Anime of You - Part 4 (Story)
Sep. 5th, 2009 11:47 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
major_kerinaI really enjoyed writing this...it was tougher...but I enjoyed it.
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 5
(Feel free to follow on DeviantArt for half updates)
Anime of You – Part 4
Some part of my mind immediately flashed into action. I looked all around for signs of their direction. I recalled what Katsu had taught Yuji about trails. I noticed the fine details. I could tell the fresh footprints from the old.
I cut through the dense forest. Branches were broken along the way. I worried after a while that they intentionally wanted me to follow them. But I had no other choice. I ducked around trees as quickly as possible.
I was fast but not fast enough to catch a glimpse of them. After a while, it seemed they were getting more careful. There were less signs of their direction but still enough for me to pick up. My heart was racing but Yuji wouldn’t let it overtake me. He was going to be strong for his brother. He was going to show him how much he’d learned and how much he’d done.
I felt such great admiration for him.
Yuji even had a rough fighting style which used his small size as an advantage. I worried what Mayu could do without Katsu’s skills. I ran a little faster despite the fact I was already out of breath.
The trees seemed to a thinning. I could hear voices up ahead. I slowed, worrying about an ambush. I made my way carefully through the trees. I could see old, wooden houses. They looked like houses from centuries ago. They were wooden and painted white and brown in the traditional style.
A dense crowd was gathered in the middle of a road. Their clothes looked relatively modern. Not Edo period like everything else was suggesting to me. Yuji didn’t offer any clues. I leaned around a tree and tried to listen as best I could without being detected.
They crowd was murmuring when one voice cut through the rest. It was deep and male. There was a laugh followed by the words, “Look upon your supposed protector. Where are his powers now? Look at the blood streaking his face…”
I tried to climb a tree to get high enough to see around the people. I could hear Katsu coughing through the murmurs. The same voice laughed and added, “Sure, he put up a better fight than anyone here. But this is hardly the great Katsu I’d taken soooo much trouble to seek.”
Finally, a gap cleared in the crowd and I could see Katsu standing there with his fists up. His face was a little beaten up but he stood with a trembling young boy behind him. Mayu had none of Katsu’s skills but she sure showed his resolve. Her eyes looked ahead at the laughing aggressors.
The attackers from were dressed in rough, gray full-body outfits. The tallest one was circling around Katsu. He had a long scar in the shape of a half-moon across the middle of his face, wrapping around his nose. He walked with a limp. He held my satchel up in one hand. The others with him cowered back a little bit and were similarly-dressed.
My heart almost clenched as he reached in to rifle around in the satchel. Then, he passed out of sight in front of someone in the crowd. A cow made a soft sound. I hopped down from the tree branch. I had to get over there before my mind was altered.
I made my way carefully around the people standing around. I bowed my head. I tried not to attract anyone’s attention. Yuji’s mind recognized those people I could trust, who wouldn’t sell me off to these attackers.
I sought a name to put to these attackers but Yuji had never met them before. He did know that thieves and criminals often challenged the protection that Katsu provided people in the border towns. Sometimes they were rivals who wanted tribute from towns for their protection. Sometimes they just wanted to best him in battle.
My brother always won.
I darted around carefully. I searched Yuji’s thoughts for something, anything I could do. Finally, he had an idea. I whispered to one of the townspeople he didn’t know that a local store was on fire.
Then, I darted away and started a small fire with a fallen branch. It wasn’t long before the smoke from the flames wafted into the confused crowd and from there it lit embers of accusations and fear. The crowd started to rend. Some of the young men launched at the thieves. I made my move.
In the chaos, the leader had the satchel torn away from him. With my small size, I was able to snatch it up before anyone knew it was gone. Getting my brother out would be harder.
I was sure to be seen quickly. Fortunately, my brother made the first move. As a few people in the crowd cleared, I could see my brother punching the man with the half-moon scar right in the face. I smiled for Mayu.
The other thieves headed right for him. Katsu took off through the crowd. He soon spotted me. The young boy dashed through the side, right with Katsu. I ran with my brother and the young boy through the heart of town.
Screams and mighty yells echoed behind us. I tried to fish the papers out of the satchel. I hoped with all my heart that the images were all still there. I counted quickly and soon felt all four.
The young boy’s eyes were full of panic. I grabbed his hand and told him, between pants, “It’ll be okay.” The thieves were right behind us but I didn’t let him look back.
Yuji knew a good hiding place. I just hoped we could make it. I took the lead ahead of Katsu with a hand wave. Katsu had strong lungs but Mayu didn’t have his running skill. I darted around a house.
The young boy in the red-and-green outfit was behind. Mayu picked him up and put him on his shoulders. I knocked over a pile of bamboo. It wouldn’t block the way very well but it would slow them down. I hoped.
I led us back to the forest. It was slower going but I knew it wasn’t far. There was a small hill beside a large stream. I closed and tightened my satchel and leapt in first. A double splash followed behind me as the boy fell off Katsu’s shoulders. I swam over and grabbed his hand.
Immediately, I feared for the papers. But Yuji knew his satchel was water-tight. I hoped it would be good enough.
We swam under a tangle of tree roots to an opening beside the stream. The cave was quite small here but it led off to a larger opening upstream. I figured that if the attackers were looking for us then they would try looking downstream instead of up.
I leaned my head back against the rough, slick walls of the cave. It was dark it was a dry and I could hear my brother and the young boy panting. I told them to wait and not to speak.
Darkness and slowing breathing covered everything. The young boy whimpered quietly. Aside from the low undulation of the water lapping against the small cave, I could hear nothing else. I took that as a good sign.
I still had my flint but I doubted I could start a fire in here. I grabbed Katsu’s large, muscular hand. It was trembling. The trembles stilled with my touch. Softly, he asked, “What now?”
I reached over for the young boy but he started trembling when I touched him. I told them both to follow me.
The path upstream was narrow so it gave Katsu some trouble but he was just able to squeeze through. Before long, we could see light. As soon as I could see, I checked the papers. They all seemed dry. I tried to remember which were Mayu’s and which were mine.
I checked the edge of one carefully in the dim light. I couldn’t see much. It would work on one of us. I gripped Katsu’s hand as much as I could. The young boy stammered out, “What’s going on…” before we all heard a rough sound above us.
I turned back and whispered him, “This paper changes reality and minds. If you don’t touch it then your mind changes too.” It was all I dared to say. He gripped the stone wall and shook his head.
I was sure I could hear footsteps above us. Then came the voices. It was the voice of the scarred one. He said through the earth, “Do you really think you can out-smart us? We’ve been following the both of you for days. We know where you hide…”
He was getting into a villainous monologue so I figured I had enough time to act. I looked to the young boy but he recoiled from us. I tried to grab his hand and guide it to the paper but I was more concerned about my brother/sister.
I held Mayu/Katsu’s hand with the paper. I crept towards the opening to get enough light.
I slid out the paper. It was the kung-fu one of Katsu’s. She was a womanly martial-arts woman with muscular thighs and a beautiful figure dressed in a blue, floral qipao which clung to her mature body. Yuji wondered why his brother asked the mystical lady for that particular artwork. Katsu just blushed at the time.
I thought I saw the young boy’s hand dart in as enough light flowed in for Mayu to see the image. I touched the paper and laced my fingers in with Mayu’s.
I heard a roar from outside rush in like a sudden thunderclap. I could sense that the attackers were just about to strike. I wanted to shut my eyes. I gripped Mayu and the paper tightly.
The moment that followed with the shift felt no different than I expected. Till I realized I was standing on the other side of the tunnel and I was much taller.
A sudden, giggling force enveloped me with smiles. Hugging me below a very mature woman’s chest was a young girl in a silver kimono with a half-moon charcoal mark on her face. She smiled up at me and said, “Gotcha!”
A flood of young girls swarmed the tunnel and helped us out. When we emerged, the half-moon girl pointed at me and said, “For catching the great Katsuko, lady warrior. We, the Silver Blossoms, ask the tribute of…your autograph!” She grinned widely and brought out a paper and pen. The other girls, all dressed in flower-covered, silver kimonos, also produced pens.
From around me emerged what used to be my body. Yuji looked up at me with concern. I looked down as a shiver went through me. He slid the sleeved paper back in his satchel. With a careful smile, I signed what I could remember of Katsu’s signature in the best ‘Katsuko’ I could manage. I wound up mixing it with my own handwriting. It didn’t seem to bother the girls, who swooned and hugged me with glee.
The half-moon girl had an obvious limp to her step.
The young boy…now a young girl clad a reddish-and-green head-covering tied at her neck with little adornments of lace…also emerged. She looked over at the half-moon girl in her kimono. Then, they smiled at each other.
My heart sunk. She hadn’t reached the paper in time. But she looked so happy. She was apparently a cousin of the half-moon girl and they’d split up to find Katsuko at her training ground. They argued over who found me first and stuck their tongues out at each other.
Eventually, all the girls waved to me with thanks for the autographs and darted off into the forest with a chorus of giggles.
It was only then that I could begin to absorb the fact I had traded places with Mayu. Mayu leaned against a rock and shook her head, “How did this happen?” She turned her small fingers around.
I leaned against another rock. I realized I didn’t even know the young boy’s name, even back in school. I pressed on my chest a little. I blushed. I felt like a stylized video game character like this.
I shook my head to Mayu slowly. I was easier to think of him as Mayu than Katsu or even Yuji. I still had Yuji’s memories but they didn’t intrude quite as much anymore.
The world still seemed like a rich and full painting.
I turned my slender but rough fingers around. They looked well-worn by work with a few little scars and some dirt under the nails. I paused. I held my hand up and told Mayu, “We never touched when holding the paper, did we?”
Mayu paused. She shook her head. “Not that I can recall, except for this time. Could that be it?”
I figured that had to be it. It was the only thing we’d done differently. I tried to think back in the nebulous memories from before, from Neil. Yuji’s memories had crowded those places but my feeling told me that it hadn’t even happened as far as Neil could remember.
Mayu reached for the papers in his satchel and sifted carefully. The one we just used was half-way out. I wondered if in thirty minutes it would work on me now or still only on Mayu.
After some discussion, we decided to wait and head back to town. I had a little bit of Yuji’s martial arts knowledge in passing from his brother, so I figured it would be safer this way for now. Mayu was eager for catboy land but we agreed on a little breather.
As I washed and marveled at my face in the stream, Mayu took off his top and wadded in the stream. With a soft smile, I asked him, “What do you think about being a boy?”
Mayu floated and answered back, “It’s actually not all that different. I kinda like being a young boy better. But it was fun to be absolutely ripped. Shame I didn’t save the day.”
I felt more jarred in my current body than in the one Mayu had now. And both felt endlessly better than the stress and strain of the cross-dressing form.
Mayu looked content to be a flat-chested boy. The Mayu I knew would’ve been annoyed to have lost all her progress. But then I also knew Katsu, who didn’t even think about his muscular chest. He just thought about strengthening it to protect those in his care. But there was another Mayu that I didn’t know and who I could only divine in glimpses.
I folded my hands and sighed. I wondered in the quiet places in my head if our fates were to just accept a new reality like what had happened to the young boy…to my busty classmate with red and green. To whatever he or she was before. If before even mattered.
I looked across the stream. I saw a woman standing between two trees. She brushed her hands gently across the bark. Her hair was long and black and she was dressed in a flowing white robe.
She carried with her the tools of a mystic. She smiled at me and approached the stream. Mayu soon noticed her but I spoke first. I asked her about what happened. She bowed her head and said, “One of me probably told you this might happen. Be glad you weren’t touching without holding the paper, otherwise you two would’ve been each other and never realized it.”
Mayu wrung the ends of his clothes and asked, “Is there really a way out of this cycle of change?”
A.L. bowed her head and said, “Yes. And it’s closer than you think.” We both leaned forward but that was all she offered. She tapped a tree and said, “The trees that make the paper that make your images aren’t far from here. They’re inside the boundary.”
We both gasped. Mayu immediately asked A.L., “How do we get inside the boundary?”
A.L answered, “You don’t. No human can. Many try and are either transformed in various ways or visibly-scarred for life. But…”
That sounded different than what Yuji remembered but we both leaned forward expectantly. A.L folded her hands and said, “But…those inside would’ve already been transformed. Into humans that shift genders. Into those with mystical powers. Or even…feline-human hybrids.” She gave a wink and turned away.
Mayu reached into her satchel. He peeked carefully in the dark of the bag. She found her/my catboy image and stared at it without any effects. Clearly, the images passed from her to me with the shift.
He held it up in its sleeve. He looked at it and over at me with wide eyes. “This is it. This has got to be it. If she’s right, then this is our ticket home…right here.”
I looked at the sleeved paper and I felt less confident than her…him. But I didn’t want to diminish the light in his eyes. I asked him, “Do you still want to head back to town?”
Mayu sighed with the paper in his hands. “I’d like to put things right. Or at least know we can. I wouldn’t be able to enjoy any of this without knowing that. Even the catboys. And…this fantasy hasn’t really turned out so fun.” He slipped his shirt back on.
The walk to town took a while. And it was harder to navigate the dense branches in my adult body. Town itself was much the same as I remembered it.
Some people stopped to greet me. Everyone seemed so nice. There was one lingering look from an old man which creeped me out but the smiles of the townspeople more than made up for it.
Our home was much nicer than the one in Yuji’s memories. It was three stories with very nice glass work on the front. Mayu slid open the door and we left our shoes on the side. With hopefulness, I left mine facing out.
A woman I remembered from Yuji as mother smiled over at us and asked, “Hello you two. Did your little fans find you, Katsuko?” I smiled and nodded to mom. She looked annoyed at Yuji’s wet clothes and made him change upstairs.
I found a soft cushion and rested on it. My clingy dress didn’t feel comfortable in any position but at least the material breathed.
I regretted that I hadn’t finished all of breakfast. The smell from the kitchen didn’t help.
Mother’s clothes looked contemporary but the tools of the kitchen looked antiquated. There were shimmering lights around the room but they weren’t electrical. They looked to be glowing on their own. I figured it was some sort of fantasy magic.
Mother served a cup of tea on the table before me and I eagerly sipped it. Before long, Mayu came down in different clothes. Mother served some sweets to both of us. Mayu still had the satchel in his hands. He leaned it towards me but waited till mother went upstairs.
When we were alone, Mayu looked over at me and asked, “Do you want to get this over with?”
I trace the rim of the cup in my hands. I circled around it again and again and asked Mayu, “And what will happen when it ends?”
Mayu lowered the satchel and looked at the floor. “I had no idea but we have a chance to get back home.” I looked right at her and said, “I have memories of two homes. One is a home like this. The other is a home with my sister Mayu. Your home is different.”
He scooted closer to me. “But we both started out at the same place. At an anime convention where I dressed up…where…I remember about my boyfriend Neil. I know…I might have to give that up to get back to the original one. But we have to do it.”
I squeezed the cup of tea. “…the convention one is gone.” I felt fresh guilt burst through me. Mayu looked away and nodded slightly. “Yeah. It’s gone. We can find something. We can get it back. A.L. said that these worlds are real. They exist. And I don’t think any one of them is lost. It’s gotta be like stars in the sky. We just have to find the right way.”
I looked at my dim, undulating reflection in the tea. I shut my eyes. It sounded like mother was coming over to the stairs. I felt sad to leave such a calm and friendly place. But I opened my eyes and told Mayu, “Let’s try it…”
Mayu packed away some food in a side pocket of the satchel. Then, we held hands as she slipped out her catboy image. He looked no less nefarious than the last time I saw him. I hoped he was actually a nice guy who didn’t attract red-eyed beasts, thieves, or danger of any sort.
He seemed to reach out to me as I looked down at him. I said a quiet goodbye to mother as the world slipped away once again.
We arrived in another forest. I was holding a hand that felt about the same size as mine, only much more muscular. Mayu’s intimidating, white-haired catboy looked across at me with a nervous expression. I felt glad to know we’d switched back.
The ears on his head moved just like a cat’s. I could feel a pair of my own on top of my head. They picked up the soft sounds of the forest.
He had a rather villainous appearance. His skin-tight outfit really showed off the firm ridges of his abs. Mayu brushed his long, feathered hair away from his eyes. His skin was pale with black-traced eyes that looked sinister but were disarmed by Mayu’s worried gaze.
I smiled at Mayu and asked, “You okay?” The white-haired catboy gave a bit of a look and felt around. He paused with a blush as he felt his firm chest and clenching outfit. Looking down, I felt a bit warm myself. My clothes were just as tight as Mayu’s but my form was leaner with less-pronounced pecs. I was dressed all in black.
Mayu’s white tail showed from behind her. It was thick but moved quickly. Reaching around, I found I had a red one which matched my hair. It was slender and seemed to bend like a curl of flame.
The forest we found ourselves in was dense. It looked more like a rain forest. The gray trunks of the trees seemed to stretch forever until they reached a dense halo of leaves that blotted out the sky. From the trunks there were few branches and they always seemed dim gray or even white. The slim leaves of the branches glowed.
On the floor of the forest, the plants were small but dense. We both wore heavy boots so the low plants weren’t a problem to walk around in. On my back, I had a pack which matched my clothes and had only a passing resemblance to my satchel or school bag. Within, I found all four papers still in their special sleeves and some food packed away.
After we’d both taken a moment to get a feel for our cat-like parts and bodies, I scanned the air for others. A cicada gave a far-off call. Shutting my eyes, I turned my ears forward. I circled in place.
Eventually, I caught a faint cutting sound, like someone was chopping wood. Mayu heard it too once he’d turned in the same direction. We both moved carefully through the forest. Having a tail didn’t do all that much for balance on two legs but I gave it a few swishes with a smile.
The sound was actually further than I expected but we soon tracked it to the side of one of the larger trees. A.L. held her hand beside the tree and energy seemed to hack into the tree bit by bit. She gestured and a severed limb drifted to the ground. It didn’t take long before she noticed us.
Dressed in a black robe that matched the deep tones of her hair perfectly, A.L. drifted down slowly. She looked us over and said, “You two seem familiar…” The look in her eyes wasn’t quite what I was expecting from A.L.
We introduced ourselves and then carefully showed her one of the images. She floated down to look it over and pronounced, “That’s certainly the paper I make from these trees. A little used but that’s them. But I’m not the only one who makes that paper.”
Mayu bit his lip, which looked menacing with his face. “What do you mean ‘used’?”
A.L. folded her hands. “These trees store spirit energy. The old growth trees have brilliant white branches. Those are rare. When made into paper, that paper can be used hundreds of times. The younger trees have been storing energy for less time. Their paper may allow only a handful of uses before it just becomes normal, depleted paper.”
Mayu gave a little shudder and clutched his hands. “Is ours old tree paper or new tree paper?” A.L. shrugged. “There’s no way to tell by the paper. It’s better to ask the maker of it. But I assume that’s not possible for you two…”
Mayu clutched his hands even tighter, like he was trying to crush something, and asked, “Another…version of you gave these papers to us. And a version of you who just talked to us said there was a way for us to get home.”
A.L. smiled a little and remarked, “I tend to be obtuse and obfuscating. Are you sure that’s what that ‘me’ really said?”
There was a moment when we both searched back to the other A.L.’s exact wording. Mayu shook her head and said, “What I mean…is there a way for us to get back to where we started?”
Immediately, A.L. said, “No….but there are ways to find happiness in new worlds.”
Mayu’s knees quivered. “There is no way back to our original world?”
Still in the air, A.L. leaned back against the tree. “Even what you perceive as your original world is made out of a mosaic of strands of possibilities. It’s not a straight line but a web. Human experience leads you on a path you weave through that web. And the thread…perhaps… connects the both of you.” She looked between us. We looked at each other.
She settled to the ground and tapped her harvest of white tree limbs. They jumped up into her hands. “You both have made it through so much together. Imagine the countless times that your thread could’ve been broken before now. Each of those is a possibility that never got as far as you two standing right here.”
I could imagine so many times we could’ve gotten lost along the way. Mayu shook his head and asked, “Does that mean…we do have a chance to get home?”
A.L. beckoned us with her head as she turned to walk away. We followed.
She noted, “I don’t know what you would consider home but your thread…your fate and destiny tied in each other…is crafted by your choices. I would never want to take choice away from either of you. That’s why I shudder to offer any clear advice. If I tell you possible paths then all other possibilities will be locked away forever. And one of those possible paths may be the one you most desire.”
I felt myself nodding at her words. But, for Mayu, they weren’t enough. “We need…something. What do we do?”
She looked us over with a sympathetic gaze. She sighed and said, “While I may hate me for this and you might be worse off for this advice. I will say to trust in each other.”
Mayu cupped his face and sighed. I reached over to touch his shoulder. Then Mayu’s eyes widened, “Wait…water. Is that it? If we wash the paintings then will…I dunno…things reset? Is there something here we can use? There’s gotta be something here…” His voice begged.
A.L. looked Mayu in the eye carefully. “Despite my regrets, I gave you the best advice I could offer. There is nothing of this world, or that I can offer, that can give you what you seek. If you want to put the images in water, I won’t stop you. But I don’t advise it.”
Mayu leaned his head. “What will happen if we put the images in water?”
A.L. gestured and the pile of branches joined together with another set of branches on the forest floor. “That’s up to the both of you. You may stay as long as you like but I’d really rather not say any more. My best wishes to you both, no matter what.”
She adjusted the branches into a neat pile and hovered into the tree-tops.
Mayu’s tail was low and his ears drooped as well. He looked on the verge of tears. I put my arms around him and he trembled a little as he said, “I wish I could just forget. There’s no hope. There’s no way. We’re never going to get home…”
I turned my pack and showed her the images. “We still have these. We can test the last few and see what happens.”
He shook his head slowly and said, “And what then? We see the girl side of scary vampire boy. Or we see me as a cat girl. What then? When happens when there’s nothing?”
I shrugged. “I dunno. But hold the paper with me and I’ll be there to help you when things change.”
His legs trembled like mine in cross-dress. I put my hand in his. Despite how strong he looked, he felt so very frail. A.L. emerged from the canopy with a handful of branches and set them near the pile.
He shook his head. “I don’t want to put on more costumes. I just want to go home.”
I hugged Mayu tightly, strong muscle to strong muscle. “Trust me. I’ll get us home.”
He looked to me. In his dark eyes, I saw a flash of hope. I took out the flip-side of the catboy. It was a playful catgirl with white, long hair on her head and silvery fur all over. Her tail was long and bushy. She was as busty as the female martial artist I’d turned into. Whereas Mayu’s eyes now were small and dim, her eyes looked wide and innocent.
Mayu shut his eyes. I hesitated. I didn’t want to kill Mayu’s hope. But I had no idea what else to do. Then, an idea flashed through me. I paused and turned to yell for A.L.
She fluttered over and set down a few branches. She accepted my questions calmly.
I asked her, “Can you make a work of art which will take us back home with a fresh piece of your paper?”
A.L. sighed and shook her head. “I’m hardly the person you want for something like that. My skill isn’t to the task.”
I felt deflated but I came back with another question. “Can it be done? Who can do it?”
A.L. pressed her lips together and shook her head. “I really don’t know…I wish I did.”
Words died in my throat. I had one question left. “We kept memories from times where our memories were…changed. What does that mean?”
Her eyes lit up. “You did? How long have you had the papers with you?” Mayu’s gaze lit up as well. Mayu said it had to be no more than a day.
A.L. clasped her hands in surprise. She shook her head. “That’s rare. That’s so very rare. That means something….oh…but…no. I don’t want to risk your chances.”
She stared straight at us and said, “Remember what I said but also forget what I said. You two write your own future. If your bond is real…if it’s a strong thread then there’s nothing that can keep you from whatever you seek.” She held her hands, as though in prayer, and said, “But you need to know if your bond is strong. And the right moments are needed…” She looked pained to say the words. She said them then turned away.
It was the last she offered to us. The rest was just a repetition of, “You’re better without my words. I’ve said too much.”
And so, Mayu and I were left in the forest as A.L. hastily went on her way. Mayu looked better but confused.
I wanted to read into her words but I didn’t really know where to start. Mayu looked at me and said, “I think she wants us not to touch the paper.” My eyes widened and I asked, “Wait. How do you figure?”
Mayu tapped the paper and said, “Think about it. I lost my memories once but I still can feel them there. You became Kyoko but you still remember Neil and Heather too. It’s like…she called it string. Maybe it’s like pulling on that string.”
I tensed my lips. “And what if it breaks? What if we don’t remember?”
He set an arm on my shoulder. “It could break. We could forget but…we’ve remembered so far. We surprised her. I think we can do this. We can get home. I believe it.”
I couldn’t feel her same enthusiasm but I looked into her eyes and nodded slowly for her. “But we haven’t tried going through all the images. What if that’s the solution?”
Mayu’s tail flipped a little. She straightened her ears and asked, “Do you trust me?”
I nodded immediately. Mayu clutched my hands and said, “Trust me on this. I feel this is right. I feel really scared about it…but we have to try something different. I feel like we’re just stuck in an endless cycle of worlds and identities…I’ll volunteer.”
I took a long breath through my nose. My tail felt tense. I asked, “Your image or mine?”
She sighed and shook her head. “I dunno. Pick one.”
With a sigh of my own, I shuffled the papers and pulled one. It was the school girl one. Into it, I fell. Before my eyes, the girl’s bathroom returned.
I was standing over the sink with the papers. It was like waking from a dream.
Mayu sat over by a stall. Now he was the one in drag. It looked really good.
He smirked at me and asked, “Like your manly self…don’t ya, sis? Maybe I’ll show you my girly ones some day.” Then, he stuck out his tongue and laughed softly.
I could almost imagine myself smiling. I could almost imagine having Mayu as a brother or maybe as a sister again. I knew I could easily do it and Mayu would never know. Before I could even think about the possibility, I pulled out my other paper.
The visage of the skin-tight, dark man looked back at me. The rush felt a little stronger this time. I’d never used the papers so close together alone. I felt energy shudder through me and the entire room. I thought I even heard Mayu gasp.
I staggered. The bodysuit felt desperately tight.
I was in a bright hall. A young man stood before me in a dark, leathery outfit. His hair was red and long. It glimmered by torch-light.
We were in an immense hall. Ornate chandeliers covered the ceiling. Rich tapestries covered the walls. It all felt like a painting. The anime sensations were in full effect. Everything seemed to undulate with energy.
The man took a step towards me. I hoped this was Mayu but I felt hesitant to speak. I wished that Mayu had never had this idea but my use of two papers in a row did feel different. The air felt different. I felt memories at every breath.
I remembered being Neil. I remembered being Heather…and Kyoko…and even Yuji. There were still some missing parts but they felt like solid memories instead of passing thoughts.
Suddenly, heavy footsteps fell like thunder into the room. The red-eyed soldiers flooded around the edges of the room. They all glared at me. They laughed and hissed and undulated like a plague of red. Through the red emerged a woman with black hair.
They cowered as she passed into the room. She approached us and gave a little smile as she said, “Hello, Count Drake. I’m in charge now.” She gestured and the red-eyed soldiers all took a step closer. She gave a look to the man before me. “And your good friend is now my second-in-command.” The man gave no expression.
Before I could respond, A.L. reached in and grabbed the two papers, sleeves and all. She turned them in her hands and tucked them under an arm. “I can’t just let you escape so easily with whatever spell papers you have here. Now…Mr. Fujiwara, you may take the prisoner away.”
Looked into the man and I knew it was Mayu. The gaze looking back at me was impossible to read. I pleaded with my eyes. I said one word, “Mayu…”
A.L. jerked her head around and yelled, “Silence!” I shut my mouth. A.L. turned away. I mouthed the word to the man. I tried to move his frozen features.
He looked back at me and punched me right in the face. I tumbled, my face screaming with pain. He looked down at me with a harsh, gleeful smile and said, “I will kill you. Then I will resurrect you to kill you again…”
I was surrounded by rough hands. They covered my head with a cloth bag.
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 5
(Feel free to follow on DeviantArt for half updates)
Anime of You – Part 4
Some part of my mind immediately flashed into action. I looked all around for signs of their direction. I recalled what Katsu had taught Yuji about trails. I noticed the fine details. I could tell the fresh footprints from the old.
I cut through the dense forest. Branches were broken along the way. I worried after a while that they intentionally wanted me to follow them. But I had no other choice. I ducked around trees as quickly as possible.
I was fast but not fast enough to catch a glimpse of them. After a while, it seemed they were getting more careful. There were less signs of their direction but still enough for me to pick up. My heart was racing but Yuji wouldn’t let it overtake me. He was going to be strong for his brother. He was going to show him how much he’d learned and how much he’d done.
I felt such great admiration for him.
Yuji even had a rough fighting style which used his small size as an advantage. I worried what Mayu could do without Katsu’s skills. I ran a little faster despite the fact I was already out of breath.
The trees seemed to a thinning. I could hear voices up ahead. I slowed, worrying about an ambush. I made my way carefully through the trees. I could see old, wooden houses. They looked like houses from centuries ago. They were wooden and painted white and brown in the traditional style.
A dense crowd was gathered in the middle of a road. Their clothes looked relatively modern. Not Edo period like everything else was suggesting to me. Yuji didn’t offer any clues. I leaned around a tree and tried to listen as best I could without being detected.
They crowd was murmuring when one voice cut through the rest. It was deep and male. There was a laugh followed by the words, “Look upon your supposed protector. Where are his powers now? Look at the blood streaking his face…”
I tried to climb a tree to get high enough to see around the people. I could hear Katsu coughing through the murmurs. The same voice laughed and added, “Sure, he put up a better fight than anyone here. But this is hardly the great Katsu I’d taken soooo much trouble to seek.”
Finally, a gap cleared in the crowd and I could see Katsu standing there with his fists up. His face was a little beaten up but he stood with a trembling young boy behind him. Mayu had none of Katsu’s skills but she sure showed his resolve. Her eyes looked ahead at the laughing aggressors.
The attackers from were dressed in rough, gray full-body outfits. The tallest one was circling around Katsu. He had a long scar in the shape of a half-moon across the middle of his face, wrapping around his nose. He walked with a limp. He held my satchel up in one hand. The others with him cowered back a little bit and were similarly-dressed.
My heart almost clenched as he reached in to rifle around in the satchel. Then, he passed out of sight in front of someone in the crowd. A cow made a soft sound. I hopped down from the tree branch. I had to get over there before my mind was altered.
I made my way carefully around the people standing around. I bowed my head. I tried not to attract anyone’s attention. Yuji’s mind recognized those people I could trust, who wouldn’t sell me off to these attackers.
I sought a name to put to these attackers but Yuji had never met them before. He did know that thieves and criminals often challenged the protection that Katsu provided people in the border towns. Sometimes they were rivals who wanted tribute from towns for their protection. Sometimes they just wanted to best him in battle.
My brother always won.
I darted around carefully. I searched Yuji’s thoughts for something, anything I could do. Finally, he had an idea. I whispered to one of the townspeople he didn’t know that a local store was on fire.
Then, I darted away and started a small fire with a fallen branch. It wasn’t long before the smoke from the flames wafted into the confused crowd and from there it lit embers of accusations and fear. The crowd started to rend. Some of the young men launched at the thieves. I made my move.
In the chaos, the leader had the satchel torn away from him. With my small size, I was able to snatch it up before anyone knew it was gone. Getting my brother out would be harder.
I was sure to be seen quickly. Fortunately, my brother made the first move. As a few people in the crowd cleared, I could see my brother punching the man with the half-moon scar right in the face. I smiled for Mayu.
The other thieves headed right for him. Katsu took off through the crowd. He soon spotted me. The young boy dashed through the side, right with Katsu. I ran with my brother and the young boy through the heart of town.
Screams and mighty yells echoed behind us. I tried to fish the papers out of the satchel. I hoped with all my heart that the images were all still there. I counted quickly and soon felt all four.
The young boy’s eyes were full of panic. I grabbed his hand and told him, between pants, “It’ll be okay.” The thieves were right behind us but I didn’t let him look back.
Yuji knew a good hiding place. I just hoped we could make it. I took the lead ahead of Katsu with a hand wave. Katsu had strong lungs but Mayu didn’t have his running skill. I darted around a house.
The young boy in the red-and-green outfit was behind. Mayu picked him up and put him on his shoulders. I knocked over a pile of bamboo. It wouldn’t block the way very well but it would slow them down. I hoped.
I led us back to the forest. It was slower going but I knew it wasn’t far. There was a small hill beside a large stream. I closed and tightened my satchel and leapt in first. A double splash followed behind me as the boy fell off Katsu’s shoulders. I swam over and grabbed his hand.
Immediately, I feared for the papers. But Yuji knew his satchel was water-tight. I hoped it would be good enough.
We swam under a tangle of tree roots to an opening beside the stream. The cave was quite small here but it led off to a larger opening upstream. I figured that if the attackers were looking for us then they would try looking downstream instead of up.
I leaned my head back against the rough, slick walls of the cave. It was dark it was a dry and I could hear my brother and the young boy panting. I told them to wait and not to speak.
Darkness and slowing breathing covered everything. The young boy whimpered quietly. Aside from the low undulation of the water lapping against the small cave, I could hear nothing else. I took that as a good sign.
I still had my flint but I doubted I could start a fire in here. I grabbed Katsu’s large, muscular hand. It was trembling. The trembles stilled with my touch. Softly, he asked, “What now?”
I reached over for the young boy but he started trembling when I touched him. I told them both to follow me.
The path upstream was narrow so it gave Katsu some trouble but he was just able to squeeze through. Before long, we could see light. As soon as I could see, I checked the papers. They all seemed dry. I tried to remember which were Mayu’s and which were mine.
I checked the edge of one carefully in the dim light. I couldn’t see much. It would work on one of us. I gripped Katsu’s hand as much as I could. The young boy stammered out, “What’s going on…” before we all heard a rough sound above us.
I turned back and whispered him, “This paper changes reality and minds. If you don’t touch it then your mind changes too.” It was all I dared to say. He gripped the stone wall and shook his head.
I was sure I could hear footsteps above us. Then came the voices. It was the voice of the scarred one. He said through the earth, “Do you really think you can out-smart us? We’ve been following the both of you for days. We know where you hide…”
He was getting into a villainous monologue so I figured I had enough time to act. I looked to the young boy but he recoiled from us. I tried to grab his hand and guide it to the paper but I was more concerned about my brother/sister.
I held Mayu/Katsu’s hand with the paper. I crept towards the opening to get enough light.
I slid out the paper. It was the kung-fu one of Katsu’s. She was a womanly martial-arts woman with muscular thighs and a beautiful figure dressed in a blue, floral qipao which clung to her mature body. Yuji wondered why his brother asked the mystical lady for that particular artwork. Katsu just blushed at the time.
I thought I saw the young boy’s hand dart in as enough light flowed in for Mayu to see the image. I touched the paper and laced my fingers in with Mayu’s.
I heard a roar from outside rush in like a sudden thunderclap. I could sense that the attackers were just about to strike. I wanted to shut my eyes. I gripped Mayu and the paper tightly.
The moment that followed with the shift felt no different than I expected. Till I realized I was standing on the other side of the tunnel and I was much taller.
A sudden, giggling force enveloped me with smiles. Hugging me below a very mature woman’s chest was a young girl in a silver kimono with a half-moon charcoal mark on her face. She smiled up at me and said, “Gotcha!”
A flood of young girls swarmed the tunnel and helped us out. When we emerged, the half-moon girl pointed at me and said, “For catching the great Katsuko, lady warrior. We, the Silver Blossoms, ask the tribute of…your autograph!” She grinned widely and brought out a paper and pen. The other girls, all dressed in flower-covered, silver kimonos, also produced pens.
From around me emerged what used to be my body. Yuji looked up at me with concern. I looked down as a shiver went through me. He slid the sleeved paper back in his satchel. With a careful smile, I signed what I could remember of Katsu’s signature in the best ‘Katsuko’ I could manage. I wound up mixing it with my own handwriting. It didn’t seem to bother the girls, who swooned and hugged me with glee.
The half-moon girl had an obvious limp to her step.
The young boy…now a young girl clad a reddish-and-green head-covering tied at her neck with little adornments of lace…also emerged. She looked over at the half-moon girl in her kimono. Then, they smiled at each other.
My heart sunk. She hadn’t reached the paper in time. But she looked so happy. She was apparently a cousin of the half-moon girl and they’d split up to find Katsuko at her training ground. They argued over who found me first and stuck their tongues out at each other.
Eventually, all the girls waved to me with thanks for the autographs and darted off into the forest with a chorus of giggles.
It was only then that I could begin to absorb the fact I had traded places with Mayu. Mayu leaned against a rock and shook her head, “How did this happen?” She turned her small fingers around.
I leaned against another rock. I realized I didn’t even know the young boy’s name, even back in school. I pressed on my chest a little. I blushed. I felt like a stylized video game character like this.
I shook my head to Mayu slowly. I was easier to think of him as Mayu than Katsu or even Yuji. I still had Yuji’s memories but they didn’t intrude quite as much anymore.
The world still seemed like a rich and full painting.
I turned my slender but rough fingers around. They looked well-worn by work with a few little scars and some dirt under the nails. I paused. I held my hand up and told Mayu, “We never touched when holding the paper, did we?”
Mayu paused. She shook her head. “Not that I can recall, except for this time. Could that be it?”
I figured that had to be it. It was the only thing we’d done differently. I tried to think back in the nebulous memories from before, from Neil. Yuji’s memories had crowded those places but my feeling told me that it hadn’t even happened as far as Neil could remember.
Mayu reached for the papers in his satchel and sifted carefully. The one we just used was half-way out. I wondered if in thirty minutes it would work on me now or still only on Mayu.
After some discussion, we decided to wait and head back to town. I had a little bit of Yuji’s martial arts knowledge in passing from his brother, so I figured it would be safer this way for now. Mayu was eager for catboy land but we agreed on a little breather.
As I washed and marveled at my face in the stream, Mayu took off his top and wadded in the stream. With a soft smile, I asked him, “What do you think about being a boy?”
Mayu floated and answered back, “It’s actually not all that different. I kinda like being a young boy better. But it was fun to be absolutely ripped. Shame I didn’t save the day.”
I felt more jarred in my current body than in the one Mayu had now. And both felt endlessly better than the stress and strain of the cross-dressing form.
Mayu looked content to be a flat-chested boy. The Mayu I knew would’ve been annoyed to have lost all her progress. But then I also knew Katsu, who didn’t even think about his muscular chest. He just thought about strengthening it to protect those in his care. But there was another Mayu that I didn’t know and who I could only divine in glimpses.
I folded my hands and sighed. I wondered in the quiet places in my head if our fates were to just accept a new reality like what had happened to the young boy…to my busty classmate with red and green. To whatever he or she was before. If before even mattered.
I looked across the stream. I saw a woman standing between two trees. She brushed her hands gently across the bark. Her hair was long and black and she was dressed in a flowing white robe.
She carried with her the tools of a mystic. She smiled at me and approached the stream. Mayu soon noticed her but I spoke first. I asked her about what happened. She bowed her head and said, “One of me probably told you this might happen. Be glad you weren’t touching without holding the paper, otherwise you two would’ve been each other and never realized it.”
Mayu wrung the ends of his clothes and asked, “Is there really a way out of this cycle of change?”
A.L. bowed her head and said, “Yes. And it’s closer than you think.” We both leaned forward but that was all she offered. She tapped a tree and said, “The trees that make the paper that make your images aren’t far from here. They’re inside the boundary.”
We both gasped. Mayu immediately asked A.L., “How do we get inside the boundary?”
A.L answered, “You don’t. No human can. Many try and are either transformed in various ways or visibly-scarred for life. But…”
That sounded different than what Yuji remembered but we both leaned forward expectantly. A.L folded her hands and said, “But…those inside would’ve already been transformed. Into humans that shift genders. Into those with mystical powers. Or even…feline-human hybrids.” She gave a wink and turned away.
Mayu reached into her satchel. He peeked carefully in the dark of the bag. She found her/my catboy image and stared at it without any effects. Clearly, the images passed from her to me with the shift.
He held it up in its sleeve. He looked at it and over at me with wide eyes. “This is it. This has got to be it. If she’s right, then this is our ticket home…right here.”
I looked at the sleeved paper and I felt less confident than her…him. But I didn’t want to diminish the light in his eyes. I asked him, “Do you still want to head back to town?”
Mayu sighed with the paper in his hands. “I’d like to put things right. Or at least know we can. I wouldn’t be able to enjoy any of this without knowing that. Even the catboys. And…this fantasy hasn’t really turned out so fun.” He slipped his shirt back on.
The walk to town took a while. And it was harder to navigate the dense branches in my adult body. Town itself was much the same as I remembered it.
Some people stopped to greet me. Everyone seemed so nice. There was one lingering look from an old man which creeped me out but the smiles of the townspeople more than made up for it.
Our home was much nicer than the one in Yuji’s memories. It was three stories with very nice glass work on the front. Mayu slid open the door and we left our shoes on the side. With hopefulness, I left mine facing out.
A woman I remembered from Yuji as mother smiled over at us and asked, “Hello you two. Did your little fans find you, Katsuko?” I smiled and nodded to mom. She looked annoyed at Yuji’s wet clothes and made him change upstairs.
I found a soft cushion and rested on it. My clingy dress didn’t feel comfortable in any position but at least the material breathed.
I regretted that I hadn’t finished all of breakfast. The smell from the kitchen didn’t help.
Mother’s clothes looked contemporary but the tools of the kitchen looked antiquated. There were shimmering lights around the room but they weren’t electrical. They looked to be glowing on their own. I figured it was some sort of fantasy magic.
Mother served a cup of tea on the table before me and I eagerly sipped it. Before long, Mayu came down in different clothes. Mother served some sweets to both of us. Mayu still had the satchel in his hands. He leaned it towards me but waited till mother went upstairs.
When we were alone, Mayu looked over at me and asked, “Do you want to get this over with?”
I trace the rim of the cup in my hands. I circled around it again and again and asked Mayu, “And what will happen when it ends?”
Mayu lowered the satchel and looked at the floor. “I had no idea but we have a chance to get back home.” I looked right at her and said, “I have memories of two homes. One is a home like this. The other is a home with my sister Mayu. Your home is different.”
He scooted closer to me. “But we both started out at the same place. At an anime convention where I dressed up…where…I remember about my boyfriend Neil. I know…I might have to give that up to get back to the original one. But we have to do it.”
I squeezed the cup of tea. “…the convention one is gone.” I felt fresh guilt burst through me. Mayu looked away and nodded slightly. “Yeah. It’s gone. We can find something. We can get it back. A.L. said that these worlds are real. They exist. And I don’t think any one of them is lost. It’s gotta be like stars in the sky. We just have to find the right way.”
I looked at my dim, undulating reflection in the tea. I shut my eyes. It sounded like mother was coming over to the stairs. I felt sad to leave such a calm and friendly place. But I opened my eyes and told Mayu, “Let’s try it…”
Mayu packed away some food in a side pocket of the satchel. Then, we held hands as she slipped out her catboy image. He looked no less nefarious than the last time I saw him. I hoped he was actually a nice guy who didn’t attract red-eyed beasts, thieves, or danger of any sort.
He seemed to reach out to me as I looked down at him. I said a quiet goodbye to mother as the world slipped away once again.
We arrived in another forest. I was holding a hand that felt about the same size as mine, only much more muscular. Mayu’s intimidating, white-haired catboy looked across at me with a nervous expression. I felt glad to know we’d switched back.
The ears on his head moved just like a cat’s. I could feel a pair of my own on top of my head. They picked up the soft sounds of the forest.
He had a rather villainous appearance. His skin-tight outfit really showed off the firm ridges of his abs. Mayu brushed his long, feathered hair away from his eyes. His skin was pale with black-traced eyes that looked sinister but were disarmed by Mayu’s worried gaze.
I smiled at Mayu and asked, “You okay?” The white-haired catboy gave a bit of a look and felt around. He paused with a blush as he felt his firm chest and clenching outfit. Looking down, I felt a bit warm myself. My clothes were just as tight as Mayu’s but my form was leaner with less-pronounced pecs. I was dressed all in black.
Mayu’s white tail showed from behind her. It was thick but moved quickly. Reaching around, I found I had a red one which matched my hair. It was slender and seemed to bend like a curl of flame.
The forest we found ourselves in was dense. It looked more like a rain forest. The gray trunks of the trees seemed to stretch forever until they reached a dense halo of leaves that blotted out the sky. From the trunks there were few branches and they always seemed dim gray or even white. The slim leaves of the branches glowed.
On the floor of the forest, the plants were small but dense. We both wore heavy boots so the low plants weren’t a problem to walk around in. On my back, I had a pack which matched my clothes and had only a passing resemblance to my satchel or school bag. Within, I found all four papers still in their special sleeves and some food packed away.
After we’d both taken a moment to get a feel for our cat-like parts and bodies, I scanned the air for others. A cicada gave a far-off call. Shutting my eyes, I turned my ears forward. I circled in place.
Eventually, I caught a faint cutting sound, like someone was chopping wood. Mayu heard it too once he’d turned in the same direction. We both moved carefully through the forest. Having a tail didn’t do all that much for balance on two legs but I gave it a few swishes with a smile.
The sound was actually further than I expected but we soon tracked it to the side of one of the larger trees. A.L. held her hand beside the tree and energy seemed to hack into the tree bit by bit. She gestured and a severed limb drifted to the ground. It didn’t take long before she noticed us.
Dressed in a black robe that matched the deep tones of her hair perfectly, A.L. drifted down slowly. She looked us over and said, “You two seem familiar…” The look in her eyes wasn’t quite what I was expecting from A.L.
We introduced ourselves and then carefully showed her one of the images. She floated down to look it over and pronounced, “That’s certainly the paper I make from these trees. A little used but that’s them. But I’m not the only one who makes that paper.”
Mayu bit his lip, which looked menacing with his face. “What do you mean ‘used’?”
A.L. folded her hands. “These trees store spirit energy. The old growth trees have brilliant white branches. Those are rare. When made into paper, that paper can be used hundreds of times. The younger trees have been storing energy for less time. Their paper may allow only a handful of uses before it just becomes normal, depleted paper.”
Mayu gave a little shudder and clutched his hands. “Is ours old tree paper or new tree paper?” A.L. shrugged. “There’s no way to tell by the paper. It’s better to ask the maker of it. But I assume that’s not possible for you two…”
Mayu clutched his hands even tighter, like he was trying to crush something, and asked, “Another…version of you gave these papers to us. And a version of you who just talked to us said there was a way for us to get home.”
A.L. smiled a little and remarked, “I tend to be obtuse and obfuscating. Are you sure that’s what that ‘me’ really said?”
There was a moment when we both searched back to the other A.L.’s exact wording. Mayu shook her head and said, “What I mean…is there a way for us to get back to where we started?”
Immediately, A.L. said, “No….but there are ways to find happiness in new worlds.”
Mayu’s knees quivered. “There is no way back to our original world?”
Still in the air, A.L. leaned back against the tree. “Even what you perceive as your original world is made out of a mosaic of strands of possibilities. It’s not a straight line but a web. Human experience leads you on a path you weave through that web. And the thread…perhaps… connects the both of you.” She looked between us. We looked at each other.
She settled to the ground and tapped her harvest of white tree limbs. They jumped up into her hands. “You both have made it through so much together. Imagine the countless times that your thread could’ve been broken before now. Each of those is a possibility that never got as far as you two standing right here.”
I could imagine so many times we could’ve gotten lost along the way. Mayu shook his head and asked, “Does that mean…we do have a chance to get home?”
A.L. beckoned us with her head as she turned to walk away. We followed.
She noted, “I don’t know what you would consider home but your thread…your fate and destiny tied in each other…is crafted by your choices. I would never want to take choice away from either of you. That’s why I shudder to offer any clear advice. If I tell you possible paths then all other possibilities will be locked away forever. And one of those possible paths may be the one you most desire.”
I felt myself nodding at her words. But, for Mayu, they weren’t enough. “We need…something. What do we do?”
She looked us over with a sympathetic gaze. She sighed and said, “While I may hate me for this and you might be worse off for this advice. I will say to trust in each other.”
Mayu cupped his face and sighed. I reached over to touch his shoulder. Then Mayu’s eyes widened, “Wait…water. Is that it? If we wash the paintings then will…I dunno…things reset? Is there something here we can use? There’s gotta be something here…” His voice begged.
A.L. looked Mayu in the eye carefully. “Despite my regrets, I gave you the best advice I could offer. There is nothing of this world, or that I can offer, that can give you what you seek. If you want to put the images in water, I won’t stop you. But I don’t advise it.”
Mayu leaned his head. “What will happen if we put the images in water?”
A.L. gestured and the pile of branches joined together with another set of branches on the forest floor. “That’s up to the both of you. You may stay as long as you like but I’d really rather not say any more. My best wishes to you both, no matter what.”
She adjusted the branches into a neat pile and hovered into the tree-tops.
Mayu’s tail was low and his ears drooped as well. He looked on the verge of tears. I put my arms around him and he trembled a little as he said, “I wish I could just forget. There’s no hope. There’s no way. We’re never going to get home…”
I turned my pack and showed her the images. “We still have these. We can test the last few and see what happens.”
He shook his head slowly and said, “And what then? We see the girl side of scary vampire boy. Or we see me as a cat girl. What then? When happens when there’s nothing?”
I shrugged. “I dunno. But hold the paper with me and I’ll be there to help you when things change.”
His legs trembled like mine in cross-dress. I put my hand in his. Despite how strong he looked, he felt so very frail. A.L. emerged from the canopy with a handful of branches and set them near the pile.
He shook his head. “I don’t want to put on more costumes. I just want to go home.”
I hugged Mayu tightly, strong muscle to strong muscle. “Trust me. I’ll get us home.”
He looked to me. In his dark eyes, I saw a flash of hope. I took out the flip-side of the catboy. It was a playful catgirl with white, long hair on her head and silvery fur all over. Her tail was long and bushy. She was as busty as the female martial artist I’d turned into. Whereas Mayu’s eyes now were small and dim, her eyes looked wide and innocent.
Mayu shut his eyes. I hesitated. I didn’t want to kill Mayu’s hope. But I had no idea what else to do. Then, an idea flashed through me. I paused and turned to yell for A.L.
She fluttered over and set down a few branches. She accepted my questions calmly.
I asked her, “Can you make a work of art which will take us back home with a fresh piece of your paper?”
A.L. sighed and shook her head. “I’m hardly the person you want for something like that. My skill isn’t to the task.”
I felt deflated but I came back with another question. “Can it be done? Who can do it?”
A.L. pressed her lips together and shook her head. “I really don’t know…I wish I did.”
Words died in my throat. I had one question left. “We kept memories from times where our memories were…changed. What does that mean?”
Her eyes lit up. “You did? How long have you had the papers with you?” Mayu’s gaze lit up as well. Mayu said it had to be no more than a day.
A.L. clasped her hands in surprise. She shook her head. “That’s rare. That’s so very rare. That means something….oh…but…no. I don’t want to risk your chances.”
She stared straight at us and said, “Remember what I said but also forget what I said. You two write your own future. If your bond is real…if it’s a strong thread then there’s nothing that can keep you from whatever you seek.” She held her hands, as though in prayer, and said, “But you need to know if your bond is strong. And the right moments are needed…” She looked pained to say the words. She said them then turned away.
It was the last she offered to us. The rest was just a repetition of, “You’re better without my words. I’ve said too much.”
And so, Mayu and I were left in the forest as A.L. hastily went on her way. Mayu looked better but confused.
I wanted to read into her words but I didn’t really know where to start. Mayu looked at me and said, “I think she wants us not to touch the paper.” My eyes widened and I asked, “Wait. How do you figure?”
Mayu tapped the paper and said, “Think about it. I lost my memories once but I still can feel them there. You became Kyoko but you still remember Neil and Heather too. It’s like…she called it string. Maybe it’s like pulling on that string.”
I tensed my lips. “And what if it breaks? What if we don’t remember?”
He set an arm on my shoulder. “It could break. We could forget but…we’ve remembered so far. We surprised her. I think we can do this. We can get home. I believe it.”
I couldn’t feel her same enthusiasm but I looked into her eyes and nodded slowly for her. “But we haven’t tried going through all the images. What if that’s the solution?”
Mayu’s tail flipped a little. She straightened her ears and asked, “Do you trust me?”
I nodded immediately. Mayu clutched my hands and said, “Trust me on this. I feel this is right. I feel really scared about it…but we have to try something different. I feel like we’re just stuck in an endless cycle of worlds and identities…I’ll volunteer.”
I took a long breath through my nose. My tail felt tense. I asked, “Your image or mine?”
She sighed and shook her head. “I dunno. Pick one.”
With a sigh of my own, I shuffled the papers and pulled one. It was the school girl one. Into it, I fell. Before my eyes, the girl’s bathroom returned.
I was standing over the sink with the papers. It was like waking from a dream.
Mayu sat over by a stall. Now he was the one in drag. It looked really good.
He smirked at me and asked, “Like your manly self…don’t ya, sis? Maybe I’ll show you my girly ones some day.” Then, he stuck out his tongue and laughed softly.
I could almost imagine myself smiling. I could almost imagine having Mayu as a brother or maybe as a sister again. I knew I could easily do it and Mayu would never know. Before I could even think about the possibility, I pulled out my other paper.
The visage of the skin-tight, dark man looked back at me. The rush felt a little stronger this time. I’d never used the papers so close together alone. I felt energy shudder through me and the entire room. I thought I even heard Mayu gasp.
I staggered. The bodysuit felt desperately tight.
I was in a bright hall. A young man stood before me in a dark, leathery outfit. His hair was red and long. It glimmered by torch-light.
We were in an immense hall. Ornate chandeliers covered the ceiling. Rich tapestries covered the walls. It all felt like a painting. The anime sensations were in full effect. Everything seemed to undulate with energy.
The man took a step towards me. I hoped this was Mayu but I felt hesitant to speak. I wished that Mayu had never had this idea but my use of two papers in a row did feel different. The air felt different. I felt memories at every breath.
I remembered being Neil. I remembered being Heather…and Kyoko…and even Yuji. There were still some missing parts but they felt like solid memories instead of passing thoughts.
Suddenly, heavy footsteps fell like thunder into the room. The red-eyed soldiers flooded around the edges of the room. They all glared at me. They laughed and hissed and undulated like a plague of red. Through the red emerged a woman with black hair.
They cowered as she passed into the room. She approached us and gave a little smile as she said, “Hello, Count Drake. I’m in charge now.” She gestured and the red-eyed soldiers all took a step closer. She gave a look to the man before me. “And your good friend is now my second-in-command.” The man gave no expression.
Before I could respond, A.L. reached in and grabbed the two papers, sleeves and all. She turned them in her hands and tucked them under an arm. “I can’t just let you escape so easily with whatever spell papers you have here. Now…Mr. Fujiwara, you may take the prisoner away.”
Looked into the man and I knew it was Mayu. The gaze looking back at me was impossible to read. I pleaded with my eyes. I said one word, “Mayu…”
A.L. jerked her head around and yelled, “Silence!” I shut my mouth. A.L. turned away. I mouthed the word to the man. I tried to move his frozen features.
He looked back at me and punched me right in the face. I tumbled, my face screaming with pain. He looked down at me with a harsh, gleeful smile and said, “I will kill you. Then I will resurrect you to kill you again…”
I was surrounded by rough hands. They covered my head with a cloth bag.
