Seraphim is a Bystander

The Night Before the School Trip

 
“Aoi, are you already done getting ready?”
“Yeah, I’ve double-checked everything too, so I’m good to go.”

Aoi responded while putting away the items he had taken out for confirmation, answering his mother’s concerned question.
Some time had passed since the previous events, and now that their group members and schedule were decided, the long-awaited school trip was finally happening tomorrow.
“Have you managed to get along with the other members in your group?”
“Hmm… Runa-chan and Ken are the same as always, so that’s easy, but… I’ve never really talked with the other three before.”

“Oh my, isn’t that a perfect chance to make some new friends?”
Seeing Aoi looking a bit uneasy, his mother smiled gently and encouraged him.
And she was right, of course.
Still, Aoi couldn’t shake the anxiety that stemmed from not being able to communicate smoothly with the other three group members during their meetings so far—aside from Runa-chan and Ken.
…Though in reality, it was those three who were too nervous around Aoi and Ken to properly interact.

“…Yeah, I need to do my best so that everyone can have fun on the trip!”
“Fufu, Aoi? It’s great that you want everyone to have fun, but make sure you enjoy it too, okay?”
“I will!”

While Aoi was chatting with his mom, Ritsuki came out of her room, rubbing her sleepy eyes.
Aoi placed his packed bag by the door to make it easy to grab in the morning, then walked over to her and spoke.
“What’s wrong, Ritsuki? Did you wake up?”
“…Nii-san, are you not gonna be here tomorrow?”

Smiling, Aoi gently asked, and Ritsuki responded with a lonely expression.
Aoi opened his arms and welcomed her in.
Ritsuki hesitantly walked over, and Aoi picked her up and smiled.
“Onii-chan has a school trip starting tomorrow. I won’t be back for two days, so… wanna sleep together tonight?”
“…Okay.”

Despite feeling lonely, Ritsuki was clearly fighting off sleep as her eyelids drooped.
Aoi and his ⊛ Nоvеlιght ⊛ (Read the full story) mother exchanged amused looks and laughed softly, and Aoi carried Ritsuki to the bed.
He gently laid her down, then lay beside her himself.
While stroking her head with a gentle expression, he set his alarm on silent mode so only he would hear it, making sure not to wake her.
“Good night, Ritsuki. I’ll bring back lots of souvenirs, okay?”
“…Night night, nii-san…”

Aoi continued to stroke her head until she began breathing softly in sleep.
Once he was sure she was asleep, he tucked the blanket over her and finally closed his own eyes.
…Well, I guess I’ve got something to take care of too.
Suddenly, I found myself standing in an unfamiliar place.
Bookshelves stretched far into the distance atop a still water surface, and when I looked up, an endless starry sky spread above me.

Despite how unrealistic the place was—and how I knew I’d never seen it before—I couldn’t help but feel an odd sense of nostalgia.
“Oh? Could it be you remember this place?”
A bell-like voice spoke behind me.
I turned around—and saw an angel.

She had a glowing crown of light hovering above her head and three pairs of wings spread out behind her.
She looked almost like a doll—beautiful, and yet unreal—and she was gazing at me curiously.
“…Um, where is this…?”
“Ah, so you don’t quite remember after all.”

“...?”
The angel stood by an antique-style desk and chair.
She nodded in understanding at my question, then turned the chair toward me and sat down.
She raised her hand toward me and smiled.

“Well, why don’t you take a seat too, Aoi?”
“Eh… but there’s no chair—”
As I turned around, I saw that a matching chair had appeared without me noticing—though I had definitely been standing alone before.
…Was this a dream?

“You can think of it as a dream if you’d like. Your body is sleeping next to Ritsuki right now, after all.”
“Wha—? Wait, did I say that out loud?”
Startled, I looked back at her.
The angel chuckled softly and shook her head.

“This is a dream, so thoughts don’t need to be spoken aloud to be understood. That’s not so strange, right?”
“…I guess that makes sense?”
“Exactly.”

She gave a short reply, then looked behind me and waved as if beckoning something.
In response, a bookshelf slid noiselessly over to her side.
Without even glancing at it, she plucked a book from the shelf and began flipping through it, speaking to me.
“Well, anyway, I brought you here because there’s something I wanted to talk to you about.”

“…You wanted to talk to me?”
“Yep. I don’t know if you’ll remember what we talk about here, but don’t worry—it’s nothing bad for you.”
“I… see. So what did you want to talk about?”

She continued flipping through the pages and answered casually.
“I want you to remember something.”
“Something you want me to remember…?”

Even as she said that, I tried recalling anything important I might have forgotten…
I’ve always had a good memory—if something were important enough to appear in a dream, I wouldn’t have forgotten it.
The school trip, the Futaba family, simulations, my master, my family, the masked criminal…
Even thinking through all those things, I couldn’t find anything I’d forgotten.
“It’s not like you missed an important appointment or anything like that.”

“Then what exactly am I supposed to remember…?”
“How to use your power.”
Her words left me blank.

How to use my power?
That’s something I’ve never once forgotten—not since the moment I decided I wanted to become strong.
“I know. I know just how deeply that desire is rooted in you.”
“…Then what could I have possibly forgotten?”

“It’s simple. If you haven’t forgotten anything since you were aware of yourself, then it must be something you knew before that.”
“…”
…Of course I wouldn’t remember something from before I was conscious.

Sensing my frustration, the angel laughed softly.
“Haha! Don’t make that face. To me, it’s actually stranger that you’ve forgotten something that used to come as naturally as breathing.”
“……???”

“Anyway, I’m giving this to you. With it, you should be able to handle what’s coming starting tomorrow.”
She closed the book and stood up, handing it to me.
I tried to look at the title—
—but the book dissolved into shimmering light and flowed into my body.
“Wha—?! What is this?!”

“It’s okay. It won’t harm you.”
As soon as she said that, my consciousness began to blur, like a haze descending over me.
I could still faintly hear her voice, but it was distorted—too unclear to understand.
“…and…save…him…”

Him…?
Who is he…?
That was the last thought I had before I was swallowed by the dark, melting into the depths of the dream.