. . .

"What did you just say?" (I)

"Oh, I meant I'm happy that you seem fine again." (C)

At this, I literally explode. For real! Tentacles rip out of my body, the whole room turns dark, and flesh growth builds up all over the walls, until it covers the doors and windows, cutting off all escape.

"Ehm, did I say something wrong?" (C)

Really? What would make you think so?!

"Chiaki, I am, in fact, not 'fine'. Do I look fine to you? I just learned that I killed an undefined number of people by causing an age of Calamity with my emotions. My body constantly changes in ways I don't even want to imagine. I have regularly to deal with troublesome stuff that no fourteen-year-old should be confronted with. I carry the responsibility for just too many lives. I have existential dread because there are other versions of me that want to merge with my personality. To aggravate this, my future me told me that I'll eventually merge with more versions of myself than I can even fathom. And to top it all off, I realized just yesterday that, in truth, I'm just a fricking blob of nightmare flesh drifting through the dimensional expanse and that what you perceive here as my body is nothing but a stinking tentacle I created to fit my sense of self. So no, Chiaki. I'm not fine. I'm coping and just barely scratching by. And then you come and push me right over the edge!!!" (I)

"I pushed you over the edge? What exactly do you mean?" (C)

What do I mean?!!

"You stabbed me, Chiaki! You stabbed me! First you kiss me and then you stab me!!! Don't even act like you'd know what I'm going through! I've seen anime with less drama! Oh my god, my life is an anime!" (I)

"What do you want from me??" (C)

"How about an apology?! A real one! Not just 'sorry that I pushed a longsword through your ribcage, I knew you could take it'! Something genuine, without all this!" (I)

"All this what?" (C)

"All this Chiakiism! All that happy-go-lucky attitude that can't take anything seriously for the love of it! That makes everything that happened to me sound like a joke without ever acknowledging me! I seriously don't get how you can be like this! The universe might implode, and you would run a joke about how we would now have to migrate to another world! Do you think I'm a joke?" (I)

"...No." (C)

"Then why?! Why can't you for once be genuine?" (I)

"BECAUSE I HAVE TO!!!" (C)

"What!?!" (I)

That didn't sound like the usual Chiaki. The tone of it was completely different.

"Do you think I never have doubts? That I never question myself? I'm trying to find the best solutions for everyone. That may or may not always work out, but at least I'm trying! What else am I supposed to do?!" (C)

"Maybe not work together with the eldritch abductor that made you stab me in the end?" (I)

"Do you think this was easy for me?! Do you know how scared I was at that time? Without that mental wall, I'd certainly have freaked out, but I was nonetheless totally out of it! I don't have your fancy powers! I knew that thing could end me just by thinking about it! Nevertheless, I wanted to pursue the solution that would be the best for both of us. Do you know that Switchy planned to continue the game till he'd be satisfied with the outcome? We may never have stopped playing if I hadn't given them the finale they desired so much. Be honest, do you really think you could've beaten them in a real clash? Sure, I was scared that maybe this whole cosmic contract thing was just a bunch of crap, but given what I knew, it was wiser to think of it as true. Your future self existing, what this creature could do anyway, those strange hunches I get sometimes, I was considering all of this. It still wasn't an easy decision, but it sounded better than just leaving it to you two battling it out till eternity!" (C)

I get her reasoning. I really do. Nonetheless, I can't help but feel betrayed when I think about it.

"Still, you just did it. I couldn't even tell it was you till the end. You played that charade so convincingly. Even if you were convinced to be in the right, that you were able to strike at me without holding back! You never even seemed the slightest bit uncertain about driving an ultimate weapon through my body... That isn't normal, Chiaki." (I)

"We are already so far past 'normal', Iori! If I'd let all this stuff get to me, I wouldn't know how I could take it. I mean, ghosts, demons, grumpy goddesses, I'm sure people went insane with less on their table. If I didn't treat you like any other day, I might start to see you differently, and I don't want that. You, you are important to me. So sorry, but I won't acknowledge that you became some big, bad demon! I won't act like this is a thing that matters, because it can't! Because I won't allow it!" (C)

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"... Still, you stabbed me..." (I)

Am I being petty about this? It feels like a point that should matter. Probably she'll now just laugh it off again, as usual.

"Look, Iori, I'm... I'm sorry, okay? I didn't know what else to do, and sometimes this sense of detachment, this mental wall, seems to develop a life of its own, but I'm sorry. If I'd only known a better way, but I didn't! I'm sorry! Sniff." (C)

Chiaki Sato is tearing up. Because she's feeling guilty. ... This is new.

I... I step forward and hug her.

"Iori?" (C)

"You know? It's strange. This is basically all I wanted. A heartfelt apology. And now that I've got it... It is enough. Seriously, I'm no longer angry or even irritated about it. Just knowing that you meant that... It's enough. Thank you. It means a lot to me." (I)

Finally, my inner turmoil settles down. The tentacles recede, aside from those linking us, and the walls grow back to normal. I feel better.

I keep her a little longer locked like this. While not outright bawling our eyes out, we both let our tears fall. Chiaki rubbing tears and snot onto my shoulder, and I some black tar mess onto hers. I guess she got it worse. She can't even separate properly, as I locked her in with some tentacles.

However, when she opts to tickle me on her part, I decide that it might be better to let go now. Why the heck am I still ticklish? Shouldn't that be shut off? Though that I now decide against doing so might be the exact reason why it still is a thing. It's no real pain and makes me feel normal.

"So, I'll be on my way then." (C)

"Do you need me to transport you?" (I)

"Oh no, if I can avoid it, I will! It's still not pleasant. That you're bothered about a kiss while doing this to me so casually is really something!" (C)

I cringe inwardly, which hopefully doesn't affect my dream. The very idea that I would do anything indecent to Chiaki... shudder.

I decide to end things here and walk back out with her into the living room. There are Mum and Dad on the couch, and Kuri playing before them. Where did she get those dolls?

"Hi, Mum!" (K)

"Sigh. Hi, Kuri." (I)

"Hello, you two. Ahem, is everything alright with you? We heard some unholy sounds from your room, Iori. Well, I did. Your father, of course, wasn't bothered." (S)

"Let them have it. If it gets loud, then perhaps this was necessary. Sometimes shouting out what is on your mind can be liberating." (Chr)

Yeah. I'm just not completely sure if it was just shouting with all the stuff I grew in there.

"Yes, Mrs. Nomia. We could sort everything out." (C)

"Good to hear. Ahem, you seem to have got something on your shoulder." (S)

Chiaki looks there and confirms the black splotch I left at that spot.

"Damn! Will that come out again or consume all the rest if I wash it?" (C)

"Ehm, let me take care of it." (I)

Basically, I only need to move my hand over that place, send out a bazillion mini-tentacles, which subsequently suck out any contamination. Nothing too complicated.

"Well, if this isn't convenient!" (C)

"I'll see Chiaki out!" (I)

"Sure. We'll leave you some privacy, kiddos." (Chr)

Damn, that wasn't cool, Dad.

I guide her out of the door, where she once again turns to me.

"Is something the matter? You're looking that way." (I)

"You know, I meant to ask you, which I probably should've done much sooner... Your dad... He seems oddly, uh, at peace with everything that happened to his family." (C)

Damn! Didn't I mention that with her? Probably not, which means I have to catch up on this.

"No. No, he's not fine. You know, on the day when Dad came back, there was suddenly a being that looked like me in my room. They claimed they were my future self and how telling Dad would lead to our family breaking apart, as well as a bunch of other very negative consequences. So they just placed some kind of reality-bending normalcy field around them. Now, Dad can neither perceive nor come into contact with any form of supernatural event. In case something doesn't make sense, his perception alters the events into something that does." (I)

"Oh..." (C)

Is that really all she has to say to this?

"Just 'Oh'?" (I)

"I mean, I can't even imagine how tough this is on you. Not even being able to talk to him about what you have going on in your life. Yeah, I'm keeping my powers as well a secret from my family, but that's not even close to being the same as what you have to deal with." (C)

"Well, it's not like I'm the only one having secrets. I mean, I'm not sure what your Mum would say about what we're currently doing." (I)

"To me, it's only something to spice up my life. To you, it is your life. This is quite a big deal. Say, couldn't you just break that field? If your future you can do this, your current you should obviously be able to figure it out eventually." (C)

"Maybe I could bring the field down. It would be incredibly difficult and require that I commit very hard to finding a solution. But... I'm not sure if I really want that. I'm not sure if Dad knowing the truth would in any way improve anything. I fear that this might ruin everything." (I)

As much as I would like to think otherwise, it's not a far stretch to think how much Dad would freak out over our real family situation.

"Hm, yeah. I guess you're right that you could do without the drama. Past examples show that you don't deal all that well with that." (C)

"Good that we cleared that up. Will you now be on your way?" (I)

Honestly, it isn't even all that dark yet out there, and by now, I'd fear more for whatever would be so stupid to attack Chiaki. So I guess I don't need to accompany her.

"Mmh, yes. But before that, I want to tell you that I'm your friend. I am, and will always be, on your side. Well, as long as you don't start culling all of mankind without a good reason!" (C)

So, with a reason, it would be fine!?!

"Well, you know what I mean. You don't need to worry about every little thing. Sometimes it's for the best to just focus on the fact that there are people at your side who'll go through the tough stuff with you." (C)

Hah, if that would just be so easy. Yet it's not like I can ignore all the consequences Chiaki-style.

"Well, that's nice of you, but I think one of us has to stay level-headed. If I don't, someone else will bear the consequences, like experiencing another age of calamity. I simply bear too much responsibility. I cannot not think about it." (I)

"Yeah, I assumed you'd say that. Which is why I'll now go for plan B and give you something to distract you from all those gloomy thoughts!" (C)

"What exactly do you mean, Chiaki? I just told you it's important that I remember. You know that I can't just ignore my position." (I)

How does she think that would work? And why is she leaning in so close? She almost...

"Chu!" (C)

. . .

"Yep, that should do it. Just don't rip the world apart this time, okay?" (C)

. . .

"I like you, you know Iori? I enjoy spending time with you, no matter what we do and what form you have. That should be all that matters." (C)

. . .

"Well, bye now! Can't wait till next time! But now I'll be on my way! Seems like you need that moment for yourself. Bye!" (C)

. . .

That was on the mouth.

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