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My name is Mirabelle

22/03/2025

A woman faces the viewer and introduces herself: 'My name is Mirabelle.' She has short, strawberry blonde hair in a bob cut with swept bangs, and a blank expression, with cold eyes underneath thick lashes. She wears a pink shawl over a red top. Mirabelle awakens in a dark room, unclothed. She sits up, revealing a wind-up key attached to her back. She is an automaton; her body is featureless, as a doll's would be, with ball joints connecting her limbs. Narrating, she says, 'I'm not like you.' She glances behind herself with a remorseful expression. Mirabelle puts white gloves over her hands to hide their ball joints. Now dressed, she stares at herself in the mirror, examining her appearance. She wears heavy clothing, including her shawl, to hide her body as much as possible. In a tropical locale during the early morning, Mirabelle walks outside. She thinks to herself, 'This place... These people...' As she does, images come to her mind of her neighbors. In one image, a woman with twintails and headphones greets a gardener dressed in a sunhat and overalls. In another, a serious-looking woman dressed in a bathrobe speaks to a bemused employee at a fast-food restaurant. On her walk, Mirabelle passes by a store display, featuring a mannequin wearing a blue sundress. Mirabelle freezes in her tracks, staring intently at the mannequin's featureless face. Mirabelle's gaze lowers, a fearful expression visible on her face. Reminded of her nature as an automaton, something inhuman, she turns away with a defeated expression. As she walks through a grassy park, she thinks to herself, 'I'm not one of them. I don't feel the things they do.' Lost in thought with her eyes shut, Mirabelle holds one hand to her chest. She continues through the grassy park, passing by a person sitting on the bank. Mirabelle thinks to herself: 'Things like companionship. People I can trust. People I can—' The person sitting on the grass, Étoile, turns around to lock eyes with Mirabelle. They stand up to introduce themselves to her, though the words are lost. Étoile has shoulder-length platinum blonde hair, and wears clothing with starry designs, including a baseball cap and a puffer vest. Mirabelle replies to them, 'My name is Mirabelle.'

Credits

Story and art: Erika