She had died.

Her body shut down, her heart no longer pumped its vitality through her circulatory system, and as saddening as it was she had finally passed away. And it wasn't like the way she had read in various works of fiction. She didn't die saving some distressed bastard from a speeding vehicle or crazed killer. No idiotic heroic actions for her, she was much too self preserving for that kind of stuff.

Nope she died from her every day, run of the mill asthma. Though - granted - it had been on the medical prediction of her worsening condition and eventual hospitalization she had not been prepared for its arrival.

The one day she was in a rush, a few hours late for the job she had hoped to get a promotion with, she had been forgetful. In her haste the reminder to grab her inhaler had slipped her mind. She had been running, more than she knew she should have but that hadn't been on her mind.

In hindsight it was only her fault.

Even when she had felt her chest begin to contract and her lungs starting to wheeze. It hadn't been a looming threat because in her mind she was all set, prepared to deal with this at a moments notice. Oh but it hadn't been the forgetting to grab the medicine at the house that had lead to her death. No, that had been step one.

She neared the bus breathing a little heavier than usual but her breathing had never been the best either way and at that moment it wasn't a detail of importance until finally it was. The very real threat of an attack hit her hard and at full force. Her throat tightened and her air passages burned as they contracted violently. Eyes blurring she tried to calm down, getting excited would only hasten the process.

Trailing one hand quickly from her chest to her shoulder bag she not so gracefully ripped it open and began to rummage through it, dragging half concerned half curious looks from passersby.

With trembling fingers she raised the opaque object to her mouth and pushed down on the button. Once. Twice. Three times: nothing. She gave it a vicious shake and tried again. Not a thing strayed from the nozzle to alleviate her plight because it was freaking empty.

Needless to say she began to panic. She ripped the empty container out of the slot and threw it on the sidewalk, its ominous clank a warning. Frantically dumping her bag's contents onto the ground she searched for a refill, a refill she prayed she had on her. She felt concerned hands grip her shoulders and she barely heard the question over the sound of her loud and shuddering wheezes. It wasn't there! It wasn't fucking there!

"Ma'am are you okay?" A masculine voice asked, turning she caught sight the good Samaritan crouching to her left.

Fighting against the irritation of hearing such an asinine question - because hello! - she shook her head no and managed to croak out the word 'Asthma' and instantly regretted it. It had been like dragging nails along the tissue of her esophagus.

"Inhaler?"

"E...em...emptyyy." She hissed now clutching her chest and blinking hard against the black dots dancing in her vision. Her breaths were coming in short and choppy and the sound of her heart was beating obscenely loud to her ears. She could feel herself curling into a ball despite the man's protests to stay inclined.

Alarmed shouts and many different touches occurred all around but soon even those left her. She was floating in black and then there was nothing. She felt nothing, understood nothing, was nothing. It was as if her very existence had vanished, was put out like a candle.

And in this she understood she wasn't within the plane of life anymore. She was honestly surprised how well she was taking it. But that was how shock worked, got a person right at the last moment.

Yet even as she understood this she heard voices. Various voices speaking in different states of alarm and suddenly she was being pushed.

Light bloomed from the other side of her closed eyelids and she frowned. She hadn't expected the light at the end of the tunnel thing but at least she knew she wasn't headed to hell.

There was a lot of movement and speech - none that she could understand at the moment - spurring around her and slowly but surely she was beginning to feel again. Squirming slightly she tried to regain her sense of self.

The feeling of being placed into arms shocked her and she gave a little jerk.

"Careful," A soft masculine voice murmured and immediately she stilled. "we don't want her to moved so suddenly after being born."

Her expression twisted even more. Born? Hadn't she just died? Unless she had simply blacked out and the person next to her was having a child but then again, what sense what that make? Birthing didn't occur where she would be taken so where was she if not dead?

Slowly and painstakingly going through the process of opening her eyes she blinked and glared at the fuzzy net covering her vision. Closing them back for a second she nearly hissed at the headache she had received. Forcing them apart once again she hummed in contemplation. For a split second red hovering blurs at blinded her with their intensity before they had disappeared upon her second glance.

"Ah, Visio! Look she opened her eyes!" A feminine voice cooed and instantly she froze. Not used to such warm tones nor the stroking finger placed on her face.

"She is such a cute bambino, yes?" The man, Visio, chuckled and she detected a faint Italian accent curling around his words. Odd.

Waiting impatiently for her eyes to clear she turned her head with difficulty and stared into warm hazel eyes held in a handsome face framed by pale honey blond hair. He looked so familiar.

Slowly she blinked and opened her mouth to ask the man whether or not he was going to escort her soul into the fabled gates of heaven but found all that came out was faint gurgling and saliva filled chirping.

Confusion gripped her. Had dying suddenly made her uneducated? Turning to face the sound of amused giggling she saw an Asian woman with black hair and dark eyes smiling softly at her. If the man was ringing a bell then this woman banged the gong. Her face was shimmering on the forefront of her mind and for some reason it wrought annoyance as a reaction. The woman was beautiful if not a little haggard looking. But hey, pushing a mass of flesh out of their nether regions would tire anyone out.

"She must know you already Visio. Does the little baby want her food?" She cooed, expression positively sparkling.

And there was that word again. Baby.

Couldn't these people see she was a fully grown woman with years of womanly experience? This 'baby' didn't food, she was a frickin' corpse!

So wrapped up in her thoughts she didn't notice it until it was in her mouth.

A nipple.

A. Freaking. Nipple.

Some random woman's areola was in her mouth secreting an unknown liquid, she was drinking it! What was going on here?! On reflex or repulsion she bit down only to feel a drop of drool dribble down her chin. Great, so now she was stupid and had no teeth! Whoever foresees this soul trafficking business deserved a slap on the ear and a kick in the pants.

Trying to ignore the fact that she was being weaned she refocused on the conversation happening while she was...preoccupied.

"-like to name her?" The doctor had asked the two and they looked at each other before the woman spoke.

"I think," She began. "that she should take the name of your late mother. And I know that you would object to this and insist that I give her my name but I want this for you." She grinned before lifting her arms slightly.

"Besides she'll be adorable no matter what her name is."

The man turned shocked eyes to his wife before a smile bled onto his face. "She most certainly will."

Nodding at the doctor he gave the man his decision.

"I would be happy to call her Visia Salaza." He told the man. "But please give us a little more time to decide."

The doctor nodded before he once again left.

She...had just been named. By these two random people.

She did not suffocate to death just to have them do...whatever they're doing!

Raising her hand prepared to either point rudely at them or give them a good smack she froze at the sight that greeted her.

Small, chubby hands hovered in the air and just to confirm they were hers she gave them a wave. Baby hands? Baby hands?! She was a baby? What in the hell was this?!

Since when was reincarnation a thing?!

And wasn't she supposed to lose all her memory when she had been reborn? So why could she, in specifics, recall what she had eaten for breakfast?

Just when her brain began to hurt and her cool began to melt she was called back by the curious tone of her - possible? - new father.

"What would you name her if not Visia, Haruka?" He asked her. "I want this to be a joint decision."

Haruka tapped her chin in thought for a few minutes and she marveled at how she could have sworn she had seen that action once if not thrice before. Suddenly his expression brightened.

"Misa. Misa Amane." She said. "I've always wished it was my name and it's always been a favorite."

Now that was a name she wished she hadn't heard. How dare they even think to try to name her after that dim witted bottle head blonde?

Visio chuckled. "Misa Amane huh? Sounds just perfect her."

No it wasn't! These people were insulting her! Insulting!

Giggling Haruka stuck her tongue out. "Glad you think so."

Well she sure as hell didn't!

She frowned as she felt he began her eyes begin to close. Cursing this sudden bout of drowsiness she didn't both to fight it. But as her lids drooped she thought she had seen a shadowed figure move out of the corner of her eye and the faint echo of a chuckle on the wind. Its amused words barely penetrated the dense fog sleep had crafted.

"Good luck little human."

Edit: 6/26/15