HEART WORLD

~ Michi ~

"So," I blinked, tucking my hands in my pockets.

"Yes?" The weird kid in front of me raised her eyebrows. By weird I guess I meant different, so not like it's a bad thing, but I'd never seen a kid with floor length silver hair, a grey and black checkered dress, a pink shawl, and huge yellow eyes.

"Where are we, exactly?"

"Ah, of course. We're in the space between worlds."

"Uh-huh?"

She just looked at me.

"Wait, you thought I'd understand from just that? Sorry, but no."

"Okay then. I suppose that's to be expected. There are many different versions of your life that can appear at once, with things being dramatically altered each time. Someone who you're close to in one world could be just an acquaintance in another world, even a stranger. Like that."

"Alright, that makes a bit more sense," I nodded. "So, what exactly am I going to be doing?"

"You're going to visit four worlds, known at the Heart, Spade, Clover, and Diamond worlds. Each of these worlds has a young man at the crux of it that needs help with some pain they have. If you help them all get a happy ending, then at the end you'll get your own happy ending as well. Sweet deal, right?"

""Kay…" I frowned. It mad enough sense, but I got the feeling somehow that Musca wasn't explaining everything, or like I was missing something important… but I was so dizzy, I couldn't think straight.

"I know you're in pain since you just got out of the hospital, but once you get into the first world you'll assimilate quickly. You'll gain memories and relationships with the people there."

"Wait, so these memories will be fabricated? It won't really be me?"

"No no, it's not like that. It will be the new you in each world. You'll know that you don't belong at first, but as you see things and question about them, you'll gain memories and your existence will feel natural."

"So I'm just inserting myself into someone else's world? Isn't that a little… ethically questionable?"

"Well, not the way Lady Faera and I see it. These people in the world all deserve happiness, and you didn't deserve to die. So, this seemed the best thing for us to do."

"Alright, guess I can't argue with that."

"Good! So, which world would you like to visit first?" Musca made a grand sweep of her arm towards four gates that floated before us.

"Huh…." I tilted my head. "I guess Heart," It seemed easiest to simply go in the order in which they were chronologically arranged and that they'd been explained to me.

"Alright… the Heart world," Musca looked up at me as we went into the gate. "I promise, I'll do all that I can to help you,"

"Thanks for that. I, uh… I'm glad I'm not alone in this after all…" And then everything went dark.

"Ugh…" I rolled over once and crashed to the floor. "Shit," I groaned, rubbing blearily at my eyes.

"Good morning," Musca laughed.

"Morning…" I lumbered to my feet, looking around. "Is this an apartment?"

"Seems so."

"So… Is my family alive in this world…?"

"I'd guess that they aren't," Musca grimaced. "I'm sorry, but it was your fate in the other world to be without family, so it's more than likely to be that way in this world, too,"

"Ah…" I sat back down on the bed, closing my eyes as grief had to reprocess itself in my brain.

"Do you want me to erase your memories or your prior existence? I mean, that would have been the easiest thing to do, but I wanted you to be sure and didn't want to do it without your permission first,"

"I guess… that'd be good," I nodded.

"Oh," Musca's eyes widened. "I thought for sure that you would want to keep your memories…"

"Well, it's not that I haven't had some happiness in life. It's just that my parents died when I was really young, and after that life was nothing special," I shrugged.

"Wait, I thought your parents had just died in a car crash that left you hospitalized. Was I wrong?"

"It was my grandparents that died in the car crash I almost died in. My parents died when I was seven when their workplace caught on fire," I explained.

"I… I'm so sorry I didn't know…" Musca put her hands over her mouth, eyes wide with horror and shocked sympathy.

"It's fine, I couldn't have expected you to. So yeah, I'd like to forget my first life. I mean, I still want to be myself, but I'd like to start over too."

"Alright. I can do that much. Milady seems to have lent me some of her power for this mission," Musca placed her hands an inch away from my cheeks.

"What are you crying for?" I asked, surprised when heavy tears started spilling down her cheeks.

"You wanted to dream of your parents before you died… you wanted to dream of that distant happier time… I… had no idea…"

"It's alright." I smiled softly, ruffling her hair.

There was a white flash in my vision, and suddenly it was light a thousand pound had been lifted off of my shoulders.

"Ah…" I blinked, amazed that somehow the world looked the same even though I felt so different. "It feels weird…" there was a newfound blur in my mind, but I didn't feel upset about it.

"Yeah, I can get that," Musca floated over me, staring intently. "Hmm…"

"What? You're creeping me out,"

"It's just that you're really different from the first heroine. And somehow, you're able to touch me… You've got a strong connection to otherworldly things."

"Is that first part a compliment?" I raised my eyebrows.

"Yes…? I mean, you're not as delicate, or as cute. You're like a complete opposite."

"Keep it comin' Musca, it feels great."

"But my master, Lady Faera, said that that's a good thing."

"Alright, I guess I'll be happy with the vote of confidence," I shook my head.

"What should we do first?"

"I guess I should get my bearings…" I did the minimum to clean myself up and then started going through the room. "Oh."

"Oh, what was it?"

"It's a letter from a college, saying that since I've decided not to come to college this year, I can reapply for next fall. Huh. What's that all about? I'm smart, so why wouldn't I just go to college?"

"Really?" Musca arched an eyebrow.

"Why do you sound so skeptical?"

"I mean, you don't seem like you'd be good at concentrating in school."

"Come on, Musca, we just met. Calm down with the judgements."

"Sorry..." she blushed.

"Okay. Myouga University, it says…" I glance around and saw a cell phone on the floor next to the bed, checked the home screen. "It's August 1st."

"It makes sense. In the first heroine's worlds it was always August too. It's simpler that way, since schools are on break. You'll have the full month to concentrate on helping this world's crux."

"By the way, who am I supposed to be helping?"

"Oh, right. That'd be useful information."

"You don't say…"

"Orion's incident report said that his name is Shin. I got to glance through it just a bit, so I know a few basics."

Just as I was about to ask who Orion was a spike of pain flashed in my head. "Oh, shit, what's that…?"

"Are you alright? Is it a memory?" Musca was wide-eyed.

"Ugh…" A vision danced in my sight, replacing the actual world in front of me.

The picture was of a hospital. I was pacing back and forth, pulling on my hair frantically, biting on my nails. My father was in the emergency room, right on the edge of life and death with no clear outcome to be told. My mother had died of cancer years earlier, beginning my father's descent into the world of alcoholism.

"M… Michi," A boy came towards me step by step, hesitance in everything he did.

"…" I stared at him. "Get away from me, Shin."

My coworker stopped walking. "I… My dad is so sorry, I…"

"Your dad is going to hell for what he did!"

"Your dad is the one who attacked him in a drunken rage!" Shin retorted hotly, then shook his head. "I didn't come here to fight with you, I just came to apologize."

"Don't bother. I don't want anything to do with you or your dad."

"Michi-" We both turned when a doctor came out of the operating room.

"Miss Ohayashi," he began, then stopped. I held my breath, already knowing. "I'm very sorry."

I collapsed onto my knees.

"Michi…" Shin came closer.

"Stay away! Just stay the hell away from me, I never want to see you again! I hate you so much, I fucking hate you Shin!" I screamed, rocking back and forth.

When the memory stopped abruptly, fading on the image of Shin's stricken face, I had collapsed to my knees in the present as well.

"Michi! Are you alright?" Musca was floating around me in wild, panicked circles.

"Shin's father killed my father." I breathed, numb.

"Wh… what?"

"Shin's father killed my father in this world." I looked up at her. "How am I supposed to save someone if that's the case…?"