TWEWY: A Fall Into Honor:

This story is about how Joshua became the Composer. The story is from Joshua's point of view, and others if the story needs to. This is a prequel of the game The World Ends With You. TWEWY is made by Square Enix. And I own the OCs. This is a FAN FICTION and not the real prequel. Enjoy! =3

Week 2, day 1:

Chapter 35: New Partners:

The moment the girl had bowed to him, Joshua felt a extreme rush of embarrassment. He had no idea of why she was doing this. "Uh… I… Wh-What are you do-doing?" Heat all went to his face, making his cheeks tint red as he stared at her dumbstruck.

First of all, she was petrified this whole entire time he had been with her. But now, she was awkwardly sputtering out her gratitude to him?

Still staring at the ground, she squeaked out again, "S-Sir! I-I-I j-just- wanted t-to do th-this because you saved m-m-me!"

Joshua tugged his plain white shirt collar before sighed. "You're welcome." he gave her a small nod before he smiled nervously. "B-But you don't have to b- do this…"

She jerked up awkwardly to stand straight. "R-Right!" she squeezed her pretty eyes shut tightly. "S-Sorry!"

Again this was so very awkward to Joshua.

He brushed his hand through the locks of his scraggly hair before he mused, "It's fine…" after a few seconds he added, "But why are you sorry? And most importantly-" he chuckled making a slightly amused smile as he teased, "-I need to know the name of my Partner. We are going to spend the next few days as companions, so let's start with that, okay?"

The smoky black haired girl gave another of her accustomed weak smiles before she spoke so softly that Joshua barely heard her, "…yu...ri…"

"Pardon?" said Joshua puzzled and cocked his head to one side. "A little louder please?"

"M-M-" She quivered then looked into his lavender eyes. "Mayu… Akimori…"

Joshua gave a nod, he murmured to her as he extended his hand out to her. "You have a very nice name, Mayu. I'm Yoshiya Kiryu." he chuckled nervously, "B-But everyone calls me Joshua, so I rather be spoken to by the latter."

Mayu gave his hand a nervous glance then looked at him again, a second later she cautiously took his hand and shook it as her hand trembled.

He didn't know why but her hand's skin felt soft again to him. So after a few more seconds, he drew his hand away and knew he was blushing. 'Why do I feel… more awkward around her?'

She blushed as well, but hid it when she turned her head the other way. "I… I d-don't want t-t-to disrespect a p-person like y-y-you J-Joshua."

Joshua was confused for a second then registered it was her answer to his earlier question from before.

"Mayu, we're equals here." He gave a nod and she hesitantly did the same. "Please just think of me as n-nobody that is special…"

She blinked at him before shyly looking away. "I-If y-you say s-so, J-Joshua…"

Joshua scanned the area briefly, he had hoped to spot his younger half-brother but he was nowhere in sight. 'Where are you, Ayumu?' he let out a heavy disappointed sigh.

"W-What's w-wrong?" Mayu seemed to pick up that something was wrong.

He widened his eyes for a moment before he enlightened her in a disheartened tone, "Well… y-you see… I don't know where my younger half-brother is."

"You have a younger brother?" asked Mayu surprised. "I have two little twin sisters!"

Joshua nearly jumped; he never heard her so excited since they have met. Her shyness seemed to suppress things from people and herself, such as how she had a great sparkle in her blue green eyes now.

"They're 6 years old," she explained happily, "and their names are Mao and Mio." She suddenly beamed at him, and Joshua couldn't help smiling back from her unexpected bubbliness.

'She must really love her sisters.' He closed his lavender eyes as he thought contently, 'Of course she is, they're family. Why wouldn't they share a close bond with each other…?' Soon he spoke still smiling when he reopened his eyes, "Well you see, Ayumu is actually my younger half-brother. He's half a year younger than me… so… I think of him as a true brother since we spend so much time with each other."

Mayu blinked at him. "O-Oh…" again she blinked before she quietly spoke, "I n-never met s-someone with a sibling a-a half a year y-younger b-before."

Joshua nodded, he felt oddly sad she was switching back to her jittery self so soon. He liked how bubbly she was a few seconds ago, and he felt happy seeing her like that. It confused him greatly for why though. But he replied back with a giggle, "It may seem odd, I know, but it was possible since me and Ayumu are existing proof, eh?" he saw her eyes sparkle a little when he continued, "We are exactly half a year a part, I'm not even kidding about this. I was born on June 5th, while Ayumu was born on December 5th." he added in a sadder tone, "But he's a grade under me at school though… I'm 15, and he's almost 15, so I'm almost 15 and a half at the same time…"

Mayu nodded, but looked puzzled. "B-But w-why is h-he a grade l-lower? Y-You both a-are th-the same age al-almost?"

Right away, Joshua bit his lip and turned away. He pondered whether or not to mention Ayumu was blind, yet he knew she would find out anyways.

Auntie Chise didn't allow Ayumu to go to school the same year Joshua went because of his blindness, she was worried Ayumu wouldn't learn well. Despite the fact that Joshua's mother Mitzuki tried to convince her that Joshua would help him along the way, Auntie Chise still seemed firm with her decision. And Joshua remembered Ayumu was very upset by this, constantly whining he wanted to go to school. Auntie Chise only allowed him to learn to use braille to read and personally taught him how to use his psychic powers to aid him in spite of his blindness.

After a while Hinata finally stepped in, hesitantly, and thoroughly told her that every child should receive education, blind or not. Joshua recalled the very words his father used, "Chise, be rational. You are only encouraging that your son is different. I know that for a fact that the worst fear a child may ever have is that they are different. Now, Joshua here, can tutor if maybe. He can even help his half-brother move about the school grounds. Yet, the school needs to be informed of his disability, or they will be ignorant for who knows how long and believe he is a dumb or retarded child."

For a brief second Joshua felt sad and bitter, his father never referred to Ayumu as his son. Ayumu was sensitive to the fact their father never accepted or liked him one bit, his half-brother even asked him once if their father hated him.

So Auntie Chise agreed, only for Ayumu to go to school when Joshua started the next year. This was because of the fact it was too late for Ayumu to be enrolled into the school.

With a sigh, Joshua turned back to his new Partner. "He's blind."

Mayu looked appalled, her face paled to a ghostly white in a heartbeat. Her eyes quickly flickered from his to the ground. "O-Oh… I-I'm so s-sorry f-for asking…"

Joshua closed his eyes briefly before he replied as his voice painfully cracked, "It's alright. He's used to it."

Suddenly Mayu, very timidly and awkwardly, hugged him.

He felt very warm inside as she had her arms wrapped lightly around him. It was very much different than Ayumu's hugs, and even Rei's.

She soon drew back instantly like she was hit by electricity. "W-We s-should f-find h-h-him, J-Joshua."

"Y-Yeah, we should." said Joshua awkwardly while nodding; he felt a bit of a blush tinge his cheeks.

They walked together as each of them looked in different directions, as they went on Joshua fretfully glanced around. At the same time, he missed the warmth he felt from Mayu's hug. It lingered in his mind throughout the whole time they searched.

He decided soon when they had 15 minutes left that they should go to 104. It wouldn't do him good if he failed the easiest mission there was in the Reaper's Game.

So as Mayu followed him to where the Wall between the two districts would be, Joshua saw a Reaper standing at their normal outpost.

Both of them slowly ambled up to the Reaper and stood waiting for him or her to speak.

"It's yeh again, huh sugar?" said the familiar voice of the female Reaper.

Joshua froze, he knew it was the same Reaper that tried to stop him and Rei from getting to the Station Underpass last week.

He forced a smile. "I'm glad you remember me, it must be my charm."

Before Joshua knew it, Mayu hid behind him and put her hands firmly on his shoulders. It hurt causing Joshua to half yelp and half gasp in pain.

"Now I see," her southern drawl made Joshua focus on her, she gave a grin and a wink at the end when she hooted, "It mus' be nice havin' a sweetheart as a Partner… Gosh, pickin' 'er like that mus' 'ave been a lucky draw! Hahaha!"

Joshua widened his eyes in dismay, he cried out in a stammer, "W-What!? I-" he definitely felt his face flush crimson. "W-We're n-n-not- err… Gah!" He covered his face with his hands. 'This Reaper is acting outrageous! No- no- irrational! Gah! What is going on!?'

"Oh? Look at that! Yer're protectin' 'er!" The Reaper let out an obnoxious laugh. "T'is so hilarious! Yeh faces ar' priceless!"

Every second he spent standing there before the Reaper made Joshua want to sink into the ground and stay there forever. He couldn't take another moment here, he felt like he was suffocating!

Finally he removed his hands and choked out anxiously, "O-Our o-objective p-p-please!"

"Heh." She closed her pale green eyes with a snort. "It's already open. Yeh two gotta free card, thanks to that difficult guy and… heh, you'll find out soon enoug'."

The moment she finished, Joshua grabbed one of Mayu's hands franticly and shot away from that spot as fast as he could. He would have exploded if he stayed there another second from embarrassment. Why was that Reaper teasing him so much!? It was extremely humiliating for him to listen to that southern drawl of hers speak another syllable.

A few seconds later, he skid to a halt, let go of his frightened Partner, and dropped to his hands and knees. Joshua wheezed with his eyes closed tightly, feeling completely fatigued. Right now, thanks to his lack of exercise, he was ready to pass out. His dizzy spell almost caused him to not hear Mayu's worried gasp and her scream, "Are you okay!?"

"No…" he gasped for air for his panicking heart and lungs as he rasped, "Too… much… exercise…" Finally he slid onto the cold ground and lay there lightheaded, he hated that he didn't have much of a choice since he was really exhausted. Oh how much did he wish he lay on a fluffy blanket instead of the solid ground.

He knew Mayu was fussing over him, concerned and confused, as she sat down quickly and gazed at him frightened.

So he gulped in air a while, slowly recovering from sprinting.

This uncannily reminded him of Physical Education, it sucked!

He never understood why the gym teachers always drilled them in sprinting the moment they entered the gymnasium at the start of class. This always caused him to either feel way too exhausted to partake in the module sports afterwards or faint from sheer exhaustion and lack of oxygen halfway through and be forced to wake up by the gym teachers' annoying toots of their whistles and start sprinting again from scratch.

Those memories made Joshua feel sick.

Most times at the last period of the day, he would faint from fatigue, when he was conscious Ayumu always told him the office called him down to escort Joshua home when it was the end of the school day. Instead of taking the bus, Ayumu would urge- no force him to walk home together. Joshua swore that Ayumu was going to murder him during those times, he never appreciated that.

PE was the worse subject created; the gym teachers tortured and Ayumu was the killer.

Soon he felt refreshed and free of exhaustion, so he stood up as well as his new Partner.

"Why did you c-collapse like th-that?" asked Mayu franticly.

"Exercise and I don't meet eye to eye," said Joshua flatly with a little cough. "It kills me, and makes me sweat… ugh…" Now he was aware of the lukewarm liquid that slicked down his bangs and rolled down his face. "Yuck, I hate sweat!"

Mayu was about to say something else when she jumped upon hearing a growl as well as Joshua, "You'll be certainly not be fit enough, feh."

Right away Joshua spun around to face the dark blue haired teen. "Izo!"

Izo adjusted his small silver oval glasses and met Joshua's lavender eyes. "Tsk, took you long enough to fathom we dissipated the Wall." his maroon eyes narrowed and glinted coldly. "I would have alleged that you would have ensued to be the one to clear the Wall afore us, Aleck. Conversely, you appear too wedged per your innovative Partner. Feh."

Again Mayu was hiding behind Joshua with her hands resting on his shoulders. Joshua peered around his shoulder before looking back at Izo with a frown.

It was strange… no eerie not seeing Rei with Izo. The lanky lady would always bicker with Izo, scold Izo for being poetic, write on her clipboard, sneak up on people, or drag them off to their next mission. Simply, it was amiss without Rei's presence.

"How kind of you." sang Joshua sarcastically before he narrowed his eyes, his voice became depressed as he sighed, "I can't explain how weird it is that Rei is no longer with us."

Izo snorted, still scowling, "I'm solaced. The Tyke won't encumber me any longer."

'He doesn't seem daunted that Rei isn't a Player anymore.' thought Joshua sadly. 'Almost all week she annoyed me, excited to live again, only to be distraught when the Composer denied us that.' With a sigh, Joshua continued to reflect in a bitter way, 'I thought she would hate me for a long, long time… but she forgave me in a flash… I thought she wanted to try to get the chance to live again? Become a Player once more… But she didn't, she's a Reaper now, working for the Composer!'

It was shocking when Rei announced that she would join the ranks of the Reapers. He remembered her exact words when she made her choice, "Aleck, no offense but what's the chance we will live again now? Boss Woman here says nuh-uh… so yeah… I still want to live, yeah! But… I wanna try somethin' new! Y'know?" She had flashed him her famous sly smirks before he was dragged into unconsciousness. This was the last time he saw her, he never got a chance to persuade her to change her mind. He felt a tear well up in his eye, but made himself not shed it.

Right away he pushed the memory away now, not wanting to fall prey to his frustrations and tears. Overall, he felt like Rei abandoned them. It hurt, knowing that Rei was working under the Composer now, the very person who didn't give Ayumu's emotions back! What was Rei thinking!? Was she that dumb!? Or was she that insane!?

Joshua glanced around Izo when he noticed something; there was no other person with him. He felt confused.

"So… where's your Partner, Izo?" asked Joshua in confusion glancing around more before he stared back into Izo's maroon eyes, he smirked a little as he teased, "I don't see them. Are they invisible or what? Hehehe…"

Izo seemed to be not pleased by Joshua's remark. In fact, he looked more annoyed now despite Rei was not here, Joshua wondered why though. So what was irritating Izo so much then?

Wordlessly Izo stalked away.

"Hey! Where are you going?" shouted Joshua in alarm as he heard Mayu sigh from behind him.

Mayu walked over to be in front of him as she asked in a mousy voice, "W-W-Was th-that one o-of your f-friends?"

Joshua rubbed the back of his head. "Yeah… we did missions with him and Rei. I never had a choice though, Rei always invited herself in helping us."

The short black haired girl nodded with a weak smile, she then frowned slightly and shivered. Almost immediately both of them shivered, Izo's frigid air made Joshua groan, "Why?" Maybe now Izo was producing this air because he was angry, suspicious of Mayu. Of course, Joshua forgot about that trait of his friend for a split second.

Upon hearing the shuffling of footsteps, Mayu ran for cover behind Joshua again. As Joshua saw Izo reappear, he let out a gasp. He was with Ayumu!

The cobalt haired teen was pulling on the shirt collar of Joshua's younger half-brother as he brought him over, the petite blond said nothing as Izo pulled him over to Joshua and Mayu.

"Ayumu, there you are!" exclaimed Joshua happily as the two of them halted in front of them a few feet away. "I was so worried about where you were! If you were erased! And if you even had a Partner or not!" With a quick nod to Izo he added in a remark, "I guess you have Izo then, huh?"

Instead of looking at Joshua or even replying, Ayumu looked around slowly.

This caused Joshua to frown. "Ayumu?"

Ayumu again looked around, but barely lifted his head as he gazed sightlessly in a different direction than towards Joshua's.

'Why isn't Ayumu looking at me?' thought Joshua worried as he watched Ayumu. It was creeping him out when he called out to Ayumu again; the blond did the same thing.

Slowly he pried Mayu's hands off his shoulders and ambled over uncertainly, feeling so dazed for the moment.

Izo by now let go of Ayumu's shirt collar and took a step back quietly; he gave Joshua a glare still frowning.

As Joshua walked he noticed Ayumu kept glancing in different directions, which was very odd for Ayumu to behave this way. He was quiet as he stopped in front of Ayumu; he saw Ayumu's blind eyes were unfocused.

For a while, Joshua studied Ayumu, unsure of what was wrong. Then Ayumu suddenly started groping the air slightly off of Izo's direction then Joshua's, soon he grabbed Joshua's arm then grabbed one of Joshua's t-shirt sleeves.

After a few moments he asked, "Who are you? Are you Joshua?"

Those words stung Joshua's heart. "W-What?" Instantly Joshua grabbed both of Ayumu's shoulders and shook him. "What do you mean by that, Ayumu!? Of course I'm Joshua!" he stopped shaking his puzzling half-brother. "I'm your half-brother… I'm right here!"

Ayumu tilted his head to one side. "Where are you?" his emotionless tone made another sting in Joshua's heart.

"What do you mean?" asked Joshua feeling afraid and baffled by Ayumu's behavior. "I'm… I'm right in front of you!"

"You are?" asked Ayumu blinking very slowly.

"Yes!" screamed Joshua as he stared at him. "Can't you sense me!?"

For a few seconds Ayumu said nothing, and then shook his head.

To be continued…

Hope you enjoyed the chapter =3