Chapter Text
Mafuyu always had weird nightmares at certain birthdays. First one was when she became 5 years old... It went like this: she'd wake up at a certain weird place then there would be a pink haired girl trying to trick her into a place like candy store...
"Huh? Where am I?" Little Mafuyu said.
"Mafuyu~ look here!"
When she turned around there was a lady, opening a door
"H-huh?"
"I have lots of candy here! You want them don't you?"
"I...."
"Be a good kid for me Mafuyu"
"!" No... this lady is trying to kidnap her. She should run... But candies looks so good... No. She needs to be a good kid.
"I'm sorry!" without looking back she runs away.
The lady's smile fades as soon as Mafuyu runs away and sighs.
"!" Little Mafuyu woke up with a gasp.
She saw that nightmare until she became 9 years old. Everytime that lady would try to trick her in different ways. Her mother even took her to a priest but they couldn't find anything. And Mafuyu still remembers it to this day. And then there was this nightmare. Right after that homework about what you want to be in future was given and what her mother said about it, she saw another nightmare...
Huh... is this a... classroom? It's covered with flowers. Mafuyu heard that these flowers were poisonous, better not touch them.
"Ugh boring..."
eh?
There it was a girl, staring right into her eyes. She wasn't wearing any uniform. Her books and textbooks were scattered every where!
"E-excuse me?" Mafuyu said with a polite smile.
"How do you handle this?"
"Eh?"
"How can you handle following rules all the time? Can't you break them for once? You have never broke them before?"
"Rules aren't there to be broken... I should follow them."
"For what? Oh right you would become a 'bad kid' if you don't follow them" The girl said as if she had enough.
how does this girl know that....
"Break them at least for once. If you've never broke one then that means you didn't enjoy your school at all"
"I do... like school. I can't break the rules... They are not to be broken." Mafuyu said, already feeling uncomfortable.
"Oh really? Model student then huh..." The girl got up from her desk. As soon as Mafuyu saw her walking towards her, she ran. She ran to hide in different classrooms but that girl was in every classroom at the same time.
"Oi, wait I'm not here to hurt you- hey! You know you can't run right?" Mafuyu barely heard her before she woke up.
And that nightmare only hapened 2 times. On second times she and that girl argued then Mafuyu woke up. It was as if something was haunting her and "it" was annoyed so let her go. But now, they don't matter anymore. Mafuyu doesn't even understand why did they effect her this much but she feels dizzy and nauseous thinking about them. They don't matter anymore anyway...right? Little does she know her nightmares are to come true...
"I don't trust you... I won't give her to you..."
"Mafuyu!"
...
During breakfast, the air was even more tense than normally. Mafuyu didn't know what was it but she knew something was up.
"Mafuyu.." her mother said.
"Yes, mom?"
"Remember that nightmare you saw over and over again as a child?"
"You mean the one with pink haired lady?"
"Yes, that one. Have you seen nightmare again like that?"
Eh? Where does this come from...
"Umm.. When I was on middle school I saw another nightmare like that. There was this one girl who was trying to coax me into breaking the school rules I tink but I only saw that nightmare 2 times and I was arguing with her on the second one and never saw it again. Why?"
"Was there something similar in both of these nightmares?"
Mafuyu looked with a polite smile... She felt her chest tighten though she didn't know why...
"Umm so there was this flower that's poisonous on both of these nightmares on floor..."
"Okay then... we are going to a priest tomorrow"
"eh? Why?"
"Hehe. Mafuyu trust your own mother okay? I want the good for you."
"good for me..." Mafuyu mumbled...
"Okay then. I'm off to school mom. See you later." she waved a goodbye with a smile... finally. If that wasn't weird enough she saw "hallucinations" on the way to school. She deals with enough already. She just wishes to disappear on the spot.
School was tiring as always... She opened the door.
"I'm home." She said with a happy tone.
Huh... seems like no one is home. That shouldn't be surprising. She walks over to her room.. "hallucinations" on floor are the same poisonous flowers, on the way to her room. She ignores them and opens the door.
...
What the...
there is a door middle of her room... Okay it must be a hallucinations. She'll walk over it and- bom she bumped to the door. Haha... it's not real come on. Okay logic on her mind screams it's not real but she knows better. This door seems familiar... decorated with the same poisonous flowers, a weird door. Mafuyu puts her backpack down and changes her clothes then inspects the door. The rails on floor show the door too. She fels a temptation to open it. But no.
"Mafuyu, I'm home"
Mafuyu flinched, that scared her enough. But it'll be bad if her mother comes to her room and sees the door-
Her room door opens.
"Sorry for coming in without permission I need to go somewhere ASAP but I wanted to give you the new test books I bought for you."
Mafuyu quickly puts up her facade but what shocks her the most is her mother not noticing the door. She was going to ask it but decides it's better not to.
"Thank you mom..."
"Is everything alright? You look a bit off."
"Oh? Am I now? nervous chuckle I must be more tired than I thought then..."
"Hehe. Mafuyu should get rest all she needs then. Don't forget we are going to see a priest tomorrow. Goodbye."
Mafuyu waves her hand with her usual "smile" as soon as her mother leaves her face goes normal.
"That was close..." she thinks. She turns to the door.
"What am I going to do with this? Should I open it? No... but then why is it here? Why my mom couldn't see it?" her head flooding with questions. In the end, she decides to open it.
A weird light and triangles? .... Okay that's weird she steps in.
"Is anyone there- Huh?!" She feels something pull her... Everything goes dark for a second... then she is in a weird.. city?
"Welcome to SEKAI, Mafuyu!" A lady with pink hair- Wait this is the... Lady from her dreams.
"You are the..."
"Oh so you recognize me! I'm Mizuki Akiyama! Welcome to SEKAI again."
This must be a dream yet she puts her facade on.
"Um... What is.. "SEKAI" exactly?" She ask nervously yet eerily polite as always...
"Mafuyu..." Mizuki's smile softens and she looks empathic all of a sudden "No need to put facade on you know? Feel like you are home here."
"..." Mafuyu's smile fades. "It's rare someone can tell."
"We have always know the real Mafuyu! We have been watching you all this time!"
Watching her... all this time? Okay... This will be ridiclous but Mafuyu doesn't care about that as she pinches her arm... ouch..
"This isn't a dream, is it?"
"Of course SEKAI isn't a dream!"
"Who are you.. or most likely what are you?" Mafuyu asked suspciously.
"Don't freak out okay? I'm a demon actually. You could say that."
"... okay."
"Okay?! You aren't scared at all?!"
"I don't feel anything about this... I feel nothing most of the time..."
"Damn... you were bubbly as a child... yet you feel nothing anymore?"
That... made her feel weird. What is this place... Was her nightmares coming true? She didn't feel need to suspect anything. Mizuki... made her feel warm somehow.
"So... Akiyama-san. What is this place exactly?"
"Hey don2t be so formal! I've known you since you were a child."
"But I didn't known you. I have known you as a monster in my nightmare.." that made Mizuki chuckle nervously.
"Then here is me! I like Collages, curry rice, french fries and I hate mushrooms and I have a cat tongue. Now you know me!" (Cat tongue: SPeople who don't have tolerance for too hot and cold drinks and foods)
This feels weird as Mafuyu let's herself be dragged by Mizuki. Everything felt like a blur as she gave her a tour of this thing called... "SEKAI". Mafuyu thought she was hallucinating at first, she even pinched herself but she wasn't. She is a clever girl of course she tried to get out of here. She shouldn't be seen as a bad child who ran away from home. But the door was gone. It seems like the door was openned by Mizuki and of course she would've closed it. Mizuki is a persceptive girl. She notices every small detail and for once Mafuyu thought that maybe Mizuki knew the real her. But she didn't understand it... What was the "real" her Mizuki was talking about. As the tour continued, Mafuyu suddenly saw Mizuki having spider legs on her back.
"!" But in a blink, they were gone
"Is everything alright?"
"Yes... I just thought I saw something."
"Oh, okay then." Mizuki said suspiciously.
Mizuki took her to a candy shop... the same from her nightmare. It's bright that it hurts Mafuyu's eyes. The candies... they are also too bright than it should be.
"This store is too bright it hurts my eyes."
"Mafuyu! You wound me! Enanan! Look who I have here!" Mizuki said... Enanan?
"Eh? That Asahina girl we've been trying to save?" Save?
"Yes! Exactly."
"...She looks annoying and too plain."
"Ena!"
"Okay okay fine.."
Ena cleared her throat then spoke.
"My name is Ena Shinonome. Call me whatever you like."
"...It's nice to meet you I guess, Ena..."
"Yeah yeah." Ena then walked away, leaving the store.
"Hehe! I had a nice helper it seems! She cleaned everywhere jus in an hour. Oh by the way I forgot to say, time passes differently in here. 1 hour in here is 1 minute on real life so no need to worry."
"..." this was ironic. Staying in here for days would mean hours on real life. Her mother must've come to home by now but from what Mizuki said 1 minute in here must be a second on real life. So she shouldn't be worried too much. She'll leave soon anyway... right?
Mizuki later on took her to an apartment and said this is where she'll be staying from now on. The apartments was small. Had 2 rooms and one room was locked but Mafuyu can see dim light coming from under the door. She entered to her supposedly room. It was plain and eerily similar to her real room. She opened the closet to see if there were any clothes. It was filled with cozy and casual clothes... the type she would wear. She should've questioned that Ena girl but like how it is, that Ena girl does not like her at all. She must've annoyed her on her first nightmare. Somehow, Mafuyu is suspicious but doesn't feel need to question it. She is long gone anyway... She doesn't care about anything anymore so... Maybe being missing would allow her to disappear, even for once but she should be careful with her actions. Mafuyu decides that she'll just observe this time...
Mafuyu laid on bed... Cozy, she thought. It was almost like her real bed. Just what is this place? Everything was blur when Mizuki was giving her a tour so she didn't have time to ask questions. She is too tired anyway. Too tired that she barely kept in mind about what Mizuki said about being a demon. Her first mistake. While overthinking Mafuyu falls asleep... a dreamsless and most comfortable one she had in her life.