These Branching Moments

“Takajou, what is up with your face?”

“Ooh, did I get something on it?” Takajou got out a tiny mirror and started poking at his pores.

Takajou and Elegy had been sitting side by side on the bus, Elegy looking out at the moonlit countryside.

Elegy’s eyes narrowed. “You’ve had this dumb smile ever since we left the onsen.”

“It’s been awhile since I’ve let my hair down.” Takajou beamed as his green hair was at his sneakers. “Real cinchy to convince them I’m a girl!”

The two were sharing a blanket provided by the driver for the long ride back home, holding hands discreetly underneath.

“Is that also why you’re blushing?”

Takajou fidgeted a bit in his seat before turning his booming voice down to a whisper. “…How bad is it?”

“Rougir jusqu'aux oreilles.” offered Elegy. “Like you’re choking in embarrassment.”

“Well, I think I’m alright…” Takajou stared off into space. “There were many first times back there!” Takajou’s eyes closed as his grin widened further.

“Hey, have you ever been into masks?” Elegy offered a finger up to her chin as she rifled through her backpack.

“No, why?”

“Boys like to talk. Ask questions. Maybe it wouldn’t hurt to be a little more discreet?”

“What did you have in mind?” Takajou gave her a side eye and a smirk. “Wait, ahhghh!!!”

Elegy started playfully pushing a brown bag that once carried leftovers over Takajou’s head as Takajou gently resisted.

“TOO suspicious!” wailed Takajou. “I need something cooler.”

“Fine, have a lady's mask.” Elegy lifted out a smaller, under-eye gas mask appropriate for Harajuku street wear. “Though I think it needs something extra…”

“You're into masks?” inquired Takajou, rubbing his chin with interest.

“They make a statement, for those moments when a woman wants to stay cachée.” Elegy retrieved a bottle of white nail polish and proceeded to paint on the mask as Takajou admired her handiwork.

“Mmm… a moon… a pig nose… a gingerbread man?… oh, a skull!”

“Two skulls, to match your butterfly wings.” remarked an intensely focused Elegy.

“Nice. I can dig it.”

Takajou exhaled deeply, only left with one problem on the way back. How to get back into his shipping container bed by the Baal Bros Travelling Circus without waking up the likes of nosy Phegor or curious Berith.

But that’s more than an hour away.

For now, he can drift off deep in memories of the night they spent together, without thinking about pesky follow up questions like what to do if Setsuna finds out.

It was 1:00 in the morning when Takajou quietly opened the door to his shipping crate, trying to be as silent as a mouse. The wind against the relative quiet of his cramped quarters had him considering how matters ended up like this.

Makai took Mirai from him, Setsuna had gone out with another girl, and Elegy, well, it was hard to understand exactly who was in charge between them.

This was all very troubling to Takajou. He always has the answers. Except for now, as the world seems to be moving on from him.

A circuitous rhythm of raindrops helped disguise the sound of his footsteps against the floorboards. Squeak. Squeaaak. Eight more steps, now five, two…

“Big bro!” came the throaty voice of a young, stout boy. “Were ya caught up in the middle of a nighttime stroll?”

There was Phegor, great demon with the fabled Demon Duck as his steed and trusty porta-john. Well, that’s not the worst. thought Takajou.

“Hey, Phegor. Is Berith working late tonight?”

“Hmm.” Phegor stood with his staff at his chin. “If he was workin’ late, he’d have called to ask if any of us want some Makai burgers and DVDs on the way back.”

Phegor was indeed the smallest of the Baal brothers. Stout, hardy, and not above a good poop joke if the occasion arose. He also happened to take things quite easily at face value, a quality that Takajou hoped Berith had.

“Then he’s probably out on a date.” Takajou speculated. “Or gambling. Or finding dates while gambling.”

“Something like that!” Phegor smiled. “If you’re thinkin’ of staying, I made your bed for you. I figured Berith would have been happy to, so I should give it a try, y’know?”

If Berith didn’t suspect a thing, he would.

Takajou nonetheless took his circumstances as a small blessing, that Berith wouldn’t be nosing into his love life, that Phegor wasn’t at all interested in the gas–

“Hey, where can I get one of those?” Phegor pointed to Takajou’s stylish face covering.

“…Somewhere in Maxicimam. They have some cool ones now like ones with spikes that you might like.” Takajou paused for a moment to consider the lie. “You better act quickly, they might already be all sold out!”

“Agh, does that mean dealing with girls and girl stuff?”

Takajou’s mask pressed up against his cheeks as he gave a wink. “Still trying to find the strength to speak to one?”

“Just you wait!” Phegor shook his sceptre as his voice held a rasp. “I donno how and I donno when, but someday, I will find the strength to say a modest ‘Hey there. How’s it going? Could I interest you in a good sandwich spot?”

“Hamill’s a lady.” observed Takajou “You don’t have much trouble speaking with her.”

“BAH! Bah. Bahhh.” Phegor was waving his short little arms in protest as his mouth opened as wide as it could with every onamonapia. “Hamill is thousands of years older than both of us! It ain't right.”

“Suit yourself.” Takajou shrugged with his arms in a resigned pose. ”You might want to set Demon Duck aside before you try talking to other ladies.” He poked the beak of Phegor’s copyright-questionable throne.

Phegor puffed out his cheeks while sucking in his tummy. “I gotta show people that I am who I am. Which happens to be a small dude fond of ducks and the finer things in life. Like floral scented toilet paper.”

“To each their own.” The middle brother tucked himself into bed, closed his eyes, and went out like a light.

A warm aura came over Takajou as he sensed himself slowly falling down an endless chasm, lined by pastel coloured orbs and fireflies, no, will-o-wisps orbiting about.

Takajou held his arms and legs out spread-eagle style, finding that this slowed his movement down further still, to the extent that he was nearly floating in infinite space. It was hard to place this as Makai, the Known World, or some effectively liminal space left uncharted.

“Setsuna, can you hear me?” Takajou blurted out, to no response. There was no reason to expect Setsuna here of all places, but still. It was worth trying.

“Anyone?” Still nothing.

Takajou descended deeper into the empty void. A deep hole? No, a “hole” would imply breaking through a surface, one that couldn’t be seen as far as his eyes could perceive.

Suddenly, a chill. The wisps disappeared as Takajou could only feel a curious emptiness as he allowed himself to be pulled further down to the celestial space.

An image flashed by his mind. A familiar shape, manhandled by another being. The interloper shrieked THREE WORLDS, UNITED.

Within him, Takajou felt a rare yearning, a mandate to help, or of trying. To be by their side, tell them that “Everything will be alright.”

The freezing temperatures escalated as Takajou could no longer feel his fingers and toes. His limbs locked up, his breathing ceased, as he could feel his body ripped away from his soul.

BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP.

Takajou’s eyes snapped open at the obnoxious sound of his alarm.

It was six in the morning, Phegor sleeping through as soundly as ever while birds sang outside. Still with no Berith in sight.

Takajou hit the pavement with a handful of flyers, suit and tie dress, his partial gas mask a permanent fixture on his jaw. His empty red eyes were beneath eight spines of hair, the rest of it tied up in a large braid made by Phegor that morning. It took the assistance of two to hold his hair tightly enough for his usual pony tail, and there were more absences at the circus that day.

Masato Takahiro, the group’s mage, was typically the fellow tasked with promoting the circus. He had the hair and feathers of an owl’s plumage, orange at the roots and brown at the tips, donning a custom haraigushi with a Dragon Quest slime on its tip. Unfortunately for the Baal brothers, Masato’s desktop computer, laptop and cell phone all failed at once in what he had termed an “airborne virus”.

Then it was left to the clowns of the troupe, Takajou and the tiny juggler Mr. Do, to mercilessly shove as many flyers in the hands of Harajuku pedestrians as they could manage.

“Ahoy, Mister Whiskers!” Takajou shouted to a young man with big cat ears and tail and mauve eyes in short shorts, socks above his knees, and a puffy shirt with black ribbons around his wrists and neck. His hair was white, grown down to his neck, giving him a scholarly appearance.

“Um, hello fine sir in a spooky mask.” replied the cat boy.

“Would you like to add a little excitement to your life? Meet a cast of talented performers? Become world famous?”

“…I think I’d rather sunbathe in front of a window, nya.”

“How about all the stinky fish you can imagine?” Takajou pitched without missing a beat.

“Now I’m listening.”

”The Baal Brothers Travelling Circus has an opportunity for YOU.” Takajou winked and gave the cat boy a light punch in the shoulder. “Help us save our circus by become one of our performers in the athletic arts.”

The cat boy gave a bit of a grimace. “I’m not going to be locked in a cage, am I?”

“Heavens no! You’ll just have to do a few tightrope acts, balancing, knife throwing, uh, fully assisted of course!” Takajou closed his eyes. “But first, we want YOU to prove your dedication to the cause!”

“Sounds pretty good, nya. I’ve always been open to running away and joining the circus…”

“Then you can start right now by handing out these flyers to all these people!” Takajou took all the flyers he had at hand and shoved them in the cat person’s open arms. “I’ll be watching you!”

“Alright, I’ll do my best…” The cat boy, whose name Takajou never bothered to ask about, wandered off with Mr. Do to solicit customers for the Baal Brothers Travelling Circus.

His deed having been done, Takajou elected to exit stage right from the premises. Or he would have.

“Hey, aren’t you Berith’s little brother?” inquired a blonde, blue eyed girl in pigtails crossing her arms, with an orange sparkling scarf and green bee wings in a white sailor suit outfit.

“Well, that depends on where you know Berith from!” responded Takajou.

“You don’t remember us from last year?” asked a girl with a black hime cut and orange eyes wearing a loose sweater with a giant blue bow and blue triangle butterfly wings.

“OH! You’re the…” (Takajou mumbled “older…”) “girls who graduated for university about two years back?”

“That’s right!” grinned a girl with rounded, chin length black hair cut into a “v” shape around her purple eyes. Her white downcast bird wings and white button up shirt with a black bow almost gave her the appearance of an angel. “And we’re here to collect the other half of what you owe us.”

“Please, ladies!” Takajou raised his hands up to his face in gentile protest. “Though we appreciate all that you have done to help entertain Japan, circuses haven’t been doing so well of late.” Takajou lowered his voice to a mockingly sad tone. “We’ve given away every cent we have to spare! But if you are able to participate in the Baal Brothers Travelling Circus this year…”

Takajou was immediately grabbed by a light brown haired girl with two long locks of hair framing her face. She had a big blue hair clip on top, with a tartan orange skirt and beige vest that matched her monarch butterfly wings. The enthusiastic girl yelped, “I’ve got an idea!”

Takajou lightly pleaded, “Help…?” Though he was a bit eager to find out where this was going.

The monarch winged girl continued, “Let’s take him up for RANSOM!”

“But they don’t have any money?” indicated the bee winged girl.

“Let’s play with him, anyway!” enthused the feathered girl.

“Roger that!” confirmed the monarch winged girl, launching him into the sky.

“Hey, just what are you doing?” shouted the blue triangle winged girl, buzzing straight towards a wide eyed Takajou rising in the sky to intercept him.

“Take him to Laforet Harajuku mall!” shouted a dark green cicada winged girl with brown hair, messy hair down to her elbows in a blue sailor school outfit. “Nobody can find their way out of there!”

To be continued…