Still Life

“Where are we?” Masayuki asked.

I don’t know.

It was so peaceful here. Masayuki slowly landed on a ground of golden yellow grass. He was looking at a typical Japanese countryside. Judging by the setting sun, it was evening during the summer. A warm feeling filled his chest.

“Are we back?” he asked.

No.

“Of course not.” Masayuki started walking down the dirt path. At first, there weren’t any sounds around him. Then further down the path birds started singing in the sky. The sounds pf nature started to come back into focus. It actually started to feel like a nice summer evening. Baby didn’t trust it one bit.

Be on your guard.

“How do we get out of here?” he asked.

I’m working on that.

Meanwhile, they came down to the old-looking neighborhood. There were no people around. No real signs of life. A chill ran down his spine. She and he needed to get out of here fast. He could be hiding around him somewhere.

I doubt it but he could have his demons do the work for him.

However, something else had the boy’s attention. A door started to open at one of the houses. Masayuki didn’t dare move. The door opened a crack. But no one came out. There wasn’t even anyone peeking out.

“Hello?” Masayuki asked. There wasn’t a sound. Neither Masayuki nor Baby Doll were prepared for fighting. She didn’t have her powers fully back yet and he didn’t have any weapons. (Sure, he had he his VR powers but he wasn’t sure how they worked out here.) The pair braced themselves as the sound around them started to fade away. He clenched his fists by his side.

But they hadn’t expected this.

A small head poked out into the open doorway. A small body followed behind. It turned out to be a little girl with light brown pigtails and long white dress. She gave him a frowned of distrust. Masayuki looked confused.

“Um…. Who is that?” he asked.