The Road Home

Posted originally on the Archive of Our Own at http://archiveofourown.org/works/48219832.

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences

Archive Warning: No Archive Warnings Apply
Category: M/M
Fandom: Dangan Ronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc
Relationship: Ishimaru Kiyotaka/Oowada Mondo
Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Non-Despair (Dangan Ronpa), Mutual Pining,
Friends to Lovers, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Background
characters - Freeform, Background Relationships, Fantasy themes,
Flashbacks, Flirting, Fluff and Humor, Light-Hearted, Plot, POV
Alternating
Language: English
Stats: Published: 2023-06-29 Updated: 2023-08-26 Words: 12,361 Chapters:
4/12

The Road Home

by Cuddlebug1603

Summary

Mondo had never seen or even heard of The Wizard of Oz. Apparently, everyone in else in
the fucking world had.

Taka never had access to many movies growing up, but The Wizard of Oz was one of the
few, and he loved it dearly.

An Ishimondo dream(?) fic inspired by the enchantingly-classic motion picture.

 Chapter One

There weren’t a ton of things Class 78 had in common besides attending Hope’s Peak. But they
were all friends, and on the rare occasions they could spend it doing something together, it was a
god damn blast.

Mondo thought about this as he sat on the edge of the pool, dangling his legs in the water,
watching the rest of the class be a bunch of dorks.

Sakura was judging a race between Makoto and Leon, a few of the others placing bets and
cheering them on. Celeste and Toko sat on the other side of the pool, discussing something while
thoroughly judging the rest of the class. Aoi was showing off pool tricks to a slightly-impressed
Byakuya and a supportive-but-cautious Taka, who had a whistle around his neck, obviously a
certified lifeguard. Kyoko was reading, though he was sure he caught her sneaking glances at the
race (where Makoto was clearly winning, Leon complaining loudly every time he came up for air).
Hifumit sat with Chihiro, discussing swimming techniques and coming up with new challenges for
the more competitive people.

Everyone was just having a damn good time, and it was incredible. Mondo hadn’t realized the
amount of friends he’d made in the years he’d spent with them.

He was interrupted from this pleasant train of thought by a loud conversation between Sayaka and
Hiro.

“It’s called SODA, you hooligan, not coke! If you were to go to a restaurant and ask for a coke,
and they didn’t have actual coke but a different type of -cola-” Sayaka said, her voice nearly
shouting.

“Coke equals cola equals pop, I don’t know how else to say it!” Hiro argued.

They must have been having this conversation for a long, long time, because Sayaka’s near-
endless patience had clearly just run out. In a bout of frustration, she dipped her hands into the
water and splashed Hiro’s front.

Hiro reacted to the water as if it was acid. “OH, NO, YOU GOT ME,” he yelled, making his voice
high pitched, “I’M MELTING! WHAT A WORLD, WHAT A WORLD…!” Then with a thunderous
crash, he fell headfirst into the pool.

Everyone that had been watching laughed and resumed their respective activities, acting like
something completely batshit hadn’t just come out of his mouth.

Mondo looked at Sayaka, who was looking sheepish about her outburst and pitiful water attack.
“Uh, do you know what the hell he was just screaming about?”

Sayaka screwed up her eyes, like she was trying to figure out if he was messing with her.

“I’m serious, why was everyone laughing at that? I mean, sure, he was being an stupid, but what’s
new?”

Hiro had since resurfaced, his wet hair draping around his head like a Komondor. “...Whaddya
mean? Like, you don’t know -at all-?”

“I mean I kinda get that you’re referencing -something-”, Mondo defended, really not liking the
way they were looking at him. “I’m not fucking with you, I’ve never heard that shit in my life.”

Taka, who had been walking over from the other side of the pool, came to stand beside him,
bumping his shoulder with his knee. “Language, kyodai,” he chided, looking down at Mondo for
only a second before staring at Hiro, his actual target. “Hagakure-kun, falling into the pool like
that could seriously damage your head and spine. Please utilize pool safety rules, even when
making jokes,” he said, pointing at the sign with all the rules.

Hiro moved some of the mop out of his eyes. “Well, you see Taka, I think you’ll find that they’ve
updated the rules.”

Taka did a double-take at the sign. “Wha-? It most certainly did not change since I last-” he
looked back and Hiro had sunk silently under the water and to the other side of the pool. An
irritated frown curled onto his face.

Mondo grinned up at him. “Hey, you tried. Not your fault if he does it again and cracks his skull.”

“I’m not certain it will make much of a difference, good or bad,” he grumbled, glaring at Hiro
skimming the bottom of the pool. Then he sighed, sitting down next to him, also dipping his feet in
the water. “What was he bothering -you- about? The proper name for soft drinks?”

“No, I was just-”

Sayaka interrupted him. “He’s never heard of The Wizard of Oz. That’s very impressive, Mondo,
but keep it to yourself…I’m sure Hiro’s already forgotten, but the rest of the class would never let
you live it down,” she said solemnly, swimming off before either of them could say anything.

Mondo watched her go, then looked back at Taka, who was staring at him with wide eyes.
“What?” he said, wishing he wouldn’t look at him like that, kicking the water nervously.

“I can’t believe you’ve never even -heard- of The Wizard of Oz, that’s my favorite movie of all
time!” Taka said, his smile blinding. “Honestly kyodai, I haven’t seen many movies but The
Wizard Oz holds great cultural significance!”

Mondo smiled, clueless about what amazing movie they were talking about but happy to listen to
anything Taka thought was interesting. “Tell me all about it.”

Taka didn’t go off on a rant like he’d been expecting (and hoping). He was quiet for a moment,
seeming to decide something. “What are you doing tonight?” He asked, boldly.

“Wh- nothing, I guess,” Mondo said, taken aback, “but aren’t you usually busy on Friday nights?
With a student council meeting?”

“Yes, but they can handle one meeting without me. This is a matter of great urgency, don’t you
agree?”

He said it with the usual innocent look, not a hint of anything else, but Mondo still felt his stomach
flutter. “Yeah, totally. My dorm or yours?”

“Yours, I think.” Then he smiled and walked away, leaving Mondo with heat rising in his cheeks.

Aoi, who’d been watching this exchange from the edge of the pool, gave a low whistle. “Dang, that
boy sure can be -smooth- when he wants to be. You’re a lucky guy Mon,” she said, winking.

She ducked back into the pool before the towel Mondo threw at her could make contact.
 …

Mondo woke himself up with a yawn, the warmth under the covers making him stretch out across
the mattress. He sat up groggily, rubbing sleep out of the corner of his eye before opening them.

And when he opened them, he couldn’t see colors. Well, any color but brown.

He blinked. Then he blinked a few more times, the pleasant morning fuzz in his brain fading away.
He looked around his dorm room- yup, everything from the floor to the bed to the ceiling was a
different shade of brown.

A sense of panic in his chest, he got to his feet and walked quickly to his bathroom, looking in the
mirror. Mondo swallowed as he saw himself. He looked normal enough minus the weird sepia shit.
Leaning in close to his reflection, he used his fingers to hold open his eye, watching his pupil
contract and his light brown iris expand with it.

“What the hell is happening…” he mumbled, leaning back and holding both sides of the sink,
staring at his reflection some more. He was also startled to find that he wasn’t in his usual pajamas,
or anything close to resembling pajamas: he was wearing a sleeveless, white-and-brown gingham
button-up shirt with dark brown pants. He’d never owned a shirt that looked like the one he had on
and he had zero recollection of buying it.

He left the bathroom and started searching his bed for his phone, thinking of looking up ‘can you
get drunk enough to fuck up your eyesight’ , but found nothing. He tore the covers and pillows off,
looked under the bed, checked his desk, his drawers- nothing.

He also couldn’t find his jacket. So now he was starting to freak out a little bit.

Stopping in the middle of his room, he sat down on the edge of the now-barren bed, shutting his
eyes. Grounding himself, he took a large breath in, held it for a few seconds, then let it out,
repeating that a few times. When he opened his eyes, the world was still brown. But he wasn’t
freaking out or getting upset.

‘Okay. The eye thing is the biggest problem here,’ he thought, looking sheepishly across the
trashed room. He didn’t know what time it was but he didn’t get up early if he could help it, so the
nurse’s office was probably open. Maybe he’d even need to go to an optometrist or something: he’d
have to find his phone first (and his keys and wallet, which would be in his jacket). The only places
on-grounds his jacket might be were the shop or Taka’s room…still, the eye thing took precedence.

Mondo sighed, slapping his legs and standing up. He went and cleaned himself up in the bathroom,
doing his usual hair and makeup (his eyeliner now a very dark brown rather than black,
irritatingly). Then he made his way to the door and opened it.

He shielded his eyes from an unexpected brightness, squinting. When his sight had adjusted
enough, he felt his jaw drop. He hadn’t walked out into one of the many hallways of Hope’s Peak
Academy. Nope, he was standing in a small village with some of the weirdest architecture he’d
ever seen: the houses were shaped sort of like mushrooms, with giant, exotic flowers fucking
everywhere. The houses faced each other in a semicircle, converging around two spiraling red and
yellow brick roads.

Well. He’s pretty sure he was going nuts, but at least he could see in color again. Looking back into
his room, everything in there was still brown. He shut the door just in case.

Newly recolored, he glanced down at himself. The sleeveless gingham shirt was black and white,
his pants were black, and his shoes were white, like normal. This was all a relief, he’d never really
been able to pull off a color as soft as brown.

Mondo cleared his throat, walking cautiously into the center of the roads. “Uh, hey,” he called out,
looking around for any signs of life, “anyone here?” He poked around some of the houses,
knocking on a few doors (doors that were weirdly short when he stood in front of them). In fact
everything was pretty small- some rocking chairs on the porches, the tables, the mailboxes- he
wasn’t sure what to make of it.

Suddenly, he heard a familiar rumbling in the distance and looked toward the sound. Someone was
speeding toward the village on a motorcycle, down the winding red brick road. They were wearing
a large white ball gown with a small hoop skirt, and it billowed in the wind as they raced along.

With some amount of shock and relief, he realized it was Daiya. As he got closer, the dress came
into better focus: tiny glass spheres and pearls were attached seamlessly along the hemlines,
sparkling in the sun. He wore matching gloves, and he could see pearls gleaming in his jet black
hair. It was a classy, quality outfit, which made him wonder what on earth his brother was doing
with it.

Daiya finally pulled up a few feet away, parking his bike and putting down the kickstand. Mondo
was about to ask when, as his brother stood, he saw a bright pair of translucent wings flutter and
unbend themselves from Daiya’s back. Not costume wings. Just…wings.

Whatever words were about to come out of his mouth dried up. He’d been comforted seeing a
familiar face, but the wings were just too much right now. “...Please tell me what the fuck is going
on, I feel like I’m about to have a nervous breakdown,” he said shakily, seriously considering
sitting on the ground so he wouldn’t feel so faint. “Where the hell are we?”

Daiya looked at him with a mixture of pity and amusement. “Okay, here’s what happened…there
was a tornado-”

“That did not happen-”

“I’m telling you it did so shut up and listen,” Daiya said quickly, looking completely unsurprised at
the interruption. “The tornado took you from home to Oz, the country we’re in now. You landed in
Munchkinland, home of the Munchkins.”

Mondo rubbed his eyes with his hand, the other on his hip. “Right, okay,” he said, voice drained.
Something he’d said, though, resonated with him. “Oz. Why does that sound familiar?”

“It should sound familiar, because everyone on the planet knows about Oz,” Daiya said dryly.
“You seriously don’t understand how much of a dumbass you sound like when you say that. I can’t
believe I let you grow up with such ignorance,” he continued solemnly, dipping his head and
putting his hand over his heart.
“Okay, christ, I don’t think I deserved that. I don’t know jack shit about geography.”

“It isn’t about-!” Daiya sighed, leaning against his bike. “Nevermind, you just don’t get it.
Anyway, you landed in Munchkinland, right on top of the Wicked Witch of the East.”

Startled, Mondo looked back at his room. Sure enough, underneath the clean cuboidal cut of his
room was a pair of pale legs with ankle cut black and white socks, a gleaming pair of silver ankle
boots on their feet. He looked back at Daiya, horrified, but his brother had a shit-eating grin.

“They’re fake, idiot. I mean for the sake of the story they’re real, but you didn’t kill anybody. But
hey, speaking of which,” he said hastily, probably sensing how close Mondo was to strangling him,
“the Witch being killed is someone’s cue!” He said the last part as a shout, speaking over the top of
Mondo’s head.

There was rustling and a muffled curse from one of the left-most houses. “Sorry, sorry! Wardrobe
malfunction…”

“If you would just hold still, you are making it much more difficult for both of us.”

The arguing voices quieted. Mondo had a hard time believing two people could fit inside one of
those tiny mushrooms. Then, the door to the house swung open, one occupant at a time squeezing
out.

The first was Chihiro, looking miffed, then Makoto, a sheepish smile on his face. Both of them
wore what appeared to be the normal Hope’s Peak uniforms, except the colors of the fabrics were
shades of blue rather than just brown and white. Even their shoes were blue. Makoto was
obviously missing his tie and his shirt was rumpled. They were both an inch or so shorter than their
usual height.

“We were in separate houses, then he called me in a panic about losing his tie,” Chihiro said, his
mouth scrunched up.

Makoto rubbed his arm. “But those houses are too small for two people. So we got stuck. And
didn’t find my tie.”

Mondo nodded, processing as best he could. “Alright…you’re supposed to be Munchkins, who live
in this town called Munchkinland. And I just dropped my dorm room on a witch. An allegedly-
wicked witch.”

“Now you’re getting it,” Daiya said approvingly, clapping him on the back. “But guess what? Oz
has four witches, two good, two evil.”

The three of them were staring expectantly at Mondo, prompting him. “So…uh,” he said, feeling
stupid, “who’s the other evil one?”

“I’m so glad you asked!”

A large cloud of black smoke and fire surged through the ground not ten feet from them, scaring
the shit out of Mondo. A hailstorm of sparks and embers burst out the sides of the fireball, a few
flying past their faces, one even landing on Makoto’s jacket, which he hastily took it off and
stamped on it with his foot.

From the flames emerged Junko Enoshima, her skin completely green and her clothes all black,
cackling like a crazy person. “Hello, my pretties! Lovely to see you all!” She had a pointy
prosthetic nose, a hat that could never be independently described as belonging to a witch, and a
broomstick in her hands that were adorned with long black acrylic nails. All in all, pretty stylish.

Chihiro gave her a frighteningly-stern frown. “Junko, you need to be more careful when it comes to
the placement of the pyrotechnic equipment, that might have seriously hurt someone!”

Mondo considered her for a moment. He wasn’t necessarily close with Junko, but he liked her well
enough- he’d talked with her a lot about fashion shit during homeroom. They could probably call
each other friends, even though she might be pretty intense to be around. While never on purpose,
she had a habit for taking shit too far.

Junko faltered, looking at the four of them. “Did any of you get hurt?” she asked quietly, slightly
crestfallen. When they all shook their heads (Chihiro more begrudgingly than the others), she
cackled again. “Well good. But I obviously wouldn’t have minded if you had! Now…I have come
here to exact my revenge on the one who killed my sister, the Witch of the East! Was it you,
Munchkin? Or you?!” She said, wildly pointing a finger at Makoto and then Mondo.

“I did. Not on fuckin’ purpose, but I guess it technically is my fault,” Mondo said, looking over at
the (presumably fake) legs. “My bad, Mukuro.”

Makoto leaned in to whisper something. “She didn’t really want to be here in Oz anyway, I’m sure
she’s grateful to have gotten a role with no lines.”

Junko screeched, pointing her broomstick this time. “An accident, ey…? Well, I can make
accidents happen too, Owada!”

Daiya sidestepped him, shielding Mondo and leering down at her. “While I’m sure you’re not
stupid enough to try and do anything while I’m here,” he said calmly, “aren’t you forgetting about
the shoes?”

‘What the fuck does that mean’, Mondo thought for the one thousandth time today.

Junko’s eyes lit up. “You’re so right! I’ve been wanting to get my hands on those for ages!” She
leapt from where they were standing to in front of the dorm room, stopping short when she
noticed…the legs underneath it were gone, along with the shoes. She glared over her shoulder at
Daiya, who was smirking. “Where’d they go, Owada that I’m not friends with?”

“I dunno,” Daiya said innocently. Strike that, innocent-sounding. Mondo knew his brother well
enough to know the fucker pretty much always knew what was going on. “They had to have moved
onto someone else’s.”

Mondo was the only one who had to look down to realize where the shoes had gone. They had
replaced his usual nameless white sneakers, shining beautifully, catching the light just so, and fit
like they were made for him.

He looked back up at Daiya wearily. “Oh, come on,” he said, watching Junko bubble up with
pseudo-rage out of the corner of his eye, “I dropped a house on her sister and now you want me to
steal her shit?”

“Yeah, no wonder I’m the antagonist! Gimmie those,” Junko said, stomping over and attempting to
grab one, yelping when they seemed to shock her. Rubbing her hand, she yelled at Mondo.
“Owada, I swear to god if you don’t give me those shoes right now I will spend the rest of this
story being a huge pain in the ass!”

That sounded fair enough to him, but Chihiro slapped Mondo’s hand down from where it was
about to take off the silver boots. “Nope, against the rules.”
“But I don’t care about these things, they’re not my rightful property, and she’s literally threatening
me!”

Daiya squeezed his shoulder, speaking to him in a low voice. “Hey genius, you need those to get
home. And she can’t hurt you when you have those on. So yes, you do care about them, and you’re
not gonna take them off, ever, not even to sleep. Got it?” He punctuated this last remark with a
dangerous look.

Mondo swallowed, and nodded. He wondered if other people ever saw him and thought he was the
same level of intimidating that Daiya was in his eyes.

Junko swore, backing away from the group in a huff. “Well, I clearly can’t get those shoes now,
and neither can I exact my revenge…watch your back, Mondo, because I’ll be scheming a way to
get what I want!” She giggled strangely, running a safe distance away before throwing something
on the ground and disappearing into another explosion of fire.

The four of them stared at where she’d disappeared, dazed by the theatrics.

Makoto, ever the optimist, gave a weak grin. “She’s obviously giving the role her all, that’s for
sure.”

A few more seconds of silence passed.

Then Daiya clapped his gloved hands together. “Welp, I’ve got lots of Good Witch business to
attend to, I’d best be on my way.”

“Did he ever establish that he was a ‘good witch’,” Mondo muttered to Chihiro, watching with
disdain as Daiya walked away with his hands in his dress pockets, running his fingers through his
hair in a way that somehow didn’t make him look like an asshole.

Chihiro’s voice was light as he whispered back. “I think you probably need to accept now that
there’s going to be a lot of things on this adventure you’re not going to fully get unless someone
gives you context. Just roll with it and you’ll be fine.”

“I’m sure it’s frustrating to not be in the know,” Makoto added, patting his shoulder, “but it’ll
make sense soon, don’t worry.”

Mondo wasn’t so sure, but he would be lying if he said their words weren’t comforting.

Daiya peered at him over his shoulder, then smiled. “They’re right Mon. But if you’re ever lost,”
he said sagely, “just call, and I’ll be there. Probably. Maybe.” Then he snapped, his motorbike
appearing at his side, and he sped off like a bullet on the wind down the red brick road.

Mondo scowled, torn between irritation and jealousy at his cool and annoying brother.

Chihiro cleared his throat, clasping his hands together and smiling. “Alright, I think it’s about time
you learned how to get back home.”

Makoto smiled too. “Right! All you have to do is get to the Emerald City and ask the Wizard to
take you home. Don’t worry, it’s a long but easy journey. All you have to do is-”

“Follow the yellow brick road,” Mondo said without thinking.

“Wh- how’d you know that?” Makoto said, his eyebrows raised. “Did your brother tell you?”
“Well, no…” He didn’t know how he knew. It was the first thing in this weird Oz place he could
say with absolute certainty that he did know without being prompted. “I guess it’s pretty obvious.
Big, yellow, can’t miss it.”

Chihiro narrowed his eyes. “Why didn’t you think it was the red one?”

“I don’t know, man, just luck or something. Is that everything? Nothing else I need to know?” He
felt anxious. He wanted to get moving before any more important plot points could get squeezed
into his brain.

Chihiro shook his head, still looking puzzled. “No, that should be all you need. Just don’t take off
those shoes for any reason and stay on the road.”

“And call Daiya if something bad happens,” Makoto said, once again proving himself the true
mom friend of any social circle.

Chihiro pulled on Makoto’s sleeve, tilting his head. Makoto smiled and took the hint. “We’ll leave
you to it! Good luck Mondo, hope you have lots of fun,” he said cheerily, following a waving
Chihiro back into the village of Munchkinland.

So there he stood, alone, about to depart on a journey to a city that held some kind of Wizard,
trying not to get killed by a Witch. Was this story really mundane to everyone else in the world? It
felt like anything but, to him.

He put the toe of one of his sparkly-ass boots on the very point of the yellow brick road. Did he
know what was going on? No. But all he apparently had to do was get to a city, talk to some
wizard, and then he’d be home again.

With purpose, he took his first steps. Follow the yellow brick road.
 Chapter Two

…Mondo had never lived in the open country before, and after today he could say with confidence
that he never wanted to. Munchkinland was long behind him, and so were the sights- only the slow
rolling hills of farmland were there to greet him, mile after mile. The yellow brick road was very
well maintained, so between that and the absolute drudge of walking he really wished he had his
bike. Or some music, or one of the ‘Munchkins’ to talk to.

“If this shit was really a movie,” Mondo groaned, staring into the dull sky, “this part would never
make the final cut.”

He sighed and kept trudging along, close to tears with boredom. The only thing he had to do was
ponder his weird situation, and his running theory was obviously that this was just a dream. Yeah,
it felt real, but his dreams always seemed that way, until he’d wake up. This had stopped feeling
like a prank or a hallucination hours ago. So that was that, in his mind.

“Getting bored as fuck in a dream doesn’t make much sense, though,” he grumbled, running a hand
along one of the fences surrounding the latest fields. For the past twenty or so minutes the fields
had been filled with corn, the stalks nearly taller than he was. They obscured his vision of the
horizon and what must have been an infinite number of goddamn hills.

He couldn’t see it until he was right on top of it, but he reached a fork in the road. The path was
splitting into four polar opposite directions. Stopping right in the center of the x, Mondo took a
moment to curse his moron of a brother for not forewarning him. The only distinctive object in
sight was a wooden pole in one section of the fields, a large nail sticking out of it.

‘Maybe there was a sign on that at some point,’ he thought, hopping the fence and wading into the
corn. He looked around at the base of the pole, thinking the sign head might’ve snapped off.

He spotted something a few feet away. Maneuvering around a few stalks, his eyes widened- it
wasn’t a thing, it was a person. He couldn’t quite see their face until he kneeled down into the
dirt…

It was Taka. He looked pretty much like he normally did, just in a damn-good scarecrow
Halloween costume. His skin was made of burlap, but it really just looked like his normal face, and
his clothes were ragged and patched. His hands were gloved. A hat was apparently sewn onto his
head. He was motionless other than the rise and fall of his chest, sleeping deeply.

Mondo silently pumped his fists, because thank god, he had someone to talk to for at least a
minute, and it was Taka of all people! Fucking jackpot!

He cleared his throat quietly. “Bro? Bro, you gotta get up,” he said in a whisper.

Taka didn’t stir or show any signs he’d heard, which was odd, since that’s all it usually took. He
put a hand on his shoulder and carefully shook. “Heyo, Taka, can you hear me?” Still, nothing. He
tried to lift up one of his eyelids and found it might as well have been glued shut. Mondo tried
raising his voice, squeezing his (eerily boneless) shoulders, shaking him, but still, nothing.

He sat down beside him, scratching his cheek in confusion. Something was obviously going on
here. It had to be some kind of puzzle, and all puzzles had solutions. “I mean, there’s gotta be
something I can say or do that’ll get you up…” he pondered, looking down at his friend with
narrowed eyes. They were in a dream, and Taka was obviously under some kind of sleep spell.

Suddenly, a thought popped into his stupid brain. He could think of at least two different stories
with princesses cursed by sleep, and…how they got woken up.

Mondo felt his face flush, and he had to stand up and walk a few paces away from Taka,
determinedly not looking at him. From what he could tell, he was playing a role in some old story
that everyone knew except him, one where that kind of shit wasn’t weird or creepy in context. If
you looked at it outside of the lens of the story, though...

It just seemed a little distasteful. But as much as he wanted to stomp all over the idea and never
think about it again, he couldn’t think of anything else that might work.

He peered anxiously around the corn again from where he stood, looking down at Taka. This was a
lot different than those stories; for one, the two of them were very close friends, they had been for
a few years now. This wasn’t something their friendship couldn’t recover from. Secondly, if it
worked, he wasn’t keeping what happened a secret, he’d be entirely open and honest about it.

And three: he wouldn’t kiss him on the lips, he knew that was a loophole he could jump through
thanks to more recent fairy tale retellings. Did it matter when he knew the whole point was about
‘true love’s’ kiss? No, not to him it didn’t, but…he knew Taka. Taka loved him as a friend, a best
friend. Mondo, on the other hand, had been dealing with a crush on him for ages. So yeah, it
mattered. It was a lot easier to justify platonic love with a kiss on the hand rather than deny
romantic love with a kiss on the mouth.

Swallowing down his melancholic thoughts, he strode back to Taka, kneeling down beside him. He
looked at peace, his lips slightly parted. The traditional way really would be more romantic, but he
couldn’t do that to his friend.

Instead he took Taka’s gloved hand in his own and brushed his lips over his knuckles, trying not to
feel his heart beating a powerful rhythm against his chest. It was an intoxicating thing, expressing
himself this way, so he should be glad it didn’t get to happen all that often.

Mondo drew back, watching his face.

Slowly, Taka opened his eyes.

 Chapter Three

Taka blinked hard as he woke, an unusual fuzziness in his head and sight. He was lying on a warm,
uneven surface. Above him, he could vaguely make out an open blue sky on a sunny day. A dark
figure kneeling beside him blocked the worst of the sun, silhouetted in gold. As his eyes adjusted,
he took in the figure’s broad shoulders, his crooked smile, his pretty eyes…

It was Mondo, gently holding one of his hands. His voice was barely higher than a whisper when
he spoke. “Taka? You awake?”

It felt like he’d been asleep for twelve hours- a time he rarely achieved half of nowadays. He tried
nodding and the world spun around him.

Mondo made a noncommittal noise, dropping Taka’s hand. “Well, y’don’t look too cheery, but at
least you got up. I was a little worried you weren’t gonna.”

Taka took a slow breath in, rubbing his eyes. He sat up onto his elbows, feeling lighter and more
like himself- then immediately becoming confused by the surrounding field of corn they were
sitting in. As he looked back to Mondo, about to ask for some context, his eye caught a glint of
something shiny. It was a rhinestone, one of the hundreds that made up the pair of boots Mondo
was currently wearing, along with a gray-and-white checked shirt.

Then, he looked down at himself. He wore a patched farmer’s outfit, straw sticking visibly out of
the seams…he held his stuffed arms out in front of him, wiggling his gloved fingers and grinning
wildly.

Mondo, who had been observing him get acclimated to his surroundings, grinned as well. “Guess
you’ve caught on by now, huh?”

“Of course I have, I’m dreaming about being in The Wizard of Oz, my absolute favorite movie of
all time!” Taka said, clasping his hands together, completely delighted. “This must be a
consequence of watching it with you last night,” he added, though a striking gap in his memory
prevented him from knowing for certain. “Well- not you, per se, since you’re just an illusion from
my brain, but you know what I mean.”

Dream Mondo’s eyebrows raised. “Uh. Say that again?”

“I’m dreaming, so you can’t be real.”

He was smirking now, leaning forward with both of his arms resting on his knees. “Oh, okay, I’m
the fake one. We’re totally in your brain right now, got it.”

Taka quirked his head to the side, also smiling. This wasn’t something he’d ever had to argue
about before. “I’m not some figment of your imagination, kyodai. How on earth could you be real
when I’m the one dreaming?”

“I’m the one who’s been walking for at least an hour. And dealing with my stupid brother, and
Junko. Plus, you wouldn’t even be awake right now if it wasn’t for me,” he said smugly, flicking
the brim of Taka’s hat.

Oh, now that was irritating. Irritating and charming, but still. “You’ve yet to explain how that
happened, exactly.”
Some of Mondo’s swagger deflated. “Right. Yeah, I didn’t, uh-” he stopped himself, out of his
languid kneel into a cross-legged sit, his posture straighter than he’d ever seen it. “No, I told
myself if I was man enough to do it then I’d be man enough to own up to it. I kissed you, okay?”

Taka raised his eyebrows. Normally, if that was the direction a dream involving him and Mondo
took, it wasn’t with nearly as much hesitancy.

Mondo continued, not making eye contact and shifting uncomfortably. “When I found you, you
were just fuckin’ lying here in the dirt, and I tried to get you up but nothing was working. So I
figured it was like a sleep spell, ‘cause that’s the kind of weird shit that happens in old fairy tales.
And it worked, so…”

Taka smiled, his hand ghosting subconsciously over his lips. “Well, one of us is obviously taking
some creative liberties with the story’s original narrative. The Wizard of Oz isn’t generally
considered a fairy tale, and there isn't any romance, either.”

Pink colored the tips of his ears. “How the hell was I supposed to know that?”

“It’s one of the most iconic movies of all time, do you really know nothing about it?”

Mondo sat back on his palm, ticking off on his fingers as he spoke. He looked a tad bitter. “Yeah, I
don’t know shit. There’s good and bad witches, Munchkins…the yellow brick road is the way to
the city with the wizard…don’t take off the shoes. That’s it. And I only know all that junk ‘cause I
got exposition’d by my brother.” He was silent for a moment. The irked look faded, and he
fidgeted with some grass between his fingers. “I’m feeling a little overwhelmed, and really irritated
with everyone I run into being all offended over me not knowing anything about one movie. I don’t
like feeling like an idiot, and that’s really the only vibe I’ve gotten off this whole damn dream.”

The smile fell from Taka’s face. That was unexpectedly vulnerable. “I’m…sorry that that’s how
you’ve been feeling. I don’t recall exactly who you said you’ve run into so far, but I know your
brother at least usually leads to some heated confrontations. And I apologize for poking fun as
well, I didn’t mean to make you feel like an idiot.”

His eyes widened. “No, I mean- I wasn’t trying to call you an asshole, you weren’t being one. I’ve
just had jack shit to do since I started walking, so I just started getting more and more irritated,
and-” he took a breath, visibly restarting. “What I wanna say is: I’m really happy you’re here…
even if I don’t know for sure that it’s actually you. You’re my best friend, and I’m struggling going
on this big journey thing by myself. So…thanks for showing up,” he said, rubbing the back of his
neck, avoiding eye contact.

Taka beamed, a wave of pride washing over him. Yes, the two of them were best friends, and they
could be their best and finest selves around each other. It was healthy to recognize that!

And if there was one thing Mondo helped him do to better himself, it was not taking himself so
seriously.

In one quick movement, Taka pushed himself closer to Mondo and planted a sure, solid kiss on his
lips. He stayed for a couple seconds then pulled back, grinning.

Mondo’s expression had turned from anxious to stunned, his cheeks burning a shade redder every
second.

He tried his best not to laugh as he spoke. “I’m happy to be here, kyodai, especially if I can be of
any sort of comfort to you emotionally through this odd dream. And if you say you’re here and as
real as I am, then of course I believe you. I won’t be arrogant enough to assume you aren’t.”

Mondo was nodding minutely. “Yeah, um, awesome. Really glad you’re here too, but, uh…what
was that for?” he said, motioning to the space between them.

Taka’s bright mood dampened a little- he’d been hoping for that to make him laugh. “Payback? For
you having to kiss me earlier?”

Shaking his head, Mondo held up Taka’s hand, staring at him.

He opened his mouth to ask what he was trying to say, when he suddenly no longer needed to.
Given the pseudo-physiology he was working with as a scarecrow, Taka wondered if his skin was
turning bright red like it would be if he’d ever mortified himself this badly in real life. “You kissed
my hand earlier, not…”

“Yep,” he heard Mondo say, horrendously joyful.

He put his face into his hands. “I am so embarrassed.”

“As you should be.”

Taka glared at him through a gap in his fingers.

He leaned forward, smiling broadly. “Come on man, I don’t mind,” Mondo said, delicate but
obviously still extremely tickled. “You didn’t realize, so I guess I hadn’t made it all that clear…”

Taka sighed, putting down his hands and smiling sheepishly at his friend. “There’s no chance I can
get away with telling you I’m just part of your dream, is there?”

Mondo lidded his eyes, bringing his face close and deepening his voice. “Depends. How many
more kisses do I get if I say yes?”

Taka blew sharply into his eyes, smirking as Mondo winced and fell melodramatically onto his
back. “That’s quite enough of that, thank you. I think it’s about time we left this field and resumed
your journey to The Wonderful Wizard of Oz,” he said, his excitement bubbling back up from
earlier. Because as much as he loved goofing around, a hyper-realistic dream about his favorite
movie was just too good to miss.

From the ground, Mondo made a noise of agreement. “Yeah, should ‘prolly get going. But hey, it’s
our journey now- I’m being serious about that whole ‘agreeing we’re both real’ thing.”

Taka nodded decisively. There wasn’t much point arguing about it, nor was there much
consequence to either truth.

With yet more melodrama, Mondo groaned as he sat up and got to his feet. He also bent over,
offering his hand.

Accepting the help, Taka hoisted himself up, but overshot it, falling directly onto Mondo’s front.
He scowled at the amused look Mondo was giving him. “I’ll have you know, I thought I was tying
us in terms of physical affection when I kissed you.”

“Keep doing shit like that and we’re not gonna be ‘tied for physical affection’ much longer.”

‘Promise?’ Taka thought to himself but largely ignored the sass, using Mondo to set himself right.
It was just as difficult to move around as the actor in the movie had portrayed, though he could see
himself getting used to it with time. He’d always enjoyed a challenge. After a moment or two of
stabilizing himself, he gave Mondo an affirming thumbs-up.

“Great, off we go then,” Mondo confirmed, starting to direct a path through the corn.

They got to the x of the yellow brick road (it was like being on the set!) without too much issue,
though Taka found he couldn’t move as quickly as he’d please. The rolling hills of corn and grass
were a remarkably comforting sight.

Walking to the center of the x, Mondo peered blankly down each of the four paths. “Well the bad
news is none of the fuckers who sent me on this quest bothered to say that the road split at some
point, so I guess we’ll just have to wing it and circle back if we pick a wrong route.”

Taka turned, looking back at where they’d just popped out of the field. “Actually, assuming this is
accurate to the movie- which it certainly should be now that I’m here- we should go this way,” he
said, pointing to the route on his right.

Mondo looked to where he was indicating, impressed. “Huh. Alright.”

They walked to the foot of the road, pausing when Taka tripped and nearly collapsed, Mondo
catching him. Yet again, this made him look unbearably smug.

“I’ll get a hang of it, honestly,” Taka huffed, his limbs dangling loosely in Mondo’s arms,
“especially if you continue to look so proud of yourself every time it happens.”

“Would you prefer falling on your damn face? ‘Cause that’s the alternative,” he said, still
smirking, setting him upright.

Taka walked ahead, smiling at Mondo's indignant squawk. Then, without full confidence, he
started running, laughing when he heard Mondo thundering along behind him.

“Hey! You are gonna hurt your damn self!”

“Will not! Race you to that tree!”

Mondo audibly sped up, his sparkling boots thumping loudly against the smooth bricks. “No
fuckin’ fair, you got a huge head start!” “It is fair kyodai,” Taka shouted into the air, not daring to
look behind him and lose any speed, “you at least have leg bones!”
 Chapter Four
Chapter Notes

See the end of the chapter for notes

There was something to be said for how much quicker the scenery changes when you’re traveling
with your best friend. The fields of corn and other crops (which Taka identified, somehow) had
fallen back, transitioning quietly into sparse woods. The trees grew from stout things into trees a
couple stories high, their branches shading them from the sun just enough for it to be pleasant.

They’d long since stopped racing- after several rematches, it became clear to Mondo that Taka had
lost any sort of normal human stamina, unlike him, whose legs were aching, his lungs struggling to
take in enough air.

“And another reason it ain’t a fair bet,” Mondo wheezed, absentmindedly feeling the stitch in his
side, “is that I’d been walking for hours before running into you.”

Taka bumped into him, his smile much too gloating for his liking. “You didn’t look at all tired
when I woke up, nor when we started the first race,” he admonished. “Perhaps you’re just a sore
loser, kyodai.”

Mondo huffed. “Or maybe you’re a sore winner. I always hated cardio, ain’t my strong suit.”
Biking and woodworking didn’t offer much of it.

“Mm, I get it. I’ve personally always felt that arms were my blind spot.”

‘Tch, alright,’ he thought with a sly grin. ‘Cause yeah, he wasn’t some bodybuilder, but calling
Kiyotaka Ishimaru’s arms anything less than toned would’ve been a damn lie.

Like their environment, the road was also changing as they got further along it. Once perfectly
smooth, the golden bricks had started showing signs of wear, everything from chips to downright
potholes making it tougher to walk on. Even though he fell every so often, Taka was getting better
and better at controlling himself, including skipping over loose bricks and other hazards presented
by the road.

Mondo, on the other hand, wasn’t so agile.

There was a loud clunk and his foot snapped to the side, the muscles along the outside of his ankle
stretching violently until he instinctively collapsed, hissing in pain. He looked down and saw the
heel of his boot caught diagonally between a few loose bricks, and he struggled to pull it out
without stretching it more.

Taka, further ahead, looked back at the noise. “Mondo? What was-” his expression shifted from
mild concern to alarm, and he rushed back. “Oh my gosh, Mondo! Are you okay? What
happened?”

He swore under his breath, bringing his knee up to his chest and holding his lower leg. When he
tried rolling his ankle it screamed in protest, and it was starting to throb under his fingers. “Fuck,
agh…I’m fine, just wasn’t looking where I was stepping,” he said, shakily attempting to stand
without putting any weight on it.

Taka offered an arm, which he took without thinking: it made both of them drop like stones, and
Mondo yelped when he caught himself on his bad foot.
Taka anxiously yanked his arm back. “Sorry, I’m so sorry! I keep forgetting I can’t-” he let out a
short sigh, peering down the road. “Never mind. Look, I can see a cottage not a minute away, if
you can make it there on your own we can stop and rest.”

Mondo grimaced as he stood, experimentally putting the lightest weight on his bad foot so he could
walk. It ended up being more of a weird step-hop thing, but hey, he was moving. If he put more
than just a tiny amount of pressure on it he might start tearing up. “God damn this shit hurts. Aren’t
you not supposed to feel any pain in dreams?”

“This seems to be a rather special dream, for many reasons,” Taka said cryptically.

They fell into silence, moving slower than cold molasses.

Mondo looked ahead for the cottage. He hadn’t seen it at first because it was tucked away in the
surrounding trees, fallen into disrepair. The thatched roof had been bustled by weather, and the
scattered stone path leading to the door was almost completely covered with grass and wildflowers.
Piles of old wood and scrap metal were scattered around the back.

It was sad, looking at it- it probably looked pretty nice when it was new. He wouldn’t mind doing
some work on a little place like this, get it nice and fixed up. And he wasn’t much for landscaping
but he knew Taka had a pretty green thumb. Maybe someday that kind of thing wouldn’t be out of
the question, they could go find some cheap-ish place to renovate and maybe even-

Woah, nope, stop that daydream right there. Getting too domestic.

They stopped in front of the cottage. Mondo had some trouble balancing on one leg. “You figure
one of us just kinda poofed this thing into existence or no?”

Taka made a noncommittal noise. “I have my doubts, even if this is all a product of our
imagination.” He stepped off the road, leading them to the door. “Either way, I hope it isn’t
locked.”

Mondo followed, hopping awkwardly into the grass. “You know I could always pick it,” he said,
grinning at the scowl this put on his friend’s face.

“Dreaming or not, that is immoral and I will not condone it under any circumstances,” Taka
admonished, sighing in relief as the door gave way to his touch, holding it open for him.

As he passed, Mondo held the door frame, leaning over Taka. “Right, it’s immoral until someone
leaves their weekly reports in principal Kirigiri’s office and needs their delinquent best friend to get
them out in the dead of night.”

Taka pinked slightly but stood his ground, poking him in the chest. “That was entirely your idea,
you were going to do it whether I approved or not. And in case you’re forgetting, I came with you
on that little adventure on the very good chance you got caught and I needed to explain the
situation.”

“Yeah, but you had fun breaking the rules for once.” He grinned at him for a little longer before
ducking into the house.

It wasn’t anything fancy, in fact it was very simple and cluttered: an old wooden bed, its covers old
but neatly made, a desk…all laid out pretty much the same as their dorm, just with the added bonus
of all the stuff you’d find in the wood section of an antique store. Well-made and well-loved
furniture was placed here and there, not quite filling the space like it would in a normal house. Cute
wooden toys littered the top of the desk, and many dusty tools hung on the walls. Mondo surveyed
these with interest.

Taka had passed everything in favor of a relic of a standing mirror in the back corner, its edges
crafted from pine. He admired the details of his costume, touching various parts he couldn’t’ve
been able to see without it. After a minute or two he smiled, and turned to face him. “Alright, take
a seat, I’ll take a look at your ankle,” he said, pointing to a collection of different chairs near the
desk.

Mondo did as he was told, picking a nice rocking chair and lifting his foot onto an upturned apple
crate. His ankle still throbbed, but it was more of a dull ache than earlier.

Taka settled in front of him on an old milking stool. He pushed Mondo’s loose pant leg up past his
knee so it wouldn’t get in the way, moved his foot into his lap, and silently examined it. His
eyebrows furrowed into that gentle curve the way they always did when he was focused, and he
took great care as he rolled his ankle around in the joint, keeping an eye on Mondo for any sign of
distress.

Mondo sat back, leaning on the armrest with his head in his palm, his focus glazing over as he
watched Taka work. Something in him felt…soft. Because this is the kind of shit they did all the
time, wasn’t it- did he need Taka’s help figuring out what was wrong with his ankle? Hell no, he’d
been getting himself out of scraps in the gang since he could walk. He could take care of any sort
of medical shit in seconds, same for Taka. But if either of them got injured in each other’s
presence? This is what they did, every time, like an unspoken agreement.

When Taka clicked his tongue, Mondo came back to himself. “I’m confident it’s only sprained, not
torn, so that’s good news,” Taka said, giving his knee a pat before setting it back on the stool, “I’m
going to look for something to wrap it with.” He got up and walked to the bathroom, rooting
around in the cupboards. His voice was muffled as he spoke, his head probably inside a cabinet. “I
would certainly prefer it for you not to be on it at all for a few days, but I don’t think that’s an
option given our situation.”

He gave it some thought, looking around the room. An idea came to him at the sight of wooden
poles leaning against the wall. “Maybe there’s something in that junkyard in the back I could use
like a walking stick, or some kinda crutches,” he said, voice raised.

Taka popped his wobbly scarecrow head around the corner before coming back in the room, a roll
of cloth bandage in his hands. “Ah, that’s an excellent idea, we should go take a look after this.”
He sat back down on his stool, replacing his foot into his lap. “Stop me if you feel any excess
discomfort.”

As they shared the silence, Mondo thought again about how familiar this was. The cottage didn’t
have any light fixtures, but the sun poured generously through the windows, making the area cozy
and warm. He could hear birds chirping in the woods behind the cottage.

It was just…really nice.

His thoughts were interrupted by a frustrated grunt from Taka. His straw-stuffed fingers were
having trouble with the intricate job of wrapping.

How hadn’t he thought that that was going to be an issue at some point? “Hey, I can go ahead and
do it this time,” he suggested, leaning forward and trying to take the roll.

Taka held it out of his reach, jaw clenched. “No, it’s fine,” he grumbled, pushing Mondo’s hand
out of the way and redoubling his efforts.
Mondo raised his eyebrows. Something was obviously bothering him, but there wasn’t any point
arguing with him when he had that look.

A vaguely uncomfortable silence followed.

Slowly, Taka got into more of a rhythm with the bandage. With a distressed look, he met Mondo’s
eyes. “I’m sorry, I got snippy with you. I’m just… irritated. But I shouldn’t take those frustrations
out on you.”

Mondo held his gaze. It wasn’t too often that Taka let his anger get the best of him. “S’alright,
man. Tell me about what’s bothering you.”

Taka swallowed, still looking slightly abashed. “Right. I’m just…I’ve never considered myself a
vain person. But being this scarecrow, I’ve lost my physicality, and I have trouble doing the
simplest things that I suppose we take for granted, like walking. The walking thing doesn’t really
bother me though, I like the challenge! It’s just to the point where it’s impossible for me to do the
simplest tasks, like helping you stand when you’ve fallen. And that…makes me angry, and upset,”
he said, clenching his jaw again. “In the same vein as you disliking feeling idiotic, I think I might
have problems with feeling unhelpful. Or…useless.”

Mondo leaned forward and crossed his arms loosely, elbows on the armrests. “First of all, there’s
not a damn useless or unhelpful bone in your body, so don’t say that. Just because you’re not
jacked to the nines right now doesn’t mean you aren’t helpful- you’re helping with every step of
this journey whether you acknowledge it or not. You’re fixing up my jank leg. Before that you
spotted this house…and before that you knew which way to walk down the road! So what if you’re
kinda shrimpy, just for right now? You can use this dream shit as a break for that ripped bod of
yours for a minute,” he said, grinning, wondering how much more praise he could get away with
dishing. It was extra fun watching Taka’s face getting all red when it was like literal paint being
applied to the burlap on his cheeks with an invisible brush. If he had to label the current shade with
some obnoxious paint-store-color name, he’d probably go with ‘Cherry Wine’.

Taka’s embarrassed smile was the only thing better than his blush. “You’re incorrigible,” he said
weakly, tearing the end of the cloth and securing it.

“Damn, and here I thought being your friend would set me on the straight and narrow,” he joked,
gingerly setting his foot down and standing. He tested putting some weight on it and it felt much
better than it had. He clapped a hand to Taka’s back, striking a confident smile. “Y’see that?
Another instance of you being helpful. But seriously, don’t be getting on to yourself like that. I’m
just happy you’re here, regardless of whatever else is going on.”

Taka didn’t respond as he, Mondo, walk-hopped to the mirror, taking a gander at his reflection.
The bandages definitely added to the tough look. The edge of his lip curled in amusement- he’d
always pulled off the ‘recently roughed up but you should see the other guy’ look pretty decently.

He could see Taka in the mirror, not having gotten up yet, the red fading from his face only to be
replaced with a curved smile similar to his own. His eyes were somewhere on his back, hardly
sparing his ankle a second glance.

Was he…? Nah, he was imagining it. Kiyotaka Ishimaru didn’t check people out- or at least he’d
never seen it. ‘I mean, he probably likes looking at -some- people,’ he thought, ‘…who the hell is
he checking out?’

Mondo shoved his hands in his pockets and turned away from the mirror, not wanting to pursue
that line of questioning. “Welp! I’m feeling great, you wanna go look through that junk in the back
for some kind of stick, then we can get back on the road?”

Taka nodded pleasantly and got to his feet, not at all looking like he’d been caught doing anything
incriminating, and walked out the door.

‘Alright, I was definitely imagining it then,’ he thought firmly, following his friend back into the
daylight.

You would probably call the area a backyard if it wasn’t all so ill-maintained. Scraps of wood and
metal from various projects were strewn randomly in the grass, longer planks and poles lying in
piles and propped up against the house. Taka was attempting to hold a hip-height metal rod in his
hand, but it probably weighed twice as much as him.

“Mm, this might work as a sort of walking stick?”

He limped over the uneven ground and took it, supporting himself as he walked around with it. It
was heavy but not unmanageable, easy enough to hold onto for a long while… “Yeah, maybe. Let’s
keep looking for a minute, I’ll keep this one separated from the other crap.”

While Taka continued to root around in the piles near the house, Mondo sorted through some of the
stuff nearer to the forest, eventually making his way inside.

Ducking around the growing collections of spindly birch trees, he walked further in, spotting a
number of halved logs and stumps, most of them rotting with age and growing cartoonishly-red
mushrooms.

In the meat of one particular tree, there was some kind of statue art stuck into the side. It had been
beautifully forged from steel, reminding him of the curves of his motorcycle- but this thing,
whatever it was, was rusted to all hell. Vines and old leaves layered it so thickly that it was pretty
impressive he’d spotted it in the first place. Mondo tore away at the foliage near the top, wondering
what it had been.

He snatched his hand away, having recognized the part he was clearing as a face- the face of one
Kyoko Kirigiri, hard and unreadable as ever. Her frozen gaze was fixed squarely on the tree.
Stepping back and taking a look at what the rest of her body was doing (now that he could tell that
yes, this was his five-foot-something friend and not an art piece), he saw she’d been caught in the
middle of swinging an ax.

Mondo’s concentration broke as he heard a soft thud, followed by Taka’s annoyed sigh and some
rustling. Prying his eyes away from the statue, he limped towards the noise, holding onto the
passing trees for support.

He found Taka squirming around on his front, fervidly attempting to retrieve his foot from where
it’d snagged on a tangle of roots. When he noticed Mondo, he stopped struggling, lying back in the
grass with a sigh. “I don’t think I do very well on uneven surfaces. It’s fortunate that we’re
supplied with a road for the majority of this story.”

Mondo made a sound of agreement, bending down to extricate Taka’s foot. When he finished,
Taka made to stand up, but Mondo went ahead and pulled him up by the scruff, looping one of his
arms around his neck so he wouldn’t fall again. “Before we head out, there’s something in here
you’re gonna want to see,” he said, heading back to where he’d been a second ago. It wasn’t far,
even if they were moving slower than usual.

Taka seemed a little surprised at the sudden pickup but didn’t make any complaints. “I don’t know
much about movies, kyodai, but even I know the ‘you’re going to want to see this’ line is a cliché.”

“Yeah, maybe, but it’s a cliché for a reason.” He spotted the tree and walked over, setting Taka
down in front of it, indicating Kyoko with a grimace. “What the hell is up with this?”

Taka, instead of looking shocked or weirded out, lit up at the sight of their friend, clapping
excitedly. “Ah, Kyoko! What an interesting casting choice,” he said, circling her slowly. “I’ll
admit that when we entered the cabin and saw the wood-centric theme of the place I was
suspicious of this outcome, but Miss Kirigiri wouldn’t have been my first guess.”

“...This feels like one of those plot moments where an explanation would be pretty helpful.”

“Right! I don’t want to spoil anything major for you, but seeing as we’re here I’ll gladly explain,”
he said, starting to brush away the rest of the leaves and vines, “at this point in the movie, Dorothy
and the Scarecrow are foraging for apples when they stumble upon the Tin Woodsman: a man
made completely out of tin, who unfortunately has rusted solid from getting stuck in the rain. There
should be some sort of oil can around here- ah!” He’d spotted a dinky little can sitting
conspicuously on a stump, oil staining the edges.

Mondo smiled at Taka as he fiddled energetically with the can, leaning against the tree. It was
obvious how much love he had for this movie.

Soon enough he got the can working, generously oiling the bits around Kyoko’s neck, eyes, and
mouth. “Kirigiri-san? Please say something, when you can.”

It made the most ear-splitting squeaks, but she moved her jaw harshly to the side, blinked, and
gradually moved her head in a way that was almost as smooth as when she wasn’t made of solid
steel. “...Mondo, Kiyotaka. I’m happy to see you.” The surfaces of her exterior that had been spared
from the rust gleamed like an actual statue. In real life it would have been very impressive
craftsmanship. “Thank you for freeing me. I’ve been standing here for the longest time and I’m
grateful for the rescue.”

Taka was painted with a light pink blush as he continued to oil the rest of Kyoko’s joints, his
delight at the latest movie moment barely contained. “You’re most welcome! It’s our pleasure!”

When he knelt down to apply oil to her legs, Kyoko turned her head with a few small squeaks,
giving Mondo a look.

‘What?’ Mondo mouthed, the smile falling from his lips. He liked Kyoko a lot, but it was easy to
feel judged by the fine-tuned deductive stare.

She didn’t mouth back, she just flicked her eyes to Taka then continued to give him the look. It was
suspiciously similar to the one he got from the real version sometimes.

“You aren’t claiming to be real too, huh,” he deadpanned, watching as she unstuck her hands from
her ax (leaving it in the tree) and held them out for Taka to oil. After he did so, she shook Taka’s
hand, which made him absolutely giddy.

“I’ve been trapped here for a very long time, I don’t know what you mean,” she said, very
obviously knowing what he meant. So that was a no then.

Taka tapped the can with his gloved fingers, making a soft tinkling noise. “How immersive! Were
the others as good of actors as she is, kyodai?”

He looked down at him. He couldn’t tell if he genuinely believed her lackluster acting or if he was
just being polite, so he figured he’d just be honest. “Uh…yeah, everyone’s been just as good or
better, promise.” He turned back to Kyoko. “So, what’re you gonna do now you’re back in action?
Chop some more trees?”

She tried to respond but was interrupted by the sound of a distant explosion and an accompanying
scream of mirth.

The three of them stared at each other wide-eyed for a second before scrambling to leave the forest:
Mondo once again picked Taka up and slung his arm across his shoulders, but he still couldn’t run
very fast. Kyoko noticed him struggling and supported him with an arm around his waist, her grip
firm and sights set on her cottage.

They stumbled out of the woods, frantically looking for the source of the noise.

Taka was the first to spot it- he waved his available hand excitedly in front of them and pointed up
to the roof. “Junko! Junko, down here, hello!”

Junko, who was turned the wrong direction, having been looking for them too, scowled, banging
her broom on the roof. “You total jerks! You missed my second grand entrance!”

“Clearly it’s not the only thing we missed,” Mondo said, staring pointedly at the large, smoldering
chunks of roof lying all around the yard. Some of it, being thatched, was still actively burning.
“The hell, Junko?”

“Okay so maybe I kinda suck at teleportation spells,” she admitted, at least having the decency to
give Kyoko a shameful look. Kyoko didn’t seem to care in the slightest. “But the point is! I’m here
again, and I don’t like that you haven’t been smart and taken off those shoes for me. So I ask
again…pwetty pwease, Mon Mon?”

“No. And if you call me Mon Mon again I’m never speaking to you again in real life.”

She deflated, leaning dejectedly on her broom.

Taka, on the other hand, was practically vibrating, barely able to wait his turn to speak to her.
“Junko, your costume looks amazing! And you bring such great energy to the role, I’m very
excited to see what you do with it as the story progresses!”

Whatever energy she’d lost was back twentyfold. She beamed with pride, waving down at him.
“Finally, someone here who appreciates my acting chops. Well there’s more where that came from
Kiyotaka, just you wait!” She started muttering to herself, pacing back and forth on the roof as she
came up with a new big scheme.

Kyoko leaned across Mondo, the metal in her shoulder whining, and gave Taka a concerned look.
Her voice was even and cautionary. “You do realize encouraging her is only going to do you harm?
She may present a real threat, as harmless as she seems in the present.”

Taka waved her off, smiling serenely. “Ah, let her have her fun,” he mumbled, “she’s clearly
enjoying herself, and what’s the worst that could happen? It’s only a dream, after all-”

“I know! I know I know I know,” Junko hollered, making the three of them look back at her.
“Maybe in real life, I would use my natural wit and charm to get those shoes back…but this is The
Wizard of Oz, and that’s not what the Wicked Witch would do. No no, she would use trickery,
guilt…and most importantly, force!”

She lit a fire in the palm of her hand. Mondo felt his stomach sink.
“I will have those shoes back, Owada, mark my words,” she said dangerously, her smile becoming
manic, “so…how about a little fire, Scarecrow!?”

And she threw the fireball right at Taka.

Mondo didn’t think, he just cut in front of Taka, hugged him to his chest, and dropped to his knees,
shielding him from the impact with his back.

…Thankfully, Kyoko had done the same thing, sidestepping both of them and taking the damage
square-on. It slammed hard into her front and burst into several smaller flames, igniting part of the
grass. She made sure to smother it all with her foot before it could spread.

In hindsight, it hadn’t been the best plan for not lighting himself on fire, but oh well. He loosened
his grip on Taka, searching for any rogue sparks. “You’re okay, right?” he whispered urgently.
“You didn’t catch any of that?”

Taka was a little rumpled, a shocked look in his eyes. His mouth was slightly parted. He tried to
speak, couldn’t, then simply nodded, his entire face flushed.

He breathed a sigh of relief, glad as Taka to not be on fire thanks to Kyoko. Standing up, he passed
Taka to her, not trusting him to stand on his own. “Thanks Kyoko, we owe you one.”

She just shrugged. An unbelievable badass, as usual.

Mondo’s attention locked onto Junko, who looked very much like she didn’t want to be here right
now. He felt his heart beating slow and hard against his chest, his fists clenched. “So. You thought
that was a good idea, nearly setting him on fire? Thought it woulda been funny?”

Junko stared helplessly at him, biting her thumb nail. “Mon, you gotta understand, I’m trying to
play a character here and that’s just part of the deal!”

“Make it NOT part of your deal or we’re gonna have some fuckin’ problems!” he yelled up at her,
taking a few steps forward. “Have your main shit be water, or knives, or whatever the fuck it’s
gotta be so you can do your character and not have him get burnt to a damn crisp! Your beef is with
me, not Taka, so don’t you EVER do that bullshit underhanded tactic like that again. Kapeesh?”

“Yep, totally kapeesh!” she said quickly, thoroughly avoiding eye contact and holding up an ‘okay’
sign with her hand, “I will just…see you guys later, without the fireballs next time, ha ha!”

Then she disappeared in a much more modest plume of smoke.

Mondo stared irritatedly up at the roof for a few seconds longer before sighing, turning back to his
companions. “Sorry about that. Just- why did she have to be the villain, out of everyone we know,”
he asked tiredly, running a hand through his hair.

“She’s probably one of the only people in this fantasy who care enough about acting to commit to
such an eccentric role,” Kyoko said, chest freshly-charred.

“Her and my brother, I guess.” He sighed once again. “Holy hell do I not want to run into him
again, but it seemed like he had a pretty big part…maybe my best friend in the whole world would
spoil it for me if I asked nicely enough?” he said, smiling sweetly at Taka, fluttering his eyelashes
for added effect.

Taka didn’t seem to be paying much attention to the conversation. His face was rose pink, and he
had the most crooked smile he’d ever seen. “All of that was…very gallant of you, Mondo.”
 He hadn’t been expecting that in the slightest. The smile fell from his lips, as did any shred of
intrepidity, heat rising up his ears and neck. “What? No, no I didn’t mean to- I mean you might as
well be a bag of matches right now, ‘course I had to do that shit, s’not like I- I’m not gallant, I just
had to tell her to knock that shit off! It’s not like me having the shoes is your fault-”

Taka separated from Kyoko’s side, reaching out for one of his hands and giving it a small squeeze.
“Thank you, Mondo. You’re incredibly brave.”

Kyoko, thank god, chose this moment to let out a horrible squeak from her rusty foot, beating away
any other praise and giving Mondo time to recover from the unexpected compliment attack. “I do
believe it’s time for the two of you to resume your journey to the wizard.”

Taka looked at her, raising his eyebrows and letting go of his hand. “What? You aren’t coming
with us?”

She shook her head decisively. “Not to the Emerald City. I’ve been freed, and like you-” she
indicated Taka, “-I do not possess the motivation presented by the movie. Though I believe I could
be of some assistance before I leave you: your ankle is still bothering you, right?”

“Kinda yeah, kinda no,” he said, waving her off, “it’s manageable. Taka fixed it up a bit and found
a pole I could use to get the rest of the way there, so I’m good to go.”

“That isn’t a good long term solution. What I’m proposing is for me to carry you until we come
across an individual who could fix you permanently.”

Taka asked, “Fix it permanently?” at the same time Mondo chose to say, “The hell do you mean,
carry me?”

She gave both of them long-suffering looks. “Kiyotaka, from what I can tell, the way the two of
you are experiencing this story is not by-the-book: if you need to find a healer, which you do, I
believe you will run into one. Mondo, I was forged of stainless steel in a fire burning more than
one-thousand degrees Celsius, so I am more than capable of lifting you and traveling for an
extended period of time.”

Mondo held up his hands. Excuse him, he’d forgotten the Steel Detective could probably bench
their entire class right now. “I’m game as long as you’re sure about the healer thing, I don’t want to
put you out for no reason. Taka? What do you think about it?”

Taka didn’t look entirely pleased, but he probably knew better than to disagree with her outright.
“Well…though I’m not in favor of purposely changing the narrative, I understand your reasoning,
and of course I don’t mind you helping us. Thank you very much, Kirigiri-san,” he said, bowing, “I
would be delighted for you to join us, even temporarily. Should we be off, then?” he asked, a
mischievous glint in his eye.

Kyoko nodded, and the next thing he knew he was being scooped up into her arms (which were
fucking freezing, by the way).

“You total jackasses,” he squawked at the pair of them, wriggling around to no avail, “is this how
you treat people who save you from rust and fireballs?”

Taka laughed heartily at him and Kyoko smirked, the three of them making their way back to the
yellow brick road.

Chapter End Notes

Chapter End Notes

Sorry about the slight hiatus, you know how it is with work and school. I hope no one
thought it wasn't getting updated- trust me, as long as it may take to get out a chapter, I
never abandon a fic. More to come soon, though I plan on editing chapters 1 and 2
before releasing anything new. Thank you so much!

- Cuddlebug1603

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