Prologue
Because I'm Happy
Whenever she looked, she grew startled.
The girl staring back at her wasn't what she had grown to expect; the girl... she was... different? Not alike. Not the same? ...The same as what? The same as who? Wasn't she meant to have black hair and brown eyes? Wasn't her hair meant to be as dark as Auntie's, as long as Tashi's?
Why wasn't it the same girl that had been screaming, crying as she tried to run away from the spider her brother was leading her way? Why was she suddenly so different?
The little girl frowned. The other girl frowned back at her. Maybe Hikaru had upset her? Should Hikaru apologise? Didn't she want to be Hikaru's friend?*
A woman came along, stopping to stand beside the child. "What's wrong, sweetie?"
Hikaru frowned harder. "Kaa-chan?"
"...Hmm?"
She pointed at the girl. "Who's that?"
The woman's eyes seemed to sharpen. "That's you, darling" she answered gently, her voice tight. "Why? Is something wrong?"
The child looked up from where she had already begun to fuss in her seat, agitated from the lack of movement. "Kaa-chan, can I go see Tashi-kun?"
When her mother nodded in affirmative, the young girl smiled brightly, eagerly hopping up from her chair. Her Kaa-san was so funny. Her stomach was getting bigger and bigger and bigger, like a balloon. Tashi said it was because her Okaa-chan was pre... P-pre..nant? Hikaru didn't want to listen to smarty pants Tashi, but he had said that his Kaa-chan had told him, and Auntie was always right.
Her prenunt kaa-chan could have the seat, anyway. The balloon in her stomach looked quite heavy. Besides, her kaa-chan seemed to enjoy looking at her friend on the... Mi-ro? Mirror?
It didn't matter. Her Kaa-chan's friend looked like her Kaa-chan.
They both had pretty red hair.
.
.
.
Adelaide Lorenz had always been a dreamer.
Even at age 16, she'd still retained hope of one day receiving her Hogwarts letter.
She'd always dreamed of a life with all her favourite anime characters, always anticipating the days when she could go to comic-con and see all her characters brought to life. Her impossible dreams were enlivened... inexplicably real during those times. It was the only time when her fantasies seemed almost... achievable. And yet, when it seemed as if her dream was always within her grasp, reality crushed it. It crushed her thoughts and her dreams and her beliefs, like it did for every other child. But alas, she considered herself lucky that she had managed to remain so wistful during the teenage years when most other kids her age would spend their time trying to be popular, smoking and having sex.
However, like everyone else, life and all its experiences made her realise the brutality of life. She knew that the anime life, seeming to be glamorous and exciting when on her computer screen, would probably be quite difficult in its own way if made a reality. She knew that life of a ninja, a soul reaper, a pirate, a vampire, an alchemist, a soldier... She knew it would mean difficulties and death and pain. On TV, they only showed the stories of the main characters. The main character that had the friends and experiences to get them through to the end of the series. It was never about the rest of the world, the others who faced life without those friends and experiences.
It wouldn't be all fun and games. She knew this.
Yet, on the 31st of April, at the age of 83, Ada couldn't help but move her fragile little bones in anticipation of what was too come.
Her mouth lifted at the edges.
She'd always believed in reincarnation.
*Speaking in 3rd person shows childishness. It is a common trait to be found within children in Japan.
This is my first attempt at a SI story. I've considered writing a Time-Travel story, but I don't think I'd have as much fun writing it!
Do you guys want to guess who she is?
Please review! It motivates me (and just generally brightens up my day) when I hear all the lovely comments. People who have had the pleasure of getting reviews understand.