It was out in the open now. "It all started when I stumbled across all this talk about parallel universes in some of my tomes," Oliver announced. "There are so many different planes of existence, and to make it uncomplicated, the one where Feliciano originated from is accessible through the dream plane." Since he was speaking to people who could not feasibly access the Realm of Spirits, he narrowed the talk down. "Each person had a different place for their mind-" not true for him, "-and only the parallel people are able to switch places."

The trio stared dumbly, making the thinking process obvious. Kuro was the first to speak, "We should sit down."

After a long day, a chair sounded lovely. "Good idea!" Oliver grabbed Feliciano's elbow to guide him to one of the bakery's tables. Not seeing a reason to stop, he continued, "So anyhow, there needs to be cooperation of both sides." To exemplify the tweaked tale, since he wanted to keep the subject of the Realm out of the way, he lightly fibbed, "That is how after many weeks of hopelessly waiting for some obscure chance of my counterpart discovering our plane, I stumbled across this alternate world." He put his hands on his cheeks, sighing in fond memories. "Arthur was the one that came to me."

Technically, it was true. Arthur popped into the Realm of Spirits before Oliver had done that sickly afternoon. "It seems like yesterday that he said his first words to me, 'Where the heck-' omitting foul language- 'am I?"

Lutz growled, "How does this relate to getting Luciano back?"

Oliver raised his head when he stared at a scrape mark on the table. "Oh, pardon me. As I said, the connection must be made by both sides. If one of the people die, or the dream becomes forgotten, corrupted, or even destroyed, the other will be able to go back, but there would not be anything there, just an empty void." In his case, Arthur would not be present in the Realm, and he would not be able to go to the odd colored world. "It seems that Luciano severed the connection while in Feliciano's body."

Kuro prompted, "So?"

Oliver's nose crinkled at the hand he swished at him. "I am afraid that Feliciano is unable to return to his world unless Luciano comes back."

Feliciano drew a sharp breath, gripping the table. Everyone's eyes landed on him as he cried, "No!" He scrambled out of his seat to get away from them. "I can't stay here! This world is a nightmare!"

At least, there were no active volcanoes nearby. Lutz crossed his arms. "Excuse you, it's our world." Kuro nodded in agreement.

The Italian held out a hand to point, "Look how weird you guys are!"

Kuro turned to Lutz. "According to Feliciano-san, we are the weird ones."

Oliver could not help but laugh a little at that. "I think it is more understandable if you ever experience his world through your own eyes, or shall I say the eyes of your counterpart?"

Lutz gave his head a small shake. "What is all this hype of the other world? What is so amazing about it that made Luciano leave us?"

"What is not amazing?" Oliver asked, mostly to himself. "There is free art. There is no fear to laugh and show happiness. Not to mention the grass!" That wonderful, vibrant, stunning color, so much like his own counterpart's eyes. It was not fair.

"It's green!" Feliciano put in excitedly, only for realization to set in, and snap Oliver from his petty thoughts. There was no green grass in this world. "I made myself sad."

Oliver reached up and rubbed the Italian's back, urging him to sit down again. "One of the most luscious greens I have ever seen. You would never find a vibrant color like that here."

"That is not true," Feliciano said. The baker lifted his eyebrows. "Many people looked drained and duller than usual, but you have bright looks, unlike the others."

Oliver smiled. Perhaps it was not bad as he thought. "Aren't you sweet?" He shot to the others, "It remains a mystery why you two want him gone so hastily."

Kuro growled, "The crying."

As if he did not cry. Oliver shook his head, turning to Feliciano again. He would take someone crying over someone cooping their emotions any day. "You are one of the few people brave enough to compliment someone." It took someone from a different universe to get a compliment! "It is...dreadful to say that my appearance made me a victim of harassment in my youth," being the supposed freak he is.

Feliciano clasped his hands over his mouth in horror. "That's awful."

Oliver giggled at his reaction. "It was, but you know what? All those silly children are bums at the moment." His eyes flickered to Kuro and Lutz glaring at him. "Most of them, at least."

That prompted Feliciano to sniggle. "I thought you were kind of scary, at first, Ollie! I didn't know you were in my world!"

One of Oliver's eyes twitched. "They say you learn something new everyday!"

Before the other man could respond, Kuro put in, "I have learned that you two can jabber all day if given the chance. Since you liked that world so much, why did you not stay in it?"

"That is harsh!" Oliver scolded. He pushed from the table for temporary relief, and to fetch the cupcakes abandoned on the counter. "Arthur and I had an altercation about the switching process." He took a deep breath before taking the tray. "He said if I wanted his body so bad, then I had to fight for it."

Feliciano's eyes were wide, following the baker as he sat down with the treats. "Did you?" Lutz and Kuro stared at the cupcakes, more apprehensive than he was.

"Yes, and I lost," Oliver's smile pulled down. "However, I am not ashamed," anymore, he lied to himself. "Arthur won fairly," he admitted with gritted teeth, "and I am glad I even had the opportunity to lay eyes on a place like that." He felt his head grow hot from irritation, so he soothed himself by grabbing a cupcake. "Talking about it is rather upsetting, and I could only know how much pain it brings to you, now that you know you cannot return it to it."

Feliciano sniffled, his eyes welling up with tears again. "What am I going to do?"

"Since Luciano-san is not going to come back, then you will simply need to take his place."

"No! I can never be someone I am not! I don't belong here!"

"Then you better learn how!" Kuro snapped back. "Rather than bawl your eyes out all day about something you cannot change, be useful!"

Oliver mouthed, "Wow." As cruel as it was, Kuro was telling the truth.

"Luciano left for a reason," Lutz announced grimly. "He will not want to come back. Like Kuro said, crying will not get anything done. The world is still turning."

The baker agreed with a nod, since his face was stuffed with a cupcake. Quickly swallowing it to get in, he chirped, "It wil be splendid for little Feliciano to show the ways of his world to the people who need it."

Lutz grumbled, rubbing his squared jaw, "He will need to be integrated as a normal human of society first."

Kuro's head bobbled. "None of that crying either."

"I think if we could keep the friendly aspect, but train him with weaponry, our lives will be a little easier."

Feliciano looked horrified, eyes wide, and mouth hanging open. "W-what? Hey, you guys-"

"Hai, he will need to learn not to scream at the sight of a blade."

That should have been an interesting tale. Before Oliver could ask Kuro what it was about, Feliciano threw his fists against the table, causing them and the cupcake the baker held to jump. "Why are you talking about me as if I am not right here? I don't want to change anything I am just to fit in!"

Oliver took a leveling inhale, setting his treat down to pat one of Feliciano's hands. "Feliciano, this is important. Perhaps not a complete change, but it will be best if everyone else around you keeps thinking you are Luciano." He felt dreadful for going on as the brunet stared at him with watery eyes, but as many similarities their worlds shared, they were much different, too. "Dream worlds leading to alternate universes? Someone will cut your tongue out for talking like a madman!"

A loud sniff. "N-no!"

"Yes, my dear Feli." Oliver sharpened his voice, "This world is fragile. If you want to be yourself, it will have to be a little at a time. Let people get used to things like smiles and unmasked tears of sadness." He took a shuddering breath as Feliciano made a small hic. "It will make their lives, and yours from here on out, much better."

Feliciano eased into his seat, dabbing at his eyes. Oliver glanced at the tray of cupcakes, and reached for one. "Eat something," he coaxed. "I'm sure with the whole worldly switching occurrence, you did not find the time to put something in your tummy."

Lutz visibly tensed, straightening his relaxed lean against his chair. "W-wait, Oliver..."

The cupcake was already out of the baker's hands, stolen by a loud rumble from Feliciano's stomach. Oliver smiled at how the other man widened his eyes as he nipped the dessert. "It tastes good!"

"Of course it does!" Oliver said, as if it were obvious. "They are my cupcakes, after all." He learned from the best!

Lutz leaned toward Feliciano, as if reaching for the cupcake, despite there being a whole batch waiting on the tray. "N-no, you shouldn't..." Feliciano elicited a high noise of irritation, and stuffed his treat in his mouth so it would not be stolen away.

Kuro sighed, putting his gaze to the front windows. "Let him eat it. Half of it is already in his stomach."

"What's wrong?" Crumbs flew from Feliciano's mouth. "Don't you guys want any? They're delicious!"

"Yes, something is wrong," Oliver noted. A gleeful simper marked his face as he nudged the tray of remaining treats in Lutz's direction. "You fellows do not have cupcakes in your hands!"

The blond grew terrified over a tray of cupcakes, and pushed it away from himself. "Nor do we want any."

"Why?" Oliver goaded, giving the tray another shove. "Afraid something will bite you?"

So easily, an argument broke out of Lutz and the cupcakes. Oliver was accused of putting fingers in the batter, not necessarily his own. He harshly yanked on Lutz's ears in retaliation. However, by the time the trio left for the night, all of them were in a better mood about the whole ordeal.

~.~

~BOING~

~.~

The baker announced to his fairy friend during the next peaceful afternoon, "I figured since I had the flat, a cat would be suitable."

Lila shifted around Oliver's hair. "Oh, I'm not sure, Ollie. Why not get something less creepy, like a rabbit?"

"I am looking to liven up the place, dear," Oliver pulled a thread from a patched canvas until it could go no further, before stabbing the fabric again. He glanced to the bakery's front windows, but none of the passersby were interested to look in. "What do you have against felines, anyway? This is not about Gizmo, is it?"

"Cats sneak around all the time! They don't care if we're from a different realm, they'll try to eat us! Or make a game out of it, at least! It's rude!"

Oliver held the woven cloth at arms length to scrutinize it, and suggested, "You could parade around on its back."

Lila gasped, "I could, couldn't I? You'll need to get a cat, first!"

The baker softly laughed, knitting more quickly. A shadow caught his eyes, and he looked up in surprise at a figure ripping open the door. He called, "Flavio! You are a little way from your own shop!"

The blond declared, his furious green eyes burning through his rose glasses, "You and I need to talk!"

More movement passed by the window, and Luciano's gang emerged after him, all looking frightened and/or concerned. Lutz began, "Flavio, wait! You can be civil about this."

Of course, Flavio was not, snapping, "I know that's not my brother in his body! There's this stupid thing about different worlds, and dreams, and they said you know everything, so you better tell me what the fuck is going on!"

"Oh my," Lila murmured.

Oliver swallowed roughly, glancing at the other's timid expressions. Things were calm just two minutes prior to this mess! "Come to the kitchen, and we will talk one on one in there."

He was unsure whether Flavio truly did not understand the whole aspect of the parallel universes, or just did not want to understand. "Flavio, deny it all you want, but like you and I, your brother has a counterpart, and that is who is currently inhibiting Luciano's body. He is going to stay there until Luciano decides to come back."

"How do we get him to come back?! You know about these worlds, why don't you go to that void place, and get Luciano back here?"

"Luciano is not there anymore! He is in the other universe! I already told you, I cannot go there, and my counterpart would not allow it if I could."

"What about mine? Go talk to him."

"I cannot contact your counterpart." Oliver sourly suggested, "Do it yourself."

Flavio bared his teeth in an angry sneer, "Dammit, what if he is an asshole?"

No different from him. "His own brother's life could be on the line. All you need to do is calmly explain things to him, and I am certain he will understand." In a more docile tone, Oliver offered, "It is not uncommon to experience difficulty to make the connection. To send you on your way, I can make a serum that can ameliorate the process-"

"No," Flavio stuck his nose in the air. "That won't be necessary. I can do it myself."

Lila laughed at him. "Is he trying to smell something?"

"All right," Oliver said through gritted teeth, agitated and doubtful, "I am sure if you need anything else, you would be able to figure it out yourself then, too."

The blond stopped at the doorway, tossing his head in his direction. "Oh, by the way, that idiot airhead is back."

Oliver's tenseness dropped as he mashed his eyebrows together. "What airhead?"

Flavio sighed outrageously, limply gesturing with his hand. "That stupid American. He came into my shop, and asked for something besides a prison jumpsuit, and had the balls to not have any money!"

The baker weakly managed, "What?"

The fairy harshly tugged on his hair, "Ollie! Didn't you hear him?!" Oliver flinched from the volume she was using as she shouted, "That's got to be Allen! Allen's back!"

"Okay, well, I'm leaving now," Flavio announced when he was left without a comprehensive reply. He strutted into the front room, letting Oliver to trail after him. When the baker managed to make it to the counter with a hand over his mouth, the other man was standing over Feliciano at one of the tables. "...seem to be a behaved enough guy, but don't think I am not going to be giving up on my brother easily like the others."

Poor Feliciano looked lost, even if he was sitting. Flavio turned to Oliver, briskly nodding. "I need to get back to my store. See you three...hopefully never." His boots tacked on the tiled floor, and upon his departure, the shop feel into peace with a collective sigh.

Oliver stuck a hand to his forehead, exclaiming, "What a bratty child!"