Life On Rewind

[Henry Spencer]

Well, what can I say here? This idea came to me very suddenly yesterday. Maybe it's just me, but I imagined what KS would be like if interpreted as literally as possible; the idea that we, the readers, are a god-like figure in our own instances of the game, following a script. We can fast-forward, rewind, and see things from a different angle and reality than the characters in the story can. You can affect the outcomes of things. And then I thought... does a character in a scripted story truly have any free will? What if I gave Hisao the ability to choose?

But of course, I'm not going to make it easy for him. Making it easy wouldn't be any fun, and I'm somewhat of a sadistic person anyways (no there will be no deaths). This is the result of those thoughts: Life On Rewind. Enjoy.

Part One - Self-Insert: [this post]
Part Two - ???: [coming soon]

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Self-Insert

As Hisao makes his way across the snowy field on that fateful day, I can't help but feel bad for him, in a way; I know what's coming, seen it a dozen times now. This time, however, things will be a bit different. Unfortunately for him, that doesn't mean I want to change how things start out.

He's just now reaching the tree line. Good. Soon, the wheels of the game will be set in motion. I follow him at a distance, not that it really matters; he can't see me or feel my presence unless I want him to. Unless I write it into this story, much like how I'm documenting his progress at the present moment. That won't be necessary, not yet.

As he approaches a clearing among the snowy, hibernating trees, Iwanako appears, making her way into the forest as well. Hisao's mind is wandering, thinking of the cold, wondering who would have the initiative to slip a note in his math book. Approaching from behind, Iwanako startles him out of his reverie. I enter the clearing myself, looping around behind Hisao to get a good look at her. Like every other time, her face is nothing more than a flat, featureless plane. Features were not part of the script I knew, though I'm sure Hisao had some sort of mental idea of what she looked like, given that he didn't immediately freak out and run at the sight of it. Instead, Hisao's heart soars; he's always liked Iwanako, or so he thinks.

"Iwanako? I got a note telling me to wait here… it was yours?" Hisao stammers, tripping over his own words. Smooth moves, Romeo. Though I've heard the words so many times now, I can't help but smile at his expense. Poor guy doesn't even realize what's about to happen to him. I would almost pity him, if it didn't have to happen this way. All part of the script, as you know.

As Hisao mentally punches himself for being a dolt, Iwanako responds hesitantly, "Ahmm… yes. I asked a friend to give you that note… I'm so glad you got it." She sounds just as nervous and silly as he does. I've never been able to accurately gauge her affections; again, it's not part of what i know. They do seem somewhat sincere though. Too bad this only tangentially involves her.

Hisao's heart is reaching its breaking point, though he doesn't realize it quite yet. I can feel it in his chest, slowly starting to chug and misfire from the stress. Ignoring it, Hisao nevously says, "So… ah… here we are. Out in the cold…" Iwanako idly twirls a lock of her hair and "smiles", though no features appear on her face from my point of view.

Here it comes. Hesitantly, Iwanako replies, "I was wondering if… you'd go out with me? I can feel Hisao's desperate urge to respond, but his body is frozen, and his heart is busy throwing gears. I smile, satisfied that things have once again started off smoothly, and walk away as the scene fades to black behind me, Iwanako's frantic screams punctuating the darkness.

I fast-forward through the four months in the hospital. There's only so much moping a guy can stand to watch or write about. The only moment that gives me pause is when the faceless doctor explains to Hisao how his medication works. In my own way, I know exactly how he feels right now. If he could see me, I'd give him my most sincere, knowing look. Suddenly appearing in his room might be a bit freaky though, so I refrain.

Hisao's voice cuts through the air. "What?!" he exclaims. Clearly, going to Yamaku is not high on his list of priorities. I think moping, being miserable, and wasting away in a hospital are currently at the top of said list. Not wanting to listen to the same conversation over again, I once again fast-forward through the argument. Instead of anger, Hisao instead reflects on having a fresh start, a second chance. Little does he know, it can't truly be considered "fresh" if everything you do is going to happen a certain way, whether you like it or not.

The room fades to white, and when I blink, we're standing in front of Yamaku. While Hisao dwells on life, the universe, and the impressive architecture of the gate, I roll my eyes and take a deep breath. Ah, fresh air. The hospital part always sucks, no matter how quickly I speed through it. Suddenly, he takes off at a brisk pace, checking out the campus as he goes. I hang back by the gate, taking a few moments to yawn and rub my eyes. Seeing all of this stuff for the umpteenth time starts to wear on a guy, after a while. Thankfully, this could possibly be the final time I'm forced to bear witness. Hisao is just now entering the lobby of the school. Out of curiosity, I decide to see which direction he moves in first.

Appearing on the stairwell, I watch as Mutou springs to life, walks forward, and greets him. It's always a bit strange, seeing things from a different point of view. People appear out of nowhere, or when they are already there, they suddenly spring to life when needed. The script doesn't account for all the in-betweens, I guess. After a brief introduction, Mutou asks, "Do you want to introduce yourself to the class?" It's an important question; his answer will determine when I decide to deviate from the script.

Time briefly freezes, as if waiting for Hisao to come to a conclusion. The air stills, clocks stop, and my own breathing is the loudest sound heard. Only by me, of course. Finally, time shifts back into gear, and with a note of indecision in his voice, Hisao replies, "Why? Do I have to?" I breathe a small sigh of relief. This may be easier than I thought.

Jumping forward in the script again to avoid the awkward introductions, I next meet with Hisao in the cafeteria, eating lunch with Misha and Shizune. It's time for another decision to be made; I'm starting to get a bit impatient, waiting for him to progress to the insertion point, but I need to know where exactly he's headed first. Misha asks her question, and time once again freezes. Not that anyone would've noticed; the cafeteria is actually devoid of life, besides the three students. Of course, they don't know that, but the absurdity of the situation from my point of view makes me smile.

Time once again crawls forwards, and Hisao says nothing. Jumping inside his head, I find him thinking about Shizune's deafness. A decent choice, I guess. I can work with that. This time, however, I don't want to. If I'm going to make this experience have a major impact on Hisao, I need to hit him hard. My smile widens, ever so slightly; I hadn't planned on manipulating him quite yet, but I need things to go just right. Closing my eyes, I jump back in the script ever so slightly. Misha's loudly proclaims, ""We're your guides so you should ask if there is something~!"

The flow of time halts, but instead of waiting idly for a decision, I lean forward and place an unfelt hand on Hisao's shoulder. With my other hand, I reach forward, enter his mind, and carefully wipe it blank. Before I retract my hand, I whisper, "Be a good pawn and don't make me rewind the timeline too much, ok? It's imprecise and unwieldy." A brief look of understanding flits across his face. A smug smile on my own, I once again wipe the thoughts out of his mind.

Retracting my hands, time flows, and Hisao responds, "I can't think of anything, really." Success. Without waiting to hear the rest of the conversation, I skip forward once more. The visit with Nurse briefly crosses my consciousness, but I let it pass; the point of entry looms. I stop just in time to catch Kenji retreating into his room. While Hisao gets acquainted with his new surroundings, I casually mess around in the hall. At this point in the story, the only thing that truly "exists" is Hisao's room; if I were to enter Kenji's room, for example… that's not even a very good example, honestly. His door exists, but nothing past it does but empty blackness. Similarly, outside Hisao's window, what is visible abruptly cuts off just past his field of view. If he deviated from the script and leaned his head out the window, I'm sure he would notice; fortunately, he won't do that unless I interfere.

Speaking of which, it's nearly time. I hop forward a few hours and enter the room. Hisao is laying in bed, staring at the ceiling. As his eyes start to close and his mind drifts, I halt reality. Approaching his bedside, I lean down and once again place a hand in his mind. This is technically against the rules and the script, but the rules of the world are my creation, and are thus made to be broken. The script can still be followed easily enough; I'll make sure of it. In Hisao's mind, I make one tiny alteration, essentially setting up my own summoning into his reality. As I retract from his mind, I back up to the doorway to give him some space. I rewind just a few moments, and as he begins to drift, a single thought crosses his mind.

Opening his eyes and grimacing, Hisao whispers, "I wish the heart attack had never happened." A simple, unscripted phrase to nobody in particular. My smile widens.

As I freeze reality around us, I take a step forward, making myself plainly visible. Hisao's eyes widen, and before he can say anything further, I reply, "That can be arranged."

[Helbereth]

I'm suddenly reminded of an Adam Sandler movie about a remote control... I forgot the name, though.

I like this, though. Someone existing beyond the 4th wall -a hacker or something like it- imposing his will and changing the game how he pleases. I'm excited to see where this goes.

[Henry Spencer]

You're thinking of Click, a movie I actually haven't seen before. There was no real inspiration for this; I was quite literally chilling on a couch, being an asocial nerd, and it just came to me. KS is very strange when taken literally; you never see Iwanako's face, Hisao's parents, or the Doctor. You never know what Mutou was doing before he walked into that lobby. You realize that behind Misha and Shizune, even though the game may SAY the cafeteria is full, it's really Hisao's thoughts, and in reality nobody else is in there. The same principle could be applied to everything, to the point where nothing at all exists outside of Hisao's small bubble of perception at any given time.

I know where I'm going with this, and after I'm done, some people will probably think I'm a heartless asshole. But if you had the potential to literally control everything about a particular existence, or "script"... wouldn't you do the same?

[nemz]

But if you had the potential to literally control everything about a particular existence, or "script"... wouldn't you do the same?

"What, fuck with someone's life for your own amusement? Of course" said every author ever.

[Helbereth]

But if you had the potential to literally control everything about a particular existence, or "script"... wouldn't you do the same?

"What, fuck with someone's life for your own amusement? Of course" said every author ever.

Yes, this exactly. I'm pretty sure that's the inspiration behind a lot of fan fiction.

"Someone else made a group of characters that still contain enough plot holes for me to fill with whatever nonsense I desire? That saves me all kinds of work, where do I sign up?"

[Total Destruction]

This might be one of the best things I've read on here.

Deconstructing how the VN works on a literal basis would only be something I'd do if I was either smarter or had some pharmaceutical help. I'm sitting here reading this, contemplating how terrifying a world that taken literally looks like some kind of tech demo for a Playstation game could be, and I get hung up and strung out on a faceless broad giving some dude a heart attack and OH THAT'S WHAT THAT IS THE GUY FUCKIN LIKES ERASERHEAD NO WONDER HE KICKS ASS.



Keep it up, you magnificent bastard.