Grey ran as fast as he could through the hallways, dodging the bloodthirsty monster that chased him.
It roared, screeched, and groaned, while his rain boots squeaked across the tiled floor and he heaved out labored breaths. He was getting tired. He couldn’t run forever.
He turned a corner, and stopped, gasping for breath. Grey bent down and put his hands on his knees for support. Running was never his strong suit, but he could still hear the spirit chasing after him through the empty hallway? What was going on? Why was no one there?
It was getting closer, and closer, and he could imagine what would happen if he got caught- torn apart, maybe have his soul taken. Who knew with spirits?
Then, he swiveled around at the sound of it coming. Well, he’d have to worry about that later.
He couldn’t run anymore, he was sure he’d collapse if he had to do that one more time.
So, he figured he might fight.
A horrible idea, it seemed, as the spirit turned the corner, with big, sharp claws and a gaping mouth with a thousand teeth. Inside there seemed to be… pieces of people. Ears, eyes, hands, the list went on.
However, Grey wasn’t fazed by the idea that if he got hit, he could end up in pieces like that. No, not at all. He just rolled up his sleeves, adjusted his yellow vest, and stood his ground. Sure, he was a little nervous and jittery, but the initial shock wore off.
And suddenly, he got a random surge of confidence, something he never felt in quite a while. He felt like he could do anything, jump up and fly-
And ever so quickly, he climbed up on top of a nearby crate that was pushed against the side of the wall, and flew.
Well, it was more of a leap, as he surged towards the monster, hand balled into a fist, arm pulled back and ready for a punch.
Adrenaline surged through him as he made his move, avoiding getting hit by the monster and punching it.
It fell back, in shock, and was defeated by Grey’s stunning, powerful, unexpected punch… is how it would’ve gone, but it never went the way he expected. Really, it would’ve been a perfect, strong punch, except for one tiny detail.
The thing was made of mist.
His fist punched through it, leaving a gaping hole in its chest for about two seconds before it closed up again.
Grey gulped.
It grabbed his leg again and picked him up, making him hang upside-down, and it just roared at the boy. He couldn’t touch it. But it could touch him.
His brave moment of confidence was gone. He went back to incoherently screaming. He screamed quite a few not-so-kid-safe things at the monster, but it probably didn’t even speak English.
The monster made a smile- an ugly smile, if that’s even what it was- and roared yet again, seeming to delight in Grey’s screams.
He thought this was the end- and took a deep breath. Okay. he was going to die in school by the hands of a misty monster thing.
Really, really not what he expected.
However, a lot of the unexpected happened that day, and within a flash- Grey couldn’t even really tell what was happening- a red and black blur came rushing down the hallway, with a bit of gold glistening as well.
When the blur stopped, it was easy for Grey to recognize. Everyone knew him.
He was the eldest son of the local exorcist family, Mika Crowmore. And he was holding golden scissors. That was a very important thing to take note of, the scissors.
There were two types of people in the city, maybe it went for everyone else in the world too. But basically, there were normal people… and exorcists, only ever able to see spirits based on being born into an exorcist family. Since they were the only ones who could see at all times, they sort of decided it was their duty to protect the common people.
It sort of grew, and grew, and each family developed and cultivated their own methods of keeping their towns safe. But no matter which family they hailed from, they all deserved respect. God, so much. Being an exorcist was some of the most dangerous work in the town.
The dark-skinned boy chanted a few chants that Grey didn’t recognize, and the scissors glowed a little, causing the monster to recoil for a second, then attack, trying to get rid of the hideous light that offended its eyes so much.
Its blows never struck Mika, who dodged the attacks, but not in the way Grey had dodged. He had a sort of grace as he did so, jumping and ducking, focused only on the monster- not the immense damage it had caused to the classroom.
The spirit was never able to touch Mika, and all of its attacks only ever destroyed the wall.
Mika? He stayed perfect as ever, he didn’t even seem to be working up a sweat.
Suddenly, he stopped dodging, and instead lunged at the monster, his free hand extended towards what looked like the thing’s heart.
His hand went through the spirit’s misty form, much like when Grey tried to punch it, but he grabbed something that was inside of it. The monster screeched, causing Grey to recoil at the sound- but he felt kind of bad for it. The scream had echoes of pain laced with the beastly sounds.
Mika looked up at the monster’s eyes, and ripped out what might’ve been its heart. (Spirit anatomy wasn’t Grey’s strong point.)
Attached to it was a red string, he noticed, but it was only really visible where it was attached to the odd heart. The string extended much, much further, but the further it got from the heart, the thinner it got, until eventually it got so thin it seemed impossible to see.
Now, as Mika raised his right hand, the one with the scissors, Grey realized why he had them.
Snip!
The string was cut, and the monster roared one final time, warping and changing, and Grey fell as it let go of the grip on his leg.
However, he was caught by Mika before he hit the ground, unlike the monster that just fell and sat there, seemingly… dead. Grey didn’t know that spirits could die. He thought they just disappeared.
He couldn’t stop staring at the dead thing, sitting there, the odd red string snipped, and foggy form no longer staying in the shape of a monster anymore, just dissipating in a blobby mess. Its heart lay on the ground, pulled out of its chest in its final moments. It wasn’t terrifying to look at as much as it was just… sad, really.
“Hey, you all right?”
Grey’s focus changed to the boy that was holding him in his arms, and his heart stopped for a second as he met Mika’s golden gaze. He found himself looking for words, stammering at the sight of him.
“Uh- yeah. Thanks for saving me.”
“No problem.” Mika smiled softly, and Grey felt a warmness in his heart- after all, the prettiest, most popular boy at the school smiled at him- but he felt his gaze wandering back to the monster.
That was so unlike the few exorcisms he had heard of before. They usually disappeared, in peace, once pacified… this one had died so painfully. It still lay there. Didn’t they usually disappear? Why was this one staying?
Curious, oh, ever so curious.
“Hey now, don’t look at that.”
Back to Mika.
“That’s not really a sight that’s nice to see, is it?”
“Yeah, not really,” Grey laughed a little quietly. He looked at Mika’s eyes again, then the golden necklace around his neck, a circular one marking him an exorcist, and the other necklace, a golden locket with some strange symbols. Then he gazed at the soft curls of his red hair, his clear skin- a lot to take in. But damn. This boy was really attractive.
Then he realized that he was still in the arms of said attractive boy.
“Um. Can you put me down?” He asked, flushing.
“Oh! Of course.” He leaned down so Grey’s feet touched the floor, and the boy took the chance and finally stood up.
“Thanks.”
“No problem.”
It was very awkward for a few seconds, and Grey nervously put his hands in his pockets, not knowing what to say. He looked back to the monster again, ready to get one last look before he had to leave…
The spirit was gone.
Shock overtook his body, and then Mika said something.
“Hm?” Grey turned to Mika, who was apparently talking to someone else. Mr. Principal.
“I eliminated the spirit, so classes should be able to resume.” Mika gestured to the mostly destroyed hallway. It had gotten very damaged during the scuffle. “Though maybe not in this hallway.”
Mr Principal nodded and adjusted his navy blue suit with hideous stripes. He usually wore suits, especially very ugly ones, probably to feel important as he ordered kids around. “Well, good work, Crowmore.” He also called kids by their last names, too. “As expected from our top student and local exorcist.”
“Thank you,” the red haired boy replied, smiling at the praise. “But it wasn’t just me, my friend over there also helped too,” he said, gesturing to Grey. “She was a very good distraction.”
“Uh… thanks?” Grey said, stuffing his hands in his pockets. “I’m a boy though…”
“Oh! Sorry.”
“It’s fine,” he said. Man, screw his girly voice. He had to keep correcting people he didn’t know, and now it was even more awkward. Plus, Mr. Principal was looking at him too, and with a glare that made him just know that he was in trouble.
The bald man said to Grey: “Pierce, why are you here? Your class is on the other side of the building.” He shook his head. “Skipping class again?”214Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9aqzX0Dq9G
The brunet chuckled nervously. “Ah… I’m here because…” He sighed, unable to think of an excuse. “Look, I couldn’t- I was being chased by a monster spirit thing, okay? Getting to class isn’t my top priority when that happens.”
Mr. Principal frowned. “Really, Pierce? You do this every time.” He was so used to seeing Grey in his office and lecturing him that he practically memorized his schedule, and this was the thirty-eighth offense of the year. It was a miracle he hadn’t been expelled yet.
Mika chimed in. “Actually, Mr. Principal, he was helping a lot. If it weren’t for him, the monster wouldn't've been distracted and I couldn’t exorcize it…”
Grey nodded along with what Mika was saying and nervously scratched his neck. That was a complete lie. He knew the boy would be able to kill the monster without his help, and he really didn’t do anything but scream, but if it meant he could get out of detention…
Mr. Principal sighed. “Well rules are rules. Pierce wasn’t permitted to go here, so next time you need a distraction, please get her a pass at least. All right, Crowmore?”
The redhead pressed his lips into a line, and his golden eyes met Grey’s. He looked like he was going to say more in his defense, but he just looked away and said: “Of course, Mr. Principal, I won’t make the same mistake again.”
Grey didn’t really feel betrayed. After all, they didn’t really know each other, and he was surprised Mika even tried to defend him in the first place. But still, it kind of hurt.
“Now go back to your class,” the man said to Mika, who nodded and left the classroom. Then Mr. Principal turned to Grey. “And Pierce, to my office. I need to talk to you. Again. Then you’re getting after-school detention.”
He huffed. “All right.” He was most likely about to get scolded for bad behavior or skipping class or something, which was sort of fair. After all, he was technically skipping class, and he could face detention again. Hell, he could even do extra homework if he had to. As long as he didn’t have to face those people.
“If you keep up this behavior, I’m going to call your parents,” he said. “This is your last warning.”
Grey scowled.
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“All right, detention is over,” the tired teacher said, finishing his fifth cup of coffee and adding it to the pile of used paper cups that littered his desk. “Don’t come back.”
The short boy grabbed his backpack and swung it over his shoulder, relieved that it was finally over. There were some other people in there, some goths, a blond boy who was really obnoxious, and a girl that kept staring at him.
He was really glad he left them, especially the girl. She made him uncomfortable.
Grabbing his highlighter yellow umbrella from the umbrella rack, (the one that matched his puffy vest), he pushed open the door, and (not to his surprise,) it was pouring outside. He opened the umbrella and went out, the thin plastic being the only thing that protected him from the water outside.
Other students who walked home were long gone, so he had a peaceful walk.
There were a few pedestrians outside still, holding their unique umbrellas out like fashion statements. After all, it rained so much outside, you might as well come up with something creative.
He noticed an umbrella that had cat ears on it, and a cute kitty face printed on it. Aww. Grey especially had a soft spot for cats.
At that thought, he felt something soft brush against his leg. Speak of the devil.
It was a black cat, running fast across the sidewalk and jumping over the puddles.
Splish splash. Splish splash.
The splashing sound got faster and faster, louder and louder, and then a dark-haired boy appeared from behind the corner and started charging at him!
Grey quickly raised his arms in defense and almost dropped his umbrella. It wasn’t even a conscious movement, it was a reflex. Then the tall, dark-haired boy ran past him and he soon realized he was chasing after the cat.
Oh.
He was still frozen for a second, just long enough for a car to rush past him and splash him with a ton of water from a puddle. He muttered some curses and shivered, readjusting his hold on the umbrella handle and smoothing down his now-soaked hair. That would turn out to be really frizzy later.
He sighed, not thinking much of it, and continued on walking home, turning the corner down the block and almost reaching his sad, rickety house on the far side.
The road next to him was much more quiet there, as this part of town just led into the suburbs full of family houses. As compared to the main road, where there was a constant flow of cars driving to and from the more city-like part of town, the one leading into the housing area was practically silent.
He was halfway down the sidewalk until he saw a small, black creature bounding towards him. It had looped around the block so fast again?!
The cat was running at surprising speeds towards Grey, and he could see the unknown boy following really close behind, trying to catch the cat but nearly missing.
Grey didn’t know what to do, and the cat passed by him again.
Huh.
Grey reached for his necklace, a silver chain with a plain ring looped through it, just to absentmindedly trace his fingers over the metal, like he always did. It wasn’t even a conscious movement anymore, he just always did it.
But his hands just moved through the open air.
For some reason, he felt the need to look back at the cat, and so he did. To his surprise, a silver chain hung from its mouth. His necklace. How had it even gotten that?
“HEY, GIVE THAT BACK!” He yelled, and started chasing after it as well. He ran across the street, past the honking cars, all the way to the park, following the quick black cat.
His yellow rain boots were getting covered with mud, but he didn’t care, he was just trying to catch the cat.
The creature was running towards a bridge when an idea formed in Grey’s head.
Swerving to the right, he ran straight towards the creek the bridge went over, and ran over the bridge next to the one the cat was one, successfully making it to the other side. Well, more like the far end of the second bridge.
However, the bridge was slippery, and nearing the end, he slipped and landed face-first into mud on the other side, feeling the grass on his face and the horrible taste in his mouth. He coughed, spit out some of the icky brown substance, and fixed the sunglasses glasses atop his head.
At this point, the cat had stopped, and was sitting on the old, rotted bridge. The one that the town had planned to take down, but hadn’t gotten around to doing yet. A newer bridge lay to the right of it. That’s the one that he was on.214Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWBrt4AVcSL
It hadn’t seen Grey on the other bridge yet, and it wouldn’t any time soon, since Grey was now creeping along the grass on the other side to reach the far end of the older bridge.
He tried to tip-toe towards it as quietly as possible, avoiding the puddles created from the storm in the sky. Grey grinned, catching sight of his necklace still hanging from the feline’s mouth. Light reflected off the metallic surface, just sitting there, waiting for him to take it back.
He almost reached it, and was about to take back his necklace, but at the last second, the cat noticed. It started to run back where it came from, but another person came bounding towards it. The dark-haired boy from earlier.
The cat yowled, nowhere to go, and turned around, jumping back towards Grey.
However, Grey’s reflexes were fast enough this time, and he caught it right before it was going to escape.
The cat squirmed and hissed, clawing at the boy who just held it out as far as possible, not wanting to be scratched by those sharp claws. Carefully, he removed one hand, gently balancing the cat on the other, and grabbed his necklace.
Grey had dropped the umbrella and was getting really soaked by the rain when the other boy, the one chasing the cat, walked up to him and took the fuzzy creature from Grey’s hands. The feline stopped clawing for a second, and then meowed in defeat, relaxing in the other guy’s pale hands.
“Thanks,” he mumbled. His voice was small, soft, but deeper than he thought.
The voice of the cat’s owner was very surprising to Grey. The boy was tall and lean, and he had a face somewhere in between handsome and beautiful. His eyes stared at nothing, or something far in the distance, like he was spacing out, and his hair was a little on the long side, too.
Grey didn’t know what kind of voice he was expecting, but it definitely wasn’t the one he heard. Though sometimes voices didn’t match appearances, and he knew that firsthand from his own experiences. People always thought he was a guy up until he spoke, and then they’d decide for themselves that he was a girl. (They were right the first time.)
“Yeah, no problem!” Grey responded, and picked up his umbrella. He was completely drenched in rainwater now, so there was really no use in using it, but it at least stopped him from getting pummeled with more cold drops of water. Then he tried to hold the umbrella over the tall boy, too, but he was too tall, and Grey literally had to hold his arm up all the way, which was kind of awkward.
“Are… you trying to hold the umbrella?” asked the other boy.
“Uh… yeah,” Grey said, laughing lightly nervously.
Sensing the awkwardness, the taller one reached out for a second, as if feeling for something. His pale fingers bumped against the handle of the umbrella, and then he held it instead.
Grey smiled at him and wiped off his rectangular glasses, then looked at the cat. “May I pet her?”
He nodded, and so Grey extended a hand to pet the creature. Her fur was wet, but soft, and the cat meowed at his touch. The shorter boy laughed at how cute she was despite causing so much trouble.
“What’s her name?”
The boy shrugged.
He furrowed his brow. “You don’t know?”
“She’s my Grandma’s. She has many cats.”
“Oh, I see,” Grey said, sort of understanding. “Well, I’m glad I could help you catch the adorable kitty!” He said the last two words in a baby voice as he petted the cat again, and she meowed. Probably in annoyance, but he preferred to think that she liked him. “Anyway, I should probably go home…”
The dark-haired boy nodded, and then started to walk away, but then Grey stepped forward, arm outstretched. “Wait, what’s your name-”
However, the bridge was old, rotted in some spots, and couldn’t handle the weight of two. So, unfortunately, the place where the two of them were standing gave way, causing them to fall to the creek underneath them.
He fell quickly, and unexpectedly. His heart leapt into his throat.
He always thought he’d die falling off a bridge. But not like that.
Today marked his second near-death experience, and damn, this guy was NOT having a good day. He was soaked, just came back from detention, and fell to his death- could this day get any worse?
Well, scratch that last part. He fell, and felt himself in someone’s arms again. For the second time.
“Mika?” he whispered, not even of his own will, it just passed through his lips. But as he gazed upwards, he wasn’t looking at beautiful dark skin and blood red hair, he was looking at a ghostly pale boy, like all of the blood was drained from his body, with the longest locks you could ever imagine.
He reached out mindlessly to touch the blindfold on his savior’s face, tracing his fingers along the fabric. “Are you okay?”
His savior smiled, a small smile, barely noticeable, but his lips curled upward in a cute, small way, as if to say “I should be asking you that question.”
Grey didn’t know how he could tell exactly what such a small motion meant, as he was usually only able to do that with people he knew, but before he had time to think, the boy holding him just nodded his head, still smiling, and when Grey blinked, he was gone. Disappeared. It was as if one moment he was there, and the next, a phantom.214Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5W2207NGWn
The second he disappeared, Grey fell four or five feet to the ground, landing in the creek with a big splash, but unharmed. To fall that far… they must’ve been floating- wait, no, that couldn’t be right. How would they be floating?
He just laughed it off, standing up in the creek he fell in and stroking the silver ring on the end of his necklace. That was so weird. Like, really weird. And where was the other boy, the one that helped him get his necklace back?
He’d have time to question it later, really, once he got home and dried off, after all, now he was more drenched than before, covered in the icy water of the creek while the wind blew through his clothes, making it feel even more cold than normal.
He shivered, and climbed up the muddy hill so that he was on the same level as the bridge. Grey saw many things- the bridge, and the rotted spot he fell through, muddy paw prints that the cat left being slowly washed away by the precipitation, and everything else.
But there was no sign of the cat, the strange blindfolded boy who caught him, or even the person whose name he still didn’t know.
There was no one in the park but him.
Well, that should be phrased differently.
There was no one else in there but him… and the countless spirits that wandered the park.214Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCWSEQKt6io
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A/N: That concludes the first chapter! I hope you all like it, and I'll see you in the next chapter on March 17! :D214Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJQljyedVB0
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