Nightfall
Mei burrowed under her covers, her head hidden beneath the blanket. The phone screen glowed faintly in the darkness of her little cocoon, not too bright.
She opened her contacts, scrolled to Dr. Tesla's name, hesitated for a moment, then started typing.
"Dr. Tesla, I suspect Shiraha's fierce ghost friend has been getting more and more disobedient lately."
The time difference between California and the Far East was roughly seventeen hours. Past nine at night in the Far East meant around four or five in the morning in California.
Tesla, still half-asleep, fumbled for her phone. Most of her contacts were set to Do Not Disturb, so anyone who could wake her at this hour was generally important.
"Mei, huh..."
Tesla murmured drowsily, sat up with a yawn, shook her head hard, and stared at the phone screen, spacing out.
"Dr. Tesla?"
Mei sent another message.
Tesla slowly came back to her senses. "Disobedient how?"
She didn't get it. Wasn't that fierce ghost friend something Shiraha had imagined? Possibly even a split personality. Could someone really harm themselves?
Could Shiraha have an incredible acting talent too, one that might get backstabbed by a secondary personality?
But Shiraha's not in a band.
"Today whenever I went to find Shiraha, his fierce ghost friend would fiercely bite him on the cheek. Even though I can't see any teeth marks, Shiraha's cheek would get all red."
Mei's expression was very serious. She believed she was already grown up now. That's why this evening, she hadn't shown any signs of fear, to avoid provoking Shiraha's fierce ghost friend.
Tesla: .....
"Anything else?"
Mei continued her explanation. "Shiraha seems to have his freedom of movement restricted. Whenever I try to find an excuse to call him out to play, his fierce ghost friend grabs his hand and he can't move away."
Tesla remained silent.
That... doesn't exactly sound like disobedience.
She asked, "What's Shiraha's reaction?"
Mei typed quickly. "He looked a little embarrassed, but he didn't ask me for help."
She paused, then added another line. "Shiraha is way too easy to bully. Even at this point, he's still letting that fierce ghost friend do whatever she wants."
Tesla rubbed her eyes, found her glasses on the bedside table, turned on the light, and reviewed their conversation again.
Well... your Shiraha is definitely being bullied...
Wait. Wait. Wasn't Shiraha's case schizophrenia? Could it be that psychokinetics, after long enough with a split personality, genuinely started treating the other identity as independent?
Oh. Right. Even for non-psychokinetics, if someone developed a second personality at a very young age, it would display very deep dependency.
Tesla: "Mei, I'm about to give you an important mission."
Mei's little face paused. Wasn't I the one asking Dr. Tesla for help right now?
Tesla's face twitched as she typed. "You have to rescue Shiraha!"
Mei stayed silent. Rescue him how?
Shiraha's fierce ghost friend was super vicious. She could effortlessly smash robots and human skulls. Red mixed with ashen gray. Even now, just recalling it still frightened her.
"Shiraha's fierce ghost friend can't do anything once she's away from him. So, little Mei, don't act too aggressively."
Tesla warned.
Anti-Entropy was indeed humane. They'd always respected the choices of others. With Shiraha's talent, no one was asking him to shoulder any great burden but could things at least not be this absurd?
Seeing Mei still hadn't replied, Tesla had no choice but to bring out her ultimate weapon.
"Mei, Shiraha is closest to you. This mission, only you can do it!"
Only me?
A budding sense of responsibility rose in Mei's heart then her mind flashed back to that image. Red mixed with ashen gray.
'Going against a fierce ghost... I feel like my little head could be easily popped into a flower with a single bang.'
Her small hands tangled in hesitation. She couldn't give an answer. She watched her phone screen go dark on its own, tapped it back on, then watched it go dark again a long while later.
Mei didn't sleep a wink that night.
Tesla looked out the window. The sky was still dim. Streetlights glowed lonely and solitary. She couldn't sleep either.
She stared at the ceiling, a single thought turning over and over in her mind.
The one kid in Anti-Entropy who theoretically had the best prospects, who, once he was an adult with normal orientation, could branch out into a bloodline rivaling Schicksal's Three Great Houses... was he really stuck on romantic inclinations?
What kind of hellish joke was this?
Shiraha hadn't slept either.
Tonight, Elysia-nee was once again at the balcony, gazing at the moonlight outside, though her expression seemed somewhat more relaxed.
He sprawled on the bed, watching Nee-chan. Moonlight brushed her face, making features already exquisite appear even softer.
"Still not asleep?"
Elysia made no move to play caretaker tonight. She sat by the window, one leg drawn up. The Raiden balcony was so spacious that even the not-particularly-tall fairy lady could sit however she pleased.
Shiraha blinked. "I thought Nee-chan would hold me to sleep tonight."
Elysia paused. Her starry eyes held a hint of playful reproach. 'You really know nothing of atmosphere, do you, Shiraha?'
'At a moment like this, saying something like that, are you completely clueless, or do you know exactly what you're doing and are teasing on purpose?'
Shiraha didn't wait for an answer. Personally, he felt their affection level had already advanced to the next stage. No need for the careful boundaries of before.
"I can't sleep tonight either. How about I keep Nee-chan company while you zone out?"
Though phrased as a question, he didn't actually wait for Nee-chan's reply. He hopped off the bed, scurried to the balcony, and sat down right next to her. The floor was cold. It kept him all the more awake.
Elysia let out a soft, amused laugh and reached over, pulling the still slightly hesitant Shiraha snug against her side. A child's warmth was so comforting. "Shiraha... I've always had a wish."
This time, she didn't call him "little Shiraha." Her voice held no strong emotion, it was more like she was drifting through memories.
Shiraha answered earnestly. "We'll make it come true together."
Hearing this entirely predictable reply, Elysia's lips curved upward. She began to make her wish. "I wish for eternal world peace. I wish for people to forever understand each other. I wish..."
"Can't do it!" Shiraha cut her off directly.
Elysia: .....
'At a moment like this, reminiscing about the past, opening hearts, dreaming of the future to deepen our bond, are you sure you want to refuse so decisively?'
She sighed. "Alright. Our Mr. World's Number One Killer really is quite heartless."
Shiraha explained seriously. "It's not heartless. It's just that true mutual understanding between people is too difficult. If I had to name a world like that, the only things that come to mind are a hive mind of machines or an insect swarm."
"If Nee-chan wants to make that wish come true, I'd recommend switching to a different one. However—"
"A world at peace... that one, the two of us can try."
He tilted his head up and quietly watched Nee-chan's stunned little face.
Elysia blinked. After a brief hesitation, Shiraha blinked back.
This subtle, unspoken tension stretched on, until Elysia realized that Shiraha seemed to be completely serious.
It stirred a small warmth inside her. But not much. After all, Shiraha was also from the Previous Era. Everyone had been caught in the current back then. Not a single person had walked the perfect, correct path.
To put it bluntly, Elysia believed that the Previous Era's chaos was proof that no one back then had any real grand vision to speak of.
Words like "world peace," coming from the mouth of anyone from the Previous Era... always fell a little short.
"Sleep now, Shiraha. Pondering world peace at this point really is getting ahead of ourselves."
That was what she said, anyway. Then Elysia stood up, reached out, and scooped Shiraha up in one smooth motion.
Elysia added, "As it happens... I'm tired too."
Off to sleep!