もし: If, suppose, what if...
This fic is the first in what I hope will become a series of what-if spin-offs. All of these spin-offs will be titled Moshi, which is "if" as a sentence starter. This first one has to deal with A Day in the Life: Chapter 15, wherein Satoshi choses to stay the night at the Mousey house, and how that one decision would have changed the remainder of the story.
This is highly experimental right now and I don't know if I'll continue it or not, but I thought at least I'd throw it out there for people to see.
As for Ikite-Yuku, I have the morning of that finished right now... and nothing else for that chapter. I'm kind of stuck at the moment. But ! I know I promised that it would not be a year between updates and it hasn't been, so I haven't broken any promises yet, right?
As for Wisdom, that is much closer to being done. I had a couple difficult, involved conversations to write, and they had me starting and stopping until it started feeling right. It's a boring chapter to start with, so that's not helping much, but things will start getting interesting again soon.
IF YOU HAVE NOT READ A DAY IN THE LIFE UNTIL THE 15TH CHAPTER, YOU WILL NOT GET THIS. PLEASE GO BACK AND READ THAT FIRST.
By the time Satoshi had even realized where his feet had taken him, he was already down by the riverbed. In the back of his mind, he wondered why he would go to such a place in the first place, but an unfamiliar van rumbled up along the shore and pulled to a stop just long enough for a familiar man with sticky fingers to hop out the side. He waited patiently for him to scale the steep incline. Maybe after an encounter with Dark, he would be ready to go home.
"Do you wait for me like this every night?" Dark drawled sarcastically as Satoshi became visible over the crest of the hill.
"No, just when I need a charming example of human depravity." Satoshi knew that Dark didn't mind the banter, and all the better.
Dark switched his pack to the other shoulder. "It's really hard for me to feel insulted when I have no idea what you just said."
"So you're a moron and a criminal. Congratulations." Satoshi's humor always had been dry, but Dark picked up on something different.
"Something wrong?"
Satoshi didn't even notice Dark had stopped walking until he was about a yard ahead of him. It seemed Niwa wasn't the only observant one in that house. Despite the fact that Dark was a criminal, Satoshi felt he could trust him at least this far. "You know that glass incident this afternoon?" Dark nodded; of course he knew. "I was involved in it. A girl in my class was also hurt." Satoshi was pretty sure Dark knew of Risa, but he was also certain Risa wouldn't want anyone to know. "If my father finds out, I don't know how he'll react. I don't think I can go home tonight."
Dark gave a thoughtful pause. He had always caught the vibe that Satoshi's home life was anything but enviable–most of the top student's situations were similar–but he had never made to guess to what extent. "You know, you can always crash at my place."
The refusal that was Satoshi's first instinct stopped short of his lips. If Dark hadn't announced the theft tonight, then either Kei was already looking for him, or the phone call from the police department would come, and Kei would be gone very quickly; and if the theft tonight was announced, then his father wasn't home yet, but it wouldn't be much longer, and Satoshi was certain the first thing Kei would do would be to search the house for his son. He'd be out looking for him immediately, and all of the places Satoshi could think to go would be first on Kei's list.
Kei didn't know anything about the Mouseys. Satoshi would be safe there.
Satoshi hated having to rely on people—especially people like Dark—, but tonight was unavoidable. "Is it really alright?"
"Of course!" Dark had to stop himself from giving Satoshi a rough pat on the shoulder. "My mom won't care. Hell, she'll be happy to have you over."
Satoshi let that strain of conversation die out before mentioning something he had noticed earlier. "That wasn't Saga's van."
Dark crossed his arms, a little annoyed. "He didn't answer the phone. I got a buddy of mine to pick me up instead."
"What did you steal this time, Phantom Thief?"
"Nah," Dark waved his hand, "Just Dark this time. I didn't announce it or anything."
"You didn't?" Then Kei was already out looking for him; the museum was bound to have noticed the theft by now.
Dark wasn't sure if it was a rhetorical question or not, but he answered it anyway. "No, I got my mom something tonight to apologize for getting suspended today." He brought the backpack in front of himself and started to dig through it as he walked. "I was kind of involved in the glass thing, too. Krad just about fell out that window."
Satoshi wanted to ask, but decided better of it as Dark pulled out a gem. Satoshi couldn't make out the colors in the dark setting, but he knew what it was anyway. "You stole the Abstract Hope Sapphire unannounced?"
"Yeah. Mom's been eying this for years." Dark stowed it away again just before they hit a streetlight. All he needed was for the thing to glimmer in its light. "Thought she'd appreciate it since I really screwed up today."
Satoshi shook his head, not sure what kind of mind could appreciate thievery. "How is Hikari-senpai doing, anyway?"
Dark frowned. "He doesn't want anything to do with me anymore. After we got suspended, I tried joking around with him a bit to cheer him up, and he bit me, almost broke my arm, and basically told me to never talk to him again."
"So he's upset about it, then." When Dark had admitted to being involved in the window incident, Satoshi had secretly assumed it was his fault. Now he knew he didn't have to feel guilty about jumping to conclusions this time around. "Was he hurt badly?"
Dark shrugged. "Just a few cuts, though his back got pretty messed up with all that broken glass. I think it scared him pretty bad though." Those words brought them across the bridge, away from Satoshi's usual wanderings, and not five minutes later, a dark sedan passed by that very same spot, slowly creeping by in search of someone that would not be found that night.
When they finally reached the Mousey house, Dark made sure to enter first, and was met with a broom coming down hard on his head, leading to a quick and heavy collapse in the entryway. "Dark Mousey, how dare you go getting yourself suspended from school? And for fighting? I know I brought up up better than that, young man! Why, if the Tanaka's weren't probably watching us from that window of theirs right now, I'd—Oh!" Emiko noticed Satoshi standing there for the first time, and quickly brought the broom behind her back, laughing in what could have been construed a nervous manner, if the laugh hadn't been coming from Emiko Mousey. "Hello there, dear."
"Good evening, Mousey-san," Satoshi tried to hide his satisfaction in seeing Dark taken down by his mother, but he had the feeling Dark could see it from his position sitting up and rubbing the forming bump on his head.
"What the hell, Mom! That hurt—!"
"Oh course it hurt!"
"—And to think I brought you a present, too."
Emiko's demeanor changed all at once. "Present?" Dark passed her the backpack, and when Emiko peeked in, she emitted a loud squeal. "Oh, Dark-honey! You didn't!" She dropped down on her knees to throw her arms around her little boy. "This is a wonderful present, thank you!"
Satoshi, who was still standing out the door, began to cut in, but was interrupted by a voice from the stairs. "What's going on? What's with all the screaming?" Daisuke finally got low enough on the stairs to see between the ceiling and the rail. "Hiwatari-kun?"
"Oh, oh, oh, right!" Emiko picked herself off the floor quickly and tapped Dark's side with her foot to tell him to move and let his friend in. "Come in, Satoshi-kun. Are you staying the night?"
Satoshi didn't pause in slipping off his shoes. "Yes, please, if that's alright."
"Of course it is, Dear. You can take Dark's bed, just wait so I can change those sheets first," Emiko added as an after-thought.
"Mom!"
"Oh hush, you're a teenage boy aren't you?" Emiko retorted with her hands on her hips. "Don't think I don't clean those sheets of yours often enough to know—"
"Alright, alright!" Dark interrupted with a fierce blush. "But why my bed?"
"Because," Emiko stated pointedly as she opened the linen closet. "You're still in trouble for getting suspended today. Besides, Satoshi-kun is your guest, isn't he?"
"Well, yeah, but—"
"Then it's settled," Emiko's smile signaled the end of that argument, and she turned her attention to Satoshi. Dark, knowing he was defeated, went to see if he could find the spare futon. "Have you boys eaten yet?"
"No, not yet, Mousey-san."
"Alright, I'll fix something when I come down then," the words floated down as she practically skipped up the steps, still thrilled enough about the sapphire to hum while she went about.
And Daisuke finally had room to talk, still not sure what his mom was so happy about when she'd been pissed all afternoon. "Hey there, Hiwatari-kun."
"Hello Niwa," was the bland response. Satoshi had forgotten just how chaotic this household was.
"So, um, why—"
"I'll tell you later."
"Ok," Daisuke smiled and relented. "Come on, I'll get you something to drink."
"Thanks, Niwa."
In the style of ADitL, that ends the day and the first chapter. Please, let me know if you think I should continue this off-shoot, or just let it rot.