Looking in the mirror, you let out a weary sigh. There are dark circles under your eyes, your hair is a mess, and you look like, over all, a complete wreck. Honestly, lately, you feel like you’ve been run over by a train. Work has been kicking your butt. Which is why you stand here this morning, contemplating calling in sick just to get a few days off. Surely, a little white lie won’t do any harm?

“I agree! You look tired.”

A voice, sounding a bit… too cheerful, rings in your ear, accompanied by a faint… giggling sound.

“A little lying never hurt anyone!”

The voice says, again too cheerfully.

“That, in itself, is a lie.”

Another, louder yet somehow far calmer voice shoots back, ringing in your opposite ear. This one does not sound amused.

You shake your head. Honestly, what’s going on? You really must be exhausted, hearing things like this.

Suddenly, something… happens. Two people(?) materialize out of what seems to be thin air. Oh, geez, now you’re hallucinating, aren’t you?

The first person, wearing a black and red coat, a frown adorning his face, bows. But this isn’t the strangest part, no. On his back, there are two wings, pure as the snow on a cold winter day in Nimbasa city.

“My apologies for the intrusion. My name is Ingo. And this…”

“Ingo” gestures toward the second person, who looks exactly like him for the most part. Well, sort of. Instead of wings, he has what seems to be a… tail? One of those you might see on a cartoon devil, or something. His coat is white and red, rather than black and red, and he smiles, not frowns. In fact, the smile adorning his face is so wide, one could almost call it creepy.

“…Is my twin brother, Emmet.”

Emmet smiles, waving to you like an excited child at a sleepover does when their best friend arrives.

“I am Emmet!”

He bows (like the other did) as he announces his name, though it seems to be in an attempt to mock his brother. Strange…

And then, even stranger, they speak again, this time in perfect unison,

“We are your consciences.”

…You really are going crazy, aren’t you? Two men, one with literal wings and another with a weird tail, claiming to be… what? The angel and the demon on your shoulders? It’s bizarre! This has to be some sort of joke, or hallucination, conjured up by your sleep-deprived mind. Right?