Present Time: Rin

"Y-You're-…" I stared in disbelief. Black Rock Shooter's human counterpart stood before me, shyly smiling. Mephisto leaned to Mato, raising an arm in my direction. "Miss Kuroi, this is Okumura Rin. He is a very good friend of Black Rock Shooter." She nodded. "It's nice to meet you, Okumura Rin." I quickly unlocked the door of the glass wall to properly address the girl. "It's nice to meet you too, and you can just call me Rin, it's fine." She nodded. "Black Rock Shooter never told me about you… I was surprised when Mr. Pheles told me that you two had grown close."

I slowly approached the girl, closing the divider behind me. "Yeah… technically we weren't supposed to see each other at all. Rock being… well, basically being a prisoner of the Order." She nodded in understanding. A silence hung in the air as we awkwardly looked away from each other. Mephisto was the one to break the quiet. "Rin~, I'm sure Mato would like to see her otherself, if you wouldn't mind," he said, pointing at the key I held. "O-Oh, yeah." I turned and reopened the glass door, motioning for Mato to enter, but refusing Mephisto passage to the other room. "Oh, Rin. Do you really not trust me?"

"Not yet." I grumbled, crossing my arms. He shrugged, resting his hands on his umbrella. I turned back to Rock and Mato, watching as Mato sat in the chair I had previously been sleeping on. She smiled down at her sleeping counterpart. "She looks so peaceful… It's different. In a good way, of course." Mato chuckled, glancing over to me before facing Mephisto. "Now, if I remember correctly, you were able to project your mind into that of Black Rock Shooter's were you not?" Mephisto trilled. The pigtailed girl nodded. "If that would wake her up, I'd do it." I watched as the demon king's lips curled into a sickening grin. "You'll never know if you don't try~.

"I think… I think I can reach out to her…" She laid her head next to Rock's and grabbed her hand with her own. "If I just concentrate…"

"Wait- Mato… you don't have to if you don't want to- last time you did something like that-… And what if you don't wake up? It's too risky, Mato. Rock wouldn't want you to hurt yourself-"

"It's like Mr. Pheles said, Rin. I won't know if I don't try." Part of me wanted to let her do this, as she could see Rock again and hopefully help her, but another part of me was screaming not to let her even attempt it, for if she was hurt, the consequences it held for both her and Rock could be disastrous. "Mato, wait-" yet my words came too late, as I notice as the Mato's eyes lay wide open, blank.

Five Months ago: Rin

Just yesterday, I had left a note on Shura's desk, one that requested spending time with Rock without supervision, and while I had told myself not to get my hopes up, I couldn't help but be excited. I hastily fumbled through my pockets to find the key to Shura's office, before placing it into the dorm room's door. "I'll be back later Kuro!" I called out, before stepping through the doorway.

Shura's office seemed a lot emptier without the loud red head in it. At first, there was no sight of Rock, leading me to believe Shura had refused my request, but after doing a quick check around her desk, I found the otherself sitting on the floor behind it. "Rin! You're here!" I chuckled. "Did you think I wasn't coming?" I extended my hand to the otherself, which she used to pull herself from the floor. "What're you doing on the floor anyways?"

"Shura told me to hide there, in case anyone walked by and saw me…" She said, heading for the chairs we usually sat in, but I grabbed her shoulder, and spun her to face me. "I was thinking we could head out. It's kinda dull in here, and you should be able to experience this world to its fullest!" She hesitated. "Would we not get in trouble for leaving?"
"Not if no one knows you left." She looked at me, slightly confused, before taking my hand in her own. "Okay. I trust you, Rin." I glanced at her hand before staring into her eyes. They seemed to twinkle with life even more than last time. And the blue against her pale skin shone brighter than the sun… She was smiling again… I shook myself out of my thoughts, and began to take off my hoodie. "Here," I said, handing it to her. "People don't usually dress like that. If we don't want to get caught, you'll have to try to blend in."

She nodded, unbuckling and dropping her long jacket onto one of the chairs. Her outfit never left much to the imagination, but the loss of her jacket revealed so much more of her pale skin. I could feel my cheeks warming up as I let my eyes wander, until she pulled the hoodie down over her chest and stomach. "A-Alright," I said, averting my eyes in attempt to regain my composure. "Y-You ready now?" She held up a finger to motion she needed a second, and removed her gloves, placing them on top of her jacket. "Yes. I'm ready." I took her hand with my own, and began to lead her out. I placed the key to the boy's dormitory into the door, and turned.

"This is where you stay?" I nodded, grinning. "It's not much but it's kinda cozy. And Yukio and I have the whole building to ourselves which is really nice." She nodded, glancing around while I led her to the kitchen. "I don't know if I've ever asked you, but, where do you stay, Rock? Like, when Shura isn't with you." She lowered her head and shrugged. "It's a cell somewhere in the Order's headquarters. I haven't been given much detail." I stopped dead in my tracks, and turned to face her. "A cell?" She nodded. "But… I thought they trusted you now?"

"Not as much as I wish they did." I grumbled and bared my teeth in anger. A cell? Really? She's not some kind of animal! "Rin… It's okay. Let's… let's not think about it." I let out a heavy sigh before turning back to the kitchen, and pulled a picnic basket out of the fridge. "Yeah. Yeah, let's enjoy today!" I said, lifting the picnic basket up to show her. "Alright, this is all I needed. Let's go!" Hand in hand, we walked out of the dorms and into the sunlight. "Fresh air! Much better than that stuffy office, right, Rock?" I looked back over my shoulder at her as she walked outside, inhaling deeply. She softly smiled and nodded. "It is, Rin." I clutched her hand tighter and smiled back, turning to face forward. "Okay then! First stop, True Cross Town!"

Once we arrived in town, Rock seemed overwhelmed, constantly looking around her to take it all in, and watching in awe at all the people and shops. Each store we passed had her poking her head in, just to look at the establishment. Eventually, we reached the end of town, and headed into the heavily wooded area behind the school. "What'd you think?"

"This… this is how humans live?" I nodded and smiled. "And that's not even half of it!" Her eyes were still wide with surprise and puzzlement, and her jaw hung slightly open. I giggled, and led her further in the forest. "Alright, I had one more thing planned for today," I said, placing the picnic basket on the grass of the forest. "A picnic! If that wasn't obvious by the basket."

"Picnic?"

"Yeah, it's where people lay out a blanket on the grass and then just enjoy a meal together." She nodded and watched as I pulled a blanket out of the basket and began to lay out all the food I had made. Once I had finished, I sat and pat the blanket next to me, smiling up at her. She nodded, and sat as I had motioned for her to. "Rin? Otherselves… we don't need… food." My smiled slowly faded and I gulped, remembering this one simple fact. "R-Right… Sorry," I said, placing the sandwich I had just lifted back onto a paper plate. "We can just talk then, if that's okay?" Her voice was almost a whisper, and her eyes were darting in every direction other than my own. "Yeah. That's always nice, Rock." Her eyes glanced at me, if only for a second, and she smiled softly.

"So, uh, how has your 'feeling' been going, Rock?" She shrugged. "Okay then… How'd your thing with Mato go?" Her eyes twinkled, and she finally sat up to face me. "It was… It was really nice. She forgave me, and that's all I wanted. And we were able to talk to each other… They let me hug her. I was… I was really happy, Rin." I smiled. To see her so happy was all I really wanted at this moment. I was tired of seeing her gloomy face, and I wanted to see that smile that melted my heart. And she provided just that. She began to get lost in thought with her memories of Mato, and smiled wide, her eyes closed in content.

When she noticed I was staring, she fell back to reality, and glanced away from me again. "S-Sorry, Rin." Her smile dropped, and she twiddled her fingers together. I was drawn to her, and crawled over and sat beside her. "No need, Rock. It's all okay." Her eyes darted to my face, her face following close behind. We spoke not a word, our eyes locked in a gentle stare, and she smiled. I could feel my cheeks heat up again, but I didn't turn away this time. "You should smile more, Rock. You have a wonderful smile." Her body violently twitched for a second, and she turned away, pushing herself backwards. "Rock? Are you okay?!" She shook her head no, and stared down at the grass just off the blanket. "What happened? What's wrong?"

"I-I… I felt something… It hurt…" I moved to her side and put my hand on her back. "Do you want to go back?" She shook her head no again. "Do you want to talk about it?" No. I decided to cease my questions and wait for her to calm down, tracing small circles along her back with my hand. "It's okay, Rock. It'll be okay." After a while, her body stopped shaking and her breathing returned to normal, prompting me to believe she had calmed down. She slowly sat back on the blanket and took a few deep breaths. "What happened?"

"My body… it hurt…" I tilted my head in confusion to signify I didn't quite understand. Rather than further explaining what she felt, she grabbed my hand from the blanket and placed it against her chest. "R-Rock?"

"Here. It hurt here." It took me a few minutes to realize what she really meant, and I only pieced it together when I noticed my hand would be right over where her heart would be.

Present Time: Black Rock Shooter

Ever since my encounter with Mephisto, all I could think of was that name. Okumura Rin. I had said it aloud a few times in attempt to make sense of it, but all it did was leave me with a fuzzy feeling in my mind and my chest. It all felt so right but why? Who is Okumura Rin?! Black Gold Saw had instructed me to stay within the small area she had claimed as her own, and kept a close eye on me. It didn't bother me to be watched all the time, as she had done it constantly before I lost my sanity. But it also felt familiar. The feeling of being constantly watched and guarded, it was something more familiar than it should have been. Nothing made sense anymore.

I was pacing around, attempting to make sense of all these puzzle pieces I had gathered, when something in my mind clicked. It was faint, but I felt it. Then I heard it. I heard her.

"Black Rock Shooter?! Can you hear me?!" Mato-… What was she doing here? How did she manage to reach into my mind. "Rock it's me, Mato!" I ceased pacing, and closed my eyes to concentrate. "Mato?"

"Yes! Rock, I'm here!"

"But why? Why did you connect with me once more?"

"I'm here to try and wake you up!" Wake me? So Strength was right. My body remained comatose in Assiah while my mind traveled back to the Otherworld.

"Then you are with my body?"

"Yes! Yes, we all are!" All?

"What do you mean you all are Mato?"

"It's me, Mephisto, and Rin! We want you to wake up!" That name… how did she know that name?!

"Mato, who is that? Tell me who Okumura Rin is!"

"Y-You don't remember him?" I wish I could communicate through motions, to shake my head in remove any unnecessary words from our conversation.

"No. Who is he? And… Mephisto… Why is he there? Mato stay away from him!"

"He just wants to help, Black Rock Shooter! And Rin… I don't know much, but you were close friends. You were always together, Rock!" Her voice had become frantic, and her presence had begun to fade. "I-… I think he loved you, Rock. So please! Please wake up! Pleas-" but her words were cut off as the connection between us shattered, and my eyes shot open.

I feel like this chapter seems a little rushed, and isn't exactly what I wanted, but I hope you all like the outcome of my writing! This is also a little later in the day than I normally post, but I wanted to try and edit this one as much as possible. We've also just caught up to all the chapters I had pre-prepared for this story. School gets in the way but I promise I'll find time to write more!

As always, feedback is welcome and appreciated, and I hope you enjoyed chapter 7 of Comatose!
~Blondie