Usui.
A doll I had given life to using my Scrap abilities. Now the judge of all official Rhyme games. It – or she, I guess – was just one of the many dolls in existence which harboured a piece of my consciousness.
For a long time I thought the only way I could ever escape the tower was through those dolls. But now, seeing her in front of me, it was surreal.
Her masculine voice rang out through the alley, an ethereal light surrounded her as she addressed the crowds of Rhyme players. And us too, I guess.
Beside me Mizuki was tense. His face was set in an odd mix of disdain and disgust as he took in the sight of everything he didn't believe in.
"Lighten up," I said, though I'm sure he couldn't hear me over the crowd and the rain. So I spoke louder, "This is supposed to be fun!"
I saw him mouth the word 'fun' doubtfully.
I wondered what he was more annoyed by – whether it was the Rhyme game or the fact that we were already drenched and the rain didn't appear to be letting up. But I didn't find his attitude frightening like I might have in the tower. It wasn't like that at all.
I couldn't see much from where we were; just occasional bursts of light and minor extensions of a world that wasn't real. But I was really more interested in the people. I wanted to know what kind of people played Rhyme. I had learned from Virus about the sort of people who made money predicting Usui's appearances, and Trip told me about the players who conducted their own, more violent versions of rhyme, but truthfully the people I was surrounded by looked harmless. They were just addicts who needed Rhyme as a way to survive.
I was actually happy to have created their supplier. I understood them better than I would any other type of person.
Mizuki made an annoyed noise which was barely muffled by the roaring sound of thunder, laying the way for yet another burst of lightening. I would never get used to this whole natural weather thing.
"Oh, what?" I asked, deciding to play into his mood.
"I just don't get it – it's not real. What's so great about something that only happens in your head?" Mizuki asked me. Of course, as a Rib player, he would have a lot of hate towards Rhyme. But I didn't think that would be one of the reasons.
"You know, for some people the mind is the only escape from a terrible situation," I told him. I looked around at the people surrounding us, "How many people here are really happy with themselves, or even with Rhyme?"
I was looking forward, still trying to catch glimpses of Usui, but I could feel Mizuki looking at me. No doubt he was trying to find a hidden meaning in my words when I was sure there was none. It was something he should be able to understand; Rhyme was like a drug to sad and lonely people.
"So then, what are you trying to say?" he asked.
"I don't think I understand it completely," I said, "But don't we all have things we'd rather not face?"
Rhyme was like a way for people to escape their own towers.
Another burst of lightening seemed to strike at the exact moment that the crackling sound of a megaphone over-powered the rain and boisterous crowds.
"What do you think you're doing?!" A voice screamed from the mouth of the alley.
"Not good," Mizuki muttered. He grabbed my arm as the crowd instantly began to part and disperse.
In the middle of it Usui remained completely calm, like nothing was happening. It was a scene I vaguely remembered seeing in a dream, or perhaps through her eyes.
"GET BACK HERE YOU LITTLE SHITS!" That same voice screamed through the alley, "YOU'RE ALL UNDER ARREST!"
Hearing that made me laugh, even as people pushed past us and the strength they put into running away constantly threatened to shove me right off my feet. Who knew getting in trouble could be so much fun! Though maybe it was just the adrenaline and projection of the crowds over-excitement onto my own heart, that made it feel so exhilarating.
But – at the same time I knew if that man, Akushima caught us, I would be taken right back to Oval Tower. That thought made me run faster, pulling Mizuki along with me until we'd beaten the crowds and he stopped, forcing me to as well.
We were right in front of the Junk Shop I'd been left by the day before.
"He probably didn't see our faces, but we can wait here for a while," Mizuki said. He pushed me inside – no time for patience – and made sure we hadn't somehow been followed before coming inside too. I heard him muttering, "Can't believe we were almost arrested for a Rhyme game."
I almost apologized out of habit, but I knew that wasn't what he wanted.
The store was big and dust, filled with old bits and pieces on old shelves. It looked like a cross between and auto-store and a literal pile of junk. An odd looking allmate swept past us yelling "Cleaning" when there appeared to be nothing to clean. Its' sensors must've been thrown off by the stores content.
"A friend of mine works here," Mizuki explained as I continued to look around, "But he's a heavy sleeper, like you – so he probably won't show up until later. That's probably for the best though; you don't look up to meeting any new people right now."
I shook my head in agreement. Although running from the law was exciting it was also emotionally draining – as everything else tended to be for me. I wasn't ready to do anything other than stand around and pretend to be interested in a bunch of crap I had no use for, and wait for the rain to pass.
"Is it another one of your team members?" I asked idly.
"No – he doesn't want to get involved in Rib, or Rhyme," Mizuki said. "Doesn't want to get a tattoo either," he muttered, as though it was such a strange concept.
We weren't there very long before the door opened again, a little bell ringing to alert the presence of new customers – or in this case the presence of three kids, who tumbled in one after the other. There were two boys and one girl, they looked like triplets but I couldn't be sure.
Today really was an exciting day; I hadn't seen a child up close since I was one.
The kids poked around the store and the counter in front for a few moments. The allmate tried to avoid them and when it looked like they were about to take chase the girl seemed to notice there were other people there. The oldest looking boy spoke first.
"Oi, where's the pervert guy who usually works here?" he asked.
"Did he get fired?" the girl asked.
"Do you work here now?" asked the other boy.
Then they all leaned forward, uncomfortably close.
"Are you a pervert too?" the girl asked.
"Of course! All adults are like that!"
I was beginning to realise these kids, deceiving as they may be, weren't the pillars of innocence they seemed to be.
"Wh-what's happening?" I asked Mizuki, who was busy pretending not to pay attention.
"It's just kids,' he said, "children."
His reiteration was a sure sign that he was teasing me. Like I didn't know what anything was in the real world.
"Yeah but –"
But who was I to judge the actions of children? When I was that size I was on drugs. Not willingly – but that was hardly the point.
The kids lost interest in me really quickly. Maybe it was Mizuki's pretend disinterest in the situation which caused them to walk away.
The girl sighed wistfully and said "i can't believe he got fired."
"Yeah I can't believe that baldy finally came to his senses," the older boy said.
The store's atmosphere became ominous as soon as those words were said. A man appeared behind the counter as if from nowhere, a dark aura surrounding him.
'What did you kids say?" He bit out. He looked like he would be much nicer under different circumstances.
The children all turned to stare at him, their playful attitudes having disappeared. The girl was the first to speak.
"Kio look what you did!" She complained.
"Ah, he didn't mean it," the younger said.
"Oi Mio, Nao stop speaking for me!' Kio exclaimed. "I'm not afraid of this old man."
I felt something tugging on my sleeve and turned to stare at Mizuki, who I'd almost forgotten about completely. I wasn't sure whether to find the spectacle in front of me funny or terrifying, though Mizuki acted like it was one of those mundane everyday things, which shouldn't be thought of twice.
"We should go," he whispered.
I nodded and let him lead me back outside, where the rain was beginning to let up. There were patches of blue sky along the horizon and the clouds that were still littering the sky weren't so dark anymore. We were still wet from the rain before, and I was only now taking notice of the familiar cold which accompanied wet clothes, but before I had the chance to even shiver or try curling up on myself, Mizuki had an arm around me, rubbing my arm as though trying to warm me up.
"We should probably go home – if you've never seen rain before you've probably never had a cold either," he said, "How important is this thing you're looking for?"
Part of me was mad that he didn't think Aoba was the single most important thing in the world, while the other part was concerned how comfortable the word home made me feel. I couldn't forget where my home really was, so I shook it off.
"What we're looking for is literally more important than your life," I said.
Mizuki hummed. "Sounds like something a terrorist would say." When I didn't say anything in retaliation he said, "But – you're not one, right?"
I laughed.
"Not telling~"
I walked a little ahead, containing anymore laughter as Mizuki chased after me, demanding to know whether I was or wasn't. Not that either way would've mattered. I was lucky to have been found by a kind-hearted person, and not one who's heart was just as rotten inside as those who'd kept me in the tower.
I was going to fuel the fire, maybe mess with his mind a little, but any words I'd been thinking of fell back down my throat when I collided with another person. I'd been so focussed on messing with Mizuki that I forgot to watch where I was going.
"I'm sorry!" a familiar voice exclaimed, two strong arms gripping my shoulders.
Looked up, apologizing as well though much quieter – to see who I would have to pry away from me, only to end up biting my tongue in a blind panic.
If I had given into the urge to run right then, I never would've noticed that the man – robot – standing before me was not one of the alpha's come to drag me back. While it was very likely they had been sent out to get me, this was no one of them.
"This is all my fault, I'm really sorry!" he exclaimed, shaking me slightly.
"It's alright," I said, prying his fingers from my shoulders, "I'm fine, no harm done, right?"
No he wasn't one of the alphas. This was the defective unit I'd heard about – Clear.
"Really, you're not mad?" he asked. If not for the gasmask covering his face, he would look exactly like the alphas. He tilted his head and leaned in closer to me, his gasmask eyes trying to look into mine, "Wait, don't I know you from somewhere?" he asked.
"I don't think we've met," I told him, averting my eyes and hoping he wouldn't recognise my ability. Chances were he wasn't self-aware like the newer models, so even if he did recognise me, he wouldn't know what to do about it.
"You're right," he said, "sorry."
He backed off completely and scooted around me awkwardly. It had stopped raining completely by then but he unfolded and umbrella and continued to walk away like nothing had happened at all, humming a song I'm certain I've heard before.
