章 21: Interlude Part 1

After saying goodbye to Alya and assuring her that he would be looking for new talents, Aiden returns to the temporary house he's staying in. As he enters through the front door, an uncomfortable sensation envelops him as he notices how dark everything is. The place seems deserted, empty of life. "Why is it so dark?" he wonders, frowning as he searches for the light switch. After a few seconds, he finally finds it and turns it on.

"Ha! Congratulations!" a sudden voice exclaims, making Aiden jump. In that moment, a burst of confetti and the sound of a party whistle fill the room. "You've completed your third world!" says Nannyra, with a radiant expression and a tone overflowing with enthusiasm. Aiden, completely surprised, takes a step back, not knowing what to do. Nannyra's sudden appearance and carefree attitude confuse him.

She stares at him intently, a playful smile on her face. "And I still haven't gotten bored of you... that's quite an achievement!!" she says with a light laugh. Then, her gaze becomes more penetrating, and she locks eyes with Aiden. "You haven't even tried using the powers I gave you to overthrow me," she says, as if it's a joke, but with a hint of challenge.

Aiden quickly responds, shaking his head. "No, of course not," he says, somewhat nervously. The idea of challenging Nannyra has never crossed his mind; it doesn't make any sense.

"Good!" Nannyra exclaims, nodding with a satisfied smile. "Because that would be a really stupid idea, right? Who in their right mind would try to challenge a God with the powers that the God himself gives them? Doesn't make sense, right?" Aiden nods in silence, not entirely sure if he understands what she's really implying, but not wanting to dive any deeper into the topic.

"Anyway, back to the matter at hand," Nannyra continues, changing the subject as if nothing happened. "Congratulations on completing your third world!" she says with a smile, showing no concern for Aiden's confusion.

Aiden stays silent for a moment, unsure if this is really something to celebrate. The number three doesn't hold much significance for him. But of course, he's not going to say that to Nannyra. "I appreciate your congratulations," he responds, trying to sound genuine as he offers her a forced smile.

Without missing a beat, Nannyra pulls a small box from her pocket and holds it out to him. "And here's your reward!" she says in a festive tone. Aiden takes the box cautiously and opens it. Inside, he finds a set of keys.

"You've got a house now!" Nannyra exclaims, smiling mischievously. "You won't have to sleep on the streets anymore." Her smile has a playful touch, as if she's enjoying the moment. "Well, unless in the world I sent your character to, they don't have a house. In that case... yeah, you'll have to sleep on the streets," she adds, shrugging carelessly, as if there's nothing she can do about it.

Aiden looks at the keys in his hand, unsure of what to do with them. "So I have a house in this world?" he asks, visibly confused.

Nannyra suddenly bursts out, her eyes shining with excitement. "No! Now you have a house in all the worlds you've been to! And the best part is, they're all connected to each other!" she shouts, waving her hands.

Aiden steps back, a bit stunned by Nannyra's sudden burst of energy. "Where did you come up with that idea?" he asks, still bewildered.

"I stole it from another story!" Nannyra replies with a smile, clearly proud of her revelation.

Aiden stares at her silently for a moment, still processing the magnitude of the information. "Well, I guess that's all for now," says Nannyra, glancing at her watch, suggesting she's in a hurry. "It's time for me to go, I've got work to do," she adds, changing outfits with a flash of light that envelops her, transforming her into a limo driver. "I have to prepare the next world," she explains casually.

"Oh! And before I forget," she adds as she heads for the door, "You need to find Alya and tell her you're staying."

When she says this, Aiden stops her. "Wait!" he exclaims, opening a dimensional space with a gesture of his hand, pulling out a script and quickly flipping to the last page. "It doesn't say I have to do that," he protests, a bit frustrated.

Nannyra stops dead in her tracks, raising an eyebrow. "Well, it's a last-minute change," she says, pointing to the final part of the script that's crossed out and replaced with a new section. "See! Now it's in the script," she says with a satisfied smile.

Aiden frowns. "This isn't right," he says firmly. "You can't keep changing the script," he says, showing the original script, now filled with crossings out and new pages. "Look at this," he adds, pointing to about 30 modified pages. "30 pages wasted because you wanted to add The Flash!"

Nannyra watches him, a mixture of exasperation on her face. "They're called last-minute adjustments, you ignorant fool. And stop repressing my art!" she responds, pouting. "GOODBYE!" And with that, Nannyra storms out, slamming the door.

Aiden sighs, tired. "Ah..." he exhales, feeling the exhaustion take over him. But then something crosses his mind. "The house in this world is still the same one I had to bring Alya to..." He pauses for a moment, reflecting. "Now Alya and Marinette know where I live," he murmurs, resigned. "I'd prefer if nobody bothered me... well, at least no one else knows where I live."

From some corner of existence, Nannyra with a vindictive smile thinks to herself. "Yes... it would be a shame if other people knew where you live," she murmurs to herself. At that moment, all the business cards Aiden had left during his travels magically transform. On each one, the address of his house corresponding to the world they are in appears.

"It would be a shame if people bothered you in your free time! HAHAHAHA!" Nannyra laughs maliciously.

[The Kuroki Family's House]

Mrs. Kuroki is getting ready to go shopping, while her thoughts revolve around her family, especially Tomoko. Her behavior has improved since Aiden, the temporary babysitter, stayed with her that day. She has changed in several ways, especially in the less healthy aspects. She now sleeps better, no longer has those dark circles under her eyes, and, what surprises her the most, is that her obsession with "video games" has decreased. When asked why, Tomoko simply says, "Those things can't compare to reality," although Mrs. Kuroki isn't entirely sure what she means by that. Something inside her tells her it's better not to find out.

Everything has gone fairly well, at least during the first few weeks. As Mrs. Kuroki finishes organizing her thoughts, she grabs her purse to head out for groceries. Just as she approaches the door, she hears footsteps running toward her.

"Are you going out?!" Tomoko asks, running toward her mother in an exaggerated manner.

"Ah... yes, Tomoko, I'm going out," she responds with a sigh, tired of this routine that is starting to become more and more annoying. Although Tomoko's behavior has improved in some ways, in others it has gotten worse. Now, every time she has to leave, Tomoko insists on calling Aiden to take care of her.

"Then, you're going to call him!" Tomoko demands, a strange smile on her face.

Mrs. Kuroki, visibly annoyed, raises her fist and hits Tomoko on the head. "Enough! I'm not going to call him to look after you just because I'm going out for an hour," she says, frustrated.

"It doesn't have to be a full hour... 30 minutes is enough!" Tomoko insists, her voice full of frustration.

Without thinking too much, Mrs. Kuroki responds with another hit to the head. "AH!" Tomoko lets out a small cry of pain and falls to the floor, looking at her mother with tears in her eyes.

"You don't need a babysitter, Tomoko! In fact, I don't even think we'll need one again!" Her mother's words strike straight at Tomoko's heart, leaving her wounded inside as she crawls to her mother's feet. Her voice trembles, and her eyes fill with tears. "But… please, if it's about money, I'll pay for it myself!"

Mrs. Kuroki looks at her disapprovingly, leaving her on the floor before heading for the door. "Stop being so dramatic," she says coldly, before leaving the house to go shopping, leaving Tomoko crying on the floor.

Her brother Tomoki watches the entire interaction with a disgusted look on his face. He doesn't bother asking what's going on, just jumps over his sister Tomoko, who is still lying on the floor, to leave as well. But he stops dead when he feels something grab his leg. Tomoki hears a trembling voice.

"Are you abandoning me too?!" Tomoko screams, looking at her brother with tears in her eyes.

Tomoki, with an annoyed expression, jerks his leg, trying to break free from her grip. "Let go, weirdo! I have things to do," he says, frustrated, as he tries to free himself from his sister's hold.

"I'm not a weirdo! Aiden doesn't think I'm a weirdo!!" Tomoko yells, gritting her teeth in fury.

Tomoki is already tired of all this. At first, when he came back from camp, things seemed to have improved. His sister became less annoying, leaving him alone for much longer. But then she started talking about that so-called Aiden. And the more he listened, the more convinced he became that he didn't exist.

"Stop bothering me with your imaginary boyfriend!" he growls, fed up with hearing his sister's fantasies.

"He's real!" Tomoko says, holding on tighter to her brother's leg. "He's tall, has white hair, his body is sculpted by the gods themselves. He's an expert at many things! He loves me! And he's a great lover!" Tomoko screams through tears and snot, her voice cracking.

"Then go bother him and leave me alone," Tomoki says, kicking and pulling away from his sister.

"I can't, I don't have his number!" she responds, as tears begin to roll down her cheeks, almost uncontrollably.

At that moment, Tomoki remembers something. He remembers seeing a babysitter service card in his mother's room when he went to ask her something. "Hmm… I think mom has his card in her room…" he murmurs. But he immediately covers his mouth, remembering that his mother had shown her refusal to call the babysitter service.

Tomoko, upon hearing that, desperately crawls across the floor like a cockroach, quickly climbing the stairs to her parents' room. She slams the door open and rushes to the drawers, pulling out clothes and throwing them around the room.

Her brother, who has followed her and knows he'll be partly responsible for all this, tries to stop her. "Get out of here!" he orders, though his tone reveals his annoyance.

She doesn't listen. She continues searching frantically. Until, finally, she finds it. The card.

"Ahhh!" Tomoko screams, feeling the pressure of her brother's hand as he grabs her head with a firm grip.

"Enough!" he tells her, taking the card and throwing it out of their parents' room. Then, he stands still, looking at the mess, knowing he'll have to clean everything up.

"And don't come in!" he says, looking at his sister, who remains on the floor.

"BAM!" The door slams shut as Tomoko lies there on the floor.

"Ajjajaja... JAJAJAJA," Tomoko starts to laugh lightly, then louder. "Stupid brother!" she thinks to herself, a mischievous smile spreading across her face. "I've memorized the address! Now nothing can separate us, my destined love!"

-/-

Author's note:

Did Tomoko's parts make you cringe? I hope so, reading the manga Watamote is killing me inside. Does this mean I'm publishing the other chapters? Not really, but I wanted to publish something. This chapter was longer, but I think I'll split it into two and add an R-18 scene.

Also, I came up with the best idea ever, though I'm not sure how to implement it, but I'll get to it eventually. Sit down, breathe, and listen to my idea * drumroll *: Voltron: The Legendary Defender and (Horde Prime from She-Ra: Princess of Power / The Clone Empire from Star Wars). I'm not sure which one, but the important part is the clones and the galactic empire.

I also had an idea for Naruto-R63. I'm almost certain I'll cross it with Sun Wukong. I mean, he already has similar powers, clones, cracks jokes... and the rest.

Comment something, I love reading ideas.

Kisses and hugs.