Volterra took a deep, steadying breath after Murikabushi took nem into Mirrorspace. This s**t sucked. It massively sucked. Ne didn't want to have to go through some stupid trial to get nis own, like, soul back. If ne'd known that becoming a magical girl was literally going to involve having your soul stolen, ne would have maybe thought twice about that s**t. Ne blew the steadying breath out violently through nis teeth, immediately negating any positive effect that the "steady" breath may have had on nis nerves.

Ne stared into the strange landscape, feeling an odd sense of vindication and apprehension that this would be the last time ne saw it, even if ne never saw it much anyway—ne just… hadn't liked going in all that much. But now… Now there was this tone of finality that colored it all for nem. It was almost melancholic.

Or maybe that was just something about the Chaos-poisioning messing with nis head. Shaking it violently like a particularly perturbed cat, ne marched on through the twisting paths, getting angrier and angrier with every passing moment that ne didn't ******** find anything.

Damnit, why was this so stupidly ******** hard?

It was then that ne finally spotted it. Ne knew by the way it called to nem, from where it seemed to be proudly displayed, and the way nis hairs all stood on end. Ne wanted to step closer to it, to snatch it up and take it and run, far far away from here, but something stopped nem. Just a little bit. After all… Look, maybe it was a silly thought, because this was obviously not an episode of Leverage, but it was not like ne knew for sure or not that there weren't… some kind of booby traps around it. Insivible lasers or some crazy ******** thing.

"Oi! Mirror b***h!" ne shouted into the void with as much power as ne could. "I want my ******** soul back, thanks!"

"That's not what I do," came a voice that nearly made Volterra shriek, but ne managed to suppress it, whirling to see some—oh, Jesus ******** Christ, of course the thing that embodied the spirit of the MirrorSpit would take on some odd reflection of nem. A reflection that seemed… cool. Almost too casual. Yet also with an air of friendliness. Something that… Volterra dearly wished ne had. It was stupid, ne knew, but ne's cynicalness was borne of a desire to actually be friendly and nice—a desire that never seemed to bear any fruit, no matter how hard ne had tried as a child to get it to.

"Right. And I'm a fairy," ne said witheringly.

"Depending on who you talk to, yeah," Not-Volterra said, flicking some dust off nis shoulder. "From what I hear, that's a fun word to call yourself if you're queer."

Volterra snorted. "I see you've met my cousin," ne said dryly, then frowned. No, no no no. Ne did not want to get friendly with this thing.

Not-Volterra smirked a little, and Volterra wondered if this is how ne truly came off to most people—such a smug, condescending, a*****e, Volterra wanted to wonder if the Mirror Thing would start spouting about the wonders of MirrorCryptocurrency—but ne knew that was unlikely.

"You don't seem to like your own attitude," the Not-Volterra thing said in the most annoying, brutal, pitchy sing-song tone Volterra had ever heard.

"You don't have to reflect everything you know," ne said, rolling nis eyes. "It's more spooky if you don't. Ever seen one of those videos where someone turns around but their reflection doesn't?"

Not-Volterra blinked in momentary confusion, then shook nis head and sighed. "Oh, Volterra. If only you knew," ne said dramatically. "You could be so much happier with yourself, if you just visited more. Create your own space. Your own world, where nobody could ever touch you, bother you. Literally physically impossible for anyone to reach you here. Maybe you'd have a space to feel all those strong feelings and have the mental space to be the happier, cheerier person you want to be out there, away from Mirrorspace."

Volterra's breath hitched. "And be some kind of peppy cheerleader? No thanks."

"Hah! No, silly. But maybe you could be someone more deserving of the title of Senshi of Sunbeams. Isn't it funny, Little Mix Sunshine, that you don't have a sunny personality? That you're so harsh, cold, cruel? If you used your island, you could have your little ice queen castle, and feel better about yourself outside the island, find a way to be deserving of the title you know you don't deserve right now. I could help you with your island, your personal space—it would be completely safe."

"I don't think that's how isolation works," Volterra said, voice wavering.

"It's not total isolation," Not-Volterra said, seemingly genuinely surprised by the idea that that's what Volterra thought it was suggesting. "It's about a safe space away from it all without having to reject it all."

Volterra wanted to believe it. Wanted to believe it so badly ne could taste it. But… ne knew how miserable nis cousin was in the Dark Mirror Court. Knew that Murikabushi had brought nem here specifically for finding nis Mirror Seal and getting the hell out of dodge, or blowing this popsicle stand, or whatever stupid metaphor he would say that would make Volterra laugh and hate it. Knew that if Murikabushi left, Volterra would too, simple as that. Ne's self-esteem or feeling deserving of the senshi title or whatever the ******** else this crazy being could come up with to tempt Volterra into staying was never, ever going to be worth losing nis cousin over. Perhaps nis entire family, too.

No. Ne would not. So, ne bared nis teeth at the thing ne'd been calling Not-Volterra and snarled out, "I don't care. None of it. And it's not even a stupid 'I'm too emo or goth for this s**t' kind of 'I don't care'. I ******** mean it. I don't care about whatever it is you have to say. As long as my cousin is leaving, I am too, and that's that."

"Do you think there's only one reflection of me?"

"Huh?"

"I'm convincing your cousin to stay, too," Not-Volterra coaxed. "If you go for your Mirror Seal, take it, and leave, and follow through on all your plans—it could all be for naught."

Volterra stared. Thought about it for one long moment. Then shook nis head. "Nah."

"Nah?!"

"Nah. Muri wouldn't do that," Volterra said confidently, completely sure of nemself for once in nis life. "His spine is wayyyy too shiny for that. He's done bending over backwards for people that just want to control him, the way you do. So back the ******** off, shut the ******** up, and let me get my damn Mirror Seal. Or I'll get out of here and start shattering all the precious mirrors this Court has stocked up everywhere to move to and from in. I know where a lot of them are, after all."

"Okay, okay, you don't have to be so jerky about it," the Mirror Thing muttered. It shattered, then, in a sparkle of broken glass dusty bits and shards that made Volterra pull a face.

"And you don't have to be such a drama queen," ne muttered, covering nis face with a hand in case it wasn't just some kind of cool effect. Ne didn't want to actually inhale glass dust, thank you!

Ne reached for the Mirror Seal, the one resonating so strongly with the starseed in nis chest, and gently, carefully wrapped nis free hand around it. Nis heart pumped adrenaline so harshly through nis body ne almost felt dizzy with it—ne had done it. Ne had the Seal. Ne could leave. Could leave and find Murikabushi and go… get purified. The thought sent a fresh wave of anxiety and adrenaline through nis body, but ne remained calm, taking a few deep breaths. Ne could finish this. Ne had the stupid, rotten Mirror Seal. There weren't that many steps left to take, now.

Soon enough, ne and nis cousin would be safe. Safe, with new names, and it ached to lose nis name—ne had always liked Haruhi Tatsuhana. To nis great surprise, as ne exited Mirror Space, tears flooded nis ********. Stupid emotions," ne muttered to nemself, rubbing at nis eyes with the hand that had been protecting nis face from glass a few minutes ago. Ne… really didn't want to lose being nemself. Even if ne knew ne would be the same person on the other side of this… Ne would still be unreversedly different. Same but different in a way that would… actually break what little heart ne believed ne had. Ayame would still be nis family—but no longer nis little sister.

A broken sob escaped nem, but then ne bit nis hand harshly, redirecting all the feelings into something different for them to escape out of. Ne wouldn't cry. Not now. Ne was done with that. Crying had always been the worst.

Once more… ne took a deep, steadying breath, and walked on to the park.