Chapter 23: The Parallel Mind

I had this strange dream last night.

I was a loli with black haired twin tails, a casual shirt, and short pants, wearing a grade schooler backpack. I was trapped in a cage with a monster which looks like the Beholder in fantasy stories--only instead of one, there's a pair of sinister eyes.

Its size was really big especially compared to mine; its closed mouth alone was about as big as my entire body.

It also had rows of massive sharp teeth with nasty saliva dripping, that's very close to my body. in its bodies there seem to be countless tentacles wriggling nastily.

There was a bit of suspense and adrenaline rush but I wasn't scared. turns out, my loli self in the dream did not get eaten or raped with its tentacles at all.

What I did was making it docile by poking one of its eyes with my fingers until it went blind. the sight of its closed eyes was painful. it was all filled with a darker shade of bruise and traces of clotted blood was on its edges. seems like whatever gruesome things I did made it scared shitless.

...

When I woke up, I was turned into the same little girl.

The clothes I wore changed from the usual shirt and pants to a children's pajamas.

It was the same old room I used. There were no cute and fluffy things present. Even the pattern of the bed and pillows were the same as the night before. My room did not have any photographs or mementos present so I wasn't sure if anything had changed.

I still hadn't got a good look at my face.

A little girl around 12 to 13 years old stared at the mirror lazily. She had unkempt waist-length black hair. Yet her eyes emitted a dangerous crimson glow.

It's like she was about to kill me, even if she's me. I wasn't sure exactly how to feel about this.

That was where I stepped outside my room and walked downstairs for breakfast. Usually, Mom and my little sister would be present, but nobody was there. Not even their shoes were on the rack; not even my own shoes.

It was especially strange since Mom usually stayed at home all day.

Like in my room, there was no pictures of my family but I didn't feel about caring—I was hungry.

There was a note on the fridge:

[Kaori. There's breakfast ready over here. No need to heat it on the microwave. Just eat it straight up.

-Mom]

To think someone with a name would appear the second time in this story (see Slap My Stick chapter)

I was kind of afraid of mentioning my mother, my little sister and especially my name because they might disappear somehow. I had a feeling, the one who orchestrated all this nonsense was very lazy to remember names.

That aside, did Kaori always look like this? I thought her hair was supposed to be short and instead of a menacing pair of blood spheres, she always greeted me with dreamlike black eyes.

Maybe I got transported into a parallel universe.

Well, no need to go into detail. I just have to eat.

The breakfast consists of a regular chicken sandwich with vegetables. It was an adult's portion but my loli self could nom it easily. I also drank a glass full of milk, I wonder since I'm a girl now and currently at this age, would I experience my breasts getting bigger? Or finally able to participate in Yuri?

Hmm...Kaori wasn't the type of character to have boobs. Even many years after me and my sister went to college, Kaori still looks the same as always. Dunno 'bout the parallel universe thing, but I might not even age at all.

With this Yandere look, I might attract weird people instead.

I cleaned the dishes and went searching the remainder of the rooms. I went to the nearby ones like the kitchen and the first floor's living room.

Ah, there it was.

There's a family picture which seems to be taken recently.

Mom, Dad, me, my little sister and a much different Kaori—the one I was in. It was a few meters above the fireplace, with exquisite frames, nailed firmly into the wall.

Different than most families, we did not have a television. There's only a shelf filled with books, mostly novels. A comfy sofa which your entire weight would sink in and you get to enjoy snuggling against its pillows. There's also a desktop computer which Mom used.

In the desk were a set of pictures which entail our family's growth in chronological order.

Kaori only appeared when me and my little sister already spent a good time at high school. It was the same as with my original world—just, Dad didn't appear as much.

I looked at the clock; it was 2 PM already. Me and my little sister were usually home by now. We're not much of social butterflies despite my sis ability to naturally form a Yuri harem.

Speak of the devil, I heard the sound of the open door and my curiosity sparked me to run towards the entrance.

There I saw my little sister, looking cute as always, but I felt very strange when I look at myself.

Was I always this handsome? Or was it due to me being in a girl's body?

"We're home, Kaori." the other me flashed a bright smile and patted my head.

"Do you miss me? I won't let you sleep at night, Kaori." on the other hand, my little sister lifted me off the ground and pecked my lips.

That was my first kiss!

...and it's when I was a loli and with another girl that's my own sister. It made my cheeks flare and I shivered a bit when I thought she'd rape my tongue with hers, but she quickly straightened her expression and put me back down.

This pimp! She's a Yandere you know! It was a wonder that you could survive when you're always with another woman when this loli wasn't around!

Unless...

"What's wrong?"

"Umm...did this eyes not bother you at all? I think when I looked in the mirror, it was blood red."

"Not at all." the other me gave a nonchalant reply

"I think it's extremely cute, such a gap more when you're such a gentle girl."

"Umm...I'm just wondering, did I ever do things like murdering you because I'm jealous at all—since well—I look like a Yandere."

"It never crossed my mind even once." my lil' sis gave a confident reply while patting her chest; which were also quite small.

"Kaori, it's just my assumption but—did you murder all those police officers a few days ago?" the other me inquired

"Err...I don't know. I have no recollection of it."

It was even a bigger mystery on how those piles disappeared mysteriously when me and my sis got back from home on that day—on the other world though.

...but it seemed the events of this world proceed roughly the same.

"Bro! Like I said, she's just a doll at that time."

As my mind short-circuited upon trying to remember all the details, I have to divert the conversation somehow:

"Err..more importantly, where's Mom?"

"The police station, she was asked for a questioning due to the disappearance of the police forces. All of their latest GPS signals pointed to this location." the other me explained.

I see it made sense why she wasn't here.

"Why took few days though? Certainly, if they have such evidence, our house might be rudely searched by now."

"From what I've heard, it took longer to be approved by the higher-ups. Besides, all the premise about a doll massacring an entire battalion of the police force was completely bogus." the other me replied

Meanwhile, my lil' sis just nodded few times, like she understood everything. Well, knowing her, she certainly did it just to goof off while the usual me would prepare a paper fan and whacked her head.

..but me over there simply stood there pondering.

"It was an interesting topic but, Kaori. Let me drop off my bags in the room first."

"Same here!"

In any case, both of their rooms were locked. I tried opening it as I went downstairs.

My room was on the furthest corner, as I was Kaori now, but how it was different compared to the original one, which was filled with oriental style design as if we're entering a different world, might be one of the minor changes.

"Umm....bro, sis. Can I see your rooms?"

"Sure, but why though, there's nothing interesting." the other me said nonchalantly

"Whatever the reason, my Kaori is always welcome."

Was it really okay? To tell them I'm not Kaori, but the 'brother' from another world?

".....that is..."

I completely screwed up right here.

"Are you really worried that you're not acting like Kaori, bro?"

"Hey, me over there, you sure had it lucky turning to a little girl huh?"

"...."

I panicked and tried running downstairs but as my sister hugged my loli body so lewdly, the sense of comfort assaulted my entire body; my movements gave in.

"From the moment you got extremely excited when I kiss you, I already know. My big bro really loves Yuri, after all."

"...but you're too afraid to admit to your desires, that you wish to experience it as a girl. That's why the entire time, you could only think about being a third wheel, which slowly eats up your soul."

"Err...why do you know about it so much?"

"Because..."

I am YOU.

Your little sister is YOU.

Kaori's also YOU.

"What about Mom and Dad?"

"Mom and Dad are simply Mom and Dad." my little sister said

"What about the others?"

"Who knows, in the multiverse at large, you could become another individual whose thought devices were most compatible." the other me explained

"...but in this case, how could it be possible for me to exist as three different people at the same time?"

"We used the same way you used to manifest into Kaori." the other me made a smug face as if it was a matter of fact.

"Wouldn't I manifest in your body instead?"

"No. As of current, there were fewer and fewer connections where I'm actually male. You right now, had a strong desire to be a yandere loli and such you meet us here in this form. If you're wondering why we met, it's because three of us had the most compatible wavelengths out of every version of us within the multiverse...and that was enough to create our own temporary universe, consisting of the things three of us were most accustomed about."

"The Rule of Threes?"

Everything that happens, would happen because THREE beings believed earnestly in it.

"Yep." my little sister also smiled.

"It was temporary since it could only exist within a dream and the Rule of Threes influenced our dreams in a way which made us realize the self we're manifested into, before arriving here. There were many things to explain, but since there wasn't any time left, let me make it brief."

In that case, the one bearing my own old body may not necessarily be the same person in that world, the same with the one manifesting as my little sister, who actually talked a lot less.

I could somehow tell why the other me was somehow too handsome, it was an idealized self, after all.

This feeling was the same on why you could just act as you'd like behind a computer avatar, but a part of it might be due to me and the other two unable to open up our true selves. Due to the repression of real life, if I could name a possibility.

Here's the summary of what the other me told:

You are not alone in the multiverse.

Your beliefs are not unique.

Seek us based on your own belief and learn more about your true self.

Depending on how your beliefs change, we may or might not even meet again, but it was all good. Because, in the end, we're all YOU.

I speak of this again, YOU ARE NOT ALONE. YOU ARE NEVER ALONE.

Cherish the beliefs you hold deep in your heart as it was the KEY to open this DOOR, where WE will always welcome you with open arms.

No need to fear, for together we are STRONG. Not even the mightiest force within the multiverse could alter it, as it were also a part of US.

...

When I woke up and returned to my old world in my old body, I began to wonder.

"What's with all this nonsense?"

I just realized one thing.

If I could band with enough power, especially the omnipotent multiverse being, I could create an ideal world.

Somewhere my true self could manifest to its fullest.

Yet, my powers weren't enough for it, as I also need one of my own to create this world. There's still a long way to go.

At least, it's just a matter of time. A vast improvement to when I wasn't even sure if it was possible or not.

I would try treading this path either until I die or I had found an even better one.