Chapter Text
"Hey Omori, is this what your place looks like? Why haven't you ever showed it to us before?"
Sunny watched helplessly as Kel and Aubrey orbited around his room, admiring what little it had to offer.
“Be careful you two. Some of this stuff might be fragile!” Hero nagged.
Sunny was at a loss for words, he didn’t know where to begin, how had this happened?
Sunny's eyes had opened to a gentle ray of morning sun on his pillow, just as he had many times before. Part of him was slightly sad he had to wake up again but he couldn't force himself to feel strongly about it even if he wanted to anymore, it was just routine at this point. It had happened hundreds of times before and would happen hundreds of times again. Besides, someone had to finish the chores.
He lifted himself out of bed and onto the floor. Anything of note was all packed up in boxes, so it wasn't hard to notice when something was out of place. Today, something was very much out of place. Three colourful children in pajamas playing cards on the floor.
Sunny stared blankly at them, not phased in the slightest.
This wasn't necessarily unusual, his dreams had leaked into the real world before. Occasionally he’d see a rogue wormhole or forest bunny roaming the halls of his home.
He attempted to cross the room to check the list of chores but was stopped in his tracks when his big toe hit something solid. Hard.
He yelped and clutched his foot, looking down to see what he could’ve possibly stubbed his toe on.
A small purple boy leapt up off the ground, clutching his backside, "Ow! Watch where you're going! What was that… for?”
Kel realised who he was speaking to and immediately changed tune, “Oh, Omori! You're up! I didn’t realise it was you!
Sunny stared at him in utter bewilderment.
His hallucinations didn’t often talk to him, much less bump into him. He rubbed his eyes but they wouldn't disappear.
Kel suddenly realised that "Omori" now stood over him, "Hey, come to think of it, did you get taller overnight?"
Sunny didn't respond. He couldn't. He was like a deer caught in headlights. This all felt too real.
He reached out and pinched Kel's right cheek hoping that the vision would fade when he touched it like usual but instead he hit soft flesh. Sunny lurched his hand back like he'd touched a hot stove, Kel's face had felt much too much like real human skin for his liking. If this really was a hallucination like he'd assumed, it was an incredibly elaborate one.
Kel yelped, "Ow! What's up with you today, Omori?"
Another voice spoke up, “Hey, what’s all the commotion? Oh, hi Omori!”
Hero had now also realised Sunny was awake.
“We told Kel and Aubrey to leave you alone while you slept, you seemed peaceful so we didn’t want to bother you.”
“Omori’s here?” Aubrey asked excitedly, she rushed over to his side and grabbed onto his arm. Sunny flinched.
Sunny tried pinching himself as hard as he could, a sharp pain shot up his arm but still nothing changed. Sunny's breath hitched in his throat.
Hero lit up with realisation, "By the way, did you get taller overnight? Nice growth spurt, Omori!"
Sunny was severely overwhelmed at this point, he was being forced to process more information than he could handle all at once.
He had to have finally lost it, his years of antisocial behaviour had finally caught up to him and now he was paying the price.
At least, that was what should've been true, if they were just talking to him he could have believed that was the case but now he could feel them, physically. That couldn't be possible, you're not supposed to be able to touch your own delusions, right? His head throbbed just thinking about it.
His thinking was cut short by Kel speaking up, "Hey Omori, is this what your place looks like? Why haven't you ever showed it to us before?"
Sunny didn't respond, he was frozen in place. Completely at a loss for what to do.
Kel looked at what little still decorated the house.
Sunny ignored him, he wasn't done thinking. The idea that he wasn't crazy and this was all real somehow felt much worse than the alternative, at least that was a straightforward answer.
This one meant that Sunny had somehow willed the impossible into reality.
"Wow, it's all so empty... and brown." Kel remarked, poorly trying to sound impressed.
"Hm, closer to beige honestly," Hero chimed in.
Kel tilted his head at him, "What's a beige?"
As the two discussed colours, Sunny tried to gather his thoughts into one place, trying to figure out what could have caused this. He thought back to White Space and the last thing he remembered, how badly he had wished to spend a little more time with his dream friends.
He tried to retrace his steps, the last thing he remembered was…
The barn.
Omori hadn't even had any time to close his eyes, the blinding flash of white enveloped him as he lay on the ground, whitespace again.
Omori was back much sooner than he would've liked. After his latest near miss with that strange Basil apparition, he forced himself back into the safety of its stark white expanse. Red hands lingered a short while away, waiting to guide him back to the rug if he wandered too far.
Once again Something had tried to lure him in, this time with an irresistible siren call in the form of a blinding red light behind a barn door.
He lamented the fact he was here again so soon, he lamented the fact he had almost let his guard down for too long, if he was even slightly less proactive something terrible might have happened.
He gazed blankly at the black lightbulb dangling above him, not angry or even particularly frustrated, just... disappointed. He could feel Sunny's disappointment too.
Omori picked himself off the ground, he already knew what to do. Headspace seemed to have a way of making it very clear when he had overstayed his welcome. Another day was going to begin soon, that was something neither of them could stop.
He made a soundless sigh and readied his blade, pointing it inwards at himself. He closed his eyes and plunged the cold metal blade into his chest. As he fell to the ground, he thought about how dearly he wished he could afford the dreamer just a little more time inside the dream.
Sunny wished the same.
Did that mean the universe decided to grant his wish? Was this something he was capable of doing the whole time?
Before he could think more, a new voice completely derailed his train of thought.
"Hey, what's with that glum look? Are you feeling okay, Sunny?"
It was a sweet, gentle and horrifically familiar one.
He looked up, beginning to shake. He was greeted by an earnest smile as warm as the sun framed by flowing dark purple hair. Mari knelt down so she could look at him at his level. Sunny’s throat went dry as words failed him.
"Sorry, I hope you don't mind, I went ahead and looked around the house before you got up." She giggled.
His heart pounded. Sunny had decided what he was going to do on the spot. He leapt upwards and hugged her tightly, Mari sat pleasantly confused for a moment then carefully embraced the hug. She was just as soft and warm as he'd remembered from when he was child. If he really was crazy, he would've wished to never be sane again then and there.
"Oh! I love you too!" She said awkwardly.
"Hey! I want a hug too!" Aubrey interjected.
"Ooh, me too!" Added Kel.
"Ha, guess it's a group hug then." Hero smiled.
The four gathered and held each other tight. Sunny felt his stress seep away slowly. He finally began to wind down from his thought spiral just enough to think clearly again.
All right, from what he understood, this was real. He was no psychologist but he was certain this wasn't how hallucinations worked though couldn't be completely sure unless there was a clear way to prove it. Though that being said, how could he prove it?
An idea came to mind, there was only one way for certain to know that this wasn't just his imagination, he'd have to show someone, if someone else could see them, then he couldn't be insane.
Though, the more he thought about it, the more he hesitated, how would he introduce someone to them? What would he say?
The answer to that question would come sooner than he was prepared for as a knock rang out from downstairs. Sunny's head snapped to the direction it came from, that had to be Kel, the real Kel. Dream Kel perked up as well.
"Ooh, I'll get it!" Kel called out as he rushed out of the room.
Sunny flinched, he flew after him. Though it was what he wanted, he had hoped for more time to think about how to do this gracefully. He had to beat Kel to the door.
He hesitated at the stairs, they seemed steeper than they really were for a moment, he shook the feeling away as best he could and awkwardly wobbled downwards, he didn't have time to be afraid of heights.
Unfortunately, despite being much smaller then Sunny, Kel was much more athletic than him by a mile, he couldn't possibly hope to catch up to him, especially with the time he had wasted on the stairs. Sunny hadn't exactly been in peak physical health for a very long time.
By the time he made it to the living room, he was already out of breath, ribs stinging. He had to stop before he passed out.
Kel stopped at the door and announced his presence in a cheery tone, "Who is it?"
The knocking stopped, there was an uncomfortable pause.
"Oh! Uh... Sunny, is that you? Can I come in?" The voice asked.
"Huh? This isn't Sunny, this is Kel!" He responded.
Kel was taken aback by the loud voice that called back at him, now he was certain that wasn't Sunny, though it was still familiar to him somehow. He couldn't really put his finger on it though... and did it say his name?
"Huh, did you say Kel?" He asked, "Are you messing with me?"
"Hey! I already told you, there's no Sunny here, I'm Kel."
"Okay dude, you're acting weird. If this is a joke, it's getting kinda old, can I come in already?"
"I dunno, let me ask Omori," Kel turned to Sunny, "Omori, can this guy come in? Ah, hey!"
Sunny ran to the door and pushed Kel aside, he wanted to ask Kel to come back later so he could plan though as he hovered behind the door, he stopped to think. What if Kel thought he was making excuses and didn't come back?
He couldn't go outside with the group, Sunny imagined the stares he might receive and shuddered. He sighed, there wasn't much else he could do, this was as good a time as any. He'd just have to improvise.
Sunny cautiously opened the door just enough to look outside, peering out at Kel. He looked at where he remembered Kel's head being but realised he was just staring at his torso, he craned his neck further upwards to make eye contact, Kel offered him a crooked smile.
Kel had gotten much taller than he was used to, there had been a time where Kel had actually been a little shorter than him, they used to compare heights often. Kel would always boast about how close he was getting to Sunny in height, promising that one day he'd beat Sunny at growing. It seemed he had kept that promise tenfold.
"Wow, it really is you, huh? Been a while, hasn't it? I guess I can't blame you for trying to get one up on me." Kel laughed.
Sunny didn't really say something, only stared blankly.
"Omori, who's at the door, I wanna see!" The other Kel grumbled, trying to push his way back into the sight of Kel.
Kel stopped and tried to look behind Sunny into the house, "W-wait, you actually do have someone over? That wasn't a joke?"
Sunny scratched his head and looked behind him at dream Kel, he wasn't sure how to answer, he settled on just nodding. It was technically true.
Kel started to feel guilty for a reason he couldn't explain, he had no idea Sunny apparently knew other people, when had that happened? If he had gone out to meet people, surely he would've said hello at some point. Sunny wasn't avoiding him on purpose, was he?
Kel prepared to turn back, "Oh, um... sorry, I didn't realise you had other friends, I mean if this is a bad time, I can just-"
Sunny grabbed the end of his shirt, "Stay." He said raspily, his voice slightly broken from years of not using it.
Kel stopped right away, slightly hopeful.
Sunny opened the door to reveal a strange little boy with dark hair, though it wasn't dark like black per se, it had an oddly blue-ish hue. In contrast however, his skin was pale, unusually so, like he was albino. Despite how weird he looked, this kid was also oddly familiar, much like he sounded.
Sunny turned to Kel, "Can you... see him?"
"Uh, 'see him'? Who, the kid? I mean yeah, sure I can see him, why? Kel answered.
Sunny nodded to himself and turned to head back inside the house, he gestured for Kel to follow him. Kel did as instructed, he watched the other boy follow him. Kel was certain he'd seen him before, he racked his brains for an answer though nothing came to him. In the end, he just shrugged it off.
Kel took a quick glance around the old Sunny abode, he was reminded of better times, watching cartoons with the entire gang and tasting Hero and Mari's cooking, though those memories were warped by the missing furniture, it made the room feel much too big. It dampened his mood again.
"Wow, so this is what your house looks like now, so weird to see it all empty like this," Kel turned to the boy at Sunny's side. "Anyways, what's your name, little guy?"
"I told you earlier, I'm Kel," he replied.
Kel began to pout.
"Okay but seriously, what's your actual name? I know Sunny just told you to say that to mess with me, right Sunny?"
Sunny shook his head. Kel furrowed his brow.
"Oh c'mon, not you too! This isn't funny anymore, someone needs to come clean or I swear I'm gonna turn around and-"
"Kel! I hope you're not bothering Omori's guest."
Kel was stopped in his tracks by a voice he recognized all too well but had no reason to be heard here. Surely it was just a coincidence, surely that wasn't really-
The owner of the voice ventured down the stairs and Kel was greeted by Hero’s face.
Though it couldn't really be Hero, Hero was still at college.
Besides, this guy only barely looked like Hero at all, more a pale imitation of Hero. Literally. He was as pale as the little boy and dressed in pajamas like he'd just woken up, Kel staggered backwards slightly.
"Wh-what the-"
Sunny grabbed his wrist, urging him not to run off. Kel's head was spinning, he looked back to the other kid and suddenly the resemblance came to him all at once. Just when he thought this couldn't get any weirder, some more strange kids followed him down the stairs. A young version of Aubrey and...
Oh god.
"Oh, hello! Sunny didn't mention he'd be having his friends over, you look almost just like Kel!" Mari beamed.
Kel almost fell over but Sunny held onto him tighter. Kel tried slapping himself, he winced but came to realise this was not a dream. He stared at Mari, then back to Sunny, then back at Mari again, then once more at Sunny. A sudden wave of light-headedness came over him.
"S-Sunny, I-I... there's... is that- is this... what you wanted me to see?" He stuttered.
Sunny nodded.
"R-right, um... my head feels... kinda funny. I... I think I need to sit down," Kel said, throwing himself onto the floor. Sunny rushed over to him to make sure he hadn't hurt himself. Kel was still conscious but seemingly only in spirit, he had become unresponsive. Like his brain had been left on the dial tone.
Aubrey waved a hand over his face then turned to Sunny, "Omori, I think your new friend is broken."
Sunny sighed.
"Oh, if we're lying on the floor then I'll set up a picnic!" Mari said happily.
"Let me help," Hero offered, chasing after her.
After the two had disappeared from sight again, Sunny went to check on Kel who was still on the floor, staring blankly at the ceiling trying to process what he had just seen.
"I... can explain." Sunny told him quietly.
"Please do..." Kel muttered.
The group was now sitting on a sprawling picnic blanket in the middle of the living room. Mari had wanted to move things outside to get some fresh air but Sunny insisted that she stay put.
"Right... I guess that makes sense..." Kel said. "So, you really have no idea how they got here, you didn't like, wish on a star or something?"
Sunny shook his head, "I remember... wishing I could spend more time in the dream, then they were here. There were no stars involved, at least I don't think so..."
Kel shot Sunny a sad look, he knew Mari's death had destroyed everyone mentally but had Sunny's life had been so crushed he'd rather spend time in an imaginary world with fake versions of his friends then with his real friends in real life?
That didn't sit right with him at all. He wanted to press further but decided against it. Sunny had at least made an effort to reach out, after all.
Mari entered the room a little upset, "Well, I looked everywhere but there's not much to eat here at all, not even the ingredients to make something from scratch. It's hardly a picnic without food. Doesn't Mom and Dad leave anything to eat out for you anymore? I mean look at you, you're twig thin."
Sunny looked away from her sheepishly.
"You on the other hand Kel, have grown up so nicely. You should really take a leaf out of his book, Sunny!"
"Oh yeah, guess I did. Thanks, Mari." Kel thanked, still a bit uncomfortable with her presence.
"It's not fair, I wanted to get bigger than Omori," Dream Kel puffed.
Kel gave a confused look, "By the way... why are they calling you Omori?" Kel asked Sunny.
"Because that's his name, duh!" Aubrey interrupted. "Right, Omori?"
Sunny shook his head, "No... I'm not Omori, not really."
The group was puzzled, "Huh?"
Mari chimed in, "I think what he means is, if there's two Kels here, then this must be the other Omori. Is that right, Sunny?"
Sunny was shocked by how quickly Mari seemed to pick everything up, though in life she'd always been clever, so he supposed it made sense.
"Yes. Omori is the me from the dream world, he's... not me, I'm Sunny." Sunny explained.
"What? B-but if you're not Omori, then where is he?" Aubrey whimpered.
Dream Kel's eyes widened in horror, "Oh no! First we lost Basil, now Omori? What are we gonna do?"
Sunny became worried, he'd not stopped to think if Omori had been released too, he assumed that he was still in Headspace but if he was out here, knowing what his counterpart was like in Headspace, he was terrified that he might be out on the streets terrorising people.
"C-calm down, I'm sure he's fine wherever he is! He's probably out looking for Basil!" Dream Hero reassured.
"Y-yes, he's... fine!" Sunny added. "Please, don't go looking for him."
Sunny grabbed Kel and led him into a different room, "We need to talk, privately."
"Oh! Okay..." Kel said hesitantly, once they were in the bathroom and Sunny was sure they could not be heard, he locked the door. He turned to Kel with an expression that made Kel start to worry.
"I don't know if Omori is here but if he is we need to find him, fast." Sunny stated nervously.
"Huh? Why, he's just a dream version of you, right? How much trouble could he be?"
"That's the thing he's... not really like me. He looks like me but he's... different." Sunny explained half-heartedly, he didn't want to outright say that Omori had a tendency to be violent.
"Different? Different how?" Kel inquired.
"It's hard to explain but just trust me. He shouldn't be outside." Sunny insisted.
Kel swallowed, what could Sunny mean, what was this Omori guy like? Kel had just assumed he was shy and quiet like Sunny was but Sunny was making it out like he was bad news. He couldn't be that bad though, Sunny was a good kid, he wouldn't hurt a fly.
"What should we do then?" Kel asked.
"I guess go look to make sure he's not here. I'll tell the rest to stay here, they'll listen to me, I think." Sunny said. "Just be careful he can be... unstable."
"Unstable? What do you mean-"
A knock from the other side of the bathroom door interrupted Kel.
Mari spoke, "Sunny, I don't mean to alarm you but we might have a bit of a problem out here."
Sunny quickly opened the door for her and they followed Mari downstairs. Dream Kel and Aubrey were absent from the picnic basket.
"Wh-where did they go?" Sunny asked frantically.
"Outside I think, they got impatient and wanted to find Basil and Omori. Sorry, they can be real sneaky when they want to be." Hero said defeated.
Sunny clutched his head, "Oh no..."
Kel was quick to try calming Sunny down, "Hey, no biggie! We'll go get them back, they couldn't have run far."
"Of course, is it okay if I tag along, little brother?" Asked Mari.
Sunny hesitated, "I don't know..."
"Oh please, Sunny. They'll likely listen to me better!" Mari insisted.
Kel turned to Sunny, "I mean, I guess it can't hurt as long as we're quick."
Sunny relented, "Fine..."
"Hooray!" Mari cheered.
The two dream children ran across the streets without a care for their surroundings.
"I bet I'll find Omori and Basil before you do Kel!" Aubrey teased.
"What? Nuh uh, I will!" Replied Kel.
"Then how about this, whoever finds them first gets two hundred clams from the other!" Aubrey proposed.
"Two hundred? That's way too many!"
"What's wrong? Are you scared I'll find them first?" Aubrey stuck her tongue out at him.
"Huh, no way! You're on!" Kel said.
The two raced each other up the street, it didn't take long for the sweltering summer heat to catch up with them. They slowed to a crawl and retreated to the shade of a tree.
"Ugh... why is it... so hot?" Kel panted.
"I don't know, this place is so weird. Why is the sky blue, where are the stars?" Aubrey complained.
"Yeah... don't tell Sunny but I'm really starting to not like this place- wait... is that?"
"Huh, what are you talking about?" Aubrey asked.
"Look, there!" Kel pointed.
Before them was a large playground that looked pretty similar to the one where they played. Though it looked worn out and much duller than theirs, a faded statue of the big yellow cat stood at the far end like an overseer of the playground.
"Huh? The playground?" Aubrey asked. "What about it?"
"No, not that! Look closer!" Kel said, pointing again.
Aubrey looked further into the playground where Kel was pointing and looked over the surroundings for something of note. Past the swingset, her eyes settled on a mop of blonde hair, the figure turned around to look around nervously and Aubrey's eyes widened. The boy's face was almost identical to Basil's, complete with a flower shaped hairpin. They watched him chase after a girl.
"Basil!" Aubrey cried.
Kel began to run after him, "Race you!" He called back to Aubrey.
"Hey, no fair! You gave yourself a headstart!" Aubrey yelled before chasing after Kel.
Basil sprinted ahead of Kim, putting himself between her and her scooter, "Please! J-just talk to her for me! It's really important."
Kim huffed, "Ugh, for the last time, I said buzz off! If it's that important to you, go ask her yourself!"
"B-but I've already tried, she won't listen to me! Please, you're her friend. She'll respond to you!" He pleaded.
Kim began to scowl, "Are you being dense on purpose? I said buzz off."
Kim pushed Basil to the side, he stumbled and tripped over then collapsed to the ground in a heap groaning in pain, Kim cursed under her breath. She hadn't meant to push him over but that was what he got for getting in the way. She looked around hoping no one had seen that. She didn't wanna have to answer to her Mom today.
"U-ugh..." Basil squeaked in pain. His eyes watered. He was hopeless, he couldn't even get Aubrey to talk to him, how could he possibly-
"Basil!" Two voices called out.
Basil looked up, wondering who had called his name so suddenly. He watched two strange kids run towards him with deep concern in their eyes, they looked... eerily familiar. The two huddled around him, holding him tightly. He tried to squirm away.
"Hey, quit being mean to Basil, you bully!" Aubrey shouted.
Kim raised an eyebrow, "And who the heck are you twerps supposed to be? We're kind of in the middle of something right now."
"We're his friends, duh!" Kel replied, "Now leave him alone!"
Basil was speechless, his friends? He didn't know these kids, were they just saying that to get Kim to leave?
Looking closer he was struck with a realization, their faces. He wanted to believe he was imagining things but even though they were ghost white, he knew exactly where those faces came from. He'd seen them in the pages of his photo album at least a hundred times before...
No, that was impossible. He had to be seeing things. He had to.
Kim scoffed, "Whatever, hasn't anyone taught you kids not to butt in where you don't belong? Now get lost before you get hurt."
"Hey! If you want a fight then you'll get a fight!" Kel warned.
Kel readied his kickball and Aubrey brandished Mr Plantegg, ready to strike. Kim had to stifle a laugh at these kids holding toys like weapons.
Kim giggled, "Ooh, I'm sooo scared. What are you gonna do about it? Gonna beat me up with that doll or-"
Kim was interrupted by a kick ball directly to the skull, she staggered back and fell over. She held her aching aching nose in her hands and felt a trickle of something warm, looking at her hand she noticed a smudge of blood. She was stunned, she hadn't even had time to process what hit her, how did one ball hurt that bad? Kel grinned smugly.
"Nice shot!" Aubrey exclaimed.
Kim held her forehead, "Argh, what the hell? What even was that! Ugh, what's your problem?"
"Ha, I warned you. I think you should be the one who gets lost!" Kel taunted.
Kim's ears turned red, she was about to retort when she noticed the rest of her crew behind them, lead by a towering figure now stood over the three of her rivals, bright pink hair obscured her face in shadow but still displayed an unmistakable death glare and she rested her nail bat over her shoulder, rocking it slightly to make it clear who called the shots around here. Kim smirked as the three looked over at where she was staring.
"Now you've gone and done it." She uttered slyly.
Basil looked up and his heart sank, this was bad. He had just wanted a peaceful conversation but now these random children had completely ruined any chance he could've had, he cursed his own luck. Why was it always him that seemed to get the short end of the stick? He immediately felt stupid for asking why, it was because he deserved it. That’s why.
"What the hell are you doing, Basil?" The real Aubrey scowled. "Are you seriously going around finding random kids to fight your battles for you now? That's low, even for you."
Basil made a horrid strangled squeak, "W-what? N-no! It's not like that at all, I don't even know these kids! Please, I'm so sorry, I-"
"Don't lie to me just because you’ve been caught!" Aubrey shouted, she then addressed the children, "Look, you two need to leave, I don't know what he said or gave you to convince you to do this but it's not worth it. This is between us and us alone."
Kel and Aubrey were indignant, how dare this weird scary girl threaten them. How dare she threaten Basil!
"We're not going anywhere!" Aubrey exclaimed. "Basil is our friend!"
Kel joined in, "Yeah! Leave Basil alone, lady!"
Aubrey laughed. "Okay, seriously. This is cute but it’s getting really annoying, I'm not about to fight a bunch of kids. Now beat it before-"
Kel attempted to toss another ball at Aubrey's head, she deflected it with her nail bat without missing a beat. She turned to the boy. Kel glared back furiously. Aubrey began to clench her teeth.
"Are you not listening to me? You're starting to piss me off, I'm only going to say this once more, leave already-"
Before she could continue, the little girl lunged at her headfirst. She collided with Aubrey's stomach at full force. Aubrey crumpled in a heap on the floor, dropping her bat. The hooligans huddled around to check on her.
"Aubrey! Are you okay?" Kim rushed over.
Aubrey only cried out in rage in response, "Alright, that’s it!"
She dove for the kid, swinging her fist before she could think about who she was trying to hit. In her enraged stupor, she missed Dream Aubrey entirely and socked Basil square in the jaw. He doubled over and sobbed.
Real Aubrey cursed, “Ah, shit.”
Dream Aubrey watched Basil blubbering on the floor absolutely horrified, that was the last straw, her blood boiled with anger. She retaliated by swinging Mr Plantegg as hard as she could possibly muster. Real Aubrey attempted to move out of the way but it was too late. She was struck in the side of her abdomen with the full weight of the toy.
The soft plush somehow hit like a truck, Aubrey was thrown onto the ground again, this time she stayed down. She was winded, she could only gurgle in response to the Scooter Gang's concerns.
Dream Aubrey looked at the gang satisfied, then noticed the nail bat lying on the ground the pink haired girl had dropped earlier and was struck with a flash of devious inspiration. She picked it up and admired it for a moment.
"Hey, meanies!" Dream Aubrey cried, brandishing her new weapon. "Go away or I'll start swinging!"
The scooter gang turned to look at her in horror.
"Surely she's kidding, right?" Vance said.
"Forget it, I'm not sticking around to find out!" The Maverick called out, already starting to run off.
"Ah... I-I just remembered I have somewhere to be..." Angel stuttered. "Sorry, bye."
"Bye..." Charlie uttered simply.
Real Aubrey attempted to throw a tantrum, pounding the ground with her fist though at this point she was so weak it was even more pitiful than it would’ve been otherwise.
Her pride had been severely injured and everyone had seen it, even her own gang had lost faith in her.
"Gahhh, how am I losing? What the hell are these kids made of?" Aubrey grumbled.
Kim returned to Aubrey's side, "Okay, I think that's enough. We should leave, you're hurt!"
Aubrey grabbed Kim's jumper to pull her closer, "No! I am not gonna be humiliated by-"
"Aubrey!" A voice called out from behind them. Both Aubreys spun around in sync. Real Aubrey had to do a double take. She had turned to see... her. That unmistakable kind face. She was followed by two others, Kel and... Sunny?
But Aubrey was hardly concerned about them right now, she couldn't be. Aubrey was fixated on her. This had to be a dream. Or closer to a nightmare, a corpse was walking.
The colour drained from Basil’s face, he began to hyperventilate. That face, that voice. His heart sank. The dead had returned and it was here to punish him, he was sure of it. That’s the only reason she could be here right now. He tried to turn and run but the two children grabbed him and held on. He struggled and thrashed but it only made them hold on tighter.
“No!” He cried, “L-let me go!”
"Hey, where are you going now Basil?" Dream Aubrey asked. "Don't you want to see Mari?"
Real Aubrey flinched at the mention of her name.
"Aubrey? Are you okay?" Kim asked.
"We... we should go." Aubrey said stiffly.
"What? But just a second ago you said..."
"I said we need to go. Now."
"Oh, okay..."
The two turned and ran for the hideout. Kel and Sunny watched them disappear into the overgrowth.
Kel noticed Sunny's confused stare as he watched Aubrey leave.
"Huh? Oh, wait. You wouldn’t know, that's Aubrey now... It's a long story." Kel explained to him.
"Aubergine, what are you doing here? I sincerely hope you weren't bothering those people." Mari spoke in that motherly tone she only used to use when she was annoyed.
"But Mari, they were being mean to Basil!" Dream Aubrey argued.
"No buts, you need to come home now, we've been worried sick!" Mari replied. "And that goes for you too, Kel."
Mari then smiled at Basil, "Oh and hello, Basil. So lovely to see you again!"
Basil managed one final whimper before his mind finally buckled, he fell limp in Dream Kel and Aubrey's arms.
Mari jumped, "Oh dear, not again! Why does everyone seem to be so scared of me these days, it's like they've seen a ghost..."
Kel and Sunny exchanged looks.
Mari sighed and shrugged, "Oh well, I guess it can't be helped. Come on you two, bring Basil with you, let's go home."
"Wait!" Dream Kel shouted, "But we haven't found Omori yet! We can't leave without him!"
"We can search for him later, this little excursion has been enough." Mari asserted.
The two dream kids continued to argue, "But..."
Kel watched the two backchat, it was kinda nostalgic in a way. Though it was obvious someone needed to put an end to it. He lit up, he’d been struck by an idea.
He interjected, "Hang on Mari, Let me try something. My Hero used to use this one on us all the time, always worked like a charm!"
Kel mustered his best charming Hero impression, "Hey, if you kids behave for the whole day, I'll take you to get pizza later, deal?"
"Really? Hooray!" The two cheered, forgetting all about their concerns.
Mari beamed at him. "So clever, thank you Kel!"
"Hehe, thanks," Kel said.
Kel then whispered to Sunny, "By the way, can you spot me some money for that?"
Sunny looked at him wearily.