Erika was disappointed that her script was not picked but whatever powers there were decided to go with a strange shadow play. Shizuo was just too confused by the whole thing but somehow he could not take his eyes off the stage.
A shadow disc spun. Two shadow figures stood on it. The effect was very strange, the motion highlighted their bi-dimensional bodies.
"Revolving, revolving, revolving."
"We revolve around and around."
"It's a revolution."
"But is it really?"
"The more things change-"
"-the more they stay the same."
"Revolving, revolving, revolving."
"But you see, we are still revolving around the same axis."
The scene changed to a shadow princess crying between two coffins.
"A long time ago there lived a princess who was very sad because her parents had died."
"'There is nothing eternal.', she thought to herself and hid inside a coffin herself."
"But then a prince appeared. Riding a white horse and full of courage."
A shadow prince slid into the scene.
"He said, 'Why are you crying with such sorrow? Take this token of our encounter and use it to find me when you grow up. Never abandon your pride and beauty no matter what may happen."
The shadow prince handed her a shadow ring.
"So impressed was the girl with the prince that she decided to become a prince herself to save others."
"But was that a good idea?"
"More importantly, did the girl really leave the coffin?"
"I wonder."
"I wonder."
The shadow disc resolved itself into the shape of a coffin.

"That didn't make sense...as in, any sense at all."
Shizuo was so baffled that he had to vent. To his great surprise he found everyone, which was to say every duelist, deep in thought as if the play had some secret meaning to them. It made him feel very uncomfortable. Up to this point he had assumed that these people for all their weird tastes in trippy duels were essentially normal down deep. But he now had his doubts.
"Do you think so, Shizuo-sama?"
"Yeah. I mean, what was it all about? Shadows and...shadows and spinning stuff. And such strange talk. Oh well, doesn't matter I guess."
He shrugged it off and tried not to think too much about it. Shizuo had a policy, although he would never put it in such terms unless under duress, to shove out of his mind whatever could not exactly be assimilated.
"Onii-sama, I did not know that you were here."
Shizuo halted on his tracks at this. And then noticed the spitting image of Izaya minus the glasses, smiling openly and ruffling Izaya's hair.
"Onii-sama...? Twins? Wait- what?"
"How rude of me, I haven't introduced myself. I am Izaya's older brother. Not much older, though but of course I cannot help but think of him as my kid brother. I'm Orihara Hibiya."
Shizuo was still too stunned to know how to properly react but he shook the hand offered to him and felt his awkwardness increase tenfold.
"Oh, sorry. Izaya never said anything about a brother so I was just real surprised. I'm Heiwajima Shizuo."
"Izaya has told me all about you. Thank you for taking care of him all the time."
This annoyed Shizuo considerably but he could not quite pin down why exactly.
"No problem. He's my friend. I mean, we're friends so of course I'd look out for him."
Hibiya smiled apologetically.
"I am afraid that I have been so busy with school matters as of late that I hardly have any time to be with Izaya. I'm the vice-chairman."
"Yeah but family should come first."
"Yes, indeed. Indeed."
Izaya took a step forward so as to stand next to Hibiya.
"Onii-sama has been working very hard for me."
Hibiya looked most pleased.
"Why don't we all have a drink together?"
They settled for a small café on campus and Hibiya ordered rose tea for himself and Izaya. Only now that the first shock was over that Shizuo began to discern Hibiya as more than a mirror come to life. And what he realized right away, as soon as he began to actually pay attention, was how smooth and mature this new character was. From the way he picked the delicate cup to the way he laughed in just the right way. Shizuo remembered some of the top dogs at his former school. Sleek fellows who manipulated others at will and would have the most interesting conversation about art before and after kicking in your teeth.