Last Supper

-January 22nd

You know, the sick man's life might not be so bad. 

I woke up yesterday at around noon, and after I almost collapsed for a second time, I spent the rest of the day relaxing in bed. 

It sounds like it'd be boring, but with the empress by my side throughout the duration of it, things turned out to be pretty fun. To an extent, I guess I'm surprised that Cacophony would be willing to sit with me for hours on end doing basically nothing besides caring for my needs. Of course, it's not like I thought she was a bad person or that she didn't care about me at all or anything, but I mean... something like this is a bit of a big ask I guess.

It makes me glad, though I will say that yesterday she was oddly insistent about taking a shower with me. She said that all the hot water might make me pass out again and said that there was no way that she was going to back down on that. 

Despite her saying that, I did actually manage to talk her down from it on the condition that I keep the door partway open.

Now that I think about it, she was like that when we first met too. Back then I talked her down from showering together as well... It really has got to be a cultural difference...

Yesterday I also got the chance to mention what happened in the depths of my soul. Cacophony had an unexpected reaction.

 Without a second thought, she said, "Huh? No shot something like that happened. It must've been a fever dream."

I blinked at her a little dumbfounded at her complete rejection. "I-um... A fever dream...?"

Cacophony crossed her arms and looked at me thoughtlessly then she raised one hand and placed it on my forehead to take my temperature. 

"With my hundreds of years of experience, I've never once heard of a story as wild as yours. I've heard tales of an inner world inside the soul, but it's not something as extreme as you describe. Then comes the fact that you saw someone else inside your inner world. Really, it sounds to me like you were simply not in your right mind." 

From there the conversation quickly moved on to a different topic and the story of my weird experience was left by the wayside. With just how confident she was that it was a figment of my imagination, even I have to doubt myself. 

If I were anyone but myself, I'm sure her assessment would've held more weight. 

Still, since I am myself, I'm still desperately holding onto the idea that what I experienced wasn't something as mundane as a fever dream. 

A faint, acrid scent suddenly cuts through my thoughts.

I wrinkle my nose at the sudden stench. 

The day was still young, and I was cooped up in bed to get some extra rest. Normally, I'd be off on my way to the medical center right now, but- 

Actually, looking at the time, I guess I'd already be at the school gates if this were a normal day... Being home really makes time fly faster. 

Mixed up in my head once again, I was snapped out when that stench somehow got stronger.

'Burning?'

I sit up in bed, sniffing the air. It's not the sharp, smoky kind that would make me think the house is on fire, but it's still enough to put me on edge.

Was Cacophony using her fire magic? 

Glancing around, I feel... fine. More than fine, actually. My body feels light, and my head is clear. Whatever fever had me bedridden yesterday is completely gone. I swing my legs over the edge of the bed and stand up. No dizziness, no weakness—yep, I'm fully recovered.

'Recovered' might be an understatement; I felt even better than I was before. 

Standing up fully, I began examining my body. 

At a glance, everything seemed to be the exact same.

My arms were still just as scrawny as they were before, my short frizzy hair was still at the same length, and even my unremarkable face looked to be perfectly intact. 

Still... I don't feel the same. 

It wasn't some major, crazy difference that would suddenly flip my world upside down, but something just didn't feel right about my body. 

If I had to vocalize what felt wrong, I'd say: 

"My body feels good... Way too good..." 

I looked down at myself for a few seconds more to confirm that everything was really. No matter how many times I looked at myself, nothing seemed to be different.

Then I made a choice.

Flinging my entire body around with every ounce of force that I could muster, I extended one hand toward a plastic sword sitting on the shelf. 

"Now! Come to me, Blade of Evernight!" 

... 

Yeah, I didn't expect anything to happen anyway.

With a sigh, I looked downward, "I had to check."

Brushing aside the lingering embarrassment, I make my way toward the door, following the strange smell downstairs.

Right before I exited my room, I took one final glance backward and looked at the assortment of gifts that hadn't been there before.

'Guess Cacophony must've told the others about my condition... Guess I'm feeling a bit grateful right now.'

With that final thought, I turned back around and moved to the stairs.

As I descend, I hear soft humming.

That's odd.

The humming was clear and majestic. It was a sound that anyone with working ears would love to wake up to every morning. Even more than that, it was so gracefully melodic that one could listen to it every day for hours without growing tired of it.

I round the corner into the kitchen, and the sight that greets me stops me in my tracks.

Cacophony is standing at the stove, clad in an apron.

An apron.

We didn't even own one apron, yet... No, I must not fall to this temptation! I must transcribe this image into my mind for the rest of my life!

Her long crimson hair is loosely tied back, though a few strands still fall over her shoulders. She was adorned in a simple white shirt and jeans, all lightly covered by a black apron with a pattern of small red hearts. She holds a spatula in one hand, tapping it lightly against her palm as she sways to the rhythm of her own humming.

Juxtaposed to her dazzling figure, there was the source of the horrid smell.

On the stovetop, something sizzles aggressively and causes a thick black smoke to rise from the pan. The source of the burning smell...

Cacophony turns to me the moment I step inside the kitchen, her red eyes lighting up.

"Oh, you're awake!" she exclaims, flashing me a wide, radiant smile—so full of warmth that it takes me a second to process. "Perfect timing! I'm cooking up some food!"

I blink. Slowly.

I glance at the stove. Then back at her.

"Wh-What?" 

It took no time at all to put the pieces together, and thus, I was left speechless. 

'It's such an overdone trope and yet... To have it happen right in front of my eyes is... Oh, my dear Empress...'

My gaze flickered back toward the stovetop, where a thick plume of black smoke was steadily rising. The food—if I can even call it that anymore—looked more like a charred offering to some eldritch deity than an actual meal.

I hadn't thought about it before, but I guess I've been doing all the cooking since Cacophony arrived here.

"You really do have good timing, Veri. It's all finished, so you don't have to wait.", Cacophony spoke in an oddly proud tone. 

Her confidence is unwavering. She doesn't seem to notice—or maybe she just doesn't care—that the so-called 'food' in the pan has been charred beyond recognition.

As I stared at both her and... well, for now, let us just call it the food, I struggled to even form the right words for the situation. 

Cacophony was looking directly into my eyes with an earnest expression. She looked to be so pure and honest that I felt bad even thinking that I would refuse her kind gesture. 

That feeling of doubt would be shattered once I glanced back at 'the food' though. 

"Cacophony... I've visited many worlds before, but I don't think I've ever encountered such an odd cuisine. What might you have been going for?"

Her beautiful features contorted in confusion. "Hmm? It's a pancake, of course?" 

Pancake. 

Just referring to what was in that pan by that name should've been a crime.

"How did you come up with the recipe?"

"Well, you had a cookbook upstairs so I took upon myself to take a peek. Overall, I didn't do so bad I think!"

"But... When did you learn to-" 

"To read your language? I haven't yet, but stuff like this mostly comes down to feeling and intuition, right?"

I open my mouth, then close it. I glance again at the pan, where whatever she's cooked is now fizzling in its own destruction. "Well, I mean—"

Before I can finish my sentence, she swiftly grabs a plate and, with a confident flourish, slides the burnt remains onto it. The food—or what used to be food—lands with an unsettlingly solid thunk.

I flinched.

She doesn't. Instead, she turns to me with an expectant look, holding out the plate like a proud cat presenting a freshly caught bird.

"Eat up," she commands. "It's my first time cooking for you, so I expect you to savor every bite."

I looked down at the plate before taking it into my hands.

These... these can't be called pancakes. 

Pancakes are fluffy, golden, and inviting. What's in front of me is a burnt, misshapen mass with jagged edges that look sharp enough to cut steel. And then... No, that can't be true... How could that be true... I think I spot some batter still raw in the center, somehow untouched by the raging inferno that destroyed the rest.

Met by such a monstrosity, my heart was beating out of my chest. 

'Don't do this to me...'

"Oh! Do you hear that?! A parallel universe is calling my name. They're in need of my help and won't survive if I don't-" 

Cacophony's eyes narrowed with a sharp intensity. No words were required to get across what she wanted to say. 

Oh no.

I gulp. There's no way out of this, is there?

Resigning myself to my fate, I hesitantly pick up a fork and attempt to pierce the so-called 'pancake.' The fork barely makes a dent.

I try again. Still nothing.

I press harder—

Snap.

I blink.

The fork. The fork just snapped in half.

Silence.

I slowly looked up at Cacophony and awaited her reaction. 

"I didn't know humanity created such weak forks. I guess that's why my people didn't use them."

"Yeah... weak fork..." 

"You'll have to eat it with your hands." 

My heart dropped.

For a brief moment, I really thought that I'd escaped.

With the weight of impending doom settling on my shoulders, I glance down at the 'pancake' once more. My hands tremble slightly as I reach for it, my survival instincts screaming at me to reconsider all of my life choices up until this very moment.

Cacophony, however, remains steadfast in her expectations, watching me like a hawk—no, like a proud mother bird waiting for her chick to take its first doomed flight out of the nest.

I muster every ounce of courage I possess and lift the piece toward my mouth. I take a deep breath, offering a silent prayer to whatever deities might be listening.

Just as I'm about to take a bite—

Knock. Knock. Knock.

I see. So there is a god in this world.

Cacophony furrows her brow slightly but doesn't protest when I immediately place the plate down with the kind of reverence one would give to a live bomb.

"I'll get that," I say. 

I move swiftly toward the door, my pace bordering on desperate. Flinging it open, I'm greeted by the sight of two familiar figures standing in their school uniforms—Fang and Charlotte.

For a moment, I just stare. They stare back.

The first thought in my mind was how odd it was to see this pair of people together. It was a stray thought that only stayed in my head long enough to be acknowledged, but not long enough to settle.

As she took in my current appearance, I saw Charlotte's expression shift slightly into one of concern. It was probably because I looked like a man who had just seen his own death flash before his eyes.

Fang didn't share in her shock and concern. Honestly, he looked like it was normal to see me in such a rough condition. He might've been more shocked if I looked just fine. 

Well, that makes a bit of sense. After all, Fang is—

Fang!

Then, all at once, something clicks in my mind.

Oh. Oh right.

There was something I swore I'd do.

Without thinking, I step forward and firmly grab Fang by the shoulders. His eyes widen slightly in alarm.

"Fang," I say, my voice filled with absolute determination, "will you teach me magic?"