Kimmie splashed about in the bathtub that Mr. Stopstop was able to get them in the hotel. She was really dirty from sleeping on the streets for the week that she did, and the bath was just sooooo waaaaarm. The hotel people even gave them some bubbles, which were really fun. She cleaned herself, with Mr. Stopstop sitting besides her, back to the ceramic, head facing the door. He was being all awkward for no good reason.

But because he wasn't looking she started to goof off, and she threw a whole wad of bubbles at the ceiling! It looked really funny.

"Kimmie," Mr. Stopstop shook his head when he heard something smack against the ceiling. "Are you throwing bubbles?"

"Um, no!" Kimmie shouts, grabbing the bar of soap again. It was high above her on a shelf, so she had to stand up to grab it. Water fell down her sides, bubbles sticking to her skin, red from the hot water.

"Kimmie," Mr. Stopstop groaned, turning around to look up.

Kimmie froze in fear. She didn't know why, but she just suddenly got really scared. She stood there, hand inches from the bar of soap, eyes widening as Mr. Stopstop looked up and up and up.

"The hotel workers will have to clean that Kimmie, we need to be nice to them," Ron looked down at her and blushed immediately because she was naked. "Oof, sorry."

He sat back down and looked away, and Kimmie just kind of stood there.

She didn't understand why she was so scared.

So the moment she could, Kim had to figure it out.

Kim and Kimmie lounge together in a hot spring they conjured for each other, and it's very peaceful. Their skin tingles with feeling, steam clearing their throats. But Kim still finds it hard to focus on taking it in, and feels jealous as she sees Kimmie sighing dreamily in relief.

She was naked in front of Ron, and it's the first time since this started that she's ever felt… she thinks it's called dysphoria? She has… known she was trans, she just hasn't processed what it means yet. She hadn't even seen her, um, boy part, until that moment, which Ron saw too. And now she can't stop thinking about it. Can't stop looking at it, wishing this weren't real.

"How do you do it Kimmie?" Kim asks. "How does it not bother you?"

Kimmie looks over to her and frowns. "You're sad about Ron seeing us like that?"

Kim sinks deeper into the bath. "I used to be so much bigger, and stronger. I'm not used to feeling so weak all the time, I was never scared of people like this, everyone towers over me and… I know I can't defend myself right now."

Kimmie lowers herself gently into the bath and swims over in these neat little breath strokes, landing besides Kim and taking her hand under the water. "When did you start getting tough?"

"Um, heh, well that's kind of complicated," Kim says, a nostalgia gleam coming to her eyes. "The missions started when I was about 13 but I actually started training a lot earlier."

Kimmie turns to her and then looks up towards the sky, as if she saw something. Her eyes flash and she giggles, looking back to Kim. "You always wanted to be a hero! Woooow. Did Ron know?"

Kim blushes. "No, I told him I just wanted to be a babysitter but I was kinda hopin' that, y'know, somethin' might happen. I was um, nine, when we started, Kimmie. I did gymnastics and parkour and… I remember it all really well, Kimmie. But you know what I can't remember?"

Kimmie frowns.

Kim can't remember what sex is like, she doesn't even remember the word. She doesn't know what grown-ups do together when they're in love, she doesn't even know why they kiss so long sometimes, it seems boring. Even romance, the nuances of it, don't make sense in her head. She can't even begin to imagine what it must be like.

The very second Kim, not Kimmie, willed herself to run into that parking lot and ask Ron if she could call him Daddy, it all died.

But it doesn't make her too sad. She's not even that upset that Ron saw her naked by accident… this watered down, sexless version of her. She's just a kid, it happens with parents sometimes, and she's already kind of seeing Ron as more of a dad.

She doesn't like it all slipping away this fast though, it scares her. It's been one week and her mind has already regressed so much.

She looks at Kimmie. "I don't remember what I forgot. It's… probably better like this?"

"I'm sorry being a kid is so hard for you," Kimmie says so preciously. "At least we get to be together."

"I'm worried about Daddy," Kim says suddenly, seized by so much passion that she doesn't even realize she called him Daddy again. She doesn't want to keep thinking about herself, it hurts too much. "He's sad."

"Kim…" Kimmie pats Kim's back with her other hand, and Kim flinches. She feels so fragile tonight, and so aware of how much softer her skin is now, how sensitive she is to touch, how pretty much anything will be much bigger than she expects it to be. "...it's not your fault he's sad, okay?"

Kim nods as there's this loud deafening boom off in the distance. They both ignore it. This happens every night.

The boom means they're waking up soon. Kim doesn't want to. She's not ready to go out there today and make friends at the shelter. Not ready to be so blissfully unaware of who she really is. She wants to stay in the hot bath, with her best friend. She squeezes Kimmie's hand. "I really couldn't do this without you… but sometimes Kimmie, I think… what if I just didn't try?"

Kimmie doesn't seem to understand. Kim's not sure if she does either, she's not as good at using her words as she used to be. "What if… I just went away?"

Kimmie blinks. "N-no, Kim, no…"

"B-but," Kim stutters. "I-i-if I were gone, we would… just be a boy. A-and people wouldn't pick on you as much and you wouldn't be so confused all the time…"

"Kim," Kimmie's voice becomes more stern all of a sudden. "You… know I'm not real right?"

Hot tears burn down Kim's cheeks. Kim knows. She knows the little girl she's talking to isn't real, that she's just her imaginary friend. She knows that if anything…

...Kim shouldn't be calling herself Kim in this place. Because she's Kimmie. Her imaginary friend is Kim, because she's the more mature one. As silly and childish as she is, she grounds Kim.

Kim concentrates really hard and there's a release as the names swap in her mind.

Kim is Kimmie.

Kimmie is Kim.

"S-s-s-s-s… mmm," she groans. "S-s-s-s…" Her lips get wet and she bites down a sob. " I'm sorry I keep making you call me Kim. I know I'm Kimmie. You should go away. I'm not a good friend. "

Kim squeezes little Kimmie's hand. "No, we're best friends forever. We can keep playing, okay?"

Kimmie nods, tears shining on her baby fat-laden cheeks. "Okay."

The boom in the distance grows, scraping against the ground. There are two voices screaming gibberish in the massive cloud of black, arguing with each other. Kimmie's ears prick up. Tonight is a nightmare about the last time she ever saw Ron.

It was the night Kim and Ron both said the cruellest things they could have to each other. Kimmie dimly realizes as she holds her best friend that she doesn't remember what it was they said to each other, just that it tore her up inside. She'd rather forget it.

But it's important, and it's probably why Ron is so upset. Maybe if Kimmie figures out why he's sad… she can help him. She can save him.

"Kimmie, that's not how it works, you know that," Kim whispers, leaning her cheek against Kimmie's shoulder. It's so thin and bony, it's likely no comfort. Kimmie narrows her eyes.

"I wanna see what's in there," Kimmie mutters to herself as it gets closer and closer. It's going to run through them and they'll wake up screaming, and get even sadder when Daddy isn't there to hold them like he did yesterday. "But… you shouldn't."

"Kimmie… there's lotsa stuff you need to forget about now that you're a kid again. Please."

"Shhh," Kimmie massages Kim's neck. The cloud gets so close. "Shh."

"Kim, please," Kim whines. "For me. For us."

Kimmie closes her eyes and she hears the first words screech into her ears—

"— Drakken isn't even trying to take over the world, Kim. He just wants you."

She hears her former self draw in an ugly breath and she remembers. And she looks down in horror at Kim who is crying as the memory overtakes them. That's not fair. She may not be real, but she's going to protect her, she's going to do absolutely everything she can to protect her.

Kimmie blinks back tears, and screams. "NO!"

All of it implodes at once, the cloud splintering into a hurricane around them, too fast and cutting for any full sentences to come through. It focuses Kim and Kimmie in the eye of the hurricane and gets more and more aggressive. Kimmie holds Kim so tight, she needs to protect Kim. Keep thinking about protecting her, Possible. Focus.

It's scary. It's really scary.

They never last this long in the nightmares.

Kimmie raises her hand and it pinches a nerve to do it, but she grabs at the air and squeezes, and the hurricane implodes again and this time shifts into four inky tornados that spiral off into the sky, and then fly back down like javelins. They strike the hot bath around them, embedding through the ground and sticking up like monuments.

The screams and wails slow until they're whispers that drift away, and the towers become black.

The bath drains and Kimmie looks down at Kim's back, her spine pushing so hard against the skin. Summer dresses fall over the two of them and they huddle even closer. It keeps them both warm.

Kim's fast breathing slows until it's calm and almost unnoticeable. She looks up as the black abyss crackles with white and gold filtering in. Morning is coming. Kim looks to Kimmie, smiling softly. "I'm really proud of you, Kimmie. That musta been really hard."

Kimmie feels small again, and childish. That memory is dead now, she's never going to be able to find it, and she thinks… even if she were to learn what it is that her past self and Daddy argued over, she wouldn't believe it. Wouldn't believe he could say such a thing to her. Or she him.

"Th-thanks," Kimmie whispers, pulling Kim up to her feet, the golden light shining against her cheek. She's sort of scared about what that means for her. If she keeps erasing memories like this, in addition to the ones she's naturally losing her hold on… can she really stay together? She had no idea it'd be like this, how she'd fight every day to retain mere shreds of her former self.

It's hard to know that when you're not even sure if you're the parasite or the host.

"You're really strong, I hope we do cool stuff today now," Kim giggles, holding Kimmie's hand and thumping into her just before light runs through them.

It ends up being the waking Kimmie's first day without nightmares.