Two months later:
Gary:
"Hello," I said into the phone.
"Hi, can you hear me?" Sayuri replied over the line.
"Yep, loud and clear. How's it going, has your mum let you go out alone yet?" I asked.
"No… I regret telling her I got lost for two days. Now she thinks if she loses sight of me again I'll disappear."
"Ha, that's what you get," I laughed. "See the best part of being independent is that I don't need to make up excuses."
"How's your new house?"
"It's nice," I smiled as I looked at the new two story house from the front. "It's a bit big for Sis and I but we'll survive."
"How is Alicia?"
"She's next to me but on the phone with Carl. Pretty much every day they've been talking. If we never bought these new phones I swear she would have ran her mana dry."
Sayuri laughed, "I really want to see all of you again."
"Get a passport and come visit! Your holidays are soon right? It's not like you're lacking money."
"There's no way my mum would let me go alone, and I'm finding it really hard to sneak in all this extra cash into our household."
"Ah the problems of having a family," I smirked. "All I have is an overly physical sister." I quickly ducked as Sis' hand swept over my head. "Oops she heard that one."
"Don't be mean to each other," Sayuri reprimanded.
"It's not me I swear."
"Gary if anything I know you had at least something to do with it."
"What? No way!" I joked. "Anyway any word from Dave on your end?"
She sighed, "No…. If it wasn't for you three and Dave's presents it feels like it never happened."
"What about the whole magic thing, can't really forget that right?"
"You're right but I can't really use it much with so many people around."
"And that's why our new house has a basement just for me to mess around in," I said proudly. "About Dave, I'm sure he's trying his hardest to see you again."
"I know… it's just I-… … … … … …."
"Hmmm?" I stared at my phone. The line had been cut. Not strange for an overseas call. I turned to my sister, "Hey Sis, how's Carl?"
She leaned her phone away, "He's just got his passport renewed. He says he'll be coming over with his parents in a few weeks."
"Wait with his parents?" I couldn't help feel a bit worried. Even if I wasn't directly part of their relationship, I had to wonder if my sister would be alright.
She continued to chat happily to Carl, "Yeah we even have a few guests' rooms. Hmm? Carl are you there? Carl? Strange the line just got cut. I'll call him back later."
"Yeah same thing happened with Sayuri. Maybe we should change providers," I said absentmindedly
"Maybe," Sis stretched her arms. "Regardless, what do you want for dinner?"
"How about we just order pizza…." I started to walk away from her and inside.
"I could cook again," she followed me.
"No I'm really feeling pizza…."
She grabbed me from behind with unsmiling eyes, "Do you have a problem with my cooking?"
Honestly yes. She had been trying to build up her repertoire but all it had done was make me sick so far.
"I just really want pizza," I smiled as best as I could and opened our front door.
"Just wait a sec-," A bright flash of light cut her off.
Mana flooded from the door and I felt it begin to wrap itself around us. "Sis hold on!" I grabbed her arm quickly as the light swallowed us.
Sayuri:
"Gary? Gary are you there…." I looked up from my disconnected phone. Where was I? I had left my room to get a drink while talking to Gary and all of a sudden I was somewhere else. I recognised this place. It was empty and quiet but just yesterday I was here. It was my school. I was in the corridor outside my classroom, but why?
The faint tingle of mana filled the air. Someone was using magic here. A magic powerful enough to take me completely by surprise and teleport me. The only person capable of doing that in this world,
"Gary?" I called out but there was no reply. My heart began beating heavily feeling an impending danger. I let my mana reinforce my body and prepared myself. Even if nothing had happened since we came home, it didn't mean that it would stay that way.
I threw open the sliding door beside me and stepped into my classroom. Outside the windows was the setting sun and a view of the schoolyard. Inside the room however, the chairs and tables had been stacked on top of each other forming a makeshift throne on one end of the room. And on top that throne, was a black haired male smiling. The Miltis Empire's Hero.
His eyes locked on to mine with a haughty grin. My mana went rampant and I pulled my feet back, ready to defend myself. Before I could a white light shone in front of me and three people tumbled out against the floor. Carl, Alicia and Gary… it had been quite a long time since I had seen them but I recognised them immediately.
"Get up!" I quickly yelled and advanced in front of them ready for anything.
"Sayuri?" Alicia said confused but then her eyes fell upon the Miltis Empire's Hero. "What the heck is he doing here!?"
"No time to complain!" Carl helped her up and drew his sword from the black bag he was holding. Mine was back in my room… having been so used to being back home I grew complacent.
Only Gary stayed on the floor with his mouth gaped open as he stared at the Hero. Then he smiled and started to laugh.
"Garr now is not the time to go insane," Alicia picked him off the ground.
"No, you don't understand," he had a brilliant smile on his face. "Dave don't you think you should stop playing around now?"
"Huh?" we all replied dumbly and looked at the figure sitting on his makeshift throne.
He stood up and jumped to the floor. His hair turned light blue and his features became calmer, although still handsome in his own right. It was the face of the person I had wanted to see most since we left.
"Ah, you're no fun," Dave sniggered. "The others didn't notice at all."
"D-Dave?" Carl dropped his sword. "You're actually here?"
"Well obviously," he smiled. "It's good to see you again."
"But it hasn't even been three months," Gary said disbelievingly.
"Actually I figured it out in a few weeks but it ended taking a little more effort to connect our worlds than I thought," he laughed. "Until this morning I was unconscious."
"Why you!" Alicia couldn't help but feel frustrated. "And after all that, the first thing you think of is pulling a trick on us?"
"Pretty much."
"And what's with those clothes?" Gary asked.
He twirled, "Oh these? I thought I might try 'school' in your world. I'm a bit older but shh it's a secret." I recognised those clothes, they were the male counterpart of my uniform.
Alicia nudged me, "Sayuri say something."
I couldn't. It had happened so fast, one moment he was gone and now he was back with his same old smile, tricks and games.
"Sayuri?" he called to me in a tender voice.
I wiped my eyes as the tears were building up, "Dave…."
"I kept my promise."
"You really did," I smiled.
He walked towards me and the others stepped back. Before I knew it he had my hands in his,
"Sayuri Shizuka, would you do me to the honour of allowing me to stay here beside you, not as just a friend but someone more?"
I gripped his hands and without as much as a second delay, "Yes!" I hugged him in a tight embrace as if he could disappear any minute.
Davarious First Born Light of the Autumn Wind:
"Tight…." I returned Sayuri's hug but eventually had to call out to her. She was still reinforcing her body and in a world I had much less mana to run with, her arms were crushing me….
"Oh sorry," she let go with a blushing apologetic smile. Being beside her calmed me yet at the same time I felt an energy that I had never known before. It was intriguing yet completely natural.
"How about we take this somewhere nicer?" I waved my hand a door appeared. "After you." I gestured for the others to enter as I reset the chairs and tables.
On the other side we arrived in a small room. The furniture included, one bed, a study table, a book shelf, and leaned against the wall was a coffee table. It was a quaint room but held a softness to it that breathed life into its corners.
"Th-this is my room!" Sayuri turned on me immediately.
"Yes it is," I replied nonchalantly.
"How?" she immediately began to panic and pick up the random books sprawled across the floor and clean any noticeable rubbish.
"I've created a door to this world, and I've connected it to three locations. One, your room, two," I opened Sayuri's room door.
"That's my room," Carl said with nice timing. It was much larger than Sayuri's and held a refined elegance to it.
"Oh how fancy," Alicia chirped.
"Is that a King size bed?" Gary gaped. "And your own TV!"
"I-it's not like you guys can't afford your own now…."
I closed the door and reopened it, "And three."
"Isn't that the entry to our house?" Gary asked Alicia.
"It is too," she nodded.
Sayuri gripped my arm, "Why didn't you take us there instead?" She was surprisingly angry.
"Because I wanted to see your room," I grinned. Her grip tightened. "Ah sorry, I'll keep in mind your privacy from now on…."
"You better," she glared at me but then softened her expression bashfully, "Especially considering we'll be together a lot more now…."
Argh! Still my beating heart. Her expression almost got to me but I reflexively kept my emotions in line.
"Phew," Alicia waved her hand as if cooling herself, "getting hot in here. Maybe we should let you two have a moment."
Sayuri reddened, "Ah no, it's nothing so let's keep going. I've really wanted to see you all again."
"Ah you're still so cute!" Alicia jumped on her in a tight hug.
I closed the door once more and opened it again, "Also it's connected to my world." The living room we had shared when they stayed with me came into view and standing just outside the door was my sister.
Before I could close it in time she jumped across,
"I'm here!" she declared.
"T-Terra?" Gary flinched.
"Hi!" she smiled happily and moved towards Gary but I held her back.
"I thought I told you to stay till I called you," I narrowed my eyes at her.
She avoided my gaze, "Well… I ummm, oops?"
I sighed, "Gary do you mind if we take this to your house?"
"Sure," he replied still taken aback from Terra's sudden appearance.
I changed the doors location and we all stepped through into Gary's and Alicia's home's entry way. "By the way, if any of you want to use the door, just think about which location you want to go and it should do the rest."
"So I can visit Sayuri whenever I want to?" Alicia smiled while still pressed against her. "Sweet."
"On the other hand," I cleared my throat. "Someone needs to let Terra stay with them."
"Huh?" Gary replied.
I held Terra who was smiling way too much by the shoulders, keeping her in place. "It's just a theory but because your world doesn't have much mana, Terra might start growing up at a faster rate. In fact she might grow even faster than normal. Who knows in two years she may actually look how's she's meant to."
"Hear that?" Terra's eyes were glued to Gary's. "In a few months I might look just as old as you do. So…."
"Hold on!" Gary raised his arms in a cross. "This is going pretty fast. I mean, you just got here. Shouldn't we settle down? Also just how long are you planning on staying?"
"Hmmm Terra will need to stay here," I answered. "If this is going to work she can't come back home until it works or not at all. As for me, I'll be commuting between home and Sayuri's house."
"My house?" Sayuri turned to me surprised.
"I attached the door to your room and I've already made documents enrolling into your school," I pulled them out. "See Davious Flint. 17 year old male transfer student from Norway. Where is Norway anyway? I should probably read up on that."
"Did you really need to go that far?" Carl asked me as Sayuri just couldn't accept what she was hearing.
"Oh Carl please, I haven't gone far enough. I found a few books on your world and wow is it different. I'm planning to visit every country!" I calmed myself, "But for now, I'm just going to play student with Sayuri."
"… he said play," Gary smirked.
"So yeah, look after my sister," I released Terra and she slyly latched on to Gary's arm.
"Why here?" he replied with a mixture of emotions.
"Carl and Sayuri have a family so that would be suspicious. Besides you have a guest room right?"
"Just how much did you investigate us before coming here?"
I turned my face away and ignored him while clearing my throat, "Now that we're all back together, I'm hungry. Who wants to eat?"
And thus my own adventure in a different world began.
The END?