#:chapter one

Moshe had never been to Europe, so he had never been given the chance to look around a castle. Especially one as splendid at this. It almost made him forget that this was all fake, and he was certainly not in Europe. (Or was he? Cilestino was European. Who knew where they all were.)

Returning to the main hall, he felt like he could hear something... familiar. It brought him back to those days of running around in shorts and a sunhat, waving his net around to catch bugs and critters. It was unmistakably the sound... of a frog.

He looked down, and sure enough, there was one. A real frog. It had a crown on its head, which wasn't the weirdest thing he'd seen, but it was weird.

"Poor nar. I almost stepped on you."

He crouched down and picked up the frog. It ribbited, and Moshe, chanted back, "kero kero kero".

Hearing footsteps, he turned in their direction, hair swishing like a black waterfall.

Miko honestly saw this coming. But he wouldn't say that he wasn't surprised. After all, he just made an entire spiel on selfishness.

If that's what Hikaru wanted, he doesn't blame the other. 

"I guess you didn't 

Know Selena as well as

Some of us here did."

Coraline looked completely serious.  Here was the one place where they (or anyone else) could permanently die.  Everywhere else was relatively safe, but here...  And now the thought that they could actually send someone here to their death.  It was sobering, to say the least.

"...I think that I am in agreement with everyone else.  It feels severe to condemn her, and what has she done to deserve such a thing?  I can't recall anything of the sort that she's done.  She seems very kind."

Miko's statement appears to resonate with Coraline, for they wince at his last statement.  Still, they collect themself quickly, and continue on.

Hikaru looks around, and he can't help but roll his eyes at everyone's answers. They just seem so... fake to him.

Are we really going to pretend we're all caring, forgiving people?

I honestly don't care what happens to her. And why should her own issues be my problem, really?

The rest of you can go on pretending to be upstanding people. As for me, well...

After so many things happening that Miko has witnessed and experienced, he can easily believe the host's words. Yikes. 

"The shadow said she's 

What Selena is at her core.

But I also want 

To disagree there."

Talking to both versions of Selena was... strange. But it was something.

"Selena doesn't 

Hate anyone, yet she does 

Want to be selfish.

There's nothing wrong with 

Being selfish, I believe."

It's in human nature to be selfish anyways. That even when life is perfect, you want some things changed or to be different.

"If her shadow is

That selfish portion of her,

I don't see why we 

Should have them both killed.

Carla looked around as angry as ever, only wavering when Selena blew out a kiss.

"I don't know what she'll do. But I know her well enough to take a stand on her behalf while shes.... gone."

She turned to face everyone with a confidant and aggressive stance.

"Selena is the nicest person i've ever met. I had emotions other than anger around her because even in just the span of a few days she made me comfortable. Even if that..."

She pointed at Selenas shadow form.

Moshe looked around the room with raised eyebrows, as if unable to accept or take seriously all that he is seeing.

“Well, er… I feel as if I don’t know Selena-san well enough to determine whether she will be able to accept herself. But, y'know, she seems nice. I don’t see any reason to sentence her to death so soon. Anyone else got any opinions?”