ophiuchus are more than enough to illuminate the evening. she watches in silence as dozens of little points of light drift steadily along the water’s surface, each symbolic of someone’s wishes towards another, living or, possibly, dead. in a place like this, one could really never be certain what another had left behind.

yukari finds herself thinking about gensokyo more often than she’d like, no matter how she tries to enjoy herself in the present — the choice is out of her hands anyhow, so there’s no use worrying about any of it — but that’s just the problem: she worries, and she worries, and she worries. of course, not a soul would ever read it from her face nor posture, nor would she ever simply say so aloud, but that little fear, that her home and her people have gone to ruin in her absence, gnaws at her insides like a rat in a sack of rice. all she can do is smile and carry on, as always.

and perhaps seek a little fun to pass the time, of course. she spots a nearby young lady to potentially antagonize, if the moment is right.

‘the lights certainly are mesmerizing, aren’t they?’

‘did you come to ask the alraune to set one to the river for you?’

    it truly is beautiful. the soft, almost ethereal glow the countless candles create as they float atop the water’s surface. she’s been watching for hours now, silent, as if speaking would break some sort of sacred silence she’s imposed upon herself. in truth, Minako was simply lost in thought.

        it’s been strange. to be alive once more and to have knowledge of a choice she made, a choice that ripped everything away in order spare those she cherished most from any pain. here, in this place, she remembers that choice. feelings of that have led her here, feet planted firmly as her gaze never leaves the water. she misses them. every single day, she misses them more than she thought was humanly possible. it’s as if there are tiny pieces of her missing, gone away and there’s no way for her to get them back-- not that she feels as if she has any right to want them back anyhow. she made a choice and Minako has to live with it, as difficult as it has been. even if it was for their sake, there was a selfishness in that choice. but was it so wrong, to not want them to suffer? she doubts she’ll ever get an answer to that. 

  those people were important to her. and even if her wishes will fall on deaf ears, she still....she still wants to do it. for them. they deserve that much, at the very least. she does not know what she will wish for. forgiveness? for them to find peace, wherever that be? a hope that they’re happy in some other world? maybe all of the above. it’ll do nothing to ease the guilt that gnaws at her heart, but she is not doing it for that. 

     the woman’s voice does not startle her and briefly does the teen cast a glance to see who had spoken before her eyes return to the flickering lights. ” They are. I’ve never seen so many before....” but in a place like this, no doubt there were plenty of people who carried wishes for others in their hearts.

     ‘  it is not ?  ’  he is no expert when it comes to guns so he would not be able to tell the difference between a real or a fake. is this place truly so dangerous that people are forced to carry a gun around here? if that’s the case he should bring his box with him just to be safe. however upon the mention of it being harmless he already begins to reconsider. though he supposes that a fake gun may have it’s advantages too.

aesop looks around,  ‘  is it necessary to be carrying one around in plain sight?  ’ surely no one would be dumb enough to try anything (as long as they don’t know it’s a fake one) but considering he just recently arrived he cannot help but wonder if there are less friendly types walking around. 

     “ Truthfully, I don’t know. “ she’s barely been here long enough to give a proper answer to his question. Minako has seen others walking around freely with weapons on them-- things much more dangerous than her ‘fake’ gun. most of the citizens she’s seen seemed to not even be bothered by such weapons being out in the open and she’s not sure if that’s from it being so common or because they know what dangers lurk on this island. after all, the teen does not believe that people wouldn’t walk around with weapons so much if this place was simple and innocent as it may seem.

She’d feel silly, if the other’s answer didn’t make her feel only more confused. Aigis wasn’t one to make such mistakes, so it took her a few more moments of simply staring at the other to process the words. A strange ache in her chest told her that she had done something wrong, even if the girl couldn’t figure out what it was. Was she sad that she didn’t know them? Maybe…

She didn’t know this person, so why did she want to apologize for that itself?

“Oh, I’m sorry. It’s.. not like me to make that kind of mistake.” she stammered out, hands held as she bowed in apology to the other. “Why don’t we start this over then?” 

That was what people did in this situation, right? Pretend they didn’t feel awful for a mistake? That seemed right in her head, so Aigis decided that was the best option.

“I’m Aigis, it is a pleasure to make your acquaintance. Please forgive my rudeness earlier.”

     ah, just like she remembered.

 it’s the nostalgia that hits her next as she quietly watches, listening and observing each action. the uncertainty, the polite bow, no doubt thinking on what to do next. all things Minako remembered as the other was slowly but surely becoming her own person, becoming more than just an anti-shadow weapon. it brought back the memories of seeing her at school. conversations on the rooftops and outings to the strip mall, dinners spent with the other members of S.E.E.S. at the dorm. 

       all memories that were precious to her...all memories that, for a time, had completely vanished. not by accident, but by choice. she knows she would feel a hole in her heart with those gone and it’s only thanks to this city that she now remembers. remembers all the good and the bad and everything in between.

              and she doesn’t want to forget ever again.

    “ Oh, don’t worry about. Happens to everybody one time or another! ” it takes strength to not treat her like an old friend, to not be overly friendly. somehow, she manages. and after introducing herself does her smile soften a fraction.

She was following a stray puppy around for a while, pathetically waving a dog treat around as it absentmindedly ignored her and went about it’s day to day puppy business. Ah… Is this what people mean when they say that she has a weak presence? Even with a treat in her hand, an animal will still ignore her. 

As she’s thinking about these insecurities, she accidentally topples into a child- maybe a year younger than her students. The treat flies out of her and and only then does the dog decide it’s worth eating.

Megumi clearly isn’t happy with this.

She sulks even more when this person asks her if she’s late for school- those words seem to cut into her like a knife? Does she really look that immature??

“I’m a teacher!” She blurts out in embarrassment, and promptly realizes that teachers actually can be late for school. “B-But no!! I don’t have any business to do right now! I was just…”

She watches the puppy trot away and sighs.

“… Forgive me for being unsightly.”

        oops.

  okay, so maybe she had assumed that the other wasn’t a teacher and more of, say, a college student or something. but definitely not a teacher and even if she remains still smiling on the outside, inside, she's mentally scolding herself for jumping to conclusions. now that she has a moment to get a better look at the other, she did kind of give of a bit of a ‘teacher’ vibe-- nothing like Ms. Toriumi, though. can’t say she’s ever seen a teacher chase as after a puppy, either, but she isn’t going to judge that.

      “ No, no, it’s alright! I get it, when it comes to cute animals, everything else just comes second. “    

   after all, how many nights did she spend playing with Koromaru? brushing his fur, staying up late to watch whatever was on the television that night, taking him for walks. the momentary sight of the animal has a nostalgic feeling popping into her heart and for a moment, her features softening. she missed him. he was the fiercest and most energetic dog she’s ever known.

@deathsfool​

Something was. Odd. Aigis couldn’t help but stare at the other as she considered her feelings. Some part of her was sure that she knew this girl. Yet, no matter how hard she strained, she didn’t have a single memory that she could recall of them. Despite how strange it was, she knew she wouldn’t get anywhere if she just stood there. The other certainly wasn’t going to notice her staring at the back of her head.

“Do… I know you?” Aigis asked, having walked up behind the other with only the metallic click of her odd feet indicating her approach. 

Aigis didn’t. No, she did. It was… so odd. Some part of her certainly seemed to think they knew one another. Were friends, even. It wasn’t like her to forget…

   someone out there had a really, really cruel sense of humor.

she knew who it was automatically. the metallic clicks she’s heard so many times before are hard to mistake, and as she turns to face her-- face the owner of that voice -- it takes every single ounce of her strength to not break down right then and there. yes, someone out there had a cruel sense of humor if Aigis was suddenly here. here and asking if she knew who Minako was. 

    who knew such a simple question could sting so badly? and yet, her face shows none of that. it is calm, if not a bit confused. none of that pain or sorrow or guilt makes its way to the surface. even if it felt like there was something heavy sitting in her heart, a heaviness that only grew the longer she stared at someone she once considered a best friend. ah, but this is not that. Minako already knew why she did not know her-- this was the Aigis from his world. from where the right choice was made. she should consider that to be a mercy then. a good thing. but even so, that urge to cry remains, only growing more potent at the oh so achingly familiar person before her. 

          no. no, do not cry, Minako. you don’t have that right.