Archive of Our Own

It was another beautiful early evening in ENA’s dimension, the sky setting into a mature cheddar coloured orange, a chill in the air from the shy sun. The polygon girl herself strided closer and closer to her apartment complex, Glass House, the coconut bar of properties. Hovering next to her was a planet referred to as Moony.

“Bless you again for walking me back home from ballet class, dearest Moony”

“Yea sure. It can be a pain in the neck having to race against the weather clock. You’re gonna remember to eat, right?”

“Affirmative. All that pirouetting has made me hungry”

Through the glass doors they went, finally feeling a bit of warmth on their shells. The entrance lobby was white, almost futuristic with a bit of the 90s sprinkled in. Behind her desk and clicking away on her computer was the landlady, KeeKa, a pale skinned woman with black hair that reached the top of her shoulders, complete with a lopsided fringe covering most of her forehead. Her clothing consisted of the professional type, a white blouse with a black blazer jacket done up, a pencil skirt that reached her knees and high heels. The main feature was her face, nothing more than a blank slate. Her lack of expression didn’t stop ENA from greeting her though.

“Lovely weather again today, KeeKa”

In response, KeeKa suddenly twirled up a mask the same colour as her skin, a mask which loitered on the end of a slick wooden stick. It was her facial features, finally bringing out the black colour in her calm eyes. While speaking in a low British accent and the voice of a telephone, she tilted her mask from side to side like a clock pendulum.

“Welcome back, ENA, Moony. Have you managed to settle into your new apartment yet, ENA?”

“Well she hasn’t been crying herself to sleep anymore” guessed Moony. “That could explain why there’s a lot of cardboard boxes in the recycling”

“Have you found the Easter egg yet?” KeeKa then questioned ENA.

ENA in response tilted her head to the side with her hands to her hips, a question mark next to her.

“An Easter egg?”

“I’m certain you’ll find it soon,” the landlady assured her. “By the way, there’s been a lot of thefts lately. Let us know if you amble across anything suspicious”

“Will do, KeeKa” agreed ENA, already being dragged to the lift by Moony.

“Have a nice evening” concluded KeeKa.

The inside of the lift contained brown walls with a silver floor. Stalking the girls from behind was a full view mirror with a shiny railing.

“Thefts?” questioned ENA as they eventually left the elevating chamber. “How long has this been going on?”

“Sucks to be them”

“A--Am I next?”

“Unlikely”

Moony rolled her single eye.

“No way is that hoarder gonna even be bothered to sneak up to the highest floor. He’d probably be tired the moment he reached halfway. Ohohoho!”

The corridor they walked through felt so long and liminal, the wooden spiralled floorboards not even creaking at the weight of ENA’s feet, the beige and maroon triangles staring at them from the walls.

It wasn’t a long walk to ENA’s door, it’s hard smooth wooden material beckoning her to enter-- that along with her stomach.

“Well we better split. Try to actually stand up to your ballet teacher next time, sport. Chores are dumb”

“See you tomorrow, Moony!”

ENA entered her apartment and took her shoes off. Just polite things. This was an apartment she had moved into a week ago, designed by the landlord and landlady themselves. How very kind of them. Like any entity, she was aching with anxiety of having to move out and take on her own responsibilities. It was a good thing she was still on the same floor as her parents, siblings, cousins, aunts, uncles. That’s a lot!

Just as soon as the door closed, an adorable canine scampered over to her. It was the Hourglass Dog she and Moony won from that one auction, now with a yellow and blue collar so she could be identified. Yes I said she.

“Hi, Bud!”

With her shoes now off, ENA couched down and patted Bud on the head, the dog’s stumpy tail wagging and tongue sticking out.

“Did you miss me?”

Bud let out a short whimper.

“It must be the dinner hour. Would you like some food?”

The instant mention of dinner caused the dog’s floppy ears to perk up-- and for her mouth to do the rest.

“Ok, silly kibbles coming right up”

That auction prize was a big catch indeed, a lucky hookline from Runas himself. Bud had saved ENA from going insane. With guidance from the Hourglass Dog, it was the polygon girl’s job to wake up and take good care of her, food, fun and comfort. In return, Bud was the ambiance to the empty air, a loyal companion thick and thin.

The moment ENA poured silly kibbles into her dog bowl, Bud happily nibbled down.

“That’s a good girl”

The skirt wearing being then heard her own sharply edged stomach rumbling, prompting her to place her blue hand to the source for inspection.

“Actually, hunger is rumbling over me too. Moony’s right. I must replenish myself. It’s a good thing I found the time to buy ingredients before discovering the Fun Door’s present day interior. Whatever happened to Madame Moisell?”

Rambling again, are we, ENA? If she kept doing so then she wouldn’t have the chance to batch something up.

On the door of her fridge was a number generator, an extension to help her decide what to have for dinner or a snack. It was a good thing she would often order her favourite ingredients from the globe inside her window screen known as the computer. People would give her an allergic reaction. Today's special was onion ramen. Wait! Onion? I thought she hated vegetables. Well from what she was told, overexposure therapy was used to get over a phobia. ENA decided to take part in this rather slowly, adding just one vegetable to the main dish.

It was rather hard to dice up the onion without letting her blue side mope over stinging eyes. Preparing the rest however was a piece of cake. All she had to do was boil the noodles in a rolling saucepan of hot water, slice up her choice of meat (and remember to wash her hands afterwards, because you don’t know where raw meat has been) and grill the chopped up ingredients on a wire rack. It was a relief that she took catering lessons with her brother, or she would’ve started a fire. How unlucky would that be?

Her apartment smelled so delicious, ranging from chicken to pork. She at one point almost passed out from the beeping noise of the fire alarm, but again, no fire. It just got a little bit smokey. At least this smoke was pleasant to swim in. The smoke these days was not only unbearable but deadly. From what she heard on the news, cigarette smoke was rapidly growing from door to door. Hopefully, it wouldn’t slink into her map. Her neighbourhood was often clean and fresh.

Cigarette smoke was nasty, but noodle smoke was delicious, so delicious that you could cut it with a knife, but ENA didn’t want to spoil her dinner on smoke when she could just replenish her need with a proper meal.

As the sun continued to set, the innocent one gracefully slurped up her ramen, though rather quietly. She knew it actually wasn’t really that rude to slurp, but her days back in school would never fail an attempt at mind melding her beliefs. It was as if those teachers had security cameras in her head, but at least they couldn’t discriminate against her anymore. ENA was an adult now, a young adult, 20 years alive. Sure she still lived near her parents and other extended family, but she now had her own independence, her own apartment, her own life, so why was she still receiving ridicule? Surely these entities would learn to respect her after everything she did for them. At least her family was proud of her which encouraged her to keep moving forwards, and her therapist had given her some wise words of wisdom. She could find the greatest of fun in the little moments.

One of which she had eventually finished savouring, the dream BBQ, the mayonnaise, what about the onions?

“Ahh, that was a fairly tasty dish”

Said sigh of satisfaction was suddenly met with a mysterious odor which just appeared from under her nose only for it to clear again. That was strange. ENA thought only strange things occurred outside of Glass House. Her apartment was her safe zone where nothing peculiar could happen. Oh well. At least the smell was gone now, so she got up and placed her bowl inside a sink of warm water. If she left it submerged in there for a while, then it would be easier to clean. In the meantime, she could just scrub at her chopsticks before eventually moving onto her bowl, all while she wore her gloves by the way. Even ENAs hate the wet texture of dishwater.

Once she was done, the same odor returned as she disgustedly smacked her lips at the aftertaste of onion. ENA sniffed deeply, her head scanning for the source of the smell. It turned out to be her, first coming from her own triangular mouth. Her blue side gagged at the reveal and instantly covered her mouth as her eyes were washed with static, yet the smell was still there, even closer. Was her skin the source?

“Ooh, my pores!”

ENA began dramatically rubbing her face in despair.

“They’re so wet and slippewy!”

Her hands then slid to her hair, the tips of her fingers scratching the scalp harshly.

“It’s so gweasy! I wanna die!”

The static blur washed to her eyes again and her happy side came back with the antidote to her unwanted aura. ENA casually stretched her arms out.

“Ahhhh. Time for my first bath here in my new home”

While ENA’s new kitchen had a slight rustic terracotta feel, her bathroom was open to more natural lighting and fresh aquatic cleanliness that could even wash your soul. Both her walls and floor were blue, the walls sparkly while her flooring had the same appearance as water. It was as if it were frozen under her tiles.

ENA’s bathroom was always clean and sparkly. Afterall, presentation was important whenever the landlords or landladies would announce their apartment inspection and maintenance in order to check if living environments were pleasant. One example was her shower and tub, both connected together, sitting inside an alcove.

ENA entered a glass cuboid and stared up at the shower nozzle resembling a colourful flower. It took her a while to get use to a new shower, but she was able to acclimatise eventually. However, this would be her first time ever using her new bath, a bath that was as deep as the shallow end of the pool, wide yet still keeping that triangular shape with room for her legs.

ENA stared down at it, tapping her chin with curiosity. If she now had the knowledge of using her new shower, she could work out how her new bath worked too.

“Now the beginning is usually inside the faucets, true?”

ENA leaned her upper body over the bath and hovered her polygon arm over to the hot tap. After the first turn of the handle, said tap began to shake. Has there been a kink in the pipes? Suddenly, something squeezed their way out of the tap, something pastel pink, baby blue and rubbery. Once they had finished inflating themselves, an unfamiliar creature fell out, sliding down the side of the bath happily. ENA instantly turned off the tap for better inspection.

“Well this is out of the ordinary”

The creature turned out to be a small inflatable mood octopus with its own little blow nozzle thankfully sealed shut, and her facial expressions were rather cute and kawaii, just like her voice.

“おめでとうございます!/Omedetou gozaimasu! 見つけたね!/Mitsuketa ne! 私は君のアパートのイースターエッグ、オクティで、君のバスルームの助手になるよ!/Watashi wa kun no apaato no iisutaa eggu, okuti de, kimi no basuruumu no joshu ni naru yo!” (Congratulations! You’ve found me! I’m your apartment Easter egg, Octi, and I’ll be your bathroom helper!)

“Umm, salutations, Octi. My my! Such a daring coincidence if I may say so--”

“待って!/Matte! えな?/ENA?” (Wait! ENA?)

Octi innocently crawled her way closer.

“君がルームメイトになるって分かってたよ!/Kimi ga ruumumeito ni naru tte wakatteta yo! 暖かい水分補給用チャンバーに浸かるためにここに来たのですか?/Atatakai suibun hokyuuyou chanbaa ni tsukaru tame ni koko ni kita no desu ka?” (I knew I’d have you as my roommate! Are you here to submerge yourself inside a nice warm hydration chamber?)

“The bathtub? Oh! Well you see, my inflatable minion, I-- don’t know how”

“どうやってやるか分からないってどういう意味ですか?/Dou yatte yaru ka wakaranai tte dou iu imi desu ka? 学ぶ時です/Manabu toki desu. まずプラグを穴に差し込みましょう/Mazu puragu o ana ni sashikomimashou” (What do you mean you don’t know how? It’s time to learn. Let’s start by inserting the plug into the hole)

Oh silly ENA! How could she ever forget about the plug? It was the only way of keeping the water intact.

Once finished with the plug, ENA was then tasked with turning on the hot tap. As it started to run a white stream of water, she then had to pour in some bubble bath, this one a refreshing neon blue with the scent of a raspberry ice shushie. Above them both was a loading bar with a long way to go.

“これには少し時間がかかるかもしれません、 ENA/Kore ni wa sukoshi jikan ga kakaru kamo shiremasen、 ENA. このレシピにはすぐに冷水が必要です/Kono reshipi ni wa sugu ni reisui ga hitsuyou desu. この時間を使って寝室で服を脱いでください/Kono jikan o tsukatte shinshitsu de fuku o nuide kudasai” (This might take a while, ENA. Cold water is needed for this recipe soon. Make this the time to undress in your bedroom)

Despite the running tap, ENA could still overhear her bee buzzer bell ring from the kitchenette.

“I keep forgetting how weird my buzzer sounds. I shall return in a few clickety clacks”

With that, ENA left Octi to babysit the bath while she answered the door. Upon opening it, she was met with an invisible funhouse mirror, another version of herself staring back outside. It was another ENA, this one with a different colour palette, red on her left, a silver white on her right with a tad bit of a blue shadow above. Her eyes were also different, both of which triangular, cheerful on the red side while scowling on the white with a single eyelash. Her clothing resembled the type of Japanese school uniform worn by the older youth, consisting of a white blouse splashed with very very light pink, dark green shorts, red and pink stripy suspenders and a green student cap with grey binding around it complete with a badge at the front. Her footwear was black, the usual shoe and boot, only slightly lighter, almost dark green. Her hair was also black, the usual neat bob, only shorter than the original. She still kept the ahoge though, the frozen butterfly hovering above her hat. Her red hand lacked the four fingers, resembling a mitten while her polygon hand contained pointy claws.

Held in both hands was a brown package.

“Package for my fellow brethren. You must be new here”

“I moved out of my parent’s apartment a week ago. Much obliged”

Worker ENA gave her the package, triangle eyeing her down.

“You um-- you look familiar. Do I know you?”

“Well chug me down! I haven’t seen you since our 18th ENA Day! Has life been nice to you?”

“It’s absolute hell right now, but a lot of hard work can go a long way. How do you make a living?”

“Um-- disability welfare-- and ballet”

“Your parents must be super chill. Lucky. You should see mine. Tell me, have you ever attempted to venture into the portal of hell at the far end of this corridor?”

“The boarded up room? None of us are allowed to break inside. KeeKa informed us all that it’s off limits for eternity”

“Oh if only I knew. Well I swear on my life that I shall never return to the door again. Bless you for your business”

As innocent ENA started closing the door, worker ENA suddenly placed her mitten hand on the front.

“By the way, who is this KeeKa you speak of?”

“She’s the landlady. You may question her at reception if she has her mask on”

“I’ll write that in my notes. Happy wiggles”

The delicate ENA took the package to her bedroom and placed it on her bed, the sky a dark orange through her windows.

“How puzzling. Since when did I order a package? I’ve only moved in recently”

She then checked the address on the box.

ENA Happy/Sad

414 Glass House

Insert dimension here

“Perhaps this is a welcome gift. How very kind”

There was nothing else to do with the package except carefully open it. Brushing away the outdated newspaper gave her a video camcorder that was grey.

“What a nostalgic gift! I use to obtain one of these!”

ENA hugged the camera to her blue cheek when she suddenly noticed a crack on the lens.

“A cwack? I’ve been pwanked! Whoevew sent this must hate me! I’m sure I can fix it up. Maybe the property owners have knowledge in camera maintenance”

A gasp escaped from her mouth with blue teeth.

“The bath!”

After placing her new(ish) camera on a shelf, ENA retreated into her walk-in wardrobe, reemerging now in her white fluffy bathrobe with matching slippers. In this new form, she returned to the bathroom to find condensation on the inside of the glass cuboid.

“Oh my! Octi must be breathless in there!”

Opening the door encouraged the gentle steam to float out, yet Octi seemed right as rain. The loading bar meanwhile was half full (or empty).

“冷たい水の準備はできてる, ENA?/Tsumetai mizu no junbi wa dekiteru, ENA?” (Ready for the cold water, ENA?)

Thanks to the magic of the bubble bath, the silk white water from the tap would transform into blue water. The same thing happened for the cold tap too which didn’t have as much run time as its counterpart. Nobody would want a too cold bath during a time when the weather’s climate started to decrease.

Once the temperature was at her personal preference and loading was complete, ENA turned off both taps. Now all Octi had to do was to taste it. Thanks to her helium bloodstream, she was able to float above the surface after splooshing in.

“新しいバスタブでの最初のレッスンにおいて、あなたは第一レベルを突破しました!/Atarashii basutabu de no saisho no ressun ni oite, anata wa daiichi reberu o toppa shimashita! それでは中に飛び込んで!/Sore de wa chuu ni tobikonde! 水がとてもきれいです/Mizu ga totemo kirei desu” (For your first lesson on your new bathtub, you’ve made it past the first level! Jump inside then! The water’s lovely)

There was a hook on the inside of the shower door where ENA hung her bathrobe, leaving her slippers outside. There was also a shower radio connected to the wall in the shape of a hot pink flower, right there to filter out the voices inside her head. By now, she was already bathed in the waterbed of blue heaven.

“Ahhh, this is life. There’s nothing like an evening bath”

As steam continued to rise from the triangular porcelain cauldron, ENA would dip her hair completely underwater while Octi offered assistance. This inflatable friend had the ability to gently shoot multiple small spouts of water from her face, all without a connection to a hose pipe. These thin sprays would tickle ENA's split coloured skin, prompting a childish laugh, just so long as she didn't get anything in her mouth.

The texture of ENA's hair was hard to describe, identify even, but to Octi, it was satisfying to tackle. Clearly, she cared more about the health of her hair than her will to live. What ENA never knew was that an inflatable octopus massaging chocolate milk flavoured shampoo into her hair was an act of self improvement rather than a distraction. She had plenty of time to relax and melt her stress away.

She even had enough time to dry her hair, this time by herself with a hairdryer. ENA wore her towel and stood in front of her sink, a reflection of her former self staring back through her wall mirror. Her hair swayed strong to her right like a flag in a gale while her happy side cheerfully hummed in her usual masculine tone.

After a quick brush, ENA entered her bedroom and immediately dove right into her walk-in wardrobe, reemerging with cute lounge pyjamas consisting of a pink jumper, black shorts and pink and light blue socks that reached near the top of her lower thighs. She was as fluffy as a space marshmallow.

The sky had now darkened to a beautiful indigo, prompting ENA to treat herself for surviving another bizarre day. Once her electric kettle had finished boiling, the polygon girl carefully poured soothing water into a mug with a teabag inside. This was a special kind of tea with the magical herbs that could help her sleep.

Once finished, she carefully hovered to her living room and placed her mug on her coffee table. Despite her silent footsteps, her Hourglass Dog could still hear her. Bud paused from tugging at her rope and scampered closer, all while ENA settled herself on the cushy sofa and covered her body in her fleece blanket. She sighed comfortably while Bud jumped onto her lap.

“Hiya, Bud”

The cosy little polygon girl floated her blue arm over to her bookshelf and brought a book back to her. This was a book she had just started and despite only knowing the prologue, she was already hooked on it. Shell Biscuits: a tale of the inhabitants under the sea of code-- and the importance to know how the cookie crumbles. ENA happily yet calmly flipped through pages, pausing to sip her warm herbal tea, all while her Hourglass Dog stayed curled up on her lap.

What a peaceful evening. After stretching herself to the limit through the afternoon, she could finally get lost in her own imagination. In fact, she got a bit carried away.

Time had passed like multiple grains of sand, and ENA had now found her book over her face. She took it off then lolled her head to her right, inspecting the time on her hourglass clock. The sand had about roughly two more hours to go before it would flip itself over to midnight.

“Holey smoked cheddar. It's getting late”

Bud meanwhile slowly brought her head up, just eyeing the owner who added her bookmark and placed her cup and saucer in the kitchenette sink at the same time. Oh the perks of having your limbs detached. ENA yawned before picking up her blanket and dog and got up from the sofa. Her next destination wasn't her bedroom yet.

“Just a quick wash up first”

***

Aside from almost falling asleep on the toilet, all ENA had to do was brush whatever teeth she had and take her nausea medication. That way, her stomach wouldn't interrupt her quick hibernation. While partaking in her skincare routine, Octi, the octopus who perched on the edge of her sink, finally noticed the adorable ball of sleeping custard behind the bathroom owner.

“あなたが砂時計の犬を飼っているとは知りませんでした/Aww, anataga sunatokeno inuo katteirut owa shirimasen’deshita” (Aww, I didn't know you owned an Hourglass Dog, ENA)

“Isn't she cute? My closest friend and I found her at an auction. She goes by the name of Bud”

“いつかあなたの親しい人たちに会いたいです/Itsuka anatano shitashi hitotachini aitaidesu. あなたの薬はどのような癒しをもたらすのか、聞いてもいいですか?/Anata no kusuri wa dono you na iyashi o motarasu no ka、 kiite mo ii desu ka?” (I’d love to meet your close ones someday. Mind if I ask what source of healing your pills bring to you?)

“These were prescribed by the Mistress. She was my doctor who helped me start life anew. I get sickly so I task myself with nausea tablets to ease stomach static. It all started when I was in elementary school. I was invited to my first ever slumber party by a humorous mime named Merci. It was horrible! Her mummy made me eat veggies!”

“あなたはまだこのMerciの存在を見たことがありますか?/Anata wa mada kono Merci no sonzai o mimasu ka?” (Do you still see this Merci entity?)

“Afraid not. We lost touch after that very night, though we had a brief reunion inside the Chair Door. Oh it would be so exciting to meet again. I hope she doesn’t hate me”

“彼女がどこにいても、毎日あなたを恋しく思っていると思います/Kanojo ga doko ni ite mo, mainichi anata o koishiku omotte iru to omoimasu” (Wherever she is, I reckon she misses you every day)

Her blanket still wrapped around her, ENA finished up on her skincare routine and placed her lotion bottles back in her mirror cabinet, a yawn following after.

“さて、ENA?/Sate、 ENA? そろそろ少し仮眠をとる時間だ/Sorosoro sukoshi karimin o toru jikan da” (Well, ENA? It’s about time you snack on some winks)

“Indeed. The heybarn is calling me”

After rubbing her diamond eye, ENA picked up her dozing doggie.

“Until the moon falls once again, Octi”

“おやすみなさい、ENA、そしてグラスハウスへようこそ/Oyasumi nasai, ENA, soshite gurasu wa usu e you koso” (Goodnight, ENA, and welcome to Glass House)

Octi slept in the bathroom. After all, that was where she was born and it was just the right temperature for her.

ENA meanwhile had her own slumber chamber to retreat to. First, she plugged in her essential USB soul, letting it stick out of the computer socket. This would let her recharge through the beautiful night as she slept. ENA then snuggled into her bed, the blanket still hugging her, her Hourglass Dog sleeping by her side, her standing mirror reflecting its gaze, her new--ish video camera still sitting in place on the shelf. That was the last obtainable object she laid her eyes upon before they closed for good and her little Zs rose up one by one, thus ending another fine day. She will give it her best tomorrow too.

***

The next day, ENA once again had finished with another ballet class, meaning she now had the rest of the day to herself. She thankfully didn't have to stay late again, so Moony wouldn’t have to pick her up. She had plenty of time.

Thus, ENA decided to collect a snack inside the Hourglass Meadow on her way home. There she happily trekked over the hills and past the empty hourglasses, delicately clutching a straw basket.

Suddenly, she crashed at the sight in front of her: an apple orchard farm. How helpful, and they were even having a seasonal sale on for a limited time. Who would ever want to miss out on such an opportunity? She just had to venture inside.

Many mannequins stood by the orange trees, admiring the new apples that had recently grown into bloom. ENA plodded past them, cheerfully hanging her mouth open acutely as usual as she stared up at the fresh confectionary. They were all scrumptious looking, yet one apple stood out from the rest. This apple hung from the highest branch of the tallest tree she could find, its red skin shining in the sunlight. It looked oh so irresistible and she knew she deserved this little treat.

One thing though: how would she be able to reach it? Fortunately, her arms were always this disconnected from her torso and could reach out of bounds items. How-- handy. That counts, right?

ENA’s arms soared upwards like a jet until they both cupped the apple from above. Just as she was about to tug it off its branch though, the rest of her body suddenly catapulted up with them until they in turn reached the same branch. It was an awfully high branch, so high that it reached a single cloud which floated through ENA’s legs, thus moisting them up with dew. Looking down was a mistake as the grassy ground was further away from her feet. Eyes wide, she could only look forwards at the rest of the landscape stretching out and squeak one word.

“Help”

Suddenly, there was a quiet snap from above her head. The apple had finally given into the extra weight and decided to let gravity decide ENA’s fate as she fell back down.

Midway below her, napping on her own branch was an exhausted feline referred to as the Shepard. Faint screaming made her ears twitch, prompting her to open her eyes and raise her head off her arms. Glancing up invited a random ENA to suddenly brush past the branch she laid upon, taking the Shepard with her. It was a sudden shock, yet it didn’t stop the split coloured cat from hooking another branch with her new cane. (The other one had been stolen by Moony)

ENA tightly wrapped her arms around the Shepard’s torso for dear life, but the Shepard just kicked her in the skirt, loosening her grip and causing her to plummet-- for just a short amount of feet as her back instantly collided back with the grass. The dizzy polygon girl stared up as the grumpy feline thumped after her, landing on all fours before rising back on two of them.

“Ты проказник!/Ty prokaznik! Ты пытаешься украсть у Великих Рунас?/Ty pytaesh'sya ukrast' u Velikikh Runas?” (You troublemaker! Are you trying to thieve away from the Great Runas?)

ENA being ENA responded while she stood back up and brushed away at her ladylike skirt.

“Sincerist apologies, miss. I found this apple basking upon this fine promising tree here and I wouldn’t want to be one to miss out on a delicious treat”

“Тебе могут предложить яблоко просто за то, что ты выпал из Эдема, а мне остаются только грязь и волосы Песочных часов?/Tebe mogut predlozhit yabloko prosto za to, chto ty vypal iz Edema, a mne ostaetsya tolko gryaz i volosy Pesochnykh chasov?” (You’re able to be offered an apple just from falling out of Eden while I’m only left with mud and Hourglass Dog hairs?)

“I suppose there could be a way for us to even the odds”

ENA reached into her Windows styled tote bag and brought out a bento box of the rest of her afternoon meal.

“I made too much cheese and rice for lunch today, and I enquire to offer you the rest”

With a still yet curious face, the Shepherd brought out a cat bowl from her buttoned blouse as her head slightly tilted. In return, ENA happily used her chopsticks to pour the rest of her lunch into the second bowl. The cat in front of her then became the cat who ate rice, just shoving her CGI face down and nibbling away. The Shepherd brought her head back up, delicately chewing. She tried to hide her new expression of interest, but ENA could see right through her. She just had to give in.

“Я только прощаю тебя в данный момент/Ya proshu tebya tolko v etot moment. Просто не используйте этот момент как выход из тюрьмы карты/Prosto ne ispolzuyutsya etot moment kak kartu vyhoda iz tyurmy” (I'm only forgiving you at this one moment. Just don't use this moment as a get out of jail card)

“I hope your day is filled with sunshine, lollipops and rainbows!”

After a cheerful wave, ENA spun around and went on her merry way.

“Типичная ЭНК/Tipichnyi ENA” (Typical ENA)

After shaking her head, the Shepherd resumed her free sample, only for an apple in the shape of a square to fall on her head.

***

Many say that there’s only one way out of the Divine Door, yet some old mental wizard out there theorised many other doorways, entrances and exits. It was unknown how ENA managed to sneak out of exile for the second time. Perhaps another doorway inside the holy code returned her to the reformed Lonely Door. No one would ever know.

The apple she had found still sat inside her basket without a single bite. Something was scaring her away from even eating it, something toxic.

The very moment she re-entered the Glass House lobby, the first anomaly she saw was the workaholic ENA just about leaving the lift, the same ENA who delivered the camcorder to her last night. Perhaps she needed context, so the unemployed ENA hovered closer to the bipolar worker until they were both in the centre of the front desk.

“Good evening, fellow brethren!”

This startled worker ENA so much that she turned into paper and spun the previous way, just staring at the mirror inside the lift, at her lack of reflection. Her split mood counterpart just brought out the apple she had yet to eat.

“May you peel this apple for me?”

The colours returned to Meanie, prompting her to crane back her head.

“What? Why can’t you do it yourself?”

“I don’t have the ability to do so. Moony usually peels my apples for me”

“Well then why can’t you just ask this-- Moony instead?”

“Shedding an apple sounds like a quick chore to partake in while we discuss the damage of the camcorder you gifted me last night”

“Wait!”

The rest of Meanie’s body rotated around.

“Why do you even want this apple peeled? What’s the big deal?”

“Well Moony believes that the skin on apples contain toxins, which is why I’m requesting you to remove said toxins for me”

The unemployed one held the apple up, her eyes shining.

“Please? Please?”

“Oh Runas! Can’t you just eat the apple with the skin on?”

“B--But-- I can’t eat this with the skin on! I don’t want to! I’m not allowed!”

“Oh God! Alright!”

Meanie snatched the apple with her mitten hand and used a single claw to scrape off the skin.

“Will you shut up if I peel this apple for you?”

The happy one responded with a thumbs up.

“Affirmative”

“Might I ask who you’re talking to?”

KeeKa interrupted the polygon girls from behind the desk, prompting the slightly younger sounding one to slowly turn her head to the right. The landlady just stared at her, tapping her fingers on the counter. The same ENA just took a few steps closer, wanting to partake in communication without KeeKa’s permission.

“Well, KeeKa. My brethren here is the one who gifted me the camcorder I lent to you this morning for inspection”

KeeKa froze in return, nearly dropping the mask she used for expression.

“Brethren? You mean-- ENA? Oh my. I think we may have a problem”

“What? Why? What sort of problem?”

“Well you see, ENA, this brethren you’re telling me about is theorised not to be living in this dimension”

After a slight static jumpscare on screen, the ENA behind the ENA had changed her colours like a chameleon. Instead of her usual juicy red and white, the ENA had grown cold, dimming into a dull blue on her polygon side yet pitch black on her fleshy side. KeeKa’s tenant was unaware of this for she now wanted to ask more questions.

“Excuse me?”

“I have an estimate on which one you’re referring to”

The landlady then brought out a missing person advertisement from underneath her desk. The missing person in question just so happened to be the ENA she had just spoken to, colours and all. Below the portrait was information on her.

Have you seen this ENA?

Young adult woman, adorned with a light pink blouse, green shorts, red suspenders and student cap.

Last seen entering the lift of Glass House, Lonely Door on the 18th ENA Day during the late evening. Please contact anyone if you see her?

“It seems she hasn’t been found for two years. As the flier suggests, I last saw this ENA entering the lift down here. After that, I never saw her again. The next morning, Boden and I searched for her, but all we found were planks of wood torn off from the forbidden door on your floor”

“Whatever are you chiselling at me? I just met this anomaly”

The anomaly they spoke of though just shot her head up to the ceiling, her face cracked like glass and her triangular eyes black and hollow, replaced with a USB stick inside each one. After a shriek of agony, her entire body turned completely blue and she faded out of existence the moment the living ENA spun around to check.

“I could’ve sworn--”

Left behind on the floor was half of the peeled apple. ENA was about to pick it up when KeeKa suddenly stopped her.

“Wait! Keep clear of the mysterious object!”

After bringing out a polly wallet, the landlady left her desk and approached the mysterious item. She brought her emotive mask closer down for inspection, holding it like a golf club. The item in question was a voodoo doll sown with a sack material. None of the ladies dared to touch it, yet their eyes could still feel the fabric of a sockmonkey.

“This is unexplanatory” the landlady continued to wonder. “I thought the supernatural happenings would’ve strangled away by now”

KeeKa used the polly wallet to scoop up the voodoo doll like it was a doggy bag and didn’t hesitate with ziplocking it up.

“I shall discuss this with the family business on what to do with this cursed relic. Either I destroy it myself and place the curse onto me, or I could banish it in the postbox and send the curse to another being. In the meantime, I suggest you stay clear of any mysterious items. If you find any more paranormal occurrences, let me know. You can retrieve the apple on the floor now, but don’t forget to wash it once you return to your apartment”

ENA’s disembodied arm reached down and picked up the rest of the apple, not even moving the rest of her body as she continued to watch KeeKa lock up the voodoo doll inside her desk drawer.

“My brain could just explode,” the polygon confessed. “However did I receive that camcorder if my brethren is missing?”

“I still have the camera and I ordered a new lens from the shopping globe. Once I fix this up, I’ll investigate the predicament. Dismissed”

***

ENA was in need of a much needed sit down, yet the whole occurrence left her feeling unnerved. What if another such item suddenly appeared in her own apartment? Thus, she decided to eat the half cut apple outside on her apartment balcony. Her balcony had artificial yet realistically feeling grass which was a bonus for her Hourglass Dog if it ever rained rocks. It was even complete with some strange looking potted plants, a bench, a picnic table with a parasol and a grill for that dream BBQ.

ENA sat pretty as she delicately slid her teeth into her little snack, the apple she had fortunately washed under her kitchen tap, patiently chewing as she stared off into the distance, the white, barren distance, only a few mannequins strolling here and there. Not many entities were out compared to yesterday.

“Lovely weather again today. I suppose I’ve been wasting it away ever since I moved in. It’s suppose to be safe, yet it’s haunted. Did my employed kin-- really disappear?”

Her deep thoughts were interrupted by Bud who licked her yellow leg, making her squirm with a squeal mixed in with a giggle.

“Treat?”

That was the dog talking, not ENA.

***

Old Lang Syne whistled woodwind style in the quiet air. The sky was black and the outdoor oxygen was still. Somewhere, out there, a couple of NPCs would be taking the Train Door home after escaping or dying from the Purge Event at this time of night. It was late already, or too early?

Landlady KeeKa no longer had to wear her mask during slumber. As she slept in her bed, her facial features returned to the blank slate, her eyes censored with a black bar. All was quiet in her apartment, all but the muffled thudding of footsteps along carpet behind her bedroom door, a door which then opened. In her state of recovery rem, KeeKa could feel the presence of an entity grow closer to the left side of her bed. Her bed was the double kind, meaning she had more room to sleep without claustrophobia, yet the walls of her room were shrinking closer, or so she felt.

*Click* One of her bedside lamps suddenly turned on, its intruding light finally prompting her to wake up. Behind that censor bar, KeeKa managed to pick up a being in the dim light. What was ENA doing in her apartment? KeeKa never gave her the apartment key. Wait! That wasn’t ENA. It was the missing ENA! The triangular eyes, the student cap, the claws, the mitten.

“Where have you been??” the landlady questioned her.

ENA in return just leapt up onto the bed, using her differently coloured arms to support herself over KeeKa.

“2 o’ clock, 6 o’ clock sharp. Don’t go to the fourth floor”

“Why? Was there an accident? Would you like me to--”

The entire room suddenly exploded into a deep blue, illuminating from ENA’s now returning cracked blue skin. Her eyes were gone once again and her mouth could scream only silence. The light faded to black, taking her with it. Once it returned to the usual golden glow, ENA was gone.

***

“Why won’t this begone?”

Inner dimension ENA returned to the Glass House lobby, reusable shopping bag in hand, only to freeze once her eyes locked onto the lift at the far end. The doors were open, and scrubbing the full view mirror was Boden, KeeKa’s brother. Curiosity pulled her closer like a magnet. She just had to start a conversation.

“Excuse my intrusion. Is the elevator still out of service?”

Boden sighed, knowing he had to communicate with her. He gave the mark another spray, rubbing at it again with a cloth. The mark in question was a bright blue squiggle, writing no one could understand.

“I’m afraid so, ENA”

“What about the ground floor restroom? Is that also out of the question?”

There was a single gender neutral toilet facing the opposite side of the front desk, and emerging from it with another cloth and spray bottle was KeeKa, her mask wrapping its wooden tentacles around her neck like an octopus.

“It’s so unexplainable, Boden,” she prescribed her brother. “I’ve been thoroughly scrubbing the mirror for a while, and the markings don’t seem to be budging off”

“Hmm? Not many deliquants dwell here. Perhaps another property owner is jealous of our success”

“It almost looks as if it was written on the inside of the mirror”

“That’s impossible”

The siblings gazed their attention to ENA, KeeKa addressing her first.

“Was it an eventful shopping trip, ENA?”

“It was unfathomable! The snacks I had bought for tomorrow’s movie night with Moony were suddenly picked clean from the pantry. I had to go all the way to Lunimart to restock. I found out too little too late. I was unable to capture the burglar, nor could I identify them in time”

“We’ll check the hallway cameras for any suspicious people” assured KeeKa. “Why don’t you return to your apartment and pack up your shopping?”

Being a diligent tenant, ENA obliged. There was a single door on the right side of the toilet, a door which she opened up, revealing her greatest enemy known as the stairs. Once she was out of sight and hearing, the black haired, dungaree adorning siblings made their way to the staff only room where they could regrettably put the cleaning appliances away.

“If we’re unable to get rid of the markings, we’ll just have to close the lift and the toilet until further notice” concluded Boden once they entered.

“They really do look as if they were chiselled on the other side of the mirror. “Save me”. It’s almost as if the missing ENA is calling for help”

“Missing ENA? You mean that strange occurrence you encountered last night?”

“She must be lost in the complex somewhere, but where she’s lost, not even I know. Maybe she’s the one plundering from our tenants. Maybe she’s homeless”

“If it were her, then how would she be able to break in without destroying the locks?”

“Maybe she entered through the TVs or computers?”

“What about the tenants who are technophobic? Your theory has plotholes I’m afraid. Perhaps we should sleep on it--”

A beep could be heard from KeeKa’s computer.

“Another strange occurrence from a tenant,” she said.

***

From sunset to nighttime once again, more and more occurrences appeared. The ground floor was thankfully done with it, but it was already starting on the fourth floor under the cover of darkness. Once the Hourglass struck 2am, ENA’s bedroom started to redecorate itself, yet it was hard to identify without the luminance of the moon-- or the windows for that matter-- or closed eyelids.

Moony was the only one with an extra apartment key to ENA’s place, so who could it be now roaming around her safe zone? The Hourglass Dog, Bud, perked her ears up at the sudden distant sound of footsteps along wood. Someone else had broken into her owner’s apartment, just wanting to loot away at the snack stash ENA had just restocked. Bud couldn’t let it happen again, so she got up on her stumpy legs and started nuzzling her nose against her owner’s blue cheek. This though just tickled her, causing her to quietly giggle in her sleep.

“Cuddles, Bud?”

ENA turned over onto her blue side and scooped up her CGI furball into embracement. This left Bud defenceless, letting the mysterious burglar enter the bedroom. She tried to wriggle out of her grasp, but ENA kept her strong grip, prompting the burglar to enter the bedroom where they stopped in front of the bed, watching ENA sleep soundly without any awareness whatsoever. With the tenant in the centre of the bed, the burglar carefully climbed upon it and crawled all the way to ENA’s head level. ENA didn’t look afraid at all, still smiling in slumber despite the odor of rubbish around.

“두 시, 여섯 시 정각/Du si, yeoseo si jeongguk. 하지마--/Hajima--” (2 o’clock, 6 o’clock sharp. Don’t--)

ENA suddenly thwacked this familiar sounding entity with her arms, causing the anomaly to be launched off her bed. Despite the impact of whoever it was to be smacked against the wall followed by harsh running footsteps, ENA still didn’t wake up. That herbal tea was quite the strong one.

Octi the Easter egg octopus could hear those footsteps thumping loudly from the bathroom. It was just as dark in there too, the only light shining from the sink mirror onto the suddenly broken glass shower door. Octi shakingly clung onto the side of the bathtub that was full of murky water, water that would give anyone a disease. It had only been a few days, yet the bathroom had become filthy rather quickly.

“誰かいますか?/Darekaimasu ka? えな?/ENA? こんな夜遅くにトイレを掃除する必要はないよ!/Konna yoru osoku ni toire o souji suru hitsuyou wa nai yo! ベッドに戻りなさい、明日の朝これに対処しましょう!/Beddo ni modorinasai、 ashita no asakore o taisho shimashou! こんにちは? /Kon’nichiwa?” (Is someone out there? ENA? You don’t have to clean the bathroom now at this time of night! Return to your bed and we’ll deal with this tomorrow morning! Hello?)

Silence reigned, apart from the bubbling of the water behind Octi, stretching her gaze to the source. The still surface had become an outdated hotspring, even though the jacuzzi jets were off. Unbeknownst to Octi, a foot crookedly stuck out next to her, twitching and glitching, but that was the least of her concerns. Full blown in front of her, a black shark fin swam around before submerging underwater, ripples running away outwards. The surface remained still once more, Octi keeping her eyes glued to it with suspense.

Suddenly, an anomaly burst out of the bath, spraying filthy water all over the glass and tiles. Emerged from the depths was the cursed cracked ENA from the torso up. Her prey screamed, but the punished instantly grabbed her with a clawed hand and dragged her underwater with her. Once more, the water surface returned to stillness.

***

Despite the cool morning temperature outside, sleepy little ENA woke up to the warm rays shining through her windows. Coming to, she rubbed her oval eye and smacked her triangular lips. What a nice restful preparation for the weekend. This could be her chance to relax after a week of hard practice. It took her a while, but ENA finally sat up and politely yawned.

“Another day, another dwama”

Despite the optimism she attempted to cling onto, she could sense some upcoming nausea that would ruin her beginning. Thus, her first destination was where she stashed her cracker tablets: her bathroom cabinet.

Upon entering the bathroom however, she was met with a flat rubbery pink puddle on the floor.

“Is this-- a mysterious paranormal occurrence?”

ENA hovered her head closer to the ground for inspection, suddenly noticing some small black dots on the front. She gasped the moment it spoke.

“エナ、あなたですか?/Ena、 anata desu ka?” (Is that you, ENA?)

The humanoid’s head sprung back to her torso like a slingshot.

“Oh riddle me ree! You must be so deflated, little Octi lost!”

Unbeknownst to ENA, Moony let herself into her apartment with the spare key she was given, a dark circle under her eye.

“Hello?”

She didn’t even care about the neighbours. After all, it was already 9 o’clock in the morning. No time to waste the day away.

Upon entering her friend’s bedroom, Moony half expected ENA to still be hiding under the covers, yet the only one sleeping on her bed was the Hourglass Dog.

“Not again. Did she seriously forget to take--?”

Moony was interrupted by Bud shoving her black snout into her eyehole.

“No-- No kisses”

The punk moon carefully took Bud out and placed her on the carpet. She was the prize won at that auction and Moony wouldn’t want to hurt her. She even hesitantly patted her on the head.

“Morning, you. Where’s your owner?”

***

“Dude! I thought I told you to ask before--”

Upon checking the bathroom, Moony interrupted her lecture with a gasp. She had hovered in at the wrong time, finding her friend reinflating an octopus for a single second. ENA immediately stopped, holding her breath as she froze. Cue the awkward silence until Moony broke it.

“I’ll be behind the door. Lemme know when you’re done”

*Slam*

***

“An alternate dimension?”

ENA sat behind her kitchenette table, her bowl of cereal in front of her, Moony hovering next to her.

“I totally thought it was a dream, man. I woke up in my apartment, only my lights didn’t work and the windows were gone. Then this mime entered my bedroom and told me not to head down to the ground floor from 2 to 6”

“Mime you say? Tell me. Did this mime wear a beret?”

“Yea?”

“Adorned a mask?”

“Sure?”

“Spoke with hand serpents?”

“Why are you asking me all this?”

“Merci finally visited?”

“THAT was Merci? What the hell is wrong with her? God, her eyes. Her four eyes. Anyway, thanks to this morning’s email from Boden, it turns out that my apartment has been infested with paranormal bugs, so I wanted to check if you were experiencing the same dumb glitch”

ENA thought for a moment, giving her the chance to consume some of her hydrations.

“Not that I know of. I have been suffering from burglary for a while now come to think of it. I had to restock the snack cabinet due to this. The toilet paper situation I’m still pondering though. Maybe I just used too much for my makeup”

“Don’t you use those makeup sponges to remove that foundation?”

“Oh yes! I do!”

This realisation hit ENA in the head.

“Wait! That scoundrel! I bought a two month supply and everything!”

“Yea, that stuff is better used for revenge against that guy who took away those fast food playgrounds”

ENA in return was lost for words, only squinting her eyes at Moony in confused disgust.

***

It was revealed that despite the missing items, ENA’s apartment was thankfully not a victim of the paranormal. It turned out that Moony was scouting for a safe habitat to crash until the property owners cleansed the rest of the complex from the hauntings. She wasn’t scared though-- you could tell because she didn’t admit it. ENA, being a diligent friend, didn’t hesitate in accepting the offer. She would do anything for a close friend like her. She would lend a hand, a foot, even a head for her.

Nearest to noon, ENA was fully dressed and freshened up. There she was, idly sitting in front of her TV, watching an innocent anime as a way of waiting for her afternoon fuel.

“Yo, NENA!” she heard Moony call from the kitchenette behind her.

This prompted her head to turn around and inspect.

“Yes, Moony?”

“Yea, um, I’m making us hotdogs for lunch and I can’t find the ketchup”

“You mean the bottle we bought after you taught me how to skateboard and my leg got caught in that transfer portal?”

“No, the bottle we won when you took part in that cheerleading competition and your arm flew off and landed in front of LuMi, causing him to spill the soda he was carrying and the coach didn’t notice so he slipped yet he offered you the second place participation award because he didn’t break anything?”

“Oh, yes please?”

With lunch sorted, ENA's head rotated back to the TV. Even with the cute pastel colours, her mind wouldn't stop nagging her with anxiety.

“Oh what future does Merci have in this world? Whatever would she be doing in order to pester Moony like that? Maybe she's homeless, couch surfing”

ENA could sense Moony’s presence now on her balcony, presumably checking the grill. Oh whatever adventure did she have this time?

***

“Excuse me, ladies”

KeeKa captured ENA and Moony’s attention the very moment they entered the lobby from the stairs, something she never did much.

“Do you still have your crucifixes hanging above your doors?”

“We had those?” asked Moony.

“You see, ever since those old souls were found in the off limits room on the fourth floor,” KeeKa explained. “Wow. What a long sentence. We could sense happenings not meant to be”

“Old souls?” ENA started to question.

“That was where she found yours and put her own DNA” continued KeeKa. “Something tells me that a horrific act happened on the fourth floor many years ago, an act which put a curse on the level. Thus, our parents put up crucifixes everywhere in order to seal the curse from unlocking this portal to hell”

Moony in response just groaned.

“I’m not taking the stairs back up again. Damn, these levels are so high as a kite”

“Very well” responded KeeKa. “We’ll sweep around and check soon”

***

Time flew past and the unlikely pals found themselves regurgitated out of the Chair Door, causing them to fly until they landed in a small heap below.

“What a waste of time,” winced Moony.

How else could it get any worse other than the Gatekeeper striding their multicoloured legs to the jumbled delinquents?

“You owe me one damn dirty ape for the damage you caused inside the Extinction Party”

“Damage?” Moony scoffed. “That was NOT me, alright? It was that Chocodile guy with the pimp coat. You know? Notorious for repoing for depts? Mafia leader of the Pixie Dust Palooza?”

“Calculating criminal records--”

Just as a few window boxes appeared around the Gatekeeper, Moony instantly ushered ENA to a charging booth further away from the interrogation. The humanoid had almost drained her charge from exploring, so Moony had to hover inside with her while she sat on that bench, recharging her USB soul. Unbeknownst to ENA, her lunar neighbour kept eyeing the stick inside its socket.

“I’m too cool for jail”

“How long have we been scouting, sweet thing?”

“Don't call me that. Almost all day. Man, that party felt like tall grass. It's so thick, you can barely see through it”

“May I ask how much sand is left to empty out the hourglass?”

Moony took out an hourglass from her hole and inspected the time. While a lot of sand was already at the bottom, plenty of the grains were still hanging at the top.

“About quarterpast five? Are you hungry?”

Despite the search being over, Moony didn’t want to return to Glass House yet. Besides, the great outdoors can really tempt you into taking out, and the girls were really hankering for a restaurant meal. Ever since ENA moved into independent living, she found it hard to catch a chance. It was a good thing she had her courageous friend to make decisions for her.

There they were inside a small family business shaped like a workshop. Despite the size of the exterior, it was rather cosy. After all, it was located in the middle of a majestic forest where the trees had beating hearts.

The interior was bigger, all wooden as if the owners carved everything out themselves. It was a comfortable place to have garlic spaghetti. ENA and Moony certainly obtained this generous cash, sitting opposite each other by a window. Moony watched as her friend delicately slurped her meal up, switching emotions during every chew.

“I hope Merci’s ok”

“Wake up and smell the mayonnaise. We've stalked everywhere. We even tried to check where that fun house use to be, but the builders wouldn't let us or they'd call the police”

“What a lovely outing we had together. Just think, Moony. Once we return to my apartment, we can watch Purple Starfish”

“Just as soon as you're wearing those pjs of course”

“Ahem?”

That wasn't ENA. It was one of the owners, a grandma elf animated like a Kibler Elf advertisement, pink dress uniform, white frilly apron, fluffy slippers, small rounded glasses balancing on her nose.

“Is that you, ENA?”

“Nana Olive?”

“Aww sweetie. It's been so long. I remember when you and that mime were children and that ringmaster use to take you both here whenever that cafe was closed”

“Merci? My other childhood friend here actually advised us to form a search party for Merci. We've been spying all day”

“So have we. I’m afraid she isn't here. She hasn't visited for a while”

Nana Olive pointed to another missing person advertisement near the carved wooden bar. Instead of ENA again, it was the Mime, Merci, all of Merci from the mask to the serpent hands.

“Define “while” please?” ENA gently insisted.

“Well it could be possible she's behind another door” guessed Nana Olive.

Another door?

***

Later, like very later at Glass House, dearest brother Boden sounded the buzzer, as a way to request a discussion with his sister. KeeKa herself was already in the middle of an after shower thought and was mid ready to answer. She slipped on her green pyjama jumper and met up with Boden inside and outside her apartment.

“I’ve been sent more information, KeeKa. Even with the crucifix’, the scratching on the mirrors continue. I don't know how, but this curse must've bypassed the malware code”

“That's not all I'm afraid of. Come”

The black haired siblings entered Keeka’s apartment where they took to the kitchenette. KeeKa decided to brew some hot chocolate while Boden waited by the table.

“Remember that camera I offered to fix for one of our tenants?” asked the sister. “It’s now officially missing”

“Are you sure you didn't misplace it?”

“Certainly sure. I distinctly remember locking that camera away in our desk draw, but now, it's gone”

“How absurd. I thought the burglar alarm would softlock the suspect on the spot, which could mean--”

“Whipped cream?”

“How could whipped cream be the saviour of this situation?”

“No, I mean would you like whipped cream with your drink?”

“Oh! Well I'm pleased to accept”

Spraying could be heard from the kitchen counter as KeeKa applied the cream to both mugs. Once done, she carefully brought them over to the table and placed them down before taking her own seat.

“You were saying?”

This was followed by a sip from her mask.

“Perhaps Glass House doesn't have a burglary infection. Perhaps there's a poltergeist”

“A poltergeist?”

“An entity you can't see but can still feel their presence. A poltergeist can interact with physical objects, pick them up, toss them around. Perhaps such a supernatural creature is the cause for the writing on the mirrors”

“In the mirrors more like”

“When do these haunting happen”

“Our tenants have reported that these happenings arrive when the clock strikes 2 o’ clock in the morning until 6am. The biggest hauntings mostly take place on the fourth floor”

“Then it's settled. Once 2am rolls along, we shall investigate the matter up close on the fourth floor”

***

At 11am, ENA dipped a whole squid flavoured crisp into her mouth, the last one in the packet. There she was in her cute pyjamas, in front of the TV which rolled the credits of Purple Starfish.

“What a brilliant movie! Your criticism, Moony?”

She turned to her celestial friend who had fallen asleep on the sofa.

“Hmm, actually, I'm pooped myself”

Being a diligent friend, ENA picked up the rounded ball with hair.

“Time for bed”

***

Before they could conclude another day, ENA decided to help Moony with skincare just like she usually did. Added on was a brushing to the teeth and the hair, which hurt.

“Wherever is Octi?” the polygon lady wondered to herself. “Maybe she went to bed early”

***

Once they were both refreshed, ENA carried Moony to her bedroom, her Hourglass Dog following her feet. For a new apartment, the bed was surprisingly big enough for both of them, and not to mention really comfy. She carefully placed Moony on the bed and tucked her in before climbing in herself. As the Hourglass Dog walked in a circle on the duvet, all three girls yawned at the same time, embracing the warmth underneath. ENA couldn’t pay attention to her surroundings anymore, just the anomalies with her as she started to sink into slumber.

“Another-- brilliant day. I’ll give it my best tomorrow too”

Yet there was some unsureness in her voice.

***

The hourglass clock had flipped over the moment an early dark morning rolled over, way too early when you could stay in that cushy bed until sunrise.

Oddly, a sudden urge woke up ENA. No matter how many times she had begun her sleep streak, something was in the way this time, and she wouldn't be able to resleep until the situation was sorted. What about Moony? Would this ritual wake her up? Yet, oh the pain! Guess poor ENA had no choice but to carefully slide out of bed and sneak out of the bedroom.

With her presence gone for a little while, time still ticked away, and as the hourglass kept slowly draining its sand, a blue light started to illuminate around the bedroom, shining down on Moony. The light was too much for her, hurting her head.

“Urgh, EENA? Quit reading and go back to sleep”

A single hand from her square hole brought the covers over her, yet the light still interrupted her rest.

“I-NA? BI-NA! I’m not kidding! Dude”

Moony then rolled onto her right side only to find the cute doggo curled up next to her, yet ENA wasn't there anymore.

“Fine, I'll do it myself”

Carefully avoiding Bud, Moony shifted herself closer to the other bedside, her single eye shut the whole time. She tapped the button on the crescent moon light, only for a distorted image of a corrupted ENA's face to flash in her mind for a brief second with static. This prompted her to open her eye, staring hard at the lamp-- which was still on.

“Wasn’t this thing already on?”

It was also its usual yellow rather than the previous blue.

“What the hell is going--?”

Her frustrated whispers were interrupted by scratching behind her, making Bud’s ears twitch with curiosity.

“Since when did we have computer mice?”

Moony spun around, her eye landing on the standing mirror. It had been vandalised with messy blue graffiti writing, all over it.

“Huh? Em evas? It carries on from here too?”

Bud whimpered slightly at the lamp flickering behind Moony.

“Oh boy”

Ding went to the bedside lamp. Ding went to the main bathroom light, also plunging ENA in darkness as she continued to sit there.

“Very funny, Moony. Would you kindly turn the light back on please?”

No response.

“I indeed insist”

Nothing.

“Pwease turn the light back on? This isn’t funny anymore!”

Silence.

“I’m scawed!”

Out of options and still on the toilet, ENA had to hover her polygon arm over to the light cord by the door. No matter how many times she pulled, the bathroom remained dark.

“えな?/Ena? あなたが見えません/Anata ga miemasen. すべてが暗い/Subete ga kurai” (ENA? I can’t see you. Everything’s dark)

Then came Octi’s voice, clearly awoken by ENA.

“This is embarrassing. The light must’ve blown a fuse. I can barely see through this thick void”

“待って!/Matte! 流しの上にライトがある!/Nagashi no ue ni raito ga aru!” (Wait! There’s an illumination above the sink!)

“Do you think you can scavenge for an extra light bulb--?”

As if the situation couldn’t get any worse, the same geometric fingers felt a roughly textured naked toilet roll holder by her right side.

“Pardon my French, but didn’t I replace the roll this morning? Do I have to live here now?”

“シンクの中に余分なロールがいくつかあります/Shinku no naka ni yobun na rooru ga ikutsuka arimasu. キャッチ!/Catch!” (There’s some extra rolls inside the sink. Catch!)

ENA felt a soft item fall on her head before it fell into her hands. It was a full roll, only it didn’t feel freshly new.

“Um, much obliged?”

“終わったら、シンクに近づいてください/Owattara、 shinku ni chikazuite kudasai. これを見なければならない!/Kore o minakereba naranai!” (Finish up then approach the sink. You must behold this!)

Even after ENA was fully dressed from the waist down again, she stumbled into more problems. The toilet was broken! No matter how close her fleshy hand waved at the censor, it wouldn’t flush.

“Travesty! The plumbing’s broken and I have a guest!”

“それだけじゃない/Sore dake janai. 寝る前のトイレはきれいじゃなかったの?/Neru mae ni toire wa kirei janakatta no?” (That’s not all over. Wasn’t the bathroom clean before you went to bed?)

“Absolutely, Octi! The incense reeks of cigarettes now, and the windows! They’re--”

“鏡だ!/Kagami da! 鏡を見て!/Kagami o mite!” (The mirror! Look in the mirror!)

According to Octi’s description, the only light in the bathroom was illuminated from the mirror. Disgusted with herself, ENA strode to the light, only feeling a touch of closure and safety from not suffering in too much of the dark anymore. Now her eyes could adjust and pick up differences. The bathroom tiles looked greasy, lacking the usual aquatic cleanse she felt every time she stepped inside.

“蛇口も使えないと思います/Jaguchi mo tsukaenai to omoimasu” (I don’t think the faucets will work either)

Octi’s cute voice steered ENA’s head to the right, and right that octopus was. There was the little scamp, clinging onto the side of the sink and there was no longer any room inside. Thanks to the illumination from the mirror, the two toned girl noticed many bathroom essentials piled inside. Conditioner, toilet paper, shower gel, body wash, bubble bath, facial cleanser and a bar of soap.

“ここ/Coco” (Here)

Octi spouted multiple sprinkles of water from her face so ENA could thankfully wash her hands. It was a good thing there was soap nearby, even if it felt a little dingy.

“I don’t remember putting everything here”

“見上げる/Miageru” (Look up)

ENA did as she was told and almost grimaced at the sight. The mirror had been defaced with blue writing etched into it everywhere.

“Save me? Wait!”

Behind the writing was the reflection, only it didn’t reflect correctly. While the bathroom she was in now had become unsanitary, the mirror kept painting it as if the light was still on and the walls were still squeaky clean.

“Why is the mirror so bright?”

“私たちは…と思わない/Watashitachi wa... To omowanai” (I don’t think we’re--)

Just as Octi was about to come to the conclusion, eager desperate scratching arrived at the door. ENA and Octi stayed by the sink as barking came next. With a relieved chuckle, ENA opened the door and her Hourglass Dog instantly scuttled in and rubbed her fur against her cherry pink socks.

“Bud? What’s the matter?”

Bud stopped once her mighty nose caught the scent of an unfamiliar entity. ENA watched, Octi now perched on her shoulder, as her doggo followed the scent, nose to the floor.

“Mind you don’t roll in anything, and stay away from any toxic mould”

Bud continued to sniff out for this prey, finally stopping once her nose collided into two black boots. Her head lolled up, inspecting the wall in front of her, only to yelp in fear at the monstrosity standing there. Four of their eyes were impaled with their own USB stick and their skin was a ghostly blue. ENA followed the sound of Bud’s fearful whimpering so she could gain a closer look at the entity.

“Did something scare you?”

She gasped at the figure standing before her.

“Oh my! It just can’t be!”

It was a mime, but not just any mime. It was--

“Miss Merci!”

Merci wasn’t the same as before. Her head felt like it was on fire for eternity and everything was dark in her vision.

“ENA? 정말 너야?/Jeongmal neoya?” (ENA? Is that really you?)

“Aww!”

Even in these unknown circumstances, ENA gave Merci an embrace.

“Moony and I have been looking for you! A restaurant even put up a missing person sign due to your absence! How did you enter my apartment? Have you been living in the walls? Did you hear me pee--?”

“멸종 파티 이후로 계속 연락이 끊겼어/Myeoljong pati ihu-ro gyesok yeonragi kkeutgyeosseo. 겨우 그 지긋지긋한 곳에서 빠져나올 방법을 찾고 나서 너를 찾으려고 했는데-- 으악!/Gyeou geu jigeutjigeuthan goteseo ppajyeonaol bangbeobeul chatgo naseo neoreul chajeuryeogo haetneunde-- euak!” (I’ve been missing since the Extinction Party. After I finally found a way out of that damn place, I tried to find you and-- urgh!)

ENA inspected the blind hand puppets.

“Oh my gosh! All of your eyes are gone!”

“정말 아파!/Jeongmal apa!” (It’s really painful!)

“Hold still--”

The very moment she felt ENA’s finger and thumb pinch one of the USB sticks, Merci could feel her life force drain more and more.

“발사하지 마!/Balsahaji ma! 제발?/Jebal? 내 이전 몸은 깊은 잠에 빠져 있어!/Nae ijeon mom-eun gipeun jame ppa jyeo isseo! 니가 그거 뽑으면 내 두 번째 몸이 죽어!/Niga geugeo ppob-eumyeon nae du beonjjae mom-i jug-eo!” (Hold your fire! Please? My previous body is in a deep sleep! My second body will die if you pull them out!)

ENA instantly took her fingers off the chosen stick, white in the face at the idea of her childhood distant chum perishing in front of her. For her part, Merci flopped her hand puppets onto ENA’s disembodied shoulders.

“이거 꼭 들어야 돼!/Igeo kkok deureoya dwae! 너 여기 있으면 안 돼!/Neo yeogi isseumyeon an dwae! 위험해, 그녀가 널 죽일 거야!/Wiheomhae, geunyeoga neol jugil geoya! 넌 그녀 대신이 되기 전에 떠나야 해!/Neon geunyeo daesini doegi jeone tteonaya hae! 난 너랑 같이 갈 수 없고, 여기 오래 머물 수 없어. 안 그러면 그녀를 바로 네게 데려가게 될 거야!/Nan neorang gachi gal su eob go, yeogi orae meomul su eopseo. An geureomyeon geunyeoreul baro nege daeryeogage doel geoya! 눈이 있을 때 길을 찾아!/Nuni isseul ttae gireul chaja!” (You need to hear this! You shouldn’t be here! It’s dangerous and she’ll kill you! You need to leave before you become her replacement! I won’t be able to come with you and I can’t stay here for long or I’ll lead her straight to you! Find a way out while you still have your eyes!)

Now hyperventilating, Merci sprinted out of the bathroom, banging into a wall from what the impact theorised.

“Find a way out?”

ENA’s stomach started to swirl her static juices, so she picked up her dog and left to find Moony.

***

Despite being cursed with blindness and a lack of spatial awareness, Merci was now nowhere to be seen-- or heard. ENA couldn’t even hear her stumbling around in the dark or fumbling for walls. She was gone. What about Moony? She was still here, wasn’t she?

“君の月の友達はどこかにいるはずだ/Kimi no tsuki no tomodachi wa doko ka ni iru wa hazu da” (Your moon friend must be here somewhere)

“I don’t wanna die alone”

After returning to her bedroom, ENA noticed that her standing mirror had been disgraced with the same cries for help, “Save me” Through the etches, the reflection was a lukewarm shine compared to where she found herself now. It shone down on her bed, the covers now creased with springs sticking out.

“You’re not the feral type, are you--?”

A hand suddenly grabbed her by the angle and dragged her underneath the bed. Before ENA could squeal, the same white mitten then covered her mouth.

“Will you shut up? She’s gonna hear you”

It was Moony.

“Who?”

“The creepy worker girl who almost looks like you”

“What do you mean? Why is my apartment a mess?”

“That’s not your apartment, dude. We’re in the mirror world. No water, no power, nothing. It’s like an evil version of Glass House”

“I--Is there a way out?”

“Duh, the ground floor, but we gotta be careful. I haven't made it to the final level yet. She would've depleted my lives, not that I'm a coward or anything”

The girls kept peaking through the gap of the bed, keeping their hearing in check.

“Can you hear any movement?” whispered ENA.

Nothing, yet it sounded like quite a crowd outside this dystopian apartment.

“Urgh. Face it. We're doing nothing just pretending to be the damsels in distress. We girls can fight back, can't we?”

“Isn’t fighting ill mannered?”

“I’ll do all the fighting then. Stay behind me”

Moony slinked out from under the bed, ENA following after.

“Don’t even think of flipping out”

All four girls (including Bud and Octi) sneaked through the battered hallway, wooden floorboards hazardously sticking out, wallpaper torn and the shapes jumbled with no life in them. No matter how much ENA wanted to criticise this interior, her white side held her tongue.

The crowd had become quiet once they reached the entrance door, as if they were still far away from it. ENA was too frightened to leave, but nowhere felt familiar or safe in this dimension. The only safety she had came from her close companions and she had to rely on them, especially tough Moony who slowly opened the door.

ENA never knew if the lights still buzzed in the main hall during late night hours. They presumably did in case anyone worked the night shift, but not here. Only the dimness of light could reach half of the corridor.

The girls felt drawn to this light, turning to the right to find more entities leaving for the stairs. The last to leave was LuMi, another one of ENA's good friends, well he almost did until he heard a door, their door.

“Was that just my eyes?” he whispered to himself.

Obviously, the girls were too far away to hear that, but not for long. Once they all discovered each other, the group of four crept their way closer to him, all while LuMi signalled them to join him. Even he felt unsafe by himself.

“Girls?” he asked once they connected. “My mind is playing tricks on me again. The floor has gone dark, there's writing on every mirror--”

“It’s not just in your head this time, LuMi,” explained Moony. “We’re in the cursed night, the other side of the mirror”

“Can you all see the light too?” LuMi then asked as he pointed towards the lift.

The doors were left open a jar, the graffitied mirror in view, yet there was no floor keeping them safe.

“That's the real world” said ENA, and she was right.

On the other side of the mirror was a different hallway with the lights on. It was the real Glass House. Knocking on it were two of the landlords, Boden and KeeKa in their nightwear.

“ENA?” asked KeeKa as she kept hold of her emotive mask. “Moony? LuMi? What happened? We’re trying to find you”

“Stay off the fourth floow! You'll get swallowed by the night!”

“Stay hidden on the ground floor” instructed Boden. “We won't stop investigating”

On the other side, the siblings watched as the five foreigners of the cursed night dipped to the right out of shot. If the lift was out of order, the stairs were the only option.

“Could it really be the cursed night?” Boden asked his sister. “Where is this portal to hell? You will be careful, won't you, KeeKa?”

KeeKa turned her back to the mirror, facing the long hallway ahead, now holding her mask with two hands.

“Though I know I should be wary, still I venture someplace scary”

***

It was tricky for the imprisoned tenants to travel down the loose rickety stairs, but at least nobody died yet.

Once the trio stepped out of the stair alcove, they found the ground floor swarmed and packed with every entity from the same floor, again, a lot of ENA's family. It was still dark with only a few torch lights seeming to do the job.

“What happened to all the windows?” asked LuMi. “I remember them being installed”

“Um, may I shimmy to the door?” ENA asked a family member.

In the end, she had to float her head over to the entrance for curious inspection, only to freeze and breathe. Silenced. There was no door, no exit.

“Is this it?”

“What do you mean?” LuMi asked her. “Are you saying there’s a dead end?”

Everyone kept drilling their eyes towards where the door was suppose to be. No glossy shiny glass. Just a filthy wall.

“私たちは鏡を通してしか現実の世界を見ることができない/Watashitachi wa kagami o tooshite shika genjitsu no sekai o miru koto ga dekinai” (We can only see the real world through the mirrors)

“There’s no way I’ll be able to survive-- in this disgusting, painful world”

“Oh honey”

ENA’s mother, Professor Spex, gave her a consoling hug, letting her cry on her shoulder.

“Why would Glass House have this nasty curse?”

Her disembodied arms finally felt ready enough to unwind off of Spex, the scientist who turned to face the prisoners of this world.

“I think it’s about time you know where ENAs come from. Many years ago, there was a war criminal, the first ENA. She was prideful, greedy, a nightmare. Nobody knew where she came from, believing that she was a deadly virus as her actions caused so much damage to the code. This ENA was the queen bee of the hive, the leader of the soldier ENAs she manufactured with USB sticks as if the sticks were eggs. Behind every door, the ENAs caused havoc, chaos, broken plains. There were plot holes, glitches, crashes. The sky was dyed red, the smoke kept growing. Many entities died, imprisoned, brainwashed, worse comeuppances. Only the Genies could take the ENAs on, but that just caused the smoke to choke more of the air. This carried on until the ENA side were nothing more than Mannequins, yet the smoke still lingered because there was one more ENA left, the leader. A quick death would just be merciful, so the Genies made her wait in the Death Row Tower for her own demise. Glass House was once the Death Row Tower. That boarded up out of bounds room far at the end of the fourth floor? That was her cell”

***

As Spex continued to explain the history in the mirror realm, KeeKa back in the real realm had slid the paper door to the side, the door which should’ve stayed boarded up. Behind it was a small wooden room, claustrophobic and dark. The landlady had to use a torch in order to find her bearings. The room was rather barren and quiet aside from the occasional creaking. There were cobwebs, loose boards-- and some broken cuffs which were clearly ripped off the wall. Writing had also been scratched across the wood, reading out, “Save me”

At the far front was a memorial display, the candles and incense on the sides quenched out years ago. In the centre was a photo frame, a frame with the first ENA. Orange on her left and green on her right, her eyes triangular. Her black hair was in a separate long ponytail, geometrical on the green side. She wore a military leader uniform which was a purple lilac, complete with a cap.

“When the time came, she was burned at the stake” Spex continued. “All that was left behind in her cell were multiple USB sticks, one from every soldier who died by the hands of the Genies, including her own”

KeeKa meanwhile inspected a rounded wall mirror on the left. As she approached, the landlady noticed that she couldn't see her reflection behind the “Save me” etches. Instead, she discovered a more decrepit version of the room, except it looked more like a prison cell.

“I, the great Spex, discovered these USB sticks years later”

Suddenly, a blue chrome Merci slammed her mask wearing face against the inside of the mirror, shocking KeeKa into retreating out of the room, tripping onto her front as she did so.

***

“I took those sticks and rebooted them into how I want ENAs to be. With new code, the new wave can stop history from repeating itself”

“Sticks?”

ENA couldn’t help but overhear Moony muttering a question as her mother continued.

“I don’t know how, but I think this curse might be linked to the sticks. These prisoners of the mirror realm, they have their sight impaled with two toned coloured USB ports”

“I don’t understand,” admitted LuMi. “You rebooted the ports to make room for new code”

“There's totally one stick she forgot to include” announced Moony. “An orange and green one, from the same idiot who started it all. I should know because-- because I have it”

“You do?” asked a relative.

“Since ENA’s 18th. The same teacher from hell stabbed me in the eye”

“The first ENA?” asked LuMi in disbelief. “I thought she was dead”

“I don’t have time for a soppy backstory, alright? Someone with actual fingers better dislodge it out. I’ve tried myself, but I just can't cut it. It's wedged in so deep, you can barely see it”

“鋭い刃を持つ人ならこの手術に魚釣りの道具を使えるだろう/Surudoi ha o motsu hitonara kono shujutsu ni sakanatsuri no dōgu o tsukaerudarou” (Someone with sharp edges would be able to fish tackle this surgery)

Octi started to attach herself to ENA's blocky tight wrist for a couple of seconds, fearing that she would burst upon impact with a single corner.

“ENAがやるべきだ/ENA ga yarubekida” (ENA should do it)

“What?”

“Be a bestie, alright? Help a cheese robber out!”

Moony actually spoke with sincerity, desperation taking over. ENA had to be a good friend and swim over everyone again just to get to her.

“It’s implanted into your brain, right?”

“I-NA. Crawl through my eye hole. The port’s behind fifty shades of grey. Just slit the skin then pull it out”

“Is it enough for this many bodies?”

“Just do it before we’re found out!”

With a scared whimper, ENA shoved her disconnected arms through Moony’s square followed by her head. In more endless darkness, she was now face to face with the moon’s humanoid form. She only had one eye with her other eye sealed shut as if it wasn’t there. Their key out had to be inside.

“I’m going to pwison”

Yet ENA would do anything to escape. With long shaky breaths, she droned a polygon finger out closer to the smooth area until the tip pricked it gently. A glow of yellow fluid started to gently seep out of the tiny hole. It wasn’t violent yet, but it didn’t stop ENA’s stomach from growling with nausea. She especially felt bad for Moony, almost hearing her suck through her clenched teeth. Who she heard next nearly made her gag.

“Remain in the cursed night, and there will be endless darkness”

A voice was low, glitching and chipped.

“Shoot, she knows we’re here now!”

Moony panicked, almost lifting ENA’s legs off the ground.

“You gotta hurry! Get it out, quickly!”

With more whimpering, ENA carefully dragged a corner of her finger down where Moony’s other eye could’ve been. It was a surprisingly clean cut, not too messy. All she had to do now was open sesame. With her eyes squinting, the polygon surgeon carefully pulled apart the skin, causing stardust to pour out like treacle. No matter how sick she felt, ENA had to keep it down. The only thing left to do was unplug the USB port, but it was gonna be messy.

Before she could stick her fingers inside though, ENA suddenly felt arms harshly grasp her waist with a strict tug. It was so strict that she banged her head against Moony’s shell. Moony’s human form attempted to keep hold of her hair, but the strings above started to separate as the girls were ripped freely out.

Everyone panicked as the planetary pieces split, sending Moony’s core to the floor. She looked up, finding her friend squirming in the tight grasp of the corrupted ENA.

“Return to the real world, and there will still be endless darkness”

***

KeeKa scrambled back onto her feet, sensing paranormal activity behind her. Through the illegal door frame, whatever light source it had started to flicker in the backroom she just retreated from. Wooden, iron, wooden, iron. This carried on until the power was cut. Crookedly standing inside the dark cell was Merci, a sock voodoo doll pinched inside the mouth of a blind hand puppet while the other hand spoke.

“너의 어둠 속에서 현실 세계를 저주해/Neoui eo dum sogeseo hyeonsil segyereul jeojuhae” (Curse the real world within your darkness)

“No! Nooo!”

***

“The main port! There’s still time!”

No matter the struggle, Moony’s pleas encouraged ENA’s blue jagged hand to zip over to her friend’s leaking wound. Those sharp edges dug deep through the starry mass until they felt a flat solid item. Could it be the USB stick? Hope was still inside her so in a flurry, she began to pull.

***

“Boden!” KeeKa cried as she samurai ran through the corridor. “Prepare the doors!”

As she kept running at a fast pace, the ceiling lights further behind her started to flicker off one by one. In the mirror realm, Merci ran through her own hallway, sensing KeeKa ahead of her. Her arms were out forwards, the voodoo doll swinging left and right violently as she laughed like an insane clown.

***

The procedure downstairs was agonising. Everyone had to look away, keeping their distance in fear of losing their own eyes. Moony kept screaming in agony, yet she didn’t stop ENA from tugging out the USB stick with all her might. Light would strobe as the corrupted ENA aimed her own USB stick towards her victim’s dark blue eye.

“You are my associate!”

***

“넌 내 대신이야!/Neon nae daesiniya!” (You are my replacement!)

Merci’s lonely demand echoed through the hallway as KeeKa ran into the lift. Through the lift mirror, they caught a glimpse of a damaged Merci running in the same direction.

“Shut the door, shut the door!”

Boden instantly slammed the ground floor button and the doors started to close as the darkness kept sprinting closer and closer with Merci’s footsteps.

***

A hand from Moony’s wound tried to pull the USB stick back in, but ENA wouldn't allow it. It was almost out and her fate was almost sealed. With one final tug, the stick disconnected from the wires and a bright blue light blinded everyone.

***

Merci leapt through the gap in the doors just as they were about to close, falling onto KeeKa and taking her to the silver floor.

“KeeKa!” exclaimed her brother.

With his sister’s breathing being the only sound, Boden inspected the mirror one last time. The cursed night was no longer behind it. Just the “Save me” etches.

“Are you alright?” he asked again.

Merci’s muscles felt weak and void. Fatigue crept into her brain as a hand puppet lost their grip on the voodoo doll. Her skin was no longer blue, this time pale due to the amount of blood she lost.

“누--누군가/Nu--nu gun ga” (S--Someone)

Still heavily breathing, her throat running dry, KeeKa adjusted her mask so she could inspect the mime laying on top of her.

“나 빛이-- 보여/Na bichi-- boyeo” (I can see-- the light)

“Eh?”

“난 시각장애인이지만-- 볼 수 있어/Nan sigakjangaeinijiman-- bol su isseo. 뭔지 모르겠지만-- 나 거기로 데려가 줘/Mwonji moreugess ji man-- na geogiro deryeoga jwo. 나는 어둠 속으로 돌아가고 싶지 않아!/Naneun eodum sogeuro doragago sipji ana!” (I’m blind but-- I can see it. I don’t know what it is but-- take me to it. I don’t want to go back in the dark!)

“The light,” muttered KeeKa. “The curse”

“Is it--?”

Before Boden could add on, the lift reached the ground floor. The doors opened, revealing the light. Everyone was out of the mirror realm, surrounded by broken computer mice and rubbish bags, flies buzzing around.

“You all made it!” Boden exclaimed as he ran out. “How did you escape?”

His eyes darted around, analysing everyone. ENA laid on the floor with the orange and green USB stick in her sticky hand. Moony sat there, a mitten to her tear on her face, stars leaking out.

“I’m calling an ambulance,” the landlord announced. “Are there any other casualties?”

Everyone’s attention suddenly aimed towards the second ENA. She too laid on the floor, heavily breathing with masculinity and feminism. Her skin two tone was back to its usual red and white.

“Endless-- darkness. Cursed-- night. I-- I can communicate normally again!”

Yet she still didn’t look the same. As she sat up with struggle, it dawned on her that the USB sticks were still impaled into its own socket, blue water leaking down her face. She waved her hands in front of her, only seeing endless darkness.

“I’m bliiiind!!”

***

Everyone involved in the cursed night incident was driven to the hospital shelter. Those with major injuries were sent straight into the operating ward while the minorly injured were sent to check up. Once those victims were patched up, they had to wait in the lobby until their room was ready. Glass House was in need of a re--clean as the many items that were stolen had returned with the prisoners to the real world. Then of course, the mirrors, graffitied on the inside. They had to be replaced without charge.

Spex entered the now empty lobby to find her middle child, ENA, offering herself a warm beverage from a vending machine, Hourglass Dog following her.

“Ah, I see you couldn’t avoid the temptation of the hot chocolate, hmm? Come, sit with me, darling”

ENA’s heart managed to settle with comfort with her mother there. They both retreated to the seats, the lobby almost void and bare.

“So, tonight. How are you feeling?”

“Dead inside”

“Aww. It must be very hard for you, especially with owning your own apartment”

“I don’t feel like a big giwl”

“That’s perfectly normal, ENA. Any species simply can’t click into place straight away. Anything and everything takes time. Struggles will happen at the beginning, and when they do, just use them as stepping stone fragments and continue building that tower with those fixed mistakes if you ever want to reach the moon”

ENA gently sipped her drink as her mother continued.

“Oh by the way! Boden the landlord called. He informed that while creating a decent path and deleting trip hazards, he managed to find that camcorder delivered to you”

“By my employed kin”

“Uh yea. That employed kin wanted to send you a message. On that camera, Boden and KeeKa found a video log of how she came into the mirror prison. After your 18th ENA Day party, another one of my inventions wanted to find a place to crash in Glass House. She broke into the off limits room on our floor and found a voodoo doll which she then picked up. The very moment her fingers collided, she got swallowed by the night and found herself trapped behind the mirrors. That realm we were temporarily trapped in? She had to navigate it for two years, living off the rats and hiding from the blind prisoners. Obviously, she was eventually caught. She didn’t die, just reborn into a completely different ENA. It was as if those USB sticks were possessing her shell, snatching her husk, wanting to get revenge on the real world for eternally punishing them. Eureka! That could explain why those items were stolen! They must’ve planned this for years! They wanted to animate a new dimension, a new world order, but they failed in the end, remember?”

Spex placed a hand on ENA’s shoulder.

“You revoked the curse. You unplugged its life support, putting an end to it. Now, the cursed night is in the recycling bin thanks to you”

The scientist gently brought her daughter in for a thankful hug.

“I’m so proud of you. You were very brave”

“I-- killed Moony”

“She consented to it, and you didn’t actually kill her. I reckon they’re sowing up the seam right now”

***

Spex was later needed by the surgeons for assistance. Her oldest daughter meanwhile found herself exploring the dark quiet liminal wards, finding literally anything that could help her sleep. She would pass by swinging doors that contained emergency operations.

When ENA found the first one, she heard quiet commotion, almost like a serious conversation was going on. It was clear that this room contained her employed kin as she could hear her mother describing the shape of her eyes. Hopefully, her brethren would make a comfortable recovery.

There wasn’t any dialogue behind the next door she found next, yet she felt drawn to it. Although skeptical, ENA peaked through the windows to find obviously an entity still in bed. Judging from the eye bandaged hand puppets on each side of the body, it was clear that this was Merci. When was the last time she saw Merci? It clearly wasn’t too long ago, right? Since when did Merci get swallowed by the mirrors? Why did she enter Glass House? Was she not allowed? Nonetheless, at least she was safe. Maybe someday, they could catch up again.

Lastly was the third door and behind it was Moony back in her planet of a shell, her core presumably recovering inside her. To ENA’s surprise, she was wide awake, and a little startled by her friend appearing like a Jack in the box. For once, the polygon could read her facial expression, causing her to slink back down on her knees, yet Moony could still see her floating ahoge.

“All the better to eat you with, Riding Hood! Now gimme the cookies!”

She even sounded wide awake. This prompted ENA to merrily skip into her room, just wanting to shower her with platonic kisses-- if Moony wasn’t so disgusted by this act of affection-- or pretended to at least.

“Why are you up so late? Miss me?”

“Oh yes yes, Moony! Butterflies kept choking my airways!”

“Meh, I can’t sleep either. I have a one track mind at the moment. Man, going back there was depressing”

“Mother theorised that the darkness invasion had a motive involving revenge and escape. I too disagree with these actions. Why would anybody want to bask in a dimension where the sun never rises, where there’s no outdoor air? I want those infected to live in harmony and happiness once they obtain a heart of gold. My own heart bleeds for their safety”

“Bleeegh!”

Moony stuck her blue tongue out.

“Did you forget how that core got inside my head? Your ancestor, duh”

“You dilate this experience as if you saw this future”

“Damn right I did”

“Is it part of your family genes?”

“Nope. I just had to break in at 2am after your birthday”

“You damaged the property?”

“Don’t make fun of me, alright? I couldn’t sleep, I was bored, I was drunk from all that python venom. I was just desperate for adventure. Inside was this memorial of your waaaay great grandma, a wall mirror and a voodoo doll. When I touched it, I got this urge to sneeze, sending me into that mirror realm. Long story short, that creepy hag found me and shoved her USB soul into my core’s head. She was gonna do the same for this eye when I sneezed again, sending me back into the real world. The mirror looked different this time as if that same prison was right behind the glass. Banging on it was-- what was her name? I-NA? I originally didn’t know or care how she got in there, until now. What I’m saying is-- it was pretty much my fault that this all began”

“Oh”

ENA stared down at her, her voice quiet before her sunny smile returned.

“Ok”

“Ok?”

“Would you like me to hyperfixate on video game facts to help lull you into slumber?”

Moony smacked her lips together as if she gasped for a glass of milk on stilts.

“Yea sure. By the way, this is just between us, or I’m going back to juvenile hall”

“Affirmative. Ahem! Did you know that there was an MMO titled Littlest Pet Shop Online? It was developed by Hasbro in the late 2000s. Despite its popularity, it only had a short runtime. Players could adopt their own pet, dress them up, decorate their house--”

The end