Title: Here I Stand
Summary: I had grown up being told death was supposed to lead to the peaceful afterlife, not a world of superheroes and "Quirks". [SI-OC/Reincarnation-fic]
TRIGGERS: Mentions of religion.
EDIT: 6/26/18. It's me, back again! Some dumb, simple mistakes in this chapter as well. Editing everything to better every reader's experience! Also, corrected the wrong tenses throughout the chapters and gave Mirai's parents much-needed descriptions on their appearances and clothing. Most importantly, the translations are finally added in. :)
Chapter 01: W-Why Are They Floating?!
Two months had passed since my "rebirth" into this unknown world and to sum it up as a whole, nearly every day was a maddening cycle of feeding, sleeping, and breathing. Like I was living almost every single day on an endless loop.
Was this what life after death truly was?
Were all those stories that the Church and my mother preached to me, all just tall tales?
Being given a second chance to live out your life under a new family and name?
I thought these things to myself ever since the day of my rebirth and it always went and threw my brain for a loop. This was all far from real, yet here I was. I never truly got over it this whole thing during those two months, and I don't think I ever will but there wasn't anything I could do about it.
Fuck my life.
The tedious lackluster of each day irked my soul to the point where I was always seeking a way out of my boredom. Every so often I'd toss and turn, attempting to focus my adult-like mind in order to control my toddler body. The end result is just as you would imagine. Naturally, my limbs were nowhere near developed, so my expectations were already poor enough.
Didn't mean it didn't still hurt nonetheless.
So basically all I could do was eat, sleep, and release bodily fluids. Oh and cry at every moment possible. Yeah, the life of an infant sucked.
A normal day usually consisted of me being woken up early in the morning for my daily breastfeeding from my mother.
I never could get used to the whole feeding thing, probably because I was conscious of the fact that I was actually sucking on my mother's breast. Despite that, and I hate to admit this, after weeks of my mother's natured formula, I couldn't believe how incredible it tasted. From the sweet and creamy flavor to the rich scent, it was a guilty pleasure of mine that I didn't want to admit.
Afterward, I'd either be put back in my crib until the afternoon for my naptime or be carried around in my parents' arms, though I had no idea where I was going most of the time. To make matters worse, I couldn't see anything in these first few months of life as my eyes hadn't finished developing yet.
Recalling my past life, I remembered reading a book that mentioned newborns were born without the sense of sight and would not be able to fully see until three or four months in their lifetime and knowing that fact made my days even more monotone than I'd thought possible as I anxiously waited for that day.
Two months prior to me becoming accustomed to the fact that I wasn't able to see, I was incredibly petrified.
The world was one big giant blur to me and everything was contorted and misshaped. There was a point whenever I'd see my parents; I'd become so terrified, their faces blurry and malformed, like ominous creatures in the night. I didn't know what was happening around me.
I could hear fine, but it didn't help that I couldn't understand a lick of what was being spoken. There were also times, at night, where I couldn't sleep and all I could think about was my past life; usually lead to me feeling an unavoidable wave of depression. As a result, all I did was scream and cry at the top of my lungs. Looking back at how I behaved at first, I felt horrible. I must have put my new parents through the ringer, but I had to applaud how loving and caring they were to me, even as I screamed my head off in the middle of the night like an actual infant.
Speaking of languages, I had also long deduced the language spoken around me was actually Japanese.
At the young age of thirteen, I was a full-on, and I hate this word till this very day, weeaboo. All I ever did at that point in time was watch anime and read manga. Not to say that that's a bad thing, of course, I just made it look like a bad thing. I had a habit of incorporating the Japanese language into regular English and did weird shit like run around with my arms flailing behind my back, mimicking the iconic Naruto run. I probably deserved being ridiculed and teased by my family for that part. But all-in-all, I recognized certain words and phrases used on a daily basis around me like "Otou" and "Okaa" which respectively meant father and mother.
Other than that, nothing eventful happened until about another three months later when I was finally gifted with new and improved sight. I couldn't have been any more relieved at this, the blurry images of surroundings fading and everything becoming clear.
...
The first thing I saw when I gained the ability to properly see was my mother.
Well, my new mother.
I remembered that one morning like it was yesterday. I was woken up from my slumber by her. My eyes fluttered open and I was met face to face with a woman. Seeing her for the first time, I couldn't believe how beautiful she was. She looked to be in her twenties, probably mid; her face clear and smooth, devoid of any blemishes or imperfections. She was a pale woman with long, vibrant red hair and black eyes. She had two small beauty marks, moles, on her face; one centered on her right cheek and the other near her chin. She wore a red strapless sundress, a white knitted sweater worn over it. Her neck was dazzled with a heart-shaped locket necklace. Lastly, she wore classic matte black rectangle glasses with clear frames.
"Ohayō, Mirai-kun," she spoke in a loving tone.
The way she smiled at me made me beam in happiness. Her smile was uplifting, enough to cure anyone feeling down. I wish I could have seen her smile sooner, during that first month. She patted my head carefully as to not put pressure on my soft spot before reaching into my crib and picking me up. She then proceeded to walk downstairs and make her way to the kitchen.
Deciding to take in everything I had been living around for the past four months and examine my surroundings, I found that our house was actually incredibly, well, huge! And no, it wasn't because I was so little that everything seemed bigger than I think it actually is. It was an actual mansion as far as I was concerned.
What are the chances of me being reborn into wealth? It's the least I could get for making me have to go through the tortures of life all over again.
On the way to the kitchen, we passed through the living room. Above the living room was a gigantic sparkling chandelier, luscious, stainless tatami flooring and master class art hanging on the wall that only an artistic genius like Da Vinci could've produced. The walls were painted with a classic burgundy color. There were also three double-decker sofas and a coffee table with moon rocks and cinnamon-scented candles standing in front of the couches, still in perfect condition. On the wall was a gigantic flat-screen TV and below the television was a fireplace, giving off warmth and comfort.
One thing that I did catch is how modern it looked; except for the paintings and some of the decorations, it didn't look ancient at all. I had to have been reborn in the 21st century, still.
The decor was rich in taste. It was beautiful and homey all in one.
There was also something that piqued my interest along the way. Laying the beautifully painted walls were several portraits, but one, in particular, was of a baby with short hot pink hair. That must've been me unless I had a sister or brother I somehow didn't know about. Since I've been here I haven't heard any other baby's crying beside my own. My mother suddenly stopped and took notice to me observing the portrait.
"Ā, anata no shashin ga sukidesu ne? Anata wa kawaī akachanda yo ne?" She chuckled, before continuing to the kitchen. Whatever it was that she said, it made me feel butterflies in my stomach. Suddenly, my nose was infiltrated by an ambrosial aroma. Drool started to roll down my mouth comically.
'Let's hurry this up Mom! I wanna eat!' I said, while waving my arms wildly. Well, I tried to speak but all that came out was happy gargles. Ugh, one of the many downsides of being a damn baby. Because I couldn't properly convey what I was saying, I resorted to pointing in the direction of the kitchen.
Mom seemed to easily catch on.
"Sate, anata no i no naka ni tabemono o te ni ireyou!" my mother smiled. Moments later, we were finally in the kitchen. Upon entering, she was immediately greeted by a silvery voice. That's right! I would finally be able to see my father's face too!
"Ohayō hanī!" I turned my head, as much as I could, to look forward but to no avail. Seeing me struggle to twist my head around, my mother helped me out and positioned me around herself.
Upon doing so, my eyes met with my father's for the first time.
His eyes were blue and had hot pink hair. His hair was crazily expanded out, making it appear messy and unkempt. He had a light complexion and sported a sharply-groomed goatee. He had a muscular build, most likely from working out and eating healthy. He wore a red plaid shirt and light-brown khakis, alongside a pair of black formal shoes. Finally seeing what I looked like and what my father looked like, I could see that my father's genes were very strong within me; I was the spitting image of him.
It was nice to see my 'father' for the first time, but pink hair? Spiky and messy?
Who did he think he was; an anime character?
I chuckled internally at the thought. Being wealthy and in some anime-verse? Nah, I'm wasn't that lucky. Besides, that could potentially end up biting me in the ass, depending on the anime. I could be in the Naruto-verse for all I knew, having to train to kill and risk my life as a ninja, even take place in a great war. I wheezed once more in my head. Hahaha, my imagination amazed me at times.
In all seriousness though, hair wasn't just naturally pink like that.
He looked over at me and smiled warmly.
"Ohayō, Mirai," he said in an endearing tone. He then covered his face with his burly hands. The first time I was actually seeing him and he was about to pull that peek-a-boo shit on me right? Well, I guessed I would just go along with it to please him. Had to keep up that role as a child, no matter how ridiculous it felt. (Good morning, Mirai.)
"Pikku-a-bū!" he yelled, a silly face replacing his original one. I feigned excitement, giggling while waving my tiny hands around in the air. My father gave a proud laugh before rubbing his hand through my hair. Although these people weren't my real parents, that didn't stop me from feeling some sort of emotional attachment to them.
I would never resent them out of spite, especially with the way they've taken such good care of me. They seemed like great, honest people and I couldn't wait to learn more about them as I aged. Meeting them face to face was just the beginning.
"Chotto mirai, watashi wa chōdo anata no tame ni, purezento ga arimasu!" he exclaimed before digging into his back pocket and pulling out a Matryoshka doll and placing it in my tiny hands. My developing eyes fixed in on the Russian nesting doll. A brightly smiling man, cheeks rosy, was depicted on the wooden surface. I appreciated the present, I really did, but I'm sure he could've gotten me something a little less, I don't know… creepy?
His smile was wider than the damn Cheshire cat and that was saying a lot.
The person assuming the role as my father stared at me for a couple seconds before bursting out in a fit of hysterical laughter, nearly doubling over in his endless cackling. Taking note of my shocked little baby face, my mother also took part in laughing.
I didn't get it; what was so funny? Was it obvious from my reaction that the present was downright creepy?
My father wiped a falling tear from his eye. After calming himself down, he stood up straight and puffed his chest out. From my position, he looked macho as hell; way more than my previous father ever did. Sorry, Dad; but the man in front of me had an almost heroic feel to him as he stood tall.
"Mite, musuko! Shō o o tanoshimi kudasai!" he said before putting his arm out in front of him.
That's when it happened. In that instant, it felt like the whole entire world around me had disappeared. My eyes focused on the nesting doll as it began to shake lightly in my hand.
My heart stopped. My brain was frantically searching for an answer to this sudden dilemma. I was pretty sure this wasn't normal.
I glanced upward at my new father. He still had his arm sticking out in front of him. That and his eyes were glaring red! RED!
Before I even had a chance to attempt to process what was going on, the doll started to glow, emitting a pink aura. My eyes were still developing; maybe I was on drugs? The doll steadily began easing out of my loose grip and began –
Wait for it.
Wait for it.
Levitating! Fucking levitating right in front of me!
I couldn't be the only one seeing this right now. Rotating my head as far as I could, I tried to see if my mother was seeing the same thing I was seeing and I was dumbfounded by the expression on her face. She was beaming brightly at the magical spectacle going on in front of us, like this was something normal!
POP!
Snapping my head back to what was in front of me, I focused in on where the popping sound came from and now saw two Matryoshka dolls.
My father's voice took me out of my trance, "Anata wa papa no chīsana shō ga sukidesu ka?"
He maneuvered his hand slightly upward and sideways, the nesting doll opening and revealing another doll at the gesture.
Then another one came out, then another, and another, and another.
A few moments passed before the popping noises ceased and there, floating in the air, was the glowing pink dolls, each of them lined up in a row from largest to smallest.
Yeah, that's the final straw. I was going insane.
Translations:
Ohayo, Mirai-kun: Good morning, Mirai-kun.
Ā, anata no shashin ga sukidesu ne: Ah, do you like your picture?
Anata wa kawaī akachanda yo ne: You're a cute baby, aren't you?
Sate, anata no i no naka ni tabemono o te ni ireyou: Alright, alright, let's get some food in your stomach then!
Ohayō hanī: Good morning honey.
Ohayō Mirai: Good morning Mirai.
Pikku-a-bū: Peek-a-boo!
Chotto mirai, watashi wa chōdo anata no tame ni, purezento ga arimasu: Hey Mirai, I have a little present, just for you!
Mite, musuko! Shō o o tanoshimi kudasai: Look closely, son! Enjoy the show!
Anata wa papa no chīsana shō ga sukidesu ka: Do you like Papa's little show?
A/N: I don't think all of the chapters will feature an Author's Note but mostly all of them will, explaining events that happened in whatever chapter and my thought process behind it or providing a note of some sort, thanking the readers and reviewers!
Also, as you guys can tell, this will be a slight AU from the very beginning. That's all I think I can say without spoiling anything.
Getting the language stuff out the way, yes, Mirai will eventually learn Japanese and there will be no longer any need for the translation sections as the dialogue will change to English. Not an original concept by any means, but it's realistic in this situation.
Next up, word count. The majority of the chapters after awhile will see an increase in word count; somewhere near to 5k to 10k. It just depends on the content being provided in that specific chapter. The story will start out light in terms of the number of words though.
The infant/baby years are something that will be done and over with within the next three or four chapters. I apologize if that's too long but again, there are some plot points that are necessary to be introduced. Trust me on that. I hope most aren't deterred from the sort-of-slowburn, but that's how it will be.
All the action and interactions with main characters will happen in due time!
That's all I really wanted to speak about in this A/N. Everyone have a great day, or night and be safe!