Level 1 + Dandelion Mystery
Sublevel 2 + I Love You



Hikaru played with the end of her braid nervously. "M-my turn?"

Presea nodded. "Your pre-game points were less than Fuu's, more than Umi's. It is your turn. If you do not pass your test, the game shall end. None of you shall receive a second chance."

The short redhead sighed, scratching the end of her nose. "Okay... okay, what do I do?"

Presea folded her hands before herself, as though praying. She stretched her arms out, her hands still clasped, then opened them, folding them out so that they rested side by side, palms up.

From her palms, a sparkly sort of pink light swirled up into the warm air. It spun and shimmered and drifted until it hovered before Hikaru. The girl saw Presea disappear in a flash, taking Umi and Fuu with her.

This is when the fun begins! Nova cried joyfully, sending a rush of adrenaline through their body as the twinkly pink light shimmered and sparkled, spreading out and solidifying before their eyes.

The light continued to grow more tangible, becoming less of a light and more of a person. Before long, all that was left of the pink light was a little bit of shimmering sparkles in the air, and that soon disappeared as well.

A woman stood before Hikaru, her cotton-candy-colored hair and sky-blue eyes contrasting her deeply tanned skin drastically. She rested her weight on one foot, her hands on her hips, her shoulders gracefully sloped. She wore not much, just a tight, sleeveless back shirt that exposed her middle and an even tighter, perhaps even smaller, short black skirt. One foot, concealed by a knee-high black boot, tapped impatiently.

"C'mon, hon, I don' got all day," the woman said with a strong accent, examining her bright pink fingernails. "I got places t' be."

Hikaru blinked in surprise. Oh, Hikaru, aren't you excited? Nova asked.

The redhead didn't respond to her other self. "Um... what's your name?" she asked the woman.

"Caldina," was the short reply. "Now c'mon! Le's get started."

"Uh, Caldina, I don't even know what we're doing," Hikaru said slowly.

"Tcha! No way!" Caldina continued examining her nails. "An' I thought y'all were s'posed to be 'sperienced..." She sighed. "Hon, s'like this." She held up two fingers. "Ya got yaself two selves, right? An' one 'em's mean, one 'em's not mean."

"Nova isn't really mean..." Hikaru insisted. "She's just... just..."

"Hon, don' bother, I don' got the time. Anyway, y'all got two selves. All I need ya t' do is seperate ya two selves for me."

Hikaru was bewildered. "That's all? That's my test?"

Caldina shook her head. "Hon, slow down! Thas' all I wan' ya t' do for now."

The short girl sighed. Nova?...

I'm ready, Hikaru! I'm ready!

There was a strange feeling, one Hikaru was not used to, as she and Nova hadn't seperated in a very long time. She shuddered. Then came the deeply disturbing feeling as Nova began to gain her physical form, forcing her way out of Hikaru and gaining her body as she did so. It was a horrible sensation, the feeling of someone crawling out of her back...

But it was soon over, and Nova stood next to her, gleeful.

Caldina looked her over. "'Kay... Now comes the hard part." She flashed a bright white grin. "Y'all gotta merge again."

Nova snorted. "That isn't hard!"

The blue-eyed woman raised one eyebrow. "Wanna bet?" She laughed a light, giggly laugh. "I ain' jus' playin' with ya. I did my part!"

"What do you mean?" Hikaru asked, puzzled.

The woman grinned. "I did somethin' to y'all. I ain' tellin' what, and I ain' fixin' it. But it's up to y'all to fix it yaselves and merge again or whatevah."

"What if we can't?"

"Then ya loose. If ya loose the game, everythin' that I did'll go away an' you can go back together."

Hikaru glanced at Nova. "Okay..." Then, she did a double-take, coming to stare at Nova in bewilderment.

The girl had cringed back, a strange expression on her face, one Hikaru had never seen there before... fear? She moved to step towards her counterpart, but Nova shrank back, whimpering softly.

"Nova... Nova, what's wrong?" the redhead asked, still bewildered. "Why are you afraid?..."

"Go away!" the other girl wailed, turning away, trembling now.

Hikaru spun around to face Caldina. "What did you do?!"

The woman shook her head. "That's your test, hon. Y'gotta get her t' go back in ya."

"But..." The redhead turned back to Nova, who was staring at her with fear in her eyes. But... how? I don't even know why she's scared...

The petite girl turned away, beginning to take small steps away as she thought hard, the dandelions brushing against her knees. "She's afraid of me," she murmured to herself. "But what... what about me is it?" She glanced back over her shoulder at the terrified girl. "What did Caldina make her see?"

Hikaru turned around completely, facing Nova. The other girl whimpered as Hikaru asked gently, "Why as you so afraid?"

Nova raised her arms, covering her face. "D-don't touch me!" she cried pitifully. Hikaru began to advance, slowly, gently, her arms held out in a loving gesture, but Nova still shrank away.

"Nova." The redhead's voice was soothing, calm. "Nova, I'm not going to hurt you."

"Yes you are..." Nova dropped her arms, staring back at Hikaru, her eyes brimming with uncharacteristic tears. "You'll hurt me..."

Hikaru took another small step through the dandelions. "Nova, why don't you trust me?" The other girl looked away. "I would never hurt you."

"How... do I know you aren't lying?"

"Have I ever lied to you?"

Nova shook her head slowly, hesitantly, and Hikaru smiled. "Well, then why would I lie to you now?"

Her other half pressed her hands over her heart. "I want to come back," she whispered, "I really do. I can feel the empty space in me. But... but you'll hurt me."

"No, I won't." Hikaru shook her head. "Nova, I promise you. I promise you, I won't hurt you."

The tears in Nova's eyes spilled out onto her cheeks as she wailed, "I can't trust you!" An anguished sob escaped her, for she wanted so badly to trust Hikaru, and she turned away, falling to her knees in the tall grass, bent over with her hands over her face.

Hikaru made her way slowly through the grass, then knelt next to the sobbing girl. She touched Nova's shoulder, causing her to cringe, but gently put her arms around her opposite self, holding her close gently. "I love you, Nova," whispered Hikaru as the other trembled in her arms. "I love you, and I can't hurt people that I love."

Nova looked up, tearful. "You love me?" she asked, so quietly that Hikaru could barely hear her.

"Yes. Didn't I ever say it before?" Hikaru smiled kindly. "Come back, Nova."

A smile broke through the tears, and Nova's eyes brightened. She threw her arms around Hikaru, pulling herself to the other girl tightly, crying, "Oh, Hikaru, thank you!" Then she gave up her body, slipping into Hikaru and joining as one heart again.

Hikaru continued smiling, her arms crossed over her chest as though she held Nova still. After a short moment she stood, turning and looking at Caldina. "Was that my test?"

The woman nodded. "Yep. Ya had to prove that y'could really love someone an' prove it... somethin' like that. I dunno, I just received my orders an' carried 'em out..." She grinned. "I'll see ya later, hon!" She turned, disappearing beneath the sunshine.

Hikaru continued smiling, staring at the spot where Caldina had stood, her hand over her heart. I love you, she whispered inside.

I love you, repeated her other self, with a tenderness Hikaru had not known Nova could express.

"Hikaru." The short girl turned around, seeing Presea standing with Umi and Fuu. "You have passed your test and qualified for the second level."

The redhead nodded. "I know... Now it's Umi's turn?"

Presea nodded also. "Yes. Now it is Umi's turn."