Blank Dream

Realm of Love

I unlocked the door with the bronze key.

'Realm of love, now a warm, dead illusion.'

It was a small room. A shadow figure stood behind a desk. He had a list of names and was checking it constantly. His eyes widened as he saw me.

"Bonjour, midoredomi," He spoke suddenly, "Will you be attending the Cracked-Smile Dinner Party, young madam?"

"Yes," I replied confidently even though he was creeping me out.

"I see! But madam, your face is too stiff for the Cracked-Smile Dinner Party." He was right, though, I was in no smiling mood. This whole experience seemed super surreal. "If you insist on attending, perhaps you should find the Smiling Soul and work on your smile. He's right through that door."

I looked to where the shadow pointed. The door was slightly ajar and the knob was broken. This wasn't a good idea... but I needed to move forward.

I opened the door. It was pitch black. The door slammed behind me and an ominous voice spoke, "The Smiling Soul? Yes, that's me. I am a seeker of love, a regular of the Cracked-Smile Dinner Party..." He paused. "...Oh, but your face is awfully stiff. I can't look. Let's train your smile a bit."

"Fine...," I muttered. Here we go...

"Now, let's make things more fun... Death is beautiful. Pain is pleasure. Gratitude for sadness. Today, we shall cut up and boil a pigs heart. See? It's getting more and more fun!" He sighed. "...Not yet, I'm afraid. Much too stiff. Come, let's keep practicing."

"Why not," I answered. This wasn't fun. Hell, nothing about what this man was saying would be fun to any sane person.

"Now, let's make things more fun. Beds are coffins. Light them aflame. Are those legs? If only all our blood could be orange juice! See? It's getting more and more fun... It seems to have loosened up a bit, but it's hard to call that a natural smile. Once more?"

"Go."

"Now, let's make things more ***. Blessed, sterilized cubes of meat. The corner was yesterday. I was hungry. Therefore, I bit off the pinky. See? **** getting more and more ***. Hmm, well... Barely eligible for the Cracked-Smile Dinner Party, I suppose... Ah, I just had a good idea. It may clear up your stiffness is one go."

"That's enough...," I responded. I looked down at my hands. I was trembling. I shook my head and walked out.

"I see!" The desk shadow exclaimed as a returned. I flashed him a fake, but believable smile. "A bit stiff, but a fine smile you have. That warped smile is perfect for this party. Go right ahead, madam." I started forward but he stopped me before I could enter. "Madam, it seems one person in the hall is an imitator who does not have to right to attend," He explained, lying with their mouth, their smile fake. One who does not truly enjoy the party. If you should find them, you are free to do as you please with them."

I nodded in understanding and slowly walked through the entrance. The decor was nice. My mouth watered as I noticed the delicious food on the table. The room was filled with shadow people with sinister smiles. It was disgusting. There was a teddy bear in the corner of the room.

The teddy bear stares with round eyes.

"Cute..."

I smiled. I felt deeply unpleasant. I couldn't let my smile break. I looked around some more.

Pizza. It mainly features barbecue sause and some kind of meat. I smiled again. My smile twitched. I smiled. I began to feel strange.

Cheese with some amount cut out. On the table is a huge two-layer cake. I smiled. I began to find this world so pleasant. I smiled.

I broke.

"...You're an imitator like me, huh?" The person next to me whispered. I found him. "Then take this. I don't need it. What's through the door isn't something I'm after." He handed me a key. "I braved the danger to come here, but I was off the mark. Now what to do..."

"She's an imitator?!?" Piped up one guest.

"The Cracked-Smile Dinner Party needs no imitators!" Shouted another.

"A hammering for the uninvited guest!" A third guest yelled. I ran through the closest door to me. I found myself in front of another mirror.

Here we go again...

I stared into my reflection's eyes.

-------------

10 YEARS AGO

A HOME

A familiar place appeared before my eyes. I was in my childhood home. I looked to my left to see my mother cleaning the kitchen counter.

"Oh. Mishiro! I'm still getting ready for your party, so wait there a little longer. Don't bother your dad and grandpa too much," she instructed. I could tell my mother was going to cook something, so I washed my hands. "Oh, you washed your hands without me telling you! Make sure to dry them off."

I always saw drying hands as a waste of time. If the water was going to evaporate in a few seconds, why spend extra time speeding up the process? I chose not to dry my hands and I went into the living room.

My father and grandfather sat on the couch. "Been a while since you've seen grandpa, huh?" My father asked. "You were small then... Maybe you don't remember? ...Be sure to say hi to him."

I turned to my grandpa. My dad was right. I hadn't seen him since I was a baby so yes, I didn't remember. "Mishiro! You've gotten big. It's me, your grandpa!" He cheered, "Only saw you when you were thiiis little." He made an over exaggerated hand gesture to show how small I was. "Might as well be the first you've seen of me, eh? Turning six today? Once you get into elementary, you'll learn all kinds of stuff. Happy Birthday!"

I looked down and saw tweezers. They probably fell out of my dad's pocket. I took them and held them in my hand. The socket... my hands were wet and by extension, the tweezers. Putting them in an electrical socket would surely do the trick. I went to walk back to the kitchen when I over heard heard a convorsation between by grandfather and my dad.

"Just to be clear, dad, today only."

"I know. That's enough for me. For the rest, you can do as you like."

"How's it going with your wife?"

"...She's no longer an Usui. She won't have anything to do with me now."

"...The how about with Tamaki?"

"Doubt she wants me to contact her. Even if it involves money, nothing."

"...There's too much I want to say, but today's a happy day. Let's knock it off for Mishiro's sake."

"As you please..."

I thought nothing of it and walked up to the outlet. It's dangerous to insert any metal. Especially if you have wet hands. I closed my eyes and inserted the tweezers.

-----------

I came to, again standing before the mirror. Though I still felt my muscles stiffening, there was no sign of numbness in my limbs.

"...Yes. I was an only child with three family members. My mom was Chika. My dad was Shinji. And on my sixth birthday... My grandfather Rinzou came to visit. It's a fairly distant memory, but somehow... I feel like that was a really fun day."

Just as I regained a piece of my memory, I felt as if I'd lost something important. A silver key was next to my foot. I grabbed it and found myself back with Yuzu and Ryotaro.