A/N:...somehow this is currently my third most viewed story and my most favorited and followed TD story, and after almost two years and lots of thinking and learning time, I finally finished another chapter.

Thank you to everyone who faved, followed, or reviewed since last chapter. Don't know what made this fic so successful, but I'll take it. :)

Actual serious note: I'm not going to pretend that I could ever accurately portray DID as someone who does not have it, though I've learned a lot more about it since last chapter was out. I just wanted y'all to be aware of that. I'll try my best with what I do know.

I'm hoping that this chapter will open up more chance for this to actually be finished soon. My motivation is spotty and pretty much all of it goes towards MCS.

Enjoy!

At the end of the school day, after her first meeting of art club that she presided over as president, Zoey headed towards the exit of the building, passing a classroom whose door was barely open with the lights turned off and blinds closed. No one else was left in the hallway since she'd left the meeting last, as was customary.

Suddenly there was a crashing sound that came from the classroom. "Zhat vas your first and final warning," an accented, deep but slightly feminine voice alerted whoever was with them. "Don't make zhe same mistake again."

Another voice, male, actually recognizable and clearly very afraid, replied, "Okay okay okay! I won't mess with ya, alright, geez!" before its owner scrambled out of the classroom, hand bleeding and arm starting to bruise. "What the hell you looking at?!" he sneered at Zoey.

"Nothing!" she replied, glancing off. "Just heard a noise."

"Tch, whatever," he grumbled before running out of the building, his spiky orange hair flattening with the wind.

Zoey watched him go and looked back towards the darkened classroom. Nervously she poked her head inside, only to see a very tall figure standing against the back wall, silent, only breathing in and out. She reached shakily to turn the light on and-

"Oh my, zhat is such a pretty top!" Svetlana complimented her with a smile, voice far less deep but no less accented. There was a spot of blood on her-his-their? cheek that had gone unnoticed, and several textbooks had fallen on the floor along with a chair and desk. Her lips were full and red, eyes twinkling under the fluorescent school lights; her hair was out of her face, which notably had a few deep-set lines crossing it in a few places.

Zoey stared. She knew that voice and accent, even if she hadn't heard it in so many years she'd nearly forgotten. "...Mike?" she still asked anyway. "What...happened in here?"

Svetlana's perfect posture slowly slumped as she looked blankly at Zoey for a minute before she gasped for breath and blinked. Mike grabbed the counter, his body suddenly exhausted. "Huh...where..." he looked incredibly confused; last thing he remembered was being approached in the hallway by that Scott kid, then it kinda went black...not that that didn't happen all the time.

His tired eyes eventually met hers. "Zoey," he addressed her. "...hi." He didn't know what else to say in this situation.

"Um-uh-what-" Zoey sputtered before taking a deep breath in and out. "...I'm not going to ask right now because I need to get home," she decided for herself. "Are you okay?" she then asked Mike.

"...yes? Very tired, but I'm fine," Mike insisted, standing up as straight as he could. He sounded a bit perkier than earlier. His hair was still back, sticking up more.

"Okay. I'm going to go home now. You probably should go home too," Zoey recommended.

"Right, of course," Mike agreed, grabbing his unnoticed-until-now backpack from the floor. "See you tomorrow, bye." He started walking out of the classroom.

"Hey, wait, I was wondering if-" Zoey started to say a bit too late. Mike was out of the building before she could think. Sighing, she left too, more confused than ever.

Why was Scott bleeding? Why did Mike sound like that? I mean, that voice reminds me of...what was the name...Svetlana, that's it... but that was just a character of his when we were kids...right?

She'd hoped to reconnect with him again, now that they were going to school together. Just Mike...if that was even possible.

"I'll find out what's up with him...them," she declared quietly to herself. "All of them."

She was starting to think they weren't just characters, but...what else could they be?

You'd think she'd have read up on this stuff by now, but nope.

Thoughts on the chapter are appreciated. Don't expect updates to come very fast, they just will when they do(hopefully sooner than this one did.)

Til then, stay safe out there, and I'll see ya next time. :)