The girl led him to the front entrance, smiling eagerly. Zero stared in awe at the house, dumbstruck. It looked so different yet similar with the renovation being slowly applied. "Wow...I hardly recognise it from this side..." Zero hummed. "Probably because of the new paint job, it's not finished yet," The girl stated, bluntly, leading him. As they reached the front door, the girl smiled, turning to the four builders on break. "Hiya guys!" "Hey there!" "How are you, kiddo?" "Got a friend with you today, huh?" The girl walked in, tugging off her shoes," You can put your shoes here." As she did so, a young man walked in, a towel around his neck as he went to pick up a box. "A guest?" "Yup! A secret one!" The male frowned," Secret? Hey! Nevermind..." He turned to Zero, smiling awkwardly," Sorry, make yourself at home." "Thank you," Zero mumbled, the girl peeled around the corner, gesturing for him to follow.
Zero gasped, walking through the room the party was in, with the new furniture it looked so different. The girl cleared her throat, pointing at the stairs that Zero also vividly remembered. Zero followed after the girl, neither really talking all that much. She led them to Marnie's room, opening the door and letting the entity in. "Okay, this is my room." Zero hummed, most of the decor seemed to be the same as Marnie's, with different toys," So it is..." The girl shut the door, awaiting his response. "And so?" "It's a cute room." "I believe this used to be your room, correct?" "What!?" Zero gasped. The girl leaned forward," Don't play games. You are Marnie!" "Marnie?! Really I'm not!" "So then why do I see you looking up at my window all the time!?" The girl scowled. "Because-" "C'mon, I'm going to show you where I see you!" The child ran over to the window, Zero followed, watching as she jabbed her finger out. "See! You're always down there!" "I'm not Marnie," Zero groaned," I just love this mansion, I draw it all the time."
"That can't be! How come you acted so surprised when I called you Marnie earlier!?" Zero glared at the child," What I want to know is how do you know that name?" She rushed over the desk that Zero saw Marnie sat in, in his dreams. She opened a draw, pulling out a blue book and passing it to Zero with a contented smile. "A diary?" Zero frowned. "That's right! It's your diary!" Zero paused. Perhaps this would show him just who Marnie really was. He opened it, his eyes widened as the first page met Marnie's name, neatly strung in cursive. The girl seemed happy with his reaction, gently shuffling over to the door, with a feline smirk. "I'll go pour you some Queen Mary, your favourite. And I'll be right back!" She shut the door behind her, leaving just Zero and the mysterious friend's diary.
31st May Last night I went for a row in my nightie. The marsh and the moon were very pretty at night. I shall do it again.
June 8th A party! Father, mother and many other friends came. It was such fun. I went outside from the sunroom, and danced with the flower boy. But, Nan locked me in my room because of last night, so there won't be any midnight boat rides for a while.
Zero turned the page, his eyes widened as his fingers traced over torn out pages. The girl walked in with a tray of tea, closing the door behind her. "See! It's actually you, isn't it? Marnie is your code name!" The girl set the tea on the table, Zero shook his head. "No, it's not. Marnie is someone...someone... she's just someone that I invented...an imaginary girl...only in my mind..." The girl gasped, her expression shifting into confusion. Zero gripped the diary close to him. "But I suppose this is Marnie's diary. And I suppose it's as if she's really lived here in this room." The girl ran over, sitting on the bed as she glared at Zero. "Okay, no messing around. Are you really not her?" "No." "She's only imaginary?" "That's right." The girl whimpered," But I thought you were-! And your diary said-! And you came back-! Awwwwwwww!" The girl collapsed onto the bed, staring at the ceiling with a deadpan. Zero smiled. "My name is Zero, and I came from central Devildom." "Hiya... I'm Sayaka... and I come from Matsugo..." Sayaka bounced up, shaking her head," Wait a second! If she was imaginary... why's the name in the diary the same?" Zero sighed," I don't know." "Marnie must be real! I'm going to investigate again!"
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Zero lay in bed, with Tokumei softly sleeping beside him. He held his sketchbook, staring up at the ceiling lost in thought. He was convinced that Marnie was just someone he'd invented in his mind. Which was why only Tokumei could see him. But that diary. Zero grimaced, holding the sketchbook up. His gaze lingered over her pale and gentle face; with her hand outstretched, but without Kazuhiko pressing a kiss into it. "Marnie..." Zero felt some invisible weight crush him, her face always conflicted with his soul. "Who...are you...?" He set the sketchbook down, laying back, shutting his eyes.
