Shadow World

[Mikanu]

(1x1 between CrackerPower and Mikanu!~)


Our world isn't the only one in existence. There is another, a world within our world, a world we rarely get to see. A shadow world, where our shadows reside. Most don't move and are made to imitate us as well as objects, but there are a select few who can. The Shadow People. No one knows what their intentions are. Some have reported sightings of a Shadow Person, but all they got was a glimpse. Just a glimpse, for the line between our world and theirs retreated very slightly. Still, there are others. Humans who can actually see the Shadow People whenever they wish because for them, the line between our world and their world is permanently retreated. So what happens when a person with this gift meets a Shadow Person? Well, we'll just have to see.


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Nighttime. The only time the Shadow could enter the Human World in peace. If it weren't for all the lights scattered around, the Shadow would be able to complete his mission easily. A mission to find a Human who could see him. Not just catch a glimpse, not just scream in terror as they saw the Shadow creeping towards them. No, he didn't need that. He needed a Human who was fine with seeing the Shadow People. A gifted Human.


It wasn't easy. There were those who simply seemed to see him but couldn't the next day. There were those who were much too religious, who decided that the Shadow was some sort of demon sent from Hell. Then there were the children, the ones most scared of him. It seemed like many children could see him, which was quite a shocking fact in his opinion. This fact did nothing to help him, though, for he didn't require a child's assistance.


The city was massive. He was sure there had to be someone here. Anyone. The Shadow found himself wondering if it would be worth it to whisk a child off to his homeland. He was growing desperate. He wanted to tell these People that he needed them to help, but he couldn't. He had no mouth, so he simply resorted to looking around. His red eyes looked out at the city, at the bright lights and the traffic. It looked like the city didn't sleep even at night.


He opened a random window and crawled in, knowing he was high off the ground. It was an apartment he had walked into. A bed was in the corner, and he could see the shape of the sleeping Human who lay there. The Shadow approached, looking down. He watched as the man who slept suddenly began to toss and turn. Aware of his presence, it seemed, but it wasn't enough. Too little awareness. And so, the Shadow crept away, leaving the man to a bad night's sleep.


The Shadow approached another window, but this one had light coming from it. Someone was still awake. The Shadow peeked in a little, though not too much. In light, Humans were better with their awareness. They could easily see him if he decided to show himself. All that would do would freak them out, however. And so, he sat there and waited. He knew not exactly what he was waiting for.

 

[cellar.]

The textbook sat as a hefty reminder in her lap. Josie tried to concentrate on the words before her, but each line of letters was becoming jumbled up in her sleepy brain. Something about

recombinant antibodies

and

antigens

, but none of those words was making any sense to her. With a yawn, she shut the textbook with a resounding thud. Well, so much for a little summer studying. With the textbook put aside, she reached for the cord on the lamp. As she turned in the direction of the window, she swore she could see something glowing ominously red.


She paused for a second, but nevertheless pulled down the cord.


Instantly, the light was sucked away into the cavity of the light bulb, leaving only a room of darkness.


Josie flipped over onto her side, pulling the blankets over her shoulders. Very cautiously, she watched the window again, only seeing the orange haze of city lights. Although she was tired, she still had the nagging feeling that

someone

was watching her. Reaching for the night stand, she felt around a little until her hand enclosed around a flashlight. The beam of light cut through the darkness, illuminating the room. She pointed it towards the window, but still found nothing.




‘Shut up brain, and go to sleep,’

she told herself tersely. It was ninety-nine percent likely that what she saw was just a leaf, or squirrel or car. She was just getting used to her new apartment, that was all. Yet, Josie still couldn't shake off the feeling that something was lurking just out of sight.


For as long as Josie could remember, she had always been able to see shadows. The things before her eyes weren’t the everyday silhouettes that acted like shady mirrors, reflecting back each movement with precision. Instead, they fluttered across the walls like a flickering candlelight, hiding in dusty corners all by themselves. They weren’t strung to any object, and they didn’t belong to any person. They were real, they were

alive.

But as an insolent five-year-old, it had been quite hard to make her case to any adult.


After visiting a psychiatrist (her mother had

insisted

that she need one), she had given up entirely on convincing people of the shadowy figures that seemed to roam about everywhere. By the time she was fifteen, she had already persuaded herself that they were just tricks played by an overactive mind. If only she could completely believe in what she had lied.


Hesitating, Josie finally caved into the temptation, and turned on the lamp light once again.




‘For god’s sake, I’m eighteen, not eight,’

she thought with a scowl. But she left the light on anyways.

 

[Mikanu]

The Shadow looked further inside the window. He could see a girl sitting on her bed, staring down at a book in her hands. He watched as she shut the book, and he simply turned away from the window after that. He planned to visit another person, one who wasn't awake. The ones who were held more awareness then the ones asleep. It would prove to be too much trouble. They'd simply scream if they caught a glimpse of him, perhaps run to their parents. However, he felt he couldn't skip. A little trouble was just fine compared to the trouble he faced. He'd turn back and go in, no matter the consequences.


She was looking at him. He could feel it. He was turned so she couldn't be able to see his red eyes, but she was looking at his back. The Shadow wondered if she was simply staring through him to the world outside, but it didn't seem to be so. He could barely believe it. Had he finally found who he had been searching for? The Shadow hadn't been looking for a long while at all. Or at least, that fact applied to what he called a long while. It had been a few months now. He hoped that this girl was what he needed.


It was dark in the room. No more light spilled out. He crawled away from the window and looked in again just in time for a flashlight to shine through the window. The Shadow was calm and patient as the light lingered, hiding right in the corner of the window, wondering if she really could see him. It would be a miracle, a one-in-a-million sort of thing.


He watched as she turned on the lamp and slowly crept in. On all fours, he sneaked in and out of the shadows that were placed around the room. Each shadow was still, which was good. They were doing their jobs, weren't they? After checking them all, he stood up. He was standing right in front of her back now. The shadow approached slowly, each step quiet and purposeful. He wondered if she could feel his eyes on her and knew he was about to find out whether she could see him.


A simple touch, right on her shoulder. So soft that a normal person would have simply thought that a breeze had entered the room. But he knew she wasn't normal. She wasn't like the rest of the humans. The touch was simple proof. However, it was one thing to find a person like this and another to convince her to help him. He was going to have to do whatever it took.

 

[cellar.]

For a little while longer, Josie sat very still, as if waiting for something to happen. When nothing did, she allowed herself to relax again, and tried to go to sleep once more. She was being stupid. There was nothing that could be watching her from the window, especially since she lived on the

ninth

floor. With that reassurance in mind, she closed her eyes, sinking down into her cocoon of blankets.




'There's no way I'm still scared to the dark,'

she thought, scoffing at herself.


Then, Josie felt something or someone gently brushing across her shoulder. The touch was soft, but it sent tremors down her spine.


She let out a string of curses in her head, and turned rapidly towards the source of the touch. Her breath hitched in her throat at the sight of what was lurking behind her. It was a shadow, his red eyes glowing faintly against the lamp light. No shadow had ever touched her before. In what little experience she had with them, they had always kept actively out of her way. This was definitely something new, and she couldn’t believe it.


In fact, she wanted to refuse to believe it.


Josie could feel her heart hammering at an alarming pace. The fear was slowly sinking in, but she didn’t let the expression escape on to her face. Instead, she clutched the flashlight tighter – the only source of a weapon she had in her hands. There was a large part of her that was ten thousand times ready to get the hell

away.

After the longest time of convincing herself they weren’t real, one of those things, people, whatever, had to pop right back into her life…Yet this was her chance, this was finally her chance to

understand,

wasn’t it?


Scooting away from the shadowy figure, she kept her eyes locked onto his red ones. He hadn’t done anything to hurt her, well, at least not yet. There was no harm in playing peace for now. Although she wasn’t even sure that he could understand her, she decided to speak anyways.


“W-what do you want?” Josie asked with as much force as she could muster. However, she couldn’t stop the slight stammer in her words.