Chapter 1:
There Is No Magic in This World
THE FIRST SIX MONTHS WERE ROUGH. I COULDN’T really move or speak. Someone else had to take care of everything for me. There were some pretty…uncomfortable things that transpired, so I’ll spare you those details.
I mostly slept. My life’s work was to stare vacantly at the ceiling. It was pretty boring.
I got by with hopes for the future. I knew that the older I got, the more I’d be able to do. Eventually, I’d learn about magic. I couldn’t wait.
Seriously, I can’t wait! Argh, I’d gotten so excited that I’d peed myself. Sorry, Mom.
“My goodness, little Shion,” Emma said. “I’ve got to change your diaper!”
Emma was my mother. She was a beautiful woman. As she cared for me, a gentle smile grew on her lips, and her brown hair swayed with her movements.
I wasn’t sure what to call her for a while. I recognized that she was my mother in this world. I settled on calling her Mom, or Emma to myself. Although by the time I can call her anything, I’ll probably just say “Mom.”
Emma changed my diaper with a plucky smile. I’m not sure you could call it a diaper, though. It was basically like normal underwear. It lacked any extra layers or padding, which would have limited the breathability too much.
When Emma finished, she picked me back up. “Shion, you’re the quietest little boy,” she said. “Nothing like Marie.”
Her eyes looked down on me with a hint of worry. It was true—I barely cried or smiled. I mean, I could barely say “goo goo,” much less change my facial expressions. It felt weird for a thirty-year-old geezer like me, who loved a good laugh and joking around.
Sometimes I would smile out of appreciation, but everyone always seemed shocked when I did. So, I decided to not force it from then on.
Emma hushed and cooed while swaying me back and forth in her arms.
“Mom!” A small girl burst through the door. It was my sister. Her name was Marianne, Marie for short. At three years old, she was my senior in this world. She was nothing but mischief. Her springy orange shoulder-length hair shot off her head as if expressing her strong personality. Mom tried to tame and fix her hair every day, but it was always in vain.
“What is it now, Marie?”
“It’s my turn! I wanna carry him!”
Please tell her no, Mom, because if Marie holds me, she’s going to drop me. Last I heard, falling from any height is bad news for a baby. So yeah, say no. Please.
Dear, kind Emma looked troubled.
Uh, Mom? Don’t think about it! Just say no? Say no already!
A chill tingled down my tiny body as Marie tugged on Emma’s skirt. “Please! Please!” she said.
“I’m sorry, Marie,” Emma said. “I don’t think you’re ready for it.”
“Nuh-uh! I can do it!”
You think you can! But you literally can’t!
“Are you sure?” Emma asked.
“Super-duper sure!”
Don’t do it! Don’t listen to her! I can’t die before I’ve used magic! To be reborn into this fantasy world only to die by being dropped on my head would be the worst ending ever!
“I don’t know, Marie. Let’s wait a little longer.”
“B-but I wanna! I wanna hold him!” Marie started to sob.
The sound of crying filled the room. Children are such selfish creatures. It takes them forever to stop crying once they get started.
Flustered, Emma set me down in the bed and turned to my sister. “Marie, you’re the older sister. You have to be a good girl.”
“It’s not fair! Not fair!”
Emma continued to calmly talk to my sister. Her patience was quite impressive. I definitely wouldn’t have been able to stay calm. It took almost half an hour, but Marie finally settled down. Emma stood in front of her with a broad smile.
“You just wanted to play with baby Shion, didn’t you?”
“Yeah.”
“It won’t be long before Shion will start to talk and move around. Can you wait a little longer for him? Right now, we need to protect our baby—all of us.”
“All of us?” Marie asked.
“That’s right. I need your help. You’re the big sister, and I need to count on you.”
“Because I’m the big sister?”
“That’s right.”
Marie grumbled as she rubbed her eyes of its tears. Then she grinned. “Okay,” she said. “I can wait. I’m the big sister!”
“Thank you.” Emma chuckled. “And what a great sister you are!” She patted Marie on the head.
Look at that. I just witnessed my first, beautiful heartwarming scene.
Marie toddled up to my bed. She put her face right up next to mine, then started poking my cheeks. “Get big, Shion!” she chirped.
I get it. I feel the same way, I thought. But for the time being, sister, please cool your jets.
It made my nerves flutter, but I reached my hands out towards Marie. Marie lit up, smiled, and gently squeezed a hand. From behind Marie, Emma warmly watched us.