Chapter 4

Minako, the Shrewd Girl

It was a hot August Sunday, and Minato was cooped inside the dorm studying. Not that he really minded though. It was too hot to go outside and do something, and staying inside the air-conditioned dorm felt like heaven, even if it meant having to study for his finals.

While Junpei's breaks mostly consisted of sitting around, drinking Mad Bull from the vending machines, reading magazines, or playing with his PSP, Minato consisted of taking small naps between subjects.

And for the first time, he had plunged into his dream world without being in school.

(- -)

-August 20, 2006, Sunday

Minato's Room

Early Morning

In this world, Minato quickly sat up in his bed as if he had awoken from a bad dream. As he sat up in bed, he saw Minako sitting on the foot of his bed facing him. She was dressed in her day clothes – her hair neatly tied with two gray ribbons.

"Good morning." She replied with a smile. "You're back so soon?"

He blinked his eyes at her. What did she just say?

"What are you doing in here, Minako?"

"I'm not going to cram school and singing classes today, and I just wanted to see if my guess would come true today, and it did!"

"Your guess?"

Minako giggled. "It's nothing." She got up and ran out of the room. Minato stared after his sister.

What was that all about?

The boy got up and went to his usual routine. As he went downstairs, he found his dad already gone, and his mother cleaning the kitchen. Minako was eating a small stack of pancakes and several sausages in good humor. His own plate was waiting for him, and it was just begging to be eaten.

"Good morning, mom." Minato greeted as he sat down. "I'm guessing dad had an early class to teach today?"

"Yes."

"And another question, mom…"

"Hm?"

"How come Minako isn't going to cram school and singing classes today?" Minato asked.

His mother turned around abruptly. "What?"

"Minato! Ssh!" Minako whispered fiercely.

"Minako Arisato, were you planning on skipping out on your lessons today?" His mother asked sternly.

"But mom, I don't want to go! Akane Kotone is being a buttface to me!" The girl replied. "Please don't make me go!"

"Minako, I don't care. You wanted to sing, so you are going to your singing classes."

The girl groaned. "Can't I just go to my singing lesson and ditch cram school?"

"No!"

The seven-year-old turned to her brother and said, "Minato, you have the death penalty for a week!"

He nodded listlessly. Truth be told, Minato had the death penalty almost for half a year. Another week of Minako leeching off his allowance wasn't going to hurt him much. He was so used to having to pay for whatever she wanted. He was a typical older brother who loved his little sister, and spoils her on a regular basis. Minato was just a typical doting brother, and he was certain he would be overprotective as well. Given several years, that characteristic may as well come out.

(- -)

-August 23, 2006, Wednesday

Iwatodai Strip Mall

Afternoon

It was hot outside, but it was no surprise. It was always hot during the summer, especially in the city. Minato could have just stayed inside and played MMORPGs, but Minako dragged him outside for fresh air. Minato strongly suspected that Minako wanted something, and it was probably the combination of Wild Duck Burger and the Bookworms bookstore.

Sure enough, it was. After finishing up lunch with Mystery Burgers, Minako dragged her older brother to the bookstore next door. Although she may not look it, Minako was intelligent and sharp. She liked reading and singing, and so Minato's allowance was usually emptied out on her novels and songbooks.

"Oh, look at this one." Minako replied picking up a book from a pile. It was a book that explained symbols found within dreams. "I wonder…"

"You shouldn't waste your money on those. They are just a waste of time." Minato commented when he saw the title.

Minako gave him a devilish smile. "You mean your money."

"Yeah, whatever."

He watched his little sister flip through the book.

"Hm…It says daydreams are light-hearted in nature, and are no more than silly fantasies or wishful thinking." She read aloud. She turned a couple more pages. "Most dreams contain messages that serve to teach us something about ourselves."

The gray eyes that both Arisato kids shared locked onto each other. Both gazes were hard and calculating as each one tried to read the other. It was unlike Minako to hold an emotionless gaze, as Minato studied her expressionless face. On rare occasions would she act like him, and at that point, she was difficult to understand. On the other side of the coin, Minako knew her brother wasn't one to show too much emotion, so it was not easy reading him, even if she was one of the people who knew him best.

Minako finally broke the calculating gaze. She closed the book on dream telling and symbols and placed it back in the pile. The rest of the afternoon followed as normal as possible, but Minato couldn't help but think that Minako was catching onto him. The only problem was, he didn't know what it was.

(- -)

-August 24, 2006, Thursday

Minato's Room

Early Morning

When Minato awoke this morning, he found himself face to face with his little sister again. She was dressed in her pajamas still, but she was in the same spot like last time – at the foot of his bed.

"You're still here." She replied with a cryptic smile.

Minato gave a long, hard stare at Minako.

"What are you rambling about, Minako? You've been acting strange lately." He commented.

Her smile faded and the look on her face was replaced with a frown. She tried studying her brother's expression again, but then said something that took Minato completely by surprise.

"This is all just a dream of yours, isn't it?"

"…How do you know this is a dream I'm having?"

"It has to do with your eyes and the way you act." She replied quietly. "They appear different when you are dreaming and when you are not, and the way you cross the bridge between this dream and your reality, is the same every time."

This girl was certainly sharp. She was the only one to suspect so far that this world was nothing but a dream of his. But…since when did figures in dreams suddenly become aware that the world was a dream? If he could, Minato could control every aspect of this world to his own liking, so how is it that this little girl who happened to be his little sister suddenly realized the place she was in was merely his own fantasy? It was like a robot gaining its own free will. Minato began to wonder. If someone like Minako could realize this was his dream then did he have the right to still call it one? Wouldn't it be better classified as an alternate universe?

"Is this world just a dream?" Minako asked.

"…It is."

"So then…I'm just a dream as well?"

"This dream…this world…this dimension of my imagination, it is a realistic illusion to me." Minato replied. "In my reality, I am seventeen, and my life is much more different than the one I have here. I created this world for all the things that never would have been able to happen in my real life."

Minako smiled softly with a curious spark in her gray eyes.

"Minato, you said before this is all just a dream you're having. But if this is your dream, and you are positive that what is happening in this world is just a dream, then how can you tell which world is your dream? You said this world is a realistic illusion."

Minato grinned. "I know which is my dream and my reality, Minako. These two worlds may have the same setting, but they are very different."

"How so?"

(- -)

-August 26, 2006, Thursday

Port Island Station

Daytime

The Arisato children sat on the bench next to the fountain. They watched people walk in and out of the movie theater, or people heading towards their train.

"So…in your real world, you're seventeen and an orphan?" Minako asked.

"Yeah. When I was your age, we got into a car accident. I was the only survivor."

"Then how come I'm in this dream when I wasn't born at all at the time? How do I tie into this world?"

"That night, mom got really sick. Dad wanted to take her to the hospital. They couldn't leave me alone, so I went along with them." The boy answered. "We found out that mom was pregnant that night. I remember her saying in the car that she knew the names she wanted for this next child. Ichirou for a boy and Minako for a girl."

The girl beamed. "So then, the reason why I'm here is because you wanted a little sister?" The boy nodded with a sad smile.

"But after celebrating that night, it was getting late so we began driving home. We were on the Moonlit Bridge when we got into a car accident. I don't remember much after that, only that I was thrown from the car." Minato ran his hand through his hair. "All I can really remember was that it was a full moon, and it had a creepy, eerie glow to it."

It was kind of like the Dark Hour, he thought.

"I was sent to relatives, and now at the age of seventeen, I was transferred into Gekkoukan High School at the start of my junior year. In the other world, I'm living in the dorms with several others."

The curiosity within the girl's eyes burned more.

"What else is different in the two worlds?" She asked eagerly.

"Well, Yukari and I aren't childhood friends in my world, and her dad passed away when she was young as well."

"Wow, really?"

"Junpei is the same in both worlds. He says he transferred here in the 8th grade, so I guess I made the connection there when creating this world." Minato began tracing the edges of the bench. "In my world, I know Mitsuru Kirijo pretty well."

"Mitsuru Kirijo? Isn't she the daughter of the man who owns the university that dad works at?" Minako asked.

The boy laughed and nodded. "There are others I haven't seen in this dream yet, but you probably don't know them."

"Hm. This dream seems to be a series of things that could have been." The girl commented.

"It is. There is a big difference between these two worlds though. I doubt you would understand though…"

Minako frowned. "Really?"

"Yeah, really. I'll tell you when you get older and wiser." Minato replied.

The girl nodded with a smile. "Okay, then. That's fair."

Minato looked up at the sky. The summer sun was bright and the boy raised his hand to try and shadow the light from his eyes. He could feel a faint wind against his skin, and he knew he was heading back to his real world now.

"Looks like I'm starting to awake." He commented lightly. "Don't worry, Minako. I'll come back soon."

His little sister stared up at the sky as well. He was certain she could also feel the faint wind.

"I know you will. We'll all be waiting here for you."

(- -)

Minato awoke from his small nap. He was still in his room, behind his desk. He rubbed his eyes awake and stared down at his books. After several minutes of trying to comprehend what he was studying before falling asleep, he gave up. His mind was no longer on his studies, but on his dream world.

He let out a small laugh. It had started out as a dream, but could it now be called an alternate world now? This decision was left up entirely to Minato, but for once, Minato Arisato didn't know.

Back again, only with a quicker update! I rather like this chapter, as I have another chapter that will relate to this later on in the story. Truth be told, I have no clue how long this story will be. I plan on slowing down the pace of the year of the real world because I am thinking of having Minato's dream world reach the year of 2009 for (somewhat) symbolic reasons. It seems I have made yet, ANOTHER mistake though with the first and third chapter. I said that the first chapter could take place from the end of the Yakushima trip to the point they all get their test scores, and then the third chapter takes place on the July Full Moon battle, so the timing is off. Sorry. You could just say that the first chapter takes place in May, and then third chapter in July, and we all will be sorted out. I apologize for another mishap. Anyway, thank you very much for reading! Stay tuned for more!