Inquisitive Reflection

‘Amy's Q&A Extravaganza!’

Seemingly in the mood for a game show, she pointed her finger at me first.

“Feel free to go first, Anon!”

“Are you actually a god?”

“Your eyes are so cold right now!”

She hunched over on the floor, as if she'd just taken a critical hit, before turning back toward me.

“You know I magically summoned the banner above me, right?”

She's right about that. I don't have any way to back myself up, but I'd need a bit more before I can truly believe in the existence of a god.

“She's aware of the parallel universe, so there's clearly more to her than meets the eye.”

This time, Cloey spoke up, offering a straightforward explanation.

“She very well could be a Chuunibyo, but I'd need something far more convincing than just word of mouth or simple parlor tricks.”

“Aren't you the harsh critic?” Cloey mumbled under her breath, but I chose to ignore it.

“So I need something more substantial…”

Amy seemed to really think it over, and then, as if an idea struck her, a lightbulb appeared above her head. She grabbed it and squeezed it between her hands, the bulb crunching loudly before eventually transforming into a pure white ball.

“Hehe, catch!”

Without a proper warning or even giving me a second to react, she tossed the ball straight at my forehead. The impact sent me stumbling back, causing me to fall off the chair and hit the floor.

“Hey, that hurt, you know!” I pointed my finger at her, exclaiming, only for my eyes to catch something unexpected…once again. Cloey noticed it too, gasping and covering her mouth in shock.

My body was faintly levitating, surrounded by a teal glow. In some areas, I was even partially transparent.

“Did you just kill Anon!?”

“Relax, I only separated his spiritual form from his body.” She walked over to me, cracking her knuckles. “Hold on, I haven’t finished convincing you that I’m really a god.”

I-I think I'm pretty convinced now.”

I slowly floated backward, inch by inch, as she approached. I couldn’t quite put my finger on it, but I had a feeling I’d pissed her off by questioning her authority.

“Don't be like that, little mortal.” She grabbed my wrist, pulling me closer. “Let's have a bit more fun.”

Before I knew it, she used the same technique she’d used on the lightbulb, squishing and compressing me into a ball. I could feel my body changing shape, but strangely enough, there was no pain to accompany it.

I feel like mochi.

Now, for the finishing touch!”

She lifted her knee, adopting a stance like a baseball player preparing to pitch.

“What are you planning to do?!”

“Just letting you pay a visit to a friend.”

With that, she tossed me straight into the air. My body soared through walls, reaching the night sky. I’m not sure if my screams were audible to anyone else, but I could feel my body panicking as I climbed higher. As always, what goes up must come down, and I began plummeting toward the ground. I crashed through trees, suddenly realizing what Amy had actually been planning to throw at me.

She had been aiming for the pond.

I hit the surface and broke through it, sinking into the pond without losing any momentum. I went deep enough before shooting back up from the bottom, emerging into the forest once more. The only real difference now was that it was evening.

Is this my universe? So time does move simultaneously, just with a gap time.

I couldn’t have been in Cloey’s universe for more than an hour, so it had to be around 18:00 in my own universe.

Did everyone already back up and leave, or are they just wrapping up?

My thoughts raced as I found myself descending once again. Worried about my landing, I spotted Emi and the rest of the team cleaning up the field. They were too far away for me to make out any details, but it seemed Amy heard my unspoken wishes, as I began falling right above them.

Falling…

Falling a bit more…

Smack!

I collided with Emi, right on her forehead.

https://imgur.com/a/anon-s-spirit-trip-IqEKxR0 (<- Image of Anon's Spirit Trip that I created as a reference).

The force of the impact knocked Emi down, her head slamming into the ground as imaginary stars swirled around her, though they might have been as real as Amy’s lightbulb. Either way, I felt the force of the blow too as I tried to get a sense of my surroundings. My head was throbbing, but my sense of touch had returned to normal. I opened my eyes and looked around, but Emi was nowhere to be found.

I’m certain I collided with her, so where did she go?

“Are you okay, Emi?”

I turned around to find Nova Hibiki with his hand extended toward me. I glanced at his hand, then back at him, before taking it.

As he helped me up, I started to say, “Thank you, but I’m not–” before I abruptly cut myself off.

My voice... it was Emi's.

I quickly scanned my body, and then the realization hit me. Amy's exact words echoed in my mind as my grip on Nova remained unchanged.

“So, that's what she meant.”

“Who’s this ‘she’?”

I looked up at Nova, feeling my palms grow sweaty. Instinctively, I pulled my hand back as my eyes jittered everywhere. They darted from the ground to Nova’s body, making my face flush with heat.

What is this feeling? I’m about the same height as Emi, yet looking at Nova makes me feel all tingly. Am I in love with him, or is this just how Emi feels about him?

“It looks like you’ve got something in your hair.” He reached around to pull some debris from my... erm, Emi’s hair. “Wouldn’t want that pretty blonde hair getting dirty.”

Either this guy is naturally charismatic, or he’s dropping some pretty obvious hints towards her.

The sunlight highlighted every part of his body, from his short, curly brown hair to the sweat rolling down his tan skin. It made my heartbeat increase, heightening my awareness of his very being.

…I meant Emi’s heartbeat!

“Speaking of which, hasn't it been a while since we last saw Anon? Wasn’t he supposed to be getting something from the woods?” His face showed a hint of panic as a worried thought crossed his mind. “You don’t think he got lost in there, do you, Emi?”

The way he called my name tickled the back of my brain…Emi’s brain!

“Oh, yeah... well, he actually told me he got a call from his parents, so he had to leave early. Definitely.”

Wow…she really doesn’t sound convincing when she lies.

He let out a relieved sigh and said, “I see. I’m glad to hear that, at least.”

Guess he’s stupidly kind as well.

As the atmosphere relaxed, I felt a sudden urge to ask him a rather selfish question.

“What do you think of Anon?”

Without skipping a beat, he replied, “I think he’s a really nice guy. I hope we can get closer with him.”

“I couldn’t agree more.”

I asked the question without much thought, driven by my own selfish curiosity, but Emi’s body reacted before I even realized it.

I’m not good at dealing with stupidly kind people.

But I was happy all the same.

That's when a sudden dizziness washed over me, clouding my entire vision. My body suddenly toppled, and my consciousness began to fade. The sound of someone calling my name was clear, yet distant.

“Anon!”

That’s most definitely not Nova’s voice.

“Anon!!!”

My eyes shot open as Cloey shook me. She looked a bit worried, and her eyes softened when she saw me finally open mine.

“Don’t scare me like that.” She playfully tapped my chest before glancing over at Amy. I sat up and realized I was next to her on the bed.

Meanwhile, Amy was playing with the planet lights like a kitten… for some reason.

“Hey, Amy…”’ I looked over at her, and she instantly turned my way, her expression neutral before she broke into a smile. “Wouldn’t that mean—”

“Yes it would.”

“I see.”

Cloey glanced between the two of us, looking as if we were insane.

“What was that?!” Someone fill me in.”

I gave a dismissive smile. “I’ll explain everything in a bit. Let’s actually get into the ‘Amy's Q&A Extravaganza’ for now.”

‘Amy's Q&A Extravaganza!’

“So, how old are you, Amy?”

“That’s really the first question you’re asking, Cloey?”

Amy held up eight fingers. “I’m 8 years old.”

“Don’t gods live for thousands of years?”

Amy simply shrugged at Cloey’s comment before offering a slight explanation. “I’m 8 years old in god years. Each year is about 1,000 years for you mortals.”

“Then you have lived for thousands of years, 8,000, specifically.”

“How did I end up in Cloey’s universe?”

Amy held up the piece of paper she’d been drawing on earlier and showed it to both me and Cloey.

https://imgur.com/a/cloey-anon-s-universe-g2N895B (<- Image of the universe structure that I created as a reference).

“Simply put, your two universes are connected by a single side. You’d almost never make contact with each other, but because that side is shared by both of you, it makes that connection much weaker.”

“And that pond is the thing connecting the two of us?”

Amy shrugged at Cloey’s comment. “Apparently so.”

Crossing my arms, I gave Amy a questionable look.

“I assume you weren’t even aware of that?”

Amy puffed out her cheeks and stomped her foot in response.

“I told you, didn’t I?!” Amy puffed out her cheeks even more. “I’m still super young, so I don’t have the best grasp on everything in each universe. I don’t even think I’m supposed to tell you all this, but I’m just too friendly of a god to leave you all hanging.”

She seemed to change her tune, likely to avoid getting into a deeper conversation.

“Is there any possible danger with everything?”

It’s a vague question on my part, but I just wanted a general idea of everything. Thanks to Amy’s demonstration earlier, I had a rough understanding of the connecting universe, but that was only from a spiritual perspective.

“Uhm…that’s a bit difficult to answer.” She twiddled her fingers together, looking away as I and Cloey starred in possible worry.

“Difficult as in there are a few dangers, or because you don’t have a real idea yourself?”

“...kinda.”

This god is about to give me a migraine.

Buzz!

Amy's face went pale. She just sat in silence, staring off into space.

Buzz!

Finally, Amy reached into her pocket and pulled out a phone. She glanced at the screen for a moment before pressing a few buttons and holding it to her ear.

“I didn't know gods had phones.”

Cloey had leaned over and whispered in my ear, sending a shiver down my spine.

I just had a flashback to Nova. Maybe there are still some lingering effects of Emi’s feelings.

Pushing past the sudden rush of thoughts, I shot back, “We didn’t even know gods properly existed, so I can’t be too shocked.”

She gave a ‘fair enough’ look before turning back to Amy, who now looked even paler.

“Something wrong, Amy?”

“Well…my sis just reached out, and it looks like I’ve been caught.”

“Caught?”

“I might have to cut 'Amy's Q&A Extravaganza' a bit short.” She stood up, heading toward Cloey’s bedroom door. Grabbing the doorknob, she turned back. “I’ll figure things out for now but…you might want to stay in this universe until I say otherwise.”

A look of both nervousness and embarrassment crossed her face. I guess she felt a bit awkward asking for something as big as that.

I know she means well, but to stay here? Will I be able to make it back before anyone notices I’m gone?

“I'll do as you say,” I said. “As long as you can do me one small favor.”