A leitmotif or leitmotiv is a "short, recurring musical phrase" associated with a particular person, place, or idea. It is closely related to the musical concepts of idée fixe or motto-theme.
--
How many times did time rewind itself? How many times have they gone through this eternal loop? That was probably a trick question in it of itself - there was no "how many" when it came to eternity, even if it seemingly had a start and an end before being rewound back like a single button being pressed on a TV remote.
Round and round they go - where does it stop? Nobody knows .
One would think that going through the same events over and over meant that any purpose or meaning to doing anything was eventually lost, but not to Mono. His stubbornness and single-minded attitude was both his asset and down-fall. But, who could really blame him? In a world where the next few moments could be his last, and unknown horrors waiting for him around every corner, there was something he treasured that override the adrenaline and fear that tightened his chest no matter how many times he's been through this - was a friend. Yes - was , technically speaking, but he was tired. Tired of being alone, tired of feeling betrayed-
Tired of feeling like the whole world was against him.
He knew he was daft for enjoying those little moments of kicking around a soft ball with Six, teaching her how to play on a see-saw, and taking turns pushing each other on the swing set - because the end was always the same.
Even when she pulled her hand back and turned around without looking back, though his heart had been shattered and grew to be resentful, hostile, and unforgiving; every time he woke up in the tall grass with the whispers of the trees rousing him from his vision of the door at the end of the hallway, somehow, his heart always picked itself back up and he was the same soft-spoken boy he always had been.
The truth hurt. Reality hurt . But, he was still Mono, regardless of what he became. Just like how Six would always be Six, no matter what she did to him.
Despite cherishing those fleeting moments and dreading the inevitable, Mono tried to do something different with each reset in a vain attempt to change something. Anything. Instead of startling Six at the Hunter's abode by axing his way through her make-shift prison, he'd quietly call out to her, warning her of his presence. Or, he would try to fill in the silence with small talk in hopes of building that trust early on that couldn't necessarily be spoken through actions alone.
He did everything he could think of to let her know that he was there, and that he would protect her. That he cared.
Still, there was one thing he hadn't addressed yet. Just like the loop they were trapped in, there was something else that filled the void as a constant reminder. It was something that at first, Mono found soothing but with each cycle, it felt haunting to listen to.
But, he put up with it for her, because the haunting melody was important to her. Looking at the walls of where she was trapped, seeing scribbles and ticks etched into the decaying wood, she would continue to turn the music box, round and round no matter how many days have passed.
And, near the end of each cycle, he had to smash it in order to save her from herself. He had to smash a prized possession that offered her comfort - security, a safe space, from any feelings of loneliness she might have felt.
Over, and over.
Mono never had anything like that. He never had anything to rely on to keep him sane in the hell of a world they had the misfortune of being brought up in. That's why he was so happy, knowing that there was something else out there who had her fair share of horrific encounters and close calls, that he could relate to.
No, he didn't want to keep making it about him. In a world where it's kill or be killed, he was too soft to leave anyone behind - even someone who was the epitome of "every survivor for themselves" like Six. He didn't want to keep hurting her, because it never left any time for him to say sorry. What he did in every cycle, cut deep into the person he so badly wanted to be his friend. Ironic, that his heart grew to become resentful from being betrayed as his body and mind became distorted from The Transmission, when he had done the exact same thing.
It might have seemed petty and childish, but that's because they were.
They were only children .
"Hey, psst..." Mono whispered through the cracks of the broken door. Peering through, he could see Six winding the music box, around and around, with little regard to his attempts to catch her attention.
Like she was in a trance, hypnotized by the melody.
"Hey!" He said louder this time.
Six jolted, seemingly snapping out of her trance and looked around frantically at the voice that called out to her. Her body then went into fight or flight as she scuttled under the table on the far side of the room, thinking it was someone who was going to take her away.
Mono grinned wryly at the thought.
"It's OK, I'm not going to hurt you! I'm going to get you out of there, so stand back OK? This might be scary." Dragging the axe behind him, he double checked to make sure Six was at a safe distance, before driving the axe through the door until it gave in with a destruction of wood chips and splinters. He dropped the axe and tip-toed into the room, where Six was still huddled under the table, but her head peeked out for safe measure.
Before extending his hand to help her up, he turned to the music box which had been toppled over from being startled. He gently set it up right and pushed it towards her. He wasn't going to force her to come out if she didn't want to. "You dropped this. Be careful, OK? I'd get a move on if I were you since the Hunter can come back at any moment."
She stared at him. Then stared at the music box, then back to him.
"You...You can come with me, if you want? I can help you out of here-" Mono started.
"Why?"
She finally spoke.
"Why do you want to help me?"
Mono gestured his paper bag covered head to the scribbles on the wall. "It looks like you've been here for a long time and thought you needed some help. Finding a way out together could make things easier. But, if you prefer to escape on your own..."
He let his offer linger in the air for a bit longer and to his surprise, she crawled out from the table and stood up with her eyes on her ground, rather than push past him and run upstairs like she had done during the previous cycles. At least, that's what it looked like. He never understood how she could see through her thick layer of bangs that hung over her eyes.
"You're not going to take your music box?"
She looked at the music box, and shook her head. "No. It'll slow us down."
Internally, he hoped that was for the best, but he'll think of a way to offer her comfort that was a decent replacement for what solace it had given her.
"Let's get going then." He offered his hand out to her. "I'm Mono. What's your name?"
It felt like hours had passed for how long she stared at his hand when in reality, it had only been a few seconds, but he prayed to himself over and over that for this cycle, she would take it. His heart nearly jumped out of his throat when he felt her smaller hand gingerly wrap around his own.
That was a good place to start.
"Six."
--
"Six, why don't we rest in the next room?"
"I said I'm-" Six pulled herself from her knees, her balance obviously unsteady and wobbly as her legs buckled underneath her and she found herself back on the floor, her mind still reeling and recovering from being suspended upside down for who knows how long thanks to the crack-head bullies. Honestly, if not for the light-headedness she was experiencing, she was glad she got knocked out if it meant that she didn't have to stand listening to their infernal cackling and tomfoolery. "F-Fine..."
"W-Whoa. Take it easy. Here, lean on my shoulder." Mono bent down and offered one of his shoulders, which she clumsily grabbed onto before he carefully pulled her up to her feet and wrapped an arm around her waist for further support. "Can you walk?"
Despite her shaky legs, she took a small step forward, and then another. "Slowly."
"You got it." They paced around the dilapidated washroom for a while, giving Six some time to regain her balance before escaping out of a nearby window, and tip-toeing on a wooden plank to the next building over. It was hard to tell where they were exactly in the darkness, but what little light there was, shone down from the broken ceiling above, over the piano that was strung up with rope.
Of course Mono knew exactly what he had to do, but it was a waste not to take advantage of this little break to not play around on a piano that would be rendered unplayable in the next turn of events. Without missing a beat, he ran over to the piano and lifted himself onto the instrument to dance across the black and white keys. He could hardly call it music, but that didn't matter.
"Do you even know what you're doing?" Six snorted.
"Nope!" And that's when an idea popped into Mono's mind. "Hey, Six? About the music box you were winding when we first met, how did it go again?"
She was a bit taken aback by the question based on how she wrapped her arms around herself. Oh no, did he poke a sensitive topic? "S-Sorry, Six. I didn't mean to upset you-"
Then, to his surprise, in her tiny voice, she began to softly hum the melody that occupied her thoughts. He didn't have any musical understanding or experience, but he wanted to try - try for her. Even if it meant making a fool of himself a little. He stepped on keys in a seemingly random order, but really, he was listening to the pitch each key made, overlaying his attempts with the melody he would replicate without fail. Six had no idea what he was trying to do and stopped humming, only for him to look at her as if to say 'Keep going!'.
And she did.
Mono smiled to himself confidently and turned to Six with a raised hand. "Watch this, Six!"
He couldn't tell from her bangs, but somehow, he knew her eyes had lit up when he began to play the melody. Her melody - on top of the piano. He was so concentrated on pressing the right keys, at the right time, that he didn't notice how Six had approached the piano more closely and looked up at him in awe. He hoped that even with the paper bag over his face, she knew that he was smiling at her.
"Want to try?"
She nodded eagerly and took the hand that pulled her up onto the instrument. She followed his movements carefully, taking in each note progression before taking over his position and trying to mirror his movements. Her first attempt involved accidentally pressing on multiple keys by accident, or pressing on a wrong note altogether, which made it hard for Mono to stifle his chuckles. She huffed at that and nearly shoved him off of the piano.
"Sorry, sorry! You're doing great, Six! Just keep practicing!"
Surely enough, and without Mono's chuckling to distract her, she was able to play her melody as perfectly as he did, which made her chest tickle with an unfamiliar sense of...accomplishment? Or maybe it was satisfaction? Whatever it was, it made her body feel light and she couldn't suppress the smile that spread across her face. She showed no signs of stopping her movements, allowing Mono to eye the keys that weren't being used and pressing on them rhythmically, providing another layer of notes along with the main melody.
For just a moment, all the fears and horrors melted away into the melody, as two kids danced on the piano without a care in the world. If only it could last forever but eventually fatigue caught up to them and soon, the melody stopped. They sat on the top of the piano to take a moment to catch their breaths, when Mono felt a hand tug on the cuff of his trenchcoat. He turned to Six, who had an unreadable expression on her face, but he swore he could see a tint of red dusting her cheeks even in the dark.
Maybe it was just wishful thinking.
"Thank you, Mono. That was fun."
Mono's grin widened under his paper bag hat. "You're welcome, Six. I hope we can do that again sometime."
During every other cycle, all Mono could do was watch helplessly as Six got whisked away into the Thin Man's grasp through his mind-splitting headaches, amplified by the piercing sound of the ringing in his ears and fizzle of static that consumed him.
But this time, through the pain and agony, he pushed through with his hand out and tightly clutched onto Six's hand.
It was all in vain though, the pain too deep to endure any longer, that the last thing he recalled was the feeling of Six's hand slipping from his fingers, and her horrified scream of his name before everything went black.
When he finally came to, he was in so much pain that all he could do was curl up into a ball and whimper. He had failed to save Six. Again. He wanted to count his blessings for at least pushing through the pain to reach out and hold her hand when she needed it most, but that didn't matter if she got taken away anyway.
If only he were stronger.
"Six..." Mono wheezed, taking off his paper bag, his protection, his shield that repelled the hateful gaze that the world stared at him with - to hold his head in his hands properly.
God, he was pathetic.
When he finally managed to pick himself up from the ground and stand, he did what Six often did when he had left temporarily all those times to fetch what they needed to press on - hum her song. Even though the song didn't have the same impact on him as it did with Six, those moments of sharing in her love with the melody, made him grow to become fond at what he once found haunting to listen to.
Humming her song made him think of her, which made his determination to rescue her once and for all, burn even brighter.
This was going to be the last cycle.
It had to be.
--
"Psst. Hey." Mono called out gently to the hulking form that was Six. He never got used to seeing her like this, because he always wondered what exactly did his future self do to put her through such torment that she turned into...this. It was beyond cruel, even for the self that had yet to be.
That's not who he was.
That wasn't what he wanted to be.
Six regarded in the same way, clambering towards him with her elongated limbs, with her music box held protectively close to her. Looking past her, he could see the axe that lay at the foot of the suitcase at the far end of the room - the axe that he had used to smash her safe space into pieces. He looked between the monstrous form that was Six, and the axe behind her, at a loss of what he could do to change things for good.
He wanted to be her friend. He wanted to be a good friend. There had to be a way to save her and respect what was clearly important to her. In every other cycle, he had forced his way into her space, and probably thrusted his expectation of a companionship that he so wished for.
He wanted to be better. He was going to be better.
Mono tore his eyes away from the axe and looked back at Six. He wondered what kind of expression she was wearing, through the curtain of black hair that covered her face. He wanted to see her smile again.
"Six..." He said softly, before approaching the large hands that were cage around her precious music box. "It's me, Mono. I don't have my paper bag anymore so...this is the first time you're seeing my face, huh..."
Six made a noise of acknowledgement before curiously lifting a long finger and carefully running it through his thick hair. He chuckled lightly at the gesture and playfully swatted her finger away so he could...try to look her in the eyes. He didn't like being stared at, or being judged, or being scrutinized by strangers - but Six wasn't a stranger. He wanted her to see him for who he was.
"Six...Listen...I know how important this place must be for you. You feel safe and happy here, right? But...look at yourself. That's not who you are, and that's not who you want to be, right?"
Mono didn't know where he was going with this, but he wasn't going to stop what he already started.
"I want to turn you back to normal, Six. The Thin Man is gone - I...I defeated him! So, you're not trapped here anymore! I'm here to set you fr-"
Once those words left his lips, Six thrashed wildly in protest, clearly angered and uninterested in his attempts to sway her resolve. He barely managed to jump back in time to avoid getting crushed or thrown across the room by her limbs, and the rush of adrenaline he got as a result, only made his persuasion waver. "P-Please, Six! I don't want to hurt you!"
She answered him with a loud screech of her own before swiping the music box back to her chest and cowering back in a corner of a room, body scrunched up like a protective cocoon. Mono's shoulders slacked in defeat and his body shook as tears of frustration rose from his eyes. Was that it? Was there nothing else he could do besides destroy the trust that had built between them?
He didn't have his paper bag to hide his tears in, and he swore he could feel the many eyes watching the pathetic display through the walls of the Signal Tower.
He dropped to his knees and the dam keeping his tears at bay, finally burst open. He wailed and sobbed into the floor, unleashing repeated cycles of despair and hopelessness that had amassed inside of his small, weak, heart. He had so much power at his disposal and yet, he felt so powerless at all the things he couldn't do and change.
What was the point of having any 'special' power at all if he couldn't even use it to save his precious friend?
[Press RT to hum]
With the small amount of energy he had left, he sat on his knees, and began to hum Six's melody through whimpers and sniffles. Even though he was off-key and he sounded so broken, Six slowly turned her body towards him out of curiosity. Mono didn't stop and continued humming, even when his throat screamed at him to stop, already spent from crying in despair.
Slowly, but surely, Six made her way towards him again, leaning in closely to hear his soft, wavering humming, more clearly.
Please...Please let me reach her.
Mono slowly reached his hand out to her, palm face up, offering his hand to her like he always had before their hands laced together, journeying side by side without any sign of letting go.
He stopped humming for a moment to ask in a hoarse voice, "Hum with me?"
He wondered if she even understood what he asked from the state that she was in, but she placed her large pointer finger in the palm of his hand anyway, allowing him to curl his fingers around the digit. It must have been a bizarre sight - a tiny boy holding a giant monster's hand as he hummed, wanting to soothe her anguish in the only way he knew how. She slowly joined him, her voice gruff and low, but she was trying.
Trying for him.
He squeezed her finger just a bit tighter.
It felt like the world had stopped - it felt like the loop that was constantly turning round and round, had stopped. They didn't even notice that the music box had stopped playing, as they were completely swept up and absorbed in the moment of confiding in each other for solace, through the repetitive melody. Unbeknownst to them, the broadcasts of hypnotic music and bright, flashy colours throughout all the TVs in the Pale City, were replaced with the image of Mono and Six, humming the song together.
Over, and over.
The Viewers still watched on, but their once sporadic movement and twitches had softened.
It was like they were watching the final act of a play, and this was falling action to the climax.
The pouring rain stopped.
--
I want you to trust me.
I want to be someone that you can turn to for comfort and happiness.
You don't have to give up the things that make you feel safe.
But...
I want you to know that I can protect you too.
Even if I have to go through this loop 100 more times, I'll keep protecting you during every single one.
And...
I'll keep humming your favourite song throughout it all.
--
Mono didn't recall when he had closed his eyes, but when they fluttered open, he wasn't just holding Six's finger - he was holding her hand. He didn't have to crane his neck up to look at her, because now she was at the same level as him.
The hood of her raincoat was down, revealing her messy, short bob hair that he recognized all too well from when they first met. Her bangs still covered her eyes, but now he could see streaks of tears rolling down her cheeks.
He squeezed her hand.
"Hey."
She sniffled.
"Hey."
With a free hand, Mono reached up to wipe the tears from her cheek with his thumb. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry for being able to save you back there."
Six hiccuped, before burying her tear-soaked face in the front of his trench coat. And, just as he half-expected, she began to weakly pound her fists against his chest like something akin to a tantrum. He took her hits, and gave her time to vent out any remaining anxiety that she had bottled up, and then wrapped his arms around her protectively. She clutched to the back of his coat, catching him a bit off guard by how tightly she was squeezing him, but it was a welcome change because it meant that she was there.
"Everything's going to be OK now Six-"
He should have watched what he said because the music box laying next to them had morphed into a sickening eyeball that stared right at them, and the once concrete walls began to give way to gore, flesh, and countless more eyeballs.
This wasn't how the events were meant to be played out.
The crack that Mono made into the loop was beyond repair.
And The Transmission retaliated.
Only knowing glances were exchanged between Mono and Six before they bolted out of the door where the mass of eyes gave chase. He didn't want to let go of Six's hand, but he knew that she was faster than he was, and he wanted to make sure that she got to safety before he did.
At least, that's what he hoped.
"Six! Go on ahead! I'll be right behind you!"
Six nodded and released her hand from his grip and sprinted ahead so Mono could follow her path. It terrified him, knowing that he had changed something in this cycle, but this game of cat and mouse was still the same. But, seeing Six take quick glances back at him, made him push himself even harder.
Running, and running.
Until he felt his heart stop.
The bridge in front of them crumbled way sooner than either of them had anticipated, meaning that even Six couldn't get across in time to the other side.
No, no, no, no, no, no!
There was no way in hell Mono was going to let it end like this!
When he caught up to Six, who only turned around to look at him fearfully, he grabbed her shoulders and looked at her seriously.
This was all or nothing.
"Six, do you trust me?"
Even with the mass behind them getting closer and closer to them, for the first time, Six brushed her bangs aside so he could finally see her maroon coloured eyes that were filled with iron-clad resolve.
"Yes."
Mono didn't waste another second. "Hang on tight!"
Six clung to him tightly as he picked her up and made a mad dash to the very end of where the bridge crumbled, squeezing her eyes shut to brace herself for the impending free fall. Mono leaped with all his might and mustered up every ounce of courage and power he had for this final leap of faith.
If the Thin Man could do it, he could do it too!
The air around them fizzled with energy before catapulting them enough through glitches and static so Mono had just enough of a boost to land safely on the other side, where the TV portal was waiting for them. The Signal Tower groaned and screeched in protest at the display, but neither Mono or Six spared any glance back as they breached through the portal.
Together.
--
Mono...
Mono!
Mono!
Mono jolted up from his bed, nearly knocking heads with his mom who stood back to let out a sigh of relief that her child had finally woken up. Honestly, he was such a heavy sleeper if he could sleep through his alarm clock!
"Morning, sleepyhead. Up and at 'em. You're gonna be late for school."
The boy looked around deliriously. "School...?"
His mom raised her eyebrow. "Do I need to get your father in here?"
Mono tensed up. "School! Right! I'll get ready!"
"Good. Make sure to finish your breakfast even if you're a bit late!" His mom chided lightly before leaving his room and closing the door behind her.
Mono looked around the room - his room - and a wave of realization washed over him in an instant.
It...It was just a nightmare?
He pushed the covers off of him and hurried to his bedroom window and pulled the curtains aside, letting the bright rays of the sun filter through his room. From his window he could see apartments and skyscrapers, none of which were twisted or distorted like in his nightmare. Instead of the dead silence that filled the streets of the Pale City, it was bustling with activity with people jogging along the sidewalks, cars driving by, and the bits and pieces of conversation that he could overhear.
It felt too good to be true but, when he pinched his cheek, he was still there - basking in the warmth of the sun.
Oh right. School.
He scrambled to get ready which involved brushing his teeth, putting on his school's uniform, and half-hazardly making his bed.
"Mono~!" A sing-songy tone came from behind his bedroom door before it cracked open to reveal his father's face. "Good morning, kiddo! Slept in again?"
"S-Sorry, dad! I...had a really scary nightmare. It felt like I was trapped there forever." Mono swallowed thickly.
"A never-ending nightmare, huh? Well, it's not never-ending if you're awake now, right?" His father chuckled, playfully ruffling his hand through his son's scruffy brown hair. Mono laughed and batted his father's hand away before grabbing his backpack from his closet.
"Oh? You're not taking your paper bag with you?"
His father gestured to the paper bag with two eye-holes cut into it that was sitting on his desk. Mono eyed the paper bag with a small smile and shook his head.
"I don't think I need it anymore."
His father blinked in mild disbelief. "You remembered to make your own bed, and now you don't need your paper bag? Who are you, and what have you done to my son? "
"Come on, dad. I'm gonna be late if you keep teasing me-"
His father finally relented with his arms up in surrender but, not before turning to his son once more with an apologetic grin on his face. "By the way, sorry about snapping at you last night, Mono. I just don't want you to stay up too late watching cartoons. You're a growing boy and you need your sleep."
Mono closed the door of his bedroom behind him and walked next to his dad with a carefree smile of his own. For how scary his father was when he was mad, he wasn't going to shrink away from his gaze anymore. "It's OK, dad. I won't stay up too late again."
"That's my boy. Well, I better head to work. Can't keep the guests of my show waiting." His father readjusted his tie and picked up the fedora hanging from the rack to set it on his head before heading out. "Have a good day at school, Mono!"
"Wait! Before you go, dad, I wanted to ask something."
His father looked at him quizzically. "What is it?"
"...Can I take piano lessons?"
A beat of silence passed before his father chuckled to himself. There was no room for any argument or protests. "We'll talk about it after dinner tonight - how does that sound?"
"Sounds great! Have a good day at work, dad!"
--
"My dream? You mean the one where I was stuck on some creepy boat?"
"Yeah, that one. You said you saw a girl in a yellow raincoat, right?"
"A girl in a yellow raincoat? Are you talking about me?"
"No, I don't think it was you Isabelle. This girl didn't have a braid like you do."
Isabelle played with her aforementioned side braid that was tied in a bright red bow, with a hum. "Hmmm. Well, it could have been just your imaginations."
RK leaned back on his chair with his arms crossed. "It's one heck of a coincidence, though, if me and Mono both had nightmares where we saw a girl in a yellow raincoat. But, enough of that-" RK leaned in to flick Mono's forehead, making him flinch back into his seat.
"Ow! What was that for?"
"You don't have that paper bag to protect yourself so you only have yourself to blame-"
"What kind of a reason is that?!"
"But, there is something different about you today, Mono. Not just the fact that you came to school without it, but you're a lot more...aware? Sometimes it was hard to tell if you were really looking at us with a paper bag on." Isabelle added.
Mono scratched the back of his head sheepishly. "Sorry...it must have been weird..."
"Honestly, it feels weirder to see you without it-" RK yelped suddenly upon feeling someone's foot kick into his shin. Isabelle cleared her throat and composed herself.
"Either way, we're happy for you, Mono."
"Thanks." Mono chuckled. He looked around the classroom and then at the empty desk next to Isabelle's. "Trois' not here yet?"
"She went straight to the nurse's office when we came to school." Isabelle explained, gesturing her nose to which Mono nodded in understanding.
"Alright! Everyone please take your seats! I have a special announcement to make!" Miss Diane announced as she entered the classroom with an armful of books. Mono found himself freezing up upon seeing his teacher and fully expected her to wind her neck like a serpent at the slightest sound.
RK elbowed Mono's arm. "Relax. You really think she can stretch her neck like that?"
"Seven." Miss Diane called over sternly. "Do you have something to share with the class?"
RK sat upright in his seat with his shoulders back. "N-No, ma'am."
"Good, because I don't want to keep our new addition to the class waiting longer than necessary." While Miss Diane exited the classroom momentarily to welcome the new student, the classroom erupted into hush whispers and awes of curiosity on what kind of person would be joining their class.
Mono sat in his seat with a pen twirling between his fingers, unfazed by the commotion. Well, partially unfazed. There was something deep down inside of him that hoped for something. Hoped for what, he didn't know, but when his teacher had reappeared from the doorway, followed by the new student, his eyes slowly widened and he swore he could hear his heart pounding in his ears.
"Everyone, I would like to introduce you all to our new friend to our class. Would you like to introduce yourself, dearie?"
The girl in a bright yellow raincoat at the front of the class meekly shifted glances between the class and the floor. Her bangs didn't cover up her eyes and were instead, brushed to the side and held in place with a hair clip. She twiddled her thumbs shyly and in a small voice,
"H-Hello. My name is Six. Pleased to meet you."
Mono dropped his pen. The sound of it hitting the floor was amplified because of the silence towards the new student's introduction, which left him wanting the floor underneath to swallow him whole from how his classmates all turned to him.
"S-S-Sorry!" He managed to squeak out.
His classmates turned their attention back to the front of the classroom through fits of chuckling and giggling, making Miss Diane sigh exasperatedly.
"Mono, how kind of you to volunteer the desk next to yours for Six!"
"...Huh?"
Miss Diane crouched to Six's level and pointed to the desk next to Mono's, to which she nodded obediently. She weaved through the sea of other desks and stopped at her assigned seating before shrugging off her raincoat and folding it over the back of her chair. Mono stole a few glances in Six's direction as if to piece together if somehow, somewhere she was the same Six that appeared in his nightmare.
Same kind of raincoat.
Same short, bob hair.
And her eyes-
Mono sucked in a sharp breath and tore his eyes away when he realized at the last moment that she had caught his gaze.
She snorted, before pulling her chair out to take a seat.
When she pulled out a small music box from her bag and set it on her desk, it took every ounce of restraint for Mono to not jump out of his seat.
--
"Mono, just go and talk to her."
"...I can't. Don't I need a reason to talk to her? I don't want to weird her out."
"Not sure if that's possible when it's you we're talking about." RK snickered. Mono rolled his eyes in annoyance until his head whipped around to see two older kids snatching Six's music box right out of her hands. She frowned deeply and reached out for it, but the kids dangled it over her head, right out of reach.
"Give it back!"
"Heh. I was wondering where that annoying sound was coming from. Cut it out, will ya?"
"No!"
The bully dropped the music box onto the playground and raised her foot over it. "Guess I'll just have to shut it up myself!"
Before Six could shove the girl aside, Mono was already by the bully's side and swiped the music box from under her foot just in time before it was crushed. The older girl gawked at him in disbelief before sizing him up with a smirk. "You have some nerve - what? Are you her knight in shining armor?"
"Ewwww, that must mean he has cooties!" The boy who was with her, mocked. The two burst into laughter while pointing at Mono, but to their surprise, he paid them no mind. He walked past them calmly and placed the music box back into Six's hand.
"Are you OK, Six?"
Six blinked. "Y-Yeah. I'm OK."
"Tch. Let's get out of here. They're a bunch of freaks." The older girl spat before walking away with the boy trailing close behind her. Mono glared at them as they walked out of sight before softening his gaze when he turned to Six.
"Don't listen to them. They're the bullies of this school. Everyone hates them."
Six nodded slowly, still shaken up by what just happened and held her music box close to herself. "Thanks."
"No problem. It would have been an awful first day of school if someone broke your things, huh?"
She huffed in agreement. "I would have kicked her."
Mono snorted at that. Shy on the surface, but wouldn't hesitate to fight back - that was the Six he knew. "Even if you got detention?"
"I don't care."
Yup. That's what he expected from her.
"That music box must be important to you - I was really curious about it when you put it on your desk."
Six looked down at her music box and back up at him. "...Do you want to listen to it?"
Mono beamed. "Is that OK?'
"Mhm." She sat on the ground and leaned against the wall of the school and gestured to the empty spot beside her with her head. Mono took a seat and brought his knees up to his chest and waited for her to wind up the music box before letting the melody fill their ears. With the music box in Six's lap, she leaned her head back and closed her eyes with a small smile on her face.
She opened them suddenly when she noticed Mono humming along to it.
"How do you know this song...?"
Mono smiled to himself. "I think I heard it in a dream. A little dream."