The truth in what Kenta said became evident when we both stepped into the playground near my old elementary school, where I spent all of one year attending. Even though my time here was short, I managed to inculcate myself into the group of nice people that lived here. Images of chasing after my friend, and sometimes evildoers only visible to the two of us flickered in my mind in crisp, high-resolution freeze frames.

I nearly tripped on myself as I walked through each memory, remembering details that would only be significant to me. Kenta gave me a side-eye of concern, stepping a hasty step forward before realizing I was alright. I remembered the fresh asphalt that became a little red as the blood from my scraped knee would smash against it. But being surrounded by allies that depended on me, I simply wiped my tears and kept running. 

And of course, the asphalt was replaced with wooden chips. 

I suppose I underestimated how dangerous my childhood was.

When I first arrived at this school, I was a transfer student that failed to fit in. But when I was here, I was part of a group of heroes with an unshakable confidence. 

"Well, I'm certainly impressed by this place. None of the playgrounds where I grew up looked like this. I assumed you had the best childhood ever," Kenta said, taking in the sight of the monkey bars, large slides reserved for more adventurous children, a set of swings held by solid metal chains, and what appeared to be a merry-go-round from a bygone era they forgot to remove.

"It was pretty good, actually," I said.

I took a breath through my nostrils, appreciating the origin of my strange mission. I slipped a quick glance at Kenta's profile, gauging his general interest in my little tour. He glanced back at me with a raised eyebrow. Oh, I hoped he didn't misinterpret that as anything weird. Now I had to ask him something to avoid suspicion.

"Hey, well anyways, can I share something with you," I asked.

"Yeah, sure, what is it?"

"Something I really appreciated about Super Ranger Ravagers growing up was that even if they didn't need to, they made an attempt at understanding their enemy. And after all was said and done, the Ravagers helped the citizens of the Amelioran Empire, who were just as much casualties of their war as the Earth and the people they attempted to invade."

"Hmm? I'm not sure I understand, Kotonoha-san."

"Oh, sorry-- I'm getting ahead of myself again. I guess what I wanted to say was that I really appreciated you coming out with me like this, in spite of your concerns. Most of the people I've met haven't been as open-minded."

"Well, what kind of Tyrant Prince would I be if I didn't hear the words of his opposition," he said.

Kenta rolled his eyes and put his hands on his waist in astonishment, attempting to mouth the words he just uttered to himself.

"It's addicting, isn't it," I said, noting his role-playing mannerisms.

"I suppose it is. Most people wouldn't make the connection, but professional basketball has a surprising amount of narrative behind it," Kenta said.

"Really?"

"Well, just like a lot of manga, there are a lot of heroes, villains, rivalries. It's honestly not a coincidence several popular manga also happen to be sports manga. I made the connection when I was a kid, and I decided to combine the heroic attacks of my older favorite manga with my favorite sport and, eventually, the dreaded nickname of the *Tyrant Prince* was born."

"So, you're nickname was because--,". 

" Because my teammates thought it was funny. The anger from that alone fueled most of my best games."

"I guess both of us just lost control of our narratives at some point, haha," I said.

I noticed that the setting sun was now sitting just above the horizon. Now if I didn't show him the rest of home, I'd regret what was likely my best chance to get to know him potentially go to waste. I took his hand and began dragging him to the sidewalk adjacent to the playground.

"Hey, where are we going," Kenta asked.

"There's still a couple more spots I want to show you before we go home," I said tasting the air of a day that was still young.