A couple of days after hanging out with Miho...

[homeruuun]

"Under the weather" was at once an accurate and inaccurate way for Ren to describe herself. She had much less energy than usual, but being stubborn as ever, she refused to let it show. She attended practice even after hurting her ankle, and grumbled endlessly when the team captain forced her to sit out for her own safety. Her volunteering jobs had been stressful as well, and she found herself with less work to do and less people to help. For any other teenager this would have been a good thing, but for Ren, it was a sign that she wasn't needed.

And then the kitchen knife slipped from her hand while preparing her lunch that morning. Ren idly scratched around the bandaid on her finger during class, chewing on the inside of her cheek. For anyone who knew her well, they could tell she didn't look like herself.

... Not to mention the mirrors were driving her up the wall.

Just as the bell rang to signal the end of the day's last class, the sound stretched and echoed in Ren's head and her mind seemed to blank out. She sat there, immobile, for a good number of minutes, whilst everyone around her was already packing up.

"Hey, Miura, are you okay? You look kinda pale."

"Hm... yeah, maybe you should go to the infirmary. Or get someone to help you walk home..."

"Miura? Hey, Miura, are you listening?"

Abruptly, the girl stood from her seat, surprising those standing around her desk. Without gathering her things or even uttering a word, she turned and exited the classroom, staring blankly and dragging her feet.

She heard whispers all around her... or inside her? But she couldn't actively listen to them. She was barely conscious and it was like she didn't find anything strange about walking to an empty girls' bathroom. Once there, she turned to face the mirror, empty gaze setting on the shifting surface.

Comments

[seiyayamada]

Hoisting herself up on the sink, Seiya held a hand out to Ren. "Yeah, she was here when the same thing happened to me-- Ah, one sec." Reaching over, she plucked some red ice from the wall, shoving it in her pocket. "Let's get out of here."

[homeruuun]

She supposed that would explain some things, maybe. Ren took Seiya's hand and pulled herself up on the sink (she could have managed on her own, really, but she thought she'd try accepting someone else's help for a change). "So we just... go through the mirror?" She raised her hand, tentatively placing her fingertips against the surface of the mirror and, surely enough, it seemed to ripple.

[seiyayamada]

Nodding, she slid through as if it was nothing, appearing on the other "normal" counter. Seiya held her side, slipping off the sinks.

"I'm gonna call an ambulance... how do I even explain this?"

[homeruuun]

Ren followed suit, staring back and forth between the bathroom and the mirror as she slid off the counter. She scratched her head. This was just like an anime or something.

"... Good point," she said, looking down at the slowly bleeding scrapes in her hands. "I don't think a simple I slipped and fell on something story would cut it."

[seiyayamada]

"We were mugged, right?" Seiya raised her eyebrows, hoping Ren would catch on.

"Out behind the school. He had a knife."

[homeruuun]

Mugged? Ren held her chin in thought. "Yeah... and since I scared him off, he didn't get to take anything." She still had her wallet intact in her pocket, after all. "I sprained my ankle chasing after him, and we came here to clean up since it was closer than the infirmary." Yeah, that sounded good.

[seiyayamada]

Grinning, Seiya wet a few paper towels, dabbing at her wound. "Aggghyeah, I'm gonna call an ambulance. You gonna be okay, Miura-san?"

[homeruuun]

Ren grimaced slightly at her senpai's reaction. "Yeesh. I'm better off than you are, at least. I'll be fine with a visit to the infirmary." Slipping her cellphone out from her pocket, she first checked to see if it was still intact - thank goodness, it wasn't cracked! "I'll make the call, you put pressure on that." Hissing slightly at the stinging sensation in her palm, she dialed the number and held the phone up to her ear.

"Hi, uh, my friend and I had a run-in with a mugger. I drove him off, but she's bleeding pretty bad... no, she was cut on the side. Me? No, just a few bandaids and a brace and I'll be fine, but she might need stitches. We're at Eizou Academy, we're cleaning up in the bathroom on the second floor right now. Okay, thanks."

She pocketed her phone. "They'll be here in about ten minutes. Think you can hold up?" She washed her own hands and wiped them carefully before grabbing some towels and helping with Seiya's wound.

[seiyayamada]

Applying pressure to the wound as instructed, Seiya leaned against the wall. Smiling a bit at the term "friend", she ran her free hand through her bangs.

"I should be okay. You can head to the infirmary if you need to." Worried, she looked over all of Ren's injuries.

[homeruuun]

Ren shook her head. "I've had worse. I'll wait for the ambulance with you, I insist." She clicked her tongue, discarding a towel. "Sorry, looks like you'll need a new uniform..."

[seiyayamada]

"Don't worry 'bout it." She shook her head, taking in short, shallow breaths. "I'm glad I went after you. Who knows what would've happened if I hadn't?"

[homeruuun]

She gave her another sheepish look. What would have happened?... She probably wouldn't have thought to accept her Shadow and fallen into despair. If Seiya hadn't been there to fight the Shadow, she probably would have been killed. She shook her head. "What I wonder is... what about other people? When I came here, I... I can barely remember it, but I must have been in a daze." She looked at the mirror. "It's like something beyond it is calling people there."

[seiyayamada]

"You think others have succumbed to their shadows?" Pondering the suggestion, Seiya shifted her position, hoping to relieve some pain from her side. "That's possible..."

[homeruuun]

"Maybe..." She discarded another towel. The bleeding seemed to have been mostly stemmed by now, but she kept pressure on the wound for good measure. "I snapped out of it when you called out to me. What if other people didn't get to...?"

[seiyayamada]

Her face twisted from pained to distraught. Seiya took in a deep breath, averting her gaze. "I suppose they... you know..."

[homeruuun]

Ren chewed on the inside of her cheek thoughtfully. It was scary to think about... if Seiya hadn't shown up, she probably would have...

She blinked, realization dawning upon her. "Oh, uh. Sorry for changing the subject, but I just realized I never got your name." Awkward. It would be suspicious if the ambulance asked her about it and she ended up not even knowing her name.

[seiyayamada]

Introductions, of course! "Seiya Yamada." Smiling, she tried to erase the previously dark atmosphere. "It's a pleasure to meet you... outside."

[homeruuun]

"-Yeah," outside, haha, oops. "I guess you already got my name, huh? But just to make this more formal, I'm Ren Miura."

Seiya Yamada, huh? Hmm. "Nice to formally meet you, Yaya-senpai."

[seiyayamada]

Seiya's eyes lit up and her lip pouted. "Oh my gosh that is SO CUTE."

The girls' room door opened, an EMT easing in. "Whoah, okay we got a bleeder." Another set of EMTs entered with a stretcher, helping Seiya onto it. Turning to Ren, the leader of the group looked her over. "Would you like to come too? We'll need you to fill out some paperwork if so..."

[homeruuun]

Before she could add anything else, the EMTs stepped in and helped Seiya onto the stretcher. "Paperwork, huh... well, alright." She paused. "Um, if you don't mind giving me a hand, my ankle's kinda..."

[seiyayamada]

"Oh certainly." The EMT offered his shoulder, helping Ren to the infirmary where he'd secure her care. Meanwhile, Seiya was carted off to the hospital for more hands on treatment.