Chapter Text
Mari was a week and more before the eventual day of the recital, and she was somewhat upset, perhaps with how Sunny has been slower in terms of progress, but more than anything, he seemed to also be growing increasingly stubborn, occasionally upset with the very thing they both have been working on for a long time. Practicing makes perfect, they say, and that’s what she has always been aiming for. Mari wanted the recital to be the best it could.
She couldn’t have realized how her strenuous revisal has been slowly driving a wedge between her and Sunny. The goal before her eyes was too great to look away from, despite it meaning Mari would have to risk breaking her bonds with her little brother. It was crumbling, all thanks to someone else, someone that was far more heretic.
And there she was, in bed and struggling to get a good rest. Sunny didn’t let her hug him anymore, and it wasn’t hard to figure out why. Mari argued over the one misplayed note of his for that entire afternoon, so much that it didn’t even feel like it was her that let those words out. In the end, Mari could still get a sound sleep for the night.
With eyes closed, darkness took over Mari’s vision for what felt like a couple hours, before thirst drove her out of her sleep. Slowly, Mari was greeted with light once more, but with only so much of them to help her out. Moonlight was bleeding into the room, frail and dim, but subtle and pure, dying the floor with a very faint scent of blue.
Venturing down the dark hallway, taking steps, one after another down the no less obscured staircase, and Mari came to the bottom floor. Almost mindlessly, her legs moved her closer to the kitchen.
Something was strange.
There was someone in the kitchen. It was hard to make out, but amidst the deadly silent night, the sound of footsteps creaking the wooden flooring wasn’t hard to point out. At first, Mari didn’t give it too much of a thought, still stuck in a state of lethargy after only waking up so early from her sleep. What she saw after that, completely purged the sleepiness.
With a single flick of a switch, the person that was within the kitchen became apparent. From that point on, Mari couldn’t quite stop her eyes from being wide open any more.
A tall, young man, a few years or more than her, was there, covering his eyes with his hand from the sudden glare of the lights. From under the shadow casted by his palm, there was a scar that was barely visible on his body that almost ran up the collar bone, the most prominent feature of them all.
To Mari, he felt both foreign, but also incredibly familiar. He was someone she had buried away in her plethora of memories to keep in mind, perhaps for the better. He was the person she loved with all her heart, and so was the other way. Life took him away from Mari… or at least, that’s the thought she was stuck with for a long time.
Looking the other way, he was no less surprised to see her there. It wasn’t the first time they have seen each other, but it was true when taking in the time they’ve spent having the other’s name unspoken.
He came back home, to a place that warms his cold heart. Looking around, many things were the same from when he last came to look at them. It was all sudden, too, that he dreamt of his old home back in a country thousands of miles away from where he actually was. The memory was both solemn and nostalgic to come back to…
But is it even a memory?
He was in the kitchen, lurking through the darkness to find something he could potentially recognize. Even already aware it was all just a dream, he took gentle, slow steps through the room, scared that any sudden movement could abruptly bring him out of it. Before he knew anything, a sudden burst of light washed over his vision.
And so he opened his eyes to be greeted with the sight of someone he has held close to heart from a long time in the past, and still partly does to that very day. Along with that, a familiar voice struck him.
“Mori?” She gasped. “N-No…”
“Mari...”
Silence hung over the atmosphere, for but a moment.
“It’s just a dream, isn’t it?” They both said, almost in perfect unison, which made things even more bizarre.
“...What do I even do-” Mori was cut off when Mari came in for a tight hug.
“Mori…” She said, unable to stop her eyes from growing misty. “...I...”
“Hey now… it’s OK.” Mori returned the hug. “I miss you too… a lot.”
They remained in that position for a moment longer, before both let go of each other, unable to look into each other’s eyes. A tingling feeling of sadness overtook them both, and it wrings their hearts. It hurts so much more for Mari, as she couldn’t get herself to accept she had to let go of someone so loving.
Both pulled out a chair of their own to sit on. The talk continued from that point on, but for Mari, she couldn’t get out much other than sniffs and sobs. It was too sudden, and it hit her hard.
“It’s been too long.” Mori claimed, looking down on the floor. “It’s been… 6 years, is it not? Time really flies…”
“...I… W-Why…” Mari wiped off her tears. “...Why…?”
“...Honestly, I don’t know either.” Mori solemnly shook his head. “You just feel so… real. The way you’ve already grown, everything, it feels all too real.”
“...” Mari couldn’t say anything, when her brother had already said everything she wanted to. Never before could she think of a scar on his face, for something else so much worse was already occupying her mind. It shouldn’t have been limited to just a simple scar if Mori went through an entire plane crash. The radio announcement already said it all to her, adding up to the doubt.
But then again, he was real, alive and well, only out of reach for all that had held him close to heart. The Mari that he was seeing was real, too, and she felt just like the sister he had known and loved for many years, having only grown up with time passing, just like how everything else changes.
Both sat to admire each other for a while. Six years, that’s how long they’ve spent out of reach for the other one. Even then, they all felt fleeting, only as brief as a faint thought when the conversation was started. Suddenly, the time gap vanished, and Mari felt like it was just yesterday when she lost her loving older brother.
For Mari, she already moved on from the grief and became the next subject to her father, unknowingly that is. At least she was happy with all her close friends, especially around Hero and Sunny. For Mori, to say he was struggling would be to put it lightly. He was constantly shouldering the weight of solitude and stress, unable to let go and have time to heal. Heavy thoughts never stop circling around his mind like vultures, only waiting for a moment of being vulnerable to rip him into pieces.
Mari didn’t need to be too attentive to read through the look of exasperation on her brother’s face. He looked worn out, broken by his cruel life and bleak from exhaustion. Seeing her did help Mori lighten up, but it wasn’t enough to help lift his mood completely. If anything, the sudden dream of Mari only brought more for him to think of.
“So…” Mari took her last sniff and gathered her composure. “How… have you been doing? I know it might sound stupid, but I want to know.”
“It’s… rough, that’s for sure.” Mori had a warped expression. “Life after the plane crash wasn’t easy-going at all. I had to catch up with-”
“Wait, what do you mean “after” the plane crash?” Mari looked at her brother with disbelief. “Didn’t you… die?”
“I’m not surprised you thought so.” Mori weakly shrugged. “Only me and auntie made it out okay.”
“But the radio told us.” Mari insisted, delirious to her firm beliefs. “They said there were no survivors. Those that survived the crash drowned, too…”
“Maybe the news came a bit too quickly.” Mori looked away, reminiscent of what happened, despite horribly wanting to get the moment out of his mind. “It was close, yes, but we both made it through. They never bothered to make an update, from what you’re telling me.”
“So you’re still alive!? All this time!?” Mari widened her eyes, standing up from her seat.
“Yeah.” Mori frowned shortly after. “But it’s not so nice when I have so many things to worry about.”
Mari couldn’t get herself to think straight when those words came to her, so much that she forgot it was all just a dream, like hundreds of other ones. She wanted to take a moment to let the thought sink in, realizing how her days of lamenting might not have been for anything. That there was still hope, and how she shouldn’t have let go so soon.
Mori, once again, broke her out of the ice, this time with his own questions.
“There’s no way this is just a normal dream.” He said, firmly, yet so uncertain. “I never bothered to imagine what you’d look like beyond 9 years old… Yet here you are, all grown up.”
“And I could never imagine that you’d be alive this whole time.” Mari added up to the doubt. “It’s just… how? Why is it now that you showed up?”
Both didn’t know what to say. It went on for a full minute, before Mori came back to the conversation once more.
“I honestly don’t care all that much.” He said, leaning back with his chair. “I’m just glad I get to see you right here. It’s been too long.”
He then looked at the ceiling, his face filled with nostalgia and sadness.
“All my friends, you, Sunny… everyone’s just gone. I just wanted to know if everything is okay since I left.” Mori drove his vision back to Mari. “But now that you told me about the radio announcement… I can’t be so sure. I doubt anyone believes I’m still around.”
“But what if this is all just a dream?” Mari remains doubtful, not that she wanted to be.
“I’m more sure of being alive than anyone in Faraway is, but you get the point.” said Mori, slightly let down from the realization. “Whether you believe it or not, that’s up to you. Just know that I won't go anywhere.”
Mori looked relieved, almost growing a smile on his own, but it still proved to be out of reach for him. With most of what he wanted to say out of the way, he could finally come out of the seat to be closer to Mari, who was still looking at him with heavy eyes. Many years have passed, yet she was still so much like who she was when they were together.
“If the world ever gave me a chance, I’d find my way back home as soon as possible. I’ll prove to you that this isn’t just a dream.” Mori said, more hopeful than ever. “For now, though, just stick to what we’ve promised to each other before. You haven’t forgotten, right?”
“...Yeah…” Mari trailed off, wiping off her tears.
“Just know that I still love you and Sunny the way I’ve always done. Being separated doesn’t change that. Nothing will.”
He sounded full of strength, yet, it felt so soft and sincere. They pulled each other in for one last hug.
“Take care of Sunny for me until I come back, alright?”
Mori could feel a light nod in his chest.
“Good,” He said to her. “I love you. Both of you.”
“I love you too...” Mari choked up in tears.
Then the lights were off, despite no one being near the switch. Their moment of being together was up.
Mari snapped out of bed, to be greeted with the sun reaching her bed. Sunny was still deep asleep, looking all peaceful and comfortable in their blanket. It was a wild night she had just gone through, maybe the wildest of them all. To think of what vast distance the fragments of their thoughts had traveled to meet each other was surreal.
Then she felt something trailing down her cheeks, which she quickly realized were tears. She wipes them with her sleeve, and looks out the window, thinking about what she had dreamt about. Mari wondered if her big brother really was out there somewhere, alive and well.
With that in mind, Mari got out of bed to look at the sunrise behind the trees. A vain hope bloomed within her from that day, that somebody else lied beyond the horizon.
Mori woke up to cold sweats. His nap after a long day of work turned out to be much longer than he thought it’d be. His breaths were heavy, but they slowly lightened the more he calmed down. Getting to see his loving sister once more was more than worth the hours overslept.
“What is it kid? Bad dream?” His caretaker, Fujiwara, suddenly spoke up.
Mori shook his head, not saying anything.
“C’mon, you don’t have to act all tough.” He said, chuckling. “Tell me all about it.”
“Sorry,” said Mori. “It’s a bit personal.”
“What? Your biggest fear ever? Like… spiders?” Fujiwara asked.
“I got over that a long time ago.” Mori scoffed, looking annoyed.
“Then… dogs?”
“Nope.”
“…Being dogpiled by girls?”
“Any man would fear that… unless it was you.” Mori stared at Fujiwara with a deadpan expression.
“Yeah- Hey! What’s that supposed to mean!?”
“Just let it go.” Mori looked away. “I’m fine.”
“Alright. If you say so,” Fujiwara said. “But if there’s anything you need, just tell me right away!”
“Sure.” Mori nodded lightheartedly.
Mori then glances at the door then looks at Fujiwara.
“Do you mind if I go outside for a bit?” He asked.
“Just remember to come home and cook dinner later.” Fujiwara replied. “It’s your turn for today.”
Without much more than a nod, Mori put on his slippers and came outside.
It was late evening when he came outside. The last of daylight was turning amber, leaving the rest of the sky to turn dark blue, before night took over the city. Some houses already had their lights on, drowning the few stars that were early to show up.
Mori looked on to the skyline, where there was a sunset bleeding through the many rooftops, almost instinctively. He could feel someone, something urging him to do so, beyond the drifting clouds that he could see. The sight brought him back to the dream he just had, bringing along some few faint thoughts.
He took a deep breath and closed his eyes. So much has happened up until that point, and yet, he was still going, so much for the many times life tried to bring him down. This time, however, Mori could finally sense a goal that he could look forward to. His life no longer felt endless, and his tenacity was no longer for nothing.
Mori had a smile, and he threw it into the sky, at the sunset.
“Don’t worry. I’m coming home, sis.” He reassured, both to her and to himself.