I Fell In Love With A Girl Who Died Before I Was Even Born

"You two are lucky I'm benevolent," Lana said. "But as kind as I am, and I'm feeling particularly nice this evening, I didn't bring you here so you could make out with your ghost girlfriend."

Yuki blushed, but I turned towards Lana with a look of resigned anger.

"So why did you bring me here anyway?" I asked. "Where are we? And don't say the Nightlands, as if that's a real answer. That's not an answer. I mean everything. All of this. What is this place, Lana?"

Lana took her weird Moon coin, she held it in front of me, and then she flipped it again.

"Let's have a change of scene for this," she said.

The coin rotated above us, then I saw our surroundings change. One second it was day, then it was night. Around us, the world became a blur of motion, perfectly timed with the speed the coin above us spun.

It reminded me of being on the bus when I first came here about a week ago. Days and nights went by as quickly as one could think.

Then it slowed down, and I found myself in a very familiar place.

We were in mine and Yuki's room.

"Oh," I heard Yuki say. "Well, that's convenient. I wish I could do that. I'm used to floating, but that's even easier by far."

I grinned, but I agreed with her.

"Any reason you brought us here?" I asked, sitting on my bed and trying to shake away lingering dizziness.

Lana sat on the chair beside my desk, kicked her feet up, and leaned back as far as the chair would allow.

"I thought you'd appreciate something cozy for a brief chat," she said.

Oh boy.

I saw a glimmer of amusement flash in her eyes.

"What's wrong?" she teased. "Don't you like our little chit-chats?"

I shook my head.

"You always make me feel like I'm some kind of bug or insect trapped under a microscope."

She just looked at me sympathetically.

"You're a Star Trek fan, right?"

I thought of that.

"Yeah," I said. "I guess I used to be. At least, when I was Andy and I was a 44 year old guy in West Virginia."

That made her laugh.

"See, Ryu, part of the problem you create for yourself is that you see it like that at all. You're still you. Maybe with a fresh coat of paint, or a different pair of socks if you want to use the whole 'clothing' metaphor."

Yuki looked at me and tilted her head.

"I think I get it," she said.

She pointed at me, playfully bopping me on the nose with her finger.

"You're still you, Ryu. She didn't change anything about you when she brought you here from wherever you were from."

Lana laughed.

"Watch out, girlfriend, otherwise you'll get emo dragon over there nostalgic about a song named 'Country Roads.'"

Yuki walked over.

Strange. Even in the dream, I could feel her footsteps vibrating through the onsen's ancient floorboards, and I knew it was just an illusion, created by kitsune magic and my own brain, but feeling her was comforting.

"What is the place you brought me to even?" I asked. "Why does everything here look and feel so… old?"

I saw the corners of Lana's mouth, already grinning, pull even more and solidify into a real smile.

"You noticed that, huh? Well… remember when I said I had this world made for you? I did, and it was, but, I gotta work with what I've got. Understand?"

I shook my head.

"No. I don't get it at all. What the hell are you talking about?"

I expected her to get defensive, but she just laughed it off.

"Okay, try to follow. You get that I'm a real kitsune, right? With amazing magical powers. 'By the power of Grayskull,' and everything."

If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

Finally. A real answer.

"Sure. You're a very powerful magical being. You had wherever you brought me created for me. By who? For what?"

She giggled like a damn schoolgirl playing a prank and waved her hand dismissively.

"By who? What? You think I got my phone out and placed a stupid order? Think there's an app for world creating? Sid Meier's Genesis? Wow… I had it made for you because I wanted it made for you. And since I wanted it done…"

She drew a breath as if she were tired of explaining things to a snot-nosed brat.

"Look, I used what I could get my hands on at the time. So what if the parts aren't all brand-name? It works, right? I used leftovers, Ryu. Sorry. You might have to scrape some mold off the bread, but it's still edible… mostly."

I blinked.

What the hell was that supposed to mean anyway?

"Moldy bread? Leftovers?" I muttered, trying to piece it together.

She just nodded, like she'd put the final piece of the puzzle into place for me and was just waiting for me to look at it.

"So… you had this place built from a bunch of old… garbage?"

She winked and snapped her fingers.

"Bingo! Right out of the gate! Give the man a cigar, cause you hit the ball right out of the park!"

I felt my throat burn.

"…So it's not real," I said. "It's just… some stitched-together dream."

Anger flashed across the kitsune's normally playful face.

"Oh, you did not just tell me my world isn't real," she said.

Her fist came down on the desk, smacking it hard enough to make Yuki jump and gasp.

"You arrogant asshole!" Lana yelled at me, getting to her feet straight away.

My eyes opened wide, shocked to see her so angry.

"What in the hell makes you think that sick, sad little world you came from was the quote unquote 'real' world? Huh?"

She tilted her head, letting her fiery red and orange hair fall dramatically over one side of her face. Her nose trembled in frustration.

I put my hands up, trying to show her I didn't mean anything by it.

"Hey, I'm really sorry! I-I didn't realize—"

But she interrupted me.

"Everything real was a dream once," Lana said, sternly, though she seemed to be calming herself down.

She took a breath.

Yuki looked from me to her, and the tension began to leave the room. Then I felt her cool, smooth hand slide into mine, and I laced my fingers around hers.

"I guess I should be sorry too," Lana said. "You hit a nerve there. I'm, um, sorta used to getting that kinda crap from some other… let's just say 'others.' But my point is valid. How do you know the 'West Virginia' or the 'United States' or 'Earth' or 'the solar system' or even 'the Milky Way' is the real one?"

It was my turn to glance at Yuki.

"She does have a point, in a roundabout way," Yuki offered.

Yeah. Damn it.

"So, you're saying that I don't come from the 'original' or the 'authentic' world to begin with?"

Lana rolled her eyes and gestured for the two of us to follow her.

"I didn't say that," she teased. "Don't put words in my mouth, you naughty American boy. Let's get a drink for this next part. Oh, and don't forget to stretch first. Because next? We're dancing."

Before I could say anything, she flipped the moon in her hand like a coin again. I felt Yuki's hand tighten around mine as the room began to spin.

"Lana!" I yelled. "Where are you taking us?"

But she didn't answer. Instead, she began to laugh, and the world kept on spinning.

I looked around the room once the world stood still again.

We were inside a run down, grungy dance hall. I could plainly see the footprints from a thousand dusty shoes on the floor. Sticky spots from spilled soda contrasted nicely with crumbs and grease spots.

If I had to guess, I'd say Lana brought Yuki and me to Dick's Discotheque.

And this place was every bit as dirty as the reputation that preceded it.

At least I didn't see any cockroaches. Yet.

Which made me wonder, was I not seeing them because they weren't here or just because this was a dream?

"Shion wanted to show me Dick's first," I said.

Lana just brushed my comment off.

"She did show you Dick's," she said. "The other night. I know you haven't forgotten, and technically, this is 'dream' Dicks, so you're not even really here."

Yuki stepped onto the dance floor, her ice-blue eyes were wide, taking in everything around her.

"This place is marvelous!" she exclaimed. "Ryu, just look at everything. Have you ever seen such beautiful colored lights?"

Stepping closer to the center of the discotheque, I saw what she meant.

A gigantic disco ball, covered in thousands of tiny mirrors, hung suspended above the middle of the dance floor. It was surrounded by speakers and small, multi-colored lights of all shapes and sizes. Above that, a mass of wires that would've driven an electrician insane.

"It's not like that in real life, is it?" I asked.

Lana just grinned and shrugged.

Inego stepped out of the shadows and onto the dance floor, and suddenly, music began to play.

Familiar music.

"Come on, old chum. Don't be a wallflower. We haven't got all night," Inego said, gesturing for me to join him.

I turned to Lana.

"What's going on?"

She sighed.

"You sound like a broken record. Look, your friend, Inego, is here, and he's going to teach you how magic works. You've learned enough of the basics in school by now," she said.

I had?

She rolled her eyes at me.

"Your 'music appreciation' class."

I glanced up at Inego, who just nodded in agreement with her.

"You remember how I showed you how spells are performed," he said. "If you're going to actually do that, then you've got to learn how to dance."

I looked back at Lana for a moment.

"Oh my god," I said. "You guys are serious about this."

She sighed.

"Andy," she began. "Ryu. What the hell ever. Look, believe it or not, you've gotten involved in things since you've been here. Hell, from where I am, it looks like you're even beginning to like it here."

I shrugged my shoulders.

I was getting used to it.

She raised her eyebrows, like she was thinking, then she continued.

"You don't have the benefit of being born into this world though, so we're playing catch up in your dreams. Inego's going to teach you about magic."

Before I got on the dance floor, I had one more question.

"Why Inego?"

Lana's mouth curled into a smile.

"Look, it's not a big deal," she said. "It doesn't mean anything. Seriously. Just because your best guy friend showed up in your dreams and is going to teach you how to dance doesn't mean you're gay or anything, you big poofer."

I rolled my eyes.

"That's not what I meant."

Inego answered instead.

"Then what did you mean? I'm dream Inego, after all. It's not like the real Inego's going to remember dancing with you or anything."

I shook my head.

"Not what I meant either," I said. "I just meant, like, why you and not Hibana?"

I felt someone tap my shoulder.

"I'll tell you why," said Hibana out of nowhere.

Before I could even register surprise, faster than possible, her fist was in the air, mere centimeters from my face.