Ryu was not okay. It's not the fact that he woke up in a different body, (fortunately his memories didn't surface until after he was two. He did not want to remember being changed, thanks.) or that he was now male. (His body was wrong in his last life. He was always too scared to change it.)

No, it was the kind of not okay that felt like bile at the back of his throat when his mind forced his body to be ill. It's the not okay that leaves something crawling under his skin when people he doesn't like, know, or trust touch him.

It felt like he was dying again.

It started normally. He woke up, greeted his parents, (And isn't it odd? To be reborn in a world where pink is a natural hair color. Thank goodness he takes after his mother, with his short black hair with a natural streak of blue) and ate breakfast. Then he walks to school alone.

His parents are not bad parents. They do not want their four year old son to walk to school alone. But after multiple (too many) appointments with doctors and therapists, and far too many emotional breakdowns on both sides, they treat him like an adult.

He's still to carry a phone and check in whenever he leaves or arrives at a destination, however his mental and emotional maturity means normal parenting is stifling. (Is it normal to feel so guilty about not being normal? To wish he could see his own parents as something other than awkward roommates?)

Some God, god, or goddess out there is laughing at him.

So Ryu walks to school, just like any other day. He waves hello to Mr. Akabane, and tries to pet a stray cat. He continues his walk, nursing a scratched hand. Everything is completely normal, at least until lunchtime.

Ryu isn't disliked. He's not particularly liked either, but he isn't bullied and people have tried making friends with him. The thing is, these are children. Nose picking, loud, immature, gossiping... ok, yeah. That's not really fair. Still... children.

So he eats alone, up on the roof. No one around, far away from the edge. (Has that fence been maintained in the last couple decades?) That's when it happened. Pitch black double doors with silver handles appear when he thinks about leaving for the classroom.

No one else is around, and somehow, he knows the doors are his doing. Ryu opens the doors. (Can you blame him? Sure, maybe the instinct of the door belonging could be induced with empathy, but as far as anyone else knows, he's just an unusually mature child with middle class parents. Who would go through so much effort to hurt him)

He simply did as any curious child would. (Not a child. Hormones of a child, and the emotional response of one. Body of a child, and stamina of one. But the memories matter. So much blood. So much it drowned him.)

Through the door, the world was the same. The sun still shone, electricity still worked, (later he would wonder. How does it work? How can it work, without people to provide it?) and when he looked off the roof, cars sat idle in the streets, not a person in sight.

Looking around, he saw seven doors. All of them looked different. There was one identical to the one he came through, that he assumed would take him back. One was red like old blood, almost black. A third was royal purple, with a gold handle.

The other four were grayed out and chained. Ryu knew, deep in his bones, he wouldn't be able to open them. That trying would hurt. Hesitantly, he approached the door colored like blood. (So many regrets)

Inside there was an alter, with furrows carved into the stone to channel blood into specific patterns. Thankfully, it didn't appear used. Unlit torches sparked to life the moment he stepped passed the entryway. He didn't stay long, knowing he could come back if he wanted to. (He didn't know why he would ever want to)

He went inside the purple room next. Inside was a plain stone chamber, a simple wooden pedestal in the middle. A book lay open on the stand. Within the book, a cheerful note was written...

Hi! I'm Choho! I'm one of the Gods who brought your soul to this world! My domain is Chaos! The primordial kind, not mischief. Blood, madness, and disorder! You painted your last world such a pretty red, we decided to bring you here to see what you would change!

We gave you an absolutely suuuper quirk! In this room with the book, you can make any item appear and take it back with you! Absolutely no restrictions! And when you move inside the quirk, your position matches in the real world! You might have noticed no time has passed...

No. No, he hadn't noticed.

So it's basically a teleportation quirk too! Don't worry about the gray doors. You'll know when they'll become available to you. Pah... A few of my less brilliant friends were being too mushy. Feelings are such a human thing. One last thing!

That book? It lets you select more quirks. There's a number beside each name and description. That's how many human sacrifices needed to gain it! Aren't we so nice? Just carve the pattern in the book onto their bones while they're on the alter! Bye-bye, and don't forget to be entertaining!

PS- unless you manage to ascend to divinity, you're completely immortal. If you manage to ascend, we'll kill you before the transformation finishes! :)

Ryu slumped against the pedestal, laughing a bit weakly before letting out loud, ugly sobs. He cries until he can't breathe, and mercifully falls unconscious.