Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Today was not a good day for you. 

First, you had to wake up early. Well, early for you, but then again what isn't considering your originally skewed sleep schedule? Regardless, after your early awakening and some internal grumbling, you almost left the house without your school bag, or even a meal. Lucky for you, our- your mom left a note for you on the door handle. I guess between having a schedule that hardly syncs with yours and you having all the sociability of an oddly charming brick, she still knew you at your core. Somewhat. 

Okay, the jury was still out on that, but still. 

So after you grabbed your bag, miraculously somehow packed with the books needed for today's lesson, and tried- and failed, thanks to me- to skimp out on breakfast before deciding to at least eat a piece of bread, you left the house. And didn't forget to lock the door. Good job. 

Of course, a single piece of plain bread wasn't particularly appetising, and you weren't exactly hungry since you only woke up an hour before, but you made do. Small bites. Small bites. And as you took those small bites, you repeated the same journey you had taken almost every day for the last month. Down the road, take a left, follow the main street to its completion, and there you are: Somora High. Or rather, SOMORA STATE HIGH SCHOOL, if you wanted to be more formal. 

But, today was not a good day. So instead of going from point A to point B without any shenanigans, as had been standard for the last month, you finally encountered trouble. Well, trouble for you, anyhow. 

It started with a meow. 

You looked down to find the source. Even though you're busy, you always find excuses to make time for the things that you like, cats being near the top of the list. And, lo and behold, there it was. A kitten, pitch black and painfully familiar to one you knew a long time ago. It was a little bit away, pawing at the garbage near one of the businesses along the central street. Looking back up revealed its name: Balls to the Walls... 

Oh, it was a bowling alley! Oh, thank God. 

A pawing at your leg grabbed your attention. Oh yeah, the cat. Looking down, you came face to face with the cat's adorable face in all its youthful glory. Its baby blue eyes stared directly into your black one and delivered unto you the weight of its desires. It hit right in the HEART... 

It looked hungry. And it wasn't as if you were really hungry anyway. Do you feed the cat your breakfast? 

Of course you do. You never could say no. 

And as you watch the cat poke and prod at the half-eaten slice of bread before eventually taking a nibble, you let yourself slip. You focused on the cat and got carried away. It was just so familiar, and you couldn't help yourself. As it was eating the bread, you reached a hand out and brought it down onto the cat's head, as you used to. Of course, instead of the meow you would have expected, or the tilt of a head you would have accepted, you received a hiss. Instead of enjoying the soft fur underhand, you recoiled at the pain that suddenly bloomed. 

You bring your hand away from the cat and towards your chest. Looking upon it brought back a twisted sense of nostalgia. There was a slight cut on the palm of your hand, close to the base near your wrist. It was starting to redden and itch. And slowly, ever so slowly, blood began to clot. Another hiss grabbed your attention. The black cat was glaring at you, and as you reached out to console it, to stop it, to plead it, it ran away, disappearing into the alley beside the seedy-looking bowling alley. 

"M-" 

You stopped. That wasn't the same cat. Pretending it was would only hurt you more. That was the truth you had come to accept, wasn't it? But even so... 

You became SAD. 

Not that anyone could really tell. On the outside, your eye just looked a little closer to the ground and your mouth had the slightest curl down. But on the inside, you were writing soliloquies and deciding flower arrangements. I would know. 

So, in a blue haze, you made your way to school. There were no other encounters along the central street. And standing at the entrance gates to the high school, you couldn't help but hope that you wouldn't have any more. The cat's rejection was more than enough. 

Of course, we weren't even halfway. After all, today was not a good day. 

With a silent sigh, you enter the school grounds, keeping your distance from most of the other kids in groups. You did your best to ignore the whispers that were floating about. You didn't want to know if they were talking about you. Don't worry though, I know. No, I won't tell you. 

And it was like that that your school day passed. You kept your head down, kept quiet, and just did your schoolwork. You weren't exactly a fan of schooling, but between spending more time in a safe space that you're determined is bad for you and an area you only had a handful of fond memories of, you chose the latter. Like an idiot. 

Then came lunchtime. A clamouring of loud, smelly teens, all squished into one large room that barely fits everyone. But instead of sitting outside, somewhere quieter, you chose to eat in the cafeteria. You weren't sure why, and even I had a hard time figuring out a reason. Were you trying to cling to the few good memories you had from school? Were you attempting to advertise yourself to any of the groups of people that were looking for one more member? 

Oh, that one seemed to irritate you. I'll keep that in mind. 

Sitting down at a miraculously spare table near the corner, away from the crowds, you brought out your lunchbox from your bag. Unlike your breakfast, which you consistently half-ass, your lunch had some effort put into it. Not a lot, but it was certainly more impressive than a piece of bread. In fact, your lunch was actually two slices of bread, both slathered in some life-giving jam. A jam sandwich by any other name. And a slice of heavenly watermelon, chilled to perfection. Overall, a sweet experience. But, you had a hard time eating all of it. You started to slow down halfway through the jam sandwich, and could hardly continue when you reached the last two bites. You could barely stomach the thought of the watermelon when you were done. 

This left you ultimately dissatisfied, and it was with a heavy heart that you closed your lunchbox back up and brought it back to your bag, to be eaten at a later date, potentially never. 

Then you heard the laughter. 

It wasn't exactly unfamiliar to you. Faded memories, further wrinkled by nostalgia and your imagination, brought forth images of a young boy in overalls, teaching the younger kids how to play tag with a twist. His laughter at the screams of pain caused by his powerbombs. But, unlike the dreams I had lived through, there was no sappy ending to this story. There was no understanding found between him and the flower boy. Boss wasn't misunderstood. He was just a bully. 

Looking over, you saw the source of the laughter. It was a boy only two or three tables down from you. He was plain-looking, with styled, short brown hair. The start of a beard was on his chin, and his neck had some zits, small but numerous. Derek, I think. He was sitting with a group of two others, both guys. While they weren't laughing as much as Derek, they were still chuckling a bit. Shifting your gaze and shuffling away from the wall, you saw the victim. He was sprawled on the floor, his face planted somewhat into his platter. Today's dish was steak, with mashed potato. If you knew that, you definitely would have ditched lunch... 

With a pathetic groan, he stood up, wiping some of the ambient juice and mashed potato off his forehead and nose back onto the platter. Not exactly sanitary, but relatable. At that, the mocking laughter grew worse, and seemed to spread a bit. Now, nearby tables were also chuckling softly, and more yet were just watching it all go down. It upset you. It made you want to clench your fists and let out a roar. It made you want to fight back and help him. 

You became ANGRY. 

But you didn't do anything. Because you're a coward. Even despite your slight scowl, despite the narrowing of your one good eye, you weren't going to offer a hand. You wouldn't tell them to stop, you wouldn't offer him a handkerchief, and like always you would leave them to their fate, just like Bas- 

A slight whimper dragged your mind away from me and back to reality. Damn. There the poor guy was, looking for a spare seat among the sea of people either watching him, laughing at him, or ignoring him. He looked pathetic. His long blond hair looked dull, not really helped by the mashed potato that was clinging to some of his strands. His mopey expression struck you particularly. He looked like a kicked dog. It made your heart ache, made you think about a friend from days past (it had only been a month, hadn't it you haven't really been friends for four years now), a lover of all things orange, and you knew you couldn't leave it alone. It felt like, by abandoning this boy, you would be abandoning the boy that "saved" you on that first day. 

So, you let your anger fuel your desire for action, ignored my taunts annoyingly enough, and put a hand out, trying to catch the boy's attention. It sort of worked. By raising your hand nearly directly in front of him, you did catch his attention. 

But you also caught the attention of everyone else nearby too. Ha. 

All of the silent, judging gazes coming from multi-faceted, prying eyes ate away at your anger, replacing it with a nervous tension. It almost made you put your hand down, look away, and revert back into the empty shell I was so fond of. Almost. As much as I despise you, there's no way I would let you run away. That was the decision you made back then. 

And by looking at his face, you felt your hesitation melt away. That look of curiosity, still bearing that pathetic, kicked dog look. You knew it wasn't a mistake. So, looking him in the eye, you waved your hand, gesturing him over. And, when he came over and just stood there, dumbfounded, you shifted back towards the wall and gestured for him to sit down. But he didn't do anything, just stared at you blankly. Looks like you would have to be a bit clearer. 

"...sit..." 

Your voice was crackly, still not used to speaking after all those years of silence. It seemed to catch him by surprise too. Guess your reputation as a mute wasn't exactly contained within your classes. Or maybe he was surprised by how deep your voice was compared to how small you were. Who knows? 

Annoyingly, he was just standing there, looking oddly hesitant. Were you really that scary? I suppose you had never stopped glaring. And with the eyepatch and the pale skin, you could look somewhat threatening. Well, regardless, you try again. Firmer this time, and with less cracks. 

"Sit." 

This time he listened. Sitting down in the spot you vacated, he lay down his tray and, after looking at you for a bit, dug into his meal. And you, like the weirdo you are, just silently watched him. And as you did, the mashed potato still in his hair and the meat juice dried on his face stood out to you and irritated you. So, you reached back into your lunchbox, and pulled out the napkins you had left aside for when you would enjoy your watermelon. Then you handed them to him, putting them on his arm. 

He turned to look at what it was, before looking back to you. Back and forth, back and forth. Then he nodded, taking the napkins from his arm and wiping his face with them. It didn't exactly work for the dried-up stuff, but it got most of the leftover juice and mashed potato out. He put the crumpled napkin down, then went back to his meal. 

"Thanks." 

It was mumbled, but you knew better than anyone how to translate those. His voice wasn't as deep as yours, nor as crackly. But it was subdued, and you could tell it was a voice that should have been louder, more full of life and joy. The anger started to come back, but nowhere near as much as before. You nodded, then went back to watching him. 

It was like that the lunch break passed. At the end of it, he left to drop off his tray and go to his next class, and you went off to yours. As you did, you ignored the stares that still lingered, the whispered words that passed around, and the glares that seemed to pierce your back. Looks like you made someone mad... 

And on that note, you continued the rest of your school day. Once more, nothing interesting occurred. It was, for all intents and purposes, a regular day. Except, now you had a feeling that there was something more to today. 

And, since today was not a good day, you were right. 

It was on your way home, going back along the central street, that you stopped outside of the bowling alley. Balls to the Walls... seriously, who named this place? But, that wasn't what mattered. You weren't here to get down and dirty getting a Turkey or whatever, you were here for one thing. Kitty. 

Of course, there was no guarantee that the cat would return here, but you believed. You were good at that, having blind faith. And you used to be such a realist... 

You were going to feed the cat again, using the watermelon that you weren't going to eat as bait. And maybe, just maybe, you would actually be able to pet it this time. So, there you were, sitting out the side of the bowling alley. And at some point, you had drifted off. Not into my realm, the realm of dreams, but rather into a more self-contained haze of memories and thoughts. At that point I had resigned myself to waiting. In that mindset, you could barely hear me, and no matter how many times I try to reach out, I can never invade it. 

And it was because of that resignation that I heard it first. A cruel laugh, a shout, and the sounds of something being dragged. The sounds of a struggle. And, not long after, you heard it too. You stood up, looking for the source. Over there, down the alley across the street, nestled between a bar and some sort of hotel. A glimpse of blond hair and oddly familiar clothes, jerkily moving into the shadows. 

What are you going to do? Will you follow them, and possibly enter a scenario you want nothing to do with? Or will you go home, pretend nothing happened as you had always done, and continue living this aimless life? 

I'd like to say I'm surprised, but as you cross the road towards the alley, I unfortunately can't bring myself to believe it. Ever since that first day outside, you have had something of an obsession with helping others with even the most asinine tasks. At first it was born of habit, from my own adventures out and about, for the sake of distraction. But I guess, after seeing just how good the real-world results of all of your "side-questing" were, you started to enjoy helping people for the sake of helping people. Or maybe you're just greedy, but that's just my opinion. 

As you walked down the alley, as the light started to become smothered and dim, you began to hear the sounds of a struggle. Heavy breathing, shifting dirt, and the repetitive sound of fists upon flesh. You looked down to see dropped items: a bag spilling schoolbooks and water bottles, a wallet, and some scattered pens among the rubbish already crowding the alley. As you look closer, you could almost see stains on the ground. Saliva, most likely. 

And looking up, there you saw the three laughing boys from lunch hunched over a fourth cowering form. Derek's short brown hair, looking slightly ruffled, shifted with him, facing towards you. The two friends -lackeys, even- with him turned in kind. The one on your left was shorter and skinnier, with a darker skin tone and messy black hair. Despite his size, you got the feeling he wouldn't go down easily. To the right was a taller boy, certainly closer to the fat side than anyone else here. His messy brown hair was kept in a ponytail, showing off his threatening expression and poor excuse of a goatee for all the world to see. 

On the floor was the same boy from lunch, the one you had forced to sit down with you. The one that you gave your napkins to. The one with flaxen blond hair, and an expression that didn't suit him at all. The one that made you think of your oldest friend that wasn't imaginary or family. 

As the trio shifted toward you, cruel smiles on their face, you felt your heart race. The last time you had a fight in the real world was a month ago, and you had lost your eye. And the time before that, you had been fighting another old friend, one that used to leave your heart racing. The terrifying expression from both encounters seemed to superimpose over the ones on the three in front of your, and you felt your breath cut short. You felt your blood surging. You felt your hair stand on end. 

You became AFRAID. 

Today was not a good day. 

Sunny's day hadn't exactly been the greatest. 

From almost leaving the house without his school stuff and having a wholly dissatisfying breakfast ("You promised to take care of yourself, didn't you?"), to having the cute black cat scratch him and run away ("That isn't Mewo. Mewo's missing, remember?"), and then not getting to eat the slice of watermelon specially packed for today and watching those bullies laugh at that kid ("You aren't going to do a thing about it, you coward."), Sunny's day just hadn't been great. While having the kid sit with him was nice and oddly nostalgic ("You'll never get to experience that anymore."), Sunny really thought his day would turn around when he decided to wait outside the bowling alley ("Who thought that was a good name?") to try and feed the cat his watermelon. Waste not, want not, right? 

But nothing could be that simple. After daydreaming for a bit, Sunny found his attention grabbed by the sound of a struggle. Following the noises, he found himself in an alley, facing down the bullies from school. 

And Sunny. Was. Terrified. 

But there was no way he could run from this. 

It wasn't some manifestation of guilt that prevented his escape. Now, it was his desire to do right ("No matter how much right you do, you can't take back the past."), by the boy and by himself. 

So, as the trio stepped up to him, brought their fists up to beat down on the scrawny, one-eyed boy before them, Sunny closed his eyes and took a deep breath. In and out. 

Sunny CALMED DOWN! 

Sunny became NEUTRAL! 

Opening his eye, Sunny looked at his opposition. The one on the left looked like he would be hard to hit and knew how to take a scrap. The one on the right, in comparison, looked like he would be easy to hit but hard to put down. Derek, then, seemed middle of the road. All in all, the odds were against Sunny. But that was fine. He had seen worse. ("Yeah, but you don't have pepper spray to act as a crutch, this time.") 

Derek and the Boys creeped closer!

Putting up his fists, Sunny took another breath. Not as deep, but just as calming, and paid special attention to any places that already seemed sore, or anywhere they weren't protecting. 

Sunny FOCUSED! 

Sunny's next attack will now deal more damage! 

Sunny's lone eye glared and projected an oddly threatening image on the trio. Of course, his alarming appearance didn't diminish the sight of his clearly malnourished body, that likely couldn't even lift a well-fed cat, let alone punch out the three. 

Derek and the Boys laughed amongst themselves! 

Breathing out, Sunny moved forward, thrusting his fist into the scab on the left boy's arm. The boy recoiled backwards, legs tangling with the boy on the floor causing him to fall over. ("How convenient. What are the chances he'll help you out because he thinks you deserve it?") 

"Tyrone!" the right boy yelled. Better remember that for later. 

Derek and the Boy became ANGRY! 

The right boy's fist came swinging faster than Sunny could react. It caught him on his right arm, pushing him away from the trio and against the wall. 

SUNNY lost 20 HEART! 

("You might be stronger than you were a month ago, but you're still pathetic. This would be easier if you just let me-") 

Sunny pushed away from the wall and the duo, giving himself more room. The big guy was preventing him from getting at Derek, so he was forced to fight him. But, unlike his earlier investigation, it didn't seem like this guy had any injuries at all. At least, none that weren't hidden by his clothes. But he was angry, which meant that he was more open to being hurt. Sunny could use that. All he needed to do, was use a Follow-Up. ("A FOLLOW-UP? You can't use FOLLOW-UPS without PARTY MEMBERS, remember?") 

Sunny GUARDED! 

The next attack against SUNNY now deals less damage! 

The right boy charged, shoulder bashing into Sunny's own criss-crossed arms. The force of the blow pushed Sunny back, taking his feet off the ground and leaving him on his back. The boy, on the other hand, was now still, panting a bit at the adrenaline rush. 

SUNNY lost 30 HEART! 

Sunny's arms ached, and his chest did too. Absently, Sunny hoped that the Seashell Necklace he had around his neck was unharmed, but he had more pressing matters to deal with. The big boy was starting to stand up properly again, so Sunny had to move. Pushing himself up, Sunny felt his hand brush against something and smirked a little. Score! 

This time, Sunny decided to just attack regularly, without any of the pomp. He threw his left fist forward, aiming for the bully's face. Luckily, it got him right in the nose, causing him to cradle his nose and step away. 

Sunny FOLLOWED-UP with a Bottle! 

The dull thunk that reverberated through the alley was ear-piercing, and rivalled only by the shout of pain the boy let out. He practically threw himself away from Sunny, cradling his jaw where a nasty bruise was starting to form. ("Were you trying to kill him, you psychopath? Are you trying to add to your kill count?") 

"Zeke!" is what Derek shouted. Well, there you go. Derek, Tyrone, and Zeke. A trio of assholes. 

Derek and Zeke became ENRAGED! 

Without a chance to block, Zeke threw a furious fist outward, socking you right in the nose as you did to him. 

It hit in the HEART! 

SUNNY lost 50 HEART! 

This was very bad. One more hit, and Sunny would be down for the count. But, a casual observation told Sunny that another hit with the bottle would put Zeke in critical condition. Hopefully that would give Sunny enough time to heal himself. So, taking a deep breath once more, Sunny stood his ground, and refused to give in. Refused to succumb. 

Sunny PERSISTED! 

SUNNY can now withstand one attack with 1 HEART! 

Zeke took the opportunity presented with the weird kid not moving at all and swung. This time it hit Sunny in the jaw and made him do a pirouette. Catching himself from just keeling over, Sunny stood tall. 

Sunny PERSISTED! 

With desperation flooding his body, Sunny took another swing at Zeke. Aiming for his jaw, Zeke caught himself just in time and shifted his head enough to cause Sunny's fist to bump against Zeke's chest. 

SUNNY's attack WHIFFED! 

Sunny became ANGRY! 

Sunny FOLLOWED-UP with a Bottle! 

With frustration pulling his exhausted body onwards, Sunny swung the bottle faster than Zeke could react to it, hitting him in the other side of the jaw. The sound of grass cracking left him slightly satisfied. 

It hit in the HEART! 

Zeke was STUNNED! 

Sunny blinked at that. Would this be equivalent to a free turn in that world? ("How should I know? Headspace is different from the real world for a reason.") Regardless, Zeke was too busy holding his head and moaning to stop him from doing whatever. Hoping this was the equivalent of a free turn, Sunny took a step back and breathed in deeply. In and out. In and out. 

Sunny CALMED DOWN! 

Sunny became NEUTRAL!

SUNNY recovered 60 HEART! 

Zeke was no longer STUNNED!

Sunny felt his heartrate lower. While the pain hadn't exactly lessened, he certainly felt like he could take some more punishment. Now all that mattered was whether he could strike first or if Zeke would. Taking the little confidence he had, Sunny struck forth, once more for Zeke's bruised jaw. Zeke hadn't been prepared, and lurched to the side as the feeling of Sunny's bony fist dug into his bruised flesh. 

Sunny's attack hit right in the HEART! 

Sunny FOLLOWED-UP with a Bottle! 

With one last desperate cry, Sunny brought the bottle swinging upwards, hitting Zeke in the chin and making him jump backwards. Zeke landed, but his feet failed to keep him up, and so he toppled over like a stack of blocks. All that was left of the towering boy was a whimpering, bruised heap on the floor. And all that was left of the bottle was a shattered glass.

Letting out a breath he didn't realize he was holding, Sunny looked up to Derek. 

"Y-You... what the hell... what the hell are you!?" 

Derek became AFRAID! 

Seriously? Afraid of him? He didn't look that threatening, did he? ("Actions speak louder than words. And you know better than anyone how scared people can be just by hearing some words.") 

Regardless, that just made this easier for him. After all, if he was afraid, then there was no way he would do anything, right? 

That in mind, Sunny silently stalked forward, shattered glass in hand. To Derek, it was a threatening image. The quiet new kid, whose pale skin and eyepatch made him stand out among the throngs of colour in their school, creeping towards him with a dead look in his eye and a broken bottle clenched tightly in his hand. 

And as Sunny stepped closer, he noticed a change come over Derek. After all, it is said that when an animal is cornered, their fear paralyzes them. But push them too far, and their fight or flight instincts kick in. When flight is impossible, then... 

Derek became STRESSED OUT! 

"Ah! AaaaaAAAAAHHHHH!!" 

Derek rushed at Sunny, and before Sunny could react he was pushed onto the floor. Derek was straddling him, staring down at him with eyes that seemed to glow red eyes that were quaking, pupils contracting and dilating in rhythm with some silent beat. His chest was heaving, his breaths were heavy, and as he raised his fists, Sunny felt some of that earlier fear slip in. Before he could even get a word in, Derek raised his fist and- 

SUNNY lost 10 HEART! 

He felt his grip on the broken bottle loosen- 

SUNNY lost 10 HEART! 

He felt his teeth grind against each other- 

SUNNY lost 10 HEART! 

He felt his lip get stuck between his jaws and- 

SUNNY lost 10 HEART! 

He tasted the blood drip down his throat- 

SUNNY lost 10 HEART! 

He felt his eyepatch start to loosen- 

SUNNY lost 10 HEART! 

Then, there was a lull in the rhythm of having his face bashed in. Through a blurry eye, Sunny saw Derek raise both fists, bringing them together into a... what was it? ("Hammer fist.") Hammer fist, that's right. Looking up, Sunny saw Derek's expression. The fear, the hatred, the anger, the madness. It was so reminiscent of that night. The madness... 

Sunny became AFRAID! 

Sunny failed to PERSIST! 

Sunny failed to FOCUS! 

Sunny failed to CALM DOWN! 

Sunny failed to FOLLOW-UP! 

Sunny failed to find anything, failed to take the time to just breathe and think things through, failed to do anything but sit there terrified and- 

SUNNY lost 20 HEART! 

The hammer fist dug into the centre of his face, crushing his nose and leaving Sunny to let out a low wail. His vision was beginning to blur and blacken at the corners, quickly encompassing his entire vision. The last thing he saw were Derek's wide eyes, reflecting the little light in the alley in a way that seemed unnatural. 

SUNNY SUCCU- 

"No you don't. I won't let you die here." 

S̴͈̐U̶͇͝Ň̸͎N̷̟Y̶̫̿ did not SUCCUMB. 

Opening his eye, S̴͈̐U̶͇͝Ň̸͎N̷̟Y̶̫̿ looked at Derek. Derek seemed to have calmed down somewhat, not breathing as heavily. But now he was looking at his bloody fists in horror. Now was the time for a countera- 

A thud echoed through the alley. Unlike the earlier one, this was much louder, and clearly more effective as unlike with Zeke, Derek toppled over immediately, out cold. Looking up, S̴͈̐U̶͇͝Ň̸͎N̷̟Y̶̫̿ saw the beaten boy from earlier holding a wooden plank. He was panting a bit, and looked bruised. He made eye contact with S̴͈̐U̶͇͝Ň̸͎N̷̟Y̶̫̿, and then stepped closer, putting the plank down and holding out a hand. 

"Are you okay?" 

Looking at his hand, then into his eyes, S̴͈̐U̶͇͝Ň̸͎N̷̟Y̶̫̿ nodded. And- 

Sunny SUCCUMBED. 

When Sunny woke up, he was somewhere totally unfamiliar to him. Beyond the fact that there was no roof above him, only the sky, it wasn't even the same sky as the one he saw in the alley. For one, the sky was starting to become orange, and for two, he could see way more of the sky now. 

Shaking his head, Sunny put some effort into actually looking around. He was above the ground. Instead of the concrete he had gotten used to over the last month, there was actual grass underfoot, interspersed by dirt footpaths. And trees! Oh, beautiful, glorious trees! Not as good as his favourite tree ("May it rest in peace, you murderer.") but still a sight for sore eyes in this concrete jungle. 

Sitting up revealed even more of his location. There was a sandpit over in the distance... there were monkey bars and a swing... a carousel too. This was a park! If he paid attention, he could hear the sound of children playing! Ah... how nostalgic... ("And you ruined that, for yourself and all your friends.") 

Actually, there was a more pressing matter. How did he wind up here? Last he remembered he was being beat down by Derek... and... 

A shiver went up Sunny's spine. He had taken control, hadn't he? It had been a month since their fight, since Sunny thought he had exorcised himself of his presence. Of course, that wasn't how it worked. It wasn't long before he heard him whispering in his mind every now and then, snarkily commenting on situations or trying to make him feel guilt. For the most part, Sunny ignores him, but now he had to be more cautious. If he could take over when Sunny was on the cusp of falling unconscious, then who knows what he could do? 

The sound of footsteps shifting against the grass caught Sunny's attention. Turning, he saw the boy from earlier walking over, carrying two bottles of soda. That's right, this guy saved him from Derek. With a wooden plank... You know, he might have been Sunny's enemy, but Sunny did hope that Derek was fine and not dead. 

"Hey. It's good to see you're awake." 

Now that he wasn't mumbling, Sunny could properly hear his voice. It wasn't as deep as Sunny's, but it was more energetic. Looking at his face, Sunny saw a few bruises and Band-Aids. But, he also seemed happier than he had at lunch. His eyes were lighter, and his face was less neutral. Speaking of Band-Aids... 

Sunny brought his hands to his face, feeling it out. Ow. His cheeks hurt, and his nose did too. Not a radiating ache like he was worried about, but rather the regular soreness you'd get from poking a wound. And unlike the usual skin, he felt the slightly coarse texture of Band-Aids on his face too. His lip wasn't bleeding anymore, and was actually scabbing up, so that was good. Reaching for his chest, he winced at the pain left by the bruises. Look like he'd have to take it easy for a while. ("As if you ever take anything hard.") 

"You alright? You were pretty banged up after everything." 

Looking back to him, Sunny saw that his eyes were green. Nice. Bringing his fist away from his chest, he shook his hand in a 'so-so' gesture. The other boy seemed to accept that, before offering the can of soda in his left hand. A Tasty Soda. Nodding his thanks, Sunny grabbed the can and opened it, bringing the opening to his lips. 

Ah... how nostalgic. 

After drinking a mouthful, Sunny decided that now was probably a good time to get some answers. So, looking to the boy, he gestured over. The boy seemed reluctant but sighed. Looks like he remembers how insistent Sunny was earlier today. He took a seat beside Sunny on the bench and took a long sip from his soda. Orange Joe... huh. Maybe there was more to Sunny's comparisons than he thought. 

Now then. How to go about this? He hadn't had to have a proper conversation in so long. Even that time in the hospital didn't really count, since after Sunny said what he needed to say he stopped talking entirely. ("That was pathetic of you. Who cares if your mouth was starting to get filled with blood? It's no less then what you deserve.") 

Well... a proper conversation starts with an introduction, right? At least, that's what he had been taught when he was small. ("You still are, really.") 

"...Sunny..." 

"Hm?" 

The other boy looked over. Sunny wasn't very loud. Or concise. 

"Sunny." 

"Sunny? Is... that your name?" 

Sunny nods. Finally, some understanding! Soon they would be able to read each other's minds! 

Actually, he might have been taking this a bit fast. 

"Alright. Nice to meet you, Sunny. I'm... Abe. You can call me Abe." 

Sunny nodded again. Progress! Now he just had to get information on where he was and why he was there. 

"Abe... where... are we?" 

Ow. Talking a lot made his chest hurt. Inconvenient. Abe rose a brow at Sunny's question. 

"You don't know? This is the park. Just down the road from our school. I heard that you were new here, but are you really?" 

Ah. Well, that was embarrassing. Sure, he had been in Somora for a month, but he had spent most of that month either inside setting up the house and doing tests to see if he could continue as a junior in high school ("If there's at least one good thing about you, it's that you have a good memory and a lot of curiousity. They make you see the consequences of your actions better than anyone."), or going to school. There wasn't exactly a lot of time to explore as Sunny would have liked to. Turning his head so he didn't look Abe in the eye, Sunny nodded in embarrassment. 

"Why... are we...?" 

"Why are we? You mean, why are we at the park?" 

Another nod. Eye contact re-established. 

"Well, you were beat up pretty bad, and I don't know where you live, so... I brought you to a safe place. I have a friend that lives around here. He's the one who bandaged our wounds." 

Huh. Interesting. As far as Sunny could see, it was just the two of them, so where was... 

"Ah. Looks like your friend is awake, Abe." 

The sudden voice had Sunny jumping, and then clenching his chest at the pain that flared up. Letting out a hiss, Sunny turned towards the source to see... an old man of Asian descent. Not super old, but old enough to have grey hair and winkles. What made him look odd, though, was the outfit he wore. A ragged looking long-sleeved white shirt underneath a brown... vest? They both have a chest window... and there's a bandage wrapped around his waist. He had red fingerless gloves, baggy blue pants, and... rainboots? 

...is this guy homeless? Not that homeless people aren't good people, but Abe made it sound like he had a house nearby. Wait... does he live in the park? That's... 

"Hello there, young one. My name is Komaki. Komaki Sotaro, master of the Komaki School of Martial Arts. Oh, but I suppose in the States my name would be Sotaro Komaki." Having said that, Komaki bowed, causing Sunny to sit up straighter and flounder a bit. When Komaki straightened and sent Sunny an expectant look, Sunny stood up from the bench and bent forward in a stiff bow. 

"Sunny. Sunny Suzuki. N-Nice to meet you." 

Ah, the chest. The chest! Standing from the bow, Sunny quickly plopped himself back onto the bench, cradling his chest. 

"Hm. It's nice to meet you, Suzuki. It appears you were injured while trying to help my charge. I apologize for not being there to help myself. Having said that..." 

Komaki turned to Abe, who was suddenly looking away from Komaki and off into the distance. Abe took an obnoxiously long slurp of his Orange Joe. 

"Abraham. Why didn't you defend yourself from those bullies? I know you are perfectly capable of protecting yourself and defeating them." 

Sorry, Abe was what? 

"..." 

Abe was silent. 

"Abraham. Please." 

Abe was silent, but then let out a sigh. 

"Come on, Teach. You already know why. I... don't like hurting people. I don't know why you're teaching me your style when I'm not going to use it." 

The tension between the two was rising. Sunny was looking between the two, back and forth, feeling nervous. Just what had he barged into? 

"Abraham. I teach you the Komaki style because I know that you have the potential to use it. Maybe you won't be my successor, but I know that if I leave the techniques in your hands, you'll use them for the proper reasons." 

"...I know. But still-" 

"Abraham." 

Oh, Komaki was looking severe. Is this what an argument between family looks like? "Been a long time since we got to see that, huh?" 

"Look at this boy." 

This boy? Who's- Oh! They were both... looking at Sunny. Uh, please don't bring him into this! 

"He got hurt trying to help you. He looks weak, and yet, he got into a fight against three others, all stronger than himself, for your sake. But if you had protected yourself, then maybe he never would have been hurt in the first place. What you have to understand, is that your actions don't just affect you, but also the people around you, and the people connected to you." 

Well that... hurt Sunny's pride, somewhat ("You still have that? How selfish can you be?"), but he could see that Abe was taking the words to heart. At least, if the glances back and forth from Sunny to Komaki were any indication. Eventually, Abe let out one last, long sigh, before nodding. 

"I understand, Teach. I'll... I'll think about it. Okay?" 

Having said his piece, Abe stood up off the bench, drained the rest of the can of Orange Joe, and walked off towards the centre of the park. Komaki let him go. But before he left, he turned back one last time. 

"Hey, Sunny. Thanks for the help. And for earlier, too." 

Then he left, blond hair bobbing away into the distance. That left Sunny and Komaki in the silence. Sunny had a feeling that wasn't all to the conversation... 

"Suzuki." 

Called it. Turning to Komaki, Sunny stared at his calmer expression, feeling the experience emanating from his form. 

"I would like to personally thank you for helping Abraham in his time of need. While he didn't need assistance to fight, he certainly needed help to find in himself the reason to fight." 

That was... huh. It felt nice to be thanked, but... felt a little backhanded. ("What, like you deserve better?") 

"I suppose, as far as recompense goes, a simple thanks isn't necessarily enough. Hm... then, how about... well, you certainly have a fire within... but just because the mind is willing doesn't mean..." 

After mumbling to himself for a few moments, Komaki seemed to make a decision as his eyes snapped open. 

"How about I train you?" 

What? 

"What?" 

"Smooth, Sunny." 

"I believe it would be fair. I show my appreciation for you protecting my charge by teaching you how to properly defend yourself. From what Abraham told me, it sounds as if you were fairly proficient using the environment to your advantage, so we have somewhere to start from. Of course, we would have to train your body first so you can reasonably keep up and execute the Komaki Style techniques. And, if you say yes then that means you'll spend more time with Abraham, which means Abraham may find more reason to take up arms." 

Wow, okay. That last bit sounded a little self-serving, Komaki. But... there was a certain edge to it all that sung a sweet tune to Sunny. Training, probably free, that'll make him stronger? That sounded great. And learning how to properly fight? Even better. And even if he doesn't use the fighting techniques, Sunny was certain that he could use the other lessons to aid his regular life. 

On the other hand, he would probably have to do a bunch of asinine tasks to learn, right? Like that one martial arts movie about the kid that learned karate. And it would still be hard work, far more than he had ever had to put into anything except for his... his violin. 

But on the plus side, it was an excuse to leave the house more often and explore. And it might give him an opportunity to make more friends. While he could never replace his childhood friends, he was still getting lonely all by himself. And Abe seemed pretty lonely too. So...

But what if he got hurt? Or worse, what if he hurts someone else? What if he... kills... 

.

..

...

"After you move, promise me you'll go outside more often, okay?" 

... 

.. 

. 

"I..." 

It was night-time. After an hour or so spent at the park, testing the implements and talking to the locals, Sunny finally decided to make his way home. As he did, he looked up at the twilit sky, shifting from a blooming orange to an abyssal blue. All in all, the park was better than the one from Faraway. It would stand to reason, of course. Faraway was just a town, more of a village really, while Somora was a city. There was more money to spend on decking it out. 

In comparison, however, it felt far too new. The swings weren't rusty, the carousel didn't jerk any, and the wood on the sandpit still looked freshly painted. It felt like it was less used, and hence, less loved. The people around the city were a bit more guarded too, at least compared to the people from Faraway. Well, anyone would be when compared to people that invite literal strangers to enter their home just because they did them a favour. Or maybe they just liked Sunny. ("Not likely.") 

As Sunny returned to his street, and stood out the front of his house, he noticed that the lights were out. Seems his mother wasn't here. Not an uncommon occurrence. Office work had some real twisted hours. Hopefully, Sunny wouldn't have to do that. ("You think she's doing this because she had no choice? This is because of you.") 

With a sigh, Sunny took the key to the door from his bag and unlocked it. Making his way inside, Sunny dropped his bag with a sigh before following the routine he had set for himself when he started school: open bag, swap out books, get out lunchbox, make lunch for tomorrow, leave lunch to chill overnight. 

Along the way, Sunny checked the answering machine for any calls. Usually, his mother would leave a message if she was going to be super late. And lo and behold, there one was. Pressing the button, Sunny made his way to the kitchen. 

"Hey, honey! It's Mommy. Sorry, but I'm working late today again. It turns out that one of Mommy's co-workers couldn't come in today, so Mommy's boss decided that Mommy would be the one to pick up the slack." Sunny wasn't sure why, but his mother's voice felt oddly menacing as she said that. "Anyways, I was able to come by on my lunchbreak to drop off something for dinner. I hope you like it! Love you baby, bye!" 

As the recording clicked off, Sunny opened the fridge to see what was supposed to be his. A quick glance didn't show him anything different from when he made tomorrow's lunch. A closer look, though, revealed a little white paper bag on the big shelf of the fridge. Picking it up, Sunny took out what was inside. Ooh! A pie! His mom must have made a trip to a bakery. That's... another thing that he probably hasn't found yet. Maybe Abe could give him directions one day. 

Popping the pie into the microwave, Sunny thought back to the conversation he had with Komaki in the park. When he thought of the promise he had made in the park, he couldn't help but accept. After breaking that one promise every day for four years straight, Sunny was sick of breaking promises. He was sick of lying. So, he accepted. He's now a student of the Komaki School of Martial Arts. Or, he was in spirit. He had to physically condition himself first before he learned any techniques, but he was fine with that compromise. 

The beeping of the microwave grabbed his attention, and he in turn grabbed the pie. Sitting at the table, Sunny took a bite of the pie. 

... 

It tasted good. It was a meat pie, plain and simple. A classic, really. 

... 

Ooh, it was one of the chunks of meat among the mince. A good omen. 

... 

And with one last crunch of soft yet firm pastry, the pie was finished. Ah. How wonderful. 

But now what to do? There wasn't really anything Sunny did for fun, since he hadn't had the time to go out and find or buy something. And the less time Sunny spent asleep, the better. Hm... Maybe he could... watch the sky for a bit? 

Taking a seat near the window, Sunny looked out and let his mind wander. Times past and present, possible futures, dreams, and errant thoughts, they all flew through his mind. It was peaceful, a familiar experience. Good. 

The ringing of the landline, however, brought him from those musings. Odd. Normally his mother only called once to tell him she was late. Was something big happening? 

Getting off his chair, Sunny wandered back to the phone. Looking, he saw that the number was an unfamiliar one. It wasn't his mother's, that was for sure. And yet, despite being unknown, there was something familiar about it. Like something he had wrote once long ago, or something he had read. His mother always took seriously her responsibility to educate Sunny on the dangers of strangers and scam calls. But, seeing the oddly familiar number on the screen, Sunny couldn't help but answer. Deep down, he knew the number was trustworthy. 

And, picking up the receiver... 

"...hello?" 

Sunny couldn't help but feel... 

"Sunny! Hey man! How have you been?" 

That maybe today wasn't so bad after all. 

"Hey, Kel." 

Sunny became HAPPY.

Chapter Text

Sunny opened his eyes. 

The light from his window worked to blind him even further, but in his infinite wisdom, he had closed the blinds before he slept. Just enough for him to see the light, but not enough to get in his eyes. Even if he still had a wariness to it all, he knew that he had to sleep to maintain his health. His sensei had told him that well enough. 

Shivering at the thought of his borderline sadistic teacher, Sunny got out of bed, rubbing his eyes. As per usual, his vision was perfectly fine out of his left side but non-existent out his right. After that night in the bathroom, his eye was damaged irreversibly. The doctors had told his mother, who then told him, that it was best that he get it removed, but up to him whether he left it empty or got a glass replacement. 

Personally, the thought of putting anything into his eye socket that wasn't, well, his eye, weirded him out. But after some, let's say, enthusiastic encouragement from his friends, Sunny was leaning towards getting a glass eye. Maybe after he got some more money first, though... 

Letting out a yawn, Sunny stretched his arms. What was the agenda for today? Well, today was special. No, it wasn't the weekend, and it wasn't anyone's birthday (he assumed it wasn't Komaki's but wouldn't put it past the man to not tell him and then act upset when he didn't say anything). Today was, in fact, the first day of Summer Break! Cue the celebratory jingle! 

... 

Alright then. Be that way. 

Well, Abe told him that Komaki still expected to see him today, so Sunny supposed that was what he was going to do. Thinking such, Sunny got ready. First, he removed his body from his pajamas, specifically not monochrome just to spite himself. The red singlet joined the Captain Spaceboy-print shorts and long striped rainbow socks on the floor as Sunny reached out for a pair of underwear. Once secured, he picked his outfit for the summer: a black shirt with red trim around the sleeves and neck, and beige shorts. Listen, he said he was making sure his pajamas were different not his regular clothes, sue him. 

Grabbing his eyepatch and necklace off the dresser, Sunny took a quick peek in the mirror. After everything, it was still him. Sure, he was taller now, and a healthier colour, and thicker all around, but it was still him. It was still the kid that embraced the truth and told it to his friends, no matter what the cost. 

Stepping away from the mirror, Sunny made his way out of his room and into the lounge. It was cozy. Taking a turn, he entered the kitchen. After all, breakfast was the most important meal of the day, right? 

... 

Right. Opening the fridge, he took a squiz. Nothing out of the norm. Grabbing a jar of jam, Sunny translocated over to the pantry, collecting a slice of bread, and then grabbed the finishing touch, an orange, from the fruit bowl. With these three ingredients, Sunny would make the ultimate meal... 

Or something like that. Popping the bread in the toaster, Sunny peeled the skin from the orange before taking a bite. Ah, sweet, sweet orange... Abe was right, this stuff was pretty good. It ain't no watermelon, but... 

Finishing off half the orange, the toaster popped. Grabbing it, Sunny brought it over to a cutting board and procured a butter knife. A quick twist, turn of a wrist, and flick of a knife later, Sunny had a nice piece of Jam Toast. A masterpiece. 

Alternating between the toast and the orange, eventually Sunny's meal came to a close. Cleaning his hands off and rinsing the dishes, Sunny made his way to the door outside before stopping. He had forgotten something. A new gift. Well, new as in two weeks old, but overly unused. Heading back to his room, he picked up the long, blue cloth bag. Securing the strap over his shoulder, Sunny made his way back to the door and opened it. 

Ow, it was bright. 

Standing in front of the high school was a boy with flaxen blond hair bound in a ponytail. He was wearing a dark green jacket, zipped open to show off his own white singlet. He saw Sunny just as he came off of Central Street, and immediately sprinted towards him. Raising his hand, he let out a roar disguised as a greeting. 

"Heeeeeey, Sunshine!" 

Stopping in front of the shorter boy, Abraham Williams, Abe for short, smiled at his best friend, letting his raised hand fall upon the boy. Sunny countered with his own hand, meeting Abe’s in the middle in truly the most epic of high-fives.

"How are ya?" 

In response, Sunny's lips turned upwards into a smile. 

"I'm fine. How are you, Ham?" 

In an instant, Abe's smile flipped into a frown. 

"Man, come on! I told you not to call me that!" 

His tone was whiny, but anyone looking at his eyes could see he was having fun. And no one could see that better than Sunny himself. 

"And I told you not to call me Sunshine." 

The two stared at each other, both wearing serious expressions. 

One. 

Two. 

Three~ 

The duo burst into laughter. It was a familiar song and dance, and one the two hadn't got tired of. After riding the laughter, Abe put a hand on Sunny's shoulder and smiled. 

"It's good to see you, Sunny." 

"Same here." 

With the simple communication out of the way, the students made their way to the park. Contrary to its name of SOMORA CENTRAL PARK, the park was actually closer to being on the east side of town. The reason the two met up at school was because it was the closest point of connection between the two's homes, since they both lived on opposite ends of the west side. 

Following the road, one could see a practical gradient slider shifting from well-made to shoddy-at-best. Apparently, the east side of town was made first, with an expansion towards the west having followed a few decades later. That can be seen in just how much more worn all of the nearby buildings were. In fact, it was a miracle that the park was as clean as it was considering everything else. Another indicator that they were heading into the worse side of town was... 

"Oi." 

The two broke out of their reverie at the interruption. Standing in front of the two were some older men, all wearing their own casual clothes on this fine summer day. One had a purple jumper on, one was wearing a vest and button-up shirt, and one was just sporting a tee with a decal. They were all older than the duo, looking like they were somewhere in their early 20's. Another common factor between all of them were their overly unscrupulous expressions. 

"Just give us your wallets, and we'll be out of your hair. We don't want to give kids any trouble." 

In short, they were thugs. 

Now, one might wonder, why are there thugs walking around and mugging people in broad daylight? Well, one possible explanation would be that because they were on the worse side of town, no one really cares. Except, they do this on the better side of town too. After a year of trying to puzzle it out, Sunny came to a simple conclusion... 

City folk were weird. 

"Hmmm. Nope." 

Abe put his hand to his face, fingers framing his jaw as if he were pondering some great enigma, before snapping his fingers in beat with his quick refusal. Here we go... 

"Hah? What did you say, kid?" 

One of the three, the one with the decal tee, stepped forward and cracked his knuckles in an attempt at intimidation. Ha. If something like that worked, then Abe would have been bankrupt long ago. Which, he was... huh. Should think before you think, Sunny guessed. 

"I said, no. I don't want to give you my hard-earned money." 

"Listen kid-" the clearly more reasonable of the trio tried. However, he was unaware that he was talking to the living manifestation of bullheadedness. Speaking of... 

"Sir, I don't want to give you my money. Now please get out of our way." 

Abe said that with a serious face. He had really grown a backbone over the last year. Or rather, he's finally showing the backbone he's always had. He brought his fists up, prepared to defend himself. Sunny was glad to see him so willing to defend himself and what belongs to him. But, Sunny supposed he wasn't exactly one to talk. Facing the enemy, Sunny brought his own fists to bear, leaving his gift strapped against his back. 

"Not gonna use it, Sunny?" 

"No. Would rather learn how to use it first." 

Seeing the two young men baring their fists, the three older men responded in kind, snarls on their faces. Taking a deep breath, Sunny readied himself. 

Thugs approached! 

Slowly, the opposing parties made their way to each other, circling the other and spreading out to avoid any infighting. Out of the corner of his eye, Sunny could see a crowd start to form, ready to watch the blood pour. Yep, city folks were weird. 

The one that threw the first punch was one of the thugs. The one in the vest, actually. He shouted before rushing at Abe. A foolish decision on his part. 

The attack WHIFFED! 

Abe practically danced around it, feet stepping and shifting him to the right. With the thug overextended, Abe let loose his own strike. His chambered fist fired in an instant, smashing against the thug's temple and sending him stumbling. Fallen to his knees, the thug could do nothing as Abe decided to follow up with a kick to the face, sending the thug nearly comatose to the floor. 

Not willing to let himself be outdone by his fellow student, Sunny burst forward at one of the other thugs, the reasonable one in purple. His first strike was a right hook to the jaw, and his next was a left hook to the ribs. Unlike Abe's technique, which was well-practiced and flowed smoothly, Sunny's was jerky and had plenty of room for improvement. After all, he hadn't finished his body training until only two weeks ago, hence the gift, so what he was working with was instinct and some of the lessons Abe had half-taught half-told him that he kept in mind. 

Even with his smaller stature, his training made him more than strong enough for this homebody that probably ruined his health with cigarettes and alcohol. So, with a right straight to the stomach, the thug was left gasping for air before eventually falling over to his side, gagging. Looking away from him, Sunny saw the third man start to back off, hands raised and an almost abyssal purple aura enveloping him. 

The Thug became AFRAID! 

Before he could shake it off or become desperate, the two disciples moved. Abe quickly grabbed onto the man by the collar, before shifting behind him and picking him up by the waist. 

"Hey Sunny! Go high!" 

Abe FOLLOWED-UP with Sunny! 

As the thug achieved lift-off, Sunny rushed forward. With Abe swinging his upper body and the thug downward, Sunny swung his fist upward into the thug's face. The inertia caused Abe to let go of the thug, who himself fell to the floor with a bloody nose and heavy breathing. Turning around, the duo raised their fists in preparation. There was no need for them to do so, however. All three thugs had been soundly beaten. 

Sunny and Abe were VICTORIOUS! 

Relaxing their stances, the two decided to at least get the thugs off of the road. Abe took the shoulders while Sunny took the legs, and eventually all three were deposited against the side of the local laundromat. It was just as the two were going to leave, though, that the reasonable thug woke up. And the first thing he saw? The blasé face of the kid that kicked his ass looking directly at him. So, one could be forgiven for his... over-reaction. 

"Ah! I'm sorry! Please don't hurt me!" 

Internally Sunny was trying to figure out how to calm the man down, while externally he continued staring. Abe, on the other hand, was outwardly trying to calm the man down but was inwardly tickled pink at this turn of events. Even if he didn't like fighting, this was kinda funny.

"I'll do whatever you want, just leave me alone! You want money!? I don't have a lot, but here!"

Sunny earned $10! 

...Sunny wasn't sure why, but he felt oddly filthy as he accepted the money from the babbling man. Ignoring the relieved sigh from the man, Sunny looked at Abe and jerked his head towards the park. Nodding, Abe followed along. Their journey resumed, this time with no issues. 

Eventually, the two reached the park. The sounds of children enjoying their newfound freedom was music to Sunny's ears, and made him want to join in. But he could do that later. Right now, he had some business to attend to. Walking to the centre of the park, the two saw their teacher and fellow students already practicing their moves. 

"Hey, Teach! We're here!" 

Komaki stood up from his stance, nodding to the student he was practicing with before moving towards the duo. As he neared, he nodded at each student he passed before stopping in front of them. 

"It's good to see you here, Abe, Sunny. How have your holidays been so far?" 

"Fine." 

"Come on, Teach, you know our holidays just started. And Sunny, don't just go along with it!" 

"Okay." 

"Sunny..." 

Sunny and Komaki chuckled while Abe looked distraught. Between the two, he tried to act like the voice of reason, which he technically was. But as the one that also acted out more than Sunny, he was also the loose cannon. A real wildcard... 

"So, Sunny. Have you put your gift to any use yet?" 

Sunny looked away, scratching his cheek. 

"No. Wanted to learn how to." 

"I see." 

Komaki nodded sagely. That was about what he expected. 

"Sunny, come with me. I'll tell you what exactly I have in mind for what you should learn. Abe, go walk the others through their stances. They're all still a bit rough when it comes to moving between strikes." 

"Yeah, yeah, you got it Teach... Sunny, tell me all about it after, okay?" 

"Right." 

With one last high-five, the two split off, Sunny following along with his aged master. As they walked away from the centre of the park towards a more isolated plot, Sunny fiddled with the strap of his bag. It wasn't as if he didn't trust his teacher, but... 

The memories of relentless running, endless push-ups, and carrying around heavy objects while doing menial work like sweeping fallen leaves caused shivers to run up the boy's spine. And any complaints? Well, let's just say... Komaki was a very spiteful old man when scorned. 

Eventually, the two reached a dirt clearing, paired with fences, a grandstand, and diamonds embedded into the earth. That is, a baseball field. Which was weird, since Somora didn't have a baseball team. Maybe that's a story for another day... 

"Here Sunny." 

Turning to face the boy, Komaki brought his arms from his sides and crossed them. No longer was he the prideful old man. Now, he was the hard-ass teacher of a martial art. Sunny gulped. 

"Now then. Draw your gift and show me your stance." 

Nodding, Sunny brought the cloth bag off of his shoulder. Grabbing the zip near the top end and pulling, a cloth-wrapped handle was revealed. Laying his hand on it, Sunny felt the soft yet uncomfortable texture. Gripping it, Sunny unsheathed it from the bag slowly, savouring it. Then with one last flick of his wrist, the gift was revealed. A wooden blade, near as long as Sunny's arm, with a curve that discerns it from being a mere straight sword. A dark-brown finish coating the entire blade, the simple katana revealed its form. 

Laying the bag on the ground, Sunny gave the sword a few test swings with the one hand before eventually gripping the handle with both. Spreading his feet shoulder-width apart, Sunny put his right foot forward. There he stood, waiting for Komaki's approval (or more likely disapproval). Komaki stared at him silently before humming. With a wave of his hand, Sunny brought the blade down and eased up his stance. 

"For one who has never used such a weapon, you sure seemed to have a natural inclination towards a solid stance. Tell me, why did you take such a stance?" 

"...Legs are spread to keep balance. Make it harder to fall over and easier to move around. Both hands on the handle to maximise swing strength." 

"I see. And what about your feet? Why is one foot further ahead than the other?" 

"...makes it easier to run ahead." 

"Hm. And where did you learn all of this? Certainly you didn't make all of this up now." 

"...I used to watch softball matches. They would do all the same things." 

"Only watched, never played?" 

Sunny nodded. He was starting to sweat from standing in the sun without cover, and the barrage of questions wasn't helping. Then Komaki nodded, looking on with a grin. 

"I see. It's good to see that my deductions weren't wrong. For you to be able to take something you had only seen and apply it to yourself so easily... either you practiced a lot, or you possess an excellent imagination to allow such projection." 

Sunny wasn't exactly sure what Komaki was talking about, but he sure seemed happy with himself. The projection point went over his head, but Sunny would concede that he had an... "excellent" imagination. If you called excellent overly cumbersome, at least. 

"Sunny." 

He looked back to Komaki, who had retaken his neutral expression. However, he had also raised a finger. Ah, looks like he was in for a lecture. 

"Over the last year, I have helped you train to become stronger. You showed me a personal motivation for the training, saying it was so you could become healthier. But, you have gone above and beyond in your journey to become healthy. In the past year, it is as if I had witnessed your growth from a precocious teenager into a young man. And two weeks ago, I deemed you fit to truly become a student of my school, and so I gave you that weapon as a gift." 

Sunny had questions about that. For one, why a sword? Wasn't the Komaki School an unarmed one? Was he actually being denied, but Komaki just wanted to be nice about it? W- 

"You might wonder why I gave you a sword, as our style is one of unarmed combat rather than armed. The reason is simple. Even the strongest man will fall in the face of gunfire. To truly become "the strongest" would require one to master every weapon in the world. But even that wouldn't be enough. So, to even the odds between our unarmed school and an armed opponent, the Komaki Style of Swordsmanship was developed." 

Komaki let that sit. As it were, he was trying to draw out a follow-up from Sunny, wanted the boy to ask his own questions rather than take everything at face value. And as Sunny digested the oddly philosophical information, he asked one such question. 

"Why me? No one else uses this." 

"That, my boy," Komaki responded with a sigh, "is because of your body." 

"My... body?" 

"As you likely know, your movements are still stiff. More limber than they would have been a year ago, but nowhere near the level of Abe or myself. I can see it in the way you have difficulty shifting from one movement to another in your stretches, and the time between those strikes I see you throw at delinquents every now and then. While I could teach you the basics, you would never be able to effectively use any of the Komaki Techniques." 

"..." 

Sunny had noticed. It wasn't obvious when compared to himself a year ago, but he hadn't been able to move as easily as he remembers he could five years ago, or even in his dreams. When compared to Abe, or even some of the other students of Komaki, it became clear just how inflexible he was. And acknowledging that there was something wrong with him that he couldn't do anything about? 

It hurt. 

"However." 

The rebuttal made Sunny raise his head. 

"When I saw you on that day, heard of what you had accomplished from Abraham, I knew you had a certain potential. Watching over you for the last year had only made it clearer, and seeing you with that stance confirmed it. You're a natural when it comes to combat. Maybe you'll never reach your true potential with your fists alone, but with a weapon in your hands, I know you will go far." 

He said this with a serious expression, and that was how Sunny knew he wasn't just trying to be kind. The relief he felt, the pride he felt at Komaki's words, made his knees weak, made him want to bawl his eyes out. His lips slipped upwards uncontrollably, his teeth starting to bare themselves. 

Sunny became HAPPY! 

"Now, now. Don't get too excited. Just because I praised you for good instincts doesn't mean that you don't have a lot to learn. For instance, while you took a good sword stance for a standard school, the Komaki Style is fairly different. Now, retake your stance, and I'll correct it from there." 

And so some hours passed. Komaki directed him to raise the sword above his right shoulder, holding it with both hands so it stands straight up. He also ordered him to bend his knees and widen his stance further, putting his left foot forward and having his right foot kept behind him. Apparently, the stance allowed for him to put more force into his slashes by using the force of gravity and all his body weight to bring the blade down. When running through the swings, Komaki told him the basic Komaki Style used a three-swing kata. 

The first was bringing the sword from over the shoulder all the way down. The second had him bring the sword to his left side and swing to the right. The third was one more overhead strike. Komaki had him repeat it over and over, ad nauseam, until he had seen, in his words, "thirty perfect blows". It was hard, and it made the muscles in his arm and back ache, but the sweat dripping from his brow and the blood rushing through his veins carried along Komaki's praise from earlier. It was good. It was great. 

Sunny felt satisfied. SUNNY LEVELED UP! 

Sunny learned the STYLE Gladiolus! 

Sunny learned the SKILL Komaki Style!

When Komaki had called him off, saying Sunny had done enough, Sunny had responded with a nod, chest heaving and body quivering. Letting himself just stand there, feeling the wind blow through his hair and against his skin, the satisfaction just imbued itself within his very being. When he eventually walked back to the park proper, the satisfaction had solidified into a small smile that wouldn't move. Abe picked up on it immediately. 

"Hey, Sunny. You're looking drenched. Did something good happen?" 

"Are those two really related to you?" 

When the two left the park an hour or two after midday, saying goodbye to all of the other disciples, Abe would spend the entire walk trying to get the answer to why he looked so happy out of him. But all of his attempts were rebutted with a neutral hum and an infuriating smile. Eventually, the two decided to go find somewhere to eat since Sunny hadn't had lunch and Abe hadn't had enough of it. His words, at least. 

Sunny put forth the idea of heading to their usual place, a bar and grill that served some of the best steaks Sunny had ever had. Abe countered with admitting he wanted to try out a new shop he heard open up that sold ramen. Sunny would have argued the point further, but stopped when he thought about the last time he had ramen, let alone proper ramen and not the instant stuff. That gave Abe all the opportunity he needed to push the point. 

That's how they wound up in the northern part of Somora, further down Central Street than the school. It wasn't exactly a place the two had explored much, since there usually wasn't much of anything interesting nearby. West Somora was the residential district, East Somora was the old district, South Somora was the entertainment district, and North Somora was then the job district. If Sunny wasn't wrong, that's where his mother worked. Hopefully they wouldn't cross paths. That'd be awkward. 

Eventually the two found themselves outside of a little hole in the wall restaurant with a yellow sign above it. The name was written in a language neither could understand but Sunny knew was Japanese, and underneath it in English was Rashoku... whatever that meant. 

Shrugging, the duo opened the slidng door, letting out the intoxicating smell of broth and cooking meat. A bell rang out, and one of the people behind the counter walked over. She was wearing a white uniform, the name of the restaurant emblazoned on the chest. 

"Hi! Please, take a seat at the counter and we'll take your order!" 

Her voice had a sweet tune to it. Following along, the two boys plopped themselves down on the stools at the counter, giving them a perfect view into the kitchen and at the menu left above. Manning the pots that held their wondrous brew was a large man in a singlet, a bandana wrapped around his head. 

"What'll you have?" 

That cut the two boys short. They hadn't really thought about it. Looking up at the menu, they saw a wide range of various bowls, each with names that completely flew over the two's heads. Looking to each other, they shrugged before directing their gazes to the... waitress? Cashier? Sous-chef? 

"Um... what would you recommend, Miss?" 

The woman giggled. 

"Now, now. No need to be so formal, I'm not that old. My name's Natalie, but call me Nat." The giant growled when it seemed like Nat would go off on a tangent. "Eheh. Sorry. So, for recommendations, I suppose the basic bowl would do. But do you two have any preference for flavour?" 

"Um... uh..." 

"Meat." 

Sunny picked up the slack, since Abe could um and ah about things he wasn't sure of for like an hour. Sunny had timed it once. 

"Yeah, what he said." 

"Meat, huh? That's not exactly a flavour... you two really are new to this, aren't you? Well, tonkotsu probably won't be too bad for a newcomer..." 

She seemed to get lost in thought, before snapping her fingers and turning to the giant. 

"Chief, can we get two chashu tonkotsu ramen over here?" 

The giant, now named Chief, gave a grunt before moving to grab some bowls. With swift movements he poured the broth marked off as tonkotsu into both bowls, the accompanying noodles following along, before grabbing toppings from somewhere beyond their field of view. Placing them atop the noodles with a flourish, he placed the bowls on the counter, giving the boys a glimpse at his chiselled yet stoic face. 

Blinking, the boys then looked to the bowls, both the same. The broth was a dark brown, smelling of all sorts of things. There were thin noodles bundled all underneath the toppings, barely visible through the layers of pork that had been placed on the bowl. Besides the pork were also some sliced greens that looked like shallots and an egg, split in two. The two gulped. But that was when they realized something. 

How were they going to eat this? 

The sound of something clicking against the counter grabbed their attention. Before them were two sticks with a dibbit in the middle. Grabbing one each, they both looked lost before Abe had a lightbulb go off. Pulling the two sides of the stick away from each other, there was a quick snap before Abe was left with two thin sticks. Oh! They were chopsticks! 

Following suit, Sunny turned his piece of wood into chopsticks too. But now came the logical progression of the question. How do they use the chopsticks? The last time Sunny had ramen was when he was a small child, not even ten. His parents took pity on him and allowed him to use a fork and spoon. Abe was just as lost as him. Their lost expressions must have been funny because Natalie chuckled lightly, much to their chagrin. Picking up a pair of chopsticks for herself, she mimed holding one stick with her thumb and forefinger, while the other stick was held in the gap between her thumb and pointer, resting against her ring finger. Then she mimed moving the uppermost chopstick with her middle and pointer fingers. 

Abe and Sunny followed suit, practicing holding them before practicing moving the stick. Sunny had an easier time positioning the chopsticks, but Abe was much better at articulate movement, easily getting used to moving the upper stick. Eventually, the two turned their newfound weapons on their bowls. The two had difficulty trying to balance the amount of force put into holding the food with the accuracy needed to pick up said food, but eventually mastered it enough to take a bite of the pork on top. 

And it. Was. Delicious. 

It was salty with hints of soy, overly saturated in the taste of meat. And while for some it would be too much, for Sunny it was just right. He was kinda nutty for meat. Passing the piece of meat had him picking at the shallots, which tasted negligible, then picking at an egg, which tasted better than any egg he had ever had, bar Hero's bacon and eggs. The noodles tasted exactly like the broth and were extremely filling, and the little white and pink things that Sunny hadn't noticed tasted something like fish, which wasn't great but wasn't terrible. 

Before he knew it, Sunny's chopsticks were clinking against the bowl. Looking down, Sunny saw that his bowl was barren of all but the broth that filled a third of the bowl. Hoping he wasn't being rude, but not really caring at the moment, Sunny grabbed the bowl and brought it to his lips, drinking down the rest of the dark brown liquid. Letting out a content sigh, he placed the bowl down then smacked his lips, letting the taste linger. Looking to his left, he saw Abe noisily going through his bowl too before eventually doing what he did and slurping up the last of the bowl. Hoping that he wasn't that enthusiastic about it, Sunny looked to Nat and the Chief, only to see Nat smiling brightly at the two and the Chief once more standing silently before the pots. 

When the clink of Abe's bowl against the counter reached his ears, Sunny looked over to see a content look on his face before it quickly snapped to shock and embarrassment, red spreading to his cheeks before he ducked his head. That was apparently too much, as Nat let out another chuckle. 

"Well, it's good to see you two enjoy the meal so much." 

Now Sunny was starting to feel the blood rush to his own cheeks. What an embarrassing way to put it... 

"Oh, come on now. Don't look so embarrassed about it. In Japan, it's actually a sign of respect to make so much noise! Right, Chief?" 

The Chief grunted in response, but there was something about it that felt kinder. 

"Right! Now, about your fee." 

Oh yeah. Food wasn't free. Reaching into his pocket where he knew the ten dollars he had "earned" was, Sunny prepared to pull it out, only to be interrupted by Abe dropping a twenty onto the counter. 

"This should be enough for both of us, right?" 

"Hey-" 

Before Sunny could get a word in, Nat had already taken the money, placing it into the cash register and pulling out two dollars in change. 

"Here you go. Thanks for dining in with us. And make sure to come again!" 

"Right. Come on, Sunny." 

Once more before Sunny could say or do anything, Abe had stood up and grabbed Sunny's hand, pulling him out of the store. Sunny tried to pull back, or stop, or even ask Abe what was up, but nothing he did would get Abe to slow. Eventually, the two ended up back on Central Street. A little looking around revealed themselves to be across the road from Balls to the Walls. Oh. This is where the two met for the second time. 

"Hey, Sunny." 

"...yeah?" 

"Thanks for coming with me to the ramen place. I wouldn't have gone if it was by myself." 

"Don't worry 'bout it. You'd have done the same." 

"Yeah..." 

An awkward silence started to spread. What exactly was going on here? Sunny wanted to ask, but before he could Abe had found his own topic of discussion. 

"Hey, Sunny. Uh... how have you been, lately?" 

"...fine?" 

Abe would know that better than most, wouldn't he? The two spent almost every day together. 

"N-no, I mean, how are you doing, like, mentally? Is that voice you told me about still causing you problems?" 

Ah. That's right. Honestly, Sunny hadn't been hearing him for... a while actually. A few weeks, he thinks. The voice had become quieter and less vocal over the year, but seemed to become rather obscure around finals for this year, and went completely silent around when he was given Komaki's gift. 

"I've been... doing fine. He's been... quiet, for a while." 

It was almost concerning that he had been so quiet. If not for the leftover pessimism from his isolation, Sunny could almost believe that he had finally faded away or melded into the rest of Sunny's personality. But somehow Sunny knew he wouldn't give up so easily. He would never succumb. 

"That's good. That's good. Um, it's just..." 

Then Abe looked away and scratched the back of his head, pulling some of his hair out of its ponytail. Oddly, his cheeks had gone a little red. 

"You're my best friend, Sunny. And when I saw you look so happy after your training session with Teach... I felt happy too." 

Huh. That was kind of embarrassing. But also really sweet. Abe really was a good friend, wasn't he? It made Sunny feel like a bad friend for not being able to say such cheesy things. Because to him, saying Abe was his best friend felt like he was replacing his friends from Faraway. That he was replacing the energetic Kel, the rough-and-tumble Aubrey, the reliable Hero, and the protective Basil. Even if he knew that wasn't the truth, his guilt wouldn't let him just accept that Abe really had become a close friend of his. Close enough to rival how he had been with his friends before... everything. 

"I'm... glad. That you think so well of me. You matter to me too. Your happiness is important to me, too." 

Oh, looks like he wasn't expecting that. Abe flinched away, hand coming away from Sunny's to cover his reddening face. Did Sunny say something wrong? 

"A-Ah, well, um, uh- I'm glad! That's-that's good to hear!" 

"..." 

Sunny tilted his head in confusion. 

"A-Anyways, I-I just... I wanted to- doyouwanttogotokaraokewithme!?" 

Sunny blinked. Pardon? 

"W-well? Yes or no?" 

Oh no, Sunny thought. This was a lose-lose situation. Either he says no and hurts Abe's feelings, or he says yes and looks like a fool for not being properly prepared for whatever they were doing. Well, between hurting his friend's feelings or making himself look like an idiot, Sunny already knew what he was going to do. 

"Yes." 

"O-Oh." 

For some reason, Abe looked surprised. Did he really think Sunny would leave him hanging? 

"Are you sure? I never really thought it would be your thing..." 

Oh god, this was just getting worse and worse. 

"Yes." 

"W-Well, good. Then... does tomorrow sound good to you? They normally open up in the afternoon, so let's meet at about three. Is that good?" 

Sunny nodded. Oh god, that was nowhere near enough time for him to mentally prepare for whatever this could be. 

"Cool." 

... 

It was becoming awkward again! Say something, Sunny! Anything! 

"Thanks... for everything." 

Oh god, not that! 

"Huh?" 

Abe was confused. Ah well, in for a penny, in for a pound, right? 

"Thank you... for being my friend. This last year. It means... a lot." 

Abe's expression softened. He gave Sunny a long look before looking away and chuckling, a small smile on his face. 

"Man... I should be saying that, shouldn't I? I mean, because of you... I still don't like the thought of hurting others. But, I know that I'm worth protecting. I know that. But it's easier to fight when there's someone else I want to protect. You know? So, thanks. For helping me realize that. And for being someone I want to protect." 

Oh lord. Sunny could feel the blush take over his face, full force. The cheese was too real. And it looked like Abe wasn't immune to his own cheese either if his red face were any indication. 

"Well, um... see you tomorrow!" 

Abe turned around and ran off, back the way they came. Sunny slightly raised his hand, guessing as to how effective it would be if he said bye now. By the time he worked up the effort to project his voice, Abe was already a blip in the distance. Letting his hand fall, Sunny let the summer breeze cool down his red face. Eventually, he turned away and made his way back to his house. 

The walk, in contrast to the rest of the day, was quiet. On the inside, Sunny was a roiling mass of nerves and embarrassment. The mystery of what they were doing tomorrow was beyond him, and the embarrassing things he and Abe had said wouldn't leave his mind. But even with all of that, he felt good. He felt really good. He hasn't felt this good in a long time. 

It was peaceful. 

As the sky started to shift from a brilliant blue to a wondrous orange, Sunny arrived back at his house. Taking his key out of his pocket he reached for the door, only to notice it was unlocked. Huh. Was his mother home? 

Pulling the door open, Sunny was greeted with the smell of cooking onions. Blissful. Following the smell led him to the kitchen, where his mother was cooking some onions in a pan. Around her was an array of ingredients, including but not limited to: tomatoes, salt, herbs and spices, mincemeat, and a pot with some spaghetti sticking out of it. 

Oh, Mom was making spaghetti. Neat. 

Sunny cleared his throat to grab her attention. Flinching a little, his mother whirled around to see him standing there, blank look on his face and a weird blue bag over his shoulder. She lowered the wooden spoon she was wielding, calming down at the familiar face. 

"Hey Mom. You're early." 

"Hello, honey! It's good to see you. You surprised me!" She turned back to the pan. "Mommy got to finish work early today because of the holidays. The Boss said I should take a break and enjoy myself. So here I am! I hope you don't mind some spaghetti for dinner?" 

"That sounds nice." 

Quickly, Sunny moved off to his room to drop off his blade and exchange his clothes. Tossing his shirt into the dirty clothes basket, he picked up his discarded pajama singlet. Giving it a sniff, he decided it was clean enough and put it on. The red of the singlet clashed with the beige of his pants in nothing short of a fashion disaster, but Sunny minded less since he was in the safety of his own home. Sniffing his armpits, he grimaced. Should put on some deodorant, at least. 

With that done, he returned to the kitchen with his mom. She had moved on to browning the mince, the smell of cooked onions still lingering. 

"Let me help, Mom." 

She startled before looking at him over her shoulder. Her brow was furrowed and her eyes clearly expressed her worry. Sunny sighed. The two hadn't had the opportunity to have many talks in the last year, so she hadn't been able to see how much progress Sunny had made. She was still surprised at how often he talked, even though that had started to become commonplace around three months after they moved to Somora. 

Stepping closer, Sunny tried to convey as much of his intentions as he could into his singular eye. 

"Let me help." 

It took a few moments, but eventually she sighed and put on a tired smile. 

"Of course, sweety. Mommy would appreciate it. Do you think you could put the pasta on?" 

Nodding, Sunny went ahead. Taking the packet of pasta in the pot, he attempted to open the packet with his fingers before deciding to just use some scissors. Freeing the noodles, he took the entire bundle into his hands before pausing. Wasn't there something to using a certain amount of the noodles? Turning to his mom, he asked. 

"Mom. How much pasta do I use?" 

Sunny's mother turned to face him, an eyebrow quirked up. Looking at the pasta in his hands, her expression cleared in understanding. 

"About half, dear." 

"Thanks." 

Turning back to the pot, Sunny roughly separated the bundle of spaghetti into two handfuls. Putting one back into the packet, he took the other and gripped both ends of it. If he remembered correctly, he had to... 

A snap echoed throughout the kitchen as the bundle of pasta he was holding turned into two shorter handfuls. Placing both into the pot, he brought it to the sink. Turning the water to cold, he filled up the pot to... he thinks it was three quarters full. Once done, he moved to where his mother was, over the stovetop. 

"To your left." 

If he remembered right, it was also good etiquette to announce where you were when cooking in the kitchen with someone else. Something about safety, too. 

His mother had finished browning the mince and had added some store-bought spaghetti sauce. Hm. Placing the pot onto another hotplate, his mother turned on the heat for him. Placing the lid on the pot, now Sunny was left waiting for the water to boil. Turning to his mother as she was folding the meat and onion into the sauce, Sunny looked for anything else he could help with. 

At times, he felt like a bad son. Beyond the Incident as a whole, not leaving the house for four years and never talking was certainly a dick move. He didn't exactly blame her for leaving the house as often as she did, even if it was to try and pay for their living expenses. So doing small things like this was the least he could do. Well, that and give her presents for her birthday and Mother's Day, but he had forgotten when both those days were and it was way too awkward to just ask. 

... 

That was some coward talk, wasn't it? He was just running away again. He thought he was done running. 

Even if he went to ask Abe when Mother's Day was, the only person he could ask about his mom's birthday was, well, Mom. It was okay. This wasn't the worst conversation he's had to have. That's right. In comparison to the hospital, this was small potatoes. So, gathering his nerve, Sunny took his shot. 

"Hey, Mom." 

"Hm? Yes, dear?" 

His throat was getting dry. He needed some water. His nose was itchy, he should scratch it. Didn't he have to do some summer homework? He should- No. He was running again. 

"Um... when's... when is your birthday?" 

"..." 

Oh no... oh no, oh no, oh no, he messed up, he messed up, he was such a bad son, oh no- 

"Why?" 

Huh? 

"Why do you want to know, dear?' 

She didn't... sound mad? 

"Well, I... I wanted to... get you something... for your birthday. To... show my appreciation." 

So very awkward. Why couldn't he be more eloquent? Why couldn't he have said it with a firmer voice? Why couldn't he have- 

The feeling of something warm wrapping around him permeated through to his core. A familiar head of brown fluffy hair greeted his vision. Huh. He was taller than his mother now. Leaning his head down, he gingerly wrapped his arms around her. Her clothes were soft, but didn't do much to hide her own bony body. Had she always been like this? Or was this his fault, too? 

"Oh, Sunny." He gulped. How long had it been since she had said his name? "You don't have to do that. It's enough that you're here with me. You're my son, and I love you." 

Ah. That was... Sunny wasn't expecting this. He really wasn't. How was he meant to react to this? Would tears be appropriate? Because if the burning in his eye was anything to go by, that's what he was getting. 

"...thanks. Mom. I... love you... too." 

The two stood there, feeling the warmth of love between the two. The bond of mother and son that had frayed but hadn't shattered. Eventually, the two separated to go back to the meal. The pot had begun to boil, so that left Sunny to make sure the noodles didn't get too soggy. His mother, meanwhile, let the meat and sauce simmer, tasting it and adding herbs and such to flavour it as they go. Eventually, the meal was complete. Separating the noodles from the water, then adding the noodles to the meat and giving one final stir through, their spaghetti was done. 

Sunny went ahead to set the table, while his mother started portioning out the spaghetti into two bowls. Sitting at the table, the two ate. It was delicious. It was comfortable. They made some small talk, with Sunny's mom doing most of the actual talking. When the two finished, Sunny's mom washed the dishes while Sunny dried them and put them away. 

"Mom. I still want to know when your birthday is." 

"...fine. My birthday is the 19th of May." 

"...that's..." 

That had been a few weeks ago. Why hadn't she said anything? 

"Don't worry about it, honey. Mommy doesn't mind. Really." 

... 

"Fine. But... next year. For sure." 

"...alright, honey. You always were the type that didn't like giving up, weren't you?" 

Was he? Maybe he was biased, but he felt that was only a recent change rather than a constant of his personality. If he wasn't the type to give up, then he doubted they'd be in this situation. Not that it was all bad. 

Sunny nodded at his mother before making his way to his room. He pauses, though. Then he turns around and wraps his arms around his mother. She let out a sound of surprise. 

"Thanks for dinner. Love you." 

His voice was muffled but was easily heard by the target of his affection. She let out a soft laugh before wrapping her arms around her boy. 

"You're welcome. I love you too, Sunny." 

The two held the position for a few more seconds before Sunny eventually relented, wanting to have a shower. And brush his teeth. He really needed to do that more often in the mornings. 

Plopping himself on his bed, Sunny looked out the window as the day finally ticked around to night. Today was fun. While it was unlikely, Sunny found himself hoping that every day of his holidays would be like this. Taking his eyepatch off and letting his eyehole breathe, he laid the patch onto his counter before his hand bumped against something. Looking down, his jaw fell open. That's right, how could he forget!? 

Picking it up, he flipped it open, the LED screen shining into his eye. Wincing a bit, he scolded himself. How could he have forgotten his new flip-phone!? He even came back into his room because he forgot his sword! Groaning at his idiocy, he looked at the notifications. Hopefully he didn't have any missed calls or messages. 

Unlocking it and checking his message and call history, he saw that he had three new messages. From Kel... Damn it... 

Kel was the one that had pushed him the hardest to getting himself a flip-phone. He said it would be way easier to have conversations if they didn't have to worry about noise and hogging the phone and racking up the phone bill. Sunny was personally on the fence about it, but Abe assuring he knew how to pick a good phone and his mother offering to help pay for it (something else he owes her for, surely) pushed him to accept. 

That was three months ago. How come he hadn't gotten used to it yet? 

Annoyed, he browsed the messages. 

10:23 AM - hey suny!! how r yo today? 

12:02 PM - sunny? Ar u still aslep 

2:56 PM - o i bet you forget your phon again rigt? call me when yu sea ths! 

... 

Listen, Sunny loved Kel like a brother, but he despised how Kel couldn't write a text to save his life. At least it wasn't as bad as Gino's handwriting. Looking at his call history, he saw a missed call from Kel. Looks like Kel tried to wake him up. Absently, Sunny wondered if there was a missed call on the answering machine. Pressing the green call button, Sunny brought the phone to his ear, then thought better of it and moved it away a few inches. 

As the ringing of his phone echoed though his room, Sunny wondered what Kel wanted to talk about. Maybe he was just bored? Or maybe he was looking for an excuse to avoid summer homework. At the thought, Sunny chuckled. Then the call connected. 

"Heeeeeey, Sunny!!" 

Yup, definitely a good idea to keep the phone away. See? He can learn. 

"Hey Kel. How are you?" 

"I'm good Sunny! You?" 

"I'm fine. What's up?" 

"What? Whaddya mean, "what's up?" Can't I call my best friend for no reason?" 

Kel's best friend!? How!? If that's the case, then Sunny is definitely the worst best friend in the world!!! 

"Gcht." 

"Eh? Sunny, you alright?" 

"I-I'm fine. But don't avoid the question." 

Sunny knew Kel, at least this much. Whenever there's something he's trying to hide or avoid, he tries to ask other questions, even if it normally just leaves the conversation looping in a circle. Sunny had no desire to let Kel run away from the truth. 

"Mmm... do we have to?" 

"Kel." 

"Fine, fine. Heheh. You always did know when I was lying. It's just... you know, it's almost been a year since we all saw each other. And, I'm glad that we've all managed to patch up our differences. Me and Aubrey and Basil hang out all the time together, and Hero comes down occasionally to spend time with us. I'm also glad that we've all managed to keep contact with you." 

Sunny was glad too. He's glad that Kel gave him a chance, and through his actions everyone else gave Sunny a chance too. Sunny was glad that he could call everyone his friends, and that they worried about him, even if it was just being polite. Sunny really needed to thank Kel one day. For everything. 

"But... none of us have really hung out with you. I mean, obviously, you're really far away from us to go out for a casual hang out, and we were all really busy around the Winter Break. But that doesn't sit right with me. So, why don't we try and spend our Summer Break together? Just like last year... and we'll even get to meet your new friend!" 

The thought of seeing his best friends again after almost a year made him feel warm. But it also made him nervous. Sure, they had been cordial with him over text and even over the few phone calls they had shared, but all bets were off in the real world. Sure, Sunny could defend himself, but that doesn't mean he would really want to, and there was no way he could protect himself from their words. But, Sunny's desire to see them again was stronger than any such fear. 

"I'd... I'd like that." 

"Awesome!" Kel sounded so relieved. "We'll see you tomorrow then." 

What? 

"What?" 

... 

"Yeah, me and everyone had been planning since before our finals to eventually come over, and we all planned on spending a week or two there starting tomorrow! Isn't that great!?" 

"I-It is, but... where are you staying?" 

"With you, obviously!" 

What!? What if he was busy doing something, or what if he were going to be out of the house for a while, or what if his mom- Oh God, his Mom. He would have to explain this to her. To avoid the freak-out waiting to happen, Sunny decided to ask more affirming questions, like- 

"What if I had said no, Kel?" 

"Huh? I-uh... I hadn't thought that far ahead." 

Classic Kel... holding back a sigh, Sunny asked the next logical question. 

"If you've been planning this for so long, how come you only asked me now?" 

"Oh, well, uh, haha, the thing is... I forgot, and I guess I told everyone that I had already asked and you said yes because Hero only mentioned it earlier today and that's when I remembered that I didn't ask you yet, so here I am." 

This time Sunny didn't bother to hold back the sigh. But it was quickly followed by a chuckle. It's nice to see that at least something about Kel was still the same. 

"...well, I guess I'll see you tomorrow, then. If my Mom says yes." 

"Oh yeah, I completely forgot about your mom! Do you think she'd say no?" 

Sunny took a few seconds to ignore what his more pessimistic urges were saying and think about it logically. And overall- 

"She'd probably say yes. She's not in the house very often, so we wouldn't bother her. And, she'd be happy to see me spending time with more friends." 

"Well, that's good to hear! Then I better get my beauty sleep, 'cause we've got an early rise, tomorrow!" 

"Wait-" 

"See you tomorrow Sunny! Night!" 

The phone clicked. Sunny still had his mouth left open. He had no idea when they were showing up tomorrow. Hopefully that wouldn't blow up in his face. 

Sunny was exhausted, but he still had something to do. Turning his phone off, Sunny got off his bed and stretched a bit. That talk left him stiff. Opening his door, he made his way to his mother's room, just down the hallway. Knocking, he waited for her to respond. 

"Yes?" 

Opening the door, he saw his mother laying under the blankets, reading a book. Something about flowers if the cover was anything to go by. She had put the book down to give him all her attention. 

"What is it, dear?" 

Sunny scratched his cheek. This felt awkward. Oh well, nothing risked, nothing gained, right? 

"Um... do you mind if Kel and the others come to stay with us for two weeks over Summer Break?" 

His mom blinked. That was a lot to swallow. Hopefully it wouldn't be immediate rejection. 

"Kel... and the others? Do you mean Henry, and Aubrey, and... Basil?" 

Ooh, she slowed down a bit at Basil. Sunny knew she had a hard time swallowing the idea that Basil of all people, Sunny's best friend, the sweet and gentle boy that loved flowers and photography, was the one that stabbed Sunny's eye out. She eventually came to accept it, but Sunny had a feeling she had never been able to right her view of him after that. Even when Sunny tried to explain that he had a very stressful time the last four years, and that it was either his eye or Basil's life, she hadn't seemed convinced. 

She had narrowed her eyes and puckered her lips, clearly thinking carefully. Hopefully this wouldn't backfire. Only Basil not getting to come with would not be fun. 

"...I suppose, as long as the others are with you two... it should be fine for them to come over." 

Oh. Neat. 

"But two weeks? We might not have enough food for that. I'll have to take a trip to go shopping." This part was mumbled, with Sunny only really catching the middle. "Sweety, when are they coming over?" 

"Tomorrow." 

"Oh." 

... 

The silence was awkward. That makes this, what, the third time? Yeah, don't worry Mom, Sunny knew exactly how you feel. 

"That's... sudden." 

"Yeah." 

... 

Oh god, please. Do something. Anyth- Not anything. Not making that mistake again. Reassure her that this isn't a terrible mistake. That's a good idea. 

"Don't worry, Mom. We'll take care of food as we go. I'll help pay for it." 

Yes, good job! That's gotta get her over to his side! Looking over, she's... why is she frowning? Did he say something wrong? Why does she look sad? 

"No, no, honey. That won't be necessary. Mommy'll take care of it. Just... just promise you'll be safe, okay?" 

Promise. A promise. Last time he made a promise, he broke it for four years straight, and his punishment was a poked-out eye. She couldn't know just how much this meant to him. He wouldn't let her down. 

"I promise." 

Putting his phone down, Sunny tucked himself into his bed. He had just texted Kel that his mom said it was fine for them to visit, and then begged him for when exactly they would arrive. Ideally, he'll see the text and answer the question by the time Sunny's awake. 

Laying his head on the soft pillow and looking at the roof, Sunny couldn't help but smile a little. A lot happened today. A lot of good things. He was taught the Komaki Style of Swordsmanship, was praised for his own natural talent and effort in becoming healthier, affirmed his friendship with Abe (and made a plan that he wasn't aware of- 

Wait! He forgot! He made a plan with Abe tomorrow! No! 

... 

Hopefully they wouldn't show up when he goes to hang out with Abe? 

Closing his eyes and smiling, Sunny went to sleep. 

Today was a good day. 

WELCOME TO WHITE SPACE 

YOU HAVE BEEN WAITING HERE FOR AS LONG AS YOU CAN REMEMBER 

I open my eyes. 

White greets my prying eyes. Of course it does. This is White Space for a reason, after all. 

Sitting up, I look around me. Upon my white mat, there is a sketchbook. Opening it, I see various images. At first, the pictures are bleak images, monochromatic chicken-scratch. Then there's some red added. Sometimes for morbid imagery. Other times, to add texture to images. Then, as the pages pass by, more and more colours are introduced. Or reintroduced, I suppose. Orange, then green, then blue, and pink, and all the colours in between. Only a few colours were missing, and while in some pictures their lacking presence was obvious, in others it was barely noticeable. 

Placing the sketchbook down, I look to my left. Above me was a live wire, leading off into nowhere. As long as he refuses to succumb to weakness, then the wire shall stay here forevermore, connected to nothing. Or, maybe one day it will merely bear an idea, rather than the repression of one. Who knows? Beyond the wire was my laptop. The second-best source of warmth in White Space. Booting it up and placing it on my lap, I read the entries that had been recently entered. The first ones that had been entered all talked about my own time in White Space, waiting for something to happen. Then, the entries started to talk more about his days. About hanging out with Abraham or doing training. Eating properly. Doing exams. I was starting to feel myself fade around that point. I wasn't needed. 

And I was content with that. no I wasn't It meant I had done my job. please there has to be more 

But something new had formed. Writing down a new entry, I let myself feel pleased. Maybe my job wasn't finished just yet. 

Entering the entry, I shut down the laptop and stood up. Turning behind me, I looked at the best part of White Space. The cutest, fluffiest, warmest thing for miles. Walking over, I picked her up and gave her a nice squeeze. Maximum squish. 

"Meow. (How long are you going to wait?)" 

I shrug. I didn't really know. Until he was done with me, probably. as long as I can 

Then, I put Mewo down. She was a cute cat, but wasn't exactly one for conversation. Well, I wasn't either, but eh. I looked around for something to do. There were no longer any Red Hands in the distance, making the emptiness of White Space all the more poignant. I don't have my Knife on me either. Ever since I let it go on that day, it has never returned to me. Even at his worst, the Knife was never an option. I'd like it back, please. 

Then, a thump echoed behind me. Turning, that's when I saw him. That's when I saw you. I walked over, then leaned over you to look you in the eye. Well, whenever you opened your eyes, at least. Instead of what you went to sleep in, here you were dressed in the clothing you used to wear. Beige shorts, white socks with black dress shoes, and a white shirt with a black sweater vest over it. And your face was bare of its usual eyepatch. There was a slight scar over your eyelid that you could barely notice nowadays. 

It... was actually quite odd seeing you wear that old thing on your older frame. Made you look stupider, certainly. 

And, with nothing to do, I waited. And I waited. And I waited. 

And I waited. 

And then you groaned. Your hands were flexing, your eyes were fluttering, and you were shifting around. Looking you directly into your eyes, plural apparently, I waited for you to focus only on me before speaking. 

"Welcome to White Space. 

I've been waiting for you, Sunny." 

Chapter Text

You looked horrified. Both of your eyes became blown wide open, and I could see the stress piling on you from a mile away. 

You became AFRAID. 

Actually, now that I was looking closer, your replaced eye wasn't looking right at all. The whites of your eye were black, and your black iris was white. Cool. 

Looking back to your face as a whole, I notice that you were having a bit of a tough time CALMING DOWN. Figuring that we wouldn't be able to talk if you couldn't calm down, I stepped back a bit, taking a seat on the mat. Slowly, I saw your shaking recede, and could easily imagine you taking a deep breath and letting it out. 

You CALMED DOWN. 

Shaking stopped, I see you slowly sit up. Rubbing your face with your hands, and noticing the lack of an eyepatch, you look around. You only let your eyes linger on me for a moment before you looked elsewhere. Then you stood up and you... went for the sketchbook first. 

As you look at it, I can easily imagine what you were thinking. You were put off by the initial few pictures that inspired some nostalgia in you, but you became comforted by the eventual inclusion of colour. Some pictures made you sad, some made you happy, some made you upset, and some just plain weirded you out. Reaching the end, you put it down.

Turning to the left, you took a moment to look at the naked wire left behind before moving to the laptop. Turning it on and placing it on your lap, you read my diary entries. Rude. I would complain about you invading my privacy, but I guess my privacy is yours too, isn't it? The first few entries bore you, since they were the same old, but you slowly grew perturbed as the entries started to talk more about you. That perturbed feeling slowly shifted to... solemnness? As you read the last few entries. What, are you feeling pity? Did you miss me? I didn't know you were masochistic, SUNNY. I'm glad you missed me I don't want to disappear 

Shaking off the red (and blue?) aura, I saw you speaking to Mewo. I wonder what she said to you. I probably shouldn't, since Mewo would, reasonably, say the same thing to you as she says to me. But you never know. Especially not when it comes to your messed-up head. 

Eventually, with all possible options exhausted, you... walked off of the mat and into the distance. Wow. Rude. I'm right here, and you're just... trying to leave? You scumbag. It filled me with joy to see you loop around to the right side of the map, a vaguely disappointed expression on your face. See, even this world agrees with me as a yellow aura encompasses me. 

You look at me with an unamused expression, like a cat that just saw someone sleep in their bed. I hold back a cackle and watch as you reluctantly walk up to me. Do you interact with me? Of course you do, you don't have much of a choice. 

When I see you staring at me, I slowly stood up, staring you back. We stood there in our silence before eventually you made the first move. Opening your dry lips, you spoke in a voice that was deep for your age.

"Omori..." 

Hearing you say my name. Hearing you finally acknowledge me after dancing around my existence for almost a year. It sent a shiver down my spine. It made my hackles rise. It made me happy that I've been acknowledged joyful for proof of my existence sad that you've abandoned me irritated that you took so long. 

"Sunny." 

And hearing my voice seems to send an unpleasant tingle down yours. Yeah, well the feeling's mutual. 

"Why am I here?" 

A good question. Why are you here? Well, I already have an inkling as to why, and I take pleasure in seeing how deep down you know why too. 

"You already know why, don't you?" I taunt. "It has been almost one year since you told your friends The TRUTH." Just mentioning that vile thing left a foul taste on my tongue, and made me despise you even more. "Do you really think they have forgiven you?" 

And that's the heart of the matter. Even if they say they forgave you, you would know better than anyone the difference between words and actions, between thoughts and reality. 

"But-but they said..." 

I stare you down. I don't even have to tell you my thoughts. They are yours, after all. As I stare you down, you start to crumble. You start moving back towards an exit that isn't there, your hands reach for a weapon that isn't there, and your eyes search for answers that aren't there. 

"But... But I..." 

And as I see you fall apart, onto your ass and looking at your red hands, I can't help but wonder... why? Why, why, why!? Why were you so accepting of this!? Is all it really took for you to crumble just a simple question!? If that was the case, then why!? 

Why didn't you break a year ago!? Why did you leave me behind!? 

Why did you tell the truth!? Why did you deny my existence!? 

Why did you hang on this past year!? Why did you let me fade away!? 

As a blood red aura covered me, I moved towards your downed form. Seeing my feet, you looked up to stare me in the eyes. You had unshed tears. You looked distraught. A sea blue aura was encompassing you. 

I became FURIOUS. 

You became MISERABLE. 

I have type advantage. 

"Get up." 

You sat there and looked at me, confusion evident through your own despair. 

"I said, get up!" 

I lean over you and grab you by the collar, pulling you up. When you keep looking at me with that stupid sad look, I grit my teeth. Pulling back my fist, I punch you in the face! 

It was a MOVING ATTACK! 

SUNNY lost 10 HEART! 

It didn't hurt that much, yet you look stunned regardless. That expression pisses me off! So I raise my fist again!

It was a MOVING ATTACK! 

SUNNY lost 10 HEART! 

That one seemed to snap you out of it, as you then started to struggle. One of your hands grips onto mine, hard enough to ache, while the other is falling against me, trying to push me off. Like that'd work! 

It was a MOVING ATTACK!

SUNNY lost 10 HEART! 

Then- 

It was a BLUNT ATTACK... 

OMORI lost 20 HEART! 

Finally... I was worried you had lost your backbone. Your attack managed to make me loosen my grip on you, letting you take a few steps back. Then, you raised your fists in that pitiful thing you call a stance, and I... do the same thing. I don't exactly have any other way to fight, as it is. 

We stand apart for a few seconds, both catching our breath... or you're catching your breath, I'm just waiting for you. At an invisible signal, we both burst forward. 

You put all your weight on the front foot and threw your right fist forward, and I barely got out of the way, stumbling on the floor. Skidding to my feet, I threw my own punch at your side. 

It was a MOVING ATTACK! 

SUNNY lost 10 HEART! 

You grunted but refused to fold. Pivoting on your foot, you brought your left hand out in an arc. Lucky for me, if embarrassing, my sock caught on the floor of White Space, making me fall backwards just enough so your fingers grazed my nose. 

The attack WHIFFED! 

But, the consequence of that was- 

OMORI was KNOCKED DOWN! 

Damn it, is this another real-world status effect!? Quickly righting yourself, you rush towards me. Stopping, you pull back your leg and... Oh God, please no- 

Sunny used DOWN ATTACK!

It was a BLUNT ATTACK... 

It hit in the HEART! 

OMORI lost 50 HEART! 

OMORI did not SUCCUMB! 

As my body flashed black and white, then white and black, back and forth, back and forth, you looked down on me, waiting. At some point, your blue aura had disappeared, and a neutral expression looked upon me. Now that I thought about it, my own red aura had disappeared too. As my existence calmed down, a neutral face looked into a neutral face. Then, slowly, you offered me your hand. 

Now what are you doing? Aren't we enemies? I hate you. no I don't You hate me. no you don't So what are you doing? 

You silently stare down at me, waiting, and reluctantly gratefully I take your hand. You pull me up and now we're standing face to face again. 

"Omori..." 

I stare at you. You take that as encouragement. 

"...help me become stronger. Strong enough to face my fears. To face them." 

What. 

Are you daft? Why would I help you? It's what I was created for none of my business. If anything, you being too weak would only be good for me because... because... 

Why would it be good for me? 

You hold your hand out again, waiting for me to accept. How bold of you. You want me to help you face your fears? Fine, I'll help you. But only because the only thing that gets to do you in is me. Nothing else.

And I'll make you regret it. 

I take your hand, and you give a small curve of your lip and shake. 

A noise echoed throughout White Space. We both turned to it, letting go of our hands in the process. You move towards it, and I follow behind. Looks like you're the PARTY LEADER. Joy. 

In the distance, a black blur against the constant white of this world. Moving closer, we both see it. A KNIFE. Although, it's not a SHINY KNIFE. In fact, it looks far more like a RUSTY KNIFE. That's... weird. What's weirder is when I try and pick up the knife. 

I reach for it and my hand just... phases through it. I couldn't pick it up. It's like when any of the PARTY ever tried to pick up the KEYS. They couldn't even perceive it, let alone touch it. 

It was actually quite frustrating. And a little embarrassing. When I gesture for you to give a try, that's when I realized something... 

I wasn't TAGGED. But that's not right, I went ahead and did something. This isn't a SCENE, this is PLAY, so why? 

When I see you pick up the KNIFE, I feel a part of myself fade. That's mine. That's me. I'm not a PARTY member. I'm... your weapon? 

I like the sound of that. It means you won't let me go. I hate the sound of that. It means I'm just a tool in your hands. Ah, but what else is new? 

As you swing the knife a bit, getting a feel for the blade, suddenly you stop. Then, you adopt a familiar stance. Body straight and stiff, left hand at your side, right hand slightly away, holding the knife in a deceptively flimsy grasp. Raising your right arm, you point the knife at an invisible target before bringing it to your left shoulder and swinging it across your body back to where it started. 

You take a step forward and slice. From your left shoulder down to your right hip, a scribbled line following the arc of your blade. And then you swung again, this time from your right shoulder to your left hip. Did you just ATTACK AGAIN? I suppose reality does work on different rules, doesn't it? 

Instead of stopping at two, you swung again. And again. And again. The last strike, instead of being an arc, was a horizontal blow. It was as if you took HACK AWAY and just made it a part of ATTACK rather than keep it a separate SKILL. Returning to your 'stance', you took a large step forward, thrusting your KNIFE forward in STAB. Then you stood up, shook your arms out, and pumped your fist. 

You learned the Cactus STYLE! 

...what? STYLE? What part of the manual did I miss? Where was this in HEADSPACE? Is this how people in reality facilitate fighting on their own? 

Man, reality's complicated. 

As you turn to me, a creaking noise echoes throughout WHITE SPACE. Turning, we see a new addition to our- my room. Or rather, a classic addition. Stepping over, we see a white door within this white world. You look nervous, but I'm excited. To you, it was just an escape, but to me it was home. Well, a home away from home, since we're in my home, but still. I step forward to open the door- 

Only for the doorknob to stall. It's locked.

I let out a soundless sigh and gesture for you to take the lead. You comply and lay your hand on the knob. Then, slowly, you turn it. With a click, it opened. The light beyond it was blinding. 

Taking a steadying breath, you stepped forward, and I followed a step behind. I wonder what awaits us? 

Blackness, apparently. 

This was a weird dream. Not that Sunny's dreams weren't usually weird, but this certainly is trying to take the cake. 

The first thing he sees is Omori, and he freaks out. After calming down, he looked around WHITE SPACE to see if anything was different. The sketchbook was neat, the journal entries were kinda creepy, and Mewo's meowing was adorable as always, if not just as foreboding as always. Honestly, asking if you were running away is far too on the nose. And there was even less to WHITE SPACE than usual. 

Then there was Omori. Sunny tried to talk to him, but Omori brought whatever confidence he could muster crashing down on him. It was just... somehow, facing the Truth and confessing it was an easier thought than his friends actually hating them. If they hated him from the get-go, then it wouldn't be so bad, but the thought that they were just pretending... 

It made Sunny's heart want to stop. 

And then the two fought it out. It was weird, how much weaker Omori was than usual. It was like he had become LEVEL 1 again, while Sunny retained his... LEVEL... from the real world... 

...how does that work? 

Whatever, weird dream. 

After... talking it out, Sunny guessed, they went to pick up Omori's KNIFE, which only Sunny could use, and now they're entering HEADSPACE. 

For the first time in a year. 

Nervous didn't even begin to cover how Sunny felt. But, as long as he held on to his conviction, Sunny knew he wouldn't succumb. So, opening his eyes, he looked upon- 

The NEIGHBOUR'S ROOM. 

It was just as colourful as always. It had all the same things littered around the room as always, too. The largest difference between the NEIGHBOUR'S ROOM before Sunny and the usual NEIGHBOUR'S ROOM was... well, the lack of the titular neighbours. KEL, AUBREY, and HERO were nowhere to be seen. And even odder yet... 

Looking up to the 'roof' of the room, Sunny looked at the massive empty space where normally the BIG YELLOW CAT rests, watching over his friends. It was a bummer too. The BIG YELLOW CAT was his favourite... 

Shaking his head, Sunny turned to ask Omori something, only to realize... 

He was all alone. 

Raising a brow, Sunny wondered if maybe Omori left him to enter HEADSPACE by himself. Or, more likely, Omori was restricted from entering HEADSPACE, in the same way the PARTY were restricted from entering, or even acknowledging, WHITE SPACE. 

"Wrong on both counts." 

The voice echoed in his head. Or, at least, his head when he's in his head... whatever. 

It was a familiar voice. It was one that he had heard incessantly nag at him almost every day after the Confession. Only now, instead of being relegated to background noise, he was coming through loud and clear. Distinct from his own thoughts, but not overpoweringly so. Like the monologuing voice he relegates to describing his basic actions and thoughts as if he were in a text-based videogame, or some kind of book. 

"Omori?" 

"Yup." 

"Why?" 

"Who knows with you." 

Yeah, that was him alright. Glad that Omori hadn't left him, willingly or otherwise, but worried that this would mean he would have to functionally fight by himself, Sunny decided to leave the room. On his way to the stairs, a photo frame caught his eye. Taking a detour, Sunny moved to the long bench of miscellaneous objects. Stopping in front of the picture, he picked it up. It was a picture of a familiar face. 

No. No, that's not all it was. 

It was a picture of Mari. 

"How long has it been, since you last saw her face? Not even when she was alive; how long since you've seen her face in a picture? There aren't any photos in our- in your house. And you haven't looked at the Album since you left Faraway. Why is that?" 

"..." 

The words were hurtful, but they were true. Honestly... he kept going on about not running from the Truth, about not avoiding his problems... but he was just a hypocrite, wasn't he? "Not that that's new information." 

Maybe... maybe this is part of why he's so scared. Because he's been running away... from this. He can perfectly envision in his mind exactly what everyone looked like when they were all younger, but he starts to draw a blank when he thinks about them now. Sure, the broad strokes are still there. Aubrey had pink hair, Kel was taller than Hero, Basil looked almost the same just duller, and Hero... really just looked the same. But beyond that... it's all vague. 

Sure, he was in a haze of sorts throughout that whole three-day period, with the fog only really lifting before the Confession where he barely got to see them before he had closed his eyes. But that wasn't a good enough excuse. He was always the one that had been good at remembering things, after all. 

And Mari... he had a better memory of his nightmares of her than his memories of her. Of her... of her... corpse than her living, breathing, self. 

It was loathsome. It was disgusting. 

"All of that and more is true." 

The confirmation from Omori, even if he was, at that point, just his self-loathing incarnate, made him clench his fists. Honestly, what a fool he was. He should just- 

"But that's why you want my help. So you can face them. I won't let you run away. Not from this, and not from anything else, either. The only thing that gets to kill you..." 

The vision of Omori's cold visage appeared in his mind's eye. 

"Is me." 

"..." 

Despite the words themselves not being very encouraging, or nice, or even remotely non-aggressive, there was a certain confidence Sunny could take in them. He ran away before, but that doesn't mean he's going to keep running away now. Especially since now he had his own self-loathing keeping him aware of it. 

"Thanks... Omori." 

"..." 

Placing the frame back, and committing Mari's face, her smile, to memory, Sunny walked back to the stairs. Walking up the rainbow steps, he came face to face with the only other living thing in the room. 

"Sssssssssssssss...? (So, you have finally arrived, DREAMER. Leaving on a journey?)" 

Sunny nodded. That's right, in HEADSPACE he was called the DREAMER. An apt description, certainly. 

"Sssssssssssss... (Then, you'll probably need this for today.)" 

Sunny got 50 CLAMS! 

Looking dubiously at the pile of currency in his hand then back to the SNAKE, Sunny nodded and climbed further up the stairs, eventually reaching the hole leading out of the stump. Taking a deep breath, Sunny tried to make himself as small as possible as he got onto his knees, crawling out of the stump. Miraculously, he didn't get caught in the hole, managing to leave without any difficulty whatsoever. Weird. Why does AUBREY get stuck, but he comes out just fine? 

"I don't want to point any fingers, but you did see some weird stuff on the internet over those four years." 

Blushing at the reminder of his... less than clean search history, Sunny looked out into the VAST FOREST. Four directions... four days... four adventures waiting to happen... four fears to overcome. 

Man, this world sure was cyclical, huh? Even if it did expand, the basic ideas were always there. 

Well, where to? There's Otherworld, Sweetheart's Castle, Deeper Well, and... 

"The Playground." 

Silently agreeing, Sunny moved straight ahead. As the wind blew through the turquoise leaves and gave glimpses of the purple night sky above, Sunny couldn't help but wonder what he would find. His dream friends and his favourite were missing... but the SNAKE was still there. Does that mean the PLAYGROUND will be empty too, or will it still be full? Rather, is it going to be just like when he had to go to the LAST RESORT? 

Soon after, he arrived at the PLAYGROUND. And there was... laughter. People playing around, kids screaming in glee, and snores drifting about. Stepping into the PLAYGROUND proper, Sunny looked around. There was the ball and tether with BERLY and VAN, there were the monkey bars, and the benches, and the puzzle pieces with NEB, and... there was the picnic blanket. While everyone was still around... SHARLENE, MIKAL, DAISY, REN, SHAWN... there was no sign of MARI. Or BASIL. Instead, it was just the lone chequered blanket, with a picnic basket on top. 

Walking over to it, Sunny looked inside the basket. There was a pack of playing cards and a bag of cookies. 

"Do you want to have a PICNIC?" 

"...No." 

Saying so, Sunny walks away. Not letting himself be further distracted, Sunny thought about where to go from here. He could either ask BERLY and VAN about what's been going on, or he can go to BASIL'S HOUSE. The pros of talking to BERLY and VAN are that he'll probably get a good idea of what's been going on in HEADSPACE the last year. The cons are that he'll probably get roped into playing hide and seek again, or some other game. 

On the other hand, the pros of going to BASIL'S HOUSE would be that he's going to what is almost certainly going to be a trove of, if not answers, then at least leading questions. The cons, then, are the possibility that BASIL'S HOUSE might not even exist anymore. Which is unlikely, certainly, but like Omori said, who knows when it comes to him. 

The best option here would be to- 

"Hey, you! Tall, boring, and handsome! Get over here!" 

Damn it, he took too long! Ah well, looks like the choice is out of his hands. Looking over to BERLY and VAN, he reluctantly walked towards them. Eventually, he reached the tetherball. 

"Finally! Took you long enough, geez! Anyways my name's BERLY, and this is my brother VAN! We were gonna play hide 'n' seek, but we don't have enough people, so you're playing with us! Got that?" 

Well, that was... more forceful than he remembered. Actually, if his eye wasn't deceiving him... did BERLY look... older? She was definitely taller, at least. Still shorter than him though. Looking over to VAN, he saw that VAN also looked older. Or, at least, now VAN had a beard and his hair looked more like they were horns. 

"Yeah... sorry, but you don't got much of a choice." 

Oh, and he was ruder too. Yay. 

With not much choice but to accept, Sunny did just that. In response, BERLY smiled a smile full of teeth. Very... sharp teeth. Why was she a dinosaur again? 

"Awesome! Now let me just go and gather everyone!" She sprinted off, gathering (read: threatening) everyone together in record time. 

With everyone gathered together, BERLY began distributing lots. Looking around, Sunny could see how some of the kids did look different. Most of them look older, but some, like MIKAL, got a total personality overhaul. The most surprising addition was BOSS, looking not a day older than when he was beat in the PLAYGROUND a year ago. Looks like he managed to get along with everyone. It almost made Sunny smile. 

Eventually, all the lots were drawn, and... Sunny got the shortest stick. Of course. Omori, are you sure this isn't rigged? 

"..." 

Omori's silence worried Sunny, which then compounded when he heard BERLY call him out for getting the shortest straw. Well, call him out was an oversimplification since she had never learned his name. 

"Hey, tall, boring, and handsome, looks like you're it! You know what that means! Turn around to the tether pole and count to 10!" 

Sighing, Sunny did just that. Counting aloud from 10 to 0, he heard the sounds of rustling eventually fade into nothing. Taking his hands off of his face, he turned. Right... there's VAN. And everyone else... is relatively hidden. Hopefully, them being older doesn't make them significantly better at hide 'n' seek. 

Tagging VAN and ignoring his grumbling, Sunny checked the places he remembered the kids hiding. In the little clearing where Omori learned OBSERVE, in a tree, on the monkey bars, on the slide, in the bushes, behind some trees... and then finally, BERLY's hiding place underground. Which... is still absurd, actually. Tapping against the straw in the floor, the shifting sounds of dirt could be heard before BERLY burst from the floor, none the worse for wear. 

"Phew! That was close! Man, you took way too long trying to find me! Heh, but I guess that's why I'm the champ." 

When BERLY was done praising herself, she gathered everyone Sunny found, checking them off her list before coming to the end with no surprises. No missing hiders, no sudden sneak attacks, nothing like that. It was actually kind of a let-down. 

Eventually, everyone wandered off, leaving Sunny, BERLY, and VAN at the tether-pole. After talking to each other a bit, the siblings turned towards Sunny. BERLY started scratching the back of her head. 

"Hey, uh... thanks for playing. I, uh... I know that it wasn't that cool of me to force you to play, but thanks for going along with it anyways." 

Sunny nodded. "No problem." 

"Yeah! So... thanks again, uh... um... Oh snap, I don't even know your name." 

She chuckled awkwardly. Man, where was this side of her coming from. Was she really this remorseful in Faraway? Regardless, better answer the unasked question. Good job, picking up on social queues. "Took you long enough." 

"Sunny. My name is Sunny." 

The look the two gave him was... odd. They looked... confused? BERLY had squinted her eyes, sticking her tongue out, while VAN just scratched his head, looking skywards. 

"Sunny... Sunny... the name sounds... familiar? But I just can't figure out from where..." 

"Same, Sis. Hey, Sunny, have we met before? I had a feeling earlier, but now..." 

Well, that was... weird. There shouldn't be a reason they would remember him, he had never been in HEADSPACE as himself. Only ever as Omori... could they be thinking of him? 

Actually, more importantly, how should he answer this? Technically they had met, but technically they hadn't... Ugh. Decisions are hard. 

"Just say they might be confusing you for me. Easy." 

Eh. Better than saying nothing. Probably. 

"No, we haven't met. You might be confusing me for Omori." 

And if mentioning Sunny's name made them look weird, then saying Omori's made them look weird. Instead of looking confused, they looked sad. 

"Omori, huh... Man, it's been a long time since I heard his name..." 

"Yeah... I wonder what happened to him?" 

"What?" 

Oh good, Omori was just as confused as he was. But what could it all mean? The characters were older, and they know Omori... has time been passing? But why? Aside from adding more content every loop, the HEADSPACE was constant. 

"What... do you mean?" 

Oh, they're looking at him funny again. 

"You don't know?" 

Why was BERLY looking at him with... pity? 

"Sorry, man. Since you mentioned him, we thought you knew. OMORI's been missing for a while. Almost a year, I think." 

"̸̙͛W̵̦̋h̵̘a̸̲̎ṱ̴̏?̴͚̑"̶͕ 

"Yeah, man. All his friends took it hard, too. KEL, HERO, BASIL, AUBREY... especially AUBREY." 

"̵͚̈́Ť̷̘h̷̻̚e̶̦̾y̷̹̆'̶̖͝r̶̨̊e̷͝ͅ ̷̳́s̵̮̈́t̴͖͗i̸̗̕ḻ̶̐ĺ̶̻ ̵̫͊ḣ̶͚ē̷̩ř̵͓ę̴̒?̶̬̿"̸͠ͅ 

"Um... well, they all went off looking for him. I'm not sure where exactly... I sure hope they find him. Oh, but BASIL stayed here. I think he said it was because someone needed to wait here to welcome them home." 

"Grumble, grumble. Not like we couldn't have done that..." 

"̷̛͔W̴̰̿h̶͉́ȅ̶̘r̷̺̓e̸̝͊ ̵͖̒i̵̝͐s̴̲͗ ̸̣͆h̸͖͗ȩ̷͝?̸͖̔"̷̅ͅ 

"BASIL? He should still be at his HOUSE... we haven't seen him at the PLAYGROUND for a long time..." 

That was all the information S̴͈̐U̶͇͝Ň̸͎N̷̟Y̶̫̿ needed. Immediately, he turned away and walked. Past all of the kids, down the dirt path, through the haze of turquoise leaves. 

"Stop." 

Following the winding path, ignoring his flowers and her flowers, his grip tightened on the KNIFE. 

"Stop." 

Even when a wild SPROUT MOLE stumbled into his path, he didn't stop. Barely showing the SPROUT MOLE any attention, S̴͈̐U̶͇͝Ň̸͎N̷̟Y̶̫̿ brought his KNIFE down again and again, one strike, two, four, then a fifth- 

S̴͈̐U̶͇͝Ň̸͎N̷̟Y̶̫̿ was victorious! S̴͈̐U̶͇͝Ň̸͎N̷̟Y̶̫̿ gained 22 EXP! 

Moving with the blow, S̴͈̐U̶͇͝Ň̸͎N̷̟Y̶̫̿ paid the announcement barely any mind. He had to see him again, he needed to see him again, his best friend, his- 

"Stop!" 

Sunny's body stopped. Taking a deep breath, he let go of the KNIFE, letting it enter his POCKET, before rubbing his eyes. Looking around, he found that he was a fair bit down the road to BASIL'S HOUSE. To his right, he saw a patch of rose bushes, and to his left were the gladioluses. Gladioli? Whatever. If he remembered, there should be another two SPROUT MOLES down the way. But more important than that... 

"...Omori?" 

"..." 

"...Are you-" 

"I don't want to talk about it." 

"..." 

Quietly, Sunny continued down the dirt path. Walking straight until he came to another bend, he once more saw a lost SPROUT MOLE. The sound of Sunny's footsteps caught its attention. Turning, it looked at him in shock before hurrying towards him. Stopping a few feet away, it spoke to him. 

"H-hey! Do-do you know the way out of here!? Me and some friends came here- to pay respect to YE OLDE SPROUT MOLE! But, we got lost... one of the others told everyone to turn back, but none of us listened to him! Well, I did, a little... but I spent too much time wondering whether I should follow him or keep going ahead, and I got left behind!" 

Ah. So that's who that SPROUT MOLE was... awkward... 

Nodding, Sunny pointed the way he came, before realizing that probably wasn't enough for a SPROUT MOLE. 

"Follow the dirt path. It should lead you to the PARK." 

The SPROUT MOLE looked... immensely in awe. In fact, it almost looked like it was enveloped in a white... aura...? 

SPROUT MOLE became HOPEFUL! 

"What." 

"Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you! I promise I won't forget this!" 

With that, the SPROUT MOLE rushed off, stride uncompromising.

That was... weird. It almost made Sunny wish HERO was here to give him the tutorial. 

Shaking his head, Sunny turned the bend again, once more walking down the dirt path. Passing the cacti to his right and the tulips that were right in front of him, he found another lost SPROUT MOLE at the bend. Unlike the previous one that gasped at his presence, this one... ran straight at him with an almost annoyed expression. 

"Hey! Do you know where I am!? I'm trying to find YE OLDE SPROUT MOLE'S final resting place, but I got lost! One of my friends bailed, while the other took too long to make a decision! Come on, help a SPROUT MOLE out!" 

In comparison to the one from earlier that had a white aura, this aura seemed almost... green? 

SPROUT MOLE became IMPATIENT! 

No, seriously, what? 

"Grr! If you won't tell me, then I'll beat it out of you!" 

Without giving him a chance, the SPROUT MOLE attacked Sunny, bashing into his shin. 

SUNNY lost 5 HEART! 

SPROUT MOLE ATTACKED AGAIN! 

"What!?" 

Turning on a dime, the SPROUT MOLE charged back at Sunny, aiming for his other shin. Hopping out of the way and keeping his balance, Sunny dodged the attack. The SPROUT MOLE, on the other hand... 

The attack WHIFFED! 

The SPROUT MOLE was DOWNED! 

...tripped over its own two feet, immobilizing itself. Not wasting the opportunity, Sunny brought his KNIFE rocketing down. 

Sunny used DOWN ATTACK! 

It hit right in the HEART! 

SPROUT MOLE lost 100 HEART! 

Sunny was victorious! Sunny gained 24 EXP! 

Letting out a sigh, Sunny untensed his shoulders. That was... mysterious. IMPATIENT, huh? Does it let you attack twice, with the punishment for missing being DOWNED? Wonder what the chain is for that emotion? On the topic, what about HOPEFUL? What does that do? And the third emotion, the one that he had missed because of Omori's hissy fit? "Oi." 

Sunny shook his head. He could find that out later. Actually, he probably was going to learn, later. Most likely not because he wants to. Well, consciously at least. 

Turning left, Sunny followed down the straight shot to the entrance of BASIL'S HOUSE. Without any twists and turns, it was easy to see the picnic blanket awaiting him in the middle of the path. 

Slowing, Sunny looked at it with a melancholy gaze. Eventually, he stopped in front of the basket. 

"..." 

He missed her. Dream or not, he missed her. 

"...do you want to SAVE?" 

Sunny silently nodded. Sitting on the blanket, he dug around the basket for something to eat. Personal reservations aside, healing damage for free, as minuscule as the damage is, is always a priority. 

...Oh! There was some fruit! 

Taking a slice of watermelon and an orange, Sunny went to town, feeling his soul being soothed by the sweet and sour combo. And in HEADSPACE, he doesn't have to worry about any leftover sticky juice. Awesome! 

Finishing off, Sunny stood up and walked further down the path, offering a silent thanks to her. 

Eventually, Sunny reached the elevated plateau that... lead to BASIL'S HOUSE... somehow? 

"Don't think about it, I don't need the world fracturing because you focused too hard on logistics of all things." 

Taking the warning to heart, Sunny walked around to the front of the plateau, where he found... a picture of YE OLDE SPROUT MOLE, as well as some TOFU scattered around the image. An offering? 

Deciding to pay respects to his victim, Sunny clapped his hands and offered a short bow, like he had been taught. Although, he never really saw anyone else use it... what was it about? Standing from his bow, Sunny stepped onto the plateau and then... descended? Descended down the stairs. 

Coming out into the shadowed depths of the FOREST, Sunny looked around. It looked... desolate. The trees and flowers that BASIL was so proud of were bare, no leaves or petals of any description. Even the grass underfoot was desolate, being all crunchy and dried out. Walking down the path, Sunny saw BASIL'S HOUSE. As per usual, it was a shoe. Luckily, it seemed that the plant-life near the HOUSE was a bit more full of life. Not by much, exactly. 

The grass was a dull, dark green, and the nearby flowers were wilted. Some of the trees had Fall leaves on their branches. Closer to the house, though, things grew better. The grass was its bright turquoise and the flowers were standing straight up. Stepping onto the bridge, Sunny heard a slight creaking, but that was all. A quick glance around showed that the water underneath was a dull blue. 

"It's like a cross between different phases..." 

"..." 

Standing in front of the door to the giant boot, Sunny took one last chance to check himself. And his... partner. 

"Are you okay, Omori? Are you ready for this?" 

"...does it matter? We probably have to do this to move on, whether I want to or not." 

"Of course it matters. He's your friend." 

"..." 

Assuming he wouldn't get anything else out of Omori, Sunny went back to the door. It's now or never. Taking a deep breath to CALM DOWN, Sunny knocked on the door. 

... 

No response. 

Sunny knocked again, louder this time. 

... 

There was a soft shuffle behind the door. 

"BASIL?" 

... 

There was no noise. Then, a step. Two. The sound of breathing behind the door. 

"BASIL? You're there. Can you let me in?" 

... 

Silence once more. The weight of a decision. Then, almost reluctantly, a groan of metal against wood. And a squeak. 

A gateway was formed, and a blood-shot teal eye stared out. Directly into Sunny's own dull black one. A silence between the two, and then a gasp. 

Opening the door, BASIL rushed out- right into Sunny. Wrapping his arms around Sunny's frame, the younger boy began weeping. Uncomfortably, the teen noted that the youth's tears were soaking his sweater vest. Actually, was he really a youth? His head came up to a few centimetres shy of Sunny's chin. Regardless, Sunny slowly wrapped his own arms around the dream friend. There was something oddly comforting about hugging an old friend, false or otherwise. 

"..." 

At some point, Sunny realized that BASIL was just frantically saying "OMORI", over and over again. That would be... awkward. 

Once he let out all of his tears, "All his tears at the moment, most likely", BASIL gave Sunny one last squeeze before stepping back- and gasping. What was briefly a look of joyous relief morphed into abject horror. 

"Y-you're... you're not...!" 

Ah. Seems he realized. Any idea on how to handle this, Omori? 

"..." 

Fine, then. Be like that. 

"Omori? Yeah, sorry. My name is Sunny. Do you mind if I come in?" 

BASIL took a few seconds to process that, shifting from a soul-crushing DESPAIR, to the same confused look the playground kids showed, then settled at merely a SAD expression. 

"Oh... yeah, that's... that's okay." 

Stepping away from Sunny, BASIL re-entered his HOUSE, leaving the door open for Sunny to welcome himself in. Doing so, Sunny looked around. The room was... well, messy. That isn't to say there was garbage scattered around, it was still Basil after all. But it was... cluttered. Or maybe the word would be... scrambled? The potted plants were placed haphazardly, the candles had all been melted to their wicks, the bookshelf had some books left open in front of it, and the fireplace was now merely a place, with no fire in sight. 

There on the bed, knees drawn to his chin, was BASIL. He was looking forlornly at his FLOWER CROWN, fiddling with the individual flowers. It was starting to look a bit worn... seems he was due a replacement. Walking to the flower boy, BASIL looked up at Sunny's NEUTRAL face, gaze lingering on his right eye. 

"O-oh... h-hi... Sunny, right? Hehe, sorry about... that." 

BASIL looked away, feigning an embarrassed expression. But Sunny could see through it easy. Dream or not, they were best friends for a reason. 

"Do you want to talk about it?" 

BASIL froze up, then persisted in silence. Seems like that was a no, wasn't it? Looking around, Sunny sought for a way to continue the conversation. Eventually, his eyes landed on a familiar purple book on the table. Walking over, he confirmed his suspicions. 

"Would you mind if we looked through this?" 

Sunny said so, holding up the purple book with the golden plaque reading 'BASIL'S MEMORIES' on it. BASIL looked over and his eyes widened, before he looked away and silently nodded, shuffling towards the head of the bed to give Sunny room. Nodding, Sunny came to sit on the bed. Placing the PHOTO ALBUM down, Sunny made sure BASIL was watching. The boy's eyes were transfixed, and so Sunny opened it up to the first page. 

Ah, how nostalgic... the first three were pictures of everyone making FLOWER CROWNS. The next three had everyone enjoying a picnic. AUBREY was eating a WATERMELON, KEL was drinking MILK, and OMORI and BASIL were enjoying each other's presence. There was a picture of HERO trying to kiss KEL, one of everyone posing for a photo, another of everyone after a tiresome picnic, and then one of KEL taking a... Sunny thinks Kel called it a selfie. The last two were an image of everyone's feet in a circle and a blurry image of OMORI, AUBREY, KEL, and HERO standing together. 

The duo- "Trio, actually."- were silent as they looked at the pictures. BASIL looked... bittersweet, would be the right word. Mournful for the good old days. Personally, Sunny found the images nostalgic, but that was really it. They were familiar, but they weren't real. Not to him, at least. Merely reflective of the past, rather than actually being the past. Every time Sunny thought he was getting into the groove of the images, he would always be brought short by some errant detail, like KEL drinking MILK instead of Orange Joe, or the wrong flowers being used in the FLOWER CROWNS, or the bigger details like Omori being the only one that had footwear on, or everyone being the same shade of purple. The biggest giveaway was the last one. There was never a time when he, Aubrey, Kel, and Hero ever had a picture taken as just them. 

"...I miss this." 

The admission shocked Sunny. Omori... missed this? But this wasn't real, this was all just a dream! 

Well, a dream to him. But Omori was too, wasn't he? Who's to say that Omori shouldn't care about his life, even if that wasn't his original intention? 

"..." 

Nodding at his understanding, Sunny looked back to BASIL. The boy was still distracted by the PHOTO ALBUM. Maybe Sunny should ask about it? 

"...It looked like you guys had a lot of fun." 

"Yeah... yeah, we did." 

"...what happened?" 

BASIL'S breath hitched. Is this the right track? Hopefully. Sunny and Omori listened closely, ready to learn as much as they can. 

"...it all began when... when OMORI went missing... I remember, I woke up in my friends' room, and they were all over me, crying and laughing and happy to see me... I remember being happy too! ...Wherever I was... it was a nightmare. I was so... so glad to see my friends again. KEL and AUBREY wanted us to wait for OMORI, but after waiting a while, HERO convinced us to go to the picnic blanket. He said- he said that MARI would know where OMORI is. They're siblings, after all! So, we went to the picnic blanket but- but-" 

BASIL let out a low whine. Tears had once more appeared in his eyes. Sunny was filled with dread. What happened? What could have happened? W̵h̶a̷t̵ ̶c̴o̴u̶l̶d̶ ̵h̷a̶v̶e̶ ̴h̵a̸p̵p̵e̵n̸e̴d̴ ̴t̵o̶ ̶h̸i̴s̵ ̵b̶e̷l̷o̸v̶e̴d̷ ̶s̴i̵s̶t̴e̸r̵?̴ S̸͎͝h̸͈͌e̴̩̅ ̶̥̇w̴̥̅å̵͕s̷̥͌ ̵̥̂m̷͍͂e̵͈̓ã̵̞n̵̡̛t̸̤͛ ̸̯̆t̴̅͜ö̷͖́ ̸̿͜ḃ̸̼e̵̯̕ ̴̦̔s̷͍͠a̶̞̕f̷̠̂e̸̺̍ ̶͚̈́ó̸̺n̸͖̐ ̴̙̏t̷̗͊h̶̨̛e̵̠̓ ̴͖̉p̴̺͝ì̴͜c̴͜͝ṉ̴͆i̷̮͑c̵̩ ̷̻̓b̵͚̂l̷̬̊a̸̟̾n̷̺̽k̶̺̽e̷̹ţ̸̉,̸̡̽ ̴̹͆s̵͉̓o̴̬͌ ̷͙͆w̴̙͠h̸̠͋a̴̫͘t̴̠́?̵̠̈ W̴͇͔͂͝h̵̻̪̓ä̸̙ť̴̹ ̴̞̓c̶̪͒o̶͓͓͂ư̴̟͈͋l̶̛̲̈́d̴̯̆̅ ̶͙̄̾͜h̶̼̩͐a̴̯̜̾v̶̘͎̀e̵̻͊ ̶̯̑̒h̷̰̣͆a̴̢̠̓p̶̱͖̂͛p̶̼̱̓̚e̷̟̋̇n̴̟̍͘ȇ̶̖̝d̸͙̪̉ ̴͇̌t̷̻́͘o̷̦̩͌ ̴͖̞͆M̷͎̣̎͠A̶̺͈̐̑R̷̨̚I̵̫̎̈?̵̧͌̚ 

Deep breath. In and out. Calm down. Focus. 

Shaking his head, Sunny reached a hand out to comfort BASIL. Gently, he placed it on the boy's shoulder. BASIL tensed, before throwing himself once more into Sunny. Shaking and sobbing again, he wrapped his arms around Sunny's torso, and Sunny reciprocated with an arm around the shoulders and a hand on his head. BASIL continued the tale between gasps and sobs. 

"She- she wasn't there! And we- and we waited! We did! We waited for so long! And then- and then everyone left! They said they were going to- going to find OMORI and MARI! But I- I stayed behind! Because- Because I knew that- that they were- that MARI was-!" 

BASIL'S words were starting to become hysterical. Sunny's dread was starting to pool in his stomach. Omori's was starting to strain his breathing. Then, BASIL went still. Pulling away from Sunny, he looked him in the eyes- and Sunny's breath hitched. 

Red eyes stared back into his own, an expression of fear etched upon the flower boy's visage. 

"Can I tell you something? My best friend." 

S̴͈̐U̶͇͝Ň̸͎N̷̟Y̶̫̿'̶̹̈́S̴͉̈́ hand immediately reached for his KNIFE. Ṣ̵̀i̴̩͊l̸̻͌e̵̡̎n̶̬̊c̸͐͜ę̷̂ ̴̦͋t̶͖̏h̴̦e̴̪͑ ̷̗͝Ț̷̾r̶̳̀u̶̩̽ț̴̌ḧ̵͉́.̵̟͑ That phrase echoed through his mind, filling his body.

But he stopped. No. Persist through it. Overcome it. Don't run. Omori won't let Sunny run, so Sunny won't let Omori run either. 

"Of course." 

BASIL stared at Sunny- and slowly the red fear was replaced by an ice blue anxiety. He gulped. His mint green hair seemed to grow dishevelled, almost wheat blond at the tips. His bright overalls seemed to become duller, a darker green replacing the mint. 

"M-MARI... MARI, she's... she's..." 

He slowly grew quieter, his words almost coming out as nothing more than a mumble. But Sunny heard regardless. And then-

"...dead..." 

He said it. He finally said it. It felt like this was meant to be some momentous occasion, or maybe an apocalyptic event. But looking around, nothing happened. There was no confetti and cheers, and there was no end-of-the-world event going on. Facing the flower-boy, he could see how relieved the boy was. As if a weight had been lifted off his shoulders. But he wasn't finished yet. 

"I never told them... because how could I? You understand, don't you? My best friend." 

Sunny stewed in silence. This was getting a bit odd. BASIL was talking to him as if he was Omori. That was... bad. He nodded his agreement to BASIL's question. But... he needed to add an addendum. 

"I do... I really do. But, if we had told them... maybe everything would have been okay. Not immediately. Maybe not ever. But, sometimes... you have to do the right thing, even if it hurts. They would understand, eventually. That's what I believe... and I know you do too." 

That... felt good. It's not often he could do that, put his thoughts into words. But he had gotten better at it. And, if he could, it's what he would have told Basil back then... when things were still uncertain after the Confession. Even before that... but, well, he would have changed a lot of things if he could. 

"...not bad, I guess. But, I think you broke the script." 

Wondering what he meant, Sunny looked back at BASIL. Who was looking... well, confused was a good way to put it. But another way was... AFRAID. Again. 

"O-OMORI... what are you-?" 

Then he groaned, putting a hand to his head. He groaned some more, before he eventually started letting out low whines and whimpers. His hands were gripping his hair, crushing some of the flowers on the FLOWER CROWN. Concern shot through Sunny. 

"BASIL? BASIL!?" 

Sunny didn't know what to do. The only healing SKILLS he had were ones that healed just him, and that only applied to damage not- not headaches. "It's all a matter of thinking about it, isn't it? Just teach him how to CALM DOWN and help him!" 

"BASIL, listen," he sought for his sister's words. "Take a deep breath... Don't be afraid. It's not as scary as you think." 

At first, Sunny was worried BASIL hadn't heard him. But slowly, BASIL'S shaking had lessened, and the whimpers were reduced to heavy, long breaths. Loosening his grip on his FLOWER CROWN, BASIL looked back up. 

"I... I remember... Sunny... Omori... my best friend... do you hate me?" 

BASIL said his name, and once more it felt like the world around them should be shattering into fragments. That's not right. "Damn it, shut up and listen." 

"My best friend... you kept hurting me, kept watching me be hurt, letting me... letting me... die. Do you hate me? Can you ever forgive me? Sunny?" 

Black tendrils started to creep in around them, surrounding BASIL and covering Sunny's vision. What? What!? He remembers? H̴̱̄e̸̩̊ ̴̼͆r̸̖̕e̶͇͛m̸̲̔e̷̩̚m̸̗͐b̴̥̑ȇ̸̖ṙ̴̬e̵̝͝d̸̬̈́ ̵̯̍ê̸̬v̸̭͝e̶̲͊ř̶̞y̸̺t̴͈h̵̥̚ǐ̶͔n̶̨̊g̸̻̿ ̵̤̃S̴͈̐U̶͇͝Ň̸͎N̷̟Y̶̫̿ d̷̦́i̷̾ͅd̸̹̚?̷̖̅ A̸̧͑ͅn̷̡̟̓d̵͍̪̅ ̵̝͗͒h̶̝͐̐͜e̴̻͂͑'̵̧͈̇s̸͙͎̅̒ ̷̟̔à̶͚s̴͕̈́͝k̷̮͙i̸̥̕n̵̲̰͗g̶̟̃ ̸̹̏f̶̨̟̓o̵̡͋͌r̵̨̐̔ͅ ̶̻͉͂̃f̶͈͘o̶͇ͅr̷̠͉͌͝g̸̺̻͛͝i̶̡̤̒͗v̵̰̓̏ē̷̳̝ń̶̙͠e̴̜̫̽̇s̶̥̞͋s̸̠͔̊?̴̫͉͝ 

S̴͈̐U̶͇͝Ň̸͎N̷̟Y̶̫̿ became AFRAID! 

S̴͈̐U̶͇͝Ň̸͎N̷̟Y̶̫̿ stumbled off of the bed, away from BASIL. 

"S-Sunny? Why... why are you leaving? Why are you running away!? Don't leave me again!" 

BASIL became AFRAID! 

The black tendrils coalesced into a gaping maw all around BASIL, a clutching guilt ready to tear into him at the slightest push. In his hand was a pair of GARDEN SHEARS, and S̴͈̐U̶͇͝Ň̸͎N̷̟Y̶̫̿'̶̹̈́S̴͉̈́ eye ached. Pulling out his KNIFE, S̴͈̐U̶͇͝Ň̸͎N̷̟Y̶̫̿ prepared to FIGHT! Or RUN... 

"Please... please don't leave me alone! I'm not- I'm not as strong as you! I can't- I can't make it alone!" 

With a tortured tone, BASIL swung his GARDEN SHEARS at S̴͈̐U̶͇͝Ň̸͎N̷̟Y̶̫̿. The SHEARS cut him across the chest, tearing away at his shirt and flesh and leaving a red wound behind. 

S̴͈̐U̶͇͝Ň̸͎N̷̟Y̶̫̿ lost 7 HEART! 

S̴͈̐U̶͇͝Ň̸͎N̷̟Y̶̫̿ stepped back. He brought a hand to the wound... it hurt. It hurt. BASIL was... BASIL was trying to hurt him. BASIL was... trying to kill him. Again. Then he... he should... fight back... k̸i̵l̶l̴ ȟ̷̝î̴͙m̵̦̉.̶̙̋ 

No. No. That's wrong. They're still... they're still friends... friends shouldn't hurt each other... right? 

S̴͈̐U̶͇͝Ň̸͎N̷̟Y̶̫̿ was DISTRACTED! 

"Why... why did this have to happen to us!? Why... why did I do that!? What's wrong with me!? Sunny!" 

Screaming his heart out, BASIL struck once more. Instead of swinging his SHEARS, the SOMETHING consuming him attacked, its black tendrils piercing S̴͈̐U̶͇͝Ň̸͎N̷̟Y̶̫̿'̶̹̈́S̴͉̈́ form. 

S̴͈̐U̶͇͝Ň̸͎N̷̟Y̶̫̿ lost 34 HEART! 

"Fight or run! Don't just stand there doing nothing! Or else we really will die!" 

Omori... wanted him alive? What was this, a heel-face turn? "If you have the time to joke, then you have the time to CALM DOWN!" 

Right. Taking a deep breath, S̴͈̐U̶͇͝Ň̸͎N̷̟Y̶̫̿ felt the black tendrils lessen, pulling away from the corners of his vision. 

Sunny CALMED DOWN! 

Sunny became NEUTRAL!

SUNNY recovered 75 HEART! 

Opening his eyes, Sunny saw BASIL, being surrounded by a darkness that was much more formless than the original SOMETHING. Taking that as a sign he was on the right track, Sunny prepared his body. Stowing the KNIFE in his POCKET, he brought both his fists up, both hovering in front of his collar. Keeping his legs spread apart, Sunny tucked in his chin. 

Sunny used the Rose STYLE! 

"Sunny... I... I don't-! I'm just... so tired..." 

BASIL became STRESSED OUT! 

BASIL rushed forward, hand flailing with the SHEARS, trying to deal any kind of damage he could. Sunny stepped back, trying to keep hits to the minimum. 

SUNNY lost 4 HEART! 

SUNNY lost 7 HEART! 

SUNNY lost 2 HEART! 

It hurt, but they were really just scratches. Even though they tore apart his shirt and vest and left small weeping gashes, they only stung. 

"BASIL..." 

Stepping forward, Sunny punched downwards at BASIL'S left arm, the one holding the SHEARS. 

"AGH!" 

It hit right in the HEART! 

BASIL lost 50 HEART!

The flower boy screamed in pain. He let go of the GARDEN SHEARS, cradling his rapidly bruising left arm. 

"S-Sunny... why did you do that? Do you... do you really hate me?" 

BASIL was STUNNED! 

Taking another breath, Sunny stepped forward once more. Chambering his fist, he let it fly. It zoomed directly for BASIL'S face. 

The boy closed his eyes. 

It passed by BASIL'S head. 

The boy grit his teeth, prepared for his punishment. 

The fist looped around the back of BASIL'S neck. 

The boy clenched his fists because he was still scared. 

The hand grabbed onto BASIL'S shoulder and pulled him into Sunny. 

The boy's eyes shot open. What was...? 

Sunny wrapped his other arm around BASIL'S back, resting his head on the older boy's. 

"W-What are-" 

"BASIL. My best friend." 

BASIL felt a chill go down his spine. Was he- 

"I forgive you." 

The boy gasped. 

"H-How? Why? I-I'm the one that-!" 

"I know. And I forgive you." 

The boy started to tear up once more. 

"You did that... and that hurt. It caused so much pain. But... you did it for me... because you wanted to help me." 

The boy had to grit his teeth to stop any whimpers from coming out. 

"That doesn't mean what you did wasn't wrong. It was. It was horrible. But what I did was horrible too. I'm just as guilty as you are. And..." 

The two boys gulped. 

"And... if I'm worth forgiving... then I know you are too. My best friend. BASIL." 

The boy broke. His arms were thrown around Sunny, his head once more sobbing against his now-bloody vest. 

"Th-thank you... Sunny... Omori..." 

At that, the two smiled. One on the outside, and one on the inside. And as one, they spoke. 

"No. Thank you, Basil." 

Opening my eyes, I find that we're back in WHITE SPACE. Seems that's the end for today's little surprise adventure. I wonder what time it is... 

As I go to sit up, I quickly realize something. I can't. I try to sit up, but I can't move. I try to move my arms, but I can't. I try to kick my legs, but I can't. I try to turn my head, but I can't. Even moving my eyes was beyond me. And then- 

I open my eyes. Sitting up in a panic tizzy, I look around myself. Same white arms, same white legs, same white floor, same white mat, same white sketchbook. Same black singlet, same black socks, same black wire, same black Mewo, same black laptop. I let out a sigh of relief. Must have been a bad dream. Looking over, I see you lying still, eyes staring vacantly into the sky. 

I decide to walk over to you, but not before giving Mewo a good morning pat. Letting out a cute meow and asking the same question as usual, she stared at my retreating figure. Then, I sat next to you. 

For whatever reason, you weren't moving. Were you even awake? I mean, your eyes are open, and you've never had a habit of sleeping with your eyes open. I sure hope you don't start now, you're already creepy enough. 

Figuring I should cut a long story short, I shook your shoulder. When that did nothing, I tried shaking you by your shoulders. Nothing to show for it, I tried pinching your ear. Then, I tried kicking you. Then I just stepped on you. 

This continued for a minute or two, finishing with another unsuccessful attempt to rouse you, this time by yelling at you. When none of that worked, I was stumped. How was I meant to wake you up? It wasn't like I had my KNIFE to- 

Oh wait. 

Accessing your POCKET, which I can totally do since it's also technically mine, I found the KNIFE. Gingerly, I grasped it, and revelled in the fact that I could actually touch it! It was great! 

Actually, next to our RUSTY KNIFE, I found a new item. GARDEN SHEARS, huh? How... quaint. 

Well, I'm sure you'll hear more about it next time. Speaking of next time... 

I look down at the KNIFE in my grasp, then back to you. I figured I might as well STAB myself, since that's what I always do. But then I thought about it. The dream always ended whenever I SUCCUMBED. But that was also when you were my passenger. But, now that we're two separate entities, at least in WHITE SPACE... should I STAB you? 

Looking at your still form, it somehow felt like a betrayal of your trust. Which is weird, since you have no reason to trust me for one, and it's probably the only way for you to get out of here for another. Shaking away my reservations, I stepped forward. 

STAB Sunny? 

Gladly. 

The feeling of the KNIFE piercing your stomach was... disturbing. Feeling the resistance give way to what was otherwise gooey... seeing the ruby red pouring out and staining your shirt... it made me feel sick disgusted what have I done pathetic. I should be doing this to you on even terms, not when you're unable to protect yourself. 

"G-agh...!" 

Your breathing hitched. Your chest quivered. Your eyes widened in horror, and I could finally see the life in them. 

"O-Omori...?" 

Ah, you noticed. You looked at me, then to my hands clutched around the RUSTY KNIFE now stained a blood RED. Your eyes widened once more, this time with tears gathering in the corners. You grit your teeth, then tried to talk one last time. 

"W-why?" 

Then it all went black. 

Sunny opened his eye just as the sunshine made its presence known through his window. Sitting up slowly, he scratched at his stomach. 

"Ow."

Chapter Text

Rubbing his eye, Sunny looked down on his phone, opened on his texting log with Kel. The most recent message was one sent mere minutes ago, just before he woke up, in fact. 

6:24 AM - hey sunny! thats gud 2 hear! i didtn thik of tht. hero sad we shuld b ther at 12! c u soon! 

Rubbing his eye again at the sheer pain of Kel's grammar, Sunny decided now was the best time to start his day. Standing from his bed, he went about his usual routine. Grab eyepatch, brush hair, do stretches, put on clothes, eat some healthy breakfast, brush teeth, and leave. As he was about to, though- 

"Don't forget your sword and phone." 

Sunny jolted. He looked left, then right, then behind him. Then he looked left and right again, just to be sure. Was that...? Could it really be? 

"Omori?" 

Eugh. His voice was still rough from waking up. 

"Who else would be in your dumb head?" 

Is that really all he can come up with? 

"Don't test me." 

Sighing at Omori's antagonism, Sunny decided to take his advice. Turning back, he re-entered his room, picking up the small grey flip-phone on his counter and the blue shoulder bag leaning against the wall. Sunny did one last check. 

Sword? "Check." 

Phone? "Check." 

Wallet? "Che- Oh wait. Nope, just the ten dollars you got from that one schmuck." 

Right. Keys? "Never left your pants." 

Clothes? "You mean your stanky shorts and weird looking shirt? Check." 

It is not weird looking. It is a piece of art. With the white lines going from the top to the bottom of his shirt in a pattern almost reminiscent of a spider's legs, stopping just shy of meeting in the centre by small white diamonds- it is the coolest shirt Sunny owns. His opinion, of course. 

"And your opinion sucks." 

Your opinion has been noted and systematically ignored. 

"..." 

Taking that as his win, Sunny left his room and made his way out of the house. Stepping beyond the door, he saw he was still early enough to see the end of sunrise. Beautiful... if he had a better view, of course. As it were, all he could see was orange still on the western horizon and the sun assaulting his eye on the east. 

Looking around, Sunny saw no one and nothing. The neighbourhood was quiet on this early summer day... now what? His friends were going to show up at around 12, and he was going to hang out with Abe doing something at 3... yeah, that shouldn't leave him in a bad way. Hopefully, Abe doesn't mind a few extras... 

But, looking at his phone, Sunny still had... damn, five hours? What could he possibly do for that long? He could probably go train with Komaki but... 

"Ah!" 

The pain that fought against his arms when he tried pulling them around too much made him reconsider it. Maybe another day. Okay, what else? 

Well, he wasn't hungry, so that crossed out most of his usual hangouts. Then... the bowling alley? No, no. That's too depressing to play alone. 

Come on, there's gotta be somewhere Sunny could go. He's been here a year, and he's hung out with Abe for a year, and the two haven't done anything!? Come on! 

"Why don't you check out the Southern district?" 

The Southern district? That was the entertainment district, wasn't it? Would anything even be open that early? 

"Maybe not, but wouldn't it be better to know what your options are to hang out with everyone? Or what, were you just going to spend most of your time at home and then explore with the- why am I even asking, I already know you were." 

Ouch. Harsh. But fair. 

Course set, Sunny walked down his road to Central Street, and then, in a never-before-seen move, turned right instead of left, taking him further into the south. As he did, he saw the buildings shift from simple buildings to more showy structures, plenty of glass and big signs to be found. And plenty of closed doors with signs reading CLOSED and their opening times. Seemed 9 and 10 in the morning was prime starting time. 

Walking along, Sunny saw a variety of shops. Some were obvious in their intention, like the various arcades and the casino. Sunny had a feeling he wouldn't be allowed there... But some were less clear, like... Club Getaway... what kind of club is that? What's up with all of the pictures of girls outside it? And... Pocket Circuit Stadium? What did... any of that mean? 

After wandering for what felt like aeons, but after checking his phone and biting back a curse at how it had only been an hour, Sunny decided to go take a seat on a bench. Conveniently for him, there was a nice wooden one next to an empty sandlot. Well, empty except for the swing that occupied the space. Was this meant to be a playground or something? 

Deciding to think about it more later, Sunny sat himself down. Hm... the wood was smoothed down, so it wasn't too uncomfortable, but there wasn't a good place to park his rear without getting a plank digging into his legs. All in all, 4/10. 

Sighing at the lacklustre experience, Sunny looked out into the city street. There was some bustle starting, but not a lot, certainly. Mostly just adults hurrying over to their workplaces. There was no way a kid would be up this early on Summer Break. Or at least, not this early into it. While he never understood it personally, Mari had explained that after the first two weeks, people start getting tired of staying inside. She called it... "Going stir-crazy." Right. 

Mari... he wondered how his friends were doing. Kel had said that they were leaving early... he had never really paid attention to how far away Somora was from Faraway, but if it would take them from about 6 to 12, then Sunny felt a little bad. That was way too long just to spend time with him. "Well, they're doing it anyway, so maybe instead of whining you should just be grateful." 

Sunny blinked. Damn, Omori was making too much sense. Letting out a huff through his nose, Sunny decided to message Kel. If for no other reason than to talk. 

8:12 AM - Hey Kel, how are you? 

Boom. Simple and to the point. A perfect beginning. Flawless. Absolutely perfect. The best there ever wa- 

8:13 AM - hey snuuy!! im fine! how ar you? 

And an immediate response! This was going swimmingly. 

8:13 AM - I'm fine. 

8:13 AM - AWSOME!! 

... 

... 

"Now what?" 

This was suddenly going terribly. Think. Think! A perfect beginning can't lead to a nothing middle! Um, uh, what do people usually do when they want to make conversation!? They- they- uh, they- "Ask questi-" Ask questions! Perfect! And the best question to ask would be... 

Would be... 

Hm. 

"How's the ride been?" 

Perfect! 

8:15 AM - How has the ride been? 

8:16 AM - ben good! basils been playing wit hs camera aubrey is sleeping and hero is in the tolet! 

Wait... what? 

8:17 AM - Kel, are you guys driving to Somora? 

8:18 AM - nope! didnt i menton it? were taking the tran! 

Oh. The train. 

8:20 AM - Then I'll see you guys at the train station. 

Man, Kel really needed to tell him these things in advance. Closing his phone, Sunny put it back in his pocket, then looked up to see- 

"Ah." 

There was a child staring at him. Why was there a child? It's way too early for a kid to be hanging out now. Or was it? Maybe kids nowadays worked different to the kids back in his day. "What are you talking about? You and this kid probably have, like, 4 years difference between you, not twenty." Let a boy dream. 

"Um, mister?" 

Oh, the child was speaking to him. How do? 

"...yes?" 

The child's eyes seemed to light up. Was he that happy he wasn't ignored? 

"Woah... um, mister, you look really cool. Like a Space Pirate! What's your name?" 

A Space Pirate? Like Spaceboy? Man, that took Sunny back. It was great to see a kid appreciating the classics. But, he looked like a Space Pirate? It was the eyepatch, wasn't it? "You look pretty boring when you ignore it, so yeah." 

"Sunny." 

Then, the kid's eyes dimmed. Oi. 

"Captain Sunny... that doesn't sound very cool..." 

"I like this kid." 

"Hey... Sunny's a pretty cool name..." 

Now the kid was looking confused. Man, this was doing serious damage to Sunny's already lacking pride. 

"Is it? It doesn't sound very cool... Captain Sunny... Captain Sunny..." 

No, Sunny couldn't let it end like this! 

"Then... I'll show you..." 

"Huh?" 

"I'll show you... how cool the name Sunny is." 

... 

"Man, you were way cooler when you didn't talk." 

Shut up. 

"Then... will you play with me, mister?" 

Huh? 

Looking at the kid, Sunny saw that he was... almost desperate. Did he really want someone to play with so much he'd bother a weird looking stranger? Well, honestly... 

"Do you want to spend time with the Boy?" 

How could he say no? 

Sunny nodded his assent, and the boy's existence seemed to sparkle. 

Boy became HAPPY! 

"Well, come on, then! Let's go, Mister Sunny!" 

Substory 01: A Captain

The Boy insistently tugs on his hand, and Sunny can't find it in him to refuse. So he stands up and allows himself to be pulled, tugged out of the Southern district and towards Central Street. As they did, the Boy talked a mile a minute about all sorts of things. His favourite colour, and his favourite season, and his little sister, but he mostly talked about the Captain Spaceboy comics he got from his dad. He talked of how much he liked Spaceboy, how he enjoyed the bond between Captain and Crew, how cool he thought the ship was, his favourite planets, and arcs, and even some spoiler stuff that Sunny wasn't aware of.

He even shared his woes on the lack of any sort of romance, saying that it could only make the story more in-depth. Sunny quietly disagreed, saying that involving romance would take away from the core values of the story, which was about exploration and friendship. The Boy countered by saying that a lover was just an ascended form of a friendship, and Sunny didn't have any counter for that. But the thought of Captain Spaceboy getting put through the wringer by a bad lover- it sent a tingle down his spine. 

With that out of the way, they discussed more general issues with the story, like the lack of characterization for a majority of the crew, or how Spaceboy's dad, Captain Pinkbeard, is really damn boring. When the Boy mentioned there weren't any comic stores in the city, Sunny almost cried. Damn it all. 

Then, slowly, Sunny started sharing some of his own experiences with Spaceboy. How he and his then-best friend/neighbour would visit the comic store and just read the issues, and how the store owner was fine with that. How, when they brought along their new friends, they all read the comics together and gushed and speculated. Those days were blissful. When the Boy asked Sunny what happened to his friends, he froze before saying that he had to move to the city recently. 

"But," Sunny elaborated, not liking the sad look on the Boy's face, "they're all coming to visit me today. So I'd say it's fine." 

At that, the Boy looked relieved. He looked out into the street. "That's good. It's not fun, not being able to see your friends anymore." 

That sounded... personal. Should he ask? 

"...Did you move too?" 

The Boy shook his head. "Not me. My friend." 

"Ah." 

So that's why... 

"..." 

He had never bothered to wonder what it was like from the other side's perspective. He had been the one that left, the one left alone. But he always figured the others would be okay, since they had each other. But... they would notice the absence of someone as quiet as him, wouldn't they? They were just those kinds of people. And if that's the case, then... then...

"Alright, then. We're almost at the park. I'll make sure we have fun." 

Sunny was going to blast away this kid's loneliness, just like Kel did for him. He promised! "Heh. You better keep it, then." 

Looking away from the Boy, Sunny saw that they were finally in front of the park. Giving the Boy's hand a squeeze, Sunny lead him towards the playground equipment. Luckily, it seemed there weren't any other kids out yet, so they had the park all to themselves. Looking out upon the array of playground equipment, Sunny couldn't help the rising elation. Tugging the Boy's hand, Sunny gestured outward. 

"What do you want to play on?" 

The Boy gave Sunny a weird look at his excitement, "It is pretty weird for a high schooler to be so excited for a playground", before giving the playground a good look. Finger on his chin, he thought deeply about the pros and cons of using the swings, or the carousel, or just messing around in the sandpit.  There were more options, of course, like slides and rocking animals, but we were keeping it simple now. 

Then, with a snap of his fingers, very impressive for his age, he pointed at- 

"Swings." 

"Good choice." 

It really was. Swings had a soft spot in his heart. Even beyond being a place where he got to spend a lot of time with his crush, it had also been a place he shared with most of his friends. It was his little slice of happiness in all of Faraway, one where he did his best for his friends. 

Clenching his fist, he walked towards the swing on the right, while the Boy took the left one. And then, just like riding a bike, the muscle memory of those halcyon days let him propel himself forward. Pushing off the floor, going upwards, then feeling the world pull him back down and then even further. Then he goes forward, and he pushes off the floor once again, going higher. This process repeats, over and over, until he felt like he could take the Sun in his own hands, and punish it for cursing him with such a childish name. 

"Oi, you're forgetting someone." 

Snapping to, Sunny looked to his right, only to see the Boy sitting quietly on the swing. That wasn't good. That wasn't good at all. As Sunny reached another apex, he stuck his feet out to try and bleed off momentum. It took a few swings, but eventually he had stopped. Letting out a sigh, he looked at the Boy. 

"What's wrong?" 

The Boy flinched, looking away with a flush. He gripped the swing chains and mumbled something under his breath. Sunny got off the swing and kneeled in front of him. When the Boy looked up, Sunny tilted his head to show he hadn't heard. Once more, the Boy looked away with a slight blush before saying it again, this time loud enough to hear. 

"...'m scared..." 

He's... scared? Just like... "Just like us." 

Sunny looked down, his hair shadowing his already bland expression, and the Boy felt his stomach sink. This is where he gets mercilessly teased and laughed at by the older boy... and just when he thought they were- 

"That's okay." 

The words shocked the Boy, his back going ramrod straight. Looking up, he saw Sunny giving him a small smile, with a kind look in his eye. What could he-? 

"I was scared of heights too. And spiders. And drowning. And I only managed to get over my fears last year. So, it's okay." 

As Sunny looked at the Boy, a part of him felt good saying this. It felt like he was finally paying forward the kindness Mari and Hero had shown him when he was younger. The other part of him was cringing in embarrassment at admitting his own pathetic past in front of this kid. Hadn't he said that he would prove how cool the name Sunny could be? "You'll never be cool, but at least you're keeping your promise, right?" 

Then the Boy sniffled, and Sunny felt like he had messed up big time. Before he could throw his arms up or squeak out an apology, the Boy gave him a hug. What? "Just hug him." Alright. 

Putting his arms around the Boy, Sunny gave a squeeze. There was something wet spreading on his shoulder, and suddenly this scenario was very familiar. Giving the boy all the time he needed, Sunny figured out his next move. Well, if he was scared of heights, then Sunny should just do that, shouldn't he? 

"Hey. If you want, I can help you get over your fear." 

The boy sniffled a bit before wordlessly nodding. Grinning, Sunny pulled out of the hug, looking at the Boy. His eyes were now a bit red, and he had some tear stains on his face, but he otherwise looks fine. Rubbing some of it off and ruffling the kid's hair, Sunny stepped back before moving to stand behind the Boy. The Boy turned around to give him a confused look. 

"Look ahead." The Boy did so. "Now, close your eyes. Take a deep breath. Don't be afraid. It's not as scary as you think." As the boy's back arched from him inhaling and exhaling deeply, Sunny felt a seed of worry spread that maybe this wasn't enough. But, he overcame that doubt. Now wasn't the time. 

"I'm going to push you now. When you start getting scared, just remember what I said. Okay?" 

Stiffly, the Boy nodded, and Sunny began. Gently, he placed his hand upon the Boy's back and gave him a light shove. The Boy jolted but was otherwise fine as a little height was formed. When his back came towards Sunny's hands, he pushed once more, harder this time. And once more the Boy jolted. 

And as his feet left the ground, as he felt himself flow through the wind, as he looked down beyond his feet and saw the ground fall away from him, saw the potentiality for him to fall and get hurt and die- pitch black fear flooded him, clouding his vision, choking up his throat, ready to ground him as readily as gravity ever will- 

The Boy became AFRAID. 

And as he prepared to fall, prepared to be hurt, prepared to die, awaited it, dreaded it, desired it, felt his very being melt into nothing at the thought of how long it was taking for everything to fall apart already-

. 

.. 

... 

"Now, close your eyes. Take a deep breath. Don't be afraid. It's not as scary as you think." 

... 

.. 

. 

"Hah..." 

The Boy learned CALM DOWN! 

The Boy CALMED DOWN! 

The Boy became NEUTRAL! 

Opening his eyes, the Boy looked upwards at the wondrous blue sky, stained white by all of the clouds. It was... beautiful. It had never felt so beautiful before. And as the vision of the sky seemed to move away, the clouds becoming smaller- 

"Heh." 

A gentle touch on his back belied a great force, pushing him forwards to newer heights. For an instant, his heart clenched, but as soon as it did, it relaxed. 

The Boy was no longer afraid of heights. 

And he got even closer to the sky, to the clouds, to the wondrous Sun beyond it all. The Sun... Sunny. Maybe it wasn't as uncool a name as he thought. 

After playing for a long time on the swings, the two boys tried out the rest of the park. They spun the carousel around while the other had to stay on for as long as they could, resulting in the Boy putting in a lot of effort to make Sunny move fast and getting no response and Sunny going easy on the Boy before eventually getting egged on to go faster, making the Boy get dizzy. They went to play in the sandpits before realizing that they didn't exactly have any shovels and pails, and awkwardly stood there before moving on. 

They moved to the rocking animals, the Boy taking the lion while Sunny took... the chicken. Unfortunately, there was no cat. Sunny thought they were alright, but nowhere near as fun as swings. The Boy seemed to disagree as he went ahead and rocked the lion's world- and his own. Once more taking care of the dizzy Boy, Sunny couldn't help but wonder if he had been cursed by some sort of drunken ghost or something that wanted to spread its bowlegged woes. 

Then, the last of the equipment... the slide. It was, for lack of a better word: hot. It was Summer Break, it was a Tuesday, and the slide was built directly in the sunlight, the plastic covering at the peak doing nothing to protect the metal from the Sun's vengeful rays. Unfortunately, it took Sunny's bare legs on the slide as a sacrifice for them to realize it. Man, that hurt... 

All options exhausted, the duo... returned to the swings. But instead of using them for their intended purpose, the two just... sat there. Just enjoying the sounds of the city around them. Eventually, the general silence of the duo was interrupted by the sound of chattering. Looking over, Sunny saw a crowd of children all around the Boy's age entering the park. Two girls and a boy. They were chatting loudly about something, something to do with... cards? Card games? Yu-what? 

A slight noise from the Boy caught Sunny's attention. Looking over, Sunny saw that he looked... wanting. Oh, of course. Sure, it was nice to spend time with anyone, but... there was just something about spending time with people your age that was just special. Nodding to himself, Sunny tapped the Boy on his shoulder. When he looked over, Sunny gave him a slight nod. 

"Go with them. You want to, right?" 

The Boy looked surprised at that, before looking away sheepishly. He glanced at Sunny, then back to the kids, then back to Sunny before shaking his head. 

"No... we don't know each other. Sure, we go to the same classes but... it'd be weird." 

It would be weird, Sunny admitted. But just because it was weird didn't mean it was bad. "Whatever you have to say to let you sleep at night, weirdo." Like you were one to talk, Omori. 

"I think... you should do what you want, even if it is weird." 

After all, how many people had he helped because of his own weird proclivity to look at and take everything he could? If something like that could pay off, then something as simple as walking up and saying hi would definitely pay off. 

The Boy seemed to take what he said into regard, but still hesitated. Sunny knew it was scary, but what else could he- 

"But... won't you be lonely?" 

What? The Boy was worried he was lonely? Did he really look that sad on the bench? "You always look sad." But still, he couldn't help but find it a bit funny. 

"Hehe. No, don't worry. I won't be lonely. I have to meet with some friends later, remember?" 

The Boy looked somewhat surprise at this- Oi- but then looked away with a somewhat sad expression. 

"Oh... I guess that means we won't hang out again?" 

...man, kids sure do jump to the worst conclusions fast, huh? "That's rich from you." Laughing again, Sunny ruffled the Boy's hair once more. 

"Only if you don't want to. But, I have a feeling... we'll meet again. After all, we're friends now." 

The Boy's pout turned into an awe-filled stare before becoming a wide grin. He gave a little cheer of agreement, nodding enthusiastically. 

The Boy became HAPPY. 

With that said and done, the Boy stood up... before looking unsure again. Another sigh, this one exasperated, left Sunny's lips. He stood up and looked into the Boy's eyes. 

"Do you remember what I told you?" 

The Boy looked into Sunny's good eye and nodded. Then he closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and let it out. The tension fell off his shoulders. It wasn't as scary as he thought. And with that, he turned around and walked up to the group of three. 

From a distance, Bunny saw the Boy engage the three in conversation, asking them something that got a giggle out of the girls and then nods from all three of them. As a unit of four, they walked further into the park, and Sunny couldn't help but feel proud. The Boy did it. And all he needed was a little push. Turning away, Sunny figured now was as good a time as any to head to the train station. Hearing the distant sounds of laughter, he couldn't help but congratulate the Boy.

"Good job..." 

... 

"..." 

He forgot to ask the boy for his name. 

"Dumbass." 

Absolutely. 

Substory 01: A Captain Completed! 

Sighing at his own foolishness, Sunny walked out of the park and down Central Street. Checking his phone for the time, he found that it was 11:47. That should be enough time for him to get to the train station, even more if he considered how the trains sometimes ran a few minutes late. 

As it were, SOMORA TRAIN STATION was placed in the Southern district of Somora. Apparently, it was so tourists that came to Somora would first see the entertainment and waste all of their money on frivolous things. 

...at least, that was how Abe had worded it. Guy seemed to have a deep-rooted disdain for money or something. It probably had to do with his parents, Sunny figured. After all, there has to be a reason Komaki referred to himself as Abe's caretaker. 

Sunny shook his head. If Abe wanted to share it, he could. It wasn't Sunny's place to invade Abe's personal life... unless there was something wrong. Then, as his friend, it was his responsibility to invade his privacy to lend him a hand. Ah, good old lessons from home... 

The train station was all the way at the very southern end of Somora, which was convenient as far as landmarks went. It just meant he had to follow Central Street to its natural conclusion. Walking past all the shops Sunny had passed hours ago, he eventually made it to a large seating area with train tracks in front of it, leading both ways out into the eternal nothingness. 

Feeling a slight ache in his stomach, Sunny realized that it was almost lunch time. Spotting a vending machine, Sunny figured having a drink would be the best way to calm his hunger... and his nerves. 

Walking up to the machine, he decided to give the cola a try. He had heard good things about cola. I mean, there had to be a reason why people have it so often with takeaway, right? Inserting some change into the machine, and wondering how soon he should get a job to bump up his wallet, Sunny collected the cola from the vendor. 

Wandering back to a bench, and sighing at how much more comfortable it was compared to the one from earlier, Sunny pulled on the tab and listened to the satisfying sound of carbon dioxide being displaced. Bringing the can to his lips, he took a mouthful. And- 

"Kcht! Gfhg!" 

It burns! Why does it burn!? Since when do drinks burn going down!? Isn't that completely counterproductive to the purpose of having a drink!? Man, screw this! This is awful! 

As Sunny was about to throw the can away, he was caught by how it was still mostly full. He let out a sigh. It would be irresponsible of him to throw out the can while it still had so much in it. That would be a waste of money. 

"And, it didn't taste that bad before you started swallowing it." 

Eventually, Sunny had drained the can. After the fourth or so sip, the burning in his throat became indistinguishable from its regular state, and it was a rather enjoyable experience. No wonder it was so popular... although, if he had that pain to look forward to every time, he figured he would be okay without it. 

That experience over with, he checked the time. 12:03. Seems the train was late, like he suspected. Looking around, Sunny was slightly surprised to see no one was at the Somora station. Odd. He would have figured it was a more popular spot considering it was a city, with a train station to boot. Well, then again, Faraway had a train station and it was just a town, so... 

"Look alive. It's here." 

He was right. The chugging of a steam engine could be heard in the distance, the rhythmic clanging of steel wheels against steel rails a heralding call of an unstoppable beast rushing to the ends of the world. Or something like that. Turning his head, Sunny could see the train in the distance, a thin black blur against the greenery beyond the city limits. And as the train encroached, so too did his nerves. 

Damn, no matter how hard he tries, he can't shake them off! Just thinking of Hero, or Aubrey, or Kel would be enough to throw him back into the deep end. The same for Basil to- 

That was odd. Thinking of Basil didn't make him feel nervous... it just made him feel as he used to. Warm. Happy. Untainted by their mistakes. It was... good. Did this have to do with what happened in HEADSPACE? "I would assume so. That probably means we'll have to fight KEL, AUBREY, and HERO later, too..." 

Omori sounded uncomfortable with the fact, and honestly, Sunny was too. Dream or not, fighting his friends in any regard sounded like a nightmare. This was proven time and time again in reality, and his dream literally became a nightmare because of it. 

Sunny shook his head. He couldn't think like that. There's no guarantee he had to fight the dream friends, and there was no reason he would have to fight his real friends again either. Taking a deep breath, Sunny watched as the train reached him and pulled into the station, the screeching of the brakes partially deafening him. 

And, as the doors of the train slid open and the conductor's voice echoed out, Sunny sat on the bench and waited. And waited. And waited. A bunch of people left the train, all clearly returning home from long trips if the suitcases and exhausted expressions were anything to go by. And as time dragged on, Sunny had a sinking feeling in his gut. What if Kel got the time wrong and this was the wrong train? Or what if they got on the wrong train and are going to another station? What if they're all asleep and aren't awake to get off the train? What if this was all just an elaborate jo- 

The sounds of yelling pulled him from his anxieties. It was a girl yelling. A familiar girl... Looking up, he saw a flash of pink hair that was quickly smothered by the sea of dark suits around. Was that-? 

"Agh! You're insufferable!" 

"Haha! And you're short!" 

"H-Hey, come on, guys... let's- let's not fight..." 

"Yeah, come on, you two. You're clogging up the exit." 

Four wonderfully, joyfully, horribly, painfully familiar voices reached his ears. A hot-headed girl, an energetic boy, a skittish boy, and a collected man. As the crowd thinned further, Sunny could see flashes of an orange jersey, pink hair, a green shirt, and a blue jacket. And as the crowd thinned further, no doubt could they catch glimpses of the black hair and eyepatch sitting motionlessly on the bench. 

"Better get moving. You're not gonna get anywhere if you don't face them." 

Sighing at how right his other was, Sunny stood up from the bench, immediately putting him on par in height with most of the suits around. Then he stepped forward. And as the sounds of Aubrey's and Kel's arguing got louder, as Basil's ministrations became more desperate and Hero's more exasperated, Sunny couldn't help the smile that had worked its way to his lips. As he opened his mouth to give a greeting- 

"Haha- oops!" 

-Kel's elbow found its way into his face, pushing him back and turning him around. He put a hand on his nose to cradle it. It wasn't the worst he's been hit, but the surprise made it that much more intolerable. 

"Ow..." 

"Ah- sorry!" 

In classic Kel fashion, he showed concern for the consequences of his actions- even if his concern had a funny way of making the situation worse, it was the thought that counted, right? So as Kel wandered closer, ready to grab Sunny in a way that from anyone else would seem like a threat, Sunny quickly rubbed his nose before straightening up. 

To Kel and the gang, Kel had just been messing around and hurt a stranger. Kel felt terrible and Aubrey also felt a little guilt, but mostly annoyance and indignation. Basil froze in fright, while Hero started to make his way forward, ready to apologize for his brother. And make sure he didn't hurt the poor man with the weird shirt worse. Then the man straightened up, showing himself to be... pretty tall. Taller than Aubrey and Basil, and only a little bit shorter than Hero. Still a head shorter than their resident giant, though. 

"Jeez, Kel... as rowdy as always, huh?" 

Then the stranger, or what they thought was a stranger, said that. His voice was deep. And familiar. Eerily so. Actually, a bit more about him was familiar. That black hair, and those shorts, for instance. But nothing was concrete until he turned around. 

The face itself was familiar, a bit fuller than they remembered. But what really gave him away was the eyepatch. And the black eye staring back at them, full of life like it used to be years ago. 

"...Sunny?" 

It was Kel that spoke, and he said so disbelieving. All of them would have, really. It hadn't even been a year, yet he had changed so much. 

"Of course, Kel. Who else would I be?" 

And he was talking. Even back in his youth he rarely talked, but now... he spoke with such confidence. It was Kel that pointed out all these changes first. 

"You're... you're so tall!" 

"Heh. And you're even taller. What are you, a giant?" 

"And... and you're talking!" 

"Well, I have to make conversation somehow, don't I?" 

Sunny tilted his head with a little smirk. Oh, this was great. He never knew just how much fun it was to mess with others by changing his appearance. Maybe he should dye his hair... "Not on your life." Spoilsport. 

Kel was entirely off-kilter, not expecting his near-mute best friend to suddenly become talkative. And sassy. But like with most things, he brushed it off, put on a huge smile, and went right along with it. Taking a step forward, he threw his arms around Sunny in a bear hug. Sunny wasn't expecting that at all. 

"Gah!" 

Up close and personal, Sunny found it easier to notice just how much shorter than Kel he was. Kel could still easily put his chin on top of Sunny's head, and while a part of him felt embarrassed at being so much shorter than the kid he was once taller than, another part was relieved that, in a way, they hadn't changed that much. 

Eventually, Kel let Sunny free from his warm prison, giving him an opportunity to catch his breath. Letting out a deep breath, he looked up at Kel's beaming one. Kel's face looked... manlier. More handsome. But his eyes still conveyed the usual energy. Actually, beyond his height, the biggest change about Kel was his hair. It was held in a ponytail. Was it too long for practice? Actually, why was he still wearing his jersey? Did he... did he not have any other clothes? "Remember his closet? Of course he doesn't." 

Huffing to himself, he stepped back. 

"It's good to see you again, Kel." 

"Yeah! It's good to see you too, Sunny!" 

Giving his oldest friend a smile, Sunny turned to look at the other three. The first his vision focused on was Basil, his best friend. In comparison to everyone else, Basil was still the shortest, and it doesn't much look like he's grown much. Missing his bags and dull eyes, he looks healthier overall. That was good. And it looked like he had also ditched the sweater vest and had put on a shirt. A green one, just like how Sunny wears black ones. But he was wearing a thin floral jacket and jeans now, so it was nice to see that he was branching out a bit in style. 

Walking up to him, Sunny saw Basil flinch a bit and look away. While that hurt a bit, Sunny wouldn't let himself be deterred. He had to be strong. So, walking until he was right in front of him, Sunny gave him a wave. Basil awkwardly looked to Sunny's hand, then his face, then away again before waving a bit himself. Jeez, so awkward... 

"Hey, Basil." 

"A-Ah... h-hey... Sunny." 

He looked so skittish, like the slightest touch would have him running for the hills. Too bad for him, Sunny wouldn't let him run, either. Moving quickly he brought his arms up and wrapped them around the flower boy. One around the shoulder, the other on his head, his hair tickling Sunny's chin. Basil let out a gasp and floundered a bit, before eventually putting his own arms around Sunny. 

"It's good to see you, Basil. I missed you." 

Basil's grip on Sunny tightened, before a weak voice managed to eke itself out of the boy. 

"I- I missed you too... Sunny..." 

Keeping the hug going for a few more seconds, and ignoring the tears that were soaking his coolest shirt, Sunny eventually let go with a ruffle of Basil's wheat blond hair. Basil let out a small noise of protest before looking up to Sunny with a small smile and a red face. Sunny returned the smile, a mirror of that day in the hospital. 

Then, he looked to the two people he hadn't spoken to yet, and still felt marginally uncomfortable with. 

Aubrey's pink hair was still as vibrant as he remembered, so it looks like she had been taking good care of it, at least. She still had her teal contacts in, and was still wearing her blue handkerchief. The biggest difference was that she was wearing a regular plain black shirt with her jacket wrapped around her waist, and her lack of bat. Guess they couldn't get the conductor to let that fly?

Shaking his head, Sunny stepped away from Basil and towards Aubrey. Huh. She looked a little shocked. Actually, Hero did too, didn't he? Wonder why? "Maybe because you just hugged Basil for no reason. You never do that." What? There was a reason. A good one. 

Stopping a step away from her, Sunny sent her a small smile. 

"Hey, Aubrey. It's good to see you again." 

She spluttered a bit, before looking away with a blush. After overcoming whatever she was dealing with, she turned back to Sunny, this time with a small frown on her face. Uh oh. 

"Yeah. It's good to see you, too. But I have to know." She stepped forward in a threatening manner, which was generally less threatening due to her being shorter than Sunny now and her not having a weapon on hand. "Have you been keeping your promise?" 

"Of course." 

With no hesitation, with no second thoughts, Sunny answered the question true. 

"I've been making sure to eat three meals a day, every day. And I make sure breakfast is healthy, too. I do exercise every day, and I've even taken up some martial arts. I don't want to break another promise." 

Aubrey looked surprised at how much Sunny spoke, before looking impressed. "Wonder how impressed she would be if she heard how you normally got into a street fight at least once a day?" That might be too much, too fast. On the topic, hopefully they wouldn't get stuck in any street fights of their own. Sunny knew Aubrey could handle herself, and Kel and Hero could probably make it out with a struggle, but Basil was probably screwed. 

Shaking his head to focus on the present, he looked over to the last person he had to talk to. And the last person he wanted to talk to. There was always a barrier between the two of them, even over text and call. A barrier between him and the person he always thought of as a big brother. 

Out of everyone, Hero had changed the least. There was the start of some stubble on his chin, just like his dad. His wardrobe seemed mostly static too, essentially being the same but with a jacket over a white shirt rather than just a blue shirt. Just like Aubrey, he looked a bit surprised, but quickly replaced it with the usual charming smile he always had. Whether that was good or bad was a mystery. 

Biting the bullet, Sunny moved towards him. Stopping a few steps away from him, Sunny prepared to say the same thing he said to the others. But- 

"It's good to see you again, Sunny." 

Hero beat him to the punch, bypassing the distance between them to give Sunny a hug. Sunny was frozen in surprise, and when Hero pulled away, he continued. 

"You really are taller, aren't you? You almost beat me in height. And you're not even done growing yet! Hopefully you and Kel don't grow too much more, though... That'd be really troublesome." 

Hero gave a chuckle before ruffling Sunny's messy hair, throwing his fringe out of whack. Sunny was the one who had a shocked expression now, but it was quickly replaced with his usual neutral look. Giving a nod, he stepped back so he could take in all of his friends once more. He would commit it to memory, this time. 

"Man! What a happy reunion! For real this time!" 

Kel's ecstatic shout stole the group's attention, and Sunny couldn't help his fond smile. Some things didn't change, and Kel's unending optimism is one of the things he's glad hadn't. With a wide smile, Kel spun around, suitcase in tow, and looked at Sunny. 

"Well, come on, Sunny! You don't mind leading us to your house, do ya?" 

"Don't mind at all." 

With a confident smile on his face, Sunny turned around, ready to lead them onward. As soon as he was sure no one was about to get left behind, Sunny began his trek up Central Street. Figuring that everyone could explore after they set up at his house, Sunny tried to keep their path as short as possible. Didn't exactly stop any of his friends from asking questions about the various businesses they came across, nor did it stop him giving as good explanations as he could. 

Maybe today wouldn't be so bad.

Chapter Text

You and your friends walked on through the Southern district. Your fear slowly melted away, leaving only a feeling of nostalgia and contentment. You talked about all sorts of things. Basil's flowers and Polly. Aubrey's Hooligang. Kel's basketball. Hero's degree. Your training. How everyone was doing at school, and new hobbies everyone had picked up. 

You hadn't felt so... happy, in so long. Abe was a good friend, don't get me wrong, but... he's not this. He's not them. And you feel bad about that, which you should. But even I can acknowledge that I would choose them over him. That I would choose her- 

At some point, you and everyone had crossed from the Southern district to near your house. But, if you continue as you are, you'll walk right past it. I sigh. Useless. 

"Eyes up. You're almost there." 

You jolt, and miss the look Hero and Kel shoot you. Looking around, you realize you recognise the area, and that I, as always, was right that you were almost home. Turning left, you bring everybody onto your street, and walking a bit further you reach your home. 

As you look for your keys, you miss the looks on everyone else's face. Frowns and furrowed eyebrows, all aimed at... the house? What, did it not look nice or something? Did they dislike it because it has you in it? Do they not like it because it isn't home? 

With a small sound of victory, you put your key in the door, unlock it, and enter. Opening the door wide, you gesture for everyone to enter. What was the phrase? "Mi casa, su casa"? 

Everyone trailed in, Kel leading the way and you capping off at the tail. They all spread out around the lounge room, eyeing everything. For some reason beyond both of us, there was a tension rising. You didn't like it. It was making your fight or flight instincts go off, and I was itching to do something about it. But what's the problem? Were they finally going to confront you, and destroy what confidence you had managed to gather? 

I could see how their furrowed expressions persisted into the home, and only got worse. Even you had started to notice it, Aubrey's narrowed eyes, Basil's darting ones, Hero's silent vigil, and Kel biting his lip. What is it? What's wrong? Just hurry up already, please! The suspense might actually kill us! 

"...there aren't any photos." 

Ah. That's right. Since you had already spent a year here, you had brushed it off and ignored it, but now... after last night... 

"...yeah... there aren't. I guess... Mom didn't want any reminders..." 

When you said that, you could practically see Aubrey's hackles raise, her anger painfully familiar. But before she could do something, you showed some spine for once and admitted your own part please stop I don't want to lose anything else. 

"And... I didn't help in that either... I only realized yesterday there were none..." 

That seemed to stop her cold. She flinched a bit, turning to look at you with a betrayed look that you were bitterly intimate with. As you deserve. You almost looked away, but you caught yourself. You closed your eyes briefly, taking in a breath before expelling it. You looked to her, to all your friends, and persisted. 

Aubrey was still looking at you with her fists clenched. Don't look at me Hero had a small frown on his face. Don't look at me like that Basil had a sad look on his face, one that you knew shouldn't be there. Don't look like that Even Kel had lost his smile, forehead wrinkling like he was thinking. I'm sorry The tension was getting to be too great, and you made to say something. Anything. 

"I-" 

"SO! Where are we sleeping, Sunny!?" 

You flinch. Looking over, you see Kel bouncing around once again, a large smile on his face. It didn't reach his eyes at all. I'm sorry for everything 

Before you could answer, Hero followed up, a Charming smile already on his face. 

"Yeah, that's a good question. Where is our room, Sunny?" 

Alright, alright, we're shifting topic, that's good. Now you just have to- wait... 

"Um... well, there... isn't one?" 

Oh look, your words knocked your friends off their feet again. Before they could question what you mean and why, you elaborate. 

"There wasn't a lot of time to set up a room... especially on such short notice." 

Hero gives you another look, forehead furrowed just like his brother's- before he turned to Kel, a fairly blank look on his face. 

"Kel, when did you tell Sunny we were coming over?" 

Kel, for his part, took the unsaid accusation with as much grace as he was possible of manifesting. That is, like a bull in a china shop. With one eye closed and the other looking away, Kel answered with an embarrassed smile.

"Hehe, well, you see, I, uh, may have forgotten to ask Sunny for permission and just assumed I had? And didn't ask until later?" 

"Kel." 

"Yesterday." 

It was then the pink-haired terror hopped in, taking the opportunity to gun for her orange-flavoured prey. 

"Yesterday!? Kel, we planned this months ago!" 

"I know, I know, I'm sorry! It's just, you know, I get distracted easily!" 

"Get distracted, my ass! You were probably just too busy goofing off, weren't you!?' 

"Hey! I-" 

The two were getting right up in each other's business. If we didn't already know them better, I would have said this would end up in a brawl. Basil in his weird floral jacket tried to intervene. 

"U-Uh, you two- you two shouldn't f-fight!" 

He was promptly ignored. I could almost see the blue aura showing off his SADNESS. Luckily, before the screaming match could escalate- or more likely, grab the wrong kind of attention- Hero interrupted. 

"Come on, you two. Now isn't the time for an argument. Be polite as guests." 

He said that with an authority that made your own back straighten and filled you with the desire to be on your best behaviour. The same clearly applied to the others. Even though you all knew he was a pushover, he had a weird way of projecting authority. Must be that patented "Big Brother" power. 

Turning to you, he smiled once more. Charming. 

"Okay, Sunny. Is there anywhere that we could sleep?" 

You thought about it, and I decided to contribute with my far superior spatial awareness. The house only had a few rooms. There was yours and your mom's, there was the lounge room, there was the bathroom, and there was the spare room being used as storage. The storage room was too cluttered, the bathroom's a no-go, you didn't think your mother would appreciate having to share a room and you doubted your room would have enough floor space for everyone. The only option left was... 

"Out here." You gave a quick look around, noticing the distinct lack of soft things. "I sure hope you guys came with sleeping bags." 

Hero picked up on it too, eyeing everything. Then he scratched the back of his head and gave a nervous chuckle. 

"Hehe... no, I don't think so." 

Damn. Well, the general store probably has some. You were about to comment on that, but I figured you should probably make some room out here, first. 

"Oi. Move the couch and stuff, so they have somewhere to sleep." 

You nodded. It made sense. You turned to ask for assistance. 

"Hey. Can you guys help me make some room?" 

Kel blinked at you owlishly, and even Aubrey and Hero seemed surprised. What? They were acting like you had never asked for something before. Had you ever? Then Kel seemed to shake it off, moving up to you with a much more genuine grin. 

"Of course, Sunny! We've got your back!" 

Everyone nodded at that, and then moved like one autonomous structure. Aubrey and Hero moved to the coffee table between the couch and TV, while you and Kel moved to the couch. He was giving you a worried look, probably doubting your strength. Even with your new height, you do still look quite pathetic. But your disgusting pride wouldn't let you accept him looking at you like that. So, with a nod that was probably meant to be reassuring, you crouched down and hooked your hands under the couch. 

"Alright, Sunny. On three! One... two... three!" 

You stood up in a smooth motion, arms straining a little at the weight of the couch. It was certainly the heaviest thing you've ever had to hold, but you were far better prepared for it now. Kel let out a squawk and you felt the couch begin to shift out of your grip for a moment, but then Kel stood up, righting the couch. In sync, the two of you carried the couch so that it was about a foot or so back. Enough room in the lounge room for a tall person (Kel) to lie flat and comfortably, and enough room so the connecting hallway wasn't blocked. 

Slowly crouching, you brought your end of the lounge onto the floor, and Kel followed suit a moment later. Standing, you let out a huff, flexing your hands. They were a little sore from the couch frame digging into the palms, but they were otherwise fine. The slight burning in your arms wasn't much of a problem either. 

"You okay, Sunny?" 

It was Kel. You nodded at his question before quirking your brow at him, your eyes saying everything they needed. Are you? 

"Oh, yeah, I'm fine. Just surprised, is all. I didn't think that you would be that strong!" 

The praise made you want to curl into a ball, but you held off, the blood gathering in your ears being the only indicator of your joy. Weirdo. 

"I said I had been training." 

"Well yeah, but I didn't think it'd be that much! Your trainer must be crazy good or something!" 

Thinking of Komaki sent a shiver down your spine and a chill up mine. Even experiencing some of his worst training second-hand was scarring. 

"Y-yeah... I guess." 

Now he's looking at you with a quirked brow, but you quickly turn away to disengage. I can agree with the sentiment: The less said, the better. Besides, everyone would probably meet Komaki later. It's not a big city. 

Turning, you saw the product of everyone's work. The table had been moved against the wall, and Basil was standing up from everyone's bags. He must have moved them together.

Looking at the now-freed space, it could easily fit everyone. And worst comes to worst, there was still the couch for someone to sleep on. You nodded, satisfied with the results. 

Then your stomach grumbled. 

... 

How embarrassing. 

Everyone was looking at you, and you looked away with a more normal blush on your cheeks. Maybe you should have had an early lunch after all... 

"Haha! You hungry, Sunny?" 

You nodded, still not looking at them. But you didn't need to look to imagine the wide smile on Kel's face. 

"Hmm... I guess I am kinda hungry too... maybe we should have some lunch first before we buy our sleeping bags. Is everyone fine with that?" 

Nor did you need to see him to imagine the kindly smile on Hero's. 

"Nah. I'm feeling pretty hungry too, actually!" 

"B-But you already ate earlier... n-not that I'm against eating, either..." 

"Yeah, I don't mind. But you better take us somewhere good, Sunny!" 

The overwhelming acceptance nearly knocked you off your feet, but in the end, you just nodded as you always do. 

"R-Right." 

Straightening up, you made your way past everyone to the front door. Making sure your sword bag was still on your shoulder, you opened the door. 

Today's looking to be a good day.

Once more in a line, the group of friends made their way up Central Street. Conversation bounced around from top to topic, but every now and then Aubrey and Kel would needle Sunny about where he was taking them for lunch. However, he always stonewalled them, just saying to trust him and that it would be fine. 

As they were passing the school, however... 

"Heeeeeey, Sunshine!" 

A roar that left everyone wincing in surprise echoed out from further up the road. Looking, everyone saw a figure running towards them, one hand raised high. Sunny stopped, and everyone stopped around him, a measure of concern starting to well up. But when he smiled a little, and rose a hand up, they didn't really know what to think. 

With a clap of (metaphorical) thunder, the figure brought his full force onto Sunny's hand. When the dust (read: surprise) cleared, the figure, one with blond hair in a green jacket, smiled down on Sunny. 

"How are ya?" 

And with a smile, Sunny responded. 

"I'm fine. How are you, Ham?" 

The figure, Ham(?), began to frown. But a look at his eyes would reveal the amusement sparkling in them. 

"Aw man! I thought I told you not to call me that!" 

"And I said don't call me Sunshine." 

Sunny was no longer smiling, looking up at Ham with a blank expression. Similarly, Ham was looking down with a deepened frown. The tension was rising, and the friends felt that. Kel and Basil looked undecided, while Aubrey was cracking her knuckles in preparation. It was Hero that tried to solve the problem with his words, taking a step forward. 

"Hey now, why don't we-" 

"Pfft." 

The two were looking away from each other, shoulders quivering. Then they broke. Abe stood up tall, guffaws pouring out from him as he held his stomach, while Sunny hunched over, chuckles bursting through his blank facade. The Faraway friends looked upon the scene in confusion and a little wonder. Sunny laughing wasn't exactly a common occurrence, even back then. 

"Haha- they, they really thought- hahaha!" 

"N-Now, c-heh-come oOon! Th-heh-they were reasonably worried." 

It was after a few more seconds that the two began to calm down, Abe wiping his wrist across his mouth to wipe away any spit that might have leaked out. With a deep exhale, the two turned back to each other. 

"It's good to see you again, Sunny." 

"Same here, Abe." 

They smiled at each other before turning to the other four, still somewhat boggling at the previous interaction. Abe's smile turned into a smirk, and he threw his arm around Sunny's shoulders. 

"So, who are these guys, Sunny? Friends of yours? Have you been holding out on me?" 

Sunny elbowed Abe in the side, smirking at his grunt. Then he points to them. 

"I told you about them. My friends from Faraway. Kel, Hero, Basil, and Aubrey." 

Shrugging Abe's arm off as he nodded, Sunny moved closer to his friends. Turning, he gestured an arm towards Abe. 

"Everyone, meet my friend from Somora, Abe." 

Seems everyone was still shaking off the tonal whiplash, since they were just staring dumbly at the two. Even Hero, the most socially aware of them all, wasn't saying anything. Sunny was starting to get nervous again. Why weren't they saying anything? Were they surprised by Abe? By him being his friend? Were they upset? Upset that he had a friend? Upset that it looked like he moved on? Or were they- 

"Hey! Nice to meet you guys! Sunny's said a lot about ya. My name's Abraham, Abraham Williams. My friends call me Abe, and friends of Sunny's are friends of mine!" 

Abe had stepped forward, one hand on his hip and the other held out towards the group. With a confident smile, he had derailed Sunny's train of thought and done a far better introduction than he had gotten. Sunny was kind of proud. 

"A-Ah, nice to meet you too. My name is Henry Vasquez, but everyone just calls me Hero." 

Hero had stepped ahead of the group, taking Abe's hand in his own and giving it a brief shake. Kel quickly followed suit, shaking with far more energy. 

"Yeah, it's nice to meet you! I'm Kelsey Vasquez, but everyone just calls me Kel! I heard you like Orange Joe!?" 

Aubrey sighed in the background while Basil nervously giggled. Abe's head then turned towards the remaining two, taking a bit to reason the Basil from the Aubrey. Seeing his inquisitive gaze and Aubrey's nonchalance, Basil decided to swallow his nerves and... be brave. He took a step forward before promptly stopping and practically crumbling into himself. His voice came out in a squeak. 

"I-I-I'm B-Basil... Basil D-D-Drivas... ni-nice to meEet you..." 

He was shaking. Oh god, this was pitiful. Sunny could see Abe very clearly concerned over the painfully timid boy, but knew that Abe's approach would only make it worse. Taking a step towards the flower boy, Sunny prepared to calm him, only to be beaten to the punch by, surprisingly, Aubrey. "Is it surprising? They were practically siblings before everything." 

She placed a hand on his shoulder and gave him a, probably meaningful, look. Basil looked at her and then nodded, breathing in and out before his shaking subsided. For the most part. Did he just... CALM DOWN? "Well, considering it's not a video game move exclusive to you, I'd say so." 

When she saw he had stopped freaking out, Aubrey decided to cap off the introductions, doing so gruffly. 

"Aubrey. Aubrey Jones." 

If Basil's introduction had left Abe concerned, Aubrey's introduction had left him feeling like he was nothing. Abe couldn't help thinking to himself if this really was the Aubrey that Sunny had told him about. Wasn't she meant to be nice!? 

Sunny may have given a biased description of his friends. 

For his part, Sunny was minorly concerned by how scared Basil was and how cold Aubrey was being. Sure, this was definitely what he had been expecting from those three days, but still. Lucky for him, he wasn't alone. 

"Aw, come on. Don't you mean your name is Aubergi- OW!" 

Kel had crept up to Aubrey and threw an arm around her shoulders, leaning over to tease her. In retaliation, Aubrey used her trustworthy HEADBUTT to get him to step off. 

"I told you not to call me that, Kelsey." 

"O-Okay, I'm sorry! Jeez... didn't have to hit me so hard..." 

"...sorry." 

While the two distracted each other, Sunny made his way to Basil. 

"Are you okay?" 

"Oh! Sunny. Yeah, I'm f-fine... it's, it's just- it's still kind of hard, talking to people. Y-Y'know?" 

Sunny nodded. He knew exactly what Basil meant. Even after almost a year of using his voice like a normal person, he still felt a little shy talking to strangers. And... 

"It probably doesn't help that Abe looks like a part of a gang, huh." 

"N-No! I-I mean, what!? No, I-I don't think he looks scary or anything! I mean-" 

A hand on the shoulder and a teasing smirk quieted Basil, leaving him to quietly grumble to himself. Turning, Sunny saw everyone getting along well with Abe. Hero was giving him a charming grin and asking some questions, while Aubrey and Kel occasionally chimed in with snarky or energetic remarks, before going right back to being at each other’s throats. 

Smiling, Sunny grabbed Basil's hand and brought him over to everyone else. Getting into the centre, Sunny tugged Basil's hand then let him go, letting him do as he will. Basil gulped a bit before standing fully to his short height and sticking his hand out to Abe. Abe stared at it for a second before grinning and taking it into his own. With a shake, more conversation flowed. Sunny looked on with a smile. He was glad all his friends got along. 

Eventually, the topic of what they were all doing came up, and when the answer was getting some lunch, Abe became excited. 

"Sunny! Are you taking them to our usual place?" 

"Yeah. Great food at a good price... a good introduction." 

"Would you mind if I tag along? I haven't been since... well, last week, huh?" 

"I don't mind. Do any of you?" 

Sunny's question was directed towards everyone, and there were no complaints. 

"Nah, it's cool! A friend of Sunny's is a friend of ours, right guys!?" 

"Yeah. Besides, it would be rude of us to take up all of Sunny's time, right?" 

"Mmm... fine." 

"I-It should be g-good... if S-Sunny thinks you're good, then you probably are!" 

"Sweet! Well then, let's go!" 

Saying so, Abe turns around and heads off towards the Eastern district. Sunny immediately followed after, falling into step beside Abe while the others just looked at each other, positively confuzzled, but shrugged it off and went along for the ride. As they went down the city streets and saw the gradual shift from well kept to fairly shitty, a creeping feeling of dread started to cling on to them. Conversation dwindled down to nothing, with the only noise being Abe's own humming. 

"Oi, oi, oi. What do we have here?" 

A detestable voice spoke up from behind the group. Turning, the group of six found themselves face to face with a smaller group of five. But what they lacked in numbers, they made up for in... 

"A-Ah-" 

Intimidation. 

Without thinking about it, Kel, Hero, and Aubrey took a step back, while Basil took several, leading to him bumping into Sunny. He jumped at the sudden contact, but calmed when he realized who it was. This momentary calm was immediately vanquished when Sunny grabbed his shoulder and pulled him backwards, placing Basil firmly behind him. 

The man at the head of the herd took his hands out of his pockets and cracked his knuckles, a grin on his face. Aubrey stopped moving and took on a more confrontational stance, glare on her face. Kel and Hero had also stopped, Kel setting his shoulders while Hero put on an implacable mask of calm. 

"Now, now, we don't want any trouble. Just give us your money and we'll leave you guys alone. Not exactly our style to go for kids but, you gotta do what you gotta do. Right, boys!?" 

The man with the detestable voice shouted to his cohort, and they shouted in kind. A cacophony of "Yeah"s and "You know it"s greeted him, and the sound was grating on their ears and crushing the confidence of the punk, the jock, and the goody-two-shoes directly before them. 

Then two figures stepped between the man and the friends. Two familiar figures. One in a green jacket, the other with a blue bag over their shoulder. 

"So, is there no way you guys won't try this?" 

The man rose a brow before sneering. 

"Nope! So if you don't give us your cash, we'll just take it by force!" 

Abe sighed before rolling his neck. Cracking his knuckles, he brought his hands before him in the Komaki Style stance. Sunny followed suit, hand moving up to the zip on his bag. Tugging it open, he reached in to grab the wooden handle. With a jerky movement, he pulled the sword out the bag, the end of the false blade catching on the bag for a moment. Bringing it before himself, he held it in both hands, shifting his feet apart. 

"You finally gonna show me what Komaki taught you yesterday?" 

"Yeah. I should probably practice, right?" 

"Heh. And it'd be pretty good to work up an appetite for lunch." 

As if it were a signal, the two sprung into motion. 

Sunny used the Gladiolus STYLE! 

Pushing off of his right foot, Sunny pulled his sword down and back, holding the hilt behind his armpit, before releasing the tension in a thrust right into the detestable man's stomach. He gagged and leaned forward, but before he could do anything- 

"Ah!" 

Abe had followed up with a right to the temple, knocking him onto the concrete with a huff and some saliva leaking out. Gross... 

Shocked silence was the response from both sides. Aubrey, Kel, Hero, and Basil were all looking at the duo with surprise and, regrettably, a little fear. The thugs, on the other hand, were looking on with a lot more fear, which wasn't regrettable at all. And while silence reigned- 

Sunny used KOMAKI STYLE! 

-they struck. 

Raising his wooden katana above his shoulders, Sunny prepared to lay the smackdown, while Abe had no such preparations to make. Without a peep, he dashed into the crowd, throwing his body weight into his right fist. It hit a guy in the back right in the nose, throwing him right off his feet and onto the floor, bleeding out of his now broken schnoz. 

Now the fight had actually begun. 

With a shout, the remaining three guys all turned on Abe, arms poised to crush the teenager. Abe turned around, arms parallel to block any hits. One of the thugs, a man in a blue polo, threw a punch that bounced off of Abe's armguard, causing him to let out a curse. Abe started to back off as the other two started to throw their own hits, managing to make them just glancing blows. 

When they all stopped, Abe let down his arms to once more take up his stance. But even though he was outnumbered three to one, he still looked confident. He had a smirk on his face and was looking beyond the three of them. But why? 

"Agh!" 

Their answer came in the form of a thunk echoing out. Turning around in a panic, there they saw the eyepatch boy standing over the thug in blue, wooden katana clenched in both hands as the thug cradled his head. As opposed to the confident smirk of the blondie, the eyepatch boy had a neutral expression on his face. No, it wasn't just neutral... 

It was cold. 

It was desolate. 

It was terrifying. 

The Thugs became AFRAID! 

The Thugs attempted to act, but couldn't! 

Taking the opportunity, as the thugs became enshrouded in a soul-crushing purple to his eyes, Sunny followed through. Taking a step, he swung his katana across his body, putting every ounce of his weight and rotational force into the blow. It struck the thug to Abe's right in the gut, knocking him off his feet and onto the floor with a cough. 

With a huff, Abe threw himself at the thug to his left, a straight thrown at his stomach under his ribs, then a right hook to the face, knocking him onto the floor. 

The Thugs were DOWNED! 

Barely glancing at each other, they executed their enemies in kind. 

Sunny used DOWN BLOW! 

Stepping up to the thug he had got away from Abe, he wound his leg back before- 

It hit right in the HEART! 

-letting it loose, right into the thug's face. His body rocked back, leaving a slight blood splatter on his shoe. 

Abe had done similar, bringing his foot rocketing onto his thug's face in a curbstomp. There was very briefly a muffled scream that was then replaced by a low gurgle. Standing up straight, he turned to Sunny before turning back to the last remaining thug, the one in blue. He had recovered enough to stand, still cradling his head with one hand. His eyes were wide and he was slowly shaking his head to and fro, taking steps back. 

As one, Sunny and Abe moved towards him. It started slow, taking long enough for Sunny to shift the katana into just his right hand. 

Sunny used the Rose STYLE! 

Then they ran, and the thug stumbled a little, not expecting the sudden rush. Together, they both drew back their fists, Sunny's left and Abe's right. And- 

Abe FOLLOWED UP! 

-they struck the thug in the nose, sending him flying back, stopping just short of the group of friends that looked on in shock and morbid curiosity. He let out a whimper before going silent. And that silence carried for a beat. Then two. 

Then, with a sigh of relief, the tension plaguing the duo seemed to wash away. Abe put his hands on his hips and leant back a bit, while Sunny was shaking out the pain in his left hand. Then he brought his katana up to the bag over his shoulder and tried to align the tip with the bag's entrance. It took a couple of tries, not helped at all by the bag being on his blind side, but the blade eventually caught and slid into the "sheath". 

"Hey, you doing okay, Sunny?" 

Sunny looked over to find Abe looking at him, standing normally again. His creased brow and awkwardly forced shut lips showed that he wasn't exactly sure if he should laugh or not... "It is pretty funny." But was that really the point? Looking down, Sunny idly scratched his stomach. 

"...I'm hungry." 

Abe blinked at that before just laughing. A genuine laugh, right from the diaphragm. 

"Hahaha... yeah, yeah, you would be, huh? Let's go get some food." 

Abe turned to keep moving towards their favourite food joint before quickly being stopped by one important thing: friends. Sunny's specifically. They were all staring at the two of them with wide eyes and hanging jaws. Suddenly, Abe could feel awkwardness flood his body to its core. 

"Uh... haha... are you guys okay?" 

Abe said this with a clearly nervous smile, the corner of his lips twitching as some sweat beaded near his temple. Sunny, too, looked awkward, looking away and scratching the back of his head. As the silence prolonged, he started shaking. Just little quivers in his hands, in his shoulders. Only noticeable to people that were looking for it. 

It was fear. Before, it was just a fear of his friends hating him. Of Kel lying, or just being wrong, and none of them having actually forgiven him at all. But now, it was fear of them... being scared of him.

At that time he had attacked Aubrey without thinking about it... he hadn't forgot, per se, that he was holding a knife... but, after so long fighting with the knife, swinging it to start a battle was merely instinct. When he saw her blood, minor though it was, he felt a part of him crack. So when Kel took his knife away, he hadn't complained. 

When Sunny got down to it, after everything, he had never really thought of himself as someone to fear. Sure, he had been told on occasion that he had a scary look, but that didn't necessarily equate to fearing him. Even after the Incident, he only thought of himself as someone to hate, to despise, not fear. 

But that was just blind optimism, wasn't it? Just him wanting to think of himself as better than he was. The truth was, he was scary. He picked up a penchant for violence like it was no one's business after he came to this city, and even got Abe into it a little. His dreams for four years were always filled with violence, whether it be against adorable BUNNIES, the various foes of HEADSPACE, and, far too often... BASIL. And, even then, he had murdered someone. Of course he was scary. Of course they would be- 

"Not that I don't like you cursing yourself, but if you haven't noticed, we're on a bit of a time crunch. You can brood later, I'll help." 

This guy... 

Sunny sighed exasperatedly, slouching a little into a more casual stance. At the same time- 

"Woah! That was so cool Sunny! Abe! How did you do that!?" 

...somehow, that wasn't as surprising to hear from Kel as Sunny thought it would be. Actually, it felt terribly in character. This was the guy that seemed very gung-ho about dragging Sunny into fistfight after fistfight after all... 

"Huh? O-Oh, I just, uh... you know... punched 'em? S-Sunny can explain it better!" 

Traitor. Noting the desperate looks Abe was shooting him, Sunny just gave back a small smile. 

"But you've been training far longer than I have. I only started yesterday, after all." 

Watching the light in Abe's eyes die, Sunny felt a petty joy he hadn't felt in... years. Is this how Omori felt? "Bitch." 

Letting Abe field Kel's general enthusiasm, Sunny looked to see everyone else's reactions. Hero was standing still, eyes still wide, although his mouth was shut now. Aubrey had also closed her mouth, but her eyes were narrowed. She was looking at him and the thugs intently, looking for something. It was Basil that left him the most worried. He was still standing there, eyes wide and mouth open, not paying attention at all. Out of concern, Sunny took a step towards him. 

As the sound of his shoe clacking against the concrete echoed, Basil's and Hero's attention snapped to. The two hurried towards Sunny, catching him off guard. Real soon, the two surrounded him. Hero started putting his hands on Sunny, feeling his veins and turning his bits every now and then, constantly asking if it hurt. Basil just stood there and fretted, hands constantly shifting between hovering over Sunny or fiddling with each other. In comparison to Hero, all that came out of Basil's mouth were meaningless babbles, but a look in his eyes told Sunny everything he needed to know. 

'Are you okay?' he was trying to ask. Sunny's eye gave his own answer back. 'I'm fine.' 

When the two eventually backed off, Sunny let out another sigh quickly followed by a loud oof. Kel had just barrelled into him, wrapping an arm around his shoulders. Laying his chin on top of Sunny's head, Sunny felt every bit as powerless as a teddy bear about to be snuggled. 

"Sunny! That was so cool!! You gotta show me how you did that sometime!" 

"Yeah, I'll say. I didn't know you could kick that much ass, Sunny." 

"Aubrey!" 

"What? Hero, it was totally justified this time. Don't tell me you don't want to know what the hell just happened." 

Hero paused, looking like he was going to argue the point before slowly nodding with a defeated expression. His curiosity was gnawing at him. But before Aubrey could gloat at her victory- 

A loud gurgle was heard. Looking to the source of the sound was Sunny, face now red and head firmly turned away from his friends, merely murmured. 

"I said I was hungry..." 

Everyone looked at him silently before eventually bursting into laughter. Basil was giggling, Kel and Abe were laughing from the gut, and Aubrey and Hero were chuckling. Even Sunny was laughing a bit, but that was dampened by the fact that he was actually really hungry now. 

When the laughter died down, Aubrey looked down at the grounded thugs. 

"So, what do we do with these guys?" 

That got everyone to silently consider it, before Abe and Sunny looked at each other and shrugged. 

"Well, we're not on any roads, so we don't have to worry about any traffic accidents, so... just leave them here?" 

Sunny nodded at that. He didn't mind a bit. The others showed some reservations towards it, but conceded that these two probably knew best. Gathering together, they were about to continue on their way when a whimper caught their attention. Looking down, they saw the original thug, the one with the detestable smile, slowly start to snap out of whatever pain-induced coma the two put him in. With one hand on his stomach and the other on his face, he rolled a bit so he was facing the sky- 

-and looking right at the two people that just kicked his ass looking none the worse for wear. 

"W-Wha-" 

Sunny stepped forwards, staring him down. His gaze felt like death to the thug, and felt like it was begging to be given an excuse to crush him. A whine worked its way out of the thug's throat. 

"H-Hey-" 

Sunny took another step forward, and the thug tried to drag himself back. 

"S-Stop-" 

One more step. Fear came in like a wave, trying to drag the thug down. In desperation, he sought for a way to escape his coming doom. A discomfort in his pockets grabbed his attention, and then his brain caught up. Sticking his hand into his pocket, he dug around for what he was looking for before grasping it. As his messenger of doom stepped closer, and opened his mouth, doubtless to seal his fate, the thug stuck his hand out. 

"H-Here! Just- just take this and don't hurt me!" 

Sunny stood silently, mouth opened to ask if the man was okay- he was ruthless, not heartless- but was now stopped cold. Seriously? Again? This is the second time in as many days... Staring at the twenty dollar bill sticking out of his hand, Sunny just sighed. 

"Fine. But take your pals out of here..." 

Sunny grabbed the bill and stepped past the thug, not bothering anymore. Honestly, the look of honest fear in his eyes was unsettling... but even more unsettling was the part of him that was actually kind of happy about it. Omori, what the hell? 

"Hey, don't look at me. It's not my fault you're so messed up... well, not entirely."

Coming to the last turn before they reach the alley where the restaurant was, Sunny noticed that his friends had started following again. Turning, he saw everyone looking a bit dourer than they had been. Two steps forward, one step back... 

Sunny's shoulders seemed to droop a bit as he silently led his friends toward their meal. Abe noticed and stepped up beside him, throwing an arm around his shoulders. 

"So... you getting the usual?" 

Sunny blinked. Pardon? 

"You know... are you gonna try something new, or are you sticking with old reliable?" 

Try something new? What was he... oh. Oh. 

"The Classic is a classic for a reason." 

"Man, I know that already, but you've really gotta try something else. You've only had, like, three of the things on the menu, and two of them were sides! Spread you wings- and your tastebuds." 

"Mmm... no. Tried something different yesterday. No need to today." 

"Gugh... I guess you're right. But I will get revenge for this." 

"Revenge for what?" 

His tone was exasperated, but the small smile on his face spoke of his true feelings. Abe was pretty good at distracting him, huh? 

So the two talked, Sunny elbowing Abe every now and then for a silly comment, before everyone else joined the conversation at Kel's insistence. And then, as the mood returned to the previous jovial one of minutes ago, they all took a right turn down a narrow, shady alley. Taking care to avoid dangling wires, they were greeted with a small clearing with a few buildings. On top of one of the buildings was a large sign that read 'Outback Mack's'. When Sunny and Abe stopped in front of the building, the rest all figured that this was their destination. 

Without further ado, Abe pushed open the door, receiving the ringing of a bell in turn. Beyond the door, a large room that was more on the poorly lit side greeted them. It was seemingly divided into two parts: a restaurant-esque side, with several booths for customers and a marble floor, and a bar side, with a bench complete with stools, a carpet, and a cabinet full of bottles. Standing behind the bench was- 

"Hey, Mack! We're back!" 

-the Outback Mack himself. Clad in a traditional barkeeper's uniform sans the sleeves, he had brown hair swept over his head, giving him a rather large fringe on one side of his face with the other looking almost shaven. With the piercings in his hair and nose, he looked like a delinquent forced to work a high-station job. Which may not necessarily be untrue. 

He looked over. 

"Ah, it's you two... do you guys seriously not have anywhere better to hang out for lunch? Like your houses? Or, you know, preferably somewhere not in a tiny alley?" 

"Well, that's a weird way to talk to your favourite customers. Besides, if we didn't support this place then who would?" 

Abe said with a smirk, arms crossed. Sunny nodded after him, agreeing with the sentiment. Mack just facepalmed. 

"Again with that? I already told you that you don't gotta worry. We get more than enough patronage without you two." 

"Yeah, this mysterious customer that we've never seen before. Uh-huh." 

Mack groaned. Looked like he was legitimately tired of this constant back and forth. 

"Man, whatever... I'm assuming you want the usual? Right, Sunny?" 

Sunny nods and Mack gives a sigh of relief. At least the eyepatch-kid was usually agreeable. Then he looked at the additional four people behind the regular duo and rose a brow. 

"And I'm assuming they're with you?" 

Abe's mouth formed a little 'o' at that before he quickly turned around to look at everyone- who had been waiting on him- then turned back and nodded quickly. Mack sighed once more before gesturing to the tables. 

"Well... take a seat." 

With that, he leaned under the counter, looking for something. Sunny took his shot and led the group to a booth large enough for the six of them. He ended up choosing one of the ones against the wall, the one closest to the entrance. 

Taking the seat against the window, Basil and Kel sat next to him, while Abe sat directly across from him and Aubrey and Hero sat with him. Before any conversation could continue, Mack walked by with a few menus in hand. Laying them on the table, he moved away to go prep Sunny's meal. 

Everyone opened the menu, and... well, they weren't entirely sure what they were expecting from a place called Outback Mack's, but they probably should have expected this. 

"Duuuuude, look at all this meat!" 

"Come on Kel, you need to have some vegetables too." 

"But Heroooo~" 

"I-I'm actually more interested in the garlic bread..." 

"Basil... that's not a meal, that's a side." 

"What... no pizza? What kind of restaurant is this!?" 

"Aubrey... most restaurants don't sell pizza." 

"...they don't?" 

While Hero was corralling his rowdy kids, Abe was uhm-ing and aww-ing over his menu. 

"Oi, Sunny. What should I try? I've already done the burgers, the steaks, the kebabs, and the chicken. That just leaves the whole leg shanks, the stew, and the casserole." 

Sunny tilted his head. None of those were steak, so he didn't think they were all that, but if he had to pick one... 

"Shanks." 

"How did I know you were gonna say that?" 

"Experience." 

After some more conversation, everyone finally submitted their orders to Mack, who had just been standing there with a dead look in his eyes. "Maybe I should be that guy's alter ego..." Bad Omori. 

Once the conversation shifted away from food, it moved on to more general topics. Such as: is there anything to do here? Are there any other friends we don't know about? Do you help Sunny with his mysterious training? And so on. As the questions may have hinted, they were not directed at Sunny himself. Sunny had stopped paying attention as soon as his nose had picked up the scent of his favourite dish. 

Honing in on the clacking of shoe against marble, Sunny turned his head to see Mack stalking over with a plate in hand. And on that plate was the treasure Sunny was fighting for. 

"Here's your steak, Sunny. Bon app-enjoy." 

And, without acknowledging what he said or the dumbstruck looks of the new customers, he turned on his heel and returned from whence he came. But that wasn't important. That was second in comparison to the majesty before him. The beautiful brown form, the full-bodied, meaty aroma, the lightest waft of steam highlighting the contours of its shape... beautiful. And the finishing touch: "Oragnes." No. "Yes." 

"Hey, Sunny. You having fun staring at those oragnes of yours?" 

Oh God no. The worst case scenario was playing out before him. "What are you talking about? This is the best thing that could have happened." 

"Oragnes?" 

Hero asked with a tilted head. There was a familiar feeling to the term, like an unsung gem of a memory. Kel felt it too, close to his heart. Something, something important. Basil and Aubrey were just confused. 

Seeing the confusion (and anger) emanating from his friends new and old, Abe gave a smug smile, all teeth. 

"Oh, you guys don't know?" 

When everyone nodded and Sunny's expression twisted into one that could only be called tortured, Abe's eyes gleamed in a sadistic joy that can only be felt by those who know embarrassing secrets. 

"Well, you see, when we first came here-" 

"He looked at the lemons on his steak, called them oragnes, and then was confused when Abe tried to tell him they were called lemons." 

Mack came in, suddenly silent as the night, bearing plates of food that he loudly clanked onto their table. Everyone jumped in surprise, and even Omori was surprised he hadn't noticed anything. Then Abe started whining. 

"Maaack! I wanted to tell them!" 

"You take too long to tell anything. And you would drag out Sunny's embarrassment way too long. May as well cut to the chase. Anywho, enjoy your meal." 

And this time, he made as much noise as usual as he walked away, leaving everyone to ponder. When Mack disappeared into the kitchen, they all stared for a few seconds more before blankly looking back to their plates. 

It was silent for one beat. 

Then another. 

"Wait, you didn't know what a lemon was?" 

And because of Kel's thoughtless question, the floodgates of blindsided shock were lifted. 

"What do you mean you didn't know what a lemon was!?" 

"Didn't know what it was called." 

"Why not!?" 

"A-Aubrey, I-I'm sure Sunny has a good reason for it... right?" 

"What's a good reason for this!?" 

Sunny could only look away while blushing up a storm. Abe was busting his gut laughing, while Hero was attempting to restrain Aubrey from doing... whatever. Basil was silently fretting, and Kel was just eating away at his... burger? Huh. 

"Aubrey, calm down. The food's gonna get cold if we don't start eating." 

"Eh... ugh. Fine. But we're gonna grill you about this later, got it Sunny?" 

Worst case scenario: achieved. With a slightly narrowed eye and pinched cheeks, Sunny gave a nod before diving back into his steak. The wonder of it all had been somewhat dampened by the embarrassing reveal, but it very quickly regained its glory when Sunny put his all into enjoying it. Taking his fork and knife in hand, he cut the slab of meat into chewable cubes, and went at it.

Sunny became HAPPY!

One cube, then another, then another, faster and faster, countered by the sour taste of the lemon that made it land on the right side of tangy.

Sunny became ECSTATIC!

He could feel the small smile on his face grow as he tore into it, pausing every few minutes to take a sip of water. 

Sunny became MANIC!

When his fork clanked against the porcelain of his plate, he knew he was done. Bowing his head, he clapped his hands together in prayer. Thank you for the food, indeed. "Aren't you meant to do that before a meal?" Too good to waste time praying. 

Bringing his head back up, he noticed everyone but Abe staring at him. Did he do something wrong? 

"Uh... you sure enjoyed that, huh Sunny?" 

Why yes he did, Kel. Sunny nodded his head, a wide smile on his face. Wait... a wide smile? "They're probably creeped out by it." 

Bringing a hand up, Sunny's hand grazed his lips and then his pearly whites. Narrowing his eye, he took a deep breath in through his nose and out through his mouth. 

Sunny CALMED DOWN! 

In the blink of an eye, Sunny's face returned to its natural blank state. Looking back to his friends he tilted his head. 

"Yes I did." 

There was silence as his friends stared at him and he stared back. A familiar tension had returned, and Sunny was getting sick of it. Why did there have to be so many contentious things about him? Why did he have to be so weird? Why did he have to do everything wrong? "Why did you have to kil-" 

"Hey, Sunny. You got some stuff on your face, over here." 

Abe was pointing at his mouth, just below his lips. Did he really make a mess? 

...actually, that kind of tracks with how wild he can be when it came to steak. Huh. 

Grabbing a napkin, he wiped at his mouth, and around his cheeks too just to be safe. Receiving a thumbs up from Abe, Sunny let out a sigh of relief before looking back to his friends. For the most part, it looked like they were all enjoying their meals. Kel was chomping away at his burger, Basil was eating a salad with an empty bread bowl nearby, Aubrey was chipping away at a hot dog, and Hero was curiously trying a different burger to Kel. It would have been a joyous scene to the boy, if not for the absence of small talk. It was a small detail sure, but even in the midst of the grandest meals, they had always had at least one conversation going. 

But... maybe that was just a sign that things were changing. That they were changing. He and Abe never usually spoke while in the process of eating, so... maybe Sunny was the one that had changed? "I don't want to change I want everything to stay the same" 

Blinking away the sudden static, Sunny saw Abe chew away the last bits of meat off of the shank bone. He was nodding to himself, eyes closed and mouth screwed shut as if he were contemplating some great mystery. Resting his head on his hands, Sunny watched as Abe traversed the depths of his mind to find the answer to his question. 

It took a few moments, but eventually Abe snapped his fingers with a smile, eyes springing open in joy. 

"I like it!" 

Sunny gave a smile in return. It was good that Abe had enjoyed himself. Lowering his hand, Abe smiled at Sunny rather pleased. Wonder what was going on in his head... 

"Hey, Sunny. You know what time it is?" 

Raising a brow, Sunny shook his head before palming for his phone. Pulling it out of his pocket, Sunny flipped it open, staring at the numbers on top of the screen. It was... 1:47? Why was that bothering Sunny so much? Wasn't there... something meant to be happening soon? 

Looking back to Abe, he saw a smug grin greet him. Oh God, what was he forgetting? Reluctantly, Sunny turned the phone to Abe. 

"1:47, huh? That should give us... what, an hour and ten minutes? Right?" 

What? An hour and ten minutes until what? An hour and ten minutes... one plus one is two... and forty-seven plus ten is fifty-seven... 2:57? No, no, that's way too specific, especially for Abe. Then, three? What's happening at three? "The hangout." The hangout? Wait... the hangout! 

Sunny quickly nodded his head, his promise from yesterday returning to the forefront.

"Yeah. You ready for this? ...I mean, are you still up for it?" 

Abe's smug smile shrunk a little when he asked Sunny if he were still ready, eyes flicking to the others. Did he... think Sunny would drop him for them? That was... "A completely fair assumption. Anyone can tell how much they meant to u- you." But he made a promise! And he... he wouldn't... 

He wouldn't break a promise. Never again. 

With such a- "foolish"- determination in his heart, Sunny gave Abe a nod, and felt his heart ease at Abe's smile growing to its original size. Although, thinking of his friends... 

"U-um... are you two doing s-something later?" 

There we go. Turning, Sunny saw Basil looking between the two of them, blue eyes calm but mouth screwed up. Looking a little to the left showed that everyone else was looking at them too. This was honestly getting a little repetitive... 

"U-Uh, yeah! Me and Sunny were gonna go to a place I had found recently, but, uh, I wasn't sure if we still would with you guys here. Actually, do you guys want to come with?" 

Before Kel or Aubrey could say anything rash, Hero, ever the peacekeeper, came in.

"Ah, we don't want to impose or anything-" 

And he was easily cut off by yet another relatively boisterous kid. 

"Don't worry about it! Besides, it's the kind of thing that's better the more people you have." 

"Then we'd love to come!" 

Ah, there he was. The real sun of the group. 

"I-I'd like to come too... if that's alright." 

"Well, if you don't mind... then I'm sure we'd be glad to come." 

"Yeah, I'll come. Better not be anything lame, though." 

"Awesome!" 

Abe pumped his fist, smile as wide as Sunny had ever seen it. Everyone else was smiling too, even Aubrey despite her dismissive words. It was... nice. It felt like the peace that had been lost was restored for the moment. 

And, as was part of his oblivious charm, Kel decided to move the group past the moment. 

"So, what are we doing?" 

"Oh, we're gonna do karaoke." 

What. "Wait." What? "Wait!" What!? 

"Huh? Karaoke... that's like singing, right?" 

Damn you and your practically shameless demeanour, Kel! 

Hero was looking away with a bead of sweat rolling down his cheek, Basil was paying extremely close attention to a napkin that he was holding tightly between his hands while he went pale, and Aubrey was looking around panicked as her face went pink. 

Suddenly, Sunny had a bad feeling for their outing. Or, he would, if he wasn't still working through the fact that he had, unknowingly, agreed to do karaoke. If he did karaoke, then wouldn't that mean he had to sing? He had barely even begun talking consistently, let alone try singing! He was so screwed. So screwed! 

"Yeah, it is! And they have snacks and drinks, and the music was really good! Or it sounded like, at least." 

"That sounds... awesome! Can't wait! Right guys!?" 

Kel looked at the three, and they looked at him in turn. Hero shot him a nervous smile, Basil looked at him with his mouth open in a silent scream, and Aubrey was just glaring at him. 

"Well, Kel, I-" 

"U-Uh, I, I don'-" 

"Kel, I swear to-" 

Kel just smiled at them as bright as usual, and Abe joined in, intensifying the sun rays. Sunny was starting to return to motion, although he still looked like he was in shock. Eventually, the three gave in. 

"...right, Kel." 

"Y-Yeah..." 

"...whatever." 

Content with their answers, Kel sat back and finished demolishing his burger. Conversation started to flow, first between Kel and Abe complimenting their meals and Abe offering recommendations, then Kel and Hero on comparing their burgers once Hero finished. It continued, Hero asking Aubrey and Basil how their meals were, Aubrey and Kel arguing about hotdogs and burgers, and even Sunny getting roped into conversations. Talking about his meal with Basil, trying to play neutral between Kel and Aubrey's war while fighting the desire to make it a three-way battle with steak as his flag, sighing exasperatedly with Hero, and talking about karaoke with Abe. 

Eventually, Mack showed up, raising a brow at the six. Hands on his hips, the rhythmic tapping of his shoe on the marble drew their attention. 

"You ready to pay?" 

Straightforward as always. Reaching for his wallet, Sunny paused when he saw Abe reach to do the same. Hero too. The three stared at each other in a three-way Texan draw, prepared to unsheath and fire their wallet-revolvers first. Aubrey and Basil just watched with a frown, while Kel was tilting his head, completely clueless. With a sigh, Mack decided to get this over with. 

"$49.90." 

Sunny flinched at that. He didn't have that much money, and a glance at Hero and Abe showed they probably didn't either. But still, Sunny was- "Just split the bill." Huh? 

"Just split the bill. You're gonna have to anyway to pay for it, so you might as well make it easy. Besides, you could always pay back the difference later." 

...this is weird. This is weird. Omori's being weird. He's not meant to be helpful. "Hey, I'm the most helpful part of this trash heap of a person." There it is. Whatever, Sunny would take any reprieve he can get. Even if the guilt seemed to nip at the back of his mind. 

"Let's split it." 

Both turned to stare at him, eyes wide. Whatever they were thinking was lost to him, because they both agreed to it almost immediately after. With a shaky breath, Sunny took out the twenty-dollar bill he got earlier, the thug's terrified visage flashing in mind for a moment, then handed it to Mack. Abe quickly followed up with his own ten, leaving Hero wincing as he completed the sum with his own twenty. Mack flicked through each note, nodded, then power-walked over to his register. 

It was hardly a blink later when he popped on back, holding out a ten-cent coin towards... Hero. And before Hero could reject the coin, Mack forced it into his hand and then shot him a meaningful look, one Sunny could only interpret as... understanding? 

Rude. 

When he walked away again, this time waiting at the bar for them to go, they all finished their drinks. Sunny's glass of water was already done, as was Basil's. Abe drank what was left of the Orange Joe in his can, while Kel began skulling his. Aubrey saw that and, feeling her competitive spirit burn, began to chug her own cup of water. Hero just chuckled awkwardly, draining away the rest of his own. 

With a sigh of relief, Kel slammed down the now empty can, wiping off some of the stray Devil's brew that had been left on his lip. Aubrey followed soon after, looking worse for wear. Water sickness, am I right? 

"Haa~ Man, it's been so long since I last got some fresh Orange Joe. I can't believe they sell it here!" 

Abe chuckled at that, while Aubrey just groaned out a much meaner-intending agreement. 

"Yeah, I heard. Sunny sure likes to talk about you guys." And, before anyone could respond to that, Abe leaned in and began whispering, glancing at Mack with a silly smile. "But between you and me, I think Mack keeps the Orange Joe stocked because he likes me so much." 

Seeing Abe send him a silly smile, Mack just sighed, knowing the kid was saying something stupid about him. 

After Aubrey got over her water sickness, featuring Basil fretting over her and Hero just telling her not to do it again, the group began to wander out of the restaurant, giving Mack their thanks. He just nodded, and sent them off with a "See ya-nara." Shaking off the strangeness, the group exited the building, taking in a deep breath of the much warmer air outside. 

The sky was still blue, and it was still just before 2. They still had an hour to burn, not counting the time needed to get to the karaoke place. So, what now? 

"So, where are we going now? Do you guys have anything you wanna do before 3?" 

Thank you Abe. 

"We still need to visit a convenience store for some sleeping bags and the like." 

Abe cocked an eyebrow. 

"Sleeping bags? Wouldn't you have already packed stuff like that?" 

Kel looked away and whistled innocently, while everyone else just looked at him. With a sigh, Hero looked back to Abe and decided to forestall that conversation. 

"Long story." 

"...right. Well, if you need sleeping bags and stuff, the general store is your best bet. It should be in the North District." 

"Right," then the ever-charming Hero turned to Sunny and smiled. "Lead the way, Sunny." 

Bold of you to assume Sunny even knows where that is. Ah, but luckily for you, Sunny does actually know where that is. So with a small smile, Sunny nodded and turned towards whence the group came. 

With the nostalgic chatter of everyone behind him, the wonderful steak settled in his stomach, and his precious friends by his side, he felt like he could smile a little wider. 

Despite the rough patches, today was shaping up to be a good day.

Chapter Text

You let out a yawn as you wait in the pleasant chill of the general store. You were half-watching everyone pick out sleeping bags from one of the many, many aisles within the store. You never really thought you would ever see a place that was larger than Othermart sans school buildings, but here we were. Well, technically that's not true, since this place also fell under the Othermart banner, but the point still stood. 

Abe was sitting next to you, barely holding back his laughter as he watched Kel complain loudly about the lack of orange sleeping bags. Apparently, orange wasn't a popular colour or something, since there were dark blue ones, dark green ones, and pink ones. Aubrey was acting very smug that her favourite colour was there, while Basil and Hero were trying to console and convince him to just buy a sleeping bag already, respectively. 

After eventually taming the tall whiny child-boy-man known commonly as Kel and convincing him to make do with a dark blue one ("Us brothers gotta stick together, y'know?"), attached to the caveat that he gets an orange blanket, you all went around and started exploring the rest of the Othermart. There was, of course, the grocery part, with a butcher, a bakery, and all the fruit and cold food aisles. No candy store, lamely, and the pharmacy was much smaller. 

Of course, to make up for this was the general store section that you were in. It was maybe about the same size as the grocery section, with just as many stalls. There was a small clothes shop, a souvenir store, a... make-up shop? All sorts of stuff. You guys were specifically coming out of a camping supply store. One 'CHF'... no clue what that stands for... 

Whenever you met a new person, you couldn't help but wonder what bizarre misadventures they would send you on. Bold of you to assume they would ask you specifically to do it, but even I can recognise a pattern. Just a matter of time... I'm really not looking forward to whatever the Makeover Man was planning... 

When you all went to pay for the sleeping bags, an upset in the form of Kel, Basil, and Aubrey pulling out their own wallets occurred. For an instant, indignation flared, but was immediately tamped down by self-loathing and the fact that it should be your own responsibility to treat them when you're the one taking them to lunch. Abe, however, had no such reservations, and asked without hesitation. The answer was simply... 

"Well, you guys pulled out your wallets so fast that I couldn't really keep up, hehe..." 

"I-I wanted t-to, but there wasn't any time..." 

"Well excuse me for not being as fast on the draw." 

Evidently, patience is a virtue. Just like I always preached. that wasn't patience, that was Sloth what are you waiting for, OMORI 

So after some grumbling from Abe, the bags were paid for, about $10 a bag. What a steal. 

With the bags in... bags, in hand, you all began your trek out the store, Hero and Aubrey keeping Kel on a no-wandering leash. You would have laughed about it, if not for the fact Abe put his arm around your shoulder in such a way that stopped you from walking off without much effort. I, on the other hand, can laugh about it as much as I want. 

Ha. 

Huffing at my magnanimous laughter, you pulled out your phone to check the time, ignoring the perfectly good clock at the top of the wall. 2:30, still half an hour before you should get there. Not sure how flexible that is since you're already spending time with Abe beforehand, but it would still be a good thing to arrive on time. 

Stepping past the sliding doors and hearing the ding of the person alarm, you took a breath, feeling the sudden rise in temperature like a blow to the body. Abe took his hand off your shoulders to stretch, and everyone else seemed to release a sigh at being outside once more. You turn to everyone, and open your mouth to ask what you should all do now. 

Then you felt someone bump into you, a clipped sorry, and then that person ran away from you, down the road towards Center Street. His figure was indistinct, but the white dress shirt and shaggy brown hair at least stood out. Shaking it off, you went to turn back to your friends, but... 

Something feels wrong. Like... you feel less inhibited? It's... easier to move? Shifting your leg, I could feel that it was... lighter. The pocket wasn't bulging. Wait... 

"Your wallet was just stolen."

"Your wallet was just stolen." 

Sunny paused before patting his pocket. Empty. He looked left and right before focusing on the now-distant figure that had bumped into him. 

Substory 05: Running in the '00s 

"Fuck." 

"Sunny!?" 

He didn't pay attention to that, instead immediately making tracks down the road. The distance began to shrink as the wind whipped through his hair and his newly sweaty forehead. The civilians he passed by were second to his goal, their shocked faces merely a part of the winding brown and grey tapestry they were surrounded by. 

Not that he was running into them, mind you. He was making sure to slide past or sometimes through them, the concrete beating its texture into his shoes once again. For a moment, he was consciously grateful to the hellish training Komaki had made him do. Having to run for an hour straight, with added weights and time that increased as he got better, was a frankly traumatising experience that would find a home in Black Space. 

And then he heard running coming from behind him, and those grateful thoughts were shoved back into the corner of his awareness they came from. 

"Hey! Sunny! Why are you running!?" 

"Yeah man! Where's the fire!?" 

Kel and Abe quickly made it to his sides, barely puffing. Damn the athletically-minded... Shaking off the envy and the sudden conscious sensation of air entering and exiting his nostrils, he tried to explain. 

"That guy... stole... my wallet..." 

He pointed as he ran, trying to adjust for the sudden imbalance to his tempo. Kel and Abe looked ahead, seeing the guy in the white shirt slowing down. This was their chance! Sunny took in a deep breath, and- 

"Hm? That guy? Wait... he's the one that bumped into you! Hey! You, in the white shirt! Give Sunny back his wallet!!" 

-let it out in a huff as the guy turned around, flinching at the three varyingly intimidating people running right at him before turning back and upping the pace... Damn it, Kel. 

"We almost had him Kel, c'mon." 

"Hehe. Sorry." 

"It's... fine... just... get him..." 

"Right!" 

And then Kel, nodding with a confident smile, turns to the thief and begins running even faster, easily outpacing Sunny and Abe. It really did feel like someone was kicking Sunny in his pride. That you, Omori? "Haven't found it yet, but I will when I do." 

Then Abe turned to Sunny, giving him a teasing smirk. 

"Well, guess I'll see you when we catch that guy." 

Then he also sped up, outpacing Sunny but not quite keeping pace with Kel. Leaving Sunny at the tail end of it. All alone. 

"Well. This is depressing." 

Sunny became SAD. 

"Alright, don't need to be so dramatic." 

Feeling like the world was starting to be coated in a thin layer of molasses, Sunny noticed how the streets had become less populous as they neared the school. There were less obstacles in the way, but that meant there were now more ways for the thief to go. Not wanting to give him the opportunity, Sunny looked for anything he could use.

And lo and behold, in sync with the hooting and hollering of, presumably, the soccer club practicing over the summer, a soccer ball shot out from above the school fence, right towards him.

He took a deep breath. Screwing his dead eye shut, he stared hard at the ball with his good eye. He ignored everything beyond the ball and where the ball was going to land.

Sunny FOCUSED.

As the ball slowly fell and approached, inch by inch, Sunny positioned himself. He stalled a step to line up his body with the newfound weapon. And, moments before it hit the floor…

“Duck!”

He kicked the ball, sending it in a straight shot for the guy in white. At his call, Abe immediately dropped, letting the ball fly inches above his head, while Kel turned around at the call and stumbled to try and dodge. This left the shot clear.

“AH!”

With a loud thunk, the soccer ball smacked against the back of the thief’s head, throwing off his balance enough to make him stumble. This stumble led into a trip, which led into a tumble, which led to the guy falling to the floor with another cry. 

Steadying himself, Sunny ran the remaining distance, followed by Abe who had just stood. Kel took a few moments to get back to his feet, and by that point the thief was already surrounded by Sunny and Abe. 

"Ngh..." 

The thief had managed to pull themselves up to their knees, cradling their hands. Probably scraped them in the fall. Being this close, Sunny could see his face. He... looked rather handsome, actually. No Hero, but certainly someone appreciably nice to look at. Actually, his attire made him think of The Maverick, which... not a good thing, per se. No offence, Mikhael. 

"Hey, you! Why'd you steal from Sunny!?" 

The thief shifted his view from his hands to Kel, a glare on his face. 

"Huh? The hell are you talking about? All I know is you guys started chasing after me, and now my hands are all scraped up. How are you going to fix this!?" 

Kel stumbled at the situation suddenly being turned back on them. He believed Sunny 100%, but... well, he didn't actually know for certain. And he really didn't want to spend any more money... 

"Come on... listen, do you recognise this guy?" 

Abe came in to redirect the conversation, putting one hand in his jacket pocket and throwing the other over his shoulder, thumb pointing at Sunny. The thief sneered, following his thumb to Sunny. He stared for a moment before looking back at Abe. 

"Nope, not at all. Now how about you-" 

"Are you sure you don't recognise him? You bumped into him earlier." 

He raises a brow. "Huh?" Looks back at Sunny again, then nods slowly, sneer melting a tad to make place for a frown. 

"Oh yeah, that guy. Hey, I already said I was sorry, but that doesn't mean-" 

"Yeah, and when you bumped into him he had lost something, so if you could just give it to us-" 

"Damn it asshole, listen! I didn't steal his wallet! Now get on your knees and beg for forgiveness before I call the cops on you for assault!" 

The three stood there while the thief was clenching his fists with a sneer, slowly pushing himself onto his feet. Kel was sweating, unsure of how to deal. Even in the occasional brawl with the Hooligang, there was always a mutual understanding that this was between them, no cops needed. Actually, the cops were pretty under-utilized in Faraway... So, what should they do? Apologize? Buy his silence? Beat him up? Kel didn't know, and the possibilities in his mind were becoming less and less realistic, and more and more desperate. Maybe they shou- 

"Who said it was my wallet?" 

Kel and the thief blinked, looking at the quiet swordsman confused. Abe just stood quietly, face neutral. Sunny tilted his head. 

"I said, who said it was my wallet that was stolen? How would you know?" 

The thief flinched back, stepping away. Sunny, in turn, took a step forward. He stuck his hand out, palm upwards. The thief looked between him and his hand. 

"Give it back." 

The thief kept looking back and forth, back and forth, growing more and more visibly irate with each pass. His sneer became grit teeth and a glare, his hands clenched. One of his hands was inching towards his pocket. He was clearly nearing a decision. 

Sunny beckoned with his hand. 

"Graaah! Like hell you bastard!" 

The thief shoved his hand into his pocket and then brought it out with something glinting on it. He stepped forward and swung out his shining fist in an... amateurish manner. "Not that you have much room to talk." Hey, street fighting is a perfectly respectable way to learn. Speaking of... 

Sunny stepped back out of the way of the strike. He was wary at the thought of having to fight someone else with a weapon, but he figured practice would make perfect. He put up his fists and spaced his feet, not having the time to draw. Abe and even Kel followed suit, although Kel's was much less composed. 

Thief approached! 

Sunny used the Rose STYLE! 

Thief became ANGRY! 

The thief grit his teeth at the miss and followed up with another blow from the same fist. With a slight red aura, he swung with a backfist towards Sunny's head. 

It was a MOVING ATTACK! SUNNY lost 20 HEART and 5 HEAT! 

Unlike the first blow, Sunny couldn't truly dodge the second. He moved his head back, but the weapon on the thief's hand- a knuckle duster, now that he's properly looking at it- still clipped his nose, making his head flinch to the side and leaving a stinging ache. 

"Hey!" 

Kel became ANGRY! 

Jumping forward, Kel stopped the thief from continuing his attacks with one of his own. While he wasn't the heaviest hitter, he was the heaviest. Shoulder-checking the thief, Kel pushed him away with a grunt. The thief clutched his chest where Kel's shoulder struck, while Sunny took a moment to rub away the blood that had started to gather on his face. As the thief was distracted, Sunny decided to get a minor amount of payback. 

He moved in, the molasses covering the world making his movements feel stiffer than usual. In three steps that felt like they took too long, he reached his target, and with a thrust that felt like it lacked the force it should have held, he struck the thief's stomach. 

The thief grunted, falling back a step and clutching his stomach. Even through his wince he was gnashing his teeth, ready to bash Sunny's head in. Of course, had he paid more attention to the biggest threat rather than little ol' Sunny, he might have prolonged the fight a little while. As it were, he was caught unawares when Abe's chambered fist launched right into his face, knocking him right onto his back. 

Thief was KNOCKED DOWN! 

He was on the floor, choking out screams while grabbing onto his gushing nose. Kel flinched at the screams, while Sunny and Abe just walked forward, prepared to end it. Although... seeing him squirm around on the floor, he did seem pretty pathetic. They paused for a moment. 

In that moment, another pair of footsteps joined them. With laboured breathing, the person stopped next to Kel, pink hair starting to stick to her forehead. 

"W... What... what the h... hell, guys...? Why'd... why'd ya run away...?" 

The trio turned over to Aubrey, taking a more relaxed stance. Kel let out a short breath before smiling again. 

"Hey Aubrey! Finally caught up, huh? Are Hero and Basil far behind you?" 

Aubrey looked up from her hunched over stance with a glare, generally weakened by the sweat on her face. 

"K... Kel, you... dick..." 

She gave a few more puffs, took a few more deep breaths, then stood upright while wiping the sweat from her face. She looked at the three, noticing Kel's slightly shaky smile and the blood on Sunny's nose. She bit her lip before moving towards the two of them. 

"Are you two..." 

Then she noticed the guy in white with a hand over his face, curled up on the floor near a small puddle of blood. 

"...are any of you okay?" 

Kel gave a chuckle that was almost believable while Abe huffed out his nose. Sunny just gave a thumbs up with the hand that had some of his blood on it. "How reassuring." Aubrey just sighed before putting her hands in her pockets. 

"So, what were you chasing him for, anyway? Had to be something serious if Sunny of all people swore." 

Kel and Abe perked up at that, their expressions becoming more genuine. Before they could snicker or start cracking jokes about it, Sunny decided to set it straight. "Coward." 

"He stole my wallet." 

Aubrey's expression became understanding, nodding once or twice. Then she took on her threatening smirk, stepping past the trio towards the downed thief. As she neared him, she began cracking her knuckles, slowly, one at a time. Truly a master of intimidation. Even Abe was sweating at the image. When she was over him, she leaned down and grabbed him by the lapel, hoisting him upwards. 

He came up quickly, with a groan and a stumble. His head was bowed down and one of his hands were closed, but he was otherwise docile. Aubrey decided to give him a little shake. 

"Hey, punk. I heard you stole my friend's wallet. You got anything to say about that?" 

While Sunny was personally warmed that she would call him a friend, the thief seemed unaffected, slumping silently with blood slowly leaking from his nose. Aubrey seemed distinctly unamused, shaking him harder. 

"Oi. I know you're awake, so cough it up. Unless you want me to do even worse to you than these guys." 

"Bet." Do not. 

She shook him even harder, and then he whispered something, quiet enough that not even Aubrey right next to him could understand. 

"What was that?" 

"I said..." 

He still had the knuckle duster on. 

"...fuck off you bastards!" 

Aubrey was doubled over, grasping her stomach where a bruise was no doubt forming. The thief took a few steps back, wiping his bloody face and cackling. The blood and the sneer twisting his face, and the cackles that made the hair raise on their arms... yeah, not so handsome now. When his laughter petered out, he began to speak once more. 

"-hahaha... haha... ha... now... Now I'll make you guys pay! Isn't that right, everybody!?" 

In the time it took for his laughing fit to subside, the trio had pulled Aubrey away, Kel checking on her while Sunny and Abe stood guard. Sunny brought his hand up and quietly unzipped his bag, resting his hand on the wrapped handle. But it was as he was finished talking that the true problem arrived. 

"Oi, Jean. Are these the punks giving you trouble?" 

The voice came from behind the thief, Jean. Somehow beyond anyone's notice, four more figures had walked up, all looking much more intimidating than the thief. This intimidation wasn't a matter of expression or action. Rather, this was a more simple intimidation to understand, one Sunny and Kel were used to seeing and Aubrey was used to using. 

With a bat over his shoulders, a boy wearing an unzipped black hoodie walked up next to Jean. The three more plain looking grunts following him lined up behind, hands in pockets concealing potentially more danger. 

"Yeah, that's right... so let's beat 'em up and take everything they have!" 

Jean's hands were poised like claws, clenching a phone in one hand and his knuckle duster poised over the other. His face was still twisted by an uncomfortable madness, and even his ally seemed put off. Said ally sighed before turning to Jean, trying to look him in the eye. 

"D'you at least have the score?" 

"Tch. Yeah I've got it, you greedy fuck. Here!" 

Jean shoved his hand with his phone into his pocket, and then withdrew it with just Sunny's wallet. Good to know this wasn't all based on a misunderstanding. "You would doubt m-" Yes. Regardless, Jean tossed the wallet to his ally, who seemed less than amused at Jean's remarks but grabbed the wallet regardless. He opened it, and leafed through it for a moment before pausing.

"...Jean, the wallet's empty." 

What? 

"W... What do you mean, the wallet's empty!?" 

"I mean, there's no money in the wallet. No bank card either. Not even any coupons. You sure you didn't just grab a new wallet off of a shelf?" 

"Of course, I'm sure! I- you! You, with the eyepatch! What the hell!?" 

Sunny instinctively put his hands up, palms facing forward. Listen, he didn't have a lot of use for it, okay? 

"I spent all my money on lunch." He lied as easily as he breathed. 

"Not even any change!? Come on, you don't even have an ID! The hell!?" 

Sunny could only shrug at that. He didn't really need any for anything, and he ain't driving. And he memorizes all the numbers for his workplaces anyways. He was still wondering why the other guy had lied. He should still have the $10 from yesterday. 

"...Jean, if we're not getting paid, we'll just go." 

"You can't go! Not until I've made these bastards pay for my nose and my shirt!" 

The man with the baseball bat blankly stared at Jean, before sighing. Snapping his fingers, he spoke in a confident voice. 

"Ricky." 

One of the three goons behind him walked forward. With nothing much to him other than blonde hair and a piercing, he stood with one hand in his pocket and the other resting on his hip. 

"Yeah, boss?" 

"Help Jean out with these guys. Don't go too far." 

"You got it, boss." 

Nodding, he began to walk off, the other two grunts following after. Ricky took his hand out of his pocket, wearing a brown glove that was holding another glove. He slipped the other glove on his free hand, then brought them up in a stance, the left clenched loosely and hovering in front of his face with the palm facing forward, and the right held by his waist in a tight fist. 

"Hey! Where are you going!? You can't just leave, I'm your boss!" 

"You're not my boss. We were told to collaborate on your racket, and so we have been. If you're not earning any money from your racket, then we're done here. Be happy that I'm at least leaving you Ricky." 

"A-I-Yo- GAH! Fine! But, when we're done here, I'm going to tell The Boss! So you better be ready!" 

"Yeah, yeah, I will. Good luck." 

And he finally left. Jean spent a few more moments grumbling while Ricky held his stance. But he still looked... bored. Aubrey had gotten her bearings midway through Jean and his ally's argument, and was now gnashing at the bit to get vengeance. Kel was looking worried, forehead wrinkling as he considered what to do. Abe had taken his own stance, and Sunny had finally drawn his blade, just as ready. 

"Phah! Whatever!" He turns to the gathered friends, bringing his armed arm up. "Ricky, you take care of the eyepatch kid and the blondie! I'll take pinky and the tall guy. Understand!?" 

"Mm." Ricky silently nodded, putting a slight distance between. In comparison, the friends grouped up, not willing to let themselves get split up so easily. 

"So... what should we do?" Kel asked as he reluctantly brought his fists up, not exactly overjoyed at the thought of more fighting with weapons. 

"Beat them the hell up, obviously." Aubrey was clenching her fists hard enough that bleeding was a viable concern, scowl on her face. The red was practically leaking out of her. 

"No, but I mean in specifics? Like-" 

Rickey struck. He ran forward, right arm still low and left arm still high. When he was in front of Abe, caught off guard by the sudden assault, he dropped his left arm to go for a big sweeping blow to the face with his right. His feet stirred up dust against the concrete, and Abe couldn't avoid the blow, moving with the strike and towards the floor. He caught himself and threw a retaliatory punch against the off-balance Rickey. 

It struck under the ribs, and Ricky let out a gasp before jumping back, hurriedly taking up his stance. Before he could- 

Sunny used Gladiolus STYLE! 

Sunny swung his katana down in a curve, clipping Rickey' shoulder and throwing him further off balance. Instead of pressing the attack, he put a hand on Abe's shoulder, helping him get steady. Abe huffed before giving Sunny a nod, which he accepted by letting go of his shoulder and grabbing the sword again. 

Ricky took the opportunity to steady himself, once more taking his stance. This time he attacked Sunny. Instead of going for a sweeping right, he stopped in front of Sunny, brought his left arm behind his head pointing upwards, and thrust his right towards Sunny's stomach. Sunny stepped back but the strike was too fast, so he hastily erected a guard with his blade's hilt. Ricky's fist struck the hilt and forced it into Sunny's stomach, making him wheeze. 

SUNNY lost 20 HEART and 5 HEAT! 

Despite the defence buff, this guy hit just as hard as Jean did with type advantage! This was... dangerous.

But, of course, all actions have an equal and opposite reaction. While the stance he finished in this time left Ricky stable, that didn't mean he wasn't in the jaws of a wild beast. 

"Ha!" 

Abe threw his fist forward in a blow that likely rivals Ricky's own. The pierced blond was sent swaying, his feet shifting to accommodate and leaving him compromised. Sunny took the opportunity to hold his sword defensively, one hand on the hilt and the other along the blade, ready to catch any errant blows. 

Sunny GUARDED! 

Ricky took the time to shake off the blow and enter his stance again. And when he rushed, Sunny was ready for it. As he skid to a stop, he threw his right arm forward- 

"Wha-" 

-landing his palm on Abe's chest, before pulling his right arm back and throwing forward his left fist instead, hitting Abe right in the jaw. This time, Abe was sent turning with no response. 

Abe was STUNNED! 

Abe couldn't focus for the moment, leaving Sunny to bring the pain. But, he was thinking. Why did Ricky go past him? Sunny was closer, so why wouldn't he capitalize on that? Was he trying to throw them off, or- 

"What if it's like a Punishing Move?" 

Sunny paused. If that was the case, then... 

Sunny used KOMAKI STYLE! 

He brought his blade over his shoulder and waited, while Abe shook his head to get past the ringing. Ricky's gaze never wavered from Abe. 

"Try and dodge this one, Abe..." 

Abe threw him a raised eyebrow, before nodding and spreading his legs a bit further apart, opening his closed fists. Ricky didn't even blink as he rushed forward, sliding his feet as he threw his right fist in a sweeping blow just like the first. Abe rocked back on his heels, pushing off of them and leaving enough distance between his face and Ricky's fist to just barely be considered not touching. 

Ricky's eyes widened at the miss, but went even further when he felt something crack against the top of his head hard enough to knock him over, the precarious balance his sweeping strike leaves him in screwing him over. He fell to his hands and knees, unable to defend. 

Ricky was DOWNED! 

Sunny nodded at Abe, who nodded in turn and strolled up. In front of Ricky, he swung his leg back, making him lean forward parallel to the ground, then brought his leg upwards fast enough that Sunny registered it as a blur, knocking into the bottom of Ricky's jaw and throwing him backwards. He flew back in a heap, groaning. Before either of Komaki's students could relax, Ricky slowly raised himself up, jaw slack and breaths heavy. Slowly, he brought himself back into his stance. 

His bored countenance had become replaced by sweat and a narrowed gaze. His flat mouth had curled slightly in a frown. To Sunny's eyes, it was like he had been encompassed in an aura of green. This was... 

Ricky became IMPATIENT! He can no longer change EMOTIONS! 

At a noticeably slower pace than previously, Ricky went for Abe once again. As if in a pattern, he once more went for his right arm thrust to the stomach, which Abe had sidestepped with much more room than previously. But when Ricky hopped towards him, aiming his right fist upwards and shifting his left arm to be parallel to the ground, he wasn't as prepared. Ricky's right arm bashed into Abe's chest, pushing him back but not off balance.  

Sunny still had two free strikes left. 

Operating under the assumption that his damage wouldn't be majorly affected if he went in a different direction, Sunny swung his weapon from right to left, sliding underneath Ricky's outstretched left arm and directly into his ribs. Ricky incidentally took a step closer to Abe, turning just so to expose himself to Abe's own surprise strike. The blow turned Ricky even further, like clock hands succumbing to gravity. 

The only warning either got was that Ricky's fists had clenched, and that to Sunny the green aura had become stronger. 

Ricky became RESTLESS! 

In what was a much sloppier attack than anything else he had done, Ricky had swung a backfist with his left at Abe, which glanced off of a hastily erected block. Instead of stopping there, Ricky spun a whole 360 degrees to his right, bringing his right arm to bear in a backfist that blew right through Abe's guard and knocked him to his knee. 

Abe was STUNNED! 

Ricky was leaning on his right leg, breathing heavily. His fists were shaking a little. Sunny could see the sweat on the back of his neck. 

He struck. 

The downward strike caught on Ricky's shoulder, bringing him down onto both knees while cradling his assaulted limb. 

Ricky was DOWNED! 

This was dragging on for too long... Sunny was doing good on HEART but Abe was doubtless running low. And there weren't any healing ITEMS floating about... if only he could deal more damage... 

"I might have something." 

As Abe was slowly pushing himself up to his feet, Sunny was curious. He wanted to hear Omori's plan, as weird as that is to consider currently. "I'm glad you decided to see reason." Gloat later. The plan? "Give me a moment." 

OMORI used ENRAGE! 

"Are you really going to let these fools get the best of you? You need to make them pay for hurting Aubrey like that. Crush them." 

Sunny became ANGRY! 

At the thought, Sunny felt his fists clenching tighter to the wrappings, his brows furrowing as his teeth showed in a grimace. This was... "Exactly what you need. We can discuss this later. Go." 

"Abe... let's finish him off." 

Abe shot him a look, peeking past the fuzz in his thoughts to look concerned at Sunny's sudden change in emotion. Sunny just looked back, waiting. Eventually, Abe nodded and straightened up. Approaching Ricky, he watched as Sunny stalked behind him, shifting his weapon into his right hand and leaving his left free. Then, with a grunt and a pull, it begun. 

Sunny used ROSE STYLE! 

Abe FOLLOWED-UP! 

When Ricky was pulled to his feet, Abe socked him with a right to the jaw. Ricky stumbled, but before he could regain his balance, Sunny chained with a one-handed swing of his katana upward into Ricky's jaw, throwing his head up and his body back. Standing on shaky legs, he couldn't do a thing as the two struck as one, Sunny striking him in the knees with his blade from the right while Abe struck him in the jaw from the left. 

With that, Ricky crumbled to the floor. He was heavily bruised and shaking all over. Without a doubt, he would not get up again. 

As soon as Sunny and Abe understood that, they both immediately relaxed. Their shoulders loosened and their hands slackened, but they were interrupted by a yell before they could truly finish. 

"Take this!" 

A meaty thunk resounded. Looking over, they only saw a pink comet striking against the face of the attempted thief, Jean. Nearly forgot about him. As long as he was up, the fight wasn't over. The duo prepared to trudge over, but Sunny put his hand on Abe's shoulder first. Abe looked over. 

"Rest. You took too many hits." 

"What? This? This is nothing. C’mon, we gotta help them." 

Sunny shook his head at Abe's insistence to continue. There were no ITEMS that could be used to revive the fallen here, no LIFE JAM to un-TOAST his allies. This time, Sunny squeezed his shoulder, tight enough to make Abe wince. 

"Stay. Please." 

Abe looked like he was going to argue the point again, before slowly deflating with a wince. Then he nodded. 

"Fine. But if you need help, I'll be here." 

Sunny nodded before trailing forward. Before joining the fight, Sunny took in a deep breath, holding it for a moment before letting it out. 

Sunny CALMED DOWN! 

SUNNY recovered 40 HEART! 

Sunny became NEUTRAL! 

Feeling as good as he could at the moment, Sunny affixed his attention to the other altercation, looking for a point to insert his own tempo. 

Jean was clutching his nose once more, even more red joining with the red aura that was more intense than Sunny remembered. A look to the left showed Aubrey clutching her head with a scowl, her own red aura still simmering. Kel was standing just behind her, a worried frown on his face and the soccer ball Sunny had kicked between his hands... they should probably give that back later. It looked like Jean was just getting over having his nose broken again, and if Sunny remembered right, Aubrey was slower than Kel, so... 

"Grrr! I'll make you pay for giving me another nosebleed! Haaaar-" 

"Pardon." 

As Jean went to rush Aubrey and Kel, Sunny got in between them and, before Jean could stop himself, brought his sword up at neck height, forming an effective clothesline. Evidently, the thief was no good at limbo since he ran right into the blade, chopping himself into the neck and forcing himself to fall feet over head on his back.

Jean was rolling on the ground, hands clutching at his throat as he choked out screams... yeah, that's not something to watch. Looking back at Aubrey and Kel, he saw how they relaxed slightly. Kel gave him a smile. 

"Sunny!" 

"Kel." 

Kel began to walk over, soccer ball clutched between his hands. Reaching Sunny, he took one hand off the ball to wrap it around Sunny's shoulders, bringing him in for a short, and sweaty, hug. Bleh. His thoughts must have shown on his face, since Kel immediately let go with a chuckle. 

"Hehe. Sorry, Sunny. So, where's Abe?" 

Sunny tossed his hand over his shoulder, thumb pointing at Abe who was, evidently, sitting on the concrete next to Ricky. Kel waved, and Abe threw back a two-fingered salute. 

"Ugh... so, you guys won, huh? I think we did a pretty good job here, too." 

Looking back to Aubrey, Sunny could see that she had a few bruises forming on her face and arms, and her hair had become frizzy. Her bandana was out of position as well. At least she seemed to be over whatever self-induced concussion she had been in. Sunny gave Aubrey a thumbs up, and an A+ for effort. 

"Gugh-ugh... you..." 

Oh yeah. Forgot again. Looking to the floor, Sunny saw Jean glaring back, shakily leaning off of the floor. Sunny raised a brow. 

"You... won't get away with this... do you know... who I am...? Who I work for?" 

Sunny's other brow raised at that. That sounded... dramatic. He shook his head. Jean's eyes opened a bit wider at the admission, but it was quickly hidden by a chuckle that sounded uncomfortably dry. 

"Ha. You don't... even know...? Oh... what a joke... well get ready... cause we'll... get... our... re... venge..." 

His body slumped to the floor, his head following suit. Luckily, he hadn't hit the floor hard. But Sunny was caught on what he had said. Who he is? Who he works for? Revenge? It sounded like a joke. But if he was serious... then bad would be an understatement. And it would be his fault. 

Sunny's hands immediately clenched at that, but he shook it off. He could loathe later, he had to check on everyone right now. He decided to start right there. 

"Kel? Aubrey? Are you okay?" 

They both whipped to look at him with wide eyes. What? Was it that weird of him to ask? Soon after, their eyes returned to normal and they put on comforting smiles. Or, at least, Kel did and Aubrey put on a confident smirk. 

"Yeah man, I'm fine! Aubrey took most of the hits anyways." 

"Yeah, I- Kel! Come on!" 

She gave him a smack to the arm, but Kel just laughed it off. While under most circumstances Sunny wouldn't believe it, seeing these two smile and laugh forced him to. Turning, Sunny made his way to A- 

"Everyone!" 

"A-Are you... okay...!?" 

Oh. Looking down the road, Hero and Basil appeared through a... crowd of onlookers... man, the people in this city really need more hobbies. They were both sweating up a storm, and Basil was out of breath. Hero was looking too frantic to be exhausted though. As soon as he caught Sunny's eye, he immediately made his way over. He first reached Kel, who couldn't even get a word out as Hero inspected him, twisting his head by his chin then looking at his arms and even pulling up his jersey. When he saw the beginnings of a bruise on Kel's chest, he went stiff. Slowly pulling the shirt down, he went to Aubrey. 

Compared to Kel who couldn't even defend himself, Aubrey immediately fended Hero off, putting her arms out to keep him away. But she pulled her arms back as soon as she realised her mistake, grabbing one arm with the other in an attempt to hide the truth. It was too late though. He had already seen them, the bruises on her arms and her jaw. His hands were clenched into fists. Then, he turned away from them to move to Sunny, who had been frozen stiff. 

When Hero was in front of Sunny, he couldn't move. Sunny couldn't see Hero's eyes. His face was being shadowed by his hair, and the only thing on his face was a frown. But it was the same. As Hero slowly reached for his face, Sunny couldn't help but think that it looked the same. As Sunny could feel his desire to jump or run or anything, he could only think about how it was exactly the same. As Hero gently placed his hand on Sunny's face and turned it to the side, he knew that it was the same. 

It was the same as in the Hospital. 

The same look of anger that Hero had in the Hospital. 

At the Truth. 

At him. 

In the face of that anger, he couldn't do anything but await his fate, his punishment, his dea- 

"Sunny..." 

He blinked. The sensation of something in his hair, sifting and stroking... was that a hand? His vision was encompassed by a dark blue expanse. Sunny looked up. And Hero was looking down. 

His expression was gentle. Gentle and sad. It was just like... 

"Are you okay, Sunny? You're the only one that didn't answer." 

He was? But Hero had been... how long had he zoned out? "Not even a minute." Ah. 

"Mm. M'fine." 

Hero stopped for a moment before giving his hair one more ruffle and letting go. Orienting himself, Sunny saw as Basil frantically gestured at Aubrey and Kel while talking, and the two looking away a little. Abe was still sitting on the concrete, although he was slouching more. Hero cleared his throat, and Basil immediately turned away from Kel and Aubrey to gun for Sunny. 

"Sunny!" 

He dived in for a hug, and Sunny grunted at the force. This might be the tightest hug Basil's ever given. Has he also been exercising in his free time? 

"Sunny! Are you okay? Are you hurt? Where does it hurt? Why did you run away? Why did you swear? Did you actually swear or did I imagine that? Are they-" 

"Ba... Basil... I'm fine... please... let go..." 

This was becoming lethal. 

"Ah! S-Sorry!" 

As soon as Sunny brought up his complaint, Basil immediately adjusted, letting go of Sunny and letting him take in a few breaths. 

"B-But what happened, Sunny? Why did you start running?" 

"Well..."

"So, this guy," Hero pointed at Jean's unconscious form, "stole your wallet, you went to get it back, and you all beat each other up. Right?" 

Sunny nodded. 

"And now, you've potentially incited... gang violence against yourselves?" 

Sunny nodded again. 

The clap of his hand against his face was like a gong in their ears. Hero's disappointment was a whole other level of disappointment for all of them. 

"I know that sometimes you have to use... violence... to solve disputes, but couldn't you have at least talked it out?" 

"...In our defence, Sunny did ask for his wallet back, and the guy said no." 

All gazes switched to Abe, who was doing his best to look unaffected by Hero's judgement. But Sunny could tell by how he was pinching and tugging his jeans that he was feeling skittish. It was just like when he watched Komaki lecture him once. 

After a few beats, Hero let out a sigh, pulling all gazes back to him. Then he looked at Sunny, and Sunny felt his skin crawl. 

"Well... just be more careful, next time. Please." 

He looked bitter having to admit that the possibility of a next time was fairly high, but at least he admitted it. Looking away with another sigh, Hero scratched the back of his head and walked away. Curious, everyone watched as he made his way to the unconscious Jean, and then watched in shock as he rifled through his pockets. 

"Uh... H-Hero?" 

Even Kel was shocked at this... illegal activity? Is that what this was? When Hero fished Sunny's wallet out of Jean's pocket and called him over to take it, everyone felt a minor amount of relief. The relief quickly turned back to shock when Hero continued looking through his pants after that. Eventually, he pulled out another wallet from the opposite pocket. Opening it up, he looked through it while nodding. Then he withdrew a handful of notes from it and dropped the wallet back onto Jean's chest. 

"Wh-What the hell!?" 

Aubrey was shocked at this absolutely criminal activity before her. That's how bad this was! 

"H-H-Hero-o, wh-what are you d-doing?" 

You're freaking Basil out, Hero! 

And then he turned and shot them a Charming smile, sparkles practically glimmering off of him. 

"I'm just helping him pay for our medical supplies. After all, he's responsible for all this, so it's his job to take responsibility, right?" 

No one could say anything in the face of his Charm, even if it was juxtaposed by the tainted money in his hands. 

Sunny only got a bad feeling out of this... 

Substory 05: Running in the '00s Completed!

"Well, here we are!" 

Abe swept his hand out at the... low-key venue. It was, in all honesty, plain. Cream walls and a red tile roof, the only thing that added any flair to it was the blinking neon sign titled '24-Hour Prince Charming', which was... well, it certainly wasn't inspiring confidence. Sunny blankly looked at him, hoping to convey exactly what he knew they were both thinking through his eye. 

Yet, as he gazed, he couldn't help his eye catching on the gauze placed on his cheek and jaw. After Hero... acquired the money, they went back to the small pharmacy in Othermart to buy some medicinal supplies. After purchasing almost a hundred dollars worth of bandages, gauze, and painkillers, he patched everyone up and gave Sunny the leftovers, leaving everyone with obnoxious white on their body. Actually, all of them had some on their face. Almost like a... like a gang sign, or something... 

Nah, that's stupid. Anyways- 

"Are, uh... are you sure this is the right place?" 

"Course I am! This is where the music always comes from whenever I'm passing by!" 

For context, they were back in the Southern District. It was almost 3:30 in the afternoon. Abe assured that he hadn't made reservations or anything, just that 3 o'clock sounded like a good time. Which, y'know, would've been great to know earlier, but it's good to know at all, right? "Ironic." Shut it. 

"Well, I'm sure it'll be really cool, no matter what it looks like outside!" 

There was Kel, ever the optimist. With his positive bump, everyone reluctantly agreed, and so they trailed in. 

As the doors squeaked open, their first view of the place was the buzzing lights reflecting on the lacquered wooden floor. Stepping inside, they were greeted with more lacquered wood, green walls, and a lady sitting at a reception desk, a stairway to her right. Everyone was glancing around, inspecting everything. It was... 

Well, it didn't look much better inside than it did outside. 

Abe walked up to the receptionist lady that had been waiting for them to order, hoping they weren't just here to see what was what. With all of the confidence he could muster, which Sunny knew after spending the last year with him was a lot, Abe presented himself and sai- 

"Good afternoon, sir. Are you here for a room?" 

"Um- uh- yeah?" 

"I see, sir. Is it just you, or is everyone here a part of your party?" 

"Uh- Everyone?" 

"I see. It's $5 per person per half hour period. How long would you like the room for?" 

"Uh- I- uh-" Abe was looking around desperately, his gaze going from the room to the gathered friends. His gaze was pleading, and Sunny couldn't find the heart to leave him to suffer. Thinking about it, everyone's pretty tired, and Sunny personally doesn't have a lot of money to spend on something he probably won't enjoy. So, one session would be the best bet, right? 

As such, Sunny raised his pointer finger and gave Abe a nod. Abe caught it and sent Sunny such a look of gratitude that Sunny could feel himself de-aging. Awesome. So, after this, wonder what they're gonna d- 

"An hour please, ma'am!" 

What?

"Of course, sir. That'll be $60." 

Abe, no! What have you done!? 

"U-Uh, right! Uh..." 

Abe looked panicked again. Guess he didn't have that much money in his pocket... obviously. Guess everyone has to pay their own portion? Thinking such, Sunny slid his hand into his pocket, fishing out his wallet. 

"I knew it was a good idea to keep some money spare." 

Hero walked past all of them and pulled thirty dollars out of his pocket, placing it on the table. Then he pulled out his wallet and grabbed an extra $5 note. 

"Alright everyone, now we just gotta pay $5 each." 

With a Charming smile, he handed his note to the receptionist, who received it with a fluster to her expression. Ol' reliable. Everyone was in awe of Hero using the tainted money he gained for this, as well as his lack of hesitation in shelling out. Maybe he really didn't want to keep it on hand? 

In a line where Kel rushed his way to the front and Aubrey tried and failed to shove him out of the road, everyone paid $5 to the receptionist, who took it all with an impenetrably plastic smile. With the whole $60, refunding Sunny a 5 from the 10 he gave, she did something on the computer in front of her, before handing Hero a key with a numbered keychain attached. 

Shooting her one more smile, Hero leads the way up the stairs into a poorly lit hallway with the only actual lighting being dull neon lights lining the floor. Down the hall was a door with the number on their key, 104. 

"Guess this is it." 

Sticking the key into the handle's lock, Hero rested his hand on the knob. Taking a deep breath, he twisted and pushed, revealing... 

"Woah..." 

A rather plush room. The floors were carpeted, and there were couches arranged around a table, with a television screen hung up on the far side of the room. Moving in further, they saw that there were microphones and a remote on the table. Hero went to inspect the remote, while everyone else got on the couches. 

"Huh. These are... these are alright. They're kinda stiff though." 

"Y-Yeah... Oh! S-Sunny, where do these rank on the scale?" 

Hm. Sunny wondered. Sitting on the couch, he tried to find a comfortable spot, but was blocked at every avenue by the layer of hard stuff and discomfort that lay behind a surface-level softness. Sure, it was better than the floor or a chair, but it wasn't good by any means. 

"3/10." 

"O-oh..." 

"Huh? Scale?" 

Abe was looking around confused. Had he never mentioned it? Actually, that makes sense. They don't exactly spend a lot of time on sleeping appliances. 

"Oh, you don't know?" Why did Aubrey say that so smugly? "Sunny ranks the things he sleeps on, with his bed as the golden standard. Kinda weird, but that's just how we like him." Huh? 

Sunny blushed a little, looking away. How embarrassing... Basil caught his eye, and when he saw Basil's own smug smile just like hers, Sunny felt the blush envelop even more of his face. Glancing away, he saw Abe looking a little lost, but smiling when he caught sight of Sunny's red face. Betrayal... 

"Huh. So that's how this works..." 

Looking over, everyone saw Hero fiddling with the controller while staring at the TV. Looking up, they saw that Hero was scrolling through what was a bunch of... song names? Hero pressed a button, and music started coming out of the television. He kept pressing the button, and the music became louder and louder, until it reached an acceptable volume. The song currently playing was a... pop song? Sunny's pretty sure that's what they're called. Hero pressed another button. 

They were greeted by a guitar strum, that continued into several more. Another button press, another song with guitars, these ones sounding higher pitched and coming faster. Button press, a slow build-up of piano that Sunny thought was... familiar. Another press, another familiar song, this one with the constant strumming of a lighter guitar. Was this... 

"Alright, everyone. Any requests?" 

Everyone was caught flat-footed. No one thought Hero was just gonna go for it. And as the silence dragged on for a few seconds, they wondered if anyone would. And then, like a light in the dark, like the hope that burns through despair- 

"Ooh, I've got one!" 

Everyone looked to Abe, who was almost vibrating with excitement. He was really looking forward to this, wasn't he? If that was the case... then Sunny would do his best. 

"What song is it, Abe?" 

"It's that one song, by Metallica! Enter Sandman!" 

"Enter Sandman? That's an old one, huh? Remember when Dad would make us listen to it, Kel?" 

"Nope! I've spent too much time and effort blocking out the memories to remember!" 

This is targeted. "This is hilarious." 

Hero sent Kel an exasperated look, while Kel just smiled wide, head empty. Basil was chuckling nervously, while both Aubrey and Abe were frowning. Abe turned to talk to Kel as Hero searched for the song. 

"Now listen here, Kel. Rock is an art, just like martial arts, and just like basketball. And Metallica is a master craft of that art, just like how Orange Joe is a master craft of soda. If you can't understand that now, then I'll have to show you." 

Man, he was really pumped. Aubrey had been nodding along with him until he mentioned Orange Joe, and Basil was nervously glancing side to side, visibly holding back a laugh. Kel just smiled and nodded. 

"Kay, got it. Now you just have to input your name and pick up a microphone. Here you go." 

Hero walked in and stopped Abe from giving Kel any more of the 3rd degree. Passing him the remote, Hero took Abe's place on the couch as he got up and wandered over to the front of the room. He took a minute or two to figure out how to type his name, registering himself as ABRAHAM WILLIAMS. As soon as he pressed enter, the screen went black. Then, the strumming of a guitar began to play. 

After a few strums, another string was added. And then a bump. And then after a few more seconds, drums joined in. Abe was tapping his foot. The beat kept constant, and the tempo sped up, the guitar coming in heavier. It was a few more seconds before Abe started bopping his head. The beat kept at it getting more and more intense. 

Hero was sitting with a patient smile while Kel looked bored out of his mind. Aubrey looked excited and Basil was curious. Sunny was just happy to see his friend happy. 

It was when the drums finally came in heavier than ever that Abe started smiling. He straightened up and brought the mic closer to his face. Was this it? 

After almost fifteen seconds of holding the mic to his face, he finally began to sing. 

"Say your prayers, little one! Don't forget, my son! To include everyone~!" 

He swayed his shoulders in tune with the guitar. 

"Tuck you in, warm within! Keep you free from sin! 'Til the sandman, he comes~!" 

He pumped his spare fist with a "Hoo!" 

"Sleep with one eye open! Gripping your pillow tight! 

Exit light! Enter night! Take my hand! We're off to never-never land!" 

Once more, the instruments took over, and Abe went back to tapping his foot and moving his head. Aubrey was moving her head too, while Basil was watching in something like awe. Kel had started slumping back, and Hero was very determinately trying to keep him upright. No change for Sunny. Luckily, this instrumental was much shorter than the first one. 

"Something's wrong, shut the light! Heavy thoughts tonight! And they aren't of Snow White~!" 

Abe gives a little shake of his head along with the last line, before once again shaking his shoulders in time with the guitar. 

"Dreams of wars, dreams of liars! Dreams of dragon's fire! And of things that will bite, yeah~!" 

This time, he swept his hand slowly through the air. 

"Sleep with one eye open! Gripping your pillow tight! 

Exit light! Enter night! Take my hand! We're off to never-never land!" 

And the instruments one more time, but it sounded different now, more intense, more metallic. Aubrey was proper into it, her expression single-mindedly focused, while even Basil was beginning to sway to the beat. Kel had full-on slumped back, feet kicking underneath the table. Eventually he bumped something and, bored out of his mind, he slumped further to check. What he found put a smile on his face, making him sit right up straight, which immediately made Hero wary. That wariness compounded when such a mischievous smile was turned on him. 

Sunny was just having a good time, really.

"Woo! That was sick!" 

Aubrey was clapping and hollering, incredibly into it, more than any of them had ever seen. Well, except for that one Spaceboy/Sweetheart crossover episode... 

"Y-Yeah! That was really c-cool!" 

And Basil was gently shaking his fists, not as energetically as Aubrey but still quite intensely. 

"Haha! Thank you, thank you!" 

Abe was dramatically bowing, green jacket swaying with each dramatic movement. There was a large smile on his face, and he was starting to get a sweat on. Gesturing with the microphone, he waved it around. 

"So, who's next?" 

This time, there was no wait as Kel immediately hopped up. Suddenly, Sunny got a bad feeling. 

"Hero! Hero's next!" 

"W-What!?" 

If Hero's reaction were anything to go by, then he did too. But Kel would allow no refusal. 

"Come on Hero! Do it! Better now than later, right!?" 

"Ugh-I... I guess?" 

"Exactly!" 

Saying so, Kel got up, grabbed the mic out of Abe's outstretched hand, then shoved it to Hero. Hero fumbled with it while Kel got on the remote, looking for something no doubt sinister.  

"Ugh... Kel, if I'm singing, then shouldn't I be picking the song?" 

"It's fine Hero! You can pick your song next time!" 

"That's... not much of a comfort..." 

The remark went ignored as Kel kept trying (and failing) to correctly type in the song name, tongue sticking out. Hero and Kel were watching Kel warily, while Aubrey was gritting her teeth and Basil was slowly rubbing her back. Abe just shrugged and went to sit down next to Sunny. 

"Got it!" 

Drumbeats began playing. Kel looked at Hero with a wide smile, while Hero furrowed his brows in thought. In comparison to Hero, who was taking a minute, Sunny could feel his soul practically scream an answer. 

"Billie Jean?" 

Kel smiled wide and nodded while Hero snapped his fingers. 

"Yeah, by Micheal Jackson, right?" 

Kel was vibrating so hard he was almost hopping. But then Hero furrowed his brows once more. 

"But... why that one?" 

And like he was waiting for it, Kel smiled with narrowed eyes. He pointed downwards. 

"Check under the table." 

And so Hero did, and, almost reluctantly, Aubrey and Basil did too. Abe was too tired, and Sunny was too worried to follow along. But the small gasp he heard made him start to reconsider. When Hero pulled something out from under there, Sunny was convinced this whole event was a terrible mistake. 

"This is..." 

"Hero will be singing, with Sunny as a back-up dancer!" 

Oh no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. No. No... 

"Huh? Why Sunny?" 

"Heheha! Watch and be amazed, Abe! Sunny! Step on up and take your place by history's side!" He sounded confident, but he followed up with a much gentler tone a moment later. "Only if you're comfy with it, though. No biggie either way, Sunny." 

Sunny took a deep breath. He hated this. Hated it. Hated having to do things because his friends asked him to, not being able to say no. That's the exact scenario that lead to- everything! 

But... 

But... maybe it won't be so bad. Just one dance. And besides, deep down, maybe, there's a part of Sunny that wanted to do it again. Care to confirm, Omori? "...Well, I won't say it wasn't fun." 

Looking up at Kel, Sunny nodded, then stood up. He walked over to Hero, who had similarly stood, and collected the object. He inspected it in his hands. To the regular eye, it was essentially a black bucket hat with the rim beginning to bend at the sides and bent completely at the back. A white ribbon was tied off around it. 

But to the eyes of any sort of music enthusiast, or even anyone with a passing interest in popular music at all, it was a legendary type of artifact. A hat that held all sorts of meaning. The hat of a King. A Fedora. 

In that moment, holding the hat in his hands, he felt like his entire life had been leading up to this moment. Hooking his thumb in the rim at the back, Sunny brought his hand back, flipping the hat so that it landed on his head right way up. Placing that hand on top of the hat, Sunny pushed it down, covering more of his face and exposing the back of his head. 

Without waiting for anyone or anything, he moved to the front of the room, preparing for his moment. And, eventually, the music started. Those same drumbeats from earlier began anew, and continued. At the appropriate moment, Sunny let a "Tch tch" fall out of his mouth as he began grooving, tilting and repositioning the fedora in tune with the beat. 

When the piano started playing, Sunny began leaning on his right leg and then pushing back to a neutral position, in rhythm with his hat tilts and the music. 

"She was more like, a movie queen from a movie scene. I said don't mind, but what do you mean, I am the one? Who will dance- on the floor- in the round? She said I am the one, who will dance- on the floor- in the round." 

In the few seconds between that lyric and the next Sunny prepared to move. 

"She told me her name was Billie Jean-" Sunny stuck out his left hand in a fist parallel to the ground, palm upturned- "As she caused a scene." Sunny leant back, letting one leg take on his weight while the other stuck out with his knee bent near at a right angle. He started thrusting rhythmically in beat with the tune. 

"Then every head turned with eyes that dreamed, of being the one, who will dance- on the floor- of the round." 

It was coming. The build-up. As soon as Sunny heard air pass Hero's lips, he knew. The time was NOW. 

"People always told me~" Sunny hopped off his heels, performing a spin. "Be careful of what you do~" He stopped himself by grinding his feet into the floor, on his tiptoes. "And don't go around, breaking young girl's hearts~" Sunny pivoted on his tiptoes, sashaying his legs to and fro. 

"And mother always told me-" A clap of his hands. "-be careful who ya know~" Straightening up, hands fanned out to his sides. "And be careful of what you do, because the lies become the truth! Hey~" Another clap, this time accompanied with Sunny kicking his leg straight up, internally wincing at the feeling of his hamstrings trying to force his leg back. 

"Billie Jean, is not my lover~" Bringing the leg down, he spun once more. "She's just a girl that, claims that I am the one." He stopped again on his tiptoes, this time fanning his hands out and shaking his shoulders. "But the kid is not my son." He brought his arms together, elbows touching, before sliding to the right and fanning his hands again. 

"She says I am the one~" Flipping his outstretched hands once, twice, thrice. "But the kid is not my son." Back on his tiptoes, shaking his legs out. A small "hee, hee, hee" left his mouth. He was starting to reach his limit. He would have to use The Move sooner rather than later. 

"For forty days and, forty nights, the law was on her side." He clapped his hands once again, bringing his knees in too. It would be soon. "But who can stand when she's in demand, her schemes and plans?" Another spin, leading into a kick. "Cause we danced- on the floor- in the round." Slamming his foot on the floor, shaking his whole body to and fro. 

"So take my strong advice~" This was it! "Just remember to always think twice." 

"Do think twice!" 

"Do think twice!" 

Back up singing from the crows, and an additional "Oh-hoo!" from Sunny completed the lyric. Now was the time. 

"She told my baby we'd dance ‘til three," Sunny positioned himself, facing the side, "then she looked at me." 

"Then showed a photo, my baby cried," hand tilting hat down, other hand on hip, one foot before the other, "his eyes were like mine, oh no." 

"Cause we danced-" one foot flat, the other on its toes- "On the floor-" he began to push back- "In the round." And walked. 

"Yeah! Go Sunny!" 

Maybe this wasn't so bad after all. 

Sunny learned Essence of Moonwalk!

Shaking out his incredibly stiff limbs that were not meant to be stretched that far that quickly, Sunny took his congratulations with a small smile and a blush clashing against his usual cliff-face. 

Kel and Abe were shaking their fists in childish excitement, Kel telling him he still had it while Abe was asking where he learned all that. Aubrey was sitting in the background, but even he could catch her happy smile. Basil was stinging that he hadn't brought his camera, because that was Album-worthy. Hero was giving him a head pat, which may have further contributed to Sunny's blush. 

"You did good singing too, Hero..." 

Hero blinked at that, but smiled after. Sunny wasn't lying, his singing was good. Better than he remembered back when Hero was contending with puberty. Speaking of... 

"So, who's next?" 

Hero waved the microphone around. It looked like Kel was deciding whether he should or not, but Sunny, in a moment of hysterical weakness, shrugged and said, "I'm already here. Why not?" 

And this garnered some more looks, but Sunny was a bit too sore to care. Instead, he listlessly grabbed the remote and scrolled through the song list. The names weren't really ringing any bells, so Sunny decided to listen for a rhythm. He must have scrolled through the entire list though and looped around, since his ears were met by a familiar beat from earlier. Looking up, he saw the name of the song. 

Please, Please, Please, Let Me Get What I Want by The Smiths. A certified hikikomori classic. "God, I remember listening to this a bunch, even if that one Coldplay song was the one I liked singing more." Remember when you talked? What a weird time... 

With a nod, Sunny selected the song and inputted his name. SUNNY SUZUKI stared back at him, and he confirmed with a nod. Stepping up to the front of the room, he saw everyone staring at him, and oh this was much more nerve-wracking without the fedora breaking line of sight. Just don't think about it, just don't think about it. 

Calm down. In and out. Focus. Squeeze 'em close and listen. 

The guitars started strumming, and Sunny had no more time to dilly-dally. Now or never. 

"Good times, for a change. See, the luck I've had, can make a good man, turn bad~" Slowly, he began to sway. 

"So please, please, please, let me, let me, let me~ let me, get what I want... this time." As the guitars took the song away, Sunny couldn't help but relive those nothing days, where he would shunt his emotions away into a white room, long before he locked them away in a black hellscape. All that time wasted, feeling nothing but guilt and self-loathing for something he didn't understand, didn't remember. How his once pristine memory had become foggy and disjointed, his only moments of clarity being those times he was closest to finally leaving, but being dragged back in by those cold, wet, bloody hands. 

His story was over. All he had to do was remember what it was. 

Sunny could practically see the blue effusing his skin, simmering underneath and waiting for an outlet. And that outlet was this. 

"Haven't had a dream, in a long time." That was- "See the life I've had, could make a good man go bad..." But... what right did he have to complain? 

"So, for once in my life, let me~ get what I want. Lord knows, it would be the first time... Lord knows, it would be the first time...!" This sense of bitterness welling up within him, is that what he truly felt? This desire to spite the world that spited him first? Even if it was his fault? As the instruments carried the song to its conclusion, Sunny couldn't help but wonder... 

That song was how he felt, once. That was without question. But... was it how he felt now? Good times... for a change? The times were... the times were good. They had been for a year. He had gotten what he wanted. But... would it stay that way? He... "If you put effort into it, then they will. That's what you wanted to believe, isn't it?" Huh? 

"You have done nothing, and so you have earned nothing. We both believed that. But now you have done... a lot. And so you have earned a lot. A loyal friend, a teacher, a stronger body..." 

Omori, you... 

"Sunny." 

He jerked back. Looking up, he saw Abe looking at him with worried eyes. Sunny shook his head and looked around. Everyone was looking at him. They were all on their feet, looking ready to move. Towards him. They... He... Sunny sniffed. 

"Sorry. I was... thinking. I'm better now." 

Sunny didn't try for a fake smile or anything. That wasn't his thing. He just gave Abe a solitary nod. And Abe stared at him, and kept staring, until he nodded too, guiding Sunny over. As they neared everyone, Sunny gave them a nod and a soft apology, placing the microphone on the table. 

Sitting, he watched as everyone shuffled for a bit before slowly sitting down, shooting him the occasional look. Except for Kel. He stood standing, and looked between Sunny, the microphone, and where Sunny was standing. Just as Hero was beginning to say something to him, Kel nodded, a resolute look in his eyes. Scooping up the remote, he began playing around. Everyone looked at each other then him, no one really knowing what's going on. Then, Kel gave a small cheer. 

"Got it!" 

A pop song began playing in the background, one that got the blood in Sunny's body tingling. Kel fiddled with the remote even further, typing his name out as KRLSDY VARQRES. Awful. Hero looked perturbed while Aubrey was straight-up looking violent. 

"Yo, let's go!" 

Kel hopped over to the front with a wide smile. Just seeing it made Sunny's heart heal somewhat. Then the piano kicked in. 

"Yo, listen up, here's a story! About a little guy who lives, in a blue world! And all day, and all night, and everything he sees, it's all blue, like him, inside and outside!" 

Kel was shaking his shoulders, one hand held out slightly. His grin was infectious. 

"Blue his house, with a blue little window, and a blue Corvette. And everything is blue for him, and himself, and everybody around, cause he ain't got, no body, to listen to..." 

As the music wound down, Kel held out a solitary finger, telling them to wait. Then with a stomp- 

"I'm blue, da ba dee, da ba dae, da ba deee, da ba dae, da ba dee, da ba dae~" 

He clapped his hands and threw his hips to the side. 

"I'm blue, da ba dee, da ba dae, da ba deee, da ba dae, da ba dee, da ba dae~" 

With a laugh, he gave a little twirl, and Sunny couldn't help it. He giggled. It started soft, but it became louder, until he was certain he was drawing too much attention. But he didn't care at that moment. As the roiling blue gave way to a fuzzy yellow, Sunny smiled. 

Sunny became HAPPY.

"Haha! Woo! That was fun!" 

Kel was doing all the cheering for himself that was necessary, but Hero and Basil still threw in their complements. Abe was hyping Kel up, while Sunny just smiled at him in a way that seemed to make Kel smile more. The only one that was silent was Aubrey. With each passing second that Kel was glimmering, Aubrey seemed to shrink further and further within herself- 

"I won't stand for this!" 

-before rocketing to her feet, drawing everyone's attention towards herself. She turned and thrust out a finger at Kel, glaring. 

"I won't stand for your disrespect! First you hate on rock, and then you play this!? Kelsey Vasquez, I will show you the true power of rock!" 

Everyone stared for a few moments, and just as Aubrey was beginning to realize how loud of a move she just made, a little tinkling came from beside her. There was Basil, fist over his mouth, turned away, his shoulders shaking. As if he could feel her stare, he could no longer hold it back, and began letting out giggles of his own. Kel immediately joined in with loud guffaws, while Hero let out a few chuckles. Abe huffed out his nose, and even Sunny let out a laugh. Aubrey was standing there as her face slowly became pink, hand slowly retracting and her finger going limp. 

"H-Hey! Don't laugh!" 

The laughter continued for a few more seconds, eventually petering out because Aubrey looked like she was really gonna use violence on them. With a huff and some pink left in her cheeks, she snatched the microphone from Kel's hand and picked up the remote, stumbling with the occasional button input as she sought out her song. 

With a sound of joy, she selected a song that had guitars immediately blaring, then stumbled her way through typing out her name, eventually leaving her with AUBEY. 

"Haha, Aubey! Haha-" 

"Shut up, Kel!" 

"No last name, Aubrey?" 

"Uh, no? I'm confused why you guys are putting in your last names, honestly. It's a waste of time." 

Hero couldn't really say anything to that, so he let it be as Aubrey walked her way up to the front of the room. With a dramatic turn that let her hair trail behind her like a comet trail, she pointed one hand straight up. 

"Are you ready to rock!?" 

Kel just lay back with a smile as Sunny and Basil gave hesitant "yeah"s. Abe was into it, shaking his fists with a "Woo!" Hero was trying to get Kel to participate. Then the guitars kicked in. 

And boy was it loud. What was the name of this song? Riot Girl? By Good Charlotte? Huh. 

"She's got tattoos, and piercings, she likes minor threat, she likes social distortion!" 

Aubrey was holding the microphone close with both hands, eyes screwed shut. 

"My girl's, a hot girl. A hood rat who needs an attitude adjustment! Christina, wouldn't wanna meet her! She hates you Britney so you better run for cover." 

Aubrey's head began to bop, hair swaying behind her. 

"My girl's, a hot girl. A riot girl, and she's angry at the world! Emergency, call 911! She's pissed off at everyone! Police, rescue, FBI! She wants a riot, she wants a riot!" 

Aubrey was into it. 

"And everywhere we go she gets us thrown out, constantly, but that's okay, because I know, I know, I know, my baby would do anything for me. Yeah!" 

Aubrey let go of the mic with one hand to bring it up, tilting her head up as well. The hand she let go with was instead deposited at chest level, clenched into a fist. 

"Christina, wouldn't wanna meet her! She hates you Britney so you better run for cover." 

Aubrey hunched over the mic, two hands once more firmly grasping it.  

"My girl's, a hot girl. A riot girl, and she's takin' on the world! I said, emergency, call 911! She's pissed off at everyone! Police, rescue, FBI! She wants a riot, she wants a riot!" 

Aubrey started banging her head once more, letting the guitar solo take her away. With a large smile on her face, Sunny couldn't help but think that she was really having fun.

"Meh, that was alright. I've heard better." 

Oh, Kel, you absolute firestarter. Why? Just why? As Aubrey stalked up to him, panting and sweaty but no less intimidating, Sunny absently wondered if this was finally it. The point of no return. 

When Hero and Basil got in her way, Sunny had to consider that now was not the time. Instead, what it was the time for was... 

"Basil, what are you singing?" 

And the solitary "huh?" he let out, as well as the shell-shocked expression Basil showed him made Sunny think that maybe Basil hadn't yet made peace with this scenario. Sunny decided to let him down gently. 

"For karaoke. Do you know what you would like to sing?" 

"Ah-I um-ah, I..." 

"Do you... want to sing?" 

And Sunny already knew the answer to that question, but he had to ask anyways. Basil would have to cope with the fear of all eyes being on him in his own way. All Sunny could do was have his back. 

"Y-yes... I want to." 

Sunny accepted the answer with a nod and a smile, offering him the remote off of the table. Basil hesitated before taking it, unsure about something. Taking a deep breath, he resolved himself, and began scrolling. 

It took a few minutes, in which time Aubrey had kicked Kel in the shin in revenge and Hero forced Kel to endure it. Eventually, Basil settled on something that sounded slow and calm. Just his pace. A glance at the name revealed the song known as Ruler of Everything, by Tally Hall. For some reason, Sunny didn't trust the name at all, but was willing to let Basil figure it out. 

Entering his name as BASIL DRIVAS, to which Aubrey face-palmed with a sigh, he took his position at the front of the room, shifting from foot to foot, facing the television which displayed lyrics rather than facing everyone else. As the piano led on in, he slowly began to relax. But as the keys shifted in pitch, and he saw the lyrics for the next line coming up on the TV, he tensed up again, bringing the microphone up to his face with shaking hands. Then he began. 

"J-Juno was mad, he knew h-he'd been had, so he s-shot the sun with a gun?" In that moment, Basil wondered what the hell he had decided to sing. "Shot at the sun with a gun... shot at his wily one only friend... Oh..." The pianos were getting deeper, more distorted, and then almost as suddenly drums joined in to lighten things up. Basil almost missed the next lyric. 

"I-In the gallows, or in the ghetto. In the town or in the meadow~, in the billows even over the sun, every end of the time is another begun." 

Basil had slowly begun building up his own groove, swaying from side to side slightly. 

"You understand, mechanical hands, are the ruler of everything. Ruler of everything. I'm the ruler of everything in the end..." 

Basil was no longer shaking, instead his entire body dedicated to the groove. 

"Do you like how I dance? I've got zirconium pants." And then, with suddenly much less confidence, "Consequential enough to slip you into a trance..." Perking back up, "Do you like how I walk, do you like how I talk?" And back down, "Do you like how my face d-disintegrates into chalk?" Up, "I have a wonderful wife, I have a wonderful job," Down, "She criticizes me for being ego-centric..." 

Sunny let out a monotone "ha ha ha" as the screen dictated, causing everyone at the couch to stifle a laugh. 

"You practice your mannerisms into the wall. I-If this mirror were clearer I'd be standing s-so tall. I s-saw you slobber over c-clovers on the s-side of the hill. I w-was observing the b-birds, circle in for the..." Basil trailed off, not wanting to say it. This song had been jamming him in two different directions and now he carried on with a breathy voice, his body no longer in sync with the rhythm. 

"I-I've been you, I know you, your facade is a scam... y-you know, you're making me c-cry, that's just the way th-that I am... I-I've been living a lie, a metamorphical scheme...? Detective undercover, brotherhood, objective, obscene? Oh, n-no, no, oh... yeah..." 

Basil had slumped over, and Sunny felt like he and the others were one wrong move away from getting to him. Was this what he looked like earlier? But then Basil had straightened up, audibly took a deep breath, then shook his body out. Looked like he was... better? As the guitars carried on, he quickly turned back to give the group a thumbs up and a gentle smile. 

Sunny decided to trust in him once more. 

Basil's confidence immediately evaporated in the face of the tongue-twisting sequence of letters that didn't deserve to be recognised as a word. Ah well. At least he was having fun, right?

Everyone clapped when Basil finished his song, proud to see his conviction to stick to the bit. He himself was looking incredibly confused, eyes pinched and mouth flat. His jacket had become a bit ruffled, and his hair was hanging a little bit limply. 

"That was... interesting. So, who's next?" 

Everyone looked from Basil to each other, before Kel jumped up and shook his hand around, calling "me, me, me!" Basil gave it to him with a tired smile and sat down. 

And, as Kel tried and failed to correctly type the name of a song, as Aubrey and Abe talked about music, and Hero and Basil complimented each other on everyone's singing, Sunny smiled. Soft and sweet, he smiled and gazed at this wonderful present he was in. Maybe there was some colour that would be forever missing in his life, but that didn't mean he couldn't still find new colours to paint his world. 

His story wasn't already over. It had begun on that day almost a year ago. And it was still going even now. So, truly... 

Today is a good day.

Chapter Text

"I'm telling you, Aubrey! I'm the taller brother!" 

"Eh, I dunno Kel... you both look the same height to me." 

"Hero! Tell Aubrey that I'm the taller brother!" 

"Hehe..." 

Hero scratched the back of his head while Kel pointed at him, Aubrey leaning back in amusement. This situation occurred after a few more songs, and a constant back and forth between Kel and Aubrey after each of their songs. Basil and Abe were unwilling witnesses as Sunny and Hero were often dragged in between the two of them for whatever reason. It was Hero's turn right now, and Sunny prayed for his safety. 

"That's it! Hero, get up! Me and you are measuring our heights! Then you'll see, Aubrey!" 

"Will I?" 

"YES!" 

Without waiting for Hero's response, Kel grabbed Hero's hand and dragged him towards the "show area". Even just from that, Sunny could see how much taller Kel was than Hero. This was stupid. 

Kinda hilarious, though. 

Letting go of Hero's hand, Kel turned to face the wall, waiting for Hero. And with another sigh and a tired smile, Hero turned, placing his back to Kel's. 

"Okay Sunny, which of us are taller!? Be honest!" 

"Just... tell him what he wants to hear, Sunny... please." 

"No, no, obviously you should follow your heart. Right?" 

Damn it... Sunny wanted this situation to end just as much as Hero's did, but the mischievous side of him wanted it to continue... But they were almost out of time... But it was funny... But time... But funny... 

Looking over to Basil and Abe, who had so far contented themselves to watching the chaos, Sunny hoped for them to give him a sign out of this chaos. Instead his hope was crushed when he saw that Basil and Abe weren't even paying attention, too deep in a conversation with each other. Some words Sunny could pick up were "Album", "Sunny", and "Park"... were they talking about taking photos of landscapes or something? He couldn't pay too much attention since Kel was yelling at him. Ah, screw it. 

"Kel's taller." 

"Haha! Yes! Woohoo!" 

Kel raised his fist and pumped it, jumping as he did. Under regular circumstances, he would have landed, Hero would have given a little laugh, and there probably would have been a joke about feeling empty or something. Instead what happened was- 

"Ah!" 

Kel fell back to the floor and cradled his hand. When he had jumped, he accidentally punched the TV, leaving it buzzing and his hand evidently sore. Hero sighed and took his hand. 

"Come on Kel, you gotta be more careful." 

"Hehe, sorry." 

Hero checked Kel's hand, but let it go with a huff when he must have found it wasn't hurt seriously. In comparison to Hero's exasperated concern, Aubrey only offered vaguely concerned aggravation. 

"Jeez, Kel! You gotta be more careful, you might break something." A pause, a look at the TV, then a glare back at Kel. "Like the TV! See!?" 

Blinking, everyone looked back at the TV. The screen was flickering, a layer of static obscuring the usual blue background. That was... bad. 

"Either I'm seeing things, or the background behind the static is turning purple." 

Hero sighed, picking up the remote. 

"Well, before we panic, let's try turning it off and on again. Hopefully we won't have to pay for repairs..." 

That last part was muttered out, and Sunny's mind flashed back to Mack's apparent sympathy for Hero's economic situation. Sunny also hoped, for Hero's sake if no one else's. 

With a press of the button, the TV went black with a sound. Then, after waiting a few seconds, Hero pressed the button again. A low hum started emitting from a TV, that eventually grew into a loud buzz. And yet, the screen stayed black. But before Hero could press the button again, the noise cut out and the screen flickered on. 

"Huh?" 

The screen was purple rather than blue, and on the top of the screen were the words 'Secret Menu'... an easter egg??? 

"Um..." 

Hero looked from the TV to the remote in his hands, then to Kel who threw up his hands in a "don't look at me" stance. Hero looked incredibly undecided, then looked down at his wrist. Oh, a watch. Was he checking the time? Before Sunny could do the same, Hero pulled away. 

"Twenty minutes... eh, why not?" 

He began to scroll through the songs, various types of music playing. One had very dramatic guitar strokes, another had very... poppy guitars? And another had very intense guitar strums with reverb. They all certainly sounded... unique, compared to what they were singing earlier. 

"Huh. That's weird." 

"Eh? What is, bro?" 

"Oh, the songs. Apparently, they can be sung in pairs." 

"Really!?" 

Hero was right. On the screen next to the name of every song was an option to enable co-op or not. Interesting. Wait, does that mean... 

"No way, for real!? Bro, we have to go!" 

"A-Are you sure, Kel? I'm not sure if any of the duet songs are your pace..." 

Kel shook his head, ponytail flopping around. Grabbing a microphone off of the table that had been left untouched, as there hadn't been any prior use for it and everyone was too busy to fiddle, Kel hopped over to the front of the room. 

"Doesn't matter Hero! I trust you to pick a song that will make the true power of our brotherly bond shine!" 

Hero let out a sigh before scrolling through the list. Sunny's attention was taken by Basil poking at him, head tilted in curiosity. Abe was also looking at him over Basil. 

"Hey, Sunny, what's going on? W-We, uh, sort of stopped paying attention? Hehe..." 

Sunny held back a laugh as he explained the situation, Basil nodding slowly while Abe watched with an eyebrow raised. When he was done, Basil gave one last nod, while Abe gave a smile that meant he was planning something. Basil slowly opened his mouth to say something, but Abe beat him to the punch. 

"Hey, Sunny, wanna sing a song with me?" 

Sunny blinked before nodding. Sure, that sounded fun... hopefully Abe didn't pull too far ahead of him, having to harmonise is a pain even with the best of relationships. He would know... 

Shaking it off, Sunny saw Abe send him a bright smile, while Basil wilted slightly. Before he could ask, Aubrey called out over him. 

"Oi, Basil. Sing with me." 

"O-Oh. S-Sure, Aubrey!" 

Basil gave a small smile that Aubrey returned, and Sunny felt his worry ease. Just in time too, as Kel let out a groan. 

"Ugh, come on Hero. Do we have to do this one? It's a rock song..." 

"Kel, you weren't gonna pick anything else. And besides, I think we got a real shot at this." 

Hero sent Kel a wink, and Kel just let out a groan, slumping. Aubrey laughed viciously at the turn the conversation took. With a drawn-out sigh, Kel relented with a nod. 

"Don't worry, we got this." 

Hero threw Kel a charming wink, ruffling his hair before grabbing the two mics and tossing Kel one. Walking up to the "stage", Hero and Kel stood side-by-side facing the screen, Hero looking much more excited. A glance at the television showed the name of the song. Judgement -Shinpan- by... huh. No artist is provided. Isn't that illegal? 

Before Sunny could think too hard about it, the music started. Dramatic guitar strums came out of the speaker, making everyone on the couch straighten up. The guitar was quickly joined by equally dramatic drumbeats, and then the singing begun. 

"I'm just some dog, outcasted and stray~" Hero was holding the mic with both hands, close to his face.

"Rails I've broken off as I change my own fate..." Kel followed up, microphone lazily held in one hand as he sung a tad monotonously. 

"I always choose to go my own way~" Hero had begun to bob his head a little. 

"My tail... won't wag and I won't play." Kel idly scratched his thigh. 

"A yes-man ain't me, that's something I can't change." The two said this in sync, their voices seeming to perfectly harmonise despite their different levels of enthusiasm. "Woah-ho-ho~, woah-ho~, we are bad boys~" At that whispered line, they both seemed to slump a bit, but perked right back up for the next line. 

"Society wants to throw us out, but, "No!" we say in the name, of Justice!" The line swapped from Kel who was starting to show more enthusiasm, to Hero who was really starting to groove out. And as one, they struck. 

"We're breaking the law! Breaking the world, destroy it! Breakin' the world- tear way the tenderness!" The two were beginning to move in sync as well, both holding on to the mic with one hand as they pumped their other fist in a rhythm, their heads bopping in tune. 

"We're breaking the rules! Not even the Six Codes can keep us all at bay, breakin' the law- We're rising up again!" 

"Let's raise our fists up..." Hero brought his fist out- 

"Beat chaos down with our own-" Kel did too- 

"Order and our own, Judgement!" They bumped their fists together as the last few strums of the guitar played out. 

All reigned silent for a few moments, before the two brothers let their fists fall. Turning back to the audience, they were surprised by the sudden round of applause they were receiving. Hero took it with a blush and a shy grin, while Kel took it with a much larger grin, hands clasped behind his head. This unfortunately meant- 

"Kel, put your arms down! You stink!" 

"Hey, I don't stick that bad! Right Hero!?" 

Hero just looked away with a cough. Kel slumped a bit. 

"Man..." 

Before he could complain too loudly though- 

"Heh. Good job, Kel. Didn't think you'd be that good at singing a rock song." 

The pink punk gave Kel a compliment, a soft smile on her lips. Kel looked like he didn't know what to do, just blinking dumbly. 

"So, how was it, singing a rock song? Not as bad as you thought, right?" 

Oh, looked like Kel knew what to do in this situation though. 

"Yeah, you're right. It's actually worse." 

"Why you-"

After preventing another murder, Aubrey had pushed Kel out of the way and taken her's and Basil's turn to sing. Kel spent a long time chuckling at her overreaction and Abe fighting back his own negative response, while Hero did his best to make him stop. Aubrey had been relegated to sitting on the couch, since Basil was worried she might actually break something. 

Eventually, Basil settled on a song that sounded more his pace. Drums and the occasional ting from another instrument, played out as he and Aubrey hopped on "stage". The song they were playing was called Rouge of Love by... also no name listed. Is this going to be a recurring theme? 

Facing the screen, the music began to play. The drums started and became a bit louder, and another instrument joined the fray. Before the proper lyrics appeared on screen, the call-out lyrics written in parentheses showed up first, and that's immediately what Aubrey sang. 

"Oooooh! Rouge of Love!" Aubrey had said this with much enthusiasm, throwing a hand up before quickly bringing it back down, face turning pink at how extra she was bring. Basil just chuckled at her, hands tightly grasping the microphone. The music continued, and then some more call-out lyrics appeared that Aubrey sang again. 

"Everybody sing Rouge of Love!" While she wasn't as extra with this lyric, her body had begun singing a more honest tune, moving slightly to the rhythm. "Let's paint it red, Rouge of Love!" 

Then it was Basil's turn. And with a slightly quaking voice but a sturdy heart, he sung. 

"So, I'm just what you think." The first warning bell was that the key lyrics were sung by a girl, which wasn't too big of a deal. Plenty of Basil's favourite songs were sung by girls. "A plastic figure, playing dress up at night." Oh no. 

"Come on baby!" Thank you Aubrey, very cool. 

"All you see, a veil of lies. Cosmetics, thick as paint, on this baby face." Oh no no no. 

"Love potion, pretty face!" At least she was having fun. 

"I'm so over men, and this love business." This song was mocking Basil. 

"Me too?" Aubrey was mocking him too, hand on her chest with an offended expression. 

"They don't mean a thing to me, throw it all away." Basil tried to get in on the expressive hands game, hastily throwing his hand away from the microphone in an attempt to make it look like he was throwing something. 

"I may as well be trash..." Now Aubrey was getting bummed, slumping a bit. 

"Though these frightened-" 

"They're already frightened." Please don't interrupt him Aubrey. 

"-lips won't stop quivering-" 

"Your lips!?" Aubrey, please. 

"I'm free, rouge hiding the doubt in me!" Now Basil was getting into it. 

"Rouge of Love!" Yeah! 

"This greedy neon city!" Basil clenched the hand that he had thrown aside. 

"Oh, Rouge of Love!" 

"I've let it take my heart!" He brought his hand back to his chest, slamming against his heart. 

"Come take my heart!" Aubrey made a "come over" gesture with her hand. 

"I'm like a blind fish swimming!" Basil brought his hand over his face, fingers splayed to cover his vision. 

"Very freely!" She made a wavy motion with her hand. 

"Deeper into the shadow!" He brought both hands back to the mic. 

"Oh, Rouge of Love!" Aubrey did the same. 

Their bodies were swaying in sync, the drums taking them on a rouge red ride! 

"I'm finally getting used to~" 

"Oh, Rouge of Love!" 

"This mask that I've been wearing!" Basil moved a hand back to his face, this time shadowing his mouth rather than his eyes. 

"Come take my heart!" Aubrey once made a taunting gesture. 

"I have a brand new part of me!" Basil clenched his fist. 

"My touched heart!" Aubrey followed suit. 

"This tainted, Rouge of LOVE!" As one they threw their fists into the air, fingers outstretched and pointing towards eternity. 

"Everybody say Rouge of Love!" As Aubrey said that, everyone else joined in, creating a very loud follow-up. "Lalalala la-la, Rouge of Love!" 

And as the music faded out, there was silence but for the pants of Aubrey and Basil. Then applause started and the duo turned back with soft smiles, sweat on their foreheads. 

"Good singing, Basil. Sounded just like the real thing." 

All Basil could do in response is pout.

Being the last pair to go, Sunny was reasonably nervous. Abe seemed to take it in stride though, the thought of hanging out with friends probably overwriting any fear. Sunny was sitting at the couch, watching as Abe enthusiastically scrolled through the options, all sorts of songs playing. Aubrey and Kel were arguing over who sung the best, both Basil and Hero being bystanders to it despite the both of them having sung the majority of their songs. 

He rubbed at his throat. While he had been getting better at speaking recently, that didn't mean he was used to such strenuous throat-based activity. It would be horribly awkward if his voice gave out midway through the song. "Blessed silence? Yes please." On the contrary, Sunny would think even more often. 

"This is it!" 

Reverberating guitar strums played from the TV, as a name came up on the screen. Pride from Despair, once more by no one. It sounds like a rock song... hopefully his voice could make it through. Man, he would do some stuff for a water... 

"Sunny, come on." 

Abe was calling him. Looking up, he held back a flinch as Abe tossed him a microphone and grabbed it. Standing up, he made his way to the front of the room, staring at the TV. He felt Abe step up beside him. Then Abe clapped him on the shoulder. 

"Ow." 

"C'mon, Partner. We've got this!" 

Sunny raised a brow. 

"Partner?" 

Abe flinched back, taking his hand from Sunny's shoulder to scratch his cheek. 

"Ah-well, I mean..." 

Was he... blushing? 

"It's just... me and you, we've been friends for a while, y'know? And for as long as we've been friends we've done almost everything together, y'know? We fight together, we train together, we eat together... side by side, back-to-back. Like cops in those buddy cop movies, y'know? You're my partner, and I'm yours. Or, at least... that's what I'd like to think..." 

The tail end of the explanation came out as a mumble, but Sunny understood. Partners, huh? He wasn't wrong that the two had spent most of the time they've known each other hanging out. But by that logic, hadn't he done the same with everyone else from Faraway? "Except the last 5 years." Yes, except those. But he's never needed to use nicknames like this for anyone else. Does that mean he was just never as close to his friends as he thought? Or was this just an Abe exclusive thing? Or- 

"Hey, Sunny. Don't think so hard about it, okay? It's just a name, it doesn't mean much." 

Abe had knocked him out of it. Giving him a small, stiff smile, Abe nodded towards the TV. Their song was about to play. It was showtime, then. Alright... then- 

"Let's do this, Partner." 

Sunny's certain that Abe was gaping at him, but he didn't have the opportunity to check because Abe immediately started singing the lyrics that were on screen. 

"This shitty fucking life... my shitty fucking self..." Wow, how vulgar. "Desperately live in despair, again and again, boys and girls! Now, stand the hell up!" Abe had taken to clenching one fist at his side. 

"Since hopelessness weighs down on your shoulders, show them your pride! Let's go! Despair-borne... PRIDE!" As he said the last word, the instruments exploded, the solitary guitar being joined by a strum, and both being played viciously. Looking at the screen, Sunny was coming up after one more thing from Abe. He took in a breath. 

"Let's go!" Now! 

"Throughout the goddamn year, I'm in despair with myself. At a complete loss, I'm a child lost in my youth!" Sunny swung his own arm out to the side. At the same time, Abe sung. 

"I have no, no idea!" 

“Nine times out of ten, the gods are completely disappointed. The highway to my dreams is, completely congested!" Sunny clenched his fist in front of his chest as Abe wagged his pointer finger. 

"I have no, no passion!" 

"Even the map is distorted by, my myopia. Always wandering off course, and shit, the month is almost over!" He threw his hand up in a one-armed shrug while Abe mimed rubbing at his eyes. 

"Can't, can't, can't stop the tears!" 

"My worldly desires grow stronger and stronger, and my animal instincts grow duller and duller. I don't care if I've been wrong so answer me damn it!" He pointed straight ahead and his Partner did the same. 

"Go! Go! Get the answer!" 

The instruments almost seemed to curve back a bit, letting Sunny speak his lyrics straight. 

"How do you want to live?" He brought his palm up in question. 

"Hey boy! Get up fuckers!" 

"How can you be proud of a life-" He enclosed his palm and left his thumb and forefinger pointing out. 

"Hey boy! Stand up fuckers!" 

"-that's squandered moment by moment-" He threw his hand away, losing the gesture he had made. 

"Hey boy! Get up fuckers!" 

"-as it heads towards its end?" His hand fell limply by his side. 

"Hey boy! Stand up fuckers!" 

"Hey boy! Think for a second-" Sunny's hand rose up. 

"Hey boy! Get up fuckers!" 

"-with that empty skull of yours!" He tapped his temple. 

"Hey boy! Stand up fuckers!" 

"Show them right now! The glorious despair-borne pride!" The boys threw their arms out to the side. Sunny grabbed his microphone with both hands while Abe began pumping his spare hand to the beat. 

"Burn it down, burn it all down!" In the background, Abe began chanting out, "Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh-woah-oh~". 

"Rusted over and deprived of light, burn your dark past like trash with the fires of your heart!" 

"Pride from Despair!" 

"Accepting your despair, lets you look down on those fools, as you become a crane towering over the trash heaps~" Sunny brought his hand skyward as Abe continued his earlier chanting. 

"Bedazzle them, with your despair-borne pride!" Sunny held a hand over his face, fingers splayed to reveal his eye looking through. Abe took over from there. 

"Every day is shit... my day-to-day life is shit... Succumb to the pits of hopelessness, boys and girls!" Abe pointed his finger straight down. 

"So start fuckin' running! Floor that accelerator with vigour and show them what you've got! To succeed from Despair, your drive!" And as the song ended, Abe turned to his right while Sunny turned to his left, immediately leaning against each other. They looked at their wayward audience, Abe clenching his fist and flexing his arm in front of his chin, while Sunny put his hand over his face, leaving enough space between his fingers for his left eye to look out at the group of friends. 

And with a final beat, the song was over. The two held their pose, looking at their audience who only stared back. And they kept staring. And staring... 

"Awkward..." 

Sunny started to bring his hand away from his face, ears going red, while Abe began to bring his hand down. They were stopped from doing so, though, when everyone began clapping. Kel was laughing manically, Hero and Aubrey were chuckling, and Basil was giggling. Was their pose that funny? Now the blush had properly spread to Sunny's face, hand fully covering his mouth. 

He turned when Abe started to chuckle too, fist covering his mouth. Seriously? 

"Hehe... good going there, Partner." 

Abe winked at Sunny, getting off of Sunny's back and turning around. Bringing his hand away from his mouth, he faced his palm towards Sunny. Sunny looked between the palm and Abe for a few moments before grunting, pulling his hand away to reveal his much less red face. Bringing his hand up, he brought it towards Abe's, creating a light clap. 

The duo smiled.

"Ah... well, that was fun. Right, everyone?" 

"Yeah! It was a blast!" 

"More fun than I thought it would be, I guess..." 

"Y-Yeah, I thought it was really fun." 

"Mhm." 

"See? I told you guys it would be fine!" 

The group of friends found themselves content with their purchase, grouped out the front of the karaoke storefront. The sky had begun to shift from its baby blue to a burnt orange, and the friends found themselves uncertain of the next step. None of them were particularly hungry, so... should they just head home? They still needed to bring the sleeping bags they bought from the Othermart too. 

"So, I guess you're all gonna go to Sunny's house, now?" 

Abe asked that with both hands in his jacket's pockets, head tilted a bit. A slight smile was on his face, but Sunny could tell he wasn't glad about it. Sunny grabbed at his bag's strap, rubbing the rough texture between his finger and thumb. He didn't want Abe to have to go now, but he wasn't sure if it would be okay for Abe to come with them. He wasn't sure what to say. 

"Yeah, it's getting late. We probably shouldn't be out at this time, especially what with the gang you all incited being in town." 

There was Hero, ever the safest. Checking his watch, he looked back up. 

"Abe, why don't you come with us? It's safest together, when you think about it." 

Abe jolted at that, and Sunny straightened too. Really? Could this be the chance they needed? 

"Yeah, come on Abe! Let's hang!" 

"You can come with us, I guess. We're cool." 

"I-I wouldn't mind if you came with us." 

And they were all okay with it? This was perfect! Sunny let go of his bag and held his hand out. 

"Wanna spend the night, Partner?" 

Abe looked surprised, eyebrows up and eyes wide. He didn't seem to have expected this either. Eventually, one of his hands came out to scratch the back of his head, and he looked away with a small smile. 

"Are you guys sure?" 

They would not be denied. 

"Yeah!" 

"Of course." 

"I just said it, didn't I?" 

"Y-Yeah!" 

"You know me well enough to know the answer. C'mon." 

With a light blush on his cheeks, he shook his head hard enough to throw his ponytail into a tizzy. 

"Alright, alright. Geez..." 

He brought his other hand out of his pocket and took Sunny's. Instead of shaking it, Sunny tugged, pulling Abe behind him as he walked towards his friends. Their friends. Amidst them, he let go, and everyone immediately got into a line formation. 

"Oh, don't forget to get permission from Komaki. I'll ask my mom." 

"Oh, right!" 

Sunny didn't actually know about Abe's parents, but because Komaki had first introduced himself as Abe's caretaker the assumption was that Komaki would have to be who he talks to. Fishing his flip-phone out of his pocket, Sunny opened it up, opening his messaging app. Selecting his mother, he began to type out his message. 

4:34 PM - Mom, do you mind if another friend stays over? 

Sending the message, Sunny puts his phone back in his pocket, not expecting his mom to respond anytime soon. Looking behind him, he saw Abe holding his flip-phone to his ear, clearly on a call with Komaki. Not wanting to eavesdrop, he dropped back a bit, joining everyone else who had coincidentally also not wanted to eavesdrop. 

Instead, his attempts at leaving were interrupted by a buzzing coming from his pocket. Digging around, he pulled out his flip-phone. 'Mom' was flashing on the phone's LCD. That was fast. Flipping the thing open, Sunny read the message that was evidently sent. 

4:35 PM - That should be fine, dear. But who is it? Mommy doesn't remember you mentioning any other friends. 

Ah, had he... not mentioned Abe? At all? "You're an asshole." Yeah, you're telling him... 

4:37 PM - A friend I made at school, Abraham. 

Sunny had an instinctive feeling that he had made potentially a mistake. His dulled son-instincts, you could say. And he was quickly proven correct by the flurry of buzzing that came from his phone. With no small amount of hesitance, he looks down. 

4:37 PM - A friend? 

4:37 PM - You made a friend? 

4:37 PM - Honey, I'm so proud! 

4:38 PM - You better bring them back soon, alright? 

4:38 PM - Mommy will be home soon! Love you! 

Sunny huffed. How embarrassing... he loved it. 

4:38 PM - Love you too. See you later. 

Flipping his phone shut, hopefully for the last time this evening, he put it back in his pocket and looked over to Abe who was also putting his phone away. Abe gave him a smile. 

"Alright! Komaki said it was all good! So... should we go?" 

Sunny stared at him for a moment. 

"...don't you need to pick anything up?" 

Abe scratched his head, a brow raised. 

"Hm? Uh... I don't think so? Should I?" 

Oh, no. Don't tell him Abe has never- 

"Have you never been to a sleepover or something?" 

Looking over, it appears that everyone had made their way back up to them once they noticed they were done. It was Aubrey that had asked such a question, being sarcastic. But- 

"Well, uh... hehe." 

"Ah." 

Abe had started scratching his cheek, looking away. Sunny grabbed onto the sleeve of his shirt.

"No way! Come on Abe, we'll show you how to slumber party like the best!" 

Kel inserted himself in, wrapping an arm around Abe's shoulders with a wide smile. Abe blinked owlishly before smiling lopsidedly. 

"So, uh... what do I need?" 

And as Kel opened his mouth to offer a mountain-sized list of items that have almost no actual relevance to sleeping over, Hero decided to input his own information, which had just as much experience as Kel and even more credibility. 

"Well for starters, something to sleep in. We could go back to get a sleeping bag, but we're running out of daylight..." 

"If he sleeps on the couch, we could get him one of the spare blankets from the closet. If you're okay with that, Abe." 

Sunny cut in as he saw Hero go into thought. At his response, Hero snapped his fingers and gave Sunny a nod and a smile before turning to Abe. Abe just nodded, not entirely sure what to say. 

"Thanks, Sunny. Aside from that, you'll need pyjamas and a toothbrush. And besides that, it should just be anything that you need on you or that you want to bring." 

Abe slowly nodded. 

"So, my toothbrush and some pyjamas. Got it. Should we go to my place then? It's a bit far from Sunny's..." 

"Yeah, let's go! Come on Abe, we'll show you how to really party!" 

With that final affirmation from Kel, the group retook their linear positioning, Sunny leading at the head with Abe right behind him and Hero capping it off at the tail. 

Let's go get some PJs! "Yay."

"Alright, we're almost there. Just two more streets and then a left." 

The group had found themselves walking for a while, conversation flowing from one segment of the proverbial snake to the other. They were currently on an offshoot of Center Street, one on the opposite end of the street to where they had come from. It was practically identical to the streets encompassing Sunny's house, and unlike the similar streets of Faraway, the houses dotting these streets lacked any of that outward personality. 

Passing one street, Sunny looked around. The houses were plain insofar as there wasn't any decoration to their lawns. No doghouse, or abandoned toys, or ominous statues that seemed to judge you for all you had done. Just green grass, concrete driveways, and different paint jobs on each building. Brown and white and beige and oh look, white again. 

Passing another street, Sunny couldn't help but find it boring. The rest of the city was interesting certainly, especially to someone that had grown up in a country town. But goddamn were the houses a dime a dozen. Probably saved on costs, sure, but couldn't the people have done some exterior decoration? 

Actually, considering the sheer number of wannabe criminals, maybe that was the better decision. Still boring though. 

"Take that left." 

Right. Taking that left, Sunny stepped onto a small cul-de-sac that looked practically indistinguishable from the streets that had just been travelling. Well, except for... 

"What the fuck?" 

"A-Aubrey, language!" 

"Actually, I'll let it slide this time." 

At the end of the cul-de-sac was... well, a house. But unlike all the other houses, having a standard size, this one was... stouter. It had a slanted wooden roof and was much smaller than its neighbours. And unlike the homes made of concrete, this one was made of wooden logs. A chimney on the top stood unopposed, made of brick to juxtapose the wood. A cabin. It was a forest cabin. In the middle of the city. 

"Abe. What." 

Abe didn't look alarmed in the slightest. 

"What? What's wrong?" 

"Don't give me that. What's with the cabin?" 

"Cabin? Oh, my house." 

Pardon? 

"WHAT!? Abe, that's your house!?" 

Kel pounced, putting a hand on Abe's shoulder and shaking him back and forth. Abe let himself be ragdolled as everyone else had their own little freak out. 

"You live there!?" 

"W-Woah..." 

"At this point, I'm not sure anything can surprise me anymore." 

Sunny just gently put his face in his hand, and Abe just smiles. 

"What? Didn't I tell you?" 

Oh, shut it. Bringing his hand off his face, Sunny gave a flat look that Abe just laughed at. Shaking it off, Sunny made his way towards the home, Kel letting go of Abe to follow. Getting closer to the house revealed that the house was actually somewhat elevated off the floor by wooden-supports that blended in as part of the wall. Some steps lead up to the plain wooden door, and a lawn chair was left next to the entrance, almost anachronistic in comparison to the world around it but feeling just at home next to the log cabin. 

Abe took the lead, fishing his key out of his pocket. Walking up his steps, he stuck the key into the door and twisted. Giving a push, it opened. 

"I'm home~" 

Saying so for reasons beyond them, but for some reason scratched at a forgotten corner of Sunny's mind that even Omori wasn't aware of, he stepped in and immediately kicked off his shoes. Just as Sunny was ascending the step, he turned around. 

"Oh, do you guys think you can wait out here? I shouldn't be very long." 

Sunny blinked before giving a nod, taking a step back down. Abe gave him a nod with a grateful smile before turning away and closing the door. 

Well then. 

Apparently, standing around looking like a vaguely-kicked puppy put his friends into action. Aubrey walked up next to him, one hand akimbo. 

"Well. That was a bit rude, wasn't it? Wonder what he's hiding in there..." 

Kel sidled up too, wide smile replaced by a screwed-up mouth and narrowed eyes. 

"I hate to agree, but I'm curious too. Think we should break in?" 

"Huh? You, suggesting a crime? When did you grow up into a gangster?" 

"Hey, don't say it like that! Besides, I thought you would have done something like this before!" 

"And what's that supposed to mean, Kel!?" 

Oh no, they were fighting again. Basil tried to intercede, hands gently on Aubrey and Kel and futilely trying to push them away from each other. 

"H-Hey, no fighting! Come on, Aubrey, you know Kel didn't mean anything b-by it. R-Right, Kel?" 

"Yeah... sorry, Aubrey." 

"...hah. It's fine, Kel." 

It was... a success? Huh. Aubrey was looking away while Kel was scratching the back of his head. 

"But, do you know how to break into someone's house?" 

"Why you-" 

Ah, the sweet sound of failure. Finally, Hero interjected, softly bopping both Aubrey and Kel with a karate chop.

"Calm down, you two. There's gonna be no breaking into anything, alright?" 

The two looked down, pouts on their faces. Even if they would both deny as such. Basil let out a sigh of relief at the situation having been resolved, and Hero held back a chuckle at the two's expressions. Just as Sunny was getting used to the newfound peace, the creaking of the front door grabbed his attention. 

There was Abe, shoes once more on and now carrying a plastic bag on his arm. He looked from the pouting Kel and Aubrey to the overly relieved Basil then to Sunny himself and rose a brow. 

"Did I miss something?" 

Hero gave a snort.

Making their way down Sunny's street, he was being teased about lemons, as promised. 

"You never knew!?" 

"Listen. It just never came up." 

"How doesn't it come up!?" 

"No one ever asked." 

"Of course they wouldn't, it's assumed knowledge!" 

"What are you upset about again?" 

"You know-" 

Hero got between the two, shutting Aubrey down. 

"Now, now, come on. I'm sure Sunny understands now." And then he smiles and messes with Sunny's hair. "And besides, it's not like this has happened to anything else, right?" 

Sunny kept his mouth shut. Hero dropped his hand to give him a very concerned look. 

"Right?" 

Kel interjected. 

"Sunny! Do you... know what a lime is?" 

Sunny's lips pursed and his ears started to go red. Abe started laughing. 

"Sunny? Sunny!?" 

Basil looked hollow, his eyes merely reflecting the light. 

Making it once more to Sunny's humble abode, he withdrew his key and opened the door. Still empty. Mom's working regular business hours, then. Opening the door all the way, he let everyone in. While Kel, Basil, Aubrey, and Hero moved more or less immediately to set up their sleeping bags, Hero and Basil making a detour to their luggage, Abe looked around the apartment. 

Sunny wondered what he was thinking. Actually, his curiosity was great enough that he decided to just ask. He walked up beside Abe, and Abe turned to face him. 

"Oh, hey Sunny. Just looking around. This place is pretty nice." 

He turned away, once more inspecting the environment. Thank you for the compliment? Shrugging, Sunny turned to see what everyone else was doing. 

Kel and Aubrey seemed to be having territory disputes, with Basil as the collateral damage. Listening closer, it sounded like Kel wanted to sleep in the centre, but Aubrey wanted him to sleep as far from her as he could. The reasoning for such a decision was clearly that Kel was a loud sleeper. Not that Sunny usually had to bother since he was usually a deep sleeper. Poor Aubrey, though. 

Hero was digging through his bag, looking for something. It must have been important judging by how intently Hero was looking. Sunny stepped over to help. 

"I think you're forgetting something." 

Sunny stopped. Forgetting something? What was he... "You were gonna get Abe some stuff to sleep, remember?" Oh, right! To the closet! 

Turning on a dime, he made his way to the hall. Turning left, he moved towards his mother's room and the closet beside it. Stopping in front of it, he just stared. It was just a regular wooden door. No unique details, no strange accoutrements, no weird noises beyond it, and no bizarre odours emanating from it. Laying a hand on it, Sunny felt the wooden grain and the metal knob and all of it. It was there. It was real. 

Of course it was. There was nothing left to hide. Right? "Yup." Right. 

Breathing out, Sunny twisted the knob in his hand and pushed open the door, revealing... darkness. He took a step into the room. 

Yup, still dark. Putting his hand against the wall, he felt around for a light switch. Bumping his fingers against something plastic and hard, Sunny felt around for the jiggly part before flicking it. With a buzz, the lightbulb hanging from the ceiling came on. 

Unsealed boxes took up a majority of the room's space. Behind all of the boxes was a closet. Stepping up to it, Sunny found two boxes that left an ache in his heart. One was a wicker basket with a lid also made of wicker, a handle attached and a red and white chequered blanket peeking out of it. The other was a black wooden chest with unpainted wood along the edges of it. A closed lock was inlaid in the chest's lip. Looking at it made his heart burn. 

"..." 

Turning away, Sunny opened up the closet, looking for the spare bedsheets. A dark grey bedsheet was what he found. Hopefully Abe doesn't mind the drabness. Picking it up, Sunny closed the closet and turned around. Once more facing the two boxes. An errant thought came to mind. 

Where was the key to the Toy Box? 

"..." 

While his other's silence was suspicious, Sunny decided he had more important things to do than putting a pin in this curiosity. Shaking it off, he stepped back towards the doorway. Flicking the light switch again, he stepped outside and put the shutter on the dust and time swept memories. 

Leaving the hallway, he moved over to the couch where everyone was now congregating. Wonder what they're talking about? 

"I'm telling you Aubrey, we've gotta watch Cosmo Dunk! It's a literary masterpiece!" 

"And I'm telling you, you don't know what you're talking about! The only reason you like it is because it has basketballers and Spaceboy characters in it!" 

"Yeah, and!? That doesn't mean it isn't still a great movie, that just means it's an even better one! Besides, I bet you probably brought the Sweetheart DVDs!" 

"Well maybe I did! And besides, at least Sweetheart has class and history as the OG magical girl show!" 

Kel made a gagging noise while Aubrey growled. Movies, huh? Hopefully they've got a movie player somewhere... 

"Come on you two, no arguing. We'll all get a chance to play our movies at some point, alright? And anyways, I thought we might watch Nero and Glitch. Maybe it's a bit of a kid's movie, but I found the themes of what it means to be family to be really profound, y'know? Almost made me cry." 

"...that's lame, Hero." 

"Gah..." 

Hero clutched at his heart in pain. The kids of this generation truly were cruel, weren't they? Basil began mumbling, barely loud enough to be heard. 

"I wanted to watch Herlock Sholmes, but I guess we can do that later..." 

Poor Basil... Even Abe thought so, coughing into his hand. Before the argument could escalate any further, or more damage could be wrought, Sunny walked up with the large blanket in tow. 

"Abe, here." 

He held out the bundle in his hands, which Abe hesitantly took and laid on his lap. It was very thick and cumbersome, and it spilling over Abe's lap exemplified this. With the burden free from his hands, Sunny prepared to enter and hopefully end the argument. But before he got the opportunity, his phone began to buzz. Fishing it out, he checked who was calling him. It was... Mom? He flipped it open and accepted the call, putting it to his ear. 

"Mom?" 

"Hi, sweetie! Mommy will be coming home, soon, and with all of the groceries we'll need. But, I didn't have enough money to grab any bread for sandwiches later. Sorry, honey..." 

"It's fine, Mom. Actually..." He had some spare money, and bread could be bought with $5, right? "Do you want me to go get some bread?" 

"Oh, sweetie, you don't have to." 

"But I want to." 

His mother stayed silent for a few moments while Sunny held the phone to his ear, staring intently at a point on the wall. His mother spoke up, a mixture of sadness and pride in her tone. 

"If you're sure, then. Oh, my little boy, all grown up... I love you." 

"...love you too, Mom." 

Pressing the red decline button, Sunny turned to his friends on the couch. They were all staring at him with varying degrees of intensity. Careful, he might just blush. 

"Sunny? Are you going somewhere?" 

Hero asked that with a strained expression. Sunny nodded mutely. Everyone glanced between each other before Basil brought up the question. 

"Um... do you... do you want any of us to come with you?" 

Hm. A good question. Sunny doesn't particularly want to go alone, but he's also certain he could get it done faster by himself. And if he does it quick enough, maybe he'll get to beat her home. Taking that into account, Sunny shook his head. "This is a terrible idea." Shush. 

"No, I should be fine on my own. Shouldn't even take me fifteen minutes." 

Despite his reassurance, none of them seem convinced. In fact, they seemed even more worried now if the lip biting and eye narrowing was any indication. 

"Sunny, are you sure? None of us would have a problem with coming with." 

In opposition of Kel's attempt at haggling, Sunny stood undeterred. This was a matter of his "loathsome" pride. 

"It'll be fine. I'll be careful. I promise." 

Sunny even gave them a smile. One that was tamped down by the bandage pressing down on his nose, sure, but a smile nevertheless. And unlike everything else, that seemed to do the trick. Slowly, everyone relaxed somewhat, lips becoming unbitten, eyes easing, shoulders slackening. Yet there was still tension within them. Were they... really that worried? 

Sunny felt touched. 

Giving them another smile, this one much softer than the one previous, Sunny turned away, moving towards the door. Before he reached it, Abe called out. 

"If you take too long, I'll call you! So you better answer!" 

Throwing his arm out, he gave Abe a thumbs up before pushing his way out of the building. 

Once outside, he looked at the sky. It seems that in the time he spent inside, the sky had turned entirely into that burnt orange, with tinges of an ecstatic pink on the horizon. Letting out a breath, Sunny turned to walk down the road, clenching his fists. He was gonna get this bread.

Taking a step out of the Othermart, Sunny looked at the sky. Hardly any pinker than he remembered. Perfect. Readjusting his grip on the plastic bag, he made his way down the street. He had gotten that bread. 

But before he could even leave the street, he felt a buzzing in his pocket. Seriously? It hadn't been fifteen minutes yet, had it? Checking the caller and seeing it was Abe, he sighed before answering the call. 

"Hey Sunny. You okay?" 

Sunny blew some air out his nose. 

"Yeah, I'm fine. Why are you calling so early?" 

"What, am I not allowed to worry about my friend?" 

He said it jokingly, but Sunny could tell he meant it. Guess he was being a bit defensive about all of this, wasn't he? 

"No... no, you are. I'm sorry. I just... really wanted to do this on my own." 

"Yeah. Yeah, Partner, don't worry about it. I trust you. Besides, you promised. And you hate breaking promises, right?" 

"...I do. So, I'll see you soon then." 

Saying so, Sunny stopped. Turning to his right, he spotted an alley. For some reason, his instincts were telling him to watch out. A look to where he had just oame from told him why. There were 4 people, all clearly suspicious in nature and that's saying something considering what Sunny looks like. All four were staring at him, and they all had their hands in their pockets. Sunny got a bad feeling. Actually, one of them looked familiar. Brown hair, a white dress shirt... and plenty of bandages on the face. 

"Actually, I might not be able to see you as soon as I'd like." 

Turning around, Sunny saw another four suspicious figures approaching him. Unlike the four behind him that were absolute strangers, he actually recognised these guys. They were all dressed in black hoodies despite the heat, and one of them was carrying a baseball bat. One of their number, an individual with blond hair, was also limping, stark white bandages on his face. 

He was surrounded. 

"Hm? Whaddya mean, Sun-" 

He was yanked by the arm. Not expecting it, he couldn't offer any decent resistance, and next thing he knew he was facing the dead-end of an alleyway. Being in the Northern District, it was much cleaner than the alley from earlier, but there was still rubbish left around. A few doors were embedded in the sides of the buildings, trying to justify the alley's existence. 

Catching his balance, Sunny turned and placed a hand on his sheath, looking for the face of his mystery assailant. What greeted him was a shock of white hair in a messy cut like his own, glittering red eyes and a shark’s grin staring back at him. Wearing a white shirt with some black trim on the collar and cargo shorts, he stood out amongst the crowd of thugs that were slowly piling in and cutting off Sunny's exit. 

He was trapped. 

"...Sunny... Su...y!? Wh.... hap..." 

The sound of conversation was coming from a bit away. Sunny's gaze flickered downwards. His phone. It must have left his grasp when he was pulled inside. Before he could make a move for it, the albino snatched it up and looked at the screen. 

"Abe, huh? I wonder, is this meant to be the other guy that helped beat Ricky?" 

Saying such, almost tauntingly towards the phone, he hung up before a response could come. Tossing it back to the floor, he faced Sunny. 

"So, you're the guy, huh?" 

His voice was deep, but charming. Like a prince from a kid's movie. It made Sunny's skin crawl. 

"Yeah! That's him, Boss! He's the one that beat Ricky and helped break my nose!" 

The brunette punk pointed at him, voice charmingly mad. Ah, so it was him. It was hard to tell through the bandages... what was your name again? John? 

"Alright, I hear you Jean. Care to confirm, Ricky?" 

The so-called Boss looked back to the banged-up blond. Staring intently at Sunny, Ricky gave a nod. With a small laugh, the Boss turned back to face Sunny. 

"Well then, I suppose I should introduce myself. My name is Suki, and I am the leader of the Grey Hounds. And you are?" 

Chapter Text

Well... this was a terrible situation. 

You, alone, stuck in a dead-end alley, with the only escape being clogged by nine thugs, two of which you have beaten up but not by yourself. 

And if that wasn't enough, at least two of them definitely have a weapon, another three probably do, and the leader is trying to talk to you despite how much he freaks you out. 

Put simply, you're outnumbered, outgunned, and sooner or later outpaced. 

Bet you're really stinging now that you're by yourself. I told you not to listen to that pride of yours, and look where we are. 

...whatever. You should probably answer. 

"Sunny." 

The leader, as it were, Suki smiled a bit wider at that. 

"Sunny, huh? You seem a bit gloomy for someone with such a bright name." 

This guy... 

"What do you want?" 

He rose a brow. 

"What do I want? Well... that depends. If you mean right now... well, I just wanted to meet the guy that beat up my men. But if you mean in the grand scheme of things..." With a shrug and widened eyes, he continued. "I just want to have a good time." 

A good time. He wanted a good time? He was the leader of a gang, not a little group like Aubrey's but an honest to goodness gang, because he wants a good time? His friends carry weapons, pickpocket, and who knew what else, because he wanted a good time? 

And as the slightest trace of familiarity flowed through you, as you felt yourself relate to the thought even just a tiny bit, you realized. 

You became AFRAID. 

He was the most terrifying enemy. He wasn't something intangible like the PHOBIAs, or the SOMETHINGs, or even me. He's not something you can just OVERCOME by building yourself up to that point. He was real, and he was there, and his smile felt like it could rend you to bits. 

"And now that I've met you, I've gotta say..." He hid his smile for a moment, likely to moisten his lips, and it felt like you could breathe easier. "I'm not very impressed. You look strong enough to take on a few chumps, but I can't see how you beat Ricky. So..." 

Suki cracked his knuckles and rolled his neck, filling the silence with a noise that made your spine shiver. When he finished with that, he held one hand open by his waist and stuck the other arm out, palm flicking towards himself. Wait, was he... 

Was he TAUNTING you? 

I could feel it working on myself, trying to bind my sight in an aura of red, but even that couldn't pierce through the veil of purple over you. You need to CALM DOWN soon, otherwise... 

"Come at me. And I'll see if you're any fun." 

TAUNT over, he brought his hand back, leaving it resting near his face. His feet were spread apart, his left leg in front of his right. In comparison to Ricky, who looked like he knew what he was doing but was still rough around the edges, Suki looked perfectly composed. There were no obvious weaknesses in his stance. Even his weight was evenly distributed between his legs. 

You went to draw your blade, but you felt the weight of it all on your hands and elbows. 

You went to spread your feet apart, but you felt like hands were dragging you down. 

You went to clench your fist, but you felt something fill your grasp and force it open. 

You have to CALM DOWN! 

You took in a breath. You hold it in, let it fill you and push away the fear, before letting it out. Before the fear can encroach once more, you take in another breath. This one pushes the fear out even further. And then, with one more breath- 

You CALMED DOWN. 

You became NEUTRAL. 

And as much as I want you to fight immediately, to prove this guy wrong about you- I still have enough agency to know that's not the path you should be taking. That's why I'm not protesting when you say: 

"And why should I fight you?" 

Suki tilted his head, and oh, there were the teeth again. But the fear merely bounced off of you. 

"Well... if you beat me, then we'll let you leave, as simple as that. Hell, I'll even make sure my men know not to attack you or your friends on the streets. And if you don't fight me... well, then I'll just take the fight to you." 

His smile became wide again, and he slowly ground his left foot into the floor, like he was miming a bull about to rush. Tch. As it were, you had no choice but to fight. And what would happen if you lost was left vague, but you knew it wouldn't be something you wanted. 

Narrowing your eye, you reached behind you, unzipping the bag and drawing your weapon. You spread your feet apart, clenching your fists around the wrapped handle. 

You used the Gladiolus STYLE. 

Holding the blade in front of you with both hands, you stared down the sword's spine to where Suki stood, grin wide. 

You waited. You waited for anything. A shift, a twitch, a sign. You waited for the signal to move. 

A snap, the crack of two fingers sliding against each other fast enough to ignore friction. 

You move. 

You rush forwards, and he does too. You bring the weapon down, and he grabs you by the wrist, pulling you toward shim then spinning away from you, pushing you from behind. You almost lose your balance, but you catch yourself and throw back a rash kick that he blocked. 

Suki 

Leader of the Grey Hounds 

Pushing off his guard, you brought both your feet back to their initial position. This time you don't wait. 

Jumping forward, you bring your weapon in a horizontal swing towards him. He ducks underneath and then pushes the blade as it passes him, throwing you a little to your left. Rather than pursue the advantage he made, he just stood up and retook his stance, smiling. 

This guy... 

Your next swing went from over your left shoulder down to your right hip, attempting to "bisect" him, as it were. You were certain you had him dead to rights, but at the last moment he stepped to the side, not even deflecting your attack this time. His loss. 

Not letting him take a chance to waste a turn, you followed the rotation of your blow. Spinning around to face him once more, you thrust your sword forward, aiming for a blow to the stomach. 

And he just. Sidestepped again. As your blade passed him by, he slapped it down with one hand, then brought his foot crashing down on it to ground your weapon. Your sense of balance was perfectly compromised. He moved- 

"Haha. Is that all you've got?" 

Keeping one foot on your blade, he slapped your cheek softly with his hand. His grin had become even larger, almost splitting his face, and then he jumped off the sword and retook his stance. He just TAUNTED you. And you- 

You became ANGRY. 

You used KOMAKI STYLE. 

You held your weapon up by your shoulder, ready to shatter your opponent. He just stood, peering through the red that enveloped you. 

You swung downwards, and he moved aside. 

You swung to the side, and he ducked. 

You swung downwards once again, and he- 

"Tsk-" 

-grabbed you by your wrist, standing up and halting your strike- 

"-tsk-" 

-spun around behind you, pulling your arm up even further so it pointed straight up- 

"-tsk." 

-and slammed his palm right into your elbow. 

You lost 60 HEART. 

A lance of pain ran through you, forcing your entire right arm to spasm and tearing a pained gurgle from your throat. Your hand could no longer grasp the Wooden Katana. 

You were forced into Rose STYLE. 

Letting go of you, Suki pushed you back and you couldn't resist it, hardly catching yourself as he picks up your weapon. As you clutch your arm, you watch as he looks at the weapon in his hand, shifting and tilting it before looking away with a huff. Once more, the face-splitting smile TAUNTED you. 

"Just a hunk of junk." 

Without a second glance, he tossed it behind his back. Without caring about the work, the effort, the importance behind that blade, he tossed it aside. Like he was tossing aside this last year. 

You became ENRAGED. 

Your elbow wasn't broken, so you cast aside the pain and bring your fists up to your face. 

They were all you had. 

With red flames licking your fists, you threw a right hook that he backstepped away from. Same with your left hook. Your right hook was instead sidestepped and repaid with a knuckle right into your nose. 

You lost 30 HEART. 

You jerked away, your anger making the pain much sharper than it should be. But you were undeterred, immediately throwing yourself back into the fray. Another hook, another miss. Another straight, another miss. More and more strikes, further and further into the dead-end. Boxing him in, I would like to say, but I don't believe it.

And I was proven right. Grabbing your arm as you thrust through where he was, Suki starts to tumble forward, shoving a foot into your gut before falling over. Your perspective shifts and blurs, brushing past him on the ground and then the ground itself before settling on the rotting sky, back flat against the dirty alley with a stab of pain. 

You lost 40 HEART. 

You groan and he chuckles, and suddenly you're getting up, paying no heed to the dull ache behind your eyepatch and the way the details of the alley start to blur. No, instead you pay heed to the wooden object as large as your palm. Instead you pay heed to the way he smiled at you, the way he TAUNTED you. 

"Man... I'm bored." 

You became FURIOUS. 

He let out a whistle. 

"Wow... if looks could kill, huh? Ah well. Get as angry as you want. You won't beat me." 

Bringing up that piece of wood you were clutching, I noted what it was. Looked like a broken-off piece of a two-by-four. Seemed as big as the KNIFE, actually... Wait, are you- 

You used the Cactus STYLE. 

Brandishing your "knife", you leapt forward, and he just stood there. If he's so good at dodging your blows, then all you have to do is overwhelm him! So, with a weapon that was practically dripping the red and orange of your rage, you struck.

Right shoulder to left hip, left shoulder to right hip, every strike pulling you closer and closer towards him, not letting him pull further than a step away from you before you attack again. Bring your blade up in an uppercut, then step forward and bring it crashing down. He steps away again, but this time you jump into him. 

He catches you by your shoulder, but before he can grip you spin around and hit him in the waist! 

"Huh. Maybe you're better than I thought." 

But he just steps back and away, moving with the blow and not even cradling his side. You're not sure if that should make you even madder or if you should feel the chill of fear, but before you could do anything- 

"Too bad." 

Suki used Bear STYLE.

His entire stance changed. He squared his shoulders, tensing his arms by his sides. Swinging his arm back, he swung it directly towards you. All you could do was stare, watch as his entire body seemed to FLEX itself into the perfect weapon.

And then it all went away in a burst of static.

You lost 100 HEART. 

The static clutched to your vision, your hearing, your touch, even your sense of taste and smell as you drew in weak breaths. Through the static that invaded your senses, you found yourself surprised that he could change 'STYLES', just like you. I was too, but it isn't as if what you do is impossible for others to do. 

Through the haze covering your vision, you could see the white spectre hulking towards you, taking one slow step at a time before stopping above you. His smile stood out amongst everything else, mocking you even now. That anger... you could still feel it flowing through you, making you want to fight on. But you can't. You have to CALM DOWN, have to recuperate if you want a chance at victory. So come on! Just take a deep breath, let the anger go, plea- 

"I wonder. Maybe your friends will give me more of a challenge? Ricky mentioned a blond with you, and Jean talked about a tall bastard and a pinky bastard... oh, and that Abe guy. Maybe we'll even get the money you all stole from Jean out of them. What do you think, Sunny?" 

... 

.. 

. 

This b̸͔̔͝ạ̵̑s̵͚̹̋͛t̵̪̭̒a̵̱̒̕ͅr̸̛̩͚ḏ̶̔̍. 

H̷̻͉̐ú̴͙r̸̡̊ṱ̸̹̊̄ him. Ć̴̯ȑ̵̡ù̶͚̯̋s̶͕̒̅ȟ̸͖͕ him. Ḓ̴͌e̷̢̕ͅs̵̤̲̿̉t̸̹̅r̴̭͛̆ö̸̫y̴̠̦̎͆ him. 

Make it so he can't harm any of our loved ones e̶̲͍̩͈͌̇́͆̎͘͜v̷͎̞͋͌͝ȇ̴̩̋͠r̵͓͋̂͛. 

Even if it means you have to K̷̜̞̗͌̅̇͂͜Ï̸̭̪̣̮͂̈́̈́͠L̶͔̫̭̦̞̖̫̜̲͉̦͕̑̂͒͜͜͜L̴̨̧̛̙̲̰͈̫̮̬̭̭̋̏̀̒̀ him. 

Y̸̮͚̻̎͊̀ͅö̵̢̱͌̓̃͝u̸͚̝̘͕̻̯̇̌̋ lost 10 HEART. 

Y̵̯̗̎̃̋̚Ō̷̡̢͕̥̗̈͠Ṳ̵̓̊̔ SUCCU-

Suki kept his fist on Sunny's face for one second, then another, before pulling away and watching as blood sluggishly crawled out of his nose and stained his cheeks. He pulled away with a sigh. Looks like he had gotten his hopes up. 

Straightening up, he turned to make his way back to his men, Jean watching with a pale face but a satisfied smirk and the boy with the bat looking on with a slight frown. Just as he stepped near where he had dropped Sunny's phone and wooden sword, he stopped. He had heard something. 

A rustle. Flesh dragging against concrete. Wood bumping against trash. And breathing. Harsh, harsh breathing. 

Was he smiling? Suki didn't even know anymore. 

All he knew, as he watched the ravenette stumble a bit before standing up straight, pointing his makeshift "knife" at Suki's chest? All he knew as he looked into Sunny's one good eye, the one whose pupil and iris had practically turned into pinpricks and leaving his eyes as a pale white? All he knew as he saw how the eyes seemed to reflect an intoxicating joy, a blazing anger, a crushing sadness, yet also seemed to not reflect anything at all, was that this? 

S̴͈̐U̶͇͝Ň̸͎N̷̟Y̶̫̿ became INSANE.

This was exactly what he was looking for.

Ŷ̷̮̣͉̱̍̎͒̿͝o̵̼̝͎̩̱̲͒͒̈̆̍u̸̡͔͎͉̰͂͋̆̆͊̀̓̏͝/̶̗̥̀̇I̶̡̠̽̈́̅̈́̈́͜ stood up. Brandishing the KNIFE, y̵̢̘̱͈̞̱̭̆̊͂̆̊͠o̴̦͈͗̄͋͝u̶͈̭̘̦̙̜͇͊/̵̡̭͙̜̳̯̦͎̒̎̇̈́̿Ḯ̴͉͍͒͂̒̇ prepared to K̷̜̞̗͌̅̇͂͜Ï̸̭̪̣̮͂̈́̈́͠L̶͔̫̭̦̞̖̫̜̲͉̦͕̑̂͒͜͜͜L̴̨̧̛̙̲̰͈̫̮̬̭̭̋̏̀̒̀ him. 

He merely retook his stance, entire body tensed to take a heavy hit and deal a heavy hit. Bastard. 

Swinging the KNIFE to the side, covered in the prismatic red, blue, and yellow flames, y̵̢̘̱͈̞̱̭̆̊͂̆̊͠o̴̦͈͗̄͋͝u̶͈̭̘̦̙̜͇͊/̵̡̭͙̜̳̯̦͎̒̎̇̈́̿Ḯ̴͉͍͒͂̒̇ lunged for him.

In comparison to earlier, the strike was more wild, and even faster than before, going from top right to bottom left, harshly landing on the ground with one foot. Suki moved back just enough so that it clipped his chest, but before he could take another slow swing, while y̶̤͓̩͋ͅȯ̶̼̦̲̤͛u̷̧̡͉̜͐̒̑ṟ̶̼̩̥̍̓/̵̨̢͚̤͛͐͛̅m̵͕̈́̍̽̕ẏ̸̟̏ foot was still in the air, y̵̢̘̱͈̞̱̭̆̊͂̆̊͠o̴̦͈͗̄͋͝u̶͈̭̘̦̙̜͇͊ slammed y̶̤͓̩͋ͅȯ̶̼̦̲̤͛u̷̧̡͉̜͐̒̑ṟ̶̼̩̥̍̓ hand against the hand holding the KNIFE, forcing it to slam into Suki's chest and pushing him back a step. 

Grinding m̵͕̈́̍̽̕ẏ̸̟̏ foot into the dirt as Ḯ̴͉͍͒͂̒̇ turned, Ḯ̴͉͍͒͂̒̇ caught sight of Suki's widened eyes. He was surprised. Good. Ŷ̷̮̣͉̱̍̎͒̿͝o̵̼̝͎̩̱̲͒͒̈̆̍u̸̡͔͎͉̰͂͋̆̆͊̀̓̏͝ could feel an equally threatening smile start to grow on ơ̴͔̺̺̬̣̱͙̜̱̯̪͍͒̊̌͌̎̐̐͂̋͠͝͝ų̸̩͈͈̝̤̊̌̊̀́̈́̃̽̑̎͆̓̒̿͋ṙ̶͈̹̗̩̻͖͈̻̞̒͂̅̒͑ face. 

S̴͈̐U̶͇͝Ň̸͎N̷̟Y̶̫̿ lost 10 HEAT. 

Ŷ̷̮̣͉̱̍̎͒̿͝o̵̼̝͎̩̱̲͒͒̈̆̍u̸̡͔͎͉̰͂͋̆̆͊̀̓̏͝ refused to give him a turn. Ḯ̴͉͍͒͂̒̇ struck. Leaping forward once more, the KNIFE was held to the side as y̵̢̘̱͈̞̱̭̆̊͂̆̊͠o̴̦͈͗̄͋͝u̶͈̭̘̦̙̜͇͊ landed in a roll, striking him once more. Not wanting to let up, Ḯ̴͉͍͒͂̒̇ start to leap from the crouch, but- 

"Well, aren't you quick?" 

He had been winding up a punch the whole time, but w̵̨̡͕̘̹̤̄͜ę̷̜̩̳̻̈̑̓̈́͐͒͆̑̽̚͠͠ hadn't been paying attention, so the sudden pressure applied to the side of y̶̤͓̩͋ͅȯ̶̼̦̲̤͛u̷̧̡͉̜͐̒̑ṟ̶̼̩̥̍̓ head was a surprise. 

S̴͈̐U̶͇͝Ň̸͎N̷̟Y̶̫̿ lost 10 HEAT. 

S̴͈̐U̶͇͝Ň̸͎N̷̟Y̶̫̿ lost 40 HEAT. 

But it hardly did anything. The wet feeling on y̶̤͓̩͋ͅȯ̶̼̦̲̤͛u̷̧̡͉̜͐̒̑ṟ̶̼̩̥̍̓ face meant nothing in between the flames and the static, and so w̵̨̡͕̘̹̤̄͜ę̷̜̩̳̻̈̑̓̈́͐͒͆̑̽̚͠͠ countered without hesitation. The KNIFE carved a path along his unyielding middle, before suddenly shifting directions to the sky. It struck his jaw, knocked his head back, and then Ḯ̴͉͍͒͂̒̇ leapt. 

Looking down and seeing his faux-red irises glimmer, seeing his twisted smile despite the situation- 

It made ơ̴͔̺̺̬̣̱͙̜̱̯̪͍͒̊̌͌̎̐̐͂̋͠͝͝ų̸̩͈͈̝̤̊̌̊̀́̈́̃̽̑̎͆̓̒̿͋ṙ̶͈̹̗̩̻͖͈̻̞̒͂̅̒͑ own grow in recompense. 

Then the KNIFE was swung down with everything w̵̨̡͕̘̹̤̄͜ę̷̜̩̳̻̈̑̓̈́͐͒͆̑̽̚͠͠ had, and he had to capitulate. He fell to a knee, and w̵̨̡͕̘̹̤̄͜ę̷̜̩̳̻̈̑̓̈́͐͒͆̑̽̚͠͠ landed on ơ̴͔̺̺̬̣̱͙̜̱̯̪͍͒̊̌͌̎̐̐͂̋͠͝͝ų̸̩͈͈̝̤̊̌̊̀́̈́̃̽̑̎͆̓̒̿͋ṙ̶͈̹̗̩̻͖͈̻̞̒͂̅̒͑ feet. Now that he was down, victory was- 

S̴͈̐U̶͇͝Ň̸͎N̷̟Y̶̫̿ lost 10 HEAT. 

S̴͈̐U̶͇͝Ň̸͎N̷̟Y̶̫̿ was no longer INSANE. 

You became NEUTRAL. 

And then suddenly, it was solitarily Me and You again. Once more, I could do nothing but watch, and once more, you could hardly move. 

Your hand could barely grip the broken plank, your knees were shaking underneath your own weight, and your chest was heaving to take in any air to stave off the breathlessness. The layers of fire and static had been stripped away to leave you exposed to all of the pain that had been ignored. 

"Haha... what, are you not going to hit me? Too tired?" 

Suki laughed, slowly stepping back up to his full height. But instead of retaking his stance, he just stood there, one hand on his chin. 

"You look different. That look in your eyes is gone. Don't you want to kill me?" 

Out of energy, the word kill merely made you flinch. You stumbled a bit, foot struggling to gather enough friction against the ground to stop your slipping. You caught yourself, but your stance was a mess. 

Legs farther apart than shoulder-width, shoulders hunched forward, with your left arm hanging limply and your right weakly holding the makeshift weapon before you. Any strike right now would put you down for good, which is really bad. So you should CALM DO- 

"Well, maybe you do still want to kill me. Maybe I just need to drag it out sooner. But you know, you managed to make this interesting. So thanks. I hope you can show me an even better time next time." 

And before you could do anything, he walked up to you and threw a basic hooked punch right into your face. 

You lost 1 HEART. 

And it was enough. You crumbled, wrist striking the floor and sending the wood skittering away. You could barely breathe anymore, barely think, but at least the pain was starting to dull. Through your single eye that was darkening with your looming defeat, you could see Suki looking down on you, a small smile on his face. Somehow, this one felt more personal. 

"Don't worry, we won't hurt your friends. Not when you're so much fun." 

Then he turned away and left, and the last things you heard were the sounds of footsteps against the concrete and a buzzing from somewhere nearby. 

A yell of your name resounded. 

You SUCCUMBED. 

... 

.. 

.

WELCOME TO BLACK SPACE 

YOU HAD HOPED TO NEVER RETURN HERE

Chapter Text

It's cold. The cold is familiar. It's an insidious cold, one that sinks into your bones, then even further, beyond the marrow and right into your soul. 

I open my eyes. At least, I think I did. As it is, there is no difference between whether my eyes are open or closed. And if that wasn't clue enough, I'm not exactly deaf to the ominous voice that welcomes us to this land of sleep. 

Internally sighing, I sit up. And as I thought, here I am. 

BLACK SPACE. 

I'm honestly not sure if I'm feeling fear or irritation. Well, I'm not sure if I'm even feeling, but that's a discussion for later, preferably never. 

But after having to come here anywhere between once every two weeks to twice a week for almost four years, it starts to become a drag. The only fear I feel from this place is your leftovers and how this place always happens to feature a new, horrifying take on your mentality. 

Speaking of you, there you are, lying on your back once more in the middle of the black blanket. Near you are the tissue box with very rough paper, the complementary soulless picnic basket, and... 

Wait, there's not meant to be an and. 

I stand up from the cold floor I was on and walked towards it. You didn't move an inch, as still as you usually are when asleep. But as if it were some kind of signal, the moment my socks touched the blanket- 

"Please no..." 

-you opened your eyes, looked at the eternal blackness, then covered your eyes with your hands and groaned that line out. You held your hands on your face for a moment, then another, then eventually let them fall from your face with another groan. Just as I did, you sat up, taking stock of where we were. Your gaze clearly caught onto the other object next to the picnic basket, but instead of moving towards it, you... 

"Hey, Omori." 

...chose me instead. Huh. You slowly stood up, pressing your hand on the blanket to help you up and then quickly withdrawing, shaking your hand. Was it cold? You looked from your hand, to the carpet, back to your hand, and then to me. What? 

You stuck out your other hand and made a grabbing motion with both towards me. Seriously? Why would I do that? We are not friends. 

"Please?" 

...why are you already on your feet, holding my hands? 

"Thank you." 

You squeezed my hands slightly before letting go. The sudden lack of warmth was sharp, and I couldn't stop my hands from clenching to try and preserve it... odd. 

You began looking around, the sweat on your face the only sign that you're feeling nervous. And of course, before long, your gaze is drawn to the same thing that grabbed my attention. 

You hesitate, but take a step forward anyway. Then another, and another, and then you're in front of it. 

A familiar wooden chest, blackened by the Truth that stained everything in this space. 

The TOY BOX. 

You hunch over, placing your hands on the stained wood. Your arms twitch, as if you wanted to pull away, but you keep your hand on it. Gripping the sides of the lid, you tugged it upwards- 

And was stopped by the creak of the rusted lock. Of course. After all, the TOY BOX has a KEY. One that you should never have been able to hide, how did you hide it, who let you 

You stay silent before letting out a long and slow sigh, removing your hands from the chest and shaking them out. Standing up straight, you turn to me. 

"Omori... why are we here?" 

I was expecting the question at some point, but I'm still annoyed to hear it. (And isn’t that a novelty?) 

"You said you wanted to become stronger, to face your fears. What better than this place, the place you fear more than anything, to train you?”

This is, of course, a lie. I hardly have any control of this world anymore I was nothing more than a usurper, a traitorous thought gone too far, and even if I was, I doubt I would have used BLACK SPACE this soon. 

You looked at me with an almost disappointed expression, eyes lidded and a frown weighing it all down. For a moment, I thought I caught a flash of red in the iris of your... "eye." And before I could respond, most likely in an attempt to make that flash become a fixture, you let out another sigh. 

"Sure, but... is this meant to make me less scared of my friends?" 

The disbelieving tone in your voice would have made me cackle, but instead I contented for the slightest flash of yellow along my body and a shrug. Man, even if I was in control, all bets are off past that door. Speaking of the door... 

A creak echoed throughout the space. Both our heads moved on a swivel to find the source of it, and what greeted us was... well, another oddity. 

A wooden door. 

No, not like the black wooden door that's always in BLACK SPACE. Just a regular, brown door. Like the ones inside your house. 

It just stood there, practically a beacon among the pitch black of this world. And well, besides us. 

Slowly, you turned back to face me, eyebrow raised, and all I could offer was a shrug. However you took that, you just stared for a little bit before turning back to the door and moving towards it. 

Oi, don't forget about me. 

Sidling right up next to you, I watched as you fiddled with something in your right hand. The KNIFE. 

Oh wait, that's right- 

Hands feeling through my POCKET, I pulled out the GARDEN SHEARS. I have no clue how its STATS compare to the KNIFE'S, but I imagine you can probably figure that out. So, I shove the SHEARS into your POCKET, and watch you blink at me confused. What, do you need a text prompt read for you? 

"Boss Item from BASIL." 

We didn't have any of those in HEADSPACE, which you probably thought was a shame since you quite liked that trope from other games you played. I was gonna get around to implementing those in the next run, but. Well. 

You stared at me, one, two, three, before nodding and turning back to the door. You reached out and grabbed the knob, and didn't flinch at all. Is it not cold like everything else? 

"Omori. Are you ready?" 

My eyes widened a bit. Are you really asking me? You're the PARTY LEADER. You make the decision. And besides, I can't do anything but change your EMOTIONS, I'm otherwise about as handy as a Navi. I would have been taken with you regardless. 

But, you're not budging an inch, you're just waiting for me, and I couldn't stop the defeated sigh that left my lips. Honestly... 

You're far too merciful to the person that tried to kill you without remorse. 

"Mm." 

Just the slight noise and a nod that you couldn't see but could feel was all you needed. Slowly, you turned the knob, opening the door to reveal a tender light in the eternal darkness. With one last nod, we walked through the doorway. 

Once more into blackness.

The light faded in slowly, first illuminating the immediate space Sunny stood in, then expanding to reveal the street that he stood on and even further, revealing a familiar city. 

Well, it wasn't familiar at first. Those buildings he had gotten so used to over the last year had become black and faded, the grass along the lawns grey and saturated. The colourful sky he remembered was orange, like the sunset yet not. It was too much, too orange, too bright to truly be sunset. 

He looked up and down the street. If he wasn't wrong, he should be in front of his own house. And yet, looking at it, he knew there was no importance to it. Not yet, at least. It was just as black and unassuming as every other home here. 

Then, where should he go? 

He turned to the left and stared. He didn't have any particular memories of what lay down there. Maybe he walked down there once? Did it lead somewhere or was it just a dead end? He took a few steps down then shook his head. This wasn't it. 

Instead, he turned the other way. The usual path, to school, to the park, to... well, to everything. He took a few steps towards it, and kept going. This felt right. 

He kept walking until he eventually reached Center Street. Glancing up and down, his gaze roamed over the blackened storefronts, stopping momentarily over a brighter spot in an alley, before catching and resting on a slight blur of red down the road. Was that... 

Sunny walked down the road, vision focusing better on the red in the familiar shape of footprints. Before he reached them, though... 

"Meow..." 

He stopped. It felt like his muscles had seized. His head turned. 

"...meow." 

He was standing in front of that alley, the ground beneath him almost white when contrasted with the grey and black of everywhere else. Despite this, though, what lay in the alley beyond seemed to be shrouded in shadow. 

"Meow." 

And peaking out from the shadows was a cat. A black cat, familiar and not. It was Not Mewo in all of her scrappy glory, and she was signalling for Sunny to follow. 

And he wanted to, he really did. But at the same time, he didn't. 

It hurt. Looking at her hurt. 

Loss hurt. 

One step, then another, he stepped towards her, until eventually he kneeled before her. Slowly, gently, his hand raised and lowered, reaching for and landing on her head, between her ears. He gave her a scritch, and was rewarded with a purr. He gave her another, and he got back a mewl. One more, and she gently bat his hand with her paw. 

He pulled away and she shook herself out before turning, slinking back towards the shadows within the alley. But before she did, she stopped and let out one last meow. 

"Meow... (Come find me later...)" 

Then she was gone, and he was alone. He felt himself shake. 

Sunny became SAD. 

The slight haze of blue covered his body and he felt himself give a shudder, but nothing else. "You need to CALM DOWN. This won't help you." 

He let out a low, long sigh. Then, a deep breath. In, then out, then in, then out. The sadness was slowly pushed off, flowing away like smoke in the wind. 

Sunny became NEUTRAL. 

Standing back up, he stared into the darkness for any sign. He tempted himself, wondering if he should try and enter. His hand neared the shadow, then halted. He shook his head. 

He left the alleyway entrance and continued his journey, approaching the bloody footprints. They led further down Center Street, closer and closer to the school. And, leaving Center Street and turning the corner, he saw- 

"Abe?" 

At Sunny's call, he turned around. It was Abe, except... not. Of course it wasn't the real Abe, but it isn't the Abe he knew either. This was more like the boy he had met after that first month at high school. 

The quiet boy with flaxen blond hair, a pacifist by choice. He hadn't even tied his hair up by this point, it just hung messily over his shoulders and forehead. There were still bruises on his face from their first meeting. He did have the green jacket though, just not the posture that Sunny associated with it. 

He waved Sunny over, and Sunny felt himself hesitate for a second. But in that second, someone walked by him. A boy much smaller than himself, with black hair that didn't reach his shoulders and a small frame in a white button-up and a black vest. A single rebellious cowlick stood up from his hair, easily adding another inch to his height. 

"Sunny. You kept me waiting." 

The boy shuffled, looking away and grabbing onto his left sleeve. 

"...sorry." 

The taller boy winced slightly, bringing his hands out of his pocket to give a weak sign of surrender. 

"No, don't worry about it." 

A silence spread between the two, and Sunny could only stare in shock. That was him. He remembered this. This was- 

"This was the first time you went out with Abe, remember?" 

A familiar voice, yet not. A friend that he refused to recognise, a Stranger through his own will. Sunny turned around. 

"It's been a long time, hasn't it? Sunny." 

White pupils stared back at him out of a walking, talking silhouette. At first glance, one might think his expression were blank, but even through the slight ache in Sunny's right eye he could see that the expression on his face was earnest. He let out a slight laugh even as his other let out a dissatisfied huff. 

"It has... Basil." 

The pause in his movements and the slight shrinking of his white pupils was the only signs he was shocked by Sunny's response, before he let out a huff of his own. 

"You... you really have grown up from that boy a year ago, haven't you? That's... the first time you've said my name." 

If Sunny could actually see any of the details of STRANGER'S face, he's certain he would see a smile. The shadow lightly shook his head. 

"You don't have to if it's simpler, for you." 

And before Sunny could respond, he continued, gaze looking at the frozen forms of the younger Abe and Sunny. 

"You're here to overcome your fears. I brought you here to help." 

Sunny blinked. 

"You brought me here?" 

STRANGER nodded, pupils becoming obscured by his narrowed eyelids. 

"Did OMORI tell you that he did? He has no control over this place, beyond the Throne. And now..." he shakes his head. "He has no power here. No more." 

Sunny digested that for a few seconds, before nodding. As annoying as it was, he had a feeling Omori had been lying earlier. But that meant... 

"So... why am I here? How does this help?" 

STRANGER continued staring at the frozen memory. Was he thinking about how to explain it? 

"...in HEADSPACE, you overcome your fear of your friends, your fear that they still despise you, that this is all a ploy. That's good. But, there are still things you need to make peace with within, not just without." He nodded towards the frozen memory, now beginning to regain motion. "Watch." 

Abe had scratched the back of his head, looked at Sunny then away again, and repeated the process, looking like he had something to say but dropping it at the last second. Getting fed up with the process, he gave a quiet sigh. 

"So... let's go, then." 

The younger Sunny blinked at him, tilting his head like a cat. The question was clear. Abe looked away, scratching the back of his head once more. 

"I said I was going to take you out to thank you for earlier... well, more like Komaki forced me to do it like this..." he muttered that last part. Sunny probably wasn't meant to hear that. "So, let's go and... find a place to eat. Got it?" 

His younger self nodded, stepping toward Abe. He stopped before he passed, though. 

"Where...?" 

Abe blinked, before looking away. Was his eye deceiving him, or was his cheek sort of red? 

"Well, uh... I... don't really know anywhere... so I was just gonna... look around..." 

His voice got gradually quieter and less sure the more he said, and Sunny was certain his cheeks were getting redder. He remembered how he could feel laughter build up, but all that had left his mouth at the time was a cough. 

When he saw Abe just flounder on the spot, he had decided to take charge. Randomly choosing a direction, he walked down the street leading to the East. Abe just stared after him before spluttering and telling Sunny to wait up. 

He could feel a smile worming its way onto his face. He forgot just how funny awkward Abe could be. The huff he could barely hear from STRANGER seemed to agree. 

As the younger duo walked down the street, Sunny moved to follow them, only to stop when they suddenly disappeared like dust in the wind. Blinking, he looked over to STRANGER only to find he was gone too. 

"Prick." 

Letting out a chuckle at Omori's continued dislike of STRANGER, Sunny looked around before deciding to follow the path. If this really was a memory of their first time hanging out, then he knew exactly where they were going to be. After all, it was also the first time they had met Mack. 

Walking through the familiar streets and back-alleys, faded colours notwithstanding, was a familiar endeavour. After all, he had made this path at least twice a week for the last year. As he reached the backstreet that lead to Outback Mack's, he heard a growl come from behind him. 

Turning, he saw the memories of himself and Abe, except there were more figures there too. Ones hardly taller than Abe, their faces obscured by shadows. That's right, they had been attacked again back then... damn, this city really has a problem. 

Stepping towards them, Sunny levied the KNIFE that he didn't realise he was still holding. However, his steps were interrupted by a feeling. 

"Behind you." 

He leapt forward, the sound of something slamming onto the space he had been earlier filling his ears. Landing on his arms, he rolled out of it, getting his feet on the ground then standing up. He looked up to his attacker, only to find- 

"Big... Big Yellow Cat?" 

He stared up into the cartoony eyes of his favourite, the cat's own eyes staring into his with a deep sadness. Even though he didn't say a thing, Sunny could still feel what he was trying to convey. A feeling of comfort despite his tattered yellow fur, a desire to grant peace through his rotted orange claws, a love that seemed to tear at his very being. 

He was trying tell Sunny to rest. Sleep, little one. You are safe with me. 

It made Sunny's skin crawl, made him want to cry. This love was too much, it was toxic despite its gentleness. The BIG YELLOW CAT had always been his favourite, and in a way that had been cemented when he continued on as the protector of the NEIGHBOUR'S ROOM in HEADSPACE. He just wanted Sunny to be happy. 

"He wants you to be happy, even if it kills you." 

There was a reason he had fallen in line with Omori. He wasn't resistant to Omori's methods like ABBI, nor was he ultimately neutral to the matter like HUMPHREY. He had agreed, because he thought it would be the simplest way for Sunny to be happy. He hadn't gone mad like HUMPHREY, because he had never lost sight of his goal. 

Sunny took in one shuddering breath after another, slowly stabilising himself. Standing up straight, he gave the BIG YELLOW CAT a frown. 

"I'm sorry, Cat... but I can't." 

And the cat just floated there, staring at him sadly before giving one, tired nod. Of course, he knew that. He had been watching over him for a long time. And so, the Favourite just gently brought its palms up, preparing to fight. 

As Sunny brought his KNIFE to bear, he stopped as he felt more than heard the STRANGER reappear. He was watching from the alley that Sunny had just come from, arms crossed. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the Favourite look over as well. 

"The Favourite... the representation of those days spent in the Park and the Treehouse with your friends, making memories that would ultimately guide you back to the light. The dearest of the three great creatures, and yet the one that opposed the Truth the most." 

The reminder made his shoulders hitch a bit, but otherwise he was fine. When he realised STRANGER was apparently done sharing, he turned back to the BIG YELLOW CAT. Instead of bringing his KNIFE all the way, though, he instead put it back in his POCKET and tried to envision his STATS. 

And with a slight pop, he could see the MENU in all its glory. Well, mostly. It was just him and Omori in the PARTY. Looking for the WEAPON tab, he looked at their numbers. His KNIFE had a HIT of 100 and an ATK of +7. It also gave his SPD a boost of +2. Wait... that sounded familiar. 

The SHEARS, on the other hand, had... a HIT of 1000, an ATK of +13, and a DEF of... -5. Eee. 

Sticking with the KNIFE, Sunny brought it out in his regular one-handed stance, firmly held by his right hip. He stared up into his favourite's big, sad eyes, and affirmed his resolve. The BIG YELLOW CAT brought its wicked claws up, poised to crush him. 

They stood, a Dreamer and his Favourite dream friend, staring each other down. A Stranger continued to watch from afar, the silent referee to this battle. 

Sunny leapt forward, KNIFE streaking through the air towards the yellow cat's ruined fur. The cat brought a hand up to defend, the KNIFE'S slash sliding off the orange palm and only leaving a faint mark, like the Favourite had scratched his palm for too long. 

Catching himself on his feet in a crouch, he hopped to the side when the cat's other hand came to slam him into the ground. The blow kicked up some dust, so Sunny took his opportunity. Pushing off of his feet, he jumped onto the BIG YELLOW CAT'S hand just as it was rising, giving him enough momentum to jump again. 

He had gathered enough elevation to put him right above the BIG YELLOW CAT'S mouth, right in front of his forehead. Gritting his teeth, he thrust- 

BIG YELLOW CAT 

Favourite of The Three Great Beasts 

-only for the hand he had jumped off of to come up from below and strike him, forcing him even further upwards and for his thrust to go way off course. Flailing, he hastily crossed his arms in front of him, just in time for the other hand to slap him away, forcing him down the street and closer to where his past self had been. 

While he couldn't see them anymore, he got the feeling they were still there. They'd probably reappear if the fight ended. 

Huffing, he shook out his arms and stood up from his position on the floor. Thank goodness this is a dream. He likely would have died from that otherwise. Or broke his bones, either either. 

Rolling out his right wrist, KNIFE luckily still in his grip, he considered how he was going to do this. The hands wouldn't yield to his KNIFE, and they didn't seem to directly relate to the Favourite's HEART either. But if he tried to attack the cat, he would be rebuffed with the hands anyways. 

Sunny glanced around the street, looking for anything to help out. Unfortunately, the street was clear. Was it this clear only a few minutes ago? Hm. 

"As bad a strategy it is, it might be best to just keep attacking him until he starts using EMOTIONS. Then I can give you type advantage." 

Nodding at the simple strategy, Sunny began to execute it. Rushing forward, he swung the KNIFE in an arc, right shoulder to left hip. Once more, the strike was blocked by the wicked hand, barely even leaving a mark. Instead of the other hand coming in from the side, the hand that he was in front of pushed back, surprising him and throwing him onto the back foot. 

Sunny lost 5 HEART! 

With a grunt, Sunny planted his feet, then had to jump away because of the other hand that now decided to join in. It tried to crush him in between the two palms with a swat, so he hurriedly jumped through the gap that left him further away from the cat. However, the cat's action also left him momentarily vulnerable. 

Taking the opportunity, Sunny pushed past the wicked hands, KNIFE coming up in a sideways slash to carve up the cat. He saw the cat's eyes follow his movements out of his peripheral, but he couldn't see how he reacted when Sunny left a large gash in his side, revealing... nothing. He was hollow inside. Just faux fur and plush stuffing covering a layer of ceramic clay and empty air. 

Actually, was that a green line? 

Before he could get too deep into his poking and prodding, the BIG YELLOW CAT suddenly turned around, his hands situated around him so that he struck Sunny like a spinny-top. 

Sunny lost 20 HEART! 

With a choked yell, Sunny felt himself go flying, air rushing past him before he found himself hitting the adjacent wall. 

Sunny lost 10 HEART! 

His right shoulder had taken most of the impact, and he could only groan as he stared up at the BIG YELLOW CAT slowing down its rotation, gently stopping while facing him. 

The look in his eyes made Sunny's heart ache, a distant desire to not make his friends cry again being dully replicated in this guardian of his friends. The Favourite just continued to stare at him, his mouth not opening at all, yet his words as clear as anything. 

Rest, Dreamer. I don't want to hurt you anymore. 

An aura of blue began to envelop the BIG YELLOW CAT, causing his eyes to droop and his natural smirk to flatten out. The sight made Sunny cringe. 

BIG YELLOW CAT became SAD! 

Slowly, Sunny pushed himself to his feet, back dragging against the wall. With a slight push, he stood on his own two feet, no longer supported by the wall. He tried to stretch out his shoulder and back as simply as he could, not taking his eyes off the cat. Well, wasn't this a pickle? Now his attacks would deal even less damage. 

"Not if I have anything to say about it." 

Omori used ENRAGE! 

"He's trying to take everything away from you. Your friends, your happiness. Are you really going to let him!?" 

Sunny could feel his breathing suddenly pick up, a burning feeling in his chest that spread out and upwards, up into his throat and out his mouth, a snarl. 

"Like hell!" 

Sunny became ANGRY! 

Slashing his KNIFE in front of him in a tight grip, the red embers swirled around him. Once more, Sunny rushed at his opponent, this time thrusting his KNIFE at the Favourite. When his blow was caught, instead of dodging, he kept pushing forward, trying to push the hand back. 

Between the immovable object and the unstoppable force, instead of one being moved or the other being stopped, that unstoppable KNIFE began to pierce through the immovable claw. 

It was a MOVING ATTACK! 

Something gooey started to leak past the KNIFE, but before Sunny could look too close he moved to the side, dragging his weapon out of the wound and making it wider and more jagged. In the place he had been was the other claw that had come down once more to crush him. It was slower now, and Sunny had every intention of taking advantage of that. 

Flicking the KNIFE to remove the off-red jelly, he ran over the hand to leave a horizontal gash in the BIG YELLOW CAT. In his haste, though, the hand that he had stabbed slowly charged up a palm thrust, only managing to clip his shoulder rather than hit him head-on. 

It was a BLUNT ATTACK... 

Sunny lost 3 HEART! 

It had only thrown him off by a bit, but that was enough. His slash was further away than he intended, and only left a small gash. 

It was a MOVING ATTACK! 

It was slight, but he could hear a whistling noise. Was that meant to be the BIG YELLOW CAT'S breathing? That... actually made him feel kinda bad. 

The blue surrounding the Favourite intensified, cutting off Sunny's thoughts. Why was he...? 

BIG YELLOW CAT became DEPRESSED! 

His drooping eyes met Sunny's, and once more a message passed between them. 

Dreamer, please. Be happy, please. 

His heart ached, but at the same time it incensed him. He didn't need Omori's provoking words to make that infernal flame burn brighter, didn't need them for the red around him to intensify, and certainly didn't need them to force the words out of his mouth, through his grit teeth. 

Sunny became ENRAGED! 

"I am!" 

The BIG YELLOW CAT stalled, straightening up in surprise. Through the red haze, Sunny could barely see the STRANGER he had forgotten about in all the fighting, looking back at him with a curious gaze. Sunny gripped his chest with his left hand. 

"I am happy! I really am! Every day, I can look forward to spending time with Abe!" Distantly, he was aware of a flash behind the Favourite, the momentary appearance of his younger self with a bruise on his cheek and blood on his lip next to the younger Abe, nose bloody but so were his fists. On the ground were the two shadowy silhouettes of their assailants. That's right, that was... 

"And when I can't see Abe, I can train with Komaki! And sure, it might be hard, but it's fulfilling! I like knowing that I'm getting better..." 

Sunny took a deep breath, his ANGER cooling. He CALMED DOWN before continuing. 

Sunny became NEUTRAL. 

"Recently, I started talking to my Mom again. Really talking to her. And when she hugged me back, I felt so happy! I felt like I might start crying!" The blue aura covering the BIG YELLOW CAT had begun to wane, while a similar yellow aura began to flicker around Sunny. 

Sunny became HAPPY. 

BIG YELLOW CAT became SAD. 

"Today, I had spent so long hanging out with my friends. Not just Abe, but everyone. Kel, Aubrey, Hero, and Basil! And it was so fun! Walking around the town, eating together, talking again, playing karaoke- it was all so much fun! I was happy." 

He bowed his head, taking a few deep breaths. He had been talking non-stop, and even in a dream he was still bound by his own laws of reality. He looked back up once more, KNIFE held softly at his hip. The cat's eyes had returned to their usual, gentle countenance, no longer drooping. The blue was gone, now. 

BIG YELLOW CAT became NEUTRAL. 

"Maybe it's not always happy." His grip tightened on his shirt. "Sometimes it's worse than it could have been back then." He thought of telling the Truth, of worrying about the arrival of his friends, of their silent judgement at the lack of any connection to their past in his home. He thought of fighting Basil on that moonlit night, of that first fight in that alley a year ago, of fighting Suki with everything he could muster under the fear of... of something.

"But, it's also so much better than it ever could have been. I never would have felt like this if I had just stayed in my room, enjoying the rotting past!" He thought of the smile Kel gave him when he first left his house, of the hug he had shared with his friends in his backyard, of the gentle smile Basil had given in response to his own. He thought of the first time Abe had given him that smile that was so reminiscent and yet so wholly unique, of Komaki granting him the right to learn his sword style, of properly reconnecting with his mother. 

His right hand was now empty, the KNIFE having returned to his POCKET once it realised it was no longer needed. Instead, he put his hand out, offering it palm up to the BIG YELLOW CAT. 

"We don't have to keep fighting. You're my favourite. Because you always watched over me and my friends when we were having fun. You kept us safe. So please..." 

He walked towards the cat, dropping his left hand from his chest. As he stepped closer, the Favourite almost seemed to get... younger. And smaller. The gaps in his body filled in, his orange claws receding into soft yellow paws, and his tattered fur shrinking and distributing and revitalising as the familiar egg yolk yellow. Eventually, he stood right in front of him. The BIG YELLOW CAT. The Favourite. His Favourite. 

He looked up into his Favourite's eyes, just as he stared down into Sunny's eyes. Then, a slight nod. His yellow paw, now much less threatening than it had been before, slowly raised up before the tip of his middle finger was placed in Sunny's hand. Sunny couldn't help the delighted smile that spread across his face, the yellow sparks around him intensifying. 

Sunny became ECSTATIC. 

He shook the cat's finger as well as he could, barely making the hand budge. But that didn't matter. What did was the feeling in his chest, of something slowly moving back together. He tightly shut his eyes, hoping to preserve the feeling within. 

Then something small and hard and cold made its way into his grip, and the soft plush feeling faded away, with a gentle voice on the winds being his reminder. 

"Then be happy, Dreamer. Continue to find happiness with your friends." 

Opening his eyes showed him as much as he expected. The BIG YELLOW CAT was gone, in his place being the STRANGER staring at him. Glancing down at the thing in his hands, he found... 

"Metal?" 

It was a small piece of metal. An oblong octagon, with a small circular hole punched out of the metal. Looking at it felt so... hauntingly familiar. Tilting it around in his hand, he noticed that there was a protrusion on the side opposite the hole. It seemed roughly torn off at that point, like someone had broken it. Wait, was this... "The KEY?" 

"Collect the TOY BOX KEY FRAGMENTS. Once you have them all, you'll have the strength you seek." 

The STRANGER piped up, staring at Sunny. Sunny stared back, letting the information sink in, before nodding. 

"Thanks again, Basil." 

He continued to stare at Sunny before huffing, his shoulders slumping. He shook his head before turning and walking away, throwing one last statement over his shoulder. 

"Keep walking towards the future... my best friend." 

Then he was gone, disappearing in a shadowy blur. Sunny stared at the spot he had been, before looking down to the KEY FRAGMENT in his hand and clenching his fist. 

"Oi, are you kids okay?" 

A familiar tired voice echoed through the street. Turning, he saw Mack stepping out of the familiar alleyway, wearing a now unfamiliar barkeeper's uniform with the sleeves. He was looking with a disinterested expression at the younger Sunny and Abe, but the crinkling near his eyes betrayed his worry. 

The memories of himself and Abe looked at each other, then him, then to their assailants. Abe was clearly suspicious of him, eyes narrowing and slowly trying to shuffle himself and Sunny away from the stranger. Sunny, meanwhile, dazedly shook his head. 

Mack stared at the two bruised and, in Sunny's case, bloody kids and sighed. Turning around, he gestured for them to follow. 

"C'mon. I have a medkit in my shop." 

Abe watched him go with suspicion, while Sunny just nodded and followed after, blood dripping from his lip. Abe seemed torn between following his sense or sticking with Sunny, and his apparent loyalty clearly won out as he followed along, his suspicion not letting up. 

Sunny watched all this from the entrance of the alley. When the three entered the Outback Mack's, Sunny remembered how the encounter had shaken out. Mack had cleaned and bandaged their wounds, and when he was about to send them on their way Abe's stomach growled. He had looked at them deadpan for a few seconds before asking if they wanted to eat something with a sigh. 

Sunny had vigorously (for how he was at the time, at least) agreed, while Abe unsurely nodded. And thus, that day was the first time they had ever eaten from Outback Mack's. Sunny had fallen head over heels for the steak, and Abe had also found the steak rather delectable. Not to the extent a MANIC Sunny did, of course, but it was still really good. 

The memory lit a warmth in his heart that he had barely remembered. This circumstance was precious to him, in its own way. It let him find a sanctuary, a place to spend time with his friend. And now, he could stay there with all his friends. 

Maybe he should invest in a Big Yellow Cat for the restaurant... "He'd probably find it silly, but keep it anyways." 

Chuckling at the thought of Mack's response, Sunny closed his eyes, letting the memory, and the world around him, fade.

And I opened my eyes afterwards. 

Once again, the blackness of the depths was the only thing I could see. I move to get up, only to find that I can't again. 

I try to turn my head, but no response. I try to lift my knees, but no response. I try to dig in my heels, but no response. Hell, I don't even know if my eyes are actually open. 

But I stay calm, because I know it'll pass I don't know anything, this is only the second time it's happened, what if it's different I've been wrong before 

I curl my fingers, and no resp- 

The sensation of freezing cold fabric moving against my fingers stops my train of thought. I curled my fingers, and there was a response. I tried to move, and I moved- 

And then I opened my eyes. Sitting up in a hurry, I find that I'm once more off of the blanket, in the centre being you. I look down to my hands. 

They weren't anywhere near the blanket. But I moved my hand and felt it, so how? 

Standing up, I look around. There's the tissue box, and there's the picnic basket, and there's the... the TOY BOX. I'm still not sure how to feel about it scared angry nauseous, or about the Stranger anger anger ANGER sadness, but at least I know there's a purpose to all of this. The most annoying part is that there's always a purpose... 

Not wanting to approach the BOX, I move to you instead. Once more, you're lying on the floor, and once more your eyes were blankly staring into the sky. Well, "sky." Maybe it's more like a ceiling? Hm. 

One errant detail I did notice was that your right hand was a little clenched instead of lying flat against the blanket. Filing that away for something or other, I decide to cut to the chase. 

I put my hand in your POCKET and fish out the KNIFE. Looking at it, I see that it's... well, it's not RUSTY anymore. Now it just looks DULL. I don't think it's any stronger though. 

Once again, I look from the KNIFE to you, and get that same feeling of betrayal. But it's not, is it? This is just... the way it has to be. If it wasn't, then you'd wake up... right? 

Maybe I should wait, maybe this is what I should wait to see happen. 

No, that'd be ridiculous. You're a lot of things, Sunny, and an idiot's definitely one of them, but you're not unreasonable. Well... generally, I suppose. 

So... STAB Sunny? 

Of course. 

The only possible positive I can derive from this experience is that at least the KNIFE didn't have to deal with as much resistance. The red still stood in stark contrast to everything around us, and the feeling of horror disgust loathing being pathetic once more flowed through me, making my arms quiver. 

"Gkt!" 

You seemed to cave inwards, arms crawling up towards the wound, squeezing your sides, your legs curling up. Your eyes had widened only for a moment before screwing shut, a noise having choked its way past your grit teeth. 

"O... mori...!" 

It came out as a growl, and yet to me it sounded more like a whimper. 

"Wh... ere... are you..." 

The whimper was accompanied by tears that made their way down your face. From your left eye at least. But from your right it was black, black, BLACK, AND RED RED, RED LIKE BLOOD- 

Then everything became white.

Sunny lay back on his bed as the Sun's presence opened his eye. There was the slightest sweat that had gathered near his empty socket that was making it sting. Instead of placing a hand on his stomach, he merely grunted the closest he could come to making a fully formed word. 

"Ouh." 

Chapter Text

He stared up, vision blurry, at the ceiling of his room. The ceiling fan was slowly turning and turning, almost a representation of his mind buffering. At least, he thinks it's the fan. He hopes it was the fan. It would be awful if it was anything but the fan. "It's the fan, chill out." Good. 

He blinked a few times, trying to get the blurriness out of his eyes. While his vision cleared up a bit, he could still feel the sleep in his eyes. Enjoying the vague sensation of his bed around him far too much, he reluctantly moved his arm to wipe his eye. 

Er, well. He tried, at least. 

He couldn't move his arm. He could sort of feel it, could feel the apparently tight blanket over it and the mattress beneath it, but he couldn't work up the energy to move it. Trying his other arm showed the same result. He felt numb. 

He felt trapped. He was in one of the most comforting places he could imagine and he felt trapped. It felt like a betrayal by the thing he should be able to trust. It felt like a nightmare. 

That he had already left BLACK SPACE had already slipped by his mind as he felt panic approach. He had never really thought of himself as someone with claustrophobia, but you could forgive him for panicking in this situation, right? 

"I can. So CALM DOWN, alright? You're safe." 

He hadn't crossed over into AFRAID territory yet, but as his breath hitched, he whimpered in response to Omori's soothing remarks. CALM DOWN? He can do that he can CALM DOWN. 

As the slimy feeling of those black tendrils began to touch his heart, he took in a breath of air. Letting it out, the snaking tendrils left. With another, his breathing evened out. And with a third, the numbness he felt in his body faded away. 

Only to be replaced with an uncomfortable stiffness. Oh, he really needed to move. 

With a groan, Sunny tried to at least tense his muscles. And, to his joy, he did get some success. But, to his confusion, there was... pain. Like he had been tensing for over a minute rather than a few seconds. Why would he...? 

"Well, that fight was pretty rough." 

Fight? Oh, that's right. Against... Suki. Sunny couldn't stop the shiver that wormed its way down his back at the thought of the faux albino. That guy set off all sorts of warning bells in his head. That shiver, unfortunately, unearthed even more pain along his body, which. Sure, Suki had hit him hard, but he didn't hit him everywhere. 

"Hm..." 

Deciding to let Omori think about it for him, Sunny focused himself on trying to leave his bed. He felt like he had been in there too long, and. Well, he didn't want to spend any more time in a bed than he had to. 

Shaking off the train of thought, he tried to turn his head. What time was it, anyway? He had kind of been wanting to train with Komaki today... 

Although there was some protest, he could turn without much difficulty. Looking out his rooms window, he saw that the Sun was up. That at least meant that he had been asleep since the fight. Too bad he couldn't tell the time... 

And looking the other way didn't exactly reveal much else either. Well, nothing relevant other than a feeling something was different, at least. He did notice that his room seemed cleaner than he remembered it. Thanks, Hero. 

The errant thought of his big brother figure friend caused his stomach to grumble. Man, what he would do for some Hero-tier cooking. Mari was right, he really was... 

"..." 

He really needed to get out of here sooner rather than later. Although, now that he's thinking about it, he can smell something. Was that... bacon? Did they even buy bacon yesterday? 

"Hero bought some yesterday when you were watching Kel complain about the sleeping bags." 

Oh, okay. Wait, what? 

"Whu...?" 

Oh, that sounds rough. But seriously, what? 

"I saw some bacon out of the corner of your eye in the shopping bags, and put two and two together." 

Sunny blinked, the feeling of the bandage on his nose and around his forehead rubbing against him uncomfortably. It felt like there was something else there, too. Something drooping now that his head was turned. Trying to catch a glimpse of it, he turned his head to the left, making the thing fall further to the right. When it had fallen to rest by his neck, he turned to look at it. 

It was... an icepack? Huh. It was warm now, so it wasn't particularly pleasant to rest his cheek on. Turning his head back to look up at the ceiling, he decided to give moving another try. 

Starting small, he decided to try and crane his neck rather than turn it. His efforts were met with a cracking noise and his vision moving to look down his chest, which revealed that, yes, his bed was firmly tucked. Who did this? Who did such an embarrassing thing to him? Who? 

Anyways, with that confirmed, Sunny began the difficult process of sitting up. Which is easier said than done, what with this super tucked-in blanket. What the hell, did they fold the edges underneath the mattress? 

He tried to push himself up, feeling his chest raise a bit before being ultimately halted by the blanket. Sunny fell to the bed with a light thump, before trying to raise himself again. Once more, the blanket stopped him. His second thump was followed by a growl. Time for Plan B. 

Taking in a breath, he tried to move his arm. It moved! But hardly. His limb still felt weird, like it was weighed down or something. Sliding it along the mattress, he tried to push it against the blanket. Some air might be nice, it was kinda stuffy in here... 

"...seriously?" 

His arm's lazy drifting being rebounded by his blanket led him to express only a flat-footed astonishment. Seriously? Did they actually tuck his blanket into the bedframe!? Why!? For what purpose!? 

His astonishment gave way to indignation, which in turn fuelled his arms attempt to free him. Pushing against the tight fabric again and again, he could feel his arm better and better, could properly move his fingers and could now try to pinch and pull the blanket out as he pushed it. 

And, with a swishing noise of fabric against fabric, his blanket spewed over the side of his bed, dangling gently. And his arm was dangling over the side, too. And, that hurt. Like, a lot. His entire arm stretched out seemed to send stinging pain up and down, his elbow and his shoulder and his wrist all seeming to resist the very thought of existence. Why. 

With a groan, he slithered it back into the bed, laying it by his side. Staring blankly at the ceiling, he let out a breath before once more trying to raise himself. As the blanket slid off of his frame and he rose up, his gaze got to travel over his blue blanket before settling over his own body. Which. Why is he shirtless? 

Bringing his now vaguely throbbing right arm to his chest, he gently touched himself to see if he had any bruises. It distracted him from the embarrassment the thought of being stripped unconscious elicits. Hopefully it was just Hero that did it... 

He flinched a bit when he pressed on his chest where Suki had planted his foot. Man, throwing him over his shoulder like that... sure, it sucked from his point of view, but he had to admit... it was kinda awesome. Looking down at his chest, though, there wasn't really any bruise. From how tight his face felt and from what he remembered of last night, it's probably his face that's bruised and not anywhere else, but still. 

Looking down at his elbow, he saw that it also didn't seem visibly worse, but the throbbing ache he could still feel told him this was definitely a case of it being worse than it looks. 

... 

"..." 

...so, now what? 

"...you wanted to get up, didn't you?" 

Oh, right. Putting his hand on the bed, Sunny turned his body, bringing his legs out from under the blanket and revealing that, surprise surprise, they were also bare. Why? He could understand his shirt, that's where you would expect most punches to be, not in his face, but not the legs. Hah... at least they deemed it okay to leave him his underwear. He doesn't know what he'd do if he actually woke up naked. Probably never leave the house again. Again. 

Placing his feet on the ground, he grimaced at the ache in his feet and his knees, and grimaced more as he put pressure on them and began to stand. In what felt like too much time and at the same time far too sudden, he was standing up and oh okay now he was falling down. 

Just as suddenly as all feeling in his legs disappeared, he was clutching onto his bedside table, bumping against it and making a kinda really loud noise. 

"Guh..." 

Great, now his side hurt. That'll bruise... maybe. 

"Sunny!?" 

And then, without warning "that was the warning," there were loud thumps as someone (or someones?) ran towards his room and, without even knocking, opened his door. Rude. 

"Hey, Sunny, are you o... kay...?" 

He could feel himself start to sweat at all of the gazes that were focused on him. Instead of it just being the person that called his name, which he figured was Kel in retrospect, it seemed everyone from home had barged in. Kel was staring at his slumped form in confusion, eyebrows furrowed and mouth quirked in a small frown. Aubrey and Basil both stared at him with wide eyes, Aubrey's mouth slowly opening and closing while Basil covered his face with his hands, to little effect since his eyes were peeking through his fingers. Were they okay? Their faces were kinda red. 

And Hero's gaze was inquisitive. His eyes roamed, not staying anywhere for too long. Sunny wasn't really sure why, before it hit him. Hero's training to be a doctor. He's probably the one that did all of this. Relaxing slightly, Sunny started to push himself up just as Hero's gaze seemed to relax, his shoulders rolling back as an easy smile spread on his face. 

"So, I guess the blanket didn't keep you down for long?" 

With that little comment from Hero, Sunny couldn't stop the snort that escaped, nor could he stop the sudden energy loss he felt afterwards, slumping even further over the bedside table. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw everyone seem to step closer before Hero put out his arm. 

"Alright everyone, calm down. I'll take care of him, so you should give him some privacy, okay?" 

Everyone's gaze moved to Hero, and there was some hesitance. Kel looked unsure if he should leave or not, looking between him and Sunny, before eventually nodding and turning to the door, waving Aubrey and Basil with him with a smile. They both nodded along, peeking at Sunny one more time before leaving. 

And then it was just Sunny and Hero. Which was... stressful. They were... okay, now. At least, he hoped they were. Hero certainly didn't seem to hesitate in giving him a hug. Hero nodded and closed the door while Sunny stayed slumped, the slight sweat he had worked up starting to cool. Then Hero looked at him, and he almost wished it hadn't. 

"Hey Sunny. You doing okay?" 

Sunny took in a breath then nodded, pointedly ignoring the pain in his arms and legs and back and chest and oh God he was really sore- 

"Yeah? You're not hurt anywhere?" 

Okay, maybe he couldn't ignore it as much as he wanted. 

"Sore... everywhere..." 

Hero nodded with a little frown. He came closer. 

"Yeah? Can you specify where?" 

Right, right, need to be more descriptive than two word statements, come on. You trained for this. 

"Joints in... arms and legs... and my back... and my gut... and everywhere..." 

Better than nothing. Maybe. "Seriously?" 

Hero pursed his lips, brows furrowing. That didn't seem good. 

"Hm. How about your face, how is that? You were... pretty banged up when Abe brought you back." 

Abe had brought him back? The mention of his partner brought to mind the voice he thought he heard before he had succumbed. Was that Abe? 

"Ah... my face is... fine... the bandages are a bit... tight..." 

Hero blinked at him, before smiling. What, did he say something weird? 

"Heh. You're pretty tough, Sunny." 

He could feel the heat in his ears at the faux pas, but shook it off. Trying to push himself up from his slump, he didn't notice Hero until he was by Sunny's side, putting a hand under his arm to help pull him up. Sunny let himself be pulled along, grateful for the free ride. 

"Do you mind if I check you over, Sunny? Just to be careful." 

Sunny nodded. He didn't mind. And besides, this might be good practice for Hero. And so, Hero checked him over. Stretching out his arms and legs to see how much would cause pain, asking for Sunny to flex, feeling for any dislocations, checking for any bruises, shining lights into his eye to see if he had a concussion, the works. In the end, Sunny felt more exhausted than when he woke up, and just wanted to eat and flop onto some soft surface. 

Luckily for him, Hero was done. After being rebuffed for offering to help Sunny dress- he was not five, he could do it himself- he left, granting Sunny the privacy he had started with. 

Sighing, Sunny slowly lumbered his way over to his closet. He had the feeling his shorts and shirt were probably in the wash since neither they nor his pyjamas were on the floor where they left them. Thank you and damn you, Hero you saint. Sliding it open, he found that, yes, his beige shorts and kick-ass shirt were nowhere to be found. His pyjamas were gone too, which was so very troublesome. Never change, Hero. 

Looking past that, he grabbed himself a new pair of undies, as well as some black shorts with red buttons and a white button-up shirt. He stared down at the pile in his hands before turning to the door. 

"To be frank, you're filthy." Yes, he was about to think that. He really needed to shower. Especially since he hadn't gotten to do it yesterday. But... he really didn't want to have to make the cross-continental journey over to his bathroom and run the risk of someone else seeing him near naked... 

How troublesome... "Just do it. You don't have any comfort clothes that are big enough to cover you, and bringing your blanket with you would be far more troublesome." Damn it. He hates when Omori's right. "Heh." 

Sunny shut his eyes, bandages covering his scarred eye. Just gotta do it. Gotta persist. 

Letting out a breath, Sunny quietly opened his door, peeking to make sure no one was around. With the coast clear, he slipped out of his room, creeping down his hallway. When he saw the entrance to the lounge, he slowed so he could watch for anyone coming near.

Peeking around the corner revealed Hero in the kitchen, plating what was almost certainly bacon and something else up. Kel and Aubrey were at the table eating, while Basil was checking the bags for something. And, over the lip of the couch, rested a head of familiar dirty blond hair, seeming to stare listlessly at the ceiling. Abe? 

Seeing his partner seem so down pinched at Sunny's heart, but he had a goal. Luckily for him, no one was looking his way. Crouching, he tried to stay below the couch as he crept, eventually reaching the door to the bathroom. Pulling it open, he slipped through the gap and shut it close. 

Sighing in relief, he stood up slowly and powered through the aches of shifting from high to low and back too quickly. Shaking out his legs, he looked in the mirror. 

Time to clean up.

 And as you got ready, I decided to think. The dream last night took place in BLACK SPACE... and that troublesome bastard STRANGER was the one that called us there. And why? 

To help you become stronger. To let you face what you had forgotten. Maybe even... to be rid of us all. 

And, like any classic video game, he needs to activate or pick up x number of important things to open the way to the final goal. In this case, the number of things to pick up is doubtlessly three which will in turn be protected by each of the Three Great Beasts. Probably. 

And the three things are KEY FRAGMENTS, and together they would forge the TOY BOX KEY. Which would in turn open the TOY BOX... 

And then what? 

What lies at the end of that journey? What happens after you open the BOX? What's in the BOX? The Violin? What will you do with it? Make me SUCCUMB? 

Oh, don't forget to wash behind your ears. 

And besides the BLACK SPACE stuff... there's everything in HEADSPACE. Time has continued and everything has changed, has grown. People are older, the scenery has aged, and my friends are... well, from what I had heard, they were lost. Looking for people that would never return. It... it hurt to think about. 

He didn't like that it hurt. 

Whatever. As you finish drying off and begin to put on your clothes, I decide to just focus on the now. That is, watching you hang out with your friends. Yay... 

Hey, wait, dON'T BRUSH YOUR TEETH YET-

Sunny shook his head as he let out a sigh, the bandaids on his face still damp on his nose and his hair still slightly damp on his face. The bandage that had been wrapped around his head was held loosely in his hand, and his right eye was firmly held closed. He was seriously way too close to getting soap in there, even after a year... 

Shaking off his potential for failure, Sunny opened the door and stepped out. The creak of the door opening seemed to grab attention, since looking into the lounge room showed Aubrey and Kel facing him and giving a wave, lazy and energetic respectively. Sunny offered back a weak wave of his own, his attention drifting to where he could see two heads of blond hair over the lounge. 

Neither turned his way, so Sunny figured they were probably focused on something. Holding up a finger to Kel and Aubrey, he signalled for them to give him a minute. Turning, he lumbered his way over to his room. Sure, he could move more regularly now, but that doesn't mean his legs didn't still hurt like a bitch. Every step felt countered by an ache from his feet and his thighs and his pelvis and it just wasn't fun. 

Slipping through his still open door, he moved over to his bedside table where he hoped his eyepatch was. He didn't see it, but maybe he just couldn't notice it. Brushing his hand over the top, he came to the conclusion that, no, he wasn't missing the obvious, he was just missing his patch. 

Sighing again, he slid out the draw and rummaged around. He had thought it was a bit excessive to keep it, but hey. Looks like those decisions (even if they weren't his) were paying dividends, huh? Feeling cotton beneath his fingers, he pulled until his hand was free of his drawer, a cotton eyepatch dangling from his digits. 

Laying the bandage on the countertop, he grabbed the eyepatch with both hands and placed it on his face, looping the "handles" around his ears and internally grimacing at the pain in his shoulders. Turning to the mirror, he saw the snow-white patch over his right eye conflicting quite drastically with his face, especially compared to when he first wore it. 

Rubbing at the damp bandaid left on his nose, Sunny stepped out of his room. Time to finally go talk to his friends, properly. "And eat some food." And eat some food. 

A few steps forward and turning to the left, he once again looked into the lounge, where the only difference was that Aubrey and Kel were now facing the TV and didn't notice him. Oh, and Hero was here now, and was smiling at him. 

"Hey, Sunny. How are you feeling?" 

At the sound of Hero's voice, everyone seemed to react. Kel and Aubrey turned to face him, Kel with his usual wide smile and Aubrey with her own small smile and a nod. Basil almost popped off of the couch as he turned around, staring at him for a few seconds before blushing and offering him a small smile. 

But the other blond didn't seem to move at all. Maybe he was asleep? Sunny decided to be careful about it. He gave everyone a smile before turning to Hero, limply raising his hand and turning over his palm. So-so, as it were. Hero frowned slightly. 

"I see." His frown was easily wiped away with a charming smile. "Well, you should come over and eat. Not to toot my own horn, but some good food just might make you better." 

Sunny couldn't help the edges of his lips being tugged upwards, or the air forcing its way out of his lungs. Nodding, he walked closer to Hero, who in turn directed him to the kitchen where a plate was lying on the table. And on that plate was the most beautiful thing Sunny had seen all year. 

Crisp red bacon covered a portion of the plate, barely bumping against the equally crisp brown crust of the tan and crunchy bread, itself obscured by the crown of this plate. Fluffy white encompassing a deep yellow, a sunny side up egg that almost brought tears to his eye. 

Picking up the plate, he moved over to where his friends were sitting, already excited for the blend of flavour awaiting him. And yes, he's aware of the irony of it, him enjoying sunny side up eggs despite hating when people make puns about his name, but listen. It's worth it. It is worth it. 

His re-arrival was met with smiles that very quickly redirected themselves to the TV. What was on...? Peeking at the screen showed a bunch of weird-looking kids drawn in a cartoon style doing... spy shenanigans? They were all dressed in loud colours too, red, orange, green, and light and dark blue. 

Weird. 

He looked away, instead searching for a spot on the floor to sit. As he did, his gaze surreptitiously trailed over to Abe and- 

"..." 

-he was awake, and was staring at Sunny with a small frown on his face. It looked like there were bags under his eyes. Sunny's throat felt dry, so he gulped. 

"...hey, Abe." 

If anyone noticed the conversation, then they didn't say anything. Or at least, Sunny didn't notice anyone trying, what with his eyes stuck on how... tired Abe seemed. This was different from the usual tired, the "I woke up only a few minutes ago" tired or the "I stayed up late goofing off" tired. This was different even from the tired Abe he had first met, quiet and withdrawn. 

"..." 

Abe stared at him before slowly closing his eyes, sinking into the couch. Sunny blinked. Okay then. Guess they'll talk later. 

Taking a step forward, he turned to the TV and slowly sank down, the ache in his legs coming to a crescendo until his bottom hit the floor and his legs could relax. Placing his plate on his legs, he leaned over so his face was almost directly above it. And with his hands, he picked up the piece of toast with the egg on it, bought it to his mouth, and bit down. 

Egg. It had the undeniable and wholly unique flavour of egg white, the toast providing more of an enjoyable texture experience, more than anything. The next bite revealed the same. Pinching some of the bacon and placing it on the toast, his next bite combined that unique flavour with the meaty one of bacon. 

And on it went, until he eventually reached what was objectively the best part of the egg, the yolk. The other unique flavour, in combination with the meat of the bacon and the crunch of the toast, was wonderful in every way. Sunny was in Egg Heaven. Heggven. Heaveggn? Heggven. 

But, all too soon, the food was gone, and all he was holding was crumbs. Looking at the plate showed he at least had a few more pieces of bacon to chew on as he watched whatever was meant to be shown on TV. 

Despite the rough start, this day hasn't actually been too bad.

Man, nevermind. 

"Hm... so, your entire body is aching, even if you were never struck there?" 

This preceded his body being once more stretched to his current limits, except much less gently and without much care for the pain he felt. The only response he could give was an "Mhm" that could barely be distinguished from a grunt. 

"I see..." 

He went silent for a bit, clearly thinking about something as he kept shifting Sunny's body around like he was a poseable action figure. Of course, he wasn't the only one in the room, because Sunny can't get something non-embarrassing. 

"Uh, M-Mr. Komaki-" 

Komaki seemed to snap to attention at that, turning to look at Hero before waving his hand dismissively. 

"Bah. Just Komaki. No need to call me mister, especially not for the friends of my students." 

Komaki had shown up at Sunny's house without any warning, apparently wanting to check on Abe. His arrival had been met with surprise and a small amount of suspicion, at least until Sunny had explained who he was. Then, with almost no warning or time to even think about it beyond a tiny comment over his shoulder as he went to check on Abe on the couch, he began grilling Sunny. And now we're here.

"Uh, right, then, Komaki. Don't you think you're being a little too rough with Sunny? He is injured, and-" 

Then the old man put out his hand, silently telling Hero to hold. 

"I understand that you're concerned for Sunny. You're a caring person, I can tell. But I know what I am doing, and I know what my student is capable of. Speaking of..." 

Hero looked away with pinched lips, hands clenching a little at being dismissed. Kel pat him on the back while Aubrey just frowned at Komaki. Komaki, on the other hand, frowned down at Sunny, letting go of Sunny's arm to grab onto his shoulder. 

"Sunny, did you push your body past its limits?" 

Sunny blinked at that. What? Beyond his limits? What, like a L*IMIT BR*AK? Like RELEASE ENERGY? He can't really remember doing anything like tha- "Hold on." 

Hm? "Maybe you don't remember, but something did happen. After you SUCCUMBED the first time." After he SUCCUMBED? But wouldn't that be the end of the fight? Although... he does remember something... holding onto that piece of wood like it was a knife, his vision blurring as he moved around and around, the hate that had been burning up his veins- 

Oh yeah. Now he remembers. INSANE, huh? How typical. 

"...I think, near the end of the fight... I started moving around a lot... rolling, and jumping, and diving. Very blurry." 

Komaki nodded, his other hand coming up to stroke his beard. When whatever thought he had in his head came to completion, he let go of Sunny's shoulder and crossed his arms. 

"I see. I understand the problem, now." Then he glared at Sunny, and Sunny felt like a few years had just been stripped off of his life "how many of those do you think you have?" and added to Komaki's "how many of those do you think he has?". 

"Do you remember how I told you, only two days ago mind, that your body isn't as limber as the average person's?" 

Sunny did in fact remember this, and the ache that came with being confronted by his shortcomings. He nodded. 

"The reason as to why your limbs are in the condition they are is likely because you tried fighting as if you were, or as if you were even better than that. The way you had described how you fought made me think of my star pupil, from 1988," and Komaki grinned at whatever memory he had before diving back into it, "I remember that from the few fights I saw him in that weren't with me, he would always fight by moving in hard to follow movements. Leaps and rolls and dives, pirouettes and spins and slides. He might have been the fastest fighter I had ever laid eyes on." 

He shakes his head. 

"Regardless, the crux of the issue is that you strained yourself, and now your body is paying the price," he clapped Sunny on the shoulder. "Now you must rest. So, I forbid you from leaving the house for today." 

And before Sunny can even protest, can even let the horror of the situation sink in, Komaki turned away and left, offering a slight bow to the others before he was on his way, the door closed as if he were never there.

Which, given how much of a character his teacher is, might have been the reality of the situation if not for how everyone else in the room looked equally gobsmacked. 

"Well... at least you have a lot of practice, right?" 

Sunny's palm soundly met his face, a groan escaping their holy union. Oh, Kel... this was going to be awful.

Sunny had been fiddling with his sword when Abe woke up. Evidently, what he hadn't noticed was missing from his room was his sword, which had apparently been taken back home with him, and the PHOTO ALBUM, which had apparently been taken from his room with a "little" (read: anywhere between a lot and none at all) hesitation. 

He was just checking over his gift for any dibits or contusions in the blade. A stray splinter or any scratches. He vowed to go out of his way to punch Suki for every imperfection. But his concentration was interrupted by the shifting sounds on the couch behind him, followed by a quiet groan. 

Turning showed his partner sitting up, hands groggily raising to rub his face and then the back of his neck. Yeah, sleeping like that doesn't seem very pleasant. After letting out a yawn, Abe opened his eyes, rubbing them a bit at the sudden light. Then, when his eyes landed on Sunny, he grumbled out something that sounded sort of like, "Hey, Sunny." 

He started to stand up before pausing, turning to look at Sunny again. His eyes widened and he took a step forward, one hand stretching out. 

"Sunny-" 

But, he clearly got up too fast, since his socked foot slipped against the carpet and sent him hurtling into Sunny. Which hurt. 

"Ow..." 

The back of Sunny's head dully bumped against the carpet, while Abe's head luckily fell beside Sunny's and just headbutt the carpet. Lucky, because if they had just headbutt each other, then Sunny's pretty sure he would have to deal with a concussion today, too. 

"H-Hey! Are you two okay!?" 

The voice of his other blond friend echoed from the dining table, his concern clear. Before Sunny could offer a response, Basil approached and began hovering his hands over the two, hesitant to get handsy. Abe pushed himself up on one arm, the other rubbing at his forehead. 

"Basil, chill out, they're fine." 

"Aubrey, I-I don't think-" 

Turning his head, Sunny could see their resident punk sitting on the couch and watching. She wasn't outwardly concerned, arms crossed and lying firmly on the couch. But Sunny did notice that she was keeping an eye on the two of them, and her hands were tensing. Heh. 

Abe took his hand off his head, letting him look down at Sunny who was calmly staring up, an eyepatch he didn't recognise standing out against his face. Abe realised how close they were and quickly sat up, shifting off of Sunny. 

He just sat, catching his breath for a few seconds. Sunny sat himself up, taking a moment to assure Basil that he was fine by squeezing his hand. While Basil squeaked, he also nodded at Sunny. Letting go of Basil's hand, he turned to Abe, who was quietly staring at him. 

"Good morning, Abe." 

Abe just silently stared at him before slowly reaching out. His hand landed on Sunny's shoulder, and his gaze travelled over Sunny's face, catching particularly on the still slightly damp bandaid on his nose. When he was satisfied with his examination, he looked Sunny in the eyes. His grip on Sunny's shoulder tightened. 

"...are you okay, Sunny?" 

Sunny didn't like how Abe's voice sounded. Scratchier than usual, and without the energy he usually speaks with. It was frank, and frankly he didn't like it. 

"Yeah." 

Abe stared at him, brow raising. He clearly wanted more. 

"I'm fine, my body's just a bit sore. Komaki already came and told me I'm not allowed to leave the house today." 

He couldn't help but be sour about it still, but at least his words seemed to comfort Abe as he slowly nodded. 

"Good... good. If you had tried to leave the house, I would have forced you into bed myself..." 

His statement became shaky at the end, his grip on Sunny's shoulder tightening once more before letting go, shifting over to his lapel. Grabbing it, he brought Sunny closer to him, gritting his teeth. 

"Damn it, Sunny... I was worried! What the hell!?" 

He began to shake Sunny back and forth slightly, making Sunny's vision blur. Out of the corner of his eye he could see Aubrey and Basil facing them, but not much more than that. Instead, he focused on Abe's face, and the tears that had gathered in his eyes. 

"When I saw you on the floor... when I saw that asshole smiling at me and talking... why!? Why did you go alone!?" 

Sunny frowned. He didn't think that this would happen, didn't think that he would make anyone worried, didn't think his wretched pride would cause this- 

"Not thinking seems to be the cause of a lot of your issues, huh? Well, or thinking too much, I guess." 

Omori's harsh but fair words cut off Sunny's spiralling thoughts, letting him focus once more on the moment. Still being shaked, he saw Abe's eyes start to leak tears and felt his heart crack a little. 

"Abe..." 

He reached out, placing his hands on Abe's shoulders. He squeezed and Abe slowly stopped shaking him, instead staring at him and breathing heavily. 

"...I'm sorry." 

Sunny bowed his head, closing his eyes. His head bumped against Abe's arm, which quickly retracted. 

"I wanted... to prove myself. Prove that I could do things alone..." 

Shame built up in his chest, and so did a familiar SADNESS. The SADNESS of seeing the consequences of your actions, intended or otherwise. 

Sunny became SAD. 

"...I didn't mean to get into another fight. And I didn't mean to leave you out of the loop like that." 

Despite the frown he had naturally assumed, he worked up the energy to give a slight smile and lifted his head to look at Abe. 

"Hey, Abe. Thanks for the help. And for earlier, too." 

Not just for coming to rescue him, but also for helping him with his friends yesterday. And, in a way, for everything. Abe stared at him, dumbfounded. What, was him apologising and thanking him so weird? "I could make a quip about this, but it's probably that you did both at once. Also..." Also? 

Abe chuckled and looked up, leaning backwards and unlatching Sunny's hands from his shoulders. His right hand came up to his face, wiping at it. 

"Heh. Isn't that a familiar line?" 

Huh? He didn't understand. His head tilted, he made a small noise. Abe looked back down, eyes slightly red, and chuckled at the sight. Then he reached out and placed his hand on Sunny's head, ruffling his hair. 

Sunny became NEUTRAL. 

The feeling of a warm palm on his head was familiar and comforting... but also, Sunny began to pout. Come on, he's not that small anymore. His expression seemed to make Abe laugh even more. 

"Yeah. You're welcome, Sunny. And, I'm glad you're safe." 

Sunny smiled at that, just as Kel came bounding into the room from his toilet break shouting, Hero trailing after Kel to calm him down, now finished with his call to his parents. 

Despite his misgivings, today hadn't been as bad as he feared. Maybe it really could be a good one, for once.

It was just as the sky beyond the window started to turn orange that a knocking echoed throughout the house. Everyone looked up from what they were doing, staring at the door's slight rattles. Sunny blinked a moment before getting up from his spot on the floor, moving towards the door. 

"Are you expecting someone, Sunny?" 

Sunny turned to Hero, shaking his head. At Hero's frown, he figured he should elaborate. 

"Mom usually comes home later. Wouldn't knock on the door anyway. Don't think she ordered anything, either." 

Hero's frown only got more severe, joined by his eyebrows. Not only that, everyone else that had been listening suddenly all looked various degrees of concern. It would have made Sunny's heart feel warm, if not for the fact he felt they were overreacting. He waved them down, trying to give a comforting smile. 

"It's fine. Probably just one of Komaki's students or something." 

Somehow that seemed to be the worse option, as it pushed Hero to stand up and stand by Sunny. With what should have been a comforting smile but didn't feel like it, Hero put his hand on Sunny's shoulder. 

"Don't worry Sunny, I'll make sure you don't get scammed or anything." 

It was clearly meant to be a joke, yet somehow Sunny got the feeling Hero had meant every bit of it. Looking at the expressions on everyone's faces, smiles that felt less like an agreement and more like a threat, he got the sudden feeling of being a sheep among wolves. Or, more accurately, a wolf cub amongst the pack. 

With Hero patting him on the shoulder and letting go, Sunny trailed over to the door which was still being knocked, worry for the person on the other side welling up from deep within. Laying his hand on the knob, he gave a silent prayer for the poor schmuck on the other side. 

"Hey." 

And then immediately asked for a refund on that prayer. Seriously, what the fuck? 

"Hello there, sir. Can I help you?" 

A plain face looked back at him. Not ugly or handsome, no distinguishing marks. His hair and eyes were stock brown. This person was so plain that had he been wearing anything else, Sunny doesn't think he would have recognised him. 

But he was wearing an unzipped black hoodie, with a plain white shirt and blue jean. It took a moment to piece together just which of the hooded goons this was meant to be, but something about him just screamed out that he would be at home with a bat on his shoulder. 

So, this was the one that lied about his wallet, then. And instead of his, to be frank, identifying baseball bat, he was carrying... a small piece of wood? 

"Hey, you!" 

Looks like Sunny wasn't the only one that recognised him. Abe broke out into a sprint from where he had been sitting, slamming against the door frame in a showing that would have probably been very intimidating had Sunny seen it from front on. Abe's sudden anger surprised everyone else who still hadn't recognised the Hound, while the Hound himself stood unaffected. 

"What the hell are you doing here!? Here to finish the job!?" 

Hero stared at the screaming blond, realisation slowly dawning on him. His fists slowly clenched as he turned to the Hound with a stern frown. 

"Sir, what are you doing here?" 

He only offered the angry boys a momentary gaze before focusing on Sunny. His hand holding the piece of wood stretched out to Sunny, offering it. 

"Here. This is for you." 

He spoke, acting oblivious to the anger emanating from the doorway, which had only grown once Aubrey, Kel, and Basil caught on that he had something to do with yesterday. And Sunny, acting every bit as oblivious in turn, merely spoke. 

"Why?" 

The Hound stared for a second before shrugging, free hand coming up to tug at his hair. 

"You seemed like you knew your way around one. Figured it'd be better if you had one on you instead of just a broken piece of lumber off the ground." 

Knew his way around one? Better to have it on him? Broken piece of lumber? What was he... wait. "A KNIFE?" Holy hell, this guy is giving him a KNIFE. Wait, isn't that illegal? 

"So, what? You're just gonna give Sunny a weapon and then make him get into a fight with you goons again?" Aubrey scoffed, evidently disillusioned with the gang life. "Fat chance." 

The Hound stared blankly at her before sighing. 

"Listen. Whether he takes it or not, he's now a... "target" of the Grey Hounds. That's the price for catching Suki's attention." He winced as he said his leader's name. Trouble in paradise? "This," he gestures with the KNIFE, "is my own decision. Not something I was told to do, but something I decided on." 

He once more held it out. 

"So, here. Take it." 

While he could feel his friends starting to protest again, Sunny instead focused on the KNIFE. With some hesitation, he reached out, causing the protests to quiet. He grabbed the part of the weapon not being held by the Hound, and found himself looking into the boring brown eyes. 

"Why are you helping me?" 

It wasn't just about the KNIFE. It was about his wallet, too. Whether the Hound understood that or not wasn't clear as he looked down to the KNIFE for a few long moments, before looking back up and letting go of the KNIFE with a shrug. 

"I'm not sure." He turned around. "I guess... I thought maybe you could be the one to help him." 

Help... him? Who? ...Suki? He looked over his shoulder. 

"When I saw you, I just had a feeling you might get him. That's all." 

Then he walked away, ignoring the confused protests of Kel, Aubrey, and Abe, and the glares from Hero and Basil. 

And then he was gone, out of sight but not yet out of mind. Hero gently shut the door, engaging the lock once more. He stepped back from it and crossed his arms, thinking. Aubrey let out an aggrieved sigh. 

"Man, what an asshole." 

"I didn't... I didn't like him very much." 

"Me neither, Basil. Me neither." 

"Amen." 

The solidarity between the four would have brought a smile to Hero's and Sunny's faces, if not for the former being deep in thought and the latter looking at the weapon in his hands. The handle was lacquered wood, a pale brown that was actually quite pretty. It wouldn't look bad in a painting or something... 

The rest of what must have been the sheath was the same colour, only identifiably different by a thin lip less than midway from the base of the handle. All in all, it does just look like a wooden case that you'd snap open to pick up pencils or something. 

But there was obviously more to it than this. Sunny gripped the handle and the sheath. He was going to pull it off. He was going to pull it off and expose the blade. He was going to pull it off and have a new weapon. 

If it was an actual knife, he wasn't sure what he would do. The responsible thing would be to dispose of it, or even to just put it somewhere safe. 

But he doesn't trust himself to do that. Doesn't trust that he won't take it with him outside and use it to hurt someone. Doesn't trust that he won't use it to wake up wakeup wakeup wakeupWAKEUP- 

A warmth covered his hand. Sunny blinked, his heavy breaths stuttering and halting. He looked up. Familiar warm brown eyes, more like the Sun than he could ever be, stared back at him. A comforting, toothy smile was on his tan face. 

"Hey, Sunny. You okay?" 

Sunny blinked a few more times before nodding, his breathing starting again and evening out. 

"Yeah. Thanks, Kel." 

His smile widened before he stood up, stretching his arms. Looking around, he saw everyone else seeming to relax too. Hero was slouching, Aubrey had crossed her arms and was leaning against the wall, Basil was fidgeting with his hands, and Abe was resting his hands on the back of his neck. But, he'd have to be an idiot "more than you already are, at least" to not notice that they all had their eyes on him. 

He took in a deep breath through his nose, then let it out through his mouth. He would just have to do it and move on from there. His grip on the sheath and handle tightened. Please don't be a knife, please don't be a knife, please don't be a kni- 

With an almost grating noise, yet one that was sort of familiar, Sunny pulled the two away, to reveal... 

"It's... wood." 

A wooden blade that followed from the wooden handle, thin and long enough to fit comfortably in the sheath. In comparison to the handle and sheath, the blade wasn't lacquered at all. It was smooth but still felt grainy. The back of the blade was flat and blunt, but the front of the blade was slightly curved at the tip, bearing a different thickness to the blade's blunt end. 

It wasn't sharp. It could be sharp. Running his finger along the edge, he could feel that it could be sharpened to a fine point, like a pencil. But it wasn't sharp, and that's all that mattered. He let out a breath he didn't know he was holding. 

"Woah... that looks kinda cool!" 

As Kel started hyping him up and Aubrey and Abe tried to get a look at the weapon, Sunny felt himself relax. He had felt tempted to try swinging his KNIFE like he was in HEADSPACE, but decided against it. He didn't need to make the problem worse than it already was. 

The conversation eventually shifted away from the KNIFE and towards more mundane matters, letting Sunny sheath the weapon and put it in his pocket. He smiled looking at his friends. 

Today really was a good day, wasn't it?

His Mom's arrival home was preceded by her car entering the garage, the garage door opening and closing. With the sound of keys shifting open the lock, the door opened and revealed her tired form. 

She took a few steps in, stifling a yawn, before looking into the lounge where the TV was still on. The scene was one that melted her heart just as much as it hurt it, familiar in its beauty, and yet the differences stood out starkly. 

Children, sleeping soundly sprawled out against the couch or on the carpet in front of the TV. Well, children and an adult, really. She stepped closer to turn off the TV before her attention was attracted to the one child who wasn't actually asleep. 

"Hey, Mom." 

She stifled a gasp, not wanting to wake up the children from her surprise. Looking at him, she saw his handsome face lit up by the blue light of the television, illuminating his white eyepatch and the bandaids on his nose. She sniffled. 

Reaching out, the woman placed a hand on her son's face, relief clear on her face. Her fingers traced the edges of the bandaid and eyepatch. 

"Sunny... my baby." 

There were tears in her eyes, and Sunny once more felt the shame in his chest, clogging up his throat. He swallowed it fruitlessly. 

"I'm so glad... I'm so glad you're okay." 

The tears had left her eyes and instead decided to decorate her face, running off some of her make-up and hinting at the black bags under her eyes. Sunny wanted to say something, had to say something, had to choke some of the guilt out- 

"I'm... sorry, Mom... for breaking my promise..." 

Sunny became SAD. 

And maybe that was the crux of it. Not just that his actions had hurt the people he cared about, but that he broke a promise after making one. He had never wanted to break another promise, never want to do something akin to shattering a bond in his eyes. Like shattering a piece of himself. 

Sunny became DEPRESSED. 

"I'm so... sorry..." 

Sunny became MISERABLE. 

Tears began to creep down his face, his good eye not really being able to see anything at all. His frown was small, but it felt like it weighed a ton. Just... why? Why was he like this? Why couldn't he be worthy any of what he has? Why couldn't he be like Ma- 

"It's okay, Sunny... Mommy forgives you." 

The hand still on his face began to wipe away his tears, gently turning his face to face her. 

She smiled down at him, tears no longer flowing and eyes red. Her thumb rubbed slow circles into his cheek, calming him down. 

"I'm just glad that you're okay, Sunny. I love you." 

He could feel a whine try to build up in his throat, but he swallowed it down. Instead, he managed to croak out a response. 

"I-I love you too, Mom." 

Her smile grew even larger, really showing where her daughter's smile had come from. She leaned in, and planted a gentle kiss on Sunny's forehead. 

Sunny became NEUTRAL. 

Leaning back, she gave his cheek one more stroke before letting go. 

"You should go to sleep now, sweetie. Young boys need their sleep, after all." 

Sunny pouted at that, but felt his lips fight to smile. He closed his eyes. 

"Goodnight, Mom." 

"Goodnight, sweetie. Sweet dreams." 

He could hear her not move for a few moments before walking away, placing something on the dining table before leaving for the hallway. A door opened and closed, and then Sunny was left in silence. Well, not really. 

There was still the sounds of his friends around him, their soft breaths and occasional movement, and in Kel's case some loud snores. 

He wasn't alone, and it meant everything. 

Slowly, he felt his awareness dim and dull, the sounds of his friends becoming quieter and blending together before leaving him altogether. He felt the call to the other side. But before he fell down the rabbit hole, he had one more thought. 

Today was a good day.

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