⠀"Do you really not remember anything?"
⠀"Not really. I can read, and I can work my phone, but not much else." Sora said, configuring their sword so they had their hands free, "Maybe I'll remember something on the way out of here."
⠀Ryouta nodded, staring up at the giant pillar of light nearby for a moment. Sora stared as well, finding themself captivated by how beautiful the bright glow was. Like millions of fireflies swimming around each other in a perpetual spiral. It continued into the starless sky, ending eventually in a magical circle barely visible to the naked eye. Ryouta had to call Sora a couple of times to snap them out of it, grinning giddily when they finally looked over.
⠀"It's super pretty, right? It's called a Gate, and there are a bunch of these all over Tokyo, 23 in all. They used to be considered tourist attractions, but one day Transients started appearing out of it, and it turned into total chaos. Even the police got involved in trying to figure out what was going on." Ryouta explained, motioning for Sora to follow them down a path leading away from the nearby shrine. It was still considerably dark, even with the Gate illuminating the surrounding area.
⠀"Were they able to get it under control?" Sora inquired, still fiddling with their sword, eventually giving up and letting it slap annoyingly against their leg as they walked.
⠀"Oh, yeah. The police designated the areas around the Gates as restricted, but people just ignore it. It's faster than going around the long way, and as long as it's not dark, you're pretty safe. The park used to have food stalls in front of the waterfall and where the Gate is, but they got rid of them for safety purposes." Ryouta pouted, seemingly thinking about something.
⠀"Are Transients people who come through the Gates?" there wasn't much they could do but ask questions about this...situation Tokyo was in. Was it bad? They weren't sure yet, but judging how the police had to get involved, it probably wasn't a favorable one.
⠀"Yeah, and aggressive ones that wander are called Stray Transients. The Red Oni is a good example, to be honest." Ryouta said, taking a look at the wound on his arm. While it had stopped bleeding, it wasn't fun to look at. He pulled his rolled-up sleeve farther down his arm.
⠀To keep the awkward silence at bay, Ryouta began talking about various things one could do in Shinjuku. From the different arcades around town, the big ones in Kabukicho, to the best restaurants, he covered it. It didn't take Sora long to notice that he was passionate about things relating to food. Ryouta would get a sparkle in his eyes as he explained the best specialty restaurants, good times to stop by, his favorite dishes to get, and so on.
⠀There's a great tempura restaurant called Tsunahachi Shinjuku near Koshu-kaido Ave that I've been going to lately, and their fried mochi is great! If you want, maybe we can both go after you get settled?" Ryouta's face filled with joy at the prospect of eating with a new friend. Sora nodded, not entirely sure what tempura was, but they trusted him to recommend good food. He was so enthusiastic and friendly, Sora couldn't help feeling a sense of calm around him. After another bout of silence, Ryouta turned the tide of the conversation to Sora.
⠀"How are you feeling, by the way? I know you won that fight, but it looked pretty bad for a while." Ryouta was genuinely concerned, which made Sora smile.
⠀"I'm doing okay. It was...scary. I wasn't sure I was going to win that fight, but I did. And even better, I was able to give someone a home." they said, looking ahead to the path, which was divided into three different directions. Ryouta continued walking straight.
⠀"I don't blame you for being scared! I think I'm gonna be traumatized after tonight. No more shortcuts through the restricted zone for me!" Ryouta held his hands up in an X formation before the two of them laughed. Ryouta and Sora walked and talked, with Sora commenting on the mass amount of buildings surrounding the park. Eventually, Ryouta came to a stop in front of a public restroom.
⠀"Hey, if I give you some money, could you get us something from the vending machine? I need to go to the bathroom really quick before we get outta here." Ryouta handed Sora some money and headed in, but then quickly stuck his head around the corner, "Don't leave without me, alright! You'd better wait for me!"
⠀"Don't worry, I won't." Sora giggled before looking at the various drinks. The intense glow of blue LED lights lit up their tired face, which they saw reflected in the glass. They had some minor scrapes on their chin and forehead, but it wasn't anything a band-aid couldn't fix. Sora decided to get a coffee for themself but chose to wait for Ryouta to get out since they didn't know what he liked.
⠀They reclined against a nearby tree situated in front of the restrooms, quietly sipping their can of UCC coffee. This is my first drink in Tokyo, Sora thought, it's pretty tasty....
⠀A sense of peace settled over them as they listened to the distant rush of cars and nightlife flowing through the chilled night air. This was a beautiful place, and for now, Tokyo was their home. But they had to find a way to their original world, and this city would have the answers. They turned towards the Gate, feeling melancholic, though they knew not why.
⠀"Gates, huh?" Sora muttered. They fished their phone out of their pocket, opening the App and flipping through the different features.
⠀There were several tabs, one of which was called 'Team/Upgrade'. After tapping on it, a small window appeared explaining what each tab did before closing to a spinning gray symbol. They scrolled down to see a sub-tab called 'Familiars'. Like Lil' Sal? They clicked on it, and two small boxes appeared with a face in it, one the Red Oni, and one for the aforementioned goatman. They clicked on Lil' Sal's picture, and he appeared in a shower of blue pixels like before.
⠀"What's up, Master? Did you...." Lil' Sal yawned, lifting a sleeping mask with a six-pointed star onto his forehead, "Did you need something?"
⠀"Nice pajamas, Lil' Sal." Sora giggled at the blue silk pajamas the small goatman wore before sighing, "Do you know anything about Gates and Stray Transients?"
⠀"Easy peasy! Firstly, Stray Transients...no clue! And before you get mad, I'm a demon from out of town, remember? I have no idea what the locals talk about!" Lil' Sal sighed, sitting on their outstretched leg, "Gates I do know, though. Ahem! A Gate, for simplicity's sake, is a temporary doorway between two worlds specifically for summoning. The way you summoned that sword is like opening a Gate."
⠀"Really?"
⠀"Yep! Also, it's considered a taboo to connect two separate worlds, but no one listens to that rule anyway." Lil' Sal yawned once more, leaning back like there was a reclining chair behind him. His face went from relaxed to perplexed in a half-second, turning his head towards Sora, "Wait, how do you know about Gates? Did I mention them earlier?"
⠀Sora pointed quietly toward the Gate behind him, the small goatman spinning around quickly. His jaw dropped slightly at the giant pillar, staring with a mixture of awe and shock. After a brief period of him being at a loss for words, his high-pitched voice broke the calm silence like a bomb.
⠀"That thing's a Gate?! It's huge! And just sitting there open like that! Gates are temporary! Temporary!" Lil' Sal hollered, waving his arms around madly.
⠀"Does the book not cover stuff like this?"
⠀"No, it does not! But since my book is the Freshman Edition, I don't know for sure." Lil' Sal opened the book and flipped through the pages until he got to the desired one and spun it around for Sora to look at. Although the writing was indecipherable, Sora got the basic idea from the diagrams on the page.
⠀"So, Gates like these don't exist in other worlds? Can you reopen a Gate that was closed before or do you have to make a new one?"
⠀"Well-"
⠀The two of them jumped at the sound of a closing door, with Lil' Sal leaving immediately, leaving Sora's question in the cold air.
⠀"Sorry I kept you waiting for so long! I tried getting some of the blood out, but I don't think I did a good enough job." Ryouta smiled as he headed over to where Sora sat, extending a hand for them. They took it, wincing once again. Ryouta's face filled with concern, but Sora waved it off.
⠀"It should be good enough to not draw attention from anyone we pass." Sora smiled, and Ryouta nodded. He looked at where Sora just was, making a face.
⠀"Did you happen to catch that blue orb of light that was just here?" Ryouta asked. Sora shook their head no, wondering if Ryouta had caught a glimpse of Lil' Sal, "I heard yelling, so I tried to hurry."
⠀"I didn't see anyone nearby, but maybe it came from the street level." Sora decided, for now at least, they were going to leave Lil' Sal out of the mix. It would be too much on an already stacked-high plate.
⠀They handed Ryouta the extra money, saying that they weren't sure what he liked. Ryouta chuckled and got himself an orange juice before the two of them made their way towards the exit.
⠀For now, they walked in silence.
⠀"There, see? We're finally out of Central Park." Ryouta and Sora walked on a small footbridge that passed over the busy street that ran in front of the park. The rush of cars below was loud, and Sora stopped to listen for a moment before turning their attention back to Ryouta. He was looking for a place to eat, commenting that neither of them had dinner yet and all the running around had made him hungry.
⠀"What do you recommend?" Sora asked, leaning against the metal bridge rail. The night breeze blew across their skin, and they shivered. Their hoodie wasn't doing a good job of keeping them warm, but all Ryouta had was a dress shirt, so how was he not cold?
⠀"Hmm...there's a fast-food restaurant nearby that would give us more volume, but there's also a restaurant near the station that has made-to-order hamburger steaks. What do-" Ryouta got quiet, freezing in place as he stared in terror back in the direction of the park. Sora grabbed the hilt of Boundless Tail just in case and looked in the same direction.
⠀Off in the distance, around a small covered area, was a Blue Oni. Near its feet were small blue and green shiny globs that twitched and moved like Jell-O. Ryouta squeaked fearfully, though the Oni hadn't noticed them yet. Sora grabbed his hand, pulling him along quietly until they reached the other side of the bridge. Neither were in a state to be almost killed again, not tonight. Or ever, Sora hoped. Sora pulled Ryouta behind some shrubbery, and they sat down on some stairs. It was out of view; the Blue Oni wouldn't find them over here. The Hyatt Regency Tokyo building beside them blocked any wind that would carry their scent that way as well.
⠀"...Sora, are you...a Transient?" Ryouta's quiet inquiry took them by surprise. They turned to him, unsure of what to say. Were they? By Lil' Sal's classification of them being Summoned here, that meant they were. But they were also a Summoner since they could make pacts and Summon things themself.
⠀"I- "
⠀"Sorry, it was a weird question. You can't be, anyway, you don't have wings or fur or stuff like that." Ryouta shrugged, seemingly back to his regular self.
⠀"What do you mean?"
⠀"You can tell immediately if a person is a Transient. Some look nowhere near human, others do but they usually have animal ears, fins, or just have weird magical stuff happening around them." Ryouta pulled the restaurants back up on his phone and showed them to Sora. They looked, but the question was still bouncing around their mind. What brought it up?
⠀"I guess some fast food would be okay. It would also get us away from the park, and out of danger." Sora helped Ryouta stand, and they made their way to another set of stairs that led down to street level.
⠀The two of them headed down the tree-covered sidewalk in front of the Hyatt quietly, still taking measures to avoid the Blue Oni, though at that point they were safe. Sora headed quietly below an underpass, not realizing that Ryouta had stopped a couple of paces behind them, as something had caught his eye.
⠀"Ryouta, there you are!" a new voice calling over to their friend made Sora finally turn around. Ryouta looked surprised and slightly panicked at the owner of the voice. Sora watched from near a set of vending machines, hidden in the shadows. They were ready to jump into action to get Ryouta out of there if something went awry.
⠀"He saw me...." Ryouta whimpered, glancing at where Sora was standing. He motioned towards the irritated teenager in a uniform similar to his heading down the stairs towards him. He was dragging someone in a similar uniform by the ear.
⠀"Damn it, Shiro, that hurts! Ow!" the rather burly and scruffy teen tried getting him to let go but to no avail. Shiro was an unstoppable force and no immovable object was gonna stop him from chiding Ryouta.
⠀He made his way to the smaller chubby teen, his irritation quite visible even from where Sora stood. They felt somewhat guilty, even though they had nothing to do with whatever Shiro was mad about.
⠀"I've been looking all over for you two. We're all going to be late for the dorm's curfew because you two don't understand the value of punctuality! It takes just one person to cause issues for a whole group, and mine seems to be full of- "
⠀"Evenin' Shiro!" Ryouta cut the rather nerdy looking student off, halting the incoming tirade. Shiro frowned harder, making him chuckle nervously, "You see, I would've been back sooner but I, uh, we...ran into some unavoidable circumstances, and...um?"
⠀Shiro's face went from angry to concerned to confused as he looked at the current state Ryouta was in. The burly student that Shiro had been towing behind him was looking for a way to escape, and accidentally spotted Sora, who was still watching from the same spot as earlier.
⠀"You're a mess, Ryouta. You're covered in scratches and...blood?" he had a moment of realization, something akin to a momentary bit of nausea running through his face, before coughing and crossing his arms angrily, "You went through the restricted zone of the park, didn't you! By the shrine?!"
⠀He opened his mouth to protest, but upon finding no valid argument, pouted and apologized. Shiro shook his head, beyond any form of exasperation known to man. He grabbed Ryouta by his good arm and made to drag him along with the other teen. Sora ran over, blocking Shiro's advance. He froze, surprised at Sora's sudden appearance.
⠀"Excuse me, we have places to be, if you would kindly step out of the way." Shiro stared down at then, squinting when they didn't move. Sora stared back, unsure of where this sudden stubborness came from.
⠀"Dude, hello?" The burlier of the three teens shook Shiro by the shoulder, getting him to break eye contact with Sora. He pushed his glasses up begrudgingly.
⠀"It's nothing. Nothing at all."
⠀Ryouta and the burly teen exchanged confused glances, unsure what to make of Shiro's hostile reaction. Sora stared back at him before bowing politely.
⠀"It's nice to meet you, I'm Sora Watanabe." they glanced at Ryouta, who gave them a thumbs up.
⠀Shiro didn't respond at first, before letting go of Ryouta and bowing back. "Pleasure. I'm Shiro Motoori."
⠀Yeahhhhh, they saved me in the park earlier. Also, why are you acting so weird?" Ryouta asked, and the burly teen snorted.
⠀"Yeah, even weirder than usual." he remarked, shutting his mouth at the glare Shiro shot him.
⠀"I'm perfectly fine! No one is acting weird." Shiro straightened his gray ornate uniform, giving Sora another hard stare. "I'm Ryouta's classmate and class representative. From what I gather, you saved him earlier from whatever he ran into in the park. For that, you have mine and our sincere gratitude."
⠀"You're welcome...." Sora said, their voice growing quieter out of embarrassment. That was twice today they were praised for doing something completely normal. It was odd.
⠀"As it should be, though there are many who would not share that sentiment with you-"
⠀"Hey, is that a sword?" the burly teen pushed Shiro out of the way to inspect Boundless Tail where it sat in Sora's belt loop. He squatted down, smirking shortly after, "You've had your hand on this sword the whole time like you're ready to square up. I can tell just by lookin' at ya that you're a force to be reckoned with."
⠀"Sora, this is Kengo Takabushi, he's in the same class as the both of us. We're a pretty interesting group, huh?" Ryouta smiled, and Sora felt the tension leave their shoulders, "You don't have to worry about him much."
⠀Shiro nodded, "And yet we do since he picks fights with everyone, including people you've just met! Have some self-respect."
⠀"They're duels of honor, not fights!"
⠀"Or so you say." Shiro turned his back to Kengo, instead facing Sora with a small nod, "Unfortunately curfew is fast approaching, and we must be on our way, though I wouldn't snub at you accompanying us back to the school."
⠀Sora smiled at Shiro's invitation, almost laughing at how it sounded quoted out of a story. Perhaps it was from a book, or maybe Shiro just wasn't good at talking to people. Either way, the motley group started heading down the street, with Shiro leading the way and Kengo being dragged by the arm behind him. The group had barely made it past the underpass before the tension between Shiro and Kengo exploded.
⠀"I'm not a damn kid, Shiro, you can let go!" Kengo tore his arm away, scowling. Shiro turned to give him an equally sour look, making Ryouta and Sora glance at each other with concern.
⠀"You sure act like one! You're not good at anything but picking fights, why do you think I had to come out here and get you?!"
⠀"Because you're 'I'm Mr. Class Rep and Honors Student, I gotta be a kiss ass to all my teachers cause I'm so smart!" Kengo spoke with a mocking tone, taking a threatening step forward. Shiro was taken aback for a moment before stepping forward himself.
⠀"Raw strength won't get you through life, Kengo! You've failed most of your tests and are on your way to repeating a year! Your last-minute cram sessions have only brought you poor excuses for grades!"
⠀"Stop trying to force your way of thinking on me! It's annoying that you really believe what my old man says." Kengo walked towards one of the construction partitions nearby and leaned against it, shoving his hands into his pockets. As far as Kengo was concerned, this conversation was over. Shiro, on the other hand, was hellbent on getting Kengo to agree with him. It took Ryouta stepping in front of the aggrieved class rep for him to pause.
⠀"Guys, Sora is watching. It's time to stop." Ryouta said, returning to Sora, who was avoiding looking at the arguing pair, "Hey, don't worry about those two. This happens all the time...but to be honest this was rougher than usual."
⠀Sora nodded their head sadly, "Are you sure they're friends?"
⠀"Oh, yeah. They've known each other since they were kids, but sometimes they get on each other's nerves." Ryouta and Sora watched as Shiro and Kengo wandered back over to where the two were standing.
⠀"I apologize that you got caught up in that. We should keep heading towards the school. These two, after all, are not allowed off-campus after hours." Shiro said, bowing slightly in apology, He started walking down the street before being quickly yanked back by Kengo. Ryouta muttered a thank you before looking back at Sora.
⠀"Shiro, hold on." Shiro was about to protest, but Ryouta ignored him and grabbed Sora's hands gently. They were surprised at how soft they were, "You have to give me your number so we can eat like we said we would, alright?"
⠀"I'd like that a lot. I don't know my number, though." Sora replied meekly, greeted by a loud scoff from Kengo.
⠀"Me either, man." Shiro shot Kengo a look. Kengo glared back before grabbing his own somewhat beat-up phone from his back pocket.
⠀Sora retrieved their phone out of their pocket and handed it to Ryouta to look at. After a moment, Ryouta smiled and pointed to the SUMMONS app in all its blue glory. Kengo, who had come over out of pure curiosity, leaned over to see what Ryouta was pointing at before smirking.
⠀"I don't really use it for anything but keeping in touch with friends, so this is great! We can talk whenever we want! It even has a call feature!" Ryouta looked ecstatic, which Kengo mirrored.
⠀"Yeah, then you and I can get together and spar!"
⠀"Wait, you have it? I didn't think you liked stuff like this." Ryouta turned to Kengo, confused. Kengo shrugged at him.
⠀"Looked interesting. I use it like you do, keeping in touch."
⠀"I think that's what I'm going to be using for too, especially after tonight." Sora chimed in, looking at Ryouta's shirt, which was still stained somewhat.
⠀Shiro, gathering his confidence, headed towards the three excited teens, "I concur with Ryouta's sentiment of keeping in touch. My reason, however, is to, uh, thank you properly. If that's alright, I mean, you don't have to, it's up to you- "
⠀"Shiro, are you alright? You're acting weird again."
⠀"I-I'm quite alright, Ryouta, thank you for asking." Shiro stated matter-of-factly, "This is a learning exercise as well, mind you."
⠀"That's the occasion? I mean, you usually say this kind of stuff is beneath you." Ryouta laughed softly, "It's good to see you finally decided to jump in feet first."
⠀Shiro's blush was almost invisible in the low-light, but Ryouta managed to notice anyway. The flustered class rep let his classmate install SUMMONS for him, using this time to watch Sora closely. They were squatted down near a flower bed, holding the withered heads delicately in their fingers. Shiro noticed that their hoodie also had speckles of blood on it, making him wonder what kind of trouble the two of them had gotten into.
⠀"Alrighty, Shiro, we've all got each other's IDs, and...woah, when did it get so late?!" Ryouta handed Shiro back his phone, pointing to the time. It was already 9:40, which made Shiro quickly start corralling everyone into the direction of their school. Sora trailed after them absentmindedly before stopping in their tracks, remembering the important fact that they didn't go to school with these three.
⠀They had nowhere to go.
⠀Sora caught up with Shiro and the others before they got too far away and grabbed onto the hem of Ryouta's sleeve. He turned to look at them, pausing when they saw how distressed they looked.
⠀"Sora, what's wrong?" Ryouta asked quietly, though the others had turned around to see what the holdup was. Sora tapped their finger against their head, and it took Ryouta a moment to get what they were implying, "That's right...are you going to go to a hotel?"
⠀"I'm not sure...I don't have any money- "
⠀"Sora? Is something wrong? Do you need money for the train?" Shiro asked. Sora shook his head, looking at Ryouta for help explaining his conundrum.
⠀"They, uh." Ryouta bit his lip, thinking, "They don't have anywhere to go- "
⠀"What, you run away from home or something?" Kengo asked genuinely, though Shiro smacked him on the arm for being rude.
⠀"No, that's not it. I...." Sora trailed off, feeling embarrassed, though they had no reason to. How would one explain they remember nothing about who they are?
⠀"You don't have to say another word. I understand if you don't want to talk about this." Shiro's eyes lit up quickly, an idea making its way into his head, "Sora, I have a proposition if you'd be so generous as to listen to it."
⠀Sora met Shiro's brown eyes, "Why don't you come to our dorm?"
⠀"What?!" Kengo and Ryouta both balked at Shiro's idea.
⠀"Why are you so surprised?"
⠀Kengo gaped at Shiro like he had just spoken in tongues, looking between Ryouta and Shiro, "You get me right, Ryouta? This is Mr. Class Rep, number one stick in the mud, the follow the rules or die guy!"
⠀"Kengo's right, Shiro. Sora can't just stay in the dorms without permission, as much as I support the idea." Ryouta's shoulders fell sadly as he imagined Sora hunkering down under the underpass for the night. Alone and in the cold.
⠀"They're in no condition to use public transport covered in blood and dirt." Shiro adjusted his glasses, crossing his arms. Sora looked at the arm of their hoodie, finally noticing what he was talking about on the sleeve.
⠀"I'm filthy...."
⠀"Exactly why it would be in your best interest to stay at the dorms for the night. I'll explain the situation to Mr. Mononobe, so don't worry. Well, Sora?" Shiro looked to the other two to back him up in convincing them.
⠀"I accept, but...why would you risk getting in trouble for me?" Sora asked, the group heading towards the school, which was a mere block away.
⠀"I can't just abandon someone that helped my classmate. None of us-well, Ryouta and I-wouldn't have gotten much sleep worrying about you out here. Besides, consider it returning the favor for helping a friend." Shiro paid Sora a small smile, which they returned.
⠀"That's true. This is also the first time I've seen you smile." Sora said nonchalantly, taking Shiro by surprise. He looked away, another light blush decorating his face. It took them a bit more time than expected to reach the school. But when they did a very angry looking man in a blue swimsuit was waiting for them.
