{Vocaloid} Where the Odd Ones Lie

Aftermath

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Hello?
Are you there?

Can you hear me?
Do you feel that?

...is that really me?

Mayu shot upright, panting and out of breath. She looked around her, but couldn't make anything out of the cold darkness. Her body seemingly jolted on its own, at the horrible remembrance of the flaming cart. She scrambled to her feet, frantically waving her arms around to make out where she was. It felt like a cart, but the smell of the wood was fresher. She began palming the floor on her hands and knees, and touched something warm. She felt upward, and grabbed hold of something warm and hard. It felt like one of her show-mate's legs. Her trembling body grew tired from relief. She crawled over to the persons lap, and lay her head down gently, drifting slowly back to sleep.

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What is that?

Right there, I see it!
What is that?

What happened right there,Mayu?

Are you okay?

Mayu woke up again, this time in a cold sweat. She woke up to many eyes starring back at her, all seeming calm. This unsettled her.
"Mayu...we have to get to practice." Miku squeaked out. Her demeanor felt...off.
"Come join us when you're ready. We'll be waiting. Big Al said softly. They all exited the cart, leaving Mayu alone on the soft hay floor, with a heavy quilt laid over her.
Maybe looked around the cart for a while, letting the sunlight from the cracks soak in her skin. Her body felt stiff under the quilt, but in this instance it was comforting. She felt safe.
After a while, she slowly got up from the floor, slowly but surely gaining her balance. She looked down at her body. Her cream leotard stuck looser to her skin. Have I lost weight? Her eyes made their way to her arms, and she felt frozen. There on one of her arms was a long, thin "crack", stretching from her bicep to her elbow joint. She traced her fingers down it. It didn't hurt, but she'd never seen anything on her skin quite like it. It looked almost...porcelain.
She decided to save her confusion for later and made her way to practice. She felt lighter as she strode to the tent, with seemingly nothing worrying her mind. She felt lighter and airier. Still, as the minutes passed, she began to feel heavier and heavier. Like the remnants of the person she used to be were slowly beginning to sink back in. The person before...the fire?
....did I die?
She pushed the startling thought aside; her assumptions were coming out of nowhere. She entered the tent, and everyone was going along as usual. They'd changed their next act slightly, and in about three days they'd be back on the road. She was excited for the show, but those thoughts were clouded by her anxieties.
Was it a dream? How could I've imagined a pain like that...
She remembered vividly her skinned hands, bare scalp, and absent lips as the fire scorched every inch of skin it got to. She remembered feeling devoured and hopeless. That feeling of despair, she just couldn't shake it away.
She went over to the Flower sisters, who looked to be their usual selves. "Should we take it from the top? Or do we start at my specific part?" Mayu asked them. Their expressions both softened. Flower looked especially distressed.
"Mayu,I-"
V quickly raised a hand in front of Flower, shushing her instantly. Flower bit her lip and nod, leaving them on the ground while she climbed the trapeze.
"We can start from your specific part" V said, in a gentler tone than usual. Mayu attempted a smile, and took her place outside of the arena. Practice went well, but she did notice a few missing members.
Later that night, in the cart, everyone was awake and chatty. Mayu sat comfortably next to Piko, enjoying the atmosphere. It helped take some things off of her mind. She still hadn't seen Luka or Fukase all day.
"Miku? Have you seen Luka?" Mayu peered over to Miku and whispered.
Miku jumped a little, but smiled. "I haven't, I think she is meditating. It is important for her to."
"Oh. Where does she normally meditate?"
"I'm not sure, she changes it up every now and then. You can try and look for her if you'd like."
"Okay, thank you."

Mayu made her way from the cart and out into the clearings in the forest. Most of the land was flat; the thick forested areas were far into the horizon, with a few trees here or there.
She slowly crept out into the Twilight, looking around for Luka. She wasn't very hard to miss. Her bright green eyes and horns made her unmissable.
"Luka." She called out."
She ventured further, until she was just at the edge of the thick forest.
"Luka?" She called out softly.
Emerging from the thick forest was Luka, with fresh tears streaming down her face, wearing what seemed to be a simple cloth toga.

"You go out and meditate a lot?"
"Mhm, especially now."
Mayu sat with Luka in a small patch of clovers and flowers and comforted her the best she could. Luka seemed to be in a rough spot.
They both sat comfortably, eyes closed, enjoying the warm evening breeze. After a while, Mayu opened her eyes.
"Luka, if it's okay for me to ask,why were you crying alone back there?"
Luka hesitated a bit, but slowly looked over at Mayu with a calm face. "Sometimes it gets to me that I don't know exactly what I am. I don't know my parents. I don't understand my anatomy..but after a while, I became satisfied with myself. I'm okay not understanding. But over time it still gets to me.
Mayu raised her knees to her chest, playing with the hem of her dress.
"I'm starting to feel that way too. I thought I knew who I was but...," she looked down at her arm ,"now I'm not entirely sure.
Luka nod, and closed her eyes again.
"I think that, to really be satisfied in life, you have to truly accept change and adapt, even if it is conflict with yourself. Try not to get too caught up what you are, and more of who you are."
Mayu looked over at her. She looked much calmer. She spoke slowly and gently, but it was all from the heart.
"I will admit, this pregnancy has taken a tole on me. Recently I have..I have been feeling a little abdominal pain. It's so worrying..." she sounded a bit more distressed.
Mayu furrowed her eyebrows.
"The stress you feel cannot be good for the baby." She said simply. She didn't know how to express her concern.
Luka nod. "Yes, and I'm just so scared. I'm not sure what will become of this pregnancy. I guess I'll just have to have faith in this baby." She said, her voice much calmer this time.
Mayu starred at Luka. Her beauty and grace, and her faith...she admired a lot about her. She admired her point of view, and wished she could agree with that Luka said. But she couldn't. She still felt hopelessly dissatisfied with herself.
They sat in comfortable silence for a while, until Luka began grunting.
"L-luka?" Mayu held her shoulder. Luka winced in pain, doubled over and holding her stomach.
Mayu began to panick a little. "Uhm, o-okay, lets get you back to base."
She took Luka's arm and supported her from under her shoulder, as they slowly began to walk. Not long after, Mayu saw in the corner of her eyes someone running towards her.
"Mayu! Mayu!" It was a soft voice. Was that...Piko? He had another person with him. Once they came closer, and she saw who it was, she felt frozen again.