A/N: Horray! This chapter is going to be more dialouge-based, because we've gotten past the initial description-part of the exposition~ Just to clear this up, because it's going to get confusing later on:
Regular Font - Used for describing a situation or the setting.
" " - Quotation marks are used for speech.
' ' - Used for emphasis on one or two words.
Italics - Thoughts of the person currently pointed out in the POV; anytime you see a break, it will say (-'s POV) if the POV has changed - Also used for describing dreams or a mindscape.
Italics and Bold - Thoughts of a second person in the mind of the person pointed out in the POV; it sounds weird now, but after this chapter and the next it will make sense~
"Italics in Quotes" - This is used during a dream or while in a mindscape, and shows the person is talking out loud. Thoughts while in a dream or mindscape will be regular font, to contrast with the all-italics. If there are more than two people in a mindscape at a time, I will say who is who.
"Italics and Bold in Quotes" - A second person talking out loud in a dream or mindscape.
'Italics in Apostrophes' - For a third person in someone's mind, thinking in the waking world, as thoughts are the same as speaking out loud to everyone else in the mindscape.
'Italics and Bold in Apostrophes' - For a fourth person in someone's mind thinking in the waking world.
It seems complicated now, but it will (hopefully) become easier to see later.
- = - = - = - = - = - (Chapter 4) - = - = - = - = - = -
(Mitsuki's POV)
"M-moon?!"
The boy seemed just as shocked as she was, but her mind kept making excuses for her. It's just a slip of the tongue, he doesn't know what it means, just act innocent, you won't have to deal with the pain-
You know as well as I do that wasn't a slip of the tongue, the voice practically smirked.
S-shut up! Go back to whatever corner you were in before!
Ushii-shii-shii… But that wouldn't be any fun~
You still haven't told me who you are.
Don't be so untactful when changing the topic. Anyways, you should be more focused on what's happening right now. We'll talk later. You wouldn't want to keep your precious Sun waiting, ne?
"Sun…" I breathed out, not realizing I had spoken aloud until the boy practically strangled me in his embrace. "Can't… breathe…"
"Sorry…" he muttered, looking embarrassed. "B-but I just… I've missed you so much!" He suddenly burst out, hugging me again, this time managing to not cut off my airway in the process. "I missed you too…" I chuckled, hugging him back.
"So…" he began awkwardly, taking a deep breathe to prepare himself. "Do you have any idea where we are?"
"About that…" I muttered sheepishly. On one hand, it was embarrassing only being able to base my theory on my otaku knowledge. On the other hand, my inner otaku felt like screaming YOSH! I'm finally useful!
Ushii-shii-shii… You really are pitiful.
Like you can talk; you're sharing this pitiful existence with me.
…Good point.
After fully explaining my anime theory, Sun just looked thoughtful for a moment before muttering "That makes sense." MAKES SENSE?! I felt like screaming and ripping my hair out. Once I had spent enough time in this world that I could say confidently that my anime theory was the most logical conclusion- I swear I'm going to kill you disembodied voice if you don't stop laughing-, it was weeks before I could think straight again. Even then, the only reason I got out of my slump was when it decided to speak for the first time.
I'm offended~ Ushii-shii-shii…
Sun startled me out of my thoughts and my internal war with that thing by suddenly hugging me again. "I get that we're all alone here now, in the world of KHR. And since Haru and Bel weren't exactly old enough to have children in the original plot, manga or anime, we must be past that, during the time of Vongola Decimo's reign. But fish sticks Moon; I don't care about any of that. As long as I have you, and you have me, we'll be okay. We'll make it through this; together."
I felt hot tears pool, then streak down my cheeks as I hugged Sun tighter. I really, really missed you Sun.
D'awwe, you two are so adorable~
Shut up. You're just jealous. Satisfied I had shut the voice up, I sighed. "That being said and all…" I yawned. "Can we go back to bed? I'm tireeeddd." Sun chuckled at my whining, and I could practically hear him thinking the same thing I had a few seconds ago. I really, really missed you Moon.
With that weight lifted off my shoulders, I could feel that I wouldn't be having anymore nightmares tonight.
"Surprise~ Ushii-shii-shii!" a little girl with blonde hair twirled around me, in what looked like a white nightgown. For some reason I had to resist the urge to smack her, even though I was sure I'd never seen her before.
"Mmm? Have you decided to go mute? That's not very nice, you know, just when I promised to talk with you~" the girl pouted, before a realization came to her. "Do you not know who I am?"
"…After that last comment I'm pretty sure I know who you are. Just, I didn't expect you to be… A little girl…"
She looked offended at this, comically grasping her heart in mock pain before falling over and rolling out of my sight. I ran over to where she disappeared, and she grabbed my hand before I could actually feel concerned for her. As I fell, she flipped me so that I landed semi-gracefully on my back, cushioned by the grass. "Ouch," I commented before I could stop myself. She just looked at me, amusement glittering in her eyes, before doing that strange laugh again. It sounded just like…
"I've got it!" I said, hitting my right fist into my outstretched hand. "You're Bel's real daughter!"
"Ooh? I knew I liked you~ You're almost as sarcastic and smart as I am," she said, flipping her hair in mock appreciation for herself, before we both burst out giggling.
"Strange," I said, wiping away a tear, "I thought I'd hate you, but you know, you're not half bad. Kinda glad you aren't a mini-Bel," I spoke the last part without thinking and cringed, before the girl started laughing so hard she doubled over gasping for breathe.
"I… I'm glad too," she managed to breathe out, before taking a moment to collect herself, "The world wouldn't be safe with more than one of him. Since I've been raised alongside you, it was really Haru who influenced me more than Bel. I guess the laugh's genetic though~" she sighed dramatically, pulling a 'woe is me' look before we collapsed in giggles again.
"So… where are we, exactly?" I questioned, looking expectantly at Bel's daughter. "We're in your mindscape, Honey-bunches-of-oats," she exclaimed, earning her a raised eyebrow. That had been one of my favorite terms of endearment. "I have access to your memories as well, and since I really don't have any memories of my own, it's like I lived your life along with you," she sighed in response. For a few seconds it was silent, as we listened to the breeze rustling the trees and grass of this so-called 'mindscape'.
"You know, I almost consider you my older sister. I mean, I don't have any siblings other than that Sun character, and I'm heavily influenced by your memories," she whispered.
"In truth though, we're one and the same; just because we have separate souls and minds, doesn't mean we have different experiences," I thought, before coming to a realization. "I can't just refer to you as 'you' or 'that girl', and 'Bel's daughter' is kind of weird," I muttered as I crinkled my nose.
"Well, since we're both Mitsuki, how about this. I'm Mi-chan, and you're Tsuki-chan," she suggested, her eyes expectant. "So you take the kanji for 'beauty' from our name, and I take the kanji for 'moon'… Yea, I think that will actually work!" I grinned happily, the only problem left unsolved in this new life suddenly gone. For a while we just grinned at each other, and then I let my eyes wander over the meadow we were in. It was a huge grassy plain, with hills and breath-taking flowers scattered throughout it. The edges were surrounded by trees; meaning we were in a clearing.
"Wait… Isn't this that park near Mama's apartment?!" I exclaimed, before realizing there were some differences. "It's similar," Mi-chan said dreamily, "but since a mindscape is the space in someone's mind that takes the appearance of a place important to the person, it's a combination of that park, one of the most important places in your life to both of us, and varying other important objects and places. If you spend enough time here, like I do, you can find anything you'd ever want or need, so long as both or one of us believes it has some meaning or value." After her explanation, she sighed, and added, "I'm kind of glad you're the one controlling this body so that I get to spend all the time I want here. The best part is, small parts of it can change to whatever I want! So I'm never bored, and you get to deal with the annoying things in life," she finished with a smirk, which led to me attempting to punch her, which resulted in a mini-scuffle, ending with both of us rolling around in the meadow until we landed in a river.
After several fits of giggles due to the sopping wet condition of our appearances, I realized something. "If this world follows the plot and logic of KHR the anime/manga," I puzzled, Mi-chan nodding encouragingly at me, "then doesn't that mean that usually only illusionists have mindscapes like this?" She stared at me for a second, then blurted out "Holy shit you're right! But…," she stretched, doing some thinking of her own, "we are very different than any other character in the series, and while we may have mist waves in this body we share, the mindscape probably manifested itself as a way for us to communicate face-to-face."
"So I don't think we're a predominantly mist-flame user, but I can't be sure," she finally said, looking up at me with an expression of 'that's the best I got, sorry'.
"Maa, maa, there's no reason for you to be sorry," I leaned back with my fingers interlocked behind my head, "I mean, it's better than what I came up with, because I thought we'd have to get tattoos like Fran and Mammon and loose our faith in the world or something," I said, wrinkling my nose at the thought, then burst out laughing when I looked at Mi-chan's face again. "What? I'm perfecting my deadpan face for if and when it's needed," she pouted. "Am I as adorable as Fran yet?"
"Ooh?" I raised both eyebrows at that. "You like Fran?" I teased, smirking. "S-shut up! He's just so…" she became a little lost for words, her face becoming redder until she burst out, "SO ADORABLE~!" I rolled around laughing my ass off as she covered her mouth with both hands, trying to block anything else from coming out of her traitorous mouth.
"So…" I mused, the smirk never leaving my face as the color started fading from her cheeks, "I suppose you wouldn't mind the facial tattoos after all, huh?" She deadpanned for a second, then slowly got up looking down at the ground. I barely managed to get up and think 'Oh, shit…' before she shot a murderous glare in my direction. "I'll kill you for that," she hissed, and the mindscape was filled with my shrieks of laughter and horror and Mi-chan's death threats.
For the first time after I saw his blood stain my fingers, I was glad I came to this world.
Awwwe, Mi and Tsuki are bonding~ I don't know what you guys think, but Mi-chan is a personal favorite :3 As always, tell me if you spot a mistake, and tell me your thoughts on Mi-chan~!
Thank you PineappleKing for being my first reviewer~! ^-^ It really means a lot.
Reviewer replies:
PineappleKing: x3 She... does have some screws loose. But, having your family murdered in front of you does tend to do that to someone.
Guest: Actually, Valentino isn't the name he goes by :3 I found out his real name by chance alone. I'm not sure if he'll become a character we see more often or not, but it's amusing to think that people who he trained might become as clumsy as he is. And while I have to make the twins suffer, I'm not... that cruel. Ish. Maybe.
PineappleKing (again!): Awwwe thank you~ I enjoy writing this, so it isn't too much of a problem for me ^-^