Fragments of a Shattered Mirror
Disclaimering: I own Bandai all the .hack enterprise.. In my dreams, that is... Look, I don't technically own any more than copies of the games, manga some of the anime (as in Liminality 2 volumes of Dusk)... But the plot and some facets of the characters as I have chosen to portray them belong to my imagination..
Review would be nice once you've read this. If you truly hate it, tell me why... But don't expect me to fix everything that bothers you. Suggestions are always welcome, if not always followed.
Chapter 10
A/N: Em.. I finally decided what Kite's actual name.. not his nick name.. is. Akira. I did edit the first chapter to say as much, but it doesn't seem to want to reload…So… yea… When you're admitted to the hospital, you must give your full name… Not a nick name, but your full name… For Kite, that would be Akira Nakahara.
Real World
Emi Nakahara, Kite's mother, was just carrying her three plastic bags of food an a jug of milk out of her car and to the apartment building (where the Nakahara family dwelt. Remember that in Japan there isn't a lot of land space and so many people live in apartments.) when she espied Yasuhiko just about to open the door to the flight of stairs to the second apartment – where Kite and his family lived.
"Yasu!" she called out.
The boy, adjusting his backpack, turned. "Oh, hello Mrs. Nakahara. I'm bringing Kite his books and homework. Umm.. Would you like help with those?"
"Yes, that would be much appreciated," replied Emi, gratefully handing over a bag and the milk.
"How is Kite doing? He looked awful yesterday…"
"I'd say he's gotten worse, I'm afraid. I'm taking him to the doctor tomorrow," murmured Mrs. Nakahara.
"Mmm…"
"Did you walk here?"
"Yes. The weather's mild and mother says I could use the exercise."
"Well, you must be feeling better. You were so pale and thin when you woke up! I'm glad to see you doing well. Would you like to join us for dinner? I know Kite will enjoy the company."
"I'd love to! After I see Kite, I'll call my mother and tell her."
Mrs. Nakahara smiled, then paused to unlock the apartment door and open it. Inside, as she and Yasu removed their shoes, she called out, "Kite, honey, I'm home! Yasuhiko's here with your homework."
Receiving no response, Emi sighed. "He's probably sleeping. Why don't you go upstairs and wake him? Just put the groceries on the counter. I'll deal with them."
A couple minutes later, Yasuhiko knocked on Kite's bedroom door.; There was no answer, so the boy pushed the door open, shrugging his backpack off as he did so to use as a door stop. However, what met his eyes was not at all what he expected. Backpack falling from limp fingers, Yasu could only stare for long moments.
Then, rushing forward, he cried in a hoarse voice, "Oh my god! Kite!"
Kite lay as if he'd fallen out of his desk chair, limp upon the floor. A headset still covered his glasses and eyes, though it was knocked somewhat askew. A controller dangled less than an inch from the ground upon its cord. The screen of Kite's computer fizzled with static, but Yasu didn't need any graphics upon the screen to know what his friend had been doing: Playing the World.
Quickly, Yasuhiko felt for a pulse. It was there, slow and not as strong as it should have been. Eyes filled with worry, the boy removed Kite's headset and shook Kite in a vain attempt to wake him. As his fears that Kite would not awake were confirmed, Yasu rose and called to Mrs. Nakahara. His voice cracked and the particular change in pitch would have been hilarious under other circumstances.
-
Maybe an hour later, Mrs. Nakahara and Yasuhiko were at the hospital, the boy taking a seat on one of the waiting chairs (uncomfortable as usual) and Mrs. Nakahara going up to the 'reception' desk to ask where her son had been taken. When the paramedics had arrived, they asked questions that Yasu and Emi did their best to answer. When they had loaded a limp and yielding Kite into the ambulance, they took him directly to the nearest hospital. Mrs. Nakahara, after calling Yasuhiko's parents, took Kite's friend and herself to the hospital as well, though considerably slower. After all, it was rush hour and traffic that made way for an emergency vehicle did not make way for any others.
Mrs. Nakahara cleared her throat and asked, her voice strained with worry, "Miss? My son Akira Nakahara was brought in by ambulance a little while ago.. and… I would like to know where they've taken him… And… Can I go see him?"
"Certainly, ma'am," replied the woman. "I'll call someone to take you. Akira Nakahara? The kid in a coma?" –Emi nodded.- "Ah, yes. They have him in a temporary room until they can run an MRI. Oh, please have a seat; You look as though you are about to collapse," she added with a sympathetic smile.
Emi nodded and, her eyes distant and worried, she did as she was bid, taking a seat next to Yasuhiko. For the longest few minutes of her life (besides the time before her wedding, giving birth to her daughter, who was away in college, and then her son), Mrs. Nakahara waited. And then a nurse clad in light blue, but somehow neat scrubs came over.
"Mrs. Nakahara?"
"Yes..?" she looked up warily. Yasu, too, looked up.
"Follow me, please."
Emi and Yasuhiko immediately rose and followed the nurse, nurse Shinji Suzuki, as her nametag read, through a pair of double doors that marked the boundary between waiting room and the hospital proper. Shinji lead them down the tiled corridor past a row of rooms for 'quick' outpatient care such as stitches or for assessment of injuries of those coming in through the emergency room. They also passed a nurse's station in which one nurse sat drinking coffee and the other wrote something upon clip board.
"Do, do you know what happened to Kite?" asked Emi, voice quavering with anxiety.
"I'm not entirely sure other than that he is in a coma. We'll run an MRI on him tomorrow to rule out any brain damage or a concussion, but…"
"But.. what?" asked Yasu.
"… nothing. Nevermind. He's only down here temporarily for overnight observation. If he doesn't wake up by tomorrow, we'll be moving him to the coma ward…"
Neither Yasu nor Emi asked any more for they had arrived at the room. The door was open and a couple chairs, a bed, IV stand and several monitors were visible. Upon the bed lay Kite, now clothed in a hospital gown (-sarcasm-lucky him…-end sarcasm-), and mostly lying under a blanket. An IV in was his right arm and various sensors affixed here and there, such as the heart rate monitor. An oxygen mask obscured mouth and nose and his long bangs covered his eyes. Those eyes, when open, were not unusual as Japanese eyes went, a dark brown, not quite black, just like his mother's, just like his father's. A nurse was checking something on one of the monitors and occasionally referencing to a piece of paper she held.
The nurse looked up. "Oh, Shinji," she said, her voice bright and cheery. "And.. his mother, I presume? And a friend?" - Yasu nodded – "I was just making sure the sensors were all connected correctly… Just routine thing. Nothing's changed at all. … I'm done now. Doctor Misono will be back shortly." A sigh escaped her lips as she gazed at Kite for a moment. "Poor kid.."
With that the nurse vanished out and down the hallway, off to another room to check on equipment. Shinji nodded to her in passing and stood aside while Emi hurried to her son's side. The mother took her son's hand (left for the left side of the bed faced the door), holding it tightly. It occurred to her that she had left his glasses at home upon the floor where they had fallen, but… It didn't matter now.
Yasu stood at the foot of the bed, gazing at his friend with troubled eyes. Was it possible that the Twilight Incident was repeating itself, ironically picking the very one responsible for ending as its first new victim? Definitely possible, but Yasu hoped that wasn't the answer. Maybe whatever illness Kite had contracted had something to do with it?
Shinji murmured that she must attend to her duties, but that she'd check up in a little while. Then the nurse left, scrubs swishing as she moved. Several minutes passed and then Doctor Misono entered.
"Emi Nakahara?" he asked, startling the woman a little. "Mother of Akira Nakahara?" The doctor only knew the names because he was looking at a sheet clipped to a clipboard that held the necessary information. The doctor had removed it from its holder on the wall when he had entered. "I'm Doctor Misono." He held his hand out to Yasuhiko.
The boy took his and mumbled, "Yasuhiko Nishimura, Kite's friend."
At the same time, Emi nodded mutely and turned from her son to the doctor, reluctant to leave her child's side. The doctor proffered his hand to her and she shook it.
"Well, you can see that he's unconscious and has been since he was brought in. Shinji explained to you that he is in a coma. We won't know until tomorrow if it is something to do with the brain… But.. It doesn't seem like it. Except for the fact that he won't wake up, I'd say that, other than an elevated temperature, low pulse and extreme pallor, he would be in excellent health," said the doctor. "Hmm… I do hope that we find what is wrong with him, though… and that this isn't like what happened months ago," he added almost to soft to be heard.
However, both Yasuhiko and Emi heard him and paled. The woman asked, "You mean the ones who fell into comas for no apparent reason..?" She glanced at Yasuhiko. "It isn't that, is it? Is it!"
"It can't be!" exclaimed Yasuhiko, looking considerably disturbed.
Doctor Misono sighed wearily. "I do not know. I remember those two, if they are who I think you are talking about. You, my boy, and an Amaya Yamamoto, if I remember rightly. This case does have striking similarities…"
"But," said Yasu. "The reason I fell into a coma was because of stuff in the World. I think Kite was playing it when he fell unconscious, but the same thing can't possibly be happening again!"
Dr. Misono was about to say more when a nurse, not one they had yet seen, popped in and said, "Doctor? We have another one like this kid who was just brought in… I think she's been here before for the same reason…"
"Hmm..? Her name..? What room are they taking her to?"
"Yamamoto… Don't remember her first name. They'll be taking her to the room next door once they've finished with preliminary tests. I just thought I'd let you know, sir."
"Thank you, Keiko."
Another weary sigh escaped Misono's lips as he breathed, "Please don't let this be starting again…"
"Forgive me, Mrs. Nakahara, Yasuhiko but I will have to see to the other patient, now."
He half bowed and left. Kite's mother and friend stared after him, eyes wide and horror-filled. Then Emi pulled a chair next to her son's bed and sat down. She knew she ought to call her husband and then her daughter away in college, but… she couldn't leave Kite yet. "Yasu? Would you like to call your parents and have them pick you up? I think I'll be here a while… and you have homework and…"
"Yes… I left my phone in my backpack at your house, though."
"Oh." Emi fished her key chain out of her pocket and removed one key. Then she retrieved her phone from her pocket. "Go to the lobby and call them and take the spare key…"
"Thankyou, Mrs. Nakahara."
-
The World
Tsukasa awoke later that night and wished he hadn't. He felt sick and his head pounded; It felt as though someone had run over him with a steamroller, then thudded his head with a sledge hammer. Every muscle ached. So this is what a hangover is supposed to feel like. Except that with a hangover you were drunk hours earlier… But I didn't drink anything.. What was I doing, then..?
With a low moan, Tsukasa rolled over onto his side, curling himself into a ball. However, he started when, opening his eyes a little, he espied a red clothed twin blade sitting a couple feet away, knees tucked to his chest. Kite… that was his name. The twin blade was looking at the wavemaster with a worried, depressed kind of expression. Tsukasa closed his eyes again, now not even trying to recollect anything else. His head hurt too much for that.
Kite heard Tsukasa moan and saw the wavemaster roll to one side, curling into a ball. The twin blade watched curiously to see if Tsukasa would actually wake up or was merely turning in a dream. The wavemaster's violet eyes, however, opened, staring blankly at Kite. Then recognition dawned and Tsukasa closed his eyes again. Kite sighed, turning his cerulean gaze back to the horizon… The digital horizon… but it seemed so real!
The gentle breeze that rolled through the field at times, the scent of the distant flowers, the sight of the stars dotting the sky from the moment he awoke an hour ago – it as was all too real to Kite. He knew without trying that he wouldn't be able to log out, knew that it would be same for Tsukasa.
A sudden idea occurred to Kite. He looked back at Tsukasa, the other's face a picture of misery and pain… and that was all Kite's fault. However, he would try and make what amends he could, starting with this. He held his hand palm outwards over Tsukasa and murmured the words, "Pha Repth."
A rainbow white light surrounded Tsukasa and immediately the throbbing hurt lessened then vanished. He still felt like death warmed up, but at least he was no longer in pain. The wavemaster opened his eyes, blinking blearily at Kite. Tsukasa continued to feel a little sick, but he trusted his stomach not to heave if he spoke.
"Thank you," was all he murmured.
"It was nothing," replied Kite mournfully. "You have no reason to be grateful to me.. Hell, you have every reason to hate me."
"No.. Not you. Morganna," said Tsukasa as memory flooded back.
He sat up slowly and gazed at Kite, who was staring at the horizon again.
"Be that as it may," replied the twin blade, voice bitter, anguished. "She used me… And thus it was by my hand… If I'd been stronger… If I'd been able to resist…"
"Then you would have had a longer period of her messing with your dreams and your head and maybe when she did gain control, you wouldn't have been able to throw her off," said Tsukasa. "But letting yourself feel that way is exactly what she wants. By feeling guilty for her doing, you are only playing into her hands… I don't want to be here, damn it, I never wanted to be trapped again. But…"
"But what?"
"At least Blackrose isn't data drained… Neither was I, exactly, and.. well.. at least you aren't alone in your captivity within the World."
A sad, half smile touched Kite's lips, but not his eyes. The smile disappeared quickly and the twin blade sighed, looking in the distance again.
"Speaking of which," added Tsukasa as an afterthought. "How did we wind up here in the first place?"
"Blackrose, Elk and Mia brought us here."
"Where are they now?"
"Blackrose said that Mia comes every now and again. Elk apparently had to leave because his mother made him get off to go to bed. Blackrose's own mother yelled at her to get off the computer a while ago.. Shortly after I awoke, actually. I could hear her through Blackrose's headset. Anyway, before she left, she said a friend of yours dropped by maybe an hour after they brought us here. I think it was Mimiru. Apparently Mimiru was rather shocked and worried. She left supposedly to call you…"
Tsukasa nodded. "I see… I wonder if I'll have to make up the calc test we were supposed to take tomorrow…"
Kite goggled at her. "You're worried about a math test!"
The wavemaster burst out laughing. "No. I was just … Actually, I don't know why I said that…"
Kite blinked, then joined in the laughter. When they ceased, Tsukasa sighed and leaned his head against Kite's shoulder. Slightly surprised, Kite hesitated a moment before draping his arm across Tsukasa's shoulder. It was only then that he realized Tsukasa was still half laughing, and yet half crying.
(a/n: When I'm referring to Tsukasa as 'he' this sounds a lot like slash.. aaaah!)
Author's Noterlies
So I was going to add more, but then I realized that this chapter was long enough and that y'all would rather me update faster than have me have uber long chapters. Eh.. Maybe. Ah well... Here is thy chapter!
By the way, I change my username. The reason is explained upon my userlookup.
Reviewers: Hey! I didn't take as long to update. Aren't you proud of me?
Steeple333: I emailed you, I believe. Thanks for reading this.
Dragon's Hitokiri-ish pokebacked- YES I MUST POKE... arg-pokes you- Thanks!
Macky: Thankyou.
Minako-gasp- How could you loose a story-mock horror- It's ok! Power of love? Ah, a cliche! Maybe.. Maybe not.. I certainly am not revealing. Besides, I change the story all the time.. So if I told you one thing, chances are, something completely different would happen.
MoonlightAwakening-grin- I did try to make Elk 'Elkish.' Glad you like 'im. I always pictured him as a geeky smart kid who gets beaten up at school and doesn't have the greatest homelife... And has only a single parent, his mother.. Dunno why. O.o Well.. -blush- Thankies!
Twilight: I am pretty sure I emailed you, too.. Ah well... -shies away from ninjas- You can't send them after me now! I've updated! And Orca is in this chappie. Happy-dangles Balmung by the wings over the Sarlack pit from Star Wars: Return of the Jedi- Buahaha! If you send your ninjas after me, Balmung gets it! Piros-wipes sweat off brow- Me: Don't worry, axeman.. I'll get you, you freaky game designer who I swear is gay.
To anyone and/or everyone who read my fic but didn't review - REVIEW!