~ Michi ~

"Sawa!" I caught up to her at work the next day. "I tried to recreate what you and Mine did last night… Did it work?"

She inspected me. "You're not wearing mascara."

"I knew I was forgetting something."

"Here." She reached into her purse and pulled some out. "Sit down and let me fix you up."

"You carry that stuff around with you?"

"Of course I do, just in case my makeup gets messed up."

"Lame. You're such a girl."

"Shut up and sit still," she laughed. "And just remember not to wipe at your eyes no matter what. I can't tell you how many times I've done that."

"Gotcha." When she was done I hurried to set tables.

"You really do look pretty," Musca commented.

"Thanks. But I keep thinking about eating lip gloss though, because it tastes good when I put it on." I started singing under my breath as I made sure the napkins were folded correctly. "Kakeochi nakushite shimatta… Saigo no kompoonento wo… sagashite –"

"Michi."

"WAH!" I spun around, almost knocking over the table I was working on as I flailed around. "Kent! I told you already to stop sneaking up on me."

"My response will remain the same as well. You simply aren't aware enough of your surroundings."

"Shut up." I sighed, then looked up at him. "How is Ikki doing?"

"He seems to be doing well, comparatively. That relates to what I wanted to ask you about, actually." He blinked at me.

"Yeah? Spit it out."

"Would you be willing to attend a goukon with me?"

"A what?" I thought back to what manga I had read. It had been in Lovely Complex… "Oh, right. A group thing, like a meet and greet or a date… Wait, why me?!"

"You are my comrade in the investigation into emotion I am conducting. Hence, I wish to get your take on this experience. If it serves as any incentive, Ikkyu will be there as well, practicing meeting women and forcing them not to focus on his eyes."

"Huh… That, I'd like to see." I just wanted everything to work out for him. "Well… Sure, then. I'll go. When?"

"This Saturday. I took the liberty of arranging a day when you, Ikkyu and I are all free."

"You're a scheming evil genius, you know. Don't pretend you're not aware of it."

"I will text you further details at a later date."

"Okay, cool." I realized that Kent had been flat out staring at me throughout the conversation. "What's your problem?"

"I wonder." He tilted his head. "You seem to be glowing today."

"Huh?"

"That is the most sense I can make of the observation. Best to get back to work now." He returned to the kitchen with abnormally long strides.

"You're the one who interrupted me…" I muttered. "Hey Musca, what do you think he meant by glowing?"

"I have no idea. Do you think that was his version of flirting?"

"Smart as he is, I'm not sure if he knows the meaning of the word." I laughed, then went back to singing. "Kimi wo tsuredashita unmei ni, hikiyose rareru kioku…"

"You seem happy today," Musca noted with amusement. "What is it?"

"I just am. I sort of made up my mind to try and be happy as much as possible. That way maybe I'll be better at making other people happy too. I mean, I was so stressed out that I didn't even talk to Toma, who is a good friend. I've been doing okay so far, but I can stand to try harder."

"I'm a bit happy to see you're taking things seriously, but try not to stress out too much."

"Yeah, yeah. You'll catch me if I start to do anything too crazy, right?"

Musca hesitated. "… Y-yeah."

Later on during the shift Sawa popped into the kitchen while I was washing dishes. "Michi, there's a customer asking for you at table eight."

"Argh… Why?" I groaned. "I'll be right out." I dried off quickly, pulled my sleeves down and composed myself before heading out. A man with a black hat and impossibly long green hair was sitting there. "Hello master, how may I help you?" Although I was screaming on the inside, it went over smoothly on the outside. I had perfected my technique.

"Hello… Well, this may sound strange, but…" His voice was soft, almost like a girl's. "Did you know there's a spirit following you around?"

I froze, resisting the urge to look behind me at Musca.

"What?!" Musca gasped.

I frowned. "Who are you?"

"Ah, right. Sorry. My name is Ukyo."

"Ukyo?" It sounded familiar for some reason.

"He's the one the first heroine chose…" Musca noted. "I told you that at the beginning."

"That's right." Ukyo nodded.

Then, he was probably trustworthy. "You can see Musca?"

"Yes. I've always had a strong connection to the Spirit World."

"Oh. Well… I guess you'd like to know that I'm sort of… the second heroine," I explained. "Musca is guiding me along."

"Ah, that makes sense. Michi, right?"

"How'd you know?"

"Would you mind meeting me after you're done working today? It's a conversation best had when there are no other listeners around."

"Right." If anyone else here heard our words, they wouldn't understand at all; they'd think we were crazy. "But what's this about?"

"It has to do with why the worlds fused into one."

"Lady Faera never got back to me on that…" Musca frowned.

"Okay, I'll meet you outside when my shift ends. You want to order something in the meantime?"

"No thank you. I have someone waiting outside."

"Your girlfriend?"

"Yes."

"Ah." It felt strange, knowing that the first heroine was so close by. "Later, then." I retreated back into the kitchen. "What do you think, Musca?" I whispered.

"I'm surprised he showed up so suddenly, but if he can give us information it's worth it. Still… I wonder why Lady Faera never got back to me. And how does he know?"

"Save all those questions for later. We'll get things sorted out while talking to him."

After work I changed quickly and ran out the door. "Hey, you're here." I jogged up to Ukyo.

"Of course."

"I almost thought you wouldn't be. You suddenly showing up feels a bit surreal." I looked around. "She's not here? The first one, I mean."

"No. She wouldn't understand the conversation since her memories of the Spirit World and all that has to do with it are gone."

"Wait, so she doesn't remember Shin, Ikki, Kent or Toma?"

"Not at all."

"Damn…" I shook my head. "So, why are you here?"

"I received a message from Lord Nhil on the behalf of Lady Faera. He told me about you and asked me to deliver it to you."

"Lord Nhil is Orion's master." Musca's eyes went wide.

"Right. He said that the worlds fused together because you're meant to finish the pathways by the end of the month, Michi."

"Wait, what? I'm being timed now? Why?"

"All I was told is that there is a certain event that is taking place at that time. I'm sorry I can't tell you more. Apparently Lady Faera is now being watched closely by her superiors in the Spirit World so that she doesn't interfere with the human world anymore."

"That's why I never heard from her again… Is milady alright?" Musca wrung her hands nervously.

"She's perfectly fine aside from being monitored." Ukyo paused. "I must admit, I was excited to know that there was a new heroine. I wanted to meet you. It's strange to not have anyone else that knows about the Spirit World."

I nodded. "Yeah, I get that. It's hard sometimes to have to tiptoe around other people."

"How are you doing so far in terms of progression?"

"I've completed two pathways, Shin and Ikki."

"Ah… Ikki was someone I had wanted to warm you about. Specifically the girls who follow him. They can be dangerous."

"Trust me, I know. But it's been solved."

"Then, may I offer you another piece of advice?"

"Sure, I'd appreciate anything I can get."

"Be careful of Toma."

"Why's that?" I frowned.

"Have you ever seen an instance in which he suddenly changes his personality and becomes much more aggressive?"

"Of course not." I paused. "I mean… Maybe?" When he'd grabbed me the day before, I'd felt that something was different, but I'd chalked it up to him just being overly concerned.

"For the sake of having someone he cares deeply for as his own, or for the sake of protecting them… he can be pushed to do very violent, very bad things."

"Like what?" Apprehension pricked at me.

"In Shin's original pathway, Toma had hurt Kohana, the first heroine, after she had mistaken him for Shin. Then in Toma's original pathway, Kohana was having trouble with Ikki's group. Toma ended up locking her in a cage."

I gaped at him, shocked beyond words.

"No wonder Orion didn't like him…" Musca shivered.

"Wait, wait. Is he crazy or something?"

"I wouldn't say that. It's just that…" Ukyo sighed. "I've given it a lot of thought. I believe that in the end, all four of them suffer from the same thing. What do you think it is?"

"Um…" I frowned. Shin, Ikki, Kent and Toma were all very different. But Ukyo was saying that they were all the same at the core. What was it? What they had felt, what I had felt for them and understood myself through feeling it as well… "Loneliness," I blurted. "Right?"

"Right. Toma's problem is that he feels loneliness more deeply than any of the others. Shin blocks loneliness by being standoffish; in that way he takes control of his isolation. Ikki blocks it by accepting trivial, meaningless relationships and trying to fill the void in himself. Kent blocks it by being analytical. But Toma… He just crushes the feeling down and tries to act like everything is okay. He continues like that until he bursts. I wanted to warn you of that, Michi."

"Well… Thank you. I feel more prepared now. Hey, mind if I get your phone number just in case I have any more questions?'

"Of course. I'd like to help you as much as I can." We traded phones, and I looked up from entering my number when I heard a click.

"Did you just take a picture of me?" I raised my eyebrows.

"Yes. It just struck me that this is a special moment, and I had to."

"Special huh?" I thought about it. It was all amazing, really. We had linked the worlds because of some fate that had been chosen for us. In his own terms, Ukyo had won during his time navigating through the pathways. And no matter what, I was going to win too. "Yeah, it is."