Astrophile

033

You never really had any odd dreams...

For as long as you can remember, dreams were the only place where you were free. You didn't have to worry about your mother or the cruel reality. You could just rest in peace.

But then, you had a dream that made you reconsider everything.

You were surrounded by complete darkness.

Everywhere you looked, there was only darkness. Up ahead, an array of lights illuminated the darkness but it still wasn't enough to light it all up.

It was eerily beautiful...

You looked at your sides, walking around in nowhere. In the distance, you saw a figure that stood all alone. Due to the darkness, you couldn't see their face but the light shining on their figure made them look ethereal.

Suddenly, they turned to you and started walking over. Out of fear, you stepped back and for some reason, slipped into nothing. The figure immediately rushed over and grabbed you by the arm, allowing you to catch sight of their lifeless [Eye Colour] eyes.

The person, now identifying as older you, pulled you up and placed you beside her, making you stumble slightly. She turned to look at you, "You okay?" Her voice was as smooth and melodic as last time, this time lacking the previous edge to it.

You nodded which made her raise her hand and place it on your head, ruffling your hair slightly with a twinkle of adoration in her empty eyes.

"Do you know who I am?"

"Yes." Was all you said to the lady and you swore you saw her eyes widening for a fraction of a second before a smile took over her lips.

She grabbed your hand and began walking into the darkness aimlessly. The light from before formed a path for you two, but it led to nowhere. She turned to you with a gentle smile, "Aren't you scared?" Her words made your eyes widen in curiosity, "What do you mean?!"

She looked back at the front as she explained, "I mean, like aren't you confused? Or scared as to where I'm taking you?" She raised an eyebrow and you smiled, greatly amused, "I think you're forgetting that I'm the younger you..."

She stared at you for a good minute before letting out a loud laugh, "My, my!! Who would have guessed that my younger self would surprise me so much?!" She kept on laughing but your expression became cold.

"Huh? What's wrong?!" She asked when she saw your face, "Is it true?" She tilted her head in confusion, "What is?"

"That we're the ones who killed Uncle Osamu?!" You raised your voice and her grip on you tightened, "Who knows?" She said as she stared up ahead. You were ready to fight her with how angry you felt, "-but even if we did have a hand in his death... the one who is truly responsible is [Mother Name]..."

Your face became disturbed and tears flooded your eyes, "But even if it's sad; even if it's painful; you have to keep on moving forward...." She pulled you into a hug and whispered softly into your ear, "I called you here for a reason... I need you to do me a favour..."

"What?" You answered softly, the warmth feeling nice.

"I need you to befriend Kurokawa Izana..." Your eyes widened as you heard the boy's name. You turned to look at the older you in surprise, "Izana?! Why?!"

She gave you a soft smile and placed a hand on your cheek, "Because he's important in the future!!" She cheered with fake happiness.

"Eh, so that means that I have to befriend him cause he's important?!" She shook her head, amused at your antics, "No, it's because I need you to get close to him and pull him out of the darkness in the future!! I need you to save everyone, and for that... Izana is an important piece..."

"T-That's-" Older you cut you off with the wave of a finger, "It's not impossible!! And as far as helping him goes, I know that you'll be able to do it since we have the ability to make people listen to us!!"

"I don't think I can do this!!" You shook your head as she suddenly grabbed your shoulders and lowered her head to your ears, "Yes you can!! You're the only one who can do this!! Please..." She pleaded as you both looked on the ground, watching as the light and the never ending darkness began fading.

"You're the only one who can do this, little me..."

You woke up with a jolt. Looking around, the rays of the Sun shone on your skin. You let out a yawn and pushed your blanket off of your body, flinching as you felt the cold air nip at your skin.

You recalled the dream you had and your eyes darkened. How on Earth are you supposed to befriend Izana when he hates your guts?!

You scratched your head in annoyance at the lack of proper answers before you went about with your day.

After school and dojo, you were still thinking on how to get in contact with Izana when you were suddenly approached by a happy Shinichirō, "Yahoo! [Name]!!" He yelled happily which made you glare at him, "Nii-san, it's [Male Name] when we're at the dojo!!"

He shook his hands as an apology and grabbed you, before running over and placing you on his bike, "I need to take you somewhere, okay?!" He gushed and before he even let you speak, he started the engine.

Zooming through the streets, you clung onto Shinichirō for dear life, noting how fast he was going compared to most times. He seemed almost eager to drag you.

You found yourself recognising the familiar path, "WAIT A MINUTE!! ARE WE GOING TO MEET IZANA-KUN?!" He grinned nervously through the side mirror which made you freak out.

'Oh God!! The demon's gonna kill me!!' You thought as fear flooded your body.

He parked his bike and practically dragged you to the backyard of the orphanage, "S-Shinichirō-niisan!! C-Calm down!!" He didn't listen, but just dragged you with a grin.

"Izana!! Kakuchō!!" He yelled as both kids peered from inside the orphanage into the lawn. Kakuchō grinned at your sight and waved at you.

You shyly waved back and turned to Izana who had a giant blush coating his cheeks. They walked over to you, Izana following behind Kakuchō as both you and Shinichirō sat down under the tree.

"[Male Name]-kun!! It's nice to see you again!!" The dual colour eyed boy exclaimed as he grabbed your shoulders and pulled into a hug. You smiled softly before returning his hug, making him beam even brighter.

"Hello, Izana-kun.." You trailed off, still a bit scared of him after what he pulled last time.

He looked at the ground, nodding slightly but Shinichirō placed a hand on his shoulder, "Izana..." He looked at the older boy before letting out a sigh and turning to you.

"I-I'm sorry [Male Name]!! I shouldn't have brought you there and pu-" You cut off him off by grabbing his shoulder and smiling softly, "What are you talking about Izana-kun?! I was the one who slipped that day, it wasn't your fault!!"

He looked at you helplessly as he tried to assure you that he's the reason why you almost died, but then you looked at him slightly and signalled him with your eyes that Shinichirō still didn't know the truth.

He stared at you for a good minute before tears began pooling in his eyes as wiped them with the sleeves of his shirt.

"Don't worry, Izana-kun... I've been through worse..."